(A/N: I do not own Spiderman or Assassin's Creed. That right belongs to Ubisoft and Sony).
The next few weeks in Peter Parker's life were...fascinating to say the least. He had finally gotten with his dream girl, he was back on good terms with Harry, Liz had started talking to him again (Despite the objections of her best friend, Sally and her ex-boyfriend, Flash) as good friends. Things were starting to look up for him for the first time in a while.
Peter had been taught and trained by his Assassin Mentor, Alex Clayton, on their history, their creed and the techniques of theirs they had used throughout the millenia they had been around. He wasn't an Assassin or a trainee to be an Assassin. He was just a student.
The young boy had learned their skills quickly due to his enhanced durability. He was able to parkour seamlessly after a few sessions and he had learned to be more stealthy and use his surroundings to his advantage to hide in plain sight (Which wasn't an easy feat considering his bright red costume).
The lesson he was currently learning was about the creed of the Assassin Order which was broken down to a simple phrase: Nothing is True, Everything is Permitted. Six simple words but confusing ones when placed together.
"Nothing is True, Everything is Permitted. What do you think it means?" Alex said to Peter as he stood above him while the younger boy sat down on a bench.
They were in the middle of a secret base located somewhere in Queens, New York. Peter didn't know for sure. He was always told to go to a specific location, a different location each time and never the same place. Alex would always make him put on a blindfold as they went into a car and was driven to the new secret base apart from the warehouse where they were previously set up.
Peter was in his regular clothing as he scratched his chin and contemplated the creed and the message it was trying to present.
"I...I'm not sure. On the one hand, it seems very straightforward...and very cynical...but on the other hand, maybe it's not so simple and maybe it's not meant to be...like it's trying to tell a bigger story than what's actually presented" Peter said, looking up at his mentor.
Alex smiled at this answer.
"You have wisdom beyond your years, Peter. Indeed. On face value, this does indeed seem very cynical and depressing...and it would be if it was doctrination. However, it's just an observation, really. Of the nature of reality. For example, when I say Nothing is True, that's not me saying that literally nothing is true. That makes no sense. No. What I'm saying is the foundations of society are fragile and that we have to be the shepherds of our own civilization. When I say Everything is Permitted, I don't really mean that I believe that we should be able to do anything we want all the time. It goes against the tenets of our order. What I'm saying is that in life, we are presented with a great number of choices to make and no matter what, we have to own up to the choices that shape our destiny whether they be glorious...or tragic" Alex explained.
"Why not just say this? Why make it so cryptic?" Peter asked, curiously.
Alex shrugged. "I'm not sure. Maybe you're supposed to figure it out for yourself in some way or another. Maybe it allows people to delve into the deeper mysteries of why we're Assassins. Maybe it's short enough to get people's attentions. Any which way, it's the code we've lived by for thousands of years and will continue to live by for as long as we continue to roam the world"
"...Have you ever made choices you regret?" Peter asked, referring back to the part of his speech where Alex talked about living with choices. He asked because it was at this time relevant because over the past few months, he had made plenty of mistakes that he had since regretted.
"Every day of my life...however, I don't let it deter me from what I'm supposed to do every day: Defend the liberty of those who otherwise couldn't do it themselves" Alex said, somberly. He then looked at his phone and saw the time.
"Alright, I think that's enough for today. You know the drill" Alex passed Peter a blindfold. Peter rolled his eyes and obliged, tying it around his eyes.
Alex then led him outside their base to the same car that brought him here. Peter had to admit that this was not his favorite part of the trip, the lack of trust. He had wanted to bring it up to his mentor a few times that it was completely unnecessary. However, tonight, he had other things to worry about. Tonight was the night of the homecoming dance and he had to get ready to get dressed and pick up his date and girlfriend, Gwen Stacy. It was a day he had been looking forward to for a while.
Peter's mentor had driven him to a block away from his home where he wouldn't easily be seen by his aunt.
"Thanks, Alex. I'll see you soon" Peter said, waving at him as he got out of the car.
"See you around, Peter" Alex said, nodding at him before he started the car and drove away.
Peter walked back into his house and greeted his Aunt who was waiting for him in the kitchen with a kiss on the cheek.
"Hi, Sweetie. How was your day?" May asked, smiling at Peter.
"Pretty good. Managed to get some decent photos in" Peter said, lying. He had told May that he had taken up another shift at the Bugle to cover the sessions that Alex made him work.
"That's good. You're not working yourself to death, are you, sweetie. With all these activities of yours?" May asked like a concerned aunt would.
"Oh, I'll be okay, Aunt May. It's nothing I can't handle. Besides, I could use them on my transcripts" Peter said, shrugging.
"Oh, please, honey. You have a 4.0 in several AP classes. Any college would be crazy not to accept you" May chided.
"Well...you never can be too sure" Peter said, flushing.
"Well I am. Anyway, you really must be getting ready. Captain Stacy will be here soon to take you and Gwen over to the dance. I assume you won't want to keep them waiting" May said, observing the wall clock, seeing that it was around 30 minutes away from the time that Gwen and him agreed upon.
"Definitely not. Hate to get 'the look' from her again" Peter said, shuddering at the thought before he went upstairs to get dressed in his tux. He was looking pretty snazzy if he said so himself. He buttoned up his shirt, straightened out his bowtie and tied his leather shoes.
After looking at himself in the mirror one last time, he went downstairs. Just as he reached the last step, the doorbell rang. He grinned widely like an idiot and walked to the door to open it.
The sight he saw before him practically blew him away. Outside the door was Gwen in a long blue, sparkling dress that went down to the ground. Her beautiful blonde hair was put into a ponytail moved to one side of her neck, putting her gorgeous face and hair on display which at that moment had on a small smile. He blushed deeply.
"Wow...Gwen...you...you look incredible" Peter stammered.
"Like an angel?" Gwen asked, teasing him while stepping closer towards him.
"Oh, yeah...you remember that?" Peter asked, remembering the one time when he had called Gwen an angel when Mary-Jane gave her a makeover.
"Yeah...It was really sweet of you to say...and you don't dress up too badly yourself, my hero" Gwen said affectionately, placing a soft kiss on his lips before placing the corsage she had for him on his lapel.
The blonde girl had gotten into the habit of calling him her hero ever since she found out he was indeed Spiderman, referring to the time he saved her life. Peter didn't mind though he did want her to be careful when saying that. You never knew what people might infer from something like that.
"Thanks...oh and here's yours" Peter said, getting his corsage for her, wrapping it around her wrist.
They then stared into each other's eyes, not saying a word until they both chuckled.
"Sorry...I was just getting-" Peter tried to say before Gwen interrupted.
"Peter Parker, if you say 'getting lost in your eyes', I'm sewing your lips shut" Gwen giggled.
"That's...that's not what I was going to say" Peter said, embarrassed, rubbing the back of his head.
"Alright, you two, it's time for the aunt to intervene finally. Let's get some pictures before George blows his gasket" May said, getting a camera out.
"We can use my phone, Aunt May" Peter said with a smirk, amused that his elderly aunt refused to enter the modern world of technology.
"No, no, no. Let's do this the old fashioned way" May said, getting them posed together in the middle of the living room.
"You look lovely, Gwen, by the way" May said, smiling softly at the teenaged blonde girl.
"Thank you, Mrs. Parker. You look beautiful today, too, if you don't mind me saying" Gwen said, smiling back.
"Oh, you're very kind, dearie but I don't look as good as you do. Now get together now" May said as she got her camera ready. Gwen leaned against Peter's chest as he wrapped his arms around her waist. They both smiled brightly as May took a picture of both of them.
"Alright, now hurry along. The dance floor awaits! Give George my regards, Gwen" May said as she hurried the two out the door.
They both approached George Stacy's car. Peter opened the door for Gwen who giggled at the gesture.
"Oh my, what a gentleman you are" Gwen said as she got into her dad's car.
"Anything for you" Peter said, kissing her on the lips as he got in.
"Hey now. Father in the car" George said sternly but inside, he couldn't help but smile a little.
"Sorry, Captain Stacy" Peter said, scooting away from Gwen a tiny bit.
"Ah, no troubles, Peter. Anything for the boy my daughter's absolutely crazy about" George said playfully.
"Dad!" Gwen said embarrassingly, lightly smacking her father on the shoulder.
"I'm just teasing you, Gwen. So Peter, I think this is the first time we've talked since you and my little girl became an item" George said, looking at the rear view mirror towards the back seat at Peter.
"Yeah, I think it has. Am I due for an angry father-in-law talk?" Peter asked, smirking (And also kinda scared considering how this wasn't just a dad, it was a captain of police dad).
"Maybe, maybe. We'll discuss it when we get there. Anyway, I just want you to know I'm very happy the both of you finally got together after all these years. In my opinion, it's a long time coming" George said, sincerely.
"Thank you, sir. I appreciate that" Peter said, nodding at his girlfriend's dad.
After 15 minutes of light conversation between Peter and Gwen about things like school and such, they made it to the school. George parked in the front.
"Gwen, why don't you wait outside a bit. Peter and I need to have the talk" George said, narrowing his eyes at Peter.
"Ugh. Dad! You've known Peter for years!" Gwen said, glaring.
"I just wanna talk" George assured although Gwen knew (Or at least she thought she did) and just turned to Peter.
"Just relax. He's full of it" Gwen said, kissing his cheek and leaving the car, leaving George and Peter alone with each other.
"So let me guess. If I break your daughter's heart, you'll roast me over an open fire and serve me to your dog?" Peter asked with a raised eyebrow, wanting to get this over with.
"Nah...nothing that mild" George said with a smirk before turning back to his daughter's boyfriend.
His smirk sort of turned into a sort of gloomy half-smile.
"I...I just wanted to thank you" George said which made Peter confused as hell.
"Uh...I'm sorry what?" Peter asked, not understanding a word he was saying.
"Gwen told me about what happened before Summer break at Norman Osborn's funeral. I just wanted to thank you for not giving up on her. I know it couldn't have been easy for you to go through something like that" George said with a kind of sympathetic look.
"Oh! I...I wasn't aware she told anyone" Peter said, a little surprised.
"She told me a bit ago...when the both of you started going out...it explains a lot really. I occasionally caught her crying in her room some nights during the summer. I would ask why but she stubbornly never saw fit to tell me...now I guess I know" George said, looking down, vividly remember of his little girl's pain over the summer.
"Oh. I...I didn't realize it was that hard on her as well" Peter said, feeling pretty crappy about himself.
"It's not your fault, Peter. You couldn't have known. I just wanted to tell you how much I appreciate this. Harry was never right for her….seems it was always you that held her heart" George smiled at him.
"Thank you, Captain" Peter said.
"Call me George, Peter. Really. I'm off-duty...and by the way, that reminds me" George said before he passed something to Peter...a sort of earpiece.
"Just a little gift from me to you, in case you know, you want to talk, I want to see what's going on with you and Gwen...in case anything comes up" George said, winking at Peter.
Peter blinked. Did he…? No. It couldn't be...Could it?
"Uh...thank you, Ca- I mean...George" Peter said, blinking rapidly.
"Good...now get on out of here. Have a good time!...But not too much fun" George said, giving a slight glare to Peter who slightly gulped.
"No problem, sir. Thank you" Peter said. With that, he left the car. George then drove off into the night.
Peter turned to Gwen who was waiting for him with a disapproving frown on her face towards her father that had just drown off.
"I'm sorry about him. He's sweet but he can just be so irritable sometimes" Gwen said with a pouting face.
"It's alright, babe. He's only looking out for you" Peter said, kissing her cheek, deciding not to tell her what George told him. Not yet anyway.
Gwen remembered how she told Harry she didn't like being called babe or honey...but with Peter...it felt different. She didn't mind at all.
"Yeah but I wish he would start treating me like a grown woman. I mean I practically am of that age anyway" Gwen rebutted.
"Well, just amuse him for now. After all, he's got 1 more year of you being his little baby girl" Peter teased.
"Oh can it, Parker" Gwen said, lightly shoving him before placing both of her arms around Peter's. They began to walk towards the gym.
"So...what did you learn today at your session?" Gwen asked, referring to the session with Alex.
"Apparently that Nothing is True and that Everything is Permitted" Peter quipped, not feeling the need to explain the deeper meaning.
"Well that's certainly not depressing" Gwen said, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, honestly, it goes deeper than that but on the face, yeah, it's kind of depressing" Peter nodded.
"I'm just glad you didn't learn anything this session like that 'Leap of Faith' they taught you. I never want to see you do that again, by the way. When I realized you weren't swinging your web to safety, I was panicking like no tomorrow" Gwen said, still sweating at the memory.
"It actually felt pretty liberating, really. Like a purge of fear, like there was nothing else in the world that mattered anymore because I knew it would be alright in the end" Peter said.
"All I saw was a near suicide attempt. You're not doing that again" Gwen declared.
"But-" Peter tried to argue before Gwen gave him the 'look'.
"Maybe I didn't make myself clear. You. Are not. Doing that. Again" Gwen said, slowly.
Peter, remembering the quote about hell and women, just nodded.
"Yes, dear" Peter said before Gwen kissed his cheek.
"Thank you" Gwen said, nuzzling into his arm.
They went inside the school and made their way into the gym. It was a simple homecoming dance. A dance floor, a punch bowl, a photoshoot, etc.
"So what do you want to do first?" Peter asked his girlfriend.
"Hm...Oh, there's MJ! Let's go talk to her!" Gwen said, pulling him over towards the redhead.
Mary-Jane was dressed in a black dress, similar to the one she wore when she and Peter went to the Fall Dance before, looking dressed to kill as ever.
The redhead turned and saw the couple walking towards her. She grinned.
"Hey, lovebirds. You're looking spiffy, especially you, Tiger" Mary-Jane said with a wink which caused him to blush.
"Thanks, MJ. You're looking gorgeous as ever" Peter said, complimenting her back.
"Thanks, Pete" Mary-Jane smiled at Peter.
"Now now, break it up you two. The girlfriend is here" Gwen said but she was smiling, knowing it was all in good spirit.
"No need to worry, Gwen. I couldn't compete, especially with that killer dress you got on" Mary-Jane, looking her up and down.
"Thanks, MJ. So where's your date?" Gwen asked, looking around.
"Oh...here he comes now" Mary-Jane said, looking behind the both of them.
Peter and Gwen turned to see Harry coming with two plastic cups of punch.
"Hey, MJ. Punch?" Harry offered which Mary-Jane took.
"Oh, wow. I didn't know you asked MJ to the dance, Harry" Peter said, amused as he raised an eyebrow.
"Well…" Harry tried to say before MJ interrupted.
"He wanted to show up with a date and I wasn't really interested in all the other guys that asked me so...I figure I might as well just go with my best friend's friend...The limo ride didn't hurt either" Mary-Jane said, shrugging.
"Yeah...thanks again, MJ" Harry said, blushing, embarassed.
"Well I think it's very sweet...you 2 actually look kinda cute together" Gwen said, smiling softly.
"Uh...huh. Right" Mary-Jane said, rolling her eyes and taking a swift drink of her punch.
Harry shifted. This was more of a pity date than anything, really. At the very least, he was back on 'Ok' terms with Mary-Jane. With the next girl that was coming up, he had a little bit of less luck.
Liz was coming up with Flash. Liz looked gorgeous in a silky, long, tight dark green dress that went down to her knees. She wore long heels with her dress.
"Hey, guys. Thought I'd come up and say hey" Liz said with a grumpy Flash by her side. She was his date for the dance tonight because he was having some issues with his girlfriend Sha Shan Nguyen and she didn't want to come tonight so he was forced to go with Liz as just a friend who had previously dumped him for Parker.
"Thanks, Liz. You look great" Peter said, looking at her dress.
"Thanks, Petey. You look dapper as ever" Liz said, smiling softly at him. She hated that Peter was in another woman's arms but she could see the smile on his face as he held onto Gwen and knew that it just wouldn't be the same with her. Therefore, she was happy.
"So Parker, I noticed your 2 new little buddies haven't been around lately. What gives? They realize what a dweeb you are and cut loose so they didn't have to look at you anymore" Flash asked with a smirk which caused Liz to smack him on the arm.
"Quiet, Flash! This attitude of yours is exactly why Sha Shan didn't want to come tonight" Liz said, glaring deeply at him. Flash just rubbed his arm.
He was right, though, in a way. Emmanuel and Christopher had gone back to Philadelphia with their mothers after their recent failure at the Observatory. Peter hadn't heard a word from them since the group had left Miami but he had a feeling that if he ever did again, it wouldn't be pleasant.
"For your information, Flash, Emmanuel and Chris were just exchange students from a school in Philadelphia and I was just keeping them company for the week. They've gone back home since then" Peter explained.
"Hmph, good riddance. They were more annoying than you" Flash said, sneering.
"You know...I think that's something you and I can finally agree on" Peter plainly said.
Sensing the tension, Liz patted Flash's arm.
"Well anyway, we gotta talk to Sally. She'll have my head if I stay away from her too long. I'll see you around, Petey. Maybe you, me and Gwen can stop by the Silver Spoon tomorrow or something?" Liz asked.
Peter looked to Gwen who nodded. She still didn't completely trust Liz to keep her hands off Peter but it was a slow process that needed to be constantly built upon. Besides, she liked hanging around Liz. She was pretty sweet compared to the people she hung around with.
As the 4 continued to chat, there was a slow song that came about 30 minutes later.
Peter and Gwen turned to each other and went out to the dance floor hand in hand, leaving Mary-Jane and Harry behind.
Harry turned to the redhead and shrugged. "What do you say?"
Mary-Jane looked at him for a few seconds and sighed. "Alright. Sure. Why not?"
She then took his hands and allowed herself to be pulled by him to the dance floor. At the very least, maybe he'd get a few head turns from ladies, seeing him dance with one of the most gorgeous girls in senior year.
Back with Peter and Gwen, the brunette boy placed both hands on her waist while she placed both her arms on his shoulders and around his neck as they slowly shifted to the music.
They gazed longingly into each other's eyes as the music played in the background.
Gwen just had to sigh sweetly. This was a dream come true for her. Her heart practically skipped a beat as the boy she had loved since 7th grade was finally in her arms and she was in his. Everything was now what they were supposed to be.
Despite the teachers chaperoning and searching for signs of PDA, Peter didn't care. He pulled Gwen in close for a deep and affectionate kiss.
They had stayed like that for some time until a teacher finally cut in and pulled them apart. One look of her stern eye was all they needed to know that enough was enough.
"Well that was nice while it lasted" Peter quipped.
"It was worth it. I'm so happy to be here with you, Peter. You have no idea" Gwen said, laying her head on his shoulder.
"So am I, babe" Peter said as he rested his cheek on the top of her head.
They stayed like that for some time until he felt his phone buzz. He got it out and saw that it was a text from Jameson. Apparently, Doc Oc was trying to help himself to some spending money from a bank nearby and he wanted pictures.
Peter groaned. "Damn it!"
"What is it, Peter?" Gwen asked, looking up at her boyfriend.
"It's Jameson. He wants me to take pics of Doc Oc who's robbing a bank right now...you know what that means" Peter said, looking down at the ground.
Gwen just smiled, lifted his chin up and gave him a quick peck on the chin.
"It's alright. Go on. The city's not going to save itself, you know?" She said to him.
"Ar...are you sure? I don't want to leave you here all alone...and I feel like I ruined our special night tonight" Peter said, feeling guilty.
"There'll be plenty of other nights, Peter. Besides, you already made it magnificent. Go on. I'll be fine" Gwen insisted.
Peter smiled. "Alrighty then. I'll see you then"
After giving Gwen a quick kiss, he started to hurry away from the dance floor and out the door of the gym.
"There he goes again" Mary-Jane said, smirking.
"As always" Harry added.
"Say, Har, let's give Gwen some company" Mary-Jane said, noticing the girl in question leaving the dance floor.
"Yeah, let's" Harry said, not wanting to leave his friend alone.
They both moved to the side of the dance floor with Gwen standing beside them.
"You doing ok, Gwen?" Mary-Jane asked the blonde girl.
"Yeah, I'm fine...I kinda wish he didn't always have to go save the day and everything...I wish I could help him somehow" Gwen said, thinking on how to accomplish this.
"How do you plan on doing that?" Harry asked with a raised eyebrow.
"I don't know...but...maybe I'll think of something" Gwen answered. She then remembered about how Peter told her that he had gotten his powers by a genetic mutation caused by a spider bite at Dr. Connor's office. That made her think a bit. Maybe she should look into how that could happen soon enough. Maybe...experiment with it a little the next chance she got.
"So hey, it's still early. Why don't we just ditch this place and go grab a bite to eat somewhere?" Mary-Jane suggested.
"Hmm…yeah. I think that'd be nice" Gwen said, smiling.
"Alright. I'll get the limo ready" Harry said, taking out his Osberry.
"You really need to get your own car, Harry" Gwen said, getting sick of the limo.
"The limo is just fine" Harry insisted.
"Can't hurt to drive yourself every once in a while though" Mary-Jane said, shrugging.
"The limo is fine" Harry repeated, not wanting to listen to this.
Mary-Jane and Gwen looked at each other and shrugged. They figured it wasn't worth getting into as they all left the gym together.
*Meanwhile*
On top of a nearby building was Spiderman, dressed in full costume, looking down at the bank in which Doc Oc was currently robbing. Police cars were all over the bank, guns loaded and pointed towards the front entrance.
"Well...looks like I'll be able to make my doctor's appointment tonight" Spiderman said as he swung down from the building with a web, ready to save the day once more.
This was certainly an interesting point in time in Peter Parker's life but he wasn't complaining. He had managed to recover from the dreadful summer that followed his heartbreak of leaving Liz for Gwen and Gwen deciding to stay with Harry. Now, not only was he with Gwen but he also made amends with Harry, his best friend as well and made a few new ones with the Assassin Brotherhood.
He didn't know what the future had in store for him next, especially with the possibility of the Templars possibly coming after him in the near future but whatever was coming next, he would make sure he was ready for it.
The friendly neighborhood Spiderman was back better than ever, ready to make quips and whoop ass once more was the last thing Peter thought before sneaking his way into the bank and coming face to face with the crazed scientists with metal arms.
"Hey Doc, I hope I'm not too late for my appointment" Spiderman quipped before going into battle mode and starting his fight with the mad doctor.
(A/N: I want to thank everyone for taking time to read my story. Again, sorry if I didn't get all the details from the Spectacular Spiderman right. I still haven't brought myself to watch full episodes of the show yet [It's not on any streaming service as far as I know so that makes it harder]. Either way, I had a really good time writing this story and I hope you enjoyed reading it just as much.
Please leave a review if you liked it or have constructive feedback [And please only be constructive. I'll ignore flames and delete them if they come from a guest reviewer].
I'm not 100% if I would make a sequel of this story. I have thought about it but I would need to be pretty inspired and I'm honestly not sure what I would write about. However, maybe it could happen. Maybe.
As always, if you like or loved it, please leave a favorite).