Chapter Song: Mr. Brightside by the Killers (simply for the vibes)
Headcanon of the chapter: Danielle would totally be a vegetarian if it weren't for the fact that she just loves bacon and chicken wings.
—
This had to be the best day in the entirety of Flash's life.
First, he got to replace Peter on the team at Decathlon and helped win the National Championship, then Mr. Harrington may or may not have told him he could then tell Peter he was totally expelled for ditching the competition, and finally Spider-Man totally came to save their lives after the giant explosion in the elevator. Which, was a little terrifying, but Flash was able to get interviewed by news anchors and made it onto National TV.
And to add to the cherry on top, as soon as the EMT's were done checking him and the rest of the team over, Flash was the first one off the bus after it arrived at the hotel and dashing up the stairs (Decathlon trophy in clutch). He ran and ran until he finally reached Ned and Peter's room. He had swiped the key to their room from Mr. Harrington and was able to unlock it with ease where he knew he would find Danielle and Penis Parker.
He had to admit, he was surprised Danielle would ditch this competition, but it wasn't hard to figure out why they both had done it. Sure, Flash still couldn't believe Danielle even hung out with the loser, but gave Parker props for managing to get her in bed with him. And at a fancy hotel, too. Nice.
As the key slid into the lock and the door opened with a click, Flash was so excited to bust them for their deeds. But, when the door finally opened all the way and he was eventually able to see what was really going on, he was a bit... stumped.
"What?" Flash muttered in awe as he laid his eyes on the surprisingly tame and not at all sexual scene playing out before him.
"How did you get a key to my room?" Peter asked the dumbfound boy standing in the doorway. He was sitting on a chair pulled out next to the bed, and, much to Flash's chagrin, was fully clothed.
As was Danielle, who was lying in the bed tucked up underneath the large comforter with her head propped up on the fluffy pillows against the headboard. She looked pale and sweaty and if she didn't look disgustingly sick, Flash would've made a joke about Peter wearing her out, but unfortunately even an idiot could tell she was just really freaking sick. So sick, apparently, Peter had to stay behind just to press a warm towel against her forehead and hold a metal trash can next to her at all times while he force-fed her pain meds, Saltines, and water. Which was exactly the cover story they used once the rest of the team arrived to their room to find the exact scene Flash had walked in on.
"Hi, guys," Peter grimaced as the rest of the team wandered in, looking slightly more exhausted than the other two did. "Sorry we missed Decathlon. Elle got sick during our study session last night and her fever hasn't let up since then. I didn't want to leave her alone and she didn't want to be a burden," he lied with ease. He had gone over the script he and Danielle had come up with over a hundred times as he waited patiently for them to return from their fifteen minutes of fame with the dozens of reporters that interviewed them after the fiasco.
"We thought you had flaked," Cindy exclaimed.
"You chose a hell of a day to be sick, Danielle," Abe joked half-hearted.
Danielle, who was barely conscious, managed a tight smile. "M'sorry," she hummed.
"Don't worry about it, Ellie," Liz told her reassuringly. "Just get some rest."
"Actually," Mr. Harrington chimed in from behind all the kids, grabbing their attention. "The school called after seeing the news and wanted us to come back tonight. Apparently all of your parents are freaking out and want you home ASAP... So, the bus leaves back to the school in about thirty minutes. Danielle, you're gonna have to be sick on the bus and not in this overly priced hotel. Sorry."
And with that, the group dispersed to their separate rooms to get packed, leaving Danielle and Peter to exchange glances of both relief in the fact that they didn't question their story and worry at the fact that they'd have to face the wrath of their collective families when they returned to New York.
"Wait, seriously?" They heard Flash call after Mr. Harrington and the rest of the team as they left the room. "You're not even gonna question if they were having sex or not while we left them alone the entire day?"
"Gross, Flash!"
As the team left the hotel room where the enhanced teens resided, both shared a hesitant look with one another.
"Do you think they believed it?" Peter asked Danielle sheepishly.
"I think so..." she replied just before her nose scrunched up and a small sneeze escaped from her mouth. "Achoo!" Simultaneously, a lamp from across the room rattled before tipping off the edge of the table it was on. But within the same breath, Peter was on his feet, shooting a web out to catch hold of the lamp to yank it into his grip before it could hit the floor. When he turned to glance over his shoulder, he couldn't help but smile at Danielle's embarrassed blush hidden behind the tissue she held to her nose. "Sorry," came the muffled apology.
—
It didn't take long for the Decathlon team to pack up their things and pile into the bus. They hadn't planned on leaving so late after all the interviews and check-ups, so by the time they had left DC city limits, almost everyone on the bus was already asleep. Which gave Peter and Danielle a chance to talk about the mission that had gone eerily wrong.
"I'm sorry we didn't get to catch those weapons dealers," Danielle murmured to Peter who sat beside her in one of the small leather seats in the rear of the bus. She was still weak and sick from the over-exertion of her powers, but she was slowly regaining her strength the longer she rested.
Peter shrugged and bowed his head. "It's fine," he told her. "I'm just... I'm just glad everyone's okay." Despite what his mouth said, Danielle didn't have to be partially telepathic to understand the real guilt and disappointment in Peter's voice and his eyes.
"All thanks to you," Danielle replied as she gently nudged his knee with hers, catching his attention. When Peter looked up at her, she mustered a smile. "Liz, Ned, and Mr. Harrington wouldn't have made it out of that elevator if it hadn't been for you." But despite her efforts to try and cheer Peter up, he still didn't seem convinced. "You saved them, Peter."
"Yeah, but I was the one that put them in danger in the first place," Peter retorted bitterly. "They would've never had to be saved if I hadn't put them in danger by leaving the glowy-thing with Ned."
"How were you supposed to know it was a bomb?"
"I should've-!" Peter cut himself off, mid-snap. He composed himself before lowering his voice, "I should've known."
"You couldn't have, Peter," Danielle whispered as she reached her hand in between them and took his hand in her own. She almost pulled away at just how warm Peter's skin was. She'd never noticed before as she intertwined her small, pale fingers into his own in an act of comfort.
Peter was confused at the gesture at first, but eventually accepted it as his fingers wrapped around Danielle's, returning the action. Peter sighed as he took what she said in mind and realized she was right, he couldn't have known what that Chitauri core was capable of. But, he would still feel guilty for what happened at the Monument, no matter what. He had out his friends in danger, his teacher, his best friend, and the girl he liked. Not to mention, he had left Danielle alone on a bench unconscious after she had risked her life getting him out of a vault he had gotten stuck in... It was all just a big mess.
"Peter," Danielle's voice pulled him out of his troubled thoughts and Peter turned to glance over at her. "You don't always have to put the blame on yourself, you know," she told him. "We're partners, remember? If one of us messes up, we both take the fall for it, not just one of us. We're in this together." She squeezed his hand in response. And after a few moments of deliberation, Peter squeezed back.
The remainder of the trip back to New York was spent with the two glancing out of the window talking amongst themselves about what to expect when they got back, missing Decathlon, and their possible next move with the weapons dealers now that they knew where their source was. And all the while, their hands remained intertwined.
—
By the time the bus arrived back at Midtown in the middle of the night, there were already dozens of cars full of worried parents already waiting for their arrival in the parking lot. One by one, the students filed off the bus and were met with frantic hugs, worried questions, and panicked confessions of love after their near-death experience away from home.
As Peter and Danielle exited the bus together, no longer hand-in-hand, they watched as all their friends and their families embraced. Something that felt like a mixture of both pride and guilt fell over the pair as they brushed past the heart felt scenes. Well, that was until Peter's Aunt May came rushing through the crowd at the sight of her nephew exiting off the bus.
She didn't waste a moment as she grabbed hold of him and gave him a rib-crushing hug. When she pulled away, her immediate reaction was to check for scars, bruises, or anything out of place on her nephew's face and body. Once she finally realized he was safe and alive and in one piece, she hugged him once more just because. Danielle watched from close by and wondered what might've been going through May Parker's mind when she had watched the news and heard her nephew's team were the ones in that elevator, that he was in danger and miles away from her where she was helpless. It couldn't have been pleasant.
"Are you alright?" May asked as she pulled away once more and took Peter's face in her hands.
"I'm fine, May. I promise," Peter reassured his aunt over and over again as she hysterically continued to ask him wuestions regarding where he was and what happened. She was so caught up in reveling in the fact that her nephew really was okay, she had barely noticed the girl awkwardly standing off to the side behind him. "Danielle," May breathed a sign of relief as she pushed aside Peter and made her way to her newest reason to worry.
Danielle stiffened suddenly when May took her in her arms and squeezed her tight. Peter couldn't help but chuckle at the face she made in response.
"Oh, I'm so glad the both of you are alright. I heard what happened on the news and I almost drove all the way to DC just to make sure you were alright," May began to vent to her nephew directly after releasing Danielle from a bear hug. "Oh, I'm so happy you're safe. I don't know what I would've done if..." She trailed off as her eyes glazed ovr. Danielle recognized the look of a woman who had already lost so much already.
"May," Peter's soft voice comforted his frantic aunt as he placed a gentle hand on her arm. "We're fine. I'm fine. There's nothing to worry about."
May sighed. "You're right. You're right," his aunt shook her head. "Why don't we get you home. You're probably exhausted from that trip." Peter nodded in agreement, and Danielle silently wished she had a ride home.
She could probably catch a cab but she had no cash on her. Then again, she doubted she wanted to go back to the Penthouse after what had happened with Rae back in DC. Also, not to mention the fact that her brother and Tony had probably already seen the news about her and Peter and were probably already on their way to New York to put her in a little bubble and not let her leave ever again. God, why did she have to let Peter get stuck in that vault?
"Danielle," May's voice brought her out of her conflicted cloud of thoughts. "Do you need a ride home?"
"Um, no... I think I'm good-" The sound of a loud, growling engine cut Danielle off. Annoyed and irritated at the loud and obnoxious noise, the brunette (as well as many others in the parking lot) turned to see where the noise was coming from. But when Danielle's landed on the silver Audi a few yards away, what scared her wasn't just how expensive the automobile looked, but the person that was walking out of it.
Off to the side, leaning against the driver's side door of the vehicle in her brown wig and designer boots, was Rae. She was wearing sunglasses over her eyes in the middle of the night, hiding her eyes and making her unreadable face even more so as Danielle sheepishly made her way towards her. There was no outrunning her this time, especially in front of all her school mates. As she started walking away after telling May and Peter goodbye, Danielle felt someone tug at her sleeve. When she turned, she saw Peter give her a worried glance. "Are you sure about going with her...?" He whispered to her beneath his breath.
Danielle glanced between the stone-cold statue of a woman and the warm and the comforting boy beside her. There was no escaping what was to come this time. "Yeah. I'll be fine," she assured him as she turned back around and continued the walk to her demise. "I'll call you later," she called over her shoulder to him as she walked, only remembering that she had left her phone in a bus in an attempt to escape Rae when she was three feet in front of the very woman.
"You came willingly," Rae remarked without a trace of emotion behind her tone.
"I figured if I ran you would just have my brother or Tony track me down," Danielle retorted bitterly.
Rae shrugged. "I could've easily found you myself."
"Is that why you had my phone bugged?"
"You mean this phone?" Danielle watched as the older woman pulled a familiar cellphone from out of her back pocket and held it up to her. "I had it bugged to make it easier to know where you were while I was away. But believe me, I could've found you without it. There aren't a lot of places you can go where I wouldn't find you. Phone or not." Danielle didn't need a translator to understand the threat in her words.
She shifted uncomfortably beneath the woman's harsh glare she knew was burning holes in her face, even through those sunglasses. "So, what now? Are you going to drag me back to the Penthouse and chain me up there until further notice?" She prompted.
Rae shrugged as if she were considering the option. Danielle regretted the words as soon as they left her mouth. "I could," Rae replied nonchalantly. "But like I said, I could find you anywhere, whether I continued to let you go to school and be a vigilante or not. So what's the point of keeping you on lockdown?" Danielle raised an eyebrow. She had a point.
Rae sighed as she tossed Danielle's phone to her, the teen barely catching it before it could hit the floor. Confused at the gesture, Danielle glanced up at her questioningly. "Trust me, I'm definitely not Tony Stark," the older woman grumbled bitterly before making her way back to the driver's side door and climbing in. Danielle barely had time to get to the passenger's side and climb in before Rae had started the car and began to drive off.
The teenager sighed in relief as they drove their way through the city towards the Penthouse. She figured that the conversation could've gone worse. And in hindsight, she did get her phone back.
After the long and tense drive to the Penthouse, Danielle had never been more happy to see that lame fruit basket Rae always managed to keep stocked on the marble kitchen counter. Danielle was quick to drop her belongings at the door and snatch up a pear. She never knew just how hungry she had been until she took that first bite of the fruit, her eyes almost rolling to the back of her head as she chewed.
Rae glanced over at the teenager from over her shoulder, an eyebrow raised as she watched her devour her food. "When was the last time you ate?"
Danielle paused mid-bite to answer, her mouth still somewhat full. "Mm, I ate a granola bar at the protest."
The older woman let out a frustrated sigh before making her way towards a large door on the side of the kitchen. Danielle watched curiously as the brunette woman opened the door and turned on a light switch inside, revealing the contents inside to be a closer filled to the brim with foods of all kinds. Danielle's jaw involuntarily fell to the floor, her pear forgotten, as she walked around the kitchen island to peer at all the untouched perishables she hadn't known were there.
Rae raised a skeptical eyebrow at the shocked teenager beside her. "Did you seriously think I would let you starve while I was away?"
Danielle shrugged, her wide eyes not leaving the shelves upon shelves of food. "I just assumed this was a mop closet, or something." Out of the corner of her eye, Danielle could've sworn she saw the tiniest trace of a smile on Rae's face, but she figured that maybe her lack of food might've just gone to her head.
"Well," Rae cleared her throat. "Now that you know that I can find you virtually wherever you go and that you also have a pretty broad selection of food, I expect you not to get yourself killed while I'm away," the brunette woman stated as she gathered her belongings off the counter and made her way towards the elevator doors the way they had just came in.
"You're leaving again?" Danielle asked, the disappointment coating her voice.
Rae paid no mind to the teenager's clear distraughtness as she zipped up her expensive looking jacket. "I have a meeting I have to be at in..." she checked her wrist for a nonexistent watch. "...3 hours that's almost halfway across the world. Hopefully I'll miss the opening regards so I can leave early," she grumbled in disdain, her freshly polished finger pressing the button on the wall just before the doors opened and she walked in, leaving the enhanced teenager behind yet again.
The woman paused briefly in her steps at the thought of the young girl behind her. She turned to face Danielle, who remained standing at the edge of the kitche counter, watching her as she went along.
Rae sighed. "Please stay safe," she told the young girl in a more genuine-than-usual tone. "I'd rather not have your brother or Tony down my throat the next time they see you on the news for something insane. Oh! And speaking of which, you should probably check your phone."
Just as the elevator doors closed, Rae watched the calm and collected young girl suddenly began to scramble for the device on the kitchen last thing Rae saw as the doors shut completely was the look of complete and utter doom on Danielle's face the moment she picked up the phone and saw just how many missed calls and unanswered messages she had. Rae chuckled and shook her head... Poor kid.
—
Twenty-two.
Twenty-two missed calls Danielle had gotten from her brother in the short period of time she had gone without her phone. Not to mention, the fourteen worried text messages and the seven frantic voicemails that Jack had left her.
You have seven new voice messages.
"Hey, Happy mentioned you were in D.C. I hears about the shooting and just wanted to tell you to be safe... I'll call you back when I'm free in a few."
Message deleted. Next message.
"Dani... Um, I just got out of my meeting... I just wanted to call and say good luck at your competition tomorrow. You're gonna do great... Bye."
Message deleted. Next message.
"Look, I know you're probably mad at me because you think I haven't been as... around as usual, and I'm sorry, okay? I just... I'm trying to get this whole Accords thing down while also staying on top of... Avenging things. And I know it sounds like a shit excuse, so I promise as soon as I'm done with these next few meetings maybe we could... take a day off and hang out at Coney Island. Like old times... I just... I'm trying, Dani. I am... Call me back."
Danielle's finger hovered over the delete number on her phone after that particular message. She faltered for a moment before pressing a different key instead.
Message saved. Next message.
"Call me. Now."
The teenager winced. This was definitely around the time he was starting to see the news.
Message deleted. Next message.
"Danielle Roźalia Harper, so help me if you don't call me back right now-"
Message deleted. Next message.
"Answer the phone, Danielle-!"
Message deleted. Next message.
"... I don't know if you're mad at me still... But please, for the love of God, Danielle, please, just let me know that you're alright. I need to know you're okay...
Danielle glanced at the time stamp on the message. It had been left for her almost an hour ago. She figured Jack was probably worried sick. And all because she was reckless and had decided to hide her phone on a bus and almost get herself killed on a school trip to D.C.
But while what she had gone through was... less than exciting, she figured Jack was probably having the worst night ever just worrying about her, wondering if she was alright or if she was mad at him for blowing her off these past few weeks.
Danielle was just about to call him back to put him out of his misery when she abruptly paused. The teenager glanced down at the screen in front of her, Jack's number blinking in front of her eyes as her thumb hovered over the 'DIAL' button. She debated for a moment just doing what he asked, only to realize that it was late and she was exhausted and the last thing she wanted was to get into another draining argument with Jack right now.
Nonetheless, she felt as though he at least deserved to know she was saved, like JE had asked in his message. So, instead of calling, she sent him a quick text.
To: Jack-San the Electric Man
From: Dani Radcliffe
I'm alright.
It was a bit vague and blunt, but hopefully it would give her a few hours to nurse the killer headache she had at the moment. Just at the thought, a aching pain flashed through her skull. Danielle groaned and reluctantly set her phone on the nightstand beside her. Tired and half-awake, Danielle reached across the nightstand for the bottle of pain meds Darcy had given her a few weeks before. She had used up most of the first bottle within the week, but luckily, they sold the medication at any half-decent drugstore in Queens. Danielle dropped four pills into her hand, tossing them back dry and swallowing with a grimace. She shook her head at the wry taste it left before she fell back onto the mattress.
As soon as her head hit the soft pillow, it didn't take long for sleep to find her. She drifted to sleep that night with dreams of explosions in large white buildings, screaming girls and boys, helicopter propellers whipping her hair in all different directions, a large metal door, a burning sensation, and a demon with wings flying at her with his talons ready to rip apart her flesh and bone.
—
The next morning, Danielle awoke to only a fraction of the pain in her head than the day before. It was a wonderful relief, but the teenager still took a few pills with her morning dose of orange juice she drank before heading off to school.
The trek to school was as normal as ever. Danielle managed to make a quick stop by Delmar's just to see the reconstruction and how it was coming along. Every once and a while she'd even spot Mr. Delmar and wave. He'd wave back occasionally, but she always caught on to the crinkle cheeks with every half-hearted smile he gave that told her jut how hard the store explosion hit him.
Today as Danielle stood out in the corner of the sidewalk across the street, she took in just how much Mr. Delmar had lost. And not just him, but everyone the weapons dealers were affecting by putting these dangerous weapons out on the street for anyone to take advantage of.
The rest of Danielle's walk to school was filled with thoughts and plans of a possible next move to bring down the winged-man and his band of criminals. They didn't have much to go on. The tracker Peter had put on the dealers was probably still active, it could serve as a good tool to the pair. Not to mention, now that they had foiled his heist in DC, maybe instead of finding him, they would already be after them. It was twisted, but it could still work.
However, Danielle's planning came to halt when she reached the edge of the Midtown football field. As she crossed the fifty yard line, her phone began to ring in her back pocket unexpectedly. Confused as to who would be calling her at 8 in the morning on a Monday, Danielle pulled out her phone to find out. Her chest tightened when she read the caller ID.
It was Jack.
She wasn't sure why she was so scared to answer. After all, he couldn't really get mad at her for much. He knew she would be in DC, no way he could accuse her of sneaking out. And he didn't know about the explosion being partially her and Peter's fault or about the weapons dealers, so he couldn't exactly blame her for anything or say she was putting herself in danger.
By the third ring, Danielle had figured that she didn't have to be so scared. It was just Jack. Then again, she wondered how her and her brother's relationship transitioned from being two peas of the same pod that always he the other's back, to two ends of an odd spectrum, worlds away.
Finally, after 30 seconds of mentally arguing with herself, Danielle answered the phone.
"...Jack?" Danielle answered hesitantly as she put the phone to her ear.
On the other end, she heard a loud and sigh of relief. "Danielle. Thank God, you're alright."
Danielle bit her lip as a twinge of guilt bubbled up inside of her. Suddenly she was feeling like a real ass for not calling him last night to let him know she was alright over phone instead of a phony text, and all because she didn't feel like fighting like she thought they would. "Yeah... Yeah, I'm alright. Sorry I didn't call or text. I left my phone at the hotel by accident and was... pretty out of it when I got back last night."
The brunette held her breath as she walked the rest of the way to the school, across the remainder of the field and to the sidewalk beside street where kids were either parking or getting dropped off. She was certain that there were engines revving as loud as the sound of her beating heart in her throat as she waited for her brother's answer.
There was a sigh on the other line. "It's fine," her brother replied. "I'm just glad you're okay."
Danielle let out a sigh of relief as she took the step off the sidewalk to stride across the cross walk and slowly up the school steps. "I'm... I'm still sorry I didn't answer your calls. It was... irresponsible and really crappy of me." Danielle sighed as she entered the hallways of Midtown, kids bustling around her, but her attention was focused on her older brother. "I'm really sorry, Jack."
"Me too."
Danielle slowly broke her fast paced and slowed to a hault as she reached her locker. Her fingers traced the lock as her confusion built up as to what Jack could possibly be apologizing about. She had been the one to leave him ignored while she was off knocked out during a crisis in DC. But, instead of interrupting, she allowed him to explain.
She heard him exhale heavily before continuing. "Look, I know it's been hard lately with..." the Accords, losing a lot of your powers, being abandoned by close family, getting locked away in a maximum security prison, being dropped off at some crazy care-giver's Penthouse only to be left alone for weeks on end, and generally just driving yourself crazy by trying to balance school, vigilante-ing, and being a good friend and sister? "everything," he settled with.
"But I promise, I'll try and be better at this whole... Avenger-slash-big brother thing, alright? From now on, I'll put work aside to visit you every other weekend. We can go get lunch, chill at an arcade or museum, have a movie marathon in the rec-room here, try and see how much spaghetti Vision can eat in one sitting, maybe even try to recreate the parade scene from Ferris Bueller?"
Danielle chuckled as she pulled her unlocked locker open, her eyes landing on the small printed out photograph of Jack, herself, Wanda, Pietro, and another Enhanced kid from Sokovia all standing side-by-side. The picture tugged at her heart string every time she saw it, but it reminded her everyday of what she had lost and who she still had. Pietro and the other Enhanced were long gone, only with her through memory, and Wanda was a world away. But, there was always someone that was there for her. Always. And that was the big brother she knew and loved. Jack.
The brunette could feel the small tears trickling down her cheeks as she stared affectionately at the image in front of her. It wasn't for a good couple of moments that Danielle finally answered her brother on the other line. "O-Okay," she stammered. "That sounds nice."
"I'll see you soon, alright, Dani?" He responded, sounding equally as enthusiastic.
"Okay," she mumbled through the receiver.
"And Dani," Jack quickly added before she could end the call. "Keep yourself safe, okay?"
Danielle sniffled and nodded. "I will," she promised him.
"Elle!" The brunette turned to her right to find Peter practically skipping down the hall towards her.
"Hey, I gotta go. I'll call you tomorrow about this weekend, okay?"
"Alright. Talk to you-" Danielle winced as she hit the 'END CALL' button and quickly shoved her phone into her back pocket as Peter approached.
"Elle," he greeted her with a beaming smile.
She tried to reciprocate the smile as she replied just as enthusiastically, "Peter. What's up?"
Peter's smile faltered slightly as his head cocked to the side and his eyes narrowed. "Have you... have you been crying?" Danielle's hand shot up to her cheek where her fingers touched something cold and wet just beneath her eye. "You okay, Elle? What happened last night with your caretaker?"
Danielle quickly shook her head and wiped away the evidence of her call with her brother. "Nothing. No- Yes- I'm fine," she explained. "Rae, she, uh, she left after dropping me off at the Penthouse last night. She, uh, she didn't do anything about DC."
"Okay..." Peter decided against pushing the question about why she had been crying, and instead settled for discussing the reason he had been so excited about today. "Well, speaking of DC, did you catch the news?"
"Not really," she answered truthfully. "But, I'm guessing maybe you're feeling a lot better than you were last night."
Peter laughed as he nodded. "We saved people in DC. I mean- we save people all the time, but this is the first time I've, like, really, saved people since hunting down these guys." Danielle's smile slightly faltered as she began to understand where this was going. "What do you say about maybe trying to sneak out of 5th to try and get a head start on catching these guys before the end of the week?"
"I, uh..." Danielle pursed her lips together, unsure of how to explain her train of thought after DC and talking with Jack. But, then something dawned on her. Maybe this was her way. Maybe catching these weapons dealers with Peter was the way to prove to Jack that she could handle herself. If she could handle this, she could handle anything. Right? "Okay. We can slip out the back door during passing period."
Peter smiled. "Cool. I'll meet you in the East Wing after 4th."
"How about after 2nd?" Danielle suggesting in the spur of the moment. "More time, right?"
Peter seemed a bit caught off guard by her eagerness, but the confused expression on his face only lasted for a moment. Instead of questioning her motives, he just nodded and went along with it. He would be lying if he wasn't as eager as she was. "Alright. I'll meet you in the East Wing," he said before jogging off down the hall for class.
It then dawned on Danielle as she watched Peter jog off through the crowded halls that he wasn't kidding when he had said something about the news, because apparently it had spread like wildfire across Midtown Tech. All Danielle could see from end to end of the halls of the school were kids dressed all in Eris and Spider-Man memorabilia and costumes. Two girls dressed in navy and gold wearing masks passed the brunette as she made her way to 1st period, and an entire group of Spider-Man's sitting in the back of her Geometry class. It was a bit unsettling, but at the same time flattering somehow.
—
After 1st period ended, it took Danielle a bit longer to navigate through the crowded halls of "vigilantes" before she finally ended up at the exit near the East Wing that her and Peter had discussed. But, she seemed to have been beat there by none other than Principal Morita who was marching past her towards his office.
Danielle halted in her quick pace, trying not to make it seem as though she was heading to go skip with her vigilante partner...
...Who just so happened to be walking behind Principal Morita with a glum look on his face that screamed 'busted'. It didn't take Danielle look to put two and two together to understand what had happened.
Peter winced when he glanced up and made eye contact with Danielle. She grimaced and waved awkwardly as Principal Morita scolded him, sternly accusing him of truancy as he led him into his office. The last word Danielle picked up on as she passed by was 'detention'.
Great... she bitterly thought to herself.
Well, of course she had to get him out, but how? It couldn't be that hard, right?
Of course not! She had to busted Peter out of a maximum security vault of alien weaponry, how hard could it be to bust him out of detention?
—
A/N: Quarantine Day 6: I finally got around to finishing this extreme filler chapter. Hopefully now that I suddenly have a lot of free time on my hands I'll get around to updating a lot sooner. No promises tho, bc I still have online classes and a wedding to unfortunately reschedule. Keep ya posted!
Reviews:
zikashigaku: I don't think anyone is gonna happy to hear about Danielle stretching her power to the point of her physical limits, but that's just her dumb and reckless self. oh my gosh, dont even remind me of THAT drop. Before Tony's death in Endgame, Gwen's death literally hit me like a freight train and I have yet to recover. Glad you enjoyed the chapter, though. Hope you like this one.
Wikked: Aw, thanks. Glad you think so. I feel like I can easily write Ned and Michelle out of all of this bc I relate most to being in awe of everything, but at the same time being slightly tolerant of everyone around me. Lol. Glad you also like Elle, I do too ;)
I. D.'s Fantasy: She survived! Yay! Here's the next chapter!
sofiarose613: There shall be no more wait! I present to you yet another tension-ending chapter. Not as bad as the last, but a tense one nonetheless.
.mouse: I'm sorry about the cliffhanger! But if you've come this far in the story, you should know by now it's a defining trait of mine to end all the chapters like that, lol. And omg yes I love HIPS, I really need to catch up. It's been a while. But, I'm glad this is considered one of your facs, so here, have an update. :)
