Disclaimer: Everything belongs to Columbia Pictures and to the writers and producers and whoever else I may have forgotten to mention. The only things I claim to own are my own characters and the plot of this story.

P.S. Have a pleasant Ides of March!


A few weeks later, Connor slouched in the very last seat on the school bus. His backpack sat in the vacant spot next to him, and he stared absentmindedly out of the window at the heavy grey clouds overhead. It was a sign that he didn't want anyone trying to talk to him. And for the most part, everyone avoided him, even the rest of the Zenith Team. Summer had given him a worried look when he'd boarded a few minutes earlier, but he'd willfully ignored it. He'd been growing more distant from the rest of the team in the past couple of weeks. Not going to team trainings was really straining that relationship.

The bus slowed to a stop in front of a now familiar house. This was the one moment Connor broke his disinterested gaze from the dreary scene outside to glance at the two girls coming up the walkway. Dahlia boarded first, blond hair bouncing around her face in fresh curls. Her cousin was slower, lagging behind a bit. Allie gave Mr. Flannigan a soft smile before she made her way to her usual seat.

As she stepped down the aisle, she glanced up. For a split second, her gaze met Connor's. It was a split second too long for him though, and he immediately turned his back to look out the window again. As he turned, he noticed her hesitate. Then the bus began moving and she sat down in the closest empty seat, several rows away from where she usually sat. That was fine with him, because he figured the farther he could stay away from Charm, the better it would be when he finally figured out her endgame. From the corner of his eye, he saw Summer and Cindy peek around their seats to look for Allie, but she had already disappeared behind the tall seat back.

Even though the bus was moving, Dahlia was still making her way to the back of the bus and sat down on the seat in front of Connor. After a moment, when he was sure no one would be paying attention, he leaned forward and put his head on the seat. "Anything new?" he half whispered through the crack between the seat and window.

"Yeah," she responded after a moment. "There's some news."

Connor perked up. Dahlia had been his inside eye on Charm and her team for the past few weeks, even since the incident at Jaskier Technologies. He'd told her it could be dangerous, but she'd agreed to help because she didn't want anyone else hurt. The bus rides to and from school were the only times he could hear any information she had gathered. Quickly, Connor pulled out the spare notebook he'd taken to carrying to keep all his thoughts organized. "What have you got?" he asked when he was ready.

"I think they're planning something big. Like, really big. While she was in the shower last night, I snuck in and saw someone had messaged her about something cobalt. Mom nearly caught me going into her room, so I didn't get to see much. But her chat name said something about a charm, like in charm bracelet, and the other person's name was GreekGoddess008. Does that mean anything? I got a couple of pictures. Sorry they're not the greatest."

A moment later, Connor's phone buzzed. He took it out and glanced through the photos he'd just received from her. They were fuzzy, but he could make out enough to understand the conversation. Charm and, he assumed, Nyx were discussing how to use the Cobalt they had stolen in a homemade particle accelerator. He suddenly realized that what they were after at the computer farms wasn't data on people, but instead plans for the machine. What Charm was doing could become an incredibly dangerous situation if she was allowed to continue. But now he had the information that he needed to confront her. He halfway wanted to turn her in to General Laraby, but in memory of their one-time friendship, he was going to give her a chance to turn herself in. And if she refused, well that was a bridge he'd cross if it came.

While he thought, Connor finished writing down his notes and closed the notebook. "Thank you, Dahlia," he said as he slipped it into his backpack. "What you've given me helps a lot. That should be enough spying though. This is getting dangerous and I don't want you getting in trouble."

She gave a sound of understanding and turned away to do whatever else she did on the bus ride to school. From a few seats ahead, there came a loud thud as the bus rounded a curve. Connor stuck his head out from his seat to see a familiar worn cowboy boot in the aisle. As Allie reached out to pick it up, he got a good view of her hand, which was still bandaged from her first fight with the Zenith Team.

Even as the bus pulled up to the school, he couldn't get the image of her hand out of his mind. The thought brought back the memory of everything the villainess had said to him in their interactions. You would have been a great asset to the team. It is not for your health thus to commit your weak condition to this cold corridor. Hero.

Connor was so lost in his thoughts that he ended up being the last one of the bus. Or so he thought. As he began to make his way to the door, another figure rose from their seat halfway up the aisle. Apparently more than just her boots had fallen off the seat. The contents of her backpack littered the floor. She reached out to grab a toy rocket that had slid across the aisle when he stepped in her way.

"Hey!" she started before looking up and freezing.

They stared at each other for a long moment- Connor in contempt and Allie in fear and confusion. "Sorry, Connor," she finally said. "I didn't realize it was you."

He grunted in response. This was the first look he'd gotten of her up close in a couple of weeks. Her eyes were puffy and red, like she'd been crying recently. Not only that, but her hair was pulled back into a messy bun instead of its usually neat braid. There was another moment of silence between them before Mr. Flannigan asked if they were getting off. Allie jumped at the sound of the bus driver's voice before she moved to finished repacking her back.

Connor couldn't understand how this disorganized farm girl could possibly be the mastermind behind some of the most daring and dangerous heists in recent years. In fact, it almost looked as though she had rolled out of bed just before the bus arrived. She opened her mouth like she was about to say something, but Connor suddenly turned, not wanting to be near her any longer. As he made his way down the stairs, he noticed her watching him. Then he stepped off the bus and Allie Charm disappeared from sight.

Most of the other students had already made their way inside. No one wanted to stand around in the chilly drizzle that had started to fall. The clouds hung thick and heavy, giving no sign that they were ready to give up the dreary weather they'd had for nearly a week.

Connor made his way to his locker, keeping his head down as he pushed through the crowded hallways. The lock stuck for a moment, and in frustration he gave it a small vibration. The lock clicked open as it shook, but as he held it in his hand, he noticed it was too damaged to close again. He cursed silently as he opened the door and reached in to retrieve his textbook for first period.

Physics. A realization hit him suddenly. Today was the day the class final projects were due. He and Allie had agreed months ago that he would finish the slides and she would make the model, but he had completely forgotten about it. A flash of panic ran through his mind before a strange sense of calm settled in. He honestly didn't care about the project anymore. He would just tell Dr. Grant that he'd been training too much to finish the work and get an exemption. A smirk grew as he realized that his partner wouldn't have such an excuse not to have finished the work. And perhaps he could use the opportunity to gather a bit more information about her activities from her lies.

The first bell rang, letting him know that he had just a few minutes to get to class. Connor shut his locker and hung the broken lock in it usual place before he took off toward his first period classroom. By the time he walked through the door, Allie was already sitting in her seat. The toy rocket he'd seen earlier was placed neatly on the corner of her desk, and she was staring down at a notebook that was open in front of her. She didn't look up as he entered and slipped into his seat next to her. She didn't move when the tardy bell rang, only looking up when Mrs. Kilby called the first group up to present.

Connor retrieved his physics notebook from his bag, pulling his personal notes out with it. Using his school notebook as cover, he silently began to review his notes while he waited for the big moment.

The presentations seemed to draw out longer and longer, and Connor was getting impatient and a little afraid they would end up waiting until the next day. Finally, though, Mrs. Kilby stood up during the applause for the previous group. "Great job, guys! That was an excellent presentation about colorblindness! Okay, last group. Miss Ellis and Mister Shepard. I know that's a tough act to follow, but I'm looking forward to hearing about rockets!"

Connor and Allie both stood at the same time. He noticed that her demeanor immediately picked up as they made their way to the front of the class. He vaguely remembered her mentioning winning second place at a speech contest for the Ag Society. Of course, her powers of persuasion would ensure a win in nearly every competition for public speaking. Even if she'd had a bad morning. She sat the rocket on the table at the front of the room and glanced toward him expectantly as he stepped up beside her. When he didn't say anything, she smiled at the teacher and cheerfully mentioned that they had a couple of things to prepare.

Her grip was iron tight as she took his wrist and practically pulled him into the nearby storage room. "Connor, where are the slides?" she whispered harshly as soon as the door was shut behind them.

He feigned surprise. "Oh man, I thought you were going to finish those!"

Her eyes grew wide as she realized he wasn't going to cooperate. "Bullshit! We agreed that I would build the model and you would finish the slides based off our research!" she replied, fear rising in her voice.

"You haven't said anything about them recently, so I thought you were finishing them," he replied coolly.

"They were on your computer, Connor! I've tried to text you ten times this past week and you didn't answer any of them! What has gotten into you lately?"

There was a gentle knock on the door and it opened to reveal their teacher. "Are you two ready? Or are you just going to stand in the closet and whisper? Poorly, if I may add."

Allie cast a worried glance at Connor, who merely shrugged. "I guess not," he said finally. "I mean, we don't have any slides or anything."

Mrs. Kilby looked at Allie. "Is this true?"

"He was supposed to finish the slides, ma'am," she replied, voice growing hard as her façade began to crumble. "I finished my part. But I guess I have enough notes I can present without slides."

The teacher shook her head in frustration. "Okay, then. I'm afraid that since you have nothing much to show the class, your grade for the project will reflect that. And since you don't seem to keen on presenting, you may take your seat Mister Shepard."

The defeated look on Allie's face was all the satisfaction Connor needed. Mrs. Kilby opened the door fully and stepped back so they could pass. The rest of the class was obviously highly entertained at the drama, as every other student was staring at them. Allie trudged to her desk and retrieved her notebook before taking a place near the front table. She began to speak as Connor took his seat. She explained the various design elements of rockets, pointing them out for the class on the model. Then she talked briefly about the physics involved in getting them into space, and finally ended with a discussion on the costs of building a space-going rocket.

There were only a couple minutes left in class by the time she was finished. Allie slowly made her way back to her desk and slipped the model rocket in her backpack. Then she spent the remaining few minutes staring at the empty desk in front of her. When the bell rang, she was the first one out the door. Connor waited until he too was out of the classroom before letting the smirk he'd been hiding all class to cross his face.


The rest of the day went by significantly faster than first period, and it wasn't long before Connor found himself striding into his sixth period precalculus class. When he arrived, he immediately noticed Allie was already there, sitting in the desk closest to the door. He walked by to get to his seat, and she ignored him as she had done the rest of the day.

At lunch, Summer and Dylan had waved her over to the table where they sat, leaving Connor to sit alone. He'd watched them throughout lunch, pretending to look at his food if they glanced his way. Allie hadn't talked much during lunch. But just before the bell rang to end the period, he'd glanced up to see his two teammates glaring at him. He gave them a confused look and went to throw his trash away.

At least it seemed as though his mission of making her life miserable was succeeding. Now all he had to do was get her to confess that she and Charm were the same and what her thieves' guild was up to. He had it planned out, and next period he would confront her. But for now, he was content to sit and wait. It was probably going to be the best math class he'd ever attended.

Mr. Bryant walked in from the opposite door just as the tardy bell rang. After he took roll, he immediately dove into the previous day's lesion to review the homework. Connor thought Allie would continue to stare into the notebook she had open on her desk, but instead found it was the opposite. The usually shy girl was much more active in the class discussion than on normal days, almost as though it had become her favorite subject overnight. She volunteered to solve a problem on the board, answered questions, and even asked a couple of her own about that night's homework problems. Connor was absolutely baffled by her complete 180, and deep down, he was furious.

When the bell rang signaling the end of class, Allie was again the first one out the door. Connor followed a bit slower with the rest of the class. His fury made the hallway pass by in a blur, but he managed to make his way to his locker. After he'd retrieved the things he needed for his last class of the day, he began to make his way to the Ag Science classroom, where he'd planned on confronting Charm. But as he passed where her locker was, he noticed that she was still getting her books and loading her bag. There wasn't anyone around. She was alone. He wouldn't have a more perfect opportunity to confront her.

She must have heard his footsteps as he approached, because she glanced down the hallway in his direction. He watched a range of emotions cross her face, before finally settling on anger. She slammed her locker door and snapped the lock closed. Then she turned to glare at him.

"What was that crap you pulled in Physics this morning?" she asked, voice low. "I messaged you several times about those slides and you never answered me. So you knew damn well that those slides were-"

"Shut up," he growled, cutting her off.

His books dropped to the door as he advanced on her. She took a step back, her fear showing in her eyes. Her anger faltered, melting into fear when he slammed a hand into the locker next to hers. She backed into the wall at the end of the lockers, gripping her books so hard her knuckles were white.

"What is your problem, Connor?" she asked. "I've tried to be nothing but nice to you, but you're acting like I'm the bad guy. What did I do to make you so mad at me?"

The tardy bell rang again, but he ignored it. "I know who you really are," he said, voice low in fury. "And now I know what you're up to. So now my only question is why?"

"Why what?" she said. Her eyebrow quirked in confusion, even as she cowered back against the wall.

"Why did you steal those plans? What are you going to do with it?" He was standing over her now. "You weren't a coward at Jaskier, Charm. So why are you flinching away now in the daylight?"

She looked up at him as he reared back to punch the wall beside her. He would make her talk one way or the other. Suddenly, her gaze fell on something behind him. Her eyes went wide, eyes shining with unshed tears.

"Mister Shepard, Miss Ellis. Might I ask what you two are doing here after the tardy bell? And it looks like you're wanting to fight as well," Mr. Paliento said as he stepped to pull Connor back.

Allie slumped all the way to the floor but stayed silent. The tears that had threatened to spill over a minute ago were trailing down her cheeks. "Fighting is a serious offense here, Mister Shepard. You have no previous reports of issues, though, so all I'm going to do now is give you a detention slip for being tardy. But I am warning you to stay away from Miss Ellis, and if I see this behavior again, the consequences will be much more severe."

The principal then turned his attention to Allie as she stood up. "And as for you, since it seems as though you were an unwilling participant in this, I will let you off with a warning about being tardy again. However, tomorrow morning we will have a discussion about the future of your position as president of the Ag Society. Now both of you, get to class."

Mr. Paliento turned and disappeared around the corner, leaving the two teens alone again. Connor looked over at Allie to find her staring after the principal. He saw her shoulders shake and she brought her hand up to cover her mouth.

"What did I do to you?" came her soft voice, so quiet that he nearly missed it.

Then she was gone, running down the hallway toward their last class.


Author's Note: Hey y'all, I know it's not April 6th yet, but it is the Ides of March. And since there's been several references to Shakespeare in this story, I figured there was no better time to post a surprise (much like Julius Caesar got on this day 1976 years ago- just much better and not so stabby). Also, I have moved along with writing the last few chapters than I was anticipating, so the upload schedule may change a bit once I get the story completely written.

In the meantime, enjoy the latest chapter of Hero! It's about to get real exciting, so hang around and we'll get to see a nice little face off between Charm and Connor coming up very, very soon!

As always, please feel free to comment or message me. Lately I haven't been getting notifications about messages until much later, so apologies in advance if I take forever to respond. But I love reading the feedback that y'all give and it encourages me to continue writing (heck, if I get enough interest, there may be a sequel to Hero in the future). Everyone who has sent me ideas, I have usually tried to incorporate them into my story if possible. And I love connecting with my readers. Thank you so much for sticking with me this far and for all the favorites and alerts y'all have on Hero. It's hard to put into words the appreciation I have for y'all. Thank you. ~NightRider