3534/Auld Acquaintance

Auld Acquaintance
Date of Scene:	24 September 2020
Location:	Queens
Synopsis:	Supergirl and Spider-Man reconnect and talk about heroism over pie.
Cast of Characters:	Peter Parker, Kara Danvers

---

Peter Parker has posed:
It's been something of a long patrol. A lot of the usual runaround, running around after petty crooks for the most part. A few major issues. Another armored truck robbery, an attempted sexual assault that ended badly for the guy with the knife...

But now, it was time to relax a little.
He was only 18, so he wasn't even old enough for alcohol. He probably was never going to try it. No idea what it would do to him, or even if it would.
No, his way to relax was to hang out on the roof of an office building, feet hanging over the edge, mask pulled up to the nose, and a little dinner. Kept hot with a few of his homemade hot containers to keep food warm, a tall bottle of his favorite drink (half iced tea, half lemonade) with a little ice in it, and two slices of Aunt May's apple pie.

Sometimes, like the zombie hunter Talahassee opined, you had to enjoy the little things.

Kara Danvers has posed:
Kara floats down from above and settles on to the edge of the roof next to Peter. She looks over to him and smiles warmly. A small nudge with her shoulder, she looks out over the setting sun. The beautiful reds and yellows blending with the horizon and the night sky chasing it down.

Kara remains silent for the moment, enjoying the march of the celestial bodies. They never looked like this on Krypton. The red sun coloured everything differently to Earth. People never think about how weirdly alien a major colour palette change can be.

"What a month," she eventually says to her friend. That's an understatement, but she's not going to dump on him randomly. May be he's been having a rough time too. He is Spider-Man after all, he faces a lot of the trials of humanity she has to rush past, as much as it pains her.

Peter Parker has posed:
He looks over as she lands and...oof. Still the same, not a hair out of place, clear blue eyes, and the resplendent blue and red and yellow.

Supergirl. The Girl of Steel. The Maid of Might. The Coca-Cola of Rock-and-Rolla. (Okay, that was too much of a stretch.)

He smiled, but there was a little sadness in the smile. But that was okay. She was still epic and awesome and kind and thoughtful and all the other good things.

After a moment, he hands over a small triangular plastic container, and a plastic fork. "Been awhile since you've had Aunt May's finest. Sounds like you might need it more than I do."

He takes out his sandwich, tuna on whole wheat.

"How've you been, Supergirl?" Because code names when in uniform, never forget.

Kara Danvers has posed:
Kara accepts the triangle container and fork, "Thank you Spider-Man." She smiles back to him, noticing that strained expression. It must have been one of those days for Peter too. She takes a bite as the last glow of red ducks behind the buildings and terrain. It is night. Her uniform takes on darker tones at night.

"It's been too long. I'm sorry for that. So many things have happened." She looks to him and says, "What has the Spider-Man been up to, you seem a little melancholy. Not quite your usual upbeat self." She could say the same about herself. Growing up sure throws unexpected challenges at you.

She seems a bit introspective today, "Do you think this world will ever be ready for peace? when they realise the challenges of living are more than enough that piling on more self made problems is not worth the hassle? I have this dream, this wish for humanity to one day reach out in to the stars - but as a benevolent force, there to help. Is it enough to set a good example every day and hope to /rrao/ that it catches on?"

Peter Parker has posed:
Spider-Man chuckles. "We tends to screw up a lot more than we get it right, I guess. But we have to keep trying. Like Rocky Balboa. Never give up trying to do the right thing."

He pauses. "I think I told you the starfish story. About the guy on the beach, tossing beached starfish into the ocean. Another guy comes up and says that there's too many, you can't save them all, what does it matter? And the first guy picks up another starfish, chucks it into the ocean and says, 'Mattered to THAT one.'"

His smile turns wry and encouraging. He is more...himself, in the costume. Less worried about what people say because they have no idea who he is. "What matters is that we do SOMETHING, Supergirl. You save the world, deal with things I can scarcely imagine. That's what you do. I help the little guy. I'm the blue-collar hero. But that's OKAY, because that is what *I* can do. And you and I we just keep on doing the best we can." He takes another bite, sips his drink, then swallows. "You know you can always bend my ear about anything, Supergirl. I'm always willing to listen. And even though you work with some of the best minds of the planet...if you ever need a second opinion about anything scientific, you can always seek me out."

Kara Danvers has posed:
Kara chuckles, "Oh. I'll never give up. I would hope that Earth can avoid the mistakes my people made." She sighs, "So many mistakes." With a shake of her head she looks back to Spider-Man and then dips the fork in to the pie and takes a bite. It's delicious. The more she learns about this planet, the more she appreciates the work her uncle and father put in to choosing it for Kal and her.

"Well.. if you want to know. I am getting panic attacks in tight dark spaces, Dru-Zod took the last city of Krypton from us, Ursa beat me up, four of the Titans disappeared in to a wormhole, one of our number was abducted by Russian spies, super villains called The Fearsome Five attacked Titans Tower, and a creature called ZZGU attempted to invade our world through a dimensional portal."

She takes another bite of the apple pie and raises an eyebrow to Peter. "Your turn, what's eating at you?," she encourages.

Peter Parker has posed:
Spider-Man sighs. "I think a powerful businessman tried to bribe me today. Offered me 240,000 a year to be his personal shutterbug...but he said it was my work with Spider-Man that attracted his attention. The guy's name is Wilson Fisk. And I have no idea why he'd be interested in Spider-Man."

He takes another sip. "This kid...Trent Hopkins. He was helping a couple of other guys six months ago rob a bodega. He was 15, poor, was offered 50 bucks. I stopped the other two, but webbed him to a ledge so the cops wouldn't give him a criminal record. Found out he was having trouble at school. Did a little tutoring..."

He rubbed his face. "One week ago, the other two got out on bail, paid him a visit to shut him up permanently. I...got there too late. Caught the other two, but his mother..." He takes a deeper breath. "He's been on my mind for awhile. Sometimes you do all you can..."

He sniffles, then says, "You have to make yourself get up in the morning and do it again, but you do...because there are a thousand Trents out there...and all you can do is save as many as you can."

Kara Danvers has posed:
Kara thinks on the name and says, "I've never heard of him before, but that sure is a lot of money. You might be right, he might be after Spider-Man." She smirks a touch, "If you ever need anonymous-backup, I could always put on a spidey suit and pretend to swing around on webs." She's only half joking.

But then he tells of Trent Hopkins and she wraps an arm about him in a warm hug. "That is horrible P-Sp.. Spider-Man." She lets out a long sigh and rubs his far shoulder gently.

"You're right, it doesn't always work out the way we'd want it too. Sometimes I feel so helpless. Brainiac, Dru-Zod, ZZGU, even the Fearsome Five hurt so many of my friends. I just wish for a more peaceful tomorrow. But unless we do keep getting up and trying, that tomorrow may never come."

After a while she says, "This apple pie is incredible, thank y- the chef for me."

Peter Parker has posed:
Spider-Man looks to her, then nods, his hand resting on her arm. "Yeah. I wish for that, too."

He doesn't express disbelief about her feeling helpless, because even Supergirl can feel helpless, and patronizing her was never an option.

"It's not all bad, though. I guess I should probably tell you. Remember that redhead I told you about?"
He doesn't say "MJ," but there's only one redhead he's told Kara about.
"She and I...we're giving it another try. Partly because she already knew my secret...and partly because she's dealing with one of her own. But...yeah. It happened."

Kara Danvers has posed:
Kara raises her eyebrow again and smiles, "That's great. I hope it works out well this time. Don't repeat the same mistakes. Open communication and addressing issues sooner rather than later. If you can't communicate openly with your chosen partner, then they're not really your chosen partner, right?"

Kryptonian ideas on relationships are at a norm that is more desired by the majority of couples on Earth.

Peter Parker has posed:
Spidey takes another sip. "Well, she is channeling a female warrior from 12,000 years ago AND she is working with SHIELD." He shrugs. "So, it seems I am fated to be with ANOTHER girl who is so much more awesome than me."

He winks. The eye-lens winks along with his eye.

Kara Danvers has posed:
Kara chuckles, "Don't sell yourself short. It's not what someone can do, it's who they are inside that really matters. Also, you're Spider-Man. That's pretty amazing right there. You started a whole thing. There are t-shirts with your face on them. People write songs about you on the internet. Also, you're one of the nicest people I know. I am extremely lucky to count you as my friend."

Peter Parker has posed:
Spidey raises one eyebrow, "Songs? I only know about Spider-Fail.com. But maybe that is because they get the most content." He shakes his head. "I hope SOMEONE is making a mint off my likeness."

He looks back to Kara. "Hey...I did get the communication system up and running. Want me to see about setting up a rig for you and dial you into the Spider-Comm network? I promise, no affiliation with any major group, and our database is totally private." He looks thoughtful. "I....MIGHT have to send you the blueprints so you can make some Kryptonian-level gear. I made an augmented-reality set of contact lenses, but your eyes occasionally get all burn-y and that would fry the lenses I can make."

Kara Danvers has posed:
Kara nods her head with interesting, "Sure, why not? That sounds amazing. You designed and built it all yourself? Back on Krypton I would make custom atoms, but I wasn't much of an engineer. Physicist - that's me. Huuuge science nerd here." She points a thumb at herself and smiles.

"It's been really hard to continue my studies. I don't have the elders to guild me and the database doesn't have everything I need and I don't have all the equipment I'm used to /and/ Earth science is like yet another foreign language. Everything is named after people, rather than what it actually is."

Peter Parker has posed:
Spidey hmms. "Well, I started college at ESU. I'm in the Neuroscience program. Ever thought about studying together? I can help translate, the lab isn't exactly the Stone Age...and I know She-Who-Makes-the-Pie would love to see you around again, even if it's just hanging out."

Kara Danvers has posed:
Kara chuckles, "She-Who-Makes-the-Pie. Good one." She sighs and says, "I'm pursuing a different career path in my alternate identity.. and actually it's turning out to be really interesting and fun work. I can see yet another way to make a difference in the world with it. I suspect when it comes to particle physics, on Earth I'd be retreating old ground more than exploring new fields like I was going to do at the Science Academy in Argo City."

Peter Parker has posed:
Spidey shrugs. "It's your calling. I just want to help if I can."

He finishes his sandwich and picks up the other dessert container, opening it to sniff the pie with a smile.

"Do what fulfills you, Supergirl. All the rest is details." He pauses. "Wonder Woman is on the Spider-Comm network, though. She is designated as an Honorary Spider. So there is a precedent. But she hasn't called in...and I'm sure she is doing the same thing as you, awesome stuff that would scare the stuffing outta me." He takes a bite of the pie and hmms. "But, it is what it is. I just worry that if I show up at the embassy without a good reason, one of those Amazons would shove me into a box the size of my nose and then make me eat the key."

Kara Danvers has posed:
Kara playfully says, "What fulfills me right now is this apple pie." She finishes it off and offers the triangle container and fork back to Peter. "You say it'd scare you, but I bet if a giant tentacle monster were tearing up main street, you'd be right in there fighting it. That's the kind of guy you are."

Peter Parker has posed:
Spidey snerks. "Yeah, and calling for help on all channels the entire time." He looks to Kara, then looks down, smiling and shaking his head. "I'd be making a lot of jokes at the expense of the Japanese to hide how scared I'd be, too. One perk of this mask...the bad guys can't tell how scared I am."

Kara Danvers has posed:
Kara nods her head, "But I can." She taps her ear, "And the true measure of a hero is that despite how afraid they are, they do it anyway. I'd want a friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man on my side any day of the week." She snaps her fingers, "Oh wait, I do!" She grins and rubs his shoulder again. "You're not just one of the good ones Spider-Man, you're one of the best ones. And if any Amazons pick on you I'll call up Troia on my T-comm and she'll sort them out quick smart." She nods.

Peter Parker has posed:
"They wouldn't pick on me. But my luck would dictate that I talk to the one Amazon whose only experience with me is seeing me on Spider-Fail.com." Spider-Man finishes the pie, then packs away the container. "But I do appreciate it, Supergirl. And I wouldn't bother Diana, really. If I attract the kind of trouble she usually deals with, I'm sure she would see it from her embassy by that point." Spider-Man looks thoughtful. "Apart from when we stopped that gold heist, asking you to join me in fighting bad guys feel like using a flamethrower to kill roaches. Overkill."

He looks around. "Listen...I'd like you to meet Red sometime. I don't think you ever did...and maybe you might be able to help with something that may be FAR out of my league."

Kara Danvers has posed:
Kara shrugs her shoulders and places her hands in her lap. She nods her head, "Sure. If you think it'd help. And believe me, I always feel like a planet sized flamethrower. Most of my crime fighting work is an exercise in extreme restraint. But sometimes a threat comes along that seems to need people like me, my cousin, and my sister. Like you I'm not afraid to face it head on. Don't feel too concerned, worst case scenario a criminal stupidly tries to punch me and hurts their hand."

Peter Parker has posed:
Spidey chuckles. "Yeah. I think the smarter crooks would just surrender. Doc Ock, though...well, quite a few of them...ah, well. When you meet Red, I can help lay out the whole situation. But it involves magic. BAD juju."

Kara Danvers has posed:
Kara urkls, "Magic.. magic is the worst." She smirks and sighs. "Cheer up though Spider-Man. Think of all the people who are thankful to be alive right now because of you, and all their families and friends who adore you for it."

Peter Parker has posed:
Spider-Man nods. "That's the thing to remember, right there." He looks to her, then blinks as an alert comes up. "I need to get going, Kara. I have to see about getting the A/C fixed at the house, and I burned up Fisk's $20,000 check on principle."

Kara Danvers has posed:
Kara slips off the edge and floats out from the building, turning back around to face Peter. "I had no doubt you would." She gives a friendly wave and says, "Stay safe Spider-Man." She smiles fondly to her friend and then shoots up off in to the sky.

Peter Parker has posed:
Spidey watches her go.

"Story of my life," he says with a chuckle, then starts cleaning up. When eating a la carte, always bus your own table.