strangetrip | [GP] training day

There was a trope that in prison there wasn't much to do except work out or read. As colorful as Madonna Inn might be, it was still a prison. And look, somebody had put together a library.

Put fifty some people, many of them military, adventurers, vigilantes, or superheroes of one stripe or another, in a prison with none of the urgent missions or near-death experiences they were used to, the fitness center was going to be a popular place. Maybe almost as popular as the bar.

... Probably not quite that popular.

There were free weights and weight machines, treadmills and ellipticals, yoga mats and exercise balls. A room set aside for classes, if someone decided to lead. A large square had been taped over an area of the floor off to one side as a make-shift sparring space. Sports equipment had been brought back from Bonesville for those who preferred more organized games. And those who had been stuck here longest remembered there hadn't always been a salmon ladder.

In other words, something for just about everybody. And you could usually find someone in there if you were looking for a spotter, workout buddy, sparring partner, friendly competition too.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"The Hand isn't a person. It's a group. An order of ninja assassins, including practitioners of dark magic, deeply integrated in organized crime. Trust me, you don't want to get involved with them if you can help it." Or you could be Maya, donning a completely different costumed persona to investigate them singlehandedly. To be fair, she'd thought she'd be able to call for backup more easily than reality turned out. She hadn't planned on the fight over registration turning everything upside down.

"Ninja assassins," Peter echoes, thinking how utterly cool magic assassins that are also practitioners of dark magic, deeply integrated in organized crime would be, if it were a movie and not actually Maya's reality. It was definitely the kind of movie he and Ned would watch. Probably even in theaters. But only during the matinee or at one of the theaters that gave student discounts.

"I'll be sure to watch out for them," Peter says, filing this information for later on. "Thanks for letting me know."

A beat, and then he asks: "Do you think that we'll meet in my timeline? That sometime we'll like--" Peter pauses there. "--be friends and stuff?"

Maya wasn't sure the Spider-Man in her world counted as a friend. Teammate, sure. If he wasn't actually a Skrull. She'd liked him okay, although they weren't as close as her and Clint or Logan. For all his chatter, he'd kept most of them at arm's length, from what she'd seen.

"Maybe. All this timeline craziness is, I don't know, not my area of expertise." It wasn't something she could learn simply by watching, and what she had picked up from Strange had mostly left her with more questions, and no time for answers. "But we're both here now. Maybe that's the better place to start a friendship."

Peter likes to think that someday, if he does ever get to go back, he'll meet all the other-versions of all the people who already know the other-him. Though it'd be really weird for him to try and act like he didn't know them. But considering all the weird things that happened to them, maybe they'd believe him. Just like he believed everyone here who told him they met another Peter Parker.

"So," Peter starts uncertainly. "Does that -- does that make us friends now?"

Friendships took time, or intense experiences the inn seemed to lack. Not that Maya was complaining about that. Yet. She could see how people got bored in time. And if she was honest with herself, which she tried to be, Maya wasn't always good at letting people close enough to be friends.

"It's a start." Direct. Honest. Not implying a closeness they hadn't built yet, nor suggesting it was impossible. It was the best answer Maya had for him now.

That answer doesn't seem to dampen Peter's enthusiasm in the least.

"Great!" he exclaims. "I should, uh--" Peter glances behind him. "--hit the showers." He's kind of gross right now, and he's pretty sure he smells and if he does, he really doesn't want to keep inflicting that on Maya. He had kinda a workout earlier.

He stands up, then wipes his hands on his shorts. "Think we can hang out again sometime?"

The inn is a lot bigger than Strange's sanctum, but it's not New York City. Or Queens. Or Hell's Kitchen. "We're stuck here with fifty other people and no way out. We'll see each other again. Talk to you later, Peter."

"See you later, Maya!" Peter says with a wave as he walks away. "And good luck with your training!"

[GP] training day

Re: Peter & Maya

Re: Peter & Maya

Re: Peter & Maya

Re: Peter & Maya

Re: Peter & Maya

Re: Peter & Maya

Re: Peter & Maya

Re: Peter & Maya