Peter looked at the gathered crowd, “uh, what’s up?” and Gwen held out a hand. Peter shrugged and took it.

“No you dumbass, card.” and Peter frowned, it was then he noticed everyone was wearing clothes for heading out, even Laura and Wanda were wrapped up for the cold.

Peter frowned but took his bank card from the drawer, handing it to Gwen. “So, want to explain?” and she smiled, 

“Aunt May is coming over,” and even MJ smiled at him knowingly, “So, we are heading out to get Laura and Wanda the things they need for moving in, while you talk to your aunt.”

Peter chuckled, “So your hiding?” and Gwen nodded,

“Damn right we are. Aunt May is scary and you want to tell her about Laura and Nat? Cause I sure as shit don’t.” While Gwen had a point, it was going to be difficult to let Aunt May know about Nat. She was still wrapped in the War Widow armour being tended in Peter's apartment, and while he could pass the suit off as a replica, mentioning the woman inside was a problem. Laura was a different matter.

“Look, we know okay, we all feel it too. Once she wakes up we’ll plan and have a huge family dinner okay? But right now,” and Gwen shook her head, “spend some time with your aunt, Pete. You know you need to too.”

Laura moved out from behind Felicia, this was her first official outing with the group and she was excited to be taken shopping around New York. She looked over at the apprehensive Peter and fist-pumped, “Monkey strong together!” she yelled and as they all looked at her, 

MJ, looked a bit sheepish, “yeah so we might have watched Planet of the Apes, so, uh, expect more of that,” but Peter laughed and shook his head.

“I’ll be fine guys, okay.” and as he gave them all a reassuring hug, and those who wanted a kiss, they filed out of the warehouse to take Wanda and Laura around New York.

Aunt May tapped a finger on the table. Peter had made coffee as normal but was a little unhappy everyone else had come up with an excuse and vacated the warehouse for the day.

“So?” she asked him expectantly, and Peter sat down and made himself comfortable. “How many more are there?” and as she looked around the warehouse she noticed that there were a few extra chairs at the breakfast table now.

“Uh, two. But they hid so we could talk,” and Aunt May nodded. She would be having words with Peter before she had words with Gwen and MJ. She understood that he lived a different life from what she expected, but now it was up to six women. Even though she had a limit, as long as he was happy she was happy, she just wanted to make sure that they were happy as well. Of course, it was also to make sure that they were up to her standards. 

Peter might be okay with someone willing to bed him, but they might be after some hidden fortune he had. As she looked around the warehouse even she could tell he was living well above his means. Six tenants or not.

“The girls want to have a family dinner, so they can meet you properly. I’ll cook and uh, you can meet Laura and Natasha.” Peter looked at his cup, “but Natasha was hurt. She’s an agent and she helped take down the Triskelion. She’s in a coma right now and we,” Peter’s voice cracked as he tried to hide the pain he felt each time he looked at her still form, “we don’t know when she’ll wake up,”

“Was she the only one?” and Peter nodded.

“We were safe, well, as safe as we could be when it happened. Nat was there though, and she saved everyone, please Aunt May, just don’t,” and she sighed and shook her head,

“I never expected you to have so many Peter. I mean, it’s nice that so many women find you attractive, but nothing prepares you for this. How do I plan for grandkids when you have. Wait, you said Laura as well?” 

but Peter was busy trying not to choke on his coffee. Grandkids? Shit.

Aunt May smirked “yes Peter, grandchildren, I assume you know what that means, I am not stupid, and I doubt very much that they don’t feel the same way. So, Laura?”

“She was an academy student, but uh, she’s a bit sheltered, really strict upbringing and, well.” how to explain someone who had a massive needle lodged in their brain to control them. “She had learning difficulties, but a small surgery fixed it, she’s just, blunt.”

“Blunt?” May asked quizzically,

“She yelled at her dad that we were uh, dating,” and Peter looked apprehensive at his Aunt.

“I assume ‘dating’ is the polite term for what she actually yelled,” and she had to stifle a laugh as Peter nodded.

“So Natasha is older I assume, and Laura younger?” but Peter shook his head and refilled his cup, offering Aunt May more but she shook her head, “unless you have decaf. Curt likes to keep anything like that to a minimum, and it makes me jittery these days,” and Peter made a mental note to get some in for the pair when they visited.

“Natasha is 5 years older, but Laura is older by a year, she just doesn’t look it.”

“And I can meet them when?” she asked,

“Nat was given a clean bill of health, we’re just waiting for her to wake up, and the girls took Laura and another new roommate out shopping, so if you wait you can meet them both.”

Aunt May raised an eyebrow and Peter frowned “no?” and as she snorted 

“No, really, no, even I have a limit.” and she laughed, “Really, because I see more than an extra set of homes here, more than just three, Mr Parker. You can say that but if you have five then why not more, why not eleven.” but Peter knew she was teasing him,

“You're okay with that?” and she shrugged,

“It’s not my life Peter, as long as they are happy, oh and I will be making sure that they are, then you can have a hundred, but, Happy,” and she gave Peter a stern look. “Grandchildren.”

“And now, what really happened at Shield’s headquarters?” This was the conversation she was not looking forward to. The last time something like this happened she lost her brother and sister in law and it took her and Ben years to pick up the shattered pieces. The only blessing they had received was Peter.

“It was an extremist group, I was only caught in the crossfire before we got out. Rescue and She-Hulk saved us and we evaced out with one of the first teams.” Peter said with a straight face. As soon as Wanda let him know she had slipped up with Aunt May he made sure everyone had their stories straight. There would be no letting her know about his powers, or anyone else’s for that matter.

“Peter. I watched the news. I watched the footage with my heart thumping in my chest and you’re lying. I don’t know why but you are.” Aunt May frowned. The students had been cleared for the day, and according to the news, only the full agents were at the triskelion that day. Unless Peter had powers and was there as an agent, she knew something didn’t add up.

Peter sat back in his chair and sipped his coffee. “Aunt May, if,“ and he sighed, “If I told you I can’t tell you, would you be more upset than if I lied?” and she just stared at him.

“I was well aware that Mary and Richard were Shield agents, but they never once lied to me, Peter. I always knew, and Ben always knew when an assignment was dangerous. So we could prepare for the worst. This sneaking around, I told you a long time ago, I won’t wait to hear from a newspaper that my only living relative was killed, and yes, if you said you were there I would have had more respect for you than a lie.” 

Staring at her cup, “I don’t need to know what you do Peter, I only need to know if it will be the last time I speak to you again.” she said in a barely audible whisper. Tears formed in her eyes and Peter's heart broke as he knew that he had been the worst to her.

“I can’t tell you, I was afraid to tell you, Aunt May. Part of what Mary and Richard did was because of that. I just didn’t want you to worry.” and he reached over and took her hand in his.

“Your parents were two of the kindest people I knew Peter, they deserve more.” but to her surprise, Peter shook his head,

“Sorry but no. I looked over both their files, at what happened and what kind of agents they were. No, they took a child on a mission, even a courier mission was no excuse. If they loved me, why didn’t they quit? Why were they still working as field operatives when they both could have gotten desk jobs? So no Aunt May, no” and with a scowl, he shook his head. “They don’t deserve my respect, only you do.”

She sat back, took a breath and pulled a tissue out from her sleeve and wiped her eyes. She knew Peter was becoming hardheaded and right now she wished Ben was here to talk some sense into him. Since his accident, he had become so distant, so difficult to talk to and she had no idea how to reach him. Steeling herself she sat up straight.

“Well, I think first, the guttering needs to be cleaned, then the roof needs to be examined. Windows that need repainting and re-sealed for the winter. The woodwork could use sanding and weatherproofing, the yard cleaned and mowed. Once you've done all that, then maybe I will be calm enough to discuss your actual punishment.” and as she looked over at him he nodded, looking intently at his cup.

Peter nodded, yup definitely in trouble, but he had a secret weapon and reaching under the table where he kept his drawing supplies he pulled out a folded set of papers. They had been sitting there for a while. Peter was waiting for the right opportunity to talk to May about it but one thing after another came up and it was never the right time. This was the right time. If she wanted to pressure him over grandchildren, then this was his way of making sure she knew exactly what she was getting herself into.

“Uh, Aunt May, I, uh, was thinking, and after, you know, Shield and everything else that uh, I’ve been wrong about one thing.”

Aunt May raised an eyebrow, “just one?” and Peter frowned and nodded, taking out a pen he signed at the bottom of the first sheet and then the last. 

“Uh, I was going to ask on my birthday but uh, the girls wanted to-“ Aunt May raised an eyebrow again, she did most certainly not want to know what happened on his 21st.

Peter cleared his throat, “please?” and he slid the sheets over to her.

Aunt May picked them up and raised a hand to her mouth, her eyes glistening as she read the words on the top. Nodding at Peter, he handed over the pen and she signed her name next to his,

Peter grinned as he took them back and folded them carefully, putting them in an envelope,

Peter moved over and hugged her, “There is only you Aunt May. I love them, they are my family but you’re right, I’ve been ignoring the one person who did everything for me, without asking, without complaint and I’m sorry.” as Peter’s eyes misted up, so did hers and they sat hugged together.

“Don’t think for one minute this gets you out of trouble, Mister,” she said as she ran her fingers through his hair.

“Of course not Au.” He stopped himself, that wasn't right, not any more.

“Of course not, Mom.”

Malisson

Big surprise right?

I looked and in most, if not all, Spider-Man universes Aunt May and Uncle Ben never adopt Peter, which was strange. I mean, while it was written in a more lax era, surely Child Services would have been all over the case with Bens murder.

Aunt May isn’t related to Peter at all, but the law gets really weird here, calling them “affinities” (relationships of people related by marriage only) which usually end in death. So would May be granted automatic guardianship of Peter? To be honest I have no idea but as it's never mentioned, I would assume not. 

Which leads Peter to realise that if anything ever happened to him, May would get nothing. 

Ben has been dead for 10 years at this point and legally she isn’t related to him at all. If this was “that” kind of story they could even become romantically involved (insert Marisa Tomei’s hot aunt May joke here). 

So this is his way of showing her he loves her, but also making sure that after almost dying (again) if anything happens to him, she’s taken care of.

And now an Announcement. (in a spoiler so it doesn't take up the whole page)

Spoiler

First, Wow. Arc 6 is over and with 180 chapters we’re at the halfway mark of the entire series.

It's weird to think that less than a year ago I wasn’t even writing and now I have 183 chapters published and another 60 waiting to be uploaded. (guess what I’m doing on my day off)

Thank you to everyone who has read the novel, followed me, liked, commented, and reviewed.

You all made the experience worth doing, and worth continuing.

Onto the news.

My schedule has stabilized and I now know that my writing time is a lot shorter than usual, down to 3 chapters a week roughly.

This means that right now, nothing is going to change BUT,

Arc 9 is going to be my test arc with three options,

One. End the novel at Arc 8 (not happening)

With Christmas and the New Year, Arc 9 might be delayed and the easiest option is to simply end the novel with Arc 8. It's the end of book 2 anyway and gives me more freedom to decide what I’m doing.

Ending the novel early feels like a F*** You to everyone though, so I'm not doing it.

I just wanted to let everyone know I had considered and then decided against it.

Two. Put the novel on hiatus at the end of each Arc until it is completed.

If Arc 9 isn’t finished by the end of Arc 8, I might have to use this option but right now, it's not my favourite. 

Three. Reduce my release schedule

House Of Venom was originally 3 chapters per week, and going back to that gives me 10 weeks per Arc rather than 6, and should be a large enough increase to get things finished. 

It's still another of these “wait and see” things. If by the end of Arc 8 I have Arcs 9 and 10 done, then my release schedule will stay the same, if not then I’ll adjust the releases to fit.

I really just wanted to let everyone who follows and reads the novel know the situation, rather than making a sudden announcement. The end of Arc 8 is still 3 months away, so I think that's plenty of warning.

180 down, 180 to go.

• Mal

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