"Mama who bore me. Mama who gave me. Mama, the angels. Mama who made me so sad. Mama, the weeping. Mama, the angels. Now way to handle things. Mama who made me so bad. No sleep in Heaven or Bethlehem"

Mama Who Bore Me from Spring Awakening

6 MONTHS LATER

Melody looked in the mirror of her hotel dresser as she did her eyeliner. She looked over to the corner of the mirror where she could see the Stark Expo opening ceremonies on the TV. She rolled her eyes with a smile as she saw Tony's cheesy smile once the suit was being taken off of him. He bowed to the crowd in his tux once it was completely taken off and the dancers continued as the crowd went wild. "Oh, it's good to be back." Tony told the crowd once the dancers left the stage. "Did anybody miss me?" Melody stood up from her seat and put on her diamond stud earrings as she adjusted her dress, trying to show a bit more cleavage.

Melody had changed in the last six months. Anyone who really knew her could tell. She wore a lot of makeup, showed a lot of skin and slept with a lot of guys. At first, Tony thought she was just rebelling since she never did it in her teenage days, but this was lasting longer than a normal rebellious phase. She wasn't just rebelling, she was angry and she was going to be the "new Melody" until she was no longer angry. "I'm not saying the world is enjoying its longest period of uninterrupted peace in years thanks to me." Melody rolled her eyes at Tony's usual full of himself attitude. "I'm not saying that from the ashes of captivity that never has a phoenix metaphor been so perfectly personified in human history. I'm not saying that Uncle Sam can kick back on a lawn chair and sip on an ice tea because I haven't come across anyone whose man enough to go toe to toe with me on my best day."

Everyone cheered out and Tony seemed to enjoy it for a moment, but then put his hand next to his face, trying to stop them. "Please, it's not about me. It's not about you. It's not even about us. It's about legacy. It's about what we choose to leave behind for future generations. And that's why for the next year, for the first time since 1974, the best and brightest men and women of nations and corporations of the world will pull their resources, share their collective vision to leave behind a brighter future." Everyone cheered as he threw his hands in the air. "It's not about us. Therefore, what I am saying, if I'm saying anything, is welcome back to the Stark Expo."

Everyone cheered on as Melody shook her head. "You are so full of shit." She commented with a smile. "You always are good at making speeches."

"And now, making a special guest appearance from the great beyond to tell you what it's all about, please welcome my father, Howard."

"Sorry, Gramps." Melody spoke as she shut off the TV. "I've got to go."

She walked out the door in her tight, black dress and got out of the hotel, flagging a cab down. Pepper was also worried about Melody's new actions. She had a new boyfriend that no one liked at all. He was just sketchy and Tony especially hated him. He knew he wasn't good for Melody, but Melody didn't even really treat him like a boyfriend and he didn't treat her like a girlfriend. They continued to sleep with other people which was exactly what Melody was planning on doing tonight.

She got to a club and danced most of the night away. She flirted with anyone who noticed her and drank a lot. She even ended up going home with someone, but when she woke up with her eyeliner smeared and a man's shirt on, she had no memory of what had happened the night before.

She slowly sat up in the bed, quickly realizing she was in a hotel room. Melody hated the night when she woke up. She hated not knowing what was going on, but she loved the nights when she got to be wild. When she got to go insane and rebel. It was a way for her to avoid her problems. A way for her to get out her anger in a fun way.

When she got out of the bed, she began to look around the room, trying to get some clue about whose room she was in. After walking around the bedroom, she found a picture of Justin Hammer with Senator Stern. "Holy shit." She said in a fearful voice as she put the picture back down. She looked around, knowing she had to get her clothes on and get out. She didn't want to know which one of the two she slept with.

Right when she slipped her dress on, the door opened and Justin Hammer walked in with two coffees. Melody looked at him as she bit her lip with her heels in her hands. "I didn't expect you to want to stick around." He told her as he extended his arm with one of the coffees in it.

Melody walked towards him, feeling so embarrassed. She was supposed to stand in front of him in court in an hour and here she was leaving his bedroom as a sloppy one night stand. "Thank you." She whispered as she took the coffee and he nodded.

Once Melody got out of the room, she got in the elevator to the floor right below the penthouse suite and snuck into her adjoining room with Pepper. Right when Melody shut the door carefully, not to alert Pepper, she heard, "Young lady, where have you been?!"

Melody cringed. She didn't need a mother. She had something better. A Pepper. When Melody turned around, she put on her best smile while Pepper was standing in front of her, her arms crossed as she looked at Melody disapprovingly. "Hey, Pep."

Pepper walked up to her and smacked her on the back of the head. "Why are you such an idiot?" Melody opened her mouth to say something, but Pepper picked up her hand to silence her. "Don't even answer. You have to get ready. Now." She pushed Melody forward, making her stumble a bit. "Your dress is ready. Put it on quick and I'll give you medicine for the hangover you'll be feeling in a minute."

Melody rolled her eyes as she slipped on her professional looking black polka dotted dress and sat on the bed, waiting for Pepper. She gave her the medicine and a cup of water before sitting on the bed behind her, beginning to brush her hair. "I'm sorry I'm such an idiot." Melody told her as Pepper began to brush out the knots in her hair.

Pepper gave her a small smile. "Well, you're not an idiot." Melody smiled as Pepper began to put Melody's hair into a fishtail braid. "The choices you make are idiotic."

Melody sighed and shrugged. "I'm sorry."

"I know you're trying to have fun and get your anger out in some way that involves you not talking about your anger, but you need to talk to someone, Melody."

"I'm not ready to talk to anyone."

"It's been six months, honey. You have to talk to someone. I know finding out the truth about Clint was tough-"

"This isn't about him!" She snapped. Pepper looked at her in the mirror, shocked. Melody felt bad for snapping at Pepper and then shrugged, thinking about how to make up for it. "At least I'm not moping around the house like I did the first few months."

Pepper sighed as she rolled her eyes. When Melody was a teenager, she never had to deal with anything like this. She didn't have a bad bone in her body, but now she felt like she was dealing with a teenager. "I don't want to argue with you, Melody." She finished the braid, Melody adjusting her smeared makeup, actually making herself presentable before standing up and taking a deep breath, getting herself ready for the court.

Tony and Melody sat at a table facing all the senators who were against the Iron Man suit. Since they were the ones who created it, they were the ones who were in trouble. Tony currently had his back turned to the Senate Armed Services Committee and was flirting with Pepper. "Mr. Stark, can we pick up where we left off?" Pepper began to signal for him to turn around. "Mr. Stark, please?"

Tony turned around quickly with a smile. "Yes, dear?"

Melody cracked a smile as she crossed her arms, ready for what they had to tell them now. "Can I have your attention?"

"Absolutely."

"Do the two of you or do the two of you not possess a specialized weapon?"

"We do not." Melody spoke into the microphone confidently.

"You do not?"

"We do not." Melody continued. "But it depends on how you define weapon."

"The Iron Man one."

"Our device does not fit that description." Tony told Senator Stern.

Senator Stern leaned forward, obviously annoyed with the two. "How would you describe it?"

"I would describe it by defining what it is, Senator." Melody told him, a little forcefully, getting annoyed with Senator Stern as well.

"As?" He asked, biting back to her snarky remark.

Tony looked to Melody, trying to find the right words. "It's a high tech prosthesis." Everyone laughed as Melody shrugged, knowing that's exactly what it is. "That is actually the most adept description."

"It's a weapon, Mr. Stark."

Melody rolled her eyes and began speaking. "If your priority was actually the wellbeing-"

"My priority," He cut in, causing Melody to let out a deep breath to cool her down. "Is to get the Iron Man weapon turned over to the people of the United States of America."

"Well you can't have it." Melody smiled at Senator Stern's face as Tony continued to talk. "I am Iron Man. The suit and I are one. To hand over the Iron Man suit would be to turn over myself which is tantamount to indentured servitude or prostitution depending on what state you're in." The crowd laughed, but Tony and Melody kept their straight faces. "You can't have it."

"Look, I'm no expert-"

"In prostitution?" Tony asked. "Of course not. You're a senator. Come on." He banged his hand on the table and turned to Pepper as the entire crowd burst into a laugh. She didn't seem impressed at all.

"I'm no expert in weapons, but we have someone here who is an expert. I would like to call on Justin Hammer, our current primary weapons contractor."

Melody sunk into her seat at the sight of Hammer from embarrassment. She hated that she had to see Hammer after their night she didn't even remember. It was just casual sex, she thought to herself, be a woman and get over your embarrassment. "Let the record reflect that I observe Mr. Hammer entering the chamber and I am wondering if and when any actual expert will also be in attendance."

Justin moved over to his seat, giving Tony a tight smile at the insult as he picked up his water and began to drink from it as Senator Stern pounded his gavel. "Absolutely," Justin spoke through a laugh. "I'm no expert. I defer to you, Anthony. You're the wonder boy. You and little Melly over there, all grown up." He turned to Melody and gave her a wink, causing her to pick up her glass of water and take a long drink of it. "Senator Stern," Tony was looking at Melody with a confused face as Justin stood up, but she couldn't look at Tony. She had really messed up this time. So much that she couldn't even look at Tony. "I may well not be an expert, but you know who was the expert?" He turned to Tony and pointed at him. "Your dad. Howard Stark." Melody looked over at Justin while shaking her head. She had no idea how he got to her at all. Drunk or not. "Kind of like a father to us all and to the military industrial age."

Hammer stood up, standing in front of the audience as Tony and Melody continued to stare him down, hating that he was talking about their relative. "Let's just be clear. He was no flower child. He was a lion. We all know why we're here and in the last six months, Anthony Stark created a sword with untold possibilities and yet he insists it's a shield." He gave them an imitating face, causing Melody to subtly flick him off, resulting in a smiling approval from Tony. "He asks us to trust him as we cower behind it. I wish I were comforted, Anthony. I really do. I'd love to leave my door unlocked when I leave the house. Well, this ain't Canada. You know, we live in a world of great threat. Threat that, Mr. Stark and Miss. Barnes will not always be able to foresee." He moved his microphone down on the desk right before saying, "Thank you. God bless Iron Man. God bless America."

A few people clapped as Melody looked around at them like they were crazy, knowing the only reason he got a clap at all was because he said 'God bless America' "That is well said, Mr. Hammer." Senator Stern said into his microphone as Melody leaned into her seat, bored with the entire thing. "The committee would now like to invite Lt. Colonel James Rhodes to the chamber."

Both Tony and Melody's eyes grew wide at the name. "Rhodey?" Tony asked incredulously as they both turned around to see him walking into the room with their mouths dropped. Tony walked over to him as cameras flashed pictures of Rhodey walking into the room. Justin Hammer stood up and began staring at Melody, causing her to give him the middle finger again. "Hey buddy." Tony told Rhodey. "Didn't expect to see you here." He told him as they leaned in, shaking hands.

Rhodey sighed. "It's me. I'm here. Deal with it."

"I just-"

"Drop it!"

"Fine, I'll drop it."

They continued walking to Melody, sitting down on opposite sides of her and turning back to Senator Stern. "They have for me a complete report on the Iron Man weapon compiled by Colonel Rhodes. Colonel, for the record, can you please read page 57, paragraph 4?"

"You're suggesting that I read specific selections from my reports, sir?" He asked nervously.

"Yes, sir."

"It was my understanding that I would be testifying in a much more comprehensive way." Melody watched him nervously, knowing this paragraph was going to be bad.

"I understand. A lot of things have changed today."

"You do understand that reading a single paragraph out of an entire context doesn't reflect-"

"Just read it, Colonel." Senator Stern cut him off as he leaned back into his seat. "I do."

He looked at Tony and Melody apologetically before looking back to his report. "As he does not operate with any branch of the government," He paused, looking up from his report guiltily before looking back down. "Iron Man presents a potential threat to both the security and the nation and to her interests." Melody sighed loudly as she turned to Tony. "I did in fact go on to summarize the benefits of Iron Man-"

"That's enough, Colonel." Rhodey continued to talk who kept getting interrupted by Senator Stern.

Tony was done with this entire situation, not taking any of it seriously anymore. "I'm not a joiner, but I'll consider Secretary of Defense if you ask nicely." Melody smiled at him as she leaned back into her seat, causing Pepper to worry that Tony was becoming a role model to her now more than ever. And she wasn't admiring Tony's good parts. "And if you can bend the hours a little bit."

Senator Stern rolled his eyes at Tony before turning back to Rhodey. "I'd like to go on and show the imagery that's connected to your report."

"I believe it is somewhat premature to reveal these images to the general public at this time."

"Yes, Colonel, I understand and if you could just narrate those for us we would be very grateful, Colonel."

Rhodey hated how they were overly polite and he hated how they had his hands tied, but this was his job. He nodded to the person controlling the computer and took a drink of water, preparing himself. "Intelligence suggests that the devices seen in these photos are in fact attempts at making copies of Mr. Stark and Miss. Barnes's suit."

Melody rolled her eyes as she pulled out a hacking device and nudged Tony to make him look as he was currently pretending to be falling asleep. "Let's have some fun with them, shall we?"

"What are you doing?" He asked her.

"I am currently hacking into every database showed on that screen to get videos of their 'suits'."

Tony gave her a confused look after her sentence. "Did you mean to put air quotes around the word suits, but didn't have the hands to do it?"

"Shut up." She mumbled as she continued working.

"…are currently operational."

She nodded as Rhodey finished his sentence and put her device on the table. "Let me show you something." She hit a button as she aimed the device at the computer screen. "Wow, I'm good." Melody commented as the computer began to go ballistic from being hacked.

"You accommodated their screens." Tony spoke as he watched her work in wonderment.

"I need them." She spoke a she turned to the other one, taking it over as well. "Let's see what's really going on."

"What is she doing?" Senator Stern asked in a concerned voice as he leaned forward.

"Well," Tony began happily. "If you'll direct your attention to said screens," He looked over at the screen as Melody began displaying a video on it. "I believe that's North Korea." Melody turned to him and nodded. "It is North Korea." Tony corrected.

Their version of the suit took a few steps before toppling over and sending out bullets, injuring the few that were there. "Turn that off." Senator Stern commanded.

Justin Hammer stood up quickly and moved to the computer screen in an attempt to turn it off. "Iran." Melody said in a bored tone as she looked over to the other screen. Their suit ended in an explosion. "No grave or immediate threat here."

"Is that Justin Hammer?" Tony asked in a fake voice as he looked over to the other screen.

He and Melody shared a smile before looking back to the screen. "How did Hammer get in here?" Melody asked in a playful tone as Hammer tried even harder to get the screen to stop.

"Justin, you're on TV." Tony told him. He and Melody leaned back in the chair, taking pride in the chaos they had created before looking to Rhodey who gave them a slight smile before putting the glass of water to his lips.

Hammer finally just unplugged the screens making all the footage go away before hurrying back to his seat, embarrassed. "Wow." Melody commented.

"I'd say most countries are five, ten years away." Tony commented while looking back to Senator Stern. "Hammer Industries: twenty."

Hammer fumbled with the microphone before holding it steady. "I would like to point out that the test pilot survived."

"I think we're done with the point that they're making." Senator Stern commented as he jumped out of his seat, beginning to panic. "I don't think there's any-"

"The point is, you're welcome." Tony told him as he leaned on his hand while looking up at him in a bored way.

"For what?"

"Because he's your new nuclear deterrent." Melody told him obviously. "It's working. We're safe. America's safe."

"You want our property?" Tony cut in passionately. "You can't have it, but we did you a big favor." He stood up and turned to the audience dramatically. "I've successfully privatized world peace." He threw up the peace sign as the audience erupted in applause, giving him a standing ovation. "What more do you want?" He asked everyone. "I've tried to play ball with these ass clowns."

"Fuck you, Mr. Stark." Senator Stern spoke as he leaned forward as Melody made like she couldn't hear what he was saying. "Fuck you, buddy." Melody in return put up her middle finger with a shrug, resulting in a clap on the back from Tony. "We're done for the day." Tony leaned forward to get his sunglasses as they both began blowing kisses to the senators. "You've both been a delight."

The two walked through the crowd, enjoying the praise, giving the audience a few words and then making it out of the room. They were greeted by sudden quietness, enjoying the lack of noise for a moment before Tony put his arm around Melody's shoulders. "Let's go get a burger, kid."

The new story is here! I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter and sorry it took so long to get it posted. I've been busy. What do you think about Melody's new bad girl attitude? Review your thoughts!