Superhero

. . .

So I know it's been a little while since I posted a story but this one kind of wrote itself a few months ago and I decided to finally put it up. Let me know what you think. This takes place right at the beginning of season 2 between "Costumes and Courage" and "Backups and Breakups". Ally is meant to be young, just 15 years old, 16 at most.

..

Ally left her final class of the day and went to her locker. She just got hers open and began to select the books she needed to take home for homework when she noticed the dark haired boy two lockers down. She smiled shyly and he quickly looked away, realizing he'd been caught staring. She tried to remember his name as she zipped up her bag and got ready to go home. Tyler - that was it. But she didn't know his last name. She was pretty sure he was a junior or senior, just a bit older.

"Hey Ally, can we work on a new song today?" Austin asked, appearing suddenly at her side as she walked down the hallway.

"Sure. After I do some homework. Meet me at Sonic Boom later?" She suggested.

"I'll be there." Austin agreed. Then he vanished again just as quickly as he'd appeared.

Ally shook her head and smiled. He was a big ball of energy, kind of like a puppy. She was still getting used to her new friend's quirks and habits. They didn't have any friends or classes in common which explained why they hadn't met until last summer when he played the drums in her dad's store. And even though they didn't live very far from each other they had gone to different schools until high school.

So here Ally was, a 10th grader trying to figure out this high school thing, pass drivers ed, and manage a new friendship and career as Austin's songwriter. She was thinking this over when she met Trish out front of the school to walk home together. Man, she could not wait to get her license in a few months so she could drive them to school. Her mom left her an old beat up car to drive while she was off in Africa for the next three years.

"There you are! Let's go." Trish said as Ally approached.

"In a hurry?" Ally asked. They walked away from the school as they talked.

"What? No." Trish said which only confirmed Ally's suspicions.

"It's okay. I should hurry too. Austin wants to work on some music tonight but I've got homework to finish first." Ally said as they began walking.

"How is the music coming?" Trish asked.

"Pretty well. I'm feeling a bit of pressure after the success of "Don't Look Down" but we have some good songs in the works. We just have to finish one."

"Well that's good. The website has tons of requests for more music. You guys are getting really popular." Trish said.

"Yeah, Austin has been putting together a group of backup dancers to make his performances bigger. He's had a lot of interest for that and he's having fun rehearsing with them." Ally said.

Trish's phone pinged with a text. She pulled it out and got a huge smile on her face as she read the message.

"Good news?" Ally asked, curious about her best friends behavior lately.

Trish immediately looked panicked. "Oh, um, yeah, you know. My mom just told me that I have a dentist appointment this afternoon and I'm going to be late so we better hurry."

"The dentist?"

"Yeah, I love getting my teeth cleaned. Yay!" Trish said.

"Sure. Well, see you later then." Ally said, hugging her friend quickly as they parted ways at a corner. Trish's house was nearby and Ally's wasn't much farther two streets over.

. . .

Austin was changing his clothes after gym class the next day when he overheard two other guys talking. He normally didn't pay attention to what others were talking about since he had a lot of things on his mind: his budding singing career, his new backup dancers, and of course cheerleaders. But when one of the boys mentioned Ally all other thoughts fled Austin's mind. His new friend was extremely important to him. They had spent all summer making music together and cementing their new partnership.

"Have you ever talked to Ally Dawson?" a boy named Tyler asked.

"No. I have a class with her later. Isn't she a straight A student?" another boy named Rob asked.

"Yeah. But have you noticed her legs?" Tyler asked.

Rob snorted. "I didn't think she was your type, but when you put it like that. . ."

"She's a smart girl: she's probably got some hidden talents." Tyler said.

Austin frowned. Sure he'd heard talk like this before about other girls, and he wasn't one to talk when it came to looking at pretty girls at school, but that comment took it a bit far. And this was Ally. She was different - she wasn't just some pretty girl, she was his friend. Of course she was pretty, Austin knew that, but hearing some random guys talk about her this way was just wrong. He was about ready to say something when the subject changed.

"Speaking of talents, I found another really good video on dad's computer." Tyler continued.

"As good as the hot Blond nurses?" Rob asked.

"Better. I'll send you the link later." Tyler said.

"Sweet." Rob responded. "Hey, did I tell you what I got Kelsie to do with me last weekend?"

Austin made a face and quickly left the locker room. He could guess what kind of video they were talking about and he wanted nothing to do with that stuff. He had more important things to worry about right now, like surprising Ally with a great dance with his new crew of backup dancers. He knew this would help him get to the next level in his performances. Plus he could watch out for Ally as long as they were hanging out, keeping creeps like Tyler and Rob far away from her.

. . .

Two days later Ally was working at Sonic Boom after school. It was Thursday and she was looking forward to the weekend and some extra reading time. A new book had come out from an author she liked and she was planning on spending some quality time reading it. She was interrupted from her happy thoughts about reading by a customer with some questions about a xylophone.

When she finished she noticed that guy from school, Tyler, hanging around the guitars.

"Can I help you with anything?" Ally offered. She loved being helpful and getting people into music was an awesome part of her job.

"I was just looking around. Is it true that girls like musicians?" Tyler asked with a wink.

"Um, sure." Ally began. "I mean when you see someone play an instrument well and you know the time and dedication that takes it's a really beautiful thing. How could you not respect that?"

Tyler simply nodded and his eyes drifted down.

"Oh how silly, I'm Ally by the way." she said, guessing that he was looking at her nametag.

"Tyler." he supplied.

"Hey Ally! Guess what Dez made with a car battery and salami." Austin said loudly as he and his best friend walked through the doors of Sonic Boom.

Ally spun around to see the guys and smiled. "I have no idea. What?"

"We have no idea either but it smells delicious. Do you have any crackers?" Dez asked.

"No I don't have crackers - there's no eating in the store, remember?" Ally shook her head and went back to her spot behind the store counter.

Austin threw a quick glare at the dark haired boy before following Ally but Tyler didn't notice as he was looking at the guitars again.

"Do you want to get something to eat at Minis?" Austin asked her.

"I can't. I've got to work for two more hours and then I have to finish my homework. Maybe we could tomorrow." Ally answered.

"Okay." Austin said.

"Oooh, let's see how many mini tacos I can eat!" Dez suggested.

"Yeah! No way you can beat my record of 30." Austin said, rubbing his tummy with pride.

"They are so small though - its not really like a normal eating contest." Ally pointed out.

Austin shrugged. "Maybe not but it's fun."

Lester came out of his office and approached the kids.

"Ally, I just signed up for a trumpet convention in Georgia for this weekend. I'll leave tomorrow and be back Sunday night. Can you hold things down here at the store for me?" Lester asked.

"Sure dad." Ally agreed. Maybe she could get in some reading when things were slow at the store.

"Thanks sweetie. I better go pack." Lester said and hurried off.

"He sure is gone a lot." Dez noted. "Doesn't it bother you to be alone?"

"I'm kind of used to it." Ally said resignedly.

Out of the corner of his eye Austin caught movement and saw Tyler walking away. Had he just heard what Lester said? Austin decided to keep a close eye on Ally this weekend. There was just something he didn't like about that guy.

. . .

Ally stopped by her locker Friday afternoon to switch out books before going to the store to work for the rest of the night. She heard something to her left and glanced over to see Tyler at his locker as well.

"Hi Ally." he said.

"Hi."

"Do you have a lot of homework this weekend?" Tyler asked.

"Not too much which is good because I have to work." Ally answered.

"Oh yeah. Do you work a lot at that store?" he asked.

"Sometimes. I have to help my dad out all weekend." she said.

"Well good luck." Tyler smiled at her.

"Thanks. That's really nice." she said. Then they parted ways and she went straight to the mall.

. . .

Ally worked until closing Friday night, taking a small dinner break with her friends. Then Saturday morning she had to open the store but took a few hours off in the middle of the day to do some homework and get lunch in the mall with her friends who came around to give her much needed company. When she finally got home Saturday night she was pretty tired.

She walked into her empty house and got out her new book to read some more before going to bed. She had been able to sneak in a few chapters over the last two days but she knew she could easily finish it by Sunday night now that she had some time to herself.

Just as she sat down on the couch in comfy clothes with a mug of cocoa to read a little before going to bed she got a text from Austin.

Just checking if you got home safe. -Austin

Ally smiled at the screen of her phone.

I did. Thanks. -Ally

Good.

Ally took a sip of her drink and opened her book. Two seconds later her phone buzzed with another text.

What are you doing?

Trying to read that new book I got.

Oh. I guess I should leave you alone then.

It's okay. Is everything all right?

Yeah. I just feel bad you are alone so much.

Aww thanks Austin but I'm really fine. I'm used to this with my Dad.

Maybe it's weird but I worry about you a little. I wouldn't like being on my own so much.

That's why you have Dez. He's like your unofficial brother.

:D He is.

Ally put down her phone and picked up her book again. Fifteen minutes later another text came through.

Are you really spending Saturday night reading?

Yes. You know I'm rolling my eyes right now. I like reading!

I know you like it but maybe next weekend the four of us should do something fun. You haven't come to the arcade with me yet. Or there's a new monster movie coming out that we could go to.

That could be fun. Next weekend. Right now I really want to finish this book.

But I'm bored and have nothing to do.

So that's why you keep texting. It's late at night, we couldn't go anywhere now anyway. I know your parents wouldn't let you leave at 10:30 pm

So? You are alone and I'm bored so why shouldn't we hang out? Even if it is just chatting like this. If we do something together then we aren't alone right?

You really can't stand being lonely can you?

Maybe, maybe not. It's a mystery you have to solve.

Already solved. You clearly can't handle quiet time when you have nothing else going on.

It's one of my charms.

And so humble too.

Ally giggled to herself. Austin really was a piece of work. They were different in so many ways but their friendship worked so well. And they made an incredible songwriting team. All in all she was really glad she met him.

A knock at the front door startled her. She glanced at the time on her phone. 11:15pm. Who on earth would be coming over at this time of night?

Is that you knocking on my door?

What are you talking about? Is someone at your house?

Hold on. Let me go see who it is.

Ally set her phone down and didn't see the next text from Austin.

Don't answer it!

Ally?

Are you okay?

Ally glanced down at herself: loose pajama pants and a baggy shirt. Not her cutest look but in her defense she wasn't planning on seeing anyone right now. She glanced out the peephole of her door to see Tyler standing on her front porch waiting. That was odd. She opened the door.

"Hi Tyler." she greeted him.

"Oh Ally, I'm so glad you are awake! Listen, the gate on the side of my yard was open and my dog got out. Normally I'd just wait for her to come home on her own but she's due to have puppies in a few days. Could you help me look for her?" Tyler asked in a hurry.

"Oh, wow, that's awful. Um, what about your parents?" Ally asked glancing past him to see that he was alone.

"They are searching the other part of the neighborhood and I'm searching over here. There's a park nearby where I take my dog a lot. I think she might have gone there." Tyler said. He was wringing his hands and looked anxious.

"Well, okay, I guess I can help you. Just let me put shoes on." Ally said.

"Great." he said in relief.

Ally picked up her phone and saw three messages waiting for her. Austin sent them each a minute apart.

Austin, I'm okay. Tyler from school needs help looking for his lost dog at the park. Hopefully it won't take long.

ALLY NO! DON'T GO WITH HIM! HE'S A CREEP!

Be nice Austin. So he's quiet and we don't know him well yet. I didn't know you well when we started writing songs together and look how that turned out.

I'm not kidding Ally - he's bad news. Promise me you won't go.

I will be fine. I'll text you when I get home.

Ally finished her text and slid her shoes on. Tyler was still waiting outside for her. She pulled the door closed and they began walking toward the park. Ally's phone buzzed with two more texts in quick succession but she decided to ignore it. Austin was being over protective which was sweet but she felt unnecessary.

"So what kind of dog is she?" Ally asked.

"A black lab."

"What's her name? Shouldn't we be calling out for her?"

"Lady." Tyler answered. "I don't want to wake other people. I'm pretty sure she will be at the park so we can call for her there."

"Oh, okay."

They walked in silence for a moment as they got closer to the park. At the edge Ally called out for the dog. She was surprised when Tyler didn't do the same. He looked more relaxed than he had before and she began to feel uneasy in the dark empty park.

"We should look on the footpath through the trees." Tyler said, steering Ally in that direction.

"Why don't we stay here and call for her? It's so quiet this late at night I'm sure she'll hear us and come." Ally said.

"It's okay Ally. Just come here." Tyler grasped her upper arm and kept walking, pulling her along. Being taller, older and stronger, he had a distinct advantage over Ally.

"Tyler, let go." Ally said, resisting him as they entered the narrow path that ran through the forested part of the park.

He faced her and pulled her close to his body. "Come on Ally, it's just us. Let's get to know each other better." Tyler had a strange expression on his face. Ally's eyes widened in shock and she tried to push away but Tyler kept a firm grip on her arms. He backed her into a tree and roughly kissed her cheek and neck, sliding one hand along her waist and lifting the hem of her shirt.

Ally's phone rang, loud in the quiet of the middle of the night. She fought Tyler harder but he grabbed her hands and blocked her from pulling her phone from her pocket as it kept ringing loudly.

"Stop it! Let me go!" Ally began to yell as they kept struggling.

"Come on, you like it, you know you do." His hands grabbed at the front of her shirt.

"No!" Ally cried out again and then screamed when a dark shape came out of nowhere. Tyler was pulled from her but still held one of her wrists and she staggered forward and fell to her knees, finally breaking his grip on her.

"Get off her!" a familiar voice yelled angrily.

"What the?" Tyler righted himself and pushed away from Austin. Ally looked up at them from where she knelt on the ground after falling.

"Go away NOW." Austin said.

"Whoa man, what's your problem?" Tyler put his hands up in front of himself.

"You are. Leave Ally alone." Austin stood in front of his friend defensively.

"We were just having some fun." Tyler said.

"No we weren't." Ally argued as she got up and brushed herself off.

"Don't ever talk to her again." Austin said.

"Fine. So not worth it." Tyler grumbled as he stormed away into the night.

They watched him go and then Austin turned to Ally, gently taking her arms and looking into her eyes which were beginning to fill with tears. A sob tore through her and she hugged Austin as she began to cry. He held onto her.

"It's okay now." he soothed her.

"You were right. I should have listened to you." Ally gasped between sobs. "I was so scared Austin."

"Me too. Come on, let's get you home." Austin suggested.

He led her out of the park toward the playground and his abandoned bike. It was thrown on the ground in his hurry to find Ally. He picked it back up and held the handlebars with one hand while keeping his other arm around Ally's shoulder. They walked back to her house that way.

Ally calmed her tears as they went, feeling much safer now that she was with her friend. She always knew she could trust Austin and that he would be there for her but this was a whole new level. She knew he had just saved her from something awful. She shivered at the thought of what almost happened to her.

Austin felt her shiver and gave her shoulders another squeeze. They were almost back to her house but he didn't want to leave her alone. He was already in some trouble for rushing out of the house with only a few words to his parents. He had some explaining to do when he got home and he hoped they would understand. But he also couldn't just leave Ally alone tonight either.

"Do you want to come to my house tonight or do you think you could stay with Trish?" Austin asked. "I don't think you should be alone after that."

"I don't think I can sleep now, but Trish's house would feel better than being here right now." Ally admitted as they got to her house and she opened the front door.

"Get a bag together for the night and I'll call her."

"She won't be happy you are waking her up." Ally said.

"She'll forgive me this time." Austin assured her.

When Ally came down a few minutes later with an overnight bag Austin was talking on the front porch with Trish and her mom. They drove over as soon as Austin told them what happened. Ally went straight to her friend's mom for a hug. Anita De la Rosa held her tight for a moment and then pulled back to get a good look at her daughter's best friend.

"Oh Ally are you alright?" Anita asked.

Ally shook her head as fresh tears filled her eyes. Trish joined them in a group hug.

"I'm so glad Austin called. Come home with us tonight and everything will be okay. When does your dad get home?" Anita asked.

"Tomorrow afternoon." Ally answered.

"We'll talk to him tomorrow. You can stay with us until then. Let's go huh?" she kept an arm around Ally after she locked the house and they walked out to the car.

"Will you be alright Austin?" Anita asked in her motherly way. She had always been a good surrogate for Ally when Penny wasn't available.

"Yeah, I'll ride my bike straight home." he said and then looked at Ally. "Be safe okay?"

She hugged him again. "Thank you. It isn't enough, but thank you."

"You know I'd do anything for you." he said. "Goodnight."

Austin got on his bike and rode away as Ally, Trish and Anita got into the car and drove home. They had a brief chat on the way and at Anita's insistence Ally agreed to call the police the next morning.

Mike and Mimi weren't happy when Austin got back home that night but he quickly explained everything. Considering the circumstances, they let him off without grounding him for leaving the house past his curfew. Mimi was also anxious to check in on Ally as soon as she could in the morning.

. . .

Ally hardly slept that night. She tossed and turned on the air mattress she usually slept on when she stayed over at Trish's house. She kept remembering the way Tyler grabbed her and started touching her body. The relief of seeing Austin come to her rescue helped, but couldn't erase the fear she felt at being attacked that way. First thing in the morning Anita called the police and an officer came to talk to Ally.

While they sat in the living room as Ally recounted her story the officer's radio kept going off with muffled voices. Officer Landry turned the volume down a little more on the radio at her belt and apologized to Ally with a grim expression.

"We've been a bit busy tonight Miss Dawson. Another girl went missing with a similar story to yours late last night."

"What?"

"A young man matching the description you gave me of your attacker lured a girl out of her house last night around 12:30 with a story of a lost pet. She was found this morning around 5am using triangulation on her cell phone in a forested part of that park."

"Is she okay?" Ally asked in shock and horror.

"She was beaten and raped and is in the hospital now in serious condition. I would say you are pretty lucky this morning Miss."

Ally nodded but couldn't speak as fresh tears slid down her cheeks.

"Look, you've been a help. You gave us a name and I've already dispatched some officers to the young man's house. We'll do our best to make sure he can't hurt anyone else." Officer Landry said, placing a comforting hand on Ally's shoulder.

"Okay." Ally said quietly, horrified at what she just learned.

"I'll be contacting your friend Austin as well to get his account of what happened last night." The officer said. She nodded at someone and got up to leave. Ally was then engulfed in another hug from Anita and Trish.

. . .

"Austin!" Mimi called up the stairs, waking her son at 9 am.

Austin groggily shook his head then rubbed his eyes and looked at his clock. He groaned and got ready to roll over and sleep some more when his mother called up to him again.

"What?" he called back, trying not to sound too crabby and failing.

"Come down here." Mimi answered.

Annoyed and tired after being up late and stressing over Ally last night, Austin forced himself out of bed and obeyed his mom. Down in the family room next to the kitchen the tv was turned to the news. Austin gaped at the mass of people in the park where he found Ally and Tyler last night. Part of the trail was blocked off by police tape and there were detectives and police all over the area.

"We are not releasing the name of the victim or suspect at this time." the news reporter on tv said. "All the details are unclear but at this time we are being told that a girl was lured out of her house after midnight last night by a boy. The girl's parents called police a little while later when they could not reach her by phone. She was found this morning in critical condition and is at the hospital with family right now. A suspect was brought into custody this morning and is being questioned at this time."

"Ally." Austin whispered. He went to his phone on the charger in the kitchen and called her.

"Hello." Ally's warm voice answered.

"Ally. Okay. I just saw the news. Are you okay? Are you still at Trish's house?"

"I'm still here. I know the news is awful. Austin . . . you saved me last night." her voice broke on the last part and he could tell she was crying or close to it again.

"Ally."

"What you did last night. . . I don't want to think about what would have happened if you weren't such a good friend. If we weren't texting and you hadn't come I could be the girl in the hospital or worse this morning. I can never thank you enough."

"I'm just glad you are okay. I mean I know last night was terrible but you are safe now."

"Because of you. Austin. Thank you for being my friend. I don't ever want to lose you."

"You won't. Because I don't want to lose you either." Austin said.

"My dad is coming home early. Mrs. De la Rosa called him this morning and he skipped the last day of the convention. I talked to the police this morning and they want to talk to you too. I should go but we'll talk later okay?" Ally said.

"Okay. Bye Ally." Austin ended the call and looked up to find his parents watching him. Mimi had tears in her eyes as she pulled her son into a tight hug.

"I'm so proud of you for helping Ally last night." she said.

Mike patted him on the back and looked choked up too. "Running out of the house after curfew isn't a good habit to be in, but being a good friend is. I'm proud of you son."

Austin nodded as his parents hugged him tight. Mimi led him into the kitchen where some pancakes were waiting. The morning news played quietly on the tv as they ate and talked a bit.

As Austin finished his breakfast a reporter on the news drew their attention again. "We are getting more details about the attack which occurred last night, putting one girl in the hospital in critical condition. The girl in the hospital is still unresponsive but we have been told that another victim came forward this morning. She told a similar story of being lured out of the house earlier in the evening. She was able to escape her attacker and positively identified the young man who is in custody at this time. It appears that sometime after she got away from him, the young man contacted another girl and was able to successfully attack her. Word is also coming forward that this is not the first time the young man has contacted girls in this manner, however, clearly something was different this time and things became violent. We are learning that the boy has a history and pattern of behavior that should have tipped someone off before now but wasn't caught in time. He often went to his neighbors houses late at night and rarely appears to have parental supervision. While the police were aware of this behavior, it was never linked to dangerous or violent actions before this incident."

"Can we turn this off now?" Austin asked.

"Sure we can." Mike agreed. He flipped off the tv just before the doorbell rang. Mike went to the door and opened it to find two police officers.

"Hi I'm officer Landry and I need to speak with Austin Moon please."

. . .

On Monday Ally walked through the school hallways with Trish. When they got to Ally's locker she refused to look to her left where she had often seen Tyler in the past. He wasn't coming back to school, of that much she was certain, but she didn't want to start crying now. Her name had been kept out of the news to protect her as a minor and she didn't want anyone to know the huge mistake she made in agreeing to help Tyler the other night. As far as she was aware no one knew who 'the other girl' who escaped a terrible fate was and she wanted to keep it that way.

Friends of the girl who was attacked knew what happened by now and the news was starting to circulate through the school. Ally still felt awful about it. She had wondered what would have happened if she had called the police that night. Could she have stopped Tyler from hurting that other girl? But the more she thought the more she realized that she probably wouldn't have stopped him. By the time she would have spoken to police once she was safe at Trish's house, Tyler already had the other girl in the woods and they wouldn't have found him until after anyway. But guilt still ate at her.

For now Ally was glad to have Trish by her side as she collected books for her first few classes. Austin and Dez came up to them, the latter unaware for now of what happened Saturday night. They would tell him eventually, but Dez was sensitive and Ally wasn't sure how he would handle it. Ally was grateful to have her friends with her and she smiled at each of them gratefully. Trish slipped her arm through Ally's and Austin put his arm around Ally's shoulder. Together the four of them walked down the hall toward their first classes of the day. She was going to be okay.

...

A/N: Something similar to this with a much sadder outcome happened in my older sister's community last year. In reality there were two girls whose parents wouldn't let them out of the house late at night. There was one who went out with the boy anyway at midnight and her body was found early the next morning by police pinging her phone for triangulation. The whole community was shocked by her death and mourned with her family. Please be careful my friends.