Chapter Text
Peter made quick (ha!) work of the guard, securing him tightly to the side of the elevator with duct tape while putting on the guard uniform. He gave the guard a smug grin as the elevator doors started to open, and then schooled his face into a neutral expression he had seen a lot of cops wear. He quietly made his way to the prison room with his head down to hide his young face, Logan kept insisting he looked too young but Peter thinks it's ‘cause he hangs out with a bunch of squares.
As he stepped into the concrete prison the first thing he could see was a glass shape on the floor, illuminating the entire room. He finally got to see the prisoner, the guys said his name was Erik, and Peter did not know what he was expecting but it sure was not this. Erik looked serene like he was meditating but not asleep, which is definitely what Peter would have done, and a little scruffy but not downright hobo-ish, and still had a vibe of regality and intenseness around him.
Peter was immediately drawn to him and he had no idea why.
The speedster finally slipped the (gross) food down the shoot, complete with a nice handwritten note and everything, and waited for Erik to see it.
As he finally glanced up after reading the note he had a confused look on his face, which further fueled Peter’s signature cocky smile. His smile increased in tandem with the frequency of his hands shaking the glass and watched in pure glee as the glass slowly (for him) fell to the ground.
After overcoming his shock, Erik swiftly climbed up his cell, which Peter had to admit he was a little impressed, Wanda said he didn’t have any upper body strength, which pfft whatever.
“In 3 seconds those doors are going to open, and 20 guards will be here to shoot us.”
“I know. That’s what I’m waiting for.” Peter resisted the urge to add a ‘Duh’, and placed his hand on the back of his neck.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m holding your neck so you don’t get whiplash.”
“What?”
Aww man did he speak too fast again? “Whiiipplaaaaasshhh.”
Peter felt like he was building up like a rocket and once the doors opened, he was off.
As Erik was taking time to orientate himself when they reached the elevator, Peter changed into his clothes and checked his watch, great he was (for once) right on time.
He saw Erik give him a confused double-take at his change in attire as he was still recovering, making the teen feel slightly bad.
“You’re good. It’ll pass.” Wait, did he make him feel weak? “It happens with everyone” Nailed it.
Ugh, now it was awkward and too silent. Peter was genuinely curious about the man and wanted to know why he felt a connection with this man he had never met.
“Must’ve done something pretty serious. What ya do man? What ya do? What ya dooo? Why’d they have you in there?” agh now he sounded like his little sister.
“For killing the President.” Ok wow, he did not skip a beat huh.
He glanced at the guard to see if he heard it too and mouthed ‘Shit’ as the guard gave him a ‘why did you break someone out of the pentagon without knowing what they did’ look.
He must have made his slight panic apparent to Erik, who felt the need to defend himself.
“The only thing I’m guilty of is for fighting for people like us.” Peter had no idea how killing the president would help him, but what did he know? He regularly risked getting arrested for some Twinkies (man he was hungry.)
“Take Karate? Ya kno’ Karate man?” Maybe that’s how he fought, that’s all the formal fighting Peter knew ‘cause of when he begged his mom to take him to a karate lesson but was kicked out of the program because he was too ‘rambunctious’ and ‘got distracted easily’ which is whatever.
“I don’t know Karate, but I know crazy” Ok, that was funny. They both were crazy, and not for totally different reasons, although Peter doesn’t plan on killing a president anytime soon.
In another awkward silence, Peter remembered his mom telling both Wanda and him that she knew a man who could control metal, in a desperate attempt to comfort her twins when both their powers came in.
“They tell me you control metal?” Was he the guy?
“They?”
Peter stopped paying attention and accidentally let his thoughts slip,
“Ya kno, my mom once knew a guy who could do that.” Nah Erik was cool, the guy his mom described was dark and scary and most importantly not cool.
Before he could respond, the doors opened to reveal a soaking wet Charles and gave him a small smile to show that everything had gone according to plan.
“Charles?”
Charles then proceeded to give Erik a hard punch to the face.
--
If Peter thought the elevator ride was awkward, then the car ride was downright unbearable. Charles and Logan sat upfront, leaving Peter to sit in between Erik and Hank.
Everyone in the car seemed to hate Erik, Although Peter really couldn’t tell with Logan, which confused the teen, if they hated him, why did he want him out of the Pentagon, adults were weird.
“Soooo?” Peter was so bored he needed something to do.
“So?” Hank gave him a confused look.
“What are you going to do with a Pentagon prisoner, who you guys all seem to despise?” He felt kinda bad for him, the first familiar face he sees once getting out of a 10 year-long solitary confinement (which would make Peter crazy after, like, 3 days) just decks him. He doesn’t know why he feels bad for him, maybe it’s the weird connection he keeps feeling?
“While I have the same question Charles, my first concern is why did you have a child break me out?”
“Hey! I’m not a child, I’m 16, almost 17.” in like a couple months, but they didn’t need to know that.
Erik just looked at him, like ‘thank you for proving my point’, and turned back to Charles.
It was Logan, however, who answered the question. “Believe me he was our last resort.”
Logan looked at both of them with a weird expression, as if he knew something they didn’t and turned back to face the road. That was weird, but then again Logan was being weird the whole time, looking at Peter as an old photograph, despite never seeing the man before in his life.
Peter turned to Erik, he wanted to know more about the man, who seemed to be in his corner for some reason. Peter thought long and hard about the next intellectually stimulating question he could think of.
“What’s your favorite song? Do you know any new ones? I don’t know if they let you listen to new music, which would absolutely suck for me cause I would be bouncing off the walls, literally. You seem more like a classical fan, which is fine I don’t judge as long as it isn’t super boring, are you a classical fan? I could introduce you to some rock, I think you would like Pink Floy-”
“Peter!” Hank exclaimed
“Oh sorry, I have a habit of talking a lot.”
“I couldn’t tell,” Charles muttered dryly
Erik seemed to have ignored the oncoming questions or simply didn’t understand them.
“Where are your parents? Do they know about this?” Was the president killer concerned that Peter was playing hooky?
“Relax man, my mom thinks I left to go help some cops.”
“And your father?”
“Eh, never knew him” Peter knew he should probably be sad talking about his non-existent father, but he stopped caring about him long ago.
“I am sorry for prying.” he looked actually guilty.
Oh no! He didn’t want one of the coolest dudes he had ever met to feel guilty for him!
“Don’t be I don’t really care, I mean sure, I would like to meet him,” he saw Logan give a tiny brief smirk out of the corner of his eye, “But, it isn’t really ever on the forefront of my mind.” food, however…
“Hey, can we pick up something to eat? I’m starving”
“You just ate a ton before going into the Pentagon?” Hank looked confused, and maybe a bit tense.
“Well yeah, I mean, but that was like hours ago, and my metabolism is super fast so I’m, like, constantly hungry,” he said with a shrug.
“You can eat after we make it to our destination.” Erik tried to say with finality.
Peter groaned “I could die of hunger by then! Weren’t you concerned about my safety a while ago?”
“Peter” Erik’s even tone reminded him of someone,
“Ughh you sound like my mom.”
“Well, maybe she’s right.”
“Ha, Don’t let her hear you say that! It’s true, but still.”
The rest of the trip was spent in less awkward silence, at least in the backseat, he couldn’t speak for Charles, who Peter thought that if he was a cartoon character we would see steam coming out of his ears.
When they finally reached the airbase, Peter wanted to bolt right then and there and kiss the ground. He practiced self-restraint, however, keeping his cool in front of the guys.
Everyone soon followed his lead, stalking out of the car at various forms of relief. Logan went straight into the plane, Erik was behind him but just before entering started at Peter with a look the speedster couldn’t even begin to decipher.
When it was just Charles, Hank, and him outside, and while Carles was thanking him, Peter tried one more time to join the guys on the Mission ™.
“Hey I saw your flight plan in the cockpit, why are you going to Paris?”
Hank and Chales just shared a look, but more in exasperated fondness rather than annoyance, which was a slightly nicer change in pace, he had to admit.
“Do me a favor and return it for me?” he was trusting the speed demon with a car before his mom did? Sweet.
“Ok”
He thought that was the end but as a final farewell, “And Peter? Take it slow.”
Where was this humor when they were all stuck in the car? He liked this Charles way more.
Peter was kinda sad to see them go, but as he drove off (maybe a bit slower than he usually would) he couldn’t help but think he would see those guys again, and maybe then he could hang with Erik more, maybe finally explain why they had that on sight connection like there was some sort of bond. Maybe it was, like in DNA or whatever.
Nah, that’s too weird.