𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐃𝐨 𝐖𝐞 𝐅𝐚𝐥𝐥?

𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐫.

━━━━━━ ⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅ ━━━━━━

"i was mugged?"

━━━━━━ ⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅ ━━━━━━

GOTHAM ACADEMY GRANTED SCHOLARSHIPS ONCE A YEAR. Due to the recent events involving the Joker, the academic test was pushed back to before the winter break. The aspiring students would be tested in English, Math, and Science. These three subjects were what Gotham Academy was known for. There would be a singular scholarship awarded to one student from each grade level from Freshman to Senior.

Penny had to be one of them. At age seventeen the girl qualified for the Senior scholarship, as did ten other teenagers. Looking around the room she was seated in, it was evident that she did not fit in. Even with this being a scholarship opportunity for those who cannot afford tuition, it was obvious that a majority of the people she was surrounded by did not need it. The jewelry the girls were wearing and the shoes the boys were wearing looked as though they cost more than Penny's rent when she and May lived in Queens.

The mutant shook over her observations and focused on the paper on her lap. Information was written down sloppily in pencil. Information such as her birth date, current residence, and emergency contact. Hesitantly, Penny wrote out Tony Stark on the emergency contact line, as well as a 10-digit number that would directly lead to the run-down house phone in Penny's new living quarters.

The door to the room opening gained Penny's attention. A woman in a white blouse and a black pencil skirt stepped in, her heels clicking against the marble floor. She smiled politely at the parents and children in the room, the grin dropping when she saw a bruised and dirty Penny seated on the chair closest to her. With a low hum, she looked back to the crowd of seniors.

"If you would all please follow me and bring your papers." She requested before turning around. Somehow, Penny ended up at the back of the line, behind the chattering group of her peers. No one even spared a glance in the Parker girl's direction. They slowed to a halt in front of an open door, where they were directed inside by whom Penny could only assume to be the principal. Eleven wooden desks were lined up in a row, one in front of the other.

"Take a seat." The woman ordered, grabbing a stack of papers off of the table at the front of the room. Penny grabbed the closest chair and pulled out a pencil as long as her index finger from her pocket. The door to the room was shut, containing the company.

"You will have an hour to complete the test. Any conversation will result in immediate disqualification." The principal explained whilst the woman collected the contact information and laid the stapled test packet in front of each child.

"You're time begins now."

Penny opened to the first page and could not prevent the smile that graced her face. This was the work that she began to do when she first started interning for Stark Industries. She could practically hear Mr. Stark's words in her ears. She walked herself through the problem step-by-step and soon found herself at an answer. It was no difficult feat for the teenager to solve the dozen or so math problems on the piece of paper. Her notes and final answers were written neatly, the girl not wanting to lose a point for illegibility. By the time she reached the English section, the majority of the room was still on the third or fourth problem.