Archive of Our Own

Swinging through the city never gets old.

It's her favorite part of this whole superhero thing, Ichika thinks— aside from helping the people she loves. Slicing through the air at ungodly speeds, the tension of her webs releasing as she reaches the apex of the swing, the burn in her arms from holding on. The wind blasts her through her suit, handmade and all blue, with tiny little holes in it, or maybe she's blasting it, and it all feels so good.

She was always afraid of heights. When she used to go to theme parks with Leo/need, it would take so long for them to convince her to go on the big rides or the Ferris wheels. But eventually she would cave, like she always does to her friends, and let the adrenaline spike her heart rate. It took swinging to the Empire State Building and sticking herself to the very top to truly break that fear.

Not that it's still a little freaky, to be twirling, flipping, spinning through the air, breaking over the tops of buildings with nothing to support her. But she loves the adrenaline rush of danger, loves the feeling of freedom that comes with the speed.

And right now, she really needs to be speedy. But… a quick stop for flowers wouldn't hurt, would it?

//

"Hey, I'm here!" Ichika calls out, still adjusting her flannel when she steps into Honami and Shiho's apartment. She keeps a bag of extra clothes on the rooftops near each of their apartments, among other places she commonly finds herself at like… well, her job is mostly it, these days.

This apartment has become Leo/need's hangout place after college graduation, as they still figure out the logistics of truly moving in together. For Saki, it's because her lease isn't up until the fall, although she practically stays over with the other two every night. But for Ichika… it's a little more complicated. It'd be hard to be a superhero if she couldn't do it out of her own home.

"Icchan!" Saki cheers, running into the entryway and barreling into her. Ichika lifts the bouquet above Saki's head so she doesn't crush it. "You're late! I missed you so much."

Ichika laughs, a little surprised. Saki's as energized as always. "I missed you too," she says, returning the hug.

Honami follows Saki a moment later, coming to them and taking the bouquet so Ichika can lower her arm. "For us?" she asks, and she seems confused, as if Ichika doesn't bring them flowers often.

"Yeah. I just… wanted to." Ichika shrugs. "Especially since I was already running late."

"You shouldn't have." Honami smells the flowers. "Saki's favorites, this time?"

Ichika nods. "Yellow tulips. I got lucky they had them."

At that, Saki finally releases her and spins around, finally acknowledging the flowers and breaking out into a smile. "Icchan…" she turns back and beams at her.

Saki leans up on her toes and presses a kiss to Ichika's cheek. After Ichika gained her powers, she hit a growth spurt too. It made it harder for Saki to kiss her like this, especially out of the blue, which Ichika (mostly) doesn't mind. PDA can be embarrassing.

"Come on," Honami beckons them, "Shiho-chan's already in the living room."

They're having an at home movie night, which becomes a more and more common date for them as everything else becomes more expensive. Movies at home and walks in the park. For Ichika, it's enough to just be together. For the others… it probably is. She hopes it is.

"Do you mind if I eat something while we watch?" Ichika's stomach gurgles. Being a superhero doesn't get rid of her need to eat. If anything, it makes it worse— both because of the extra exertion and forgetting to eat, being too caught up between too many things.

"You had time for flowers but not food?" Honami softens. "Of course. There's leftovers in the fridge."

A few minutes later, Ichika's on the couch between her girlfriends— Saki and Shiho, to be exact. Shiho's arm is thrown lazily around her shoulders while Saki curls up in her side. It makes it a little awkward to eat the leftover noodles, but she manages.

The flowers sit in a vase on the coffee table, and Ichika is satisfied with her choice of bouquet. Yellows and some reds, oranges to blend them.

"Alright Ichika," Shiho says. "Your turn to choose. I'll scroll, just tell me what to do."

It takes a few minutes of flipping through streaming services and arguing over which movie to watch ("I've already seen it." ; "That's too scary!" ; "It sounds kind of… boring.") before they settle on a somewhat recent superhero movie that they all seem happy with. Especially Saki and Shiho, who have always loved superheroes. Shiho's looked up to them since they were a kid, and Saki is obsessed with one particular hero— Spider-Woman. Ichika. Ever since the first time she saved her friends in high school, Saki has been trying to uncover the identity of New York's friendly neighborhood Spider-Woman. But Ichika's been here all along, right next to her.

Twenty minutes into the movie, Saki chirps up. None of them mind talking during a movie while they're at home. If anything, it's more fun for them to be able to discuss their thoughts and theories as they go.

"Batman kind of reminds me of Spider-Woman."

Shiho snorts. "Why, because they're both based on animals and have their gender in their name?"

Saki frowns at them. "Firstly, spiders aren't animals—"

— "Yes they are," Ichika butts in—

"And secondly, no it's because they both don't kill, they both do detective… stuff, and they're both super smart, and because they both lost a family member that influenced their goodness!"

Ichika laughs a little at being compared to the on-screen hero. She never realized it but… they are kind of similar, aren't they?

"I still don't know how you're obsessed with her if you don't like spiders," Shiho grumbles.

"Because she's cool and spiders are creepy."

"What if she's friends with spiders? Or if she's a spider under the mask?"

Saki quiets for a second. She nudges Ichika, as if she's asking for help.

"I'm sure she's not a spider," Ichika says, patting Saki's head. Saki nuzzles into her hand with a content sigh. Ichika will always have her back. "You couldn't have kissed her if she was a spider, right?"

Shiho groans, making the other three laugh. Ichika likes to bring it up whenever she can because she finds it so, so funny. The others don't even know how funny it is to see Saki get embarrassed and excuse it as "It was before we were even dating!"

It's late one night while they were still high school juniors— about a year after Ichika was bit by the radioactive spider. Saki's outside, going for a late-night walk to clear her head when she stumbles upon Ichika trying to recover in an alley after fighting off a group of bank robbers.

"Hi," Saki says, startling Ichika. Her senses must be dulled because of the fight. Ichika whirled around and instinctively shot a web at her, knocking the bag of chips out of her hand. "Oh."

Ichika is on high alert for all of a second before she realizes it's Saki and understands exactly why her senses didn't alarm her. Why would they ever alarm her of Saki, or any of her friends, for that matter?

"Sorry," Ichika says. She tries to lower her voice, hoping that Saki won't immediately notice that it's her. She zips past Saki and retrieves her bag from the wall behind her. "The chips might be a little crushed. I'll pay you for a new bag if you want."

"No need," Saki says with a shake of her head. A moment passes before an idea dawns on Saki. Ichika can always tell. "If you're not busy fighting another crime, why don't you repay me by taking a walk with me? Just for a little?"

Ichika thinks about it for a second before agreeing. She wouldn't go for a walk as Spider-Woman with just anyone— this is special treatment Saki gets. "But I have a better idea."

Which is how Ichika wrapped Saki up in her arms and took her swinging with her, arcing around buildings and laughing all the way. Saki screams in her arms when Ichika does anything even slightly outside of swinging in a straight line. Funny how scared she is of this but how fearless she is on thrill rides.

Eventually, Ichika lands them on the top of a tall building that she knows is nearby Saki's. Ichika perches on the concrete ledge and sets Saki down safely on the other side. She would hate for her to fall.

Saki gazes out over the city in wonder, her mouth ajar and eyes shining. It's then, Ichika thinks, that she truly fell in love with Saki.

They talk for what feels like forever yet still not nearly long enough on that roof. Until the sky begins to brighten and Ichika realizes that they've both stayed out far too late.

Ichika offers to swing Saki back home, even though it's only a short distance. Saki accepts, of course, and this time she doesn't scream.

She drops Saki off and salutes her, shooting a web to pull her up. As she ascends, she hears Saki call out for her. It sounds like she forgot something.

Ichika lowers herself back down like a… well, like a spider on its string. She's upside down looking at Saki, basically eye level with her. Saki steps closer and reaches for her neck.

"Can I pull the mask up?" she asks. Ichika hesitates. Swallows hard. She wonders if Saki can see the bobbing of her throat through the suit. "I won't take it all the way off. Just to the nose."

"Sure," is all Ichika can manage.

Saki takes the small seam that connects Ichika's mask and torso and rolls it down, stopping once she's revealed the bottom half of Ichika's face. Ichika is sure that now Saki will recognize her, but if she does, she doesn't say. Instead, Saki just leans in and kisses her.

Ichika promptly short-circuits. Her lips linger only for a moment, and it's not nearly enough. Ichika wants more, but she's too stunned to do much of anything. Saki backs away with pink dusting her cheeks and laughs nervously.

"Thanks, Spider-Woman. For tonight and always."

Saki offers a small wave before retreating into her apartment building and leaving Ichika a flustered mess.

(And when they're both conveniently exhausted the next day, nobody seems to question it).

"Icchan, you're zoning out." Saki snaps her fingers in front of Ichika's face.

"You just missed a really cool part," Shiho says.

Ichika thinks they're teasing and not informing but when she looks to Honami, Honami agrees. Ichika doesn't want to make them rewind, so she decides to try to pay more attention to the movie.

Ichika hopes, one day, that she can tell them all. One day, when she passes on the mantle, maybe it wouldn't put them in the line of fire. As soon as it's safe for her to, she'll tell them. Until then, the irony behind her double life and Saki's obsession will remain a private joke.

Her thoughts are cut off by an alarm blaring from the TV. An alert flashes along the bottom of the screen. Shiho groans because it's interrupting the movie, but Ichika reads every word. An armed carjacking— ambulancejacking?— on a street only a few blocks away. Shit. She needs to go help with this.

But she's in her girlfriends' arms, comfortable and safe and warm. But what if… what if someone gets hurt? What if this becomes something bigger? She can't just leave it alone in favor of her own comfort.

"Shit!" she yells. Her girlfriends all snap toward her, a mix of worry and shock on their faces. Ichika shoots up from the couch, scrambling toward the entryway. Honami follows her up, concern written all over. "I forgot something important at work. I'll come back later, I promise."

"Really?" Honami asks, hovering over her while Ichika slips on her shoes. "What story do they have you working that's so important it can't wait until tomorrow?"

It is important, sure, but not that important. Her job at the Bugle is just a part-time gig that she uses more as a source of information, now.

"An important one. A really big one with sensitive information that I really can't leave laying around at the office." Ichika launches back up and quickly kisses Honami on the cheek to pacify her a little. "I'll make it up to you guys, I promise!" she calls out to the others emerging behind Honami.

And then she turns, twisting the doorknob.

"Wait, Icchan, we didn't get to—!" Saki's voice trails off behind her.

But she's already out the door and rushing down the stairs, leaving her girlfriends behind and dashing off into the city.

//

Ichika messed up. She's bitten off more than she can chew on her own this time. Because it wasn't just one ambulance, it was a whole line of cars tearing through the streets behind them. So much so that they start to overwhelm her, eventually, and she's caught held down by one group while the ambulance screams toward her, slamming into her and driving her straight through the wall of a nearby building.

Ichika blacks out for a minute, and when she comes to, she sees three men stepping through the newly created wall and searching for her. She's so lucky it's dark in here. The smokescreen from the destruction allows her to pull herself up to the ceiling and stick above them, waiting for the three to get into a compromised position.

Her chest is killing her. Breathing is so hard that she thinks she might have broken a rib. It's killing her just to hold onto the ceiling.

There. They line up, each looking a different way, and Ichika shoots into action, her webs coming out at light speed and wrapping up each of them before pinning them down or wrapping them up on the ceiling. She shuts each of them up with a slap of webbing across their mouths.

Finally, she drops from the ceiling and groans, rolling her shoulders in hopes to alleviate some of her pain.

"You guys really did a number on me," she jokes. "Check the roof next time."

A tingle on her right shoulder and she's shooting another web, flinging herself toward her target. She lands a kick square on the gunman's jaw, then jumps to the next one and the next. Each time her fists connect with her opponents the shock of bone against bone rolls up her arm.

The strain on her bones is too much for her. She's not sure she can beat up all of these guys without going down herself. Another set of tires squeals toward them, a clown car full of grunts spilling out.

The next minutes are a blur of webs and punches and quips as she fends off another wave of criminals. She's not sure where she picked up her habit of joking during fights, but it seems to help, somehow. Each breath gets harder, each punch lands with more pain. She needs to get out of here, but she can't just leave them to do whatever they were planning.

Finally, sirens blare from a few blocks over. Took them long enough. Ichika delivers one last kick, knocking another person out before looking for the nearest rooftop to escape from.

She pulls herself up with some struggle, perching on the corner of the roof and staring down at the mess on the street below. A police car finally shows up, these useless cops can never be on time, and Ichika jumps away, swinging as fast as she can towards her apartment.

She only makes it a few blocks before she has to land and catch her breath. She yanks up the bottom of her mask and coughs, choking up blood onto the roof. Damn her injuries. Damn these criminals. She could've been home and back with her girlfriends by now.

When she starts moving again, it's hard for her to swing at her usual pace. It's hard to see, much less zip through alleys and jump across the roofs of buildings. Her vision blurs as she pushes herself.

And then, her hand slips from the web and she slams chest-first into the edge of a roof. She has the wind knocked out of her, coughing up a little more blood. Suddenly her ears are filled with a different rush as she falls, ping-ponging back and forth between the fire escapes on opposing walls of an alley until she lands, she thinks, in a dumpster.

Surrounded by the smells of a dirty alleyway and the sounds of distant sirens, Ichika fades out of consciousness.

//

When she wakes, the first thing she realizes is that she is neither outside or at home. The second thing is that her entire body is killing her.

If she's not at home, and she's not outside, then someone must have found her. Where is she? Suddenly, she panics. Someone found her. Her hands scramble to her face and relief washes over her when she feels the fabric of her mask. Although, it is lifted to reveal the bottom half of her face to help her breathe.

Something to her left sets off her senses. A person waking up. She tenses, shooting to a sitting position and arms flying up to defend herself with her webs and… she's not in her suit anymore. No webs. Her hands curl into fists instead, until she hears, "Oh, thank god you're awake," and Ichika's heart stops.

She knows that voice. Knows it as well as she knows how to breathe. It's Honami, sitting up beside her from where she passed out on the coffee table, vase of flowers next to her. Honami smiles hazily at her and Ichika lowers her fists. Honami means no harm, she never could.

But, shit. She was near Honami and Shiho's place when she went down, wasn't she? It's on the way to her own apartment and it's just her luck that she happened to lose strength here of all places. Her luck that someone found her at all, let alone one of her girlfriends. This isn't how she imagined Honami finding out. That is… if she found out.

"You didn't take the mask off, did you?" Ichika asks, lowering her voice. One day this trick won't work anymore. Maybe it's already failed.

Honami shakes her head. "You didn't have any horrible head injuries. Just," Honami gestures to the rest of Ichika's body, beaten up and bandaged and bloody. She's wearing one of Honami's shirts and a pair of her shorts and both hang a little loose on her. "I wouldn't be surprised if you have a concussion, though. You fell pretty far if the crashing sounds were anything to go by."

Honami reaches out, cautiously pushing Ichika back down onto the couch. Ichika lets herself be guided back down because even if it wasn't Honami, even if she didn't trust this person, she surely wouldn't be able to fight back anyway.

Honami watches her like if she looks away Ichika will disappear. Eventually, when Ichika's head pounds harder and she groans, Honami says, "I'll get you an ice pack," and disappears into the kitchen.

Ichika's left alone for a minute, in which her already hurting head works overtime. If Honami didn't take her mask off then there's a chance she still hasn't recognized her. Though, Ichika wouldn't be surprised if Honami recognized her from her body, or her lips, or her cheeks and the short strands of her messy hair that poke out from beneath the mask. And Honami must have undressed her to get the suit off, so she's seen everything. There's no way she didn't realize. But Honami hasn't said anything yet, so maybe, just maybe, she's in the clear.

Shit, Shiho's here too, aren't they? Which means Shiho must have helped. And the same probably goes for Saki. She doubts Saki went back home. They're probably in the bedroom, sleeping but only because Honami told them to, because Honami said she would watch Ichika. But they must know. They all must know, now.

After a minute, Honami returns with the ice pack wrapped inside of a towel. She kneels down beside Ichika and presses it to her forehead. She doesn't give it to Ichika to hold for herself. She's probably worried about Ichika overexerting her body.

"Did they get away?" Ichika asks.

"They? Oh, the big… whatever it was with the ambulance? No. They were apprehended. You did enough, Spider-Woman."

Ichika breathes a sigh of relief. She was about ready to push through her pain and potentially-probably broken bones to get back out there.

"They got you pretty bad, didn't they?"

Ichika laughs, the sound choking in her throat a little. "Yeah. Seems like it. Took an ambulance to the chest. And a lot of other things, as you can tell."

Honami laughs a little, moving the ice pack down a little, covering Ichika's eyes. The relief is immediate, soothing her aches for the moment.

"Thanks," Ichika says. She should've said it minutes ago, but better late than never.

"It's the least we could do. We went out to investigate the racket because we thought you fell on our fire escape, but then we saw you passed out in a bunch of trash." Honami laughs, and Ichika feels her face light up with embarrassment. "Couldn't just leave you there."

"You could've."

"Not my style. Especially not when it's Spider-Woman."

Ichika sighs, trying to take control of the ice pack. Honami lets her, sitting back a little and watching her. Always so attentive, so caring.

"You're a good person," Ichika says. It's something she's told her before, but not as Spider-Woman. "Most people wouldn't do this even for me."

"I'm not that great," Honami says.

"You are. I can tell."

"Your spider senses telling you that?"

"No," Ichika shakes her head, "I don't need them to see that much."

Honami quiets a little and Ichika sees a small, embarrassed smile grace her lips. Her beautiful, beautiful smile.

"You can go to sleep," Ichika says. "I'll be okay here."

Honami frowns. "I don't want to leave you alone."

"I'm not going anywhere. Don't worry." Ichika chuckles, pointing down at herself. "I wouldn't make it very far if I tried."

Honami tosses the idea around for a minute. Ichika watches the gears turn in her head before she eventually stands up.

"I'll sleep out here with you," Honami says, "in case you need anything.

Ichika nods. Her eyes trail Honami as she goes into the bedroom, disappearing for only a second before re-emerging with two blankets. She lays one over Ichika, then lays down next to the couch, curling up on the floor.

They settle into silence, the only sounds their breathing and the slight rustle of blankets.

"And," Ichika has to stop herself from saying Honami's name, "thank you again."

"If you won't take the help for free, then consider it a repayment. For all of the times you've saved me and my friends."

Ichika nods, though she knows it's stupid because Honami can't even see her anymore. A repayment for all of the times Ichika's saved them, huh? Honami should know that Ichika doesn't need repaid, that she's not doing this all for some type of recognition or payment.

She does it because she has the power to. It's her responsibility to use that power for good, and Ichika will go every day saving people for nothing in return, because that's what people like her ought to do.

Honami's breathing steadies, and Ichika can tell she's fallen asleep. She turns her head to watch Honami, her beautiful, kindhearted girlfriend. She must be exhausted. Ichika's sorry for keeping her up like this.

Ichika might be the superhero here, but she truly believes that Honami is a better person than her. If Honami had powers like Ichika, how much good would she be able to do?

//

Later, a while after Honami falls asleep, Ichika carefully steps over her girlfriend and almost makes it to the door before stopping. She should leave a note, something telling them where she. went. If Honami wakes up to Ichika being gone, she would start panicking.

Ichika scribbles on a piece of paper stuck to their tack board in the entryway. She's sure that Honami will recognize her handwriting, but it's probably too late to be worrying about being recognized anyway.

Ichika slips out the door quiet as a ghost and slinks down the hallway and up the stairs to the roof. The air feels good on her face. Like she can breathe again.

She doesn't intend to go anywhere. Partially because her web shooters are busted and partially because she knows her girlfriends would all worry for her. For Spider-Woman. So, she does plan on going back down. She just needs some time up here, some time to get her damn mask off so she doesn't feel so suffocated.

The city lives on at night, distant horns blaring through the streets. There's still small groups of people out, stumbling around and laughing amongst themselves, even though it's long after dark.

Ichika stalks to the edge of the rooftop and jumps up to sit on the parapet, her legs dangling out in the open air. She finally rips her mask off and sighs in relief when the breeze combs through her hair.

It's a beautiful view, she thinks, even though Honami's building isn't even close to the tallest in the city. It rivals the view from the tallest buildings in the city— Avengers Tower and Ootoricorp's building— because if you look in just the right way, you can see the entirety of the west side. Ichika loves the city, despite everything wrong with it. If she didn't, she's not sure she would try so hard to protect it and the people in it.

She sits in silence for a few minutes before the metal door to the roof creaks open and Ichika's scrambling to pull her mask back over her head. She thinks she manages it before her new companion, who she now sees is Honami, makes her way toward Ichika. Honami leans on the parapet but doesn't climb up next to Ichika.

Honami doesn't say anything at first. She seems content with them just existing comfortably in each other's presence.

"Hypothetically," Ichika starts, "if you picked up an injured vigilante and had the opportunity to learn their identity, would you?"

"Hypothetically, I wouldn't take off their mask. I would only do what I needed to in order for them to heal." Ichika looks over at Honami to find her looking away, guilt written in her expression. "I really didn't. I just… I know every part of you, Ichika-chan. How could I not recognize you?"

Ichika sighs. "And hypothetically, if that vigilante was your girlfriend, what would you do?"

Honami studies her for a minute. Ichika wonders what's running through her head, how she's coming to her conclusion. But before she can start to worry, Honami speaks up again. "I would just say that I wish she had told me sooner so that I could have helped her more."

And surprisingly, it doesn't feel the least bit terrifying for Honami to know.

Ichika slumps a little, a mix of relief and worry setting over her. "I figured you'd know," she says. "It'd be pretty hard not to after tonight."

Honami steps to the side, closing the gap between the two of them. Honami's arm touches her side, but she doesn't try to hold her. Ichika is grateful, she thinks, because her body is still really hurting.

"I can't imagine what it's been like for you all these years. You must have been so… alone."

Ichika looks up to the sky. It's hard to see the stars in Manhattan, but there's a few flecks of white across the sky. She wishes there were more. She remembers there being so many more when she was younger. One day, she hopes the four of them can go see the stars again.

"It… I haven't been alone. I have you guys and my coworkers and the police chief. Mostly you guys."

"You know what I mean though. As Spider-Woman." A beat. "Did either of the others know?"

"I don't think so." Ichika bites her lip. "Saki might've. She hasn't confronted me about it, but I'm pretty sure she found out a long time ago. Though, if she didn't before I'm assuming she has now."

Honami laughs. "I wish you could've seen the look on their faces when we got that suit off of you."

Ichika grins. She tries to imagine their shocked (hopefully shocked, or else she did a really bad job of hiding it) faces. Saki probably wanted to rip the mask of right then and there, to see if the Spider-Woman she loves is the same as the girlfriend she loves.

"I'll tell them properly tomorrow. I… wasn't planning on telling any of you any time soon."

"You weren't?" a new, sharper voice asks from behind Ichika. Ichika spins around to find Shiho standing at the door with Saki, still half-asleep dangling on their arm. There was no warning from her senses. It must be because it's her girlfriends, again. Because she knows down to her marrow that they're no threat to her, even if they found out.

Ichika freezes for a second, in which Shiho laughs a little and pulls Saki along toward the edge. They break apart, then, Shiho going to Honami who hugs them around the waist and Saki settling by Ichika and leaning her head into Ichika's side. Ichika brings her arm around Saki's shoulders, but only for a moment before the ache gets to her.

"It's so cold up here," Saki complains. She pulls her cardigan tight around her torso.

For a few minutes, they sit together in comfortable silence. Saki buries herself in Ichika's side, shivering a little. Ichika knows they're all waiting for her to talk, but she's finding it hard to start.

"I didn't… know how," she says. But no, that's not right. "I was scared."

"Icchan," Saki soothes. She rubs her face into Ichika through the thin layer of fabric that is Honami's sleep shirt. "If we're going to have this conversation… can we talk with you?" She peers up at Ichika. Quieter, more nervously, she asks, "Can I take the mask off?"

Ichika completely forgot she was wearing it. She hesitates for a minute, because of course she can, it's not like she has anything to hide anymore. but finally gives them a small nod. She bows her head and Saki's fingers are cold against her neck while they slip the mask up and off of her. Ichika shakes her hair free a little, the nights breeze hitting her immediately.

"There's our girl," Saki mumbles.

She holds Ichika by the cheeks, thumbs running over the cuts on her face from her earlier fight. Ichika's lip quivers as she nuzzles into Saki's hand, her eyes slipping closed from exhaustion and the sheer warmth of being held by Saki. She lets herself be held, touched, even though she just had the mask on, even though she just told them who she really is.

"Yeah," Shiho muses. "It makes a lot of sense that it's you. I'm surprised nobody's figured it out."

"You three did," Ichika says.

"We had our suspicions," Honami says. "I've never seen you and Spider-Woman in the same room, you know? But we only noticed because it was you and we're us."

It's only because they've spent their entire lives side-by-side that they noticed. Maybe they got suspicious when she suddenly got much, much stronger in high school, or when she cut her hair out of nowhere, or when she started running out on their plans because one of her many, many enemies popped back up across the city.

"You've really been doing this since high-school," Saki says. "You're amazing, Icchan."

"You might even say I'm the 'Amazing Spider-Woman.'"

Saki pinches Ichika's cheeks and Ichika finally breaks, a laugh overtaking her. It's so nice to be able to talk to them about this.

"Thank you," Ichika says, her voice low. "I feel so… free."

Saki thumbs at Ichika's eye and she peeks out at her girlfriend. Saki grins at her before leaning in and kissing her cheek.

"That's for saving us so many times."

There's a sudden pain on the back of Ichika's head. She whirls around, breaking out of Saki's grip, to find Shiho's hand retreating from flicking her.

"And that's for being scared to tell us."

"I— I wasn't scared of how you'd react or anything like that. I was scared that it would be… dangerous for you."

They give her their undivided attention. Three pairs of loving, concerned, curious eyes.

"Dangerous?" Shiho prods.

"I've made a lot of enemies over the years. If you knew, I know you'd try to help me in whatever ways you can. I don't want there to be a crosshair on your backs."

"That's not…" Honami trails off. Ichika looks over at her to find her frowning. "Don't make that decision for us."

Ichika nods, laughs a little, as she realizes that her crazy girlfriends wouldn't mind the targets. They have full faith in Ichika foiling any plans that may involve them.

"We want to help you," Shiho says. "Crosshair be damned."

"I know," Ichika sighs. "Just like I would do for you."

"You do do it for us. And for everyone. But… you don't have to carry that burden alone. You can look to us for support."

"Any time?"

Shiho laughs under their breath. "You know it."

Ichika nods, a smile setting on her lips. She doesn't have to carry her burdens alone. If there's one thing for her to remember from this night, it's that.

The wind gusts between the buildings, the man-made wind tunnel putting in overtime. It makes Saki cling closer to Ichika, all of them squeezing into each other a little more. Ichika loves this warmth. She didn't get enough of it earlier— not nearly enough.

Ichika yawns, finding herself utterly lost in their closeness. Then there's another flick to the back of Ichika's head and she's turning again, this time finding a pouting Saki.

"And that," Saki grumbles, "is for skipping out on today."

"I was doing important stuff!" Ichika defends herself. She flushes a little, embarrassed to ask her next question. "Also… why? Was today special?"

"Ichika-chan… you don't even know what day it is, do you?" Honami asks, her voice suddenly a little lower, sadder, Ichika thinks.

Ichika racks her brain. Did she miss something important? Saki's birthday was three months ago, Honami's not for another two. It's not a holiday. Her parents aren't back in town for another few weeks…

"I… don't," she finally says. "Help me out?"

"It's your birthday!" Saki exclaims, balking at her. It's her what? "You forgot?!"

Ichika sputters a little before reaching an eloquent: "I guess?"

Honami's hand finally wraps around Ichika's waist and she loves it, even with the surge of pain that comes with her touch.

"That's it," Honami says. "You need a break."

"Can't," Ichika says. "The city never sleeps."

"Sure, but you need to. You've been going going going for so long you must be exhausted."

"I…" Ichika can't deny it, because Honami has seen how bad she's been tonight. "It just comes with the job."

"Maybe, but you wouldn't be able to fight well right now anyway, so… take a few days off? Stay with us until you're healed?"

Ichika wants to take her up on that, she really does. But… she still has work at the Bugle… but she could take some time off from that, surely. Surely. But what about the city? What happens if Spider-Woman disappears for a few days? What if there's a big attack or, like, a prison break or something?

As if reading her mind, Saki reminds her, "There's plenty of other heroes in the city. Maybe you could call, like, Daredevil or something and she could cover for you."

"You think I can just call Daredevil?"

"Well I don't know what superheroes you're friends with." Saki crosses her arms. "Oh, what about the moon girl?"

Ichika sighs. Moon girl, or as most people would call her, Moon Knight. As Ichika calls her, Asahina-san. "Are those the only superheroes you know?"

"No! They're just the ones I'm pretty sure you're friends with. Maybe?"

Ichika ruffles Saki's hair, laughing under her breath. "I am. And… you're right. I'm sure someone will fill my place for the few days."

"Great, now… can we go inside?" Saki shivers, pulling her arms back around herself. "I'm dying up here. Save me, Spider-Woman… save me…"

Shiho snorts, separating themself from Honami to tug Saki back toward the door. They talk low between the two of them, something about Saki being annoying and Shiho being mean.

And they leave Ichika with Honami, arm still around her waist. They sit for a minute as Ichika looks back to the sky. She thinks she can see a few more stars than before.

"Ready to go?" Honami asks.

"Sure. It is getting cold."

Ichika turns and slips off the parapet. She's face-to-face with Honami now, and even with Ichika's superpowers and her growth spurt when she got them, she still has to look up a little to meet Honami's eyes. Honami holds her by the shoulders, thumbs rubbing her soothingly.

Ichika leans in, her arms coming around Honami's neck. She kisses Honami softly, nervously, like it's the first time she's doing it all over again. Her hand grips a fist around her mask as she deepens their kiss.

Honami squeezes her close, her hands falling to Ichika's waist again. When her grip tightens on Ichika's waist, they're forced apart because of Ichika's pain.

"Sorry," Honami says, kissing her girlfriend on the nose.

"Don't be."

They stand in each other's arms for a minute, and the noises of the city around them fade into nothingness.

Ichika is here, beaten up but alive, with her identity revealed to her girlfriends for good. There's no going back. From here on out, she might struggle to protect them, but at least she'll never be alone again. If her girlfriends say they can put up with New York's Spider-Woman Hate Club, then Ichika has no reason to not believe them.

"Thank you," Ichika mumbles. "I don't know where I'd be without you."

"In a dumpster," Honami teases.

"I mean… for everything."

Honami just smiles at her and says, "I know, darling. Now come on, we have cake downstairs for you. Maybe it'll help your healing."

Ichika laughs, leaning her head onto Honami's shoulder. They're all so good to her. Honami's hand comes to the small of Ichika's back, and soon enough she's letting herself be guided back to their apartment where Shiho and Saki are surely waiting for her, excited to finally be able to celebrate their girlfriend.

And for the first time in a while, Ichika feels like she can live in the moment. Like she can fully enjoy herself with her girlfriends.

It's the same feeling she gets from flying through the skies— like she's finally, fully, free.