a bigger man might not feel quite so compromised

[osreborn]

WHO: NORMAN OSBORN and REILLY TYNE
WHERE: In the sky, a bit upstate
WHEN: Wednesday night?
WARNINGS: Goblin business
SUMMARY: Goblin and Goblin Jr. play catch (up)
FORMAT: Whatever


It had been a long, impatient few weeks, and now that Norman had his satisfaction back he had been all the more impatient. From what he could tell, business was proceeding as usual -- and thank goodness for Reilly during Norman's own time of incapacitation. It was an alibi, though not as airtight of one as Norman wanted before this concluded. He needed to press for the details, and wondered with a suppressed thrill what sort of responses Reilly would report back. What sort of responses had yet to come when it was discovered who the new Goblin menace was.

Norman sat on his glider, hovering some fifty feet from the ground in a fairly empty industrial part of some podunk upstate town he only knew the name of so as to inform Reilly of his location. He wanted those details as soon as possible -- tonight, before he went mad with waiting.

Spiders, in nature, could be quick to devour their prey. Even, depending on the species, their own kind. Their young. It was sometimes a pity nature didn't work quite as cleanly with humans. Luckily, that wasn't Norman's goal. All Reilly needed to do was tear apart the web; that was the only start that was ever needed.

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[bedeviledspider]

Soon enough, Norman would be able to spot something flying overhead. It was moving erratically, whatever it was, making sharp jarring turns through the night sky. Before it reached him, though, the thing had at least managed to slow down to a manageable speed.

Even if it stopped a little too close to Norman's face for comfort.

"Sorry, sir," Reilly said with a sheepish smile. "I'm still getting the hang of this. I'm used to using... other methods of transportation."

[osreborn]

Norman raised his eyebrow, twitching his own glider up with his foot so as to bring the two to eye-level, which was also aided by crouching slightly. He wasn't dressed to be on a glider, but rather in one of his work suits. The glider could be remote controlled, so dressing up seemed a little overeager.

"I know you are," he said, calmly, and pointed to Reilly's feet. "It's like riding a bicycle. You need to pick up speed and then steer with your feet. It's designed to be intuitive."

[bedeviledspider]

Reilly nodded. Then he shut his eyes, focusing on the movement of his feet, a small smile breaking out as he felt the wind rush past him, causing his jacket to almost start flying behind him before--

"Whoa!" Before he lost concentration, lurching forward just a bit too far and nearly flying off the glider. "S- Sorry!" he called to Norman. "I should have told you... I haven't ridden a bike in a while, either!"

[osreborn]

"The point is that it's something you never forget," Norman said with impatience, as he glided around Reilly's other side and put his hand on his back, to steady him. "Perhaps I should have added that you steer with your hips, as well. It's best not to let them fall out of alignment with your feet."

He moved away again in a quick, graceful motion.

"It's quite simple."

[bedeviledspider]

Reilly grit his teeth. He was going to get it this time. Prove to Osborn that he...

For just a split second, he faltered. The glider wobbled a bit under his feet. Prove what? That he was capable of following orders, worthy of the task he'd been assigned? Yes, that was it. That had to be it.

Besides, this wasn't the time to be dwelling on such matters. Floating in the air like a fool! What an embarrassment! So he took a deep breath and he started to glide. A little too far, a little too fast -- but he was getting the hang of it.

[osreborn]

Norman raised an eyebrow, smirking slowly and flying away from him, giving Reilly space. "You can do it, can't you? You don't want to look like a fool when you see them, do you?"

He drifted in a slow circle around Reilly, taunting; encouraging. Reilly was progressing, yes, but he had a long way to go. Norman would see him there.

[bedeviledspider]

If Norman needed any further proof that he'd just pushed one of Reilly's buttons, there it was: a determined look on his face almost savage in its intensity. "You're right," he growled. "I'm not going to let any of them, especially the Webhead, make any oh-so-witty remarks. They're going to respect me."

He was picking up speed as he ranted, but more importantly, he seemed to have a better handle on it. Not yet realizing he'd completed manuevers that had eluded him just a few moments before.

[osreborn]

"That's what I like to hear, Reilly. They haven't earned your respect, have they? But they'll respect you. You know things about them they can't begin to understand about you."

Norman drifted a little quicker as Reilly picked up his speed, driving his glider higher. "They'd waste no opportunity to mock you if you stumbled, or should you veer incorrectly."

[bedeviledspider]

"It's true," he hissed. "They've never understood me."

As continued to rant, he went around in circles, smoke trailing behind him with every revolution.

"I'll wipe the smug smiles off their faces. You have my word, if they even think of trying to mock me, I'll-- I'll--"

Well. His clenched fists said enough.

[osreborn]

Norman smiled. "You'll hurt them. Isn't that right?" He watched Reilly circle and glided in front of him, reaching into his bag to withdraw a pumpkin bomb. He tossed it delicately over like one might toss a baseball.

"Have you used any of these yet?"

[bedeviledspider]

Reilly's eyes lit up as he looked at his catch.

"Pumpkin bombs?" He asked, his voice overtaken with a hideous glee. "No. I haven't used any yet."

[osreborn]

"Ah. What are you waiting for, boy?" Norman held out his palm for the one he'd just tossed, expecting it to be tossed back. "Would you like to practice?"

[bedeviledspider]

"Do you really have to ask?!" A wide smile spreads over his lips as he hurls the bomb back at Norman with everything he's got.

Well. Almost everything. Norman should be glad he didn't light it on fire in his excitement.

Still, there's a surprising amount of power in his throw.

[osreborn]

Norman swerved eagerly, catching the bomb on its descent to the ground rather than its arc, and it landed gently in his palm. "Good throw. Aim is important, of course, but with incendiarys you get a little wiggle room."

He tossed it back.

[bedeviledspider]

"I can aim," Reilly muttered, looking more like an upset child than a frightening menace as he palmed the explosive. He lost himself in a solo game of catch for a minute or two, testing the weight and feel of the bomb in his hand. It wasn't anything like a billyclub.

But at least it wasn't his first time handling projectiles. Licking his lips, he readied the pitch, hoping this time it would be a little harder to catch.

[osreborn]

"Don't worry about it too much. Practice makes perfect, boy," Norman said calmly, swerving again, more sharply, this time to catch the bomb. It was a dangerous game they were playing, but wasn't it all? A perfect metaphor, if anything, tossing the bomb around. He threw it back, harder.

"If it helps, imagine your target is Spider-Man's head."

[bedeviledspider]

"What do you know, that's just the inspiration I need."

With that said, he tossed bomb back and forth in his hands, looking speculatively at the sky before tossing it back to Norman.

"Speaking of targets, I wonder if I should... acquire one. For practice."

[osreborn]

"What sort of target do you have in mind?" Norman asked, catching the bomb again and throwing it back, with barely a pause in between. He wanted Reilly's reflexes quick, sharp -- after all, he had a reputation to uphold.

[bedeviledspider]

Norman didn't need to worry. Reilly's hand was up almost as soon as the bomb was thrown, and in almost the same amount of time, he was throwing it back. Spider-sense was partially the reason, of course, but a lifetime of vigilante work was good for the reflexes.

"Hmmm. The Stacy girl would upset them the most, I think, but she still doesn't trust me yet. Perhaps Spider-Girl? Though I think she has supicions as well..."

[osreborn]

"Gwen Stacy may be jumping the gun. You want to save her for later. Possibly for last," Norman said, calmly, his glider drifting as he mused. He caught the bomb and threw it back in one movement again. "Because of the impact she'll cause. Spider-Girl is good. And what about the other? Spider-Woman."

He cared about her the least, at the moment. Just as long as Reilly did not focus his attentions on Spider-Man.

[bedeviledspider]

For a second, Reilly seemed to fumble with the bomb before throwing it back, the hint of frown on his lips. "Spider-Woman? I... I guess I could..."

It would devastate her. It was the logical move. Out of them all, she was the one who trusted him the most, had no doubts about his recent behavior. Still. Trust didn't come easy for Jessica. He knew that. To do something like this...

He shook his head, clearing his mind of these unnecessary worries. If Norman wanted him to do it, he'd do it. "If you think she's the best choice, sir."

[osreborn]

Sensing the hesitation, Norman swooped closer, his arms folded behind his back. His demeanor was calm enough, though impatience was beginning to stir under the surface. He resisted he urge to grab Reilly by the collar.

"You guess you could, or you simply could. What do you think, Reilly? This isn't complicated."

[bedeviledspider]

His body tensed. Everything in him was fighting off the urge to shout back, scream something about getting off his back, or hurling a bomb at Noeman in frustration.

In time, though, his shoulders sank. As dread filled his stomach.

"I can do it," he whispered softly. "I can do it."

[osreborn]

Norman did reach for him then, gripping the front of Reilly's shirt gently, not quite threatening but certainly not comforting. He sneered, showing teeth.

"You're certain? Because if you can't, you should tell me now."

And there was something threatening in that tone.

[bedeviledspider]

"Get your hands off me!"

It was a reflexive reaction. He didn't even realize he'd said it until he could hear the words in his own ears, seconds later. Instantly, he was berating himself for it. Angering Norman? What was he thinking, doing something as stupid as that?

His shoulders dropped. He grit his teeth. And turned his eyes downward, away from Norman. That, too, was a reflexive action. Put into his brain years before he came across the Goblin and Bellatrix. "S- Sorry, I didn't mean to... say that. Or any of those thins, I just don't... like being told what to do. And she is my enemy now, but, she was my friend once. Even so..."

He took a deep breath and stared Norman in the eyes.

"I can do it. Orders are orders."

[osreborn]

"Good. I was worried you were beginning to forget your position here, and I'd rather not waste my timing having to... remind you." Norman did let go of Reilly, a bit roughly. He didn't remove his gaze from him, but his tone grew less threatening.

"You know that her friendship means nothing to you now. She's a Spider, and do you remember what we do to spiders?"

[bedeviledspider]

"I... I don't need a reminder." Reilly's breathing was still coming out in heavy, labored huffs. The anger and adrenaline hadn't quite left his system, but at least it was redirecting towards the right target.

"We squash them," he said softly. Then, with more conviction: "We squash Spiders."

[osreborn]

Norman patted his shoulder, and in moments had glided away from him a distance of ten or so feet.

"That's right. We squash them. Good boy." He held the bomb out again. "Then are you ready?"

[bedeviledspider]

Reilly's palms opened and he crouched into a catching position on the glider -- eyes always on the bomb. With a boyish bravado, he called out:

"Bring it on, Osborn!"

[osreborn]

"You're getting the hang of it," Norman said, tossing the bomb slightly to the left in the hopes Reilly would fly over to grab it. He spun it, paying no mind to the mockery they were inflicting on this wholesome father + son activity.

"That's encouraging. I knew you were capable of learning with a little effort."