Ultimate Spider-Woman: Change With the Light

Chapter 13: Collateral Damage

Gwen Stacy rubbed her eyes as she leaned back in her chair. Sitting at a table in the Empire State University registrar's office, Gwen was filling out a series of application forms for financial aid, having suddenly found herself owing more than $5,000 in tuition after her father had cancelled the payments he had been making for her. Aunt Nancy had helped explain many of the forms to her, but filling them out was still a massive headache.

Now, of course, having been forced to borrow all this money to pay her tuition, she was not only going to be broke but up to her eyes in debt, since unless she found more modeling or acting work, she would have no other way of paying her tuition and other bills. Gwen had already become resigned to the fact that she'd have to move back in with Aunt Nancy, Jill and her mother, given how she'd no longer be able to make rent payments on her apartment.

She was brought out of her reverie by a familiar voice who cut in on her, half in surprise and half in amusement.

"I never thought I'd see you here," the man behind her remarked, as Gwen got up and turned around to see who was talking to her. "It just goes to show you, the economy's hitting our nation's Prom Queens just as hard."

Gwen glared at Harry Osborn, who only smiled in response.

SPIDER-WOMAN #13

"COLLATERAL DAMAGE"

"Don't even start with me, Harry," Gwen muttered, as she moved to sit down again. "I have enough problems without having to deal with your crap."

"Funny, I could say the same thing about you," Harry retorted, not backing down an inch. "And that's not the only thing-remember how you told me about how Liz was a saint in putting up with my bullshit? Well, you were right...but again I could say the same thing about Liz being a saint in putting up with your crap, too."

Gwen recoiled in surprise.

"...What do you mean?" she asked slowly, no anger in her voice this time.

"You know exactly what I mean," Harry told her bluntly. "That's all you ever do when you're with Liz, complaining about your problems and snapping at her when she tries to help you."

Gwen had no response to this at first.

"...You don't know what my father's been putting us through," she finally said defensively.

"You think you're the only one with problems?" Harry asked her. "According to my old man, I'm a disgrace to the family name. Kitty still has to put up with mutant bigots harassing her. Peter Parker has to work two jobs to be able to afford to come to ESU. And you think Liz has forgotten how her sister died in that molten metal accident?"

"I..." Gwen began, before she sat back in silence. Her first reflex was to snap back at Harry, but as she thought more about it, she realized he was right.

I haven't exactly been Friend of the Year, she thought to herself. Blowing off Randy when he asks me out, not listening to Kitty or Liz when they might want to get something off their chests...

Her calm, contemplative look told Harry everything he needed to know.

"And like I said before," he finally added, "you were right about me not treating Liz the way I should. Makes you wonder what she ever saw in either of us," he said with a half-smile, before he headed for the exit.

Gwen watched him go, before shifting her attention back to her application forms. Her frustration began to rise up again, but she took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down.

Taking a long, hard look at the papers in front of her, she set back to work on them with a renewed vigor.

Consolidated Edison, or "Con Ed" as it was commonly referred to by New Yorkers, was one of the biggest energy companies in the world, supplying energy to millions of customers in New York City itself and the surrounding Westchester County, possessing billions in assets and employing a small army of workers.