This is a story-thread continuation of You and Me Means Team.
(Disclaimer: I do not own either the DC characters Bruce Wayne/Batman, Alfred, Lucius Fox, or Gordon; I also do not own the Marvel Characters American Dream, May Parker/Spider-Girl, nor any of the other Avengers Next mentioned in this fic. I can only say that this fic is written up for pure enjoyment of the readers and has no bearing on the way that the character progression of Bruce Wayne to Batman... I own nothing, so please, no lawyers are necessary, I lay no claim to the works of Marvel or DC Comics and their creators.)
Me and You and You and Me
It had been six months since Spider-Girl had returned to New York, and she was an active side-member with the Avengers. She and Sabreclaw had an almost grade-school friendship. He taunted her, she tried to ignore him, she really did; but then he'd make a comment that'd set her into a lather, she'd snap at him, he'd smirk and then the process would start all over again…- As stated: grade-school friendship.
Spider-Girl and American Dream were so over Mainframe being all Fury-fied on them; especially since he wasn't able to replicate/rebuild himself anymore. It wasn't their fault that he decided to crash his satellite factory-thing into a volcano- And that had been seven months ago! For a computer programed hero, he sure could hold his grudges…
ThunderStrike wasn't usually so annoying nor so antagonistic; but he was really grating on their nerves, they'd almost maimed Warp for even suggesting that it was 'That Time of the Month'; Sabreclaw was himself, and that was enough to tick anybody off. J2 and Jarvis were the only men on or with the team who didn't make mention or jar their nerves. Stinger, Engergizer and Bluestreak made sure not to even be seen with the men that had jarred the sensibilities of their leader and second in command.
In order not to make someone's head spin off their neck Exorcist/Kill-Bill style, Spider-Girl recused herself in a barely used strategy-room of the Avengers Compound/Mansion. She had to get a handle on this; Spider-Girl had no idea why her Spider-sense was jangling her nerves, but it was making her nuts, and don't forget irritable. It wasn't this bad before-
She stopped herself.
Then the big light-bulb above her head turned on.
"What are you doing in the dark May?" American Dream asked as she turned on the light-switch that was just inside the door. Oddly enough, Dream was in her civvies- as much as a 'super-soldier' could be in civvies, she was in jeans and a 'bomber' jacket with her star on the back, and as Spider-Girl knew from observing, American Dream had at least six mini-shields strapped beneath the arms of said jacket.
Spider-Girl turned to her best girlfriend and team leader. "Nothing Dream; but something's going to hap-"
She never got to finish her sentence. All she could be thankful for was that she had her backpack with her civvies inside; the only bad thing about the civvies she had in there was that they were for the drama she was starring in… She was to be Mrs. Kennedy, pearls and everything, (her mom was so proud of her taking up the dramatics) but she also had in her pack a pair of blue-jeans, a flowing blouse and matching slip-ons (rehearsals were now required to be in costume) Fortunately for her she'd plopped the backpack in her lap as she tried to make sense of her jangling Spider-sense before she was forced once again to travel trans-dimensionally.
She landed in a construction site; luckily she'd landed just to the left of the freshly poured cement pad that was setting. It took her a moment to get her bearings. It took her more than a moment actually; she ended up climbing to the top of a crane to get her bearings height-wise. Well, Spider-Girl was in Bludhaven; she recognized the landmarks if not the actual buildings (only because they hadn't been built yet).
So she had one of two options, one of three if she wasn't being picky: She could go to this New York and do the whole hero-ing thing there; she could go to Gotham and start up there and find BW and help in whatever capacity she could.
The only issue with the second option was that she couldn't be Spider-Girl; she'd be too tempted to save people- Especially if BW was functioning in Batman capacity…
And the third option wasn't even an option, really. There was no way that she could ignore those in need of help and saving.
Not that Great Responsibility wasn't in her blood or the Family Credo or anything…
Right, because that went over well. Her main focus was to get BW to a working level, depending on what level he was at currently.
Judging by the Newspaper that was drifting through the construction-site, which she snagged with a web-line, it was- well, she was guesstimating, but judging by Nightwing's age (since she now knew his identity, [she was brilliant- she figured it out in the watchtower, when she saw them converse] and who else would have that kind of money for a sweet set-up like that?) that should make Bruce Wayne about… thirteen. She double-checked her mental math-estimate. Yeah, BW should be thirteen. She would get to deal with a moody, pubescent, hormonal, teenage boy… joy; Emo anyone?
But she couldn't stop just being a hero, could she? No, her sense of responsibility was too strong. But in this time-era, crime wasn't a prolific as it was… you know: in the future-present…
Yuk. Now she knew why Madame Webb had referred to time as non-linear: 'It's more like a big ball of Timey-whimey, wibbly-wobbly… stuff' she mocked to herself.
So on her way to Gotham, she stopped three bank robberies and stuffed four muggers into some really rank garbage cans full of gross week-old garbage. Spider-Girl smirked to herself as she tossed them into it: they got their just desserts.
When she got into Gotham, she ended up stopping several more crimes stealing, looting, a small riot. It was amazing how just her presence alone could scare the crowd into scattering; she looked around just in case it wasn't her, it was. There was a wounded police officer lying on the ground, she helped him up and noticed his name plate read 'Gordon'.
"How badly are you hurt?" She asked as she helped him into a sitting position. She'd already done a precursor scan of his situation; he was able to move his legs and he wasn't bleeding profusely, so where was he hurt?
He made harsh groaning noises as she helped him sit up, and she gingerly felt his ribs. Two of them were broken, his right wrist and his shoulder were dislocated. With her webbing she would be able to prevent further movement of either, she'd had Dream help her with her own dislocation and though she was willing and able to put it back in place she was leery of harming him further.
"My shoulder…!" He gasped.
"I can help you put it back in place, but it will hurt…" She cautioned.
He nodded his head, and without warning, she jerked the arm back into its socket.
"You could have warned me!" He gasped out barely able to breathe from the sudden pain, only able to speak after the pain had eased when the shoulder was back in it socket.
"It would've been worse: you would have tensed up causing more damage to the joint…" Spider-Girl pointed out drolly. "Let's get you to the nearest hospital Gordon…"
"How did you now my name?" Gordon asked.
"I don't need to be the World's Greatest Detective to know how to read a nametag…" Spider-Girl said drolly, helping him to a standing position. "So we have three choices: 1, we could walk to the nearest Hospital; 2, I could web-swing to the nearest Hospital; or 3, you could call a squad-car or an ambulance to take you to the nearest Hospital…"
Gordon looked into the reflective eyes of her mask. "Who are you?"
Spider-Girl smiled beneath her mask; she loved it when they asked that question. "Me? I'm just your friendly, neighborhood Spider-Girl!"
He ended up calling for a squad-car and she waited with him until it arrived, she noticed a lot of gang-art and she wasn't about to leave a wounded officer in this part of town. She stayed long enough after the squad-car had turned the corner to see the previous rioters come out of the depths of the shadows of the alleys and whatnot. They thought she was gone, obviously; but they misunderstood what the Spider did. The Spider watched, the Spider waited, and then- without warning, the Spider struck… Well, maybe not without warning, she was the Spider-Girl after all.
"I turn my head for one minute and the entire neighborhood makes a come-out…" She mocked them. "You definitely make a girl feel welcome!"
Mentally she mocked herself, she knew that this city belonged to the Bat and his mission to keep the scum cowed; even if the Bat was only thirteen and hadn't yet grown into his Kevlar-spandex. That was when she saw him- scrawny but semi-brawny adolescent Bruce Wayne; now she groaned. Bruce was trying to take on a group of slicers'n'dicers (the small budges in their back pockets proved her suspicions); just what she needed… The kid had no idea how to fight them, no idea at all… He had put up his dukes, his stance was too loose; he had a calculating eye, but that was too uneducated, and there was no way that the kid was ready to take on the slicers, they were vicious as her early months in uniform could attest despite her innate danger-sense.
She took two minutes knocking the rioters around and then webbing them up. Then she jumped to the opposite side of the street.
"I swing into town and in the first hour, I'm swamped! What's up with this city?! Have you people no respect for the honest hero in spandex?!" She demanded as she clocked one of the thugs on the back of the head.
"I can handle myself!" The kid semi-sullenly stated.
"Sure you can kid." Spider-Girl mocked; she grabbed him by his upper arm and semi-gently swung him up and pasted him to the alley-wall with a quick web. "Stay there a minute." She smiled behind her mask. He was going to hold this against her for months, if not years.
To his wide-eyed astonishment, he watched this strange unknown heroine take on six thugs and using some unknown style of martial arts she took half the thugs down in less than three minutes. He was somewhat astonished at this unknown woman in red and blue spandex.
The other half of the thugs pulled out their knives that he hadn't known they'd carried. His eyes widened and he started to call out a warning, but this unknown female hero in red and blue seemed to know what was going to happen, because she spun and tilted her head to look at the knives that were aimed at her.
"Oh no…! You've found my weakness: Small knives!" She gasped out. Even Bruce could tell that she was mocking the thugs. A web shot out from her wrist and she claimed two of the knives leaving the last thug with his knees knocking.
"Get 'er!" The thug in the middle shouted.
"Get her?" Spider-Girl mocked. "Clearly your pilot light got blown out…" She twisted to one side, locking her wrists and twisting free the last knife from the thug's hands, breaking his wrists in the process; he fell to the ground screaming. The other two she was messing around with, getting them mad. Bruce could tell they had more experience than the other four, and he found himself looking anxiously on as this female hero took them on in seemingly nothing but spandex and athleticism.
She used the fire-escape to her benefit; using the ladder only twice to smash on the thugs. Eventually, which was actually surprisingly quick, she had the last two thugs laid out alongside the still crying and whimpering wanna-be slicer.
She attached three of the thugs with a line of webbing to the fire-escape. Of the last three she splatted the first two to the alley wall and the last she had him raise his arms, and then webbed his knees to his chest.
"Listen, there are a lot of other choices… In the future you might want to consider truck driving or being a short-order cook; this line of work never pays off well…" She said lowly to the pain-filled thug, Bruce heard though and it made him consider the female hero who was consulting and somewhat consoling the thug.
She bounced lightly on the balls of her feet before she jumped easily and landed on all fours above his head.
"This had been an interesting night…" Spider-Girl said as she released Bruce. "Why's a kid like you picking a fight with not one but six guys three times your age and armed?" She lowered him to the ground and stood before him.
Bruce looked up into her face, well- it was more like glaring, but the effect was lost since he couldn't look into her eyes, and more like glared into her large lenses.
"It's none of your business."
Bruce got the distinct feeling that she was rolling her eyes at him behind her large reflective lenses as she led him from the alleyway into the street.
"Considering the fact that you nearly got gutted like a fish and scarred like a wolverine, I'm making it my business." Spider-Girl said. She was glad that she'd stored her pack behind a gargoyle on one of the lower rooftops; this kid, Bruce, was definitely observant.
She made him wait for a couple minutes while she placed a call via a phone-booth to the police to let them know were the previous rioters were, and that they wouldn't be immobile for long. She was informed that several squad-cars were on their way, and then Bruce got tired of waiting he had the same question the 911-responder did:
"Who are you?!" Bruce demanded.
"Just your friendly, Neighborhood Spider-Girl;" She said introducing herself and she hung up the pay-phone.
"Never heard of you;" Bruce growled.
"And I've never heard of a kid with a background like yours, leaving the comforts of home and going out on the streets trying to fight the world with no training." Spidey scoffed crossing her arms across her chest.
Bruce got the distinct feeling that he should high-tail it for home. "Look, this has been nice and all-" Bruce started.
"You're right, it's late; call your guardian Mr. Wayne. No doubt your guardian is worried and you're not settling their nerves."
Bruce startled and looked at her more closely.
"You recognize me?"
"Kid- it's not like I don't know the socialite circle." She deliberately let the information drop; letting him make his own theories.
It took him a moment, but she could see the gears turning in his head. But other than that, it didn't look like he was going to move. Rolling her eyes behind her mask, she swung him up.
"Alright kid, if you're not going to call your guardian… Hang on, it's not going to be fun for you if you fall; Keep your arms loose." She said as she placed him on her back, arms around her neck.
She could tell as she web-swung through the city that Bruce was loving the night air as they swung through the early morning hours of the night. When they were leaving the high-rises, she timed her landing for a truck that Bruce pointed out went by his family's estate. It only took the firing of one well-aimed web-line and a corresponding jerk for bag to jerk free of its hiding place and for the backpack to attach itself to the side of the truck.
It took them another ten minutes for the truck to get to their destination (With another jerk, the bag landed in a shadowed tree along the edge of the estate property.) and yet another five to get from the road to the front door. Seriously this Spider-Girl was able to jump over the gate to his family's estate. He liked the fact that she didn't apologize for her knowledge of his late parents. She was no-nonsense, she was acrobatic and she had a flair of subtle understanding that he approved of. There was something about this Spider-Girl that made him breathe easier; something deep that said she understood.
But he was surprised when her gloved fist knocked on the estate's front door; he hadn't thought they were so close.
A harried Alfred opened the door, surprised to see her figure, but relieved all the same to see him.
"Master Bruce!"
"Hi Alfred;" Bruce said, nonchalantly as Alfred embraced him; but he winced when Spider-Girl whacked him on the back of the head. "Ow- er, sorry about… you know… leaving when…"
Spider-Girl's stance turned almost hostile, and he felt the hair on the back of his neck rise; Spider-Girl meant business.
"I left without telling you, making you worry; and I promise I'll never do this kind of thing again." Bruce said quickly, not being able to look into her face made her even more intimidating.
Her stance softened.
Alfred watched the exchange between the heroine and his young charge. This was unexpected; Bruce had been doing similar things for weeks. Although Alfred had been in WWI and WWII, his young charge still gave his nerves a jolt whenever something threatened Master Bruce. But this was something that he had never seen of his young Master; this female oddly uniformed hero was a good change for him.
"Thank you Miss, for bringing the Young Master Bruce home…"
Spider-Girl waved it off, she'd done similar things back in New York.
"Might I ask: who are you?"
Bruce spoke up drawing Alfred's attention. "She's Spider-Girl!"
That gave her just enough time to silently and swiftly leap onto the door-lintel and climb to the top of the roof. From there, she was going to wait until the occupants of the house went to sleep and then make her way to the road; but then she saw in the distance a party going on. It was on another large estate and the party was winding down.
"Where'd she go?" She heard Bruce ask and she knew that one of them was picking up the card she'd left.
"Courtesy of your friendly, neighborhood Spider-Girl;" Alfred spoke, reading from the card.
"Oh, she's good…" Bruce said appreciatively.
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
Thanking her lucky stars, Spider-Girl shimmied the tree shadows to the edge of the property where her backpack was hidden; there in the depths of the shadows, she changed into her Mrs. Kennedy outfit. Suddenly grateful for having to change backstage quickly and in the dark, she slipped into her heels and finally donned the hat, the last thing she was able to do thanks to some finagling from Mr. Fantastic, was to change her backpack inside out and collapse it slightly into a drawstring purse (Thank goodness for pocket dimensions otherwise her other clothes and uniform would have never fit!).
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
She then started walking to the lane and towards the other property, when she heard a sniffling about five minutes after she'd crossed a property-line. Huddled in the bushes was a young girl, dressed in a party frock, looking scared and completely dirty.
"Are you alright?" May asked, kneeling in front of the girl.
She was startled when the girl threw herself into her arms and began bawling. It took some doing, but she was able to determine that the girl was from the party at the house, but didn't live there. She had had to come to this birthday party, but she really didn't want to because everyone there made fun of her and hurt her feelings. May was pretty sure that everyone was in particular, the birthday-girl and her cronies, but instead, offered to walk with her back inside and help her talk to the adults.
Once she'd escorted the girl inside, she ended up having a hard talk with several parents, and eventually she'd made her point and there was a definitely going to be a lecture in several children's future. That being done and several connections made, May Parker was ready to face the City of Gotham.
She had told a few people of importance that she had just moved here and had had all her belongings except that in her purse stolen. The parents of the girl had immediately volunteered to pay for her stay in an apartment in the city for six months. May had immediately declined, but they were not going to let her, so she reluctantly agreed and the next morning had found herself set up in the furnished apartment in the posh part of the city for the next six months. Another set of parents, the birthday girl (Veronica Vreeland), had set up some accounts in the high-end stores for her attire, and had said that they would pay her grocers bill for her stay in the apartment.
Flummoxed, but agreeable, May was now fully set-up in her apartment in the city.
As soon as Monday came forward in the week, May had an interview set up with two places: Wayne Industries and the Gotham Globe. She was hired to take pictures for the Globe and could do so easily, as it was for fluff pieces like weddings and the like, and she also was hired as a secretary to one Lucius Fox of Wayne Industries. He was a likeable man, and a trustworthy one. He'd had her purchase a set of tickets to an airshow to take place that weekend her first day on the job and was told to purchase one for herself as well, to be part of the group.
That was when May Parker had met Bruce Wayne as a civilian. May Parker was introduced as Lucius' secretary and had immediately been brushed off by Bruce. Alfred Pennyworth and Lucius Fox had looked discouraged at Bruce's response to her position in the company, but May made it her personal mission to make that day a good one for the boy and also to start changing his ideals toward those that worked under him.
She made references to age-old stories and by the time lunch came around, Bruce was thoroughly intrigued by this young woman and her tales. With the air-show in full-swing, the three adults made sure that Bruce had had a fun filled day; May had even remembered to take a camera with her, and took a picture of the two men standing behind an ecstatic Bruce as planes flew intricate formations above their heads.
Over the next several weeks, Bruce had come to the office under the guidance of Alfred Pennyworth. Even though Bruce was just thirteen, he had a keen mind, but he had no idea how he was going to do what he wanted to do for the people of his city. The idea started as a seed and then began to grow, and it was all thanks to May Parker- Secretary and Photographer extraordinaire.
When night arrived, he and Alfred had returned to Wayne Manor, he actually went to the Library and pulled out the books of the 'Once and Future King' as well as the tales of 'Robin Hood'; and then because she'd only made a mild reference to it, he also pulled out the short story of 'The Girl With The Gazelle' by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It was this that he read first and was so intrigued with the idea that he pulled all the 'Sherlock Holmes' books and set to reading their tales. There was a saying that Bruce became exceedingly fond of: 'Throw out the Impossible and Whatever Remains, No Matter how Improbable, Must Be the Truth'.
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
The visits to Wayne Industries became more and more frequent at Bruce's insistence. It got to the point where every afternoon after school, Bruce would sit with May Parker and aside from her secretarial duties, would tell him tales of other detectives. Her favorite detective seemed to be 'Boston Blackie' and while Bruce enjoyed the tales of the impish detective, he was thoroughly gripped by the tales of 'The Shadow' and the way he intimidated the answers from those he questioned.
All through this time, 'Spider-Girl' was working on keeping the streets clean, if only somewhat. She stopped robberies, car-jackings, several muggings and when worse came to worst she had joined up with Dr. Fate and Max Mercury to stop a Big-Bad- at that point she was invited to join by the charter members of the Justice Society; she agreed to join on a free-lance basis, and while she wasn't a charter member, she could be found foiling some plot of some dastardly villain.
Bruce had taken to following Spider-Girl's exploits, some were in person, others he followed the news-leads. When he'd followed her and tried to help in her patrols, Spider-Girl would get Bruce quickly out of harm's way and web him to the wall, stating: "When you can get out of that in three minutes, then you can help me"; Then Bruce started reading about escape artists.
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
One afternoon, May wasn't in the office as Lucius had given her the afternoon off; however she'd left word with the front receptionist that if Bruce wanted to visit with her, she could be found in Gotham Park. Alfred drove him there and for the first time in three months, Bruce saw May Parker dressed down in jeans, a blouse and flats. She was leaning against a tree reading a science-fiction book, which Bruce initially scoffed at, until May started reading a passage to him. Alfred sat on a park-bench quite near and listened as he read a book on Britain's economical rise.
Bruce's eager mind lapped up all the information it could, and by the time October came around, including Bruce's birthday, he was excelling in all his studies both from school and self-imposed. For his fourteenth birthday, May got him a series of books on Myths and Legends from different regions around the world. She told him to collaborate which stories were true and how they tied in to other countries; with that in his mind, the next several times he visited, May told him tales of traveling between planets and how other cultures seemed based on similar aspects to Earth.
Bruce accepted this information with a grain of salt and since he couldn't collaborate it at this time, he wrote down the pertinent information to come back to at a later time.
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
The next time he visited, he told her which tales seemed to collaborate the tales from another country; but she asked him to take the idea further and ask questions of people from those countries and their thoughts on the matter, so that afternoon, under the guidance of Lucius Fox, Bruce walked Wayne Industries and asked people where they were from and what they thought of the different legends. That made them bring up their ideas and thoughts about science and how it involved every aspect, so on a whim, Bruce asked one Scientist in Particular, a Doctor Hamilton who was about to start with STAR Labs, what he thought about travel to other planets.
That night brought a new series of books into Bruce's repertoire, the study of different planets and with May Parker in mind, he also took the books on their myths and legends.
Still through all of this, Bruce was following the heroic-career of Spider-Girl; he was amazed that one hit could knock a man out while another could merely incapacitate while leaving its victim conscious.
So on his own he began studying physiology and the anatomy of humans; he mentioned it to May Parker and she suggested he speak to his Family Doctor and then read some books on Eastern Medicine.
One afternoon Bruce was surprised to see May Parker at her wits end. She had a wild look about her eyes that as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle would have said: boded ill for its recipients.
Alfred was concerned for her, and stated as much, until May showed him the reason for her harried appearance. With that much said, Alfred escorted Bruce out of the office and back home; that evening as he was putting his homework away, Bruce found a book on facial features in his bag that showed him the little tics and facial giveaways that indicated what was on the persons mind. May Parker, despite being as harried as she was had managed to get that into his bag without either he, Lucius or Alfred noticing; she was good…
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
Christmas came around rather quickly and Bruce was at a loss on what to get May Parker; she'd helped him so much this past year. They were forced to take a detour due to some power-lines that had come down across the road, when they slowly drove past an antique book shop that caught his eye. Bruce quickly asked Alfred to stop and park, and as soon as that was completed, Bruce was inside the small warm shop with a hot chocolate from the owner and being asked what he was looking for. Bruce described how May Parker had incited his inquisitiveness and how he wanted to get her something in return; in mere moments, the owner left and came back with a series of books called 'Hornblower' by C.S. Forrester. The owner described the books' summary and Bruce was sure that these would be a fabulous present to May Parker, and Alfred helped pay for them; as soon as they were wrapped and Bruce had finished his hot chocolate, they were out the door and on their way back to Wayne Manor where Bruce decided he was going to wrap the presents himself. After several failed attempts, he remembered one of the tales of Sherlock Holmes as well as Boston Blackie, where someone was always available to ask for help or aid. Bruce did that and after walking into the kitchen and asking Alfred to help him, was conned into helping make dinner where it was quickly burned and deemed un-edible; they had sandwiches for dinner instead.
Christmas Morning arrived and Bruce though without his parents, was gifted with several things from the different departments that he'd made contact with from Wayne Industries; and all thanks to May Parker. Many of the departments had gotten him books that he didn't have, and which he was thrilled to receive, Lucius Fox had gotten him an advanced chemistry set, Alfred had gotten him a cookbook as a joke, but also a book on the urban myths of the region of the United States they were in. May Parker had gotten him three beginner books of languages of different countries: Japanese, Kasnian, and French; also she'd gotten him something that would quickly ignite his interest in computers.
He'd also gotten presents from the socialite circle, which brought his mind to Spider-Girl, how was she involved, and did he know her? He went through those presents carefully, evaluating them, most were gift certificates and a couple were toys, but there was one present that caught his eye: someone unnamed, had gotten him a signed poster of the Gray Ghost; was Spider-Girl keeping an eye on him?
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
Late one January morning, Bruce learned from Spider-Girl that there was always another option. He and several of his classmates were being held hostage by men at tommy-gunpoint. Bruce looked at her form as she stood in front of his class, there was no hesitation in her form; was she really willing to give up her secret identity to save so many people? His classmates whom had also been a loyal following of Spider-Girl, although they were thrilled to have a heroine in their midst, were still scared out of their minds. Spider-Girl was given options she took the third option not spoken. She shot a web into each gunman's eyes which automatically made them raise their guns to the ceiling where a web nailed each one to the ceiling; only to be shot by a sniper. She'd dodged at the last second so that the rifle trained on the back of her head never made its original target.
It was only after she'd been shot that Bruce heard a tackle taking place above his head. Max Mercury had just shown up and brought the gunman down hard.
"What took you so long?!" Spider-Girl demanded as she held her shoulder, her shoulder was screaming pain.
"I was in China getting Chinese!" Max complained. "It's hard being a speedster! We were just clearing up a riot in Sheng-hai!"
"Who's this 'we' thin-man?" Spider-Girl questioned him as policemen entered the scene and started arresting the gunmen.
Then the other charter members of the Justice Society came in; Dr. Fate made Spider-Girl sit before he began healing her.
"You do not have to work alone Spider-Girl, we are a team for a reason…"
"I'm just not used to having a partner in these deals…" Spider-Girl stated.
Fate rolled his eyes behind his helmet. He knew the reason Spider-Girl was here, she was not to change the fate of the man that would be Batman, but to start him on his Mission.
"Besides, the kids are safe- so I can continue with my Mission." Spider-Girl said, silently noting how closely Bruce Wayne was paying attention.
Bruce listened carefully, 'Mission'? He noted her emphasis on that particular word.
"And what is your Mission Spider-Girl?" Fate asked her, more for the benefit of Bruce Wayne's ears.
"To make this city a safer place for others… So no one else has to suffer what happened to me and mine."
It was with that statement that the kindled spark of what would be Batman's essence took to flame.
Fate noted what was happening, and released Spider-Girls' shoulder. She would have to leave in the next four months. She was here to make sure that Batman was a reality; her being here was important for the future Order of the Universe.
Bruce continued seeing May Parker at the office after school, she made him hone his memory to a fine edge, she encouraged him to think outside the colored lines.
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
It was then on the cusp of his summer to freshman year in High-School that he found out that she was leaving.
"What do you mean you're leaving?" Bruce demanded. May Parker was the older sister he'd never had, and now she was leaving?!
"I gave my two weeks' notice late last month and the girl I trained will start working here full-time tomorrow morning…" May Parker explained to the frustrated heir.
Bruce ended up storming out of the room, leaving a harried Alfred to follow him. Lucius sent a look at May Parker and both went back to work, but May knew that Spider-Girl would have to meet up with Bruce Wayne that evening; she didn't want his temper to go unchecked.
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
That evening Bruce was feeling reckless so he was in town trying to take down anyone who had done wrong; Spider-Girl found him, slamming his fist into the face of a weasel faced guy.
"Didn't you promise that you wouldn't do this again, Mr. Wayne?" Spider-Girl asked him from her position on the wall.
"What do you know?" He snarled at her as she leapt to the ground in front of him.
When she didn't answer immediately, he sneered at her, "that's what I thought."
Spider-Girl suddenly grabbed him by his ear and tugged him out of the alley and into the street where she turned a corner and dragged him up a small deck of stairs.
"Hey- Let go! Leggo my ear Spidey!" Bruce complained loudly to the empty streets.
"No one understands, do they?" She asked quietly, her tone belying her body-speak, which was annoyed and intimidating. "The world is against you, everyone leaves…"
Bruce snapped his head as much as he could to look at her, his frustration evident.
She pushed him inside as soon as she turned the handle to the door, not allowing Bruce to even think of what she was doing.
As soon as they walked inside Bruce noted the differences. There was something sad here, it permeated the air. Then Bruce saw a picture in the hallway, his parents were in it; he stepped closer to take a better look.
"Spider-Girl, you're here…" Came a fragile voice. An older woman stepped into the lighted hallway, Bruce noted that she was heavily scarred; not from weapons not from fists, but from flames.
"Hey Granny…" Spider-Girl said stepping closer to the old woman, well- she was probably as old as Alfred, Bruce considered.
Spider-Girl hugged 'Granny' carefully. "They're upstairs dear…" 'Granny' said.
With a bounce to her step, Spider-Girl heavily put her feet on the steps, and soon several children were at the head of the staircase.
"Everyone here has lost something, someone…." 'Granny' said, as the children clamored and led Spider-Girl down the hall and into one of the rooms; "I have children here whom have lost their parents, others their hearing, their sight, some a hand or other limb."
Bruce looked disconcerted at the old woman. "Who are you?"
'Granny' laughed, it was a laugh that sounded like it had had better days. "Spider-Girl calls me Granny, only because it amuses her to do so…" Her smile strained the scars on her face, making the smile painful almost. "Whether you believe it or not, I'm only thirty years old…"
Bruce looked at her astounded.
"I can see you don't believe it…" 'Granny' said. "My parents named me Gratitude, Gratitude Ebony."
"Why?"
Gratitude Ebony's eyes crinkled and Bruce saw stars in her eyes. "Ebony is my last name… And I suppose my parents named me Gratitude because without the help of a stranger on a train, I wouldn't have lived past my first day…"
From upstairs, Bruce heard the off-key singing of several people, something about 'black socks'.
"Spider-Girl is an amazing person isn't she?" Gratitude, Granny asked Bruce. "She makes things lighter for the rest of us; there are days I swear that she takes on the burdens of Atlas."
Bruce looked to the ceiling as if he could see through it. He could hear tromping upstairs and it sounded like there was a small chase-scene going on upstairs.
Granny smiled, they were playing 'duck-duck-goose!' upstairs again, Spider-Girl always let the younger ones win.
"Her being here lets the kiddos be children…" Granny said as she led the way into the kitchen. "She's smart too; she forces the kiddos to think outside the colored lines…" She took some glasses down from the cupboard.
"She just showed up here one day, took one look at the kiddos and took them all to the zoo! I think the cashier had a heart attack when she bought the tickets for the children, still in uniform too, but they came back telling me all kinds of stories, thrilled as thrilled could be. I'd never seen them so lighthearted…" Granny sighed softly in remembrance. "After that she showed them that being different, is something to be cherished and appreciated not something to be avoided and misused. She even made fun of the Status Quo that society puts on all of us…"
As she spoke she took down a plate and put some homemade cookies on it before pouring milk for the both of them.
Bruce listened to Granny closely; nibbling on the cookies and drinking the milk. What he learned from this scarred woman, is that to be judged by appearance is worthless, but to be judged by deeds is what made great men and women.
Granny's parents were from Brazil and she wanted nothing more than to make sure that the planet was preserved ecologically. She caught herself halfway through her impassioned speech to a boy no older than fourteen, and pushed him to join Spider-Girl and the others upstairs.
Once he was upstairs he walked down the hallway until he heard Spider-Girls' voice, she spoke as enthusiastically as May Parker did with the same intonations, causing him to wonder; but he walked through the opened door to the room to hear about two small groups of heroes that had come to the Old West to stop a man from changing time. The main character was a man named Jonas Hex, the tale was outrageous; mechanical horses and Pterodactyls, a six-shooter that shot one bullet out of each cylinder of the same gun at the same time? A man who fought with only the contents in his belt, a woman with bracelets that re-aimed bullets, another man that used the energy of leprechauns to fuel his will?
Still Bruce enjoyed the story, and for those that couldn't hear, Spider-Girl used sign language to tell her tale, and her tales were so vivid that Bruce could almost see the action in his mind her details were exceedingly precise even speaking and 'speaking' made all the children in the room lean forward to learn more of the tale. Spider-Girl ended the tale telling them that several of the mechanical animals were in an unmarked cave deep in the wilds of the blazing west sun-scorched lands.
Bruce asked the question, which two of the children translated into sign for the non-hearers. "Were you the woman in the tale?"
Spider-Girl scoffed. "Me in my tight spider-spandex, fight in the old West?" She then snickered, "A Spider riding a horse? I'd have to know how- I'm a Big-City girl. Middle of nowhere with no tall buildings to swing from would put a swift end to this web-slinger…"
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
Granny and the other children waved as they left the building, smiles on all their faces.
"Why did you take me there?" Bruce asked as he handed her a quarter for the payphone.
"You need to use your head…." She explained to him knocking lightly on his crown causing him to move to avoid the knocking. "Muscle is nothing without the brain to control the movements…"
"But I was-" Bruce denied.
"You weren't using your brain; kid, I've seen a lot and I've done a lot more. I've stopped an evil God from controlling the Earth and turning it into her lost home, I've avoided traps, gotten into quite a few as well…" She winced to herself. "But one thing saved my bacon: using my head."
Spider-Girl put the quarter in the slot and waited for the person on the other end of the line to pick up. "Hi Alfred, your friendly neighborhood Spider-Girl speaking… I've got Bruce here with me and he needs a ride back home."
Bruce tried to interrupt and take the phone from her, but she was too quick, putting a hand to his chest to keep the phone out of reach.
"I'll stay with him until you're here." Spider-Girl agreed and she told him their location. "Yes; see you soon Alfred," and she hung up, the quarter going through and two nickels coming out the change-slot. She handed the change to Bruce before sitting on the vertical part of the lamppost next to the payphone.
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
For the first time Bruce got a really close look at Spider-Girl. He knew she was athletic, her build suggested that, and her moves proved it. She was also witty, and had some snark that made him smirk whenever he either read or heard of it. But he couldn't shake the feeling that he'd been dealing with her for a long time; that and the way she'd told her tale to the other kids, she sounded- He needed to make sure.
"May Parker, why is it that you decided to become Spider-Girl?"
He got no response; Spider-Girl shook her head and looked at him through her lenses. "Sorry, you were asking me something?"
"…Just wondering why you became Spider-Girl…" Bruce said trying to avoid the sudden lecture that he felt was incoming.
Spider-Girl had heard the entire question, but she'd learned to ignore her name while in uniform. In uniform she was Spider-Girl, her father though retired, was Spider-Man. She had relatives that were clones of her dad and still they fought crime, making New York a better place for everyone.
Spider-Girl decided to answer his question, "With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility…"
"Huh?" It was a short answer, but there had to be some deeper meaning behind it.
"It's something that my family lives by; 'with great power comes great responsibility'." He didn't look like he understood at all. "Bruce, responsibility is what drives me and mine…"
Bruce looked closer at her, her body language was loose, but still tense, if that made any sense, which to him currently, didn't.
"Our actions make us responsible, just as our inactions do…" She turned to face him, her lenses gleaming in the lamplight. "Bruce the best advice I can give you is to act, not react; plan six steps ahead of the three steps that you can see. Plan for the worst, but hope for the best; and in the end people will surprise you…"
She could see the Wayne Town Car in the distance. "Above all else, if you don't remember that, 'the night is always darkest before the dawn'…"
Alfred made a U-turn and pulled up to the curb. "Master Wayne! Where have you been?!" He demanded of Bruce.
Spider-Girl knew that Bruce had a lot to think on and decided to give the teenager an out. "I took him to see how things could be worse than they are…" She stepped off the lamppost to the ground.
Alfred looked at her carefully, but nodded opening the door for Bruce.
"Inside then Master Bruce, Miss Vreeland is expecting you to attend her party…" Bruce groaned loudly in response.
Alfred closed the door and Bruce rolled down the window. "Any advice?" He asked hopefully.
The expression behind her mask grew more open, "A gentleman is really a man who says one thing, but thinks another." Bruce looked surprised at that advice. Spider-Girl reached through the open window and ruffled his hair, knowing that she was leaving and only now could she get away with it. "Tell you what: the next time you'll see me, I'll be in Bludhaven."
Bruce looked back at her as the town-car drove off. Because she was on a roll, and as Superman wasn't actually doing his thing yet, Spider-Girl shot out a web-line and declared: "Up, up and away!"
Once in her apartment, she pulled out her backpack and put the clothes inside, they were high-quality tailored clothing, there was no way that she was giving these up; that and Tony would have a spizz-fit…
She placed a call down to the doorman and told him that the food in the boxes in the hall were to be given to a homeless shelter. The doorman agreed and with the last of her clothes in the bag, as well as the Hornblower book series Bruce had so kindly purchased for her for Christmas, and dressed down in her jeans and blouse from her second day in Gotham (the Mrs. Kennedy outfit was in the very bottom of her bag), May Parker left her residence for the past ten months, said goodbye to the doorman and walked out the front door and down the road into the sunrise.
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
Well, it looked like she'd walked into the sunrise; she actually ended up tripping and falling on her keister just inside her quarters at the Avengers Compound. She dropped her bag on the side of her bed and faced her desk complete with computer.
She turned on her computer to look at the date, same day she left, but it was ten hours later. Ugh, time-travel… She started out with Nightwing who had been the partner of Batman as Robin, but was now on his own in Bludhaven; but she'd been sent back to that dimension but into the past where she met Batman before he even became Batman and ended up guiding him onto that path…
Madam Webb was right; the timeline was just 'a big ball of timey-whimey, wibbly-wobbly stuff…' No wonder she got a headache from time travel.
To make it worse, she was going to have to explain to American Dream where she'd been after disappearing from right in front of her. Bluestreak would understand, so would Thena, Warp, and possibly Stinger and Energizer, but the others?
This was going to be a long next day, so she sent a quick IM to the rest of the team telling them that she'd explain where she'd been first thing in the morning after breakfast.
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
In the Batcave, Batman was going over the security feed from the Watch Tower. Beside the video feed, was a newspaper article: "The Webs and Wings of Bludhaven", that's what the local media called them, Nightwing and Spider-Girl….
'"From the start then…"' Spider-Girl groaned, putting her gloved hand to her fully-masked face. She turned to face Nightwing fully. '"I'll need unimpeded access to a Molecular-lab with nanite capabilities. As well as your full and complete support in taking care of Bludhaven while I'm on Million-Dollar-Man duty."' The latter she requested of Nightwing, she'd quickly written out a list and handed it over to Batman; that was just the top of the list, there were several implements, devices and various chemicals that were on the list as well.
"She did say the next time I saw her she'd be in Bludhaven…" Batman muttered under his breath, so quietly that Robin didn't hear.
Robin looked at the screen trying to see what Batman was seeing. Batman then pulled another article from twenty some-odd years prior.
"Is that… Spider-Girl?!" Robin exclaimed. His masked eyes scanned the article quickly, and he promised himself to read more up on Nightwing's kinda-yes, kinda-most-definitely-not partner, Spider-Girl at a later date.
"Yes. You will not tell Nightwing either, not until she's gone."
"Gone, what do you mean gone?" Robin asked of his mentor.
Batman didn't answer; instead, he closed the search and ended the video. "Robin, we need to patrol."
"Yeah… Alright. But what about Spider-Girl?" Robin asked his mentor again.
Batman was silent until they reached the center of his city, his responsibility.
Spider-Girl had changed him the end of his middle-school career; May Parker had had a way about her, she made the mission easier to bear.
He'd learned from experience, and in his own way, he had taught his first ward and was teaching his current ward the same way May Parker had taught him; eagerly, ready to make a difference in a young life.
END
This is the end of this story-thread, and I apologize for the "timey-whimey, wibbly-wobbly stuff" that this is made of. I hope you have enjoyed this continuation one-shot, good luck to you all in all you say and do!
JoWashington