"Will we get our memories of him back from this?" Natasha asked, wondering if anyone could answer.
"I'd have thought not, but nobody has ever tried to bring the memories back like this, or even at all." Strange admitted.
"We saw Mr Hogan have a brief flash a few moments ago, I believe." Wong elaborated. "It's certainly possible we will all get our memories back. Though it does raise some questions."
"Why you did it." Tony dead-panned.
"And what happens if we do remember, since it seems we needed to forget, for this to be happening at all." MJ finished.
"Yes, and it's the answer to those questions that worries me." Strange spoke up. "Also, I see we have two other men who both act and look as if they are Spider-Man, yet neither wear a costume any of us recognise. That also worries me greatly."
"I'd love to tell you, Doctor, but I'm afraid that this time, seeing will be believing." Spider-Man 2 explained.
The scene changed to Peter riding the subway to school as "Two Months Later" flashed up on the screen. Peter sent a series of texts to Happy, wondering about the next mission, before scrolling through them, seeing hundreds sent, with no reply.
"Man, poor kid." Clint said, looking at how dejected Peter looked to not be getting a response.
"I may not remember this kid, but why are you ignoring him, Happy? We saw clips of the Germany stuff, clearly I don't want him neglected. I remember Spider-Man though, we had a good relationship, at least I thought so. Why would I not want my main guy on him?" Tony turned to Happy.
"I don't know. I mean, I don't ever recall these texts." Happy tried to defend his on-screen self, even if he found it indefensible himself. He may not remember any of these texts, but he knew he should have done more. Two months without a reply it seemed, what was the kid thinking by now?
Peter got to school to avoid been hit by a car, the driver calling out "Penis Parker!" As Peter walked through the school, he saw a school news report where one of the anchors was shot down for a homecoming dance by another.
"So you're a prick?" Natasha simply asked, glaring at Flash who wilted in his seat. He didn't remember this Peter kid, but Spider-Man had been his hero for years. To know he had been insulting him like that, he was just glad Spider-Man never bothered to string him up off the Empire State Building and leave him there all day.
"I...I guess." Flash simply said in the end, thinking if he was like this with this Peter now, he would undoubtedly do it again.
"Don't do it again." Steve simply said, staring Flash down who gulped.
"Yes, Mr America, Sir." Flash promised. He would try be better with others, he didn't want anything to do with angering the Avengers of all people.
Peter reached his locker to be greeted by a teen holding a Darth Sidious lego figure, asking Peter to join him in building a new Lego Death Star, the two of them geeking out over how many pieces it had, before Peter declined to help, saying he needed to be free for the Stark Internship.
"Wow, that's me!" Ned exclaimed, surprised he was in this. Man, he must have been really good friends with this Peter. How did he not remember him?
"Ned, are you alright?" MJ asked, looking to her best friend.
"No, I'm not. This guy is clearly meant to be my best friend, and I don't remember a thing about him!" Ned said, looking in horror at the version of himself he saw on screen, so carefree and happy with his friend. "How can I live with myself, not knowing my own life?"
"None of us remember this guy. But I can tell just from this you're good friends, Ned." Betty spoke up. "You do it because he's probably out there somewhere."
"She's right." Steve said. "You do it as they would do it for you."
Peter then blanked Ned as he saw a popular girl go by, talking to the female school news anchor, and watching her go by.
"There I am!" Betty exclaimed, surprised she would be in this that much.
"Is that Liz?" Abe asked.
"I haven't seen her in years." Cindy pouted.
"I hope she's doing ok." Ned agreed.
The scene changed to show a science class and the bully, Flash, being asked a question, getting it wrong, before the teacher called on Peter, who was busy watching clips of Spider-Man. He then answered the question correctly. Flash then told Peter he was dead.
"What if he is?" Scott asked the unasked question as Hope elbowed him and the rest of them, except Flash, glared at him. He could even sense under the mask that the other two were glaring at him as well.
In another class, Peter looked over notes for an improved formula for web fluid, mixing it in his desk as the teacher droned on.
"The kid's a genius!" Tony and Bruce both happily declared before looking at each other.
"I'm clearly the one adopting him, Bruce." Tony insisted.
In the canteen, Peter and Ned discussed whether the girl they had a crush on, Liz, had new clothes, Ned said we should stop staring, before a girl on their own table looked up, said it was too late and they were losers. Ned asked why she sat with them, she said as she had no friends.
"Well I'm your friend, MJ!" Ned insisted.
"Yeah, I know that, but we didn't really start talking until Sophmore year, did we?" MJ reminded him.
"Oh yeah."
Peter then talked with Mr Harrington about skipping debate club for his Internship, Flash stated he had never even met Tony Stark as the others begged Peter to come, including Liz. The other girl who sat with them stated that she had noticed he had quit other clubs already, saying she wasn't obsessed with Peter, just observant. They agreed Flash would cover for Peter at Nationals as Peter waited for school to end, being the first out of the door, he jumped the gate to the field below, making it to Queens fast.
"I mean, you're smart, but it seems Peter would have clearly been a better choice to be in the debate team." Abe pointed out as Flash preened that he was chosen.
"I mean, he's clearly a genius." MJ agreed.
"Definitely gonna scoop him up for Stark Industries when this is all over, we get the memories back and I somehow cheat death." Tony swore.
Strange frowned. It wouldn't be that simple, he could promise that. Tony had to die, that much was certain. He wasn't even sure how those from 2023 had forgotten this Peter, it must have been to do with coming back to life in this time.
Peter talked to a deli owner, Mr Delmar, asking how his daughter was as Delmar told his employee that Peter's aunt was hot. Delmar and Peter joked as Peter stroked his cat, Murph. Delmar asked how school was, Peter said he had better things to do, Delmar told him he didn't want to end up like Delmar, running a deli, Peter said it was a great job he had.
"The kid has got some stones." Clint remarked.
"Definitely a good game." Sam agreed.
"I like that he cared for the cat." Bucky said softly.
"My kid will not be working in a deli!" Tony insisted.
"Your kid?" Natasha asked, ribbing him.
"Clearly I'm his adopted father, I made him a new suit and sent Happy to him. I may not know him, but he's a genius, how can he not be my kid? I'll even tell him he is when I meet him again." Tony promised her.
Peter raced down a side alley, stripping off his top and trousers, revealing a six pack and toned body, before slipping on his Spider-Man suit as a onesie, pressing a button it fit to his body, webbing his backpack to a dumpster, he jumped onto a nearby roof and began to swing around, checking the neighbourhood, stopping a bike thief, giving an old lady directions, trying to stop a guy breaking into a car.
"Wow, he's built." Abe said, thinking on his own body development over the years.
"Definitely doesn't skip leg day." Ned stated.
MJ was having thoughts at the sight of his body. Bad thoughts.
"How has his identity not been revealed by now, webbing his clothes to dumpsters?" Clint bemoaned as Natasha grinned. Yep, she needed to give this kid pointers on discretion.
"God my tech is amazing." Tony bragged.
"Such a kind kid." Bruce marvelled.
"Well he's definitely a hero. Wait, didn't we fight him in Germany?" Sam asked.
"We got our asses kicked by a kid?" Bucky moaned as Steve laughed at his two friends misfortune.
The guy claimed the car was his as the alarm went off, the neighbours came out and began to complain, shouting at the car owner, Spider-Man and each other before an old man began to chat to a woman in another apartment, enquiring about her mother.
"Wow, gotta check first." Cindy chuckled.
"Does that old man look familiar to anyone else?" Tony asked.
"Yeah, I think I've seen him somewhere before." Natasha agreed.
"I thought he looked familiar." Rhodey agreed.
"Weird." Bruce said.
The scene cut to sunset, Peter telling Happy about the events of the day, complaining he could be doing more, catching his web fluid cartridge before he could stop it, he spotted a few men wearing balaclavas heading into a bank, muttering that there was finally something good.
"He's determined to prove himself. That could prove costly if he isn't careful." Natasha remarked.
"He'll be careful. He's a good kid." Spider-Man 3 spoke up before he could stop himself.
"Wait a minute, you've met him, haven't you? You're not Peter as well, are you? Either of you?" MJ asked as the two Spider-Men looked at each other before shaking their heads.
"Sorry but no. But we have met Peter, he's a great guy, really." Spider-Man 2 affirmed.
"We can see that. Why isn't he here though? Helping us to remember all of this?" Ned protested.
"I'm sure he would be if he could be, kid." Tony told him.
"I'm not entirely sure how this has all worked anyway." Wong said. "So I can't say why he isn't here."
Spider-Man stood leaning against the door as the robbers, wearing Avengers masks, used high tech equipment to open the bank ATMS. Spider-Man feigned amazement at the Avengers as they began to attack him, he greeted Thor and Hulk, saying it was good to meet them, but he thought Thor would be more handsome. He asked why Iron Man needed to rob ATM's as he was a billionaire, before being caught in an anti gravity beam and lifted into the roof and smashed into the floor repeatedly. Spider-Man still managed to quip "I'm starting to think you're not the Avengers."
"He's got as bad a sense of humour as you do, Tones." Rhodey remarked.
"Definitely quick with a quip." Steve agreed.
"I'm not sure if that's a bad thing or not." Wanda stated.
"Definitely a good thing. I've got the best sense of humour." Tony grinned.
"What is with all of that tech though?" Clint asked.
"Definitely something more than some low level street thugs should have." Natasha confirmed.
"It's gotta be tied to Toomes, right?" Bruce asked. "With us seeing him and his crew working on weapons."
Mr Delmar phoned the police to tell them that Spider-Man was fighting the Avengers in a bank, Peter tried to web up the crooks as they dropped their device, which went haywire, setting fire to the street, including Delmar's. Peter raced over to save Mr Delmar and Murph, only to find the criminals had escaped.
"At least he saved the cat and Mr Delmar. I remember his sandwiches, they were the best!" Abe cried.
"It's a shame he shut down. I'm glad his son took over after the Blip." Cindy agreed.
"They make the best sandwiches in Queens, he's a man of culture!" Ned happily cried.
Peter phoned Happy to tell him about the high tech weapons, only for Happy to tell Peter he was busy packing up Stark Tower as Tony had sold it and they were moving everything to the new Avengers compound upstate, telling Peter he hoped there was no cell reception there and saying Peter was free not to call him, to leave this threat alone, before hanging up.
"Happy, you can't be like that with your Spiderling." Cindy admonished him.
"My what?" Happy asked, confused and terrified.
Peter headed back to his apartment, crawling in across the ceiling, dropping to the floor and closing the door so May didn't see him, he turned around, taking off his Spider-Man costume, to see Ned sat on the bed, who dropped his Lego Death Star in shock, Peter looking back at him in shock too.
"Ned, I need you to track my phone!"
"This is the best thing that's ever happened to me!"
"Peter..." Ned sighed, memories hitting him as he saw the reveal on the screen before him.
"Ned, are you alright?" MJ asked him.
"Y-Yeah, I think so." Ned shakily said as everyone else in the room looked at him with concern. "I think I got some memories back, I remember him asking me to track his phone? And I said something about how it was the greatest thing ever for me to help him." Ned explained.
"Wow, that's great!" Spider-Man 2 spoke out and Ned was sure that under the mask, the guy was smiling.
"Why can't we remember anything?" Flash asked.
"Maybe it's like a significant moment with him, that awakens the memories?" Strange queried to Wong, who shrugged.
"I can't pretend I know how this works, Stephen!" He whispered to him.
Ned and Peter talked in hushed whispers about Peter and his secret, how Ned didn't believe he could keep it quiet, but when Peter pleaded, that he didn't want to upend May's life anymore than he already had, Ned agreed. Peter then kicked Ned out as he and May went to dinner together, Peter promising he would tell Ned about it all at school.
"So, I'm going to hope you keep his secret." Tony glared at Ned who gulped.
"I-I think I do." Ned sweated.