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fandom-ash · 1 year ago

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Beyond the Pain // Chapter Four: Rhythm of the Night

Pairing: Miguel O'Hara x Maria Philips (OC) Word Count: 2.7k Warnings: No NSFW scenes, but Maria is horny on main Ao3 Mirror: Coming Soon Chapter Two | Chapter Three | Chapter Four Summary: Maria hits the gym and is confronted by her feelings - and her boss. Later, night patrol begins. This series is intended for adult audiences. MDNI. > Spider-Verse Masterlist <

The gym was a place for heat to boil and sweat to simmer. Spiders often congregated in Sector 12 in order to make use of the extensive super-human-weighted exercise equipment. If you were here, chances are you could lift a bus with one arm. That kind of strength required extra care when it came to designing gym equipment. Normal barbells felt like curling toothpicks and just didn’t cut it. The iron here, however, was cut differently.

Exhaling slowly as she pushed upwards, Maria continued her set on one of the many benches. There was a steady rhythm to reps that let her clear her mind. Up, down. In, out. It made her flow as one unit. Press. Breathe. Relax. Repeat. The thoughts that were rampant in her mind flowed through her arms and vanished, burning away like snow into a fire.

Uncertainty gnawed at her insides most days. Cooper was busy with his work and home dimension (specifically a masked man named Silk) and Felicia was taking a small break in order to head on a small archaeology expedition on her Earth. The isolation felt suffocating but there was nothing Maria would do to interrupt them on their journeys - instead, the opportunity to make new companions among the Society kept her occupied.

And so here she was, at 6 am on a god damn Saturday, pumping iron because Ben wanted a “workout sesh before the dawn breaks forth through the night.”

And he didn’t even fucking show up!

Maria, already awake and dressed, decided to take advantage of the gym’s currently-low population.

Another push, another breath. Pull. Inhale. Push. Exhale.

Strange feelings nipped at her heels anywhere she went. After the Cavewoman Kraven incident a week ago, there was a new sense of power she felt… but also of longing. Not for something, but for someone. Something clicked into place with those magic words he said at the debriefing.

“Good work.”

Good lord, I’m pathetic, she chastised herself as she pushed out once more, raising the weighted bar above her. Praise kink be damned, I am NOT going to fall for my boss. She gritted her teeth. Push. Exhale. Pull. Inhale.

Resolve raged like an inferno within her. She would stand firm. No amount of broad shoulders, pouty lips, dark hair, large hands would ever… make her doubt…

GOD FUCKING DAMNIT!

Push. Exhale. Pull. Inhale. Push. Exhale. Pull.Inhale.Push.ExhalePullInhalePush-

“Maria.”

And so the castle of cards came tumbling down as the breeze carried Miguel’s voice to her. Opening her eyes, she looked at the absolute Adonis before her. Tank top. Sweat pants. The outfit of a gym rat and a lady-killer. She had never seen him out of his suit before, and the tanned skin of his arms drew her eyes in with every small and faded scar that hugged the contours of the muscle.

“Are you alright?”

Maria blinked owlishly before resting the bar on its hooks above her. “Yeah, yeah! Never better! I love being up at the ass-crack of dawn on a Saturday for no reason… It’s great, really,” she stammered, sitting up and rubbing her face, which was damp with sweat.

“Uh-huh,” Miguel said. “Well, since you’ve never been better, I’ll spot you and clock your reps for the next set.” He sat his water bottle down on the bench to the left and stood behind Maria’s headrest.

“How generous, just don’t get too smug when you see my max is half of yours.” She laid back down and adjusted her spine and hips before reaching up and gripping the bar. Another set would be no problem, except…

Why. Why why why. He’s going to kill me. Or maybe I should kill myself. I’m going to disintegrate.

Miguel was so tall that when he stood behind her, fingers lightly on the bar to catch it, his package was lined up perfectly to her head. If she leaned back, her mouth would align perfectly.

“Ready when you are.” His voice was so even and calm that it nearly made Maria scream. How could he be so calm?! His manhood was right fucking there! If he leaned made towards the bar, perhaps to catch it, she would get a face full of-

“Alright then. Shooting for 30. Let’s go.”

Push. Exhale. Pull. Inhale.

18. 19. 20.

“Maria. Don’t lock your elbows.” The slight tremble in her arms was obvious, and Maria closed her eyes and exhaled through her mouth as she pushed upwards, making an effort to keep good form.

“Attagirl,” he whispered. It was so low that his lips barely moved and it wouldn’t have even registered if someone with enhanced senses hadn’t been listening intently to every breath he took. The words rushed through Maria, fanning the flames running up her spine.

“Water break!” she declared, quickly docking the bar before sitting up, wiping her burning face, and walking over to one of the bottle-refill stations against the far wall. She grabbed one of the plastic cups from the dispenser and filled it quickly with cold water before downing the whole thing in a few gulps. While trying to literally drown her feelings, Miguel smirked.

That’s one way to confirm a hypothesis, he mentally gloated.

Sitting down on a nearby bench, Miguel picked up one of the heaviest dumbbells and began to curl, paying attention to his biceps. While he seemed focused on the weight in his hand, his eyes were well aware of Maria in his peripheral vision. Watching. Observing. Collecting data and seeing how she reacts.

It almost felt twisted, in a way, to take such a… scientific approach to … whatever he was doing. Courting? Seducing? Flirting? Teasing? He didn’t have a name for it. All he knew was that he had needs, and she had needs. And if their needs overlapped, perhaps they could help each other.

Maria felt like her heart was going to explode out of her chest. Miguel was hot, criminally sexy. And here he was, showing off for her like he’s trying to make her combust on the spot.

If that’s what he’s even doing… Am I reading too much into this?

Setting her doubt aside with a small sigh, she finally sipped on her fourth cup of water and watched him curl out of the corner of her eye. His rippling muscles, strong arms, the way his full lips parted when he exhaled, the line of sweat dripping down his temple… All of it was quite the sight to behold. Furrowing her brows, Maria pulled her phone out of her legging’s side pocket and tried to busy herself with looking at anything other than Miguel’s massive arms. Her mind was racing, thoughts bouncing around and stinging like angry hornets.

Felicia would be giving me so much hell for being a chicken about all of this, she thought. But then again, he is my boss. I’m sure that’s against an HR code somewhere, but… can he fire me for this?

Maria wiped her face as she tapped some bubbles on a game that supposedly “helped you focus” as they appeared and disappeared. It was a load of shit but it was something to keep herself mentally occupied until-

Spindle coiled in her mind, ready to pounce. Her spider-sense was screaming at Maria, but it was different than panic. Her stomach flipped while Spindle chittered endlessly in her mind. Anxiety filled her, but also anticipation. Spindle wanted something - but what?

“Maria.” Miguel’s voice ripped through her thoughts and Spindle was practically doing flips in her mental web.

Whore, Maria chided her familiar.

“Don’t need the bench press anymore, so you can help yourself to the station if you need it,” Maria said, looking up from her phone and trying desperately to play it cool.

“So you’re finished with your exercise for the morning?” he asked, a brow raised and his hands on his small waist.

“Uh, yeah, yeah. Gonna hit the showers and then see what tech lecture Aaron has sent me a recording of this time. My inbox has never been the same, I almost worry for it,” she chuckled.

“Report to my office at 7:00 pm tonight. If you’re still interested in going on patrol, that is.”

Maria blinked. “Patrol? Like out into the city?” The gleam in her eyes was nearly infectious. Playing it cool always played second fiddle to how genuinely excited she was to see all of the sights in the city. New tech, new places, maybe even cool places to hang out at - literally! It beat the monotony of HQ, with its sharp architecture and white-on-gray metal panels for all of the walls. Between ceiling-to-floor glass windows, of course. There was nearly an unnatural amount of natural light in the HQ lobby that reminded Maria of what she was missing out there. Sun and fresh air.

“I figured tonight would be a good time for it. Didn’t want you to think I had forgotten.” The soft ghost of a smile on his lips made Maria’s stomach flip. Spindle had a similar reaction, chirping and skittering around inside of Maria’s mind.

“I’ll be there! I mean, uh - yeah, that’s cool. See you then.” Maria waved a two-finger salute at him, trying to salvage any chance at a decent facade she had. It wasn’t often she found herself getting all goo-goo-eyed over a guy, and there was something about Miguel that made her feel like a teenager again, kicking her feet while laying on her bed and drawing hearts in her notebooks with their initials inside them.

Miguel let out a soft chuckle as Maria immediately made her way to the exit, nearly jogging out and away from the potential of any more embarrassment. Her nervousness and obvious attraction was quite the stroke to Miguel’s ego, and he wiped a hand down the lower half of his face, hiding his smug smile from any onlookers.

Still got it.

The thrum of excitement made Maria feel alive. Lightning danced in her bones as she ran to Miguel's office, swinging, jumping, and flipping along the way to get some of the energy out. It was time. She was going to see Nueva York!

The lift ride was painfully slow. Once the doors slid open on the correct level, Maria jogged excitedly down the long dark hallway that eventually led to the Lair. Each step was accompanied by a bounce of the balls of her feet. If she didn't keep moving she was going to explode from excitement. Spindle chirped happily, also bouncing on a mental web within Maria's mind.

The doors slid open as she approached, revealing the blue hues of the dim lights within Miguel's office. His dias was raised high, as usual.

"Boss!" Maria greeted excitedly before webbing up to the raised platform and landing beside him. Miguel swept his gaze over several monitors before glancing at her.

"You're early," he said.

"By 10 minutes! You expect me to wait while we could be out swinging around?"

"If you're this excited about patrol, I'd hate to see how excited you get over actually cool things," he chuckled, letting a small smile curl the corner of his lips. "Lyla, everything quiet?"

"For the 12th time, yes. Go out and enjoy yourselves. I'll keep my eyes peeled for emergencies." The small hologram woman appeared and hovered beside them, rolling her eyes at Miguel. Maria left out an amused huff before looking at Miguel.

"You heard the lady, Bossman." She beamed at him while resting her hands on her hips.

Miguel's brows furrowed for a second as he glanced back over the monitor collection. Closing his eyes, he nodded and turned away, walking towards the edge of the platform and leaping down onto the floor far below with a massive thud. Maria followed with a considerably higher amount of grace.

"Lyla, lock up. Keep me informed of everything that-"

"Yeah, yeah, anything that might cause a disruption or anomaly creation." Lyla's voice mirrored Miguel's perfectly as she mocked him. "Go. Get out of here. Touch grass. Breathe fresh air." Her hands shooed him away as they walked out of the office. The doors slid shut behind them and clicked as they were locked.

"Sounds like you should get out more," Maria teased as they entered the lift. Miguel rolled his eyes, a small smile on his full lips.

"Not you too - don't need another person making me socialize and see the sunlight every now and then." He tapped directions on the lift panel.

"If I'm going to be a Conclave member, it'll be my job to bully you into going outside."

"You're fired. I'm bringing in someone else," he chuckled before the lift started moving upwards.

"Wait- up? Shouldn't we be going down?" Maria asked as she looked at the view outside. The city was beautiful, with large swathes of green and circular paths between large clusters of tall buildings and perfectly-round ponds. The sunset bathed everything in a fiery glow.

"Where would be the fun in that?" Miguel's mask pixelated over his face, and Maria followed suit, letting her mask cover her head with a light flash of blue. The doors opened to the very rooftop of Babylon Towers. The wind howled across the smooth metal flooring, and Maria's stomach flipped as she understood for the first time how painfully high up they were. Miguel stepped out, Maria following hesitantly behind him.

"Don't tell me you're afraid of heights," Miguel said. Maria could feel his smug expression, even with his mask up. She scoffed and approached the edge with him, peering over it cautiously.

"It's just… a long way down." She squeaked as Miguel rushed past her as a blur, leaping off the rooftop like it was nothing.

"Miguel!" She exclaimed as she watched him descend before he shot a web at nearby flying traffic, grabbing a car and using it to swing from. He repeated, using the cars as moving anchor points with a practiced pattern to his movement.

"Mad man…" She closed her eyes tightly before stepping back and rushing forward, leaping off the edge of the roof. The wind screamed around her as she entered free fall, angling herself towards the line of traffic zipping by. With a flick of her arm she shot out a web and nabbed a car, using it to catch herself and swing forward with the momentum from her fall.

Miguel was already way ahead, swinging towards a large central cluster of skyscrapers. He made this look easy! Continuing to swing from car to car, Maria felt the gears turning.

Spindle, think we can get a boost?

The excited squeaking from within made Maria laugh before she felt the familiar tingle of energy through her body. She webbed a far-ahead car and quickly pulled herself towards it, using the distance to gain speed as the energy built. Blue light crackled around her like lightning before she released the web and shot forward with a thundering boom.

The cars behind her were knocked slightly around, wobbling to regain balance after being hit with the literal shock-wave generated. Maria flew forward like a bullet as her surroundings blurred from speed. The energy faded as she slowed, webbing another car and swinging ahead. She looked behind her to see that she had shot herself ahead of Miguel, whose suit-eyes were wide.

"How did you-?" His voice crackled over comms. Maria laughed in delight as she continued to swing forward towards the cluster.

"I've been learning some new tricks with Spindle!" She kept her momentum and saw her opening, swing forward and up. Arms tight, legs straight, she pulled herself into a spin before landing on a rooftop, skidding to a halt.

Her breathing was hot and heavy as she took a moment, running her hands through her bangs. Her blood was pumping and her muscles ached. Letting out a whoop, she pumped her fist in the air as Miguel landed, similarly skidding until he stopped.

"That's how it's done!"

Miguel shook his head and chuckled. "I took it easy on you - I didn't know you had some tricks up your sleeve." She could feel his grin from behind her mask, and she laughed in delight.

"Sure, sure. Whatever helps you sleep at night."

He shook his head and motioned to the nearby buildings. "Welcome to Surface Central. We'll start the patrol here."

A/N: Special thanks to my beta readers, @madschiavelique, Fari, and Nura! Love you guys! <3333

Remember to comment and reblog - support fandom creators! And if you want more spider-verse content, why don't you check out my Spider-Verse Masterlist?

#miguel o'hara #spiderverse #across the spiderverse #atsv #spiderman 2099 #oc x canon #Ash Writes [⌨️👽📖 Read it and Weep!]#Miguel O'Hara [🕷🌹🩸 Emo Vampire Spider]#Maria Philips [🕷💙👟 Rhythm of Love]

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fandom-ash · 1 year ago

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Beyond The Pain // Chapter Two: Tell It To My Heart

Paring: Miguel O’Hara x Maria Philips (OC)

Genre: Romance with eventual smut, MINORS DNI

Word Count: 3.1k

Warnings: No beta - We write like men!

Ao3 Mirror: Coming soon

Chapter One | Chapter Two | Chapter 3

Summary: Maria and Miguel come to an understanding after trading blows. She decides to ask him for a favor to prepare herself for what lies ahead.

"Walk with me." The request was simple enough, and yet Maria would have preferred to be asked to do literally anything else. The HQ was quiet this late into the evening. The few Spiders they did pass didn't acknowledge them outside of a small nod here and there.

"So… what do you want?" She tried to sound respectful. Gentle, even. But she wasn't going to split hairs about the slight edge to her tone or how Miguel furrowed his brows at her words.

Sector 12's entrance loomed ahead. The training simulations and gym were a hot spot for Spiders to gather, and yet this late into the night it would be most likely deserted. The SimCourse - the holographic training simulation course - would probably be available. Jessica's words hummed in Maria's mind.

"I want… to apologize." Miguel's words were low and deliberate. Maria blinked. "I should not have treated you so harshly. It was your first time leading a mission." He looked at her, a dark glint in his eye. "Let's make sure you do better next time."

“We doing a SimCourse run, then?” She asked as they walked into the gym area, their movement making the automatic lights flicker to life. Just as Maria expected - completely empty. Miguel clicked his tongue and looked at her with the faintest smirk.

“I was thinking of something more personal,” he said before walking over to the large mat and settling into a crouched fighting stance. Maria blinked owlishly at him.

“Like… fight you?”

“I didn’t take you for the hands-off type. Come on.”

Maria scoffed. “As much as I’d love to punch your pretty face, I don’t think this is wise-“

“I’m not asking. I’m telling. Spar with me.” His massive form was curling with tension and the energy rolling off of him made Maria’s stomach flip. There was no way she could get out of this one, and why waste such an opportunity?

She strode up to the mat and crouched down as well, as the duo circled each other like a pair of tigers around a meal. Miguel stared at her intently but didn’t budge, so Maria made the first move: a swift kick at his knees. He blocked with a flat hand, redirecting her momentum.

"Sloppy, reckless," he chastised, brows furrowed slightly.

"You're one to talk!" Maria spat back, lunging back at him to swing at his stomach. Once again he redirected her with his open palms, making her snarl as she fell to the mat. Miguel stepped back and to the side with a speed and grace that was unnatural for someone of his size.

"Your head's not in the game. You've gotta clear the noise, eliminate distractions." He kneeled down beside Maria, gently helping her stand back up. "Is something wrong?" There was a sudden tenderness to his tone that made Maria recoil.

"What are you, a cop?" She rolled her shoulder and looked away from him.

"Maria." A hint of the old Miguel, the one that offered her a place to stay with no questions asked, surfaced. She blinked as he continued, "I'm trying to atone for how I've been treating you lately. I've… had some things to work through, and I'm wanting to help you do the same."

"You can't just stroll in here and play therapist!" Maria snapped. "You've been nothing but a dick for the past three weeks! Always on my case about something! If you're going to ride my ass, at least pull my hair, fuck!" She was nearly yelling before huffing and stepping away, face red with rage. "I came here to do good things, help people!"

"And you have been!" Miguel spoke loudly yet firmly. "You have been. And we've noticed. Jessica wants you to replace her."

She froze, meeting his eyes. "What?"

"She wants you to take her Conclave seat so she can spend more time at home." He stepped towards her and sighed, closing his eyes. "You've got the potential and the drive. We just have to work on your skills out on the field."

"Wait- what?!" Felicia shot up from her seat on Maria's couch, adjusting on her heels so her wet toenail polish wouldn't smear. "You're going to be in the Conclave?!"

"Hey, are you going to let me finish this story or not?" Maria put as much faux-hurt as she could into her voice before laughing and returning her attention to Cooper's toenails. "This red really suits you, Coop," she commented. "So, as I was saying-"

"Back the fuck up, we need to discuss how you called him 'pretty'," Cooper said as he peeked over his magazine at Maria with a raised brow.

"Well was I wrong? Man's got great bone structure." Maria gently set Cooper's foot down and looked at her own toes, painted a cute navy and spread out with spacers while the nail polish dried.

"You're right there," Felicia slumped back onto the couch. "But I'm not down for all of that baggage. Might as well throw out the whole suitcase."

"Speak for yourself, I love a project. I could fix him," Cooper said with a waggle of his brows while the ladies exploded into laughter. Maria wiped tears from her eyes, trying to compose herself enough to speak. "True! I've never met a project man who could say no to Cooper's glam. You're too strong, I'm gonna have to take you out for the good of the dating ecosystem!"

"I've got eyes on the target, let's take him out." Felicia held up her hands like she was holding an invisible sniper rifle and looking at Cooper through the scope.

"How could you? Did you guys plan this all along?! Betrayal! Utter betrayal!" Cooper cried out in mock-terror, holding his hands up while Felicia pretended to load a gun and shoot him with a "bang," causing him to lay back and groan with deadness. Maria laughed and rolled her eyes at the pair.

“Hey now, no murders during the sleepover,” she reminded before laying back on her beanbag. “It’s too much paperwork for me.” She let out a soft sigh and let herself sink further into the cushion, feeling the weight of her responsibility crush her bones into dust with its overwhelming presence.

“So how did you leave things?” Felicia asked. Maria wiped a hand down her face and groaned.

“It’s just… kind of waiting on a few things. They see potential in me, but I’ve been doing training courses every night for the last week in order to ‘hone my skills to an acceptable degree.’ It’s insane and I hate it, but…”

“Why don’t you decline then?” Felicia looked at Maria, her eyes soft in such a way that it made Maria’s stomach churn.

Ugh, pity.

"Because this matters, and it matters to more people than just me. Jess needs the break to be with her son, and I'm willing to help make that happen." With another sigh Maria slumped more into the bean chair, hoping it would swallow her whole. The feeling in the air had turned sour, and she had to fight the urge to rip herself out of the situation. Easier said than done, but where would she even go? Cooper and Felicia were in her living room.

"Maria, babe, have you been taking care of yourself?" Cooper asked.

"Huh? Do I stink or something?" Maria looked over at him quizzically.

"You just… seem tired, frazzled. Maybe you're stretched too thin?" There was a soft cadence to his voice and Maria frowned.

"I'm fine guys, I really am." Based on their looks, Maria wasn't convincing anyone with her words. "I just need to get some rest, I might head to bed soon." She rubbed her eyes and slumped back into the chair. She could hear Felicia and Cooper chatting whole waiting for their toes to dry, but they grew farther away as sleep began to embrace her.

——

Rain assaulted the large windows of Maria's apartment, filling the air with constant noise. She was curled up on her bed, scanning through documents and articles on her phone.

"I still don't understand, Lyla. How does it work?" She looked over at the tiny hologram sitting on her other pillow, filing her nails.

"Can you be more specific, doll?"

"HoloTek! How does or turn light into physical matter?"

"Well I'd say your observation is a bit flawed. It's not so much as turning light waves into solid matter, but instead multiplying the beams millions of times over. The waves become so powerful and focused that they begin to react to materials in the air and force them into a solid, sturdier structure."

"What?! You're kidding! This was only theoretical in 2029! And it's true? When was the breakthrough?!" Maria's eyes shined wide with wonder, catching the yellow reflections of Lyla's glow.

"It's been a recent development, in the grand scheme of things! It was presented to science boards across the globe about 7 years ago, and hit widespread commercial development markets around 3 years after that. You should have seen the ripples in the scientific community! Miguel won so many awards and the commercialization of the tech is what keeps Spider Society running!" She dismissed her nail file and lounged on the pillow, looking up at Maria with a raised brow.

"You… you're telling me Miguel O'Hara pioneered HoloTek?" Maria blinked, trying to keep her eyes from popping out of her skull. "I mean, yeah. He does have 3 PhDs after all. He's pretty much a certified genius." Lyla sounded so matter-of-fact and calm about what she was telling her. In a way, it made sense. While Maria wasn't close to Miguel, she knew that he was the one who built the Spider Society. She just didn't expect that to have been quite so literal.

"Wow… I never knew. That's pretty amazing, honestly." She locked her phone screen and laid it near Lyla. "I sometimes feel like the only adult Spider who flunked out of college," she admitted. "I would've been the first Dr. Philips in my family." She closed her eyes and sunk into her mattress further.

"Don't sweat that, Sugar! Education has come a loooong way in the last 70 years. I'm sure you'd do great at University now!" Lyla grinned at Maria. "It's about learning now instead of memorization. Totally different animal."

Maria huffed and smiled slightly. "School being about learning… I never thought I'd see the day." She yawned and blinked, her eyelids getting heavily. "I'm going to pass out now. Talk to you soon, chica."

"Night!" And like that, Lyla flicked out of existence. The pang of isolation settled over Maria like a fog, and she pulled the covers over herself. Tomorrow waited for no man, and she needed sleep if she was going to perform well.

——

There was a bit-crushed synthesized groan as Maria kicked at a hologram of a generic "bad guy" and caused him to run out of health. He flickered out if existence and Maria skidded to a halt at the end of the long white-paneled hallway that made up the SimCourse.

"That's how it's done!" Her breathing was heavy and she threw her head back as she gave a loud whoop. Spindle chattered excitedly in her mind, and Maria's grin was so wide it felt like she was going to split her cheeks.

"That's a personal best. Good job, Blue." Jess tapped some keys on the control panel while she reviewed footage from Maria's evaluation. Maria padded over and snatched her water bottle off the edge of the console and downed it greedily.

"The physical training routine I created seems to be successful," Aaron looked at his own monitor, glancing over vitals and other information gathered during the training. "Have you been reviewing the reading I've sent you?" He didn't look away from his screen while talking.

"Can't say I have," Maria admitted. She sat on the couch in the control room, grateful to rest her feet for a minute. She closed her eyes and wiped her forehead with the back of her hand. Her suit clung to her form and made her long for a baggy shirt and pajama pants - comfort, not work. "Been too busy pumping iron."

"It's paying off, your time is down by 15 seconds," Jess confirmed before closing her holographic monitors and walking towards the pair. "It's a strong improvement from last week's times."

The genuine praise made Maria beam. Leaning forward in her seat, she pointed at Jess. "That's great! Once I get a get another run in, I bet I can shave off another two seconds. I'm feeling it, it's gonna be-"

"I'm not running you again. Girl, you've already done it three times! Get some rest. I know I'm going to," Jess cut Maria off and put her hands on her lower back, stretching to accentuate her words.

"Besides, physicality is only half the battle," Aaron said. "You still have a lot to learn about battle strategy and 2099 Technical Theory. You couldn't possibly be on the Conclave if you don't understand how the Watch technology-"

"Watch it," Maria warned. "I'll get to it when I get to it. It's not like there's a written exam on this stuff." She glanced towards her mentor. "I'll get promoted when you think I'm ready, right?"

Jessica pulled her lips into a tight line. "It's a group vote. I present you when I think you're ready, and then the others decide."

"You've got to be able to help run this place in Miguel's absence. We are the Conclave, the next in command for Spider Society! We have to be ready at all times. It's about strength and devotion to our cause, the knowledge-"

"Alright, alright! I get the picture," Maria cut Aaron off with a chuckle. With a roll of her eyes and a small smile on her face, Jess walked towards the doors out of the Control Center.

"I'll give Miguel a report, then I'm off duty for the next 72 hours. If you need anything, you'll either have to handle it yourself or ask Lyla," Jess warned her pupil. "So be on your best behavior, alright? I'll see you guys after my weekend." And like that she was gone.

Maria stood up slowly with a groan, starting to feel the adrenaline wear off and a deep ache settle into her limbs. Aaron made his way towards the door, his robotic spider limbs curled up on his back.

"So… the reading?" Maria asked as she followed him out. "Are there alternatives? Because big blocks of text just blur together."

"Hmm. Get that tested," Aaron remarked. "But if reading is problematic, perhaps a practical workshop might be beneficial. Have you had your learning style identified? Has tactile learning been beneficial to you?"

"Uh…"

"I'll set up a workshop demonstration for you to analyze the Watches. Be on the lookout for an invite sent to your calendar. Perhaps I could turn it into a whole lecture…" He kept walking, hand on his chin in thoughts so deep that he didn't even notice Maria was no longer walking beside him.

She already had a plan.

——

PROTEIN SYNTHESIS COMPLETE.

SERUM STABILIZATION UNDERWAY.

PLEASE STAND BY.

Miguel's glower was so intense that it could melt into the monitor. Diagrams of molecular structures, chemical compounds, and DNA strands floated around on the golden monitors. Before him, a centrifuge swirled with a low hum.

"A watched pot never boils, S-Man," Lyla said as she floated beside him, lounging on a massive (to her) bean bag chair. He sighed and closed his eyes for a moment before looking at his hologram of an assistant.

"I can't let my mood destabilize again. It's not worth the risk." He glanced back at the monitor before turning away and going over some files on an adjacent display.

"Well as they say: With great spider powers, comes great spider mood swings!" Lyla blinked over beside his head. "When was your last dose?"

"4 days ago." His thick brows furrowed

"And you already need another one?" Lyla sounded uncharacteristically serious at the realization. She pulled up a tiny holographic computer and tapped away at it.

"I want to keep it on hand." He tapped a few nodes on his own monitor, pulling at a model of a web, dragging around nodes to pan across the diagram of the Achrachno Humanoid Poly-Multiverse. The thrum of destiny pursed across the lines, soothing him. When viewed from this far out, the randomness and chaos of life almost seemed to make sense to him.

"Bossman!" Maria announced her presence confidently, making Miguel grit his teeth into a snarl at the intrusion. He looked over at her, his brow raised.

"Do you need something?" He asked flatly as Maria approached his dias. There was quite the look on her face, with the pull of a smile ghosting over her mouth. She stopped before the raised platform and rested her hands on her hips.

"A favor," she declared.

"Oh boy, here we go…" Miguel rolled his eyes before speaking again. "What do you have in mind?"

Maria paused, wetting her dry lips as she contemplated her next words carefully. "I… need to know more about Nueva York and how things have changed since… my time. 2029."

Miguel paused. This… wasn't what he was expecting. "Oh?"

"Aaron Parker gave me a pop quiz that I didn't study for. I need to be better prepared for what lies ahead. If I'm going to kick ass in other dimensions, I need to know how this Watch works." She motioned to the device on her wrist.

"So what are you asking me, exactly?" He crossed his arms over his massive chest.

"I want you to show me around the city and explain things to me. Lyla's been giving me videos and information but it's not the same."

Lyla winked at Maria behind her heart-shaped sunglasses. "She's got a point, Boss. Besides, you could do with some fresh air every now and then."

Miguel scoffed and looked at Lyla. "Fresh air? In this city?" He rolled his eyes and looked back down at Maria, lips pulled tight in thought. "But… you have a point. Fine, we'll start patrolling Nueva York as a duo. Just follow my lead. We can head out tomorrow," he declared before turning back to his monitors. He tried desperately to ignore Maria's wide grin.

"Yes! Amazing! Let's get something good to eat too - I'm tired of the cafeteria food. Any suggestions?" Maria shifted her weight to one hip, still grinning.

"We're going on patrol, not a date. Dismissed," he said as he waved a hand at her, still staring at his screens. Maria's footsteps faded into the distance, sounding a bit quicker and bouncer than usual.

STABILIZATION COMPLETE.

A/N: ITS DONE! Whew, I honestly never thought I would finish this lmao. Works been a lot but I’m so hyped to have this part for you guys! Enjoy! 💙💙💙

#miguel o'hara #miguel spiderman #atsv #spiderverse oc #oc x canon #miguel o'hara [🕷🌹🩸 emo vampire spider]#Ash Writes [⌨️👽📖 Read it and Weep!]#Maria Philips [🕷💙👟 Rhythm of Love]#across the spiderverse #spiderman #spider man 2099

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