Chapter Text
Peter Parker hated field trips.
Maybe his Parker Luck was just inherently incompatible with field trips. In elementary school, he got bitten by a goat at a farm. In middle school, he got bitten by a dolphin at the aquarium. In high school, he got bitten by a spider at a tech expo…
Okay, the spider one turned out pretty well. That spider made him Spider-Man. Thank goodness the goat and dolphin from before weren't radioactive. He really didn't want to contemplate the possibilities of becoming Goat-Man or Dolphin-Man.
But when he saw the alien spacecraft through the school bus window, he knew his field trip had once again devolved into a crazy disaster: he boarded a donut-shaped ship headed for outer space, fought a purple alien trying to destroy half the universe, they lost, and then… he got "bitten" by death, turning into literal dust.
When Peter regained consciousness, he hadn't expected to open his eyes again. After all, he didn't think his super healing was powerful enough to reconstitute him from ashes. Looking around, he saw others who had turned to dust also restored in the blink of an eye.
"Kid… KID!" Dr. Strange's voice pulled Peter's chaotic thoughts back to reality. He spoke rapidly, words Peter half-understood, while opening a portal to a scene of ruins. "Five years ago, Thanos used that gauntlet to snap his fingers, turning half the universe's life, including us, to dust. Now, Stark and the others have brought us back. Snap out of it, they need us!"
Half the universe? The Snap? The Gauntlet? Five years ago?
Oh god… This was absolutely his most insane field trip ever…
Peter followed Dr. Strange through the portal, standing with countless warriors, deafening battle cries echoing over the ruins of the Avengers compound.
"Avengers—"
Captain America gripped Mjolnir, which had returned to him, the broken shield hanging from his arm. Behind him stood allies from every corner of the world: Wakandan armies, Asgardian warriors, sorcerers, and every hero who had been turned to dust by Thanos's snap and now miraculously returned.
"Assemble!"
With a roaring battle cry, everyone charged onto the battlefield.
Peter's spider-sense buzzed in his head with unprecedented intensity, guiding him through the chaos. His eyes scanned the crowd, instantly finding his mentor.
"Mr. Stark!" Peter swung excitedly across the battlefield, webbing up the Black Order member about to strike Tony, while Ant-Man stomped on the enemy.
He hurried over and helped Tony up, the reunion making him feel as if he'd finally found an anchor in the storm. He looked straight into the man's eyes, unable to contain his excitement: "Holy cow! You will not believe what happened! Remember when we were in space? I turned to dust? I must have passed out, and when I woke up, you were gone—"
Mr. Stark was alive. That was the most important thing. Peter's thoughts were still jumbled. He kept babbling, not stopping, as if talking could empty all the thoughts and emotions from his mind.
For Tony, his thoughts were almost as chaotic as the kid's. He stared intently at the boy's face, head tilted slightly as if still verifying what he was seeing: My god, he hasn't changed at all. Still so young. Five years have passed, and he looks exactly the same, as if nothing ever happened.
"—But Dr. Strange was there, right? He said it's been five years, hurry, they need us, and then he started doing the sparkly gold thingy…"
Tony barely heard a word. "Hug me…" He stumbled forward a couple of steps and pulled Peter into a tight embrace before the boy could step back.
Real. Solid.
"W-what are you doing…?" Peter froze for a moment before realizing this was a hug. A dry, firm kiss pressed against his neck. He sighed, almost melting into the kiss. "Oh… this is nice."
"It's so good to see you again…" Tony's voice held a barely perceptible tremor. He patted Peter's back firmly before reluctantly letting go.
"So… are we at that level now?" Peter suddenly asked.
The sudden callback immediately made Tony laugh: "Oh, kid… you're still hung up on that?"
Tony just wished the battlefield had given them more time. Peter soon webbed away, diving back into the fight, leaving a quick "I gotta go!" as he disappeared into the crowd.
He called out a "See you later!" He didn't know if the kid heard it, but it was worth a try.
The whole thing was rushed. Honestly, apart from punching the enemies in front of him, Peter had no idea what he should be doing. Until his suit lady connected him to the Avengers' comms—
«—What do we do with this damn thing?!»
OMG, was that Hawkeye?!
«Get those stones as far away as possible!»
Okay, okay… So that's the Infinity Gauntlet. That *is* pretty damn serious.
«No! We have to return them to their original timelines!»
Who was that?
…
«Dr. Strange, is this the one? The winning timeline?»
Peter heard Tony's question and the wizard's cryptic reply.
Alright, so it's a Schrödinger's cat… Schrödinger's victory path? Really hope this is the one.
Thank you, spider, for his enhanced vision, allowing him to quickly spot Hawkeye desperately running through the crowd with the gauntlet. Peter watched as the gauntlet was passed to Black Panther, only to be almost snatched by Squidward—forgive him, he really didn't know that guy's name—He swiftly swung over, snatching the gauntlet with his webbing just before the enemy could grab it: "I got it!"
"Instant Kill Mode activated!" Peter shouted, his heart pounding with adrenaline and nerves, struggling amidst the swarm of alien soldiers.
"I got this, I got this…" Peter muttered, but seeing more soldiers closing in, he had to yell for help, "Okay, I don't got this! Help! Somebody help!"
"Hey Queens! Heads up!"
Captain America's voice came from afar. Peter instinctively obeyed, shooting a web to propel himself upward as Mjolnir flew overhead.
"OH MY GOD—!"
The boy's hoarse scream was drowned out by the rain of laser fire. He was tossed through the air like a relay baton. He no longer cared who caught him or threw him next; his eyes were fixed only on the gauntlet—last time he failed to get it, leading to half the universe vanishing. This time, he couldn't fail again.
A laser blast shook him off the flying creature he was on. He hit the ground hard, clutching the gauntlet, scrambling on all fours to take cover behind the nearest barrier, holding the gauntlet tightly against his chest before it could be knocked away.
They might lose. The thought flashed through his mind amidst the deafening explosions. The intense suppressing fire had them scrambling
The gears in Peter's mind spun frantically. He needed to get the gauntlet to the right person, to send it back to where it came from. But there was no one around him now, others couldn't reach him, he could be blown up any second, the gauntlet could fall into the wrong hands… if Thanos got it, everything would be for nothing…
Millions of choices, only one right…
Even if the gauntlet was sent away, Thanos was still here. They'd have to keep fighting, they were destined to suffer heavy losses…
Or maybe…
Peter looked down at the gauntlet in his arms—
[Five years ago, Thanos used that gauntlet to snap his fingers, turning half the universe's life, including us, to dust.]
Peter recalled the wizard's words upon waking up.
Oh god, he must be insane now—
Seizing the moment when everyone was dodging fire and no one was paying attention to him, Peter slipped his hand into the gauntlet.
Indescribable agony instantly shot from his hand through his entire body. The violent energy surged through his frame like a bursting dam, hurting more than when he'd turned to dust on Titan. The nanotech suit dissolved almost instantly. His skin charred black, cracks glowing with the light of the Stones.
Peter had never felt his arm so heavy. The weight of the entire universe, in every sense, pressed down on his slender shoulders, making him scream and cry.
Please, please!
Let us win!
Let everyone—Oh, except Thanos and his army, of course—survive!
Holding onto that thought, Peter mustered all his strength and snapped his fingers.
*Snap*
The sound was soft, yet it clearly reached every corner of the battlefield.
The suppressing fire from above ceased abruptly. Time seemed to freeze.
"What's going on?" Tony watched the enemies around them begin to disintegrate, instinctively looking at Strange. "Did we win?"
"I don't know…" Strange shared the same confusion. "Maybe. Someone must have snapped. But this isn't any future I've seen…"
Thanos watched his army crumble like sand blown by the wind, piece by piece turning to ash, dissipating into the air. His gaze crossed the battlefield, landing on the young vigilante lying on the ground, clutching the gauntlet.
Thanos nodded slightly. Finally, he sat down where he was, closed his eyes, and calmly accepted his end.
"Okay, whoever snapped, good job." Tony watched Thanos vanish and immediately opened comms. "Hey kid, we won."
But the response was only static.
His eyes anxiously scanned the gradually calming battlefield. Heroes began emerging from their cover, looking at each other with confusion and growing joy. Victory was assured, but he didn't see that ever-restless red-and-blue figure.
"Spider-Man?" Tony called again, his heart sinking inexplicably, a dread worse than facing Thanos's army gripping him. "Spider-Man!"
"Friday, get me Spider-Man's last suit coordinates!"
The coordinates led Tony to a shattered piece of debris in the distance. The moment he saw Peter lying on his back, holding the gauntlet, Tony's voice caught in his throat. He dropped to his knees beside Spider-Man. "No… you stupid kid, how could you…!"
The teenager's right side was almost completely charred, a horrifying sight. On his remaining left side, those once vibrant brown eyes now lacked focus, clouded over. Tony cradled Peter's head, noticing his breathing was faint, almost imperceptible. The initial anger was instantly replaced by panic:
"No, I shouldn't… Hey, listen, look at me, look at me, Pete. You'll be fine, you're okay…" Tony futilely tried to address the terrible wounds, finding no place to start. The suit's faceplate retracted, revealing his pale, tear-streaked face. "Hey, can you hear me? It's me, Mr. Stark."
Peter seemed to hear the call. He struggled to turn his eyes, his gaze finally focusing on Tony's face. He twitched his lips, only managing to move the charred skin, trying to joke as usual: "Ow… this gauntlet… really 'bit' the dust…"
Tony forced a grim smile: "Kid, that pun is really terrible."
Peter apparently agreed: "So… did we win?"
"Yes, yes…" Tony's tears flowed uncontrollably. He nodded vigorously, choking up, barely able to speak. "We won, kid… we won… you did it… you did it, nice work, kid…"
"Cool…" A flicker of joy passed through Peter's eyes, quickly washed away by greater exhaustion.
His spider-sense told him his time was up.
"Tell May, Ned… I love them. I'm sorry."
"No, don't you dare! Don't you dare make me your messenger! You have to tell them yourself," Tony muttered, wiping his tears roughly, frantically looking around. "Medics! Medics! We need help over here!"
"Mr. Stark," Peter used almost his last bit of strength to touch Tony's arm, forcing him to turn back and face him.
He was leaving.
Peter felt his vision darkening again, almost exactly like before he turned to dust.
Although he really didn't want to go…
"… Stark, can you… give me… another hug?"
"Of course, of course…" Tony immediately held him tightly. "It's okay, you'll be okay, hang in there, help is coming… I'll take you home, we'll have lots and lots of hugs…"
"This is nice…" Peter leaned against the reactor on his mentor's chest. The mechanical hum and steady heartbeat replaced the noise in his ears. His vision narrowed to that faint blue glow, the pain in his body gradually receding.
Then,
Peace.
…
The last bit of life in the young boy's body extinguished like a candle in the wind. The hand resting at his side fell limp.
"No, no…" A broken, almost inhuman sob escaped Tony's throat. "No… Pete… please… not again…"
He tightened his arms even more, as if he could lock the life within them. He shook the frighteningly light body in his arms, whispering incoherently: "Wake up, come on, wake up. This isn't funny, this isn't funny at all, Kid…"
No response.
Those brown eyes, always sparkling with curiosity, excitement, or worry, now stared emptily, reflecting neither the sky nor his devastated face. Tony's trembling hand reached out, futilely trying to close the eyelids. His fingertips touched the gradually stiffening skin and recoiled as if burned.
"Come on, Tones…" Rhodey tried to lift Tony, to pull him up from the ground. "You need medical attention."
"No, not me," Tony replied stubbornly. "*He* needs medical attention. Call Strange, he can fix him. We can use the Time Stone, he can be saved!"
"Tony, he's gone…"
Pepper's voice sounded nearby, filled with incredible heaviness and sorrow. The Avengers had gathered behind them. The joy of victory hadn't even fully bloomed before being utterly extinguished by this tragic sacrifice.
"God, just a kid…"
Someone in the crowd whispered softly.
Sixteen… Tony added in his heart. He's only sixteen. He should be back in school, going on field trips, doing homework; he should be home, reunited with his aunt, building Legos with Ned, going on dates with girls, applying to MIT…
"Pep?" Tony, clutching the body, almost collapsed into Pepper's arms. Pepper sank down with him. "He's gone, Pepper. Again. He's gone again. Almost exactly like last time… I lost him again…"
Tony sobbed. The one person he'd hoped would return *did* return, but only for a few minutes. Just minutes.
"Shh, Tony, I know, I know…" she repeated softly, her fingers combing through his sweat-dampened hair, trying to offer a sliver of comfort. She knew better than anyone what this child meant to Tony.
The wind swept dust across the silent ruins, as if mourning the passing of a young hero.
Spider-Man is gone.