Chapter Text
Tony watched carefully as Peter swung about, helping web down doom bots and generally causing enough of a ruckus to draw some of the attention away from him or the other Avengers. Most people would agree that Omegas like the young man shouldn’t be on the field, especially unmated. Hell, Tony would agree if it weren’t for the fact that he was already working towards fixing that.
When Tony first met Peter, he had intended to sit the Omega down and put an end to things before the kid got hurt. As the Pack Alpha for the Avengers, he was seen as a leader in the superhero community, and such tasks were often left to him. However, the Omega surprised him, not only with his intelligence, but also with his drive, so Tony changed his plans on the fly. Instead of shutting him down, he invited the young Omega to his labs for an upgrade. He didn’t go all out, as Spider-man wasn’t officially associated with the Avengers so it would look odd for him to be decked out in Stark Tech, but it was enough to keep him safe while Tony implemented his plan.
It took months to build trust with the little spider. Months of assuring Fury he had it under control and that his plan was still moving forward. And today, it was finally going to pay off.
Tony waited for Peter to inevitably take a hit from a doom bot, then activated the nanites hidden in the suit. Ostensibly, they were there to repair the suit and help close any wounds Peter might receive, but today, they would also serve another function. Today, they would inject a compound that would set off the events needed to send the Omega running into his arms. All he had to do now was wait.
Peter wasn’t sure what had hit him after a doom bot sent him flying, but it was a doozy. Normally, he had no problem shaking the hits off. For a moment, he worried he’d been poisoned, but then he felt the telltale drip of slick and he froze.
He wasn’t due for at least another month, and he was always so careful to never go out around his heat like Mr. Stark had warned him.
Peter bit back a whimper and frantically tried to think of how he was going to get home ok when his body was slipping so fast. Luckily, the AI Mr. Stark had put in his suit had caught on and was offering to connect him to the Alpha.
“Please, Karen, tell Mr. Stark I need help,” Peter all but cried. The cramps were coming faster now, and it hurt. Clearly, this was not a normal heat and he didn’t understand what could have triggered it.
He was so caught up in trying to manage the pain that Peter didn’t notice Mr. Stark landing nearby. Nor did he hear when the Alpha called him. It was only when he felt a sharp pain in his thigh that Peter realized he was no longer alone.
“Hey kid, it’s going to be ok,” the Alpha said.
Peter didn’t hear if he said anything else as the suppressant and the pain overwhelmed his senses. He trusted Mr. Stark to get him to safety though and didn’t fight the darkness.
When he came to, he was in the Medbay hooked up to an IV. That wasn’t surprising, and it was hardly his first visit. What was surprising was Director Fury of the Avengers sitting in the chair next to his bed. That was downright terrifying actually. His heart rate picked up and Fury finally looked over at him.
“I see you’re finally awake,” Fury said, his face set in a permanent frown. “You know, I didn’t think I’d have to be having this conversation. In fact, I’d still rather not because it’s a pretty well known fact that Omegas shouldn’t be in high risk occupations. Do you know why that is, Mr. Parker?”
“Sir, I-”
“I don’t want to hear excuses, Parker,” Fury growled, and Peter couldn’t help shrinking into himself. “It is a well established fact that Omegas are susceptible to stress induced heats. It’s also a well established fact that said heats can endanger those around them because they interfere with an Alpha’s senses while also leaving the Omega defenseless.”
Peter opened his mouth to argue but shut it again when Fury shot him another glare.
“That was reckless, irresponsible, and just downright stupid, Mr. Parker,” Fury continued. “You had no plan in place and if it wasn’t for Stark, you wouldn’t have even had a suppressant on hand to manage it. Clearly, I have let this go on for too long. I thought Stark might talk some sense into you or at least keep a proper eye on you. That was my poor judgment, and I’ll be rectifying it now.”
“What do you mean?” Peter asked, his heart pounding.
“Effective immediately, Spider-man is no more,” Fury said. “Our scientists will work on reversing or suppressing your mutations, and in the meantime, you’re on lock down. I won’t have any more nonsense from you. It’s bad enough I have to go before the press and admit that we let an Omega go out as a superhero. The press is going to eat us alive for Omega endangerment. I don’t need more collateral damage.”
“Sir, please!” Peter tried to argue but Fury just shook his head and swept from the room.
Peter couldn’t help the panic and tears Fury’s words caused. His powers, his mutations, were part of him. He couldn’t go back to being the weak asthmatic kid he was before. It would be like seeing in colors and then losing it.
He was still panicking when Mr. Stark walked in.
“Whoa, you gotta calm down, Pete,” Mr. Stark said but Peter just shook his head.
How could he be calm when he was in pain from the suppressants coupled with the emotional pain of Fury’s threat? The Alpha clearly didn’t agree though and tried again, this time with more authority behind his voice.
“Breathe for me, Peter.”
It took a few tries, but with the Alpha so close, it was hard for Peter to not listen. Once he was calm, he explained everything Fury had said.
“Please, Mr. Stark, you can’t let him do that,” Peter begged. “I can’t go back to the me I was before. I’ll do anything.”
The Alpha was quiet, but Peter could see the older man contemplating their options.
“There is one thing,” Mr. Stark said, voice quiet and eyes far away. He turned away from Peter but not before Peter caught the narrowing of his eyebrows and firming of his lips. “There’s no point in saying I told you so’s and you should’ve been more careful. We’re in this mess now and... If we had more time, I could figure out a better fix for this, kid, but the truth is Fury wants this done yesterday. So.”
Peter’s chest goes tight at the reminder but Tony’s words gave him hope.
“So?” When Tony still wouldn’t look at him, he grabbed the Alpha’s wrist, fingers tight with a hint of superhuman strength. “Whatever it is– Anything is better than losing who I am as Spider-man.”
Tony shook his head, “I need time. My... solution... It isn’t something that we can just do without thinking about it. It’s serious and irreversible.”
But they didn’t have time. Peter knew it and Tony knew it too. He could go to sleep tonight and wake up tomorrow as a civilian. He wouldn’t put it past Fury to follow through while he’s knocked out on meds.
“Mr. Stark– Please...”
Finally, finally– Mr. Stark turned back to him. His expression showed just how much he was unhappy with what he was about to say.
“Mating.”
The color drained from Peter’s face. That was not what he was expecting. His stomach cramped, hard, a not so gentle reminder that his body was still going through the brutal affects of a forced heat suppressant.
“W-what?”
“If we mate, I can protect you from Fury’s threat,” Mr. Stark said quietly. “You’ll be under my jurisdiction, not his, and we’ll be able to use my full resources as not only majority shareholder and primary IP creator for SI, but also as Pack Alpha for the Avengers. He won’t be able to touch you without severe repercussions.”
“I-” Peter suddenly felt like he couldn't breathe and more tears slipped free. Either way, he was giving up something that felt like a part of himself. Spider-man or his independence as an unbonded Omega. It was all so much on top of feeling ill, and he felt like there was no way he could make this decision in this state but there was no time.
“Easy, Peter. Take some deep breaths for me, there you go.” The Alpha’s voice was calming and familiar, the same tone he used the few times Peter’s senses had gotten overwhelmed in the lab. It caused something inside of Peter’s chest to loosen a little, and he relaxed minutely.
This was still Mr. Stark, the man who had given him a chance despite being only 18 and an Omega at that. The one who let him in his state of the art labs and made a suit to protect him. Clearly, there was only one real choice here.
“Please, sir, if you’re willing, I’d like to be your Omega.”