- Chapter 108 -

Along Came a Kumo

While the Hamato/Lee Family would often go out on night patrols, there were nights when they needed time to actually sleep or have time to themselves. In the wake of the Aeon incident, this was understandable, thus the Hamato Clan offered to take up patrols for the next few days. As such, when night fell, Tai's group climbed onto the roof of their brownstone. To everyone's surprise, Akemi chose to join them.

"It's rare for you to join us on patrol, Akemi," Makoto mused.

"Hey, I'm gonna be old enough to have a weapon soon," Akemi remarked. "Time to get into the swing of things, y'know?"

Makoto grinned. "Well, let's see how you keep up!"

They ran and parkoured off various rooftops. Akemi managed to keep up, before stepping on a loose brick and plummeting. She fell, only to land on something soft... and sticky.

"Akemi!" Makoto ran over to the edge, looking down. "Are you-?!"

"I'm okay! I landed on this nice, soft…" Akemi took in her surroundings, terror rising as she saw what she was on. "Giant... spider web…"

Indeed, she was lying right in the middle of a giant spider web that had been spun in the alleyway between the two buildings. Akemi immediately went pale, beginning to hyperventilate.

"Alright, calm down, don't panic..." she said aloud. "I-It's probably just some silly string the kids were playing with or something."

"Yeah.. totally," As Jade hopped down, Makoto began descending the fire escape, drawing a kunai. "Just... hold still."

"Just hurry up, please…" Akemi was visibly shaking, trying with all her might to keep her cool as Makoto began cutting the web carefully. Eventually, Akemi dropped, landing in Jade's arms. As Jade set her down, Akemi began shaking violently, looking up at the web.

"Spider, b-big... big s-spider... oh God…"

"Easy there," Jade soothed as she carefully peeled the webbing off Akemi's back. "Just breathe. You're alright."

Akemi took slow, deep breaths, composing herself. "...I'd like to go home now, please."

"Yeah, good idea." Tai looked at the webbing in Jade's hand. "Let's call the guys too."

An hour or so later, the Hamato/Lee family has gathered at the brownstone. All of the teens were a bit groggy, Hisako and Kagome in their PJs with sneakers and hoodies to combat the cold. Tai passed out coffee to all of them as Akemi explained what happened.

"It was a jumbo-sized spider web. Thank Kami the one who made it wasn't around, or I'd probably be dinner."

"A giant web this close to the brownstone…" Donnie mused.

"Right." Vee stood up, rifling through a toolbox left out from repairs during the Aeon incident. "I'm getting a hammer."

"Now hold on, Vee," Leo cut in.

"I am holding on… to the hammer."

Leo gestured to the webbing. "This webbing doesn't have the same coloration as Big Mama's, meaning this is a different spider. And they could be a friendly."

"Yeah," Mikey added. "No one's been reporting giant spider attacks."

"For all we know, it's one of her babies or something! Biding their time!"

"How about we actually verify and make sure it's not one of hers first?"

"Well, I can say this much," Donnie looked over the webs."This webbing has definitely been strengthened with mutagen."

"Right. Let's go to where Akemi found the web, see what we can find out." Leo turned to Vee. "And Vee, no hammer. We are not attacking the spider until we have 100% clarification that they're dangerous. Got it?"

"Can I at least bring the bug spray?"

Leo glared at her, and she sighed.

"Oh alright, fine."

Sometime later, they were examining the alley where Akemi had fallen. They looked up at what was left of the web, all of them taken aback by its size.

"That... is a big cobweb."

Donnie took a closer look, scrutinizing the silk. "Huh, this webbing isn't that old. Like it was made maybe an hour or so ago."

"It was pretty fresh when I cut it," Makoto chimed in. "Very sticky."

At that moment, they heard a slight buzzing. They looked up, seeing a familiar-looking bug caught in it. It was glowing slightly and was much bigger than a normal insect.

"Is that what I think it is?" Tai questioned.

"An Oozesquito…" Leo nodded.

As it flailed, something began to move across the web. Everyone froze, seeing a figure with four spider legs in its back crawl along toward the Oozesquito. Once it was close enough, it plucked the bug out of the webbing, holding it in pudgy, child-like fingers like a kid with some candy.

"Yummy!" the figure declared before sticking the Oozesquito in its mouth, chowing down.

"So that's how it must have mutated…" Donnie mused.

The spider happily ate the Oozesquito, smiling the entire time... and that was when it looked down to see the clan.

"Uh oh!" the spider immediately scrambled away.

"Hey, wait!" Leo called out.

The kid didn't. He just started scuttling up the wall, escaping onto the roof. By the time the others got up there, the kid was gone.

"That mutant… he was just a kid," Kagome realized. "A scared little boy."

"Why'd he run off like that?" Mikey questioned, looking confused. "None of us had our weapons out."

"Maybe he saw Vee's backup hammer," Hisako quipped, gesturing with her thumb to a very guilty-looking Vee.

Leo turned to his sister in irritation

"Damn it, Vee…" He pinched the area between his eyes. "What did I tell you?"

"It's a giant spider, Leo!" Vee shrieked, gesturing toward the horizon and revealing her hammer. It was a large, rubber mallet, the biggest hammer she could find. "I wasn't taking chances!"

"He's a kid! And now you scared him away!"

"I stopped him from eating us like he ate that Oozesquito!"

"Stop bickering!" Makoto shouted, then he noticed movement on the other side of the building. The spider boy was watching them but ducked the second he was noticed. "Over there! He's there!"

They pulled out their turtle lines, rushing to chase the kid.

"Wait, kid!" Mikey called. "We're not gonna hurt you! We just wanna talk to you!"

The kid wasn't listening, spitting webbing from his mouth to swing across the street. Despite their best efforts, the kid eventually escaped. As they caught their breath, Leo glared at Vee.

"When I say 'no hammer,' I mean 'no hammer.'"

"Leo, c'mon-"

"No! He ran from us, Vee! Does that seem dangerous to you?! Either get your head in the game or go home!"

"He was a giant spider! Did you expect me to take any chances?!"

"Yes, because I said so! I'm the leader, remember?! Which means that when I give an order, you shut up and do what I say!"

Vee let out a frustrated yell, throwing the hammer to the ground and storming off. A moment passed before Leo sighed.

"Right... we'll need to keep an eye out for any more spider sightings."

Everyone nodded before dispersing. Unbeknownst to them, the spider was watching from a distance, slowly looking toward the brownstone.

The next evening, Airi was being put to bed by her mom

"Good night, sweetie." Mika smiled before leaving, turning out the light as Airi got settled in. As she did, a shadow passed over her window, lightly tapping on it. She perked, standing up and looking out. As she looked around, something soft tickled the top of her head. She looked up, meeting the gaze of two red eyes and six smaller ones around it.

"Hi," a soft voice said.

Airi's eyes widened, but before she could say anything more, a hand gently yet firmly covered her mouth.

"Shh…" he said quietly. "Please don't yell. I don't wanna get squished."

He pulled his hand back and hopped down, letting Airi get a good look at him. Aside from the folded-up spider legs on his back and red eyes, he looked like a human boy around her age. He had messy dark brown hair and a matching complexion. He was wearing an old blue sweatshirt and brown shorts, along with simple black sneakers that looked too big for his feet.

"Are you the spider that saved Akemi?" Airi whispered.

He nodded, coming a bit closer.

"She was falling… I didn't want her to squish. But then they brought the Turtles. The girl had a hammer…"

"Dang it, Vee…" Airi shook her head before turning back to the boy. "I'm sorry about her. She has a bad time with spiders."

"I'm not a bad spider," the boy insisted, sounding so much like a boy insisting to Santa that he was good. "I promise! I've been keeping the glowing bugs away from your house!"

"The Oozesquitoes?"

"Yeah. They don't hurt me anymore and they taste good. So I can make sure they don't hurt you and your friends."

"Thank you, but why are you doing this for us, if you don't mind me asking?"

The boy blushed a bit. "Because I owe you my life."

Airi thought for a minute before perking with a gasp. "You were the spider I put outside a few weeks ago, weren't you?"
The boy nodded. "Yeah. That was me. I caught a glowing bug in my web and ate it not long after, and the next thing I know, I'm like this."

"And you've been protecting us ever since?"

"You're all good guys. I watched you take care of everyone, and save so many people."

Airi smiled, taking his hands. "Thank you... Kumo."

The boy tilted his head. "Kumo?"

"It's Japanese for spider. Gotta call you something, don't I?"

"Kumo... I like it."

Airi thought for a minute. "It's kinda cold out there, Kumo. Wanna come in?"

Kumo looked out at the street. "Just for a little bit."

He quietly climbed in, Airi sliding the window shut.

The next morning, Mika went into Airi's room, stopping short at the sight of Airi and Kumo sleeping in her bed, curled up like puppies. A moment passed before the entire apartment was roused by her shriek. Instantly, they all stormed into Airi's room, where Kumo was cowering in the upper corner of the ceiling while Mika clung to Airi.

"Who are you?!" Mika demanded. "How did you get in here?!"

"Mama, it's all right!" Airi cried.

"It's the spider!" Makoto exclaimed.

Kumo hissed, rearing back like a cat. Airi yanked her way out of her mother's grip. "No, WAIT!"

Akemi screamed, grabbing a bo staff and attempting to bash Kumo. He hissed again, then scrambled to the window.

"Akemi, no!" Airi darted over, grabbing the staff and wrestling with her as Kumo slid the window open and bailed.

"What is going on in here?!" Yukio demanded.

"There was a mutant spider in Airi's bed!" Mika cried.

"I let him in to warm up!" Airi shouted. "We didn't mean to fall asleep!"

"WHAT?!" Akemi shrieked. "Why would you let something that creepy into our house?!"

"Kumo isn't creepy!"

Tai raised an eyebrow. "Kumo?"

"You named it?!" Akemi exclaimed. "Now you're gonna get attached to it!"

That did it. Airi whirled on her, absolutely furious.

"SHUT UP, AKEMI!" she screamed at full volume.

A dead silence followed, everyone stunned speechless at Airi's outburst.

"Did... Airi just tell someone to shut up?" Makoto questioned.

"And scream at the top of her lungs?" Erika added.

"Because Airi was being a dumb face! Kumo isn't a bad guy! He's been keeping those Oozesquitoes away from our house! You fell in his web because he wanted to save you!" Airi threw up her hands in exasperation. "First Vee with the hammer, and now this?!"

She grabbed her sneakers and a coat, running for the still-open window.

"Airi, wait!" Akemi exclaimed. "I just wanted to-"

"No!" Airi glared at her. "I don't wanna hear it! You were being a jerk!"

Everyone gasped and Akemi clutched her chest, feeling physical pain from the normally sweet Airi calling her a jerk.

"Y-You don't mean that!" she let out.

"Yes, I do!" Airi pulled her sneakers on. "Kumo saved your life, and protected our home from Oozesquitoes, and you try to repay him by killing him because of your stupid bug phobia! I hate you, Akemi!"

Akemi's jaw dropped, a shocked gasp escaping her as her legs gave out and Airi scurried up the fire escape in pursuit of Kumo.

"Airi!" Tai cried. "Damn it, I'm going after her!"

He hurried to his room, quickly getting dressed.

"She... hates me?" Akemi let out in shock. "Airi... hates me... I can't…"

"Everyone, gather your things," Mika ordered. "And someone call Yoshi. We need to get my daughter back."

Outside, Airi had made it down the streets, looking around.

"Kumo!" she called.

As it was early morning, there were just some joggers and the occasional early commuter.

"Oh, where could he be… KUMO!"

"Y'know, a little girl like you shouldn't be roaming New York alone."

Airi perked as a shadow fell over her. She slowly looked to see Baron Draxum's gargoyles perched above.

"I'm looking for my friend Kumo," she replied. "My dumb cousin scared him off."

"Hmmm…" one of the gargoyles tapped his chin. "Maybe we could help you find him. Wanna go for a ride?"

The other gargoyle elbowed him. "Huginn, could you try not to sound like a creeper?"

"Sorry Muninn…" Huginn cleared his throat. "Would you like me and my companion to give you a lift? We can fly you around, give you a better view." He leaned over to Muninn, whispering "Better?"

"Much better."

Airi took a step back. "I'm... not supposed to accept rides or talk to strangers. My mom said so."

"Then allow us to introduce ourselves," Huginn said.

"We're the gargoyle twins. That's Huginn…" Muninn declared.

"And that's Muninn," Huginn said.

"What's your name?" both asked simultaneously.

Airi hesitated for a moment. "I'm... Airi."

Huginn smiled. "There you go. And now we know each other."

"We're not strangers," Muninn declared.

"And now we can give you a ride," both declared.

Airi hesitated, thinking it over. While she wanted to believe the best in the two gargoyles, something in the back of her mind kept insisting trusting them wasn't a good idea and to run.

"I'm sorry. I really need to get going."

She turned, beginning to go as the gargoyles turned to each other.

"She still doesn't trust us?" Huginn asked.

"Well, could be our red eyes and demonic looks that are giving her trouble there." Muninn pointed out.

"That is very true. Oh well, Plan B?"

"Eyup."

Both of them swooped down, grabbing Airi by her arms.

"Hey, what are you-?!" Airi let out.

"Sorry!" Muninn said. "We tried to do it the easy way, but you don't really have a choice here!"

"Let go of me!" Airi tried to struggle as she was lifted off the ground and into the air.

"You know that's a very bad choice of words to say when you're over a deadly fall, right?" Huginn pointed out.

"Well, she is a human toddler," Muninn remarked. "Perfect for the Baron's experiments."

"No! Somebody help me!"

All of a sudden, something sticky hit Muninn. It gummed up his wings, making him drop.

"Ewww!" the gargoyle exclaimed. "What is this?!"

"It looks like... spider webbing?" Huginn said.

Some hit Huginn and they all dropped, landing on a massive, hastily strung-up web. Kumo immediately scurried across the web on his spider legs toward Airi.

"Kumo!" Airi cried.

"Just hold on! I need to make sure these guys can't move!"

He crawled toward them, his mouth opening in four different places as he spat out a line of webbing. He cocooned them both.

"When Baron Draxum hears of this-!" Huginn began before Kumo grabbed his head and tilted it to the side, bearing his neck and opening his mouth normally to reveal two cute little fangs, which he promptly sank into Huginn's neck before doing the same to Muninn.

"I... feel really tired all of a sudden." Muninn groaned.

Kumo squished their cocoons together, setting them aside before patting them on the head.

"Just take your nap," He turned to Airi, looking her over. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah…" Airi sighed. "I'm okay. Thanks."

"Airi!" came Tai's voice.

Kumo gasped, making to scurry away, but Airi caught his arm.

"I won't let them hurt you," she assured. "I promise."

The Hamato Clan rounded the corner just in time to see Kumo gently freeing Airi from the web. Holding her in his arms, he slowly descended on his spider limbs.

"Airi!" Jade cried. "Get away from that-"

Tai raised a hand to quiet her, shaking his head. As he made it to the ground, Kumo gently set Airi on her feet, hiding behind her as she turned to face the others.

"Put your weapons away, all of you," she ordered. "I'm gonna tell you what happened last night and just now, and you're gonna be quiet and listen."

"Happily, after you step away from that–" Jade began.

"Jade," Tai looked at her. "For your own sake, shut. UP." He turned back to his sister, sliding his weapons into their sheaths. "Alright, Airi. You have our attention."

Airi nodded at that. "Okay, first of all, remember the little spider I stopped Akemi from squishing and let outside a few weeks ago? Well, here he is."

Kumo gave a tiny wave.

"It mutated?" Hana asked.

"He, Hana!" Airi snapped. "Not it, he! He's a boy!"

"Sorry. He mutated?"

Airi nodded in approval. "That's better. And yeah. Apparently not long after I let him out, he caught one of those Oozesquito bugs Leo and his sibs have been going on about and ate it."

Erika perked, the pieces falling into space. "And going by what Donnie told us about mutagen, you must have been the last thing he touched before he was exposed."

"Uh-huh!" Airi confirmed.

"Hang on…" Makoto piped up. "I remember something else. Don had this theory that mutation is also based on your mental state. It's why Master Splinter and the turtles all look as good as they do, while Tokka, Rahzar, and Fishface all look, well... hideous."

"Well, that explains why he looks like a nice little boy," Mizuki remarked.

Kumo waved slightly.

"I'm not bad, I promise," he assured. "I just wanted to keep you safe, to help people like you do. So I've been catching all the glowing bugs I can, trying to stop them from stinging anyone else."

He then spat out some quick webbing. It fell, revealing an Oozesquito in it. He picked it up and grinned before popping it in his mouth like candy. Seeing his childlike attitude and cheerfulness firsthand, Tai and the others visibly began to relax.

"And Akemi being caught in your web?" Makoto questioned.

"I saw her fall and spun it to catch her. Like I spun this one to catch Airi. She was grabbed by those guys up there." Kumo pointed to Huginn and Muninn's cocoons. "They said they were trying to take her to some guy named Baron Draxum."

"Draxum…" Jade perked. "Isn't that the guy Kagome and the others mentioned? The one who set the Oozesquitoes loose?"

"It is," Hana smiled at Kumo. "You probably saved her life."

"She saved me," Kumo replied. "It's why I've been doing all this."

Just then, his stomach growled loudly. He covered his stomach, blushing. "The glowy bugs are yummy... but it's not enough food anymore."

Tai knelt to his level, smiling. "How about we go back to the brownstone and talk more over breakfast? Can you eat human food?"

Kumo nodded. "A big cat brought me McDonald's once. It was good." He pulled a small Beanie Baby out of his pocket. "It came with a toy."

"Well, why don't we introduce you to more?" Tai offered.

They headed back to the brownstone. After a quick explanation, they sat down around the table. Kumo looked at the plate of eggs and bacon before him.

"That smells nice." He took a bite, went wide-eyed, and started gobbling. "Sugoi!"

He coughed slightly, gagging before Erika slid him a glass of milk, which he drank gratefully.

"Try not to eat too fast," she cautioned.

"You said a big cat brought you McDonald's and your clothes," Tai recalled. "Was he wearing an eyepatch and trenchcoat?"

Kumo nodded.

"I thought so. Old Hob found you."

"Uh-huh," Kumo confirmed. "He said I could come stay with him until some friends of his found me a home, but I said I wanted to stay, so he brought me these clothes and the McDonald's. After that, I set up webs near here. Whenever those glowy bugs came by, I caught them. They can't hurt me, but they can hurt you, and I don't want you to hurt like I did. [rubs his arm] It tasted good, but turning into this... not fun. When you found out about me last night, I went to Airi to explain my side of the story. She seemed the least likely to try to squish me."

Airi gave Akemi a dirty look for that.

"I'm sorry, okay? I overreacted." Akemi turned to Airi. "You don't really hate me... do you?"

"Once you apologize for realsies." Airi insisted.

Akemi sighed, turning to Kumo. "I'm sorry I tried to smash you. I had... a bad experience with non-mutant spiders once when I was little."

"Some bigger spiders can be jerks, but most of us aren't bad," Kumo told her. "We just eat bugs and wanna be left alone."

Akemi nodded. "Right... I'll keep that in mind."

With that, Kumo turned to the others. "Also, I'm sorry for scaring you all this morning. I just came in to warm up for a bit and fell asleep. It was just so comfy."

"Where do you usually sleep?" Tai asked.

"There's a cozy place behind the dumpster," Kumo replied. "I usually find a place safe from rain, spin a web, and get settled in."

"Maybe we can set you up with a room in here?" Hana offered. "We've got plenty of space."

"But if I'm inside, I can't catch the glowy bugs."

Makoto snapped his fingers. "I might have an idea."

-X-

After breakfast, they stood before the water tower on the roof.

"It'll take some work, but we could fix it up," Makoto mused. "String up some fairy lights, put in some insulation, add a window, and we could even get you a hammock."

Kumo smiled. "I'd like that. Thanks."

"Hey, you're part of our clan now, Kumo," Tai ruffled his hair. "Speaking of, Akemi, you get to tell Leo and the guys about Kumo."

Later, the Hamato/Lee siblings gathered as Akemi explained Kumo's story.

"So he's just a kid, and has been protecting you from the Oozesquitoes," Vee mused. "Well... I feel sheepish."

Leo smirked, crossing his arms. "Do you, now?"

Vee sighed. "Okay, okay. I'll admit it, I should have listened, but come on! You have to see my point of view!"

"Most mutants we've met have been bad, but we haven't gotten any reports of spider attacks," Leo pointed out. "If we had, things would have been different."

"Don't bring logic into my fear!"

Everyone chuckled as Vee turned to Kumo. The boy was playing Jacob's Ladder with Airi but looked up when the turtle approached.

"I'm sorry about the hammer," she told him. "I... have a problem with bugs. I'm aware of that."

"I'm not a bug, I'm a spider!" Kumo grinned, showing off his cute fangs.

"Yeah… well, you get the idea."

"You don't have to be afraid of me, promise!"

"Yeah, Vee," Mikey said. "Spider Bytez is cool!"

"My name is Kumo, not Spider Bytez," Kumo insisted.

"Yeah," Airi agreed. "Sorry, Mikey, but I met him first, so I get to name him."

"Awww…" Mikey drooped.

"Looks like there's one person even Dr. Namenstein can't beat," Raph chuckled.

Everyone cracked up at that.

Author's Note:

Yep, that's our take on Spider Bytez. In the original version of OOTS, it would have been Makoto who mutated. We changed our minds for this version, considering the Oozesquitoes.

Voice cast for this chapter:

* Kumo - Alkaio Thiele (Peter Parker/Spider-Man in Spidey and His Amazing Friends season 3 and onwards, Max Jr. in Call Me Kat)

Please R&R. Until next time!