Safe
“I can't do it, V. I can't. I need you.” Eddie gasped through the pain.
“Eddie this is sad. I'm embarrassed for both of us.”
Eddie stretched and strained but he just couldn't do it, he couldn't touch his toes from a standing position without Venom controlling things. Sure, he'd never been the most limber guy but was it always this bad? They still patrolled the city and fought crime on a pretty regular basis, he'd been doing crunches since the baby was born, he still worked out with his weights sometimes, how could he not do basic yoga?
Spider-Woman, Jessica Drew, another superhero parent whose son was in the same daycare group as Sleeper had invited them to this stupid baby yoga class for parents because she didn't want to come alone and because he's such a good guy he said yes. Sleeper was on the mat under them and he had the mild paranoia that the kid was a little embarrassed for him too.
“You okay over there?” Jessica asked him from her own mat where she was having no problem reaching all the way to the floor. His only excuse was that he’d given birth more recently than she had and he was clinging to it.
Venom apparently pitied him and took over his body and helped him complete the pose.
“I am now.” He answered relieved of his humiliation.
It was nice having another superhero/parent friend around, someone who understood the unique dynamic of balancing babysitters, bad guys and everything else. She was the only person they knew who sent them both pictures of criminals she's beat up and new tummy time ideas.
“By the way, a little bird told me about a trafficking shipment coming through the harbor tonight. Would the Lethal Protector be interested?” She asked raising her hands high above her head in a mountain pose.
“Why yes, Jessica. Yes we would.”
“Thought so.” She smirked back at him.
“We're gonna destroy some scum! Yes we are!” He cooed and baby talked to Sleeper.
That night they stood on the roof of a warehouse across from where the trade was supposed to go down. A large metal shipping container was loaded off a freight carrier and a group of men fanned out around it clearly waiting for something, probably their buyer. Some of the men had semi-automatics but not all of them, nothing they couldn't handle. No one noticed the massive, imposing, black figure watching them.
“Oh great, Spider-Man is here.” Eddie observed, spotting the other hero creeping across the side of the freight carrier the traffickers arrived on.
“Miles?”
“No, Peter.”
“No way, he'll just web them up and let them be arrested. These guys are ours, let's go.”
They leapt off the edge of the building and hit the asphalt, their pal Spidey wouldn't notice them as his Spider Sense didn't pick up on symbiotes. They bolted straight for the shipping container and tore the doors off their hinges, bullets thumping on their back. Inside the wet and musty metal container several pairs of frightened eyes stared back at them. Eddie's heart stopped when he saw them, they were all children who couldn't possibly be any older than Agony, Lasher, Scream and Phage. They were freezing cold and looked very sick. Eddie felt their combined rage rip through them as Venom erupted in a shattering roar. Their monstrous form turned around to face the surrounding men still shooting at them, crouched down and roared again before launching to a berserk fury. A haze of sharp teeth and claws ripping into unprotected flesh and bone.
“Venom stop! Eddie I know you're in there, you have to stop your symbiote!” Spider-Man called out.
They almost didn't hear him over the screaming.
“They don't deserve to live, they have to die!”
A spray of blood hit their face as they tore off a head.
“Do you wan't to traumatize those kids even more?!” Spider-Man webbed up some more guys.
They stood there still burning with anger as they considered Spider-Man's point and he was right, they couldn't be doing these kids any psychological favors right now. They let the headless torso drop out of their hands. The three of them approached the container and the children all flinched away.
“You're looking a little terrifying there big guy.” Spider-Man pointed out.
“Oh, sorry.” Eddie apologized and Venom receded back into him.
After some quiet words and gestures they got the children out of the shipping container and they stood huddled together outside.
“Who told you to be here?” Spider-Man asked.
“Spider-Woman. You?”
“Daredevil.” He answered.
“Not that I care about your ongoing insanity but you seemed a little more brutal than usual back there.” Spider-Man said as they kept an eye on the children.
“These children are the same age as our middle kids. Makes it harder to stomach.” Eddie admitted.
“Middle kids? You guys had another one?”
“Yes.” Eddie glared defensively at the masked hero who put his hands up in response.
"Mazel tov. How does that work between you? Actually, I don't want to know. Its better if I don't know."
It wasn't long after before the bright lights of the SHIELD helicarrier shined down on them.
“That's our cue to go, SHIELD doesn't really love us.” Eddie squinted against the lights.
They spent the next day keeping a close eye on their kids, just to know they were safe.