Last Part

The rest of the room stood in wonder at the boy who was hopping from foot to foot. This boy, who was around the same age as King T'Challa's little sister, Shuri, was even deadlier than his own guard. This boy was taken when he was a kid and raised and forced to become this. T'Challa felt a lump form in his chest.

No kid should ever have to go through what he did.

Without a second thought, T'Challa spoke up, "You can stay here, you don't have to go back overseas. We can keep you safe here, just like we are with your mentor."

Peter shook his head, his thoughts spinning about the life he made back home. He couldn't just leave it all behind-- well in theory, he could. But he made actual friends and carved a niche out for himself in that school, he couldn't just give that up! A small smile made its way onto his face, "I really have to go back. But if it's okay with you, I'd like to stay a few days to come up with a cover story."

T'Challa welcomed the boy with open arms, and decided then and there, that no matter what the media says about his boy that he was simply misguided and needed a helping hand. "You are welcome to stay in my kingdom anytime." After a second thought, T'Challa asked, "Would you like your items back?"

Grimacing, Peter shook his head frantically. If there was one thing he didn't want, it was his knives back. A reminder of his past. A reminder of who he used to be.

The king seemed to understand and before he could say anything else, someone burst into the room, "Brother I am so bored-" All eyes turned to see her, and a mischievous grin wormed its way onto Shuri's face. "And who is this?"

Shuri walked over to where Peter was standing next to Bucky, who had put a protective arm around his protege's shoulders. "Shuri, this is Peter, a friend from Hydra. He's staying with us until he gets his bearings." Bucky informed her.

Shuri eyed Peter warily, a smile still gracing her face. "Nice to meet you," Peter chirped, putting on a facade of a charismatic young teen. Not to say he wasn't usually charismatic, but he wasn't in an amazing mood considering his fate was certainly questionable at the moment.

Shuri didn't even question the young boy, just took it in stride. She took Peter back to her lab, saying something about becoming friends, but not before making fun of T'Challa and giving Bucky a fist bump.

The two became fast friends, and Peter was happy to add her to his friend list. Currently residing of Ned, MJ, Bucky, and now, Shuri. The list wasn't too long, but it was growing faster than Peter could have ever imagined, so he couldn't complain.

Soon a few days had passed, and Peter had time to piece together a story for SHIELD. He hadn't been getting any more messages from SHIELD or Ned, it seemed that Wakanda was a land away from other lands. No unwanted messages came in, and no went out. The blissful days went by too fast, filled with inventing with Shuri, exploring the kingdom, and of course, catching up with Bucky. They had training sessions to reminisce like the old days. It seemed like the two assassins had gotten a bit rusty because it was more often than not a shorter fight without each other pulling out any flashy moves. But they were still fun outings, Peter liked to believe that their sparring matches weren't as lethal and intense because they no longer felt like they were consistently on a ledge. Now, they were able to relax. To make choices.

It was a freedom that was long overdue.

By the time Peter was at the barrier of Wakanda, his eyes were once again lighting up with emotions, and a smile was on his face much more than his usual frown. He had a beat up bag full of half-eaten rations, and a nearly empty water sheepskin. Peter also had put on distressed clothes and rolled around in the dirt before getting his stuff. He also conveniently didn't have his knives with him. The point of all of this?

There was no proof of him ever making it to Wakanda. No evidence to tie him to ever running into Bucky. Nothing other than to point him towards wandering around the desert alone, scared of running out of water.

He hugged everyone before he left with a smile. But as soon as he crossed the shimmering barrier, he put on a distressed face, wide eyes and a scared facial expression. If he was going to sell his story, he was going to do it the right way.

Peter had decided while in Wakanda that no one else could ever control him. He made his own decisions, no one else. Not anymore. The only thing he took from Wakanda was a gift from Shuri, a small seemingly simple strip of fabric tied around his wrist. The piece of fabric was unsurprising not a piece of fabric. It was actually a communication device that Peter could use from anywhere in the world to talk to his buddy and ask for help. Bucky also had one, allowing them to stay in touch without the fear of being traced because it only worked for their person due to Shuri doing something for it to be activated by their biometrics.

Peter lowered his head and gave a pitiful cough as he trekked through the sandy dunes. SHIELD would locate him soon now that he was back in their jurisdiction, it was now only a waiting game for them to find him and ask where he has been for the last couple of days.

He dragged his feet with a limp that he forced Bucky to beat into him before he left the city. It wasn't long before the sounds of a helicopter chopped above him, informing him of SHIELDS arrival. Peter let big fat crocodile tears run down his cheeks as agents came out and helped usher him into the safety of the helicopter.

Peter had a story mapped out in his head, evidence in items to back him up, and bruises to show struggle. There was nothing SHIELD could do now but believe that The Spider was no longer an asset, was no longer useful as a weapon. Peter gave himself a small smile while everyone else looked elsewhere. He was finally making his own choice, and that was to control his own destiny and dismantle a huge company from the inside out.

He was finally truly free.

-=-

Done with this prompt, gotten kind of bored but hope that was enough of a wrap up for you all!

I've been writing formally for a while for finals and stuff, so writing with contractions and slang feels so freeing thank god!!!

Hope you enjoyed it!

Good luck on your finals, my last one is Monday!

-SecretsInMyHead