A/N: This is my apology to all of you readers waiting for the next chapter of The Last Petran. I kinda sorta haven't written the next chapter yet, so there will be no new chapter this week like I promised. I do, however, have the next chapter of Downpour ready and waiting. I'll upload it in the next few days. Until then, I hope you enjoy this sweet little one-shot. I sure enjoyed writing it!
4/21/18 Update: I added a few more details to this story.
It was a beautiful, clear day at the compound.
Peter and Lia were sitting outside under a tree. They didn't talk, choosing instead to enjoy the quiet and one another's presence. Peter could tell from her face that Lia was thinking hard about something, and, knowing her, she would eventually tell him and ask for his opinion. So he sat back against the tree and waited patiently for her to voice her thoughts.
After a few more minutes, Lia finally broke the silence. "If a Weeping Angel had two shadows, would you stare at it or run for your life?" she asked aloud.
Peter stared at her. "That's what you've been thinking so hard about?"
"I've been thinking about this for almost a week now. I can't find a solution that doesn't end badly!"
"You've devoted a week's worth of time trying to decide what you would do if you ran into a fictional sci-fi monster?"
"It's not my fault! I had nobody to discuss it with. Tony and I are the only ones in the compound who watch Doctor Who, and he's been at a conference for the last week and a half."
Peter shook his head, smiling at his best friend. "Lia, you do know that the world doesn't revolve around Doctor Who, right?"
Lia gasped, scandalized. "How can you say something like that? I don't think we can be friends anymore, Peter." She turned away from him, arms crossed.
He chuckled. Lia jokingly ended their friendship at least twice a week on average but it didn't take much to get her to forgive him again. "What do I have to say to get you to be friends with me again?"
"If you can find an answer to my question, I might be able to find it in my heart to forgive you," she said without turning around. He could hear in her voice that she was smiling.
"Well…" He thought for a moment. "I suppose all you'd need to do is find a way to subdue the angel while avoiding the shadows. Weeping Angels can only move if nobody is watching them, so all you really need to do is find a mirror or something reflective and put it in front of the angel so it can't move. Then you can get the heck out of there."
Peter's response was met with silence. "Lia?"
Still nothing. "Lia, are you actually mad at me?" He moved over to where she was sitting so he could see her face and his mouth dropped.
There was a large orange and black butterfly on Lia's nose. She was still as a statue, eyes wide in shock. Peter laughed out loud.
"You okay there, Lia?" he asked, grinning.
"Peter!" she hissed. "What do I do?"
"You hold still, that's what." He had his phone out, pointing the camera lens at her while he snapped a few pictures. "I want to remember this."
"Peter Benjamin Parker if you don't get this thing off my face in the next ten seconds then so help me-"
"Okay, okay! I'll help." He waved his hand next to her face and the butterfly flew away. "There."
"Thank you." Lia finally relaxed back against the tree.
"Why are you so scared of a little butterfly, anyway?" he asked.
"Let's see how calm you are when a large winged insect lands on your face!" She glared at Peter as he stared at the photos on his phone, trying hard not to laugh. Eventually, he lost his battle and burst out laughing.
"Peter!"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! You just look so adorable with a butterfly on your nose." He held out his phone to show her the pictures.
The corner of Lia's mouth turned up when she saw the photographs of her. Her eyebrows were raised and her eyes crossed as she tried to stare at the insect perched on her nose. "Okay, maybe I do look a little funny."
"Just a little bit, Butterfly."
She raised an eyebrow. "You're calling me Butterfly now?"
"Yeah, it's cute. Like you."
She smiled. "I kinda like it."
Peter didn't tell her the real reason he gave her that nickname. She thought he was referencing the butterfly incident, but that wasn't entirely true. He called her butterfly because of the feeling he got when he saw her smile. It always felt like he had swallowed a bunch of them into his stomach.
"Now," she said, "back to the Weeping Angels…"