We will be descending in five minutes. Please lock your trays up, open your windows and buckle your seatbelts. It is currently ten pm in Washington. It's partly cloudy and the temperature is currently hovering at twenty-three degrees.

I stirred from the almost trance-like state drawing had left me in. Was it already over? I mean, yeah it had been an incredibly boring plane ride but now it seemed strange that I was closer than ever to home. It felt… odd to think about.

Not in a bad way! Just in a really surreal way. This plane trip had made my way home a lot easier and made Hydras job more of a wild goose chase now. They would probably still be searching for me over in Wakanda and that area.

I blinked a few times before looking down at the scribble I had been working on. Pursing my lips, I hastily finished the last few lines before closing the book.

Hopefully, whoever owned this wouldn't mind that I had looked through their luggage. It was only one page after all… right?

I quietly opened the bag, taking my time on unzipping the bag so I knew I was keeping quiet, before I put the notebook back under the clothes they had been under. As an afterthought, I straightened out the scrunched clothes to at least try and make it look okay. I closed the bag once I was done with it. Good enough. Worst case scenario the owner realises that someone had been through his stuff and that person was me.

Wouldn't make it any easier to track me down before I got to SHIELD or someone though. I would be out of Washington as quickly as I could. But maybe not by plane, it had been stressful enough just doing this. I would figure out the when and how later, right now I just had to get out of the airport. That's all I needed to currently worry about, besides Hydra but that was a given.

So, now for landing. This was going to be a pain if take off was anything to go by.

I swear the plane had been put at that precise uphill angle just to make sure the bag squashed me. I curled into a ball and prepared myself to be jolted around. If I stuck myself to the plastic I shouldn't be jolted around but my stomach would definitely drop and I might feel a bit light headed or something. I didn't know, this my first time on a plane, I was only guessing. I was hoping I was wrong in all honesty. This was going to be oh so much fun.

I turned my attention to the people below me while I waited. I could hear a lot of jostling around, though I couldn't hear many people moving around on the carpeted floor. Most people were seated then, and seatbelts were been clicked back into place. I listened as people put their trays up and opened their windows. I listened to the familiar 'clicks' of people turning off their technology. I heard bags being opened, stuff hastily shoved inside and then zipped shut again. There were the quiet murmurs of people talking. I could hear many people pointing out landmarks like the white house to their friends and family.

It helped reassure me, in some weird way. It was quieter than most streets I swung through while on patrol. The atmosphere was quiet… peaceful in a way I hadn't been able to feel in more than a month. It was just… normal people doing normal things.

I relaxed, un-tensing my muscles. Pleasure-pain swept over me and I stayed perfectly still while I waited for it to pass. Had I really been that tense? Enough for me to actually feel something from the simple action? I must have been tensed for a while if it hurt, maybe even weeks, 'cause normally my Spidey powers were right on top of that sort of thing. Maybe they had been that way since I first fought Hydra all the way back in New York, or maybe from when I had been fighting that weird monster. Huh. Guess fighting, being pretty scared of your fate and running for your life did that to you.

Or it was just because I had been in a scrunched up ball for eighteen hours. Yeah, it was probably that.

The plane went into its first dip and I watched the other bag move a little bit. Not enough to worry my spider-sense that I was going to get crushed, but enough for me to notice. I shifted my head so I could get a better look at it. It was perfectly still now, of course.

At the next dip, the bag moved closer. I narrowed my eyes and shifted it further away with a foot. No thanks, I had had enough of bruises. They were so annoying! I mean, I'm going around doing some everyday task and as soon as something puts mild pressure on it, it cries out like I was miraculously unaware of my nightly activities. Not to mention when I'm fighting, like I have things to worry about that aren't you bruise, chill.

Besides, I had earned more than my fair share at this point. If I wanted a break from them then I deserved one.

The plane dropped yet again, and the bag shifted towards me. I squinted, trying to give it an intimidating look.

'Don't do it,' I mouthed, even though it was an inanimate object and I had a mask covering my face, 'I don't want you to be my first proper supervillain.'

Yet, the moment I stopped staring at it, the plane dropped yet again and it went straight for me. I put a leg out before it could get any closer.

'What's your plan, Mr Bag? To squish me to death?' I mocked.

Why was this my life? I was officially insane. This is why isolation isn't good for the human brain.

There was one more drop before the tension in the air thickened and the roar of the engines dampened. I sat up on my elbows in confusion, trying to work out what it was. Were we headed towards the ground too fast? Were we going to crash? I was suddenly jolted in place and sent straight up as we hit the ground. I hit my head on the roof, hard. I cursed as quietly as I could, rubbing my head. I could already feel a headache coming on. Oh C'mon!

Spider-sense you had one job!

The air roared in protest against the flaps on the plane's wings. These, of course, were helping the plane slow down. It was loud, may I add. Way too loud. Why did no one think that, I don't know, people with super hearing would probably complain about how noisy it was?! The world had super-powered people popping up everywhere nowadays. It would be a necessity at one point or another, surely. Seriously, did no one design anything to muffle it?

The plane had slowed down to an itty-bitty pace, probably as fast as a car, but compared with before when we were up in the air and landing it felt like we were going at a snail's pace.

Man, I was glad we had landed, eighteen hours was way too long of a flight. Whoever had thought it was a good idea deserved a slipper to the face.

But, as I reminded myself, I was in the USA, eagles and all! And I was a few states away now, instead of half-way across the world, from home. That was so much better. I seriously couldn't believe it. I was almost scared to acknowledge it in case I woke back up in the Hydra base and find out this way all a weird dream.

I allowed myself to smile, to let myself hope that I had a very real possibility of getting home. As long as I didn't wake up I should let myself feel good... then I thought about the mad dash I was going to have to make across the airport, in camouflage, in a crowded airport. This was going to be fun.

Finally, the plane's engines slowed down and we stopped completely. The plane went quiet. Or, quieter, because there was still humans onboard doing stuff, but the roar of the engines was gone. There was a ping as the seatbelt sign came off and many people immediately unclasped themselves and there was the loud sound of overhead lockers being opened everywhere. Not to mention how everyone was now shuffling about or talking to the people around them. I had nothing to do, so I tuned into one such conversation happening a few seats away from where I was.

"My legs are so stiff, I can't wait to stretch my legs and get home!" Person one said.

"I bet my bed was lonely without me." Person two sighed, sounding almost dreamy.

"I bet I missed it more." Person one joked.

I smothered a laugh, they had no idea. Try nearly a month on a thin mattress, with only a blanket and pillow.

People's shuffling steps as they moved out of the plane got closer to me, and I realized that I had to prepare for the locker to be opened. I curled into a small ball as far away from the bag as I could and turned all my attention to my spider-senses. I tensely waited for the distinct buzz it would give me when it sensed I could be discovered.

I can't believe I used to live without it, it has so many uses. Such as making the perfect pancakes. How did I know that? I often cooked them as midnight snacks. Yes, I had been sneaking down into the kitchen and making food. I was a growing super-hero with a fast metabolism, give me a break.

Snapping out of my thoughts at the sudden buzz, I camouflaged just as the flap opened. They glanced around and spotted their bag. With a tug, it came down to the ground. I waited for them to close the flap, but instead, they just stood there idly as they waited for their turn to move.

I almost silently uncurled, panic settling in quickly. Why did they not close it? Beats me, but this just made everything harder.

I peeked out to see the line was moving and the owner-of-the-bag was just about to begin moving. Should I drop down and follow them? Nah, I wouldn't have a chance to prepare myself for a mad dash.

Finally, they walked out of the plane and disappeared from my sight. Breathing out a quiet sigh of relief, I un-camouflaged and swung my legs out. I dropped down with a muffled 'thump' and ducked into a seat to recover for a few moments. This was it, when I got up and out of the plane I would have to move as quickly as I could so as not to camouflage too long.

I listened to my surroundings and couldn't hear any footsteps. There probably wasn't anyone onboard so I could wait until I was in the jet-bridge before camouflaging. That should work, and it gave me just that little extra bit of time that could be crucial. I took a deep breath then got up and walked down at a normal pace. Maybe I could wait even longer before camouflaging, as long as there was no one in the jet-bridge. Yeah, that would work.

There was a loud screech of my spider-sense just as someone screamed behind me. I jumped, turning around fast enough for my body to protest to find a woman standing there. She was wearing a flight attendant uniform and she was just peaking around the corner. She was frozen in place, both hands covering her mouth.

"I… come in peace?" I offered, taking a hesitant step back. More to get ready to sprint than anything else in case she made a move to grab me.

They stood in place as if they were doing their best imitation of a statue, barely blinking as they looked me over several times. I hesitated, caught between wanting to flee and getting as far away from this person as possible, or staying and explaining that she couldn't tell anyone I had been here.

If Hydra found out… It wasn't something I wanted to think about. So I stayed, limbs tensed and ready to run.

"You're… alive!" She finally moved, coming over and putting a hand on my shoulder as if checking to see that I wasn't a ghost. I tensed, and she pulled her hand away. "Everyone thought you were dead!"

"Um…" I struggled to say something. Of all the times to fail me, brain! I'm fine in battle, but talking to an excited stranger is hard? Come on!

"Wait a minute, why are you on this plane?" She asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Well, um, the thing is… please don't tell anyone I was here." I blurted out, taking another small step back. If my mask wasn't covering my face I knew I would look beyond terrified to her.

Their frown deepened, "Why not? Everyone's been wondering what happened to you. Many didn't think you were dead, I mean, normally a body would turn up or something but there was nothing. And you've been gone so long."

I laughed nervously, rubbing the back of my neck. "Um, you see… there are these really bad people after me? Yeah, um, I need you to promise me that you will not tell anyone I was here. They're still after me, I… I don't want them to get me again."

Understanding suddenly flooded her eyes. Before I could protest, she wrapped me in a tight embrace. I tensed, but after a few moments, I relaxed just a tiny bit.

"Is there any way I can help you?" She asked quietly. She let go of me and I took a few steps back.

"I need to get out of this airport. I, uh, I was going to just camouflage the whole way but I don't know how long I can do that. So… do you have a bag I could hide in?" Why was I telling her this?

She laughed, "Wait, what? Wouldn't it be easier just to walk through in your normal, everyday clothing? Wait, unless you're actually a whole bunch of spiders pretending to be a human." She joked.

I laughed quietly, "You've discovered the big secret, oh no. But, um, no. I don't exactly want to reveal my secret identity to just anyone and the guys after me know my face, sorry."

She nodded, "Alright, as long as you can squeeze in."

As she turned around to grab her bag, I spoke up, "What about airport security? Wouldn't they find me in here?"

She turned around, a smirk on her face, "Flight attendants don't have to go through security, we have places to be and things to do."