Chapter Text
Alright. Let's do this one last time.
My name is Pok Gukgak, and I was bitten by a radioactive spider 16 years ago, and since then, I've been the one and only Spiderdusk.
I've got a tragic backstory and all, a true superhero. I uh. I couldn't save my dad when a burglar broke into our home. So … I save everyone else.
I do the typical hero stuff, y'know. I save Bastion City every week and wound up saving the love of my life. She wound up saving me back, so we wound up married with one beautiful baby boy named Riz. He's 14 now and … The work gets tough, not being able to see him very often and all but. We make it work.
My day job is a spy -- isn't that funny? But it also means I'm really good at the whole, secret identity thing. I mean -- I had to get married, and you can't really get married to Spiderdusk. My wife knows, is what I’m tryna say. My kid? Eh, that’s a talk for later.
Spiderdusk swung through the streets, jumping from building to building, waving at the people below who called out his name and waved, holding newspapers, notebooks, and even children for him to sign.
“Maybe later!” He replied to them, trying to get back home as fast as possible. He was beat, grabbing his phone and heading to Sklondas contact.
I’m beat, what are we doing for dinner? He sent the message as he landed on the roof of a nearby apartment building, looking up from his phone to find a rooftop garden party. He looked at the banner, seeing “Happy 6th birthday Johnny!”. He then looked to find Johnny, seeing a young boy at a table with cake in front of him, staring in shock. The other partygoers seemed just as surprised.
“Don’t text and swing amiright?” He said casually, grabbing a torn piece of wrapping paper and a sharpie, and quickly signing it. “Happy birthday little man.” He put it on the table next to him, and with a quick finger gun, he swung away, taking refuge a few buildings over as he walked on the wall of some office, checking his phone again.
Not sure, what are you in the mood for? Could do Chinese food.
He looked up from his phone, finding two window washers going about their day.
“Hey, can you two help me out? My wife and I are tryna figure out dinner and … I’m kinda stuck.”
“Depends.” One of them said, turning to him. “What are you in the mood for?”
“See she just asked me that!” Spiderdusk replied, throwing his hands in the air. “And it’s like… I could go for anything. But I don’t wanna get in that well what are you in the mood for thing yknow?”
“Yeah yeah, I hear you. There’s a really good Mexican place a few blocks away, they have the best enchiladas you’ll ever eat. But if you want something more Bastion City, could always do Tony’s Pizza. A little touristy but still good.” The other one suggested, Pok nodding.
“Oh, pizza does sound really good right now. Thanks for all your help!” He called out, before swinging away again. They smiled and waved as he headed home, phone in hand.
Could always do Tony’s. Pizza sounds good right now. He sent the message, before landing on the wall of his apartment building, cracking open the window as he climbed into his room, finding Sklonda sitting on the bed.
“Riz is home.” She looked up at him and his spot on the ceiling. “And you know how I feel about you dirtying the roof.”
“Didn’t he have that club meeting today?” Pok replied, taking off his glasses that acted as the mask, and placing them on the desk. “Some … Humans and Houses kinda thing?”
“Decided not to go. Said it didn’t feel like his scene.” The man groaned, throwing off his jacket and putting it on his desk chair, before grabbing one of his trench coats, and covering himself up. “I’ll be back.”
“What a brave soldier, using the stairs for once.” She teased. Pok rolled his eyes, before crawling back out the window and heading down into an alley, before stepping out and heading through the door.
He climbed up the stairs instead of using the elevator, figuring he might as well get some exercise on the rare occasion that he used the stairs. He then reached his door, fumbling with his keys, before opening the door. He found Riz sitting on the couch, watching a show before pausing it and looking up at Pok walked over, and gave him a kiss on the head.
“Hey dad, welcome back.”
“You’re home early. Didn’t you have that … game thing you were gonna do for school?” Pok commented. Riz shrugged as his dad put his stuff down by the door.
“I decided not to go. The guys in the club seemed weird, I didn’t like their… vibes.”
“Their vibes?” Pok snorted as he grabbed a can of coke from the fridge, turning to his son.
“Yeah, the uh, the house master as they're called, his name is Biz and he was just… weird. I dunno. Went home instead, said mom asked me to do dishes.”
“Ah, classic mom excuse.” He remarked, sitting down on the couch next to him as Sklonda stepped out, laptop in hand.
“I’m ordering dinner, what do you guys want from Tony’s?” She asked, turning to them as she set her laptop down on the table.
“I could go for like… a cheese pizza honestly, nothing crazy,” Riz answered, Pok nodding in agreement.
“I’m beat so … whatever I don’t have to cook you guys can do. I’ll leave it up to you.” He then got up, before realizing he was still in his suit, heading back to his room.
“Man, dads been really tired these past few weeks.” Pok overheard as he entered the bedroom, slowly changing out of his suit with a long sigh. Sklonda would cover for him of course, something about how work had been tough on him, a hard case to crack.
He didn’t like to admit it to himself very often but ... He was getting older. Having to fight The Prowler wasn’t as easy anymore (and somehow she never seemed to age, which .. seemed unfair), and neither were any of his other villains.
He wasn't unfit, by any means. Swinging through the city every single day without fail, constantly fighting. That kept you in shape. But it kept him exhausted. Every day was a workout at this point, and he wasn’t sure how long he could deal with it.
He hit the light switch in their closet, watching the secret compartment where he kept his spider stuff open up, quickly putting his suit back in its spot.
He needed some kind of successor. But what were the odds of two radioactive spiders? He had gotten bitten in a cave outside Arborly on a mission, so there probably weren’t any in Bastion City anyways.
Pok supposed he could keep his eyes and ears out for any other Spidermen surfacing. Though -- once again, he wasn’t thrilled about the odds of 2 radioactive spiders.
He closed the compartment, stretching as he headed back out into the living room.
“I’m taking a nap, wake me up when the food’s here,” Pok said, Sklonda giving him a thumbs up as an understanding before he headed back into their room and collapsed on the bed.
He woke seconds before the doorbell rang (a mildly annoying feature of his spider-sense, that it worked even while he was sleeping), standing up and getting out of bed, heading to the dining table as his wife placed the boxes on the table, while he grabbed the plates.
The family began to sit down and eat, though Pok usually kept them from just being stuck in silence.
“How’s school Riz?” He asked, looking at the boy on the other side of the table.
“Uhm. Fine, I guess. Better than middle school?” He raised an eyebrow.
“You guess? Is something wrong?”
“I dunno. I don’t have many friends. Or like. Any friends -- but that’s fine! I can focus on schoolwork this way.” Sklonda looked at Pok, and there was a silent agreement between them.
“You need friends kid.” She chimed in. “We’re happy if you focus on schoolwork of course, but being social is important as a teenager.”
“Yeah yeah, I guess I just. Never know what to say to people. It’s hard, starting a conversation.”
“Ask 'em how their day was. Go from there.” Pok suggested.
“Well it just feels like … everyone is so different from me? If that makes sense? Like they just … wouldn’t understand what I was saying.” Sklonda scoffed, placing her bread down.
“You’re fourteen. Even the popular kids or whatever, or the jocks, they all feel like no one gets them. It comes with the territory of being in high school.”
“Ask them about Spiderdusk -- kids do like that guy right?” Sklonda shot him a look, to which he mouthed back “What?” with a shrug. Riz, on the other hand, laughed.
“God, dad -- you are so old. Spiderdusk is like … teenage fangirl material now. Girls think he’s hot or whatever.” His wife was holding back what he could tell was a very loud (and very hurtful) laugh, and Pok was … mildly offended.
“No one thinks he’s cool?” He tried to not sound like a kicked puppy -- but it happened pretty much uncontrollably.
“I mean he obviously saves the city or whatever, so he’s like. A hero. So I guess that makes him cool? But teenagers aren’t really talking about him.” He made a mental note that he was losing viewers in the 14-19 age range before Riz continued. “And didn’t he date mom at some point? Why do you even like this guy?”
“Oh yes, we had a very very messy breakup,” Sklonda remarked, wiping away tears from her eyes.
“He’s the only one of your mom’s exes who routinely saves the city, forgive me if I think he’s just a little bit cool.”
“Well I just think his whole … James Bond private eye thing is cool but … I don't know. It’s for you and your old fogies. And the pencil stache --”
“What's wrong with the pencil stache?” Pok questioned. Riz looked to him, before sighing.
“And the pencil stache is totally cool and … doesn’t at all make you look like a 1930s oil tycoon.”
“Hey!” Pok snorted, though he was smiling.
“I’m kidding! I’m kidding! You make it work dad.” Riz reassured throwing his hands in the air
“Well, I’m glad we can agree on something. And what's this about … old fogies? Kid, I’m like. In my late thirties. That’s not that old.”
“It’s old to me.” His son shrugged, before continuing to eat his pizza. Pok looked over to his wife, about to ask her if she could believe the slander his son was spewing, but found her beaming as she looked between the two of them.
“This is nice. We should do this more often.” She murmured, looking at her husband before giving him a small kiss on the cheek.
That night, as the two of them got ready for bed, Sklonda walked up behind him, wrapping her arms around him.
“It was nice. To see you and Riz laughing like that. Haven’t seen that in a while.” She remarked. Pok placed his hands over hers, kissing the side of her head.
“It was nice to laugh like that.” He replied, giving her a small smile before she pulled away, glancing at the floor.
“You want something.” He continued, giving her a look.
“You just … you’re so busy. The Solisian Service stuff… and then the whole Spiderdusk thing on top of that. I don’t see you very often but I know what you’re doing at least, and I sometimes run into you at work at the very least but … Riz. He’s at school all day. And then he comes home and you’re not here. And if you are here you’re … not fully here. Thinking about what you have to do next, which villain is going to return. Stuff like that.”
“What are you asking?” She sighed, looking up at him.
“Could you maybe not be Spiderdusk? For a day? And just be Pok? Riz barely sees you.” Pok thought about it for a second, looking away, before glancing back at her.
“The ci--” He began, but Sklonda scoffed and rolled her eyes as she stepped away from him, going into their closet to change.
“Yeah, I know Batman. “ Her voice lowered to a mocking tone. “The city needs me.” She then stepped out of the closet, turning back to him, her expression serious. “Y’know who else needs you? Your fourteen-year-old son. Spend a day with him at least. Bastion City won’t fall into an apocalyptic wasteland if Spiderdusk isn’t there for a day.” He thought about it again, before letting out a little huff.
“...Yeah. Yeah, I guess you’re right.”
“You have tomorrow off anyways. Go pick him up from school, and hang out with him. Do … guy stuff, I dunno. I don’t care what you do so long as it’s with Riz.” He let out a small laugh but gave her a kiss.
“I’ll hang out with him tomorrow. I promise.”