Day One
The first thing he thought was that this place could use Spider-Man.
The air was heavy, filled with chemicals and gloom. Barely any sunlight peeked through the overcast, and the people he saw below looked like death warmed over. Peter could relate.
He had been given a couple of hours to swing by his place and grab what he could before the spell took effect. So, there he stood, on a rooftop with a large duffel bag containing all he thought necessary. Or, what could fit in the bag, rather. Clothes, special protein bars he had designed with Mr. Stark ages ago, his phone, wallet with all he (and May, oh god don’t think about May) had, an extra pair of shoes, his Spidey suit, extra web fluid, a blanket, some LEGO figurines that he couldn’t bear to part with, the works. Now to find a place to put it, and then he would begin his wanderings. Peter scanned the area below, looking. There! A large stretch of green a mile or so from here! Perfect!
‘Robinson Park’ loomed over him, and his more spidery traits were satisfied with the greenery of it. So, Peter made his way in.
It was quiet, a welcome oasis from the noise and bustle of the city. Even if Peter could never fully escape the noise, the dampening effect the trees had was greatly appreciated. The trees seemed to whisper around him, something indistinct that had him slightly on edge, but not worried. Not yet, anyways. He would start to worry when his spidey sense told him to. Deeper into the park, the trees got closer, and a large mass of vines and trees and flora of all kinds appeared on the trail before him. Someone put a sign in front of it: ‘Not Your Land.’ Well, it would have to be Peter’s just for a bit. He swallowed, walking into the tunnel made from the greenery.
Everything was moving around him, he could hear it, he could feel it. Looking over his shoulder showed him that his exit was now blocked off by various vines with what looked to be thorns adorning them. No going back now…
“Um, hello? I’m very sorry to intrude, I just need to put my bag somewhere until I find a better spot for it. I swear it won’t take long.” Peter wasn’t sure who he was calling out to, but he figured he’d better explain himself to whoever (whatever?) might be listening. His spidey sense was buzzing now, getting slightly louder the further in he walked, but not enough to make him try to get out. It was more of a warning than an immediate threat, and as long as he didn’t piss off who or what was listening, then it should be fine. Hopefully. Maybe.
A vine wrapped itself around Peter’s wrist and began pulling him further in. Peter trusted his senses, and they weren’t telling him he was going to die, so he let it. Eventually, he reached a greenhouse-like area. He carefully eased the glass door open, calling out, “Hello?”
“Hello!” A cheerful, loud, New Yorkaccent called out. “Whaddya doin’ here, toots? Don’tcha know this place isn’t meant for people like you?”
Peter blanched at that. “Wait, please! I just need to put my bag down before I find someplace else to store it! I swear I won’t be any trouble, miss!”
A girl with blonde hair tied into pigtails dyed at the ends jumped in front of him. Clutched in her hands was a large mallet, clearly weighing a ton, yet she held it with no problem. “Ooh, he has manners, Ivy! And he’s a New Yorker, too! Oh, hello, kid! I haven’t heard a friendly voice in ages! And such a polite one too!”
Peter laughed nervously. “Heh, thanks, miss! My aunt would have my head if she heard me talking any other way, so… Wait, why is my accent surprising? Is this not New York?”
Another woman emerged from the foliage, this one with green skin and red hair, wearing a cute ‘tree hugger’ shirt. She smiled at Peter. “You’re in Gotham, New Jersey, young man. What’s your name?”
“Peter. And I’m not in New York? But I thought…”
The blonde giggled and draped herself over the redhead. “The name’s Harley, kid. Dr. Harley Quinzel. And this here’s Ivy. Did ya not mean to come to Gotham?”
“No, I thought— it doesn’t matter, I’m here now.”
The two women exchanged glances, a silent conversation happening between them. “Call me Pam. If you didn’t mean to get here, how did you? And why do my plants trust you?”
Peter rubbed the back of his neck. “I might be a bit more spidery than others, but I’d prefer if we kept that between us. I uh. Also have no clue how I got here.”
“A meta-human, huh? Well you’re in good company, kid! And even if you’re not from around here, I like ya!” Harley chirped. “Come on, you can leave your bag here for as long as you want, just as long as you’re not keeping a bomb or something crazy in there.”
“Thank you! And yeah, no bombs here. I really wouldn’t want to hurt plant life like that. Especially this kind, this is really cool! I’ve never seen anything like it! What’s a ‘meta-human?’”
“Gosh,” Harley gushed, “that’s someone like Red, here! And me, I guess!”
Pam hummed pleasantly. “And someone like you, Peter. We’re different from other humans…” Pam stooped down and inhaled a beautiful flower before walking again. Peter followed them to a roomy area with a rug, a couch, a tv, and a small cooking area.
“Just dump it on the couch, Petey!” Harley sang.
Peter did so, smiling at the two. His spidey sense was quiet, despite everything weird going on, so he was fine. A little weirded out, but fine.
“So, what brought you to Gotham, Peter?” Pam asked.
Peter cringed a little, thinking of the spell, the other Peters, MJ and Ned and May and— “Um, I kinda got caught up in something big. Like, really big, and I couldn’t stay there anymore. In Queens, I mean. So now I’m here.”
“Hell of a place to move to! But hey, you’re in good company, so you must be doing something right, right Red?”
Pam laughed a little. “Just be careful kid. We’ll keep your bag safe for you. Go do what you need.”
“Thanks, Miss Pam. I will. I’ll be back in a couple of hours or so. I just have to find someplace to crash, and then. Yeah. Do you know where the library is from here?”
“Sure do, kid! Just head out of the park and to your right. Cross at Campbell Street and it’s a straight shot from there!”
“Thank you. I’ll be back in no time.”
The two waved him goodbye and Peter was on his way once more.
As promised, the Gotham Public Library loomed over him, and Peter made his way inside. “Excuse me, could I please use a computer?”
A red-headed woman in a wheelchair smiled up at him. “Sure, right over there! Take a pass, and come get another one if you still need the computer after three hours. What’s your name, kid?”
“Thank you, miss. It’s Peter.”
“Got a last name?”
“Yeah.” Peter decided not to elaborate and snagged one of the little papers with a code on it. He ignored the inquisitive stare of the librarian (Barbara!) and sat down at a computer facing the wall.
He logged on and immediately set to work. Peter’s eyes glanced down at the date and time on the bottom right corner. ‘7/24/2018’ stared back at him, making Peter blink. Okay, 2018, he could work with that. Sure the computer was a little outdated, even by Aunt May’s standards (don’t tear up, don’t tear up), but a quick google search told him Tony Stark didn’t exactly exist in this world, so, right. No tech. Or at least, not very good tech. Instead, there was something called Wayne Enterprises. Run by a billionaire-head named Bruce Wayne. In a city called Gotham. This city. Which was in New Jersey. Look, he didn’t expect Parker Luck to start getting nice on him all of a sudden, but he had really hoped it wouldn’t be Jersey bad.
What was next? Superheroes. Did they exist here? Yes, yes they did. A group by the name of ‘The Justice League.’ Known for working well together and being a (relatively) united front. Wow, that was something Peter wasn’t used to, that could be interesting. Plus, it had an alien leading it that looked human. Huh. Peter looked human. This could be promising…
Right, now onto Gotham superheroes. Batman. And others. A lot of others, apparently. In fact, there was a fuck ton of Robins at one point, like a movment of Robins. One Robin, two Robin, Red Robin, blue Nightwing. That sounded like a Robin, and the speculation seemed to agree with him. Signal, Spoiler, Black Bat, and a crime lord that somehow counted as a hero, Red Hood. Whack. Okay, so if a city counted a freakin’ crime lord as a hero, that kinda says a lot about it. This place is insane. Good to know.
Okay. So, it was July. That meant time before school started. Hopefully enough time to get an apartment or something. An apartment meant he needed records. He should probably do that…
Before he knew it, a couple hours had passed and the light outside was waning. Peter was one of the only people left in the library, and yeah now was time to head out. He had information on the various soup kitchens and shelters around the city, so that should help.
Peter quickly cleared his searches before logging out and heading out. He waved goodbye to Barbara, and went back to Robinson Park. His bag sat on the outside of Pam and Harley’s home, and Peter started to sprint as he saw a man jog up and try to snag it, only for Peter to see he had nothing to worry about. A vine snapped across the man’s knuckles, and away the would-be thief ran. Huh. Sweet.
Peter grabbed his bag, calling out a ‘thank you’ to the women who had kept it safe for him and headed out. He had seen an abandoned building on the way to the library and was certain he would be fine ignoring the caution tape around it. The old building was boarded up and was old and probably unstable, but it wasn’t setting any warning bells off, so it would be fine. He trusted his instincts, and he could survive a collapsing building. He wasn’t planning on staying on the ground floor, so if it did collapse, it wouldn’t all be on top of him.
Peter climbed up the building into a semi-open window and landed with a flourish, bowing for an imaginary audience. The little apartment didn’t have anything furniture-wise, but that was okay. Man, this building was pretty great, in regards to shelter. Why were there no other homeless people here? Maybe they just couldn’t get in like Peter had? Whatever, Peter wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth, alright? Peter pulled out the blanket he had brought with him and ate one of his protein bars. Using his duffel as a pillow, he quickly fell asleep. Tomorrow he would try to find a job, get some more food, go thrifting, and maybe start patrolling again. Gotham could use Spider-Man, especially his new home in ‘Crime Alley.’
Unknown to Peter, outside the building, a spider scuttled over the radioactive sign firmly planted in front of the building.