The Dark Archer

Chapter 24

Kylie POV

My father and I stayed and cried together for a good hour like a couple of sissies, recounting stories from my childhood. Eventually we were just chuckling as I leaned into his hold after a story about how excited and giggly I'd been at home on the day I met Peter. I smiled and it was like I suddenly remembered my best friend.

"Oh my god Peter!" I shouted, leaping to my feet.

"What?" Dad demanded, eyebrows furrowed.

"He must be so worried! I mean I just disappeared! Oh my god what if he went to the apartment looking for me? SHIELD is probably watching it! What if he got himself captured too?" I panicked.

"Calm down, Ky. I know SHIELD is watching the apartment, but I haven't gotten any messages about him getting captured. He can hold his own, I'm sure. Now we need to go meet your mother in Tahiti," he assured me. Then he took my hand and started to lead me out of my room. I dragged my feet and tugged my hand out of his hold.

"Woah, wait just a minute. I can't go to Tahiti," I protested. Dad stopped and turned to look at me.

"Why not? What's the matter?" He asked me.

"First off, SHIELD is still looking for me, so it will be near impossible to take me anywhere, and second, I can't just leave Peter like that. He's my best friend, Dad, and he's going through some rough stuff right now. He needs me, and I need him. You can go to Tahiti, but I'm gonna hide out here a little longer and then go back to New York," I decided.

"If you go back to New York you'll be no safer than you will going with me," my father responded.

"Dad," I said softly. "I know you're afraid for me. But you don't have to worry about me anymore. I can take care of myself now, Dad. I'll be fine. I'll come back to you, I promise."

Dad looked like he may cry again, but instead he pulled me into a bone-crushing hug. I squeezed him back in relief, knowing he'd decided to let me go. He rubbed my back and kissed the top of my head.

"You be safe," he mumbled into my hair.

"Always," I promised. "I can teleport you to that airport I've been to, but I don't want you to get odd looks, so I'm going to push you into an alley in New York. You can leave from there right?"

"Yes, Ky. That'll do fine. Just, walk me downstairs first?" Dad asked.

I nodded in agreement and stepped away, smiling reassuringly at my father. I walked alongside him down the hall and the staircase. We strolled in a comfortable silence to the screen door and out of the farmhouse. I gave him one last hug out on the porch before gently pushing him into an alleyway that was almost always deserted. I didn't want to give him a chance to say goodbye to me. I knew how difficult it would have been for the both of us. Goodbyes are always hard.

I sighed, now alone again at the farmhouse. I resignedly walked back inside and plopped down onto the couch. I didn't know what to do. My mind was still reeling from the revelations my father had informed me of, and I just all of a sudden felt so exhausted. Though I'd cried myself to sleep earlier in the day, I was still quite capable of passing out on the couch.

I woke up again when the wall phone rang loudly from the kitchen. I shot up immediately. Who could possibly be calling here right now? This number isn't even in the phone book. Who would have this number? I asked myself. I cautiously crept to the ringing phone and picked it up.

"Lee? Are you there? It's Peter," I heard right as I picked up. I sighed out in relief, but was still slightly suspicious that SHIELD could be forcing him to call me and was listening in.

"Peter, what's your favorite color?" I asked in code. We had established it at some point a few years back, when we were young and liked to play spy.

"Green. Bright green," he replied. I breathed out in relief. Peter was safe.

"I'm so glad you're okay," I breathed.

"I'm happy you're safe too, Lee. I was so worried when I saw SHIELD stalking your apartment. That is until your uncle Tony called and told me you'd escaped. I figured I'd wait a minute and then call you from a pay phone. I'm glad that I remembered when you told me this place's phone number," he explained.

"Tony called you? He knows who you are? My dad does, but I didn't think Tony would figure it out," I told him.

"Yeah he said he didn't want me to freak out and do anything stupid. And how long has your dad known?" Peter asked.

"Apparently the whole time," I responded, running a hand through my hair. "Anyway, I'm safe and I'm glad you are too. I'll probably be coming home tomorrow or so. How are you?"

"Good. Listen Lee, I just found out the truth about my dad. He didn't betray everyone and leave me for money, he was trying to save me. Oscorp was going to sell the spider research to the military to use as a biological weapon, so he destroyed all of it. He also screwed then over by using his own DNA in the research, which is why I lived through getting bitten and ended up with these powers. And Kylie... Harry is dying. And he thought my blood, Spider-Man's blood, could save him, but after seeing my father's video I know he'll die if he tries it. There is just so much happening here and I need you, Lee," he ranted.

"That's great, Peter. And I need you too. Oh my god I nearly forgot! Guess what? SHIELD didn't want to capture us because they wanted us as prisoners, they wanted to try and recruit us! Isn't that amazing? And also, I had my powers long before now, but that's kind of a long story so I'll just shorten it. Basically SHIELD intervened and thought it would be safer to nullify my powers until I could control them, but they ended up pushing them back for like fifteen years. My parents felt so terrible because they thought that they had destroyed my powers forever. So they never told me about having them. Life is so complicated and I can't wait to come back home to you," I rapidly explained. I could practically feel Peter smiling at me through the phone.

"That's amazing, Kylie. I have so much to tell you when you get back. I miss you, Lee. And I need to tell you something when you get here," he told me.

"I miss you too, Pete. I'll see you soon," I promised.

"Hurry home," Peter said before hanging up.

I laughed to myself as I set the phone back down. How had I gone from my lowest to my highest in such a short span of time? From being betrayed by my family to being rescued by my other family, and being alone and sad to loved and wanted. It was so strange how life worked sometimes.

I then began thinking about what Peter wanted to say to me. He sounded happy when he spoke, so I assumed that the news was good. Perhaps Gwen had made it into Oxford? Does it make me a bad person that I want her to get in purely so she'll be in England? I mean of course she deserves to be in Oxford, but still.

Shaking off my rude thoughts, I meandered through my childhood home aimlessly, wondering what I was supposed to do to occupy myself until I returned to New York. I began to think of the rest of my family.

My parents were obviously in Tahiti, as my dad had stated earlier, but I didn't know what happened to Bucky or Bruce after they rescued me and then later dropped my dad off here. Thor was apparently back on Asgard with Noah and Jane. Bucky had said that the team minus Tony and the aforementioned were on some mission to find Rumlow in Africa, but who knew what Tony was up to.

It seemed that my situation very nearly tore the team apart at the seams. One more incident and the bond and trust built between them may shatter, which made me very sad, because I couldn't bear to see my family split into quarreling sides. It was like my heart being broken and it's pieces attacking each other.

I could only hope that no such thing would occur.