The next chapter! I hope you like it, please let me know! As always, thanks to everyone who read the last chapter and left a review! This time, we'll get to know a little more about Tony's life in this story.

To those of you who have also been reading 'Only a Job': The sequel has been posted! It's called 'That's What They Call Life'.

The song to this chapter is 'Smoke Signals' by James Blunt.

I don't own the characters or places!

Tony

In the end, I didn't send Happy to the tailor and went there myself. Normally, I hated those unnecessary walks, but this time, I didn't mind. It was good to be outside for some time, even if the streets in New York were still crowded. My mind always wandered back to the article I'd read and I couldn't stop wondering what kind of person Ms. Virginia Potts was. Somehow, I really hoped that she would come to New York so I could meet her. I had to solve this riddle.

I knew that Phillip was also right when he said that it could be bad for the show, but we've dealt with worse in the past. Maybe we could even use her critic to our advantage, I was sure that would work. We had to be clever, but when weren't we?

All around me, people began to whisper when I walked through the streets, but I didn't care. By now, I was used to the attention. It had been quite a scandal at first. Tony Stark, son of Howard and Maria Stark, who'd died in an accident years ago, was opening a show. And not just any show. A show involving singing, dancing, acrobatics and now also magic. First, the people working for me hadn't been approved by the crowds. Like Rhodey or Anne. Their skin colour used to cause many problems. Only a few very clear statements from my side had stopped the insults and threats of violence. Well, and maybe a few clenched fists.

Now that I'd thought we were finally accepted, thanks to Phillip who also helped us to get the rich and influential people from New York into our theatre, a famous critic for magic shows was coming to New York. Sometimes, I was really wondering if fate was playing tricks on me. However, I decided not to let myself discourage that. As I said, we just needed a clever plan to use it to our advantage.

After all, we'd done it before. Win the hearts of the people. Otherwise, all those rich snobs who knew my parents wouldn't be coming to the show. Though I wasn't sure if they didn't still think that I was a huge disappointment. My father had helped to make the railroad in America what it was now and everyone had expected me to continue his work. When I decided not to take that path, it had shocked many people. Especially when I also started to look for friends in the poorer parts of the city.

I regretted none of it and honestly, I didn't care if the people came for my show or for me. The most important thing was that they were coming at all. The show had to be a success. I'd promised it back when we started.

I'd nearly reached the tailor when the conversation of two men close to me caught my attention. "Let me tell you again, this woman is scary. She noticed immediately which tricks were fake and from what she wrote in the paper, she even knew how they worked!" He shook his head in disbelief. "I was there and if she wouldn't have pointed it out, I would have never guessed that something isn't real. I've enjoyed the show immensely, just like my wife. I bet she would have never noticed anything wrong about the magician."

"It's not natural for a woman to notice so much." His companion agreed darkly.

"From what they say, she doesn't have a husband who puts her into place. She's travelling with her uncle and he's far too soft with her." The man was talking quietly now, as if he didn't want anyone else to hear what he just said. I glanced at my watch and made it look like I was waiting for someone, hoping they wouldn't notice that I was listening.

"You said she's beautiful?" The second man asked, suddenly sounding more attentive. Unfortunately, I couldn't see his face anymore.

"Red hair and green eyes. Also very tall. She should be happy that witches don't get burned anymore." Did I hear pity in his voice? "Mr. Pembroke was furious when he read her article and the people didn't want to visit his show anymore afterwards."

"I could think of better things to do with such a woman instead of burning her." When I heard this, I froze and fought the urge to turn around. The way he said it made it obvious what he was thinking right now. And I hated it! Even if I wasn't sure if I wouldn't hate this woman with all my heart, I could never tolerate someone talking about a woman like this.

"Her companion is a good fighter, at least that's what I've heard." The first man sounded uncomfortable now.

"He can't be with her all the time. I'm wondering if they'll come to New York... After all, we've also got a show here."

"I think Stark wouldn't tolerate her in his theatre. Do you remember what happened to those who insulted his people? Who knows, maybe he'll chase her out of town all by himself. But I think that will never happen. They're heading south, maybe to Washington."

"Didn't they come from there? Why should they already go back?"

"They say Pembroke scared her away." He chuckled.

"Pity. I would have loved to meet her."

"I bet you do."

After that, their conversation turned to other things like the weather and the new railroad station in the city. I breathed in deeply and continued to walk towards the tailor then.

From what I've heard, Ms. Potts didn't seem to have many fans. Somehow, I hoped that she was indeed heading south and away from the problems that seemed to be waiting for her here. Including me. Because I still wouldn't let her ruin what I'd built in years of hard work.

"It won't work like this!" Anne exclaimed loudly, an annoyed expression on her face. "I can't trust you to catch me, Peter."

"I will catch you, I promise." The kid said seriously. "You have to trust me with this."

"He's stronger than it looks." Rhodey added with a slight smile on his lips. "He never let you fall before, Anne."

"That's true, but this is different." She insisted. "If he won't catch me this time, I'll not just fall a few feet." The insecurity in her eyes couldn't be missed.

"What if you'll try it the first times when we're all ready to catch you if something happens?" I asked loudly, attracting their attention. I doubted that they'd been aware of my presence so far.

"Sounds fair." Anne replied after a few moments of silence. She turned to Peter and narrowed her eyes. "You'll better catch me, Parker."

"I will." He repeated, this time not that enthusiastically anymore.

I walked down the stairs and smiled widely. "Awesome, then let's try it!"

They both turned to stare at me. "Right now?"

I quirked an eyebrow. "Of course now. I thought you wanted to practice this trick before you became insecure, Anne?"

She nodded hesitantly. "Yes, Mr. Stark."

I rolled my eyes. "How often did I tell you that it's Tony when we're alone?" I took off my jacket and gestured for the others to get ready. "And now come on, I don't have all afternoon!"

"Because you're invited to a party." Steve noted with a grin. "A very boring party."

"Nonsense, I bet it will be delightful." I lied and ignored their laughter. The sound of footsteps caught my attention and I turned around quickly. "Phillip, you're just in time!" I announced loudly and now the others also noticed his arrival. I saw that Peter's expression darkened, while Anne looked flustered. "Anne and Peter are trying a new trick now and they need people to catch her if something goes wrong. Come on, you can also help."

"Excuse me?" Phillip stared at us and for half a second, his eyes rested on Anne.

"We'll have to catch her if Peter won't do it." Rhodey threw in, which wasn't very helpful. Now I saw Phillip's eyes flicker to Peter. Most others didn't notice it yet, but I knew what was going on between those three. Peter and Phillip both liked Anne. And she wasn't sure whom she preferred. Or if she even liked one of them more as a friend. It was a disaster and once again, I was happy that Phillip wasn't a part of the show yet. It would only lead to problems.

"Now come on, Phillip." I ripped him out of his thoughts. "I bet you wanted to tell me that we have to leave for the party this evening. The sooner you'll help us with the trick, the faster we can leave."

With a sigh, he gave in and joined our small circle. Anne and Peter both made their way upstairs and we all watched them in silence, knowing that they had to concentrate. Phillip was standing right next to me and I could nearly feel his anxiety. When they were swinging and Anne jumped, we all held our breaths. And then... Peter caught her without problems. All around, the others cheered and I also grinned. Next to me, Phillip was still a little pale, but he looked relieved.

They repeated the trick two more times before Phillip announced that we really had to leave. I wasn't too happy about it, but I took my jacket and followed him out of the theatre. To be honest, I preferred an evening with my friends to all those rich snobs we would have to deal with soon. However, I wanted them to come to the show, so it was a sacrifice I had to make.

In the carriage, I raised my eyebrows at Phillip. "You looked nervous."

"Nervous?" He repeated and glanced at me.

I nodded. "When you got to know that Peter would have to catch Anne."

"That's something he does every day. Why should that make me nervous?" From the outside, he looked completely calm, but I knew that it was just a mask.

"You like her." I stated.

"Everyone likes Anne." He threw in. "Without her, our work would be less enjoyable."

"That's not what I meant and you know it." I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. "You're interested in her."

He chuckled. "That is not true."

"Oh? So when I would say that Peter and Anne would make a good couple..."

"Alright, it's true." Phillip interrupted me and sighed deeply. "But you also know that it would never be possible, Tony."

"Why not?" The interest in that question was real. "You like each other. What's wrong about that?"

"From all the people in this city, you should know best that nothing is easy." He stated and crossed his arms.

"I achieved everything I ever wanted." I argued. "So it might not be easy, but possible."

"My parents would never approve of it."

"I thought the opinion of your parents doesn't matter anymore?" He had a big fight with them back when he joined us. I knew that he didn't care about their opinion, so it was just an excuse. "Why do you think it wouldn't work? Because of Peter?"

"She obviously likes him."

I laughed, making his eyes narrow. I held my hands up in a defensive gesture. "You should see the way she looks at you. Every time you turn away, she can't take her eyes off of you."

This took him by surprise and he stared at me. "If you make fun of me, I swear to you -"

"I'm not." I interrupted him firmly. "I'm actually serious about it."

Phillip looked at me searchingly for a few moments, but in the end, he sighed once more. "Seems like you are." His voice was barely a whisper and this was one of the few times Phillip Carlyle looked completely overwhelmed.

I decided that this was the perfect moment to change the subject. After all, he needed to be in top form when we were moving among those sharks soon. "Who will be there this evening?"

"Every important person here in New York." Phillip smiled, also glad for the change. "And even more."

"More?" I wanted to know.

Slowly, his smile turned into a wide grin. "Rumours say that a certain Ms. Virginia Potts has arrived in New York this morning, together with her uncle. They also say that she's been invited to this party."

I froze at those news. "She's here? I thought they were heading south."

He nodded. "They're in New York. Apparently, they just left Philadelphia in the south for whatever reason."

I remembered the conversation I'd heard a few days ago. That the owner of the show in Philadelphia had been furious because of her article. It had been a clever move to leave the city in the wrong direction first. Most probably, they'd spread the rumour that they were heading to Washington themselves.

"Tony? Are you alright?" Phillip asked and ripped me out of my thoughts.

I nodded automatically. "Of course. Fine." I cleared my throat. "So she really came to New York. Just like you suspected."

He didn't look pleased about that. "Please try not to make her angry. We need to work out a strategy first."

"When she's at the party this evening, she'll miss the show." I thought loudly. "Tomorrow is our day off. So she can see it in two days at earliest."

He nodded in agreement. "Until then, we should know what we'll do if her critic is bad." It will be bad, his voice said.

"We will. I've got a few ideas. But that depends."

"On what?"

"What exactly she writes." I muttered.

The party was as expected. Tiring. Everyone knew Phillip and wanted to talk to him. It was good, of course. After all, we wanted people to notice us and talk about the show. However, my mind was still somewhere else. I kept looking around secretly, but so far, I didn't see someone with red hair in the crowd. Maybe Phillip had been wrong and Ms. Potts wasn't in New York?

"Tony, it's so good to see you again!" A familiar voice said behind my back and I turned around immediately, hoping my wide smile looked convincing. Next to me, Phillip copied the movement.

"Obadiah!" I exclaimed and shook his hand. "What a pleasure to see you again." I turned to Phillip. "Phillip, may I introduce Mr. Obadiah Stane to you? Obadiah, this is Phillip Carlyle."

Obadiah's smile was wide when he shook Phillip's hand. "The lost son of the Carlyle's. I've heard many things about you."

Phillip looked uncomfortable when he chuckled. "I hope only good things, Mr. Stane."

"It's Obadiah, please. And yes, the best." He glanced at Tony. "Finally someone who's got the courage to let society think whatever they want. Just like Tony."

"He might have helped me a little with this." Phillip admitted after making sure that no one was listening to our conversation.

"Obadiah was the best friend of my father." I told him, mostly to explain why we were talking this informally. "He continued his work at the railroads in this country."

"Only because you didn't want to do it." Obi smiled at me. "I bet you could have achieved all the changes much faster."

"I prefer working with people." I threw in simply.

Obadiah didn't look convinced. "Do you?"

"He's got a point there." Phillip whispered and changed the subject to something less dangerous quickly. "Did you visit the show yet?"

Obadiah nodded. "Three times so far, and I have to admit that I was amazed every single time. Just like my wife. She loves it. Especially your part, Tony."

I smiled at him. "I'm happy to hear that."

"I even told a few of my colleagues and friends about it." Obadiah continued. "A few of them were already there."

"Thank you."

He winked at me. "I could never let you down, Tony." Then he changed the subject once more and started to tell us about the news concerning the railroad. I followed the conversation with interest, but I knew that Phillip didn't really care about this. I already expected him to leave and search someone else to talk to, but to my surprise, he stayed with us.

I wasn't sure how long we'd been talking when suddenly, the people around us started to whisper and look towards the entrance of the ballroom. I exchanged a look with Phillip and we both moved to see what had caught the attention of the others. I was aware that Obadiah followed us, but I didn't turn to him. My eyes were glued on something else. Or rather someone else.

She was wearing a long, blue dress. It was tight and showed much of her skin, especially the arms and her chest. Her red hair was falling over her shoulders in soft curls and the green eyes scanned the crowd attentively. Her skin was tanned, most probably from lots of time in the sun. I also thought that I could see freckles on her skin, but from the distance I wasn't sure.

I would never forget the moment I saw her for the first time.

It felt like my heart was beating unsteadily in my chest. A strange feeling flared up inside of me, one I couldn't quite place and had never felt before. For half a second, I thought that I was going to be sick. However, the feeling vanished as soon as it had appeared.

Suddenly, Virginia Potts turned her head and it seemed as if she was looking directly at me in the crowd.