It hurt to leave his friends in that alleyway, especially after they found out his greatest secret. It would have been nice to talk to them more about it, but he needed to keep them safe. His own emotional needs didn't matter, not with what was at stake. He needed to keep moving forward, despite missing what he was leaving behind.

His back backpack with all his gear was close, but still too far away for his liking. Getting out of hos costume and into better cloths would make hiding a whole lot easier. Moving around with the copters in search mode was still difficult, but he managed by hiding between the alley's and only moving when he thought it was safe enough for him.

Spider-Man stopped at the end of an alleyway when he heard voices. He carefully peaked his head out and saw Pro Heroes there, talking just after dealing with a fire. Most of the explosions had been dealt with now, thankfully, but this also meant heroes would be back on patrol. Getting past them would be no easy feat.

"…What am I doing?" he whispered to himself.

His mind travelled to class 1-A, and all the friends he made in his time there. Tenya was still grieving for his brothers' injuries, now he couldn't be there to comfort him. Momo still felt useless because she lost at the festival, and he couldn't be there, telling her how wonderful she was. Mina will be heartbroken; they'll never be able to watch that sci-fi romance movie he promised to come over and see. It hurt more than anything to abandon his friends, but at this point, it was the only way to keep them safe.

He had to let them go, even if they hated him for it.

Cold metal was suddenly shoved in front of his neck, just barely touching it. From the corner of his eye, he saw it to be a blade, one that he recognized well. His spider-sense finally rung, just a half second after the blade had suddenly appeared before him. Every nerve in his body said something was behind him, but he didn't need a spider-sense to know that.

"Where is the Mind Stone?" Nightmare said, the blade hovering around his neck with the other hand on his shoulder.

"I don't have it," Spider-Man kept still as not to provoke the killer, "Go bother some other hero in tights."

"Don't test me," He said, pushing the blade closer, "Or I'll hunt down and kill your whole family."

"No, you won't. No one is paying you."

"I kill either whoever I'm paid to, or whoever I think deserves it."

"You can stop now. You aren't going to get paid anymore, Tombstone was arrested half an hour ago."

His grip on the blade tightened, adjusting his position to the arachnid, "I'm not doing this for him," he growled, "Where is it?"

His speed was likely already recharged now, so making a move on him wasn't going to work or he'd just get sliced up. If he wasn't working on orders from Tombstone anymore, then why was he still doing this? Was he working for someone else, or did he have his own agenda?

"Do you see pockets in this suit?" Spider-Man waved his empty hands, "I got nothing, lucid loony."

Nightmare examined Spider-Mans suit, checking to see if he was telling the truth. He used his free hand to pat him down, and found the belt he wore under the torso of the suit.

"Nice try," he said, lifting up part of the torso of his costume and looking into the belt's contents. All he found were web pellets and other gadget parts for his web shooters, which he didn't even have access to right now.

After checking all the pockets, he lifted the torso piece back down, groaned in annoyance, and backed off with the blade sheathed to his hip. Spider-Man hadn't turned around before hearing him try to walk away.

"Hey!" Spidey said as he turned around, "That's it? You threaten me and just leave?"

"Hm …yeah," He bluntly said, "You're no use to me. Tombstone was arrested, meaning I'm no longer getting paid. I only kill either those I'm paid to kill, or people who've wronged me. Be glad you don't fit in either anymore."

"At least tell me why you want the stones. I'm sick of the whole 'I'm a brooding back guy so ill never talk about my motives' persona. Save me and everyone the time, please."

Nightmare let his head roll around on his neck, annoyed by his persistence for something so small as a motive. Heroes always needed a reason, a specific thing to tie down the motivation so they can have something to pin on them. For him, it wasn't that simple. There is no one event that motivated his actions, it was a multitude of painful memories and torturous rounds of the clock.

"Pain," He said, "What other reason would someone have?"

Spider-Man jumped into the air and landed in front of Nightmare, keeping at least a yard of distance between them. He would need at least a second to react to the use of his quirk if needed. He wasn't going to let him leave knowing how dangerous he was.

"Heroes," Nightmare sighed, "always thinking too small," with the push of a button on his belt, a timer started ticking from it, "About three blocks down from out the left of this alley, you'll find an apartment building with bombs strapped to the bottom of the structure. You have about 5 minutes to do something about it."

"I thought you didn't kill innocents!"

"I don't," he walked past him, "So you better save them."

After Nightmare dashed away, Spidey wasted no time rushing up the wall and onto the rooftops, leaping through the air at great speeds. He was tired from the fight with Tombstone, but continued to push himself despite how his muscles screamed at him. The night was just never going to end, not until every last player was off the chessboard. He hoped Nightmares schemes would be the last issue to prevent before he could finally let himself rest.

Landing on the street and giving nearby civilians a heart attack, he found the only apartment building for a few blocks in that direction. Getting closer to it, he immediately spotted about five bombs attached to the buildings support structures on the outside. The timer was set at 4 minutes and fifteen seconds, not enough time to evacuate everyone inside. He would need to disarm the bombs manually.

"Everyone, get clear!" He shouted to those traveling on the sidewalks and street.

Kneeling down to the first bomb, he opened up the casing and started to mess with the wires. Normally he could just rip the bomb off, web it up and throw it high in the air for a controlled explosion. A feat like that was unfortunately impossible without his web shooters, so he needed to get smart about things. It took him an entire minute of his time, but eventually he was able to disarm it. Thankfully, he's had some experience with bomb threats.

Knowing what he needed to do now, he rushed to the next bomb and repeated this action, which also took a minute. This repeated for the others as well, until he disarmed the fourth bomb and noticed he only had 15 seconds left. The last bomb was in the back of the building, sitting on the bottom center of the wall. He ran as fast as he could, ignoring that he hadn't the time to disarm it.

Just as he came into view of it, the bomb reached zero and exploded, destroying the bottom piece of the walls structure. With it, a good amount of the front of the first floor had gone as well. Everyone in the streets who stupidly stuck around screamed in a panic, calling police and Pro Heroes on their cellphones to come and help.

With a major support set now lost, the entire building had started to topple over. People inside had started screaming in horror as they didn't know what to do.

"No!" Shouted Peter as the building began to fall forward toward the civilians in the street. He rushed as quickly as he could, sliding onto the street and holding his arms up just as the wall came down on him. His super strength had managed to stop it just before it could smash into the ground. Surprisingly, it remained intact, which hopefully meant the people inside were ok. Still, even with his strength, he couldn't hold the wall forever.

"Get out of here!" he grunted, nearly losing his grip on the building. The civilians on the street started running away in a panic, but he could still hear the screams of the people inside.

His feet cracked the ground below him now as he put everything, he had into keeping that wall up. He pushed it up further and further, moving forward with it as he did. Cracking and falling debris made him stop as he realized the walls weren't as stable as he hoped. If he moved any further, everything would come apart.

Just when he thought his muscles were going to fail, the weight of the building suddenly became lighter. The wall started to hover over his hands and lift back into place. It hadn't done so itself, rather someone else had started pushing. He looked up and saw two massive hands pushing on the building, grabbing it by its front corners and leaning it back into place. Her shadow overtook his entire body, though her eyes remained focused on the collapsing complex.

By his feet, tree roots had started moving across the yard and to the back of the building. They took root where the explosion had hit and filled the gaps in the support structure. By this point, Spider-Man had fell to his knees in exhaustion and just watched as two familiar heroes took care of the problem.

When the roots were in place, Mt. Lady was able to let go and catch her breath, laughing only for a second before she locked onto the young arachnid hero. Quickly she shrunk down to normal size and jogged over to him, kneeling down and holding him by his shoulders.

"…Mt. Lady?" He asked.

She nodded to him, giving him a warm hug in thankfulness that he was safe. That was the main thing on her mind; that he wasn't injured from the experience. She hadn't even thought about why he was here or what he thought he was doing. Kamui, on the other hand, was the opposite.

"You've got some things to answer for, kid," Kamui spoke in regret. He honestly liked the kid a lot, and admired his determination and inner strength. That said, he had been breaking the law according to a recent source, and that was unacceptable.

"Kamui, give him a minute!" Mt. lady demanded, holding him tighter against herself.

"We can't," Another voice called out. Spidey now noticed that a few police cars were parked around the streets, with barricades keeping civilians out. They must have moved in while he was distracted from keeping the building aloft. The voice in question came from Detective Naomasa, and he didn't look very happy.

"Peter Parker," Naomasa called out, "I'm sorry, but you're under arrest. You have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you."

"Under arrest?" He questioned, "I didn't fight any villains! I just tried to save this building!"

"We both know that's another lie. The drug dealer Tombstone was just arrested, and he was pretty chatty on the way to lockup."

Tombstone, of course. In one final effort against him, he had told them everything about how Spidey had fought him. Even with him in cuffs, he still proved an issue for him.

"He said you were there to fight him, along with two others he didn't describe. Right now, though, our focus is you. You used your abilities to harm a villain without having the right to do so. We have no choice but to place you under arrest."

Mt. Lady didn't like what she was hearing, but she knew it was the truth. He had done something he shouldn't have, and some form of punishment had to be done. Then again, she felt horrible for how much he has been through recently, and this was only adding to it.

Spider-Man escaped her grasp and slowly stood up straight, almost losing his balance on his right side.

"Kamui Woods," Naomasa called out, "Handcuffs."

Kamui nodded and pulled out a pair of handcuffs. He stepped forward, and immediately Spider-Man stepped back.

"Kid, don't make this hard," Kamui asked.

He clenched his gloved fists with his gaze locked on Kamui. If he did 'the right thing' and turned himself in, it would do no one any good. Above everything else, helping others was his priority, even if it harmed him in the end.

"I'm not going," He stated, backing up again, "I'm sorry."

In response to his resistance, many officers put up their guns with the safety off. He stood his ground in spite of them, refusing to move any further back despite how fast his heart was pumping.

"Cutie …" Mt. Lady whined, "Please don't do this. I know you've been through a lot, and I really wish I could make this go away, but you have to face this."

"Naomasa!" Spider-Man called out, "I told you about the stones. I told you what was at stake, so you need to understand why I can't go with you. Your Pros won't get it done, not with their focus being on their careers, looking good, making money and keeping up their reputation. You don't know what you're really up against and you may never know. That's why it has to be me who fights against it."

"You can't decide that!"

"Believe me, I want people to fight with me. I want others to help, but the few heroes who see their power as responsibility are teaching at U.A. I won't wait for the worlds approval anymore, and if that means becoming a fugitive …" He opened his arms out wide, "Then that's what I am. I'll be whatever I have to be if it means keeping others safe, may God damn my own safety."

His words moved her like they always have. His heart was strong and immovable, as he truly felt what he was doing was right. He really believed that breaking the law was the only way to keep people safe. Perhaps it was, perhaps this was the only way and he could see it. Despite this, she still didn't do anything to defend him.

"If you do this …You can't go home to your family," Mt. Lady reminded him, "Your aunt, your foster family, your friends …what happens to them?"

"They are strong. I have to put my trust in them, as I hope you can put in me."

The officers tried to move closer now, their fingers on the trigger in case he tried to move. Mt. lady moved out of the way so she wouldn't get shot, yet still worried about any bullets flying in his direction.

"Stop resisting!" Yelled Naomasa, "Don't do this, Parker! You can walk away! Go on trial and cooperate!"

"By then, it'll be too late!" He cried, "I can't wait any longer! I have to be the hero I know I can be, no matter the consequences! That's who I am, it's who Spider-Man is!"

"…Mt. Lady," He turned to her, "Restrain Mr. Parker."

Mt. Lady didn't want to fight him, she didn't want to treat him like another criminal. He was a good kid, and a greater hero. She wanted to spend more time with him, to feel what it was like to take care of a son. She wanted to teach him how to be a better hero.

Perhaps he already knew everything he needed to.

His gaze locked with hers now, regret steaming off both their bodies. They were passed the point of no return now. It was only going to end one of two ways, both with the same starting point. Someone had to strike first whether they wanted to or not.

"Peter …I am really sorry," She whimpered.

"I know, it's ok," he smiled under the mask, "Do what you have to do, and I'll do the same."

With a tear in her eye, she made the first move.

Mt. Lady grew and tried reaching out for him. When her hand came close enough, he leapt forward and dived between her fingers, rolling onto her palm. He ran up her arm and jumped toward her face, landed a punch square on her massive cheek. She hadn't expected the attack to be so strong, feeling about as powerful as a normal punch at her regular size. Off guard, Spidey kicked off her face and sent it to the ground with a loud thud, flying through the air as officers began to open fire on him.

He used his spider-sense to dodge the bullets by twisting through the air. His movements were fluid, but some bullets still managed to graze him. Landing on a police car, his foot smacked the nearest officer in the face and made him drop his gun. No one continued firing now that he was so close to them. With this to his advantage, he leapt around and took everyone's gun, tossing them all to the side when he was done.

Kamui tried to stop his movements by plantings roots into the ground. The roots were unable to keep up, just missing his feet every time he touched the ground. Dodging another one, Spidey soared toward Kamui and flipped over his shoulder, throwing him over his own and watching his body slam into the street.

Mt. Lady got back up and tried reaching again, but he dodged to the side as she swept her hand toward him. Despite his speed, her size caught up to him and smacked his back. He was sent flying across the street and crashing into the windshield of a car. Most of his body landed in the front seat with glass causing several cuts.

Officers approached slowly with their guns pointed. Spidey climbed to the back seat and opened the side door, and they began firing on his movement. Once out of the car, he used his strength to push it sideways and it acted as a shield for him. Officers continued to fire, and he could see Kamui's roots coming between their feet. He acted fast and pushed the car with all his might, sending it skidding forward and knocking the front officers over.

With a leap over the car he then used the officers as steps toward Kamuo, who he then again struck with the heel of his foot. Mt. Lady's fist came at him again and he made a quick jump. He had just barely missed her attack and rolled onto her arm, sliding off to the side and kicking it away. A stray bullet suddenly caught his arm, making him shout in pain and rush over to another police car and using it as a shield.

"You can't keep this up!" Naomasa said, "Turn yourself in!"

The officers, Kamui and Mt. Lady were closing in on him, and he was running low on stamina with how frequently he was moving. A final desperate attempt. He lifted the police car as it tilted away from his bad arm, and threw it at Mt. Lady. It smacked her in the face, dazing her long enough for her to fall sideways and disorient the officers. No one had gotten hurt, only shook by her impact against the ground.

In the moment of confusion, he leapt to the nearest wall and started climbing. The officers resumed their fire just as he made it to the top, and vanished over the rooftops.

"Get after him!" Naomasa shouted as the officers ran to their cars.

Kamui rushed to Mt. Lady as she recovered from the attack, shaking the dust off her face and out of her hair, "Are you ok?" He asked, "We gotta keep moving or he'll get away."

He'll get away, he said. They really were treating him as a criminal now. Nodding, she shrunk down to normal size and got to her feet. Running down the streets at a larger size would crush people, meaning they had to do this the old fashion way.

…

The sound of police sirens was rather unsettling for Spidey as he sprinted across the rooftops. Never has he missed web swinging more than he did now. No matter how fast he seemed to run, they continued to keep up with him. Without his webs, he couldn't outrun the police or Pro Heroes should they bring others in to catch him.

He was a full-blown vigilante now, fugitive status and all.

His spider-sense sounded once more, and he rolled to the side just as a figure crashed down next to him. When he recovered, he managed to get a good look at her. She wore a costume that somewhat resembled a bunny, including her metal feet. She stared him down with a huge grin on her face, like she had already won before this even started.

"No where left to run, kid!" Miruko spoke confidently, "Heard the police were in some kind of chase, I figured I'd get the job done faster. Didn't expect to see a kid, though. Gotta say, you're pretty gutsy to take on the police force."

"Hey! They struck first! I call that police brutality!"

"You haven't seen brutal yet."

She couldn't use her stomping technique, or risk tearing down the building below their feet. Instead she rushed forward and slashed her leg at him. Her speed and strength were incredible, striking him in the side before he had the time to dodge it. The blow sent him off the roof and down to the street. Instinct made him want to shoot a web, but he hadn't the gadgets for it, so instead he crashed shoulder first into the street.

He growled in pain as his shoulder dislocated, gritting his teeth together from the agony. Miruko landed on the street with her hands on her hips, a smile on her face. She assumed it was over now and that she had easily beaten the criminal like she usually did, so she didn't even bother to approach and keep him down.

"You should have thought twice before running, red," she mocked, "Stay down till the police get here."

Surprise overtook her when Spider-Man stood right back up, grabbed his shoulder firmly, and popped it back into place. He grunted from the pain and stood perfectly still until it had completely settled in. Perhaps this was going to be more of a challenge than expected, she thought.

She jumped at him again the same way as before. This time he was prepared and ducked his head going the same direction as her kick. He flipped on his side, performing a cartwheel without his hands. The entirety of his foot came crashing down on her face, throwing her off balance. When he landed straight, he charged forward and threw a punch to her gut. She was surprised by just how strong he was despite his age and size.

The two continued to trade blows, Mirukos being more brutal than his own. When she struck with her foot, he felt the hard metal smack against him, earning a bruise each time. When she threw a side kick, he caught her by the ankle and twisted it, making her spin and fall onto her back. He went to web her down, but again realized he had no web shooters. She took the moment to push off her palms and kick him straight in the chest. She had knocked the wind out of him as he fell to the ground rolling onto his back. He gasped desperately for air, yet waisted no time before getting back up.

"You're a tough one!" She gasped, "I like you."

His fist was shaking, clenched from sheer rage yet it felt as though he could squeeze no further. The bones of his wrist seemed to show pushing on his skin. With a battle cry, he dashed forward at her as she prepared to kick him away. When she threw her hook kick, he leaped over it and slammed his fist into her face. The impact sent her crashing down into the street and breaking it into a small crater for her to lay in.

Knowing it wouldn't keep her down for long, he jumped back to the rooftops and kept running. As she got to her knee's, a car pulled up next to her. The window rolled down and showed Kamui driving with Mt. Lady in the passenger seat.

"Mirkuo!" Kamui addressed her, "Hop in!"

"Screw you! I got this!" She shouted at him. Getting to her feet, she put all her strength into her ankles and leapt into the air after him. Kamui stepped on the gas and followed behind them.

His focus was on driving and keeping Spider-Man within eye shot. He didn't want to drive too fast that he accidentally crashes into someone. His passenger however wasn't as focused. She was silent with her eyes on her lap. The vibe she had been giving off didn't go unnoticed either.

"Something wrong?" Kamui asked her, keeping his eyes forward.

"I don't like how we're going after him," She spoke sternly, "He's just a kid."

"And you're a rookie, so you don't get a say."

Silence took the car by force. It was strange to see how she acted with Peter, when she was so different at every other time. She was over confident and loved the limelight, yet took her work seriously while also enjoying it. Her usually flirty popular girl attitude dropped with Peter around, like he brought out a side of her she didn't use often. Despite how she felt, he couldn't let that distract them from the mission.

Spidey's feet perched on the edge of a building as he took the time to catch his breath. He was much slower without his webs, making it near impossible to lose them. He was sweating within his costume, and panting with his hands on his knees. There was no way he could keep this up forever. If he didn't get away soon, they'd surely catch him. Originally, he was on his way to where he hid the stones, but he'd rather not lead the police force there in case they try to take them. They aren't safe in anyone's hands, barely even his own.

Sirens shook him with anxiety as they were on top of him once again. Miruko was leaping great distances and keeping up with his speed. She was going to be the toughest to fight out of all of them. While he could use Mt. Lady's size against her, and make use of his own speed against Kamui, Miruko was equal if not superior in both speed and strength. In a one on one fight, there was a good chance he would lose. If he wasn't trying to avoid jail, he'd actually ask her for come pointers.

Just before he could start moving again, his spider-sense rang as something took hold of his mouth, torso and legs. It felt like an invisible force was wrapping itself around his entire body. It pulled him into the air and down to the ground in the alleyway. When it stopped moving him, he felt a pair of hands push on his back to stop him. When eh was still, he realized what was being wrapped around him.

Dark mist.

"Stay quiet," Overcast whispered, keeping her shadows over his mouth so he doesn't give them away. He was overrun with panic and confusion, immediately assuming she was here to arrest him as well on orders of the police department. He tried to break free but found her power to be too strong having caught him by surprise. He struggled and muffled through the mist, whatever he could do just to get away.

Strangely, she didn't move or say anything after capturing him. When the police cars started making their way past the alley, she covered them in a thin layer of shadow and stuck close to the alleyway wall. She wasn't trying to capture him; she was trying to hide him.

Once the police and Pro's passed by and continued down the road, she released the shadow blanket but still kept Spider-Man confined.

"I'm not here to take you in, Pete," She said gently as not to seem threatening, "I'm on your side. When I let you go, please, please don't attack me, Ok?"

He knew she had to be telling the truth, otherwise why not just bring him to the police now while he was helpless? Finally letting himself calm down, he nodded in agreement. The shadows slowly vanished and let his body stand up straight. He took a deep breath once his mouth was clear, finding he could get enough air just through his nose after all the running.

"What are you doing?" He asked with utter confusion, "Why did you do that?"

"You're no criminal, Peter," She said, "I know you're only trying to do what's right, and I don't want you going to jail for that."

"…You protected me, despite the law?

"I care about you, a lot. We've been through so much together; I won't throw that away just because people don't like the kind of hero you are."

"How-how did you even get here so fast?"

"I have my secrets," She grinned.

He let his shoulders relax, taking slow breaths so his mind can slow down. Knowing that someone else, a Pro Hero, was on his side had given him comfort. While he can't simply go back to normal because one Pro is with him, it helps not everyone see's him as a criminal.

"Thank you, Mayume," He hugged her tightly. She could feel how he dropped his weight on her, telling her that he was extremely exhausted by this point.

"Let's get you somewhere safe, ok?" She asked as she broke the hug, "You can stay in my apartment for tonight, but we gotta move now."

"Just keep us hidden."

"My specialty."

The police were down in the other direction, but a few Pro heroes still searched in other parts of the city. Overcast made sure to keep them hidden in a blanket of shadows so they could blend in with the darkness of the alleyways. Keeping low to the ground, no one took notice of them as they moved between streets.

As they made their way across the city in secret, Spider-Man stayed mostly behind her. From that angle, he could see something strange about her pocket. It was hard to tell with the lights of the city, but it seemed like something in it was glowing. Was it her cellphone? Was someone trying to call her? Perhaps it was the police asking if she had found him. If so, thank goodness she was choosing not to answer.

Finally, they arrived at her apartment building. Using her shadows, Overcast lifted Spider-Man and herself up through the air until they arrived at her floor and stepped onto the fire escape.

"Give me one minute," She said, stepping inside. It looked dark from the fire escape; he couldn't really see anything. Shadows didn't bother her, as she likely was used to maneuvering through pitch blackness. It didn't take her long to grab a candle from the upper cabinets and use a match to light it, illuminating the kitchen and then the living room as she brought it in.

Finally, she let him inside to see the details of the apartment. The living room was small, with used furniture decorating the floor and walls. One window was broken in the corner, but otherwise it was fairly nice.

"Sorry about the lights," She said, "I didn't have enough to pay for the electric bill."

"I thought Pro Heroes made a lot of money."

"That money goes to many places. Don't worry, I bought quite a few candles."

She placed the candle down on the coffee table, and gestured him to take a seat.

As he took off his mask and sat down, she set up more candles around the room in their usual spots. Once she was done, she took a seat next to Peter and rubbed his shoulder gently, "You wanna talk about what happened tonight?"

Peter groaned in frustration, "Where do I even begin? First, I was tortured in the police station during interrogation, then I was kidnapped by super villains. When I escaped, I knew I had to stop Tombstone so I went and did that. Then I met Nightmare again, and he tried to blow up a building which I helped stop. Then, Pro heroes and police arrived to arrest me!"

"Quite the eventful day, huh?" She sympathized, "I'm sorry you're going through all this, Petey. You don't deserve all this pain."

"The villains took another stone. I failed to stop them, again."

"Do you have any stones of your own?"

He looked at her, his face clearly saying he didn't want to divulge that information.

"Peter, you have to trust me, otherwise I would have just let them arrest you."

"How do I know you're not just trying to trick me into telling you where the stones are?"

She grinned, "So you do have some."

"…Dammit."

She snickered, "It's ok, like I said, I'm on your side," She moved her hand to his, "Listen, I want to help you. If I'm going to do that, I need you to put your trust in me. Otherwise, you'll be out here all alone with a circle of trust so small it looks like a pizza bagel."

He snorted, feeling embarrassed afterword's since she laughed at it.

"I'm sorry, Overcast…Mayume. I need to keep that information to myself."

"Peter …" She seemed frustrated with his answer, choosing to stand up and pace a bit in front of the coffee table.

"Mayume, you have to understand where I'm coming from. I don't want the stones ending up in the wrong hands. Lumina is still after them, so I can't be near them too much or she'll figure out where they are. Hiding them was the best thing I could do once I had them."

"I get the logistics of it. I also really want you to trust me. After everything we've been through; the arcade, the courthouse, the festival; haven't we become …close?"

He rested his eyes and rubbed the back of his next, "Mayume … of course we are. I care about you a lot, too. It's not that I don't trust you, it's that I don't trust myself."

"What do you mean?"

"I keep them away from myself because I don't want to screw up and lose them. I don't want to accidentally use their power again. With the stones I have, maybe I could use them to stop Lumina but I don't."

"…Why not?"

"If I do, I might become addicted to the power, and I don't want that. I want to stay me no matter what happens, and not use them as a 'get out of jail free card' for life. It wouldn't be fair, and it most definitely wouldn't be right."

She seemed steamed now, actually getting angry at him, "What if it's the world not being fair, Peter? What if something happens and you want to make it right? Wouldn't using the stones power then actually be ok?"

"No," He shook his head, "think of it like using cheat codes in a video game."

"This isn't a game, it's-!" She stopped, taking a deep breath and letting herself relax.

The sound of sirens shook her, but they were very faint in the distance. Overcast walked over to the window and opened it, peering her head outside. She could see the police lights a few blocks down, but they weren't heading in their direction. As if her heart could take something like that right now.

The wind from the now open window came rushing in and blew out most of the candles, making it near pitch black in the apartment. Cursing to herself, she went to go and get the lighter. It was now, in the darkness and without city lights to get in the way, that he could once again make out the glow in her pocket he had seen once before. It was faint, but he made it out to be a purple color, illuminating from her pocket.

He knew only one thing that glowed like that.

She was distracted from getting the lighter so she hadn't seen Peter coming up behind her. With his quick reflexes, he snatched the object from her pocket and clasped it in his palm. She turned around, dropping the lighter in sheer panic. When she checked her pocket for the item, she found it was not there, but rather glowing in his hands.

When he opened it, he was met with the Space Stone.

"…Mayume …" He spoke with a shaking in his voice, "Where did you get this?"

"Peter, I can explain that. I-I had found it near one of the explosion sights. I was going to tell you about it, that's why I was asking about the stones-!"

"It couldn't have been at one of the explosion sights. Lumina was the last person to have this and she would never have let it out of her sight, so how did …you …"

The wind blew again, and the last few candles went out and turned the room entirely pitch dark, the only source of light remaining was from the space stone in his right hand. He stared at her as if the entire world just came crashing down. In his mind, puzzle pieces had started to form and take shape in ways he never thought they would.

"Do you ever wish you had more time with him?" He remembers Mayume once asking, recalling how her family was lost in a villain attack. She wanted them back so badly, because she knew they didn't deserve it. Her brother was only 9 years old, Afterall.

"I lost people, Peter, just like everyone else. I lost them and it was unfair. If I had the Power, Soul and Reality stones, I could bring them back with a snap of my fingers," He remembers Lumina telling him. She lost people dear to her, and would do anything to get them back so they could live fair and full lives.

The final puzzle piece fell into place, and he could see the entire picture.

"…You," He backed up slowly, "…You're her, aren't you? You're… you're Lumina …"

His accusation clearly made the color drain from her face, almost making her want to give a nervous laugh. She tried to find something to say, something to defend herself against his claims. His face, his anger, it was shouting at her in a thousand silent languages. He had everything figured out, and she couldn't hide anymore.

With her shoulders dropped, her expression turned to that of cold sorrow. Her right hand lifted up and she opened her palm. Within it, a ball of light appeared and floated into the air, circling around them and leaving a light trail to chase it around.

"…I'm sorry, Peter," She said, her hand still glowing, "I'm just …sorry."