"I don't know if I should kill you or thank you; I'm frankly inclined to do the former," Fury growled.
I gulped, "ah, can I explain?"
"What is there to explain?!" He slammed his fist into the conference table, startling everyone there. "You forced me to attack an enemy base without a proper plan, on false evidence of a national threat! You used an international spy agency like your personal maid service!"
Johnny was standing in the back snickering when Felicia and Jean hit him upside the head. Scott just smiled while Cap, Professor X, Storm, and Logan looked content to stand well away from Fury's...well, fury.
I gulped, "in my defence, because of what I did we now know several other HYDRA base locations that—"
"—That we could have found out if we had tracked Wyndham's movements!" Fury roared.
"Not necessarily so, sir," Hill suddenly spoke up. "I just got a call from a lab tech; apparently some of these sites are offshore and would have been impossible to connect to—" she stopped the moment Fury turned his one good eye on her. She gulped and immediately backed down. Thanks, Robin Sparkles — you were totally helpful.
"Sir, I understand what Spider-Man did was a breach of protocol and trust, but he did it to save his family," Steve stepped up behind me, placing a hand on my shoulder. "He did good work today."
"And he did it alone," Fury narrowed his eye at me. "He didn't tell me or anyone else what he was planning. He—"
"—Actually, he did tell us," Johnny spoke up. "Cat and I knew right from the beginning, and—" Johnny stopped seeing Nick's eye land on him. "I'm slowly realising I should shut up."
"Good. Maybe you didn't melt your brains just yet," Fury narrowed his eye at me again. "What were you thinking?!"
"I was thinking that if I told you the truth, you would have opted to wait and see how long it would take for Wyndham to realise his mistake, so my little worm could cast a wider net over HYDRA's bases. You would have risked my uncle and aunt's lives just for more intel. And I couldn't let that happen."
Fury met my gaze. I was really glad I still had my helmet on, because I don't think the beads of sweat forming on my face were giving off the same confidence as my voice.
"We'll discuss this later. For now...we have other problems," Fury turned away and motioned to an agent. Doors leading to the sleeping quarters opened up, and Aunt May, Uncle Ben, Richard, Walter, and Jessica walked in.
Jessica's presence really got to me. I could ignore it during the battle because my focus was elsewhere, but now — damn, she was distractingly attractive. She looked at me and bit her lip; she could feel it too. We immediately took two steps away from each other. Didn't want to risk another...'incident.'
Aunt May and Uncle Ben held each other. They looked lost and confused, sending Richard sidelong glances — still unable to believe what they were seeing. Walter immediately went to his daughter's side, holding her close.
Fury stepped back and folded his arms. "Mr. Ben Parker, May Parker — I trust my agents informed you of what is currently happening?"
Ben nodded as he held his wife closely. "A-a sort of terrorist organisation wanted my brother's—" he turned to Richard, standing right next to him. "They wanted his work. And they kidnapped us and asked Pete to bring it to them?"
"Where is Peter?" Aunt May suddenly blurted out. "Is he alright? Did they hurt him?"
"Don't worry, Mrs. Parker. Peter is just fine," Fury smirked before turning to Richard. "Now, ain't this a surprise. I thought you were dead, Dr. Parker."
Richard nodded, "yes, I...it's been a long time."
"How? After all this time?" Ben asked with a broken voice. "Where were you?"
"Held prisoner, by Wyndham," Richard hung his head in shame. "I...I tried to escape. So many times I tried. But I...I couldn't."
"Why? How?" Aunt May asked.
"The plane...it didn't crash by accident," Richard's voice went cold with fury. "They got on board, they grabbed Mary and me and jumped out in parachutes. They must have done something to the engines because, as we floated down, I watched the plane crash into the middle of the ocean with everyone still on it."
"Killing three hundred people just to cover up the kidnapping of two," Logan growled. I had to admit — that was a smart plan. Cruel, but smart.
"Mary...she resisted. She...oh God, I saw her parachute snap. She took her kidnapper down with her. I tried to do the same, but I...I was too scared. Wyndham had me. He made me work for him under the threat of coming after Peter and you. I couldn't — I couldn't let that happen."
"Did he ask you to recreate the formula for him?" Fury asked.
"Yes, he did," Richard nodded.
"And why didn't you? You had fifteen years; surely by now you could have done it again," Fury raised an eyebrow.
"Mary...she was the one who had cracked the code," Richard admitted with a sad smile. "Wyndham always considered me the genius and Mary as nothing more than a trophy, but he was wrong. Mary was the true genius. She was the only one who knew how to make the formula. She wanted to tell me, but I refused — by then we suspected HYDRA was coming for us, so the fewer people who knew the better. I stalled for as long as I could, a decade or so, until finally Wyndham gave up. He decided to put me on another project — Subject D."
"Me?" Jessica asked.
Richard looked at her and nodded. "Yes, you. He wanted me to replicate your blood. We had found you five years ago and had begun experimenting on your unique powers. I had to show some progress on this front, or else he would have killed my family. So...I helped him. It wasn't much — I did the bare minimum to keep him satisfied."
"F-five years? But I've only been awake for ten months!" Jessica cried out.
"Wait, can someone explain this? Because I'm totally lost," Johnny asked.
"Jessica was kept in cryogenic suspension," Richard explained. "She was suffering from a rare disease, and her father, Jonathan Drew — one of my best friends — saved her life using an experimental version of his own super soldier serum. It saved her, but in order for it to work, Jessica had to be put to sleep for a long...long time."
"H-how long?" Cat asked.
"Twenty years," Jessica replied grimly.
"So you can't make the formula?" Fury spoke up.
Richard turned to him. "No. I'm sorry."
"No...it's fine. Best such power remain out of anyone's hands," Fury sent me a pointed glare. "Don't know what kind of crazy child might end up with it."
"Aw, I love you too, Fury — but you do know I'm straight, right?" I snickered.
Fury rubbed his temples. "Such a pain."
"W-what now?" Ben asked.
Fury looked at him. "I'm sorry?"
"What happens now? Will you let us go?" Ben asked.
Fury nodded. "Of course. You two are free to leave — after you speak with one of our lawyers and sign an NDA. This is a national security matter; you can't tell anyone what you saw here." Ben and Aunt May nodded in understanding. Fury then turned to Richard. "And as for you...well, I suppose you've suffered long enough. After a few days debriefing with our people in the lab about everything you did for Wyndham, I see no reason to keep you from your family any longer."
"Really?" Richard's eyes went wide with hope.
Fury nodded. "Yes, now—"
"—Thank you!" Richard grabbed Fury into a bear hug, making the spymaster raise a single eyebrow in response.
"I see it's a family thing," Fury grumbled as he called a few agents and escorted the Parkers away, promising they would be home soon.
"Thank you," I whispered to him.
Fury sighed. "You did save the day...just don't do it alone again." I nodded, staying silent. Fury then turned to Xavier. "I hate to admit it, but I was wrong. Your X-Men were...invaluable."
Charles smiled. "I'm glad we could change your mind, Fury. Hopefully, if we can convince a man such as you, there is hope for us yet."
"I wouldn't count on it, Professor. There are people out there with harder heads than mine," Fury smiled. "Can I count on your team again?"
Xavier nodded. "That is what I made them for."
"Good. Maybe this just might work," Fury extended a hand that Xavier shook, both men showing nothing but respect for each other.
"Sorry, you guys, but it looks like we can't have that date after all," I heard Jean's voice in my head.
"Don't worry about it," Felicia shrugged with a smile. "Just tell us when. Peter can fly us over any time."
Jean grinned. Publicly, she waved us goodbye, but mentally she was already sending us a list of places she wanted to visit later. Felicia and I watched the X-Men hop into their jet and fly away. I knew this wouldn't be the last I saw of them — and honestly, I kind of liked those guys.
Johnny and Cap then left — Johnny taking off after thanking me for such an awesome adventure, and Cap to find out whether any part of Wyndham's claims were true, if he really did have a son. For Steve's sake, I really hoped it wasn't true. But then again, I knew I was kidding myself.
Finally, Fury turned to Walter. "Walter Hardy — as thanks for your services, I hereby reduce your sentence by five years."
"How many years does he have left?" Felicia was quick to ask.
"Two lifetimes," Walter replied, much to Felicia's shock.
"What?! But that's not fair! You never hurt anyone! You only stole from those who deserved it, and — that's not fair."
"I know, Kitten. I know," Walter pulled his crying daughter into a hug, holding her tightly. "I-I'm sorry, but I can't come home just yet. I promise — one day I will return. But until then...please, hug your mother for me, and tell her I love her."
Felicia cried as Fury motioned for two agents to remove Walter. The agents forcibly separated Felicia from her father's arms as he walked away, his head bowed in shame.
"Dad! Don't go!" Felicia cried. She tried to run, but Walter shook his head. Felicia stood there and wept. I slowly walked up behind her and pulled her into a hug. She sobbed into my shoulder. I held her. I didn't know what to do — I felt so helpless, able to do nothing but hold the girl I loved as she cried in pain.
SHIELD gave us a ride to the construction site where I had left my car. Fury told me Aunt May and Uncle Ben would only get home the following morning, after a day of debriefing, and that Richard would take longer.
I had the enormous task of acting out Peter's side of the story. Officially, he had accidentally stumbled onto the formula in one of Richard's old hard drives and HYDRA found out. He then contacted SHIELD the moment May and Ben were kidnapped; they took over from there, and with the help of Spider-Man, Captain America, and a few other heroes, they were able to save Peter's aunt and uncle.
I was really starting to hate having a secret identity.
As I flew my car across the night sky, I turned to Felicia. She was looking out the window, watching the stars slowly come out. I looked at her eyes — so distant, the gears in her head turning. She was thinking, and I knew exactly what she was thinking.
"You can't do it alone," I told her.
She looked at me. "Do what?"
"You can't free your dad from whatever prison cell SHIELD has him in."
She glared at me. "You have your father back, Peter. But I don't. I won't give up on my dad just because—"
"Hey, hey — I'm not saying that—"
"—Then what are you saying?!" she snapped.
"I'm saying you can't do it alone," I took off my helmet and turned to her. "You wouldn't last a second. But if you happened to know a badass superhero who was amazing with tech and had a penchant for pissing off SHIELD — well, then maybe you'd have a chance."
Felicia's eyes went wide. "How did you know—"
"—Know what you were planning?" I chuckled. "You're my girlfriend. It's my job to know, Kitten." I put my hand over hers and squeezed. "I'll always be on your side, Felicia. Always. Just...don't do anything drastic. Wait — we can come up with a plan first before— MPH!"
She lunged at me, kissing me on the lips. Doc, the car's AI, immediately took over and stabilised the flight as I wrapped my arms around her and slowly pulled back. She pressed her forehead against mine. "I love you, Peter Parker."
I grinned. "I love you, Felicia Hardy...please don't try to take on an international government agency all by yourself."
Felicia grinned. "Fine. But you owe me."
I rolled my eyes. "If I must."
The next day was...odd, to say the least. Uncle Ben and Aunt May had finally been discharged by SHIELD and I was at home when they arrived, playing the role of the sick nephew. They were strange around me — more reserved — and I didn't understand why until Ben told me later.
"Peter...there's something you should know. It's about your dad," he told me as Aunt May gripped his arm tightly.
'Ah, so that's it,' I realised. I put on an innocent smile. "What about him, Uncle Ben?"
"He's...he's alive, Peter." Cue the shock. Then followed a PG version of events. Ben had seriously edited the story — he made it sound like Mary hadn't sacrificed herself to keep the formula out of HYDRA's hands, but rather that her parachute had simply been faulty. He also made Richard's time with Wyndham sound far less torturous than it truly was.
By the end, I think I deserved an Oscar for the performance I put on. I excused myself when the tale was finished and headed out with my backpack. Ben and Aunt May thought I needed some space. Really, all I needed was to be out of that house. Acting was hard work.
I had made it a few streets down when someone called out. "Hey, Peter!" I stopped and sighed. So close.
I turned around and saw MJ walking up to me. She wore a loose white top that showed off a black bra strap, a pair of jeans with sandals, and a green cap with pink sunglasses.
I smiled. "Hey, MJ. What's up?"
"Nothing much. So you heading out — what's new with you? Fight any super villains lately?"
"Shh! Not so loud!" I looked around. Thank God no one was nearby. "I do have a secret identity, you know!"
MJ rolled her eyes. "Right."
"Hey, don't give me that look. This is all for your sake, you know."
"What do you mean?" MJ asked as we walked out of the neighbourhood.
"Well, think about it. Why do I need a secret identity? Felicia can totally handle herself — the girl has mad skill. Ben and May might be in danger, but anyone stupid enough to go after them will have the entire Avengers team on their tail. So yeah — you're really the only one who'd be in any real danger if people knew who I was."
"Oh, so if, like, Electro decided to kidnap me, you wouldn't come and save me?"
"What? Of course I would!"
"But no Avengers?"
"Well, yeah. I tell them the old couple who helped raise me is in danger, and everyone will be here in seconds. But I tell them this cute redhead from across the street is missing? I doubt they'd all be motivated."
"Hey! That's rude!"
I laughed. "Sorry. But it's totally true. Steve has a hero complex, so maybe he'd show up. Tony has a soft spot for family members who actually care. Hawkeye is...well, he's weird, but he's totally a family man. Black Widow actually knows Ben and May personally, so she'd help. Only Thor and Hulk would be no-shows — and that's because one is a god currently off-planet and the other is...well, the Hulk."
MJ huffed. "Oh, please. I can hardly believe that. I doubt they'd be so willing to help. Other than you, I don't really see those guys as...well, as giving a crap. They seem so distant."
I smirked. "Actually, I know for a fact that if anything happened to May and Ben, they'd come."
"Really? How?"
"Where do you think they've been for the past two days?" I raised an eyebrow.
MJ's eyes went wide as she stopped dead in her tracks. "What?!"
I smiled as we walked into a park and found a quiet corner. I set my backpack down and sat with MJ as I told her what happened. Of course I left out anything classified or sensitive, but I gave her the headlines.
Found Dad's old research. Ben and May kidnapped. Teamed up with Cap, Widow, and SHIELD to save them. Took down the bad guys. Found out my dad was alive this whole time.
"Whoa...that's like...whoa," MJ blinked in amazement. "So your dad's—"
"—Alive and kicking, yup," I snorted. "Honestly, I didn't see that coming. I knew exactly what was going to happen; I had it all planned out. But him...I never could have accounted for him, MJ. It was like a miracle."
MJ squeezed my hand tightly. "I'm happy for you, Peter. Not many people get their parents back."
I sighed. "Yeah, well...maybe you can tell me how I'm supposed to...never mind."
MJ nodded. "I guess it will be super awkward, but Peter — I know people who would kill for something like this."
"Maybe...but I'm not his son," I whispered to myself, but she heard me.
"You are his son," she told me. "You are his son and he's your dad...you'll figure it out. I just know it."
"Yeah? And why do you say that?" I asked.
MJ smiled. "You're Spider-Man. That's what you do."
I sighed. "MJ, do you think there's someone else under that mask? It's me. It's always me. I can't...I'm not some different person the moment I put it on."
"No, you are. When you have it on, you're the real Peter Parker. The real you."
"You really think so?"
MJ smiled. "I know so." I rolled my eyes but said nothing. We both sat in silence, just resting for a while. Finally, MJ spoke again. "How's Felicia?"
I sighed. "She's...she has her own issues to deal with." I didn't mention Felicia's father — it was a private matter.
"What's more important than helping your boyfriend out?" MJ asked with a snort.
I smiled. "Family issues, MJ — you know how she is. Believe me, she knows, and the moment she's out of her funk she'll be worrying about me too."
MJ shrugged. "Right. Just saying — if you were my boyfriend I wouldn't leave you hanging."
I snorted. 'Real subtle, MJ.' "Anyway, what's new with you? Sorry I haven't kept in touch over the summer. It's just—"
MJ waved me off. "Forget about it. I know — I watch the news too, you know? Spider-Man's been pretty busy these past two months. Helping clean up the city. Heck, I think last week you saved a cat from a tree or something?"
"It was a cat, but it was from a burning building," I sighed. "The city's been a mess since the attack. The others and I are doing our best, but it'll be back to normal soon — I just don't know how long that might take."
MJ shrugged. "You'll figure it out. You always do."
I smiled. "Thanks, MJ. Nice to know someone believes in me."
MJ smiled as we sat there in silence, just enjoying the breeze.