Back at the hotel, Tony, Peter, Jessica, Natasha and Vision flopped down everywhere, trying to relax for a few seconds before they had to jump back onto their feet.
"What do we know about this Francis LaMoreau?" Peter asked "Besides the fact he runs a sex ring."
Natasha pulled out an iPad.
"What're you doing?"
"Starting at the bottom," she mumbled, typing something in the search engine.
Jessica flipped over to her stomach and peered over Natasha's shoulder. A picture of the man appeared on Google Images. He had dark black hair, a scruffy and unmaintained beard, and crazy hazel eyes that sparkled viciously.
"Damn," Jessica muttered, taking the iPad from the assassin.
She handed it to Peter, whose eyes widened with shock.
"He looks mentally insane," Peter commented, staring at the picture.
He then handed it to Tony. A frown crossed his face . . . For some peculiar reason, Francis LaMoreau looked
"Yeah, but where do we find him?" the man asked.
"Beats me," Peter called.
"Do me a favor and never say that again."
Natasha took the iPad back, and started hammering away at the keyboard. Vision opened a copy of Doctor Thorne, while leaning back on the bed. Tony sighed, and stalked off in the other direction.
"Wanna watch some Poldark?" Jessica asked, poking Peter in the ribs.
"Never heard of it."
"It's a period drama about a retired red coat and how he raises up his Father's old mine."
"That sounds like a girl show. I betcha only watch it for the hot male lead who takes his shirt off."
Jessica snorted.
"He isn't my type so—"
"Found something!" Natasha exclaimed.
"What? What? What?" Peter yelled.
Jessica jumped up behind him, and looked over Natasha's shoulder. Tony dashed back into the room, and Vision also perked up.
"Francis LaMoreau isn't the name he actually likes to go by."
"What do you mean?" Tony asked.
"Well, he's going under cover to a gala with the name Jacques Petit. The gala is all big and fancy with a load of rich and elite attending."
"Why's he going to a gala?" Jessica commented, crossing her arms.
Natasha frowned, and typed some more stuff on thee iPad.
"Quite possibly to raise money," she finally said.
"What for?"
"Running the type of operation he does must be expensive," Vision said gracefully "Transporting his victims, providing just enough food, and the amount he spends to pay people off must be quite a lot."
"So, what's he gonna do?" Tony laughed "Beg the President of France for money?"
"Yes," Vision replied simply.
"Okay then . . . How're we gonna stop him?"
"You could attend the gala, Tony," Jessica suggested "You're rich and elite, and could talk to him, distracting him from getting money. We then can come and bag him after you lure him somewhere private."
"There's one problem with that, honey. He knows I'm in the Avengers. Basically everyone knows that so it has to be someone who he wouldn't know. It can't be Natasha because she leaked a ton of information on herself, it can't be Vision because well . . . you look like Vision."
"So that leaves Jessica and me?" Peter said slowly.
"Yes."
"We're teenager though. Jessica and I can't pose as rich people!"
"Why not?"
"Because . . . because . . . Okay, what'd you want us to do?"
Tony grinned wildly, and gestured for the teams to come closer. The expression on his face was nothing short of gleeful.
"Oh no, Tony. What the hell are you going to say?"
"Mr. Pitt! Ms. Jolie! Welcome!"
François Hollande, the President of France, took Jessica's hand, pulling her to him and kissing her cheek. He then did the same to Peter.
"You look extraordinary, my dear," he told her, bowing slightly "This dress! It is perfect on you!" "
Thank you, Monsieur President," Jessica replied, her voice shaking slightly.
Much to her relief, her voice sounded smooth and sultry, just like the famed actress. It turns out, Tony's brilliant plan involved Peter and Jessica masquerading as the famed couple using Natasha's disguise masks. Peter didn't really want to pretend to be Brad Pitt, but he went along with it because they had a job to accomplish. To him, it seemed a little shady, especially because he was pretending to be someone he wasn't. However, the United Nations sent them their approval, so it had to be okay. Jessica lifted her skirts, nodded one last time to the President, and walked off with Peter on her arm. The dress was a little too much, but she had to be convincing.
"Well," Natasha' voice whispered over their ear devices "Do you see him yet?"
"Nope," Peter whispered back, pulling Jessica a little closer.
They walked around, greeting several other people they didn't recognize. Apparently, Brad and Angie knew a heck of a lot of people in France for everyone came up to them, offered them drinks, and starting ranting about things they assumed they were supposed to know. They resorted to nodding, smiling, and waving a few times. There was a lot of awkward kissing also, which made Jessica want to puke. She didn't like being kissed, not even by her Mom or Step-Dad.
"Guys, do me a favor and don't get drunk," Tony whined over their ear pieces as Peter reluctantly took a glass of champagne.
"There he is," Jessica called softly, her eyes gazing towards the right side of the elaborate room.
There, standing under a dazzling chandelier made of the most beautiful diamonds they had ever seen, stood Francis, deftly holding some kind of alcoholic beverage. His physical appearance was much more put together than was expected . . . One his face, there was a thing mustache, which Peter assumed must be fake. An enormous smile was spread across his face as he spoke to two young women, who were laughing at whatever he was telling them. His face was animated, as if he seemed genuinely amused by his company.
"Be careful guys," Natasha said "The worst of people are the best fakers. I should know."
Jessica and Peter glanced at each other, then approached the man.
"Gosh, guys! Don't go charge up to them. Be sly!" Tony called, yelling into their ears.
The pair slowed down, and Peter took a sip out of his glass. He almost choked, not expecting champagne to taste that way.
"Give that to me!" Jessica hissed, snatching the glass from Peter's hand.
She held in daintily, the thin part of the glass balancing between her fingers. A small smile graced her lips, but her eyes glared daggers at Peter, who straightened his shoulders reluctantly. They started heading in that direction, chatting with a few people along the way. One person came up to Jessica, and started talking about some work she'd done for some orphans in Africa, and another person walked over to Peter and asked him about his latest film project. They answer vaguely, trying to change the topic. People gave them strange looks when Peter asked an older gentleman how he felt about Donald Trump. The man cursed loudly, and spun around on his heel, stalking away angrily.
"Gosh, Brad," Jessica snarled, tugging on his arm.
They started walking even closer, trying to act like they were doing something.
"I can already imagine the press talking about you weirdos tomorrow!" Tony called, chuckling loudly into their ears "I wonder what the real Brangelina will think!"
"Dammit!" Jessica whispered "Let's just get this over with."
They went up to Francis, who was helping himself to another glass of champagne. Peter took another glass clumsily, and smiled at the man, who raised an eyebrow.
"That's a nice suit you have," Peter said awkwardly "Is it Burberry?"
"No," the man replied in a thick French accent "It is not."
"HOW DOES HE EVEN KNOW WHAT BURBERRY IS, NATASHA?" Tony yelled hysterically.
"Shut up," Peter replied. He then clamped his mouth shut, and smiled agitatedly at Francis.
"Shut up? Is that American slang?"
"Yes," Jessica replied quickly, desperate to cover Peter's mistake "So, we heard you were starting a home for homeless girls in France."
The man raised his eyebrow again.
"Yes, that is correct."
"That's not true because Jess just made that up!" Tony said slowly.
"Well, we are interested in helping you out financially. Aren't we Brad?"
"Uh, yes?" Peter replied "Yes, we most certainly are—are."
"That is very kind of you to offer to be our benefactor." Jessica smiled, and jabbed Peter in the ribs, who then smiled.
Francis smiled too, a coy, evil look surfacing in his eyes. Anyone could tell the man was no good. He made Peter shudder a little bit. Maybe that was because they knew about all the awful things he'd done to innocent people over the years, or maybe it was simply because the man looked shifty.
"We can write you a check right now," Jessica told Francis, reaching out for his hand "We want you to be able to finish what you have started right away."
"GO JESSICA!" Tony exclaimed.
She smiled prettily, pursing her famous Angelina lips at him.
"Thank you, you are too kind," Francis said, bowing a little bit.
"Is this man stupid?" Natasha pondered, sighing a little bit.
"Uh, yeah and that's a good thing," Tony replied saucily "Pull him aside to somewhere private and try to take out any camera if they're there. We will meet you guys shortly. Over and out."
"Come, a left my check pocket in my purse. It's in the holding room."
Francis nodded, and followed Peter and Jessica, who walked towards the holding room.
The holding room was basically a high-security locker room for all the guests' thousand dollar coats and purses. Jessica and Brad went up to the desk, where a short, balding man greeted them. They requested for their key, giving the man the number of their locker. Once he determined it was their locker, the man waddled through the rows of lockers. He handed Jessica the key, who smiled graciously. Sticking it in the locker, she twisted it, allowing the door to pop open. The inside of the locker was padded with red velvet, gold coat hooks, and a little section for a purse. Jessica snatched it out, pulled it open, and removed a check book, one that had been made by the United Nations specifically for this case. She wrote a check for 50, 000 francs, and squinted at it. The Avengers had been assured that if he deposited the check, he wouldn't get any money regardless. It was a phony check, one that was worth nothing. The 50,000 Francs she was giving him didn't even exist. "Here," she said, handing the check to him. The older man left, so she turned slightly to Peter. He smiled and strode off, to turn the cameras off with a device Tony had given them. A slight buzz could be heard, making Francis spin around.
"What was that?" he demanded.
"I don't know," Jessica replied, shrugging confidently.
She smiled at him, but was greeted with a frown.
"What was that noise?" he repeated, waving his hands at her.
"What's the matter with you?" she said back, crossing her arms in front of her chest briefly.
She then stuffed her purse back into the locker, and closed it with a bang.
"You know what? I think I'll take that check back."
She reached out and took it from his fingers and crumbled it up in her hands. Throwing it to the ground, she stepped forward and grabbed his collar, lifting him off the ground.
"I couldn't bear it if you used that money for what you wanted to use it for."
With that, she threw him to the ground, and stepped on his wrist. He yelled out in shock Jessica pulled off the mask, revealing her Spider-Woman mask.
"You're disgusting," she snarled, crouching down over him.
Peter, now in his Spider-Man attire, appeared behind her, followed by Tony, Natasha and Vision.
"Give it up, Franny!" Tony exclaimed "You're a dead man and you're not going to be able to hurt anyone anymore."
The man yelled, tried to get up, but was knocked down by Peter, causing him to pass out.
"You know, we had this," he stated, turning towards his mentor.
"Yeah, but we came and made you look super cool," the older man replied wittily.
He smiled fondly at his Spider-children.
"You guys are epic and don't ever forget it," he said sassily.
"He's right," Natasha added, uncrossing her arms. Vision smiled happily, and nodded in agreement.
Suddenly, something buzzed. Out of nowhere, Vision pulled out an iPhone. A look of concern crossed his face.
"What's wrong?" Peter asked.
"Nothing," the android replied, silencing the ringing "I'll take care of it later."
Tony shrugged, and started dragging Francis LaMoreau out of the room, followed by Natasha and Jessica. Vision grabbed Peter's wrist and pulled him back.
"I got a feeling that call wasn't just nothing," Peter told his friend, who sighed sadly.
"It was Wanda."
"Wanda? As in the Scarlet Witch? Isn't she in jail?"
"I thought so . . . but apparently not. Why else would she call me?"
"I don't know, but call the number back. Maybe she's in danger."
A look of worry crossed Vision's face.
"Don't worry. It'll be okay. After all, she's got you."
"But I have to do something."
Peter pursed his lips, and nodded.
"Alright. I'll help you, but we can't let Tony know."
A/N:
Hey Everyone! I am so sorry this chapter has taken so long to publish. I'll try to be more diligent next time. I started writing it, but there was a family emergency, and I had to deal with that before I could finish it. I finished the chapter today, hence the sloppy and rushed feeling, Nonetheless, it's still something and you guys deserved something.
Yes, I know Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are divorced. I started this chapter before the news broke, and I didn't have the time to switch it up. Maybe I'll go back and edit it sometime.
So, next chapter is all about Vision. Like I said before, I haven't been writing much about him and I want to change that. Tune in next time for a ScarletVision reunion!
Please follow/favorite/review! Those three things make my day, and I really need something positive right now (you can still leave friendly criticism if you like though!)
Thank you so much for being so patient with me, guys! I couldn't ask for better readers! 3
Much Love,
gotmoreissuesthanvogue