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Chapter Text

Norman smiled softly down at the quiet bundle in his arms, rocking it slightly as he watched his newborn son's baby blue eyes blinking up at him. 

"Harold Theopolis Osborn." He spoke softly, still testing out the name, and how it felt right when referring to this little boy. 

Theopolis? What kind of name is that?

Norman glanced over to his wife when he heard the voice in his head, checking she was asleep so she wouldn't notice if he spoke out loud. 

"So, you decided to see him for yourselves did you?" Norman mumbled to himself, glancing upwards at the darkened hospital windows to catch the reflection of his darker half. He was always in his mind, but most of the time he lay dormant, keeping silent to allow Norman to function normally.

Like it or not, he is my child too Osborn. 

Norman chuckled at that, having not expected the Goblin to care much for their child. 

Emily of course didn't know about the Goblin, the few times Norman had let the darkness consume himself around her, she was none the wiser.

They were very much the same person, Norman and Goblin. The Goblin was Norman's own ego, the dark part of him that felt he deserved to take whatever he wanted without caring for consequence. The accident with the serum had just unlocked that part of his mind and given it a voice. The name had only been chosen when he crafted his villainous disguise, but he found it easier to use it to refer to his darker side. 

There was a little gurgle, and Norman immediately shushed the baby before he had a chance to cry, bouncing his arm slightly until little Harry was happy and quiet again.

His son was perfect in Norman's eyes, big blue eyes, pale skin he was sure would develop freckles, and a small crop of bright ginger hair. For now his eyes were the usual baby blue, but he looked forward to seeing if they would stay that way, or darken like Emily's.

His eyes are going to be green

Norman raised an eyebrow questioningly at his reflection. While Emily had dominant brown eyes, Norman had recessive blue. But curiously, when Norman became one with the goblin his eyes turned the same green as the formula that created him. "How can you tell?"

He's my son after all

Norman frowned, trying to add up the dates in his head. It was possible, not knowing if they had been the Goblin around the time Harry was conceived. "We'll just have to see as he gets older."

If he has our strength, he will be a good junior Goblin. Someone to take up our legacy

Norman frowned at that, shaking his head. "He's too young to be thinking about things like that. He's not the heir to the Osborn empire, or a little junior Goblin yet. He's just a little boy, who's going to need his father to bring him up the best we can."

We will crush any who wish to harm him 

Norman hummed in agreement. He didn't always agree with the more violent thoughts the Goblin brought with him, but this time they were in complete agreement. He didn't need the formula in his veins to know that he would kill anyone to protect this precious child.

Chapter Text

The Goblin cackled as he swooped around Doc Ock on his Glider. He didn't often have to fight other villains, but he was not about to lose his prize just because another criminal had also had the same idea to steal it.

"So many arms, and still out of reach as ever Octavious." He taunts, delighting in the fact that Otto is getting unfocused in his anger. He jumps from the glider to get up close, knowing Otto had the distance advantage with those arms of his.

"You got a lot of nerve Goblin. I'll be sure to rip it out of you." Doc Ock growled, his eyes unfocused as the arms seemed to lash out of their own accord, acting and reacting rather than any strategy.

Dodging between the arms, Goblin managed to get up close to his opponent, his hand wrapping around Otto's bare throat and clamping down enough to lift the man slightly off the ground with his enhanced strength. 

The actuators grabbed at his suit, attempting to pull him away, but that only made Goblin tighten his grip on the others throat. He cackled wildly, not sure who would come out victorious. Would he choke the larger man out, or would the arms manage to knock him out or drag him away. 

His adrenaline fuelled mania was suddenly tempered by the very quiet sound of a baby crying, coming from somewhere in his suit. With a growl, Goblin threw Otto across the room to give him some distance. He quickly checked the monitor hidden under his glove, before glaring up at Otto.

"It seems to be your lucky day. Something more important requires my attention. But this isn't over Octopus, it's merely a rain check." He called his glider over, jumped up to land on it in midair before flying off into the sky.

Speeding through the air, too high up for any normal civilian to see or hear him, he wasted no time in landing on the balcony to the Osborn Manor, heading straight for the secure nursery.

Ever since Emily died, he was struggling to keep childcare staff, none of them were good enough or right to watch his boy. Unfortunately this meant that he needed to put his work life on hold whenever his son needed him, but he would rather be inconvenienced than leave his little boy in the hands of someone incompetent.

"Shh, shh, its okay my boy. We're here." He's saying as soon as he gets close. The crying turns into a scream when he reaches for him, and it takes Goblin a moment to remember he's still in full gear, including his mask. 

"No, no, it's okay Harold. See? It's just your silly old dad." He pulls off the hood and mask, revealing his bright green eyes, which makes the child stop his crying in confused recognition, before sniffling and looking like he was going to start again. "Did little Harold have a bad dream?" Usually the infant slept through the night, or Goblin wouldn't have left him alone.

The baby gurgles and lifts his arms to make grabby hands, his wet eyes pleading up at his father, which has the Goblin laughing as he picks up Harry to cradle him in his arm for comfort. He's not as natural when under the effects of the serum, scared of his strength, or his mania harming such a tiny life. Where he would normally bounce the boy, or hug him tight to his chest, he instead cradles him gently and rocks him, which thankfully seems to work to calm the babe. 

It would take awhile for Norman to return from his serum based persona, but thankfully Harold didn't seem to mind either side of him, he was too young to understand why daddy sometimes acted strangely.

"Your dad gave up a good score tonight for you, you know. We won't get another chance to get it now." Goblin chuckled, not able to actually be mad at the little boy who was now gripping the gloved finger he had been playfully wagging at his son.

Tomorrow they would have to interview more nannies, so he wouldn't need to leave his boy alone when the Green Goblin needed to venture out. But tonight, he only had to calm and settle the little one down and get him back to sleep.

Chapter Text

"It seems to be your lucky day. Something more important requires my attention. But this isn't over Octopus, it's merely a rain check." The goblin called his glider over, jumped up to land on it in midair before flying off into the sky.

Otto started after the retreating Goblin in shock. Was that a baby crying he heard? 

The lights in Otto's arms flicked from red to pink as he processed what happened. Was that some kind of baby monitor the Goblin had in his suit? Had the Goblin stolen a baby… Most likely a ransom attempt. That didn't sit right with Otto. Doc Ock might be a villain, but he wasn't going to let a child, especially a young baby, be left in the hands of that maniac.

He barely hesitated before following quickly after the gliders smoke, his arms carrying him effortlessly over rooftops, his initial prize long forgotten in favour of potentially saving a baby's life from the Green Goblin.

He could barely keep up with the glider, but stayed hot on its heels, thankful the Goblin hadn't seemed to have noticed him following. Otto paused in confusion when his chase led him right to the Osborn Estate. Was the Green Goblin attempting to kidnap Norman's son?

Otto and Norman hadn't been friends for many years, but he knew enough about Norman to know that his son was all he had after his wife's death. His blood boiled at the thought of his old friend desperate to do anything to save his son from a maniac, history aside, Otto couldn't let that happen.

From a villian standpoint, Osborn's baby was the perfect ransom. If he'd been a child or a teen, then Doc Ock would probably let it go. But you'd have to be completely heartless to target a baby that wasn't even a year old.

He tried to be as quiet as he could while scaling the building to the balcony, the actuators not exactly built for stealth, and having to dig into the masonry didn't let them be silent by any means.

Thankfully, it seemed that his entrance hadn't attracted anyone's attention as he slipped inside the fancy Manor. It had been so many years since he'd been here, and he was careful that his extra arms didn't knock over anything too expensive.

It took a little while for him to find the Goblin, muttering quietly to himself with his back to the door. Otto saw the crib in front of the villian, and knew the Goblin had found its target.

"I doubt Osborn hired a maniac as a babysitter." Doc Ock said, letting the Goblin know he was there. 

_____

Goblin was so focused on his son finally starting to doze off again, bouncing him just slightly in his arms while he shushed him gently, that he missed sensing someone approaching until just before Otto spoke.

His eyes quickly darted to the floor where he'd dropped his mask after Harlod had screamed, he couldn't grab it without either waking up the baby again, or showing Doc Ock his face. He swore under his breath as he quickly grabbed his hood and pulled it low over his face, hoping the dim lights and shadows would obscure his identity, glad he was facing away from the other man right now.

"I didn't realise stalking was top of your list of crimes." Goblin half growled out in annoyance. Shit, how does he get out of this one? He looks down at Harold, who luckily didn't seem phased by the appearance of the dangerous stranger, still on the edge of sleep.

"Abducting a baby is low even for you Goblin." Otto scoffed, feeling completely justified for following. He's just glad the Goblin didn't seem to want to harm the child right now.

"Shhhhh he's sleeping Ock, wouldn't want to wake him, would we?" He tried to keep his voice the usual playful tone, though hushed to not disturb the child. 

Somewhat reluctantly, he placed the boy back in his crib even though he wasn't fully sleeping yet, but thankfully the little one just curled up and started sucking his thumb, eyes heavy and too tired to protest the loss of contact from his father. Goblin let a gloved hand smooth over the small mess of red hair with a smile for a moment, before turning back to Doc Ock with a glare he hoped was hidden by the hood.

"If the baby wakes up screaming because of you, I will rip those arms off you myself, and shove them down your throat. Just so I can watch the life drain from your eyes." Goblin warned in a low growl, not about to have Doc Ock of all villains upset little Harold. Why did Otto even follow him back here?

"Afraid Osborn might hear and find you trying to abduct his son?" Otto scoffed, not believing for a moment that the murderous elf actually cared for a child.

"And since when did you start caring about Norman Osborn ?" Goblin scoffed, stepping away from the crib, but staying out of the light, if the shadows moved from his face then Otto would obviously recognise him. They had been close once, before Norman fired him and they went their separate ways.

"You'd be surprised." Otto said, somewhat bitterly, like he didn't want to admit something. Goblin tilted his head curiously. What did that mean? "Enough to not want him to have to grieve his only son, because some psychotic imp decided it might be fun."

Goblin was a little touched that Doc Ock was protecting their son, even after their friendship fell apart, maybe it could be rekindled if Norman tired?

"Alright then." Goblin shrugged, keeping his head down as he stepped out Into the room and away from the crib.

"Excuse me?" Otto blinked in confusion, wondering what the Goblin was playing at. Surely he wasn't just giving up just because he was caught.

"I said alright then. Clearly nothing is going to happen with you here, and I'd rather not have the kid crying." Goblin pointed out, walking quickly across the room to the exit, knowing Otto would follow.

Otto was staring at the Goblin intently, so he noticed when he passed under the light, which very briefly revealed pale skin instead of the green mask. He hadn't even realised the mask was gone, and the hood covered most of the face in shadow, but that jawline looked very familiar…

Chapter Text

Otto was very confused about what was going on. Goblin was abandoning his plan to kidnap a child just because he'd been interrupted? That was very out of character, especially since he'd apparently gone to the trouble to bug the room ahead of time, presumably so he'd know when Norman wasn't around or checking his, no doubt, high tech baby monitor.

He looked into the crib to make sure the goblin hadn't done anything, or planted something with the baby, but everything looked normal. The small red-haired child rolled over away from Otto, making a small tired sound as he curled up to sleep, apparently completely comfortable despite everything that had happened.

Still baffled, Otto looked around the room, intending to tamper with any recording equipment in the room, but he couldn't see any visible cameras. If they were well hidden, Norman was in for a very strange viewing when he rewatched the tapes.

XxXxXx

Goblin paced impatiently in the den, he was itching to drag the Octopus away from the nursery, but that would be suspicious. A small logical part of him kept reminding himself that Otto wouldn't do anything to harm the boy, but logic wasn't at the forefront of his mind right now, antsy about their son's safety. 

It was a stupid mistake, he should have known he was being followed, but he'd been so preoccupied getting home as quick as he could to sooth Harold that he'd failed to notice.

His bright green eyes flicked to the door as the other supervision finally stepped out of the nursery, noticing with annoyance and frustration that one of the metal claws was holding his discarded mask. Shit.

"Do you always unmask for a kidnapping?" Otto asked, his arms crossing with his accusation.

"What part of keeping the Brat quiet didn't sink into your head." He growled. And, oh, how he hated talking about this precious boy like that, but Harold would be in so much more danger if it got out that he was Goblin's son. Their secret identity had never meant so much to them.

"I doubt Norman left his only son alone. What, did you already kill the babysitter and then get distracted with our fight?"

"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't." He didn't kill a babysitter tonight . But if the last one hadn't neglected to see to Harold, and tried to steal from them, then none of them would be in this position right now.

"What does it matter anyway, you've already busted me twice tonight. I'm sure Osborns 'Precious baby boy' will survive until the bastard gets home." He pretended to check the time on his gauntlet, to make it seem like he was aware of some sort of time constraint. Now he just needs to get rid of Otto, leave, and find a way to get dressed and sneak back in without being followed this time.

Otto rolled his eyes, placing the Goblins mask on a table nearby, noticing how the villain turned to look at it, as if trying to gauge if he could reach it or not before Otto saw under his hood. He obviously decided against it since it would require him coming too much into the light.

"If no one's home why do you need to keep quiet? If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were actually worried about the baby." Otto couldn't work out why . Nothing about the goblin had ever given any inclination that he had ever cared for anything in his life. Did the maniac have a family, or even a heart buried under that cold exterior? He had looked familiar from the slight glance he'd gotten in the nursery.

"And I'd think you had something going with Osborn. Why do you even care?" Goblin groaned. At this rate Otto was going to stay all night, something Norman might be interested in, but right now, as Goblin, was very frustrating.

Otto shifted a little awkwardly. "We were friends once… guy might be a grade A bastard at times, but he doesn't deserve to lose his son to a maniac looking for some easy money."

Goblin narrowed his eyes at the fellow villain. That was, oddly touching? Even after all the things they'd said and done to the guy, he still cared enough to fight to keep Norman from going through anymore pain.

"And besides. Kidnapping a baby , goblin? Isn't that a bit much even for you." Otto accused, trying to work out why that jawline was so familiar.

"Don't act like you're got some ethical moral high ground here Octavius. You've got six arms, and not a single one of them is any cleaner than mine." Goblin scoffed, debating just grabbing his mask and physically throwing the man off the balcony. He'd probably survive and grab onto something… probably.

Otto didn't reply, because something had clicked I'm his mind. The out of character actions, the familiarity, that was all speculation. But the other shoe dropped with that statement. He only knew one person who had ever accused him of an 'Ethical moral high ground', in those exact words.

"Norman?"

Chapter Text

Goblin froze as Otto seemed to work it out, before laughing. It's not like Otto could use it against him, and he might not be 100% sure just yet, he might still be able to play it off.

"So what? You think I'm trying to kidnap my own kid?" He teased, carefully watching Otto's reaction, which hadn't changed.

"I think you're crazy, and left your child alone to go and be a criminal." Otto countered with a surprising amount of annoyance. Norman had a fortune to spend on childcare, what on earth was he doing.

"And what? You're trying to give parenting advice?" Goblin jeered, getting irritated the longer this went on. He wanted to be able to relax, check on Harold again, and not worry about Doctor Octopus now knowing his identity.

"I'm trying to understand what happened to you Norman." Otto countered, not understanding why on earth someone as successful as Norman Osborn; the head of one of the biggest corporations in New York, and with a child to support, would be the maniac running around in a goblin mask.

"Right, because you're one to throw stones."

Otto rolled his eyes, but one of his actuators picked up the goblin mask and threw it at the other man, watching the quick reflections he knew the other to have in action.

Narrowing his eyes suspiciously, the goblin looked down at the mask, debating putting it back on and continuing to deny their identity, but honestly, what was the point? With a pissed off snarl, he slammed the mask down on the back of the sofa and pulled back his hood.

" There . You happy now? Harold's not in danger, and you're the one trespassing. Now, get out before I change my mind and throw you off the balcony." He glared hard at his fellow supervillain, almost daring Doctor Octopus to challenge him.

"You're really going to threaten me instead of talking this out?" Otto asked, crossing his arm with an unimpressed look. Maybe that kind of bullying worked on him when he was an Oscorp employee, but now they were on even footing, both as men and 'Supervillains'

"Talk what out Octavious? Do you think you're the only one allowed to take matters into your own hand around here?" It was extremely hypocritical of Otto to judge him considering what the disgraced scientist did to himself.

"I barely had a choice in what happened to me. You on the other hand..."

"I what? You don't know anything about this!" He snapped in frustration. Whether he was a bit too loud, or just a bit too forceful, he was cut off by the sudden sound of crying from the nursery.

Letting out a long breath that was meant to be calming, Goblin pinched the bridge of his nose as he tried to calm down a little, before ignoring his unwelcome guest and heading over to comfort his son.

Otto debated leaving, but followed to stand in the doorway and watch as Norman, dressed as one of the most dangerous villains in the city, softly shushed and rocked the tiny baby in his arms.

It was surreal, not fully sinking in that his old friend could be the same person he'd almost killed, and had almost killed him as well during some of their fights. Goblin acted manic and deranged, intelligent but insane at the same time. And yet here he was being a loving father.

The nursery was only lit from the doorway and soft night light that projected little stars into the room around the baby's crib. But Otto decided to really look at Norman for the first time since the hood came down.

Norman looked… different. Almost younger somehow, the light moving across his face showed flashes of soft green eyes as he fussed over his son… didn't Norman always have bright blue eyes?

"I told you to get out." Goblin said, his voice softer, but still with that dangerous edge to it, clearly not wanting to upset the infant In his arms.

"I just want to understand. We used to be friends, the least you could do is talk to me." Otto sighed, realizing they were going around in circles.

The baby seemed to suddenly notice the other person, and stopped sniffling, turning to make  grabby hands towards one of the actuators, who's light was very visible in the dark room.

Goblin looked from the baby to Otto, a frown forming on his face as he shifted the boy onto his shoulder, away from Otto and his silver tentacles, ignoring the annoyed babbling from Harold because he couldn't reach the thing that he'd shown interest in.

"If you want a civil conversation, then come back tomorrow and talk with Norman, not goblin." The fair haired man said in a very even tone, one that Otto recognised from years of working with Norman, it meant he was deep in thought about something he wouldn't discuss until he'd come to a conclusion.

"Norman what does that even…"

"Out now. Or defenestration will be the least of your worries." He cut Otto off and fully turned his back to him as he pushed past, carrying Harold out to the main living area, ignoring everything else as he made his way to the kitchen area.

Deciding to just come back again instead of trying to push it right now, Otto made his way to the balcony. He looked back once more, still baffled by everything, before using his actuators to climb down the building and away from the bizarre situation.

Chapter Text

Otto had decided against scaling the brick walls up to Osborns penthouse in broad daylight, because that was too risky for both of them to be associated with the other. So instead he opted to stride into the building with the actuators hidden under a large duffle coat, and pretend he belonged there.

The access to the penthouse was locked behind a coded lock, and it only took a few tries for him to guess the password. Norman liked memorable dates, and he always put the year before the month and day.

Considering what he saw last night, it wasn't too surprising to be his sons birthday. Norman had announced to the press that his son had been born two days after his wife actually gave birth, so not mamy people knew the baby's actual date of birth. Emily been the one to let Otto know, even though him and Norman weren't speaking at the time, since they had been good friends in the past.

He opted for the stairs over the elevator, to give himself more time to think about what exactly he was going to say to his old friend. He had so many questions he didn't know where to start. 

Before he knew it, he was outside the penthouse, only hesitating for a couple of seconds before knocking on the door.

xXxXx

Norman glanced at the small screen next to the front door, not completely surprised to see Otto outside, but a little disappointed perhaps? He'd half been hoping that the other man wouldn't take him up on the Goblins offer from last night.

It was a dick move really, his darker half setting him up to be the one to have this chat, knowing full well that the whole mess with him and his old business partner was messy in all kinds of ways. The fact that a part of himself seemed to want this awkward reunion, and being able to talk openly about his double life, was not an irony that was lost on him.

He lifted Harry into his arms, laughing as the baby squirmed and fussed, having been enjoying his tummy time on the floor with his father. But he wasn't going to let the baby crawl around underfoot with guests, especially one with limbs that didn't seem to always be controlled by their owner.

Placing him down in his little bouncer, and making sure he had his current favorite toy to hand, Norman sighed and made his way to the door. Best get this over with sooner rather than later.

When he finally opened the door, Otto was fidgeting restlessly, having been made to wait a few minutes and no doubt getting inside his own head about everything.

“I guess the coded lock wasn't as unhackable as I thought.” Was the dry opener Norman went with, leaning against the door jam as if he was unaffected by all of this.

“Didn't need to hack it. You're passwords have always been painfully predictable. As is your fixation on significant dates.” It really was funny how a man with so much paranoia, fell back into familiar patterns with certain things.

“A date you couldn't have known correctly.” Norman pointed out, having officially announced Harry's birthday incorrectly to the whole world for multiple reasons, security being one of the biggest.

“Emily messaged me after she gave birth… I think she was hoping we'd patch things up eventually.” Otto admitted sheepishly, rolling his shoulders where the actuators were uncomfortably tucked against his back.

Norman closed his eyes and took a deep breath. That did sound like Emily, optimistic, and no doubt having had her own plans to trick them into interacting again. She was as cunning as she was beautiful, even if his darker side didn't always agree about her.

“I guess you best come in then.” He said somewhat begrudgingly, there was no point in standing around out here. It may be a private penthouse, but staff still had access, and he'd rather them not be caught talking like this.

Not waiting for an answer, he pushed away from the door to head back inside, ruffling Harry's hair as he passed to grab a bottle of bourbon and pour out two measures automatically.

Otto stepped into the penthouse, somehow feeling like it was the first time in years, despite having been here less than twenty four hours ago. Maybe it was just him not being in ‘work mode’ same as Norman, but it felt very nostalgic. Even more so when Norman handed him a couple of fingers of bourbon, the same as they would have everytime they would meet here to discuss work as younger men.

“Take a seat. No doubt you have a lot of questions.”

That , Otto thought, was the understatement of the century.

Chapter Text

Otto took a seat on the arm of the sofa, since it was more comfortable and convenient to not have to crush his arms against the seat cushions, even though they were still hidden under his coat for now. If Norman cared, then he didn't say anything about it.

In fact, Norman seemed mostly unfazed by Otto's presence as a whole, casually locking the door behind them and making himself comfortable in an armchair next to where his son was playing in his bouncer.

Looking down at the drink Norman had handed him, Otto gave it a precautionary sniff before raising an eyebrow. “Can I trust that this isn't poisoned?”

“Could you ever really trust me Octavious?” Norman asked, amused by the others' understandable unease about accepting anything from a rival. 

“Why else would you invite me back here?”

Norman hummed, looking away slightly as if he wasn't a hundred percent sure of that answer himself. Instead he decided to deflect slightly after a sip of his own drink.

“It's clean. If I wanted you dead I'd have done it last night, or at least in costume so I could make an example out of you.” He remarked casually, as if he was above murdering someone in such a mundane way as poison. “Maybe it'd even get your silly little six off my back. Adrian was a bore when he worked for me. I'm running out of patience with Vulture making moves against me, both as Norman and Green Goblin.”

Everytime Otto thought he understood what was going on, his theory was shot down in front of him. He'd spent much of last night wondering if Norman had developed a form of psychosis, but this was definitely the Norman he remembered, casually and openly talking about their current criminal careers.

Harry was babbling to himself as he played, but kept looking up at Otto, curious about the large unknown man in their living room. He held out his toy to the stranger, only to promptly drop it, lip already quivering before it even hit the floor.

Distracted from questioning Norman by the imminent crying from his son, Otto didn't think twice as one of his actuators reached from under his coat to retrieve the toy and pass it back to the infant, who immediately stared at it in wonder instead of fear.

Norman watched with curiosity as his boy clapped his hands and laughed instead of being scared of the metal snake-like appendage holding his favorite toy in front of him. He supposed little Harry had already seen some odd things in his short little life, and was too young to understand just how dangerous those things could be. And yet, Otto was humouring the toddler as if it came natural to him.

“I never took you for the paternal type, Otto.” 

“You never cared about anything other than yourself or what I could bring to your company.” Otto scoffed, handing the small plush teddy back to the baby, who took it, but tucked it into his bouncer so he could make grabby hands at the bright red light in the actuator head instead. “If you had, then you might have known I was almost a father myself in my younger years.”

“Is that so?” Norman mused, watching his son's eyes narrow suddenly, before lunging forward and taking hold of the actuator head. Otto instinctively pulled his metal appendage back in surprise, only for Harry to be pulled up and out of the bouncer with it, squealing with delight at the unexpected uppies. 

Norman stood up and tried to scoop the baby into his arms, but those grabby little hands were gripping the metal too tightly to be dislodged easily. The whole time the infant was laughing like it was the most fun playground ride he'd ever been on.

“That's quite a grip he has.” Otto laughed awkwardly as Norman finally managed to prise his son's inhumanely strong fingers away from the metal.

“He is my son after all. Not all of us need cybernetics to be strong, Otto.” Norman chuckled, placing his son in his lap since the infant didn't want to settle down again yet. 

Despite his young age, Harry seemed incredibly aware of his surroundings and what he wanted. Norman assumed that his altered genetics was the reason for his son's quick development; he was already showing signs of the serum having been passed down genetically. 

Right now, Harry seemed determined to explore and play with the strange new metal thing with the bright red light.

“Maybe not. But you have something I'm sure. The Norman Osborn I knew years ago couldn't toss vehicles around like toys.” Otto pointed out, still being able to feel the bruises from where the Goblin had narrowly missed hitting him when throwing a car just the night before. “I don't care how fancy that military grade suit of yours is. There's more going on with you than that.” 

“And what is the logical conclusion that big brain of yours has come to?” Norman asked, though he didn't so much as spare Otto a glance, preoccupied with trying to distract Harry by playfully covering the boy's eyes, which only made the little one yell out and quickly push his fathers hands away until the man sighed and stopped trying.

Otto chuckled at the sight of the two of them, how patient and attentive Norman was as a single father, even with the infant glaring up at him, pouting and babbling his wordless protests. And for the first time Otto noticed that Harry's eyes were a deeper shade of blue than Norman's icy gaze, and with a slightly different hue. Babies eyes can change colour as they develop, and it looked as if Harry's may not stay blue as he got older. Which reminded Otto…

“Last night your eyes were green.” He accused Norman, locking eyes with the pale blue eyes he'd been expecting to see when Normam had pulled down his hood the night before.

“An astute observation.” Norman confirmed, curious what picture Otto was making with the few pieces of the puzzle he had at his disposal

“Coloured contacts wouldn't make sense since Gobin wears a mask. And you're too vain to let people catch on if you needed a prescription.”

“Correct on both counts.”

“So you weren't wearing contacts last night.”

“And this is why daddy used to pay this man the big bucks .” Norman said sarcastically to the baby he was currently bouncing on his knee. “He's apparently a genius.”

“You asked what my conclusion was, and I'm telling you.” Otto huffed, an old familiar annoyance returning to him, remembering how infuriating Norman had always been to work with. “You turned yourself into some kind of mutate. Probably an accident with those military experiments of yours.”

Otto wasn't wrong , the serum did indeed classify him as such; an artificial mutant, who was not born with their abilities, but acquired it later in life. A label that people still debated with the multi armed villain.

“More like a calculated risk that paid off ten-fold.” Norman smirked. “Unlike your little incident, I was able to be much more discreet about it.” He eyed the metal contraption hanging behind Octavious under his coat. He would be very curious to learn how they worked and what they were fully capable of if the opportunity arose.

“I can be plenty discreet when needed . But I don't have any connections that are in danger from my identity being known.” Otto pointed out, finishing the last of his drink and gesturing to the child in Norman's lap. “All your wealth and power, and you can't get someone to watch the boy when you're working?”

“Did we not mention the dead babysitter last night?” Norman shrugged, vaguely remembering that topic coming up. There was no remorse in his voice at all, as if this was just another employee he'd fired and not a murder victim. “Sticky fingers I could care less about. But neglecting Harry aswell is too far. There's only so many I can dispose of before people start to ask questions.” 

“Yeah, I imagine killing the staff is enough to get you blacklisted from most childcare companies.” Otto rolled his eyes, automatically picking up the discarded toy with an actuator when the baby got fussy again, holding it in front of Harry, but moving it away when the little one reached for it. The boy laughed and made grabby hands, before finally being given his teddy again.

“Not all of them end up dead. Only ones who go too far, or have the misfortune of catching me at the wrong time.” Norman didn't have to clarify what he meant by wrong time, Otto had now seen for himself the difference between both sides of his psyche. 

“Although.” Norman continued. “Considering you're apparently a natural with kids. Perhaps we can come to some sort of… mutually beneficial agreement? A simple arrangement, to help eachother out.” Norman suggested cryptically, his eyes taking on a calculating look.

“My days of working for you are over, Osborn.” Otto scoffed. Surely Norman wasn't suggesting what it seemed like he was. They hadn't been friends for many years. In fact, Otto now knew that they'd actively tried to kill each other on multiple occasions. “Besides, why would you even trust me? What could Norman Osborn or the Green Goblin possibly offer me in return to make it worth my while.”

“I don't trust easily, Octavious, you of all people know that. But you didn't know I was the Goblin last night, and yet you still protected my boy.” Norman emphasised, knowing that Otto couldn't claim he wouldn't be a protective childminder, when he'd already proved the contrary. “As for what I could offer you in return? I seem to remember you lost your main laboratory when the Spider busted you last week.”

Otto shook his head at the audacity of that implication. This whole thing was bizarre, even by their standards. 

Last night he tried to save a baby from the Goblin, and today Norman was offering him, doctor octopus , a lab in exchange for… a babysitting gig?

Chapter Text

Otto still couldn't believe any of this was real, even as he was led out of the penthouse and to the elevator, being escorted presumably to some kind of lab Norman had hidden away.

He hadn't even agreed to the bizarre proposition, but the arrogant man that he was, Norman seemed to already assume that he'd gotten his way as usual. 

There was always the option of walking away, turning around and not looking back on this whole situation. Norman would probably not track him down of his own accord… Even Otto wasn't sure he believed that fact, now knowing Norman and the Goblin were one in the same.

With a sigh, he followed Norman into the lift to see where this was going. He didn't have to agree to anything, but his curiosity was too strong to not find out exactly what the other man was proposing.

Norman gave him a subtle, but arrogant, smirk as the doors closed behind them. Otto didn't give him the satisfaction of reacting to it, despite feeling like he was unerringly acting out whatever script the other had already mentally written for this encounter. 

Whatever the case, Norman knew better than to gloat or bring it up if Otto was playing right into his hand. They had worked together a long time ago, both of them had too much pride and arrogance to not start a fight if they were called out.

Without a word, Norman inserted his penthouse key in the panel, and used the buttons to input a code that seemed to override all the controls. 

The elevator display glitched and went blank for a second, before showing a level that wasn't listed as an official floor. To all extent and purposes, the floor they started to travel to shouldn't even exist, and yet they descended down and down to the mystery subterranean level.

Little Harry was held comfortably in his fathers arms, happily babbling to himself, apparently casual as anything about what was going on. In his short life of living with the Green Goblin as his father, the young boy had probably already seen a lot of weird things he didn't understand, unfazed by Otto or the hacked elevator.

“This building’s changed hands so many times, the existence of this floor has been ‘conveniently lost’ over time.” Norman chuckled, seeing the suspicious look on Otto's face. “A slight ‘glitch’ in their system means that even the planning permission and blueprints don't show it anymore. It's completely untraceable and hidden.” 

Even before his Green Goblin days, the businessman had realised that it was valuable to have a place completely hidden away that no one knew about, where he could hide if the heat was on.

“How convenient." Otto half chuckled, impressed that it had remained that way for so long. He himself had multiple small hideaways dotted around the city, none of which had been in his possession long enough to ‘legally’ erase them from existence. But he supposed with Osborn's money, things are easier to cover up. Green Goblin may not have been around for a long time, but Norman himself had never landed fully on the white side of morality.

When the elevator door opened again, it was to a long hallway that stretched out on either side of them. Clearly at some point this was a storage facility for the building, with each unit having its own large metal doors. The modifications Norman had made were obvious even at a glance. The old heavy duty metal was jarringly juxtaposed with high-tech locks and wires connected to multiple units overhead. All very neat and tidy, despite the fact that no one but Osborn would have ever seen it.

As they approached one of the locks, Harold started fussing and squirming in Norman's arms, holding his arms out and making grabby motions towards the door, trying to communicate something with insistent toddler-babble.

“You want to push the button today?” Norman teased. He clearly understood what little Harry wanted, because the infant immediately clapped his hand happily while Norman held him out towards the lock.

Otto got the impression this was a common demand from the feisty little red-head, and couldn't help but wonder just how often Norman had his son around when he was working on his less than legal endeavours.

Once the button was pushed, Norman leaned forward enough for a retinal scan to confirm his identity. A loud beep and clicking sounded out, indicating that the door had been unlocked, and despite the heavy door, it seemed to swing open easily.

“We will need to put you in the system once you wish to utilize these facilities of course.” Norman said casually as he stepped inside. “I can assure you, my equipment is much more advanced than your seized labs, or whatever you and your little friends have managed to cobble together.”

Stepping into the converted storage unit, Otto couldn't deny the superior set up. This lab was huge, several large units merged together, with everything a mechanically minded villain could ask for. 

“I figured that given ‘Doctor Octopus's’ MO the workshop would be most appealing to you.” Norman chuckled, watching how Otto admired the equipment from a distance. 

Norman's assumptions had been absolutely correct. The lab was an engendering dream come true, everything from industrial vehicle equipment, to extremely precise soldering irons were neatly on display like a showroom. The net worth of this room alone was probably comparable to an entire state, And much more established and advanced than what Otto had been working with recently.

“There's also a chemical lab, armory and blacksmithing equipment in the other units that will be available to you, as well as almost anything else you could possibly need.” Norman explained, leaning against the door and making a fuss of Harry who was starting to get restless. “One unit will be locked off for our exclusive use, of course. Can't have you snooping or being tempted by any of the Goblins hoard after all.” He said in a teasing tone.

“You're putting a lot of trust in me not turning on you.” Otto pointed out. “I now know the location and access code to get down here. If not me, then I'm sure Adrian would take great pleasure in raiding and destroying everything he could get his claws on.”

“I have no doubt that ‘the Vulture’ would more than live up to his name and pick this place clean.” Norman agreed, seemingly unbothered by the implied threat. He had been the first to refer to Adrian Tooms as a vulture before either of their criminal careers started after all. 

“I'm also sure you would have no doubt that I would fight to the death if you or any of your six even attempted it. All that needless violence and potential fatalities, and for nothing.” He sighed, as if it would be such a chore to go through all of that, so confident that he'd be the victor.

“I could attack you right now, before you'd have a chance to get your armour or any of your dangerous little toys.” Otto pointed out, not understanding why Norman was putting so much trust in him remaining civil. They didn't have the best reputation for getting along, not as men, and definitely not as super-villains.

“You could.” Norman mused, tapping his finger against his chin as if thinking about it. “But do you really believe that you would? Right in front of the boy?” He asked with mild amusement, readjusting the infant on his hip as if to make a point. “And not feel guilty about traumatising your own godson?”

“Godso- Since when?!”

“Since tomorrow.” Norman said with a smug look. “Guardianship papers are deceptively easy to forge. Imagine my surprise when I suddenly discover my late wife had registered you as Harold's legal guardian without telling me.” 

“Norman. Are you insane? Actually, don't answer that.” Otto groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose and trying to wrap his head around this bizarre cherry on top of everything else.

There was no reality in which Otto would actually get custody if anything happened to Norman, not with his very public criminal record. Both of them knew this, so the blackmail was purely an emotional one, designed to make Otto feel guilty rather than a tangible threat.

Otto took a deep breath as he processed the bare bones of this exchange. “Let me get this straight. This is you, trying to extort me… for childcare?”

“I've extorted people for far less than the safety and security of my only child.” Norman shrugged as if it wasn't that big a deal. “I don't see the problem here. It's a win-win situation whichever way you slice it. You need a lab, and I need to ensure that the most valuable thing to me is safe. We both know how badly it would have been if someone else had followed me home whist I was distracted.”

With a sigh Otto realised he couldn't really fight that logic. If it had been someone like Scorpion instead of him, then the boy would have undoubtedly been in extreme danger. Not to mention that instead of stepping in to protect the child, most people would have watched and waited. Maybe they would have discovered Norman's identity, or worse, waited for him to be out of the house before coming to take or hurt his son in revenge.

“So what do you say, Octavius? Are you going to let your pride stop you from taking a deal with no real disadvantages to you?” Norman smirks, stepping up to Otto and offering him a handshake.

Despite his reservations, Otto shakes the offered hand with little hesitation. “Don't make me regret this, Osborn.”

As if not wanting to be left out, little Harry suddenly gives a happy yell and puts both his hands over the handshake with a big smile, as if sealing the deal.

“Welcome to the family Otto.” Norman grins.