A/N: Greetings, salutations, and etc! So, after reading your reviews and a VERY helpful PM I have made the Authorial decision to axe all shipping for story. Now, before you all say, "But in last chapter you said…" I just want you all to hear me out. The truth is I did not even want to do pairings in the first place. Half of why is that I am out of my depth when it comes to romance because I have no experience or real world knowledge when it comes romance and I have never written any form of romance material at all whatsoever. The other half of why is that I knew that in all honesty there was no I could pair any RWBY character with anyone and win. The only reason I was going to pair Ruby with anyone at all to begin with was because you all seemed eager to have Ruby be paired with someone and I felt pressured to attempt to pair her with someone because I did not want to disappoint anyone by not pairing her with anyone. So, I want to take a moment to give a HUGE thank you to the person that sent me the PM in question (They know who I am talking about) for the very helpful words of advice they gave me that helped me muster the courage to assert what I really wanted to do with this story.

Now, to address a concern about including the X-men in this story, I already have things planned out for future events for this story that require the existence of both the X-men and the Brotherhood of Mutants in this story. However, the X-men and the Brotherhood won't be too involved, they and their members will mostly just be name dropped, except for Magneto because you can't have a proper Marvel story with Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch and not have Magneto be their dad and not have him show up.

\Next to address a concern from a reader, who I am sure will know who I am referring to, that was written in a review that not only seemed to have been written while the reader was drunk, but that also basically stated, at least as far as I could tell since it took me a minute to decipher what they were saying, that my contemplating pairing Ruby with a girl meant that I hated opposite gender relationships. I can assure you that this is not the case. The only reason I had even contemplated pairing Ruby with Rahne was because the fact that Rahne's religious beliefs cause her to view herself as an abomination and Ruby's reaction to finding out that Rahne can become a wolf would be, "Cool!" This means that if anyone could convince Rahne that she is not an abomination and that she should be more accepting of who and what she is, it would be Ruby. Additionally, I am not a hateful person, I may strongly dislike the taste of flavorless vegetables, and I may strongly dislike horror movies because characters in horror movies have less intelligence then my family's cat, but I don't hate people or things.

Now, while there will not be any pairings, I am still going to have Tony and Pepper get engaged because I feel like unless I killed one of them, which would be a surefire way to lose all of you as continuous readers of this story, it would be a little too OOC of them to not end up at least getting engaged. I am not sure if I should actually have them go beyond being engaged and get married because I don't know what lies in store for them in the movies after the end of the events of Infinity War. However, I am getting ahead of myself, since we are just only starting to see events from the first Iron Man movie in this chapter.

Now, enough chit-chat! Story Time!


Chapter 7: What Happens In Vegas, Stays in Vegas?


"Nooo... moan... ooh... horrible sounds... lamentations and misery... mmeeehhhh..."

Yang rolled her eyes at her sister's antics and punched the little dweeb in the arm. Honestly, it was just a dress. She was being overtly melodramatic for nothing.

"OW! Yaaaang, why'd you punch me?"

"Because you're being annoying. Lighten up Rubes! Aren't you excited to go to Vegas?"

Ruby huffed and looked out the window of the airplane. In all honesty, she wasn't excited to go to Vegas. Sure, she wanted to be there to support her dad while he received that award (despite the fact that Tony had made it abundantly clear he didn't give two shits about it), and part of her would enjoy seeing the lights and sounds of the Entertainment Capital of the world.

However, this would be the first outing Ruby and Yang had participated in as a family, and Tony planned on announcing the two girls as his daughters during the ceremony. It made Ruby feel uncomfortable, knowing that in just a few short hours, the world would know that she existed. That isn't to say she didn't want Tony to tell people; Ruby was smart enough to know that waiting until her identity leaked by itself was a very bad idea. But that didn't make her any less nervous about what people were going to say about her. She didn't want to be a celebrity; Ruby was perfectly content staying in Tony's wonderful garage and tinkering all day long.

The fact that Yang and Pepper had stuffed her into a formal dress that made her look 'cute,' according to them, was just the unpleasant icing on the cake. Ruby thought she looked like a dress up doll, and not in a good way. How did people even walk in heels anyways?

Ruby's thoughts were interrupted when Yang bounded out of her seat and began poking around the inside of the private jet.

"Yang! What are you doing?"

Yang sent her sister a cheeky grin and said, "Oh, come on Ruby, don't you want to see what kind of cool stuff Tony has in here?"

Ruby scratched the back of her head. The thought was very tempting, now that she thought about it. Her father did have a penchant for upgrading everything he owned (which meant practically all of Ruby's new belongings were tricked out. Which was awesome).

"Well uh... yeah, but what if he comes out and sees us messing with his jet?" Ruby asked. She didn't want to annoy Tony.

Both sisters looked to the door that led to the small bedroom where their adoptive father was currently working on his laptop. He'd asked for some peace and quiet during the hour long flight to Vegas from Malibu.

Yang put a finger to her lips and whispered, "We'll just have to be really quiet."

Ruby paused, torn, before she finally made up her mind. She was bored anyways. What was the worst that could happen?

. . .

Tony Stark frowned, glaring at his computer screen. Frustratingly, the words he sought were eluding him, the speech that he had planned on writing simply not forming. It wasn't usually this hard... then again, most times, he wasn't writing a speech to reveal his daughters to the world.

Tony was still unsure about whether this was the right move. Sure, people were going to find out sooner or later, and it was better to tell them about it now. But Ruby was still so young and vulnerable (Yang slightly less so), and he knew the kinds of things the paparazzi would write about her and Yang. The two of them wouldn't have a moment's peace once he did this, their every step hounded by photographers. It was a life Tony had known since he was born, and he knew how to deal with, but the girls didn't.

Tony ran a hand through his hair and sniffed, eyes scanning over what he had written before deleting it all. He began typing again shortly.

"Let's see... do, do, do... accept the award, blah, blah, blah. Mmm... how about this?" Tony said as an idea struck him.

"Thank you, ladies and gentleman, for being here tonight, I'm sure you'd all rather be out shooting craps than sitting in here with me. I know I would. No, but really, it's an honour, I don't have many of these... hmmm... is that too egotistical? Meh, it'll work."

Tony continued typing, reading out loud as he went along.

"I want to thank the Chairman, the Board, maybe throw in a few more important sounding people, the big airbags will love it. And then onto, I know that I wouldn't be here tonight if it weren't for my friends. Mmm... I should give shout-outs to Rhodey, Obi and Pepper. That'll be the easy part. And then, Finally, I want to thank my daughters, Ruby and Yang, for being here with me tonight to support me. Say hi, girls. I can present them, they can take a few pictures, and then I can end it there. Now, if you don't mind, I think there's a poker game waiting for me somewhere in this building. There, that'll give me an out. Hopefully. If all goes well, Happy will have us out of there before they swamp us."

Tony snorted, muttering to himself, "That'll still light a fire under the ass of every reporter in the room. We'll need to book it out of there fast. Is it too abrupt? JARVIS, what do you think?"

"I approve of it, Master Stark. It's short and to the point, and doesn't give away any information. You've downplayed your adoption, which will lessen the reaction of the media to some extent. Though, Sir, keep in mind your demonstration of the Jericho is tomorrow. As you cannot be around to deal with the aftermath, perhaps it would be wise to leave Miss Potts behind."

Tony pouted. He hated leaving Pepper behind, she was extraordinarily valuable to him. She was the one who knew his Social Security number, for crying out loud. But JARVIS had a point; he'd better leave Pepper behind to calm down the media fires while he was in Afghanistan. Also, so that there was someone to watch after the girls.

A sudden loud noise drew Tony's attention, and he frowned at the door.

"JARVIS, what was that?"

"Miss Xiao Long and Miss Rose appear to have activated the jet's retractable pole and are taking turns trying to use it to climb to the ceiling of the jet."

Tony blinked, his eye twitching.

"The stripper pole?"

"Indeed, sir."

"...I knew I should have locked the controls for that before we left."

. . .

Ruby sat in the middle of a large crowd in the darkened room as the presentation began to play. Politicians, military officials, and celebrities crowded the room, all of them dressed to the nines and fully formal. The whole setup made Ruby feel very out of place, even though she knew her dress was up to standard.

"Tony Stark. Visionary. Genius. American patriot."

Ruby snorted at that, and was promptly shushed by a few people around her. While all of those things did apply to her dad, she knew that his ego was plenty large enough as it was. Yang looked to be laughing silently at Ruby's reaction, and Ruby resisted the urge to kick her sister under the table. Honestly, she was enjoying her suffering too much.

"Even from an early age, the son of legendary weapons developer Howard Stark quickly stole the spotlight with his brilliant and unique mind. At age four, he built his first circuit board."

Ruby blinked in surprise, having not known that. It was an impressive achievement. She herself had not gotten into robotics until she was seven.

"At age six, his first engine. And at 17, he graduated summa cum laude from MIT."

Ruby blinked again, and then smiled. She bet herself she could graduate earlier than Tony had. She was already on her way there at the age of 13.

"Then, the passing of a titan. Howard Stark's lifelong friend and ally, Obadiah Stane, steps in to help fill the gap left by the legendary founder, until, at age 21, the prodigal son returns and is anointed the new CEO of Stark Industries."

Ruby scowled at the mention of Obadiah. The old bald man had come by only twice more since that fight two weeks ago, and he'd been creepy and cold both times. It was like he couldn't settle on whether or not to smile or frown at Ruby (Yang he always frowned at, though Ruby didn't know why).

"With the keys to the kingdom, Tony ushers in a new era for his father's legacy, creating smarter weapons, advanced robotics, satellite targeting. Today, Tony Stark has changed the face of the weapons industry by ensuring freedom and protecting America and her interests around the globe."

Ruby looked across the table at her father and saw the tightness of his jaw. Was something bothering him? Did it have to do with Obadiah, or was it about the whole 'weapons' thing? Looking back up to the stage, Ruby saw Rhodey standing at the podium. She liked Rhodey a lot more than Obadiah. He was funny and didn't try to treat her like a kid. And he knew a surprising number of facts about engineering. Probably osmosis from being friends with Tony Stark.

"As liaison to Stark Industries, I've had the unique privilege of serving with a real patriot. He is my friend, and he is my great mentor. Ladies and gentlemen, it is my honor to present this year's Apogee Award to Mr. Tony Stark."

Ruby began clapping enthusiastically when her father stood up, a charming TV smile plastered on his face. Ruby didn't like that smile; it looked fake to her whenever she saw it. She preferred his smirks and proud grins much more. Especially the ones that he gave her after a few hours of working together in the garage.

Tony strolled up to the podium, shaking the hand of his longtime friend. After accepting the award, he looked out on the crowd and took a breath while Rhodey walked off to sit at Yang and Ruby's table. Ruby tensed. This was it; Tony had said that he was going to announce the two of them during his acceptance speech.

"Thank you, ladies and gentleman, for being here tonight, I'm sure you'd all rather be out shooting craps than sitting in here with me." The crowd chuckled and Tony continued, "I know I would. No, but really, it's an honour, I don't have many of these. It's not that often that I win awards; I don't have that kind of job."

Ruby saw her father pause, shaking his head slightly.

"For me to win this... very prestigious award... I just couldn't have gotten to this point by myself, ya' know? I'd like to thank the Chairman and the Board, as well as General Clarke for electing to give this to me. And beyond that... I know that I wouldn't be here tonight if it wasn't also for my friends. Rhodey... well, he introduced me, obviously. Stand up guy, Rhodey. Just don't ever go driving with him on a Sunday, he moves slower than my dead grandmother."

A small wave of polite laughter rippled through the audience again, and Ruby caught Rhodey rolling his eyes good naturedly.

"I'd like to thank Pepper Potts, my lovely secretary who was sadly too busy doing my work for me to attend. And Obadiah Stane as well, my ever bald mentor. I can't tell you how many times I've wanted to rub his head within the past twenty years."

Ruby snickered at that, before realizing what was coming up.

"Finally, I... I want to..." Tony stopped, faltering. He took a breath to steady himself and said, "I want to thank my daughters, Ruby and Yang, for being here with me tonight to support me, and—"

The crowd, which had been fairly subdued during the presentation, suddenly roared to life. Whatever Tony was going to say next was drowned out by noise as reporters clamored over one another to be heard. Ruby tried to make herself as small as possible, as several of the cameras turned towards their table, flashing at her and Yang. Finally, Tony managed to be heard over the din as he shouted down "No, no questions, now if you'll excuse us..."

Ruby felt someone grab her arm and she looked up, startled; she relaxed upon seeing it was Rhodey. The dark skinned man pulled her away from the table, Happy behind them as he shielded Yang from the clamoring press. They managed to make it out of the hall without too much difficulty, and the foursome began their way to the limo that Happy had parked outside.

Tony joined up with them not long after, his shirt somewhat ruffled.

"I was thinking it wouldn't be as bad at a formal award ceremony, but no... I should've known better. Sorry about that, girls."

Yang waved her hand dismissively and said, "Ah, it's fine, Pops. I didn't mind. I'm not shy like Ruby is."

Ruby glared at her sister, her arms crossed over the front of her dress as if to protect her modesty.

"So many cameras... ugh! Can we get something unhealthy and full of sugar for dinner; I don't feel so good right now."

Tony laughed and ruffled Ruby's hair, causing the thirteen year old to wave her arms in protest.

"Sure thing, short stack. My treat."

The group soon passed out of the casino that the ceremony had been held in and began walking towards the limo. Their path was halted by two women who emerged from behind the car who had clearly been waiting for them.

Tony threw a cautioning hand out and frowned at the two interlopers.

"And who might you two be?"

The blonde woman stepped forward, charming smile on her lips and hand extended.

"Christine Everhart, Vanity Fair Magazine. This is Lisa Lavender, would you mind answering some of our questions?"

Tony flicked his eyes towards Happy and jerked his head towards the limo. As the driver moved Ruby and Yang out of the line of the two reporters, Tony could see their eyes watching his girls in an almost predatory manner. He grimaced; the attention had started already.

"Ok, a few questions, that's all. Ok? And only from me."

The woman smiled, her partner clicking a pen.

"I don't think anyone in that room was expecting you to reveal that you had two teenage daughters. Is there a reason no one has heard about them before?"

Tony rolled his eyes, every inch the confident playboy as he responded, "Yeah, I don't know how much you know about me, but I'm not exactly the most liked man in America. I've kept them under wraps for their protection. You know how it is."

Everhart raised one carefully manicured eyebrow and asked, "Then why reveal them now?"

"Why not? It seemed like a good time."

The woman seemed unsatisfied with his answer and asked another question immediately.

"There are some out there who refer to you as the Merchant of Death. Do you feel guilty raising two children using money that is stained with other nation's blood?"

Tony hissed through his teeth; so she was one of those.

"How I raise my children is none of your concern, and how I make my living isn't either. It's an imperfect world we live in, Miss Everhart. People are gonna fight, people are gonna die. I just make sure that Americans die less often than the other guys, like dear old dad did. That's called patriotism, sweetie."

Everhart's eyes narrowed at the patronizing tone Tony had adopted with her and said, "A lot of people would call that war profiteering, not patriotism, Mister Stark."

Tony growled, fed up with this woman. He did not need this right now. Funnily enough, in another life he would have seriously considered trying to seduce her; she was pretty hot. But there was no way in hell he was bringing this shark in women's clothing near his daughters. Plus... well, Pepper was looking pretty good these days. It was strange that he'd never noticed her before, but since Ruby and Yang had come into his life, he'd become increasingly aware of how smoking his assistant was.

Regardless, he was done with this woman. He just needed to cut her off at the pass and hope that she stayed away from his family.

"Tell me, do you plan to report on the millions we've saved by advancing medical technology or kept from starvation with our intelli-crops? How about the Stark Industries grant that gives out over five million a year to promising college students in low income neighborhoods? Or maybe, our breakthroughs in Arc Reactor technology, a field that was once considered impossible? All of those were made possible through military funding. Now if you don't mind, I have a dinner date with my daughters."

Tony brushed past the two women and climbed into the limo, nearly slamming the door behind him. Why the hell was he feeling like this, normally a reporter that was that obvious in fishing for a story would not faze him at all.

"Hey, dad?"

Oh right. That's why.

Tony sighed and turned around in his seat. Damned if they both weren't the most adorable things he'd ever seen. They were his daughters. His. And he would be damned if he would let some harpy like Everhart near them.

"Yeah?"

"...can we get pizza? I think I want pizza. Yang?"

"Sounds good to me."

Tony smiled, some of his anger fading away.

"I'm game. Let's go get some pizza."