Hello hello again. Folks! I'm sorry for not updating sooner, but this chapter was a little bit hard for me to write. I felt that it was difficult to make it convincing and the characters realistic. Well, I hope I did ok. Let me know?

Disclaimer as always.

Unexpected Sidekick

Chapter 5: For the Best

Dana quickly ducked into a black car as soon as she escaped the police station. Well, escape was a mildly used term. How about, escorted out by three pissed off policemen? She knew she shouldn't have ratted out those two looking at fanfiction, but her big mouth often ran on autopilot. One thing she learned in her life as a teenager was that she should never talk about fanfiction in public.

It just wasn't done.

Taking a deep breath for no apparent reason, she managed to sit down in the vehicle just as the car swerved to the left, causing her whole body to slam into the next passenger which just happened to be Danny.

Which was strange, considering that Jack always, ALWAYS, sat in the middle to sit next to her. Even after a year, he didn't trust Daniel Atlas to sit next to his best assistant. Daniel must have been insistent.

Cursing colorfully, she managed to upright herself, before screaming, "What kind of driving is that, Merritt?"

"Sorry, Princess," he said, not sounding sorry at all, "But we are in a little hurry. Airplane leaves in 20 minutes. What took you so long?"

Clicking on her seatbelt, Dana made a rude gesture at Daniel, who was looking very smug at the prospect of her face being on his lap, and said, "Yeah, well. They were pretty angry after someone," she directed it to the guy next to her, "used the 'closer you look' crap, after I specifically told him NOT to..."

"Hey, it's a classic!" Daniel pointed out.

"It drives people insane," Henley answered from the front seat, smiling back at Dana. "Had fun with the cops, Dana?"

"Loads," she said dryly, while Daniel shouted.

"It's cool, " he said, fiddling with a deck of cards.

"You're definition of 'cool' is not standard, Daniel," Henley replied back, before smiling sweetly to the driver, "Right, Merritt."

Dana watched, amused, as Daniel scowled at Henley's and Merritt's close interaction. He crossed his arms together and pouted, making Dana hold back a snicker. Ah, jealousy. Good times.

"What?" he asked, a little venomously.

"Nothing," she said, stifling the sounds coming out of her mouth, "Isn't that right, Jack?"

Dana frowned when Jack didn't answer. In fact, he was being uncharacteristically silent throughout the drive, and that usually meant trouble. A silent Jack either meant a angsty Jack or a brooding Jack. Neither bode well to her mentality. Worried, Dana filled in the silence, "Yeah...er...right...Oh Danny Boy, you have the cell?"

Daniel glared, "I told you to stop calling me that," and fished out a cell phone from his back pocket.

Dylan Rhodes's cell phone to be exact.

"Thank you," Dana said, before quickly pulling a long connecting cable from the storage compartment in the backseat. "Now we just have to download all his information into the phone you gave him, and no one will be the wiser."

Dana bit her lip, working quickly. She had to admit that her techie skills weren't the best, a major reason why she called herself an 'assistant' rather than a technician, but she knew a few tricks. Other abilities, such as creating fake IDs, hacking into local city banks for some extra cash, and downloading movies illegally, were also up her sleeve.

But this, was a whole new level. She hate to say it, but she really had no idea what she was doing and was mainly following the instructions the so called "Eye" gave her. She had been hesitant doing this, considering that she remembered a friend who once hacked into government websites and got sentenced by the age of 14, but she decided to trust this mysterious "Eye".

Okay, so not really trust. In fact, she didn't trust them at all. But she did "trust" that their goal, whatever the goal may be, was more important than arresting one little teenager from New York.

"Speaking of Rhodes," Dana said, while working on the gadget, "Did anyone notice anything strange about him?"

"You mean the fact that he clearly has no idea what he is doing?" Daniel snorted, slapping his knees with his hand. "I made him so riled up; it was hilarious."

"I saw," Dana said dryly, "Merritt?"

Out of the four magicians, Dana hated to admit it but she preferred the opinion of Merritt. It wasn't that he was the most loyal or trustworthy, heck he was the opposite. But Dana felt sort of an admiration for the almost bald man, something she didn't usually just throw away to anyone. Merritt, despite being sarcastic(that was putting it lightly), was wiser than she or any other magician.

She did feel a tad bit guilty whenever she longed for his opinion. She was, after all, Jack's assistant through and through, a magician that was currently adopting Harry Potter's fifth year tactic.

"Nothing specifically different," Merritt answered, keeping his eyes on the road, "He had daddy issues, that's for sure."

"Really?" Dana asked, wrinkling her lips in contemplation, "Huh. Didn't see that."

"Well, Princess, you just haven't reached the skill level of a master mentalist. Don't worry, you'll catch up."

Dana smiled at the tease, remembering thinking that exact phrase a year ago, and shook her head, "Of course, of course."

"By the way," Henley asked, turning to look at her, "Is there any possibility that you can hack into Tressler's bank account?"

Dana frowned, "I thought that was Daniel's job?"

Daniel shrugged, his broad shoulders brushing against mine, "Yeah. Well I had a little difficulty digging up his records. I couldn't find any information about his security questions."

"That's strange." Dana said, "You would think that someone as famous as him would have some record of his first pet's name..."

Henley sighed, running her gloved hands through her perfect hair, "What are we going to do now?"

This was a problem. Dana overlooked a small detail in the plan and she felt really stupid for it. She was mentally smacking herself in the head in shame. She thought she looked at everything! She ordered the gigantic flashlight for god's sakes! There were times when she wondered if the so called "Eye" was as powerful as people claimed.

According to Dana, any person who forgot to give directions on how to break into someone's bank accounts when ordering to...break into someone's bank accounts, wasn't considered omnipotent.

Ever.

Suddenly Merritt braked, causing the car to jerk forward into incredible speeds. Dana grasped her seatbelt tight, keeping one hand firmly on the cell phone she was hacking.

"I have an idea," he said, looking back toward the trio sitting in the back. His eyes had a twinkle in them, the kind one would find in the winner of a poker game. "And involves your favorite, Danny boy. Being an overly pompous ass."

Dana smiled, half listening to the plan. After all, it wasn't her duty. She had more important stuff on her plate and she trusted the four horsemen to get the information correctly.

Suddenly, her pocket bleeped the Kim Possible tone, signaling a text message. Believing it to be one of the rogue technicians from New Orleans, she sighed and pulled it out to read. I swear if they misplaced the white bunny I am going to Crucio the-It was from Jack.

We need to talk.

Dana was the type to avoid situations that she didn't feel comfortable with. For example, she ditched college because she didn't feel comfortable with the fact that her face and her parent's legacy was splattered onto the newspapers for days. She didn't watch Captain America or the season finale of Supernatural because she was told that the feelings were too much to bare. She avoided doing magic as much as possible, knowing that doing so will cause too much attention to come to her when all she wanted was to curl up into a little ball and live her life as a no one.

She had been doing good so far. Yup. She hadn't done magic since she was 13.

Unfortunately for her, she also had a tiny issue with pride.

Meaning that she had an unhealthy amount of it. It got her to quit college, it got her to learn magic. And unfortunately, it got her in this mess.

Dana stumbled out of the black magician filled car as fast as she could before running to the back and jerking out her small luggage case from the trunk. Luckily, most of her equipment Jack's equipment were sent early to the airport, leaving her with just her personal belongings to carry.

Dana moved out of the way quickly as Daniel began to unload seven luggage cases, followed by Henley's five and Merritt's two. Jack didn't have any, as always, and stood by with his hands in his leather jacket, watching Dana with a critical eye.

"I'm going to check mine in," Dana said quickly, lifting her luggage off the ground for emphasis. The tension in the air was thick, and she was afraid to look at Jack. With her eyes trailed to the ground, she tried her best to keep her voice steady and her face clear, "Um...bye."

With the dexterity of a panda, she quickly u-turned and entered the airport, not bothering to look back at her friends.

Just breathe. You just have to get to your seat and Jack won't bother you again. GAH! I shouldn't have done that magic trick! I should have just left the card where it was instead of being STUPID and-

"Dana, wait."

Hearing the familiar voice, Dana cringed and walked faster. Dana began another string of mantras, asking herself why she suddenly lost her ability to control her demeanor. Maybe it was the lost of practice; ever since she was brought into this little 'show', she finally had friends to rely on. Even Daniel was someone that Dana knew wouldn't hunt her down or use her for his purposes, whatever they might be. Dana was a little paranoid, but she had ever right to be. Ever since she was able to walk, she had to constantly control herself. She couldn't show fear. She had to observe, watch for other fears and counter her own. She had to manipulate her surroundings, the people and herself to fit her parents' needs.

Even on the streets, she had to use the ability constantly. Watch the others, look for the weakest link, exploit and repeat.

Even now, in this dangerous game, she felt the most safest she had ever felt.

"Dana!" Jack, curse his long legs, managed to catch up to her quickly and grabbed her wrist, pulling her into a closet that just happened to be there.

What are the odds. Dana thought, staring at the door shut. She could feel Jack's breathing from behind her, but she was determined not to look. No, she couldn't.

There was only so much she could do.

"Dana, we need to talk."

"I gathered," Dana said, still staring at the door. "What I don't understand is why you brought me into a broom closet. Thinking about wooing me before the flight?"That's fine. Use sarcasm. Throw him off. Defense Mechanism 101 in the finest.

"I needed to talk to you, alone," he said, his voice only a whisper.

Breathing in courage and failing, Dana turned around a faced her best friend, "So. I'm here, what do you want?"

Are you going to hate me?

"That trick," he said quickly, getting to the point. Dana schooled her emotions as quick as possible, trying to stop her body from reacting.

"What trick?" she inquired, even adding a hint of curiosity into her eyes. Beat that Merritt!

"Don't play the Occlumency crap on me," Jack said scowling, "I know all your tricks. You know what I'm talking about."

Dana couldn't help but gasp at his words. It wasn't the language that really bothered her but the tone of his voice. It was sharp, accusatory, and angry.

She never heard him like this before.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Dana tried again, this time desperation bleeding into her voice. Please ignore it! Just stop talking about it. You don't know what Pandora's box you'll open if you-

Jack suddenly grabbed Dana's wrists, slamming them into the opposite wall. Dana's breath hitched in fright as Jack pinned her, trapping her. She immediately fought, struggling to break out of his iron grip. Her strength would have surprised any other person, but this was Jack. Her best friend. She could fight all she wanted but the magician was stronger; he knew just how strong Dana was, after all she was his assistant.

He knew her more than he knew himself.

"Let. Me. Go!" she struggled, her fright finally appearing on her face. What the hell? This isn't normal. This isn't regular. This is Jack! His behavior patterns aren't supposed to-

Jack's face remained bitter as he ordered, "Tell me how you did it."

"No!"

"Tell me NOW!"Jack said, slamming her wrists into the wall with emphasis. Dana whimpered in pain, wondering how she never seen this side of Jack's personality. Why she never prepared.

It was like her father, all over again.

"Jack, you're hurting me," she managed to say, swallowing her pride. Her friend wasn't her friend anymore. No, he was a different person and all because she didn't reveal her magic trick.

As if breaking out of a hypnosis induced state, Jack stepped back as quickly as he pinned her to the wall. His face went through many stages of emotion, too fast for Dana to calculate. He finally settled on one that looked like he had been slapped and he glanced at his hands in amazement.

Dana gasped, drinking in the stuffy air( It's still air), and flattened her back closer to the wall like a frightened squirrel. She winced at the bruises appearing at her wrist and glared tear filled eyes at her ex best friend.

"Yes, they're your hands." she shot out, breaking Jack's gaze. He looked at her in horror, before his eyes trailed down to her damaged wrists.

"Dana-"

"Don't," she cut off, straightening up, "Don't even say a word."

"But-"

Turning her back onto friend she whispered, "You promised. You promised me a year ago that you would always protect me, your family. Why? Is the greed of magic that strong that you ignore your own vows? So what if I had a trick up my sleeves? Did you honestly think I was a pet of yours, a girl who didn't know anything about magic? Someone to laugh at?"

Dana rubbed the tears from her eyes in defiance and opened the door, "You asked me. You asked me a bunch of times why I hate magic. Well here's your answer. This. Greed. This is why."

Dana walked away, leaving Jack behind. Ignoring the eyes of other passengers, she angrily tugged on her hoodie and strode forward, trying to look confident when she was crumbling inside. She glanced up at the blinking signs and saw her airplane leaving in five minutes. She moved toward the terminal, but she felt a soft pair of fingers soothing over her hurt wrists.

"Dana! Where are you going?" Daniel asked, his bright smile the opposite of Jack's dark looks that swarm her vision. "The first class is that way."

Dana stared at the fingers encircling her wrists in silence. He was so different. In this very moment, Dana wanted nothing more than throw herself at Daniel's coat and cry. She wanted his quick and controlled arms to wrap around her, give her his strength. And she had only known him for a year, and this sudden contrast between Jack and Daniel was so startling that it made her tremble. What was happening? Her opinion of Jack, her adoration and awe, was crumbling in its foundation and Dana felt sick that Daniel's face brought a pang of safety and warmth.

She had thought she was more stronger than an average girl. How could she betray her friend like that? How could her mind suddenly place feelings of safety not with her long time best friend but with Daniel?

It's not your fault. A small voice whispered in her head. It's Jack's. You saw him. He hurt you! You shouldn't be feeling guilty. It's HIS fault.

Dana nodded silently, more to herself than anyone else. She reached over and squeezed her left wrist, as if reminding herself of the pain, of Jack's betrayal. Daniel's smile began to fade, and he followed her line of vision to see her injuries.

"Who did this?" he asked, suddenly angry. The owner of the Lover's card, the man who never cared much about anyone other than himself, suddenly felt a rush of protectiveness toward the little girl in front of him. "Tell me who it was so I can smack-"

Dana wretched her wrists away and snarled, "Why do you care? Anyway, I have to get on the plane. I'm not in first class with you guys; I'm in the lower decks. Unlike you, Tressler didn't invite me on his private jet and I only managed to get on with the crew. I think I'll be serving beverages?"

Yes, it was best if she distanced herself with Daniel as well. Judging by the fact that she suddenly hero worshiped the guy, it showed her complete lack of control. Her mental state was in shambles probably, and she needed time to build it back up. Jack, Daniel, they were all the same.

They were men, and men are always the same.

Magicians. Male Magicians are even more similar.

Daniel reached out, "I had no idea. Wait, Dana-"

"Look, I have to go." Dana said, suddenly smiling a little warily, getting her bearings and her scrambled thoughts in somewhat order, "I'm just tired I guess. I'll see you in a couple of hours. You have a job to do with Tressler so don't mess up. See you soon."

She left Daniel Atlas in the terminal, his arms outstretched and a look of surprise etched onto his face.

It was for the best.