He was the same. In a time where everything else was different, Bobby Drake was the same. The same easy smile, the same bright eyes, the same unbridled desire to help people. In the future — the present, as far as Miguel was concerned, Spider-Man was harsh and angry and prone to violence where violence wasn’t required. It was often Ice Man who held him back, Ice Man who reminded him that sometimes, peaceful solutions were possible. You could smother a fire with ice instead of letting it burn a house to the ground. All you had to do was let yourself.
Bobby was making his way towards him, and Miguel really should have left. This wasn’t his time, wasn’t the age he was supposed to meet Bobby at. He was well aware that every move he made in 2020 would alter 2099 in ways he wasn’t yet aware of, but god, he wanted to hang around long enough to bask in the familiarity of Bobby Drake. He was selfish, but he didn’t care much about the timeline right now. He cared about seeing one of his best friends and having a moment of understanding in a world that made increasingly little sense.
“Yeah, no problem,” he nodded, smiling faintly under his mask. “Everybody’s hiding something. Take me, for example — I’m hiding one hell of a face.” He tilted his head as Bobby spoke, ticking off the powers in his mind. He’d known about them, of course, and that was strange. He knew Bobby, and Bobby didn’t know him. That would probably happen a lot in 2020, wouldn’t it? “Cool. I get it. That’s a good one. You can’t die? Do you… You know, get older?” Did he know he didn’t get older? Did he realize he was going to outlive pretty much everyone he knew? “Ah. Now that’s a complicated question. I’ve met you, but you haven’t met me.”
There was so much good in Bobby, believing that there could be peaceful solutions to most situations if you look hard enough. This isn’t to say that the Mutant wouldn’t get violent if needed to, not often pushed to being angry to let loose, a dangerous situation if that would happen. Bobby is well aware when it comes to what he’s capable of doing, but having the heart not to cover the entire city in ice. Someone else with similar abilities might if they felt society wasn’t worth saving, but Bobby was never interested in being some God by freezing everything around him.
The moments Bobby is pushed to be less friendly is usually when it comes to protecting the children. He still lives at the school, not afraid to crate razor sharp snowflakes to pin intruders to a nearby surface. He could do so much damage if Bobby just opened the gate, but believes it was smart knowing when and where his more extreme of abilities would be needed.
He just doesn’t want anyone to be afraid of him. Which is his main concern if Bobby went around letting his violent side take over.
“I’m not sure what that means, but I would never judge your appearance if you ever show me. I’ll tell you a secret I’ve never told anyone else. Sometimes I wish I didn’t have to unfrost myself. I wish I could live in my ice form all the time, but I can only use it for hours at a time. I feel more myself when I’m like that, but I’ve never told anyone that before.” Bobby doesn’t hate his Human form, but just prefers to be covered in ice. It makes him feel HAPPY. “I don’t know, I’m not sure what will happen to me. I don’t know if I’ll look thirty forever, or what will happen to my body. Wait —“ Bobby makes a confused expression. “How did you already meet me if I don’t remember you?”
