Fast update. I wanted to wash down the Frog-Man cringe with something somewhat less cringy. It's still kinda bad, but at least the characters aren't nearly as egotistical and unsympathetic.
The MJ/Matt/Felicia romance has really taken off given recent reviews with half of the readers being all for it and the other half thinking it's a trainwreck waiting to happen. Some others still want a Peter/MJ/Gwen polyamorous relationship or even Peter to cheat on Gwen with MJ(!). That last one definitely caught me by surprise.
Endgame's coming in 5 days where I'm at :D Let's go!
If someone told Lana a year ago she'd be friends with Susan Storm she'd have laughed in their face.
Contrary to popular belief she wasn't one of those eat the rich proleteriats (Pete taught her that word) who raged against the rich and some invisible system. Assholes were assholes, didn't matter if you had a Lamborghini or you couldn't even afford a cab. She wasn't delusional enough to think that people who struggled sang around the campfires singing kumbaya. Some of the biggest dicks she knew barely had a cent to their name and it had nothing to do with how much cash they (didn't) have.
Back then she didn't think about Sue Storm, not any more than President Howard T. Duck or Spider-Woman. She was just someone on the billboards and gushed about by her classmates because of something funny that happened on the (recently ended) Fantastic 4.
So ending up at her fancy penthouse drinking (non-alcoholic) apple cider was definitely still somewhat of a surprise to her. It wasn't the first time she'd been here, but even then she felt like an alien sitting on the fancy couch that probably cost more than her entire old apartment. Even now she still wasn't used to this. She missed her modest apartment, missed the kitchen being so close to her bedroom that she could smell the bacon when her mom cooked (they alternated every day) and hear her off-key singing.
"Lana? Are you alright?"
Lana shook her head quickly and smiled at Sue, "Yeah, sorry, just kinda tired. What'd you say?" She thanked small mercies Sue lived alone ever since her 17th birthday. Last thing Lana needed was Sue's horndog of a brother trying to grab at her tits now that puberty was hitting him like a bitch. He had his fangirls to perv on.
"I was actually asking if you were alright. You seemed...distracted lately."
"Oh...yeah." She took a sip from her cider and almost coughed it out. She definitely wasn't used to this stuff, "Just...thinking about the usual crap. I mean if it's not school it's about my other job." Thank God school decided to cut out for the next couple of days. There was a Supervill attack fifteen blocks away and one of the prissy witches complained about how 'they were practically brushing against death!' so the school decided to give them a break. Lana wasn't complaining, but she knew they'd get a shitload of homework to make up for it.
"Need to vent?" Sue smiled over the rim of her glass. If some her old Midtown High classmates saw her now they would've either kissed her ass to get an intro or accuse her of being a sellout - hell, she knew that for a fact considering Brooke immediately messaged her on headbook about the 'good old times' when Sue shared a picture the two of them took on her tweeter. And then of course she'd 'nonchalantly' mentioned that her followers would love if she did a meet and greet with Sue.
She didn't respond. Most of em ditched her and treated her like shit when she needed them so they could go suck a fat one.
"I guess." Lana set her glass down, "It's just...there's this girl, Aracely. Me and Anya and Gabe saved her from these human shitstains down at the docks and now I think she's going to be deported to Mexico. I mean, that's not my business, I already saved her, but..." But she couldn't stomach the idea of it. The girl didn't remember anything from her past. No family, no home...she'd be dead within the week given what Lana knew of her.
"There's nothing you could do?"
"I dunno. I could maybe talk to William, but I don't like the idea of her breathing only as long as he thinks he can milk her for sympathy points." Technically her friendship with Sue was the same. She was America's Sweetheart, after all, and it was so 'inspiring' (and marketable) whenever the two were caught together. The little poor girl who got powers and now she was an upstanding hero. Nevermind the fact that William was fine ignoring her for 15 fucking years.
"Do you want me to see if I can do something on my end?"
"Ah, no, it's fine. I'll think of something..." Maybe she could ask Cin about it? She was with the cops and she knew for a fact that she was still talking to her old S.H.I.E.L.D buddies, so that might have worked...
"You know I could help if you gave me a chance..." Sue mumbled. She probably hadn't meant for Lana to hear it.
"Alright, you sound like you're going through an emo thing. What's going on?"
"Wh-What? It's nothing!" Lana crossed her arms and just stared at her. She didn't say a word; she knew Sue would crack. The blonde fidgeted in her seat and, after a moment of hesitation, she spilled, "A-Alright, it's just...don't think I'm being dumb, okay?" No promises, she didn't say, "It's...I hear you talking about all the things you're doing and I can't help but feel like we're growing distant."
"Uh..." This wasn't how she expected this to go.
"You have these friends who help you with the dangerous things you put yourself through and all I can do is just watch and hope that you don't get in over your head. I'm not like those people who look at you in awe. The things you do are dangerous and sometimes I...I dread thinking that maybe one day your luck'll run out and then I'd lose you."
Lana couldn't say anything. She knew the hero gig was dangerous. She wasn't like the Mask Chasers who thought this was all fun and games and beating up bad guys in dumb costumes. She could die, and she nearly had more times than she wanted to think about. Too many times there'd been a knife that almost cut through skin or a bullet that whizzed by inches from her head. It was odd how numbed she'd become to it. It didn't even make her heart race anymore.
Lana said the first thing she could to dispel the heavy atmosphere.
"So...is this the part where you come out of the closet?" Sue's face was blank for a second before her eyes widened and her face looked more like a blonde tomato, "Cause I should probably tell you now that I'm not really into chicks and that stalker shrines are a dealbreaker-"
"Th-That's not what I meant!"
"Oh? Cause here I was looking forward to screaming about our love."
"Y-You know I like Gabriel!" Yeah, that still made her laugh. America's Sweetheart had a crush on the former weed dealer turned amateur hacker vigilante. Apparently it started when Gabe tracked down a crazy, obsessed prick cyber stalking and threatening her for 'being a disloyal slut. He made sure the cops found out and the guy was put away for long time.
Gabe didn't even tell her about it - MVP just mentioned it off-hand once and the blonde was smitten ever since. Poor Gabe didn't even know; Sue didn't tell him anything.
"Huh? So what were those longing looks all abo-"
"Lana!" Lana raised her head and laughed, completely ignoring Sue's 'glare', "I was being serious!"
"I know, but you really need to stop bugging about it!" Lana snorted, "Look, I'm not going to pretend that I haven't come really close sometimes, but that's just part of being Striker. I'm not going to spend every day worrying that maybe this time I won't be so lucky. You shouldn't think about it either. I don't plan on dying anytime soon, alright?"
Sue still looked hesitant, but she eventually nodded, "O-Okay."
"Good. So, let's change the subject cause I've had enough drama for today."
"Um...alright, so..there's this new role I've been encouraged to take." The blush didn't fade from Sue's cheeks. Not a good sign, "It's...more risque than my usual, but my agents think it's a good thing. I'm 17 now and they wanna start putting me in more...enticing roles, if that's the word? They said they want to wean off the America's Sweetheart reputation now that I'm getting older."
"Makes sense, I guess?" Sex sells. Didn't matter if it was a celebrity in a bikini or a prostitute sucking you off in an alley; people paid either way, "So what's the role?"
"I'm supposed to play the lead villainess. She's a sexpot baroness type. You know what I'm talking about?" She didn't, but Lana nodded all the same, "Right, well, they sent me the costume a couple of days ago and the props to go with and I'm...I'm still not sure I like the idea of people seeing me wearing it."
"Please, have you looked out the window lately? No one has any shame anymore." Except Pete. If there was one thing he could agree with Spider-Gwen about, it was how much of a shame it was that he didn't like skintight material.
"Maybe..." She bit her lower lip, "Could I show you? Appearing in front of a friend might help me psyche myself up."
"Sure- oh, wait, maybe I should call Gabe over first?" Lana grinned.
"N-No! That's-"
"I'm just kidding! Yeesh, just go change into your dominatrix outfit. I'll be here."
As it turned out, dominatrix outfit wasn't far off the mark. Sue stepped out of the room wearing a skintight ensemble that looked like it was almost painted on her. The top was zipped up just enough for her boobs and midriff to still be on display and the heeled boots and ass chafing pants looked like they cut off the blood flow to her legs. It almost reminded her of Black Cat's outfit.
Oh, and of course there was the fucking whip, which Sue was holding in a way that made it obvious she was resisting the urge to chuck it out the window into the unforgiving streets below.
Sue made a 'villainous' pose and Lana almost burst out laughing, "S-So, what do you think?" Sue asked softly.
"...Are you sure you're not gay? Cause between the confession and that whip I'm really starting to-"
Sue threw it right at her face. Lana ducked to avoid the flying leather and laughed as Sue glared down at her, "Pfft, is-is that your evil look?! C-Cause I'm shaking in my boots!" Sue continued to futilely try and glare down at her before eventually the absurdity of the situation made her laugh too. Lana was glad. For a big time celebrity the girl could be a major wallflower.
Eventually Sue calmed down enough to sit down next to Lana, "So you see my issue." Sue looked down at her outfit with a frown, "I know acting is about taking up multiple roles, but this is just...ugh, I feel like the only reason I'm wearing this is because it'll make teenage boys flock to the theatres."
"Probably is." Thank God Lana scrapped her own first design. Hotpants were definitely not the way to go, "Still, can't you just complain to your manager or something?"
"Mmh, Victor already tried, but the director was insistent on this. I could just quit, I guess, but I really don't want to just give up." Her shoulders sagged and she looked up at the ceiling.
"Look on the bright side: I'm pretty sure Gabe'll think the outfit's hot."
"I'd rather just talk to him normally." Sue gave her a flat look.
"Then do it."
"It's not...It's not that easy." Lana rolled her eyes. Yes, it really was. Who the hell would say no to Sue freaking Storm asking them out on a date? Worst thing that could happen was her fanboy legion getting pissy, but a few keyboard warriors were hardly worse than the criminals whose hideouts Gabe kept busting into, "It's just...I mean, we don't even really talk that much and he doesn't know that I know he helped me."
"Oh my god, this circular bullshit!" Lana groaned, "Sue, seriously, what the heck is the issue? You're hot, you're a celebrity, and you're one of the nicest people I know! You really shouldn't be bugging about this!"
"But..." Lana huffed and, before Sue could react, stood and tossed the whip into Sue's lap. The blonde gingerly picked it up and by the time she looked to Lana again the brunette held up her phone with a grin, "What are you-"
"Say cheese!"
The sudden flash made Sue drop the whip in surprise. The blonde stood and Lana backed away, "H-Hey, what are you going to do with that picture?"
"Hm, oh I just thought Gabe could see the costume too." Sue's already wide eyes practically jumped out of her face at that.
"Y-You can't!" Sue shouted in a panic. Lana had a downright evil grin.
"Oh, I totally can! Of course, I could be convinced to delete them if you just stopped dicking around and told the guy you wanted to ask him out."
"B-But-"
"Sending now!"
"Okay, okay! I'll...I'll ask him out soon, alright?!" Lana continued to grin at Sue as the blonde plopped back on the couch and glared up at her, "You're evil. You know that, right?"
"And yet you still hang out with me." The phone suddenly rang, "Cin? What's up?"
"I need you to come in and answer some questions."
"Uh...whatever it is, I didn't do it."
"Relax, you're not in trouble." She laughed softly, "It's the opposite, actually. You remember those people you saved from the docks a few nights ago?"
"Yeah, kinda hard to forget..."
"Well we found some evidence linking them to some disappearances going on in the city that I'm currently investigating. So could you come in? I tried to contact Spider-Girl but she's not picking up."
"Yeah, she went out of town to meet her dad. I'll call Gabe too, he was the one who gave us the info." She said her goodbyes to Cindy and, after subsequently informing Gabriel, turned back to Sue, "Sorry, I gotta go. Duty calls."
"I could drive you there, if you want?"
"Uh...sure, but you might wanna change your outfit. Unless you wanna go out like that; ain't judging."
Five minutes later she and a red faced Sue were driving to the police station on Sue's fancy blue corvette. She kinda felt like a prick riding around in this thing, and it wasn't just cause Sue had insisted on driving her. Lana looked outside the window and let her mind wander again. She wondered what Cindy wanted. She didn't exactly jot down notes after they rescued those people.
"See ya later, Sue."
The two did their personal handshake and Lana went down. A few of the officers gave her some looks (she wasn't wearing her costume), but as soon as she flashed the Initiative Card at the receptionist and said she was visiting Spinerette they obliged her, "She's in the lower floor. Two of your acquaintances were already paged in." Lana's brows furrowed. Two? Did Gabe take someone with him?
She opened the door to Cin's office and groaned as soon as he saw Frog-Man standing next to Gabe. She saw the guy around occasionally, but she couldn't say they were friends. Or even acquaintances, really; she stopped talking to him when Kamala moved out and the game nights stopped. It was a good idea all around. From what she heard the guy had a habit of trying and failing to be Frog-Man the Incredible.
Gabriel shrugged with a helpless smile while Cin leaned across her table with her fingers massaging her temples, clearly annoyed, "Oh, Striker! It's good to see you again!" Patillio took her hand in a limp handshake.
"Yeah, you too..." She pulled her hand back, "So...what are you doing here?"
"Oh, Gabriel told me about your meeting and I assumed that you could use some help!" Lana looked past frogger to glare at Gabriel. He shrugged again and mouthed something she couldn't make out, "So, what's the problem? Is there a villain that needs stopping?"
"No," Cin interrupted forcefully, "I called the two of them here because I wanted to ask some questions. Nothing more, nothing less."
"O-Oh..." Frogger seemed to actually deflate at that.
"So, back to business." Lana sat next to Gabe while Frogger stood awkwardly stood behind them, "All the people you two saved were taken under police protection afterwards. Almost all of them are back with or in contact with their families already, but a few are still here pending. We did some investigating and I think that we can connect them to a current case where Gifted are being kidnapped."
"How do you mean?" Lana asked.
"All of the people who were being...traded-" her face knotted in distaste, "-were present in New York when the Terrigen wave hit." Oh yeah, she remembered that. People thought they'd get badass superpowers and most of them just ended up with the super awesome power to grow their nails four times as fast. Definitely wouldn't have helped them if some assholes pointed guns and put them in a shipping container.
"So...you think that this is connected to your case about Gifted being kidnapped?" Lana asked.
"Yes. And even if it isn't, this falls under my watch. So, I'm gonna need any information."
"That's more Gabe's thing." She gestured to the quiet teen, "He was the one who got the info. Me and An- Spider-Girl wouldn't have know otherwise." She had to remind herself that Frogger was behind her. No secret identities.
"Really?" Cindy raised a brow while Gabe shyly sunk into his seat, "Well, can't be too surprised since you're Lana's friend. Alright, so can you give me anything."
"W-Well, I already gave the USB the police. I-I dropped it off anonymously with a note." Lana smiled. The guy was obsessed with not being seen, "But, I did overhear something. They mentioned that their boss was making deals with some bigshot businessman in New York. They said he was the one buying all the 'products'."
"A single buyer? Hmm..." Cin pursed her lips, "Did they mention their boss' name? Or the buyer?"
"Y-Yeah! They called him...Scorpion, I think? The boss, I mean. didn't hear anytning about the buyer."
"Scorpion? Ugh, that guy again. Well, Spider-Woman did say he was back in town. Should've known that asshole wouldn't keep the deal..." Cin sighed, "Anything else? Every little detail helps, Gabriel."
"Um...oh! M-Maybe it's nothing, but one of the goons mentioned how creeped out he was about 'those ninja fucks' they worked with."
"Ninjas? Shit, 99 percent chance that means the Hand have their fingers in this pie too..." Cin sighed again, "I gotta call Pete, get him in on this. He knows those cosplayers better than anyone."
"The Hand? Aren't those the guys who followed that demon around? I thought you and Spider-Man and the rest of the Defenders beat em all?" Frogger asked Lana.
"We took out of most of em, but they're like roaches. Always manage somehow." Lana sneered. She should've known taking down Murdock wouldn't stop them.
Cindy looked to Gabriel, "I'm the last person to judge, but I'm guessing from what Lana said you do this 'sneaking in' thing a lot?" Gabriel nodded hesitantly, probably afraid he'd get in trouble, "Hmm...well, if you're not stopping - and I don't like the idea of arresting someone trying to do the right thing - you're gonna need some backup. I have a friend, Norah Winters. She's experienced in this kinda thing. Think you could help her out?"
"N-Norah Winters? I've read up on her exposes on the Kingpin and those Darkweb hackers!" Lana covered her mouth and smiled. Of course he'd be a fanboy of journalists instead of whatever teenage boys liked nowadays, "O-Of course I'd help!"
Lana smirked at Cin, "Well, I guess this means I'm helping you...out..."
"Something wrong, Lana?" Cindy asked worriedly.
"H-Hey, what happened to the ones we rescued that are still here?"
"Huh? Like I said we're keeping them under custody. Why?"
"Wh-What about Aracely?" Lana said in a panic.
Cindy blinked in confusion, "Aracely? Who's that?"
"Aracely! One of the people we saved! Little Mexican girl, loves to blab? Not ringing any bells?" Lana stood up and couldn't ignore the sinking feeling in her stomach, "I told the cop who visited the hospital everything about her!"
Cindy's brows furrowed, "What are you talking about? I got all the reports on the victims and not a single one of them mentioned a Mexican girl in the hospital. We thought we had all the victims here. It's for their own protection."
"Then that means..." It meant there was a damn good chance that guy wasn't a cop...and right now Aracely was alone, "Shit...shit! We have to go! Now!"
"Alright Gwen, you can do this..." Gwen took as she stood in front of the door to her house. Webster warmed her stomach, but it didn't do much to help. She'd been here last night, but Dad and Jess took Helena to visit Jess' sister. It was a mixed blessing. She'd wanted to tell them all and Peter at once, just...get it over with before she could change her mind and postpone it again.
'We have to tell them, Gwen.'
Easy for you to say! You're not the one breaking the news! And you were the one who got pregnant!' she thought hotly. Seeing Peter - stoic, almost always in control Peter - lose his shit when she told him last night just made the spiders in her stomach worse. If he took it that badly how would her dad - her sweet, overprotective dad - take it? Jess might've been cool, but that did little to diminish the fact that he still had a revolver in the house.
Gwen knocked on the door.
The person who greeted her wasn't who she expected, "Hello, Gwen." Aunt May gave her a wrinkled smile. Gwen's mouth opened in shock and, before she could think better of it, she pulled the woman in a crushing embrace, "Woah! It's nice to see you too!"
"A-Aunt May! Why are you here?!"
"We thought we could visit for a few days. Come on inside."
Gwen's smile turned into a full on grin when she saw all of the occupants in the living room. Her dad and Uncle Ben were on the couch watching a game while Jess and her mom played with Helena in her crib. The older blonde looked up and gave her a hesitant smile, "Hey, kiddo- woah!" Gwen pulled her into a desperate embrace and held her tight, "G-Gwen, too tight! Super strength, remember?"
"M-Mom, you're..." She (reluctantly) parted from the older woman, though she still kept a tight grip on her shoulders, "I-I didn't think you'd..."
"I...truth be told I almost didn't, but Ben and May cheated and told George and Jess I was here. Jess kinda...dragged me over here. And I mean that literally; she put me over her shoulder like a cavewoman and ignored my arguments."
"I've been carrying a baby for months, Helen. You banging on my back was easy." Jess scoffed playfully.
"Well you can't blame me for not wanting to go!"
"I don't see why. We never blamed you for what Murdock did," her sad said. Gwen's hands clenched into tight fists. Murdock. She still couldn't believe that Peter was working with that bastard. Thank God he didn't take the D.A's deal to be that fucker's roommate.
"I know, George, but-"
"Hey, no buts," Gwen interrupted forcefully, "This is your home and you're always welcome, so enough about Murderdock."
"Too right. Life's too short to think about regrets," Uncle Ben said with a grin, "We've got some new stories to tell you guys. You wouldn't think of it, but France is a really exciting place. Me and May were there when the Eiffel tower was cut down and lemme tell ya..."
Hours passed with all of them just exchanging stories and catching each other up. Her mom told them about the flower shop she ran and, after a lot of prodding, eventually admitted that she was seeing a frequent customer of hers. Gwen felt somewhat sad at the news. She was happy her mom was moving on, of course, but it also meant the chances of her moving back to New York permanently were slim to none.
Ben and May were doing good as well. The place S.H.I.E.L.D put them in was comfy and Ben made a decent living as a general handyman for the apartment building they stayed at. Again, just another reminder that this was a temporary visit for the three of them.
"Anything new with you, kiddo? Besides the superheroics, I mean." Her mom asked.
"Oh...well...there's something."
'Tell them now, Gwen.'
"Right, um...could everyone gather round?" Everyone immediately noticed her serious tone and quieted down. Gwen took a deep breath, "I'm...I'm actually really glad you're all here. Um...there's something I have to tell you all, and since you're all family this is as good a time as any. I mean I would've preferred if Peter was here too, but I already told him last night and I just-"
'You're rambling.'
"What's wrong, honey?" Her dad asked worriedly.
"Alright, so...there's no easy way to say this, so I'll just blurt it out." She took a deep breath to steady herself, "I'm...I mean, we're pregnant."
A pregnant (heh...focus!) silence engulfed the room. Gwen resisted every urge to close her eyes or walk away to ignore the all-encompassing quiet. She looked at each of them in turn. All of them were in various states of shock, sans Jessica who seemed more confused than anything else. Ben and May held onto each other's hands in a vice grip, her mom covered her mouth with both hands and whispered to herself while her dad...
Her dad was looking at the cabinet. The one that had his revolver in it. Shit.
Before she could even say anything Helena suddenly burped and and started laughing. That seemed to jolt them out of whatever shock they were in, "Oh my God..." Aunt May was...crying?! "Oh, Gwen...I'm so happy for you both!"
"Uh...thanks?" she asked back weakly. She knew they'd be supportive, but this was kinda weird.
"I didn't think it'd happen so soon, but congratulations!" Ben grinned, "We should probably start planning for the wedding now, huh?" Gwen blinked. Wedding? What the heck was he talking about?
"I'm so happy for you both...though, I did tell you about protection, right? Or did you and little Peter choose to do it deliberately?" Her mom asked. It took Gwen a few seconds before the full implications of what she said finally kicked in and her eyes widened to the size of plates, "I'm not complaining, though! I'm all for having a grandkid to spoil, especially now, I'm just hoping this isn't a shotgun oopsie thing."
"Woah, woah, woah! Hold on a second!" Gwen stood up in a panic. Her dad tried to wheel his way to the cabinet and Gwen blocked his way frantically, "J-Just hold up, alright?! I think there's been a misunderstanding!"
"There's no misunderstanding." Oh God, he had the dad smile on his face. Not good, "I'm...happy for you both. Now, if you don't mind I'd like to call Peter over here so we can discuss this alone. Just the two of us."
He tried to slip past Gwen to reach the dreaded cabinet and Gwen screamed the first thing she could, "It's not Peter's baby!" They looked shocked again, but she was in too much of a panic to stop, "It's Webster's! She got pregnant cause apparently that's a thing symbiotes do and now we're - Webster and me - pregnant and carrying a little goop baby and ohgoddadstoplookingatthefuckingcabinet!"
'Rambling again.'
'Quiet, you!'
The next stretch of quiet was even more stifling than the last, if you could believe it. It didn't last long before Jessica suddenly snorted, "Yeah, I figured as much." Oddly enough, she didn't sound sarcastic at all. Everyone, Gwen included, gave her a look, "...What? Our life's fucking crazy, of course this shit happens! Besides, it makes sense. Parker's only been here, what, 4 or 5 days? Even if he and Gwen did it the second he came back there's no way she'd know she was pregnant. Takes like half a month before the tests even work."
"O-Oh...yes, that makes sense." May said sadly. Gwen suddenly felt like she'd kicked a dog, "I...guess we got overexcited."
"You and...that symbiote?" Her dad looked like his head was gonna explode, "I just...um..."
"Wait, I'm confused. Does this mean you broke up with Peter?" Her mom asked, "And if you did, I didn't think that um...I dunno what to call her, sorry. Whatever, how does that work? I mean, who's carrying the baby and how did you two...you know?"
"Oh my god..." Gwen covered her eyes with both hands and groaned. Webster jutted out of her shoulder and rubbed her face against Gwen's cheek. It didn't help, "No, me and Peter aren't broken up." Why did everyone keep asking her that? "As for the baby...it's hard to explain the science. Apparently Webster did it on her own. Asexual reproduction like some jellyfish. I was not involved."
"It may or may not contain her genetic data. I'm unsure," Webster added, "We plan to visit Janet to get clarification."
"So...when you said we're pregnant, you meant you and the symbiote? Peter is not involved?" Her dad asked. She nodded. At least as far she knew he wasn't involved, "Well...I'll admit I'm not so sure what to do for this situation."
"Maybe going back and not looking at the cabinet will help?" Gwen smiled awkwardly.
It was, of course, at that very moment that Peter decided to finally make his grand entrance. He stepped past the door and breathed softly in obvious frustration, "Sorry it took so long, there was a..." He stopped when he caught everyone in the room staring at him, "Alright...I'm guessing by the quiet that Gwen told you the same thing she told me last night."
"Yeah...but, why are you covered in soot and blood?" her mom asked.
"Something went wrong." How screwed up was it that she didn't even feel that worried? "Don't worry, no one died...mostly." Her dad frowned at the joke(?), "Still, what are you all doing here? Especially you two?"
"Not happy to see us, son?" Ben smiled.
"Of course I am, I wouldn't have stayed three months in France if i didn't. It's just that you both know it's still not safe to stay here, right?"
"Don't worry, we're just visiting," May said reassuringly, "Come on and have a seat. Oh, but you might wanna clean yourself up first."
It took a little bit of prodding, but eventually he told them about what he was up to before he got there. He didn't tell them about Murderdock, which Gwen was just fine with. That bastard didn't deserve any more notice than they already gave him.
Eventually May, Ben and her mom said their goodbye; they were staying at a hotel in town despite dad's insistence they could stay over. Gwen waited till the both of them were outside before she asked, "So what really happened? Without the censorship."
"It's pretty accurate, actually. Me and Matt ran through the building and I got to Murakami. Almost had him before that old hag Gao stepped in." He clicked his tongue and looked like he was about to grab a cigarette before reining it in, "Met this woman...Matt said she was part of the Hand, but for some reason she decided to help us. Spider-sense didn't ring at all so I'm givin' her the benefit of the doubt."
"That's it?"
"Well, someone left Matt bleeding out on the floor, but that's not all that worrying." She still had no idea why Peter called him that. 'Matt'...like they were friends or something. What was wrong with Murderdock? "Left him at his mom's place so she can patch him up."
"Did he...do anything to you? Anything at all?"
"Ah...noth-"
"You're lying."
"-ing really." They stared at each other awkwardly, Peter defensive while Gwen glared at him, "Didn't even let me finish."
"Cause it's BS. There's no way that asshole didn't try something, so spill."
"He didn't try to kill me, if that's what you're worried about." Gwen crossed her arms and pursed her lips, "...Okay, fine, just don't be mad." He pulled out a cigarette and lit it after some hesitation, "...When we were in the elevator together he said he loved me. That's it." He said it in the same way tone you'd use when talking about someone who spilled hot tea on you.
It didn't help. At all.
"He what?!" Peter actually stepped back at her scream. If she could look in a mirror she would've seen the dark veins that ran up her neck and how her teeth had begun to sharpen, "What the fuck?! Are you serious?!"
"Gwen-"
"Okay, no, you aren't going near that asshole again!"
"Gwen!" He let the cigarette drop and grabbed both of her shoulders tightly, "Stop worrying. I'm not his friend and I don't care what he said." He cupped her right cheek and the symbiote covered the surface of his fingers, "Me and him are never going to be friends, so don't worry. Alright?"
Gwen took a deep breath and looked away. The suit retreated back under her skin, "...I don't like this."
"Neither do I, but for now I have to play ball. Page still has Bullseye over me and the Hand needs to be buried." They faced each other again. Gwen was about to lean in and kiss him before a sudden vibration cut through the air, "That's my phone..." He (disappointingly) stepped back and frowned at the message on the screen, "Gotta go."
"Murderdock again?" she asked, more than a little resentful.
"No, but might be just as bad." He sighed and pocketed the phone, "Satana Hellstrin just called...she wants to meet."
"Great, I don't even have to guess with a name like that." She rubbed at her forehead in frustration. Why did he have to get involved with all this supernatural bullshit? What happened to good old mad science gone wrong? "Alright, I'm going with you this time."
"But-"
"Nope. I turn around and next thing I know you're gonna tell me you're married."
"Don't be silly...that contract's not binding."
The place they went to wasn't what she expected. She thought they'd go to some abandoned farm in the middle of nowhere with some assholes screaming worship in front of a pentagram. Would've fit with everything else so far.
Instead they ended up on a nightclub.
The bouncer took one look at the card Peter had and immediately let them pass. Gwen narrowed her eyes warily. Something about the guy rubbed her wrong. Peter stopped in front of the door and looked back at her slightly, "You remember what I told you?"
"Yeah. Don't touch anything, don't look too long and don't put anything in your mouth." She felt like a kid being told the rules of the bouncy castle.
"And don't get involved no matter what. Trust me, it's not worth it."
The first thing she noticed was the blood red light. She wasn't a stranger to mood lighting, but the sheer pressure of it gave her a headache. Then there was the music. Most nightclub music was loud and chaotic, but this one was a slower beat rock song she couldn't place. Gwen looked down at her hands and clenched them into fists to try and ignore her heart beating against her ears.
Peter led her to the main room and she immediately understood his warnings. On the closest table was a group of at least half a dozen men and women practically tearing through a sack with something struggling inside it. She wanted to think it was a pig judging by its squeals, but the sheer size of the sack did little to assuage the sinking feeling in her gut on how wrong it was.
And then one of them turned to look at her and she just about froze. On his own he would've looked normal, handsome even: a neat stubble, charcoal suit and somewhat shaggy hair that went to his shoulders. But there were his eyes: blood red just like the lighting in the room with a glow that couldn't be matched by any sort of contact lenses.
A demon. Half-breeds, Peter called them. Either demons or angels that had some part of them that was human or full blooded ones who gave almost everything up because Earth was so much more fun than Heaven or Hell. He'd assured her that, while they were stronger than humans, they definitely couldn't hold a candle to people like her or Cindy. It didn't do much to help her frayed nerves.
Peter grabbed her wrist and dragged her along, "What was that, Peter?" she asked, voice raised so he could hear her over the music.
"Half-breeds feeding. Either a rapist or a child killer or something else. The bigger the crime the more...flavor." His face knotted in distaste. She was torn. A part of her felt relieved that it wasn't someone innocent but at the same time she was still appalled. Even a rapist and a murderer deserved a trial and prison, not...being eaten like he was a fucking pig on a roast.
A few tables down a blonde woman with golden eyes looked up at her with a smirk and blew at the assorted chalices of water in front of her. The clear fluid turned purple - wine, she noted dumbly - and the woman picked it up to take a sip. She didn't break eye contact with Gwen the entire time.
Two more people stared at them. An androgynous looking man with short, blonde hair and golden eyes looked up at them while a woman with long dark hair and red eyes kissed and licked at his right cheek. Despite the kissing and him rubbing her thigh they continued to stare at them both, though Peter paid them no mind. Eventually she followed his example and stubbornly faced ahead.
The door to the owner's room opened slowly when they arrived. An old, heavyset man in a suit stepped out. His eyes were red and the nasty scar - a burn mark, it looked like - that ran up the right side of his face only added to his menacing presence. He glared at Peter as he passed, which he only responded to with a glare of his own.
The moment was broken when a call came from inside, "Don't just stand there, come in!" The high, cheerful voice almost made her jump up. It sounded way too normal considering the place they were at.
Peter opened the door and Gwen almost immediately felt a rush of relief. The blood red lights were gone replaced by a more neutral tone. The inside was almost comfy: upper class furniture, a few paintings on the walls and a mahogany desk that reminded her of the one her dad had.
Gwen stopped mid-stride when she finally saw the room's owner. An older woman with snow white skin and hair to match. She was dressed in a bright red skintight material that left large swathes of her side and her chest - from her breasts to her navel - exposed. She looked up at them with a coy smile and Gwen swallowed nervously as her heart suddenly sped up. Everything about her from her eyes to her long lashes to her cherry red lips were beautiful.
She didn't even care that the woman had what looked like white ram horns jutting out of her forehead. She was that hot.
Peter suddenly scowled next to her, "Enough with the mindgames, Satana."
"Oh? Whatever do you mean?" She crossed one leg over the other casually.
"You know what I mean. Quit it before I turn around and let you deal with whatever this is on your own."
"Fine...spoilsport."
All at once Gwen felt the haze lift and she gasped. She looked at the white haired woman again and blinked. She was still pretty, sure, but not to the point that Gwen drooled at the sight of her, "...What the fuck was that?" Gwen whispered to Peter.
"A little trick I like to play sometimes. Just a mild pheromonal effect." She - Satana, Gwen reminded herself - giggled, "It's always the innocent ones that are the most fun."
"I-"
"Why did you call me here." Peter stepped closer to the desk and blocked Gwen from view.
"What, can't I just see an old friend? We haven't seen each other since we averted armageddon." Peter told her about that. The details kinda flew over her head, but apparently some guy wanted to kill an angel and that'd somehow lead to Hell on earth and a thousand years of suffering or something. Between that and Red Skull's crazy daughter she wondered if someone was planning to blow up the earth's core right this second.
"I'd buy that if it was Ketch or Daimon, not you. You want something."
"Always so cynical." She sighed theatrically and steepled her hands together as she leaned forward, a sudden predatory smile on her face, "So, a little birdie told me you're fighting with the Hand."
"What's it to you? You don't care about that."
"You're right. Normally I wouldn't, but this group has...insulted me." Peter's eyes narrowed, "Apparently they didn't learn their lesson about dealing with the Beast and wanted to try making a deal with another demon for immortality."
"Wait, seriously?" Gwen asked, "Peter killed their old demon boss and now they're trying to find another one?"
"Humans are prone to repetition," Satana said, "And if it helps, it doesn't seem like the entire group is for it. Just that cult led by the one calling himself Bakuto." She waved a hand through the air, "Now normally I wouldn't care, like Petey said - what's a little soul dealing here and there? But then they just had to go and deliberately snub me to make a deal with that old bitch Lilith and her children."
"Lilith? She's around? Thought we dealt with most of her brood..." Peter muttered.
"Oh yes. She and that spawn of hers, 'Blackout', have been seen around town recently. Danny's coming over soon to deal with them and I figured you'd want in."
"Meaning you wanna use me as a proxy in your war..."
"Always so cynical! I'm giving you an olive branch here, Petey! You need to stop the Hand and I don't want that hag gaining another leg up on me. It's a mutually beneficial deal." She smiled coyly, "But if you insist, I don't mind owing you a favor for this, even if I am doing you a favor by telling you this. If you make sure this deal goes through then I'll owe you. How's that sound?"
"Sounds like something with strings attached." Peter scoffed.
"Cynical. Always cynical." She sighed and looked past him to Gwen. The blonde suddenly froze up when, before either she or Peter could react, the white haired demoness was suddenly in front of her. Gwen stepped back and the woman smiled, "But enough about business. Let's talk about your delicious friend here." She put a hand on Gwen's cheek and she froze. Bad touch, bad touch! "She oozes virtue and innocence. Odd, for a human."
Peter grabbed Satana's wrist and growled, "Stay away from her."
"I'm not planning to hurt her!" Satana pouted, "It's quite the opposite, really. People who claim goodness are a dime a dozen, especially in New York, but to see someone so honestly pure...it's almost too much to resist." Peter stepped in front of her, but Satana paid him no mind, "Hey, you're Spider-Woman, right? No need to answer, it's easy enough to tell. Innocence like you comes around only once every century."
"Uh...thanks?" She might've felt flattered if the woman wasn't looking at her the same way Gwen looked at a particularly enticing corndog.
"Hey, you want to give your soul to me?" Gwen blanched. Did she really just say that? "Oh, I don't mean right now or anything! I meant later when you die. Someone like you is on the fast track to Heaven, but do you really want to go up there? It's just church for all eternity! Boring! Personal Hells are where it's at! Who wants to spend the rest of forever singing and praying when they can party with all their favorite rockstars and shoot up with no consequences?"
"Um..."
"I tried to give the same deal to Petey, but he didn't budge, so how about you? My denizens would love having a Superhero on attraction, especially someone as famous as you. I'll give you anything you want in exchange!" She was uncomfortably close to her and Peter now, "What do you say? Want to give me your soul?"
"Enough!" Peter shoved her off, "We didn't come here to hear your pitch, Satana. If you've said all you need to say then we're leaving."
"I'll get you too eventually, Petey. You and this delicious little thing." Ugh, she'd never felt so objectified in her life; and she'd seen Spider-Woman porn! "Oh, before you go, you should probably know Blade's looking to ask for your help. Something about vampire schoolgirls?"
"...Fine."
They left far faster than when they went inside. Gwen didn't even realize she was holding her breath before she suddenly took a large, desperate gulp of air as soon as they were outside in the cold alley. Gwen put her hands on her knees and panted. Did Peter really deal with these kinds of things daily? Cause if he did then he had no fucking business calling what she got up to a Madhouse!
"...I told you shouldn't have come." Peter pinched the bridge of his nose and breathed deeply.
"It wasn't...that bad." Gwen stood up straight again, "Besides, it's...kinda flattering, in way?"
"I wouldn't trust her. She's not above making a deal with one of the anti-christ; I know cause I was there. I still got a bullet in that weasel's head." Gwen blinked. Did Peter just say he planned to kill the anti-christ? Or that there was more than one?
'She asked for your soul, Gwen. Would that include me?' Webster asked suddenly.
'I...I dunno. I'm not really sure how this works. If souls are real that means you have your own, right?'
'...I wonder if we'll be together when this ends. I don't want to lose you.'
Her (depressing) inner monologue was cut off when she heard the tapping of a cane against the ground. At first she thought it was Murdock - paranoia from last year's hell - but when she turned to the source she found a stranger. He was pale and frail looking with long, somewhat unkempt hair. He was dressed in an all black ensemble and the swathes of skin on his arms, chest and neck were covered in intricate tattoos and he used the steel cane to walk slowly towards them.
And then Peter suddenly smiled.
"Daimon." The frail looking man reciprocated the smile and accepted the hand Peter offered. The handshake was firm and Gwen made a surprised Noir when Peter practically hugged the guy, "You are a sight for sore eyes, old friend."
"And you as well." His voice was soft and somewhat raspy, though oddly comforting, "I'm assuming my sister's told you of the situation?"
"Yeah..."
"Uh...kinda confused here, Pete," Gwen cut in.
"Huh? Oh, sorry. This is Daimon Hellstrom, brother to Satanna, son to Satan and prophecied as the true Anti-Christ. Also a really nice guy."
"You flatter me." He chuckled softly. Gwen was still trying to focus on the 'Anti-Christ son of Satan who's also a nice guy' bit, "As pleasant as it is to see you again, I feel I should inform you that my sister wasn't lying: Lilith and her spawn are indeed present in this city. I'll be aiding you and Daniel in when the need arises."
"Are you sure? You...don't look like you've recovered. You gave up a lot to keep me, Ketch and Satana alive..."
"A worthy exchange. And yes, I should be fine." He raised his free and focused on the tattoos, "I've found a way to...compensate to an extent. You and Daniel will have to do most of the fighting, of course, but I'll pull my weight."
The two of them exchanged pleasantries for a minute before eventually saying their goodbyes. Gwen just watched her twice resurrected boyfriend chat up the son of Satan and said the first thing that came to mind.
"This place is a madhouse."
Peter laughed. She looked at him in mock offense till both his phone and her prioricard rang, "Huh?" She looked down at the compact screen and saw an SOS coming from Cindy's card along with a location. Across from her Peter took a frantic call from Lana.
"Looks like Cindy's in trouble."
"Lana too. Apparently they're together." Peter put on his mask while Gwen shifted into her costume, "Let's go."
She couldn't believe she was doing this.
Mary Jane took a deep breath as she lowered into a crouch on the side of the building, the cold night air whipping her hair around mercilessly. She was high up; so high that the people below looked like ants and everything blurred together in a haze of moving light.
Her fingers pressed against the window tightly. She couldn't crawl on walls the same way as Gwen, but Crimson allowed her to copy easily enough - just add some of the suit to her fingertips and, failing that, stab her claws into the walls, "Come on, Mary Jane..." She shook her head. Right now she really wanted a hood to shield her face, but Crimson refused. Apparently it and Lana agreed on at least one thing.
'What are you waiting for?'
'Gimme a fucking second!' She took another deep breath. This was her idea, she reminded herself. If she wanted to do more than add scumbag's bodies to the pile then she needed to do something different, and what better way to start than with a literal leap of faith? She'd seen Gwen make jumps like these in her sleep, so she should try too. She had a new costume; now she needed to own up to it.
'Jump!'
She jumped.
The glass shattered behind her, but the brief noise was quickly drowned out by the rush of air as she plummeted. Mary Jane stumbled through the air briefly before she eventually managed to right herself, 'Now!' She turned around and shot two lines of blood red webbing from her knuckles. The two lines flew upwards till they attached themselves to the side of the building.
Mary Jane grunted as she was suddenly pulled back by her arms with enough force to tear someone normal in half. She raised in a wide arm through the air and let go at the peak. She shot another line of webbing to a nearby building and and ran along the ground to give herself some momentum. It wasn't as effortless or automatic as Gwen, but it was exciting all the same.
A cargo truck came on the intersection. Mary Jane jumped and landed on the bed of the container before jumping across the roofs of the cars ahead of her. A few people frantically swung around their phones to record or take pictures. Mary Jane jumped higher onto a flagpole jutting out of the side of a building and used it to propel herself higher before shooting another line of webbing.
"Ha!" she screamed in excitement. This was the first time she'd had fun with it. Just a couple of days ago webswinging was just a way for her to get to places - to get to killing - faster. Now she was doing it for its own sake and it was fun.
She jumped across two close by building and swung to a brightly lit, wide office building window. Mary Jane ran along the side and and gave a casual wave to the employees as she passed, some of whom stood up or fell out of their chair entirely in shock. Mary Jane grinned and jumped into the nearby rooftop, remembering every single amateur parkour vid she watched on the youwebs.
It was only when she reached the edge of a particularly tall building that she finally stopped. Mary Jane put her hands on her knees and lower her mask to her neck. She panted for a few seconds and grinned, "Wow..."
'Had your fun?' Crimson asked grumpily.
'Yes, believe it or not.' She sat the edge of the building and looked down at her hands, her artificially lengthened hair spilling past the edge of the roof. Covered in red but not covered in blood. It was...an odd feeling, being happy to be in costume.
'Now what?'
'Now we go on patrol.' She stood and pulled her mask back up. It was the second part of her plan to try and...normalize the thing, if you could ever make this normal. Crimson had growled and groaned that it was pointless, but it was a give and take. She spent the past few months feeding the thing, now it was time for it to pay her back.
She wanted to say it meant there'd be no more killing, but she wasn't that naive. Crimson wouldn't be pacified forever and, if she was being honest, the people she went after deserved it. Murderers, rapists, human traffickers, baby killers...monsters who got away with their crimes for one reason or another and felt no shred of remorse; not until her hands were around their neck and they finally faced the consequences.
She just didn't want that to be all her life.
The next few hours were spent just stopping whatever crime she could. A few muggings here, one assault there. She didn't kill any of them, not even the one prick who kept screaming about how 'all you fucking bitches are the same!' after she stopped him from smashing that girl's ahead against the wall. He'd be in prison soon enough, and if he didn't tried something again...well, she'd do something about it.
She was just about to turn in when she heard a scream, a woman this time...and oddly familiar. Mary Jane swung the short distance over and saw a guy in a mask running down an alley with a purse in his hands. Somehow she doubted it belonged to him, 'This is a waste of our time,' Crimson groused. Mary Jane ignored it. She jumped, flipped mid fall and kicked the guy straight across his back.
The guy fell and the purse flew through the air. Mary Jane snagged it with a line of webbing, making sure to not make the tip barbed, and pulled it back towards her, "Stay there for a sec." She webbed the guy's hands and feet down so he was spread eagle and facing the ground. He was just a purse snatcher, so nothing too bad.
A pair of hesitant footsteps came from behind. Mary Jane turned with a grin and froze when she saw a familiar head of red hair, practically the exact same shade as her own, "Mary..." She almost dropped the purse in her surprise. In a city with over 8 and a half million people, what were the chances she'd run into her? Especially so late at night?
"Y-You know my name?" The other redhead asked softly.
"Uh...your nametag." She gestured lamely to the dull clip on her uniform.
"O-Oh, yeah..." Mary Jane awkwardly handed the girl her purse back. She should've swung away at that point, but of course she had to open her mouth again, "What are you doing out so late...young lady?" Mary Jane cringed. She was pretty sure they were the same age, "Most people aren't usually out this late at night."
"Oh, um...my boss wanted me to stay in later. Couldn't refuse the money."
"You still shouldn't have gone through an alley." Yeah, like she had any room to talk about that.
"I-I know, but I usually cut through this way cause it's faster. I didn't think this would happen tonight..." She held onto her purse slightly, "U-Um...thank you for saving me...um, I'm sorry what was your name?"
"Oh! Uh, Scarlet Spider! And it's no big deal! Just a purse snatcher..." She jerked her thumb to the end of the alley, "Well...I should probably go. You'll be safe?"
"Y-Yeah! It's just a two minute walk from here."
Mary Jane said her goodbyes and swung up to the closest rooftop. Mary watched her go and looked down at her purse. She couldn't do anything when that guy threatened her; he didn't even have a pocket knife. Sighing, she trudged down the alley and stopped when she was next to the struggling purse snatcher. Before she could think better of it, she kicked his side as hard as he could before continuing on her way.
Scarlet Spider...another superhero. There were more of them coming around now. She wondered idly if she was someone who got lucky with that weird mist thing. Mary herself had been out of town when it happened, but if she'd been here back then...
Up on the roof, Mary Jane pulled down her mask and breathed out slowly. That was way too close. She definitely didn't like the idea of being an unmasked hero like Kate or Peter's little sister, "That's enough for tonight..."
She was about to put her mask on before she saw it: explosions and fire. Mary Jane ran to the edge of the building and looked a closer, "A hospital..." That explosion didn't sound like a gas leak.
'We are weak to fire. You know this.' She actually caught a hint of fear in its voice.
"Doesn't mean I'm just gonna do nothing." Ignoring Crimson's protests, she put her mask back on and swung to the inferno.
I know this chapter came out a bit sooner and might bog down readers, but I'm actually kinda excited for the next chapter since it'll be the first time all five protagonists - Noir, Gwen, Lana, Cindy and Mary Jane - fight together as a team. I won't be doing these kinds of things a lot since the varying power levels between all five make it difficult for my inexperienced (for writing fight scenes) ass.
...Oh, and Frog-Man's there too, but everyone just kinda ignores him.
Thankfully I managed to cram the Scarlet Spider and nightclub segment into this chapter since I didn't want to postpone it...and yeah, I made Daimon Hellstrom into V. So sue me, I like the character design, and it allows me to differentiate him from Ghost Rider (overwhelming power) and Peter (weaponry and superpowers) by making him a summoner.
Questions:
1. What villains would you like to show up to the hospital fight? I already have a few in mind but I'm still taking suggestions. Please make it someone who can reasonably be fought by street levelers, okay? I ain't putting Ultron here. Bonus points for archetypes since it allows me to vary it up i.e Noir and Cindy fight fire users cause Gwen and MJ can't, Gwen deals with the super strong juggernaut, Lana fights a speedster etc etc.
2. Should I tone down the mystical segments for Noir going forward? Some people might find the nightclub scene and the casual mentions of things like demons, vampires etc etc offputting now that we're in V2.
3. Do you guys think we need to shift to an M rating or the T is fine?
Review Answers:
Noisy Cricket - Peter actually isn't that trigger happy; he pulls out guns the same amount as Cindy. As for unplanned attraction...that was less unplanned and more the audience kept pushing it super hard and I caved.
Cha0s4ever - Nah, even if Eugene did want to go Syndrome he doesn't have the skills or intelligence to to turn into a Superhero incel. Also, Gwen would react VERY poorly if she caught Matt and MJ kissing; as in she might legit beat the shit out of Matt before the others pull her off him, if they even bother to try to do so.
Raymond49090rc - Shadowcat's still there, she just has a hard time raising Laura on her own.
Roxasdualwielder - Initiative graduates are given specific patrol areas and almost all of them are humble enough to accept help. Heroes like Gwen can basically patrol wherever they want due to seniority and high mobility.
Brave2000 - New York and Gwen don't deserve Frog-Man's affection.
SpiderGod766 - Because I can.
Paul Garros - Something tells me Eugene is physically incapable of killing.
Vengeance208 - What do you mean Jobmore plot? As for Felicia and Cindy...Cindy's not into women, as she mentioned to Kate during V1. Every time she laments she's single she always refers to men. With regards to Frog-Man, his main issue is trying to be something he's not - like a 5 foot unathletic guy trying to joint he NBA.
I don't really have a word schedule and just write when I can despite being often distracted. As for dialogue, what do you need? I just write what I think the characters should say.
Guest 1 - Peter and Matt do share some similarities, yes, but personality wise are complete opposites. Matt is, to put it bluntly, a sadistic troll who enjoys needlessly antagonizing people whereas Peter, despite his reticence, is generally more polite and leaves people alone if they leave him alone. Matt goes out of his way to antagonize everyone.
Frog-Man's main issue is his ego and single-minded focus to be a badass hero with women falling all over him. Contrast to Gabriel who sticks to his strength and isn't afraid to have others like Lana do the heavy lifting because he's self-aware enough to know his limits.
Titan616 - Gwen rescues cats in canon Ghost Spider. And yeah, Eugene's really lacking self-awareness and overflowing with ego and a want to be famous. He's also kind of an ass, really: notice him prying into Gwen's relationship and butting into Gabriel's business the second he thinks it's an in to more hero work.
Guest 2 - How's Cindy a child? She started off immature (my fault for being unsure where to take her character), but after the Ogre arc she's far more subdued and mature, especially in comparison to others like Gwen. And in Cindy's case for guns, one could possibly chalk it up to her being an agent/police officer.
With regards to the romance: Norah's straight, Felicia might be open to a relationship now that she helped kill the Beast and Flash...well, kinda awkward but it was mentioned by Gwen in the last volume that he's going out with Glory, so he's not free either.
MJ is 21 (same age as Gwen) while Matt is 33-34, the same age range as Jessica Jones (33) and Helen Stacy (35). It's about 10 years and some change. Is that too much? It's hardly any worse than Jessica and George Stacy or for people who were angling to pair off Peter (18) with Cindy (28) during the first volume.
