Here we are, back at the beginning of a new story. This story picks up a couple of months after the last one ended. Joei is still busy with school, training, and now her charity. This story will take place through the Avengers and a bit afterward.
Disclaimer: I don't own rights to any Marvel characters.
December 19, 2011
Josephine sang loudly as she lit a sugar cookie scented candle, "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas, everywhere you go. Take a look at the five and ten..."
"Somebody's happy," Caitlin commented as she walked into the living room of their Willowdale apartment.
Josephine grinned, "I am."
"May I ask why?" Caitlin crossed her arms over her chest.
"I have a date tonight." Joei answered, walking toward the kitchen for coffee.
"Oh, do tell," said Caitlin, following her excitedly, "What made you say yes? You've been turning down dates for months."
"I know, but I kind of like this guy. He's in two of my classes and we were partnered up for a project at the beginning of the semester. He's nice and he doesn't treat me like I'm Iron Man's daughter, you know? He just treats me like a normal person."
"A normal person that he likes enough to go on a date with," said Caitlin, "What's his name?"
"Alex Quinn. His uncle owns Quinn Worldwide."
"You're going on a date with Ian Quinn's nephew?!"
"You've heard of him?"
"He's only the hottest billionaire alive," Caitlin laughed, "No offense to your dad, of course."
"I'd be more offended if you thought my dad was hot." said Joei with a wave of her hand, "Well, Alex is pretty handsome, too. But that's not the only reason I agreed to a date."
"Of course not."
"It isn't!"
"But you won't pretend it wasn't at least one reason."
"It may have been a contributing factor."
"Ha!"
"Oh, shut up."
"So what time is this big date taking place?" asked Caitlin, serving a cup of coffee for herself.
"He said he'd pick me up at seven and to dress up. I thought I'd wear that red dress with the long sleeves and the peplum."
"With the little black belt and the buttons on the front?"
"That's the one."
Caitlin nodded, "Very chic, very Kate Middleton. Remember to pack everything up before you leave, otherwise you'll get home late and still have to pack everything for tomorrow."
"Yes, Mom." Joei rolled her eyes.
"Speaking of which, Pepper called while you were training with Barton this morning. She said that we are doing ugly Christmas sweaters this year whether your dad likes it or not."
"I'm totally posting that on youtube."
At six fifty, Josephine had established a routine. She would sit on the couch for ten seconds, get up, walk to the mirror near the door, check her hair or outfit or make up, walk to the other couch, sit down for ten seconds, and repeat.
"Would you stop? You're going to kill your feet in those heels before you even make it out the door." said Caitlin, walking in with a box of cookies and plopping onto the couch, "You look fine."
"Maybe I should stay in and watch Christmas movies with you."
"Maybe you're an idiot," Caitlin countered, "You have a hot date. You look amazing. It is practically a guarantee that he is taking you to eat somewhere with really good food and that he'll open the door and help you with your chair. If it sucks, we will be back in Malibu tomorrow and you can curl up on the couch with your parents and watch as many Hallmark movies as you want."
The doorbell rang before Josephine could answer her.
"Oh my gosh, it's him. Do I look okay?" Joei asked.
"I literally just told you that you look perfect. Get it together, girl. You can pass a torture test but you can't chill in front of a guy?"
"My only relationship wasn't exactly a gold standard, Caitlin."
"Go. Open the door. I'll sit here and pretend not to notice."
"Okay."
Josephine smoothed out her dress and quietly berated herself for acting like a fourteen year old girl. With a smile, she opened the door wide.
Her smile faltered instantly. "James."
"Uh, Joei, hi." said James, looking as tall and handsome as ever in his S.H.I.E.L.D suit. Sometimes she really missed him, "You're busy. I'm sorry I didn't mean to interrupt or anything..."
At that moment Alex Quinn appeared in her line of sight, making his way toward her door behind James.
"Alex," Joei did her best impression of a sincere smile, "Hi."
"Hey, Joei. You're ready," he smiled back, although she didn't miss the look of confusion as to another boy standing at Joei's door in a suit. Joei did her best not to compare the two.
"Yeah, I was actually just finishing up when James got here."
"Oh, I'm so rude, I'm sorry," said Alex, extending his hand to James, "I'm Alex Quinn, a friend of Joei's."
"I'm James Fullerton," said James, though he didn't take Alex's hand, "I'm-"
"Here to see me!" Caitlin had suddenly appeared next to Josephine and was dragging James inside while also pushing Josephine out, "We were going to watch some Christmas movies and stuff before Joei and I have to leave tomorrow. Josephine, here is your coat, and your purse. You two have fun, don't do anything I wouldn't do, and stay warm. We wouldn't want Joei catching a cold before her big Christmas charity carnival now would we?"
"You're hosting a charity carnival?"
"It's part of my orphan education program," Joei said, feeling embarrassed.
"Alright well, you two have fun, be back by midnight, bye!" with that, Caitlin slammed the door shut behind them.
Joei and Alex stood on the front step for a few seconds, still a little shocked. It wasn't until the words "What the hell" were clearly head from inside that Joei decided it was time to move.
"So, that was a little weird," she said.
Alex laughed good-naturedly as he led her down the steps and toward the sidewalk, "It was definitely the most eventful beginning of a date I've ever had. Caitlin sure looked excited to get you out the door."
"She really loves Christmas movies," Joei laughed before deciding that it was time to change the subject, "So where are we going?"
"I'd tell you but it would ruin the surprise," he said, "My car is just down there."
"You're not going to kidnap me, are you?"
"Would you let me?"
"My family and I have a complicated history with kidnappings."
"Oh, Josephine, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to upset you!"
Joei laughed harder this time, "Alex, I was just kidding."
"Oh. You have a strange sense of humor, did you know that?" Alex laughed nervously.
"I'm aware. I promise you'll get used to it. You should hear me and my dad."
"I'm sure growing up around a genius makes you pretty quick witted." he nodded.
"I don't think I'd be able to survive in that house if I wasn't," Joei joked, "But there's never a dull moment. And I learned to talk really fast."
"A trait that I think rubbed off on Caitlin." he noted, "This is my car."
"Well Caitlin is part of the family now," she said as he raced over to open the car door for her, "Thank you, you don't have to act like a gentleman to impress me, though, really."
She was safely in her seat and he leaned down with his arm on the door so that their eyes were level, "Who said I was just acting?"
Not for the first time, Joei was taken aback by how smooth he could be sometimes, "Well then...I guess you can just keep doing what you're doing."
He chuckled and nodded before closing the door and making his way to the driver's side of the car.
"Now are you going to tell me where we're going?"
"You wouldn't believe me if I did."
"We're not leaving the country are we? Because we'd have to go back and grab my passport."
"Well I did have a trip to Venice scheduled but your nanny wants you home by midnight," he joked, "So I guess it's off to that French restaurant on Main Street and then I was thinking we could hit that swanky new dance hall that opened downtown?"
"Oh, the one with the theme nights? I've been trying to get Caitlin to go with me since they announced it but she thinks it'll only fuel the rumors that she's my sugar baby."
"But she's older than you."
"Tabloids don't care about silly things like age and facts."
"Touche. So what do you think?"
"I think you should start the car because there is a coffee Crème Brûlée with my name on it waiting to be eaten at La Fleur."
"Well then we better hurry. You wouldn't want somebody else to eat it."
"That would be a true tragedy."
Two hours later, their meal was long finished but they had yet to move from their table. The awkwardness of the first date had melted away before they had even reached the restaurant, and Josephine was enjoying the conversations immensely. It had been a long time since she'd found someone that she could relate to in regards to their upbringing. Even before Ian Quinn had built his empire, Alex's parents had been high ranking members of social circles in both Manhattan and Miami. Alex had not been as exposed to the spotlight as Joei had, but his pictures had made the front page on occasion, and he was surrounded by famous friends.
"Is it true that you said no to a date with Lindsay Lohan once?"
"In a dream, maybe," he laughed, "I don't think Lindsay and I have ever been in the same room together. I doubt she even knows who I am. My turn...is it true that you broke into a Victoria's Secret in the middle of the night?"
"Okay now you're just making that up!"
"I am not, I swear. I saw it in a trash mag on vacation in Greece last year."
"That is totally not true. They send me free stuff so I'll show up to their fashion shows, why on earth would I need to break in?"
"Really? I wish I was famous enough to get free stuff just for existing."
"I do not get it for existing," she said defensively, "It's a marketing strategy."
"So your existence is so prominent that your presence alone is a justifiable marketing strategy?"
"Now you're just making fun of me," Joei pouted.
"I am," Alex chuckled, "I'm very sorry. Will you ever forgive me?"
"I might if I'm taken dancing as was promised."
"I did promise, didn't I? And the waiter already left the check, didn't he? I guess it's time to go."
"Make sure to leave a good tip."
"I always do."
"Now you're just trying to impress me."
"I swear, I am an exceptional tipper. I even tip at the college cafe."
"Well at least I know now that you are a decent human being."
"I hope you'll consider me more than just decent."
"All in good time, sir."
"Shall we, my lady?" he offered his arm and Joei gleefully linked hers through it, her coat hanging on her other arm.
"Off to the ball we go."
When Josephine closed the door behind her at exactly twelve oh-three later that evening, she closed her eyes for a moment and allowed herself a private smile. Her cheeks were aching from all the smiling and her feet were aching from all the dancing. She almost peaked through the window to watch Alex walk back to his car as she slipped out of her shoes, but she could feel a pair of eyes on her back. She turned and noticed that there were two people in the living room.
"What the hell are you still doing here?"
"Now, Josephine," said Caitlin, standing up form the couch and slowly walking toward her friend, "You should hear him out before you try to kill him."
"You have five minutes," Joei glared at James, grabbing her soes and placing them near the coat hanger.
"The twins sent me their Christmas presents for you. They couldn't stop by because they're on a mission with their S.O., but I figured I would deliver them along with my own. And also I was hoping to apologize."
"Apologize?"
"Yeah," Jimmy shrugged and stood form the couch. Caitlin had seemingly disappeared, "Look, I know that I acted like a jerk, and that I didn't trust you. And I'm sorry."
Joei sighed and walked toward the couch, "It wasn't just you. I acted like a jerk, too."
"We weren't exactly the definition of a power couple, were we?"
"No. I guess not."
"I was jealous. I'm not afraid to admit that anymore." said Jimmy, sitting on the coffee table so he could face her, "I was jealous that you were already so focused on your role as an agent and you were going on missions and holding information that only higher level agents had...and I've just been bouncing from one job to another."
"I knew that," Joei nodded, "Even if you didn't say anything I knew and yet I didn't take any of your feelings into account for anything. You were jealous and I was...indifferent. If it makes you feel any better, I have no idea what I'm doing with my life right now, except for maybe with my charity project."
"It doesn't, but thanks. We're both still figuring out this secret agent thing, I guess."
"Yeah. Maybe we're too young for something so complicated. You know Professor Garner used to be married to a S.H.I.E.L.D agent?"
"Really?"
"Yeah, and even though he works with S.H.I.E.L.D I guess the secrets and the baggage were too much anyway. I mean I've never asked him about his divorce. It's already weird enough that he still has a picture of her on his desk, I figure asking would be crossing some sort of line. But if two grown adults can't make it work..."
"We probably can't either," James agreed, "But we were pretty good friends before, weren't we?"
"We were," she nodded, "I think we were more supportive as friends than we were as a couple."
"Yeah. So, that's really all I wanted to say. I've been placed in charge of asset tracking, which means I'm supposed to know where the agents and consultants in the area go and when and how they go. I saw you were leaving tomorrow and just wanted to come talk to you before you left. And bring you your gifts, obviously."
"Thanks, Jimmy," she stood and he did the same, taking a step toward the front door, "I'm sorry you had to wait up all night."
"I'm sorry I ruined the beginning of your date."
"About that...are we...I mean, is it a problem?"
"Um," he rubbed the back of his neck like he always did when he got nervous, "About that...part of why I wanted to make sure we were cool was because there's this girl in my building and..."
"Say no more," Joei laughed softly, "We're cool."
"Cool. Enjoy your Christmas, Josephine."
"Hey, if you're not doing anything on New Years Eve, would you be interested in flying to Malibu? I'm hosting an indoor carnival for my kids."
"Kids?"
"Um, it's what I've started calling the scholarship recipients. Calling them 'the orphans' felt kind of mean, and well some of them are still in kindergarten so...I just started calling them my kids."
"That sounds great. Maybe I can convince Murrow to stop by. We're supposed to report to the Hawaii base the day after that."
"I hope you can make it. I'll put your name on the guest list."
December 31, 2011
"Hey no running!" Joei called as a group of eight year-olds whizzed past her, their chaperone looking particularly worn out as she chased after them.
"Missie Stark Missie Stark!" Joei looked down at the child who was pulling her bracelet. She was nine or ten, and standing with two boys who wore the same colored tags as she did. Joei had assigned a color to each group home or school group that was coming in, and every child had a name tag in their respective color pinned to their chest so that they were easier to keep track of.
"Yes, Annie?" asked Joei, taking a quick look at the little girl's name tag.
"Max says girls can't be as good as boys at basketball but I says I bet you could beat any of the boys here at the basketball game."
"Not as good as boys?" Joei asked, raising an eyebrow at the boy in question, "Young man, I will have you know that girls are so good at basketball that they had to create a professional basketball league just for girls, otherwise they would have beat all the boys teams. Tell you what? You get to pick the boy, and if he beats me I will buy you boys an ice cream the size of your head, but if I win then you have to give Annie one of your tickets so she can buy herself that ice cream. What do you think?"
The food and games at the carnival were actually free, and while the kids did get "tickets" to "pay" for everything, all they had to do was go to a ticket stand and ask for more, where they would be given tickets ten at a time to avoid anybody hogging certain rides or games. There was also a rule that said you could only ride or play two times in a row, and then you would have to go back to the line so that other kids could get a turn.
"Deal!" said Max, who despite not being more than ten looked like he had pondered the pros and cons of the deal like a mob boss. He turned toward the boy next to him, whose name was Frankie, and they whispered to each other and nodded, before pointing at a person behind Josephine, "I choose him!"
Joei turned around and tried not to laugh, "Are you sure about that?"
"Yes."
Joei walked toward where Alex Quinn was standing admiring a fourth grader's Q-Tip Artwork, oblivious to her approach. She hadn't noticed at first, but her hand had ended up wrapped around Annie's much smaller one.
"Excuse me, sir?"
Alex turned around with a bright smile as he recognized her, "Hi."
Joei tried to be subtle about her motioning toward the children as she stretched out a hand, "Hello, I'm Josephine Stark, and my friends and I were wondering if you'd like to enter a little game we've decided to play. It's just your typical boy versus girl competition."
"Oh really?" asked Alex, going along instantly, "And what would this competition entail?"
"You have to beat Miss Stark at the basketball game!" said Frankie, who up until then had said nothing.
"And what do I get if I win?" asked Alex.
"Miss Stark said that I would get an ice cream as big as my HEAD!"
"But what do I get?" asked Alex, looking unmotivated.
Frankie and Alex whispered at each other again, seemingly negotiating. Alex and Joei made eye contact and broke it quickly, both stifling giggles at the children's antics. Finally, the two boys nodded and looked at Alex, "We'll share our ice creams with you."
"How generous," said Alex, "I'm in. Lead the way to the basketball game, kids."
The three children made their way to the game booth, arguing about the outcome of the competition and leaving Joei and Alex to walk behind them.
"Fancy seeing you here," said Joei, "I wasn't sure you'd come. I thought you were in Malta."
"I got bored of the business talk and waiting in my hotel room for Uncle Ian to finish his meetings. My mother wanted to do some shopping in the Hills so I thought I'd make the drive down here. This building is amazing, did you have it built just for this?" Alex asked, looking up at the open ceiling of the coliseum/dome that housed the carnival.
"Yeah, I wanted something open enough that it would still feel like a carnival but closed enough that I wouldn't have to worry about kids and teenagers escaping. Some of these kids look happy, but there are kids out there that think running away and living on the street will solve their problems."
"Were you one of them?" he asked.
"No. I was too young to start thinking about those things, and I didn't really know any other sort of life until my dad came along. I was taken into the orphanage when I was a baby so it's all I ever knew. By the time those sorts of thoughts could get to me, I had already met Dad, and a few weeks later he had already offered to adopt me."
"Honestly, I've been here for thirty minutes and I can tell that none of these kids are thinking of running away. You're changing their lives already."
"Thanks. It means a lot that you think so."
"So, if you don't mind my changing the subject, did you see our pictures on TMZ?" Alex asked, bumping his shoulder with hers.
"Caitlin made sure to leave the DVR recording so we wouldn't miss it. Did you see the cover of InTouch?"
"Yeah. They didn't capture my good side, though."
"Oh shut up, you know you don't even have a bad side."
"We're here, we're here!" the kids shouted.
"Hello there, sir," Joei said loudly to the game operator, "My friend and I would like to play a round."
"That will be two tickets, Miss."
Joei procured two tickets and handed them to the operator. Before he could explain the rules of the game, a familiar voice sounded behind Joei.
"There's my wonderful daughter!"
Joei turned to see her parents had arrived from their business meeting. Tony was wearing a charcoal gray three piece suit and Pepper wore a black and blue dress with killer blue high heels.
"I just had a great idea," said Joei, "Why don't we team up?"
"For what?" asked Pepper.
"Miss Potts, you and I are going to show these kids that girls can be even better basketball players than boys. Dad, you're teaming up with Alex."
"Alex, is it?" Tony raised an eyebrow at Alex. Of course, Tony had already seen the articles and the TMZ segment. For Alex's part, he seemed to not be intimidated. Joesphine was impressed.
"Nice to meet you, Mr. Stark," Alex extended a hand and gave Tony a firm handshake, "What do you think? Can we defend the boys?"
"Well, I suppose we can try," said Tony, unbuttoning his coat and draping it over the shoulders of a very excited little boy who was nearby, "Will you hold on to this for me for a minute?"
"Yes," the boy nodded excitedly, "I'll take good care of it, Mr. Stark."
"Thank you..." Tony moved the coat to peak at the boy's name tag, "Thank you, Johnathan."
"Two more player, please," said Josephine to the operator, handing him two more tickets.
"Alright, when that timer starts, the basketballs will pour out and you will have exactly one minute to shoot as many baskets as you can. Whoever makes the most shots wins. Since you're teaming up, I suppose we'll just add up the shots for each team and get the winner from there. Any questions?"
"Do I have to shoot with my hands?" asked Tony.
"Yes, Mr. Stark, you must shoot with your hands. And no climbing on. You have to stay standing on the ground. Any more questions?" asked the operator. "Nobody? In that case, get ready, get set, and GO!"
"What are the chances your dad will let us win?" Pepper muttered as she threw a ball and missed.
Joei focused on the basket. It was just like target practice, only a basketball was much bigger than a bullet.
"Well I'm trying to teach these kids a lesson so I'm hoping they're high."
Joei made her first shot, and then Tony made his second. Joei and Pepper made one more each and Alex made another. As the seconds passed, they were tied.
"Ten more seconds!" cried the operator. Around them kids and chaperones alike had gathered to watch the competition. Joei heard the clicks of various cameras around them.
Joei made another shot, Alex made another, and then Pepper and Tony picked up a ball to make their own shots. Pepper's shot went straight through the hoop, while Tony's bounced on the edge and fell away.
"Girls win!"
Pepper and Joei hugged in excitement while Alex and Tony gave each other a pat on the back and clapped for the girls. Joei looked around for Annie, picking her up and giving her a tight hug and a high five.
"Okay! Okay!" Joei called through the crowd so they would quiet down, "I know I said that if the girls won, the boys would have to give Annie a ticket so she could buy a giant ice cream. But because I'm so happy that Mo-Miss Potts and I won, I declare that EVERYBODY GETS A GIANT ICE CREAM!"
A chorus of "YAY" and "Awesome!" ran through the crowd and Joei led the way toward the ice cream stand. She'd approached small businesses to provide them with all of the coolest treats in the Los Angeles area, and most of them had delivered when they'd heard the amount she was offering them. It was winter, but the Southern California weather was still decent enough for an ice cream cone the size of a small child's head.
Leaving two of the organizers she'd hired to deal wit the Ice Cream rush, she made her way toward the Tomorrow Today Pavilion with her parents and Alex in tow, where a handful of reporters were waiting to get a statement.
"I hate when I actually have to talk to them. It's was so much easier when I just had to look cute and smile and wave and hold dad's hand."
"Well, you're not a baby anymore, honey," said Pepper, "It's time to face the depths of hell like the rest of us."
"That makes me feel so much better, Mom," said Joei.
"You mean Miss Potts," said Tony.
"No one heard me."
Although they and been together for a while now, Pepper and Tony had let the world simply speculate on their relationship status, which is why Joei continued to refer to her as Pepper or Miss Potts outside of their social circle.
"...and if you take even a few minutes to look around at these children you will see what I have been seeing for months now and that is the ginormous impact that this program is having on these kids." the presenter at the podium was saying, "Ah, and here she is, the woman of the hour. Miss Stark, welcome. And a big welcome to Stark Industries CEO Virginia Potts and Mr. Tony Stark, without whom this project never would have come to fruition. Welcome, welcome."
Pepper and Tony took a seat at the front row, while Alex quietly made his way toward the back of the small tent that had been set up in the lunch pavilion to watch the press conference.
"Miss Stark, I now hand the microphones over to you," said the presenter, indicating the various microphones from different channels that were connected to the podium.
Josephine made her way to the podium with a smile, tucking back a strand of hair that had come loose from her ponytail. She faced the press and motioned at her Carnival t-shirt, jeans, and red Converse All Stars. "I'm usually much better dressed for these things, I promise."
The press chuckled lightly as they always did, and Josephine began her presentation.
"Before I start, I just want to give a huge thank you to Mr. Jackson who was up here just now. He really deserves a lot of the credit for making all of this possible. While I've been away at school he and my assistant have been texting and calling and e-mailing each other constantly, coming up with all of the plans and the events and the fundraisers and just all of the little details that come with an idea as huge as this. Mr. Jackson has previously worked as a Social Worker and as a school counselor so I know that he understands better than anyone what these kids need and what will put them on a positive path full of learning and growth and just overall happiness. He has been a partner in making this project a reality and even if I had all of the money and the time and the resources, this project never could have seen the light of day if it wasn't for him. So please, if you could all just give him the round of applause that he deserves."
The press offered Mr. Jackson an enthusiastic round of applause and Joei was pleased to see him getting so emotional. She had hired Mr. Jackson after months of searching for someone who could help her make the project a reality.
"I would also like to announce something very important. Up until now this project hadn't really been given a name. Everybody has just been making up names for it like Josephine Stark's orphan project or Josephine Stark's Scholarship or things like that. I think it's about time that this project was given a name, and after some thought and careful consideration, I think I've found the perfect name for it, and that's the Jackson-Stark Education Foundation, J-SEF for short."
From her place on the podium, Josephine could see Mr. Jackson' eyes get watery. He was a kind faced, soft spoken man in his forties. He was patient and nurturing to all of the children who crossed his path, but also very no-nonsense when it came to work, and incredibly intelligent.
"Now that we've established the name, I would like to thank you all for being here today. This carnival is only a small part of what J-SEF will be doing for these kids. So far, there are eighty-two children who have become recipients of our grants and scholarships. They have received school uniforms, shoes, backpacks, school supplies, books on various subjects to read in their down time, educational games and toys, and in two cases, college scholarships as they continue their education and take it to the next level. Today we decided to put school on hold for a bit, seeing as it is vacation time, and let kids be kids.
"What many people don't realize about being in an orphanage or a group home is that no matter how well off you are, outings tend to be few and far in between. Things like carnivals and movie tickets can get expensive when you're looking after anywhere between five and ten kids. That's why today I decided to let children be children in a place that is safe and fun. You'll notice that every entrance and exit, including the emergency exits, has two security members standing at the ready. There is also surveillance all around in just about every corner of this dome. The only way for a kid to get out without permission from their chaperon is if they scale the wall and climb out of the roof. And while I wouldn't put it past a couple of the wilder second graders, I'm sure Iron Man will be happy to jet up there and bring them back down to the ground," she joked.
"I think now is the time to take a few questions, and then I'll go back to enjoying some time with these kids. Who's first? Ah, Bob, good to see you, what's your question?"
"Josephine, what is the next step in the project? Is it true you're planning on building a school?"
"No that's not fair, you crammed two questions in there!" said Joei playfully before answering, "There are no plans for any school just yet. We are, however, looking into the idea of creating a couple of tutoring centers for any of the kids who might be struggling with certain subjects, and maybe even for those who excel at a certain subject to be able to tutor the younger students and make some extra pocket money. Other than that, we want more kids to become a part of J-SEF and eventually expand into other parts of the country and maybe one day into other parts of the world."
"Thank you," said Bob.
Josephine got two more questions related to the project and the carnival before the questions she had half expected came.
"Miss Stark, I know this may be unrelated to the subject at hand, but can you confirm any of the rumors related to your intimate relationship with the owner of Quinn Worldwide's nephew, Alex Quinn? I believe he's in attendance here today."
"You're right, he is in attendance here today," Josephine nodded, "And you're also right in stating that your question has nothing to do with the subject at hand, so if I ever decide to hold a press conference in regards to my personal life, I will be sure to let you and your website's editors know first."
Pepper looked extremely pleased by her answer, Tony looked both smug and impressed as he made eye contact with the reporter who had asked the question, and Alex looked impressed.
"I'm afraid that for now that's all the time I have for questions," said Josephine, "I believe there's a hypnosis show going on in about fifteen minutes at the mini theater which can be found just behind the pony rides. If anyone would care to join me, I for one am looking forward to seeing who the hypnotist forces to cluck like a chicken."
There you have it. Some insight into Josephine's life between one crisis and another. I'm working on Chapter 2 now, and it should be up soon! Until then, please review!