Alright guys, I'm actually going to start writing this story now. I know it's been a while since I've updated anything really, but I've been lacking inspiration and time. Anyway, it's going to be difficult to incorporate Rebecca into this one I think, but I'll do my best and I hope you guys like it, if not, I'm always willing to hear suggestions or comments if you hate it or love it. So, here it is, keep in mind I'm still developing ideas and this is really just the beginning.

Rebecca tossed and turned in her bed, trying desperately to get comfortable and put her mind at rest, but it wasn't working. It had been so long since New York, but the memories wouldn't leave her alone. The reminders were always there and she couldn't escape them. The Chitauri chasing her around the buildings, the mind control Loki tried to have over her and the missile. Every time she closed her eyes she could see that wormhole in the sky and her dad flying through it as she chased behind, and her heart would beat faster and faster waiting for him to come back down, but in these dreams he never did.

''Dad!'' she gasped as she shot straight up in her bed, clinging onto her sheets.

''Mr. Stark is currently in the workshop.'' Jarvis informed her. ''Shall I inform him-''

''N-no,'' she shook her head, taking a deep breath. ''Don't tell him anything Jarvis.''

Rebecca pushed the blankets off her body and swung her legs off the bed, breathing deeply as she tried to recover from her nightmare. It was the same thing every night, but it never got any easier to deal with. Walking into her bathroom, Rebecca saw her face covered in tiny beads of sweat as she worked on steadying her breathing, running water into her hands and splashing it on her skin soothingly.

Soon after, Rebecca walked back to her bed and sat on the edge, pulling out a drawer in her bedside table to reveal a small bottle of scotch. She unscrewed the lid and took a mouthful, grimacing at the taste before she took another, desperately trying to consume the liquor. It was easier to sleep when she didn't have to try as hard to put her mind at rest, and after trying this remedy a few months ago, she had been relying on it ever since, in true Stark tradition.

Rebecca wasn't the only one having trouble coping with the aftermath of New York. Where she had trouble getting to sleep without nightmares, Tony had trouble getting to sleep at all. The nightmares were so bad he feared sleeping as much as he knew he needed to rest. Pepper had moved in with him and Rebecca at the mansion when they got back from their break away from this place, and although her support helped him, he still couldn't sleep and he knew he needed help, but his mind was focused on one thing and one thing only since New York, preparing himself.

Tony had never witnessed anything like what he saw in New York. The enemy was no longer confined to Earth and different countries, it was on other worlds, it was in the universe and it was able to come and attack them all just like they had in New York. Tony had been building suits non-stop, creating an army if he ever needed them. His technology was more advanced than ever, he could control all of the suits without even having to be in them and he was able to command the suit to assemble on him without a robotic dock. Everything he was doing was to make sure he was prepared. He worked every night down in the workshop when everyone else was asleep, and no one knew how bad it had gotten.

''Morning,'' Rebecca mumbled as she walked into the kitchen the next morning.

The house had been decorated for Christmas since Pepper wanted them all to have a normal holiday for once, and there was red and green colors everywhere along with a perfectly arranged Christmas tree in the corner.

''Good morning,'' Pepper smiled, sipping on her coffee. ''Do you need a ride to the office today?''

Rebecca had been working with the research and development area of Stark Industries for a while now, but ever since she turned eighteen a month ago, she had been allowed to much more within the company, just as Tony had when he was her age. She could start development on anything she liked, and that's why she loved the job, not to mention it took her mind off of everything and kept her busy.

''No it's okay, I'll drive myself, I'm having lunch with Ben.'' she shook her head, pouring herself a coffee into a large mug.

''So I can expect another speeding ticket then?'' Tony's voice came from behind her as he walked into the kitchen, opening the fridge to pull out a bottle of water.

''I don't speed.'' Rebecca shook her head.

''Right, so those last two tickets were for...''

''A misunderstanding.'' she defended.

''Uh huh.'' Tony chuckled.

Pepper rolled her eyes and sat her coffee cup in the dishwasher before turning to put her hands on Tony's chest when he turned toward her.

''I'll see you when I get home.'' she pressed a kiss to his lips, feeling his hands on her hips.

''And when will that be?''

''I don't know, I have a few meetings today but I shouldn't be too late.'' she told him before walking over to grab her bag, saying goodbye to Rebecca as well.

Pepper was the only one keeping the household sane with her routine. If Pepper didn't leave each day for work, Tony's days would mush together and he wouldn't know what time or day it was since he spent so much time in the workshop by himself, endlessly working on whatever he could. With Rebecca working as well, Tony had no reason to leave the workshop at all during the day except for when he was hungry, and that only encouraged things to get out of control.

''It can't be that soon.'' Rebecca shook her head. ''No way.''

''I'm telling you, Christmas is three weeks away.'' Ben chuckled. ''Have you been living under a rock?''

Rebecca picked up some of the pasta on the plate in front of her and twirled it around, thinking of how fast everything had gone by without her even noticing. Ben still had his job which was located in New York, but he was able to work at the company in Malibu instead, however every few weeks he would have to go back to New York to a meeting or something important, helping the city recover from what had happened. Rebecca worried every time he was there, panicking that something was going to happen, but he would always return home safely.

''It just doesn't seem like it, like Christmas.'' she shrugged. ''Everything's different now.''

Ben looked over to her with a sad smile, trying his best to offer his support although not knowing what to say to her. Things were different now, she was right, but he always did his best to convince her that it wasn't always going to be that way.

''How about we go out tonight?'' he asked, catching her off guard. ''We'll have a movie date, like the first time we went out.''

Rebecca smiled as she looked over to him, thinking about the idea of going out for the night. It had been so long since they had done something like that, and she thought it could be exactly what she needed right now.

''That depends,'' she smirked. ''Who gets to pick the movie?''

''How about one of us pick the restaurant for dinner, and the other picks to movie.'' he suggested.

''Deal.'' she nodded, sipping at her drink.

Rebecca was lucky to have Ben. After everything she had been through, he had been there for her completely no matter how bad it was or how difficult it was to understand. When everything was going on with Shield and New York, he supported her, and he had to watch her fight against the enemies, and he was still there by her side, because he loved her, even after everything.

Tony had been working in the workshop all day as usual, making more Iron Man suits and working on a new device that, when implanted into his arm, would summon the suit to assemble around him like he had been planning for the past few weeks. It wasn't quite ready yet, but with the amount of hours he spent working down in the shop, it wouldn't be long until it was ready for use.

''Sir, may I remind you it has been a considerable number of hours since you have eaten anything.'' Jarvis told him as he worked.

Tony finished screwing one of the metal hand pieces of a suit before looking over to the clock on his wall that was barely ever acknowledged. It was closing in on 5pm and he hadn't been upstairs or stopped work since Pepper and Rebecca left at 9am. He knew what he was doing was unhealthy. He wasn't sleeping, he didn't remember to eat, he never took a break and he was drinking concoctions he had mixed up to prevent him from being exhausted.

''Yeah thanks J,'' Tony nodded, returning to his work for a moment.

''It is advised you acquire at least 8 hours sleep sir to perform at a healthy level.''

''I'm aware. You know I didn't program you to tell me useless trivia.'' Tony muttered.

''No sir, but you did program me to inform you when you're health is-''

''Mute.'' Tony called out, rolling his eyes.

A few moments later, he sat back in his chair, running his hand through his hair as he let out a yawn. He was tired, he had been for days now. He hadn't had a full nights sleeps in months, always waking up to the nightmares and giving up on trying to get a solid eight hours. Pepper didn't know about his struggles, he didn't want her to worry, all he wanted was to make sure her and Rebecca would be safe, and he wouldn't stop working until he knew they would be.

Rebecca's hand rested comfortably in Ben's as they walked into the movie theater after dinner, finding their seat. Being Rebecca Stark, she received many stares from people as she walked in, but she was used to that by now, it was natural to her. Since Rebecca had chosen the restaurant, it was up to Ben to pick the movie, which was fine by her.

''Hey, quit hogging the popcorn!'' Ben laughed as he stole a handful.

''You have to save it for the movie.'' she defended with a giggle.

''Oh, which explains why you have a mouthful?''

Rebecca laughed and tried to swallow the popcorn in her mouth before she choked. She was already enjoying their date, missing the time they used to spend together like this. With them both having jobs, it was harder to find time for dates and nights out, but they were managing quite well.

When the movie finally started, there was barely any popcorn left and they discarded the box onto the seat next to them until the movie was over, and Rebecca leaned in closer to Ben, getting comfortable. She didn't know what the movie was about exactly, but she knew it was action. They first part was fine and she was seeming to enjoy it until there was a fight scene and gunshots and explosions began rumbling through the theater. Rebecca didn't know why, but her whole body was tensing up with every gunshot, her memories from New York flashing back to her. She worked on controlling her breathing, trying not to alarm Ben, but the explosions wouldn't stop, and all she could see was the buildings crumbling in front of her as the Chitauri chased her, taking her right back to the battle. The flashing of light on the screen along with the battle sounds was all too much for her, and as much as she hated having to do it, she got up and ran out of the theater, causing Ben to run after her.

''Bec?'' he ran out of the door, finding her over to the side.

Rebecca had her hands over her ears to get rid of the ringing explosions that were echoing through her head as she squeezed her eyes shut, trying to block the sights that her mind kept repeating to her. Her body trembled as Ben put his arms around her, trying to calm her down.

''I'm sorry,'' she told him with an unsteady voice. ''I don't- I don't feel good.''

Ben nodded his head and pulled her close into a hug, running his hands over her back to soothe her. She had never told him explicitly about her nightmares, however he knew she was still having them, and he understood why she was upset right now. Rebecca was used to the nightmares, she knew how to handle them and calm herself down as bad as it was, but she had never been like this before. The noises were so loud and realistic that the memories just kept coming up, she couldn't help it.

''That's okay, I'll take you home, it's alright.'' Ben told her softly, kissing her forehead.

Pepper was in bed by the time Rebecca got home, walking in the door by herself after assuring Ben she was okay. Tony, however, was still wide awake and down in the workshop. He had taken a break long enough to have dinner with Pepper and stay upstairs with her until she went to bed, but then it was back to work. When he heard Rebecca come home though, he returned upstairs.

''Hey, how was your night?'' he asked with a smile, hoping she enjoyed herself.

''It was good.'' she nodded, throwing her bag over onto the couch.

Tony noticed her blank expression, wondering what was wrong. She smiled, but he was father, he saw right through it.

''You okay?'' he asked.

Rebecca didn't answer him directly, instead she walked over and hugged him tight, resting her head on his chest. After what she experienced tonight, she just wanted to be close to her dad, to know that he was okay, that he was here. Tony looked down at her with concern for a second before wrapping his around her and holding her tight, stroking her head with his hand.

''Yeah, I'm fine,'' she told him quietly. ''Just needed a hug from my dad.''

Tony smiled and pressed a kiss to her head, rubbing his arms on her back like he did when she was little.

''Anytime, kiddo.''

Okay guys, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I haven't written in a while, so please forgive me. Anyway, I know this chapter was a little more focused on Rebecca and life now after New York, but this is really just an establishing chapter, setting up for future ones. I'll be most likely following everything in Iron Man 3 (y'know, except for throwing in scenes with Rebecca and altering a few things, but I'll try my best) so you guys will be able to follow more easily and can understand what's going on with Tony since there will be more focus on him in the coming chapters. Now, just to clear things up, Rebecca's problems aren't like Tony's as his are more severe although they are similar. I threw in the whole alcohol thing as a reference to the whole alcoholism that runs in the Stark family and to also add a subplot. Anyway, as I said, just a starter chapter, it'll get better. Please review and let me know what you guys think and any ideas you might wanna add or just anything in general. Thank you for reading!