*Hides behind couch* Okay, okay, don't kill me! I know, I missed Christmas and New Years! But I really can't be blamed; I don't take my ADD medicine during school breaks and my inspiration - as well as my attention span - takes a little vacation.
But I'm back! And I'll start with my shout-outs:
New Favorites:
HuntressofArtemis310
New Follows:
kiwi8fruit, ShanTV Broadway
Review Replies:
stinkysox: Yeah, sorry about the sped-up aging and pace. Sydney is currently 14, with her 15th birthday coming up in a couple months.
ShadowGrace: I know this took a long time, but I hope you enjoy it!
Guest: Yep, you got it! Sydney's 5th birthday coming right up!
At one point in the chapter, there will be multiple languages being spoken. I've left you a guide at the bottom of the chapter. Sorry for all the required scrolling!
No quote this chapter; I couldn't fit one in.
I hope everyone enjoys! Please note we're back to Sydney's VP.
~Isolation~
Chapter Three
"Has he lost his mind?
Can he see or is he blind?
Can he walk at all?
Or when he moves, will he fall?
Is he live -"
"Tony!" I shout. "Shut up!"
"Aww, come on, Syddie-girl," he complains, walking up to me and placing an arm around my shoulders. "You're killing my buzz!
"I'm gonna be killing something else if you don't stop singing that dumb song."
"But it's the truth! I am Iron Man!"
"TONY!"
"Alright, alright. Calm your horses."
"Oh believe me, if I had horses they'd be stomping you into the ground right now."
"Hey, there you are, Sydney," Natasha says as she walks into the kitchen. Opening the fridge, she pours herself a glass of orange juice. "Have a good morning off class?"
I smile. "You bet!"
My morning lessons had been cancelled for the day due to "unprecedented circumstances" - basically meaning there's hardly anyone in the Tower to teach me. Steve is in London visiting an old friend, Thor is supposedly back on Asgard (although I suspect he's with Jane again), and Clint is most likely hiding from Tasha somewhere in the rafters or air ducts (don't ask).
Nat glances at Tony and turns to me with a wicked gleam in her eye.
"Hoe lang is hij al in?"
I smirk but quickly school my features. "Vain parinkymmenen minuutin! Hän vain tekee sen provosodia minua."
In my peripheral vision, I see Tony's eye twitch. Oh gosh, me and Tasha are terrible. But it's so much fun to irritate him!
Nat quickly replies. "Pourquoi n'avez-vous pas le frapper encore? Ça va le faire taire."
"Nah. Pabbi myndi ekki vera vitalus, en ólíkt pér, ég ekki eins og fólk óttast mig."
She rolls her eyes. "Qualunque cosa. Hai visto Clint?"
I motion discreetly to the ducts above us.
Tasha rolls her eyes again and, sighing, drains her juice and jogs into the hall toward the nearest vent.
I turn to see Tony glaring at me.
"What?" I ask innocently. He grumbles something and stomps off as I stifle a giggle.
Although he has contacts and attends meetings around the world, Tony Stark has never taken the time learn an foreign languages. Which makes it oh so easy to mess with him by speaking in multiple dialects in front of him. One thing you should know about Tony: He HATES not knowing what's going on.
Above me, I hear a thud and then Clint's voice. "No! Tasha! I don't want to go to training!"
As his shouted protests fade away, I begin to laugh.
~Isolation~
I can remember my life pretty well, more-so than most people, I think. Maybe it's because my time in Stark Tower is such a vast change from life in the orphanage that my mind decided to save everything.
My fifth birthday is probably one of my favorite memories. I'd been a resident of the Tower for about two years and had already fully adjusted with perfect ease.
Why did I enjoy my fifth birthday so much? Because of Snoopy.
I'd dropped hints repeatedly about how much I wanted a puppy. As a little girl, it was probably one of the most important things to me. I talked about dogs for months, working up to dropping the birthday wish on my family. I was so sure they wouldn't say no.
Then I'd found out Steve is allergic to animal fur.
I was devastated but refused to let it show; I didn't want Steve to feel bad. He couldn't control what he was allergic to. I began spending time in my room, surrounded by my stuffed dog collection, pretending they were alive and needed to be cared for.
On the day of my fifth birthday, the team - plus Pepper, Jane, Darcy, and Agent Maria Hill from SHIELD - played games with me, watched movies, and ate cake for lunch. When it came to present time, I got a bunch of cool stuff, including more stuffed dogs and a Polly Pocket set. Soon, the only people left who hadn't given me anything were Steve and Tony. This is the part I remember most clearly.
FLASHBACK
Steve crouched down in front of me. "Sydney," he started. "I know how much you've been wanting a puppy, and you don't know how bad I feel that you can't have a real one because of my allergy."
I started to interrupt, to tell him it was okay, but he held up a hand to stop me and continued. "So I talked to Tony, and he agreed to collaborate with me on your birthday present. Do you know what collaborate means?"
I shook one head.
"It means we worked together." He looked at Tony and nodded.
Tony put an unwrapped cardboard box with holes in my lap. The box seemed to pulse slightly. Confused, I lifted the lid and gasped.
Inside lay a sleeping dog. It wasn't a puppy exactly, but still young. It looked like a beagle.
At the sound of my gasp, the dog lifted it's head and gave me a doggy smile, its pink tongue lolling out of its mouth. It stood up and placed its front paws against the edge of the box so it could see me.
I looked at Steve. "But your allergies...!"
He shook his head. "It's not a real dog," he explained. "It's robotic. I told Tony I really wanted you to have a dog, so he made one."
I gaped at Tony, open-mouthed and in awe.
He chuckled. "It doesn't need to eat or use the bathroom and it'll never get sick, but otherwise it's pretty much the same as a real dog. It'll sleep when you tell it to and you can even program it with a password to keep others from messing with it. You can teach it tricks and take it for walks, even give it baths; I made it waterproof. It'll listen to you, too; if you want it to shut up, it will."
"Is it a boy or girl?" I asked.
"Either. I didn't make it gender-specific."
I thought. "I think I'll name you... Snoopy! 'Cause you're a beagle and Snoopy is so cute!"
Snoopy barked twice and wagged his tail happily.
My eyes filled with tears and I looked at two of my uncles. "Thank you."
They both wrapped me in their arms and squeezed gently.
"You're welcome," Tony said.
"Happy Birthday, Sydney."
END FLASHBACK
Getting Snoopy was probably one of the best moments of my life. A dog is a girl's best friend, and unlike a real dog, I'll never lose Snoopy. He may be a machine, an invention created in Tony's workshop, but he'll always be with me, no matter how long I live.
~Isolation~
I don't normally like to end with a flashback, but it works for this chapter. Isn't Snoopy cute?
Here's the language guide I promised you.
"Hoe lang is hij al in?" ("How long has he been at it?") - Dutch
"Vain parinkymmenen minuutin! Hän vain tekee sen provosodia minua." ("Only the past twenty minutes! He just does it to provoke me.") - Finnish
"Pourquoi n'avez-vous pas le frapper encore? Ça va le faire taire." ("Why haven't you hit him yet? That'll shut him up.") - French
"Nah. Pabbi myndi ekki vera vitalus, en ólíkt pér, ég ekki eins og fólk óttast mig." ("Nah. Dad wouldn't be mad, but unlike you, I don't like people fearing me." - Icelandic
"Qualunque cosa. Hai visto Clint?" ("Whatever. Have you seen Clint?") - Italian
I'd only planned on a couple languages, but it's so much fun translating stuff! I found all translation using Google Translate. If any of them are wrong... blame Google.
Please review? If you have any flashback requests, feel free to let me know!
