• Vanessa looked at Harry as he went on and on about them getting together, but she wasn't actually looking at him, more like out the window, she missed him, she worried for his safety, not too long ago he visited her at the mansion, he had bruises, swollen lips, and a nasty black eye, she asked who had done it, because she would gladly go out and shred the people that had done it, but he insisted that she didn't have to worry. "Danny Rand....," Ms. Clark scanned the class room, "not here.... has anyone seen him, he's been out for four weeks, I hope that he is okay," Harry grins, "he's probably skipping, or just dropped out completely," he whispered to her, "no he didn't, Danny would never do such a thing." For a few minutes Harry and Vanessa argued with each other until the door to the classroom opened, everyone gasped, it was Danny, he was beat up again, but this time much worse, his one good eye looked over at her, she could tell he had been trying to smile, but it was hard because of how swollen his lips were. He held a heart shaped box in one hand, and a bunch of roses in the other, but the real change was his hair cut.... it was short, but did that really matter? Vanessa stood up from her seat, walked over towards him and with a quick motion, slapped him across the face, the teacher gasp, "Vanessa Johnson, now you go right back to your....?," the sudden change from anger to sadness stopped the teacher from talking, tears rolled down the sides of her cheeks, "so worried, I was so worried Danny," Vanessa placed her hand across the red mark that she created on the side of his face, "can we be excused Ms. Clark?," she asked, but she had already written two passes for them, "here, take as long as you need to," she hands Vanessa the two passes and both head out of the classroom.

    Danny and Vanessa sit upon a bench near the school, she opens up the box of chocolates and takes one out, Vanessa bites it, leaving only half, it was sweet so she offered him her half eaten one, "here I can't finish all of these on my own," Danny placed the roses down on the other side of him in order to pull her closer to him, "say aah," he opened his mouth, he even made the 'aah' sound which made her chuckle lightly. She placed the chocolate in his mouth, Danny chewed slowly, she could see that even chewing caused him pain, "does it hurt Danny?," she asked, he swallows the chocolate before speaking, "yeah, but I get used to the pain," he gazed at her with his one good eye, "but just thinking about you makes me feel better," Vanessa felt herself about to cry once again, "I wanted to come see you again before I go," he let his free hand rest upon the side of her cheek, a slight groan of pain coming from him, she wanted to stop him, but it was his own choice to touch her, she placed her hand on his bandaged one, she didn't want to ask any questions about where he had to go, it was his business, even though it gets him hurt. His thumb softly caressed her lips, this caused her cheeks to grow warm, a few seconds later they were kissing, Vanessa gripped his shirt while Danny wrapped one arm around her waist and his hand resting on the back of her neck, she breaks the kiss in order to speak, "how long....?," he hesitated at first but he told her, "a year and three months," she lowers her head to his chest, "a year.... and three months," it was hard to take it all in, it was hard to know that Danny, her boyfriend was going away for such a long time, he wraps his arms around her, "when I get back, I'll find an apartment so you and I could live together," he held her close, it was as if he didn't want to let her go at all, "look at me Vanessa," she lifts her head up, he wipes away the lingering tears on her face, "I love you Vanessa, I love you so much," his eye began to water, then a single tear fell upon her forehead, "Iron Fist doesn't cry," she said before wiping his tears away, he laughed softly, "well Danny does," she smiled at him, "I'm going to miss you, more than you'll ever know." She stays in Danny's arms until the moment he leaves, Vanessa sits on the bench alone with only a half empty box of chocolates and a bouquet of roses by her side.

    - - - - - -

    Vanessa stood in her room, her normal street clothes switched out for her fighting uniform, once she places the mask on, Vanessa is no more, only Scarlet X. She strapped on her only weapon, her katana and went out the window. Since Fury hadn't assigned any missions or training Vanessa had gotten bored of just staying cooped up in her room all day, it was spring break after all so she should enjoy what the streets had to offer. "I'm the unstoppable Juggernaut!," Scarlet X rubbed the back of her head, "how do you people always escape?," she took hold of her katana and points it towards him, "yeah, yeah, yeah we all get it," Juggernaut threw the car at her, but with a swift upward slice the car was split into two, "are you going to just throw cars at me, or will you fight like a man," the crowed behind her began to 'ooo' at the comment she said, she grins, but he wasn't amused, "no girl, especially a kid is going to tell the Juggernaut what to do, GRAAH!," he charged at her, the second Juggernaut came at her she dodged, "heh, you just got played," he stopped in his tracks, but it was already too late. A web shot onto his helmet, and with a mighty tug it came off his head, "HEY!," Scarlet X crossed her arms, "take it away Spiderman," she steps out of the way, "with pleasure," Juggernaut looks up to see Spiderman hurdling down at him until his fist connected with his face, "uuhhg....," Scarlet X grins, "who's unstoppable now," Spiderman lifts up his hand and she slaps it, "good one."

    "Is Jameson always talking trash about you?," she and Peter sat upon the edge of a tall building eating hot pizza, "always," Vanessa chuckled, "and the people eat it up too, what complete morons," she throws her pizza over, Peter grins, "are you angry at what Jameson is saying to me?," he gasped, "I feel so special right now," Vanessa punched his shoulder, "ow!," she rubs her chin, "you know what, I'm going to stop him," Peter raised an eyebrow, "you're kidding right," she shook her head, "no I'm not kidding, I'll do it tomorrow morning when he's at his peak of trash talk," he looks at her, "why are you doing this? You used to avoid conflicts like these," Vanessa shrugs, "I don't know.... bored I guess," but that wasn't really the answer he was looking for, "it's Danny isn't it," she chose to dodge the topic, "hey look my pizza hit someone on the head," she tried to smile but couldn't, "I know it's hard, but he won't be gone for long," he placed a hand on her shoulder, "I know Peter, I'm just worried about his well being, you saw him didn't you, Danny would always come back badly hurt," Vanessa looked at the palm of her hands, "I wish I could have done something to help him....," Peter stood up, "we are going to do something, come on," Vanessa was confused, "what? How do you know where he is?," Peter grins, "I have my ways," Vanessa squints her eyes, "you spy on him don't you, you stalker," she smiled, "what! Stalker? I wasn't stalking him, just keeping an eye on him," she stands up, "you're a good friend," he rubs the back of his head, "oh come on, you're making me blush."

    - - - - - -

    Vanessa and Peter came to an abandoned building once it was dark enough, "I saw him coming here alone a few times," Vanessa peeks inside, "are you sure? It seems like any ordinary run down building," Peter squints his eyes, "it maybe an old building," he stopped what he was saying in order to pull open the large doors, "but not to others, ladies first," Vanessa looks inside, it was pitch black inside, "don't you mean gentlemen first," he chuckled, "oh no, no, no ladies are always first," she took his arm, "then we both go in," Peter gasped. It was too dark to see anything, "don't you have night vision or something?," she asked him, "oh yeah, almost forgot about that," he taps the side of his head, "okay this way," Vanessa followed the sound of his footsteps until he stopped, "Peter, what's wrong? Why'd you stop?," she asked, Peter squints his eyes, "well there's a large thing in the way.... so yeah," Vanessa sighed, "let me see this, " she snatched off his mask and placed it on her own head, "oh, that.... well what is it?," she took his mask off and hands it back to him, "I have no clue, for all we know it might just be a pile of junk," Peter kicked a piece of rock and it hit the weird looking object, in just a second it began to glow bright blue, "piece of junk you say," she walks forward but Peter took her by the shoulders, "wait! You're just going to waltz in there?! You don't even know what that thing is!," she crossed her arms, "it could be some dooms day device that can turn you into ash," Vanessa nods her head, "you are so smart Peter, you know I could have just died if it weren't for your quick wit," he crossed his arms, "well of course I am, I'm a genius you know," she pulled away from him, "then tell me this genius, did your spider sense tingle when I was about to cross over to my doom?," he placed his finger up, "yeeaaaahhh, no," Vanessa placed her hands upon her hips, "then nothings going to happen," she was about to head in but he took hold of her shoulders again, "carry me?," she squints her eyes, "yeah RIGHT!," she took hold of his arm and and throws him inside the blue light, she watched him disappear, "hope I'm right about this," she walks forward, her hand the first to go in, but with a strong tug on her arm she was pulled in.

    She pats her self, "I'm still alive," she looks behind her but the thing was gone, "you're evil you know that," Peter told her, Vanessa rolled her eyes,"what, it was instinct, not my fault," she chuckles, "you did that on purpose," he hissed, she turns Peter's head around in order to see the view, "are you seeing what I'm seeing?," Peter's eyes widen, "yeah, I think so....," but before she could say anything else she was bumped into, causing her to stumble, "hey! Watch where you're- - !!!!," the older man turned in her direction, his face was the first thing she had seen, it was grotesque, Peter his behind her, "I'm so sorry, please forgive me," she tried to smile but it turned out crooked, "you wench! You dare bump into me!," Vanessa placed her hands up in defense," I apologize sir, it was my fault," she just wanted him to leave, his face made her want to vomit! The strange man grumbled and went on his marry way, "that was close, I almost wet myself.... hey look he dropped something," Vanessa picked up the long tattered brown cape things, "we should use this, we're obviously not from around here," she took one and wrapped it around her body, Peter took off his mask, "better, now lets get a move on." Both walk down a dirt road that was crowded with people, they had to swiftly weave through the sea of people, but that didn't work out, "so.... aggravated," she clenched her fists tightly, "calm down, let's just ask for some help," Peter told her, she gripped his tattered brown cape, "ask for directions? Are you crazy, we're in a foreign land, we don't know how these people roll," she crossed her arms, "lets just stick to the- -?!," she looks past Peter to see someone dragging a young girl by the hair, "stick to the what?," but she had quickly passed him by, "forget the plan for a second," Vanessa walked over towards the scene, the girl was getting beaten badly by the older man, "you stole from my shop, now you must suffer the consequences!," he held up a stick and attempts to hit her again, but Vanessa used her speed to get there before he did. She grabs his hand, and Peter shot a web onto the stick, yanking it away from him, "get your filthy hands off me you wench!," he pulled his hand out of her grip and went in for a slap to the face, but a nice knee to the stomach caused him to fall to his knees and gasp for air, "I'll be taking these," Vanessa reached over and took the bag of apples, "you don't deserve this, no matter how hard you worked for it," she grins, "FREE APPLES!," a bunch of people crowd around her, digging into the bag, luckily she had already stashed four of them.

    Peter took one of the apples and bit into it, "so good, no wonder she wanted one," Vanessa rolled her eyes before squatting down near the little girl, she looked no older than five or six, "where's your mom?," she asked the little girl, "gone," was all she said, "oh man....," Peter rubbed the back of his neck, "what's your name then?," the girl shrugs her shoulders, "don't know," that's when the girl began to shed tears, "I so hungry, I just want little," Vanessa frowns, her anger rising, "you're a strong girl you know that," the girl nods her head, Peter and Vanessa smiled, "do you want to come with us?," she nods her head, "yes," she took an apple and hands it to the girl, "I'll be the one to protect you from now on," Peter spits out some of his apple, "what?! How?," Vanessa stands back up, "I have my ways," he shook his head, "but this is a little girl we're talking about, you can't just do as you wish," Peter crossed his arms, "I say you just leave her here, if she survived this long with out her mom then she can do well on her own," Vanessa frowns, "you should hear yourself Peter, and you say I'm evil," she placed her hand on top of the little girls head, "look we'll bring her with us until we find Danny," Peter groans, "fine....," she punched him in the shoulder, "ow! Ow, ow ,ow, ow!," she continued walking, the little girl sticking by her side like glue, "you know this is just like one of those movies I've seen," Peter said, "oh my gosh, I'm dieing!," she placed her hands over her ears, "really, you didn't even let me finish," the little girl smiled, "I want to hear your story," Peter smirks, "at least someone here wants to hear it," Vanessa felt like slapping him on the back of the head, but that would have to wait, "all bets are up!," Peter raised an eyebrow, "wow, guess some things don't change," he chuckled to himself, "right Vanessa.... Vanessa?," but she had ran into the crowd of men, pushing through until she met the guy in head of the stand, "all bets on what?," she asked, but the man only scrunched up his face, the wrinkles on his face making him look even more older than normal, "woman shouldn't be here," Vanessa reached up and grabbed the cloth of his shirt and pulled him in close, "I'll ask again, all bets on what?," a red X forms and she grabbed it with her free hand, "I....I was just saying that bets are up on he tournament," she gazed in his eyes, "and who are the people that are being bet on?," he asked, the red X now spinning full speed, "Iron Fist, Fat Cobra, Bride of Nine Spiders, Tigers Beautiful Daughter, and Dog Brother Number One....," Vanessa let him go, "now was that so hard?," she turns around,the crowd of men now clearing a path for her, Peter ran over to her, "did you find anything," she nods her head, "Danny's going to be in a tournament with others," she crossed her arms, "wow, didn't see that coming," she looks at him, "neither did I, but lets just keep going, this tournament thing should be around here some where."

    - - - - - -

    It was getting dark and the little girl had tired down, Peter carried her the rest of the way, "look!," Peter points over towards a figure in the distance, "it's Danny!," Vanessa watched him go into a large castle like building along with others, "lets hurry before they close the gates," she told him. Peter and Vanessa were now in stealth mode, meaning that their suits turned invisible, they passed by them with ease and then the gates close, "dark," the little girl said, "yeah, real dark....," Peter touched the side of his face, "night vision go!," he whispered, he looks around, "okay they just turned a left corner," she crossed her arms, "lets hurry before we loose them," he nods his head, "sure thing." They head down the hall, making sure they were careful not to make any sort of sound, "okay, now their going their separate ways," she really didn't care about the others, she just wanted to hurry and meet him, "okay lets go," they hurry down the hall and turn down the corner Danny had went, she could see a dim light down the short hall, "you go ahead, me and little one here will watch your back," Vanessa nods her head before heading down the hall, she stops by the door, how was she supposed to knock on the door when it was made out of paper, she couldn't just barge in, this was his room, meaning it was private. Vanessa slides the door open and silently came inside, she slides the door shut, she took off her shoes before going any further, "um.... hello?," but no answer, didn't he come in this room? She took off her cape and stretched out her limbs, now that she thought about it she was a bit tired, but she wanted to explore the room, a few seconds later she heard foot steps, she turns around to see a nude Danny, he was drying his head before he finally noticed her, "Danny.... I," she turns around quickly, she shook her head, trying to get image out of her head, she could hear him coming closer, "how did you get here?," he asked her, Vanessa turns her head, "well, I just.... I don't....," she couldn't find the words, Danny placed his clothes on before holding her hand, "tell me when you're ready," she smiled before walking over towards the sliding doors, "Peter come in!"

    "So you were stalking me?," Vanessa chuckled, "that's what I said," Peter shook his head, "I was just keeping an eye on him that was all," Danny looks over at the sleeping girl, "what about her?," now it was her turn to explain herself, "well, I sort of brought her along with us," Peter crossed his arms, "sort of? You would have adopted her if given the proper paper work," Vanessa rolled her eyes, "the girl was getting beaten just because she attempted to take an apple, she was driven to do so because she was starving," she placed a blanket over her, and sighed, "I'm tired," Vanessa raised an eyebrow, "but you didn't even take a shower," Peter frowns, "I'm sorry but I feel there is no privacy when the shower is outside," Vanessa grins, "there's nothing to see so you shouldn't worry, Danny smiled and shook his head, "you take that back," she smirks, "or what?," his cheeks turned a bright red, "flat chest!," Vanessa made a small gasp, "why are you looking at her chest anyways?," Peter raised up his hands in a defensive manner, " I wasn't, I was just.... I was just talking about you, you flat chested beast....," Vanessa smiled, "just go to bed Peter, he took his pillow and cover and travels over to the far part of the room, "night world," he grumbled before resting his head on the small pillow. Danny blew out the candle, took Vanessa's hand and brought her over to the balcony where they could be alone, "I knew you were going to come back, but I was just worried about you," she looks at him, then turned away, "you must think what I did was stupid," she chuckled, "well, yeah I do, but knowing that you came all this way just to make sure I was okay," he caressed the side of her cheek softly, "that made my day," he hugged her from behind, "I'm so lucky to have you Vanessa," she turns around in his arms, she touched his face, "I like your hair," she felt a few tears trickle down the side of her face, "I forgot to say it back when you were about to leave," she smiled softly, Danny used his thumb to wipe the tears from her cheeks, "thanks, I did it myself," she trails the tip of her index finger on an old scar on his face while he gently ran his hand up her neck, for a moment they just look into each others eyes, that is until Danny leaned forward to kiss her. Their lips finally meet for only a few minutes until she broke away from him, she yawns, "I think I'll go to bed too," Danny kissed her forehead, "I'll be in there in a few," Vanessa stretched out her arms, "okay," was all she said before heading in, Danny stood there, his hands in his pockets, this one would be a hard one to explain to his master....

    TBC