daybreakacademy | hollow plots and zombens

The only reason Orihime saw it at all was because she was so close to that part of the hollow when she ran beneath it and took out a leg. While she didn't believe this could possibly be the remnant of a person who loved his nephew, she wasn't going to write it off as impossible.

She furrowed her brow, thinking hard. The mask had to be important. Maybe it was hiding the true identity of this thing, and if they took it off, it would be exposed. If it wasn't Ben, they didn't have to hold back, and could fight with their full strength. And if it was...

"I have an idea," she whispered. "We'll both run. You go left, I go right. Whoever it goes after gets the shield. Whoever it ignores, will shoot the mask with a web and yank it off." She glanced at Peter and smiled a little. "Hopefully that's you. You're a lot stronger than I am." Then she faced forward again, her face serious. "Ready?"

If it's not Ben, then that makes it easy, right? Peter is strong and clever enough to kill this thing, in theory. His whole problem is that he's been trying to save his uncle, not murder him. If he's wrong, then - then he's wrong, fine. But as long as there's a glimmer of hope that his uncle is actually, truly here ...

Breathe in. Breathe out. It's a good plan. Better than most of Peter's, to be honest.

"Yeah. Yeah, let's do it." He manages to give her a watery smile. Good thing he made those shooters for her after all, huh? "Ready when you are."

The Hollow's not going to give them much more time to talk anyway. It lunges forward with a snarl, aiming to ram both of them in the same blow. So as agreed, Peter jolts to the left, hoping that Orihime's gotten clear on the right.

The thing writhes for a moment, temporarily uncertain of who to go after? Peter is the target it's after, but this other person - this person cut of fits leg. Pissed it off. Time to slash a claw down at Orihime's head.

She bolted the same moment Peter did, dropping the shield, keeping her eyes on their foe. She came to a stop near the edge of the roof, feet spread and fists clenched, ready to call her shield again to defend Peter.

She's honestly surprised it chose to go after her, but relieved. She hated seeing that look on his face, knowing that this thing had torn open every raw wound that he still bore. It made him cry. She couldn't easily forgive it for that.

True to her word, she snapped up her shield, and not a moment too soon. She slammed her palms forward to strengthen the barrier with her will. The hollow was strong, and its spiritual pressure made her feel weak in the knees. But she stayed upright and pushed back, perspiration beading on her brow as her breath came out in short, misty puffs.

"If you're really his uncle, prove it! Because I don't believe someone he loved that much would be trying this hard to hurt him!" she shouted, to keep its attention focused while Peter took his shot.

The Hollow rears up on all its legs, looming over her with all of its weight and strength and power. Now she has its full attention, for better or for worse. Its gaze is a physical weight in addition to a spiritual one; it appears to be searching her for a moment, debating the best way destroy her. She's a nuisance, she's in the way, and it is not having that.

"I'm doing what's best for Peter," the thing hisses. The voice is masculine, a cruel echo of what Ben's would have been in life. Older, a little raspy. But similar to Peter's, too. "He doesn't belong here. He should have stayed with me."

Not that that makes any sense, right? Peter's not really listening to his uncle, though the words still make him ache. God. He misses his uncle so badly it hurts. In some way, this wild night has been Peter just trying to get a few more moments with his uncle, even if it costs him everything ...

Focus, Peter. He thwips out a web as planned. The first one doesn't quite make it, but the second? That's a bullseye. He plants his feet on the roof and pulls, hard. The mask wavers; he's got a good grip but it needs something else to knock it loose.

"Of course he belongs here!" Orihime was starting to wilt under that increase of spiritual pressure. Even without opening her spiritual senses, it was a crushingly powerful reiatsu. She had to keep standing. A hit! ...But not quite. Keep talking!

"He's learning to be a strong hero that protects people! So no one else will have to feel the pain that he did when he lost you! Why aren't you telling him how proud you are? He's becoming a man that other people can depend upon, because you meant that much to him!" She poured more of her energy into the shield. "So stop and remember how much he meant to you too!"

Bulls eye! Orihime nearly lost her shield she was so relieved when she saw the web smack straight into the center of the mask.

...But it wasn't coming off. Alarmed, her gaze shifted to Peter. She could see him straining with all his might, digging in his heels. He was so close!

Orihime looked up at the mask and saw that it was shifting. It wasn't permanently rooted, but it wasn't enough. If she hit it too, she'd be pulling it at a different angle. It didn't seem like it would help.

Tsubaki might do it, though.

She hesitated. Tsubaki was lethal. He could split the mask, but he might also split the hollow too. She'd killed one daemon like this with a single blow, and it had been quick. There was also the risk of spending too much spiritual energy. Using Tsubaki might weaken the shield and leave her vulnerable. There were lots of ways this could go horribly wrong, and there was no guarantee that they were on the right track with the mask.

Didn't she owe it to Peter to at least try, though?

She lowered her hands. Another strike against the shield cracked it, a dark line webbing outward from the point of impact. She had to focus all of her concentration now on Tsubaki, and dismissing him at just the right moment to keep the blow from becoming a killing strike.

"Tsubaki..." He darted in front of her, a nimbus of her power glowing around him. "I reject!"

She slashed the air with her hand and he darted forward. The shield shattered. The light around Tsubaki grew brighter as he smashed into the mask...

...And Orihime immediately cut their link just as he started to bore through the face that lay behind that mask.

If they're wrong - then this is probably the end of both of them. Peter is nearly out of strength, Orihime is giving her all just to keep from killing this thing. It's that realization that drives Peter to pull hard at the end here, right as Tsubaki finishes. The mask splits down the middle; Peter pulls both fragments down, hard, and they fall away at last. And Peter holds his breath.

(No matter what, he owes Orihime everything after this. If it's Ben, then she's saved him; if it's not Ben, then. Then his uncle is safe elsewhere, at least, and they're about to die, and maybe he'll see Ben soon enough anyway. He just wishes Orihime wasn't likely to get swept up in it too. Please, please, let this work. He's so tired. He's so tired--)

The Hollow screeches to a halt. It leans over Orihime for a terrifying moment, all of its legs splayed, the maw uncomfortably close to her. Then - then it seems to draw back in on itself a little. The armor recedes just enough that a face appears where that mask had been. Unhappy. Confused. And familiar, too. It is Ben's face under there. Some part of him still lingering, watching over a nephew that somehow got a second chance at all of this.

Peter could just about collapse with relief and worry. He stumbles over to Orihime to make sure she's okay first. Did Ben hurt her? Did her magic wear her out? And then, still next to her, he looks up at his uncle's face, his breath catching in his throat. "Ben...?" he says, his voice a hoarse whisper. "Uncle Ben? Can you hear me?"

Please, please.

She was on her knees, breathing heavily, her hands shaky but she wasn't hurt. She still had enough power to summon her shield again if she needed to, and she was ready to defend them with every last bit of strength she had.

The monster was backing down. And that face...that expression... She never should have doubted Peter's instincts, and she was glad she'd gone along with them despite her skepticism. Weathered and frightened, there was still something in the eyes that confirmed who he was.

Her head turned just as Peter skidded to a stop next to her. "I'm okay, I'm okay," she confirmed quickly, a hand up as though to check his face and make sure he was all right too. No injuries...no physical ones anyway.

The old man's eyes snapped to Peter's at the sound of his name. "Pete... Oh Pete, what did I do to you...?" He reached forward with two thin legs, then stopped, jerking the limbs back as he saw them as if for the first time.

No physical injuries, no. Thanks to her healing, he's fine. Emotionally .. less fine, but. Something to deal with later. Not immediately.

"Thank you," he says, his voice soft. "Just - I've got this, I think." If he can't talk to his uncle now, after everything, then something is really wrong. He's glad Orihime is here to help him through this, but he also wants her to rest for a moment. He can take it from here...

He turns back to his uncle, swallowing past the lump in his throat. It really is him, isn't it? He'd known the whole time, from the first moment he'd seen the scars on his uncle's neck. Nothing else could have copied them quite that perfectly. They're burned into his mind now. "I'm okay," he manages somehow, his voice wobbling and weak. Just. Reaching out for his uncle with one hand now. "Look, I'm not hurt. I'm all right."

He'd been hurt, though. Orihime healed him and cleared the dirt and blood from his face, but his clothes are a mess. Multiple slash marks, tears, stains ... He's been through several fights with Ben and he looks it. Ben would have to be blind not to see it.

Peter keeps talking though. He's hoping to find strength as he goes, but really he feels more and more like he's about to burst into tears. "I - I did way worse to you. It's my fault you're ... " He stares up at all of Ben, this horrible monstrous state he's in. Dead and turned.

"Okay," Orihime nodded once, her voice quiet. "I'll be right here." Just in case it was a nasty trap, she didn't want to let down her guard completely. The grief and regret looked so real, though...

The spider creature retreated one step, a spindly leg coming up as if to ward Peter off with a hand it didn't have. "No no no, I know what I did. And I'm not proud of it. I hurt you, I hurt your friends. And I might do it again."

He was grimacing, as though he'd swallowed something that was twisting his stomach, and blew out a breath.

"Pete...the only thing that scared me that night was thinkin' that thing would do to you what it did to me. It wasn't your fault, son. It was never...hah...never your fault. You hear me? Now look, I don't think I've got much time before I lose control again. You. Cannot. Let that happen."

Oh god. How long has he been waiting to hear something like that? Months? And of course his aunt had said much the same thing, but he hadn't told her the truth. Nobody here got the whole story. Maybe because he was scared of the reaction he would get. If they would blame him as much as he blame himself, or - worse, if they'd try to absolve him of it ...

Tears start to stream down his face. He's barely aware of them, save to swipe at the ones that blur his vision. "I still should have come back. I could have saved you. I have to save you now." He reaches out again, despite Ben nudging him back. "I - I can't kill you. Please."

That last part comes out as a desperate little whisper. If that's the only to keep Ben from reverting again ... then he has to, doesn't he? There has to be another way. There has to be. He's fought all this time just to have a chance at this, and now he can't save his uncle? No.

"That thing would have torn you apart if you'd been there any earlier, Pete. No way in hell I'd stand by and watch that happen to my kid." He stopped trying to back away, but he had a tough time meeting Peter's eyes. "You were exactly where you were supposed to be, exactly when you were supposed to be there. But I would have given anything to spare you what you saw."

He sighed. It would have seemed gruff to anyone who didn't know the old New Yorker, but he was just weary. "Then you'll have to think of a different way to contain me. You're a smart kid. Figure it out. And if you can't, don't feel too bad about it, all right? You're too young to live the rest of your life swimmin' in regrets."

The giant arachnid body shuddered and he grimaced. "There's more. You're in danger. The thing that did this to me is still out there, and it's going to make more monsters out of innocent souls."

Orihime blinked, and her brow furrowed. He was transformed...?

"And it's gonna come for you, Pete. It's no coincidence that it tracked me down, you're the real target here. Whatever power your soul's got, it wants it."

He didn't realize how desperately he missed his uncle until he hears him, finally. The tears aren't stopping any time soon; he just sort of struggles to deal with them, swiping at his face every few seconds and trying not to make a complete mess out of himself. "I still could have done something," he says. "I'm really strong now, Uncle Ben. I've helped other people."

And he hopes that makes his uncle proud, or at least a person that his uncle would approve of. It just hurts knowing he can hardly do anything here. Being able to punch a hole in the wall doesn't help when the problem isn't a wall. He has to contain Ben, or heal him, or ...

He straightens a little too when Ben continues on. That - what? That's new information, isn't it? He'd thought this was a one-time thing that just showed up to hurt him personally. "You weren't like this on your own?" he asks. The answer is obvious, sure, but he has to echo it just to kind of get his thoughts in order. "So - so it did this to you. That means we can undo it."

He's completely skipping over the part where he, personally, is in danger here. Peter Parker is in a life-threatening situation? Must be Tuesday.

Anyway, he turns to Orihime. Hating to ask her for anything else when she's already done so much for him, but - but he's desperate, and he knows his own powers aren't the right tool for the job. He might manage a rune shield like what Bumblebee taught him, but that's not going to fix Ben. "Can you heal him? Can we undo it?"

He doesn't dare hope, but. He's going to try.

Orihime was clearly thinking the exact same thing. Her eyes darted to Peter's when he turned to her. She looked at Ben and put a hand over her mouth. "...I'm not sure. It's risky. I might wind up only healing his wounds, and the mask might come back too." Her focus was healing, but she'd found that she could fix migraines too. She looked at Peter's clothes, noting that there wasn't a stitch out of place. Hadn't they been torn up before she used her powers on him? That wasn't healing, was it?

She looked to Ben, who was looking at her, then Peter.

"What the hell, give it a whirl, kid," he puffed with a pained laugh. "I can't keep control much longer anyway."

Orihime looked to Peter. Ultimately, this was his decision. She knew what the answer would be, but still, she wanted to make sure he was prepared. "I can try it. Is that okay?"

They might just undo all of their progress, it's true. But - here at the end of all things, Peter is willing to try anything. Anything at all.

"Please, yeah," he says, scrubbing at his face again. "If we put the mask back, I'll just - have to do this again." And then kill Ben, probably. Anything is worth risking for this. He just wishes he could do it instead of her; he's afraid of exhausting her past her limits. After this, he owes her absolutely anything and everything, regardless of whether it works or not.

He turns back to Ben, then, reaching out a hand again. Voice wavering. "Just hold on. Please, Ben. Until we can try this."

"Yeah. You got it. Keep talkin', your voice is helping to keep me anchored."

Orihime nodded once. She didn't try to get to her feet; she didn't need to stand to use her abilities, and she was tired. But this was important. Whatever his uncle had become, it could hurt a lot more people.

But more than that, she wanted to give Peter the closure he never got to have. If he had to literally kill his uncle... She couldn't bear to even think about the expression on his face if he had to do something so horrible.

"Shun'ou, Ayame." She squared her shoulders as she summoned the two spirits to her side. Her hands lifted and they moved to hover at both ends of Ben's abomination of a body. She couldn't fail at this. "I reject."

The gold light spanned into place, flickering at first, then strengthening with a soft glow as Orihime poured all of her soul and willpower into her shield.

She could feel that taint pushing back, fighting her. Whatever did this, it had done so with a fierce determination and willpower of its own. It made her angry just thinking about it. The real monster had hunted down Peter's uncle, twisted him, forced him to attack his own family.

For what?

Her brow dipped further as she frowned and tapped into that anger. It was completely unforgivable. All of it.

Concentrating, she shoved mentally back at the encroaching inky wrongness that seemed to poison the air and thicken it with darkness. And the source...the source...it was coming from the hole in Ben's body. She tightened her focus on that one spot and gave one good, solid push.

The invisible membrane burst, and the toxic miasma seemed to scatter. Black mist rose from the spidery legs, thin wisps at first, then thickening into plumes as the monstrous form was peeled back from reality and dispatched at her behest. Ben's agonized face, eyes closed, suddenly lost the taut lines of pain as he sighed.

With one last shuddering ripple, the spider creature was gone, and there was nothing left.

Just an old man laying face down on the rooftop, his graying hair stirred by the breeze. His finger twitched, and he slowly, slowly, lifted his head with a weary blink. "Well. Well I'll be..." His arms shook with effort as he struggled to rise. "You kids did it."

"YaaAaAaAayyyy..." Orihime smiled, her voice quavering. That was the last bit of power she had. As Ben rose, she toppled, completely exhausted.

Keep talking, huh. Okay. He can do that. There's not much he can do from the supernatural side of things, so he'll have to hold down the fort on the mundane side. He starts to talk in the background, then. Babbling at first. Talking about May, how much they miss him. The school ... and that loops him back to his powers, the Avengers, all of that. Normally he'd be going through it slow, trying to gauge his uncle's reaction to all this craziness, but now isn't the time. He'll just flow through it instead, all at once. And maybe if his uncle can focus on the good that Peter has done, how much he took Ben's words to heart ... Thats's some kind of healing too, right? If he can give Ben enough strength to hold on until Orihime's done, then maybe this will work.

(If nothing else, he's getting it all off his chest. All the things he wanted to say to his uncle but never got to. All of the things he wanted Ben to see but couldn't show him. Words are a poor substitute, but they are everything to him right now. He'll cling to them with everything he has.)

He can't quite see what Orihime is doing, but he can see the progress she's making. The legs retracting, the mass receding, the monstrosity folding back in on itself and disappearing - until it's just Ben. Just his uncle in front of him, not alive, but - but whole for a moment. He can only stare for a split second, his mouth finally gone dry.

And then Orihime just about faints next to him, oops. He moves to catch her, carefully laying her down on the roof. Here, he'll grab this ruined suit she made for him. That'll have to do for a pillow. He's really, really, worried for her, and he really really wants to say thank you, but -

But he gets the feeling he doesn't have much time. As soon as he's sure she's okay, he stands, carefully. And then throws his arms around his uncle, a small sob escaping him at last.

If ever the theoretical question was asked, "Can ghosts cry?" The answer was evident in the tears that leaked down Ben's face, tracing the wrinkles as he held his nephew, his kid, in his arms. His veined and calloused hand slapped at Peter's back as he just held him for a little while.

"You're all right, Pete. You're all right. I'm fine." He cradled the back of Peter's head, rocking him as if he were just five years old all over again.

"Come on, let me get a look at you." He drew back just enough to look at Peter and smiled. "'Ey, look at those handsome Parker genes comin' through." He gave his cheek a friendly clap. "You eating okay? Getting along with your teachers?"

He feels physical enough. If this is an illusion it sure is convincing; if it's only temporary, then it's enough for him right now. How many times has he wished for this exact thing? All he ever really wanted was a few more minutes with his uncle, just to hug him again and show him how far he's come in these past few months. He leans against Ben hard for a moment, at least until his uncle draws back to take a look at him. Then he rubs at his eyes, trying to smile through the tears.

(He is smiling, but - oh, this aches too. Pain and relief in equal measures.)

"'Course I am," he says with a little bit of a laugh. "You oughta see it. The cafeteria here is nuts." This probably isn't the most important thing they need to discuss right now? But he clings to the relative normalcy of it all. "Teachers are fine too. Though. Uh." Here a guilty look passes over him. "I've definitely pissed off two RAs. And I'm definitely out past curfew tonight."

But he's mostly made up with Imelda, he thinks, and Bee will understand for tonight. Besides, is it really late any more? He's been out so long that the horizon is starting to pink.

"Curfew, again? Pete, you're killin' me here!"

...

...

"Poor choice of words. Come on, buddy." He ruffled his hair, pushing his hands against his knees as he stood. "Hurrrrrgh you think you wouldn't have aching joints in the afterlife, but here we are. Let's put your little friend to bed. Sun's almost up, ghosts don't do real well when it's bright out. I know we got a lot of ground to cover. A lot. So I've gotta fade out and rest soon, but I'll be back tonight. You gonna be all right?"

Yeah, thanks for that Ben. He chokes a little, kind of pained? It's way too soon for Ben to make those kinds of jokes; good thing it's soon enough for Peter to still be hanging off his every word.

But - Ben says something that makes Peter forgive him instantly. "You can come back?" he says, his face brightening with the glow on the horizon. "If I'm gonna see you again, then - then I'll be fine, I promise." More than fine really. A little guilty that he let Orihime just flop on the roof if this wasn't gonna be his only conversation with his dead uncle, but. He'll start making up for that now. Gently, very gently, he stoops to pick her up princess style, still using the suit to cushion her head in his arms.

It was an accident! He wasn't used to being alive and actually being able to speak with someone, let alone his own family. He kept a steadying hand on Peter's shoulder in case he needed the support to pick up the girl, but Peter was more than strong enough. That was going to take some getting used to.

"Yeah, I'll come back. That's a promise." He walked forward, his legs stiff. Whatever this 'body' was, it was worn out from the night's activities.

But he was able to hug his nephew again. That was something he didn't think he'd ever do again.

Hey, he's got this. Did he mention the super strength in his babble earlier? Eh, maybe. He'll forgive Ben for not remembering though; he hardly remembers himself.

He nods, though, bowing his head for a moment. "All right," he says. "I'm holding you to it, okay? So - so don't hold out on me." He'll understand if it takes Ben some time to figure out wtf is going here, or needs to rest after all that, or - any of that really. As long as he gets to see Ben again at some point. That's enough for him.

His nephew, the superhero. That was going to take some getting used to. He escorted Peter across the roof as the sun edged further up over the Alps. Down the stairs, step by step, his form began to fade. By the time Peter reached the landing, he was alone save for the unconscious Orihime in his arms.

But even if he couldn't see Ben, his uncle was there to watch over him.

God, okay. Even knowing Ben isn't gone - even knowing there's no way he hallucinated any of this - he has to kind of stop as Ben fades to nothing next to him. Take a deep breath, try not to cry. He can't wipe at his face with Orhihime in his arms, and he'd rather not get her shirt wet here.

So he braces himself instead, and carefully heads back downstairs. It's about then that he realizes he doesn't know what room she's in? That. Hmm. His room has a spare bed, of course, since he still doesn't have a roommate? It's probably weird to take a girl to his room while she's unconscious like this. But given the alternative is leaving her in the common room ... yeah. Okay. Back to his room, then. He'll lay her down onto the spare bed carefully, then retreat to his own. It's been such an agonizingly long night. He'll watch her for a moment, to make sure she's all right, but before long he's slumped awkwardly on his own bed, fast asleep.

It was a long while before Orihime had regained enough strength to stir. Her fingers twitched toward her palm, and her lashes shivered. Slowly she cracked her eyes open as sunlight leaked through the window and onto her face. It was warm...

And this scent...

Her half-opened eyes stared silently at the ceiling as she slowly became aware of the sound of breathing. This room...this wasn't her room, but she recognized it. It was...

...

She sat up on her elbows with a start, her face burning. Then her gaze fell on Peter's sleeping face, and her startled expression relaxed. He was okay. Thank goodness...!

But that didn't seem like a comfortable sleeping position! She chuckled quietly against her knuckle, then sat up a little more. He must have been exhausted in every possible way. Where did he keep his spare blankets? She didn't want him to catch a cold...

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject