Chapter One: Begin Again

Alex Rider ran, his hands waving with well-practised grace. He charged around a corner and down another corridor, praying, hoping that he would make it. When finally, he arrived at his destination he reached out his hand and gently pushed down on the door handle, forcing it to open. He ducked inside with all furtiveness he'd developed after years of being a spy.

Alex crept across the room, hoping, praying that he wouldn't be noticed. It was never good to be noticed. He was nearly there just a little bit further and he would be safe…

"Alex Rider!"

Crap. He'd managed to draw the attention of the very person he'd been trying to avoid. Mr Stevenson: Tyrant, dictator and the latest thorn in his side. He was the world's strictest English teacher who didn't suffer fools gladly. Alex wasn't a fool but Mr Stevenson didn't suffer him either. Whenever he dealt with Alex, he always seemed to be both equal parts exasperated and aghast.

Mr Stevenson glared at him. He would like to say that the glare had little impact on him. Once upon a time, which would be true. Back when he was still an MI6 agent living with Jack – that glare wouldn't bother him. However, after everything Agent Mason did to him he could no longer make that claim. He was healing but being faced with an angry adult was still a big deal to him. He knew, logically, that Mr Stevenson couldn't hurt him but after Alex had spent years being hurt by those who weren't supposed to, he had little trust in what the rules allowed.

"You're late!"

Alex offered a look that he tried to make seem contrite. In his experience, when he appeared chastised the threat to him was minimal. While he had a snarky retort ready on his lips, he was going to let his pride get in the way of his safety. He made that mistake too many times before in his life to do so again.

"Sorry, sir!" Alex apologised trying hard to keep the quiver out of his voice.

The teachers were supposed to be gentler with him. Apparently Ben had been quite clear with them on that score: sharing what Alice advised. Mr Stevenson either didn't care about the so-called 'advice' or believed himself to be exempt from that. He had something against him, Alex just wasn't sure what.

Judging by the way Mr Stevenson looked at him, his contrite look didn't have the effect he was looking for. In fact, if anything, Mr Stevenson seemed angrier and that was not something he wanted. The English teacher scowled at him before pointing toward a desk.

"Take your seat, Alex." Mr Stevenson ordered. "And take out your book. Shakespeare waits for no man!"

Rather than make a witty comment about how he wouldn't care if Shakespeare did wait for him (frankly jumping over canals and running from hitmen was far more interesting and far more useful than analysing Macbeth) Alex did what he was told. Alice had assured him he had been making great progress in the last few months but he was still nowhere near ready to risk being rude.

"Now where were we?" Mr Stevenson asked rhetorically in the way teachers do before answering their own questions. "Ah yes. Act 1 scene 3. Oh, and Alex?"

Alex looked up from his book as he fumbled to find the page. He ignored the sniggers from his classmates, wishing that Tom was in his English class. Ben had asked if he wanted to switch schools. Alex refused. While Brooklands had done little to ensure his safety, staying there at least meant he had a friend. Right now, though, he was beginning to regret that decision.

"Yes, sir?" Alex asked, tentatively. He knew that whatever the teacher wanted – it wasn't good.

"Detention." Mr Stevenson declared with a smirk.

Great. That was just what he needed. MI6 would be laughing in his face. Who heard of an agent who had detention? True he wasn't technically an agent anymore but that wasn't the point. He saved the world several times over. If that didn't give him a bit of grace to be late now and then he didn't know what did.

Benjamin Daniels spent a lot of time thinking and worrying about Alex. It was something that came with the tertiary of being a parent he supposed. But the worries he spent his time pondering over were very different to the ones discussed on 'Mumsnet' (Ben would vehemently deny that he examined that website if questioned). That was where Alice came in. The women had been a godsend and not just for Alex. She advised him on how to help Alex and gave him the contacts for support groups. Alex seemed to be doing well – or as well as could be expected. The school was a formality that he had only recently got back and Ben couldn't help but worry if it was too much too soon.

The teenager was beginning to make real progress although they still had a long way to go. Alex flinched away a few times and sometimes addressed him as 'sir'. There were times when he still thought Ben would strike him, particularly when he'd done something he feared would be persevered as wrong. Those incidents were becoming less and less frequent though and he definitely wasn't as bad as he had been before: flinching and apologising at every sudden movement and assuming the blame for everything. Ben knew that really, they had only just begun a pathway of healing that would no doubt last a lifetime, but that was alright.

At first, he was worried, taking the blame for himself if Alex had a setback or if his healing wasn't progressing as well as he expected. Alice however, had been the reassuring asset they both needed and reminded them to celebrate the victories no matter how small. This wasn't something that could be rushed but that didn't mean they couldn't celebrate things that everyone else took for granted. They were doing well, not just Alex but Ben too. Neither of them wanted to point out that setbacks were to be expected. And neither of them was expecting the next setback to have quite widespread effects.

Ben's musings were broken by the sound of the front door closing. A few seconds later his son appeared in the kitchen doorway, a bashful look on his face. Alex didn't say anything as he walked in a reached for the plate of fruit and crackers that Ben had prepared for him. It was another sign of the progress he was making. There had been a time when Alex would take the snack until verbal permission had been granted. Alex was still underweight and his GP had advised that he had a healthy snack waiting for him when he got home.

"So, how was your day?" Ben asked once Alex finished the snack.

Alex made a face before he took a few gulps of water. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and sighed. While he was making an improvement, he still sometimes worried about getting into trouble.

"I got detention," He admitted.

Ben frowned slightly. He knew, of course, that there would be times when Alex would rebel. He had been warned by Alice that Alex would start pushing boundaries now that he had begun to feel safe. It had been just a couple of months since he had suggested adopting Alex. He hadn't seen too many signs of rebellion just yet – perhaps this would be the start?

"Oh?" Ben tried to keep his voice even so not as to make assumptions either way. "Why? What happened?"

Alex ducked his head slightly. He was getting a lot better at sharing when things bothered him but the nervousness he showed when he thought he was in trouble was still evident. It was to be expected – he had only just started his journey after all.

"I was late for my English lesson," Alex informed him, quietly. "I had a panic attack in the toilets and by the time I calmed down, the late bell had one."

"A panic attack? What set that off? Are you alight?"

Alex smiled to himself. Once again he had been reassured that Ben wasn't and would never be like Mason. Of course, he would attach to the panic attack rather than his tardiness.

"I'm fine now," Alex assured. "I just… I knew I had English next and I just panicked because I don't like reading aloud and I don't really get all of this Shakespeare stuff. That made me think of my old tutor. Before I knew it, I couldn't breathe. "

Ben opened his arms in a silent offer of physical affection. He was one of the few people from whom Alex accepted physical contact. In answer, he leant into the touch. As if by magic, all of his negative feelings dissipated and his fear of being reprimanded disappeared.

"Oh, a chuilein." Ben comforted. "It's alright, I'm not mad. If anything, I'm angry at your English teacher. Did you tell him why you were late?"

"He didn't really give me chance. He just told me off and gave me detention. I didn't want to speak to him after class. I didn't want to get into more trouble for making excuses for him."

Ben sighed. He had heard a lot about Mr Stevenson and none of it was good. He had already had tales from Alex about that man. From what he gathered he had a stick shoved up his arse. Well, that was fine, as long as he treated Alex with respect and kindness god knows the kid needed it! But this was unacceptable. He wouldn't have his teachers punishing him for causing panic attacks. If he had taken Alex aside, he could have found out what was wrong. Instead, he gave him detention. How was that supposed to help?

"I will be having words with the school tomorrow. They know the circumstances and it would have only taken five minutes to find out what happened." Ben declared. "I'm not happy that a panic attack was triggered either."

Ben knew that sometimes Alex was unintentionally triggered by other people. Heck, even he had caused panic attacks and flashbacks. However, he suspected that Mr Stevenson just didn't care to change his behaviour according and that was not something he could tolerate.

"You don't need to!" Alex protested. "I shouldn't have been late."

"Yeah, you should have completely ignored your panic attack and just gone to class," Ben replied dryly. "Maybe you could have gone to a teacher for assistance but that's up to you. Mr Stevenson shouldn't have made a big deal out of something that wasn't your fault and should have at the very least, taken the time to find out what happened."

Alex smiled. He knew he should have trusted Ben to have his back. He had shown time and time again that he would have. He was always on his side – even if that meant that he didn't agree with him. Being on his side meant that he had his well-being at heart and Ben hadn't given him reason to think otherwise.

"So, I take it I'm not grounded?" Alex questioned only half-jokingly.

Ben had been clear on the rules about discipline. If Alex had gotten detention by actively making a bad choice then he would be grounded. This, however, had not been one of those times so ergo he would not be grounded. However, there was still a little voice that told him that he would be and deserved to be harshly punished.

"Of course, not!" Ben reassured. "I'm not going to ground you for having a panic attack, even if that means you are late. You also won't be serving detention if I have anything to say about it!"

"Thank you, Ben. For not grounding me I mean. I'm not that bothered by the detention since you said I'm not in trouble. It's half term next week so I'm just glad I will be free!"

Ben pattered him on the shoulder.

"Speaking of half-term, do you remember what Alice suggested about making new memories in some of the places you have been?"

"Mmm," Alex replied. "She thinks it would be good for me. I'm not sure, I guess it depends where we go."

In answer, Ben handed him a leaflet. Alex picked it up. When he saw what it was he knew immediately what Ben was thinking. It was a leaflet adverting Los Angles as a holiday destination.

"I know LA has some bad memories. But It also has some good ones." Ben began. He bit his lip uncertainly. "You don't have to say yes, but if you would like, we could spend half-term in LA."

Alex thought about it. LA reminded him of the Pleasures. It was where he lost them and where he began being pulled under Blunt's and Mason's thumb. It was true that there were so many bad memories associated with it. But there were also so many good memories. And maybe he could get some much-needed closure by making more happy memories.

"Yes," Alex decided finally. "I think I'd like that."

They would only be there a week after all – a week in the sunny state of Los Angles. What was the worst that could happen? Alex knew he never should have asked that question because when he did the universe laughed.