CHAPTER FIFTEEN
❝ nothing to lose ❞
THE DRIVE TO the dance felt hours long, even though it was twenty minutes at most.
Henry didn't pay any mind to the fact that Aster was on edge. He talked for the entire ride, keeping his eyes on the road as he rambled on about football and his plans for playing in college. Aster wasn't listening to him. Her thoughts were consumed by Peter sitting in that car with Toomes, hoping the criminal wouldn't become suspicious of Peter based on his nerves alone.
Henry pulled the red Mercedes into the student parking lot, turning off the engine as soon as it was parked. He opened his door and stepped out before Aster even had her seatbelt off. Rounding the car, Henry opened Aster's door and held out a hand for her to take.
Aster forced a smile, taking his hand and holding her dress at the bottom so that she could maneuver herself out of the passenger's seat. Her heels hit the pavement as she stood, though she was still far shorter than Henry, even with the extra few inches. Henry looped her arm around his and walked her up the front steps of the school, ducking under the blue and gold balloon arch to pass through the front entrance.
Once they got into the actual dance, Henry pulled Aster along with him to greet some of his friends from football. While he was busy talking, Aster turned and scanned the gymnasium. She saw Michelle dressed in a cute dress, standing in the middle of the floor and lightly swaying to the music. The teenager raised her chin and nodded at Aster when she saw her, to which Aster returned with a wave of her own.
Still, there was no sign of Peter and Liz. Henry turned and followed his date's gaze in a confused manner, tipping his head down to ask, "You looking for someone?"
Aster met his eyes and rubbed a hand over her forehead, feigning a headache. "I'm just... looking for your sister. She told me she was gonna bring some Advil in her clutch and my head is killing me."
Frowning, Henry placed a hand on Aster's lower back and pulled her away from his friends. "She and Peter should be here. They left before us."
Aster reassured him with a small smile and a timid shake of her head. "I'm just gonna go the bathroom and splash some water on my face. Maybe that'll help."
But when she tried to step away from him and ultimately make her escape, he followed, still with his hand on the small of her back. "I'll come with you. I don't want you going alone if you don't feel well."
Biting down on her tongue, Aster internally winced. She just needed a second alone. Then, she could slip out and go after Toomes. She and Henry left the gymnasium and began walking down the empty hallway together, but since the locker rooms were closed, the next set of bathrooms was fairly far away.
Ensuring Henry she would only be a moment, Aster pushed into the bathroom. As soon as she heard the door shut behind her, she blew a long breath from her lips, dramatically throwing her arms into the air. "I can go to the freakin' bathroom by myself," she muttered, peeking under the stalls to make sure no one was in there with her. Once she deemed the bathroom empty, she braced one hand on the sink countertop, using the other to massage her right temple.
She didn't even have to fake the headache anymore.
With the combination of her date's dad being the Vulture, Aster realizing she was head over heels for her best friend, and Henry not leaving her alone so that she could sneak away?
Yeah, she had a headache.
Staring at herself in the mirror, Aster willed herself to stop thinking about Peter. She needed to stop thinking about the way he looked at her as she descended the staircase. The way his big brown eyes widened and his mouth fell open—
Clamping her eyes shut, Aster cursed herself for letting a boy consume her thoughts like that.
What was happening to her?
She needed to shut off her feelings, tell Henry she had to leave, and go take care of business.
A new wave of confidence washed over Aster after she gave herself a short pep talk. She took a deep breath and exited the bathroom, plastering a regretful smile on her face. Henry was leaning against the wall opposite of her, with his hands in his pockets and his eyes cast toward the ground. When he heard the sound of the bathroom door opening, he raised his head and stared at Aster quizzically. "You okay?"
"I think I might just have my dad pick me up," Aster breathed, rubbing a tired hand over her face. "I'm sorry—"
"Hey, hey," Henry chanted, standing to his full height. He walked closer to Aster, caging her against the wall. His calloused hands settled on her smooth biceps and he bowed his head down to meet her gaze. "Are you sure it's not just nerves?"
Aster scrunched her nose up, making a face at him. "Uh, I don't think so."
Henry frowned, sliding one hand down to her waist. "I understand if you're nervous being with me. It's just..." He was so close that Aster could smell his cologne. His eyes bored into hers, so intensely that Aster felt like he could see right through her. "We didn't even get to dance."
His voice had dropped to a near-angry tone. A shiver ran up Aster's spine and she tried to wrench herself from his grip, realizing then that his hold on her had tightened. "Henry—"
In her moment of distraction, she didn't see Henry reach into his pocket. She didn't even have a chance to look down at the weapon in his hands until he had already stabbed it into her lower back, eliciting a sharp grunt from her. A hot pain spread through Aster's body and she was suddenly unable to move, let alone even hold herself up.
When Aster's knees buckled, Henry caught her, slowly lowering her tensed body to the ground. Aster wished she could push him off of her, but she couldn't even make a noise, not as he lowered his mouth to her ear and whispered, "I can't let you run off, can I? My dad wouldn't like it if Starlight and Spider-Man interrupted him."
Aster's blood ran cold.
He knew.
How did he know?
Sensing her shock, Henry chuckled, his hot breath still fanning her ear. "I didn't even have to try. I was leaving football practice late one night and I saw someone falling from the roof," he said, acting dumbfounded. "It was you. And when I saw Parker dive after you and catch you with his webs..." A scoff slipped past his lips, meeting Aster's ears like a dagger. "Well, I just had to stick around and watch. Then I saw this flash of blue and all the pieces fell together."
With Aster's inability to respond, he went on, "My dad had me watch you two ever since then. Man, what a double life you have. Or triple, right? Starlight... Black Cat... Aster Andromeda?" He paused and pretended to think back on his words. "Wait, is it Andromeda or Stark now? I'm having a hard time following."
Aster felt like she couldn't breathe. Not only because the weapon in her back was hindering her ability to even move. The thought of Henry watching her and Peter made her feel dirty. Knowing he went and reported back to his dad—
Another realization rocked the world around her.
Toomes knew who they were, all along. And Peter was sitting in a car with him, lacking that important piece of information.
"You two are making things very difficult for my dad," Henry told her, pulling back to look her in the eye. The two of them were still in a heap on the ground. "There's a plane taking off from the Avengers Tower tonight. That plane is chock-full of weapons that would be worth millions on the black market. Each. So I took the liberty of making sure you weren't going to interrupt him from rerouting that plane. As for Parker, let's be honest... the kid will probably pass out with whatever my dad will threaten him with. Maybe Liz? Or you?"
Aster felt sick. Her hand shook as she tried with all her might to disarm him. Desperate, she even tried to use her powers. But alas, nothing.
Noticing her failed attempt to fight him, Henry shook his head and smirked. "You're not going anywhere. There's a modified Chitauri weapon embedded in your back right now. It's made to paralyze freaks like you—"
Henry clearly didn't see the textbook flying at his head until it had already connected with his skull. The hardcover book knocked him out cold, making him slump to the ground and release Aster.
As soon as the weapon was dropped from her back, Aster sucked in a deep breath and rolled away from it, attempting to catch her breath as the pain coursing through her entire body faded away. Her eyes were glued to the Chemistry textbook laying fanned out next to her, though she quickly snapped her head over to where it had flown from.
Ned was standing in the otherwise-empty hallway, dressed in his suit and fedora hat. Stunned, his eyes were wide and his mouth gaped open. As if he wasn't expecting to actually hit Henry.
Letting her eyes slip shut for a mere moment of relief, Aster breathed out a laugh. "Ned, I love you."
He broke out of his trance and ran over to Aster, dropping to his knees beside her. "Holy shit, are you okay?"
Aster dismissed his concern with a thumbs-up, attempting to stand on shaky legs. "Where's Peter?" she urgently breathed.
"Peter left. He told me that Liz and Henry's dad is the guy with the wings. He wanted me to find you, track his phone that he left in Vulture's car, and—"
"Ned," Aster interrupted his rambling, using him as a crutch to get to her feet. He snapped out of his shock and helped Aster stand. Her legs wobbled for a moment, still trying to shake the effects of the weapon Henry used on her. "Vulture is going after the plane leaving the Avengers Tower tonight. It's full of alien tech. Make sure Peter knows that. I'm going after them."
"You're going after them?" Ned repeated her words, clearly doubtful. His eyebrows scrunched together in worry. "I don't know if Peter would—"
Deciding that actions spoke louder than words, Aster held up her hand and conjured a ball of cosmic energy in her palm. Partly to shut Ned up and partly to make sure the weapon Henry had used on her didn't affect her powers. The fatigue she was feeling previously melted away instantaneously, reminding her how much she loved her abilities. Ned's eyes went comically wide and he was mesmerized by the swirling blue and silver energy emitting from her palm. "What the—?!"
"Yeah, I know," Aster hurriedly interrupted him. "While we're at it, I'm Black Cat too." She ignored his stunned expression, slipping her heels off of her feet before beginning to back down the hallway. "Go be the guy in the chair... and make sure he doesn't move!" she yelled, pointing down at Henry's unconscious body.
She broke off into a sprint before Ned could say another word. Running down the hallway, she waved a hand over her entire body, transforming her satin dress into her suit.
An eager smile grew on her face. Much better.
───
Within minutes of her leaving the school, Ned had already hacked into Aster's comm system. He let her know that he tracked Peter's phone, which stopped along with Toomes' car at an abandoned warehouse. Peter, who had apparently stolen Flash's car along the way, was already almost there.
Aster picked up her pace when she heard that. She jumped on top of cars and played leap frog with them, using them to move through the busy Queens streets quickly. The rest of the way, she ran.
When the warehouse finally came into sight, Aster didn't slow. Her blood was pumping past her ears and her joints were beginning to ache as she ran. Still, she didn't stop.
Not until the entire building collapsed.
Aster faltered in her steps and her breath caught in her throat. She watched Toomes fly out of the wreckage in his wingsuit, but when Peter didn't follow, she felt nauseous.
Without another thought, Aster ran into the ruins of the warehouse. Small fires were scattered around the debris, filling the remaining space with dark smoke. Aster twisted around, searching for any sign of her partner. "Peter! Can you hear me?"
A muffled cry met her ears, "Aster? Is that you?" Peter's voice was strained and he sounded like he was on the verge of a panic attack. "I'm stuck. I-I can't move. I can't..."
"Hang on, Webs," Aster breathed, scanning her surroundings carefully. She was having a hard time locating his echoing voice. "I'm gonna find you," she hurriedly reassured him.
A beat of silence passed, and just as Aster opened her mouth to ask him to yell out again, he grunted out, "No, no. I can get myself out of here. Aster, go after Toomes."
The new confidence in his voice made Aster freeze, yet her chest swelled with pride. Still, her feet stayed planted on the cracked concrete and worry contorted her expression. "Are you sure—?"
"Go, Ast. I promise I'll be right behind you."
And despite everything in her that made her want to stay, Aster nodded. There was no doubt in her mind that his words were the truth. She trusted him enough to know he would be right behind her and she knew he was strong enough to get himself out, even without the suit.
So, she ran after Toomes. A tired smile graced her lips when she heard his fading voice behind her, "Come on, Peter. Come on, Spider-Man."
When Aster emerged from the warehouse, she spotted Vulture perched on top of a stripped billboard. When he spread his wings and took off, Aster had to make a split-second decision right then and there.
Screw it, she thought to herself. I've got nothing to lose.
Thrusting her hands out by her sides, Aster let her palms bleed with sparkling blue energy. She shot up into the air and flew after Vulture, feeling stronger than ever with the ability to use her powers again.
Keeping her distance, Aster dipped down into the air when Vulture glanced back. She needed to stay out of sight. Peering up, she squinted at the Stark plane gliding through the clouds ahead of them. It was barely visible with the retro-reflective panels doing their job, mirroring New York City to stay incognito.
To her relief, a web cut through the air next to Aster, stretching through the night sky ahead. It stuck to the wings on Toomes' suit, tightening at the weight hanging from it. When she tilted her head back and spotted Peter hanging below her, Aster couldn't help but laugh. He was in his homemade suit, hanging onto the web for dear life as they climbed in altitude. She twisted her body and gave him a thumbs up, to which he returned with a shaky one back.
When Vulture finally reached the plane, he flipped over and held onto the bottom of it. Staying far back, Aster mirrored his actions, catching the web connected to him to pull Peter up to her level.
"Oh, my god! Oh, my god!" Peter chanted, peering down at the city far below with his chest heaving up and down.
Aster winced. "You okay?"
Peter turned to her and his eyes softened a bit. She could tell, even through his mask. "You have no idea how glad I am to see you. And your powers," he breathed.
Even though she knew his words were most likely related to the issue at hand, a warm feeling filled her chest. "Yeah, well, when Henry tried to kill me, I had a feeling you would need some help with Toomes."
Peter ripped off his mask, staring at her with wide eyes. A rare dark expression clouded his expression. "He what?!"
"It's fine," Aster reassured him. "Ned came to the rescue. He's a great guy in the chair."
Aster's attempt to lighten the situation with a joke flew right over Peter's head. His angry expression melted into a worried and he moved closer to her. "Are you okay? Did he hurt you?"
For a moment, Aster forgot they were tens of thousands of feet into the air. She smiled, looking into his eyes to tell him, "Only my pride. The one time I date."
That time, Peter did laugh. He seemed like he wanted to say something else, but before he could, he lost his grip and yelled, trying but failing to catch himself with his sticky fingers. He didn't slip far before Aster grabbed his wrist and kept him from falling. Smirking down at him, she tilted her head teasingly. "Caught ya."
Peter smiled up at her, shaking his head. "For once it's me and not you."
"Do you want me to drop you?"
"No, I... please don't."
Aster snorted and pulled him back up next to her, tilting her head toward where Vulture was perched. "You ready to finish this?"
Taking a deep breath, Peter slipped his mask back over his face. "Let's do it."
AUTHOR'S NOTE!
so... how y'all doing?
there's a LOT to unpack here.
some of you are probably surprised but some of you probably saw it coming: henry isn't one of the good guys.
he manipulated aster, doubling her trust issues.
but good thing ned was there!!!
i <3 ned.
aster and peter are about to kick some serious ass.
get ready for spider-man and STARLIGHT!
she's backkkk!
<3 mal