Chapter 48 - I am Spider Tobey

The days kept passing. The Spider Family had been growing more and more famous, while Stark Industries' stock plummeted like a plane after Tony declared that his weapons company would no longer sell weapons.

Then, a little over a month later, while the girls and I were swinging through the city, I stopped on a wall and looked up at the sky. The girls followed me and stood by my side.

"That tin man falling over there, is it what I think it is?" MJ asked with amusement.
 "Yeah, looks like the gold-titanium alloy man has appeared. Well, since he's falling at high speed while looking completely frozen, he doesn't really seem to be a man of that alloy just yet," I joked back.
 "Want to meet him?" I suggested.
 "Yes! I want to see the difference between the real Tony and the one you made!" Emily said excitedly.

But Natasha focused on something else. "What do you mean, 'the Tony you made'?" she asked, raising an eyebrow and looking at me with doubt.
 "We'll talk about it later, otherwise, he'll get away," I said with a smile under my mask. I shot two webs at a building with both hands and started swinging away.

Then, like a stone in a slingshot, I launched myself.

Flying rapidly toward Tony, I reached him within a second, wrapped my arms around his armor, and just as we were about to reach a height where I could shoot a web and stop our fall, Tony managed to reactivate his suit and took off at high speed.

I could only make a funny face as I was carried along for the ride, while Tony screamed with adrenaline, having narrowly escaped death.

"Knock knock." I looked at him with amusement and tapped twice on his helmet, as if it were a door.

Tony turned his helmet toward me and was startled to see a masked person hanging onto him mid-flight.

"Hey! What the hell are you doing here? You didn’t pay for a ticket," Tony shouted, his voice slightly metallic with a touch of tech. He sounded annoyed that someone was hitching a ride on him.
 "You idiot, I was trying to save you!" I shouted back, irritated, though I had actually anticipated this would happen and was having fun with it.
 "I don’t need help. But wait, I recognize you now. You’re the famous Spider-Man," he said, first annoyed but then with a hint of admiration and curiosity in his voice.
 "Well, now you've taken me too far. Mind taking me back?" I said, looking at the ocean beneath us with a bitter expression. I’m not in the mood for a swim in the freezing sea tonight.

Tony seemed amused by what I said. "Not in the mood to swing across the ocean tonight, web-head?" he teased with a grin.

"Damn, that was a good one," I muttered with a smirk, but Tony, with his high-tech helmet, seemed to hear me, as he burst into laughter while making a U-turn back to where we came from.

Soon, we returned, and I saw the girls standing with crossed arms, pressed against a building. I jumped off Tony’s armor and stuck to the building next to them.

"Hey, ladies, I got us a new ride," I joked, pointing at Tony with my thumb.
 "Ha ha, web-head," Tony mocked my joke.

"Who are these lovely ladies?" he asked, probably with a playboy smirk.
 "They're my wives—respectively Ghost-Spider, Scarlet-Spider, Spider-Rogue, Spider-Angel, and Black Widow. And if you stare at their curves and breasts, I’ll beat you up. And so will they," I warned Tony, narrowing my mask’s eyes with a dangerous tone.

"Okay, okay, relax, stallion... Wait, did you say they’re your wives?" he said, perplexed.
 "Yeah. Well, except for Black Widow, but it won’t be long before we get married too," I said, turning to Nat with a smile beneath my mask.

Natasha lowered her head and said nothing. But I knew she was embarrassed. We had known each other for two months, and we were about to take the next step.

A month ago, I kissed her forehead. After that, kissing her became normal, and soon we were kissing on the lips. Once we take the next step, it won’t be long before we plan our wedding.

"How the hell did you convince them to be in a harem?" he asked, incredulous and curious. He wanted to know if he could pull it off someday.
 "I think the hardest part of starting a harem is, well, starting a harem. There are too many uncertainties for the girls. But after years, if you're good enough to satisfy their desires—and no, I’m not just talking about sex and money—the girls feel comfortable with their sisters. Besides, they have to get along too. People don’t really believe in the multiplicity of love. They think they can only love one person. But if that’s the case, how do they love their parents, siblings, and family if they can only love one person? That idea is kind of flawed. Anyway, sorry Tony, this wouldn’t work for someone like you," I explained, while the girls and Tony listened to my opinion with curiosity.

"Ohh, and how do you know I’m Tony?" Tony asked curiously, with a bit of caution, not even denying that a harem wouldn’t work for him. Tony Stark could barely take care of himself, let alone multiple women.

"Secret," I said in a mysterious tone, but then I smiled warmly. "But Tony, I’m really glad to see that you’ve changed, and I can feel that your heart is in the right place now. You haven’t made your official debut yet, but… welcome to the hero club."

He didn’t react much beyond a "Thanks," but I could tell Tony was a little emotional hearing that from me, a well-known hero. And I was probably the first person to truly believe he had changed.

We chatted with Tony for a while longer, but soon he had to leave, and the girls and I had to get back to fighting crime.

"Tony, your bodyguard Happy keeps buying food at Ursula’s diner. That’s where we work. You can visit us for a meal or ask for help anytime," I offered with a smile.

"Huh?! Hey! I kind of already figured out your identities and was planning to surprise you tomorrow, damn it. Aren’t you guys supposed to keep your identities secret or something?" he asked, frustrated.

"HAHAHA! Nah! We only hide our identities because of the fans. Except for MJ, we don’t like being bothered for autographs," I said, amused.
 "Hey! I like giving autographs as a singer, not as a hero. Being a hero is a more personal side of me; I don’t want to give autographs for doing good," MJ explained seriously.

I smiled, pulled her into a hug, and kissed the top of her head. I’m really proud of my women.

Tony seemed quite surprised and thoughtful after hearing what MJ said. Not long after, he left, and the girls and I went back to our business.