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WEDNESDAY
Peter was bored.
He was sitting next to Ned and MJ on the top row of the bleachers listening to Principal Morita drone on about the new math curriculum. The assembly had only just begun, and already the students of Midtown High’s Junior class were falling asleep. Flash was a few rows in front of them, quite obviously texting on his phone. He had been quiet today, not bothering Peter yet, so maybe this would be a good day. Ned was whispering with MJ about something or other, (probably the scrunched face of Mr. Morita she’s sketching) and Peter kept zoning out, trying to get a head start on tonight's homework by solving the equations in his head.
He looked over at his friends, when they figured out that he was Spider-Man, they had been supportive, covering for him and making sure he was taking care of himself. Then when he found out his true parentage, they supported him then as well. Sometimes it’s good to have friends who know you, friends you can trust.
It was common knowledge by now that Loki had been mind controlled during the attack on New York, and that he regretted it deeply. He joined the Avengers with Thor after the battle against the Dark Elves, and even though many protested his new position, he quickly proved himself good. When Tony first introduced Peter to the newest member of the team, Loki immediately recognized his own son, explaining that he had left Peter on Midgard with his mother to protect him from Loki’s enemies. It was a shock to Peter, to find out that he was the son of a god, a shock to the team too.
But then Thor, who had a look of concentration on his face, had shouted, “By the Norns! It is true! I feel your magic inside of him brother!”
This earned a shocked exclamation from Peter of: “I have MAGIC?” And a smiling Loki promising to teach him everything he knows.
It also prompted a: “What even is your life.” from Ned when Peter told him about it.
It had been two years since the day he met his father. He was 17 now, about three months left of his junior year. This new curriculum wouldn’t be implemented until next fall, and all Peter could think about was: Yeah, maybe today will be a good day.
Maybe he jinxed it, because in the next second, his spider sense hits him like a dagger going through his eye, causing him to flinch back. He tenses and grabs onto Ned’s arm, he’s never felt it this strong before.
“Somethings coming.” he whispers to his friends, and he watches as they tense up as well. He pushes his senses to try and locate the threat while scanning the large room. He doesn’t see or hear anything.
That is, until the side of the gymnasium explodes in a pile of rubble.
There's a cacophony of screams and shouts from the students and teachers, everyone ducking for cover. Peter goes pale at the sight of the Black Order, also known as the Children of Thanos. He recognizes them from the stories his Father told him of the one that captured and controlled him and the projections he would cast to show Peter what to be wary of. After Loki had been proven innocent in front of the Allfather, he and Thor hunted the Black Order in an attempt to cripple and discourage Thanos. They were captured, and sent to separate high security prisons in completely separate sectors of space.
Peter simultaneously hits the S.O.S. on the Stark-Watch that contains his suit, and imbues the necklace under his shirt with his magic. The necklace had been a gift from Loki on his sixteenth birthday, all it took was for Peter to push a bit of his magic into the simple green stone and it would alert Loki that Peter needed help.
Now with help undoubtedly on its way, Peter studied the Black Order, and breathes a sigh of relief when he sees that neither Ebony Maw nor Supergiant were with them. All he sees is Proxima Midnight standing in the front, her husband, Corvus Glaive at her right side, and to her left is Cull Obsidian. They look…. well, they look like they’ve seen better days. You could still see the scars inflicted from the battle that ended in their capture, and they looked dirty and exhausted from what must’ve been a tiring prison escape.
Proxima Midnight steps forward and addresses the crowd of cowering children and their guardians. “SILENCE!” she yells, and the screams and shouts turn to whimpers and whispers. “We are the Black Order. There will be no need for violence unless you do not comply with our demands.” She surveys the room and scowls, turning to Glaire, “Are we sure the magical trail led to this… daycare?”
He pulls out a small contraption from seemingly nowhere, looking at the visual display. “There are still traces of his magic near, although not as strong as it should be. Perhaps he is concealing himself.” Proxima nods her head in agreement, before turning to face Principal Morita, who is still more or less in the center of the room. He was thrown by the blast, and is gathering the strength to stand in front of the intimidating aliens. He pales when he realizes that she’s looking at him, shuffling backwards towards the bleachers.
“You are in charge of this establishment, yes?” she asks him. He nods his head and attempts to wipe the blood running down his face. “Good, so where are you hiding Loki?”
“L-Loki?” Mr. Morita stammers, “I-I don’t know!”
Now, Peter knew where this was going, and he couldn’t let this go on much longer lest someone get hurt. He had no opportunity to slip away and show up again as Spider-Man. He was basically in the middle of the bleachers, with no way to leave any sort of illusion in his place without tipping off the kids around him trying to sneak past them. He knew what he had to do, and he knew that it was a long time coming.
Peter turns to Ned and MJ and whispers a quick, ‘stay right here’ and gets back a chorus of ‘stay safe idiot’ and ‘are you serious right now?’ He stands tall among the rows of cowering students, grateful he was able to snag an aisle seat so that nothing is in the way. He begins to walk forward, drawing attention to himself as he walks down the center aisle. He passes the row where Flash and his buddies are crouched low and hears the “What the fuck are you doing Parker, get down!” that is whispered in his direction.
As he reaches the bottom of the bleachers, he is glad to see that Proxima Midnight has shifted her focus onto him and is no longer threatening his principal. She looks him up and down and scoffs, “You are not who we are looking for, child.”
“You are looking for Loki, right?” he asks as he steps forward, her eyes narrowing on him, “While Loki is not here, I believe the magical signature you are tracking belongs to me.”
“To you? You are just a weak Terran boy, why would our tracker lead us to you?”
He ignores her, and continues on. “I hope you know that attacking our planet is not in your favor. Didn’t you learn your lesson last time?” he goads, earning a snarl from Cull Obsidian.
“You obviously know who we are, boy. So why attempt to face us?” Glaire asks.
Peter shrugs his shoulders in an effort to act aloof, “You have misjudged the strength of Midgard, and that will be your downfall.” He puts his hands behind his back to hide the protection spell he begins to cast over the civilians. He cannot let any of them get hurt. Peter hears a few more confused murmurs when the people behind him notice his hands started glowing, but they are smart enough not to point it out to the aliens.
“What is your name, boy?” she questions, the spark of hatred and realization in her eyes growing.
Peter smiles at her, trying not to show just how afraid he is at the moment. “I am known by many names,” he starts, tilting his head and smirking. “Here on Earth, I am known as Peter Parker.”
“Here on Earth?” Glaire steps forward to ask, “And what of elsewhere?”
Peter grins again, this time wider, “Well,” he starts, quickly finishing up the spell, “My true name…” he pauses, “is Peter Lokison.” he says, his eyes flashing from brown to green just as the greenish barrier flickers to life in front of the crowd of teachers and students.
There are gasps of awe and confusion in the audience behind him, and he distinctly hears a few ‘what the fucks’ and ‘holy shits’ from his peers. Proxima takes a surprised step back. “Lokison!?” she growls, “I was not aware Loki had any living offspring.”
“Yeah, that was kind of the point, don’t ya think?” he smiles, summoning his miniature horned crown, (another christmas gift from his father) and pretending to stretch his arms across his torso. “There's also one more thing you should know.” he says, putting his hands on his hips, “I have one more name that I am known by on this world.” he pauses, both to stall for time and also because Mr. Stark’s and his father’s theatrics are probably rubbing off on him.
“I also go by Spider-Man.” he states plainly as he twists the face of his Stark-Watch and smiles as his opponents and peers watch his suit form over his body. He leaves his mask in the new position he’d created, where it reaches up to his ears, wrapping around the back of his head and leaving his face and his crown uncovered. He summons the red and gold cape his Uncle Thor got him, and secures it to his shoulders. A few cheers are called out behind him, along with many more ‘What the actual fuck’s’; Flash being one of the louder voices.
“So, I suppose I’m out of time to stall.” he says as he webs Cull Obsidian’s feet to the ground. He jumps to the side, just as Glaires spear goes flying right where he once stood. It bounces off the barrier, the people on the other side flinching back before they realize they are safe. Proxima jumps forwards, moving her spear towards Peter’s chest and scowls when he once again dodges.
Peter knows he probably can’t take them by himself, his only goal right now is to survive until the Avengers get here, and protect the students and staff behind his barrier. He can tell with his advanced hearing that the rest of the school is empty, likely evacuated when the blast hit the gymnasium, and he is content in knowing that he is free to use his powers to their fullest and he won’t harm anyone.
“Stop moving Lokison!” Glaive growls, slicing his spear at Peter’s head, the young godling leaning back to dodge it, “But that’s no fun!” he replied, webbing him in the face in response.
Cull had broken free of the webbing on his feet and swung his hammer at the Lokison, who just barely dodged it. Peter leapt to the ceiling and once again covered the brute’s feet in webs.
Proxima Midnight turned to look up at him, “We will kill you, and then your traitor of a father will mourn your death.”
Peter rolls his eyes, “How can he be a traitor if he was never willingly on your side? Mind control isn’t nice y’know?” He dodges the spear thrown his way in retaliation, flitting across the ceiling with great speed. He buys himself time, dodging and weaving the spears thrown at him from the ground, while he begins another spell. “You know I’m still half mortal, shouldn’t you be able to kill me a little more easily.” he taunts, collecting even more growls and snarls.
All of a sudden, he jumps to the ground, landing in his signature Spider-Man pose. He casts several illusions of himself stemming from inside him and walks away from the center of the illusion, finding a spot among the many fake versions of himself. He talks to them, his voice coming from all of the illusions.
“If you wish to kill me, then you have to find me first.” and at that, all of the illusions begin running in all directions, laughing all the way.
Cull Obsidian let out a roar and began smashing through the illusions. Corvus Glaive focused his energy on the ones swinging through the air and on the ceiling, while Proxima Midnight did a mix of both.
Peter maneuvers through the fight, webbing up the aliens whilst remaining undetected. Everytime one of them thought they saw him, there were two more illusions catching their attention. Soon they were covered in webs, getting more and more frustrated as they pulled at the restraints and kept fighting. Peter smiles as he realizes that he might actually have a chance here.
There were about thirty copies to begin with, and now they were down to just five, one of which was the real Peter. Peter stops the laughing, moving himself in front of the three aliens (who are thoroughly webbed up) positioning himself on the opposite side of the gym from the civilians. He takes a moment while his copies circle around the Order to look into the audience to find his friends. He makes eye contact with Ned and MJ, who are smiling from ear to ear, granted, still huddled close to the ground. He sends a wink in their direction, and Ned shouts loudly: “GO PETER!”
His eyes drift towards the rest of the crowd, and is astounded when he finds them all watching with bated breath, waiting to see what would happen next. Their eyes filled with wonder and amazement only exaggerated further with their open-mouthed faces. It only takes them a second to register what Ned had said and the cheers of his classmates fill his ears.
Peter jolts, as the amulet on his neck pulses with energy, and he smiles wide. His father is here.
“Well then,” he addresses the Order, not bothering to use his illusions to speak. The aliens all turn to face the real Peter as well as they can with their feet webbed to the floor, and his illusions fade away. “This has been fun and all, but I believe our playdate has come to an end.”
Peter can feel his Father’s presence behind him, and can hear the sound of the Iron Man repulsors on the outside of the gym. He is the only one that doesn’t flinch or startle when Loki materializes beside him, and laughs at the reaction of the aliens. His father is in his full armor, crown upon his head, and a murderous look in his eye.
Peter hears as Mr. Stark breaks a hole in the wall behind the students and teachers, bypassing Peter’s barrier, and begins quietly escorting everyone out of the building. Loki steps forward and speaks, “Now now, what do we have here? How did you nuisances escape your cages?”
Thor lands just inside the hole in the wall created by the Order, and calls out, “It is as if they are asking to get beaten, brother.” He smiles and turns to Peter, “And to attack my nephew, well, it seems they have a death wish, don’t you agree Loki?”
“Indeed brother.” He says advancing on the Black Order, who try to pull away, but are unsuccessful. “Indeed.”
Proxima makes her voice heard, “If you put us back in those intolerable prisons, do not expect us to stay quiet of your spawns existence.”
Loki smiles wide, gleaming look still in his eyes, “Since you asked nicely,” he taunts as he casts a spell, the green ropes wrapping around their necks and hands, “Now you are hereby unable to communicate to anyone or anything about my son's being or whereabouts. And any effort to tell someone anything about him will result in excruciating pain.”
Corvus Glaive opens his mouth, but all that comes out is a strangled yell. “And that goes for any attempt to insult him as well you mongrel.” Loki remarks with a sinister smile.
Mr. Stark flys in, having flown around the gym and to the hole the Order had made, and retracts his helmet. He is carrying several sets of reinforced restraints meant for their not-so-friendly friends. “Hey Rudolph Jr., couldn’t leave any for the rest of us?” he asks, referring to Peter who answers in kind, “Sorry Mr. Stark, didn’t mean to party without you.” a grin spreading on his face.
Mr. Stark rolls his eyes and smirks, “Kid, when are you going to start calling me Tony?”
Peter’s grin gets even bigger, “Whenever it stops being funny Mr. Stark.” he retorts, earning an equally large smile from his father beside him, who ruffles his hair with a fond, “Brat.”
Peter drops the force field he casted when all the civilians have left. And seeing as Steve and Sam walk in the hole in the wall Tony had created, it was perfect timing. They walk over to them, twin exasperated looks on their faces. “Kid, how do these things always happen to you?” Sam asks, earning a shrug from the guilty party. Steve continues shaking his head, “Good job son, but now we have to deal with the fact that all you friends know who you are, and are very insistent in seeing you.”
Stark steps up to the aliens, who are still webbed up and unable to talk, “How about we get these ugly mugs secured before we go to the meet and greet.” he quips.
Peter sighs, turning to bury his face in his father’s shoulder. “Ugh, they’re going to have so many questions.” he whines, getting a chuckle from everyone around him.
“It’ll be ok Peter.” Loki says as he hugs his son. “If they have a problem they’ll have to go through me.”
“And me!” his Uncle Thor shouts, picking up his brother and nephew in a bear hug.
“Put us down you oaf!” Loki shouts, receiving even more laughs.
They quickly get the restraints on the alien invaders, S.H.I.E.L.D. agents carting them away when Sam pipes up, “We should probably go save our resident super spies from crowd control.” referring to Nat and Clint.
“Oh I bet they’re loving that.” Peter deadpans before he sighs, “Ok, I’m ready to face the music.”
“Are you sure?” Tony asks him, “We can sneak you out the back, no one will know, and I can make them all sign NDA’s to protect your identity.”
“You’d make over two hundred people sign NDA’s and not expect a leak? Come on Mr. Stark, that’s a bit much. And besides,” he states, squaring his shoulders, “I think I’m ready for people to know. I’m tired of hiding.” The grins from his family and friends at his words make him blush, and with one last hug from his Dad, their group turns to leave out the way the students and teachers were escorted to safety.
Sam and Steve go first, followed by Tony. When Peter steps out, flanked by his father and uncle, the crowd of his peers waiting in the parking lot erupts in cheers. Peter pauses for a split second before he smiles wide and sees Ned and MJ rushing to him.
“Dude you were awesome out there!” Ned says, followed by a “Eh, he was adequate.” from MJ as he envelopes his best friends in a hug. He looks over their shoulders to see the students and teachers staring at him incredulously. His friends must feel him tense up because they release him and look at the rest of Midtown’s Junior class.
“Surprise?” Peter asks, holding his hands up in mock surrender.
He’s instantly swarmed by questions being thrown his way, the only reason he isn’t getting trampled is because his family and friends step in front of him and block anyone from getting too close.
Loki puts a hand on his shoulder as they move through the crowd. Tony leads the way, the Avengers acting as bodyguards to Peter. Ned and MJ follow behind, not ready to leave their friend quite yet. They make it to the edge of the parking lot where ambulances are tending to any scrapes or bruises that were inflicted in the initial blast. Peter can see Mr. Morita is being tended to by an EMT, laying on a stretcher, and it seems to be where Tony is headed.
Mr. Morita looks up from where he’s being treated, and startles a little at the site in front of him. Tony Stark in front, the Falcon and Captain America flanking him, Peter in the middle with Loki and Thor beside him. Then in the back is Ned and MJ with Black Widow and Hawkeye making sure the crowd stays back. The man pales a bit and tries to sit up. Peter rushes forward and lays a hand on his principal's shoulder. “Lay down Mr. Morita, you took quite the hit to the head.”
The man in question lays back down, holding his head like he just realized how badly he's hurt. “Ah… right.”
Tony speaks up, “I just wanted to let you know that the repair efforts should be done in time for school on Monday, funded by me, of course. That should give us four days for repairs.”
“Thank you, uh, Mr. Stark.” Morita says, “Can you just confirm for me that today was real, and that I’m not hallucinating please.”
Peter's lip tugs up in a smirk, “Unfortunately Mr. Morita, it’s all real, I’m real.” The principal lets out a worn-out sigh and a quiet ‘damn’.
Peter laughs again as he turns to walk away, but before he could take a step he hears Mr. Morita call out to him, “Peter,” he turns back to look the man in the eye, “Thank you. But I expect you to be in my office Monday morning with your guardians before classes. We have much to discuss.”
Peter gives a sheepish smile to the injured man, “Of course sir, I suppose I have some explaining to do.”
“You’ll get your answers soon, Morita.” Loki claims, and Mr. Stark takes over, “That’s right, I already have Pep setting up a press conference for Friday, that gives us all of tomorrow to prepare for the whole world to know the truth.”
“The whole universe.” Loki corrects, with a proud smile directed towards his son.
FRIDAY
He watches as Mr. Stark leads the conference as he waits backstage with his father and aunt May. “Hello everyone, I’m just here to confirm some things before we introduce the man of the hour. There was an incident on Wednesday at the Midtown School of Science. It did involve aliens, and the problem has been dealt with with no casualties. The reason we’re all here though, is because the identity of a certain web-slinging superhero was revealed as a result of the fight.”
The crowd of reporters goes wild with questions, and are quickly silenced when Tony puts his hand up. “We hold all questions until the end please. Respect the spiderling’s right to privacy and don’t be too pushy and we’ll all be friends.” He pauses for a brief moment to let everyone settle down. “You should also know before you meet him that the rumors of him being Loki’s son are true, and I expect no one to attack him for things he can’t control, capiche?”
Tony waits for murmurs of agreement to spread through the audience before smiling and straightening up. “Now without further ado, I introduce to you all, Peter Parker-Lokison! AKA Spider-Man!”
Peter comes out from behind the curtain as the reporters admittedly go nuts, and he squints into the camera flashes. He is immensely grateful for the contact lenses Pepper gave him to filter out the lights. She also gave him impromptu media training and how to skirt around questions you don’t want to answer, which admittedly, he didn’t need much coaching on because he’s picked some tricks from his father.
He steps up to the podium, in his Spider-Man suit, crown, and cape; and he faces the scariest enemy he’ll ever face: The Media. The godling puts on a winning smile, and puts his hands out in a placating gesture waiting for the crowd to calm down a bit.
“Hello everyone,” he starts, “I’ll forgo introducing myself because there is no way I’m topping that.” grinning over at Mr. Stark and getting a few laughs. “I just wanted to explain a few things to you all and hopefully I can answer a few questions you might have.” he pauses to gather himself before continuing on with his speech.
“My identity was never meant to be revealed so soon, but extenuating circumstances prevented me from keeping the secret. Aliens, a part of the group responsible for mind controlling my father, Loki Odinson, in 2012, attacked Midtown High on Wednesday. They were tracing my father’s power, intending on killing or capturing him in revenge over their defeat. Instead, they found me, along with my classmates in the middle of an assembly.” Peter pauses to take a breath, and continues on.
“I had no way to slip away and perform a quick costume change without being noticed, but I knew I had to do something. So, after calling for backup, I revealed myself as the one they were looking for, and consequently, revealed my identity to the entire audience of teachers and students. I was able to stop the aliens while protecting the civilians and we now have the attackers safely imprisoned and preparing for the rest of their lives in the dungeons of Asgard.” he spoke calmly, and professionally.
“Now I’ll take a few questions.” he tries, immediately bombarded with raised hands and loud calls of ‘Peter!’, ‘Spider-Man!’, ‘Mr. Parker!’ or Mr. Lokison!’. He calls on a woman towards the back of the crowd and she asks how old he is. He takes another deep breath.
“I’m seventeen, turning eighteen at the beginning of next school year. I’m sure the follow up to that is ‘How old were you when you started being Spider-Man’ and the answer is fourteen. I also want to clarify that my spider powers have nothing to do with the powers I inherited from my father. I didn’t even know we were related until two years ago. My spider powers came from elsewhere, and were a complete accident.”
He turns to a fairly younger reporter in the front who asks, “Why didn’t you know you were related to Loki?” and gets “He knew he had and has enemies, he left me here with my human mother to protect me until it was safe to return or until I could protect myself. I didn’t meet him officially until Mr. Stark introduced me to him and my uncle Thor during a visit to the tower.”
A reporter also in the front jumps forward to ask, “Why did the Avengers let you be a hero so young?” Peter smiles when he answers, he knew this would come up, “They didn’t like it at first, and tried to get me to wait until I was older. But I wouldn’t back down, and they knew that trying to stop me would just make me keep doing it without their permission or supervision. So instead, Mr. Stark outfitted me with a suit fitted with the best technology and safety systems to keep an eye on me. Some of you may remember the suit I was using when I first started out… it was nothing more than a tracksuit and goggles- so I definitely got an upgrade.” he states, “Ok, last question then we gotta go.”
He scans the crowd as hands wave for his attention and points to someone in the middle who asks, “Does this mean you’ll be joining the Avengers?” Tony steps up beside Peter and drags the microphone over to his side of the podium. “Peter here has been an honorary member of the Avengers ever since we met him.” Peter steps back to flank Tony and lets the man take back over. “His brilliance is on par with me and Dr. Banner, he has helped neutralize many threats including Ultron and will be made an official Avenger soon after his 18th birthday.”
The audience tries to scramble for more answers and is shut down by Tony when he gives a resounding “That’s all the questions for today thank you everyone!” as he shuffles Peter off the stage.
—-
Peter was sitting in the common room of Avenger Tower after the press conference, scrolling through social media. There were mixed reviews and opinions on the revelation of Spider-Man’s identity. Not to mention the fact that he is Loki’s son… and how young he is.
But the general consensus was positive and supportive. There were of course those that would rather bitch and complain about it was technically his fault the school was attacked, which- fair, he doesn’t deny it. And there are also those that still can’t accept that Loki is a good guy now and are calling him the child of a monster, which- less fair. But he can’t control the opinions of others, and he doesn’t regret that his identity was revealed. It was going to happen sooner or later, he’s just glad it came out under good circumstances. Regretting that his identity got revealed would be like regretting that he saved everyone, and he doesn’t regret that at all.
He looks up at his father as he sits on the couch with Peter, handing him a hot chocolate. “How are you feeling?” he asks, and Peter thinks for a second.
“I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders that I didn’t even know was there.” Loki smiles at him after taking a sip of his tea, “That’s good to hear little one.”
MONDAY
After a slightly tense meeting with Mr. Morita discussing official school records and emergency contacts; Aunt May, Tony and Loki all in attendance, he walks to his locker to get ready for 1st period. He had gotten to school way early for the meeting and the hallways were still relatively empty, the ones that he did see just starred and left him alone for the most part, which he was thankful for. He’s dressed as he normally would going to school, a science pun t-shirt with a blue flannel overtop. He didn’t see the need to dress up, despite Mr. Stark’s insistence. Loki had sided with Peter, telling Tony that Peter doesn’t owe anyone anything, so he shouldn’t have to change himself for them.
He grabs his textbooks and heads towards the cafeteria, where most people pass time while waiting for school to start. He passes the newly rebuilt gym on the way, stopping for a second to admire how quickly they were able to finish it. Entering the cafeteria, he moves to grab an apple from the free breakfast table, and sits down at his, Ned, and MJ’s usual spot.
He puts his earbuds in and starts up some music, tuning out the world around him. More and more people show up and while they stare and whisper, they don’t approach. He is joined by his friends about 20 minutes before class starts, and they each have smiles on their faces.
“Dude, I know we were texting all weekend, and we knew to expect it but damn.” he says, gesturing at the people around them. “You’re not gonna leave us for the popular crowd now are you?” he jokes, looking over to where Flash and his friends keep taking quick glances over to Peter, trying and failing to be discreet.
“Don’t worry Ned, Peter’s not interested in fake friends.” MJ interjects, getting an agreeing nod from Peter. “You guys are ridiculous, you know I wouldn’t last a day over there.” he says as they sit down either side of him.
MJ knocks her shoulder against Peter, “So how's the fame treating you?” she teases.
Peter grins wide, leaning into her and throwing a hand on his forehead, “Oh MJ, it’s terrible! Save me please!” Her lips turn up in a smirk and she pushes him into Ned. They all pause and make eye contact before bursting out laughing.
“How nobody realized you’re the son of the God of Mischief, I have no idea.” MJ says as she rolls her eyes.
“Peter,” Ned starts, “Are you, like, the god of anything? Oh my gosh are you the God of Spiders?”
“You know what Ned, I don’t really know.”
“What do you mean you don’t know?”
“That’s not really how it works, Ned.”
“Then how does it work?” a new voice interrupts. Peter and his friends look up to see Flash standing on the other side of the table, his arms crossed over his chest. All of a sudden all eyes in the cafeteria are on them, the crowd not even trying to hide their staring.
Peter sits up, leaning his elbows on the table and putting his fists under his chin. He grins at Flash, narrowing his eyes. “Do you truly wish to know? Or are you simply here to antagonize me?”
Flash tenses, then relaxes, schooling his face to something that almost looks sheepish. “I’m just curious…sorry.”
Peter looks up at the clock on the wall to see that there are about 15 minutes before the bell rings. He looks back at Flash, and the hopeful look on his face; then he looks at the people behind Flash, who have equally curious and hopeful looks on their faces.
He sighs, moving to stand up. He needs space if he’s going to explain this properly.
“Alright everyone, shows about to start! Gather ‘round, I’m only doing this once.” He says, moving around the table to the center of the room. “Just a warning, this will be a demonstration of sorts so if you’re uncomfortable with me using magic you’re free to leave.”
Nobody left, everyone in various degrees of excitement, even the teachers.
Peter begins with his hands at his sides, “So the question that was asked was if I was the god of anything, and if I was the God of Spiders. The simple answer is no, at least, not yet.”
He claps his hands in front of him, watching the looks of amazement as a projection of the galaxy fills the room. He hears a lot of gasps, and his lip quirks up as he continues. “Gods aren’t born knowing what their title is.” Peter starts, flicking planets into existence as he goes. He moves his hands in a circular motion and the projection starts to rotate idly.
“There are two ways to gain your title.” he starts. He brings up an image of his uncle, no details, just a golden silhouette. “My uncle,” he says, making the projection fly around with Mjolnr, “Was chosen by the patron element of Thunder and Lightning just before his 300th birthday.” The projection shows a young Thor throwing a tantrum when lightning starts to form around him and strikes where he stands, leaving his hair going in all directions, earning a couple giggles from the students around Peter.
“You don’t get to choose your patron, your patron chooses you. Patrons are usually elemental spirits or nature guardians,” He shows an image of multiple elements swirling around each other, animals of multiple worlds walking the spiraled streams, “And they are as old as the universe itself.” he says, the image shifting to show a vaguely humanoid creature made up of stars and galaxies holding the streaming elements in the palm of its hand.
“My father, however,” bringing up a silhouette of his father, “didn’t know he was the God of Mischief until he was over 400 years old.” he says, making his fathers young figure move through some basic training forms with his daggers. “My father gained his title once he became known for tricks and pranks.” The projection shifts to show a young Loki turning into a snake and scaring various warriors in the training grounds, getting a few laughs from the audience.
“The very act of rumor and word of mouth bestowed his title upon him. Once enough beings from across enough realms knew of him, the universe itself acknowledged the legitimacy of the new God.” His projection shifts once again to show his father kneeling before the personified universe.
“So my answer to the question at hand remains.” he starts, ending the projection. He looks around, realizing that a lot more people had arrived amidst his explanation. “I’m not the god of anything yet. But if enough people know who I am, or if the Patron Spider Guardian chooses me, then maybe. And that’s a big maybe, because even if enough people on a hundred Earths knew who I was it wouldn’t be enough, and I’m nowhere near 300 years old.” he says with a laugh.
“Peter,” MJ starts, Peter turning towards her. “Couldn't the spider bite that gave you your spider powers be interpreted as the Patron Guardian choosing you?”
Whispers go through the crowd as Peter tilts his head in thought. “I suppose that’s one way of looking at it.” he says, rubbing the back of his neck. “I’ll have to ask my dad when I get home.”
There is a collective jump when the warning bell rings overhead, sounds of protest ringing through the group. The teachers start shuffling everyone towards the classrooms, the students talking animatedly amongst themselves over what they just experienced.
Ned walks beside Peter on their way to class, MJ leaving them to head to 1st period. He has a weird look on his face, like he’s thinking about something too hard.
“Is something wrong Ned?” Peter questions his friend.
Ned looks him in the eyes as they enter their shared class, “How long are you gonna live, exactly?”
Peter is aware of his classmates listening in on the conversation as they take their seats. He realizes that Ned probably hasn’t thought of this issue before, and is thinking about how lonely Peter might be when all of his normal mortal friends are dead.
“Well, I’ll definitely live longer than a normal human.” He declares, “But not quite as long as my father. We aren’t quite sure how long my lifespan will be, but the general consensus is that I’ll live at least 1,000 years. Dad thinks I’ll grow to maturity, then essentially stop aging at a normal human pace. I’m not the first half mortal that's existed, but I am the first one that has had an affinity for magic, so they think I may take more after my father’s side.”
The jaws of the whole class around him were on the floor, everyone trying to comprehend that Peter was going to live over 10 times longer than them. Ned looked like he was about to cry, and Peter immediately went to comfort his friend.
“Hey man, don’t worry about me. I may be here long after you’re gone, but you’ll always be the best best-friend I could have asked for.” he puts his hand on Ned’s shoulder and his friend smiles at him. Peter leans over to Ned to whisper, “Also it’s been suggested by Mr. Stark that I can eventually take over as leader of the Avengers, and keep recruiting new superpowered people to continue protecting Earth.”
Ned's eyes widened significantly, “Damn man that’s awesome!”
Their teacher walks into the class and the conversation is ended. The rest of the school day goes relatively well besides a few people asking Peter some questions here and there. Lunch went by faster after he asked politely for everyone to give him some space, and anyone who apparently didn’t think Peter deserved personal space were quickly scared off by MJ. Soon it was the end of the day, and Peter was saying his goodbyes to his friends on the steps of the school when he looked up to see his father in a plain green hoodie and jeans with sunglasses on his face. He was leaning against a sleek black car parked on the curb, and despite the disguise, he wasn’t exactly laying low with several people pointing and whispering at the site of Loki.
His father gets a wide smile on his face when he sees Peter walking down the stairs of the school. He pushes off of the car and starts walking to Peter as Ned and MJ say a final goodbye and start heading home. They meet halfway with Loki slapping his son on the back. “Have a good first day of school as Peter Lokison?” he teases as Peter groans and rolls his eyes.
“It was alright I guess.” he replies, as they walk to the car. “Why are you picking me up anyway? Not that it’s not good to see you, but where’s Happy?”
Loki chuckles at Peter's antics, “I figured now that the issue of the secret identity has been resolved, there is no reason why I can’t pick you up whenever I want.” he says, ruffling his son’s hair.
Peter swats his hand away and ducks into the car to avoid the hand trying to make its way back into his hair. Loki shakes his head and gives up to go get in the driver's seat. They head out towards the Avengers tower, Loki listening and laughing as Peter tells him about his day.