"Holy Shit, Peter," MJ slumped back in her chair, "you killed someone." She looked over at the body, "You killed two people, Peter, two. Do you know what that means?"
"I'm fired?" Peter replied and Gwen snorted.
MJ just shook her head, "This isn't the time for jokes, shit Peter, we could all go to jail for this." Felicia had been moved onto another more comfortable bed and Gwen had poured bleach over the table and dumped the invader on it.
"MJ, it's fine, Gwen, Poison can create a caustic bleach right? Cover the agent guy in it, I'll web him up then throw him into the bay." Gwen nodded and started to work.
"That's, that's not what I meant Peter. This is a crime scene, we, we need to call someone." MJ curled herself up, holding her legs.
"And what MJ? Tell them that I'm Venom and you two are infected as well? Tell them that Alexsi Sytsevich was Rhino and he sent a kill squad after us? That Felicia is Black Cat? Yes it sucks, but these people tried to kill me, tried to kill us. Felicia is dying and probably won't make it, and you're worried about the cops? Sorry, I love you I really do but you're being stupid right now. This," Peter motioned around him at the warehouse, "this keeps us safe, and right now I doubt the cops are looking for either a secret agent guy or Felicia. Sure, they'll want to talk to me but I've got two alibis, you and Gwen, and if you keep your shit together, then we'll be fine."
"Wait, you love me?" MJ was blushing and she leaned forwards excitedly.
"Of everything going on, that's what you take?" Peter was exasperated, he would do anything to keep them safe and murder was a small price for that.
"Oh well, excuse me for finally getting the words from the one person I wanted to hear them from, sorry it took you killing two shitheads to say it." MJ had stood up and was shouting at Peter
"Look, emotions are high enough, we all need to calm down and it'll be fine." Gwen had finished the task and had climbed back up to her deck, but really, if you two are gonna fight or fuck, please do it on your own house, I'm not cleaning up after you."
MJ stared wide-eyed at Gwen, and Peter just laughed. The tension in the air was gone, MJ rubbed her arm, "love you too, stupid shithead," she whispered.
Peter smiled at MJ, "love you too Gwen," but she just rolled her eyes. The symbskin flowed over Peter. "We will be back," and leaping down to the table, lifted the cocoon under one arm. He leapt up and out of the skylight exit in the roof.
"Is it going to be like this more often?" MJ asked Gwen, who shrugged.
As she sat staring at her cold coffee she really didn't know. "We both knew Pete was Venom, we both knew that he went out at night. Can we complain now? I mean, we knew Rhino and those assholes attacked him, that he wanted to get back at them."
MJ sighed, "I know, but murder. I didn't think about that, I didn't think it would go that far. It's Peter you know, stupid dorky lovable Peter, not some monster, not a killer."
Muse twisted and MJ's outfit changed into something more casual, she had been dressed for going out but now back in the warehouse she wanted to be comfy. "But I don't want to fight, Gwen. I've had enough of people like Flash," she rubbed her arm, "like my father, but this, this whole thing. Why is Felicia in a costume? Why are people trying to kill us?"
"I don't know," Gwen replied, "but Pete is right, that guy had a gun, MJ. He was going to kill us to get to Felicia and then kill her, even if Peter didn't kill him what? We couldn't let him go, he knew where we lived, he saw our faces. There'd be cops or who knows what else swarming this place."
"You think Felicia knows who he works for?"
"I don't know MJ. But we can ask her when she wakes up."
"If she wakes up," answered Peter.
He had only taken a few minutes to dive into the dock and secure the body to the riverbed, using more webs he'd wedged it down with added rocks and even after Gwen's caustic web fluid had done its work nothing would float to the surface.
He had also discovered a new power, as he dived down and his lungs burned he let out a breath and found he could breathe. Whatever his symbskin was made of allowed fresh clean air to pass through it without him drowning. It was just the wrong time for sharing his excitement about a new power.
Venom slipped back and the trio stared at one another as his symbskin retracted and became a set of clothes again. Gwen looked at MJ and then at the floor biting her lip, frowning.
"What did you do?" Peter asked her,
"She was dying Tiger, not just a little bit but really dying, so uh, we saved her."
"And by we you don't mean you two," he motioned between Gwen and MJ, who shook their heads.
"No, Muse, uh, Muse spawned, as Poison did. She told me how to do it, so don't give me that look, two deaths are more than enough, I'm not a killer, and neither should you be." MJ poked a finger at him, her anger was evident and Peter knew better than to push it.
Peter rubbed his forehead, Gwen had been on purpose even if it was the first time, MJ an accident but if it meant saving Felicia then it was fine. She was a friend, maybe not on the same level as Gwen or MJ but even then, MJ was only just coming back into their lives. Felicia had saved him from Flash on several occasions and even stayed in the maths club, even though Peter knew she was struggling.
"Fine. Shit," he swore and his shoulders slumped "but if she acts like you two we could be in real trouble."
"Oh don't worry Venom, You're not." A black and grey-skinned symbiote covered Felicia limped up the stairs and joined them on the deck. Her symbskin was black, with dark grey stripes, like tiger markings over her body, and a long flowing ponytail which glinted like fine silver thread hung from the top of her smooth black mask. As her yellow crescent eyes narrowed she spoke, "We are Huntress and you have some explaining to do Peter." her threatening demeanour was spoiled however as the trio stared at the small cat ears that adorned the top of her mask and as Gwen aww'd, Peter burst out laughing.
Huntress slipped out of her symbskin and Felicia limped over to the breakfast table. She was unamused at the trio's reaction to her presence, expecting more than being made fun of, but as she was sore and tired and they had coffee, she didn't care.
"So, you saved me by making me a symbiote huh?" She picked up Gwen's cup and sipped it and made a face, "ugh, doesn't anyone take sugar here?" snatching back her cup Gwen put a clean one down on the table and poured out a cup, nudging the sugar down at her.
"You know what they are?" Peter asked and Felicia nodded,
"You got Sytsevich's files and I have my own. Oscorp did illegal genetic research about five years ago, did some digging and John Jameson, the only survivor of the shuttle crash was quarantined," stirring several heaped spoons of sugar into her cup Felicia smiled after she sipped it. "My father uh worked in the hospital. Whatever was wrong with John kept him under isolation, nobody in or out. Oscorp even started a lab to study it and that's where my files end. My guess was it was the symbiotes. So, now we have Venom, Poison, and Widow. A trio of monsters chomping their way through New York." Felicia sat her cup down on the table, "sound about right?"
"Well, I do most the chomping but yeah, Gwen and MJ don't really do that sort of thing, but are you okay, I mean, it can be pretty rough, you should meditate or I can show you some exercises," Peter replied.
"Uh, Nah, I'll pass. I can feel her but she's not fighting me so I'll deal." Felicia waved a hand "You, however, are remarkably calm, so what gives, why are you different?"
"They share a genetic memory don't they, so you tell me," Peter answered, "but at a guess, whatever Oscorp did to me before the symbiote got me. How could you, without one, fight toe to toe with Venom and come out on top?"
"Illegal. Genetic. Research, geez Pete, you not listening? Norman had a hard-on for a super-soldier serum that was lost during World War Two, you should know what though, son of the infamous Parkers."
Peter drew a blank stare, "um, huh? Uncle Ben was a mechanic and I think Aunt May was just a housewife."
"No dumbass, your parents," Felicia drew herself forwards, "you really don't know huh?"
Peter rolled his eyes, "look, Felicia, I'm tired, just spill it okay and quit the shit, they saved your life, fucking act like it."
Felicia sighed, "No joy in the hunt huh? No wonder." Peter banged his hand on the table, "hey okay okay, shit. Richard Parker, Curt Conners, and Norman Osborn all worked together on serum, the Oscorp formula, but Curt disappeared after someone attacked him. Your parents died in that car crash and suddenly Norman drops it and starts working on his exo armour suit. It still got used though. Alexsi, Flint and Maxwell, all Enhanced, all working for Norman. The heist where you all got squashed, they took something from the vault, but I couldn't get into the police reports to find out what. If you can find out what they stole it ties them to Norman, find out what he's up to and it'll answer your questions about the symbiotes."
"Didn't you just do that, take the files, leave the cash, I've got enough to deal with without adding Norman Osborn to the pile." Peter pointed at the rucksack full of papers. "It's yours, don't care, don't want to care."
If Felicia already knew that they were symbiotes then she knew more than she was letting on. Right now Peter couldn't trust her. He knew her father was travelling but if he worked on a secret project for Osborn he doubted he'd be back anytime soon. Felicia was hiding something and he wanted her as far away from Gwen and MJ as possible.
"What do you mean you don't care, he had your parents killed, he's been killing-"
Peter stopped her by raising a hand.
"I'll stop you right there, again, I don't care. Normans a scumbag, I've always known he's a scumbag and if you're right, all this is proof he's a scumbag. But I can't fight Norman fucking Osborn, I don't have the resources, the manpower and even if he killed my parents, which he probably did. Me against Oscorp? Against however many Enhanced they have? I got my ass kicked last time, Alexsi is dead and I'll find Marco, Dillon, and Ock, and then they'll be dead. Felicia, I can't do the big picture right now. I don't have a big picture, this," he motioned, "this is just the beginning and yeah, in five-ten years I can go after Osborn but right now, he'll chew me up and there won't even be bones to spit out."
Felicia stared at him, with her arms crossed. He was right and it annoyed her he was right, Oscorp was a big fish in a bigger pond, even killing Osborn would make huge waves and the resulting vacuum would get a lot of people killed. The second richest man in America can't suddenly drop dead without the resulting power plays doing a lot of damage.
"So, let's join up, Oscorp being endgame but for now, Marko, Dillion, and whoever was under that boiler suit are our targets, take them out and we hurt Osborn a little, follow the trail and take out small bites, take out little chunks, one we can manage and he won't notice."
"Death by a thousand cuts huh?" MJ stated and as the three looked at her, "what? I read, assholes,"
Peter and Gwen laughed, and Gwen unattached herself from Peter to hug MJ.
"Fine, fine you win, give me the files, just," Felicia sighed, if they'd known where she was she'd been tailed, and the chances of her home being safe were now next to zero, "just set me up in one of these fancy boxes okay, look, I'll take the end on over there," and as she pointed to MJ's house, MJ shook her head and pointed to herself. "Fine!" Felicia groaned, "which ones are empty?" and Peter pointed to the offices on the other side of the building. "Oh, come on, those?" but as Peter scowled at her she raised her hands in surrender. "Those are fine, those are fine." She slumped and poured herself another coffee.
Peter stood up, finishing his coffee, "Training first and then work. Felicia, even with Huntress you've just been shot, so no joining in. I need to head to work, well, what's left of it," Gwen groaned, she hated the training,
"Plus you know, you just killed your boss, do you even have a job?" Gwen asked, to which Peter sighed. They both stood and stretched, moving over to where Peter was sitting.
"Can I at least watch?" and Peter shrugged as she stared hungrily at Gwen,
Guess the rumours were true, he thought, guess I'm not the one Huntress will go after.
Felicia stood and stretched gently. Holding her hand over her stomach as it complained. "Come on my pretties, let's get sweaty." Gwen rolled her eyes but MJ was almost glowing.
thank god, MJ though, I can get her to stop pestering me now she's got another target. Gwen wanted more of a relationship than MJ was willing to commit to, so with Felicia here and her apparent lesbian tendencies Gwen should be happy, she just hoped Peter wasn't the jealous type. MJ knew it was mean to think of Gwen like that, but her pushiness was sometimes too much for her to bear.
"Might as well, got 3 hours before I needed to get up for work," Gwen said pointing at her watch and MJ groaned at seeing the time, her shift at the diner started at 7 so she was in the same boat.
Peter stood and stretched, and as the three began to work out Felicia poured herself more coffee and enjoyed the show.
"So ladies?" Peter grinned as the three finished their routine, "shower?" and he didn't even wait for a reply before heading into his home. Felicia was reluctant to join them but as Gwen and MJ shrugged she shook her head and just stared at her cup,
"Can I uh crash in someone's bed for a bit?" she asked and MJ pointed over at her place,
"Just for now though, Peter, get a proper place set up for her."
While Peter, MJ, and Gwen showered, Felicia could hear them talking but right now she didn't care. She was alive and as she curled up in MJ's bed, all she could think about was how grateful she was to them all, and how to pay them back.