Trapped in the Shadows

Chapter 10 - My Fault

The person holding me at gun point was blasted away in a bright flash of light, allowing me to release a sigh of relief. My father flew into the room and growled, "you stay away from my daughter."

Following him in were the rest of the Avengers who easily defeated the remaining three attackers, seeming disappointed that they didn't have more to do. Tony ran over to me and I threw my arms around him as he deactivated his suit. He held me close and asked, "Are you ok? Did they hurt you at all?"

"I'm fine, just a little banged up and exhausted, but I'm so glad that you came. I'm not entirely sure that I would have been able to get out of that mess, especially after I assigned Spder-Man to focus on saving my classmates," I confessed, tears of relief dotting my eyes.

"I know you, (Y/N), I'm sure you would have found some way around it. I'm just glad that you are safe now," he replied, kissing my forehead and pulling away. "We'll help get anyone who needs medical attention to the hospital and then I think you've earned the rest of the school day off."

Peter rejoined the group, immediately coming over to make sure that I was alright. I lied to him, telling him that I was fine, although I was beginning to feel extremely lightheaded. However, I didn't want anyone to worry, so I kept that to myself. Cap, Rhodey, and Banner rushed over to check people for injuries as Tony used his suit to extinguish the fire that was now spreading across the wall. Bucky and Natasha went to free those that Peter had successfully webbed up in the hallway so that they could be interrogated. He had managed to web up their hands and their teammates hadn't cut them down, which was fortunate for us because now we had a chance of getting answers.

"There's something wrong," Peter warned, turning his head towards the vans that were parked in the middle of the hallway.

Nobody was even given the chance to question what Peter was feeling before the two vans exploded. Wanda and I both reacted immediately, trying to contain the blast with our magic. It was a great strain on both of us with the size of the explosion and I knew that I needed to release it soon or else I was going to black out.

"Get it outside of the hole," I told Wanda, knowing that there would be enough space on campus outside of the school where the only things that it might destroy was the surrounding lawn and a few trees. We released the blast, not realizing that the police were arriving. The explosion flipped over one of the cruisers while the other thankfully remained unaffected.

I tried to rush out to see if the officers were hurt when I felt myself lose my strength and everything turned black.

...

The first thing I noticed was the splitting headache and how sore my entire body felt. I couldn't remember anything that had happened, not understanding where all of my pain was originating from. Confused, I managed to pry my eyes open, finding myself in the medical bay of the compound.

"Mr. Stark, she's awake!" I heard Peter cry out, making me realize that he was seated next to me on my left. My father was on my right and Bruce was rushing over to my bedside to see how I was from a medical point of view.

I lifted myself up in the bed as I asked, "what happened?"

"You over-exerted yourself at the school," Bruce replied as Tony and Peter tried to get me to sit back down.

"The school? I-I don't remember anything at school up until almost falling asleep in English," I confessed, ignoring my father and boyfriend.

"I'm sure it will come back to you," Bruce assured me, placing his hand on my arm. "Now it would be wise to heed the advice of Tony and Peter and lie back down. Try to get some rest and we can brief you on everything once you are feeling better."

"Haven't I been resting all day?" I argued, desperate to know what I was not remembering. "Please just tell me what happened."

"(Y/N), I'll fill you in on everything if you just lie back down," Peter promised as he took my hand.

I sighed, pushing myself back down, wincing as I moved. Clearly something intense had happened that I was failing to remember based on how sore I was. Peter ran his fingers through my hair and began to explain, "while you were in English, there was an explosion in the school. We heard the principal calling for a lockdown, but you clearly had the same idea that I had because we met out in the hallway in our suits. You decided that we would corner the attackers in the middle so you teleported to the other side of the school. That was the last I saw of you until you were caught in Ms. Tanner's room battling the attackers left and trying to protect the students in the room. We were overwhelmed so you told me to evacuate the students while you fought them off. I knew I shouldn't have left you, but you're always so stubborn and I didn't want them to get hurt either, so I did as you requested. The Avengers arrived as backup, but at that point you must have already been more than exhausted. Then the attacker's vans exploded and you and Wanda moved the blast outside the building to protect the school. It was too much for you to handle and you passed out."

Flashes of my memory returned to me, fleeting images of the attack. They matched up with Peter's words, but there was something he was leaving out. I shifted my gaze down at my hands and closed my eyes, "it was my fault."

"What do you mean?" Peter asked, brushing my cheek lightly with his thumb.

"You got prisoners, right? Have they been talking?" I asked my father, figuring he would know more about that than Peter.

He shook his head, "but I am sure they will soon, Natasha's in there with them."

"They were after me. That's why they were at the school. They were there to kill me. It was all my fault."

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(A/N): Good news! You didn't die yet! I hope you enjoyed this little chapter!