Thanks to Silverpedals1402 (Wow, thanks! I'm glad you liked it. :D Sorry for the wait. :/), Finny-Kun Goddess (Thanks! I hope you continue to enjoy it!), ImaAvenger (Thanks! Haha, no problem. ;) ONWARD!), Carpetbakr (Because... I am EVIL! Mwahaha! I know, I thought it was odd, too, at first, but then it became too compelling an idea to pass up. Aw, thank you!), PercyJacksonLover14 (Thanks, I'm glad you think so! I'm always trying to practice emotions and such... So thanks! :) ), and Silvertongued Dreams (More of a hallucination, at least in my mind. And thank you! I'm really glad you like it! :D ) plus whoever else reads this! And roninarnia!

I AM TERRIBLY SORRY FOR THE WAIT! Hurricane Isaac, although not carrying a lot of wind, did most of its damage in water. While my family, and my community for the most part (compared to other places) didn't get it quite as bad as we could have, we still had a lot of damage. A few days after the hurricane a tree that had been uprooted feel on a power line. While most of our power was fixd in the next few days, our wifi has yet to be fixed. I'm at McDonald's typing this because I feel terrible about the long wait. :(

I hope everyone is safe!

This chapter isn't as good as it could have been, but when our wifinis fixed I'll go back and edit. ;)

Chapter Three

Pepper didn't get hardly any sleep that night, staying up late to finish the homework she had procrastinated to finish all week. At one point she had started to nod off, but the vivid dream of flying through the air, dipping and spinning thousands of feet above the city in light purple and white armor had been dispelled by the shriek of a woman in the distance, making the girl lurch awake, tensing and listening alertly. Cries and screams had become as common as the sound of car horns honking in New York, but every time she heard someone screaming for help it still sent shivers crawling up her spine.

Eventually, head bobbing threateningly as though she were about to fall asleep, she checked her alarm, blinking rapidly to shake the blurriness in her vision and make the blazing red numbers come into focus. She gasped, realizing it was past seven-thirty in the morning, jumping up off of the bed.

"Shoot, shoot, shoot, I'm late," she mumbled under her breath, running to grab her black high top converse. As she plopped down on the edge of her bed, yanking the scuffed shoes on and beginning to lace them up, she decided to take a shorter route to school. It was a lot more crowded than the one she usually took, but if she was late today then she would be facing up to a week in detention. She hurriedly stuffed her books back in her backpack, yanking it over her arms and rushing for the bedroom door when she caught sight of her reflection in a mirror and cringed. Her hair was sticking up every which way and under her eyes were dark circles. No way was she leaving the house like that, detention or not.

Another six minutes later, after fixing her hair, brushing her teeth and dabbing some makeup under her eyes to hide the darkness, she was rushing down the sidewalk in a surging sea of pedestrians. As she walked she rummaged through her unzipped backpack awkwardly swinging off of her arm and bouncing off her side, trying to locate a book to make sure she hadn't left it at home. Suddenly she gasped as she slammed into someone, crushing the air out of her lungs for a moment as she collapsed onto the sidewalk, letting out a little groan when she saw all of her books had fallen onto the damp cement.

"I'm so sorry!" a feminine voice above her gasped, and a moment later a tall woman in a long sleeved navy blue blouse and lengthy skirt was kneeling beside her on her knees helping her gather her things. "I wasn't watching where I was going."

"No, it's my bad," Pepper responded distractedly, glancing quickly at her before returning her attention to cramming her books into her backpack. "I was walking too fast and I was looking in my bag and-"

"Maria? Are you okay?"

Pepper's blood felt like it had been injected with ice as she looked up to see immaculately dressed Howard Stark watching them from the side of a jet black limousine parked several yards away. She glanced back at the woman, who was smiling apologetically at her, as the millionaire began to stride over to them.

"Oh, no no no no..." she mumbled as the pieces clicked together in her head. She had just ran into the wife of one of the richest, most powerful men on the Earth. Could she just die now?

She finished with her books, zipping up her bag and straightening as the inventor reached them, gently pulling his wife to her feet by tugging on her forearm. Blushing crazily, Pepper stuttered, "I'm so, so, so sorry! I didn't mean to- I was in a hurry and- gah, I'm so sorry!"

Howard let out a deep chuckle, smiling tiredly, although warmly, at her. "That's alright, no harm done."

Her face burning, Pepper awkwardly slung her backpack over her shoulder, finally daring to meet eyes with the woman. "Well, um, I'm really sorry, I'll try to be more careful..." The redhead broke off in mid sentence, tilting her head to the side as she stared at the woman, certain distinguishing features seeming to stand out to her. Dark ebony hair swept over her forehead and framed the sides of her face, cut off at her shoulders, and wide electric blue eyes gazed back at her filled with a kind of mischievous sparkle. It took her a second to place who the woman resembled, but then she let out a tiny gasp as she thought of the man from her dreams. Staring at the woman, and then the millionaire, they both seemed to have dozens of the same characteristics as Tony. And then there was the fact Howard Stark was a genius...and that armor couldn't have been created by just anyone...

Pepper felt her heart racing as her mouth opened and clamped shut again, trying to say something although she didn't know what. She glanced at Howard, who was watching her quizzically, and a name pushed its way to the front of her mind.

Tony Stark.

The girl stumbled backwards, a hand clasping over her mouth in utter shock as she gaped at the two in recognition. Suddenly it seemed as though thousands of memories were flooding her consciousness, images and voices and snatches of conversation, all revolving around the man who had been occupying her dreams. Tony Stark. Tony the scientist, the inventor, a hero clad in crimson red armor, her friend. His voice echoed around her mind as years of memories poured into her head, nearly overwhelming her as she bit back a groan, kneeling forwards and holding her head between the palms of her hands.

How on Earth had she forgotten him?

The next thing she recalled she was sprinting across the scuffed pavement, book bag bouncing lightly against her back as tears threatened to spill from her eyes, the bewildered would-be parents of the hero watching as she ran.