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sugars-fluffy-escapes · 2 years

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A Rose Without Thorns

Peter!3 x ND!vigilante!reader (Reader is a moral vigilante, but they do some very brutal business. A lot of people initially perceive them as a villain. Lookin at you, J. Jonah Jameson)

*Please listen to this playlist, during your read and please also check out these character posts for Gabisile and Amari beforehand*

*SPOILERS FOR SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME + THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 1 AND 2 | Takes place in Peter 3's universe after the events of No Way Home*

SFW; Fluff intertwined with a shit ton of angst

Words: 33,687 (Lawd have mercy)

Summary: Y/N L/N is a very timid and soft spoken individual whom Peter became acquainted with during his many trips to the bookstore and cafe they happen to work at. No one in Y/N's life, not even their best friend, knows that they are New York's new infamous vigilante, Wrathful Rose, a ruthless soul who never pulls punches when it comes to their job. They've never even been seen. Spider-Man is the only person to come close to seeing Rose, but each time he nearly does, they've already slipped away. When their paths finally cross, he tries to convince them to go about things in a less brutal way, later leading to him presenting an unusual ultimatum in hopes he can save them from being consumed by the darker, vengeful, brutal path that he was consumed by for years.

Warnings: Violence, descriptions of injury and blood, swearing, very brief hints at a man being creepy, mentions of death, brush with a near death experience and retelling/discussion of it, processing trauma, a lot of crying; comfort, angst to fluff (emphasis on the angst), slow burn romance (extremely slow burn) web restraints (NOT in an nsfw way) and of course, tickles (courtesy of you know who)

DISCLAIMER: My goal with this story is not to glamorize pain, violence, or vengeance, or trauma. As someone who's felt very wrathful because of past experiences, my hope with this piece of writing is to show how the reader navigates and processes their pain, how the rage and wrath begins to consume them, and how they'll work to overcome that with the help of someone else who knows that pain, who knows how grief and rage consumes a person, and who knows that the path the reader is on won't heal their heart or soul, because it didn't heal his. The songs are chosen to invoke the emotion the characters are feeling, and to further immerse the reader in the world this story takes place in. I wanted this to feel like a cinematic experience but still simply be words on a page. Also, all aspects of reader's neurodivergence are written from my personal experience as an ND person. Not every neurodivergent person experiences what the reader experiences. I wanted to write a long fic about how an ND reader would navigate life as a vigilante and how they would be masking, literally, and figuratively.

[NOW PLAYING]

< Everybody Wants to Rule the World - Tears for Fears >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 4:13

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

-Witnesses say it was at this very intersection that they witnessed the aftermath of a brutal attack on now-disgraced BluangelTech executive, Preston West.-

Peter's eyes stared aimlessly at the television screen hanging above the cafe's counter, absentmindedly fiddling with his sleeves. It was the fifth news report of its kind in less than a month, and he had yet to miss one.

-Mr. West was found unconscious with several injuries, including a fractured ankle, dislocated shoulder, and multiple broken fingers. He'd been left on the hood of his car, the roof of which had been painted with the word 'Extortionist' in what is now confirmed to be his own blood.-

"Fuckin hell," a passerby commented, though Peter didn't acknowledge him. The description of the violence inflicted on the man, though he was very much a scumbag, made Peter's stomach turn. He felt he was seeing the more brutal and vengeful version of himself as Spider-Man all over again, and the thought sickened him. Each time Peter had arrived at the scene, Wrathful Rose had already slipped from sight, leaving behind a bloody message, and a bloody signature.

-All digital billboards in the area then played footage of Mr. West's uncovered criminal dealings. This footage has been reviewed and confirmed to be real, and after he has recovered from his injuries, the District Attorney is set to indict Mr. West on charges of extortion, amongst what we're now finding out is a laundry list of crimes. Aside from extortion, Mr. West will be charged with perjury, harassment, fraud...-

"Here... Here's your coffee, Mr. Parker." Peter briefly took his attention away from the screen to acknowledge the soft-voiced individual who'd handed him his drink.

"Thank you, Y/N." His smile was warm as he adjusted his sweatshirt. "I've told you though, you... you don't have to be formal. You can call me Peter. We've, uh, known each other long enough, right?"

"Peter... Right... S-Sorry. I'm still working on reminding myself." Y/N corrected themself and timidly fiddled with their fingers, before noting Peter had glanced back up at the television.

The bittersweet aroma of the freshly brewed coffee wafted into his nose as the hot cup, though covered by the cardboard zarf, heated the skin on his palms. He caught Y/N wincing out of the corner of his eye, and looked over to see them rubbing their shoulder over the sleeve of their red sweater. "Y/N, are you okay?"

"Hm? Oh! Y-Yeah, sorry... I... I slammed my shoulder on a doorknob at home after picking something up..." Y/N answered sheepishly, thumb fiddling in an attempt to smooth a wrinkle in the fabric. "It's definitely bruised. I'm... I'm really clumsy outside of work..."

"I'm sorry, Y/N," Peter said sympathetically. "I know that feeling... I... I'm clumsy too. Make sure you ice it when you get back home, y-yeah?"

"Mhm. Thank you, Peter." The two both glanced up at the television as the reporter continued. Neither had noticed Y/N's friend and coworker Gabisile eyeing the two, with sheer amusement at their attempts to socialize with each other. She'd seen it time and time again, and had to bite her tongue to keep from commenting on how disgustingly and awkwardly cute their interactions were. They were the kind of interactions that emitted the ultimate form of secondhand embarrassment, but were far too sweet to look away from. She glanced over at her and Y/N's friend Amari, who sighed and smiled as he counted out a customer's change.

[NOW PLAYING]

< Sweet Dreams - Eurythmics >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:37

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

-BluangelTech, through a message delivered by its CFO, Alan Proctor, has denounced the disgraced former executive and refuses to comment further. Although we cannot put a face to the culprit behind Mr. West's exposé, people seem to be in agreement that this could only be the work of the mysterious Wrathful Rose, as their signature motif was painted on the car, also in Mr. West's blood.-

It was not easy by any means for Y/N to act as though they did not already know every detail of the event being reported on the television. After all, they were the reason for all of it. They swore to themself that neither Gabisile, nor Amari, nor Peter, would ever know the truth.

"Bloody hell..." Y/N breathed, eyes widening when they realized what they'd said and growing embarrassed by Peter and Gabisile looking over at them simultaneously. "No! Oh God! I'm so sorry, I... I did not mean it like that."

"I mean, it was kind of funny," Gabisile stated through grit teeth and an amused grin, laughing when her friend hid their face in their hand. "Aww, dohon't be embarrassed, Y/N!"

"It was very poorly timed, Gem. And not in good taste to use that particular word..." Y/N began to tug on their sleeves in a self-soothing manner.

"It's okay. It happens to everyone, Y/N. Especially me. You... you don't need to be embarrassed for a slip of the tongue, alright?" Peter offered them a reassuring smile, which made Y/N's face feel warm, the corners of their mouth involuntarily turning upward. They'd be lying to themself if they said they didn't find Peter Parker incredibly charming.

"Thank you, Peter," Y/N muttered, eyes wandering back up to the television. Given their position, they had to strain their neck to do so, and moved to lean back against the counter, Peter right on the other side. He glanced over at them, noticing the paler, slightly raised skin under their choker, an accessory they were rarely seen without, and always accompanied by a small gold necklace with a latch that kept it shut. At times, he wondered if there was anything inside. The scar spanned across the width of their throat, nearly ear to ear. Y/N had never acknowledged its existence, and Peter never commented on it. He did get curious the first time he saw it, and had opened his lips to ask, but Gabisile saw and knew what he'd been about to do, and rapidly shook her head, moving her hand in a fast side to side motion and mouthing a hard "don't." It was made clear to Peter in that moment that it wasn't something they ever spoke about.

[NOW PLAYING]

< Science Fiction/Double Feature - Richard O'Brien >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 4:33

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

"Do you... think they'll catch the Wrathful Rose?"

"I hope the hell not," Gabisile interjected, smirking with satisfaction at the television screen. "They're my new hero."

"They've got all this evidence, though. With a very efficient means of gaining it. So, why the violence?" Of course, Peter knew Wrathful Rose was sending a warning message to other people who did what West did, but he also knew what kind of damage that amount of rage did to one's state of mind. Of course he knew. He'd felt that same way. That kind of violence, it was personal. His question was simply a cover.

"I won't sugarcoat it, these fuckers deserve it," Gabisile shrugged. "It's not like they're being killed. Besides, the hospital visit will give 'em a little extra time to reflect on their stupid and vile life choices."

"You really like violence, Gabi..."

"I like an adrenaline rush, an interesting story, and some good old fashioned payback when people deserve payback," Gabisile corrected. "Yeesh, Y/N! Do you say the same thing about horror film watchers?"

"I watch horror films!" Y/N stated defensively.

"And you scream. We're four movies into our Saw marathon and you still squeal like a cute little guinea pig!"

"Aren't y-you supposed to!?" That made Peter chuckle. Y/N's face seemed to gain a bit of a glow as they grew flustered and hid their mouth behind their sleeves.

"OhmyGodyou'resocute," Gabisile sighed in one breath, leaning forward and squishing her friend's cheeks. "How have you not been cuffed yet?"

"Stop it..."

"Look at this face!" Gabisile turned Y/N toward Peter with a proud toothy grin, ignoring the whines of protest from her friend as she squished their cheeks and made them pucker their lips. Peter laughed at the wholesome scene playing out in front of him. "This is the face of a cinnamon roll! You agree with me, right, Peter?"

"Oh yeah, definitely. A total cinnamon roll. The epitome," Peter agreed. "Cinnamon roll of cinnamon rolls you might say."

"Don uhncourage huh! Gehet uff, juhmuh!" Y/N's muffled voice had him chuckling.

"What was that, Y/N? I don't speak cutie-pie," Gabisile teased, snickering when Y/N lightly swatted at her hands before she let go of their cheeks.

"Ahare you good, Y/N?" Peter asked apologetically.

"Both of you are mean." Y/N huffed, gently massaging their aching face with their fingertips. "Damn it, Gemma. I'm gonna have sore cheeks for the rest of my shift."

"Pause- Hm. Hmhhm... Sore cheeks~"

"Gabi!" Y/N's voice was nearly a shriek as they slapped their snickering friend on the arm and scolded her. "I. Did. Not. Mean. It. Like. That!"

There were a few seconds of silence from the three, Y/N hiding their face in their hand, with Gabisile biting her knuckle to hold in her laughter. She would have succeeded, had it not been for the quiet repeating of the phrase from the man sitting at the counter in front of her.

"Sohore cheeks..." Peter muttered under his breath in a higher tone of voice, pressing his lips together in a half-hearted attempt to stay composed.

The one little giggle he let slip did him in, and his shoulders shook while he chuckled. Gabisile began cackling wickedly, slapping her hand on the counter. The two's reactions were akin to children at a sleepover who were trying and failing to suppress their mirth over potty words at two in the morning. Y/N tried. They really tried. When Gabisile inhaled and repeated the phrase with a high pitched voice, the snort that followed had Peter throwing his head back with laughter, and Y/N giggling hard. Peter couldn't help but tune in to the sweet sound that left Y/N's lips as their fists rapidly shook in front of their chest. The three spent more time laughing over the phrase than they cared to admit, and by the time they were done, Y/N was holding their abdomen with their hands. Amari looked over at them from his place at the register, having heard the laughing fit quite loudly, and promptly turned back around while shaking his head.

"I'm not even gonna ask."

"Youhou missed out, Mars! Whoohoo! Oh Gohod, I'm crying," Gabisile sighed, fanning her eyes and staring up at the ceiling. Peter grinned at Y/N, who had been whining about the fact that they'd never live that down, still beaming, though their brows furrowed into a wince from their sore belly. "Ooh! Look!"

-The NYPD have attempted to locate Wrathful Rose to ask about just how they were able to obtain the evidence regarding Mr. West, as they attempted to do in the past with others who have already been tried, convicted, and sentenced, and those who have been indicted as recently as last week. However, Wrathful Rose and their whereabouts continue to remain a mystery.-

"It seems like Wrathful Rose is always ahead of the police," Peter noted, biting his thumbnail as it rested on his lip. "No other vigilantes have crossed paths with them yet either."

"Maybe... maybe Spider-Man will..." Y/N pondered aloud, before looking at the taller man, their words having caught his attention. If only Y/N knew. And unbeknownst to Peter, if only he knew. "I-I... I gotta get back to work now before Gem embarrasses me again. It was really nice seeing you, Peter. Please let me know how you're enjoying the book I recommended."

"I will! I uh, actually read a couple chapters yesterday. I-It's a really good read so far. Take care, Y/N, alright? I'll see you around." Peter couldn't help but chuckle when Y/N simpered and waved shyly, before turning to help another customer, greeting her with their soft voice and smile. Y/N's words echoed at the back of his mind for a while. Maybe they were right. If Spider-Man could catch Wrathful Rose at just the right moment, he could directly ask them what their motive was. Lifting his drink to his lips to take a sip, he paused when his eyes caught a glimpse of writing in black sharpie.

Have a wonderful day, Peter! I'm four chapters into "Bravery in the Depths" so far. I love it! Thank you for the book rec! See you tomorrow! (Or whenever I see you. See you!)

~ Sincerely,

Y/N

The grin was almost instantaneous. The corners of his eyes crinkled with joy at the sweet little message written on the cardboard. Y/N was a very sweet soul, empathetic and awkwardly endearing. Though the two didn't really see each other outside of the cafe and bookstore, they were very much in the midst of a budding friendship. He felt that since meeting two of his counterparts in the multiverse mishap, and with his newfound perspective, it had become a little easier to start connecting with new people; albeit, very hesitantly, but he was making progress, and that's what mattered most. After leaving the cafe and bookstore, as he skated down the sidewalk, a high school hobby he hadn't ever left behind, his mind wandered back to the Wrathful Rose. He found himself feeling worried about what emotional state they'd have to be in given just how violent they were. Peter empathized with them, even though he didn't know their exact reasons yet, for doing what they did. He already knew for certain, however, that it was definitely personal, and he was determined to help them before they were too far gone.

[NOW PLAYING]

< One Way or Another - Blondie >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:29

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Peter lay in his room, mind wandering aimlessly as he stared up at the ceiling. Silently, to himself, he was counting. He had nearly encountered Wrathful Rose ten separate times, and he had tried everything he could to stop them so he could talk to them before they slipped away, but he was always just a second too late. It seemed like he'd never actually come face to face with them. The urge to talk to them was eating away at him. Every day that passed, was just a stronger desire to find them.

"Always gone before someone sees them... Seems to have set targets... Figure out their next target..." Peter's out loud mind mutterings trailed off, jaw dropping and his brows furrowing as he slowly lifted his head. "Figure out their next target. Shit!"

In that instance, Peter kicked his legs and shot up out of his bed. He began scouring the web, typing furiously on his computer (though being mindful of his sticky fingers, a lesson very much learned from years ago when he first got his powers), for any and all news articles relating to Wrathful Rose. Begrudgingly, he also searched the Daily Bugle, though he opted to skip any videos and articles containing reports from J. Jonah Jameson himself. Fucker.

Amidst his research, he discovered that there were at least twenty, if not more, who'd been targets of Wrathful Rose's violence. Of those twenty he'd managed to find, fourteen of them had been tried and sentenced as a result of the evidence left behind at the scenes, two were awaiting sentencing after their verdicts, and four had just been charged.

When he wasn't collecting data, he'd continue searching for Rose out on his patrols. Day after day, however, he arrived right after they'd already left, with no hints at where they possible could have gone. Each time, he'd cuss in frustration, throwing his arms up and pacing before swinging away and continuing his patrol. Peter had created a whole map of articles, of all of Wrathful Rose's previous targets, searching for a possible connection between all of them but finding none, other than the obvious, that all of them had serious skeletons in their closet, and Rose was tearing down that closet door- perhaps taking an axe to the wood- and yanking the skeletons out. Their crimes didn't appear to be connected either. Of course, some charges overlapped, but they were completely independent scenarios. He bit his thumb and closed his eyes, letting out a sigh of discouragement. Each new report on the cafe and bookstore television each morning was driving him up the wall. Y/N, Gabisile, and Amari were overwhelmed with customers that day, so he wasn't able to stick around and talk, but a couple's conversation caught his attention as he was ambling toward the exit.

"No, I'm telling you, honey! I had a cousin that worked at BluangelTech! Once you quit, or you get fired, they completely expunge your history with the company!"

"Ronny, there is no way a company could actually get away with something like that."

"Tell that to my cousin then, Susan!" The man argued. "I swear to God, Preston West woulda been erased from the BluangelTech history books if that Wrathful Rose person hadn't brought the information to the media's eye as fast as they did! Oscorp did something similar when that Max Dillon guy became that electric dude..."

"Electro."

"Oh, so you know his name, but can't be bothered to remember my sister's?" Peter's ears began to ring from those words, and as soon as he was standing on the sidewalk, he ran. At home, he made a note about the past targets all being possible former employees of BluangelTech, and pinned it to the center of the cork board, before letting out a huge sigh and trudging backward to his bed, falling onto it with a huff. He still had no idea who was next.

[NOW PLAYING]

< The Game Has Changed - Daft Punk >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:26

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

A week had gone by. The sun had set in the city that never sleeps, lights still illuminating the area, cars honking, streets bustling with people, everything coated by the aftermath of the morning's rain storm. Peter crouched on the roof to observe it all, watching carefully before he began his patrol. He swung around for a while, before he felt the familiar tingling sensation, strong and loud. Without hesitation, he leapt from the roof, his web shooting out and propelling him down the block. It had to be Wrathful Rose again. He was sure of that.

A loud, agonized scream echoed in the direction he was already headed. He landed on a fire escape, and looked down at the ground below, only to see an older man with greying hair, and a wrinkled business suit, lying on the street. His clothes were bloody, soaked by the wet ground, and he was writhing from pain. Peter realized the man was missing both of his hands, with the word "PERVERT," written on his white collar shirt. A few feet away, sat a folder of what Peter assumed was evidence, being held by the man's disembodied hands. Despite the horrified screams of the gathering crowd, Peter looked around the area, breathing heavily as he attempted to pinpoint exactly where Rose was hiding. The crowd had begun to ask him questions, some yelling at him to do something, others cheering, but Peter had to tune it out. Wrathful Rose was still in the area, and they were not getting away. He caught a glimpse of a shadowy figure disappearing down the alleyway, and jumped forward, launching himself into the air and swinging after them, narrowly avoiding kicking anyone in the growing crowd.

The figure had already made it to the top of another fire escape, pulling themself over the roof's edge. Peter's tingle was set off again, and he immediately rounded to the other side of the building. He knew they had heard the frantic crowd yelling at him, inadvertently alerting Rose he was near, and would work to get themself a good distance away, so he sneakily stayed low and followed them. After several blocks of distance had been put between the scene of the attack and Wrathful Rose, Peter used his webs to catapult himself up to the roof of the abandoned building they'd halted atop. As he landed, the person he'd been chasing froze in their tracks, and let out a small gasp. There they were... After several instances of them narrowly evading ever being seen by Spider-Man, he and Wrathful Rose had come face to face. Rose's stance was defensive, poised for attack. Peter studied them with a tilt of his head, seeing the darkness that surrounded their eyes and malice in their ruby red irises. They were definitely angry, and not at all happy to see him.

[NOW PLAYING]

< There He Is - Hans Zimmer >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:06

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

"Hi there! You must be Wrathful Rose."

The dead silence was painfully awkward, Rose refusing to say a word as they kept their eyes glued to the masked man.

"Wow. I finally catch more than a glimpse of New York's new vigilante," he stated. "I gotta say, it's nice to put a face to the name. Well- y-you know... some of a face... like a half of one? One third, maybe?"

Peter gestured to the mask that covered their mouth and nose. Rose scoffed, hand glowing red as they prepared to attack him.

"Woah! Okay... you've got powers! I don't know if I saw that one coming honestly. You seem to have no trouble brutalizing people without them."

"Save your cocky banter for the child's play villains, Spider-Man." Rose pointed at him, the glow spiraling from their wrist to their pointer finger. "And you're one to talk about brutalizing people."

That comment stung. Peter knew all too well they were referring to the years he spent as a Spider-Man who didn't pull his punches. "Okay... ouch. Looks like you're just as callous with your words as you are with your hands."

"If you're done with this little standup-slash-roast routine, I have places to be."

"More overkill violence to dish out?" Peter questioned.

"You know damn well, that these fuckers deserve every bit of pain I inflict. Do you see me harming innocent civilians, bringing destruction to the city, stealing, murdering?" Rose challenged, taking a step forward. "I'm not the next Lizard or Electro, Spider-Man."

"Lizard and Electro got dealt some really unfair cards, Rose. You know that. What happened to them was really, really shitty, and bad things came about as a result. They aren't doing those things anymore. They're not villains-"

"And I am!?" Rose's voice raised in pitch and volume, defensive, and venomous, as they jabbed at their own chest with their hand. "I'm not some monster trying to take lives or make the city panic. I have every right to dish this pain out on those who deserve it. Now stay out of my way, and I'll stay out of yours. Sound fair?"

"Why do you take things this far...? Why is this necessary to you? They said you tortured Preston for an hour. Why?"

"Because. it's. not. enough," Rose hissed. "I'm sending those scumbags a warning to clean up their act, or else they'll end up like Milton Jenkins, Brandy Crawford, Clarence Grover, Alicia Spence, Preston West, and especially, tonight's Chester Rogers. You know they're not the only ones, and they won't be the last. Get out of my way, you foolish arachnid. I'm warning you... I will crush you like a bug."

"Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm not doing that. I can't let you go about things this way, Rose."

"Who the fuck do you think you are? The overseer of New York's heroes?" Rose spat, both hands glowing. "You're not the king, Spider-Man. You do not get a say in how I deal justice just because you've been in this game longer than I have. Now, I'm leaving. If you know what's good for you, you'll stay in your lane."

"I'm not gonna do that, Rose. No can do. Nope, sorry." Peter's shrug and response earned a scoff from the angry individual, who sighed, as though it burdened them to consider fighting him.

"Alright. You made this bed, you lay in it, Spider-pacifist." With an angry grunt, Wrathful Rose threw their hand forward and swung at him with their blade. Peter knew it had been coming thanks to his tingle, and jumped out of the way before it had a chance to strike him.

"Rose, I really don't want to fight you!"

"You started it," Rose hissed. "You'd have been wise to be on your way for your nightly patrol of the city. Instead, you're trying to stop me from doing my job, and in the process, not doing yours!"

Peter shot a web at the hand that held the blade, grabbing the hilt of it and ripping it from Rose's grasp with a grunt and a yank, sending it flying to the ground. "This is part of my job, Rose! You and I both know that what you're doing is coming from a sense of bloodthirsty rage! This isn't justice! None of this is anything more than revenge!"

"You don't know a damn thing about me, Spider-Man!" Rose snapped, lifting a bucket of tools that had been lying on the ground by a pile of junk, and with a red glow, sending them flying at the man. Peter jumped and twisted, dodging all of the flying objects. Rose screeched, charging at Peter, who was quick to evade them, taking hold of one of their arms. A shrill growl left Rose's throat, and they shot their other arm back. The blade that lay several feet from them began to glow red in unison with their hand, and it shot back into their grasp.

"Telekinetic... Huh... Anything else you care to surprise me with?" A circular burst of red surrounded Rose and sent Peter flying back. He rolled several times before skidding to a stop right at the edge of the roof. The city below was going about its business as usual, though he could see the sirens from police cars and ambulances below, headed back in the direction of the alley where Rose had left Chester Rogers. He sat up with a groan, pushing himself to stand again, and steadying himself quickly. "Yeah. Ugh... Something like that. Forcefields? Really!?"

Rose ran at him, body aglow and eyes illuminating. They tried to throw a punch, but Peter grabbed their wrist, getting a fist to the chin from Rose's other hand, but without hesitation, he grabbed that one too. They tried to pull their hands free, but the strength of their opponent's grasp was too great.

"How about we talk things out instead of you trying to kill me?"

"How about you piss off!?" Rose formed a forcefield in front of them to knock into both themself and Peter, the force of which was launching them toward the door to the rooftop. Rose had every intention to slam him into it.

His back hit the wall, the impact causing him to inhale sharply. Rose began to run, but Peter wasn't about to let them get away. He used his web shooters to catapult toward them, arm wrapping around their waist while they yelled, startled by how quickly he'd caught up to them. They tried to push away, and in his struggle to keep a grasp on them, he gripped their hip with a sudden motion, unprepared for the high pitched sound that left Rose's mouth.

[NOW PLAYING]

< One Way Or Another - Blondie >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:38

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Peter's eyebrows raised behind the mask as he processed Rose's reaction. Then it clicked in his mind and he began to grin. "No way... No. Way."

Rose turned their head to look up at him, eyes glowing red with malice, but the insults they'd intended to hurl his way came out as a high pitched squeak in response to Peter poking their side a few times, body jerking and trying to twist away, eyes flickering from the solid glowing red back to their ruby irises. When they heard Spider-Man's amused chuckle, they growled, eyes glowing once more. "W-What's so funny, bug man?"

"I never expected someone as angry and venomous as you would be the ticklish type~" Those words had Rose's eyes widening, another squeak leaving their lips at the sight of the Spider wiggling his fingers in the air, almost feeling the sensations on their sides already. "Ohoh! This is great!"

"G-Get off me!" Rose snapped, using their powers to push themself away, letting out a rather undignified yelp when they landed on their back, the wind knocked out of them.

"Giddy UP!" Peter yelled, throwing his arm in a lasso-like motion before his web shooter activated. An all too familiar fwip! sound made Rose jump, gasping when their wrists were shot not once, but several times with webbing. "Where d'ya think yer goin, partner~?"

Peter laughed triumphantly, looking down at Wrathful Rose, who angrily kicked and yanked at their wrists, which had been pinned by the sides of their head. "Looks like the Spider's caught a Rose in his web~"

Rose screeched with rage and tried to free their wrists, but the layered webbing was too strong. Peter saw the blade glowing on the ground, but he was quick to web it down as well. "Oh no you don't!"

"You. are. infuriating!"

"Aw~ Is someone grumpy~?" Peter teased with a soft, cutesy voice, before raising his hands and teasingly wiggling his fingers, the sight of which had Rose squirming. The heels of their boots dug into the ground in a futile effort to push themself away. "I really think it's time you had a laugh."

"I-If you take a-another step closer-"

"Oops- Hey! Look at that!" Peter gasped in mock surprise as he stepped forward, looking down and then back up as if the action shocked him. He did a double take, letting the sarcasm sink in for a few seconds. "I took a step closer! Here, I'll do it again!"

Rose was growing nervous, biting their lip behind their mask to suppress the anxious giggles bubbling in their throat. "Y-You call this fighting!? What h-happened to the Spider-Man who doesn't show mercy?"

"Fighting? Nah," Peter scoffed and threw his hand to emphasize his point. "I told you I didn't want to fight you. But, since you insist on it, I gotta switch up the kind of fight we're having. One-sided tickle fight sound good to you? You cool with that?"

[NOW PLAYING]

< Ballroom Blitz - Sweet >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 4:06

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

"Quit b-being a coward and g-give me a fair fight! A real f-fight!"

"Oh? I hear that voice shaking~ Don't tell me you're scared of the tickle monster~" That pouty voice and the damn word made Rose's heart flutter badly. Peter crouched down and crawled toward them in a manner identical to a real spider, which made them kick their legs with a screech.

"G-Get away from me, you feral fucking arachnid!"

"Scared of spiders too- WOAH! HEY! NO! BAD LEGS! BAD!" The angry vigilante had nearly kicked him square in the face, though he dodged it with ease. Fwip! Rose's ankles were swiftly webbed down, and Peter sighed with a shake of his head. "Really? A kick to the face? That's not very nice. Stay. Bad legs. You're not squishing this spider."

To add insult to injury, he pointed at Rose's legs the way an angry owner would to a pet who'd destroyed the couch. Rose was seething with rage, or at least they had been, or perhaps, they were simply trying to be. With a frustrated groan, they tugged at both their wrists and their ankles, collapsing back with exhaustion. It was no use. They whimpered again, realizing they were absolutely stuck, and they were not getting free.

"I'm... going to absolutely... k-kick your ass." Rose was panting from exhausting their energy.

"And I'm... going to absolutely... tickle you silly~" Peter teased, leaning over his trapped adversary and chuckling at their nervous inhale, glowing eyes flickering as they grew more unfocused and even more uneasy. "Which one of us is accurately predicting the future, hm? Cause I'd definitely say me, but I don't know, I wanna hear your input."

He wiggled his fingers a third time, thoroughly amused when another squeak came in response. "Stop doing th-that!"

"Doing what? This?" Peter moved his wiggling fingers closer, stopping just shy of their sides and making them squirm. "Ohoh! You're air ticklish!? Oh, this is gonna suck for you."

Rose sucked in their abdomen when he hovered his hands over their belly, the butterflies worsening. They had no idea how they were going to get out of their predicament, much less how they ended up pinned to the rooftop of an abandoned building, about to be tickled by Spider-Man. Of all that they expected, of all the possibilities, why did it have to be that? One last feeble tug at the webs on their wrists and ankles had it fully sinking in for them that they were stuck. "D-Dohon't."

"Wait.. Was that a giggle~? Did... did I just hear you giggle~?"

"F-Fuck... fuhuck y-you!" Their response was followed by their own squeal, which they tried to fight off with shrill shouts of frustration. Peter had curiously brushed over the skin where their top had torn and left part of their side exposed.

"Ohoh! I wonder where your weak spot is~" Rose fought desperately not to let anymore giggles escape, but the sensation of his fingers brushing on their side spread to their back, igniting the nerve endings while their body screamed at them to laugh. The teasing only made it worse.

"Come on~! Lemme hear those giggles!" It was getting harder and harder to ignore just how unbearably ticklish the fabric of the suit felt on their skin. The sharp inhales and exhales of breath became shoulder shaking, as Rose's resolve grew weaker with each breathing cycle.

"Mmph. Mhmhmhhh! Mmpheheheee! G-Gehehehet ohohohohohofff!"

"There's that giggle! Oh my God, I bet the smile on your face is the most precious thing ever."

"Youhouhou ahahahahare sohohoho dehehehehEAD! NAHAHAAH! NOHOHOO!" Rose squealed when Peter began tickling both of their sides, moving his fingers closer to the point where their sides and back met and making their upper body arch. "Whahahat thehehehe fuhuhuhuck!?"

"What? Did I catch you off guard with the tickling thing?"

"Youhouhou're suhuhuhuppohohosed toho fihihihight! N-Nohohot... *hic* nohohohot..." Rose lost their train of thought and dissolved into more giggles, turning their head in a feeble attempt to hide their face as the teasing continued to make them feel shy. Peter slowly spider-walked his fingers toward their belly, watching as their eyes went wide. "N-Nohoho... Nohohohooo! Gehehehet ahawahahay!"

"That reaction tells me you've definitely got a ticklish belly. Look out, look out! I'm gonna getcha~" Peter chuckled when Rose let out the highest pitched squeak yet, torso shaking in unison with their laughter. "Awww! What a cute little noiiise~!"

Rose was squealing helplessly, hands shaking, still hiding their face as best they could. "You know, you better hope no villain finds out about this. You never know how many of them are keen on the idea of tickle torture."

Rose shut their eyes and swore repeatedly. "S-Stohop tahahalkihing! Stohohop tahahalking! StohoHOP TAHALKIHIIIING!"

"Why~? Is someone getting flustered~? Can the tough, angry, Wrathful Rose not handle a little tickling?"

"S-Shuhuhuhut youhouhour Gohohod dahahamn flyhyhy-hohohole!"

"Ouch. Spider insult. That's a bit of a cliché, don't you think? You know... you're not very intimidating when you're giggling so adorably, are you~? Are youuu~?" He playfully tickled behind their ear and laughed as Rose turned their head with another whine. "No you're not. No you're notttttt~!"

[NOW PLAYING]

< Beggin' - Måneskin >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:31

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

The aggressive front was slipping the more Peter tickled them, and he found himself wondering why they didn't just use their telekinesis to launch him across the roof. He fluttered his fingers along the bit of exposed skin on their neck, right below their jaw. Rose wanted to be furious, but they couldn't be; not when they were giggling and squirming. They knew they didn't hate the predicament they were in, but they'd be damned if they let Spider-Man of all people learn that they actually liked being tickled, so they attempted to keep up their venomous demeanor. Keyword: attempted.

"N-Nohohohot thehehehere! *hic* H-Hehey! W-WaitwahahahaitwahahAHAHAIIIT! N-NOHOHOHOHOOO!" His thumbs had begun pressing circles into their hips, and the sensation was unbearable. They squirmed side-to-side, which in retrospect, definitely made it tickle more.

"Aww~ Youhou do know that technically, you're just making this worse~?" Peter teased, leaning closer. "Ahat this point you're pretty much tickling yourself."

"P-Plehehehease! MohOHOHOHOHOVE SOHOHOMEWHEHEHERE EHEHELSE!" Rose shrieked.

"Did you- holy shit... did you just say please!?" Peter questioned with feigned disbelief. "Is a little tickling really all it takes to give you some manners?"

"PLEHEHEHEAAASE!"

"But I thought you wanted the Spider-Man who doesn't show mercy! I'm fairly certain that's what you told me."

Rose sputtered and tried to argue, but they couldn't conjure up a rebuttal. Their face was burning hot beneath their mask, stomach alight with butterflies, and heart racing. Peter did grant them the reprieve they'd pleaded for, however, pausing his playful attack and allowing them to catch their breath. "Youhou... ahahahare dohone fohor... thehehe mohomehent IhI... gehet out ohof this..."

"Uh oh. Wrathful Rose has still got thorns. I guess we gotta keep going~ Tell you what, you get to decide where I tickle you next!"

"Ohover myhy dehehead bohody!"

"Hey! Don't make me go for your hips again. I know how to make hip tickling way worse than what you just experienced," Peter warned, chuckling triumphantly at how quickly Rose changed their tune at the playful threat.

"F-Fihine! Fine... A-Arms..."

"An underrated tickle spot! Good choice!"

"Fuhuhuck youhou..."

"You are in for a major attitude adjustment, Rosie Posey~" Peter warned, before his fingers began fluttering over Rose's biceps. They were immediately sent into a fit of high pitched giggling. "Thahat look on your face tells me you weren't expecting to be this ticklish here."

"DohoHOHON'T cahAHAHALL MEHEHE THAHAT! *hic* Y-Youhouhou're suhuhuch aha jahahackahahassss!" Rose could have sworn the eyes on Spider-Man's mask narrowed at their remark, that or they just knew they were in big trouble.

"Alright, the name calling's earned you a one way ticket to an absolute ticklish hell. Or heaven! Depends on the person I guess. This seems pretty hellish for you."

Peter opted for slowly and menacingly wiggling a single finger, chuckling at the way Rose shrieked. He began tracing his finger across their belly, chuckling at just how much Rose was squealing from the lightest touches. Behind their mask, they pressed their lips together as they whimpered and whined, trying with every ounce of their willpower to keep from giggling anymore. Their attempts were all in vain as Spider-Man got close to their sides at a rapid pace with all ten wiggling fingers, making them let out a panicked scream. "Ahawww~! Anticipation is such a killer, isn't it?"

It was an agonizing three minutes of Peter using the 'air tickling' tactic before he eyed the way Rose reacted to his hand nearing their knee. He'd been wiggling his fingers just a few inches above it and saw how their expression became much more panicked. "Youhou are in so much trouble~"

"H-Hehey! Nohoho! Nohohohot thehe knehehehees! NAHAHAT THEHEHEHERE! GEHEHEHET OHOHOFFFFFFF!" Peter had hit an absolute death spot; the space on the inner side of their leg right where their knee met their thigh. Rose was hiccuping with laughter and squealing uncontrollably, feeling the ticklish sensations travel to the rest of their legs. To make matters worse, they felt the tickling sensations up their spine. It only took another minute for Rose to reach their limit.

"PLEHEHEASE! *hic* NOHOHO MOHOHOHOHORE! *hic* I CAHAHAHAN'T!"

"Aw~ Is the tickle monster too much for you to handle~?"

"Plehehehease plehehehease pleheheaase! *hic* IhIhIt's toohoohoo muhuuuuuch!" Rose was giggling tiredly and gasping for breath.

Peter stopped immediately, and sat back. "I'm a bit shocked you didn't launch me into the air the moment I started tickling you. Now that I think about... wait... You totally could have gotten free." Rose's eyes widened at what Spider-Man was insinuating, and defensively, they shot a forcefield out and launched him away. Peter landed on the ground with the air knocked out of him, sitting up with a pained gasp. With the rage building inside of them, they let out a scream and used their forcefields to break the webbing on their wrists and ankles.

"Woah woah woah, hey, heyyy. Easy. Easy." Rose shakily stood, and so did Peter, cautiously raising his hands. With an angry, still giggly huff, they used their forcefields again and launched Peter into the rooftop entrance.

"Yeah... That was bound to happen," he wheezed, standing back up. "Look, you're still pissed. I get it-"

"Youhou... youhou dohon't know aha damn thing about me..."

"Maybe I don't, but as someone who's in this business just like you, I'm warning you, don't keep doing things this way."

"OhOr what?" Rose hissed, standing up and steadying themself. "I'm leaving. You're lucky... I haven't killed you... yet."

With a snarl, they used their telekinesis to free their blade and place it back in its hilt. Peter sat up and looked at them. "Think about what I said, Rose. Take my advice, please. I'm trying to help you. This is your one warning."

"Waharning!? Who's the one currently on the damn ground? I don't need your help, Spider-Man."

With a leap, Wrathful Rose was gone from the roof, leaving a bewildered and tired Peter leaning against the brick wall. Unbeknownst to him, Rose's face was burning as they replayed what just happened in their head, still able to feel the lingering sensations of being tickled to tears.

[NOW PLAYING]

< Where is My Mind - Yoav >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 6:12

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

When Peter walked into the cafe and bookstore the following morning, Gabisile was leaning against the counter, eyes glued to the television. The smell of fresh coffee, and cinnamon rolls, was oddly more soothing than it usually was. On the screen, another report about Wrathful Rose. He recognized the man who was going on a mindless angry rant about the vigilante. J. Jonah Jameson. Of course he was.

-What are my thoughts on this 'Wrathful Rose?' They're a danger to society! Just like that Spider-menace meddling in matters that don't involve him! People of New York, we've got ourselves a ghastly go-getter playing GOD! A joyless and reckless jackass acting as judge, jury, and executioner!-

"Wrathful Rose hasn't killed anyone, you stupid-ass man!" Gabisile argued, turning to look at one of her other coworkers. "Can you believe this shit? Real rich of him to call someone else a jackass."

"He's been doing this for years, Gem. It's not gonna change."

"Well, someone should sue his ass."

If there was one thing Peter could agree on, it was that J. Jonah Jameson was an absolute pest, especially considering he was still slandering Spider-Man after years of Peter proving otherwise to the public. The man would never change. Not when his ridiculous ranting raked in so much revenue. When Peter sat down, Gabisile's head turned, and she grinned. "Morning, Parker!"

"Good morning, Gabi," Peter greeted quietly. "Is... uh, is Y/N here?"

"Yeah! They're just grabbing some supplies from the walk-in. They'll be out in a sec- Oh! Speak of the devil! Get over here, Y/N!"

"B-Be careful, I'm carrying creamer- GemmAAHAAA!" They were yanked forward, the last syllable of Gabisile's nickname leaving their lips in a high-pitched shriek while they tightened their hold on the carton. When their eyes met Peter's, they gave the tiniest, sheepish smile. "H-Hi. Good morning..."

"Good morning, Y/N," Peter greeted.

"I'll take that!" Gabisile swiftly nabbed the creamer from Y/N, intent on completing the task they'd been trying to finish so that they could talk to Peter. She gave the two space, but not before subtly not-so-subtly nudging her friend's arm.

"Ahh!" They hissed from the ache that shot through their arm, glaring at the still grinning woman.

"You okay?" Peter's question drew their attention back to him.

"Y-Yeah... I-I... well, you know. Different day, same accident-prone Y/N..." The individual shyly fiddled with their choker, while Peter made an effort not to stare. The corners of their mouth dropped downward, lip trembling.

...Don't cry... Please don't cry... not now... Y/N was repeating the words over and over in their head, staring at the counter and taking deep breaths. Deep down, Peter would always be curious about what happened to them, but he promised Gabisile that he would never ask about it, and that's a promise he swore to keep. Amari set a cup of fresh tea on the counter for Y/N, before turning back to his inventory list. Y/N's smile returned, though the pain was still present in their eyes. "Th-Thank you, Mari. You make the best tea in all of New York."

"I'm glahad you think so!" The man laughed proudly before greeting a customer who'd just walked in. "Good morning ma'am!"

When Y/N turned back to Peter, he was looking at them worriedly. "You iced your shoulder, yeah?"

"M-Mhm!" Y/N nodded their head, eyes drifting to the television when Jameson's ranting continued. "Thank you for the advice..."

-I'll tell you what! 'Wrathful Rose' is too nice a name for this nuisance of New York! Reckless! Wretched! REPUGNANT. REPULSIVE. REPREHENSIBLE ROSE! How long will it be before someone brings this criminal to justice!?-

"Ugh. This guy never shuts up," Peter groaned, noting the way Y/N's hand had balled into a fist as they gripped their apron. Their jaw was clenched, and their body was subconsciously rocking. "Y/N?"

"Hm?" They realized they'd been tensing and quickly relaxed, releasing their fingers from their balled up state and taking a breath, briefly flapping their hands and shaking their head. "I-I'm alright... Sorry. It's... overwhelming, to hear that man talk..."

"You can say that again. The man's got a mad motor mouth!" Gabisile called, mocking Jameson's gruff angry voice and affinity toward alliteration, causing an older gentleman who was sitting at one of the tables to let out a knee-slapping guffaw. "See? He gets it! Thank you, sir!"

Y/N and Peter watched as Gabisile and the man pointed finger guns at each other. Amari was casting his "signature look of judgement," name courtesy of Gabisile, before he began cackling to himself. Peter's brows furrowed and he began chuckling, which only got more intense when Y/N pinched the bridge of their nose and shook their head before lifting their cup of tea to their lips. "Shehehe's definitely the people person of people persons." Peter's comment had Y/N smiling behind their cup. It was a genuine one, and Peter grinned upon seeing it.

-And let me tell you something else, folks! Here at the Daily Bugle, we've got some very exclusive information from some of our top correspondents! Apparently, Spider-Man, the original Menace of the modern era, was seen pursuing this perpetrator! Yet he hasn't come forward to confess the criminal's whereabouts? Citizens of New York, when will this whirlwind of worry end!?-

The mention of Spider-Man following Wrathful Rose made Y/N's heart jump into their throat. Their sudden hitch of breath caused them to choke on their drink, quickly setting it down as they coughed into their elbow in an attempt to soothe their irritated lungs and throat.

"Woah woah woah! Y/N! Are you alright?" Peter frantically leaned forward, eyes emitting concern, nearly reaching out to them but deciding against it. "Easy, easy. What happened?"

"I-I'm... I'm okahay..." Y/N croaked, leaning on the counter. "Wehent... *hic* down *ack* the wrong piHIPE."

"Ain't no fucking way," Gabisile muttered, walking back over to Peter and Y/N, subconsciously reaching out to pat her friend's back in hopes to quell their coughing. "Did he just say Spider-Man saw Wrathful rose!?"

Y/N's stomach was churning with butterflies, as the memories of the previous night jumped to the front of their mind in a manner akin to pop up ads on a laptop screen. To make matters worse, they could still feel the phantom tickling sensations lingering on their body, which only served to heat up their cheeks and ears.

"I heard he actually caught them," Amari chimed in, blissfully unaware of how much his coworker was squirming where they stood.

"Y/N. Are you sure you're okay?" Peter questioned. Something about Y/N's body language was troubling him. He saw the way their eyes darted down to the floor, the way they bit their lip and fiddled with their sleeves, arms tucking in at their sides, which even they hadn't seemed to notice.

When Y/N looked up at Peter, they nodded rapidly again. "I promise, Peter. I'm just frazzled. I'm probably overstimulated... I'll go on break after we talk and try to clear my head. Maybe I'll have a stim break in the back or the walk in. Gabi always stims with me."

"Alright," Peter relented, giving an apologetic smile. "Be easy on yourself, okay? Y/N?"

"I-IhI'll try," Y/N chuckled, but it sounded hollow. Gabisile was giggling as she bid farewell to the old man who'd laughed at her impersonation of J. Jonah Jameson.

"Woo! Thahat man had the best energy. He sahaid something about Jameson that really tickled me."

The moment Gabisile said the word, a squeak had left Y/N's lips. They tried to play it off, desperately hoping none of their friends had heard it, but both Peter and Gabisile noticed right away. "Y/N, seriously, are you alright?"

"Mhm! I-I just... I gotta..." Y/N flapped their hands to recalibrate before lightly slapping the counter and pointing their index finger. "I just forgot about something I needed to do... I'm g-gonna... real quick... S-Sorry..."

With a deep breath, Y/N picked up their cup, and left for the back room. Gabisile and Peter watched them silently, before turning back to face each other. Peter studied Gabisile's facial expression, written over with worry and exasperation.

"I... I don't know what to do, Parker," she sighed. "They're in pain all the time now... tired, even quieter than they usually are... I'm really worried about them."

"Did something happen recently...?" Peter asked.

Gabisile shrugged as she began wiping down the counter. "I couldn't tell you. It has been getting worse overtime, though, whatever it is. It definitely took a turn yesterday. I left our apartment for a date, came back close to midnight. Y/N was still awake, looked more frazzled and flustered than I've ever seen them look before."

Those words had Peter freezing in place, furrowing his brows, slowly opening and closing his mouth as he contemplated the thought that jumped into his mind. "Did... Did they go anywhere... Or..."

"Not to my knowledge. They've been so isolated. They don't really go anywhere else besides here. I... I know I made you promise to never ask about it, and I will never tell you what happened, but... It's been almost six years, since they got that scar..." Gabisile muttered.

Ten years... It had been almost ten years since Peter lost Gwen Stacy. No matter how much farther apart that day grew from him, he'd never forget it. He still remembered it like it had happened the day before. From start to end, the event played back in his head for hours at a time. The look in her eyes... the soul shattering silence of it all... Peter would never fully heal from the lifetime of damage those seconds had dealt him.

"Would you... uh... Would you believe me if I told you I'm nearing the anniversary of something too, Gemma?" Peter asked, feeling his eyes become glassy at the memory. Gabisile nodded, irises filled with cautious curiosity. Peter took a breath, but as he continued to think about it, he shook his head, a hollow chuckle taking the place of his words in that moment. "It's... I'm sorry. I can't... I-"

"Peter," Gabisile interrupted, before placing a hand on his forearm and giving it a small squeeze. "I understand, aight? You don't need to put yourself through it again just to tell me. I believe you."

The tearful man nodded, staring down at the counter. "I just wish I could help them..."

With a small huff as she folded the rag and held it in her hands, Gabisile spoke firmly.

"Listen. Y/N trusts you. They don't trust a lot of people these days, Pete. They tell me every day how much they're enjoying the book you recommended." Gabisile laughed softly, glancing toward the backroom before smiling. "IhI wish you could see just how much they light up when they talk about you. You're the first new friend they've made in years."

"I... I had no idea..." Peter's voice was a low mutter. "They really trust me...?"

"They really do." The cafe and bookstore had become a little quieter, less busy and bustling with people, so Gabisile opted to go on break and check on Y/N. She removed her apron and set it in the hamper, turning back when Peter said her name.

"Please, please tell Y/N I hope they feel better, alright?"

Following a grin, and a promising nod, Gabisile left for the back room. Before standing up, Peter left a tip, picking up his coffee cup and waving to Amari as he began to make his way toward the door. He couldn't stop racking his brain around how Y/N was acting. He couldn't stop replaying what Gabisile had told him. He couldn't believe what he was even considering as a possibility. No... He saw Rose's eyes, blood red and full of ire. Y/N's E/C eyes, they held exhaustion... they held pain... they held fear. He had to push away the idea of Y/N and Rose being one and the same, but the thought would lay dormant at the back of his mind.

[NOW PLAYING]

< Poker Face - Lady Gaga >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:57

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Peter leaned back in his computer chair in the early hours of the morning a couple of days later, biting the end of the marker he'd been using to write with. His research on finding any details he could about former BluangelTech employees led to a singular data source in which he found hundreds of names. There'd be no way to know who Rose would target next, but given that he found Rose once, he'd find them again. He began to ponder more about the science behind Rose's powers. If he could figure it out, he could upgrade his webbing, and be a little better equipped for their attacks. Before his experience with the multiverse, he wouldn't have even thought about reaching out to them, but now, now he was stubborn, and hell bent on helping them, and he would find a way to do so.

"Energy... energy energy energy..." Peter repeated. Rose's powers were made of a darker energy source. If he could figure out what it was, he could theoretically web through their force fields, or perhaps keep them from forming entirely. Of course, it would have been helpful to know how they got their powers, but he doubted they'd be keen on telling him. And so began his experimentation. With quickness and precision, he pulled on a lab coat, adjusting the collar before using his web shooters to grab goggles and a pair of gloves. Hour after hour in the makeshift lab, he worked tirelessly to figure out a way to evade and intercept Rose's forcefields, as well as interrupt their telekinesis.

The first attempt was rather disastrous, given that Peter launched himself into the wall, slamming against it with a yelp and catching himself with his hands before he could fall to the ground, groaning from the pain in his shoulder caused by the initial impact. "Agh! Mother Hubbard!"

He had stumbled into the cafe and bookstore the following morning at the same hour he always did, wincing with each step he took. Y/N curiously and silently studied his face as he sat down. His hair was messier than usual, and his eyes screamed of pure exhaustion.

"A-Are you okay, Peter?"

"Yeah! Never... never better," Peter answered sleepily. The dazed look on his face was rather cute, and Y/N admitted as much to themself.

After shifting on their heels, and timidly pulling at their sleeves, they took a breath and looked him in the eyes. "Would you... like a coffee?" Y/N's kindness made him smile, and he nodded rapidly. In his peripheral vision, he could see Gabisile watching the television. Wrathful Rose had struck again, this time leaving their target with a broken jaw and a bloody sign that said "Liar."

-We are getting word that Matias Huffman, the man in question, has repeatedly lied under oath in order to destroy the lives of several people. The evidence left behind at the scene of Wrathful Rose's brutal attack has been turned over to the authorities, with an indictment pending following Mr. Huffman's recovery. In the meantime, we're told, he's had his jaw wired shut and remains under supervision-

"Fitting," Gabisile muttered. Peter had noticed Gabisile's repeat enthusiasm over what Wrathful Rose was dishing out weeks before, but that seemed way too cut and dry of an outcome. Gabisile couldn't be Rose. A lot of other people felt the same way she did, and he couldn't blame her.

"Mans lied under oath how many times!?" Amari exclaimed from his place at the register.

"At least thirty, Mars Bar!"

"Jesus H. I don't trust anybody!" That response earned a round of laughter from Gabisile. Y/N, who's back was to them, was silently giggling, as evident by their shaking shoulders.

Peter looked over at Y/N when they turned around, as they gave a shy smile and walked back over with a freshly made cup of coffee. He took in the scent of it, sighing with content and grinning. "Thank you, Y/N. You're the best." When his eyes caught a glimpse of the bluish-purple hue decorating the knuckles on Y/N's right hand, he looked up at them with uneasiness.

"P-Peter?"

"Are you okay? What... what happened to your hand?" Peter's question was innocent enough, but Y/N still took a shaky breath before answering him.

"You'll never let me live it down."

"Tryhy me."

"Alright... I..." Y/N studied their own knuckles and winced at the feeling of bending their fingers, subconsciously stimming with their uninjured hand. "Gemma's got this brick wall section of her room... I... I slammed my hand against it really hard by accident."

"They scared the hell out of me," Gabisile interjected, pointing at Y/N. "I come back after closing the shop and you look like you've been engaging in fisticuffs or some shihit. On God, Y/N is the only person who can look like they whooped someone's ass from simply walking through an apartment."

Amari held his chest and leaned back with a loud guffaw. All four of them began laughing, though Peter noticed Y/N's laugh sounded more tired. He guessed their exhaustion was due to the approaching anniversary Gabisile had mentioned a couple weeks before. Even though Peter had no idea what Y/N had endured, it was clear that time had not been merciful or healing to them. His eyes met Gabisile's and she gave a sad nod, confirming his suspicions that Y/N would only grow more unlike themself until the six year mark passed. However, it was evident to Peter that Y/N's isolation and pain was worse than Gabisile had been witness to in the previous years. Of course, he had the suspicions at the back of his mind about just how Y/N hurt their hand, but he shut them down at first thought and continued talking with his friend, not willing to subject them to any mistrust or suspicion he might have had.

Peter's lab experiments continued, through repeated trial and error. The second attempt in particular saw Peter getting his hand stuck in a mini artificial forcefield, to which his reaction was throwing his head back with a groan. He spent the next hour trying to get his hand free, which included planting his feet on the table and trying to pull himself from it, and hitting it with a wrench of all things. To add insult to injury, in the midst of trying to liberate his hand, the wrench bounced off of the orb of energy, and would have landed square in his face had his tingle not kicked in. His last resort, which in retrospect, probably should have been his first idea, was firing his web shooter at the generator powering the forcefield. It flickered and disappeared, leading to Peter falling back on the lab counter, where he broke several beakers.

Try number three fared much better results, as he was able to isolate the element and energy he theorized would mimic Wrathful Rose's powers most accurately. He prepared a new sequence for his web shooting formula, and generated a new miniature forcefield. "Alright. Alright... Third time's the charm," Peter shut one of his eyes as he readied the larger version of his web shooters that he used for testing purposes. With a push of the button, Peter gasped and jumped up. The webbing had gone directly through the forcefield, sparking and glittering with bits of red energy. He began to cheer, sending his fist forward in triumph.

"YES! YEAH! WOO!" He'd done it. Now he just needed to clean up the lab. The sight of the mess it had become, research and materials strewn out across the table and the floor, made him sigh tiredly, nevertheless, he shut off the generator before getting to work tidying up.

***

[NOW PLAYING]

< In My Dreams (Sped + Pitched Up) - Anohni >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 1:45

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Y/N's eyes shot open with an anguished scream, sitting up in bed and clutching their throat, hand unmoving from their scar. Their heartbeat throbbing inside of their ears was all they could hear; not the worried calls of their name by Gabisile outside of their room, nor the knocking on the old oak. When Gabisile just about bust down her best friend's door, Y/N instinctively shut their eyes, having realized that upon awaking, they were glowing red from their distress. Gabisile immediately ran to their side and repeatedly reminding them they were alright. It took a full minute to convince them to let their hand rest, to let it fall onto the blanket in front of them. The rocking took over their body as the tears pooled in their eyes, which had gone back to normal thanks to their self soothing. "Y/N..."

"I'm okay!" Y/N knew they were really only trying to convince themself of that fact. Gabisile offered a hug, silently, eyes filled with tears of her own that glinted in the dim city lights that crept in through the curtains. "I'm..."

Gabisile let out a small huff of surprise when Y/N launched into the embace, but quickly wrapped her arms around her sobbing friend, obliging when Y/N gave a gentle squeeze to indicate they needed a pressure hug. In the past year, their nightmares had been few and far between, but they'd started to resurface in the past few months.

"I'm gonna cancel my date night. W-We'll stay in. I'll call Mars Bar over and we can all watch a movie-"

"Gem, you've been planning your date night with Sable for a week. Mars has a gig tonight."

"And you know damn well that Amari and I would drop what we're doing to make sure that our best friend is okay, Y/N. It's what all of us have always done. The three of us ride together. We always have and we always will."

"Gabi... don't. You deserve a good night out tonight," Y/N argued. "I'll be okay-"

"Mm-mm. No. Don't you dare start with me!" Gabisile was crying, and she moved back so she could look at her best friend. "The aftermath of what happened to you is forever burned into Amari and I's memories! If it's that bad for us, then I can only imagine how effed up it still is for you!"

"Gemma..."

"No. No arguments. I'll reschedule-"

"Gabisile!" Y/N threw their hands up in frustration before letting them fall again. "You've done that too many times already in the past five years. You said yourself that you really like this girl, so go spend time with her! Put yourself first for once, please!"

Gabisile fell silent, and placed her hands on her friend's face. "The moment you need support, you text or call me. Aight? Doesn't matter it's two hours from now or ten minutes."

Y/N nodded slowly, and silently, accepting one more hug from Gabisile before she stood up, and walked toward the bedroom door. "I mean it, Y/N!"

She smiled when she heard a genuine giggle from her friend. "IhI know, Gem. Go have fun." Hesitantly, Gabisile closed the door, but not before blowing a tearful kiss to her friend, who caught it in their hand, and pressed it to their cheek. Y/N tucked their legs into their chest and rested their chin on their knees, gripping their wrists tightly and staring at the wall. The moment they heard Gabisile drive off, they pushed back the quilt, and got out of bed.

[NOW PLAYING]

< In My Dreams - Anohni >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:01

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Y/N's eyes never left the mirror as they removed their golden necklace from around their neck, and used their telekinetic abilities to pull on their suit, securing the collar of it around their throat to hide their scar. With one deep breath, they closed their eyes, hair and irises changing in hue. It had been weeks of tracking, weeks of plotting, but they felt they were ready to deal some heavy blows to BluangelTech more directly. They felt the secret pouch on their suit, right next to their blade, stored safely in its hilt. Many names had been crossed off of that list that sat inside, and many names were yet to be. As soon as they'd donned the mask that covered their mouth, they grabbed an old skateboard, free of its wheels, and slipped through their window, into the night, hungry for vengeance, and out for blood. As they pulled out of the parking space in front of the building, Y/N silently made their way through the city streets, taking alleyways, back roads... In the five months of their vigilante life, they had made the darkness their sanctuary. What began as uneasiness and uncertainty, had become burning rage; a set path they intended to take to the fullest extent. For years they wondered what they could have done differently, whether or not they could have stopped what happened, but no longer were they stuck in their room asking question after question, none of which would ever be answered, as far as they were concerned. No. Now they were acting.

Despite the fact that New York was always brightly lit by an endless amount of lights, the BluangelTech building illuminated like no other. Y/N had no intentions of going in there, however. No. They had every intention of following the limo parked outside. A few feet away, stood Alan Proctor, the company CFO, and two members of the BluangelTech board. It had taken years of obsessive research, digging into every little detail they possibly could, to finally begin to gather some semblance of an answer as to why the events of nearly six years ago had happened to begin with. They had been left with some hints, as many as could have been given, but the rest, they had to find on their own. Proctor, as Y/N had found out, was the man who'd brought the horrifying incident to fruition. His name was among the information left to them. He was not the only person Y/N was looking for, however, as he had not been the one to leave them with the scar. Until they could find him, Y/N was plenty keen on dealing revenge to the others who played a role. They fought through blood, sweat, and tears to gather the list of former BluangelTech employees, as for some, Y/N had faces, but no names, and in other cases, names without faces. Unbeknownst to them, they were being followed. Spider-Man crouched on rooftop nearby, waiting, watching, looking for a moment to intercept. Y/N dropped the skateboard on the ground, stepping onto it, and with a glow of their powers, it hovered off of the ground. They used it to keep up with the limousine as it began to drive off, avoiding the street lights, staying low, and, as far as they knew, unnoticeable.

The air was cold, and damp, and it sent chills down their body. They weren't sure of the limo's final destination, but they were dead set on destroying everything Proctor had, dead set on burning him to the ground, leaving nothing but ash and dust, a pathetic failure of a man who could no longer get away with anything. They wanted to kill him. They wanted him dead. They wanted everyone who hurt them dead, or as close as they could be to it. Out of view, Spider-Man swung from the rooftops above and followed them.

[NOW PLAYING]

< Special Project - Hans Zimmer >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:14

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

The further away the limousine drove, the more confusion seeped into Y/N's mind. Notwithstanding, they carried on, gripping the handle of their blade when the limo came to a stop, outside large metal gates and a sign that read:

RAVENCROFT INSTITUTE FOR THE CRIMINALLY INSANE

They took out their recording device, and snapped several images of Alan and his associates exiting the limo. A loud, shrill, creaking noise pierced Y/N's ears, as the rusted, pointed, metal gates slowly opened. Y/N studied the man who had walked out to greet them. Although the shadows obscured his face, a select few details caught Y/N's attention. Atop his head, sat a black fedora, with a trench coat, slacks, and shoes of the same shade. In the single ray of light that grazed his shoulder, the vigilante could see streaks of greying-blond hair.

"Thank you for coming, Mr. Proctor." The man extended his hand and Alan firmly took hold of it, shaking his hand with gratitude while the two board members stood silently behind. From his hiding place, a feeling of dread washed over Peter, his tingle setting off alarms, a warning, that whatever he and Rose were witnessing, was the start of something very dangerous. His body felt cold, and achy, ears swimming and ringing. For Alan Proctor to be meeting with someone at Ravencroft, of all possible places, it could only be for nefarious purposes.

"It's a delight to see you again, Mr. Fiers." Fiers... Gustav Fiers. The Gentleman. Peter remembered that name. He had sent six people after Peter in the past several years, all beginning with the Rhino, the day he returned to his duties as Spider-Man. The man was no idiot. He was cold. He was calculated. He wouldn't be out in the open so fearlessly unless he were already prepared for an ambush. Peter swung forward, and jumped down to the ground below, right behind Rose.

Y/N readied their blade, but a hand covered their mouth and they were pulled back into hiding. They twisted and thrashed, but their wrists were swiftly webbed to the brick wall above their head, immediately recognizing the sound of Spider-Man's web shooters. "What the fuck are you doing!?" They hissed, attempting to use their forcefields to break the webbing, but finding they couldn't even form them. The little sparks of red, woven in the webbing, caught their eye and they snarled.

"I warned you about this, Rose!" Spider-Man reprimanded.

"You're ruining everything! Get this shit the fuck off of me!" Y/N demanded, swearing the moment the red covered hand was over their mouth again. Spider-Man shushed them, listening carefully to the conversation happening only several meters away.

"Mr. Osborn is quite eager to meet with you," Fiers declared. "I'm afraid these past ten years have been quite harsh on poor Harry."

Peter felt his heart drop to his stomach. He had never wanted to hear Harry's name again. He couldn't let Rose foolishly launch an attack on Alan Proctor. They wouldn't survive it. Not with Fiers there, and especially not if they were in cahoots with each other, and Harry Osborn of all people. Rose's muffled screams and glowing eyes were reflections of their burning rage. In an attempt to continue their plans, they used their telekinesis, however, their blade would not cooperate, Spider-Man's webbing disrupting their focus. One last yell of ire ripped through their throat, the echo of which stopped Gustav Fiers in his tracks. "It would seem we have an uninvited guest. Find them, and kindly eliminate them..."

"Fuck!" Peter hissed, ripping the webbing from the wall, placing their tied arms over his head to rest on his shoulders, and wrapping an arm around Rose's waist. He launched them upwards just as a group of men with guns had ran around the corner. The bullets began to fire, and Rose let out a cry of agony as one grazed their thigh, tearing their suit and sending a burning throughout their entire leg. Peter picked them up in his arms, securing their hands around his shoulders, before running to the other end of the roof, and jumping off into the darkness.

[NOW PLAYING]

< Fall (Slowed + Reverb) - Daft Punk >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 1:39

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Rose was in too much pain to respond to much else, and could only groan and swear in anguish, feeling as though the wind was knocked out of them from the rate at which Spider-Man was swinging. He refused to stop until he was certain the gunmen were no longer pursuing them. When he had found a safe rooftop to stop on, he lifted Rose's still-webbed wrists from over his shoulders, setting them down to lean against the roof's fence. "ARGH! FUCKING HELL!"

"Shh, shh. It's okay! You're gonna be okay! Shit... Where are you bleeding?"

"I-It's... just... a graze... FUCK!"

"Sorry! I'm sorry!" He had taken out a piece of gauze and carefully pressed it to their thigh. With a fwip of his web shooter, he created a seal to stop the bleeding until he could get them a proper bandage. "Are you alright-"

"NO! NO I'M NOT FUCKING ALRIGHT! YOU RUINED EVERYTHING!"

Peter jumped at Rose's outburst, before noticing they were attempting to use their telekinesis again. "Rose, stop! Your powers will go haywire! DON'T!"

It was too late. With a burst of red, their mask was ripped from their face, the collar of their suit splitting at the neck. As they looked up at Spider-Man, eyes alight with hatred, he looked back at them in horror. He hadn't recognized their face, eyes ruby red, hair a scorching orange, but his eyes had fallen upon the distinguishable, paler line of skin, that ran across their throat.

"Y-Y/N..."

"W-What... H-How did..." Y/N's worst fears were confirmed when they felt the cold air on their neck, fingers brushing over their exposed scar. A knot formed in their throat, eyes already watering, as their hair and eyes returned to their normal color. "How do you kn-know my name, Spider-Man? Tell me... TELL ME!"

Spider-Man said nothing, as he slowly reached up, and pulled the mask from his head. A choked sob left Y/N's lips the moment they realized that the man looking back at them, face cast in melancholy, was Peter Benjamin Parker...

...Guilt struck Y/N's heart like a bullet to the chest. "Peter..."

Their breath grew shallow, and their body began to rock back and forth rapidly, shoulders shaking uncontrollably. The crying individual couldn't bring their eyes to meet his. "Y/N... Please... please, look at me-"

"No!" Their vision blurred from the endless waterworks, stinging their cheeks and burning their nose. "It's... I-It's all over... I'm done..."

"No, no it's not done. Please, explain why you've been doing this. Please tell me. Help me understand-"

"YOU WOULDN'T UNDERSTAND!"

"Help me understand," Peter repeated. "Please, Y/N."

[NOW PLAYING]

< In My Dreams (SLOWED + REVERB) - Anohni >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:24

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

For nearly two minutes, neither of them spoke. All either of them could do, was cry, as they sat there on the rooftop. The sounds of the city at the farthest points below seemed to be right in their ears. They could both hear it all. The honking of cars, the shouts of pedestrians, every little noise, was akin to a cacophony.

"When I was a-a teenager, I had an accident... I-I... I have no memory of this part, but my family says I had been taking a backroad home... and something struck me. I remember feeling pain... like something was burning, and warping... underneath my skin." They hesitantly looked up, uninjured leg bouncing anxiously. "It was agony... When I woke up, I was moving things with my mind... I was forming forcefields with my hands... I was... morphing my appearance..."

"You woke up with powers." Peter had whispered it more to himself, but Y/N still heard him.

"Do you know... how scary it is... to wake up, and your reflection is staring back at you with a different face?"

"No... I don't. But I do know how scary it is to wake up with powers. It was fucking terrifying."

"I-It still is... I-I... I vowed, after that day, that I would never, use mine. Not for anything... Not for anyone... u-um... T-Tomorrow... marks six years..." Y/N sniffled, fighting to compose themself, body still teetering and breath still shallow and trembling. "Six years ago, tomorrow, is the night... my childhood b-best friend... they..."

The memories physically hurt to remember. They subconsciously shielded their throat with their hands and took a sharp breath. "F/N FL/N. That was their name... It's... it's been a long time since I've said it... We grew up together. We did everything together. They were neurodivergent... like me."

A broken smile graced their lips momentarily, feeling warmth and safety from the fond memories they had of their friend. "F/N and I never wanted to be apart... But, after graduation... Th-They got a job, w-working for BluangelTech. F/N was w-without a doubt, the m-most passion driven person I ever knew. Everything was going s-so well for them!" Their body was overtaken with a sob.

"Y-Y/N... are you okay with telling me what happened? To them...? To you...?"

"Alan Proctor happened. F/N g-got screwed over... All of their projects... all of their discoveries and research... everything went to him. I-I'm guessing that... that afterward, F/N found something they weren't supposed to find. Six years ago tonight... they..."

Y/N reached into a pocket on their suit, and held up the necklace, which Peter recognized the moment he saw it. It was no wonder they were never seen without it. "They gave me this. I had n-no idea that was the last good memory... that I would ever have of F/N. And it was the only clue I'd have about who did this to them. The following d-day, I... I didn't hear anything from them... So, that night, o-on my way to Gemma's, I stopped by their house..."

In the brief moment that Y/N closed their eyes, they felt all the dread and fear flooding their mind and body, and shot them open again, only a few shallow breaths away from hyperventilating.

"The door was open... Their front door was open... I went inside and..." they burst into a fresh flood of tears, convulsing with grief and sobs. "F/N was on the floor, w-with their throat slit... open... They were still alive when I got there, Peter! I s-saw them look at me! I tried... I tried to get myself to move! I tried to scream at my body to do something but it wouldn't fucking move! They were still breathing! I TRIED. Th-They were trying to warn me but I-I was so panicked, I wasn't listening!"

As their crying grew louder, Peter slowly moved closer, his stomach churning as he prepared to hear whatever words were about to leave Y/N's lips.

"Th-There... There was a painful grip on my shoulder... a-and one slice... ear to ear..."

[NOW PLAYING]

< A Cappella (Slowed + Reverb) - Daniel Caesar >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 1:43

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

All Y/N remembered feeling in that moment, was searing, excruciating pain, and the hot, wet sensation of blood. With a pained gasp, eyelids pushed back as far as they could go, their hand shot up to their neck, and they fell to their knees, blood dripping from the corners of their mouth. They couldn't wait to make a decision any longer. In front of them lay their friend, lifeless... dead... torn from the land of the living with one slice of the sharpened blade held in the hands of the stranger who'd broken in. That stranger... he looked at them, with his dark hair and deep green eyes, and smiled.

In mere seconds, as the man then fled from the house, they broke their vow of never using their powers, and, hand unmoving from their neck, they pulled and held their own wound shut, the dim glow of their telekinesis visible through their violently trembling fingertips. With their head pounding, and breath weakening, blood staining the screen of their phone and casting spots of red, they texted Gabisile four words, and four words only, too overcome with pain to read the earlier messages.

Y/N could faintly see the flashing lights of the police cars and ambulances that had pulled up outside of F/N's home. Everything felt as if it were happening in slow motion. With their last ounce of physical strength, still holding their wound shut, they tearfully reached out to their friend, and gripped their hand, succumbing to their own agonizing pain and exhaustion, just as the EMT's ran through the door.

[NOW PLAYING]

< In My Dreams - Anohni >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:02

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

"I-I should have died, th-that day, Peter... I would have..." Y/N was tugging at their sleeves around their webbed wrists and rocking with distress, as they recounted the rest of their story. "Gabi... and Amari, th-they... they saw me! As they wheeled me to the ambulance, they saw me! Amari told me Gabi was screaming... screaming!"

Peter didn't bother to wipe the tears from his cheeks, more already falling and taking the place of the ones that had rolled down his face seconds before. He saw the pain in Y/N's eyes. He heard the pain in Y/N's voice. All he could think about was how he'd felt that same pain, perhaps not physical from a blade to the throat, but emotional, from watching (what felt like an eternity but was only mere seconds) the love of his life falling to her death inside of that clock tower. To see Y/N, in such pain, was tearing him apart.

"Every time I sleep... every time I sleep I just fucking see him again, Peter! I see that fucking smile on his face! Over and over again I feel myself nearly die while my dead friend just looks at me horrified! They died scared, Peter!"

"Y/N..."

"Don't..." Y/N was hiccuping, breathing growing shallow as their stress stimming worsened. "Every time I look in the mirror, I... I... I see this scar, a-and I'm reminded... that... that my vow to never use my powers, ended with my closest friend d-dead in front of me! I could have done something! That man's face has been in my nightmares for almost SIX YEARS!"

"Y/N-"

"I don't ever talk about F/N anymore because I f-feel so guilty! Please d-don't tell me you understand any of that, Peter! How could anyone know what this is like!? How could y-you know or understand-"

"I do know, Y/N!" Peter interrupted loudly, almost angrily, his face overcome with heartbreak. "I do know! I understand! You want to know how I know? You want to know where my mistakes got me!?"

Y/N looked up at him briefly, before lowering their head again.

"In high school... I... I ran away after arguing with my Uncle Ben, stopped at a convenience store and this piece of shit robbed the place. Uncle Ben... he... he tried to wrestle the gun away from him, and he got shot. He died in front of me as I was putting pressure on his wound, Y/N. I felt his blood on my hands... in every sense... I felt it..." Y/N's sobbing had quieted to gasps and hiccups. When Peter moved closer, they grew tense, but he simply removed the webbing from their wrists. "That was the point where I started doing what you do... right now, this, anger. The rage. My vigilante journey started as a revenge mission. I-I... I spent a lot of time hunting for the man who killed Uncle Ben."

"I-It wasn't your b-breaking point, though... was it?" Y/N inquired shakily. Peter shook his head, and averted his eyes.

[NOW PLAYING]

< Exit Through the Lobby - Michael Giacchino >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 4:17

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

"H-Her name... Her name was Gwen. Gwen Stacy... We went to Midtown together. She had the brightest smile... a-and the cutest laugh..." Peter was smiling at the memories, but that smile was overtaken by sorrow in seconds. "I wouldn't be the Spider-Man I am today without her. Sure, I'd... be a guy in a spandex suit fighting petty criminals, but, she inspired me to fight for so much more. Everything I couldn't figure out, she could. Everything I couldn't do, she did. And... and in the end... I... I couldn't..." Y/N was silent, waiting for Peter to continue. He took a long, deep breath, tears still falling with every blink of his eyes. Although time had passed, although he'd found some closure, he could still see it play out in his head, from beginning to end.

"I guess I need to go back a little bit... uh... Harry Osborn was my childhood friend, Y/N... Years ago, he... he told me he was dying.... Retroviral Hyperplasia. Norman, the old CEO of Oscorp, his father... he had it too..."

"He's... He's the Green Goblin... right?" Peter's nod confirmed Y/N's suspicions.

"It's my fault... that he's at Ravencroft... That he's the Green Goblin..."

"H-How...?"

"Harry was desperate to cure his disease. He... he said that he needed Spider-Man's blood to live. Because of my self healing, he wanted to do a blood transfusion. It would have killed him. I had to refuse. B-But... I feel like I was so dismissive... He hugged me, pleading with me to find Spider-Man, telling me he didn't want to end up like his dad..." Peter still felt a lot of guilt for how he'd handled everything with Harry. Of course, he was still furious with him, for inadvertently causing Gwen's death, but he missed his friend...

"The night that I fought Electro... Max... I told Gwen, that she couldn't be there. I tried to stop her from coming with me, but..." Peter wiped his tears in a futile attempt to compose himself. "She said she was with me... That it was her choice."

Y/N hesitantly, slowly, pat the space beside them, offering for Peter to sit next to them, and he obliged, leaning back against the wall and staring out into the cityscape. "Harry showed up right after Dillon died..."

"Died...? Wh-What do you mean he died?"

"He died that night, Y/N... I'll... I'll elaborate but... Harry saw Gwen, with me, and he figured out that me and Spider-man are one and the same..." Peter lowered his head and steadied his breathing, pressing his lips together. "He grabbed her. Dropped her from the air above a clock tower. I caught her, and we fell through the roof. Harry was relentless. He wanted me to hurt. He wanted me... to suffer... In the midst of it all, Gwen fell when his glider went haywire and crashed. I shot out a web... but it was sliced when the clock gears turned against it..."

[NOW PLAYING]

< Let Her Go - Hans Zimmer >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 0:34

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

"I tried... I jumped after her, shot another web out, but I was too late. She... She was..." As the wind atop the roof picked in its intensity, Peter wept. "I lost track of how long I sat there... holding her... pleading, for her to stay with me... That fall was seconds long. I saw our lives flashing before my eyes in those seconds. Our entire lives. And I saw our life together... gone..."

[NOW PLAYING]

< Exit Through the Lobby - Michael Giacchino >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 4:17

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

"I nearly killed Harry after that, Y/N. I almost beat him to death. I wanted... I wanted him to die." Y/N's body and nerves were aching with the feeling of regret. They recalled everything they'd said, everything they'd done, how cruel they'd spoken to Peter without even knowing it was him, without even thinking that Spider-Man, out of every person in the world, would understand their pain more than anyone else.

"I-I'm so sorry, Peter... for everything. Everything!" Their quiet sobs became louder, and soon, they were wailing with remorse. Neither of them were quite sure how it happened, but Y/N found themself crying into his chest, as he hugged them tightly. That was the first hug the two had ever shared together...

"Y/N, the Spider-Man you asked about, that first night we encountered each other... That bitter, violent, hateful Spider-Man, the one who stopped pulling his punches? Now... Now you know why..."

"I regret every word I spoke on that rooftop that night, Peter! E-Every word!"

"I'm not mad at you, Y/N," Peter argued. "I'm terrified that you'll spend years of your life doing what I did. I won't sit here and tell you I don't think those scumbags deserved what you dished out on them as Wrathful Rose, Y/N. But after a point, it destroys you. It consumes you. That's... that's what it did to me. And for a good near ten years... I couldn't find my way out of it."

Y/N moved back from the hug, and began to scoot away, wincing from the pain in their thigh. "Everything I've done... F/N would be terrified of me... I can't do this anymore." They hiccuped, and, rattled with fear at the person they realized they'd become, looked up at Peter.

"Turn me in."

"W-What?"

"Turn me in, Peter!"

"I'm not doing that, Y/N. I'm not."

"PLEASE!" Y/N was sobbing again, placing their hands on their head and tucking their legs closer to them. "I can't... Turn me in, Peter. I'm begging you to. All of this... it's... over. I'm done. I'm done..."

[NOW PLAYING]

< Solar Sailer - Daft Punk >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 2:42

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

"Y/N..." Peter moved to crouch on his hands and feet, slowly closing the distance between the two of them again, planting himself in front of them, and gently taking hold of their hands, guiding them down to rest in his, intermittently giving them gentle squeezes.

"Will you let me tell you how I got out of this? How I got out of everything you're feeling...?" In that moment, their voice seemed to run away from them. In all honesty, they were surprised their distress hadn't brought it about sooner than it did. They nodded, but lifted one of their hands to try and hint at being unable to speak.

"Are you nonverbal?" Peter's question was affirmed with one more nod. "That's okay... It's okay. Let your body rest alright? Let your mind rest. I've got a lot to tell you about... I've got a lot to explain."

And explain Peter did. About the multiverse being real, about how he was dragged from his world into another Peter Parker's. He explained that Max Dillon had originally died fighting Spider-Man, and how because of a spell, of all things, gone awry, five villains ended up in Peter One's world. Y/N listened intently, hand still squeezing Peter's as he described Peter One's plight to cure the villains before sending them home. Peter could see the confusion on Y/N's face when he mentioned that Peter One's aunt May had been killed by Green Goblin.

"Not Harry... The... The Goblin from Peter two's world... His name's Norman Osborn. In that world, he was Green Goblin," Peter elaborated. "Peter One... he said he wanted to tear him apart for what he did. That's what I nearly did to Harry. I know that's what you want to do to Alan, to the man who killed F/N, and nearly killed you... but I'm telling you right now, it will tear you apart too..."

Y/N's lip trembled, and they sniffled.

"You know, there's a saying that all three of us Peter's have been told by someone in our lives. For Peter two and I, it was Uncle Ben... For our little brother, it was May. Even after the initial attempt to help the villains went bad, she never stopped believing in that saying. 'With great power, comes great responsibility.'" Peter saw Y/N's eyes watering again, and he softly placed his other hand on their forearm. "Peter Two and I didn't have the chance to stray from the darker path. We weren't going to let Peter One do what we did. I... I won't let you do what I did..."

"H-How...?" Y/N's voice was small, and it was evident that speaking was painful for them in that moment. "How do you... get out, of this...?"

"In my case... I found some much needed closure. I found redemption, of sorts. The other two Peters, they... They both have an MJ. Their girlfriends."

Y/N's expression made Peter chuckle. "IhIt's a lohot to take in, isn't it? All of this multiverse stuff? Peheter One's friend said his name, ahand we all answered him." When a giggle left Y/N's lips, Peter's heart fluttered, relieved to see his friend experiencing a moment of joy, if ever brief, at least it had been there.

"When Green Goblin set off an explosion on the Statue of Liberty, MJ, she fell... Peter One almost reached her, but he got knocked away by the glider... In that moment, I..." His eyes were tired from all of the crying before that, but he still had more tears to release. "I just saw Gwen... and I dove. I jumped right after MJ, caught her in my arms, and I did what I was angry at myself for years, for not doing the first time. I stopped our fall with my webs, after I had reached her..."

Peter had been terrified to look at MJ, as he stood on the ground holding her, pieces of broken scaffolding falling around them. All he could see was Gwen, lifeless... unmoving... All he could see was his own failure.

"The moment... The moment MJ affirmed to me that she was okay, I... I cried... Then, she asked if I was okay... To hear her ask that question, it... it made me realize that I could be okay... I would be okay... Saving her, sparing her Peter from the loss I went through, reaffirmed that the Spider-Man I was meant to be, the Spider-Man that Gwen wanted me to be, was still in my heart, somewhere... I just needed to find him... and I needed to allow myself more time to be Peter Parker again."

Y/N tearfully squeezed his forearm to comfort him, and when Peter looked up, they'd opened their arms to offer an embrace. Peter graciously hugged them, wiping his eyes hastily, and allowing Y/N to rest their head on his shoulder.

"You deserve your closure, Y/N. I wanna help you find it..."

The two lost track of how long they'd sat up there together, but after a few more minutes, Peter donned his mask, and retrieved Y/N's for them, before he dropped them off back at their and Gabisile's shared apartment.

"Are you sure your leg will be okay?"

"M-Mhm... I-I've... I've been through worse..." Y/N joked with a hollow laugh, wiping the fresh tears from their cheeks.

"I'm only a call or text away, okay?" Peter had removed his mask one more time, so the two could look at each other. "I mean that..."

"I-I know... Th-Thank you, Peter."

After he bid them goodnight, Y/N closed the window, pulled the curtains shut, and removed their suit. They properly cleaned and dressed their bullet graze, before pulling on long pajama pants to hide the bandages. Despite Peter's reassurance, despite his understanding of their harshness and cruelty, the guilt was crushing them. They placed the necklace back around their neck, and with a tearful sigh, they buried their blood-stained suit in the back of their closet, intent on it never seeing the light of day again.

[NOW PLAYING]

< In My Dreams - Anohni >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:09

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

The streets of New York were adorn with a thin layer of mist, the air wet from the heavy thunderstorm in the early hours of the morning. Peter slowly pushed open the door of the cafe and bookstore, his gaze immediately drifting to the empty space at the counter. Amari's eyes met his as he looked up from the register, and Peter was quick to notice his usual demeanor, carefree and friendly, had vanished, replaced by a tense body, and sadness. His attempts to greet Peter with a smile had failed. The silence was haunting. Only one other customer was in the store that morning. Gabisile walked back around the counter, freezing when she saw Peter. She looked exhausted, eyes swollen and face void of her familiar smile. Of course, Peter knew that this day was horrifying to Gabisile and Amari to have to remember as well. To see their friend, near lifeless, towing the line between survival and death, was a sight unforgettable, and forever haunting. He walked over, quietly sat down at the counter, and didn't even need to open his mouth to speak before Gabisile was answering the question she knew he would ask.

"Y/N... They're... They've taken the week off... I-It's today... Six years ago today..." Peter nodded, with more understanding than either Gabisile or Amari knew he had. "Amari and I- we... we tried to insist that one of us could be with them today... they refused."

"Where... where are they?" Peter asked quietly.

"They've been at the cemetery since they woke up," Amari answered bluntly, placing his head in his hand.

"Amari!" Gabisile hissed.

"Gem-Gem, I'm tired of dancing around what happened, aight? Do you not trust Peter?"

"This is about Y/N! You know they hate talking about it!"

Amari let out a yell of frustration as he gripped his locs with his hands. "Yes! I do know! But you wanna know what else I know, Gabisile? You hate talking about it even more than they do! Is this your fear for Y/N's wellbeing, or is it your own damn fear of having to relive that day talking right now!?"

Gabisile stormed up to Amari and poked his chest repeatedly. "Don't you dare get all self righteous high and mighty on me, Amari Jackson!"

"ME!? Miss Gabisile 'this isn't my secret to keep' Harris, is calling me high and mighty!? If you think for one damn second-"

"I already know! Alright!? Y/N told me themself!" Peter interrupted loudly, standing up from his seat. He couldn't take the bickering anymore. "They... they told me... I know.... about... about how they got the scar... about F/N..."

Gabisile and Amari stopped, both of them turning to look at Peter, stunned to see he was crying. "I know it's horrifying to see your best friend barely making it out of something alive... And... it's horrifying... to see someone die..." The reticence in the air was almost suffocating.

"Peter..."

"That day. Uh... the day I tried to tell you about... what happened ten years ago," Peter took a slow, shaky inhale through his nose, before letting the breath leave his lips. "G-Gwen... her... her name was Gwen..."

The two friends could only watch as Peter left a tip on the counter, and left the cafe and bookstore without another word. Amari looked over when he heard sniffling. Gabisile was crying, wiping her hands on her sleeves, an effort which proved fruitless when she began sobbing harder. Amari wordlessly offered his friend a tissue, his own tears falling down his face and into the hair of his beard. Gabisile placed her hand on his shoulder as she wiped her eyes, and the two exchanged silent apologies for arguing. Neither of them would ever forget seeing Y/N on that stretcher as the EMT's wheeled their dying friend to the ambulance. Both of them had nightmares for months after that day. After a few moments of silence, the two stared at the empty chair, and the tip lying in front of them.

"He didn't even b-buy anything..."

[NOW PLAYING]

< Stand in the Rain - Superchick >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:19

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Y/N hadn't moved from the grass where they were kneeling, eyes downcast and sullen. The weather alerts on their phone had been ignored, along with text messages, and missed phone calls. In front of them, sat F/N's grave, adorned with fresh flowers of their favorite variety. Y/N hadn't cried since the previous night. "I... I don't know what to do anymore, F/N. You'd be so disappointed... if you knew..."

For nearly twenty minutes, they said nothing more, their heart pounding uncomfortably, throat feeling tight as the tears finally began to form. Their body was rocking, hands gripping the fabric of their sweatshirt like a vice, lungs working in overdrive. It had begun to rain... The cold droplets of water stung the skin on their hands and ears. Even as the rainfall grew stronger, harsher, they remained where they were. All of their anger, their rage, their pain, fear, and remorse had built up like a pressure rocket, and with a scream, it burst. Y/N sobbed inconsolably, repeating apologies they told themself F/N would never hear.

They buried their face in their hands, and even as the mud began to form beneath them, they didn't move. All they could do, was cry, oblivious to the pair of eyes that were watching them from above. Peter was perched on the wall of a taller building right above the cemetery, clad in his Spider-Man suit, heart aching at the sight. He knew he'd done the same thing they did. He'd been where they were, and he knew that all he could do, was give them their time to grieve. With a heavy heart, he turned, and swung away to continue his patrol. Y/N was exhausted, soaked from the downpour, and cold. They'd lost count of how long they stayed, curled up in front of the tombstone, but as the shivers wracked their body, teeth chattering, they knew they'd grow sick if they didn't get back home and warm up. As much as it hurt to do, they whispered one final apology and goodbye, promising they would visit again, before weakly standing, and staggering down the cemetery path, feeling more broken than they'd ever been.

Later that night, Y/N cried themself to sleep, unable to speak, unable to think of anything except their guilt... Peter lay awake in his own bed, staring up at the ceiling for hours, mind racing with thought after thought, all of how he could help Y/N feel any better...

[NOW PLAYING]

< Karma Police - Radiohead >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 4:24

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

-It has now been two weeks since any of us in the state have seen a single sign from the infamous vigilante, Wrathful Rose. No incidents have been reported, no symbols have been left, no new names have been added to Wrathful Rose's exposé list. As the people of New York wonder where they've gone, there's a question we are all asking ourselves, are we better off, or worse off, without them?-

Peter gripped his coffee cup, staring up at the television screen. The reporter had been right. Wrathful Rose had disappeared, and for two weeks, no one knew why. He knew, and couldn't help but be angry with himself, feeling as though he'd failed them. In those two weeks, he hadn't seen them at all. Peter had made amends with Gabisile and Amari, who were quick to reconcile after their fight, and found himself enjoying their company, as much as he could be, given his sadness about Y/N.

-You wanna know what I think, folks!? Wrathful Rose is nothing more than a cowardly con artist whose control over the citizens of New York could only have ever ended in CATASTROPHE!-

The anger of J. Jonah Jameson's words made Peter clench his fists with spite. He hadn't noticed that his coffee cup had been crushed in his hand, of which the remaining contents spilled out onto the counter.

"Uh... You good, Pete?" Amari had witnessed the entire ordeal, mildly amused but mostly concerned. Peter glanced down, and jumped up, quickly picking up the crushed cup and tossing it into the trash.

"Y-Yeah! Yeah... Um. I'm so sorry about that." He apologetically and hastily tried to wipe the spilled coffee with a napkin.

"IhI got it," Gabisile insisted with a chuckle, holding up the rag and spray bottle she'd retrieved from beneath the counter.

"Gemma... How are they...?" Peter asked quietly.

"Quiet... Exhausted... They... They don't really talk to Mars and I much right now." Gabisile's voice was trembling, and Amari gently placed a hand on her shoulder to comfort her, before taking the dirtied rag and spray bottle from her hands. "I think they feel guilty... For a lot of things... Shame always weighs heavy on their conscience. It's that fear of failure... that fear of letting down people they love..."

She walked around to the other side of the counter, and sat down in front of Peter, shoulders shaking. "They told me, yesterday, that they let us down; Amari and I... Which couldn't be further from the truth, but... it's hard to hear the truth when your grief is lying to you. They said, that they let you down too, Peter. They said they let you down the most."

Gabisile's usual demeanor was gone. The bold, chipper extrovert was unrecognizable, almost scary to him. Subconsciously, Peter began shaking his head, slowly at first, and the rapidly. "No. No, they didn't let me down. Not for one second, they... they've never let me down..."

"I just wish they could hear us." She looked up, lips pressing together, before Peter leaned forward, and gave her upper arm a comforting squeeze. He wasn't expecting Gabisile to hug him, but he graciously returned it. "You're a good friend, Peter Parker."

That was all she said, before breaking away from the hug and heading for the back room. Before Peter left, Amari met him in a handshake, and thanked him. As Peter walked down the street, crowds of people everywhere around him, he couldn't take his mind off of the night he and Y/N opened up to each other on the rooftop. He knew from firsthand experience that healing never happened overnight, but he couldn't live with himself knowing that for the past two weeks, Y/N had been burdened with guilt and shame. Another report appeared on the television screen.

-Behind me, a crowd of Wrathful Rose's supporters are creating a tribute in hopes that the vigilante returns to their work, however, most seem anything but optimistic of their return-

At the back of his mind, Peter continued to think about what Alan meeting with Gustav and Harry would mean for the near future. He hadn't stopped thinking about it since that night. He knew that something bad was coming, and he was going to need Y/N's help.

***

[NOW PLAYING]

< In My Dreams (Slowed + Reverb) - Anohni >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 4:39

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Y/N awoke with a yelp, feeling the freezing cold hardwood floor beneath them. That was the forth time in two solid weeks that their dreams had caused them to fall off of their bed. Their arms and hands grasped at the bedsheets, pulling themself back up to sit on the edge of the mattress. As their eyes wandered over to the clock on their bedside table, they sighed with despondency. It was only four in the morning... Returning to slumber was not an option for them. They'd much rather be exhausted than see their mind replaying their pain. A knock on their window made them gasp sharply, their entire body flinching, arms and fists moving outward and inward. With a hesitant swipe of their hand, they opened the curtains to see Peter standing there. He silently pointed to the window, mouthing the word "please." Y/N obliged, and moved to sit at the head of their bed, tucking their legs into their chest and fiddling with their fingertips. They couldn't even look at him. Both were waiting for the other to speak first, but when Y/N made it clear they weren't comfortable initiating the conversation, Peter finally spoke. "You quit..."

"I-I quit..."

"Y/N, don't-"

"Peter, I-I feel so bad, about everything, okay? Right now I'm lost... I'm confused... I'm sad... I'm... I'm really hurting. I can barely sleep and when I do, i-it's all nightmares..." Y/N never got used to how painful it felt to cry, and their sinuses were burning from all of the sobbing they'd already done. "I, I've been dreading this moment. S-Seeing you again. I... I didn't know how I could ever face you again... after all that I said... and... and all that I-I did..."

"I forgive you for everything, Y/N! I already did. I understand, because I've said what you said... and I've done what you've done... Maybe not... not exactly word for word, or action for action, but I know this cycle. I know this path."

"I... I guess I just don't understand why you haven't given up on me yet..."

"I'm not giving up on someone I care about." Peter's voice was firm. "Okay? You're... you're the first friend I've made here since losing Gwen, and, losing the Harry I knew. I'm not about to lose you too."

"I-I'm still here, aren't I?" Y/N sniffed, and slowly looked up at the man in front of them. His expression had a pit forming in their stomach. "Peter... what else did you come here for...?"

"I need your help."

He saw the way Y/N's eyes widened, and they way their head shook rapidly. "No... Peter, no. I'm not. I can't-"

"Alan Proctor, Gustav Fiers, and Harry Osborn... They're planning something, Y/N. Harry knows I'm Spider-Man. If he sees me as Peter Parker, with you, or Gabi, or Mari, he'll kill all of you."

"Not if he doesn't know!"

"If he doesn't know already, he's gonna find out, Y/N!" Peter argued tearfully. "Please. If he doesn't already know who you are somehow, he'll find out... He'll find you... You're the only person who can help me do this... I can't do this on my own."

"D-Do what... Peter?" Peter was building up the strength to tell them. It was the hardest decision he'd had to make in a very long time. His choice went against everything his mind and heart were telling him to do. It was a choice that he still couldn't figure out where his younger multiverse counterpart found the strength to make. His hands were trembling, and his lips felt dry.

"I'm gonna cure Harry."

Y/N stared at him blankly, taking in every word, before their face morphed with disgust and disbelief. "What the fuck, Peter..."

"I know."

"Cure him? A-After everything he's done to you?"

"Killing him is not gonna make my pain go away. It's not gonna ease my guilt for making Harry feel hopeless. I cure him, he can't hurt Gem, or Mars, and he can't hurt you..." Peter gently placed a hand on Y/N's outstretched leg. "If we don't stop him, he will kill one of you, or all of you."

Y/N felt ill at the thought of losing Gabisile or Amari. They couldn't handle another loss. F/N's death had shattered them to their core. Just the possibility of losing someone a second time made them choke out a sob. "I-I... I can't go through that again, Peter... I can't..."

"Neither can I, Y/N. Especially not you... Not Gabi, or Mari."

Peter could hear Y/N's heart racing uncontrollably, their chest rising and falling with each shallow breath. "Okay. I'll... I'll do it... Whatever it takes. I don't want to lose you either, Peter." He moved to hug them, but they held up their arms.

"I'm f-feeling... I'm feeling s-sort of touch averse right now... I need a second. I'm sorry..."

"Don't apologize. I'm sorry. I... I should have checked with you first..." Y/N lifted their hands, holding them out to Peter, who slowly took hold of them. He waited for them to initiate any further contact, gently squeezing their hands. They slowly leaned forward, and rested their head on his shoulder, letting go of one of his hands so they could wrap their arm around his middle. Peter lifted his hand to hold the back of their head, still squeezing their hand, and resting his forehead on theirs when they began to cry again. "We're gonna cure Harry..."

"Mm-hm."

"And we're gonna use your proof to take down Alan and Gustav."

"Wh-What if... if that man shows his face again? What if h-he tries to finish what he started...?

"We'll stop him. He'll never see another day of freedom in his life."

"I want to kill him, Peter. I... I want to watch him die. Make him feel the same fear I felt. The same fear... and same pain... F/N felt, and then some."

"It won't heal your pain... Killing Harry wouldn't have healed mine... Nearly killing him didn't take any of that pain away... But, if that man shows up, you and I are gonna stop him, alright?"

"I can't promise I won't try to kill him... please... Please promise me, that you'll stop me... if I try..."

"I promise," Peter whispered. "Y/N, please promise me that you'll try... to... to forgive yourself... Even if it takes years... It's taken me nearly ten to even begin to..."

With a deep breath, and another sob, they let go of Peter's hand and hugged him tightly with both arms, and as soon as Y/N initiated that contact, Peter returned it, giving them a squeeze. "I-I promise... I promise to try..."

After crying into his shirt for several minutes, Y/N moved back, and Peter gave a smile, and, despite his own tears, it was one of relief, and warmth. An idea crept into his mind, and he jumped up. "Come on. Pull on a sweatshirt and some shoes," he encouraged.

"Wh-What for...?"

"It's a surprise," Peter answered, unable to suppress his grin. "Come on! We gotta hurry!"

Without wasting another minute, Y/N obliged, unable to contain their own smile at Peter's excitement. They probably should have been expecting the web swing when Peter told them to hold onto him tightly, but it still surprised them nonetheless. Peter jumped, and Y/N couldn't help their shriek. The cold air stung their cheeks, and the sight of the buildings flying past them was too dizzying. They shut their eyes tight, refusing to open them until Peter had landed. He leapt down onto flat ground, still holding his frightened friend, who lifted their head, but covered their eyes with one hand as the other still clung to Peter's shoulder. "We're safe, Y/N. Open your eyes. Trust me." Bit by bit, Y/N peeked through their fingers, and softly, they gasped...

[NOW PLAYING]

< Young - Sam Smith >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 2:35

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Peter had taken them to the very top of the Empire State Building, just as the sun was beginning to rise. The radiant, golden glow felt sharp on their irises, but they gazed in awe at the orange and pink that had begun to paint the sky. With the stars still sparkling above, it took Y/N's breath away. Their friend carefully set them down, laughing softly at the flabbergasted expression on their face. The longer Y/N looked, the more their body began to move. At first it was a subtle sway, which grew to rocking on their heels. Soon, their smile was uncontainable and they flapped their hands with indescribable joy. "Peter! This... This!?" Again, their voice was gone, but this time, not from distress. The sight of Y/N overcome with giddiness, with a genuine smile and happy stimming taking over their body, was enough to get tears rolling down Peter's face.

"This is where I go, when... When I'm feeling the way you're feeling. I just sit up there," he nodded to the ledge, "and I take everything in. The air, the sky... I feel peace up here... I feel safe... I feel... I feel alright. That's what we are up here, alright? Both of us. That's what we'll be up here." Y/N was overwhelmed from their clashing emotions, and their lip quivered, covering their mouth with one hand as their stimming picked up in pace on the other. When they convulsed with a sob, Peter grew worried. Right as he had made a move to get closer, he let out a loud grunt at the impact of Y/N jumping into his arms.

"Wohoah!" Peter chuckled, laughing harder when he heard Y/N giggling. He attempted to steady himself, but the two ended up falling onto the ground. "Gohoing DOWWN!"

His tingle kicked in to keep Y/N from getting hurt from the fall, and he helped the still laughing individual to lie beside him once he was sure they were alright. It had been a long time, since either of them had felt as at peace as they did in that moment. The two of them stared up at the sky, watching as the daylight slowly crept up on the stars. In the midst of his pondering, he found himself feeling a little mischievous. With a turn of his head, he asked his question. "So, uh... When are we gonna talk about how you were totally letting me tickle you that night I caught you?"

Y/N's breath hitched. Loudly. They could already feel the heat creeping up their ears. It had been flustering enough knowing that Spider-Man had figured that out, but as it fully sunk in for them that it was in fact, their friend, Peter, who'd figured it out that night, they squeaked, and they turned their head back up to the sky. "I-I was not..."

"You were~" Peter insisted, smirking and scooting closer. "You could have gotten out of those webs any time you felt like it. Admit it."

"N-Not happening, Peter."

"I will bug you until you admit it. Come on~"

"Nuh uh..."

"Admit it, bug."

"B-Bug!?"

"Yeah. I'm gonna call you bug from now on. You are overdue for a nickname and you didn't seem too keen on 'Rosie Posey.'" The nickname made Y/N's cheeks feel warm.

"I'm not admitting to anything."

"No? Not even if IIII..." Peter lifted his hand, and ever so slowly began to wiggle his fingers in Y/N's direction, which made them squirm. "You still won't admit it?"

"Mm-mm," Y/N squeaked when Peter's fingers nearly touched their side. They could feel the urge to giggle growing harder to ignore, and when Peter pulled them closer, they shrieked, the giggles pouring out of their lips. "Peheheheter! PEHEHETER!"

"It's about time you got acquainted with tickle monster Peter Parker, bugs. I think you're really gonna like him~" Peter sat up, amused by how much Y/N was laughing just from the anticipation. "Why are you so giggly~? I haven't even started tickling you!"

"Behehehecause y-you're g-gohonna!"

Peter feigned a look of shock, and furrowed his brows. "Wait- How... How did you know what I was gonna do!? Do you have a secret power you didn't tell me about-?"

"Sehehecrehet pohohoweheher!?"

"Yeah. Secret power. You've got the tingle thing, don't you? Same thing I have."

"Nohoho IhIhI dohON'T!"

"Yehehes you do~ You've got a tickle tingle!" Peter was grinning like a fool, laughing at his own joke as Y/N hid their face in their hand. His hands hovered above Y/N's abdomen, and when they curiously uncovered their eyes, Peter began playfully attacking their belly over their pajama shirt, their sweatshirt having ridden up from their squirming. They let out a loud squeal, before they began laughing loudly, hands flapping with joy. "Yes you do yes you dooooo~!"

"Peheheheterrrrrrr!"

"Y/NNNNNNNN~"

His fingers spidered over their sides, and Y/N shrieked with laughter. "Thihihihis ihihisn't fahahAHAHAHAIRAAHAHAHA!"

"It's nihice to finally see how ahadorable you look when I'm tickling you silly!" Peter exclaimed. "Awww! Look at that smile~! You really are a cinnamon roll~"

Y/N was kicking their legs rapidly in the air, snorting and screeching when Peter's thumbs found their way to their hips. "WAHAHAIT! *hic* NAHAHAT THEHEHERE!"

"No? Does it tickle too much, bug~?" He was wickedly happy to finally see Y/N's reaction to the teasing, pouty voice. Their stimming went into overdrive and they hide their face with a whine. "Is somebody getting butterflies~? Yeah? Good! You're a giggly bug, aren't you~? Giggle-bug's a good nickname, don't you think? Or maybe, bugaboo~!"

"Youhouhou're sohoho meheheheaaaan!"

"I think you just don't want to admit you like being tickled~ Ah-! Don't you hide from me~" Peter gently moved Y/N's hands away from their face, still poking at their torso with one of his fingers. "It's nothing to be embarrassed about."

"IhIhIt is fohor a cohold-hehehearted ahahand scahary vihigilanteheHEHEEEE!"

Peter had begun squeezing at one of their knees, and swiftly grabbed their ankle. "You're very far from cold-hearted, giggle-bug. And scary? Nuh-uh. Not when you're laughiiiiing~"

"Whahahat ahahare youhou- heheyyy! Dohohon't you dahahare!"

"Oh? Why not? Bad spot, bugaboo?" Peter swiftly pulled off their shoe and tossed it aside.

"Waitwaitwahait! OHOKAY! Ohohokahahay! IhI ahahadmihit it! WAHAIIIIT!" Their sudden squeak of admission was without a doubt one of the cutest sounds Peter had ever heard. He smile triumphantly, before wrapping their arm around Y/N's ankle.

"I'm glad. Because I'm having a lot of fun tickling you."

Before Y/N could say anything else, Peter's fingers were fluttering over their sock. They screamed into their hands, laughter jumping a full octave, hands stimming rapidly and uncontrollably. "I thihink this spohohot's wohorse than your hips, bugs~" Peter teased. He began chuckling impishly when after another minute, Y/N formed a forcefield around their foot, making Peter let go. They lay there, taking in air and giggling softly. Peter lay back down beside them, and they turned to look at him.

"Youhou... fihihihihight... dihihirty..."

"I do nohot! That was fair and square tickling!" He gave their side one last poke, heart fluttering at their giggly squeak.

"Wait a minute- Your forcefields have always been red... right? That one just now was pink," Peter noted.

"W-What?"

"Mhm."

"Huh..." The sun had almost fully risen, though the sky was still a little darker. As the gentle breeze brushed through the open spaces of the tower, the two caught their breaths, that feeling of peace unwavering in their safe place. "After... After all this is over... With Harry, and Alan... and that Gustav guy... I'd still like to put Wrathful Rose behind me."

Peter turned, studying Y/N's expression for a few seconds. "That's fair."

"I... I understand, if... you don't..."

"Bugs," Peter waited for Y/N to look at him, and held out his hand, gently squeezing Y/N's hand the moment they gave him theirs. "I'm not going anywhere. Whether or not you're still a vigilante after this is all over, you'll still see me walking into the cafe and bookstore for a coffee."

Y/N giggled. "Ohohokahay."

"I'll see you other places too, won't I? Like... Like maybe after... after we take care of what's coming, we can finally spend time together outside of the cafe and bookstore?"

"Youhou will. IhI promise."

Both of them were beaming at their agreement, and, with their hands still in each others' grasp, they watched as the sun finished rising.

***

[NOW PLAYING]

< The Equation - James Horner >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 4:23

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

The lights in Peter's lab flickered momentarily after he's flipped the switch, causing Y/N to cringe at the flash. "Sorry, bug."

"I-It's okay..." They muttered, shoulders shuddering briefly as a soft and short 'brrr' emitted from their lips. After they'd shaken the disruption out through their fingertips, they stepped inside, admiring the shelves and lab equipment, before gazing down at the concrete floor.

"Welcome to the Spider-lab."

Y/N turned back to Peter, who was locking the makeshift lab's door, the cheeky smile already tugging at the corners of their mouth. "S-Spihider-lab?"

"Thehe name is a work in progress, alright? I... haven't really had much time to brainstorm lately." Peter chuckled, before walking over to join his friend. "Did you bring your suit?"

"I did... but... I don't really see the use in patching it up... There won't be a Wrathful Rose to wear the suit after we cure Harry."

"You never know when you might need it, bugs. Besides. I've got a few ideas in mind."

"F-For the suit repair?"

"For a new suit."

"You'd... You'd do that for me...?"

"Mhm. I make all of mine." Peter took the suit from Y/N's hands when they held it out to him, smiling at their expression, which was full of curiosity, eyes wider than usual as they awaited more information. He lay the suit out on the table, before spinning on his heels and pointing to his friend. "And we'll make yours together. But fiiirst, tell me everything you know about your powers."

"E-Everything...?"

"Everything."

"O-Okay... um... what would you like to know about first...?"

Peter placed his finger on his chin, eyes wandering to the ceiling as he playfully exaggerated his pondering, and made Y/N giggle. "Telekinesis. Let's start there."

"I... I can only move what isn't living... I used to be able to, but... I can't anymore... The night... the night I nearly died... and um... h-held my wound shut, was the last time I could use my telekinesis on a human being." When their eyes began to water, Peter offered his hand for Y/N to squeeze. As they continued their ramble, they found themself subconsciously using their other hand to fiddle with Peter's sleeve, at which his heart grew warm upon noticing. "M-Maybe it's the traumatic experience of nearly dying? I-I don't know..."

"That makes perfect sense, bugs. Your body's remembering that you were on the brink of death... the last time you used your powers like that. You're protecting yourself." Y/N hadn't considered that before... For a long time, they had feared they were just too weak after that point... "Peter Two, uh... He can shoot webs right out of his wrists, and he mentioned... he mentioned he actually lost his powers at one point."

"H-How does that happen?"

"All up here," Peter answered, pointing to his temple. "Emotionally and mentally. Maybe that part of you won't be gone forever... You never know..."

"M-Maybe..."

"Alright. What next?"

"Surface level morphing. It's how I change my hair and eyes... But, i-if I get a wound, or... or..."

"A scar...?"

Y/N looked up at Peter, and their fingers reached up to brush over their choker, before they nodded rapidly. "I can't use my morphing to hide it at all. However... I can... change the shape of my facial features, but I haven't figured out how to make it last. So I... I wear the mask over my mouth and nose, just in case the hair and eyes aren't enough..."

Peter scribbled down Y/N's information in bullet points before looking back up. "Alright. Forcefields?"

"B-Buckle up... this... this one's a bit of a doozy..."

"I love a good doozy." Peter wrote down every detail Y/N gave him, and after briefly biting the end of his pencil, he immediately began writing out an equation. Y/N watched followed the pencil with their eyes, as it etched the graphite onto the paper. They wouldn't pretend like they understood what it meant, but it was fascinating to watch, and they quietly rested their chin in their hands, face aglow with wonder. Peter's ears picked up on a gentle noise, akin to little bubbles popping in the air, one by one. When he glanced up at Y/N, their breath hitched, and they bit their lip apologetically. "S-Sorry, I..."

"You don't need to be sorry." Peter smiled softly, and glanced back to the paper, echoing the same noise Y/N had made moments before, catching their simper in his peripheral vision. He couldn't help his breathy chuckle when he heard the sound once more. After a few minutes of echoing the sound back and forth, Peter finished writing. "Alright. Here it is. We add this formula into the material of your suit, you should be able to change the suit's color with your morphing powers. And if we add this one, you should be able to create forcefields that fit the form of your body. If someone tried to stab you, or slice you, the suit would make it much easier to block the attack with ease."

"H-How did you... The color thing...?

"Think about how some animals change color, right? Like a seahorse or an octopus. They've both got those pigment-filled cells called chromatophores. Except, instead of chromatophores that stretch and pull to display more of a certain pigment, your suit's got microscopic technology woven into the fabric that will react as though it's part of your skin, and, uh... let... let you change the color." He'd briefly trailed off as he saw how engaged Y/N was in his explanation. Their eyes were wide with awe, curiosity, and it was rather cute to see. "Come on. We'll make a square of it and do a trial run." It took Peter all of ten minutes to put it together, and he returned to the table where Y/N was sitting, holding up the little square with a smile.

"You ready?"

"A-As ready as I'll ever be..."

Peter gently placed the fabric over Y/N's forearm, and Y/N jumped when it illuminated in response to coming into contact with them. "It's synced! Okay, try changing its color." The two's eyes never left the fabric, and as Y/N used their morphing powers, the fabric began to turn blue, but their skin remained the same color. Y/N couldn't believe their eyes, and changed the color to green, and then red, and then pink.

"H-Hoholy shit, Peter!" When Y/N began happy stimming, the fabric briefly flashed a rainbow hue, and Y/N squealed. Peter was grinning ear to ear at his friend's giddiness.

Once the two had settled, they tested the forcefield element of the little square of fabric. Y/N watched as Peter dropped a pen downward toward their arm, and shrieked when it bounced away, though they eagerly met Peter's hand in a high five when he cheered. "Now that we know it works, we gotta make your suit."

"How... How long will that take?"

"Once I've got your suit measurements? It shouldn't be more than an hour and a half." Peter pressed a button on the machine he'd used to create the fabric. "While we wait for this to produce enough of this fabric for your suit, we've got a cure to make."

"I-I... I don't know how helpful I'll be, Peter... I'm... I'm not one hundred percent sure how all this works..."

"Heyy. Self deprecation is not allowed in the Spider Lab, bugs."

"I'm b-being honest!"

"Honesty schmonesty! You talk poorly about yourself again, and I'll tickle you to the floor."

"P-Peheter!!"

"Am I clear, giggle-bug~?" Peter poked at their sides a few times and chuckled softly over their adorable squeaks and happy stims. "Am I cleaaaaar~?"

"Yehehes! Yehehehess! Ohokahahay!"

"Good. Follow me." Peter handed Y/N a pair of goggles, and, after studying them for a few moments, they carefully placed them over their eyes. He had gathered all the materials he needed to work on Harry's cure. The air was scarily silent as Y/N watched Peter work. They bounced their leg on the stool they sat upon, eyes gazing at the chemicals and test tubes.

"What... um... wh-what was it like, f-fighting a guy with electrical powers...?"

"The fihirst time? Max... he uh... he was whooping my ass. AhAnd, to add insult to injury... he played 'The Itsy Bitsy Spider' on thehe Oscorp power plant tohowers."

Y/N looked at him blankly, before their lips curled into a smile. "Reheheheally?"

"Reheally." Peter grinned as he used a dropper to add another substance to the beaker. "IhI fucking hate thahat sohohong."

His friend was giggling even harder, unable to contain their laughter over the idea of Peter getting his ass kicked to a nursery rhyme. "Soho... What happened n-next...?"

"Max, he... he was shocking me... badly. Thankfully Gwen helped me magnetize the web shooters earlier. Stopped them from getting fried. I couldn't get my hands to fire them though... cause... you know... the muscle spasms Max's powers were causing. Gwen saved me. She uh... drohohove a car into him." Peter glanced up and saw Y/N's widened eyes, as well as their dropped jaw, and began chuckling.

"Ohoho my Gohohod!"

"Rihihight? Shehe... she dihidn't even hesitate... She was brave... she always did the right thing... even... even when..." Peter trailed off, stirring a mixture and focusing on his breath to keep composed.

"She loved you," Y/N reminded him, unsure if it was the right thing to say, but taking a chance. "Wh-When... when you love someone... y-you're with them through everything..."

Peter couldn't help but smile, a reaction which reassured his friend. "Youhou know, that's not the first time she saved me either."

"N-No?"

"Noho," Peter chuckled, his voice breaking slightly. "She uh... smashed a trohophy on Dr. Connors' head when he was the lizard."

Y/N couldn't help but giggle, before their smile faded and their eyes focused on Peter's work again, quietly stimming with their fingers.

[NOW PLAYING]

< Becoming Spider-Man - James Horner >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 4:17

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

"Alright. I've managed to properly isolate my self healing factors..." Peter stared at the mixture in the beaker. "The issue before... uh... My dad, he mentioned... in a video message I found, that the reason that spider bite didn't kill me to begin with, was because the spiders were bred using his DNA. All other trials failed, because the subjects kept dying..."

Y/N was silent, eyes wide at Peter's explanation. "Y-Yeah... But, with a little tinkering, and with the knowledge I gathered from my multiverse trip, I think I solved the issue. So in about three hours, we'll have transformed the spider venom into a cure for Harry."

"That's... That's incredible, Peter."

The praise made Peter's face redden the slightest bit, but he smiled, and set the venom into a metal contraption, and lifted the beaker. "Care to do the honors?" Y/N beamed, and with a flap of their hands, they nodded, taking the beaker from Peter and pouring the liquid into the metal canister. Peter closed it tight, and set it aside.

"Alright! Now while wait for the formula to transform the venom, I'm gonna take your suit measurements." He pulled out a roll of measuring tape, and with a grin, began to unravel it. "This might tickle a bit."

"J-Juhust a bit?" Y/N questioned with a nervous giggle. "IhI'm not sohoho sure I truHUHUST YOUHOUHOU! Peter!"

"Ehh, mahaybe a lot~" The two sat together at the table after several giggle-filled minutes of taking measurements, both with pencils in hand. "So, I was thinking, if we do a rose emblem here, we can add one on the back as well."

"C-Could we add them to the inner wrists as well?"

"Of course, bug." Peter bit his pencil in thought, before looking over. "How would you feel about a series of little roses right here?"

Y/N glanced to where he pointing. The roses would rest along the part of the suit just above their scar. They subconsciously ran their fingers over their choker, and looked up at him with a nod. "Let's do it."

Once they'd gotten all the sketching done, the moved on to color scheme, and decided on a combination of white, gold, red, and pink. Of course, Y/N would be able to change the suit body at any time, so if they wanted to make the suit black, or red, they could do so. The two of them worked as a team, and with the help of one of Peter's many contraptions, the suit outline was cut out for them, and all they needed to do was sew the pieces together. "How good are you with a needle and thread?"

"Juhust make sure you've got lots of thimbles and bandaids." Y/N giggled. Peter operated the sewing machine, with Y/N closing off any bits that could only be sewn after the elastics were ran through. Once the suit was finished, he gave Y/N some privacy to change.

"Are you ready, bugs?"

"M-Mhm!" Y/N's heart was pounding as Peter opened the door to re-enter the lab. He froze in his tracks the moment he saw them. All of the chosen colors beautifully complimented Y/N's skin, and the hood rested upon their head in a manner akin to a rose petal. He noted that Y/N's hair had changed in hue to a soft pink. "I-I... I figured... the hair matches... s-so..."

"You look incredible, Y/N."

Peter smiled softly as Y/N rubbed their arm. "R-Really, it's... it's thanks to you, so, thank you, Peter."

"You know, you don't look so wrathful anymore. Have you thought about a new name?"

"N-Not really..." Y/N answered. "Since I won't be doing this after we cure Harry, I... I don't r-really see the point in renaming myself."

"You'll always be a hero, bug. Even when you retire from this life."

"IhI haven't been much of one, Peter..." Y/N sighed, a sad smile gracing their lips. They'd taken out their phone to check the time, but a headline notification at the top of their screen, made their heart leap to their throat. Their body began to rock, breath growing heavier, lungs feeling weak. Peter could sense their panic. He tried saying their name, but they were unresponsive.

"Buuuugs...?" His voice was drawn out, as he saw Y/N's face falling with despair, eyes dark with fear. "Y/N, please tell me. What did you just read...?"

The trembling individual swallowed dryly, and looked up into Peter's eyes.

"H-Harry Osborn was just broken out of Ravencroft..."

***

[NOW PLAYING]

< Sum Total - Hans Zimmer >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 2:51

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Harry stood, staring at the city below him through the glass of the BluangelTech tower. He could see the approaching silhouette of Gustav on the floor beneath him.

"It's not exactly wise to be standing out in the open when you're on the lam from Ravencroft of all places, Harry." The young man ignored Gustav's concerns.

"Can you believe it?" Harry questioned, smiling unnervingly as he peered out at the night sky. "We're so close."

"I still don't understand why you're putting so much faith into Alan Proctor's plan, Harry. You know as well as I do that he's no genius."

The young man's shoulders began to shake with a chuckle, which grew into a haunting laugh. "And you are, Fiers? I have spent, the past ten years... putting my faith in you. You sent six different people after Peter and you still couldn't kill him!?"

"We underestimated that boy's willpower-"

"YOU FAILED, FIERS. ADMIT IT!" Harry screamed, turning around and staring right at the Gentleman, his eyes green, teeth bared, and hair standing on end. "You fucking failed. You failed me. You knew how hopeless I felt after Peter refused to help me; after Menken framed me and took everything from me! And now you want to ride on the coattails of Proctor and I's success while you do nothing!?"

"You forget that I'm the one who's been loyal to you for a decade, Osborn!" Fiers walked up to Harry and pointed at him. "You're the one who initially failed to kill Peter Parker. You know that damn well-" Gustav's eyes widened, his breath hitching in his chest. He lowered his gaze, to see the blade that had pierced his stomach, before looking back up at Harry in disbelief.

"What IhI know damn well, is that you're fucking useless. And I don't need you anymore," Harry began laughing again, pushing Gustav to the ground, before grinning at Alan, who'd walked in just in time to see the Gentleman meet his demise.

"The plan will be set in motion tomorrow," he stated, grimacing slightly at the pool of blood on the linoleum floor. "What do you request?"

"I want to be the one, to kill Spider-Man. You can kill Wrathful Rose... If they're brave enough to show..."

***

[NOW PLAYING]

< Still Alive - Mt Eden >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 4:38

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Peter silently poured the cure into a syringe vial, the sound of his own breathing overwhelming his ears. As soon as he'd finished, he caught the sound of soft sniffling, before turning around and seeing Y/N had sunk to the floor, rocking and breathing shakily. He crouched down, and crawled over. Y/N seemed to know he was about to speak... "I-I'm terrified, Peter... It's one thing t-to be acting out of rage, on targets who never see you coming, but... this... I'm..."

"Hey, hey! Shh, it's okay. It's okay." Peter sat cross legged in front of them, their knees touching. "Y/N. We're going to get through this."

They weren't sure how long they sat there, but Y/N eventually moved into Peter's arms, hugging him as tightly as they could. Before it got too late in the night, Peter softly encouraged Y/N to go home, and get as much sleep as possible. He had a feeling Harry's plans were much further in motion than either of them knew... He made sure to give Aunt May an extra long hug when he stopped by to visit her that night, unsure of whether or not it would truly be the last time she saw him alive... Neither Peter, nor Y/N got a long, restful sleep that night. Y/N was clutching the usb drive of Alan Proctor's crimes in their hand, unwilling to let go of it even in their moments of slumber. Peter could sense that the inevitable day was not too far from them. He knew it could happen at any moment, and despite preparing as much as he could, despite preparing Y/N as much as he could, he was still uncertain of how everything would end... Peter was scared.

At work the following morning, Y/N didn't feel fully present in their body. Gabisile and Amari tried to help them feel more grounded; walking them through exercises, stimming with them, but Y/N couldn't shake their feeling of dread, made all the more strong when Peter walked into the cafe and bookstore, his eyes carrying that same look. "Damn! You too, Pete?" Amari exclaimed.

"W-What about me...?"

"You look stressed, Parker." Gabisile answered, before Amari could speak again. "And 'you too,' meaning Y/N is more stressed than I've ever seen them. They've been nonverbal all morning..."

Peter's heart sank, glancing over to where Y/N was standing. They were staring at the menu taped to the wall, anxiously pulling at their sleeves. He fiddled with his pockets, feeling for the cure and syringe inside. "Did you read the headlines last night, Mars Bar?"

"Who didn't, Gem-Gem?" Amari and Gabisile's voices sounded faint and were only growing fainter as a ringing began to disrupt Peter's ears. His stomach churned, and he looked toward the windows.

[NOW PLAYING]

< I'm Electro - Hans Zimmer >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 0:47

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

From outside, a loud boom, echoed through the streets, shaking the ground up to hundreds of blocks away. "The hell was that...?" Amari questioned.

When the ground shook again, followed by a car flying past the store windows, the patrons inside began to panic, all of them beginning to make their way outside to see the commotion. Y/N's breath grew shallow, having no time to think as Gabisile took their hand and led them out the door with Amari, Peter right behind them. No amount of planning, or preparation, could have prepared Y/N and Peter for what they saw. A large BluangelTech robot, shaped like a fallen angel, was walking in their direction, destroying buildings as it went. Despite being several streets down, it was growing closer at an alarming speed... When another car came flying at them, Peter tackled Y/N out of the line of fire, spinning around to take the brunt of the fall as Y/N shrieked and fell on top of him. Dust flew in the air, and into their eyes.

[NOW PLAYING]

< We Can Make the World Stop - The Glitch Mob >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:27

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Y/N and Peter looked up, and heard the echoes of an unsettling, horrifying, sickly laugh. "Harry..." The crowd began to scramble, screaming and yelling, unsure of which direction to go to flee. Gabisile and Amari had been pushed back by a wave of fleeing civilians, but Y/N and Peter could hear them screaming out their names and straining their voices.

"Y/N! PETER!"

"WE'RE OKAY!" Peter roared. "I'VE GOT Y/N! GO! GO! WE'LL FIND YOU!"

He sat up, and jumped to his feet, pulling Y/N behind a stack of junk in the nearest alleyway, placing his hands on their face. They were hyperventilating, stimming with distress and wiping their tear-filled eyes. When an explosion shook the concrete, Y/N screeched, body jumping violently. "Bug, hey, hey. Look at me, please. You don't have to look me in the eyes, but I need you to see me."

When Y/N hesitantly obliged, Peter smiled. He began to flap his hands, and by instinct, his friend followed. For a near thirty seconds, the two stimmed together. "Come on out, Spider-Man! Bring Rosie Posey with you!"

Y/N's eyes widened, as the panic set in with a jarring invasion of their thoughts. "Wh-What are we going to do, Peter?"

"Exactly what we said we would do. Alright? Have you got your suit on?"

"M-Mhm!"

Peter nodded, before taking out the vial containing the cure, and the syringe. "I need you to hold onto these. Alright? Use your suit to stay in the shadows, attack from the ground, alright? Remember your forcefields. We need to send this thing toppling to the ground."

Y/N nodded rapidly, and tearfully threw their arms around Peter. "I'm scared..."

"Me too, bugs. But I believe in you, okay?"

"O-Okay..." He returned the embrace, holding the back of their head and closing his eyes. When the two pulled away, Peter pressed a kiss to the top of their head, before he pulled his mask over his face, and turned, launching himself into the air, and out into the open.

"YOU WANT ME? COME AND GET ME!" With a deep shaky breath, Y/N removed their overclothes, pulled their mask up over their mouth and nose, eyes changing in hue to a deep ruby red, while their hair warped to the color pink. After pulling up their hood, They inched closer to the open, pressed against the wall, their trembling hands aglow with a pink. Time seemed to slow down as their eyes fell upon the chaos in front of them...

[NOW PLAYING]

< Everybody Wants to Rule the World - Lorde >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 2:36

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Screaming, crying, panicking, that's all that could be heard as waves upon waves of civilians ran through the streets. Peter swung above, seeing no signs of Harry, and concluding that he wouldn't be attacking head on just yet. He realized that the man controlling the mech was Alan Proctor himself. When a thrown blinking bomb threatened to fall directly into a group of people, Peter's web stopped it midair, and with force, he threw it at one of the mech's arms. "I hope you know, Proctor, this whole plan's gonna blow up in your face!"

Y/N used their telekinesis in a panic, stopping a flying piece of rubble from hitting a group of people, before sending it right into the mech's knee joint. It halted briefly, but recovered alarmingly quickly. They could see already that Peter was becoming overwhelmed out there on his own. For several seconds, they fought to move their legs. As they stepped out from the alleyway, they tried to stay hidden, ducking behind a car and morphing to match the color. The anguished and broken-voiced wail of a woman crying out a few feet away from them, as other crowd members held her back, forced them to peek out from their hiding space. To Y/N's horror, a child had fallen in the street, and was only seconds away from being crushed. "LET GO OF ME! MY BABY IS OUT THERE!"

"You'll die if you go back out there, lady!"

"I DON'T CARE! MY CHILD IS IN DANGER!" Peter fired his webs at the mech's ankle, his heels digging into the ground as he fought to keep it from stepping down and crushing the child. When he began to slip, Y/N's heart nearly stopped.

"NOO!" With a shout of their own, Y/N sprinted out into the open, and toward the child, nearly falling over themself. As soon as they approached, they shut their eyes, the child clinging to their leg, as the two became surrounded by a bright glow of pink.

[NOW PLAYING]

< Flynn Lives (Slowed and Reverb) - Daft Punk >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 4:06

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

The shortness of breath they suffered from the pace at which they'd sprinted, was made no less bearable by their racing heartbeat. Just above where they stood, with their arms outstretched, weighing down on their forcefield, was the giant Bluangel mech. Peter's web had slipped and he'd fallen backward, the full weight of the metal slowly beginning to push downward. Y/N unleashed a loud, strained, rasp filled growl, already feeling the pressure grow in its intensity. They could feel the beginnings of the burning sensation in their muscles, and their eyes fell to the frightened child sitting in front of them, legs tucked into their chest.

"Hey," they said softly. "It's gonna be okay-"

Their words were abruptly cut off by their own cry of pain, the mech pushing down with a startling amount of force, resulting in Y/N falling, with one knee planted on the ground. The child screamed, crying for their mother, who was sobbing and screeching from several feet away. "Shh, shh! Here! Look at me, sweetie!" Y/N pleaded.

"A-Am I gonna die?"

With a firm shake of their head, Y/N encouraged them to move closer. "Here. I... I need you to take the mask off of my face and look at me... alright?"

When the little reached out and shakily removed the mask, they curiously placed their tiny hands on Y/N's face, a gesture that melted their heart. "Hihi. Hi. What's your name, sweetie?"

"F... F/N..."

A faint ring began in Y/N's ears, eyes widening upon hearing that name. As the memories of their closest friend flashed through the back of their mind, they felt the tears pooling in their eyes. Despite the searing pain traveling through their body, as their forcefield strained against the metal threatening to crush both themself and the little on, they gave a gentle smile... a safe smile... Peter was yelling at the top of his lungs for civilians to clear the area, swinging and searching for a weak point in the mech. He felt the tingling in the back of his head, and quickly set the new plan into action, shooting his webbing through the hollow points in the metal, swinging around to make sure each one he'd shot had properly latched on. For Y/N, the urge to cry was overwhelming, but instead, they gave a pained smile. "Hi, F/N... My name is Rose. I have a best friend... w-with the same name as you."

"You do?"

"IhI do. F-F/N...? I... I need you to be brave for me right now, alright?" Y/N's lip was quivering, the tears slipping down their cheeks and over their lips. "Can you be brave with me?"

"Are you, s-scared too? Like me?"

Y/N nodded quickly, sniffling and blinking away the stinging liquid that obscured their vision. "I am... Even heroes get scared sometimes. But we're gonna be strong, F/N. We're gonna be strong together, okay? You and me."

...I won't fail you a second time, F/N...

They'd whispered those words to themself, suppressing a sob and nodding outward. "Look right out there! Over there! Do you see him?"

"Spider-Man!" F/N exclaimed, with an enthusiasm that made the weeping Rose laugh heartily.

"Spider-Man!" They repeated, gritting their teeth to bear the pain. "My friend Spider-Man is going to get the mean robot away from us, but it might take a minute. We gotta be patient, and we gotta be strong. Okay, F/N?"

"Okay!"

"Ahalright! We're a team right now, F/N. You're gonna help me keep this forcefield strong!"

"Yesyesyesyesyes!" With a bounce of their heels and a clap of their hands, they waddled to stand right in front of Y/N once more.

Amari and Gabisile peeked out from a car they'd been hiding behind together. Peter had landed on the ground, arms pulling at the webs he held in his hands with all the strength he could conjure. They realized he was trying to tilt the mech, and after glancing at each other, ran forward, unaware that from a distance, a pair of sickly green eyes, illuminated with spite and madness, were watching them, and taking heavy note of their actions.

"Ready, F/N? Reach! REACH! HANDS UP TO THE SKY AS FAR AS THEY CAN GO!" The child stood on their toes, arms outstretched above them, as they mimicked Y/N's stance, and made a fwooosh sound with their mouth. "YES! AWESOME JOB! KEEP THAT FORCEFIELD STRONG! GOOD JOB, F/N!"

"COME ON! HELP SPIDER-MAN SEND TAKE THIS FUCKER DOWN!" Amari waved a handful of other civilians over, joined by a few officers. When Peter looked up and saw the crowd, he strained to hold the web rope with one hand, before shooting out two more for them to grab onto. They split into two groups, and, with a collective of cries and huffs, began to yank on the webbing, heels digging into the ground. The pressure was sinking into Y/N's bones, every nerve in their body felt as though it were on fire. They knew that in less than a minute, the mech would crush them both.

"IT'S TILTING!" Gabisile cried, arms tightly around Amari's waist as she leaned back. "KEEP GOING!"

"WE NEED ONE MORE PULL!" Peter roared. "ON THREE!"

One...

F/N's mother let out a piercing wail in the midst of her sobbing.

Two...

A shrill, guttural scream left Y/N's throat and echoed against the city buildings, body on the verge of collapsing.

THREE

With one final tug, the mech lost its footing, and began to fall, the pressure on Y/N's forcefield lifting, and causing their body to feel weightless, as if they'd been lifted up by a thousand pairs of wings. Overcome with a mix of pain, sorrow, joy, and relief, they began to sob.

[NOW PLAYING]

< Peeta - James Newton Howard >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 0:34

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Some of the people helping had fallen backward from how hard they'd pulled, scrambling aside on their hands and feet or turning to get up and run. Peter desperately waved the rest of the civilians out of the way, the officers who assisted helping to pull them out of the area where the mech was destined to fall. He knew Alan Proctor would not survive the mech hitting the ground, and wasted no time in catapulting forward. He broke the glass and yanked the man from the control box, jumping just before the impact and using his web to break their fall. Though they landed roughly, with both Peter and Alan rolling on the ground a few times, they were alive. Alan was breathless, staring up at Spider-Man, too shocked to speak. Peter's blood was boiling at the man who was to blame for ordering the hit on Y/N's friend, and leaving Y/N broken and traumatized for years.

"Get. Up." He hissed, harshly gripping the back of his suit, webbing Alan's hands behind his back in seconds. "You're done, Proctor. Done."

[NOW PLAYING]

< The Briefcase - James Horner >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:15

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Y/N's body felt weak, and tired. They looked down at F/N with a proud grin, before the forcefield flickered, and disappeared, their eyes falling shut as they collapsed on the hot tar. "Rose?" F/N crouched down, their little hand gently patting Y/N's shoulder. With heavy breaths, Y/N opened their eyes, still in tears when they met the child's gaze.

"Wehe did it, Rose!"

"We... We... we did... Awesome job, little hero!" A weak groan left Y/N's lips. "I-I'm... so so proud of you."

...And I'm sorry I couldn't save you six years ago...

"F/N! F/N!" The child's mother nearly tripped on the scattered debris that lay in her path, but she only ran faster.

"Go... Go see your momma, F/N."

"I... M'gonna make sure you're okay first. Because you made sure I'm okay!" After those words were spoken, Y/N wanted to weep even more, but to their own surprise, they let out a joy-filled laugh. F/N's mother knelt down and scooped her baby up into her arms, sobbing with relief that they were safe.

"My sweet angel," she sniffled, pausing when her child pointed to the individual on the broken ground below them.

"Momma. I gotta help them up." F/N's mother was hesitant, but they slowly stepped forward, and knelt down, setting the little one down next to her. "H-Hello...? Are you alright, honey?" Y/N stirred again, and felt a pair of arms carefully helping them to sit up. Peter was worried out of his mind, and, after Amari and a few others assured him that they'd make sure Alan didn't go anywhere, he sprinted forward.

"Spihihider-Man!" The child giggled excitedly.

"Hi, kiddo!" Peter greeted, his cheerful voice growing panicked when Y/N slumped back in the woman's arms. "Rose... ROSE!?"

"Hi..." Y/N breathed, shakily moving to try sitting up on their own. "I'm... I just... How do you do this... all the time...?"

Peter laughed and pulled them forward into a tight hug. Y/N caught their breath, before their eyes widened, and they felt their face for their mask, forgetting they'd removed it.

"Rose?" The child was holding the mask out to them, a sheepish smile on their face. After Y/N had tiredly reached out to take hold of it, Peter helped them to stand up. Before they could return the mask to its place on the lower half of their face, the mother stopped them briefly.

"W-Wrathful Rose...?"

"J-Just... Just Rose, please..."

"They're not... wrathful... They're shiny, mama! Rose glowwws!" The child emphasized their exclamation with big hands and a precious little drawl, making Y/N laugh tearfully again.

"Rose is radiant," F/N's mother affirmed.

"Radint."

"Raay... deee... aaaant!"

"Raaaadiiant!"

"Does radiant mean shiny?"

"Yehes it dohoes, my little brainiac." She placed a hand on the side of Y/N's face, and smiled. "Radiant Rose, Thank you, for saving my baby."

"F/N was brave and strong for their mom," Y/N stated quietly, and smiling softly.

"Radiant Rose has a best friend with my name!"

"Doho they?" When the woman looked back up at Y/N, she could see the hurting in their eyes, and the ache in their heart. Y/N's breath hitched when the mother wrapped her arms around Y/N's shoulders in a tight hug before stepping back. She placed a hand on the side of Y/N's face. "Take care of yourself, honey. I'm sure your friend is very proud of you."

Another tear fell from Y/N's eye, but they nodded in acknowledgement, and placed the mask over their mouth and nose. The two of them crouched down in front of F/N, and held out their hands for high fives.

"We're proud of you, F/N," Y/N declared. "Stay safe, alright?"

"Mhm!" The child gave a tiny wave, resting their chin on their mother's shoulder, while they excitedly began to tell their mother the story of how they helped a superhero. An uplifting sight it was, however soon interrupted by officers approaching, gripping Alan's arms, still tied with the webs. Y/N's blood was bubbling with fury at the sight of him, and for a moment, Peter was scared things might go south, but as the individual stepped forward, eyes glaring daggers at the disgraced CFO, they stopped. They had nothing more to say to him. Like a machine with a command, they took the usb, containing the evidence of all of Alan Proctor's vile crimes, labelled with his name, from their pocket, and placed it in a speechless officer's hand.

"A gift... From Rose..."

As Y/N took a step back with intent to return to Peter's side, a voice startled them. "Hey! Where do you think you're going!?"

A sergeant took several steps toward them and pointed his firearm at Y/N with disgust. "You, are still wanted by the state. We have direct orders to take Wrathful Rose into custody-"

"You're not arresting my partner."

"Partner?"

"Rose, is staying with me, alright-? And if you've got an issue with that... if... if the state's got an issue..." Peter crossed his arms and jutted his chin toward the remains of the Bluangel mech, "...take it up with those effing robots."

The sergeant relented, and Y/N turned back, where they recognized that Peter was looking at them proudly, even if they couldn't see his face. He saw in their eyes how much they were still hurting, eyeing how they tugged at the sleeves of their suit, and opted to lift their spirits a little. "Who would've thought I'd live to see the day that Rosie Posey left the thorn bush."

"Shuhut the hell uhup."

[NOW PLAYING]

< Still Crazy - Hans Zimmer >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 2:42

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

A loud crack, followed by the sound of collapsing rubble, brought their moment of banter to a grinding halt. The two stepped in the direction of the sound, watching as a sphere, with its familiar blinking red rolled in front of them.

"ROSE-" Y/N had shrieked, hastily throwing up their hands and casting a forcefield around themself and Peter. The rest of the remaining civilians fled, screaming at the sight of another Bluangel robot, this one more goblin-like in appearance, hovering above the ground. Peter and Y/N's eyes met, the forcefield blinking away, both of them breathing shallow and sharply. He swiftly threw his arm around their waist, and by instinct, Y/N gripped his shoulders, bracing for Peter to start swinging. "This is gonna get a lot worse before it gets better."

"I-I figured!" Peter could hear his friend in the early stages of hyperventilation, heart pounding and body trembling, and turned his head in their direction. "Hey."

"Y-Yeah...?"

"Look at me." He waited for them to oblige, and gave their waist a gentle, comforting squeeze with his arm. "I've got you. Alright?"

"...I've... I've got you too..."

"Hang on." Y/N's legs wrapped around Peter's waist, and they shut their eyes, letting out a vocal stim in response to the fwip of the web shooters activating. After taking a deep breath, Peter catapulted them up into the sky. Y/N opened their eyes the moment their stomach settled, and winced at the arid air that was there to greet them. A chill wind washed down their body as the two ascended, and at an inhuman speed, Peter swung them forward. The motors whirred when the mech turned its head, the operator finally noticing Y/N and Peter's presence.

Peter's tingle sent him the warning for the incoming swipe the mech took in his direction, with every intention to knock them out of the air. "LET GO, ROSE!" Y/N released their grip without hesitation and Peter threw them upward. With a loud yelp, they landed on the robot's arm, and as they dug their foot into a groove, they anchored themself with a forcefield, body jerking forward when the mech shook its arm. Their telekinesis, still red in its hue, began to disrupt the servos. Peter shot webbing in every crevice he could see, spider crawling up the leg and jumping to the other to repeat the process. The mech began to spin out of control, and Y/N's stomach dropped, heartbeat leaping to their throat. Despite the wooziness, they continued to anchor themself and pull their body forward, growing closer to the metal face and hoisting themself up with a screech. All of their fingers enclosed in a fist, hand glowing pink with a forcefield, they hammered down at the glass that served to be the mech operator's window, creating a hole and using their forcefields to shatter the glass.

Peter swung up and landed right beside them, his tingle setting off a horrifying warning. He pulled Y/N out of the way as the man's arm reached to grab them. In his peripheral vision, he saw the reflection of the mech against the glass of the approaching skyscraper. Y/N yelped when Peter grabbed them and launched them up to the rooftop, the two falling from the aftershock of the mech crushing the opposite half of the structure and sinking into it, the top of goblin mech's head where part of the roof once sat. As the two caught their breath, their moment of relief was short lived, when a haunting, horrifying voice, filled their ears...

[NOW PLAYING]

< I'm Goblin - Hans Zimmer >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:43

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

"Took you long enough, Peter. You've been delaying our reunion for far too long, don't you think?"

"Peter!?"

"Peter!? The fuck you mean, Peter!?" The two jerked their heads behind them at the two recognizable voices, horrified to see Gabisile and Amari standing deadly still, with the Green Goblin himself hovering behind them on his glider. Its pointed blades were pressed against their spines, threatening to impale them at any moment. A masked man stood behind the three of them, armed with a long blade.

"Shit..."

"G-Gem... M-Mars..." Y/N breathed. "P-Peter... he's... he's got..."

Peter took off his mask, and held up his hands cautiously. "Harry. They have nothing to do with this. They didn't know until you said my name-"

"But they LEAPT at the chance to help you when you were in trouble." Harry spat, before laughing and gesturing toward Y/N, who stiffened. "How about this one, huh?"

"Leave them alone, Harry."

A haunting laugh left Harry's lips, and he pointed to his mouth, gesturing to Y/N to remove their mask. "Hurry up."

Y/N couldn't do anything but comply with the demand, and slowly, shakily, removed the mask. Their eyes couldn't lift back up to meet Gabisile's or Amari's. They knew Harry was waiting to see who they truly were, so, with their lip trembling, their eyes and hair returned to their natural color, and with anger, they yanked down the neck of their suit and revealed the scar. "Y/N..."

"Oh my fuckin God..." Amari muttered.

"There they are~" Harry sang. "Y/N L/N. I'm a little surprised it's you. But then again, pain and rage do wonders for the mind, don't they? Look at what they did to me."

"How the fuck do you know their name!?" Gabisile snapped.

"You're in no position to be demanding answers from me, Gem-Gem. But, since I already planned on telling you, it's thanks to this man. Lucas. Terry. Why don't you show Wrathful Rose, who you really are?" The second Lucas removed his mask, a searing pain began to spread from one side of their throat to the other, ear... to ear... The ringing was ear-splitting. Y/N felt as though their throat was closing up, and subconsciously clutched at their neck. The man helping Harry, staring at them with his dark hair and green eyes, was the man who'd nearly taken their life.

"Foolish foolish foolish." Lucas taunted. "You were lucky I spared you after that night you know."

"Stop fucking talking..." Y/N hissed, eyes burning with tears.

"Your little friend was snooping around where they shouldn't have been," he sneered. "And you got caught in the crossfire. I should have hunted you down and finished the job-"

"AAAAARRRGHHHHH!" Y/N screamed with rage and charged at the man, who pulled out a blade and readied for their attack.

"Y/N, NO!" Peter yelled, making an attempt to run toward them but being stopped by Harry shooting a hook and wrapping it around his neck, yanking him back.

In a bout of quick thinking, Amari pushed Gabisile out of the way of the glider's blade and to the ground. Harry growled with anger and shot his glider forward, attempting to pierce Amari through the chest. "AMARI!" Gabisile screamed, running up and gripping the side of the glider, crying out when Harry sliced their shoulder. Peter freed himself and jumped up to fight the force of Harry's glider, dodging the swings of his blade.

"Run! GO! GEM! MARI! GO NOW!" Gabisile let go of the glider and scrambled backward on their hands and feet. Amari attempted to dive out of the way unscathed, but Harry clipped his arm and he let out a cry of pain, tumbling to the ground and groaning, the blood seeping through his sleeve. "Mari! Mars! Are you okay?"

"F-Fuck! Fuckin' goblin stabbed my arm!" Peter quickly pushed up Amari's shirt sleeve and webbed the wound to hold off the bleeding, shooting out another web and swinging a bomb away, up into the air, when Harry threw it toward them.

"Y/N!" Gabisile cried. "Y/N! Stop it!"

Y/N screamed when Lucas sliced at their skin, but the adrenaline of their rage kept them rushing at him. In another ten seconds, they had brought Lucas to the ground, using a forcefield to hammer at his temple and face, breaking his nose in the process, their eyes glowing red with rage once more. They wanted him dead. They were going to kill him. Amari stumbled over with Gabisile, and the two tackled them off of the now unconscious Lucas. "GET OFF OF ME!"

"No!"

"Y/N! ACK!" Peter was struggling to keep Harry at bay, but he shot out a web and took Y/N's blade from their hands. "DON'T!"

"What the fuck, PETER!?" Gabisile and Amari quickly grabbed their arms. "WHY DID YOU STOP ME-"

"I PROMISED YOU, Y/N!" He yelled. "I promised you, I would stop you from killing him! You asked me to promise I would!"

That reminder was enough to make Y/N burst into tears, with Gabisile and Amari hugging them tightly. The three didn't notice Harry had rolled a bomb their way until Y/N caught a glimpse of red. The still crying individual tried to throw up a forcefield, but the blast impact was too strong. As the goblin mech dislodged from the building, Y/N quickly pulled the cure from their pocket, and threw it onto solid ground, before the mech dropped... and the three friends felt the surface beneath them slip... Y/N, Gabisile, and Amari, were falling to their deaths...

[NOW PLAYING]

< Save Yourself - Jared Emerson - Johnson >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 2:06

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Fear... That's all Y/N's eyes could see, all their ears could hear and all their body could feel. They were falling, and not far above them, two of the most important people in their life were falling with them. Gabisile's eyes were shut, the fear of her approaching death leaving her unconscious. Amari was screaming, and swearing, trying to reach his hand down to Y/N's as he held tight to Gabisile's wrist. The last thing Y/N could remember, was the look on Peter's face as Harry hooked an arm around his throat and yanked him away from the roof's edge before he could jump after them. He had never wanted history to repeat itself, he had never wanted Y/N's history to repeat itself, and as he fought to push Harry off of him, he yelled Y/N's name at the top of his lungs.

He had to trust they would make it. He had to trust that they would save Gabisile and Amari. He had to trust that they would save themself. Harry was grinning madly as he tried to snap Peter's neck. "Hurry up... and finish what you started ten FUCKING YEARS AGO, PETER-" His fist flew into Harry's face, before he slung a web around the back of his head and slammed his knee into his temple, dazing him enough to make him fall backward. Harry violently swung at Peter, feral with rage and determined to kill. Peter wasted no time in firing his web shooter to grab the cure from where Y/N had thrown it up to him before they fell. The syringe was uncapped, and, Peter, kneeling on Harry's chest, stepping on his wrist, jammed the cure into his arm, yelling out when Harry's fingernails dug into his leg, his blade slicing open his side. Y/N was through with thinking, through with the suffocating feeling of fear and through with being trapped in their own head. All that echoed in their soul, was to save the people they love. With their throat raw from screaming, and a blazing pink, that lit up their skin, shot up their body out through their eyes and mouth, Amari and Gabisile were pulled forward into their arms, and the three were engulfed in a burst of light.

[NOW PLAYING]

< On Your Way - Daniel Pemberton >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 2:19

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Y/N stared up at the sky, their lungs feeling heavy with panic, breaths coming out at an unsteady pace. The solid ground of the roof they'd landed on almost felt like an illusion, as their eyes wandered to the skyscraper, the broken mech still crashed into the side of it. They weren't exactly sure what had happened at first, but when they frantically looked to their left and right, seeing that Gabisile and Amari were alive, they closed their eyes tight and curled up on their side, weeping. The impact had shocked Gabisile awake again, and, hands trembling, after she'd pat her body and squished her face for reassurance that she hadn't actually died, she shrieked, this time with joy, kicking her legs in jubilation and glee while Amari clutched his chest.

"I... fuckin... hate goblins," he panted, face washing over with fear at the sight of Y/N curled up on the ground and trembling violently. "Shit! Y/N!"

"Y/N?"

In between the two of them, Y/N had begun crying harder, their body aching with pain from exhaustion, and their wounds. Everything had happened too fast for them to fully comprehend in the moment, but now, every second, every sound, everything in their line of vision during that fall, was on loop in their brain. Their eyes were shut tight, afraid that opening them, even the slightest amount, would mean waking up back in the air, falling to their death alongside Amari and Gabisile. Amari's arms wrapped around their middle, and he lifted his crying friend into an embrace. "Y/N, hey, hey! It's okay. We're okay. We're okay."

Gabisile joined the embrace, and together, they consoled their sobbing friend, who'd begun rocking back in forth at a rapid pace, overwhelmed, and overstimulated. Their eyes were still closed, breath hitching loudly as they choked on the air. "Y/N. Look at me, look at me. We're alive. We're alive. You saved us. You saved yourself. We're safe." Y/N's arms shot up to clutch onto their friends' arms. Even though they were safe, held by two people they couldn't ever bear to live without, that lingering fear forced them to keep their eyes closed for nearly another minute...

[NOW PLAYING]

< Allerdale Hall - Fernando Velázquez >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 6:20

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Peter webbed Harry to the roof, knowing that when he finally came to, he'd be back to average human strength, and unable to break out of them. For a few seconds, he stared at his former friend, feeling his hand clench into a fist, his anger from years before still lingering. He knew that curing him had been the right thing to do, but it didn't make it any less easy to see Harry get even a fraction of his life back, while knowing that he took Gwen's entire life away. Despite his anger, his heart was hurting for Harry just as much, knowing he'd never been given a chance. The faint sounds of Y/N sobbing inconsolably were enough to make him turn his back to look toward the unconscious Lucas, and he quickly webbed him as well. ...Deep breath in... deep breath out...

Peter ran toward the edge of the roof, and jumped, swinging forward and launching himself to land in front of the three, still locked in a hug. Amari and Gabisile looked up, and made space for Peter to sit with them. Shakily, hesitantly, with Gabisile and Amari's encouragement, their eyelids lifted, and once they'd blinked the tears from their eyes, to see Peter looking back at them, they launched forward into his arms as he let out a breathy groan. He began laughing when he ended up landing on his back, despite his own crying, relieved that his three friends were alive. When he heard just how pained Y/N's cries had become, how broken their voice sounded, he hugged them tighter. "Aww, buhugs. You knohocked the wind outta me," he teased, relieved to the high heavens when he heard a muffled giggle.

"Fuhuhuckin a it's good to hehear you laugh." Peter poked at their sides and back a few times just to hear the sound again, grinning when they squeaked and kicked their legs. He sat up, still holding them tightly, giving them a big squeeze, and smiling softly at their hum of approval.

"I... I did it, Peter..." They fiddled with their fingers, which were clasped behind Peter's back. "I... I don't know how... but..."

"I trusted that you would. I... I knew, that you could do it, bug."

"It'll be a wh-while before I can do that again..." Peter's grin never faltered, and he moved back to place his hands on the sides of their face, his forehead resting against theirs affectionately... happily...

Their two friends watched the sight with melting hearts, glancing at each other with the silent agreement that the two were adorable together, whether that be in a platonic sense, or a romantic one. "Thahat's okay! I'm proud of you."

Y/N looked up at Gabisile and Amari, and began to feel their guilt settling in. "I-I'm really sorry... that I didn't tell you..."

"We're not mad, Y/N," Gabisile promised, smiling sadly. "I'm just saddened that you didn't feel like you could confide in anyone about it. You shouldn't have had to go it alone for this long. You can tell us anything."

"Even if the thing in question is about you being a fuckin vigilante," Amari added.

"The four of us are friends. Nothing's ever gonna change that." Gabisile's voice was firm, and proud.

Peter's smile was evident of his optimism. "Th-The... the four of us?"

"Fuck yeah, the four of us, Pete!" Amari exclaimed with a higher pitched voice, making Peter laugh lightly. "Although, I think I speak for Gabi and I when we say we'd rather not dahance with death like that again."

"Fahair enough," Peter relented, moving closer and gesturing for Gabisile to show him her injured shoulder, before stopping the bleeding with his webbing.

Gabisile grinned. "We'll still support you two in any way we can, though. We can promise you that."

[NOW PLAYING]

< Rue's Farewell - James Newton Howard >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 5:00

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

When an enraged yell echoed from above, Y/N and Peter looked at each other solemnly and sorrowfully. Harry had definitely woken up. After making sure Gabisile and Amari were alright, Peter lifted Y/N onto his back, their arms wrapping securely around his shoulders, and legs wrapping around his waist. He webbed their arms to his body, to ensure no chance of falling, before he swung the two of them to the side of the building, and crawled up to the roof. Harry looked up the moment he heard a noise, seeing the man who'd been helping him was out cold, before his tear-filled eyes rested upon Peter helping Y/N off of his back. His icy blue eyes, having returned to their natural color, glared daggers at the two of them. "What the hell did you do, Peter?" He hissed. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME!?"

Peter's jaw clenched more the closer he got to Harry, his eyes filled with tears of his own, still overcome with conflicting feelings about his choice. "What did I just do? You wanna know what I just did!? I just gave you the chance to live. A proper chance!" He glanced at Y/N, who walked over to their attempted killer, still unconscious from the blow they'd dealt to his head.

"I cured you, Harry..." He turned to look at Y/N, who was completely silent, hands clenching into fists as they continued to stare at Lucas. With a sharp exhale through their nose, they knelt down and slapped the man's shoulder.

"Wake the fuck. up." His eyes fluttered open, tugging at his wrists and realizing he was webbed. Peter was worried, and, remembering his promise again, tried to speak, but Y/N interrupted him.

"Y/N-"

"For years... I thought I'd be ready to kill you." They muttered, voice dripping with venom. "I told myself that the moment I found you... that... I would torture you, agonizingly, painfully, slowly, before putting you to death the same way you did my friend. The same way you nearly did me."

Y/N's eyes began to water, but they weren't scared. They were angry, confused, upset, and sad, but they were through being afraid of the man. With one tug, they exposed their scar and stared him dead in the eyes. "This right here, this scare is a reminder that you, fucking failed. You're not worth my blade. You're not worth anything to me... Am I clear? You'll spend the rest of your life... thinking... thinking about how I lived, how I came back, and how your loss was by my hand, but I will never think about you again after today. You're dead to my memory. Dead. And you will stay dead. That's my way, of killing you. Fuck you." Lucas smiled smugly, but Y/N said nothing more, stood up slowly, and walked away from him, wiping their eyes and stimming with their sleeves as they looked at the sun setting in the distance.

"Why... Why did you cure me, Peter? What, did you have a change of heart or something?" Harry's voice was one of taunting, despite his tears.

"I cured you... because it was the right thing to do, Harry. This changes nothing- this... You and I... There's nothing. Not right now. I do hope that there will be, with time..." Peter stepped closer and crouched down to meet his eyes. "You're looking at a very different Peter than the one who nearly beat you to death for what you did. Now, you get to live a long life, a healthy life. I made sure of it. Y/N and I made a proper cure. You won't end up like your dad, Harry. I promise..."

The realization was sinking in for Harry, and his eyes watered even more, the smile fading from his face. Peter could see the pain in his eyes, and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I hope you make the most of it in whatever placed you're locked up in. I'll visit you... It might take time but I will. There's a lot I could have done differently when we reunited. There's a lot I could have tried to do. And... I am sorry, you know. I'm really sorry I couldn't help you sooner than now... I'm sorry I made you feel hopeless... I'm sorry I wasn't there for you... I really do hope that you find some happiness again, Harry."

Y/N had sat down with their legs tucked close to their chest, crying quietly from a whirlwind of exhaustion, relief, and grieving. In their peripheral vision, they saw Peter sit down beside them, and he offered his hand. Y/N slowly wrapped their arms around his middle instead, and Peter smiled softly, giving them a big squeeze, and kissing the top of their head. "I'm so proud of you, for what you just did. I... I know it was really hard to do... F/N, I... I know they're proud of you too..."

"I'm proud of you t-too, Peter. And... I know... that Gwen is proud of you..." Peter heard Y/N's words, and believed them wholeheartedly. It would take Y/N time to fully believe that wherever F/N was, that they were proud, but they trusted Peter's words, and it became harder to challenge them.

[NOW PLAYING]

< It's On - Superchick >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 3:28

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

"I guess, since we uh... since we did what we set out to do, I'll just be seeing you around as Y/N now. It's been nice working with you, Radiant Rose." Y/N silently pondered those words. After all the two had been through, both as Peter and Y/N, and as Spider-Man and Wrathful-turned-Radiant Rose, Y/N couldn't envision not being by Peter's side when he fought crime. They wanted evil people to pay... of course they did... but they didn't want to return to dealing vengeance the way they had been.

"Wrathful Rose... I'd still like to put Wrathful Rose behind me... b-but... Radiant Rose isn't done. I want to keep helping you... if... i-if that's alright with you, Peter." Peter's heart swelled with joy and the smile on his face told Y/N everything they needed to know. He nodded rapidly, and for a couple more minutes, the two stared at the sky, before donning their masks, waiting and watching as the authorities arrived and escorted Harry and Lucas away. When the two made their way back to the other rooftop, Gabisile and Amari had already left. Y/N called them to make sure they were alright.

"We're chillin- ARGH! GOD. DAMN. I'm... I'm vibin."

"They're suturing Mars Bar's wound. I'm up next. We promise we're aight."

"IhI'm glad," Y/N giggled.

"Hey."

"Y-Yeah, Gem-Gem?"

"Mars and I, we love you two. Aight? We fucking love you guys."

If hearts could glow, Y/N's and Peter's would have put every light in New York to shame. In unison, they both replied. "We love you too!"

"Fuck yeah! I got three platonic soulmates. Luckiest man on planet Earth." Amari commented, swearing at the sting of the suture. "Jesus H!"

"Feel better, Mars!" Y/N said with sympathy. "You're a badass!"

Y/N and Peter could hear the sounds of Gabisile blowing kisses through the speaker. "Kisses, you two! I'm sending lots of them! We'll see you later."

"Bye, Gem." Y/N hung up the call and stretched before sitting with Peter again, plopping down beside him and rocking their body.

"So..."

"Sooo..." Y/N repeated.

"Sooooo..." Peter's drawn out repeating of the phrase made Y/N giggle, and they rested their head on his shoulder. When a sudden screeching of tires, followed by sirens echoed below, Peter and Y/N's eyes met. "Sh-Should we... uh... I guess we should... you know..."

"Y-Yeheah... Uh... let's."

Peter hopped to his feet, and held out his hand, helping Y/N to stand up beside him. "I hope you're ready for a lot of adventure, Rosie Posey. Now that we're partners, there's gonna be a shit ton of saving to do."

"I-I'm... I'm more than ready, Peter. I'm Spider-Man's indefinite ally now." The smile on Peter's face was overwhelmingly bright, and as the two pulled their masks on for the final time that night, Y/N hopped onto his back.

"Hang on tight." Y/N didn't need to be told twice, and tucked their chin into Peter's shoulder as he leapt from the roof, the two swinging down to follow the flashing lights of the speeding police cars.

[NOW PLAYING]

< Rooftop Kiss - James Horner >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 2:35

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

*One and a half months later*

As Y/N walked down the cemetery path, fresh flowers in their hands, for the very first time, they wore a hopeful smile. Never before that day had they walked into the cemetery without crying, much less with a smile of all things. Once they'd adorned F/N's gravestone, they knelt down in front of it, and greeted their friend.

"Hi, F/N. A lot... a lot has happened in the past six years, but, I promise you, I'll be visiting a lot more. I'm... I'm really sorry I could only visit once every year for so long. I felt so much guilt for your death... Sometimes I still do, but..." They wiped their watering eyes, smile still present on their lips. "...Gem and Mars Bar help me get through it. A-And, a new friend... I really think you'd like him. His name is Peter. He's... He's amazing... I-I... I know you two would have gotten along."

Unbeknownst to them, Peter had stopped by the cemetery to say hello Gwen. He'd been sitting there for nearly an hour, telling her about how he'd found three new friends, all of whom he knew would be part of his life forever. He talked about curing Harry, about his promise to make her proud, to carry on protecting people... "Gwen... I promise, I'll keep making you proud. I won't wallow in my guilt and act out of bitterness the way I did for ten years. I'm gonna honor your legacy, and carry your message with me, everywhere I go."

On his way out, he saw Y/N, saying farewell to F/N. He placed his hands in his pockets, and smiled when Y/N turned around and saw him standing there. "I uh... I... I came to visit Gwen," he explained.

Y/N nodded understandingly, and, once they were close enough, reached up and gently pat Peter's shoulder. "She's proud of you."

"And F/N's proud of you," Peter replied, before remembering something he'd seen on his way to the cemetery. "Come on. I gotta show you something. You won't regret it."

"S-Swihihinging or wahalking?" Y/N teased, shrieking when Peter took hold of their hand and gently pulled them along.

"Running!" He yelled, and that's exactly what the two of them did.

[NOW PLAYING]

< I'm Spider-Man - Hans Zimmer >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 1:05

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

Peter led Y/N down the block, the two of them weaving around pedestrians and breezing through crosswalks. Y/N could feel the wind in their face, and the warm sun on their skin. Their legs grew tired, but thankfully, they reached their destination before they were completely void of energy. "Alright, close your eyes."

Y/N obliged, and Peter guided them to stand in front of a brick wall, decorated with all sorts of graffiti. "We're here! Take a look, bugs!"

When Y/N opened their eyes, they gasped, still holding Peter's hand tightly, while their free hand flapped with joy. In front of them, were two spray painted emblems. One a Spider, over blue, and the other a Rose, over pink. Peter's had the initials "S.M." for Spider-Man, and theirs, had the initials "R.R." for Radiant Rose. The two friends stood there for several minutes, hand in hand, admiring the anonymous street art with awe...

[NOW PLAYING]

< Where Is My Mind (Slowed + Reverb) - Pixies >

0:01 ─ㅇ────────── 4:12

⇄ ◃◃ II ▹▹ ↻

-It's been two months since BluangelTech CFO Alan Proctor sent the people of New York into absolute panic as he, along with disgraced former CEO of Oscorp, Harry Osborn, and a man by the name of Lucas Terry, unleashed giant robots that ran rampant through the streets. Lucas Terry, a man responsible for the death of a young BluangelTech employee named F/N FL/N, and for the attempted murder of an individual named Y/N L/N six years ago, was finally sentenced today, and will spend the rest of his life behind bars-

Peter walked into the cafe and bookstore just in time to see Gabisile and Amari, who, along with the rest of their coworkers, cheered and celebrated the news. Missing from the crowd, however, was Y/N, who'd requested a shift in the bookstore for the day. He didn't blame them for not wanting to watch the news report, given the numinous experience that had lasted six years.

-BluangelTech is now under investigated for dozens of unsolved crimes all tying back to the company. And, as we are finding out, all targets of the vigilante formerly known as Wrathful Rose have been discovered to be former BluangelTech employees-

He noted their peaceful expression, perhaps from or perhaps it was one brought about by distraction. Whatever the reason, they looked happier, and when they saw Peter walking over to them, they grinned, bouncing on their heels and rushing over to meet him. Peter was immediately greeted by a warm hug. Y/N stepped back after a few seconds, and their friend noticed something different. The choker around Y/N's neck was a gold chain with colorful charms, but their scar was in full view, Y/N no longer hiding it, the chain sitting just below.

-Mr. Osborn is also currently on trial for the murder of Gustav Fiers. As we are finding out, Mr. Fiers and Mr. Osborn were responsible for the attacks that occurred over the span of the past ten tears, of which the villains were dubbed, "The Sinister Six"-

"How are you fairing today, bug?"

"Eh... F-Fair to m-middlin' I think..." Y/N smiled when Peter chuckled. "H-How are you...?"

"Better, especially seeing you today. I uh... I really like the... the choker..."

"Th-Thahank you, Peter." Peter could see Y/N's eyes were burning with something. They looked as though they wanted to ask him a question, and ask they did. Well, tried to.

"P-Peter, I was... I was wondering if... I-I... I figured... I thought maybe... I wanted to ask you..." Y/N took a deep breath, and gently bumped their wrists together repeatedly for clarity and composure, hand gripping a book they were meant to be putting on the shelf. "Sorry..."

Peter smiled softly, and gently took the book from their hand, setting it in its proper place, before joining Y/N in stimming, following their movements. "It's alright, Y/N. Take your time. I'm not going anywhere." His encouragement of their stimming did not go unnoticed, and upon their lips appeared a simper, that only grew as they began to shake their wrists, allowing their hands to move freely, grinning as Peter joined in. Unbeknownst to the two, Gabisile had caught a glimpse of them taking a little stim break together on her way back to the counter from the backroom, unable to keep herself from grinning, a hand shooting up to her heart in adoration.

"What's got you all soft, Gem-Gem?" Amari questioned. "Did Sable text you- Oh... Ohhh! Oh that's so damn cute."

-Spider-Man and Radiant Rose have appeared inseparable since they saved New York two months ago, with the two heroes stating that they are now partners, and they've promised to continue protecting the people of New York together for years and years to come-

They watched as Y/N suddenly bounced on their heels with excitement at something Peter said, before giving him one more hug. When Peter walked back to the cafe section and sat down at the counter, he grew a bit timid at the way Gabisile and Amari were looking at him. "Uhuh... h-hi, Gabi... Hi, Mars..."

"What were you two getting giddy about over there?"

"Y/N... uh... Y-Y/N and I are gonna hang out after their shift... Y-You know, in a regular, non 'enemy threatening to destroy the city' kind of way."

"IhIt's about time you two had a proper friend get together!" Amari laughed.

"Aww! I'm so proud of our Mighty Junebug!"

"Mihighty Junebug?" Peter questioned with a chuckle.

Gabisile giggled. "Yeheah. Y/N's our Mighty Junebug. I'll call them MJ for short."

Peter's entire body froze upon hearing those two letters. His eyes widened when he glanced up at Gabisile, who'd turned to talk with Amari about the news report, before his gaze traveled back across the cafe to the bookshelves, where Y/N turned around and met his gaze curiously. When he gave a soft smile, his stomach fluttered upon seeing them giggle and happy stim, waving before they resumed sorting new books. His mind and heart had the epiphany in unison as he continued to gaze at them...

Peter Parker had just found MJ...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

OH MY LORD 😭💖 And thus, we conclude A Rose Without Thorns. This fic has been a good month in the making, and in all honesty, this piece of writing was extremely cathartic for me to create. Of course, I cannot relate to the reader's specific traumatic events, but my own experiences brought about that same feeling of rage, and that same feeling of bitterness. Writing a story in which the reader starts their path to healing and makes progress, is a good reminder for me of how far I've come with my own healing. I suppose that's one of the reasons Peter 3 is such a huge comfort character for me. /gen 💙 I hope this fic was a captivating read! I really wanted to find a way to wrap up some stories that TASM 2 left unfinished, since we never saw what happened in the years before NWH. Harry deserved better and this was my way of setting him on the path to a second chance, and perhaps in the future, he and Peter forgiving each other. /srs /gen 🥺 I also really hope you all enjoyed getting to know Gem-Gem and Mars Bar!!! They are without a doubt my two favorite oc's in recent years, and I will definitely be writing for them again, don't worry! /pos /lh 🥳🥰

If you've stuck around for this little message, I just want to say, stay tuned, because I will be writing drabbles in the future that take place in this story's universe! /pos 🤎 But what a cliffhanger to conclude this long fic on, right??? /hj /lh Thank you, all of you, for helping me believe in myself. And a HUGE thank you to the amazing, wonderful readers who beta read this fic and gave me INCREDIBLE feedback and moved me to tears of joy, one of whom is @chailattef (also thank you for just rambling with me about how Harry was done so dirty in TASM 2 because he deserved so much better and I will die on that hill) This is the first time in my life I have written a story of this length, from beginning to end, and I feel so proud of myself! This is a really huge milestone for me as a writer and you can bet I'll be writing on here for a long time!!! /gen ❤️💜 Until the next fic, take care, lovelies. Sending lots of love!!! ~Ushu (Sugar)

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