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comiicii · 1 year ago

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Hummingbird

Backdrop: You and Miles have been best friends since you were babies. Doesn't mean that the friendship never faced some hardships. Pairing: e1610!Miles Morales x fem!spider!reader | e!1610 peter parker x platonic!reader Warnings: None, probably some grammatical errors. A's notes: This is going to be a series that spans both Spider-verse movies. This first chapter is mainly word vomit, laying the foundation for the next chapter. Reader is a spider-person in the story and her powers/suit are that of Aña Corazon. Word count: 2k

You and Miles hadn’t always been joined at the hip. You two had grown up together on the same block which meant your families were close. You both also attended Brooklyn Visions Academy. There was a rough patch you two went through before attending the school. It lasted about two years. Two years of hang outs cut short, excuses and apologies (from you). Thinking back on it, those two years were the absolute worst.

The reason those two years were a rough patch in your friendship with Miles was because you got bit by a radioactive spider and became your universe’s Spider-Girl. Your actual spider name was Araña but the news didn’t care - you were a menace to some like J. Jonah Jameson and Spider Girl sorta stuck.

You were 12 when that happened. There was already a Spider Man, Peter Parker but he gladly took you under his wing. He didn’t mind showing you the ropes. Your powers slightly varied from his. Besides the usual super strength, heightened senses, and all the general arachnid powers, you got the extra boost of organic webbing and camouflage (which you would later teach Miles how to control). Peter did his best to help you. You had grown fond of the mentor that you would later think of as an extension of your family. Peter had started out incredibly protective of you (newsflash, he never stopped being protective). You were 12 for crying out loud! He wasn’t going to throw you into the dangerous streets of New York to figure it all out. He saw how scared you were of your new found powers and what it meant for your future. He made it clear to you from the beginning that your life was never going to be normal or easy moving forward. He didn’t want to lie to you because while being a superhero looked like a lot of fun, it wasn’t always the case. Sacrifices would have to be made in your life for the sake of your anonymity and your loved ones’ safety.

After you got the hang of your basic spider powers (aka about two months), Peter started taking you on patrol with him. He barely let you be near a criminal. After months of patrolling and begging Peter to give you a chance, he let you have an ‘easy’ criminal. You had spent those months prior working out your suit. It differed from Peters iconic style which you admired but you wanted to stand out as your own. You had gone with a different color scheme; opting for black and white to keep it simple. Your insignia was white and was the statement of your suit, looking as if a big white spider was hugging your body. Your mask was something else that vastly differed from Peter’s. Normally, the point of a mask was to make sure your whole face was covered. Never being the type to go the conventional route, your mask covered your eyes, the top and side portions of your face. Besides, your e/c eyes were your most defining feature. Your mask went up to your hairline where it stopped so your hair was flowing in a pony of sorts. Your nose, mouth and ears visible. You had prototypes in which you did have a traditional mask like Peter’s but it was way too constricting and truthfully, you felt claustrophobic in the damn thing. Plus, you had added a heads up display into the mask so as to take calls from your family as well as being able to see in different spectrums of light. You were always tweaking the tech in your mask to add some new feature if you felt it made your superhero life slightly easier.

While Peter knew you could hold your own, he still kept a tight leash on you. While he told you life was going to be hard moving forward, he still wanted you to live your life. He didn’t want you to feel the weight of the world on your shoulders as you were still a kid. As he put it, he wanted you to savor the moments while you still had the opportunity to do so. To experience the things that define your childhood and build relationships that would balance out the hectic and soon to be somber life that came with being a Spider. You had confided in Peter about your friend, Miles. A friend you had drifted from since gaining your powers. Peter had told you that your loved ones would essentially need to be kept at arm’s length because they could possibly be used as leverage by enemies. The thought of your family or friends being caught up in all of it scared you and so you started distancing yourself from them. Your family didn’t get suspicious as they chalked it up to puberty hitting you hard. Peter could see first hand how much it hurt you to lie about such a big part of yourself to Miles, though. He knew your friendship would hit a bump as you tried to balance your hero and normal life.

Miles was different. You had loved the boy deeply. It wasn’t romantic. It was genuine, unconditional love between the two of you. Having grown up together made it easy to say ‘I love you’ and the bond the two of you shared over music and art was deeper than anything you had shared with anyone else. It hurt you when he had that concerned look on his face when he noticed a shift in your demeanor towards him. He was the first person to notice that you weren’t being yourself. That you were lost in something - he just couldn’t know what that was. You had tried to gradually distance yourself from him but it was hard. You two would still hang out but since you committed to your superhero life, you helped the city when you could - even if it meant sacrificing some precious moments with him. You were late to most of your hangouts. You were constantly coming up with half ass excuses and apologizing to him as to why you were late. You hated the look he got on his face every time you showed up late or blurted out an excuse. It hurt him and it didn’t make sense to Miles. He didn’t want to think you were outgrowing him as a friend.

“I’m sorry Miles. Got caught up with…homework.” You winced as you met his eyes.

He knew you were lying. He knew very well that the words coming out of your mouth were absolute bullshit. Your wincing was also cause you got into it with the bad guy of the week and didn’t necessarily walk away scotch free (which Peter scolded you about like the big brother he was).

“It’s alright. I know your family is just as hard on you about school like mine”

He always understood. That was the problem. He didn’t want to lose you so he accepted that whatever was going on with you, it didn’t involve him. He came to terms that maybe whatever you were going through, you wanted to do on your own. He knew you were stubborn like that. He just hoped that you would find your way back to him. His mom had told him that it happens in friendships. Some dissipate while others come back to you after straying for a moment.

As your friendship with Miles suffered the first year of getting your powers, you got the hang of your powers and helped out Peter whenever you could. You started small and as time passed, you showed Peter how valuable you were as a partner in this world. Sure, you had your fair share of mistakes, you were still a kid after all, but you learned from them and always got back up. That’s something you quickly picked up on about being a Spider - you always got back up.

Peter would always let you know if he could handle things on his own or if he was chasing down a lead that left you alone to patrol for a short period of time. Again, he tried to give you time off so you could be a kid. He didn’t mind the company but it was hard for him to see someone so young be thrown into his world. You appreciated the sweet moments you shared with Peter and always smiled when he sent you a text saying to enjoy your Friday night with friends and family because it was a quiet night in Brooklyn.

“Hey Pete?” you broke the comfortable silence you were sharing atop a deli the pair of you frequented on relatively quiet nights of patrolling. He had grabbed a sandwich for the two of you to split.

“Hm?” He hummed as took a bite of his sandwich.

“Thank you,”

“What for, arañita?” his Spanish wasn’t perfect but you loved that he tried and used the spider name you gave yourself.

“For y’know…taking me under your wing” you started, looking to your mentor with genuine love and admiration. “I know it wasn’t easy having to take me on” you chuckled as you bumped your relatively small knee with his bigger one.

“Hey now, where’s this coming from?” He softly knocked your knee in return as he faced you, worried that you were going through something.

“Nowhere! Can’t your awesome spider-pupil tell you she appreciates you without there being an ulterior motive?” you laughed as you took a bite of your sandwich.

At that, he had a smug grin which earned him a slightly harder bump from your knee to his.

“I don’t know…you usually butter me up before asking for something.”

“Well, this isn’t one of those times.” you laugh once more as you look out to the bustling skyline of New York and continue eating your sandwich with pure bliss.

Those were the moments you savored with Peter.

As the months rolled into a year, you oh so slowly began to almost successfully balance your hero and normal life. Your grades had slipped slightly when you got bit but they were on the up and up. Your friendship with Miles was very clearly hanging by a thread. Miles didn’t reach out to you as much and there were more moments of awkward silence between the two of you than you would’ve liked. It wasn’t normal for the two of you to not talk about something. You wanted to let him into your world. So badly. You knew that he would be happy for you and support you like the amazing friend he was. He wouldn’t tell you to quit, he’d tell you to keep going and keep fighting. He probably would help you with upgrading your suit. You hated that you couldn’t share that part of your life with him. It would put him at risk of being used against you. You didn’t want him to be used as some pawn in a villain’s eyes to get to you. Peter could see the toll the secrecy was having on you and tried his best to keep your mind off it if conversations trailed to that territory. It wasn’t like you hadn’t breached the subject of the new ‘Spider-Girl’ to him, though. You brought it up once to gauge his reaction to the whole idea.

“What do you make of the new Spider-Girl swinging around with Spider-man?” You mindlessly asked while scrolling through your phone as a distraction from the studying you and Miles were supposed to be doing.

“Mm, thought she went by Araña?…but not bad, I guess?” he answered, his eyes not leaving his notebook that had his class notes, waiting for his brain to actually absorb the information on the page.

A flutter of your heart. He knows your actual spider name!

“Her suit looks pretty cool..” you nonchalantly commented, your eyes quickly looking to him for a reaction.

“Does look cool with the black and white,” he smiled, his pencil now aimlessly doodling on the margins of his notes. “I think Spider-man’s training her ‘cause maybe he’s getting old…probably wants to hand the reigns to someone younger.” he continued.

“Think she’ll be good at it?”

“Oh yeah.”

#miles morales x reader #miles morales imagine #e!1610 miles x reader #spiderman across the spiderverse imagine #across the spiderverse imagine #atsv imagines #marvel imagine #marvel imagines

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rose24207 · 7 days ago

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Web of feelings

Summary: When Spider-Girl is dosed with a love potion and falls for her enemy, the Prowler, he must fight to undo the chaos while questioning if this fake love could ever become real.

Genre: fluff, humor, angst if you squint

TW: under the influence of a love potion, fighting

A/N: tell me how you feel about these types of stories! English is not my first language. I hope you enjoy it though! Requests are open and welcome!

Masterlist

Brooklyn was never quiet—not for Spider-Girl, and definitely not for the Prowler. You’d been chasing rumors of a villain called Alchemy, some mad scientist type who’d been dosing unsuspecting people with potions to wreak emotional havoc. It sounded like a bizarre nightmare.

You weren’t exactly thrilled when the trail led you to a dimly lit warehouse on the edge of town, but that wasn’t the worst part.

No, the worst part was the claws that nearly took your head off the moment you landed.

“Seriously?” you hissed, flipping out of range and landing on a rafter. “Do you have a tracker on me or something?”

Below, the Prowler straightened up, claws retracting momentarily. His purple mask glinted under the flickering light. “Not everything’s about you, Spider,” he drawled, though his distorted voice made it sound more menacing than smug.

“You sure about that?” you quipped. “Because the last five times I’ve been out here playing hero, you’ve been right behind me like some creep.”

“Maybe you’re just predictable.”

“Maybe you’re just annoying.”

The banter was cut short when the floor rattled beneath you. You both froze, attention snapping to the back of the warehouse where shelves of vials shimmered in faint light.

You and the Prowler moved at the same time, rushing toward the shelves. You weren’t sure what Alchemy had cooked up, but you didn’t want him getting away with any of it.

“Stay out of my way!” you snapped, shooting a web toward the vials.

“Not happening,” he retorted, slashing through the web with his claws.

“Oh, come on!”

You lunged at him, but he dodged with ease, spinning to swipe at you. The two of you moved in a deadly dance, dodging and countering with practiced precision. It might’ve been impressive if it wasn’t so frustrating.

“Do you ever get tired of being a pain in my—”

Your words were cut off as your foot slipped on something slick. You barely had time to process the shattered vial beneath you before a cloud of pink mist enveloped your face.

“Great,” you muttered, coughing as the world spun around you. “What now?”

When your vision cleared, the first thing you saw was the Prowler standing above you, claws raised.

But instead of feeling your usual surge of annoyance, something else hit you—something stronger, warmer, and completely inexplicable.

“Wow,” you breathed.

The Prowler hesitated. “What?”

“You’re... gorgeous.”

He froze, his claws lowering slightly. “What did you just say?”

“I mean it.” You pushed yourself up, brushing rubble off your suit. “Why didn’t I notice it before? The way you move, the way you fight—ugh, it’s like poetry in motion.”

He took a step back, his claws retracting completely. “Okay, what the hell is wrong with you?”

“Nothing’s wrong,” you said dreamily, tilting your head. “You’re just... amazing.”

“This has to be a joke,” he muttered, pacing away from you.

“It’s not a joke,” you insisted, following him. “Why do we have to fight? We could be partners—no, more than that. We could be everything.”

The Prowler spun around, holding up a hand to stop you. “Nope. Nope. Nope. This is not happening.”

“But it is happening,” you said, stepping closer.

“Stay back,” he warned, pointing at you.

“Or what?” You grinned, your voice dropping into a teasing tone. “You’ll sweep me off my feet?”

Before he could answer, a laugh echoed through the warehouse.

“Oh, this is better than I imagined,” Alchemy said, stepping out from the shadows.

Miles turned toward him with a growl. “You. Fix this. Now.”

“Fix it?” Alchemy asked, feigning offense. “Why would I ruin such a masterpiece? Spider-Girl and the Prowler—Brooklyn’s newest power couple!”

“You’ve got ten seconds to give me an antidote,” the Prowler snarled, claws extending with a metallic click.

Alchemy smirked. “Or what?”

Before Miles could lunge, you stepped between them, pointing a finger at Alchemy.

“Not my man,” you declared, your voice dripping with defiance.

Miles flinched. “What did you just—”

“Not my man,” you repeated, stepping closer to Alchemy. “Nobody messes with him except me, got it?”

Alchemy looked at you, then at Miles, then back at you. “Oh, this is delightful.”

“I’m serious!” you snapped, shooting a web at Alchemy’s arm and yanking him forward. “I’ll fight you myself if I have to.”

“Please stop talking,” Miles groaned, dragging a hand down his face.

Alchemy tossed a vial at the ground, releasing a cloud of purple smoke that filled the air. You coughed, your senses momentarily dulled, but Miles didn’t hesitate.

“Stay here,” he ordered, claws slicing through the haze as he charged after Alchemy.

“But—”

“I said stay!”

You frowned but obeyed, your heart pounding as you watched him fight. Even in the chaos, you couldn’t help but admire him.

“Look at him,” you murmured to yourself, a dreamy smile creeping onto your face. “What a man.”

By the time the smoke cleared, Alchemy was unconscious, pinned to the ground by one of Miles’ clawed gauntlets. He stood over him, breathing heavily, a vial of green liquid clutched in his other hand.

You rushed to his side, your eyes wide with concern. “Are you okay? Did he hurt you?”

Miles flinched at your touch, holding up the vial between you. “This is the antidote.”

“Antidote?”

“For whatever he dosed you with,” he muttered. “You’re not thinking straight.”

“I think I’m thinking clearer than ever,” you said with a soft smile.

Miles stared at you, his chest tightening. For a moment, he hesitated. If he gave you the antidote, you’d go back to normal. You’d hate him again.

But if he didn’t...

“I’m sorry,” he said quietly, and before you could protest, he pressed the vial to your lips.

When you woke up, the Prowler was gone. Alchemy was unconscious, groaning softly as he regained consciousness.

You didn’t remember much, but something about the night lingered in your mind—something you couldn’t quite place.

The next day, you were surprised to find Miles Morales waiting for you at your locker.

“What do you want?” you asked, narrowing your eyes.

He shrugged, his usual smirk noticeably absent. “Just checking in. You seemed... off yesterday.”

“How would you know that?”

“No reason,” he said quickly. “Just... take care of yourself, okay?”

Before you could respond, he turned and walked away, leaving you confused.

Miles sat in the back of the classroom, watching you from a distance. You were back to your usual self—sharp-tongued, quick-witted, and completely unaware of what had happened.

But he couldn’t stop thinking about the way you’d stood up for him, the way you’d called him your man.

It wasn’t real. Not yet.

But maybe, someday, it could be.

For now, he’d settle for being a little kinder, a little softer. After all, the line between love and hate had never been blurrier.

Thanks you for reading!

#milesmoralsxreader #miles 42 #42 miles morales #miles x reader #miles molares #spider man: across the spider verse #prowler #spiderman #love potion #potions #villain #enemies to lovers

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itsmebytch001 · 1 year ago

Note

Aaron being single and all gets the attention of a few ladies around the area. They know he has a daughter. They all be like ‘I’ll be her mommy for him’.

When said women start dating Aaron they barely last a week because y/n scares them away.

Aaron notices and is kinda proud of his daughter being overprotective of him.

She would do pranks like flour in hair dryer, ballon dropped on head full of glue and glitter, laxative in food.

She would act all good girl in front of her dad but when he turns his back it’s game over.

(I Love this one!)

Aaron was lonely, He a man pushing 45 was single with his daughter as his main company, and though he loved you pices the company of a 10 year old can only be tolerated so long, and it wasn't like he wasn't attracting women it was just they never stayed more than a week, and after Diana he simply wasn't willing to put himself through all that again.

Women thought highly of him for being a competent single Dad and thought that you needed a Mommy, and sure you wanted a Mommy, but you could feel that these women didn't really care about you, you were just a stepping stone to Aaron. And you weren't having it.

The first was Linda who was warded off by your posioning of the food with laxitives, sure she could never prove it, but it was you.

The second was Mira scared off by a can of hair spray and a lighter.

The third was Tiff who was a germaphobe, so you being the normal child you were found a dead rat, came home to find her sitting on the couch, and threw it at her.

Of course Aaron didn't know about these events, if he had he would chastise you, but from his perspective he simply could not keep a woman.

Aaron: "I don't know what wrong? Am I just past my prime?"

Jeff: "I mean yeah, your 45"

Aaron: "I know I know, but It's like I got some lady I see once of twice and once I bring her home, she's gone"

Jeff: "You think it's the house?"

Aaron: "What is wrong with my house?!"

Jeff: "I don't know, it might spook her off"

Aaron: "There is nothing wrong with my home, and besides what would you know, you haven't been in the game for 10 years now you got Rio"

Jeff: "Yeah...I am lucky aren't I"

Aaron: "Ay! Keep your mind on one thing!"

Jeff: "Do you think...maybe it's Y/n?"

Aaron: "What do you mean?"

Jeff: "Sometimes when you aren't around she starts acting a menace"

Aaron: "Ha, your lying"

Jeff: "No man seriously, Miles says she's running a gum black market at school, dealing it out her piece for pocket change"

Aaron: "Come on man that's harmless"

Jeff: "MULTIPLE times I've had teachers come up and tell me how Y/n's been caught stealing from the school"

Aaron: "Oh really? And what she stealing?"

Jeff: "Paint, markers, a stapler, a chair"

Aaron: "If any of this is true, why haven't been told?"

Jeff: "Because all the teachers are to busy fawning over you! I'm telling you man Y/n is a little devil"

Aaron: "I think you and I are talkin bout different people" He rolls his eyes, but later in the day he can't stop thinking about what Jeff said, were you a different person when he was gone?

So he started watching you a little more, some would call it stalking, but is it really stalking if it's your own daughter? So he found himself observing you from across the road of Brooklyn Middle, and just as Jeff said, handing out bits on gum, and being handed change, but that was just small, kids stuff right? And he was proud that you were only ten and already a hustler, but were you also a thief?

That Friday Once school ended and he was waiting for you outside the gate having you rush over to him come home time noticed you were struggling to carry along your bag.

Aaron: "You want to me to carry that for you?"

Y/n: "No, It's fine"

Aaron: "You sure? it looks heavy"

Y/n: "Really Pa I'm good"

Suspicious

Later that night Aaron found himself sifting through your bag, only at the bottom to find a selcection of books, that weren't yours? He took out the books and placed them on the dinner table and waited for Saturday morning to confront you, and come Saturday morning you emerged from your room with tired little eyes to see your school bag had been emptied onto the table, and your stolen books had been found.

Aaron: "explain yourself"

Y/n: "Uhhhhh....Those are Floras...she asked me to hold them for her"

Damm she's a bad lair.

Aaron: "Y/n, This" He held up a thick textbook. "Is a Arabic language revision book"

Y/n: "Yeah?"

Aaron: "Flora dose not speak Arabic, if your going to lie to me least have it be consistent"

Y/n: "You don't Know she might" Your Dad raised an eyebrow at you, where you really going to try spin this?

Aaron: "get back in your room"

Y/n: "What?"

Aaron: "get back to your room, now, you can come out when your ready to tell me the truth"

Y/n: "Bu-"

Aaron: "Back! Now"

Y/n: "Fine! Whatever"

Aaron: "Don't whatever me young lady!"

It had been two hours now and still neither of you were budging, your Dad would pop in your room and ask 'You ready to talk?' To wtich he had met radio silence from you and a blank stare.

And he thought to maybe call some of his old flings, as them how they were, catch up.

Calling Mira...

ring

Mira: "What do you want?"

Aaron: "Hii Mira...I know it's been awhile since we last tak-"

Mira: "What do you want Aaron?"

Aaron: "I was just wondering if you'd like to come round and have dinner, we could catch up"

Mira: "You still got that daughter of yours?"

Aaron: "uh Yes?"

Mira: "I am not gonna put my self round that psychotic little girl of yours-"

Aaron: "Excuse me?"

Mira: "Good bye Aaron, Don't be calling me again til you get rid of that thing!"

Aaron: "The Fuc-"

Call ended

Calling Tiff

ring

Tiff: "You got alot of nerve calling me Aaron"

Aaron: "you just picked up and you already mad?"

Tiff: "What do you want?""

Aaron: "Damm, you are you so mad?"

Tiff: "Your child threw a dead animal at me"

Aaron: "Sorry, what?"

Tiff: "Did I stutter?"

Call ended

Aaron didn't need to call Linda to see a pattern forming, you were a diffrent person when he turned his back...but what now? He knew you were stealing things you simply didn't need, and throwing dead animals at people and scaring off all the women, he re entered your room.

Aaron: "Y/n"

Y/n: "Yes?"

Aaron: "You gonna tell me why I just got off the phone with Tiff, and she told me you threw a dead animal at her?"

...

Aaron: "Well did you?"

Y/n: "...No"

Aaron: "Don't lie to me girl I leave you at Auntie Rio's house and we both know how that gose If I tell her what you've been doing"

Y/n: "...maybe "

Aaron: "WHY?!"

Y/n: "Because...just because?"

Aaron: "Just because? Your gonna have to come up with a better answer than that before I start meting dolls"

Y/n: "Melt them...Mom will just buy me more"

Aaron: "Well Maybe You'd just like to live with Diana wouldn't you?"

Y/n: "Maybe I would"

Aaron: "Really? Really you wanna go stay with your Mom?"

Y/n: "Maybe I DO!"

Aaron: "Fine, start packing a bag because you ain't living here no more"

Y/n: "FINE"

Aaron: "FINE!" He slammed the door, realising he, a grown man pushing 40 had just stepped down to the level of his 10 year old, he heard rummaging coming from your room only for you to burst out the door with a suitcase ready to leave.

Y/n: "I'm ready, when do we leave?"

...

Aaron: "I-Baby I was kidding-"

Y/n: "Well I wasn't, I wanna stay with Mom"

Aaron: "...Well I'm not gonna shofer you there"

Y/n: "Fine, I'll go there myself" You declared as you went to make your dramatic exit, Aaron thought you were just pulling a stunt, you would drop the bag and aplogise, until he saw you turn the knob and begin to step out.

Aaron: "NOPE" He grabbed you by the back of your shirt and hoisted you up into the air and you flinged yourself around trying to get free.

Y/n: "PUT ME DOWN!!"

Aaron: "I did not fight for majority custody just for you to throw it back in my face!" He yelled as he plopped you back into your room shutting the door on you and keeping your packed bag, holding the door closed as you hit it with your tiny 10 year old fists.

Y/n: "LET ME OUT LET ME OUT LET ME OUT!"

Aaron: "You keep yellin your just staying in there longer!"

GIVE ME MORE SUGGESTIONS!!!

#yandere spiderverse #aaron davis x reader #uncle aaron #yandere morales family #dad aaron davis #platonic yandere #yandere miles morales #aaron davis #rio morales x reader #jeff morales #jefferson davis

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braidedgraphite · 4 months ago

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John Updike's 9/11 report:

Suddenly summoned to witness something great and horrendous, we keep fighting not to reduce it to our own smallness. From the viewpoint of a tenth-floor apartment in Brooklyn Heights, where I happened to be visiting some kin, the destruction of the World Trade Center twin towers had the false intimacy of television, on a day of perfect reception. A four-year-old girl and her babysitter called from the library, and pointed out through the window the smoking top of the north tower, not a mile away. It seemed, at that first glance, more curious than horrendous: smoke speckled with bits of paper curled into the cloudless sky, and strange inky rivulets ran down the giant structure’s vertically corrugated surface. The W.T.C. had formed a pale background to our Brooklyn view of lower Manhattan, not beloved, like the stony, spired midtown thirties skyscrapers it had displaced as the city’s tallest, but, with its pre-postmodern combination of unignorable immensity and architectural reticence, in some lights beautiful. As we watched the second tower burst into ballooning flame (an intervening building had hidden the approach of the second airplane), there persisted the notion that, as on television, this was not quite real; it could be fixed; the technocracy the towers symbolized would find a way to put out the fire and reverse the damage.

And then, within an hour, as my wife and I watched from the Brooklyn building’s roof, the south tower dropped from the screen of our viewing; it fell straight down like an elevator, with a tinkling shiver and a groan of concussion distinct across the mile of air. We knew we had just witnessed thousands of deaths; we clung to each other as if we ourselves were falling. Amid the glittering impassivity of the many buildings across the East River, an empty spot had appeared, as if by electronic command, beneath the sky that, but for the sulfurous cloud streaming south toward the ocean, was pure blue, rendered uncannily pristine by the absence of jet trails. A swiftly expanding burst of smoke and dust hid the rest of lower Manhattan; we saw the collapse of the second tower only on television, where the footage of hellbent airplane, exploding jet fuel, and imploding tower was played and replayed, much rehearsed moments from a nightmare ballet.

The nightmare is still on. The bodies are beneath the rubble, the last-minute cell-phone calls—remarkably calm and loving, many of them—are still being reported, the sound of an airplane overhead still bears an unfamiliar menace, the thought of boarding an airplane with our old blasé blitheness keeps receding into the past. Determined men who have transposed their own lives to a martyr’s afterlife can still inflict an amount of destruction that defies belief. War is conducted with a fury that requires abstraction—that turns a planeful of peaceful passengers, children included, into a missile the faceless enemy deserves. The other side has the abstractions; we have only the mundane duties of survivors—to pick up the pieces, to bury the dead, to take more precautions, to go on living.

American freedom of motion, one of our prides, has taken a hit. Can we afford the openness that lets future kamikaze pilots, say, enroll in Florida flying schools? A Florida neighbor of one of the suspects remembers him saying he didn’t like the United States: “He said it was too lax. He said, ‘I can go anywhere I want to, and they can’t stop me.’ ” It is a weird complaint, a begging perhaps to be stopped. Weird, too, the silence of the heavens these days, as flying has ceased across America. But fly again we must; risk is a price of freedom, and walking around Brooklyn Heights that afternoon, as ash drifted in the air and cars were few and open-air lunches continued as usual on Montague Street, renewed the impression that, with all its failings, this is a country worth fighting for. Freedom, reflected in the street’s diversity and daily ease, felt palpable. It is mankind’s elixir, even if a few turn it to poison.

The next morning, I went back to the open vantage from which we had watched the tower so dreadfully slip from sight. The fresh sun shone on the eastward façades, a few boats tentatively moved in the river, the ruins were still sending out smoke, but New York looked glorious.

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xxoxobree · 1 year ago

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OC TINGZZ‼️

Bree The Nightweaver/Spider-Woman?

This is Bree Bishop from Earth - 1242

She’s your average 15 yr old genius, that got a scholarship to the prestigious Brooklyn Visions Academy

She was bitten by a genetically modified wolf spider and gained the proportionate strength, speed , stamina , durability and reflexes of a spider. She heals 3x faster and is more resistant to injury than your average human, can stick to walls , and can jump several stories high. Like the wolf spider she can release venom from the fibers on her finger tips that help her to stick to walls to paralyze enemies for a few hours.

Her spider sense is stronger than any other spider sense , much like Raven Baxter (she likes to say) her spider sense can basically allow her to see the future on occasion.

Let’s take a trip down memory lane to understand just how Bree became the Nightweaver:

Field trips! Who doesn’t love a day away from the boring old classroom? So, the students were all hyped up for their trip to Oscorp Industries. You could feel the excitement in the air as the bus screeched to a stop. And who was there to greet them? None other than Dr. Octavius, the head honcho of Oscorp. He took them on a tour of the place, babbling on about every little thing along the way.

Now, let me tell you about the spider exhibit. Poor Bree, had a major case of the heebie-jeebies when it came to those eight-legged critters. So naturally, this part of the trip was at the bottom of her excitement list. Little did the class know, one sneaky spider had managed to escape its cage.

As Dr. Octavius blabbered away, Bree tried to keep her cool by leaning against the wall and keeping her distance from those creepy crawlies. But guess what? That escaped spider saw the perfect opportunity and decided to take a stroll down Bree’s jacket and onto her hand. Without warning, it sunk its tiny fangs into her poor unsuspecting hand. Yikes! Startled, Bree smacked her hand completely oblivious to what just happened.

When she finally mustered up the courage to look at her hand, she nearly jumped out of her skin at the sight of the spider. Fear and panic overwhelmed her, and before she knew it, she fainted, totally overwhelmed by her unexpected encounter with the eight-legged menace.

So there Bree was, waking up from that incredibly embarrassing moment that almost turned the field trip into a total disaster. She had this brilliant idea to keep the real reason behind her fainting all to herself, even though her hand was throbbing with pain. Little did she know, getting bit was just the tip of the iceberg. Bree was about to go through some seriously weird changes.

Bree woke up feeling like a hot mess, with sweat dripping down her face and her vision playing tricks on her. Determined not to let this ridiculousness ruin her day, she mustered up all her strength and dragged her lazy self out of bed. As she reached for her homework, her hand started trembling like a leaf, and to make matters worse, the paper clung to her hand like it had a secret crush on her. Seriously, what the heck was going on? Baffled and annoyed, she shook her hand in disbelief, but that paper just stuck like glue.

After gathering herself, Bree left her dorm room, her senses seemed heightened, almost like she could feel everything around her. "Why am I so sweaty? What is going on?" she asked, confused and on edge, as she made her way down the hallway. Suddenly, she bumped into her boyfriend, Miles Morales.

Bree looked up at him, slightly flustered, and quickly apologized. Miles, with a concerned expression, reached out to brush her hair behind her ear. His touch revealed her dampened hair, coated with sweat. "Ew... Babe, why are you so sweaty?" he asked, instinctively wiping his hands on his pants.

Bree glanced up at Miles with a familiar look he knew all too well - she was about to cry. But before the tears could escape her eyes, they both turned their heads and squinted their eyes in response to a piercing buzz that resonated in their heads. Miles' eyes widened in shock.

Bree’s world came crashing down on her as Miles not only revealed his secret that he’s Spider-Man but she now has the same power and responsibility as him. But eventually she understood her responsibilities and now she’s the one and only Nightweaver.

Miles gave her one of his suits that he grew out of.

Bree and Miles have been dating for 2 years since freshman year, Miles was in love the minute she smiled at him for the first time.

Their favorite thing to do is share new music and sing together

Miles trained her how to fight but they have totally different fighting styles , Bree is smaller so she is faster but a little clumsy sometimes, she’s a Spider-Man so naturally she’s funny , even makes villains chuckle sometimes.

Her and Miles work together most of the time but they do go on solo missions.

Their relationship got stronger since Bree got bit.

Fighting sandman

They both have comics made about them 🥰

Before knowing what a cannon event was , the unthinkable happened to Bree and she lost her mom in a fight against vulture, she struggled with the lost of her mom and blamed herself for a long time , she decided that Nightweaver would be no more , with Miles to support her ,she took a year off.

She took a year off and gave you bitches some slack 😝 but she’s back and with a new look

She chose pink cause duhhh! But she chose to keep Miles’ design cause that’s her man and she gonna stick beside em’

#neteyamsmunch #breeandhermunches #breeandhermunchesfics #neteyamsmunch fics #miles morales x oc #my spidersona #spidersona #Bree Bishop #they look so good together #miles morales x reader #miles morales fic #ai art

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lucifersbimbobitch · 3 years ago

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That Red Dress

Pairing: Bucky x Reader

Summary: Right after 1941, Bucky was saved from the clutches of Hydra. You being his saviour, but he still didn’t know your name. One night at the bar, you join Steve and Bucky on a night out. Peggy walks in stealing the show and everyone’s heart with her dress, the infamous winter solider taking a peek. You wouldn’t let her steal the show especially your man.

Warnings: fluff some kissing

“Seriously Steve, what are you looking at?” Bucky rolled his eyes, his best friend, constantly looking throughout the bar for his lover. Eyes darting back and forth, faster then the speed of light.

“Her.” He mumbles, his hand twitching, anxiety spiking with each passing minute. Bucky rolled his eyes, annoyance flailing in his veins. Obviously, Steve basically worshipped the ground Peggy walked on, and he himself was still struggling with his feelings.

He still remembers, the faint sound of your voice, the sweetness coating every syllable. Completely knocked out on the gurney where Zola experimented on him, he didn’t remember anything. Only the words “it’s okay, your safe now.” A flash of a black suit similar to the black widows is all he can recognize. What was her name? Not even Steve knew.

“Bucky..where is she!” Steve groaned, throwing his arms on the howling commandos back, his heart sicknesses for Peggy staining the room.

“I don’t know Steve. Can you get off of me!” The brunette scowled, is words slipping off his tongue like venom.

“Geez, Buck. Whats gotten into you?” Steve glanced at Bucky his baby blues radiating with his. “Is everything okay?”

“Everything’s fine” Bucky blurted out, his tone more menacing then normal.

“Relax.” Steve ushered, patting Bucky’s shoulder, the tender touch causing the future super solider to calm down the anxiety seeping out of him.

“What was her name?” Bucky turned to Steve, muttering an usher, quiet enough the entire bar wouldn’t be able to hear.

“Who?” Steve mentioned, half listening. His eyes once again scanning the door for Peggy.

“The girl, who saved me..” Bucky’s words were interrupted, as gasps from the other men in the proximity filled his senses.

Wearing a tight red dress, hugging her every curve. Hair styled as if it took hours, and bright red lipstick shimmering on her mouth, that could be seen for miles. Peggy Carter makes an entrance that every men in the club falls for.

Little did they know, you were in the corner. Right behind the entrance of the bar, where you had the perfect glimpse of Peggy and your Bucky, gushing over her.

Bucky was starstruck, this women that just strode in was beautiful. This man that Steve called his own, walking in as if she owned the place but Bucky’s mind wondered elsewhere, to you. But, you were no where in sight.

“Care to grab a drink?” A deep British accent filled his ears. The drop of every word engulfed by the accent.

You stood from afar, anger pouring through your veins. Your cheeks flushed red, as you knew Peggy Carter was the most beautiful women in Brooklyn. Little did she know, that was your man, and you weren’t going to let her snatch him away.

“Hm, I think Steve would rather prefer that.” Bucky said with a smug, his hand underneath his chin, supporting his head.

“What a shame.” Peggy started but didn’t get a chance to finish her sentence, as everybody gasped even louder then they did only minutes go.

You walked in. In a sweetheart neckline with a open sleeve at the bottom exposing your bare leg. Jewels dotted your fingers, neck, and ears. Makeup plastered so accurately it was impossible to displace a flaw. All the men in the bar, coming up to you, but your only mission was James Buchanan Barnes.

Bucky stood there, his mouth hanging wide open. It was you, the women who saved his life. The women who stole his heart, and every step you took it only seemed to beat faster.

You strode over to him, your eyes filled with fury, as he stood over you. Much taller then you, muscles bulging from his howling commandos uniform. Baby blues piercing your soul.

You glanced at Peggy, your eyes glaring into hers, signalling her that Barnes was taken, and only by you.

She seemed to take a swallow, fear growing in her stance as she took a sip of wine, to cover it.

You grabbed Barnes by his collar, looked at his piercing blues before pressing your lips to his.

He was shocked, not responding, the love of his life now in his arms, claiming him in one stroke.

You were flushed, the infamous Sargent Barnes was never under anyone’s control now he was under yours.

Suddenly you pulled away, lust and love cowering his gaze. Only thing in his view was you.

“What’s your name doll?” Bucky muttered starstruck.

“Y/N” with that you strode away you dress flaunting behind you, Bucky scrambling behind you not to far away.

#fanfic #imagines #fluff #bucky barnes smut #bucky x reader #mcu smut #mcu phase 4 #writing #bucky fluff #marvel imagine #reading #marvel smut #winter solider #winter solider x y/n #captain america #fiction #40s bucky

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avatarvyakara · 3 years ago

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Strands of Webbing

A Spiderverse Fanfic

Prompts 253-264

“Not Sidekicks”

First | Previous | Next

253. Mentor

The Original Six—the Spider Gang—the Cluster—the Veterans—they have many names. But what they also are, is a rallying symbol. In a cosmos where the Friendly Neighbourhood Spider is so often alone, they're the ones who get it.

Most of the time, they're also the first to find someone new. Someone like them.

And there's always room to learn something new.

254. Nephew

"This is Charles!" says Ham, proudly showing off the tiny spider in his hand. "My great-niece Nelly's kid, she left him to me in her will."

Miles and the other Spiders exchange glances.

"Um…"

SP//dr's face produces an "it's-so-cute!" emoticon, and the robot waves gently.

Charles extends one leg and wiggles it up and down.

"Well done, Charles! The nice lady's name is Takara. Can you say 'Takara'?"

Apparent silence.

"That's neither here nor there, kid."

"What was that?" asks Peter, who quite frankly looks exhausted already.

"It's a spider thing. Now, you guys got any mashed bedbugs?"

"Not in this house, we don't," says Aunt May sternly.

But Ham isn't paying attention. He's turned back to his nephew and is tickling under his thorax. "You're gonna be the best superhero ever! Yes you are! All we need to do is find someone to bite you…"

SP//dr raises its hand.

“Nah, nah, it’s gotta be something different. Something unique...”

?_?

“Not that you’re not unique!”

255. Simian

The first and only time Peter tries to make money in a wrestling match, it's a terrible mistake. The man's gotta be pushing sixty and he's literally got a god on his side, how is he losing?

"Come on, you little masked menace!" calls Crusher Hogan from below. "You gonna get your hands dirty, or are you just gonna sit on that pole jumping around instead of fighting like a man?"

Figures he'd have to go for a "shooter", which apparently means "someone who doesn't fake matches and therefore knows exactly how to hit where it hurts". And here he thought it meant he could use his guns...

Odd, though. He's glowing. His costume is literally glowing Red.

(The Spider-God wouldn't give him the Red unless there was a good reason.)

"Why don't you come up and fight like a spider?" he asks, letting the colour sink into his words.

The old Black man stares up at him for a moment—

And grins.

Uh oh.

"Nah," says Crusher. "How about I fight like a monkey instead?"

The light around the ring turns Blue.

"Oh, son of a—"

POW.

The man just jumped eight feet like it was nothing, grabbed him, and tugged him down into a chokehold.

"Language, son," he says, mildly reproachful. "There are impressionable youths in this place."

Peter loses as gracefully as he can, to the sound of cheering from the (quite young) crowd.

That night, the Spider-Man stops by the arena to see the Monkey King.

“What’s that colour you got around you, son?” asks the surprisingly hirsute hero—more than he was before, anyway. He’s using a long, featureless iron pole as a walking stick. (Definitely for show.)

“It’s red.”

“I wondered. Never seen red before. Mine is blue.”

“I know.”

The Monkey King grins. “That sounds like a tale, young’un. You got time to swap?”

“Maybe. If you can tell me what you’re supposed to be doing with that power.”

“Hah! Nothing too special. Have fun. Keep my family safe. Take what I want from the Man. Help people out on quests. That kinda junk. Wrestling helps pass the time and keeps the neighbourhood kids out of trouble.”

“How often do you get quests?”

“You would be amazed. You good with tea?”

“Much obliged, Mr. Hogan.”

“Call me Crusher. Or Sun, if you want. That’s his name, but he don’t mind my using it. That or The King.”

Now Peter grins. “Guess you’d better shut my mouth and call me Anansi Boy.”

The King of Brooklyn roars with laughter.

256. Uneasy

As far as Mary-Jane Watson is concerned, Carnage is a Symbiote, a remnant of her best friend Steff “Stay” See (who was once the Red Spider and didn’t tell her until it was too late) and the source of Mary-Jane’s powers. It's a way to feel closer to her lost companion, and an ally in protecting her version of New York.

As far as Carnage is concerned, Mary-Jane is a legacy, a comrade mourning their lost friend. And for a while the resentment and guilt battled each other, and so Carnage and Mary-Jane had to make a decision as to which they would follow. But one thing is for certain: whatever darkness lies within Mary-Jane, it is far more manageable than Knull was.

Both of them assume they’re in control. Both of them are right.

(Both of them also agree that, whether Flash Thompson or Venom is in control, the individual on the whole is a bit of a prat.)

257. Duality

Most of the stuff Hida knows about, Peni has as much connection with as Billy has with Peredur’s time, and vice versa. (“No, it’s not magic, you daft brush, it’s not even a particularly good record, the Beatles really went downhill since they brought in Ringo Starr—”) So there’s a cultural impasse. Noir, on the other hand, while much closer in terms of tech level and linked to a spider-spirit directly like Hida is, knows basically no Japanese at all, and what little he knows is from Peni’s time. So there’s a linguistic impasse.

They work on it, together. They both seem quite happy to. Peni learns more about her mother’s ancestral culture, Noir learns his friend’s native language to the degree he can actually manage simple conversations.

And Hida gets better at web-slinging, and her English is pretty good after a year of learning, and they get a chance to work on water combat so she can move better in her home environment. (Well. Swim in a lake uptown. But still, water combat.)

“So...is it like adoption? Did Peni and Noir agree to joint custody of Peni’s mom or something?” asks Miles from the side of a building in Peter B.’s world, to some very weird looks. “What?”

“Think about that sentence for a moment,” says Peter.

“...oh. Oh, urgh, dude, no. Not like that!”

Gwen snickers.

“But I get what you mean,” says Peter. They’re like a brother-sister team-up.”

“Taking care of Peni’s mom. Who is also a demon spider in human form.”

“That would explain so much...” muses Miguel, only for Peter to elbow him.

"Behave. That's my baby sister you're talking about there, O'Hara."

"You don't even have the same parents, Parker."

"Regardless."

258. Combo

Ava Ayala, the White Tiger, huffs in annoyance.

“Really, Spidey? One of you wasn’t enough?”

“You’re welcome,” says Spider-Glitch drily, pulling off the door of the hanging cage. “Think you can get down while the others handle the VENOM agents?”

White Tiger squints. “Isn’t one of them a VENOM too?”

“A Carnage, actually. Don’t worry, she’s cool.”

“I’ll bet.”

Something’s a little odd about the fight down below. The five other Spider-...people?...well, they’re fighting, but whenever they land a hit green numbers appear in the air.

“Bet you can’t beat that, Peni!” crows the little black-and-red spider, after a couple of shots knock three VENOM agents unconscious and reverting back to their original forms.

“You’re on, Morales!” says the red-and-blue giant robot.

Spider-Glitch grins at Ava’s expression. “I think they took to the Matrix pretty well, all things considered.”

“They’re treating it like...a video game?”

“I know, right? I can’t believe Fury never thought of that!”

259. Elastic

“Uhhhh...hey!”

Spider-Man stares.

"Oh. Yeah. Forgot about that." The…rather strange girl (she can't be more than thirteen) shrinks her fist down from colossal size to something approaching normality. "So! …what's up?"

"¿Debería volver más tarde?" asks the Scorpion, fresh from a punch from the aforementioned fist. "Puedo dejar la plata si lo quieres."

"Don't move, this will just take a minute," orders Spider-Man. For good measure, he quickly webs the Scorpion down.

"It is as if you don't trust me…"

“So...can I hang out? Not, you know, as a sidekick, but maybe just kinda shadowing you for a bit? Until I’m ready to work back in Queens. If...that’s okay?”

"Okay, first off, what are you doing out of school?"

"…it's March break and I took the two-week option? Why aren't you in school?"

Miles almost splutters. "Wha—who said anything about being in school?"

(It's his last semester, for your information.)

"And why do you sound like you've got a bad cold all of a sudden?"

"Why does everyone keep saying that?" Then Miles remembers himself. "And what's with the costume?"

The girl draws back, looking a little self-conscious. "It's not like I just have materials that stretch with me lying around…" she mumbles.

"No, no, that's okay. I had the same problem, went around in a store-bought suit for my first few days too. I can help with that if you want," Miles offers, wondering how to explain this to Mrs. Parker. ("Hi, I found a stray superhero and she needs a suit"? Probably not the best opening line.) But the strange girl brightens up a bit, at least. "No, what I meant was, why the Captain Marvel costume?"

"That's because I'm Ms. Marvel!" says the girl proudly. Trace of an accent…Hindi, maybe? Urdu?

“Seriously? You know that’s probably copyrighted, right?”

“Okay, to be fair, you basically just took over the franchise. This is a tribute.”

"I did not—okay, look, bottom line, you do not just go out into the street and start swinging! That's not how superheroing works! You gotta practice a bit, maybe get yourself some decent digs, some kind of support network, again you can start with part of mine, and…and what am I saying? You don't need this kind of life, kid! My advice? Just stay outta the game until you’ve got your future settled. I can handle stuff until you do."

"I think you're gonna be a baaaad teacher," mutters Ms. Marvel, which annoys Miles for reasons he can't quite place.

"Probably!" calls the Scorpion.

"Stay out of this, Marco."

"Wow. It's not like secret identities mean anything around here, is it."

"Cállate."

260. Include

And Kron Stone, alias Venom, is down for the count.

“Lyla? You getting this?” murmurs Miguel.

—well, yeah, but that doesn’t mean I can actually tell you who it is—

Odd way of phrasing it, but...

“Hey!” calls Miguel in his Spider-Voice. “Whoever you are, you did good, kid. But this isn’t safe for you.”

“If it’s safe for you, then it’s plenty safe for me,” says the copper-bodied figure through a modulator. “And I’m not a kid.”

“You sound like a kid.” Actually he sounds like Gabriel with a sore throat.

The shimmering mask of liquid metal (a Stark-Fujikawa specialty—maybe a corporate rival?) twitches into a face like an annoyed gargoyle. “I’m not. Uh...I am the Green Goblin, here to clean up this town!”

“Uh huh.”

“Look, I just saved your life, dude, give me a break.”

“I’m trying to. Go home, kid. You’ve got better things to do with your life.”

“Right about now?” says the Green Goblin, fanged face looking surprisingly solemn. “This is exactly what I want to be doing. I’ll...see you around, Spiderman.”

And he gets on his hoverboard and starts to fly away.

“Hey!”

The Goblin turns in midair.

“...thanks.”

The metal face twists into almost a soft smile, and on he goes.

Stark-Fujikawa tech again. Hmmm...

Maybe he can ask Gabriel if he’s seen anything suspicious lately. He works for Stark-Fujikawa, right?

—honestly I have no idea who that was—

And maybe he needs to bring Lyla over to Xina again, she’s definitely malfunctioning and he didn’t even ask her to this time.

261. Corporeal

The fact that there's another Spider in Miles' dimension? That's…cool. The fact that she's about the same age as Peter Parker, was bitten by the same spider as Peter Parker, and had a bit of a tough time for some reason so she moved out of town? Also cool. The fact that she's got a bit less experience than Peter so Miles doesn't have another mentor (not that he really wants one)? All good.

But San Francisco?

"That's like…the anti-New York."

The ghostly figure beside Silkworm on the rooftop rolls his eyes.

that'sabitrudeisn'tit?

Silkworm (who is wearing what seems to be a yellow and white hanbok-style suit with black web patterns and a domino mask) grins.

"Okay, so it takes some getting used to. But it's not too bad. And hey, it's nice to know there's another Spider around, just in case."

andyou'renotthrowingyourselfatthisoneso.

"Spectro."

Spectro just grins.

Miles blinks.

"I don't think you two have been properly introduced. Miles Morales, Spider-Man, meet my idiot boyfriend, Hector Cervantez. Alias Spectro."

Miles scratches his head. "Uhhh…correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't he…aren't you…"

dead? Spectro finishes. probably.

"Dude, I'm…"

actuallythat'sreallyunclear, butyouknowwhat? i'velearnedtolivewithit. sortof. He smiles. plusitmeansIgettohelpoutabitmorearoundhere.

Silkworm smiles back. With practiced ease, Spectro makes a karate-chop movement, which Silkworm catches easily, and they hold hands for a couple of seconds.

"So…what kind of bad guys do you get around here?"

"Would you believe me if I said Pokémon?"

"Come on," says Miles dismissively. "You ain’t gonna fool a Brooklyn kid that easy."

There's a roar on the horizon, and a large pink dragon soars overhead.

"…man, that's not fair."

Silkworm and Spectro laugh.

262. Wail

Taking a piece of Peter’s grave to another dimension? That’s one thing. Him asking to be carried around all the time? That’s another.

“Gee, Stacy, aren’t you a little old to have a pet rock?”

Gee, Allen, aren’t you a little old to need to get a life?

...okay, fine, she snorted at that one.

It hasn’t been very helpful on the job either. Up until now.

“Any last words?” asks Doc Ock, squeezing tight.

Mind you, now’s not the best time to find out.

Ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod just stay there I’ll help!

“That,” grunts Gwen between her teeth as she tries to push the mechanical limbs apart, “would be a really bad idea—”

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

The sound pierces Gwen’s ears and turns her stomach. Doc Ock is literally blown backwards. Her ears are bleeding.

It disappears as quickly as it started.

A few quick webs and an anonymous text later, and Gwen’s up on the rooftop squeezing the rock tight enough to crush it. (She doesn't. She wouldn't.)

“What the hell, Parker?”

...I’m sorry. Are you okay?

“Never mind about me, what was that? When did you turn into a banshee?”

I didn’t! Honest! I just...gathered up some of the sounds floating around and kind of pushed them out. It’s like how I talk to you, just...not like that. Maybe a bit stronger.

Gwen pauses. “How long have you been able to do that?”

Far as I know? This is the first time I’ve actually tried. I honestly didn’t think it could work.

“...hmm.”

...can I try it again?

She knows the hope in that voice. That curiosity tinged with mild desperation.

“Only on bad guys,” she warns him. “And only in emergencies.”

You got it, Sensei.

“Shut up.”

Hey, how's "The Banshee" as a codename?

"About as on-the-nose as 'The Lizard'."

It's straightforward at least.

"You're gonna be the death of me, you know that?"

I wouldn't dare. You'd give me hell for the rest of my afterlife.

"And don't you forget it." But she's smiling again.

263. Mentee

One evening, Doctor Octavius—not Doc Ock, don't mix lab work with mask work—starts glitching.

"Whoa! Doctor Octavius, are you okay?"

She bats his hand away from her shoulder—and then falls to the floor, starts going fractal again with a noise like a lightsaber put through a DJ mix. "Don't worry, Mi/les, I'm ab/sol/utely f/ine! …owwwww." She cricks her neck. "Just a side effect from a personal experiment."

"This is…"

This is weird. This is very weird.

(And if she hadn't just tried to kill him again last week he might actually be worried.)

She looks at him softly, puts a hand on his shoulder to reassure him. "Hey. Hey, it's okay, kid. I'm alright. Nothing to be s/caaaaaared/ offffffffff. Aargh, that hurt."

Miles winces in sympathy. "What—what can I do?" (Play dumb.) "Can I get you anything to help?" (Smart dumb. Nice.)

She nods, panting. "You think you can g/et a bage/lllllllll…get…get me a bagel from the cafeteria please?"

"Extra cream cheese?"

She grins. "You know me so well, Mister Morales."

Better than you'd think, Miles thinks to himself as he rushes down the hallway.

Okay. Option One, there's a parallel-world Olivia Octavius who's managed to get through. Unlikely but possible. Option Two, travelling too many times between dimensions causes you to start glitching in your home dimension because of the other atomic structures incorporated into you. Again unlikely—he's never glitched at home—but worth talking to Tech Support about. Option Three…

Option Three is that travelling too many times between dimensions when you don't have a stabilizing factor, like, for instance, being a Spider, causes your atoms to slowly fall apart regardless.

None of these are good. Other hypotheses may be even worse.

Much as he has concerns about Doc Ock, much as he really doesn't like Liv based on Aunt May's stories, he doesn't want Doctor Octavius to die. Least of all like that.

Bagel. Toasted. Extra cream cheese. Strawberry jam. Some water as well. Bed rest is next, he can handle the project report (a re-evaluation of thread theory based on “anonymous research”, i.e., collider data). He's been at this job for two years now anyway. And then…he hopes Miguel's still up, at least.

Miles doesn't need to imagine how painful it could be. He knows. But he, for one, is not going to wait around and watch.

264. Collective

"See?" says Ham, proud as can be. "Told you guys that Charlie would be amazing."

"Well, yeah," says Peter B., who looks mildly ill, "but…it's not exactly just him, is it?'

"Well, no. But hey, the psychic link seems to be holding up fine. Who would've thought being bitten by a radioactive human would do the trick? Millicent, stop pulling your brother’s legs!"

“How do you even tell them apart?”

“What, like it’s hard?”

The large mass of churning, scuttling spiders in roughly the shape of a human being manages to stand up inside one of Peter’s old suits. It waves.

"How many kids did your great-niece have, exactly?" asks Peni.

"Nelly was always very popular," says Ham, wistfully.

SP//dr, oblivious to her best friend's mild discomfort, waves back eagerly.

"Ladies and gentlemen! I present to you the one, the only, Spiders-Man!"

Now there's just the matter of a mask, which is duly provided, brought up to the top of the pile, and inhabited. There’s a small vocal translator in said mask, designed specially by Miguel.

And so speaks the Spiders-Man for the first time:

“...hi.”

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geekgemsspooksandtoons · 3 years ago

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My Spider-Man Ideas

Because I’m glad my good bro @kaijuguy19 asked me about this. I want to say and it’s not a secret I’m actually a big Spider-Man fan. And ever since last year. I wanted to make my own take on the character. And maybe I still will one day. But smaller maybe. But ever since this post I made. https://geekgemsspooksandtoons.tumblr.com/post/662905966119075840/to-be-honest-i-just-wanna-say-i-feel-like-maybe-i I think it’s best I just talk about it.

In a way, I feel like this is what The Amazing Spider-Man series could’ve been maybe. Which is something I wanted to talk about. Despite some big criticisms towards that franchise. I don’t mind it’s place, and we can’t change history with it. And Spider-Man is in the MCU now.

This may not be all finished yet. Or put together much better. But this is practically my, “The Dark Knight” of the Spider-Man character. Yet also, I feel like maybe it’s best I don’t touch the Spider-Man franchise.

Because I feel like if fans, non fans, and whoever read this. They would honestly think, “GeekGem, please go back to The Mask franchise” because while I love Spider-Man, and the themes his character represent. Along with the many characters and stories. That have even inspired the likes of The Mask Rebirth strangely. But The Mask is maybe a series that is...maybe more suited for me...

I just wanted to say that I think people would be like, “Go back to The Mask franchise please. And never touch any Spider-Man related again” but I’m being way too harsh about myself. Now let’s begin. XD

Part 1.

I wanted to strangely make my own Spider-Man in a sense like Batman 1989. But I feel Spider-Man 2002 fills that hole. Including one of the old ideas that Peter has been Spider-Man for 5 years with no huge villains. But recently, it had gone to maybe his second year instead. Him being 19 and in college. With the origin not shown, but cleverly shown and told maybe akin to how Spectacular told it. And what I wanted Homecoming to do possibly. Or even something like that 2017 series.

It mainly dealt with Quinten Beck’s Mysterio. And it was basically a more mature version of, “The Menace Of Mysterio” and basically, Mysterio’s first apperance. With Beck trying become a superhero by framing Spider-Man. But after he frames Spider-Man. He tries to showcase he’s even more of a hero by deciding to kill criminals. I remember a friend of mine understanding that he called him an evil(er) version of Neil Druckmann/Quentin Tarantino/Ken Levine.

Even though I was really gonna look into his story because comics had gone in more depth with him.

Other characters like Mary Jane, Gwen Stacy, Harry Osborn, Aunt May, and the employees at the Daily Bugle would be involved. With the main story of Peter recalling why he became Spider-Man in the first place. And with Mysterio practically being a foil to him. And there is the inclusion of Silver Stable being brought to take down Spider-Man. But her job has become more troubling with Mysterio. Yet I question if I still want her in this.

Including it developed into something like the upcoming The Batman movie. With maybe Beck losing it more because the police hate the fact he’s begun killing criminals. But anyway, I wanna leave as it is. I just remembered the Silver Stable part. I wanna talk about the one I thought of the most. The one that I really wanted to do. Forgot to put Captain Stacy in this. Since I just wrote him down in part 2.

Part 2.

This idea is basically my The Dark Knight for Spider-Man. Like, literally. With the idea of using the Green Goblin, and really showcasing how dangerous the character is. And I really wanted to test the words, “With great power comes great responsibility”.

Think of this story if the Green Goblin replace the Joker in The Dark Knight. And you replace certain characters with Spider-Man characters. But if I recall, it’s mainly this idea of Goblin trying to teach Spider-Man the consequences of being a superhero.

Going in line with his original version like he first appeared. This is Norman Osborn. But it’s never revealed until the end. And it’s kind of a mystery. And with Norman faking his death by a terrorist attack by the Green Goblin. With Norman before that, acting like an older and kind fatherly figure. When in reality, he’s a genuine horrible person hiding behind a persona. And with the Goblin persona, his abilities and all that. He uses the Green Goblin as an outlet to unleash who he truly is. Going with what how the 616 version of him is. There’s no split personality.

I will admit, the faking his own death thing might backfire on him if he wins. Maybe him with a back up plan that Norman was alive, and was taken hostage by the Goblin. With Norman making it look like that.

In a nutshell, the Green Goblin is practically who Norman is deep inside. And he tries to become the leader of organized crime. Until he meets Spider-Man. Where in this version, Green Goblin is like a cruel teacher, and he wants to really teach Spider-Man what it’s the huge consequences of being a superhero.

This dude is literally more like a boogeyman. He’s if Arkham Knight’s Scarecrow and Heath Ledger’s Joker were fused into one. But he‘s also basically if Ghostface was a supervillain with powers and gadgets. He has the glider, but he does other shit. Despite his original intention, he becomes Hell bent on making Spider-Man understand the responsibility of what he’s doing.

With Green Goblin becoming more of a terrorist. That it becomes so bad. That Silver Stable is brought in likely by Captain George Stacy. That this problem with costumed people has gone too far.

Goblin is killing members of the Wild Pack, police officers, and he’s just causing chaos to bring Spider-Man down. But when he figures out who Spider-Man is. It becomes even more personal.

At first, it seems like the story is gonna go the way of, “The Night Gwen Stacy Died”. And it’s scary because Gwen knows who Peter is, and is with him. But it’s different, with not Goblin taking an unconscious Gwen to the Brooklyn Bridge. It’s still the Brooklyn Bridge. But instead he kidnaps her, leaves her tied and gagged surrounded by a bunch of barrels that will explode. There’s no Spider-Man accidently killing Gwen with his webs. But instead...what happens is...much worse. To me personally.

Spider-Man saves Gwen, and stops the barrels from exploding. But it doesn’t go the route of, “What if Gwen Stacy had lived?” storyline. Instead, the Green Goblin’s plan wasn’t to kill Gwen. But something to destroy both her, and Peter mentally.

Instead, when Peter tries to go back to May’s house. Aunt May is literally killed by a bunch of hidden explosions. And during the same time or a little later. Captain George Stacy in his office is killed by similar hidden explosions.

What happened is that because Goblin found out who Spider-Man was, and knew who he was dating. He felt like it was too easy to kill Gwen. But he wanted to do something possibly more extreme. Something that would still make Peter snap. But also destroy his relationship with Gwen.

He took the words from Spider-Man 2002, “The heart Osborn. First, we attack his heart” to literal heart. He kills Aunt May, and George Stacy in the most horrific way. Including destroying the home Peter grew up in. And after some time. Goblin literally calls Peter to pretty much rub it in that these are the consequences of him being Spider-Man. And that Gwen wasn’t the one he wanted to kill. With him possibly ending the conversation, talking about how it’s gonna end.

That it will end with one of them dying. But he doesn’t care. If Green Goblin kill Spider-Man, he wins. If Spider-Man kills Green Goblin, Spider-Man will be viewed maybe more as a menace. Because he likely killed Green Goblin out of pure rage. Which Goblin tried to create, he unleashes the anger that Peter tries to hold in. And with his mother figure killed in such a way, and a friend who was like a new father figure killed in a similar fashion. It’s literally a cruel test Goblin is trying to pull.

And in the end, during some stuff, with Spider-Man nearly killing Goblin like in the comics. But soon stopping himself when he learns that it was Norman all along. And it ends with Norman like the 2002 film and comics, accidently killing himself with the gilder. He never comes back, he’s truly dead.

On one point, Spider-Man stops himself from killing Goblin, and Norman kills himself instead. But the other point is something else instead. Norman is revealed to the the Green Goblin, putting Oscorp in a heap of shit, and people looking at Harry strangely. And despite comforting each other, but because of the horrible events.

Gwen decides that it’s maybe best to break up with Peter. Understanding her being with Peter seemed to have gotten her father killed. She doesn’t hate Peter. But she seems to hate Spider-Man. That persona, not Peter himself.

Part 3.

This was the most challenging one. Because I really wondered about the villains. There was Kraven with possibly a Kraven’s Last Hunt story. Hobgoblin because Peter would lose his shit at another Goblin. But also the idea of the symbiote suit being in the story. And during this whole development process from last year. Characters like Miles and Black Cat were involved. But I’m not sure now. With the idea that Miles may become a Spider-Man one day. And Black Cat being bothered by black suit Spider-Man.

Yet recently, despite it may feel overstuffed. But it’s not three villains. And it could be as long as it wants.

This part is basically Spider-Man 2 fused with Spider-Man 3. With the big focus of the aftermath of Green Goblin's destruction upon New York City. And Peter’s grief with the loss of Aunt May, George Stacy, and Gwen deciding to leave him. Despite he fully understands and respects Gwen for leaving him. But it’s hard.

But also with Mary Jane truly becoming Peter’s true love. After the traumatic loss and Gwen leaving New York. I know and understand Gwen’s death was a huge part of changing Mary Jane as a person because they were friends with a friendly rivalry that I recall. I...wanted to make it less depressing. Despite May was the one replacing Gwen’s death. Because that seems maybe more powerful, it depends on how you see it. Mainly with the idea that May never did anything wrong, and it was such an easy kill for Goblin. It’s like Uncle Ben’s death all over again.

Yet again, the concept of part 3 is of Peter truly embracing being Spider-Man. And not letting his darkness take ahold of him after the death of the woman that raised him. With the symbiote bringing out repressed anger even more. And made worse after the death of Aunt May.

But it’s Mary Jane that helps him overcome that darkness. And I wanna share this video that explains that more. Because I feel like that could’ve been an amazing plot point for The Amazing Spider-Man 3 if done right.

The video is by Sevenwebheads. I loved this guy before he sadly left YouTube out of nowhere.

youtube

And with how I talked about this part. It being Spider-Man 2 fused with Spider-Man 3. The villains being Doc Ock, and Venom. And in a sense, Peter is his own villain. Because of the symbiote.

It’s possible Doc Ock like his 2004 film version is maybe more sympathetic. And honestly more understandable as a villain than Norman Osborn.

Quentin Beck/Mysterio is a man who is crushed by his ambitions, and being a foil to Peter’s belief about responsibility and being a superhero.

Silver Stable is a mercenary that’s more like a complex character. Yet gets into conflict with Spider-Man. Not really a villain.

The Green Goblin/Norman Osborn in this is pretty much the embodiment of pure evil. Practically enjoying what he is doing, and not caring what the consequences are. A total anti-thesis to everything Spider-Man represents. And would make other villains or anti heroes look at him like, “What the fuck is wrong with you!?”

With Doc Ock again, being more sympathetic, but still a villain. Akin to Spider-Man 2′s Alfred Molina. And Eddie Brock, who I think should have sprinkled throughout this three part story.

With Venom and Eddie. I really like them both, I really do. But I wanted to do a version that would make sense. Instead of copying the 616 version or only the Ultimate version. Considering in a sense, the 616 Eddie isn’t much of a foil to Peter. Where the Ultimate version seems more like that in a sense.

I feel like the symbiote shouldn’t be an alien from outer space. Because that opens a whole can of worms. I seriously feel like the alien aspect doesn’t mesh with the more grounded take of Spider-Man. And it just at times makes me feel fine with the idea of Venom not being included in Spider-Man’s mythos. Despite how iconic he is.

So the symbiote’s origins would be more involved with science than from outer space. And with Eddie not only being a bit more complex. Yet he is also a foil to both Peter and Mary Jane. While you can understand him, he practically becomes more unhinged and possibly has some relations with Peter like in Ultimate and Spectacular. And when I think about, even using some elements from The Amazing Spider-Man 2 mobile game version of Eddie/Venom.

His character would be more in line with how Todd McFarlane and David Michelinie introduced the character. But while there is some dark comedy. It’s seriously more frightening. Another boogeyman in a sense like Green Goblin. With his first appearance being like in The Amazing Spider-Man issue 299. And Venom representing one of the many mistakes Spider-Man made. That being the birth of Venom and it bonding to Eddie Brock. Creating a villain that Peter feels responsible for.

I guess in a sense, I wanted to use three of Spider-Man biggest villains. Those being Green Goblin, Doc Ock, and Venom. With Mysterio and Silver Stable included. There is the idea of Carnage. Even though I liked the inclusion of Carnage in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 game. And Cletus is truly a foil to everything Peter is. I really wanted to showcase Venom as that. Still wondering about Black Cat because I love Felicia.

With this part. Considering how tough this whole trilogy is. This part is basically I guess, the light in the darkest hour.

Where you have moments like a black suited Spider-Man nearly killing Doc Ock, and even before that, ripping off one of his arms, or maybe all of them. I’m not sure. But it’s nearly killing Doc Ock that truly makes Peter if his anger has truly gone too far. And an interaction with Mary Jane who is the biggest person who has been comforting him. Helping him through his grief, after everything that had happened with him.

Peter chooses Mary Jane over keeping the symbiote. And because of his rejection of the symbiote, it bonds with Eddie. Who is practically a final test for Peter in this story. The dark reflection of what he could’ve became. A man despite you can feel for him. Eddie slowly became more sociopathic, became more irresponsible, and becoming more consumed with hate and anger.

The light rising above dark, and moving on with life. Because if we cling on to the past. We’ll be stuck there forever. And with Peter being a pessimist who has optimistic moments. This whole trilogy is like an endurance test of him as Spider-Man.

I really wanted to bring to life the earlier stories of Spider-Man from Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. It’s basically a love letter to the character and his mythos. Focusing on some more darker elements like Peter’s anger issues, and other things. But also dealing with the many themes about the character. But it’s even more rough when you replace Spider-Man 2′s Doc Ock with Green Goblin. And you maybe place Doc Ock in Spider-Man 3.

Even though I feel like Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy is maybe the perfect representation of the character. Despite all the criticisms towards Spider-Man 3. And other people’s nitpicks among many things. I feel like those films REALLY got Spider-Man right. Along with others like The Spectacular Spider-Man cartoon and others.

Think I’ve said enough. I’ll talk other stuff in the reblogs. But yeah...which I’ll say this in a reblog. Despite I don’t mind flawed films...I wished The Amazing Spider-Man franchise took a direction like this.

#GeekGem Rambles

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thekillerssluts · 4 years ago

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WILL BUTLER – Interview

How are you? How have you experienced the pandemic so far? I’m in Brooklyn and New York is remarkably chipper at the moment. I’m still aware that things might go south and we might have a second great depression, but it doesn’t feel as dire as I feared it would. It’s been a wild six months.

The work on your second solo album Generations has been directly affected. I read that some of the songs were worked out live and some were recorded during lockdown. I actually finished it right before lockdown. Coincidentally, I raced to finish it mid-March and finished it literally on the day New York closed everything down. We knew it was coming though.

How did you spend the time after then? I was still mixing the album. Time has no meaning anymore. I’ve been at home; we have young kids here and the online teaching has been intense [laughs]. We have a yard and could go outside. Nearby, there is a beautiful cemetery, so we could go for walks there. We were quite lucky and comfortable. It was strange, it was like being in a hurricane, but it was completely silent.

Talking about being a parent: You said that Generations is about your place in American history. Did having children start your thought process about that? When did you start researching the trail of your family and put it into the greater picture? For an American family, we have always been quite conscious about our history. My dad’s family has been in New England since the 17th century. They have been on the same three islands in Maine for 250 years. My mum is a harpist, a rock’n’roll pianist and jazz musician, her parents were jazz musicians, my great grandfather was a musician. I think it is very beautiful and pure to be children of musicians, of musicians, of musicians, etc. But America likes to pretend that how you are born doesn’t matter. But it is clearly not a coincidence that I’m in a musical family. It’s also not a coincidence that I own my home instead of renting, it’s not a coincidence that I’ve never been to jail… There are all these other heritages that are poisonous. People have always been unpacking, but in the last decade or so we have started to unpack collectively as a society. This has definitely been part of the way. There is a whole section of America that asks, “Where do we come from, where is this going?”

There are two sides to that, your personal family history linked to music and a more political approach thinking about social status and how your family background influences your position today. The video for your single Surrender sees you discuss the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor and the Black Lives Matter movement. Did you consider your political engagement and your status as a white artist in the US during your research of your family history? I never thought that critically about race until I was a grown-up. I was aware of history; I was a smart person, and I knew about the civil rights movements etc. But for the last 15 years now, Arcade Fire has been working with Partners in Health. They started as a health clinic in Haiti. Their original mission was to believe in a preferential option for the poor, they believed that poor people should have better services. As a doctor, you must see where the disease comes from in order to treat it. And in Haiti it became clear that the reasons people were dying were very much rooted in the history of slavery and the American occupation. In that context it becomes very clear how important history is in people living or dying. That was when I started really thinking about that how long you are going to live highly depends on the last 400 years. I don’t want it to be “the future is written”-pessimist, but to be aware that where we come from and where we are going is literally a matter of life and death.

Your album Generations raises many general questions in that respect and gives conversations for answers. Do you think that important questions often don’t have an ultimate answer? I believe so. I believe that answers – to the extent that we’re talking about problems we can fix in America – are rooted in collective political action. The only way to do that is conversation and compromise and moving forward together. Moving forward individually – at least in America – has always been our thing, but we are realizing that you have to move forward collectively. I think there are some concrete answers to technical questions, but even applying those has to be a discussion.

With your music you not only dive into history but also compare it to literature – with Policy being short stories and Generations being more of a novel. How is that reflected sonically? Sonically, I care a lot about bass. There is something very powerful and mystical about how the body reacts to bass. There is a dark current of bass through the record that feels like a character. It feels sometimes menacing, sometimes supportive. With the backing vocals, there is always a conversation. Sometimes, I’m conversing with a distorted version of myself and sometimes there is a room full of people. Sometimes I’m right and they are wrong, sometimes I’m right and they are wrong. There are characters that develop. To me, there are some through lines in the piece. I was happy about that because you never know until you make the actual thing.

There are different lines of moods, too. Many songs, like your single Surrender, have a very joyous sound. Still, that’s mixed with parts of desperation and honest critical reflection. Did you plan to include these contrasts or was it a natural progression while you were working on the stories of the record? I feel the lines when I close my eyes. There is an old Smokey Robinson song called “I Gotta Dance to Keep from Crying” and it’s about a breakup. But still, particularly in the last decade, where it felt like things are spinning of control and you can really get lost in that spin and chaos, that emotion is just naturally present. But you have to take a breath and focus. One thing that has always stuck with me from history is that during the Detroit Riots in 1967, within a couple of weeks and within a 20 minutes’ walk from where the riots started, Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell recorded Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing, which is one the most pure and joyous songs. There’s space for both transcendence and beauty and a harsh political reality. They just naturally inhabit the same space.

Let’s talk about the recording process: Even though Generations is a solo record, it doesn’t mean you were playing or working solo, you have band members with you. This is very much a band record. I have this band since I toured Policy. My drummer is Miles Francis and my wife’s sister July Shore plays bass on a lot of things. One of their childhood friends, Sara Dobbs, used to be on Broadway and hated it and quit and I said, “You’re very talented, do you want to be in my band?”. My wife can also sing and so the five of us have played a lot of music together over the last five years. I set up a session in my basement and wanted to record some demos and see how far we could get. After a week of recording we had eight songs that weren’t done, but that were real. After that, I was like, “Oh, we have the base of a record here, we can do this!”. When we play together, there is a real communication between everyone. Probably more than half of the songs were played over the shows last summer before we recorded them to feel some energy from it.

Because of Covid-19 we might have some more months, some think even years, until everything might be back to normal for the event industry and touring. With your solo record out: was the plan to also tour it internationally and how are your plans now for the closer future? I was really devasted to not tour this fall. I was very much interested to drive around America a month before the presidential election. We were also going to Europe, maybe even Mexico and South America. I’m very sad to not do that. I don’t know when that’s going to be possible.

Thank you for the interview!

https://www.bedroomdisco.de/2020/09/will-butler-interview/

#Arcade Fire #will butler #interview #generations

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fanfic-scribbles · 5 years ago

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Heroic Gestures

Fandom: MCU Captain America/Avengers

Summary: Bucky saves you, you save Bucky. In different ways, but still– it’s all in a day’s work for a couple of heroes.

(Shut up Steve.)

Quick facts: Romance – [established] Reader/Bucky Barnes/Steve Rogers – Nondescript Reader

Warnings: Some Reader peril, liberal usage of humor in a scary situation, little hurt and much comfort

Words: 2259

A/N: If you’re currently going ‘what gives, didn’t I see this this morning?’ yeah, that was a ‘whoopsie’ on my part; I posted it, had some technical glitches, tried to fix it on mobile while I was at work and borked it to the point where I had to delete it and wait until I got home. I promise I’m not spamming, I’m just technologically inept. Also anybody who can edit posts on mobile is smarter and braver than me <3

Today had been going so well– you ran some errands, you cleaned the kitchen, you changed the password on Bucky’s computer so he can’t skip out on quality time with you when he gets home from his stupid SHIELD thing–

“Where is it?”

You're not sure how an otherwise mostly-pleasant morning has topped off with you tied to a chair in the middle of your ransacked living room, but you are going to kick somebody for it.

“I don’t know what ‘it’ is!” you snap and then gasp when the man’s face contorts in anger. Okay, easy; don’t piss off the guy with the gun sitting in arm’s reach. “I- I don’t know what you’re talking about; I don’t, I swear.”

He sighs like you’re the dumbest person he’s ever met. Rude. You could say a lot of things about a guy who breaks into someone else’s home, throws everything all over the place, and then starts asking where something is without telling the person he’s asking what he’s looking for. But you won’t. Mostly because he has a gun. And a knife. And a lot of muscles. Really, you’re more of a lover than a fighter, and you intend to keep it that way.

Unfortunately the man in front of you has a face only a mother could love, and a personality that you hope no one would care for. He grinds his teeth and takes a deep breath, which is good, you think. “Earlier today, Tony Stark came by and dropped off a package,” he says slowly. He raises both of his thin eyebrows. “Ring any bells?”

Ah, Tony. You are so kicking him later. “Honestly, no,” you say, because it is unfortunately not uncommon for Tony to just ‘drop in’ from time to time to do things like leave weird ‘presents,’ or upgrade your security system without asking, or stick rude notes that are too funny to get mad at on the refrigerator. Steve and Bucky don’t know how he gets in. Well they should be happy to not-know that you are so revoking his key after today.

The man grips your chin to painful degrees. “I don’t!” you insist, panicking that this is about to get way worse. But then he suddenly lets go.

And then he hits you. Hard enough to turn your head. Hard enough that half your face starts to throb. Despite your attempts to keep cool, you tear up a little. “I wasn’t even that rough,” he says and yanks your face back into line. When he does you catch a glimpse of someone lurking in the shadows– and the familiar glint of metal makes you able to breathe again.

“It can and will get worse,” Big Ugly tells you very seriously. You almost smirk, because yeah, it’s going to. And you hope Bucky lets you get a kick of your own in for good measure. But Bad Guy lets go of your face and sits back, smug and self-satisfied. For now. “Now– what did Stark give you?”

You sigh. “If Tony left anything then it would probably have been for one of the other two Avengers I live with. You’ll have to ask them.”

The man’s eyes flit suspiciously, but he doesn’t look around, even as he acquires a large and menacing shadow. “Oh really?” he asks sarcastically, like he doesn’t believe you have even so much as a roommate. In a brownstone. In Brooklyn.

Tourist.

“So where are they?” he asks and leans just a little too far back, away from you, and towards–

Bucky strikes, metal arm like a shining silver cobra, and grabs the other man by the throat, hauling him up over the chair he’s sitting him and pulling him back gagging and gasping and flailing so your beautiful specter can growl into his ear, “Right. Here.”

“I can’t believe you didn’t let me kick him.”

“I didn’t want you anywhere near him,” Bucky mutters and keeps dabbing at your face. You didn’t even feel the blood so you must be cleaned up by now, but repetitive motions can help soothe him when he’s like this, and right now Bucky looks like he’s a million miles away. “Steve’s gonna kill me.”

Steve will do no such thing and you both know it, but it doesn’t seem like a particularly comforting fact right now. “He’s gonna have to go through me,” you say and put your hand over his to hold the cloth there. “How are you feeling?”

He gives you a Look. “I punched him.”

“So pretty good then?”

You catch a hint of a smile before he dips his head down low. “Hey,” you say and hold his face, bringing him back up. You rub familiar stubble with your fingertips and cradle his jaw in the palms of your hands. “It’s not your fault. He came because he saw Tony. It’s not Tony’s fault either. It’s his fault. You saved me. Nothing really terrible happened. Breathe, baby.”

He does. He doesn’t look all that happy or relieved about it, but it’s not your place to harangue him out of having emotions.

“That said, maybe I can get Tony to do a drop off in an Amazon locker next time.”

Harangue, maybe not. Encourage some others, definitely yes, and Bucky rewards you by breathing a brief laugh. He then shakes his head and goes back to dabbing your face. “Steve is going to kill me.”

You should have bet on it because when Steve comes home a couple of days later, Bucky walks in right behind him completely hale and hearty– much like Steve, who predicts your running jump with such aplomb that he drops his bag to the floor just in time to catch you. “You’re okay!” you say, legs wrapped around his waist, and you kiss him several times over while he takes you over to the couch and sits with you on his lap.

“Likewise,” Steve says and runs a gentle hand up the side of your face. You didn’t think you looked that bad, but he adds, “Bucky told me what happened. How are you feeling?”

Bucky is currently lurking in the big armchair off on the side, watching the two of you like he’s afraid to interact. You hope he got his kisses in when he greeted Steve at the airfield. Actually, scratch that– you hope Steve got his kisses in, because Bucky is full-on into self-flagellation mode for not having been psychic about a wanna-be terrorist stalking Tony for a delivery the boys weren't even expecting.

Still, you try. “I’m fine. Bucky swooped in, all knight-in-shining-armor-y, and saved me.” You smile at Bucky while still addressing Steve. “I’m no shrinking violet, but I felt braver when I saw him.”

Bucky perks up from his busy ‘Sit Morosely in a Chair’ activity. “Really?”

“Mm hm,” you say, still enthused with running your hands over Steve’s. Luckily he never seems to mind how touchy you get after a mission.

“I’m sure you were brave,” Steve says and brings up your hands to kiss them.

“Nope!” you say, too cheerful on purpose. You sit back on the couch and drape your legs across Steve’s lap. “So, here’s what happened: one day while I was out, completely unbeknownst to me, Tony came over and dropped something off.” You put Steve’s hands on your thighs and pat them. “And don’t worry; I have since talked to Tony about dropping by when one of us isn’t home.”

“So have I,” Bucky mutters.

“Shush! This is my story,” you say and shoot Bucky a glare. He crosses his arms and looks away, so you clear your throat. “Anyway. Unbeknownst to Tony, he was being watched by someone else. Dundunduuuu–”

“AIM,” Bucky murmurs and you glare at him again. He puts his hand to his mouth.

“So, I got home after running some errands and one of the mysterious evil people watching the house decided to make their move,” you say, but Bucky looks so sad again you think…why not have a little fun with it. “He forced his way into my apartment, but I held him off…” for five seconds, but you punch the air and say, “–with my untapped assassin powers!”

Steve lets out a startled laugh and Bucky looks at you like you’re crazy, but he’s stopped looking sad, so you run with it. You nod emphatically. “Yes, to my surprise, I held him off with magically discovered physical ability that would make even Natasha say “whoaaaa.’”

Bucky snorts and his hand is less for showing you he’s going to behave and more for covering up a smile. That’s way better, and totally worth the pain you’ll endure if Natasha ever finds out your impression of her sounds more like Bill and/or Ted than her. You grin and continue with your story. “We fought for hours. I was amazing.”

“Well, I have seen you catch a chip when it started to drop on the other side of the room,” Steve says thoughtfully.

You snap your fingers and point at him. “See? Same motivation.” You then mock a swoon. “Alas, my hubris got the best of me and I was defeated. I awoke, tied to a chair.” You put your hand to your chest. “My own fault; I underestimated my lesser-but-still-formidable opponent. So, he interrogated me. It was kind of scary, but I gave him nothing.” You lift your hands when you shrug. “Mostly because I didn’t know shit. But! Also because I’m brave and stout of heart and yadda yadda.”

Steve is doing real bad at trying not to laugh, and Bucky, though more composed now and trying to be stern, is cracking fast. Good. “And then.” You clasp your hands over your heart as though to keep it in your chest. “Bucky came out of the smoke and shadows and loomed over my lesser-but-formidable opponent.”

“We have a smoke machine?” Steve asks.

“Nope. He was just that awesome,” I said. “I was pretending to cry, to catch my lesser-but-formidable opponent off-guard. It totally worked; he was such a dummy. And then– and then!” You sit up because you’re at the best part, and Steve wraps an arm around your waist to help you stay steady on the cushions. “So I told my lesser-but-formidable opponent that Tony didn’t give me anything, but if he did it would be for the two Avengers I actually do hang out with–”

“‘Hang out with,’” Steve scoffs and pinches your thigh. You yelp and fall against him to make him stop.

“I’m at the best part!” you say and cover his mouth. He takes your hand and starts kissing it, but he’s paying attention (and it feels nice) so you allow it. “So- so he says, ‘where are they?’ and Bucky– cape flowing, lightning striking, shadows casting over his face–”

“Did I have a rose whip too?” Bucky asks dryly.

“I think you would look fetching in a domino mask, but that’s neither here nor there. Anyway, so- so Bucky says–” you drop your voice almost as low as you can, “‘–Right. Here.’ And POW! WHAM!” You swing, making punching motions at the air, so hard and numerous that you almost fall off the couch. Steve is still holding you and at one point he keeps you from diving face first into the floor. “Thanks,” you pant and take two more big, deep breaths to get back to baseline. “And then I totally forgot I had magical badass powers and let Bucky handle the situation, and he beat up the bad guy, and untied me, and I fell right into his arms because he’s my hero. And then some other boring stuff happened. The end!”

Steve claps and Bucky joins him, and you stand up to take a bow, as is your due. You then hop over and sit across Bucky’s lap. It’s hard for Bucky to mope with someone draped over him, as you have well learned from watching Steve. “You’re amazing–” you kiss him, “–and strong–” you kiss him again, “–and I love you so–” kiss, “–deal–” kiss, “–with–” kiss, “–it,” kiss kiss kiss.

“Fine! Fine,” he grumbles but he can’t hide that smile from you. “Shouldn’t you be harassing Steve? He’s the one who hasn’t been home.”

“I have a solution for that,” Steve says, suddenly next to you, and he lifts you into his arms.

“Hey!” You smack at his hand. It’s one thing when you’re making him catch you, it’s another thing when he initiates. You're supposed to be in charge, dammit. You’ve said so.

“I need to thank my heroes for taking care of the homestead while I was out,” Steve says and nuzzles your neck, dipping down to kiss and nip at your collarbone. You shiver and even Bucky looks entranced when Steve lifts his head and says in a deeper voice, “Are you in, Sergeant?”

Bucky manages a barely intelligible “yes” as he stumbles to his feet and follows you both to the bedroom. Steve doesn’t ask you but, admittedly, he doesn’t have to. You’re easy and you’re pretty okay with it. Also, you feel like after this week you deserve to be doted on a little bit. And you know you will be.

It’s good to be a hero.

However if they try to start dragging you to the gym with them, you’re going to show them some actual secret ass-kicking abilities.

#steve x bucky x reader #steve rogers x bucky barnes x reader #captain america reader insert #captain america fanfic #avengers fanfic #fluff #peril #tall tales

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tawnyyeyed · 5 years ago

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a very belated birthday gift ! 02.06.1988 —— @lyricalrose . ♡

shopping for him is always a difficult task, and a hurdle in which almost every woman faces — whether it be a birthday gift, a christmas gift, a valentine’s gift, or even just a gift for him in general. men are seemingly hard to please and it’s never easy, but for her favourite red-haired rocker from the sunshine state, elouise is adamant on pulling together one of the most perfect and elaborate birthday gifts she has EVER generated with her own two hands. after all, his birthday seems to be the most fitting occasion for her to express her unconditional appreciation for him — the thought of the singer having occupied her mind a lot more often than not over the past six or so months. with the amount of laughter and joy he has brought her through some of the simplest of conversations, he is well deserving of all the gifts he is about to receive as they sit at his apartment door.

the process all began weeks in advance, back in early january in fact. elouise was attending a house party, sitting with her artist friend richard when quite randomly he pulled a blade from his jean pocket — one of his latest works. it was a pocket knife, ornate in just about every way. silvery and glimmering in the dull light, the metallic grip was engraved with the finest of details. a pile of fanged and beastly looking skulls, thorny and wilting roses amongst them whilst a thick chain coils and tangles around them. the very first thought that popped into her mind was; axl would love this ! the whole design reminiscent of his entire aesthetic, or at least she thought so. immediately she offered to buy the thing off him right then and there, and within minutes the blade was sold and stuffed into her purse at the discounted cost of a mere twenty.

however, the bargain didn’t end there. with elouise’s confession that the blade would be given as a gift to someone, a certain someone that richard was familiar with, the artist was more than happy to design a custom tee for the singer he had met once before. a halloween ago, now. it doesn’t take very long for the two to come up with a concept, and it’s only two and a half weeks later that richard is arriving at her apartment door with a black tee in hand. adorned in airbrushed imagery, the design is a caricature of axl — he’s a menacing skeleton in a leather jacket and matching leather pants, his features exaggerated in the way that his shoulders are broadened and the rest of his body tall and skinny, hunched over almost as a cigarette smoulders between bony fingers and a razor sharp grin resides upon the skull’s face. his exaggerated hair resembles actual flames, and beautifully compliments the burning leaves that fall from autumn trees in the background as well as the signature brooklyn brownstone building that towers over him from behind. the imagery is frightening, but insanely cool — and elouise can’t help but let out a shriek of sheer amazement and excitement and AWE when she sees that at the top of the design, ‘mr. brownstone’ is written in big grey letters in a graffiti sort of style. richard never fails to wow her, and he continues to prove that as he turns the tee around show that on the back he has painted a brownstone brick wall littered with graffiti and tagging, though most importantly, it writes; ‘ w. axl rose was here ’. it’s perfect, and it also happens to be the perfect reminder that axl’s birthday is just around the corner and is quickly creeping up on her.

one late night after a long and tiring shift at the deli, elouise sits down on the floor of her studio apartment with a box and begins decorating it. using various different types and patterns of birthday gift wrap to line the inside of the box, she lays down some multi-coloured tissue paper and sprinkles the bottom of the box with metallic cut-outs of stars and zig-zags that come in green and purple — all purchased from the party store just around the block. carefully, she folds the shirt and wraps it in dainty blue tissue paper. the pocket knife, too — only for both bundles to be prettily tied with multi-coloured ribbons. she can’t help but smile at the job she’s done. loving the decorations and more so the thought of him seeing them for the first time, and then taking the time to open each gift individually. she honestly wishes that she could be there just to witness the opening of the gift, see the hopeful joy that it will bring him and see that darned smile of his. the thought brings about butterflies fluttering in the pit her stomach and she can’t pinpoint exactly why. it even has her blushing as she sits there, alone on cold and wooden floors as she thinks about a boy two and a half thousand miles away. rush’s closer to the heart playing softly on a nearby stereo.

𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒅𝒓𝒂𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒚 𝒄𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕

that is when she has a lightbulb moment. a mixtape. what if she makes him a mixtape ? or two. pondering on it, it’s only a matter of seconds before bare hands and knees go crawling across hard floors to the cabinet on the wall. a storage place holding every record and every cassette tape she holds dear. her entire life story is tucked away on these shelves, written on various tracks and played through many differing instruments and riffs. suddenly, she feels the need to compact it all down onto one singular tape. a 60 minute run of her all time favourites. some songs that make her smile, some songs that move her to tears, and some songs that remind her of him. it’s a grand idea, but it’s one that she executes and executes well. after all, they are both virtuosos. they both live and breathe music, and she’s sure that axl will appreciate something such as this. especially given how dorky the end result is. a 60 minute tape of elouise, sitting on her apartment floor at nearly 5 in the morning, playing her all time favourites all whilst talking sappy in between songs. comments on how much she loves them, why she loves them, and how some of the said songs remind her of him. it’s a strange concoction of david bowie, the rolling stones, rush, led zeppelin, bob dylan, and last but most certainly not least — guns n’ roses. who happen to be the bearers of her number one, all time favourite song: DON’T CRY .

the final song begins to play and unlike the rest of the tracks, the quality of this one is by far the poorest. after all, it is a mere demo that he gave to her. a tape of a tape of a tape, and so on. but still — regardless of the quality — she believes it to be the greatest song that she has ever heard in her entire life, and makes sure to say so. a song that has miraculously got her through some of her darkest hours. moments of reflection, remembering those who let her down and those whom she let down. her mother, past lovers, friends that she no longer talks to anymore. and during the recording of this final song, elouise finds herself laying in the middle of the floor in her satin nightgown, her eyes gently shut — the tape recorder only inches from her head now as she slowly drives her fingers through her wild mane of auburn hair and hot tears form along the lines of her lashes. that guitar solo sending her to another planet, as it always does. her heart rate picks up entirely and by the end the solo, the singer is breaking out into a sweat upon axl’s sweet voice filling her ears again. it’s sonic therapy in it’s purest form, and it’s something she wants to thank him for — but now isn’t the time. she has to focus on finishing this tape, and ending it the way that she had planned to. so as the song comes to an end, the brunette is silent as she tries to pull herself together again. a deep breath audible in the recording before a whole lot of rustling and crackling can be heard, elouise rolling onto her stomach and leaning on her elbows, the tape recorder now in her shaky hands as she wishes the redhead a happy birthday, and then again through song. her voice sweet, soft — with lingering remnants of former sorrow albeit happiness as the gentle smile that sits upon her pretty lips can be FELT in the mere way that she delivers the hushed tune.

❝ 𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒚 𝒃𝒊𝒓𝒕𝒉𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒚 𝒃𝒊𝒓𝒕𝒉𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒚 𝒃𝒊𝒓𝒕𝒉𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒂𝒙𝒍, 𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒚 𝒃𝒊𝒓𝒕𝒉𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒚—— . ❞

suddenly, the tape cuts and that is all. an entire sixty minutes of jovial conversation and song. an entire hour of elouise pouring out her heart and soul through music and laughter. it’s unlike anything she’s ever done for anyone before, and for a few days she even reconsiders whether she should be sending the tape to him. is it too personal ? is it too dorky ? is it just outright WEIRD of her ? these thoughts bubble about in her head like water boiling in a pot, tormenting her until one night she receives a phone call — less than a week now until the big day. it’s axl himself. to hear his voice is like music to her ears, her face aches from grinning so much, and any reluctance is suddenly pelted from her third-storey window. she can’t wait for him to receive the shirt, pocket knife, the goofy ten-to-one tape she stayed up all night recording for him, and now all the new york related knick knacks she has purchased for him in the meantime. new york candies, new york koozies — even a silver statue of liberty fridge magnet that doubles as a bottle opener and a keyring that bears the image of her beloved brooklyn bridge. atop all the bric-a-brac wrapped in pretty tissue paper is a ornate envelope, signed beautifully in his name with a card sitting inside. once opened, the card transcripts:

to axl,

wishing you the happiest of birthdays, my dear friend. i hope that it is filled with laughter and joy, and that the guys are treating you like the king you are —— because you deserve it !!! anyway, i’d love nothing more than to be there with you to celebrate your special day but this whole living on polar opposite sides of the country thing really sucks ! sucks ass major ass ! it’s fine though, have a drink on me tonight and i’ll make sure we celebrate your born-day the next time we happen to cross paths !

p.s. —— call me whenever you find the time, i’ll probably to be dying to know whether this made it to you or otherwise is currently being held in the hands of some stranger ! haha !

whole lotta love,

elle with the z from nyc ! ♡

it isn’t much, and it isn’t anything too extravagant — she’s a small-time singer working on minimum wage, after all. she just hopes that this is enough, and that he doesn’t see it as being too tacky. especially when she’s just forked out sixty percent of last week’s earnings to pay for a courier to drop the gift off to him on his birthday exactly. a big spend for her that she sees worth it, and a cross-country expedition that has the brunette stressing the entire four days it takes for it to arrive at his doorstep. afraid that it might get lost or even worse, stolen, as was expressed in the card.

the courier arrives at his apartment door with the box in hand, a notepad and pen atop the mysterious parcel as he raises a hand to knock upon the door — each tap against the wood filled with reluctance as he wonders if he has the wrong place, the wrong apartment. though before he can fret too much, the door is opening and he is being met with a redheaded figure. “ are you w. axl rose, by any chance ? this parcel has just come all the way from new york. ” the young courier asks with a scratch of his head, though his question is answered immediately as the stranger nods his head in affirmation. “ sweet. i’ll get you to sign here and then it’s all yours, buddy. ”

#is this? the moment? that el realises she loves him? oo p #this was really long but really cute to write so super worth it lol #i hope you enjoyed it !! <33 and also an fyi:#i linked the don't cry demo if u wanna go listen to it :")#for those extra feels lol #ohhh and i also left the end pretty open just in case you wanted to reply but don't feel like you HAVE to!! <3

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lets-talk-appella · 6 years ago

Text

i’m nobody’s but yours

Chapter 21/25 - Chloe

Summary: Beca is straight as an arrow. 100%, totally, completely straight. Except for one problem that 100%, totally, completely changes everything: Chloe Beale.

Title borrowed from Calum Scott’s “If Our Love Is Wrong.”

Word Count: 3.5k

Rating: M (for dark themes, homophobia, masturbation, and eventual smut in later chapters)

AO3, FFN, and below.

Chloe stares at her laptop screen in shock.

Everything around her fades away; the music from the playlist Beca made for her, the occasional evening traffic sounds from outside, and even the muted voices of the Bellas downstairs. At this moment, the only thing that matters in the entire world is the email she received ten minutes ago.

Dear Ms. Beale:

Congratulations! Please consider this your formal acceptance to the Brooklyn Animal Care Veterinary Internship program!

We were impressed by your attention to detail in your application, as well as your optimistic attitude and record of community service. What most made you stand apart from other applicants was your impressive amount of leadership experience; we believe this experience makes you uniquely qualified for a potential Intern Manager position with our staff during the duration of your time here.

Though your training will not begin until September 1st, we had several other highly-qualified candidates and would appreciate notice of your acceptance or denial of our offer no later than August 8th.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out should you have any questions about the position or the hiring process.

Sincerely,

Brooklyn Animal Care Staff

She’s read it end-to-end seven times, the meaning sinking in slowly. She glances at the date in the corner of her laptop screen: August 4th. That gives her four days to decide.

It’s not like she really has to consider other offers. Though she’d applied all over the country, the Brooklyn program had been her top choice; their program is the best of those she applied to, and the idea of living in New York sends a thrill of excitement shooting through her. It’s novel and ensnaring and something she’s wanted for herself for a while.

The only thing that’s keeping her from immediately accepting is Beca. Or, more exactly, the relationship she has with Beca and how much it means to her.

Beca has heard back from exactly one of her many job applications so far. Two days ago, a music producer based in Houston, Texas, offered her a position with an acceptance deadline of August 10th.

How far away is Houston from New York? A thousand miles? More?

Chloe pulls up Maps online; the distance from Brooklyn to the center of Houston is 1,419 miles.

It’s too far.

Chloe pulls her lower lip between her teeth and opens a new internet tab: veterinary internships Houston TX. There are more than 60 results. She could do it. She could fill out an application right now.

Her hands twitch on the laptop keyboard, and for an instant, she seriously considers it. It wouldn't take long. She just has to copy and paste a lot of the information from her other applications.

Chloe leans forward with a groan to rest her head in her hands.

It would never work. Even with her application materials prepared, there’s no way she could complete multiple applications, the subsequent phone interviews, and hear back from them in the span of the four days she has to either accept or decline the position in Brooklyn.

Chloe groans again, frustrated. She’s fully aware that the rational thing to do in this situation is for her and Beca both to accept their offers, as long as no one else contacts either of them in the next few days. They need jobs, and their lease is about to end. The “adult” thing to do would be to say yes to the offers.

And yet.

They do still have some time before they have to decide, and it’s possible that they might actually manage to get offers from within the same city. Maybe. If the aca-gods are in their favor.

Chloe’s eyes prickle and sting. It’s not fair. They should have all the time in the world to be together, rather than potentially having to live across the country from one another. Chloe knows that in reality, Beca’s job prospects are much more limited than hers; every city needs veterinarians, and those veterinarians need internships. Big-name music production jobs are much less common. If she really doesn’t want to live apart from Beca, then it makes the most sense to follow Beca to wherever she goes.

It’s just. Brooklyn’s program is really the best, and Chloe knows Beca would want her to follow her dreams and go there.

They haven’t been dating long, but already, Chloe can’t imagine a future without Beca. She thinks it might have to do with how long they’ve known each other, or maybe even that she’d stayed at Barden all this time to be with Beca. Either way, she’d never liked the thought of leaving Beca, and now that Beca has made her into the happiest person in the world, the thought of separating from her is borderline unendurable.

The words “Beca” and “forever” are linked in her mind, no matter how impractical that may be this early in their dating relationship. Chloe knows it should probably scare her – being this dedicated to someone so soon – but it doesn’t.

It has all become alarmingly simple.

Chloe and Beca, Beca and Chloe, Chloe and Beca, Beca and Chloe.

***************

Telling Aubrey is probably the worst part about not graduating the second time.

“What do you mean you ‘failed again?’” Aubrey practically screams over Skype.

“It’s fine,” Chloe says, trying not to wince at Aubrey’s volume; if Aubrey senses weakness, she’ll pounce. “I’ll just try again next year.”

Aubrey groans, the computer mic distorting her voice and making it crackle. “Chloe. You can’t keep doing this to yourself.”

“I don’t –”

“Oh, don’t give me that,” Aubrey insists, looking at Chloe seriously through the camera. “You know exactly what you’re doing. You’re too smart to have actually failed anything, much less – what was it?”

“Russian Lit,” Chloe mumbles guiltily.

“Russian Lit?!” Aubrey repeats loudly. “Chloe, seriously? I know for a fact you have Anna Karenina almost memorized. Don’t pretend you don’t know what you’re doing.”

“I mean, Dr. Zhivago is really a hard novel to analyze –”

“You’ve read it three times,” Aubrey says, sounding exasperated. “Be honest. It’s the same reason as last year, isn’t it? The Bellas?”

“They’re my family, Bree,” admits Chloe, dropping all pretense. “I don’t want to leave her – them. Them,” she says firmly, kicking herself a little and hoping Aubrey won’t notice the slip-up.

Unfortunately, Aubrey always has been too astute; even through Skype, Chloe can see her eyebrows lift and expression turn satisfied.

“Mhmm. So how is the little goblin?”

“I’ve asked you not to call her that,” Chloe snaps, more defensively than she’d meant to.

It makes Aubrey’s sly grin widen, and Chloe knows she’s given herself away.

“But you still know who I mean, even when I call her things like that,” Aubrey replies with a dismissive shrug. “Does she know you’re purposely failing to stay with her?”

Chloe feels herself flush, and stutters out, “That’s not – I don’t – you’re –”

“Why don’t you move on, Chloe?” Aubrey interrupts, shifting at her desk to lean closer to her laptop. “She’s still with Jesse and – unless you haven’t told me something – she’s still straight.”

Chloe looks away from the screen, stung. She doesn’t need Aubrey to tell her these things. She already knows them, painfully well.

“I – you never know, okay?” she manages after a moment, still unable to look back at Aubrey.

“Chloe,” Aubrey sighs after a moment, her tone softening so that Chloe’s able to look at her again. “I – I’m sorry, but... you have to know how unhealthy this is. You do see that, right?” she speaks delicately, as if worried Chloe’s going to start yelling at her.

Chloe’s stomach plummets and she looks away again.

“I mean… you just… Chloe, if she’s straight, there’s no point in continuing to feel like this. It’s a little – well, it’s unfair to both of you, really.”

Chloe swallows hard, Aubrey’s unspoken words screaming in her ears. She can read between the lines. She knows Aubrey is calling her creepy and obsessive.

On Skype, Aubrey starts to backtrack. “Okay, maybe unhealthy was a little –”

“Let’s talk about something else,” interrupts Chloe, not really listening. “Have you heard anything from your dad?”

Aubrey stares at her disapprovingly at the blatant subject change but doesn’t comment on it. Chloe breathes a little sigh of relief when Aubrey goes along with it, albeit reluctantly, and starts detailing some of the last postcard she’d gotten from her father concerning probably confidential military operations.

As she half-listens, nodding and smiling in all the right places, Chloe tries very hard to ignore the faint stirring of guilt in her stomach.

Aubrey doesn’t need to know she’s already planning on graduating with Beca. She’d probably think that was totally crazy.

***************

Beca and Chloe forever. At least, that’s how Chloe sees it.

In a few days, though, separation might be their new reality.

A light knock on her door breaks her concentration. It’s okay, though; she can tell by the knock it’s Beca. Smile already spreading over her face, Chloe calls, “Come in!” As she does, though, she minimizes her email, not wanting to ruin Beca’s mood by bringing that whole mess up. She’ll tell Beca, just, not yet, at least if she can avoid it.

The door opens and Beca slips in, leaving it cracked open behind her. Chloe relaxes at the familiar sight of Beca’s crooked grin and giggles at the dramatic way she throws herself on Chloe’s bed, bouncing against the mattress before sitting upright.

“Hey,” Beca says, “you busy?”

“Not really,” Chloe shrugs, careful to keep her tone light and casual. “What’s up?”

“Not a lot. Just got off the phone with my dad,” Beca answers, rolling her eyes, but without menace. “He’s been taking every chance he gets to ask about you and – and us,” she adds, suddenly looking nervous.

“How’s that going?” Chloe asks tentatively.

Beca shrugs, looking up at the ceiling. “It’s… not bad,” she says slowly. “I mean, we’ve been talking for a little bit, since your parents came over, and he’s kinda getting it?” Beca says, her voice rising like it’s a question.

“That’s good, though, right?”

“Yeah. It’s – he’s been slowly getting better about it. He didn’t say anything totally offensive this time, anyway,” Beca huffs.

“That’s good. Uh, and…?” Chloe trails off, uncertain.

“Sheila?” Beca asks, and Chloe nods. A corner of Beca’s mouth lifts contemplatively. “I mean, she’s – radio silence,” she says grimly. “It’s like my dad said – she’s just kinda like that, and I’m not sure she’ll change. He’s trying to talk to her, though, a little at a time. We’ll see,” Beca finishes in a tone that tells Chloe she’s done talking about it.

“Okay,” Chloe says. “So, we’ll, uh, we’ll work with that.”

“Yep,” Beca says, tracing her fingers over Chloe’s bedspread. Chloe has to suppress a smile and ignore the natural swoop in her stomach at seeing Beca on her bed; Beca’s been spending most nights in her bed lately.

“But, anyway,” Beca clears her throat, and Chloe hauls her mind out of the gutter so she can listen. “Was also wondering if you wanted to come shopping with me,” Beca asks. “Just to the mall or something, maybe.”

“Did you have something in mind?” Chloe asks, pushing away from her desk and moving to sit next to Beca at the end of her bed. It’s not often that Beca willingly goes to a place involving large amounts of other people.

“Well,” Beca tilts her head and reclines back to an elbow, her torso twisted toward Chloe. “Mostly I want to check out what they have for, like, uh, parting gifts? I guess? For the Bellas.”

“... Oh my god.”

“Don’t make it weird.”

Chloe can’t stop the huge smile she feels spreading over her face. Chloe wants more than anything to tease Beca (and mercilessly) for being such a softie but decides to take pity on her pinkened cheeks and stubbornly set jaw.

“We can do that,” she says. “It’s a great idea. Did you have anything in mind?”

“Nah, I just want to see what they had, you know?”

“Oh, uh, okay, yeah, we can probably –”

“Are you okay?” Beca interrupts, leaning forward, her eyebrows drawing together in concern.

“Hmm?” Chloe feigns innocence while panicking internally.

Beca’s frown deepens and her eyes flick between both of Chloe’s intently. “You seem a little… I don’t know. Not quite here, I guess. Just kinda off.”

“I mean, it’s nothing.”

Beca shrugs. “If you don’t want to talk, it’s okay, I just want to make sure everything is, you know, chill, or whatever.”

“Oh, it’s okay, I just, um…” Chloe hesitates. She hadn’t planned on telling Beca quite like this, but she doesn’t like the idea of keeping anything a secret from her. “I’m… I was accepted to the Brooklyn internship,” she finally expels in a rush.

Beca’s eyes fly wide and her mouth pops open in what Chloe knows is excitement. “Dude, you got in!” she exclaims, bolting upright.

“Yeah,” Chloe says and grins despite herself.

“Dude! That’s awesome, congrats!”

Beca lunges forward, reaching for Chloe’s face, and pulls her into an excited and somewhat sloppy kiss. Through it, Chloe can tell Beca is genuinely happy for her, and that both invigorates and saddens her. It makes her decision that much harder.

Beca pulls back first, her hands still cupping Chloe’s cheeks.

“I’m so proud of you, Chlo,” she says sincerely.

“Thanks, it’s really… I’m excited,” Chloe says, then winces internally at the obvious strain in her tone.

Beca’s smile falls slowly and she pulls away, dropping her hands from Chloe’s face to she can study her more closely.

“Are you?” Beca asks, softly this time. “Excited, I mean?”

“Yeah, it’s just…” Chloe half-shrugs, and looks away from Beca and toward her desk, where her open laptop almost seems to mock her. “It’s kinda far from Houston.”

Beca stills next to her, and Chloe glances over to see her looking down at the bedspread between them.

“Why does that matter?” she asks carefully.

“Beca, you know why it matters,” Chloe says.

Beca’s hands twitch in her lap.

“I mean… it – yeah. Brooklyn kinda is far away from Houston, yeah,” Beca agrees after a second.

“I could turn it down, maybe try for something closer,” Chloe’s quick to say, but Beca’s already shaking her head seriously.

“No way, Chloe,” she says firmly. “No way. I thought you’d always wanted to go to that program, right? You said it has a super high vet school acceptance rate.”

“Yeah, it – it does…” Chloe admits slowly, grateful Beca had remembered that detail about her program search.

“Okay, so you should go there, right? So you can get into vet school later?”

“Beca –”

“Look,” Beca cuts her off gently, “Chlo, I don’t want to be that couple that holds each other back from doing what they really want to do.”

“You wouldn’t.”

“Baby, I’m worried I would,” Beca says, staring down at her lap. “You’ve been talking about their program for a while. Isn’t it what you want?”

“Yeah, but I want you, too.”

“You can have both, Chlo.”

“Beca –”

“What if we were switched?” Beca asks suddenly, looking back up. “What if I had wanted to go to LA and gotten an offer there?”

Chloe refuses to look at her. “That’s not the same,” she says.

“Yes, it is.”

“I…” Chloe sighs and rubs a hand over her face. She knows exactly what Beca’s doing, and she knows she’s right. “I’d tell you to go,” she finally concedes.

“Yeah,” Beca nods, reaching for Chloe’s hand to pull into her lap. “So this is me, telling you that you should follow what you’ve been working for.”

Chloe pulls her lower lip into her mouth, worrying at it with her teeth. When she doesn’t say anything, Beca runs her thumb over the back of her hand.

“What is it?” she asks softly.

“I just...” Chloe starts, then has to pause to swallow the lump in her throat before she can continue. “It’s not fair.”

She knows it’s childish – life isn’t fair to anyone – but she wants to complain, at least a little bit.

“What isn’t fair?”

“This!” Chloe exclaims, finally looking up at Beca. “This whole stupid thing! We just got together and now we might be pulled apart! It’s not fair!” she finishes, her voice cracking.

Beca stares at her for a long moment, eyes wide. “I – yeah, I know,” she finally starts, and Chloe watches as determination take over her features. “It’s not fair. But, listen – having a long-distance relationship is not the end of the world.”

“I didn’t –”

“I know it’s not ideal, but it’s not the end of the world,” Beca repeats, speaking louder. “We don’t have to end just because we’re not living together, okay? There’s – there’s text, and calls, and Skype, and – we have options,” Beca says. “And, you know, lots of people make it work. We can too, okay, if we have to. And it won’t be forever.”

Chloe shrugs, then nods slowly. A trickle of hope moves into her chest.

“And,” Beca continues, “I still haven’t heard back from, like, a ton of jobs. I’m not gonna go to Houston if I can help it, okay?”

“Okay,” Chloe whispers, squeezing Beca’s hand.

She’s right. If anyone can do it, it’s them. It’s not ideal, but it wouldn’t be forever.

“Besides,” Beca adds a second later, her tone lighter as she nudges their shoulders together playfully, “Houston gets, like, super hot in the summer, and you know I don’t do well in the heat.”

Chloe snorts at that, and a small smile grows on Beca’s face. Chloe doesn’t say anything, but Beca’s still watching her, her expression tender.

Reaching forward to push a strand of Chloe’s hair behind her ear, Beca says, “And, um, if you’re really not sure… think on it for a bit, maybe, and we’ll go from there? I might even hear back from some places by… when do you have to tell them?”

“The 8th.”

Beca’s eyebrows lift, but then her expression arranges itself into something more neutral.

“Okay, so, the 8th,” she says, and Chloe can tell she’s forcing her casual tone. “That’s… yeah. I still think you should do it, though, because it’s what you’ve been wanting for a while.”

It sounds so simple coming from her mouth. Chloe knows Beca is just as terrified by the looming moves as she is, but she sounds so confident and assured in that moment that Chloe instantly relaxes.

“Sounds good,” she breathes, some of the tension lifting from her chest.

“Good,” Beca says, then stands from the bed, still tugging on Chloe’s hand. “And, in the meantime, would you like to dance with me?”

“What?” Chloe blinks up at her, surprised.

Beca’s grin only widens. “We need to celebrate this, and I don’t have any cake with me, so… dance?”

“You’re so weird,” Chloe says, but then she allows Beca to pull her to her feet and into a quick kiss. Beca’s lips move languidly against her own, their familiar taste reminding Chloe of crackling campfires and warm movie nights and exhilarating performances and home.

After a moment, Chloe has to pull back, slightly breathless. “Do you have music?” she asks.

Beca tilts her head, mock offended. “Duh, who do you think I am?” she asks incredulously.

Chloe smiles as Beca waggles her eyebrows overdramatically and pulls her phone from her pocket. She scrolls for a second, then taps on the screen, turns up the volume, and La Roux’s “Bulletproof” fills the room.

Chloe’s lips lift at song choice – even though at one time, it had nearly torn the Bellas apart – and Beca sets down her phone face-down on Chloe’s desk so that the music can full the room. Beca takes both of Chloe’s hands in her own, and with one more crooked grin, Beca starts dancing.

She leads them in a kind of jerky swing dance that doesn’t really match the song, but Chloe doesn’t mind; all she can think about is Beca’s hands in hers, guiding her back and forth and side to side in the middle of the bedroom.

They take turns spinning each other, Chloe’s eyes following the trails Beca’s whirling hair makes in the air. Beca backs her into her bed once, and Chloe wobbles dangerously, but Beca tugs her back with a glint in her eye that tells Chloe it might not have been an accident, but an excuse to pull their bodies closer together. As the music ends, Chloe spins Beca one final time and tugs her close to rest their foreheads together, breath mingling and hearts beating in tandem. Beca’s hands slide up her arms to loop around her shoulders, and Chloe rests her hands around Beca’s waist.

Even though the music is over, they revolve slowly on the spot, Chloe’s mind calming and heart racing. Beca nudges forward to brush her lips against Chloe’s, even that barest touch between them sending sparks cascading through Chloe’s entire body. She hums into the kiss, pressing forward just enough to add pressure before easing away again.

“Say yes to New York, Chloe.”

It’s quiet, whispered against her lips, but it still shakes Chloe’s world.

“I’ll need a roommate,” she breathes back.

“Ask the group chat.”

It’s a smart idea. Most of their futures are so up in the air that one of the Bellas is bound to be willing to move to New York with her.

(She wishes it could be Beca. More than anything, she wants it to be Beca.)

But she has to think practically.

“Okay,” Chloe agrees. “I’ll ask them.”

“Okay,” Beca smiles, then pecks Chloe’s lips again. “So… about that shopping trip?”

“You got it,” Chloe whispers, and she lifts a hand to trace her thumb along Beca’s cheekbone before she (reluctantly) pulls from Beca’s arms to text the group chat and find her purse.

#bechloe #bechloe fic #my writing #beca mitchell #chloe beale #pitch perfect fanftic #i'm nobody's but yours #chapter twenty-one #we're so close to the end!!!#also this is being posted later today than usual sorry!

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braidedgraphite · 1 year ago

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John Updike's 9/11 report:

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weirdsciencecomics · 5 years ago

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Here are the February 2020 Marvel Comics Solicitations for all Spider-Man related comics!

VENOM #23

DONNY CATES • MARK BAGLEY (A/C)

VARIANT COVER BY SKOTTIE YOUNG

GWEN STACY VARIANT COVER BY HUMBERTO RAMOS

VENOM ISLAND COMES ALIVE!

They say there’s no rest for the wicked, and few creatures in the Marvel Universe are as wicked as CARNAGE. Face front, readers — the seeds of next year’s VENOM event are already beginning to grow…

32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

RAVENCROFT #2 (OF 5)

FRANK TIERI • ANGEL UNZUETA (A) • Cover by KYLE HOTZ

VARIANT COVER BY SKAN

Ravencroft is open for business! But with the secrets revealed in RUINS OF RAVENCROFT in the open, the Institute is more dangerous than ever. Can John Jameson right the ship before it’s too late?

32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

SYMBIOTE SPIDER-MAN: ALIEN REALITY #3 (OF 5)

PETER DAVID • GREG LAND (A/C)

VARIANT COVER BY RON LIM

VARIANT COVER BY ALEX SAVIUK

GWEN STACY VARIANT COVER BY PHIL NOTO

VARIANT COVER BY GERARDO SANDOVAL

CONNECTING CHINESE NEW YEAR VARIANT COVER (2 of 3) BY JIE YUAN

PETER PARKER: THE SPIDER SUPREME?!

After reliving one of the most horrible moments of his life, Peter Parker turns to one of his oldest allies for a magical helping hand. Don’t miss the next history-shaking adventure of Peter David and Greg Land’s landmark SYMBIOTE SPIDER-MAN Series!

32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #39

NICK SPENCER • IBAN COELLO (A) • COVER BY PATRICK GLEASON

GWEN STACY VARIANT COVER BY PEPE LARRAZ

CONNECTING CHINESE NEW YEAR VARIANT COVER (3 OF 3) BY JIE YUAN

There’s a new game in town, and the ante is QUITE HIGH! Welcome to The Palace, a super-villain casino run by the classic (and under-utilized) Spidey-villain CHANCE! It’s got everything a villain could want, including betting on whether your arch-enemy is going to make it through his or her latest super-battle! Not only will this not sit well with Spidey, but it may just CRUSH him.

32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #40

NICK SPENCER • IBAN COELLO (A) • COVER BY PATRICK GLEASON

GWEN STACY VARIANT COVER BY ELIZABETH TORQUE

Jonah Jameson’s new gig has proven to be nothing but trouble for Spidey. As you are well aware, JJJ doesn’t take “no” for an answer, so even if Spidey is knee-deep in a world-saving situation, JJJ will always be there to “help” him. But while Spidey is dealing with JJJ and Chance, something is brewing with Kindred and it can’t bode well for Peter.

32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99

SPIDER-HAM #3 (OF 5)

ZEB WELLS

WILL ROBSON (A/C)

VARIANT COVER BY DAVID NAKAYAMA

LET’S DO THE HAM WARP AGAIN!

What’s a Ham Warp? We don’t know, but this third issue of SPIDER-HAM is an interdimensional delight! Spider-Ham just can’t catch a break! First SPIDER-MAN crashes his solo adventure…and now they’re trapped in the past! Somebody’s gotta bring home the bacon!

32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99

SPIDER-MAN/VENOM: DOUBLE TROUBLE #4 (of 4)

MARIKO TAMAKI

GURIHIRU (A/C)

“VENOM IS A GREAT ROOMMATE AND FRIEND!” – Spider-Man

Spider-Man and Venom must finally work together to fix their situation…one that Venom TOTALLY didn’t get them into in the first place. YOU CAN’T PROVE IT WAS HIM!

32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99

AMAZING MARY JANE #5

Leah Williams • Carlos Gómez (A) • Cover by Humberto Ramos

VARIANT COVER BY TBA

GWEN STACY VARIANT COVER BY JAVIER RODRIGUEZ

CUT?!

All that stands between MJ and Mysterio’s ragtag crew and filming their climactic battle scene is…well, VULTURE, STEGRON, TARANTULA, KING COBRA, RHINO, and SCORPION! If this is Mary Jane’s last chance to realize her dreams, you can bet she’s going to fight like a tiger–or a spider! Will filming ever wrap? Will Mary Jane ever go home to the AMAZING SPIDER-MAN? And can Peter forgive her for her Hollywood team up?

32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99

GHOST-SPIDER #7

SEANAN McGUIRE • IG GUARA (A)

Cover by PAUL POPE

Gwen has it all! Two worlds, two lives, living in harmony…nothing bad could happen! …something bad is definitely about to happen. Be there when Gwen’s worlds begin to collide!

32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN: THE DAILY BUGLE #2 (OF 5)

MAT JOHNSON • MACK CHATER (A)

COVER BY NIKO HENRICHON

VARIANT COVER BY PASQUAL FERRY

Professors missing from Empire State University: Abductees or recruits? Skeins of Spider-Man’s web drape Lower Manhattan: Charming local color, or Department of Sanitation headache? Does anything happen in Kingpin’s city without his knowledge? The reporters of the Daily Bugle are beating pavement to answer YOUR questions.

32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99

MILES MORALES: SPIDER-MAN #15

SALADIN AHMED • JAVIER GARRON (A/C)

GWEN STACY VARIANT COVER BY NICK BRADSHAW

INVASION AT BROOKLYN VISIONS!

Miles’ journal has gone missing–you know, the one where he wrote his private thoughts about BEING SPIDER-MAN!!! And it’s fallen into enemy hands! Does that have something to do with Miles’ high school under siege by the most monstrous goons he’s faced since CARNAGE? You’re about to see more of Brooklyn Visions than ever��but is it for the last time?

32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99

SPIDER-VERSE #5 (OF 6)

CHRISTOS GAGE – JUAN FERREYRA (A)

Cover by DAVE RAPOZA

SPIDER-MAN NOIR, DEAD NO MOIR?!

Miles continues his journey to save the web of life and comes face to face with Spider-Man Noir! But, wait…isn’t he dead?!

32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99

BLACK CAT #9

JED MACKAY • KRIS ANKA (A) • Cover by J. SCOTT CAMPBELL

GWEN STACY VARIANT COVER BY CARLOS GOMEZ

Felicia has gotten into some trouble in New York. Some may call it “inciting a war” but we aren’t here to mince words. What’s a girl to do? GO TO MADRIPOOR! That’s right, the Black Cat and her crew go to Madripoor to steal the next object on their list. No problem, just another artifact that is in the private collection of someone named… where’d I put that note… oh, here. Someone named “Patch.” Uh-oh. Patch is Wolverine. BLACK CAT IS STEALING FROM WOLVERINE?! All this and guest-artist KRIS ANKA (UNCANNY X-MEN, RUNAWAYS) is joining the book for two issues!

32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99

MORBIUS #4

VITA AYALA • MARCELO FERREIRA (A) • Cover by SKAN

CONNECTING VARIANT COVER BY JUAN JOSE RYP (4 OF 5)

THE MONSTER CALLED MORBIUS!

Michael Morbius has always been a man of science. But he’s also a man of pride, and when those two traits combine, the results have been catastrophic. This time is no different! Whatever Morbius has wrought havoc on his genetics – with his humanity inching closer to memory with every passing moment! This while a figure from his past returns, with Morbius dead in her sights.

32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

SCREAM: CURSE OF CARNAGE #4

CLAY McLEOD CHAPMAN • CHRISTOPHER MOONEYHAM (A) • Cover by RYAN STEGMAN

VARIANT COVER BY CLAYTON CRAIN

SPINNING OUT OF THE PAGES OF THE VENOM EVENT OF THE YEAR, ABSOLUTE CARNAGE!

SCREAM faces an ancient evil from the depths of the sea! Watch as the VENOM lore builds the history of the symbiotes into a twisted tale of horror and menace! You’ll never want to go back in the water again, True Believers!

32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

MARVEL’S SPIDER-MAN: THE BLACK CAT STRIKES #2 (OF 5)

DENNIS “HOPELESS” HALLUM • LUCA MARESCA (A) • Cover by SANA TAKEDA

Variant Cover by DAVID NAKAYAMA

BLACK CAT HEARTS SPIDER-MAN!

The BLACK CAT continues her mysterious crime spree in New York…but will her reappearance catch SPIDER-MAN in a tangled web between MARY JANE and his former flame?! An all-new look into Peter and Felicia’s fiery passion and the deadly consequences of a Super Hero romance. ME-OW!

32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99

GWEN STACY #1 (OF 5)

CHRISTOS GAGE • TODD NAUCK (A) • Cover by ADAM HUGHES

VARIANT COVER BY JEEHYUNG LEE

VIRGIN VARIANT COVER BY JEEHYUNG LEE

FACES OF GWEN VARIANT COVER BY TODD NAUCK

CONNECTING CHINESE NEW YEAR VARIANT COVER (1 OF 3) BY JIE YUAN

HIDDEN GEM VARIANT COVER BY TBA

VARIANT COVER BY J. SCOTT CAMBPELL

VARIANT COVER BY TBA

The First of Gwen Stacy’s AMAZING Adventures!

Gwen and Peter may not have met until AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #31, but that doesn’t mean Gwen’s life began on that page. Learn the never-before told origin of Gwen Stacy, top of her class, daughter of the Police Captain and, as her friend Harry Osborn calls her, “The Beauty Queen of Standard High.” But she’s way more that you even know! Gwen’s got a science brain, a nose for trouble and a no-quit attitude that always gets her in trouble. In the early Marvel Universe, that’s a recipe for disaster. Don’t miss Gwen, Captain Stacy, Harry and Norman Osborn, Crimemaster, Wilson Fisk, Jean DeWolff, Yuri Wantanabe and even Spider-Man!

40 PGS./Rated T …$4.99

Spider-Man February 2020 Marvel Comics Solicits Here are the February 2020 Marvel Comics Solicitations for all Spider-Man related comics! VENOM #23 DONNY CATES • MARK BAGLEY (A/C)

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