Gwen

Gwen was sitting in her lab on another Saturday afternoon. It also happened to be her fifteenth birthday. She held up the first prototype guided sniper round and inspected it. She'd fabricated a thousand of them while she was at school that week. She hadn't told Obadiah she'd finished. She still had three months left on her deadline. She wasn't sure she would ever get too. Tony Stark had just held a press conference yesterday where he'd told the world Stark Industries were no longer in the weapons business. She sighed and put the bullet down. She should be happy at the turn of events. No more weapons. That probably meant she had no job. She had been depending on the bonus. The lab door opened, and her spider sense gave her the slightest twinge. She spun on her stool. It was Obadiah. He had a present. It was wrapped in golden paper.

"Happy Birthday, Gwen."

He placed it down on the work bench beside Gwen. Then put his hands on his hips. He reached down and picked up one of the bullets. He inspected it closely.

"Are these what I think they are?"

Gwen nodded. Obadiah held it up.

"Impossible indeed."

Gwen frowned.

"Not that they will ever see the light of day."

Obadiah smiled.

"Don't worry. It's being taken care of. So, these are ready for testing."

"Yes, put a tracker on a target and every single bullet will head towards it."

Obadiah smiled.

"We'll test fire them Monday. If they work as advertised, by this time next weekend, you'll be a very happy girl."

"They will work. I would have tested them myself already, but I'm not legally allowed to fire firearms in the course of my job. The State of New Jersey believes that would be too dangerous for a minor."

Obadiah laughed and patted her on the back.

"Well, you've outdone yourself Gwen. Why don't you take off for the afternoon? Get an early start on your birthday celebrations. Paid of course."

"Thank you."

Gwen stood up and took off her lab coat. She hung it by the door then came back for her phone, backpack and the present. Obadiah was still admiring the bullets. She was about to leave the lab when he called out to her.

"Say Gwen, has that Agent reached out to you again?"

She shook her head.

"Not a word from him or anyone else, Obadiah."

He nodded.

"Have a good birthday."

"Thank you!"

She beamed at him and picked up her phone and let Toby know she was leaving early today.

Tony Stark

Tony was sitting in his workshop staring at the Mark 1 armor schematic he had put in the computer. He tapped his chin.

"Jarvis, start a new project. Name it Mark two."

"Should I store it on the Stark Industries servers sir?"

Tony shook his head.

"No, no I don't know who I can trust, store it on my private server."

Tony started pulling parts off of the hologram of the Mark 1. Left with the exoskeleton he started to add in new smaller components. Jarvis piped in as he worked.

"Sir, would you like me to load the new chip and circuit fabrication specifications from the Stark Industries servers."

Tony paused in his typing.

"New what?"

"In your absence a new fabrication technique has been designed by Stark Industries engineers. It reduces chip size by a factor of one hundred."

"Display the specs please, Jarvis."

Tony spun the new chip design document around zooming in.

"I'll be damned."

He zoomed into the top corner of the document and saw the lead research engineer and his eyes went wide.

"Gwen Stacy. She did this?"

"Yes sir."

"Clever kid. They look good. Yes. Load the new fabrication specs. Update the Mark Two specs with the new chip sizes. Shrink components as appropriate."

"Of course, sir."

Gwen

Gwen's father was packing up to head into work when she got home. He gave her an apologetic look.

"Sorry Gwen, I know it's your birthday but got called in. We will do your dinner tomorrow, okay?"

Gwen nodded. She was used to this. She could remember two birthdays her dad had actually been home for. She gave him a kiss on the cheek and headed into her room. She tossed her present on the bed and got changed into more age-appropriate clothes. She hopped down the stairs. Toby was still waiting outside. When she got in, he pulled away from the curb.

"Thanks for doing this Toby. Are you sure you won't get in trouble?"

Toby smiled and glanced into the rearview mirror.

"Mr. Stane has made it clear whatever you need, you get. So, if it's me for a couple of extra hours I would be waiting around for you anyway, who is to care? Besides its your birthday."

He drove silently for a while, then glanced back at the mirror.

"If you don't mind me asking, who are you going to see?"

Gwen gave a slight shrug.

"Just a friend. He'll be out soon. I go to see him every Saturday after you drop me off. Figured if you give me a ride there and back, I can stay longer."

Toby nodded. Eventually he pulled into the parking lot of the youth detention center where Miles Morales was being held. She walked inside. She went through the metal detectors and went to the sign-in desk. The corrections officer behind it was a woman Gwen was familiar with.

"Officer Allen. How are you doing today?"

"Doing good, how about you?"

Gwen smiled.

"I'm doing good too."

Officer Allen looked at Gwen's signature, then motioned to the hallway.

"You know the drill, Gwen."

Gwen nodded.

"Thanks!"

Gwen followed the hallway to the visiting area. She pulled her portable chess set out of her backpack and left the bag with the visiting area guard's desk. He buzzed her in. She went and sat down and started setting the chess set up. Miles walked in. He was in a grey jumpsuit he still had his braids in. He sat down across from her.

"I did not expect to see you here today girl. Thought that boyfriend of yours would be treating you right."

Gwen shrugged.

"It's my birthday I can do what I want. We going to play or what?"

Miles smirked at her and moved a pawn. She moved her own pawn. He glanced up at her.

"I figured you out. I know why you're coming here."

Gwen raised an eyebrow.

"Why am I coming here?"

He moved another piece.

"Same reason Peter doesn't know who I am, same reason, I'm not dead right now. Same reason that boyfriend is always in just the right place to get videos of Spider-Woman."

Gwen moved a bishop.

"Oh? This should be an interesting theory."

Miles shook his head and moved his rook out.

"You going to make me say it, girl?"

"Really, you think that's me?"

Miles nodded. Gwen moved a pawn up, it threatened his rook.

"I think you're going a bit crazy being in here. Good thing your lawyer says he's going to get you out of here soon."

Miles moved his rook up a space.

"I guess it's true, money buys justice."

Gwen nodded.

"That and the fingerprints they had on file for the robbery vanished. It's the darndest thing."

"It sure sounds like it."

"It's almost like someone with really good hacking skills managed to break into their system and delete the files."

Miles shrugged.

"Guess it's my lucky day."

"Guess it is, Peter has been missing you a lot. So, seems like it is his lucky day too."

Miles smiled and nodded. Gwen swept her bishop up and took out his rook. She looked at Miles.

"You haven't told Peter about this theory of yours, have you?"

Miles laughed.

"Hell no. I see that as mutually assured destruction considering what she knows about me. At worst she loses a best friend. For me the worst is death."

"Well, if what you suspect is true, then why would she waste time on you."

Miles moved another pawn.

"Because she wants to make sure my nose stays clean? She is madly in love with me. Or she's trying to make up with a friend, without telling him what she did."

"Well, if she were who you think she is, then she would want to ask you a question about where someone would get ahold of military grade weapons on the streets. Cutting edge stuff, barely even in the field for the military."

He looked up at her.

"Is this what you didn't want to talk to me about a couple of weeks ago?"

Gwen didn't meet his gaze and gave a small shrug. Miles snapped his finger.

"Shit girl, you were one of the unidentified minors that were victims of a car bombing."

Gwen shook her head.

"Not a car bombing. It was explosive gel rounds I designed."

"Ouch, shot at with your own weapons. I'll tell you what, I'll call my uncle, I'll tell him she is going to visit him tomorrow and tell him to answer whatever questions she has."

Gwen sighed and moved one of her pieces.

"How did you know?"

"Oh, I suspected right away. Who else would want James as badly as I would? Thought it might be someone else whose parent he killed."

Gwen nodded. Miles seemed to have forgotten their chess game. He lowered his voice.

"What happened to you?"

"It's a long story, I'll tell you another time. Once you get out of here."

Miles nodded. He leaned forward.

"Gwen, I know what you've done for me. The heat you took. How you're paying for my lawyer, so I'm not stuck with some idiot public defender. How you've helped my mom make her rent payments and pay for food."

"It's nothing."

Miles shook his head.

"It is not nothing. You had my back when I needed it. I've got yours from now on. That's how it works in my hood."

Gwen nodded.

"Just please, stop breaking the law or we'll have to fight it out again."

"That shit is done. Fuck Fisk. My Uncle Aaron and me, we're going to be on the right side of the line now. I'll make money by robbing the drug dealers, put them out of business."

Gwen shook her head.

"Miles, you're smarter than that. You might be as smart as me. There is a scholarship program at Midtown High. You should apply."

Miles narrowed his eyes.

"So I can be the token poor kid?"

"Peter is going there on a scholarship. You're at a crossroads. You want to go down the one that almost got you killed? Could have kept you in here for life? That got your father killed. Or do you do want to do something more with your life?"

Miles unfolded his hands and looked at his palms.

"I won't get in."

"You will. Miles I know people. I'm working on something. Something big. If your Uncle Aaron can get me close, I can make a deal. No matter what happens with the courts, I can get you out of here, maybe even get you into Midtown. It's going to be dangerous so you promise me if I can make it happen you will give it a good honest try."

"It would take a miracle to make that happen. So shit, why not. You pull that off I'll do it."

Gwen glanced at the chessboard.

"I guess we're not finishing this today."

Miles shook his head. Gwen started cleaning off the board and putting the pieces away. Miles looked at her up and down.

"You know, if I wasn't with Peter, you'd be my type."

Gwen raised an eyebrow.

"I thought I had the wrong plumbing for that."

Miles laughed.

"Nah, girl. I love everybody equally."

"Well, it'll never happen, I follow the bro-code. No dating my BFF's ex's."

Miles nodded.

"That and you got Flash. Not my type, but those abs."

Gwen got a dreamy look in her eyes.

"Yep."

Gwen pulled the chess set closer.

"I should go, my driver is waiting outside."

Miles smirked.

"Oh, 'a driver'? Have you gone and got all rich and important on me?"

Gwen laughed softly and gave a shy smile.

"No, he's just a Stark Industries driver. It's not important. I'll see you next week."

Miles stood up and reached for her. A guard cleared her throat. Miles snapped his hand back. Gwen looked at him expectantly.

"What's up?"

"I just… something has been bothering me since you've been coming to visit."

"What?"

"How are you getting in?"

Gwen smiled.

"You remember an officer named Erica Smith?"

Miles nodded.

"Hell yes. She's been coming by to make sure mom and I are doing okay. She was some friend of dads."

"Well, she's going to be my stepmother in two months. She made a call. Told them I was your girlfriend. Asked if they could overlook that I'm not family, because you're the son of an officer who died in the line of duty."

Miles smiled, then nodded.

"See you next week. SW."

Gwen waved and turned around. She blushed when she realized Miles's eyes were on her butt. She had no idea why he was causing the flutter in her chest. She had Flash, and Miles was with Peter.