Peter sat on the edge of the Paramedic truck, a towel wrapped around his shoulders. His lips were only a little purple from the run in with Hydro Man, and there were bags under his eyes. The experience today wore him out greatly, so he had been asked to remain at the scene for a little while longer. Kendo of course stayed with him, sitting next to him on the truck as reporters came in with cameras. When they had asked to interview Peter, he politely declined, and they moved on. The day hadn't gone how he expected, but at least he knew for sure that Goblin was out there.

Meanwhile, his thoughts went to the strange woman from before. She had swooped in and saved him from Goblin and his goons. The strange part was how she spoke to them. It was clear that they were working together from what she had said, and yet she chose to save him. Why did she not just let Peter die? What does she gain from him living another day?

"Peter …" said Kendo to get his attention, "I'm sorry this happened. I shouldn't have brought you to the police station."

"It's ok," He replied, "It's likely they would have attacked me no matter where I went."

"Why do they want you dead so badly? I don't understand it."

"It's complicated Kendo. Honestly, I don't know what their plan is, just that I'm enemies with them all back home."

Kendo paused, laying her head on his shoulder, "That detective will probably ask you questions you know."

"I know, and I don't know what to tell him."

"Maybe tell him your history with them, or about the stones."

Peter turned his head to her, "I can't tell anyone else about the stones, Kendo. Just …trust me on that."

Just beyond the police tape, a car pulled up and parked next to the sidewalk. Jumping out of it was Izuku and his mother, both with faces of worry. Izuku jumped over the tape and rushed over to him despite the police calling out for him to stop. Eventually though, they simply let him go and allowed his mother through as well.

"Oh, thank goodness!" Cried Mrs. Midoryia, "Izuku said you'd be a bit later getting home, but then we saw the news about the police station! What on earth were you doing here?!"

Peter looked at them with a sad expression. Her reaction reminded him so much of his Aunt, who worried every time he came home late or with a bruise. In fact, the resemblance almost broke his heart, "I'm sorry, Mrs. Midoryia," Peter said sadly, "Kendo and I had seen some villains, and we came to report the sighting to the police. That's when they attacked the station. I was just trying to do the right thing …"

He knew fighting villains without a license was illegal, but he still fully intended to fight them anyway. That didn't mean that he didn't feel bad about who he hurt in the process. Worrying his current foster family is the last thing he wants to do.
Mrs. Midoryia sighed, "I understand, Peter. It's not your fault. I just worry about you and Izuku. You're put through so many dangerous situations at that school, as a mother it scares me! I just want to make sure you two are safe."

Peter smiled warmly, "We're ok, Mrs. Midoryia. I promise."

"It's my fault, ma'am," Kendo spoke up, "I brought him here after we saw those villains. I never meant for anyone to get hurt."

"Oh, I don't blame you, sweetie," She replied, "No one could have seen this coming, spider-sense or not."

Peter chuckled, "I see what you did there."

"Why don't we go home?" She suggested, "I can make dinner and you can rest up."

"Can I just …talk to Peter first?" Kendo asked, tugging on Peter's shoulder.

"Of course," She said, "Izuku and I will be waiting in the car."

As Izuku and his mother made their way back to the car, Peter looked at Kendo with a puzzled look.

"These villains," Kendo asked, "They're going to keep hunting you, aren't they?"

"…yes," He said, "It's likely, anyway. Though, there was a woman who stopped them from killing me. I don't think she wants them hunting me, even though they seem to be working together."

"Don't you think you should tell the police about your connection to them? I can't stand keeping all these secrets."

"I know …" Peter sighed, "It's becoming more dangerous."

A rock suddenly flew and aimed itself at Peter. He reacted quickly and caught it in the palm of his hand, clenching it tightly and looking in the direction it came from. In a nearby alley, he saw a familiar figure standing there, looking tired and sluggish in his true form.
"Kendo," Peter continued, "Please excuse me for a moment."

He didn't give her time to respond as he made his way into the alley. All Might was standing there, waiting for him in his true form. His super hero costume was too big for his actual size and dragged down on his thin body. There were bags under his eyes, likely meaning he pushed himself today. Maintaining his massive form must be difficult on his stamina.
"Peter," All Might spoke up, "We need to talk about the villains that attacked the station today. Detective Naomasa and I agree when we think that they came to the station hunting you. The Rhino from one week ago, he knew you. He talked about Spider-Man during interrogation. Then there was the Shocker, who attacked the room that you were in. Your villains keep popping up one by one, and it's looking suspicious. I need you to talk to me, Peter. Detective Naomasa and I are close, he's one of the few who know my secret. We can help you, but you need to trust us."

Peter leaned against the wall of the alley and stuffed his hands in his pockets. He was backed into a corner now, there wasn't a likely chance he could bluff his way through everything. All Might was a good man, and he needed to trust him with at least some of it. Besides, he didn't want these villains coming after Izuku and his mother.

"There are more than just Rhino and Shocker," Peter began, "From what I know, there is also a man named Hydro Man, another called Vulture, and …one named the Green Goblin."

"Do you know why they followed you? Why they're hunting you?"

There was no way Peter could tell them about the stones. If he did, they would look for them. Those stones can't fall into unknowing hands under any circumstances, "I don't. Not the others anyway …but Goblin hates me most of all. We have a lot of history."

"What kind of history?"

"…His real name is Norman Osborn. He runs a company called Oscorp, and he's the father of my best friend back home. We …created each other."

All Might was curious now, "How so?"

Peter looked down again to avoid his gaze, "I just feel responsible for what he's become. And I'm always being the one to stop him. It's like an endless loop."

"I see …" he stepped forward, "I'll have to inform the police department about this. If they really are after you, then you'll need protection from them. We can assign a Pro-Hero as a temporary body guard until these villains can be detained."

Peter looked back up at him, fitting, "You really don't have to…" He stopped mid-sentence. He couldn't protect Izuku and his mother all on his own. Even then, it's illegal to fight them at all. The situation has pros and cons. He can't look for the stones with a Pro always on his tail. In fact, it would be near impossible to go anywhere if he always has company. That aside, it's the best scenario to protect the people he cares about. Figuring out how to continue his search is a bridge he needs to cross later.

"I understand," Peter surrendered, "I appreciate your help, All Might."

"And I appreciate your cooperation," He replied, "It's the best move to protect everyone. I'll inform the chief, and we'll set everything up. We'll search for a Pro who will be willing to watch over you for a little while. Is there anything else that you're not telling me? Anything at all?"

Peter looked away, "No, sir."

All Might took a moment to stare at him, before letting out a sigh, "Alright. Get yourself home and rest. I'll see you at class tomorrow."

Peter nodded and left the alleyway quickly. All Might stood there with a look of suspicion. He had a feeling that Peter was hiding information from him. In fact, he's always been a mystery ever since he arrived. Pleasant as he was, he was a boy of secrets. He was so used to keeping things from people, the truth must be a difficult thing to tell. For now, the information he had was enough. These villains were dangerous, and they weren't going to stop.

Meanwhile

"You're going to stop!"

In the large empty room, the four villains were scattered about. Goblin leaned against the wall and scoffed at the smaller woman who yelled at him.

"What you did today was unforgivable!" She shouted. This had been the first time she had been legitimately angry since they had met, "I told you we need him to find the other stones!"

"Why?!" Goblin shouted back, "We can find them just fine on our own! We don't need Parker!"

"Yes! We do! Because you don't have the patience to find them on your own! These stones are scattered across the city, hiding from us. As 'villains', we can't just waltz around the city however we please. Peter has already found two of them, while you only have one. He could easily use the stones to win, but what does he do? He doesn't use them."

"Because he's weak."

"Because he's strong!" She emphasized, "He understands that power like that can't be abused! You, however, will abuse the stones the second you have them! That is why you can't be trusted to find them! It must be him! You will listen, or so help me I will blind you so bad, it removes your vision all together! Understand?!"

Goblin said nothing.

"I said…" She began to glow a terrifying level of light, engulfing the entire room and removing all its shadows, "Understand?!"

Goblin tried to shut his eyes, but it simply shined through his eye lids. He fell to his knees as the light seemed to produce heat as well, pushing against his body, "Alright! Just turn it off!"

The light dwindled and died, bringing the shadows back into the room, "Thank you, Osborn. I hope you'll behave here on out. Follow my plan, and we both benefit. I promise you."

She grabbed a nearby chair and sat down, "Right now we're at an impasse. We need him to find the other stones, but now he's being protected by the police. He won't be able to do anything for us."

"So, what do we do, then?" asked Hydro Man, "You just said we can't kill him."

"Correct, but we can motivate him," She leaned against the edge of the chair, "Whether fighting crime is illegal or not, he'll do whatever he has to if he knows its right. He's a true hero down to his core, so he can't help it. We just …need to motivate him somehow …" She perks up, "Bait. We bait him! Give him something else to fight for! Finding the stones; that's just him being responsible. But if we want him to fight harder, we need him to have something to fight for. It has to be something personal or …" She pauses, "Someone personal."

Goblin sat against the wall with a huff. He hated working with this woman, but he knew that it was necessary. He wanted so badly to put her in her place and take over everything, but that's not the smartest move. She has power, resources and an understanding of this world. Whether he liked it or not, he needed her. The issue was that her plan moved too slow. Every second he wasted was another stone he may lose. Peter could use the stones any time he wanted, but he chooses not to. Peter in the picture causes problems. It's obvious that he hates him, but he needs him dead because it makes this so much easier.
He'll follow her for now, but he'll make his own moves the first chance he gets.

The Next Day

The weekend finally rolled around for the students. Peter hadn't even bothered to get up from his bed. The cover remained on him throughout the morning as he laid on his side. He stared at his backpack, which contained 2 stones inside a bag. He had so much power just within arm reach. However, he knew it would be irresponsible for him to use that power for himself. Its not something he should do, especially with the Goblin after them. Was that woman after the stones too? It would explain why they are working together. Goblin wasn't often one to take orders from anyone or let himself be pushed around. He was stronger than that; smarter. So, perhaps he's just using her until she no longer has what he needs.

He spent the whole morning with these thoughts in his head, tossing and turning with sorrow. He was in a very tight situation. All Might knows these villains are after him, and now so do the police. There's no way he'll have a moment of peace long enough to find the stones, not unless he runs away. Things need time to cool down, so it's likely the villains may go into hiding anyway. Perhaps taking it easy was the best thing for a while.

Izuku entered his room and greeted Peter with a look of delight, but also concern, "Hey," He said, still hanging onto the door, "The Pro hero that the police assigned to us is here."

Peter sighed and sat up, pushing himself to his feet, "Who did they get?"

"Someone I haven't heard of, but she's supposed to be good. Wanna come say hi?"

"…Sure."

Izuku saw his obvious distress, "Peter, it's not your fault. The police and the Pros are going to stop those bad guys. We're going to be ok. I know you think you're causing us too much trouble, but it's alright."

Peter put his hands in his pockets, faintly looking up, "…Ok. Let's go meet her."

Izuku and Peter stepped out of the room and into the kitchen. Immediately he saw a young woman talking with Mrs. Midoryia. She was only a little taller than Peter, likely meaning she wasn't that much older either. She wore a thin dark-tan collar jacket, open to show her purple shirt. Her pants matched her jacket color, without much more detail to it. Around her neck was a light orange scarf, not too long. Her skin was dark, parallel to her bright blonde hair. Her arms had sleeves that didn't connect to the shirt, with a blue bead bracelet around her wrists. Her fingers weren't covered by the sleeve, and they only traveled up to her elbow.
She eyed Peter as he came in and smiled, standing up straight, "Hi there!" She greeted.

"Hi," he greeted back, "Are you the Pro Hero?"

"I am," She held her hands together, "You can call me Overcast. It's nice to meet you."

Peter pulled up a chair and sat down, taking in the details of their protector, "I'm sorry you have to be here for us."

"Don't be. Stuff like this happens. Sometimes a Pro is put on protection duty, it's nothing new. Plus, I have several other Pro's on speed dial. You couldn't be in safer hands."

"Um," Izuku stepped in, "I just have some questions. You said your name was Overcast. What can you do?"

She grinned at him, "They chose me to protect you because I'm good at making things disappear. Watch this," She holds up her hands, and out of them appeared a mist of darkness. The room was completely ingulfed by the shadows, and the lights were unable to stop it.
"I control shadows," She said, her voice seeming to come from nowhere, "I can provide easy escape from villains should they come for you. When inside my shadows, you can't see or feel anything around you, making it easy to pass by someone. I can use it offensively as well, but it's limited."

The shadows vanished and returned to her hands, the lights returning to bloom.

"I can assure you, you're safe with me."

"How old are you?" Peter asked.

"I graduated from U.A 7 years ago actually. I'm 25 years old. I know I'm young, but I promise that I can protect you. I graduated top of my class after all."

"She seems nice, boys," Mrs. Midoryia said, "I have faith in her."

"Right …" Peter said, standing up, "I'm gonna step outside."

Peter walked across the room and opened the window, stepping out and crawling onto the outside wall.

"Is …he ok?" Overcast asked.

"I don't know," Izuku sighed, sitting where Peter left the chair, "These villains came here because of him. I think he just feels guilty about it all. He's not gonna feel any better being cooped up in here all day. I just wish we could help him."

Overcast put a hand to her chin, squinting her eyes as she tried to think of a solution, "He takes this stuff pretty seriously. I wonder how much time he actually spends just being a kid …wait!" She slammed her fist into her other palm, "I got an idea! How close are you to your classmates?"

"Well, pretty close. We have a group chat for our phones and everything. Why?"

…

Peter held himself on the wall primarily using his hands. The sun was high in the sky now, so it must have been the afternoon. All he could really do was stick there and take deep breaths for the past hour. He hasn't been handling things very well the last few days. Everything fell apart after Itsuka found out what he was doing. He can't blame her however, she only wanted what she thought was best. She wanted to protect him from harm, but the situation was still a bother. He had too much stress on his shoulders right now.

"Hey! Peter!"

Peter looked down and saw a small crowd of people below him. After squinting his eyes, he recognized them as his classmates from U.A. The one who called out was Momo, waving to him with a bright smile. He nearly didn't recognize anyone outside their school uniforms. He was surprised to see them all there, Bakugo included. Though, he didn't seem very happy about it.

"Hey Peter!" Mina called out next, "Come on down!"

Peter leapt down with little effort and landed in front of his friends with a confused look, "What're you all doing here? Like, literally all of you," He eyed Bakugo.

"Screw you!" Bakugo shouted from the back, "I only came for the free food I was promised!"

"What he means," Momo said, "Is that Izuku called us and asked if we all wants to pitch in and go to the arcade in town. We know things have been a bit stressful for you, so wee thought this would be something fun to do! We're gonna go one way or another I guess, but we'd love it if you could come along."

Peter looked to Izuku who had been standing in the front, "You …brought them here?"

"Yeah," he smiled, "You wanna come?"

Peter looked to each of the 20 classmates standing there. It almost made him tear up that they came here, whether it was for him or not. He had been through so much the last week, maybe this is what he needs. A day off from all the doom and gloom could really help him think.
"…Ok," Peter said with a smile, "Ok, sure! Let's go!"

"Yay!" Mina shouted, jumping into Peters arms and hugging him tightly, "This is going to be so much fun!"
Peter turned red from her contact, but hugged back none the less.

…

The arcade was massive and full of games on several different floors. It had many winter colors with neon lights hanging above. Children and teenagers were all over, playing games and eating in the food court. Bakugo immediately walks in that direction with the money given to him by the group. Everyone else began to spread out into several groups. Peter had stuck with Totoroki, Mina and Momo.

Mina had immediately pulled them to the virtual racing games, where they were able to race locally together. Her positive attitude was a nice change for Peter, as he needed a happier day. Totoroki was much more chill with it all, though that's not to say he wasn't enjoying himself.

"Oh! This one next!" Mina said, pulling on Peter's arm as she pointed at a shooting game.

"You're really excited, aren't you?" Peter asked.

"I mean, yeah! This is a great place! I just wanna have fun."

"I like that about you."

Mina looked at him with a red face, "Like what about me?"

"You always have fun with things. Even when things look rough, you find a reason to smile. I really admire that about you. Plus, you're pretty strong too."

Mina smiled brightly, tugging him over to the games.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Momo shouted as she tried to keep up, "I can play shooters too!"

Overcast stayed behind and watched everyone as they scattered about the arcade. She did her best to stay close to Peter without imposing on his good time. She even played a few games of her own as she kept an eye on them. It was amusing to see Mina and Momo unknowingly fighting for his attention. Whether that be out of love, or just classic friendship was up to them. Mina herself was often cheery from what she knew, so this isn't out of character. It's Momo that's interesting to watch. She got into U.A. based on recommendation, so she was a very focused student. She seemed to care for Peter, perhaps out of respect for someone who tries just as hard at school as she does. Whether or not there was more to it had yet to be discovered. Children will be children, no one can change that.

Seeing them interact with each other suddenly made her sad. Their joy reminded her of some of the times she's had with friends. Times like those shouldn't make her sad, but they do.

"Ms. Overcast?" Ururaka poked her shoulder, snapping her out of her funk.

"Oh! Sorry, hello Ururaka. Do you need something?"

"You just …seemed upset for some reason. Is everything ok?"

Overcast sighed, looking back at Peter and his group, "They're just reminding me of some people I used to know. People that …aren't around anymore."

"Oh …I'm sorry."

"Oh, no! It's alright!" Overcast laughed nervously, "Really, don't worry about it. Thank you for checking on me though, you have a good heart."

She ran her hand on the top of Ururakas hair, messing it up, "Now go have fun."

"Laser tag!" Mina shouted, gaining the attention of everyone around her, "There is a laser tag arena! Guys?! Let's play! 10 vs 10!"

"Doesn't that require Bakugo?" Peter asked.

"Oh, I'm sure we can get him to join if we bargain food into it."

Bakugo suddenly rushes over with his shoulders pushed up, a look of ferocity on his face, "Finally a game more my style! Bring it on you weaklings!"

It didn't take long for everyone to put on their gear and step into the arena. The teams were split into 10 each and put on opposite sides of the arena. One side was red, the other was green. The arena was dark, minus neon lights on the ceiling, and on their gear. Other than a few obstacles, the arena was completely open. Peter was on the green team with teammates like Izuku, Momo and Ururaka. The other team consisted of combatants like Bakugo, Tenya and Totoroki. Mina jumped up and down, wearing the green teams color.
"Let's get started!" She shouted, just as the timer sounded off.

Bakugo was the first to rush forward and fire off a few shots. A few of Peters teammates got hit and were knocked out of the game for a few seconds, before coming back online. Peter however dodged easily and dive slide's under Bakugo, shooting him right in the chest.

"Damn you!" Bakugo shouted as he composed himself, "You won't be getting another shot like that!"

Mina quickly shot Bakugo in the back, laughing and running off. Bakugo screamed and ran off in a random direction. Izuku clearly did his best to avoid confrontation with him, keeping his gun close to his chest. Above them was a massive TV that kept score for all the combatants. In first place was Momo, who continued to shoot her classmates with precision and timing. Peter wasn't far behind her, still needing to surpass Totoroki in overall score despite being on the same team.

Peter quickly hid behind an obstacle, where Momo had also been hiding.

"Hello neighbor," She grinned, "Fancy meeting you here."

Peter was panting with a smile on his face, "So, whatcha been up to? Shooting peeps, counting virtual kills?"

She laughed, "Something like that. I'm glad you came along. You seemed like you needed it."

"Yeah, I really did! Thanks for bringing me! It means a lot to me, Momo."

She turned red, looking away and brushing her hair, "Well, anything for you, Peter. You're a good guy. You don't often meet a lot of good guys. I mean, you saved everyone on your first day. I'd say you're already a Pro hero."

"I appreciate it," Peter said, "But I wouldn't call myself a good guy. I'm just doing right with what I have and make up for the mistakes I've made."

"Such as?"

Peter was silent, looking down at his gun to observe its details. Momo's face dropped as she realized she may have hit a nerve, just like before in the classroom.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to …" Momo looked down, "I get there's something about your past you don't want to share. I'm sorry I keep bringing it up."

"No, no! Its ok!" Peter reassured, "I just …it's a very personal thing but …something bad happened, and I try to be better because of it. You know what I mean?"

Momo nods, though still looking down at the floor. Peter put a hand to her chin and lifted it up, smiling.
"Hey," He smiled, "I'm fine. Don't worry."

She smiled brightly, holding her gun close, "Ok."

Izuku suddenly screamed, running in the opposite direction of Bakugo who chased him down. He tried to dodge Bakugos attacks, which consisted of more than just lasers. "Get back here, Deku!" Bakugo shouted, "Don't run like a coward!"

Peter took sight of his actions and placed his gun on the ground. Momo looked at him curiously as he lifted his sleeve up, revealing a silver bracelet with a trigger that popped out. Putting his fingers together, Peter shot a web out and grabbed Bakugo's leg, pulling him down.
"Hey! What gives?!" Bakugo shouted, following the web down to Peter, "Oh, I see! We're using quirks now! Fine by me!"

Bakugo pointed one of his palms down, firing off a small explosion that sends him flying toward Peter. Momo quickly stands in front of him, and a shield suddenly pops out from her skin, forming in her hands. Bakugo lands right on the shield, bouncing off and stumbling in the opposite direction.

"I guess we're using quirks now!" Momo said, helping Peter onto his feet, "This just got a lot harder!"

"That's what makes it fun!" Peter shouted as he jumped into the air and shot out a web, swinging away. He bounces himself off the nearest wall and propels forward above the enemy combatants. He fired down a barrage of lasers, taking out more than half the opposing team for a few seconds. He stuck to the wall just in time to see his enemies groaning in annoyance.
"Hey! Don't be mad, just use your quirks!" Peter shouted to them, "I like things fair!"

Once the opponents gear had turned back on, they gave each other grins of determination. Totoroki was the first to take off on a slide of ice, with Tenya speeding not far behind him. As he was running however, Tenya suddenly slipped and fell off the acid Mina created, and she slid away laughing.
The supervisors of the Laser Tag arena were beginning to panic due to the potential damage the students may cause. However, Overcast held up her hand to them for reassurance.
"They're fine. None of them are that reckless."

Their faces lite up from one of Bakugos explosions.

"…Most of them," She finished.

She grabbed a seat and smiled, looking at the students as they continued their fun. There was a clear smile on Peter's face. It was nice that he was able to find some happiness after the chaos yesterday. These kids may want to be heroes, but right now they were still just kids. With how much fun Peter seemed to be having, she wondered when the last time was that he spent time being a kid.
Seeing that smile on his face made her happy either way.