Disclaimer: Gwen Stacy and Miles Morales are owned by Marvel, not me.
Hello, lovelies!
Well, this is my first - that's right, very first - fanfic with no OCs. No major or minor ones here. Just a one-shot between two Spiders and dorks building a nice friendship. And a possible romance? Hmm, who knows for certain. Enjoy. :)
"Hey, Miles! Got a minute?"
Miles stared up at the ceiling, pleasantly surprised by a large, pink portal in the middle of it. Sticking her head out, Gwen appeared with a grin on her face.
"Gwen?!"
"Heh, of course. C'mon. I want you to see my world."
"...It's the middle of the night, but sure," Miles said. "I got time, I guess."
Gwen chuckled. "Well, it's pretty early in the afternoon in my world, so...up and at 'em!"
Taking a moment to check up on his parents, Miles silently told Gwen to wait as she smiled, shaking her head. Tiptoeing across the hall, he watched his parents cuddling in front of the T.V., completely and blissfully asleep. He sighed with a soft chuckle before making his way back, but not before he stubbed his toe.
"Ah! Damn it!" Miles whispered before he covered his mouth.
He listened to his father mumble some weird, incoherent stuff about stale donuts before holding his mother close. Miles beamed, gently closing the door as he retrieved his Spider gear.
"I'm ready," he said to Gwen.
"Took you long enough," she joked. "C'mon."
With a bit of a smirk, Miles shook his head, stepping through the portal with Gwen's help.
New York City, Earth-65
"Whoa…"
In an instant, Miles found himself on the edge of a roof of a skyscraper, staring at the marvel that was – and is – the New York of Earth-65. Though it might not seem different, it looked different compared to his world. The massive, sprawling cityscape was highlighted with neon buildings, glowing under a sky riddled with vivid colours of bright pink and baby blue. The traffic was pretty minimal, emphasized by the lack of honking horns.
"This world's pretty awesome, Gwen," he said, taking in the sights and sounds. "I like the whole neon look."
"Yeah, it's never boring, trust me," Gwen replied with a soft chuckle. Putting the mask and the hood on, she became Spider-Woman once more. "Before I let you know why I bothered you, here. Take this…"
From her backpack nestled close by, she brought out a stylish, black-and-red wristwatch-like device. To Miles, it had a peculiar design; it looked like a cross between a radar compass and one of those BitFit watches his mother liked to wear every morning. Nevertheless, Gwen urged Miles to put it on as he obliged.
"What's this for?" Miles said.
"Long story short, it's a device that allows you…" Gwen gave his nose a slight boop.
Miles flinched. "Hey!" He smiled wide, showing off his pearly whites.
"…to travel between dimensions without any issue. You just gotta put some coordinates in and boom! Done. I got one myself." She brandished one of her own, a light, teal-blue version. "Kinda matches the look."
"O-Okay." Miles decided not to think about the specifics or the story of how Gwen acquired such a device. It was easier that way. "It looks good on you."
"Thanks." Gwen smiled as her mask expressed her emotion. She sat down beside him. "Here's the thing…"
Looking at the neon lights, she paused for a while before she spoke up. "We both made a choice to help and protect others, but…I feel we can do better by thinking bigger."
Miles stared down at the traffic, thankful he wasn't afraid of heights. "Yeah…"
After stopping Kingpin and his cohorts' crimes, he remembered the words of Peter – both his world's and 616's Parker. "Heh. P.B…"
"P.B.?"
"Yeah, I thought it'd be easier to call him that. Makes it less confusing, y'know?"
Gwen nodded, rubbing her temple. "Yeah, this whole multiverse thing's kind of a pain."
The two Spiders shared a quick laugh before Miles continued with he was saying.
"But, yeah, um…you, P.B. and the rest helped me see that being Spider-Man means more than just putting on a mask and running around Brooklyn. There's always gonna be another villain, another crazy plot. Same thing, different day."
"Yeah," Gwen said, curling herself up into a ball. "I won't be surprised if 'Liv' tried to experiment on you now."
"Heh, no thanks. She's creepy." Miles chuckled. "But it's more than just Doc Ock. It could be Tombstone or-or Scorpion. And I'm pretty sure Kingpin will be back on the streets by tomorrow morning. And what happens then? What if…" He paused. "What if I might not have all the answers?"
Silence.
Gwen suddenly placed her hand on Miles' shoulder.
"I wouldn't worry about Kingpin and the rest for now. I think they're learning their lessons the hard way," she said. "Besides, I don't think anyone does. I thought I did, but…life had a shitty way of proving me wrong." She lifted her hood up. "I thought having these powers meant that I could live the good life. Little did I know, it…it came with a price."
She buried her head down, forcing herself to come to terms with the death of her version of Peter Parker once again. Her mind conjured that one terrifying image of looking into her best friend's eyes, seeing the colour fade from them. He felt cold, colder than anything she ever felt before. She remembered feeling all of those overwhelming emotions: betrayal, anguish, resentment. Gwen could still remember Peter's last words…
"I just... just... wanted to be special... like you..."
Gwen sighed, feeling the walls closing in.
Suddenly, Miles sat closer to her, giving her a friendly shoulder bump. "Hey, Gwen, you okay?"
"I…Not really, no." Gwen slowly tilted her head in his direction, shaking it ever so slowly.
"We can talk about it. It's just the two of us."
Silence. The sounds of the cars on the road lingered below.
Gwen shrugged. "Maybe not right now. But I promise we'll talk about it soon. …Thanks for snapping me outta it."
"No worries. Hey…"
Much like before, Miles placed an arm on Gwen's shoulder. This time, it was different. "You're not alone. Not anymore. If you need help or anything, just let me know, okay? Let's get better together."
As she heard the sincerity in Miles' words, it made her blush. In Gwen's mind, it was probably a good thing she wore her mask. She thought that her powers were a burden; a curse. But now, seeing Miles and the rest, along with helping them save the multiverse, gave her a little bit of confidence and closure…
Plus, having Miles cheer her up was a little bit of a bonus. Only a little bit.
"I'll keep it in mind," Gwen said with an uplifting tone. "You too, huh?"
Miles nodded with a grin. It's nice knowing she's okay. "Yeah, you bet."
An awkward silence followed as the two Spiders realized how close they were. "A-Actually, heh, that reminds me. Why did you bring me here, Gwen?"
"Oh, yeah!" Remembering her original intentions, Gwen leapt to her feet en pointe, pushing those dark memories to the back of her mind once more. For now, it's hero time.
"Well! I thought it'd be better for both of us to get some training from other Spiders. Besides, we learn something new every day, right?"
"Yeah…"
"Our devices can also find traces of Spider DNA to make it easier for us to travel…and it picked up traces of a new Spider-Man! Earth-6."
Miles raised his eyebrows in anticipation of Gwen's proposal. "So, what are you suggesting?"
Gwen activated her device, creating another portal. On the other side, it showed a similar version of Earth-65's New York but different.
"We save some people, bust some crimes, and meet another Spider-Man in the process!"
Miles looked at the buildings, comparing them to Gwen's world. "This world looks like one of those 'manga' comics my roommate likes to read, but…more…action-y and colourful."
"Yeah, I don't question it, either," Gwen said with a giggle. "Ready to go?"
Without a second to hesitate, Miles donned his Spider gear – along with his hoodie and Jordans – and put on the mask once again. Standing on that very skyscraper in another world, he took a big breath and exhaled, taking in the sudden realization…
He was Spider-Man. In more than one world. Cool. "I'm ready. Wait! What about—"
"Don't worry! Your world will be fine," Gwen said with a laugh.
Taking Miles' hand and guiding him through, the two Spiders leapt through the portal together as it closed…with no one the wiser.
