The Cat's Meow

Chapter One, Suspicions

Run, jump, look. Run, jump, look. It was an easy skill, one that she had practiced for some time now. Even though she carried a heavy bag, it didn't hinder her progress. The lone vigilante reached her destination. She stopped on top of the current rooftop she was on and looked around. She listened, but the only sound was that of the howling wind. The other sound she could hear was that of two men arguing in the street beneath her.

Her eyes took in the scene below. She squinted through her binoculars. Her ears focused on the conversation happening. Below her in the streets of New York there was a cop and a thief. A police car was parked near a street lamp. The yellow light shone down on the two.

"I'm telling you, officer, she was here. In the flesh. I don't know where she came from. She was here and then she vanished." The thief said as the cop shoved him into his car. So far, the cop didn't seem to be buying his story. That was good.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Tell it to the judge." He replied, sounding slightly impatient as he closed the door. Before he got in the car himself he began to talk into the walkie talkie attached to his costume. She couldn't make out much in the wind, but she knew who he must've been talking to.

"Darn it, Cat, why do you always have to get caught?" She hissed under her breath as she kicked the rooftop. She stopped and watched the cop turn towards her. She fell onto the ground and hid. She listened, hoping the cop wouldn't decide to investigate. Once she knew the cop car had gone, she continued on her way. She knew that if the Black Cat got caught in the limelight again, her new employer would skin her alive. She hoped he didn't find out. She might even consider praying, if it meant getting her mother back. She doubted it, and continued on her way.

The next morning, several blocks away from Black Cat's location, was the Parker house. Deep in his bed sleeping, was Peter Parker. The only thing that wasn't hidden by his covers was his hair. He felt someone ruffle it and sat up. Sadly, it was only Luke and Danny, his new roommates. Even though they had only been staying with him for a few weeks, he still considered them new.

"Hey dude, it's time to get up. Last day of school for this week." Luke said as he stretched his arms in the air. Both were already dressed and ready for school. How they woke up that early baffled Peter.

He yawned and got out of bed," Yeah well, not all of us can get up as early as you two." He said and stumbled out of the room. He didn't look at their expressions as he left.

As per usual, Ava was sitting at the table. She too, was already ready while Sam was still in his pajamas. He had his backpack placed near his seat, which Peter didn't understand. Sam never finished getting ready before Peter.

"Peter your breakfast is on the table. I got you some orange juice as well," Aunt May said as she arrived in the room. She pecked Peter on the top of the head. Ruffling his hair, she grabbed her purse and headed for the door," I have to go. Are you sure you don't need a ride to school? You know Mary Jane leaves early sometimes."

Peter shrugged as he sat down and began to wolf down his meal. Sam went upstairs and Ava grabbed his backpack," No, I'm good. I'm sure we'll make it."

Aunt May gave him a look and he tried avoid her eyes. Eventually, she left the subject alone and left. Peter let out a sigh of relief once he had finished and raced to get ready. It was the first day back from Winter Break and he didn't want to be late.

Fortunately, they reached school just in time. The bell rang five minutes after he arrived to class. He took notes quietly yet he felt eyes on him from behind. Out of the corner of his eye, he scanned the room. So far, he couldn't find the person who was staring at him. However, he looked in the back of the room and saw a new girl. She had light blonde hair and fair skin. Her blue eyes shone in the lights and Peter had to do a double take to make certain he was truly seeing her.

"Mr. Parker is there something interesting in the back of the room that you would like to tell us about?" Asked the teacher, folding his arms across his chest. All of the students turned to look at him.

He shook his head as he finished writing the notes," No, sir." He replied and the teacher nodded. Peter let out a sigh of relief as the teacher began his lecture.

Peter was thankful when the bell finally rang. He hurriedly packed his things and went to the door. However, he couldn't help over hearing the conversation between Mr. Barnes and the new student.

"Well Miss Hardy we're glad to have you in class. Let me know if you ever need help. I'm sure one of our students or I would be more than willing to assist." He said, sounding as overzealous as usual.

When the blonde girl answered, her voice was sweet and melodic yet it had a certain bite to it that said "watch out." Something in her voice made Peter shiver. He tried to think of where he'd seen her," I will, Mr. Barnes. Thank you so much for your help."

Peter rushed out the door, but not before he could bump into Sam. He growled silently under his breath as he went to his locker. He noticed Sam following, and rolled his eyes. Sometimes he wished he could punt Sam down the hall. However, he knew that would cause more problems than solve.

"So Parker, have you seen the new student? She's hot, blonde and totally my type." Sam said and Peter slammed his locker door closed. Hopefully, he could escape Sam before the bell rang.

"I thought you were already with MJ." Peter said as he leaned against his locker.

"Not officially. Besides, I heard she's hot. I'm going to go find her and ask her out," Sam said and began looking for the new student. Suddenly, his eyes lit up and he pointed to her location," There she is. Wish me luck Parker and hope you can learn from me."

He said snottily and shoved his way past Peter. If this was anything like how Sam had tried to ask out MJ, Peter didn't want to stay and watch. Just as he was about to turn away, his ears picked up the word. The wonderful word that made him smile for the first time that week.

"No. I'm sorry; I'm just not ready for a relationship at this time." A grin appeared on Peter's face as Sam's distraught expression reappeared in his peripheral vision. Peter stifled a laugh and walked quickly to class.

"You think this is funny, Parker?" Asked Sam, having seen Peter's look of amusement, he chased down the hall after Peter. Before Sam could yell anything else, Peter took his seat.

"What was all that about?" Asked MJ as she took a seat near Peter. He tried to ignore her as he got out yesterday's homework.

Peter shrugged nonchalantly," He asked out the new girl and she rejected him." He responded, trying to make it sound like nothing. He felt her nudge him gently on the arm. Peter feigned pain and began to rub where she had nudged it.

"Well that would be a first." She said with a sly grin as the bell rang. Peter took out his notebook and began to write the notes that appeared on the Smart Board.

The day passed by through a blur. Hour after hour came and finally it was time for lunch. Peter's stomach had been growling most of the morning. He sat in his usual spot, at his usual table. Soon after his friends joined, making the table feel fuller.

Before the cafeteria grew too loud, Principal Coulson called everyone to attention. As usual, everyone stopped talking. Whenever Principal Coulson spoke, no one else did. It was creepy how his skills as a S.H.I.E.L.D agent and high school principal coincided with each other. It was so creepy; he didn't need a bull horn.

"Listen up students. For those of you who don't know, we have a new student. Her name is Felicia Hardy and she moved here from Brooklyn. I want everybody to give her a warm welcome to Midtown." He said as Felicia gave a lone wave. She looked a little intimidated, but most new students did when they were being introduced.

As soon as he finished talking, everyone erupted into conversation. It was after Christmas break and next week were Mid Terms. Peter knew that every time around this year, it was loud. He decided to join the conversation, considering that he would be leaving soon. He knew S.H.I.E.L.D was down, so they had decided to take shifts patrolling around New York. However today, Coulson had something to show them.

"So what'd you say to her anyway, Sam? I heard she dumped you flat." Luke said with a grin on his face. The others did as well, including MJ.

Sam's face had turned a deep shade of scarlet. He tried to distract himself with his fries, but it didn't work," All I said was 'would you like to date someone with class?'" He said and waited a moment. For a moment, the entire table was quiet. Then, as if on cue, everyone began to laugh. It was soft at first, and then grew in volume.

"No wonder she turned you down, dude. You don't have class at all." Snickered Harry as he squeezed his girlfriend's hand. So far, he and Zara had been going out for a few weeks now.

"Yeah well, not all of us would have the courage to ask the new girl out." MJ interjected and a few people nodded in agreement. She didn't look affected by him asking her out. Peter wondered if they had started dating yet. Peter wondered if Sam and MJ were dating at all for that matter.

Peter finished his food and continued to converse with his friends. He glanced at the clock one more time and left the table. It was time. The others must've known it too, because they had left long ago. Zara hugged Harry good bye and followed close behind Peter.

Principal Coulson, who was standing beside the door, saw them as they came. He opened the door for them," There you two are. I thought you weren't coming."

"Yeah, well, not all of us can excuse ourselves early." Peter said as they entered the room. He took his usual seat and waited. For a few moments, it was silent. Then, at that moment, a blue holo screen appeared. The door window was blocked, along with the windows in the room. It was completely dark, save for the holo screen. On the holo screen was Dr. Curt Connors, a scientist working with S.H.I.E.L.D.

"Dr. Connors, what's wrong? Asked Ava immediately, leaning forward in her seat. Peter figured this was a recorded message, because he didn't respond.

Immediately, the screen changed to show a woman appeared on screen. Instantly, Peter recognized her but he couldn't place her identity. However, he still couldn't remember when he had seen her. The woman wore an all-black costume. Claws accompanied her fingers and a mask covered her eyes. Her white hair was long and straight. She was crouched, as if waiting to spring on some imaginary prey. Her costume looked like that of a cat.

"This is the infamous Black Cat," said Connors. Peter knew instantly that this was the reason why he was here. He stole a glance at the others, and they nodded in agreement. Connors continued," she's the top cat burglar in all of New York. She's also been stealing some items from the S.H.I.E.L.D lab. They were inconsequential at first, little trinkets here and there and then, she started taking more things."

"Such as?" Ava asked, leaning back in her chair.

The screen changed and another image appeared in the screen. This time it was of a glowing cube. Peter recognized it instantly as the Cosmic Cube. He knew the others reaction almost as soon as the image appeared on screen. He knew they would be as dumbfounded as him.

"The Cosmic Cube, one of the world's most dangerous weapons," Replied Connors matter-of-factly as if it were no big deal instead of one of the world's most dangerous weapons," S.H.I.E.L.D has been keeping their weapons under top security measures. However, the Black Cat stole this from us. We don't know why she's here and we don't know why she's stealing things from us. Right now we're more concerned about getting back the Cube."

This time when the screen changed it was of a map. Peter figured it was of New York. More importantly, Manhattan," Here are the places she's been so far. As far as S.H.I.E.L.D can tell, these are the main places where she goes. We don't know why she's stolen what she has, but we do know this. She doesn't normally mess with S.H.I.E.L.D property."

After that, the holo screen disappeared and the room grew lighter. Each teammate turned to the other, dumbfounded and confused. It was Luke that eventually spoke, keeping his voice level.

"So whoever this Black Cat is, she's obviously bad news." He said and the others nodded in agreement.

"So who does S.H.I.E.L.D thinks she's working for?" Peter thought aloud, which earned the stares of his teammates. He turned to look at them, deep in thought," Well, you heard what Connors said. She isn't normally someone to mess with S.H.I.E.L.D. That usually means she's working for someone. But who would want her to steal all this stuff and why?"

"I don't know but I say we keep our eye out for her. She could be anywhere in disguise and we just don't know it." Replied Ava and the others nodded.

"I agree with Ava. We should watch our backs." Said Peter and they all left the room. A new atmosphere hung around the heroes, one that was heavy and taunting.

Instead, she used the direct route. Peter's thoughts were confirmed when he saw her charge directly towards the guards. Both shot at the cat burglar with their bulky guns. Nonetheless, it seemed as if Black Cat ignored them. She threw a device at them, which caused them to fall asleep. They slumped against each other, their bodies relaxed.

Eventually, it was time to get back to class. Just as Peter was heading to his locker, he felt someone lightly bump his shoulder from behind. He turned to see that it was only Felicia Hardy. The new girl. Instantly, he felt embarrassed.

"I'm sorry did I bump into you?" He asked as he helped her off the ground. Her platinum blonde hair shone in this light.

"Yeah, I'm ok. Thanks. Most people only like me for my looks." She said with a grin. Peter made sure to get a good look at her. She wore a teal short sleeved blouse with white skinny jeans and black shoes.

"OOOh, looks like Peter's got a girlfriend!" Called Flash from down the hall. He and a couple of his buddies snickered at the comment.

"Well he'd be a better boyfriend than you." Shouted Felicia and several of the boys "oohed" at Flash. The blonde athlete clenched his fists and stormed away.

"Thanks for that, Felicia." Peter said as his cheeks turned a deep crimson color.

"Don't sweat it, kid. And hey, don't let that kid bug you. He's only a second-rate slinger who's jealous of your skills. See you around." She said and went to her locker around the corner.

Out of the corner of his eye, Peter saw Zara approach him. He opened his locker as she leaned against a nearby locker. Her arms were crossed and she looked vexed," You know I could've handled him too."

Peter shrugged, trying to keep nonchalant," I never said I didn't want your help. Besides, she stepped in."

Zara looked in her direction and then back at Peter," Well I don't like her. I don't trust her. There's something about her that screams she's hiding something. Whether that's drugs, or that she's Black Cat."

Peter turned to her, a look of shock on his face," You honestly don't think she's the real deal do you? You've only known her for a day, and even then you haven't introduced yourself to her."

Now it was Zara's turn to shrug. Peter didn't know if Zara didn't like her because she was blonde or what. Nevertheless, he decided to remain optimistic. She seemed nice enough," Just watch your back, Parker. Seems like every boy in school is falling all over her. And I'm not just saying that because I'm jealous because I'm not. I have a bad feeling about this girl. I don't know why or how, but I do."

Peter slammed his locker door closed," Are you sure it's because you're not jealous?" He knew it would only piss her off, but he couldn't help himself. He heard her let out a frustrated sigh. He figured she was frustrated with him, but not mad. At least, not yet. Peter needed something that would distract her. Fast. His eyes searched the hallway and immediately found Harry. He pointed his head towards Zara, and Harry nodded. He had gotten the message.

"Yes, I'm sure. Listen Parker, the only reason I'm telling you this is because I have a bad feeling. My dad said that whenever a person is hiding something, you can usually tell. Have you ever seen her befriend or join any social groups since she's moved here? For most new kids, it happens within the first day. Some kids even find friends within the school before they join." She said, trying to give him the stink eye. Part of Peter shuddered at her look. The other part, the teenage boy part, wished that she would just go away. Finally, Harry's hand came down on his girlfriend's shoulder from behind.

"Hey Zara, don't you think we should head to class? I'll walk with you." He suggested as Zara turned to him.

"Ok, sounds good." She said and their hands intertwined. As they rounded a corner, Zara turned to Peter. She gave him a look that said if-you-don't-head-my-warning-I-will-tear-your-head-off. Then, she smiled and was gone. Peter shook his head and went to class.

The rest of the day passed by in a blur. Luckily, there wasn't much homework. It was the week after Winter break. Plus, Mid Terms were the following week. It wasn't as if the kids were going to learn something new. Nor would they want to. In any matter, Peter was grateful when they finally made it home. Even though he had to walk through the snow, he was glad. It had been a long day and he would have much to discuss with his team about Black Cat.

"I'll see you at seven, ok Sam?" Said MJ as she stopped and stood on her own porch.

Sam nodded in agreement, a silly smile on his face. The door was halfway open," Uh-huh. I promise, MJ."

"Sam, close the door! You're letting all the heat out." Ava said and took hold of his shirt. She pulled him in and closed the door behind him.

"Yeah man, what are you thinking? It's cold out there." Luke said as he began to do his homework. Danny sat beside him in the living room.

"Speaking of cold," Said Ava as Peter passed around snacks. Once he knew everyone had received one, he set it on the table," What are we going to do about Black Cat? You guys all remember what Dr. Connors said."

"We must investigate this with an air of caution." Said Danny as he closed his textbook. Luke nodded next to him.

"Right, but how are we going to handle it?" Repeated Peter as he stepped into the room and took a bite of his blueberry muffin.

"I say we invite her to dinner. I know a great place in the center of Manhattan." Sam grinned as he dropped his books loudly on the kitchen table.

Peter shook his head in disagreement," I don't know, guys. I think we should monitor S.H.I.E.L.D and Manhattan. Patrol in shifts. Just in case she decides to steal anything else. That way maybe we can figure out why she's stealing all this stuff." The others nodded in agreement as Ava took a seat on the couch.

"So another patrol shift? It's not like we don't do enough of those already. However, that does sounds like a good idea. How do you guys want to do the shifts? I want to do it second, just because I'm going over to Zara's tonight. We're study buddying until after Mid Terms." Ava spoke as she turned her muffin around in her hands and Peter nodded.

"I will take the first shift. I have not much left to do with my 'homework.'" Danny said, raising his hand triumphantly.

"Man, how'd you get that done so fast?" Asked Luke, feeling and sounding slightly irritated.

Danny smiled triumphantly and turned to him," Learn to do as I do. Work by yourself and check your answers constantly." He replied and Peter shook his head.

"Focus guys," Said Ava as Sam leaned against the couch. Sam raised his hand next, a large smirk on his face

"I'll take second to last. I'll take second to last, date with MJ."

"I'll third take shift," Luke said," But how long are these shifts going to last? We can't all be gone at the same time. Mrs. Parker's going to wonder where we're at."

"He's right. I think the length should be a half hour. Then maybe five minute break in between and then the next person goes." Suggested Peter, his hands in his pockets. The others nodded in agreement.

Peter gave a tired sigh," I'll go last, since nobody else volunteered to do it unless Zara wants to?" He turned to Ava with a sly grin. She nodded as she took out her phone and began to text.

"I'm texting Zara now. She can go after Peter. So the order goes Danny, me, Luke, Sam, Peter, and then Zara, right? Did I miss anybody?" She asked as she sent the message. The others shook their head.

"Nope. Pretty sure you got everybody." Peter replied.

Just then, Ava pulled out her cell phone," Hey guys, Zara texted back. She said she's able to put in some extra hours."

"Perfect, then it's settled. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some studying to do. I want to ace these Mid Terms." Luke said and everyone went about their work.

However, Peter's mind wandered. He didn't know what to expect from Black Cat. All thieves acted the same. Secretive and disloyal. Nevertheless, he still needed to know the reason behind her thefts. Why had she stolen all those items? What was her purpose behind them? All these thoughts ran through Peter's mind as he finished his muffin and grabbed his backpack. He took them upstairs, as he processed over the information Connors had given them.

A/N: So I know what you're all thinking. Avenger, why are you working on a new project? Don't you have enough of those already? Yes I do, so stop whining! The reason I'm writing this story is because I would like to see Black Cat in the series. She hasn't shown up yet, and I'm not waiting for Season Two to come out.

Heat Strike: You weren't going to wait for it anyway.

Me: Quiet you. Did I ask you?

Heat Strike: Continue. I still have a bad feeling about this girl, though.

Me: I know you do. I did that on purpose. Just say the line will you?

Heat Strike: Avenger22 doesn't own anything, except her own Oc's and the plot, so please ask before you use them! Please don't forget to review! No flames please!