𝐎𝐍𝐄 𝐖𝐎𝐌𝐀𝐍 𝐀𝐑𝐌𝐘- 𝐏𝐞𝐠𝐠𝐲 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐫¹

five | found items

-FIVE-

Peggy and Magnolia arrived at the Jarvis residence, where both Michael and Edwin were waiting. The boy greeted Magnolia with a polite smile, and took her hand to press a kiss to it in jest. She rolled her eyes and snatched her hand back, but nevertheless let a tint of pink spread across her cheeks. 

"Do you have anything you want to tell me?" Peggy asked, clearly wanting a particular answer. 

"Not at present, no." He lied. As they arrived at the hole in the floor, which led to the sewers.

"Very well. Let's get on with it." Peggy curtly said, moving to the bathroom to change.

"Mr. Stark believed the intruder had some advanced technological assistance." Said Jarvis.

"Mr. Stark believes brushing your teeth requires advanced technological assistance." Scoffed Magnolia, going after her. 

After a few minutes, both women emerged in their gear, and Michael found himself staring at Magnolia. While Peggy and Edwin conversed, she struggled with a buckle at the back of her vest.

"Michael, can you put on that buckle for me?" She asked, turning her back to him. "Also, you're staring. It's rather rude to stare."

"Erm, of course. And my apologies, Magnolia." He smiled awkwardly, before clipping the buckle in place.

"Thank you." She nodded before turning to her mother.

"The two of you can come after Mr. Jarvis and I give you the 'all clear'. Do not enter unless you hear the signal, understood?" Peggy ordered in her 'army voice', as Magnolia called it.

"Yes ma'am." Grinned the brunette girl.

After the two adults went down, a few beats passed in an awkward silence till Peggy called out, "All clear!"

Magnolia nodded and pulled the harness up, connecting the clasp to a loop on her vest. "Puff out your chest a bit." She ordered the boy, not looking at him. He complied and she put the hook on a loop which was on the belt of his gear. 

"You didn't need to do that. I just wanted to see how stupid you looked." She smirked. "And you looked mighty stupid." 

"I take offense to that." Scowled the boy. Magnolia simply smirked and winked at him before leaping off the edge of the hole, slowly pulleying them downwards into the sewer.

The moment their feet hit solid ground, Magnolia realised how close their faces were, and scowled at the smirk which spread across Michael's face. She hastily unclasped her vest from the hook, put it in the provided duffel bag, and moved away, muttering curses in German under her breath. 

Michael caught up with her, and began, "Magnolia, I was wondering..." 

"No." She interrupted him in a sharp monotone. 

"But I didn't even--"

"No." 

"Will you just li--" 

"No."

Peggy's voice cut through their little argument, "New York is one of the last cities to still use its sewers to run off storm water, isn't it, Nola?" 

Magnolia threw her mother a grateful look before replying, "Yes, it is. When the tunnels are full, the tide gate opens and the water runs into the river." 

"You know an awful lot about this." Michael scoffed, but immediately kept his mouth shut after she glared at him. 

"So, according to what Magnolia just stated, all Mr. Brannis would have needed is a raft and a forecast. He could have floated his stolen treasure all the way to the sea." Peggy trailed the flashlight's bean up the small waterway to the floodgates.