Aftermath (a BH6 crossover)

Chapter Two: No More Secrets

"Are you coming?" Tony called, breaking through her trepidation. He'd put his sunglasses on again as he headed towards the front exit, pausing only long enough to look back at her and make sure she was coming before continuing down the ramp.

Kally pulled herself together and swung her bag over one shoulder as she followed him out. She'd gotten lost enough in her thoughts that there was no sight of any of her classmates, though she could see a charter bus not too far off from the tarmac. If she didn't hurry, she'd miss it.

Seeing her start to head towards the bus, Tony loudly cleared his throat. "Excuse me," he said even louder when she didn't seem to take the hint. While Dr. Banner was going with the other college students, he had other plans for Kally. "You're riding with me."

The teen looked appropriately shocked as she stared at the billionaire super hero. "I'm sorry? What did you say?" She clutched her phone in her pocket, mentally reminding herself not to squeeze it too hard. It wasn't just any ordinary phone, but the new home of her AI, Sammy. Not only that, but it was more tripped out than a regular phone.

"I said you're riding with me," Tony repeated. He indicated a dark sedan waiting around on the other side of the plane where Happy, his usual chauffeur, waited to collect them. "We've already got your checked luggage stored in the trunk. Unless you'd really like to go with the others and risk being gawked at because you got to ride up front with me..."

The choice was hers and she knew it. Either way, things would get awkward. But at least this way she could at least pretend to have taken a different flight. It wasn't like she'd been visible to those in the back part of the plane, which was a blessing. Deciding to take Stark up on his offer, she followed him around to the car where Happy held the door open for her. At least it wasn't a limo.

.....................................

The hotel chosen to house all out of town competitors was pretty nice, all things considered. It wasn't as fancy as the one they'd had that welcome dinner in with the NYU Student Technology Expo, but it definitely wasn't a rundown one either. The building was easily ten plus stories tall with pleasing topiary out front. And the lobby was more than sizeable.

Once Aunt Cass had checked both herself and Hiro in, the teen couldn't help but look around in excitement. He felt much like he had upon getting into SFIT, jittery, anxious, and excited beyond belief. It had been a long time since he'd last gone up against outsiders in a bot fight. This would be a whole new crowd, with potentially updated tech and he could only hope that his tried and true Megabot would stand up to the challenge.

Strictly speaking, the bot fights were taking place in a local arena not too far from the hotel. In fact, it was within walking distance. Hiro'd heard rumors that the two buildings, the hotel and the arena, were connected via underground tunnels. It was probably a good thing they were having the fights there, as some could get a little rough. And even though the rules dictated there would be no betting allowed, he felt certain there would be some underground activity going on in that area. He also knew that if his aunt found out he was even contemplating participating in that part, he'd be grounded for life. Old habits died hard.

By the time the others had checked into their respective hotels rooms, Fred with Wasabi, and Honey Lemon sharing with GoGo, they were all ready to head up in the elevator. Thankfully, their rooms were all in close proximity to each other, with Aunt Cass's adjoining Hiro's by a door between the two rooms. She'd insisted on that in case something should happen. It didn't help that, as a minor, he either had to share a room or have an adjoining one. The others were right across the hall.

Fred pushed the luggage cart he'd borrowed to take all their bags upstairs. Any bellhops were currently unavailable so he'd just snagged one and loaded up their stuff while Wasabi registered their names at the desk. But now he talked about potential races down the hall on the thing, making Aunt Cass wince inside. They didn't need to get kicked out of the hotel due to stupid antics.