Woof, big time gap between updates. I got FF7 remake, P5 Royal and my mentor finally responded for my thesis. On the bright side I feel better than before so maybe my writing can get better. Hopefully.

Anyway, I checked the love interest vote and wow it's overwhelmingly in Scott's favor. Hell Silver didn't even get any votes till the more recent days. What kind of world do we live in that no one cares for the dashing rebel prince over the single dad working at Baskin-Robbins?


caramba1995: Gonna be real for a second here. Spider-Man is not someone to be admired. He's a killer vigilante and it's disturbing just how many people have posters of him up on their walls or say he's cool and wanna be just like him. Hello, dude's a killer!

Reply from Haha im a tree: He's also saved a lot of people. Remember the Jack-o-Lantern terror spree? Or how about when he and the Defenders did a last stand to protect the people in that safety zone during the Carnage incident? That and the big fucking DEMON in Times Square. There's a reason people like him.

Reply from caramba1995: So just because he does good we're supposed to ignore he's running around playing judge, jury and executioner?

Reply from harrishen: I'm not complaining for now. My niece was tricked into getting addicted and forced to sell herself on the streets. Who helped her out? It definitely wasn't the cops who just put her case on a file and forgot about it.

Reply from Jar of Jelli: Face it, dude, this is a losing battle. I don't agree with everything Spider-Man does but so far he's doing more good than bad. I live in Hell's Kitchen, and lemme tell ya life here has gotten WAY better now that there isn't some giant fucking tick demon making everyone miserable.

Reply from DarkSpider: He does have a point - it's disturbing how people want to emulate someone like me or Daredevil. You want someone to admire? Look at the Avengers, you've got six flavors of heroes right there if you want em. No one should aspire to be a vigilante who spends his days in back alleys seeing what slips through the city's cracks. There's a reason we never called ourselves Superheroes.

Reply from MadameWeb: I see your flair for the dramatic hasn't changed much. I shouldn't have expected any less, brother.

Reply from Jar of Jelli: Wait, what?"

Reply from DarkSpider: Damn it Teresa...


"Kill me now."

Gwen snorted and rolled her eyes at the dramatic declaration. Despite Peter's comments about her wearing her heart on her sleeve - which she didn't really see as anything wrong, by the by - he had his own flair for dramatics. He'd deny it, of course, say that he always reacted with an 'appropriate response for every situation', but then he said stuff like that every time he had to play nice or mention France. Which was weird since it sounded like a great place to her.

And now he wanted to kill himself cause they had to go to a fancy all girls school.

"What, not excited?" She bumped her right shoulder against his left with a grin. They were close to the Sisters Faith Academy- the same school Lana wouldn't stop complaining about given half a chance. Despite the name there wasn't actually much in the way of faith unless you 'counted how much faith you had that mommy and daddy's money can wipe your ass for you', to use Lana's words. Probably why she just called it 'the prison' every time.

According to what Peter told her Cindy wanted them to interview a girl who supposedly had info on the sudden Terrigen Mist exposure that happened yesterday. Apparently said girl, one Patricia Lindbeck, was a 'major fan' of both of them and figured this was her best chance to get some selfies. Wasn't much the police could do. So far the laws of Terrigen exposure were vague at best and it was pretty hard to determine if there was even a crime here or not. Even Peter wasn't sure if this was worth anything and the only reason they came here was a favor to Cindy.

That and she was pretty sure he really wanted to see Lana.

They were coming up on the school and they'd have to separate soon. Technically speaking they were still 'broken up' so walking in together would've looked too suspicious. She'd swing off and change to her costume while Peter hung around a nearby and hopefully not get arrested before she swung back. Police were still pretty iffy on him outside of when he was fighting demons and vampires and without his powers she didn't exactly like his odds of dodging bullets.

"This is me. See you in a minute." She kissed him quickly then ran off to somewhere nice and abandoned while he parked the bike somewhere else. She still preferred webswinging, "Come on, webs, let's get it done," she said as soon as she climbed up to a short building. She did a quick scan for drones and anyone else with cameras before shifting into her costume.

'We are going to a school. How different is it from university?' Webster asked.

'Pretty different. ESU's more free and most profs don't care about you skipping classes as long as you turn in your work. Why? Thinking about enrolling?' she joked back. Webster was always hungry for information. If she wasn't nomming on chocolate she was begging for new books, mostly history to try and figure out how humans dealt with stuff. Hopefully she didn't get too cynical after reading about all the fucked up shit mankind did.

On the other hand she refused to read Gwen's books or feed her answers. That'd be cheating, she said, and cheating would be wrong.

'Not for me, but for Chocolate. We need to think about her future.'

'Her name's Gabby.'

'Not in my heart.' Gwen rolled her eyes. She was insistent that Chocolate was the be-all end-all of names and nothing would convince her otherwise, 'And I'm serious. I know she's getting an education now while she's with Laura but according to Cindy her host is prone to laziness and doesn't like to study. I'm not sure I want to trust our child's future to someone who says 'math is hard' every time Cindy scolds her.'

'Well we're gonna have to talk with Laura about that, especially since they seem convinced being a Superhero's the best thing to go for.' Not that she disagreed; being a hero was pretty awesome. She just didn't want her to do it while she couldn't even go to T rated movies, 'Speaking of the future, maybe you could-'

'I am not helping you cheat on your tests, Gwen.'

'Oh come on!' She huffed internally, 'What's the harm in a little help here and there? You were totally willing to help me win that card game a year ago!'

'That was because you wanted to see Peter naked, which was harmless. We must draw the line somewhere, especially now that we have a child who looks up to us for guidance. We cannot teach her that cheating is the right way to succeed in life.'

'...You're no fun anymore.'

'Reading history books and watching the news numbs you. Seeing what mankind is capable of is depressing. I'm lucky you're my host else I might've decided it wasn't worth fighting for.'

'That's...weirdly heavy.'

'Don't worry. If I ever decided humanity is better under my rule I'll run it by you first.'

'...Please don't go groundweb on mankind, webs.'

Shaking her head, Gwen swung over to the school gate and saw Peter already there standing near the gate with his back against the wall. He uncrossed his arms when he saw her, completely ignoring the gawking looks a few passerby gave him. Most of them seemed at least smart enough to duck their heads low and ignore him. Peter was prickly when it came to getting attention from strangers.

"Look who's here," he said, voice dripping with condescension. Even now she hated the fact that they had to pretend to hate each other's guts every time they were in public, "For someone who told me to come here you're pretty damn late."

"Some of us actually have lives outside of the mask, you know." She scoffed, "Trust me, if the witness didn't want both of us talking to her I wouldn't have called you here. Now come on, let's get this over with so I can go on pretending you don't exist."

They walked to the front, bypassing the guard who looked like he was tempted to shoot at Peter to get the next headline. Gwen made a 'calm down' gesture and nudged her head to the school before he eventually nodded back and returned to his booth. She couldn't blame him for being wary. Peter didn't have the best reputation and while a lot of those rumors were bullshit - she was pretty sure he didn't have blades growing out of his wrists - she understood the effect he had on people. The only reason they got this far was cause their witness told everyone who'd listen that they were visiting.

Sadly the receptionist wasn't as cooperative.

"As I said before, I can't let you in." The bespectacled, 40 something woman looked up at Peter from her desk without a hint of fear or hesitation. Gwen had to admit, it was ballsy, "I understand that Ms. Lindbeck was insistent that you be allowed to interview her but we cannot simply let someone like you walk around the school."

"Trust me, I don't wanna be here either but one of your precious princesses said that we both had to talk to her or she wasn't gonna spill anything about that damn mist. You wanna try solving this on your own?"

"Even still-"

"Ms. Steinman," Gwen interrupted. Thank god for nametags, "I understand your concern. Trust me, I wouldn't be here with him if we had any alternatives, but this is where we are. If you want Spider-Man to leave then wouldn't it be best to convince Ms. Lindbeck to talk to me or Lana alone?" She wouldn't exactly be against Peter leaving right now. Acting like she hated him was exhausting and she didn't like how some of the students looked at him. Most of them (wisely) decided to not draw attention but there were a brave few who battered their eyelashes and threw a few giggles his way.

What that the 'bad boy charm' Eugene said Peter had? Cause right now it was annoying the hell out of her.

"You wanna find out where that mist came from, don't you?" Peter said, "We're the best chance of that, unless you want your investments to start sprouting scales. And you don't gotta worry about any guns;' left those with your buddy outside."

The older woman closed her eyes, took a deep breath then, after some very obvious hesitation, handed them two guest passes, "You're to make your way to Ms. Lindbeck's room then come back and return the passes. No deviation or exploring, am I clear?"

"Trust me, I wouldn't be here if I didn't owe someone a favor." He grabbed the ID and checked the text from Lana on directions. According to the message she sent them both it was at the end of the right, second floor hallway. She said she'd meet them there.

Gwen barely made it to the stairway before a mob of girls stopped her asking for the usual stuff: autographs, selfies, a personalized message for tweeter. She tried to push past them but they were insistent. Peter looked back and she swore she saw the fucking smirk on his face before he waved and disappeared up the stairway. Even without his powers he was really hard to pin down.

She was forced to give at least a few signatures before finally managing a way out. Regular fans were bad. Teenage girls who were used to getting everything they wanted? Even worse.

She got right up the stairway just in time to see Lana suddenly jump tackle Peter in an embrace. Despite her previous feelings of jealousy she couldn't stop the smile on her face at their tight hug and the way Lana laughed. After what happened to Lana Peter couldn't stop thinking about the Hand. Hopefully her getting better allowed him to cool off at least somewhat.

'I'm proud of you, Gwen. Jealousy is unbecoming.'

'Ah, shut up.'

The pair separated as Gwen walked up to them, "Hey, Spider-Woman." She gave her a half smile and a nod, "Glad you two could make it. Sorry for the sudden call-out."

"It's fine. But you owe me for those damn autographs." She tugged uncomfortably at the visitors pass slung around her neck. In a place like this it felt like a collar, "So...who's the girl?"

"Patricia Lindbeck aka prissy bitch brunette edition." Lana sneered and jerked her thumb up to the door halfway down the hall, "She says she knows something about the fucking peanut mist and I figured we might as well get to the bottom of it before we get another boom. Trust me, you do not want to see most of these witches getting powers. We've got swiftgram Gifted running around."

"How do you know she's even telling the truth?" Peter asked, "From what I've seen in this place they'll say anything to get more of those 'upvote' things and gain validation from strangers."

"Cause I told her I'd smash her phone if she is. And trust me, these trust fund babies know I'll do it." She sighed and crossed her arms, "Just hurry it up already. As happy as I am to see you both it's pretty weird you two being here."

"Not coming?" Peter asked.

"She wanted it to be just you two." She sneered, "Don't worry, I'll be right outside."

Gwen knocked on the door and was met with wide, blue eyes and an excited squeal that nearly burst her eardrums, "Oh my god, you're here! You're both here!" She squealed again and opened the door to let them in. She and Peter shared a look before she warily stepped inside with Peter right behind her. Even with both of them wearing masks it was easy to feel exposed.

Before either of them could say anything she suddenly went right next to Gwen and took a selfie, "Oh, those bitches aren't gonna believe this!" She grinned and started typing on her phone, completely ignoring them both. They shared another look and she saw his eyes narrow underneath the goggles. He was losing patience.

"Excuse me, Ms-"

Again she was ignored in favor of her suddenly posing next to Peter and taking another selfie. Gwen ignored the stab of annoyance in her gut at how blatantly she draped herself across his right shoulder when she took said picture. The price of fame, to quote She-Hulk. She'd had at least a few Roxxons try and come on to her and Peter didn't lose his shit there so she could do the same.

"Ohh, could we-"

"Enough," Peter said. His voice made it clear he was all out of fucks to give, "You called us here because you had information. What is it?"

"Later. I just gotta-"

He looked like he was about to snatch the phone out of her hands and chuck it out the window. Gwen cut in before he could, "Please, we don't have much time," Gwen said, once again trying to play good cop, "You called us here specifically and we appreciate you doing this, but we both have things we need to do...like I'm pretty sure he needs to put someone in the ICU before he gets too antsy," she added at the end. Hated each other, had to remember that.

"Yeah, and I'm sure she has a few more charity events she has to attend. Gotta make herself feel better from that high up pedestal." Peter scoffed.

"Wow, you two really don't like each other, huh? Thought that was just a rumor. Heh, guess those posts were right." Gwen decided not to ask which posts exactly she was referring to. She sat down on the bed and crossed her right leg over her left in a way Gwen knew was too deliberate to be natural. Gwen wasn't blind. She'd dealt with enough celebrity crushes to know the telltale signs and judging by the way she looked at Peter and occasionally bit her lip she had it for Peter. Bad.

She wasn't worried, at least not on Peter's end. The girl was pretty, at least in the way someone who had access to high end cosmetics and fancy organic food could be, but but Peter didn't care about that stuff. She was more worried about her. Like the girls asking for autographs earlier, they didn't know when to take no for an answer.

"The information?" Peter asked, looking her in the eyes and nowhere else.

"Oh, right." She leaned back slightly on the bed with a smile. He still didn't look anywhere else, "I overheard a couple of my classmates. They think Baumgartner's only here cause she's got special powers so they thought that if they could get those too she wouldn't stick out so much."

"Not you, though?" Peter asked.

"Me? No way. I've seen what that mist thing does. You really think I'd give up all this and probably get like scales or feathers or something? Not happening." Well, at least someone here had a bit of sense, "Thing is some people here really don't like Baumgartner. Think she doesn't belong here with the rest of us. Me? I don't care. I don't talk to her and she doesn't talk to me and we both like it that way."

"I'm sure she's happy to hear that." Gwen rolled her eyes, "The names?"

"Hold up, there's something else I want." Peter let out a long suffering sigh next to her but didn't say anything, "Hey, I'm putting my neck out here. This place can be pretty dang cutthroat so once I tell you who these two are they're gonna come after me. I think that deserves something, don't you?" She gave them both, mostly Peter, a sickly sweet smile.

"...What do you want?" Peter muttered.

"I want something from both of you. Spider-Woman, my dad's doing a charity dinner and we'd get way more attention if you showed up."

"...What's the charity for?"

"The Children's Wish foundation." It took everything Gwen had not to sigh. A make a wish knock off that spent maybe 1% of their actual donations on the kids while the rest went to salaries, private parties and more and more fundraisers. She wouldn't have been caught dead on one of these things but she figured a swing-by would be enough if it meant getting the info.

"Fine. What do you want from Spider-Man?" she asked.

"Show me your face." She was looking right at Peter when she said that, though that wasn't much relief. Peter crossed his arms and just looked at her without saying a word, "Come on, it's not a big deal. Everyone already knows what you look like cause of that Jack-o-Lantern guy. I don't even know why you're still wearing a mask. I just wanna see what you look like when your face isn't messed up. Not a big deal, right?"

Gwen's hands twitched, "Hey this isn't-"

"Fine." Gwen's head snapped to Peter, her eyes wide. He didn't look at her, "Just for a few seconds and you don't take any pictures. I'll know if you try and I'll smash that phone yours and get a friend of mine to delete every single thing on your sky storage if you do. We clear?"

"Fine, fine." It was obvious she was put off and probably hoping to score a few more selfies.

Peter pulled off his mask. His face was expressionless and didn't change at all when she suddenly stood and leaned close to get a better look at him. Seeing him in his full costume was enough to make her forget that he didn't have his powers now outside of his spider-sense. The girl continued to look and made to poke him when he suddenly grabbed her wrist.

"The names?"

"Fine, a deal's a deal." She huffed and sat back down, "It's these two." She pulled out her phone and showed them a picture of two girls side by side. The girl to the left was tan with dark hair done up in meticulous curls while the right was pale and had straight blonde hair that went down to the small of her back, "One on the left is Gabriella Morgan and her friend is Diana Hawthorne. I overheard them talking about how they heard from a friend of a friend on how they could get some packed in mist."

"Did they say any names?" Gwen asked.

"Ah...something about Diamonds?"

"Diamondback." Peter scowled before putting his mask back on. Gwen got why. It was the same bitch who shot Lana in the face with a shotgun. If she didn't get her new powers then and there she wouldn't be here right now.

"I guess so." Lindbeck shrugged without a care, "Oh, but if you're hoping to talk to them you're out of luck. They both went home; a bunch of people did after that mist thing showed up. My guess is they plan to come back and make their superpowered debut next week. They're gonna pretend they weren't responsible for the mist and it was all just some lucky accident. Then they show up Baumgartner and get to be the Queen Bees again."

"They seriously made a deal with a crazy gang member and exposed themselves to the mist just cause of that?" Gwen sighed. She'd understand if they wanted to do something with their powers, especially with the Initiative, but just for a high school pissing match?

"Popularity's everything around here. I'm happy in my own spot but most people here'll do anything to get to the top of that totem pole."

"That should be enough," Peter said, "...Thanks for all your help."

"No problem." She fluttered her eyelashes up at him and twirled her right pointer finger in a lock of hair, "So, now that business is over how about the two of us go out? I know a great place around here." Was she seriously...

Oh hell no.

"That's not-"

"Back off," Gwen said before she could stop herself. Both of them turned to look at him, the girl in shock while Peter narrowed his eyes in silent reprimand for breaking character. She scrambled quickly and turned to Peter, "Back off," she said again, firmer this time, "I know what you're like and if you think I'm going to let you get anywhere near this girl you've got another thing coming."

"But I was the one who-"

"Just because you were a terrible girlfriend doesn't mean you get to blame me." His eyes shifted again. Relief that they hadn't gotten caught out and they had an escape, "You know what, I'm done here. Have fun signing autographs."

He walked out the door without another word. The teenager looked at the door, mouth agape, and Gwen followed him out just before she heard the frustrated scream behind her. She had to admit a part of her felt bad for the girl, but considering they got practically blackmailed to come here the sympathy was thin.

She returned the visitors pass (Peter already did his) and, after making sure no one was looking, swung up to the school roof from behind the building. When she got there Peter was already sitting on one of the vents while Lana sat on a nearby chair with her feet propped up against a low wall. She waved at Gwen lazily and finished off the bag of chips at her lap.

"You sure we're safe to talk here?" Gwen asked. She would've preferred somewhere more discreet. Maybe a good high rise building.

"Yeah, no one ever comes up here. School roof's forbidden to students and these witches don't wanna get caught breaking the rules," she said, "So how'd it go? Did she manage to keep it in her skirt?"

"A little warning about that would've been nice," Peter said with a frown.

"I knew you could handle it. 'Sides, I figured Spider-Woman would keep you safe." She gave them both a teasing smile, "So spill, what'd she say."

"Gabriella Morgan and Diana Hawthorne. She thinks those two made a deal with Diamondback to get some mist in a can and they're gonna make their Gifted debut next week," Gwen said. Still felt stupid just listening to it.

"Diamondback? Of course that bitch has her claws on this." Lana breathed out through her nose and tossed the empty pack of chips next to her without a care, "Guess that gives me even more reason to pay her back for chunking my head." It was still bizarre how she casually she treated getting shotgunned in the face, "Still, next week, you said? Perfect. I'll be able to catch these two witches when I get back."

"You're leaving?" Peter asked.

"Yeah. School's cancelled the rest of the week cause of the mist so Sue thought it'd be cool if we went out of the city on a little camping thing to help me recover from this." She pulled back her uniform shirt and both Gwen and Peter winced when they saw the jagged, ugly scar at her gut, "I mean if I had my way I'd be out there as Striker right now but you don't argue with Sue. That's something you never win."

"A camping trip...you sure it's safe to be so isolated right now?"

"What, you think this place is any safer?" Lana snorted, "'Sides, Bullseye's done. Spider-Woman took care of him."

"...What?" Peter looked at her and Gwen felt something click into place. Oof, she knew she forgot something, "What do you mean?"

"Right, I was gonna tell you but then you showed up looking all normal again and it slipped my mind." Gwen shook her head, "Ran into Bullseye while me and Scarlet Spider were doing that favor for Cindy. They were making a deal with Scorpion's guys and me and Kate stopped them. Bullseye was there too and...well, I kicked his ass. He should be in Ryker's right now."

"Sure that was a good idea...?"

"I wasn't going to kill him." She crossed her arms, "Either way he's in prison now so that's our problem solved. Oh, and I gave your knife to Kate for safekeeping. I didn't wanna give it to you while you were still bite sized and we should probably wait for your powers to come back before you go around slinging demon fire again."

"Wait, you lost your powers?" Lana asked.

"Temporarily. Blame Teresa." He sighed and stood, "I should really be going. Promised Cin I'd meet up with her in a few minutes. She got the party invites so now's a good chance to put it behind us."

"I gotta go too. Kate said she's done investigating and we should be able to track where Scorpion was stashing his weapons." She stretched her arms above her head and breathed out deeply. Back to work, "Hey...I don't wanna be that girl again, but be careful, okay? Without your powers..."

"I know. I'll be careful. See you two around."


Ultimate Trash Boy: So apparently Spider-Woman and Spider-Man went to an all-girls school. Thought they were broken up.

Reply from QueenoftheTVworld: They are. I have a friend who has a cousin who goes to the school and she said that they were arguing. Apparently one of the students there is a witness and she wanted to talk to both of them.

Reply from Unoriginal Name: Should've known they wouldn't stop talking to each other :/

Reply from Silver-Blade: Does it even count when they still don't like each other? Apparently Striker likes him so I wouldn't be surprised if the two of them end up dating at some point.

Reply from Unoriginal Name: Nah, she and Sue Storm are a thing.

Reply from StrikerNotBombshell: How many times do I have to tell you assholes I'm not gay before it sticks? Cindy ain't gonna call you Onii-chan either so stop fucking sending her those creepy PM's. It's not cute, it's fucking annoying.


Cindy was chugging her third cup of coffee by the time he finally arrived. Peter raised a brow and eyed the cups, "Interesting night?" he asked sarcastically.

"Not as much as you think. Just exchanged some parenting tips." She finished her cup and put it down with the other two next to her, "You're late, by the way."

"I was busy doing that favor for you," he shot back, "Now come on, let's get this over with." He tugged on the collar of his suit and with a frown. Cindy said the party was black tie required so they had to dress up again. Cindy herself had gone above and beyond, dying her hair a light shade of blonde and putting on just the right amount of make-up to mask her most obvious features. No one would know she was Spinerette unless they were deliberately looking.

"Someone seems grumpy." She threw all of the cups to the trash and walked next to him shoulder-to-shoulder, "Didn't enjoy your time at the all girls school?"

"Not really." He still wasn't used to people being...'fans' of him. He was well aware that he was a murderous vigilante and those shouldn't have gotten fans. Not him, not Moon Knight or Castle or Murdock. It's why they worked best in the Kitchen, "Do me a favor, next time you need someone to do an interview in a school or a convention? Talk to someone else. Or get your police buddies to actually do their damn job."

"Fine, fine. No more throwing you to those scary schoolgirls." She put a hand on her neck and cracked away the last of her previous hangover, "You ready?"

"Yeah." He nodded. They were going through the front door so that meant no guns, no knives, nothing else they could use to their advantage. Without his powers he'd be going in there with a target on his head, "At least one of us has powers..." He put his hands into his pockets and kicked a stone down the street. With any luck they wouldn't have to do much fighting.

"Just don't agitate any people packing guns and we should be good."

He was about to snark back when his spider-sense rang softly. Not danger, "...We're being followed." Cindy's eyes narrowed and she reached for her gun before Peter stopped her, "It's not dangerous. It's..."

"Mom."

...Damn it.

He looked back and sighed when he saw his brother's kid right behind them. She looked up at them with those wide, brown eyes of hers and Cindy's features immediately softened. Great, "What are you doing here, kid?" He didn't really know what to say to her. The only time he ever really talked to her was after she found out about her brother's kids. He mostly found it odd how quickly his brother and Cindy had taken to her.

"Yeah, I'm with him," Cindy said, "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be doing your in-school suspension?"

"The teacher let me out. She thinks it's wrong I got in trouble because I stopped Mortimer from hurting Cassie." Someone was getting fired, "I was bored so I followed your scent. You are going to do something dangerous. I want to come."

"Absolutely not." Cindy shook her head, "Listen, this is...none of this is exactly kid friendly, okay?"

"I have done worse," she said nonchalantly. Before Cindy could counter Gwen's kid - Gabbie or Chocolate or the pink menace, whatever it was called now - stuck out of her neck, though it was still hidden under the hoodie she wore, "Gabbie also wants to go. She thinks that it will be good practice for when we become heroes later."

"They aren't going to let a kid in. This isn't exactly an all-ages party," Peter said.

"We can sneak inside. Gabbie makes it easy," she insisted, looking up at Cindy with puppy dog eyes. It was obvious by the look that she was going to cave, "Please, I want to help you and uncle."

"...Uncle?"

"You are dad's brother, so you are my uncle," she said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Peter just looked down at her blankly. What exactly was he supposed to say to that? "Family is family."

'Technically the both of us our cousins as well since mom is going to marry Peter at some point,' The pink menace added.

"Uh...not so sure that's how it works."

"Just leave her be, Pete," Cindy shook her head, "Laura wants a big family, so if she decides you're her uncle then you're her uncle. Just accept it." Well, apparently he had a niece now. He wasn't even sure if he he was fine with being the godfather to Gwen's new little sister and now this? He was too tired to deal with it, "That aside, I'm not sure how comfortable I am with this plan of yours, Laura."

"I'll go even if you say no."

"Cindy, we don't have time to argue about this. Party starts in five minutes." He checked his watch, "She can take care of herself, right? That and with Gwen's kid she's stronger than either of us. Better to keep her close so you can keep an eye on her."

"You just said the party wouldn't let her in."

"She doesn't have to go in. Put her outside on recon so we can have some backup." And if they did everything right they wouldn't even have to get into a fight. Shouldn't take much to kidnap this Mr. Brownstone and drag him out.

"...Fine." Laura beamed, "But you're staying right outside. I'll leave my phone open so make sure you keep in contact, okay?"

"Understood."

"...Come on, Pete, let's do this."

The party reminded him of a low class rave. Despite the fancy attire and large house on display the place looked more like a drug den than anything else. Men and women danced (read: grinded against each other) on the center while loud music blared above them. The smell of thick booze in the air was all too familiar while the strobing lights made his head pound.

"We really going to find him here?" Peter asked Cindy.

"You're the one with the beefed up spider-sense. Did those guys lie to us?"

"No." Then again they still could've been wrong. Whatever, this was still their best lead. Peter made his way to the bar and picked up one of the free glasses at the counter. His spider-sense immediately blared, "Spiked." He handed the cup over to Cindy. She frowned and set it down, "Guess that explains why everyone's so blitzed around here." He had mixed feelings on addicts. For the most part he didn't care for them; apart from a rare few kept addicted on purpose most of them chose to dive into that rabbit hole. Gwen felt pity for everyone but as far as he was concerned if you dug your own grave you could lie in it.

Just like Urich did...

"I don't think everyone here's been spiked." She gestured to the people sitting around corners who stared up at the air blankly, "Look at them. Doesn't look like something you get from a drink, right?"

"I'll check." He knelt down in front of them and tilted their head down. Blank, wide eyes, open mouths and slack limbs. Heroin, just like Cindy's overdosed interrogatees. No needle marks either. Their guy was here.

"Interested in something?" A deep baritone asked behind him. Peter looked back and saw a guy easily a foot taller than him (not as if that was hard...) looking down with a suspicious glare.

"Whatever these guys are on? I want in." He smiled in the same sort of sleazy way he'd seen on way too many addicts and dealers, "I actually got a girl with me and I was hoping...well, you know." He eyed Cindy like she was a piece of meat. The guard followed his look and whistled, "You know what I'm getting at, right? Don't want her goin' to the cops showing needle marks."

"Yeah, I get ya." So now he had the guy's approval. And he felt sick, "Alright, fine. You take your friend and follow me up. You got money, right? Cause this shit don't come free."

"No problem there." He winked and handed the guy a hundred dollar bill tip before going back to Cindy. He grabbed her by the arm and whispered, "Guy thinks I'm about to date rape you. Just play along and he'll take us up to his boss."

"One of the classics, huh? Fine." She suddenly giggled and draped an arm around him while he led her up. He put a hand around the small of her back and threw a thumbs up at the guard with the other. They both followed him up the stairs and Peter felt the thrum of his spider-sense growing more steady. Danger, but nothing specific for now. Just danger all around them.

"Over here."

The guard opened a door the sleaze hit him straight in the face. The stench of booze was even worse compared to before and what he saw made his stomach churn. Men and woman in various states of undress draped across a circular couch while the man of the hour himself sat the center like the king of the castle.

Mr Brownstone, real name unknown. He was an older man, probably in his late 30's judging by his features, with short hair and a neatly trimmed goatee. Handsome if not for the sleazy grin on his face. The white suit he wore was deceptively plain and messy but the smile on his face when he saw them spoke volumes. Judging by the men and women around Peter guessed the guy crossed both streets and didn't much care for consent.

He counted three guards - the one who led him here and two at the entrance. Each of them were packing pistols. Easy enough for both of them deal with even without his powers.

"Well now, another customer?" His voice was deep and smooth. Calming in a way if not for the drugged up people around him, "Lemme guess, you're looking for the untraceable fix."

"You know it." Ugh, kill him now. "But, uh, we don't gonna give any blood, right? Cause I did that with this cult a couple months back and trust me, the drugs ain't worth the shit they did with it." Technically not a lie. The Hand took more than enough of his blood during his time in their camp.

"Nothing so ritualistic. Just give me the money alongside the drug of your choice and find a spot. I can put it in your system easy and without a trace. No need for dirty needles and no risk of infection or overdose." Except for the ones he does it to deliberately. Peter pursed his lips and gave Cindy a barely perceptible nod, "Now, should we get started? I have-"

Peter grabbed the guard who led him there and pulled the gun from his holster. He barely had a chance to scream before Peter hit him straight in the neck with the butt of the pistol. He hit him again in the back of the head just as Cindy incapacitated both guards behind them, leaving one of them stuck to the wall in a blanket of webbing while the other was sprawled out on the ground.

She picked up one of the pistols and they both aimed at him, "Mr. Bronstone, I assume? You're a difficult man to find."

"And judging by that webbing you're Spinerette." He leaned back on the couch seemingly without a care, "I'm curious what a big-time Avenger like you'd want with a guy like me. Avengers go after dealers now?"

"Don't play dumb. I've lost three information sources cause of you." She clicked off the safety and stepped closer, "Now this is how it's going to go. You're going to come with me and tell me exactly how you did that and anyone else you have on your list."

"Or what?"

"Or I kill you here and now and at least get a guarantee that I won't get any more overdoses any time I try to interrogate someone."

"A summary execution, is it? And here I thought the Avengers stood as the heroes of our time." He sighed, "Fine then."

Both of their spider-senses blared. All of the addicts around them suddenly began to convulse, frothing at the mouth and screaming incoherently before lunging towards them. It wasn't a danger, but it was enough of a distraction for the bastard to slip past them down the hall, "Shit!" Cindy aimed a shot at his back but the door closed before she could pull the trigger.

"We need to hurry!" He shoved one of the frothing addicts to the floor and opened the door only for his spider-sense to blare again. He pulled back just in time to avoid the barrage of machine gun fire that lit up the door, "Shit..." He peeked his head up slightly and ducked back to cover before they could get a shot off. He counted at least half a dozen, all of them with assault rifles.

Cindy took up the other side of the doorway, gun drawn, "That must be his second line." She looked with pity at the first line. Most of the addicts got caught in the crossfire and those that didn't were frothing at the last few seconds of overdose. Bastard, "Hall's too narrow for me to swing over. See any other way out for me to flank them?"

"Not where I can-"

His phone rang. Peter opened it and furrowed his brows at the unknown number on the screen. Just what he needed, "Whoever this is now's not a-"

"Spider-Man." He knew that voice, "I'm in position nearby and can provide covering fire. Just say when."

"Castle? What...no, I'll ask later." He gestured to Cindy and tightened his grip on the pistol with his free hand, "Fine, on three seconds take out two of the gunmen."

"Acknowledged."

3, 2, 1...Peter heard the sound of bullets impacting against bone. The gunmen turned, distracted by the new attacker, and they both charged. Cindy swung overhead raining bullets down while Peter did the same from the ground. It didn't take long for the second line to fall and they went down hall, "I'm repositioning," Castle said.

"If you find a guy in a suit with a goatee shoot him in the leg." He put the phone back in his pocket and grabbed some spare magazine from the bloody pile.

Cindy kicked the door down and jumped over the railing. Noir ran down the stairs, ignoring the stares of the few partygoers who weren't too stoned to completely ignore the gunfire, "We should split up." She pointed to two, slightly ajar doors, "I'll go left, you go right. You still have the codec, right?"

"Yeah. Go."

They nodded to one another and Peter went through the right door. He kept the gun raised and ran down the hall warily, listening for every little ping from his spider-sense. Right now it was the only advantage he had over these mooks.

Case in point.

He pulled back to avoid the shot that came from the corner of the hall. He peeked around the corner and fired at the hint of leg from the opposite wall. A short scream came and Peter shot him twice in the chest before continuing, "Can't find a good position," Castle said from his phone, "I'll focus on cutting off reinforcements instead."

"Thanks." He ducked into an empty room and waited till another rent-a-goon passed . He shot him in the back of the head and grabbed another magazine, "So what the hell are you doing here? Thought you were in Mexico or South America."

"Murdock called me. Interesting message." Well, that was a surprise, "Norah told me about this too and said you might need help after your friend told her you didn't have your powers."

"Hm." Of course it was Norah. She was weirdly to the guy despite her personality.

"Pete, you there?" Cindy chimed in, "Going through the hall, I think I'm catching up with this guy. Where you at?"

"Not sure, but I think we're close. I can hear the gunfire from here." He wiped the blood on his coat and put in a fresh magazine. Fighting without his powers was definitely an...experience.

He was almost out when his spider-sense blared one last time. Another mook in a suit charged him from a nearby door and pinned him against the wall. Peter grimaced and tried to raise the gun only for the giant palooka to knock it out of his hands. The large rent-a-goon snarled down at him and pushed harder against his neck to keep from breathing.

His vision swam and darkened. He tried to remember those lessons Stick beat into him and grabbed the brute's wrist. Just the right amount of pressure at the perfect spot and...

"Ahhh!" The grunt screamed and stumbled back, holding on his left arm that felt like it was on fire right now. Taking in some shaky breaths, Peter kicked the bastard in the face and grabbed the gun again. He barely looked up before Peter aimed right between his eyes and fired.

"...Damn it." He rubbed his no doubt bruising throat and stumbled down the hall. Maybe he should've gotten an extra month of lessons from Stick. Rand said he and that Colleen woman he knew were offering training. Might take them up on that.

"Gotta fix this..." He stopped and, after making sure he was alone, put a hand on his neck and focused. His healing hadn't gotten much better, mostly due to lack of training. A part of him wanted to go back and check to see if any of those people were still cling to life from their overdose and if he could fix them. But he knew that was a fool's errand. Healing some bruises wasn't the same as fixing what was inside.

He met up with Cindy near the exit, "Hey, you alright?" she asked worriedly.

"I'm fine." Last thing he needed was her hovering over him, "Both halls converged here. We shouldn't have split up."

"Hindsight, Pete." She raised her gun, "Come on, let's finish this."

Cindy kicked down the door then stopped mid-charge when they saw what was on the other side. An empty lot with cars that were probably meant to be used as an escape plan. Which would've worked if not for the fact that everyone, Mr. Brownstone included, was tied up in thick, pink webbing that would've left them all helpless even if most of them weren't beaten unconscious.

Then there was Laura, sitting on one guard's back wearing the most nightmarish costume he'd ever seen. He'd have bad dreams about that tonight.

Cindy looked at the sight in front of her and groaned, "...What the f-"

"I told you I could help," Laura said, smug in the way only kids could be, "Do you trust me now?"

'Not bad for a first time!' The pink menace cheered.

"We'll talk about this later, okay?" She knelt down and, after sharpening her fingers, cut the web covering the drug lord's face. He looked up at them with a glare, all sense of smug superiority gone, "Now, we were talking before? Wanna take my deal now?"

"Don't act as if you hold all the cards." He sneered up at her, "You play the part of the stone cold bitch but I know your type. You wouldn't sacrifice people to get what you want." Laura's eyes narrowed and she flexed her hands, just barely keeping her claws contained, "You think I have access only to the people here? Oh no, I've got dozens of people all across the city. Addicts, loved ones who I used as collateral...one thought and they'll all die horribly."

"I could just kill you right now. That's still an option." Cindy growled.

He laughed at that. It was loud enough that it echoed all across the enclosed lot, "You think I don't have a failsafe? If I die all of them die too." Spider-sense, "I'd have to be an idiot not to have insurance-"

Peter shot him in the face. Cindy flinched back slightly and surprise then looked at him, "He was lying." He tapped the side of his head and, after a seconds hesitation, she nodded.

"Alright, I'm trusting you." She dropped the 'borrowed' gun and sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose, "Damn it, I really hoped we could've taken him. Guy like him would've known a lot..."

"It was either him or those people. Choice was obvious." Even if he didn't feel much pity for addicts he wasn't exactly keen to throw them to the grinder. His life wasn't worth theirs.

"Yeah, don't worry I'm not judging you." She looked at the webbed guards, "Not sure if we can bring these guys in for interrogation considering what we just did. Ah, whatever, I'll think of something. Least I won't get any more sudden overdosing when I talk to someone."

"So it's not a complete waste of time." He rubbed his neck, "We done here?"

"Yeah, I guess. I gotta clean this mess up and get Laura back home. You gonna talk to Punisher?"

"Might as well. Take care of yourself, Cin."

"You too, Pete."


Get Yeeted: FriendlyNeighborhoodSpiderWoman, I'm gonna bite the bullet and ask: what kind of guys are you into?"

Reply from Sammy: Oh boy, here we go...

Reply from BulkyQuasar22: Cringe.

Reply from FriendlyNeighborhoodSpiderWoman: That's blunt.

Reply from Get Yeeted: No point in beating around the bush.

Reply from FriendlyNeighborhoodSpiderWoman: Fine, I'll give you a hint since you're so ballsy. I like nice guys, as in the genuine kind. Someone who can put others above themselves. That applies to girls too. That's all I'm saying about that.

Reply from Get Yeeted: Come on, that's not enough! It's so generic too! How about something a little more specific? :)

Reply from FriendlyNeighorboodSpiderWoman: Is 'Not you' specific enough?

Reply from BulkyQuasar22: Oof, there it is."


This chapter went through some changes. Originally Noir was going to have a fight club segment and he was also supposed to save Cindy from overdosing with chi. Former was cut for time and the latter was removed for contradicting Noir's established chi skill level.

Next chapter we'll have Lana's camping trip (along with more exposition on Aracely and possibly Sue's manifesting powers) with either a Mary Jane or Gwen segment to follow. Depends on which one you guys want more.

I'll put up a new vote for what finale you guys want. Vote there if you're interested.

Question:

1. As said above, what do you guys want for the second segment after Lana's camping trip: Gwen being forced to flirt it up more with Roxxon or Mary Jane being caught in the awkward triangle between Felicia and Matt?

Review answers:

Hardlight - Kinky? Uh...not so sure about that.

AlexTheSouthParkGhostRider - They already have Ghost Rider for a heavy hitter.

titan616 - Laura doesn't mind if her family's weird; she just wants a big one, as she makes clear in this chapter. Now Noir is her uncle and any children he and Gwen have are going to be her cousins. More and more family!

Cha0s4Ever - Cindy takes to motherhood way too quick for someone who spent the past 10 years developmentally stunted. As for Scott being in danger, it's mentioned that most baddies do try to avoid using the typical 'take loved ones hostage' plan. For most heroes fighting bad guys is like a job, but if you make it personal chances are thou shalt not kill goes right out the window. Same reason why in the comic book Empowered villains generally avoid killing heroes - do that even once and the entire hero community goes on a bloodhunt.

As for the finale, I don't read X-Men all that much so no Utopia. That and I'm not much a fan of many X-Men story arcs.