Ch. 10

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We had moved the chest downstairs. Tony crouched down in front of it as I lazily plopped onto the couch.

"So... How old are you? Because you can't be older than eighteen," Tony said without evening looking up at me.

"That depends. What day is it?" I cocked my head to the side.

"Jarvis?"

"Wednesday June 22, sir."

I jumped at the sudden voice. I panicked, thinking that someone managed to get around the SHIELD agents, before I remembered reading about Tony's AI.

"Well, tomorrow's my birthday. I'll be 17. I assume Jarvis is you AI." I glanced over at Tony, who was still staring at the chest.

"Happy Birthday. Yes, Jarvis is my AI. Just A Really Very Intelligent System."

"Impressive. Is he in all your houses, or just this one?"

"All of them. And in the suit."

"Very impressive. Are you going to open that or just stare at it?" I asked motioning to the chest.

Tony glanced at me and smirked. Slowly, he opened the lid and gazed at what was inside. He pulled out a rolled up blueprint as I came and sat next to him on the floor. The blueprint was labeled for an arc reactor, created by Anton Vanko and Howard Stark. I looked at what else was in the chest. There were a couple of files, and notebooks, a newspaper clipping, and other things that were individually packaged.

Tony grabbed the newspaper clipping, and started reading. I looked over his shoulder, and read the heading, Soviet Scientist Vanko Defects. The second heading read: Physicist Seek Asylum in the United States. Tony tossed the clipping aside before I could read anymore. Next he pulled out two film reels, and handed them to me.

"Jarvis-"

"The projector is in the closet, sir," the AI answered before Tony even asked.

A few minutes later, I was plopped down on the couch again watching through the films. Tony was sitting in one of the chairs and going through a notebook he found in the chest.

The films were of Howard Stark. They were the same films Tony showed at the Stark Expo every year. I watched as Stark messed up his words, and restarted multiple times. In one shot you could see a young Tony in the background playing with the diorama of the Stark Expo.

In another Stark is having a drink, before he says "and from all of us at Stark Industries, I'd like to personally show you...my ass." I chuckled and turned to Tony.

"Why do I have a feeling you'd do something like that?"

"Probably because I would," Tony smirked.

I turned back to the film to see the last clip.

"Tony," Howard says to the camera. I turned to see Tony look up, slightly shocked.

"You're too young to understand this right now, so I thought I'd put it on film for you. I've built this for you," Howard continued, motioning to the diorama. "And someday you'll realize it represents a lot more that people's inventions. It represents my life's work. This is the key to the future. I'm limited by the technology of my time, but one day you'll figure this out. And when you do, you will change the world. What is, and always will be, my greatest creation...is you."

I could feel tears stinging the back of my eyes, but refused to let them fall. I looked over to see Tony struggling with the same thing.

"Didn't love you, huh?" I asked.

Tony glanced at me, but didn't say anything. He looked back down at the floor, and put his head in his hands. I walked over and sat on the arm of the chair. Gently, I put my arm around him.

"He could've at least told me he loved me while he had the chance. It would've made life a lot easier," he mumbled.

"I agree with that. But Tony, you got to spend eighteen years with your parents. Mine died when I was eleven. My baby sister never got to meet them, and my brother can barely remember them. Just be grateful you got that long with them," I whispered.

Tony lifted his head from his hands and looked at me. Slowly, he nodded and gave me a small smile.

"You're right. Sorry. I'm just having a rough week. Y'know dying and all."

I leaned down and gave him a hug. He was shocked at first, and tensed up, but after a second he relaxed and hugged me back lightly. I pulled away and smiled at him.

"C'mon, we still have a lot of work to do." I whispered as I got up.

"I need to go see Pepper. I have to- to-"

"To apologize?" I finished.

Tony merely nodded.

"C'mon, I can get us out," I said, grabbing my jacket.

********
Tony and I followed the secretary to Pepper's office.

"Miss Potts?" She stuck her head into the office. Tony pushed the door open, and started to walk in.

"Relax," he said, stepping around the woman.

"Mr. Stark and Miss Foxx would like to see you. He refuses-"

"I don't," Tony cut in, already making his way toward Pepper's desk.

Pepper shot a confused look at me. I merely gave her an apologetic smile. Pepper nodded in acknowledgment and went back to her phone call. I looked around the office before sitting down opposite Pepper. Bill O'Reilly was on the television talking about Iron Man. Bill was telling people how Tony made Pepper CEO, and asked what her qualifications were.

"Mute," Tony said softly, and the TV went silent.

Tony walked to the corner of the room where all his stuff as packed into boxes. Something covered in a sheet was leaning against the wall. Tony grabbed the sheet and pulled it off. Behind it was the 1974 diorama of the Stark Expo.

"Will Tony Stark be there?" Pepper was saying into her phone. Tony walked over and pulled up a chair.

"Will I?" He asked.

"No, he will not," Pepper replied dryly into her phone.

"I would like to be," Tony quipped. Pepper hung up her phone and glared at Tony.

"You got a minute?" He asked.

"No."

"C'm you just got off the phone. You're fine. Thirty seconds."

Pepper glanced down at her watch.

"29, 28," she started counting down.

"Okay, I um... I was just driving over here, and I basically thought I was coming to apologize, but I'm not-"

"Oh, you didn't come here to apologize?" Pepper interrupted.

"Look, that goes without saying, and I'm working on that. But I haven't been entirely upfront with you and I'm trying to make good- Can I move this? This is crazy, it's like a ferris wheel and-" Tony asked motioning to the spinning stick thing on Pepper's desk.

"No," Pepper shook her head. Tony cleared his throat, pushed my chair out of the way, and rolled his chair over to where I had been. I stuck my tongue out at him as I moved my chair around him to sit where he had been.

"Do you know how short life is?" Tony asked Pepper. "And if I never got to uh, express, and by the way this somewhat relevant to me, and I don't care, I mean I care, it would be nice, but I'm not expecting you to- to- Look, here's what I'm trying to say, I'm just gonna say it-"

I smirked at Tony's discomfort, and stuttering.

"Let me just stop you right here," Pepper interjected. "Okay? Because if you say 'I' one more time, I'm going to actual hurl something at your head, I think. I am trying to run a company. Do you have any idea what that entails? People are relaying on you to be Iron Man and you disappeared, and all I'm doing is putting out your fires, and taking the heat for it."

While Pepper was talking Tony had picked something up from the desk and was playing with it. When she finished he accidentally shot it toward her. Pepper just managed to catch it before it fell off the desk.

"I am trying to do the job that you were meant to do," Pepper stated calmly. However, underneath her calm exterior and calm voice, I could sense the harsh tension from anger. Tony fidgeted uncomfortably for a few moments. Suddenly, Pepper's eyes narrowed.

"Did you bring me strawberries?"

Tony glanced up at her.

"Did you know there's only one thing on Earth-"

"That you're allergic to. Strawberries," Tony cut her off. He looked down at his hands ashamed.

"This is progress Pepper," he said looking back up. "I knew there was some correlation between you and this-"

"I need you-" Pepper started.

"I need you too," Tony said, hope filling his voice.

"To leave. Now," Pepper finished looking sad. I glanced at Tony. He looked like an abandoned puppy who had been kicked. It broke my heart.

The door opened behind us, and I turned around to see Natasha and Happy Hogan entering.

"Miss Potts?" Natasha said.

"Hi. Come on in," Pepper said, all evidence of anger and hurt leaving her voice.

"Wheels up in twenty five minutes," Natasha said walking toward us calmly. I caught her eye and winked at her. She smirked in return.

"Thank you," Pepper said to her.

"Anything else boss?" Happy called from the door.

"I'm good, Hap," Tony said, spinning around to face him.

"No I'll just be," Pepper started to say over Tony. "Another minute."

Tony looked back between Pepper, Natasha, and Happy.

"I lost two of the kids in the divorce. I still have Morgan though," he smiled at me. I rolled my eyes.

"I'm not picking sides. Besides, I knew Pepper first," I said. Tony stuck his tongue out at me.

"Are you blending in well here, Natalie?" Natasha turned and shot Tony a glare.

"Here at Stark Industries?" Tony clarified. "Your name is Natalie isn't it? I thought you two didn't get along." Tony motioned between Pepper and Natalie.

"No, that's not so," Pepper said.

"So its just me you don't care for? No? Nothing," he said when Natasha still didn't say anything.

"Actually, while you're here," Pepper said. "You and Natalie could discuss the matter of the personal belongings."

"Absolutely," Natasha nodded as Pepper left the office, Happy following behind her.

"I'm surprised you can keep your mouth shut," Natasha said turning to Tony.

"God, you're good. You are mind blowingly close to this. How do you do it? You're a triple impostor, I've never seen anything like it. Is there anything real about you? Do you even speak Latin?" Tony questioned.

"Fallaces sunt rerum species," Natasha deadpanned.

"Which means? Wait, what did you just say?" He called out to her as she walked to the door.

"It means you can either drive yourself home or I can have you collected." And with that Natasha stormed out of the office and slammed the door.

Tony glanced over at me.

"What did she really say? Did she insult me?"

I laughed and shook my head.

"No she didn't insult you. She said looks can be deceiving. Or, at least something similar."

Tony just rolled his eyes. Looking at the spinning thing again he sighed, and and started placing things next to it so it wouldn't move. I laughed at his childishness.

"C'mon. Let's go," he said getting up. He grabbed the strawberries and threw them in the trash. Just before we left though, he stopped and turned to the diorama against the wall. He walked up to it and looked at the inscription placed on the side.

"The key to the future is here," I read over his shoulder.

Tony removed the rest of the sheet and stared at the diorama for a moment. He circled one hand around his eye. Suddenly, a huge grin grew on his face. Like he just had an epiphany. Seeing Tony Stark, someone who was basically a mad scientist, look like that scared me half to death.

"Help me get this into the car."

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