As Ryker's prison came into view, M.J. took a turn on her bike, heading for the visitors' parking lot that was a bit away from the actual building. She still couldn't believe that this was where her sister had been for some time now, this terrible place. Peter had told only told her a story or two of his visits as Spider-Man to the place, clearly not wanting to dwell on it. From what she did remember though, he presented the prison as a lonely and relatively colorless place where criminals spent their last days either in solitude or getting into whatever trouble they could together, even in their confines.

Mary Jane found a relatively convenient spot to park her bike, putting down the brake and shutting it off before securing her helmet with it. She then stepped into the building, explaining who she was there to see. She then had to go through a rigorous process where they checked her person and belongings to make sure that she wasn't bringing anything even remotely dangerous or suspicious with her. It took longer than she personally felt was necessary, but in the end, M.J. was cleared, and a worker instructed her to follow him.

As they were making their way to the visiting area, Mary Jane found herself glancing at her surroundings. The walls of the place were as dull as they could be, the floors a dark grey while the walls were a tainted white brick formation and looked as though it had been far too long since they had last been painted. Really, everything around her just made her feel sad in general, but especially for her sister. Guilt started to well up in her again as she thought of how Gayle had been here without her knowledge for multiple years, and she hadn't even known about it. M.J. fought to keep those feelings buried though; she needed to brace herself for however her big sister might react to seeing her, something she wouldn't be able to do well if her emotions were already compromised.

Eventually, they came to the visiting room, where a section of seats and booths were located that had phones on both ends and what looked like special security glass to separate the two sides. M.J. had seen this kind of setup in movies before, but there was something very surreal about actually being in a situation where she had to use one. She took her seat at one of the open spots, with the prison worker instructing her to wait, explaining that her sister should be out shortly. Mary Jane did exactly that, sitting and waiting as patiently as she could. She glanced around a little and even found herself accidentally looking at and even listening to conversations around her between prisoner and guest by accident, forcing herself to quickly tune them back out.

The sound of a door opening could then be heard. M.J. sharply turned to look in the direction that she'd heard it from, seeing what appeared to be a guard walking out an inmate. They came closer and closer until, sure enough, Gayle, her big sister, stood in front of her, about ten feet or so away from her end of the area. The guard then went and stood at the back, but all that the woman could do was stare at who was before her, seemingly unable to move for a moment. M.J. wasn't sure of the look Gayle was giving her, with it seemingly being a mix of shock, anger and who knew how many other emotions.

Eventually, Gayle came forward, taking her seat on her side of the booth. M.J. grabbed her phone, putting it to her ear, her sister doing the same. No one could seem to initiate the conversation though, an awkward, uncomfortable silence hanging in the air.

"Hey Gayle," Mary Jane finally spoke up first.

"Hey," her sister muttered unenthusiastically in reply. All she could seem to do was stare at M.J, which caused her to avert her eyes slightly as another silence fell between them before she finally managed to speak up again.

"I... I like what you've done with your hair."

"No you don't," her older sister replied.

Okay, she got her there; M.J. had always made it clear that she was a fan of her sister's long brunette locks that used to go down well past her shoulders, an area it could now only barely make it to.

"Okay Gayle, I..."

"What are you doing here, Mary Jane?" the older Watson girl questioned as she shook her head dejectedly.

"I came here to see my sister," M.J. tried to reassure her. Gayle only scoffed, shaking her head.

"So, I'm supposed to believe that you care about me again all of a sudden?" she questioned. "We'd just pretend that the last thirteen years never happened?"

There it was.

"I'm sorry, Gayle," Mary Jane said, hoping her tone expressed her sincerity properly. "I was young and stupid. I should never have left you like I did."

"I spent what was essentially the last five years of my childhood basically being your mom," Gayle explained, her tone bitter. "I was the one that got you out of trouble, that stood up for you when dad was too busy rotting away in his drink, and then the one time, the one time I ask just something of you, my little sister, you run away to New York for college. You might have been young, Mary Jane, but you weren't stupid... just incredibly self-centered. But why; after everything I had done for you, all the times I had been there, why couldn't you be there just the one time that I needed you?"

M.J. swallowed; at this point, she had little doubt that her sister's look could kill someone if she wanted it to.

"Maybe it was because of everything that you did that I ran away," she finally answered. "I saw all that you gave up for my sake. I watched as you put on a happy face, but I knew deep down that it was killing you that you had to sacrifice so much for me. I could tell how miserable you were, and the last thing that I wanted was to end up like that. So, I ran off and made up my mind to do what I whatever I wanted in life, and that I wasn't going to be responsible for anyone but me."

Another silence fell between them as M.J. tried to contemplate her sister's reaction to her words. She was still obviously angry and bitter, but at the same time, there seemed to be just the slightest hint that she'd at least taken what she'd said to heart, though she could easily be misreading it.

"Gayle, you asked me why I was here now," Mary Jane continued. "I'm here because you need me now, and this time, I want to help you. Tell me your side of what happened; maybe I can help somehow?"

Her sister scoffed again.

"You really think that there is something you can do to help me?" the woman questioned. "My own lawyer won't even come in and see me anymore, not even the man who used to be my husband."

M.J.'s brain suddenly froze in shock.

"You... you were married?"

"Yep," Gayle replied dryly, "and happily too, for a while anyway. Timothy came along not long after you left, and he helped me pick up the pieces. We married after a year, and for a while, things were going pretty well for us. Once all of this went down though, he showed his true colors. He hasn't come to visit, not even once. He hasn't even brought the..."

Some cracks started to show in Gayle's more sturdy, angry expression. Her lower lip started to quiver and M.J. swore that she could even see some tears welling up in her eyes. Her sister quickly wiped them back and recomposed herself.

"My point is that everyone has left me... just like you."

All her sister's bitterness came forward in the straightforward, calm delivery of that sentence, causing M.J. to squirm in her seat slightly as she fought to keep her composure outwardly.

"Gayle, please, let me at least try and help you," she pleaded. "I'm friends with the city's district attorney; maybe I can get your case reviewed?"

Her sister only shook her head.

There's nothing to be done," Gayle replied. "I've already tried everything. Besides, the last person that I want help from is you, Mary Jane."

With that, Gayle got up from the seat.

"Gayle!" M.J. called out through the phone. "Gayle! Don't do this!"

It was too late though; her older sister didn't even look back as she was escorted away, leaving Mary Jane there, alone.

Landing on the edge of a rooftop, Peter closed in on his latest target. By now, he'd invaded and occasionally torn through a few spots around the underworld that he knew of, desperately searching for any answers or even clues that he could. His most recent stop was what had led him to his present location, having received a tip about a guy who had a particular proficiency in the use of brass knuckles. This being the M.O. of Eddie and Anne's attacker, it seemed like a logical place for him to be; on top of that, the building he was now eyeing was only about ten blocks away from the Brock's neighborhood.

Observing a lack of activity outside, Peter opted for a closer look. He leapt across the way, landing on his fingertips and toes against the side of the building. Once more he opted for his traditional stealth spot, popping open the entrance to the ventilation shaft and crawling inside. He moved quickly but quietly, eventually picking up the sound of voices and following them. Peter soon came to their source, looking down at a room with a few guys inside of it. All they seemed to be doing was sitting around playing poker, and he was about to move on when he heard one of their phones start ringing, so he decided to wait it out and see if anything important was discussed.

"The reporter?" the guy answering said. "Nah, he's not going to be a problem; we messed up his woman pretty good, so at the very least, he's preoccupied with her right now."

Yep, this was the right person for sure.

"He is?" the guy questioned, reacting to whatever he'd been told. "Then he's either braver or stupider than I thought."

If that was about Eddie, that was definitely NOT good. Peter wanted to jump in so badly and put a stop to this right now, but he thought better of it, electing to wait and see how the call played out.

"Don't worry boss, I'll finish the deal this time," the man said before hanging up.

Peter had heard enough; barging in through the ventilation area, he slammed onto the table, destroying it and sending everyone that had been sitting at it toppling to the ground.

"You're not going anywhere, pal," he proclaimed, eyeing the man in question. His spider sense then went off, indicating danger coming from his backside. He spun around instinctively, firing webs before he'd even fully turned to the two other men, webbing away their weapons before pinning them to the wall behind them with webbing. Peter then turned back to see that the other man had disappeared. Indeed, he could hear him having just turned the corner out of the room and into the hallway.

"Why do they always run?" Peter said, sarcastically lamenting the pointless decision of his target.

Eddie turned the corner, coming upon the building in question. According to his source within New York's finest, this was a spot where some of the less than honorable members of the city came to hangout, and it was an area of prime suspicion in their investigation into the attack on him and Anne. He looked around the area, seeking a spot to hide out and see if he could ID anyone who came out.

However, before he could do so, gunfire could be heard from inside the building, drawing his attention. Seconds later, a man came running out of the building's side exit, the guy turning back to look at whatever had been going on behind him. Eddie recognized him instantly: it was the man that had attacked him, the man who had beat the woman he loved within inches of her life.

An uncontrollable rage suddenly flooded Eddie's veins, and he took off towards the guy, making up the ground between them quickly. The man turned to him just in time for the reporter to tackle his target, slamming him to the ground. Eddie then reared up, punching the man in the face.

"I knew I'd find you," he said in a low voice, delivering another blow to the man's face. "You'll never hurt my wife ever again!"

After a couple more blows, the man's nose was already bleeding. That didn't stop Eddie though, who reared his fist back yet again, only to feel a surprise hit to his ribs. His opponent then managed to roll him over and off of him. Eddie fought through the pain and got back up to attack again, but the man drew a gun before he could, wiping the blood off his nose and looking at it.

"I have to admit, you're even stronger than you look," the guy said. "Clearly, I underestimated you before, but don't worry..."

The man then cocked his weapon, his expression growing more serious.

"I won't make that mistake again."

Fortunately for Eddie, no sooner had the guy said those words than a web came in, sticking to the gun before it was yanked off to the side. Barely even a second later, Spider-Man came flying in, delivering a kick that sent the guy crashing against the hard concrete ground at least ten feet away, if not more. The superhero then proceeded to web the guy repeatedly so that he could not move from his current position, despite his moans of pain from the blow he'd taken.

"Not so tough now, are you?" Spider-Man said as he came up to the guy, appearing to hold then set a phone down on the man's chest. Eddie found himself only able to stare, not sure how to process what just happened or how he should even feel right now. To his surprise, the red and blue hero didn't give him much time to do so, coming up to him.

"We need to talk," he said before suddenly, he grabbed Eddie by the shoulder area of his jacket, the two of them soon flying high up until they were on a rooftop a couple of blocks away. The man then set Eddie down in front of him.

"What do you think you were doing back there?" the wall crawler asked, squatting down to look him in the eyes. Even though he couldn't see past the costume, something about his pose made Eddie nervous. Plus, his tone was a little deeper than he'd expected for some reason.

"I... I got a tip from a contact of mine in the police department," he explained. "This place was where they think the guy might have come from, so I..."

"So, what, you thought you'd just take it upon yourself to catch the guy?" Spider-Man questioned, seemingly beside himself at the idea.

"No!" Eddie refuted. "I was just hoping to ID the guy, but then I saw him, and I just... I remembered what he did, and I got angry."

"Yeah, well, that anger almost got you killed," Spider-Man scolded, "so next time, why don't you leave the whole crime fighting thing to me or to the boys in blue, you understand?"

The man then got up and started to walk towards the end of the building just as sirens could be heard in the direction from which the two had come.

"Wait!" he called out. "You have to take me back there; I can ID the guy!"

"That won't be necessary, actually," Spider-Man said. "I caught him having a rather sensitive conversation. Once I explain to them about that, they should have all that they need."

"No, I have to see this through," Eddie insisted, coming up to Spider-Man. The wall crawler then held out his hand, putting it to his chest and stopping him in his tracks. For a moment, the masked man just stared at Eddie before finally speaking up.

"You know what that conversation was about?" he asked. "Actually, I'll answer that for you: it was about a reporter who was nosing into things he shouldn't be, even after the guy had supposedly handled the matter."

"Which is why I have to go down there and make sure it sticks," Eddie argued.

"No, it's why you need to learn your place and stay out of the way," Spider-Man replied, jabbing a finger against Eddie's chest for emphasis. "Anytime you civilians try and 'help', you usually just end up getting in my way and making my job harder, so why don't you just go home and go back to your computer, or better yet, go back home to your woman, who's in the hospital right now?"

Spider-Man then shot a web and swung off, leaving without giving Eddie a chance to get in another word.

After that, Eddie went home, where he just sat in his chair in the living room. He'd thought about going back to the hospital, but Anne's parents had come to give him a break, something that he sorely needed. Yet, even as he crashed on his favorite seat in the house, where he usually relaxed before bed, he still couldn't even begin to relax. Instead, his mind remained preoccupied on what had happened with the thug and with Spider-Man.

He truly had only meant to go and ID the guy before calling in the police, but when he'd seen him, it was like a switch had flipped in his mind. He'd pictured the guy's face as he held the most precious thing in the world to Eddie against him, seemingly pleased with any pain he inflicted. It had been a foolish decision, but still, he felt he'd had to take the chance.

And who was Spider-Man to say that he shouldn't? What gave him the moral authority to boss him around as if his costume made him a higher class of citizen or whatever? His blood still ran hot even now as he thought of how the wall crawler had denied him even the basic right to testify as a witness. What if...

Suddenly, Eddie's phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hey man," came the voice of his contact at the police station. "I wanted to give you an update: they brought in some guy that Spider-Man apprehended, but he came back clean."

"What?" Eddie questioned, shooting up from his seat. "No, no no that was him! He was the guy; I was there, I saw him!"

"Really?" the man replied, "there's no record of you being there when they apprehended the guy?"

"That's because Spider-Man took me away!"

"Why would he do that?" the man asked.

"I don't know, he thought he was protecting me or whatever," Eddie explained as he grew more and more flustered. "Look, just let me come down there, I'll testify right there in front of his cell."

"Too late," the guy said. "He was released just a couple of minutes ago.

Eddie's heart nearly stopped.

"What?"

"We looked into him, but since he turned up clean, we had no reason to hold him anymore," the man explained.

"What about his phone?" Eddie questioned as he ran his hand up to the top of his head. "Spider-Man said something about a call he'd made that could incriminate him or something."

"We checked it out, but our guy said that there was nothing he could find in its history or anything," the officer clarified. "Listen, if you're so sure, maybe I can get someone to follow him or something, but while the guy looks a little shady, from a record and evidence standpoint, he's clean. I'm sorry man, I'll let you know if I have anything else."

The man then hung up.

Hope you all are still enjoying it! I'm excited to be getting more and more into the thick of things!

Continuing to pray for you all; stay safe and healthy!

"And Mary said: 'My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,'" Luke 1:46-47, 49