6905/Spider

Spider
Date of Scene:	12 July 2021
Location:	Brooklyn
Synopsis:	Ben and Terry get to know each other, go on patrol and chat about false memories and not taking dares from Harley Quinn
Cast of Characters:	Ben Reilly, Terry O'Neil

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Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly is getting used to taking regular patrols. Moving into Titans Tower and having the resources and, frankly, easily available food on-hand has allowed him to cut down on his time delivering food for SUPEREATS.COM and to focus on actual superheroing. He still misses Aunt May's packed lunch - and Aunt May - but he has to make his way as a weird clone in the world and there's no use being mopey about it. Well, okay, sometimes he's really mopey about it, but he tries not to be, especially when he's wearing the hoodie. Nobody wants to be saved by an emo boy.

He put up a note on the bulletin board to see if anyone wanted to patrol with hi and, to his surprise, someone did and now they're set to rendesvous here on the roof of a delicatessan in Brooklyn, the smell of corned beef in the air.

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"Oh man," comes the voice without a body- "That scent makes me want to sit down and gobble up. It's been ages since breakfast!"

The owner of the voice eventually becomes clear when, a dozen feet or so from Ben, a grin appears in mid-air. A second later it is followed by stripes, and then the rest of the body fills in, revealing the Cheshire Cat, crouched on the edge of the rooftop.

His outfit isn't exctly formal hero fare- a pair of black bike shorts and a teal tank top with a stylized Cheshire grin emblazoned across the wide chest. This is his unofficial summer uniform, because being covered in fur means that the more clothes you put on, the more likely it is that you're going to faint from heat exhaustion. "I approve of your rendez-vous location, even if I am going to be hving some serious cravings now!" he says, standing up to his full height and giving the Scarlet Spider a grin, feeling a little self-satisfied at having performed the trademark appearance flawlessly.

Just like swans gliding gracefully across the water, there was a lot more going on underneath to present that seamless illusion. In this reality, and in this mixed body, he couldn't just appear and disappear at will like he could in Wonderland. Instead, he had to use invisiblity, his Rabbit Hole, and his natural stealth in tandem.

But that's his little secret. Spidey doesn't need to know that.

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly didn't know diddly squat about Terry, really, other than briefly being in the same mission during that crazy auction thing, which was literally the same day he joined the Titans and left him feeling a little fish out of water, if the fish was a spider and also a person.

He pushes back the hoodie portion of his costume, his body decked in a combination of scarlet trimmed in black with a little navy thrown in, but not too much because then he'd look just like Spider-Man and there's no reason he should be connected to Spider-Man, other than them being friends and occasionally working together, right? No reason at all.

"I mostly needed to grab some lunch beforehand and then have a little time to digest. Don't wanna go on patrol while processing a Reuben. That's just asking for distress."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Terry steps closer to Ben, grinning, "Oh man, tell me about it. When I first started going on patrol about a year ago- nobody told me. I guess it must have been some sort of initiation ritual. Beast Boy took me on patrol and we had a big belly burger before starting."

He stops a few feet from Ben and glances at his costume up and down, noting the hoodie and making a brief mental note about potentially getting one for a winter variant. He hated having snow on his hair! "And then when you're leaping around rooftops things /move/ man. We ended up fighting some dorks who tried to hold up a bank and... let me tell you, hell is being in the middle of a fight you want to get /done/ with because you've got to /go/!"

He crosses his arms. "I love your outfit, by the way. All you spiders have the bestt designs, really. I'm still not really feeling what my groove is. I've changed outfits like, four times."

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly smiles, "Thanks. I designed it myself, just wanted to add a few different touches. A lot of us tend to get clumped together, so it's tough to stand out," he says. "Not that it really matters, I guess, but you want to be yourself and not just a...copy of somebody else," he says.

"And yeah, I've definitely been on the bad end of some situations like that. I always try to keep a good eye on where the nearest public restroom is just in case. Sadly, there aren't a lot of them at rooftop level," he says.

"Your outfit's not bad at all, although it says more 'summer beach party' then 'gonna kick your ass'. But that just means you take 'em off guard."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Terry glances down at his outfit and chuckles. "Oh, this? Yeah... it's kind of an exception. When it gets super hot out, I literally can't even if I'm wearing anything except the lightest stuff." He tugs at his tank to show off the logo, "But I got my logo printed on this so it sort of looks official. But put me in something like that..." he gestures to Ben's outfit, "and I'll get heatstroke in five minutes flat. Now I know why Tigra runs around in a bikini in the summer. But let's be honest," he crosses his arms and his grin turns into a smirk "Ain't nobody who wants to see me running around in a speedo- so Beach Party Vorpal (accessories not included) it is."

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly grins, "Oh, I'm sure that's not true! You're in really good shape. A lot of us are basically wearing underwear on the outside anyway. Like, my first costume was literally like a pair of long johns that I dyed," he says. Well, that wasn't really him, that was Peter, he just remembered it. Funny how that works.

"I can see how the fur would be an inconvenience sometimes. I guess I'm lucky I didn't get more spider-aspects like extra eyes or big black hairs coming out of my back!"

Terry O'Neil has posed:
The Cheshire raises an eyebrow and chuckles, "Well, okay, maybe /some/ people might want to see me running around in something like that. But I'll do it on personal request, not public access, though," he says with mischief, and then leaps over and lands in a crouch on a ventilation pipe that isn't too far from Ben. "When I first struck up with the Titans, I wear wearing hoodies and sweatpants until Donna told me I had to figure something out because hoodies are Raven's trademark." He raises a hand to point at Ben's, "Mind you, yours is colorful enough that Rae wouldn't want to wear it, so you're totally safe."

Or is he?

"It's hard in summer, but in the wintertime I don't need to wear nearly as much as other people when my winter coat comes in, so I guess that's a nice trade-off." He glances over at Ben, examining him, before coming to the conclusion: "If you had big black hairs coming out of your back, would you have to wear, like, backless tights? Like those backless ball gowns but for superheroes? Oh god that would be funny--- good thing you don't have those. But an even more embarrasing trait would be... you know. You could have ended up producing silk the way spiders do. Then you'd be swinging upside-down all over the city..."

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly winces, "Believe me, I've thought of a lot of embarrassing side effects that could've been. I know I got lucky in some ways, although now with some of the troubles I've been having..." he says, then trails off. "That's going to be okay, though. Caitlin's going to be able to figure out what's going on. She's the best, right?"

"I don't think I've met Raven yet. The little bit I've heard, I'm a little scared to. The hood is really convenient, though, especially in bad weather. I always used to get water dappled on my lenses, even though I made them water resistant."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Terry frowns. "Caitlin's the best. I... don't know what troubles you've been having, but I'd entrust my life in her hands. She pulled through for Gar when he got his arm chopped off and found a way to help boost his self-regenerating powers to regrow it. She's magic at baking /and/ science. Just don't ever ask herr what Going Full Caitlin means."

"Raven is... Raven. She's a valuable asset to the team, she obviously cares for the team very much. But most of the time I think she is plotting my demise." He grins and shrugs, "It's probably the mystique she carries. It's hard to tell how much is true and how much is just your mind filling in for the blanks she itentionally leaves behind." He stretches his legs a little.

"So,everybody in the team has different relationships to their secret identities, but I am fairly open about who I am. I'm Terry O'Neil and I work for the Daily Planet... I don't know how comfortable you are with telling people who you are, but if you ever do tell me, you can rest assured that I can keep the secret. I know Ghost Spider and Spider-Woman's identities, but none of the other Spiders. And I don't ask unless told because I'm a journalist, not a muck raker." He smirks, "and the Bugle can suck it. "

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly considers, "I'm not sure where I am with it. Probably because," he sighs, and then just admits it, "My identity isn't only my own. I'm a...clone. Which means if I show my face, I'm showing his face, too, and it's hard to know where the line is. Not that most people would recognize either of us, it's not like he's famous or anything, but I know that sometimes people cross paths in unexpected ways. Spidey's very protective of his, for good reason. But I go by Ben. You can call me Ben," he says.

"Maybe, in time, I'll just give in and start going unmasked around the Titans, at least. Probably, once I'm more comfortable. Everyone seems really friendly and social. It's...nice. I haven't had a lot of friends and the ones I do have...well, mostly they're someone else's friends that I just remember."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"Ah, I see-" a clone. He has never met a clone before, so he doesn't know if clones remembering things is common or not. "I can imagine how... confusing it must be." He hesitates for a second, and then leans in close to say quietly: "I don't really know what /you/ must be going through, but I am not entirely alien to it. I am /the/ Cheshire Cat... but I'm also his son. It's... complicated. Dad ceased to exist when I was born, and the mantle passed on to me. Apparently There Can Be Only One. So..." he waves a hand close to his face, "I sort of /remember/ things that happened to him, and know things I have no way of knowing for myself but which /he/ knew. So I'm not exactly a clone, but... you're not entirely alone?"

He reaches over and puts a hand on Ben's shoulder, "But it's decent of you to want to protect Spidey's identity. I've only seen him from the nose down, 'cause we were eating hot dogs in the park, so I know he's caucasian. So don't feel like you need to starve around me to protect your chin and mout 'cause I've already seen that!" he chuckles. And then he grows earnest.

"Ben, the Titans are family. Sure, we're chaotic at times, and some of us are a little extra... but if you have nowhere to go and have nobody to turn to, you can always turn to us. And if you /ever/ need anything, anything at all? You can call me. My number is listed in the contact directory, and the good thing about Rabbit Holes..."

He snaps his finger and a Rabbit Hole opens in front of them- overlooking Champs Elysee.

"... is that I can be anywhere with just a snap."

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly looks up at the Rabbit Hole, "That is awfully convenient," he says, taking the comfort as Terry's hand rests on his shoulder. He seems to absorb it a little. He hasn't gotten much in the way of other people touching him in a long time. No hugs from his aunt or from his old friends, just...Ben. Off on his own.

"I'll keep it in mind. I dyed my hair, too, although I Don't know how much it helps. Mostly I think it works because I - he - isn't the kind of guy who dyes his hair," he says.

To the Cheshire Cat thing, he nods, although it seems crazy to him. How can he be THE Cheshire Cat? Wasn't he a fictional character? Isn't that like being the guy from Brooklyn 99 or having the powers of He-Man? Well. The powers of He-Man would be pretty sweet.

"A bad guy stole his memories and put them in me, tried to use me against him. Didn't work. But it complicated...everything."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"Dyeing works wonders. I know. I know for a fact from certain superheroes that all it takes to fool a lot of people is a wig of a different color. That's because our brains aren't very good at facial recognition and instead relies on pattern recognition..." he smirks "Of course, that doesn't rule out things like /scent/. But just as long as you douse yourself in Axe bodyspray when you're in your secret identity, nobody is going to even try to sniff you out. That thing is like acid on the nostrils for enhanced senses."

He squeezes Ben's shoulder, "Oof... a doppelganger of mine from another reality stole my powers and tried to use them against me and the team, I feel you..." he pauses, and then looks down in an embarrassed gesture, "But you can probably rest assured in the knowledge that you didn't do anything to stupid as to make out with your doppelganger, which is how he stole your powers!" he figures that he had best mention it because, sooner or later, somebody was going to. He scratches the back of his neck and smirks.

"I've made... some stupid mistakes. So you don't need to worry too much about screwing up. Almost nothing you can do could match up to some of the stunts I've pulled... and I'm still here!"

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly grins, "Yeah, that...didn't really occur to me, I admit. I mean, not that I'm not good-lookin', I think I do pretty okay for a...nerdy dude, but there was too much conflict and confusion for us to ever get..." he says and then realizes he has no idea how Terry got into that situation and he's definitely not going to ask.

"Hey, I've made all the mistakes. Like, A to Z, top to bottom. I tend to have a little bit of bad luck, in my experience, but nothing too disastrous recently. Coming to the Titans has been a great thing, for one, I was kind of on my own crashing in Gotham..."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"A nerdy dude built like an acrobat- and Spidey had a good-looking chin, so yours must be too!" Terry jokes. He then smirks as Ben trails off. He raises both hands by way of explanation and says "All you need to know is that there was a dare involved, Harley Quinn with a camera, and my unstoppable curiosity. Even though it did cause some complications, it did satisfy one point of curosity and I can objectively attest to the fact that I am, in fact, an absolutely terrific kisser!" He looks around, and then shrugs, "Not that anyone else wanted that clarified. But at leat I know now. And knowing is half the battle, right?"

An actual honest-to-goodness animated star flies behind him, leaving a rainbow trail that fades a few seconds later.

"It's no good, crashing in Gothan. That place is the pits. Stick with us in sunny Metropolis- I hear nobody knows what the sun looks like in Gotham because it's constantly covered in that sickly fog. That city isn't healthy for anyone. Turns you into a psycho. Just look at Robin!"

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly watches the star, his head rotating slightly to follow it, "Okay. You did that right? Not just a hallucination?" he says. He's got to check, some of his clone DNA instability has been causing interesting symptoms.

"I just went to Gotham cause I thought I could do some good. And I figured it was better to put some distance between me and Original Recipe. Kind of awkward having to avoid all my own favorite hangouts and friends because there's a me that's already there who belongs there and I'm actually the doppelganger who was supposed to take his place, only I didn't."

"I've heard about Harley Quinn. I would probably not take a dare from her."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"Oh. I probably should have warned you about that. I can create images and sounds and smells. If I wanted to-" and there, in a moment, there are two Bens, every detail perfectly copied, "I could look and sound like you." And indeed he does, down to the voice.

And then he's Vorpal again. "It comes in handy. If you ever need a decoy, or a distraction, I'm your cat. My illusions show up on camera, too. Not on infra-red, though..."

At the mention of Harley Quinn, he purses his lips and leans in close, putting an arm around Ben's shoulders as he says in a conspiratorial manner:

"Harley is nice. She's been doing very well trying to go ... well, if not completely straight, then at least wobbily straight. She's a great friend of mine. But yeah- don't take her up on a dare unless you are ready for a rollercoaster ride. And don't drink anything she prepares unless you are ready for the hangover of your life. Maybe I'll introduce you to her someday soon, she lives with my cousin April."

He glances over at the clone and smiles, "How's that Reuben settling down? You feel ready to traipse across rooftops? That is, if you're not embarrassed to be seen in my improvised duds next to your fancy Spideyfashion!"

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly smiles, "I'll remember that. All of that," he says. Admittedly, he's a little more used than most to seeing other people who look and sound exactly like him. He even has a pair of old Spidey style duds packed away in case Peter ever needs him to provide an alibi.

"I think I'm ready to go, five blocks up, five blocks over, then back around again in a good old fashioned quare? One of the benefits of New York geography, easy symmetry."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"You got it!" Vorpal says, taking a step back and stretching his legs to warm up, "I want to practice my parkour up here so I won't be using my Rabbit Holes too much. But... I have a request for the back-around!" he says with a broad grin, "that is, if you're up for it."

While he says this, he pulls on his pair of white fingerless gloves, and secures the Ifast ankle stabilizers to his feet.

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly crosses his arms over his chest, "You wanna swing, don't ya?" he says with a bemused tone in his voice. "People usually ask for that until they do it and then their tummies start trying to eat their medula oblongata."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Vorpal laughs and bounds over to Ben, and puts both hands on his shoulders while bouncing up and down slightly on the balls of his feet "Oh please, please, please? Spidey took me swinging once and I totally yarked on someone... but that was ages ago! And besides, I've gotten used to changing gravitational fields because of how I chain Rabbit Holes together!"

Terry feline does That Thing That Cats Do and stares at Ben plaintively, "I'll buy you ice cream afterwards! Give you a neck rub! Get you Nick Drago tickets! Take up your Monitor Duty for a week! Whaddaya say?"

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly laughs, "Fine, fine, no need to bribe me. I'm more of a hip-hop guy anyway,' he says. "But ice cream sounds good! Cookies and cream for me!"

He fires off a web line, "Let's get to heroing! Okay, that's not a good catchphrase, but it'll be good enough for now..."