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Usually, a person would find trash in a dumpster.Matt Murdock had found a person in the dumpster.A very small, very still person.“Hello?” he called down. “Can you hear me?”No answer. Either they were hard of hearing, unconscious, or close to it. He didn’t want to think about the other option.He leaped down from the fire escape, landing lightly beside the bin. He scanned the air for signs of blood or injury, but he couldn’t smell anything over the overwhelming stench of garbage.Luckily, when he listened, he could hear shallow, raspy inhales and exhales, accompanied by an ugly scraping sound, a telltale sign of broken ribs.Though he hated it, he realized he didn’t have any other option but to pull the person out to examine closer, though there was no telling how much damage that alone could do.Reaching in, he grabbed hold under each armpit and dragged the person out. Despite their deceivingly small size, they were surprisingly heavy, and Matt grunted as he heaved them up and over the rim of the dumpster.The moment he set the person on the ground, they let out a small, involuntary groan of pain, and Matt was almost bowled over by the smell of iron and copper.Right. So he found a mortally injured person lying in a dumpster on patrol. Totally normal.Tentatively, he placed his hands lightly on the person’s abdomen, only to jerk away when he fingers met what felt like wet, sticky pulp. That didn’t bode well at all. Frantically, he tried to remember what little he knew about the human body other than where to punch, but panic had closed off all rational thinking for the time being.He wasn’t the person to do this. And judging from the amount of blood, this person didn’t have long.He only knew one place to go.Picking up the person, he slung them (gently) over his shoulder, before taking off down the street.***Ten minutes later, Matt stood on the doorstep of an apartment. Holding onto the person with both hands, he kicked the door until he heard someone inside move. Then he stopped for a few seconds before picking back up again.”What do you WANT?!”The door swung open, and the towering figure of Luke Cage filled the doorway. He hit Matt with a wave of pissed off vibes before he stopped short, first recognizing Matt, then taking in the bloody body slung over his shoulder. “Matt, what the hell?!”“Claire,” Matt growled breathlessly, still winded from running. “Where’s Claire?””What do you mean, where’s Claire? Wh—“”I’m here.” Matt heard Claire coming out of the bedroom, tying her robe. “Can’t you find another person to wake up in the middle of the —oh my God.””I need your help,” Matt begged her. “I don’t know how long this person’s got? It took me ten minutes to get here, and they’ve been bleeding out the whole time.”Both Claire and Luke stayed frozen for a second, but Claire broke out of her trance first. “Right. Luke, get my kit.””But—“”Get my kit.”Luke went to get her kit. Claire started pushing aside furniture to clear a space so that Matt could set down the body onto their hardwood floor. He set the person down as gently as possible, but despite his efforts he heard a groan of pain.Luke came back, silently handing Claire her kit. She set to work, only giving a few instructions to Luke to go grab paper towels or a dish rag. Luke did that, and also came back with a glass of water for Matt. He accepted it thankfully, feeling guilty for waking them up so late at night, but then reminding himself that it was for a good cause.Then Claire reached for something, and Luke stopped her. “Baby, no. Don’t.””Luke, I need to check his eyes.””He has it on for a reason. Even Matt’s got one.””We’re past that point, now. This is life or death, and I don’t have time to worry about it. It’s not like we’re going to tell anyone, anyway.””Wait,” Matt held up a hand. “What are you talking about. What do I have?””A mask.””Is this person wearing a mask? Like a ski mask or what?”There was a long awkward pause before Claire broke the silence. “Matt, he’s wearing a mask because you just happened to pick up Spider-Man on patrol tonight.””What?” Spider-Man? Though that would explain the small size, but still, what? “What the hell was he doing in Hell’s Kitchen? Doesn’t he work in Queens?”Claire shrugged. “You tell me. You found him.”“I didn’t even know he was Spider-Man.””Then I don’t know what to say.” Claire waved Luke off. “No, I’m taking this off. Let me do my job.”She peeled the mask off Spider-Man, and both she and Luke froze.“Oh my God,” Claire breathed.Matt was getting really tired of this. “What?”She shook herself. “I-It’s nothing. I just never imagined him being that...young.””How young is he,” Matt asked as she set back to work.”I can’t tell. He looks like a teenager, but to be honest, he could be like twelve.”“Spider-Man’s twelve?”“I’m kidding Matt. Sort of. He just looks really young.”They sat the rest of the time in silence.***Matt was going over a new case when Spider-Man woke up.Claire and Luke, being the badass saints that they were, let him go home, grab some work, and change into normal clothes before coming back to keep tabs on the young vigilante.Matt was alerted to their resident patient when the kid let out a hiss of pain. Without turning, Matt listened to find that Spider-Man was trying to get off the couch Claire had planted him on once she finished stitching him back together.”It would hurt less if you sat back down,” Matt commented, waiting to see the kid’s reaction. Spider-Man stopped in his tracks before lowering himself back down onto the couch cushions. Matt smirked to himself.Then, after a moment, the kid spoke. “It would also hurt less if I stopped breathing.”Matt broke into a real grin then. Turning around, he faced Spider-Man. “What was Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man doing that got him beaten half to death in a dumpster?””Who’s asking?” the kid replied, though Matt was fairly sure he was only half paying attention to their conversation. From the restlessness that the kid moved with, Matt guessed he was trying to take in his surroundings.”I am,” Matt replied, leaning back in his chair. “And a few other people. Like my friends that patched you up and whose house you’re in right now.””Well, some people decided they liked beating up pedestrians for cash, and I tried to intervene. We had a disagreement.””Worst disagreement I’ve seen. And I’m a lawyer.””Huh,” Spider-Man said. “Well, since you’ve already seen my face, I’m Peter.””I actually haven’t.””What?”Matt raised a hand to his eyes and snapped his fingers. “Haven’t seen your face.”Spider-Man, well, Peter groaned. “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.”Matt chuckled. “It’s fine. I’m Matt.” “Hi Matt.”A moment, then, “Thanks, Matt.””Don’t thank me. Thank Claire.”***A week later, Matt was patrolling again. Thankfully, no more bodies in dumpsters had been found, so it had been a good week. Spider-Man had stuck to Queens, meaning Matt hadn’t seen much of Peter recently.So he decided to go near the other borough.Perching on an office building right outside Queens, Matt waited.Sure enough, at 9:30 on the dot, Spider-Man came zooming in, flipping and landing on the roof a few meters away.”Hey!” Peter called, and Matt could hear the kidlike enthusiasm in his voice. Now that he knew Peter’s age, he couldn’t see him as an adult anymore. “You’re Daredevil, right!””Yes,” Matt replied, biting back a smile.”I’m a huge fan!” Peter gushed earnestly, and Matt almost burst out laughing. This kid was almost too much. “Thanks,” he managed to choke out.They sorta stood there for a moment, before Peter said, “I gotta keep patrolling, but it was awesome meeting you!”And Matt couldn’t help it. He said, “Good seeing you too, Peter.”Then he jumped to one building over, leaving Peter standing there, stunned.Priceless, he thought.