Chapter Text
This is not what a biochem major should be doing with herself at two in the morning with a test tomorrow, Oat thought to herself as she swung through the tall buildings, trying to find out where Black Cat had disappeared to again.
She had been woken up by the police scanner half an hour ago because there was another robbery in the string of them that had been going on recently. Black Cat had been targeting this brand which was under investigation for child labour and exploiting workers, but it was buried within a few weeks because if you're rich and throw enough money at your problems, they disappear. And it did. The business started thriving again, the previous issue escaped civilians' minds and everything went back to normal.
That was until around a month ago, when the first robbery in this string happened. But there was something odd about it. She would still steal, but she would also take internal documents, financial records and anything else that could prove what the company was doing. Then, a few weeks later, an alarming amount of evidence would mysteriously appear against the business and force another investigation. Oat wanted to get to the bottom of this.
This was not her first and it wasn't going to be her last encounter with Black Cat. They had both started doing their respective things around the same time, but Oat was seen as a hero and saviour while Black Cat was seen as a horrible criminal by the public. However, that's not how Oat saw her. Oat had gotten to know her over the past six years and she knew that Black Cat would only steal from sketchy businesses. Then, a few months later, there would be an alarming amount of evidence against those businesses which forced another investigation. Oat admired it, she did, but she never understood why the stealing was necessary.
But now that she had caught up to Black Cat, she needed to focus. Black Cat wasn't anything like the other villains she fought. She wasn't strong like Kingpin, didn't have powers like Electro and didn't have high-tech weapons like Green Goblin and Doc Oc. She was incredibly calculated, agile and had a habit of disappearing. She was also incredibly distracting for Oat, but that was beside the point.
“Black Cat, how are we doing on this fine morning?” Oat said charmingly.
“I'm perfectly fine, Spider-Woman…” Black Cat said, returning the tone. “However, you seem to be slowing down. Are you not an early riser?”
“In what world is two…” Oat paused, looking down at her watch, which would soon prove to be her mistake. “…thirty-seven in the morning normal for ‘early risers’?”
Oat was still looking down, and when she finished speaking, she looked back up to see that Black Cat was nowhere to be seen.
“Fuck this. I stayed up studying, then you woke me up early, and now you're continuing to take away my beauty sleep. What is wrong with you?”
Oat knew Black Cat could hear her. The other woman could always disappear, not because she was super fast, but because she knew how to hide, which meant she hadn't gone far enough to be out of earshot.
“I KNOW YOU CAN HEAR ME!”
In the end, Oat got two hours of sleep, which were interrupted yet again, but this time by her roommate, Pam.
“Oat.”
Nothing.
“Oat.”
Still nothing.
“OAT.”
Oat jolted awake, nearly falling out of bed. “What? What happened?”
Pam was standing in the doorway already dressed. “You have class.”
Oat stared at her. “Okay?”
“And don't you have a test today?”
Oat's eyes widened.
“Fuck.”
“I'm assuming that's a yes.”
Oat grabbed her phone and checked the time. “PAM, WHY DIDN'T YOU WAKE ME UP EARLIER?”
“I've been trying to wake you up for ten minutes!”
“Oh.”
Oat practically launched herself out of bed, grabbing whatever clothes she could find.
“What time did you even go to sleep?” Pam asked.
Oat froze. There was absolutely no correct answer to that question.
“Late.”
“How late?”
“Late enough that answering that isn't going to make either of us happier.”
“Oat.”
“I was studying.”
Technically true. She had been studying. Just not during the several hours afterwards where she'd been swinging between buildings chasing an infuriating woman dressed like a cat.
“Hi, my name's Oat. I got bitten by a radioactive spider when I was sixteen, and now, as well as being a fourth-year biochem major, I am also the city's saviour, Spider-Woman,” is how Oat could introduce herself, but it kind of destroys the whole secret identity thing she's got going on, so all of that stays between her and Rak.
Oat had finished her test, and god, she was thankful to be born somewhat smart, otherwise that would've gone a lot differently for her. But now she had no more classes today and could sleep until she was eventually woken up by either her police scanner or her roommate telling her to get ready for work.
However, her nice thoughts about sleeping were interrupted by what she was currently looking at, which was her roommate kissing her best friend.
“Jeez, get a room and have some dignity,” Oat said, plopping her bag down before getting changed into the most comfortable clothes she owned.
“For starters, we do have a room, and secondly, where was that mentality when you brought home another girl two nights ago when I came home from a shift which you were also supposed to be at?” Pam said, now leaning against the headboard.
“I was going to come, but then something came up and there were only like twenty minutes left, so I didn't see the point. And you already said you'd cover for me.”
“I give up.” Pam stood up. “Rak, what do you want for lunch?”
“Tuna mayo sandwich, please,” Rak said, smiling at her girlfriend.
“Can I have the same?” Oat said from her bed, not looking up from her phone.
“No, you can't. I was asking Rak, not you, you freeloader,” Pam said, walking out.
“It's okay, Oat. You know she's going to get you something anyway.”
“I know.”
Rak waited until Pam was gone before turning back towards Oat.
“So now tell me what you were actually doing that caused you to only have two hours of sleep last night, because I know for sure you weren't studying.”
“Wow. Do you really think I couldn't have been studying? I can't believe how lowly you think of me. I was studying, for your information, but then I went to sleep and unfortunately I was woken up twenty minutes later because there was a robbery.”
“Black Cat?”
“Yep.”
“Again? Wow, you're not very good at your job.”
“Excuse you, I keep the city safe. Black Cat doesn't even endanger civilians. She's only a thief, and only to corrupt businesses. She could be an excellent hero if she just stopped stealing.”
“Okay, but how come you've never managed to catch her, but you can beat Scorpion in five minutes?”
“Because she's Black Cat. She's fast, agile, clever—”
“And you fancy her, and then you get distracted and lose sight of her. How'd she trick you last night? Did she ask you the time and then you checked and took your eyes off her?”
Silence.
Dokrak burst out laughing. “I can't believe you got tricked again in the same way.” She pulled a small notepad out. “What is that now? Fifteen ‘your shoelace is undone’—on a suit with no shoelaces—thirteen ‘what's the time’ and seven ‘look, a shooting star.’”
Rak looked down at her writing before looking back at Oat.
“How are you this much of a loser, and how are you known as a flirt with thousands of people crushing on you?”
“I'm not that dumb. It's just she says everything so convincingly.”
Pam eventually came back carrying three plates.
“I thought you said you weren't making me anything,” Oat said as Pam handed her a sandwich.
“I changed my mind.”
“You made the exact same thing as ours.”
“I can still take it back.”
Oat immediately took a bite.
“Thank you.”
The three of them ate together, Rak occasionally stealing food from Pam's plate despite having the exact same sandwich in front of her. Oat had almost started falling asleep sitting up when Rak's phone buzzed beside her.
She picked it up and immediately sighed.
“I've gotta go.”
“Already?” Pam asked.
“Nene wants me home.”
Oat opened one eye. “Your sister?”
“Unfortunately.”
Another message appeared on Rak's phone.
Rak stared at it.
“I swear she knows when I'm talking about her.”
Pam laughed while Rak stood up and gathered her things, leaning down to kiss her girlfriend goodbye.
“See you tomorrow.”
“See you.”
Rak looked towards Oat before leaving. “Try not to get distracted by any clocks tonight.”
“Get out.”
Rak laughed as she disappeared through the door.
Oat settled further into the sofa, finally ready to get the sleep she'd been thinking about all day.
“You know you have a shift tonight, right?” Pam said.
Oat's eyes opened.
“Obviously.”
“What time does it start?”
Oat paused.
“…Hypothetically?”
“Oat.”
“I'm getting ready.”