Once Aspen Blue left the Avenger's tower, she made her way to a random motel. She honestly just wanted to relax and sleep for a while, so when she got her room she immediately plopped on the bed.
She stayed in the motel over night and once again was plagued by nightmares, but it was alright. She was just glad that she was away from Peter and Tony for a while.
She knew that her reaction was probably dramatic, but she honestly didn't know what else to do. Aspen had already lost enough people in her life by her own fault, and she didn't want that to happen again.
It was her fault she didn't know where her parents were. She had left Hydra with Bucky without second thought when given the opportunity, and she didn't even stop to think about retrieving her parents.
Now she had no idea where they were and everyday it felt like she was growing farther and farther apart from them.
Every file she opened or image she saw just made her more confused and flustered, and there wasn't much she could do to clear her mind. Of course, Tony and Peter both provided decent distractions and help, but in the end all she was doing was putting the two of them in danger.
Aspen already didn't like the idea of the men--especially Peter--going into a Hydra base for her, but now that she knew that she could be turned into Hemlock with just ten simple words the thought made her want to throw up all over again.
The thought couldn't leave her brain, however. She continued to imagine herself becoming a weapon and killing her only friends, and she couldn't help but wonder if that was her fate.
Should she even hope to find her parents, or was her path already set in stone and headed for darkness?
Aspen had been wandering the streets for about an hour now mindlessly. It was pretty early in the morning, so the streets were somewhat peaceful. She was paying no attention to where she was going, yet her feet seemed to be leading the way. The young Blue got onto the subway and sat in silence before getting off at her stop and walking again, her destination still unknown.
Aspen knew that she couldn't run forever. She would have to see both Peter and Tony again, but for now it was best to be away. The girl always had tendencies to isolate herself in tough situations, as unhealthy as it was, but that was just her introvert-personalities way of functioning.
She needed to pull herself away and go into her shell in order to provide comfort for herself, so, that's exactly what she planned to do. She would take a break for a little until she was ready, then continue her research on her own.
Aspen's feet suddenly stopped leading the way and her eyes were now facing familiar doors. A small smile danced it's way onto her lips as she looked up and read the sign. The warm feeling of Stacy's coffee shop flooded her senses as she walked up to the counter and ordered a hot chocolate.
The girl found herself staring at the table her and Peter sat at together, so once she paid and received her drink, she made her way over to it.
Aspen rolled her eyes at herself as she sat down in the exact place she had before. She wanted to think of her actions as pathetic, but on the inside they made her smile.
A small sound echoed to her ears when she sat her bag on the floor, so she leaned down to find the source. The girl let out a small sigh and grabbed the item, leaning up and putting it on the table in front of her.
"Sorry, Barry. I didn't mean to do that." She mumbled to her succulent, rubbing her finger over the now chipped rim of the pot.
Aspen took a sip of her warm hot chocolate and leaned back against the cushion. She allowed her eyes to close after a while and she tried to relax as best as she could.
She was only able to sit in peace for a few minuets, though, because behind her she heard the doors bell chime and feet scuffling her way. She never opened her eyes even when she heard someone plop down in the seat across from her.
"This is a cute place, did Parker show it to you?" Tony Stark's voice spoke through the silence.
Aspen ignored the man's question, and kept her eyes closed. "You tracked the phone you gave me, didn't you." She was mentally cursing herself for forgetting to leave the device behind.
"You know, you really hurt the kids feelings when you yelled at him like you did. That wasn't very nice. Then you went and disappeared for an entire night, which caused him even more stress--again, not very nice." The man continued to speak in a playful tone before taking in a breath and becoming more serious. "Aspen, Peter never saw the file, only I did."
At that Aspen opened her eyes. "What?"
"I opened it and didn't tell either of you, and for that I am sorry. I wasn't getting anywhere with the computer, so I decided to just open the second file. I didn't tell you because I thought you would react badly when you found out--clearly I was right."
Aspen narrowed her eyes at the man before realizing what he had said. "Wait, you opened it after we went to the Hydra base?"
"Yes, what, do you think I would've actually let us waltz into a base if I knew you had freaking trigger words?"
Aspen let out a sigh of relief and took another sip of her drink. "I figured that you and Peter had opened all three the night we found them. I guess I was wrong."
"Yeah, you- wait, I'm sorry. Did Aspen Blue just admit she was wrong?" Tony said, placing his hand over his heart dramatically.
"Shut up," she laughed lightly.
"But anyway, I'm sorry that I opened the file without you." Tony said, regaining his serious tone.
Aspen gasped and put her hand over her heart mockingly, "did Tony Stark just apologize to me?"
"Alright, alright, enough. Now that everything is cleared up, let's go back to the tower and start researching again, I was thinking that we-"
"Tony, no." Aspen cut off the man, "I'm not going back."
The man gave her a blank stare, "I don't follow."
"I can't put you and Peter in danger like that, that would be too selfish. Now that we know that I can be turned back into a weapon in an instant, it's not fair for me to drag you both into this mess."
Tony looked up at the ceiling and mumbled something under his breath. "You don't get it, kid. As genius as you are, I would be able to help you more than you could do on your own. But that's not even my main point, the real deal is that it's not about you anymore. Yeah, at first I agreed because I promised to help you find your parents, but now their is evidence of another Hydra base that no one knows about, and I can't just leave that alone. It will all work out better in the end if you and I work as a team. Take Barnes and Cap for instance, they worked together even though one had a Hydra-infested brain--no offense. So, what do you say, Blue? Are you in for a little team up?"
Aspen stared at Tony for a while longer with her eyebrows furrowed. She was thinking through his points carefully and considered every detail.
"Did you just compare us to Bucky and Steve?" She finally responded.
"I believe I did."
"Then I'm in."
☼
On the way back to the tower, Aspen explained multiple times exactly what her part of this team up would be.
She would be the one to sacrifice herself in any emergency, she would be the one at fault if anyone got hurt, etc.
She also made sure that Tony understood his job: if she were to ever become Hemlock again, kill her immediately.
Of course, Tony argued with her about this, but in the end her argument was stronger. If she became Hemlock, there was a large chance she would kill someone, and Aspen's only wish is to go her entire life without harming another person.
"What about Peter?" Tony finally asked, and Aspen shook her head.
"He's not apart of this team up. I want him no where near any of this Hydra business. If they get to him and do things, I would never-"
"Be able to live with yourself. Yeah I've heard that speech. From him." Tony interrupted with an eye roll. "Peter has said those very same words to me hundred of times. 'If Aspen gets hurt I'll never be able to forgive myself,' 'we have to help her or I'll never live easy with my decision,' over and over again. Blue, we have to let him help because he's already in too deep. I hate to be the barer of bad news here, but the kid is absolutely infatuated with you. I think that even if we tried to keep him out of it he would find a way in anyways and that would be much more dangerous. Come on, you know I'm right."
Aspen did know that Tony was right. She had seen the boy's determination first hand when he snuck into the trip to Virginia, so she knew that if they denied him now it could end badly.
"Fine, but you have to promise me something. If there ever comes a moment where you have to save either him or me, you pick him. No matter what he says, or no matter what you think is the better move, you help Peter first. Got it?"
The man was about to make a sarcastic comment back at the girl when he noticed something. He saw a little spark in the girls brown eyes that made him realize exactly why she was so worried about Peter's safety.
Whether the girl knew it or not, she cared a whole hell of a lot about Peter Parker, and that is what made that talkative Iron Man close his mouth and nod his head.
"Pinky swear?" Aspen said, sticking her smallest finger out.
The man refrained from rolling his eyes and locked pinkies with the sixteen year old.
"Pinky swear."
☼
(A/N: I SEE HOMECOMING TOMORROW AND I'VE NEVER BEEN MORE EXCITED FOR SOMETHING IN MY ENTIRE LIFE!!!)