alexis harper
aka, the recluse
the bite
unlike the other known spider-bitten, powered people, lexi was bitten as a child. great power? great responsibility? try explaining that to a seven-year-old who just sprouted venomous fangs.
vigilante's venom
some days she isn't sure if she's the dark hero, taking out the wicked for the great good. or, if she's become the monster herself. so far, she's kept her identity secret.
blending in
lexi was able to harness her heightened senses to have one very unique career that allows her to blend in easily. she's a chef with an impressive resume, working under a food blogging contract for a network.
the bite
alexis harper was a quiet child, often ducking her alcoholic father's temper. her mother was often the punching bag, and lexi couldn't do anything to stop it. the first seven years of her life were troubling, without much hope for change, until something incredibly strange happened.
her mother thought it was a brown recluse. those bites carry venom, difficult for an adult to fight, and surely would be worse for a child. she needed to take lexi to the doctor. her father, as usual, spent their money on his poison of choice. her arm ached as her parents fought. then she saw her father strike her mother with something - one of the very bottles he drank from. glass and blood mixed on the ground as her mother fell lifeless. lexi leapt and fangs came out, biting her father, poisoning him. he fell next to her mother. she called 911.
she remembers sitting on the steps outside to this day, more vividly than she can recall her mother falling. so many sirens and people in uniforms. they took her in, telling her she was brave. but her fangs wouldn't go away, so she kept her mouth closed. they said it was shock, and maybe it was.
it wasn't until much later at the police station that an older officer came in to see her with hot chocolate that she opened her mouth, revealing her fangs. but the officer was kind. she introduced herself as marie and told lexi she was special. that was the first time she cried. she fell asleep in marie's arms, and her fangs retreated back into her gums.
she stayed with marie for a couple of weeks. she was safe; she was able to weep for her mother, and there was no judgement when there were no tears for her father. she had no other family, but marie promised she wouldn't go into the system. she was getting ready to retire and offered to adopt lexi. she promised to keep her secret safe and to get her the training she would need, if she wanted to be like the other spider-bitten people of the world.
she stayed in marie's care and worked through her trauma. in time, she called her mother-marie. through marie's contacts, lexi received training in gymnastics and kick-boxing but also lock-picking and computer hacking. she's a well-rounded spider, able to bring something to a team or perfectly capable to work on her own.
vigilante's venom
as the recluse, lexi's main objective is to help the helpless. she has a soft heart for children in abusive situations like her own case. her trouble is that as she's grown up, she's realized that kids can face these challenges in privileged homes just the same as a poor, struggling home like hers.
if she sees someone in power hurting the less fortunate on a larger scale, she will find a way to take them out, whether it's by indirect means or by simple poisoning. she doesn't lose sleep in these cases.
she realizes she isn't going to be an avenger - at least, not by captain's standards. but she looks up to jessica jones, daisy johnson, and captain marvel. she believes she can use her powers and resourcefulness to make a difference............ it just might not be in the golden, perfect light.
.....and sometimes she might look like the bad guy. she's okay with that.
as her powers go, she has retractable fangs that hold lethal venom. she has learned with age how to control how much venom she releases at a time. she's also able to bottle her venom. she creates the standard spider webbing from her wrists. she has heightened senses. she's also trained in kickboxing, jujitsu, and gymnastics to go along with the usual spider agility.
blending in
lexi learned before the bite that she loved to cook with her mother. one of the few things she kept was her mother's recipe box - something she absolutely treasures.
after the bite, her heightened senses initially made food very confusing. her palette was changed - things she loved felt too sweet now, and things she used to hate now had depth and flavor. as she learned to accept her new normal, she began to cook with her abilities in mind. mother-marie gave her free reign of the kitchen, understanding lexi needed a safe space to work through her trauma.
her gifts helped her to become something of a savant in the kitchen. she won a several cooking competitions in their area and competed nationally once, but the attention from that was too much. still, her talent didn't go unnoticed - she received a scholarship to culinary school which she attended after high school, then she started a vlog of cooking segments.
.....she was careful to keep her fangs in check and hide her webbing in the videos. She tried to have something of a normal life despite being a spider at night.
She was offered a contract to travel and continue her vlog, but now getting to cook in kitchens more than just her own. It gives her the opportunity to push both of her careers forward..... if she can keep her anxiety and venom in check.