stacysghost

[stacysghost]

AT SOME POINT, I JUST -- I STOPPED PULLING MY PUNCHES. I GOT RAGEFUL. I GOT BITTER. I JUST DON'T WANT YOU TO END UP LIKE ME.

marvel multimuse, with characters as loved by emrys. featuring @oscxrpceo, @stacysghost, @parkersbite, && the gambit. they/them, 25+, selective.

home rules currents tests @noahsresources @jercy

[stacysghost]

(id probably drop a few more threads and make an entirely separate account but this would allow me to stay more organised and consider more test muses (remy lebeau/gambit 👀))

[stacysghost]

"God, I wish I could claim it as my own. That'd have been incredible advice. No, I saw a gifset of some model on Tumblr like a decade ago giving that advice and it'd stuck with me ever since," she explains, shoving a fry in her mouth. "'Girl', asterisk, parenthesis, gender neutral."

@stacysghost continued from here.

valeria almost snorts soda out of their nose at gwen's words. hand comes up to cover their mouth with the back of their hand, wiping sticky mess away with their sleeve.

❝ honestly? solid advice. you think of that all on your own? ❞

[stacysghost]

"Literally as many fries as it takes, girl. It's not even my money," she answers, pulling her phone out of her pocket and leading them into the diner. "We will be thanking my boss for our lunch today, and he'll be thanking you in return for exposing all the company's weaknesses."

+ " Long as you don't mind that I'm going to ABSOLUTELY demand payment in FRYS . " It was a THREAT that Mary Jane absolutely meant every single word of . As long as the FRYS kept coming, the information would likewise follow afterwards .

[stacysghost]

Criminal Sentences, Vol. 15

(Sentences from various sources for criminals and/or dangerous muses. Adjust phrasing where needed)

"Sooner or later, you'll tell me. Sooner or later, you'll want to do it."

"Anyone can betray anyone. You should know that."

"You know, I never really thought you had it in you."

"Whatever way you look at it, we both want to conquer the world."

"Turn around so I can tie you up."

"When people are afraid of you, you can do what you like."

"So obvious a weakness? In you?"

"You know what? Once this is done, maybe we could work together?"

"You know, you should be very careful when you make allegations that you can't substantiate."

"Oh, morality and conscience tugging at you yet again? What a blessing I was brought into the world with no such burdens to bear."

"Notice how I didn't need to lower myself to your level?"

"The world needs bad men. We keep the other bad men from the door."

"I have limited tolerance for being ambushed."

"You would make a beautiful corpse."

"You're arrogant, or else you would have never walked in here."

"What am I going to do with you? You simply won't die."

"It's called quid pro quo. You tell me something, I tell you something."

"You really are creepy, you know that?"

"You shouldn't have interfered. You'll pay for this."

"Look me in the eyes. I want to watch your lights go out."

"You really have no decency, do you?"

"No game is worth playing if you can't win."

"Did you know you can buy cyanide on the dark web?"

"I see you're not wearing handcuffs. I take it you were able to talk yourself out of trouble?"

"I don't want to hurt you, but I will!"

"I'm not here to make deals, or to listen to threats."

"You must be a stone-cold killer, huh?"

"You shouldn't have done that. A man needs all the friends he can find."

"You know, dirt cleans off a lot easier than blood."

"You always had that sociopathic je ne sais quois about you."

"Used a lot of names, haven't you? Makes a man wonder who you really are..."

"I'm sorry about being so mysterious before about what I do. I just don't like telling many people."

"I've gotten you one of the best criminal lawyers in the country; you should listen to his advice."

"Without me, there is no you."

"I've just realised something: I don't want to kill you anymore."

"After two weeks on the road, your incessant scheming is hurting my head."

"Who told you where to find me?"

"You are straying dangerously close to offering advice about a situation you know little about."

"Have you never heard that money talks?"

"You sent me to die. That's kind of a deal breaker for me."

[stacysghost]

"What good is power if you don't use it to your advantage?" Gwen asks, but she's smiling, teasing. She had more power to do things in the company than most, but she's also incredibly careful about how she goes about using it. Anything she does that doesn't go over well has the chance to backfire onto Harry, and he already struggles enough as it is to find a footing with the board. "Okay, real. But seriously, you are way more than qualified for this job, girl, you should own that."

“What? You… you did?” Ophelia knew she liked Gwen, but she didn’t think she’d like her even more once she realized it was her who likely gave her the chance to get this job. “Wow, I… I mean, I’m grateful, really. You didn’t have to do that.” But she’s not entirely sure if she’d be here if she didn’t. “Lowly assistant with a Masters, please, you’re brilliant and Harry appreciates you and your brains, I know it. But I’m glad you can talk to me too about this stuff cause there’s so much to catch up on.”

[stacysghost]

She's made herself very comfortable on the couch in his office by the time she asks the question, shoes kicked off and legs crossed under her. Does she have work to do? Oh, most definitely. But most of her job is Harry, so as far as she's concerned, this is work. Don't mind the fact that she's currently folding a strip of paper into an origami star, a pile already on the coffee table to the side.

Gwen isn't expecting an immediate answer to her question, knowing how cagey Harry's been with his past before his return to Oscorp, content to wait and fold her paper. She's planning to scoop the pile into an empty, decorative dish on his desk when she's done, hoping they'll serve as a tangible reminder that he's not alone.

She considers his answer for a second before answering, looking up from the half-folded paper in her hand.

"Promise me you'll tell me if that changes?"

@stacysghost asked: ❝ why do you let me close when you’re always driving everyone else away? ❞ (actually i think you rbed that list for gwenharry pain )

He almost -almost- argues that he doesn't drive everyone else away. He hasn't always been like that, after all, for all he's always kept most people at arms' length. But he finds he cannot argue, not anymore, because she's witnessed him kick out someone he once considered a brother.

He's never been a trusting person, and he doubts that will ever change: so, so many people look at him and see an Osborn, and not Harry. Others, he knows he cannot risk trusting, nor getting close, because there is a chain of command, and the difference keeps getting steeper.

Gwen, however... he's long been aware he should have kept more distance. But now they share a bed often enough, and she knows almost everything there is to know about his life these days.

"You've proven me I can trust you." He settles on. "Everyone else keeps proving me the exact opposite thing."

Even the people he has loved the most, and even if a part of him keeps expecting Gwen to break his trust again.

Still, Harry has never done well being alone, and he's more grateful for her presence than he'd otherwise admit.

[stacysghost]

"Thank you," Gwen replies, a little smug. Spider-Man was basic, but she's proud of herself for Ghost Spider. That's what she's been striving to be, unseen in her efforts of being a vigilante. Not unseen enough, though, since Spider-Man had noticed her.

She hopes the lenses of her mask catch the unimpressed look she gives him, at the attempt to hide his own embarrassment at her refusal to shake hands. She'd learned from the best -- don't shake hands with someone if you don't agree to their deal. He's not trying to make a deal, but even still. Fae rules. Don't trust the man your boss slash best friend is very clearly heartbroken over.

"I appreciate the offer, but, really, I'm more than capable when it comes to handling myself. I was a very busy teenager with all my extracurriculars," she says, and is that too much information? Or does it just make him think she's been at this longer than he assumes? But, somehow, she's not scared or doubtful. This thing, being Ghost Spider, it's just another thing she is overly qualified for, in her mind. Worried, about what Harry would think, but she knows he wouldn't leave her alone. She shrugs. "I don't want any associations with your lot of villains. I've seen the news, listened to the podcasts. You don't have a good reputation, Spider-Man. You or the kid."

She doesn't put much stock in what Jameson says, but she does like the Danikast. And, obviously, the people she overhears on the subway back to her apartment after a long day at Oscorp. The people love them, but there is a lot of property damage with their name attached. "At least not in the papers."

There's no denying that Spider-Woman wouldn't be the most inspired alias out there, Peter is very aware of it... but with two Spider-Men, he knows where most people's ideas might go. Including Jameson's, and truly it's almost a miracle he hasn't jumped at the call to give her a name, or to start speaking badly of her.

"What did the hyphen do to you?" He asks, even if he's mostly joking. Enough so that he nods, nevertheless, as she gives him her name, and when he next speaks it's far more seriously, almost like an offered olive branch, despite the situation. "But it's a good name. A really good one."

Even despite the way his hand is offered, and he moves it to scratch the back of his neck, trying to keep the situation relaxed anyway. Even despite her refusal too, because he has so many questions, piling on top of each other: why, and how, and where did her spider come from beyond the obvious suspects?

"You don't have to join us." He tells her, however. "But we know what you're going through, with the Spider powers. We can help you. We'd like to, it's not an easy thing to deal with." He adds. He remembers his own doubts, his own fears, he doesn't want anyone to go through it alone. Even if she might not me. "Even if you look like you're doing quite well." He adds. And then, "What does being a free agent mean, for you?"

Because, despite everything, he has to ask. He wants to help, but he knows she might not be after the good of the many. It wouldn't be the first evil spider he meets.

[stacysghost]

"is that a challenge?"

"You better use this fiddle to play Shri Ram Charit Manas."

[stacysghost]

"well when your strings are 'everything' it's very easy to play you!"

you hear that sound? it's the sound of wade crumpling at @stacysghost 's feet 'cause he's bein' played like a fiddle and he's WEAK

[stacysghost]

Gwen, god help her, sucks in a breath when she sees the face of this universe's Curt Connors. It's hard enough, getting thrown into different universes every time her watch decides to glitch out, but running into someone who looks so, so much like her Harry makes her heart ache.

Sure, his hair is different, and he's got a different wardrobe, but his eyes are the same, and she might be tricking herself but she swears they flicker with recognition for a second before calming down.

She adjusts her grip on the notebook in her hand, swallowing hard before shaking her head. "Sorry, you scared me. I wasn't expecting someone to be down here."

I wasn't expecting you to look like him.

Her heart hurts so, so much.

@stacysghost liked for an assumed identities starter!

The issues of ending up in a universe where the multiverse is not much of a secret are many... and one of them was expectations, and managing them. But for better or worse, Harry has long learned to deal with expectations, and how to subvert them.

Curtis Connors, mild-mannered, fond of animals -especially reptiles-, and with an easy demeanor and a tendency to become a giant lizard on accident was a concerning prospect... but a far less concerning prospect than one young Harry Osborn, gone through villainy already. So a Curtis Connors he'd become, managing to get a spot as a teacher's assistant in this universe's ESU thanks to his ability to lie, hair dye, and comfortable -if mildly unfashionable- clothing, even as he tried to figure out how to get home.

And then he'd turned around to see Gwen, or most likely, a Gwen, come into the room where the biology department kept the reptiles, Harry's current occupation these days.

"Hello, can I help you?" He smiles, nevertheless, and wonders how long until the pain of missing someone universes away subsides.

[stacysghost]

"Oh, you just think you're real cute, don't you?" Gwen teases, stepping closer to poke him in the chest, right in the middle of his pecs -- and her shirt. Her look is challenging, eyebrows raised at him. "You just think you're absolutely adorable, huh."

He is. She can admit it. She can also admit to using her unseen strength to walk him backwards, fingers spreading out against his chest instead of poking him. Her eyes flick between his arm flexing and his chest under her stretched-out shirt. "Don't tempt me. I bet you'd crumple if I ordered you around."

@stacysghost sent: “ is… that my shirt you’re wearing? ”

"... Maybe." He glances down at himself before looking back to her. "But doesn't it look just marvelous on me? I think it's only a couple sizes too small." He's also not sure if he's going to be able to take it off, actually... but that's not a problem for right now.

"Try and take away these guns from me." He flexes his arm with a grin. "Can't web those to a wall." A pause. She totally can. "I mean.. not without turning me on that is." Is that supposed to be a threat? Yes and no. He's pretty sure that it's not really that intimidating to her, at least.

[stacysghost]

The second Gwen has laid eyes on him -- Harry, her Harry, she'd felt nothing but relief. She'd seen far, far too many Harrys that scared her, seen and heard too much of what happened to the other versions of her. Even the Gwen Stacy of this universe had suffered. She was alive, she'd figured that much out, but just barely.

The question that rings through her mind every time, what makes me different from all the rest? still has no answer. Theories, yes, but nothing concrete.

She wants to hug him. She knows it would be weird, for Mary Jane and Doctor Connors to be found hugging, having just met, which is what stops her, unsure of how long Peter would be gone, but she makes a mental note to meet up with him later so that they can properly reunite.

"I've been so worried about you," she smiles, relief etched all over her face. "How you'd been holding up at home without me."

Gwen pulls her braid out from behind her neck instinctively, a new habit she'd picked up in this universe. It's been newly dyed, a deep red-orange. She's still not used to her reflection. With a shake of her head, trying to count on her fingers, she answers, "This is the.... sixth? Universe I've managed to find my way into. Oscorp should really stop letting me unfiltered access to their labs."

She looks back up to him, smile widening. "Nice outfit, by the way. I'm loving the whole... ratty professor vibe."

@stacysghost asked: i just told you i missed you. ( in accidental multiversal travel au? )

"Of course." Comes his answer, gaze fond and relieved despite the easy teasing in his voice. "Mary Jane."

Because it might be a textbook case of the pot calling the kettle black, and yet... he can't help teasing her further. Letting himself enjoy the relief of having found one familiar face before he dwells on exactly why she isn't going by her actual name, because it might be a case of another Gwen existing in this universe, as it tends to happen... or she might have run into the same terrible truths he has.

But that doesn't matter just yet, because this universe's Peter has excused himself to check on something -to be Spider-Man, most likely- so now it's just them, both pretending to be people they definitely are not.

"I missed you too." He admits, however. "I'm glad you're okay."

He's aware of -witness to- a shade too much murder to be anything less than sorely relieved. And he hasn't been to that many universe.

"Have you been here all along?" He ends up asking, as he leans against the table. Trying to figure out just how much she might have seen... and aware of the sight he presents himself, having dyed his hair to a darkish brown and abandoning the tailored suits -not that a multiversal traveler can afford those easily- in favor of what he's choosing to call 'thrift-store academia'.

[stacysghost]

"Okay, I think we're close to one of my favorite diners -- I'll pay if you tell me every flaw you've found in the security system."

+ " All part of my elaborate PLAN . Trust me, there will be DETAILS galore . "

[stacysghost]

"Can't a girl get a lunch --" Gwen cuts herself off, jumping up, holding a granola bar in one hand and reaching up to pull her mask back down with the other.

Her Spider-sense doesn't go off, and that's what scares her the most, already on guard. Sometimes, Gwen has slow nights, the crimes in the city dealt with by the other Spiders before she can get there. Sometimes, it's so busy she barely has time to swing between situations.

Mostly, though, it's like this: a crime or two just as the sun is setting, a little break, and then something else afterwards. And that's when the stranger had caught her unawares, mask pulled halfway up her face, just enough to eat.

Gwen squints at the man behind the lenses of her mask. She'd finally mechanized them to move with her so that he can see the expression. "Who are you? How did you even get up here?"

↬ @stacysghost liked this for a starter from Harry Osborn

Well, this one wasn't a Peter Parker. Still a Spider-Man though. Spider-Person? Spider-Girl? Woman? Not important; she was a spider, that much was clear. Did that change anything?

Actually.. he wasn't sure.

He slid his back bag back onto his shoulders, and approached, navigating the roof easily and without fear - even as he came close to the edge. She had been here for longer than two seconds; maybe Harry's gotten lucky. Maybe he's caught a spider, taking a rare break.

"Aren't you supposed to be stopping bad guys? That's your whole thing, right?"

[stacysghost]

How much longer can Gwen handle these two idiots being stubborn about each other, she wonders, as she wraps an arm under his to offer support. Is Peter injured enough that she can get away with asking all her questions?

"Oh, my god, I am so sick of listening to you both whine about this," she says instead, thankfully stronger than the other Spider in this moment, staying on her feet, and still supporting his weight.

"I'm not trying to hurt you, Spider-Man." There's a part of her that thinks about telling him get your shit together and leaving his ass here on the roof, but, as she'd just told him, she'd made a promise, and she's not going to let him die on her watch. "But I have half a mind to lock you both in a closet together until you finally talk it out."

But that would reveal too much about her identity to him, and while he can know that she knows Harry, she doesn't like the idea of him knowing as much about her as she knows about him.

"You don't have to believe me," she says, as she readjusts her grip on him, "but all he wants is for you to survive another day."

She sighs. "I swear, sometimes it feels like I'm a minor character in a romance novel. Hopefully, whatever author is writing this book lets me wind up with a pretty girl."

@stacysghost asked: i promised harry i wouldn't leave you here.

It's not the first time he's injured. It won't be the last. It's not even the first of the week either. And yet, it had been a long time since he'd ended up injured in such a way.

He'll be fine tomorrow, or at least fine enough, as long as he makes it back home, avoids worrying MJ too much, and gets to sleep the injuries off. He just needs to get there, from the rooftop he's crouched on, but it doesn't feel easy, nor feasible... until someone else appears.

He's relieved to see her, spider-sense only warning him minimally before she appears and then going comfortably quiet, as it tends to do... before she speaks, and then it's his own anxiety spiking up because his spider-sense is quiet but his sudden jolt of horror, as he forces himself to his feet, unsteady as it is, is staggering.

"No." He has to tell her. "You cannot..." But he can't finish his words, coughing and coughing blood as he tries.

Had this been Harry's plan all along, a part of him wonders? Make his own Spider, then get... what? His blood? Revenge? He's been avoiding him for so long, so why would anyone close to him want to help Peter? And so, what else could it be? Peter finds he doesn't know, and the thought hurts as much as his body does, because he has tried to reach him, to be sure this is not like Dr. Octavius' betrayal. That he might have lost a friend but maybe not gained an enemy, and once again he should have seen it, done something about it before they reached this point.

"What..." He tries, coughs again, tries again. "What does he want with me?"

He's not sure he wants to know, but he knows he doesn't want to fight her. He still will, if he has to.

[stacysghost]

why have i done this to myself