**Request for Warriorsfan56 where Peter and Cooper get in a fight, but their dads have some wise words for them both. Somehow, I write the worst fights, ugh. Regardless of that, I hope you enjoy!**

"It's just not okay," Cooper ranted, pacing in front of the steps where Peter was sitting. Peter's eye was almost swollen shut, a start bruise forming on the pale skin around it. It didn't matter that any evidence of an injury would be gone in a few hours - all that mattered was that when Cooper showed up to surprise Peter after school, he'd found some kid named Flash beating him to putty.

"It's fine, Coop," Peter said, for what felt like the twentieth time.

Maybe it was the fact that they had been arguing over it for almost a helf-hour by then, or maybe it was the New York sun, but something inside Cooper snapped, and he wheeled around.

"It's not fine," Cooper said, his voice rising to match his anger. "It's not fine, and I'm tired of you saying that it is! God, Pete, can't you see what's going on here? You have to stand up for yourself!"

"And why is that, exactly?" Peter asked, his own anger rising to meet Cooper's. "Is it just because I'm your friends, or is it the powers that make me somehow better than everyone else?"

"You're not better than anyone!" Cooper yelled. "You're not better, but that's just it! No one deserves this!"

"Exactly! No one should get hurt, but I recover so much faster than everyone else-"

"Don't you dare use that as some cop out," Cooper cut Peter off, pointing his finger into Peter's chest. "You can't have it both ways, okay? You can't be some superhero one day and then let this shit slide the next."

"So now I'm an accessory to the crime, right?" Peter was meeting Cooper blow by blow, their anger bubbling over and forcing them to say things they neither meant nor could ever take back. "Because that's what you're saying. You're saying that by letting Flash knock me around, I'm not fit to be a hero."

Cooper dug a palm into his eyes. "That's not what I am saying!"

"Just stay out of it," Peter bit back. "Why do you even care?"

"Because it's wrong, and you're supposed to care about wrong and right!"

"Leave it alone-"

"Just tell someone-"

"-Please-"

"-Can go to Tony or-"

Peter turned so sharply, he almost bowled Cooper over. Cooper took a step back, but Peter chased him, and they stood nose-to-nose. "Just stay out of my life, okay?"

Cooper's anger cooled so quickly, it froze his tongue, and he stood dumbly as Peter marched away. Then, all at once, he melted, and he felt his knees go a little weak. He had never fought with Peter before, not in all the years they had been friends. Hell, they were more like brothers than friends, really, though neither had ever said it. Cooper felt his eyes prickle with tears as his body slowly came down from the adrenaline of the fight. He needed his dad.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"You were supposed to be at the arcade with Peter," Clint called, not even looking up from his phone. It wasn't until Cooper came around the corner of the kitchen that Clint looked up and took in his son's appearance. His hair was sticking up all over as if he'd been pulling on it, and his eyes were red-rimmed and wet. Clint was up and out of his seat in an instant, his phone forgotten on the table. "What happened?"

Cooper was biting back tears, his mind suddenly working a mile a minute. Would Peter be more angry if he told Clint? Would the fighting get worse, or did Cooper need Clint to repair things?"

Clint forced Cooper's chin up until they were looking right at one another. "You can tell me anything, Coop, and we'll fix it."

So Cooper told him everything, starting from the moment he saw Peter fall, to the moment Flash hit him, to the last thing Peter said before leaving.

"Alright," Clint said, taking a deep breath and pulling Cooper in for a hug. "Let me think, and we'll fix this."

"Promise?" Cooper asked, looking up at his dad with such a broken look, it burned Clint to the core.

"Promise," Clint replied, stroking his hand down the back of Cooper's hair. "Now, let's start simple: you apologize."

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Peter slammed the door to his bedroom, and Tony was knocking before the lock could initiate. "Peter? I thought you had a surprise waiting after school."

"Yeah, well I'm not talking to him."

Tony furrowed his brows. "Why not? I thought you two were best friends. God knows its the only reason I tolerate Clint hanging around as much as I do."

There was a thump against the door, which Tony recognized as a pillow. "Go away."

Tony sighed. "So you two aren't talking. Want to tell me why?"

"Because he's a jackass, now go away!"

And that was the line in the sand for Tony. He immediately overrode the lock and pushed his way into Peter's room, a whole lecture hot on his lips, when he noticed Peter's eyes were red and he had tracks down his cheeks. Most worrisome was the bruise fading over Peter's cheek, just barely visible in that sickly yellow.

Tony immediately took Peter's face in his hands, gentle fingers working over the bruise to check the bone underneath. "He did this?"

Before Peter could answer, Tony was pulling away, shaking with anger. "I'll kill him. I'll kill that kid, I swear to God, Peter, you don't-"

"It wasn't him," Peter said quietly, effectively cutting his father off. "But it is why we were fighting."

Tony let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. "Why don't you tell me what happened, and we can go from there."

Peter took a deep breath and looked up at his dad, whose face was full of such sincerity, it was almost heartachingly sweet. Peter nodded slowly, then bit his lip. "You can't be mad."

"Never at you," Tony replied easily.

And Peter told him everything, from Flash's remarks through their school years together, to the events of today. To being tripped, and Flash punching him. Cooper pushing Flash off. The guys all making fun of Peter for it, and the way Flash leaned in when he told Peter it would be worse tomorrow when his boyfriend wasn't around to protect him. The way Cooper had insulted Peter's heroism, and the last thing Peter said before racing to the subway to get away from the whole shameful situation.

Tony held his son through the whole story, and when it was done, he placed a kiss on Peter's curls.

"Alright," he said finally. "Let's start here: Cooper was right. No one deserves what is happening to you, Peter, and you should stand up for yourself. Though, guessing on what you just told me, standing up doesn't really help us here, so instead, we're going to go to the principal. I know that can make things worse, but it won't this time, because I'm going with you. And we're not leaving until that kid is out of the school."

Peter nodded, running a sleeve under his nose. "Okay. And Coop?"

"Well, I think you need to apologize."

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Peter ran a nervous hand up and down his arm, looking at the imposing door in front of him. Clint had let him in, and Tony and him had stayed in the living room to talk. Peter finally knocked, gathering up as much courage as he could, and steeling himself for Cooper's rejection.

"Come in," Cooper called, and Peter pushed open the door.

The two boys made eye-contact.

Cooper scrambled up and off his bed, shifting nervously once he got to his feet. Peter mirrored him, feeling his own anxiety kick in.

"I'm sorry!" the two teens blurted out, almost at the exact same time. Peter was quick to keep going, cutting Cooper off.

"I'm so sorry, Cooper. I was so mean to you, and I know it was just me being embarrassed and angry and I felt like you were saying that because of Flash, I was a bad person- or a bad hero, I guess, but I know that's not what you meant. I don't want you out of my life, I want you in my life. I want you to care enough to defend me, and I'm just- I'm really sorry."

Cooper was taken aback for a moment before he started laughing, and Peter looked up confused. "I'm sorry, Pete- you are- you are so good," he finally choked out. "God, how are you so- I'm sorry. I never think before I do anything, and I rushed into that situation without thinking about what was best for you. I'm so sorry for all those horrible things I said about you and all that shit about you being a bad hero-"

And then Peter was laughing, and that was a sound that Cooper had missed in the short few hours he'd lost it, and he was joining in. They laughed and laughed, eventually falling onto the bed together, and laughing until their sides ached and their lungs burned.

"I really am sorry," Peter whispered, when they had finally caught their breath.

"Me, too," Cooper whispered back.

"Want to watch a movie?" Peter asked, and Cooper agreed readily.

And that's where Tony and Clint found them almost two hours later, passed out with the end credits of some spy movie playing on Cooper's laptop. The two dads just rolled their eyes and shut the door quietly, letting the boys rest.

"Guess I'm stuck with you after all," Tony joked, knocking Clint's shoulder.

Clint just smiled. "You know you love me."