Chapter 11: Knocking a Screw Loose

'Just when I thought things couldn't get even more complicated…'

Despite being on another one of his usual nightly patrols, the Webhead's mind is once more bothered and preoccupied with some of the strangest events that have transpired in the past few days….

'I had to deal with crazy imposters and upgraded villains; I can't go around one of those normal one-on-one dates with two amazing girls conspiring behind my back. And now Gwen's got powers, cool ones at that…!? Well, not that I'm complaining though, but still…' Spider-man thought in his head before feeling a ring over his phone for some reason and picked it up, snapping himself back into reality. "Hey guys, how's your evening going?"

"Quiet. All clear on this side of the city, how about you Bobby?" Prowler replied over his built-in communicator in his mask, watching over the city blocks near the theater atop a ledge.

"Coney Island's clear. Copy," Iceman playfully replied with Shadowcat holding onto his back while gliding through the area near the piers and coastlines atop his ice slide.

"No danger sighted in this neighborhood, maybe the villains are hesitant to run around," Ghost Spider joked over the phone while zipping and leaping around the neighborhoods in Queens. "You know, with the five of us around?"

"Even better then! If there is not a single sign of danger in the next hour, we can call it a night," Spider-man suggests while swinging around. "You know, you guys don't have to follow my lead in doing this, alright?"

"But what if you got beaten again like last time? Won't it sting to be a thug's punching bag every once in a while?" Shadowcat teases while making a good point.

"She's right though, Pete. We're just here to help with whatever we got," Ghost Spider adds. "So don't reject our offer to assist, okay?"

"Okay, yeah. Thanks you guys...for sticking around with me," Spider-man quipped in an appreciative manner.

"Piece of cake bro," Iceman replied back.

"No prob, I could always use some nightly workout," Prowler replied back.

'At least this way, the city's way safer than when I was swinging solo. Yeah, Liz, MJ, and Aunt May would be safer…' Spider-man thought to himself before landing on a nearby pedestal. 'Hmmm, I wonder how Liz will take Gwen having powers…'

Meanwhile, somewhere on the same night at the Allans' residences, blocks away from Spider-man's position….

"Gee, this one looks kinda tight. Can I even fit in wearing this?" Liz complained out loud while holding her newly bought white sports jacket, skeptical about its size. "Nevermind, I just hope it does."

She then proceeds to wear the jacket over her sleeveless rash guards that she wore back in her cheerleading days and zips it well, examining her appearance through the mirror.

"Ooooh! Lookin' good!" Liz complimented herself in her jacket. "Hmm, how about these?"

She then takes the white knee length shorts and carefully puts them on as well, which unexpectedly fits her comfortably.

"Wow! This rocks!" Liz screamed with glee, staring at her appearance in the mirror before grabbing her helmet with a yellow visor that has a nosepiece to help it fit comfortably on her face as she carefully puts it on.

Like a nervous fashion model, she just looks at her whole appearance from head to toe and back to front with mixed feelings festering in her mind…

"Maybe this is too flashy as a hero suit. Wait, Petey's suit is red and blue, so does that mean mine is kinda plain? Geez, I wonder if he found this hero gig initially hard," Liz muttered while looking around her jacket with singular streams of vibrant violet and yellow along her jacket's zipper and arm sleeves.

"You know what, forget it. As long as I got my real name and face safe, then I'm safe," Liz muttered before putting on her white gloves, white knee socks, and white rubber shoes with retractable roller skates, striped with short streams of violet and yellow. "Cool! They fit in nicely!"

After that, she buckles on her favorite white belt bag and then picks up her grappling hook gun before leaving her room through the balcony, looking at the night sky and the tall buildings in front of her. She gulps down her fears then carefully points and aims her grappling hook gun to the top of the building, firing and launching it high up until it latches onto the ledge of the building. Out of cautious curiosity, she gently tugs and pulls the line connected before standing on the fence of her balcony and then looks down at the streets that are storeys below her.

"Hoooo man, whew...tally ho," Liz whimpered before taking the leap of faith off her balcony.

In the middle of free falling, she holds her breath before pressing the trigger of her grappling hook gun and reels her up high in midair while swinging forward to go with the flow.

"Whaaaahoooo!" Liz cries out while feeling the breeze and the similar sensation Spider-man has in swinging around until she safely lands on the rooftop with her hook retracted. "Whoa, that was incredible! I can't believe it!"

She then explores the rooftop around and notices several other nearby rooftops that are almost clumped together. With a thrilling idea…

"Alright Lizzy, remember what we've practiced. It's cool! Just like in the gym…" Liz thought out loud while limbering up and slowly getting into position before dashing like crazy towards the ledge and then vaults over it before breaking her fall on the other rooftop by rolling over her arm to her shoulder and back until she gets back easily on her nimble footing.

In front of her were pipes aligned like railways, giving her the chance to pop her retractable roller skates before skating fast enough to hop over and grind on the pipes like rails, using her grappling hook to latch on and lift her up onto the higher ledge until she could climb over it. Sitting down and looking around in awe of the sudden adrenaline rushes...

"Man, I'm so diggin' this hero thing!" Liz shrieked with joy as she removed her helmet for a breathing moment until she heard alarms ringing nearby down at the street.

Just found a few meters away were a tandem duo of robbers that looted the nearby jewelry store before taking off on a motorcycle.

"Oh no you don't! Not while Spidey's gone you don't!" Liz muttered before quickly putting her helmet back on and chases them down, skating around on the rooftops while pursuing the pair of thieves.

"Whoo! We got a nice haul tonight pal!" Says one of the thieves in a balaclava.

"Shhhh! Quiet man! Do you wanna alert one of those freaks! No way am I gonna waste tonight with one of 'em!" Scolded the thief driving the motorcycle.

"Wow, they sure knew how to fail in keeping a low profile," Liz quipped before pulling out her grappling hook gun and aiming it at the motorcycle's butt. "Here goes nothing!"

She then fires the hook at the motorcycle, managing to latch onto its butt, startling the passenger in the process while slowly descending down by skating along the walls before landing and skating on the street.

"What was that!? Is that Spider-man?!" Asked the driving thief.

"Naw man! Just a girl!" Says the thief as he points out his gun at Liz. "I'll deal with her!"

"Yikes!" Liz screamed before noticing him shooting at her, which was able to gracefully, and yet barely dodge the bullets fired at her until his magazine ran out. "Now it's my turn!"

As she presses the trigger on her gun while skating on the road, she reels herself in as the gun swiftly, yet steadily retracts the hook. With the distance shortened at an instant, she quickly lands a kick on the robber's face with her roller skates, hitting him hard that it hits the back of his friend's head and in turn startles him in the middle of driving until they bump and crash onto a nearby lamp post, rendering the both of them unconscious due to the strong impact.

"Oooh ouch. That's gotta hurt," Liz thought out loud, able to maintain her balance on her roller skates until she hears police sirens closing in. "Uh oh, time to bail! But first, a quick memory!"

She takes out her phone and does a selfie with the incapacitated robbers and their wrecked motorcycle until the cops arrive, just enough time to swing away with her grappling hook and land atop a nearby building before looking down to watch the police quickly arrest the two criminals before leaving the scene with a satisfied smile.

'Best night ever!' Liz internally screamed before discreetly rushing back home.

"Almost done with you, young ones. You will make great assets to my cause," Miles thought out loud in his private laboratory, where Mark Allan became Molten Man.

"You mean 'our' cause, right doctor?" Norman interrupted, appearing from the shadows with Tombstone reluctantly standing as his bodyguard.

"M-m-mister Osborn! Why I—yes! Th-these are specimens that I've cultured and separately experimented for our benefit," Miles assured, showing Norman several canisters, three of which are containing three cultured symbiotes that are spliced or divided.

"This experiment must work better and yield greater results than the other fiascos that were tested, especially in the absence of our valued friend, Hammerhead," Norman reminds, tapping the ground with his walking rod while looking up close on the symbiote in a red shade that piqued his interest.

"Oh you will surely be pleased. I have planted my remote-controlled subdermal nanites in two of these specimens, to grant us the power to control them and allow them to do the fighting for us," Miles assured.

"Two? What about the third one?" Norman asks.

"The third one is the parent or the originator of the other two smaller specimens. It is more difficult to control, even after researching it till now. But I will not give up sir!" Miles assured.

"Good doctor, you can take a break for now. You've earned it," Norman orders.

"Y-yes...thank you sir," Miles thanked before leaving the laboratory discreetly.

"Little Green friend, this charade will surely end if you continue this foolishness in making living weapons. The Webhead won't ignore this, and so will the rest of his ragtag of freaks," Tombstone hissed, crossing his arms.

"Awww, I am quite flattered by your concern Mr. Lincoln, but remember, I have whereabouts concerning your little girl," Norman threatens to make him listen to his words. "I won't hesitate to hire a search-and-destroy team to put her out of her misery because of a helpless and yet ruthless father like you...unless you continue to do my bidding."

"..." Tombstone stayed silent, exuding an aura of rage from Norman's threat.

The next day in Midtown High…

"Hey Flashy! Look who's got the attention in the news!" Sally jeered, showing the newspaper to the blond jock.

"An Angel In The Night: Last night, a vigilante clad in white was found stopping a robbery in progress until the police were able to apprehend the suspects…" The newspaper went on relaying the brief information on the female vigilante doing Spider-man's work in another part of the city.

"Big deal! They're just petty crooks! Spidey could handle the bigger fish!" Flash protested as he shoved the newspaper back to Sally.

"Hey guys, what's up?"

Coming their way down the corridor was the oddball clique, with Peter, Liz, and Gwen on the front.

"What's going on? Another 'messing with Flash' Day or something?" Peter quipped, making Liz hide her giggle on his shoulder.

"Yeah well there happens to be another heroine in town! And she was just found fighting crime on the farther side of Manhattan, check it!" Sally suggests, handing the newspaper to Peter and Liz. "Finally, some more girl power! Am I right?"

Trying to act like nothing happened, Liz intently reads the news with Peter on her short misadventure as the vigilante stopping an ongoing jewelry heist, which warms her heart to notice Peter reading her story and the joy on Sally's face—even though it was her biggest reason for quitting the team.

"Wow, is there a trend to find more people like her to go out fighting crime like that?" Hobie deadpans while glancing at the newspaper.

"Like I said back then, Hobes, New York does embrace weirdos," Peter quipped, knowing how they don't have problems being the team of heroes around and unknowingly stinging Liz's heart from his remark in calling her a weirdo.

"Interesting news, you got that for the Bugle, Petey?" Liz wonders out of curiosity.

"Ummm, mind if we talk it over somewhere else?" Peter nervously suggests.

"Over something sweet then?" Liz suggestively adds.

"We can do that," Peter accepts with a smile.

"Mind if we could come with?" Kitty asks.

"The more the merrier, Kitty!" Liz adds with a smile.

"Alright!" Bobby exclaimed.

"But where though?" Gwen wonders.

"You know, my parents just recently established a new dessert parlor in one of the hotels nearby, wanna try it out? You'll be one of our first tasters, not customers for now," Liz briefly explained and suggested.

"As long as the food's free, I don't mind if it's even poison," Bobby joked bluntly, getting two elbows from Gwen and Kitty hitting his gut. "Ow! What?!"

"It is our pleasure Liz," Hobie adds.

"Awesome! Sally, Flash wanna come to—"

"No thanks, I'm all good, see ya's later," Sally bade in an annoyed tone before leaving them whereas Flash was found missing, probably looking for Sha Shan or whatever.

"..." Liz looks down in sadness, bummed out about her best friend rejecting her offer until Peter embraces her.

"Maybe she still seems bothered about what happened, but maybe it will come to pass soon enough, probably," Peter tries to comfort Liz, gently caressing her back.

"Thanks for that Petey," Liz thanked with a smile.

"Come on guys, let's get it over with later, 'kay?" Gwen points out, with her hands on their forearms with a somewhat jealous look on her face.

"Okay okay, yeah," Peter nervously replied, releasing his hold on Liz, making the two girls giggle in response.

"Hm? Kitty, you okay?" Bobby wonders, noticing the unfamiliar and uneasy look on her face.

"Huh? Okay? I'm mighty fine! Why?" Kitty nervously replied back, making Bobby raise an eyebrow in response.

"Okay Mr. Brock, shall we start?"

"Yes doc, and you can call me Eddie instead."

Meanwhile, in the Ravencroft Institute— an asylum for the mentally unstable and reformed criminals—Dr. Ashley Kafka, the founder of the institute, is currently holding another talk session with one of the young patients named Edward "Eddie" Brock, who's been rumored to be arrested for posing as a certain villain who fought Spider-man.

"You say that you used to have um, a close friend since childhood, correct?" Ashley asks with her pen, notes, and clipboard in hand.

"We're more than childhood friends. We called each other 'bros', especially after our parents died in a crazy plane crash," Eddie answered.

"Oh...I'm sorry…" Ashley apologizes upon hearing that tragedy.

"Don't be, it's nothing to brag about," Eddie assures. "Always had my watchful eye over my li'l bro for as long as I could remember...until the unbelievable happened…!"

"What is it?" Ashley asks, writing down their thoughts on her notes.

"Despite everything I've done for him, and being all by myself for a long time, I was getting all the worst things coming to me from him and him alone…!" Eddie hissed while looking at his clenched fists. "All the pain, all the mishaps, I just wanted to return it to him fifty–no, a hundred fold for all that he's done to me…! Yeah, and that was until I had some help in giving me a hand of almost finishing the job until...he did quite a number on me. And to make matters worse, I've lost that friend thanks to him. Without it, I'm alone...again."

"Eddie…" Ashley reaches out and gently lays her hand on his forearm. "Was this...friend of yours…even a good friend to you in the end?"

"Well...uhm, no, not really. A part of me feels that it was only attached to me for the hate inside of me," Eddie answered. "The feeling to be bad, to release my rage, I don't know how to describe how good it felt until I lost it."

'It? Why 'it'? Is 'it' that bad that you won't regard 'it' as a person?' Ashley wondered in her confused thoughts. "But Eddie, let's just say you were able to finish the task you had back then. What happens after?"

"What happens after? Well, I…" Eddie trailed off, contemplating what would be the next thing to do once right after he exposed Peter's identity. "Well I...I could…"

"Eddie, if vengeance is everything that you're after, then the hardest part would be finding yourself from what comes after," Ashley says out of concern.

"I...I…" Eddie nervously trailed off before feeling her hand on his shoulder.

"Eddie...the best way to handle this...is forgiveness," Ashley hearftully suggested, making Eddie give her a confused and awkward look in response. "This feeling of revenge, to get even and take it to another level, it's going to eat you alive before you could even realize it. It's as if this 'friend' really held a great influence on you, whether it is with you or not. You have to let it go, Eddie...at least before it is too late."

"I wish I could...doc. Sounds easy when you say it that way, but you don't know the entire story, that's why," Eddie softly protested.

"You're right, Eddie, I may not know the complete story. But what I do know, for your own good, is that you need some sort of closure...or else it will kill you and eat your heart out…" Ashley trailed off in a saddened and concerned tone before standing from her seat and then discreetly walked up to the door. "Bye, Eddie…"

After she leaves and closes the door to Eddie's cell, he slumps onto his thin bed and blankly stares at the ceiling, trying to reflect on Dr. Kafka's words and her presence. Despite him being currently emotionally unstable, he was astounded at her being genuinely kind and patient around him.

"Man, that doc's crazy. Is she always like this with the others?" Eddie thought out loud while trying to relax and reflect.

"Naw! Not really man!" Cletus yelled from the other side, overhearing the entire conversation and session.

"Maybe that's because she is actually nervous and scared of you," Eddie snarkily replied.

"Heh! Anywhere's better than staying in this joint!" Cletus exhaled.

"I deserve to stay here. Being a loose cannon in here is better than out there… guess my bro's girl was right the entire time…" Eddie trailed off before dosing away to sleep.

"Wheeew, rough relationship eh? Meh, as if I care," Cletus scoffed, staying silent.

Outside Eddie's door, Ashley stood and leaned on it, overhearing his leftover thoughts while holding her mouth to keep her voice shut before walking away quietly with a tear down her eye.

"Eeeeek! Hahaha! That was fun!"

Back at the Allans' residences, Liz geeked out like a fangirl, prancing around the room until she slumped onto her bed, giggling at the confused and interested face of Peter after the hangout ended at around 5 pm.

"Man, it's fun to see the silly face on Petey. Although they were kinda skeptical, they were apparently shocked by my encounter," Liz thought out loud before sitting up to stretch her arms and back. "Okay, time to rewind a bit with a little adventure."

After getting back up from her bed, she went to her closet with a handmade secret compartment, where her hero uniform and equipment are found behind all her clothes and shoes. She quickly puts on her uniform and helmet, wearing her gloves, socks, belt bag and shoes before taking her grappling hook gun. After she checked her equipment's condition, she opened her balcony door and then stepped out before swinging into the night above the streets lit by bustling cars and the glowing light posts.

"Waaaahooo!" Liz screamed with joy as she launched herself up high before grabbing and throwing herself from a hanging flag pole and realizing that she's about to fall into the subway station. "Uh oh, not good!"

Out of panic and desperation, she quickly pops out her roller skates and then barely grinds the wheels on the steel rail until she could safely land on her skates.

"Whoo! Safe," Liz panted out of relief, caressing her beating chest from another dosage of adrenaline.

"Heeeelp!"

"Quiet woman!"

Suddenly, on the other station, a man was found harassing and mugging a woman, grabbing on her coat and purse.

"Aw c'mon guys! It's night time, can't crime just rest!" Liz groaned before skating her way through the somewhat crowded subway, gracefully and carefully avoiding the live obstacles in her way, astounding and surprising the people with her swift movements. "Hey buster! Let 'er go!"

"What?! Who are you, girly!?" The robber screamed before grabbing the woman into a headlock and putting a knife close to her face. "Stay right where you are! Or else this woman dies!"

Despite the fear and caution in her mind, the rushed beating in her heart along with the adrenaline in her blood causes her to speed up towards the fearful robber and terrified victim.

"What are you, insane?! She's gonna die?!" The robber bluffed.

Putting her acrobatic and gymnastic ability to the test, she leaps up high like she used to do in cheerleading, with a spin and somersault over the robber's head, catching him off guard until she kicks the robber's hind temple with her heel, causing him to hold his head in pain.

"Aagh! Why you little—"

"Take a nap!" Liz sassily quipped before landing a strong right hook to his chin, knocking him out instantly as he fell on his back. "Whew, thank you Papa for the lessons!"

Snapping back to reality, she notices the terrified woman in front of her along with the other bystanders nearby in the subway.

"Uhhhh, sorry about scaring you, miss! I didn't mean to—"

"Thank you! Thank you for saving me!" The woman thanked out of heartfelt gratitude.

"Say wuh?" Liz wondered, confused from her reaction until the crowd cheered with applause around her, leaving her speechless in many ways possible. 'Seriously, danger could have been averted! It's just one guy!'

"Hey miss hero! What's your name?!" Asked one of the bystanders.

"What? I'm no hero, okay, I screwed that up!" Liz protested.

"Hey! So what if you screwed, you saved her!" Says another onlooker.

"Waitaminute, you're the rumored hero from that incident a night ago! You're like an angel!" Another person points out.

"Oookie time to bail!" Liz thought out loud as she skated away from the astounded crowd and shot her grappling hook to reel herself and grind on the rails for a quick getaway.

"This is the police, hands where I can see 'em!" Sgt. Carter yelled with his gun out.

"Too late officer, he's out for the count," an onlooker commented.

"What do you mean 'out'?" Carter looked at him in confusion before entering the scene with the knocked out robber. "What happened here?"

After escaping the scene and making it safely back on her room's balcony, Liz immediately closes the door and curtains the windows before taking her helmet off and putting her shoes into her closet until she hears her doorknob clicking.

'Oh no! Oh nonononono!' Liz panicked in her mind that she slips into her bed quickly and hides herself under the sheets before pretending to sleep.

"Mija? I wish to–oh, nevermind, maybe next time," Mr. Allan thought to himself before closing the door and leaving her room.

'Dios mio whew! Close close call,' Liz softly panted before getting startled by a sudden phone call from a caller named 'Petey' and picked it up to answer it in a low-toned voice. 'P-Petey! What's up!'

"Liz? You okay? Why do you sound tired?" Peter noticed.

'Oh pft, it's nothing. Just a little late night exercise, that's all,' Liz lied, strangling her heartstrings for lying to Peter.

"Oh okay cool um, I was hoping we could talk for a little bit about Sally you know, but now might be a really bad timing. Sorry Liz, I got so busy and—"

'It's fine, Petey, I'm cool with having that conversation tomorrow if you'd like? And feel free to invite Gwen to join us,' Liz chuckled, slyly suggesting for a weird date.

"Okay sure, I'll pick you up then around—wait, what'd you say?" Peter asked for clarification.

'Night Petey gotta go bye!' Liz immediately bade, leaving his question hanging before exhaling from another tiring night. "Agh, man, there goes another story….with my face on it. Meh, too tired to think."

The next morning, Liz gets up and quickly changes her clothes from her uniform and into her casual homewear before heading to the dining hall for breakfast with her parents.

"Morning Papa, morning Mama," Liz greeted before yawning and taking her seat to eat on the table.

"Lizzy mija, I have heard some news from Sally. Did you...quit cheerleading?" Mrs. Allan asked, catching Liz off guard from her question.

"Uhm, yeah, why?" Liz nervously wonders why, wiping her mouth with a table napkin.

"We thought you'd enjoy doing cheerleading, and we support you all the way, mija. But when we heard that you no longer join it, we were just concerned," Mr. Allan assures.

"Thanks Papa, but I'm good. I found other nice things to try after I quit, and I honestly found them to be much more enjoyable, not that I found cheerleading to be boring though!" Liz briefly explained, making her parents exchange surprised looks.

"It would seem this Pedro kid really grew on you, Liz, and it seemed like it's going good," Mr. Allan commented, confusing Liz from his remark.

"Wait, Papa, what do you mean?" Liz asked, giving him 'the look'.

"Nothing mija, it's okay, just fine with what you like and do recently. No biggie," Mr. Allan assured.

"O-okay Papa," Liz nervously replied before finishing her breakfast and then taking the dishes to the sink to wash them.

Few minutes go by and all of a sudden, the doorbell rings twice…

"Lizzy, can you get the door please!" Mrs. Allan called while changing into her business clothes in her room.

"I got it, I got it!" Liz responded as she gently drops the dishes in the sink and goes over to open the door.

"Morning!" Peter greeted with a bright smile, startling Liz in the process.

"P-Petey! M-morning!" Liz stuttered, taken aback from his appearance.

"Liz, who's at the door?" Mr. Allan asked before checking the door. "Ah, Peter! Here for Liz?"

"Good morning Mr. Allan! Y-yes sir, is it okay if I borrow Liz for today?" Peter nervously asked, making Liz giggle in response.

"It's okay, just be careful with my daughter, I mean it," Mr. Allan jokes.

"Papa!" Liz barked before turning to Peter. "Gimme a minute to prepare, Petey!"

"Go on, I'll be right here," Peter assures, receiving a peck on his cheek before watching her enter her room.

'Okay, how should I do this…' Liz contemplated, putting on a pink t-shirt made of spandex cotton and then putting on spandex cotton sporting shorts that she used in her cheerleading practice before putting her white shorts and gloves in her belt bag. 'Wait, too obvious, uhhh, ah!'

She finds one of her gym bags on the sofa and puts her belt bag inside it, along with her grappling hook and surprisingly her helmet, zipping the bag before tying the sleeves of her jacket around her waist and leaving the room with her gym bag over her shoulders. After that, she wears her rubber shoes that she used when playing her alter ego, with the built-in retractable roller skates.

"All set, Petey! Let's go!" Liz calls out, stunning Peter from her look before immediately snapping out of it.

"U-uh yeah! Let's roll! Thank you for having me, Mr. and Mrs. Allan! I promise to return her safely!" Peter stammered before taking off with Liz, snuggling up to his arm. "Hey, do you need to bring that much stuff with you?"

"Hm? Oh yes! I was taking them with me just in case," Liz partially lied, not wanting to reveal her surprise to Peter.

"Oookay then," Peter trailed off, trusting her decision as they made their way to the elevator.

In the laboratory of Dr. Miles Warren, with Tombstone watching over him in Hammerhead's absence at the slammer….

"Hello, Dmitri?" Tombstone called over the phone.

"Yah, what is it this time?" Chameleon responded in his annoyed Russian accent and tone.

"Yes, I have a friend that might require your assistance. It is a simple infiltration mission to deliver a care package, or at least that's what I was told," Tombstone replied.

"Really now? Well say the place," Chameleon barked.

"Ravencroft, I need you to come here to pick up our care package and infiltrate that asylum," Tombstone briefly explained.

"You're kidding me, that place full of nutjob thugs and criminals?" Chameleon protested.

"Yes, I promise to pay you well," Tombstone groaned, feeling his wallet getting lighter after Osborn took over his headquarters.

"Yeah alright, I shall see you in an hour, where are you?" Chameleon accepted the task.

After Peter and Liz left the Allans' residences, they hit a nearby shawarma joint for a quick bite before sitting down on a sidewalk bench with a shade over their heads to catch up about certain things...

"Petey, I was thinking that Gwen would show. What happened?" Liz wondered before chomping on her shawarma and modestly covering her full mouth.

"Well uhm, I tried, but she picked up and told me that she was going serious with a bit of hands-on experience in her dad's office. Can't do anything about that," Peter shrugged.

"Really?" Liz raised an eyebrow, curious at what she plans to do. "Anyway Petey, what did you wanna talk abou–"

Out of nowhere, Peter's phone rang and caught both of their attention.

"Answer it, it's probably Gwen," Liz suggested, letting Peter pick up his phone and check who's the caller.

"Uh nope, apparently, it is my annoying loudmouthed boss," Peter answered otherwise. "Uhmmm…"

"Go on, take it. Or you're fired," Liz joked playfully, letting Peter answer the phone.

"Uhmm, hello?" Peter picked.

"Ah Peter! It's me, Robbie! Sorry, borrowed JJ's phone, but I knew you'd answer if you think it was him," Robbie answered. "JJ's in the bathroom, but he's looking for you for another scoop. Please come immediately."

"O-okay, sure! See you then! Bye!" Peter bade before ending the call and turning to Liz. "Liz I'm sorry, but the Bugle called and–"

"It's okay, Petey, it's no biggie," Liz assures, making Peter think of a silly idea.

"Hmmm, how about you come around my workplace? A 'bring-your-girlfriend-to-work day' or something?" Peter suggested playfully.

"Are you serious, Petey?" Liz playfully protested with her hands on her waist.

"C'mon, it'll be fun, probably," Peter nervously assured, reaching his hand out to her.

"Mmm, fine. Sounds like a field trip anyway, so why not? I get to see everyone you're working with as a photographer," Liz accepts the offer as she takes his hand and stands up with her gym bag on her shoulders before finishing the last of her shawarma and throws the wrapper in the bin.

Peter then also finishes his shawarma and throws its wrapper in the bin before taking the bus with Liz to the Daily Bugle.

"Ugghh, oggh, who gave me that bologna sandwich! If I find out who gave me gas, I'm tearin' him to pieces! And where is Parker!" Jameson yelled like a madman, after a bad start in the afternoon with a gassy stomach.

"I'm here now sir! I'm sorry for the delay!" Peter apologizes as he rushes out of the elevator with Liz following him.

"What is this, some place for you to hangout!?" Jameson yelled, glancing upon Liz's appearance beside Peter. "Missy, stay where you are, just gonna borrow you loverboy that once hitted on my secretary."

"Wait, what?" Liz looked surprised, giving Peter 'the look'. "I'm so telling Gwen later."

"It's a long story, I'll gaagh–explain later!" Peter assures before being dragged by J. Jonah Jameson into his office.

"Wow," Liz stood speechless at what her boyfriend meant about his boss.

"Don't worry, it's normal around here," Betty playfully assured.

"Really? Harsh," Liz cringed.

"By the way, the name's Betty, Betty Brant. I'm the woman you might be wondering to be Peter's supposed date at your school's dance," Betty introduced.

"What's my job for the day, JJ? Any good scoops?" Peter asked confidently.

"Oh yeah, a real good one! Since it's a weekend, I want you to get me photos of that oddball runnin' around town fighting the good fight before sun down!" Jameson eagerly demanded, slamming his palms on his desk out of excitement. "That flashy outfit! That unconventional fighting style! And the booming attention she's getting for messing around criminals better than that wall-crawling menace! Heck, I bet she could pose a great challenge to that menace!"

'I knew he was gonna say tha–hey that last bit…!' Peter barked in his thoughts.

"What's with the you're giving me, son? Don't you want a job, I got you one!" Jameson barked in his face. "But the problem now though would be the headlines for the paper: gotta something catchy. Hmmm, an oddball hero who messes around with criminals, I got it! We'll name this one Screwball!"

"Whatever you say, JJ, your call," Peter shrugged.

"Oh what?!" Liz was shocked out of realization from her appearance and personality. "No wonder why Petey chose you?! Now I see the reason why."

"You look amazing yourself. But I'm too old for him. Even his aunt came here to inform me about it," Betty adds.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Liz apologizes.

"It's fine I—"

"What are you? A standing ovation?! Out!"

Suddenly, Jameson scares Peter out of his office, sending out to do the task he was assigned to do.

"Yessir!" Peter screamed as he bolted out of the room and met with Liz, who was found talking with Betty Brant. "Uhhm, you still wanna talk?"

"Oh no, it's fine Petey, I've learned quite a lot today," Liz smiled playfully before turning to Betty. "Good talk! Let's try meeting again next time!"

"Glad to talk with you! It's fun while it lasted," Betty chuckled.

"C'mon, there's plenty of chances to meet! See ya!" Liz bade, letting Peter take her hand as they make their way entering the elevator.

"Whew man, another 'mission impossible' for the Daily Bugle," Peter sighed.

"What's he got on you this time, Petey?" Liz wonders.

"I gotta find photos of that female hero prowling around the streets, playing around with bad guys," Peter replied. "Oh, and get this, my boss gave her the name Screwball."

"Screwball huh?" Liz wonders out of curiosity. 'Hm! Sounds pretty catchy to me.'

"I gotta find pictures before sundown, or I'll get my butt fired," Peter groaned.

"Oh please, it's still the middle of the afternoon, anything can happen, I think," Liz nervously assured.

"I hope so," Peter hoped before his ringing cell phone vibrated in his pocket, making him check to see the caller's name saying 'Hobie' and pick it up to respond. "Yo Hobes, what's up?"

"Um, I need a hand?" Hobie spoke through his voice-disguiser, donning his outfit as the Prowler while being busy fighting the Enforcers alone. "The three superhuman stooges broke out of prison and are causing mayhem near Central Park, after I spooked 'em in the middle of their heist, but now I'm a sitting duck over here–whoa!"

"Come here li'l rascal! I'm gonna make you pay for makin' a fool outta me!" Shocker roared from Prowler's line, firing vibration blasts at himr.

"Wait, where is the rest of the team if you're all alone!?" Peter asked hysterically out of concern.

"Bobby and Kitty are grounded as I've heard from some old guy through Bobby's phone, and Gwen probably turned off her phone after not responding in the last ten minutes!" Prowler screamed before hiding behind a tree, spooked by a vibration blast just centimeters close to damaging his built-in communicator.

"Come on out, boy! Face us like the real man you are!" Shocker roared from afar.

"Crud! Sorry Liz, duty calls! Wait for me by the Silver Spoon! I promise to see you there!" Peter assures before running off to change into his suit.

'Not today Petey!' Liz thought out of excitement as she went over to a nearby alley, quickly putting on her shorts, her helmet, and her belt bag before untying the jacket around her waist and zipping it up.

After that, she gets out her grappling hook and grapples to the ledge of the rooftop where she hid her gym bag and stuff on the roof of the stairway's entrance before popping up her retractable roller skates.

"Now then, Spidey, wait for me! Because I Screwball will be joining the fun!" Liz, taking on the name Screwball, swings and grinds around the rooftops, following Spider-man from behind.

"Guhagh!" Prowler grunted as he was slammed and pinned against the wall with a huge gauntlet gripping his neck. "Ox! Settle down, big guy! Weren't we buddies?!"

"Not anymore. I've always envied your way of gettin' way ahead of our game with our clients," Ox hissed.

"Well, not to be a downer fellas, but he did a great number on some of our prey, so–"

"Quiet Ricochet! Enough talk, just beat him until he's flat as bacon, Ox!" Shocker orders.

"Nuts," Prowler cursed, closing his eyes from the pain.

"Hey hey hey, the gang's all here again! How'd you all get out?"

Suddenly, Spider-man appears just in time to assist Prowler, who is currently pinned by the big-boned Ox.

"About time, Spidey!" Prowler groaned.

"Sorry! Took a little detour," Spider-man shrugged with his Spider-sense triggered from an incoming projectile, making him jump over to latch onto the wall.

"Perfect, I get to hit two birds with one stone today, venting my frustrations on you two runts for messin' with my line of work!" Shocker thought out loud as he fired multiple vibration blasts at Spider-man.

"Bro! Help me!" Prowler called out.

"Oh right!" Spider-man forgot as he rushed over to kick Ox in the face, letting him release his hold on Prowler.

"Agh, I can breathe again," Prowler exhaled, holding his aching neck.

"Not while I'm around you ain't!" Shocker roared before planting his fists on the ground, vibrating it with his gauntlets and making tremors in a wide radius that caused Prowler to lose his balance. "Like my magic? Learned it myself."

"Cheap trick, Shocker, but it won't trick me anyday," Spider-man quipped as he webbed his face and trapped his gauntlets to the ground while latching onto the wall.

"Forgot about me, bug?!"

Even when his Spider-sense was triggered, Ricochet's rebounding speed caught up and knocked down the Wall-crawler to the ground from his side while Ox painstakingly endured Prowler's knockout gas until he found the opportunity to grab and throw him against the wall.

"Ow…" Prowler groaned, wincing in pain before falling on his stomach and knees beside the downed Webslinger.

"Well then...gentlemen, any last words?" Shocker replied while pointing his gauntlets, preparing to blast the two incapacitated heroes with his power. "Nevermind, see you on the other side, suckers."

"Hiya, boys!"

Getting the Enforcers' attention out of nowhere, a girl clad in white on roller skates stood behind them with a grin on her face.

"Whoa, what kind of costume party is this?" Screwball quipped sassily. "You three boys totally need a makeover...in the slammer!"

"Wow, now who are you supposed to be, sugar?" Ricochet asked in a flirting tone.

"Man, get yer head in the game!" Shocker barked, slapping Ricochet's hind temple.

"Ewww, sorry boys, but I got a guy I like, and you're messing with him," Screwball deadpans before getting into a passive stance with her grappling hook gun in hand. "So messing with him means messing with me, got that?"

"Shame," Ricochet cursed before revving up his suit and charges towards her.

"Watch out!" Spider-man warns.

With quick reaction time, Screwball leaps up high into a backflip angled in a moment that allows her to catch Ricochet's tech pack from above with her grappling hook before being dragged away like a jetski on wheels around the streets.

" 'Ey! Get this thing off me!" Ricochet barked, caught like a rabid animal from Screwball's hook.

"No way Jose! I wanna enjoy this! Whew alright!" Screwball screamed with joy while skating along the streets. "Okay big boy, timeout!"

Looking around, she grabs hold of a nearby light post and then manages to quickly wrap the line of her grappling hook around it, forcing the other end to pull back with Ricochet in tow until the rebound force causes him to rebound on the ground and wall like a loose dribbling ball, incapacitating him after he stops.

"One down, two to go," Screwball smirked while reeling in her grappling hook before turning to Ox and Shocker with a sassy pose. "You boys wanna piece of me?"

"C'mon Ox, I'm through playin' around. Let's just get this over with," Shocker groaned.

"What? No man, I—"

"What!? You afraid of li'l girl now?!" Shocker screamed in his face.

"No I–bwagh!"

What shot and KOed Ox like a shotgun behind his back were the two heroes quickly up on their feet after a moment to breathe thanks to Screwball's distraction.

"You lose, Montana," Prowler smirked, holding a slingshot pad that's held together by Spider-man and his web.

"It's three against one, Shocker! Your move," Spider-man warned.

Knowing a loss when he sees one, he quietly raises his hands up high to avoid a shot to his face, only to be kicked and spun in midair from Screwball's roller skating roundhouse, knocking him out flat on the ground.

"Hah! Now that's what you call girl power, bandidos!" Screwball yelled out.

"Screwball!"

Startling and getting her attention was Spider-man calling out to her. She then composes herself to look good in front of her probably clueless boyfriend as he walks up to her.

"Um, is that me you're referring to?" Screwball jokes, pretending to not know the name.

"U-uhm, no, my boss called you that. And uh, thanks for the save. We would've been hammered down badly outnumbered," Spider-man thanked.

"Aw shucks, it's nothin', thanks Spidey," Screwball accepted the gratitude in a cute familiar pose that caught Spider-man's attention.

'Waitaminute, that gesture and tone, awfully familiar. No, it can't be,' Spider-man thought to himself skeptically. "Say, those moves of yours are incredible! Where'd you learn all that?"

"I trained in a gym, duh, where else?" Screwball deadpanned, making Prowler hold his chuckle from Spider-man's cluelessness.

"Hmmm, not from cheerleading or such?" Spider-man probed further, catching her off guard from the last bit.

"Wait, what'd you say? C'mon I–hey whoa!"

Without hesitation, Spider-man grabs Screwball by her waist before swinging away, leaving Prowler to deal with the cops coming their way from the call of civilians and bystanders.

"Wow, sure, just leave me here to deal with the police. Real smooth bro," Prowler grumbled with his arms crossed.

"Oooh, since when did Spidey go macho?" Screwball shrewdly points out while hugging Spider-man by his neck.

"Ever since you came down like a daring angel in roller skates, you got my attention already," Spider-man replied in a serious tone while swinging around.

"Ooh really?" Screwball wondered. "In a good way or a bad way?"

"Both. I don't know who you are; thank you for the assist back there; but you better give up this charade while you still can. It's dangerous for a civilian like you to play around with criminals," Spider-man urged.

"Oh yeah?" Screwball taunts.

"Yeah," Spider-man replied back.

"Okay then, let's seal the deal with a simple game," Screwball slyly suggests, letting go of her hold on Spider-man and catching him off guard.

"Hey wait! Lady!" Spider-man yelled out, trying to catch her foot.

However, the slick female daredevil does a diving spin while free-falling until she latches onto a ledge with her grappling hook and lands safely on the rooftop. The Webhead stood on the other side with a deep alley between them.

"Lady, cut me some slack. I don't have time for this. If my girl gets irritated for being late, I'm so blaming you if she flips out on me," Spider-man warns, pointing angrily at her.

'Oh sure, but I'm gonna have fun while doing it, Petey,' Screwball thought to herself. "The game is simple: catch me, and you get me. Clear? Good! See ya!"

With haste, she swiftly gets away with her roller skates on, trying to run away from Spider-man as part of her challenge.

'Liz, I'm sorry, but I'm going to be terribly late, again…!' Spider-man groaned internally while zipping his way to the other rooftop and slowly catches up to Screwball, trying to web her down to trap and catch her.

Holding up her phone like a mirror, Screwball manages to dodge the web bullets shot around her from above while skating away from the Wall-crawler.

"C'mon! You gotta do better than that!" Screwball taunted before hopping over the ledge, catching Spider-man by surprise.

She then barely lands safely atop a thin brick wall and slides on the slanting side to create a wide distance between her and Spider-man.

"Hahaha! Come on, Spidey! I'm wide open!" Screwball taunted again while sliding atop the brick walls.

'Urgh, she's way getting on my nerves now!' Spider-man huffed before zipping and running over several rooftops to catch up to her, lunging and catching her in his strong embrace. "Gotcha!"

However, as he carelessly caught Screwball, they both are just meters away from being street pancakes.

"Uh oh! Hold on!" Screwball assures as she tries to latch onto the nearest building and manages to catch the edge before reeling both her and Spider-man over to the rooftop.

"Whoa, whew, man, you're heavy!" Screwball panted and shrieked after trying to carry the weight of two people while swinging.

"Yeah, sorry about that…" Spider-man apologizes. "Crud, now I'm sure she's gonna get real upset."

"Who you talkin' about?" Screwball wondered, limbering up her sore arms.

"My girl, I am so dead for ditching her on our date," Spider-man sighed.

"Maybe not, Spidey," Screwball smirked.

"Why so?" Spider-man asked, wondering what she meant by that.

"Because…"

From there, she gently removes her helmet before flaunting her long brown hair while also revealing her face and identity as Liz Allan, leaving Spider-man dumbfounded and speechless.

"L-L-Liz!? You're Screwball!?" Spider-man points out loud in a hysterical tone.

"Tada! Sorry Petey, for messing around, but it was just so irresistible to see the look on your face and your reactions. Totally priceless!" Liz screamed with joy while holding her helmet under her arm. "Still, I don't mean any harm, Petey. I did say that I really wanted to help you, and here I am."

"B-b-but...how!? Where'd you get all this stuff!?" Spider-man asked hysterically.

"I did a little online shopping of course. Everything except my belt bag and gloves," Liz answered before putting her helmet back on to avoid exposing her identity any further.

"Wow...I mean...just...wow," Spider-man was at a loss for words with her deep wanting to actually help him, though he was hoping it'd be with a less annoying impression if she wasn't his girlfriend. "Then wait, was this the reason you quit cheerleading?"

"Mhm, I know it was kinda a selfish decision, but I've made up my mind and I tried enrolling in some cool gyms," Screwball briefly explained.

"Now that's cool! No wonder why you could move and escape like a monkey in an urban jungle," Spider-man joked, getting a punch to his shoulder.

"Hey! Who are you calling a monkey!?" Screwball screamed out before tackling and pinning down Spider-man to the rooftop, looking straight into his eyes behind the mask until she partially unfolds it to gently kiss him, which caught him off guard. "Sorry again for the uhm, first impression?"

"Are you kidding? You totally killed it! Not bad actually, but what about your parents? Do they know?" Spider-man asked.

"If they knew, I would've been grounded by now," Screwball pointed out sassily with pursed lips and her hands at her sides.

"Fair point," Spider-man responded. "So um, still wanna...have that date?"

"Yeah, but I gotta go get my stuff back. Just near the Daily Bugle," Screwball accepts.

"Alright, 'Screwball', but this time, I'll be swinging," Spider-man quipped, letting Screwball embrace his neck from behind.

"Alright Spidey, your call," Screwball accepts before planting a quick peck to his cheek, letting him swing back to the Daily Bugle for her gym bag.

'So far so good….'

Later that night, just hours before dawn, Chameleon, disguised as an anonymous visitor, manages to slip into the Ravencroft Institute as by the request of his clients Tombstone and Miles Warren, with two labeled and sophisticated care packages marked by Dr. Warren himself as a guide to avoid mistaking one for the other.

"Thank you boys, couldn't have done it without you," Chameleon thanked while using a voice-disguiser.

"Whatever, just do what you want to do. You only got ten minutes," says one of the wardens guarding the place and guiding visitors around the facility.

Looking around the place and inside the cells through the little windows for eyes only, he stumbles upon one of the possible hosts for the cultured symbiotes that the mad doctor indicated before letting the warden open the door to the cell of Eddie Brock.

"Hey pal, I got a present for ya, open it whenever you want to," Chameleon smiled, leaving the package with a black tape on its side to avoid confusion before leaving the cell for his neighbour and letting the warden unquestionably open the cell to the snoozing madman Cletus Kassidy. "Oookay, I'll just leave it right here then. Thanks for the trouble boys."

Without speaking another word, Chameleon safely leaves the institute without attracting a lot of suspicion while having completed his infiltration mission. Moments after he left, a disoriented Eddie Brock sits up from his bed and stares at the package left for him, drawn to a familiar presence that seems to be emanating in the package before walking to it.

"What is this?" Eddie wondered, trying to open and unseal the package, only to be met with the erratic symbiote emerging out of the entrance, catching off guard. "No, no! It can't be! Get away!"

Despite trying to escape, the symbiote quickly envelops Eddie with its slimy body, reuniting with its former host.

"No! No! Noooo!" Eddie screamed in pain, with his wails resounding and alerting his entire prison block. "Get off! Get off of me! Nooo!"

—To be continued


A/N:

Almost done with season three guys. Hooray! :D

Now to wait again for more to come. :(

Stay safe, and take care everyone. God bless and thanks for sticking around with me. XD