Chapter Text
If you’d asked Clementine a month ago what she spent her time doing, she’d tell you that she was usually either studying for some test, at practice or a game, babysitting her neighbor’s kid, or hanging out with her best friends. You know, typical stuff. If you asked her now? Well, still all of that plus… whatever this was.
She was thrown against a car, denting the hood. She made a mental note to leave an apology or something on a sticky note as she sprang to her feet and swung back toward her assailant. It wasn’t that she didn’t feel bad for whoever’s car that was, it was just… well, she was fighting the St. John brothers. Again. For whatever reason, they just didn’t want to stay in jail. This was the second time this week they’d gotten out and, of course, gone straight for her. Well, not really, but since she’d made her first appearance as a superhero, they’d been showing up in public to get her attention. Clem guessed it was kind of working, since she did keep taking their bait, but they also kept getting put back in jail, so she wasn't entirely sure what they were getting from the whole experience. One thing was for sure, whoever was in charge of keeping them there was doing a shit job.
She’d have left a little money for the owner of the car as well, but it wasn’t like she kept cash in her suit. She hoped the apology would suffice. Or…
“Okay, I’m not paying for that, so you’d better have robbed a bank or something before this to pay for this guy’s new car. Or at least pay for a new hood,” Clem said, kicking Andy St. John in the face. Andy and Danny were your stereotypical, garden variety thugs hopped up on radiation. They’d already been wanted criminals before they got their powers, but now they were even more of a pain in the ass. Clem did appreciate the change of pace from her usual muggers and petty thieves, though. At the very least, fighting the St. Johns was stimulating.
“Jesus, do you ever shut up?” Andy growled, charging toward her. Clem had caught Danny in some webs a block down, and judging by the approaching sirens, he’d be back behind bars soon. Hopefully they could keep him there for more than three days, their previous record, this time.
“Actually, I don’t. Haven’t you noticed?” Clem said, quickly punching him in the face and dodging his retaliation. Andy groaned loudly.
“You think you’re the shit, don’t you? You think you’re fuckin’ hilarious... Well you ain’t. You’re pathetic,” He said. Clem knocked him backwards into a wall, quickly webbing him. She dusted her hands off on her suit as Andy struggled against the webbing. Clem turned to walk away, but Andy called after her.
“What, you’re gonna… you’re fuckin’ walkin’ away from me! One of these days, you’re not gonna be able to walk away… we’ll get you, and I can tell you this… we ain’t gonna walk away like fuckin’ cowards!” Andy shouted, clearly spitting mad. Clem didn’t turn around, used to this from the brothers. Still, as many times as she’d defeated them, she couldn’t shake the feeling of unease she got imagining what would happen if she… well, there was no use dwelling on that. Anyway, she had to get to school soon, she had a math test today, not to mention baseball practice in the afternoon. But she was forgetting something.
She didn’t carry cash in her suit, but she did have a couple sticky-notes on her from a school project that she’d done a while back. She’d forgotten about the project and done it last minute on the roof of some office building. She’d panicked and stuffed the sticky-notes and a pen into her suit. She still had them, and quickly scribbled out an apology before sticking it on the car’s hood. The sirens drew closer, which Clem took as her cue to leave.
She quickly scaled the nearest building and watched from above as the police reached Andy. Satisfied with his capture, she began to swing between buildings in the direction of the alley on the outskirts of the city where she’d left her backpack and clothes. She dropped down discreetly next to a dumpster. Thankfully, her bag was still there. Someone had stolen her bag once, and since then she’d made more of an effort to hide her things when she went… spidering.
Clem quickly changed out of the suit in the alley, the dumpster acting as a shield between her and the passers-by. She knew that if anyone looked behind her cover, she’d be in some serious trouble, but it wasn’t like she had time to change at home, not that she’d want to be spotted in her suit anywhere near her actual house. She had to be at school in an hour, meaning she had to get out of Atlanta, quick. The brothers had really held her up today. Or rather, the police had taken their sweet time getting over there to back her up. Just because she was around didn’t mean they had to stop doing their fucking job. Honestly, the police in this city bordered on incompetent.
After changing into her regular clothes, Clem tossed her suit into her backpack and swung it onto her shoulder, before jogging back out of the alley. She’d discovered this shortcut into and out of the city when she’d first decided to use her powers, and since she only lived a little ways from Atlanta, she could usually move around relatively easily. She'd just tell Christa she was going on a jog (technically sort of true), go into the city and fight crime for a few hours, and then make it back before the first bell. It was a polished routine.
Clementine began her jog through the woods just outside of Atlanta that lead back to her town, periodically checking her watch. As she drew closer, she recognized the scenery around her better, before finally making her way out into a neighborhood she recognized. Unfortunately for her, this neighborhood was almost completely across town from the school. Of course, she knew about this beforehand, having done the same thing multiple times, but still, she would’ve liked to get a water break.
Sadly, time didn’t allow for this. Water would have to wait. She made her way across town as fast as she could, and finally reached the school. God, this whole thing would be so much easier if she could web-sling her way through town, but it was safer to change in Atlanta. Plus, if someone spotted the Spider-Woman in a little town outside of Atlanta, it would be a hell of a lot easier to track her down. Pretty much nothing except actual crime would be able to get her to don the good old mask outside of Atlanta. No, she’d have to continue going it on foot.
She reached Ericson High School more than a little bit sweaty. Yeah, she was athletic, but she’d just run a hell of a lot after fighting superpowered assholes, not to mention she’d done all of that in the Georgia heat. She’d gotten to school with almost ten minutes to spare, but she still had to make it to class before the bell rang. Clem quickly made her way down the hallway as it emptied, until she was one of the last few kids not in class. She reached her first period room right as the bell rang, walking in panting slightly and with her head down. Mr. Everett stopped her by his desk.
“Cutting it close, Clementine,” He said quietly, so as not to draw too much attention. Clem looked at him sheepishly.
“Sorry, Mr. Everett,” She said. He smiled warmly.
“It’s fine, you’re on time after all. I just want to make sure you keep that up. You’ve been getting to class later than usual these past few weeks,” He said.
“I know. I’ve been… doing stuff before school, and it’s kind of taking over my early mornings. I’ll be sure to get to class sooner though,” She said. Mr. Everett raised an eyebrow, amused.
“Doing stuff?”
“I… yeah. Stuff. Jogging, and… stuff,” Clem said. Mr. Everett shook his head with a smile.
“Alright, Clementine. Stuff. Go take your seat,” He said, and Clementine quickly slid into a chair next to her friend Gabe. He smiled at her.
“Hey, Clem.”
“Morning.”
“Running a little late today, huh? What’d Everett have to say?” Gabe asked, scooting closer to Clementine. Clem scooted away, and Gabe pouted at her. It was no secret among their friends that when Clem and Gabe had gone through their shared emo phase in middle school (although, could anyone really say Gabe’s phase had ended?), Gabe had quickly developed a crush on Clem. Clem had let him down gently, but he’d sulked for a solid week and a half. Now, Gabe’s past crush on Clem was mostly a joke within their friend group. Every time Gabe did something like give her his pudding at lunch or laugh at something Clem said a little too loud, it was turned into a joke. Clem smiled at Gabe, and scooted back toward him.
“Sorry. Um, he was mostly making sure I kept getting to class on time. Which I did, by the way. I wasn’t late,” Clem said. Gabe shrugged.
“You were late for you. Actually, you’ve been… somewhere else these past few weeks. What’s up?” He asked. Clem’s eyes widened. He knew about her trips to Atlanta?
“What?” She asked quickly. Gabe frowned.
“I mean… you’ve clearly been dealing with… something. Is it…” He trailed off, unsure of how to breach the subject, but Clem knew what he was trying to say. Well, at least he didn’t know about her double life as Spider-Woman. She sighed deeply.
“You mean Omid? I… sort of. I’ve been going on jogs, to… clear my mind and shit. You know? It was really hard to convince Christa to let me go out after what happened, so now that I finally persuaded her, I’m taking advantage of it. I guess I’ve been going out farther pretty much every morning, so it’s taking me longer to get back. Which is why I was almost late today,” Clem shrugged. Gabe nodded.
“Okay. Well… if you ever want a jogging buddy… okay, you know I’m kinda shit at running for too long, but I’m sure Duck’d go with you. Or Sarah, if her dad would actually give her permission to leave the house in the mornings. And I’m always here to talk, if you need it. Or even if you just want to talk. It doesn’t have to be a need. I mean-“ Clem cut him off with a smile.
“I get it, Gabe. I appreciate it, and I know I can count on you all. But I think being alone helps too, you know? I don’t usually get enough time to think, and, well… I’ve had a lot to think about recently,” She said, and felt a little bad about lying. But it was to protect him, she reminded herself. He was safer if he knew nothing about her double-life. Gabe nodded thoughtfully.
“Yeah. I get it.”
Clem tuned into what Mr. Everett was saying after that. She always liked history. Her dad had loved history. So had Omid. She had always thought they would have liked each other. Her dad had always said that history was what connected everyone, because everyone had some shared history, either personal or before they were born. His eyes would light up when he'd tell his favorite historical anecdotes. He always said that sometimes, real life was wilder than fiction. She had to agree. Sometimes, a radioactive spider bites you, and suddenly, you’re taking up the responsibilities of being a superhero. Sometimes, life is just like that.
Omid had liked history in a different way. Whereas Clem’s dad’s eyes had lit up when he was talking about history, Omid’s entire being had. He was an enthusiastic guy, but especially about the things he loved. Some might argue that everyone showed enthusiasm for what they loved, but Omid was special. He had a unique energy that he brought with him places. It made you feel more alive somehow. Funny. He was so lively, and yet…
Soon, the bell rang again, and Clem was off to math class. She’d never been great at math. She pretty much excelled in every other class with little to no effort, but Clem actually had to work to get good grades in math. She hadn’t been looking forward to the test at all. She hadn’t had as much time to study for this one as she’d wanted, having had to cut a little time out of her life to make room for the St. John’s. Honestly, she might take the St. John brothers over geometry. Okay, maybe not, but still, Clem definitely didn’t love math. Thankfully, her childhood friend, Duck, was in her math class. He grinned widely at her as she took her seat.
“You ready for the test?” He asked. Clem groaned, planting her face on the table. “I’ll take that as a no.”
“I’m too tired for this shit,” Clem grumbled, lifting her head up off of the table. Duck’s expression quickly turned to one of concern.
“How much sleep did you get last night?” He asked. Clem shrugged.
“Um…” She said sheepishly. Duck fixed her with what was probably meant to be a stern gaze, but didn’t look intimidating at all coming from Duck. He was practically a walking teddy bear.
“Clem…”
“Like… five hours? Maybe a little more than that?” She said.
“Clem!”
“I couldn’t sleep! And I got up early to go jogging,” Clementine explained. Duck shook his head.
“Dude, you need to sleep. I’m tired as hell and I got eight full hours. Set your alarm a little early, take a shorter jog,” He suggested. Clem shrugged.
“Maybe.”
“Not maybe. Say you’ll do it, Clementine.”
“I can’t promise you anything.”
“Uh, yes. You totally can. It’s easy, all you’ve gotta say is ‘yes, Duck, I’ll get up a little later from now on, because sleep is important’! See? Not hard at all. Now, you say it,” Duck said. Clem shook her head. She figured that stopping Andy and Danny St. John from killing innocent civilians was slightly more important than her getting a little more sleep, but she couldn’t exactly tell Duck that. She rolled her eyes.
“I promise I’ll try my best to get more sleep tonight,” She said. Duck, seemly satisfied, smiled at her.
“Alright, good,” He said. The teacher came around with the tests, and soon, the room was quiet as everyone focused on math. Clem groaned internally as she marked the third question in a row as one to go back to. She thought again about how she usually prepared better for math tests, but she hadn’t had as much time recently with both more frequent practices and having to take on the responsibilities of heroism. Or was it vigilantism? Depending on what paper you were subscribed to, it was either one.
The only paper Clem read religiously was the Ericson Weekly, the school newspaper. It was run by the journalism and media teacher, Carley Miller, and a kid in Clem’s grade, Aasim. He was in her English class. He was smart and witty, and an excellent journalist to boot. Honestly, the Weekly was the only paper that she trusted wasn’t completely corrupt. Of course, that was a lot more likely with a school newspaper, but it was exceptionally good for a school paper. It had reported on the Spider-Woman when she’d first shown up a few weeks ago. Aasim had run a column on why she was a hero, and definitely one that the world, or at least Atlanta, needed.
Clementine had always liked Aasim, even if she barely talked to him outside of class. That piece had reaffirmed her fondness for him.
She liked Carley as well. Clem was taking journalism and occasionally wrote for the Weekly as well, so she’d gotten to know the woman pretty well. Clem liked Carley almost as much as she liked Mr. Everett. For one thing, she let kids call her by her first name, which by default made her cooler than most of the other teachers. Plus, she was just… good. She had also put in her two cents on the Spider-Woman. She’d said that when the police aren’t equipped to handle something, or aren’t doing their job, it’s probably best for someone else to step in. The way the system’s set up, it’s pretty hard for someone to… get in there. But the Spider-Woman had managed to do it. She’d added that the police definitely weren’t prepared to handle superpowered criminals, and that it was best that a superpowered hero was stepping in.
That was what Clem thought as well.
But it wasn’t just superpowered criminals that Clementine wanted to take down. It was more about protecting the little guy. Nobody had been there to protect her parents. Nobody had been there to protect Omid. She couldn’t let something like what happened to them happen to anyone else when she could stop it. That was why she’d decided to don a mask and a secret identity and become the web-slinging Spider-Woman.
Carley and Aasim seemed to get it.
It was… weird to hear people talking about her, though. And plenty of people did. Apparently, she was interesting to people, which wasn’t really the point, but it was… strange. She’d gone into full panic mode the first time the Spider-Woman had been brought up among her friends. They’d been at Gabe’s house, hanging out with his sister and his Uncle Javi. Javi’d been the one to bring up the Spider-Woman, and Clem was pretty sure her heart had stopped for a second. Thankfully, her friends had all pretty much been supportive of her (even if they didn’t know it was her). Of course, Duck thought superpowers were “sick”, and Sarah liked that someone was out there using their powers to protect people rather than hurt them. Gabe seemed to not really care, but Clem had caught him arguing with someone on the internet about how Spider-Woman was a hero. Or really, how she was a hero. It was still really wild hearing her friends talk about her without knowing that they were talking about… her.
She hadn’t told them about her powers because she didn’t want them to get in any trouble because of it. If they knew, and she made any powerful enemies, they’d be able to use her friends against her. Clem couldn’t let that happen. She wasn’t letting anyone else get hurt because of her, especially her friends.
She finished her test and turned it in to the teacher just as the bell rang. After math, the rest of morning went by quickly. Spanish was mostly uneventful. She liked Spanish since it was taught by her neighbor and Gabe’s cool Uncle Javi. Javi was funny, and liked to tell jokes in class. After Spanish was art with Luke, another one of her neighbors. She got special privileges to call both Javi and Luke by their first names, because, well, she’d been calling them Luke and Javi since she was a kid. It would just be… weird to stop. As soon as art was over, Clem made her way to the cafeteria. She got her lunch and sat with her friends.
Duck and Gabe were arguing about something ridiculous, so Clem decided to talk with Sarah until they inevitably got tired of… whatever it was they were fighting about. She thought she heard something about a fistfight and Duck’s dad? Clem didn’t even try to understand their arguments anymore. It wasn’t worth it getting involved every time they got like this. Every day they were arguing about something even more wild and nonsensical than the day before.
“Hey, Sarah,” She said, smiling at her friend. Sarah smiled back.
“Hi, Clem. How was your math test? Duck said it was hard,” Sarah said. Clem shrugged.
“Yeah, well you know I’m not really a math person. You’ll probably do really well,” She said. Sarah grinned at her.
“Aw, thanks. I’m sure you did well, though. You usually do.”
“Yeah, I guess so. I didn’t study as hard for this one though. I haven’t really had time, with practice and everything,” Clem said. Sarah’s expression turned to one of confusion.
“Really? Usually you… make time.”
“I don’t know, I guess I’ve been kind of overwhelmed,” Clem said. Sarah nodded.
“Okay, I get it. If you ever want to come over to my house and study with me or something, you can totally do that. I mean, I’d have to ask my dad first, but he loves you, so he’d probably say yes,” She said. Clem smiled. She appreciated her friends’ concern, really, but this didn’t really seem like something she could get their help with. She was just going to do what she usually did, and make even more time. Still, it was a little hard focusing on her math when she was worrying about the St. John brothers busting out of jail again. What if they got out when she was in school? She couldn’t exactly just run out of school and get to Atlanta before things went to shit… It was a half hour jog to get there, but it was only a five minute drive. If she just had a car…
But Duck was the only one she knew with a car. She couldn’t exactly borrow it whenever with no explanation, could she? No, if the St. John brothers tried to get her attention during school, she’d be pretty screwed. Unless the police decided to actually do their job, but they hadn’t showed any sign of doing that since she’d shown up.
“Yeah, I might take you up on that,” Clem said. She wasn’t gonna turn down any time with Sarah, even if what she really needed was more hours in the day.
“Clem, back me up here!” Gabe said. Clem raised an eyebrow.
“Back you up on what? I wasn’t listening,” She shrugged. Duck rolled his eyes.
“He said that Javi could beat up my dad in a fight,” He said. Clem and Sarah shared a deadpan glance.
“Seriously? That’s what you’ve been arguing about for the past five minutes?” Clem asked.
“Ten, actually. They’ve been at it since I got here,” Sarah clarified. Clem sighed.
“That’s even worse. But it doesn’t matter who’d win,” She said.
“What?” Gabe asked, he and Duck sharing a confused glance.
“Christa’d come in and wipe the floor with both of them,” Clem grinned. Duck and Gabe glanced at each other, before shrugging.
“Okay, probably,” Duck admitted.
“Definitely.”
“Fine, definitely.”
“Oh, guys! My dad says you can come over to my house this weekend!” Duck said. He was the master of abrupt subject changes. He began to ramble, and Clem mostly tuned out of the conversation, nodding occasionally. Her eyes wandered behind Duck, to another table in the corner of the cafeteria. A boy in a heavy, fleece lined trenchcoat was talking animatedly to a girl who was slouched against the wall, clearly disinterested. Louis and Violet. They were in Clem’s grade. Violet was one of those loner-types, and Louis was one of those people who just… did what he wanted, and didn’t really give a fuck what other people thought. He was in her English class, and he was overwhelmingly positive. Violet was also in her English class, and she seemed… well, not negative, but definitely not positive.
However, she also seemed not to care what people thought. Maybe that’s why she and Louis got along. Or perhaps more likely, Louis just took a liking to her. Clem could see why, though. Violet was quiet, but when she did speak up, she was pretty funny. Not the Duck kind of funny, it was more subtle than that. With Duck, his jokes slapped you in the face. Clem liked Duck’s jokes, of course, but Violet’s were just a little more up her alley. They were closer to the kind of jokes she’d make.
And Violet also had the nicest eyes… and arms… she had really, really nice arms.
Okay, so maybe Clem had a little crush on her. But honestly, who could blame her? There was just something about the way Violet leaned against the wall in gym like she didn’t want to be there (and she probably didn’t), or the way her eyes lit up just a little when she made a sarcastic comment in class. Or maybe it was the jackets… Clem was a sucker for jackets. Honestly, what is it about jackets that makes people look about ten times more attractive?
“Hello? Clem, you with us?” Gabe asked. Clem blinked. Oh, she’d totally zoned out.
“Yeah, sorry.”
“What’re you looking at anyway?” Duck asked, turning around. As soon as he saw Louis and Violet, he turned back around. “Oh, dude. You’re so in deep.”
“Duck…”
“I mean, seriously. You’ve had a thing for her since… forever. Since she moved here.”
“He is kinda totally right…” Sarah frowned. Clem groaned.
“Look, what am I supposed to do about it? These things don’t just… go away because you want them to,” She said. Gabe rolled his eyes and leaned toward her, propping his chin on his hand.
“Clem. Speaking from experience here. You’ve got two options. Either you man up and ask her out, or you find someone else. Or, I guess you can do nothing and change nothing. Your pick.”
“Yeah, I think I’m gonna go with option three then.”
“Clem…”
“Look, trust me. There’s no way she likes me back, so I’m not gonna humiliate myself by asking her out,” Clem said. Gabe, Duck, and Sarah sighed collectively.
“Are you kidding? Like, everyone in this school who’s into girls would love to get with you, Clementine,” Gabe said.
“Lucky me, I’ve managed to find the one person who isn’t into me, then. Look, Violet’s never shown any interest in me. Just… can we talk about something else?”
“Clem-“ Duck started, but Gabe cut him off.
“Lay off, Duck.”
“Okay. Sorry.”
“It’s fine,” Clem said, shooting an appreciative glance at Gabe, who smiled back at her. Duck began to talk about some TV show he was watching, and Clem listened idly until the bell rang. She and Sarah both had English after lunch with Mr. Collins. They took their seats and waited until the class began. Sarah doodled on the borders of her notebook while Clem stared at the doorway, watching her classmates enter. Louis and Violet entered together, and Clem’s eyes followed them as they took their seats. She continued to stare at the back of Violet’s head until Sarah nudged her firmly. Clem snapped back into reality, shooting Sarah a grateful glance. It would’ve been really awkward if Violet caught her staring. She usually kept herself from staring for too long, but she was super tired today and had totally zoned out.
The class began. Clem liked Mr. Collins. She didn’t like him as much as she liked Mr. Everett, but she definitely enjoyed his class. He was great at analyzing literature in a way that didn't make him come off as pretentious, unlike some other English teachers she'd had. After English, she had economics, which was boring as fuck. Honestly, she wouldn’t take that class if it wasn’t a requirement to graduate. At least she had one of her teammates in that class, though. She sat with Brody, and they made dumb jokes to distract each other from whatever they were supposed to be learning. Clem understood most of it, and what she didn’t get, she could catch up on later. She found it was easier to teach herself the material than to try and understand what her teacher was talking about.
After Econ was journalism. She took a seat and began looking for an article to analyze. After a minute, Carley stopped behind her desk. Clem looked up.
“Hi, Carley,” She said. Carley smiled at her.
“Hey, Clem. What’re you working on?”
“Oh, I’m looking for an article to read and analyze for the assignment you gave us.”
“Finding anything?” Carley asked, glancing at Clem’s screen. Clem shrugged.
“Yeah, but I’m not sure which one I want to use.”
“Can I see?”
“Sure,” Clem scooted her chair back and let Carley look more closely at her screen.
“How about this one?” Carley asked.
“Which one?”
“This one, on Spider-Woman.”
“Oh, I wasn’t actually considering that one,” Clem said. Carley glanced at her.
“Really? You’re one of my only students who hasn’t done some sort of assignment on her yet,” She said. Clem thought quickly. She hadn’t wanted to do any sort of a project on herself (okay, that was a weird thought), but maybe it would be less suspicious if she did.
“I mean… I don’t know. I think she’s cool, I just don’t get all the hype around her. She’s using her powers to help people. It’s what most people would do,” Clem said. She wondered if it was ever going to get any less weird talking about herself like that. Carley looked at Clem, but her sharp gaze always made it feel like she was looking through her. It made Clem a little nervous.
“Well, so far, most of the people who’ve wound up with powers haven’t used them to help people. They’ve used them for their own benefit. That’s why some people are suspicious of someone with powers using them for good, and it’s why the rest are pretty much idolizing her. She's something new.”
“I guess so. I could do my assignment on her, actually,” Clem said. Carley shifted.
“Actually, I was hoping you could do… a little more,” She said.
“Hm?”
“Well… you’re one of my best students. You’re an excellent writer, and you clearly think about things in depth. I’d love for you to write a piece for the Weekly on Spider-Woman,” Carley said. Clem was a little surprised.
“You want me to? But… you already had Aasim write one. And you wrote one yourself.”
“Well, those were Aasim’s thoughts, and then my own. I’d like to hear your thoughts. And it’s not like anyone’s getting tired of reading about Spider-Woman anytime soon. Like I said, she’s something new, she’s got novelty.”
“I… okay. I’ll do it,” Clem said. She wasn’t going to turn down an opportunity to write for the Weekly. She wasn’t going looking for one, but it was a measure of faith in her that Carley sought out her specifically for this piece.
“Thanks, Clem,” Carley smiled.
“No problem.”
“I’m gonna let you get back to your work, but let me know if you need anything.”
Clem decided she’d analyze a Spider-Woman article after all. Not the one Carley had pointed out, since it seemed like most other articles she’d seen so far. She scrolled through, skimming over the titles. Nothing really stood out. On page three of results, she finally saw one that gave her pause.
‘Why Does Spider-Woman Have A Mask?’
Well, because she didn’t want to be identified, of course. Why else? Clem clicked on the article. According to the author, it was actually because she was planning on committing some huge crime after gaining the favor of the public. Clem snorted. This person clearly misunderstood her motivations. It kind of stung, but it was expected. A lot of people didn’t really trust people with powers. It was like Carley had said, they weren’t used to people using their powers to help other people.
She wrote a quick response that basically explained that some people like to look out for and help other people, and then began to organize her thoughts for her own piece on herself. Soon, the bell rang and she made her way to her last class of the day, gym.
She got changed in the back of the locker room with Sarah and they made their way out to the gym. They found Duck and Gabe by the bleachers that were folded against the wall. Duck was talking to his teammate, Marlon, while Gabe picked at the skin around his fingernails awkwardly. When Clem and Sarah showed up, Marlon nodded at Duck and walked off.
“Hey, guys,” Sarah said.
“Hey. Ugh, was it just me, or was Econ really boring today?” Duck asked.
“It’s boring everyday, Duck,” Gabe said.
“Yeah, but it was, like, extra boring today.”
“I wouldn’t know, I totally wasn’t paying attention,” Gabe shrugged. Clem laughed. All of her friends liked different classes, but none of them liked Econ. Clementine’s eyes wandered to the opposite corner of the gym, where Violet and Louis were talking. Louis was saying something, waving his arms animatedly. Violet rolled her eyes and replied, and Louis lit up. He was pretty cute. If Clem wasn’t in so deep with Violet, she might have had a thing for Louis.
Gym class began with warm-ups. First they did push-ups, sit-ups, jumping jacks, and stretches, then they ran laps around the gym. By the time they were done, Clem still hadn’t broken a sweat. They were in their soccer unit, so Duck ran off to grab a ball for them to kick around while Gabe, Sarah, and Clem stood idly. They passed the ball for the whole period, talking and occasionally attempting “fancy tricks”, although only Sarah and Clem could pull those off. Duck and Gabe pretty much made fools of themselves.
After gym, Clem changed and got ready for practice. Today was a Tuesday, which meant she had baseball practice. Tuesdays and Thursdays she had baseball practice, Mondays and Wednesdays were soccer days, and Fridays, she had off. She loved both sports, but baseball was probably her favorite.
She got her stuff and made her way back outside to the field where practice was held. Lilly, her coach, and a couple of her teammates, were already there. Lilly greeted her with a smile.
“Hey, Clem.”
“Hey,” Clem nodded to her coach as she swung her bag down at the side of the field. She partnered up with Ruby and tossed the ball back and forth to warm up. Soon, the team was doing drills, and after that, Lilly announced a scrimmage. Clem’s team was batting first. She watched as her teammates made their runs, and then it was her turn. She stood at the plate, positioning herself. She nodded to Becca, who was pitching, to signal that she was ready. Soon, the ball flew toward her. She swung the bat solidly, and didn’t hesitate before running for the first base.
Clem liked running. Jogging was nice, but running for a short period of time, really fast? That was one of her favorite feelings. She made it to first base, kicking up dust, and seeing that she’d hit the ball way out, made for second.
She made sure she wasn’t going beyond the speed she’d been at before the spider bite. She didn’t want to use her superpowers for personal gain. Well, maybe she did use them around Atlanta for fun, because… it was basically like flying! Who wouldn’t want to feel that? But when it came to her sports, she’d always believed in playing fair. Cheating takes the fun out of winning.
She made it to second, and still, she could tell she had time to go for another. She slid towards third base. She looked around. She couldn’t see the ball anywhere, but the pitcher wasn’t holding it. Clem ran for home plate. She heard heavy footsteps behind her and jumped to reach the final base. The world felt like it was moving in slow motion around her as her foot finally touched the plate. She’d made it. Damn, this never got old, did it?
Clem’s teammates clapped her on the back and she took her place back in the lineup to catch her breath. She took a sip of her water and glanced out across the field. She squinted. There was someone leaning up against the bleachers. Who was it? She’d seen some creeps lurking around practices before, and usually she’d just let her coach know and they’d go sort it out. But upon further inspection, the person across the field wasn’t some weird stalker. It was Violet. What was she doing watching their practice? Wait, she’d just seen Clem’s entire run. Clem flushed further.
She hadn’t messed up, had she? No, it’d been a good run. Did Violet like baseball? Clem was pretty sure she didn’t, she’d overheard Violet once, telling Louis that sports were dumb. Maybe she was just waiting to get picked up? Yeah, that was probably it.
Clem played the rest of the scrimmage well, but not quite as well as she had her first run now that she knew Violet was watching. Clem felt Violet’s gaze even when she most likely wasn’t watching her (it wasn’t like Clem could stop and check). She stumbled a couple of times, but it was nothing noticeable. Or at least, it wasn’t noticeable to anyone but her.
After practice was over, Clem said a quick goodbye, grabbed her backpack, and jogged across the field. As soon as she started, though, Violet quickly walked off. Clem frowned. So she hadn’t been waiting for a ride, after all. Maybe she just… secretly liked baseball? Whatever, it wasn’t really Clem’s concern. She walked the rest of the way home, thinking up reasons Violet had been at practice despite herself.
“Hey, Christa,” Clem said as soon as she stepped through the doorway, turning around to lock it again.
“Hi, Clem. How was school?” Christa asked. She sounded tired. She looked tired, too. She’d been like this since Omid had been killed. Clem couldn’t blame her. Omid had been… well, he hadn’t been like a dad to Clem, he couldn’t replace her father. He was more like a really close uncle. But he’d been a light in both of their lives. He The only difference between Clem and Christa was that Clem had plenty of other lights. Christa had pretty much only had Omid and their cat that had died a couple of months before Omid.
“It was good. Carley wants me to write a piece for the Weekly,” She said. Christa smiled, but it was forced.
“That’s nice.”
“Yeah,” Clem said, swinging her bag onto the bench by the door and moving to the kitchen to grab a granola bar. She ate the granola bar quickly, and then took her bag again before heading upstairs to do homework. She was halfway through her math homework when the door opened suddenly. Clem spun her chair around.
“Hi?”
“Hi, Clem. We need to talk,” Christa said. Clem frowned.
“Okay.”
“You… since Omid… passed, you’ve shut yourself off from me, Clementine. I don’t know how to reach you, you’ve been… you hide out in your room all evening, and then you get up in the mornings to go on these jogs and I don’t see you at all. I… I can’t… I’m alone, Clem. It’s like I lost Omid and you at the same time…” Christa said. Clem swallowed hard. She hadn’t realized, but the extra load she’d taken on from being Spider-Woman had gotten in the way of her relationship with Christa as well.
“I… Christa, I’m so sorry… I had no idea. I’ll spend more time with you, I promise,” She said. Christa’s expression hardened.
“You will. Because I don’t think you should be going on your morning jogs anymore, Clem.”
“What?” Clem asked, switching from understanding to defensive. Her jogs were a cover for her vigilantism, and when else could she go out to Atlanta? Not during school, obviously, and definitely not after school, since she had homework.
“I just… I still don’t think it’s safe, and I miss that little bit of time we spend together in the mornings. I think it’s for the best,” Christa said. No, it definitely wouldn’t be for the best. Clem had to go out during the mornings, people’s lives were at stake. She frowned at Christa.
“Look, I get it. You want to spend time with me. I can do that! I’ll do my homework downstairs, it’ll be nice! But please, let me keep going on jogs.”
“Clem, it’s not just the jogs. People do bad things in the night and early morning… I just want you to be safe,” Christa frowned. Yeah, well, Clementine wanted the city of Atlanta to be safe, and if it was one’s safety over the other, she’d put Atlanta’s safety over her own. Of course, she couldn’t tell Christa that. She panicked, searching for something she could actually say.
“I think you’re just being paranoid.”
“What?”
“You’re paranoid because of what happened to Omid. That’s not gonna happen to me, Christa. I’m careful. I can handle myself. Please, these jogs are important to me,” Clem snapped. Christa looked at Clem, growing angrier.
“Clementine. This isn’t about Omid-“
“Of course it’s about Omid! We wouldn’t even be having this conversation if Omid hadn’t-“
“Stop.”
Clementine paused, realizing how heated the conversation had grown. She shouldn’t have mentioned Omid, no matter how angry she’d gotten. Christa’s face crumpled, and Clem hated herself just a little in that moment.
“Christa, I’m so-“
“Don’t.”
“I…”
“Don’t, Clementine. You know what? You can handle yourself so well? Fine. Prove it. What would you do if someone pulled a gun on you?”
“Christa-“
“No, Clem, you brought Omid into this, tell me what you have going for you that he didn’t. Tell me.”
Well, for one thing, she had superpowers. But she couldn’t tell Christa that.
“I… I’d put my hands up. I’d cooperate with them. Give them what they wanted,” Clem said finally. Christa shook her head and laughed humorlessly.
“You think Omid wouldn’t have done that? If he-“
“If I hadn’t been out there too, right. If I hadn’t gone out that night, he wouldn’t have been looking for me. I get it Christa, it’s my fault he’s dead,” Clementine said and for a moment both her and Christa were silent, glaring at each other, tension hanging heavily in the air. In a split second decision, Clem grabbed her backpack and pushed past Christa.
“Where are you going?” She called after Clem as she sped down the stairs.
“Out! Don’t bother coming after me,” Clem said, not waiting for a response before storming out and slamming the front door shut so hard that it shook the frame. She wondered for a moment if she’d disturbed the neighbors. She hadn’t been that loud, right? When none of the neighbors’ lights turned on and nobody came out to see what the commotion was, Clem decided she was probably fine.
What now? She hadn’t exactly thought through what she was going to do, just that she needed to get out, needed to breathe. She could go on a walk. Clem remembered what had happened the last time she’d gone on a walk at night, and she felt a pang of guilt. She knew Christa blamed her for what happened to Omid, and she kind of did too. Tonight felt a little like that night, with her storming out after a fight…
Clem suddenly regretted coming outside. She couldn’t really go back in right away, though. She had to give Christa a little time to cool off. She shrugged off her nerves and stepped out into the night.
It was just a walk. It was no big deal. Plus, she could handle herself with her powers if necessary, like she’d wanted to tell Christa. Not that she’d need to use them. She made her way down the street quickly. She didn’t really have an idea of where she was going, she was just walking away. She walked past Rebecca and Alvin’s house. She often babysat their son, AJ. He was a cute kid. Clem passed Luke and Nick’s house. She’d known them since she was a kid. She’d played with Nick and Luke and Nick’s Uncle Pete when she was a kid and they came to Kenny’s barbecues. She’d gone to Luke and Nick’s wedding a few years back, and it was one of her favorite memories.
She passed Bonnie’s house next. Bonnie sometimes had Clem over to take care of her cats when she was vacation, or just to talk. Bonnie was interesting to talk to. She seemed worn and warm, like she’d seen a lot, but had come out a better person for it. Next to Bonnie’s house was Mike’s. Mike was quiet and kept mostly to himself, but he was friendly enough. He and Bonnie talked often, though. A lot of the time, one would be at the others’ house. Clem often speculated that there was something going on between the two, but it wasn’t really her business.
Clem crossed the street that lead toward Gabe’s house. If anyone would be able to make her feel better right now, it’d be Gabe. He had a temper, and he had a lot of experience blowing up at people who he loved. Plus, both Duck and Sarah were probably already asleep, so there was no use going to either of them.
The streets were eerily quiet. Some of the noise from Atlanta carried with the hot, steady wind, but the town felt empty at night. Usually, that gave Clem comfort, but she was oddly on edge tonight. She picked up her pace. The sooner she got to Gabe’s house, the better.
The closer Clem got, however, the more her feeling of unease grew. She paused, looking over her shoulder. She didn’t see anyone, but the tingling down her spine didn’t subside. She suddenly felt the urge to change her direction. But that didn’t make sense. She was going to Gabe’s house. She shook her head and continued walking, but the feeling she had was unbearable. Clem gave in.
“Fuck it,” She said, and turned down a side street, letting her instincts lead her. Maybe this was some sort of… spider thing? Spider-sense? She took note of her surroundings as her feet carried her into the now silent center of town and then past it. Once she realized where she was going, she almost turned around right then. She was heading toward the abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of town.
The adults in her life had all warned her to stay away from the warehouse, since it was probably not structurally sound and on top of that, it was a common spot for the more shady populace of the town. Clem paused outside. Should she really go in? Her gut was telling her yes, but her common sense was screaming at her to run. She frowned. If she was going to go in, she didn’t want to be recognized in case she had to use her powers. At least, she didn’t want to be recognized as Clem. She pulled her Spider-Woman costume out of her bag. She’d designed and created it herself after Omid’s death. She’d spent six days locked in her room, planning her superhero identity. It had paid off.
She quickly changed into the costume and stashed her bag behind a dumpster. The building was far enough from the rest of town that nobody would see her. As soon as she’d hidden her backpack, she leapt up and onto the wall. She crawled along the side of the building until she found a window that was slightly open, and crawled through it. Once she was inside, she could hear voices. It sounded like people arguing from behind a closed door.
Clem took a deep breath and crawled most of the way down the wall and dropped down softly. She made her way to the door, pausing outside. She didn’t know these people. Despite her… spider-sense leading her here, she couldn’t just barge in. Maybe it was a… friendly argument? Okay, so maybe not, but maybe there was nothing she could do. Like two family members arguing or something. Clem pressed her ear against the door.
“-swear, I won’t tell anyone I saw you here!” The person on the other of the door sounded scared, and Clem tensed. Their voice also sounded… familiar, but Clem couldn’t pinpoint where she’d heard it.
“I’m sorry, kid, but you’ve got yourself into some deep stuff by bein’ in the wrong place at the wrong time… It ain’t nothin’ personal, but you seen too much. We gotta get you out of the way,” It was another voice, this one also familiar. Clem spent a moment trying to remember where she’d heard them both, when a third person spoke up and Clem’s blood ran cold.
“‘Sides… I think you’re a liar. You seem like you got morals, and they ain’t seem to align with ours.”
Clem knew who two of the voices belonged to. Those were the St. John brothers. What were they doing here? And who else was in the room with them? It didn’t matter, all Clem knew was she had to stop the brothers from hurting whoever else was in there with them. She didn’t hesitate in kicking the door open and charging into what appeared to be a small office to confront the brothers.
“Do you guys seriously break out of jail every day or something? Who is in charge of keeping you locked up? Can I get a full name so I can make a complaint and get them fired? And hopefully replaced with someone who’s actually competent,” Clem asked, kicking Danny in the shins.
“Oh fuck me, it’s her!” Andy shouted. Clem tried to shoot a web at him, but he dodged it with a smirk. “Thought you caught me there, didn’t you? Well it’s gonna take a lot more than that to-”
Clem didn’t bother replying to his comment, simply charging at him and throwing him into the wall. They collided with a rusted filling cabinet, which gave a heavy thud as it toppled to the side. Clem got two solid punches in before being pulled off of Andy by his brother. She turned to punch him in the face, faltering as she saw who was behind him, a shocked expression on her face.
Violet.
Of course.
Of course Violet would be in this fucking abandoned warehouse. And of course the St. Johns would be here for who the fuck knows why, and of course her weird powers would lead her to them (okay that part was definitely good), but now she was fighting two supervillains with her crush in the room. The moment it took for the shock to set in was enough time for Danny to hit her hard enough that she practically flew into the wall.
Clem pulled herself back up to retaliate. This was her second fight today, and she was a little worn out. Well, third if you counted her argument with Christa. God, Christa… she was definitely going to apologize to Christa as soon as she got back home, she’d been way out of line. Sometimes, Clem mused, all you need is a possibly lethal fight with some supervillains to put everything in perspective.
Then again, she wouldn’t be able to fight supervillains if Christa didn’t let her out… She dodged a hit from Andy. She currently had bigger fish to fry, like not getting herself or Violet killed. She kicked Andy in the chest and he stumbled back. She webbed him quickly, and then turned to Danny.
“Hey, it- it ain’t gotta be like this!”
“I think it does,” Clem said.
“No, it ain’t. You an’ me… we ain’t like the rest of folks… we can do what most people can only dream of doin’… and if you ain’t takin’ advantage of it, I say you ain’t deserve it,” Danny spat.
“I am taking advantage of it,” Clem said. She didn’t like Danny grouping her with himself and his brother. She wasn’t anything like them.
“Not like we are. Look at us. Now look at… her. To her, we’re… we could be gods… people like her, they’re pathetic!” Danny yelled. Clem shook her head.
“I think people like you are the pathetic ones, Danny,” She said, preparing to web him. But before she could, Violet stopped her.
“Let me.”
“Um-“ Clem tried to say something, but before she could continue, Violet had grabbed a coatrack and hit it over Danny St. John’s head. Okay, that was weirdly… hot. Violet did it a few more times, and Danny crumpled to the ground. Clem webbed him for good measure.
“I, uh… thanks,” Clem managed. Violet nodded, slightly out of breath.
“No problem. Thank you for, you know, swooping in and saving my ass.”
“It’s what I do.”
“Well, still… thanks,” Violet said, crossing her arms. Clem stood for a second, unsure of what to say.
“Do you, uh… you need a ride?” She asked, immediately cursing herself for her awkwardness. Violet looked at her, surprised.
“You have a... Spider-Mobile or something?”
“Not a Spider-Mobile, but the webs are pretty good for getting around,” Clem shrugged. Violet’s eyes widened slightly.
“Your suit come with a passenger seat?”
“I could… carry you?” Clem suggested, her heart pounding. She was offering to carry her crush home, and her crush wouldn’t even know it was her. This whole thing was crazy. Violet considered her offer.
“I… okay, but only because I’m super tired and I don’t want to walk,” Violet said. Clem nodded.
“Yeah, the near death experiences do that,” She said. Violet cracked the tiniest smile, and it warmed Clem’s heart. She did that! She made Violet smile! Technically it was Spider-Woman and not Clem who’d made that joke, but… still.
“Makes sense. So, uh, do I just…” Violet stepped toward Clem. Clem frowned.
“Um, I could hold you with this arm, and… yeah, use this one to move around,” She said, looping one arm around Violet and holding her against her side. Okay, this was weirdly intimate. Clem could feel her face flushing under the mask, and Violet seemed slightly embarrassed as well, but she wasn’t backing out yet=.
“Alright… you sure you won’t drop me?”
“Positive,” Clem said, although she’d never actually done this before. Obviously. She’d only been Spider-Woman for… about a month. Actually, a little less than a month. She hadn’t really had much time to… carry people around. Still, first time for everything. She took a breath, getting a running start and aiming for the ceiling. Clem used the web to swing through the window, and held her breath as they soared outside and landed in the grass.
“That’s… that’s pretty cool,” Violet said softly. Clem nodded.
“Yeah. Tell me about it,” She said. She glanced at where she’d stashed her bag. She couldn’t go get it now, could she? She’d come back for it later. She had to let the police know about the brothers, too. It was going to be a long night. Clem used the trees to swing forward. “So, what were you even doing in there?”
“Oh, I… I go there to think. It’s quiet. Mostly,” Violet said. Clem nodded.
“Assuming today was the exception.”
“One of them. Sometimes people have their parties there, the kind they can’t really have at home, so it can get kind of overwhelming then. Usually if I see that people are already there, I just turn around, but I didn’t think anyone was there today. They weren’t the usual crowd, who make themselves pretty obvious. When I saw them, they’d already seen me, so…” Violet trailed off.
“What were they even doing?” Clem asked.
“I think they were setting up some kind of... base of operations there? I don’t really know.”
“Makes sense they’d pick an abandoned warehouse. And just outside of Atlanta’s smart, they’re close enough to the city to get in and out, but it might take a while for people to figure out that they aren’t actually staying. Where’s your house?”
“Oh, you can just drop me off at the high school. Ericsons. It’s just in that direction,” Violet pointed. Clem knew her way. She swung over quickly, jumping across a few roofs before dropping down on the field.
“Here you go. Have a safe walk home,” Clem said, nodding to Violet. Violet smiled softly.
“Yeah, thanks. You too. I mean… have a safe… swing… home. To wherever Spider-Woman lives, I guess,” She said. Clem shrugged.
“Thanks,” She said. She would’ve liked to make sure Violet got home safely, but she had to get the police on the St. Johns before the webbing wore off. Clem could’ve gone all the way to Atlanta, it wasn’t that long a walk… or swing, but she really didn’t want to be seen by too many people, plus the webbing might wear off before the police got back. Then she’d be in trouble. Luckily, she knew exactly who to go to.
Five minutes later, she was knocking on the front door of one David Garcia. The guy honestly scared Clem a lot, but he was the one person who Clem trusted to take care of the St. John brothers for sure. He was good at his job. The door swung open and revealed a disheveled David, rubbing his eyes. He blinked when he saw her in the doorway.
“Spider-Woman?” He said blearily. Clem nodded.
“Uh… yes sir. According to my information, you’re a police officer in the area?” She said, making an effort to deepen her voice. David nodded, shocked.
“Yes, that’s… I’m a police officer.”
“Good. Well, the St. John brothers got out of jail again, and I apprehended them at an abandoned warehouse just a short ways from here. The webs should dissolve in about an hour and a half, so that’s plenty of time to get them secure. They’re in an office off to the side. I think I did a number on the door, it should be easy to spot,” She said. David nodded again.
“I- okay. Yeah.”
“Alright, well it was great working with you. Good luck with the brothers. Oh, and could you get someone more competent to keep them locked up this time? It’s getting annoying how often they break out. I mean, I know you’re not working in Atlanta, but surely you have some influence, I’ve heard you’re a pretty great officer after all. Anyway, I’ve gotta get going. So… bye,” Clem said, shooting off a web and quickly making her way back to the warehouse to grab her bag and change before the police got there. It only took her a few minutes to get back and changed, and then she made her way back through the neighborhood. God, Christa was going to be worried sick.
Clem reached her house and took a deep breath. It was better to get the apology over with. She stepped toward the door and pulled it open gently. She didn’t see Christa in the living room, and she couldn’t hear her moving upstairs.
“Christa?” She called into the quiet house. Clem was met with silence. “Hello?”
She took another step into the hall, and moved through the main floor. Once she’d circled back to the living room, she turned around, only to come face to face with Christa. Clem screamed.
“Christa, you… you scared me!” She said after she had caught her breath. Christa frowned sternly.
“Well, you scared me. Storming out like that…”
“I’m so sorry, I… I shouldn’t have reacted like that. I’m really busy right now, with school and sports and everything, and the jogs help me clear my head for a bit. I guess it kind of felt for a second like you were trying to take that away, and I blew up at you. I shouldn’t have done that, and I’m sorry,” Clem said. Christa nodded, considering this.
“I get it. Everyone has their own ways to process things, and I can’t keep you cooped up in here. It’s not fair. You can keep going on your jogs, as long as you’re safe, and I’d really like it if you did your homework downstairs, like you suggested. You shouldn’t have reacted the way you did, but neither should I. You… know I love you, right?”
“I mean, yeah. Of course, Christa,” Clem said. Christa nodded slowly.
“Alright, good. Good. Because I’m afraid… I feel like recently, I haven’t been showing you that I love you. I don’t blame you, you know? For what happened to… what happened to Omid. I blame the woman who shot him, and I blame myself a little bit for letting him go out alone. But I don’t blame you, Clementine.”
Clem swallowed hard. “I’m sorry, Christa.”
“It’s okay, I’m sorry too. Come here,” She said, and Clementine stepped forward and into Christa’s arms. The two embraced for a moment. They would always be missing a little something without Omid, but they still had each other. Clem resolved to spend more time with Christa in the afternoons.
“Alright, I think it’s time for you to get to bed. You’ve had a long day,” Christa said. Clem nodded. She really had no idea how true that statement was.
“Yeah, I am pretty tired. Night Christa. I love you,” She said, before climbing the stairs to her room. She dropped her back by the doorway and changed into pajamas, barely staying conscious while she brushed her teeth. Damn, a day really could take a lot out of you. Clem collapsed into bed and fell asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.