The day that was a day that was extremely rough for everyone involved. A fun night had turned really tragic in a heartbeat. That just proved one thing that tragedy can be around the corner no matter how hard that you want to avoid it.
Harry Potter thought about what happened after that night. The man got away. The police could not hunt him down. All they had was a face to go on and the man must have gone underground. It had all of the classifications of a robbery that turned violent. He doubted that this man walked out the door intending to kill anyone.
He must have cased the place, making sure to stay under the radar. He waited until the Parkers were gone, all of them. The only problem was that his work ran longer than he did and he just was leaving when Ben and May got back.
Now there was a man who was dead. Harry stood underneath the shower. The water had long since stopped running. He thought about the waste of life that this was. This man might have repented his actions, he might not.
George Stacy said that they had every single intention to catch the man who did this and bring him to justice.
Harry made his way out of the bathroom. He had a quick message from Rose on the phone.
"Harry, I'm sorry what happened, please call me at noon your time if you can get the chance…..if not I'll see you at the funeral," Rose's voice said over the phone. "The twins send their love as well and say they hope to see you soon."
He had another message over the phone.
"I'm really sorry for what it's worth," Felicia said to him and Harry smiled. "Things are busy over here, otherwise, I'd come and see you. Tell Gwen I said hi and give May my condolences, might be over here a bit longer, but I'm sorry. Ben Parker was a good man and no one deserves that."
Harry smiled and was going to hang up the phone but there was one other message for him.
It would have to wait for a minute because Harry could smell cooking coming from the kitchen. He quickly got dressed and made his way up the stairs. He made a turn.
May already made breakfast, that much Harry could see. It was obvious thought that she was making so much more than that. She had a casserole set up on the table, and Harry could see another one and a third one. She was currently working on a fourth one.
Harry walked over towards her and pulled her way from the oven. His next action was to wrap his arms around her into a tight hug.
May flinched for a second, before she realized that it was Harry there. She had been in her zone ever since that happened.
If only the perp had been caught by the police the first time through, Ben might still be alive. That was something that she reminded herself of.
"It's going to be alright, he wouldn't have wanted you to go to pieces on his account," Harry told her gently.
May shook her head and she allowed a soft sigh to escape her mouth. "I know that, but…."
"You know that, you've been cooking since before I went to bed, and you're cooking since I got up," Harry said. He made his mother look him in the eye. "You haven't got any sleep since the moment that we got back from the Watsons, have you?"
The look on May's face told Harry pretty much everything that he needed to know. There was a moment of protest that threatened to come from her. Harry decided that he wasn't going to have any of that right now.
"I know that this is your way of coping," Harry told her.
"Yes, I'm glad that you realize that," May said, and she could see those eyes, Lily's eyes, stare back at her.
Lily always had that uncanny way of guilt tripping people and making sure that they did what was best for them.
Harry inherited that from his birth mother. "But, you know that you need some sleep. I don't want to have to worry about you being sick, you know."
"But there's too much that I have to do with…."
"Ben's funeral, I know, I'll take care of it, I'll take care of everything, trust me," Harry told her.
May raised her eyebrow when she looked back at him. "I do trust you."
"Then why aren't you going off to get some sleep?" Harry asked her, with a smile and May shook her head at him.
"Just as bad as Lily," May muttered underneath her breath.
"I'll take that as a compliment," Harry told her.
May was about ready to walk off. She stopped short and turned around. "Take it out of the oven in about an hour."
"No problem," Harry said. In response, May walked off, leaving him alone in the kitchen.
Harry had a few phone calls to make and maybe a couple to return if he could. The first thing was to call Norman Osborn and tell him that he wouldn't be into work for the next couple of days.
He decided to grab a few muffins and some orange juice. He would have to have his strength if he wanted to deal with this entire mess regarding planning for the funeral.
Donald Menken casually walked up the stairs. He nearly bumped into Peter's assistant, maybe his pet project. He wasn't sure which, but she obviously fancied herself to take his job one day. Menken was keeping a close watch on her never the less.
He couldn't even be bothered to remember her name. It wasn't important. He didn't have the time to deal with Peter's lapdog.
"Yes, may I help you," she said when he nearly bumped into her. She wasn't in a good mood and she didn't have the time to deal with Norman Osborn's lapdog.
"I need you to relay a message to Mr. Parker-Osborn," Menken commented to her crisply as if he was giving the latest weather report or sport's score. "His uncle, Ben Parker, was shot and killed in a botched robbery last night."
She dropped her cane to cup her hand over her mouth. Flushing in embarrassment, she bent over, nearly falling over to pick it up once Menken offered her no assistance.
"That's awful," she said in shock and awe.
"Yes, very much so," Menken said dryly. Mr. Osborn did give Harry Evans-Parker the time off that he needed. Something that he would do for very few people. That just showed them without a shadow of a doubt how much Norman Osborn valued Harry's contributions to his company. It was best for business if he remained happy.
"Do you want me to tell him?" she asked.
"Yes, I wouldn't have told you if I didn't," Menken commented to her. "This has been a stimulating chat, but I have more important things to do. Send Mr. Parker-Osborn my condolences and I'm sure his father would have liked to pass them on as well."
His condolences sounded very shallow and almost like they were done out of obligation. That being said the scarred brunette woman hobbled forward like an obedient and dutiful dog. She raised her free hand and knocked three times evenly on the door.
"Unlocked."
She knew that. The door pushed open and she walked into the office. She only walked as far as she had to shut the door.
The woman stopped at the edge of the office. The cane clutched in her hand when she leaned forward. Her knee bothered her something fierce because of the change of the weather.
Peter Parker-Osborn looked outside of the window into New York City, almost like he was in deep thought. The girl waited patiently to be acknowledged and to be given permission to take a seat. She had been on her feet all morning running around the building.
The pain pills that she took only eased the pain somewhat. Her abilities that she couldn't use because of the nerve damage in her arms burned through them quickly.
"Yes, what is it?"
"Sir, it was your uncle, he was shot last night," she told him.
Peter looked around. Despite his problems with Ben Parker as of late, he didn't want ill will to be visited on the man.
"Which hospital is he in?" Peter asked. He could see the look of despair on her face. He cut straight to the chase. "He's dead, isn't he?"
She nodded slowly. The potential heir apparent to the Osborn legacy said.
"Doctor Evans-Parker is taking care of all of the funeral arrangements," she said, checking the note that Menken slipped her.
"Let him know that if there's anything to help," Peter commented swiftly. He knew that Harry would be good to making sure everything got in line for the funeral. He would also make sure that his aunt didn't overwork or over stress herself. "And have they had any leads on the bastard that did this?"
"No," she told him swiftly. "I don't really know that much more about it. There's just been a blip in the news and a picture of the guy. A warning that he's considered armed and dangerous, so he shouldn't be approached."
Peter almost thought that there was a word of warning in her words. His protégé/assistant looked back at him nervously.
"I can see if I can find out more if you want me too," she suggested, trying to look like she was helpful.
"Do that, please," Peter told her. "And after you do that, find out when the funeral's going to be and call down the limo driver. I should be there, to say goodbye if anything else."
He wished that he would have made amends when Uncle Ben was still alive. That being said, there wasn't anything that could stop him from paying his respects.
"I'll do it, and I'm sorry," she told him. "Sir?"
"I heard you," he commented when he looked out the window again. His thoughts were far different than they were before.
With any luck, this man would be punished to the fullest extent. Hopefully he would rot in the deepest darkest hole. There were very few good men in this world and when one of them died, it was a tragic moment.
Peter was left alone in his office. He wasn't particularly close to the man to be honest. That being said the fact that he was murdered really did weigh something fierce down on his mind.
News spread rather quickly and Liz Allan took the short walk down the street to the Parker Residence. She looked around nervously.
The blonde girl had her hair tied back and she wore a very stylish white blouse and a pair of black cut off denim shorts with designer boots. She was the type of girl who had a purse that matched pretty much every pair of shoes that she had.
She inherited the role of Queen Bee of Midtown High School after Felicia Hardy graduated. Being the Head Cheerleader, she figured that she would be in line for the role rather easily.
Of course, she thought that Gwen and MJ might be just a bit more adept at such things. If only they cared about such things.
Liz made her way to the Parker Residence. She had heard about Ben Parker being killed and she wanted to offer her condolences in person. It was all over the paper and the manhunt for the man who did this. George Stacy held a press conference saying that the man in question was a danger to the community and needed to be brought to justice.
The fact that a relative of one of New York's most prominent young citizens got shot and killed got all kinds of people worried. It was a tragedy in its own right however.
Liz casually walked her way up the steps and nearly stopped at the edge of them. She raised her hand and slowly knocked on the door. She whistled and waited patiently for Harry to come and greet her.
"Hey, Liz."
Liz turned around and grinned. She should have known that Harry was out and about.
She didn't know Harry as well as Gwen and MJ did. She did know him well enough though to be smitten with him. He tutored her and still did in a couple of her classes. The Midtown administration had been cracking down on academics and the school wanted their athletes to get the best grades possible. It would look everyone look good by comparison.
"Hey, Harry, how are you doing?"
Liz would have been lying if she didn't admit that Harry haunted her dreams after what she caught him and Gwen doing the other night. She did have a few dreams here and then but they grew more vivid.
She could see Harry sitting down on the porch bench. There was a handset next to him, along with several files and notes. A cell phone also sat next to him.
"I'm doing about as well as could be expected given the circumstances," Harry said to her. "I'm surprised to see that you're here….."
Liz interrupted his statement right away. "I heard about what happened. I just wanted to stop by and check up to see how you're doing after everything."
She leaned down with a smile on her face. Her arms wrapped around him rather tightly. There was a moment where she realized that this positioning might not be the best for this. That being said, she felt Harry's face press against her stomach.
Liz blushed rather prominently when she realized that Harry's face may have gotten a little too up close and personal to a certain part of her if she had maneuvered the hug a little lower.
"So, honestly, how are you doing?" Liz asked him.
"Lots to do, for a funeral being arranged, I've been on the phone all day," Harry said. He just got off the phone with Peter's personal assistant who bombarded him with twenty questions regarding what he knew. It took almost forty five minutes before they came to the point that Harry didn't know much more than the news media officially did and the funeral was still being scheduled.
Liz decided to allow herself a moment to stand there.
"Sit down, make yourself at home."
Harry cleared off a space for Liz to sit down and she did so in good grace.
Gwen Stacy felt a maelstrom of emotions in the back of her mind. She walked by in a zombified state. There was an entire lot of getting her head in check. The problem she saw was that her head kept getting messed up and it was hard for her to concentrate.
She wasn't in full blown guilt trip mode. Not being in full blown guilt trip mode wasn't exactly a good thing though. There was still some guilt that weighed on her.
Gwen hated playing the "what if" game because that never ended really well for her. She chewed down on her lip.
'Stop beating yourself up for this,' Gwen thought to herself. She shook her head in a vain attempt to clear negative thoughts. 'This is not the time, this is certainly not the time. Oh god, you're going to be a wreck and it's going to be worse for Harry.'
She was pretty sure that Harry was able to hold it together fairly well. There were times where he was under pressure and it scared her almost how well he held it together.
Hell Gwen was going to have to go as far to say that if he wasn't able to hold it together, then she wouldn't be here having her pity party right about now. The blonde frowned extremely deeply when she arched her neck back.
'Okay deep breaths, remember not to lose it,' Gwen thought to herself mentally.
She felt bad about missing Harry's call from earlier. She didn't know if she could keep it together over the phone with her state of mind. After a large breakfast, a shower, and putting a dent in a cinderblock with her fist, Gwen thought that she was better off with talking things to Harry.
She jumped over the garbage can that someone laid out in the middle of the street. The funny thing was that there was a buzzing in her head that caused her to come back to life.
'That's an unfortunate near miss,' Gwen thought to herself. She struggled hard to keep it together with herself. The blonde wrenched her head back after a second.
She shook her head and made her way to the front door step. It was not time for her self loathing. Harry was the one that lost a family member. Gwen decided that it was time to see things there.
She stopped there and she spotted Liz there. The blonde frowned, wondering what the cheerleader was doing there.
'Beaten to the punch with the comforting thing, I see,' Gwen thought to herself, balling up her fists.
She nearly put her fist through someone's new car in frustration. Gwen took several deep breaths. The breathing exercises Harry taught her worked wonders in keeping her temper in check along with her hormones.
She wasn't blaming Liz for comforting Harry. No, Gwen blamed herself for wasting a good chunk in the morning wallowing in her own guilt. It wasn't jealousy because she knew that many women would be entangled in Harry's web. It was anger at herself.
Gwen stepped forward and gave a deeper sigh. She wondered if Harry or Liz noticed her.
The blonde made her way back home. The wind blew in her face. She still walked in a daze.
There was a message on her cell phone. Gwen decided that she would ignore it for now. It was just best that she get something else to eat.
Gwen wondered if her powers burned more calories when she was angsting up a storm. If that was the case, she would have to keep them in check. Having a hyper metabolism sucked in certain instances and this was one of them.
She really had no choice. It was a call from Peter's friend…Harmony, wasn't it? She couldn't recall her name off hand. Gwen figured that she might have been doing some digging about something on Peter's behalf.
Gwen thought she was the persistent little toady, trying to call every two minutes, even when she was eating. At first, she was amused. Then when the calls persisted throughout the lunch time, she was getting really, really, annoyed.
She would answer, she supposed, right after she got something to eat.
"Yes," Gwen said curtly.
"It's urgent," she said, sounding irritable that Gwen left her hanging so long. "Peter wants to know everything and you were there when the suspect escape. Can you give me a full description of the guy who you saw who did this?"
"I've got the composite sketch right here and the picture, I'll just send it to you," Gwen said. This was the type of girl who would get on her nerves just on sheer principle and she had been having such a shit morning she would lash out at anyone.
"Oh, that's great, you know you really should answer your phone more often, because this would have been done by now," the girl lectured over the phone.
"Excuse me that I have more pressing business given that my boyfriend's uncle died," Gwen said to her snappily. "And did you get what I sent you?"
"Oh, I got it, thank you, and if I need anything further, I'll call you, so stay by your phone," she commented in a clear voice.
"Looking forward to it," Gwen dead panned and she hung up the phone. "Bitch."
Liz decided to take a seat on Harry's lap when she perched herself on the bench. The young man pulled his arms around her. It didn't matter the position. In fact it was the best for practicality because of the fact that there were papers spread over the bench for all to see.
The young blonde Cheerleader allowed herself to stretch her legs. She could feel Harry's hands move in front of her. She decided to deflect herself away from certain thoughts that had been born from her observation the other night. It would be best for both of them if she asked a few questions.
"So, what are you doing anyway?" Liz asked him.
"I'm going through some stuff for the funeral, and also some things that the burglar tried to steal," Harry said. "He dropped the bag that he had when he…..well when he committed the murder."
Liz turned her head slightly to face Harry. He got an inventory of everything that was stolen out in front of him.
"Some of my mother's jewelry, some silverware, and oddly enough, something that Richard Parker left in the house, notes from his job, the burglar tried to take that."
Liz's curiosity was piqued at that moment. She raised her eyebrow and hmmed, with interest.
"Was there anything of value taken?"
"Nothing that I can see your average person using," Harry said. "There was a formula for a super sticky adhesive that Richard scrawled on a napkin."
Liz shrugged, she couldn't see anything that your average thief would want for that.
"So, you've been keeping busy with everything, it hasn't really had a chance to sink in, has it?" Liz asked him.
"It sunk in well enough last night, I just have to make sure that my mother doesn't do anything," Harry said. "She already made enough food to feed an army in there."
"Well some people cope with stress in different ways I guess," Liz said, with a frown.
She couldn't even begin to guess how they were feeling. It was a senseless crime and she hoped to see the person who did this be brought to justice. Hell the entire community wanted to see these people brought to justice.
Harry had a few messages from people about condolences. Obviously given that he was well known in certain circles, news like this was going to spread fast.
"So, Harry, do you mind if…."
The question was lost forever in the annals of time. A limo pulled up and Harry recognized it immediately. The driver exited the limo, walking over to the side and opening the door. Peter was the first person to exit the limo. He reached into the door and helped his assistant out of the limo.
"Do you have your cane?" Peter muttered underneath his breath and she nodded.
"Yeah I got it, it's fine," she commented. She leaned on her cane and hobbled over. She was in a bit of a short mood this afternoon.
"So, I figure that you were busy, but I need to swing by and talk to you," Peter said and he looked at the young woman who was with Harry. It was entirely unusual for Harry to be in the company of a gorgeous woman, in fact it was expected. "Forgive me, if I haven't…..had the pleasure."
"This is Liz Allan, Liz, this is Peter Osborn, my cousin, and this is Peter's assistant…"
Peter cut off the introduction before Harry could finish it. "So this is the famous Liz Allan that my brother was telling me all about."
"Oh, he has?" Liz asked.
"Yes, but….do you mind if I borrow Harry for a moment from you?" Peter asked her.
"It's quite alright," Liz said, waving her hand towards him. She was left with Peter's assistant. Liz shifted herself, when she saw that Peter's assistant was very interested in what Harry was working on. She blocked the bushy haired girl's view. "So, you've worked with Peter?"
"Yes, that's correct," she replied, annoyed that she couldn't get a closer look at what Doctor Evans-Parker was working on. "I've known him since….college."
"Those are some nasty scars," Liz muttered and the girl looked very annoyed. "I'm sorry, I wasn't really judging, even though some people might."
"Yes, I'm well aware," she commented, turning away on her cane. She wondered what Peter was talking to him about and how long it was going to take. "I got them in primary school….junior high or Middle school for you Americans, isn't it?"
"Yeah, I think it is," Liz commented. She wanted to ask who gave them to her but she knew better than to press the issue. She struck a nerve.
"So, I swear, if there's anything that I can do to bring Ben's killer to justice, just let me know," Peter said. He leaned in close to Harry so the two girls couldn't hear him. "OsCorp has connections and we can find out who did this. He can be put in a hole that he won't be getting out of any time soon."
Harry assumed that he met some high security prison, but there was something about what Peter said that made him unsure if that was what he meant. There was just something about his tone.
"What's the deal with her today?" Harry asked.
"Oh…..well your girlfriend snubbed her apparently when she didn't answer the phone the first time that she rang," Peter said. "And I swear, I didn't ask her to call Gwen and pester her about this. She must be feeling guilty enough as it is. She took it upon herself to do some detective work. I'll have a talk with her later, and it won't be happening again. Trust me."
Harry trusted Peter to an extent but things had changed. He was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.
"Wait in the car," Peter told his assistant. He didn't want to say anything with people outside of the family around, but he was pretty sure that Menken or Norman put her up to what she did today.
Harry wondered if he should tell Peter that the burglar tried to steal some of his birth father's notes. Even if it was useless, Harry decided to hold that information off for later.
"I'll see you in a couple of hours, something's come up," Peter said to him. "Remember, if you need any help…."
Harry smiled and waved him off. The two of them said their goodbyes.
"I better get going, sorry again," Liz said, giving him a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek when she went off. "I'll see you around."
Gwen made her way back to her apartment. She was in a bit better spirits.
The blonde pushed open the door and didn't even walk three feet into the room when she saw her father sitting at the table. She frowned when she looked at him. He looked like a zombie at the table. Gwen wondered if he had been living entirely off of coffee as of late.
George Stacy acknowledged the presence of his daughter standing in the door. He frowned when he saw her approaching.
"Are you okay?" George asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine, I was just surprised, that's all," Gwen said and she got one of those Dad looks. "That's really all."
"If you insist," George said and Gwen sauntered over. She took the empty chair across from him.
"Has there been any news?"
"Gwen," George told his daughter. "You know how I don't like bringing my work home. Especially given that this is an actively ongoing case."
Gwen slowly folded her arms and gave her father one of those looks. It was the type of look that could burn a hole through solid steel. A hardened cop like George Stacy could even handle so much.
He sighed and finally caved in.
"We don't have much to go on but they've finally been able to match the photo," George commented. "The man in the photo is a career criminal known as Dennis Carradine. He's been in for burglary, armed robbery, car jacking, and he even ripped off a wrestling promoter for his money."
Gwen might have been impressed by this given normally it was the wrestling promoters than ripped off the talent.
"He seems to have skipped down or more likely, had some friends that allowed him to disappear into the criminal underworld," George said, mentally weighing how much he could tell his daughter. "His partner is an entirely different matter entirely."
"What about his partner?" Gwen asked him.
"Herman Schultz, he was an inventor of a sonic drill at Tri-Corp, but he was fired for having an attitude problem and also his experiments were a safety hazard," George said. "This was about three or four years back. He turned to less than savory practices in the meantime. He's been working with Carradine for about six months now."
"You can question him, right?" Gwen asked and she recognized the look on her father's face. "That's not that simple, isn't it?"
"No, it's not that simple," George told her. "There was a miscue with the paperwork and Schultz walked as a free man. None of the charges could stick. And now he's disappeared and no one has any clue what he's been up to."
Gwen crossed her arms, trying not to scowl too deeply. This was not promising news. The one lead to the man had done this disappeared because someone fucked up.
George sensed his daughter's discomfort. He calmly got up, wrapped his arms around her and swept her into a quick hug. He leaned down and kissed her on the forehead.
"Don't worry about it," George commented to her. It was obvious that Gwen was worrying about her and her latest intense glare showed him all of that. "We're the ones that have to worry about it. Just look after Harry. We'll catch him, we're the professionals, that's what we do."
George yawned.
"And now I need to try and get some sleep," George commented. "Good night, Gwen."
"Good night, Dad," Gwen said and she wished that she sounded more chipper.
Gwen made her way over to the couch. She sank down it in the fit of angst. The problem was that while her father told her to not to worry about it, she did worry about it.
She also worried about what might happen with the consequences of giving Peter's aide that photo. Gwen wasn't in the best of mind and she was very annoyed with the person's persistence.
'Guess it's too late for take backs now,' Gwen thought to herself.
Her eyes shifted towards the open file folder that was over on the table in front of the couch. Gwen knew that she shouldn't pry. Her father left it lying around and didn't pick it up in his tired state.
It was almost like the devil and the angel were going to war with her.
'One little peak won't hurt,' Gwen said.
The devil k'oed the angel in the most figurative sense of the word. The blonde picked up the folder. For all she knew, this particular file didn't have anything to do with anything.
It did have everything to do with anything. She spotted everything that she needed. There was a report about the crime, a status report. There was also the list of known associates of Carradine and Schultz. There was also known locations of where they did to business.
The first smile of the day crossed over Gwen's face.