Subconscious
It’s cold. Why is it so cold?
Eddie groaned and opened his eyes. He was not in his bed. That’s not right.
“Wh’re ‘m I?” He slurred out.
It was dark and definitely outside- that’s why it was so damn cold. He managed to roll over a little and his stomach dropped when he was met with a twenty story drop onto a busy street.
“Ah-Oh God!”
“Do not roll over. You are already on the edge of the rooftop.”
“V-V! What happened?! Where are we?! What did you do?!”
“Not what I did, what you did. I have been a passenger without control on your late night rampage.”
“Rampage? Venom what happened?”
They formed their head and face in front of him.
“You do not remember.”
“Remember what?”
Venom snickered.
“It’s not funny! What don’t I remember?”
Why was Venom laughing right now? They were on top of a building, in the middle of the city, in the middle of the night, who knows how many miles from home- this was very much not funny.
“The kids-!”
“Are at home and perfectly safe. It is just you and me here.” They were still grinning, so many fangs gleaming in the glossy moonlight.
“Why are you grinning at me like that?!”
Eddie looked around frantically for some sort of clue and his eye was caught by a streaky trail of crimson leading up to a small pool of blood and a rat. Half a rat.
His mouth tasted metallic.
“Did I eat that?”
"Not just that one, there were two others...and a pigeon...and a mugger. You summoned my mouth to eat the mugger though. Your tiny human mouth could never have eaten all of him in any reasonable amount of time.”
“Oh God, why don’t I remember?”
“Because you never do."
“Why do you keep saying that?!”
“You did this when you were pregnant. Both times. You did it when Carnage was six months old too. Sleeper just turned six months old and you are doing it again. It is cute that you do not recall any of this.”
“It’s not cute, Venom! You’re probably doing something to mess with my memory.”
“I am not. You say that every time too.”
“D-Did I hurt anyone? Venom what’s happening to me?”
Venom sighed (as much as someone like Venom could sigh) and stopped teasing. Eddie’s genuine fear was taking all the fun out of this.
“It is okay, beloved. You humans have a term for this, you were ‘sleepwalking’. I have no control when you sleepwalk so I can not stop you or wake you.”
“Sleepwalking? I sleepwalk and I eat people when I sleepwalk?” He sounded horrified.
“You become...feral.”
“Why is this happening?” Eddie still sounded panicked.
“When you were pregnant the children were growing. When Carnage was six months old they had a growth spurt. Sleeper is six months old now so he will probably have one too. A growth spurt means he will eat more. Their symbiote side comes with certain dietary needs and I believe your body senses this.”
“I sleepwalk and sleep murder...for the kids.” He seemed to be following.
“Even subconsciously you are a good father, Eddie.”
“I’m a sleep murderer.” He whined and flopped onto his back.
The sky was turning dusky, hazy purples and blues filling their vision. They had to get home. Now that they had a say again they hauled Eddie to his feet and encased him- they’d get there a lot faster as Venom.
Their bedroom window was open, evidence of Eddie’s earlier escape into the night, so they crawled back through it. Everything was exactly as they left it- none of their little ones even woke up to notice they were gone.
Well, except for maybe their littlest one.
Sleeper was holding himself up with the railing of the crib, two big luminous ruby eyes staring at them from over the bars. Eddie smiled and Venom tingled a little under his skin. Sleeper lifted his arms to them and without the railing to hold on to he fell onto his bottom, too young to stand by himself yet. He didn’t seem to mind the falling though, he was too happy to see them.
“Mama!” He smiled infectiously up at them.
“Hey Sleeps.” Eddie smiled back and picked him up, cuddling him close to them.
“Your father did some unspeakable things for you tonight.”
“Ugh. Venom.” Eddie groaned.
“Because he loves you.”
Eddie just sighed. Defeated.
“Mamaaa.” Sleeper smiled again and he couldn’t help but smile back.
“As I said: even subconsciously you are a good father, Eddie.”