A/N: Hey, y'all! New year, so far so good. Thank you all for you kind comments. This next chapter is short-ish, more of an interlude as Jaya's arc turns towards college and adulting. See the end of this chapter for my future posts/new stories. Have some IronDad!
"If I sit on this sofa one second longer I'm going to die," Jaya declared dramatically.
"Then stand up," Natasha said logically.
Jaya stood up, crossed the room, and faceplanted into one of the giant stuffed rabbits that had been dragged into the living room to function as a beanbag. "I'm so bored," she groaned. "I think I'm ready for college."
"What have you decided to do?" Natasha asked.
"Architecture and some sort of Biology," Jaya said. "My two specialties. Maybe a little quantum mechanics on the side."
"It's not an order of fries," Natasha said, amused.
"No, I know, but if I'm gonna be an Avenger I need to know what I'm doing for really reals. And I want to help people all the time, not just during alien events. That means disaster relief and clinics and things like that. The things that happen all the time that Steve can't actually punch into submission."
Natasha snickered. "I'm sure he could punch a hurricane. We should ask him."
They went to Tony instead. "All right!" he said. "Let's do this! I've already got your applications, your scholarship, and your references. All you need to do is sign." He handed her his tablet.
Jaya frowned at the filled-out application. "Where am I sending this?" she asked.
"Since you're a Starklet-"
"We agreed we weren't calling me that."
"-I'm sending you to my alma mater, MIT," Tony said. "You'll love it. And that way you'll be close, too, in case of emergencies." He faltered suddenly, his hands fluttering spastically. "Unless, I mean, where do you wanna go?"
Jaya signed her name, warmth in her heart. "Gotta keep up the legacy, no?" she asked.
He smiled at her.
AV-AV-AV
Of course any protege of Stark's would get into MIT, and of course they would let her do a double major in Architecture and Biology and a minor in astrophysics. "You realize with this course load you're going to be using your powers to reverse your brain from the mush it's going to become," Clint warned her.
"Yeah, probably," Jaya said, with all the nonchalance of youth. "But Tony and Bruce have been teaching me these things for over a year, so I think I've got a little bit of a headstart. And if not, I'll ease up."
"Good. We don't need you getting burnt out, kiddo."
AV-AV-AV
"You want me to have a bodyguard!?"
"Yup."
Jaya crossed her arms. "No."
"Yes," Hill said calmly.
"No."
"You're gonna make Steve do the Sad Puppy Eyes?" Tony asked, pursing his lips.
Jaya paused. Steve's Sad Puppy Eyes were devastating. "No..." she said slowly.
"Good girl. You get a bodyguard."
"Why?" Jaya asked plaintively. "I'm not a child, I can take care of myself."
"I know, kiddo. But you're famous, and famous people need security. Even Steve has security when he goes out."
Jaya scoffed. "He has someone from HR who stops him from signing all the autographs and adopting all the puppies."
"Point being, even Captain America needs someone to keep an eye on him." Tony held out the tablet. "Can you just please go along with this? It'll make Bruce feel much better to know you have backup all the way in the wilds of Massachucetts."
Jaya scowled and took the tablet. "Fine."
"Great. Her name's Laura, you're gonna love her."
"Laura the ex-Black Ops?" Jaya asked, skimming through the woman's record.
"Yup."
Jaya looked up at Hill. "Is she a SHIELD agent?"
"Nope."
"Hm."
AV-AV-AV
"You know, I'm pretty sure me moving into dorms is not newsworthy," Jaya said, cringing away from the hordes of camera phones. "Why did you guys have to come, anyway?"
"It's tradition," Tony stressed, putting an arm around her shoulders. "Family helps you set up in the dorm, thus breaking the ice and embarrassing you in front of your dorm mates. Tradition."
Jaya sighed. "We're already on YouTube."
"Positive Avengers press is always a plus."
"I don't want to be on YouTube."
Tony ushered her into a corner of the hallway where no one could see them. He gripped her forearms. "You're famous kiddo, like it or not. I'm sorry, but that's the way it is. I grew up with it, I had to, and now so do you. If it could be otherwise, I would let you go to school in relative anonimity, but you were a superhero before you were a student. I know it's a lot though, especially when you're new at this, so," he sighed. "Just, don't take anything personally, and find some good friends. Sorry. I don't actually have any good advice. I spent my years at MIT blowing things up and trying to get Rhodey drunk. Just, don't be like me. Be like Steve, except without the yelling at racists and conservatives. Actually, don't be like Steve. Be like Thor. Without the willful destruction of property."
Jaya gave him a small smile. "Okay..."
"You good?" he asked, peering at her. "Because if you're not, we can call this whole thing off and we can put you in online classes."
"I'm good," she confirmed. She leaned up and kissed his cheek. "Thank you, Tony."
He smiled at her. "You're gonna do great, kiddo."
A/N 2: Thank you for reading! So. Regarding the future of this story: I'm just not in an Avengers frame of mind right now, so updates for this specific story will be slow. If anyone has any requests for adventures they'd like to see College!Jaya have, let me know!
However: if anyone likes Star Trek, I've re-written Ohana Means Familia to be less incidental OC and more plot-like.
Also, guys, once my beta readers are done with my draft, I'm going to start publishing my multi-volume massive universe crossover that I have been working on for the last six years. The first volume of the story starts in Star Trek: The Original Series, and will eventually cross into... quite a few others. Hopefully once it passes my beta readers, I'll start posting that one soon, so be on the lookout for that.
I'm also going to attempt the process of self-publishing this year, so ... lots of things to look forward to for 2020. Thank you to everyone who's read/reviewed/favorited so far! (sorry for such long notes)