Fic: Collision Course (Comfortember)

[csi_sanders1129]

Title: Collision Course
Chapters: 1/1
Author:csi_sanders1129
Genre: Drama.
Ratings: K+
Word Count: 655
Pairings/Characters: Frank Castle, Peter Parker, Tony Stark
Synopsis: In which Frank and Peter are in search of a lead and Iron Man interrupts their plans.
Comments: Written for Comfortember 2020, Prompt: Car Rides. Follows Worlds Collide. This and ‘Worlds Collide’ were both challenge responses, so they’re not exactly fully fleshed out but I’ll likely add things between these two as I go. Comments and kudos would be awesome. Enjoy!

"Can I drive?"

Frank raises an eyebrow at the kid as they cross out of New York and into Jersey. After several weeks of research, they've finally tracked down a lead on de Merville's new personality. "I don't know," he says, "can you?"

Peter looks unimpressed with the snarkiness. "Hey, I got my license last month, I'll have you know."

"Yeah, yeah," Frank laughs, "Gotta stop for gas soon, then you can drive," he concedes.

Suddenly, though, there's something in the road in front of them. A person. Frank slams on the brakes, but as he gets closer, he's reasonably certain the car would have lost the battle if he actually made impact.

Tony Stark's in front of them.

"Oh, no," Peter says, sinking down into the passenger's seat, looking a lot like he'd very much prefer to disappear. Instead, he plasters an overeager smile on his face and puts his window down. "Mr. Stark! Hey! How's it going? Nice night for flying?"

"Don't even try it, kid," the man in the literal fucking Iron Man suit says. "I get alerts when you leave New York, you know. What are you doing out here? It's a school night," he recoils at his own words, like they leave a bad taste in his mouth, "Ugh, 'it's a school night' - did I just say that? You made me say that." Then his eyes land on Frank. "And just who are you, anyway? And why are you driving across state lines with a sixteen year old at midnight?"

"Says the guy who has the kid lo-jacked?"

"Nice try." Stark must run some sort of scan with all of the fancy tech in his suit. He does not look pleased by whatever it tells him. "Oh, Frank Castle. Great, Peter, you're hanging out with the Punisher, who is, evidently, not dead."

Frank tenses. That's not good. Could have been worse, he supposes, if Peter hadn't already known that, but the kid had figured it out the day they met. Still, he doesn't particularly like the idea of Tony Stark knowing about him.

"Peter, get out of the car now," Stark demands, all traces of humor or sarcasm gone from his tone. "I'll take you home."

But Peter doesn't move. "That's okay, Mr. Stark. We're good."

"Yeah, I wasn't really giving you a choice."

Frank's about to protest. He knows about Peter's alter-ego, just as Peter knows about his own vigilante acts of justice. Still he hadn't realized quite how involved in it all Stark was. He supposes he should have, given Peter's 'internship' and the very fancy and high-tech suit. Despite that, Stark isn't his father, and as sketchy as this situation undoubtedly is, he doesn't get to act like he is. But, suddenly there's an arrow through the windshield, it goes whizzing by perilously close to Peter's headrest.

"Shit," Frank slams the car into reverse, spins so that Peter's side of the car is furthest away from any more incoming shots, and floors it. Iron Man, he's sure, can hold his own.

"What the hell was that?" Stark's voice is patched through the radio in the car now. "Did you bring a fucking kid along with you while you're on the run from whatever shit you're tied up in?"

"He's after both of us," Peter answers, "Is he still around?"

"Got a lock on a figure about a thousand meters out, which makes that one hell of a shot." There's sounds of a brief scuffle over the radio after that, and a moment later, Stark returns, and the form of an unconscious but familiar man drops ungracefully to the ground in front of the car. Stark lands beside it, a file folder of information on both of them – snapshots of them at the coffee shop that first day, proof they'd been tailed in the weeks since. "You two have a hell of a lot of explaining to do."