#soopernerd

So when Peter describes Tony as his friend to the lady at the front desk to explain his visit, Tony wears that like a badge of honor.

“He’s my friend” to reassure Aunt May over the phone before a particularly dangerous mission. “He’s my friend” to warn his kidnappers that hell’s coming to them. “He’s my friend” when someone asks why he trusts Tony Stark, someone who got rich off of destruction, off of apathy.

peter adores tony, but tony builds this emotional wall between them from the get-go, mostly because he’s afraid he’s going to be a bad influence. At the beginning of the mentorship he keeps peter at an arms length, because he knows everything he touches turns to ruin.

I certainly think that, in the earliest stages of their relationship, before peter started to see the more human side of him, he would copy his mannerisms, even simple little things like the way he stands with his hands in his pockets or the way he nods at the receptionist when he walks into one of his fancy business buildings. He thought that maybe, if he was more like tony, tony would like him more.

SCENARIOS:

when they’re in the lab, peter copies little things about tony, the way he sits, the way he stands with his arms crossed, the way he moves seamlessly around the room swiping at holograms and picking up tools in a controlled, chaotic dance. At this point, peter doesn’t know where everything is in the lab yet, but he feels insecure asking, so he just kind of fumbles around until tony helps him.

peter yells at DUM-E to pass him things the way tony does, except DUM-E doesn’t listen to him.

peter starts picking up some of the sayings that tony has, even the less… school appropriate ones.

peter gets kidnapped while he’s out on patrol. it’s the first time this has happened, and quite frankly he’s terrified. when tony is scared he doesn’t show it. so, he tries to act all tough and smart like tony. it only ends up making the kidnappers more angry with him, and they hurt him more.

after this, tony has a heart to heart with peter about all this, sort of an expansion on the classic “I just wanted to be like you / I wanted you to be better” moment from Homecoming, where he explains to him that he likes him just the way he is, and the reason he’s been so distant is because he doesn’t want to rub off on him.

peter explains that the reason he’s doing all that in the first place is he wants tony to be proud of him, and think he’s worth his time.

from there, they start to open up to each other.

tony the bad influence. tony who didn’t have any good parental influences in his life. tony who, afraid of messing up, ran away to india as a means of distancing himself from peter, peter the good kid, the scared kid just looking for someone to guide him.

tony the mentor. tony who steps up despite himself. he reads parenting books on “breaking the cycle of shame”. he learns peter’s little mannerisms and peeves— things that make him laugh, things that scare him, things that hurt him. he learns to understand peter, and as he does, he learns to understand himself.

tony the father. even after peter is gone, he’s reminded of him constantly in the ways he cares for morgan: he’s made a special spot for her out in the garage for times when she stays in there just to be with him. he remembers which stories and snacks are her favorites. he stays with her when she has a nightmare, reciting familiar lines he used to say to a kid he used to know.

peter taught him all that. how to realize his potential to love, and be loved, and not be afraid.

tony wears chunky shoes to make him seem taller when he’s in public and around the rest of the Avengers (inspired by the fact that RDJ wears these thickass shoes in the movies). but, when he’s working with peter in the lab, he just wears normal sneakers because Peter’s shorter than him so he doesn’t care, and all his insecurities feel a little less heavy when he’s just killing time with his teenager