AKili-Chan: I love writing the banter because it really was a missed opportunity in the series. Yep the idea comes from the sketches. I thought it'd help April if she could be her own person so my idea of the outfit is distanced even further from the Spider-Girl look.

April is good for Reilly and I wanted her to be aware of that. It's a two way street. I was playing with the idea of him waiting outside but I felt that would undermine Maggie telling them that they needed to take leaps of faith.

Wolvmbm: Thanks, I enjoy reading tales of redemption so writing them is just as fun.

Son of Whitebread: Thanks, April does have a way of creating drama.

Nekochan1994: 1) No, this has nothing to do with Spider-Verse. If I do anything with that plot it won't be on a story I'm already working on.

2) I can't take credit since it was the original name the creative team were planning on giving April.

3) She'll continue what little education she's received but it's not a big plot thread.

...

Helping April out had created a cautious type of hope whenever Reilly saw her as Darkdevil. He wanted to feel more secure but he couldn't dare let his guard down. It wasn't like pushing May into becoming a stronger Spider-Girl. They were different people in entirely different situations. He couldn't give April the same tough love and she required more attention. On the other hand it was so satisfying to feel like he was making a difference. After so many recent defeats having even a potential win made him feel more determined. As such Reilly had no time for a social life which Mr. Nelson had noticed. While he had never tried to be the center of attention Reilly Tyne had friends at work, people that liked spending time with him. Nothing big just lunches and small talk. Sometimes he had a few semi-friends at school too. If given time he might had better relationships but he never had more than a few moments to himself even before April had come into his life.

Fortunately his boss had enough compassion to allow him to have more free time. Reilly used it to get more sleep, focus on an upcoming project, shut down an uprising crime family and train April some more. Creating a daily schedule for the girl had been a godsend and while she balked at some of the chores she seemed to like the results. More than that the happiness he'd catch glimpses of seemed genuine. Maggie was giving her school lessons and teaching spirituality. Reilly had never thought about it before but he didn't think the Parkers were religious. Having such an ignorance of the world around her April must have had a lot of questions. Most of them were addressed to Maggie who was more understanding and patient than he was. When they were together they focused on other areas like controlling her impulses.

Maggie suggested a show of good faith by letting April fight crime with him. The girl was nervous the whole evening with her eyes glancing over to him. It was then that he knew for sure that his plan to not give her the same treatment as May was a wise choice. The near desperate desire for approval was hard to watch. He reminded her to focus and added a few jokes to lighten the mood. More sarcastic but the effort wasn't in vain as Indigo leapt onto the scene with a few retorts of her own. They had happened upon a gang dispute that wouldn't last long between the two of them. She wasn't as smooth in her movement as her sister, her quips were more mocking and her hits were stronger. Even so Indigo did well by restraining herself and keeping alert.

"Looks like that extra training you so vocally complained about paid off. Not bad Indigo."

"Please Darkdevil, they were amateurs." She tone was an attempt at bravado that failed because of the shaking in her voice. The smile on her face lasted the rest of the day and she didn't even complain when they spent an extra hour training.

Some days were easier than others with April in a positive mood. He'd catch her smiling when he arrived before feigning disinterest. Other times she'd cry and want to break something. Once Darkdevil heard her having a nightmare and froze. He had no idea what to do in such a situation. They weren't close enough that he could comfort her and even if he did it would be dangerous to do so. Not to mention April would likely be embarrassed over the whole thing which usually translated to violence. The thought of letting her suffer was unbearable but how could he stop her pain without making things awkward? He turned on the tv which April already had at full blast then quickly turned it off and listened. The screaming had stopped and the bed creaked as she got up.

"Did I wake you?"

The scenario was a believable one: Darkdevil coming back late and teleporting in to land on the remote April haphazardly left on the floor. She gratefully accepted it without questioning anything.

"Wha-no. I was up."

"Oh good, otherwise I would say that you proved my point about the tv." He made his tone teasing to cover up the unease he felt. It seemed to help April as the tension left her shoulders.

"I totally could sleep through that." She scratched her arm and seemed to search for something to say. "How did patrol go? See any of the dweeb squad?"

It was her oh-so-affectionate name for the New Warriors that he never bothered to correct her on. Partly because he agreed on at least two members fitting that description. "As a matter of fact I did. I had the pleasure of spending three hours with the Buzz living up to his name. Having miles of tunnel echo his grating voice was an absolute delight."

The disgust in his tone made her laugh a skill which he had been improving upon lately. "I'll bet. Guy seems to love to hear himself talk."

"You don't know the half of it." Tossing the remote onto the coffee table he waited a beat before asking: "Anything you want to talk about?"

Aprils' eyes widened a fraction before she forced a smile. "Nah. Nothing worth talking about now. Tell me what bug boy did."

They talked until she fell asleep on the sofa and he retreated back to his room to dress for school. During the day May called twice marking the first time she had done so in some time. The first call he had missed as he was in the middle of a debate in class. Reilly was on the side defending a hypothetical gang member and that he was determined to win. Class ended before they got the results but it had put him in a bad mood. Particularly the fact that he was essentially preparing to defend guilty parties in the future maybe even those April and him had just stopped. What would she think if she knew the truth? Would she understand or question justice system more than she already did?

The second call came after he left the bathroom on his way out the door. Since he couldn't talk Reilly texted to see what the problem was. The reply had him scowling as soon as he read it. May wanted him to get infomation on a booker? The task was pretty insulting since it was a job she could easily do herself. What did she think, that he was at her beck and call to get Intel when she was too lazy to bother? It would be one thing if she just asked if he knew the guy but to say she wanted Darkdevil to do this personally right then? What was he? Her errand boy?

I'm in the middle of something. Any reason you can't do this?

There was a five minute pause before she responded. I'm in school, I can't ditch all the time!

Oh the irony. You do have other contacts you know. People that have access to computers that can locate anyone.

I just thought it would be faster for you. He was slightly amused to see she texted as fast as him and likewise preferred to type out the words.

That doesn't mean I'm always free. May had taken him for granted and assumed he'd always be there when she needed him. Well she had become a hero in her own right which meant she had to do her own legwork. This was her responsibility not his and frankly he didn't have the time to spare. If it was an emergency he would make time but it wasn't. April needed him not May and it wasn't like Spider-Girl didn't have others she could ask.

She might have understood that as she didn't text back. Feeling irritable Reilly finished his classes and teleported over to his apartment to finish his assignments. Once done he transformed into Darkdevil to meet April for another round of crime fighting. He hadn't eaten all day but he reasoned he'd grab something later. Indigo was sitting down anxiously swinging her feet back-and-forth when he arrived. Seeing her so excited after all the struggles she was facing was heartening.

They managed to foil a looting with no problems and Indigo was gaining confidence. She wasn't getting an ego just seeing what she was capable of. Darkdevil couldn't help but feel proud of all she was accomplishing. A new super powered threat popped up an hour afterward near a retail district. Near as he could tell it was bank robbery in progress with a super strong foe tossing debris.

"Indigo! Make sure no one gets hit! Look after the crowd!"

The decision was made to help with her compassion as well as keeping her from going all out with the new guy. A few teleports proved their enemy had little focus and would be an easy mark for a few nicely timed sucker hits. An easy battle that luckily hadn't led to anyone being harmed.

"Show off." Indigo chided but she was grinning.

"It got the job done." At the sound of police sirens he directed her to the nearest rooftop.

It should have been a moment to admire their teamwork and how far April had come. Unfortunately for them they weren't alone. Darkdevil heard it before he saw the figure shoot another web line and beside him his companion stumbled.

"Easy. She doesn't know and I won't tell her unless you want her to know."

Spider-Girl landed in front of them with a hop and he could see her head dart between the two of them as she decided what to say. "Hey Darkdevil. Who's your friend?"

"I didn't realize I was involved in social networking but this is Indigo." All April managed was a quick wave in return. "Since we're all introduced let's cut to the chase. Is there anything you need Spider-Girl?"

"Whoa, hold on! We're not introduced yet." She stepped forward to hold out her hand to Indigo. "Hi I'm Spider-Girl. I figure it's best to start off on the right foot otherwise we'll do things the traditional way of fighting over a misunderstanding. I've never been a fan of that. Plus anyone hanging out with Mr. Grumpy has to be interesting."

The handshake was uncomfortable to watch as was Indigo trying to sound normal. "Yeah it's...its a lot of fun."

"Well it can be but it's a huge responsibltity we have."

"I know, I got the memo." The venom in Aprils' voice made it apparent that May had hit a nerve.

"H-have we met?" When Indigo tried to walk past her Spider-Girl grabbed her arm. "Wait! I have-!"

The arm rippled in her hold as the limb lengthened to bat the hero away. "Leave me alone!"

Spider-Girl landed on her back, unharmed but obviously shocked at the behavior. He thought he could salvage the situation before it got out of hand but he was too late. "...April?!"

Indigo recoiled away from her "sister" as if burnt.

"I thought you were dead! We all thought-" Tearing away the Spider-Girl mask Mays' eyes turned to Darkdevil. "You knew?! Why didn't you tell me?!"

"Because I don't want anything to do with any of you!" April screamed back. Tears had formed in her eyes and she shook with each word. "I don't want you around!"

She leapt over to the next rooftop ready to bolt if Spider-Girl came closer. He was ready to follow to make sure she was okay when May pulled his arm. "Wait a second! I'm not done talking about this!"

"You are for now!" At another time Darkdevil would have talked but April was fleeing and she was the one in greater need. He teleported away leaving May alone to wonder what just happened.

"I know I screwed up, you don't have to say it!" The Indigo costume had transformed to cover up more of April. He doubted she was aware of it but to him it looked like a protective layer. "I don't know why you even bothered to follow me! You rather be hanging out with May! Just admit it! Everyone else does!"

Darkdevil let his aggravated sigh be loud enough that she'd hear it. "Are you finished? I thought you would have realized by now that I have my own seperate life by now. No one dictates what I do and in case it escaped your notice I didn't want to stay to chat. I told you I was going to help and I am. May isn't a factor unless you want her to be one."

"She'll tell her friends and their hunt me down." April sniffed as she attempted to stop herself from bawling.

"I don't think it'll go that far but even if it does I'm not giving up on you. I don't make promises lightly." That said Darkdevil wasn't looking forward to his next meeting with Spider-Girl.