An-turns out Peter's a ghost

TW-blood, gore, angst, FEELS

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"You shouldn't be here." A voice echoed around the apartment. Tony sighed, stepping further into the abandoned apartment.

"I know, but I need your help," Tony said soothingly.

"It's dangerous to ask for the help of a spirit." The voice said. Tony watched in fascination as a boy slowly floated through one of the walls, staring straight at Tony.

"I know, but you aren't dangerous, are you? I've been watching you for a long time. You've been using your powers to help, to save. What if I told you that if you helped me you could save a lot of people?" Tony said gently. The boy, who through research of his past life had found his name to be Peter.

"And what's in it for me?" Peter asked quietly, floating closer to Tony.

"You get to stay here, in the abandoned apartment block and I'll make sure no one can knock the building down," Tony said. The boy narrowed his eyes.

"It wasn't always abandoned." He said softly, waving his hand. Tony watched as the apartment slowly changed, holes in the wall mending, the dirt and grim disappearing until it looked like a normal modest apartment. He turned in circles as a copy of the boy and a middle-aged woman danced around the living room. He turned back to the boy in confusion.

"That was me, before I died. And her, before she died. But she passed on. I didn't. If I help you, you promise me that no one but me steps foot in this building, and you have to help me pass on." Peter pleaded, the illusion fading until it was back to normal, causing Tony to have to step around holes in the floor.

"If you help me, I'll do everything in my power to help you. I'll make sure this is a protected site." Tony said firmly, the boy nodded, his legs disappearing until it was just his torso and head.

"Okay. I'll help you."

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"Mister Stark! I finally found something!" Peter shouted, running out of the elevator and into the penthouse house living room. He froze when he saw the rogues sitting there calmly on the couches. Peter promptly dropped the step of he was holding, causing it to shatter on the floor, seeping into the floor with wide eyes.

"What just happened?" Clint said suddenly.

"Why is there a shattered Stark pad on my floor?" Toky said from the doorway, clicking his tongue as he leant down and picked it up, rotating it in his hands.

"A kid ran in shouting about something he found and then fell through the floor?" Scott supplied confusedly. Tony sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose impatiently.

"FRI? What happened." Tony asked exasperatedly.

"Mr Parker was spooked," FRIDAY said. Tony groaned, standing back up.

"Peter, FRIDAY, what did we say about ghost puns?" Tony reprimanded.

"That's not the spirit Mr Stark." Peter teased, floating through the wall opposite Tony, only visible above the waist, arms crossed over his chest, red and blue mist below his waist.

"You know what. I don't know why I keep you around." Tony said, pointing a finger at Peter who giggled, diving at Tony and floating through him.

"Because I'm a joy! Anyway! I found something!" Peter said excitedly, taking the Stark pad from Tony's hands, mending it easily and brandishing the article.

"That's great kiddo, what's it about?" Tony asked, taking the fixed Stark pad, Peter covered it with his hands, his eyes finding the team.

"I think we have some explaining to do," Peter said shakily. Tony blinked, looking up at the very confused team.

"Spider-Man's a ghost?!" Sam asked incredulously.

"And this is why I don't like people." Peter drawled, closing his eyes so he became semi-solid again, falling from the air onto the waiting couch. Tony sighed and sat next to him.

"How? What? Huh?" Clint stuttered. Peter giggled, leaning back into the couch.

"I love this. Every time. How, I died, wasn't supposed to yet and didn't pass over. What, a ghost. Huh, mood. Hotel, Trivago." Peter said.

"How did you die?" Bucky asked suddenly. Peter's giggling stopped, his mouth closing slowly, he swallowed thickly.

"You don't have to answer if you don't want to Pete," Tony said gently, rubbing Peter's back.

"Tony knows then?" Steve asked. Peter looked up at him, shaking his head.

"No. Me Stark doesn't know. No one does, even if you look up my name it's drowned out by the articles about my parents." Peter said quietly. He hummed after a moment, swinging his legs slightly.

"When I got my powers when I was alive. I was bitten by this radioactive spider from Oscorp industries genetic research lab." Peter started.

"That company that shut down around ten years ago when they tried to manipulate human DNA?" Natasha asked. Peter nodded.

"You've been a ghost a decade?" Sam asked incredulously. Peter held up his hand for them to be quiet.

"I was sick, really really sick. It started with a fever and I thought it was just a reaction to a spider bite. But then I started throwing up. And my skin started peeling, and I was seeing blood. There was blood everywhere. And it hurt. More then anything's ever hurt. And then I was dead. Radiation poisoning. And I was in this limbo, where I kind of felt light and floaty. It was like I was wherever my body was. But no one could hear me, or see me. And I saw everyone at my funeral, and I'm not sure if I was supposed to see everything, because suddenly people could see me again. Could see how I looked when I died." Peter explained weakly.

"But you look normal," Wanda said. Peter nodded slowly.

"Yeah. Apparently illusions are my specialty. But I can't do them all the time. If I'm away from my tether then I can't use my powers." Peter explained.

"Your tether?" Wanda asked.

"Where I have the most memories. I'm tied to that place. Forever. I can leave it, but only for a certain amount of time. I have to go back there, to charge I guess." Peter explained.

"Wow. Ghosts are real." Steve breathed. Peter snorted.

"Yes and no. I'm not what you would call a ghost. I'm a typical a class haunting, but not aggressive unless you give me an incentive." Peter said weakly.

"Have you ever been aggressive? Or show people what you really look like?" Bucky asked. Peter shook his head.

"Yes and no. Once, when someone tried to knock down my tether. The apartment building where I grew up. Was nasty, there's a video of it on YouTube. But no, I've never shown someone what I really look like. Only small parts of it. But no, I haven't. Not even Mr Stark." Peter said softly, his fingertips fading until they weren't visible. Tony patted his shoulder.

"You're alright Underoos. No ones mad." Toky soothes softly. Peter nodded.

"'M gonna go back to queens. Don't wanna spook your friend Mr Stark." Peter said breathlessly, going transparent and floating off of the couch into the air, before disappearing with a pop.

"That happens a lot. Don't worry. He'll be back. He's just remembering something he doesn't like to, that's all." Tony explained.

"But his powers? As Spiderman?" Steve asked quietly.

"The radioactive nature of the spider venom caused his DNA to be altered. That's why he died. A ghost retains all of its abilities form before it passed to its afterlife." Tony said. Steve nodded slowly.

"What does he mean by passing?" Bucky asked. Tony winced, turning on the Stark pad and looking a the article which was talking about ghosts and their progress.

"The afterlife. He calls it home. Where his family is, where he's supposed to be. Sometimes, when he's not got energy and I have to take him back to queens myself, he's all loopy I guess. And he's in pain, great pain. And he says that sometimes he just feels empty and alone and afraid because he's dead, but not really. And he doesn't want to spend his afterlife in limbo, watching people he's grown to love to fade away just like him. When I recruited him he made me promise that I'd help him pass on." Tony said.

"But you love him?" Natasha asked. Tony looked up at her, nodding slowly.

"Yes. If only I had known him when he was alive. Because he's like my son. He spends most of his time here, so much that he told me he can feel his tether shifting." Tony said softly.

"Life doesn't last forever I guess," Natasha said. Tony chuckled, nodding his head.

"No. It doesn't."

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"Could you stop that?!" Peter shouted, turning sharply and floating off of the ground, his eyes boring into Sam and Clint's.

"Why? It's not like you can feel it." Sam said. Tony's eyes widened, watching as peter floating towards them, his hair becoming messy, knotted and matted, his skin reddening slightly, fingertips dripping blood, skin caked with dried blood.

"Oh yeah! Let's throw books at Peter because he can't feel it!" Peter shouted. Looming in front of Clint and Sam.

"Ten points if you get it through his chest!" He shouted, thrusting his fist into Clint and Sam's chests.

"Fifty if you get it through his head!" He shouted again, thrusting his fists through Sam and Clint's heads.

"I didn't choose this! You have no idea what it's like! Watching the people you love fade away before your eyes, being powerful to stop it! You don't understand what it's like to wish it was all just a horrible dream! I JUST WANT TO GO HOME!" Peter screamed, his red and blue mist floating in the air.

"Pete, you gotta calm down. Or you'll hurt someone. You don't wanna hurt someone do you?" Tony asked gently, taking a few slow steps forward. Peter turned to him slowly, his hair returning slowly to normal, his skin becoming pale again, the blood seeping back into his skin and disappearing from the floor.

Peter's eyes were wide, his mouth opening and closing. He floated towards Tony, centimetres from his face.

"You know what? I don't know anymore." Peter said, sinking into the floor and not coming back out. Tony turned to Clint and Sam.

"Why would you do that? What insane thought made you think that was okay? Can't you see that he's been through enough? And you know what, this time I don't know if he's coming back!" Toky shouted desperately.

"They didn't mean to upset him Tony," Steve said gently. Tony shook his head.

"I don't care. Because I've never seen him that angry. And I don't even know if that was real anger. But I don't know if you can fix this." Toky said, pointing his finger at Sam and Clint. He turned sharply and stormed out of the room.

"I know where to find him."

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"GET. OUT." Peter shouted at the team standing in the living room of the apartment. The team winced, several copies on Peter's solid form surrounding them.

"We just want to apologise for how we've treated you," Steve said gently. The Peter's burst into laughter, echoing and lagging slightly, the sound not matching his movements. The Peter's loomed over the team, floating into the air around them.

"No one ever what's to apologise to poor little Peter Parker. No one cares about Peter Parker. So why do you? What's different about that you care about me?" The Peter's said, fading back into the one. They all froze, closing in on each other into a tight knot as the scene changed, like a daydream.

"You're worthless Parker!" A boy shouted, Peter limp on the floor, held up by a boy who punched him cleanly across the face, breaking his nose and knocking him out. It changed again back to the apartment, Peter throwing up on his bedroom floor, his hair missing in patches, skin red and peeling.

"Please. Someone help me. 'M dyin'" Past Peter pleaded into the open air. The scene changed again, they were at a funeral service, casket getting lowered into the ground with no one else there.

"No one cared about me when I was alive so why should they care when I'm dead right?!" Peter shouted, pushing Steve back forcefully. And Steve didn't know what to say as Peter rose into the air. Suddenly he wasn't the friendly Peter Parker they knew, his science pun T-shirt he'd died in shredding and dampening with blood, washed-out faded jeans looser and soaked in blood, scuffed converse rubbed and clawed at, hair missing, matted and damp with sweat and blood. His face was gaunt, skin melting from his face, showing his bones and flesh underneath.

"The world was wrong to treat you the way it did!" Natasha shouted. Peter laughed, throwing his head back as more bones became visible.

"You think I don't know what?! Do you think I don't wish I could rewrite everything? But it doesn't matter how the world treated me when I was alive, because it's treating me worse when I'm alive!" Peter shouted, throwing his arms up in the air desperately.

"I just want to go home! I DONT BELONG HERE!" Peter screamed, his voice echoing around the room.

"And you can go home. You just need to let go." Came Tony's voice from the doorway. Peter froze, turning to Tony, tears dripping out of his eyes.

"What?" He said softly.

"Your tether. You need to let it go." Tony answered softly. Peter looked confused and conflicted. Tony smiled softly up at him.

"What happened to my peter? Come back kid, I know you don't want to hurt anyone. You'd never forgive yourself." Tony said softly. They watched as the blood slowly faded, the clothing returning back to normal, and his body repairing before their eyes. Peter dropped to the floor, slightly transparent. He had never been totally solid, but he was always so close. But now, everyone had seen what he really looked like.

"I'm, I'm sorry, I didn't, I didn't mean to, I lost, lost control and-" Peter stuttered out, Tony rushed forward, catching Peter before he fell to the floor, holding him tightly.

"I know. I know Bambino I know. I know." Tony sorties, cradling Peter to his chest, running his hand through Peter's still damp hair.

"I just wanna go home. I just wanna go home." Peter pleaded, fisting Tony's shirt in his hands.

"I know Bambi, I know. But I found a way, you just need to let go." Tony said softly. Peter looked up at him, his face concentrated and calculating.

"I realised something, Mister Stark. My tether stopped being the apartment a long time ago, it became you. And I don't know if I can let you go." Peter said softly. Tony smiled down at him, holding Peter's face in his hands.

"I know you can. Cause I believe in you. You were always so much more than a kid to me, you were my kid. You are my kid. And no matter what you're always gonna be my kid. I'll visit you, in the graveyard. Every month. I promise." Tony said firmly. Peter smiled softly up at him, holding him tighter.

"I'm gonna miss you." He said softly into Tony's chest. Tony chuckled wryly, crying into Peter's hair.

"I'll miss you too." He said back. Peter looked up at him, hugging him as hard as he could.

"Goodbye, Mister Stark. I love you. And thank you." He said, tears seeping into his mouth as Tony nodded, kissing his forward and slowly letting him go. They all watched in wonder as peter was slowly engulfed by the familiar red mist, his eyes closing, falling limp as his body slowly turned into the mist, fading into the air.

But Tony was a mess, holding a hand over his mouth, muffling his sobs, tears gliding over his fingers and landing on the hardwood floors with soft patterns.

"He's not coming back." Tony cried.

"But he's home now," Natasha said gently, sinking to the floor next to Tony, following by the rest of the team, holding Tony as he held himself.

And if the team heard soft laughter and peter's voice ringing in the tower they weren't going to say anything, because Tony didn't seem to mind.