As he started to cool down from the fire, his phone started to ring, and he quickly pulled it out of his suit: JIMMY

Knowing he couldn't let it go to voicemail, he quickly answered it and acted like he didn't run a marathon. "Hey, Jimmy." He then heard what the photographer said on the other end. "Figured Mom would wonder where I was. Tell her I am just on my way home. I'll be there by the time she arrives." He then heard what he had to say and nodded. "Don't worry. I'm just out for a walk. When was the last time something bad happened to someone in Metropolis?" Then he hears what Jimmy had to say on the other end. "Okay, besides the time that my mom got kidnapped by the Joker. If anything, that was Batman's fault. I think if that guy stayed in Gotham, that clown wouldn't have come here."

He then hangs up and saw he got a text from his mother

Peter, you better be home before I get there.

Peter rolled his eyes and chuckled as he started to make his way home.

Is the famous Lois Lane really worried I'll get attacked?

Get home. Now.

Yes, Ma'am.

Peter then smiled as he pulled his mask down, racing his way down the street. Then he leaped and made his way back through the city to make it back home.

But as Peter was making his way home, there was a certain someone who was making herself known. With the threat of Superman spoiling the fun for criminals, more small-timers had the chance to make a name for themselves.

This new amateur appears to be an attractive, teenage girl with white hair, green eyes, and fair skin. She wears a black domino mask and a black-latex jumpsuit with white fur around the top half of the suit as well as on her sleeves and legs.

She was just outside of a jewelry store and raised a finger, pulling out a claw from the tip of her finger, then traced a circle across the glass. Once completed, she then pulled out the piece and sneaked her way inside with ease.

Once she got inside the store, she started to descend off of a line she has connected to her belt so that she doesn't trip off the systems. Once she got further enough inside, she pulled out a canister and opened it to release a gas that revealed the lasers on the floor.

"A school has better security than this." She commented and opened a case with the jewelry inside to steal it.

Peter was swinging home when his super-senses (name in progress) went off and got his attention. He noticed the hole in the glass and knew that it didn't take an expert to know that meant there was trouble. Knowing he could come up with some quick excuse later why he was home late, he quickly changed directions and landed on the roof.

Noticing the Cat Burglar, he quickly descends from the ceiling on a web and shot out a web to her bag. "I know what they say about diamonds and girls, but I always saw it as more of a metaphor."

"Well, I believe we haven't been acquainted yet." The Cat Burglar said with glee in her voice to see the new mask in town. "Thought the only man in red and blue around here was Superman."

She ended up letting go of one of her lines to go around and swinging over to dangle upside down aside from Peter. Their strings were starting to collide and wrap up as Peter was trying to figure out what to do.

"Easy, kitty-cat. I don't wanna fight." Peter said, not sure if he even knows how to fight.

"The name's Black Cat." She introduced herself as she grabbed onto his suit. "And cats don't fight spiders." She then kicked the spider, sending him flying across the room. "We just bat them around!"

The newly named Black Cat then landed on the wall, using her line to start running up the wall. Peter shot two webs to stop himself from landing on the ground and quickly caught himself. But seems this new girl saw his move coming and moved fast to avoid it and leaped off the wall. Peter then leaped off the ceiling and met her halfway.

Seems she was given training in some way as when the two of them met in the middle, he used his legs to kick her. But she also mimicked his actions and the two were sent flying across the opposite ends of the room they started from.

Peter however was sent flying as she was hooked to a rope, giving her less maneuvering room than Peter has. He shot his way back and tried to catch her, which ended in her spinning around and shattering one of the cases, causing some of the glass to fall and set off the actual alarms.

The Black Cat then attracted her claws and went to try and slice Spider-Man, taking a chunk of his suit with her. Seeing she was clawing onto the wall and giving him an opening; Peter quickly shot a web to attach her to the wall.

"Oh, you better not get your goop in my hair." Black Cat warns him as she used her claws to rip herself free, taking part of the wall with her.

'Note to self: readjust the formula.'

"Don't worry, it comes off in ice or peanut butter." Peter quipped as he swung back towards her.

"Lovely." Black Cat commented as she leaped off the wall.

The two of them then met in the middle of the room again with her continuing to dangle and Peter hanging off a web he attached to the ceiling.

"You've got quite the skill set, Spider. Do you want in on this gig?" Black Cat offered to the rookie. "We can split the take 50/50."

"Gig? Take? These words are...strange to me." Peter didn't know what to think about the offer.

"This is my first gig, and I tend not to screw it up. Let's just say mommy wouldn't be impressed, and I wouldn't hear the end of it from her either." Black Cat commented to the boy. "A certain captain of industry is looking for money for something to do with finding something that has unlimited scientific potential."

"Are you sure he was a true captain of industry?" Peter asked as he flipped and landed on one of the cases. "Or was he some industrial cadet trying to show off for the girls?"

Peter then shot out some webbing to wrap up her arms, trying to keep her here for when the police finally arrived. What is taking them so long? But the webbing didn't hold her for long as Black Cat was sent swinging around the room.

"Oh, I know when a man is showing off!" Black Cat said sarcastically as she came swinging back and spun to kick Peter back. "What do you say, hot stuff, don't you want a slice of the mud pie?"

"It's tempting, but then I would have to turn in my recently received superhero discount card..." Peter listed off as he tried to catch up with her.

"Too bad." Black Cat says as she used Peter's second attempt to stop her to rip free of the webbing, grabbing onto the roof. "I like us together."

"But we've only just met," Peter commented. "And I'm not that kind of Spider."

"Give a cat a chance." Black Cat says as she swung back, kicking Peter and sending him falling. "And she'll make you that kind of spider."

"Stop, you're making me blush," Peter commented as he tried to get her back away from the roof.

Then the doors burst open, and a few officers aimed at the two. "Freeze!"

"What?" Peter was distracted by the cops and ended up getting kicked by Black Cat who also took notice of the two officers. "Ow!"

"Two is a company, three and more is a collaborating witness," Black Cat said as she then descends into the roof and left the Spider and cops. "Catch ya later, Spider!"

"Great," Petr groaned as his super-sensed picked up on something else with his head buzzing. "Whoa!"

The cops then started to open fire on Peter, seemingly expecting him to be an accomplice for the Black Cat. He saw that he needed to find a way out of there, as well as the fact there was still that cat burglar out there. Looking around, he started to see there wasn't any other escape other than the one that Black Cat made for herself. But he still needed to get past the cops with guns that have him cornered behind jewelry displays.

Then he got an idea when he looked down at the web canisters attached to his sleeves. Once the chemicals come into contact with air, they will expand and are capable of containing individuals. In the state the substance is in right now, it wouldn't hold them for long, but it would be long enough for him to escape. Removing one of the canisters, he quickly stood up and tossed it at the cops.

Once they saw Peter, they took a few shots but didn't have enough time to get a good shot when the canister exploded. The webbing formula exploded and encased the cops, their guns, and just about everything in the vicinity was encased in the formula.

Getting an opening, Peter used his one good Web shooter to pull him out and slingshot into the air. Getting a good look at the vicinity around him, Peter noticed that the Black Cat was still nearby. But on his way down was another scary story as he slammed and rolled across the roof.

Walking off the pain of his first fall, Peter raced after the Black Cat as she was just a rooftop away from him now. Black Cat turned around and smiled as she watched the boy chase after him.

"Took the boy long enough." Black Cat commented as she then used a grapple to swing across the roof gaps while Peter just leaped across. She was impressed at how skilled and powerful the boy was and got an idea when she saw train tracks. "Looks like I've gotta play harder to get for once."

When she reached the end of the roof, she looked down at the tracks and clutched onto the bag of jewels as she allowed Peter to catch up. When he landed on the roof, Peter started to walk over toward her.

Black Cat smiled as she decided to mess with the boy and looked back over at him. "Like the view?" Peter immediately stopped in his tracks at that comment, not sure if she was referring to the city or to... her. "It's the only thing you'll catch tonight."

Peter raised his hands and gestured around them, seeing there is no way out for her. "Where are you gonna go?" He saw there was no way out for her and continued to stroll over. "Come on, don't be a sore loser. Admit defeat and give up the jewels."

"Oh, like any other man, you're just after my jewels." Black Cat mocked the boy and leaned back over the balcony. "And here I thought you were different."

"What?" Peter stopped walking as he was confused by the comment. "I was...I was referring to... stop twisting my words!"

Black Cat then waved him goodbye before doing a back roll and falling off of the roof. Peter gasped and ran up to her and tried to catch her when he ran up to the edge of the building. But when he looked down at where she fell, he noticed that she landed on the end of a train and was making her escape.

"Okay... and then there were two," Peter commented as he didn't expect there to be two teens with masks. But then as he looked up at the train tracks, he noticed that they intercepted near LexCorp. He then started to recall what she told him back in the jewelry store. "A captain of industry..."

Lex Luthor.

He likes to tie up loose ends using other loopholes to escape the law.

Could he be using the money for the jewels Black Cat stole to cover up his company's involvement in something?

Is it related to what happened to Superman?

Did Lex capture him?

Could it have something to do with that thing from the container which ended up giving him these powers?

But then his phone went off and interrupted his train of thought as he pulled it out to see who was calling. To no surprise, it was his mom.

He was in so much trouble.

He didn't know if it was better to answer the phone and get her wrath now, or to wait until he got home to receive it in person. Answer the call, and he receives a portion of the yelling now and the rest later.

But just as he was going to answer the call, he had what felt like a sudden glitch within his super-senses. It was like an itch that came into his mind that he can't scratch. He started to look around and wonder where or what caused them to glitch like that.

He can't stay around to figure it out. He needed to get home and hopefully isn't going to be grounded for life. The time was going to be cut short due to the fact he has one web shooter, but he was going to have to make up for that.

Peter quickly swung his way to his mother's apartment complex and landed on the roof where he keeps a backpack for him to change into, just in case he needed it. In this case, he kinda did as he ended up leaving the house earlier in his suit without a change of clothes. Racing down the stairwell, he reached his door and used the key he carries on him to sneak inside.

Walking into the house, he knew he was going to hear about it from his mom when he walked in just for the lights to turn on. Freezing right in the middle of the room, Peter looked over and saw his mother sitting in the reclining chair in the middle of the living room. He could see the stern look on her face and knew that she wasn't happy with him for being out this late.

Ever since the Man of Steel had gone missing, Lois has started to worry for Peter's safety even more than usual. Being the center of attention a lot of the time, she gets more than a few enemies wanting some payback.

"Hey." Peter greeted his mother.

"Where were you?" Lois asks him.

"Sorry. I was just out and didn't notice the time. I had to stop somewhere to charge my phone and was going to call in." Peter quickly tried to come up with a believable lie. "But then Jimmy called and I knew you were worried. Then this weird thief thing happened and the cops had to ask me some questions about some girl in a catsuit stealing jewels."

"A what did what?" Lois asks him in complete confusion.

"Yeah, it was this whole thing. So I've been stuck with them for a minute." Peter quickly explains to her.

Lois sighed and knew she couldn't really be mad at him for what was out of his control, which is what Peter went for in that story, following a few techniques that she taught him of writing stories to make it up. She could still be mad at him for being out this late, but Peter always tended to wander off a little on time of curfew. A perk she believes he ended up getting from her. He definitely didn't get it from his father.

His father. That was a sensitive subject. Peter would constantly be bullied for the fact he didn't have one when he was little. Rumors constantly floated around about who ended up getting it on with the great reporter Lois Lane to this day. Fifteen years later, nobody has anything else to do with their lives but spread rumors of someone else's life.

"Right." Lois sighed as she stood up. "Just... get to bed. I've got to get to work on this Cassidy interview tomorrow."

"I don't feel right about that." Peter quickly interjected his thoughts. "Especially with Superman gone, you tend to drag danger with you."

"Well, you're not wrong." Lois had to agree with her son as she walked over to check her bag for the morning.

"I'm not?" Peter was surprised to hear.

"I gave birth to you, didn't I?" Lois told him with a snarky smile.

Peter couldn't help but laugh at how bad that joke was. "Okay. That's hurtful."

"But factually correct," Lois responded and headed off to bed. But she stopped and smelled the area and couldn't help but feel something was wrong. "Do you smell smoke?"

Peter froze and looked down and moved his clothes to look at his smoke-scented costume. "Uh...no."

Lois did a bit of sniffing as she walked around the room to be sure of it. Peter was starting to worry she would discover him too fast and was starting to slightly panic. It's not like he wanted to keep this idea of going out and fighting crime a secret from her, but there was no way he was going to say this when Superman was missing. With him gone, dozens of his old enemies who are in hiding are likely to resurface sooner or later.

He needed to have her see the good that Spider-Man can do so that she couldn't say it was too dangerous. With Superman out of the picture, that was precisely the reason that the city needed Spider-Man. He needed to help the people that weren't capable of helping themselves.

Lois then shrugged as she didn't seem to be able to realize that the smoke was coming from Peter. "Well, whatever it is, seems it's gone now." Then she turned and walked towards her bedroom. "Goodnight."

Peter sighed in relief and decided to follow her and head to his own bed. "Goodnight." He had a feeling that Cat Burglar wasn't done with whatever she was doing or who she was doing it for. "Well, that was more eventful than previous nights."