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MISADVENTURES IN PARADISE
xii. THE POWER OF THE TRUTH

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   RILEY GAZED OUT THE window as the private plane filled with the students of Midtown High. After Beck ruined their trip, she figured the least she could do was help them get home safely. Of course, they had to use a bigger plane, not that they could've used the original jet Happy and Roman traveled in, as it'd incidentally been blown up by Beck.

   As Happy helped the others board, she chatted with Fury on the phone.

   "Our records state Beck worked for your old man, only to be fired after accusing Stark of stealing his tech and having a nervous breakdown," Fury clarified. "Not sure why he wanted credit for something called BARF, but I suppose it's a decent conversation starter."

   "Beck should've just gotten a hobby instead of becoming a murderer," she said. "How are the background checks on his team going? Anyone stand out?"

   "I try not to be surprised when these things happen. You can't trust anyone in this industry. It pays to have contacts."

   "Is that what Fury said when you took his place?"

   The long pause that came only confirmed her ongoing suspicions.

   "I can't lie, you had me convinced for a while, but Fury pretty much raised me. Where to start? The real Fury never would've let Beck's lies get this far. There's also your temper. Fury's a real dick, but he doesn't lash out too easily. Those pop culture references were a huge red flag, too. I'm guessing you knew I grew up caring about pop culture, which is why you thought referencing things like Teen Vogue would boost your performance," Riley coolly said. "You're lucky I'm not Nat because she would've put a bullet in your head before you could explain yourself. I'm a little peeved, but you helped us, so I'll let it slide. Who are you?"

   She waited patiently as two voices bickered in the background of the call. She eyed her nails, played with her sunflower necklace, and even thought about what she'd have for dinner later before 'Fury' sighed.

   "Talos." His voice changed, now deeper and accented English. "My name is Talos. My wife, Soren, has been impersonating Maria Hill. It's rare someone sees through us. You have a good eye."

   "Wait, that wasn't the real Maria?" She dropped her necklace. "Huh, she's good. Talos and Soren... I know those names. You're Skrulls, right? Do you know Carol? Wait, does that mean Fury's off-world? With Carol, my favorite person to ever exist? And he didn't tell me—?"

   "This is exactly why Fury didn't tell you," Talos said.

   "I'm extremely offended."

   "I extremely don't care."

   She huffed. "You know, Carol loves me."

   "Yes, I imagine she says that to all her strange fangirls."

   "She made me a flashlight with the light of the star NASA named after the Avengers. What'd she make you, hm? What's that? Oh, nothing? Yeah, I thought so."

   "I'm hanging up now."

   "Tell Carol if she needs me—!"

   "I'm not doing that."

   BEEP!

○ ○ ○

   The dial tone droned as Peter got off the phone with May, who had spent the last 15 minutes panicking in his ear over everything she'd seen on the news. She praised him for saving the day, too, but she was mostly riding off the adrenaline her Spider-Man-induced heart attack gave her.

   He and MJ stood at the back of the line as their peers boarded the plane, which shook as Flash shrieked, "WE'RE ON A PRIVATE PLANE SPONSORED BY VALOR? BEST DAY EVER."

   Ned chimed, "We literally almost died—"

   "BEST. DAY. EVER."

   Peter wasn't looking forward to being trapped in an inescapable metal tube with Flash again. He should've asked Roman to teleport him home, but he and Riley were surely long gone by now. They had no reason to sit through a lengthy flight when they had the luxury of Roman's powers.

   Peter supposed he could sit with Ned, but he knew he'd end up third-wheeling again. There was no chance in hell that Happy would let him sit up front either — if not to protect his identity, then because Peter happened to annoy the shit out of him on a flight to Berlin several years ago and never let it go. At least he had MJ and whatever casually traumatizing cult movies she'd force him to watch to look forward to.

   When they finally boarded, they couldn't help but notice every seat was filled. Their eyes swept every row, every seat, even the ones near Flash and Brad. Just their luck, not a single seat was available for Peter or MJ.

   "Uh, Mr. Dell?" Peter tapped their already snoring teacher's shoulder. "Mr. Dell?"

   His head snapped forward with a snort. "MAN DOWN! Oh, it's just you, Parker. What can I do for you? Are we there yet?"

   "We haven't left yet," MJ said. "Where do we sit? There's no room for us."

   Mr. Dell sprang out of his seat, neck pillow collapsing to the floor as he looked around. He rubbed his head. "Hold on. HARRINGTON! HARRINGTON, WE GOT A SITUATION!"

   Toward the front, Mr. Harrington was chatting with Happy and a figure standing behind a corner.

   "We really appreciate you guys doing this for us. You have no idea how stressful this trip has been," he babbled. "If there's anything we can do to thank you—"

   "That's not necessary, Mr. H. You guys are old friends," the unseen figure assured, which sounded eerily like Riley.

   "The kids were so distraught when they thought you... you know." Mr. Harrington sucked his teeth, drawing a finger across his neck. "I'm just relieved you're alive and everyone's safe—"

   "ROGER!" Mr. Dell bellowed, causing Mr. Harrington to jump. Happy and the unseen figure stepped out of the narrow corridor, revealing herself to be Riley. Peter perked up, for his enhanced hearing had served him well once again. "We have a problem. There aren't enough seats for everyone."

   Without looking up from his live-stream, Flash said, "Aw, I'm sure we can just tie Parker and MJ to the wings!"

   Riley eyed them innocently. "Oh, that's not a problem. They can just sit with Roman, Happy, and I up front."

   Flash leaped to his feet. "On second thought, it's only common courtesy if I offer Mr. Parker my seat—!"

   "Didn't you just say you wouldn't give up your seat on this plane for the world?" Riley teased, causing him to sink back down beside Brad, who was also sulking. Peter hadn't seen it, but she had just confirmed to the rest of his class that she had no idea who he was and that they weren't friends. "Come on, MJ. You, too, uh... Percy, right?"

   "Peter," he corrected, fighting a smile as they joined her. "We had some classes together before the Blip. We went to Camp Mirkhaven together, too."

   "Really? I don't remember seeing you." Riley looped her fingers with MJ's, pulling her along. "Sorry about that, Peyton."

   Once the curtain behind them was drawn, MJ asked, "Did you plan this?"

   Riley scoffed. "I can't believe what I'm hearing. You think Roman and I deliberately decided to tag along on this flight to put off filing our mission reports? You seriously think we made sure you and Pete wouldn't have seats with the others, thus forcing you to sit with us instead? As if!"

   On cue, Roman wandered out of the cockpit with a headset on. He stopped in his tracks. "Oh, hey, MJ."

   MJ's grip on Riley's hand tightened as she shyly said, "Hey, Rome."

   They weren't even trying to hide their feelings for each other anymore, and Riley loved it. They'd always been good at pretending their feelings weren't there, but things rapidly changed after Roman got shot. Because he didn't just get shot. He took a bullet to protect MJ. Sure, one could argue Roman was simply doing his job, but Riley squealed loud enough to shatter the sound barrier when she found out anyway.

   "Hi, Romie," Peter chimed.

   Roman scowled, but before he could retort, Riley demanded, "Take that shit off. You're not co-piloting this flight."

   "Why not? It doesn't even look that hard!" Roman demanded.

   "Because I don't wanna wake up mid-flight to you doing loop-de-loops!"

   "But Happy let me when we flew to the Netherlands—!"

   "No, I didn't," Happy declared as he dropped into the seat farthest from the group, sheathed his window, and slapped on an eye mask, preparing to sleep for the next eight hours undisturbed.

   The others followed suit, sitting in separate rows in pairs. The first hour of the flight was tame, filled with easy conversation, folding safety manuals into various shapes (because Riley was still insistent on becoming decent at origami), and listening to the incessant hum of the plane's turbines.

   Peter was tracing shapes on the back of Riley's hand when he asked, "Can I ask you something? What did Beck... show you with his illusion tech?"

   Every muscle in her body tensed. She could still see it so clearly. That was the curse that came with Beck's illusions. Every nightmare was seen with waking eyes, destined to follow you into your slumber. Rinse, repeat. A never-ending cycle.

   "Everything," she eventually said. "Everything I've ever loved, everything I've ever cared about. He showed me everything, then he took it from me. I couldn't do anything to stop it, no matter how hard I tried."

   "Me too. It was so real." Peter held his breath. "He said... He said if I was good enough, Ben would still be alive."

   "He's wrong," Riley asserted. Everything in sight was suddenly red. "You know he's wrong, right?"

   "I don't know," he mumbled. "Before Beck died, he said that people will believe in anything. He knew I'd believe that... right? I don't even know how he knew about Uncle Ben..."

   "Beck's been planning his revenge for years. He did his research because he wanted to hurt us. Because he couldn't touch Tony, and we were the next best thing. That doesn't mean he was right," Riley reminded. "What happened to Ben was never your fault."

   "Yeah... I know."

   Beck was lucky Riley hadn't known about the poison he tried putting in Peter's head. She would've murdered him herself.

   It wasn't long before she said, "I'm sorry."

   Peter didn't look up. "Why?"

   "You've been through a lot in the past 24 hours."

   "Oh. Yeah. I'll be okay... I think," Peter said. "It's not just the Ben thing. I... saw you die. And then I saw Beck die. Yeah, he was an awful person, but... seeing people die in general is... weird. I don't know how you're so used to it. The death."

   "I hope you never have to get used to it," Riley quietly said. "I know it sucked, but Beck can't hurt you anymore. You handled him like a pro out there, you know. You were amazing."

   "A pro wouldn't have given Beck EDITH," he said sourly.

   "Beck wouldn't have had EDITH if Tony and I didn't give her to you. We can play the blame game all day, but the point is, we owned up to it and fixed everything. Pros mess up all the time. Half of us are only in this industry because of an accident," Riley said. "I just... I want you to know you're enough. More than enough. You don't have to be perfect or... the next Iron Man..."

   Peter winced. "I shouldn't have said that—"

   "I'm only saying that because I feel the same way about myself."

   "...Seriously?"

   "All... the... time," she confessed. "I literally can't do anything without wondering what Nat or Tony or Steve or anyone would do instead because I'm so sure they could clean all my messes 10 times better than I can."

   "But..." His eyebrows scrunched. "You're Riley Stark."

   "And you're Peter Parker."

   "Don't say that like it... like it means something," Peter said. "Spidey hasn't done anything but protect the neighborhood from donut shop robberies. Peter Parker... He's no one special."

   "Do you even realize what makes Spidey so special? The fact that anyone can be under that mask," Riley said, genuinely offended. "You made him special. You made him a hero. Not Iron Man. Not me. Peter Parker. Peter's the reason Spidey even exists! Yeah, maybe someone else can do our jobs better than us, someone who won't screw up, but they're not here, are they? We can sit and wish we were someone else and wish we were as good as our idols all day, but that doesn't change who we already are and what we've done to help others. No one can tell us who we are. We don't have to fill anyone's shoes but our own."

   Despite how Peter stared at her adoringly, Riley blinked and leaned into her seat, dumbstruck. "This leadership shit is a curse! Motivational speeches are literally pouring out of me!" she wailed.

   "I love you," he laughed. "I think we both needed to hear that."

   "I think you're right."

   Peter rested his head on her shoulder, allowing Riley to lean on him, too. For the rest of the flight, they didn't speak, finally allowing themselves the pleasure of a peaceful night's rest.

   When they landed, a tiny knot of jealousy tangled Riley's gut as she watched the students of Midtown High run through the airport to greet their loved ones. At least she had Roman... who was still talking to MJ. They hadn't stopped talking the entire flight, smiling, laughing, gossiping about government secrets that Roman wasn't supposed to be sharing.

   "Those guys are so cute," Betty gushed from beside Ned.

   "It's kinda weird," Peter admitted.

   "You're just mad because Rome doesn't flirt with you anymore," Riley taunted. "Hey, maybe you guys can all go on a triple-date! Rome and MJ, Ned and Betty, and Happy and May!"

   Peter knew she only said that because she knew it'd make him gag, which it did. "I can't believe Happy and May are... a thing. At least, I'm pretty sure—"

   "Oh, we broke up," Ned and Betty revealed together.

   "No!" Peter exclaimed. "W-What? Why?"

   "Men and women grow apart, but the journey they share together will always be a part of them," Ned reminiscently said.

   Betty gently cupped his cheek. "You are so wise."

   "What does that have to do with you guys breaking up?" Riley wondered as Betty dreamily walked away. Ned gave a smile and a shrug, going to find his parents, too. "Guys? Hello?"

   Peter snorted. "I should go find May."

   Riley nodded, purposely keeping some distance between them. The last thing they needed was for the press to catch one of the most famous people in the world casually talking to someone with a secret identity. The press would have a field day if they ever found out Peter was Spider-Man.

   "Tell her I said hi," she said. "I'll see you later, uh... Paul...?"

   "It's still Peter." He lowered his voice, adding, "You're having way too much fun with this."

   "You think I enjoy pretending I have no idea who you are? Who do you think I am?"

   One by one, the students left the airport with their families. Riley observed from the sidelines, ensuring everyone was okay before she felt comfortable leaving. The knot wound itself tighter as she watched them, arms slung around each other, kisses stamping their cheeks. She remembered feeling the same way watching her peers reunite with their families after the Washington Monument fiasco. Back then, the only person waiting to take her home was Happy. This was, more or less, the same situation, wasn't it?

   But Happy had left as soon as they landed, leaving Riley alone and wondering where Roman wandered off to. That was when she spotted the sign with her and Roman's names written in blinking lights.

   "RILEEEEEEEYYYYY!" Morgan Stark squealed as Roman carried her on his back.

   "Oh my God," Riley gasped, allowing her legs to propel her forward. Tony met her halfway, being the first to welcome her home in a suffocatingly tight hug.

   "You die or magically go missing one more time, and I'm implanting a microchip in your head while you're asleep like a dog," Tony threatened, kissing the top of her head.

   Pepper rolled her eyes, pulling her eldest into her arms. "He's kidding."

   "No, he's not," Riley said as Tony said, "No, I'm not."

   "So, was this necessary?" Roman asked, nodding to the electric sign still flashing their names.

   "Mommy said Daddy was m... manic because the big fire guy on the TV scared him," Morgan explained. "I dunno why! It was just a movie! Wasn't even real!"

   "I don't like monsters," Tony shrugged. "I'll have you know, it can also do this." He clapped his hands, causing the lights on the sign to strobe and a little jingle to play. Tiny fireworks burst out of the sign, falling into a formation that oddly resembled Roman and Riley's faces.

   "Wow," Riley marveled. "Retirement really turned you into a dork."

   "It was Morgan's idea," Pepper mentioned.

   "You didn't let me finish. I love it."

   "That's funny, you know," Tony remarked, "coming from the kid who got hit by a plane. I mean, seriously, how do you not see it coming?"

   "Have I ever told you that if you had just a mustache, you'd look exactly what I'd imagine the Monopoly man would look like after he becomes geriatric?" Riley fired back.

   "It's so weird. Every time you open your mouth, I hear this annoying buzzing sound."

   "Isn't that what your Nanny used to say about you? You know, the one you had until you were 14?"

   "Well, at least things are back to normal," Pepper said, watching as Tony and Riley walked away together, completely leaving the rest of the family behind because they were so busy bickering. She and Roman followed them. "So, tell me about London. Did you get a chance to go to that bakery I told you about?"

   "No, but I saw it in passing right before I got shot."

   "You're kidding! Talk about bad luck. Maybe next time."

   Roman snorted. "Yeah, next time."

   The next few days were spent filling out mission reports and running further damage control, including explaining to the UN what happened with the drones and keeping in touch with Talos and Soren. Riley ended up spending more time answering phone calls than ever, even after all the busy work was finished. First, a call from Bucky, then Sam, then Bruce, and lastly, Clint. They'd seen her "death" on the news and wanted to make sure she was okay. Some had taken it seriously, others just called to laugh and gloat about how they truly didn't believe the news when they saw it.

   At the Stark Cabin in the woods, they didn't spend much time unpacking everything that unfolded in Europe, instead following the routine they'd picked up after someone in the family saved the day for the billionth time: daily family breakfasts, lounging on the porch, talking, and simply enjoying the air and each other's presence.

   It was a week later when Riley announced to her family one afternoon, "Well, guys, these past few days have been nice, but I have to drop Roman off for his big date."

   Pepper sat up. "With MJ?!"

   "I can't believe I told you guys about her," Roman groaned as Riley pulled him out of his seat, where he'd been sitting with the youngest Stark. "Save me, Morgan!"

   Morgan just laughed, waving him goodbye.

   "Don't be nervous, Junior. It's a rite of passage," Tony whimsically said. "A boy's journey into manhood."

   "Oh?" Pepper sipped her glass of iced tea. "When are you embarking on this journey?"

   "Romie's going on a date?" Morgan wondered.

   "It's a date," Riley confirmed, booping her nose, "but not the kinda date you're thinking of."

○ ○ ○

   Riley held her stomach as she laughed uncontrollably, watching as Spider-Man swung a wildly screaming Roman through New York. She was laughing so hard that she nearly fell off her forcefield as she flew after them, tears streaming from her eyes as Peter kept "accidentally" dropping and catching Roman mid-air.

   It all started with an innocent comment from Roman, just before they landed in New York again last week: "I've always wondered what it's like swinging on those webs."

   Now, he had his answer.

   "PUT ME DOWN! PUT ME DOOOWWWWNNNN!" Roman screeched. "I'M GONNA DIE! I'M GONNA DIEEEE! I'M GONNA KILL YOU, I SWEAR I'M GONNA— AHHHHHHH!"

   With one last swing, Spider-Man landed on Eighth Avenue. Roman was still gripping him, eyes squeezed shut as he stuck one foot out, feeling for the ground beneath him. When his shoe touched the cement, Roman scrambled off Peter and clung to the nearby street light, hugging it tenderly.

   "Oh, it's over. Thank Asteria, it's over," Roman panted while New Yorkers passed them by. The locals paid them no mind, whereas tourists watched them through their phones, gawking excitedly over seeing real superheroes up close.

   Riley landed after them. "I'm gonna pee myself, holy shit!"

   "Aw, Rome, you're making me blush!" Peter pretended to tuck his hair behind his ear. "I didn't know I took your breath away so easily!"

   "I could kill both of you and never shed a tear," Roman grumbled. "Stop laughing!"

   "I can't!" Riley's arms were tightly wrapped around herself as her ribs started to ache. "I'm pretty sure I saw your heart fall out of your ass three blocks ago!"

   "We are never, let me make myself clear, NEVER doing that again! NEVER!" Roman yelled. "How do you do that every day!? I thought I was gonna puke!"

   "I'm glad you didn't," Peter cooed. "That would've made our first date extremely awkward."

   "Do you want to die right now?"

   "If it gets me out of college apps, then absolutely."

   "Ladies, ladies," Riley stood between them, using Peter as support as she finally caught her breath, "I think we can settle this through churros. Who's down?"

   "Hell yes," Peter agreed. "Want me to swing you, Romie?"

   "Want me to hit you, Petey?"

   "Guys, look," Riley said, nodding toward the jumbotron hanging over Pennsylvania Station. Despite being surrounded by towering skyscrapers, each embellished with massive ads alongside even bigger billboards, the jumbotron stood out, its speaker blasting through the streets over the honking cars and civilian chatter.

   "This is breaking news!" a news anchor reported. "We come to you now with revelations about last week's attack in London. An anonymous source provided this video. It shows Quentin Beck, aka Mysterio, moments before his death. A warning: You may find this video disturbing."

   Riley's smile fell as she gawked at the jumbotron. By now, everyone was paying attention to the news. A pixelated recording flickered across the screen, revealing a bleeding and dying Beck. He was on the bridge, but instead of that gray jumpsuit they'd seen him in before, he was in his Mysterio costume. How?

   "I managed to send the Elemental through the dimensional rift, but I don't think I'm gonna make it off this bridge alive," Beck frantically said. Hot tears threatened to stream down his cheeks. "Spider-Man attacked me for some reason! He has an army of weaponized drones, stolen Stark technology. He's saying he's the only one who's gonna be the new Iron Man, no one else. Valor thought she could help him. She said he was her boyfriend, she thought she could help him find his sanity. But then Spider-Man attacked her and Roman, too!"

   The video feed switched to another view of Beck, where he was laying on the floor of the bridge, slowly dying. It was hard to tell, with all the smoke and destruction around them, but the lower half of Spider-Man was visible in the frame.

   "Are you sure you want to commence the drone attack? There will be significant casualties," EDITH warned.

   "Do it," Peter said. "Execute them all."

   Gunfire from the drones exploded in the background, followed by a recording of Riley's voice crying out, "NO, NO! STOP! STOP, PLEASE!"

   Riley's head spun as the video played. She never said that! Not on the bridge, at least! She'd screamed those words when Beck was using his illusion tech against her — when he showed her an illusion of Peter dying... Oh.

   Beck was setting them up. One last attempt at ruining their lives. One last attempt at revenge. One last attempt at tearing Riley and Peter apart.

   No, Riley could fix this. As the crowd of people around her, Roman, and Spider-Man began to stir, all she could think was that she could fix this.

   "This shocking video was released earlier today on the controversial news website, TheDailyBugle.net," the news anchor explained.

   The screen cut to a famous journalist by the name of J. Jonah Jameson, a balding older man who ran the Daily Bugle. He ranted, "There you have it, folks, conclusive proof that Spider-Man was responsible for the brutal murder of Mysterio, the inter-dimensional warrior who gave his life to protect our planet, and who will, no doubt, go down in history as the greatest superhero of all time! But that's not all, folks. Here's the real blockbuster. Brace yourselves, you might wanna sit down."

   "What else could there be?" Roman muttered. His knuckles were white as he clenched his fist.

   "Don't ask," Riley hissed, her voice an entire octave higher as she panicked.

   The recording switched to Beck as he uttered his last words. "Spider-Man's real—" The video glitched. "Spider-Man's real name is P—"

   The screen turned black. The feed was cut off.

   The world held its breath as they waited for the final bomb to blow. Tick... Tick... Tick...

   Riley was frozen, stuck to the pavement, like prey caught in a spider's web, waiting for its death. Tick... Tick...

   A memory echoed in her head. "My real power, Valor, is the truth. And soon, everyone will know the truth, delivered by a real hero. ME!" Beck had sworn the night he tried to kill her. "Feel my power, Valor. Let the truth set you free."

   Finally, the recording returned to the screen.

   "Spider-Man's real name is Peter Parker!"

   A yearbook photo of Peter flashed across the jumbotron. The crowd erupted with roars and gasps as the news sounded, almost like an explosion. But this explosion didn't kill them. It only made them wish it had.

   One by one, Peter's photo popped up on every electric screen in the vicinity, spreading across the borough, across the state, across the country, across the goddamn world.

   The secret was out.

   Peter threw his hands to his head, horrified as he shouted, "WHAT THE FU—?"

   The last thing that played on the screen was Riley's raspy screams once more, as if the world needed any further proof that Peter was Spider-Man, "PETER! NO, NO! STOP! STOP, PLEASE!"

   It was too late.

   As of today, to the rest of the world, Spider-Man and Valor were enemies.

END OF ACT TWO; CANYON MOON

○ ○ ○

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

I don't even know what to say right now lmfao.

All I'll say is — aside from I HOPE YOU'RE ROTTING IN HELL, BECK — I hope you guys enjoyed this act and my twists on FFH!! It's been so fun and so challenging writing FFH while also trying to stay true to Peter's character arc/journey. I know Tony's alive, but it's important to me that Peter still somehow develops the way he does in the movies.

It's also so important how Riley's also grown through all of this chaos. She's maturing, she's fighting her fear of commitment and fear of the future, she's no longer comparing herself to the other Avengers. She's come so far!!

Of course, just when things start looking up again, everything falls apart. Beck used his final breaths to ruin Peter's life and to push him and Riley apart. It's no secret that Peter and Riley are stronger together, so what happens now that they're forced to take opposite sides in this insane scandal? How will Riley help prove Peter's innocence when everyone thinks he stole Stark tech and tried to kill her? Will Riley believe that Peter didn't murder Beck? Will Peter finally get a break? Who knows! Get ready for NWH!!

And, of course, I have a few twists up my sleeve because I love chaos. Stay tuned :)

(No, I have no idea how I'm going to casually write Tony into NWH while maintaining the actual plot/message of the movie, but thank you so much for asking anyway).