Michelle "MJ" Jones

During the next couple of days, Kaine – or Tarantula, as his costumed identity is called – became the talk of the town. He started to become known as the bigger, more brutal version of Spider-Man. From the videos I've seen, there wasn't much in the way of finesse or lightheartedness to his fighting style – just a lot of threats and beaten bodies in his wake. I was surprised to see him out and about in costume. Last time I checked, Kaine didn't want any parts of the superhero stuff. When I asked Peter about it later, he explained it was all part of a plan. When he explained the details, I could see how uncomfortable he was with the whole thing. I didn't blame him. It was a pretty dangerous situation, and I was sure that Peter didn't want to see a family member of his at risk. Of course, who would? But Kaine agreed to it and he could definitely handle himself from what I could see, so what could any of us even do or say?

While everyone was playing the waiting game, we finally got to meet with Pepper at Stark Industries' New York offices. We were all picked up by Happy and taken there. We didn't have to wait long before Pepper came in with Morgan in tow. After she got herself situated, she got right down to business.

"So you all have made a decision?" Pepper asked.

"Yeah, we did," Craig replied. "We all decided that we're going to take our intellectual talents to Empire State University."

Pepper nodded. "That is definitely a great choice." She tapped her fingers on the desk a few times. "So, are all of you ready? Do you have your SAT scores, extracurricular activities, and the like?"

"Most of us do," Carmilla said. "Peter and I have to take the SAT. I never got a chance to even register until this year."

"I did take the SAT before," Peter added. "But… you know."

"Right, right, that certain thing happened," Pepper uttered. She sighed. "That also means you'll need some extracurricular activities too, huh? Well, we'll figure something out. I'll probably put you on a couple of projects that could use some extra brainpower. So, for the time being, I'll have letters of recommendation for MJ, Ned, Kitty, and Craig by today. Carmilla and Peter, I'll have one for each of you once you take the SAT and get the results."

"Sounds good to me," Carmilla replied with a smile.

After that, we were all taken home by Happy. Much to my surprise, when I got home from training with Colleen, my dad handed me an envelope containing Pepper's letter of recommendation. The next day, I met with my guidance counselor, and we got to work on my application for Empire State University. I was still accepted by MIT and other schools, so I had them as a backup. Once we were done, I walked out of the office with a smile on my face. While I knew I had to play the waiting game, I still felt rather accomplished.

Later on that day, I got home from work. It was my day off from training, so I figured that I was going to watch TV or study. Neither of that happened, though. When I got home, my mom and my dad were in the living room, sitting on the sofa as they watched TV. They both looked at me, and my mom smiled.

"Hey, Miche'," she greeted.

I nodded towards them. "Hey mom, hey dad," I greeted back. "How's everything?"

"Everything's fine," my dad replied. He picked up the remote and turned off the TV. "…We do have something to talk to you about." I narrowed my eyes. "You're not in trouble in any way, sweetheart. It doesn't even have anything to do with anything you've done. Please sit."

I stared at them for a few seconds. I then slowly made my way over to the recliner. I took off my backpack and took a seat.

"Okay, so as you know, your father and I have been working on things between us," my mom began. "We've made a lot of progress, and we're happy about that. After talking to our counselor, however, we realized that certain actions we've done may have hurt others. Chief among them is your sister."

It took me a lot of effort not to frown. My sister, Gayle, and I… we used to be close. But there was an incident that we were involved in. We both got into a lot of trouble because we trusted the wrong people. Leading up to that, my sister and my dad would often get into heated arguments because of some of her "extracurricular" activities. My mom would often defend her – I guess that's when the arguments between my mom and dad started. But after that particular incident, it was the last straw. Gayle was sent to my aunt and uncle in Oregon. My sister didn't even argue. She wanted out. I haven't seen or heard from her since.

"We're going to spend some time to try and hash things out with her," my father continued. "It's probably going to be a bit hard and… We're not sure we want you there, in case something happens. We're going to see her during Midtown's spring break. If you want to come with us, then we'll take you. But if you don't, we'll pay for a trip for you or whatever you plan on doing during that time."

I stared at them for some for some seconds. I didn't know what to say at first. On one hand, it was a very, VERY long time since I last saw or even heard from my sister. I knew she was doing okay, if only because I've overheard my dad speak with my aunt and uncle a few times over the phone, but I wanted to see her and reconnect with her. On the other hand, I had no idea how things would go between my sister and my parents. I didn't even know if she wanted anything to do with me anymore. Also, while I love my folks, I still had a bit of resentment towards them. I knew I needed to talk with them about it, but I wasn't ready, and if things went south between them, I was afraid I'd open up that can of worms at the worst possible time.

"Can I take some time to think about it?" I asked.

"Of course, Miche'," my mother assured.

"Okay." I nodded. "Thank you."

I was thinking about it all night. Even when I was studying, it was in the back of my mind. A part of me was excited. A part of me was scared. A part of me was hoping that there was a chance for our family to be whole again. A part of me was afraid that the wedge between my family and my sister would become permanent. Not wanting to dwell on it any further, I went to bed early.

The next day, at lunch, I was on the roof of Midtown, as per usual. As I ate my sandwich, I heard sirens out in the distance. I didn't think much of it. It was just a normal day in New York, as far as I know. I heard the door open up behind me. I looked over my shoulder to see Ned. He walked up to me quickly.

"MJ, have you heard the news?" he asked.

I turned around and glared at him. "I don't want to hear about who caught their significant other making out with so-and-so," I deadpanned. "You know I don't do school gossip."

Ned glared at me back. "Oh ha-ha." He then showed me his phone. I looked at it. There was a stream on The Daily Bugle site. It was a rooftop fight between Kraven and Tarantula. They were really going at it. Tarantula was on the attack, kicking Kraven back first into an AC unit. He then webbed him against that same spot before he moved forward and sent fist after fist into Kraven's face. "You know, Kaine might take care of Kraven!"

"He won't." There was little doubt in my mind that Tarantula could if he wanted to. But I knew the plan. Ned, apparently, did not.

"What do you mean?" Ned asked.

I shook my head slowly. "Kaine is going to put up a fight. Then he'll take a dive and give himself up. It's all a part of a plan."

"And Peter is okay with this?"

"…Define 'okay'." I shrugged. "Kaine agreed to it, so there's nothing we can say." I looked out towards the city. "Let's just… not watch this."

Sure enough, by the time I was at work, Tarantula getting captured by Kraven was the talk of the town. There was a whole press conference called, with Kraven spinning this as a huge step in getting rid of the X-Men once and for all. It was enough to make me roll my eyes as I worked. I was ready to push it to the back of my mind until I noticed that the Loser didn't show up for his usual. Yup, this plan definitely wasn't sitting well with him.

After I was done with work and after my training session, I decided to make my way over to Peter's place. I was only a few blocks away. Along the way, I stopped at a food truck that was selling funnel cake and coffee. I made sure the coffee was decaf. Peter didn't need caffeine in his system, I figured. As I continued on my way, I couldn't help but notice how quiet it was. It was almost too quiet. I started to get the urge to walk a bit faster. I kept it cool and just kept on walking normally. However, I came to a stop when someone stepped out in front of me from the alley. He was dressed in a black hoodie and blue jeans. He was holding something wrapped in a paper bag. Something told me that it was an alcoholic drink. That something was the smell of alcohol coming off of him.

"Hey sweet lady!" he slurred out. "Where you goin'?"

"To my boyfriend's house," I replied simply, hoping that would be enough to get him to leave me alone. I took a step to my left. Unfortunately, he stepped in my way.

"He can't be much of a boyfriend if he's at home while you're out here all by yourself at this time of night." He smirked. "Why don't you and I hang out a bit so I can keep you safe?"

I took in a breath. "While I appreciate the offer, strange man who just came out of the alley, I have a thing about hanging out with people I don't know."

"Well let's get to know each other."

I sighed. "Okay, let me make it clear for you. I don't want to get to know you. I just want to be left alone. So if it's all the same to you, I – "

It was at this point that the guy reached into his pocket with his free hand and pulled out something. After a flick, I saw the blade. "What wasn't a request, bitch!"

I took a step back. I was ready to run. While I was being trained by her, Colleen always emphasized to me that I should always try to remove myself from a street fight by walking or running away first. However, before I could, he lunged at me with a knife. I immediately dropped the stuff on the ground. Quickly, I moved forward. I narrowly dodged the knife and grabbed his shoulders. There was also another thing that Colleen drilled into me. A street fight was just that – a street fight. There were no rules, decorum, etiquette, or the like. So, with that in mind, I didn't feel the least bit bad when I lifted my right knee and sent it straight into his crotch. As he groaned out in pain, I shoved him backward while I withdrew my knee.

As he stumbled backward, I stepped forward and sent my knee again, this time into his face. As he stood up from the blow, I used the momentum of the knee to turn to my left. With my left foot planted and my right foot off of the ground, I sent my right foot into the right side of his abdomen, knocking him to the ground. He tried to sit up, but then ended up rolling onto his left side as he held his right side with his hands. Yup, his liver felt that impact. I walked up to him before I looked down at him. I scowled at him before I looked over at the food I dropped. The coffee was all over the place and the bag the funnel was in was stepped on. I sighed before I looked back at him. I kneeled down, reached into his back pocket, and pulled out his wallet. I opened it up and saw some twenties in there. I took it from him and tossed his wallet to the side.

"Consider this compensation for my emotional distress," I deadpanned as I stood up. "Next time, it'll be a trip to Presbyterian."

It took me some time to get to Peter's place. Not wanting to show up emptyhanded, I stopped by a bodega and grabbed a couple of cans of AriZona Iced Tea and a large bag sour worms, along with a couple of chopped cheeses – they weren't from General Ock, but I was sure Peter would appreciate them all the same.

When I got to Peter's place, I used the spare key he gave me to make my way in. When I stepped through the door, I was greeted by the sight of Peter sitting on his bed, giving me a look of surprise. He was dressed in a white t-shirt and a pair of black gym shorts. I realized I should have called ahead.

"Hi," I said with a sheepish smile as I closed the door behind me and locked it.

"…Hi," he replied slowly. He took in a breath before he let it out.

"Sorry for dropping by unannounced, but you didn't come by Peter Pan." As I said this, I removed my shoes with my feet.

"Yeah." He stood up. "I, um… I was a bit too nervous about the plan, you know."

"I figured as such." I lifted up the bags. "I got sour worms, AriZona Iced Tea, and a couple of chopped cheeses - not the Ocky way, though."

Peter stared at me for some moments. He then smiled. "I appreciate it all the same."

So, we ended up sitting on his bed and eating in silence for the most part. I had a feeling he had something on his mind, but I didn't want to push him. So, I just kept on eating. Eventually, he did speak.

"I was never really okay with the plan, you know?" Peter spoke as he looked forward. "Joanna came up with the idea, but I wasn't too thrilled about it. The only reason I went along with it was because Kaine agreed to it and I didn't like the initial idea." He shook his head before he looked at me. "Kitty and Carmilla wanted to kidnap Justin Hammer. Craig and I were against it."

"Yeah, kidnapping is a bit… extreme," I said in agreement. Granted, it wouldn't have been the first time the X-Men have abducted someone. After all, they abducted Doug back in Palm Springs so they could get the information needed to rescue Carmilla. But, as much as I disliked Hammer, abducting him wouldn't have been right.

"I just… I just hope that we didn't put Kaine in a situation that we can't get him out of." Peter sighed. "I've gotten my fill of losing people close to me."

I didn't say anything in response. Honestly, what could I even say? Was there anything I can say that could make him feel better about this situation? I didn't think so. Instead, I put my arm around him and pulled him close. He didn't put up any resistance. When has he ever? Instead, he scooted in closed to me and turned into me a bit before he rested his head on my shoulder. I brought my hand up and ran my fingers through hair, lightly scratching his scalp. I looked forward. For the time being, I allowed myself to pretend that I didn't have a future of uncertainty on the horizon, both in regards to my relationship with Peter and my family.

Fuck me.