Polina was in the training room, punching and kicking a sandbag.

The others stood on the sidelines.

"She's been going at it for a week and a half," Margo frowned, "has she talked to any of you guys lately?"

"No," Gwen sighed, "we've been trying to get her to open up and talk but she keeps brushing us off or reassuring us that she's fine." "When she clearly isn't," Pavitr whined.

Peter B frowned, holding a sleeping Mayday in his arms.

Polina gave a sharp kick to the sandbag, the force of the kick sending it flying across the room and into the wall. She breathed heavily and rolled her shoulder.

"Polina?" Jess said. The girl looked at her and everyone could see how tired she looked. There were bags forming under her eyes and sweat trickled down her brow.

"Before you say anything, Jess, I'm fine," she said, trying to keep the irritation out of her voice. She was failing.

She picked up another sandbag. "I'm adjusting," she said.

"Adjusting to what exactly?" Hobie asked, raising an eyebrow. His friend shrugged and she cracked her knuckles only to wince. She looked at them. They were bruised and almost starting to bleed.

"Damn it," she muttered. Before she could do anything, Miles firmly grabbed her arm and she looked at him, startled.

He frowned, "we need to get you to the doctor." "I'm fine, Miles," she insisted, pulling her arm out of his firm grip, "I don't need to coddled all the time."

"Would it help if we told Miguel?" Pavitr asked. "Told me what?"

Heads turned to see the lead Spider-Man walking into the training room.

"Nothing," Polina said quickly. Miguel raised an eyebrow and he glanced at Jess who gestured to her hand.

He frowned, "Polina?" "I'M FINE!" She shouted angrily. Miles and Pavitr both flinched. Mayday jolted awake with a cry of protest.

Polina breathed heavily before she stormed towards the door. Miguel grabbed her arm. A feral snarl escaped her lips as she spun around and pinned Miguel to the floor, baring her teeth. Her eyes were glowing.

Miguel stared up at her, shocked. Then his eyes narrowed. Jess hurriedly ushered everyone out of the training room.

Miguel grabbed Polina, rolled over and pinned her to the ground.

"Calm down," he said sternly. "Get. Off!" She snarled before she shoved him off and swiped her claws at him but he quickly jumped back to avoid them. He stared at her bewildered for a moment.

Was she trying to actually hurt him or was she just really, really angry?

Polina breathed heavily, a low growl rising in her chest. Her claws flexed and she snarled like an angry lion. Then something flickered on her face. Regret.

She stepped back, suddenly guilty.

She shook her head and turned away, rubbing her face. "I... I'm...," she gritted her teeth as she retreated further and further into the smallest corner of the room.

Miguel frowned as he walked over to her. "Polina... what's going on? Layla says you've been depressed, irritated. Angry."

"I don't need an algorithm checking on me," she said, her face buried in her arms. Miguel rubbed the back of his neck with a frown.

Excluding last time, he wasn't good at this whole... comforting thing.

He sighed before he knelt down beside her and gently rubbed her head. She sniffled, "...it's my Canon Event."

He paused and stared at her.

"I have to relive that moment every day," she said bitterly, "who does that?"

"I... I know it's not easy," Miguel started. "Stop," Polina hissed and she glared at him, "you went through your Canon Event. You tried to stop Miles from changing his because you were scared. Because you failed."

Miguel flinched and stared at her. She stared back at him with a sudden coldness in her hazel brown eyes.

Then the coldness faded and she looked down. "I'm sorry," she said, "I'm not sorry for what I said but I'm sorry for how I said it. We both lost something and damn right it sucks. But... we can't handle it on our own anymore. You can't handle it by yourself anymore. You've got a lot of people who care about you."

Miguel chuckled softly, "when did you become so wise?" "Since I met the most amazing anomaly in the entire Spider-Verse," she replied with a smile and he knew she was talking about Miles.

She sighed softly, "so... wanna get something to eat?"

Before Miguel could answer, his stomach growled and she looked at him in amusement. He tried to hide the blush in his cheeks and she smiled.

"C'mon, big bear," she teased.

"Excuse me!?" He jumped to his feet and she squeaked before she ran to the door but not before she threw out her webs at Miguel's feet, gluing him to the floor for a moment.

She ran out the door, "run, guys! I called Miguel a bear!"

Hobie snickered as he, Pavitr, Miles and Gwen joined her, laughing.

"Get back here!" Miguel shouted and the sounds of squeals and laughter filled the hallway.

Everyone made it to the cafeteria and Polina exhaled in relief as there weren't many Spider-People there. She hummed softly, "hey Sunflower."

Miles nearly choked on his own spit as he blushed at the nickname and Hobie snickered. "Y-yeah?"

"Didn't you say that you met another version of yourself?" She asked, "a... Prowler version of yourself?"

She looked at them and Miguel looked uncomfortable. Miles gave a small, nervous laugh, "yeah... it was terrifying."

Polina's eyes softened for a moment. "How so?" She asked.

"Because... well... that dimension... is a lot different than mine," Miles said as they all got lunch. Polina furrowed a brow for a moment.

"...I wanna see it," she said. Gwen looked at her in surprise, so did Miles.

"S-seriously?" Miles stammered. Polina nodded, "seriously."

Everyone looked at Miguel. He sighed and rubbed his face.

"Fine, fine," he relented, "just keep your watches on and be careful." "When are we not careful?" Polina asked.

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Ah... nevermind," she smiled. They went through the portal.

As they stepped through the portal, Polina was taken aback by the stark contrast between the two dimensions. While Miles' dimension was bright and colorful, this other dimension seemed to be perpetually shrouded in darkness. The once bustling streets were now empty, with a haze of purple haze hanging in the air.

Miles led the group to a run-down apartment building, where he entered a small apartment. Inside, the walls were torn and worn, with clutter covering every surface. A figure dressed in a black and purple costume with a mask covering their face stepped out of the shadows.

"Miles?" the figure asked, their voice distorted by the mask.

Miles nodded. "Yeah, it's me," he said, gesturing for the group to follow him. "These are my friends Gwen and Polina."

The figure introduced himself as Prowler Miles, a version of Miles Morales who had taken a darker path in life. Polina couldn't help but feel a sense of unease as she looked at the masked figure.

"So, what brings you here?" Prowler Miles asked, folding his arms.

Miles shifted nervously. "We were just passing through and Polina wanted to see this dimension," he said.

Prowler Miles raised an eyebrow then looked at Polina. "Is that all?" he asked, his voice tinged with suspicion. "You know, this isn't a playground, kid. This is a dangerous place."

Gwen stepped forward. "We understand the danger," she said, "but our friend was curious about this dimension."

Prowler Miles eyed her for a moment before sighing. "Fine," he said, "but don't say I didn't warn you."

Miles smiled and he looked at Polina. His smile fell when he saw the nervous look on her face.

"You okay? We can go if you want," he said. She shook her head, "no, no, it's fine. I'm just processing everything."

Prowler Miles looked at her.

"How come you don't visit the Spider Society?" She asked curiously.

"You do realize that the second I step foot in there, it's like putting a target on my back," he huffed.

Polina hummed softly before she snapped her fingers. "Then I've got an idea," she smiled, "meet me at my house tomorrow. Bring Prowler Miles and Hobie."

Miles and Gwen looked at each other. Prowlet Miles raised an eyebrow.

"Okay," Gwen said, placing a hand on her hip. She was curious to see what plan Polina was making. And what would come from it.