Allies & Enemies // Spider-Man [Book 2]

twenty-two {Arya's POV}

"Here you go," I said, handing a steaming mug of hot cocoa to Peter as we were sitting in front of the fireplace, wrapped up in comfy clothes and blankets. The fire burnt brightly to warm us up after our adventure at the pool. We had stayed another hour after I had overcome most of my fear and I had actually enjoyed myself. 

We had retreated to the lounge area of the compound and we had started a game of Scrabble on the grounding front of the fireplace.

"Thank you," Peter chimed, blowing on the steamy drink. "It's your turn."

I puckered my lips as I stared at the letters I had. I grinned as I spotted the perfect word. Letter by letter, I laid down the word 'quick' and I smugly looked at Peter. "20 points for me." With a grin, I added the 20 points to my score and saw I was way ahead of Peter. "You're losing again, Parker."

"You have played too many games in your life, Ry. You're unbeatable." He shook his head as he took a sip from his mug.

I stared at him for a few seconds. "What did you call me?" I asked softly.

He looked at me in confusion. "I called you something?"

"Yeah, you called me 'Ry'," I said.

"I did?" he asked and I nodded. "Oh. Sorry."

"No, don't be," I smiled. "I like it."

His lips turned upward. "Okay."

A loud banging noise sounded through the compound and I looked at Peter in confusion. It was dark and pouring rain outside, why would anyone be here at this hour? 

I rose to my feet and walked to the front door. Tony and Pepper came from upstairs. "Are you expecting someone?" he asked me. 

"Not really. You?" I told him and he shook his head.

"Stark! Open the door!" I heard a voice shout and I recognised it after a few seconds. It was my mother. 

I rushed forward and unlocked the door. I was met with my mother and a dark-skinned woman standing next to her. "Good evening, Arya," my mother said with a smile. 

"Mom? What are you doing here?" I questioned. 

"Can we come in?" she asked, completely ignoring my question. I nodded and stepped aside. 

The women stepped inside and I closed the door. 

"Elizabeth. What brings you here at this hour?" Tony asked. 

"I need to discuss something with you," Mom answered. 

"Me?" Tony questioned. 

She folded her arms. "Yes, you. Can we talk somewhere in private?"

"Yeah, of course. This way." Tony held out his arm and led them to the kitchen. Peter, Pepper, and I stayed behind. 

"Do you know what this is about?" I asked Pepper and she shook her head. 

"No, not at all. And I'm sure your father doesn't either," she answered. 

I reached down and took Peter's wrist. "I know something," I whispered and he nodded. " We'll be right back, Pep," I told the red-headed woman. 

"Okay, don't get into trouble," she said with a smile. 

"When do I ever get into trouble?" I grinned before leaving the entrance hall and ran up the stairs with Peter hot on my heels. I entered a hallway and squatted down, opening one of the vents. I turned to Peter and held my finger to my lips.

I crawled into the shaft and took a few turns before I reached the vent I was looking for. I sat down cross-legged on one side as I went completely silent. Peter sat down across from me with the vent between us. I focused my ears as I listened to the conversation between my parents and the woman my mother had brought. 

"But I don't understand. I thought all the paperwork had been dealt with," I heard Tony say. 

"That was before I replaced Elena. I was revising all of the documents of children who no longer live with us and I came across Arya's file. I saw it missed a signature so I did the first logical thing to do, which was contact the person who had registered Arya into the orphanage," the unknown woman spoke and an uneasy feeling settled in the pit of my stomach. Elena was the first name of Miss Solomon, the woman who had practically raised me. The woman talking must've been the one who had replaced her. 

"And when I got the call from Irene, I knew that it was a sign. I don't get to spend a lot of time with Arya because she lives with you, but technically, you have nothing to say about her. I was and still am her only legal guardian," my mother stated and my blood ran cold. "I'm taking her back to Seattle where she will live with me." 

"What?" I mustered out. 

"What?!" Tony exclaimed. "That's not happening, Elizabeth. She's my daughter and she lives with me." 

"I'm very sorry, Mister Stark, but legal documents say that she is not," the woman, Irene, said. 

"Screw that. You'll be hearing from my lawyers. Good night. You know where the exit is," Tony growled and the set of fading footsteps informed me that my mother and Irene had left the room. The sound of the front door opening and closing confirmed that. 

"Arya..." Peter said softly and I shook my head. I rushed out of the shaft and to the kitchen, where I found Tony sitting at the counter, his hands folded in front of his mouth. His eyes glistened with tears and he looked up when he heard me enter. 

"Tony..." I whispered and my own tears leaked from the corners of my eyes. 

"Don't worry, kid. No one's gonna take you away from me." He stood up and tightly wrapped his arms around me. "We're gonna get through this and you're gonna stay right where you belong." 

"But what if they're right? I don't want to move to Seattle," I mumbled, my voice cracking and faltering. 

"They're not. I'll get the best team of lawyers who are gonna make sure your mother can't take you away." He told me. "We're your family. Me, Pepper, Peter, his aunt. That's worth fighting for, Arya." 

I nodded. "Thank you." 

He pulled back from the hug and let out a long breath. "I don't know how this is going to go, but if this goes to court, they'll most likely want you to speak as well. I think it's smart for you to make up your mind and know exactly what you're going to do. If there's even a small chance you want to move to Se-" 

"Don't say that. I want to stay here," I cut him off. 

He nodded once and tried to hide his smile. "Okay. In that case, we're gonna win this thing. You don't have to worry about that." 

"Thank you, Tony." 

He smiled before he ruffled my hair, leaving it messy and dishevelled. "No problem, kid."