Man, I am batting 1 out of 3 for these little talks so far, and that's really not a good average if I'm trying to help these people put their lives together. For gods sake, I can talk down The Hulk, but I can't have a supportive conversation with a regular person?
Okay, Peter Parker and Steve Rogers probably don't count as "normal" exactly, but still, this isn't going very well. I got a do over with Steve atleast, but I have no idea how I'm going to patch things up with Peter. Or even if I should, for that matter. For crying out loud, I knew he was an emotionally devastated teenager, but the second he showed resistance to my "advice", I basically just jammed my thumb into an open wound.
I pull off my sunglasses and lie back on the grass of the mansion lawn, staring at the greying October sky above me.
I'm starting to wonder if I'm even helping at all here. I'd hoped I could atleast divert some of the disasters I remember from the comics, and yeah, I did manage to keep Bruce from consigning himself to decades of loneliness and misery, but christ, I also managed to talk Captain America out of being Captain America! I still think he needed to step back a bit and actually think things over, but when I say it out loud like that, it sounds pretty bad. I really hope he does come back, because I'm pretty damn sure the U.S is going to need him in the coming years. I know he didn't do much to help social progress in the comics, but this is an actual reality, not one controlled by the Comics Code that forbids everyone from saying mean things about the government. Here, he can actually help make things better.
And then, there's Peter...
A shadow falls over me as a figure blocks my view of the sky.
"Well, aren't you just the picture of misery? It really clashes with your wardrobe, you know."
I blink as the figure becomes clearer, and I see Tony Stark standing over me, dressed in a shirt with a grey suit jacket draped over his arm. His tie is undone, hanging loosely around his neck.
"Oh, hello, Mr. Stark. Just contemplating all my failures, that's all. You?"
He sits down next to me, crossing his legs as he slumps down "Oh, just got back from a little after-work thing at the Copacabana. The Mk III armor is officially finished, so I figured a little celebration was in order. I mean, that's why I was there, no one else knew obviously, for them it was just a millionaire playboy doing some Tuesday drinking."
"I guess the chest plate makes your old playboying a bit difficult, huh?"
"Sunshine, you have no idea. I mean, I wouldn't give up the hero thing we're doing now for anything, but missing out on the parties Hefner throws, it comes close." He shakes his head "So, which particular failures are you contemplating anyway? You don't seem to be doing THAT badly, even if making Captain America run away from home is a bit of a mark against you."
Well, might as well ask... "Hypothetically, let's say there's this... troubled teenager I know. Now, this kid is smart, like SCARY smart. Like, could probably make a doomsday weapon in his garage after an especially bad day at school smart. Now, let's just say I tried to talk to this kid, only instead of helping, I basically threw all his trauma and guilt back in his face."
Stark raises an eyebrow "How hypothetical is this situation exactly?"
"I'm lying in the middle of your lawn and staring at the sky, what do you think?"
"...okay, can you atleast tell me who this hypothetical kid is?"
I shake my head "No, he's pretty damn protective of his identity, the only reason I know about it is because of the, you know..." I point at my head "random future insights. But let's just say there's a lot of heroic potential there I don't want to see going down the drain because I screwed up. Also, he's a nice kid otherwise, and according to my visions, his current path isn't going anywhere pleasant. I know I can't fix all his problems, but I'd atleast like to be able to get him past his shitty background so he'll stop sabotaging himself."
"Well, fixing PEOPLE aren't really my thing, if he was over 18, I'd just recommend you taking him out drinking and bonding that way."
"Yeah, I don't think that'll work in this case."
"Right, well, luckily for you, I do have some small experience in the field of "child prodigy with shitty pasts" to draw from, so I might be able to give you some advice. Just... a quick question first. He's not YOUR kid, right?"
"WHAT?!" I bolt upright "Of course not! Do I look like... well, I guess I am technically old enough to have a teenage son, but no, he's not mine. Why would you think that?"
"Hey, you have any idea how many people in my social circles have kids they never talk about? It's kind of a playboy occupational hazard, and I didn't want to make assumptions about your social life. It's not like I know what you do when you're away from the mansion."
I sigh "Nevermind that, you had some advice...?"
....
"YOU AGAIN?! I told you to leave me the hell alone!"
"Okay, that's an entirerly reasonable reaction considering how our talk yesterday ended up, but if you'd just hear me out..."
I decided against trying to actually meet Parker inside Middleton High again, yesterday was one thing when Sandman was trashing the place, but there's no reason for Mr. Sunshine or Johan Magnusson to be at the school, much less looking for Peter Parker. Luckily, it was just a matter of waiting for school to let out in the afternoon, then follow Peter as he ducked into the closest blind alley to switch into his Spider-Man costume so he could go out webswinging and look for bad guys to beat up and let out the frustration of yet another day of societally approved misery gauntlet, i.e high school.
Of course, that also means he's in asskicking mood, and I'm already on his shitlist, so I'm staying in my half-light form just in case he takes a swing at me, which I wouldn't blame him for.
"You have some damn nerve, after all those awful things you said yesterday! I should take you down and leave you for the police myself!"
"And why would you do that? I'm a... well, I hate to call myself a hero, because that sounds so conceited, but I guess crimefighter, just like you!"
"Oh please, I've seen those interviews you did, I've seen what they're saying about you in the newspapers, you're practically a communist if half what they say is true!"
I cross my arms and give him a flat look "Really, so I'm being accused of something I haven't done, because the people who own the media don't like me and use it as a blunt weapon. Sound familiar at all?"
That actually makes him pause "That's... it's not the same! Jameson just hates me!"
I nod "Yeah, I'm aware. He hates me too, because we both represent something bigger than him - he hates us because no matter how hard he tries, or how much money he has, or how many important friends he gets, he can never have powers or perform heroics like we do. And if he can't have something, he'd rather tear it all down like a spoiled child."
It's a bit of a half truth, Jameson's hate of superheroes is genuine, but I've read a few back issues of the Bugle in my downtime, and he's surprisingly liberal in other areas, especially civil rights, which is depressingly rare in this era. He could be a real force for good, if he wasn't such a stubborn old goat when it comes to anyone in a mask. At any rate, I've seem to have rattled Parker a bit with that.
"I... we're still not the same."
"Of course we're not the same, you're an orphaned teenager, while I'm a grown man who should have known better than act like I did yesterday, so for what it's worth... I'm sorry... I know it doesn't make up for doing it in the first place, but I did mean what I said about wanting to help you. Because I can't just in good conscience ignore the things I've seen of the future, and you don't deserve all the crap the world is going to pile on you. Hell, you don't deserve any of the crap you've already dealt with! I can't force you to accept help, and I don't want to anyway, but I think deep down, you know that things aren't going the right way."
He still looks like he wants to punch my head off, but finally, he seems to relent, his shoulders slumping "...I'm not giving up being Spider-Man. Not for anything. It's too important."
"You don't have to. See, I can't fix all your problems for you, but I CAN help alleviate some of them. Or rather, I know someone who can" I reach into my vest, and pull out the card Stark gave me "You're a bit too young for full membership, but how does a paid reserve position with The Avengers sound?"685