Chapter 10 – The Heart of the Matter
For some reason, Peter/Gray had thought Xavier's school would be more like the Avenger's Compound, metallic and sleek and modern. On the surface it looked like a British manor house converted into a boarding school. It wasn't until he'd been ushered to the basement that technology began to encroach on the décor. His tour guide, a young brunette in t-shirt and jeans had introduced herself as Kitty. Peter/Gray wasn't sure if that was a code name or her given name. Did responsible adults really name their kids Kitty? Still conflicted about his own name, he'd stuck with Spider-Man even though he wasn't wearing the suit.
"So, I've heard of you. New York City is your turf and you can do a lot of things, climb walls and shoot webs and stuff." Kitty smiled and pointed to herself. "Personally, I'm a one trick pony. Want to take a short cut?" Without waiting for permission she pulled him through the wall to their right and beamed. "We're here. Hank should be right out. I have to jet. Class, you know?" With a wave of her hand, she dropped straight through the floor.
"Matter phase shift," Peter muttered. It was enough like the Vulture's fancy phase shifting tool that the scientist in him wanted to perform experiments on the two methods to see how each worked. Everyone here had something, a genetic gift. Even before acquiring his symbiont, Peter had a whole tool kit of gifts. It would be weird to be a student here. He wouldn't have to be the student with secrets. He could display his gifts overtly, but they wouldn't be nearly so special when everyone had their own version of super powers.
Of course, powers didn't make you a hero. He knew what he was made of; buried under a ton of concrete he had figured that out. Symbiont or not, he knew would always be Spider-Man.
"Mr. Parker, it's so good to see you. I wish the circumstances were less serious." Hank McCoy arrived through a door instead of dramatically through a wall. "As you can imagine, we're going to examine you. I'm here to repeat your physical."
"I thought you would want to start with my head. You know, make sure I'm not planning an evil parasitic invasion of the planet?" Peter/Gray shuffled his feet nervously, still half-waiting for them to lock him up somewhere.
Dr. McCoy laughed and shook his head. "Based on your call with Mr. Guthrie, Professor Xavier scanned you perfunctorily before we sent someone to get you. He plans to have a closer look after your physical if that's okay with you?"
"Oh, he was in my head? I didn't feel anything." Peter/Gray stepped forward to the examination table. Instead of changing into the hospital gown Dr. McCoy indicated, he just shifted the symbiont's shape to match the gown.
"Remarkable," Dr. McCoy said. "That's new. If you're game, I'd like to quantify what the symbiont is capable of after the basic physical."
"Okay, we can try that. I'm afraid what I know is pretty limited at this stage."
"You are in the right place, Mr. Parker. We specialize in quantifying and developing unique biological gifts." Dr. McCoy took out an ophthalmoscope and grinned. "Basic physical first."
Ned had not been kidding when he declared that Peter being Spider-Man was the single greatest thing that had ever happened to him. After six months without his friend, Ned would gladly go back in time and stomp the stupid spider to death before it bit anyone if it would bring his friend back. MJ hung around with her sketch books and dry humor, but it was nowhere in the vicinity of the same. She didn't even know about Spider-Man or have any idea what was happening with Peter. All Ned wanted to do was talk to someone in the know for five minutes.
He considered texting Happy every day but never actually did. May gave him updates periodically and she never turned him away if he visited but she wasn't home much these days and it was weird stopping by to check on Peter when Peter was upstate, locked in a lab. The worst part was that everyone at school except MJ had already moved on. No one asked about Peter anymore. It was like he had never been here at all.
MJ wandered into Spanish class, but she took French or maybe it was Latin? She nudged Ned's shoulder before walking forward and handing Señor Vincent, his Spanish teacher, a note. "Señor Leeds, they need you at the yearbook office. Don't forget the quiz this Friday. Adios."
Letting MJ lead him away, Ned frowned in confusion. "Since when are you on the yearbook staff? Why does the yearbook staff need me?"
"I'm not on the yearbook staff. We're cutting class." MJ paused to see if he would argue.
Ned shrugged and let her lead on. "Okay, I've never actually cut class before. Why are we doing it now?"
"We need to talk and get on the same page. It's the end of the day and we haven't had a quiet private moment to talk." Outside and around the main building, MJ settled on one of the benches in a park just outside school grounds. The handful of smokers from Midtown, teachers and students, tended to congregate here and a smattering of cigarette butts littered the area. "I know Peter is Spider-Man. I also know that he's been locked up in the Avenger's compound, not home with the sniffles or in the hospital or whatever you've been telling people most recently. He stopped by my house last night on his way out of town. I promised him I'd tell you what was up first chance I got."
Ned quietly digested MJ's revelations and shook his head. "Did he tell you why he was locked up? I know you don't have any contacts with the Avengers, but you at least called May right?"
"He told me about the symbiont. He's with a mutant advocacy group. They're going to handle the situation with him. The Avengers were talking euthanasia according to Peter, and it's not wrong to get a second opinion, right? He didn't seem dangerous to me. He just seemed like Peter."
"Euthanasia? Mr. Stark would not hurt Peter, not in a million years. He was just going to get the symbiont out. May would never let anyone hurt him." Ned shook his head, shaken at the thought of someone euthanizing his best friend.
"If the symbiont is a sentient being, just getting rid of it would still sort of be euthanasia, Ned. All I really know is, he seemed pretty scared. Peter wanted you to know he was okay and that he'd flown the Avenger's coop. Consider yourself notified." MJ stood, adjusted her bag and headed for the street.
"Wait, why did he go to you for help and not me?" Ned asked. He had no idea what he would have done if Peter had come to him, probably called Happy again, but it hurt to know that his best friend had gotten help from MJ instead.
"You're his best friend. He couldn't go to you. The Avengers would have been all over that angle hunting him, don't you think?" MJ raised a hand in silent farewell and ducked into the pedestrian traffic.
Ned sighed and took out his phone. He considered calling Happy again. Instead he called May. "May, it's Ned. I'm calling to check in about Peter. Call me back?"
Dr. McCoy had long since finished his basic physical and had escorted Peter/Gray to a rather large gymnasium. Another mutant was already there also blue, but where Dr. McCoy was bulky and furry, his friend was slight and wiry with oddly formed hands and feet and an honest to God devil tail. He moved like a gymnast or a dancer swinging around the gym equipment with a fluid grace unlike anything Peter/Gray had seen.
"After watching some of the videos of you in action, I thought a practical test of agility and flexibility would be prudent, maybe a little fun." McCoy took off his lab coat and his shoes and socks. He bounded up onto the elaborate gymnasium bars and clapped his fellow blue mutant on the shoulder. "Kurt I'd like you to meet Spider-Man. He might just give you a run for your money up here."
"Ja? Are we playing tag then?" Kurt grinned and clapped his three digit hands together.
"That was my plan. To be fair, no teleporting Kurt, and Peter no webs. This is a pure physical agility game. If you touch the floor, you're out. If you catch Kurt, you win. I'll be playing on your team Peter."
"Is that fair, two on one?" Peter asked, already morphing his clothing into his spider-suit.
"No, mein freund, das ist nicht." Kurt grinned and shrugged, trying again in English this time. "I do not lose this game; two on one is more fair for you."
"We'll see about that." Peter launched himself next to Dr. McCoy. "Strategy?"
Professor Xavier watched the three mutants and their agility game from the observation booth. Even before becoming paralyzed, he had never been able to move like them, bodies contorting and flying like most men would never imagine to try.
Charles' mutation made it hard to honor the privacy of the people around him. He tried to be polite, not dig into the minds of his friends and colleagues though skimming the surface was almost impossible to block out. Spider-Man had specifically asked for his help, for him to evaluate what was happening in his mind and Charles took this moment when the young man was utterly focused on another activity, mind and body engaged in a goal, to slip inside his mind unnoticed.
The organization of minds was not standard in any way. Charles had explored simple minds and chaotic minds. He had seen insanity and peace and he had even met evil.
Peter's mind had its own cadence and flow. A brilliant mind, Charles determined quickly based on the speed and complexity of thoughts. He didn't let himself get trapped in the abstract or in the chemistry or the maths.
It wasn't a chaotic mind but there were some unusual connections for a teen, levels of maturity and responsibility and determination that usually formed much later if at all. Under and around Peter, almost invisible, Charles finally saw the symbiont. It shimmered, a translucent river that wrapped around everything, seemingly a benign passenger. This image of the mind, bare and clear would not be possible if Peter and the symbiont were aware in their mindscape.
Getting this perfect clear overview would help him to understand exactly what he was dealing with and what he would be able to do to assist. It would likely awaken Peter and the symbiont to his incursion, but Charles reached a mental hand out to the symbiont and engaged the intruder.
The game of tag ended abruptly. Responding to a mental warning from Xavier, Hank was there to catch Peter when he faltered in the middle of a jump and fell limp. The young man's eyes were moving rapidly under his lids, like a person in deepest REM sleep.
"What happened? Is he okay?" Kurt asked, teleporting to the ground.
"I told you why he's here. Professor Xavier used our game as a chance to sneak up on Peter and the symbiont he's harboring. They're having a conversation now, I imagine." Hank smiled sadly. "With any luck, this will all work out well for everyone. Thank you for helping, Kurt. Just myself would never have provided enough of a challenge to really distract him. He's a fast one."
"Ja, the boy has moves. He was not going to win our game, but he is more interesting to play with than most. You'll tell him for me?" Kurt asked.
"Of course."
May paced from one end of her kitchen to the other, not actually looking at the billionaire leaning against her wall. "Let me get this straight, you gave Peter to the X-Men?"
"No, Peter gave himself to the X-Men. I just didn't contest the change in custody." Tony sighed and interposed himself into May's, pacing route. "It was a smart move. They're a trustworthy group that are uniquely equipped to handle this type of biological crisis. They were on the list of people I called initially looking for help. May, you met Dr. McCoy. Dr. McCoy is in charge."
"Where were they? You called them when you first started looking for help. Why didn't they help six months ago?" May shouted.
Tony threw his hands up. "You can blame the federal government for that. Do you remember what was happening six months ago? We were all pretty distracted, but I know you didn't miss Operation Brush Fire? Our government tried to arrest three quarters of the known mutants in the country on trumped up, crap charges. Without discussing politics, the X-Men were busy."
Sinking slowly into a kitchen chair, May nodded. "Right, I remember that, but you think they can help?"
"Maybe. I'm willing to give them a chance to at least evaluate the situation." Tony took the seat across from May and gathered her hands into his. "Let's be honest. I was out of ideas. Fresh eyes and skills can only help."
"It wasn't supposed to be like this. I was the cool aunt. Mary and Richard were supposed to handle the hard stuff." Despite her best efforts, tears began to fall. "Can I go where he is? I'm his guardian and I should be with him."
"They asked for forty eight hours, to evaluate him. These guys can be secretive, especially coming off the kind of issues they've been having recently. I'll make sure they know that you will be joining him if he's staying longer than that, okay?"
May nodded slowly. "Okay."
Xavier entered the alien mind; he swam its dark ocean to the cave at its center. So much lay dormant, but the open portion thrummed with life and light and color. He examine each piece in turn and then swam back to the human mindscape. Peter and the symbiont were waiting for him, prepared to fight. Peter's teeth were too sharp and too long, his hands clawed.
An alpha class telepath, Xavier did not engage the other mind in battle. He had no desire to fight these minds or to harm them. Exuding calm and peace, he waited for the initial fight or flight response to pass as they realized they had company but were not actually under attack.
"Peter and Gray, it is very nice to meet you. I am Charles Xavier. You asked for my help."
Their mental form shifted back to a more human normal and the young man exhaled slowly. "I'm sorry. I knew you were going to examine us. I thought there would be more warning. You scared us."
There was an echo to their voice in this place and Xavier could still see the symbiont and host, not mixed together in perfect solution but swirled together like an imperfect suspension.
"I'm going to attempt something. Try not to be afraid. I will not hurt you."
Xavier shifted the piece of his mind inside Peter to a cool, blue sieve. He gently massaged the human and symbiont minds, not trying to break their bond, but decreasing the area of contact down to a single, strong channel. With two entities in front of him, he gently compressed the bond between the two of them until there was no communication.
The reaction was immediate and dramatic. Peter collapsed to his knees, limp and gasping and Gray screamed in abject terror. Xavier forced the symbiont to sleep so that it didn't hurt itself and he returned his attention to Peter. "How does that feel, Peter?"
"Lonely. You didn't hurt him, did you? Gray isn't evil. He was born in here. I taught him everything he knows. You can't hurt him. Please don't hurt him."
"Look. He's sleeping, Peter. I've got him here. Your mind has been under extreme stress. This bond, you need to learn to dial it up and down, forward and back or you will fracture your mind. If you fracture your mind, Gray will not survive any more than you will. I'm going to help you Peter, but you have to trust me and do exactly as I say."
"I'll try."