[for Peter and Mary Jane] Hotel California.

[notaparker]

There goes my sense of wonder and excitement. Oh, space hasn't entirely lost it's allure, it's just hard to keep hold of it right now. Instead of noticing the interesting technology and the fact that we're high above the world kept aloft by clever science, I just feel hemmed in. It doesn't help when I stop to check the way out and Mrs Kanyebot

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[daretodo]

Following the impromptu kissing session out on the ol' Optical Reinforcement Venue -- seriously, whoever's behind Aperture Science needs to reconsider their naming system -- I give Mary Jane a quick tour, so to speak, stopping to explain some of the more interesting details I've picked up in my time up here, with maybe just a little longer spent in the lab dedicated to cloaking technology than anywhere else. Honestly, I'm not entirely sure how much she understood of my excited technobabble, but she let me yammer on for the most part anyway

[getemtiger]

Something was wrong. That much was easy enough to discern, between Jessica's expression, Peter's reaction, and the fact that she was pretty sure that this was where they were supposed to be leaving from. Had she been up here on her own, it would have been easy enough to assume she'd made a wrong turn somewhere, but Peter had spent time here before, and did, as far as she knew, know his way around. This didn't bode well.

All the same, worrying though the situation was, there was no reason to panic, at least not yet. Peter was bound to be able to figure it out, and while she didn't know the one from Jessica's universe, she suspected that, to have been a clone of any Peter Parker, she would have to be pretty damn smart. It was going to be just fine. She was sure of it.

"Pete?" she called, still where he'd left her, breaths just a little heavier, teeth worrying at her lower lip. "What's going on?"

[notaparker]

If this stuff is going to keep happening to me, I reserve the right to start calling it the ol' Drew luck, at least when it applies to me.

"Yup," I say, to Peter's question. "I tried switching it back on, but nada."

I demonstrate. The 'Portal Failed' message flashes up on screen again.

[daretodo]

"Here, lemme take a look at it," I say, shuffling in beside Jessica to, in fact, do just that. While I don't exactly question her intelligence, I do have a few more years on her, not to mention more experience with the system, however limited. As far as I know, the portal's been open since Tony first turned it on.

Keeping my gaze locked on the screen as I troubleshoot the problem -- I don't try to switch it on again, half because Jessica just said she already did that, and half because I don't want to waste time -- I call out to Mary Jane, "It's fine, Red. Some yahoo must've shut down the portal by accident."

With the number of people who've been wandering through here, it's not especially surprising. Doesn't make it any less frustrating, though.