Redcrosse
Antonia Stark comes into the world silently, so still the doctors are worried about brain damage and the possibility of disability. Her mother lies just as still on the bed, exhausted and grey coated in a thin sheen of sweat, her full lips forming a pitying frown; Howard will not be pleased with a girl. When the doctors decide there is nothing wrong with the child, they move onto the mother, however there is little they can do. Maria Stark can never again bear a child for fear of death. It is only when her mother starts sobbing that the silent child begins to wail.
Howard Stark waits with Obadiah Stane in the lounge, cigars in hand discussing their latest business deal, both waiting for the wails that will signify the birth of a legacy. They hear the wails long after the nurse has been and gone, neither of them speak.
In the corner a butler waits, expectant of a new master, hopeful to hear of a mistress. He worries about all of their futures as he hears that the Stark legacy can never be held by a male heir. He looks down as he hears Obadiah speak of another wife, another chance for an heir. He thinks of Peggy Carter when Howard agrees a woman cannot fight, a woman cannot rule and a woman shall not inherit, it is a gentle proud smile that rests on his face as he serves them their drinks.
Maria Stark laughs when she sees Howard's face as he enters the room, the slight sway in his step, the stench on his breath all too strong. She smiles when he looks at their daughter and knows that he will not accept this child, will never love her; after all Howard has only loved an idea of a man and even the faint respect he holds for her as his wife will not be enough to save both her and her daughter. After he leaves she looks at her child, this beautiful thing that she has created, the daughter she has loved since she first kicked inside her belly and knows that only one of them will come out of this family intact.
The newly named Antonia Elizabeth Margaret Stark stops crying and slips into sleep, dreaming of another mother who looked at her child so sadly and another father who had only ever wished for a son and knows that she will shine.
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Authors note: Those who follow me will know update times are awful and unreliable, this is because I am in university and I can't do much more than apologise but life gets in the way. Hopefully I'll be able to get another chapter for one of my other stories out soon, I make no promises.
Thanks for reading,
Suchanarcissist
