All of Me - peaches_ofourown (2024)

Chapter 1: prologue

Chapter Text

"Think you can keep up?"

With a mischievous grin hidden behind her mask, she quickly reached out and pressed her fingers against the web-shooter, releasing the homemade formula she had concocted with the other web-slinging hero swinging beside her. "Keep up? You forget who taught me the ropes! I've been keeping up with you since day one."

As the sun set on the iconic skyline of New York City, the streets below were alive with activity and energy. Two figures swung gracefully through the city's vast network of buildings among the towering skyscrapers. This was a scene that had become familiar to the city's residents, but this time it was different. This time, it was a father and his daughter, united by their unique powers and a common goal to protect the city they cherish.

The streets below were illuminated by the warm glow of street lamps and neon signs, casting soft shadows that seemed to dance alongside them. The distant sound of traffic and the hum of city life provided a soothing backdrop to their nighttime adventure.

Behind his iconic mask, Spider-Man's eyes showed pride and admiration for his daughter's development as a hero. He saw in her the same passion and drive that once drove him to become a hero himself.

"Looking good, Spider-Lily!" He called out, his voice carrying a hint of playful encouragement.

His partner grinned and glanced back at him, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "You're not doing too shabby yourself, old man!" she teased in return.

Having ensured the neighborhood's safety from late-night crimes, Spider-Lily followed her mentor to the rooftop of an apartment complex. Patrolling the city was part of her nightly routine as Spider-Lily. She had started wearing the mask at the tender age of 11, but had actually developed her genetic spider powers from her father at the age of 3, when she was first seen crawling on the ceiling. Although her mother had been hesitant to let her daughter fight crime, she could not be more proud of her. Spider-Lily was very responsible and very much like her father, who never backed down from a fight.

After witnessing her friend die in front of her, she realized that great power comes with great responsibility. Since then, she has sworn to become stronger in order to protect those she cares about.

And for three years, she had been Spider-Lily with Spider-Man.

The two spider-people paused for a moment, catching their breaths and taking in the view of the city below. Spider-Lily watched Spider-Man sit down and remove his mask, revealing her doting father, Peter Parker. He ran his fingers through his blond hair before reaching down and grabbed the lunchbox on the concrete roof. He opened it to find four pairs of sandwiches.

Peter turned to her and casually asked, "Want one?"

Humming in response, Spider-Lily stretched her limbs after her strenuous swinging exercises. He tossed the sandwich in the air, and she easily caught it with her webs before sitting back down. The city lights shimmered below as the two sat comfortably on the rooftop ledge. They each held a sandwich, enjoying the simple pleasure of a late-night snack after a long night of fighting crime.

"Your mom makes good sandwiches," Peter noted after a moment of silence, nudging her playfully.

She nodded vigorously, her mouth full of food. A moment later, she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She pulled it out, earning a reproachful look from Peter. "Hey, I thought I told you no phones during patrol?" he said.

The excuse "I forgot to take it out of my suit" came easily to her lips as she shrugged nonchalantly. Her eyes returned to the dimly lit screen, which displayed a text from her best friend.

pendejo
first day tomorrow!! 🥶🤟you ready?

She laughed a bit. His typings could be so goofy sometimes. Peter merely shook his head at his daughter's antics.

bobo
kinda
wbu

"I just remembered," Peter's voice caught her attention and she stopped typing momentarily. "It's your first day in your new school tomorrow..."

"Yeah, Miles and I were just talking about that," she replied, her attention drawing back to her phone. "Brooklyn Visions Academy."

Her father gazed from afar. "Oh, your mom's gonna kill me for bringing you out on a school night."

"I can easily handle going through the day with little to no hours of sleeping,"

"Well, things are going to change now that you're in a new school," Peter didn't miss a beat, watching as her mouth formed into a pout. "Visions Academy is different. I don't want to see you juggle two things at once."

She pursed her lips. "Dad, it's no big deal. I've been doing this for the last three years. I can handle it!"

"It starts with saying that you could handle it," he replied, "but then there would be a time when you have to choose between the two."

The world fell silent, the only sound the distant murmur of traffic. She let the moment hang before whispering, "You know what I'm gonna choose..."

Peter frowned. "And that's the thing; you shouldn't have to choose," he emphasized. "Right now, you should focus on your school and leave the patrolling to me—"

"-But—"

"-And if there's a problem I couldn't handle by myself, I'll call you," Spider-Man said as the two stared at each other. Spider-Lily looked disappointed because she knew he would never call her for help, but her father's look was one of reassurance that made her trust him this time.

She nodded absentmindedly, lolling her head to the side.

"Plus, your mother's gonna be really mad if I let you skip school for Spider-Lily duties."

Y/n let out a small laugh, looking over the streets of New York. Peter noticed that she became pensive, as he stared at the profile side of her face before sighing loudly.

"Kid, hey..." he began fiddling with his fingers as he tried to find the right words to say. "I just want you to live a normal life as early as possible," he admitted, resting a comforting hand on her shoulder. She kept looking over. "You became Spider-Lily so early, so fast. You're missing out on your other life as Y/n Parker."

She furrowed her brows. "I'm not..." she tried to say, but her words died in her throat.

Peter turned her around to face him as he smiled reassuringly. "Now, I want you to go have fun on your first day of school tomorrow, hang out with that Miles kid, and make some new friends!" He saw her face morph into an uncomfortable smile. He straightened his back. "Okay, not into it. Got it. But make sure you destroy those physics questions!"

A sparkle appeared in her eyes as she nodded once. "I won't let you down!"

"There we go, kiddo!"

Wee-woo! The piercing wail of sirens filled the air as police cars sped down the highway. The two figures turned their heads towards the sound, exchanging knowing glances. Peter pulled his mask back on. "Are you ready?"

Y/n lowered her mask, concealing her identity with the red and white cloth.

"I'm ready."

Chapter 2: sunflower

Chapter Text

Colored markers squeaked to the beat as a young boy drew home-made street art name-tags at a desk, headphones on, singing along to a song he's too young for, but he doesn't quite know the words yet. "Needless to say I mm-mm– check! Mmm, hmm- buh! Nuh-nevetheless! Callin' it quits now, baby I'm a wreck—"

"Miles! Miles, time for school!" A voice from outside his room, but it fell on deaf ears.

"---Oooh! Ooh~ "

"Miles! Miles!"

"She wanna drive me—"

"MILES!"

"Yeah?!" He yelped as he whipped off his headphones, clearing his throat. "Yeah?"

"Are you finished packing for school?" His father asked from the other side of the door.

Miles looked over his shoulder at the empty suitcase on his bed. He had not packed a single item, and he had been avoiding doing so like the plague. "Yeah! Just ironing my last shirt!" he lied. He began to frantically throw clothes and books into his suitcase, not bothering to fold or organize them.

"¡Vamo chacho!" His mother exclaimed from the living room.

"C'mon, you a grown man now! Let's show these teachers that. Let's go!"

"Miles—!"

He threw on his blue uniform jacket, loosening the collar. He carried his unopened backpack in his front and marched out of his room, the door flying open, and into the living room where his parents were also getting ready for the day. "Where's my laptop—?"

"¿Donde le dejaste?" His mom walked by him.

"¡Yo no se!" Miles replied just as frantically as he scoured the shelves nearby.

Jeff's booming voice took over, "If you want me to drive you we gotta go now—"

"--No, Dad, no no no. I'll walk–!" Miles tried to edge away, turning over the sofa's cushions in search of his laptop. He climbed over the couch and onto the kitchen, to which he almost bumped his mother drinking coffee. "It's okay—"

"Ay maria, este nene me tiene loca!"

Miles opened the covered food on the table and grabbed a spoonful of his breakfast. His mom and dad frantically crossed behind him.

"Miles, gotta go!" Rio was getting impatient. She didn't want her son to be late on the first day of his new school.

Said boy got his mouth burnt from the heat. "In a minute!" He replied as he chewed.

"Gotta go-ohh~!" She then retaliated in a sing-song tune. Jeff got behind Miles and packed the laptop he found on one of the tables inside of his bag.

"In a minute!"

Miles made a mad dash out of the kitchen, tugging on his luggage as he finished his last bites of food. He quickly put on his shoes and headed out the door. As he stepped onto the stoop in front of their apartment, his mother called out to him. "Miles, wait!"

Before Miles could utter another word, his mother enveloped him in a tight embrace, smothering him with kisses. The boy rolled his eyes, unsure whether he loved or hated the affection. "Mom, I gotta go," he said.

Rio cheerfully replied, "In a minute!" as she continued to kiss his cheeks. She eventually stopped and closed his backpack. "Now, don't forget to say hi to Y/n for me. You're meeting her at the front of the school, ¿verdad?"

"Si, mami." Miles rolled his bag down the steps. He adjusted the straps of his bag behind him and began walking away.

Rio crossed her arms as she called out, "Papá! Llamame! See you Friday!"

"Okay, mami. Hasta luego!" He excitedly waved goodbye and headed off, dragging the luggage with him.

He struggled to carry the heavy bag down the street, but he was in his element. As usual, the streets of Brooklyn were bustling with activity as usual, crowded with people as he walked by his old school, Brooklyn Middle– where he met his best friend–, and passed by some of their old pals whom they loved and missed.

"Ohhh, look who's back!" One of his friends greeted, "Yo, what's going on, bro?'"

Miles grinned smugly. "Hey, I'm just walking by, how you doin'?"

"-Miles! ¿Te va bien en la escuela?"

"Seguro que si!" He replied just as enthusiastically.

"Yo, Miles, did you feel that earthquake last night?" Another one of his friends passed a ball to him.

Miles smirked while doing a handshake with another friend. "What are you talking about? I slept like a baby last night!"

"How's that new school?"

"So easy!" He said.

"Say hi to Y/n for me! We miss you both!"

He ran further down the street, confidence in his veins as he slapped his homemade stickers on some things– like a hanging sign, a mailbox, attempting to slap one onto a street sign, pasting it, making a loud clang–

—but he tripped on his shoelaces and fell into the street. "¡Contra!" He yelped, stumbling into the pavement.

He groaned, staying down. Police lights flashed as a familiar vehicle rolled in with the signature bwoop bwoop!

He hung his head in protest, knowing what was coming. "Ah, c'mon..." he groaned under his breath.

Miles' father, Jeff, slotted his head out of the car window. "Get in here, Miles." He urged, opening the door automatically after the command.

Trudgingly, the younger Morales hauled his things in the passenger seat and sat on the back, unenthusiastically wearing the seat belt.

Jeff drove off, playing the radio as the police car moved through the neighborhood. Miles looked irritated. "Seriously, Dad, walking would have been fine."

The older man replied without missing a beat, "You can walk plenty on Saturday when you peel those stickers off."

"You saw that?" Miles frenziedly sat up on his seat. His eyes fleeted everywhere as he tried to explain. "I... I don't know if that was me, Dad."

"And the two from yesterday on Clinton."

"...Yeah. Those were me," Miles admitted in a low tone, his face contorted. Jeff looked at him in the rearview mirror of the car, putting a stop to his son's antics. Miles appeared to be in pain, which bothered the older man. There was a noticeable uneasiness between the two that did not exist when Rio was present.

They drove by a row of hipster coffee shops as Jeff would observe. He then tried to bridge the gap with Miles, more cheerfully, "Soooo... look at that, another new coffee shop... you see that, Miles?"

Miles, clearly not interested, placed his head on his palm by the window. "Totally, yeah..."

"-You see that one, what's that one called?" Jeff asked.

"Foam Party."

"Foam Party?!" He let out a cackle. "Come on..." they were beginning to pass by the people lining up by the establishment, as it had recently opened. Miles heard that Spider-Lily was given the honor to cut the red ribbon. He would have wanted to see it, but with school and the long lines... it was impossible to reach it in time.

"Is that a coffee shop or a disco?" Jeff asked, trying to be funny... but Miles wasn't laughing, instead he rolled his eyes.

"Dad, you're old, man."

A voice from the radio intercepted their conversation, reporting, "There are multiple reports of another mysterious seismic event last night. Sources close to both Spider-Man and Spider-Lily say that the two heroes are looking into the problem—"

Jeff turned off the radio, shaking his head in disapproval. "Spider-Man... Spider-Lily..." he scoffed, "I mean these two hooligans swing in once a day, zip zap zop in their little masks and answer to no one, right?"

"Yeah, dad... yeah."

"And we already had enough with one Spider-Man 3 years ago, but now there's two? Give me a break."

Miles was quiet. He thought they were cool. He just let his father speak, deciding to drown his voice out.

"And meanwhile, my guys are out there—"

"-yeah—"

"-lives on the line, no masks– you know– we show our faces! Accountability!"

Miles' turned his face to the side, recognizing a group of kids his age. "Oh no! Dad, speed up, I know these kids—"

"--You know, with great ability comes great accountability!"

Miles' brows furrowed in frustration, adamant to correct him. "That's not even how the saying goes, Dad."

Jeff continued, mumbling in approval, "I do like his cereal, though, I'll give him that—"

The car stopped, sending Miles further in embarrassment when his friends began filming him with their phones, wide smiles as they watched him. "Yo, Miles! You got arrested?" One asked in astonishment from the other side of the car window.

Miles was mortified, sliding down his seat and covering his face with his hands. "Oh my gosh. Don't cops run red lights?"

"Eh, some do... but," he clicked his tongue, pointing at himself. "Not your dad!"

The green light eventually appeared, signaling the vehicle to go. The car drove up until they reached under the Brooklyn bridge, to a school overlooking Manhattan, which loomed across the water. The car pulled up in front of the building where they saw Y/n standing by the steps. She wore her backpack, a holder with three cups in hand.

She saw them, waving happily. Miles saw her too, smiling for a moment, but it faded as he ducked down. "We were so happy back in Brooklyn Middle," he began, referring to him and his best friend.

Jeff raised his eyebrows at his son, knowing where he was going with it. "Miles, you've given it two weeks. We're not having this conversation," he tried to reason.

Miles leaned forward. "I just think that this new school... is elitist–"

"Elitist—?"

"And I would prefer to be at a normal school among the people," he argued, "I know Y/n would, too."

"The people?" Jeff's face was contorted, gesturing to the other students outside on their way to school. "These are your people!"

Miles continued, "Y/n deserved the spot in this school. I'm only here 'cause I won that stupid lottery—"

"No way. You passed the entry test just like Y/n did, just like everybody else, okay?" The older Morales emphasized, but Miles only looked more irritated. "You have an opportunity here, you wanna blow that, huh? You want to end up like your uncle?"

"What's wrong with Uncle Aaron?" Miles uttered, looking at him. "He's a good guy—"

Jeff flinched, angered. He reigned it in. "Look, we all make choices in life—"

"It doesn't feel like I have a choice right now—"

"You don't!" Jeff ended the conversation just like that, the statement effectively shut Miles up as the two sat in the car in silence for a beat.

Y/n approached the vehicle, sensing the tension from a mile away. She didn't mean to listen in on the conversation– it just happened to be in her line of hearing, and fortunately (or unfortunately), she had super hearing.

Their eyes followed her and acted like nothing had happened until the last minute. They were silent as she skipped cheerily. "Good morning, Mr. Morales...! Hi, Miles," she acknowledged the two, preemptively slipping her head past the window to hand Jeff a styrofoam cup. "I... bought you a cup of joe, sir. Just how you like it." Even for about 3 years of knowing Miles' family, she still trips over her words when talking to the Morales patriarch. She bit down the wince from cringing at herself– she never says 'cup of joe'.

Jeff turned the cup silently, seeing the branding slapped to it. He hummed, "Huh. Foam Party." He turned to Miles with a knowing look, rendering Y/n speechless. Was there some kind of an inside joke?

Miles finally made a move and got out of the car. She stepped aside and watched as he opened the front door to get his bag. The son and the father kept sharing glances, like the other wanted to say something. As much as Y/n felt like it was her duty as Spider-Lily to always fix something and Miles was her friend, she didn't want to intervene.

But she didn't like the silence, tapping her feet around to ease the tension. She was still wearing a smile, albeit shaky.

Jeff nodded at his son. "I love you, Miles," he said slowly, like a reminder. Y/n's smile slightly widened at the interaction.

Miles shrugged the straps of his backpack on as he tried to be smug. "Yeah, I know, Dad. See you Friday." He slammed the door shut and began walking away, Y/n on his trail, making sure to accept the coffee she got for him from the newly opened shop. "Thanks for the drink," he told her.

She grinned. "Of course—"

A P.A system resonated while a quick flash of red and blue surrounded the front of the school. "You gotta say I love you back," Jeff said into the P.A.

Miles turned around swiftly, the hot caramel macchiato swishing around– "Dad, are you serious?"

"I wanna hear it," Jeff retaliated.

"You wanna hear me say it—"

"'I love you, Dad.'"

"You're dropping me off at a school—"

"'I love you, Dad.'

"Look at this place—!"

"'Dad, I love you.'"

Her eyes switched between the two before the young Morales let out a sigh in defeat. "Dad, I love you..." he repeated, albeit forlornly.

Jeff feigned a smirk, just as smug as Miles when he thought he could get away from not saying it back. His voice was still in the P.A system when he replied, "That's a copy. Tie your shoes, please! And Y/n?" The girl whipped her head towards him, her back straightening. "Thanks for the coffee." He lifted the cup as if he was having a toast.

The students around them were laughing at the hysterics displayed on their first day. Miles hurriedly stormed off, and Y/n was quick on her feet to follow Miles through the door after briefly waving goodbye at Jeff, with him nodding back and driving away.

Walking through the hallways, there were still remnants of the embarrassing incident outside as students kept quoting I love yous left and right. Miles scrunched his face, disgruntled.

"Just ignore them," Y/n voiced out, amused at his expression. "Though I must admit, that was the sweetest thing I have ever seen in my life."

"Stop rubbing it in," he groaned before taking a sip of his long-forgotten drink. "Foam Party, right? How did you even get to buy one and get to school before me? Dad and I saw the long line."

She merely shrugged. "Eh, my dad got me a free VIP ticket... you know, being a well-known physicist. No biggie." Y/n hoped that Miles would drop the topic immediately. A VIP ticket really meant that she was in the grand opening herself as Spider-Lily and was given the honor to cut the ribbon– one of the first times that only Spider-Lily was invited for a grand event, instead of the two spider-people.

Peter and Mary Jane Parker bid her farewell before she went ahead and took the commute this time instead. She would have swung to school but knowing of the drinks she had to carry, it was a mishap waiting to happen.

"So. Brooklyn Visions Academy," Y/n reiterated, gazing at the high ceilings. She didn't know how else to open up a conversation about the school now knowing about his issue with Visions. After all, she heard what he said in the car. Although she agreed with Miles that the school is elitist and that they didn't have to be there, she also knew that Miles had every right to be here. He's one of the smartest people she met.

Before she knew it, Miles awkwardly began striking up conversations with every kid he saw, trying to interact like he was on his street... but everyone was just so focused.

"Miles," she said, resting her hand on his shoulder and pulling him back to her side. "You don't gotta force a conversation with these people. It's only the first day. Let the social interactions come to you naturally," she advised as they continued walking.

Miles rolled his eyes good-naturedly. "Of course you're good at making friends. What else can't you do?"

"I'm not," she retorted, rolling her own eyes. "If I were that good, then I would be the most popular girl in school."

He chuckled shortly, his grin lingering. "Yeah, and then you'll leave me for cooler people." He nudged her playfully.

She snorted, shoving him back just as mirthfully. "Are you serious? You're the coolest person I've ever met. No one could replace you, Miles."

Without meaning to, his lips formed into a smirk as he avoided her stare. "Yeah?"

"Yeah," she answered immediately, proceeding to pull him into a hug as the school bell rang. "I'll see you in Lit. Apparently, that's the only subject where we have the same teacher."

"Bummer," Miles remarked, placing his hands on her back. "I'll see you,"

She parted from his hold, holding onto the fastenings of her bag. "Has-tah loo-way-gow, cabron!" She ran away before Miles could reprimand her for speaking poor Spanish intentionally in front of him.

He shook his head as he witnessed Y/n's head getting smaller as she made her way to class. Miles Morales and Y/n Parker had been friends for 3 years, having met in Brooklyn Middle. The girl was a new student, having been transferred from her old school for personal reasons and was introduced to the boy– and the rest was history. They shared a love for superheroes, specifically the web-slinging character. They geeked out whenever someone mentioned his name, and when the second spider eventually entered the crime fighting scene, they accepted her– much to the girl's delight.

She taught him most of the things he needed to know about Science, while the boy exchanged her Spanish lessons. Her father was a smart man, and an inventor. Whenever he can, he would invite his daughter and the young boy onto one of his labs and show them his gadgets and blueprints, gradually igniting Miles' interest in quantum physics– resulting in the two of them going to Visions Academy.

To this day, Y/n retained some Spanish words. She used them when talking with Miles from time to time to see that she's improving (but most of the time they really just speak English), while his fascination with studying physics urged him to reach for his goal. For three years, they have been the best of friends.

But sometimes, Miles yearned for more—

Sitting down on his chair, he wasn't prepared for what the day would bring him. 7:45 am signaled his first official class, oh boy it's his favorite, Math.

Contrary to popular belief, Miles actually enjoys Mathematics. He dabbles in calculating with formulas and numbers all around, but racing against other 30 geniuses of his classmates trying to solve for XY? It can be a little stressful. He was correct, though, as he knew the value of the constants.

But what he didn't know was the hecticness of the following classes.

Logic: "Syllogism."

Spanish: "-en este clase, se habla castellano."

Literature: "Tonight, read two chapters of Great Expectations—" he didn't even get to say hi to Y/n.

Science: "I'm giving you a take-home quiz on volumetric pressure—"

Health: "Do a five page essay with your conclusions stressed—"

Workers Party.

Take-home work.

Industrial Revolution.

Incapable.

An enormous change.

Unstoppable—

A bell rang. Miles glanced at the clock above him that read '1PM'.

It was only 1PM and he felt like he was about to melt on the ground.

1PM was his Physics class. On the bright side, it was the subject he was looking forward to most. He opened the door and he saw his classmates sitting in a darkened classroom, lit only by a large screen playing a documentary. Miles tried to sneak his way to his seat.

"-countless other possibilities. There could be a universe where I am wearing red. Or wearing leather pants—"

Ms. Calleros flipped the lights on. Her students blinked in the bright light and grumbled. "Mr. Morales, moving in the dark. You're late."

Miles adjusted his eyesight as he tried to find an excuse. "Einstein said time was relative, right? Maybe I'm not late. Maybe you guys are early."

His joke was met with unamused silence— except for a single titter from a new girl.

"Sorry, it was just so quiet."

Miles nodded sarcastically at the girl.

"Would you like to keep standing there or... do you want to sit down?" Ms. Calleros offered before she hit the lights again, resuming the documentary.

In the dark, Miles awkwardly shifted his way around towards his seat, banged his books into a desk. In the documentary that they were watching stood a physicist, identified as "Director, Alchemax Laboratories." She looked like the consummate nerd and seemed to be amped about physics.

"Our universe is in fact one of many parallel universes happening at the exact same time. Thanks to everyone here at the Fisk Family Foundation for the Sciences, I will prove they exist when I build my supercollider. All I need is 10 billion dollars. Chump change, right?

"Every choice that we make, would create countless other possibilities. A What-if to infinity..."

Eventually, the day had come to a close, ending his official first day of school. Miles retreated to his dorm and brought out his stack of homework. Literal piles of books surrounded him as he couldn't help but stare at it. He then took out a legal pad to start on his personal essay Ms. Calleros had assigned him.

"I'm assigning you a personal essay. Not about physics, but about you and what kind of person you want to be," she told him. 'Great Expectations' was written on the top of it. His mind was scrambled, his pen only hovering over the paper. Where does he even start?

A knock interrupted his trainwreck of thoughts. Immediately, he stood up and opened the door, revealing Y/n with her arms crossed. "Hey," she greeted with an amiable smile.

"What's up," Miles replied coolly and was about to let her in until he remembered the other person in his dormitory, glancing back at his roommate who was in the zone. "Uh..." he trailed off.

"I see you've met your roommate," she nodded casually. She psst'ed at him, trying to get his attention. "Yo, Ganke. Will you stop coding for a sec and properly meet your roommate?"

The guy merely hummed. 'Yo," he muttered, but that didn't stop him from typing.

"Ganke?" Miles pronounced, the person now sounding familiar. "You've mentioned him before, right?"

"This is the guy I've been telling you about," Y/n gushed excitedly, bounding towards her other friend, behind his chair. Ganke gave a measly nod towards him before spinning back to his laptop. Y/n ardently rolled her eyes, turning to Miles, "He's really dead-set on finishing what he needs to do."

"What is he doing anyway?" He stepped closer, trying to make sense of the lines of codes in one of his screens. The colors looked pretty, but seeing them clunked together and moving rapidly, Miles could feel a headache incoming.

She inspected Ganke's screen, bending forward and narrowing her eyes. "He likes to make games in his free time. I think right now, he's making a Spider-Man fan game. Am I right, G?" She reverted her gaze to her bespectacled friend, craning her neck to the side so she could face him closer.

"Hm..." he nodded once, affirming her guess.

"Cool," Miles maffled, his eyes furrowed. He didn't seem to like the way she was... close to him— but he wasn't gonna show that. He looked back to his homework that he was supposed to do, sighing. He was already exhausted just looking at it. The Great Expectations essay had plagued his mind again with thoughts.

Y/n stood upright and noticed the stack of books on Miles' desk. "Holy crap, homework," she said gravely. "What are you currently working on?"

"Well," Miles weakly motioned to everything in his workspace, his hands swirling around. "This? But, uh, this Physics teacher assigned me a special essay. Can you believe that?"

She shook her head, formed her lips in a straight line. Miles mimicked her expression, his eyes narrowed in zest. She erupted into a small laughter, her eyes wandering everywhere in thought, chewing her bottom lip as an idea occurred to her. Her gaze returned to the boy in front of her, who was waiting patiently.

"Follow me."

***

"How do you know this spot?" Miles asked, clambered on the same ladder Y/n just climbed on.

She chuckled. "Uh... I saw the ladder on the way to my dorm. Never knew it would look like this, though." But she has been here multiple times now by herself as her alter-ego. She liked the view of the sunset on this exact spot sometimes, and now for the first time, she had someone else to watch it with.

"Woah," Miles sounded, looking around him. He felt so tall as he took in fellow rooftops, the air nipping at his skin.

Y/n alighted gracefully on the edge of their rooftop. Miles followed suit, slumping down beside her. The two leaned their shoulders against each other as they gazed at the colorful sky. The sun was setting, and the sky was ablaze with color. Shades of orange, pink, and purple filled the sky, and the clouds were tinged with gold. The two people were silent, simply enjoying the beauty of the sunset. They felt a sense of peace and tranquility as they watched the sun sink below the horizon.

After a moment of silence of swinging her feet against the wall, she asked, "What's your essay about?"

"She wanted me to write something about the kind of person I wanted to be and junk..." He shook his head with a puckered brow.

"That is kinda pressuring," she thought aloud. "I never thought it would come from your Physics teacher."

He silently agreed with her sentiment, looking afar. His eyes danced around the moving cars, watching it shine as its bodies were washed with golden light. A question came to mind, one that he's asked himself ever since the first day. He turned to her slightly. "Y/n, what do you think about this school... so far?"

She contemplated for a bit, trying to sound as honest as possible without sounding overjoyed. "It's great. Yeah," she continued, "Classes are okay, the facilities are okay..." she trailed off, shifting to her right to see him better. "Why do you ask?"

He shook his head as if saying that it wasn't a big deal. "I don't know," he began, "This school... Yeah, I mean it's great and all, but I don't think it's for me."

Her brows met in the center of her forehead at his admission. She chose her next words as carefully as she could. Her hand snaked to his left shoulder, leaning closer. "It's just... gonna be a hard time adjusting, Miles. It's a new school, with new people." It was realistic, it was the truth. "But, you belong here," she pressed, "You're always built for great things."

A slow smile formed in his lips. "You think so?"

"I know so," she found herself smiling too, their expressions mirrored. "I've always believed in you and what you can do, Miles."

He definitely felt better from her words. His chest was lighter, and his mood was far from droopy. "You're great at giving advice, you know that?" he said.

"Well, I guess that's just one of the perks of being best friends with Y/n Parker," she said, smirking.

Miles looked at her in amusem*nt before he leaned in and enveloped her in a hug. When words fail them, they communicate their thoughts with an embrace. There had been several other occasions when Miles had been vulnerable and his defenses were broken down in front of her, and Y/n was extremely grateful that he felt safe and comfortable sharing his feelings with her. She was always willing to listen, just as she knew that Miles would do the same for her.

The relaxing hug was suddenly put on-hold when Y/n felt her senses tingling, eyes slightly widened. Reluctantly, she had to pull away from Miles, who was adorning a very lovely blush. "I have to go," she told him, huffing a breath. She didn't like how her job interrupted her moment, but when her spidey senses pricked her skin when the threat was supposed to be back in Brooklyn, she figured it was too important to pass up the opportunity.

"Right. Yeah," Miles uttered, bashfully looking away.

Her eyes sparkled with amusem*nt as she watched the awkward boy. She lifted her legs hanging from the ledge and hopped off, bouncing her toes on the concrete rooftop. "Bye, Miles."

"Aight, see ya."

Miles heard the rickety ladder squeaking from behind him. He fiddled with his fingers, unfocused eyes following the skyline. He didn't want to go down to his room yet. He didn't want to sit down and spend the rest of his night on some dumb essay just yet. He needed to cool off.

And he knew exactly where to go.

Chapter 3: hypnotize

Chapter Text

Putting on his headphones, he began his journey; taking the subway, crossing through streets, and running across alleys. Upon turning right, there he saw the apartment, his uncle's apartment, standing out from the rest of the rooms, with his speakers blaring music and warm lights dancing around.

Uncle Aaron was lounging on his couch, relishing in the calm ambience. He took out his phone and saw a text from his nephew. He opened his inbox, seeing a photo of him with a caption "I'M WATCHIN' YOU!!" along with various stickers. He smirked good-naturedly, looking to where exactly Miles would be standing.

And there he was, standing right outside his window, pressing his face against it and making funny faces.

Half an hour of eating a meal together, the two find themselves talking as Uncle Aaron washed the dishes while Miles sparred with his uncle's punching bag, though not very competently. "What's up with school?" Aaron asked from the sink.

"Going great. Got tons of friends," Miles answered quickly, but Uncle Aaron could pick out the sarcasm from his reply. He wiped his hands on the towel and made his way over to the punching bag, holding it for Miles.

"You can't tell me it's all that bad there..." he said, "Smart girls is where it's at. Place must be full of 'em." He chuckled.

Miles let out a nonchalant chuckle. "No, there's no one. There's no one."

Except, of course, for the one he can't take his eyes off of.

Uncle Aaron strolled to the microwave to retrieve a bowl of popcorn. "Aye, but what 'bout that Y/n chick you've been kickin' it with? Anything happening there?"

"Y/n?" Miles echoed, his movement momentarily pausing as he processed the question. He chuckled softly, a hint of a blush dusting his cheeks. "Nah, she's just a friend, you know? We hang out, talk, nothing more than that." He shrugged, trying to play it cool, though his heart might have been racing just a bit.

"Yo, I cannot have a nephew of mine on the streets with no game."

"Hey, I got game!" The younger boy protested, wanting to prove to his uncle that he's got it covered. "Me and Y/n? We're cool, you know. We hang out all the time– aye, she even got me coffee this morning! And she took me up to the roof, like just the two of us. Maybe she's into me... or something," he concluded his rambling, easing onto the couch with a shrug. He picked up his sketchbook and doodled some pieces onto the page.

Aaron chuckled, clearly entertained by Miles' attempt to play it smooth. "Seems like she's diggin' you," he agreed, joining Miles on the couch and popping open the bag of popcorn. You know about the shoulder touch?"

He paused his drawing. "Of course I do!" Miles exclaimed, but then his voice softened. "But, uh, tell me anyway."

"Tomorrow... track down that girl, stroll up to her, and just be like..." He rested his hand on Miles' shoulder, tilting slightly with a sly look. His eyes half-lidded, and he raised an eyebrow with practiced finesse – the classic shoulder touch. "Hey."

Miles couldn't suppress a snort of amusem*nt at the whole act. He playfully swatted Aaron's hand away. "You serious, Uncle Aaron?"

Aaron remained undeterred, a grin tugging at his lips. "I'm telling you, man. It's science."

He scoffed playfully, a glint of amusem*nt in his eyes. "So, I should just walk up to her and be like..." He mimicked Aaron's move, but with a humorous twist. "Hey."

"No no no no...-like—" he tried again, adding a bit more flair. "Hey."

"Hey..."

Aaron chuckled at his effort. "No. Heyyy."

Miles gamely joined in, adding a touch of exaggeration. "HeyYy.Yy."

Their shared laughter filled the air, Aaron giving him a good-natured nudge. "You sure you're my nephew, man?"

Miles' phone vibrated. He took it out, looking at the notification, his mood immediately dampening.

Dad
Done with that homework?

"Is that her?" Aaron's voice chimed in from the background.

Miles' response was quiet, almost contemplative. "I should probably head out. Still got a paper to do tonight."

Aaron's gaze shifted from Miles to his scattered sketches on the pad, a sly smile forming. He changed the topic smoothly but with intent. "Hey, you've been keepin' this from me?" He reached for the sketchbook, examining the drawings with interest. "You throw these up yet?"

He quickly interjected, his tone rueful. "Nah, man. You know my dad. I can't."

His uncle got to his feet, a determined glint in his eye. "C'mon. I got a spot you ain't gonna believe."

***

The wind ruffled her mask as she glided through the urban expanse of Brooklyn. Beside her, her father effortlessly performed his own aerial tricks. Letting out a whoop of delight, she reveled in the adrenaline rush that always accompanied her swinging escapades.

As they continued their dynamic dance through the air, Spider-Man casually brought up the topic. "So, how's school, kid?" he shouted through his mask, his words riding the currents of wind that surrounded them.

"It was everything how a first day of school should be! Tiring as hell!" she retorted, pressing her fingers against her palm and shot webs at the top of the building, pulling her entire weight with her. "The only class I had with Miles was Literature! That sucks!" she complained loudly, casually swinging upside down with her foot attached on the web. "But I did what you told me to! I freaking aced that physics quiz!"

"A quiz on the first day? Wow, that school is the best– hey, a thief."

They spotted a man on the verge of snatching a purse from an elderly lady. One swift move, and the purse was in the clutches of the fleeing thief, who darted toward an alley with unwavering speed. The two spider-people jumped down and began apprehending the man, but he had friends. Friends who carried firearms and they were not afraid to use them. It's about to get real messy.

Spider-Man threw a punch at the first guy, quickly webbing his gun to the nearby wall. "What's the problem about?" He asked.

The other spider-person smoothly crouched down and expertly swiped another man's feet, causing him to tumble to the ground. With a hint of playful pride, she shouted, "Just your typical magnetohydrodynamics!"

"What the hell are you saying?!" The third thief yelled out, confusion in his features. Spider-Lily produced a web from her wrist and onto the guy's mouth, silencing him.

"Shh. I'm speaking."

"That's easy," Spider-Man commented on the physics topic, webbing the two guys against the wall.

"And guess who wrote the answer on the board? Better give a gold star to this spider over here!" She pointed at herself, smug in her tone. She picked up the blue purse and dusted it clean while Spider-Man webbed the last guy before calling the cops.

Lily managed to find the old woman and assisted her the best she could before the two swung out of the scene.

After about 2 hours, Spider-Man suggested they take a break, casually landing on the flat roof of an apartment complex. With the city's crime rate low, they decided to lounge around for a bit, not wanting to overwork Spider-Lily right after school.

As they soaked in the peaceful atmosphere, Spider-Lily brushed off a bit of debris caught on her suit and began a conversation. "You know, Dad, I'm really happy for Miles." Peter turned to her, his expression attentive, silently encouraging her to continue. "I overheard his conversation with his dad this morning," she continued, fiddling with her fingers. "Miles was talking about how he thinks the school is elitist—"

"-oh I thought that, too–"

"-me too!" she chimed in with a grin before resuming, "And, uh, he said he doesn't deserve to be there..." Her voice trailed off.

Peter raised an eyebrow. "Hey, now. Miles? He's a gifted kid. He absolutely deserves to be there."

"That's exactly what I wanted to tell him! He's seriously the smartest guy I know."

Peter cleared his throat.

"Except you, Dad," she added, playfully rolling her eyes.

He chuckled softly before resuming, "But why can't you tell him?"

"I don't know," Spider-Lily admitted with a sigh, her gaze fixed on the city below. "I've been trying to find the perfect moment, but it's like it keeps slipping away. Besides, he might think I overheard his conversation with his dad, and he already had that embarrassing first-day moment. I just don't want to stress him out any more than he already is. The poor guy's got a lot on his plate."

Peter placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, offering a reassuring smile. "You're a smart kid, just like him," he said gently. "Maybe instead of waiting for the perfect moment, you should just be honest with him. You know, let him know that you're there for him no matter what. Sometimes, it's the simple gestures that mean the most."

Y/n laughed shortly. "As always, Dad. You're right."

"I'm always right," he replied, but then his voice dropped into a whisper. "Don't tell your mother."

A rumble in the street interrupted their moment of solace and the two already had a hint of who would be causing it. It has been occurring for weeks now, and they're almost close to finding the source of it. "You up for it?" Spider-Man asked his partner beside him.

She nodded, jumping up from her seat as well. "Of course."

They swung through the sky using their webs, tracking the ongoing seismic disturbances to their source. This investigation had consumed their efforts for quite a while, discussions taking place back at their main headquarters. She recalled pinning up images of potential villains involved in the situation, but the ultimate orchestrator was Wilson Fisk, better known as Kingpin.

Over the past twenty years, he had been a regular adversary for Spider-Man to face. Initially, Peter was hesitant to involve his daughter in dealing with Kingpin, given his very dangerous nature. However, over the last three years, Y/n had proven that she could hold her own in a tough fight.

The two spider heroes were well aware of Kingpin's heart-wrenching story of loss. His wife, Vanessa, and son, Richard, had been unfortunate witnesses during a confrontation, leading to a fatal car accident that claimed their lives. This devastating event changed Kingpin from a typical mafia boss into a man driven by an overwhelming determination to reunite his family. He sought the assistance of Alchemax, led by a renowned physicist, in his desperate quest to rewrite history and bring back his loved ones.

He won't let anyone get anyone in the way of bringing his wife and son back.

Even if it means squashing a few bugs.

***

Ganke was accustomed to working late into the night, his fingers dancing across the keyboard as he focused on the computer screen.

Meanwhile, the same couldn't be said to his roommate Miles, who was having a restless night, tossing and turning in his bed. He tried various tactics to induce sleep – burying his face in a pillow, rapidly blinking his eyes – but nothing seemed to help.

Growing increasingly frustrated, Miles eventually reached for his phone and dialed her number. After a couple of rings, she picked up with a cheerful "Miles! Heyyy!"

"What's up?" Miles responded, using their customary greeting. "I didn't think you'd still be awake."

"Same to you," she replied, her tone equally casual. "Uh, what are you calling for?"

He shifted restlessly. "Can't sleep. Hey, does Ganke usually stay up late?" He whispered into the phone.

Y/n's response came after a moment's pause, accompanied by a backdrop of muffled noises – rustling and crashing – which piqued Miles' curiosity. "Y/n?" he inquired, his tone laced with intrigue.

"Ah! Yeah!" Her reply sounded rushed, as if she was caught up in something urgent. "What did you say?"

Miles' brow furrowed as he tried to make sense of the sounds in the background. "What's going on over there?"

"Uh, I'm watching a superhero movie!" she explained, her voice carrying a mix of exhilaration and distraction, like she was multitasking.

Miles playfully pouted, his words carrying a hint of mock hurt. "Seriously? You could've invited me, you know."

A surprised yelp escaped Y/n, followed by a moment of chaos. "Hold on a sec!" she exclaimed, her voice muffled as if she had turned away momentarily. "I'll call you back, okay? Movie's getting intense. Promise I'll catch up with you."

Before he could respond, the call abruptly ended, leaving Miles with the lingering beep of disconnection. He stared at his phone, a bemused smile tugging at his lips. That conversation was the most confusing he's ever been in— and that's saying something.

Deciding it was best to let things rest for now, Miles opted to sleep on it and catch up with her tomorrow.

***

Spider-Lily gasped for breath as she perched on the rooftop, her chest rising and falling rapidly. "That was... intense."

Her fellow hero, though not as winded as his daughter, still looked fatigued. The battle had taken its toll on them, and they had lost track of time. "Kid, you have to go back to your dorm and get some sleep. You've got school tomorrow."

"Honestly..." Y/n exhaled, her voice almost a wheeze as she lay down on the concrete roof. Despite her regenerative powers healing her injuries, her mind felt foggy and exhausted. "I don't think I can make it to school tomorrow."

"That's exactly why you need rest," Peter responded, removing his mask with a tired sigh. The Green Goblin had put up a tough fight, tossing him around like a rag doll. "Ugh, my back," he groaned, running a hand through his disheveled blonde hair.

"I'm kinda hungry," Y/n remarked, also taking off her mask and getting up. She noticed a compartment on the rooftop where they usually stashed their lunch before patrol. Inside was a box of empanadas – her favorite. She eagerly grabbed one and started eating, leaving the box for Peter.

"Aw, man. They're cold," she commented between bites, the flavor still satisfying despite the temperature.

The night air was brisk, the moon casting a pale glow over the city. Y/n estimated it was probably around 3 or 4 in the morning, but the exact time didn't matter to them. They continued munching on their empanadas, finding comfort in each other's company and the shared exhaustion from the battle.

As they sat in silence, Y/n's thoughts drifted back to her earlier phone call with her best friend. She couldn't help but cringe at the lame excuse she had given him. Watching a superhero movie? Seriously? It was one of the most embarrassing lies she had ever come up with. She glanced at her dad, a faint smile tugging at her lips. When it came to advice, she knew she could always count on him.

"Dad, do you like Miles?" Y/n asked after a moment, grabbing another piece of empanada.

Peter looked at her with an incredulous expression. "Do I like Miles? Is the sky blue? Is this empanada delicious? Am I Spider-Man?" He quipped, a playful glint in his eye. "Those all have the same answers."

Y/n laughed at his response before her expression turned more serious. "Do you think... it's okay if I tell him I'm Spider-Lily?"

Peter took a moment to ponder the question. "Why do you want to tell him?"

Y/n's brows furrowed as she considered her words. "I guess... I'm just tired of keeping secrets from him. Every time I have to go out as Spider-Lily, I come up with all these excuses and lies, and it's starting to weigh on me. I hate leaving him in the dark and feeling guilty about it," she concluded, her words carrying a hint of frustration.

Spider-Man leaned against the ledge, the city sprawled out below him. He polished off the last of his snack and casually wiped his hands. "Well, kid, here's the thing. If I were just your dad, I'd say go with your gut. But see, I've worn that mask too, and I gotta tell you, revealing who's under it can bring a world of trouble. And not just for you, but for the people you care about," he spoke, a tone she's heard before.

"But you and mom made it work—"

"Your mother and I had our own way of handling things, and it was a different time, a different situation. Revealing your identity is a big step, and it comes with risks. Don't you remember how you wore the mask in the first place?"

She didn't need a reminder. It had been around four years, but the memory of gunshots, her gasp, and her heart racing was still fresh.

Spider-Man scooted a bit closer, pulling her into a gentle embrace. "Hey, I'm sorry," he said, his tone softer, knowing he struck a chord. "I didn't mean to."

"It's okay," she reassured him, her voice a mix of sniffles and steadiness. "You're right, though."

"I just want to keep you safe, and that means looking out for your friend, Miles too. I love you, okay?" They met each other's eyes, a shared understanding passing between them.

Y/n returned his gaze, seeing the love and protection of a caring father. He'd always been there, keeping her safe. "Love you too, dad," she said sincerely. The hug was a comforting cocoon, its warmth and tenderness almost lulling her into sleep.

"I'm always here for you."

Chapter 4: vision brooklyn 1, 2, 3

Chapter Text

Miles jerked awake, suddenly alert for the day ahead. He sprang out of bed, noticing Ganke was still engrossed in his computer. He wondered if his roommate had even slept. Wanting to ask but not wanting to break his concentration, Miles opted to head to the shared bathroom to freshen up.

After a quick shower, he reached for a pair of pants from the floor and pulled them on. To his bewilderment, they seemed unusually short, barely reaching his ankles. Miles furrowed his brow, a perplexed expression crossing his face. That's weird. My pants shrank. He thought to himself, glancing down at the oddly cropped pants.

"I think I hit puberty!" he exclaimed suddenly, the words slipping out before he could catch them. Ganke's typing momentarily halted, his eyes wide, but he quickly returned to his laptop as if he hadn't heard a thing.

Cringing at his own outburst, Miles hastily dressed in his school uniform, packed his bag, and slipped on his shoes. With a quick exit and a door slam, he was on his way. Stepping into the school hallway, he noticed curious glances from fellow students. He tried in vain to adjust the length of his pants to appear more presentable, but they stubbornly stopped right above his socks.

I gotta get new pants. He exclaimed the words internally, but he could hear his voice as clear as day.

Wait, why is the voice in my head so loud ?

From across the bustling lobby, Miles spotted Y/n, and his feet seemed to move on their own accord, leading him toward her. She greeted him with a sweet smile, though he couldn't help but notice the heavy bags under her eyes. Before he could voice his concern, she enveloped him in a hug, a surprising gesture that left him momentarily stunned. He didn't hug back, but the sensation was still exhilarating, making his heart race.

As they pulled away, Y/n leaned back slightly, her brow raising inquisitively. "Hey," she greeted, her tone shifting as she observed him. "Are you okay?"

Miles blinked, feeling an uncomfortable dampness on his forehead. Why am I so sweaty? He mentally scolded himself for the sudden perspiration.

"Miles, why are you sweaty?" she asked in a deadpan voice, her eyes narrowing in confusion.

He hesitated, his mind racing for an explanation. "It's a puberty thing," he blurted out with a chuckle, attempting to sound nonchalant. His own words hung in the air, and his cheeks warmed as he realized how absurd that sounded. "I don't know why I said that. I'm not going through puberty. I did... but I'm done. I'm... a man."

Y/n burst into laughter, her amusem*nt contagious. "Sure you are. Anyway, I wanted to apologize for not calling you back last night. The movie was... good, yeah. Lots of fighting, and the heroes were—wait. Do you want me to spoil it for you? It's cool if we save it for later. Maybe with some ice cream?"

Miles's hand landed on her shoulder, causing her to pause mid-sentence. There was a brief moment of silence, a subtle shift in the atmosphere. "Hey," he spoke, his voice unexpectedly cool and deep.

Her heart skipped a beat, caught off guard by his sudden change in demeanor. A faint blush colored her cheeks as she met his gaze, a playful glint in her eyes. Was he trying to pull off some kind of move? She couldn't help but smile, her tone playful. "What's up," she responded, playing along with his newfound swagger. "What's going on?"

Miles appeared utterly mortified, his embarrassment palpable as he stood frozen, unsure of how to proceed.

Y/n's spidey senses intermittently chimed in her head, a dull headache starting to form.

A new voice broke the awkwardness. "Um, hi," the voice said, and both Miles and Y/n turned their heads toward the newcomer, a blonde girl clutching her books. Relief washed over Miles as she rescued him from his cringe-worthy predicament, but Y/n's heart sank. Was she hallucinating? Was it a result of her sleep deprivation?

She blinked multiple times, but the blonde girl remained standing there, a slight awkwardness surrounding her. And those eyes – those bright blue eyes were distinct from the faded ones Y/n remembered.

"I'm Miles," he blurted out, introducing himself with his hand still on Y/n's shoulder, a bit awkwardly.

The blonde girl nodded, her expression seemingly understanding. "I'm G-waaaaanda...?"

Miles raised an eyebrow. "Wait, your name is Gwanda?"

She attempted to explain the origin of her name, but Y/n felt like her world was spinning, struggling to maintain her balance. Her breaths were shallow, her vision blurred. Miles noticed her trembling and suddenly realized that his hand was still on her shoulder.

"Y/n, are you okay? You look like you've seen a ghost," he asked with concern, attempting to lighten the mood. However, his attempt at humor was met with silence. Y/n averted her gaze, staring fixedly at the ground, attempting to ground herself.

Gwanda's expression shifted to concern. "I'm sorry, it's just... Wanda. No G. I'm... only kidding," she said in an attempt to ease the situation.

Y/n's reaction was visceral. With a sudden force, she turned away, causing Miles to stumble slightly and his hand to graze against Gwanda's blonde locks.

Y/n was on the brink of making a quick escape from the corridor when she caught wind of an unexpected ruckus involving Wanda and Miles. "Ow, ow, ow, ow. Calm down...!" Wanda's voice was strained.

"I... can't... let... go... Y/n, help!" Miles' plea was tinged with panic.

A twin sister she didn't know about? That couldn't be possible! The two were inseparable, sharing every detail of their lives. Curious yet baffled, Y/n inserted herself between the two, attempting to gently free Miles' hand from Wanda's scalp.

"Miles, let go!" Wanda's demand was assertive, but her efforts only seemed to worsen the situation. Now, not only was his hand stuck, but his other hand had managed to adhere itself to the blonde girl's book. Y/n watched the unfolding chaos, feeling overwhelmed. Her mind was torn between dealing with her own emotions and resolving the bewildering scene before her. The sensations coursing through her body were relentless, setting her on edge. Why was her spidey sense still on overdrive? Where was the danger?

In an unexpected turn of events, Wanda's strength prevailed, and Miles was unceremoniously toppled to the ground. Y/n was taken aback. She hadn't expected Wanda to possess that kind of physical prowess based on her appearance. It was a shock to witness her effortlessly overpower Miles.

***

Y/n paced anxiously outside the clinic door, attempting to steady her breathing. Amidst the prolonged wait, she attempted to sort through her thoughts. What on earth had transpired in the past hour? She had awoken feeling groggy due to lack of sleep, attended school, encountered Miles, sensed a spidey tingle, and then stumbled upon a girl who bore a striking resemblance to her deceased best friend—except her name was Gwanda without the G.

What. the. hell.

She tried to remember if she had come across any blond girls resembling her in her classes. Perhaps her focus during classes had been too intense to notice, but it seemed implausible that she could have overlooked a face as distinct as that. Why did this uncanny resemblance have to manifest itself now?

After what seemed like an eternity, the door swung open, revealing Miles with chunks of golden hair stuck to his hand. She was about to inspect for any injuries when he instinctively stepped back, his hands raised cautiously. "I'm still... sticky," he admitted, struggling to find a more fitting description. He was undeniably sticky.

"Miles, what's the matter?" she inquired, mindful of his boundaries. "Is...," she paused, swallowing a lump in her throat, "Is Wanda okay?"

"She's fine. Are you planning to go see her? You looked pretty rattled when she introduced herself," he observed, his concern evident. He wished to offer comfort, yet the memory of his hand's sticky encounter made him hesitate to reach out.

"Uh, don't worry about it," she waved dismissively. "Um," she hesitated. "You sure you're okay?"

"I should be the one asking you that, loser. You look pretty pale."

"On second thought, I think I need to get back to my dorm for a bit. I barely slept last night, and..."

"Hey, no need to explain." Miles interjected, his hand half-reaching out but hesitating. "Just go get some rest, okay? You look like you need it." He glanced at her fatigued expression.

Y/n flashed a thankful smile, moving closer as if to hug him, but Miles unconsciously took a step back. She shot him a playful yet quizzical look, still going in for the hug regardless.

Miles found himself unsure of where to place his hands, but Y/n wasn't about to let go anytime soon. After the mild panic attack she'd experienced earlier from seeing what seemed like a ghost, she guessed she really needed this hug.

Lost in the moment, Y/n didn't notice when Miles eventually put his hands on her back. When they finally pulled away from the embrace, his eyes widened like saucers as he stared at his hands. They weren't sticky anymore.

"Okay, bye," she said as she parted ways, walking around the corner until she disappeared.

Miles was left to his own again, now feeling that he was against the world. Against teenagers, more like. He tried to reassure himself, filling his mind with positive thoughts. No one saw. It's okay. No one knows. No one knows.

But all eyes were on him, like he had the spotlight. Everyone around him was giving him these looks. Looks of— they totally knew.

Am I the weird guy now? What am I doing? How do I stop? Can they hear my thoughts? Why are all my thoughts so loud ?!

Y/n neared the main exit, but her heightened senses abruptly kicked in, setting her nerves on edge. Halting, she glanced back, a shiver running down her spine. Slowly, she retraced her steps, ending up near the nurse's office. She pressed against the lockers, covertly observing the clinic's blue door. As if on cue, it swung open, and right on schedule, the blonde girl emerged.

Her spidey senses blared again, the intensity multiplied, making her blink her eyes rapidly. At the same time, this Wanda person stood straight like a leopard sensing nearby danger. Her blue eyes scanned the busy hallway before continuing walking, passing by students and the like, while she was still on high alert.

Y/n followed her every move, while being as discreet as possible. She saw her going to the gym, dodging past student athletes.

Wanda sped through the next corridor, until her feet took her outside, and now outside one of the dorm buildings. Her pace was quick until she skidded into a stop and turned around. "Please stop following me!" she burst out.

Y/n froze in her spot, caught red handed. She straightened her back and regarded her with caution. She didn't know what else to say except, "I'm sorry..."

The blonde inspected the girl, trying to decipher her motive. "I don't know what you're trying to do, but please, you're creeping me out."

"I- I'm sorry!" Y/n stuttered out her apology, frantically waving her hands around. "I thought I..." her face of concern dissolved into one of hope. "Do you... do you know me?"

Wanda's face immediately contorted into confusion. "I don't think so?" She answered slowly, sounding suspicious.

In the middle of the street, people crossed them as the two remained staring. In unison, the two gals narrowed their sight as if trying to read the smallest text in the world, but in that moment, their minds intertwined in one single thought that they dare say it aloud.

"You're like me."

Chapter 5: scared of the dark

Chapter Text

"Okay. In here." Y/n pulled Wanda into her dorm room, where it was safe and private. After finding out that they were the same, the two decided to skip the rest of the day and retreated to her dorm because they knew they were going to talk about it for hours.

The blonde roamed around the room, idly gazing at the posters on the wall. Y/n was in the bathroom, opting to wash her face to maybe get rid of the stress.

She quickly sprinted out of the bathroom, facing Wanda again. "I don't even know where to start," Y/n admitted, deciding to stand in the middle of the room. "Okay, let me ask you this... is your name really Gwanda? Or Wanda?"

The new girl looked at her, her resolve crumbling. She sighed in defeat. "Okay. You got me. It's not Wanda– nor Gwanda. My name is Gwen Stacy."

Y/n let out a breath she didn't know she was holding, looking away and pacing. "Okay," she breathed. "Okay."

"I didn't tell you my real name because the truth is... I'm from another dimension," Gwen explained, fiddling with her fingers. "I was fighting this bad guy when all of a sudden there's this portal that I got sucked into and landed me in New York– but not my New York."

"How long have you been here?"

"A week."

"And why did you decide to go to Visions?"

"My spidey-senses told me to," Gwen easily replied, "I wasn't sure why, until I met... someone like me," she answered.

Y/n went silent after that, contemplating her next words until apparently, Gwen beat her to it.

"So, you're Spider-Lily, I assume? I saw it on the billboards. I can't believe there are two other spider-people here," Gwen's brow raised in curiosity.

"Yeah," she said. "Spider-Man's my dad..." She shook her head, trying to refocus. "Hold on, I'm still not quite caught up with the situation. What you just encountered was literally straight out of a quantum physics book! So we're talking about multiverses! Multiple dimensions, multiple versions of us!" She couldn't wrap her mind around it, even if she tried.

"You sounded just like my friend back in my world just now," Gwen pointed out, but with a somber smile.

Hearing that made Y/n's heart skip a beat. Her friend. "And may I ask... what their name is?" She didn't mean to ask, but if she shared names with Gwen's apparent best friend, then surely she would've known who she was by now.

"Oh. Their name... was Peter. Peter Parker." Gwen's eyes casted downwards.

"Wait, what," Y/n gasped. Was? Peter Parker?

So it really was different.

Gwen suddenly turned to her. "Is there a Peter Parker in here? Have you met him?" Her eyes sparkled with hope.

Y/n didn't know how to address this properly, so she just went straight to it. "He's Spider-Man. My name is Y/n Parker."

"Oh," she said slowly as if she felt enlightened. "That's... crazy."

"Tell me about it."

Gwen looked at her, like really looked at her— then it clicked. "Ah! You're Y/n L/n in my dimension!"

"Y/n L/n?"

The blonde chuckled. "Yeah. She goes to my school. One of the sane people who stood up for Peter when Ned Leeds got too close to him. It's a version of you now that I realized," she admitted, brushing a hand through her hair.

Y/n saw the way Gwen grimaced before noticing the large handprint left on her scalp. She knew those marks all too well. "Oh, let me help you with that."

Gwen leaned away from her touch, and Y/n stopped her advances, dropping her voice in a gentle tone. "I'm just gonna fix your hair a bit. In apology for what Miles did earlier."

When the blonde didn't say anything else, the other took it as a yes. She proceeded to retrieve the appropriate tools for a proper hair-over. Only the sounds of a razor was heard and the blonde found herself relaxing under Y/n's hold. "I'm sorry," Gwen began to apologize. "I don't want my hair touched by anyone ever since..."

"Yeah," Y/n took over, noticing her faltering tone. She was about to say Peter. "I know how you feel."

"You do?" Gwen spoke a bit too quickly, as if offended. Y/n wondered if she thought she was being sarcastic or fake. Guess she had to prove herself genuine.

While slowly shaving half of her hair off, she cleared her throat. "If you must know, my best friend died in my arms, too."

Gwen was quiet, speechless. But interestingly, not surprised. She let her continue.

"My dad said I was young when it happened. Too young," she said, "I managed to hide my identity from her for 3 months. Patrolling with my dad was fun– I finally get to swing around the city and fight bad guys. Though my dad always put me on day patrol to 'keep me safe', safety wasn't really important when it comes to this stuff.

I wanted to tell her that I was the new spider hero that she's been hearing in school, but I had to be responsible, he says. So I didn't say anything. It was hard trying to live a double life; as Y/n Parker who's normal and oblivious, and as Spider-Lily who tries her best to keep her people safe.

Skipping school and flanking on hangouts at the last minute became the norm for me, but it wasn't for her. She was pretty angry with me, telling me I don't value our friendship— but I do. I care so much, but I understood why she felt that way. I... I get why she would call me a bad friend.

I was filled with anxiety that time, I didn't wanna end our friendship, so I did the most logical thing my 11-year old brain could think of: I told her I was Spider-Lily."

"And then what happened?"

Y/n sighed, on her way to finishing the story and Gwen's hairdo. "She took it surprisingly well, asked to be the guy in the chair and all that. I told my dad that I told her, and he wasn't too pleased but there's nothing he could do about it. And for 2 months, our friendship just got stronger.

It was... until the day I was patrolling by myself. It was the first time I got to be alone since my dad had to go to a science fair as a judge. It was the first time I didn't go with my dad to anything science-related. I thought to myself if I could prove to him that I can handle patrolling alone, then he wouldn't have doubts anymore.

I found four men trying to rob someone, and I wasn't scared. I've dealt with these guys before. Thankfully, the lady ran off so I could focus on the guys..."

They had guns.

At that moment, Y/n knew what to do. With her webs, she tugged the guns out of their hands and webbed it so that they couldn't use it. They didn't hold back their punches, though, and albeit Spider-Lily was struck, she didn't back down. Eventually, she knocked them out.

She watched the three men webbed against the wall, heads lolled to the side— unconscious. She was breathless, having done this all by herself, but her senses were still on haywire.

"Oh, my gosh that was amazing!"

Her head snapped around to the sound of her voice. The eyes of her mask widened. "Gwen! What are you doing here?!"

"I was just walking by, I promise. I heard fighting and thought I'd see you here," she explained, moving closer.

Spider-Lily closed her fist, frustration slowly flooding in. "You're supposed to go far away from the fight, not go closer! It's dangerous!"

"Okay, okay." Gwen gestured with both of her hands. "Chill," she said, placing a hand around the superhero's shoulders. "You took down everyone, right? It's over." But why was her senses still felt all over the place?

"You—" Spider-Lily groaned, escaping her hold. "Let's get out of here. Now," she looked back and saw the same three men still unconscious. There were three of them, right?

"I didn't get all of them," Y/n concluded, turning the razor off. Her voice was suddenly low. "Then there was a gunshot... I knocked the guy down, but it was too late. She was already bleeding out, and I couldn't do anything about it. And that was the day Gwen Stacy died. Because of me."

Gwen startled slightly at the mention of her name. Understanding now why Y/n seemed shaken upon seeing her, she could imagine how traumatic it must have been for her to encounter a seemingly resurrected friend. Despite feeling sorry for her, Gwen realized the importance of offering Y/n some much-needed reassurance.

"I know you've probably heard that a thousand times by now, but it wasn't your fault," Gwen said, reaching up to have a feel of her shaved head. It was finally even. "Sometimes things go wrong,"

Y/n nodded, packing up her tools and cleaning the floor. "Yeah. Blaming myself won't change the past. I know, I know."

Gwen observed her, arms resting on her knees, which were pulled close to her chest. "Well, it's nice to know I'm not alone."

"You still need to tell me your dead-best-friend story, though." Y/n playfully pointed at her with the broom.

The blonde rolled her eyes. "We'll save mine for another day. I think we had enough sadness."

"For real. The sad aura is filling up the room and it's kinda suffocating," Y/n admitted, putting away the broom and pan before placing her hands on her hips. "So. Noodles?"

Is there a more comforting way to alleviate the sadness than savoring a cup of steaming hot noodles?

As the kettle hummed in anticipation of hot water, Gwen stole a moment to appreciate her new appearance in the mirror. A chuckle of awe escaped her lips, and she pivoted to take in the eclectic decorations that adorned the walls. Her eyes then shifted to the corner, where a set of bunk beds stood. The lower bunk, unmistakably Y/n's, was adorned with a plethora of posters, while the top bunk remained a canvas of bare walls, adorned only with a solitary pillow.

"You have a roommate?"

"She's always out," Y/n responded from the kitchen, which was only a few meters away. "Pretty sure she doesn't take studying seriously. And I also think she lives with her boyfriend now? So most of her stuff ain't here."

The electric kettle automatically turned off, the water inside already boiling hot. Gwen easily flipped into the air and landed on the top bunk, crossing her legs. "Speaking of boyfriends..."

"What?" Y/n asked, briefly casting Gwen a glance while pouring hot water into an instant cup noodle.

The blonde laid on the pillow, her hands behind her neck as she stared at the ceiling. "Miles?"

From the top bunk, a commotion reached her ears, followed by the sound of hurried footsteps. "Pinche-" the other girl cut herself off, grabbing a towel and running her burnt hands through it. After a few seconds, aided by accelerated healing, the pain subsided. "What? What about him?"

"Oh, don't act dumb now," she could hear the smugness in her tone. "I see the way you two look at each other, and he even flirted with you!"

Y/n deadpanned, her shoulders dropping. "Ah, yes. The joys of super hearing." She climbed the ladder with cup noodles in both hands, handing the second cup of ramen to the blonde. "How much did you hear?"

"Just that last part where he made his voice go deep and say—" Gwen placed her hand on Y/n's shoulder and repeated, "Hey."

The girl laughed shortly. "Oh, what do you know about flirting? Was that even flirting?" she asked, trying not to come out as mean. "We're just friends," she mumbled lowly before slurping on the noodles.

"Whatever helps you sleep at night," Gwen shrugged.

The two spent their time eating in silence, with only the sounds of slurping and chewing breaking the quiet. But throughout, Y/n kept checking the time. It wasn't until the lights from outside became more prominent through her window that she realized it was already night.

Typically, this would be the hour when she'd receive a text from her dad, instructing her to suit up for patrol—usually serious crimes like a drug bust or dealing with the mafia. But not today.

Suddenly, an earthquake shook their solace. It lasted only a few seconds before stopping. Outside, people were screaming, and tires were screeching. The two girls had already considered various villains who could have caused the earthquakes, but Y/n, her senses heightened, knew who the real culprit was. Without hesitation, she reached for her phone.

News of the earthquake echoed around her room as the reporter's voice explained the commotion outside. The two watched a video of the city, post-earthquake, glitching with weird, neon colors.

Y/n glanced at Gwen. "I have to go..."

She suited up, Gwen looking away from her and walked toward the window, gazing outside. The lights of the city briefly went out before lighting up again. "What the hell is happening?" she wondered aloud.

"We've been tracking down Kingpin's collider– he's the one causing the earthquakes. My dad's not texting me. Again," she gritted her teeth in frustration. She doesn't like it when he leaves her in the dark.

Y/n had just reached for her mask when Gwen suddenly glitched in a JOLT– and she fell down. "Woah, are you okay?!" she asked, approaching closer.

"I'm—" she glitched on the floor shortly, curling her body. "It's nothing."

"That doesn't look like it's nothing," Y/n knitted her eyebrows. "Why are you glitching like a scratched CD?"

Gwen huffed as she slowly sat up. "I- I think the cells in my body don't like me being in the wrong universe. I'm not supposed to be here." She stood up and patted her clothes.

But the ground rumbled again, making them lose their footing slightly. Y/n glanced back at her blonde friend. "As much as I want you to come join me..." she trailed off, hoping for Gwen to catch her drift. Having Gwen come with her would mean people would see another spider-themed hero, leading to an explanation that they currently couldn't afford.

She nodded. "I understand. Go. Break a leg."

"I sure hope I don't." Y/n allowed a smirk to grace her lips.

Gwen rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean."

Y/n quickly found herself a pen and paper, and after swiftly writing her phone number down, she equipped her mask. "Text my phone. I'll call you if I need help."

"Alright."

She opened her window, leaped off, and swiftly shot a web onto a stone wall, pulling her weight upward. While swinging, she attempted to call her dad through the intercom on her mask. It kept ringing, but there was no answer. "Where are you, Dad?"

MEANWHILE, Miles Morales found himself face-to-face with Spider-Man. He was still in disbelief, attempting to catch his breath and make sense of the situation he found himself in. Just moments ago, he struggled to grasp the idea that he might have spider powers and could potentially become a spider hero. Now, he was in an underground facility with an interdimensional supercollider, witnessing Spider-Man battling bizarre biological villains.

Unfortunately, Spider-Lily wasn't in the scene, a disappointment for Miles as he always enjoyed watching the hero in action.

Perched amidst the debris, Miles made his way toward the suited hero amid the smoke and dirt in the darkened room. The hero, still in his suit, was coughing heavily. Miles approached with concern. "Hey, hey. Are you okay?" he asked.

He wasn't. "I'm fine, I'm fine. Just— resting."

"Can't you get up?" Miles stared at the whites of his mask, the other exposing his eyes. They looked familiar.

Spider-Man produced a wry laugh. "Yeah. Yeah, I always get up." He coughed some more. "The coughing's probably not a good sign," he breathed.

Above them, shadows danced, signaling the arrival of Kingpin's thugs who had discovered the breach. From outside, Kingpin's authoritative voice echoed, commanding, "Find him, now." A light at the other end of their location hinted at the approaching threat.

The hero's voice was urgent as he leaned towards Miles. "We gotta team up here, we don't have that much time..."

"Wh-what about Spider-Lily? Is she gonna arrive any time soon?"

The older man hesitated. "N-no... no. She's not. Listen," Spider-Man handed the shutdown key to Miles, keeping it safe in his palm. "This override key is the only way to stop the collider. Swing up there, use this key, push the button, and blow it up."

In that instant, the full weight of the fact that he was conversing with Miles, Y/n's friend, started to register. Spider-Man's eyes widened slightly, grasping the implications of Miles becoming a spider hero and eventually sharing the swinging duties with his daughter. Spider-Man swallowed hard, his breath becoming shallower. "You need to hide your face. You don't tell anyone who you are. G-go to Spider-Lily. She'll know what to do. Just– just tell her what I told you."

Miles, albeit confused, nodded.

"K-keep her safe, Miles." The words carried a sense of finality. He was gradually coming to terms with his fate. "Promise me you'll do this."

He stared upon the mask that protected so many people, and he wondered if he could also get to wear the mask. "I promise."

"Go," Spider-Man urged, voice raspy, but desperate. "Destroy the collider. I'll come and find you..."

Miles ran off, but not before sparing a glance at the hero, concern in his features. It hadn't even registered in his mind how he knew his name.

"It's going to be okay..."

The boy clambered up a debris pile to the floor above, peeking up to the top of the collider. It's so far up there, hidden in a layer of smoke. Down below, the conversation continued, Kingpin taking the lead.

"Tombstone, we're done with tests," his voice was low but it was still resonating through the rendezvous. "Get that thing ready to go again."

The scientist in front of him backed away, before sprinting.

"Run faster." Kingpin shook his head. "These guys are weak." The trio of villains approached a beaten up Spider-Man, laid in concrete. "I'd say it's nice to see you again, Spider-Man. But it's not. Spider-gal's a no-show?"

"Hey, Kingpin," Spider-Man whispered in a casual tone, deciding to ignore the last comment. "How's business?"

"Booming! Ha." He let out a short laugh before grabbing a handful of the hero's mask, and forcefully pulled it out of him, revealing his identity.

And Miles sucked in a breath upon seeing who he was under the mask. Even from a distance, he couldn't mistake the blonde hair and blue eyes. The revelation sent his mind into a whirlwind. Did she even know that her father was out there every night, fighting bad guys?

"Aw, that's a no-no." Spider-Man— or rather, Peter Parker uttered. "This might open a black hole under Brooklyn. It can't be worth the risk."

"It's not always about the money, Spider-Man." Kingpin emphasized.

Prowler emerged from the shadows, sharp claws extending from his gloves as he slowly closed in on Peter.

In an attempt to change his mind, Peter faced Kingpin, frantic. "Don't you want to know what I saw in there?"

Kingpin paused. "Wait," his hand was raised. The Prowler halted in his tracks.

"I know what you're trying to do," Peter said in a whisper. "And it won't work. They're gone."

What did Peter think Kingpin's reaction would be? Acceptance? Understanding?

No. A flash of fury and Wilson Fisk brought his big hands in the sky before delivering the death blow himself. A long beat has passed. Their surroundings had rumbled, dust billowed, and Peter Parker wasn't breathing anymore.

His imposing figure loomed over Peter, and with a cold voice he commanded. "Get rid of the body."

Miles, still looking horror-stricken, moved slightly, making debris fall.

"What was that?" Kingpin snapped his head around at the sound. They follow the noise up to a silhouetted figure, who quickly dashed out of the scene. "Kill that guy."

The Prowler took off, running after Miles.

***

Y/n swung around the city, scanning for any signs of casualties, all the while persistently attempting to reach her father. Worry crept in as the missed calls piled up, but she clung to a sliver of hope.

Her senses tingled, and she descended to investigate a peculiar sight—a jumbled mess of a traffic light, a remnant of dimensional glitching. Pausing on a rooftop, she scrutinized the strange amalgamation, noticing the blurred outlines of various objects like traffic cones, trash cans, and street lights.

People were gathering around it with their phones, taking photos of it, while one man commented, "Yeah, I think it's a Banksy."

A call buzzed on her intercom. A lovely redhead popped up in the corner of her screen, labeled 'Mom' below it. Yet, an odd sensation pricked at her senses. Answering the call, she heard Mary Jane's voice. "Y/n, are you in your dorm?" She preferred delivering such news in person rather than over the phone.

"Uh, I'm out," the daughter answered simply. She decided to confess her concern. "Mom, I can't find dad anywhere. I'm kinda worried. Do you know where he went?"

"About that..." MJ's voice turned mellow. She sighed. "I need you to go home. Right now. Please." It was a plea. A wry, shaky, and meek one.

Y/n's brows furrowed. "Mom? Is everything okay? Is there an intruder?"

Silence met her, and that was far from good. An anxious pit settled in her stomach.

"Just come home, dear."

Miles clambered through the window of his childhood bedroom, his breath coming in heavy gasps. He was rattled and so terrified. The weight of the enormous responsibility he had been given, stopping a weapon that could erase everything in an instant, combined with witnessing the death of the city's hero, had left him shaken. His heart continued to beat erratically, the pulse resounding in his ears. Yet, amidst the turmoil, there was a glimmer of relief—he was still alive, still safe, at least for the moment.

"Police!" The door swung open, and Jeff loomed in the doorway, his posture authoritative. "Put your hands up— Miles? Miles?" Jeff's voice wavered as he recognized his son. He expected him to be in his dorm; what was he doing here? "Why aren't you at school?" he questioned.

Miles tried to explain, maybe come up with an excuse, but his words failed him. He ran up to his dad and embraced him, tight. Jeff was taken aback, slightly confused, then seemed to get it. He wasn't about to refuse a hug from his son. "Whoa, whoa. It's okay. It's okay," he reassured, gently cradling his hair.

Rio followed suit, drawn by the commotion and curious about what was happening. "Miles?" she inquired, exchanging glances with her husband. "Que te pasa?"

Miles was released from the hug, still silent.

"Is it the earthquake?" Rio placed an assuring hand on the boy's shoulders. He looked at both of his parents, torn. Should he confide in them?

"Can I sleep here tonight?" He whispered, one should notice the fatigue in his voice.

Jeff sighed. "Miles, it's a weeknight. You made a commitment to that school—"

"Jeff," Rio cut him off, giving him a look. "He's upset."

The two shared a look, and after a moment, the patriarch softened, understanding the situation. "Of course you can stay."

That was all the confirmation Miles needed before his legs gave up, causing him to plop down on his bed. He interlocked his hands and began to fiddle with his fingers as he thought about what he wanted to say. "Dad?" His voice was soft, tinged with a bit of fear and uncertainty.

"Yeah?"

"...Do you really hate Spider-Man?" Do you hate Peter Parker? Do you hate the man who didn't have to protect his city but he did anyway? Even though he has a family of his own, he tries to make sure every family comes home unscathed? Do you hate my best friend's father?

Oh, god. Y/n. What would she feel once she finds out?

A beat passed. "Yeah...?" Jeff answered slowly. "I mean with a vigilante—"

"Jeff, mi amor—"

"What?" He looked at her confused. Rio began to escort him out of Miles' room. "He asked. Baby, you know how I feel about Spider-Man, c'mon..."

Jeff and Rio eventually left, as Miles laid down on his bed, thinking about Y/n. He brought out his phone, and dialed her number. He waited as it rang, but she didn't answer this one.

Or the next ten calls.

He took the key out of his pocket and opened his hand, revealing what sort to be a flashdrive, with the name Alchemax. He stared at it before hiding it in his palm again. He tried closing his eyes to drown out his anxiety, his worries, his pain.

Rio and Jeff watched the news.

"We interrupt this broadcast for a special report. Sad news tonight. The hero known as Spider-Man had died after injuries related to another powerful earthquake in Brooklyn."

Miles sat up from his bed, hearing the news from his room.

"This devastating loss leaves his partner, Spider-Lily, to carry the mantle alone to face the daunting task of defending our beloved city. Multiple sources are confirming that Peter Parker, a 37-year old inventor and researcher, operated as Spider-Man for at least two decades while fighting side by side with Spider-Lily for three years."

People around the city were on their phones, simultaneously listening to the news. Their hearts were broken one by one.

"The question hangs heavy in the air: can Spider-Lily rise from the shadows and fill the void left by Spider-Man's absence?"

Miles slipped out through the window, strolling along the streets of New York City. Eventually, he found himself standing in front of a store window with a display of TVs. All of them were broadcasting the news about Spider-Man's death, accompanied by a photo of Peter.

As he gazed at the image of Peter and his smile, Miles reflected on the man he knew—a good person and a caring father. Memories surfaced of times when he was invited into one of Peter's labs, with Y/n proudly showcasing her dad's prototypes and inventions. Peter had been the catalyst for Miles' interest in science.

Lost in thought, Miles realized he hadn't considered Spider-Lily. How was she taking the news?

"Peter Parker, Spider-Man, is dead. He is survived by his wife Mary Jane, his daughter Y/n, and his aunt, May Parker. Our hero, Spider-Man, is gone ."

Miles navigated through a crowd of well-wishers, all dressed in Spider-Man costumes, including the one he had bought from a store. The surrounding people had donned their own spider-themed attire, ranging from homemade to store-bought outfits. On a stage, MJ stood dressed in black, and behind her, Y/n was embraced by May, unable to contain her tears.

His heart reached out to his best friend.

"My husband Peter Parker was an ordinary person," Mary Jane began her speech, her tone solemn. "He always said it could have been anyone behind the mask. He was just the kid who happened to get bit. He didn't ask for his powers. But he chose to be Spider-Man," she said, looking among the crowd with Spider-Man masks. They were crying, they were mourning, they were sympathizing with the bereaved.

"My favorite thing about Peter is that he made us each feel powerful," MJ continued. "We all have powers of one kind or another. But in our own way, we are all Spider-Man. And we're all counting on you," she finished her speech.

Mary Jane backed away from the dais, going for her daughter and hugging her intensely. Aunt May tried her best to comfort them both.

***

"We're all counting on you..."

Miles rounded a corner and took out multiple versions of the Spider-Man Origins comic book. Along with that was his phone. His fingers itched to make a phone call. He does, waiting for it to ring. It went into voicemail, and Miles decided to leave one. "Uh, Y/n. Hey! What's up?" He winced at himself for trying too hard. "Um, listen, I just want to say that... I'm here for you, man. Just— call me if you need me. A-and I have something to tell you, too. Okay– uh, bye."

That was so lame.

Chapter 6: catch the s train

Chapter Text

"It's going to be alright."

Is it?

She'd heard every variation. I'm sorry for your loss. My deepest condolences. We'll all miss him.

Y/n powered down her phone after being flooded with condolences. While appreciating the well-meaning sentiments, she found it overwhelming. Coping with the loss of a superhero father, the collective mourning of thousands of strangers didn't sit well with her.

She recognized her selfishness in choosing solitude over comforting her mother. However, the pain and devastation over her dad's death, especially considering Spider-Man's resilience in always getting back up after being knocked down, were too overwhelming for her to set aside.

The people of New York lost their hero,

But a daughter lost her father.

She had found herself in this exact situation before-standing among mourners at a funeral, witnessing the solemn lowering of the coffin into the grave. She was supposed to be accustomed to it by now, given her past experiences with loss. But why did it still hurt so much?

Her father's words echoed in her mind. "Being Spider-Man comes with risk, but it also comes with responsibility. The responsibility we bear comes with a price, and sometimes that price is the ones we care about. It's a harsh truth, but it's one we can't escape. What matters is how we carry on, how we honor their memory and keep pushing forward despite the pain."

He must be disappointed at the way she was laying in bed for hours now, ignoring texts from Gwen, e-mails from Ganke, and calls from Miles. The rest were automatically sent to the spam inbox, coming from strangers who managed to get her contact number. We're sorry for your loss. Spider-Man was a hero.

What use were those words? To sympathize? To know that they care?

Even her social media wasn't a safe place. Her posts from weeks ago had recent replies of "R.I.P Peter Parker." or "Are you okay?"

Tired of the consoling words, she shut her eyes. Yet, each time darkness enveloped her, the stark reality hit - she was alone. The sole spider hero in a vast city. She realized she wasn't as ready as she thought. She simply needed more time. She needed more training. She needed more preparation.

She needed her dad.

Finally, she walked out of her room. The sky was gloomy- it's only been a day, but it felt like months now. Her body felt sluggish, heavy, and exhausted. She found her mom at the dining table, typing something on the laptop- probably replying to the well-wishers.

Y/n sat on the other chair, the opposite of her. MJ caught sight of her, and her back straightened. "Sweetie," she greeted, clearing her throat. "How are you-?"

The girl placed her mouth on her knuckles as she nodded, "I'm fine," she said, trying to sound convincing.

MJ faltered, her shoulder slumping. "I shouldn't have asked that. Of course you're not okay."

"I will be. I promise. I've gone through this before, Mom," Y/n said, and she noticed the way the older woman knit her eyebrows, but she decided to jump into another topic; one that she wanted to talk about ever since the funeral. She decided to confide in her. "Can I... ask for advice?"

"Anything," the redhead replied, closing her laptop to give her daughter her undivided attention. "What is it?"

She fiddled with her fingers, hesitating. "I..." she began, taking a breath. "I don't know if I still want to continue being Spider-Lily. What should I do?"

MJ paused, pondering the question. She stared at her for a moment, before she intertwined her hands together, understanding. "Sweetheart, it's completely understandable to feel that way, especially after everything that's happened."

"But Dad believed so much in being Spider-Man," Y/n reasoned. "I feel like I'm letting him down if I stop."

A frown tugged on the older woman's lips, leaning forward. "Your father would want you to prioritize your well-being. Being Spider-Lily doesn't define you. It's a part of you, but not all of you."

"I don't want to disappoint him."

"You could never disappoint him," MJ retaliated, not missing a beat. "He loved you more than anything. If you choose to continue as Spider-Lily, do it because it feels right for you, not just to fulfill some expectation."

She noticed the young girl's silence after that, deciding to comment on it.

"There's something else, isn't it?"

"What if I want a normal life, Mom?" Her daughter asked suddenly. "Just being Y/n Parker, not Spider-Lily."

MJ gazed warmly at her daughter. Her world had shifted when she crossed paths with Peter Parker. Right from the start, she understood the perils of being romantically involved with a superhero. Yet, over the years, their love triumphed over every challenge. Now, with a daughter wielding spider-powers, MJ recognized that for anything related to spiders, Peter was the guiding force for their young girl. She strived to be there in the best way she could.

The weight of single parenthood lingered within her. Peter was gone, leaving her behind. Yet, she wasn't about to crumble in front of her daughter. She needed to keep it together.

"That's a valid choice," she nodded, "Your father always said that the mask shouldn't erase who you are. It should complement the person underneath."

Y/n let out a sigh, grateful for her mother's wisdom. MJ always seemed to have a point. She was always right. With a soft tone, Y/n admitted, "I miss him."

"I miss him, too," she followed, "And whatever you decide, know that your father would be proud of you. Whether you're wearing a mask or not."

Unable to resist, the young girl rose from her chair and moved toward her mother. They shared a warm embrace, arms wrapped around each other. MJ reciprocated, rubbing her daughter's arms and leaning into her.

The grieving family mourned in silence.

***

A couple of hours later, she made her way to May's place. It was just a subway ride away, and she took the train precisely for that. In an attempt to conceal her identity, she adopted a disguise - dark sunglasses, a large scarf, a knitted bonnet, and oversized clothes. Stepping outside her house, she observed the gentle descent of snowflakes. Curiously, she extended her hand, waiting for a single snowflake to land on her open palm.

Navigating the subway, she opted to stand, leaning against the metal pole rather than taking a seat. The rhythmic movements of the train didn't faze her, and her feet remained firmly planted on the floor. Upon reaching her stop, she exited the cart and entered the station. Jogging up the flight of stairs, she found herself in the neighborhood.

The area boasted rows of charming houses, each uniquely stylized based on the owner's preferences. Some were adorned with an abundance of plants, while others were characterized by an excess of blue. Approaching May's residence, she couldn't help but notice the overwhelming theme - an abundance of Spider-Man memorabilia.

In her yard, a cluster of red-colored candles stood amid an array of assorted flowers.

Y/n came to a halt as she reached the front of the house, her eyes fixed on the memorabilia strewn across the porch: cards adorned with drawings of Spider-Man's mask, Spider-Man toys, various pieces of merchandise, and even his Christmas albums.

With her super hearing, she heard voices from inside the house. One voice belonged to May's, and the other two must be from a couple of visitors. "I'm very sorry for your loss, Mrs. Parker. Peter was a good man."

"Indeed, he is. I'll see you both out."

That signaled Y/n to make her exit. She sprang up from the porch, executing a literal leap until she landed with a soft thud on the roof. Hiding behind the dormer, she observed silently as May welcomed the visitors. Noticing more groups patiently waiting their turn to offer condolences, Y/n decided that perhaps another time would be more appropriate for her visit.

She waited until May welcomed them inside, and even from afar, she could tell she was tired. Stay strong, great aunt May.

Y/n bounced out of the scene, opting to swing around. Fortunately, she had kept her webshooters on her wrist, and her mask was tucked into the pocket of her jacket. Swiftly, she equipped it over her face, finding herself back in Brooklyn where the snow blanketed the area. White extended over the roofs and roads, and vehicles moved cautiously through the wintry conditions.

Trying to keep a low profile, she avoided drawing attention so soon after a significant loss. Fortunately, people were preoccupied with dealing with the snow, and the spider hero zipped across buildings unnoticed.

As darkness settled, the city's lights began to illuminate. She watched each light in New York flicker to life one by one-neon signs, Christmas lights, spotlights...

She missed him.

"Dang it," she hissed under her breath, the sound muffled by her mask. Memories flooded back of times they had swung around together, marveling at the lights. "Ugh," she groaned. Enough swinging.

Spider-Lily perched on a rooftop of a building. The eyes of her mask overlooked the block, and from below, she just noticed a bunch of tombstones.

Ah, heck. She's back in the cemetery.

For all this time, she had been standing on the cathedral's roof, and that specific grave was adorned with a collection of mementos. Assessing the cemetery, she leaped down, her boots meeting a mound of snow. As she straightened up, she focused on the slab bearing his name.

Tears pricked at the corner of her eyes, making her remove her mask and immediately wiped them away with the sleeve of her jacket. She sniffled, trying to contain her tears, but it only made it difficult as it was getting hard to breathe now. Sobs wracked through her body while her face remained hidden, her arms doing a motion in wiping her tears away.

She gradually took them off, opting to shift her attention elsewhere. Exploring what the people of New York had left at his grave, she discovered action figures, Spidey balloons, painted portraits, an array of different flowers, and a newspaper with the headline, "SPIDER-MAN DEAD."

Y/n squatted down, diligently straightening items that had shifted in the harsh winds. She brushed off snow from a stuffed Spidey toy, fluffed it up, and carefully set it back in place. The newspaper with its bitter headline was removed and set aside. She rearranged the flowers-red roses, daisies, and tulips. Among them was a card, probably from a child, with the heartfelt message, "I will miss you Spider-Man," accompanied by a charmingly disproportionate drawing of the hero.

"You get a pass because you got his name right." It's always with a dash.

After a bit of rearranging, she settled down, drawing her knees to her chest and resting her chin on them. Her gaze drifted downward, and she absentmindedly doodled in the snow with her finger. "I miss you already," she confessed softly as she traced shapes in the snow. "I'm... trying. I talked with Mom. She said it's up to me, but I just... I don't know what to do anymore, Dad. I know you don't want me to go and avenge you and stuff, but I just can't go back there alone. I can't do this without you," her voice cracked, and she buried her face inside her arms, her body shaking slightly from her cries.

Tears cascaded down her cheeks, into her clothes. "I'm just a kid," she cried, her voice muffled.

As if on cue, the cathedral bell chimed in a pattern. Unfazed, she remained in her position, her heartbeat seemingly in sync with the ding-dong of the bell. From a distance, her ears picked up footsteps in the snow, accompanied by tingling spidey senses. Disengaging from her curled position, she sat upright, rolled to the side, and swiftly galloped out of the scene. Managing to hide on the side of the building, she was grateful for the lack of lighting. The darkness consumed her figure, rendering her unseen by ordinary people.

She just couldn't seem to mourn properly with all the other people getting in the way.

Walking on the path towards the gravestone was a teen, maybe someone her age. They were wearing a makeshift Spider-Man costume- probably store bought. Standing in front of the grave, the person sighed before taking off the mask just above their forehead.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Parker," Miles whispered, but it was enough for Y/n to hear. It's Miles, but why did the familiar sensation enter her mind when there wasn't even a threat? She continued to listen to his 'apology', but what could he be sorry for?

"I think I really messed it up," he said. "I want to do what you asked. I really do, but... I'm sorry. I'm not sure I'm the guy. And I don't know how to find Spider-Lily, so I can't help her, either."

Y/n's senses were going crazy, it was driving her insane. But it was the same feeling that she had with Gwen. Does he...?

Her heartbeat escalated as she thought about the implications. Her thoughts were in disarray, but they all seem to point to a conclusion that Y/n couldn't ignore. He's...? No. No, no, NO!

"I can't do this without you."

A shadowy figure walked past the side of the building where Y/n was hiding, making her senses more haywire that she couldn't stop the headache from forming now.

The stranger approached Miles from behind him, and she was about to intervene, until her best friend noticed it first, turning around in a brisk manner, pulling his mask back down and panics. He threw his arms up, accidentally making contact with the guy, and an electric ZAP sent a guy meters from him.

The dark figure flew back, just as a string of webbing burst from his hands and stuck on Miles, yanking him forward, making him land on the pile of snow. "Woah!" he yelped.

Y/n emerged from the shadows, her mask covering her identity. From the bonnet and the scarf and jacket, it looked like she just got back from vacation. Miles noticed her instantly, "Spider-Lily!" he called, sitting up and looking at his hands. "What did I do to him?" he asked, gesturing to the unconscious man lying on his stomach.

"What happened?" Lily questioned, gently approaching him. Her senses were still on haywire.

"I don't know," Miles admitted, glancing at the guy, and he finally got a closer look. But before he could take another step, a spotlight flashed at the three of them and a strict voice demanded, "What are you doing over there?" A police officer.

The scene did look incriminating. Two kids and an unconscious man? Suspicious.

"Freeze! PDNY!"

Miles stood, startled. He held his hands up. Lily remained frozen. Do the cops recognize her even in this set of clothes? The boy subtly glanced to his right. "Can you help me?" He whispered.

Spider-Lily gave him a nod. Without hesitation.

"Run!" She gasped, and Miles made a run for it, but he's tied to a senseless body, making him get snapped back. The webbing was still attached in his torso. "Crap."

"Are you kidding me right now?!" Miles expressed, trying to break free, but Y/n knew it was no use. The webbing lasts for at least one or two hours.

The police advanced, turning on body cameras. Y/n gasped, frantic. "No time. Come on!" They picked up the immobile man; her on his left shoulder and Miles on his right. They dragged him over to a stone carving, and Y/n aimed her webshooters. Webs darted out and attached to a nearby tree.

"See ya officers!" Miles yelled, and Spider-Lily jumped out, but she couldn't carry two people at the same time. The attempt of swinging forward failed as the stranger just fell, taking Miles with him. "Oh, no."

Y/n had to think. Think, think, think.

"Get over here, you meddling kids!"

RUMBLE. . . WHOOOOSH!

From her left, the sound coming from the incoming elevated train. She shot her webs and it fired. It's connected! "Come on!" She offered her hand, and Miles accepted it, following her steps.

The train sped through its tracks, and the force sent them flying across the highway. The difficulty though was trying to balance the homeless guy in their hands.

Miles clung to the web that connected him to the unconscious man, but the guy's weight kept dragging him down. Panicking, he struggled to prevent his face from making contact with the ground. The man slid between cars, briefly regaining consciousness before being knocked out again by a traffic light, rendering him once more in a deep sleep.

Spider-Lily's mask twisted on her face as she fought to keep her balance, managing to lift Miles' weight. Glancing up, she noticed the approaching train station and decided against stopping in the middle of an intersection, altering her course.

Detaching the three of them from her web, she fired in a different direction. Away from the city, away from people.

They tried to escape, but their journey was cut short in an alley, and they tumbled onto the sidewalk. As the man lay on his back, Y/n finally got a clear view of his face. Despite the bruises, the resemblance was undeniable. He looked just like him. Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes as she fought back a sob. In a hushed tone, she uttered, "Dad?" while seated on her knees.

"Wait. Dad?!" Miles whipped his head to his side where Spider-Lily was sitting. But this is Peter Parker, so that means...?

Spider-Lily removed her mask, and there she stood. Miles Morales' best friend, Y/n Parker.

Chapter 7: the multiverse of fries

Chapter Text

Miles suggested taking the Peter look-alike to his Uncle Aaron's apartment, which happened to be vacant at the moment. He quickly concocted a story about Aaron being usually away at this time of night. Utilizing Y/n's webbing from her shooters, they secured him to a punching bag.

They attempted to rouse him by spinning him around, but he remained unconscious. It seemed they would have to be patient and wait for him to wake up on his own.

Y/n stared at the homeless guy long enough until she had to look away. "He looks so much like him, it's insane." There has to be some sort of explanation. He can't be the same Peter who just died— plus, her dad's hair is blond, not brown.

Meanwhile, Miles was glancing at her from time to time, a look of disbelief in his features. He had just removed his mask, now playing it in his hands.

"Listen," he began, making Y/n flinch slightly. "I feel like we moved on pretty quick from the fact that you're Spider-Lily. My best friend, Y/n Parker— is Spider-Lily."

"Right."

"And you didn't even tell me!"

"Oh, boy here we go," Y/n placed her fingers on the bridge of her nose, alleviating the incoming stress. "I wanted to tell you, okay? Life just got in the way."

Miles paced around. "I should've seen it coming. Mr. Parker– who is also Spider-Man– has a daughter. Of course, she'd also have spidey powers!" There was a huge grin on his face, almost like he was proud.

"You literally couldn't have known, Miles. My dad's identity didn't get revealed until like, this morning."

"And I could've had the whole day to figure it out!" Miles retaliated, raising his eyebrows at her.

A quiet moment followed, the atmosphere uncertain—neither comfortable nor awkward, just hanging in between.

The boy in the room looked at her, his expression carrying a somber frown. "Hey. I'm sorry about your dad," he said, choosing to convey his condolences in person.

Y/n had gotten sick from receiving the same words from other people, but hearing it from Miles, felt soothing. "Thank you," she smiled. It was a small smile, but it was the most genuine ever since the funeral.

Her gaze dropped, and Miles observed the shift in her smile. The weight of their current situation—Spider-Man's demise, his sudden powers, the appearance of another Peter Parker—clearly took a toll on her. Yet, he had an idea to ease her pain, if only for a moment.

"C'mere."

His words resonated, and she turned to see his open arms. A hug from Miles Morales? She wasn't about to turn that down.

Colliding with him, Miles swiftly caught her before she could tumble, and they shared a quiet embrace. Her arms encircled his neck, his around her hips, and they swayed gently. A sigh of relief escaped her as she found comfort in his embrace. Almost drifting off, the realization struck her—they were holding a doppelganger of her dad captive. With a slight jolt, she pulled away.

With her hands on his shoulders, their eyes met. Spidey senses tingling, they winced. "You've got them too," Y/n noted.

"I was planning on telling you," Miles shrugged hesitantly. "Life just got in the way."

"Oh, you–" she playfully slapped him in the chest, taking his breath away. "How dare you use my own words against me. When did this happen? How–?"

"I got bit by this weird-looking spider, that's why yesterday I was... sticky."

A look of understanding crossed her face. "Oh."

"Yeah. Oh," he echoed. "But I wanna tell you about... that night."

Just as Miles was about to explain, a groan emanated from the punching bag, catching their attention.

Miles and Y/n faced the punching bag, and as the man webbed to it began to regain consciousness, his eyes flickered open, accompanied by a surge of spidey senses.

"You're like me," he whispered in a confused wonder.

Y/n stared at him, facing her fear. "Who are you?" She needed to know.

The homeless man started thrashing wildly, attempting to free himself from the webbing. His movements were frantic, but the webbing held firm. Miles looked on, a mix of surprise and fear in his eyes.

With all the thrashing, the punching bag made him turn to the other side. "I'm Peter Parker," he deadpanned.

"Then why aren't you dead?" Miles jumped into the conversation. "No offense to your dad." He turned to the girl beside him.

"Dad?" Peter blanched. "He has a kid?" He rolled his eyes before sighing in exhaustion. "Great. Just great."

Y/n raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms. "Got a problem with that?"

The older man paused, looking at her. "No."

"How are you here?" Miles continued his line of questioning, trying to look intimidating. "Are you ghost?"

"No."

"Zombie?" Y/n.

"Stop it."

"Am I a zombie?"

"You're not even close," Peter interjected, annoyance laced in his tone.

"Are you from another dimension?" Miles asked, pacing around. The other two were quiet. "Like a parallel universe where things are like this universe but different? And you're Spider-Man in that universe? But somehow traveled to this universe, but you don't know how?"

Peter appeared even more disgruntled, and Y/n couldn't look prouder. "Wow, was that really just a guess?" Peter deadpanned.

"Well, we learned about it in physics," Miles said, shrugging nonchalantly.

Y/n gave a nod of confirmation. "Quantum theory—" she and Peter began to say simultaneously, but then halted, locking eyes. "How'd you know about that—?"

Miles interjected with excitement, breaking the eye contact between Y/n and Peter. He turned to Peter, "This is amazing! You can teach me, just like Peter said he would—"

"-Before he died," Peter filled the gap.

He said that?" Y/n turned to Miles, eager for an answer. She couldn't overlook that crucial piece of information. So he was there on the night of Spider-Man's death. "What else did he say?" she inquired, intrigued.

"Look, I made a promise to him," Miles mumbled, examining his hands. He flicked a quick glance at Y/n but quickly averted his eyes when he noticed her still watching him intently.

"Well, kids," Peter chimed in, regaining their attention. "Here's lesson number one. Don't watch the mouth. Watch the hands."

He raised his untied hands, and Y/n gasped, attempting to web him again, but he skillfully dodged the attack, maneuvering until he was behind the punching bag. She tried for another shot, but to her dismay, nothing came out. "Oh, come on!" She was out of webbing fluid.

Hearing the cry, Peter leaped, kick-spinning the punching bag toward the two. The bag knocked Miles hard, sending him sprawling toward the door. "Miles! You alright?" Y/n called out.

"Yeah..." he grunted, exhaling heavily. They observed with concern as Peter swiftly moved toward the window. "Peter, seriously—"

Peter webbed his mouth shut.

"Hey—!" Y/n intervened, but she stopped before she could call him. She didn't even know how to address the man. Peter would be weird. Dad would be weirder.

Peter paused in the windowsill, feeling slightly guilty. "Trust me. This'll all make you a better Spider-Man."

He leapt from the window, but he glitched and tumbled, screaming upon hitting the fire escape. Y/n and Miles rushed forward, observing him through the window as he grunted in pain.

"Hey," Miles called out, "Are you okay?"

"No, I'm not," Peter answered.

"What's going on with your body?"

Y/n jumped in the conversation. "You're glitching because your atoms have a sense of being out of place knowing that you're in the wrong dimension?" She took a gander, and if it was the same situation that Gwen was in, then she knew the real reason for this case.

"Right, yeah. You're his daughter alright," Peter grumbled, sitting up. "Look, I'm not looking for a side gig as a Spider-Man coach. I got a lot going on in my dimension. Like, a lot."

Y/n jumped down in the fire escape. "Well, this dimension's Peter Parker wouldn't have given up so easily. My dad wouldn't have—"

"Well, guess what, kid?" Peter interrupted. "I'm not any of those things, most certainly that last one—" He glitched before he could swing away,. Luckily, he caught himself before he fell. "Want my advice? Go back to being two regular, normal kids. Eat pies, go on dates... I really don't care."

"I don't have a choice," Miles retorted, "Kingpin's got a supercollider. He's trying to kill me!"

Y/n leaned in, all ears. So, the collider was the sneaky culprit behind the city's glitches, turning earthquakes into a bizarre routine. This wasn't your run-of-the-mill seismic shake.

"Wait a second, what did you just say?" "Hold up, rewind a bit. What was that you just said?" Peter's interest was piqued, and he effortlessly stood on the side of the building.

"Kingpin's trying to kill me—"

"Who cares about that?" Peter dismissed him pretty quickly. "Where's the collider?"

"Brooklyn. Under Fisk tower."

"Good bye!" Peter greeted them with a wave, proceeding to walk along the side of the building. Miles attempted to follow, but his unrefined powers caused him to slide down the wall. Y/n effortlessly planted her feet on the bricked surface, reaching out to assist Miles.

"Don't let go!" Miles pleaded as they struggled to maintain their grip on the wall.

"Where is he even going?" Y/n wondered aloud, glancing at Peter's unconventional route.

Peter was babbling aimlessly. "When it runs again, I'll just jump in and get back to my life—"

"You can't let them run it," Y/n said, "That collider needs to be destroyed or everyone's—"

"Or everyone's going to die. That is what they always say," Peter mocked. "But there's always a little bit of time before everybody dies, and that's when I do my best work!" He flipped, landing on the car gracefully.

Miles pulled something from his pocket with one hand. "Won't you be needing this?" he asked, holding out a flash drive for everyone to see.

"Ah, you have a goober!" Peter exclaimed half-heartedly. "Give it."

Miles pulled it away, causing the two of them to retreat from the man. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Wait. Not so fast. He called it an override key."

"It was our override key. My dad and I made it," Y/n interjected, narrowing her eyes at him.

Peter scratched his head casually. "There's always a bypass key, a virus key, a who-cares key I can never remember so I just call it a goober. Give it," he repeated, extending a hand towards them.

"But this key is needed to destroy the collider!" Y/n exclaimed, not backing down.

"I need it to go home!" Peter snapped back, not relenting as well.

Y/n averted her gaze at the key, and her eyebrows knitted together. "No." She took it from Miles, making him protest. She inspected the device around her fingers, but one look and she already knew. She turned sharply to her best friend. "Miles! ¿Rompiste esto?"

She whispered harshly, and Miles sweatdropped, shaking his head. "¡No! Se rompió. No me recuerdo what happened."

"What?" Peter was perplexed at the two bickering. While they were distracted, he easily webbed the goober right off Y/n's hand and began to walk away.

"Wait!"

"Hey!" Miles yelled after him, but it fell on useless, deaf ears.

Peter scaled the other building, walking upwards. "The collider created a portal that brought me here. And I have to g—" He paused when he realized that he was already holding a broken override key. "Did you break this?"

Y/n crossed her arms and gave Miles a narrowed look. He felt cornered. "No! I don't know..."

She returned her gaze back to Peter. "We'll just get another one."

He didn't even turn around. "You made a back-up?" He asked, anticipating.

"...No."

Peter facepalmed, groaning as he began to march away, "This is why I never had kids, this is why I never did that..."

"Can't we make another one?" Miles asked, exasperated.

Y/n straightened her back. "Well, in order to do that, we have to go back to Alchemax and steal the override again to make another key. "

"Which I am forced to do," Peter yelled, flailing his arms around as if he was being scolded by his mother. "I'll just turn the collider back on and jump back to my own life."

Miles, with no warning, leaped to the opposite side of the building in pursuit. Y/n was taken aback by the sudden and daring move. He successfully adhered to the surface just as Y/n followed suit, effortlessly scaling upwards.

"Look, if we don't turn off the collider after you leave, everyone in this city, and millions of others will die, and you're just gonna go home and leave us here to figure this out for ourselves?" Miles said in an exasperated breath. "You good with that, Spider-Man?"

"Yeah."

Peter walked away over the top of the building, disappearing from their sight.

Y/n, completely defeated, perched on the wall. Her shoulders slumped as sobs shook her entire body, her whimpers reverberating in the alley. Miles attempted to console her, but she turned away, softly hissing, "Shh..."

She cried some more.

Peter poked his head back over the ledge, observing the two teens wallowing on the side of the building. He scoffed, "What are you doing?"

"Making you feel guilty," Y/n said simply.

"Is it working?" Miles added, looking up at him.

Peter stepped back, placing his hands on his hips, looking exasperated. "How could it, no— Look at me, does it look like it's working?" he rambled, "No, it's... no it's... ohhh," he chuckled darkly, as if he's not about to believe them.

He yelled into the fabric of his jacket, mimicking a sneeze. "AHHH! No! No! Do not let them win!"

Y/n raised her head up to see Peter walking back towards them. She raised an eyebrow in anticipation.

"Alright, alright. You win," Peter admitted defeat. "Come on, we don't have a second to lose."

As they anticipated the sunrise, Miles and Y/n took Peter to a Greek diner, a place he expressed eagerness about. According to him, it was his favorite fast food spot in the entire universe. In that moment, Y/n realized he was quite different from her father.

Y/n excused herself, leaving the two alone for a brief moment. She assured Miles that she'd be back, explaining that a nearby lab could quickly provide the webbing needed for her shooters. With freshly loaded webshooters, she swung back into action as Spider-Lily and swiftly returned to the restaurant.

She spotted the pair seated in a booth and touched down in a nearby alley, taking off her mask and stowing it away. Quickly entering the establishment, she greeted Miles and sat beside him. "Hey," she said.

"What's up," Miles' face brightened when he saw her as he scooted to give her space to sit on. "I ordered you the usual."

"Thanks," she replied, pulling out her phone. Opening her messages, she read ones from Gwen and Ganke. After responding to them, she texted her mom, letting her know that she'd be out for a while. She didn't want to cause unnecessary worry.

gwanda
idk if we're friends yet, but u can talk with me. i understand what you're going through right now. i mean, you know that, right?

y/n
sorry for not replying so soon. and yeah, i understand. thanks gwen. of course we're friends. what are you doing right now?

ganke
i'm here for you. your dad was a great man.

y/n
thanks g. miss you already.

She opened her social media, and as expected, articles about Spider-Man were still circulating on the internet. There were also threads discussing Spider-Lily's 'inactive servitude' since the day her partner died. Her notifications were flooded with condolences from people.

Meanwhile, Peter began to ramble about how much he loved the burgers, devouring them voraciously. Miles observed, growing annoyed. This is not a normal Spider-Man. He glanced at the girl beside him, who was engrossed in typing on her phone.

"Can we focus?" Miles stared pointedly at him.

Peter grunted, grabbing the boy's order of fries and turning it upside down, causing the fries to scatter. He pointed at a particular fry. "This fry? This is your universe," he started, picking up the potato. "It's soggy, it's undercooked, it's small, it's weird. It's gross." He tossed it in Miles' direction. "It wants to grow up into a better universe."

Miles glared at him, unimpressed.

"And this," he picked up another fry, vastly different from the first one. "Crispy, delicious, normal fry is my universe." He took a bite of it.

"So when the other Peter got shoved in that collider beam by the freaky, giant, green dude—"

gwanda
i'm actually omw to alchemax. dyk about that place?

y/n
yeah. i know plenty.

we're actually planning on going there now if it wasn't for this bozo we just met.

gwanda
we? are u with miles? and who's the bozo?

y/n
it's long story, i'll tell u l8r.

Y/n returned to reality, disinterested in whatever Miles and Peter were discussing. She just didn't want to have anything to do with the Peter from another universe.

"I think you're gonna be a bad teacher," Miles said to Peter, deadpan.

Y/n leaned forward on the table and turned to him. "I can teach you, Miles."

"Of course you would. Yeah," Peter remarked, busy picking up the fries to notice her glare. His mouth was filled up with food and sarcasm, apparently.

"What does that supposed to mean?" Y/n questioned, sipping on her milkshake.

"Nothing," he dismissed. "You gonna eat that?" He asked, motioning to her hashbrown.

Wordlessly, she slid her plate towards the older man. She ran out of appetite anyway.

"Y/n, you know where Alchemax is, right?" Miles turned to her.

"Yeah," she nodded. "Which is why we need to hurry up. We're wasting valuable time," she emphasized, glaring at Peter.

He was unfazed and even had the decency to look bored. "Relax, relax. So, where do you say Alchemax is?"

"Hudson Valley, New York?" Y/n answered in the same tone as him.

Miles suddenly gasped from beside her. "You can teach me to swing on the way there!"

"But you don't have webshooters, Miles," Y/n quickly interjected. "Dang it, I should've borrowed you my old ones."

Peter only laughed in the discussion.

Chapter 8: alchemax infiltration plan

Chapter Text

The three rode a bus through the Hudson Valley.

"I'm not swinging to the Hudson Valley, Miles. Not after a hearty burger-breakfast," Peter reasoned, slapping Miles in the shoulder.

Y/n sat beside him, who was agreeing with Peter's statement (even though she didn't want to). "It's kinda a long way, you'll run out of webbing before even getting there," she added, trying to keep Miles' interest. She placed her hand on his, giving him a reassuring grin. "I'll teach you how to swing, that's a promise."

And he smiled back.

"Yeah, Miles," Peter chimed in, "Keep your legs fresh, you'll thank me for this later."

The whole way there, Miles asked Peter questions about his universe's Spider-Man, and though he didn't want to go over it again, he didn't shut the kid out. He might pick a lesson or two if he wants to become a spider-themed hero of his own.

So he answered to the best of his ability, avoiding questions that were too... touchy for him. He got bit when he was 17, and for the last 22 years, he was Spider-Man, all the while Y/n was trying to deafen her ears.

Suddenly, a notification from her pocket cut the conversation off. Y/n brought out her phone and saw a text from Gwen. Miles consciously looked away in respect, deciding to gaze at the trees they were passing by.

gwanda:
where u at?

y/n
almost there. gonna sneak in.

gwanda
alr i have a disguise. i'm abt to go in

"Who you textin'?" Miles asked, fiddling with her fingers. The question made her smile.

She turned to him. "Why you askin'?" she asked in the same tone. "Jealous?" she leaned forward, taunting him. Miles flushed.

"No. Tonta..."

Y/n laughed, deciding to text Gwen later. Putting her phone away, she gave Miles her undivided attention. "That was just Ganke. He wants to catch up."

She swore she saw his face contort in annoyance, but she didn't comment on it.

The bus arrived at their stop, and the three got off. They ventured off-path, through the woods until they eventually reached the top that overlooked Alchemax.

Peter began to undo his clothes, Miles following suit. Y/n hid behind a rock and removed her clothes as well, the red and white suit hugging her body just right. She revealed herself to the two who had just finished suiting up— but Peter still wore his gray sweatpants, and Miles was wearing a yellow cape with his store bought Spidey suit.

Peter noticed, pointing at the yellow rag. "And it's a no on the cape."

"I think it's cool," Miles shrugged, and Y/n was about to raise her hand in agreement until Peter grabbed the cape. Miles tried to pull it back and there was a bit of tug of war as Y/n simply watched.

"Take that off, it's disrespectful. Spider-Man doesn't wear a cape," Peter remarked, yanking the cape from him. Y/n knitted her eyebrows. Spider-Man does wear a cape. It was a concept.

The three made their way on one of the boulders that hid them from the building. Miles turned to Spider-Lily's eyes. "Spider-Lily—"

"Just call me Lily so it won't be a mouthful," her mask moved as she spoke.

Miles hesitated, testing the waters. "Right... Lily, so how do we retrace your dad's steps?"

She was silent, slowly facing the building to avoid his gaze. "I'm still having a hard time doing that," she said, her voice barely a whisper.

"What?" Miles asked, to which Y/n glared. With his super-hearing, there was no way he didn't hear that.

"Nothing," she quickly dismissed. "Okay, we need a plan."

Peter, who was silent all this time, raised a finger. An imaginary lightbulb appeared on the top of his head. "Got it..."

He laid down his plan, and from the get-go, Y/n already thought that it was an awful plan. Getting a bagel from the cafeteria? Ridiculous.

And he was done, the other two realized that they were not involved in the plan at all. "What, so what's our role in this?" Lily stood up, placing her hands on her hips.

Peter was stretching his body against a tree while he thought of a lame excuse. "Uh... Step 7: The two of you stay here, lookout. Very important."

Miles protested, "Look, you have to teach me to do Spider-Man stuff or I'm not going to be able to help—"

"Watch and learn, kids, I'll quiz you two later!"

Then he's gone, stealthily swinging across the clearing towards the Alchemax building, where he crawled down a grate, opened it, and entered through. Y/n glared through her mask. "That guy is hopeless," she shook her head, turning around to see Miles already looking at her, mask off. She blushed furiously, eyes blown wide. "What?"

"Nothing," Miles quickly snapped out of it. "It's just... it's the first time I've seen Spider-Lily at a close distance."

He could finally see the intricate details found in her suit. The pure white, accented with bright red, spidery-looking blooms. Kinda like a spider lily. "Ah, I know where your name comes from, now," Miles noted, his tone smug like he's Sherlock Holmes for unlocking a code.

"That hard, huh?" She sat down next to him, their backs against the big boulder. She pulled her mask up to her hairline. "Never really stayed in one place. I'm sure you have a lot of questions," she said. Miles just seemed to interview every spider today.

"I just can't believe that you are Spider-Lily. Why didn't I think of that?" Miles asked, making Y/n laugh. He still wasn't over it.

"Well, usually, I'm the smarter one out of the two of us," she said, smirking.

"So that's why you're so good at PE. I bet you're not even breaking a sweat!" He bumped his shoulder against hers.

The two laughed for a moment before Y/n halted, gazing at the snowy ground. So many things that she wanted to ask, wanted to say. So many things have happened in the last 24 hours. How did Miles get his spider powers? What did he hear from the night her dad died?

"Are you okay?" Miles noticed, making her look at him. "I know it's really weird, seeing your dad—"

"A version of my dad," Y/n quickly interjected. 'He's not him, Miles."

He nodded. "Right. I'm sorry."

Y/n pursed her lips, feeling guilt. "I'm sorry, but you gotta know what I feel, right? Seeing someone looking exactly like your dead father, but he's not exactly him. He has different colored hair, a different personality... but deep down, he is Peter Parker. A-and I just couldn't handle being so okay with it so soon."

Miles leaned forward and hugged her from the side. "Hey, I'm here for you," he whispered. "We got this, okay? We're like the dynamic duo,"

"You always know what to say," she said.

"Maybe I'm the smarter one of the two of us," Miles quipped, smiling that charming smile of his. And at that moment,Y/n felt a deep sense of gratitude for having him in her life. In the midst of her ever-shifting world, Miles stood as her anchor, her source of stability, strength, and hope.

All of a sudden, their Spidey senses tingle simultaneously, drawing their attention to the building. A limousine was rolling up, and stepping out were none other than Kingpin, accompanied by Tombstone. Miles froze, panic coursing through his veins. "Kingpin!"

"He's always trouble," Y/n shook her head in disapproval. Glancing behind her, she noticed Miles hiding behind a rock, lost in thought. "Miles, what's wrong?"

"Kingpin," he breathed. "He killed your dad. We– we have to go there!"

Her heart skipped a painful beat, and the memories of that fateful night rushed back with an agonizing intensity. She turned her gaze towards the man who had ruthlessly snuffed out the life of a hero, the same hands that now bore the stain of Spider-Man's blood. He was the architect of her pain, the one who had callously stolen him away.

He would pay, and justice would be a reckoning storm upon him.

Y/n was handling the situation with more composure than Miles, who was spiraling into a stream of anxious mutterings. "What do we do, what do we do?" he repeated, his hands grasping his head in escalating worry.

"Okay," she said, mustering the willpower to restrain herself from confronting Kingpin head-on. "Let's go and warn... Spider-Man." With that, she put on her mask and extended a hand to Miles.

He accepted, and Y/n daringly drew his body nearer to hers before extending her wrist to the sky. Aiming carefully, she shot a web that adhered to one of the tall branches. Miles blushed, but he maintained his grip. Y/n turned to him, their noses nearly touching. He couldn't lean away. "Don't scream, okay?" she whispered, and Miles felt his legs turn to jelly.

Everything unfolded in a blur. "What, what are we—" Before he could grasp their actions, Y/n shot off, pulling Miles along. His hands instinctively covered his mouth as the wind harshly slapped his face with speed.

Y/n detached the web and affixed a new one to another branch. They swiftly arrived at the same grate Peter had used. The two crawled through the vents, stealthily tailing Kingpin and his accomplice.

The urge to just—

She clenched her fist to stop her thoughts. What she would risk to just jump down from the vents and take him out of his misery...

Fortunately, the vent accommodated the two teens, and they eventually spotted the other spider-person at the end of the tunnel. Miles called out to him one last time, "Peter!"

"Yeah– what are you two doing here?!" Peter hissed, the eyes of his mask narrowing.

"Kingpin's here! Just– move over!" Miles tried to worm up next to Peter, and they began complaining like two brothers sharing a sleeping bag. Y/n stayed behind, not wanting to cause too much of a ruckus, but with these two, she's not surprised if they're already being tracked and targeted with a bunch of weapons.

She felt her phone vibrating and she was already grateful for the distraction. She looked over and saw Gwen's recent text.

gwanda
i got in. where are u?

y/n
hiding in the vents. what r u about to do?

"Go back outside!" Peter snapped back, but Miles wasn't about to be put down as easily as last time.

"No!" He insisted, facing him fully. "I can't sit there and just let Spider-Man die without doing anything about it. I'm not doing that again!"

The Parkers fell into a contemplative silence after Miles' impassioned closing statement. The argument had concluded with this admission, and his words were charged with intensity and determination. Both Peter and Y/n couldn't help but respect the resolve in Miles; it was clear he wouldn't go down without a fight.

Peter softened, simply staring at him.

"What?" Miles questioned, expecting Peter to once again dismiss him, insisting that he stay out of it. However, this time, the older man remained silent. Even Y/n was surprised to see this Spider at a loss for words.

Peter thought it over. "Most people I meet in the workplace try to kill me, so, you're a nice change of pace," he admitted.

"Well, you're not the only spider around here, so you better get used to it," Y/n remarked snarkily from behind them. She was used to teaming up. Clearly, this Peter was not.

Peter only realized that she was there. "Wanna listen in? There's still room for more. Come on, I'll scoot."

"No thanks," she declined, her tone on edge. She didn't expect him to go soft on her now.

Miles turned to her, "Come on, (nickname), this is serious Spider-Man stuff!" he encouraged. Through the hole in the suit, she could see the stars in his eyes. He was genuinely excited, and who could deny a request from such a cute boy?

Y/n sighed in surrender as she crouched down with them, finding herself awkwardly positioned between Miles and Peter. Oh, this is awkward as hell.

The atmosphere felt tense, and her heightened senses were on high alert, creating a tingling sensation on her skin. This was the first time she was in such close proximity to this version of her father, Peter. Best not to overthink it.

Her attention shifted to the head scientist they were targeting, and the familiar frizzy hair instantly caught her eye. They had crossed paths with Aunt Liv before, and it was never a pleasant experience.

"Uh, Mr. Fisk!" The head scientist greeted the big man who just entered the room, and seeing him again triggered Y/n's fight-or-flight response— and she definitely, desperately wanted to fight him. The scientist led him to a computer. "Look at this data. I know you can't really understand it, but these are really good numbers—"

She settled in front of the computer, its monitor casting a glow that reflected on the window behind her. Entering her password, she swiftly unlocked the system. "And... I got the password!" Peter cheered, earning a skeptical glance from Miles.

The trio continued to eavesdrop as the head scientist delved into details about the collider. Y/n had encountered this information during their initial sneaking, but at that time, there weren't any significant findings. It seemed seismic movement was the only notable outcome.

The head scientist enthusiastically revealed that there were positive effects, like multiple dimensions starting to collide. Y/n absorbed the information, realizing that their speculations were turning out to be accurate. The scientist went on to explain the inevitable occurrence of a black hole and a rupture in the space-time continuum. That was undeniably ominous.

The group below exited, closing the door. When the wall slid closed again, Peter sprung into action. He climbed out the air vent, Y/n following close by. He leaped over to the office chair and began 'hacking' into the scientist's computer, while she surveyed the office. Various items lay scattered on the table, including a metal claw.

Y/n gazed up at the ceiling where she noticed Miles exerting himself, trying to unstick from the ceiling lights. "Miles, what are you doing?" She whispered, stepping forward.

He shook his head. "I can't move!"

"Y/n, handle the situation while I do this," she jumped at the mention of her name. It was the first time Peter addressed her by her first name.

"Okay, Miles. You gotta relax your fingers!" Y/n instructed, her voice in a frantic hush. "Just don't worry about everything around you and be in the moment!"

"I am in the moment, it's a terrible moment!" Miles replied in the same tone, tugging his fingers off. The light flickered on and off from its force.

"Miles, idiota, they're right there!" She gritted her teeth in anticipation and anxiety. "You have to relax. What do you do to relax?

The boy stopped moving momentarily. "Relax... okay. " He paused in his movement, closing his eyes.

He began singing his favorite song, albeit not knowing the entire lyrics. Peter stopped typing and he groaned, placing his head in his hands. "Oh, for crying out loud."

"Okay, you got it," Y/n encouraged, pumping her fists. Miles began humming to himself, gradually unsticking a finger. Oblivious to the rest of his fingers coming unstuck, he was in his own world. He started to fall, and though Y/n attempted to catch him, the sudden weight threw her off balance, resulting in a loud clang as they crashed to the ground.

Spider-Man glared at the duo. "Teenagers, just the worst—"

Y/n whipped her up to look at the door's window, through which she saw the head scientist turning back to her office, having heard the crash.

Peter jumped over the table, searching for the boy. "Miles, where did you go?"

"I'm right here!" Miles whispered harshly before turning to Y/n, softening. "Are you okay?" he asked, apologetic.

She turned around to face him. "Yeah, I'm—" but she couldn't find him. "What the–" she stood up. "We can't see you, Miles."

"I'm right in front of you," Miles tried to convince. The other two followed his voice, "Can Spider-Man turn invisible?"

"Not in my universe," Peter replied.

"Apparently they can," Y/n answered, marveling at the sight– er, the no-sight. "This is incredible!" She tried to touch him but accidentally poked him in the wrong places.

"Ow! You just poked me in my eye!"

"Sorry!"

Peter was impressed, but he didn't want to show it. "Some kind of fight or flight thing."

Through the window, they saw the head scientist walking towards her office to investigate, and Peter turned to the kids. "Remember this password," he whisper-yelled, handing the flash drive to Y/n. "Dgfampesand4$35876534545435—"

"Slow, down, Peter! I- I need to write it down!"

"-and download this schematic!"

"How do I do that?!"

"While I..." Peter smoothed his hair under his mask. "...turn on the charms."

Before the door opened, Y/n agilely jumped over the desk and slid down under the table, concealing herself. She couldn't witness Miles reaching the computer, but she hurriedly and anxiously plugged in the drive. From beneath the table, she could hear her Aunt Liv's voice joyfully greeting Spider-Man.

Miles was typing the password in the computer, mumbling the code as he did so. "...3454543... Ah, what was the rest?!"

"35!" Y/n whispered from below, providing help. He typed in the number. It worked!

"Holy—" Miles stopped himself when he saw a baffling desktop full of files.

"What did you see?" Y/n rose from the table and kneeled down to see the computer. She took control of the keyboard and mouse navigated through the files.

Miles whispered to himself, "Organize your desktop, lady!"

Her fingers moved with great speed, navigating through files and scrolling through documents. She already knew what it looked like, having gone through this before. She just hoped it hadn't changed. Pausing for a moment, she stole a glance at Peter, who was currently restrained to a chair with metal bearings. Aunt Liv was always bad news.

Y/n moved the file to the open window where the drive was located. A new window popped up, indicating that it would take around 2 minutes for the transfer. As she kept an eye on Peter being sampled, Miles couldn't help but express his amazement, "You're incredible, Y/n."

"I know," she replied, listening to the head scientist discuss cellular decay and glitching. The loading bar reached its end, indicating a 100% complete transfer. She swiftly removed the flash drive and turned off the computer as if nothing had happened. "Now, how do we get Peter out of here?"

"You're calling him Peter?"

"Shh, not the right time."

They were quiet as they listened to the head scientist rambling about. "If you stay in this dimension too long, your body's going to disintegrate. Do you know how painful that would be, Peter Parker?"

"Uh, I don't know," Peter replied, weirdly tense.

"You can't imagine," she shot back, her voice dropping in a whisper. "And I, for one, can't wait to watch."

The trio of spiders in the room suddenly stopped in their tracks. Y/n hadn't considered that this woman might have sinister motives. Liv used to visit her Great Aunt May to engage in discussions about science and physics until one day she abruptly stopped. All Y/n knew was that Liv was a formidable scientist with a desire for change—and apparently, she also worked for Kingpin.

"What did you say your name was?" Peter asked after a long beat.

The head scientist stood up, "Doctor Olivia Octavius."

Y/n wasn't surprised by the mention of her name, but she was shocked to witness tentacles unfurling from Liv's back after revealing her black suit. The blue octagonal glasses were replaced by green goggles. One of the tentacles seized Peter by the neck and forcefully slammed him into the ground.

Doctor Octopus.

Peter choked out a quip, "Can I assume that your friends call you Doc Ock?"

"My friends actually call me Liv," she corrected, adjusting her gloves before turning, "My enemies call me Doc Ock."

"Run! Go!" Y/n jumped up and shot a web towards the control panel, opening the door for Miles to escape through.

Doc Ock turned to the other spider. "Spider-Lily! How nice of you to join us!"

"Eh, what's up, doc?" Lily breathed, her stance ready. The fight commenced, Doc Ock's tentacles coming to attack the both of them at the same time.

Miles looked down the empty hallway and the hesitation of leaving Y/n and Peter behind settled in his chest. "I got it!" Peter insisted as he was being slammed into the window.

"Oh, you got it, Peter?" Doc Ock mocked, mistakenly thinking that Spider-Man was referring to her. One of her tentacles menacingly approached the other hero, and the villain grinned. "Don't think I forgot you, little lily!" She attempted to attack Spider-Lily, but the agile heroine swiftly dodged, countering with webs and punches while Peter was helplessly dragged around like a ragdoll.

The older man endured repeated slams into the glass walls as Miles sprinted past him, still clutching the goober. "We got it handled, buddy! Everything is fine!" he reassured before turning to Y/n. "Spider-dilly, you can go with him!"

"It's Spider-Lily!" she corrected with a hint of bitterness. Springing up from the wall, she delivered a kick to Doc Ock's face, propelling her toward the nearby glass. Her tentacles pulled Peter to the glass, shattering it with his body. Lily skillfully leaped over the broken glass.

"Okay, this is a little bad," Peter mumbled, flying from the hit.

Doc Ock chased after him. "You're chatty!"

Observing that she wasn't Doc's top priority, she witnessed Miles colliding with a lab assistant, becoming visible. The assistant gazed at the kid adorned in Spider-Man merch, remaining silent. The boy swiftly got up from the ground in a rush. "Gotta go!" he exclaimed, hastily leaving the fallen lab assistant.

Y/n jumped down, helping her up. She finally got a good look at her and let a smirk grace her features. "Woah, nice hair there, intern."

"Thanks," Gwen shot back, rolling her eyes. After a second, her face turned serious. "What's the sitch?"

"We might need some backup," Y/n said, placing her hands on her hips, wincing at the sounds of destruction in the background. "I need you to get the computer back in that office over there... just in case," she added, nodding her head towards the main room. Gwen nodded before swiftly running off.

Peter and Doc Ock continued fighting through the offices and laboratories. "And this is the moment that I'm losing the fight!"

Lily leaped in and webbed the tentacles, restraining them just as they lunged for Peter. However, one of the other tentacles managed to grab Peter by the neck and forcefully slammed him through the wall, where Miles was still running. Peter winced in pain, struggling to keep up with the pace. "You got the file?" he panted as he jogged beside Miles.

"Y/n did," Miles answered. "Here's the drive."

He lifted the goober with his fingers. "Good job," Peter commended, reaching for the drive until Doc Ock emerged from the office with her four metallic arms, towering above. One of her arms on the left threw Peter away, leaving Miles alone with the goober.

Doc Ock loomed over him. "Could you give me that, young man?" she asked.

"Get away from him, pulpo!" Lily appeared, swinging down and punching Doc in the face, momentarily stunning her. Lily took that moment to grab Miles' hand, and they ran through the hallways. Miles turned invisible as they made their escape.

Doc Ock recovered, turning around. "Spider-Lily! You didn't tell me you had an invisible friend!"

Lily turned around to see the villain quickly catching up with them. She shot a web, and Peter easily caught it, yanking the two with the web. They went flying until they reached the door. On the way, Lily punched the lock, closing the door in Ock's face!

The trio burst through a door, only to find themselves confronted by a group of scientists in lab coats who were mid-meal. A moment of awkward silence ensued. "Well," Peter remarked, glancing at Miles, "this seems like the perfect moment for you to turn invisible."

"Yep," Miles shrugged, but nothing changed.

Peter waited, nodding. "Okay, not going to turn invisible..." he noticed a table of snacks beside him, his eyes zeroing in a plate of bagels. He picked one. "Hey, Y/— Spider-Lily, want one?"

"No!" she whispered harshly.

"Alright, let's play it cool..." Peter suggested as he strolled past the buffet. However, Y/n couldn't help but think that there was nothing remotely normal about this situation. The vibrant red and blue of Spider-Man's suit drew the attention of the scientists, one of whom sat up, raising an eyebrow.

"Spider-Man?"

"Shouldn't we be running by now?" Y/n whispered, her steps slightly quickening.

Peter leaned closer to her. "Nah, it's fine. They'll just let us go," he said in a smug tone.

The scientists pulled out weaponry, stanced up to look intimidating— which they are. They did a good job to make those bio-weapons look life-threatening. Peter turned to Miles, suggesting, "Now we do a switchy-switchy," as he took the goober and handed Miles a bagel.

Lily ran past the both of them and bolted out the doors first. "Get back here! Where do you think you're going? He took a bagel!"

As they sprinted away, Peter removed one of his webshooters and tossed it to Miles. In return, Miles hurled the bagel, striking a scientist squarely in the head. Miles fumbled with putting on the webshooters. "Alright, time to swing just like I taught ya!" Peter shouted amidst the chaos.

"When did you teach me that?" Miles shot back.

"I didn't!" Peter shouted, "It's a little joke for team building!"

Lasers were being shot around them, and they started to panic. "We sure are being a team right now!" Y/n yelled back sarcastically.

"Alright, you ready?" Peter continued, helping Miles with the webshooter, quickly putting it on and threw him off the deck, swinging into the forest. Miles was frozen, a disaster, twisting and flailing on his web as gunfire exploded the branches and tree trunks around him. He's never actually swung before!

"Whoa, whoa, I can't do this yet!" Miles yelped, trying to pull his weight up.

Peter swung by him smoothly doing tricks. "Everybody knows that the best way to learn is under intense, life-threatening pressure! And this is it, Miles!"

Miles crashed into a trunk, and he lost momentum, beginning to fall. He fumbled with the webshooter, clicking it repeatedly. "C'mon, c'mon!:

But he missed, tumbling to the ground. Guards found him and started shooting without hesitation. "Uh, oh!" He stood up, picking up his feet and sprinted along the forest floor as Peter and Y/n swung above him.

"What are you doing down there?!" Peter shouted from the trees as he took down multiple scientists.

Miles exhaled, "I run better than I swing!" He answered in a frantic yell, dodging the lasers.

"You gotta swing or they'll catch you!" Peter swung away, leaving Miles in the dust– or snow. "This is what you wanted!"

The boy tumbled in the snowy ground. From a distance, he heard a buzzsaw. Doc Ock appeared, cutting down trees with her mechanical arms. "Uh oh," Peter turned back and slowed down in his swing.

"You could be a little considerate, teacher!" Y/n screamed, twirling back around.

"I'm trying to teach him!" The older man reasoned.

"Yeah, but you're not helping!"

Doc Ock advanced, determined in her eyes. Her tentacles were livid, wildly stomping everywhere to get to him. Miles ran up a log, trying to find purchase with his web shooter but he kept missing.

Peter rolled his eyes under his mask and began yelling 'advice' at Miles. "Aim with your hips. Look where you want to hit. Square your shoulders Don't forget to follow through. Don't shoot off your back foot."

Miles was quickly out of runway, now on the edge of the tree. "That's too many things!" he yelled, trying to dodge Doc's attacks.

"Then stop listening to me!" Peter said, swinging back to him.

"That's the best idea you've had all day!" Y/n shot back.

Miles reached the top of the tree, running out of branches. He leaped up in a backflip just as Y/n swooped in and grabbed his hand. They swung for a moment. "I'm gonna let you go, then you shoot your web at a random branch!" Y/n instructed, detaching her web and firing one again. He had to learn. One way or another.

He clutched her hand tightly, afraid she'd let go. "What?! No! That lady's still chasing me!"

"You have to swing, Miles!" Y/n brought them slightly closer, but not too low. She counted down, warning Miles— who wasn't ready, at all. "3... 2... 1!" With her one arm connected to Miles, she winded him up, sending him upwards.

Miles breathed as he flew. In mid-air, he pressed down on his web shooter, shooting off a web, and... it connects! He swung away as Peter knocked down Doc Ock. "Nice, Miles!" he praised.

The young spider swung onto a branch, alongside Peter and Y/n, guiding him along the way. "I'm doing it!" He marveled.

"Good, you're doing it!" Peter cheered with him. "Double tap to release and thwip it out again."

"Okay. Thwip—"

"-and release. And twip—"

"Thwip—"

Lily found herself in the same rhythm as them, finding the whole thing amusing. Miles howled a cheer as Peter sported a huge grin and Y/n laughed. "We're such a little trio!" Peter gushed, "Me as the teacher who can still do it, you as the student who can do it just not as good, and Y/n is the supportive cast who is also a great addition!" Nice save, Peter. "I'm proud of us!" he then said, "Is there something you want to say to me—?"

Just then, Peter glitched sporadically, falling down into a thick branch, and he heard a cracking sound upon impact. "Peter!" Miles called out to him, and he crashed into the branch. Y/n slowed down and helped them, but before she could reach the two, she was punched by Doc Ock's metal arms. "Ow–!" but before she could fall, she was suspended by another string of webs.

The branch that Peter and Miles were on broke, causing both to fall. Ock watched, smirking. They're done for. But then—

WHOOOSH!

A black and pink blur swung by, and the two were webbed up in tangles. "What the–?" Miles turned around to look for Y/n, but she was on the ground.

"Who did that?!" Peter asked.

Meanwhile, Y/n's smile widened as she watched a girl in a hoodie and ballet shoes dispatching Doc Ock while holding a computer like she asked her to. She just saw Spider-Gwen in action and she loved every second of it. The hero landed in a branch near them, with Miles and Peter in embarrassing positions.

She unmasked, greeting them with a smirk. "Hey, guys."

Miles was shocked, not expecting the same blonde girl from his class to be swinging around. "Gwanda?"

"It's Gwen, actually," she corrected him.

Peter chuckled sarcastically. "Oh, you know her? Very cool." They were helped get untangled from the web, eventually landing on the snow.

"I'm from another dimension. I mean, another, another dimension," the blonde shrugged. "You could just call me... Spider-Woman."

Y/n landed on the same branch and the two shared a high-five. "Perfect timing."

"Y/n? You know she was a spider-guy?" Miles raised an eyebrow, demanding an explanation.

"It's a long story." she smiled sheepishly, raising her right shoulder.

Peter cut off the conversation, placing his hands forward. "I'm sure we have a lot of time for that later. Right now, let's focus on destroying the—" He brought out the goober only to see that it was smashed beyond belief, wrecked to pieces. "Oh, f—"

"Figured that would happen," Y/n intercepted with a smug look. "That's why I had Spider-Woman over here retrieve the actual computer for me."

Gwen nodded, carrying the unit beside her. "Which was a genius move, by the way, (nickname)."

"(Nickname)? Oh, so she gets to call you that now?" Miles accused, crossing his arms as he glared playfully.

Y/n dragged herself towards him. "Come onnn, we're a team, right? She pulled both Gwen and Miles into a group hug.

The boy squeezed in, looking at Gwen. "I like your haircut," he provided. Maybe a compliment might make her forget that he was the reason for the cut in the first place?"

"You don't get to like my haircut," Gwen remarked, stepping away as she re-masked. The sounds of gunshots rang through the forest. The scientists were coming again. The blonde fired her shooter and got away. "Let's go."

Peter followed, winding up. Miles wondered aloud, "How many more spider people are there?"

"Save it for comic-con! Peter replied, swinging away.

Miles turned to Y/n after putting his mask back on. "What's comic-con?"

Y/n shrugged, having no idea what that was before she shot a web at a branch and swung off with Miles just as bullets hit.

The gang of Spider-people managed to hitch a bus and got inside, on their way to Queens. Miles and Y/n sat next to each other, and Gwen sat on the other aisle. Y/n held the broken drive in her hand. "I knew he was going to break this. Eventually," she said, looking smug. "But I know where we can make a new one.

"Good thinking with having Gwen get the actual computer," Miles said as he turned to her. "Speaking of... h-how did the two of you know each other?"

And so Y/n provided the explanation, beginning from her closest friend dying up to the point of her meeting Gwen Stacy from another dimension. Gwen added the details of what happened in Y/n's dorm, and though she told about her own experience of not being able to save her best friend, she didn't tell anything else beyond that.

"I'm sorry about your friend," Miles approached with a solemn smile.

Gwen allowed a ghost of a smile to grace her lips. "Thanks, Miles," she said.

For the rest of the bus ride, the three spent their time getting to know each other, laughing at each other's jokes, and making fun of Peter while he was asleep. For someone who has spidey senses for powers, he sure was a heavy sleeper.

Chapter 9: there are others

Chapter Text

"Are you sure this is the place to make the goober...?" Peter asked slowly, taking in a small house, cluttering the porch with cards, bouquets, and toys.

Y/n made her way to the front of the door. "Yes," she insisted. "But we have to get permission first, of course."

She rang the doorbell, waiting for her beloved Great Aunt to come out. They waited in silence, but Peter's leg was jittery in anxiety. "We should probably go..." he dragged himself on the sidewalk, about to step away.

"Peter, we're literally on the doorstep," Gwen deadpanned, crossing her arms.

The older man persisted, "Bad idea, bad idea. This is a bad idea."

The front door opened behind her, and Aunt May peeked out. "You guys are all very sweet, but no more fans today, please," she began, then her eyes softened as she saw her great-niece standing in front of her. "Y/n?"

"Hi, Great Aunt May," she whispered, fiddling with her fingers. Her eyes casted downwards, noticing the weapon in her hand. Her face morphed into confusion. "Uh, why do you have a bat?"

"Oh, Y/n..." May immediately pulled her in for a hug. It always felt nice getting hugs from May. It always felt so warm and comforting, and she'd always need it after an eventful day. "Do you need something...?" her words died in her throat as her eyes widened.

On her porch stood the three other spider-people. Stepping out onto the sidewalk, Aunt May was visibly stunned, especially at the sight of Peter. Wasn't he supposed to be dead? And for Peter, wasn't Aunt May supposed to be dead? Y/n observed May's expression closely, standing behind her with a sense of caution.

"Hey, May..." Peter sighed out. Aunt May touched him and ran her fingers through her face. The trio watched their interaction intently.

Y/n spoke after a moment, "Grauntie May, so this is going to sound crazy, but he's not Dad. He's from an—"

"An alternate dimension," May finished her sentence, a knowing tone in her voice.

"Yeah..." Peter trailed off, confusion in his features.

Y/n and Miles exchanged perplexed glances. How did she know? Y/n decided to let the two converse rather than questioning her knowledge of quantum physics.

May touched his face in awe. Peter absorbed her touch. Y/n didn't know what to feel. "You look tired, Peter," she mumbled, her voice soft.

"Well, I am tired," Peter said, his voice cracking.

May continued, noting his physique. "And older... and... thicker."

"Yeah, I've heard that already."

"Oh, jeez, are those sweatpants?"

Gwen stared blankly.. "Yup. That's what they are."

"I was there, Aunt May," Miles started as he stepped forward. May turned to look at him, recognizing the boy who had visited her house several times, always hanging out with her great niece after school. "I was there when it happened," he said. "I am so sorry."

May placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "It wasn't your fault, Miles."

Y/n began to walk backwards, pointing behind her. "If you don't mind, Grauntie May, we're gonna go to the yard." The other three Spider people followed, walking closely.

"Oh, I'm coming with you," May replied knowingly, a smirk on her face. Y/n led the way while the rest trailed off behind her. They arrived at a garden shed in the tidy yard.

Peter mumbled from the side, "Oh yeah, I got one of these, to. A little shed where I keep my spider-gear—"

The great niece let her aunt open the shed– purely because she liked doing it because she thinks it's cool. Unlocking it, a spider-graphic began to glow on the shed's door, which opened to reveal an elevator. Gwen and Miles marveled at the cool entrance, while May was giving Peter a smug look as if saying: was yours like this?

Peter entered the elevator last, albeit begrudgingly. "I mean, this place is pretentious," he scoffed.

"You ain't seen nothing yet," Y/n noted as the mechanism took them down, into Peter Parker's massive lab, crammed with crime-fighting and science gear, photos, hangout furniture, not to mention every Spider-branded product in existence.

Miles turned around, doing a 360. "Whoa! Y/n, I didn't know you had this Spider-lab underground!"

Y/n jumped down before the elevator landed. "That's because you didn't know who I was yet, silly."

Y/n and May moved toward one of the control panels, engaging in a discussion about improving Y/n's webbings. Y/n also disclosed the news of Miles possessing spider powers and the necessity of his own set of web shooters. May's response was somewhat... lukewarm, almost as if she already had an inkling. Nevertheless, she readily agreed to upgrading Miles' equipment.

Meanwhile, the boy immediately gravitated toward the first thing that caught his eye: the costumes. He observed that one of Peter's costumes had a cape, and he shot a sly look back at the brunette Peter, feeling vindicated.

Peter nodded, his tone slightly abrasive. "Yeah, mine was like this... but take away the jeep, the plane... imagine it way smaller. Imagine a futon. I- I feel sad for this guy." He paused in his step, finding a photo frame placed on a countertop. It was a family picture of MJ, Peter, and little Y/n, together. Happy. It hit him hard.

The younger boy noticed his silence, and decided to call his attention. "Hey, Peter, I think this is a cape."

Peter couldn't help but smile. Gwen, in turn, watched the entire exchange, her wheels turning.

"Hey, (nickname), where are your suits?" Miles asked, turning to Y/n who had just finished her conversation with May.

"Oh... well..." she began, walking over with a cup of coffee that May recently brewed. "My dad was super careful with building mine, so this was one of the only suits I have," she explained, continuing, "It's self-repaired, too. I only added the artistic details."

Miles grinned at the way she talked. Now looking at her suit, he nodded approvingly. "It looks great."

"Thank you," a faint blush formed in her cheeks.

Miles returned to looking at Spider-Man's past suits, and Y/n watched him closely. The boy stared upwards, like he's looking up at him. His reflection was still a bit off-centered. The girl beside him gazed, seeing his longing expression. "You'll fit into one soon," she whispered.

His lips lifted in a small smile, giving her a soft look.

Then, May's voice called everyone's attention. "Peter knew how dangerous the job is," she began, and Y/n instinctively slotted herself next to her for comfort. May openly wrapped her arms around her niece's shoulders in a loose embrace. She continued, "But he figured the only one who could stop this guy was Spider-Man."

"I couldn't do it alone," Y/n admitted in a small voice.

Miles' shoulders slumped. "Kingpin knows we're coming. We're going to be outnumbered," Four versus, possibly ten more villains that might show up may not suffice.

May tilted her head as she smirked. "Don't be so sure," she said, stepping away from Y/n as she took something from her pockets. "You might need these," she held out "my name is" stickers.

As if on cue, their spidey senses tingle all over the place, the same feeling when they saw each other for the first time. From the ceiling, four sets of eyes opened in the shadows. Miles and Y/n were shocked, Gwen was confused, and Peter was over it.

"You think you're the only people who thought to come here?" May remarked from behind them.

There was a sound of blinds flicking open, and a Spider-Man in a black and white filter was lit with venetian blind shadows, and his coat seemed to be inexplicably billowing around him. "Hey fellas," he said, voice calloused. He tipped off his fedora in salutations.

"Is he in black and white?" Miles asked.

Peter merely stared. "Where is that wind coming from? We're in a basem*nt," he added monotonously.

"Wherever I go, the wind follows," the old-timey Spider quoted, extending his hands in sorrow. "And the wind, smells like rain."

And then, sounds of machine whirring were heard from above. A Japanese girl jumped down from above, twirling in the air. "Hi guys! Konichiwa! Hajimeash*ta Yoroshuku?"

A robot followed behind her, landing on the ground before making cool moves.

"This could literally not get any weirder," Peter noted.

A pig in a Spider-Man suit waddled up to them, "It can get weirder!" he countered, sliding up and sticking out his hand for Peter to shake. "I just washed my hands, that's why they're wet! No other reason.

Their spidey senses went off in unison as they stared in surprise. "You're like me."

They introduced themselves, going by the names of Peni Parker, Spider-Man Noir, and Spider-Ham.

Peter stepped forward, opting to talk with the most mature out of the three, Spider-Man Noir. "So, uh, how did you get here?" He asked.

"Well, it's kind of a long story," Noir pursed his lips.

Spider-Ham chimed in, "There was a portal of some sorts and we got sucked in and landed in this universe."

"Maybe not that long."

"And now, we're just trying to find a way home," Peni added, a frown on her lips. SP//DR, her father's robot that contained a spider, sported a sad face as well.

Noir explained, waving his hands around. "The only way home is back through the collider gizmo. The only trouble is—"

"One of us has to stay behind and destroy it," Ham cut off, doing a stance.

There was a pause. Before—

"I'll do it," Noir, Ham, Peni, and Gwen all volunteered, a determined look on their faces.

"No, no, no. You don't get it," Miles stepped forward, shaking his head.

Peni tilted her head. "Don't get what—?"

They all glitched, except for May, Y/n, and Miles, who could only watch in pity. The glitching got real ugly, so painful that they were on their knees when it ended.

"Are you not looking at the Spider-people in this dimension?" Y/n asked, pointing at herself. "None of you can stay here. If you stay, your body will slowly disintegrate and you'll die!" she exclaimed. "Miles and I are the perfect contender for getting you guys home and destroying the collider."

Miles turned serious, his voice low. "Look, I made a promise. So I have to keep it. I have every right to be here."

Y/n smiled at him. He's right.

The rest of the gang looked at Miles and Y/n after their speech. It's kind of inspiring, but—

"Who are you again?" Noir asked, making Y/n whip her head towards him in a glare.

Peter immediately jumped up, "This is Miles, and Y/n. This dynamic duo is going to save the multiverse!" The two exchanged grins of excitement.

"Hell yeah," Y/n expressed.

"Y/n..." May warned slowly.

"Heck yeah."

"Guess what," Peter began, walking up to Miles and talking him up as if he was a salesman. "This kid can turn himself invisible. Watch this, he can do it... Now!"

Miles grunted, struggling to use his power. His muffled screams sounded like he was forcing himself. He gave up, exhaling, "I can't do it on command."

"Not yet," Y/n butted in in defense.

"Not yet, but it is cool." Peter echoed, smiling weirdly. "Show them the zappy thing, Miles."

Once again, Miles tried to show off his power, but he couldn't do it, putting his hands on his pockets. "I can't do it on command."

Peter chuckled, "He can't do it on command! But he can do so much more, like what else can you do—"

"Just those two things—"

"Just those two things,"

The Spider-people on the other side of the line were looking hopeless. They were about to put their faiths in these children? They were hesitant.

Y/n stepped forward. "You have to put your faith in us," she said, as if reading the hesitance in their minds. "I've been doing this for 3 years with my dad, and Miles has only been doing it for like— a day."

"And I've seen them in action already," Gwen added, locking eyes with Y/n. "They've got potential. They're gonna get us home," she added. Y/n looked at her with gratefulness in her eyes. The blonde nodded back as if saying, "I'm with you, and I trust you."

Gwen said her piece with conviction. Everyone wanted to believe it. Noir stepped forward to prove it, facing both Y/n and Miles. "Okay, little fellas. Kingpin's gonna send a lot of mugs after ya. I'm talking hard boys, real biscuit boxers. Can you fight them all off at once?"

"Well, I, I haven't actually fought anyone—" Miles said, but he was cut off.

"Surprise attack!" Noir attacked the boy first with a foot sweep, knocking him down. He turned to Y/n and sent a punch her way, but she dodged.

"Can you rewire a mainframe while being shot at?" Peni asked, throwing a hard drive at Miles while he was down.

"Can I what?"

"Show me!"

"Surprise attack!" Noir announced, and this time, they were both punched in the same time, and they landed on their backs.

Gwen leaned forward. "Can you swing and flip with the grace of a trained dancer?"

"Can you close off your feelings so you don't get crippled by the moral ambiguity of your violent actions?" Noir.

"Can you help your aunt create an online dating profile so she can get out of the dang house in a while?"

"I did that, Grauntie May!" Y/n replied in a loud tone, defending herself.

Spider-Ham continued, "Can you float through the air when you smell a delicious pie?"

"What?!"

"Can you be strong?"

"Ruthless?"

"Disciplined!"

"I don't know, maybe—"

"BOING!

"Show me some moxie, soldier!" Noir urged. He went to attack Y/n and backed up, before sending a kick straight to his chest, sending his back. Miles... wasn't doing pretty well.

"Wait—" Y/n tried to say as she watched Miles get knocked down repeatedly. She wanted to go and rescue him, but was forbidden by Noir when he pulled her collar back. "Miles!"

Everyone began talking at the same time, their voices mashing together. They all seemed to be encouraging Miles, but their approach was just so wrong, seeing the way Miles hadn't gotten up yet.

The Spiders watched Miles struggle on the floor. He couldn't get up.

Concerned looks were exchanged before the gang gathered in a circle to talk, leaving Miles behind. Y/n was eventually let go, and she immediately slid to the ground and kneeled beside him. "Miles, are you okay?" she asked, placing her hand on his shoulder in support.

He was silent when he sat up, looking past her. Y/n turned to the direction that he was looking at, and saw the Spiders talking about Miles in hushed whispers, but it wouldn't even be effective against their super hearing. "...He's not ready, it's obvious!" Gwen said in a harsh tone, pinching her fingers together.

Miles' eyes were downcasted as they continued to say things that were probably more than right. Y/n glared. "I'm gonna talk some sense to them," she said, beginning to stand up, but Miles grabbed her arm and stopped her from doing anything else.

"...No," he said meekly, avoiding her fiery gaze. "You don't have to."

Y/n knitted her eyebrows, worried about his silence. "Miles—"

Suddenly, he tore himself away and broke into a sprint, running to the platform and turning himself invisible. "Miles!" she yelled his name, catching the other Spiders' attention. All they saw was the shed doors opening way up in the rafters. "Wait, come back!" Y/n called out, but nothing followed. He didn't come back.

Sheepishly, Peter turned to the Spiders. "See that? He can uh, turn invisible."

The headquarters was silent, they could hear a pin drop— and Y/n's knuckles cracking in anger. "Look what you did," she blamed, her dangerously low voice echoed in the lab. "You all think you're so strong and unbeatable, putting pressure on a kid who's just starting out!" she exclaimed, adding, "We were all like him at first!"

She turned to the brunette. "Peter, what age were you when you were bitten?"

"Fifteen," he replied, looking at the ground guiltily.

Y/n shook her head. "Exactly. We didn't ask for these abilities. But we chose to put on the mask and become Spider-Man," she said, taking in their faces. "Miles wanted to be Spider-Man, but what did you do? You thrash him and tell him he should be more like you, when he is nothing like you!"

She exploded, breathing heavily from her outburst. Everyone got quiet, looking everywhere but at Y/n. She walked away, and the Spiders were left to their thoughts. From the depths of her pocket, her phone began vibrating. She took it out and saw Rio Morales calling.

Meanwhile, Peter Parker, after being persuaded by May to go out and find the boy, found himself climbing a billboard where he saw him. Miles had his knees drawn to his chest, hugging himself.

Peter stared at him, choosing the right words to say. There's no other person who could understand a spider problem except a spider himself. He sighed, hopeless. "What do I do here?" he mumbled to himself before walking over and squatting down next to him.

Miles realized that he wasn't alone anymore, but he didn't move an inch. Peter placed a hand on his shoulder to begin, "You okay?"

The boy shook his hand off. "I'm not like you guys," he muttered

"You mean the robot or the pig?"

Miles huffed. He wasn't in the mood for any jokes right now.

Peter shook his head. "Yeah, I mean, this is new to me! I don't know what I'm doing! Alright, congratulations, you revealed me—"

"I'm supposed to save the world, Peter," Miles cut off, his voice loud.

Silence ensued. Peter turned to face Miles' back.

"Well," Peter began. "There's a problem right there. You can't think about saving the whole world. You have to think about saving one person, Miles." His look was serious. "You just think about someone you love."

Miles blinked as he paused. His eyes casted downwards. "My mom, and... my uncle, and my dad, and..." he trailed off. Peter waited. He was waiting because he knew his answer lacked something. Or rather, someone.

When the boy only gave him a helpless look, Peter smiled. "You don't have to say it, buddy. I know," he said, chuckling. And then, "Uh, you wanna talk about that?"

"No," Miles turned smug, facing him. "There's a Mary Jane where you come from, right? She's your one?"

"She was," Peter answered, avoiding his gaze. "I mean, she's still there, but uh... you know."

"You wanna talk about that?"

Peter scoffed playfully, before his tone turned melancholy. "Look, Miles. This hero thing, it gets really, really complicated, man," he said, giving him a serious look. "You lose things."

Miles contemplated, thinking about the life Peter went through. He then thought about his Peter, who was a good man gone too quickly.

"And look, maybe I can go back home and get another chance, I- I wo—" he stuttered, "Maybe I could do the thing I really want to do."

Miles' eyes slightly brightened in curiosity at the thought. What was the thing that he really wanted to do? "You wanna talk about that?" he tried again, making Peter laugh.

"Honestly, Miles, don't do it like I did," Peter said, Y/n's words from earlier echoed in his mind. "You gotta do it like you. Someone wise told me that once. Don't let them go, okay?"

He had a feeling who that wise one was. "I have to go," he said, beginning to stand up. He wanted to go to the other person he could trust most.

Y/n's eyes widened at the name of the caller, looking away from her phone for a moment as she contemplated. Should she answer, then she's bound to receive an earful. Should she not, then her trust might be compromised. With a huge breath, she pressed accept by the fourth ring. "Y/n?"

"Hi, Mrs. Morales!" she chirped, hoping she didn't hear the strain in her supposed happy tone. Y/n placed a hand on her hip. "How's everything?"

Rio sighed from the other end of the call. "Ay, mija. Have you heard from Miles?" she asked, concern laced in her voice.

"Um, no. Sorry, tia. I haven't," she replied, despite seeing him literally minutes ago. "We've been flooded with homework, and I haven't had the time to see him. Perdon. What's wrong?"

"Well, he's not answering my calls, and we're worried for him," she exhaled. "If you see him, will you please tell him to call me?"

"I– of course. Goodbye, tia."

Y/n ended the call, and on her screen was a text from her mother.

mom
Y/n, are you busy?

She opened the app, and began replying. She needed a distraction.

y/n
what's wrong?

mom
Nothing's wrong. I just need a favor from you.
Will you accompany me tomorrow night? Wilson Fisk just invited us to a memorial fund for Spider-Man.

She didn't reply back.

Exiting her messages, a wallpaper of her and Miles doing faces stared back at her. She hovered her finger on Miles' contact number, hesitating on calling.

After a moment, she sighed, turning back to the group who were still silent. "Peni, right?" her eyes landed on the little girl. She nodded enthusiastically, a blush appearing on her cheeks.

"Make the goober."

Chapter 10: breakdown the house and tear off the roof

Chapter Text

Feeling stifled in the Spider lab, the group eventually ascended the stairs and settled in upstairs. Noir discovered one of Y/n's old toys, a Rubik's cube, and laid on the couch, examining it carefully. The other Spiders patiently waited for Peni to complete the creation of a new goober.

Y/n sank into one of the lounge chairs, her body appearing drained of all energy. May, standing beside her, ran her fingers through her niece's hair. Deciding to brew her a mug of coffee, May momentarily left her side.

Gwen saw her leave, and took her chance to replace her, watching as Y/n looked at her phone wallpaper forlornly. She was waiting for a call, even a text. "Have you heard from Miles—?"

"For heaven's sake, I don't know!" Y/n bursted out before she softened. "Look, he's just clearing his head. Give him time. He'll probably learn to be Spider-Man outside faster than in this place with you guys,"

Sensing the collective gaze of the other Spiders, Y/n shifted uncomfortably. Peni returned to the living room, presenting Peter with the new goober, which he hung around his neck. Y/n's attention lingered on the door, as if anticipating Miles' hurried entrance. Gwen observed her with a steady gaze.

Y/n gave up, looking away. "Maybe it's good that he doesn't come back."

"Y/n!" Gwen shouted, stunned. "I thought you believed in him!"

"I do," the spider uttered, holding her phone tightly. "I have every faith in him. But everything happened so fast. He wasn't prepared because he wasn't given a day to breathe or test the waters before he was being chased by a bunch of scientists, and getting beat up," she said, making everyone go silent again. "It's just... I remembered the first time I wore a mask. My dad was there, and he taught me the basics. It wasn't smooth sailing, but I got the hang of it eventually. Miles already had everything thrown at him, and it feels like I'm failing him when I'm supposed to be his best friend."

Gwen found herself speechless, uncertain about how to provide solace. Fortunately, May stepped in, entering the room with a cup in hand. "Y/n, you never once failed at being Miles' friend," she said, giving her the hot mug. Y/n took a sip, before placing it on the coaster. May went on to make some more.

Peter chimed in, his hands on his hips. "Hey, I just met the kid, but I already know him," he said. "He's got what it takes."

Every Spider in the room except for Y/n and Gwen all gave him looks of suspicion, not believing a word he's saying.

He added, "I bet you he's going to come back through that door recharged and ready to fight."

Just then, Miles stumbled in the front door, a wreck. "M-my uncle!"

He was breathing so quickly, restless, flailing his hands around in a panic. Y/n stood up so quickly and gave him her full attention, but was careful to keep her distance. He was clearly stressed out. "My uncle Aaron, he– he– he's the Prowler!"

"What?" Y/n gasped. His uncle Aaron, who had been very kind to her, turned out to be the person who worked for Kingpin, who had been fighting Spider-Man and Spider-Lily, and was now out to hunt Miles, his nephew.

The revelation must be killing him, his emotions must be in disarray.

"This is a pretty hardcore origin story," Noir noted, and everyone sent him glares while Peni smacked him in the chest.

Miles fought tears. The spiders looked to Peter, who didn't have the slightest idea of what to say. "We're gonna figure it out. It's okay."

"Were you followed?" Gwen stepped forward.

"No," Miles breathed, shaking his head. "I- I don't think so."

But their spidey senses told them otherwise, as they heard a rumbling from outside. They all pulled down their masks, in a fighting stance as they waited.

DING DONG!

The bell rang,

Then, CRAAASH!!! A tentacle shot out and broke through the door, knocking a tea tray out of May's hands.

Out of fear, Spider-Lily pushed her away. Doc Ock walked in her tentacles lifting her off the ground. "Cute place," she said. "Real homey."

"Oh, great. It's Liv," Great Aunt May deadpanned, making Y/n whip her head in her direction. She knew this entire time?

Miles, heartbroken, mumbled in defeat. "I... guess I was followed."

"Oh, no..." Gwen closed her eyes under her mask in anxiety.

Peter motioned over to Miles. "Get out of here, kid."

Miles turned to run through the kitchen but was blocked by Tombstone, walking in with a smirk on his grayed face. "You messed up big time, kid. Very sloppy." He pushed past Miles and they saw another villain showing up. Scorpion.

"Mira todas estas arañitas..." he mocked, revealing his stinger at the end of his tail, ready to poke someone with it.

The Spiders stuck close together, feeling cornered. The villains marched, slowly padding towards them.

May gestured out her door. "Would you mind taking this outside?"

"We don't pick the ballroom, we just dance," Noir remarked, bringing his fist up.

Sorry, Grauntie May. But he's right.

Doc Ock saw the goober hanging around Peter's neck, making her grin wider. "Oh, I think I'll be taking that." Her tentacles reached out towards Peter and everyone leaped into action, breaking into a fight. Noir, Ham, Gwen, and Peter were all trying to take care of Doc Ock, while Tombstone backed her up.

Scorpion cornered Miles, who was challenging him, "Stand, niñito, dale."

Miles stanced up, trying to be intimidating as he brought his voice down. "Prepárate a morir." He raised his hands— that were stuck in couch cushions! "Ah, man– these stupid pillows!" He tried to shake him off as Scorpion laughed at him, ready to attack.

Lily came up behind him and kicked him in the head, stunning him for a moment. And SP//DR was right on time to save Miles as he was busy unsticking from the cushions.

Doc Ock was busy multitasking, smashing Peter into the ceiling, pieces of drywall falling apart. May looked around her and saw that all of her furniture was being destroyed. She had had enough, equipping her wooden bat and swinging it at Tombstone, knocking him out the front door, onto the street. "I said take it outside!" She shouted, and Lily cheered when she saw the whole thing.

Tombstone recovered, going straight for May, and Spider-Lily advanced, distracting him. He went for her instead, delivering punches and kicks. Lily dodged, sending punches of her own, and Noir eventually joined, smashing a painting over the guy's head.

The goober came loose, flying around the living room. "I got it—!" Miles chased after the key but was thrown against the wall. Gwen managed to take it from Doc Ock, webbing away, but Scorpion knocked it out of her hand. Noir caught the goober, but glitched, making him drop it.

Miles continued to chase after the key as it was kicked around the room. Finally, he grabbed it before Doc Ock could reach for it, and simultaneously, his spider-senses went off.

From the window, he watched as a shadow sneaked by like lightning, and his nerves were completely on lockdown. It was suddenly hard to breathe now.

The shadow crashed through the window, landing in front of Miles. The Prowler. He knew who it was under the mask now. How could his uncle be the Prowler? Miles was frozen, his breathing uneven. Peter webbed the goober out of Miles' hands for safety measure. "I got this buddy," Peter reassured, before turning to the Prowler. "Leave the kid alone!"

He lunged towards him, and they fought for the goober. Doc Ock joined in on the action, as well as Spider-Lily, trying to help Peter. She tried to pry the Prowler away from him, and the Prowler shifted his focus to Lily, not hesitating to rain down punches on her.

Miles watched, mortified. "No, no, no. No!"

The fight caused Peter to drop the goober, bouncing on the floor towards Miles. He picked it up, and the Prowler noticed, about to make his chase.

Peter managed to kick Prowler off himself and out through the wall next to Miles into the street. "You gotta go, man."

Just then, SP//DR and Doc Ock slammed into Peter and all were knocked out the front of the house into the neighborhood. The battle continued, ranging through the rooftops, smashing out of the windows. Gwen and Spider-Ham handled Scorpion, Peni and Lily dealt with Tombstone, and Peter and Noir with Doc Ock.

Y/n whipped her head around for any signs of Miles. Where is he?

Distracted, Tombstone managed to cause damage, and sent a mighty punch, bringing her to the ground. Peni quickly retaliated, destroying him with SP//DR.

Miles tried to hold on his own, running away from the Prowler. But he couldn't get his Uncle's Aaron's face off his mind. Just last week they were having fun playing basketball, and then the other day they bonded over graffitiing an abandoned train station. Where did his good, kindhearted uncle go?

The Prowler swiped his claws, narrowly missing him. This kid was driving him mad the longer he didn't give him the goober. Miles raced up the stairs, the villain close behind. He grabbed his leg, but the boy kicked him away, continuing upstairs to the hole blasted through the roof.

Miles scrambled his way, climbing up the roof, but before he could swing away, the Prowler landed in front of him, clutching his hand on his neck, and dragging him over to the edge of the roof, his feet barely hanging on.

"Nowhere left to run," Prowler said, his voice menacing and hostile. Miles tried to paw his hands off him, but he was relentless.

He watched as the Prowler bared its claws at him. Sharp, pointy, and deadly.

Miles gulped, returning his gaze to the Prowler's white eyes. He knew he shouldn't do it... that was one of his Uncle Peter's last few pieces of advice before dying, but in an attempt to change his mind...

He yanked his mask off, exposing himself in front of the villain. But this was no villain. This was his uncle. His uncle who always listened, someone he could trust, someone who he can talk to.

Someone who could understand.

The eyes of Prowler's mask softened as he shook his head in denial. "...Miles?"

The boy opened his mouth but his voice wasn't present. "Uncle Aaron..." he moved his lips.

Aaron took off his mask as well, revealing the shock and disbelief in his face. His eyebrows knitted as the identity still hadn't sunk. "Oh no no no no..."

Miles' eyes welled up, the edge of his toes aching from standing on it. He was at the mercy of his uncle, who now felt at a crossroads. His voice was barely a whisper when he said, "Please, Uncle Aaron..."

Kingpin's voice sounded from Aaron's earpiece, taking him out of his stupor. "Prowler, what are you waiting for? Finish it," he said, his tone gruff and strict.

Aaron breathed, looking behind him cautiously before looking back at his nephew with eyes so frightened and glassy. He didn't want Miles to be afraid of him, he didn't want to be the cause of his fear. But here they were.

With shaky fingers, he slowly pulled down Miles' mask, concealing his identity once more. He backed away, raising his hands. He smiled at Miles when—

BLAM!

A gunshot fired from behind, and Aaron fell back, his eyes wide as he collapsed on the roof. Miles looked down and saw Kingpin with this weapon raised. The boy scrambled towards his uncle, careful not to touch him with his shaking hands. He could hear his own breathing in his ears.

Kingpin clicked his gun and aimed at Miles, but from behind, Peter swung in and knocked the bad guy down. Peter looked up and saw a frozen boy, clueless of what to do. "Get out of here!" He shouted at him.

He didn't want to leave his bloodied uncle on the shingles so he quickly snapped out of it and scooped up Aaron before swinging away. He wasn't able to go too far, opting to go to a dark alley. Miles gently placed him down and kneeled over his body.

Aaron gritted his teeth in pain, looking at the sky. Miles was breathing quickly, placing a hand on the lower portion of his face as he unconsciously shook his head in refusal.

"Miles..." Aaron whispered,

"Uncle Aaron..." the kid placed his hands over his mouth, unable to stop his tears from falling out. "This is my fault," he murmured.

Aaron detached his hand from his gloves, releasing a hissing sound. He took his nephew's hand, looking at him. "No, Miles," he said. "I'm sorry. I wanted you to look up to me. I let you down, man, I let you down."

Miles shook his head, no.

"You're the best of all of us, Miles," Aaron murmured, nodding. "You're on your way," he closed his eyes for a moment before drawing in his last breath. "Just... keep going. Just keep going..."

Aaron closed his eyes in finality, and there was silence except for Miles' sobs resonating throughout the dark alley. He planted his hands on the sides of his head, scrunching it in frustration. He was still in disbelief.

His eyes were bloodshot, still, and blank. He was still gazing at the now dead body of his uncle. There was silence, until there wasn't when Miles heard a person from behind him. "Hands up! Put your arms up now!" It was the booming voice of his father, Jefferson Davis.

Miles stood up slowly, but didn't turn around. He put up his arms per his father— or rather, Officer Morales' orders. "Turn around."

The boy wearing a Spider-Man makeshift suit stood still, red and blue lights flashing against his skin. Instinctively, his body turned invisible, camouflaging in the walls of the alley. Jeff recoiled, aiming his handgun around wildly, unable to see him "Hey! Hey!!!"

But as he advanced, he saw who the dead man lying was. He sheathed his weapon, kneeling over and checking the man's pulse. His heart dropped to the ground when he felt nothing. Just cold, empty, silence. "Aaron? Aaron. No... no!"

He let out a sob, punching his fist on the ground. From above, still camouflaged, Miles could see the grief hitting his father.

Jeff's face hardened after a moment of sorrow. He turned on his shoulder radio and barked orders at the device. "All units. I want an APB on a new Spider-Man."

Chapter 11: miles morales rises up

Chapter Text

Miles couldn't comprehend what just happened in the last hour, but his mind and heart were a whirlwind of emotions that bombarded him. It felt so overwhelming that he had to go away and swing to his dormitory.

Despite his sloppy and careless swinging, he managed to climb through his window and land on his dorm room. He didn't want to face anybody. He knew that no one would be able to understand what he was going through. He yanked the mask off his face, feeling suffocated. He was breathing furiously, pursing his lips in anger.

He glared at the books lying on his desk. Great Expectations was left open, and it stared at him as if it was taunting him, mocking him. Miles surged in with a huff and began tearing through his room in an emotional, teenage rage. He pushed all of his homework and books off his desk, threw a lamp at something, hurled his chair upside down.

From his chaos, his sketchbook fell open on the floor, and the artwork he did with his Uncle Aaron stared up at him. Miles bent down and picked it up, closing it and flung it out the window. After a moment, the notebook flew back through the window like a boomerang, and Miles caught it, confused.

Y/n's head popped into the window. She climbed into the room, followed by the other spiders. The girl was wearing her civilian clothes this time, void of her spider suit. "Miles," she spoke, and that was enough for Miles to fall apart again.

"Y/n," Miles keened, his voice cracking up. Her arms were already opened for him to crash into. He pulled her in a hug so tight but Y/n relented, comforting him through hushed whispers. Miles was holding back his tears, but his sobs were still heard.

"I'm here. I'm here."

The spiders gave them a moment of silence, until Peter spoke up. "Hey, bud. You okay?"

Miles eventually let go, albeit weakly. He took a deep breath, not saying anything.

Peter continued, "We've all been there. For me, it was my Uncle Ben," he placed his hand on Miles' shoulder.

On his other shoulder, was Noir's hand. "For me it was my Uncle Benjamin."

"For me it was my father," Peni added.

Gwen provided her own grief. "For me it was my best friend."

Miles' eyes shifted to meet Y/n's and she was silent, communicating through her gaze. He already knew what she was meaning to say without words. He knew of the first, and he was a direct witness in the second.

She felt her throat tighten, looking away from his golden honey stare. "Miles," she began. "The hardest thing about this job is you can't always save everybody," she said. She knew that now.

He furrowed his eyebrows as he huffed. "Look, it was my fault. You wouldn't understand," he said, making her look at him disgruntled.

"Miles, we're probably the only ones who do understand," Gwen shot back, and the girl beside her agreed.

There was a sudden jiggling at the door, and they sensed that someone was about to enter the room. Ganke opened the door, walking inside with his headphones on. Music was blaring on his ears at loud volume, weakening his spatial awareness and not sensing the spider-team plastered to the wall in the back of him.

Oblivious, Ganke grabbed his Spider-Ham comic and started to read, feet on his desk. Still in his headphones, he spun in his chair, now facing the Spider gang, but with his comic blocking his view.

Peter instructed the group, veering to the right. "That way! That way!"

Ganke then crossed back, making them go to the opposite again. "Other way! Other way!"

Y/n saw his exact reaction when he lowered the comic and saw the clump of Spider-people. Spider-Ham simply grinned at him. "Do animals talk in this dimension? Cause I don't wanna freak him out—"

Ganke fainted to the ground, bringing his chair down with him. His body was sprawled on the ground, unconscious. She jumped down and hurriedly scooped up her friend. Miles followed and assisted her, fixing the lower bunk and laying him down there. Miles pulled up the blanket to his chin while Y/n removed Ganke's glasses and placed it on the bedside table delicately.

After doing so, she put her hands inside her hoodie as she watched the rest of the Spider-gang exit out the window. Miles gave them a look. "What's going on?" he asked Peter.

Gwen, with her feet already on the window sill, faced the boy with a sullen expression. "Goodbye, Miles."

She jumped off, and that left Miles, Peter, and Y/n.

Peter spoke, sitting on the desk. "Miles, I came to say goodbye," he said.

"We can say goodbye at the collider," Miles shot back, still confused. Y/n stayed speechless, her arms crossed as she avoided his gaze.

Peter stood. "You're not getting it. You're staying here," he insisted,

Miles stepped back, suddenly defensive. "I need to be there. Y/n and I do. So you can all go home."

"They are going home, Miles," Peter retorted, his face hard. "I'm the only one staying."

The boy looked slightly crestfallen, pausing. "You're taking our place?" he asked, noticing Y/n's silence in all this. "If you stay here, you'll die," Miles tried to convince him and change his mind, but it already seemed like Peter made up his mind.

"I'm doing what needs to be done. I just wanted you to hear it from me."

Miles' eyebrows knitted together in disbelief. "What about MJ?"

Peter simply stared at him, and Miles could see from his eyes that he was so tired and restless. "Not everything works out, kid." He then held out his hand. "I need the goober." Peter closed his eyes when he was left hanging. Miles wasn't giving it up. "Please don't make me take it from you."

The older man stepped forward, and the younger boy was furious. "That's not fair! You've gotta tell them I can do this!" Miles held the drive away from him.

"It wasn't their decision," Peter said, gesturing to himself.

Miles stopped, giving him a look of betrayal. Then, he looked over at the girl standing beside the window, leaning against the wall, avoiding his stare. He took a step, and his tone was accusatory. "Y/n, did you agree with this?"

She didn't answer.

Miles tried again, with more emphasis this time. "Did you?"

Y/n kicked off the wall and began trekking towards him. "Miles, I'm doing this for your own good," she said, opting to place a hand on his shoulder, but Miles recoiled as if it was hot to the touch. He stepped back, looking her directly in the eyes.

"I gotta make Kingpin pay!" He exclaimed, "You have to let me make him pay!"

"But going in there recklessly, with your emotions getting ahead of you..." Y/n trailed off. Her fists clenched in worry. "Miles, it's not a good idea."

"Y/n, you have to know what I feel," Miles shot back, seething in irritation. "Don't you want to make him pay, too, for killing your dad?" At the moment, he didn't care if his words stabbed her in the heart like knives. He didn't care about the way her lips were pulled down in a deep frown after that malicious question. He didn't care when he saw the way the light on her eyes had died.

Because at the moment, he only cared about his anger towards Kingpin. He wanted to seek revenge so badly.

But instead of lashing back at him, she simply... stood there. She took a deep, shaky breath before opening her mouth, "Don't you think I've thought about making him pay too?" she said slowly, her voice cold. "I wanted to avenge my Dad, wanted for Kingpin to have the same fate,"

Miles' gaze focused on the desk beside her. What's the point?

"But it's not going to bring him back, Miles," she continued. "Trust me, I know," she said with such conviction that she wished he would understand. Surely he could grasp the notion that she's only agreeing to the decision of not tagging Miles along because she wanted him safe.

Jeff just lost his brother.

He's not going to lose his son so soon, too.

Peter tagged in this time, speaking up, "Miles, you're gonna get yourself killed."

"But I'm ready, I promise—"

The older man did a combo move, nearly knocking Miles to the ground, if he wasn't there to catch him. Miles hung down, held up by Peter. Y/n let out a sharp exhale.

"Then venom strike me right now," Peter demanded, holding his suit tight. "Or turn invisible on command so you can get past me."

Peter and Y/n anticipated as Miles attempted to do what he wanted, pushing against his strength, but it only made Peter seem more right. Outside the window, the other spiders listened to their conversation. "Poor little guy," Noir muttered.

"Look, I know how much you want this, kid," Peter said, putting Miles down and jumping down himself, landing behind him. "But you don't have it yet."

Peter fired a web at a desk chair under Miles, spinning the chair, webbing him into a cocoon, and took the goober from his hands. "I'm sorry," Peter said. He couldn't look at him.

"When will I know I'm ready—"

His mouth was shut by a web.

"You won't," Peter answered. "It's a leap of faith. That's all it is, Miles. A leap of faith."

He masked himself before jumping out the window and swinging upwards. That left Y/n, who watched sadly as Miles was tied to a chair. He couldn't even look at her either. She made her way to the window, about to climb out when she stopped, looking back at him.

"I've always believed in you, Miles."

Y/n leaped out through the window and scaled her way to the rooftop where the other spiders were waiting on her answer.

"I'm not joining," she said, and the others didn't say anything in protest. She just couldn't handle being a part of the group anymore. Though that would mean one less spider in the gang, Y/n was certain that they can do this without her. She wasn't able to prove that she was capable of destroying the collider, either.

If Peter wanted to destroy it, then by all means. There's no use changing his mind anyway. A Spider's head is stubborn and unrelenting.

"Goodbye, Y/n," Gwen said, looking at her with a frown. At least she had the decency to say goodbye.

Y/n nodded, avoiding her gaze. "Stay safe," she whispered, and they took their leave, swinging away from the dorm.

It was peaceful for a moment, the girl basking in the winter air from the rooftop. From the depths of her hoodie pockets, she brought out her phone. She scrolled through another flood of messages until she pressed her mom's contact, the invite still there.

After contemplating, her fingers typed,

y/n
i'll be there.

Miles was still securely tied to his desk chair when he sadly watched the spiders swing away. Time passed by, the pink clouds becoming more prominent as the sun set, but he was still restrained. How long does webbing come off again?

He stared out the window, the web stuck on his mouth felt uncomfortable now when there was a knock on his door, jolting him out of his self-pity. Miles began scooching his chair towards the door excitedly, hoping that this person knocking can help him out of his web. He was ready to face humiliation just to be free from his confinement.

"Miles!"

He stopped when he heard his voice. It was different from the authoritative, assertive police officer. Now it came from an exhausted father, trying not to break down as he tried to inform his son of his uncle's death. "Miles, it's your Dad," he introduced himself.

Jeff saw a shadow moving under the door until it stopped. Miles froze in his place. I guess he was still trying to be invisible..

"Please open the door," he said. "I can see your shadow moving around."

Silence.

"Yeah. Okay, I get it," Jeff said, nodding slowly. "Still ignoring me. Look, can we talk for a minute? Something happened..."

He was struggling with what to say, his voice cracking. Jeff removed his hat, and began fiddling with it nervously. "Look, sometimes, people drift apart, Miles. And I don't want that to happen to us, okay?" He let out a sob, a first for Miles. The boy couldn't recall a time where his father cried.

"Look, I know I don't always do what you need me to do or say what you need to say, but I'm... I see this... this spark in you. It's amazing! It's why I push you. But it's yours and whatever you choose to do with it, you'll be great."

Miles' eyes were wide and soulful. He rested his head against the door. So close.

Jeff placed a palm on the door as he leaned closer. "Look, call me when you can, okay? I love you."

Then,

"You don't have to say it back though."

But he still waited for Miles to say it back.

When he didn't get the response, Jeff tapped the door farewell and walked down the hall.

Miles closed his eyes, pushing himself against the wall to place himself in the middle of the room. It was quiet, the only sounds were of his breathing, in and out against the web. He remembered his father's words as his hands visibly relaxed.

"I see this spark in you. It's why I push you."

Maybe Miles needed that push.

He began to feel the electricity flooding his senses as his venom life started to crackle to life on his hands, using this memory is how he's learning to control such power. He grabbed onto the web, and used a mini venom strike to break free from the chair's restraints. ZAAAAP!!!

Miles stood up from the impact, looking at his hands. He couldn't believe it.

All of a sudden, Ganke bolted up, dazed. His eyes scanned around the room for the source of the sound, but he saw nothing but a pile of mess around his room. He decided to go back to bed and restore his sleepless nights.

From the side, Miles revealed himself, being invisible all this time. He was finally in control.

He returned to Aunt May's house, back to the shed where he had first fled from his fear. Now, he confronted it with courage and boldness. May sat there, waiting, sipping her tea. "Took you long enough," she murmured, a smug look on her face.

From the selection of Spider-Man suits, the older Parker lent her one of her nephew's earliest prototypes. He sought for Peter's permission under his breath before spray-painting the suit with black and red, in contrast to Spider-Lily's white and red.

"You'll fit into one soon,"

"I've always believed in you, Miles."

"You're on your way. Just keep going..."

Clouds were gathering around the building's tippy top. The boy in his favorite hoodie sat on the edge of the tall tower, looking down below. He moved closer and closer to the edge.

"When do I know I'm Spider-Man?"

"You won't. That's all it is, Miles... a leap of faith."

He walked to the edge of the roof with bated breath, the wind buffeting him, and then he leaped. Letting go of his grip on the shattering windows, he released his inhibitions, shed his hesitance as he fell. Miles was plummeting, yet he felt like he was rising.

In the midst of the strong winds, he flailed, diving headfirst toward the pavement before swiftly turning around and shooting a web upwards between his legs. The webbing latched onto a building, and he began to swing, navigating purposefully through New York. He slid between taxis, ran across windows, embracing the exhilaration of the city.

The people of the city couldn't believe their eyes. The swinging figure wasn't clad in the iconic blue and red suit or the white and red motif. No, this was something different. Confusion rippled through the onlookers—some thought it was a hallucination or a bizarre joke. Yet, underneath the bewilderment, a spark of hope ignited. Perhaps Spider-Lily wouldn't be alone anymore.

With a final leap, he swung up to the top of the Brooklyn Bridge and landed, taking a moment to catch his breath. In the distance, Fisk Tower loomed, and a smirk played on his lips as he pulled his mask back on. He was ready.

"Oh, god. Mom, do we have to go?" Y/n whispered under her breath as she and MJ were escorted to the front of the building where photographers, journalists, and civilians were waiting. "You know Ki– Mr. Fisk is bad news."

She caught herself just in time, her lips pursed to prevent almost slipping up. MJ remained unaware of Wilson Fisk's true identity, and Y/n preferred to keep it that way. She couldn't bring herself to tell her mother that the man who killed Spider-Man and the one commemorating a Peter Parker Memorial Fund were one and the same.

To which, Y/n's eyes were rolled so far up in her head that they were about to fall off. How ironic.

The redhead to her left smiled at her daughter. "Hey, we're just attending out of respect. We'll make a small appearance, and if you want to leave, tell me and we'll get out of here."

I want to leave NOW.

"Thanks, mom," she replied instead, opting to stay silent. They waited until the chaperone opened the door, and instantly, they were bombarded with flashes from professional cameras and cheers from a mix of people with varying statuses. Y/n was accustomed to the spotlight, receiving accolades both as herself and her superhero alter ego. However, it still felt disconcerting to put on a fake smile after her father's death. Journalists persistently encouraged her to turn toward them and acknowledge the audience. As Spider-Lily, she didn't have to worry about manipulating the muscles on her face because it remained concealed by her mask.

She placed a hand in front of her face to shield herself from the flashing. It was hectic, the people were excited because this was Spider-Man's family. Peter Parker's wife and daughter. Of course they were going to be interesting in their lives.

The two weaved their way around other celebrities and photographers until they eventually got ushered inside, and assigned to their table, seated with other guests. Table 12. MJ patted her dress down, adjusting her red hair. Y/n checked her phone, still seeing countless social media messages regarding Spider-Man and Peter, and she turned it off, not wanting to deal with any of it.

She decided to look around the room as casually as possible, and within seconds, she could already see the villains she fought back at May's house. Tombstone still looked undead as ever, Scorpion was wearing a suit that didn't suit him at all, and a hundred more mafia members.

Wilson Fisk had friends.

"Y/n, you should relax," MJ pointed out, her hand reaching to clasp with her daughter's. "You've been so on edge since the beginning of the night."

"I'm fine, really," she reassured the older woman, but accepted the comfort nonetheless. She caressed her fingers, cold to the touch. Her eyes shifted around the walls draped with massive banners depicting Spider-Man, and she felt like vomiting.

The mastermind behind it all finally revealed himself, his large stature behind the podium. Y/n had to stop herself from narrowing her eyes and gritting her teeth in anger.

He waved to the crowd and they clapped in return. "Thank you," Fisk said, "It's nice to be with you this evening to celebrate Spider-Man. He and I were very close. He was always a favorite of my son. Kids love Spider-Man, right? Still do. Unfortunately, the other half of the team, Spider-Lily, wasn't able to attend tonight as she is busy."

The audacity of this man.

Fisk then raised a hand to his right, motioning to their table. "And I just want to thank Mary Jane and Y/n Parker for being here this evening. Our prayers are with the Parkers."

The other guests clapped solemnly as Y/n tried to reply with a small smile, until her spidey senses picked up and she immediately turned around. She watched as the spider gang all walked across the hall as if it was a normal day, wearing bowties.

MJ suddenly stood up. "Wait here, honey," she told the younger Parker. "I'm gonna tell a waiter to get us more bread."

Y/n was unable to stop her mother from walking around to find a waiter. Her eyes shifted between her and the other spiders now arguing. She was clutching her fist so hard when MJ found the specific Spider-waiter and that was the other Peter. Oh, this is about to be awkward, quick.

Peter B couldn't help but be mesmerized by the redhead's beauty. "Oh, wow."

"Um..." MJ trailed, "I just wondered if we could have some more bread at table twelve?"

He paused. "Yeah," he let out in a whisper. Gwen was facepalming from behind him. "I'm just, I'm really sorry..."

"Oh!" her brows furrowed slightly at the weird reply. "Don't be sorry. It's just bread."

"No, I wasn't there for you when you needed me," Peter continued his tirade, pouring every inch of his emotions to her, while MJ was just standing there, taking it all in. "And I didn't even try...!"

"That's fine. You know, I should really get going—"

"I know I could do better if I just had another chance to give you..." he paused as he realized. "... the bread that you deserve..."

She narrowed her eyes amusingly, "Are you okay—?"

"Mom!" Y/n appeared right beside her, as she gave the rest of the spider gang a pointed gaze, who all lit up as they recognized her. Peter was still busy being in a trance, and she turned back to the redhead who was looking confused. "Hey, did you already ask them for the, uh, bread?"

MJ replied, not looking at her. "Yes, but—"

"Ma'am, we'll take care of that bread right now," Gwen said with a peppy tone, standing next to Peter. She subtly gave Y/n a nod, before pulling the older man away, and Y/n did the same, pulling her mom away.

"Thank you!" she said, about to turn away.

But MJ was so kindhearted and persistent. "It's been nice, uh, talking to you."

Peter was the same. "For you they should fill this place up with fresh bread."

The two ushered their respected adults back to their respected positions, but not without Y/n sneaking a glance back at the spider gang, who were now sneaking their way to the kitchen. They opened the door to reveal Tombstone and a bunch of guards looking at them suspiciously.

"Hey," the villain uttered with his arms crossed. "What you got in there?"

Peter already got his fists in the air and was about to fight, if not for Gwen lowering them down. "Oh!" she began searching for an excuse.

Luckily, Noir jumped in, acting casual. "Just your typical stuff; liver, heart, cheese, bar-le-duc sandwiches," he listed, while the blonde continued to push Peter's fist down. "Nothing unusual.

"Oh, that's good," Tombstone said, playing around with the toothpick in his mouth. "'Cause I'm kinda hungry." Without warning, he lifted the tray on their cart, revealing Spider-Ham out of his suit, but his mask remained intact. He was biting an apple with a bunch of herbs surrounding him. Like fine dining.

Tombstone laughed at the absurdity, and the spider gang felt nervous for a second, thinking that their cover was blown.

"Look at this!" He pointed at the pig. "They even got the mask on!" he was amused, laughing with Gwen and the other guards. Then, they stopped. "I don't eat pork."

"You don't deserve pork—!"

He thought he heard something, but he continued, pointing at the other side of the room. "Right through there. Have fun."

The spider-gang passed by and through the door, and when they were out of his sight, Tombstone brought out his communication device and placed it on his ear, smirking. "Yeah. They think we're dumb."

"Boy, they are dumb," Peter noted, taking off his bowtie when the coast was clear.

Gwen merrily removed hers as well, cheering. "They are so dumb!"

The group entered a living room, trying to find the entrance to the collider without alerting the guards and, well, Kingpin. They looked around for any sort of fake doors and buttons, but Peni easily located a false wall, pointing it with SP//DR. "It should be right here," she instructed, gesturing at a large, yellow painting. Of course it would be the least obvious.

"What a beautiful painting," Noir commented, turning around to admire it. "I love the use of purple."

Ham rolled his eyes under the mask, facing the readers of this story "Again, colors. Not his strong suit—"

"It's purple!" Noir screamed as he tore through the paper, revealing an elevator access. He kicked open the doors and slid down, Ham and SP//DR following.

Gwen latched herself on the cables, waiting for Peter who was busy looking at a painting of a once happy family; Vanessa, Richard, and Wilson. What was going on inside his head?

"Peter! Shake a leg, let's move," Noir called from below, and the other two spider-people jumped down.

Y/n knew that everything's going to go to crap the moment she saw Kingpin, other villains, and the group of spiders. Her senses only heightened when Fisk made his exit after delivering a very manipulated speech, and her suspicions were confirmed when the ground began shaking and the room was glitching.

The guests were already in hysterics, getting out of their seats and screaming. "Mom—" she began, about to ask for permission, but MJ was already looking at her.

"Go," she pressed, already standing up. She already understood that her daughter needed to be someone else right now.

Y/n rose from her seat, bundling her dress in her hand. "You need to go somewhere safe, please," she whispered before dashing out of the scene. Her dress was probably expensive as hell, but she couldn't care less as she ran to the other side of the room, where she knew Kingpin entered. The crowd were running to the opposite direction of her, making her bump into other bodies and getting the gown ripped off. She completely tore off the lower part, now free from the restriction.

From her left, an old lady tripped on her shoes and fell to the floor. No one had immediately stopped to help her, nobody even batted an eye. "These damn rich people," Y/n muttered under her breath before doing a detour and sprinting off towards the lady. She helped her up as gently, but hastily as possible.

A man eventually came to her side and took the elder woman in his hands, and Y/n resisted the urge to roll her eyes. He probably only came to assist her because he saw Y/n Parker, but now that it was out of her hands, she had to focus on the mission at hand and ran off.

Chapter 12: spider-man loves you

Chapter Text

Peter B. Parker found himself in a tough situation, struggling against Doc Ock's grip. He was so close to inserting the override key into the ceiling's panel if it weren't for Kingpin's thugs interrupting them and foiling their plans.

Doc Ock pulled Peter in. "Any last words?" she asked.

"Can I get a minute to think about it?" he choked out. "Do you have a pen?"

"Goodbye, Peter Parker."

Suddenly, one of her metal arms reared back and punched her in the face. He raised an eyebrow at the scene happening before him, incredulous despite still being held captive. Doc Ock looked around, trying to look for any stray webs that might be the culprit. Another kick was sent to her jaw and her tentacles were now out of control.

"Who did that?!" Doc Ock demanded, flailing her hands around in hopes of getting hold of the invisible suspect.

From below, two webs were dispatched towards her and the figure launched himself, the invisibility wearing off, revealing Miles in his new suit. "Miles?!" Peter exclaimed in shock, eyes wide behind his mask.

"Spider-Man—?"

Miles flew towards Ock, cutting off her sentence as he sent her flying with his punch, causing her to release Peter. Miles caught him with his web and they both landed on the ceiling. "Wow, Miles! You're doing it on command!"

"About time, right?" the boy replied.

The other spider-people on the ground caught on, looking happy to see the kid in his element. Peter placed an enthusiastic hand on his shoulder, shaking it a bit. "I love you! I am so proud of you!" he said, making Miles chuckle so freely. The older man paused. "Do I want kids?"

A lone panel was charged towards them, almost hitting them. "Oh, yeah. I forgot about her," he remarked, stancing up. Doc Ock broke off more octagonal shingles and threw them at the spiders, but they dodged it with ease. As they fought, they all noticed a box rising up towards the beam.

"Well, that doesn't look promising," Peter noted, swinging away.

"No, it doesn't."

From the observation room, a copy of Vanessa and Richard began to flicker into existence as Kingpin watched. "I've got genetic matches!" One of the scientists announced before trailing, "Hold on... it's too risky—!"

"Shut up and turn it up!" Kingpin demanded.

Back to the collider room, Miles kept searching for someone, a red and white combination, but his senses were tingling for the wrong reasons. The room descended into more chaos as Peter barked out communications, "On your left! On your right! I got 5 o'clock, 3 o'clock, 2 o'clock! Every direction!"

Gwen noticed that Miles was aimlessly looking everywhere and she already knew what he was thinking. "She's not here, Miles," she said, giving him an answer she knew he wouldn't like, but it was the truth.

He nodded, moving forward. "Right. Okay," he managed to utter. He'll save his apology for later. After he destroys the collider and gets everyone home.

Cluster buildings began to burst through the portal, as the spiders continued to battle while things got crazy. "Guys, are you seeing this?!" Miles shouted, meeting up with Peter and Gwen on top of one of the collider guns. The three all looked out over the chaos that was happening in the room.

"Looks like our dimensions are coming to us!" Gwen remarked in wonder.

Peter let out a sound of awe. "It does look cool though, right?"

More buildings spewed out of the beam, now looking like an amalgam of cities and colors. It looked horrifying and beautiful at the same time. "We gotta get back up there," the blonde said, "Shouldn't be too hard—"

All of their spidey senses went off, and they turned around just as Doc Ock hurled a school bus towards them. They leaped out of the way before it hit them. Gwen throttled one of the floating objects towards Ock, but she broke it in half and hit Gwen with it, sending her towards the building hard.

She lost consciousness for a moment, and gravity pulled her closer to the beam. "Gwen!" Miles shouted before flying after her, reaching for her and grabbing her wrist. But now the two of them were being pulled into the beam, and his feet slipped.

But then he felt his other hand being grabbed and pulled them back. He looked behind him to see...

"Y/n!" Miles cried in relief.

She smiled underneath her mask. "Hey."

"What's up!" the boy replied excitedly, happy that his hand was held, happy that she was here.

"Perfect timing," Gwen said from below, recalling the time it was said to her.

Lily smirked. "Speaking of perfect..." she said, turning to him. "Nice suit, Miles."

"Thanks. I made it myself," he replied cheekily. She smiled back before shooting a web strand back at Peter. He grabbed the web and pulled it harshly, giving the three superspeed.

"That was adorable, team!" the older man cheered. "Now hold on tight!"

Gwen flew in towards Doc Ock, giving her a taste of her own medicine. They all hit her 1-2-3-4.

Ock jerked back from the impact and smashed onto a building. Furious, she raced back towards them.

The four fixed their fighting stance, stretching their wrists and cracking their knuckles. "Buckle up guys, this is going to take a while," Gwen spoke, preparing for the worst.

Doc Ock was cackling loudly as she dashed her way, about to wreak havoc when—

She was hit by a rogue 18 wheeler, making Peter gasp loudly as he placed a hand on Y/n's shoulder. They all stared at her demise. "Alright, never mind," Gwen continued. "Let's end this thing."

Miles stepped forward coolly. "Guys, I got it."

Peter protested against him. "I'll go. I'm the one with the goo—" he started reaching for the inside of his wrist only to see the boy already holding up the drive, making him deadpan. "Oh, you gotta be kidding me."

Y/n grinned delightedly. "Who taught him that?" she asked no one in particular.

"Don't watch the mouth. Watch the hands," Miles said before shooting off a web and swung away through the chaos in the collider room.

Peter called his name, Gwen was shouting out warnings, while Y/n couldn't be anymore proud. "Woo! Go Miles!" she cheered. She had always believed in him. He had tapped his own potential and now all eyes were on him. She just wished her dad was able to see how far Miles had come.

Miles eventually reached the panel, sliding smoothly as he landed. Peter leaned closer to Y/n. "Now who taught him that one?" he retorted, giving her a knowing look.

Every spider swung off to join Miles as he got control of the beam, reversing the quantum polarity. The room shook, interdimensional quakes rocking the collider room and all of Brooklyn.

"Guess this is it," Y/n said, looking over the spiders. Miles pulled his mask up.

Peni spoke from Noir's shoulder, her beloved robot now destroyed. "Well, nice to know we're not alone. Right?"

"Yeah," Gwen nodded.

They all looked around at each other. They wanted to go home... but a part of them wanted to stay.

Y/n punched into the keypad and twisted the goober. "I got the portal open," she said. "You first, Peni."

The girl smiled, looking at them. "Thank you, Miles and Y/n. From both of us." She leaped off with a salute, bringing her spider with her. The two of them fell into the beam, and the room exploded with color. Miles punched in another code before looking at Noir.

He scratched the back of his neck. "I, uh, love you all," he struggled to say. He then held up a Rubik's cube, turning to the owner of the toy. "I'm taking this cube with me, if you don't mind."

"Go ahead," Lily smiled, slightly amused at his request. "Have fun."

"I don't understand it, but I will," Noir continued, his voice dripping with determination. He let go of the ceiling and floated back into his own world as well.

Spider-Ham was next. He retrieved a large mallet from behind his back as he was close to tearing up. "I want you to have this," he told Miles. "It'll fit in your pocket," Ham reassured, but the boy was puzzled, taking it anyway.

"That's all folks."

"I-is he allowed to say that?" Peter asked dumbfounded. "Legally?"

Ham jumped, letting the beam swallow him whole.

"We made a pretty good team," Gwen said, knowing she was the next to jump in. A beat passed, and Y/n smiled at her friend. The ghost of her past always seemed to haunt her, but she wasn't scared anymore, it seemed.

"We did," Lily agreed, nodding. "I'm glad to see you again, Gwen," she told her sincerely, hoping the blonde could convey the meaning of her words.

Gwen smiled, crinkle in her eyes forming.

Miles grinned as well. "Do I get to like the hairdo now?"

She remained smug, giving him a raised eyebrow. "You know I'm older than you, right? Fifteen months, but it's pretty significant if you ask me."

"It is," Y/n added, making Miles glare at them playfully. He matched their ego, replying, "Well, Einstein said time was relative, right?"

"Nice," The trio laughed, and Peter smiled warmly at their newfound friendship, taking their time at goodbyes.

Gwen turned to face them again, holding out a fist. "Friends?"

Their smiles widened– if that was even possible. "Friends." Each of them lifted their own fists, stretched their arms and met at the center, bumping their fists against each other.

But that didn't suffice for Y/n, so she brought the blonde in for a hug. She didn't know where to put her hands, as it remained in the air. "This feels... nice." She managed to let out.

Miles grinned at her widely. "She gives the best hugs."

Eventually, Gwen returned the embrace, placing her hands around her neck before they parted. "See you around, guys." She elegantly leaped into the beam and she was gone, colors flashing around their eyes.

Peter took his turn, revealing his face. Y/n noticed the hesitation in his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Right..." he trailed off, avoiding their gazes. Before he could say anything more, the three of them were hit with a surge of spider-sense.

Miles, Peter, and Y/n shifted their attention as they noticed Kingpin had exited the observation room. He was now leap-frogging across buildings, displaying a clear sign of anger. With a powerful kick, he shattered a random floating debris into pieces. His fists were tightly clenched as he shouted, "You're not going anywhere!"

Y/n and Miles swiftly lowered their masks, preparing to confront their adversary. However, Peter abruptly leaped away from the control panel, causing them to pause. "I'll hold him off. You guys shut this down!" he directed, firing a web at the ceiling.

"Peter, that wasn't the deal!" Miles screamed after him.

"Y/n, push the green button!" Peter yelled instead, as if the girl would listen to him. She wasn't, only watching him do something stupid. "Do not wait for me!"

Miles pursued him, with Lily swinging nearby. He used a web to latch onto Peter's body, pulling him back to their side. Peter landed on the building's side, visibly frustrated. The two joined him, and he angrily removed his mask, his hair tousled. "What are you two doing?!"

"Peter, you need to go home!" Y/n urged, unmasking herself.

He jumped closer, pointing a finger at them. "This guy could kill both of you! And I can't let Spider-Man nor Spider-Lily die!" He reasoned, grit in his voice.

"Neither can we," Miles shot back, causing Peter to pause. He studied the expressions on the kids' faces, attempting to understand their thoughts. Could they be considering sacrificing themselves for him? He dismissed the idea, thinking he could handle everything alone.

Peter furrowed his brows, shifting his eyes between the two spider-heroes in front of him. "It's okay," he tried to convince. He was content with the idea of staying until his cells eventually vaporized. The thought of not returning to his dimension and facing his own reality didn't bother him. He had come to terms with the inevitability of death.

So why was he so scared?

"Yeah, it is okay," Miles replied, and Peter thought he agreed— until he was suddenly drop kicked like he had done to Miles before, and he held the front of his suit, suspending him over the portal. "You gotta go home, man," he coerced one last time, empathy laced in his voice.

Peter's whole tough exterior melted into cowardice. "How do I know I'm not gonna mess it up again?"

"You won't," Y/n chimed in, smiling at him assuringly. Peter's brown eyes connected with hers. She was the daughter of this dimension's Peter Parker, and through the time they had spent together, he marveled at her display of resilience and strength, traits inherited from her father no doubt. Seeing her, he couldn't shake the thought of what it would be like to have his own daughter back home.

Yet, as these thoughts crossed his mind, there was also a sense of melancholy. The realities of his own dimension, where he had lost his family, weighed heavily on him. In Y/n, he saw a glimpse of what could have been, a parallel life that existed just out of his reach.

"Right." Peter suddenly smiled, letting out a small chuckle. "It's a leap of faith." That's all it is.

He let go of Miles' arm, readying himself. The boy released his grip, and the two watched as Peter was dropped into the portal, wearing an impressed grin. "Not bad," he whispered to the wind. A flash of light blinded them, and Peter was gone.

Miles and Y/n shared a glance. The tensions between them remained unresolved, but they both understood that now wasn't the moment for that discussion. Not until they dealt with Kingpin. Pulling down their masks, they exchanged a subtle nod before turning to confront the approaching antagonist.

Positioned on the side of the building, standing on rows of windows, they confronted the formidable foe. "Kingpin!" Miles shouted, readying himself. The duo started moving towards him, but he pounded the building with his fists, sending a cascade of glass their way. Lily and Miles skillfully backflipped to evade the shards.

Brandishing a gun, Kingpin took aim at Miles, firing bullets relentlessly until Lily intervened. "Nope! Sorry, that's cheating!" she quipped, swiftly snatching the weapon away with her web and swinging across the room.

A subway train suddenly sped by, hurtling toward her just as Miles shot a web at the train and hitched a ride. "Adios!" he remarked, lifting himself up. The two met on the roof of the train, breathing heavily. "We've gotta get to the panel," Lily said, trying to locate the button.

"I'll deal with Kingpin, you go and press the button," Miles instructed. Lily nodded, about to jump off, until the roof of the train broke and a pair of hands pulled Miles in.

"Spider-Man!"

Inside of the subway train, Miles flickered in and out invisibility as he evaded Kingpin's punches. But the villain predicted his next spot and landed a hit on his face. Miles tried to summon his venom strike, but it was fizzling out. "Oh, no...!"

Kingpin grabbed his neck, throwing him around the train. "Not so easy doing it on your own, is it?"

"He's not alone."

A sudden kick was delivered to the side of his face, forcing him to release Miles. He dropped to the floor, attempting to regain his breath and strength. Kingpin turned to face her, his imposing stature looming over her. "Spider-Lily," he seethed, venom laced in his voice. "And here I thought you fell off the face of the Earth after seeing Spider-Man die."

"No," Lily retorted without missing a beat, erasing her fear. "I don't run away from things. Especially not from you, Kingpin."

Lily attempted to subdue him, leaping off the wall and delivering a punch. However, it was futile as he didn't even flinch and easily seized her by the neck, following Miles, who was still slightly weakened. He tightened his hold on the two of them, slamming them against the window. "I already killed one spider, what's two more?"

Kingpin suddenly heard voices, familiar ones, to his right. Multiple versions of his wife and son appeared, glitching in and out. None of them seemed to recognize him, belonging to their own dimensions but not this one. Yet to Kingpin, they were still his Vanessa and Richard.

"What are we doing here?" One Richard spoke, his eyes holding the same fear as his son from years ago.

Vanessa stepped back. "I don't know, Richard."

Kingpin momentarily let go of the spiders, completely facing his wife as he tried to convince them that it was her doting husband. "Vanessa, it's me," he begged, his voice faltering. "You know me!"

"We're leaving now."

Vanessa and Richard, visibly frightened, dashed through the subway door behind them. The man, unrecognized by his own family, tried desperately to chase after them, pleading, "Don't go! Stay with me, please!" Entering the train car, he discovered it was empty, signifying that his family had returned to the multiverse.

Miles and Lily scrambled out of one of the windows, finding themselves on the side of the speeding train. Lily gestured toward the wildly floating panel she had located. Miles acknowledged it with a nod, and they were ready to swing away when Kingpin burst through the vehicle, landing in front of the spiders.

He'd lost everything, but he's not about to lose this fight.

"You're not stopping this. Not today."

"We are stopping this! Right now!"

Kingpin relentlessly advanced toward the two, but with the strength they had left, they fought back, giving it everything they had. Lily attempted to flank Kingpin, aiming to catch him off guard, but he countered by delivering powerful punches to Spider-Man and hurling large objects at her. How could two super-powered teens still be no match for him?!

The duo battled against Kingpin, who seemed to unleash renewed fury upon them. He tossed Miles off the train just as Lily webbed a massive boulder, hurling it at him with all her might. However, it merely crashed through him without leaving a scratch, frustrating Y/n even more. Feeling herself being thrown off the train as well, she reacted swiftly, attaching her web to his body and pulling on the string forcefully, bringing Kingpin down with her.

Y/n and Kingpin continued their brawl as they plummeted, surrounded by a chaotic mix of colors and debris. Punches to his face, a fist striking her collarbone, a forceful grab to her neck, and an uppercut to his jaw – the intense exchange of blows echoed in the surreal descent.

Miles called her name, trying to reach her just as the two crashed into the Brooklyn Bridge.

Dazed from the collision on the bridge, she shook off the pain, blinking away the blurriness to find Miles now grappling with Kingpin. However, it seemed he was struggling and couldn't hold his ground. She staggered to her feet, determined to locate the button.

Kingpin and Miles faced off, both visibly exhausted. In a sudden move, Kingpin seized Miles by the head, throwing him against a heap of debris. Miles crashed into the ground, struggled to rise, only to slip back down.

"The real Spider-Man couldn't even beat me! You're nothing!"

Kingpin was out of breath, but he was enjoying beating the hell out of Miles Morales.

He kept getting up, but Kingpin kept knocking him down. He was getting exhausted.

"Spider-Man!" Lily called out to him, reaching out her weakened hands.

Kingpin slowly approached Miles, as Miles tried to crawl away. "You took my family," Kingpin fumed, "And now, I'm gonna make sure you never see yours again."

In the crucial moment before Kingpin could land a fatal blow on Miles, akin to what he did to Peter Parker, a web shot out from behind, snatching him away.

Being pulled away, Kingpin turned to witness Spider-Lily back in action. His growls reflected annoyance at the interruption, but any enjoyment he might have felt was quickly replaced by simmering anger. If it was a fight she wanted, he vowed she'd soon regret it.

Recognizing the danger of being in close proximity to Kingpin, Lily seized another substantial boulder with her web and hurled it at him. However, Kingpin effortlessly shattered it with a single punch. Undeterred, she continued her assault, throwing more objects that hung in the air. Her goal was clear—to distract the formidable villain.

"Get up, Spider-Man!" she urged Miles, who was still on the ground. With determination, she started webbing Kingpin's elbows together, attempting to immobilize him. It took a considerable amount of webs, but she hoped it would be sufficient. As Kingpin found himself unable to move, it signaled her to unleash her fury on him.

After delivering a barrage of punches, she turned back to Miles, who was still struggling on the ground. However, she continued to cheer him on, unwavering in her belief in him. She always did.

"Get up!"

She whipped her head around to the voice and noticed a person at the control room. It was Miles' dad, also cheering him on," Come on, Spider-Man! Come on!"

Distracted, Kingpin seized the opportunity to break free from the webbed restraints and advanced toward her purposefully. He delivered a powerful punch that briefly knocked her out. Unsatisfied with that, while she was already down, Kingpin felt it wasn't sufficient. He smashed his fists directly into her ribcage, cracking the bones.

"...NO!" Miles let out a whine as he wobbled. He had to get up. He had to regain his strength and get up and save her. He couldn't let another Spider-Man die.

He couldn't let another Parker die.

It took him a few seconds but he staggered to his feet. With renowned power, he faced Kingpin.

"I'll always have my family," Miles replied to his taunt from earlier. And then, "You ever heard of the shoulder touch?"

Kingpin's terrifying demeanor faltered at the question. "What?"

Staring at him through his lenses, Miles laid a hand on Kingpin's shoulder. "Hey."

KKAAAAAAA-ZAPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!!

Kingpin received a massive venom strike, sending him flying backward from the force of the blast. Miles swiftly attached a web to his body and started slinging him around. "Hey, Kingpin! Push the green button for me!" Kingpin was sent upward, crashing against the panel—a direct hit. The venom blast extended across the entire collider room, and the beam started sucking everything back in.

Miles went to Y/n's side, who was groaning in pain. "Hey, I got you. I got you," he assured, scooping her in his arms.

"That was amazing, Miles!" She wheezed in pain, clutching her torso.

"Stay with me," he murmured, assisting her to her feet. Webbing them both to the ceiling, they clung to each other as the chaos reached a fever pitch. The beam retreated back into the collider guns, causing a massive implosion. The collider's implosion was colossal, pulling the multiverse back into order. Silently, they observed the shutdown, getting pushed back by the force but steadfastly holding onto one another.

The shaking stopped, and everything was quiet. Miles opened his eyes. "Y/n, Y/n..." he called out to her, shaking her awake. He saw the eyes of her mask slowly opening. "Are you okay?"

"I've never been better," she responded, dusting off debris from her head. They locked eyes, acutely aware of their closeness. Miles still held onto her waist, and her arms encircled his neck. Recalling his resilience against Kingpin, she couldn't help but feel proud. "You did it, Miles," she whispered, a wish lingering that her father could have witnessed his heroics.

Miles exhaled shakily. "No," there was a smile in his tone, on the verge of chuckling in relief. "We did it."

Her mask shifted as she smiled, sensing her arms tightening around him. Their attention was suddenly drawn to some coughing. From the debris of the observation room, they saw Jefferson standing up and coughing, shaking dust off.

"Come on," Miles muttered, crawling them out of the collider room. And when Jeff looked up, he saw a spider web dangling, but the two heroes were gone.

After taking care of the villain, the two found themselves on top of Fisk tower, overlooking the scene below. Multiple police cars surrounded the smoke and rendezvous of the destruction. "Ow," Y/n let out once they landed on the rooftop.

"Are you okay?" Miles couldn't help but ask again, his mask already pulled up to his forehead.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. Don't worry," she replied, dismissing him. There, she could see him properly now, his own suit that fit him perfectly. She shook her head at how the boy always managed to impress her without even trying.

Miles noticed her actions, and he tilted his head. "What?"

She shook her head again, avoiding his gaze. "It's just... you've already come so far, and I couldn't be more proud of my best friend," she expressed her thoughts, missing the way Miles slumped his shoulders at the last part. "And I'm sorry," she said, looking at him. "I'm sorry for basically throwing you under the bus. I just wanted to keep you safe, but I was dumb and—"

"You don't have to explain yourself, Y/n," he interrupted her, stepping forward and placing his hands on either of her shoulders. "And I'm sorry too for saying all those things," he said sincerely. "I didn't mean it. Your dad was a good man."

She nodded. "I know he's proud of you, too." She placed a hand on his jaw, caressing it gently. "He's proud knowing that someone so strong, smart, determined, and my best friend is the new Spider-Man."

"But he wouldn't be Spider-Man without someone like Spider-Lily, Y/n Parker," he easily added, shaking his head. "You gotta give yourself some credit." He couldn't help it, glancing down at her lips. He saw her leaning forward, and he thought this was his chance.

She silenced him with a firm hug, and Miles exhaled deeply from the pressure. When words failed, embraces spoke volumes. Ignoring the rapid thud of her heart in her chest as she noticed the way Miles gazed at her, she acknowledged that there might be significance to it, but the right moment would reveal itself—just not at this instant.

From below the building, they heard police staff investigating the scene, searching for casualties. That reminded her. "I need to call my mom," she said, pulling away from Miles, who was still reeling from the hug.

"Okay," Miles replied, turning around to give her privacy, just as he saw his dad coming out of the building, leading a handcuffed Tombstone into a cop car. He heard Y/n's voice from behind, talking to Mary Jane.

He himself got an idea and took out his own phone, pressing his dad's contact. He waited until Jeff answered in the third ring. "Miles? Miles?! Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm okay..." a beat passed as he tried to strike a conversation with him. He reminded himself that he's talking to his dad as Miles, who didn't know where he is, not as Spider-Man, who was at the scene of the crime. "You're probably busy, so—"

"No no no, I can talk!" Jeff was definitely busy, but he didn't care. "I can talk. Look, so I came by earlier because, uh... your uncle..."

"I know, dad," Miles cut in, not wanting to hear the words. His voice was suddenly meek and vulnerable. "I'm so sorry." A wave of emotion hit him as he paced around. "Do you know who did it?"

"I thought I did... but I was wrong." Miles' brow furrowed at the admission. He let him speak. "Look, Miles, what I said at the door, it wasn't just talk. Look, you know, I was thinking maybe we could find a nice wall privately owned—"

Miles started to get emotional, holding his tears back. His dad was willing to do that for him, to break the law, just to bring him comfort that his uncle used to give him. "Okay, dad," he said, chuckling sadly. "Alright."

Jeff continued, "-like at the police station and you could... 'throw' up some of your art?"

The boy withdrew his phone from his ear and donned his mask. He turned around and noticed Y/n still engaged in her phone call, now reaching out to her Aunt May. He leaped off the building and activated his invisibility, landing beside Jeff, who was expressing frustration about his phone.

"Officer?" Miles appeared in front of him with a pop!

"Spider-Man!" Jeff screamed, startled. His back straightened as he looked down at the hero. "Listen, uh, down there, that was, I mean, you and Spider-Lily... I owe you—"

He was taken aback when Spider-Man hugged him. The two of them stood there, frozen, until Jeff awkwardly patted him on the back. Eventually, they broke it up, and Miles cleared his throat, channeling his disguised voice. "I— We... Me and Spider-Lily? Look forward to working with you," he spoke with an attempt at a deeper voice.

Jeff laughed awkwardly, as if trying to entertain a small child. "Yeah, yeah. Me too, I guess." Then, "I don't approve of your... spider methods, but, we're just gonna have to agree to disagree."

Miles couldn't understand a single word, but he nodded, standing firm. Still in that faux deep voice, he replied, "Thank you for your bravery tonight, I love you," he said the last part too quickly before he swung away.

Y/n observed the entire scene from the rooftop after completing her phone calls. Mary Jane expressed relief at her safety, and she informed Aunt May that the other spiders had returned home to their dimension, successfully defeating Kingpin. Y/n glanced at her screen, at an ongoing conversation.

y/n
miss you already.

But no reply.

Stowing her phone, she noticed the police shining lights toward Kingpin, who was webbed up between two buildings. Taking this as their cue, Y/n and Miles leaped down and walked down the street, greeted by cheering people. The crowd was thrilled to witness the emergence of the new Spider-Man and the return of Spider-Lily.

"Welcome back, Spider-Lily!"

"Yeah, thanks Spider-Man!"

"You guys are the best!"

"Check this out!" Miles announced, sticking to the wall but immediately falling off. "Whoa! That was... part of the move."

Y/n laughed at him, and after holding a baby's hand, she and Miles jumped off and swung away.

***

Okay, let's do this one last time, yeah? For real this time. This is it.

My name is Miles Morales . I was bitten by a radioactive spider, and for like two days, I've been my city's Spider-Man, along with his partner, Spider-Lily, Y/n Parker .

I think you know the rest.

I finished my essay.

Great Expectations by Miles Morales.

We saved a bunch of people.

"It's them! It's Spider-Man and Spider-Lily!"

I got hit by a drone...

Did this with my dad.

They painted a tribute to Uncle Aaron on a wall.

Met my roommate finally.

Miles, upside down, fist bumped with Ganke. Ganke was stunned, but he never thought his roommate would be a superhero. Wait until he hears about his other friend.

Slapped a sticker where my dad's never going to find it.

He pasted a sticker on a gargoyle at the top of a building.

And... I finally had the courage to ask my long-time crush out.

She was given a sunflower, which glowed the same way as her eyes did. "Will you...?"

And guess what? She liked me too.

"Yes!"

I thought I was going to go through this alone, but she had always been beside me, and she always believed in me.

And when I feel like no one understands what I'm going through. I remember my friends who get it.

Ham, Peni, Noir, Gwen, Peter...

I never thought I'd be able to do any of this stuff. But I can. Anyone can wear the mask. You can wear the mask. If you didn't know that before, I hope you do now.

Cause I'm Spider-Man.

And I'm not the only one.

Y/n gazed at the city, marveling at its beauty and radiance. It was another peaceful spot she had discovered and shared with Miles for moments of relaxation. She hoped he was appreciating the scenic view that Brooklyn had to offer.

However, when she sneakily looked at him, she found his gaze already fixed on her, a tender expression on his face, a slight smile playing on his lips, and eyes half-closed. He didn't avert his eyes when caught in the act. "You're supposed to be admiring the city, silly," she remarked with a smile, playfully shoving his shoulder.

Miles chuckled, unable to conceal his blush.

"Nah. This sight is much prettier."

Chapter 13: across the arachnohumanoid polymultiverse

Chapter Text

Around a year had passed since Peter Parker died, and the radioactive spider had bitten Miles, thrusting him into the realm of superheroes alongside his best friend and others with similar abilities. It had also been a year since he mustered the courage to ask out his best friend, and she had gladly said yes.

Rio and Jeff didn't immediately notice the change in their relationship until Miles and Y/n explicitly mentioned it two weeks after his confession. Despite the shift, their dynamics remained largely unchanged, continuing to engage in the same activities they did when they were friends.

Rio was undoubtedly excited by the news. She embraced Y/n with enthusiasm, delivering a hug even tighter than usual, and urged her to start calling her "Mama" from that moment on.

That was the only thing Y/n agreed on—until Mama Rio started rambling about certain 'urges,' prompting Miles to intervene with a furious blush on his cheeks.

Jeff approved, and that was the most relieving part, considering he could come off as someone who was very strict when it comes to Miles dating. Luckily for Y/n, Jeff had deemed her 'respectful and a good kid even though her father was Spider-Man,' earning him a glare from both Rio and Miles. Y/n paid it no mind, continuing to eat the adobo that Mama Rio had prepared.

God, she'll have to get used to calling her that.

Mary Jane and Aunt May had identical reactions, both being very supportive of them. May had a knowing smirk on her lips as she essentially said, "I knew it," leaving Y/n and Miles exchanging an uneasy look in response to her statement.

The two had discussed it beforehand, and on that same dinner night, with Y/n holding his hand tightly under the table, Miles revealed to Mary Jane that he was the new Spider-Man. Y/n observed her mother's reaction, not anticipating her to leap out of her chair and approach Miles. He, too, was taken aback when MJ suddenly enveloped him in a warm embrace.

Tears streamed down her face, but a smile adorned her lips as she told Miles that Peter would be proud of him. Miles was at a loss for words, and in the midst of the emotional moment, he felt his own eyes welling up. Y/n found the entire scene heartwarming and melancholic, a bittersweet sense of peace settling in her heart.

The remainder of the dinner was filled with lively discussions about Spider-Man shenanigans, and for Miles, there was a palpable sense of relief in finally sharing his identity with someone else.

He just wished it was this easy when it came to his parents.

Over the course of the year as crime-fighting partners, they developed a routine to navigate the delicate balance between their civilian and superhero lives. Y/n willingly passed on her knowledge, sharing not only the lessons she inherited from her father but also her own strategies for maintaining a double life.

Following their school day, the duo would rendezvous in their superhero personas on a nondescript rooftop, embarking on a 2-3 hour patrol of the area. If, by some miracle, the city was devoid of any crimes (a rare occurrence), they'd head back to their respective dorms to tackle their homework. Due to the school's stringent dorm checks, they had no choice but to complete their assignments in the privacy of their own rooms.

Though most of the time, they would sneak out and do their homework on a random skyscraper instead.

Ganke found himself caught in the middle of their escapades. Despite his repeated declarations about not wanting to jeopardize his pristine reputation with lies and excuses, he couldn't bring himself to refuse his friends. However, he remained adamant about not being the "guy in the chair."

Miles had been improving himself as the new Spider-Man. The people of Brooklyn adored him, and soon enough, his image became merchandise, with masks, makeshift costumes, action figures, and even sponsorships. However, the newfound fame didn't change him; he remained the same Miles who could make her laugh until she choked, the Miles who listened to her endless rambling about her interests, and the Miles who made everything better.

They went on numerous dates, as they liked to call them. It could be exploring a newly opened store endorsed by both Spider-Man and Spider-Lily, swinging across the Manhattan skyline, or even just making web concoctions together. The cost of the date didn't matter; as long as they were together, that was enough for them.

"Wow, that's cheesy," Miles remarked one day, smirking at her with his hands behind his neck. The two were currently relaxing at a park as their civilian selves, enjoying the view from ground level this time.

Y/n Parker chuckled, rolling her eyes. "Coming from you? Oh please," she challenged. "We could be infested by mice by now from how cheesy you are."

"Erm, actually," he sat up, facing her as he adjusted his imaginary glasses. "Mice aren't always attracted to cheese."

She accidentally let out a laugh at that one. "You're such a nerd."

"I'm a nerd? That's basic knowledge!" Miles protested, his tone pitching higher. "Says the one who talks about quantum entanglement from time to time!" He pointed a finger at her, making her gasp.

"You like listening to me talk about quantum entanglement," she accused, offended but still playful.

He chuckled, gaze softening. "I do."

And whenever someone dared to interrupt their lovely time, like Armadillo terrorizing a random building, they would suit up and meet once again, but as their spider identities. It would take them at least 20 minutes to take care of the villain, call the police, and get out of the scene before they arrived.

Miles had certainly undergone physiological changes, and it wasn't just the courtesy of puberty. He had grown taller, and subtle muscles had become more prominent. He now towered over her, and he always seized the opportunity to give her forehead kisses every now and then. Y/n didn't protest, as she certainly appreciated the sweet gesture.

Speaking of kisses, a month into their relationship, Miles felt the urge with every cell and bone in his body to kiss her, but restrained himself, especially knowing that both of their families were aware of their relationship by now. Every day, he found himself adoring her more and more, and he was so happy knowing that he could freely express his feelings now that they were dating.

He was geekily pointing out the differences between the way they acted around one another as friends and as something more. Usually, she would just give him a hug before they depart for their respective classes. Now, she'd kiss him on the cheek every morning when they met at the hallways before classes.

Before, he would receive texts of her checking in and photos of the skies. Now, he could bombard her with random images that he took that reminded him of her and send her videos from the internet that he thought she'd find funny. Even their nicknames had changed to something more intimate.

Cuddling became a necessity, particularly after demanding weeks filled with exams. However, the only place where they could comfortably cuddle was Y/n's house. Their dorms were too far apart, and the staff conducted hourly check-ups. Miles' childhood bedroom wasn't exactly private, and they risked getting an earful from his parents. Although they occasionally seized the opportunity every Saturday when both Rio and Jeff were at work, giving them the room to themselves, her place felt safer, especially since MJ wasn't home all the time.

The first kiss wasn't anything grand. It wasn't planned, and it wasn't perfect. Yet, it was everything they ever wanted.

It had been a fairly good day for both of them. Miles had improved his grades despite missing some classes, Y/n had been elected as student body president, and they had been excelling as their superhero counterparts, kicking butt and taking names.

They sat on the edge of the Williamsburgh Bank Building; Miles' new favorite thinking spot, and just sat there in comfortable silence. The wind blew around them, but its current wasn't strong enough to knock them down; they simply felt it moving between them.

Miles stole a glance at her, his eyes sliding to the left as he played with the material of his suit. She had her eyes closed, basking in the wind, and Miles couldn't help but think she looked absolutely beautiful.

Now or never, Miles decided. His heart on his sleeve, he leaned closer. He lifted his arms and cupped her cheeks with his cold hands, and she blinked her eyes open, consciously nuzzling her face deeper in his hold.

Miles' breath hitched as he felt his heart explode at the innocent gesture. His thumb rubbed across her cheek, just feeling her skin and seeking serenity. Her eyes followed his as he glanced down at her lips, and he immediately heard her pulse quicken.

He returned his gaze back to her eyes, doe, twinkling eyes. She reached over and placed her hand over his, and they already felt intimate, being like this, being so close with one another. She could see him leaning closer, his lips ghosting over hers. They shared a breath, and at that moment, the nerves came in at the wrong moment, Miles avoiding her gaze. He looked down at the space left between them, until finally...

"Can I kiss you?"

His voice was barely a whisper, still avoiding her gaze like a kicked puppy. Y/n wanted to laugh, in fact a wide smile was threatening to stretch her lips. Seeing as Miles wasn't moving, she took the lead, pushing forward and pressing her lips against his.

It was chaste, quick, but their hearts had beaten faster to the same beat. She could feel him tense, sucking in air. The feeling was foreign for the two of them. They don't get to kiss their best friends every time.

Y/n pulled away slightly, but their lips were still hovering on one another. Miles forced himself to let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, his mind was reeling and his touch was getting fervent.

At that moment, he needed to feel her lips against his again.

So he dove in and captured her mouth once more, languid in movements. Slow, as he focused on their connection, the way he moved slightly to feel a change. Relaxed, the tense from before had disintegrated like dust as he pushed himself closer. Happy, when she reciprocated with just as passion as he had.

The blood flowed to his cheeks and he couldn't help it— he smiled against the kiss. Y/n felt the shift in his mouth and she opened her eyes as they parted again. Miles stared down at her, moving his hands all over her; her baby hairs, her brows, the apple of her cheeks, her jaw.

He saw her beam up at him, a smile so reassuring, so sweet and shy, the kind of smile that tells him without words that everything will be okay and we'll always have each other's backs.

Right then and there, he wanted to tell her.

"I love you."

He couldn't look her in the eyes, his gaze fixated on her lips, seeing the way it opened in surprise. She couldn't form a proper reaction, stuttering and being all flustered.

It wasn't the first time they told each other the three words. They were comfortable with the exchanges, one would say it after a completed favor, whether it be Miles agreeing to come to a convention with her, or Y/n completing one of his never-ending favors.

But they knew that this time, it had a different connotation, one that came from fleeting gazes, unnoticed adoration, and passion. More than friendship could allow.

"I don't know, I just needed to say it," he continued, leaning closer, "You don't have to say it back, though. I can be patient."

Y/n heard this despite being said in a soft tone. She squinted her eyes playfully at him in a challenge. Reciprocating his gesture, she cupped his cheeks in her hands as well, making him look up at her.

Brown eyes met hers, full of light and wonder. "Miles," she whispered. It was just the two of them, sitting on the edge of this tower. He hummed instinctively, following the sound of his name with her voice like a trance.

"I love you, too."

Those words felt like fresh air, giving him life. He moved his fingers again, wanting to see if this wasn't real and he was simply dreaming. He felt immense relief, and he realized that he couldn't be patient as he wanted to hear those words from her so badly. He wanted to hear her everyday, every minute, and every second.

"I have loved you ever since you knocked over a whole bucket of paint over yourself back in science fair," she continued, the corner of her eyes crinkling in amusem*nt.

Miles' face soured, pouting as he said, "Hey, that was an accident. And if it wasn't for me we wouldn't have placed."

"Yeah, 4th place," she shot back, squinting her eyes playfully. "If we actually went with my idea, we would have gone for the gold."

And back to the bantering.

11 months later.

It was only November, yet snow descended from above, falling on top of roofs and the streets turned white. Everything seemed to be melancholy and the usually busy city turned quiet. People seemed to gather around, grouping together. Aunt May was able to come all the way from Florida, to witness a grand opening.

A museum dedicated to Peter Parker, Spider-Man.

Someone, probably a government official that Y/n could hardly care about, brought themselves on stage and began an opening statement. They introduced who Peter Parker was, who his family were, as they stood on stage.

Y/n figured that she'll never be out of the spotlight as the daughter of a hero. It was a miracle that no one had put two and two together and found out who Spider-Lily really was, and she liked it better that way.

Peter Parker was just as important as Spider-Man. They both had significant contributions, with Peter being scientific, and Spider-Man being heroic. Inside of the museum, they displayed photographs of the hero saving different people. It didn't matter how rich or powerful they were, it didn't matter where they came from, Spider-Man saves everyone.

There were also displays of his scientific contributions, like a gadget or tool that were used by fellow scientists up until now. Y/n noticed that in some of the displays, her name was credited beside his, and in some of the Spider-Man pictures, she was also there, present as Spider-Lily.

Red and blue motifs decorated the museums, to commemorate the hero's iconic suit. His mask littered the high ceilings, and this reminded her of Kingpin's memorial fund, but this intention was much preferred by her. This was better than a funeral.

The people around her were intrigued at the many things that Peter Parker as Spider-Man had done. Kids were inspired, elderly people were grateful, and the men and women were amazed. Y/n was misty-eyed.

MJ noticed, of course she does, and did her best to give her daughter a subtle comfort through all of this. The redhead was smiling despite the tears forming in her eyes, while May was full-out crying.

Miles and his family were also present, and throughout the opening, the boy hovered near her as he admired the paintings made by fans of Spider-Man. Under the mask was the man he had gotten close with, bonded over his homework even for just a day.

"What's up, Mr. Parker? How's the new science gadget coming along?"

"Oh, Miles, I thought I told you to call me Peter?" The man chuckled, scooting his chair over to his work desk.

Miles rubbed the back of his neck, slightly embarrassed. "Oh. Sorry. I'm just used to it, I guess."

"It's all good," he had reassured, tinkering with his invention while Y/n had just returned from putting her stuff in her bedroom.

"Dad, why don't you show Miles the new tech you've been working on?" she had asked, opting to lounge by her work area.

Peter smirked, "I thought you'd never asked."

And so the three of them spent the entire evening marveling at the different inventions that Peter had to offer. The two teens quickly disregarded the homework that they were supposed to do, instead focusing on helping the older Parker with his work.

Miles blinked away the tears forming at the back of his head, sniffling slightly. Y/n noticed, slotting her fingers into his and gave his hand a quick squeeze. He looked down at her and the two shared a smile. It wasn't a happy smile, but a comforting one, one that said 'everything will be okay'.

Scratch 'museum dates' from the list of date ideas for now...

***

There wasn't a day where Y/n didn't miss the family she had formed with people who had the same circ*mstances as her. She thought she was the only one, but the prospect of the multiverse literally crash landed in her reality to convince her otherwise.

She had met the most unique people, but had given so little time to get to know each other well. It wasn't their priority at the moment, and Y/n had wished, every day since they went home, to have another chance for them to meet again without any threat to fight.

And ever since she watched the Spider-Gang jump back one-by-one to their home universe, she began wondering if there was a way to travel across it.

When a Parker gets curious, their curiosity won't be satisfied until they find answers. She started devising a device to traverse the multiverse. Memories of the collider's chaos flooded back to her, recalling how it tried to forcibly extract duplicates from existing worlds. Then she remembered how Peter and the other Spider-Gang members glitched, their cells struggling to adapt to different dimensions.

And now, she was wondering how one would stop the cells from glitching when the user is in another dimension.

She wanted some sort of remote control to channel across which universe to go to. And... with just the right information, she could maybe give a visit to her friends.

Working on the invention while keeping it under wraps was difficult, especially when the person she's keeping the secret from was her boyfriend, the only person she's been with 24/7. Mary Jane and May didn't have to know as they couldn't comprehend the idea (May was a possible option until Y/n decided to let her focus on her new home in Florida).

So for the past 6 months since Gwen and the rest of the Spider-people departed, Y/n had been working on the invention all by herself. Scratch her lab from the list of date locations for now...

Though Miles could point out the bags on her eyes all he wanted, she could easily use school homework as an excuse as they were still students after all. The reason for not telling him about it yet was that she didn't want to give him hope yet. She wanted to test it out first before consulting him about it.

And now 1 year later,

It was their anniversary.

Looking over her desk, she saw a mess. She remembered the times where she was so sleep-deprived she could hardly think, but she needed this to go through so badly. Her hopes of jumping across dimensions were still going strongly that she didn't want to back down so easily.

But today, after a failed attempt of even opening a gateway, that hope was dissipating. With shame, she finally decided that she's going to tell her boyfriend today.

Miles had planned a surprise picnic for the two of them, and he had prepared the menu all by himself— totally not with some help from Rio.

He had texted her to meet him up by some avenue, one that they have totally swung by before and Y/n didn't need to be told twice as she was already out the door.

He had specifically told her to go out as Y/n Parker, not her other identity. There must be some kind of reason, but she knew she'll hear his cheesy explanation once she arrived.

And surely enough, Miles was already comfortable sitting on the picnic blanket, the iconic red and white checkered pattern sprawled on the lush grass inviting her in.

He greeted her with a cheeky smile. "Come here often?"

She reciprocated the grin, kneeling over and giving a short kiss with her hands on his shoulders. Miles immediately placed a hand on her waist to steady her. He could feel the warmth radiating off her, especially when she gave him one of her smiles. Beautiful.

"This looks great, Miles," she gushed, squeezing his bicep.

His smile stretched wider, reaching for the basket he brought with him. "Well, it's about to get better, amor." He rummaged through the bag and retrieved the food sealed tightly in tupperwares. There were also fresh fruits he probably just bought at a market, and juice boxes.

"Mom made this just for you," Miles said, opening a pink tupperware with a sticky note on top. It said, 'Happy Anniversary, lovebirds!' and Y/n's heart melted.

The box opened with a loud pop! And she let out an excited sound when she saw her favorite food packed inside.

It was the first one she took a bite out of, giddily kicking her feet as she got to taste Rio's cooking again. Every weekend, Mary Jane usually cooks, but with her getting swamped by paperwork, Y/n could take over. But sometimes, being Spider-Lily and a high school student can only do so much.

That's why, Rio took the liberty to invite the Parkers for dinner every weekend. And though they didn't want to intrude at first, Rio insisted that they were more than welcome. Miles was ecstatic, of course, as he was given the chance to still see her after their patrol.

"How was it?" Miles asked, amused by her head bobbing.

She finished chewing, giving him a look. "Do you even have to ask that? Obviously, it's delicious!"

He chuckled, proceeding to take a couple pieces of mango cubes from a packet, savoring the sweetness. They spent their day being their civilian selves, Miles Morales and Y/n Parker, trying to go a day without thinking about their other lives.

The sun was on its way to signify noon and the people who came to enjoy the sunrise began to leave. One little blonde girl that the couple were happily observing was still busy admiring the pretty flowers littered across the park.

"Gwyn, dear, let's go home!"

Miles and Y/n silently whipped their heads towards who seemed to be her mom who also sported the same colored hair. The little girl cheerfully ran into her arms and they shared a fitful of giggles before making their exit.

It was silent between the two of them. Everything around them was tranquil, except for the buzz of traffic nearby and the swish swish of the trees. Miles wanted to talk about the occurrences from a year ago, but he was afraid it wouldn't be a fun subject, while Y/n was being plagued by her thoughts of her telling him about her invention. How would she even begin?

"I—"

"Do—"

They both shut their lips together, giving each other a look as if saying 'Um... who should go first?'

"What is it?" she asked first.

Miles bit the bullet, taking a deep breath. "Do you think about... them?" He gave her an earnest stare, waiting for her response.

She dropped her gaze, opting to look at the blanket. "Sometimes," she admitted, hugging her knees close to her chest. "You?"

"Me too. I remember that day so vividly, trying to become Spider-Man, finding out that there are other versions of Spider-Man from other dimensions..." he trailed off. "Makes you wonder about the millions of possibilities out there."

Talks about the multiverse weren't foreign to the two of them. Sometimes they would share their curiosity of other worlds and other versions of them.

"They came to our world because of our Kingpin's collider," Y/n had wondered aloud.

"Now I'm thinking about a day when we are the ones being taken to other dimensions."

She immediately bit her lip, berating herself for the mistake. She didn't mean to open up the topic, but Miles was too curious for his own good.

Maybe this is a good time to tell him about her ongoing project, one that she kept from him. But she kept it for a reason.

"Miles—"

Their spidey senses were triggered at the same time, and as if on cue there were noises of destruction followed by screams. The two gave each other a look, instantly on their feet.

"Tell me later," Miles said, reaching down and putting back all the tupperwares inside the bag. Rio will kill him if she found out that even one of her beloved containers went missing. "You brought your suit?"

"I did," she answered in relief, putting on her webshooters. "I need to hide though. I'll see you, okay?"

And when another set of screams broke throughout the streets, that was her signal to dash to the nearest alley and transform.

Miles did the same, going somewhere discreet after remembering which wall he webbed the bag onto. He quickly removed his clothing, revealing the black spidey suit underneath.

Leaping to the sky, he met with Spider-Lily, swinging towards the commotion.

It was the Armadillo yet again, up to something diabolical obviously. However, he was still no match against two Spiders who had a bond stronger than anything.

Upon throwing the villain back in jail, the people cheered for their favorite superhero duo who had saved the day once more. Immediately, there were cameras, taking pictures of them swinging away from the scene.

Spider-Lily and Spider-Man found themselves on one of their usual rooftops, with their masks remaining. "I'd love to stay," Spider-Man uttered, looking out at the city. "But I have to go."

Lily jutted out a hip as she teased, "You have a date?"

"Actually, I was in the middle of one before this happened," Spider-Man replied just as smoothly, playing the game with her. "It's our anniversary," he shrugged casually as if it was no big deal.

"Ooh, lucky girl," she retorted, nodding. "Well, I should leave you two, then."

"Definitely don't go to this specific location," he said, handing her a crumpled paper of what used to be a shopping list. "It's supposed to be private, ¿entiendes?" The right eye of his mask winked at her and before she knew it, he swung away without another word.

She opened the paper and there written on the back was the location of a rooftop of a specific apartment complex and the time below. 4PM

Looking at her smartwatch, she checked the time and she only had 13 minutes left. So with the clock ticking down, she sat down on the ledge and began formulating opening statements for her confession. I did a thing, Miles. And I'm sorry for not telling you sooner.

The wind blew around her, and she let it linger around her skin for a bit, cooling her off. She let out a deep breath, concluding her thinking session.

Putting her mask back on, she was filled with finality. One way or another, she will tell Miles.

A minute after 4, she landed on another rooftop across the street to quickly change back. And five minutes later, she leaped towards the building and landed only to find Miles already standing in the middle of the concrete flooring, arms behind his back.

"Nice of you to join us, Ms. Parker."

He was wearing his attempt on formal clothing, because it was the same outfit he wore earlier, jeans and jacket, but this time there was a clipped black bowtie on his collar. It was skewed.

He looked too damn cute.

"You look stupid," she remarked, snorting under her hand.

"Hey, this was an expensive fit," Miles fluffed up his bow with one hand, adjusting the clip. "Cost me like– 500 dollars."

"Ooh, so rich," she cooed, walking closer to him and fixing it for him. With two hands, she reached up and pulled the two ends apart. "There."

When she looked up, she noticed that he was already staring at her with a small smile. Speechlessly, he brought out a bouquet of three huge sunflowers, all gazing at her like she was the sun.

She remembered him giving her the same flower when he asked her out one year ago. He was so bashful and often tripped over his words, but he got his immediate answer the moment he was finished with his speech.

Miles invited her over to the edge of the rooftop, right where they could see the horizon that displayed the sunset. It was radiating with warmth and serenity and it was a perfect foreground for the two of them as they sat in comfortable silence.

Y/n placed the flowers aside, opting to hold her boyfriend's hands instead. She opened his palm, massaging his skin, keeping herself entertained while Miles was watching her amusedly.

They talked about the enemy they had fought earlier, laughed at their silly accidents and corny quips, and also listed their weaknesses to implement a better strategy for next time.

It was the benefit of their partnership, dating as both their superhero and civilian identity. They get to talk so openly about their lives, and they have nothing to hide from each other.

Oh.

Right.

She does.

While waiting for the sun to fully set, they were silent, making her grab the opportunity to devise a plan. She would tell Miles a brief introduction with context and then drop the bomb.

If he sounds just as exciting as the concept, she'd invite him to her lab and show him a demo. If he sounds even the slightest of doubt, she'd pass it off as a joke and pretend like she didn't say anything important. And if he asked why she hadn't told him anything about it, she'd just quickly change the subject.

He'll understand why she kept it a secret, right?

Just as she turned to him and opened her mouth, Miles dusted his jeans and stood up the ledge. She quietly observed him and his hand outstretched towards her. "Come here," he beckoned her.

She took his hand, using his strong arm to lift herself off the ledge and stepped closer to him. Miles retrieved his phone and wired earphones from the pocket of his jacket.

Raising an eyebrow, she gave Miles a look as he tried to untangle the wires. He doesn't even own wired earphones. "Did you buy this? You know you could've borrowed one from me."

"Shhh," he jutted out his lips as he fixated on unjumbling the cord. "If I did that, it would have ruined the surprise. Ugh, finally." He sighed when he eventually got the earphones unraveled. He gave her the left bud while he wore the right.

She fought the excited smile threatening to appear on her lips, anticipating what song he was about to play.

The first tune entered her eardrums, and she already knew the name, making her smile widely. Miles, after quickly tucking his phone back in his pocket, placed a hand on her waist and his other on her palm. Her eyes sparkled as she admired the way Miles guided her through their dance. It wasn't really anything formal, but her heartbeat still escalated all the same with the way they swayed around the edge of the building, not caring about the wind around them.

They didn't care if either one of them fell down, because they knew who would catch them.

***

Y/n kicked a loose pebble in the street as she walked down the avenue. The moon in the sky accompanied her and her thoughts that ever plagued her.

She didn't get to tell him.

Now, let her explain.

She was genuinely enjoying the moment she had with Miles and honestly the promise of telling him completely left her mind. Plus, Miles was distracting as hell— especially when he was the one who leaned in first.

Not a good excuse? Alright.

Y/n groaned, burying her face in her hands. She has got to keep herself together. She was given so many opportunities to tell him, even when he dropped her off in front of her doorstep and kissed her goodbye. But noooo, she 'forgot' to tell him.

When he was gone and out of her vision (she made sure she didn't hear his heartbeat anymore), that's when she crumbled and internally screamed from the outside of her home. She eventually got off the porch and ventured to the other direction, preferring to walk over to her lab rather than swinging.

"Such an idiot, Y/n," she told herself in a harsh whisper. But a small part of her was patting herself in the back for not telling him about the interdimensional travel device. She didn't want to give him hope, especially when she was losing hers.

Just as she arrived at the corner of her block, she felt her senses go haywire. She looked around for some sign of danger, but the darkness was all she saw. Craning her ears, she tried to listen for a scream of help, but all she heard was white noise. Still, she was on high alert as she continued to walk slightly slower this time...

From an alley meters in front of her, there was an orange light in contrast to the dark of the night. It was pulsating, glowing, as if drawing her in. She staggered forward, steadying her movements. Inching closer, she placed her back on the side of the building, trying to quiet her breathing. Finally, she turned and snuck a peek in the alley, seeing an orange portal in the shape of a hexagon.

Her brows furrowed deeper when a tall man with broad shoulders stepped out. He looked menacing,with his red and dark blue suit hugging against his muscles. "Lyla?" His voice was gruff and low.

"Yo," a mechanical voice answered, and a hologram of a little stylistic woman appeared on his shoulder like a materialized conscience.

"Are we in the right place?"

"Dimension 1610, like you said," the hologram replied, glitching around wildly in mid-air. "Check your gadget, dummy."

"Just make sure that the spider in this dimension is within reach."

"Well, actually—"

Y/n inhaled sharply, reeling back and looking away from the portal. She couldn't control her breathing as she tried to comprehend the last 5 minutes. There's a man in a blue and red suit stepping out of a portal with a hologram lady telling them the number of their dimension.

She knew her dimension's name. She got the chance to find out from one of the first few tests of her prototype. And it was Earth-1610.

But why was he looking for a spider?

Her spidey-senses warned her again, feeling like it was pricking against her skin. And before she decided to take a glimpse of the mysterious man again, she felt her neck being held against the wall. She whipped her head back to the man now in front of her, with hooded eyes and bared teeth.

"Y/n Parker," he spat her name out like it was a disease, his voice as low as one could hear. "Listen to me."

She gulped– at least tried to– what with the situation her throat was in. It was difficult, but she managed to calm her voice down. Her senses were still on high-alert as if it was telling her that he's definitely, totally a threat, but a small part of her, somehow, was trying to hear him out.

The man let go of her, but they remained at close distance, for them to have a discreet conversation. "Who are you?" Y/n quickly spoke before he could, determined to know who he was, and how he got here, and what his mission was.

"My name is Miguel O'Hara. I lead an elite strike force dedicated to the security of the multiverse—"

"The multiverse, so you're from another dimension?!" she sputtered, making sure that the orange hexagon from earlier truly was a portal to other worlds. Because this was exactly what she was trying to build for a year now. "How did you make that portal? How did you manage to manipulate the laws of space time continuum to configure the name of each multiverse into whatever device you just used? How—"

He punctured the brick wall from behind her, making her purse her lips.

"Shut up!"Miguel hissed, clenching his fist. "You–!" He stepped back, placing his fingers on the bridge of his nose as he huffed in annoyance.

"Why are you here?" She couldn't help but ask. She just had to know.

"I'm here... to fix your mess!" " He seethed, jaw locking in place. "Your dimension had caused all of this, and now it's up to me to get things back to order. Do you understand?"

Y/n stepped away from Miguel's close proximity, flailing her hands around. "Okay, I get it. We made a mistake, and you and your... Spider– Security Strike Force or whatever are trying to fix it." She paused, and a brief silence overtook as she tried to search for the words. "W... How can I help?"

Sighing from exasperation, she slapped her thighs.

Lyla floated around a pondering Miguel, glitching across his shoulder. She craned her neck towards him, dropping her voice in a whisper. "We could use her help..."

"Hold that thought, Lyla." He raised a hand, cutting off her speech. He placed his one hand on his waist while the other one was rubbing his forehead. He was clearly in his thoughts, but Y/n saw it as a good sign.

At least he looked like he was considering it.

She wanted to convince him further, but she figured it would do more harm than good if she opened her mouth. She imagined herself in a group of people just like her, sharing one goal of saving people and being the good guys.

And then she imagined Miles, swinging along with her and enjoying the company of other spiders. Having cool missions and a secret headquarters.

"You're in."

Miguel seemed to have gone back to Earth, his eyes still pointed in a glare. Y/n couldn't help but grin excitedly at that. She couldn't wait to tell Miles and—

"But you can't bring the other one with you."

That made all of her enthusiasm dwindle down in one quick swoop, draining the light from her eyes. "Say, what? Why can't Miles go?" She noticed the way Miguel was looking aggravated, but she wasn't about to back down. "He's just as capable as me. We both have the same powers, we both have the same duty. Why can't Miles go?" She asked again, desperate to know the answer.

"Listen, kid. There's a reason why I'm asking you out of the two of you. If I were to do that, I would've arrived in this dimension earlier and crash your date."

His tone was venomous, and she tried to stop her expression from changing into one of surprise. So this Miguel guy had been watching her and Miles, and the gears on her head were turning from trying to think how long he's been spying on the two of them.

"But—"

"You're asking too many questions," Miguel cut her off, glaring directly at her. "Are you in or not?"

Thankfully, Lyla appeared in the middle of them, standing with her rose-tinted glasses as she leaned closer towards Y/n. "Honestly, we could use the extra help around HQ." She paused, and the little girl listened intently to what she wanted to say. Lyla dropped her voice to a whisper, as if she was about to make some gossip.

"We've seen what you can do. We could see the potential. And— we could help you complete it."

That made her eyes widen in intrigue. So they really do keep an eye on them despite being in different dimensions. Lyla noticed the way the spiderling looked slightly interested, and she waved the bait more aggressively. "We really need someone like you, Y/n."

She bit her lip, contemplating her next decision. This Spider-Society was trying to tickle her brain in a way that makes her chase it. The headquarters sounded so cool, albeit her butchering up the name a few moments ago, but the thought of being able to accomplish something with the resources and training the Society could provide.

"Okay. I'm in."

She spoke before she knew it.

"Great!" Lyla exclaimed, glitching around in a happy jig. "Ohhh, this is exciting!" There were various celebratory confetti that she conjured, flying everywhere. "Welcome to Spider Society, Y/n Parker! Or should I say, Spider-Lily? Ah!"

The girl couldn't help but giggle at the exciting thought. She's got to jump across universes, and meet other Spider-people!

She allowed herself to be selfish, just this once.

"Let's go, Y/n! Through this portal," the AI lady instructed, opening the orange gateway, and the girl jumped in. Miguel and Lyla watched as the official Spider assigned in Earth-1610 had just been recruited.

"See? It's that easy," Lyla shrugged at Miguel, who watched the whole thing in silence, but his face remained emotionless. "You just don't know your way around children—"

"Lyla."

That made the hologram zip her mouth, raising both her hands in mock surrender. In a command, she disappeared and Miguel was alone again. He gave his surroundings a quick scan before retreating to the orange, hexagonal portal.

Yet another secret to keep hidden.

***

Chapter 14: guggenheim assemble

Chapter Text

Let's do things differently this time. Like SO differently.

His name is Miles Morales.

Her name is Y/n Parker.

Two spider-people against the world.

He was bitten by a radioactive spider...

She is the daughter of Peter Parker.

Different origins. Different abilities. Same responsibility.

They hadn't always had it easy...

Y/n's best friend dying in front of her, her father dying in front of Miles. His uncle dying in his arms, and his father unwittingly pulling a gun on his own son...

But they're not the only ones.

You think you know the rest. You don't.

I thought I knew the rest, but I didn't.

I didn't think it would come to this, but it did...

"Yo! Def Leppard!"

CHELSEA, N.Y
Earth-65
Spider-Gwen's World

The blonde was in the middle of band practice for The Mary Janes. Her three other band members stared blankly at her, and Gwen spoke, "Is the song over? Seems over."

"Are you okay?" Em Jay, their vocalist, asked in concern.

Glory chimed in, "You don't hang out, you don't want to talk—"

"I didn't join a band so I could talk about my feelings—"

"Well, I did," Betty retorted in response.

"I joined it so I could hit my feelings with sticks!"

Gwen demonstrated so by hitting the drum set. Glory stepped in and deadened the cymbal with her hand. "If you don't tell someone what's going on, you're gonna snap—"

"I'm fine," the blonde snapped. Exactly.

"That's not how someone who's fine would say that," Em Jay countered, fleeting her gaze to the right.

Glory added, "They'd say, 'I'm great! Thanks, how are you?'"

"I'm great! Thanks!!!"

Gwen said in a louder tone, knocking over the drum kit. There were a few noises of worry resounding throughout the stage. "How are you?!" She stormed off. The other band members called out to her, but it only fell on deaf ears as the blonde continued her venture out of the double doors.

She found herself walking against the foot traffic in her paint-streaked world. But she didn't feel as if her body was moving through it. Instead, the world was moving around her. She began to reflect on things left unsaid.

I always wanted to be in a band. Guess I just never found the right one.

In this line of work, you always wind up a solo act.

Gwen hurried into the subway, but one can't outrun a memory.

Y/n and Miles didn't know what it felt like. But before them, I had Peter.

Her Peter Parker. Back when things were simpler, and better. It was just the two of them, and their families were close. But Peter didn't really know her, and she didn't really know him either.

Everything was okay, until it was too late.

Until she had to.

"Everything's gonna be okay. Don't worry..." were Peter Parker's last words.

I never really made another friend after that.

Gwen left the train as soon as the doors were opened. Her thoughts drifted to two people she never thought she could relate to.

Except one. Two, actually. She was just so easy to get along with.

But she's not here. Both of them aren't.

And there's no way to get there.

Her hand was placed on the window of her fire escape, watching her dad's back facing her. She entered, trying not to make a sound, but sometimes it's hard to remember that her father is a—

"How's the band?"

"Uh, yeah. Great. I quit, so. Y'know, thumbs up," she hurriedly supplied an answer before hiding in her room, knowing that her dad would follow.

George spoke up from behind, trying to keep the conversation afloat. "We, uh, we caught a break in the Spider-Woman case."

The blonde froze but instantly went back to doing her menial tasks. "Oh? That's... good..." she tried to keep her voice enthusiastic.

"We're close. I can feel it."

"Me, too..."

She began gathering some clothes, failing to notice her dad's gaze, though she already had a feeling it would be a look of distress. "It'll be good for us."

"Don't be so sure," she immediately shot back, saying it under her breath.

George straightens, as if her daughter needed some reminding. "She killed your friend."

"You don't know that—"

"I do know that. I was there. She ran from the scene."

"Maybe she didn't have a choice."

It was a losing battle, but Gwen didn't want to give up. The wound was reopened, and it always stung every time this got mentioned. George wasn't the only one at the scene.

"I got a job to do, Gwen—"

"It won't bring him back!" She burst out, cutting him off. Why can't he just... accept things?

Her clothes were packed. She might not even sleep here tonight.

George stayed by the door, ignoring the tense atmosphere and going for it: "Say... you too punk rock to give your old man a h—"

The blonde flew across the room and wrapped her father up in a hug. It was tight, and warm, and quite over-the-top, but to Gwen it didn't matter because... what if it's the last one?

George melted as he returned the embrace. It was all he ever wanted...

"All units... possible superhuman event... Guggenheim Museum..."

Of course, all things must come to an end.

The older man parted away, giving his daughter an apologetic look. "Hey, this... this could be it."

"... suspect is Adrian Toomes, also known as the Vulture..."

The Vulture?

"So, I'll uh, see you later?"

He left before hearing her answer, before seeing the way her shoulder slumped and her frown deepened. "Cool," she muttered.

Once she was alone in her room, she dug out another police scanner from inside her childhood stuffed penguin, turning it on. "49-20 on scene. It's a real mess down here. We're gonna need all the help we can get!"

Gwen made her way towards her drum kit, specifically her bass drum, kicking it open. Her spider gear was tucked inside, along with other paraphernalia, but a particular one caught her eye.

It was a polaroid picture of that day; the first time she opened up to other people and how they bonded together through their torments. The blonde was situated to the left, and the boy was seated to the right, and in the middle was a girl wearing a warm smile.

The smile was contagious, as she couldn't help but smile again. The texts they sent each other passed by her mind.

If only they were here she'd have someone to talk to...

... but instead, she pulled down her mask.

"This is Captain Stacy, I'm five out. Need you to look alive. Good chance our girl shows up."

She turned off the scanner. Yep.

Opening her window, she leaped out and swung into the city. Graceful like a ballerina, like a bird free in flight. It's just simpler up here...

... because down there? It's a mess.

Police cars and trucks surrounded the museum, choppers floating around. The whole shebang.

Officers gathered around, trying to come up with a plan to apprehend the enemy when suddenly, there was an explosion followed by screams— and a strange medieval Italian voice?

"Arrivederci ragazzi!"

"Everybody on my signal," George ordered his men once he arrived on the scene. "Look out for signs of Spider-Woman!"

THWIP!

He was pulled back by webbing, along with his partner. Within seconds the whole crew was stuck to their cars, a bunch of webbing on their bodies.

"Hey– ymfghmmf!"

George's mouth was muffled as it was covered by webbing.

The perpetrator dropped down in front of them, her mask shifting as she spoke in a deep, accented voice. "How's the manhunt for me going?"

Captain Stacy writhed under the cocoon, "You're under arrest!" he exclaimed, his voice still muffled.

"Good to know!" Gwen sprinted off, backflipping into the Guggenheim, where her acrobatics landed her in a dark, smoky lobby.

"Vulture!" She called, her voice bouncing around the walls as it produced a loud echo. No one answered, and she shrugged. "Screaming their name usually works."

She looked around, scanning her surroundings, failing to notice a silhouette flying up behind her. Her spidey senses alerted her of an incoming attack, but it was too little too late when she felt the impact of the kick.

Gwen tumbled into a container of basketballs. "I guess that worked," she grumbled. She looked up at the ceiling to see the manic figure flapping above her, finally getting a good look at the—

"I am-a the Vulture! The pinnacle of man's genius!" Adriano Tumino declared his wings into all its glory. He looked like a drawing from one of Da Vinci's notebooks.

"You're not my Vulture," Gwen pointed out, raising an eyebrow. "Are you... made of parchment?"

That caught his attention, hovering above the blonde. "What cursed world have you brought me to— ARGDHSFSHASGD!!"

Vulture sputtered out, his atoms glitching out of nowhere. Gwen saw the exact phenomenon before, approaching him casually. "You're glitching, huh? Been there. Where you from, bud?"

Bud?

"I am an artist! An engineer!" He growled, shooting arrows that the blonde easily dodged.

Gwen simply rolled her eyes. "Oh great. A Renaissance man." She shot her webs towards the back of the Vulture, easily flipping onto him. It felt like a cowboy slowing a runaway mustang.

"Let me guess," Gwen continued, "You were having an espresso in some old-timey Leonardo da Vinci-dimension and suddenly a portal opens up and you wind up here. Am I warm?"

Adriano briefly paused. "Yeah. That's pretty much it."

He continued to flail his wings around, carelessly knocking down various artworks and precious collections, and Gwen noticed that the damage the Vulture was causing looks... glitchy...

She gave him a glance. "Uh, sidebar? Maybe you could stop making a mess of the art museum for no reason?"

"You call this art?!"

Gwen swiftly replied with a quip, "We're talking about it, aren't we? I mean... it's more of a meta-commentary on what we call art, but it's also art?"

Vulture had had enough or her quips, and his mechanical beak opened, revealing a flamethrower.

"I wouldn't play with fire, dude, you're kinda made of paper."

She easily evaded the flames, but not the giant harpoon, pinning her to the wall. His claws were smacked against her torso, and she braced for the end.

"Ciao, Ragazza."

Vulture reared for the final blow, as the eyes of Spider-Woman's mask narrowed. "This is such a stupid way to die."

He was about to bring down the large claw until a hard light laser-web lassoed Adriano's arm. What the...?

From above, a hexagonal portal materialized, and shooting out of it was a blue and red blur body slamming against Vulture across the room and landing on the debris. It managed to get off Gwen, who swung over for a closer look.

There, stood in all of his glory– and seemingly long cape, was Spider-Man, but obviously a variant. Seeing him made Gwen recollect the other spider-themed superheroes like her, making her look back to the portal. That's where he came from... she wondered if it was a way to travel to other worlds.

She noted his futuristic watch, red and white in color as it flashed the words, "E-65".

"Uh, I'm sorry, who exactly are you supposed to be?"

His back still facing her, his digital coat vaporized. Upon closer inspection, his suit was made out of technology, little wires decorated the reds of the attire. He briefly turned around, the eyes of his mask narrowing. "It's classified." His supposed deep voice didn't perturb Gwen whatsoever.

"You're the Blue Panther."

"No."

"The Caped Blue-sader?"

"No. I'm—"

"Dark Garfield."

"No, stop—"

"Macho Libre!"

He fully turned around, trying to be menacing. "I'm from another dimension."

"You are?!" Gwen exclaimed with faux surprise in her tone. "Wow... actually I'm not confused." She knew all this stuff already.

The other Spider-Man began his own introduction, "My name is Miguel O'Hara. I lead an elite strike force dedicated to the security of the multiverse—"

"Actually forget it," Gwen cut off, stopping his monologue. She failed to notice the other guy's reaction, which was him clenching his fist in annoyance. Could he blame her? She was rather interested in the device that was on his wrist. "Can you go to any dimension you want with that watch?" If the answer was what she was looking for, then she was hoping he would let her borrow it. She needed to pay her friends a visit.

"It's much cooler than a watch," Miguel deadpanned, pulling his arm away when he noticed that she was slowly reaching for it.

Gwen leaned back her shoulders. "Okay. Sensitive. Look, there's a big flying turkey from the Renaissance I have to bring to justice so if you don't mind—"

"It's alright, kid," he said, blocking her way. "I'll take it from him."

She looked behind him, stepping back. "Okay. Knock yourself out."

Miguel stuttered, furrowing his brows. "Why are you saying it like that—?"

BAM! Vulture slammed Miguel from behind like a wrecking ball. Ah. That's why.

Gwen took a leap, following the large turkey. "You're not funny!" Miguel shouted from above, trying to control the rampant Vulture.

"I don't know..." she replied, following after the two. The two spiders clung onto the back of the bird like nature intended.

That's when Miguel's brain finally clicked. She was one of the spiders part of the collider incident.

They busied themselves pushing the civilians away, saving them from Vulture's attacks. What were they still doing there?

"Attenzione!"

Adriano spread his wings, releasing hundreds of Da Vinci styled wooden drones as he laughed maniacally.

Gwen turned to Miguel as the two sprinted next to each other. "So you want me to handle this one, or—"

Miguel bounced off the ledge, masterfully destroying the drones in one awesome swoop.

"Huh, okay."

Still, Spider-Gwen swung up, following closely behind for assistance. The other Spider-Man tore one of Vulture's wings off with his weapons, but Adriano retaliated, immediately rebuilding it out of thin air as if he was drawing it in a Da Vinci codex...

"Ay por dios! He's got hammerspace!"

He was sent through the debris, while Adriano's spikes pushed Gwen against the wall and dragged her across. From the rubble, Miguel called out to his AI, "LYLA!" And by the call of her name, she materialized in front of him— still the size of his palm. "Can you please, you know...?"

"Nah, you gotta say it first," she taunted, glitching around.

It was quiet. "... Call for backup."

"What?"

He gritted his teeth. "Call for backup."

"C'mon..."

"Please just call for—"

"Yeah, I already called them." Lyla shrugged, the annoying Miguel giving her free entertainment. He seethed, growling. "But I enjoyed that~" she trailed off, bringing out a phone and taking a selfie with him.

A new hexagonal portal emitted a very rad and also pregnant-looking Jessica Drew of Earth 333. She throttled Vulture, stripping his feathers off his back with the wheels of her badass motorcycle before landing with a cool as hell 720 degree exclamation point.

Gwen was speechless, and the other spider took the cue to introduce herself. "Spider-Woman."

"Me too," the blonde replied, awestruck. She glanced down as she couldn't help but wonder. "Are you? Uh..."

Jessica looked down at her belly before caressing. "Oh, this? We don't know the sex yet, but my husband wants it to be a surprise." She chuckled. "He's really corny... but so hot—"

"Will you adopt me?"

"What?"

"What?"

"GUYS!" Miguel's booming voice resonated throughout the museum. "Can we focus on the big fire-breathing threat to time and space please? Y/n, evacuate the civilians!"

Gwen's head turned around so fast that it could give her a whiplash. Wait did he just say—?

And surely enough, it was. Spider-Lily in the flesh, with some noticeable changes in her suit, but it was still the iconic red and white. She clearly improved, soaring the air gracefully. "Y/n! Hey!"

Said girl recoiled upon a familiar voice calling her name. "Gwen?!" She called back, her voice cracking. While she was caught off guard, a wing came down and slapped her silly, making her lose balance. Luckily, she caught herself before she completely fumbled. "This is your universe?"

She checked her watch. Huh. E-65. No wonder.

Jess eventually peeled out, and Gwen leaped off, swinging closer to her. The two conversed casually while still kicking butt, and the two older spiders observed. No one would dare deny that they didn't look cool doing that.

Miguel clung onto Vulture, clawing his way past the renaissance armor. The two thrashed around in mid-air like wild animals. "Take a good look at my greek fire from my backpack!" Adriano declared, slingshotting one of his homemade bombs through the ceiling, sending glass shattering down into the hall.

Gwen and Lily managed to assist the people out of the lobby. "Don't let him out!" Miguel yelled, grabbing onto him. "He'll disrupt the canon!"

Vulture activated sulfuric boosters, soaring upwards while Spider-Man 2099 was still on his back. The two finally reached the open sky, and Adriano paused, taken aback by the sheer beauty of this astoundingly colorful new world he was in. It looked like an oil painting, "Che meravigliosa bellezza..."

"You get used to it."

Miguel bared his fangs, opened his mouth wide, about to put this bird to sleep—

SHING!

A bright light blinded them both, and to their right, a police helicopter whizzed by. "GO TO THE GROUND!"

Miguel was ticked off, raising his voice. "Will you get out of here?!"

"We have you surrounded!" A voice from the megaphone threatened.

"But I'm a good guy!" He insisted, wrestling with Adriano in mid-air.

"You don't look like a good guy!"

"You're just gonna have to shut up and trust me!"

Vulture launched a flock of medieval blades, and Miguel failed to catch them before it slashed into the helicopter, sending it spinning down into the building. "NO!"

Lily gasped, seeing the flying vehicle fall. She leaned down and saw a crowd of people scattering, but still in the splash area. Her gaze averted to Gwen, who had just taken stock of everyone, including her father. The two gave each other a wordless look, a single nod, before leaping into action.

Gwen spun a massive web from one side of the room to the other as she flew through the helicopter bay door and grabbed the two pilots, and Lily followed suit, immediately responding by catching the pilots and getting them somewhere safe.

Jess and Miguel followed the two younger spiders' lead, using Gwen's web to slow the plummeting helicopter. Jess and Y/n shared glances through their masks. This was the girl Y/n was talking about.

A solo act could never pull this off.

But a quartet? This quartet? It's like a symphony...

... that finally stopped the chopper mere inches from the floor. Their webs were conjoined together, different variants of it, but it managed to hold the heavy vehicle. The crowd gawked in awe. It was finally over.

Miguel carried a subdued Vulture off the floor. "That's what I was gonna do," he commented off-handedly. Meanwhile, Spider-Lily was checking for injuries among the civilians, sighing in relief when there weren't any severe ones.

As they cleaned up, Gwen finally collapsed in the rubble, exhausted, but her spider-senses still kept her alert. It won't seem to let her rest. She felt like someone was behind her, about to attack, and she turned around, tried to yank the weapon out of them— but she was out of fluid!

"HANDS IN THE AIR!"

It was her father, George Stacy, who had his own gun pointed right at her.

"Captain. Come on," she pleaded. Her voice was raspy as she stuttered out the words. She stepped back once she saw him getting closer.

"Suspect is armed," he said in his usual officer voice.

"With what?! I'm out of webs!"

"Get down on the ground."

She tried to joke, "Which is it? Hands in the air or get down on the ground?"

"You're under arrest—"

"I just saved a bunch of people!"

"--- for the murder of Peter Parker."

That hurt. "Captain, come on, I—"

"You have the right to remain silent," he continued. "Anything you say—"

"You don't understand—!"

The sound of gunshot resounded around them, causing her to stop whatever she tried to say. He pointed the firearm right back at her. "You don't understand," he countered, his voice dropping to a whisper.

She breathed, still recovering from the shock of the gunshot. Was he truly going to shoot her? She was truly running out of options, how else would she convince him not to arrest her? She stared at her father's stoic expression. A face off between his reality and hers.

... and so the only thing left to do is tell the truth.

Gwen took off her mask.

Her father took a step back. Processing. What?

She opened her mouth, bursting at the seams. "Dad..." she croaked, "I've thought about telling you, but you can see why I didn't want to... I didn't murder Peter. I didn't know it was him. I didn't have a choice."

The words were thrown at him in a panic, but George's face remained unreadable. He still couldn't fathom that the guy he's been tracking for years... was just right under his nose.

What was he even supposed to say?

He took the easy way out. "How long have you been lying to me?"

Gwen closed her eyes tightly, not liking his approach. "Can you just not be a cop for a second and be my dad and listen to me? Do you really think I'm a murderer?"

No. Yes. He didn't know what to say.

"You're in this to help people, right?"

His eyes casted downwards, avoiding his daughter's gaze.

"Well, so am I. And the way to help right now is to listen to me," Gwen continued, trying to get to him.

But all she got was silence.

"Please... you're all I have left."

A moment had passed, yet everything was still in slow motion. George spoke again. "You have the right to remain silent—"

"What?"

"Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law—"

"Dad! Are you really this afraid of me?!"

He barely held it together, continuing his speech. "You have the right to an attorney—"

"Dad! Stop!"

"Don't get any closer!" He instinctively lifted his weapon, just as she pulled her arm out towards him.

Suddenly, hardlight webs grabbed the gun as Miguel disarmed George and trapped him in a glowing containment field. The harder he fought against it, the tighter it bound him.

"Dad!"

Y/n dropped in and pulled Gwen towards her. "Gwen. Gwen. Just breathe. Come on."

"We got you," Jess assured, placing a hand on her shoulder before facing her leader. "Right, Miguel?" she challenged, making him let out an exasperated sigh.

He mumbled underneath his mask, "Lyla, scan this mess."

The AI materialized once more and summoned clones of herself to scan around the room, orange lights filling the area. "No further anomalies. Canon remains intact."

Y/n couldn't help but wince as she realized that Gwen is experiencing her canon event. Miguel activated the portal from his watch and threw the tied up Vulture into it. Spider-Lily remained on Gwen's side despite seeing the sign that they should go already. She kept whispering comforts in her ears, but the blonde barely heard them. Her eyes were locked on her father.

"We can't just leave her here," Jess explained to Miguel, following him. "She's doing this on her own."

Gwen stared at the ground, breathing heavily. "I don't know how to fix this," she said, voice barely a whisper, but the other three spider people heard her.

Jess looked at Miguel again.

Y/n does as well, waiting for his cue. His body moved slightly, as if something had kicked in. He waited for a moment, letting out a small, "Yeah...well, join the club." He nodded at her, giving her the signal.

Spider-Lily reached into her pocket and tossed her friend a watch. She saw the way the information sank into Gwen. She looked at it as if it was a new opportunity, a way to escape— to be understood.

She sent her father one last look, as Miguel and Jess disappeared. Y/n tagged along, but stopped midway to wait for the blonde. Silently, she sent a silent apology to the policeman trapped in the barrier. I'm sorry, Captain Stacy. Your daughter might need this.

Then, Gwen made her decision.

Chapter 15: back where it all started

Chapter Text

BROOKLYN, N.Y.
Earth-1610
Spider-Lily' World

4 months later...

Teachers and students filled the Visions Academy office, filling out paperwork, waiting for appointments, and all the like. Inside were the Morales couple, Rio and Jeff, sitting before Ms. Weber, a college counselor.

"I know he's just a sophom*ore but we want to get a jump on the college conversation, so, I'm sure he's gonna be here. Any minute," the matriarch began, watching as the counselor sifted through her son's information.

"He's very serious about his future," Jeff chuckled sheepishly, only to receive a stare of doom from Weber, who's heard it all before.

Outside of the office, were the Parkers. The mother had her laptop as she continued her work from there while the daughter sat beside her, bringing out her phone and texting her boyfriend.

mi sol <3
where are u? your parents are already here waiting for u

"Uh oh," Miles Morales muttered upon seeing the text message. "Well this has been fun, but I really gotta wrap this up," he said before putting his mask back on and faced his enemy of the week; a weird tall guy that looked like a Dalmatian. He called himself The Spot.

He tried to web Spot, but Spot reflexively holed the webs right back at Spider-Man's face, trapping him in a face-palm. Lenny, the owner of the bodega they were in right now, assessed the attack from behind the counter. "Maybe just pay me now," he said, referring to the beef patty that Miles took.

Miles ran out in pursuit of Spot as he struggled to remove the webbing from his mask.

Okay, let's do this one last time.

My name is Miles Morales.

I was bitten by a radioactive spider, and for the last year and four months, I've been the protector of this city as Spider-Man, along with his girlfriend, Spider-Lily— who had done this far longer than me.

And we've done great things together.

He fell out of a Spot-hole straight into a hot dog cart, spilling out its contents. "Come on, man. You could hurt somebody!"

Catching all sorts of bad guys... Y/n improved her suit, going for a material she calls 'nanotech', while I designed my new one, with some fly ambience down the side.

Y/n and I helped Aunt May with moving out to Florida...

We guest co-hosted Jeopardy... Is that even a word? "Guest co-hosted'...

I endorsed baby powder. Apologized for endorsing baby powder...

Y/n finally had her ice-cream flavor. "De-Lily-cious Double Dutch"...

My mustache came in... and out. Y/n didn't like it and I made another mistake.

I've been developing a new twist on my venom thing...

...But how much longer can I keep lying about who I really am?

Not gonna lie, I am envious of Y/n and how her family knows her identity. She doesn't have to lie and come up with excuses. I mean... would my parents get it if I told them?

Maybe in some other universe...

I just wish it's that easy.

I miss my uncle sometimes, even though he... turned out to be the Prowler.

I try to do what he told me...

"Just keep going."

VVVP!

mi sol <3
u know what if you're still not here in the next 5 mins, i'm coming in

dad
we're all waiting!
THIS IS IMPORKAGE!

"You're looking at your texts?" Spot shouted exasperatedly. "You understand this is the fight of your lives, right?" He sent him multiple punches, to which Miles easily dodged.

dad
*IMFORFKANT!
*IMPORTANT!

After hiding his phone away, Miles was back in action. He raised his arm back as he attempted to punch the villain, but his limb only passed through one of its holes, appearing in the front of his face. He used that hand to throw Spot onto the pavement.

"Oh, my nose! Ah! That really hurt!" Spot expressed.

Miles was back on texting, trying to reassure his girlfriend through the phone. "Sorry, I just really gotta be somewhere—"

"SIKE!"

Spot opened a hole under Miles, who fell through mid-text—

Y/n cranes her neck closer to the wall, using her spidey senses to hear the conversation inside the counselor's office. She listened in as Jeff practically told everyone in the room about his texts with his son. Now she figured that he's not gonna come any time soon.

"That's it," she muttered to herself, putting her phone aside. She stood up, dusting her clothes before facing Mary Jane Parker. "Mom, can you wait here? I have to get Miles."

She turned to her, raising her eyebrows. "Oh? What's wrong?"

"He's... stuck in traffic," the girl swiftly provided, some sort of code that no one else would understand. "It'll be quick. I'll be back soon with him."

"Okay, be safe," MJ replied, nodding before reverting her attention to her laptop. "I love you."

"Love you too," Y/n made her way out of the office, swinging open the door.

But before she could sprint out through the hallways, she was met with brown irises, expressed with surprise. "Oh!" The girl before her let out. "Hi! Sorry to scare you!"

Y/n blinked, but hastily recovering with a shake of her head. "It's alright. Do you need any help?"

Her eyes subtly scanned the girl's appearance; a stack of papers in her arms, her frazzled hair, and untied shoelaces. She was breathing heavily, probably breathless from running in the corridor. "I-is this the counselor's office?"

"Yes. Do you have an appointment?"

She nodded. "I don't know if I'm late, but it's supposed to be for a student counselor thing? Ahhh I don't know, my schedule's all messed up."

Y/n smiled reassuringly. "It's still Morales' turn in there, so unless your last name starts with a letter before M, then... you're not late."

The girl breathed a sigh of relief, looking like a big weight was taken off her shoulders. "Thank goodness."

Y/n bent down on one knee, tying the girl's shoelaces as she spoke. "You can go inside and sort all your stuff while waiting." She jumped back to her feet before opening the door. Before either of the two moved, she attempted to introduce herself. "By the way, I'm—"

"Y/n Parker! The student body president. Everyone knows who you are," the girl cheerfully chimed in, but there wasn't a hint of sarcasm in her voice. It had a genuinely happy tone, and it seemed like she was really excited to meet her. "I would shake your hand, but I'm scared I might just drop all these papers."

"That's okay," Y/n shook her hands in dismissal. "And you are...?"

"Gabriella O'Hara. You can just call me Gabbie," she smiled.

"Gabbie. I'll keep that in mind."

After the two of them exchanged their goodbyes, Y/n closed the door and got back to the game, running across classrooms until she reached the rooftop. The coast was clear, and there she pressed a button from the inside of her blazer, making the suit materialize all over her body. The eyes of her mask blinked as she got used to the new vision before leaping off the building and swinging her way to Miles' location.

Miles and Spot flew through a hole and onto a rooftop of another building. Spot threw a flurry of hole-punches. "I got you right where I— AOUGH!"

Spot was caught off guard when he felt a harsh kick on his jaw that sent him sideways. "Spider-Lily?"

"Spider-Lily!" Miles sounded elated underneath the mask. "Perfect timing."

Together, they defeated Spot, redirecting his fist back through the hole where it connected with Spot's own temple– THWAK!

At the end of the day, I'm Spider-Man...

Miles and Lily turned Spot into a pretzel, using their webs to tie him up. "Unbelievable! Come back to your nemesis!" Spot shouted, but Miles only patted him on the head dismissively and swung away.

"Don't escape!"

And no one can take that away from me.

The other spider swung alongside him. "I've never seen that guy before," she admitted. Though she was used to seeing villains of the week wearing weird costumes and having anthropomorphic features, this particular villain piqued her interest. She noticed the guy's ability to create portals out of thin air and internally, she was intrigued, giving credit where credit is due.

Miles hummed. "Mhm, well it doesn't matter. You know you didn't have to come, Y/n. I could handle it."

"We're partners, no?" Lily replied just as loud against the wind. "We look for each other's back. And where's my thank you?"

He rolled his eyes, his smile growing. "Maybe later. As you can see, I'm about to be killed by the hands of my parents."

"And I, for one, can't wait to watch."

***

They reached the student dormitory building, where they saw the opened window of his room. "Say hi to Ganke for me." Miles jumped through the aperture, hastily changing to his uniform.

Y/n swung back to the main building, back to the rooftop as her suit dissipated in a blink. She ran down the emergency stairs, walking out when nobody was watching.

"Hey, Y/n!" Someone greeted her from the lockers.

"Sup, Parker?"

"Yo, student body president! What's up?"

"Hey, Y/n, wanna go to the movies?"

She smiled, smoothly gliding down the hallways, smiling at her fellow students.

My name is Y/n Parker.

I didn't get bit by a radioactive spider, but I got my powers from my father, Peter Parker.

And for three years, I have been what they call "masked vigilante", or more formally, Spider-Lily.

You know the rest.

I mean, you've literally read the chapters.

I quit the Spider-Society after working there for 2 months.

It just got a little crowded, you know?

Besides, I want to focus on my future. Specifically, my future with Miles .

I know the Spider-Society's whole shtick is to save the multiverse from collapsing and all that, but they can handle things without me.

I did my job, helped finish the jump verse gizmo, co-created the dimensional transporter, and left it all up to the other spiders who I knew could fulfill their duties– maybe better than I do! Good luck, Margo.

Y/n approached the Vision's office, noticing its proximity as she walked closer. Just as she reached for the door, a hand landed on hers. She looked up and met the gaze of piercing blue eyes. The man wore a small smirk, looking down at her.

"Parker," he greeted, keeping his hand in place. His smirk was the same one he used to charm other girls, but she remained unaffected by his flirtatious advances.

"Osborn," she replied, pulling her hand back from the door. Harry Osborn, the competitive student who always aimed for the top, found himself repeatedly outdone by the girl standing before him. He was driven by a desire to impress his dead father, a task that seemed futile even when his father was alive.

She knew he was frustrated; it was obvious every time the professor announced her as the top scorer. Harry was the only one who didn't clap. She didn't understand why he was so provoked by her, considering they were both excelling academically. But she couldn't bring herself to get to know him better. To her, Harry seemed like a bear trap, enticing someone with bait only to snap shut once they got close enough.

"Are you... going to come in?" she asked, feigning interest in small talk. She had become adept at maintaining a facade ever since she became Spider-Lily. Now, as the student body president, she had no trouble embodying the more accommodating side of Y/n Parker.

"Depends. Is Morales done yet?" Harry replied, crossing his arms. His smirk faded, but the mirth remained in his eyes.

"Not yet," she answered shortly, shrugging. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I gotta go inside."

He watched her, raising an eyebrow. From the position of their surnames, he smirked as he realized. "Early as ever, Parker," he remarked.

She didn't reply to that, closing the door to end their conversation. Just as she sat down on the seat next to her mother, she heard a familiar rhythm of a heart beating faster than usual.

As if on cue, the door opened, revealing a breathless Miles in his uniform and his backpack in front of him. "Hey," he spoke.

Y/n casually looked up to her boyfriend, acting as if they didn't see each other in their alter-ego moments ago. "What's up," she said, finishing their usual greeting. She tossed her head to the side, motioning to the people inside of the room, waiting for him.

Miles sighed, already feeling exhausted, before gathering the energy to deal with this. He opened the door, all smiles. "How's this going? College! Woot-woot!"

"Now son, what do we always say?" Jeff stood up, making way for Miles.

"On time means—"

"Five minutes early," Miles grumbled as he plopped down into a seat. "I know, I know. Look, I gotta get back to being a great student so can we make this quick?"

Rio and Jeff stared at him, and he immediately straightened his posture.

Ms. Weber began narrating his progress in school, revealing his grades while his parents always provided some sort of comment. "Okay, Miles' grades are pretty good. A in AP Physics."

"That's my little man!"

"And AP Studio Art."

Jeff was proud when he heard that, "He takes after his uncle."

"A- in English."

"She's a tough grader."

"And a B in Spanish—"

"WHAT?!" Rio exclaimed, snapping her fingers to get his attention. "Miles. Mira. Esto es imposible. ¿Verdad?"

"Are you trying to kill your mother?! Ok, it's okay, it's okay."

"Calmate Mami," Miles comforted. "Eso no es my fault."

Rio fired back just as rapidly. "¿Qué es esto que "no es my fault?" ¿Estás tomando una clase en Spanglish?"

Y/n giggled quietly to herself as she listened in on the conversation with her enhanced senses. She couldn't help it; she was too curious to hear their feedback on Miles' grades. She had teased him about his grade in the class, predicting his mother's reaction—and she was right.

"What are you laughing about?" Mary Jane asked from beside her. Y/n shook her head in reply with a dismissive wave.

Ms. Weber was babbling about Miles having a story in order to salvage all this, bringing in the dramatics that his parents didn't seem to approve of. "And now, his dream is to attend the top physics program in the nation," the counselor continued.

"Whatever it takes, we'll do it," Rio nodded

"At Princeton University."

The matriarch paused. "In New Jersey?!"

Weber nodded.

"Nonononononono— that's too far!"

"New Jersey's too far from New York?" Miles said, exasperated from his mom's logic."

Rio faced him. "Oh yeah? And have you told Y/n about this? Where is she attending?" she challenged him, grasping at straws.

"Empire State!" he quickly answered her, prepared. "The same school her father went to, Ma. We've already talked about it and she's fine with it!" He said, hoping to convince them that their relationship won't have an issue with long distance.

But his father saw past that, pointing out an entirely different issue. "You've talked about it with her and not with us?"

"There's great schools in Brooklyn," Rio stood her ground, trying to convince his son to stay here.

"Mom, Princeton has the best quantum researchers in the country!" Miles explained to his parents, telling them about smarty things that Jeff tried to catch up with, but was slow to understand. "I could help figure out how to travel to other dimensions!"

See his friends...

Work with them...

"You all got me into this school because you thought I could do something special," he continued. "And now I think so, too. And the special thing I want to do is this. There are people out there who can teach me the things I want to learn... but they aren't all in Brooklyn."

Rio and Jeff traded looks. His speech was a lot to swallow.

Weber slammed her hand on the desk, and they looked at her. "That's your story! Now just stick to the script..."

His spider-sense hit him, making his eyes appear all out of focus. He squinted out the window and saw the same cow man wreaking havoc. Spot was free.

Are you kidding me?!

Miles jerked out of his seat, quickly slipping out of the door despite his parents' warnings. He was back in the hallways, on the way to his dormitory, when someone else was running with him. "How did they take it?" Y/n asked.

"I'll get back to you on that!"

After changing to his suit, he swung out of his dorm room only to be immediately t-boned by Spot with the ATM.

Spider-Lily arrived to the fight, trying to team together against Spot, but she noticed that the villain seemed to only go for Spider-Man even when he already received a couple of kicks from her. Selective attention much?

The ATM crashed through the roof of a policeman's car. Miles and Spot were inside, still fighting. Jeff ran out of the school building. "Spider-Man! Spider-Lily!"

Miles, still attached to Spot, portaled away with him, knocking over a sculpture and generally wrecking Visions. Jeff and Lily chased after them, screaming out complaints after complaints.

As the two engaged in a weird slap fight, Jeff and Spidey were also engaged in a weird banter, like father and son. Lily's eyes narrowed in disbelief and bemusem*nt, shaking her head at the predicament happening in front of her.

The four were sucked through a spot hole and into a water tower, until another hole flushed them out into the upper edge of a familiar construction site; ALCHEMAX, aka the source of this inter-dimensional mess. Spot saw the sign, his anger growing.

In the meantime, Miles and Jeff tried to catch their breath from the wild ride, Jeff talking about how Spider-Man acts just like his son, while Miles tried to be casual about it. Spidey looked up to see Spot running straight for them.

A web attached on Jeff's side pulled him away just as Spot tackled Miles into a spot hole that launched them deep into the construction pit. Lily landed beside the policeman. "Officer Morales, please. You're not supposed to be hare," she said, watching the fight that contained flying through holes. It looked like a circus.

"I'm a cop! This is my job!" He exclaimed, stomping his foot on the metal flooring.

Spot opened another hole close to them, and Lily seized the opportunity, leaping through and leaving Jeff behind. She navigated the darkness, spotting the two tussling figures and deciding it was time to end the fight.

Planting her foot firmly, she landed a powerful kick to Spot's face, separating him from Miles. Spot, frustrated by her constant interference, grabbed her ankle. This fight was meant to be between him and his maker, and he didn't need her meddling.

As they emerged from another portal, they collided with a ladder, sending Jeff, who had been climbing, plummeting towards certain death. While Lily struggled to restrain Spot, Miles' senses went into overdrive. Reacting swiftly, he shot a web towards his father, swinging him to safety on some nearby scaffolding.

"Ugh, get out of this Spider-Lily! Stop fighting his battles!" Spot yelled, pushing her off.

"I'm fighting you, man! You're making this city unsafe and I'm trying to stop that!"

"I'm trying to make him remember!" He quickly shot back, shoving her away and creating a portal to send her through.

"Hey!" Spider-Man quickly intervened. "What gives?" He pushed down the Spot until they landed at the foot of the collider site.

Spot tumbled to the ground before standing back up. "Destiny brought us here! You see it now, don't you?"

"I really... don't?" Miles shook his head for a reason.

"I am your nemesis!" Spot declared, throwing portals at him, to which he dodged with ease. "You really don't remember what you did to me... what I did for you?"

"Uh... no."

"I worked at Alchemax. I ran a test on this collider that brought a spider here from another dimension. 42... it escaped and bit you. My spider made you Spider-Man."

Miles slowed down to a pause, taking the information. "What?"

"You ran through the cafeteria," Spot continued, his voice gradually filling with rage. "You hit me with a bagel!"

"I've hit a lot of different villains with a lot of different food.

Lily finally caught up to the other two, along with Jeff sliding down to the bottom of the site and joining the spider heroes.

"You make your flippy, little sassy jokes and everyone loves them. But no one knows what it feels like to be on the other side.

Miles and Lily exchanged looks with their masks. "I'm just trying to lighten the mood," he replied to Spot.

"I created you. You created me."

"Spider-Man, why'd you create that guy?" Jeff chimed in.

"I didn't! He's talking crazy!"

"I was in this collider room when you blew it up!"

The spider-people shared looks again. Was he aware that they were both in the collider when it blew up?

"Because of you, I lost my job, my life, my face! My family won't even look at me!" Spot motioned to Miles. "I made you into a hero! You made me into THIS! Look at me! You did this to me!"

Spot runs towards them, crackling with energy. He looked like he was a much more imposing figure than he was only moments ago. Portals surrounded him, as he scurried his way. Miles and Lily prepared themselves for the blow.

"Look at me! I'll make you respect m—"

NOPE. Spot literally kicked his own butt into a portal.

"I am your nemesi—!"

The portal closed up, and he was gone.

There was silence, as they tried to process what just happened. "Where'd he go?" Jeff asked, breathless.

"He... kicked his own butt." Miles thought that that was one of the weirder sentences he admitted out loud, but they saw the same thing as him.

Jeff walked away, irritated. "You know we're supposed to catch the bad guys, right?"

"I always do...!"

Y/n jutted her hip as she gave him a look.

"...usually."

The two spiders trailed behind Jeff out of the construction pit. Overhead, a police car dangled from a sky-bound portal. The officer they were following spoke into the walkie talkie, "Guiterrez, get the crane, man!"

"I am trying to do right out here," Jeff said.

Miles tilted his head, still answering with his weird low 'Brooklyn' accent. "I mean, Spider-Lily and I are trying, too.

"And the two of you need to be a better role model."

"We're a great role model."

From behind them, the police car finally dropped from the portal and into the ground, sending a port-a-potty flying.

While still staring at the two, he muttered into the walkie. "Gutierrez. Cancel the crane." He departed from the duo, just as they looked at one another. They watched as Jeff punted a traffic cone in frustration.

Lily placed a hand on his shoulder. "Go on, talk to him. I'll handle talking with the construction guys over here," she said. She leaped out and greeted the staff from the side, while Miles tried to keep up with Jeff.

"Do you... want to talk about it?"

"Are you crazy?!"

"Well, men of your generation ignore their mental health too long," Miles informed, placing his hands on his hips as if he was the wiser one out of the two.

Jeff started talking to himself, spilling out his anxieties and insecurities to the air. "What am I– what am I even doing? 'Cause no matter what I do, someone always thinks I'm blowing it."

Miles gingerly approached his father, hearing his admission that he thought he would never hear when he took off the mask. They both stare out at the overlook of the construction site as if it were an ocean.

"So... your son..." he began. "How's he doing? You think he's gonna figure it all out?"

"Honestly?" Jeff was looking to the other side, avoiding his gaze.

"Yeah...?"

"He's a good kid."

"Yeah?!"

"You know, it's scary. He says these things that are so smart..."

"Cool. Well, I should probably..."

"And then he does things that are so stupid."

Damn.

"I just don't want him to mess it up."

Miles came back to the railing, muttering on the side. "Maybe get off the kid's ass—"

"I'm sorry, what?"

"What? I don't know?" He pretended he didn't say anything.

Jeff continued. "And I hate that he's not being honest with me."

"Maybe he's scared to talk to you..." Miles answered, sprinkling a bit of honesty into that sentence.

"WHY WOULD ANYONE BE SCARED TO TALK TO ME?!"

The eyes of his mask widened. Uhm...

"It's just—" Jeff sighed, looking over the site again. "You think you're getting good at being a parent, you think you got it licked, and then they go and grow up. He even has himself a girlfriend now. Though I have to admit, that girl is a good kid. They're good for each other and I see that they lift each other up, but... I just don't wanna lose him. You know?"

Miles didn't realize that he was staring at him until the silence went on a little longer. He shook his head before trying to give out advice. "Well, as an objective observer with no skin in the game, I say, you gotta let him spread his wings, man." He stretched out his arms awkwardly.

They look out across the site, tarps shimmering like waves.

He casually-not-so-casually leaned on the railing, trying to save the conversation. "If this isn't nice, what is?

Someone clears their throat from behind him. "Ehem. Spider-Man?"

He whipped around to see her standing there, waiting for him. "Right. We should get going."

"Yeah, and catch that holes guy!" The older man looked at the two of them just as Miles walked over to his partner.

Spider-Man suavely turned back to Jeff. "Don't worry, I don't think that guy is gonna show his face again."

***

Y/n and Miles sat on the edge of the rooftop, their legs dangling as they ate their sandwiches. After the fight, she had headed straight back to the counselor's office, just in time for her evaluation. By then, O'Hara and Osborn were gone, and she was up right after Karen Page. Her grades were good, MJ was proud as usual, and her dream school had given its approval.

"What time is the party again?" She asked him, munching on the sandwich they got from a random stand on the corner of a street.

"5PM," Miles answered, fiddling with his mask. "They're looking forward to seeing you again, you know."

That alone made her smile as she remembered the last time she saw his family. "Likewise. Your cousins were fun."

"More fun than me?"

"You know what I mean," she rolled her eyes playfully, reaching for another sandwich. Before she could grab it, Miles shot a web, pulling it away from her grasp. "Hey!" she protested, but he just grinned.

"Don't fill up too much. You'll need room for all the food at the party later," he warned, his tone half-serious half-joking.

Y/n stood up, balancing effortlessly on the narrow ledge. Miles followed her lead, his movements graceful despite the precarious footing, as he finished the last bite of his sandwich.

"You know," he began, his voice carrying a sincere tone, "we make a pretty good team. Not just as our superhero selves, but... as Y/n and Miles."

That alone brought a smile to her face. "We do, don't we?" She took a step forward, testing her balance. "It's crazy to think about the future, though. College, responsibilities, the whole shebang." She shifted her weight, balancing on the balls of her feet.

"Eh, we'll figure it out," he replied, his steps mirroring hers. "We've always had each other's backs."

"I just... I don't want things to change between us." She pivoted on one foot, her eyes meeting his. He knew what she was referring to.

He took her hand. "Whatever it is, we'll face it together," he reassured her, "You know nothing could ever change how I feel about you." He squeezed her hand gently.

Despite his words, she remained pensive, her movements less sure. "What's on your mind, querida?" he asked, concern in his voice.

"It's just... I want you to know that whatever happens, you'll always be my Spider-Man, alright? Don't let other people tell you otherwise." She shifted her stance, tightening her grip on his hand.

"Of course," Miles smirked, maintaining his steady posture. "And you'll always be my Spider-Lily."

"Hell yeah, I am," she said with a confident grin.

The two of them laughed, dancing around the ledge with careful, measured steps, their worries momentarily forgotten in the joy of the moment.

***