But… It’s me! The real Spider-Man!

"Her house?" Gwen wondered as she looked around. The mercenary's dwelling was as unsightly on the inside as it was on the outside. If there was one thing you could say about the place, it was that it was surprisingly ordinary. No weapons scattered around the corners, no dirty clothes or food scraps. Not at all, the hallway and living room were kept perfectly clean, not to mention the furnishings in the house, all looking like a model family lived here. Not at all what you'd expect from one of the most eccentric women in the world, or at least the most eccentric Stacy had ever met. As she passed the room with the door slightly ajar, Stacy's keen eyes even saw a photograph of a young couple on the bedside table. The man and woman were smiling happily into the camera, hugging each other tightly. Gwen felt she saw something she shouldn't have seen, but Deadpool didn't seem to notice anything.

Soon, however, something made the girl forget about the mysterious couple in the photo and change her mind a little about the mediocrity of the mercenary's dwelling. It was hidden behind one of the doors in the basement of the secret laboratory of a scientist. Just like in the movies. The transition from home to the atmosphere of a high-tech secret hiding place was so abrupt that she whistled:

"Wow, this is quite a setup you have here!" She had never seen such a variety of expensive scientific equipment, and even the Connors Laboratory, generously sponsored by the university, paled in comparison to Parker's secret lair. By this time, Stacy had no doubts as to who or why all this splendor had been organized, nor, indeed, as to Peter's competence as a scientist. The antiserum that had brought Karen back to normal life was a testament to the skills of its creator. Gwen, who considered herself quite knowledgeable in matters of genetics and chemistry, could hardly understand the principles of the drug. Not to mention the fact that Professor Connors' breakthrough was also possible only because a sample of the substance from that drip came into her hands.

Parker himself showed up right away, and not alone, but in the company of a tall blond girl who immediately turned her attention to the new arrivals.

"Oh, good, you're here!" Turning to Gwen, the stranger smiled. She gave Stacy the impression of an animated and energetic person. She was a company girl and a charmer, like Watson, who could make anyone like her. For some reason, Gwen thought she would have a laugh like M.J.'s. She knew it was only a first impression, and it might be false, but in her nineteen years, she'd rarely been fooled by people. And now that she had superpowers, her ability to recognize the moods and personalities of people she was talking to had reached a new level.

Nevertheless, Stacy is immediately suspicious of Parker's acquaintance. Venom, missing from the Spiderwoman's radar at the same time as Deadpool, suddenly appears during the attack on OzCorp and claims to know Parker. And now the mercenary who hunted Venom is discovered in Peter's secret hideout... though rather the opposite, since according to Deadpool, this is her home. And if you add to that the guy's warning that another man is now hiding under Venom's disguise...

"We didn't really get a chance to talk last time, you were so fast on your web!" The newcomer confirmed the girl's conjecture, holding out her hand for a handshake. "About that time, I wanted to intervene earlier, but you were flying so fast over my head that I was afraid of hitting you when attacked. But it's still cool that we got to work together, you know, it was the first time I went out in public... well, like a heroine or something."

Stacy smiled under her mask after hearing such a long and emotional speech. This time she seemed to have guessed the character of her new acquaintance. Having met the new Venom host in person, Gwen was fully convinced that she and the monster that had devoured people some time ago were completely different personalities.

"Goddamn it, Bobby! Bottomless Throat is my nickname, and you'd better stop talking so much unless you want to challenge it." Deadpool suddenly cut in, pointing a threatening finger at the girl, and then added in a whisper to Gwen, "She's a big fan of yours and wants your autograph on her tits, maybe even from your white liquid."

"Nice to meet you," Stacy said in response to the handshake, pretending she hadn't heard the end of Deadpool's line.

"What? No, don't listen to her, I'm just a little worried, that's all," Bobby waved the mercenary off. "My name is Barbara, but my friends can call me Bobby."

"Wanda Wilson, but my enemies may call me Deadpool or Imminent Death," Wilson added, her arms crossed over her chest.

Sensing she was expected to answer, Stacy awkwardly introduced herself:

"And I'm Spiderwoman, as I'm sure you've guessed."

There was a brief awkward pause, as if Bobby and Deadpool were waiting to continue.

"That's it?" The mercenary was the first to fail, "We don't hide our names, in case you haven't noticed, we don't hide behind masks... mine doesn't count, believe me, you don't want to see what's under it."

"No one knows the identity of the Spiderwoman, and I'd like to keep it that way," Stacy replied, bracing herself for the mercenary's pressure.

"So..." replied Wilson in a strained voice, "you came to my house, you know our names, we offered you our friendship, and you won't even tell us your name. That's disrespectful."

"Don't push her," Bobby suddenly came to Gwen's defense, "people know Venom as a bloodthirsty monster, and I'm not talking about your reputation at all, if not for Peter's word, our acquaintance would have started with a spider web shot in the face. You can't reproach her for not wanting to reveal her secret identity in the company of a monster and a murderer."

Bobby's speech was interrupted by the sound of a centrifuge turning on at a fairly high speed.

"Somebody's just watching too much television," Parker interjected, turning to the girls, "we've got better things to do than measure..."

Peter was suddenly silent before he finished his sentence, and then continued to fumble with the test tubes. But he had achieved his goal, the conflict died down before it had even begun, and the attention of those present shifted to other questions.

"Is she here?" Gwen took the opportunity to change the subject, "Did you really catch her?"

Wanda was clearly unhappy with the indulgence Bobby and Parker were giving Spiderwoman, but decided to give the new girl some time.

"In my bedroom," Wilson said with a lewd tone in her voice, "in a freezer box, tied up, gagged and dildoed in the ass, waiting for her fate, you can go see, I think you'll like it!"

If Deadpool intended this line to embarrass the two female listeners, she clearly succeeded. Stacy could only be glad the mask was hiding her face at this point.

"Oh," Parker sighed heavily, putting his hand to his face, "don't mind her, she's joking."

"What do you want to do with her?" Gwen asked with a hint of concern in her voice. At that, the girl wondered which part of what the mercenary had said was true.

"Wait a minute," Parker asked her, and then he started the second centrifuge, which made such a noise in the room that it was impossible to speak for half a minute. But soon the first machine fell silent, and Peter began to explain the situation to Osborne a second time. The need to retell the same thing several times clearly did not please him.

Listening to his conclusions, Gwen couldn't help but wonder. If the fact that yesterday's assailant turned out to be the head of OzCorp fit into the picture of events quite well, because even yesterday Stacy had noticed how lucky Norma Osborne had been to miss the festival, the fact that she was also the mother of Peter and MJ's classmate, who had been transformed by an unknown serum just like Karen had been rather unexpected. After all, New York is a city of many millions of people, what are the odds that of all the women in the city under the guise of a villain, someone they know?

"And he doesn't know yet that Spider-Woman is the drummer in his girlfriend's band and Professor Connors' intern!" - flashed through the girl's mind. Parker will be surprised when he finds out the truth...

Stacy misfired. She thought not "if," but "when," as if the very thought that sooner or later Peter would find out her secret identity had already taken root in her brain. Thinking quickly about the thought, Gwen, surprised to herself, concluded that it made perfect sense. After all, Parker is the one who makes the web for her, knows about almost all the exploits, and generally provides maximum support. If there's anyone to whom Spiderwoman is willing to reveal her secret, it's him. But is Gwen Stacy ready for that? Besides... the girl remembered that sudden kiss after the White Rabbit's arrest, which made her heart race a little harder.

But Parker is hiding a lot from her, too! How did he know about the impending attack? How did he figure out the villain's secret identity and the place that is her hideout? And those were just a few of the unanswered questions Gwen had accumulated about Parker. When it came to this guy, mystery and mystery spawned each other like bonds in a reaction. But sooner or later the amount of substance that sustains the reaction must run out, and then Gwen will know the truth. In fact, she was already barely restraining herself from blowing her suspicions on Peter, but she felt that doing so would only turn the Spiderwoman's only ally against herself, not to mention the mercenary and Venom. In the end, the infallible sense of danger that had never failed her before was stubbornly silent when it came to Parker. Or rather, she sensed something, but she couldn't figure out what it was. Sometimes she began to think there was something about him that made them alike-as if he were like her...