Hiding in the Shadows

Chapter 24 - Tracking the Shadow

(Peter's POV):
As I made my rounds throughout Queens, I noticed someone sitting at the edge of a rooftop. Drawn by curiosity, I approached the figure, immediately recognizing it as Shadow. I couldn't believe my luck, I hadn't seen her for weeks and yet here she was just sitting there, as though waiting for me.

She seemed to be talking to someone, although she was alone. I couldn't quite make out everything, but she seemed to be talking about some sort of bad idea. What stunned me, however, was the fact that she was speaking in an American accent, not the normal British one that I had grown accustomed to. It was a voice that seemed strikingly familiar to me.

Knowing that I needed to try to ascertain her identity for Mr. Stark, I decided to start talking to her. If I could get the conversation to naturally shift to who she was, that would be great. If not, I would follow her back home and discover where she lived. At least that would give me a clue as to who she was.

We began conversing, happiness swelling within me as we talked. It was the same sensation I got whenever I was around (Y/N). There were so many similarities between the two of them, I began to understand why I had feelings for both.

I placed my hand on Shadow's leg, watching as she recoiled from my touch, "whoever they are, I am sure they would be proud of what you are doing. You could have just as easily hid your power from the world and instead you put yourself in danger to save others. You give the people hope, don't let yourself forget that."

"Thanks, Peter," she replied and I could tell that she was smiling beneath her hood.

"You probably shouldn't call me Peter while I'm in the suit," I corrected her, getting to my feet and offering my hand to help her up as well. "Would you care to join me for another team up as we patrol the city?"

She placed her hand in mine and stood, clearly in pain as she hissed through her teeth, "I was actually planning on calling it a night. The last fight got a little rough."

My eyes widened in fear, not knowing what to do because she never got hurt, no matter what happened, "are you injured? Oh god, do you need any help? I can bring you to a hospital if you need-"

"No, Spider-Boy, I'm fine. I just got hit by some sort of alien blaster, but I'm sure it'll heal. It left some sort of burn on my side, that's all. I hope you have a nice night and I would advise you to stay away from any large groups using alien tech in their weapons," she replied, squeezing my hand gently before jumping to the next building and disappearing into the dark.

"Hey droney, can you follow her? Just don't let her see you," I instructed as the little spider shaped reconnaissance drone flew off my chest and off into the direction that Shadow went.

I did feel somewhat guilty for striking when she was so vulnerable, but I couldn't disappoint Tony Stark. Besides, Mr. Stark wasn't a bad person so giving him her identity wouldn't be a bad thing, would it? It would probably give her more resources to work with and maybe even a spot in the Avengers.

After a while, I started following Shadow, careful to keep enough distance so that she was never actually in view. The one thing about my Spider-Man suit was that the bright red and blue didn't really blend in. Thankfully, I had Mr. Stark to thank for giving me the technology I needed to follow unsuspecting people without me needing to be anywhere near them.

"She has stopped at the Avengers compound," Karen spoke in my ear, making me frown in confusion.

"The Avengers compound? What would she be doing there? Is she already one of the Avengers?" I wondered aloud, her destination only adding to my confusion.

I decided that I would report this to Mr. Stark so I entered the building and informed the security guard that I needed to speak with Mr. Stark immediately. As I waited for Mr. Stark to allow me up, I double-checked with Karen that we were in the right location and she responded with which room Shadow was hiding out in.

"Mr. Stark will meet you in his office," the security guard informed me and I muttered a word of thanks before continuing my now well-known journey to Mr. Stark's office.

"Kid, what are you doing here so late on a school night?" Mr. Stark asked as I entered the room.

I tore off my mask and realized that I had no idea how to say what I wanted to, "you know how you wanted to have me find out who Shadow is?"

"Yeah, I kinda figured you'd forgotten about that assignment, honestly. It's been quite a while since I asked you to do it and you've presented no results," he replied, seeming unenthusiastic about my visit.

"I know, she's been avoiding me or something, of course she won't admit that that's what she's been doing, but I know her better than she thinks I do-"

"Kid, what's the point?"

"Well today I found her while she was patrolling Queens and so I had the drone you installed in my suit follow her home," I explained, getting more and more nervous as I approached the revelation.

"And? Where'd she go? Somewhere in Queens or does she live elsewhere?"

"Mr. Stark, she, uh, she came here," I confessed, carefully watching his reaction.

Disbelief came first, then an idea seemed to pop into his mind, but was soon overcome with confusion, "I don't understand, there's no one here who could have done that. She's British, yes? The only ones with accents are Vision or Thor, and Thor's not even here right now."

"She's not British," I blurted out, forgetting that he didn't know. "I, um, heard her talking to herself or someone I couldn't see before she knew I was there. She had an American accent and then slipped into a British one when I announced my presence."

He closed his eyes and breathed, "son of a bitch."

"Do you know who it is? I have exactly what room she's in if that would help at all," I offered, ready to give him as much information about Shadow as possible.

"No, I think I know which room she's in," Mr. Stark replied, before moving his attention away from me. "F.R.I.D.A.Y., would you kindly demand that my daughter get down her fucking ass down here?"

"Wait, Mr. Stark, you have a daughter?" I asked immediately, shocked by his revelation. How the hell did I not know that he had a daughter before this moment?

-

(A/N): oh look at this shit going down! What do you think will happen to you? I hope you've enjoyed this chapter and are prepared for the next!