Chapter 19
He'd watched her closely through the house dinner of macaroni and cheese. Nearly everyone else was fine around her, but Archie wasn't going to let that fool him. Teresa and Atlanta were talking with Harper about different dress styles she might want to try (though for what, Archie couldn't begin to figure). Odie was asking more questions about her teammate's technology. Neil was arguing to no one in particular that there was no way Harper's teammate could be better looking than himself.
There were only two exceptions to the normal facade. Jay was lost in his own thoughts which, though sometimes strange, was not uncommon for the brunette. Herry, though, was unnaturally quiet too as he happily stared at Harper from her side. And he wasn't eating that much-which sent up warning flags no matter how you spun it.
Afterward there'd been a round of video games, where Odie maintained his gloating rights as champion, but everyone had ended going off to their rooms by ten-thirty.
Thinking back on the meal, recounting everyone's attention, made Archie quickly sit upright. He hadn't fully paid attention to it before, but that's probably because she was a goddess.
Athena had been acting strange too.
He'd only looked at her once, but when he had, the goddess had been watching Harper closely. Like she'd been waiting for something to happen. But whatever it was, it must not have happened because the war goddess was soon out of the house to visit Aphrodite.
Archie frowned at the darkness in his room. Athena and Aphrodite were polar opposites, they scarcely ever spent time together by choice. Not that he thought they should, in his opinion Love and War should never cross.
He blinked. One phrase came to mind, and it made him cringe a little. Not knowing what else to think, he hoped Zeus knew to reign his daughters in before either of them did something they'd regret. Ok, fine, something Archie would regret.
In an effort to keep himself from jumping to conclusions, Archie ran his tired mind over the pieces of knowledge he'd gotten from the girl at Happydale Home for Neglected Youngsters. What had happened to Harper's family? Was her grandfather really her grandfather? And if he was, then where was he? Had Harper even tried to contact him since they'd taken her in?
He'd just started mulling over who Austin might be, when he heard a muffled metal clang. Frowning, Archie leapt to his feet and tripped his way over to his small bedroom window.
The alley was aglow in the full moon's light, creating a scene that he could easily imagine being the inspiration for a Sherlock Holmes story or Edgar Allan Poe poem. And at first he couldn't see anything unusual, but then a stray cat got spooked and a girl's voice muttering a soft curse of irritation drew his attention toward the end of the alley. Toward the street, where a teen girl's pale skin was shining whiter than pretty much anything he could see against her simple dark party dress.
What made her unmistakable was more than the slight limp or the wary gaze she kept casting around, it was the long braid of golden hair that just reached her waist. Harper.
For a moment, Archie could only stare. What a difference. She wasn't gorgeous by any means, Atlanta could easily out shine Harper even on a bad day, but despite her typical style it appeared that Harper did actually know how to use cosmetics and walk in a pair of dainty heels.
As Harper gave the alleyway one more glance and stepped toward the lighted sidewalk, Archie raced back across his room and fumbled with the zipper of his hoodie in his haste to switch it with a leather jacket he'd borrowed from Neil. It was a shorter torso, but at this point, black was probably better to wear than the blue she'd caught him following her in earlier.
Then he bolted out of his room, up the stairs, and out the door of the dorm. A quick glance down the street as he hopped down to the sidewalk assured him that she hadn't gotten far, barely three doors down the block. Trying not to sprint after her, Archie pulled up the jacket's collar and pulled on a pair of sunglasses Neil had left in the pocket, which only made him happier that night was bright anyway.
He'd just turned the corner when he bothered to check his watch. "Eleven-forty-two,"he muttered, only frowning some more as his gaze returned to the girl in front of him. "Where are you going at quarter to midnight?"
One more block over, Harper stopped at the large parking garage behind one of New Olympia's theatres where she stepped over to a waiting cab. Archie held back, hiding himself at pedestrian's entrance to the garage as he watched the quiet exchange. The younger girl smiled at the cabby as they talked, making Archie sure that she was the reason a cab was waiting behind a theatre on a night that noone was performing.
When Harper moved to climb into the taxi's back seat, Archie nearly leapt after her. But thanks to the street lamp, he caught a flash of green. A small gift back hanging from her wrist. Instantly he remembered the conversation he'd overheard her share with those other dancers.
The cab pulled away and hung a right, plunging further into the nightlife center of the city, and Archie watched it go with a near smile as he sauntered away from his hiding place. He knew where she was going.
...
"You have no idea how surprised I was to hear from you, kid!" The cabbie said, chuckling warmly as he glanced in the rear-view. "All these years and you're finally back, ey? I was beginning to think you weren't coming back. Or that you'd gotten a car."
"A car?" Harper repeated, then laughed. "Vinnie, why on earth would I want to drive in the city?"
He chuckled again, shaking his head. "Beats me, kid, but stranger things have happened, ey?"
She gave her own chuckle of agreement, glancing back. Her pursuer was gone. Or at least he wasn't following closely anymore. It wasn't like she was imagining it, she'd followed and been followed enough in her life to know that prickly feeling on her neck meant that someone was close and gaining.
At first she'd thought it was Archie, but every time she'd glanced back the boy's trademark blue sweatshirt was nowhere to be seen. In a way she was relieved that she'd finally gotten around the suspicious purple-haired nuisance, but then it made her skin crawl with goosebumps. If it wasn't Archie... then who did she hear following her?
The possibilities weren't endless, but none were something to look forward to and only made her wish she could get to the party faster.
"You okay, kid?"
Harper wrenched herself out of the thoughts that were starting to make her panic and looked up at the rearview mirror, where she could see Vinnie's dark eyes dart back at her every so many seconds.
"Yeah, no, I'm fine," she said, flashing a quick smile. "Just-uh-anxious to be back."
The cabbie studied her for a moment as they waited at a red light, but nodded (satisfied) as the light turned green. "Must be a change from your globe-trotting, ey?"
Harper huffed a laugh, her eyes going back to the neon lights that flew past her window. "Yeah," she said. "Definitely a big change."
The next few twists and turns went by in silence, which Harper was both grateful for and hated. When the taxi slowed to a stop in a very busy part of town for so late at night, she gathered her things and leaned forward with a bill.
"I'll probably be out of here by one-thirty," she said, already feeling tired. "Mind coming back for me?"
"For you, Harper? Of course," Vinnie said with a friendly smile before he gave her a serious look. "You call me if you ever need to, okay, kid?"
Harper sighed, happy for his comfort. "I will."
"I mean it," Vinnie shouted after her as she scooted out onto the sidewalk.
She laughed and smiled back into the cab. "I know! Say hi to Ethel for me!"
The cabbie grinned at the mention of his wife, then tipped his cap as she shut the door and pulled away from the sidewalk.
...
Archie knew of the club Harper was heading for and where secret section for High Schoolers was. Not because he'd ever been there, mind you, but he knew where it was. A bus ride later landed him in the heart of the city's nightlife. Clubs and theatres and concert halls lined the street, lending noise and chaos to the night.
To his surprise, taking the bus had actually gotten Archie there about three seconds before Harper stepped out of the cab again. She leaned back, probably to thank the cabbie, then tossed her braid over her shoulder and continue down the street a little before turning through an iron gate that was supposed to close off an alleyway.
Making good time, Archie followed at barely steps behind, but he stopped at the gate and watched Harper approach a sub-level side door a little more than half way down the building. He pulled back as she turned to glance anxiously around. When he looked again she was reaching for the doorknob, but she tensed as though spooked and looked further down the alleyway again.
Archie looked too, frowning. What could possibly scare the annoying girl who tried to take on a river guardian? But his attention was drawn back to the door as it was wrenched open, making both Archie and Harper jump in surprise.
"Harper!" A guy who had a build alot like Herry's stood in the doorway wearing a plain black shirt and loose-fitting jeans, grinning down at her. "Get in here before I have to carry you!"
The girl's face broke into a grin. "Yeah, you'd have to catch me first, Maurice."
"In those heels?" the guy said, raising an eyebrow as he glanced down at her feet. "You wouldn't make it five steps."
"Who says I'd keep them on?" Harper asked, taking slow and deliberate steps down to the door.
"Everyone," Maurice affirmed. "Unless you want a host of tetanus shots."
Harper made a face at him, but had already stepped past him when she responded. "Eew! Grosse!"
Maurice chuckled. "Get to the party, Minx," he said, turning from the alleyway, giving Archie ample time to sneak forward. "The birthday boy's been waiting for you."
"No he hasn't!" Harper's voice objected, growing fainter with each word. "He doesn't know I'm in town yet..."
The door, heavy and metal, probably would have slammed shut, but thinking quickly, Archie had flung the end of his whip forward, easily hooking the impervious metal into the doorframe.
Smirking in triumph, it only took him moments to slip inside and work the weapon free, closing the door behind him. There were at least 25 steps down after the door before Archie found himself in a room that looked like one of those places from the 1930's. A speak-easy or something. And if it weren't for the few modern outfits, he'd have thought he'd stumbled into a movie shoot, instead of a hidden teen hangout below a modern club's dance floor.
Neil would like it here. Every now and then the modeling-hero would hit these strides of doing everything "retro" and drive everyone nuts for a good week or five with his insistence on fashion sense. All the more reason to never tell him about this place.
The club was a little crowded, but Archie managed to duck out of the doorman's way (by means of a nicely placed closet) as he headed back up the stairs. After waiting a few minutes, Archie moved out into the open, never more happy to be wearing Neil's coat. To at least some extent it made him look like he could possibly blend in a little.
"Harper!"
Archie ducked into a small coatroom. The blond was quickly accosted by two girls he'd seen her with at one of the dance studios. The girls giggled as they hugged her and asked what seemed like hundreds of questions in squeaks that hurt his ears.
"Yeah, I will," Harper said in answer to one of them. "Where's Haileigh?"
"Over there," the shortest girl said, pointing across the dance floor. "And don't forget to see Chase!"
"I will! I will!" Harper said with a laugh, then pried herself loose.
Archie followed quietly, attempting to not stand out like a sore thumb by keeping to the edge of the room. Luckily, Harper found a table not very far away from a safe little nook he quickly hid in.
...
As antsy as she was before, by the time Harper reached her friends' table, she was ready to run right back out the door. But she highly doubted any of them would allow that. And the look that Haileigh was giving her proved the other girl still knew her well enough to be ready to pounce if need-be.
So with a rueful smile, Harper took up the empty seat.
"Bout time!" the petite brunette at the table shouted. "We were beginning to think you weren't gonna show!"
"More like Mari thought you weren't going to show," the girl with braids said. "I said you'd be here when it's practically over."
"And I'm the one who won the pool," Haileigh said proudly, giving Harper a conspiratorial smirk before holding her hand out to their friends. "Pay up! Five bucks each!"
The two girls quickly said something about needing the bathroom or seeing someone they hadn't seen in a while, and quickly left their company. Harper and Haileigh laughed after them, shaking their heads.
"I'm surprised you didn't say more like twenty," Harper said.
Haileigh snickered and took a sip of her lemonade. "I should have."
They sat in silence for a moment or two, both watching the other teens in their social circle enjoying the music and showing off.
"So what have you been up to?" Haileigh asked, leaning forward on the small table. "I like the new dress."
"Thanks," Harper said, quieter than she had been as she glanced down at the purple fabric.
Haileigh gave her a smile that most would have called dazzling, then it faded away as she got next to no response from the other girl. Hesitantly she asked, "So what's wrong?"
...
Through the chatter and music (which Archie could swear was getting louder just to spite him), Harper had gone quiet. Or maybe she had answered, judging by the other girl's face she probably did. And whatever it was, it didn't seem to be a good thing. Instantly Haileigh leaned closer and the two started talking in conspirital tones that were little more than a strange extra hum by the time it reached Archie's ears.
After a moment or two, Haileigh sat back in her seat, looking perplexed and concerned. "So... are you going to find them?"
Harper hesitated. "I don't know."
"You have to!" Haileigh yelped.
"How?" Harper cried out, her hands going to her hair in frustration. "I don't even know where to look!"
The other girl frowned, then shook her head. "I don't know," she said after a moment. "But if he's back, he'll be coming after—."
"Good evening, Ladies!"
Both girls jumped as some tall guy with spiky black hair practically bounded over to their table. He pulled them both into a tight and (what looked like) incredibly uncomfortable hug, before letting them go to grin at them. "I heard that a certain braided blonde was back in town."
"You heard right," Haileigh said, grinning as well.
Harper groaned and, from what Archie could see of her, she turned bright pink.
"And you didn't come say hello?!" the guy demanded, looking aghast. Then he frowned at her in mock indignation. "You were supposed to be my partner for Arts in the Park."
"I know..." Harper muttered loudly.
"And do you know who had to step in?" he asked. "Rachel."
Harper grimaced. "Oh, I am so sorry. Why didn't Ms. Funnel have Mara or Danielle step in? They're better than me."
"True, but Mara and Danielle already had partners. And Haileigh here had sprained her ankle," he informed her. "But, you can make it up to me now. You owe me two dances."
She gaped at him as Hailiegh broke into giggles. "What?!"
"Right now!" He affirmed. "It's my birthday—you're not allowed to say no."
"I haven't been dancing while I was away, you know," she said.
"Doesn't matter," the guy said, shaking his head and already dancing to the music. "You know these steps."
...
Clearly Harper knew this guy pretty well, or at least well enough that they did a whole tango that had to have been choreographed. And it was pretty good, though Archie was never going to admit it. The last step, though, had Harper hanging from her partner's grip and looking at the world up-side-down behind her—right at Archie.
The blonde's eyes went large and her laughter went away as she nearly fell from the guy's hands, but she managed to pull another smile onto her face as she was pulled to her feet again. Around the pair, all of the partiers burst into applause with a few shouts of "me next, Chase!" Harper nodded in thanks as the birthday boy sauntered up to another pretty girl, then she ducked away and cast a glance back towards Archie, who pulled his collar a little higher and moved away from the booth.
Harper's gaze followed him, though, and once he'd found a seat along the wall, a waitress appeared next to him with a soda. "Uhh." He stared at the drink as the girl put it down. "I didn't order this."
"Yeah, Chase's floor girl sent it over," the waitress said, nodding back towards the table where Harper was sitting with her friends again. The blonde might have been smiling and laughing with those near her, but Archie could see the heightened attention in her eyes as she glanced his way again. With her eyes locked on his, she gave him an irritated look then lifted her own glass and took a sip as though it were a peace offering.
Archie kept the glass at a distance.
Harper frowned openly, drawing questions from those around her and curious glances were sent Archie's way, but he quickly turned to duck behind his collar.
A few tense moments passed before he looked back. Then he nearly had a heart attack.
She wasn't with her friends. A frantic look around the room gave him no sign of the long braid anywhere in the crowd. Panicking, Archie raced towards the stairs, thinking that it would at least give him a higher view if nothing else.
By a stroke of luck, that turned out to be the best thing he could have done. Harper's golden hair moved just out of view before the door to the alley closed.
He took the stairs two at a time, bursting into the night a little louder than he'd planned. But Harper wasn't there to turn towards him, she was already on the sidewalk. Huffing from the climb and growing irritation, Archie did his best to creep along the wall until he was crouched by the building's corner.
"You're still not good at stealth!" Harper informed him without even looking away from the busy street.
Giving up on trying to hide at the entrance to the alley, Archie straightened his coat dodged a few people to stand next to her. "Well I'm good enough," he said. "You couldn't lose me."
Harper rolled her eyes. "I have more important things on my mind than you and how much you don't like me."
Archie shot her a glare, which she didn't pay attention to, but returned his attention to watching the street just like she was. "I'd like you more if you'd tell the truth," he said. "Instead of turning the conversation all the time."
"I've answered every question anyone's asked me," she said defiantly. "Just because you wanted more of an answer than I have to give you doesn't make me a liar."
"Maybe not, but it doesn't make you trustworthy either," he countered.
"Is that why you didn't drink the water I sent you?" She asked, the pitch of her voice going up a notch. "Did you think I'd poisoned it or something?"
"Clubbing 101, Rapunzel, don't drink anything you didn't order yourself or watch pour," Archie said.
Harper bristled at the name. "Well excuse me for thinking of getting you a drink instead of pointing you out to Maurice or Chase like I should have!"
"Maybe you should have," Archie snapped right back.
"Next time I will!"
A loud car horn made the arguing teens jump and Harper spun, hitting Archie with the end of her braid as she did so, to see a familiar cab pulling to the curb. Then she turned back to him with one of her own hearty glares. "You're not coming with me."
"Like I'd actually want to be stuck in a car with you," he sneered.
She gave him another scathing look as she opened the cab's door. "Enjoy your ride home," she said with a voice sweet as acid as she dropped inside. "Try to make it back by two." Then she slammed the door and the cab took off from the curb.
"I will!" Archie shouted after the red taillights.
It wasn't until he'd gotten back to the bus stop that he realized what she'd meant. None of the busses was going to take him in a direct like back to the dorm. The closest he could find was a seven stop loop through the bohemian section of the city before he could get dropped off three blocks down.
He kicked a littered can closer to the trash bin and sat down on the bench to wait. It was going to be a long night.
A/N: Sorry for the ridiculously long delay! Too many things got in the way, but hopefully that won't be too much of a problem continuing on (wishful thinking, I know). Anyway, hopefully this chapter's not too hodge-podged to come through clear, kinda wanted to get more of a wedge between Harper and Archie. lol Let me know if there's something amiss! ^_^