Quick note before the story. This is a test of a character I have been thinking about for a while now and was told by Legolas. that I should write it. I have posted this story on a forum some where so those of you that have seen it might know a little about the character. Please let me know your thoughts on this story either by reviewing or PMing me with the details.
Locked away in a small room on the top floor of an apartment in New York a young woman was slouched over in her chair, arms and head resting on the desk before her seemingly asleep. Her raven shoulder length curls hiding her face. The desk lamp next to her switched on, the timer triggering it as it was set up to do. Light filled the small space as best as it could. The woman stirred at the sudden light. Sitting up slightly just to slump back in the chair with her arms hanging by her sides. Her jade green eyes opened yet didn't seem to focus as she stared lifelessly at the wall the desk was pushed up against. Newspaper clippings were pinned to the wall. Each had the same thing with little true differences between them. A photo of a woman in a silver and black skin tight one piece with a white spider just about her breasts. Over her face was a mask. Only her mouth and curly black hair were visible. The headlines all reading more or less the same thing. "Shadowspider strikes again." Each clipping had pen or marker scribbling on them. Things like "not true", "lies", and "innocent" had been written over most of them and the ones that hadn't been written on were scribbled out. A silent tear ran down her check before she brushed it away and stood. "I need a drink." The woman sighed before turning and leaving the room.
The woman, Lee Almar walked the dark streets of the city. Her jacket, a worn men's black leather one protected her from the harsh wind that was blowing through the street. Fitting. She thought bitterly as she turned and entered a bar just one block from her apartment. The place was almost empty, as it always seemed to be. Which was why Lee liked it so much. Almost empty meant she didn't have to push away drunks looking for a date, people looking for one nighters, or people talking about the latest news on Shadowspider. Sitting at the bar the bartender set her usual before her. "Been a while." He greeted her. "Hit a low tonight." Was all she said before taking a slow sip. He nodded and went to the other end of the bar; know she wasn't in the mood to talk. Setting her drink down Lee put her head in her hands. The nightmare of Shadowspider's bad press haunting her even there. She felt her fangs trying to appear and pushed them away before picking her drink up again. The door to the bar opened and closed, informing her that someone had entered. She paid no mind until a man sat down two stools from her on her right. Looking at him from the corner of her eyes she noticed he was well built, blue eyed, and had neatly combed short blond hair. She guessed by the way he held himself that he was a solider. She stopped looking at him and returned to her drink, barely noticing as he ordered a beer.
Lee had only started on her second drink when her thoughts were cut into by a voice. "Are you alright Ms?" Turning her head she found the blond man looking at her with a look of concern. A good guy? Not many like him these days. She thought before answering. "Got a lot on my mind." She figured that short answer would be enough for him as well as let him know she wasn't interested in talking to him. "Maybe I could help?" He didn't take the hint. Lee let out a sigh and put her drink down. "I'm not looking for help. Nor do I want to talk about it." Lee thought about just leaving for a moment before shrugging off the thought. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to butt into your business Ms." He turned back to his beer looking sad and defeated, like a kicked puppy. "Lee." The blond turned a confused look to her. "What?" He asked. "My name is Lee. Lee Almar." The smile that spread on his face was almost contagious. He quickly held his hand out to her. "Steve Rogers." Lee nearly fell off her stool at that. Pulling herself together she shook his hand. "Aren't you Captain America?" She feared the answer but had to be sure. He smiled shyly and blushed. "Yes ma'am." An Avenger here? They can't know who I am yet! No, clam down. There's no way they could know. "Strange place for an Avenger to be. Doesn't Tony Stark have a full bar in that tower you all live in?" The blond, Steve nodded. "Yes he does. But I don't like drinking with Tony often. He seems to have made it his life goal to try to get me drunk. I fear what his liver must look like." Lee nodded. She had heard of Tony Stark's drinking habit and had little doubt that he would often get drag others into drinking with him. "This is one of the few bars Tony doesn't know about. So I come here to get away for a little while." He finished. "I take it you don't like your team-mates?" If he doesn't then maybe I could use this. Steve shrugged. "It's not that I don't like them. They are a good bunch and I am happy to fight beside them all. But like any team there are things that we disagree and fight on." That was not what Lee had been hoping for. So she sighed and took a drink. "And with this business of Shadowspider we tend to fight a lot." It took everything for Lee not to choke at that. "What business of Shadowspider?" Steve sighed and took a drink. "We've been assigned to capture her. She's a threat that everyone wants off the streets. Problem is no one's been able to hold her long enough to even cuff her." He explained. "And what have you been fighting on?" He shook his head. "I shouldn't be telling you this." He sighed. "I'm just one person and no one is listening in. It will stay between us." Steve studied Lee's jade eyes before sighing again. "Alright. We're arguing over how to go about catching her. So far traps don't work and we have no idea what she is after. Her invisibility makes her hard to track. Clint thinks the best way to catch her is to put an arrow through her. Not to kill her but to force her to drop to the ground in pain and prevent her from getting up and running any time soon." Don't let Hawkeye get me in his sites. "Natasha thinks the same but with a bullet." Or Black Widow. "Tony thinks he can disable her invisibility but so far all attempts let to the device creating the invisibility to explode." How many of them want to hurt me? "Thor thinks we should just charge her all at once and knock her out." At last! One where I don't end up dead or badly wounded. Though with the way he hits things I still might be hurt or killed. "Bruce, well he doesn't want to partake in the capture. He's sure the other guy would kill her." I am starting to hate these guys. Steve took a long drink of his beer, draining it and ordering another. "What about you? What do you think your team should do?" Steve stared at her for several long minutes, making Lee fear she had said something to tip him off that she was pumping him for information. "I think we need to take a closer look at her. What she's doing. What she might be after. So far nothing points to what Shadowspider is looking for. She never steals anything. Only ever destroys the odd building and kill a few people here and there. The rest of the time she leave people alive but unconscious with two puncture wounds were the shoulder meets the neck. And the ones she leaves alive don't seem to know anything that can help us. She must be after something." Lee leaned back, somewhat relieved to know that at least one Avenger didn't want her hurt or dead. "Well good luck with Shadowspider." Lee took out her wallet and paid for her drinks. "Wait I'll walk you home." Steve offered. "I don't live far and I have pepper spray. Nice meeting you Captain." She brushed off before quickly leaving. She didn't need an Avenger following her home.
Hanging from a web attached to a crane Lee sighed heavily. She had thought she'd tracked down one of the crime bosses she believed was connected to the people that were allegedly after her. But after five hours she was ready to give up. "Waste of time." She sighed before free falling a few feet. Twisting her body she fired off a strand of webbing at the corner of a near by building and swung off down the street. I need to get better sources of information. That's the fourth time I've been wrong this month. And it's only the second week of the month! I better Spiderman doesn't have this problem. "Huh?" Lee had enough time to turn in mid air before something collided with her and sent her crashing onto a rooftop. Pushing herself up Lee backed away slightly at the sight of Ironman pointing his weapons at her. "I wouldn't do that." He warned. Lee barely had time to wonder what he meant before her body just managed to dodge the arrow that had been aimed at her. Not good! She could see Hawkeye on the roof across from the one she and Ironman were on, another arrow at the ready. "Now would be a good time to rethink your life." Lee sent a glare to Ironman before realizing all he could see of it was her frown. So she let her fangs grow and hissed at him. "Bad kitty." He joked before firing at her.
Lee slide down her shower wall as the warm water filled the air with steam and washed the blood and dirt off her. She had just managed to get away from the two Avengers, but not with out taking heavy damage. Her left shoulder was burnt, she had several cuts were arrows nearly dug in, multiple bruises dotted her torso, and she was sure she had at least two cracked ribs. Had she not remembered her invisibility at the last moment she knew she would've been beaten and captured. "Idiots the lot of them." Lee was beginning to believe that whoever was after her was convincing the heroes to go after her too. Shaking her head Lee forced herself to her feet, wincing at the pain before grabbing her soap.
Once showered she stumbled naked to bed and flopped onto her stomach. The moonlight from her window lit up her naked back, highlight the large scar that ran from the back of her right hip to the back of her left shoulder. Smaller scars dotted her back and most of her legs. She knew the small ones came from the crash that took her family from her as a child. But the large one was a mystery to her. The doctors claimed it was years old but found no reason it should've been there. Shutting her eyes from the moonlight Lee let herself drift away from the world into what past for a dream in her mind.
A blur of colours and shapes dancing through her mind. Sounds jumbled together for most of it. But as always one part of her dream always had clear sound. "Lee? Lee where are you? Come on Lee we don't have time for this!" The voice seemed to belong to a woman and held both worry and annoyance. Each time she heard it a name would dance on the tip of Lee's tongue as if taunting her before disappearing as the sun forced her awake. It was torture for her, having to go through this every night. But she knew she couldn't avoid it. She needed to be rested for her search for answers. So each night she let the dream taunt her. Let it slowly drive her into madness. For that name couldn't dance forever. One day it would be her's. The blur of colours and shapes would give way to memories and she would have answers. But until then she would allow them the pleasure of their dance while she searched the waking world for clues and answers. For someone had to hold them, one way or another.