New chapter. I've been writing a bit ahead but I don't know how long this will last.
As always, please review :)
"Focus up." Liz said standing at the head of the bus holding quiz cards. "Our next topic is the moons of Saturn."
"The second law of thermodynamics."
"Frank Sinatra."
"Fort Sumter."
"Flash is wrong."
"Okay, let's focus. Next one."
"Liz, don't overwork them." Mr. Harrington said.
Peter hit his bell. "Strontium, barium, vibranium." He said.
"Very good, Peter." Liz said. "Glad to have you back."
"Glad to be back." He said.
Kate smiled faintly as she watched Peter with the group at the front being quizzed. He really was smart, and he just looked in his element here. If only these guys knew the other side of him. She glanced towards the back of the bus, out the window and picked out the nondescript car that she knew Bucky was driving with Sam in the car. She wondered if they were bickering still.
Liz moved on to the next question. "What is the current standard unit of—?"
"Can I take this real quick?" Peter said suddenly.
"Yeah, fine." Liz said.
Kate looked up at him as he moved down the aisle, holding his phone up to his ear. She gave him a curious look as he sat down next to her, holding the phone to his ear.
"Hello?" He said. He listened for a second and his eyes widened. "Tracker." He whispered.
Kate frowned as she watched him. Who was he talking to?
"Yeah, it's just a school trip. It's nothing." Peter said rolling his eyes. He looked at her. "Happy, I gotta say, tracking me without permission is a complete violation of privacy."
Happy. Kate sighed. Crap, she had forgotten about him watching the tracker for Tony. She scooted closer so she could listen to the call as well.
Ned, who overheard the comment, pointed at the tracker that he was watching with a raised eyebrow.
"That's different." Peter whispered to Ned.
"What's different?" Happy asked.
Peter focused again. "Nothing. Look, it's just the Academic Decathlon. Even Kate is here." He said. "It's no big deal."
"Hey, hey. I'll decide if it's no big deal." Happy said. They paused as they waited. "Sounds like no big deal, but remember, I'm watching you."
Happy was definitely one of her favorites but him watching the tracker could become a problem. However, she knew that he was going to be busy getting the SI employees out of the Tower so it wouldn't be hard for them to trick him for a while at least.
On their way in to DC, they saw the wreckage from the Triskelion that they were still trying to clean up. They got to the hotel where the team was going to be staying. They had to get signed in and then were going to be given their room assignments.
"Everyone, stick together." Liz called back as she walked with Mr. Harrington.
"Yeah." Mr. Harrington acknowledged, seeming a little frazzled.
The kids were all looking around in amazement at the massive hotel.
"You kidding me?" Cindy said. "This place is huge."
"I've seen bigger." Flash commented.
Kate rolled her eyes but smiled.
"So, what do you think?" Peter asked her quietly, a smirk playing across his lips.
She grinned back. "Well, it's no Burj Khalifa, but still nice." She said back playfully.
Peter grinned and they turned back to listen to the group. Kate looked to her left and saw familiar eyes watching from the shadows. They definitely weren't alone.
…
"Peter…why are we removing the tracker from your suit?" Ned asked curiously.
Peter looked up from what he was doing, Kate across from him working on the suit while they had it hooked up to Ned's laptop. "I gotta follow these guys to their boss before they move again…and I don't really want Mr. Stark to know about it." He said quickly.
Kate, who was supposed to be in the room she shared with Michelle, glanced at him quickly.
"So, you're lying to Iron Man now?" Ned asked sounding a little concerned.
"No, I'm not lying." Peter said thinking quickly. "He just doesn't really get what I can do yet." As he said that, Kate was able to expose the tracker imbedded in the suit. Peter grabbed it, removing it carefully. "Gotcha. All right, Happy, enjoy tracking this lamp."
"There's a ton of other subsystems in here..." Ned said thoughtfully as he looked at the program. He snickered. "...but they're all disabled by the Training Wheels Protocol."
Peter moved over. "What? 'Training Wheels Protocol'?" He said.
Kate moved up and looked at the screen. "Turn it off." She instructed.
"I don't think that's a good idea." Ned said. "They're blocked for a reason."
"I know what these programs do, and they can help Peter tonight." She said.
Ned didn't look convinced.
"Come on, man, I don't need training wheels." Peter said, a little genuine frustration seeping into his voice. "I'm sick of him treating me like a kid all the time. It's not cool."
"But you are a kid." Ned pointed out.
"A kid who can stop a bus with his bare hands." Peter said.
Ned sighed. "Peter, I just don't think this is a great idea. I mean, what if this is illegal?" He asked.
"Look, please." Peter said. "This is my chance to prove myself. I can handle it. Ned, come on."
"I don't think this is a good idea." Ned said.
Peter saw his opportunity. "The guy in the chair." He said quietly. He caught Kate's eye and she smiled faintly, knowing what he was doing.
"Don't do that." Ned said.
"Come on." Peter said pleadingly.
Ned pressed a few keys and they watched the suit light up.
…
Kate watched Peter zip up his hoodie over his suit, shouldering his backpack. She walked with Peter to the door and checked outside for anyone coming while Peter turned back to Ned.
"The glowy thing, it's evidence." He said. "Keep it safe. All right?"
"Okay. Okay." Ned said picking up the Chitauri core.
Peter looked at the tracker. "They're moving." He said.
"Be careful." Ned said.
They moved out, heading back towards Kate's room. They ran into Liz and the other decathlon kids, everyone dressed in swimming suits.
"Hey, Liz." They said nervously.
"Perfect timing." Liz said. "We're gonna go swimming."
The other decathlon kids ran past them on the way to the pool, everyone laughing but trying to be quiet.
"We were—I was gonna go study in the business center." Peter said.
"You don't need to." Liz said. "You're the smartest guy I've ever met. And besides…a rebellious group activity the day before competition is good for morale." Liz cleared her throat when Peter didn't reply right away. "Well, I read that in a TED Talk, so—I—I heard it in a TED Talk. And I read a coaching book."
Kate sighed internally. It was almost painful watching the flirting, it was so obvious. However, to her surprise, Peter didn't seem as fazed by it as she thought he might.
"You really—" Peter paused. "This is really important to you."
"Yeah. It's our future." Liz said. "I'm not gonna screw it up." Kate felt a twist in her chest. "Besides, we raided the minibar and these candy bars were, like, $11." She tossed one at Peter, who caught it easily. "So, you guys get your suits on and come on."
They watched their friends disappear down the hall and Kate looked at Peter. "It's okay to backout if you want to join them." She said carefully.
He looked at her. "Not a chance." He said. He took her hand again like he had on the bus. "We're gonna do this. I'll be back in a little while I promise."
Without thinking about it, Kate stood up a little on her toes and kissed his cheek. "Be safe."
She watched him leave and then went to round up Michelle and Ned to get them to the pool. Better to all be in one place then have them split up. On her way to her room, she saw a brief flash of light.