𝙁𝙇𝙊𝙍𝙀𝙎𝙀𝙉𝘾𝙀

End of the Beginning

Earth-938B. It looked completely different, despite being the same city. You had to admit, it was pretty cool. It reminded you of those futuristic sci-fi movies on television, with all the floating cars and sky-scrapers. The elevator was also impressive, all three of you standing on it while it moved upwards.

Realizing you hadn't introduced yourself, you turned to the men, pulling your mask off. "I'm _______."

"Oh, where are my manners? Sorry about that. I completely forgot about this whole secret identity thing." He pulled his mask off, and your whole world stopped.

Now you remember where you recognized him from. He looked just like...."Peter B. Parker. It's nice to meet you."

You couldn't breathe, couldn't move, and all of a sudden, your body was glitching, just like Octavius's. You almost unstuck to the elevator and fell, losing your balance, and stumbling over to Peter.

"Woah...you alright there? Miguel, get her a day pass." He looked exactly like your Peter, but older. Graying hair, stubble, and slight wrinkles, and his nose was a little more crooked. But those soft brown eyes were just like his...

You stepped away from him and let out a little cough, wiping away the tears in your eyes. Miguel handed you a blue band for you to put on, to keep you from glitching. "Yeah, sorry about that. Just got some allergies."

The elevator doors then opened, reaching the lobby. Quite a few other spider people are walking around, all different shapes, colors, and sizes. "Wow." You murmured, impressed.

"This is just the beginning of the recruits. We've got a couple hundred right now, but we're planning on going into the thousands." A girl told you, appearing on Miguel's shoulder. She looked like some sort of hologram avatar thing.

"What- Who are you?" You asked, tilting your head at her curiously. "I'm Lyla, Miguel's virtual assistant...And you must be _______ from Earth-168. I've heard lots about y-"

"Alright, that's enough. I'm cutting this tour short. ______, come with me..alone. " Miguel waved Lyla off, causing her to pout and disappear into thin air. He gave Peter a pointed look, one that he recognized way too well.

"Alright, well, I'll see you later kid." You looked over your shoulder at Peter, growing a little nervous. You didn't trust Miguel, and you didn't like him either. You definitely weren't going to be comfortable alone with him.

"You'll be fine." He mouthed to you, giving you a thumbs up as he walked away. You weren't so sure.

You followed him past the other spidermen, past the caged anomalies and a creepy Go-Home machine, past a small laboratory, where you finally reached your destination. The room was illuminated by multiple orange monitors which were on a platform that also had a desk and chair. You were too far away to see what was on them.

The doors shut behind you, leaving just you and him, alone together. Now without distractions and interruptions, his mask disappeared and he started to speak.

You stared at him, studying his features. You'd never say it out loud, but he was attractive, his features sharp but soft, high cheekbones, pouty lips...but there was something else that you noticed. He looked tired, dark rings under his dark scarlet eyes, something familiar about those eyes..a look..a feeling..You weren't sure.

"As you can tell, I'm in charge of this whole thing...And I know what happened to your husband."

"How?" Was all you could say in response, feeling your heart sink in your stomach.

"Lyla." He called, and as he spoke, holograms of multiple red webs appeared around the room, all connecting.

"All of our worlds are connected through something called The Canon. Chapters of our stories that we share and I know yours hasn't been easy." You stared at the events in front of you, feeling a little shiver go down your spine at his knowledge. Has he been watching you? And for how long has he known?

But you also felt relief at that. Your mother has always told you that everything happens for a reason, but you had a hard time believing that after everything you lost. And if it did happen for a reason, why were you being punished? Why were you cursed? It was comforting knowing that all those losses weren't for nothing.

"The original Spider-Man was Peter Parker. There are millions of other Peter Parkers out there, and his timeline is the most common. So if you join-"

"What makes you think I want to join you?" You remarked, raising an eyebrow. He let out a small huff, frowning at your interruption.

"There's a society full of people just like you, and you can make a difference, not just in your universe, but in everyone's, which is a pretty big positive." He snapped his fingers. "Lyla, watch."

"What am I, a dog? Could you at least have some manners?" She remarked. He sighed in frustration. "Can you please give me a watch?"

"Better." It was amusing to watch Miguel struggle over something as simple as having manners, but you can tell he's not a man of patience. He rolled his eyes, shook his head, and muttered something in Spanish under his breath.

He adjusted the settings of the watch, before handing it to you. "I know that it's a lot to think about, so I'm giving you a day to make up your mind. This watch will take you home. If you're out, take it off, and it'll self-destruct. If you're in, keep it on."

A portal opened in front of you, and you stared at it hesitantly, before looking back at him. You still had so many questions. You didn't know what to do.

"You should go. You've got a lot of decisions to make, after all." He told you. You got one last look at the solemn expression on his face, before stepping into the portal and leaving.

–

When you got back, it was nighttime. You knew you couldn't stay at home. You would just spend the night tossing and turning, thinking about what just happened, driving yourself crazy.

"Hey Dr.Brant, I was wondering if we could schedule another appointment? Something's come up and I would really like to talk to you as soon as I can." You left the voicemail while you swung through the city, before stopping at the subway,

After an hour-long ride and another forty-five minutes swinging, you finally reached the house, ringing the doorbell. A dog started barking loudly, and you could hear footsteps down the stairs, and to the front door, a familiar face appeared as she opened the door, wiping the sleep from her eyes. "_______?"

"Hey, Aunt May. Can we talk?"