[GROWING PAINS]ARC

Chapter 8

The Set-up

You head home walking slowly as you think about things. The evening light illuminates paints the sky in a twilight hue. But your concerns are more with current issues than scenery.

No, what concerns you is a more important issue- Norman Osborn, especially. You could put on a costume and break in- assuming that he doesn't have measure in place for that. But what would you do- accuse the man? Try to get into his systems and find the info you're looking for? And that's assuming he's careless enough to leave that information decrypted.

You need a plan of action, but you're also facing another issue. The bills troubling your aunt and uncle and you without a job to help out. And without a job, you're screwed on the subject of getting money. How are you going to do that, rob robbers? Steal from a bank? Catch the Black Cat for the reward?

Hmm…

You pause at the though. Actually…

Actually, that one has merit. Of course you're not a skilled detective who knows every single one of the criminal genius's tricks and can chase him forever, but you've got spider powers and webshooters, which should be almost as good.

Probably.

Still, though, you'd need something to disguise yourself- you're puny Parker, after all. You'd either have to be able to outsmart a thief who has never been caught with some tricks and traps, or disguise yourself and try to catch him.

Also, you're broke, so making traps would be very hard with what you've got.

Still, there's probably something you can scrounge together if you tried. Maybe you should talk to Gwen, too. But, then again, maybe not. She might get mad at you for doing this.

You could head back and do something, but you should be more careful and check things out first. Especially with Gwen. You don't want your co-conspirator to be angry with you, it would be inconvenient.

Also, you should probably research the whole bounty thing. Wording is very important and Jameson's a man who controls words, so it would be best to figure out exactly what the bounty entails. Stopping a robbery is different from catching the crook, after all.

So, what should you do first?

You head home to research the bounty. Arriving home, yet again, to an empty house, you look over at your neighbor's house. Man, what are they up to over there? Actually, better not to know.

You shake your head as you head down into the basement, which is quickly becoming the place where you spend your time the most these days. Starting up the computer, you grab the news paper you bought last week and look it over. Nothing committal, just that he was offering a bounty there.

No, what you need to do is find something that's got what he's offering and what's the fine print on the conditions. This shouldn't take too long, but it really depends on how open Jameson's been with his bounty. Odds are, not very much.

It takes some doing, but you manage to find images and text of the contract. It seems that the reward is legitimate as it's for 'anyone who stops the Black Cat from stealing his wife's prized emerald cat statue.' Furthermore, he will double the reward if the Black Cat is caught and presented to the police along with a story in the Daily Bugle about the heroics of the person who captured the Black Cat. Furthermore the reward will be in cash.

It seems like a pretty good deal. With your abilities, it shouldn't be too hard to stop the heist and, if you could manage to capture the Black Cat, the reward doubled.

Man, with two thousand dollars, you could help out Aunt May and Uncle Ben AND get some more materials to work with. Or something.

You lean back in your chair and pick up the phone. As you do so, your eye catches the secret compartment with your webshooters and your dad's notes and hard drive.

You should call Gwen and talk with her.

You dial her number. It's still early enough for you to get a hold of her. Her phone rings for a few before she picks up. "Peter? What's up?"

You open your mouth to talk but freeze considering what you're about to say. Can you just go and say 'hey, Gwen, I'm going to catch the Black Cat tomorrow for the reward money, want in?'

Can you?

No, not over the phone you can't. If you're going to tell her about your plans to stop the Black Cat, it should at least be in person. It's way to easy for conversations to be misinterpreted or ended over the phone.

"I've got something important I need to talk with you about. Can we meet up somewhere?"

Gwen sounds a bit exasperated. "Peter, I-"

"I know, I know. Your father doesn't want to going anywhere, but this is important. I wouldn't bother you if it wasn't."

She lets out a sigh as she hears the sincerity in your voice. "Fine. I'll be right over."

She hangs up and you find yourself sitting in the basement, waiting awkwardly. You look around and decide to straighten up the mess that's beginning to form down here before heading back upstairs. When the door rings, you open it and let Gwen in, inviting her to sit on a chair. She looks at you, a little worried.

"Alright, what's the matter Peter?"

You raise up a hand. "Before I do, you have to promise me to listen all the way to the end, alright?"

She nods, growing a bit more uncomfortable. "Well, you see, let me start by explaining something. My Aunt and Uncle… they're having financial troubles, you see? …But they haven't wanted me to know. I've been trying to get a job to help out some, but nothing's worked out. So… I'm going to make a disguise and try to catch the Black Cat for the reward money."

Gwen stares at you incredulously. "I know, it's stupid, but… I can't not take this opportunity, Gwen. I know I'm probably putting myself in danger, but my aunt and uncle took me in and raised me like I was their own son and this might be the ONE way I can help them out. So, I wanted going to tell you because this effects you, too, Gwen, and this isn't something that I should just abruptly tell you over the phone."

Gwen stares at you for a long time as you nervously wait for her response. She lets out a sigh, ruffling her hair. "You shouldn't do this. You really, really shouldn't. But I can at least understand why you feel you need to do this, Peter. And I said I'd help you so you don't get in over your head…"

She leans over and slaps you upside your head. "But you still deserve that."

She nods and takes off her glasses, cleaning the lenses, as she looks at you.

"Alright, so what's your plan? What are you going to do to catch the Black Cat?"

You scratch at the back of your head. "Well, I'm working on that. That's another reason I wanted to talk with you. Your dad works on the case so I was hoping you'd be able to help me out with planning."

Gwen shakes her head, leaning in to whisper in your ear. "Alright, but my dad could get fired if what I managed to learn got out. Basically, they're going to try to protect the statue by locking it away and switching it out with a fake. Or at least, that's what's going around the police department in case the Black Cat infiltrated in disguise. The real one is what's listed as the fake.

"The only people who know are my dad and Jameson, everyone else in the police are out of the loop. Even so, because of it, the ruse of guarding the statue is actually acting as a guard of the real one. Not to mention, Jameson's refusing to let it leave his sight, so he's been walled up in his office all week, though it's mostly an act.

The Black Cat always strikes on the date stated, at the time stated. He's never failed to get away undetected even after leaving the calling card. So, your best bet is to get in a position out of sight where you can monitor the situation. Considering your powers, it shouldn't be too hard."

She leans back and looks at you. "Are you sure you want to go through with this Peter?"

You nod. "...While I'd like the money, I'd rather not interfere with your dad's plan, and wind up bungling things. So the only opportunity I'd have to catch the Black Cat, would be after he saw through your dad's plan, assuming he'd be able of doing so.

"Chances are that I'd just be spending a boring night lurking on the ceiling, so I don't see the harm in trying."

She nods as you think of something. "So, do the items just up and vanish or what? Is there no signs or any odd behaviors?"

Gwen shakes her head. "Of course there's evidence after the fact, but it's too late by then. Often he breaks security codes by infiltrating the people who have the code and stealing it. Only on the night of the crime does he actually take the prize he's after. There's also usually some sort of distraction set when the crime happens, but the methods seem random and there's no predictable pattern to try to stop. As for violent behavior? Well, again, after the fact, they do find people who have been knocked out that the Black Cat impersonated, but other than a knot on the head and bruised ego's there's no lasting damage.

"Honestly, there's going to be people out and around looking for the Black Cat, but my father's strictly forbid Jameson from letting any of them in the building. The man might be a jerk, but he's not entirely stupid. Besides, it's mainly there to build up publicity. Have you seen how much the Daily Bugle has been selling recently?"

She shakes her head in disgust. "But, still, that's about all I know. The best bet would be to find yourself a ledge overlooking Jameson's office and keep an eye out. But, still, you will need a disguise, you're right.

"Have you had any ideas?"

You've had experience helping Aunt May fix clothing before so you know how to sue a sewing machine. You might be able to improvise something but as for a disguise? You have no idea right now.

You shake your head. "No, please help me."

She smirks, a mischievous glimmer in her eyes. "Alright."

It isn't long after that you're up in your room, sorting through clothes with Gwen. You avoid anything you regularly use and look through things you usually keep sorted away. Gwen's like a machine, searching through and picking things to the side, only pausing to take a glance at you.

Before long, she's throwing clothes at you and telling you to go change. After a few times she stops you before looking at other things, eventually taking a pile of clothes down stairs. On the way out, she pauses and grabs your soldering goggles you keep by your door and continuing on.

She sets them down before arranging them in two lines. There's a black suit design that seems stylish and a red and blue… mix up. She pauses before taking the black clothes and folding them up. "No, might get you shot by mistake."

You stare at the outfit down on the ground. It has long, red socks, elastic blue pants, a red long-sleeved shirt and red gloves. To the side is an alternate, red pair of pants and a blue hoodie. Where the head should be is your welding goggles as Gwen looks thoughtful. "Some sort of mask. Maybe stop by a costume shop and buy one?"

She pauses and looks back over at you, a bit nervous. "Well, it's impromptu, but I though about the idea that you probably wouldn't want to be shot just because you wore black. And the red and blue- well I remembered that spider and it might not be the wisest, but I though these might look okay, as a sort of stand in. What do you think-I mean there's got to be a mask, too but I couldn't find something to work right as one. The outfits should also let you use your webslingers, too which would help you out."

Gwen looks over at you, nervous.

You stare down at it again before smiling at Gwen. "I like it. I really like it. And if this is impromptu, I'd love to see what you can make when you have time to work on it."

She smiles, lacing her fingers behind her back as she quickly looks away, her face coloring. "W-well, thanks, but we still need to grab a mask. And don't you worry about it, this one's on me!"

Taking a moment to recover, she grabs a measuring tape, getting measurements for your head. When she's done, she hands you the clothes and gestures towards the basement. "Go try it on with your webshooters and give me a call when you're done changing."

You nod and head downstairs, changing into your attire and putting on your webshooters. You give it a feel and move around. It isn't constricting your movements but, honestly, when did you get these pants? You try out the webshooter before nodding in satisfaction at the result.

You call down Gwen who walks down carrying the soldering goggles and hands them to you. You put on the tinted goggles and grin at her. "Well, what do you think?"

She smiles. "Not bad."

You give the outfit a bit of a test, but your wall climbing abilities work just fine. You look a bit cartoonish, but that might work in your favor.

You step outside with your clothes and change back into your normal attire. Gwen clears her throat. "So, um, was there anything else, Peter, or should I go?"

It's almost nine at night.

You nod. "Since it's late, would you like to eat dinner here?"

Gwen pauses before nodding. "Sure, I'd like that."

You give a nervous smile. "It won't be anything to write home around but I can make some soup and sandwiches. Um, is that alright?"

She gives you a smile. "It's fine, Peter."

She sits at the table while you cook as the two of you make small talk. Eventually, you set down the food and the two of you eat.

After the meal, you clean up the small mess you and Gwen made before returning to the living room, where Gwen picks up the red shirt and blue hoodie. "Um, could I borrow these? I'll have them back tomorrow, but I wanted to do something for you."

You give her a smirk. "Working on your own costume in the future, then?"

As you say the words, Gwen freezes before she smirks and lightly smacks at you playfully. "Peter Parker, what kind of girl do you think I am?"

You want to tell her what you think. That she's beautiful, but you can't muster up the will to do it. What if she doesn't think of you the same way? At least right now, you two can be friends and if you confess… well things will change, maybe for the worse.

You smile and shake your head. "A spider powered girl with a cosplay obsession?"

She snorts, raising her nose upwards, smiling cheerfully. "You win this round, Parker!"

She shakes her fist at you before chuckling. "Well, I should get going. I'll see you tomorrow, alright?"

She puts on her shoes and opens the door waving.

"Hey, Gwen, how about I walk you home?"

Gwen pauses and turns back to you, eyebrow raised. "I don't think I'll have any trouble getting home safely, Peter. Thanks though, it's a sweet thought, though."

She shrugs. "Besides, I have to sneak back into my house, too. I wasn't really supposed to leave the house, after all. Dad's orders."

You nod. "Well, alright."

She seemed okay with a hug before, so you give her a very light hug before letting go. "G'night, Gwen. At least give me a call to let me know you made it home alright, okay?"

She nods before quickly closing the door. A few minutes later, you see her walking from your house down the street.

When she's gone, you go over to the wall and hit your head against it, softly. Damn it, it was the perfect opportunity, too.

You decide to sit down and watch TV while waiting for Aunt May and Uncle Ben to get back. It's almost Nine o'clock so they should be back soon. There seems not to be much on Reed Richards and his crew. Even though they landed and are isolated, they're currently undergoing treatment at Richard's business and home, The Baxter Building, and should, hopefully, be back to normal soon.

Obadiah Stane is currently assuring people that Tony Stark will be found and that Stark Industries will be fine in the interim.

Eventually, you tune out the TV and start to drift off as you hear the front door open as Uncle Ben and Aunt May walk in. They look tired, Uncle Ben concealing a yawn behind his hand before smiling at you. "Hey, there, Peter. How's it going?"

You smile at them. It's been a while since you've been able to see them and they're tired. So, right now, there's no need to ruin the happy mood. "Not bad, it's good to see you two. How was your evening?"

Uncle Ben shrugs. "Not bad, we were just-"

He's cut off by your aunt lightly elbowing him. He gives you a sheepish smile as Aunt May clears her throat. "Anna just wanted some company, she's been rather lonely lately, so we though we'd spend some time with her. We didn't invite you because you were busy with your tutoring lately and you wouldn't be interested in what we old people talk about anyway."

She walks over and kisses you on the forehead. "Don't stay up too late, dear, alright?"

You nod as the two of them head upstairs as Uncle Ben turns back towards you. "Hey, Peter, I'm going to be working tomorrow night so try not to make too much noise if you do stay up, alright? It's going to be a long day."

You nod and wish both of them a good night as they head to bed.

You wait a little longer for the call. When the phone finally rings, you quickly pick it up first ring and answer it. "Hello?"

"Hey, Peter, it's me. Sorry for getting home a bit late, it felt like I was being followed for a bit a few streets away from your house, so I took a detour. Eventually it went away, so everything should be good. Sorry if I worried you, see you tomorrow!"

She hangs up leaving you more relieved. Now that you know she's okay, its fine to go to bed. You head upstairs and get ready for bed before fitfully trying to drift off to sleep.

You don't think you'll ever get to sleep suffering from your embarrassment as you are, but before you know it, you're waking up to your alarm going off.

Tonight's the night.

Yeah, tonight's the night. Tonight you're going to have to face off with the Black Cat, hopefully getting the reward.

You get ready for the day and head downstairs. Uncle Ben seems to be reclining chair, getting in a bit more sleep as Aunt May prepares breakfast., looking over a bit worriedly at your uncle.

Seeing you, she shakes her head and smiles, her voice quiet. "Ah, Peter. Good Morning. Be careful to be quiet. Ben's going to be working tonight, so he doesn't have to head in until a bit later. Though I really wish he's tell that boss of his…"

She shakes her head. "Regardless, have a good day at school today, Peter."

You nod, finishing up your breakfast before you give your aunt a kiss on the cheek and head out the door, quietly.

You're going to have a busy night tonight, so you decide to take the bus and relax. At the bus stop, you see a lot of new people around and a lot more activity as there seems to be people talking about the Black Cat's planned caper for tonight.

When the bus arrives, you get on it to see Harry sitting there looking bemused. You sit down next to him and he gives you a nod. "Hey, Pete. Ridiculous, isn't it? All this focus on the acts of a criminal. Seems like this sort of thing only encourages criminals like the Black Cat."

He shakes his head. "Really, I wish someone would catch this guy. Even though nobody's gotten hurt, it's just a matter of time."

He lets out a sigh and gives you a grin. "So what's up with you Pete?"

You give him a shrug and a weak grin. "Not too much, I chickenedoutwithGwen-Hey! Have you been keeping up with what's been going on with Reed Richards?"

Harry blinks trying to puzzle out what you mumbled out before you quick and masterfully changed topics. He gives you a raised eyebrow. "Well, other than what you just mumbled out, which I WILL get out of you one way or another, you know I have been, Pete. My dad's been grumbling all day because he and his people aren't allowed to help out with Reed Richards. Apparently the guy's locked out everyone from his home, even the government.

"Hell, I think the Daily Bugle would be paying cash for pictures or information on the Richards normally, but the owner's too wrapped up in the whole Black Cat thing. He's made a real big deal out of nothing,. Who cares if he loses whatever the thief's after, it isn't like it isn't insured or replaceable."

You nod, trying not to frown. It's nice Harry's got it good, but..

He shakes his head looking guilty. "Sorry, Pete."

The bus arrives at Midtown High as the two of you get off and head on in. You keep an eye out for Gwen, even waiting for a bit outside, but head back in to reach your classes in time. She's probably already here, anyway.

You get to chemistry and Gwen is there, ready for Class, reading a book. She nods at you before class officially begins. The day goes rather fast and before you know it, its lunch.

You find Gwen, who is eating alone, and sit across from her. She looks at you, a bit surprised. "Hey, Peter. What's up?"

She's a little surprised at you for eating lunch with her rather than Harry - and the first time you've eaten lunch with her, period. Adjusting your fake glasses, you smile. "Well, I thought we could have lunch together and talk."

Gwen raises an eyebrow and leans in, her voice quiet. "That isn't a good idea, Peter, we're still at school."

She seems to be thinking that you want to talk about your plans for tonight.

You shake your head, looking hurt, your voice overly dramatic.

"What, you think the only reason I'd want to hang out with you is so I could talk about my problems? Why dearest Gwen, you wound me."

She chuckles as you hold your heart. "Alright, fine."

You sit down and enjoy lunch with her, eventually you decide to address a different topic.

"I was just wondering if you'd had any more phone calls lately."

Gwen frowns but nods. "At least one a day. It's only from the school phone and it's a different person every day. It really isn't that big of a deal Peter."

You raise an eyebrow, pointing your spoon at her. "Didn't you tell me not to take everything on myself and let it pile up? Well, I'm saying the same to you. If I can do something to help, I will."

She looks like she's about to refuse before letting out a sigh, giving you a wry smile. "Alright, fine. But only because I don't want to be a hypocrite, and only after things get settled, alright?"

You nod solemnly. "Alright, deal."

The two of you spend lunch talking about what might be wrong with Reed Richards before heading back to class.

After school ends, you grab your bag from your locker and go find Gwen.

Gwen should still be here, so you decide to meet up with her before she leaves. She still has your costume, after all. You head towards her locker where you find her sorting through her locker.

"Hey, Gwen."

She turns towards you and closes her locker, picking up her bag. "Hey, Peter. What's up?"

Her voice is cheerful, but it seems like she didn't expect to see you. You smile. "Well, I though we could meet up and talk, since school is over."

Gwen looks pensive. "I should be expecting my ride any time now, I don't think I have the time.

You look at her, concerned. She seemed to have slammed her locker shut the moment she knew you were there. And her smile seems a little forced.

"Is something wrong, Gwen?"

Her eyes widen and she looks away, guiltily, her smile fading into a worried frown. "So, you noticed."

You nod, putting a hand on her shoulder. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. But I'd like to help if I can."

She gives you a nod and opens her locker. Inside, it seems like someone has slipped in pieces of paper through the vents. On it are tons of rude or nasty comments about Gwen, some of them including you.

Gwen looks away, unable to meet your eyes. "I didn't want you to know, Peter. You're my friend and I didn't want you to feel guilty because you saw these. It's happened for a while, any time I talk to any boy and it's gotten worse since you and I have started hanging out…"

She turns towards you, eyes serious. "You can't tell anyone, Peter. Not a teacher and especially not my father."

You swallow nervously before shaking you head. You put a hand on Gwen's shoulder and look her in the eyes. Its time to tell her how you really feel.

"Gwen, I'm not going to let the girl I like deal with this all alone."

Her eyes widen in surprise. "…You?I?What?Huh?!"

She seems completely shocked, not moving for a second before she quickly grabs something out of her bag and stuffs it into your arms. "HereyougoPetermyride'sherebye!"

She quickly grabs her bag and runs down the hall, careful to not look back at you. You stare at her disappearing form and let out a sigh. You open the bag you saw and see that it's the costume parts she borrowed.

Well… At least you have your costume.

You decide to head on home. Best to get the costume in a safe place, after all.

When you get home, you notice that's nobody's home again. You see a note from your aunt saying that she's over at the neighbor's again. Shame she isn't here, but it's also a good thing, too.

You head down to the basement and lay out the costume parts you have and the ones you got from Gwen. There's the long, red socks, the blue pants, the red, long sleeved shirt with the spider-emblem on it…

Wait.

You look at the shirt to see that there's a spider design sewed onto it. It's actually pretty well done, but you can that there was a lot of effort put into it. There's also a larger one on the back. You pull out the red gloves and webshooters and notice two other things.

The first is an elastic, perhaps spandex, mask in there. Red. There's also a note from Gwen.

-"Picked this up for you, Peter. It's on the house. Hope you like it and the shirt.

-"Gwen"-

You look over at the shirt and the mask. It's actually really nice. You'll have to thank her.

…If she'll ever speak to you again, that is.

You try on the outfit and it fits, really well. The mask seems to breath really well and the goggles don't impede your vision too much while still covering your eyes.

It'd be best to grab yourself an early dinner. After all, it'd suck to be distracted by getting hungry. You heat up some soup and have a sandwich with it. As you eat, you turn on the television and watch it. Seems like there's a lot of coverage of the area around the Daily Bugle.

You finish off your sandwich, dipping it in the soup's broth, before drinking the broth, too. You're currently wearing jeans and a hoodie, which conceal the rest of the outfit below.

You waste a little more time before heading out, the rest of your outfit in your pockets and your webshooters beneath your sleeves.

Time to bag a cat.

End
To Be Continued...

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