For Verity

[close_to_the_ground]

Man, Peter is gonna get so grounded.

The question is what he's gonna get grounded for. He and Mr. Stark have never really talked about what the rules are when friends come over. It's not an issue yet, since he doesn't actually live at Panoptes. And he's not supposed to tell people about Spider-Man, kind of, but Mr. Stark said he could tell people he trusts and Verity works for Panoptes so Mr. Stark must trust her.

He waits to get a text from Verity and takes the private elevator down to the lobby, hoping Mr. Stark actually works late like he's supposed to.

He really, really likes Verity. He wishes he'd had a sister like her and he feels pretty good about her not being freaked out about the Spider-Man but it's never not a weird thing to have to tell someone.

Okay, deep breath.

Comments

[close_to_the_ground]

Peter freezes when she curses, wondering if like, he's got a hole in his shorts of something horrifying before he realizes what she's talking about.

Oh.

Oh.

"Uh, yeah. I wanted to talk about that. Not the abs. But related. But it's like, it's weird. So you gotta, so gotta promise you'll still be my friend."

[notaskingpermission]

Verity raises an eyebrow.

"Well, you just said I was your sister, so that got you five hundred points in my book, so..." She's feeling really jokey about the whole thing, it's not like being built is bad, but then she realizes something and frowns.

"Wait. Shit. You're not, like...on steroids, are you?"

[close_to_the_ground]

"God, no. No," Peter huffs, walking slowly over to the wall and placing one hand on it then another. Then a foot and then another foot.

He twists around so he's facing her but still easily stuck to the wall.

"Not totally human. Not sure exactly how much not human but not a hundred percent. Mr. Stark knows. It's how we knew each other back home," he says, voice shaking.

[notaskingpermission]

Oh, shit.

Verity is such an idiot. Luckily no one else needs to know how big of an idiot she is. Because she already knew Peter was Spider-Man (come on, Peter Parker, friend of Iron Man? duh), so of course he'd have abs. She just hadn't been thinking about it in that moment, all the muscles surprising her.

But, she's also not supposed to know he's Spider-Man, so her wide-eyed look is probably the right reaction.

She plays it up a little, widening them even more.

"O-kay. Are you an alien?" she pretends to guess. "With...duct tape skin?"

[close_to_the_ground]

"No, no no hell no," he says, dropping from the wall and skidding over on his bare feet.

"Not an alien. Got bit by a genetically fucked up spider. So. I guess I got some spider abilities and some that are just weird. Is it, is it too weird? Do you need to go?"

Shit. It really is so weird.

[notaskingpermission]

Verity really assumed Peter was about to say something like, I am Spider-Man in a dramatic voice like in the movies. (The first ones. Or were those the second ones? She thinks there's been a lot.) But he doesn't, he says spider abilities and she can't help letting out a small, surprised laugh.

"Spider abilities? What does that mean? Can you shoot webs out of your butt?" she teases.

"No, I don't have to go. I mean, if you shoot a web out your butt at me I might, but..."

[close_to_the_ground]

"Yeah, yeah I shoot webs out of my butt," Peter sasses, walking over to the water and sticking his foot in to check the temperature.

"I designed these web shooters so I can swing around, though. Maybe I can take you sometime. I can lift almost anything, though. Like, a lot. And do flips and stuff. And all my senses are crazy."