They arrived to the stables mere seconds before the others. They landed just as Nico finished putting away the rope.
"You smell like blood and gunpowder. What happened to you? Your shirt… Are those bullet holes?!" Peter exclaimed, running towards him and looking at Wade's back.
"I seem to attract a lot of unwanted attention. Don't worry, baby boy. I'm fine but it's way past my bedtime, can we go to see ponydude, tell him what we know and go to sleep?" Wade scratched the back of his head. Peter frowned, sensing Wade's half-truth, but he decided not to push it. Not yet, at least. "Anyway, where are we sleeping tonight?"
"There are spare rooms in the Big House, but maybe you should go to the infirmary, if you got shot..." Percy said as he guided the pegasi back into the stables.
"Nah, I'm fine. Can't say the same for the t-shirt, though." Wade chuckled and started heading to the blue house, Percy showed them to their rooms and left, murmuring about having a day off.
Chiron was waiting for them when they reached the house. With tired voices, they explained what they had discovered and, after being told that the next morning they would have to meet with the counsellors and Oracle to decide what to do, they were dismissed and shown to their room. Peter and Wade too were looking forward to sleeping; the events of the day had drained them and they were having a hard time keeping their eyes open. They striped out of their clothes and got inside the big and comfortable bed. Wade felt one of Peter's arms around his waist, pressing his muscular chest against Wade's scarred back. Wade lifted his head a little to let Peter's other arm slide beneath the crook of his neck and grabbed his hand, kissing each of Peter's knuckles. In return, Peter kissed Wade's shoulder and nuzzled against his nape. They wished each other goodnight and were out like a light a few seconds after.
Next morning came and they woke up, and got dressed quickly; Wade thanking a nymph that gave him a new orange t-shirt, and they headed towards the dining pavilion, where they sat at the same table they were the day before, a tempting, fluffy cheese, bacon and vegetables omelette waiting for them on their plates. They sat and their glasses automatically filled with black coffee for Wade and green tea for Peter. They wolfed it down, and, after they had complemented the food and receiving seconds from a blushing nymph, they followed the counsellors back to the house, where they were shown to a room with chairs around a ping-pong table. Each of the campers took a seat and motioned them to sit on the chairs that were left. Nobody said a word for a moment as they waited for Chiron, Rachel and Mr. D to arrive.
"Before this meeting begins I want you to know that last night, I allowed Percy and Nico to accompany our guests to the city and that's why they have the day off." A murmur of discomfort rose between the rest of the demigods and Chiron raised his hands to continue talking. "The reason for that was because it had to be quick. Percy is fast by air and Nico has his shadow-travelling abilities." He turned towards the masked men. "Shall I continue or would you like to explain?" When the three of them shook their head, Chiron nodded. "The group discovered that this is, in fact, not their world and today's meeting is to decide what we will do next. They expressed their wish to remain here until they can find a place to install themselves temporary until they find a way to repair their… teleporter, was it? Now, this camp is for Greek demigods only, and these men are just mere mortals. Extraordinary ones, unlike anything we've ever seen or heard, I must admit. They can see through the Mist and possess incredible abilities and our Oracle has deemed them worthy of entering, so I'll leave the decision to you, counsellors. While they debate, would you please wait outside the house?" Wade and Peter nodded and went out.
After an hour or so, they were called back. The counsellors have reached a unanimous decision. They would let them them stay. The relief in the masked men voices was almost palpable and thanked the demigods over and over. There were, nonetheless, two conditions.
"We can't let someone stay if they don't trust us." Annabeth said. "We understand about wanting to keep who you are a secret in order to protect a loved one. We all do. Each of us lie to our mortal friends and family about ourselves because we need to keep them safe. Each of us have been where you are now. The first condition is, just as we are trusting you with our home and our world, we want you to trust us with your faces," She stated, her grey eyes fixed on the trio.
"You want us to unmask ourselves," Peter said.
"Are you sure, wouldn't want to drool at my beautiful face…" Wade tried to sound nonchalant, but everyone could hear the nervousness in his voice. "All right, just… don't scream… or puke." He could feel his heart hammering on his chest and his instincts yelling, screaming for him to run as he slowly raised his trembling hands to the back of his head. He tried to control his breathing and closed his eyes as the piece of clothing fell off his face. He did not hears gasps, which encouraged him to open one eye and see that the counsellors were not looking at his with pity nor disgust, which was a relief. "This gorgeous mug you are lookin' at is the face of Wade Winston Wilson, a.k.a Deadpool."
The demigods nodded and silently waited for the other man, who breathed in deep and pulled his masks off and let it rest on his lap. He ran his fingers through his brown curls, nervous. "My name is Peter Parker… What's the second condition?"
"It's not much of a 'condition' but more like an exchange? You have amazing combat abilities and maybe even more so with weapons. We would like you to teach us some of it?" She continued and the Wade and Peter nodded after a few seconds pondering the offer.
"And as the head of the Hephaestus cabin, I offer myself to repair that thingy of yours, free of charge!" Leo exclaimed happily. "There's no machine I can't bend to my awesome will. Nor ladies." He winked and threw an arm around his girlfriend's waist. The vigilantes agreed and told the energetic teenager that they would give the teleporter to him as soon as the meeting ended.
"Any more questions?" Chiron asked."
Nobody answered.
"Thanks for letting us stay. We uh– We really appreciate it." Peter scratched the back of his head. They had trusted the demigods with their identities. Everybody started exiting the room until Leo remained and he accompanied Wade to retrieve the teleporter. The boy was thrilled.
"If you can repair it, you can build one for yourself." Wade winked as he gave him the machine. "Knock yourself out, furnace-boy," he shouted ad Leo disappeared behind a corner. "Well, cuddle pals, I'll take this as a victory. We've got jobs, a place to stay and someone who may be able to fix the source of our problem. The downside? No kinky spider sex," he whimpered dramatically.
"Also, no Ids," Peter added. "There's no way we will be able to rent a place for us nor find another job in case the kid can't take us back."
"We'll manage," Wade said dismissively, fanning his hand. He just needed to keep them in the dark for the next days about his plan and then they would be able to buy ten penthouses in the middle of Time Square if they wanted
"You still have something to tell me, Wade. Don't think for a second I didn't notice you acting weird last night." Peter put a hand on Wade's shoulder, preventing him from running off. They both knew that, if he wanted, Wade could shrug the hand off and leave, but that was not going to happen.
"I'm crazy, Peter, not stupid. I don't underestimate you, but you'll have to trust me on this one. I'll tell you when the time comes, I promise. I've got everything under control." He smiled.
"That's exactly what I'm afraid of," Peter commented and Wade mocked hurt, clutching a hand over his chest and the other one over his forehead with the palm up. Peter rolled their eyes but decided to let him be… for now.
Between their new found job as 'trainers' for the young demigods, a month soon passed. Each of the masked duo – as they were called – had a cabin that liked them more than the others.
The Ares cabin admired Wade because of his fighting abilities and his vast knowledge about weaponry, tactics and combat. He had forgotten more about all of them that the young campers would ever know, in their own words. They also admired Wade's scars, even if he still got uncomfortable about them.
Surprisingly, Peter was the Hephaestus Cabin's favourite. They were mesmerized by his web-shooters and by the technology from Peter's world and would listen avidly when he explained his shooters' mechanics or about any of his other gadgets. Specially, Harley, the youngest demigod, who seemed to have a fascination with the hero and would follow him everywhere, asking questions about heroes and about his spider powers. Wherever Peter went, Harley would be like his shadow. In the end, Peter gave in and let Harley climb on his back to crawl every wall in the entire camp, which ended with an exhausted Peter and an over-excited eight year old.
A month passed meant that Wade and Nico had to return to the city.
And Wade needed to find a way to sneak out without waking Peter up but came up with none so, instead, he decided that, when the last activities for the day had finished, Wade would call Nico to his room. When the teenager arrived, he found the larger man in full gear – where he got another suit in perfect conditions, Nico was unsure of. Nico, fidgeting uncomfortably with a heavy bag on his shoulders, summoned the shadows just ad Peter entered the room, looking for him. When he saw Wade in his Deadpool suit, Wade said that it was time for him to manage things and, before Peter had any chance of stopping him, he disappeared engulfed by the shadows.
As they travelled through the darkness, the voices started whispering in his mind, giving their unwanted opinions. Wade knew he was going to have a fucklot of explaining to do when he got back, but hopefully, Peter wouldn't be so mad when they saw what he had done.
[Are you kidding? He will be furious when he learns that our concept of "managing things" involved returning to our mercenary life and forging documents.]
{Not to mention the blood money. I hate to say it, dude, but, White is right. Spidey will kick our pretty ass.]
Wade told them to suck it up and covered his ears in a failed attempt to hush his boxes.
[… We are voices inside your head, remember? You can't silence us.]
"Deadpool," Nico called him from the blackness and tugged at the rope tied to his body. Wade followed it and grabbed the teenager from the shoulders as they exited the shadows, where they were received by the familiar run down building's façade. Wade untied himself and shrugged his shoulders.
"Remember what I told you last month, Ghost King? Still a great name," he snickered as they walked up to the old wooden door and knocked on it.
"Don't talk, don't look anyone in the eyes, don't embarrass you with my awesome powers. Don't let you get your ass kicked. Yeah, got it covered."
"Hey!" Wade protested but couldn't retort because the door opened and the same man they met that made the Halloween comment appeared. He yelped as he saw the ex-mercenary towering over him, armed and with a wide smile that stretched along his mask, "Well hello there, sugar buns! I'm here for the Masquerade. I used my finest rags for the occasion!" he faked a high-pitch, happy voice as he pushed the door open and entered the dark hallway. His boots echoed on the place as he headed towards the end of the corridor and into the open room. He stopped in the threshold and put his hand on his hips as every voice faded and everybody turned to see Wade, with their mouths dry as they recognized, not the mask of the man some of them had shot at the previous week but also, now looking at him in his suit, they recognized the man of the legends that circled in the underground circles.
"The Unkillable Killer… I told you he was alive… The Merc with a Mouth… So it was really him last week… The Crimson Comedian… I thought he was just a weirdo trying to get free drinks, but that suit… I thought he was just a myth…" hushed voices whispered among themselves, overlapping each other as they looked at the man standing at the entrance of the room.
"You finally showed up, Deadpool." Alessia was sitting at the bar, a glass of whisky resting before her. "Come to my office. Now." Wade crossed the room and strolled behind her, with Nico at his side looking at his feet. They trailed along the thin lady until they reached the office, where a thick bundle of papers lay on the middle off the desk. "Six sets, Deadpool. The price has doubled since you left."
"Love the way you lie, my dear." Wade nodded to Nico, who passed the backpack over to him and started taking some big rolls of money out of it. Peter would kill him when he discovered Wade not only had money stashed in one of his pouches but also that he spent it on the documents. But just before he handed over, Wade threw the money over her shoulder, way out of Alessia's reach and unsheathed his katanas and pressed the sharp blades against her neck. Her lower back was pressed against her desk. "Tell the gunmen behind that door to put their guns away before I paint this entire building red. You know what I'm capable of and you know I don't stay dead. Unlike you." His voice was low, dangerous. Nico felt a cold shiver running down his back as he tasted the sheer bloodlust and raw danger that flooded out of the ex-mercenary. He never saw the ex-mercenary move. "You fooled me once, Alessia. No more games. I brought enough money to pay for these and that's just it. Give the boy the papers and we'll leave everybody alive."
The woman looked into the white of this mask for a few seconds before shouting: "Back off, guys! Now!" The faint sound of footsteps faded into the distance. Alessia reached blindly behind her back and grabbed the documents. "Take them, kid." Nico hurried and took the papers, putting them inside the bag and returned to the spot behind Wade, far enough to be out of the katanas' reach.
As soon as Nico was behind him, Wade's entire demeanour changed. He took his swords away from her at an incredibly fast and his creepy, dangerous smile into a cheery one. "I love making business with you, sweet cheeks. Let's go, kid." He left the money on the rugged floor and started skipping towards the door, his swords still in his hands and the teenager right behind him.
It was a funny and terrifying view, but it served its purpose. No one dared to lift a finger against them as they exited the building.
Once they were out of the perimeter, Wade sheathed his katanas and sighed. "It went better than expected," he breathed a laugh. "Pass the rope, kid."
"Don't call me 'kid'. I have a name." Nico grunted as he took the cord out of the bag and tossed one of its ends. They both started to tie it around their bodies in almost silence. Wade hummed a tune Nico didn't recognize as he knotted his rope.
A scream made them jump off their skin and they turned to see a young woman being dragged inside a dark alley by a group of men. Wade frowned and unsheathed his katanas and started running in her direction, bringing Nico along because they were still tied together. Without looking, Wade swiftly cut the knot on his waist and stood on the entrance of the alley. "You know, you should always buy a lady dinner and have her consent before getting kinky." Wade's voice boomed and startled the attackers, who had a knife against the woman's throat and her chest was exposed, her clothes having been cut. She was crying and begged Wade for help. He was happy to comply.
"Who the fuck are you, freak? Guys." The one who was holding the knife snapped his free fingers and the other three men charged towards Wade. He told Nico to step aside as he wielded his katanas. Even Nico, with his fast reflexes, had a lot of trouble keeping up with the speed Wade moved. The attackers did not have time to react before their hands fell off their arms and blood tainted the already sticky walls of the alley. They could not stop him before he buried his swords deep in their bodies, purposely missing vital organs and arteries and, in the blink of an eye, Wade did the same to the man holding the woman. Wade used one of the men's shirt to clean his swords before sheathing them again.
His voice was soft as he held a hand towards her and waited for her to take it. "You are safe now. Do you live near here?" She nodded and took his hand with trembling pulse. "Would you like me to take you there?" She nodded again and laced her arm in Wade's. He started whispering soothing words to her and motioned Nico to follow them. They walked for a few minutes before reaching an apartment building. "Call 911 and tell them what happened."
He let her go but before he could turn around and leave, she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. She was crying. "Thank you," she repeated over and over again. Wade froze, unsure of what to do until Nico motioned him to return the hug. He ran his scarred hand through her head until she calmed down bit. "Can I ask your name?" She wiped the last of her tears with her hands.
"Deadpool, now go rest." He smiled and waited until she was inside the building before turning to face the teenager, who looked at him with a mixture of emotions.
Wade grabbed the rope and tied it again. He did not hum.