Chapter 12: Fantastic Score

Luke didn't know how to tackle Peter's words, the certainty which lingered within him. Completely caught off guard by the sudden intrusion his mind attempts to comprehend the right response. Sitting on his cot in his boxers and covering the lower portion of his body with the seats. The Avengers leader rubbed his eyes several times, like he was attempting to remove sand from his heavy eyelids but the rank body odor emitting from Peter made it more convincing to remain awake.

"You don't quit do you?" said Luke with an exhausted tone in his voice.

Peter maintained his stance on the matter, never changing his facial expression from a look of indifference. There was a lone chair beside him, to which Luke pointed for Peter to take a seat but Peter stood where he was, aware that his smell but did not let it affect the way that he spoke. He only wanted to speak his piece and leave as soon as possible.

"Not as long as I have work to do" Added Peter, leaning against the wall next to the doorway. "I just got back from the topside, Reed Richards is going to present his thesis on the adaptable evolution of the Human race in Sweden soon. I can use his research on dimensional travel to ease the work on your project."

Luke was stunned from the answer he received. His eyes fully open now "That might be too dangerous. Can't we find another way?"

"It is dangerous but you asked me to come to you, which is what I'm doing now. If you really want to make this work we have to take a chance with Reed's research. His research will save us a lot of time, just have to get in and get out."

Luke's head sank into his chest, his mind deep in thought of what he was about to do. His moral code was much a part of him as Peter's used to be, keeping him from crossing certain lines. He thought back to a certain conversation with Cap, when he allowed the punisher to stay and help fight for the anti-Registration. Luke told him that when you "lay down with the dogs and you get fleas" and now those words seemed to still hold weight with Peter standing in front of him. Telling him what was about to happen, what he was planning.

A slump formed in Luke's throat and he knew he was in a hard place. Back and forth his mind considered the repercussions of such a decision as he stared at his Frank Castle. He could be either a hypocrite or ignorant and the former was gaining the advantage. Still Peter stood in front of the door with his facial expression unchanged and Luke was sure that Peter might go through with the idea regardless of Luke's ruling.

Finally he broke "Honestly, I'm getting tired of losing. My attention is aimed toward Hell's Kitchen so if this helps us then make it happen as quiet as possible. Don't go off halfcocked like you did at Stark Tower."

Peter gave a slight smirk "Now that we have that out of the way, what's Reed and the team doing under the initiative?"

"Well that's simple, there is no team" said Luke after letting out a great exhale and laid back on his bed.

Peter's mouth hung slightly open from the answer which opened the way for another question begging to be answered "Wait… who handles all of the odd stuff like stabilizing molecules or keeping Galactus and the Skrulls from destroying planets?"

Luke yawned loudly and covered his mouth, attempting to fight off the sleep "Little above my paygrade but Reed has been busy this past year to change the world through his work as a scientist, strictly. Making public appearances for the government's sake I guess but there has been no news of a "Fantastic Four" cruising through space and saving the world from planet eaters. But…"

Luke took a moment to process his thoughts "…there was a theory that the initiative organizes a team to prevent threats from space and other dimensions before they happen but there is no evidence to support the theory."

Peter then began to think of the Fantastic Four, the team which he had become close to over the years, admiring their exploits and constantly reminded of the importance of science. He continued to think of the war and how that team was effected, split in half with Mr. Fantastic and the Thing siding with Iron Man, while the invisible Woman and Human Torch were with Captain America.

"So what happened to Sue and Johnny after I left?" asked Peter as he rubbed his temples.

"After you left we kept in touch with Sue and Johnny" said Luke. "A little afterward I met with Johnny and that's when we learned about phase two, He couldn't say too much. Just that Reed had it on a data file and that they were onto him. I assume Johnny was questioned by Reed about what he had found, which he denied. The amnesty offered gave a fresh start so I told Johnny to leave it to us and keep out of trouble."

"But he couldn't do it" added Peter. Knowing full well about Johnny's nature as a troublemaker and he those tendencies were emulated by Peter himself wherever the two of them had gotten together.

"The next thing we knew Johnny was fighting it out with Tony. We tried to get to him but it was too late and Tony sent him away."

"To the Negative Zone…"

"Right, another reason to get the gate up and running as soon as possible. Keep it low profile, which means doing your homework and knowing what security system Reed has in place beforehand."

Peter simply nodded his head and exited into the hallway and leaving Luke to his sleep but sleep would not come back to the Avengers Leader for some time.

Peter took his walk down the hall, knowing exactly where his next stop was going to be. He crossed paths with Dagger who gaze was frozen in place for a moment after her eyes met his. He inquired to know where Felicia's room was and Dagger rubbed the back of her neck with her hand with reluctance on her face before finally saying. After receiving his answer he was aware that she, like others, didn't know how to talk to him so he walked onward.

He approached the door with a bit of hesitation before knocking three times. A moment passed and there was no response so Peter knocked again but this time he used more force. The door slide open, revealing a half awaked Felicia with her messy silver hair covering her face. She wore a Lengthy white T-shirt which covered her torso down to the middle of her thigh.

"Oh, to what do I owe this unexpected visit?" she said with a tiring tone yet still attempting to make it sound sexy when so saw Peter in her door way.

Her appearance had caught Peter off guard. She was always acting in a manner that would overwhelm him with sex appeal. This often made it hard to focus.

"Can I come in?" said Peter a little reluctant to actually enter for partial fear of what she might try. Felicia gave an incredulous look which suggested that the formality of asking to enter the room was not needed. She directed Peter to sit on her bed after she placed a towel over the bedding.

"How dedicated are you to all of this? Cage's cause I mean, somehow I feel like you might leave the moment things don't go your way."

"Well a girl should always keep her options open but I'm staying. Why do you ask?"

"I have a job for you but I just wanted to be sure of something. Since you were with the Heroes for Hire"

"Do you know why I joined the Heroes for Hire?" asked Felicia as she sat next to Peter on the bed, "I was positive that the team leader Misty Knight suspected that I only joined up for the money (and she wasn't wrong) but I always knew that it was because of you. I wanted to know what it was truly like to save lives but I figured I might as well get paid for it. It was good. I always thought back to what you said, the good we could do with our abilities. But to answer your question, I was never really one of them. Just feeding intel to Luke, hot tips mostly until this recent relocation. So what's the job?"

"I need you to help me break into the Baxter Building where Reed keeps his lab."

"You just know what to say to a girl" said Felicia as she smiled, showing off her white teeth.

Felicia could be seen biting her bottom lip out of the sheer excitement soon to be had. She reached under her mattress and pulled out a set of instruments wrapped together in a scroll-like holding kit. The tools were from Felicia's personal kit used in her thieving which weren't too far behind her. She was so intrigued that she inquired more details about the job like layouts of the building or even an understanding of the security system which was said to be "creative."

All that Peter was sure of was that the defenses were usually based on a certain theme but there was no way to know what that theme was at the present time. At the very least he could draw up a floor plans for the lab and living quarters. It was Felicia's job to fill in the blanks using her vast experience. She then gave a humorous laugh with her face toward the ceiling out of sheer surprise while Peter remained silent.

"Well in any case" began Black Cat. "I meant what I said before, about you not having to do all of this alone. We're in this together Spider. Plus I'm sure Sue Storm has quite the collection of gems."

Peter was of course in protest against stealing, especially someone he still partially considered a friend not to mention objects which draw too much attention. This job needed to look a certain way to deflect attention away from the New Avengers in some way.

"You know they're going to blame us regardless of who steals from them. A little deflection isn't a bad thing."

Peter nodded in agreement while running his fingers through his hair. He would need more time in order to iron out the details but one thing he did know was that Felicia was not going into that lab alone.

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Most people don't know that New York City has a way of effecting people. There is an undertone of infectious irritability which the majority of New Yorkers seem to fall victim to without realizing it. They constantly monitoring the number of times that their personal space had been violated and the nature of said violation. They are known for sharing displeasure toward tourists who suddenly stop in the middle of crowded sidewalks, looking at the tall structures in utter amazement. Though an individual could fight against these negative thoughts all eventually became abrasive at some point.

Sue Storm was certainly no exception to this universal rule by any means especially upon this particular day. The time was approaching midday as she stood on the D train in a light blue slim T-shirt, white fitted blue jeans, a tan colored jean jacket and brown colored boots. Her blond hair recently trimmed so that it hovered just above her shoulders. She was not alone on the train ride with both of her children, Franklin and Valeria Richards standing beside her, both one hand clasping each of her hands.

The train car was crowded and little open space was available but whatever space was free remained because no one wanted to move from the doorway. The air conditioner gave off was cool but the amount of bodies in such a tight space fought back and made the air lukewarm. "Why didn't I take a cab?" she thought as a man's shoulder continued to bump into her back.

Before the train had even fully approached the 59th street station she could see a small group of five people positioning themselves to enter the train car, leaving only a narrow path with which to exit. Sue grew so agitated at this display of insensitivity that she formed a force field the outside of the door in the shape of a half cylinder. As the doors slid open the group outside the door huddled together and attempting to slip onto the train car as passengers were going to make their way on to the station platform. Not only did they not manage to slip by but their faces were bewitched with perplexity as they met the invisible wall and they were then forced back as the Invisible Woman walked off of the train with both of her children in hand. Before she had even dismissed the wall the group was in a fit, knowing who she was and what she had done?

"Hey. You can't use your powers that way!" said a man in the small group in anger as the sweat beaded down the side of his face.

"And you should wait for people to get off before you get on!" retorted Sue as she walked onward with both of her children in hand.

She could already hear her husband, Reed's words in her head. "There are better ways to handle those situations, Sue" he would say "You should have identified yourself first and then state your intentions. There are reasons for these procedures." He would have insisted but still she ignored those thoughts and pushed forward.

After climbing two flights of stairs until they reached the surface, an area of Manhattan called Columbus Circle. Sue then took her children to cross the circular mass in the center of the square. Shrubbery encircled the reasonably large patch of land along with a fountain shooting spouts of water into the air and arc downward graced with a circle shaped pillar with a Christopher Columbus statue which sat on top. She passed through the area in order to reach the entrance to Central Park.

The trio ventured deep into the park until they were in the center of an open space when she let go of their hands. Trees were scattered about and the grass was a lush green color. She turned to look over her right shoulder and waved her left hand revealing a cluster of children's toys floating in the air like party balloons caught inside of a net. She took off her jacket and sat a large blanket down over the grass in the shade of a large tree, sat down and lowered the toys onto it. Watched as her offspring dived into the cluster of toys and picking up their favorites she couldn't help but smile.

She watched as Franklin and Valeria wandering a reasonable distance from the blanket toward some other children. The other parents watched as the children interacted, chasing each other around the open space and played. Sue did her best to focus on her children, watching them simply play while allowing the moment to fill her with abundant joy.

The outside air was filled with fresh pollen from the surrounding trees and the sun was at its highest position in the sky. She saw the bees hovering just above the flowers and go about their way. Time seemed to slow to a crawl in these moments, perhaps which was why it was her third trip to the park that week.

There were other parents with their children enjoying the atmosphere. Franklin and Valeria exhausted themselves until Sue recalled them to the blanket. A basket could be seen, filled to the brim with sandwiches, snacks and a thermos. She reached into the basket and proceeded to hand paper cups to both with juice to rehydrate them for playing in the sun.

On the far side of the park was Peter Parker, wearing the guise of a homeless in a dirty brown overcoat to blend in with the environment. He had a light beard covering his face. After all, the homeless were notorious for occupying parks and other public places in the city. For the time that Sue was there with her children, he watched them carefully. Laying down in the grass with appearance of taking a nap but having Sue within his eyes line of sight. At times the heat grew unbearable but he stayed, determined to monitor the situation.

He was careful to occasionally turn his body to make it appear that he was still asleep while cautiously looking for anybody who seemed out of place. For all that he knew there could have been shield agents keeping her under surveillance as a precaution. He couldn't see anyone and his spider-sense didn't tingle so he continued to watch.

Eventually Sue recalled her children and signaled that it was time to leave. Peter fought the urge to immediately leap onto his feet. She began to pack up her children's things using her powers. It was too soon for her to leave. Slowly he sat up right and stood into a slouch and walked around the park in an arc shape, making sure that he walked under the cover of trees while avoiding the wide open space. Still he received no warning signals as he walked.

Peter could feel his heart pound with greater intensity after each step. There was a slight pain building in his head but it was manageable.

"It's too soon he thought" he thought. "I have to think of something quickly."

Sue was still in the process of packing everything away as Peter drew closer until he was only 10 feet away. Suddenly his walk looked as though he had developed a limp. Sue could see him from the corner of her eye as her children began to approach him.

"Hey mister" said Franklin. "Are you lost?"

"Franklin come back honey, leave that man alone"

Peter continued to walk toward Sue and he saw the look of disgust which she displayed for him. She probably would have put up a force field between him and herself but Franklin and Valeria were now walking beside him.

"Do you have any change?" asked Peter with an outstretched hand.

"Sorry but I don't have anything"

"You're Sue Strom right? I just need a little something to get me back on my feet"

"And I said I'm sorry but I don't have anything for you" said Sue with a certain tone in her voice. She didn't want him to come any closer but for Peter there was no choice. She told her children to step away from the homeless man before her and they did with a bit of reluctance.

"Please… I have nowhere to go. No food to keep up my strength" he insisted while still inching towards Sue when the buzzing started.

"I said no!" she yelled, using her powers to knock him over and on his back. The back of his head collided with the ground and though the grass softened the impact he felt a strong pain ringing through his head. Peter cradled his head wanting the intensity to decline as he just laid there.

Sue stopped packing her things and ran to his side. She didn't mean to lash out like that but he wouldn't quit. Kneeled down to get a good look at him but the bum covered his face quickly in response. Franklin tried to walk back over but his mother kept him at a distance.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to do that. Let me help you up." The invisible woman attempted to pull the bums hands from his head but he was not unlike a child, now too stubborn to give in.

"No, I can do it myself"

"It's ok. Just let me…" Sue concentrated her powers to force his hands away from his face. He could do nothing but yield to her and she looked at him. It took a moment but her eyes caught sight of him. Peter's head was still causing him pain and all he could do was lay on the grass as she put her hands over her mouth.

"Hi Sue"

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The black liquid slid in between the tiny crevices and continued between the aged wood and insulation. There could be no sense in attempting to raid the lab which was at the top of the complex with understanding all that lied beneath it. The people who lived in this building were various and different in their mannerisms. All were residents who had either lived there for years or recently moved in. some may have had the inclination to think that because Mister Fantastic owned it that it was the safest building in the city next to Stark Tower. None of them knew that an alien was actually crawling inside of their walls.

Mister Riverton, a Vietnam War veteran had recently complained to Reed about the roaches which had recently become more active in his apartment in the hopes that Reed would fix the problem. What he got was a lecture on the resilience of the insects having survived the Jurassic period and the apparently incredible structure of their bodies. Since that day he tried to avoid the scientist if he could help it and attempted to wage war with his new sworn enemies.

He could hear what sounded like scratching on the other side of the wall and readied his bug spray. It was a cluster of the foul creatures, skittering across the floor and walls in a mad scramble. He emptied the can, spraying upon every occupied surface and was so busy dealing with the invading force that he was unaware of the black shadow creeping up on him from behind.

At the front entrance of the Baxter Building was a Felicia wearing the guise of a bike courier wiring shorts and a small messenger bag on her shoulder. A Yankees baseball cap covered her blond hair was bundled up and tucked underneath it. The man at the front desk was elderly and well dressed in his black suited uniform and hat. She slipped inside the elevator with a small group of people so that the door man was unaware.

She rode the elevator up to the 30th floor and picked the lock of the door furthest down the hallway. After entering she found Mister Riverton collapsed on the floor and the mass of black encircling him like a shark does to its prey. After changing into her black cat burglar suit, Felicia then searched the ceiling for a vent large enough for her to fit inside of.

With the grate removed and the symbiote entering the vent first she followed. She didn't like the idea of having the alien as a backup but according to Peter it was necessary. Being a living liquid, it was Venom's job to perform recon a number of times. She watched her guide slither its way to the upper floors of the building. As she ascended, Felicia noticed that her body was no longer heavy but lighter and rather than crawl, she began to hover through the small space.

This sensation was a far different occurrence than what she was used to but she followed until she reached a panel with a lock on it. Venom untightened the screws and moved itself to one side of the vent so that Black Cat could remove the grate. Once unlocked, the grate cover floated away but was immediately caught in the grip of the alien and stuck to the wall of the room with a residual piece of itself as an adhesive.

The gravity in the lab had been altered to match that of zero gravity paired together with pressure sensitive tiles. For this reason the symbiote was needed to better navigate the room since it was native to the gravity.

Venom then began to slowly cover the cat like an added layer of her suit but did not cover her face and she hated every second of it. It spread over every part of her body except the head and neck but did not take over her body. It only guided her movements to where she should go. Gently she flowed into the lab head first.

The lights were off and there was not a person to be found while Sue was out and Reed was reportedly off giving a speech. A flashlight was held in between her teeth to light the way. On one side of the room were tables covered in beakers and test tubes on the other were glass windows leading to sterol work areas for make new technology. The suit used tendrils to help pull her until she reached a metal door in the far corner. The surface was cool to the touch and a keypad next to it. Her hand was guided to the buttons which caused the door to yield itself open.

The inside was much like a vault from a bank with many draws of different sizes.

"Let's split up and find the blue prints. If you find them screech or something."

The gravity was still set to zero so when the draws opened the contents floated out into the open air. Felicia didn't want to look at Venom but she could hear the multiple doors open from behind. Finally she found blueprints titled "N-Gate" along with sheets of equations she hadn't the slightest clue of how to understand.

She took a small digital camera from her bag and held up the papers while taking multiple pictures of each when suddenly the gravity had returned to normal. The Black Cat landed safely on her feet and the symbiote had been stuck to a wall.

"Well that was unexpected" she said in a sarcastic tone. "C'mon Slimy, We're out of here."

Venom slid over Felicia's body, covering her completely this time. A chill instantly took her over as she saw herself being engulfed. She rustled up the papers from the floor and took the shots that she could before putting everything back to where it belonged. Some of the papers may have become creased while being placed back inside. Besides being capable of imitating Spider-Man's powers, Venom could also become transparent, cloaking itself like a chameleon in the surrounding environment.

The sound of a door sliding open could be heard, followed by the sound of heavy footsteps coming toward them. The weight and pressure caused the floor to shake as the cause of it drew closer. It was a large orange man with rocky jagged skin, blue eyes and wearing shorts with the four on the waistline. It appeared as though Ben Grimm, The Thing of the Fantastic Four. He walked into the Lab and found the open vent. He shoved the grate back into place and arched his back, ready for a fight that was sure to come.

"I don't know who ya are but ya got no business here!" Said the thing with fair warning in his voice "You're stuck here with me now. I might not be a scientist but I do have security clearance and I just locked down the lab, so guess what pal? It's clobberin' time."

Venom began to crawl on the wall and then the ceiling. The cat could feel the ill intent seething from the creature. Only the stronger one would survive. While still invisible Venom crawled on the ceiling until it was directly over The Thing's head. Slowly the tendrils unraveled and descended to Ben's head like a snake. Like a true predator the invisible alien wrapped around the rock head like a plastic bag, cutting off the oxygen to suffocate him but something was wrong.

For a moment Ben did not struggle, he did not panic at all. His four large fingers grasped the tendril and pulled on it with such great force that Venom slammed into the ground and cracked the tile. The camouflage went away upon impact, revealing the noir burglar on her knees.

"So there you are. I hate fighting ladies so tell you what? I'll make this quick"

"You can try Rock man"

"Sorry, that's somebody else" said The Thing as he readied his fists for a punch. His large four fingered fist was halted by two petit open palms. Thing immediately threw another punch which made contact with Felicia's torso and sent her into a wall.

She could now feel the loathing consume her mind like an unstoppable fire. The eyes became black vertical slits in the center of the usual white design. Two fangs sprouted from the top row of teeth and a claw grew on each fingertip. White long hair grew in length to the bottom of her spine. White fur also appeared on each of her forearms, turning her into the symbiote Black Cat. She maintained her slender shape while becoming more ferocious.

The orange titan began to close the distance between them like a boxer, swift on his feet and fist guarding his face. He threw a right hook and followed up with a left but both hit nothing except the air as she flipped backwards and launching her foot into his chin. Venom used her slender body to its advantage curving and coiling waiting for the prey to tire himself out but he did not tire. Ben took one of the work tables and tossed it at her which she avoided but was blindside with a tackle.

She was hard pressed against the wall and Grimm continued on with unyielding tenacity until she finally struck with two fingers to his blue eyes. The blood flowed from the eye sockets followed by yelling and then random swinging.

The symbiote Black Cat allowed The Thing to come in close. She grabbed his right arm and used the leverage to flip him onto his back. The arm was still in the cat's clutches who proceeded to wrap its legs around it like a snake. The left hand clawed at the symbiote but the symbiote was took slippery to grasp. The arm struggled to resist but began to give until it came loose.

Now separated, the arm revealed wires which shot off sparks of electricity. Even with the arm gone the rest of the body its left arm was still trying to find her. With the right arm still in her grip the cat proceeded to pull the head from the body and crush it.

"Noo evidence" said the black cat standing victorious as she walked to the vent to make an exit.

Just then, the door burst open with three figures in the doorway, two men and one woman. She had already crawled back into the vent and plugged it with the stone arm. Felicia was positive that she could feel heat coming from behind her and never looked back.

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In the park Peter sat on the blanket next to Sue as she sat in a fetal position. The settling sun was beginning to burn a bright orange-red in a yellow sky. Sue seemed to be so happy to look upon him that she couldn't help but smile and share the events of the last year. The spider could still feel the pain from when his head collided with the ground.

"After the war ended Reed and I took a vacation from the city to repair the damage done to our relationship. Storm and T'challa filled in for Reed and myself while we were gone. We traveled to the Virgin Islands, it was nice but all I could think about was cap and the war. No pardon could ever wash away what happened to us all, the lines that were drawn."

"Once we got back I felt no different and soon after those thoughts had reflected on the team. I wasn't sure we could actually be a team anymore, that's when Luke reached out to me Johnny took it upon himself to go into Reed's office. He caught a glimpse of a file under the name "Phase 2" but nothing more and at that point I knew we could never get our old lives back. I wanted to help him figure it out but he made me swear not to mention it and instead he went to Luke about what he found. Tony came by shortly after to ask Johnny questions but he refused to cooperate with the conversation ending with a fire fight in the sky."

"After they took him away I couldn't look at Reed any longer. I gave up fighting and opted to spend more time with my children. Reed became more driven in his work, barely leaving the lab to research man's greatest mystery, evolutionary adaptability. As for Ben he joined the initiative and visits every now and then.

Peter remained quiet with his eyes drawn to the grass below. Only occasionally did he look her in the eye while she was trying to get a look at him.

"I'm just so angry all of the time, ya know?" Said Sue.

"So tell me. What happened to you Pet-"

"Don't say my name."

"It's ok, see?" Sue taped onto the wall of an invisible wall and to restore Peter's confidence she called out to her children who resumed playing as if they didn't hear anything at all. Peter still didn't want his name being said while out in the open but he could see that Sue wasn't fond of being spied upon either.

"Where is Mary Jane?"

Peter took a moment "that's the question I get asked the most and I still don't like answering it… She's gone Sue."

Her eyes never broke contact with his and stunned in place. She wanted to know more because MJ were friends and the news only hurt her already wounded heart. Peter could see the tears beginning to appear in her eyelids and he found himself fighting his own tears from flowing in response to hers. His mouth curled downward into a half circle.

"How?" Sue said with such pain was almost stammering

"You don't need to know tha-"

"The hell I don't. She was my friend, what sense does it make to keep it from me?"

"She… she was mind controlled and force to fight me but her heart gave out from the stress. I came back because the guy that did it works for the initiative and I'm not going to stop until the whole thing comes down."

Sue insisted to join the New Avengers but Peter wouldn't hear of it. She was a mother and at the present time had no business getting involved in the present conflict. He warned her with great heed about the Shadow Man and that things were going to get intense at some point he assured her that she would be needed but now was not that time. The warning only made it harder for her to ignore.

Peter made eye contact with her, his eyes misty, showing his concern for her safety. He promised to get into contact somehow if he had really needed her. It wasn't much longer until Felicia showed up and signaled to Peter that it was Time to leave from a distance.

"I have to go now."

Sue grabbed Peter's tattered sleeve

"You know Mac Gargan is dead right? Without the symbiote to support him he passed away. That has to be eating you up inside."

Peter slowly pulled away his sleeve gently from Sue's light grip and looked her in the eyes and said "I'll see you soon" and walked away.

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Back inside of the Peter's work station Felicia placed the Photos onto his desk without a care. The symbiote was still attached to her body, refusing to loosen its grip as a simple black jumpsuit and leaving her head visible.

"When you said that you needed my help Spider I assumed you meant just me. Get it off me!"

"Aww what's the matter kitty?" said Venom, a mouth had formed at the stomach section of Felicia's body. "We thought you liked getting a little dirty. Nothing like imitation blood flowing down your fingers, right? We barely had to do anything at all. You should have seen her Parker, a natural born killer if we ever saw one."

"Shut up!" Shouted Felicia

"That's enough Venom" Added Peter

"Ohh feisty. Can we keep her Parker? We promise to take real good care of our kitty."

"I said that's enough! Are you going back on our agreement?"

"Don't get your spandex in a bunch, we were just playing around. Personally we like the Spider-Woman, much better for cruise control."

Venom melted from the Black Cat's body and slide into its orb shaped container.

"I can't work with this oil stain."

"I'm sure it feels the same way that you do. Rather kill you than help you infiltrate one of the most secure laboratories in the city, but it had to be done."

"Do you know what it made me do? I thought I was fighting the Thing and it pulled the arm right from it. Luckily it had wiring rather than the other stuff"

"It was an LMD?" inquired the spider with aroused interest

"The most advanced one I've ever seen. It looked like actual blood was coming from its eyes, which your new friend stabbed."

"And there was only one?"

"There were four of them and I think they might caught a good look at me."

"Nothing we can do about it now, just have to be more cautious for now… thank you."

"What? You want me to say you're welcome? I never want that thing near me again!"

Peter didn't say anything in his own defense. Perhaps he wanted to say sorry for putting her in that situation but he held onto his words.

Felicia took a moment to catch her breath. There was a bit of remorse on her face, as if she felt like she overacted a little too much. "Anyway, I agreed to do it so half the blame is on me as much as you."

She drew closely to him slowly in her seductive ways.

"You have to stop this before you go too far. I don't want you to get hurt, to get someone else hurt."

For a moment his eyes were transfixed into hers and vice versa. She drew closer him and he couldn't break away one inch as she prepared to embrace his lips. Her lips were so soft and welcoming to the touch. He felt at piece and at the same time guilty. Guilty for betraying his wife's memory in the stroke of a moment. "Would she want this?" he thought. The moment quickly got more heated as on kiss turned to multiples and Felicia proceeded to unbutton his shirt.

"Stop" said Peter in a weak voice. "I can't do this. I am sorry for putting you through that but I have to do this"

"You think I don't get it? You made a mistake, don't do something you'll regret. Mary Jane wouldn't want you to"

"I warned you in the beginning that I didn't want you to get hurt. I have to do this because it is the right thing to do regardless if I want to or not. Just go Felicia and get as far away from me as you can before you get hurt again."

The Black Cat was beside herself as she attempted to advance upon him again and was turned away. This was the second time that he drove her away but there was one certainty, there was still an old remnant of the man that she and Mary Jane loved in there and ne needed saving.

After she left the room and the door closed shut peter gathered himself and released Venom from confinement "Did you get it?" Asked Peter as Venom slithered onto his desk as a bubble began to form on its top side. A small device not unlike a wristwatch protruded from the black mass and onto the desk. The Spider-Man nodded his head, it was time to get back to work.