Into the Light | Peter Parker x OC

Chapter Fifty-Six

A/N: welcome back!

this chapter i promise is not nearly as depressing as the last two were and it's somewhat exciting, if you will. it's all mysteriously setting up the next arc of the story!!

enjoy!

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"I just want to see you happy again.

The way you used to be

before...everything."
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FIVE MONTHS LATER

Life had become a well-oiled machine for the Starks.

Every morning, Tony and Pepper went for a run outside. And every morning, Adelaide dressed Morgan. Then Pepper came back to relieve her of her duties so she could go workout in their gym.

Pepper did some company work from her office, Tony took Morgan outside for a walk, and Adelaide went to sit by the lake to read her book. She'd gotten knee-deep into crime and mystery novels. They had lunch together as a family. Sometimes, they would go into the city for business, but by dinner time, they would all be together again. After some light tv, they hit their respective beds and it was lights out for everyone until the next day.

Well, for almost everyone.

Adelaide quietly closed her bedroom window behind herself as she lowered her hoverboard into the grass. Making sure she hadn't woken anyone up, she looked around the woods and then leaned forward on her hoverboard to make it speed through the trees.

After the Blip, the city had been in chaos. She had been too lost to care, but even now, over a year later, chaos still lingered in the streets. Perps had gotten more confident and the police department had lost half of their force. Some of the perps were just people desperate for food or medicine, but most were treating the post-Blip New York like the purge and there weren't enough officers left to stop them.

After losing half their force, the department had promoted their students on the verge of joining and promoted the lower-levels up which got them the numbers, but not the level of experience the original force had. Lots of the newbies were in terrible shape and barely knew the law. With the perps now more confident than ever, the newbies were also more easily rattled.

Living in the city had become a nightmare.

The city needed their friendly, neighborhood Spider-Man. Of course, so did she, but she realized that she would have to be the one to step in for him. She never thought it through, she just...knew that this was exactly what Peter would have done if he were still here. There was no plan, she just did her best to help the people.

It started a few months ago when she had begun to miss her city. She joined Tony and Pepper on their business trips sometimes and she noticed how bad things had gotten there. That was when she decided to try and help. Maybe she couldn't solve the problem (it truly was like whack-a-mole) but she had been sitting around at home for too long now. Plus, this made her feel closer to Peter than anything else had in months.

She knew she couldn't hide this from Tony forever, but she figured she'd take what she could get.

"Alright, TADASHI, where's the fire?" she asked once the city came into view.

"A bank robbery on the corner of 172nd and 168th. There are five people held hostage, two males, three females. Three perpetrators, all male. Authorities have been called and are on their way."