Chapter Text
The Saturday sun shone down on New York City, and it was a beautiful day across the entire city. People were living it up throughout all five of the boroughs. A man in a baggy Deadpool costume was being kicked out of the zoo after a bout of daydrinking shenanigans. Frank Castle was still asleep somewhere after a long night of pumping goons full of lead. And somehow, in the bowels of Hell’s Kitchen, Spider-Girl had gotten herself wrapped up in one of the most classic do-gooder tales of danger and woes.
“Oh, please, you have to get him down from there!” cried out a worried old lady in criminally thick bifocals. “I don’t know what’s gotten into the poor thing! Oh, just listen to him!”
Spider-Girl looked up at a short tree next to the road and saw the yowling fat gray cat clinging onto one of its branches. Had it gone up after a bird or something? She shook her head and smiled to herself.
“Not to worry, ma’am,” she said. “This cat’s not the only one who knows how to climb up stuff. I’ll get her back to you lickity-split!”
“Are you sure that you can get my sweet Peter down? Can you maybe call the Fantastic Four?”
June winced a little under the mask upon hearing that name. It didn’t hurt her, but it was a little reminder of the situation she had gotten herself into with Doc Ock. Her time as Spider-Man was coming to a close, and maybe that wasn't the only change bound to happen in her life. Maybe it was about time to put Peter Parker to rest too. But then the idea of calling four other superheroes to get a little chubster out of a tree was enough to lighten her mood a little. Maybe the X-Men could come by to join the party too.
“Not to brag, ma’am,” June said. “But I’ve got a pretty good track record at handling kitty cats.”
Spidey went up the base of the tree and got to the first big layer of branches in no time. The cat wasn’t too far ahead, and soon enough, the two were almost at the same height level. She glanced up to see Peter the big kitty staring at her with a pissed-off expression on his face.
Oh great, he’s the type that loves company, she thought to herself. Webbing an animal up in front of his owner sounded like a great way to get herself on the Daily Bugle’s front page. A net below the tree made of webs sounded more promising but might end up causing an unflattering headline too. This just in: Spider-Man pushes a local cat out of a tree! Maybe her mask was confusing to the whiskered critter? No way that she was taking that off in public, though.
“Here, kitty kitty…” she said as she slowly extended her fingers for him to sniff. She wasn’t sure if there’d even be a smell with the red glove on. Then came the Spider-Sense before five claws came slashing towards her hand.
“Woah!” she yelped as she yanked her hand away in time to avoid the cat’s swipe. He hissed at her as she heard the old lady below make all kinds of worried sounds. “You really aren’t making this easy for me, are you, Petey?”
Not many other options were presenting themselves. She groaned before creating a bit of distance between herself and the cat, then stuck a hand up the bottom of the torso portion of her costume. She found the right pouch on her hidden utility belt before opening it up and pulling out a small, outdated cell phone. A sticker of a red spider was on the back of it, custom-made and showing off her first spidery logo. She debated which number on her contact list to call before deciding on one and putting the phone up to her ear.
“Come on, don’t be busy, don’t be busy…” she muttered to herself before she got an answer. “Hey, Johnny, it’s me, your old friendly neighborhood— Yeah, yeah, Johnny, I know. Hey, listen, have you ever gotten a really grouchy cat out of a tree before? You have? Perfect. Care to maybe fly on over and give me some pointers…? Yeah, I’m serious. Alright, great, see you.”
Spidey looked down at the old woman, who looked just as anxious as when she’d shown up to the scene. The crimefighter looked totally defeated under her mask.
“Well, don’t worry, ma’am… The Fantastic Four are on their way over.”
__
“Unbelievable, I can’t believe it took five of us to get that little furball outta there!”
Spider-Girl sat on the edge of a rooftop by herself, her mask pulled up just past her nose as she munched on a street vendor’s hot dog. She remembered just how hard the Human Torch had been laughing at her expense with Peter the ever-loving cat. Of course he wouldn’t offer to hold the cat and fly it down to the street, and the Thing was most likely too heavy for the whole tree to support. Poor Reed Richards might have been one of the smartest people June knew, but the man was just not built for understanding animals. The uncanny sight of his stretchy limbs had earned him a good clawing.
In the end, it was a simple force field from the Invisible Woman that had saved the day and brought Peter down to his owner. June could still perfectly picture the smirk that Susan had given her after that, and the superhero family had gotten all of the credit. At least June got to see cute little Franklin in the Fantasticar. But what an embarrassing start to her day.
“What’s next?” she asked herself after standing up and taking a step backwards away from the roof’s edge. Then came the last bite of her hot dog. “Sandman fills my boots with… himself? Paste-Pot Pete decides to shoot glue at me again?”
She wasn’t expecting to hear a deep voice just a bit behind her.
“It could always be a friendlier face,” someone said, making her practically jump into the air. Spidey turned around to see a familiar man draped in a red cloth bodysuit, black wrappings around his forearms and hands, and two horns protruding from his hooded cowl. He stood casually, leaning against the building’s roof hatch.
“Always nice to see you drop by my neighborhood,” said Daredevil, the unofficial patron saint of Hell’s Kitchen.
“Jeez, man,” Spidey said. “Don’t just sneak up on people like that! Are you trying to give a girl a heart attack or something while she’s eating?”
Oh shit. Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit.
Daredevil let out a low, long whistle. “Talk about a slip, huh? Or maybe just a slip of the tongue?”
June recognized that she had a way out. “Oh, uh, yeah. I—“
No. She’d spent the past twelve hours or so convincing herself that coming out was finally the next step in her journey, and taking the easy way out of this would just make it messier. How could she reveal to the world that she was Spider-Girl if she couldn’t muster up the nerve to tell just one man?
Then again, Daredevil was one of her closest allies. What if it went wrong? What if the dynamic between them changed in a way that she couldn’t turn back? Maybe he’d feel uncomfortable around her, and hell, didn’t he have a little bit of a reputation for chasing skirts? This discussion could still come after the big announcement, or maybe…
She shook her head. No, this was her moment.
“Caught red-handed,” she said, “Spider-Girl. That’s the name I’m thinking for myself. Do you think it has a bit of a ring to it?”
Daredevil chuckled and smirked at her. “Spider-Woman would have been my first guess, but I hear that it’s kind of taken already. But Spider-Girl? I think that’d suit you fine.”
June smiled under her mask and shuffled her foot on the rooftop. “Thanks, Daredevil. And you, um, aren’t… bothered by it or anything?”
“Bothered?” he asked. “If I had a problem with that, then I wouldn’t have been a real friend in the first place. What would have bothered me is if you were to lie to me about it just now. Trust me, when your heart went all wonky after you called yourself a girl? Dead giveaway.”
Spider-Girl groaned at how easy she was for him to read. Then again, not many people could manage to get by him.
“Then again,” he said, “I kind of already had a suspicion about it?”
“Oh no,” Spidey replied, “Please don’t tell me you guys aren’t all taking bets behind my back. I gotta know, what was it that gave it away?
“Uh, no, just subtle stuff with my powers and all that. One time I started picking up a little bit of a… different scent on you? I figured maybe you just found yourself a woman or something, but it kept lingering over time. Changing, getting a bit stronger. But I don’t know, maybe there are bets going around. I can’t tell if you look that different because, well, you know.”
The man waved his hand in front of his covered-up eyes to make that point clear.
“Maybe you should have just called yourself Hound Dog instead of Daredevil,” Spider-Girl pondered out loud. “Though it would be a little harder to take a guy running around at night in doggy ears and a tail instead of little devil horns.”
“I hear that’s kind of like the furry conventions in town.”
“Uh, can’t say I've ever been to one of them,” Spidey said, causing Daredevil to hum in response. She wondered if the man in red doubted her or not before remembering he was a living lie detector. “Hey, wanna swing around town for a bit like old times?”
Daredevil smiled. “Sure thing, Spider-Girl. Oh, and if anyone ever gives you a hard time about you being a woman? I know some pretty good law guys who can maybe throw the book at them.”
Spidey stretched her back before leaning over the building’s guardrail to enjoy the view. “Alright, partner. Let’s get to work.”
——
“Parker?! PARKER?!?!”
A booming voice reverberated through the Daily Bugle; anyone nearby practically shrank down in fear of getting spotted who had unleashed it. Two days had passed since Spider-Girl had come out to Daredevil, and reports were coming in that the webhead would be appearing soon in Central Park in a press conference with the Fantastic Four. And in his office, J. Jonah Jameson had already been coming up with headline ideas for the big event.
“I thought I’d called that boy in an hour ago!” he barked at no one in particular. He stood in front of his full-wall window and looked down at the crowded streets below, as if scanning for the photographer he was looking for. “The big event is in two days, and if my ‘Spidey star’ isn’t there to give me a front-page picture of him, I’m gonna—“
The sound of a thud came from his office door before the knob turned.
“I’m sorry, sir!” said June as she practically fell through the door to his office. “There was a ton of traffic on the way here, and then I saw a mugging happen in an alley a few blocks down. Spidey came in and, well, let me tell you—“
“Spider-Man?” Jameson asked, “And you got a picture of him?”
June gulped and took the duffle bag off her shoulder, setting it down in a chair to sort through. Truth be told, the mugging really did happen, and she was there to stop it, but taking a picture of the scene hadn’t crossed her mind while heading to work. She had a few spare stock Spidey photos that she carried around just in case of a situation like this.
“Yes, sir, Mister Jameson!” she said, “I saw it all happen, and shhhh— …surely you’ll like what I got for you.”
June handed her boss a photograph of the web-slinger swinging in a random alleyway between two small buildings. She suddenly worried if he’d somehow be able to tell if the photo was months old at this point. Old Jonah had his interesting moments, but he had never been a slouch in his field of work. The man’s brow furrowed, and June fidgeted her foot.
“There’s no action here!” Jonah judged as he tossed the photo on his cluttered oak desk. “I wanna at least see that crook caught on film!”
“The crook? Which one of them, sir?”
Jonah let out a short bark of a laugh before walking over to his chair.
“And that’s part of why I keep you around, kid. A good wit in you, good spirit! That’s hard to come by these days, but I’ll spare you my rant. But I do have one thing for you. Now, clear your schedule because I’ve got an assignment for you in two days. There’s going to be a big show happening in Central Park, and guess who’s going to be there? That masked menace, Spider–…”
June’s heart was beating fast, and the strength to tell Jonah about her real identity just kept fluttering right out of her hands. It had been for months now. He was old-school, hot-headed, and clearly opinionated, but… she had learned over time that he was full of heart, too. The people at the Bugle were taken care of, and at the end of the day, he was a good man to work for. Maybe not the friendliest boss, but a good guy to have on your side. And out of everyone in June’s life, he was going to be the most important one to learn her secret.
“…And that’s why I’m having you be there to take a picture of him! If that mask comes off as the rumor says, we better have the best shot of it in town.”
“You’ve got it, boss,” June said as she nodded her head. “I’ll get front-row seats. Hey, while we’re in here, I do have something to talk to you about.”
Well, June had thrown herself into it with that sentence. Her career was potentially on the line with how her boss would react to what she’d say next, and it took everything she had to keep her jitters under control. Why was this moment so much more frightening to her than fighting criminals and super-powered murderers?
Jonah’s expression grew more serious. He adjusted himself in his seat and looked up at his photographer. “Sure, kid, go ahead. Everything alright with you? No troubles at work?”
June turned around to shut the door, letting a shaky breath out once her back was turned to her boss. Then she put on the calmest spin she could and looked at Jonah.
“Sir, working at the Bugle has been great, and I’ve met so many great people here,” she said. “And you’ve always been really fair to me, but… There’s something that I’ve been keeping to myself for a bit that you should probably know going forward. I’m, uh… I’m transgender.”
Jonah blinked and leaned back in his chair. The fingers on his left hand drummed on the armrest as he thought of what to say next, and even this brief pause was too much for June to wait for.
“I don’t mean to make you change anything about the job,” June continued, the words coming out quickly. “Like I said, everyone’s been really nice and I, uh… Well, this is really important to me and—“
“So, how long have you known, kid?”
June’s sentence died off as she tried to gauge her boss’ reaction. He didn’t seem pissed off, at least.
“Me? Well, I mean, I’d say since last March?”
“And you’ve just let us call you the wrong name all this time!?” Jonah asked in his signature emotionally charged voice. “For God’s sake, Parker, why didn’t you tell me earlier? …Um, is ‘Parker’ still okay with you?”
June huffed out an anxious little laugh. This was really happening.
“Parker is fine! I’m gonna go by June now, but I know your style of naming people.” She chuckled to herself after saying that. “Guess I’m lucky there; you don’t even need to change any of your habits or anything. Call for me like you always do, and I’ll be there!”
Jonah rubbed at his chin with a finger, glancing down at the photo that June had given him earlier.
“Except that the Bugle’s gonna have to credit you as ‘June Parker’ for your pictures now, right?”
Right, she’d realized a while back that this was gonna come up. Being known as June to her workplace meant that her new name could be shared all across the city in the newspaper. Unless she wanted to take it slow and still go by Peter publicly? But then there’d still be a conflict in identity between inside the Bugle and outside.
The decision had been eating away at her for months, but she felt inspired in the moment. This step seemed like it’d be the hardest in her journey, and it felt like she had made it, so why not use it as a springboard for fully coming out?
“Yeah, that sounds good to me, boss,” she said with a grin. “Thanks for being understanding about all this, by the way. I’ve been worrying about it for a while…”
“Scared of me, huh?” Jonah asked. “Kid, I’ve been all for civil rights since I was just getting started as a journalist. Hell, I ought to dig up a few stories I’ve done way back in the day; I’ve been fighting for people for like since before you were born. You don’t have anything to worry about with me, and don’t you dare let anyone in here give you crap. Or anyone in general, for that matter.”
A knock at the door interrupted their conversation. Jonah gave June a glance, and she just nodded. The man smiled and looked at the door.
“Come in!” he barked, and with that, the door opened up to reveal Betty Brant. “Oh good, my favorite secretary!”
“Last time I checked, I’m your only secretary,” Betty said. She walked over to Jonah’s desk before setting down a batch of filled-out paperwork on an empty spot.
“Oh, and Miss Brant?” Jonah said with a gleam in his eyes, “I’ve got news for you! Parker’s a woman now!”
Both girls in the room went a bit rigid at how casually Jonah threw that info out. They glanced at each other, and Betty made notice of how June’s brown hair had now grown out a bit below her shoulders. She gave June an awkward smirk, her eyebrows raised a bit at the awkward situation.
“Uh, Jonah,” June said, “Thanks again for being super supportive, but I should probably be the one to go telling people about this?”
She glanced at the open office door, and her expression dropped at the sight of Ted Hoffman standing nearby, just looking at her with a dumb expression on his face. June just gave him a tiny glare before he gulped like a fish and walked away.
“Fair enough, Parker,” Jonah said. “Ah, sorry for jumping the gun like that, but Betty’s fine with that for sure. She's a good one. Hey, we’ve got a reporter in the same camp as you; remind me to introduce you two sometime. Now I’ve got a doozy of a day coming up, so head on out of here if you’re out of news for me. Go tell some other people here or something!”
June excused herself and walked out of Jonah’s office, elated that the big news had gone through without a hiccup. Not only was she keeping her job at the Bugle, but her boss seemed to be totally on her side? It was a big day for June Parker.
But the big day for Spider-Girl was still coming up. Her press conference was in two days, and she still had a little project back in her apartment to finish up before it happened. She’d already told the Fantastic Four what it was going to be about, but there was a lot riding on it all going well with the public.
June got on an elevator heading down to the Bugle’s ground floor and kept thinking to herself as it went lower and lower to her destination. She smiled as she realized that both Spider-Girl and June Parker were going to debut at the same event. Maybe it was going to be a huge day for both of them.