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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟔
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐈𝐄𝐋𝐃 𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐏

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Alex stood between Atlas and Michelle with the rest of the Decathlon students gathered in front of their bus. While the rest of the teens discussed their upcoming competition, the Easton girl's mind was filled with thoughts about what they figured out last night. If it was up to her, Alex would've sped to Maryland to figure out exactly what was going on. But all three boys warned her it wasn't safe to go alone. In all honesty, the Easton girl was surprised Peter cared about her safety due to how he'd been treating her.

The redheaded girl was brought out of her daze by the sound of approaching footsteps. When she turned towards the source of the noise, Alex found Peter jogging toward them. The students started murmuring amongst themselves while the Easton girl watched the boy with a small smile on her face. As soon as the Parker boy stopped in front of the Decathlon students, an uncomfortable silence surrounded them. The brunette boy scanned over the group until his eyes unexpectedly fell on Alex. They just stared at each other for a long moment before he cleared his throat and moved his attention toward Liz.

"I was hoping I could rejoin the team," Peter announced, causing everyone to exchange a look with each other before Flash pushed past the girls in front of them to stand next to Liz.

"No, no way. You can't just quit on us, stroll up, and be welcomed back by everyone," the Thompson boy stated while he continued to glare at the Parker boy.

"Hey, welcome back, Peter!" Mr. Harrington said after exiting the bus before his attention fell on the raven-haired boy, "Flash, you're back to the first alternate."

"What?"

"He's taking your place," Abe stated, making chuckles erupt from the group of teens while Alex stared at the back of Flash's head with a smirk on her face.

"Excuse me, can we go already?" Michelle questioned as she pushed herself off the bus and moved to join the rest of the group, "I was hoping to get in some light protesting in front of one of the embassies before dinner."

"Protesting is patriotic. Let's get on the bus," the brunette man responded before taking a step back and using his thumb to gesture toward the yellow vehicle.

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Liz stood in the aisle of the bus and read questions on the flashcards in her hands. After she read every question, the ringing of a bell cut through the air followed by someone's answer to the question. Alex and Atlas sat in the back of the bus across from Ned while Peter practiced with the team. All three of them stared at the holographic image in the Leeds boy's hand. At least, the Easton girl thought the three of them were watching the image.

However, when she looked up at the boy sitting next to her, Alex found the Duncan boy staring at the curly-haired girl reading a book in the seat in front of Ned. The Easton girl instantly nudged him in the side with her elbow, drawing his attention to her. She quirked an eyebrow at him, only for him to return her questioning look with a sheepish grin. It wasn't long after that when their attention was drawn back to the situation at hand by Peter walking towards them.

"Uh, yeah, it's just a school trip. It's nothing. Look, Happy, I gotta say, you tracking me without my permission is a complete violation of my privacy," Peter said into his phone before he sat down in the seat behind his best friend, who gestured towards the hologram in his hand, "that's different."

Alex and Atlas continued to watch the Parker boy as he listened to the man on the other end of his call. It wasn't long after that when the brunette boy got a slightly panicked look on his face. "Nothing. Look, it's just the Academic Decathlon. It's no big deal."

Peter was silent for another moment while Happy spoke before he ended the call. The brunette boy just stared at his phone for a long moment until his attention moved toward the duo watching from the seat across from him. The panicked look on his face instantly turned to confusion as his eyes studied them before he finally opened his mouth to speak.

"What are you two doing here, anyway? Last I checked, neither of you are part of this team," the Parker boy said in a tone that made annoyance run through Alex and Atlas' veins before his attention landed solely on the redheaded girl, "and I thought we decided last night that you weren't gonna help me with this anymore."

"Are we really doing this again, Parker?" the Duncan boy questioned while Ned slid down in his seat as if he wanted to disappear.

"Doing what again?"

"Okay, I really need you to make up your mind," Alex announced while she ran her hands down her cheeks, earning a confused look from the boy in front of her before she let out a long sigh, "you act like you hate me one second then it feels like you're starting to warm up to me before going back to hating me. Which one is it, Parker? Do you hate me or not?"

Peter was silent for a moment while his eyes scanned every inch of her face. It wasn't long after that when his eyes moved to meet hers before finally giving her a response. "'Hate' is a very strong word...I prefer 'dislike.' And I definitely can't trust you considering who you used to work for."

Alex's blood ran cold as she just stared at the Parker boy with wide eyes and parted lips. An awkward silence surrounded them while Ned cringed in his seat at his friend's response. It wasn't long after that when the Easton girl finally snapped out of her daze before grabbing all her things. She did her best to keep her emotions at bay as she got to her feet and moved to the very back of the bus.

After slouching down in her new seat, the redheaded girl turned her attention out the window. She kept her eyes glued to the passing scenery in an attempt to keep her mind off everything. Despite her efforts, Alex couldn't stop the memories she wished she could regret from resurfacing. All the pain and suffering she had to endure throughout her childhood washed over her, which made her breathing quicken. Due to her being trapped in what felt like a nightmare, the Easton girl was completely unaware of the harsh words Atlas was sending Peter's way.

Not much time passed when the Duncan boy stood up and moved to sit next to the Easton girl. Neither of them said a word for what felt like an eternity before Alex felt an arm around her shoulders. The next thing she knew, Altas was pulling her closer to his side. The redheaded girl was frozen for a long moment before she gave in to his gesture and placed her head on his shoulder. Even though she tried so hard to keep the tears from escaping her, one managed to slip down her cheek.

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A few hours had passed since they arrived at their hotel in Washington, DC. Even though she was invited by both Liz and Michelle to get out of her hotel room and explore, Alex found herself lying on her bed with her eyes glued to the ceiling. No matter how hard she tried, the Easton girl couldn't shake all the emotions that resurfaced. Her brain kept replaying her memories from being trapped in the HYDRA bases. Her parents' faces as they experimented on her haunted her followed by a phantom pain spread throughout her entire body.

A knocking on the hotel door snapped Alex out of her daze before she sat up faster than the human eye could see. She just stared at the door for a long moment then she let out a sigh and went to answer it. The Easton girl was greeted by Atlas, who sent her a small smile and a wave as soon as the door was open. Alex let out another long breath before stepping to the side to allow the boy entry to her room, only for both of them to stop in their tracks when a panicked Ned appeared from around the corner.

"Hey, guys," the Leeds boy greeted with a small wave and a forced smile as he looked around at the world that surrounded him before his attention fell back on the pair, "we need to talk."

Before they had a chance to respond, Ned was ushering the duo into the Easton girl's hotel room and locked the door behind them. Alex and Atlas exchanged a confused look as the Leeds boy pulled his laptop out of his backpack before sitting down on one of the beds. After Ned typed something onto his computer, he pulled out the hologram they had been using to track the men that tried to vaporize Atlas.

"Alright, I really need you to tell us what's going on, Ned," Alex said, breaking the silence that surrounded them while the boy in question continued to stare at his laptop screen.

"Yeah. The last time I saw you this stressed was when the Lego Store was sold out of the set you wanted," Atlas added, drawing Ned's attention to them for the first time he entered the room.

"That was a very scary time," the Leeds boy muttered under his breath before he let out a long shaky breath and continued speaking, "Peter went after the bad guys. He left a few minutes ago and I haven't heard anything since then."

Alex just stared at the boy in front of her for a long moment before she rubbed her hands down her cheeks. "You let him go after a group of mercenaries...alone?"

"In hindsight, that probably wasn't my brightest moment," Ned admitted then a small smile appeared on his face, "that's why I was hoping you could go after him."

"And why would I do that?" the Easton girl responded while crossing her arms over her chest and leaning back on the wall behind her.

"Because he might need help."

"He made it clear that he doesn't want my help."

"I think we all know that he doesn't want your help...but he needs it," the Leeds boy told her while taking his laptop out of his backpack before muttering under his breath, "even if he'll never admit it."

Silence filled the room as Ned began to type away on his keyboard. It wasn't long before Alex found herself looking over at Atlas, who was already staring back at her with a knowing look on his face. Even though she wanted him to tell her not to go, the Easton girl knew those wouldn't be the words coming out of his mouth. Just like how those weren't the thoughts running through her head. Deep down, Alex knew that Peter needed her despite claiming to want nothing to do with her. So instead of trying to keep up her normal life, the redheaded girl decided it was time to step out into the world and be the person Charlie and Pietro saw in her.

It was time for her to be a hero.

A small sigh passed over Alex's lips as she made her way over to her suitcase. After opening the main compartment of her bag, her fingers found the zipper of the hidden compartment. It only took seconds for her to open it and reveal her suit. Ned stared at the clothing with wide eyes and slightly parted lips while Atlas watched his friend with a small smirk on his face. Another silent moment passed before Alex grabbed the suit and went into the bathroom. She did her best to control her shaking hands as she changed out of her pajamas and into the Wankandan-made clothing.

Once she finished zipping up the front of her suit, Alex just stared at herself in the mirror. The Easton girl would be the first to admit that the girl staring back at her seemed like a stranger. Even though she knew she was doing the right thing by going after Peter, there was a small voice inside her telling her to stay at the hotel. It took everything within her to ignore that voice and walk back into the bedroom.

"Where exactly did Peter run off to?" Alex asked after she sat down on the bed and began putting on the shoes specially made for her to go along with the suit.

"Some gas station in Maine," Ned answered without even attempting to hide the amazement he was in over her superhero suit, "he's trying to get them to lead him to their leader."

"Well, that's just great," the Easton girl muttered under her breath before she caught her mask that Atlas tossed her and slipped it onto her face.

Once she knew her identity was concealed, Alex looked over the Leeds boy's shoulder and at his computer to see exactly where she was headed. Another sigh passed over her lips as she made her way toward the window, only to stop right a foot away from her exit. She stood there for a moment before she reached into one of her pockets and pulled out two communicators. After placing one in her ear, Alex turned around and handed the other to Atlas.

The Duncan boy just stared at the small in his hand before he turned his attention toward the girl in front of him. "Why are you giving this to me?"

"Well, Peter has a 'guy in the chair' so I thought I should have one too," Alex told him as matching smiles appeared on their faces, "plus, I'm gonna need someone to convince me to stay when I wanna run away from the fight."

"Oh, I'll definitely be that person," Atlas responded then he pulled the girl in front of him in for a tight hug before whispering "good luck" into her ear.

The redheaded girl instantly returned the gesture with a small smile on her face. It wasn't long after that when they ended their moment and Alex made her way toward the window once again. After opening the window, the Easton girl crawled out onto the fire escape before quickly climbing down. As soon as she reached the ground floor, Alex studied the coordinates on her watch one last time and sprinted toward her next destination.

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It wasn't long before Alex finally reached her destination. Instead of making herself known to Peter that she was there, the speedster hid in some bushes right down the street from the gas station. Her eyes stayed glued to the Parker boy as he sat on top of an old sign before her attention fell on a van parked on the other side of the lot. An eerie silence surrounded the world around her as Alex waited for something to happen, only for her wish to be granted in the strangest way.

Peter fell from the sign he was sitting on.

Alex did her best to hide her laughter as she watched him slowly get to his feet. The next thing she knew, Spider-Man aimed his web-shooters at the top of the gas station overhang, only for balls of webbing to shoot from his wrists. Peter just stood there for a moment before he ran forward and hid behind one of the columns.

The Easton girl kept her eyes glued to the Parker boy as he stared down at his hands for a long moment before stepping out from his hiding place. That time his web-shooters did what they normally did and shot a string of webbing up into the air. However, as soon as it attached to the overhang, electricity emitted from the webs and caused all the lights to flicker. Peter instantly panicked and broke the webbing before he sprinted behind the building and jumped up onto the roof.

"Hey, Alex, can you hear me?" Atlas' voice rang through Alex's ears, causing her to jump a bit.

"Yeah, I can hear you. Loud and clear," the Easton girl responded as she continued to watch Peter spy on the enemy.

"What do you see?"

"Just a sketchy van and Peter failing to control his fancy new suit."

Before their conversation could continue, the speedster's attention fell on the headlights approaching. The smile instantly faded from her face as they got brighter before her ears picked up on a faint buzzing in the distance. Alex instantly looked up into the sky without thinking and barely made out a silhouette flying toward the approaching vehicle. It wasn't long after she spotted the dark figure when Peter rushed after the trucks. A shaky breath passed over the Easton girl's lips before she sprinted after the Parker boy.

As soon as she reached the truck Spider-Man landed on top of, Alex grabbed the handles on the back of the vehicle before she pulled herself up. A wave of panic washed over her as she got her bearings before she held onto the truck for dear life.

"Hey, Big Bird! This doesn't belong to you!" she heard Peter shout from on top of the truck, causing Alex to pull herself up a little more to look over the top of the vehicle to see Peter standing across from a masked man with glowing eyes.

The stranger just stared at the Parker boy for a long moment before he jumped up and attached himself to his wings. The man then flew straight at Peter, making the boy jump out of the way and shoot his webbing at the flying man right as Alex pulled herself up onto the roof of the truck. The brunette boy just stared at the speedster for a long moment before both of their attention went back to the man flying at them.

They managed to dodge his initial attacks then the man grabbed the bag in Peter's hands. A tug-of-war match over the backpack began before Alex raced forward to help the Parker boy. The two teens continued to pull the bag away from the flying man. That continued until the strap broke and sent them falling through the opening the stranger made and into the back of the truck. Alex slammed onto the floor of the truck much harder than she anticipated with her head taking most of the fall. Despite her fighting to keep her eyes on the blurry world that surrounded her, everything soon plunged into darkness.

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