Concerns
With a leap, Spider-Man landed on the corner of one of the taller rooftops around, pausing to catch his breath and survey the area for anything in need of his attention - just as the chink of metal hitting brick sounded to his left.
Bracing himself, Spidey watched to see who was attached to the other end of the grappling hook.
Deadpool.
It was Deadpool.
“Heyyy Spidey!~” Climbing over the ledge and collecting the hook of his grapple, Deadpool swung it around as he stepped closer.
“Deadpool, hi,” feeling awkward and wondering what the man in red and black wanted, Spider-Man’s hello was weirdly civilian of him.
“Soo, whatcha been up to~?” Deadpool’s tone is teasing, like how someone would talk to a close friend, but the mercenary was known for being unpredictable.
“Nothing much, cat’s from trees, kids from the road - y’know, the norm,”
Just as Deadpool started to say something else - something Spidey probably didn’t want to hear - he heard a distant panicked scream and made quick moves for the ledge.
“Duty calls!” and jumped off before slinging a web.
An hour or so later in his patrol, Spider-Man finds himself fighting Rhino, his fellow enhanced human and complete pain in his literal ass.
Cussing as he skid across the concrete, civilians watching from behind a police barricade which gave him a wide berth, the vigilante slung a web at the building behind the man in Rhino-themed armour to propel himself towards him in a powerful kick.
As the fight raged on, Rhino’s armour was dented as Spider-Man punched and kicked, using his webs and flips to add momentum, and his costume grew tears and his body gained bruises, though mostly on his torso, shoulders and legs.
At one moment, the Rhino was able to catch his arm after he threw a punch and flung him to the ground, causing a crack in the concrete and an ache in the Spider’s back, the man had taken the opportunity to swing another hit whilst he was down, though thankfully Spider-Man rolled out of the way in time to avoid it.
From afar, Deadpool observed Spider-Man; his clearly enhanced strength to be able to dent such robust armour, his ability to roll with the hits he receives (quite literally), and his flexibility - there were many, many innuendoes he could make if he wasn’t in all-out investigative mode.
Many people think the ‘Merc-with-a-mouth’ can’t be austere, deadpan or even shut up - but really, when there’s something he really, truly cares about then he’ll take absolutely no-shit, no-jokes until he’s at least evaluated the situation at hand.
So that’s exactly what he’s doing; evaluating.
With a peak through the gap in the blinds, he let himself through the unlocked window - he already knew nobody was home, but it’s always best to double check before climbing on through.
He had also triple checked that the shitty apartment he was breaking into - that he saw Spidey exit! - was Ferret’s, and so his head was already coming up with a variety of questions and theories.
The flat was freezing - despite running hot due to his mutation, even Wade could tell the place was unusually cold - that was the first thing he noticed.
Looking around, he took in the practically shoebox-sized apartment.
Deadpool’s attention was immediately caught by a few things - the scraps of bright red and blue fabric was strewn on the floor, alongside a sewing kit, the many metal bits and pieces, and the presence of only one mattress on the floor.
That last bit alone sprouted up several theories.
The extreme lack of furniture and personal belongings and the mold growing in the corners was quite concerning, but not unexpected due to how much landlords tend to demand for rent, not always leaving people with enough to feed themselves nevermind furnish the place.
Wade nosied through the apartment, finding the bathroom to be even emptier, only taking note of the two toothbrushes, and the cupboards to be completely bare of food, not even takeaway leftovers remaining.
With his observations made, and a second sweep of the apartment, Deadpool let himself back out the way he came, making sure everything was left as he found it. He had some suspicions to make sense of and theories to explore.
For the last few days, Peter’s spidey sense had been almost constantly buzzing lowly at the base of his neck, making it hard to concentrate on much of anything in public. It was the warning of something being just slightly off, not dangerous - not yet at least - but wrong.
He found himself acting clumsier, making more mistakes and bumping into people, especially when the hum ruminating around his skull began, taking away all his attention from the minor things, leaving him looking over his shoulder at every turn.
He wasn’t sure what this meant, not in the slightest. On the bright side though, it stopped when he went to his job in the Hellhouse, so at least he has one safe space, if not his own apartment.
That Friday, Ferret entered the bar after his internship and dropping off his most recent round of Spider-Man photos. Already tired from the usual chewing-out from his boss at the Daily Bugle, Ferret slumped himself onto a barstool near where Weasel had been typing away at his computer.
“You alright there, Ferret?” Weasel asked, glancing up from behind his tech.
With a grumble, he replied, “Yeah, just… it’s been a long week,” explaining his current state away.
“Well, uh…” Weasel made a constipated expression, “you’re, welcome to… talk about it?” he finished, sounding more like a question than anything.
“Thanks, Weasel, but I’m okay, don’t worry,”
“Good, cause we open in five,” Weasel says, back to his usual self, as Ferret heads to the back to deposit his belongings.
Not twenty minutes later, as Ferret’s serving up drinks and ducking swinging arms, does he spot the one and only Deadpool.
He’s only met the guy once as Ferret, but what is it now? Two times? Three? As Spider-Man.
As he was about to turn away from the huge leather-clad man, he heard his name being called by said merc, “Ferret! Hey, hey Ferret!” clearly and loudly trying to gain his attention.
Not wanting to be rude to the man who made him feel on edge, he turned to walk in his direction with a forcefully polite smile.
“Hi, you need something?”
“Just wanted to talk to the buzz of the bar, since last time it was a pre~tty quick chat,” Deadpool joked, much less serious than last time, and a lot more like how his reputation describes him.
“Oh, yeah, well do you want a drink or?” Ferret felt unusually awkward, partly due to the caution of him connecting the dots between his voice and Spider-Man’s.
“Nah, I’m all good, are you good? With your side and all?”
“My side?” Ferret asked, confused.
“When we bumped into each other last time?” Deadpool adds context. Even though his face was hidden by his mask, Ferret felt his eyes on him, watching his reaction.
“Oh, right, yeah, uh,” Ferret stopped, “yeah, I’m fine, all good,” cringing at his own unconvincing words, he redirected, “you’re pretty intimidating y’know. Even for a mercenary,”
“Me? Intimidating?!” Deadpool straightened his back from his slouched position against the bar, “how could this happen?” He cried out, dramatically.
Feeling more at ease, Ferret laughed, “I mean, yeah, y’know with the mask and the swords-“ he was interrupted by a terribly offended merc.
“Swords?!” His hand slammed against the bar, in, once again, an over dramatic act, “these are katanas! And not just any katanas, this is Bea and this is Arthur,” he pointed to one and then the other, “and they deserve respect!”
“Oh, of course, my deepest apologies,” Ferret said sarcastically before reaching for the next round of drinks that Weasel had placed nearby for him.
“I accept your apologies,” Deadpool replied before Ferret left with the drinks.
“Weasel, we need to have another hang out with Ferret,” Deadpool slammed his hands down on the bar minutes after Ferret left.
“How?” Weasel mumbled, only paying half his attention to Wade as the other was engrossed in his computer.
“He doesn’t trust me as Deadpool!” he whined, slumping over the bar.
“Well, duh, he’s only met you twice?” The greasy man turned towards his friend who’s still wearing his leather suit.
“So we need to hang out?! So we can, like, check on him!”
“Why don’t you just come to the bar out of your suit?”
“C’mon Wease’ just let us hang out, y’know you want to~” a pleading Wade asked.
“Y’know what, fine, but only cause I don’t want to hear your whining anymore,”
There was nothing Wade was able to see at a glance when he had been chatting with Ferret earlier.
His sleeves were long and his hoodie bunched up around his neck, so the only skin he could see was his hands and face, although his hair had grown a little longer and had began to curl around his face - as cute as he looked, it made it difficult to check him over for injuries he may or may not be hiding.
Maybe if they make Weasel’s apartment super warm and they sweat him out then he’ll be able to check over him better.
That next evening, Ferret came in to work and was immediately met by Wade who sounded very excited to see him.
“Ferret! You’re here! Great, okay, are you free later? After work, I mean.”
“Uh, sure, yeah,” he had his internship the next day but that wouldn’t interfere.
“Well~ how about we have another takeaway movie night! You, me, several boxes of food,” he changed his tone from excited to jokingly reluctant, “and Weasel,”
With a chuckle, Ferret agreed to this , Ferret reiterated his initial answer with a nod, walking past the older guy to get ready to help open the bar.
Wade hopped on the spot, clapping his hands and squealing loud enough to bring Weasel down from his upstairs apartment.
“The fuck?” the man asked, rhetorically.
“Ferret’s here! Might want to check your snack cupboard cause it's movie night!” Wade yells back, answering him.
Throughout Ferret’s shift, he was looking forward to spending time with Wade and Weasel - which felt a little odd considering Weasel’s his boss, but he does he really count? - and found himself being drawn towards Wade during any spare moment he found between taking orders, serving and mixing drinks, and updating the Dead Pool board.
They chatted about what movie they wanted to watch and what fast food they would order - general small talk as Ferret was fleeting between his tasks.
When the bar finally slowed down and people were being kicked out so they could close, Weasel came out from behind his computer and Wade helped the two of them clean up.
Once they were upstairs, Ferret collapsed on the couch in the same spot he had claimed the last time, sighing as he had been on his feet practically his whole shift.
That peace was soon disturbed as a certain giant lump came crashing down on top of him.
“Wade!”
“Oops! Didn’t see you there,” Wade joked, flashing a smile at him.
Ferret had never gotten a good look at Wade’s face due to the generally shitty lighting in the bar and Weasel’s apartment, as well as his tendency to have his hood up, as well as sometimes wearing a medical mask and/or sunglasses.
The skin on the lower half of his face looked textured, bumpy, scarred - not that that took anything away from his impossibly straight teeth and movie-star smile.
Of course, almost every customer at the bar was scarred in some way, some more than others, and so Ferret wasn’t phased.
“Get off, you’re heavy,” making a show of trying to push him off, but lacking almost all his strength, Ferret struggled beneath Wade.
While several of his bruises were being pressed lightly
“Stop humping one another on my couch and get the movie on while I order our food,” Weasel complained as he turned back around and saw the two of them.
“But Weasel-“
“Weasel, help me!” Ferret cut Wade off.
“Nuh-uh, bye,” and Weasel left the room, presumably to order delivery without the sounds of their yelling in the background.
“So~” Wade began as he got more comfortable on top of Ferret, “hey there,”
Ferret scoffed and manoeuvred the best he could under the facade of not being strong enough to lift Wade, until he was satisfied.
“Hey, Ferret,” Wade got his attention, his tone more serious and without the joking tone.”
“Yeah?” Ferret looked at him oddly over his shoulder, his back now to the man.
“What d’you think about Spider-Man?”
“Huh? Why?” He couldn’t help the stiffening of his posture, the out-of-the-blue nature of the question and the relation Ferret has to his alter-ego (not that Wade would know) put him on edge.
“Just ‘cause,” and after a moment, added, “I mean you work in a merc bar, so I’m just wondering what you think about superheroes like Spidey!” His tone became lighter, likely realising the out-of-character flatness he previously spoke with.
“Oh, right, we’ll he’s active in the area I live, so I see him about from time-to-time, he seems to be helping the little guys, y’know? Not like the Avengers who exclusively step in for alien invasions and such,” he let his true feelings on his own vigilantism mix with half-truths.
“Right, have you ever spoke to the guy? Seen his ass up close?”
“His what?”
“Don’t avoid the question!”
“Yeah, a couple times,”
“Come on, gimme the deets!”
“Well, I don’t know, stopped me from getting mugged once or twice, I’ve seen some of his fights up close, nothing much,” Ferret waved him off, hopefully giving Wade enough to drop the subject.
“What‘s he like?”
“I don’t know, he’s cool? Why’re you asking so many questions?” What was happening here.
“‘Cause I wanna meet him too!” Wade bemoaned, shifting to drop more of his weight back on top of Ferret, just to be annoying.
“Well, I don’t know, move to Queens?”
“Well maybe I will!”
Weasel came back in, looking at the two of them moodily. “Shut up, the food’s gonna be here in like 5 minutes,”
“What did you order?” Ferret asked.
“Just some Mexican; tacos, tamales, whatever else was there,”
“Did I ever tell you that I love you, Weasel?” Wade exclaims, leaning up to see Weasel over the back of the couch.
“Gross, I never wanna hear that again,”
“Aw, you love me~” Wade teases as the other walks around said couch and collapses into the bean-bag chair.
“What’re we watching, anyway?” Ferret asks.
“Ooh! We need to watch Golden Girls!”
“I’m not watching that shit,” Weasel looks offended at the thought.
“We need to!”
“What about that Star Wars marathon we talked about last time?” This suggestion interrupted Weasel and Wade’s bickering for the nth time and was met with agreement from the other two men, one much more enthusiastic than the other.
Soon, their food arrived and Wade was voted to be the one to go collect it - and so with the thermostat turned up and a raid of Weasel’s recently restocked snacks, Wade returned with the food and piled it onto the coffee table which had already been cleared.
As they ate, they got more comfortable, Weasel sitting further away, and Wade pressed right up against Ferret, he slowly but surely put into motion his several step plan to meet his and Weasel’s agreed upon goal - to check Ferret for injuries.
Firstly, he got more comfortable, knowingly sitting close and - with the aid of the raised heating - got Ferret to shed his hoodie, although he still wore a long-sleeved t-shirt.
And secondly, he put an arm around the back of the couch, and eventually slid it down to Ferret’s shoulders, continuing this method until he was practically hugging Ferret, all done slowly as to seem natural.
But then, Ferret stretched, extending his legs, lifting his arms over his head and arching his back. This gave Wade two pieces of information.
One; Ferret is flexible because look at that arch.
And, more importantly, two; Ferret currently has a smattering of bruises over his right hip and side, disappearing below his t-shirt.
And not the kind of bruising given by an overly enthusiastic partner.
Wade didn’t let his eyes linger for too long, or comment on the bruising, but took note of it.
They paused the movie for Ferret to head to the bathroom, during the time of which he sent Weasel a look of concern, and mouthed, ‘BRUISES’, not speaking in case the third heard them through the paper thin walls.
Weasel nodded, a grimace on his face before he turned his attention to his phone.
Ferret returned and the movie continued, Wade resuming his near-cuddling position along Ferret’s side.
Finally, Ferret mindlessly pulled up his sleeves and wiped his brow, clearly the combined heat of Wade and the central heating had gotten to him despite his bathroom break.
That’s when Wade felt himself freeze.
A handprint-shaped bruise was imprinted onto Ferret’s left forearm, just below the wrist.
He tried not to let his shock and horror appear obvious - he didn’t want to alert Ferret and make him panic or close up, like many in his position would - but this gave Wade a whole lot more to consider.
But to be able to approach this situation calmly, he had to push all theories to the back of his mind to be mulled over later.
“Hey, uh, Ferret?” Wade begins, quietly against the roaring movie.
“Mm?” Ferret replies, glancing to the side at Wade, attention still held by the TV.
“Are you okay?” That draws his attention.
“Yeah, of course, why?” Ferret frowns and turns to face the other.
“Just, you been in any trouble lately? Muggers? A robber?”
“Uh, not that I can think of…” Ferret is tentative in his reply.
“Well how’d you get this?” Wade’s hand slides from across Ferret’s torso and grasps his forearm just under where the bruise ends, inciting a flash of panic to appear in Peter’s eyes.
See, Peter had sort of forgotten about not only the many bruises that are splattered over his body from his fight with the Rhino, but even the one he received when the armoured man had gotten ahold of him.
Partially because he’s dealt with far worse injuries than light bruising, and partially because he was enjoying himself, despite the humidity in the apartment.
Shit.
“Oh, yeah, funny story, really,” Peter fumbled for words, landing on an answer between the truth and a lie, “this one guy I know, he wasn’t doing too good, and I riled him up, honestly it was my fault, we got in a fight and threw a few punches, but that was that, nothing I couldn’t handle on my own,” Ferret answered casually, waving away any potential concerns the best he could,”
Wade didn’t buy it.
But he knew he wasn’t going to get a straight answer and played along anyway, “Right, well know that you can always ask me for help, for anything at all, Weasel too,”
Ferret nodded, clearly wanting this conversation over with, “Yeah, yeah, but like I said, nothing I couldn’t handle, it was just a dumb fight,”
Ferret didn’t stay for too long after, and with a ‘goodbye’ and a ‘see you later’, he left with Wade following not too far behind.
Deadpool had a lot more evidence to consider, and several new plans to make as to approach the situation that was begging to reveal itself carefully
Deadpool has a lot more evidence to consider, and several new plans to make. He needed to take extra care in approaching what was revealing itself to be a very delicate situation.