Ultimate Spider-Woman: Change With the Light

Chapter 7: Polar Opposites

Hey, Gwen!" Jill hugged Gwen Stacy as she came into the Stacys' townhouse. With final exams over and the Christmas holidays now underway, Gwen was coming to stay with her mother, aunt Nancy and cousin Jill until classes resumed in January.

"How have you been?" Helen Stacy asked her daughter quietly as they embraced.

"A lot better, now that I'm here," Gwen smiled. "It's so nice to see you again."

"How were exams?" Aunt Nancy asked as she came into the foyer and hugged Gwen in turn.

"Stressful," Gwen sighed, "but I think I did pretty well, all things considered. I even got some acting work," she continued, telling them about the documentary Randy Robertson was filming, and the role she had gotten in it.

"You going to be hanging out with Harry and Liz at all?" Jill asked her.

Gwen was caught off guard by the question for a moment.

"Probably…why?" she finally replied.

"Because I want to see Harry again," Jill sighed wistfully.

A rare smile found its way onto Gwen's face, before she burst out giggling.

It was truly good to be home.

SPIDER-WOMAN #7

"POLAR OPPOSITES"

"Any news from Karen Page?" Aunt Nancy asked Gwen as they did the dishes after supper that night.

"She said we have a really strong case," Gwen said as she scrubbed a frying pan, "but I'm not so sure we should go through with it."

"What do you mean?" Nancy asked in amazement.

Gwen told her aunt about her father's e-mail.

"He mentioned how complicated it could be," Gwen muttered as she handed the frying pan over to Nancy and began cleaning the stew pot. "And that it could be far more complicated than we originally thought. You can guess what that means," she sighed, her shoulders slumping in frustration.

"Do you want me to tell your mother?" Nancy asked, before Gwen shook her head vigorously.

"No!" she exclaimed, before calming down. "No, we can't let her know about this, she couldn't take it," Gwen insisted. "We'll find a way to get through this…I'll handle it."

"What will you do, then?" Nancy asked.

"Whatever I have to," Gwen said determinedly, fire in her eyes.

She took a deep breath, as Nancy placed a sympathetic hand on her shoulder.

Lost in thought as she walked into the Coffee Bean, Gwen just barely managed to react in time before she bumped into a young woman with neck-length hair dyed a deep black, very pale skin, and dark clothing. The young woman recoiled in surprise, dropping the books she carried in her arms.

Mumbling an apology as she bent down to help the other girl pick up the books, Gwen was surprised to recognize the girl as Maguire "Maggie" Beck, a student in her Drama class known for her strange personality and propensity for Goth music. Maggie blinked in surprise as she recognized Gwen, quickly putting her copy of Sleepy Hollow in her shoulder bag as she got to her feet.

"Gwen?" Maggie started, raising an eyebrow. "What brings you here?"

"I'm meeting a friend for lunch," Gwen said quickly. She turned to leave, until Maggie caught her by the arm.

"Let me guess…they're not here, are they?" she smiled, as Gwen looked around to see that Liz had not yet arrived. "I just got here too-want some coffee until they arrive? I'm buying," she offered with a slight grin.