15266/Sunrises, Sharks, and Superheroes

Sunrises, Sharks, and Superheroes
Date of Scene:	30 June 2023
Location:	Happy Harbor Waterfront
Synopsis:	Spider-Man, Atom Eve, and X-23 protect a group of teenagers from sharks at the beach! The three talk afterwards, and Spidey and Eve make a new friend in the elusive X-23.
Cast of Characters:	Eve Wilkins, Laura Kinney, Miles Morales

---

Eve Wilkins has posed:
Sunrise out over the Atlantic. That was one thing about living on the East Coast. If you wanted to watch the sun touch the water here, you had to get up early in the morning rather than go watch the sunset.

Or.. well.. you could just.. stay up all night and watch it. That's the case for Eve and Miles, who currently occupy a section of sand -- sitting shoulder to shoulder -- with Eve's head leaning over to rest on him. Both of them hold generic, disposable cups of coffee without lids (the cream and sugar in both making them beige rather than dark), and they seem to be just.. sitting and talking. Two completely normal people enjoying a sunrise together.

And they would be content to do just that. After all, there aren't all that many people out this early. There are a few hardcore exercisers that jog along the waterline. Some kids that managed to drag their parents out of bed to get in the water as early as possible (and it shows on their parents sleepy faces). There's some surfers and bodyboarders and other adventurous types out in the water, enjoying the waves.

The air's filled with the vaguely sticky feeling of sea salt, the roar of the waves, the sound of the birds waking up. The sun is just about to leave the horizon entirely and start its journey across the sky.

It's really entirely peaceful.. right up to the point that one group of about a dozen teenage boys that are too far away from shore too early in the morning with no lifeguard on duty start screaming, "SHARKS!" And four fins cut through the water around them.

Laura Kinney has posed:
Ah yes. Staying up all night. Something that's familiar to anyone who has made Gotham their home. Not that you tend to see the sunrise over in that part of the world. It's usually hidden behind a pall of smog....

Laura Kinney, sometimes known as X-23, is not usually the beach going type. And indeed she's not here to check out the view or work on her tan. If not for the cry of shark she'd probably be causing shouts of alarm herself as she appears from the water in a full wet suit with enough oxygen tanks on her back that she's either travelled a very long distance under water or been down there for hours. Who can say!

Well Laura could but she's the mysterious sort.... Generally it's better not to ask.

The cry of alarm elicits a tilt of her head and a sniff of the air. Are there really sharks? Is it a teenage prank? Is the water really safe for swimming? So many questions. But she trusts her enhanced senses to figure the answers out.

Her nose always knows.

Miles Morales has posed:
Miles Morales is living the dream.

With a beautiful girl who's become his girlfriend, staying up all night laughing and watching shows and a little bit of food fights. Maybe a 'thank God' moment involving how one feels about pineapple on pizzas. Now they sit side by side on the beach, shoulder to shoulder and head to head, having an easy...nice conversation.

"Did you know that I won't be caught dead in a submarine? Those things seriously freak me out. Cruise ships are alright, I just don't really have a way /off/ in the middle of nowhere."

Then-

"SHARK!!"

Miles peeks up and he looks right at the water, gently touching Eve so she can be slightly moved off of him. "Want to see if I can swim? Because I can absolutely swim." And Miles is bolting for the water!

"Knew I should've worn the suit OVER my regular clothes..." he mumbles to himself.

Spider-Luck.

Eve Wilkins has posed:
"Well, you can relax. Now you do." Eve lifts her head enough to cut her emerald eyes over to him, grinning a little at his comment about not having a way off of the cruise ship.

But that was when the yell rang out from the water and Miles as already up, springing into action. He would.

Oh. There were sharks. There were definitely sharks. Laura could smell the predators. Four of them looking for easy, early morning prey. There was still a little blood in the water from the few fish they'd recently eaten. Humans weren't their first choice, of course, but when food was scarce, a herd of frolicking teenagers looked a lot like a buffet.

"What are you going to do?! Are you shark-proof?!"

UGH! Men. Spider-Men specifically. She wasn't going anywhere near that water. Not as Samantha Eve Watkins, anyway. But, in retirement or not, when your boyfriend jumps into the water to go swimming after sharks.. you sort of have to do something other than watch.

But it's a beach. Where does one GO to switch into Atom Eve on a beach and not get noticed, you might ask? Up. You go up.

So, with the world suddenly focused on the boys yelling shark, there's a flash of pink and the girl that was sitting there in the sand drinking coffee? Yeah. She's just not there anymore.

Laura Kinney has posed:
Be prepared. It's not just a motto for boy scouts and musicals about Lions. Angels, devils, aliens and killer robots. You name it and chances are X-23 has a plan for it. Even as she turns towards the commotion she's shrugging the oxygen tanks off and pulling a slender tube from the pack. Or at least it looks like a tube at first, close inspection reveals it's a compact spear gun.

The petite mutant is still partly in the water and, with a scowl, pops the claws on her feet. Alas the water stops anyone hearing the trademark SNIKT sounds but it does release a lot of blood into the water. Far more than any small fish could release. Ringing the dinner bell and making herself the main course.

"Get out of the water," she states. Not a shout. Just a clear and firm command as she shoulders the spear gun. "They won't swim onto the beach." Unless they're mutants or cyborgs. Never mind Atlantean magic sharks.

Miles Morales has posed:
Why can't Miles have a very simple date with Eve?!

As he's running, he calls out. "I'll figure something out!" Because Spider-Man always does. Somehow. Soon enough, he immediately turns completely invisible! Where'd he go? Light bends around him perfectly in a natural camouflage.

When he reappears, Spider-Man is on the scene!

Dressed in Black and Red with a mask over his face, web-lines are being shot into the water, attempting to pull at least one of the boys out of the water! "Kids, please keep your arms and legs inside the spider-vehicle at all times, no biting, thrashing, or-"

Right, sharks.

"Too soon!"

He sees Laura. "Woah! Did you just hop into the water with a speargun?!" He lifts up a random piece of paper. "Can I have your autograph?"

Eve Wilkins has posed:
Bloooooood. Sharks (real sharks.. not like.. bio-engineered sharks with lasers on their heads) aren't supervillains. Most of them aren't even pets of supervillains. Most sharks are just living their lives like everyone else. They have families: husband and wife sharks, little baby sharks, a hierarchal dominance system that establishes their place in shark society, like.. probably shark jobs. You don't know. Are you a shark? You don't know. Besides, the only job these sharks care about at the moment it putting food in their bellies. And fresh blood? That's like Burger King cranking up their grill in the morning.

The fin that was headed right for one of the closer boys turns abruptly towards Laura and another fin joins it, slicing through a wave into the shallower water.

That still left two sharks circling, one of them dipping under the water towards the legs of a boy that...

*ZOOT*

...gets yanked out of the way just as there's a sudden thrashing and rolling of fins. With a sticky web attached to the right hand he was thrashing above his head, the boy goes skimming across the surface of the water towards the beach. Then another, each plucked out one at a time as the others begin to swim towards the spear-gun holding woman, still screaming.

And that's when Eve descends in full Atom Eve costume above where they're all swimming, pink 'jets' flaring below her hands and boots. She waves a hand, and a series of square, translucent pink forcefield platforms appear like stair-steps at different levels, giving Spidey more height options if he wanted to zip himself up out of the water to a better vantage point (that wasn't infested by sharks).

"Rescue first, autographs second," Eve shouts, leveling an amused grin at Spidey.

Laura Kinney has posed:
X-23 doesn't look at the Spider and, thankfully, the diving gear hides the look on her face. "No. I was already in the water," she notes. Her wetsuit still has the sheen of sea water on it. How did she avoid being noticed by the sharks while she was out there? It's a big ocean. "Get the civilians out and don't worry about me." A beats pause. "No matter how much blood you see I'll be fine."

She takes a few steps, getting a good braced position (not to mention spreading the blood coming from her feet around in the water), lines the spear gun up. And fires.

The spear flashes through the air like a silver fish. Even as it flies there's a line of cord which unspools from the speargun. So that when it hits it's target, piercing deep into tough shark skin, it leaves the shark connected by a cable to it's planned dinner.

Petite though she might be X-23 loops the cable around herself and heaves. Pitting her mutant muscles against the might of the shark. Looping cable around herself and forcing it to come closer and closer. It's probably for the best she's on the menu. Because if the shark decided to swim out to sea she'd probably get hauled along after it...

Lucky for Laura being the target means she just has to keep it from getting distracted. Although even then the line seems to be cutting into her hands as she fights to wrangle the mighty sea creature. More blood to signal the all you can eat Kinney buffet!

As the two sharks she's attracted move closer she raises one hand up and pops her claws. SNIKT. Holding them ready for the ideal moment to strike.

Miles Morales has posed:
*YOINK!*

"Gotcha!"

*YOINK!*

"Got you too!"

Spider-Man is pulling people out of the water - especially those too slow to escape on their own. And since Laura is offering herself up for the desert bar for shark-infested waters, party of one, Spider-Man isn't getting in there until civilians are rescued.

"Aww." Spider-Man dejectedly groans as Eve reminds him there's still people to save. "I'm multi-tasking!" Spider-Man replies. "Looking good Atom Eve!" THWIP! Another weblike shot for another person. "He shoots and the crowd goes wild!"

He even makes white noise with his mouth to sound like a crowd cheering.

"How much wha-?" Suddenly Laura is WRESTLING A SHARK. Okay, you gotta put that at least in the top ten most badass things you could do. "I'm really concerned about the blood thing but we can table it for now!"

Pause.

Seeing Eve give him some platform options, he zips up to a better vantage point and uses it as a swing point

physics baby!

He's now swinging low, theippijg a swimmer out of the way of a shark into his arms, landing on the nose of a shark close to the surface and leaping again to get back up to the platform. "Whew! Close."

Eve Wilkins has posed:
Atom Eve lifts one red brow at Spider-Man's retort and rolls her eyes, though she can't seem to help the little smile that touches her lips. Still, though, there's a kind of jumping game that she seems more than happy to keep up with -- as one transparent pink platform gets used and left behind, it blinks out of existence and another appears, staying just ahead of where Spidey needed them. Was she guiding him somewhere or anticipating his needs? Who knows!

"Keep going! I've got him!"

Eve's other hand stretches out, and a beam of pink energy shoots out, bubbling around the kid Spider-Man was holding and lifting him away. She gives it a tug, and the bubble starts to float towards shore.

That's more than half of the kids out of the water, and Laura? Well, she's gone fishing! And the fish is not happy about it. It thrashes and splashes when the spear hits it, pulling against the rope, cutting her hands and sending even more blood into the water -- including some from the shark itself.

It's a frenzy. A third shark swims away from the remaining kids, leaving only one threat behind for them, but three for Laura to deal with, including the one she has on a leash and the other one that makes a sudden lunging rush, mouth open hungrily.

"Can you do something about that one?!" Atom Eve shouts to Spider-Man, her eyes focused on the last shark that was relentless in its pursuit of teenager flesh.

Laura Kinney has posed:
There are two main types of spear fishing. One where you fire a spear gun and hopefully wind up with a skewered fish you can collect later. And the other where you stand patiently waiting for the fish and then use a full size spear to stab it. Today Laura is doing both at the same time. Well sort of.

When the shark comes lunging at her the hand she had held up out of the water, claws extended, swings down to meet it.

There's a sudden tug on the line wrapped around her and the mysterious mutant vanishes under the water. Lost in a churning mess of crimson and bubbles. And then silence.

The quiet continues for a long pause. Enough that it'd be tough to hold a breath that long never mind fighting several sharks. Slowly bits begin to float to the surface. It's hard to say exactly what they're bits of. But it's probably for the best that just about everyone on the beach will be avoiding the water for a while...

And then, just when it seems like she can't possibly have survived, Laura rises up from the water. Wetsuit sporting several shark bite shaped holes that reveal... totally unharmed pale skin. The keen eyed will notice there's not a scratch on her. Not even from where the line was cutting into her.

Miles Morales has posed:
It's the perfect teamwork!

Either from anticipation or trying to guide him somewhere, Eve sets him up and Spider-Man is happy to use her platforms as anchors for his web slinging. "Thank you! Big fan!" Oh yes, because Atom Eve is cool and even if she was on Teen Team, the world should know how awesome she is.

Spider-Man gives her the kid, letting him be enshrouded in that pink bubble shield that lifts him away towards the shore. But now his focus is on big mean with a few rows of razor-sharp teeth that don't let them close their mouths all the way.

Creepy.

"Way ahead of you!" Spider-Man calls out. "But I'm really wishing I had shark repellent! How does Batman do it? Seriously, I should ask him for some kitwork."

"Heeeeeere's Spidey!" He thrips two more kids and yanks them out of the water and into the air, all while he's falling towards the hungry shark! "Heads up Eve!" He shouts as he lands directly on a shark hungry for blood! His fist BAPS! it right on the nose, trying to put the shark to sleep or into a state of deep confusion by snacking it right in the olfactory nerves!

"You okay?!" Hd calls out to Laura, a deep concern written on his...mask? Scent? Voice? Eh, pick one. "Please don't die! I got this one I think!"

But when you grab a shark by the nose-scales, you're gonna get taken for a ride.

Eve Wilkins has posed:
Spider's diving for the shark, so all of the platforms vanish and Eve's pink ray-bubbles shoot out like her own versions of webs, streaking through the air from each of her hands and capturing the teens at the apex of their flight. She twists mid-air, guiding them back gently to shore.

A shore not all that far from where Laura had just disappeared. It's... carnage. Absolute carnage.

"Uhhh... Spidey?! We might have kind of a situation..."

Laura wasn't coming up again, and the crowd of gawkers has only grown as the sun climbed higher in the sky. A few people had their phones out, taking video of the entire thing. More than one showed the woman that was wrestling one of the sharks with the line from a spear gun suddenly get swept under and.. well.. presumably eaten. Seriously dark, gory footage. That part would only make the six o'clock news in Gotham, but it's definitely going online. You know there's sites for it.

SPIDER-MAN SAVES TEENS FROM SHARK ATTACK. ATOM EVE LEAVES MORE INNOCENT VICTIMS TO DIE.

Seriously?! Yeah, it was only one video on one site, but come on. Internet headlines are cruel AF. And of course /that/ video stopped before Laura resurfaced again. Otherwise it wouldn't have been nearly as sensation.

What exactly had happened under there? Three sharks had swam into the submerged melee and only one completely unscathed (well, except for her suit) woman had emerged. But there was a LOT of blood.

Like.. a lot.

"Never mind! She's... she's /fine/. Woah. You were right. She /is/ cool."

The remaining shark, though.. Spider-Man's cool new aquatic mount that he got for dinging level 50? It's swimming back out to sea, very unhappy, and taking one 5'8" spider-dude with it.

As soon as the bubbles popped on the shore, a couple more platforms and pink, slide-like ramp appeared in the air, providing an opportunity for any about-to-be-stranded spiders to get to safety before the shark dove for the depths.

Laura Kinney has posed:
The waves continue to crash against the shore, indifferent to all the action which has taken place, and start to deposit bits. Icky bits it's best not to think about. But one thing is for sure. It's going to be really hard working out which bits came from which shark. Quite what the young woman of all of five foot and an inch (that inch is very important) did to turn three sharks into sashimi sized bits... It's best left to the imagination.

But she certainly seems okay. Although Laura will need to buy a new wet suit before she goes for any more ocean dips. Casually, as if her torso wasn't ejecting shark teeth all over the beach, she strides out of the water.

It's only when she's scooped up the oxygen tanks that she looks around to see how the Spider-Man and his flying friend Atom Eve are doing. "It was just a few sharks," she says with a shrug as the head of a shark washes ashore. "I don't really know what the fuss is about."

Most likely the headlines will wind up reading 'Vigilante slaughters endangered sea life'....

Miles Morales has posed:
WHAP!

Spider-Man smacks a now /really/ unhappy shark in the nose and he uses sticky fingers to stay on as it starts to swim off towards the greater ocean. "Ih oh!" Welp...if this is how Miles goes, he might as well web up a cowboy hat and enjoy the ride. But it is not this day!

"What kind of situation?" Spider-Man shouts back to Eve, but apparently Laura WAS the situation and seeing that she was fine and confirmed as such by Eve makes him sigh relievedly. "Right?!" She was /so cool/! No feeding frenzy on Laura Kinney.

She *is* the Frenzy.

Thankfully, some pink platforms form in his peripheral and he THWIP!s off of the shark and swings high into the air, using the platforms to start swinging his way back.

"Just Keystone predators getting outclassed by a gal who's not even fazed by the whole thing. Ready to be the coolest person in the internet?" Spider-Man calls to her, dismounting his web line with a backflip until he lands in the sand.

"Whew! Was that all of them?"

He looks at Eve. "That's three I owe you!"

Eve Wilkins has posed:
With Spider-Man swinging his way back to safety and the sharks.. um.. dealt with (in one way or another), Atom Eve flies her half-caped pink romper-clad self back over to the shore, the pink jets below her hands and feet suddenly extinguished as she touches down gracefully on the sand beside Laura.

"Hey, you okay?" She smiles encouragingly, a lankier, half-foot (or more) taller than Laura. "That looked.. I mean.. that was.. impressive. You're kind of a bad-ass."

Eve looks over at Spider-Man and rolls her eyes. "You two did all the work!" Speaking of, her gaze shifts back to Laura. "Oh, hey. Your wetsuit. Do you want me to...?"

Before Laura can even answer, Eve raises a hand and a brief pink glow from the various rips puts the suit back the way it was before the shark attack. It didn't just pull and stitch it back together. Eve was modifying the atoms. It was like a brand new suit that had never been bitten.

"...Sorry. I should have waited. I can put it back, if you want. Or do like a ripped crop-top thing with some thigh holes? That's pretty in right now. I'm Atom Eve, by the way. That's..." She turns fractionally towards Spidey and then looks back at Laura. "Well, you know who that is. Thanks for.. jumping in there." Literally.

Laura Kinney has posed:
The mention of potential online celebrity status seems to disturb Laura more than the shark attack did. Thankfully she still has the scuba mask on and her long dark hair, which seems to have come loose during the scuffle, to hide her identity. She glares at any onlookers with smartphones. "No pictures," she states. Which doesn't help in the slightest but hey it never hurts to try right? Several people actually take it as encouragement to get their cameras out too. "No, seriously. /No pictures/."

For the briefest of moments Miles might even find his spider-sense tingling. Someone really hates having her picture taken!

"It's fine I..." And then the suit gets mended. "I was going to say I can buy a new one. But that works too. I don't care how it looks so long as it keeps the water out."

She frowns, considering something, then adds "Someone will probably need to investigate what drove the sharks this close to shore. Probably some underwater supervillain plotting to invade the surface world or something." A beats pause as she glances to the civilians. "It's not trouble. Nice to meet you both.. I'd give you my name but... I'm not officially here." Strictly speaking X-23 doesn't legally exist. Although she does appear on the SHIELD wanted list if you look hard enough!

Miles Morales has posed:
Spider-Man arrives back on the shore quickly enough! He stands up and lifts his arms in a 'touchdown' pose. "And he sticks the landing!" His eyes look between the two women and his eyes settle on Laura.

That tingle on the back of his skull/neck makes his hair stand up in sudden warning. "Okay okay okay okay!" He lunges an arm out, shooting numerous webs that cover the 'eye' of various cameras. "Photo consent requested! Sorry guys! Don't worry though, it's biodegradable!" He points at his wrist, suggesting the webs are as such. So the ones in the ocean are probably fine! Can fish eat it?

....Yes? Maybe?

His attention goes back to Eve and he gives her two thumbs up! "You made the platforms! Can't swing if I don't have anything to connect to you know? So you did a lot of the work too! Plus you saved most of the people out of the water."

"Nice to meet you too,mystery lady." He smiles at Laura. "I'll see if I can make a call or something, get some eyes on it." And slowly.

Slowly.

He has a piece of paper and a pen slowly being presented.

Eve Wilkins has posed:
Eve laughs at Spider's triumph -- a light, genuine sound. But then she seemed to realize there were people around and she quickly clears her throat and puts in a more serious face. What? She can't help it she thinks he's adorable.

Seeing Laura's reaction to the people with cameras, Eve winces in understanding. The webbing helped and also seemed to frustrate some people as they started sticking to their cameras. "Oh.. hold on. I've got you." She glances over her shoulder at a few people creeping closer. "You guys might want to back up. You're.. standing in the splash zone."

Atom Eve holds up a hand and suddenly there's big, pink bubble they're inside.. which isn't the cool part. What happens next is that a big sand castle erects itself around the three of them like a grown-up sized play-house fortress. The only wall that was missing was the one facing the water, effectively shielding them from all of the prying eyes that weren't brave enough to swim back out into previously shark-infested waters.

Where did all of the sand come from? Well, where does it come from when you're building a regular sand castle? A giant channel is carved out around them, creating a MOAT around the castle deep enough to fill with sea water.

And, a moment later, there's the sound of a scream and a splash from over the back wall.

"Sorry!" Eve yells. "I tried to warn you!"

But then she shrugs, now in the privacy of their makeshift lair, and looks back at Spidey. And his paper. And his pen. That sloooooowy move towards Laura.

She's just staring, one hand on her hip.

"Really?"

Laura Kinney has posed:
Laura Kinney looks at the paper. Then she looks at Miles. Before finally raising an eyebrow at Eve. Or at least that's what it seems like she's doing from behind the scuba mask.

"I don't officially exist and I wasn't officially here," she reminds. "Which means I don't do autographs." There's another beats pause before she adds "Sorry." In a tone of voice which says she's anything but sorry.

"You can call me X-23 if you need to call me anything. And really I would prefer it if you kept me out of the official reports. It'll just cause you both trouble you don't need." Her head tilts to one side and she finally shrugs, then offers her hand for a handshake. That's almost like an autograph right?

"That mending trick," she starts glancing at Eve. "Does it work on people too? If so you probably could have just dealt with the whole situation by yourself. Let the sharks take a few bites and patch the kids up. No harm." Except all the trauma. Most people find having bits of them eaten a little.. disturbing.

Miles Morales has posed:
He has that effect on people! Maybe Spider-Man gets a few people to laugh. Sometimes helping people isn't just with the big, world-ending stuff. Sometimes it's completely emotional and a good laugh can turn someone's entire ideology around. You never know what someone's going through.

Getting Eve to laugh makes Spider-Man happy, though he seems to immediately shift his focus to the crowd. "Hey Eve-" and she's already on it! She uses her vast powers to give them a little nook to speak privately and Spider-Man nods enthusiastically. "Why are you so cool?" Spider-Man playfully nudges Eve with his elbow. Though paper and pen out and hoping for the best, he nods. "Really!" before he looks at Laura and experiences...

HEART CRUSHING DENIAL.

"Awww." Shoulders slump and the paper and pen are pocketed....somewhere on his suit. He really wanted a autograph! He slumps, but stands a little taller. "That's okay. It's not for everyone!" But she offers a hand, he reaches out to give it a good shake. "Nice to meet you, X-23. I'll be waiting for your album to come out."

Pause.

"Get it? Because...Rappers have numbers in...Nevermind." Bad joke! He hears her comment about LETTING sharks bite people and Miles shakes his head. "That's a terrible idea. Because then the sharks would keep coming back for more food in larger numbers and people would get SUPER traumatized."

Eve Wilkins has posed:
/Why are you so cool?/

"Tell that to the other seven-and-half billion people," Eve quips at Spider-Man, eyes glinting playfully, but then she raises both of her hands an shakes her head. "I'm kidding. Don't... I don't need that kind of publicity."

She bites her lips when he gets straight up rejected by Laura, though, and offers a little shrug of her shoulders. "She kinda.. mentioned that already," she teases, her voice barely a whisper. "Just saying." If you can't razz your boyfriend, who can you razz?

Official reports.

"Oh, no, he's the.. I don't.. I mean.. I'm not here, either -- officially." Cryptic much? Either way, Eve does reach out and give X-23's hand a shake when it's offered. "Nice to meet you, Ex." Was the twenty-three really necessary, after all, when none of the other twenty-two (or however many there were) were present to be confused with?

Oh. Right. Other rappers. Eve grins at Spidey's humor, but she doesn't comment on it. There was only so many jokes she could make in response before things started getting too personal, anyway.

The mending trick! The phrase makes Eve's smile broaden, but she shakes her head. "Nothing that complicated. I've tried, but human and animal cells... I just can't assemble them. Sand castles and wet suits? Easy. I can even do a little bit with plants as long as they've already been seeded, but not humans. The best I can do is make you some bandages. I'm not going to be regrowing anyone's leg."

Could she have handled the who thing by herself? With the ability to rearrange most subatomic particles in her environment.. maybe. Her comfort zone seemed to be 'support' rather than 'save the day.'

"What about you? Not for nothing, but.. I didn't expect to see you resurface. I mean, I get that I sort of.. put everything back.." She makes a little circular gesture with her finger to indicate the wetsuit. "But, you didn't even have a scrape on you. I'm guessing it has something to do with your name being X-23?"

Laura Kinney has posed:
Laura Kinney blinks a few times. You can't see it with her face covered, but everything about her stance indicates she's both blinking and confused. "Deep water is almost always very cold," she points out. There's no hint this is a gag. "That's why you wear a wetsuit when diving.."

Ahhh if only Eve knew. None of the previous 22 are alive to be confused with Laura. Although she does have more than one clone living their best clone lives out in the wider world. Some of them don't even want to kill her. Plus no-one mixes her up with Gabby. They're just too different in personality.

"I don't rap," she says. Still confused by Spider-Man. Although, despite her extreme paranoia, she's utterly convinced she's in the presence of a hundred percent genuine Spider-person. You can't fake those quips. "Or sing. And the last time people tried make me go to karaoke I used a smoke bomb and vanished into the ventilation system."

"Mutant healing ability. Lets me recover from practically anything. I just waited for them to bite me and dealt with each one in turn." By which she means cut them into salsa size chunks. "The codename is a long story. But I'm not really a superhero as such. I believe the situation is best described as 'complicated'."

Miles Morales has posed:
"That..."

Spider-Man's 'eyes' on his mask seem to widen a moment. She smoke bombed and jumped into a ventilation shaft?! "But...Karaoke is a lot of fun..." He looks at Eve and she can practically tell what he's thinking: X-23 is /so intense/. Thoigh the razzing from Eve that she already turned down the autograph makes Miles laugh. "Determination is rewarded!"

Pause.

"...Just, not today. And as long as it's consented...you know? I worded that terribly didn't I?" He asks Eve and he looks back to Laura. "It's okay, I rap a little bit and it's absolutely not good."

"Wow, you heal? I mean..I heal quick, but not 'get torn apart by sharks until I outlast them' quick. Your tough, I'll give you that, just uh...you know, be kind to yourself."

He chuckles towards Eve as she gets cryptic, but he says nothing.

Eve Wilkins has posed:
Eve meets Spider-Man's glance and lifts her own eyebrows, smiling wickedly. 'Right?! She's great, right?!' They didn't /actually/ have a telepathic link, but some expressions are just plain enough to tell the whole story.

/I believe the situation is best described as 'complicated'./

"Same, girl."

Of course, unlike X-23, Atom Eve didn't even wear a mask. And.. half of her 'codename' was actually just.. her name. Why didn't anyone recognize her? It's a psychology thing.

Emerald eyes shift over to the Spider, though, when he brings up determination, and she stares at him. /Stares/. Finally, he brings up consent, and her eyebrows lift. "Uh-huh."

"Yeah, well, nobody asked me for /my/ autograph," she says, her voice flat. Still staring. Liiiingering. Then she turns suddenly so that she's mostly facing Laura, puts Spidey behind one of her shoulder blades, and flips her hair over. "Too late. No pity autographs."

She's biting her lip by this point, trying to keep the humor out of her voice, but she can't seem to help cutting her eyes over to him (or the quirk of her lip that's such an obvious tell).

Laura Kinney has posed:
Laura Kinney glances between Spider-Man and Atom Eve. Sniffs the air, then nods to herself. "You're a super couple on a date," she decides. "I would recommend flying to a deserted beach next time. It may take more effort to get there. But you'll find it far less likely to be interrupted." Not that she's the dating sort but the Outsiders have had enough members who are couples that she's heard more than enough 'and then our date was ruined by X' stories.

"I don't really know what you mean by be kind to myself. A few shark bites are nothing to concern myself over. Being set on fire however.. That /is/ uncomfortable." She allows herself a smile. "There was no risk they'd tear me apart. I am stronger than I look."

Also claws. Very sharp claws. Eve might even have been able to sense how exotic the metal they're made of is while they were extended. So durable they're virtually unbreakable.

Miles Morales has posed:
Atom Eve just gets him.

But now he's gonna get held over the fire! She claims he never asked him for an autograph, and he opens his mouth to say something like 'But I kiss you all the time!' or 'Our relationship is better than an autograph' or 'I already told you I was a fan!' Instead, nothing comes out. More like:

"Guh..."
"Well I uh..."
*Throat clearing noises*
"You see, uhm..."

And then she's biting her lip and sending a knowing look his way. "C-Can I have a pity autograph anyway?" He presents a pen and paper. There's hope in the films of his masks eyes.

Then Laura is proving that she's far more observant than anyone gives her credit for (maybe?). Rather than lie to her, Spider-Man gives a very basic. "Yep." that they were in a date that was interrupted by rabid, hungry sharks.

"I believe you!" On being tougher than she looks. "Just uh ...you know, don't throw yourself into a shark's mouth if you don't absolutely have to. You know?" He shivers. "Been on fire before. Really not fun."

Eve Wilkins has posed:
Eve rolls her eyes at the request for a pity autograph, and though she doesn't actually reach for the pen and paper that's being offered, she does reluctantly lift her hands. A soft pink glow that appears around both pen and paper make them float over to a table-shaped pink forcefield that suddenly appears in front of her. Then she plucks them out of the air, signs her name (inside a heart), and hands them back to Spidey. The table? Gone.

"You're killing me. I hope you know that."

Of course, there's nothing but affection in her eyes.

/You're a super couple on a date./

"N--" Eve started to protest, but given that she was caught flat-footed by the blunt assertion, someone ELSE was faster on the draw...

/Yep./

Great. Now she had to worry about one more person that would be able to figure out both of their /real/ identities if their secrets were ever revea--

"SPIDER-MAN AND ATOM EVE ARE DATING?!"

The voice comes from the other side of the sandcastle wall. Because, while it provided an excellent visual barrier, it was.. in fact.. just a castle. And not a particularly large one. Apparently, though picture-taking was off-limits, eavesdropping was not.

"Mind your own business!" Eve yells back, sighing softly. Okay, so.. /more/ than one more person, then.

Her gaze shifts over to X-23 and she nods. "You're right. This was /supposed/ to be romantic. And it was! For a while. But next time, we're definitely going to a private beach."

Ripped apart? Set on fire? Eve shivers.

"You're stronger than you look emotionally, too, I'd guess. That stuff in you?" Laura knows what she's talking about. "I'm not a doctor, but I can't imagine it's comfortable. I'd be so cranky no one would want to be anywhere near me."

Laura Kinney has posed:
Laura Kinney gives a little shrug. "Do not worry," she assures. "I have absolutely no interest in your personal lives." She blinks. "That probably sounds rude. I meant." Another pause. "I don't really do much socialising. So you don't have to worry about me telling anyone." Besides if people thought she took an interest in romance gossip they'd involve her in the Outsiders romantic drama talks. And there are only so many times you can throw a smoke bomb then vanish into a vent.

"I've been operating in the field for a very long time. I can assure you I take an appropriate level of risk for the situation," she explains solemnly. "I am older than I look." If it weren't for how intense she is she looks mid-teens. The healing factor giving her a youthful appearance that'll likely last a hundred years or so.

When the topic of stuff in her comes up she shrugs again. "The claws? I'm used to them. You can get used to almost everything given enough time."

Miles Morales has posed:
"Only in the best way!"

Miles is fully aware of his adorability, and even still she manages to sign her name with a big heart around it and Mikes practically gushes! "Thaaanks." He says in a 'you know you love me' kind of way. Course, it won't stop her from ruthlessly gaining her vengeance for this, but certainly the affection in her tone frees Miles from wrongdoing.

'Spider-Man and Eve are dating?!'

"Mind your own business!" Spider-Man shouts alongside Eve and when he realizes they were in stereo, he toe-scuffs the sand a little bit all shy-like. "Yeah, it'll be a lot of fun. We had stayed up all night and were hoping to catch the sunset. Sharks might've gotten us this time but we'll be ready for them next time." He reaches to connect a pinkie to Eve's own, if she doesn't mind the contact.

"Thank you for that clarification, I'm an audible learner." Miles is absolutely smiling under that mask. "But we appreciate it. Nobody needs to go shouting the laundry, know what I mean?" Spider-Man remarks before his eyes settle on Laura again. "I believe you. You know what you're doing,. you know...just friends looking out." He gives a thumbs up to Laura.

"Claws?" Is that what was triggering his Spider-Sense earlier?

Eve Wilkins has posed:
Eve grins sideways at Miles when they both respond in exactly the same way at exactly the same time. "Bucket list item.. we watch the sunrise here and then catch the sunset on the West Coast." She gives a little shrug, smiling. "Or vice-versa. Just a thought."

And, of course he knows just exactly how to be cute enough to get her to not throw up her shields -- literally or figuratively. If he'd pounced on her, she might have grumped at him. The pinky, though? Hers curls too, hooking around his even as blush creeps up onto her cheeks and she shifts to stand a little closer to him.

A soft laugh leaves Eve's lips at Laura's blunt statement about not caring about their personal lives.. then the correction. "Well, me either, anymore. So, if you ever want to hang out and not socialize together, you can always hit me up. I'm.. not really doing the whole superhero gig anymore." Irony of ironies given this morning's activities. "So.. I've got a lot of time." She pauses a beat and glances over at Spider-Man, then, biting her lip. She /used/ to have a lot of free time. Now, maybe, not as much. "...I've got /some/ free time."

/Claws?/ from Miles.

"She has metal under her skin.. fused to the bone," Eve explains, looking over at him. Or, his mask, anyway. "It's incredibly intricate work and /very/ durable." She rattles off a chemical formula -- something she just instinctively knows, even if she doesn't know the name of the metal. " But.. very painful, I would think." Of course, Laura had already said she was used to them. Still, it sends a shiver down Eve's spine.

Laura Kinney has posed:
"I'd have the claws even without the metal," Laura admits as if it's no big deal. But then she did say mutant earlier. And with mutants anything goes if you believe the media. "I am quite hard to reach most of the time. My particular line of work is... unconventional." Is self employed covert ops agent really a job? Or a vocation? In Laura's case it probably just counts as a hobby. "But there's a website about cats you can upload to and if you use the right key phrase I can arrange a meeting."

So very cloak and dagger. The spy kind not the superhero duo.

"I should probably leave so you can resume your date. Especially as I estimate the law enforcement response time for this area means I'll need to go promptly to avoid undue attention.."

Miles Morales has posed:
"Deal." Mikes proclaims proudly as Eve offers that little bit of hope for a date yet: They could just go coast to coast and see the sunrise and fall. That sounds so romantic. "Just need the when! I'll bring snacks." Miles would be overjoyed to go out with Eve again.

Pretty much what he looks forward to.

Pinkies curl in with one another and Miles takes a step closer to Eve, nearly shoulder to shoulder. He bumps her a little bit. Playful as always and desiring to be supportive when speaking to others.

"Can always hangout and just....not talk! We can stare at the TV and question the nature of the universe. What is the meaning of life...I can see it now.." He looks off into the distance. "So much beige."

He smirks Eve's way and he chuckles. "/Some/." Ots a tease. She can do whatever she likes and Miles doesn't have to be with her 24/7, it's just fun to join her.

"Holy crap." He looks at Laura. "You have metal bound to your bones? The metal poisoning should kill you though...But I guess if you heal extremely fast, it wouldn't be a factor..." But Laura is suggesting a...cat website can be used to talk to her?

"Hey, we can manage cats. Is there a certain phrase you would like us to use or..do I get to guess?" He narrows his eyes. "I'm gonna guess...Lionesses hunt not Lions!" mikes guesses the phrase and most likely he's wrong.

"Whatever you decide, it was nice meeting you, X." He salutes the mutant. "You got friends in us."

Eve Wilkins has posed:
"We'll share our calendars and find a time," Eve says, smiling. SHARE THEIR CALENDARS? Huge relationship step. Next thing, they'll be sharing the GPS on their phone with each other in case the other one gets in trouble and then randomly showing up where the other one is.

/So much beige./

"...Don't mind him," she asides to Laura. "There's a chance his mask is too tight." Then she shoulder-bumps Miles, pursing her lips against a smile that lingers when he reiterates she only has /some/ available time.

/But there's a website about cats.../

"Oh! That's.." Eve's free hand comes up and she scratches the back of her neck. "We probably should have had stuff like that on Teen Team." /Had/ being the operative word. Ah well.

"Oh. Yeah. Not super ideal to stick around and ask a bunch of questions. Especially since I'm not really... connected, anymore," the redhead says, pursing her lips.

/You got friends in us./

"What he said. It was nice meeting you. We don't have a cool cat website, but, if you need /us/, you can always find us....... on the /web/." She turns her head significantly to Miles, grinning and arching an eyebrow. Okay, so it wasn't Spider-Man level humor, but /maybe/ she was at least /trying/ to make him crack a grin under that mask.

"I'll demolish our castle and put the sand back once we're all out of it. Race you to the water tower?" She waggles her eyebrows.

Laura Kinney has posed:
"I was reliably informed the meaning of life is forty two," Laura informs solemnly. She probably doesn't even know that's a reference. For all she knows it's esoteric/alien lore. Or something Batman told Tim. And if Batman says something is correct.... Well. You take his word for it. "People are always telling me I should take more personal time. It is probably about time I took their advice. Especially as my last vacation we got attacked by an ancient evil which had been unearthed. Camping is not as quiet as people suggest."

She smiles too, but it's hard to say if that's a joke or just what she considers to be a funny anecdote. (It's the latter)

"It was good working with you both," she offers with a nod. Starting to shift towards the edge of the barrier. "If we meet again hopefully it won't be a 'sticky situation'."

She can do jokes! Awful awful jokes.

Miles Morales has posed:
Miles noticeably perks up, even with his mask on, as the potential of sharing calendars is offered. We're he asked, he'd absolutely give her some kind of tracker for the both of them or they can just get on Life360 or some other kind of GPS on their phone so they can know where the other is in the event trouble rears it's ugly head.

It always does. It's a bitch like that.

"I went for a swim in saltwater, I think some of it might've went straight to my brain." Miles starts to laugh, being nudged by the shoulder bump and one of his eye-films seem to actually wink in her direction.

"Wow...that sounds intense. I've heard the 42 thing, but...I dunno, still thinking about it!" Miles suggests to Laura. "But yeah! Go treat yourself. It'd be good, you know? Time for yourself and yourself for time. We rarely get a chance these days, with everything getting crazier. Never forget to make time for you." Miles gives her a thumbs up.

Then....

The PUNS!

"HAH!" He starts to genuinely, sincerely laugh at Laura's pun. "Dear God. That one was good. Can I use that one? How have my web puns been so underdeveloped?"

Then Eve is cracking at it! "Hah! Witty!" He pulls out a notepad from a pocket in his suit and start writing these down. "My material needs work...so I guess I'll /catch/ you later." He gives a fingergun.

"Get it? Like...flies get caught in the web and..." He sighs. "Nevermind! It was good meeting you X!" He waves at her and he turns to Eve.

"You're on! Last one there sings Barbie Girl!"

And he LEAPS over the sand castle wall and THWIPS! He needs a head start!

Eve Wilkins has posed:
"If you weren't an actual genius I'd be worried, but you could lose a few IQ points and still be smarter than anyone I know," Eve remarks after Spidey's saltwater comment, and that's the truth of it. For as much as she teases him, the honest to goodness respect she has for him is there on full display in that moment.

Except.. then there's the 42 thing comment. And she pauses a beat. "You've... both read Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, right?" ... "Right?" Oh God.

Personal time! "You should! And maybe.. we'll like.. find a camp site that /doesn't/ have ancient evils."

Eve /groans/ at Miles's 'catch' joke. "That's /almost/ it, sweetheart..." But even as she's still grinning at him, he's zipping off, and her eyes widen suddenly. "I am NOT singing!!"

Pink flares from below her feet and hands as she lifts into the air, and she offers Laura a last little wave. "Seeya!!" All at once, there's a pink bubble that spreads out from her, swallowing the castle and the moat. All of the sand shifts, smoothing back into the shape it was before Eve built her castle, and the moat is even dry!

The people are still gathered on the beach, but the law hasn't shown up yet. Judging by the sound of sirens in the distance, though, it wouldn't be long, and in the next moment, Eve is rocketing forward, rolling through the air with her hands back near her hips Iron Man style, sending her soaring above a street after her web-slinging boyfriend.