I know it's been forever and there's no excuse but I got a laptop! Yay! So, now I'll (hopefully) be able to update more frequently. Then again, I school is taking up most of my time right now. Sadly, I do not own anything but OC's and plot.

Chapter 9

Sarah opened her eyes groggily, looking around in confusion. How did I get here?, she wondered. Her eyes scanned over the plain white room. A familiar beeping filled her ears, reminding her of the unnecessary time she had spent in the hospital.

"Yes, yes. She's fine." She jumped, startled by the sudden voice, the beeping matching her heart's erratic rhythm. She let her heart steady before looking for the source. "No, you don't have to worry." Her blue eyes met Alex's dark ones, but she didn't speak. "She'll be back in school at the start of next week." He continued, speaking into a small silver cell phone.

She frowned for a brief second. If I were missing...Pepper would most likely be the one to call. Tony just loves to take action. A smiled spread across her lips. "Pepper?" She asked, her voice just barely above a whisper. When he nodded, she held out her hand, motioning toward the phone.

Shock riddled his face, his voice wavering as he spoke. "I-I think she wants to talk to you." He waited for a brief second before handing the phone to Sarah.

"Where's Tony?" She said, skipping over formalities.

Pepper's voice was strangled through the phone. "Uh... He's..." She sighed. "I don't know exactly where he is."

"He's out looking for me, isn't he?"

She paused. "Yes." There was a hint of shame in her voice.

"You can't blame him for wanting to protect his only daughter."

"I know...it's just..." She trailed off.

"Just what?"

"He doesn't think about the consequences of his actions. He just throws himself out there without a care in the world."

Sarah frowned. Pepper knew Tony never thinks long term. In fact, everyone knew that. So why was she mentioning it? "What happened?" She asked.

"Uh...what?" Pepper stuttered, caught off guard by the question.

"I mean, why are you pointing out what everyone already knows? Did something happen between you two?"

There was a brief silence before she spoke. "When he left to look for you..." A sigh. "He was hungover." Her voice had become barely audible toward the end but Sarah still caught it, much to her disbelief.

"He was what now?" The words flew out of her mouth before she could come up with a better answer. Alex raised his eyebrows, surprised by Sarah's sudden outburst. She ignored him, too intent on the conversation.

"He was hungover." A pause. "Sarah, relax. I know you're fine now. So, I'll just call him before he can cause any more problems."

She shook her head unconsciously, not realizing that her mother couldn't see her. "No, I'll do it. That way, he can't deny it. I'm pretty much the only one that can get anything through that block head of his."

She sighed. "Okay. Don't get into any more trouble. I miss you."

A small smile traced Sarah's lips. "I miss you too, Pepper. Bye."

"Bye, Sarah."

Sarah snapped the phone shut, examining it. She looked up at Alex. "Is this my phone?"

He nodded reluctantly. "Yeah, I kinda...borrowed it."

She shook her head. "Whatever." She tried to get out of bed, but he stopped her.

"I don't think that's such a good idea." He said protectively.

She frowned at him. "Why not?"

"I don't want you burning down any more buildings."

"Why would I do such a thing? I would never abuse my powers."

He sighed. "I know you wouldn't but I don't know what you'd do if you were provoked."

"What does that mean?"

He sighed. "Did you have any strange dreams lately?"

She studied him carefully, wondering why he would go from accusing her to asking about her REM sleep cycles. "I don't...think so..." She trailed off, looking down at the floor. The memory rushed into her brain like letting the air out of a balloon. Somebody came to her dorm room, attacked her, and... injected her with something...

She looked up at her long trusted friend. "What happened tonight, Alex?" She whispered. "What did I do?"


"Come on, Tony." Pepper muttered when he didn't pick up right away. She, worried as always, had called Tony the second after she had hung up with Sarah.

"Hello?" He finally answered.

She breathed a sigh of relief. "She's fine, Tony. I just finished speaking with her."

"You sure?" He asked incredulously.

"Yes, I'm sure. She said she'd call-"

He cut her off. "Hold on for second, honey. I'm getting another call."

She tapped her foot impatiently. "Nice timing." She murmured.

After a few moments, Tony's voice came through the phone. "Okay. That was Sarah. You were right, she's fine."

"Are you going to come home now?"

"Not just yet. Do you know anything as to why she went missing?"

"Tony." Her voice was reprimanding. "Now is not the time for your sketchy detective work. Especially in your..." She struggled for the word. "...state. You should come home. Now."

He sighed. "Pepper you of all people should know that wife and mother are two different things. My mother died a long time ago. I don't need my wife taking her place."

"Fine, Mr. Stark." She snapped. "If something happens to you and you aren't able to make a rational medical decision, I'll have to do it for you. And the last thing anyone wants is to pull the plug on the notorious Tony Stark."

There was silence on the other end as the statement sunk in. Finally, he sighed. "Alright. I just passed over D.C. I'll be home in an hour."

"I'll be waiting." Her voice held what was left of her fading anger. "Love you, Tony."

There was a brief pause before he answered, guilt shown plainly in his voice. "Love you too, Pepper."

They both ended the call.


Alex studied Sarah as she set her phone down on a small table next to her bed. Her cerulean eyes held so much emotion... It was hard to discern one feeling from another. Pain was the most obvious. Under that was...regret? Remorse? Their eyes locked in an intense stare. He could see it now. Frustration.

"Is there anyone else I need to call?" She said, her voice hard and tight. Strangled. He was seriously regretting forcing her to call her father.

He swallowed audibly; shook his head in silence. When she acted like this, it was hard to predict what she was going to do next. It was utterly frightening.

"Good." She looked away from him, taking sudden interest in the unremarkable tiled floor. They sat in silence for a few minutes. When she looked up at him, her expression had softened. Melted from the hardness of an ice cube to the gentleness of warm water.

"You still haven't answered my question." Her voice was barely above a whisper.

He took in a deep breath. "What you did...was not your fault. You weren't conscious of your actions." He paused. "It's not your fault." He whispered.

"Okay..." She pulled her lower lip in between her teeth, biting away her anxiousness. "What did I do?"

He looked away from her piercing gaze, afraid of her reaction. "I don't know... all of the details but... I think you..." He trailed off.

"Just spit it out!" Sarah snapped, her frustration turning into anger.

He jerked away from her in surprise. "Okay, alright. You burned down an apartment building, Sarah."

Her eyes widened in total surprise. "Burned down...? Was anyone hurt?"

"I don't know." Seeing her face fall, he immediately rushed to her. He held her face in his hands, forcing her to look into his eyes. "Sarah, you have to understand. This isn't your fault. That dream you had...it wasn't a dream. The... serum he injected into you... It controlled you. It controlled your body, your brain, and your judgment. You had no part in the crime. You didn't do it. It wasn't your fault."

"Then, whose is it? If it isn't my fault, whose is it? Who gave me the serum, as you call it? Who sent me to burn down that building? Who is responsible for the people I hurt, maybe even killed? Who made Miss Morph look like the horrible villain that is her polar opposite? Who jeopardized-"

Alex silenced her rant by placing a finger upon her lips. "Calm down. We'll figure that all out soon. But right now...." He sighed, removing his finger. "We know that someone will probably be after you again... Someone who knows that you are Miss Morph. And next time, we'll be able to stop them before they can do this to you again. Everything will be fine."

Silence crept into the room while the two didn't say a word, only to be chased away minutes later when Sarah spoke. "Someone who wants to harm me... but also knows who I am..." She muttered, thinking out loud.

Alex looked at her curiously. "Do we have a suspect?"

She smiled at him, not in joy but deviously. "Yes, we do."

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