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ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING
i. HEIGH-HO

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   THE SCREAMS ARE HAUNTING. The bone-chilling howls that flood into the heavens and anchor themselves into our ears—they always would be. If you listen closely, the eerie melody of the victims' cries can be heard over the hum of silence in our daily lives. They lull us to sleep, attracting the nightmares that keep us on our toes throughout the day, the nightmares that spark raw shivers down our aching spines, the tear-jerking nightmares that awaken us with screams of our own.

   "Riley, help!"

   Riley Stark remembered every scream.

   "Please!"

   Even the ones from her adorable, yet incredibly annoying little sister.

   Rolling her eyes, Riley adjusted her position on the couch in the living room. Her arms were tucked behind her head, her muscular body sprawled across the sumptuous cushions. On top of an armrest was where her feet laid, revealing pink fuzzy socks. She pulled her hand out of the bag of chips before her, dusting off the crumbs from her pajamas—a big t-shirt and shorts—and declared, "I'm not helping you break the lock on the fridge, Morgan!"

   "Pleaseee?" the 5-year-old begged, arms flailing. She went trudging around the corner. "I know you know the password!"

   "Mom said no sugar after dinner!" reminded Riley. She strained her ears, attempting to focus on the screen in front of her. An episode of Brooklyn 99 had been playing.

   As much as she wanted to entertain Morgan, the teenager had missed out on five years' worth of pop culture. Between preparing to take over the Avengers and working nonstop, she found it difficult to catch up on everything completely.

   It was the evening of July 13th, 2023. Another month and a half had gone by. Only this time, the entirety of June felt like it was arguably the slowest month of her 16 years of life thus far. Her days had been flooded with interviews, press conferences with government officials and the UN, and rebuilding the Avengers HQ. While Riley's life had always revolved around work, this time was different.

   She was no longer the "mysterious Avenger." She was Riley Stark, teenaged superhero Valor, the eldest daughter of the Stark family, the newest leader of the Avengers. She had told her story to the public from the beginning countless times by now, and while it took some getting used to, she could feel the public beginning to support her again.

   She had no clue how the others dealt with all of this. Riley had never really told her story growing up because her colleagues already knew the grueling details before meeting her. Meanwhile, the public was clueless. Riley had repeated her story and relived her worst memories so often that she was becoming desensitized to it. Now, Riley understood why Tony was always such a pain in the ass when it came to anything press-related.

   It was even harder without a good chunk of the team by her side like they normally were. With Steve and Natasha working behind the scenes in less stressful environments, Thor venturing space with the Guardians of the Galaxy, Clint and Tony's retirement, and Bruce's temporary leave of absence to relax again, Riley was on her own. She didn't mind once she got used to it, though. After all, Riley was born to lead, and it showed.

   The public was initially reluctant on all of the sudden changes: Riley becoming the leader of the Avengers, Sam Wilson taking over as Captain America, many of the "Originals" moving on with their lives, and more. However, they were learning to accept change as it came. They had to, especially in a universe that just became stranger and stranger.

   Riley knew the team wasn't as strong as it once was. The originals weren't the only ones the team had lost. Pietro was still in a coma in Wakanda, Carol was in space, Wanda had gone MIA (though sources last reported she was in New Jersey), and Asgard was still rebuilding their community and adjusting after Valkyrie's coronation. But Riley was confident she could whip everyone back into shape when the time came.

   For now, however, Riley wanted everyone to rest. If they were going to heal and come to terms with their personalized traumas, like Clint becoming wholly deaf and mourning Vision, they needed to. They all deserved to rest, which was why Riley had put in just a little bit more effort to make sure the others weren't bothered during these next few months. While it was draining in every aspect, Riley did it for her team.

   It was arduous at first, but life was better again. For good this time. Tony and Pepper were on their honeymoon, Happy visited nearly every day, and everyone else was assimilating back into what they considered a normal life.

   For Riley, that included working nonstop and spending time with her little sister. As a matter of fact, that was all she really did nowadays, but the 16-year-old didn't mind.

   Morgan jutted out her lower lip as she glared at Riley, the gears in her brain turning at lightning speed. She didn't like it when Riley actually followed the responsibilities their parents issued her. The girl looked around the room before her eyes landed on something.

   "Hey, Dum-E, can you—?"

   "Dum-E, if you move an inch, I won't hesitate to pour water on you again!" interrupted Riley. "And I won't put you in rice again either!"

   The robot that was traditionally used to assist Tony Stark in building his inventions had quickly turned into another thing of entertainment for the Stark sisters while their parents were gone. Riley didn't have much time to do anything she actually enjoyed doing, like building random inventions, in a long time, so she moved Dum-E into the living room and the rest was history.

   Morgan tilted her head back and groaned rather loudly, causing Riley to amusedly chuckle. "Aw, don't be like that. Come here," she insisted, patting the spot beside her. Morgan eyed her skeptically, slowly making her way over to the girl. Without warning, Riley reached out and grabbed the child, immediately tickling her relentlessly. "Gotcha!"

   "Hey! Hey... Stop it!" Morgan managed to squeal between insurgent giggles.

   "No way," insisted Riley. Her fingers continued to move swiftly, eliciting more and more laughter from Morgan, who was now laying on the couch. "Not until you say it!"

   "F...Fine!" Morgan cried. Wide smiles were plastered across their faces. Riley pulled back her hands, allowing Morgan to take in a deep breath and announce, "I love you 1,307!"

   Riley scoffed. "Are you kidding me?" she demanded. Riley poked Morgan's side again once she was sitting up. "That number sucks!"

   "If you give me cookies, I'll think about moving you up," Morgan attempted to compromise.

   "Or I could tell Mom and Dad you're trying to threaten the best superhero of all time," countered Riley. "I'll feed you and the cookies to the sharks!"

   Morgan's eyes widened. "No! Not the cookies!" she bellowed. She reached forward and wrapped her arms around Riley's side. "I love you, 3,000, Tink!"

   Riley snickered triumphantly, pulling her arm over her sister. "That's more like it, shortie."

   Since the wedding, the sisters had become even closer. It had gotten to the point where Riley couldn't believe that she once believed Morgan would ever dislike her.

   Now that their parents were on their honeymoon, the sisters spent most of their time together (when Riley wasn't working, of course). This included tea parties, movie nights, inventing useless machines, cupcake decorating competitions, and even a few instances where Riley would teach Morgan basic self-defense. She'd never forget her satisfaction when Morgan learned how to throw a punch.

   Riley wasn't surprised when she discovered Morgan sleeping beside her only 15 minutes later. Rather than waking her up, Riley swiftly scooped her up in her arms and carried her to her room. She tucked in the child and left without a word. She hummed to herself carelessly as she headed back to the living room to continue her Netflix marathon. However, before she turned the corner, she noticed something: the TV wasn't on anymore.

   A sea of confusion washed over the Latina. She furrowed her eyebrows together. She had left the room with the episode of Brooklyn 99 still playing, so why was it suddenly off? Shrugging, Riley knew that if there was an intruder, she could easily overpower them.

   Though, if there was an intruder, surely JOCASTA or FRIDAY would have activated the alarms in the home? And why would the intruder go out of their way to turn off the TV? Riley warily continued to march forward, this time prepared to fight an invader if she needed to.

   "Hasn't anyone taught you to turn off the TV when you're not using it?"

   A sigh of relief escaped Riley almost as immediately as she rolled her eyes. Sitting before her on the couch in her place was Tony Stark.

   "I was using it," proclaimed Riley matter-of-factly. "I was tucking in Morgan." Her face lit up as Pepper approached her with a smile. The teenager quickly greeted her with a hug, adding, "Hi, Mom!"

   Tony eyed the two while standing up. "Hey, how come she gets a happier greeting than me?" he interrogated, only pretending to sound offended.

   Riley shrugged. "Because Pepper's my favorite parent," she deadpanned before hugging him. As Tony kissed Riley's cheek, she couldn't help but wonder, "So why exactly are you guys back two days early? Wait, don't tell me. You missed Morgan and me."

   A burst of songful laughter split Pepper as she wondered, "Is it sad that it's true?"

   Tony waved his hand in a dismissive, warning manner. "Don't tell her that," he urged his wife. He nodded toward Riley where she was now sitting, similar to her parents. "Her head's already massive. It's like Canada or something."

   "I'm taking that as a compliment."

   "Emphasis on the "or something" part."

   "Still not offended."

   "Is it because I said Canada?"

   "Bingo," Riley nonchalantly said. Naturally and expectedly, she had missed them, and so did Morgan. Still, she was just a little curious. She was even expecting them to extend their trip by a few days. But here they were, home early. "So, how was the Maldives? Must've been awful if you're back so soon."

   Pepper shook her head, brushing her long, strawberry blonde hair over one shoulder. Her eyes peeked out from beneath her choppy bangs that were just a little too long for comfort. A small smile adorned her bare face that seemed to brighten her overall complexion. It was clear she and Tony hadn't made time for personal upkeep, which everyone had foreseen. Pepper and Tony didn't have anyone to impress. They were too busy together on their honeymoon, happily dedicating their time to nothing but each other.

   "Actually, it was great," admitted Pepper. "We have to go back with you and Morgan. You'll both love it."

   Riley nodded, thinking out loud for a moment by declaring, "I don't think I'll be able to clear my schedule for the next decade." She let out a little bittersweet laugh.

   Riley would have to be blind in order to miss the uneasy glances Tony and Pepper instantly exchanged upon processing her words. She knew exactly what they were doing. They knew each other so well that they could communicate through gazes alone. That seemed to be a hidden superpower amongst the Stark family, one that Morgan would one day learn herself.

   "...Am I missing something?" Riley slowly asked. "Because it feels like I am."

   Pepper cleared her throat. "That's... uh, actually why we cut our trip short," she revealed. "We're worried about you."

   Raising her eyebrows, Riley repeated, "Worried? About... what, exactly? Because, if anything, you guys should be worried about Morgan's sugar addiction. It's like she dreams of having Type 2 Diabetes when she sleeps at night."

   Ignoring her little comments, Pepper began to ramble. "You've done over 30 press conferences in one week alone. All you've done since the wedding is interviews, parleys with the UN—"

   "And use the wrong credit card on rebuilding the new Avengers HQ," chimed in Tony. Pepper and Riley shot him matching judgemental glances.

   "You haven't stopped working in over a month," Pepper summarized. "You're babysitting, you're meeting with the President... Have you even tried to let the others take over for you?"

   "They deserve to rest," she easily answered.

   "So do you," Pepper directly parried. Concern glossed her features. Riley could see her motherly distress from miles away. "Riley, we're worried about you. You're 16. You deserve to have a life, too!"

   Riley bunched her eyebrows together. "In a weird way... you're wrong," she disagreed, crisscrossing her legs in the process. "I mean, think about it. If I didn't get a childhood when I was a kid, then I shouldn't have one as an adult. That makes no sense."

   "You're not an adult," debated Pepper. "You're almost 17. You're a kid."

   "Is that why Steve left me with the Avengers?" Riley challenged. She could see where Pepper was coming from, but she wasn't a normal kid. She wasn't a normal kid then, and she certainly wasn't one now.

  Pepper frowned, wrinkles deepening. "You work all day, everyday. It's not healthy," she critiqued. "I thought I didn't have to worry about you when it came to this kind of thing!"

   "You don't—!"

   "Pep's right, Riley," confessed Tony. Now that she was looking at him, she could see that he was worried about her, too. "When was the last time you did anything for fun? Like... Like hang out with your friends? What about that MJ girl you used to always talk about? Or Peter?"

   Riley faltered, silent as she thought about it. She hadn't seen any of them in... a long time. The last time person she saw from Midtown was Peter, and that was because he happened to be involved with the war. As for her friends like MJ and Ned, Riley last saw them right before the field trip to MoMA back in 2018.

   Besides, if Riley was being honest, she was partially avoiding Peter.

   It felt like the right thing to do. Between devoting her time to her work and family, Riley hardly had time for her friends anymore. Those few hours where she could easily shoot Peter a text, Riley found herself hesitant. After all, the last time she saw him was at the wedding, where she very abruptly realized that she had been harboring a crush on him.

   Riley still couldn't believe she had feelings for him. She wasn't entirely sure how actual crushes worked. The first one she had was on Steve Rogers, and that obviously wouldn't have led anywhere. But this wasn't anyone. This was a legitimate, reasonable crush... and it was on Peter Parker—one of her best friends, her partner in justice.

   She had been hoping that working would make the crush vanish, but instead, it just made her thoughts about him amplify. They worsened with every fleeting second. She constantly thought about all the times they had together, she thought about all the times they hadn't experienced together via daydreams. It was getting to the point where Riley had realized that back in the day when she was worried about "getting attached to Peter" was actually the beginning of her crush.

   How could it have been possible that Riley had liked Peter for over a year? Technically, she'd liked him for more than five years if you really thought about it, which was terrifying.

   But Riley didn't have time for crushes. She didn't even have time for friends outside of work. Riley was a working woman, and that was how she would remain for... eternity, probably.

   "Exactly," Tony resumed, knowing that she didn't have a real answer for him. "You're gonna kill yourself if you keep at it like this."

   Riley paused. "I'm sorry, did you two come back early to... what, attack me?" she probed. "I'm just doing what I was raised doing. I didn't get recess growing up. Sometimes I'd fake a broken rib just to get a few minutes to myself, but... nonetheless, it's my job. Why should things change? Steve left me with a team to lead."

   Tony was quick to rebuke her statement. "He also left wanting you to be better than the rest of us. He wouldn't want you slaving your days away. You're in charge now, Tink. You're callin' all the shots now. The world's been saved. You can take a break."

   Riley let his words absorb in her brain. Maybe they were right. Everything was perfect in the world except for Riley. Maybe she deserved a break, too, just like everyone else. It would give Tony and Pepper peace of mind, which was something they certainly deserved. They were her friends, her parents.

   Riley pressed her lips together. "Okay... Say I take a break," she hypothesized, "what am I supposed to do? This is all I've known. I can't just sit around all day."

   Without skipping a beat, Tony directed, "FRIDAY, read me that email from Principal Morita, would ya?"

   "With pleasure, boss," responded FRIDAY. "July 10th, 2023. 8:26 AM. To the legal guardian of RILEY O'DAIR. This email has been sent to any and all students directly impacted by the fatalistic Decimation."

   Snorting, Riley mumbled, "We should really get my file updated and pulled before they make me go back to high school again." She couldn't believe she'd been back and in the public eye for months, and Midtown High still believed she was a normal student, her surname was still O'Dair, and that she was dusted.

   "We have received many calls and emails regarding our students, and the New York Board of Education has enlightened us with the following information. Firstly, all students that were "Blipped" will be required to repeat the school year despite already taking Midterms. The school year will begin Monday, August 21st, 2023."

   It was times like these in which Riley was beyond thankful to have been a high school and a college graduate by now.

   "Secondly, all students who were meant to participate in summer programs and were unable to due to the Decimation will be refunded, should they require one, or they will receive information regarding rescheduling to the summer of 2024. This includes the big trip to Europe and the Robotics competition, as the entire team was Blipped."

   Riley remembered hearing about the trip to Europe. She knew she'd never be able to go with Midtown due to her career, but she was excited for her friends to go and live their tourist dreams.

   "In order to make up for this, Midtown High is announcing its first-ever optional summer camp at Camp Mirkhaven. This camp will take place over the course of July 17th through August 3rd, 2023. Led by Midtown, we will strive to aid those who were Blipped in adjusting to life, reuniting with friends, and creating a sense of community once again. If you'd like to learn more about our camp, please click on the attachment for an extended description and a link to sign your child up for camp. We hope to see you there! Sincerely, Principal Jim Morita."

   Riley stared at Tony and Pepper for a long moment, soundless as she promptly realized what was going on and what they were thinking. She had worried Tony and Pepper so much to the point that they wanted to send her to a summer camp for two-and-a-half weeks.

   "Absolutely not," was the first thing that left Riley's mouth.

   "It'd be good for you!" Pepper contended. "You'd get to see your friends, be a kid for once."

   "I'd have to put my entire life on hold for almost three weeks," quarreled Riley. She certainly didn't want to go. "What if aliens fall out of the sky? What am I supposed to do? Send you guys a postcard? Sing Kumbayah until they surrender?"

   "That won't happen," claimed Tony. "Face it, Tink. You don't just deserve a break, you need one. There's no argument about it. Even Happy's been telling us you can barely stay awake some days."

   Riley chewed on her lower lip, cursing at Happy in her head. "But—"

   "The team will still be here when you're back," persuaded Tony. "Besides, you're not taking over until the HQ is completely rebuilt. You're getting a headstart for no reason, chief. Two weeks won't kill you. Working yourself to death will."

   She was silent, remembering the days in which Pepper had to beg Tony to stop working so much to the point of breaking up with him. She didn't want to travel down a similar path.

   But... Riley loved working, even if it was the bane of her existence some days.

  But... she also wouldn't deny the desire and curiosity she was overwhelmed with when the thought of a break properly crossed her mind.

   Pepper leaned back in her spot, allowing Tony to fully take over. She knew that the one person that could convince her was him. "Think of it like this," he continued. "You seem to like helping people and making sure they're relaxed. If you go, we'll relax."

   "But... I'm not even a student there anymore," Riley tried to argue.

   "Technically, no one ever pulled you out," Tony mentioned. "You just went reported as Decimated."

   Riley sighed. She didn't want to argue anymore. She knew that there was no getting out of this one.

   "It's just two weeks," she mumbled, mostly to assure herself. She dropped her shoulders, straightening her posture before falling back into the cushions behind her. "You know what? Fine. I'll go. Just for you two. But as soon as this is over—"

   "We'll let you live your Seven Dwarfs dreams when you come back," affirmed Tony. "We know. Trust me. But until then, it's Heigh-Ho summer camp. Do we have a deal?"

   She fell silent once more. This was her last chance to back out. As much as she wanted to stay and live her life just as she had been for the past month, she owed it not only to her parents, but herself. She deserved a break just as much as the others did.

   "I don't know how I always get stuck doing stupid deals with you," she grumbled. "Fine. We have a deal."

   And that was it. Those few words seemed to solidify what the rest of her summer would look like. Hey, maybe Tony was right. Maybe things would be fine. All Riley had to worry about was hanging out with her friends and combatting the heat and mosquitos. That wasn't so bad, was it? No aliens falling out of the sky, no wars to fight... Besides, maybe Riley would get to see Peter again.

   No—Riley was not going to become a girl from the movies that only thought about her crush. Riley needed to get over Peter, and this was the perfect opportunity to do so.

   Maybe this could be her last mission before she was an Avenger full-time again. Yeah... one last mission... that didn't sound so bad.

   Riley would be just fine.

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AUTHOR'S NOTE:

omg hey gang!! welcome to act three! WOW we've really come a long way.

i got a LOT of comments about if i'd write about ffh, and i really did sit on it for a long time. however, then it hit me: riley wouldn't stand for beck's bullshit for a SECOND. she'd call him out the second she met him.

so, instead, (in case you missed it) that trip has been postponed to the summer of 2024 to after they repeat the school year.

i was thinking about what i could do to get the whole gang together, and i realized that putting everyone in a summer camp together was just something i couldn't pass out on lmao.

in this act, we're finally getting that riley x peter content we all signed up for, AND we're gonna see riley go through a transitional period where she has to find a balance between work and play. i'm so excited for yall to read this act and i hope it meets everyone's expectations <3

PLEASEEE comment your thoughts, predictions, questions, anything! all comments help and lowkey inspire future chapters, so spam away lmao <33333

i can't wait to see how you guys react to this next arc in riley's life and i hope you all enjoy it hehe :) okay that's it byeeeee