AN: So I got this chapter out real quick because I passed what I consider to be two very significant milestones with this story. This is my first story to have over 50 favorites, and over 10,000 views. Thanks to everyone who keeps coming back again and again to read. Chief among them as always if NeoTyson, Celgress, and Highlander for their non'stop support and reviews. I would also like to thank kobevilla who has also begun reviewing regularly now as well. Hope you all enjoy this next chapter.

Chapter 4

Peter woke up around his normal time next to Felicia's sleeping form. The blinds were drawn tight to keep out the harsh morning light from an eastern facing window. The thick bedsheets kept the occupants warm and safe. Peter looked over to Felicia to observe her current state. The gentle rise and fall of her chest matching the calm and comfortable nature of the bedroom that morning. Peter decided that after the events of last night, it would be better to let her get as much sleep as she needed and wanted.

The young man slinked his way out of bed and gathered up last night's formal wear into a pile to take away later. He then walked into an attached walk in closet and walked up to the massive dresser that was stationed inside. He pulled out a set of jeans, and a green long sleeve t-shirt, just some of the clothing that he kept a Felicia's apartment in case he spent the night. Prepared for the morning, Peter crept out of the bedroom.

Peter decided that until he talked with Dr. Strange, there wasn't much he could do by way of Spider-Man, but there was plenty of things that he could do as Peter Parker. The first priority in his mind was breakfast for him and Felicia, the next was making sure Felicia was okay. This was her first encounter with Mysterio, and in the best case scenario it was confusing, in the worst case, it was absolutely terrifying.

Peter didn't know what Felicia went through however, so while he pulled out fruit, yogurt and English muffins, Peter went over the events of last night to prepare for future encounters with Mysterio. Fortune favors the prepared as they say.

The first thing that Peter remembered was that some type of aerosol gas was dispensed into the gallery. Right off the bat, that eliminated the use of holograms to scare people, as the smoke would prevent a clear three dimensional image from forming, and the gargoyle that Peter saw was very clear. Mysterio had created more advanced animatronics than that, so he would need to talk to Felicia about what she saw before he could narrow it down further.

After that, Mysterio went after what he called the John Dee manuscript. Peter did a quick search on the man and learned that he was a 16th century scientist…and occult philosopher. Peter figured whatever occult stuff that Mr. Dee worked on, that was what Mysterio was after.

Peter started to set the table, and further analyze the situation. A manuscript in and of itself doesn't have any power. But they are directions of some sort. Whatever the directions led to, that was what Mysterio was after. That likely meant that Mysterio was likely going to be committing another theft or robbery.

Peter poured some orange juice into glasses to drink with breakfast. The next reasonable course of action would be to create some sort of anti-gen to whatever was in the gas, if indeed it was a hallucinogen. If it was just colored smoke, then all he would have to do was hit whatever he saw hard enough to break it. Peter smiled in self-satisfaction that he was able to break down situations to create a plan of action to stop super villains.

The door from the bedroom opened. Felicia walked out in the same cloths that she had slept in. The crestfallen look on her face revealing that her morning was not much better than the night before was.

Peter walked up to her and kissed her gently. "Hey." He said softly.

"Morning." Felicia said sleepily.

"How are you?"

"Better than last night." She said plainly.

"I got breakfast together."

"Thanks."

The two sat down and began munching on the basic breakfast. While Peter took large bites out of stuff, Felicia picked at her plate. Normally Felicia had a reasonable appetite after fighting criminals. This behavior continued to worry Peter, and he knew that he needed to get ahead of the problem. So he did it the only way he knew how, by being rational, and talking her through it.

"The guy who attacked the art gallery last night was Mysterio. I've fought him before, but that was your first time, right?" Peter asked.

Felicia nodded.

"He uses a combination of movie special effects and hallucinogens to scare and distract people while he commits his crimes. The first time that I faced him, I saw a werewolf. Scared me half to death. Last night I saw a gargoyle try to take my head off." Peter explained. "First couple of time I fought him, I didn't know what to do. It's worse because he makes his tricks so convincing, you swear they're real. But the important thing to remember is that they're not." He finished.

Felicia nodded again.

Peter waited for a moment. "What did you see?"

Felicia averted her eyes. She didn't want to talk about it.

"Felicia, I know that whatever you saw probably shook you to your core. But the more we know about what happened in there, the better we can prepare for the next fight." Peter said with care.

Felicia looked back as Peter. "I don't want you to know about what I saw. I don't want you to worry."

"Babe. I'm already worry because you're acting a little different. Talking to me will help eliminate that. I promise, whatever you saw won't make me think any less of you." Peter said as he pulled a chair up to Felicia. He gently grabbed her hand and used his other to lift her chin to look him in the eyes. "I promise."

Felicia just stared at him for a moment. Then she nodded.

"I saw your Aunt May." Felicia said.

"Okay. What else did you see?" Peter gently inquired further.

Felicia's lips started trembling. "There were so many of her. She was saying that I wasn't good enough to be with you. That you deserved someone better." She leaned into Peter's shoulder and clutched the front of his shirt.

Peter embraced her. "Shhh. It's okay. How many of Aunt May were there?"

"There were like…four."

"See. That's not possible. There's only one Aunt May." Peter said confidently.

"Yeah. But I'm worried that they were right." Felicia whispered.

"Babe. I saw a monster last night. Whatever was in that gas brings out an irrational fear." Peter had at this point sufficiently ruled out that Mysterio was using robots. "I know that what you worried about is silly because you are a smart, determined and beautiful woman, and I'm sometimes worried that you're too good for me." Peter said lovingly.

Felicia pulled away with a small smile. "So were both in this relationship because we both think we can't do any better."

"Well I know I can't." Peter said with a small laugh. "As much as Aunt May thinks that I should run back to Mary Jane, I disagree with her."

Felicia smiled a little wider.

"Now. You actually helped narrow down what Mysterio is using in his crimes. I need to go to Horizon and synthesize a counter agent, which shouldn't be a big deal, I think I have the chemical formula on record somewhere." Peter separated himself from Felicia and moved toward the front door. "We'll meet up after I get off in the afternoon. Remember. We strong enough to beat him, and whatever fears we have while were in the gas, aren't real." Peter said. He waited for a response from Felicia.

"Okay. We got this." Felicia said. Though it wasn't as strong as Peter would have like, there was far more strength in her voice than before, and he took that as an improvement.


Felicia was on her way to the gym in her building. She was dressed in a black sports bra with black running shorts, dark running shoes and her hair pulled back in pony-tail. The gym itself was a fairly upscale set up, catering to the wealthier demographic in the area. So in addition to the usual weights, cardio and pool, there was a full staff of classes, personal trainers, and dieticians on staff for those who wanted them. Due to Felicia extra ordinary night life, such assistance wasn't needed, but the offer was still there.

Felicia dropped her duffle bag in locker and walked over to a stair climber and turned it on. The televisions at the front of the cardio room displayed a number of channels but the one that caught her attention was a New York City news channel that wasn't the Daily Bugle going over the events last night at the art show. The reporter wasn't telling her anything that she didn't already know, but the sight of the news reel still filled her with worry and uncertainty about Mysterio's plans and abilities.

In her time with Spider-Man as Black Cat, they had dealt with a wide variety of threats. These were all staged very much in the real world. Organized crime, armed thugs, high end thieves, corrupt officials, and even mad scientists and super villains. All of these threats could be proven with science and defeated in the same manner.

Mysterio used a different bag a tricks though. At the simplest level he was an illusionist, but sometimes he managed to get his hands on actual power from other places not rooted in the world of science. That was when he became a genuine threat, as was the case now from Felicia point of view. The only time Felicia had seen what the caped super criminal was capable of, was when Doctor Octopus tried to accelerate global warming, when he destroyed several city blocks, but made it look like a small country was obliterated. Even though Mysterio's faked destruction of Sarkovia wasn't real, to the extent he made it look, it was good enough to fool Felicia who was watching it on a T.V. halfway around the world in New York.

This matched up with what happened last night. Even though what Mysterio was doing wasn't real, the feelings of terror, loss, and doubt were. That was what scared Felicia. Even right now as she worked out and tried to relax, even after Peter comforted her, she remembered that she was afraid that Peter would decide to leave her because she wasn't good enough. Like so many illusionists, magicians, and confidence men before him, Mysterio had used things that weren't there, to trick people into having real feelings.

The only thing that scared Felicia more at the moment, was what could happen if Mysterio gained an actual version of the power that he usually faked to have. What feelings of terror could he inspire then, and what more damage could he do to a person? What would be his next big move after that?

Felicia shook her head and turned some music on her phone and popped in a pair of headphones. She decided that she wouldn't ask those questions until she might have an idea of what the answer might be. She smiled a little bit at that though. Even though she was out of her element, she wouldn't let irrational fear determine her course of action.

AN: So I felt like Felicia would be a bit out of her element when dealing with more paranormal stuff. This is actually going to be looked at more in depth as I progress with this story in a way I hope you all find interesting. Thank you all again for your support.