Did anyone see the last chapter? Cause I haven't received any kudos or comments about it.

So, this chapter is mostly inspired by the Morbius film, which I know had mixed reviews. But I liked it.

Also, an appearance by another Marvel superstar!

I own nothing from Marvel or Spider-Man

Chapter 7: The Living Vampire?

Peter got a "Spider-Man 911" text from Ned, talking about strange news reports. MJ gathered some of the snacks she hadn't finished yet, then she, Peter, May and Desirée were sent back to the young couple's apartment, thanks to one of Strange's portals.

Ned was already in the living room, waiting for them, "Hey, what were you guys doing?"

"Tell you later," Peter replied. "But first, what's this about "strange news reports"?"

Ned turned on the TV, "Any speculation on vampires?"

"Are you serious?" MJ asked in a deadpanned tone.

"Yeah, I am," Ned replied.

The news reporter began to explain a series of recent murders that seemed "vampire-like". All the victims were drained of blood, originally from the neck, all of which had horrible bite marks.

The main possible suspect was Dr. Michael Morbius, a well-known biochemist and hematologist. He'd won a Nobel Prize for his own creation of synthetic blood, which he called "Blue Blood".

"Dr. Morbius? But that's impossible," Desirée said. "The man can barely get around on his own, much less kill someone like that."

The news then showed a video of two FBI agents talking to Dr. Morbius, who somehow looked healthier than he'd ever looked before.
Everyone gaped in disbelief at what they were seeing.

"How in the hell...?!" Peter whispered.

Ned opened his laptop and searched for any kind of address for Dr. Morbius, "No billing address, but it seems like he lives at Horizon Labs."

May looked at her nephew, "Are you going?"

Peter nodded, "Yes. I've gotta check this out."

With that, he soon headed out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Scene Change~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Getting into Horizon Labs was hard with the police around, but somehow he managed. he crawled on the ceiling down the relatively dark hallway until he came to Dr. Morbius' lab.

It was closed off by yellow "Caution" tape, and a keypad lock. Karen showed which numbers Dr. Morbius' fingerprints had touched, and Peter tried every combination of them until he got it.

The inside of the lab was very expansive; there were two workstations, one in front of a large bookshelf and the other had more machines. There was some kind of isolation chamber, and inside it were several empty packs of Blue Blood. But the weirdest thing was the cylinder tank full of bats.

"Ugh..." Spider shuddered. "Creepy..."

He went over to the desk and found a voice recorder. He pressed the rewind button until it got back to the beginning, then hit play.

Dr. Morbius' voice spoke from the recording, "As a result of my procedure, I have an overpowering urge to consume...blood. Human blood. In certain respects, I have succeeded far beyond anything I could've amounted. For the first time in my entire life, I feel...good. Yesterday, I could barely walk, today...I don't know what I'm capable of..."

Spidey paused the recording, "What did you do to yourself, Doc?"

He went over to one of the computers and found several experiment hypothesis that used vampire bat DNA.

"Guess it makes sense," Spidey muttered. "Since his disease was blood related, maybe vampire bats could provide a solution..."

He then continued the recording, "For a period of time after ingestion, my numbers are off the charts. I have the constitution of an Olympic athlete. Increased strength and speed that could only be described as...superhuman. And all of this on artificial blood. I've become something...different. I feel a kinship with these creatures." Spidey glanced at the tank of bats. "They...they would tear anyone else apart, but they welcome me. Like a brother. I've even developed a form of echolocation; bat-radar to the uninitiated. But the question is, how will I control it?"

"Did Morbius accidently turn himself into a vampire?" Spidey muttered. "No, it can't be. He was out during the daytime in that news report."

He then played the next recording, "But unfortunately, this condition is temporary. I've been timing myself; artificial blood keeps me stable for six hours. But that window...is growing shorter. Artificial blood won't work forever. One question remains: what if...what if artificial blood becomes ineffective forever? What happens if I go without? No blue, no red, nothing? Eventually, my vitals drop precipitously and my illness returns with a vengeance. Soon I'll face a choice: drink the red, or die. But what happened on that ship can never happen again."

"He sounds conflicted," Spidey muttered again.

"Peter, you have an incoming call from Ned," Karen told him.

"Answer...what's up?"

"Dude, Dr. Morbius was already being held at the Manhattan Detention Complex and he just escaped!" Ned exclaimed into the phone.

"...Oh, hell," Spidey cursed. "Well, where is he now?!"

"I don't know, it just happened," Ned answered.

Spidey put the recorder back on the desk, exited the lab, then made his way out of the building,
"I think I know how to find him, or...I should say I know he can find me."

"How do you know?" Ned asked.

"Just trust me," replied Spidey before he jumped out a window and swung off on his webs.

He eventually landed on a rooftop and took a deep breath,
"Hope this works, otherwise I'll feel ridiculous. *clears throat* DR. MORBIUS! IF YOU CAN HEAR ME, THIS SPIDER-MAN! I'M NOT GONNA ARREST YOU OR ANYTHING, I JUST WANNA TALK! PLEASE!"

For a couple minutes, nothing happened, until he heard some kind of WHOOSH sound on the wind. He turned and saw someone wearing an orange prison jumpsuit glide, that's right, GLIDE over to the roof! He landed haphazardly, but quickly regained his balance.

Spidey recognized the person after a few seconds of looking at him, it was Michael Morbius himself. But he looked very different: his skin was ash-grey colored, his teeth looked like scary fangs, his eyes were red, and his nose was flattened, making it appear bat-like.

But then he backed up, and his face slowly changed back to human,
"I'm sorry, Spider-Man..." He started pacing, looking anxious. "I'm just...scared, and worried of what I might have to do..."

"Dr. Morbius, I've been to your lab," Spidey interrupted the man's muttering. "I know what you did to yourself..."

"I didn't kill those people," Morbius told him.

"I didn't think you did. In your recordings, you sounded conflicted. I don't think you want to be a monster."

Morbius shook his head, "I don't...but my friend does..."

"Your friend?" Spidey repeated.

"Milo..." Morbius stated his friend's name. "We met when we were children at the same private hospital since we shared the same ailment. As I went to school, Milo became a billionaire, but after he discovered what my experiment had done to me...*chuckle* he called it a miracle. He begged me for the same treatment, but I couldn't let him become a monster as well..."

"But he took it anyway..." Spidey surmised.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Flashback~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Morbius grabbed Milo by his collar, "You took the serum, even after I warned you."

"Whoa, whoa, what am I gonna do? Lay down and die?" Milo questioned. "Thanks for the death-wish bruv-"

"I tried to protect you!" Morbius exclaimed.

"Protect me? Protect me from what?"

"From becoming a monster. Like me."

"I don't think you're a monster. Okay?" Milo told him. "I killed the nurse. I killed the nurse, I know. But you know what it's like your first time. You have no idea what you're doing, you have no control."

"No," Morbius released him. "Milo, you have to stop."

"You have to stop," Milo retorted. "Stop denying who you are, it's boring. We can go anywhere we want. We can do anything, let's go. Let's have some fun."

"This isn't you," Morbius pleaded with him. "I know you. Where's the brother I used to have?"

"How can you say that to me?" Milo questioned.

"Look what you've become."

"Everything I am, I am because of you," Milo poked him in the chest. "I looked up to you my whole life. I will never leave you." His facial features changed to the same vampiric-look that Morbius had had before. "And I will not go back. You cannot make me go back. I will not let you make me go back!"

He violently shoved Morbius away, creating a resounding shockwave that surprisingly didn't destroy the environment around them!

"OOF!" Morbius cried as he hit the wall.

But he quickly got up and chased after Milo, who'd crashed through some glass-doors leading to the subway. The chase turned into a fight that went down the tunnel and the escalator. When some cops showed up to arrest them, Milo killed one of them, then fed from another and killed the rest!

After he did a little victory dance, he pointed at Morbius, "All our lives, we've lived with death hanging over us. Why? Why shouldn't they know what it feels like for a change, Michael?!"

But Morbius walked away to where the railway was, "I'm not gonna fight you, Milo!"

Then, his bat-radar heard the train coming, and he saw waves of psionic energy moving around him. As Milo came running toward him, as if in slow-motion, Morbius jumped out to in front of the train and started flying in front of it! His flight caused him to generate an aura of energy currents and mist-like shapes of the color of the clothes he was wearing, much like fire or wind, leaving behind a trail of it as he flew!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~End Flashback~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Now he's out there, and I have to stop him," Morbius said.

"Well, then, let me help you," Spidey said. "Please. You don't have to fight him alone."

Before Morbius could answer, several random people appeared around them, along with several clouds of smoke that formed into monsters of some kind. They were blackish gray, with pointy ears, fangs and glowing red eyes. But the people looked like ordinary citizens, albeit ones that looked like street punks.

"Dr. Morbius," One of them said. "We've been looking for you."

"I already told you, I will not join you!" Morbius yelled.

"Look guys, we're kind of in the middle of something here," Spidey tried to keep the peace. "So, how bout you and your...friends who dressed up early for Halloween-"

Before he could finish, some kind of boomerang-type of weapon flew in out of nowhere and decapitated four of these uninvited guests! The gray skinned monsters screeched before they turned into dust, but the person...his skin and clothes instantly disintegrated, looking like dull fire embers, down to his skeleton, which also quickly crumbled into a pile of ash!

Spidey's eyes widened, "WHAT THE F-?!"

The boomerang returned to its owner; a tall black man who seemed fairly threatening. He had a black mustache and beard, and short black hair which faded at the bottom-half of the back of his head. He had tribal looking tattoos on that part of his head and neck. He was wearing black sunglasses (At night?), and a long black leather coat while the inside was red. He also wore some kind of black, armor, tactical vest, black pants, boots and gloves.

"Catch you fuckers at a bad time?" The man questioned in a rather dark voice.

"Daywalker!" One of the civilians yelled, while some of the others let out bestial growls. Two of them ran at him, only for him to pull out two metal steaks and threw them at their chests, causing them to disintegrate into ash as well. Two others attempted to jump at the man from behind, but they were shot by his shotgun!

Spidey would've intervened since the guy had a gun, but he was too shocked at what happened to the monsters and people; the people disintegrated into ash, while the monsters were reduced to dust.

The man put the shotgun away and drew a sword from behind his back. It was a straight, double-edged blade similar to that of a longsword, terminating in a black and silver metal hilt designed around the aesthetics of South East Asian swords. Then, he charged at the remaining people and creatures, his sword at his side before he began to swing with such speed, deft, and grace that he almost appeared to be dancing! Eventually, they were all reduced to ash or dust, then the man turned to Morbius.

"Dr. Morbius, I'm only gonna ask you once. Are you human or a vampire?"

Morbius sighed, "I don't know. I guess both."

The man pulled out a flashlight and turned it on. It shone a bright blue light and he pointed it at Morbius' face, who squinted at the brightness. But whatever the man expected to happen, didn't happen.

"Can I interject here?" Spidey finally spoke out. "Who are you? What were those monsters, and why did those people disintegrate?"

The man put the flashlight away, "Call me Blade. Those monsters were Shadow Vampires, mindless drones that follow orders. Never alive. And those "people" were the real thing."

"You mean...actual v-v...vampires?" Spidey whimpered.

Blade simply hummed in confirmation.

"So...what was with that flashlight?" Spidey asked.

"Ultra violet?" Morbius guessed, which Blade nodded in response.

"Um, what about Milo?" Spidey asked.

"Your help is appreciated," Morbius said. "But I have some things to do before we find him. How do I-?"

Blade put his sword away, "I'll find you." Then he jumped down a fire-escape.

"Well, he's a barrel of laughs," Spidey commented, then gave Morbius his number.

"Thank you," said Morbius. "I'll be sure to call if I need any help."

With that, they went their separate ways.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Scene Change~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Peter collapsed on the couch, just above where MJ was laying. She was wearing the same sheer white sleeveless tank, no bra, and cotton white underwear that she wore when he comforted her about her dad's abuse.

"So, is the good doctor actually a vampire now?" she asked, half-joking/half-serious.

"Sort of, I would describe him more as a...pseudo-vampire."

"A pseudo-vampire?"

"Apparently he did this experimental treatment on himself using vampire bat DNA," Peter explained. "It made him healthy and superhuman, but he also needs to consume blood or his disease will return with a vengeance."

"Oh, man," MJ grimaced. "Talk about a double-edged sword."

"Yeah, but he's not the killer," Peter continued. "His childhood friend, who had the same disease took the treatment as well, even though Morbius warned him not to. He's the killer, and he's got no qualms about acting like a monster."

"So that's what's going on, huh?" MJ stated. "So, what are you gonna do?"

"Wait until Morbius contacts me," he answered. "He said he had some things to do before going after his friend. *sigh* In other news, did you tell Ned about the baby?"

MJ pursed her lips before shaking her head, "He was too engrossed in what was going on with Dr. Morbius. Besides, we should tell him together."

"Yeah, maybe that's a good idea," Peter agreed. "What about telling our other friends? I mean, Kate and Ava know, but Harry-"

"We can discuss that after this vampire thing is taken care of," she told him. "Comprende?"

"Okay, that sounds like a plan," Peter agreed again.

Over the next couple days, Peter explained the situation to Ned, who remained as calm as he could without freaking out.

Ned then suggested keeping an eye on Martine Bancroft, Morbius' fiancée. And it was a good thing he did, because a British man in a gray trench coat took her to a rooftop, and he had the same vampire look as Morbius! Peter figured that must be Milo. Already in costume, Peter arrived a second before Blade did; classic pincer move. But they kept up their guard, since they didn't fully know what Milo was capable of.

"Ah, the famous Spider-Man~," Milo taunted in a sing-song voice. "I didn't think I'd meet you."

"Well that's a lack of bloody common-sense, innit?" Spidey replied with a British accent of his own. (A/N: Which is funny since Tom Holland is actually British~! XD)

Blade aimed a customized MAC-11 sub-machine gun at Milo, "Let her go."

"I don't think so," Milo refuted. "Unless you want to pump her full of lead, too."

"Actually, that's loaded with silver, designed to kill vampires," Spidey stated. "Well, not ones like you and Morbius."

"So we're the unique ones?" Milo mused. "The few amongst the many."

Spidey chuckled, "Referencing the Spartans? Look, release Dr. Bancroft and I'll give you this..." He held up a packet of blood.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Blade growled at him.

"Spider-Man may be unorthodox, but he's not stupid," An older male voice spoke from an earpiece he was wearing. "He's gotta have a plan."

"Well, it better be a good one...!" Blade whispered.

Milo chuckled, "You're willing to give me a pint of blood?"

"This way you get a meal, but without killing her," Spidey surmised. "It's win-win. But let her go first."

Milo glanced between the two, prompting Blade to reluctantly lower his gun. Milo lightly shoved Dr. Bancroft away, then Spidey tossed the pack of blood to him. As he began to drink, Spidey went over to her so he could get her to safety.

Milo then choked and vomited out the blood he just drank, "WHAT IS THIS?! THIS BLOOD IS TAINTED!"

"Huh, how 'bout that?" Spidey shrugged. "That was actually my blood you just drank. I figured it was worth a try."

Milo snarled, "You dirty little-!" His insult was interrupted as he was shot by several bullets, courtesy of Blade!
"AAAAAAAAAAAGH!" Milo screamed at the burning pain. "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!"

"Like the kid said, silver," Blade answered before holstering the weapon. "Looks like it won't kill you, but it still hurts you."

Spidey carried Dr. Bancroft down to the street via webline as Blade drew his sword.

"You alright?"

"Yes, thank you Spider-Man," she answered, panting a bit. Morbius then arrived, having just glided over.

"Martine, are you okay?" he asked.

"I am now."

"Blade is up top fighting Milo," Spidey told Morbius. "Do you have a plan to stop him?"

"Yes," Morbius pulled out a large syringe filled with some kind of orange liquid. "This is an antibody that's deadly to bats, but fatal to humans. It'll cure this...curse, but-"

"It will also kill you," Spidey finished.

"Half for Milo, half for-"

"Michael no," Martine protested.

"I told you Martine, I'm not gonna drink human blood," Morbius stated firmly. "I'm not gonna be a monster."

"You won't if you make it mean something," she told him.

"Morbius, I think Blade has a curse of his own," Spidey added. "He seems stronger than a regular human and I think it has something to do with vampires. But whatever it is, he's making the most of it. He's owning his curse; do the same."

"Own this curse..." Morbius muttered.

"Yes," Martine cupped his cheek. "Use it to stop the real monsters."

She then kissed him on the lips, and he responded with as much emotion. Peter smiled under his mask, glad that Morbius had someone special to support him. It made him think of MJ, Ned, May and the rest of his friends.

Once the couple separated, Spidey pulled out another pack of blood, "This is from your lab. I know you don't want to, but we'll need you at full strength."

Morbius shook his head, but Martine gave him a look that said "It's okay". Reluctantly, Morbius took the pack and drank the blood. Once he was finished, his vampire features appeared, then he flew up the building! Spidey jumped after him, web-zipping up the wall!

Martine watched them go, "Be safe, Michael."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Scene Change~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Despite being weakened from drinking Peter's blood, Milo was still pretty fast and strong. But Blade was quick enough to counter his attacks, kicking, punching or slashing him with his sword.

"You're that hunter that the lesser vampires fear, aren't you?" Milo mused, smirking. "What did they call you? Blade? The Daywalker?"

Blade didn't respond, he just swung his sword at Milo, who pulled back to dodge.

"MILO!" Morbius yelled as he got back on the roof, along with Spidey.

Milo smiled at Morbius looking more vicious than before, "You drank red blood? Good for you! Finally accepted what you are!" Morbius lunged at him, leaving behind a mist-shimmer of black of purple! "That's the spirit!"

Milo fell backwards off the roof with Morbius diving after him! He lost sight of Milo for a few seconds before he collided with him in mid-air, then it turned into a physical struggle, both slashing at each other with their claws!

"YOU SHOULD HAVE JUST TAKEN MY OFFER WHEN YOU HAD THE CHANCE!" Milo shouted.

He slashed Morbius in the stomach, then grabbed him in a Supplex before they hit the ground! Because of their momentum, they crashed straight through it until they came to a large sewer tunnel!

Milo got up laughing, "WHOO! Come on, Michael! You can do better than that!"

Morbius dipped his clawed fingers into a puddle just as Spidey and Blade landed next to him. The ripples in the water changed to small sound-waves, which then started to echo around the tunnel. All those present heard the small shrill, but it wasn't unbearable. They then heard another sound; multiple "flaps" and screeching.

"What the hell is that?" Blade questioned.

"Backup," Spidey answered in a "Batman Voice".

A large swarm of bats flew into the tunnel and surrounded Morbius! Spidey and Blade were ready to swing at the creatures, but they didn't attack them. They just flew around Morbius, creating a small tornado of bats around him! He rose to his feet and held his arms out, where some of the bats proceeded to climb on. Milo picked up a long metal rod and charged toward Morbius. Just as he jumped, Morbius pointed his hands at his former friend, which made the bats attack Milo, slamming him into the ground!

As Morbius made the bats keep him down, he walked towards him and pulled out the antidote. Right as he got to him, he stabbed Milo in the chest, making him scream in pain, and then he had a look of shock on his face.

"Michael, you can't kill me," he pleaded. "You gave me my name. Remember?"

Morbius had a sad look on his face, "I remember everything."

"I'm sorry," Milo apologized as his vampire features disappeared.

"Lucien," Morbius stated before he took his last breath.

Spidey placed his hand on his shoulder, "I'm sorry."

"...It was...the only thing I could do," Morbius said. After a few moments to grieve, he stood up.

"You know, doc; someone with your power would be a force to be reckoned with in our war against vampires," Blade stated. "If you're interested, I can show you where I get my toys."

"Sounds intriguing," Morbius responded.

"Guess that means I'll see you around?" Spidey asked, holding out his hand, which the living vampire shook.

"Thank you, Spider-Man."

Blade didn't accept the gesture, but he nodded in respect. He then pulled something out of his pocket and handed it to the web-head,
"Vampire mace; silver-nitride, essence of garlic."

"Thanks. Quick review on vampires; what works, what doesn't, and how do I tell them apart from humans?"

"Crosses and holy water don't do shit," Blade began a rundown. "Use a steak made of silver, aim for the head or the heart. Garlic, sunlight and ultra violet rays also work. Vampires move and smell differently than humans, and they have lower body temperatures."

"Got it," Spidey nodded. "One last question; are you one of them?"

Blade shook his head, "Only half, that's why they call me "The Daywalker"."

Spidey nodded, then web-zipped out of the tunnel back to street level.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Scene Change~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

MJ laid on the couch wearing nothing but her underwear, her hair up in a bun, and her hands resting on her still flat belly. That's when she heard the door open.

"MJ, I'm back!" Peter called.

She simply raised her hand from the couch to let him know where she was, then went back to caressing her stomach.

Peter came over and gave her a kiss, "How're you feeling?"

"A little nauseous, but otherwise fine," she responded.

"I hope nothing major happens for a while," he said, resting a hand on top of hers. "I wanna focus on you."

"I wish you could stay here with me forever," she mused. "It's too bad crime never stops, even for Spider-Man."

"Well, this power struggle between crime bosses has slowed down, so that's a good thing," Peter stated. "Supervillains are the unpredictable ones."

"Speaking of which, how'd it go with Morbius' friend?" she asked.

Peter's face fell, "Michael had to kill him..."

"...Oh..." MJ said, sadly. "I'm sorry."

"So was I."

After a minute of silence, she spoke up again, "Hey, check out that Tweet I sent you."

Perplexed, Peter checked his phone and saw MJ had sent him something on Twitter. He opened it and his eyes widened...

"Daily Bugle is FINALLY Cancelled!"

"YES!" Peter shouted as he threw his arms up in the air.

"As predicted, he tried to twist you saving the baby from that fire into something malicious," MJ said as she got up and went to the kitchen. "Get this; he *snort laugh* he said that you started that fire, paid that woman to purposefully put her baby in danger so you could save him to make yourself look good."

"That's one of the most asinine conspiracy theories I've ever heard!" Peter exclaimed.

"I know!" MJ agreed. "Apparently, that was the very last straw! As the saying goes; talk shit, get hit."
She got out some ice cream and went back to the couch.

Peter went over to her and kissed her on the cheek. "Thanks for showing me that. I needed it."

She smiled, "Anytime." She handed him a spoon so they could share the ice cream. "You know, Jameson is a lot like Trump?"

"How so?"

"Both are childish, loud and think that when they state their opinions, it should be treated as facts. And like a lot of conflicts in life, it's a battle of testosterone, estrogen or dick measuring. Not only was Jameson deluded, but he could never admit that he was wrong, because if he did, then he couldn't swing his fucking dick around."
She made that comment while making a motion with her hand above her crotch like she was swinging an imaginary penis around.

Peter couldn't help but snicker,
"You know, you're gonna have to watch your language when the baby comes around."

MJ rolled her eyes, "You think I don't know that, dork?"

Peter smiled, endearingly. "Been a while since you called me that."

"Well, you're still a dork, and a nerd," she replied. "By the way, some Tweets said they saw you with some black guy when you went underground. Who was he?"

"He calls himself Blade..."

"Does he carry blades? Cause if he's naming himself after what he carries, that's not very original."

"...Well..." Peter started. "Yeah, he does have a sword."

She chuckled in response, "I rest my case. So what's Blade's deal?"

Peter did some quick thinking about whether or not to tell MJ that vampires were actually real. They promised no more secrets between them, even if he thought it was to keep her "safe". Taking a deep breath, he explained how Blade had shown him that vampires were real...

Needless to say, MJ was a bit unnerved when she heard the whole thing.

"Now vampires are actually real? What's next; a talking alien duck that wears a business suit?" (Howard the Duck reference! XD)

"That...sounds too weird," Peter responded. "I was shocked too when I found out, but with everything that's changed in the world; at this point I'll believe anything. I mean, think about that giant...red thing that appeared from space and then disappeared without a trace a few years ago!"

"Peter, I'm nervous enough," MJ said.

"Sorry," he apologized.

After eating a little more ice cream, they went to bed.

The next day, they invited Ned over to hang out over the weekend...and also to tell him the big news.

"So, Ned. Nedward. Nedathy. Nedtonio..." MJ began as she laid on the very soft carpet by the glass table in front of the Flat-Screen TV, while the two boys were in the middle of playing Cuphead.

"Only one of those is my name," Ned responded before pausing the game. "But go ahead."

Peter looked up, wondering where this was going, but kind of having an idea. He agreed they should tell sooner rather than later, but it was still rather nerve-racking.

"So," MJ said after a beat. "Peter and I are having a baby..."

"That's great," Ned responded. Then five seconds later... "Wait...run that by me again? I could have sworn you said-"

"MJ and I are having a baby," Peter reiterated.

Ned's jaw dropped so low, one could have sworn it touched the ground.

"Pick up your jaw, Ned."

"I mean...that's a lot to process..." He stood up and paced a bit like he needed a moment. Eventually he stopped, then looked dead serious at them, "Get over here, both of you."

Feeling a little paranoid at his tone, the couple cautiously approached their friend, who embraced them in a group hug!

"I'm really happy for you guys. If you need anything, just ask and I won't hesitate to move heaven and earth for you."

MJ got a little choked up. She was genuinely touched by his sincerity, though if anyone ever asked, she'd totally blame it on hormones, "T-thanks, Ned."

Peter returned the hug, "Dude...you have no idea what that means to us..." He paused. "Though, we only need your emotional support and stuff. We got money and everything covered."

Ned released them, "Right. Mrs. Stark's got your back, then?"

"Who else?" Peter responded with a smile.

"We appreciate it and everything, but we don't wanna get in the habit of relying too heavily on anyone," MJ said.

"Hey, it takes a village to raise a child, guys. There's no shame in asking for and accepting help." Ned told them.

"I get that," Peter nodded. "But at the same time, we wanna feel like we can actually provide for our own kid."

"That's understandable," Ned said after a second. "So...how far along are you?"

MJ smiled wistfully, "Four weeks."

"I can kinda see it," Ned stated. "Are you feeling okay?"

"Other than some morning sickness and mood swings, I'm fine."

"Are you still gonna attend classes?"

"Of course," MJ answered. "I know people are gonna talk, but I wanna finish college. Though I'm gonna have to transition to online classes at some point."

Later in the day, Peter and MJ had a Zoom appointment with one of the advisors of the university, Samantha Bashaw about their situation. Thankfully, she wasn't being judgy in any way.

It wasn't the first time anyone (Be it a young couple or single person) had to inform their college that they had a baby on the way, but they'd still like to continue their education as far as possible. Advisors always did their very best to accommodate them, and it was something they took great pride in. Students might talk behind their backs, and they'd try their best to put a stop to it. And of course, faculty would always be understanding.

"Well Michelle, Peter. I'll alert the staff to allow certain dispensations for you, talking unexpected days off and the like. And if any of the student body give you any trouble whatsoever, please do not hesitate to bring it to my attention."

MJ nodded, "Thank you for understanding, Ms. Bashaw. I'll try to miss as few days as possible."

"And even when she does, I'll make sure to keep her up to speed on everything she's missed," Peter said.

"I know you will, Peter," Ms. Bashaw replied. "Is that everything?"

"Yes, thank you for your time," MJ responded before ending the call. "That went better than expected."

"Yeah, I was afraid we'd get yelled at," Peter added.

"Kids getting pregnant in college or even high school isn't as uncommon as you think," she told him. "We already know the university doesn't have bad faculty; they care about the students wellbeing and education."

"Thank God it's not like that one high school in Ghost Hunt," Peter mentioned.

"Please don't remind me," MJ muttered.

Peter's phone rang, so he answered, "Hello?"

"Spider-Man, can you meet me on the rooftop of the police precinct in China Town?" Yuri's voice asked.

"Sure, I'll be right there, Yuri," Peter responded. "Well, duty calls."

MJ gave him a quick kiss and he was off.

The person talking from Blade's earpiece was Whistler, who I picture being played by John Goodman.

The Daily Bugle is cooked and canned! Serves J. Jonah Jackass right!

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