Along Came Some Turtles

by The Legendary Dragon Reaper

Post Spectacular Spider Man season 2. Peter's life is more or less falling apart at the seems, but meeting some new friends, who just so happen to be mutant turtles armed with ninja weapons, might just be what he needs to turn things around. And a good thing too, given the new threats that are lurking in the shadows. Crossover/ continuation of Spectacular Spider man with TMNT 2012.

11. It Came from the Depths

(It Came from the Depths)

Spectacular Webhead 11: Thanks, I'm glad to see you liked it. Yeah, I figured Hobie figuring it out would get a reaction out of some people.

Superjoeyf721: I get what you're saying about Power Rangers, though personally Samurai has a soft spot in my heart since it was the first Power Rangers series I ever really got into. But yeah, I have to agree that Megaforce was pretty bad, though it had a few decent bits here and there. I'll be sure to check out that video you mentioned though. I never actually watched Ninja Steel, but I do agree that Dino Charge was better.

Vfc15650: Thanks, I'm glad to see you like it, and I usually update when I can. Yeah, since we'll be returning to high school soon, it won't be long before Gwen and the rest of Peter's classmates come back into play. Plus you're right, it's not going to be long before the rest of the group finds out Spider-Man's identity. I have a few ideas for how the dynamic between Hobie and Peter is going to develop from here, but I won't spoil anything just yet. I figured I had to bring the Black Cat in at some point, but yeah, I wouldn't count on her forgiving Spider-Man for everything that happened with her father anytime soon. Yeah, I had to make a nod to Aaron Davis being a thing in this universe, though I haven't actually decided if he's going to appear or not. If he does, then it won't be for awhile.

Martyrex: The Kraang's mutagen does provide a lot of potential and opportunities to create new enemies from both franchises due to how unpredictable it is. We've actually seen one example already, at least in part, with the creation of Hydro-Man.

Guest: Thanks, I'm glad to see you liked it. If we're talking about Black Cat being a hero, then I think the version that does that the best is from Spider Man TAS from the 90s.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The scene was a rather unsettling one, with a group of Kraangdroids chasing after a large reptile creature, which just so happened to be covered in a certain black substance, complete with the logo of a white spider on its chest. It put up quite the fight against the Kraangdroids, and despite it being injured, it managed to escape into the sewers, along with a metal container holding a certain crystal.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Morning came, and the sun was rising high over the skies above New York.

"Mikey I've already told you this at least half a dozen times, I'm not interesting in trying your pizza milkshake." Peter made his way down the stairs with his phone in hand, then paused about halfway down "Okay I'm telling you this for your own good, calling it that makes me want to try it even less. Hey I have more than enough sense of adventure, you remember who exactly I am right? Look as entertaining as it is to listen to you drink something, spit it out and then drink it a second time, I've gotta go check on Aunt May. I'll see you and the guys later." so he hung up and made his way into the kitchen, where he found May working by the stove "Aunt May take it easy, you know what Dr Bromwell said."

"Oh come now Peter, don't start like that." May was quick to call him off "I had a fine checkup the other day with Dr Bromwell and he himself said that I'm much better now. Besides, I would hardly count this as overexerting myself. I went to bed early and got a good night's sleep, so now I'm just fixing some breakfast for the two of us. What about you dear? I know how you've been burning the candle at both ends all Summer."

"I don't know if I would say that exactly, but the Bugle stuff has kept me pretty busy. I do make a lot of time to just hang out though, mostly with the guys."

"Yes yes I know, but I can't help but worry about you. And for the record, I am going to want to meet them at one point."

'...Oh crap, we have to do this now don't we?' Peter took a breath as he braced himself "Yeah, about that… I actually had something I wanted to ask you about."

"Of course dear, anything."

"Well, about these friends of mine. I was talking to their dad the other day, and he said that he knew you. And Uncle Ben."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, so I'm just gonna go ahead and ask. Does the name… Splinter mean anything to you?" he looked up and saw the shocked expression on her face, causing fear and concern to flood his being, only for it to disappear when she started laughing "Um… Aunt May?"

"Sorry, sorry, it's just…" May took a moment to get herself under control "So you did meet them after all. I honestly had a feeling that you would someday."

"So… you know about them? As in…?"

"The large rodent man with the quartet of baby turtles? Yes Peter, I know. Your uncle found him going through our trash one night."

"And you let him stay with you?"

"I would be lying if I said that I wasn't… taken aback by certain features of his, but if nothing else, I like to think that I can tell a good person if I see one, human or otherwise. He did stay with us for a short time, and he told us about… about Tang Shen."

"That was his wife."

"Yes. As I was saying, he stayed with us for a short while, and we even introduced him to you at one point. You were actually quite fond of him as well. You even played with the little turtles a few times."

"I did? So I was friends with the Turtles even way back then. Here I thought scientists weren't supposed to believe in destiny, but then again, that is the realization I came to about me being Spider-Man. I guess some things are just meant to be. So does that mean that you're okay with me hanging out with them and helping them with stuff?"

"Well here's the thing Peter, I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't worried about you, it's a large part of my job. But at the same time, I know that you'll be in good hands. Besides, I know enough about teenagers to know that even if I didn't want you to see them, you would probably try and sneak out anyway."

"So… you're okay with it then?"

"I am, so long as you're taking care of yourself with them, and you're not putting yourself in any kind of danger."

"I'm not, I swear. No more than usual anyway. Well I should probably get going, I was supposed to meet up with the guys later today and-" he cut himself short when he felt something vibrating in his pocket, and then pulled out his cell phone "Huh."

"I take it that's them?"

"It's actually from MJ, apparently there's something on the news she thinks I oughta be taking a look at." so he promptly went into the living room and turned on the TV, with May trailing close behind him.

"I'm Joan Grody reporting to you with a Sewer Shocker, with city workers being under attack by what appears to me some sort of mutant."

"...Oh boy, this is going to be bad."

"Yeah, it was like part man and part reptile, and it was all monster too, covered in some kind of black goo with a white spider on its chest. It came out of nowhere and attacked me in some kind of blind rage!"

"And I was right."

"Reptile though." May frowned slightly as she glanced over at Peter "I know this may sound horrible, but…"

"They might have their quirks, but I can say with confidence that they would never do something like that. Well, I can say that with confidence about three out of four of them. But I am kind of concerned about what he's saying."

"You think it may be putting… your new friends, in danger?"

"Even if it's not, there's a pretty fair chance that there's gonna be one news crew or another down there looking for it, and that's the last thing they want. Plus if that pans out, there's a pretty good chance that Jameson is probably going to want pictures of it if this pans out- Wait hold on a second." Peter paused the TV on a certain image and took a look at the creature 'Some kind of reptile creature… covered in a black substance, and the white spider on its chest… Oh dear god no, not that thing.'

"Peter, are you alright dear?"

"What?" Peter snapped out of his thoughts and glanced over at May "Uh yeah sorry, I guess I just spaced out for a second. Like I said, the guys aren't gonna want that thing running around down there, or any news crews down there looking for it. Plus I saw a tunnel number on the video, 281 I think. I'd better get moving."

"Peter, remember what I said about putting yourself in danger."

"I know but don't worry, it's not like I'm gonna try and get a selfie with it. I'll be careful, and I'll be with the guys. I'll be back later, I love you." Peter gave her a reassuring smile, then made his way out of the house and took off running.

'Peter… please, just be careful. And Splinter, please watch over him.'

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A short while later, at a certain sewer tunnel…

"Alright guys, it's through this way." Leo led the others into the sewer tunnel in search of the same creature, though he was quick to come across some findings in the form of footprints "Hey guys, come take a look at this. What the heck could make footprints like these?" he received a possible answer in the form of zapping and roaring in the distance "Okay then, I think we have our answer."

"Not one that you're gonna like either way."

Leo and the others glanced back to see Spider-Man drop down from the tunnel ceiling, his entire demeanor appearing more serious than usual "Oh hey, so I take it you saw the news report about that thing too?"

"More than that, I know what it is and why you don't wanna get near it. And not just because it's made of that black goo." Spider-Man stepped up to the front and motioned for the others to step back, only to be met with the sounds of loud zapping and angry roaring in front of them, which just so happened to come from a large reptillian figure, covered in black ooze with a white spider symbol on its chest, ripping through a group of Kraangdroids in a blind rage "And that in itself is enough for me to rest my case."

"I can imagine." Donnie muttered "I never thought that I could feel sorry for the Kraang."

"If there's anyone you should be feeling sorry for, it's the guy that got stuck bonded to that damn ooze."

"You realize that's a giant dangerous gater monster right?" Raph shot him a dull look.

"What I realize is what's covering it. I know what that thing is and what it does, it destroys good people, consumes them until they're nothing but rage and hate. I would know, I used to be stuck to that thing." his tone held a certain bitterness to it.

"Say what?" Mikey shared a quick glance with Donnie, then turned back to Spidey "So that thing on him is-"

"Yeah. It's the Symbiote."

"Kraang, initiate that which is known as, subjugation." a few Kraangdroids managed to get behind the creature and stuck a metal rod into his body, electrocuting him and causing him to howl in pain as it fell to the ground with a thud "Tell Kraang in what place can be found the power cell that Kraang wishes to find the place of."

"We will never bow to you Kraang scum!" the creature let out a snarl as it extended a series of black webs from its tendrils, blowing apart a group of Kraangdroids in the process, only for another Kraangdroid to electrocute him again, sending him crashing to the ground and causing further aggravation to the Symbiote itself.

"Oh yeah, man that isn't good." Mikey cringed as he watched the scene unfold, then glanced back at Spider-Man and the others "Come on dudes let's go, we've gotta help him get out of there."

"Gotta being the operative word in this case." Spider-Man told him dryly "I think I've made it pretty clear by now that I'm not particularly inclined to feel bad for the Symbiote. If anything that thing is way more dangerous than any Kraangdroid could ever be. It's a lot less stupid for starters."

"So what if you don't feel bad for that thing, what about the gator dude it's stuck to? Do you want him to be stuck to that thing and get screwed up like you were, like how you lost a friend to that thing?"

"...Crap, I hate it when you're right. Alright fine, but the moment the Kraang are done with I can't guarantee what I'm gonna do to the Symbiote."

"Good enough for me, now let's do this."

"You do know what you're getting into though right?"

"When do I ever?"

"Fair enough. You wanna do the honors?"

"Don't mind if I do my man. Booyakasha!" Mikey launched his chain-sickle forward and skewered a Kraangdroid in the head in an instant, followed by impaling another Kraangdroid with its own electric rod.

"Hey guys you'd better get over here soon, otherwise there won't be any more stupid metal piñatas for you to whack." Spider-Man shot a single strand of Impact Webbing at a nearby Kraangdroid, blowing through its head in one shot, with the other Turtles all ripping through the other droids, leaving the Kraang themselves to screech and run away in terror "Okay yeah, that's definitely cathartic on a multitude of levels. Anyone wanna go for another round?"

"As tempting as that sounds, and believe me when I tell you that it really does, we should take the chance to get out of here before more Kraangdroids show up." Leo told him.

"Yeah, that probably works too. Plus I skipped breakfast, so…"

"Hold up dude, you're forgetting something pretty big." Mikey knelt down next to the creature on the ground.

"I already swore I'd leave your stash of pizza alone, which is already pretty hard since it takes up about 80% of the room in your fridge."

"87.43% actually, but I'm not talking about that. I mean this guy, we can't just leave him here like this. What if the Kraang get their hands on him?"

"I think I've made it clear before that I have no problems with letting the Kraang keep that thing on him."

"What about him though, you said you don't want anyone to suffer because of the black cymbal thing."

"It's called a Symbiote. And dammit, I hate it when you're right. I really do. Fine, we can bring him back to the Lair with us."

"Now hold up a second." Leo was quick to cut in "I think I speak for everyone else when I say that there is no chance of us bringing that monster home with us."

"I'm willing to bet Raphael's weight in anger issues that this guy isn't the monster, that he's only like this because of the Symbiote."

"And he's not a monster, he's a giant mutant alligator monster that crushes Kraang like there's no tomorrow!" Mikey cringed as he received a few looks from the others "I said monster out loud didn't I?"

"Yes, yes you did."

"Well you know what I meant."

"I know exactly what you meant, and for once I'm putting the quips on hold. You're right about us having to help this guy, but there isn't a chance in hell that I'm letting the Symbiote into your home."

"But the giant gator monster is all good, okay then." Raph commented dryly, only to be met with a stream of webs across his mouth.

"But you're right, we can't just leave him here for the Kraang to find him either. Lucky for all of us I think I have a solution." Spider-Man reached into his costume and pulled out a small vial full of tan-colored liquid "This ougtha do it."

"And what exactly is that?" asked Donnie.

"It's a gene cleanser, a substance made that purifies the genetic structure of any being that injests it. It's what I used to get the Symbiote off of Venom last time. It's also what I used in order to cure the Lizard, and potentially… it could get rid of my powers if I ever wanted to, but that in itself is a discussion for another day. Mikey open his mouth, I'll pour this down his throat and that'll get it off."

"You got it dude." Mikey reached down and pried the creature's mouth wide open, only for it to suddenly begin thrashing around violently, grabbing Donnie by the face and shasking both him and Mikey around wildly.

"I got it!" Spider-Man latched onto the creature using his webs and pulled it close, then in one swift movement he opened the vial and poured the Gene Cleanser down the creature's throat, which was followed by a pause, and then the Symbiote began to retract until it slid its way off the creature's body and tried to scurry away.

"So what now, do we just let it go?"

"Like hell that's gonna happen." Spider-Man quickly caught it in a sack and tied it shut with his webbing "Still not too tough without a host now are you? Well forget it, I'm not gonna let you ruin any more lives." on that note, he promptly chucked the sack into the nearby septic tank, then latched onto the nearby wheel with his webbing and pulled it, letting the water flow and leaving the sack to get flushed away "And don't come back this time." once that was done, he breathed a sigh and hoisted the gator creature over his shoulder "Well what are we waiting for? Let's get him back to the Lair already."

"Y-Yeah, you got it bro." Mikey and the others promptly followed him, though he quickly made his way up to the front and glanced over at Spider-Man "So… are you gonne be okay dude? I mean I know about…"

"What that thing did to me, or really what I did while I had it? And what it did to pretty much ruin any sort of friendship I had with Eddie? To be honest… more or less. I don't know if I can ever fix that, but at the very least, I can make sure it's not going to hurt anyone else. Starting with this guy." he gestured to the creature.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A short while later, back at the Lair…

"Okay, this is a complete load of crap." Raph gave his typical scowl as he watched Mikey cuddle with the gator creature "I can't believe we're actually going along with this."

"Hey come on, would you just look at the guy?" Miky glanced up at the others "Doesn't he just seem so peaceful?"

"Yeah I'm pretty sure that has something to do with him being out cold." Spider-Man took a few steps forward as he readied his web-shooters.

"Hey what gives dude, what up with the web stuff? I thought we said we weren't gonna chain him up or anything."

"Well this was the only way I could convince Donnie not to chain him to anything like he's some kind of guard dog. Besides, the tensile strength of these things is way stronger."

"That ain't right dude, it's not like he's gonna hurt us."

"He probably wouldn't, but I can tell you from experience that the Symbiote does things to your head, and it takes a really long time to get it out."

"Well yeah, but we're the ones that saved him from the Kraang. That's gonna have to count for something doesn't it?"

"Speaking from experience, heroics don't always earn gratitude. Actually now that I think about it, I'm not sure they ever really do."

"Whatever, I still doubt he's actually gonna hurt us." then the two of them looked down to see the creature's eyes open, only for them to be glazed over and his pupils turn to slits "There you see dude, he's perfectly calm."

"His eyes are slits and they're glazed over with what I'm assuming to be rage."

"You're worrying way too much about this dude. I bet that the first thing this big guy is gonna do is thank us for-"

"KRAANG!" the creature let out a primal roar and flung Mikey off him in an instant, then turned to Spider-Man and grabbed him by the face as he started flinging him around wildly, before he threw him into Mikey.

"...Okay, so maybe the second or third thing."

"Mikey please, for the love of god, shut up." Spider-Man let out a pained groan.

"Okay, so I'm thinking I oughta get the chains now or-" Donnie didn't get a chance to finish before the creature grabbed him by the face and started shaking him violently "Get him off me, get him the shell off me!"

"We got you Donnie!" Leo and Raph were quick to grab a set of chains and launched them forward, only for them to wrap around Donnie's torso.

"Not like that, get the monster before-" Donnie didn't get a chance to finish that sentence either before he and the other Turtles were flung around and sent crashing into a wall.

"Yeah okay, I'm officially done with this." Spider-Man leapt upright and shot a signle strand of blue-colored webs at the creature, electrocuting ih and causing it to howl in pain before it fell to the ground in an unconscious heap "Okay, so bringing a formerly Venom-infected mutant gator back to the Lair, not one of my better ideas."

"What is all of this commotion?" this was when Splinter made his way out of the dojo.

"Add this to the list of reasons."

"Yeah no kidding, because it was totally your fault!" Raph snarled at him "Sensei it was these two idiots (referring to Mikey and Spider-Man) that made us bring a giant mutant back to the Lair and it attacked us!"

"You've done worse than that."

"I'm not a bloodthirsty savage."

"That's debatable for a few reasons."

"Whatever, the point is that you two made a really stupid call!"

"Hey we couldn't just leave him, he needs our help!" Mikey was quick to protest.

"He doesn't need anything, this thing is a dangerous monster!"

"Raphael!" came the sharp reply from Splinter "Remember that we have had this discussion once before. There is no monster more dangerous than a lack of compassion." and then he actually looked down at the creature "Then again, we can all be mistaken."

"We're just doing to him what everybody else does to us, judging him by his looks or stuff that he didn't have any control over!" Mikey glanced over at Spider-Man as he mentioned the last part.

"Well that is one reason for it." Donnie pulled himself out from underneath the creature "There's also the fact that he had me BY THE FACE MIKEY!"

"Oh come on, he grabbed me too but you don't see me going nuts. Besides he got screwed up by that black gunk thing, and even then he was still fighting the Kraang. It's like Master Splinter would always say, the enemy of my enemy is my bro."

"That is not exactly what I said." Splinter pointed out.

"Give him some credit, if nothing else he's got the spirit." Spider-Man idly patted Mikey on the head in an affectionate way.

"In the meantime though, what was this about the Kraang and, how did he put it? Some sort of black substance?"

"He's talking about the Symbiote that created Venom. It bonded to him at some point, and I can tell you for a fact that it can mess with your head in a lot of ways."

"So you've told us. What was it about the Kraang as well?"

"We came across this guy fighting a bunch of them in a sewer tunnel, something about them trying to get him to tell them where they can find some kind of power cell."

"And he refused to cooperate with their efforts?"

"Yeah, and all the while he was being affected by the Symbiote, so that says a lot. Lucky for us I managed to get it off him and flushed it down a septic tank. Mikey was right though, I'm not going to let anyone else suffer the same fate."

"I see. It seems that Michelangelo made quite the wise decision." that was enough to earn him a series of looks from the others "Yes, I never thought I would hear myself say that either, at least not in this lifetime."

"He's not that bad you know, he's just smart in a different way."

"A valid point as well." Splinter knelt down and examined the creature for a moment "His scars do run deep, but they appear to protect a genuine heart. One that appears to have been tainted by another force."

"Which would be the Symbiote."

"A force that you understand all too well. When this creature awakens, you and Michelangelo must find a way to befriend him and gain his trust."

"No problemo sensei, we've got this." Mikey gave Splinter a thumbs up, then caught Spider-Man in a quick fist bump.

"In the meantime, we need to learn what it is he knows about the Kraang, which means that the rest of you must try to find this power cell before the Kraang are able to locate it."

"But we're still gonna chain him up or something right?" asked Donnie.

"Of course we are. I am compassionate, not insane."

"Good enough for me."

"Don't worry, I've got this." Spider-Man encased the creature in a series of webs until he was almost entirely bound in a makeshift cocoon "Alright then, that oughta hold him for now, at least until the webs dissolve."

"And how long is that going to be?"

"Given the current batch I have with me, a few hours give or take. You guys might wanna get moving in the meantime."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Per the orders that Splinter had given them, Leo, Raph and Donnie returned to the sight of where the gator creature was battling the Kraang, which led them to discover a nearby sewer pool that they believed could lead to something. So Raph went ahead and shoved Leo and Donnie in, then dove in after them.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile, at the Lair…

At the same time, Spider-Man (or Peter when he doesn't have the mask on) sat in the kitchen, engaged in a conversation with Mikey while he was working at the stove "So I talked with my Aunt May this morning and get this, she actually does know about you guys and Splinter."

"Seriously?" Mikey glanced back at him "So all old people really do know each other?"

"No and before you say it, I doubt either of them know the guy that invented pizza."

"I wasn't thinking that."

"Yes you were."

"Okay fine, you got me there." Mikey hung his head, but then he glanced back again and took notice of Peter's downcast expression "You okay dude?"

"What? Oh yeah, I guess I just got lost in my thoughts for a minute there."

"You up for taking about it?"

"Not really, but I think it's better than keeping it bottled up inside." Peter breathed a sigh "It's just kind of occurring to me that I've got less than a week left of Summer vacation. I go back to school on Monday. I guess it's just kind of hitting me how much has happened over the past few months. I mean I was in a pretty rough place before I met you and the others."

"For real? Come on dude, it couldn't have been that bad."

"Then let's recap. I just broke up with my girlfriend to be with my dream girl, my dream girl is still dating my best friend and they were both avoiding me, everyone at school started hating me even more than usual, and just about ever person in the city thought I was a murderer for killing the Green Goblin, including my best friend who doesn't know it's me. To put things in simple terms, my life sucked. You remember that vial of Gene Cleanser I had earlier? I'd been keeping that around as a sort of insurance policy in case I wanted to get rid of my powers. It was so bad for me I actually thought about going through with it."

"Seriously? Then what changed?"

"If I had to be honest… it was meeting you and the other Turtles. And learning about the whole thing with the Kraang too. But with you guys, I just… felt like I wasn't alone anymore. When I was with all of you, even when I was still keeping my identity a secret from all of you… it felt like I really had friends again. I probably don't say stuff like this enough, but… thanks man, for real."

"Hey we got your back dude, it's what friends are for." Mikey gave a grin and caught Peter in a quick bro hug, but then a low growling noise got their attention "Looks like our new buddy is awake."

"Not sure if that's a good thing."

"It will be once he gets a taste of my pizza noodle soup."

"One thing I will give that stuff credit for, it sounds petter than the P-shake."

"What can I say dude, I've got an ear for branding." so the two of them made their way out of the kitchen, Mikey holding a pot in his hands and Peter putting his mask back on, and found the creature thrashing around in his web restraints "Well now, look who finally got up."
"You!" the creature let out a snarl as it tried to free itself with little success "Set me free of these bindings!"

"What? Oh yeah, sorry about the webs and junk. The guys kept saying that we had to keep you locked or you might attack us and use us like chew toys."

"Then who are you, and what am I doing here?"

"You can call me Michelangelo." he held out his hand, only to be met with his jaw snapping, causing him to pull away "And this right here is Spider-Man-"

"SPIDER!" the creature's eyes glazed over and he started thrashing around in his rage, only to be unable to break through the web restraints, and he eventually settled back down.

"Take it easy dude, he's not your enemy, none of us are. The two of us and my brothers actually went in and saved you before, you know from the Kraang-"

"KRAANG!" he started thrashing around again and actually managed to rip through the webs this time, only to be encased in another layer of webbing, causing him to fall back down, panting heavily all the while.

"Okay note to self, me and the Stormtrooper rejects aren't on his list of favorite people at the moment." Spider-Man knelt down in front of the creature "It's alright, you're gonna be safe here with us. We brought you here so we could help you."

"You… You actually want to help me?"

"Yeah we do, you can trust us."

"You got that right my gator buddy, and there isn't anything that's gonna heal you faster than my world famous pizza noddle soup!" Mikey stuck a wooden spoon into the put and then held it out towards the creature.

"I can think of at least 12 different things that can help him more."

"It's an acquired taste."

"Yeah, as in it can only be acquired by you."

"At least I can cook without burning down a kitchen."

"Let… Let me see…" the creature opened his mouth and allowed Mikey to pour some of the soup in, which he promptly swallowed "This is… the best thing that I have ever tasted."

"For real? Alright, it's about time I meet somebody who actually likes my cooking."

"As I said, it's the best thing I ever tasted…"

"Which says a lot in itself." Spider-Man noted dryly "So what's your real name? I'm starting to feel like calling you Giant Mutant Gator is gonna sound kind of redundant."

"I… I do not have a real name."

"Oh man, I… I'm sorry man."

"You don't have a real name?" Mikey's face suddenly lit up "Well today is your lucky day, yours truly just so happens to be a genius at naming stuff!"

"...Oh boy."

"Now let's see here…" and then he started examining the creature and feeling around different parts of his body "You know your head is kind of leathery… How about Headleather?"

"I say no."

"Heather?"

"I'm all for gender equality and stuff, but I'm gonna go with no."

"No wait I've got it, how about Leatherhead! Yeah that's it, it's even better!"

"Leatherhead it is. Thank you." the newly dubbed Leatherhead sat upright and gave Mikey a genuine smile.

"No problemo dude, naming stuff is what I do. I've been told a few times that I've got an ear for branding." Mikey gave a grin and sat down in front of him "So I've been meaning to ask you, why did you go all crazy eyes on my brother Donnie?"

"Your brother you said?"

"Yeah and Spidey here too. Instead of shaking their hands or stuff like that, you shook their faces and pretty much their entire bodies."

"I… I am sorry for that. There are times when I lose control of myself. When I awaken, I am left horrified by the things that I have done. My rage, my anger and my hatred take over, and that black substance took advantage of this, and made it even worse than it was. But it does not change that those actions are inside of me. A monster like me deserves to be bound like this, so that no one else will have to get hurt."

"Or maybe you just think you're a monster because that's how everyone else treats you. I say you shouldn't care what they think, just get on with doing what you do. It doesn't matter what everyone else thinks about you, because you get to say who you really are, not just with the stuff you say, but with the stuff you do." he glanced over at Spider-Man as he said this, and idly patted him on the shoulder.

"You… are wise beyond your years."

"Yeah, I get that a lot."

"Do you truly?"

"Most of it is from me." Spider-Man noted dryly, though he breathed a sigh as he slowly took off his mask and revealed the face of Peter Parker "So if you've been bonded with the Symbiote, then that means… you know who I am don't you?"

"Yes… Your name is Peter Parker. You're the one they call Spider-Man. I learned of you through my connect with… you called it a Symbiote?"

"Yeah. I used to be bonded to it awhile ago. I can tell you for a fact that the influence it has, it can change you, and not for the better."

"I could feel it… it grew in strength every time I lost control of myself… I couldn't bring myself to get it off of me…"

"I know what you mean. When I realized what it was doing to me, I tried to get it off, but it sort of dragged me into my own mind and tried to convince me that I couldn't live without it… and it did that by making me relive the worst mistake of my life. It almost worked, but the memory of my Uncle Ben appeared and managed to snap me out of it, and that gave me the strength that I needed to repel it, and I ripped it off of me for good. I guess you could say that the Symbiote in itself is a disease, and the cure is the people in your life that you love the most."

"I see… That is why I was unable to remove it myself… because I do not have anyone in my life that I hold dear."

"Well now you do." Peter gave Leatherhead a gentle pat on the shoulder and a small smile, one that Leatherhead returned.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

By this point, Leo and the other Turtles continued exploring the sewer pool in search of the power cell. However, they ended up coming upon a tunnel riddled with tons of homemade booby traps, including flying road signs (one of which nearly took Raphael's head off, which made him grateful for being short), floor spikes and rolling spiked barrels. They managed to reach the end of the tunnel without being injured, and somehow they discovered the power cell hidden behind a secret door in a wall, which just so happened to be a glowing crystal in a glass cylinder. It was at this point that Donnie discovered, in a way that was both painful and comedic, that the crystal was putting out an incredible amount of energy, and with the right components, it would have the potential to power almost anything effectively.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile, at the Lair…

By this point, Peter was left sprawled out on his back, still without his mask on, lying on the ground in front of Leatherhead as they engaged in a… particular conversation topic "Even all the way back then, Venom said that it knew who I loved the most and he went after Gwen. I still feel like an idiot for not figuring it out for myself sooner."

"The Symbiote feeds on the darkest parts of your heart." Leatherhead's tone was grim, then he let out a sigh "But at the same time, it still manages to see all parts of your heart. It could see the parts of yourself that even you were not aware of."

"Yeah, and then it hit me like a freaking bulldozer when Gwen kissed me. Then came all of that drama with Harry and Liz, and the whole thing with the Green Goblin. If I'm gonna be honest, it feels like it's my fault for not being honest about how I felt sooner, with her or with Liz, or with myself for that matter. You know who I'm talking about right?"

"I do. Being bonded with the Symbiote also gained me access to your memories. The one that you hold dear is… unique, to say the least. She is as beautiful as she is intelligent, and intelligent as she is kind."

"That pretty much describes her to a tee. Too bad I pretty much blew any chance I had to be with her. Now I don't even know if I can say we're friends anymore."

"Don't lose faith in the one you love Peter, you will have your chance in time. You just need to remain steadfast and patient."

"You think so?"

"I do. I've seen into your heart as well Peter, a compassionate soul who tries to live up to the great responsibility that comes with your great power."

"Did… Did you just quote my Uncle Ben?"

"It was more of a paraphrase really. But I speak the truth. Regardless of what others may say about you, no matter how much you suffer, you always try to do the right thing. If one is unable to see your true worth, then they are unworthy of you. But Gwen is not blind to the true worth that you hold. She still holds you close to your heart."

"You saw that too?"

"No, but I truly believe it with all of my being."

"Wow… when did I get so many spirit animal gurus to give me love and life advice?"

"Probably around the time you met me and my bros." Mikey gave him a grin.

"Yeah, that does sound about right. Not that I'm not grateful for it." Peter shot him a small smile, but then his gaze hardened as a familiar sensation went off in his head, and he quickly pulled his mask back on "Looks like the guys are back."

"Oh yeah, they're totally gonna be stoked about this." Mikey glanced over to see Leo and the others swim their way back into the Lair through the waterway "Hey guys get this, Leatherhead is totally off the chain. I named our new buddy Leatherhead by the way."

"Wait what?!" Leo and the others bolted upright "You mean you set him free?!"

"Wait what? No that's not what I meant, off the chain means that he's cool."

"Oh thank god."

"And that's why it was his idea for us to set him free." Spider-Man told him dryly.

"Well at least you didn't- Wait what?!" their gaze snapped towards where Leatherhead sat off to the side, a pot in hand and smiling at them "You actually let that thing go around free?"

"Would it help at all if I told you that it was Mikey's idea?"

"No, no it would not."

"Hey come on dudes, he's harmless." Mikey brushed off their worries "You just gotta get to know him a little bit."

"Uh huh. I'm not convinced."

"Why, what's the big deal?"

"Well I can think of one thing in particular." Donnie took the chance to round on him "Maybe you forgot that he grabbed me by the face earlier, so I'm going to take the chance to remind you that he grabbed me BY THE FACE!"

"He grabbed Spidey over there too, and he whacked me a few times."

"That's not the point Mikey, you shouldn't have let him go." Leo told him "What if he ends up going berserk?"

"Take it easy bro, he's not gonna go berserk. He's totally mellow."

"Uh huh. Let's test that out then." so with that in mind, Leo made his way up to Leatherhead "So he said your name was Leatherhead right? Well about the Kraang-"

"KRAANG!" that one word was enough to make Leatherhead go into his berserk mode and start swinging his fists at them, forcing the others to retreat.

"Woah easy big guy, just chill, chill." Mikey started massaging Leatherhead's snouth, causing him to relax after a moment.

"I… I am sorry my friend."

"It's okay big guy, it's not your fault. Right Spidey?"

"Yeah, I know that feeling man." Spider-Man patted Leatherhead on the arm, then pulled Leo and the others aside, his voice low "Yeah word to the wise, don't mention the big K around the big guy over there. It triggers him about as bad as it triggers you when somebody, i.e. Raphael over there, says that Space Heroes is just a low-budget ripoff of Star Trek."

"You say that one more time and I will shove these katanas so far up your-" Leo pulled out one of his katanas in a rage, only to pause and place it back in its sheath "Oh okay, I see your point now."

"Yeah."

"But seriously, if we can't mention the Kr- them around him, then what do I do?"

"Well speaking as someone who's about as socially inept as you can get, maybe start with some kind of icebreaker."

"Like what?"

"I don't know dude, I just said that I'm socially inept. Try asking how his day was or something like that."

"Fine, whatever you say." Leo breathed a sigh and made his way back up to Leatherhead "So tell me Leatherhead, how was your day?"

"It started out terrible." Leatherhead's tone was solemn.

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that."

"Yeah, you got attacked by the Kraang." Mikey was immediately met with pissed off looks from the others "What?"

"KRAANG!" and then Leatherhead went on the war path again.

"Oh. Okay hang on buddy I've got you, cleansing breaths." Mikey was quick to get to work on calming Leatherhead down and started massaging different parts of his body "There we go, in and out, cleansing breaths. You know you're in a safe place now don't you?"

"Yes… Yes I do…"

"Okay. Now here's the thing, my brothers just want to ask you a few questions. Do you think you can handle that?"

"Yes… I do…"

"Okay good. Alright bros, go ahead and ask him whatever you wanna ask him?"

"Yes, tell me…"

"Okay, so here's the thing. We just want to know what this is." Donnie stepped forward with great hesitance and pulled out the power cell, only for this to end up sending Leatherhead back into a rage.

"THIEF!" and then he grabbed Donnie by the face again.

"Oh come on, again with this?! This is so not my day!"

"Welcome to my world fellow braniac." Spider-Man was quick to brace his web-shooters and unleash a solid stream of web fluid, only for Leatherhead to rip through the webs and for him to be sent flying back into a wall "Ow."

"Donnie hold on!" Leo and Raph barred their weapons and charged at Leatherhead, only for them and Donnie to be sent crashing to the ground, leaving the power cell up for grabs, which prompted Leatherhead to try and make a grab for it.

"Nope." Spider-Man latched onto the power cell with a stream of webs and promptly yanked it into his own hand "Hey guys here's a new game, it's called Keep Away From the Godzilla Wannabe!" he was promptly met with a giant gator tail backhanding him into a wall, as well as knocking the power cell out of his hand "Ow… Okay, game over. I lose."

"I got it!" Raph leapt onto Leatherhead's back, then leapt off to grab the power cell and threw it to the others, only to be flatted by Leatherhead rolling onto him.

"Raph hold on!" Leo and Donnie went next and tried to pry Leatherhead off of Raph, only for this to end with Leo being thrown to the ground by a wayward tail and Donnie to be sent crashing into a wall.

"Leatherhead take it easy, it's okay!" Mikey tried to call him off, only for him to snatch the power cell away and try to leave "No wait put that down!"

"THIEVES!" Leatherhead grabbed Mikey by the head and threw him into a wall, and then he prepared to advance on him, only to be stopped by to strands of webbing latching onto both of his arms.

"Okay, I think that's enough of that." as it turns out, Spider-Man was the one that was holding him back, only for the webs to be snapped in an instant, but he didn't back down "Back away from the Turtles before either of us does something we're gonna regret."

Leatherhead let out a snarl full of rage and lunged at Spider-Man without hesitation.

'Well so much for the diplomatic approach, at least this way I get to test out the training from hell Splinter put me through.' Spider-Man took a breath and leapt to the side to avoid the pounce, as well as duck underneath Leatherhead's attempt to whack him with his tail, giving him the chance to kick his legs out from under him and knock him to the ground 'Thank you Rat Master Supreme. You wanna keep going?"

Cue the primal roar as Leatherhead pounced at him again.

"Hey that reminds me, any of you guys ever see that really old movie, you know Empire Strikes Back?" Spider-Man ducked underneath one attempt to grab him, and then avoided the next one by latching onto the ceiling of the Lair "You know that one scene where they're on the planet with the snow, and they have the walking thingies?" he leapt down to avoid another lunge, but this time he started circling around Leatherhead and enveloping him in a stream of webs "Really, even one person?"

"We've never seen Star Wars." Donnie let out a pained groan.

"Oh right, living in a sewer for a decade and a half. Anyway let me show you what I'm talking about." so Spider-Man continued circling around Leatherhead, binding his legs and arms in a thick stream of webs, and then he followed up with a swift kick to Leatherhead's chest that sent him crashing to the ground with a loud thud "Now do you wanna calm the hell down and act like a good giant gator guy, or do we have to go through this again?"

Leatherhead said nothing, he just let out a snarl as he grabbed the power cell, turned on his heels and stormed out of the Lair.

"Typical, nobody ever takes me up on that offer." Spider-Man breathed a sigh, but then he turned his attention over to the Turtles "Are you guys okay?"

"More bruised egos than anything else." Raph let out a pained groan as he picked himself up, with the others doing the same.

"Especially since your ego is the biggest thing you've got going for you. Hey speaking of which, I'm pretty sure we're missing a Turtle. Where the shell is Mikey?"

"I… I don't see him." Donnie and the others looked around.

"Okay I'm probably gonna regret asking this, but what are the odds he took off after our new BFF that just left?"

"Oh come on, how stupid would someone have to be to-" Leo cut himself short as he shared a look with the others "Aw crapbaskets."

"Yeah that figures, at the very least we gotta make sure he doesn't get himself killed. I'm gonna go on ahead, you guys grab your gear and catch up." Spider-Man promptly took off out of the Lair without wasting a second.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile, with the Turtle in question…

"Leatherhead, hey Leatherhead hold up!" Mikey made his way through the abandoned subway tunnels in search of Leatherhead, following a series of large footprints in the ground, only to be stopped by a wall of webs barring his way "What the shell are you doing dude?"

"What does it look like?" Spider-Man dropped down in front of him "I'm trying to stop you from getting yourself turned into a living chew toy."

"We can't just let him go like that, not when he freaks out and attacks my brothers out of the blue like that!"

"There's at least half a dozen reasons why we're not letting him go like that, and that's actually not very high on my list. Aside from the fact that he took the power cell with him, there's also the fact that he was bonded with the Symbiote, and I can tell you from experience how much that can mess a guy up. Plus I think you said it best, it doesn't matter what anyone else says. They don't get to define who we are, we do, and through words instead of actions." he patted Mikey on the shoulder and gave a small smile underneath his mask "If you believe in something then you oughta stick with it right?"

"...Yeah, I gotcha bro. Whatever happens though, he freaked out and attacked my brothers and my best friend. I gotta at least talk to him about it."

"I get it, but- Wait, I'm your best friend?"

"Yep." the two of them shared a smile and a quick guy hug, and then they turned towards the abandoned subway car in front of them "You want me to go in with you?"

"Yeah, but let me do the talking okay?"

"Fine, just don't get in over your head."

"Come on bro, when have I ever gotten in over my head?"

"The time you talked decided to bring a Hulk-sized mutant alligator back to the Lair after it had been possessed by the Venom symbiote?"

"Semantics dude, semantics." so with that in mind, Mikey opened the door to the subway car and found Leatherhead sitting in front of a small shrine, complete with the power cell "Hey dude, come on Leatherhead, what the shell is the big idea man?"

"You should not be here." Leatherhead spared him only a quick glance "You should not have come after me."

"How could I not dude? Me and Peter trusted you, then you freak the hell out and attack my brothers and my best friend! I thought you and I were friends dude."

"It was as I warned you before, there is a dangerous force inside of me that I do not have the strength to control, one that drew the Symbiote to me in the first place. That is why I must be alone, so that I will not hurt anyone else."

"Leatherhead!" this was when Raph and the other Turtles showed up and pointed their weapons at Leatherhead, with Spider-Man readying his web-shooters "Get the shell away from Mikey, if you don't then we're gonna turn you into the world's most ugly suitcase."

"Please, I assure you that I don't mean him any harm. I am only like this because it was the Kraang that made me into what I am now."

"Pull it back guys, let him say what he has to." Spider-Man motioned for the others to put away their weapons, then gave Leatherhead a simple nod "Go ahead big guy."

"Right. I was originally raised by a kind human boy, but then the day came where I had been discovered by his parents, and they dumped me into the sewer. That was where the Kraang had found me, and they took me back to their dimension. They mutated me, and they subjected me to many of their horrible experiments, but they were not able to break my spirit. A few months ago, I was able to escape through the portal that they used to travel to Earth, during which I came across the Symbiote that they found around the same time they found me, and I became bonded to it. It was also during this time that I stole this." he held up the power cell to the group.

"Okay, so what do they use that thing for anyway?"

"They use it in order to power the portal that leads to their home dimension. Without this to make it work, no Kraang are able to enter or leave this dimension. I swore that I would keep this from them and spare this world from their evil, even at the cost of my own life."

"Well it's not gonna come to that big guy, because you're not alone. Not anymore. Believe me, I get what you're going through, and not just because of the Symbiote. I know what it means to have some kind of torture forced on you for one reason or another, and to have to take on a huge responsibility. But I also learned fairly recently that if you try to do everything on your own, then you're guaranteed to fail. It's better to have some backup." Spider-Man patted Leatherhead on the arm and gave him a small smile, but then it hardened as a certain sensation started going off in his head "Guys you'd better get ready, my Spider Sense tells me we've got some seriously incoming." this was followed by an explosion that shook the subway car.

"Give to Kraang that which is known as the power cell that Kraang has come to demand that you give to Kraang."

"Oh wow, how ever would we have guessed who it was?" Spider-Man was met with a few dull looks from the others "What, sarcasm is a coping mechanism for me."

"No time for that, just use your webs to barricade the doors!" Leo barked at him.

"I'm on it." Spider-Man wasted no time in launching a series of webs that created a barrier between the Kraangdroids and the entrance to the subway car, though that didn't stop a few of them from being able to get through, but when one made a grab for the power cell he landed a swift and brutal roundhouse kick that ripped through the upper half of the droid body, leaving it to fall to the round with a thud "How are you guys doing back there?"

"How the shell do you think?!" as it turns out, Raph and the others were trying to stop the group of Kraangdroids from bursting through the web barrier and into the doorway to the subway car, but once they managed to close the door all the way a tense silene filled the air. And then it was cut short by a series of blades bursting through various points of the car "And apparently they have blades because of course they do." and then the various body parts of the Kraangdroid in the car started moving on their own and attacking the others "What the shell?!"

"Yeah, part of me thinks I shouldn't be surprised by this." Spider-Man promptly webbed the various body parts to the ground and the walls to stop them from moving, and then he fired another stream of webs to barricade the door shut "You know in hindsight, I should've done it in here to begin with." and then he saw the Kraangdroids trying to burst into the car through the other walls, which prompted him to seal those off with his webbing as well "A pretty big part of me thinks that I should've seen that coming."

"And the problem is that it's not gonna hold them off for long." Leo and the others were quick to brandish their weapons "Is there any chance you and Donnie would be able to get this subway car running?"

"This track is dead, there's no electricity to make it run."

"What about your Electric Webs?"

"I haven't finished the new batch yet. The power cell on the other hand, that's something we might be able to use. Donnie?"

"Yeah, I think it is possible." Donnie broke off from where he was trying to fend off a small group of Kraangdroids with his bo staff "We might be able to hook it up to the motor, but even with the two of us doing it together we're going to need some time."

"Then consider that time bought." Spider-Man filled his web-shooters with new cartridges of his web fluid and moved to leave the subway car, only to be stopped by Leatherhead grabbing him by the shoulder "Uh, what are you doing big guy?"

"I will buy you the time that you need." Leatherhead gave him a small smile, then turned his attention towards Mikey as he placed the power cell in his hands "You were able to trust me my friends, and so now I am trusting you. I will deal with the Kraang." and on that note, he burst out of the doorway to the subway car with a primal roar and started going to town on the numerous Kraangdroids that came at him.

"...Yeah okay, that works for me. Come on Donnie, let's get to it."

"Way ahead of you." Donnie pried open a compartment in the floor of the subway car and got to work hooking up the power cell.

"Yeah well you'd better make it fast, the one man army fighting those things out there can only do so much." Spider-Man promptly created a barrier of webs around the interior of the subway car to ward off the attacking Kraangdroids "That isn't gonna hold them forever, if you're gonna do it then do it now!"

"I've got it!" Donnie finished the process and place the power cell into the compartment, causing the entire subway car to glow, and then subsequently race out of the area and through the subway at blinding levels of speed, leaving the five of them embedded at the back and screaming at the top of their lungs.

"Come on, come on…" Spider-Man gritted his teeth as he tried to grab hold of the brake cable, but eventually he just latched onto it with his webs and gave it a solid yank, causing the car to screech to a halt, and they opened the door and looked around "Wow… So anyone wanna take a guess as to where the hell we ended up?"

"Well based on my calculations…" Donnie paused and took a sniff "I'd say we just came across the sewage treatment plant."

"Yeah, that would explain the smell."

"Woah…" Mikey on the other hand was left looking on in awe "It's just as beautiful as they said it would be."

"Well it's like they say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, or something like that. I'll let you know once my stomach stops churning. Speaking of which…" Spider-Man pulled up the bottom part of his mask, leaned out the door of the subway car and proceeded to puke violently.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Back down in the subway tunnel, the only two Kraang that had survived Leatherhead's brutal assault (albeit fairly mangled) began to discuss with each other that they would have to inform the others of what had transpired with the power cell. Leatherhead had different ideas however, and made it clear that they weren't going to be telling anything to anyone, and then he lunged at them in a rage.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Nightfall came, and the moon was shining brightly over the skies above New York.

"Well that turned out to be a lot more hectic than I thought it was gonna be." Spider-Man let out a long sigh as he leapt onto the roof of a certain building, with Mikey landing next to him "Not gonna lie though, it definitely feels good to know that the whole Symbiote problem is taken care of, at least for a good long while. No way it's getting out of the septic tank anytime soon, or that anyone is gonna be wanna go down there looking for it."

"Plus we got a new giant mutant gator buddy." Mikey gave a grin "Do you know how awesome that sounds?"

"About as awesome as knowing that without the power cell, whatever plans the Kraang have in the works have pretty much been cut short, so that puts a few things at ease for now. I guess that wraps up the Summer Vacation of one Spectacular Spider-Man."

"More like the adventures of Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends."

"That sounds like some old cartoon from the 60's. But it does have kind of a nice ring to it, so I approve." Peter pulled the mask off of his face and poked his head down into a window "Great, my Aunt May is still up. I was hoping I wouldn't have to worry about this."

"Worry about what? Didn't you say she knows about Splinter and the rest of us?"

"Yeah but that doesn't mean she's gonna want me out until midnight or something, especially since I'm going back to school starting on Monday. I'm expecting a parent talk when I get in there, but before that I have to get dressed. Speaking of which…"

"Don't need to see the bare spider, gotcha. I wouldn't wanna be seen naked either."

"Yeah but- Wait, you don't wear clothes."

"Nah but I got the ninja stuff, and a turtle has stuff he doesn't want seen, like right here down under my-"

"I don't want or need to know."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

5 minutes later…

'Note to self, find a better place to change before coming home.' Peter breathed a sigh as he tried to slip his way into the house, only to see May make her way down the staris "Oh hey Aunt May, I didn't think you were still gonna be awake. I know I'm a little late but-"

"I know Peter, but we need to talk. Have a seat." May let out a small sigh as she led him into the kitchen "I know we've had this talk before dear. You're a good boy and turning out to be a very fine young man, and now you're the man of the house. But you're still my responsibility, and I can't help but worry. I don't want to repeat what we went through last year, so I just want to get this out of the way now. I want us to stick to the old rules for the school year. You can stay out until 10, but call me if you're going to be late."

"Right. Yeah I gotcha Aunt May, that's only fair."

"Lovely. Now then, how about a slice of pie before bed?"

"That… sounds really good actually. It's been a long day."

"I can imagine." May grabbed a small plate with a slice of pie, but then she paused as she took a glance over towards the window "Actually dear, there is one more thing."

"I know I smell like I just came out of an outhouse, what started as hanging out with the guys turned into an impromptu visit to the sewage treatment plant. I'm still not entirely sure how that happened exactly."

"No it's not that, but I do want you to take a shower before you go to bed. I suppose there's someone outside the window that you wanted me to meet?"

"Uh…"

"Holy shell, she's onto me." this was when Mikey popped up in the window sill and let out a low whistle "And I thought Splinter was good."

"That's not ninja master stuff Mikey, she's got pure parent skills, and frankly those are way more terrifying."

"Oh. Yeah good point. So… she mentioned that there was pie?"

"Of course that's the detail you latch onto." Peter spared a quick glance at May "So…"

"Come on in dear, there's plenty left." May gave a smile as she opened the door for Mikey to come in, then handed him a plate.

'Okay, so today turned out to be… a lot more than expected.' Peter breathed a sigh as he downed his piece of pie and listened to May and Mikey talking 'Aunt May knows about the Turtles as has been confirmed, I had another encounter with the Symbiote, albeit a brief one, and I put it in a place where nobody can get to it, and hopefully it stays that way. Plus there's the fact that we did manage to stall the Kraang's plans by getting our hands on the power cell, at least for the time being anyway. Now the next item on my list of things to do involves going back to school, starting on Monday. To think Summer is already pretty much over for me. So much has happened over the past few months… and a lot more is gonna be coming too. Well whatever happens, at least I'll have some amazing people by my side. If nothing else, I get some comfort knowing that I don't have to deal with my burdens alone anymore.'

A/N:

Well here it is guys, the last chapter that takes place during Peter's Summer vacation. Starting with the next chapter, he's gonna be going into his senior year of high school, complete with all of the drama that goes with it. That also means the rest of his classmates are going to return, and a lot of drama along with them.

Yeah, in addition to the debut of Leatherhead, I also featured the return of the Venom Symbiote, albeit for a very brief appearance. I know that might seem a little bit out of nowhere, but this is only one part of what I have planned for it. You'll see what I mean soon enough, so please bare with me until then.

Also on the last note, May does indeed know about Splinter and the Turtles, so that is one less thing that Peter has to keep from her, which oughta be a huge weight off of his shoulders. What's more, May has now officially met Mikey, an interaction I actually decided to include at the last minute, but I'm glad I did.