Little Spy | Peter Parker ✓

[8]

PETER PARKER WAS A VERY INTERESTING BOY, I WAS BEGINNING TO REALISE.

He had been painted to be a villain, a dark and mysterious individual who would stick out like a sore thumb, with abilities unheard of that were malicious and only used to wreak havoc - but though I had only been around him for a few days, there were no signs of the reckless, broken monster I had been warned about. He was complex and peculiar, and he captured my eye easily, but he did not seem to be the same being that had been described. Almost likeable, really.

He was also incredibly good at covering any tracks of him being Spiderman - something I did not like at all. 

Peter Parker may not be the best at disguises or sneaking about, or lies or even wearing a good poker face - but he did know how to play his part as just Peter, not the Spider-man that leapt from building to building and soared through the sky. The thought of it being easy had never crossed my mind, but I did not think the act of admission would be such a complex step, out of all of them.

My days, as expected, soon began to revolve around my mission and the mission alone - I awoke before the sun, trained rigorously, went to school and did everything I could to learn more about the boy, then trudged back to Inga to begin research on any materials found. It was exhausting, simply put, but I enjoyed learning more about the strange character the boy was.

However, he was extremely good at making sure no one knew that it was him as Spider-man or seeing him ever about - every news photo was only of Spider-man, never of Peter himself, and always blurred images seconds after he moved to flee the scene. And while I was on watch all hours of the days and nights, I always found myself falling just the littlest bit too late, or falling into incidents that prevented the easiest solutions to the little issues. That, or I would catch the effects of it later on, into the late hours of the night or the day after where he would show up to school, very clearly wearing the results of a not-so-good sleep. American teens always seemed to need their eight hours, and, well, the Parker boy demonstrated what that loss meant very well.

On that Thursday afternoon, he looked weary and like he could barely keep his eyes open; no doubt from a late night mission that I had missed, something that Inga would have scolded me on profusely had she herself not had a reason for me to stay in. If only I could ask him questions, figure out more about the problem at hand, then life would be easier, but I could not let him know that I was anything more than a Canadian exchange student with an acute interest in science. Observing at a distance, snapping pictures or stealing bits of evidence when possible, that was the slow and sure route that Madame had suggested - the plan Inga hated, but what would have to work, then.

As I sat in the cafeteria, an open chemistry textbook and several blank papers carefully positioned over more important things, I could not help but wonder more about the Parker boy, as a character. Less so about his powers, the fact that he was a dangerous individual that had caught the Lider's eye - no, my thoughts drifted to his morality, the fact that he was presumed a hero by those who saw his actions or heard about them on the news. What sort of troublemaker, or a reckless weapon would risk their life for others? Who would wear a half-assed suit and jump around just to catch or defend a stranger? It was curious.

My musings would be interrupted, perhaps fortunately, quickly after they began, however.

"Hey there, Emily!" chirped a cheerful voice, and I turned to see Gwen followed by Mary Jane. "I almost missed you! What are you up to?"

I carefully shoved papers over any visible notes and shrugged towards my open science textbook. "Just finishing up homework, I guess."

"Mind if we join you?"