A/N: Wow, it's finally ending, guys. I've had so much fun writing this, and I hope that you've enjoyed it as much as I have. (I even found out that a user named KeeneTheMan has placed my story under the recommended Marvel Universe fan-fiction page on TVTropes, so thanks for that, Keene.) Sorry for the lateness of this, but I just got back to working, and I haven't had much time to work on this, especially since it turned out to be larger than I expected. (Mostly due to a minor plot point I wanted to rectify.) Please let me know if there's anything I need to change or correct, and thanks for sticking along for the ride.
Epilogue: The Consequences
1
May Reilly Parker-Jameson lay down on her bed—as the clock in the hallway chimed the time as midnight—unable to fall back so sleep due to a recent nightmare. Closing her eyes for a moment, she was almost overwhelmed by the sudden appearance of a flash of memories from a life that she had experienced before, and one that was significantly different from the one she lived now. Images of a sniper's bullet penetrating her body and sending her into the hospital caused her to clutch her chest, as her husband, J. Jonah Jameson Sr. awakened and watched as she stood up and shouted out her pain.
"May?" he asked, unsure of what to do as he turned on the lights.
Trembling, May looked over to him, seeing flashes of her late husband Ben Parker and further images of his death in her mind, along with the first reports of the Spider-Man, who had apprehended the burglar that had shot Ben. More memories flooded her mind, as May began to remember certain parts of her life that had been taken away from her, until she finally witnessed the sight of seeing her adopted son laying on his bed, covered in bruises and blood, and wearing a tattered Spider-Man outfit. Another image of what should have been the last image that she'd see in her life appeared, causing her to sigh out her grief, as she now knew that her family had been tricked into restoring a life that should have ended a long time ago.
"Peter," she said, almost in a whisper. "I don't blame you. I don't blame either of you."
"What did you say, May?" John asked, standing up to place a hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong? Are you okay?"
May turned to face her husband and smiled. "Open the window please, dear."
"I'm sorry? Do what?"
"Open the window for Peter and Mary Jane. They need to speak with me before I have to go."
Opening his mouth to speak, John decided against it once he saw the look in May's eyes, a look of acceptance. Sighing, and wishing that he could understand what was going on better, John opened the window. Looking back over to May, he found her lying on the bed, and looking weaker than he had ever seen her before in his life, almost as if her age was catching up to her and trying to take her away from him before her time.
"It'll be alright, John," May said, drifting off to sleep. "It has to end this way."
2
"Reality is re-correcting itself," Stephen Strange said as the Wand of Watoomb began to develop the portal that would bring Spider-Man, Mary Jane, and Strange to the home occupied by Aunt May and J. Jonah Jameson Sr. "Unfortunately, this will mean that those who knew of your identity before the deal will know it once more."
Spider-Man nodded, as he took off his mask, knowing that once again his choices that he had made during the time of Superhuman Registration Act would come back to menace him. He looked over at Mary Jane, who saw the look in his eye and smiled.
"We'll be fine, Peter," she said. "All we have to do is get someone like Tony or Reed to sanction us, and we'll be safe. I believe in you."
Peter smiled back, wishing he had the same amount of confidence that she did. "I know, MJ," he said. "I believe in you too. We'll get through this together. "
"Admirable," said a voice near them, "but hardly necessary."
Turning around to see who it was, Peter found the Watcher looking back at him. Strange halted the portal's continuance to their destination and waited for what the Watcher wanted to say before proceeding.
"What do you mean, 'hardly necessary'?" Strange asked. "No magic can undo make the people of Earth forget who he is underneath the mask."
Uatu smiled. "Then perhaps another source is needed to help Spider-Man and his family out."
"What are you talking about?" Peter asked.
"My people—as you so stated earlier in the fight with Mephisto—have vowed never to interfere in the lives of the people that we watch. I have broken this rule many times in my life, because I have seen the worth inside of your species, and wish you to suffer no harm that I can prevent. I, as many of those who could have helped you, was blinded by Mephisto and forced away from you in your hour of most need, so now I come to you to offer that help."
"But why us?" Mary Jane asked. "What have we done to deserve this from you?"
Uatu looked over at Peter, saying, "For years I have found this man to be one of the most exemplary examples of what humankind has to offer the universe. He has many qualities that are used to their fullest to save the lives of others, even if he doesn't know them. His self-sacrifice has led him to restore Adam Warlock to life to defeat Thanos the Mad Titan, be deemed worthy enough to wield the Uni-Power, and later on find it in himself to fight on in the name of those he loved in order to restore reality to its proper place this day. However there is yet another reason for me to bestow this gift upon you: Spider-Man once saved my life many years ago during a day where he thought nothing of what he had done."
Peter looked from Mary Jane to Strange, who both shrugged. He didn't recall ever having saved the life of Uatu, and he was sure that the Watcher had saved him more times than he could even remember, especially since he had just saved him from the cancerous Galactus and the Many-Angled Ones as well.
"Do you recall a time where you played a game of pickup football with a group of small and disadvantaged children who were playing against several of their peers?" Uatu asked.
"Yeah, I do, but what does that have to do with anything?" Peter asked. "I don't mean to be rude, but my aunt is dying and I need to get to her quickly."
"Then I shall be brief. During that game, I was attacked and captured, but I was able to distract my captor with the game, betting with him on the fate of a weapon that could have held drastic consequences for the Galaxy if it was released. He bet against you, when you were down by fifty-six to nothing; I bet for you to win. Your eventual victory allowed me to free myself and punish the one who imprisoned me. Now I shall repay you for your help."
"And here I was just thinking it was a football game."
"When you return to Earth, no one save those you choose to reveal it to will remember who you are. Accept this gift and meet your aunt with my blessing. Know always that I will watch over you with great interest and care, and that you are worth far more than you will ever realize. Farewell, Spider-Man, and my condolences."
Leaving in a flash of light, Peter looked over at Strange, who had already returned to bringing them back to Earth.
"You have received a rare gift, Peter: A second chance," Strange said. "Take care of it."
"You'll never see me squander my identity for the rest of my life," Peter said.
"We are here," Strange said, letting go of the Wand of Watoomb and levitated them into the air. "Farewell, Peter and Mary Jane. Let me know if there is anything I can ever do for you. Until next time."
Disappearing in a swirl of energy, Strange left them alone in the surprisingly silent New York City street.
Looking at Mary Jane, Peter almost spoke, but she interrupted him, "I imagine that she already knows who's under the mask, Peter. There's no reason for you to change before we go to see her now."
Nodding, Peter and Mary Jane walked on the invisible platform Strange had erected for them and walked into the house that his aunt and step-uncle shared through an open window, as they landed on the floor with mixed thoughts. Inside they found May and John, who was staring at Peter with incredulity, almost as if it was impossible for him to be Spider-Man.
"She was right then, I see," John said. "It's been you all along, Peter. You're the one who has always been Spider-Man."
"Yes, I've always been Spider-Man," Peter said, looking over at Aunt May, who was beaming at him, although she coughed between breaths.
"Peter…Mary Jane…you made it," Aunt May said, still smiling. "I'm glad."
Her face was sunken, almost as if it had lost its texture and mass in a matter of seconds. Her body looked weary, more akin to a leukemia patient than a woman who had been perfectly healthy following her recent bout with the change brought on by Mr. Negative days ago.
Walking over to her side, Peter bent down and held her hand, trying to hold back the tears that wanted to escape his eyes, and failing miserably. "I'm here, Aunt May," he said. "I'm so sorry for what I've done to you. This is all my fault."
Aunt May shook her head and coughed. "There you go again taking the blame for every little thing in the world, Peter," she said. "I don't care who's fault it is…it's already happening to us right now, so it's irrelevant."
Mary Jane bent down next to Peter and grimaced as she saw the frail form of Aunt May that lay before her. "I'm so sorry, May," she said.
"It's okay, Mary Jane, I forgive both of you for whatever it is that drags you two down. I love you both more than you'll ever know. John, come here please."
John, hearing his name called, stepped over to them and looked Aunt May in the eyes.
"Watch over them for me," May asked. "Peter and Mary Jane have a tendency to worry too much and I wish that they wouldn't. They are both good souls, and I wish them the best. I want you all to watch out for one another, and for you to see each other as the family that will always stay together, no matter what happens."
Turning to Peter and Mary Jane, Aunt May said, "For all the bad that was done when you two made the deal, a lot of good was also created. Do you know how I know this?"
They shook their heads.
"Your daughter came to me and told me so in a dream," May said, coughing some more. "She was a delightful girl, and one that I really wish I could see again, but she told me that she was just as happy to see me. She always wanted to know the strong woman that she was named after, and I imagine she wasn't disappointed in the least. Do you know what she said? That for all the harm caused by the deal, a lot of happiness was also created, and she was absolutely right. I have a higher appreciation for the life that I have lived now that I realize that I should have died years ago. I met a wonderful man who loved me with all of my heart when I thought that I was doomed to live the rest of my days in solitude, especially after Nathan Lubensky died. John has made my life so much better, and I love you for it.
"And not only that, but she said that millions of lives were saved because of the deal. Did you know that those foul creatures Mephisto allied with would have killed a lot more people had things stayed the way they had before the deal? You making it caused reality to change, and now almost no one was hurt by them. Your mistakes can create as many successes as they can failures in your life, Peter. It was a terrible thing to do, but it worked out in the end, for better or worse."
Aunt May coughed some more, and shifted on the bed. Peter almost tried to hold her still, but she held out a hand, and he backed down.
"Peter I have one last request for you before I die," Aunt May said.
"Anything, Aunt May," Peter said.
"Never give up on being Spider-Man. You have no idea how your continued persistence will change the world around you or how many people you will inspire on to greatness due to the choices you have made. The world needs Spider-Man, now more than ever. Promise me that you will never cast aside the mask in favor of living life easier, Peter."
"I promise, Aunt May."
"Then it's time I left this world behind," Aunt May said. "I love you all."
Still holding onto her hand, Peter felt the life leave his surrogate mother the moment that the hand went limp in his own. Holding the hand tightly, Peter began to cry, as Mary Jane and John embraced him and joined him in the somber chorus.
I will, Aunt May, Peter thought. I will make sure that no one forgets that Spider-Man is meant to be there to help those in need and I will do whatever it takes to make sure that our daughter knows that the woman she will be named after was the strongest one to ever walk the face of the Earth. Mary Jane and I will reconcile our differences, move past this heartache, and be with John for the rest of our lives to honor you. I will never forget the promise that I made to you this night. Now, more than ever, I am Spider-Man.
3
Mephisto brooded in his own dimension, where all of his subjects had fled following his recent loss of the powers he had obtained from the deal made with Peter and Mary Jane Parker. He was weaker than he had ever been in his life, so much that the other demon lords were all secretly conspiring to take over his kingdom in order to add his former power to their own, chief among them N'astirh, who was less than pleased in the role Mephisto had forced upon him.
However, Mephisto didn't care about them at all. He would meet them in battle, defeat them, and then force them back to where they came, while he would remain the eternal lord of his dominion. They were nothing compared to him, no matter how weak he was now.
What he did care for, however, was getting his revenge on the one man that had brought down everything he had worked so hard to obtain. While he may have lost the battle, as far as Mephisto was concerned, he would win the war.
And Spider-Man would pay for what he had done to him.
A/N: And that's all folks. I don't know about you, but I had a ton of fun reading and writing this, so much that I really looked forward to working on this whenever I got the chance to. I don't have any plans to follow-up on this, especially since I don't know how I could possibly top something like this off, but I left a little sequel hook just in case. Right now I'm not planning on returning to the world of Spider-Man anytime soon, and will instead focus on Star Wars in my newest fan-fic The Chosen as soon as I get the time to write it down that will focus on a canon character who's being led by a vision to gather several individuals from across the Galaxy that don't have a name that ends with Solo, Skywalker, Calrissian, or Fel. Thanks for the reviews, the criticisms, and everything else that you have provided. I have had a wonderful time writing this and talking with some of you. Until next time.
