I don't know what possessed me to go on another wall that night. And I certainly don't know how or why I ended up back on Princes Street. It was colder out tonight than last night so I wore my coat and brought a pair of gloves in my pockets. I walked along the quiet streets alone, not really sure what I was looking for, if anything. I simply remember turning onto Princes Street and pausing for a moment. The cool evening air breezed through my hair, sending it up beside me. My eyes were locked onto the road and row of buildings as I contemplated nothing…. and everything.
What should I do? Where do I go from here? Life just seemed so easy before yesterday; everything was so straight forward and set. Or…. was it really? In that second I remembered MJ and what he said to me before he left for Bath. "Let's do it, Gweny. Let's become the real deal." Was is really all so clear before I travelled through the multiverse? No… No, I can't say it was. After all, I wasn't really sure where I was going to go from here.
I only made it forward maybe ten seconds before that familiar varied-colour blackness began to cover me. It happened so suddenly that I wasn't aware what was going on until it was too late. The motion of myself being unconsentually thrust through the multiverse sent my hair flying like mad everywhere. Of course my eyes winced shut on their own accord, and when they reopened- when I knew I was no longer soaring through space and time- I immediately recognized where I was. Huh, I figured it out a lot faster this time- guess I'm getting better at this.
It was night out, also just like last time. I straightened myself up, since I wasn't laying on the ground this time around and took a glance around. Ok so I didn't wind up in the exact same location I was previously; this looked like somewhere uh…. for lack of a better word, sketchy. It was kind of obvious I was in a back-alley area surrounded by super tall buildings. There was no sign of Miles and I automatically knew I had to get the heck out of there. It didn't help matters that I lacked my phone, ID, or any American cash; I usually walked without my phone. Something to do with quiet time to reflect. Course doing so left me vulnerable in situations such as these.
Trying to look as small and invisible as possible, I placed my hands under my armpits and began to make my way towards a road. I didn't care which road it was, so long as it was open and out in public. You can probably already see where this is going. Only this time I didn't run into a toothy monster trying to slash me to bits. This gang of very rough-looking men had walked out from the side of one of the buildings. Of course one spotted me, pointing to me and alerting the others. I froze as these loud bunch of scary losers began marching my way, chortling and shuffling amongst one another. Frightened doesn't even begin to describe how I was feeling just then, only wrapping my arms around me tighter.
"Hey there, princess. You lost?" One jeered. "What's a little snowflake like you doing out here all by yourself, hmmm?" Another tacked on. Uh, I know I looked young for my age but I was still twenty-six. They were talking to me like I was eighteen years old. Still, that did nothing to quash my fears. My foot slid backwards, making them visibly react.
"Hey, where are you going?" "You can't leave. We just got here." "Ah, lay off her, Jo. I think you're scaring the poor girl." "So? I think she's cuter when she's afraid." Oh my god; these lowlifes! And here I thought villains were bad. One asshole extended his hand for me. "Why don't you come hang with us? I know a great place we can go." "Dude, she's pretty. I think we should take this one," one jerk said to his friend. "D-Don't touch me," my voice was beyond shaky as my foot slid back even more. Some of them chuckled. "See? I told you she doesn't like that." "Yeah well then, I have something else we can do," the first guy took a step closer in my direction. My mind was begging my feet to make a run for it, but my body would not obey. Instead I stood there shaking like a leaf and about to scream until the both surprising and unsurprising happened.
All of our eyes enlarged, including mine, when a spiderweb all of a sudden shot down from right above me. It clung to my arm and before anyone could react I was being hoisted up into the air. The web pulled me onto and overside the top of a building, making me land on its rooftop. My head shot forward to see Miles standing there. Even with his mask on I could tell he was pissed with a capital P. I scrambled to my feet in awe and shock- it had all occurred so fast.
"M-Miles?!" "I thought I told you to go back to your own dimension!" He instantly reprimanded me. My lips flapped open, speechless for a moment. "I-I did! I don't know how I…. I don't know what I'm doing back here!" Miles faced me with what I could only assume was a glare for another second before huffing frustratedly. My eyes widened again at the sensation of spiderweb clinging to my skin again. I glanced down to see Miles had fastened my wrist to a large black pole, essentially acting like a handcuff. When I gave him a confused expression, he merely walked over to the wall he had just dragged me over. "You stay here; I'm not finished with you yet," he hissed before leaping off the rooftop and down to the road to deal with my would-be attackers. Oh….. Oh! Their ensuing brawl could be heard from all the way up here. Meanwhile I stood there unable to go anywhere, having no choice but to wait for Miles to return to me.
The fight lasted for less than five minutes; more like three I'd say. I wasn't really paying attention to how long it'd been when Miles finally jumped back up to the roof where I was. After a few deep breaths, he removed his mask and planted his hands on his hips; I was a little surprised he didn't automatically free me from my webby chain.
"What are you doing here, Gwen? I told you to go home literally one night ago. Why'd you return and to such a dangerous part of the city at that?" His voice was stern but sincere. I gawked at him incredulously. "I don't…. know; I don't know, Miles. I have no idea why I keep coming here, but I assure you I don't have any choice in where I wind up. Ok, maybe I shouldn't go onto Princes Street anymore, but that's all I can think of. I didn't choose to come back, and I definitely didn't pick this place. You gotta believe me, Miles," my free hand rose up to my chest in an imploring fashion. He eyed me suspiciously for only a moment, letting out a conceding sigh. His glanced off to the side.
"I believe you, Gwen. But you can't keep coming back here. It's just not safe, especially now that you can't use your powers." "I agree with you! But I have no idea how to make it stop." "Isn't there anyone you can talk to about this?" Miles asked me. "Not in my universe. Do you know anyone? What about Peter Parker? Do you see him anymore?" "No. You're the first person from a different dimension I've seen in ten years," Miles's eyes lowered. "Yeah, me too," I agreed. He let out another sigh, running his fingers past the side of his hair thoughtfully.
"Well you can't stay here. You need to go back and I mean tonight, Gwen." "How?! I don't know how to, Miles. I literally have no control over any of this," I patted my chest for emphasis. "There must be some way," he continued to press the issue. "If there is, I don't know it! I don't understand any of this! And I….."
My sentence was cut short when that familiar darkness started to flood over me. My eyes grew since I knew what that meant, while Miles's widened in sudden distress. "Gwen?" He now sounded really, really worried. Realizing I only had like a minute and might never see Miles again, my head shot back around to him. My hand took on a life of its own, extending out towards him. "Gwen? Gwen, what's happening?!" "Miles!" Was the last thing I was able to get out before I found myself standing in the middle of the Princes Street; my arm once again stretched out in front of me. I stood there devoid of motion for I don't know how long, my hair and mouth dangling in the wind. The spiderweb previously bound to my wrist was nowhere in sight.