Archive of Our Own

When Wade originally said yes to joining Spidey on a mission taking down a group of drug traders at ass crack o'clock on a random Thursday night this is not how he expected his night to go.

He had expected the guns, because every group selling drugs did so with guns on hand. The idiots.

He had expected the screaming and fighting. “Oh no, don't take our drugs Mr Deadpool, you're so scary!!” “Please don't kill me Mr Deadpool I'll be good I promise!”

He'd even expected getting told off by Spidey himself. But he was just so pretty standing over beat up thugs with his hands on his hips lecturing Wade about his use of 'gratuitous' violence… again.

“...honestly Pool, you know these guys aren't worth it, they're just low level dealers! I know you know how to not kill people, don't even pretend! The cops are gunna get pissy at me again and it's not even me doing it! I didn't kill any of these idiots so why do I have to deal with the cops for you! Plus, I'd already called them before I saw this mess, so I can't even hold them off until you clear out- and you really shouldn't…”

What Wade hadn't expected was for Spidey to stop mid-lecture and cock (hah) his head to the side at an unnatural tilt. The smaller man stood stock still for a moment before his whole body twitched like someone walked over his grave. And then he had just booked it!

He turned away from Wade without even saying anything and bolted for one of the many shipping containers at the back of the dingy warehouse they were in. Wade almost, almost, didn’t bother following. Mainly because one of the goons had started groaning which, really? Poor choice on their part.

He took a moment to knock the guy back out with a quick whack over the head (hopefully the brain damage doesn't make this dude any dumber… then again he was a drug runner so he probably wasn't very smart to begin with), and then casually followed the spider further into the darkness.

For a second he thought Spidey might have ditched him. Crawled out a back window or something. But then, he heard a low clicking noise and the sound of shuffling feet off to his left.

Turning on a flashlight, Wade only had to take four steps until he could see Spider-Man again. The spandexed hero (“I’m a vigilante at best Wade, please”) was stalking back and forth in front of one of the shipping containers, clearly agitated. His hands clenched on and off, and he kept rolling his shoulders. The clicking noise stopped briefly when Spidey looked back at him, but continued when Wade was clearly discounted as a threat.

“What's the matter Webs?” Wade carefully edged closer. Last time the spider themed man acted like this was when Wade had jokingly stole his food. He'd ended up with puncture marks in his leather glove and stinging skin after that, pins and needles going up his arm for a good hour. Spidey had sheepishly shown Wade an adorable set of fangs, carefully hidden behind normal teeth, which dripped venom. He'd apologised and explained that sometimes his instincts got the better of him. Wade just laughed him off (and carefully hid the glove in a safe place when he got home).

“Need to get in,” was the immediate reply. “Need to get in now, Wade.”

Wade didn't bother questioning why he needed in (or why he didn't do so himself) just nodded and got to work. Breaking the flimsy lock off was easy. Opening the doors was a little harder, but only because Spidey was standing right there waiting to get in. Wade hauled the door open, pausing as the spider squeezed in the second the door was wide enough, leaving him to continue shouldering the door open so he could enter himself. He froze before he could take a step in.

Wade had assumed (“never assume Pool, it makes an ass out of you and me”) that it was probably food again. He was hopefully (almost definitely) wrong.

Children.

There were five tiny, shaking, children.

Children that Spidey was currently running soothing hands over, clicking noise back with a vengeance.

Wade knelt down at the entrance, shrinking his frame. He knew his size was off putting sometimes, and the kids looked scared enough.

They looked like they ranged from about four years old to about fifteen. Four of the five had obvious mutations.

The youngest, or at least smallest of the lot, had two tiny horns growing out of her forehead. Paired with a mane of fluffy hair crowning her head.

Two of them were holding onto each other tightly, around seven or eight years old by size. One was just sideways of normal, skin unusually light and nearly bright white, especially next to the other child they clung to, who was almost like a living shadow compared to the first's stark appearance. The latter seems to vanish into the darkness, black in the most literal sense. They both had fully white and black eyes respectively. He couldn't tell what gender they were, but if they weren't twins he'd eat his Bea Auther poster.

The fourth kid looked normal, if a little older than the twins, reaching out to Spidey with a look of awe in his bright blue eyes (yeah me too, kid).

The last girl was the oldest, maybe in her mid teens, with large leathery wings sprouting from her back. She seemed the most ragged of the group, clothing dirty and ripped, dried blood flaking off the clawed tips of her wings and fingers. She watched him with large intelligent eyes, holding the youngest girl against her gently. Wade felt like he was being assessed by her wide-eyed gaze.

None of the kids made a noise. Only Spidey, still fussing over them gently, continued to click absently. Wade crept a little closer and set the flashlight down facing a wall so that the container was illuminated, light bouncing off the dim metal so they could all properly see. Then he turned to sit facing the entrance, putting his back to the kids, and pulled out his phone.

“Hey, Woolvie how you doing? Yeah, yeah, I know, I know. Listen, I've got an issue here. Yes, an actual one! Will you- oi! Logan, I'm serious. Spidey and I found a group of mutant kids with a group of traffickers. Figured that's something your merry band of boy scouts deal with, right? Or should I call the Avengers? No? Didn't think so. We're at the third warehouse district near the edge of Queens. Aight, make it quick would ya? I don't wanna be here babysitting all night. Thanks, pookie!”

Wade shut the call off before Logan could actually respond, laughing as he did. They'd show up soon, he was sure. Always did when young mutants were involved.

Wade turned slightly to look back at Spidey and the kids, then turned fully so that he could get a better look at the sheer weirdness happening behind him.

Spider-Man, love of his life, bane of evildoers (and most cops) everywhere, web-slinging menace, had - in the brief time his phone conversation took - created a nest of webs in the corner of the container and herded the kids into it. He had them all neatly contained, reaching to touch them all softly, a weird vibrating purr emanating from his chest.

The older girl was looking weirdly resigned to the treatment, using her large wings to wrap around the twins like a cloak at her side. She'd handed the sleeping toddler to Spidey, who had her wrapped in a web carrier across his chest. The young boy was smiling happily up at Spidey, holding onto the man's arm and whispering to him excitedly.

“Hey Webs, I called the X-squad. They'll be here soon okay?” Spider-Man looked at him but didn't respond. “Imma go make sure the cops grab all those guys we beat up. Maybe grab the kids some food and water.”

He got a head tilt and weird chittering noise in response, but whatever. He left the flashlight but closed the door slightly as he left to maintain some semblance of security and privacy, and headed back to the pile of drug (and apparently child) traffickers (Spidey was gunna be so pissed he hadn't been more aggressive with them later) just in time for the first cops to start sliding into the joint.

They clearly hadn't been expecting him to be there alone. Normally, Spidey ran point with the police. Not that he liked them, he was just less likely to shoot them when they got all self-righteous and annoying than Deadpool was. For various reasons (and not just because he didn't often have a gun to shoot them with).

Two of the officers froze at the sight of him but the third kept walking calmly. Wade vaguely recognised her, he thought she usually worked the beat in Daredevil's part of town. It was probably why she was less freaked by him.

“Deadpool,” she nodded and offered her hand to him. “Detective Diaz, thanks for taking care of these guys.”

He shook her hand happily, accidentally leaving a stain of red from the blood on his gloves.

“Ain't you normally over in the kitchen?”

“Lost a bet, promised I'd trade shifts with a friend in another precinct so that he could try meet Daredevil. He's gunna be pissed I met you on his shift,” she laughed meanly.

“Oh My Gee! That's so funny!” He bounced around until he stood next to her, red mask next to black hair. “Quick, quick take a selfie! So you can boast to him!”

His larger frame and red suit looked a little comical next to Diaz, but she easily took the photo before sending it to a “JP” in her contacts with a simple sunglasses emoji.

“Um, excuse me, Deadpool, sir?” A uniformed officer cautiously spoke up behind him.

“Yeah, kid?”

“Are these just uh- drug runners? That's what Spider-Man said on the call?”

“Oh right! Actually they might be human traffickers too!” He clapped loudly and pointed at the officer, who flinched at the action. “We found a container of kids round back! Mutants too! Don't worry I already called the X-Men so they'll be here to pick up the kiddies soon.”

“Ah, um… o-okay?” The rookie looked at Diaz as if checking that's okay. Dude looks like he's one loud noise away from pissing his pants!

Diaz just nodded at the kid before looking back at Wade. “So Deadpool, Spider-Man's still here then? Care to introduce us?”

“Hah! Why not! These guys can clean-up here!”

He lead her, and one other brave officer, back towards Spidey and the kids (after taking a moment to pester a few officers, couldn’t have anyone say he was getting friendly with the cops). Wade knocked on the container to signal his return before sticking his head inside.

And staying there.

For a while.

Diaz and the officer exchanged looks. All they could see was the back of Deadpool's head and some light slipping from the crack of the doors. There was a slight hissing sound coming from inside the container, and the quiet murmur of a child's voice.

Suddenly Deadpool pulled back and turned towards them. He looked like he was smiling through the mask but he didn't sound particularly happy.

“Welp! Spidey has made a big 'ol web in there and the kiddos are now his spider-lings I think! So no introductions today sadly! I'm not entirely sure what kind of spider he is but I have a feeling regular humans should not get close right now!” He starts shooing them back the direction they came from. “You guys are just gunna have to wait out there! Send the X-Men back this way when they get here though, okay? Great!”

And with that he swiftly turned around.

When he stepped back into the container Wade took a deep breath. Okay Wilson, keep it together for Spidey. And the kids. But mainly Spidey.

… that should not be hot… keep it together!

What that was, was a massive web at the back of the container. Spidey had pulled the bottom of his mask up and his fangs were out in a way Wade hadn't seen before. He had been hissing when the cops were outside but had calmed down with just Wade and the kids.

Said kids were fine, if a little squished under the human sized bug. Wade watched as he moved from his protective position basically on top of the kids, clearly deciding Wade was acceptable (as if that doesn't make his heart do all kinds of funny things).

“Mr Deadpool?” The little boy, currently holding the toddler that Spidey had removed from his chest (probably when he went into his defensive position earlier), called softly.

“Hey kiddo, just call me Pool! No need for Mr that just makes me feel old,” he pulled an exaggerated face through the mask. “Yuck!”

The twins giggled at his antics and the boy laughed so Wade put that down as a win for him. It didn't last long sadly.

“I-I'm really sorry about this… I- d-didn't mean to do it, I promise!” the kid looked really guilty, glancing from Wade to Spidey up above them.

“Nah, don't worry about it kiddo. I'm not mad, and I promise Spidey isn't either. He might not be all that talkative right now, but I'm sure he'll tell you that he's just fine later.”

“B-But-”

“Eehhh!” Wade made a buzzer sound and crossed his arms dramatically. “No buts here! I am the supreme spider whisperer! I hold all the answers! No little kid is gunna take my title!”

The twins giggled more at his antics and even the teen rolled her eyes good naturedly at him. The kid still seemed unsure but had calmed back down again.

“Now then! My name is Wade, and that there is Spidey! What are your names?” (said spider was tilting his head a lot as he focused on all the noises happening at the front of the warehouse, but he'd started clicking again so Wade figured they were good for the moment.)

“I'm Theo, and this is Lilith, but we call her Lily.” The boy, Theo, nodded towards the toddler in his arms.

“I'm Fumi!” “I'm Kami!” The twins called. He wasn't not sure which said which… hopefully, he could just… not deal with that later.

The teen looked at him for a long moment before answering, “Paula.”

He nodded at her gently. Clearly she had been taking care of the kids for however long those pieces of shit had them. He could make out cuts and scrapes on all of them, but the brunt appeared to be on her. Clearly, Spidey had tried to bandage the worst of it though, wounds wrapped in webs as they were.

“Well, it's great to meet you all. Do you want some food? I stole some snack bars I found!” (From one of the cops— who willingly handed them over when told it was for kids— but saying he stole them was cooler.)

He edged closer to the nest, hands low with the food visible, but despite his worries Spidey didn't acknowledge his coming closer. He was able to step into the outer rim of the nest and pass the food to Paula, who carefully opened each bar, awkwardly adjusting to account for her small talons, before passing it along to one of the kids. She held onto Lilith’s and tore bite size pieces off to feed her with.

Wade took the opportunity to look at each kid a little closer.

He theorised that Paula had some sort of bat mutation. Her wings were big and leathery, but her hands were also slightly pawed with small talons for nails, and her ears looked quite different than a standard human ear from what he could see of them peeking out of her matted hair. Her nose was slightly upturned and her eyes were larger, almost all pupil, with only the slightest ring of colour around them. She didn't touch her bar, and he wanted to ask if she needed something else but didn't push it just yet. Maybe she just wasn't hungry. Once Logan and the rest of his team got them out of here, he was sure they would all be fed much better food than granola bars anyway.

Lilith, when she opened her mouth to eat the food Paula was offering her, had a full set of blunted teeth. Not anything majorly different to any other child, but clearly Paula was wary of them, cause she was quick to move her fingers out of their way. The kid's eyes were an interesting yellow colour, with rectangular pupils, and the little horns at her forehead looked like they were only just starting to grow (or maybe they would stay as nubs— Wade could only guess).

Theo didn't look like he had any visual mutation. Just a normal kid holding a less normal toddler. But he must have had an invisible mutation for him to be here with the others. Not that Wade was gunna ask about it.

The twins, Fumi and Kami, ate their bars happily. He really wasn't sure which was which but they were both skinny, with long hair that kept falling in their faces.

Wade looked up at Spidey, who was now adjusting and adding to his web at the top of the container. The man still had his mask up, fang on display which was… distracting.

Bad Deadpool! Focus!

Wade patted his pockets and ‘aha!’d loudly when he found what he was looking for.

“Fumi, Kami! Would you like me to put your hair up?” he held two hair ties up for the kids to see. He was fairly sure they were Domino's… or maybe not… whoever they'd belonged to— they were his now and he was gunna use them for the kids! (And if they had been Domino's… she had probably found more by now anyway.)

Both immediately moved towards him, jostling Paula in their haste to move out from under her wings.

“I want a braid!” “I want a ponytail!” They jumped in front of him, bouncing in the webs but not sticking to them (did Spidey always have different web types? He only used an adhesive one on patrol but this clearly wasn't that).

“Alright, alright! We'll do the ponytail first, kiddos. Sit with uncle Wade and I'll sort you out,” the pale twin sat down in front of him, facing their dark counterpart. Spidey dropped down behind him, settling down and pressing their backs together. Being a weak man, Wade leaned back into the spiderling, “Watching the door? Thanks, baby boy!”

It only took him a moment to pull the kids' hair up and out of their face. A ponytail was easy to do, even if the kid was too excited to actually sit still for it. He noticed they had pointed ears under the hair, and this close he could see that this twin had white freckles that appeared to nearly glow on their already pale as snow skin. They were also warmer to the touch than a regular human. He gave their head a pat when he finished, and they jumped up to show Paula their new hair.

“It looks great Fumi,” the girl smiled as her neatly restrained, if slightly grubby, silver-white hair was shown off happily.

Kami, as their name must be if the other one was Fumi, took their twins place in front of Wade. They didn't bounce as much but they still wiggled in place as Wade started separating their hair into three. It was harder to braid with his gloves on but he didn't want to freak the kids out with his skin, especially when he knew it was a bad day. (He could feel it shifting and moving, cancer forming and bursting over his body again and again, the topography of his skin constantly changing shape under the leather of his suit.)

Like their sibling, Kami had pointed ears hiding under their hair and black holes as freckles hidden in the depths of their skin. Unlike their twin though they were unnaturally cold to touch. His fingers started to ache the longer his hands worked, chronic pain and cold never went well together, but he pushed through it to do their hair the way they had asked.

The container was comfortably quiet as he worked. He could hear Paula and Theo talking softly while feeding Lilith, and Fumi and Kami also whispered and giggled in front of him while he finished the braid. Spidey was a comforting weight at his back, the vibration of a rumbling purr, interspersed with the clicking from before, made his whole body tingle happily.

He tied off the braid and patted Kami's hair like he had Fumi but made no move to get up. He just lent more solidly against the warmth at his back while he observed the kids.

It was probably weird but this was the most relaxed he’d been in weeks, if not months. The closest he usually got to the other man was when they got food on the rooftops after patrol, sharing banter and body heat while watching over the streets of New York. And even then there was always this tension. Lately, it had been getting worse.

He didn't know who Spidey was. Sure he could find out easily enough (he was a mercenary for christ's sake) but he respected Spidey too much to betray him like that. He wanted to be closer, to be more, and sometimes it seemed like maybe Spidey wanted that too. But then the younger man would pull away, slide away from Wade and hide behind being Spider-Man.

Wade felt like the two of them were walking a tightrope of sorts. Just waiting to tip one way or the other. He wasn't sure he'd survive the fall like Spidey surely would. (Or, well— he would, but it would involve his body painfully stitching every cell back together and even then, he wasn't sure he could heal a broken heart.)

So this? Working so closely, trusting each other explicitly while taking care of these kids? Even if Webs was clearly working through something, it was still the most real (if not exactly present) Wade had seen him in weeks. Before they'd found the kids, Wade had fully expected the spandexed hero to send him off after his standard “stop killing the criminals” lecture. To not see the other again for another night or two for their regular patrol and rooftop dinner meeting.

Instead he got more time with Spidey, and a group of cute, if definitely traumatised kids, with the heat and pressure of Spidey at his back, taking watch and guarding them all like the protector he was.

God, Wade loved this man.

If only he could find the actions or words to prove it to Spidey himself.

GRRRRRRRRR

Wade was jolted out of his peaceful thoughts by the sound and feeling of Spidey suddenly growling against him. The vibrations rumbled through the other man and straight to Wade's chest. The kids all skittered back into the nest of webs, Paula wrapping her wings around them all, spooked by the noise.

Wade turned, standing and reaching a hand to grip Spider-Man's shoulder in a steadying way (steadying for who? Did it matter?). The other man had his head cocked towards the entrance of their container, rolling growls and sharp clicks leaving him as venom started dripping from his fangs. His body pressed into Wade's hand and he turned just enough to be an acknowledgement.

“I'll go check it out, baby boy. You keep an eye on the kiddos, yeah?”

He could feel Spidey tense under his hand before he nodded sharply. Another agitated click left him as he twisted and grabbed Wade's arm. Wade let himself be pulled down, didn't fight against it. Not out of fear of hurting Spider-Man or anything. He just didn't want to lose his arm cause the other forgot to pull back his strength or something.

He knelt down, bringing them mask to slightly upturned mask. Suddenly breathing was a lot harder than a second ago as Webs rubbed their faces together!!! What!

He's like a giant kitten! A giant, venomous, kitten!

Wade could feel the hot venom from Spider-Man's fangs soaking into the leather of his suit, could feel the warmth of his breath as he nuzzled under his chin.

This went on for a good minute before the spider pulled away, apparently satisfied with himself. Wade sat on his heels trying to breath through the sudden rush of endorphins he'd experienced. Spidey, having no pity for the man he'd just destroyed, calmly stalked back to the nest of children, clicking at Wade as he went.

Giggles suddenly broke through the fog of Wade's mind. The children were laughing at him! At his misfortune! How dare they!

He turned and pointed a dramatic finger at them, “Don't laugh at me, kiddos! I'll tell you now, when you get to be my age you-”

Loud angry clicking came from the top of the nest and Wade quickly turned and started heading out the container.

“Yes, dear. Sorry, dear. Anything you say, dear,” he huffed jokingly, causing another round of giggles.

He smiled as he stepped out, making sure to mostly close the opening behind him. None of the cops were nearby but he could hear voices coming from the front of the warehouse so headed that way.

Evidently, the cops had cleared away the thugs in however long he'd been gone because there weren't any bodies lying on the floor anymore, just the puddles of blood marking where they had been. Instead, Deadpool walked out to four casually dressed, no yellow jumpsuits damn, X-Men talking to the same rookie he'd stolen food from earlier.

“Well, if it isn't the merry band of goody two shoes! No professor this time? Too late for the old man to wheel down?” Wade teased as he made his way over.

Logan huffed at him, clearly deciding that ignoring Deadpool would be the best bet tonight. Luckily his current team mates were… not exactly kinder, but not entirely Deadpool adverse, at least.

Cyclops, eyes hidden behind his stupid sunglasses (you know who wears glasses at night? Blind people. And douche-bags!), looked at Wade with tired resignation. “We were on the way back to the mansion when you called, you dick. No point going home just to fucking leave again.”

“Had time to change on the way though?”

“We keep spares on the plane you fucking-!!”

“Ignore them Deadpool, it's been a long day. You said there are children?” Storm side-eyed her male companions before turning to Wade directly.

“Yep! Five of em. Spidey's keepin' an eye on them. He's a real ‘other mother’.”

“Do you mean mother hen?” Rouge piped up, looking at the others in confusion.

“Do I?” Wade tapped his chin exaggeratedly. Then he turned and walked back the way he came without saying anything more.

He could hear Logan and… Scott (! He knew he remembered his name! Such a lame white guy name it was impossible to forget) grumbling in annoyance as they all followed behind him. Rouge was asking Storm if the other woman had any clue what his problem was. As if she would know why Wade was the way he was. Ha! Even Wade wasn't sure why he was the way he was!

They made it back to the container quickly and Wade opened the door enough to fit his body through again. He didn't like the scene he walked into and the others followed before he could tell them not to.

The kids were huddled to the back of the container still, Spidey clicking aggressively in front of them. He had dropped into a defensive position, low to the ground with long limbs stretched out, joints twisted in ways that would surely be impossible for anyone else. It almost looked like he had more joints than a regular human…

Rogue squeaked behind him, a shocked noise that caused Spideys head to cock as he locked on her. Logan swore under his breath, looking between the kids and Spider-Man with aggressive concern.

“Spider-Man? My name is Storm, or Ororo, I don't believe we've met. This is Rogue, or Anna, and Cyclops, or Scott. And you already know Logan, yes? Through Deadpool, I believe. We have come to take the children back to professor Xavier's,” she spoke in a calm tone, hands low and open as she walked to just behind Wade's shoulder.

Wade put a hand out when Scott went to walk past his other side. “I wouldn't do that. He's not listening to your words at all right now. He's all instinct. Too spidery, ya know?”

“The fu- frick is that meant to mean ‘Pool?” the man spat.

Wade couldn't explain to them. They only knew of Spidey and his whole ‘friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man' shtick. This Spidey wasn’t that. This was all instinct, no real rational thought behind him. Wade could tell though. Had seen it happen a few times when there was just a little too much happening and Spidey just. Shut off his human side and gave in to the spidery instinct inside of him. Only a rare, few times. And usually only for a moment, there and gone, but still often enough to know that the man wouldn't pull his punches properly if they agitated him right now. And if that happened only Wade and maybe Woolvie would be walking out.

“U-um,” Theo wiggled out from under Paula's wing where he and the others had been observing quietly. “That m-might be my f-fault? I'm r-r-really sorry! But animals really like m-me! And I've never had a p-person react the same way before! Like Paula is fine? E-even though she's kinda bat? And I knew a girl with a f-frog mutation and she never reacted? But maybe that's why Mr Spider-Man is being more? S-spidery? Right Mr Pool?”

“Kiddo what'd I say about the ‘Mr’,” Wade huffed and shook his head in joke disappointment, causing the kid to giggle wetly. He had been almost crying as he spoke, stuttering over his words, clearly worried for the hero and upset about what was happening. “Don't worry about Spidey, he's just a lot more spider than most people. We'll get everything sorted, don't worry your pretty little head.”

Wade had to admit it made sense though. While he didn't know exactly what Spider-Man’s mutation was, Wade did know it wasn't a mutation like the people behind and in front of him. He knew enough vague details to know that Webs was closer to him, an experiment, or an accident with something sinister. Whatever it was, it was enough that the kid's mutation (he had totally called Theo having an invisible one to be here with the others… maybe he shouldn’t have cut the kid off earlier, huh) had influenced him strongly.

Which would be more manageable without the X-Men here but also— not at all, cause then he'd just have five kids and an instinct driven Spidey to raise them with.

Alright time for a game plan.

“Kiddos, you all sit tight for a minute yeah? The grown ups are gunna step out for a second a'ight?” He got various nods in agreement. He backed up, forcing the others out behind him without turning his back on the spider in front of them.

He closed the door most of the way before turning to the others.

“Again, what the fuck Deadpool!?” Scott spat in his face.

“Calm your tits one eyed wonder. I’ve got a plan, don't stress… y’all wouldn’t happen to have any anti-mutant bracelets on ya?” it wasn’t his first plan but it would be easier to just… turn off the kids mutation and hope Spidey dropped back to normal than what the other option was.

“Not currently, sorry! We broke the last one on the plane yesterday and someone forgot to get a replacement,” Ororo glared at Logan as she said it, who didn’t even bother to look apologetic.

“Welp, that’s a shame but we’ll just have to make do!” Wade pointed dramatically at Logan. “How do you feel about wrestling a spider? Doesn’t matter, it's our only option, so you get to help me do it!”

Logan didn’t bother responding, just grunting and started rolling his shoulders to loosen up. The man bared his teeth and huffed before taking the jacket he was wearing off, clearly deciding it wouldn't help his movement any to keep it on.

“Why Logan specifically? We could all help?” Rogue asked while picking up the jacket Logan had discarded.

“Well as lovely as you all are, you ain’t indestructible. Spidey might be smaller than me but he packs a mean punch and a meaner bite,” Wade put his hands up to his mouth and mimed fangs at the group. “I recon we’ll need the healing factors of good ol’ Woolvie and I if we wanna do this without someone dying. Especially when we can't count on him to pull his punches like he normally does.”

“And the plan is…?” Storm looked pensive as she waited for an answer.

“Grab Spidey, hold him still for long enough that you can get the kids far enough away so he’s no longer all-Spider less-Man!”

“I had a feeling it was something like that…” she didn’t seem all that confident. Rude. Wade’s idea was awesome and would definitely work no problem!

Logan squared his shoulders and nodded to Wade, “Let’s get it over with.”

“Okay, you guys wait out here for my signal. He’ll let me get closer without you in there.”

Wade didn’t wait for a response, just turned and opened the door again, walking in calmly. Webs had stayed in front of the kids but relaxed his position slightly. The clicking was back, though more in anticipation than anything it seemed. Wade made his way over to him steadily, not giving the spider any indication something was up.

“Hey kiddos, I’m gunna grab Webs here and then you guys are gunna head out with the X-Men yeah? They’ll get you guys taken care of up at their fancy mansion place no problem. And then Spidey and I will come visit you all! Sound good?” he looked at the kids where they were still huddled in their corner, talking to them as he finally reached Spidey and crouched to be level with the man.

Paula nodded at him, and grabbed the twins securely. Theo had hold of Lily, still wrapped in her web cradle. The young boy had red rimmed eyes, clearly having cried at least a little, but he gave a determined nod and held Lily tightly to his little chest.

“You promise he’s okay? And you’ll both come visit right?” Theo’s voice was shaky but strong.

“Yeah kiddo, I promise. He’s gunna feel real silly when he’s back to normal but he’ll 100% wanna come see you guys and make sure you’re okay.” Wade used the distraction of the kids talking to wrap Spidey up in a weird almost hug, pulling the man off balance a little and getting ready to trap him. Wade was surprised that the other man didn’t fight him at all, in fact the spider almost seemed to settle against him instead.

Spidey stayed relaxed in his hold right up until the kids started moving past them both. The smaller man jerked in Wade's hold, though he didn't try to break free right away. He twisted his head to watch the kids, fangs clicking agitatedly as he twitched back and forth. The kids were about half-way to the door was when Spidey apparently had enough. He started actually trying to escape, not understanding why Wade wouldn't let him go after the kids.

"Woolvie, now would be a good time to come help me out!" Wade yelled as he struggled to keep the mutant in his grip away from the other smaller ones leaving.

Wade heard the door opening fully, and assumedly Wolverine coming into the space as Spider-Man's clicking escalated into full blown growls. Wade could hear Ororo and Rouge soothing the kids as they left, with the noises quickly getting quieter as they hurried to their ship. Spidey only increased his efforts the further the kids got.

Wade grunted with effort, trying to see what was taking his X-Man helper so long. "Logan, are you even-"

"Oh, calm down, bub, I know just what to do," Wade did not trust the laughter he could hear in the other mans voice, not at all, not one tiny bit.

And he was right not to.

Because the next minute Wade was knocked onto his front, which meant Spidey was knocked to his back on the floor of the container, trapped under Wade's heavier bulk (Wade had definitely not had dreams about similar scenarios no sir-ee). The smaller man struggled but seemed to be settling down, did the effect of Theo's mutation wear off that quickly or was it something else?

Then Wolverine decided to put his stupid claws to use, slicing against Wade's mask around the neck, causing skin and blood to break free.

Everything- everyone- froze for a second. Even Spidey stopped his wriggling under Wade.

Wade couldn't believe this! The audacity! You think you know someone and then they try to bleed you out in the middle of a suspicious warehouse! What the fuck Logan!

Actually that needs to be an outside thought not an inside one!

"WHAT TH-"

Wade didn't even get two words out before his mouth snapped closed. Not because he didn't want to finish the question. More because it was hard to keep yelling at someone when there was a pair of fangs in your throat.

And there was. A pair of fangs. In his fucking throat. Was this a kink? Was he into it? Who was he kidding he was definitely into it. Jesus Christ on a bike he was going to be thinking about this shit for years.

"My work here is done. Have fun chuckle-fucks. Don't call me again Wade."

Logan walked out, or at least Wade assumed he did. Honestly he was trying to not pass out due to the joy he was feeling. Or maybe it was the venom being injected into his blood stream.

…it was probably the venom. He couldn't feel his arms… or legs… this was probably fine.

They stayed on the floor of the container for some unknown amount of time. Spidey could have definitely pushed Wade off him if he wanted to, the man may have been smaller but he was not weaker, and Wade was very aware of that fact. But he seemed happy under the weight of Wades body, eventually pulling his fangs free and instead just nuzzling at the quickly healed patch of skin that was now uncovered. Happy purrs and rumbling sounds coming from the smaller man.

Wade thought there could be no way Spidey was actually enjoying the feel of his skin. It hadn't gotten any better than the start of the day, after hours in the leather suit. While Wade couldn't exactly feel his skin moving due to the venom still making its way through his system, and wasn't that a treat, he knew it would be pulsating and changing rapidly as his cancer attacked and died again and again. And Spider-Man, Spidey, his baby boy, was just casually nuzzling against it with his own exposed skin, soft and smooth compared to the rough topography of Wades skin, like it was nothing. Wade kind of wanted to cry.

Instead he lay still even as time passed and he could finally feel all his limbs, and skin, again. He was dedicated to memorising the feeling of Spidey's skin against his own, sure it would never happen again.

Eventually the rumbling purr under him stuttered to a stop, and Wade took a breath before levering his body up slightly so he could look down at Spidey. The other man was facing away from Wade, towards one of the container walls. He'd taken the opportunity Wade's moving had given him to pull his arms up, fiddling with his fingers slightly, but to Wade's surprise he didn't make any move to pull his mask down.

"Um…" Wade's voice sounded rough to his ears, so he cleared his throat with a slight cough. "How are you feeling?"

Spidey flinched a little, the movement obvious where Wade was still touching him, but still didn't look at Wade or respond at all.

Wade sighed, and mentally mourned the loss of ever being allowed to touch his baby boy ever again, before shifting his weight again with the intention of rolling off of Spidey. He only got maybe an inch away from the man before a strong, latex-clad hand whipped out, grabbing onto the front of Wade's suit and tugging slightly.

Wade went back to hovering over Spidey but refused to drop down fully. The other man felt his reluctance and didn't force the issue, but kept his hand on Wade's suit all the same. Spidey looked away for a moment longer before taking a deep breath, his fangs retracting back into his mouth, leaving it more exposed than Wade usually saw unless food was involved.

Wade watched as Spidey finally turned his head to face him, masked eyes locking on his own. The other man smiled sheepishly and Wade almost blue-screened at the sight.

"Hey," Wade watched in awe as red spread over what little of Spidey's cheeks he could see, barely listening to the words he was saying. "Sorry about the whole… everything. The biting especially…"

"Baby boy, you can bite me any time, and not just cause your venom numbed my skin," was out of Wade's mouth before he really had a chance to think about it.

The red got a little darker, almost blending with the edges of the upturned mask, and Wade couldn't stop the coo that automatically came out of him.

Spidey hunched in on himself a little, accidentally pulling Wade closer by the hand he still had attached to the larger man. Wade slipped at the sudden movement, collapsing his full weight onto the spider before he had a chance to brace. Suddenly they were mask to mask again, a weird parody of the way they had been earlier. But now there were no kids around, Spidey had his head back, and they were much closer than last time.

Wade fully expected to be thrown off, even if Spidey was the one who had put him there. Instead he watched as the other man just tilted his head a little, as if considering something, before the hand not attached to the front of his suit reached up and wrapped around his neck in a half hug, holding him in place.

"Listen Wade-" Wade was doing nothing but listening but go on "-we've known each other a while and… I trust you. I know I wasn't really myself earlier but I still remember it all and I wouldn't have wanted anyone else around for that. No one else could have helped me like you did— could have helped those kids like you did. I wouldn't have trusted anyone else when I'm like that."

Spidey took a deep breath, steadying himself, before the hand on Wades chest moved. Before Wade could move away in response, the arm around his neck adjusted so that hand was on the back of his head, considerable strength holding him still. The other hand continued until it was holding onto the edge of Spidey's mask, fiddling with the line of it against his skin.

"So, I've wanted to do this for a while but I- I'm a little bit of a coward and so I've put it off but-" Spidey huffed a self-deprecating laugh. "I don't want to push you away Wade. You're so good, and you try so hard, and you care so much and sometimes I feel like I don't deserve you but-"

"Baby boy, I'm sorry but what the fuck are you talking about? You are literally the only reason I am even half as decent as you seem to think I am. If anyone here doesn't deserve the other it's me, ask literally anyone and they'll agree!" Wade knew it was rude but he just couldn't not interrupt.

The fingers against his head twitched, and Wade could feel his mask pull slightly when they stayed connected with whatever weird spider power the other had active.

"Wade shut up for a minute and let me finish would you?"

"Yes, dear, sorry, dear," was his immediate response, parroting his earlier words and earning him a bright bark of laughter. Spidey took a moment to stare at Wade again, gathering his thoughts, before he sighed and pulled at his mask slightly.

"Okay, fuck it. I'm just gunna-" and then Wade really did blue-screen because.

That was a face. That was Spidey's face. He was looking at Spidey. Without a mask. Spidey had taken off his mask and holy shit his eyes are so brown and his hair is curly and fuck Wade say something you dick-head oh my fucking god.

"Oh my fucking god. Wait, no, I mean— curly and— wait, shit-- I, um…" Wade let his voice trail off as Spidey laughed at him, big brown eyes crinkling in joy as he did, body shaking against Wades.

"Hi," Wade said softly as the laughter calmed down. "I'm Wade Wilson, or Deadpool. What's your name gorgeous?"

"Hi, Wade," Spidey smiled up at him in amusement for the obvious ploy. "I'm Peter Parker, or Spider-Man. Nice to meet you."

"Peter, Petey, Peter-roo, Pete-sker," Peter laughed with each name Wade muttered. "Can I take you out for dinner, Petey?"

"You can take me out for dinner, Wade," Peter, Peter, leaned up and pressed a kiss to Wade's mask, right were the others lips were hidden behind the red leather. "But I'd rather you take me home."

///

"And you're sure we're allowed to be here right? You actually called ahead and asked? We're not just showing up are we?" Spider-Man, Peter, played with his fingers from his spot at Wades side before shaking them out.

"Petey-pie, when have I ever lied to you?"

"Literally this morning Wade. You told me you had milk. It was curdled."

"That's still milk!" Wade laughed as Peter punched his arm. "Anyway, we're here!"

'Here' was the X-Men mansion (featuring more than two X-Men for once! Gasp!) where they had definitely (not) been invited.

Spider-Man probably would have been. Deadpool definitely would not have been. Therefore, Wade just didn't ask.

Both of them were in full costume ("No Wade I'm not going maskless just because you know what I look like! I still have a secret identity!") and they attracted plenty of attention as they got out of the cab Wade had called them (it had taken three different cabs before they found someone who would agree to drive them to the X-Men mansion, this dude was getting a major tip. He also had like twenty selfies to show his kids when he got home). A few of the kids near the front of the house came over to talk to Spidey, while one of the older kids went inside.

A few minutes (and a lot of spider related questions later) the kid came back with Ororo, Beast, and Professor Xavier. Ororo walked out to greet them, using a gust of wind to shoo the kids away and back to their classes.

"Spider-Man, Deadpool. To what do we owe the unexpected pleasure?" She smiled at Peter though he was busy punching Wade again.

"Liar! I knew you didn't call them!"

Wade laughed and held his hands up in peace. "Sorry, baby boy! Sorry! But look! Another animal type! Maybe y'all are related!"

"Wade! That is so rude! What is wrong with you!" Peter slapped a hand over Wade's mask as soon as he said it. "No, don't even try to answer that, you walking tumour."

Wade made stupid noises under the mask just to tease but didn't try to free himself, knowing the hand would be stuck until Peter decided differently.

"I am so sorry about him, Mrs Storm, Mr McCoy, Professor," he rubbed the back of his head with his free hand and smiled through the mask. "I swear he's better trained than this normally. It's just been a long car ride."

"Well I certainly hope you're both here to visit the children you found last month. Young Theo has been quite upset about the whole ordeal, and the twins were very insistent that Deadpool fix their hair again," was the Professors only comment as he casually turned back around and started wheeling himself into the house.

Peter looked at Beast and Storm but they just smiled and made to follow Xavier inside. Peter grabbed Wade's arm and dragged him along beside the spider.

"All of the kids are adjusting well of course. We reached out to their parents, though we are still trying to find out where the twins came from. The information you sent us about the men who had them was very useful," Beast, Hank McCoy, explained mostly to Peter (Wade was listening he just pretended not to) as they walked. "All five of them are staying here until we are sure the traffickers are fully taken care of. We don't want to risk them getting nabbed again."

Peter nodded, glad his mask hid his expression. Truthfully he was annoyed that they hadn't found more about the ring the kids were from. Deadpool, Daredevil, and himself had spent some time in… less than favourable places with even less favourable people getting information. It had been good team bonding (and stress release for Peter especially) but not very helpful in way of finding the people responsible.

Eventually the group made their way into a sizable sitting room. Wade made a noise of excitement and bounced up to Wolverine, who easily shoved him aside. Peter ignored Wade and his behaviour in favour of the children sitting on one of the couches in the room.

While he hadn't had much control of himself during the whole warehouse escapade, he had indeed remembered everything that happened during it, meaning he easily recognised the five kids in front of him.

They all looked much better taken care of than they had before, clean and well dressed. Paula's injuries (that he had wrapped in webs on instinct) had healed well, and all of the kids had put on a healthy amount of weight in the month since they'd been rescued. Peter heard Xavier thanking Logan for bringing the kids so quickly, but the mans mumbled reply wasn't as important as the kid suddenly hugging his waist.

"Spider-Man! You're okay!" Theo cried into his stomach, clutching spandex in his fingers.

Paula smiled up at him and Lilith babbled from her arms. Fumi and Kami bounced in place on the couch, but their eyes were more focused on Wade behind him than the man in front of them.

"Yeah, kiddo," the sound of his voice caused all five of them to look at him in vague amazement. "Deadpool said I would be, didn't he? Don't tell me you doubted the spider-whisperer!"

He laughed at their gobsmacked faces, the sound of which finally drew Wade away from annoying Logan and back to Peter's side. The man reached out and ruffled Theo's hair.

"Told you everything would be fine," Wade shrugged, standing casually. He was quickly knocked on his ass by the weight of the twins tackling into his legs, both of them landing on top of the large man and laughing at the winded 'oof' he let out.

"You can talk!" Theo yelled up at Peter.

The spider tilted his head, making a series of clicking noises as he smiled behind the mask. The noise caused Lilith to squeal and reach out to him, recognising the sounds he had made during their time together better than his outfit (given her goat like features it wouldn't be surprising, as goats are colour blind and mostly rely on smell and hearing to determine what something is). He moved fluidly to take her from Paula, settling her against his chest without dislodging Theo, still wrapped around his waist.

Fumi and Kami had also taken a moment to look at him in interest when he clicked, but quickly went back to bothering, a now kind of upright, Wade into doing their hair again.

"Told you he wasn't just a spider Theo. He just reacted differently to your mutation is all," Paula smiled at Peter as she spoke. "Remember what the Professor said? Everyone has different levels of mutation. It's why you don't effect Lilith or I, but do effect Mr Kurt and Spider-Man." She sounded like she had repeated the words a few times, and Theo nodded along while she did.

"Kurt?" Peter questioned in interest.

"You may have heard of him as Nightcrawler, Spider-Man," Hank spoke up behind him, and Peter turned his head just slightly further than normal to be able to see the other man. Hank blinked in vague shock at the movement before continuing. "We have found that young Theo mostly has influence over animals, with a few mutant exceptions, such as yourself, Nightcrawler, or Kurt Wagner, and Wolfsbane, or Rahne Sinclair. We aren't quite sure why some are effected when others such as Paula, Logan, and myself aren't, but Theo is much better at control now than he was a few weeks ago."

"Yeah! I learnt how to not force animals to like me! Now they only like me the normal amount if they want to!" Theo smiled up at Peter when he returned his attention to the boy, not at all put off by Peter's weird movements, having seen far worse during their time in the container with the spider.

"That's great Theo!" Peter knelt a little to hug the young mutant, making sure to keep Lilith secure with his other hand as he did.

Wade and Peter spent most of the day with the five kids. They were told about classes, Theo liked classes outside the most, got all of the gossip on others at the school, Paula's roommate was going through a messy breakup with her boyfriend, and were shown around the school as well, after Wade had done Fumi and Kami's hair so that they could show off to everyone they passed.

They spent some time outside, with Peter showing off his flexibility and web-slinging in the trees, and Wade getting swarmed by groups of kids in play fights. At one point Peter couldn't see even a hit of Wade's red suit under the pile of limbs and bodies tackling him but still heard the other man's laughter.

They didn't interact with many of the adult mutants at the school, though Ororo stayed with them most of the day just to keep an eye. She was nice to talk to, and Peter get the impression she was pleasantly surprised by his behaviour. Which, given their last meeting, he couldn't exactly fault her for.

He also got properly introduced to Cyclops (Scott) and Rouge (Anna) at lunch. Scott wasn't as bad as Wade seemed to think he was, but Peter could see why they didn't exactly get along. Anna was nice, if a bit quiet, and was interested in how his powers worked. He didn't tell her much, but he did pull up his mask to show off his fangs, given majority of the people around them had seen them before.

One of the younger mutants nearby yelled in excitement, before starting an hour long discussion about exactly which spiders Peter was made up of. Theo was very interested in all the different types of spider the other kid knew about. (They did not come to a consensus that afternoon, but the kid promised to have done significant research by the time they saw Spider-Man next.)

Wade made comments during the entirety of lunch, but they were sporadic, as he was mostly distracted trying not to let his fingers get crunched by Lilith's strong jaw as he fed her.

Peter got to meet Nightcrawler, or Kurt Wagner, after lunch. The blue mutant popped into existence just behind the spider, who automatically twisted to shoot webs at him.

"Whaa!!" Kurt cried out as he was covered in sticky webs, and the nearby students laughed at his predicament. Even when he popped away and back again he was still covered in webs. Eventually he held still long enough to let Peter to help de-tangle the webs from his fur.

Wade made sure to take photos of the whole event and sent them to Logan, who was quick to track them down just so he could laugh at Kurt's bad luck in person.

When the duo had to leave the school, hours after their arrival (some of the X-Men were going on mission and were happy to make a stop for Deadpool and Spider-Man to get back home), the kids were sad to see them both go.

Peter had hold of Lilith and Theo, while Wade had Fumi and Kami. The older three kids were crying softly, and Lilith was mostly just nodding off against Peter's shoulder. There had been many promises to come and visit again (and one suggestion that Wade would break them out and bring them to the city instead which Peter quickly shot down), and both men had Paula's phone number (and her theirs) in case she or any of the kids needed them.

That didn't make it any easier to put them down and say goodbye.

After 10 minutes of them saying goodbye Paula rolled her eyes, as if doing so would disguise the fact that they were watering with unshed tears, and stepped closer to the two adults, using her wings to wrap the group in a more solid hug. They didn't quite stretch enough to cover them all, but Peter had a feeling they might in a few years, even with Wade's considerable bulk. They stayed in the group cuddle for a long few minutes, until Paula pulled away and reached to take Lilith's dozing form from Peter's grip.

The others were placed on the ground, and Paula gently wrapped her wings around them all as they waved off the ship carrying Deadpool and Spider-Man back home.

"Don't worry Spidey, we can visit the kiddos again!" Wade tried to cheer the spider up as they stood by the window, watching the mansion get smaller and smaller.

"Yeah, Wade," Peter agreed, reaching to entangle his spandex clad fingers with Wade's gloved hand. "I'm sure we'll see them soon."