After what seemed like eternity, we arrived at Teterbero Airport. The whole car ride was painfully silent, with everyone except for Joanna being upset for one reason or another. Joanna herself kept quiet. Not even she wanted to do anything to risk causing another huge argument. I almost wished she did. A part of me hated the silence. But I was still mad at Ned, Betty, and MJ and I really didn't want to talk to them at that moment.

We entered the airport through a checkpoint that was suspiciously unguarded. I figured Cyclops knew that was going to be the case, because he kept on driving without saying anything. During the drive, I did a quick google search on Teterbero Airport itself. The weight limit for aircraft to land in and take off from there was 100,000 pounds. Because of that, I expected the plane provided to us to be relatively small. However, what I didn't expect to see was a super large jet hovering some feet off the ground while its loading ramp opened. I stared at the plane, taking in the shape of it as we approached.

"…Cyclops, is that us?" Frictor asked, breaking the seemingly eternal silence.

"It is," he replied.

"Nah, seriously, is it?" Joanna chimed in from the back. "Because that's a whole Airbus."

As we got closer, I realized that it was, indeed, an Airbus – an A380 to be exact. There were different modifications to it from what I saw. Instead of a glossy finish, it was a dark gray color that almost looked like matte paint. Instead of four engines, the plane had six – two on each wing, and one on each horizontal stabilizer, which themselves looked larger than normal. The engines were integrated with the wings and stabilizers and pointed downward as it hovered. This plane was modified for VTOL functions, I realized. As a matter of fact, the engines were using Stark's repulsor technology.

Cyclops kept driving towards the plane. With a bit of a turn, he drove into the back of the aircraft. After putting the SUV in park, he cut off the ignition. Waiting right in the back was Happy Hogan, was busy eating a sandwich.

"Time to get out," Cyclops declared. We all stepped out of the vehicle. "Hello, Hogan. Thanks for delivering the jet." Happy looked at us. Realizing that Ned, Betty, and MJ were there, he pressed his tongue against the inside of his cheek for a moment as he gave a Cyclops a glare.

"So, you want to tell me why you have these kids here?" he demanded.

"I promise you, I'm as upset about it as you are, if not more," Cyclops remarked. "They snuck into our bunker to meet us, due to their worry for and about Spider-Man. And since we don't have time to take them back home, they're coming on this mission with us."

Happy looked at me. "…And you're okay with this?"

"I'm over the moon about it," I sneered. "I enjoy having those close to me putting themselves in potentially dangerous situations."

"Can we move on from this subject?" Joanna interjected.

Happy moved his gaze towards her. "And who are you?"

Joanna shrugged in response. "I'm just a woman on a gig."

"And I'm a woman with questions," Shadowcat spoke up. "Or rather, I'm a woman with one question – why were we given an Airbus? We're trying to be discreet, and this… this is the opposite of discreet!"

"Au contraire," Happy interjected. He took a moment to finish his sandwich. Once he was done, he dusted hands off. "Sorry about that. Anyway, this jet is quite discreet. This plane has been modified with the same tech SHIELD uses for their helicarriers. I'm talking ultra-reflective panels to keep us invisible in the sky, radar cloaking, radar absorbing materials, you name it. Once we're in the air, we might as well have disappeared off of the face of the earth. Anyway, lower level has this bay for vehicles, a lounging area with adjustable seats that could be used as beds, and showers. I just hope you got bedding items, because, unfortunately, we couldn't grab any in time."

"Of course," Frictor quipped. "Wouldn't want us to be flying too luxuriously, right?"

Happy took a moment to glare at Frictor before he continued talking. "The upper deck has a kitchen – which is actually fully stocked – and a lab with a Stark Industries Fabricator in case you guys need to make any new equipment."

I raised my eyebrows underneath the mask. "You guys got a new one?" I inquired.

"Yeah, we did," Happy confirmed. "The original might've been destroyed, but we always keep blueprints as backup."

"Good to know."

"I think we talked long enough," Cyclops interrupted. "Hogan, thank you. You can hit the hay early. I'll be from flying from here."

"Are you sure?" Hogan queried. "It's no problem for me to fly. At least let me take the last half."

Cyclops paused for a moment. He then nodded. "Okay." He then turned towards the rest of us. "You all have 15 minutes to get situated. Then we're out."

We all nodded. Frictor walked towards the SUV, opened up the driver door, and reached inside of the vehicle. A moment later, the rear door of the Suburban lifted up. I, along with the rest of the X-Men and Joanna, moved to the back of the SUV and gathered our stuff. We then headed through the door to the lounging area.

If I was in a better mood, I would have been blown away. The floor was covered in thick beige carpet. The seats were dark brown. From what I could tell, they seemed to be high quality futons. And they, indeed, looked adjustable. In the center of the room was what looked like a hologram projector. Off to a corner was a small fridge filled with drinks behind a small bar table.

"Well, for six hours or so, we're living lavish," Frictor commented.

"Yeah, Craig," Ned chimed in. "It looks almost better than your apartment." Everybody one else looked straight at Ned with a glare. He looked around at all of us. "…What did I do?"

"You just said Frictor's real first name, you dipshit!" MJ yelled.

At that, Ned scoffed. "But, everyone here knows his name!"

"…I didn't," Joanna informed. "You just exposed him."

Ned's eyes went wide before he looked at Frictor. A look of remorse took over his face. "Dude, I'm sorry! I'm so, SO, sorry! I'll make it up to you! You like Legos, right?"

Frictor didn't say anything at first. He just glared at Ned for several seconds. Betty nervously stepped in front of Ned protectively. "Well, no point in wearing this during the trip," Frictor grumbled as he pulled up his mask and pulled down his hood.

Shadowcat sighed as she grabbed her mask. "I can't exactly leave him alone on that boat." She pulled it off before she turned towards Joanna. "I'm Katherine."

Underneath my mask, I rolled my eyes. I then grabbed the bottom of my masked and pulled it off. I looked towards Joanna. "Peter. My name is Peter."

Joanna looked at all of us, her mouth slightly ajar. She then closed her mouth and shook her head. "…You guys would really go down in flames for each other. I respect that." She then looked at MJ, Ned, and Betty. "…But I'm starting to wonder if it would be wise to go straight to California now instead of dropping them off."

"Yeah, me too!" Craig hollered as he walked away from us and towards a chair. He sat on it with a huff. "But I want to save Carmilla as soon as possible, so we'll have to bear with them."

"I'm heading to the cockpit," Scott announced.

As he walked away, I took my stuff and walked over to a seat, sparing one last glare towards Ned as I did so.

"…One dysfunctional family, huh?" Happy Hogan commented.

"Shut up, Hogan!" Everyone else, myself included, shouted back.

I heard him grumble under his breath about getting no respect. It almost made me chuckle.

Almost.

Fifteen minutes later, we were up in the air. I wanted to get some sleep. And I did try. However, I was still upset that Ned, Betty, and MJ were on this trip. And I was still upset about the argument. I couldn't sleep. So, after about two hours, I gave up. I stood up and looked around. Everyone was sleeping. Ned and Betty were in one seat, which was reclined back by about 45 degrees. Ned had his left arm around Betty as she snuggled him.

"Good for them," I deadpanned under my breath.

I looked around until I spotted MJ. She had her seat positioned in a way that allowed her to fully lie down. Slowly and quietly, I approached her until I was standing right next to her. I saw her shiver. She was cold. I frowned. I was still mad at her, but I didn't want her to be uncomfortable. I slowly removed my jacket and kneeled down as I gently placed it over her. I then placed a light kiss on her forehead before I stood up and walked away.

It took me a while, but I managed to find my way to the upper deck. I took a moment to take in the kitchen – a full on kitchen with burners, fridges, and all. But that wasn't what I was looking for. I walked over to the lab and made my way to the fabricator. It was exactly like the one that was in the jet that Happy picked me up in back in the Netherlands. It came in real handy since I had to make a new suit to take on Mysterio. I had a feeling I might need a new one – not just for this mission, but for Scorpion. I took a deep breath before I stepped up to the machine.

I started working on the suit for a while, and I started to hit dead end after dead end over what to do. I didn't want to get too fancy with the tech. But, at the same time, I wanted it to be rather sturdy. And, I was at a loss.

"There you are," a voice said.

I looked over my shoulder to see MJ walking up to me, wearing the jacket I blanketed over her. A part of me wanted to walk up to her and hug her. Another part of me wanted to give her the cold shoulder. I wasn't over our argument from earlier, but I didn't want her to go. Internally, I sighed, wondering if this was what MJ felt like after she was told the truth about The Spell.

"Hey Em," I said quietly.

"Couldn't sleep?" she asked. I shook my head. "What you doing?"

I turned my head back towards the fabricator. "I'm… I'm working on a new suit. I figured I could use an upgrade." MJ came to a stop to the right of me. She looked down at the fabricator.

"Mind if I help?" MJ asked.

"…Sure," I replied.

She looked over the display, taking in the holograms that showed the designs I had so far. She nodded. "Well, you have the basics down. …What are you trying to accomplish?"

"I just need something that's sturdy enough to take hits from bullets and bombs, but not too heavy for me not to move around in."

"Yeah, last thing I want you to do is walk around looking like a toddler with too many clothes on." I turned my head and gave her a halfhearted glare. She looked at me and smirked slightly. I scoffed as I shook my head and looked forward.

"…I don't have that much in the way of ideas," I admitted with a sigh. "I thought about using Kevlar with a titanium alloy but… I wanted something lighter than a titanium alloy and I'm not sure a metal like that exists yet."

MJ made a noncommittal noise with her throat. We remained quiet for some moments. I looked down at the display of the fabricator before I sighed. This was something I should have thought about days ago. But there I was with probably the most technologically advanced piece of crafting equipment on Earth and I was at a loss at what to do with it. I was about ready to give up and try and get some sleep.

"…Or maybe there is," MJ spoke up. I looked at her.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"I remember a while back, Stark Industries worked with some researchers from Pohang University of Science and Technology, or POSTECH – that's in South Korea. Anyways, the researchers were making a steel aluminum alloy that's a lot lighter than stainless steel but as strong as titanium alloys."

I nodded as I smiled. "That could work." I waved my hands across the display and looked up the many substances that were in its database. I finally found one that seemed to match the description. "Postechnium." I raised my eyebrows briefly as I nodded my head. "Well, at least this name isn't a try-hard acronym."

From there, MJ and I worked on the suit. I added the usual bells and whistles – an operating system that could house an A.I., an HUD in the mask, lenses… basically, it was like the suit Tony made me, minus the drone. I wanted to use the drone, but Michelle argued against it – she wanted the chest piece to be as solid as possible. Once we were done, we looked down at the display, seeing a full color preview of what the suit would look like. What would normally have been red was chrome, and what normally would be blue was black.

"It looks sleek," MJ commented. "It might still be a bit heavy, though, even with the Postechnium."

"I've lifted heavier," I replied. From the corner of my eye, I saw her look at me.

"How strong are you?"

I took a moment to think about it. "…The most I ever lifted, from what I can tell, is 10 tons. I don't know if I can lift more than that, and I'm not sure I want to find out."

"Why not?"

"Because last time I lifted that much weight, I was trapped underneath a building that was collapsed on me."

"Jesus Christ, Peter!"

I sighed. "I wanted to prove myself to Tony Stark. I wanted to prove that I was ready to take on an Avenger level threat so I could become an Avenger. And I did. But, right before the press conference to announce me as the new addition to the team, I turned him down. It was one thing when the Avenger level threat is some crazed robot taking over a foreign country or some alien force invading the planet. But… I realized I'm living in a world where the next big time threat could be someone who doesn't look that much different from the person you pass by on the street on a normal day, if at all."

"And that's why you stayed local," MJ stated.

I nodded. "It is." I turned towards her and smiled wryly. "Though, it balances out. I used to find it weird how, in alien invasion movies, New York would be the first place targeted half of the time. But, nowadays, I'm thinking Hollywood was ahead of their time."

At that, MJ scoffed as she shook her head. "Life imitates art, huh?" She took in a breath before she looked me straight in the eye. A certain look came over her face. I frowned. I knew she wanted to talk about earlier back at the bunker. "…Peter… can we talk?"

We're talking now. That's what I wanted to say. But I kept quiet. Instead, I nodded. It wasn't the time for me to be smart at the mouth.

"…About earlier," MJ began. She bit her lip as she went quiet for a bit. She took in a breath. "…Peter, I know Ned, Betty, and I coming along was stupid. I know that. I'm not sorry for that. But I am sorry for throwing The Spell back in your face. I… I didn't mean to… it's just…" She sighed as she looked downward towards the ground. "…I understand why you did what you did in regards to The Spell. And I don't really hold it against you. But…" She raised her head looked me back in the eye. There was a look of… Well, it was a look of a few things. I saw sadness. I saw frustration. I even saw a bit of anger. None of it seemed towards me, however. "…Peter, you scare me at times. Because while I think it was stupid of you to keep your distance from Ned and I to keep us safe, I can't ignore how much love you have for us… for me… to go that far to protect us. And knowing that…"

"…You think I'd go to Doctor Strange for another spell?" I murmured as my eyebrows furrowed up.

"No." MJ paused. "…Well, yes, in a way. I just…" Her voice started to crack. My expression softened. I wanted to tell her that we could talk about it at a later time, but she continued on. "I know there isn't anything in the world you wouldn't do for the people you love. And because of that, I have this constant fear in the back of my mind that you'll do something drastic when push comes to shove. I'm sorry. I don't like having that fear, but it's there. And… I don't want to lose you again."

I didn't say anything at first. I digested what she said. I couldn't blame her for feeling that way. She was right. I couldn't deny it if I wanted to. Even before The Spell, there was me ditching Liz Allan so I could take on Toomes without her getting involved, me handing the glasses off to Mysterio since I believed the world would be a better place if he was Iron-Man's successor, and even me turning down becoming a full-time Avenger for the sake of keeping New York safe.

"…You're right," I admitted. "I'm still mad at you, but you're right."

MJ nodded. "That's fair."

I sighed. "Come here." I held my arms apart. MJ stepped forward and wrapped her arms around my abdomen. I wrapped my arms around her shoulders and held her tight against me. "I'm not going to tell you that I won't do anything that drastic again because, honestly, I'd fight Thanos again if it meant you being safe. But I will say that I'll try to be smarter about it. And remember, I already promised you – no more secrets. So if I do have to do something crazy again, I will tell you. Just promise me you'll do the same for me. Because, MJ, you scare me, too."

MJ pulled away from me and gave me a smirk. "Oh, I'm sorry, am I that dangerous to the man who can lift ten tons?" she mocked.

"Yes, you are!" I replied matter-of-factly. "…You… you see someone like me. You see how dangerous my life could be. And yet, despite the fact that you don't have powers, military or secret agent training, or the like, you see my life and decided 'You know what? This is where I want to be'." I chuckled as I shook my head. "You… other than Aunt May, no one has every cared for me that much. And it drives me crazy. I'm so afraid that you'll do something drastic for my sake and get hurt because of it. But I'm just as afraid of what my life would be like without you."

MJ gave me a lopsided smile. She then bowed and tilted her head as she placed her lips against mine. I returned the kiss. This one was long and slow. During the kiss, I felt my anger towards MJ dissipate. After several moments, we broke the kiss, and MJ placed her forehead against mine.

"…We're a couple of idiots, aren't we?" MJ whispered.

"American Idiots, to be exact," I whispered back in agreement.

"….I blame Ned."

"So do I."

We pulled apart and looked at each other. We both pressed our lips together and tried to hold back our laughter. And we both failed. We laughed for at least a couple of minutes, both out of humor and relief. I was okay. MJ was okay. We were okay. We finally stopped laughing, though we were both still smiling. I reached out and took her hand with mine. She gave my hand a gentle squeeze before she looked towards hologram of the suit we worked on.

"So… are these the colors you're settling on?" MJ asked.

"…I don't know," I replied as I shrugged my shoulders. "I mean, I love the chrome and black. But I'm not married to it." I looked towards the hologram. "You have any ideas?"

I looked at MJ as she tilted her head in thought. She then looked down and grabbed the pendant of Black Dahlia necklace. "…How about a dark burgundy chrome instead straight chrome?"

I smiled. "I can do that."