Supervision

It's strange for Peter. Despite his eccentric family, his upbringing has always been very stable. He was never abandoned, even when his parents had to save the world on their latest mission. He was always taken care of by someone he knew, never a strange face. Either one of the Avengers would remain behind with him securely locked away in Tony's specially designed safe room at Stark Tower, or if all the team were required, Peter was left in the very capable hands of everyone's favourite S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, Phil Coulson.

One time — his favourite time actually — Peter always remembers fondly there was a particularly dangerous, intergalactic invasion that once again hit New York for a week or two. That was when his mother took him to Asgard for the first time. He had a wonderfully safe time with his Grandmother, Frigga, and even Odin was pleasant enough, despite butting heads on occasion. Odin was regularly reminded that Peter was most certainly Loki's child.

So yes, despite all the aliens and the magic and the chaos that came with it, stability is all Peter has ever known. So seeing all his belongings boxes and his clothes in suitcases and not his wardrobe, is very strange and slightly scary. Scarier than being in the midst of an alien invasion.

Everything in his room is packed and ready to go — everything apart from him.
His fingers dance over the edge of his desk, his mind filling with memories of his dad helping him with his homework. They would sit for hours, Tony teaching him diligently, with a precision and depth into his favourite subjects — maths and science — that is not and never will be provided by the school curriculum. It was no wonder that Peter would ace every test and exam without so much as a blink of his eye and was consequently put into every AP class available. Along with his stable family life, but thanks to their uniqueness, Peter has surrounded himself with a selective group of friends that he trusts, so therefore refused to skip ahead a grade or two when it was offered.

Dad was good with the technical stuff, but sucks when it comes to words, especially compared to Loki. Mom was always there to help him with his English work, and it was something they always had in common. Loki has a penchant for books and his silver tongue has a knack for language that no one can rival. The thick, hard back books packed into boxes on his desk were passed down to him from his mother, who got them from his. There were some that were almost falling apart, and clearly Loki's favourites. Every so often he would come by and borrow them when he wanted to read some classic Midgardian literature. Peter's favourite books though, are the ones of Asgard's rich history, not human myths or stories, but the truth directly from the Realm Eternal. Peter spent hours poring over and scrutinizing each page, wanting to know everything about his mother and his home. Each of the books are well worn and clearly loved by both mother and son.

Peter steps over to his bed and moves the boxes and suitcases to the desk and his chair, leaving himself with just enough space to curl up on his side. He lies back and thinks. Just thinks. Thinks about how much his life is going to change when he moves across the country to college, leaving his parents behind. If he's honest, he has a pretty sweet deal at home. He has Jarvis to run his schedule, his Dad's workshop with unlimited resources, and his Mom's magic to do everything he doesn't want to. It's going to suck living without them. As he lies wallowing, Mischief, his beloved pet cat, strolls into his room and jumps up on the bed, obviously sensing the need to comfort the boy.

Peter can't recall the amount of times he's found himself like this. Ever since he was four-years-old with his first nightmare, Mischief would sleep by his side every single night. This was another thing, Peter knew he would miss. He loved this damn cat, and he knows he's going to seriously miss him. It breaks his heart even more to know that Mischief is getting older. The feline doesn't show it physically or mentally, still able to jump from surface to surface around the tower, but there are flecks of grey amongst his sleek black fur. Peter notices a new grey hair every night. He smiles sadly as he tickles the back of Mischief's neck, the cat nuzzling his cheek, purring loudly and contentedly.

Peter can't say how long he spends playing with Mischief, but that's how his Mom finds him. Loki stands by the door, silently watching his son, his own smile reflecting the melancholy in Peter's eyes. The boy looks up to see the man who gave birth to him, an inconceivable idea to the masses, but to Peter, that is his mother. To him, man or woman, he loves Loki and couldn't wish for a better Mom. The God steps into the room, staring at the bare walls and empty shelves, glad to see his books placed lovingly into the boxes for transport.

"It's nearly time to go, darling," Loki says, his hand waving through the air, the packed belongings vanishing seconds later.

"Mom..." Peter's voice is slow and hesitant, "I think, maybe I've made a mistake. Maybe it's not a good idea to go."

"Why ever not, my son?" Loki's head tilts quizzically, taking a seat on the bed beside him.

"I just know that college is going to suck..." Loki's eyebrow raises, knowing that is not the full truth, "Fine, it's going to suck being away from you and Dad."

"Darling, you are aware this is not my home world and it still confuses me, but your father assures me this is the proper thing for a child of Midgard, especially one as gifted as you, to undertake. And Peter, since this is our home for the very long foreseeable future, a Midgardian life is one you shall commit too."

And if Loki thought that Peter would be in any danger, he would certainly not be leaving. He does however, need to learn some independence. Loki is aware how much he does for him, but he can't help it. He just wants to give him the love and attention he feels he sorely missed out on as a child. It kills him though, the thought of Peter not being at home anymore; having no one to yell at for leaving his stuff all over the place, having no more of their little conversations about Loki's struggles with Midgard, or Peter's evolving relationship with Gwen. He's going to miss his child unbearably.

"But Son, please remember, this will always be your home, wherever your father and I are, you are always welcome." Loki looks away, but places his hand on Peter's arm to remind himself he's not gone get, "Don't forget us."

"Mom, are you crying?" Peter sits up, taking the hand on his arm in his own.

Swallowing back the tears, his voice cracks audibly as his throat constricts, "No..."

"I am never going to forget you. I know I don't say it enough because I'm a stubborn dick — which I totally get from you and Dad by the way — but I love you, Mom. I love you and Dad, and Mischief and this house, and this life you've given me. I'm never going to forget the last 18 years." Peter pulls Loki to him, his arms wrapping around his neck. He didn't realise, until the moment he held his crying Mom in his arms, how hard the separation was going to be on the family. Selfishly, he'd only been thinking of himself.

"Seriously, how could I forget the last 18 years? This place is batshit crazy — like unhealthily crazy — but I wouldn't have had it any other way." Loki's laugh bubbles through his tears, sniffling against Peter's shoulder, as he holds him tight. He doesn't want to let go. He's had to let go far too many times before and doesn't know if he can do it again. "Seriously though, can you at least call ahead before teleporting in, please? I might actually make some friends besides Gwen and then I'll have to go through the whole awkward explanation again..."

"It is not my fault your friend fainted! How was I to know you had a female in the tower?" Loki pulls himself out of the hug he was sharing with Peter to stare at him, exasperated as to why this was being brought up again.

"Yeah, Peter," a voice teases from the doorway, "How were we supposed to know you had a girlfriend over?!"

Peter and Loki turn to the door to see Tony leaning against the frame nonchalantly, his arms folded and his left leg crossed over the other.

Grumbling to himself, Peter huffs and flings his hands in the air. He throws himself onto his mattress, burying his face in the pillows still remaining on the bed. His muffled whines are heard, "She is not my girlfriend!"

"Yet..." Loki coughs under his breath, followed by an "I hate you" from Peter.

"Now this is what I'm going to miss," Tony announces as he approaches the bed. He manoeuvres Loki to his lap, and sits in the God's original place beside Peter. He kisses him gently, before patting Peter on the shoulder, "It's alright buddy, you'll get her eventually."

All they get in response is more unintelligible mumbling. Tony looks to Loki and the sad smile on his lips. He pulls his partner to him, Loki's face disappearing into his neck, hiding the tears that once again spring to his eyes.

Because the teasing miraculously stops with no more pain, Peter looks up to see his Mom and Dad in an embrace. His heart aches, and like the child he once was, squeezes himself between his parents. With one arm around Loki and the other around his son, Tony cuddles his family into him, holding them close.

No one knows how long they sit in each other's arms, but at least Jarvis is keeping his metaphorical eye on the time, "Sirs, it's time to leave, or you will be late for Miss Stacy, who is waiting to be picked up. The jet will only wait so long for your arrival."

Sighing, Tony pats Loki and Peter on their backs as a signal to move. It takes a moment, but they all eventually separate and Loki has composed himself enough to leave his seat on Tony's lap. Silently, Tony kisses Peter's forehead, and takes Loki's hand, leading him from the near empty bedroom.

As Peter is about to leave his room for the last time to follow his parents, Mischief meows loudly from the bed. He glances back, to see his cat sitting and waiting for him. Peter once again walks back to the bed and kneels in front of him. He strokes his back and kisses his head, whispering how much he's going to miss him into the soft, black fur. Mischief stretches his paws to Peter's shoulder, and the young man smiles, "Okay buddy, one last time."

Gently lifting the feline, he slinks around Peter's neck like a snake, making himself into an almost scarf. It's habit, something he has always done ever since Peter was old and strong enough to carry him. Carefully Peter stands from the floor and walks to the door. Balancing with a familiar ease, he bends over to pick up his backpack and slings it over the shoulder opposite from Mischief's head. Peter turns to look one last time at his bedroom, wondering just how different his new one will feel. He takes a few moments of quiet contemplation before he manually flicks the light switch and closes the door behind him for the last time.

Notes

My goodness, I don't even know where to begin! I'll start with a note about this chapter:

I know that Tony obviously has enough money to kit Peter out with a complete new bedroom for when he's at college, but Peter is a sentimental guy, which he totally gets from his Mom. And also I know that Peter would, again obviously, come back to terrorise his parents at the first chance he got, but since this is the last chapter of the last story in this series, I wanted to make the end, well the end.

So as I just said, this is the final chapter of Supervision, and the last story in my Reflection series! This makes me really sad! Reflection must have been one of my first FrostIron stories, and honestly I can't believe I've managed to actually finish the series without hating it, like anything I've ever written for any other fandom. It must be this pairing! They do things to me!

Next I just want to thank those who still bother reading my work (if anyone still is...), because I know how much I suck at updating. You must have felt like I abandoned you! D: But yes, I want to apologise profusely for me taking forever to update this time, school and exams and everything that has made my life hell are finally over and I've just been taking my sweet time to do absolutely nothing for a few weeks. However! Inspiration finally struck, because I honestly had no idea where to go with this last chapter... but I got there, and I hope I did the story justice with this finale.

Let me know what you think and keep an eye out for my future FrostIron stories! :)