- Hard to believe the spring season is almost upon us. Supposedly, the delayed Black Widow film will be released in May. I'm looking forward to seeing it...although I would prefer to watch the film in a movie theatre rather than through a streaming service. I'm old fashioned like that. It's just too bad all of the local theatres are still closed and for understandable reasons.
Enjoy.
...
Peter opened one of the windows to the break room in Jessica's office and climbed inside. Once his feet touched the floor, he quickly closed the window so the cold winter wind wouldn't get in. The young Spider raised the gift in his hands and checked to make sure nothing had been broken.
"Jessica! You here?" He called out, his mask collapsing back into the suit.
There was no answer. Peter walked down to the door of her office and slowly opened it. Jessica was in her chair like he suspected...only instead of being passed out drunk, she simply seemed to be asleep this time. On her desk was an opened folder filled with numerous papers. One of the sheets had the picture of an cute Shiba Inu dog and the words beneath it read missing.
Spidey reached out with his right hand and gently shook the private detective by her shoulder. "Jessica?"
Her snoring came to a halt with a loud snort as her eyes snapped open. "Wha? Oh...hey, Peter. What time is it?"
"Nine in the morning. Busy night?"
"Urgh, sort of. A client came here yesterday and asked me to help find her pet dog. I spent most of the night reading over the information she gave me."
That explained why she wasn't hung over this morning. Though Jessica did like to drink a lot, she held back from doing so when it was time to work.
"You don't sound too excited about doing this."
Jessica sighed. "Not really. I mean the pay's good and it's actually pretty easy work. I'm just not looking forward to searching through dumpsters and ditches to find the mutt."
He chuckled. "Well, just remember to take a long shower after you locate her. You don't want the bad smell to scare away Luke and the others."
"Shut up."
Peter held back from saying anything else and placed the present he and Wanda bought for Jessica in Novi Grad down on her desk. The private investigator eyed the gift wrapped package curiously before she picked it up.
"What's this?" Jessica asked.
The young Spider shrugged his shoulders. "Just a little something Wanda and I bought for you while we were in Sokovia."
"...This better not be a stuffed animal."
"Don't worry, it's nothing lame. I still don't get what you have against a cute teddy bear though."
Jessica began to remove the wrapping paper around the box. Their gift for her turned out to be a large bottle of liquor, although she couldn't read the words inscribed on the label so there was no way to tell what kind it was.
"It's Sokovian Medovukha." Peter explained. "A beverage with low traces of alcohol that tastes like honey flavored mead. Believe it or not, this drink is actually kind of healthy for you too."
She grew a little intrigued. "Really? How so?"
"It's made with actual honey. The nutrients and minerals stored in it can help strengthen your digestive system a bit."
"Huh...interesting. Thanks for getting me a bottle. I'm on the clock now though so I won't drink it yet. We can share a glass together after I find this woman's dog."
The young Spider didn't have a problem with that...so long as he only had one drink. "Sounds good. I hope you find her soon."
"I'm sure it won't take me too long to locate her. Tell Wanda I said thanks."
"I will."
The door to her office opened again and her oldest friend, Trish Walker, walked in. The former radio host looked the same as she did before the Decimation. A friendly smile formed across her face when she saw Spider-Man.
"Peter? Hey, long time no see." Trish walked up to the webslinger and threw her arms around him for a hug. "I've missed you."
He patted her gently on the back. "I missed you too, Trish."
The blonde woman grabbed Peter by his chin with gentle fingers and took a better look at him. They haven't seen each other since she was restored to life. Trish was pleasantly surprised by how much he's grown in all this time.
"Look at you, all grown up into a fine young man. I bet the ladies have a hard time keeping their hands off you."
Behind them, her best friend just rolled her eyes. "Stop flirting with Peter, Trish. He's already taken by seven other women."
Trish glared at the private investigator. "Relax, Jessica. I'm not trying to get with him. No offense to you, Peter. You're just a little young for me."
"None taken. This must still be a little weird for you though. How have you been adjusting?"
"I'm okay now...but it was hard to accept what happened for a while. When Jessica first explained everything to me, I thought she had gone crazy."
Spidey couldn't help but smirk. "You really thought Jessica grew insane?"
Trish ignored the look of indignation her best friend was giving her. "You would too if you heard her explanation. All she told me was that some purple alien bitch came to our planet to find magical stones and used them to wipe out half of all life. Then on top of that, she says four years have passed since I got erased from existence."
Peter laughed, finding the crude words the private detective used to describe the dead Thanos to be very funny. "Well, I can see why you didn't believe Jessica at first. You can't blame her though. Explaining details about important events was never her strong suit."
"Exactly. Thank you, Peter." Jessica said, giving him a grateful nod.
"I guess...fortunately, Elektra and Danny were able to confirm what she said when I saw them later that day."
The raven haired woman rose from her seat and gathered the papers on her desk. Organizing them into one neat pile, she tucked them back into the folder. Jessica then picked up the bottle of Medovukha and moved to put it in her liquor cabinet.
"What's that?" Trish asked, noticing the bottle in her hands.
"A special drink that Peter and his girlfriend bought for me in Sokovia."
"...Can I try some?"
Jessica shrugged. "I don't see why not. You'll have to wait until my job is done though. Right now, I want to get something to eat first."
Her best friend held up a take-out bag that she bought from the local coffee shop. "Luckily for you, I picked up some breakfast on my way here. Care to join us, Peter? I'd love to know what you've been doing these past months."
He nodded with a smile. "Sure. Lead the way."
Trish smiled back before she stepped out of the office with Jessica beside her. Peter followed closely behind them. Meals were always best enjoyed with good company and he was looking forward to catching up with an old friend.
...
"Alright. Let's see how much you've improved."
Wanda nodded and got into a defensive stance. Natasha stood across from her, poised to attack any second now. She asked the young Sokovian woman to come train with her after they both had a chance to rest from their long flight home. A little smirk formed across her face when she didn't see any hint of nervousness in Wanda's eyes.
It seems the Scarlet Witch had grown more confident in her close combat skills. Now Natasha was really interested to see what she could do.
The Black Widow took a deep breath before she finally made her move. Swinging her right arm, she drove a hard punch at Wanda's nose. The Scarlet Witch quickly raised her hand and caught Natasha's fist just before it could hit her in the face. Throwing her fist to the side, Wanda tried to hit Natasha in the ribs with a left hook. Her opponent sidestepped out of the way before she jabbed her elbow at the side of Wanda's head. The Scarlet Witch ducked beneath the attempted blow and pushed against Natasha's abdomen, shoving her back a few steps to create some distance.
Their fight had just begun but Wanda was already feeling a little breathless. Though she's grown more adept at fighting physically with her hands, the Black Widow was still a dangerous opponent.
Natasha was grinning at her. "Not bad, Wanda. You're able to defend yourself more quickly now."
"All thanks to Maria. She made sure that Peter and I kept up with our training."
She looked over to the mentioned woman, who was sitting in a chair off to the side. Hill smirked and waved to them both from her seat. She came to the training room with them and has been observing their match from the beginning. Like Natasha, Maria also wanted to know how much the Scarlet Witch has improved in fighting physically with her hands.
Normally, she would've liked to participate in their sparring session too but her right arm wasn't ready to be used in a fight yet. Hill was more than content to just watch for now.
Wanda was able to hold her own against the Black Widow pretty well from what she saw so far...not that it surprised her. During their almost year long journey through space, Maria sparred with her and Peter regularly aboard the Statesman so their training wouldn't lapse.
"Now it's time to see how well you attack. Remember, don't hold back."
The Scarlet Witch clenched her fists, planning out a strategy of attack in her mind. Natasha stood ready to defend herself. Wanda finally rushed at the Black Widow and threw a straight punch at her face. Natasha brought up her arm to block the incoming blow. It never came though as she suddenly veered her arm to the left, missing Natasha's face but also obstructing her vision for a second.
The young Sokovian woman took advantage of that and lashed out a swift low kick at her legs. The Black Widow narrowly backed up in time to avoid being knocked off her feet. Wanda's initial attack had been an obvious feint but she was impressed by the swift and smooth execution of her movements.
Natasha leapt towards Wanda and retaliated with another punch at her face. She instinctively crossed her arms in front of her to block the strike. That was what the Black Widow wanted Wanda to do though. Just before her punch could land, she unclenched her fist and grabbed hold of the Scarlet Witch's arm.
She pulled Wanda in with a burst of strength and tried to drive her knee into her gut. With her left arm caught in Natasha's grip, the Scarlet Witch used her right arm to forcibly push her knee down. The Black Widow was about to retreat but Wanda grabbed her arm and wrenched it around her back. Striking Natasha in the back of the head with her right forearm, the two of them fell down to the mat with Wanda's weight on top.
The Scarlet Witch took a few seconds to catch her breath, keeping Natasha's arm pinned to her back. It was only when the adrenaline started to wear off that Wanda realized what happened.
She just beat the Black Widow in a hand to hand fight.
Granted, neither of them were fighting seriously. She knew if Natasha desired it, she could have easily defeated her. This was the first time the young Sokovian woman had managed to gain the upper-hand against her though.
Maria walked towards them, clapping her hands gently. "Well done. I haven't seen anyone take her down like that in a while."
Wanda let go of Natasha's arm and helped her stand up. "I-I think I just got lucky. Any other day, she would've beaten me easily."
"Don't be so hard on yourself." The Black Widow said as she smoothed out her clothes. "The moves you used just now were pretty good. Did Maria teach you those?"
"Yeah. She showed me a couple of different ways to take down an enemy from behind."
Natasha smirked. "I see. You could also just trip the target to the ground but hitting them in the back of the head's a smart move too. It keeps the enemy disoriented and lessens the chance of them being able to retaliate quickly."
Wanda nodded, grateful for her advice. "I'll remember that. Should we take a break?"
"Sure. I could use some water anyways."
The two of them walked to the table where their water bottles were placed. Natasha quickly drank a long sip to wash the dust down her throat. Wanda did the same while Maria grabbed a couple of towels for them.
"I'm guessing you trained with her and Peter regularly while you were in space?" The Black Widow asked.
Hill shrugged her shoulders. "Yep...or as often as we could anyways. Peter and I were busy sometimes being taught how to wield a sword and spear by Valkyrie. Lady Sif and Hilde helped Wanda learn some of their healing magic."
"Huh...so that's where you learned how to use a sword."
Wanda smiled, remembering their journey through the galaxy. "It was an unexpected adventure but a good one. We had a lot of fun traveling with the Asgardians."
"I kind of wish I had been there with you guys." Natasha mused, wiping some sweat off her forehead. Traveling with her, Peter, and Maria in space would've been more relaxing than the hellish year she went through hiding from the US government. "We'll spar for two more rounds and then break for lunch. Sound good?"
"Sure. Just don't break any of my bones, okay? I don't want a repeat of what happened when you first began to train me."
The Black Widow sighed out of exasperation. "You're not going to let that go, are you? It was an accident and I only twisted your ankle."
"It still hurt."
Behind them, Maria couldn't help but laugh. The same thing happened to her the first time she sparred against the Black Widow. Natasha could be a little too eager sometimes when it comes to training in close combat.
...
By the time Spider-Man got back to the Avengers Compound, it was late in the afternoon. Trish had asked him to stay for lunch so they could talk a little more. Neither he or Jessica minded but the private detective had to leave at one so she could begin to track down her client's missing dog. That was when he parted company with Trish but not before promising to come visit her again soon.
"Welcome home, Peter." FRIDAY greeted as he stepped into the elevator.
The nanomachines that formed his suit and mask collapsed back into his web-shooters. "Thanks. Anything happen while I was gone?"
"Nope...although Carol did cry for a while after lunch was over."
"What, why? Is she okay?"
The A.I. surprised him by giggling in response. "Relax, nothing's wrong. Carol just got a little emotional after she and Darcy reached the end of a video game that they were playing together."
Peter looked up at the ceiling with a raised eyebrow. "Which one were they playing?"
"I believe the title was called Red Dead Redemption 2."
Now he understood why Carol cried. He himself played the game made by Rockstar before a couple of years ago. The amazing story in the single player campaign was quite a heartbreaking one to say the least. It wasn't just him who thought so...he'd heard stories about about how the game reduced many other gamers to tears when they reached the ending.
"Now I get it. Thanks for letting me know. I'll check up on her later."
"Of course. If you need anything, let me know." FRIDAY said before she signed off.
The elevator doors slid open once it arrived at his floor and Spidey quickly stepped out. He found Maria sitting on one of the couches in the lounge area, reading away at an old hard-covered novel.
Peter approached Hill quietly from behind and threw his arms around her. "Good book?"
"It's okay so far." She closed her eyes and leaned into his embrace with a warm smile. "Did Jessica enjoy her gift?"
"Yeah, Jessica loves it. She hasn't cracked open the bottle of Medovukha yet though. She's saving the drink for after her current job is complete. How's your arm?"
"About the same as earlier. My arm still feels weak but at least it doesn't hurt. Your aunt gave me some medicine that helps to reduce the swelling."
He moved to sit down beside her. "Does it taste as bad as the potions Hilde makes for you?"
Maria smirked. "No, thank goodness. The medicine May gave me are pills. Besides, I don't need to drink those potions anymore."
"You sound very relieved."
"Be lying if I said I wasn't. I appreciate Hilde's efforts in making it for me but I'm in no hurry to drink that horribly bitter potion again."
The two of them laughed together at that. Hill put a bookmark on the page she was reading and closed the book. Peter removed his web-shooters before he set them down on the table.
"So did you run into any trouble in the city?" She asked.
He shrugged his shoulders. "No more than usual. I did run into these three morons trying to rob a local convenience store while I was on my way to Jessica's office. They were shooting at the two police detectives who arrived to stop them with some heavy firepower."
"What kind of guns were they using?"
"Two of them carried military grade assault rifles while the last guy was using a shotgun."
Hill frowned, wondering where these crooks even got such powerful firearms from. "Was anybody hurt?"
"Fortunately, no. I was able to beat them down before they could harm anyone. The police car got pretty shot up though...I don't think the two detectives will be able to drive it for a long time."
"Better the car than them or any civilians. I'm glad you were able to stop those bastards."
Spidey leaned his face closer to hers. "Me too."
Maria closed the distance and pressed her lips against Peter's for an affectionate kiss. Putting her hand on his chest, she gently pushed the young Spider down to the couch. He wrapped his arm around her waist and held her close. Their lips stayed locked together all the while, with their tongues occasionally touching each other.
She was reluctant to pull away but had no choice when the need for air caught up to them both. He caressed the side of her face and gazed into her blue eyes.
"It's been a while since we were able to hold each other like this."
Hill touched her forehead against his. "No thanks to my injured arm...will you stay with me tonight?"
Peter quickly kissed her again with a smile. "Of course."
...
- I read somewhere once that private detectives sometimes take on missing pet cases. Not sure if that's still true now.
- As for why the missing dog is an Inu-Shiba, it was just the first type of dog that came to my mind. That and I've always been fond of them.