If Souls Return (Then Tell Them I Say Hi) - Tony Stark's Daughter in Gotham

Chapter 21: Because I Got a Migraine

I wanted to say thank you again for all your comments and support! I've had a lot of fun writing this story and I'm so glad to see it be loved by so many people. I hope you enjoy the update this chapter has a little more whump than the others that just pulls at my heart strings. :)

Amber knew something was wrong from the moment she woke up that morning. What had just seemed like a little headache the day before was turning into a steady pounding in the back of her skull that made it hard to focus.

The manor didn't seem so soundproof any more as she laid in her bed dreading getting dressed. She could hear all the inhabitants moving around. A shower running down the hall and Titus barking from another room all sounded like it was right next to her. The wafting smell of bacon and eggs coming from downstairs made her want to throw the sheets over her head, but they too were starting to feel suffocating.

Not wanting to cause a scene by asking to stay home from school, Amber dragged herself out of bed and began to get ready. The room tilted as she stood, and each step was like walking in a fun house.

She got down to the kitchen with the intentions of grabbing a plain piece of toast and nothing more when Cass stopped her.

"Eggs?" she offered on a plate to Amber.

Amber gulped staring down at the food. "No thanks. I'm not hungry," she said trying to fake having some energy.

"Feel bad?" Cass asked, setting down the plate and stepping forward with an open palm ready to check her forehead for a fever.

Amber pulled away, picking up her bag from the floor and trying to sneak back out of the kitchen. She didn't think she had a fever but wouldn't be surprised if the headache had spiked one.

"Fine, just tired. I'll eat something at school."

Cass frowned but nodded and returned to sitting on the counter with her food.

Amber could feel the other girl's eyes set on her as she walked away. She tried to look strong and not curl in on herself from the pain. While Amber knew she should probably turn around and tell Cass the truth, there were already too many people hovering over her at the manor. It wouldn't do any good to give them another reason to worry over her and hinder her coming and going as Spider-Woman.

She regretted the choice to stay silent when locker doors slamming shut sounded like fireworks going off. Awful was the only way to describe how Amber was feeling.

She struggled through her first class of the morning, barely able to keep her eyes open. Her hands clasped over her ears as the teacher droned on, which didn't go unnoticed by Harley.

"What's wrong with you?" Harley asked as they finally walked out of the classroom.

"I don't know," Amber said honestly. "Everything's so bright and loud." Her vision was going white as she talked, and Amber tried to push down the nausea that had been creeping up all morning.

"Do you think you're going to throw up?" Harley asked, stopping her from walking further.

"Maybe," Amber gritted her teeth trying to keep it together.

"Shit, okay." Harley searched around the hall before pushing her towards the bathroom. "Scale of one to ten how bad is the migraine? I knew this was going to happen at some point."

Instantly Amber knew where Harley was going with his line of questioning, Peter's chronic migraines from his powers overstimulating him. A mere mention of them would send Tony and Pepper into a tailspin.

Amber had only witnessed it happen twice. The first time was when they were at their lakeside cabin. Tony didn't have any pain-reducers on hand and had taken an actual Ironman suit to fly back and get some. The second time had been during finals when Peter was under so much stress it seemed to contribute to the onset of symptoms that had him grounded from Spider-Man for a week.