Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“The culprit attacked a woman in the upper district earlier today before being chased downtown by a new Spider Hero. We met up with him on the scene after the hero apprehended the criminal and handed him over to Sternbild Police. This is what our new hero had to say:”

A man in a skintight suit stands next to Agnes on the screen. She tries to hold a thick microphone up for him but he stays frozen in place a couple feet away, staring into the camera.

“You just saved someone in danger, how courageous of you!”

“Um…yeah.”

A moment of silence passes while she waits for him to elaborate. When it's obvious he won't, she continues.

“You have powers, right? Blue rose and Golden Spider joined you for part of your chase, will you be joining their ranks?”

“I don’t know.”

“Are you planning to use your powers like Mr. Legend did before you?”

“Uh, no. I don't know much about him.”

“You don't know much about Mr. Legend? The first Spider of Sternbild? Have you been living under a rock?”

Agnes laughs, trying to get a reaction from the statuesque hero. Again, he stares into the camera, knowing everyone in Sternbild is watching him and is clearly overwhelmed by that fact. Agnes clears her throat before finally asking.

“The viewers at home are all wondering; what is your name?”

The man doesn't hesitate to answer, but catches himself.

“Barn-uh-Ba-um…Ba…”

He stops speaking and Agnes chuckles.

“Ba? You want us to call you Ba?”

Without answering, the man throws his arm up and shoots web out of his wrist so fast that Agnes jumps. He leaps into the air, pulling on the web, and disappears out of frame for just a moment before the camera pans to follow him.

“Well, there you have it, folks. Our new hero…Ba. Hopefully next time we see him he'll have a real name instead of a toddler's babbling.”

The news anchors all laugh as the show cuts to commercials.

“Are you even listening to me, Barnaby?” Nathan interrupts.

Barnaby's attention is ripped from the screen, the jingle of a Pepsi commercial filling the silence as he tries to remember what this meeting was about.

Karina scoffs from the other side of the room. “He hasn't been listening since we got here. And turn that off, I hated singing that stupid jingle.”

Barnaby glances back to see a cheery version of Karina holding a bottle of the drink as she dances and sings. When the screen goes black Barnaby sees the giant Helios Cosmetics sign reflected above all of their heads.

“I actually like the jingle. The taste that goes first.” Ryan sings, only to annoy Karina further.

“Shut up, yellow boy. At least my stylist gives me different colors to wear.” Karina retorts.

“Can't help it, it's my favorite color. Maybe if you had enough confidence to show your real personality you'd-”

“That's enough, everyone.” Nathan stops him before Ryan says something he'll regret. “I called you here for a reason, remember?”

“Something about our shoot?” Barnaby offers.

Nathan gives him a grateful look, glad to be getting back to the topic at hand. “Precisely. As the main cast, we have a responsibility to keep you safe.”

Ryan raises his hand and Nathan gives him a look but lets him speak. “We already have our own security, though. At least I do.” He smirks.

Barnaby can't hold himself back from rolling his eyes. “We've all had security for years and you know this. I had my first stalker when I was thirteen.”

“I was eleven,” Karina adds.

Nathan throws a hand up to silence them. “Those aren't topics to take lightly. They're not badges of honor, they're life-threatening situations.”

“Thank you,” Ryan says with a glance toward Barnaby.

“And you,” Nathan gives a pointed look at Ryan, “having security is a privilege. If I want to assign you three the most decorated of agents, I will.”

Barnaby's head perks up at the mention of decorated agents. “Wait. Are you talking about M.S.G.?”

Nathan huffs, “there goes my big reveal. Maverick Security Group, yes. I always hated that acronym.”

“I think it's kinda funny,” Ryan chuckles.

“Of course you do, you have the humor of a child,” Karina jabs.

Ryan throws a look at Karina but Barnaby speaks up before Ryan can say anything. “If we're being assigned MSG agents, why hasn't Maverick told me?” The man comes over for dinner three times a week and knows where Barnaby is every second of the day, but Barnaby's not allowed to know about Maverick's business even when it involves himself?

“He felt it would be better to tell you all together, and when we could introduce you all to each other.”

“Introduce?”

Without another word Nathan presses a button on his desk phone to buzz his secretary. Barnaby turns around to see the door opening for three agents in full dress; all-black combat suits, holsters on their shoulders and thighs holding lethal-looking weapons, topped off with inconspicuous sunglasses. Barnaby's attention is immediately drawn to the man in the middle, his eyes glued to the strange cat-like shapes carved out of his facial hair.

“These are your agents, assigned specifically for your individual needs both on set and in your daily lives.” Nathan explains. “Karina, meet Lara.”

The short one on the left lowers her head before walking over to Karina's side.

“She's similar in age but has more years of experience than many of the agents in the company. She's been training to be an agent since she was a child.”

The blond man on the right walks over to stand behind Ryan's chair and Ryan leans his head back to look at him upside-down.

“Keith has been the top agent in MSG for the past two years. Since you had a bad experience with a fan last month, I thought it would be a good placement for you.”

Ryan snaps his head back to frown at Nathan, “All I'm saying is that sometimes even interviewers aren't resistant to my charms.” He relaxes his head back to its previous position and winks at his new security agent. From where Barnaby is sitting, he sees the man's-Keith's-jaw clench in response.

He looks back at the doorway where the cat-jawed agent still stands at attention.

“And for Barnaby, we have Kotetsu, the longest-serving agent at MSG. Maverick selected this pairing himself. According to him, you and Kotetsu have similar values.”

“Values?” Barnaby asks. The only values he has are curing his own problems and starring in whatever movie or tv show Maverick suggests for him.

The last agent finally walks over to where Barnaby is sitting, avoiding eye contact as he’s probably been conditioned. Barnaby picks up the faint smell of fried rice and wonders how the man could smell like dinner at 10 in the morning.

“Alrighty!” Nathan claps his hands for emphasis and Barnaby can't help but flinch at the sudden sound. “Now that you have your new security, time to get back to work!”

---

“You can walk next to me, you know.” Barnaby offers. He's leaving set after Cain called it an early day; Karina had begged him to let her go home after her outfit caused her so much trouble. They lovingly called it the ‘bee fit’ after bees wouldn't stop flocking to her. Luckily for her, tomorrow’s scene will be safely inside, away from any bees trying to pollinate.

“I can judge your surroundings better from a distance.” Kotetsu answers from three steps behind Barnaby.

“This is a closed set, it's perfectly safe.” Barnaby tries.

“You'd be surprised.”

Barnaby rolls his eyes and gestures to the two agents standing by the back wall, quietly talking to each other over the refreshments table. “Look at Ryan and Karina's guards, they're not worried at all!”

Kotetsu glances over and seems to consider taking a break to relax with them before slightly shaking his head, looking away. “I can't. I'm working.”

Barnaby rolls his eyes and continues walking. There's a small buzz from his bracelet and he knows he needs to check it soon.

“I'm going to the restroom and you better not follow me in there.”

Even though there are five stalls, Kotetsu kindly gives Barnaby space for the first time today and waits in the hallway. Barnaby goes into the closest stall and locks himself in, immediately raising his arm to check the message on the bracelet.

New suit ready for action.

A smile spreads across Barnaby's face and he can't contain a small leap of excitement. He can finally wear something other than the red morph suit he bought online. Maybe Agnes wont recognize him in a new suit and he'll have another chance to name himself. He couldn't go by Barnaby. Being known as Barnaby would mean living up to the same expectations he suffers through every day. He doesn't want to be perfect; he wants to use this as an opportunity to live the way he wants to live, even if he can only do it on the side.

But that doesn't matter right now when he has an uptight security Guard watching his every move. If he can just make a distraction, he could sneak away and try out his new suit. Barnaby bites his lip, considering different ways of getting this man to stop paying attention to him for even just a moment. He could pull the fire alarm, or maybe cause a spill of some sort; break a pipe so everyone has to go home. But all of these would just make Kotetsu watch him even closer. If only he could-

His prayers are answered when he hears Kotetsu speak on the other side of the door.

“Honey, I'm at work.”

Kotetsu must be on the phone. This could be Barnaby’s only chance before this man ends up following him home to stand at his door all night.

“I know, and I'll be there. I promise this time.”

Barnaby looks for an exit other than the one Kotetsu is currently blocking. There's an air vent in the ceiling but Barnaby doesn't trust it to support his weight. It's a room in the center of the building, so there's no windows he could slide out of. The door is the only option. He needs Kotetsu to move away from the door, but how?

Barnaby gets an idea and lets himself out of the stall, moving over to the sinks. He looks at himself in the mirror and utters to himself, “I hope this works.”

He turns one sink on at a time, checking if he can hear Kotetsu's voice as he does. At the last sink, it's harder to hear but he's still there.

“Yeah, of course, sweetie. This is important to me too!”

Barnaby looks around for something that could make more noise but wouldn't startle Kotetsu into thinking Barnaby is in trouble. On the right end of the sinks there's a paper towel dispenser. Noisy, but not loud enough. On the left side is a hand dryer.

Barnaby gives his reflection a mischievous smile before running his hands under the dryer and letting the loud fans build on top of the sound of running water. Kotetsu's voice is completely drowned out now, so Barnaby holds his place for a moment before leaving the dryer to put his ear to the door. Still there but faint and growing fainter, Kotetsu continues trying to amend whatever relationship he has with the person on the other end of the phone.

“I'll be there this time, I swear. I just have…work until…”

Barnaby peeks his head out when he's sure Kotetsu is far enough down the hall that he wouldn’t hear Barnaby leaving. The man must've turned the corner at some point because Barnaby doesn't see him at all. That's not important though; all that matters is getting out of here and over to Saito's lab.

He runs to the nearest stairwell and ascends flight after flight until he reaches the door to the roof. He jogs over to the edge of the building and stops, looking down into the streets below and pulls the mask out of his pocket. He slides it over his face and reassesses his surroundings with the familiar barrier of the mask's mesh eye openings. He remembers the first time he tried to fly, an unsure teenager half convinced he was making an extremely stupid mistake. He remembers falling for what felt like forever, waiting for his powers to kick in and save him.

He blinks out of his memory to the sound of someone running in the stairwell. Did someone see him? Is that Kotetsu coming? Nevermind that, just jump.

For a moment, he falls, allowing his body to gain momentum through gravity. Before reaching street level, he shoots out a web to the next building over, swinging over the streets low enough to hear people shout things like, “is that a Spider? Hell yeah!” and, unfortunately, more people recognize him as “baby-man Ba!”

They won't be calling him that soon...hopefully.

He makes his way to the lab and enters through the secret door made specifically for the Spiders. It sits at an awkward, almost horizontal angle on the back side of the building, impossible to utilize unless you can stand on vertical surfaces, and blocked from the street view by the city's shadows.

“Goo goo Ba Ba!” Maverick greets Barnaby, patting him with a heavy hand on his back.

“Ha ha very funny,” Barnaby responds. He had talked to Maverick after that interview and had been nearly in tears when he recounted how embarrassing it was. Now, the man is making jokes about it like it's nothing. Maverick always raised him with the “walk it off” attitude so Barnaby guesses he shouldn't be too surprised. Still, it hurts.

Saito sits at his desk, apparently saying something judging by the movement of his mouth but no audible sound escapes. His lab is a sterile blue hue under the florescent lights. Machines Barnaby couldn’t pretend to know the purpose for line each wall, surrounding Saito’s desk. Maverick stands to the side of Saito’s chair, using one hand to lean his weight against something that seems to be reacting to him judging by the screen showing the heat signature of a large hand.

“Your new suit is ready!” Maverick supplies.

Saito rolls his eyes but still presses a button on his keyboard that opens a curtain in front of him. Behind it stands a highly advanced suit of mostly white with red accents. The shoulders and arms are adorned with logos of sponsor companies of HeroTV, and right in the center of the chest is a snake swallowing its own tail.

“An Ouroboros,” Maverick offers, “the official name for the Spider Experiments. Hopefully, through advertising like this we'll be able to get enough funding to go global!”

Barnaby stares at the symbol, finding it strangely ironic. He is being consumed by this infection, just like the snake consumes itself.

“Go ahead! Try it on!” Maverick pats Saito’s back a little too hard. The scientist has to adjust his glasses on his nose.

The suit fits perfectly, as expected from Saito. He's the man responsible for all the other Spider's suits and they've always looked amazing. It hugs in all the right places but allows for a good range of motion where it matters. Barnaby stretches his arms for good measure.

“Well?” He hears Maverick ask.

Barnaby stares at his hands, covered by black gloves with incredibly detailed textures. One step closer to becoming an official Spider. “It's exactly what I was hoping for.”

---

“Why aren't you wearing it right now!?” Mattia half-yells.

“Keep your voice down,” Barnaby laughs, “Maverick said it was best to only wear it when I'm called.”

“You couldn't at least swing here so I could see it?” Mattia says before taking another gulp of his drink, a giant chocolate milkshake with a splash of espresso. The diner has a significant list of milkshake flavors but Mattia picks chocolate every time without fail.

“That's a stupid idea and you know it,” Barnaby takes a bite of his burger, without pickles just how he likes it, “anyway, didn't you want to talk about something?”

“Oh yeah!” Mattia starts, pausing to finish his shake with a hard swallow. They'd ordered only ten minutes ago and he'd already gone through two of them. “So you know how Ouroboros does experiments on spiders, right?”

Barnaby considers silence but decides to be snarky, “could that have anything to do with the spider that bit me when I was a child and gave me abilities beyond human comprehension?”

Mattia doesn't miss a beat, “you're an asshole. But yes, those spiders. So we've been testing on them for a bit and I noticed they're starting to act…different.”

“Good different?”

“Bad different. They're lashing out more. We even had to get new cages that can contain them better. But anyway, I took one from the lab-”

“Mattia,” Barnaby interrupts.

Mattia throws his hands up in a placating gesture, “hear me out, okay? I took one from the lab and I brought it to this guy Mekanikku; he runs another lab on the east side. The public was told we're developing Ouroboros to strengthen immune systems, right?”

“Of course, what else-”

“That's not what this guy told me.” Mattia shakes his head, looking conspiratorial, “he said that it's affecting people on a molecular level. It's restructuring their entire bodies!”

Barnaby leans back in the booth and takes a moment to consider this information. What happened to him was supposed to be a mistake. Maverick brought a spider home from the lab because he thought it would help Barnaby. He would never have given it to him if he knew what it would turn Barnaby into.

“Wild, right? He’s going to run some more tests but for now that’s what we got.” Mattia says around a bite of his cheeseburger.

“Yeah…” Barnaby's thoughts trail off, too overwhelming in this small booth. He chooses to change the subject instead of thinking about whether or not this news will make his search more difficult. “How's Yuri doing? You said you were going to invite him to lunch sometime?”

Mattia's face shifts from contemplative to animated in a heartbeat. “Oh yeah!”

---

Barnaby enters his apartment right as Samantha is leaving. As his former caretaker she maintains the role of tending to him where she can. Barnaby is hit with a wave of stroganoff and his mouth starts watering; she must have just finished dinner before heading home.

“Smells amazing, auntie. Have a good night!” He bids her farewell as she exits.

“You too, Barnaby!” She waves and closes the door on her way out.

Barnaby throws his jacket on the hanger and checks the time. 6:57, only a handful of minutes before Maverick would be here for their triweekly dinner.

He brings the freshly plated stroganoff to the dining table, straightening out the cutlery and filling two glasses with water.

Just as he finishes, he hears a loud knock on the door. He brushes his hands on his shirt, checking for lint, and goes over to open it.

“Well, hello again, Barnaby,” Maverick greets while entering.

“I appreciate the use of my actual name this time,” Barnaby jokes.

“Ba is a very respectable name. Even children will be able to pronounce it right!” Maverick's boisterous laugh fills the mostly empty apartment as he hangs his own coat on the rack and makes his way to his seat at the table.

Barnaby had only bought the table after Maverick proposed these dinners, unsure why Barnaby couldn't visit Maverick in his home instead. He liked to keep his apartment filled with only things he needed: a chair, a television, a stool for his feet maybe. But now he has a full dining table with six chairs even though he only ever uses two.

“You did a great job on your first run as a Spider. I really mean that.” Maverick holds eye contact with Barnaby to show that it's genuine. “Tell me about work.”

“Well,” Barnaby gathers a healthy bite onto his fork while talking, “the filming is going alright, we've just now started the scenes where Ryan will have to come in.”

Maverick nods, not looking up from his plate while he chews.

Barnaby bites his lip, unsure if his next line of questioning will get him any results. “Nathan assigned us all security to follow us around. You chose my partner for me, right?”

The older man still doesn't catch onto what Barnaby's trying to ask, “mhmm.”

“I took it, maybe that meant Helios Cosmetics will be funding Ouroboros.”

Maverick finally meets Barnaby's eye, “It will come in due time, Barnaby. My scientists are working as hard as they can.”

Barnaby doubts that, considering one of Maverick’s top scientists told him today that they're still developing the drug without considering the long term effects.

“Speaking of the cure, there's another man trying to make a fuss about Ouroboros. Could you do something about it?”

“Of course, sir.”

Maverick passes a folded note across the table. Barnaby leaves it where it is, partly because he doesn't want to do it but mostly because Maverick hates it when Barnaby reads the notes in front of him. Something about keeping Barnaby from talking his way out of it, even though he hasn’t tried that in years.

The man has given Barnaby a task every couple of days since he was twelve. They always have something to do with Ouroboros, usually a journalist or an ex-employee who Maverick feels is a threat. As long as the research continues, there is hope for a cure. That's the only thing keeping Barnaby going at this point.

“Tonight would be the best time,” Maverick says, “his usual bus route doesn't run this late on Fridays, so he'll be walking through a good portion of alleys. I want you to meet him there.”

They fill the silence with pointless conversation while they finish their food. Barnaby feels a growing anticipation as he waits to speak to the man tonight.

Once Maverick finally bids goodnight and wishes Barnaby a restful weekend, Barnaby grabs the note from the table and makes his way to the window. He looks down at the name written on the paper in Maverick's slanted handwriting.

He takes a deep breath before shoving it back in his pocket and pressing the button on his new bracelet. Within a second his suit materializes, the soft lining flowing along his skin and giving him chills.

“Gotta get used to that.” Barnaby mumbles to himself before leaping onto the fire escape and shooting through the city streets.

Chapter Text

Orlando steps out of the bus and onto the empty street. He slips an earbud into his left ear and pulls out his phone, turning on a podcast to keep him entertained for the next half hour it'll take to walk home.

Before turning down a side street he gets the sensation of being watched and looks over his shoulder, only to see the bus depart from the stop, continuing down the road and disappearing from view. He's never felt this feeling before but chalks it up to nerves. The workday had been more stressful than usual; they'd had to stand by and watch as a man died. Even worse, he had held the camera and filmed it all.

Orlando did the math in his head as the podcast intro played. If he went his usual route, he'd get home around time for the ten o'clock news and he'd have to relive his day as the footage played on the screen. If he goes the long way, he'll miss the news segment and only catch the weather forecast before getting ready for bed, saving himself the horror.

Long way, it is…But he can't shake the feeling that someone is here.

Just when he's about to check behind himself again, he hears something. A little splash of water as if someone stepped in a puddle. He keeps his head forward and his pace steady. If he makes any indication that he's aware of this person, they'll take advantage of his fear.

A million thoughts run through his head, the first of which is to take out the earbud so he can listen closer to his surroundings. He figures it can't hurt.

Earbud safely in his pocket, everything is louder in that ear as it gets used to being unobstructed. Even with that slight advantage, he hears nothing. But there has to be someone there. Otherwise, what could be making him so uncomfortable?

He doesn't look back.

Minutes pass as Barnaby clings to the walls above the man, cursing himself for such a careless mistake. He shouldn't have even been walking in the first place, Saito told him that the gloves of his new suit allowed his spider-like setules to poke through, meaning he could climb walls just as easily as he could without them. Yet this idiot was still walking.

Barnaby shakes the thought from his head. There's no use kicking himself over it now, he'll save that for later tonight where he can belittle himself in the comfort of his own home. As it stands, there's about a fifty-fifty chance he wasn't heard.

The man, Orlando, rounds a corner and peeks back out of the corner of his eye. He's probably expecting a typical person to be following him, so Barnaby should be safe as long as he's still.

Wrong.

Orlando's gaze briefly travels upward and lands on Barnaby. Even in the shadows, Barnaby's white suit is visible to the man.

Shit.

Orlando takes off running, immediately disappearing from Barnaby's sight and startling him. By instinct, Barnaby pushes off the wall and drifts in the air for just a moment before firing a web that gives him leverage to swing around the corner, catching up to the poor man in seconds. He doesn't even make it to the next block before Barnaby is upon him, tackling him to the ground and scraping his chin on the pavement.

“Ow, fuck!” Orlando yells.

Barnaby promptly takes his weight off the man, but still holds his wrists behind his back so he doesn't run again. “I'm sorry, I didn't mean to do that. Please stop fighting, please,” he rambles. No matter how many times he does this, he never gets over the odious feeling of holding someone's freedom in his hands.

Orlando thrashes underneath him, hardly caring to keep his bloodied chin off the dirty ground while he struggles to get free. “Who are you? Are you with Lunatic!?” He yells.

“Who?”

“You're not with that guy from today?” Orlando's movements become less erratic, but he doesn't stop his struggle, “I swear I was just there on a job, I'm not trying to expose anyone.”

Barnaby knows that's a lie. Maverick wouldn't have sent him to this guy if Orlando wasn't trying to expose the experiment. His grip tightens on Orlando's wrists. “I'm here on behalf of Ouroboros.”

Orlando finally ceases his struggle and turns his head to the side, trying and failing to catch a glimpse of who holds him captive. “That immune booster experiment? What do I have to do with that?”

Barnaby doesn't stop himself from rolling his eyes, tightening his grip in response to Orlando's terrible lying. “The file named ‘MSG's Lies’. Delete it.”

At that, Orlando's hands tense and his face goes white. “How do you know about that?”

“Your laptop isn't the safest place to be writing exposés on the most influential company in Sternbild.”

“It's on a thumb drive!”

“You opened it when you were connected to public wifi, you idiot,” Barnaby flicks Orlando's forehead for emphasis, “delete it. And never speak of it again.”

“Who even are you?”

Barnaby remembers the embarrassment from the ‘Ba’ incident and suddenly realizes that he still hasn't come up with a better name. He figures he'll just roll with it. “Call me B.”

“B?” Orlando suddenly laughs, “like the ‘Ba’ guy from yesterday?”

Barnaby sighs. "Kinda."

“Your water, Mr. Brooks.” Kotetsu holds out the bottle towards Barnaby as he walks off the set, just like he's done every shoot, every day, for the past week.

“Thanks,” Barnaby accepts the bottle and takes a sip. He's not thirsty. In fact, he hasn't been thirsty half the times Kotetsu has offered. Barnaby just can't say no when Kotetsu looks so happy to help. He's never been so hydrated in his life.

“Good work today, everyone!” Cain claps his hands as he gets up from the foldable director's chair, “same time tomorrow, we'll start the parenting montage we worked on in rehearsals. Barnaby, Karina, be prepared to improvise some cute scenes. We need the audience to feel the love!”

At the same time that Barnaby says, “Thank you, Mr. Morris,” Karina groans, “ugh, fine.”

“I'm loving the energy,” Cain says as he leaves the studio, his assistant, Mary, close on his heels.

“Parenting, huh?” Kotetsu sighs as he looks at Barnaby and the younger man's heart clenches at the loving look in his eyes, “you have any experience with children?”

The professional part of Barnaby wants Kotetsu to stay out of his work but another part just wants to hear Kotetsu's voice. He wants to know how animated Kotetsu gets when he's passionate about something. “Not particularly, no.” They walk toward the exit of the building, Barnaby's bag thrown over Kotetsu's shoulder.

Barnaby swears he sees an excited smile spread across Kotetsu's face before the man contains the emotion and instead gives Barnaby a nervous look, “well, if you want,” he pauses to open the door for Barnaby, “I could give you some tips. I have a daughter of my own, you know.”

“Really?” Barnaby gives him an incredulous look. Kotetsu doesn't seem to Barnaby like a family man, but he assumes the Kotetsu puts on a professional front at work, then goes home to his loving wife and kids. The image makes something foul grow in the pit of his stomach, which Barnaby promptly ignores.

“Yeah! I could show you some pictures if you want!” Kotetsu excitedly adjusts the bag until his left hand rests around the strap.

Barnaby glances at Kotetsu's hand and only now notices the ring on his finger. He swallows, throat suddenly dry. The feeling in his stomach keeps growing. “Um, no. I think I can figure it out.”

“Oh,” Kotetsu says, his gaze dropping to the ground as they walk, “okay. Sorry about that.”

Barnaby wants to punch himself for being so callous but he couldn't help it; he feels bile rise in his throat imagining Kotetsu with a family. He's not sure where this feeling is coming from; if it's some sort of crush it doesn't feel like any he's had in the past, and he's pretty sure it's not actual disgust. He stays silent even as they reach the car, the driver patiently waiting for their arrival. If Ben notices the tense atmosphere, he doesn't say anything, only turns on the small television screen in the back and fills the silence with meaningless sound.

Barnaby stares out the window while they ride, watching people on the streets going about their lives, completely unaware of his inner turmoil. Why is he so troubled by this man? He's never been so bothered by someone's relationship status, so what makes Kotetsu different? Maybe he's just uncomfortable knowing the man tasked with risking his life for Barnaby has people waiting at home for him. Yeah, that must be it.

A quiet trumpet riff from the tv grabs Barnaby's attention as the words ‘Breaking News’ flash across the screen. He leans forward to raise the volume and is only distantly aware of Kotetsu watching him warily.

“Last week we reported on the death of another Ouroboros victim. Today, we see hundreds of people showing up to give their support both in ending–and continuing–the experiments.”

Agnus disappears from the screen as it cuts to a street view of the protest. On one side, the signs say things like, “Ouroboros is self-mutilation,” while the other side chants, “accessible healthcare for all.”

Agnus’ voice comes back as the screen cuts again, this time showing a crowd gathering on a sidewalk, bystanders confused as to whether they can help or not. “Just a week ago, on this very street, we were able to catch the true tragedy of being incompatible with Ouroboros. A man, healthy just days before, collapsed on his walk to work in the MSG labs. Please be advised, the following footage may be disturbing for some viewers.”

The cameraman gets closer to the scene and the crowd parts for him. There, in the center of the circle, is a man on the ground, seizing, his neck crooked at an odd angle. His hands stretch impossibly open and his wrists bend backward so far they look broken.

There, on his right forearm, Barnaby sees the mark. A fresh, black dot; a bite easily disguised as a needle mark. Barnaby knows that if they had gotten a closer angle, there would be two pin holes where the spider had bitten, and a thin, curved scratch almost creating the shape of a question mark. The mark of a failed injection. Barnaby's left hand moves subconsciously to his own injection site, covered by his jacket sleeve. If Kotetsu notices this movement, he kindly stays silent.

Just then, Barnaby's bracelet pings, ripping his attention away from the small screen. The display shows an address and no further information. He only has a moment to curse Maverick for the poor design before Kotetsu is leaning over, getting into Barnaby's personal space in order to read the message.

“Do you mind?” Barnaby hides his racing heart underneath a mask of irritation. The older man still smells like fried rice and Barnaby, for some reason, longs to stay near him.

“What's that?” Kotetsu asks and Barnaby doesn't know if he means the address or the bracelet itself.

“I have a meeting.” Barnaby wishes the man would stop asking questions but knows that's never going to happen.

“Who are you meeting? Aren't we on that road? Are we heading there right now?” Kotetsu rapid-fires questions Barnaby can't answer.

“None of your business, and you aren't coming with me.”

“Like hell I'm not.” Kotetsu leans closer with a determined curve to his brow and Barnaby has to scrunch himself against the window to avoid the shoulder lingering just an inch away from him. “I'm supposed to keep you safe, and that's what I'll do.”

Barnaby turns away, avoiding the closeness of the man with a deep breath and fogging up the glass, when across the street, he sees a flash of light. Any thoughts of Kotetsu are erased from his mind when he realizes it's an alarm system set off in a small jewelry shop.

“Stop the car.” He ordered and Ben didn't hesitate to pull over to the side of the road, coming to a stop just one building past the shop.

“What the hell? Isn't that the address from your bracelet?” Kotetsu asked and Barnaby glared at the invasion of privacy, “stay here, Barnaby, I'll take care of this.”

Barnaby threw his arm back to hold Kotetsu back, “Don't. We don't know what we're walking into.”

“You want me to wait around while that store is being robbed? Just stay here and I'll be back in a minute.” Kotetsu started to open his door right as a passing car rushed by, nearly taking the door off its hinges.

The sound of the driver honking faded away while Barnaby's glare deepened. “Pay attention to your surroundings, old man.”

Kotetsu's jaw drops in offense but Barnaby is more focused on the man visible through the shop window, crowding the owner behind the counter.

“I've been doing this for twelve years, okay?” Kotetsu argues to the back of Barnaby's head, his hand still holding the door handle, “I know what I'm doing.”

Barnaby ignores him, waiting for the culprit to back away from the owner so he can judge if he has a weapon.

Suddenly Kotetsu is directly in his line of sight, running to the door of the shop. Barnaby whips his head around to find the seat next to him empty and the car door still wide open. “Ben, why didn't you stop him!?”

The driver shrugs, “you don't have enough faith in him.”

Barnaby looks back to the shop to see Kotetsu approach the man and try to throw a punch. However, his fist freezes in the air when his arm is easily grabbed and Barnaby sees the man turn to Kotetsu with a smirk on his face.

“He's an idiot.” Barnaby says as his hands fumble to open the door and throws himself out of the car, letting momentum take him to the alley next to the building. He ducks behind a dumpster, hidden from the small crowd on the far sidewalk gathered to see what the commotion is for. They seem to have been distracted enough that they didn't notice one of the most famous actors in Sternbild running into an alley and hiding amongst garbage. Still, Barnaby isn't one to take risks.

He retreats, crouched, further down the alley and rounds the corner toward the jeweler's. After ensuring the vacancy of the space, he presses the button on his bracelet that materializes his suit and checks his reflection in a puddle to make sure it still fits right.

“Hello, B,” he says to his reflection, giving it a small, two-fingered salute.

For a shop that carries jewelry of every color and grade, the security is severely lacking. B is able to open the unlocked, clearly marked, back door with no trouble at all and without sounding any additional alarms. Even silent alarms weren't in place.

“The only alarm is for the front door? Seems imprudent.” B huffs at the shop owner's expense.

Just then, he hears a shout from the front of the shop. B passes by various carving, shaping, and clasping tools to get to the door that separates the in-progress jewelry from the final products on display. He inches the door open and peeks through the crack to see the shop owner squatting behind the counter, hands over his ears. When he opens the door further, he sees nothing but the full shelves of priceless gems.

Did they leave the store? B wonders to himself. He crosses the threshold into the lobby and the owner flinches, ducking his head lower and whimpering into his knees.

He lets out a breath somewhere between a laugh and a cough to ease the embarrassment he feels for scaring the man. “Um, sorry. Please excuse me.”

“Who’s there!?” someone shouts.

B looks around for the source of the voice but doesn’t find it until he steps past the front counter and sees Kotetsu hovering over the man who was formerly robbing the place. Kotetsu whips his head up towards him and B swears he heard at least a few vertebrae crack with the movement.

“Who are you?” Kotetsu asks and B is relieved to hear hesitation instead of another “Baby Ba” joke.

“I’m B.” He tries to look larger than he is by puffing out his chest. Kotetsu’s eyes roam over him and B nervously bites his lip behind his mask.

Kotetsu scrunches his brow and tilts his head to the side in an endearing show of confusion. “Like the bug?”

B is taken aback by the question and shakes his head, “Bees are insects, not bu-”

“Get off of me!” The man below Kotetsu shouts loud enough for B to hear the shop owner squeal behind the counter. Before either B or Kotetsu can react, the man manages to wriggle one arm free and elbow Kotetsu in the side, taking advantage of Kotetsu's pain to shove him off and get to his feet before booking it towards the entrance of the store.

“Get back here!” B shouts before lunging after the man and catching his wrist just a split second before he reaches the doorknob.

“I had ‘em!” Kotetsu yells, still on his knees in the center of the floor.

B ignores him, instead joining the man's wrists together in one hand and using the other to direct the man away from the door. Once he’s sure he won't make another escape attempt, B presses the button on his helmet that patches him into Saito's comms.

“Are you there, sir?”

There's a beat of silence on the line as B waits for a response.

“Loud and clear, Mr. B” Saito finally answers, though slightly lower in volume than expected. When they first tested out the comms, Saito nearly punctured Barnaby's eardrum with his booming voice. Barnaby had requested an easier way to control the sound and Saito had quickly added a dial to his gauntlet which he now uses to raise the volume.

“How long on backup?” B asks, “this guy's already tried to flee once, and almost got away with it,” B shoots an accusing glare at Kotetsu that the man can't even see through B's mask. Still, Kotetsu raises an arm to scratch the back of his neck in embarrassment.

“‘Bout ten minutes, give or take. This neighborhood is in the police's ‘low-priority’ calls list and the Spiders were off-duty.” The engineer says, disfavor dripping from his voice as he mentions the list he despises.

“Amazing,” B exits the call sarcastically and lowers his hand from his helmet with a sigh, “looks like we'll be waiting here for a bit.”

The man takes this time to take a deep breath before speaking. “My name is Anthony. My wife, she's…” the words catch in his throat and B now notices the tears welling in the man's eyes. “She's sick.” Anthony closes his eyes with a harsh blink, whether to force the tears out or keep them in B doesn't know.

His hand tightens on Anthony's wrists, “hang tight, the police are on their way.”

“It's autoimmune,” Anthony continues, “her body is fighting off her pregnancy. We'll lose the baby if I can't get Ouroboros.” He pauses his pleading to release a sob. “I just need to afford Ouroboros.”

“B…” Kotetsu voices and B cranes his neck to find the security guard standing a few feet away, tears in his eyes.

B rolls his own, “you're serious?”

Kotetsu wrings his hands and his face contorts as he tries not to cry. B would be lying to himself if he said the sight didn't bother him.

There's a pause before B lets his head drop, a sign of defeat against Kotetsu's concern for this man who was robbing an innocent store owner just minutes ago. Instead of letting the man free, however, B opts for simply keeping Kotetsu out of his line of sight.

Whether it be through hard work or petty crimes, as long as Anthony is on the streets, he will be finding a way to pay for Ouroboros treatments for his wife and unborn child. The mere thought of a child being infected makes a shiver run down B's spine. Considering the odds of surviving Ouroboros even without being the carrier of another human being, even if she does survive, what if she still loses the child? What if the long term effects are even more unimaginable? He can't allow that to happen.

“Barnaby,” Kotetsu's voice cuts through the silence of the shop as he stares out the window, causing B to whip his head to him in surprise.

Before B can question how Kotetsu found him out in just one encounter, the older man continues, “he's waiting in the car.” He jumps up to his feet in an impressive show of gymnastics incongruous with his age, “I left the Barnaby Brooks Jr. Waiting in the car! I'm so fired!” His eyes are completely delirious now as he quickly moves toward the door.

B steps backward and pulls Anthony along with him, using the man to help block the exit of the shop.

“What are you doing? I need to leave!” Kotetsu shouts.

“I need you!” B responds, only thinking of keeping Kotetsu away from the empty backseat of his car and not about how embarrassing saying such a thing should be. But, funny enough, it isn't embarrassing at all. His face is totally hidden and Kotetsu doesn't even know who he is. Adding onto that, Kotetsu is looking at him like a deer caught in headlights, the skin of his cheeks dusted with a light rose.

“Me?” He asks.

There are no stakes. B says what he knows will make Kotetsu stay.

“Want to grab drinks after this?” It's the first thought that came to mind, and an embarrassing one, but a curious part of B imagines what would happen if Kotetsu actually said yes.

Everyone in the room turns to look at him, the shop owner peeking above the counter with wide eyes.

“What?” Kotetsu sputters, “is now the right time for that?” He gestures toward Anthony who is still staring at B like he's grown an arm out of his skull.

B considers his next words; his first instinct is to backtrack and apologize for misspeaking, but his second thought is way more intriguing. Since Kotetsu doesn't know his identity, why not have fun with this? He doesn't get the chance to say what he wants as Barnaby Brooks Jr. because of his public image, but B doesn't have that. He doesn't have to be the perfect, poised, boyfriend-material man he's forced to be as Barnaby. Maybe B can simply be himself.

“I'd take you to the movies, but they don't let you bring your own snacks.” B thinks he might've gone too far this time, the cheesy pickup line causing Anthony to scrunch up his nose and frown, but Kotetsu's lips curl upward just a little and B feels a wave of pride knowing he put it there. Even if it was a corny joke said at the wrong place, wrong time, B got to see Kotetsu blush and that's all that matters.

Kotetsu opens his mouth to respond but it snaps closed at the same time a shadow appears from the other side of the door, momentarily blocking the sunlight from reflecting the golden flecks in Kotetsu's eyes.

“Awww, did we miss all the fun?” a playful voice asks over the sound of the doorbell ringing.

B rips his eyes from Kotetsu to see the intruder. Intruders.

Two young men with smug looks on their faces stand side-by-side in front of the door, both of their arms crossed over their chest. They're wearing white costumes, close enough in style to match but different enough to tell them apart. Other than their suits, the only way to recognize one from the other is their haircuts; one long and straight, the other short and slightly curly. Their faces, however, are almost exactly the same.

With how close B had been to blocking the door before, he stands only inches away from them, close enough to see that their eyes are slightly different in shape.

“What's going on in here, fellas?” The long haired one on the right says. The man's eyes slowly look B up and down while his smirk stays firmly in place.

B hears the door to the back room of the store creak again and curses himself for not making sure the owner made it out safely before even thinking about apprehending the criminal. Now, both intruders draw their gaze to the back door as it settles on its hinges and lock eyes for a moment before stepping further into the shop, clearly intent on going after the owner.

Moving before thinking, B shoves Anthony at Kotetsu, not checking to make sure either of them stay on their feet, and runs to the back door, flailing his arms out to try and get in the twins’ way. He succeeds in catching one of them by the arm but the other somehow gets past him without B even noticing. He gives a hard tug on the arm in his hand, but the man doesn't budge. Instead, B is thrown backward, his bones cracking under the force with which he hits the counter.

“Holy cow, are you okay!?” B hears Kotetsu yell over the blood rushing in his ears. He's aware of the twins walking past him to get to the back of the shop.

B tilts his head at Kotetsu, “you worried about me?”

The strong front he puts up only lasts a moment before he gives in to the familiar pain, face scrunching with the effort he puts into holding in a scream. The more I fight it, the longer it takes, he remembers from years of training. “You need to learn to walk it off, no matter what's broken,” Albert would tell him while Barnaby took beating after beating and waited impatiently for himself to heal so the cycle could continue.

To his surprise, when he manages to stand he sees Kotetsu hovering between B and the back door, unsure whether he wants to help B up or go after the twins. The muffled bangs coming from the backroom make B wonder what Kotetsu is waiting for, but Kotetsu's eyes scan B for injuries. The hero tilts his chin upward and holds his arms out to show that he's not struggling to stay up. Mostly. “Like what you see?” He asks.

Kotetsu only looks angry for a moment before a blush makes its way to the tips of his ears, betraying his façade, and he turns his back on B to open the door. B looks around for Anthony and sees the man on his back in the center of the shop.

Did Kotetsu really knock the guy out instead of cuffing him with something? Impetuous.

B stays back to stretch for a moment, making sure he's healed enough to go into a fight. Once he's confident he's close enough to one piece that he can hold his own and protect Kotetsu at the same time, he crosses the threshold to the back room to find it in total chaos, everything that was formerly organized into its rightful place is scattered, handles of tools poking out of the wall and some even hang from the ceiling.

The shop owner stands in the center of the room, cowering behind his arms while the twins stand on either side of him, throwing the man's belongings back and forth like a sadistic game of monkey in the middle. Kotetsu reaches for the twin on the left to restrain him but ends up with his arms wrapped around empty space.

They've been bitten.

This fight just revealed itself to be much more dangerous for Kotetsu, who whips around to find the disappearing twin standing next to his counterpart, making a mocking face at the man. Kotetsu leaps forward, attempting to grab the same twin again before the boy vanishes, sending Kotetsu falling into the arms of the other twin.

He has no idea what he's doing.

B makes a move while Kotetsu has their attention, rushing to the cowering business owner's side, grabbing him by the elbow, and ushers him to the back door.

“I apologize, sir,” B tells him, helping him take a seat against the outside wall of the building, “I'll be back once the situation is taken care of. In the meantime, please stay here where it's safe.”

When he reenters the shop, it's suddenly quiet, save for the sound of the twins’ arguing. He takes a moment to understand their conversation.

“Why didn't he dodge? Is he an idiot?”

“I don't know! What do we do!?”

“Is he okay?”

“I don't know, poke him and see if he wakes up.”

He approaches them, wondering what could possibly distract them from the chaos they brought to the store before.

There, on the floor with a twin on either side of him, is Kotetsu lying on his stomach, a bulb of a bruise forming on his unconscious brow.

“What did you do!?” B shouts and lunges after the short-haired twin closest to him, grabbing the boy by the collar.

“He got in the way! Tell him, Mugan!” The twin behind him excused.

B tightens his fists and feels the boy—Mugan—gulp, his eyes searching B's mask for mercy.

“I-I was passing the toolbox to Fugan a-and something fell out and um…” Mugan falls silent and B is frozen. Kotetsu was struck with a tool? The possibility of irreversible damage dawns on him.

Before B can ask the twins anything else, Kotetsu stirs, raising an arm straight into the air. B drops the boy and reaches for Kotetsu's outstretched hand to help him up and Kotetsu winces with the motion.

The man's eyes crack open slightly and he looks around at his surroundings; a wrecked workshop, two twins in white suits, and a superhero holding him upright. His gaze lingers on B before a gentle smile breaks out on his face.

“Ah, Bunny. You finally came to save the day.”

Bunny? Is he talking to B?

“My name is just B.”

“But you're like a cute little bunny, ya know?”

B shakes his head. Kotetsu raises his hands to either side of his head in imitation of the shape of B's helmet.

“Cause of the ears?” Kotetsu laughs.

“First I'm a bug, now I'm a rabbit?”

“Well, you know what they say about rabbits.”

B doesn't have time to be confused by that statement because he realizes then that he and Kotetsu are the only people in the workshop.

Fucking twins.

There's a shout from the front of the store. A sort of agonized scream ripping its way from someone's lungs.

Kotetsu takes a step forward, testing his own ability to stay vertical. B grabs his arm when he seems to stumble but Kotetsu gives B a look over his shoulder.

“What, you're just going to stand there but I'm not allowed to help?” Kotetsu complains.

Kotetsu's question is forgotten when Anthony, apparently awake and red-eyed, bursts into the workshop with his arms swinging at everything around him. He makes a noise low in his throat, somewhere between a gurgle and a growl.

“Anthony!” Kotetsu yells, his hands raised in a placating gesture, “What's wrong?”

The man turns on Kotetsu and B doesn't recognize the look in his eyes. It's more detached and cold than it was before. There's only hatred reflecting back.

B tries to reason with him. “We can help you! Just work with the police for now and we can help you!”

Anthony lunges for Kotetsu, teeth bared. Kotetsu quickly grabs a hammer from a bench next to him and wedges the handle between Anthony's teeth, the man's jaw held open. He tries to bite through the handle to get to Kotetsu.

“What's wrong with him?” Kotetsu's voice cracks, “why isn't he listening to us!?”

“Good questions,” B says as he steps behind Anthony and grabs both ends of the hammer, effectively gagging him, and pulling him away from Kotetsu. “You know anything about knots?”

Kotetsu wipes the man's spit off of his hands, “a good bit.”

B raises an eyebrow at him.

Kotetsu picks up a piece of rope from the floor and reaches for Anthony's flailing hands. Sirens echo from the street outside and sweat beads on B's brow. He needs to leave.

“You can handle this, right?” He asks as Kotetsu swiftly completes a perfect knot to keep the still-shivering man in place.

B can't help himself, “You made that look easy. You have a lot of experience with binding people?”

“Do you know how to read a room?” Kotetsu rolls his eyes and raises to his feet.

“Actually, this room is about to get a little too crowded for me so I'm gonna head out now,” he says, and pats a hand on Kotetsu's shoulder. “Don't miss me too much.”

Kotetsu draws his brows together and B notes the way his nose scrunches. “You're really gonna leave me to explain all of this alone?”

B looks around the space: the broken glass littering the floor, the pair of pliers stuck into the back door, the less-than-conscious man pulling at his tied hands, and then back at Kotetsu. He makes sure his smile is heard in his voice, “Yeah, you got it.”

He heads toward the back door and ignores the guilt he feels when Kotetsu calls for him to wait. Barnaby should have no issue ignoring Kotetsu, but something about the way he expects B to listen feels wrong. Dishonest. Kotetsu can't leave Anthony unattended again so B knows this is his only chance to escape.

He detransforms in the alley on the way back to Ben, who has moved the car around the block to make room for the arriving officers. When he gets in, Ben asks how it went, giving Barnaby a knowing look that says See? I told you Kotetsu's not that bad.

“As I said, he's an idiot.” Barnaby has no issue transitioning to his usual monotone.

Ben smiled at Barnaby through the rearview mirror. “You caught the guy, didn't you?”

Barnaby rolls his eyes in response. Yes, they were able to seize the original criminal but they'd had to do it twice. And not to mention the two goons that escaped after randomly showing up to make their lives harder.

Kotetsu jogs over to the car a while later, already showing apologies before he's even opened the door.

“-orry, the poor owner was terrified and the police kept asking him questions and I just couldn't stand by while they bothered him like that and…”

His voice trails off when he meets Barnaby's glare, the younger man's arms crossed in a gesture of impatience.

“... sorry.”

Barnaby clears his throat, “who is it you're hired to protect?”

“...You, Mr. Brooks.”

Barnaby leaves it at that, prepared to spend the rest of the ride in tense silence. Unfortunately for him, however, Ben gives Kotetsu a chance to explain himself.

“Who was that guy in the silly suit helping you out?”

Barnaby raises an eyebrow at the driver and scoffs when Ben chuckles at his reflection.

“Oh, that was, um, the Spider guy that was on the news recently. Bee-man, I think?”

Barnaby rolls his eyes at no one in particular.

“He was really cool, though! I've never seen anyone recover that fast from being thrown across a room,” Kotetsu continues.

The glare Barnaby turns on Kotetsu is lethal. “The only notable thing about him is his ability to get injured?”

A soft pink blooms on Kotetsu's ears and he visibly swallows. “N-not at all! He was able to take on two bad guys at once and even saved Mr. Dingfelder!”

“You know that man?”

“Yeah! He helps me out when my ring gets damaged from work. It's a lovely ring but we got them when we didn't have much money so they can't take much…”

He trails off, eyes caught on the jewelry on his finger. It feels like intruding on a sacred moment so Barnaby looks away, turning his head toward the city buildings passing by the window.

A groan startles Barnaby and he looks over to see Kotetsu cradling his head in his hands. Something keeps him from asking what's wrong even though he wants to know the answer.

“Ugh, can you let me off here?” He asks.

Ben looks concerned from the front seat, “are you okay? We're almost there.”

“No, no. It's alright. I think the car ride is making it worse.”

“Where do you live?” Barnaby asks without thinking. He was a child the last time he bothered with his employees’ personal lives and here he is asking for an address.

When Kotetsu raises his face from his hands, he can see just how bloodshot his eyes are. Concussion, maybe?

He suddenly wants to keep watch over him in case something happens. Why in the world does he care? His wife will take care of him once he's home.

“I can walk, it's okay.” Kotetsu ensures him.

Ben looks at Barnaby through the rearview mirror again, “sir?”

Barnaby considers for a moment before putting his foot down. He stares back out the window when he says, “no. It's very common for people to think head injuries aren't as bad as they are. We will make sure you get home safely.”

Kotetsu groans and leans his head back on the headrest. Ben continues driving in silence.

When they arrive at Kotetsu's apartment, after getting unclear directions from the man (how many times can he confuse right from left in five minutes?), Kotetsu steps out of the car and turns around to give Barnaby a quick bow. “Thank you for your consideration, Mr. Brooks. I'll make it from here.”

He reaches to close the door and Barnaby says, “see you tomorrow, old man.”

Kotetsu stutters for a moment and Barnaby smirks to himself, keeping his gaze forward. He hears Kotetsu sigh angrily before the door slams closed.

B knocks on the glass, awkwardly waiting on the fire escape while he listens to the shuffling sounds approaching the window.

Seconds later, the curtains shift slightly and B sees a single, dark eye peeking through the crack. He raises his hand in acknowledgement, knowing his face being entirely shrouded is not necessarily a comforting sight on a fire escape at 11pm on a Tuesday.

The curtain is pushed to the side and B sees Kotetsu looking at him, perplexed, from the other side. He lifts the pane upward, a clear question on his lips before he even speaks, words slurring. “What are you doing here?”

Kotetsu takes a step back to let him enter. B looks closer to see Kotetsu's green striped pajama set and slippers, the ensemble making him look simultaneously older and younger than he actually is.

“Getting ready for bed, are we?” B jokes.

“Who's ‘we’?” Kotetsu asks with a quirked brow and a noticeable lilt to his speech that tell B the man has been drinking.

B chuckles, “as a beloved Spider of the city of Sternbild, I am simply making sure a valued citizen is kept safe and recovering from injury.”

“Beloved? I hadn't heard of you until last week. Any of the other Spiders could've done the same thing and wouldn't be bothering me in the middle of the night.”

“Eleven is not the middle of the night, old man.”

A red hue grows on the tips of Kotetsu's ears and he purses his lips in an alcohol-fueled, exaggerated scowl. “Don't call me that.”

“Easy, tiger.” B raises his hands in a placating gesture, proud of himself when a stronger blush comes to rest on Kotetsu's cheeks.

“Are you coming in or not?” Kotetsu asks indignantly, exhaustedly gesturing for B to enter.

After squeezing himself through the small window, B takes a look around the apartment. Minimal furniture, trash on the table, and empty beer bottles littering the floor. B wonders when this place was last cleaned.

There's also one of everything: one plate on the dinner table, one coaster on the coffee table, one pair of shoes by the front door. Does he live alone? Is that not a wedding band on his finger?

Kotetsu seems to notice B's observing. “I wasn’t expecting company tonight,” he explains as he walks over to the kitchen, stumbling and catching himself on the handle of the fridge.

“You like shrimp fried rice?”

B considers before answering, “you’re not seriously going to cook right now, are you?”

“That’s not an answer.” Kotetsu stares at him across the kitchen with unfocused eyes.

“Shouldn’t you be lying down? You took a pretty nasty hit.” B walks over to the kitchen island, leaning his hands on the surface.

“Only a terrible host wouldn’t cook for their guest.” B watches Kotetsu nearly lose his balance while reaching for a frying pan.

“This is ridiculous.” B stalks over to where Kotetsu stands against the counter, crowding him in the space. “You’re not a host; I’m an intruder.”

The freckles on Kotetsu’s face are visible from this distance and B counts them for a long moment before Kotetsu raises the pan he had been holding between their faces, blocking his view.

The younger man takes this as his cue to back off and steps away, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

“Lay down, Kotetsu.”

“What did you just say to me?” Kotetsu raises the pan as if about to take a swing at B, but freezes when B doesn’t even flinch and instead tilts his head to the side.

“You need rest. You can cook for me next time.”

Next time? What is he talking about?!B reaches for the pan and is surprised when Kotetsu's grip loosens on the hilt.

“I'm going to bed,” Kotetsu says, pointing a finger at B before adding, “but not because you told me to.”

While Kotetsu climbs the stairs to his lofted sleeping area, holding onto the railing for dear life, B chuckles to himself and searches the cabinets until he finds what he's looking for. He fills the cup with water from the sink and grabs the hand towel on the stove handle, wetting it under the water until he's satisfied.

When he reaches Kotetsu, the man is cuddled into the blankets, only his face visible among clouds of comforter. He sets the water on the bedside table and offers Kotetsu the cool rag.

“Put this on your head. Helps with the pain.”

Kotetsu narrows his eyes, “why are you a Spider?”

The question throws B off and he stands there, confused, before he lets out a nervous laugh. “I got bit, obviously.”

He offers the rag again, arm straining from being held out so long.

Kotetsu swallows and smacks his lips, an act B would find endearing if it weren't for the lingering question in the air.

“No, I mean like why, you know?”

When B still doesn't answer, Kotetsu answers his own question.

“If I had your abilities, I'd save as many people as possible, no matter what.”

B can't help the smile from growing on his face. Such a cheesy line and it went straight to B's heart.

He opens his mouth to speak, but is interrupted by an extremely nasally snore. Kotetsu's lips are slightly parted and his exhale comes out as a heavy puff of air.

The cool rag is placed gingerly on Kotetsu's forehead before B retreats back to the kitchen, picking up some empty bottles on the way and depositing them in the recycling box. He leaves the living room as it is, believing in Kotetsu's ability to clean up after himself.

Once he's satisfied, he goes to the window, turning back before he closes it to finally give his answer.

“I do this to find the cure.”

Chapter Text

“My ice may be a little cold…” Blue Rose says as she completes her signature move, creating a giant web of ice. Crystals woven like silk glitter across the street’s opening. She waits at the edge, ice pistol at the ready to freeze the villain's legs once he gets caught in her web.

The large man, Earthshatter as *Spider TV* had been calling him, barrels around the street corner, his yellow armor nearly blending in with the city's amber glow. He doesn't react to the sight of her web, but Blue Rose is on camera; the public can't know she's worried. She bites her lip and adjusts the grip on her pistol, mentally preparing the rest of her line.

As he gets closer, Blue Rose notices the man lowering his posture and shifting one shoulder forward, clearly expecting to ram through the web.

Tch, she thinks, no one's ever been able to get past my web, you think you’re any different?

She lowers the pistol to aim at the ground where she anticipates Earthshatter's collision.

As the battering ram of a man reaches the wall of ice, Blue Rose perfectly times her shot to freeze his feet under him and ending his terrorizing tirade through the city.

Or at least it would have if she felt the usual twing of her web as the criminal bounced back, glued to it's sticky surface.

“But your crime has been…huh?”

When the feeling doesn’t come, she turns her head to see the ice crystals crack and stretch as Earthshatter fights against her web. It makes an uncomfortable aching, groaning around as the ice is pushed to its limit.

With a deafening snap! the villain brakes through the web and Blue Rose is left standing next to the shattered debris.

He really broke through, she realizes. Broke through as if she hadn't relied on it to catch some of the strongest criminals over the past two years.

Just then, Sky High soars above her yelling through the comms as he flies by. “He's unstoppable!”

Blue Rose stomps her foot in frustration. “But I was perfectly set up for my line!” She crosses her arms in front of her chest and pouts.

“I'll try to slow him down!” Sky High, with the power of his jetpack, catches up to Earthshatter in seconds. Luckily for the Spiders, the man's huge frame prevents him from being faster than the wind itself.

Sky High gains enough of a lead on Earthshatter to prepare his attack, planting his feet on a streetlight to give him extra leverage and turning back toward the man. He winds his arms back and inhales deeply before releasing his breath in the form of a huge gust of wind, his arms extending and propelling the air around him.

For a moment, it seems like it'll work. Earthshatter's steps stutter and his footing slips, losing speed. Sky High manages another, stronger gust in an attempt to keep the man at bay but he can't keep this up forever.

Earthshatter fights the wind for a moment longer before he notices the street to his left and heads east down Main Street. Sky High doesn't allow himself a moment to recover as he leaps off of the street light, using his jet pack to stay in the air and follow the unstoppable force wreaking havoc across the city.

The bank owner sends a nervous glance around the room, trying to identify the criminal in charge. There's two of them; a man and a woman. The latter keeps glancing at her watch while the former struggles to unlock the vault.

“You said they only change the code every twelve hours, how is it so hard to remember!?” the bank owner notices a bead of sweat drop from the woman’s chin onto the musty carpet. The sizeable scythe on her back clinks against the metal of the vault door as she paces.

“It's not about *remembering*, Moonsable. I wasn't there, I have to *find* it.” The man scrunches his eyes, his brow furrowing in concentration.

The woman, Moonsable, looks to the owner and narrows her eyes. “You. Boss man. You got the code?” She gestures her head to the vault.

The owner hesitates; It would be a simple answer if he actually worked here, but Ivan has never worked at a bank in his life. “Um…that’s usually…uh…”

“Got it.” The man saves Ivan from being discovered with a sigh, backing away from the vault as the door slowly opens.

“Bout damn time, Minute Man.” Moonsable scoffs as she storms into the vault.

“My name is Rewind! I can see through time, I can’t actually manipulate it,” The man grumbles. Ivan suspects they haven’t been working together for very long.

Before Ivan can even try to relate this information to the rest of the Spiders, Moonsable groans from the other side of the large door. “Yo, boss man, we need your lockbox keys.”

Ivan feels a wave of anxiety hit him as he inches closer, knowing that he doesn’t have what they need. Come on, Antonio.

He’s about to bite clean through his bottom lip when he sees a huge suit of armor appear outside the glass doors. He rushes over with the only key the real owner would give him and opens the doors for Rock Bison, dropping his disguise at the same time he lets out a heavy sigh. “Man, one more minute and I would have been busted.”

He hears Antonio chuckle through his armor, “gotta keep you on your toes somehow.”

“Hey!” Ivan turns towards the shout, shurikens at the ready. Rewind has moved away from the vault, now blocking Ivan’s view of Moonsable. Beside him, he hears Antonio’s spikes shift into place on his wide shoulders. “Who the hell let you guys in?”

“No matter what? What is that supposed to mean?” Barnaby pleads.

“Don’t ask me that; you promised!” Ryan screams, one foot out the door.

“No! You can’t just leave us like this.” Barnaby forces tears to the surface but doesn’t let them fall.

“You know I have no choice. I have to hurry.”

Barnaby watches in horror as Ryan slams the door behind him and listens to his heavy, rushed footsteps echoing down the motel hall.

Instead of running after him, Barnaby grabs a pillow from the couch to his right, planting a solid foot and chucking the pillow as hard as possible at the door and screams.

“Ovid, you asshole!”

He lets his heavy breaths dissipate as he sinks to the floor, holding his head in his hands.

“Cut!”

Barnaby sits up and wipes the tears from his eyes, clearing his throat. That had been his hardest shout since they started filming at four this morning and it was starting to bother his vocal cords. Ryan enters the room again, stretching his shoulders.

“Amazing job, everyone! Let’s take another fifteen!”

Barnaby scans the room for his Guard and spots Kotetsu standing next to the other MSG Guards, stoic with his arms crossed while the other two converse jovially.

He rolls his eyes in disappointment but can’t say he’s surprised. Kotetsu has somehow gotten more serious since Barnaby’s great escape last week, even refusing to answer calls unrelated to work, though Barnaby hasn’t missed the nervous demeanor Kotetsu adopts when he has to turn away his caller.

While Barnaby gets his makeup retouched, he watches as Ryan walks up to his Guard, Keith, and pats him on the shoulder. They seem to share a joke and laugh, something he hasn’t done with Kotetsu. Though that can’t honestly be blamed on the older man since Barnaby has made no true effort to get along with him. What is he supposed to say? What could he possibly have in common with an older man in a completely different line of work? Even if he did, what’s the point in making friends with someone who will only be in his life temporarily, just like everyone else.

At the end of filming for the day Barnaby makes his way to Nathan’s office for another meeting, Kotetsu trailing behind him dutifully. They enter the room to see Nathan scowling across their desk at Ryan, who seems to have just cracked a joke at Nathan’s expense. Karina's eyes are glued to her phone as she sits in the chair on Ryan’s right.

“Nah, I'm just sayin’,” Ryan chuckles, “why have these super awesome guards protect us when we can have you, the Emblem of Fire!”

He falls into a fit of giggles and Nathan sighs before turning to greet Barnaby.

“Barnaby, you're finally here! Ryan was just telling us about how splendidly he and his partner are getting along.” Nathan offers a warm smile.

Ryan stifles another laugh. “And Nathan was telling us all about their plans to become a Spider.”

As Barnaby takes the seat on Ryan's other side, Nathan rolls their eyes, “a fella can dream, no?”

They smack their lips before continuing, “anyway, Barnaby, how are you and your agent?”

Barnaby glances over his shoulder to see Kotetsu, a perfect hovering distance away as always. He can't help but note that Kotetsu looks good from this angle, his jawline accentuated by the lighting and his stoic posture resembling a marble statue.

He only realizes he's staring when Kotetsu's eyes flit down to meet his own. Barnaby quickly turns back to Nathan, squashing whatever fluttery feeling rattled his chest, “why *this guy*, though?”

It's not necessarily what he wanted to say, but he panicked. He desperately needed to fight the urge to form a connection with the man. If he got caught getting along with his security guard, who knows what kind of rumors would start flying around.

After his first ever photoshoot, a picture surfaced of Barnaby and the photographer laughing together. Barnaby only remembers bits and pieces of the conversation, but it was friendly and never strayed from the topic of their work.

But the media had a field day with it. One day, he was faking being kind to people “lower” than himself, and the next he was manipulating them with sex in order to get what he wanted.

From then on, he kept his interactions with others brief and impassive. Mattia was an exception, even if only because it was common knowledge that they were closer to brothers.

“Barnaby, Kotetsu is the best at what he does, and he's been around a lot longer than the other agents. Right, Mr. Kaburagi?” Nathan raises a perfectly sculpted eyebrow at the agent.

“U-um…” Kotetsu pauses for a moment and Barnaby allows himself to turn. Kotetsu raises a hand to the back of his neck, his cheeks grow rosier, and Barnaby tells himself that he doesn't find it endearing.

“Do you disagree with your assignment?” Nathan teases.

“N-no, of course not!” Barnaby watches as Kotetsu chuckles and covers his vulnerability with a mask of humility. “Someone's gotta keep him outta trouble, right?”

“Trouble?” Barnaby questions.

Kotetsu leans back confidently, “well, yeah! You might be smart, but you're bound to get into some rough spots. When that happens, I'll be there. No matter how bad it gets.”

Kotetsu looks down at Barnaby with a lopsided smile and the sincerity in his eyes is blinding. Barnaby can't help but be defensive, “you think you're the only person who can step up for me?”

Kotetsu's smile softens and Barnaby's stomach somersaults. “I think we balance each other out quite nicely, Bunny. You're clever, perceptive, and you don't let anyone hold you back. But sometimes you need someone with more experience, someone who's been around the block a few times. And when that happens, I'll be your muscle or whatever you need. But don't think that means I'll go easy on you.”

Barnaby considers the words. *Whatever you need*. Kotetsu seems so earnest, Barnaby wants to believe every word.

But that could be dangerous, so he schools his expression and stays professional.

“Very well…I guess I misjudged you,” Barnaby looks down at his hands to avoid Kotetsu's eyes, “but that doesn't mean I'll go easy on you either.”

Barnaby hears Kotetsu laugh softly, a sound he wants to hear again and again. “Wouldn't expect you to.”

When Barnaby raises his eyes to Nathan, he sees them watching Kotetsu, seemingly sharing silent words with the agent behind him a gentle, knowing smile gracing their face.

Wednesdays are movie nights and one of the few nights a week that Barnaby gets to forget about Ouroboros. Even if every other waking moment is plagued with thoughts of the condition he’s been afflicted with, movie nights with Mattia are his time to be just like anyone else.

Except this Wednesday, apparently, because Mattia comes into Barnaby’s apartment already rambling about work.

“There’s something they’re not telling us, man!” He complains while Barnaby rolls his eyes and takes his spot on the couch. Mattia is strangely particular about where he sits. The scientist has to sit on the left side, closest to the door, and the precise distance away from the screen so that the lights from the city don’t reflect into his face.

Mattia sighs and leans back into the cushions, gaze rising to the ceiling. “I knew they were lying to us. Something about the spiders always seemed off.”

He turns his head to scrunch his brow at Barnaby, who returns his eye contact with an indifferent expression.

“Like why do we need them to be intelligent? Why have an immune booster walk around and bite you instead of having it in a syringe just like everything else?”

Barnaby thinks about the day he was bitten. The memory of the crude spider contraption crawling over him and scanning the skin of his arms before finally sinking its metallic fangs into his flesh.

“They can find the location of the most [veins] so that the medication can have the most effect.” He recites almost robotically.

Mattia sits forward, leaning towards Barnaby. “That’s what I thought, too! But our research hasn’t shown any effectual difference between this ‘ideal location’ and a regular injection.”

He pauses, waiting for Barnaby to respond. Barnaby, however, is stuck in a loop in his head of the burning [infection], seizing in his bed while [goosebumps] pebble his skin, and sweat beading his entire face.

“So I brought one to this guy, remember? Are you listening?’ Mattia taps his arm with the back of his hand.

“Yeah. Yeah, sorry. What guy?” He shakes his head to banish the memory.

“Mekanikku. I told you about him. C’mon, man. Do you ever listen to me?”

Barnaby fixes him with a glare and another eyebrow raise.

Mattia huffs before continuing. “So he did some more tests, and he found traces of dilapredaxridar in their venom sacks. Sound familiar?”

Barnaby shakes his head slightly, pursing his lips. Is Mattia still speaking English?

“The first prototype of Ouroboros used dilapredaxridar as its main component, and it was banned because of the severe side effects it caused.” Mattia pauses, waiting for Barnaby to catch on.

He racks his brain for what he knew about Maverick's first tests and vaguely remembers an argument over the phone between Maverick and one of his investors. It was after Barnaby had been infected but before Ouroboros went public as a project. There were a lot of big words Barnaby hadn't understood at the time, but he knew there was a threat to the experiment's success.

Without explaining much, Maverick arranged for Barnaby to make a public statement: tell his story to the world and secure the funding for Ouroboros. Barnaby remembers the immense pressure he felt to please his father figure, and the relief when Maverick lifted him off the ground after the TV interview, tears still running down Barnaby’s cheeks from having to relive his nightmarish years of illness before Ouroboros saved his life.

The chaos of the situation hadn't left Barnaby much time to ask what happened, but he figured this was it. One of the ingredients was causing problems. It would have cut the funding immediately if the public hadn’t heard Barnaby’s story.

Barnaby wonders for a moment if it would have been better that way.

Before he can fall too far into the depths of his greatest fears, Barnaby changes the subject.

“So, anyway, adventure or comedy?”

A disc is thrust toward him, retrieved from Mattia’s bag at some point, and he reads the title. He gives Mattia a sidelong glance and asks, “both?”

“Both.”

A few moments later, the opening scenes of The Road To El Dorado flash across the screen. Barnaby tries his best to pay attention but the information burrowing into his mind like a hundred starving larvae are all-consuming.

Once the movie is over, he tells Mattia goodnight and sees him out of the apartment. Once alone with his mind as his only companion, he feels lost. Lost to himself and lost to the world.

He longs for the soothing rush of cool night air against his face and the calming stretch of muscle when he swings through the streets.

So that’s exactly what he does.

What magnetized him to this place, he doesn’t know, but something about crouching on the railing of the fire escape outside of Kotetsu’s apartment keeps him grounded. His thoughts no longer run wild and he can finally release the breathe he’s been holding in since Mattia changed his whole world.

How could this happen? How could the one thing he’d been believing in his whole life be built on a lie? Maverick said that they’d made Ouroboros safer since the prototype stages, but then why is the most dangerous component still there? Not only is it there, there’s more.

They had to have been wrong about it. Maybe the reason they changed the species of spider a few years ago was because its genes interacted differently with the substance. Maybe it wasn’t actually the dangerous ingredient, it was actually another one that they’ve removed since then. There’s no way Maverick would risk this, especially knowing Barnaby wants to cure its side effects as soon as possible.

A crash breaks Barnaby from his contemplation and he realizes he’s face-to-face with Kotetsu.

Kotetsu, with his hand on the window pane and the other still wrapped around the air that replaced his mug when he dropped it. Kotetsu, with his cat-shaped beard and messy hair falling over his brow. Kotetsu, with his warm smile and easy quips that make B feel safer than he ever has, like a soft blanket welcoming him to bed after a long day.

He’s on his feet before he’s aware of it, crossing the balcony and raising a hand to point at the window’s lock. Kotetsu stays frozen for another second and B can’t tell if it’s because he’s thinking about letting the masked man in again or if his soul has left his body from the surprise.

Then, Kotetsu blinks and shakes his head, physically breaking himself out of whatever trance he was in, and unlatches the window to usher B inside.

“What the hell, man,” Kotetsu starts, a hint of a tremble still in his voice, “is everything okay?”

B ducks inside and takes a look around, expecting to see the apartment in a better state and being strangely despondent to find that it isn’t any cleaner. In fact, there seem to be more empty beer bottles littering the floor. An empty takeout container sits on its side on the coffee table, the chopsticks scattered across old newspapers.

“I was in the neighborhood,” B lies. He stalks over to the kitchen with more bravado than he feels, checking the fridge’s contents for something other than carbs. Instead he finds a half-stocked shelf of beers, a mostly empty gallon of milk, and a couple boxes of leftovers.

“I’ve been meaning to get some groceries…”

B turns his head to see Kotetsu with his hand on his neck again, a habit he seems to use whenever he’s uncomfortable. Kotetsu chuckles, trying to dispel some of the tension in the room.

“How do you look like that when you feed yourself like this?” What is B saying? That isn’t what he wanted to complain about.

“Um…” Kotetsu blinks and his cheeks take on a flattering hue, “I don’t- uh…”

B tries to clarify his mistake. “I mean, a man as handsome as you has to be doing something right to be this fit.” He gestures to Kotetsu’s body without realizing what he’s said.

What in the world has possessed him.

Misunderstanding in a completely unexpected but welcome way, Kotetsu drops his hand and his awkward smile grows into something brighter and more real.

“Well, I actually get a lot of protein from my fried rice! It helps a lot with gaining muscle.” Kotetsu holds his flexed arm out toward B, who inspects it with a finger on his chin and a nod. “You hungry? You wanna try some?”

Saying no is hardly an option when Kotetsu looks at him like that, so B gives a one-shouldered shrug and a slight tilt of his head. Without being able to see B’s face, Kotetsu can only guess at the expression underneath. Even so, Kotetsu turns to retrieve his wok from a cupboard and gestures for B to take a seat.

This is turning out so much stranger than expected.

For all of the flexibility his suit offers when traversing the city and fighting criminals, it’s constricting in all the wrong places as B perches atop one of the tattered stools at the kitchen island. He ends up leaning halfway over the counter, one foot on the rung of the chair and the other leg stretched out behind him and holding a good bit of his weight.

While Kotetsu’s backside is as interesting as a backside can be, B takes this time to look closer at some of the smaller things his eyes took for granted upon first glance. The fridge, for example, has a few pictures held up with various tourist magnets. Two Sternbild Guardians support a smiling little girl with a missing front tooth, an amateur artist’s rendition of the Pegasus almost covers one of the two men on either side of Kotetsu in what looks like a bar, and in the center of the magnetic surface, surrounded by stars in different shapes and colors, is a picture of Kotetsu with a woman. She smiles so brightly and genuinely that B feels like he’s intruding on a private moment as the Kotetsu in the image looks at her with so much adoration it’s hard to believe he had the ability to even look away from her to aim the camera.

B’s brought back to the present when Kotetsu tosses the quick-thawed shrimp into the wok, starting the chorus of sizzling that means ‘food so fried you’ll feel it for the next three days’. B’s stomach rolls for more reason than one.“So…” B clears his throat, “those your friends?” He glues his eyes to the picture on the right: Kotetsu atop a barstool, on one side a large man in a cowboy hat towering over him, and on his other a smaller man with light hair and a crooked smile.

It takes Kotetsu a moment to look around for what B is referring to and chuckles when he remembers picture. “Oh, yeah, those are my buds!”

He raises the wok from the stove and continues to toss its contents as he spins around to face B. “This one’s Ivan,” he points to the smaller one, “he’s one of the sweetest little guy’s you’ll ever meet, but don’t tell him I said that. And the big fella is Antonio. He’s been my best friend since before I even met Tomoe.”

Kotetsu swallows and lets his hand linger on the center image. B has just enough time to piece together that Tomoe must be the name of Kotetsu’s wife before Kotetsu has a bowl of shrimp fried rice placed in front of him.

“Alright, dinner’s served!” Kotetsu slides into the stool next to B and looks at the masked man expectantly.

B tilts his head yet again and asks the question he’s been wanting to ask since Kotetsu offered to cook for him, “how am I supposed to eat without taking off my mask?”

Embarrassed by his disregard for B’s inconveniences, Kotetsu blushes and bashfully chuckles at the floor with a finger scratching his cheek. “I hadn’t really thought about that.”

Words are out of B’s reach for the moment but he manages a grunted, “mhmm?” to provoke Kotetsu further.

The man casts his eyes around before raising his head with a triumphant smile, like he’s just figured out how to steal the moon from the sky. Then he pushes his bowl away from B and turns in his seat, leaving B to stare at only Kotetsu’s backside.

Kotetsu stays facing away when he asks, “how about this?” He raises his right hand and straightens his back, “I won’t peak, I’m a man of my word.”

B considers sneaking out to avoid the danger of being discovered - of being known - but ultimately decides against it. Kotetsu just used what little food he has to cook for him, the least B could do is try it. He looks beyond Kotetsu for anything that could cast his reflection and is relieved when he doesn’t; the curtains are drawn and B is willing to bet the only mirror in the whole apartment rests above the bathroom sink.

“Alright, but if you peak, I’m going to have to kill you,” B jokes.

Kotetsu laughs but shows no sign of breaking his word.

Here goes nothing.

B pressed the button on his gauntlet that removes the mask’s visor and gives Kotetsu another moment to betray him. When Kotetsu continues to shovel his food into his mouth with little to no care in the world, B finally picks up the spoon the man offered him and loads it up with a small helping of the fried rice.

It’s not good per se, but it’s not necessarily b bad either. With B’s experience cooking with Samantha, he knows what frozen food tastes like and understands where it lacks. Especially after rushing the thawing process, the shrimp has just a hint of flavor and has an off-putting, rubbery texture. But the rice itself…there’s something there. A little bit of spice that gives the plate life.

“Have you tried it, yet?”

B nods before remembering that his listener can’t see the motion. “You should keep your day job.”

The laugh that bellows from the man in front of him is contagious and Barnaby wants to do anything to hear it more.

“Yeah, Kaede tells me the same thing. It’s why she prefers her grandmother’s cooking.”

B tries to finish his bowl before the rice cools off and loses its already wavering edibility. When he’s done, he replaces his mask and lets Kotetsu know that he can turn around. Kotetsu then reaches under the counter to grab a bottle of some sort of rum and asks if B’s interested

“So why did you name yourself after a bug?” Kotetsu asks, around thirty minutes later when they’re both situated just enough on the right side of intoxicated to be talking about mundane things in earnest. Kotetsu had taken to placing a towel over his head when he offered B a drink and B found it too amusing not to indulge the man. Barnaby Brooks Jr. isn’t allowed to drink on weekdays, but who’s going to stop B from doing the same?

“It’s not a bug, it’s a letter. And bees aren’t even bugs anyway.” B leans back on the unreasonably orange couch and grunts when one of the errant springs pokes its way through the suit to jab him in the rib.

Kotetsu maintains their distance by leaning forward in the wooden armchair, resting his elbows on the towel balanced on his knees. “Then what are they, huh?”

“They’re hymenopterans.”

“…Is that a euphemism?”

“What? No, it’s an order of insect.”

“So, a bug.” Kotetsu raises the bottle to his lips and takes another sip.

“No, bugs are hemipterans.”

Kotetsu scoffs and shakes his head, gazing half-lidded through his long lashes and smirking. B has never felt so belittled by or attracted to a person in his life and he decides that’s his cue to leave.

“Well, I’ll leave you to it.” He stands from the couch and has to stretch the kinks out of his back before moving towards the window.

Kotetsu seems to sober up when he realizes B’s intentions to leave and suddenly perks up like he remembered something that’s been on the tip of his tongue for the past hour. “Wait! What about Lunatic!? What are you guys going to do about him?”

B’s hands hesitate on the windowsill. How does Kotetsu know about Lunatic? How does he know the Spiders are forming a plan to deal with him? The deaths haven’t even been publicly connected yet. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“You’re kidding, right? I had a briefing at work about it today. We’re supposed to keep an eye out, but it’s you guys on the front lines.” Kotetsu pauses for a moment but B doesn’t move so he continues, “Do you guys know who he’ll target next?”

B swallows down the fear Kotetsu’s words evoke and grumbles out, “No one knows how he chooses his targets. It’s not-”

An upbeat pop song startles both of them and Kotetsu scrambles to locate his phone. He answers it immediately. “Kaede! How’s it going, baby?”

B moves to open the window but Kotetsu is there in a second, his hand over B’s on the frame, keeping B present and unable to keep from eavesdropping on the conversation between the man and his daughter. B’s eyes flicker over to the picture on the fridge, at the little girl missing a tooth. How old is she now? B wonders.

”Hey, dad! My recital is next Wednesday. You’re coming, right?”

Kotetsu does that awkward chuckle that is usually accompanied by a hand on his neck but both of them are in use at the moment. “Yeah, totally! I’ll just let the ol’ boss know and I’ll be right there!”

”Okay, good. I also want to visit mom while I’m in Sternbild.”

Kotetsu’s face contorts and B can’t tell if he’s touched or offended. “Of course, sweetheart. I wouldn’t miss it for anything. I’ll see you there, alright?”

“Alright! Bye, dad. I love you!”

“Love you too, sweetie.”

The phone is still at Kotetsu’s ear when Kaede hangs up. The mention of his wife clearly affected Kotetsu and B has to assume that their relationship is rocky at best - especially considering their daughter said she only wanted to visit her instead of inviting her to the recital as well. Kotetsu’s next blink is longer than usual and B wonders if the man is holding back his emotions, but then he sighs and removes his hand from B’s.

“She keeps calling at the most inconvenient times, but I love hearing her voice,” he smiles sadly.

B is a deer in headlights and has to use most of his focus on his breathing and not the way he longs to remove the dejected tension radiating off of Kotetsu.

“She called while I was at work the other day,” a huff of air like a defeated laugh, “My one job is to keep an eye on one person and I couldn’t do that because I needed to take her call. I wanted to be angry because I could’ve lost my job, but that’s not her fault. She reminds me so often because I’ve been so involved with work that I keep missing her events.”

He pinches the bridge of his nose and B stares. This is definitely none of B’s business and he has no idea what to say.

“Sorry, I don’t know why I’m venting to you. You should head home, it’s been a long night.”

Kotetsu opens the window for B and leans back on the wall.

“Who knows what kind of life you have outside of this, I’d hate to keep you any longer.”

B slides out of the window and only looks back once to check on Kotetsu as he swings through the streets on the way back to his lonely apartment. What a night.