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"The opera? Seriously?"

Andi rolled her eyes at Gwen and finished zipping up the olive green dress she'd chosen to wear for the night. Or at least until Fury decided he finally needed the three of them. Andi thought her friend looked absolutely beautiful in the dress, but she'd chosen something a bit more practical for herself. Mr. Harrington had, of course, insisted the students dress nicely for the night, but Andi refused to put on a dress. She wore a lacy, white long-sleeve top with a pair of skinny black pants and her favorite pair of black combat boots. To finish off the look, she grabbed her leather jacket and put it on. She turned back to Gwen, who was now looking at her with annoyed brown eyes and her arms crossed over her chest.

"Look, I wasn't the one that thought of it," Andi told Gwen quietly. MJ was in the bathroom getting ready, so they couldn't speak too loudly. "And why are you so upset about it? It's not like you'll be there anyway."

"I was super excited about the carnival, Andi," Gwen said with a frown on her face. "I was going to take MJ on the ferris wheel and maybe finally tell her how I feel."

"Can't exactly do that if she's dead, can you?"

"Andi!" Gwen exclaimed. Her tone was chastising, but she was used to Andi's rather dry and inappropriate responses otherwise. Still, it didn't make her feel better.

"Beck or Mysterio or whatever the hell his name is told us to keep everyone inside for a few hours while we take care of this fire monster, okay?" Andi whispered. "What else were we supposed to do, Gwen? Let everyone enjoy the carnival at the risk of burning to death? No!"

Gwen groaned and fell back onto her bed. "Would it have killed EDITH to send us to a movie? Operas are so boring."

"Then I guess it's a good thing you won't be there anyway," Andi reminded her once more.

The bathroom door opening grabbed the girls' attention, and they looked to see MJ making her way out. Gwen automatically smiled at the sight of her, and when Andi noticed it, she smiled as well. The two were so cute and awkward. Andi absolutely loved it.

"H-how do I look?" MJ asked her friends. She wore a beautiful floral dress and her combat boots. Half of her curly brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and the other half flowed over her shoulder. She wore no makeup as usual, yet her face was still perfectly flawless.

"You look so cute!"

"You look absolutely beautiful!"

"Thanks, guys," MJ said with a smile. She grabbed her jean jacket from her luggage and put it on, more than ready to go and get the night over with. Like the rest of her classmates, the last thing she wanted to do was sit at the opera for the next four hours. Ned, however, had convinced her it could be a culturally enlightening experience. She wanted to give it a chance, and she was happy she was able to do that with her closest friends. It seemed they grew further and further away from her the longer they were in Europe. Ned was busy with Betty, while Andi, Peter, and Gwen continued to disappear randomly. It made her feel alone again, but she hoped tonight would be different.

"Can we get this over with?" Gwen asked, earning a quiet laugh from Andi. The blonde knew the question was not only aimed toward the opera, but to the fight they wanted no part of.

"One can only hope," Andi responded, tossing Gwen her jacket.

The three left the room to meet up with their classmates in the lobby. As soon as Mr. Harrington had his head count, the group left the hotel for the opera house. Walking through the festivities and tourists and locals alike having the time of their lives was upsetting to the students. They wanted nothing more than to share in the fun of those around them, but were stuck spending their night at a show they believed to be meant for their grandparents. Little did they know it was simply for their own protection.

"I bet you're all happy I had you pack a nice outfit!" Mr. Harrington called to the teenagers as he led them through the crowd.

"Yeah, because we'd much rather go to a four-hour opera instead of the biggest party in the world," Flash remarked.

Andi shook her head at him, but her attention was averted by the sound of Maria Hill's voice in her ear.

"Andrews, do you copy?"

"Copy," Andi practically whispered for the sake of remaining unheard by her peers.

Several minutes later, they arrived at the opera house. Peter, Andi, and Gwen walked in behind MJ. Brad stopped her, and Gwen frowned when she heard he was saving a seat for MJ. Sure, the picture fiasco had since been taken care of, but it didn't eliminate the obstacle that was Brad Davis. Gwen not being around didn't help much either. Being a young hero was an honor to Gwen, but it was also her burden to bear. She hated just how much it could take from her.

"Hey..." Peter nudged Gwen. "Go talk to her."

"Why should I, Peter?" Gwen asked. "I've practically pushed her into Brad's arms."

"Don't be so sure about that," Andi joined the conversation. "She isn't exactly making a move to go sit with him, now is she?"

"I guess," Gwen muttered.

"So go!" Peter said, nudging Gwen again.

She smiled at the two of them and walked over to MJ, leaving Andi and Peter to themselves. Andi met Peter's eyes and smiled, before looking at his outfit. It'd been awhile since she'd seen him in a suit jacket, but he still looked as handsome as ever.

"Jacket's nice," Andi complimented him.

"Thanks," Peter replied. "I like your shirt. It looks really familiar."

"Oh, May got it for me for Christmas," Andi reminded him. "She's practically my stylist."

"Are you in position?" Nick Fury's voice came through their comms.

Andi rolled her eyes at the sound of his voice and pulled her bag tighter over her shoulder. "I guess we should probably go then," she said to Peter. She glanced over at Gwen to see MJ walking away from her, and she frowned. Fury's timing was nothing short of impeccable.

"Yeah, we probably should," Peter agreed. He turned to follow Andi out of the building, but was stopped by Ned.

"You guys be careful, okay?" Ned said to his friends.

"We will," Gwen told him. "I need you to do me a favor, okay? I need you to tell MJ I got sick or something. Please."

Ned nodded his head. "Just—whatever you do, please steer the monster away from the opera house, okay?"

"We know, Ned," Peter replied.

"Okay."

"Okay, we have to go," Peter told him.

Andi, Peter, and Gwen quickly left the opera house together. After getting changed into their stealth suits and making their way to the cathedral tower, they were finally in position. Andi watched the ground intently from above. She was a bit terrified, given she had no idea what to expect. Not only that, but there was so much on her mind she found it difficult to clear the way she usually could before a mission like this.

"We're in position," Gwen could be heard on comms. "As soon as we see something, we'll let you know."

"Roger that," came Beck's voice.

"How're the suits?" Fury asked the teenagers.

"Itchy."

"I like the black."

"It's a little tight around the old web shooter."

Andi couldn't help the laugh that escaped her at the sound of Peter's words. He was the biggest dork in the world, as well as one of the funniest, regardless of whether he knew it or not. "That's gross, Peter," Andi said.

"I was just being honest."

"Okay, okay! Focus, guys," Gwen told her friends. "I see something."

"Yeah, energy's spiking!"

"We have seismic activity!"

An enormous bright orange monster burst from the ground below. Andi's eyes widened slightly at the sight of it, and she swallowed the lump in her throat.

"He's here!" Peter called. "Beck, are you ready? You know what to do!"

"On your lead, Spider-Man!"

Beck touched down with his powers at the ready. After giving the teenagers the go, the three of them swung down, each of them working together to put a stop to the massive monster. The fire hydrant failed to dim the flames, and after destroying the carousel, the monster grew bigger.

"We have to hit him with something he can't absorb!" Peter informed the group.

"So, what?" Andi called as she ran across the side of a building. "Are we just supposed to pelt him with rocks the entire night?"

"Pelt him with whatever works!"

"Recluse, protect the ferris wheel," Beck said. "We can't let him get any bigger!"

"Copy that," Andi replied. She launched a web toward the Ferris wheel as she ran and pulled herself toward it. She perched herself on top of the carnival ride, but was spooked to find Betty and Ned sitting in the car below her.

"Oh my gosh!" Betty exclaimed with fear in her voice. "Night Monkey! Help us!"

Andi furrowed her brows at the sound of the name but didn't respond for the sake of Betty recognizing her voice. Instead, she reached her arm down to assist the two of them, but was stopped by the ground trembling beneath her. The ferris wheel buckled beneath them, and Andi dove backward off the ride, landing soundly on the side of the building behind her. She shot a web toward the Ferris wheel and pulled it toward her to prevent the ride from collapsing the to ground.

"Uh, Spider-Woman, I guess? I could use a bit of assistance," Andi called for Gwen's attention through comms. "Betty and Ned are on this ferris wheel, and I need to get them off."

"Got it," Gwen replied. Seconds later, she could be seen swinging through the air, shooting web after web alongside Peter to help secure the ferris wheel in place.

The two watched Peter shoot a web toward the ride, but it never made it. Instead, it struck something else, but none of them could make it out.

"What the hell was that, Peter?" Andi asked.

"I have no idea!"

Andi didn't respond. Instead, she jumped off the building to help Gwen. There wasn't much they could do in terms of a physical confrontation, as burning to death wasn't exactly an option, but preventing everyone around them from burning to death was.

Andi deserted her post and made her way toward anything and everything metal she could find. She webbed it up and tossed it aside, hoping to get rid of the obstacles, rather than create more of them. The last one she noticed was a construction platform. She made an attempt to remove it, but before she could, the monster fell into it as a result of Beck's attack. Andi's webbing snapped, and a single hit from the monster sent her flying through the air. She hit a brick wall and fell to the ground, groaning in pain as she looked up at the growing monster. She let out a breath, knowing there was nothing more they could do, no matter how hard they tried.

Beck, on the other hand, had other plans. Andi could hear Peter pleading with him through comms, but Beck did not listen to him. With a bright green blast, Beck disappeared inside the monster. Beck's power overload began to overwhelm the monster, and in seconds the monster was exploding beneath a wave of bright power. The air began to calm almost immediately, though the reason why was laying in a small pile of rubble on the ground.

Andi winced and picked herself off the ground, hurrying over to Beck as fast as she could. Peter and Gwen joined her shortly.

"Mr. Beck?" Peter turned Beck over on his back, shocked to find that he was still breathing.

"Thank god." Gwen held a hand out to Beck and pulled him off the ground, while Andi watched on from the side, holding her ribs tightly. She knew without a doubt they were bruised, but she would be fine in a few hours or so.

"Are you okay?" Andi forced out, her eyes on Beck.

Beck nodded, but raised a brow when he noticed the hold she had on her upper torso. "Are you?"

"I will be."

A number of people began to exit the vehicles parked by the ferris wheel, Aurora being one of them. She ran over to Beck without a word, assessing him for any sign of injury. Andi frowned at the sight of her and stepped closer to Peter and Gwen, both of whom were currently worried for Andi.

"Is it over?" Maria Hill's voice sounded.

"That was the last of them," Beck answered, finding a place to sit in the rubble with Aurora at his side.

"But not the last threat we'll ever face," Fury remarked. "We need to stay vigilant. There's a void in this world for someone like you, Beck. Hill and I are going to Europol Headquarters in Berlin tomorrow. You and your partner here should join us."

Beck stood up to shake Fury's hand. "We might just take you up on that."

Fury turned to the teenagers, his eyes shifting as he looked at them. "You three have gifts, but it was clear to me you didn't want to be here."

"Mr. Fury, I—"

"I'd love to have you in Berlin, too," Fury cut Peter off. "But you've got to decide whether you're gonna step up or not. You're new at this, Stacy, and you did a great job, kid, but I think a little bit more training is necessary for the sake of your future."

"I understand, sir," Gwen said with a nod of her head.

Fury looked to Andi and Peter. "And you two—Stark chose you. He made you Avengers. I need that. The world needs that. Maybe Stark was wrong. Was he? The choice is yours."

Andi fought the tears in her eyes and simply turned to walk away. Beck, Peter, and Gwen made an attempt to stop her, but Aurora stopped them for the sake of herself. She ran to catch up with Andi, her presence surprising the blonde slightly.

"What are you doing?" Andi asked, taking a small step away from her. She wasn't sure she had the emotional capacity to deal with her on top of everything else that'd just happened.

"I'm making sure you're okay," Aurora told her.

"I'm fine," Andi assured her. She attempted to turn back around to head to her hotel, but Aurora grabbed her arm gently to stop her. Andi met her eyes, the emotion inside her building to its peak. Her eyes began to water again, and she didn't even try to hide it. Aurora noticed this and frowned. She couldn't comprehend the way it made her feel. All she knew was it didn't feel good.

"Let's go get you fixed up, huh?"

Andi only nodded her head and allowed Aurora to lead her away. The mission was finally over, but for Aurora, another had begun. Unbeknownst to why, it entailed protecting such a beautiful young hero from the pain of the tragic life that'd chosen her.

A/N: I absolutely hate writing action scenes. Sorry it sucks.