Just as the car was about to reach Queens, Iron Man pulled Peter aside and had him record a short "alibi" video.
Mainly, it was to keep Aunt May from worrying.
Peter thought about it and figured that made sense, so he went along with it.
After that, Iron Man told him that Happy would be his exclusive point of contact.
If they needed Peter for anything, someone would reach out to him.
As Peter was getting out of the car, Iron Man noticed he seemed distracted and probably guessed what was on his mind. He gave him a reminder:
"Remember, don't do anything I would do, and don't do anything I wouldn't do."
Peter frowned. "Then… what can I do?"
"No, no. Somewhere in between those two is a gray area—that's your operating space." Iron Man didn't want to crush his enthusiasm.
Peter nodded thoughtfully. "Oh~"
Did this mean he had just gotten official clearance to act?
From now on, when he operated on the streets, he wouldn't just be some vigilante—he'd be acting as a reserve Avenger!
And how big was that "gray area"?
Heh… even Iron Man himself didn't seem to know.
Peter chuckled to himself, already daydreaming about the bright future ahead.
Suddenly, Iron Man leaned toward him.
Peter thought he was going in for a goodbye hug, but Iron Man just reached across to open the car door.
"I wasn't going to hug you—we're not that close yet."
Peter: "…"
When Peter got home, Aunt May still wasn't back from work.
So he lay on his bed and continued tinkering with his web-shooters.
If it weren't almost dinnertime, he definitely would've gone out to test them rather than just adjusting them at home.
It had to be said—this new set of web-shooters was amazing. He couldn't get enough of them!
He could already imagine it: once he mastered every single web-combo mode, and fully understood the tech in his suit, he'd be unstoppable!
Click!
While Peter was happily experimenting, the door suddenly opened and Aunt May walked in.
Peter jumped, his brain running a hundred miles a minute, then quickly lowered the hand wearing the web-shooter and covered his eyes with his other hand, pretending.
"Peter, you—" Aunt May started to say "you're back," but stopped when she saw his odd pose. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing, just got into a fight," Peter replied, telling a lie that wasn't technically a lie—he had fought someone, actually more than one person.
"Who was it? Who hit you?"
"Some guys."
"'Some guys'? Names?"
"Uh… Steve, Scott, Sam… I'm not exactly sure."
"Steve? You mean Steve from 12C? The one with the buck teeth? I've heard he's trouble. Scott and Sam are his bad-influence buddies?" Aunt May turned to the kitchen to grab a wet towel.
"No, no! Not him," Peter said quickly, startled that she actually matched the names to real people. "You wouldn't know him—he's from Brooklyn. Yeah, Brooklyn."
Aunt May came back and handed him the towel. "I hope you gave him a piece of your mind."
Peter pressed the towel to his face before she could get a good look at his "injury."
"Of course! I landed a few punches. Really. It's just that his friend is huge, like really huge."
Aunt May ruffled his hair, deciding not to inspect the wound. "So, what's for dinner, my little tough guy?"
"I want shrimp risotto!" That was one of Aunt May's specialties.
"I'll check the fridge to see if we've got the ingredients," she said, leaving the room.
"Close the door for me!"
Bang.
After dinner, Peter went right back to tinkering with the web-shooters.
Around 10 PM, he finally found a chance to put on his suit and sneak out, ready to play hero—and, of course, test out his new toys.
But for some reason, Queens was unusually peaceful that night.
Peter wandered around for hours without finding a single incident.
Well… no news was good news, right?
But for someone eager to try out his new gear, this was kind of a letdown.
By around 1 AM, with nothing to do, Peter headed home, took off his suit, and lay in bed.
"Oh right—let's check that web."
He closed his eyes.
Huh?
Next to the dim light representing the Shadow Spider-Man, another glowing dot had appeared.
Peter's heart leapt.
This meant he could travel to another Spider-Man's world, experience his life, and gain part of his abilities!
No time like the present.
A quick glance at the clock—1:13 AM. As long as he was back before 7, he'd be fine.
That gave him roughly six hours of "alternate world experience time."
He made a mental note, then closed his eyes and guided the glowing web thread in his mind toward the new light.
Snap!
The moment the thread connected with the light, Peter "fell asleep"—
—and immediately woke up again!
When he came to, he was crouched on the edge of a building, wearing a teal hoodie, jeans, and a crossbody backpack.
"Uh… what kind of look is this? Neighborhood-friendly big brother?" he muttered.
Fragments of memory began flooding into his mind.
Sure enough, this body was also called Peter Parker. Maybe every Spider-Man was Peter Parker?
Or maybe every Peter Parker became Spider-Man?
Why was that?
Maybe if he experienced enough worlds, he'd find the answer.
He kept absorbing the memories.
This world's Peter Parker was surprisingly similar to him—he'd only recently gotten his spider powers and had built his own web-shooters and web formula.
But this Peter was a year older—already 17.
He had a girlfriend named Gwen Stacy.
That evening, Gwen had invited him over for dinner. During the meal, her father—Captain George Stacy—brought up Spider-Man, calling him a menace to society.
Peter couldn't help himself and argued back in Spider-Man's defense.
The result? The nice family dinner went up in flames.
Still, something good came out of it.
When Gwen questioned him afterward, Peter revealed his true identity to clear up the misunderstanding.
And one thing Captain Stacy said at the table stuck with him:
"That guy wears a mask, looks like a fugitive, and the crooks he catches all seem to be cut from the same mold—as if he's just out for personal revenge!"
—End of chapter—
Author's Note:
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~ Tenacious Hare 🥕❤️