Holy crap I finally did it, and just before 12 AM PST...even though I live in MST it still counts as November!...though fanfiction and AO3 won't recognize it, oh well we'll see. - Welp, writing out the AN took forever, nvm xD

I hope the wait was worth it, I again needed to cut this chapter in half, though at this point we might as well just call this the Hulk Arc, even if it's covering the span of like a week (and most of that is from the first chapter xD)

Anyways, Enjoy. I have some ranting at the end and also state my thoughts on this chapter. (14, 738 words)

Edit 12/01/2022: Looks like FF created a different notification system. Those of you with accounts will probably need to change a setting so that you will be alerted for stories you follow/favorite. Think it's the Email Opt-In in "Account - Settings"

Edit 2: Small spelling and grammar mistakes.

Beta'd by Last Ronin

Parker Industries - Peter Parker

'Maybe giving her another cricket should suffice?' Peter thought in worry.

He was hovering over his widow's terrarium after his call with Nick Fury. 'Or maybe some water?'

He grabbed the mist bottle he bought to dampen her terrarium and opened the top. Thankful, once again, that she was calm, he sprayed water on her web, watching in fascination as she crawled over to the portion of the web that was damp and sat. Immediately she moved to rest her fangs on the wet part of the web.

'Sweet.'

Snkt

"Good afternoon Peter." Tessa greeted, briskly moving to stand next to his desk, a small stack of papers in hand.

"Afternoon. That them?"

She gave a soft smile, offering the stack. "Yes, it is. Either sign or review it, then sign, please."

He moved his hands in a carefree motion before accepting. "Might as well review it, I suppose. Wouldn't want any of the other project leads potentially getting angry if they don't like some of the trademarked or copyrighted names and logos."

'Let's see here. OttoTech, OctaviusTech, OttoPark, Octo–...wow, that's a lot of names with the word Octo. Moving on… ToomesTech, TTech– yeah, no skipping skipping' Peter became exasperated at the number of names Tessa put forth to be trademarked. He didn't even want to begin on the logos. 'Whoever works in the Patents and Trademarks office is going to hate her–'

Peter froze, his eyes widening in surprise and fear as he neared the last few pages.

The words SPIDER-MAN ran clearly across the page. A quick look below showcased other words that had to do with Spiders, some of which he had used before. 'SpiderWare, SpiderTech, WebWare– What is this?'

"Tessa?" Peter asked in what he hoped was an unconcerned voice as he turned to her. "Why do we have a vigilante's name and logo as an option to be trademarked and copyrighted?"

Tessa, expression as calm as ever, responded. "You permitted me to look for ways to make money for Parker Industries. Polls on forums and unbiased news sources show that the name Spider-Man and his logo are looked on favorably by the citizens of New York in the short time he's been known. Enough so that there are plenty of pictures showcasing fan-made products with his logo and name online despite him being a vigilante. I saw an opportunity then to procure his name and logo rights to make official Spider-Man-related products to sell. I've already set up a tentative meeting with a phenomenal new fashion design company thanks to Emma's suggestion from her sister. It's called MVD. Short for Marvelous Van Dyn–"

"–Wait, wait, hold up." Peter raised his hands for her to stop, mind still reeling as a familiar panic set in. "I know I like to say we're an everything company, but clothes? And I'm guessing toys are possibly next, just off the top of my head. Are you positive this would be well received to make those kinds of ventures? I mean, he's a vigilante?! I don't have a problem with the guy, but it can send the wrong message if PI essentially takes ownership of his name."

Tessa moved to stand next to Peter in front of his computer. "May I?" She asked, gesturing to his mouse and keyboard.

Confused, Peter nodded.

Nodding herself, Tessa bent over to move the mouse, uncaring if Peter was too close and his breath hitched. Not noticing or unworried at the noise he made, she moved the mouse to open his internet browser, bypassing the Parker Industries homepage and quickly typing in 'Spider-Man' in the address bar.

Hitting enter, Peter was shown what he would expect to see if he typed in Spider-Man. News articles encompassed the top results: The Daily Globe, New York Star, New York Bulletin, and even one from Woman Magazine – a subset of the Daily Bugle.

SPIDER-HUNK: BIG BUNS TO HAVE YOUR MAN WORK FOR?

'You've got to be kidding me! I don't have a big butt!' His mind quickly flittered through memories of the times it was commented on before. Combined with the fact that he's only been Spider-Man for about a month, he felt exasperated that it was being highlighted.

He ignored that headline and continued to the last news result before forum posts started to be course, Peter wasn't surprised to see it was the Daily Bugle. He was surprised at the moderate, impartial question it posed.

SPIDER-MAN: IS VIGILANTISM NEEDED?

'That… is not as bad as I thought it would be with JJ leading the helm. What changed there?'

He didn't think about it long as Tessa scrolled down and clicked the top forum post. Immediately the page loaded and at the top was a poll posing the question: Spider-Man - Yay or Nay?

In Peter's opinion, it wasn't the best question for a poll, but he was floored that there were 62% Yay's out of 3 thousand participants. However, ignoring the overwhelmingly positive view his alter-ego had on this forum, it wasn't indicative of the broader New York population, and he gave Tessa a frown.

She rolled her eyes at him and scrolled down, showing the forum members' posts. The first few posts were simple, either reporting how they've seen him stop a purse snatcher, bank robber, or break-in before leaving quickly with a wave and the occasional calling card… and calling him camera shy or, hell, taciturn. Ugh. Not the impression he wanted to give.

He couldn't fault them, and it did fit. Other than helping the random citizen or tourist with some minor problem, he hasn't stopped to chat. With the knowledge that he was the only hero out and about right now, he's been quick on stopping crime and then searching for the next crook. He's barely even cracked out a joke like he usually would.

'Maybe that's why Jameson allowed the headline. Without coming across like I normally would and with my Mk. III armor, I'm bound to come across taciturn and way too serious… which apparently sits well with people.'

Tessa continued scrolling down, and he saw a few people voiced logical points to stay their acceptance of him and a few that were radical in their opposition. It didn't sell him on what Tessa gave her reasoning for. And honestly, Peter was regretting his irrational response to Tessa bringing up buying the rights to the Spider-Man name now that he was calmer. He was planning on doing it later when Spider-Man was more established and should have been happy for the opportunity to do it early. If he had kept his mouth shut, he'd have been able to deflect and say it was thanks to his secretary that Parker Industries had the name Spider-Man, regardless of the negative impact.

'Now I gotta make it so my conscience is clear that this won't be a money sin– D'awwwwww look at the baby!'

He couldn't help the small smile on his face at seeing a homemade design of his helmet drawn over a tiny black shirt worn by a baby. It was also holding a stuffed animal with a piece of paper taped to its head with a horribly drawn Spider-Man helmet.

When the Ms says little Max likes the new vigilante for swinging around! At least the giggles he's letting out when seeing him make us think so.

Looked into the guy. The Bugle's probs got the best shake at what he's actually done— even if the journalist has a cynical view! Their reporters have talked to tourists and citizens he's helped out on top of the victims of crimes he's prevented or stopped. Seems like a cool dude! Spidey, if you ever read this, I think you're doing good! New York's finest could use some help, in my opinion!

That opened the floodgates as people started sharing their homemade Spider-Man creations, precisely as Tessa said. Hats, more shirts, more stuffed animals; one person even created a make-shift silly-string wrist carrier for their kids to play with. That caused him to smile, knowing tons of kids wanted to swing around like him, and it was cute how they looked doing so; he paled shortly after remembering the painful memory of hearing Fusion's son had died trying to swing from the roof of a building.

Suddenly alarmed, Tessa scrolled up, turned around, swiveled his chair away from the computer, and stared at him intensely. Her eyes searched his face, concerned. "Are you okay?"

Frowning himself, Peter pushed his guilt away, knowing he couldn't give a good reason. "Yes? Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because you just thou–" She shook her head. "You're pale. Why wouldn't I be concerned?"

Frown deepening, Peter made a play of touching his skin. "Are you sure it's not because I'm white?"

Tessa sputtered. "Tha-you have a healthy tan, same as me Peter. Now please tell me. Are you alright?"

The young man sighed, mind scrambling for an excuse. "It's nothing, Tessa. Just hit me that I forgot to do something, is all." 'Which isn't a lie; I haven't given Sue a tour yet…' He stretched and looked back at the screen. "I think I see what you mean about Parker Industries capitalizing on this. Parents are bound to buy their kids something cute or cool. But do you think whoever we get to design the web shooters put in big lettering that it isn't that sticky? Let alone it can't support the weight of a child?" He paused. "Also, don't price this stuff too high; I don't wanna anger his fans– Wait, also see about setting up some sort of trade-in for homemade items. If they want a higher quality version now that there are ones, they should get them for as close to free as possible by turning in what they made."

Peter turned around to face Tessa. Her face was still laced with concern before she sighed. "Understood. I take it then that you approve of all the names Parker Industries is set to own?"

"Yeah, I do." He smiled. "While I was surprised by this, you still did good work, Tessa." He finished signing the stack of papers before handing it over.

Taking the stack, Tessa opened her mouth to speak, her eyes still searching for something in his before pursing her lips. "I'll keep you appraised on anything moving forward. Is there anything else you need from me before I leave?"

Peter frowned, wondering if he had said or done something wrong. "No, I don't need anything. I feel like I've given you enough work. I do gotta ask, though. Are you mad at me?"

Tessa sighed. "No. I'm exasperated."

Peter winced. "What did I do?"

Sighing again, Tessa leaned against his desk, crossing her arms across her chest, and whether she meant to or not, was supporting her large bust by doing so, causing Peter to sit straighter in his chair so his gaze didn't linger where it shouldn't. "It's more of what you didn't do, Peter. I know I'm not the… most talkative of Xavier's students, and I dare say I'm more taciturn than Scott is." She gave him a small smile at seeing his grin. "That said, I cherish the bond I've created with you and feel irritated that you aren't being as clear with me as I'd expect after we've known each other for so long."

Peter winced. Feeling the guilt build again at the knowledge that after so long, he couldn't nail being a good friend. His fumbling with Silver was still fresh on his mind. That said…

'She's certainly come a long way from her younger self.'

Tessa narrowed her eyes, and Peter felt the equivalent of a finger tap on his mind; his brain tingled. Causing him to laugh out loud.

Huffing, Tessa stayed silent as Peter came down from his laughter.

"I'm sorry. I never thought you'd be bothered by being compared to your previous self." Peter said, a gentle smile now on his face.

Tessa shook her head. "It's fine. I was just embarrassed. As you know, I wasn't the most trusting when I was younger. Your cute attempts to bring me out of my shell led to Charles giving yo–" She cut herself off, face paling.

"Charles, what?" Peter asked, concerned.

Instead of answering him, Tessa shook her head before standing up from the desk and grabbing the stack of signed papers. "You." She started before bowing to stare into Peter's face, coming uncomfortably close. Enough so that he could feel the heat of her breath against his mouth. Her ocean-blue eyes drilled into his hazel ones. He couldn't help the blush creeping up on him at the tension. "Are dangerous."

'I'm dangerous?'

Before Peter could process what Tessa said, she walked out of his office. The distinct SNKT of his office door announced her departure. Leaving him to stare at his monitor still left on the forum, Tessa had scrolled up to the first post containing a picture.

'Was I too aggressive?' He thought over their conversation from her entrance to departure. No. She didn't act hurt or angry. If anything, she acted relaxed. What with her leaning against the desk, her mind tap, hell, even her ending words and actions. He would never have thought he'd see Tessa push the boundaries of personal space.

'So she meant it teasingly?'

…WHY?

Peter facepalmed. He didn't want to try to understand her actions without more context. He'd just ask the next time it naturally came up. Even though he commented on her changing, it didn't mean he could push her to explain herself out of nowhere.

Sighing, he moved to close the browser window. 'It's nice to know Spider-Man's being looked on favorably for a change. It's bound to end though once new heroes start cropping up. Always did end up looking like a chump when the Avengers showed up.' He thought self-deprecatingly, souring his mood.

He paused before looking again at the baby in a spidey t-shirt. Heh. Instant mood booster. He also saw, once again, the commenter reference the Daily Bugle. His mood dropped a tad.

Peter had been ignoring the Bugle and anything associated with it up to now. Mainly so he'd not have to deal with the discouraging knowledge that Jonah and his relationship would have receded. Similar to Flash in a way. Unlike Flash, though, Peter didn't have the opportunity to curb any of Jonah's more…unfavorable traits.

'Well, now that I know there is an article…'

Peter backed out to the search results and clicked the Bugle article link.

SPIDER-MAN: IS VIGILANTISM NEEDED?

By John Jonah Jameson

Peter gaped. 'Jonah wrote this? Okay. Now I'm definitely interested.'

Dear Reader (Or those that are listening due to being visually impaired),

I'm sure we've all seen or heard of this new…vigilante… SWINGING around our fine city, mainly from the cards he's left behind occasionally on the scenes of crimes. He's taken it upon himself to "help" our brave and stellar boys and girls in blue. My initial thought when hearing about this man was that he was some attention-seeking thrillseeker, something I've stated since the start of his appearance (and the judgment's still not out on that.), but word is from our remarkable reporters who've graciously been allowed to interview you fine citizens and some of New York's finest, is that he's actually serious.

I still find it hard to believe. However, the hard facts state that crime has decreased by about 23% since the month he appeared—a notable decrease. Combined with his attire (helmet, gauntlets, and body armor), fast response time, and taciturn demeanor when dealing with crime, I cannot call myself a journalist by ignoring the facts—my final judgment, though, is still holding out! The Daily Bugle has always prided itself on giving you fine citizens (and those who read articles from our London branch!) a fair and impartial view of the news of New York, London, and the world news!

…That said, what Spider-Man is doing IS a crime. Hence the title of this article. Is vigilantism needed?

Let me describe to you then, dear reader, his current exploits, the consequences of which might be more far-reaching than you or he realizes! Even with his "official" handler(s)—Ned Leeds has notified me that occasionally there are different women that seem to be following him, one of which uses what our sources in the military say is a SHIELD HoverBike.

FIRST OFF!–

Peter sighed, closing the article. Good ol' Jonah. Even when trying to be "impartial" (about Spider-Man, at least), he couldn't help showing his bias.

'Welp. Think I'll just message my dad about leaving today instead.'

Elizabeth 'Betty' Ross - McGuire Air Force Base

Betty sighed as she waited while sitting with her father and a cadre of his security detail for this 'Richard Parker' to arrive so the man could meet with Bruce. After meeting with her father, of course. He needed to try and get the measure of the man who's been a leader in the technology, medical and defense industries. It was better than those men in yellow suits, at least. How they thought they could get away with looking like beekeepers and still be taken seriously, she'd never know.

She was wearing a red dress shirt and jeans, business casual, mainly to show that she had some type of discipline so as not to get in the way but also that she wasn't here for business. At least, that's what she was hoping for when comparing herself to her father and his men.

Thaddeus Ross was dressed in his dress blues, the three silver stars on his shoulder insignia denoting his status as a Lieutenant General. While his men were dressed in the standard ACUs, the digital pattern stood out against the wall's white paint.

Having only her thoughts to keep her occupied, due to her father sifting through some paperwork and his men chatting amongst themselves, Betty inevitably turned to think of Bruce. Bruce, the man she thought, was as interested in her as she was in him but had instead been ignoring her for the past month. Any attempt at reaching out to him was met with nervous, awkward, and sometimes hurtful attempts to brush her off. And sometimes, he was simply cold in ignoring her, outright not speaking to her. Which definitely hurt, especially since she was hoping to at least find a friend in Bruce if he didn't want romance, someone to confide in about feeling lonely, or how…the Hulk kept trying to kidnap her. She shivered—something her father noticed.

"Are you cold, Betty? Do you want me to turn up the heat?" Her father asked, his expression concerned.

The young woman glanced at the surrounding guard detail, noting that one or two actually looked like they were feeling slightly warm based on the light sheen of sweat on their faces. She turned back to her father, shaking her head. "No, dad, I'm fine. Just a random spine chill."

He frowned, the lines on his aged face becoming more prominent. "Do you need to go to the doctor?"

Betty shook her head and pat her father's hand, the difference between her ivory satin skin and her father's wrinkled, rugged beige a stark contrast. She idly noted that, combined with their different facial features, it was hard to tell she was his daughter, stress quickening what time would eventually do. "I'm okay, dad. It's not like I get them all the time; I was just thinking, is all, and my body reacted."

His frown deepened. "What about?"

Now it was Betty's turn to frown. She didn't want to incense her father, but at the same time, she didn't see a reason to hide her thoughts. "About the Hulk." Immediately a fire seemed to burn in Thaddeus's eyes, his face showing the beginnings of a glare. Betty winced. "Specifically about how he's tried to kidnap me a few times now."

"Don't worry, Betty; I'm sorry I failed you before, but I promise you, we'll get that sonofabitch before he can try again. Especially if my contacts in SHIELD are right about this Richard Parker." Thaddeus growled.

Betty gave her dad a warbly smile. "It's okay, dad. I'm sorry I seem to be in–"

KNOCK KNOCK

Betty stopped herself, knowing it was likely the man her dad was meeting with. She wasn't wrong and looked to see an airman open the door for two men.

'Oh.'

Betty felt her system receive a shock at seeing the two men walk through the door. The first one through the door was a handsome middle-aged man dressed in a form-fitting black business suit with a white undershirt. To Betty, he looked like a spy from the movies, especially with his satisfied smirk at his companion, a young man that was the spitting image of his senior who was dressed in a red checkered shirt and jeans. The pout on his face made Betty want to squeal at how cute he looked. Combined with a backpack, he looked like he had just got off a college campus.

'Am I overdressed?' She thought to herself, panicked. From the looks of it, Richard Parker brought his own son along as well, for whatever reason. Betty was only here because she didn't know anyone in New York, and her father liked to keep her around. The remnants of her schoolgirl self wondered if her father had noticed her loneliness and asked Mr. Parker to bring his own son along before quickly discarding the idea; her father, for all his love for her, was ignorant of her feelings sometimes. A consequence of him not understanding her that well.

Her father stood up, and Betty followed. He extended a hand in greeting first toward the senior of the two men. "Richard Parker, I presume? It's an honor to meet you. I've seen your military service, son. The Army is missing out on a remarkable man."

The man bellowed a laugh accepting the handshake. "You're correct, General. My name is Richard Parker, and it's an honor to meet you as well. Your service is still noted in the Army" He clasped a hand onto the younger man's shoulder. "And this here is my eldest. Peter."

The young man grinned –'That's criminal!'– reaching out to shake her father's hand. "Nice to meet you, sir."

To Betty's shame, her father politely reached out to accept without saying anything. She noticed his gaze was fixated on Peter's shoulders and triceps, which she'd admit were much more filled out than Bruce's, who was more noodley in stature. Thaddeus frowned. "You look like a strong man. You already serve, son?"

Peter's grin became confused. "Uh, no? I legally can't."

Betty blanched. 'Wait, what?'

Thaddeus grunted, grimly smiling. "I see. If you're half the man your father's record attests to when you're of age, you could also join Delta." He grinned as though he was a used car salesman, again making Betty feel secondhand embarrassment, knowing he'd be trying to convince the boy to join the Air Force. "Or maybe try for STS."

Betty paused, noting that Peter himself was confused. '...that's a new one.' Usually, her father tried mentioning being a pilot, an engineer, or even joining the security forces—like the men with them in the room.

Peter made to ask a question. "Uh? What's th–"

Richard clasped another hand onto his son's shoulder. His smile was tight. "Peter's got time to think that over later. Why don't you introduce us to the young woman next to you, Ross."

Thaddeus's grin turned to stone, and Betty knew his pride was rankled for essentially being told to stop doing what he thought was best. She prepared herself for the tongue-lashing he was known to dish out. She'd probably need to play the mediator between the two parties after. Her father really knew what to say to aggravate someone else. She wasn't looking forward to doing so.

"Certainly. This is my daughter Elizabeth."

'What?' Betty couldn't help the surprised look she gave her father. Momentarily forgetting she was just introduced. Her father never let his wounded pride go. Just what kind of man was Richard Parker to let his comment slide?

"Betty?" Thaddeus asked, his face disappointed.

"Oh. Sorry." Betty felt her face flush and turned to face the Parker men. She reached out to shake their hands. "My name's Elizabeth, but my friends call me Betty! It's a pleasure to meet you. I love the headphones you've designed." She exclaimed, hoping they both were polite enough to excuse her spacing out.

Richard grinned, accepting her handshake first. "You're okay, Betty. It's a pleasure to meet you as well. And you're in luck. You can give any more praise for the headphones to the creator."

Betty smiled. "Let me guess. It's you, sir?"

"Actually, it's me." Betty's face flushed again as Peter reached out to shake her hand, an easy-going smile on his face. "But I know not many people know that I develop technology for Parker Industries, so I don't hold it against you."

"Ah. I see." She forced her eyes to stay on his as she accepted his handshake, mind fumbling with what to say after another social blunder. 'The headphones!' "Well, I can tell you that my dad hates them!" She blurted, immediately regretting it, feeling the burn of her father's gaze on her back.

Rightfully so, Peter looked confused. "Uh. Did they break on him or something?..."He trailed off, looking at his father as though he was missing the point. "...I'm drawing a blank on why that's a compliment? If anything, it sounds like there's an underlying issue."

"I…Um…"

Thaddeus sighed. "Betty means that she sometimes is lost in her own world while listening to music with her headphones. Enough so that I've had to pry them off physically."

Betty's face became even redder, if possible, as both Richard and Peter and the cadre of men guarding them laughed.

"Well, that proves they work as intended," Peter said, a grin back on his face.

"Why yes. The men at our range also prefer wearing your military version when they aren't required to wear standard-issue Ear-Pro. Speaking of, do you think you can make a less cumbersome version for the standard soldier to wear?"

Irritation flitted over Betty again at her father, bringing the conversation back to the military. Richard as well, was annoyed, his eyes narrowing.

"Um, maybe, the battery will be th–"

"–We can discuss that another time. The current version of headphones we make are for people who love music or those who care for long-term ear protection when operating in a loud environment. How about we get started on what Fury redirected us here for first." Richard interjected.

Thaddeus grunted. "Of course. Have a seat." He said, gesturing to the two chairs on their side of the small table. The men doing so. "So…we're thinking of building a freeze ray."

The conversation that started afterward went well, Betty thought…for at least 5 minutes, mainly due to her father quickly giving the rundown on the Hulk and what he's done. Though it quickly devolved with her father becoming heated as Peter, since he was the one who would be working with Bruce, didn't seem to be willing to go beyond building what Bruce wanted to work on, which he stated wasn't to deal with the Hulk. Peter himself was beginning to look annoyed and kept looking at his phone.

"Look, just build the damn thing!" Thaddeus roared.

"I told you I'm building what Dr. Banner needs help with. It's what SHIELD asked Parker Industries to do, and that's all we'll do. If you have a problem with that, talk with Fury."

"Why, you little–"

"I think that's enough, General." Richard interrupted. "We made the detour here as a courtesy for your rank and reputation. But my son is correct. SHIELD originally contacted us to work with Dr. Banner on a project. Not the Air Force. So if Peter doesn't want to help build what you want, that's fine with me. If that's all you wanted from us, then we're done here; point us in the direction of Dr. Banner."

"Mr–Mr. Parker, surely you can see the threat the Hulk poses?!"

Richard sighed. "Yes, I can. But I'm not forcing my son to work on something he doesn't want to. Especially when there seems to be no immediate danger to anyone here."

"And what about my men still stationed in the New Mexican desert? Are their lives not in danger?"

Richard became solemn and looked at Thaddeus in disappointment. "What about the men and women on deployment? What about our civil servants in dangerous jobs? What about the children in the hospital who need medical advancements to be made? What about…?" He trailed off. "I think you see where I'm going here. There's only so much that can be put on someone's plate. So, don't try to guilt my son or me if we aren't in a hurry to do so."

Betty felt guilty after hearing Richard speak. She thought the Parker's meeting with her father was a planned thing, not that it was at the last minute. For all his faults, he never failed to alert another party of a meeting well in advance; her father cared about efficiency.

"Goddammit, I did not come this far just to get told no!" Thaddeus growled, standing up. Richard did the same.

The security forces nearby drew closer. "Sir, we're going to have to ask you to calm do–"

KNOCK KNOCK

The door swung open before anyone could answer the door, a blue glove-covered hand on the knob. "Hi there," Steve Rogers greeted cheerily, his head free of his mask, showcasing his handsome features. "Is this a bad time?"

Every male there, except Peter, stared in awe. One airman whispered to another near him. It was heard clear as day in the room's silence. "Holy shit, is that Captain America?"

'Wait, what? Isn't he dead?' Betty took another look at the man. She assumed he was simply one of many of the presumed late hero's admirers and, with her knowledge of cosplay, didn't think much of it. '...yeah, he does match the pictures in textbooks now that I'm taking a closer look.'

Captain America gave a hearty laugh. "Yes, it's me."

Thaddeus sputtered. "B-b-but how?"

Giving a mega-watt smile, Steve nodded toward Peter. "Thanks to this young man, actually. And a few other SHIELD scientists, but I hear he helped with most of the needed work."

Richard grinned, hugging Peter to his chest. "I knew it!" He rubbed his son's head. "When you told your mother and me about reviving an old American Hero, I knew it must have been the Captain or Bucky Barnes!"

Peter smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, you kinda became excited afterward." He turned toward the American hero. "Captain, what are you doing here exactly?"

Betty's father and men gasped, which Betty thought was a little much. She didn't feel like that was disrespectful in either tone or question. The man was a hero, not Jesus. 'Though my father might think he is for all I know.'

Showing Betty was right, Captain America laughed. "Why a scruffy little bird told me your father is a big fan of mine, and since I also heard from the same bird that you and he would be on base, I wanted to come to give my personal thanks and give some of my time." He glanced around at his admiring fans. "Of course, if you don't mind, I can include the others here."

"Fuck yeah!" One of the airmen shouted. Earning looks from everyone, and specifically a glare from Thaddeus. Chided, he apologized. "Sorry. Just got excited."

Captain America smiled. "It's okay, son." He turned to look at Richard and Peter. "So, do you have time for us to chat right now?"

Richard at his son with a pained look. "Actually, Captain–"

"–Sure, we have time right now." Peter interrupted with a grin.

"Great!"

"Wait, but what about your meeting with Dr. Banner?" Richard asked, a surprised look on his face.

Peter smiled sheepishly. "To be honest dad, I was hoping to have that meeting while you stayed here and talked with Captain America. I'm pretty excited myself, but I can hold off talking to him another time that works if my meeting with Dr. Banner takes too long."

Captain America looked worried at hearing that. "Uh, you sure, son? I had to fight to attend here. I'm not sure when I'd be free again anytime soon since I've been catching up on history I didn't live through, not to mention learning all of the new technology."

"I'm sure, Captain," Peter said, standing up. "As I said, hopefully, it doesn't take too long."

Betty stared at his retreating form, saddened she'd be the youngest there, not to mention her apathy toward hearing more of what was bound to be talk of the military in some shape or form. If Peter stayed, at least there was a chance she could hear the Captain speak about the modern world. Since she doubted everyone else in the room would be willing to deviate from her father's questions, especially since Richard, a former military man, might be tolerable of said questions.

She froze. A revelation overcame her. Peter still didn't know where Bruce was.

She stood up quickly, her chair letting out a loud skrrt. "Wait!" She shouted at Peter before he could leave the room. While he did stop to look at her, everyone else turned to look at her as well. She felt her face redden for being dramatic. She'd probably be questioned by her father later. However, that didn't stop her as she moved to stand next to Peter, giving him a small smile. "I'll come with you. I know where Bruce's lab is. You and your dad didn't know, right?"

The teen stared at her blankly, and Betty felt she might have overstepped. Or maybe she got the wrong impression of him. Perhaps she sh–

"You're right!" He rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Think I might have let the excitement get to me. Lead the way."

Smiling, she turned to wave goodbye at her dad. He stared for a bit before giving a short wave himself, then called for the uniformed hero's attention. "Captain Rogers? What was it li–"

Betty didn't get to hear the first of what would probably be many questions as she and Peter closed the door. Turning to face her, Peter shuffled the backpack on his shoulder. "So, do you happen to have a car? Because I was planning on asking an airman for a ride since my dad has the keys to our car. And I doubt you want to walk with me to Dr. Banner's location unless it's nearby."

Betty hummed in the positive before walking to exit the building. "I do. It's also not too far, so I wasn't going to mention a car, but now that you did, we can instead. I guess you want to get back to Captain America fast, then?"

Peter tilted his head at her, confused, before registering her question. "Oh, sort of? I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm excited to be able to talk to him, but my dad's a bigger fan than I am. That, and I kind of got over my initial excitement after seeing the guy go from a cap-sicle to a man again. I just want to make sure I don't take too much of your time."

Now it was Betty's turn to tilt her head as she pointed quickly to the car she and her dad used to get here, pulling out the keys. "How so?"

"Unless you're dropping me off and then heading home or somewhere else, I doubt you want to listen to two nerds talk science for long."

Betty frowned as they entered her car, a simple sedan, STARK model of course since her father wanted the best American brand possible. "I actually wouldn't mind that."

Silence encompassed the car then as Betty drove off toward Bruce's lab.

"Well, you can't just leave it at that," Peter said with a laugh, cutting the silence.

Betty squirmed, staring at the road. "Ah, well, it's not like I'm some secret science buff, but–um, please don't judge me… I don't really have friends, and it doesn't help that we've moved here to New York, so even my acquaintances from New Mexico are gone. So if I just dropped you off, I'd probably either head back to listen to my dad and yours talk to Captain America or head back to my room and listen to music in my room."

"Ah, no judgment here. But excuse me for asking then…" Betty heard him shuffle in his seat but was too embarrassed to look over and confirm. "Do you not get to go out much, or do you just not like going out?"

Betty fought the urge to squirm again, positive he was staring at her now. Should she open up to him further or deflect? She didn't think being open with a complete stranger was normal and didn't want to appear weird. Then again, she doesn't think many strangers would have asked the questions he did. Most people would have probably let the car sit in silence, making her turn the radio on just to fill it. 'Like with dad…' Bruce and his friend Rick were the only people who deigned to ask questions that weren't "safe", granted they both waited a bit before doing so, what with Bruce being introverted and Rick being a teenager. Which inadvertently reminded her of girls at high school, any talk of anything of substance, and people either shut down or clammed up or quickly rushed to change the subject. In short, Betty realized Peter was trying to be a friend, and due to that being in short supply at the moment, she felt relieved, even if the timing was outside the norm.

She parked them in front of the building designated as Bruce's lab for their stay but didn't make to step out just yet. "My uh, my dad became super protective of me after my mom passed and didn't let me go out as much if he didn't know who it was with and even stressed it to me when I was across the country. He's a lot better about it now that I'm an adult, but I still carry that mentality with me, making it hard to trust people. Not to mention that, yeah, I think I'm not as interested in most hobbies or activities, but I think that's sort of anxiety, you know?" She forced a laugh. She mumbled under her breath. "Or maybe it's just me thinking what my dad would think…"

Peter was silent after hearing her statement, and Betty felt her chest tighten in fear, refusing to look at him. Maybe she misread Peter's intentions. Perhaps he was just being polite when asking further and expected a neutral answer. 'Stupid Betty, just because you're lonely doesn't mean you just vent to the first person who asks a serious question. People don't really want to hear your thoughts!'

"...I don't think you're wrong about that probably giving you anxiety, Betty," Peter said, giving Betty the courage to turn her head slightly and peek at Peter. He was frowning while staring ahead, which gave her the courage to turn fully to face him. "I… I'm not a psychiatrist, so I won't try to provide you with advice, but I think if you were aware of it, you could move past this on your own. Something tells me you'd have done so eventually. After all, you blurted this out to a guy you just met." He turned to give her a crooked smile. "I think that takes guts."

Betty's face reddened. "Or I'm just a weirdo." She couldn't help but groan, mind fighting the image Peter presented.

He nodded sagely. "It could be that too."

Betty groaned, resting her head on the steering wheel. "I'm sorry. I know I'm weird."

Peter recoiled, "What, no! That was a joke, Betty! If you're weird, I'm crazy."

The woman turned to look at him. "A joke?"

He nodded rapidly. "Yeah, a joke. I don't think you're weird at all! A little shy, yeah. But so's everyone!"

Betty shook her head. "Not you. You haven't stumbled at all since I met you."

The boy snorted. "Well yeah. But that's only because of practice. Even so, do you think I'm not a bundle of nerves? I can tell you right now my heart is beating like crazy." He let out a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of his head. "I mean, I was half expecting you to blow up at me, and for this to be an awkward car ride, I'd need to repress."

No way? Him? Nervous? Betty knew he wasn't perfect. His thoughtless decision to leave the hallway without knowing where Bruce was, showed that. But nervousness? He only paused for a moment before laughing it off. "You're lying." She stated clearly, a frown on her face.

Peter sighed and rolled his eyes, exasperated, before reaching his arm over. Betty froze, wondering what he was doing before he rolled up his sleeve, 'Huh, a dark underside to his shirt?' holding it out to her.

"Go ahead, two fingers against my wrist. Call me a liar then." Peter dared.

Betty couldn't help but blush. Going to an all-girls boarding school, she rarely interacted with males all that much growing up as a teen. So for Peter to act so forward, even with something benign as a wrist touch, was jarring for the woman. Hesitantly, she reached out and pressed her index and middle finger against his wrist, noting the tightening of his wrist when her fingers connected.

BadumpBadumpBadumpBadumpBadumpBadump

Peter wasn't lying, Betty concluded, feeling the strong beat of his heart as it raced. She reddened, noticing her fingers were resting on his wrist for too long, and she retracted them. "I guess you aren't lying…"

He laughed again, putting her at ease. "Don't worry about it." He glanced down at her car's clock frowning. "We can continue this some other time, though. I don't want to keep Bruce waiting longer than he has to. Do you have a game console or PC?"

Betty felt her face twist in confusion. "Um, what? Why?"

Peter smiled another easy-going smile. "Why to play games with others, of course. Namely, me and my friend Johnny and his sister Susan." He raised his hand to his chin, "Maybe even some others if they get on. But that's once in a blue moon. But I'm sure just saying I made a new friend who's probably moving a lot would make more of them willing to join." He lowered his hand to grin at her. "So what do you say?"

"Um, I mean, Uh…" Betty mumbled. Wondering what to say. She was never really into athletics, so she didn't really try out for sports or cheerleading—not that there was an actual cheer squad at an all-girls boarding school. Or at least not at the one she attended. Combined with her father's thoughts on laziness, she never thought to try and meet people online. 'Would dad dislike the idea?' Betty was betting on yes. Then again…he did tend to look down on males that wasted their potential. While he had thoughts on how females should act, he was a lot more lenient. 'It couldn't hurt to try, I guess.' She licked her lips, noticing they were dry. "Um, I don't have one. But I could ask my dad to get me one. How could I let you know when I do? And you'll have to walk me through how to do things…" She trailed off, feeling like she was making it out to be a bigger hassle than needed.

Peter grinned, stepping out of the car. "No problem, and I'll give you my number. Just call me when you're ready."

Betty felt a smile creep up on her as she grabbed her phone before moving to stand as well. "Great."

Peter Parker

Peter handed Betty back her phone, done putting in his contact information. "Now, let's go say hi to Bruce. Do you want to introduce us?" He asked the shy woman. The bout of focus she had ever since standing up to leave with him was well gone by now, which was a shame. He was hoping the mentioning of Bruce would help reignite it, knowing she eventually or was already in love with Bruce.

Instead of the mentioning of Bruce helping her, however, he noticed the subtle traces on her face as they froze midway into a frown. "Uh, something wrong?"

Betty glanced at his eyes before aiming them downward. "Bruce isn't speaking to me right now."

'Oh God, dammit.'

Peter shuffled before shrugging and moving toward the building door to open it for her. "Well, then, I'll do the talking. If he says anything, I'll say you're there for emotional support. I heard he had a friend my age, right? And he used that excuse to keep him around… or something like that? He can't be a hypocrite…I hope," he finished with a frown.

"Yeah. He has a friend named Rick Jones, he's a bit of a rebel, but he means well. He likes to help around where he's able but mainly sticks to Bruce like glue." Betty confirmed with a nod, walking through the door.

Peter grunted an acknowledgment and followed the woman. He noticed that Betty was more withdrawn, caught in her thoughts. Whether that be about her father or Bruce, he couldn't say, but he took a moment to reflect on his own.

Namely, the fact that he didn't brush off Betty so he could don his costume and meet with Bruce earlier. He had an opportunity when she made that dramatic cry for him to wait and walked confidently up to him. However, Peter was so caught off-guard that he stood in silence for a moment before her statement registered in his head. His instinctive response was going to be that he'd just call SHIELD to direct him to Bruce, but then he noticed Betty's nervousness due to her red face; and was immediately reminded of how he was in high school. Suffice it to say he caved and allowed her to lead him to Bruce.

His next opportunity was in the car when she mentioned wanting to listen in with him and Bruce. He could have stated that what they were going to speak about was Top Secret or some other bullshit reason, but then his empathy ignited hearing Betty's reasoning for wanting to listen.

Which led him to his latest missed opportunity. After hearing the statement that Bruce wasn't speaking with her, he could have jumped on that and asked for her to leave. Instead, he immediately thought of himself and MJ and how he tended to push her away. Could you blame the guy for trying to go against that when it was in front of his face? Peter thought trying to help Bruce by saving him from some heartache was the least he could do for revealing Bruce's identity to SHIELD. So now that left Peter to come up with a way to not only get Peter Parker out of this meeting quickly. So he didn't have to try and meet Bruce tomorrow as well. But also a way to leave Betty without alienating her since he's pretty sure he's made it into her top ten list of people she wants to keep around, 'Maybe top five if I'm lucky,' and ruining a friendship for a time issue was not worth it in his opinion.

They made it to a door with an ID scanner and intercom next to its handle. Betty pressed a red button on the intercom, and Peter could hear a buzzing noise through the door, alerting the occupants in the other room.

Shortly afterward, a pair of footsteps drew nearer before stopping. The crackle of a mic turning on greeted Peter and Betty. "Name and business?" Bruce's voice rang out. It sounded tired and hollow before the mic shut off.

Peter searched for a separate button to speak and noticed a grey button next to the red one Betty pushed. "Peter Parker, I'm here to meet with Dr. Banner."

The mic crackled again, a sigh coming through clear as day. "I'm opening the door. You're late, Mr. Parker." Shortly after finishing his statement, Bruce opened the door allowing Peter and Betty to get a look at the man.

The first thing Peter noticed and wasn't surprised by was seeing Bruce wearing what might as well be his iconic white dress shirt and purple dress pants. He's sure that if he looked around deeper in his lab, he'd notice the matching purple coat lying around somewhere. The second and unfortunate thing to notice was the slow widening of Bruce's eyes beneath his circle-rimmed glasses as he saw Betty before they faded into one of faint annoyance and tiredness. 'That…doesn't bode well. I thought Bruce loved Betty.'

Without giving Peter time to answer for his tardiness, Bruce sighed and said. "Betty. I told you I'd find time to spend with you when I'm less busy. Now is not a good time. In fact, I'm about to have a meeting."

Looking contrite, Betty looked down at the floor. "Um, yeah, I know, Bruce. I was hoping I could just listen in. I wouldn't talk or anything…" She trailed off, obviously nervous and unsure of what to say.

Peter decided to cut in before Bruce dug himself into a hole he'd never get out of, or worse, damage Betty's self-worth due to her evident care for Bruce's opinion. 'I thought these two loved each other? What, did I happen to meet them while they were fighting?' Peter stepped forward. "Hey, Dr. Banner, sorry for being late General Ross directed my father and me to meet with him instead when we arrived, which was a hassle and a half. Then Captain America showed up, and it was a war getting out of the building since it felt like the whole Air Force came to see him." He placed a hand on Betty's shoulder, not missing the narrowing of Bruce's eyes at his action. "Thanks to Betty, though, I made it out in one piece. I asked her what her reward should be, and she asked if she could sit in on our meeting. I thought, why the heck not since it's not like we'll be building anything today, mainly discussing the project."

Bruce stared as his brain processed Peter's statements before shaking his head. "You–Ross, what? Captain America is alive?" He facepalmed before shaking his head. "Look, just get inside. Betty, you can stay, I guess. Just please, no distractions."

Betty nodded in agreement and beamed at Peter when Bruce turned around, motioning for them to follow.

"You're right. We aren't building anything today. SHIELD has asked me to work on a water purification unit and, if possible, make it mobile for normal humans to carry." He relayed, not stopping as they moved forward into his lab. Without turning around, he asked. "I understand you have a degree in Biophysics and Biochemistry?"

"That's correct, sir," Peter affirmed, looking around the lab. Multiple servers were in the room, giving it a gentle hum as they worked. A desk lay in the center of the room with a computer. Bruce's purple coat lay haphazardly over one of the chairs for it. A couple of piles of discarded paper took up one half. The other half lay empty save for two cups with what looked to be traces of water.

"Good. Good. I have some schematics already worked up. I want you to review them and let me know if there are any glaring errors. I want us to be able to give SHIELD a solid schematic for a large-scale purifier by the end of the week before we try working on a small portable version." Bruce ordered, not bothering to look at Peter before moving to the computer and beginning to type. Shortly after, the sound of a printer came alive, and Bruce stood up to walk into an adjacent room before coming back with a short stack of paper and handing it to Peter along with a red pen. "Mark any changes you think are needed; we can discuss them after."

With that, Bruce returned to his desk, pulling two chairs for Peter and Betty.

'Well, this isn't much of a meeting.' Peter thought to himself with a sigh. And based on the hurt look in Betty's eyes, she must think similarly to Peter. 'No use arguing with him, though, and since I'm here, I might as well look over his work.' With that, Peter sat in the chair, placed his backpack on the floor, and reviewed Bruce's work.

Ten minutes passed in relative silence as Peter marked where he thought there could be an improvement, Bruce continued typing, and Betty sat still, looking like she wanted to speak, and sometimes not even to Bruce but to Peter. However, Bruce's words of "no distractions" prevented her from voicing herself… That is, until she couldn't take it.

"Where's Rick?" Betty suddenly asked, causing both Peter and Bruce to look at her.

Bruce sighed. "Rick's getting food. I think he said something about pizza."

Peter frowned, "How long ago was that?"

Bruce glanced down at the corner of his screen. "About ten minutes. I gave him the keys to my car. He should be back any minute now, actually."

BRZZZTBRZZZTBRZZZT

"Can you get that, Betty?" Bruce asked, absorbed again into his work as the sound of typing started up again.

Betty got up, smiling, just happy to do something. "Sure, Bruce."

Waiting shortly, Peter was greeted by the sight of a brown-haired youth just a little shorter than Peter himself, wearing a red sports jacket and blue jeans, and carrying two pizza boxes. Following him was Betty, who was chatting amicably with the youth.

"–ink you'll have time to play games?" Betty asked.

Rick shook his head, "Not often. I'm usually helping Bruce and your dad, Betty. " Turning to face Bruce fully, Rick did a double take at seeing Peter.

Peter waved. "Yo."

Rick waved a hand slowly. "Yo…" He trailed off, setting down the pizza. "This the guy then, Bruce?"

"Yup." The physicist supplied in detail.

"Huh. You know I was expecting someone more…" Rick trailed off, looking uncomfortable.

"Skinnier?" Betty supplied, giggling at her suggestion.

"Uh, no, not just that. Older, really." Rick winced after finishing his statement before looking at Peter in surprise at seeing no reaction. "That doesn't bother you that I said that?"

Peter raised an eyebrow. "Should it?" Peter saw Rick's face redden in embarrassment.

"Nope. Just uh, not many kids my age can help Bruce is all." Rick continued before taking a seat and grabbing himself a slice. Betty followed soon after.

Peter shrugged before continuing to work on reviewing Bruce's schematics. He was almost done, hopefully with a short conversa– He paused to strain his ears. A hissing noise emanated from down the hall.

Spider-Sense: Bomb launching the door inward!

Time slowed to a crawl as adrenaline spiked through Peter. He was already moving to stand. Looking down the hallway, he saw an orange glow erupting from the door's seams, the metal beginning to warp. 'Betty will be in the way of the door if it's strong enough to launch it.' Peter tackled Betty out of the way and covered her body with his.

"Oof. What? Pete–Ahhh!" Betty screamed and closed her eyes, hugging herself against Peter as the blast went off with an earthshaking BOOM!

True to Peter's worry, the explosion launched the metal door straight down the hallway, where it embedded into the wall, its wind current blowing away the mess of paper, pizza boxes, and Bruce's jacket around the room.

In the wake of the explosion, Peter heard Rick panting, on the verge of sobbing, and Bruce hyperventilating. Betty was catatonic, her eyes locked onto the door jammed into the wall.

A swarm of footsteps and the rustle of metal on cloth reached Peter's ears. He glanced up to see men in green body suits with a familiar serpent motif etched on the center of their chests in yellow carrying rifles and magazines. 'Hydra.' Peter thought with a sigh. He really regretted not taking those opportunities to don his costume earlier. It would make it harder to get out of this if they were of the fanatical type.

"Target disoriented moving to secure." One of the men spoke into his radio. His eyes roamed over the original occupants of the room, starting with Banner before zeroing in on Peter. "Parker." His voice dripped with venom, alerting the rest of his men, who all stared at Peter.

Spider-Sense: MOVE MOVE MOVE

Without further warning, the man raised his rifle and began firing center mass on Peter. Peter yelped and apologized mentally to Betty before hiding her more petite frame against his and curling into as much of a ball as he could so his armor could take the hail of bullets. The force behind each one gave a resounding Thump!

Click Click Click

"Scheisse! Hurensohn! " The man hurriedly ejected the empty magazine. "Stay still, you little shit. Keep protecting your girlfriend." He fumbled with grabbing a new magazine in his haste, more angry curses of German escaping his mouth.

Peter felt time slow again as his mind scrambled for what he could do. He didn't want to showcase his powers, but it looked like he might have to. To protect his Spider-Man identity, he'd have to explain them somehow being a subset of his previous lie to his parents. He also hoped his clothes didn't appear so shredded that they showcased his undersuit. He was hinging on the fact that he could say he was wearing body armor. Calming down now that he had a plan, he peeked his head up and around to quickly plan his attack.

'Let's see, eight men, seven of whom are just gawking at the one maniac who just shot me an–'

"YOU MOTHERFUCKERS!" Bruce yelled out. Calling attention to the man. He glared at the man who had just shot at Peter, his skin becoming light green. "Don't you dare touch Bet–ARGH!"

'Ah fuck.' Peter thought to himself in horror as he watched Bruce quickly morph into the Hulk, Bruce's body growing exponentially to the horror of Hydra. 'And Betty…' Peter thought to himself as he heard her gasp in fear and hug herself tighter to him.

The Hulk let out a scream of rage as he reached for the man, his compatriots quickly skirting away as the man stood stock still in horror. The green being grabbed the man, and Peter could only watch in shock as the Hulk squeezed the life out of him. The Hydra terrorist only let out a single cry for help before the sounds of squelching flesh and crushing bone emanated from the Hulk's fist before the mutilated body dropped to the floor.

"Oh, God," Betty whispered in terror. She shook against Peter.

Blood dripped down from the Hulk's fists as he raised them in the air to scream at Hydra. "DEATH TO YOU, HUMANS IN GREEN!" With a sweep of his arms, he barreled through four of the terrorists, their bodies crashing into the wall before falling to their floor lifeless.

"Quick call for backup!" One of the Hydra men yelled before firing wildly at the Hulk. The bullets flattened against his skin before pinging uselessly against the floor. "Crapcrapcrapcrap, ARGHHHHH," The man yelled as he was tossed away into a wall of the room.

"–the target is now a large green monster tearing us apart. We need backup now!" One of the last two remaining men screamed as his ally tried peppering the Hulk from afar, catching his attention.

Peter was in a daze watching as Hulk smacked the moving terrorist to the floor, a meaty whack signifying either his death or unconsciousness. The last Hydra member whimpered as the radio crackled something in reply. Peter couldn't hear it clearly over the Hulk's heavy breath.

"AHHHHH!" The Hydra agent screamed in defiance as he fired up into the larger being's chin. The click of the empty magazine signaled the end of his bravado, and the Hulk flicked the man's forehead shortly after, the man collapsing.

Hulk snorted. "Weak. All you humans are weak." He paused before turning around to stare at Peter – no, through Peter. He was looking at Betty, who whimpered at noticing his gaze. Used to the Hulk's expressions, Peter saw the hurt that spread across his face at seeing Betty cower beneath Peter before it settled into a sneer. "Don't need any of you." It was due to that statement that Peter scrambled to stand and bring Betty up as the Hulk stalked forward.

"Hulk, no!" Rick shouted, scrambling to stand, tears falling from his face.

"Shut it, twerp. I just want to talk." Hulk grunted, standing in front of Peter, staring over him to look at Betty.

"Move, twerp number two," Hulk commanded.

Peter grimaced, feeling Betty shiver behind him. Despite his instinctive movement to move her, he did believe the Hulk when he said he just wanted to talk. The Hulk didn't have it in him to be deceptive if no one told him to be. The Hulk was like a child, and Peter knew the Hulk was possibly a manifestation of Bruce's repressed feelings as a child. But he didn't have just the Hulk's side to consider. There was Betty's as well. And just because Peter knew the Hulk was like a child doesn't mean he would get his way.

"Sorry there, big guy, but something tells me the lady doesn't want me to move," Peter said with a nervous smile, hoping that would be enough to stop the Hulk.

Hulk grunted.

Spider-Sense: I'd tell you to move, but we both know you won't

As expected but surprisingly gentle for the Hulk, he grabbed Peter and tossed him far enough to knock the wind out of a typical teen. Meaning Peter had to act the part as he stared at the Hulk.

"Peter!" Betty cried, tears streaming down her face as the Hulk moved to grab her.

Rick tackled the Hulk's extended arm. "Hulk, stop. You know this is wrong." Rick sobbed.

Not stopping Hulk grunted again and elbowed the teen to the floor. That snapped Betty out of her fear enough to try and run away. Unfortunately, it was too little too late, and at seeing his large hands wrap around her waist, she let out another scream of fear before fainting.

The Hulk let out a grunt of frustration. "Why? Why are you scared of Hulk? Hulk just saved you! Why is anyone scared of Hulk? Hulk just wants to be left alone, not-not scared of!"

A Hydra radio, still functioning, crackled to life. "Hydra 48, are you still there? Reinforcements inbound to help secure the target. Command has decided to their losses on destroying Captain America or Richard Parker and his spawn. Just hold out for a few more minutes!"

'Oh sweet, if the Hulk heard that…'

The Hulk snarled. "Humans in green are still around then. Hulk will change that." Unfortunately, the Hulk did not drop Betty while planning to go into battle.

Peter sat up, "Wait, Hulk! Leave Betty! She shouldn't be put in harm's way!" He cried. Momentarily forgetting he needed to act injured.

The Hulk stopped, staring at Betty. "No. Hulk needs to show Betty he can protect her. That Hulk isn't scary." He started walking again, piece said. "Don't follow Hulk twerp number two. That goes for you as well, twerp number one."

"But Hulk…" Rick gasped, still lying on the floor, winded.

The two teens watched as the green being stomped down the hallway out of the building.

Peter looked to Rick, who was busy staring at the corpse of the Hulk's first target. "Can you walk, Rick?" Peter got no response as Rick's face was stuck in horror. "Rick?" Peter grew restless. "RICK!" He shouted. Getting the teen to jump at his voice.

"Wh-what?" The terrified teen asked.

Peter grimaced. He hated having to be stern. "I asked if you could walk. Someone needs to get help. I'm new to the base. I'd just get lost, especially if there's a battle going on out there. Do you know where you could go for help?"

Rick shifted. "I mean, there's General Ross. He's the only one I can think of to go to help. I mainly stick with him if I'm not around Bruce." He slowly turned to look at the mutilated corpse again in horror. "But I'm not…" He drifted off, tears falling again from his face.

"Rick!" Peter shouted, and the other teen turned to look at him. "Stop looking at him. I know it's horrifying, especially since I'm assuming your closest friend just did something you never thought he could do, but Rick, I need you to stay with me here." The other boy nodded slowly. "Good. Now, I don't hear the sounds of a battle, so odds are you should be fine leaving the building. Do you think you know where General Ross is to tell him what happened here?"

Rick nodded. "Uh yeah, yeah, I think I do."

"Great. I need you to go there and ask him to send help. We don't know if Hydra will send another group to collect information on projects that Bruce has made or stored here." Peter ordered, trying to speak as calmly and clearly as he could.

The teen nodded again in affirmation, "Yeah, yeah, I can do that." He paused, wincing. "But what about you, man? You got shot! Isn't that more important? What if you're bleeding out!"

Peter waved a hand dismissively. "Don't worry about me. I'm wearing some experimental body armor, and the asshole shot center mass only. I am winded, however, and my back feels bruised to all hell. The Hulk throwing me did my back no favors as well. If I tried following you, I'd just slow you down."

The youth looked unsure. "If you're not bleeding out, I can still take you with me, man. I have Bruce's car, and if you need space to lie down, we have a back seat."

Peter felt guilty. Rick was a good kid, and if Peter were just the Parker Scion only, he'd have jumped at the chance to get to safety. Unfortunately…

Peter shook his head. "Thanks, Rick. I mean it, but someone needs to stay here and start handling what little security is possible for Bruce's data. Plus," He pulled out his phone. "I can call SHIELD. I'm sure my dad has by now, but it doesn't hurt to let them know about this myself. I'm sure they'll also send a team here to help me."

Rick still looked unsure but sighed and nodded to Peter, throwing one more horrified glance at the Hydra corpse. "Uh yeah. You got it, man. I'll try to head back here asap. You shouldn't be here too long."

Peter grinned gravely. "I know. I'll be waiting. Go on. I'll be fine."

Rick gave another shaky nod and jogged down the hallway, his footsteps fading.

Sighing in relief, Peter stood up and walked to his backpack. It was time to suit up.

Suited up, Spider-Man sprinted out of the building and leaped up to get a better view of the base and simultaneously activated his comm system to call Val, who quickly answered.

"Spider-Man!" Val shouted, the sound of gunfire momentarily drowning out her voice before someone shouted 'Clear'. "Where have you been? We've been trying to reach you for 10 minutes."

Peter sighed in relief noticing only a few places where destruction seemed to be located. "Dealing with a Hydra squad and then dealing with getting tossed around by the Hulk."

"Wait, it took you 10 minutes to deal with a Hydra squad and fail to subdue the Hulk? The Skrulls were harder to take down then these wannabe's and Fury said you could take down the Hulk if it came down to it. What gives?" Val asked incredulously.

The hero sighed. "I was in my civilian identity."

"In your– What was the point of getting Captain America to visit and distract Ross and your father if you were still going to be in your civilian identity when you met with Dr. Banner?" Val growled.

"Er…I kinda maybe sorta had a tag along in the name of one Elizabeth Ross." Peter said while jogging toward the nearest bout of fighting, seeing it had another Hydra squad of six deploying suppressive fire on Air Force personnel that were defending the office of a building. Turning off his mic he brought the furthest one back to the floor and webbed him to the street. "Hey now, why didn't anyone invite me to this party?" His statement grabbed the attention of both sides which he took advantage of while Val berated him.

"You know," Val started, as Peter struck like lightning the closest enemy to him and swept his legs before webbing him down.

"I think your insistence," Spider-Man dived for the farthest one from the group that decided to just now raise their weapons, the man gasping for breath as Peter slammed him into the ground.

"About keeping your identity," The hero attached two web-lines to the nearest terrorist and pulled slamming them against each other.

"A secret from your parents," Spider-Man yanked the two remaining agents' feet out from under them and covered them in webbing giving a sigh of relief and turned to see the Air Force members staring at him in shock.

"Is going to get someone killed." The Air Force members continued staring for another half-second before cheering in excitement. Peter smiled beneath his helmet and gave a mock salute before sprinting off toward the next battle he remembered there being.

"Are you even listening anymore?" Val asked aggravated.

Peter turned on his mic functionality again. "What yeah of course, I just had to deal with a single Hydra squad real quick, they were holding down another building with suppressive fire."

Val sighed. "That doesn't– nevermind, look can you go to these coordinates, Natasha messaged me about the Hulk fighting Captain America while holding General Ross's daughter. SHIELD needs you to prove your claim."

Peter frowned, as the coordinates appeared on his HUD. "Yeah that's not good. On my way. And Val?"

"What Spider-Man?"

"I'm sorry if I caused you any trouble, I didn't mean to." Peter apologized, hoping he didn't anger her too badly, he understood the possibility of trying to keep his identity a secret and someone getting hurt because of it. It's why if it really came down to it, he'd throw it away.

"Oh get over yourself Peter I'm just mad you weren't answering, I thought you might have died… So don't die." Val grumbled before turning off her end of the comm.

Spider-Man stopped running to process that statement. Did… he… mess up again? He shook his head. 'Got a lady to save Parker.'

"RAGHHHH" Hulk yelled, slamming a fist into Captain America's shield just as Peter arrived. A muted CLANG rang out as the proto-adamantium dispersed the force of the attack.

The two combatants, and one hostage, were alone, excluding the unconscious Hydra agents lying around them, with a sizeable amount of open street between two barricades, one ran by SHIELD personnel and the other by the Air Force, where Peter could see General Ross and Rick at the forefront. 'Good, glad he found him…Oh crap I hope if Ross sent men SHIELD handled it, I don't wanna come up with an excuse for why I'm not there.'

"LEAVE HULK ALONE!" The Hulk screamed into America's first hero's face.

Captain America frowned. "I'm afraid I can't do that. You have a young woman who is unconscious and from the sounds of it, would want to be with her family. Just let the young lady down and we can talk about this Hulk."

Hulk snorted angrily and glanced down at the Air Force barricade before turning back to Captain America. "LIAR! You're with them!"

Spider-Man decided that was the time for him to jump in and shot a web-line out to grab Betty. The plan however, did not take into account just how badly the Hulk wanted to hold onto the young woman, even to the detriment of her health. As Betty slipped through his fingers the Hulk clamped his hand tighter around her, causing her to let out a groan.

The spider hero immediately slackened his hold on his web-line and tsked. Not expecting the Hulk to go so far.

Feeling his hold steady the Hulk growled and ripped off the web-line. "Who are you?"

Peter took on a cheery tone and said. "Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man." He wagged his finger. "Now Hulk, no one here wants to hurt you, but you have to learn you can't just take what you want, especially if it's a person. You wouldn't like it if someone else took you away without your permission would you?"

The Hulk stilled, processing the information before shaking his head growling. "Hulk didn't do anything first humans did."

Peter sighed and took the moment to look over Captain America. Steve looked completely fine other than a few scuff marks from debris here and there on his uniform. He was wearing his mask now. Peter activated the Captain's earpiece communicator and added himself to the line, nodding. "Captain."

Steve nodded back. "Spider-Man."

"You willing to let me continue talking to him." Spider-Man asked, turning his head back to keep Hulk in his vision, the gamma mutate staring at him.

Captain America sighed. "You're welcome to, Hulk didn't wanna respond to me at first until I got General Ross to stand down, but even then you saw how he tried to punch me."

Spider-Man sighed, "Yeah sounds like the Hulk. If it comes to it we'll fight but hopefully not." He stepped forward earning a growl from the large foe. "Woah. Easy there big guy, I'm just coming closer to talk. See?" He asked, stepping closer with his arms up.

Now only a few feet away Peter lowered his arms down. "Why don't we talk this out Hulk? Why can't you let Ms. Ross go?"

The Hulk snarled before grumbling, "Banner likes the pretty lady. And pretty lady likes Banner. But so does Hulk. Hulk wants…Hulk wants a friend. Banner is weak, can't protect friends. But Hulk can. So Hulk wants to stay with Banner's friends."

Peter sighed internally. And there it was, an innocent want, with the naivety to go with it. Peter doubted the Hulk was ready to hear that you can't force a friendship on someone, let alone doing so when they are terrified of you and then you go around causing mayhem. His mind drifted back to the dead Hydra member, that probably would taint Betty's view of both Banner and the Hulk for years to come. But he was getting off track, if he couldn't explain the sometimes harsh reality of making friends, he'd have to try and explain that what the Hulk doing was still wrong and try to channel his empathy.

"That's pretty impressive of you to step up like that for Banner, Hulk." Spider-Man started, knowing the Hulk's underlying want to protect Banner. "But can you think of Banner's friends as well and how they feel? It'd be like if I tried to come in and step in for you and Banner."

Hulk growled raising a fist. "Bug man won't replace Hulk."

Peter raised his hands again, "Hey, hey, I said it would be like. Not that I'm about to step in for you. I'm trying to show you how they might feel. They don't know me right? So they'd probably be confused? Maybe scared about where you or Banner are?"

The Hulk was silent as he contemplated Spider-Man's words.

The hero continued. "I know you really don't want to hurt anyone Hulk, but you have to realize if you keep Banner's friends away from him you will be hurting not only them, but people who care for them."

"Pretty lady's father started it." Hulk interjected, as though to waive his right to being wrong.

Peter nodded agreeing. "That may be so, but you took it a bit farther than just defending yourself haven't you? I've heard of random people's houses or buildings getting destroyed because you're angry."

"They looked at Hulk funny."

Spider-Man sighed outwardly. He could relate, sometimes he'd get angry as well with some random New Yorker dogging him. "I know how that feels Hulk, but just because they looked at you funny doesn't mean you get to destroy their homes." Peter took a chance and walked up close enough to lay a hand on the Hulks left hand, the one holding the still unconscious Betty. "Let Betty go Hulk. No one has to be hurt anymore. I actually have a proposition for you, I bet you want to help people more than Banner right? What abo–"Peter froze as his spidey sense screamed at him.

Spider-Sense: Net incoming! Move out of Angry Hulk's way!

"No" Peter whispered in horror. In painful slow motion, as his adrenaline activated, he looked past the Hulks shoulder. Groups of airmen lined up with net launchers. The man leading the group yelled "fire". Peter rushed past the Hulk , his body moving so slowly still to his eyes and fired multiple webs, hoping to stop the attack before it could begin, but knowing it'd be useless even if he did. He was too late, as the net launchers already released their cargo. All Peter could do was stop the nets from working as intended. There wasn't many Peter noted absentmindedly as the nets stayed securely wrapped thanks to his webs, but as the rush of blood ended he felt his mood drop as the Hulk turned to stare.

Silence erupted and Peter thought he heard Natasha swear, but Peter focused on the Hulk. He noted how his eyes went from surprise to betrayal, and then anger. "Liar." Hulk whispered.

Spider-Man shook his head, frustration welling up within him. "No. No I swear I didn't have anything to do with this Hulk." He pleaded, hoping his words would reach the gamma mutate.

The Hulk stared hard at Peter, and then drifted his eyes around to the webbed-up nets before nodding. "Hulk believe Bug man." Peter sighed in relief. "But Hulk can't trust humans. They won't leave Hulk alone." Peter's heart fell and he scrambled to try and save the situation.

"Hulk I know what they did was wrong, but we're in their home and they didn't hear the conversation we just had." At least, Spider-Man hoped they didn't hear it. If they did, he was going to be even more frustrated.

Hulk paused before nodding. "Then Hulk will leave their home. Goodbye Bug man." Hulk jumped and Peter's heart raced again slowing his perception down again, he had a decision to make. Let the Hulk go and leave Betty to deal with what would be a well-meaning but still horrifying creature to deal with for who knows how long if he gets away, with her last image was of the Hulk squeezing a man to death that was sure to go well, or stop the Hulk, save Betty and deal with what will be the equivalent to a petulant child with the power to level cities. He sighed. That wasn't a real choice at all.

Spider-Man shot a web-line to the Hulk's feet and pulled slamming him down, cracking and denting the pavement. "I can't let you leave without letting Betty go Hulk."

"Bug man made huge mistake." Hulk said, from his back, fist raised to hold Betty.

"Bug man probably did." Peter quipped, sighing to himself as the Hulk stood up to glare at him. He nodded to Steve and whispered, "You handle his left." With that Spider-Man blitzed the gamma mutate ducking under his rising fist and webbing his right foot. He pulled, stumbling the Hulk enough for Steve to land a solid hit in with his shield against the back of the Hulk's left knee, bringing the giant to a kneel.

Hulk grunted making to stand, but Spider-Man never let him get a proper stance peppering him with blows or kicks causing the Hulk to raise his free hand to block, it being large enough to protect him. The Hulk tried swatting Captain America, but the WWII hero kept his distance, taking a guaranteed hit when available with his shield.

"Now!" Peter screamed. It was a distraction that Peter didn't communicate one bit and yet Captain America ducked forward as though to reach and grab Betty. The Hulk turned, alarmed leaving his head wide open as the Hulk tried to catch Captain America.

Spider-Man ducked forward in a crouch and jumped up in a corkscrew his fist connecting with the Hulk's chin, the gamme mutate's head flung back and his body slightly rose into the air. Peter finished his attack with a knee kick.

"SHORYUKEN!" He shouted in glee, letting the moment of actually being able to land the move overtake him.

Landing, and knowing it would take more than that to put down the Hulk, Spider-Man rushed forward stepping on the Hulk's chest, and threw a couple of haymakers, his speed allowing him to do so freely without worrying about the telegraphed nature.

The Hulk grunted at each hit and began wildly reaching with his right hand for Peter. Dodging the flailing limb Peter quickly stepped back into his previous position before repeating the movement. 'Come on, come on, come on!'

Spider-Sense: Meaty left hook incoming!

'Finally!' Peter stepped backward, dodging the now empty fist that flew by his face. The hero switched to dispensing his impact webs filled with concrete webbing and let loose on the Hulks limbs they quickly became trapped allowing the gamma mutate no leverage and Peter sighed in relief and turned to Captain America, who was holding Betty. "Get her out of here, this won't hold him long."

Steve made to protest. "But what ab–"

"No, just go, I got it from here, keep the others back" Spider-Man didn't wait to hear Steve confirm before speaking into his communicator. "'Tasha, Val, Fury any of you on Steve's line?" The Hulk howled and Peter sighed webbing his mouth.

"I'm here Spider-Man." Natasha responded, voice sounding irritated.

'God that better not be with me.' He sighed, "Tell me where SHIELD build the gas chamber, give me coordinates I don't want to wait for the Hulk to change, he's bound to get angrier and escalate the situation."

"Is the situation not already escalated enough?" The spy sighed not waiting for his reply. "Sending them now, controls are on the outside good luck getting there though, it's past the Air Force barricade and Ross has already shown he's unwilling to quit while he's ahead."

Peter sighed, of course it wouldn't be an easy finish. "Yeah, story of my life. Don't worry I have an idea. I can only hope the Hulk forgives me." Seeing the new coordinates pop up on his hud Peter nodded to himself and crouched reaching for one of the Hulk's legs. Pulling the limb free Peter grunted from the immediate fight the Hulk put up and tugged on the limb until the Hulk's others were free and immediately began spinning in a circle the Hulk letting out a muffled yell as he was spun.

'God I hope my aim is good, I don't think I've actually tried spinning so fast before.'

Spider-Man released Hulk and sent him flying well past the barricade, outside of the base and into an open field with a small group of buildings in the center.

'Okay, now to just follow him.' Peter thought to himself with a sigh before sprinting toward the Air Force barricade and jumping well over it.

Peter blinked as he was landing and switched the channel over to the one he knew Steve wasn't on. "Oy, someone better be thinking of a way to distract my dad. There's no way in hell he's not trying to look for me."

"SHIELD will think of something." Val said with a laugh, her giddiness apparent.

"Great!" Peter thought with a smile. He sprinted toward where the Hulk should have landed.

Arriving shortly after his conversation with Val, Spider-Man wasn't surprised to see the crater the Hulk made was empty, the sounds of destruction, from what he could now tell were warehouses, rang out clearly across the field.

"STUPID HUMANS ALWAYS GETTING IN THE WAY. HULK WILL KILL THEM ALL!" Hulk raged, voice hoarse.

Peter sighed, frustration welling up inside him again. 'Maybe I can talk him down again? If I can't I hope he didn't mess up the one SHIELD outfitted.'

"Hey Hulk it's Spider-Man, you calm down yet?"

"BUG MAN!" Hulk screamed, the sound of something barreling through buildings began. The Hulk finally bursting through the warehouse to Peter's right before throwing a wild haymaker.

Even without Peter's spidey sense, he would have been able to dodge the long wind up attack thanks to his reflexes. Dodging around the fist Peter narrowed his eyes, realizing he's in for another long fight at this rate since the goal was to change Hulk back into Dr. Banner. He didn't think the Hulk was up for any of his jokes right now.

"RARGH! BUG MAN IS JUST A LIAR! A BIG LIAR!" Hulk screamed, spittle flying out.

"Yeah well you left me no choice big guy!" Peter screamed back.

"HULK WILL KILL YOU!" The green giant screamed, digging his hands into the pavement below their feet.

Spider-Man narrowed his eyes. 'Dammit, if only I had a way to–Oh.' The hero channeled the chaotic aspect of the web, his metaphorical Dyson sphere suffusing his body with power. Everything slowed except for Peter, his body moving just as fast is it normally would. 'I didn't want to have to use this on Hulk, but I'm getting tired of this…I'll just use it for a bit.' Rushing forward Spider-Man landed a sucker punch to the Hulk's stomach the wave impact visible to his eyes as the Hulk's body lifted up and backward.

Bruce Banner/The Hulk

The Hulk rocketed backward like a bullet and crashed into two of the buildings behind before slamming down against the floor. Gasping, the gamma mutate made to rise before he felt a small hand lift him from his neck and land another unseen punch into his stomach rocketing him away again.

'Hulk is…HULK IS ANG–GAH'

Another unseen punch, this time aimed at his head rocketed his head toward the ground, interrupting his thoughts

Peter Parker/Spider-Man

Seeing the Hulk's head ricochet off the ground Peter quickly looked for the marked warehouse and felt relief at seeing the eagle painted clearly on the side and knocked the Hulk's body toward the warehouse.

He opened the hangar door, sparks flying due to the speed and slammed it shut as the Hulk passed through. He heard the Hulk groan on the other side and saw as he stumbled to stand up. Peter scrambled to find the controls and sighed in relief at finding the controls right near the hangar doors and slammed the 'on' button.

Pink gas quickly filled the warehouse and Peter was able to see through a clear window pane, that he hoped was just as thick as the warehouse walls looked like, that the Hulk was gasping for air. Clutching at his mouth. Eventually the green giant fell over, snoring before slowly but surely a small slimm figure lay in his place.

Peter sighed and sat up against the wall.

What a day.

'Ah but it's not over.' He thought tiredly.

But maybe he could take a small break?

Aaaaaaand we're done. Wow that took a lot longer to write than I thought. Mainly, because of the fight scene and it's rewrites. I was making callbacks within the chapter or referenced things within the chapter I had to change sometimes the entire beginning if I wasn't satisfied with the fight! The end result is this...I hope it was worth it! And that the few references or jokes here or there lightened the mood, or described personal feelings brought you deeper into the story!

Anyways, it's time for THE MARVEL RANT - Please skip till you see the '-' if you do not want to read it.

First, took a gander at the Spider-Verse comic, all I will say is I do not like the new OC's joining in. The only one I kinda tolerate was Night Spider, but that was simply because she is a variant of Felicia. I'll still hold judgement on the arc overall but I'm not feeling it chief.

Next, the fucking disaster that is ASM. One, Betty has a son, which kills any potential she had as a love interest under this Marvel management staff. So that's a bummer, well I wouldn't be surprised if they became hypocrites and allowed Peter to raise a child that wasn't his. (This isn't a diss to step-dads btw, but mainly the principle that they won't allow Peter the chance to raise his own.)
Second, Betty has a kid? WTF?! xD I mean, I wasn't of the mind that Betty and Ned never consummated their marriage (I'm not that fanatical xD), but after all Ned has done, and his disappearance for over year she decides to have a kid? WTF?! xD And then she thinks Ned "isn't" the Hobgoblin again just because a machine might have brainwashed him? (Okay this might be canon flaws since Spidey characters tend to fucking forget amnesiac villains always seem to relapse xD)
Which brings me to my next gripes...I was never the biggest fan of Ben or the clones and think they should have been the things retconned out instead of Peter and MJ's marriage, that said I respected the care most writers brought to Ben and Kaine...so to see what's happening with this prelude to Dark Web...They've completely undone Janine (Ben's love interest as an FYI to those not in the know) who's a Sexual Assault Survivor from her father who she killed in self-defense (but was charged with murder despite full proof showcasing her innocence - that's another can of worms btw but this is about now not the "before times") into a woman who decided to move past all that into...well as a hot-blooded male I gotta say Hallow's Eve be looking THICC but wtf Marvel? You decide to make this character a villain? xD Not to mention Ben, who's just...man words cannot describe my disappointment, again was never his biggest fan but even Spidey clones can't catch a break though his actions are kinda irredeemable IMO xD
There's of course rumblings already of Norman relapsing (who woulda thunk it!?) but this is...man idk. Sailing the seven seas is the only reason I even feel it's worth the read now.
Oh yeah, and apparently Peter, after being in who know's how long a relationship with Felicia multiple times (cuz yeah he's getting back with Felicia and by God do I hope Marvel doesn't fumble this but am likely praying for a miracle that God doesn't care for xD) collapsed after asking her out on a date...like my dude is 29 and has been in plenty of relationships with women, plenty of which he's asked out! And he never collapsed to his knees after xD

Oh and apparently Death (this is a Hulk thing btw but it's still pissing me off nonetheless) has "retired" and now a human, Marlo Chandler/Ricks wife in the comics (who was first Joe Fixit's GF as another FYI) is Death...WTF!? XD

- Rant over

Anyways, first to address some comments about Thor from last chapter, I know he's not really an alien and an actual god (small g is important xD), but Peter, who canonically went from Theist - Atheist - Theist, might have some cynical views on divinity, especially since he's able to go toe to toe with some of them despite being a human. (Albeit a super powered one) Regardless, he will be getting fact-checked later, specifically when the Asgardian Arc comes up (yes it's an arc, and no it won't be too long xD)

Onto this chapter...as I said it was a long thing to write and my first couple of drafts included Tessa not showing up in later parts but Peter reflecting on her words, I decided that they would be too heavy-handed, not to mention flow-breaking and instead satisfied myself with dropping what hints there are regarding her so far, the reason I didn't remove her part entirely is because that section is important to showcase not only her future interactions, but also hint at where Spider-Man is at with the public.

I hope I did Betty's POV justice, I spent a lot of time reading early comics and interspersed later Hulk comics to nail her voice. She seemed kinda timid/meek, but at the same time when finding something she enjoyed was all in on it. There is of course, her growth into a woman that is more confident in herself and able to voice her feelings better, but that will come later. Again I hope to do it justice. This brings me to my next topic to speak on, I hope the cracks I showed in Betty and Bruce's relationship (which are canonical for this point in time) are believable in written format XD And of course, our boy Peter unknowingly steps in to show Betty she doesn't necessarily need to rely on Bruce only for friendship/companionship...or that fucker Tyrranous xD

I of course also hope I did Thaddeus Ross justice, I felt he'd respect Peter's lineage and obvious physique but quickly grow irritated at his lack of want to join the military and, in his mind, rebellious attitude. We'll see more of him this next chapter, as those Air Men didn't do what they did by their lonesome xD

Oh that reminds me, Richard Parker canonically before the CIA was a Green Beret Captain, which was one of the most "epic" military career fields of the time, but I mentioned Delta (Delta Force) here because per the sliding timescale positions and titles like that would progress with the times and the most badass group coming from the Army itself is Delta Force! (there's also Intelligence Support Activity - which as an FYI is where Mary was assigned before the CIA, but I digress) and STS is the Air Force Tier 1 group "Special Tactics Squad" who are more of a jack of all trades since they can be assigned to any of the US tier 1 teams. - This was just me gushing and the last you'll hear of it from me outside the story (and even then I won't go into too much detail if its for some reason brought up again xD)

And then we have the Hulk...I've spoken about this with a few of you on FF, but to me the Hulk and most of his feats are overrated because of "Hiz Angah" and how he seemingly can solve any problem by just getting angry enough to where he can overwhelm his opponent, or come back to life...Needless to say that's not happening here if the opponent is too strong (Chaotic Enhanced Peter as an example) or he takes too much damage to regenerate (Again, Chaotic Enhanced Peter was wailing on him) BEFORE he gets a chance to really get angry (ie grow in strength). And even then, if he takes enough damage he will revert back to Banner. THAT SAID, I still hope I did Hulk justice and showcased that the only reason Peter seemingly stomped on him here was because: a) Hulk was handicapped by holding Betty, b) was not expecting Peter to be faster than he was and c) He was not expecting for Peter to then be so overwhelmingly strong versus him. I will have Peter acknowledge this next chapter, and would have done so this chapter if I didn't split it again xD

Ignoring the fight with the Hulk, which I think will anger fans of his, I hope I nailed his motivations, and the conversation between him and Peter was believable...oh and I hope it's easy to guess why out of all the Hydra agents only that one unlucky bastard died xD

Oh and I of course hope I nailed the Captain and the awe he received, along with making his contribution to the fight believable as well!...(And I hope people liked Val's concern, expect to see more of it and Natasha's own next chapter.)

With that peace! Hopefully I finish this next one faster than another month.

Thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed!