- First of all, I just want to thank alostt5 and TS24 for taking the time to review. I'm relieved to see that there are others out there who are disappointed with the way Marvel has taken Peter Parker's character so far. The fact that you guys are still reading this is a very pleasant surprise because I'm still a long way from calling myself a decent writer.

- I'm still learning in terms of writing on how to write specific romance parts and intimate settings so if you guys have any advice with that, I'd be more than happy to hear about them. I got asked once if I was planning to have a physical romantic scene or a lemon as most call it in this and to be honest, I'm not really sure because I've never done that before in my writing and I don't know how to go about with it. That's not saying that it won't be a possiblity but I'm gonna have to put out all the stops if I do decide to do that. Again, any good advice is welcome.

We'll cross that bridge when we get there though. For now, let's begin the next chapter...

Peter Parker and Silver Sablinova were both currently waiting for the Avengers to arrive in a private room aboard the Zenith. Max had told them that until the Avengers arrived, they were welcome to wait and rest from their recent battle. He added the fact that the Zenith was going to stay behind to help with the salvaging of the destroyed Octahedron and the search for the corpses of Rhino and Octavius. It was Sable who, much to Peter's initial surprise, requested that both her and Spider-Man would require some privacy and silence as they took time to recover. While he was at first confused as to why she would ask that, Peter quickly figured out the reason. Both he and Sable knew that the staff of Horizon Labs who were on board the ship were more than likely going to ask one of them on what exactly had happened in the base. Peter respected all and each of the Horizon Lab employees but he felt that the truth of what actually happened was something he didn't enjoy telling so casually. He had already told Captain America that he'd recount the battle in full details but that was because he and the other Avengers were one of the few individuals Peter trusted. Fortunately, Max seemed to understand and told them that there was a private room near the deck where he had greeted them that they could use in peace and further mentioned that he would tell his employees to leave them alone before excusing himself and leaving.

Now they were both in that room, sitting next to each other in relatively comfortable silence. Peter was going over in his head on how to tell the recent battle to the rest of the Avengers when he remembered that there was something else he had to take care of first. This was something that Peter wanted to do as it only felt right for him to do so.

"Sable..." He began.

Sable turned her face to look at him, hearing the sound of his voice calling her name.

"Yes, Spider-Man?"

"I just wanted to say thank you for helping me from pretty much the start of this mess and sticking to assist me till the end of it." Peter stated in sincere gratefulness. He felt truly thankful that he had someone like Silver Sable as a friend and close ally. Peter knew that he could never have saved the world on his own without her help.

Sable just gave him one of her rare warm smiles as she replied.

"It was my pleasure, Spider-Man. I have already told you before that I would follow you to the ends of the Earth if it meant helping you succeed."

Peter chuckled softly when she said that. The fact that Spider-Man wasn't very well liked in the eyes of the public and to a lesser degree, the super hero community was mostly due to the actions of the infamous wall crawling hater, J. Jonah Jameson, who for reasons Peter couldn't comprehend was the Mayor of New York. The old cheapskate almost always used his political power in finding ways to discredit and belittle Spider-Man which in turn led to many of the citizens and some of his fellow heroes feel very reluctant to help him when he needed it, much less stick with him until the bad guy was beaten.

Sable caught the soft chuckle that Spider-Man had expressed at her words and was puzzled as to why he did so.

"I meant every word I said very seriously, Spider-Man." She said with a slight scowl on her face.

Peter quickly raised his hands in surrender as he panickly tried to explain himself.

"I wasn't laughing at what you said Sable, honest! ...I really do appreciate that you would be willing to help me so much. It's just that not many others would be so quick to help me, y'know? Most people are completely convinced that I'm a menace or that I'm an idiot. I even got called a perv a few times...not sure where that one came from."

Her expression immediately softened as Sable understood what Spider-Man was talking about. Thanks to the slandering and defacing of his name by the wasted efforts of the idiotic Mayor of New York, Jonah Jameson, Spider-Man was almost always alienated by the public despite his continous heroics in saving the city and the world on many occasions. Having worked with Spider-Man so many times before, Sable was able to see for herself that his character was one of a true self sacrificing hero and the complete opposite of what the weak minded public and Mayor of New York were saying about him. Though she never said it out loud to anyone, Sable had always hated the fact that Spider-Man was almost never appreciated for his extraordinary efforts in keeping New York and the world safe.

At the very least, she would let him know now that not all of the world thought of him in such a negative way.

"Spider-Man, I assure you that I do not think of you as such nor would I ever start. In the years that we've known each other and worked together, I have seen the man that you are on the inside. A man who has one of the strongest resolves and heart I've ever felt emanating despite the many opinions and odds that have been against you. You have never faltered in doing what you felt was right and more than once have been I amazed by what you've been able to accomplish."

Peter was astounded with what she had just said about him and felt his respect go higher than it had ever been for Sable. It was rare indeed that Peter was praised at all in his work as Spider-Man and the fact that one of the greatest compliments he had ever recieved was just given to him by the beautiful Symkarian mercenary was more than enough to bring a smile on his face.

"Thanks Sable. A praise coming from you, well...that means a lot to me."

Sable simply smiled warmly at him again when she answered. "No need to thank me, Spider-Man. I am simply being honest from the heart."

Peter and Sable looked into each other's eyes for a moment before they suddenly heard the unmistakable sounds of a jet's engines roaring and slowly slowing down near them. Both individuals exited the private room they were waiting in and went out to see that the Quin-jet, main transport of the Avengers, had arrived. The side door of the jet opened and out exited three of the main Avengers: Captain America, Spider-Woman, and Black Widow. Peter smirked a bit behind his mask as he walked up towards them where Cap held out his hand. Peter took the hand and shook it as he began to speak.

"Glad to see that you're alright, Cap, Natasha." He then turned to Jessica and somehow managed to look ashamed despite the full on mask he was wearing. "Sorry if I hit you too hard, Jess...We were in kind of a rush."

Spider-Woman just grinned as she replied. "It's alright, Spidey. Just remember to hold back a bit of that strength of yours next time, we're both spiders but I'm nowhere as strong as you are."

Everyone present laughed softly at that before Captain America spoke to Silver Sable.

"Ms Sablinova. On behalf of the Avengers and U.S. government, I humbly thank you for helping and fighting alongside Spider-Man during the entirety of this crisis."

Sable just nodded her head respectfully at that. "Think nothing of it, Captain America. Octavius's plans would've affected the entire world and I knew I could not sit back and let that happen."

Cap gave a quick salute as she finished speaking before turning back to Peter. "SHIELD is sending a task force to salvage the Octahedron alongside the Zenith. Do you want to leave or stay and help with the operation?"

Peter looked over to Sable who seemed to have the same line of thought as he did when she nodded slightly at him before he answered.

"We're ready to leave, Cap. I still got to go over the details of what happened... it isn't exactly a pretty tale. "

Cap had a look of understanding on his face and lead the way back towards the Quinjet with both Sable, Peter, and Jessica following. Black Widow was staying behind to lead the SHIELD operation in salvaging the destroyed Octahedron. The super soldier set the coordinates for Symkaria first as Sable had requested that the Avengers drop her off there and soon the Quinjet was in the air, heading towards their first destination.

"We got some time before we reach Symkaria, Spider-Man. Now would be a good time to give us the full account of what happened." Cap said after he turned on the auto pilot.

Peter mentally sighed and turned towards both Cap and Spider-Woman. Sable took a seat next to him as he told the entirety of what transpired after the brief skirmish with the mentally controlled Avengers. He spoke about the confrontation with Rhino within the Octahedron and how he had to brutally injure Rhino in order to save and free Sable from drowning within the villain's grip. Peter then continued with how he and Sable had managed to reach the location of where Octavius's plans were to be executed from only to find that Octavius was already dead long before they could stop him and that he had remotely set the Octobot satellites to ignite the Earth's atmosphere at the moment when the Octahedron would self destruct. Peter told them that he was able to stop the secondary sequence of the remote activation of the Octobot satellites but wasn't able to stop the base from self destructing and mentioned that he and Sable were barely able to make it out of the base in time. When Jessica asked what happened to Rhino, Sable told her that the injuries Spider-Man had inflicted on him earlier had left him likely completely blind and just as likely rendered Rhino unable to leave the base in time before it self destructed. With that, Peter finished talking and everyone was soon silent in the cabin as Captain America and Spider-Woman took the time to understand for themselves what they were just told.

The silence was broken when Jessica was the first to quietly speak up.

"I should let SHIELD know that they should search for the bodies of Octavius and Rhino... don't blame yourself for their deaths, Spidey." Jessica said as she put her hand on his shoulder as a gesture of comfort before leaving to inform the SHIELD task force.

Peter simply nodded though he still felt a bit of guilt at the thought of him being the primary factor in Alexei's death. Captain America seemed to sense his thoughts and he attempted to ease Spider-Man's conscience.

"Don't think this is your fault, son. You did what you had to not only save another life but also the world. You weren't the one who killed Rhino, it was the twisted plans of Octavius that did that."

The mentioning of him having been able to save Sable promptly brought Peter out of his minor bout with his conscience as he realized that the only comforting outcome of this crisis other than the Earth remaining safe was the very fact that he was able to save one of his oldest friends from death itself. Peter took a quick glance of Sable before looking back to Captain America with a small grin on his face.

"Thanks, Cap. I guess when you put it that way, it does make sense."

Captain America just grinned back at him and promptly stated before going back to the controls of the Quinjet. "Glad you understand, Spider-Man. I'll let the other Avengers know what you've told me. As soon as we get back to New York though, I'm ordering you to get some R and R."

"No arguments from me, Cap...thanks again."

Sable was glad to see that Spider-Man had stopped blaming himself for the deaths that had occured. She sometimes wondered how he was able to keep that sense of responsibility from completely overwhelming him but she knew all of that was just another reason amongst the many as to why she respected him as a hero. There was something else that had been on Sable's mind since she and Spider-Man were resting in the private room back aboard the Zenith. Sable had been going over ideas in her head of how to repay him for saving her life yet again. She was very tempted with kissing Spider-Man again as thanks but the suspicion that her kiss would be more based on her complicated feelings for him than simple gratitude told her to hold back on that idea. Instead, she thought of something else altogether though it would entirely be up to Spider-Man on whether or not he agrees.

"Spider-Man, could I speak to you in private?" Sable asked.

Peter turned to face Sable when he heard her speak to him.

"Uh sure, Sable. How about we move back a bit then?" Peter said as he was very curious as to what Sable wanted to ask him. She gave a nod at his suggestion and both walked to the back of the Quinjet where it was relatively quiet and out of the presumable hearing reach of Spider-Woman and Captain America. As soon as they felt that they were secure enough with their surroundings, he began to ask what it was Sable wanted to talk to him about.

"So is something wrong, Sable? Usually people only ask me to speak with them because they need my help with something." There was some truth as to what Peter just mentioned. More times than not did people seek him out in private usually to ask for his aid and those were the few people that actually knew him well enough to not believe what the senile Jameson said about him on a daily basis.

"No, Spider-Man, nothing of that nature this time. I realize that I have yet to thank you for saving my life again and..." Sable began before she saw him wave his hands in a politeful manner.

"Whoa Sable, there's no need for you to thank me. I can't call myself a superhero if I didn't save lives...especially the lives of the people that matter to me the most."

Peter almost slapped himself out of embarassment when he finished the last part of what he just said. It wasn't a lie but he felt that he was making Sable a bit uncomfortable with that and the last thing he wanted to do right now was to make things awkward with the Symkarian mercenary.

However, Sable wasn't feeling uncomfortable in the slightest. Her mind was still taking in what Spider-Man had just said while her heart she noticed was beating a little bit faster after hearing the last part of his sentence.

"He considers me that important in his life?" She mentally pondered before promptly going back to finish what she wanted to say.

"I know I don't have to, Spider-Man but I want to. It wouldn't feel right for me to not show you my gratitude." Sable paused at that, mentally trying to word out the next part.

Peter wondered how exactly Sable planned to thank him when his mind quickly ran back to the recent kiss that he and her had shared before. She told him then that it was his reward for helping her and thought that she planned to do so again this time as a show of thanks. He had admitted to himself many times that he enjoyed her kiss a lot. What puzzled Peter a bit was the fact that he was kind of looking forward to that if it did happen again but he wasn't sure if that interest was a short term thing or the longing of something more.

Sable finally found her words and continued on with what she wanted to say.

"So as a way to show you my appreciation...rather than you having to return all the way to New York, I'd be more than happy to let you stay in Symkaria for some time to not only rest but also to relax. And before you'd say anything, I'll cover the costs towards your needs so you don't have to worry about a lack of funds should you choose to stay."

Sable finished with a small hint of hopefulness in her eyes that Spider-Man would take her offer.

Peter was very surprised to say the least that Sable was willing to go this far to thank him. While he had never stayed in Symkaria long enough to see the sights and the idea of taking a vacation there was very enticing, he felt like he was taking advantage of her in some way though he knew that he wasn't. His sense of responsibility and nature as a gentleman (as his Aunt May raised him to be) almost always had him politely decline whenever a women offered to pay despite the fact that he was almost always broke. Peter was just about to decline her as politely as he could when he caught the look in her eyes. He couldn't exactly place what it was he saw in her eyes but it almost looked as if she was pleading for him to accept her invite. Immediately, Peter felt his heart soften when he saw Sable's beautiful face with a such subtle pleading look and knew then and there that turning down her offer was the last thing he'd ever want to do.

"Sigh...so does this mean that I'm the girl on this vacation, Sable? Because it wouldn't be the first time." He quipped.

Unsure if that joke was meant to be a yes, Sable looked at Spider-Man with an unsure expression on her face. "Spider-Man?"

Peter quickly understood what she was asking and clarified things.

"Sorry, that was just a bad joke...I humbly accept, Sable. It'd be good to get away from New York for a while plus I'll finally be able to take the time to enjoy the sights of Symkaria at my leisure."

Hearing Spider-Man accept her offer of gratitude, Sable felt a small feeling of relief flow through her heart as she smiled at him.

"I'm glad that you did, Spider-Man and don't worry, I'll make sure that you have the time to enjoy yourself during your stay."

Peter simply put his hand on her shoulder as he replied.

"Thanks Sable, but you don't have that to do that much for me. I have a good feeling about staying in Symkaria, maybe because this is the first vacation I've had in well...years."

"Then that just means I'll have to personally see to it that you are resting and relaxing to your utmost ...pleasure." Sable joked in a rare flirtatious manner and almost laughed when she saw Spider-Man fidget a bit awkwardly in response. She admitted to herself that it did make him look a bit adorable, especially in his costume.

"I uh, should probably let Cap know that I'm going with you to Symkaria." Peter was still flustered from Sable had just said to him and quickly made his way to the front of the Quinjet to tell Captain America the slight change in plans.

Sable let out a tiny laugh as she slowly followed Spider-Man to the front. While it was rare that she took the time to relax and have a bit of fun for herself, Sable had a good feeling that she'd be able to do that more often now at the expense of Spider-Man during his stay in Symkaria for the first time in a long while.

-I just want to give a heads up that I got two essays for my respective courses that I have to get done and that may take some time for me to finish. So if there isn't an update for a while, I apologize. That doesn't mean I'll forget this though because I hate leaving things unfinished.

- Anyways, Some of you may have noticed in this chapter that there is a lot more parts in terms of conversations. I thought the most risky part though was when Sable was messing with Peter in a flirtatious way since I'm trying to maintain her personality of a cool headed professional while having her warm up to Peter bit by bit...not as easy as it sounds. I hope you enjoyed this chapter though and as always reviews are welcome.