Copycat: Origins (Marvel Fem!OC)

Remembering The Little Guy.

Going through the stuff she'd left at the compound was arduous and upsetting. She'd found Peter Parker's old jacket, but it barely fitted her now. Cat also found both of the beepers he'd made, she'd rescued his from the abandoned apartment.

Harley agreed to join her for a coffee that afternoon, so she left the compound on Steve's old motorbike and headed to the city. The young man was facing a shop's display, but at the sound of the engine, he turned around.

"Definitely not a sight for sore eyes."

"You missed me," Cat grinned.

"You found a way to toughen up after all, I'm glad," He examined her appearance. "Nice haircut."

"You never called," She taunted.

He raised his eyebrows. "You never gave me a number! All the info I got was from Pietro!"

"You've talked to Pietro? He didn't tell me!"

"I saw him a couple of times," Harley explained shortly. "Let's go in, my ass is freezing."

***

"You haven't changed at all," Cat said adoringly. "You have baby features, you know?"

"I'm lucky I don't look thirty, considering the shit life I've had."

"Must be the farmer genes," She joked.

"Fuck off," He chortled. "So why did you come back?"

The girl shrugged, absently stirring her coffee. "The Skrulls triggered some stuff in me I couldn't do since I was nine."

"That means..?"

She turned around in her seat, tilting her head. "No scar, see? I didn't get my memories back, but I heal faster and don't need to touch someone in order to copy them. It has its limits, but it's all easier now."

"So what's the problem?"

She hesitated. "If I spend too much time with someone... let's say I do my best to match them. I don't copy the negative habits only, of course, but..."

"Space isn't exactly kind and generous, so you were getting out of hand," He guessed. "They sent you back to control it?"

"They suggested it."

He took a long sip of his coffee. "What are you gonna do?"

"I contacted Dr. Banner to see if he's got something that might help... Or should I say Dr. Hulk?"

Harley laughed. "That's not even the craziest thing that's happened. Look around, Stray- what do you see?"

"I can tell you the things I don't," She mumbled.

"I'll tell you what I see, then. New York's always been a diverse city, but now Americans are no longer the biggest crew. They never were, to be honest, but now it's obvious."

She looked around. "That's good, right?"

"It's amazing," He admitted. "Except for the fact that crime's not stopping, it got smarter. All kinds of bad guys are manipulating the less regarded corners. If the authorities weren't paying attention before the snap, now they're blatantly dismissing it."

"What about the Avengers?"

Harley had to bite his tongue. "The real fight is out here, every day, with us trying to get by on a world that's half-dead."

She looked down at her coffee, her fingers grazed the edge of the cup.

"The last I wanna do is ruin your visit, Cat," Her friend added out of guilt. "You should be happy about being back-"

"You didn't ruin it," She replied promptly. "I'm lost, that's all. I know everything's different, but I can't see it. Maybe if you point at the stuff I should be looking at..."

Harley placed his hand over hers. "Ask all you want."

She gave him a playful look. "Two years and you're still trying to make a move?"

He grinned. "This is just my natural charm doing its job."

"Which reminds me... You wanna learn how to fight?"

"You wanna teach me?"

"I'd like to have something to do," She shrugged, moving away from his grasp and sipping on her coffee. "Training you sounds like a good plan. I know you have no interest in becoming an Avenger but if you want to hang out with me, it'd be a good idea to learn. That way if someone tries to kidnap you, at least you'll put up a good fight."

"I might win on my first try!"

"I doubt it," She stared up and down his figure. "Give me a year and I'll have you ready to beat up creeps in dark alleys."

He whined, squinting his eyes a little in a way that made her chuckle.

"It'll be worth it, trust me on this one."

Harley looked at her in a weird way. His smile didn't vanish, but his eyes turned serious.

"I'm not him, Copy. You know that, right?"

"Who?"

"Peter Parker."

"...I never told you his name," She said tensely.

"Your brother told me."

"That was not his story to tell."

"I didn't want to know. Finding out you were with this guy when the snap happened... and you still kissed me and said all those things... it wasn't right."

"We didn't have sex cause it was the right thing to do," She said with sudden disinterest. "We did it cause we wanted to."

"Did we?" He insisted. "Or did you do it to make sure C.C. was gone for good?"

Cat laughed dryly. "Does it matter?"

Harley looked away. "To be honest I might've been trying to forget a few things myself."

She looked back at him. "That weekend was the perfect excuse to put some distance between C.C. and I."

"Thought you'd ran away cause you didn't want your friends to get hurt?"

"I was eager to get away even before Kurt came to hunt me down. I'd say it was providential."

Cat drank the rest of her coffee and placed the cup on the table. She was displeased, it felt as if everyone was shoving, forcing her to face all the unfinished business she'd left behind, even if it hadn't been her choice.

"D'you think it would've hurt less, or more if you'd found out about him while being my boyfriend?"

He pondered his answer.

"I would've understood why a girl like you was attracted to me."

"Not what I asked. You're not him."

"We'll never know, Stray. It never happened. We didn't date. I'm glad you know I'm not your dead boyfriend, I wanted to be sure you haven't lost your mind."

She let out a chuckle. "You sound a lot like my brother. You should be friends."

Harley avoided her eyes. "I don't want him as a friend."

"Alright. What do you say about my offer?" Cat was starting to lose her patience. "Cause after this I can't wait to punch your pug face."

The boy tried and failed to hide his amusement. "I can always plant a bomb under your bed if you take advantage of my lack of experience, right?"

"You can try," She got up and left ten dollars on the table. "Call you later, Junior."