on mun's extended hiatus and bad excuses.

[bedeviledspider]

Look.

They might be the most idiotic, naive, clueless group of so-called superhero in the world -- believe me, I know, but I think even the Spider Clan would raise their eyebrows if I said I'd gone for a month to practice my Goblin cackle.

Even you can come up with a better excuse for my disappearance than that.

Comments

[arach_nerd]

I'll freely cop to one and three, but naive? Really?

[bedeviledspider]

Okay, maybe that one only applies to Spider-Girl.

[menaced]

There is an entire clan now?

[bedeviledspider]

Heh. I take it you're not a fan of them, either?

It's true. Unfortunately.

[menaced]

I'm not...a fan. But I do...appreciate some of the work that Spider-Man does. [She has to grudgingly give them that. Spider-Man did save her baby, after all.]

I'm not the best judge of character, though.

[bedeviledspider]

That's more credit than I'd give him but I suppose the others are... a little better. [ Sorry, Pete, that's the brainwashing talking. Mostly. ]

People say that about me, too.

[menaced]

I only know Spider-Man, and that's because he helped arrest...a villain known as Menace...and was there when I gave birth to my son.

[bedeviledspider]

Menace, huh? Never heard of that one. Must have been before my time.

Hmph. I wouldn't let him near my kid, if I were you. He's terrible with children. They all are.

[menaced]

It was...short run. [Lily hates think back to her Menace days.]

Well that's... [She has to stand up for Spider-Man, here. He's the one who went after Lily's baby even with all the crimes Lily had committed in the past fresh within Spider-Man's mind. Spider-Man took care of Harry, love of Lily's life, and returned with the child, though he was beaten and battered.]

I think you're wrong about that. Spider-Man single-handedly saved my son.

[bedeviledspider]

That doesn't change--

[ He breathes deeply, unaware that he's starting to shake with rage. ]

One good deed doesn't make him any less of a pest that needs to be squashed.

[menaced]

[Lily shrugs, noticing the shaking. She feels she's stood up for the wall crawler enough for his good deeds upon her nature. That's enough for a while.]

Are there any people you do like?

[bedeviledspider]

[ And as soon as it appears, the rage disappears, replaced with a friendly smile. ]

As long as they're not slinging a web? Sure! I have friends in the City and my girlfriend's great. And back home... well, I still had to deal with webheads, but Mr. Nelson was always good to me. And Osborn wasn't so bad.

[menaced]

[Lily smiles and nods to the positive aspects of Reilly's life as he tells them, but when he mentions Osborn...Lily's blood could have stopped cold.]

Harry Osborn?

misunderstandings go!

[bedeviledspider]

[ He shakes his head. ]

His son.

whoo! GOTTA LOVE COMICS!

[menaced]

Stanley?

[Her heart skips a beat.]

confusion and disappointment AW YEAH COMICS

[bedeviledspider]

[ He blinks. ]

Who?

wooooo!

[menaced]

Stanley Osborn. He's--he's the youngest son of Harry Osborn.

[bedeviledspider]

[ Softly. ] Doesn't ring a bell, sorry.

I want to say that I'd know if my client had a long-lost brother, but after that debacle with Norman the first and his long-lost daughter, I guess there's no guarantees.

[menaced]

Then... [She thinks. Her beloved Harry was married before, wasn't he? And he'd produced a son from that marriage, though he did not visit with the child due to visitation rights, something Lily hated as she knew it upset Harry to be unable to see his progeny.]

Normie? [She wrinkles her nose at mention of long-lost daughter. One of the Stacy kids, maybe.]

[bedeviledspider]

That's the one.

A little misguided when it comes to giving up his life as the Green Goblin, if you ask me, not to mention his friendship with Spider-Girl -- [ An exasperated sound escapes his leaves his lips. For once, it's not the brainwashing talking. He will always disapprove of that. ]

But, uh. Other than that, he's a good guy.

[menaced]

Normie becomes the Green Goblin? Oh no. Harry...

[She looks up from being downtrodden with confusion.]

Spider-Girl?

[bedeviledspider]

[ If he were himself, he'd tell her that Harry never lived to it see it happen. Even if that would be the coldest comfort. But, well, Lily's reminded him of his least favorite topic. ]

Ugh, yes, this generation's latest pest. Just as much of an annoyance as her father.

[menaced]

...Spider-Man has a daughter?

[bedeviledspider]

I know, it's pretty shocking to think someone would put up with him long enough.

[menaced]

Well it's--! [What does she say? She has nothing to say except maybe stammer incoherent babble.] I just never pictured him as the father type.

[bedeviledspider]

[ Grim. ]

Yeah, well, I can't blame you. He's not any good at it.

[ Aaaand that's genuine, alas. ]

[menaced]

Well...I can't really comment on that. I don't even really know him, except for when...stopped Menace from terrorizing New York.

[bedeviledspider]

Well. Take it from someone who knows, then.

There's that name again. Who is this Menace, anyway?

[menaced]

...he was a villain.

[Hates this hates this hates this. Oh joy. Here comes the outpour of guilt.]

He...knew Harry Osborn in real life and was his best friend...and then betrayed him for Harry's father.

[bedeviledspider]

Hmph. Not so different from your so-called hero, then.

You do know Spider-Man is the one who almost killed Norman Osborn, right? Who did murder Harry's friend Gwen?

[menaced]

The first Norman?

[bedeviledspider]

Unless you're from some world where Norman Osborn the first isn't the Green Goblin.

[menaced]

I'm from that world. Yes, Norman Osborn was the Green Goblin, and if Spider-Man almost killed Norman Osborn the first...then I wish his aim had been better.

[She may have pretended to be in love with Norman to fool the old coot into believing all her lies, but she had no genuine affection for the man.]

[bedeviledspider]

Understandable.

[ His voice shakes, trying to repress the rage that comes up every time he thinks of his father. Stabbed in the back. Left to die. ]

But killing him won't change anything.

[menaced]

No. [And though Lily is considering thoughts of Norman, dead on a spike, she knows that killing the bastard outright wouldn't solve anything.] It won't.

[bedeviledspider]

Even if you did... he always finds a way back. Always. Trust me, I know.

[ Getting your butt kicked by your possessed uncle isn't exactly something a guy forgets. ]

[menaced]

Well... [She's depressing this poor kid.] That's why there are people like us. We went through hell and back, and here we are to put a stop to people like him.

[bedeviledspider]

[ Maybe not that much, if he can manage to chuckle. ]

I'd say something about power and responsibility, but with the way you feel about the Webhead, I don't think you'd be a big fan.

Then again, neither am I, most of the time.