Alex's Diary, Entry Twenty-One

Dad's birthday was an absolute disaster.

I pictured his birthday as being a time where he could unwind a little bit and temporarily forget about the fact that he was dying from the device that was supposed to be keeping him alive. I knew that the party was going to be big and full of people because Dad's parties pretty much always are. But, even I could not imagine how bad it was going to be.

Not only did I not know at least ¾ of the people there – and, honestly, I wonder how Dad knew some of these people – but Dad got absolutely wasted. He was dressed in his Iron Man suit practically the entire time and he freaking PEED IN IT just cause he could. I've dealt with Dad drunk before, but not this drunk. Two times I tried talking to him, telling him to take things down a notch, but he just smiled at me, told me to have a good time, and to not worry.

When Pepper and Rhodey showed up, they were not happy. At all.

After Pepper made her failed attempt to get Dad to shut the party down, Dad and Rhodey got into a huge fight, suits and all. Happy tried to evacuate me out of the house alongside Pepper and the rest of the party guests when the fight started getting bad, but I wouldn't let him. Instead, I donned my suit for the second time in less than a month and intervened just when Dad and Rhodey were about to blast each other to kingdom come, coming between them and using my wings as shields to block each of their blasts.

So, now, part of my home has been destroyed and Rhodey took the suit that he was wearing with him. I have no doubt in the world that he brought said suit to the government, which I can't even really blame him for given the circumstances and pressure that I know he has been under.

Fun times.

We found out that Ivan Vanko was killed in prison shortly after he had been incarcerated. The guy must have had quite the enemy list because he was blown up in his prison cell. How explosives managed to be snuck into a jail I will never know. I don't usually wish death on anyone, but I can't deny that I feel a little better now that we don't have to worry about Vanko anymore. Hopefully, this means that no one else has their hands on Stark technology and our fight with the government might be close to over.

Ha! Who am I kidding? Our fight with the government will probably never be over until we cooperate and do what they want.

On top of all of that, Dad and I are now basically under house arrest. Not by the U.S. Government, per se, but by SHIELD. Nick Fury showed up and revealed to us that Natalie Rushman was actually SHIELD Agent Natasha Romanoff, who had been sent to us when SHIELD somehow found out that Dad and I were both having device issues. They gave us both lithium dioxide to ward off the effects of what was basically blood poisoning, telling us that Dad's dose was more of a Band-Aid but that mine, because I took Spinal Tap out of my body, might actually be a cure.

And then, they gave us homework.

Dad and I are now forced to stay at home and figure out a way to solve our mutual problem using old materials and papers that once belonged to Grandpa that SHIELD had in their possession because, apparently, Grandpa was one of SHIELD's founding members, which was news to both me and Dad. We were already researching our mutual problem and living our regular lives, so why we are not allowed to leave our property is beyond me. They literally have guards monitoring us and Agent Coulson has been ordered to subdue us if we try to leave. We're not even allowed to talk to anyone! They're allowing me one last message to Pepper to tell her that I can't come to work, but what am I supposed to be telling Pepper that I am doing that I can't come into Stark Industries for the foreseeable future?

I do not need this right now.

Justine had decided that she was done spending all her time sitting in her father's penthouse with nothing to do so she decided to go back to Hammer Industries and explore the facility on her own, to try and get a better understanding of her father's company from the people who worked there, rather than the man himself.

If there was one thing she learned from Alex Stark having been an intern at her own company for a couple years, it's that you need to get all perspectives to get the complete picture.

She didn't tell Hammer that she was coming to Hammer Industries because she didn't want him to commandeer her visit and she asked the secretary at the front desk to not tell him that she was visiting, claiming that she wanted to surprise him for lunch. The secretary was a bubbly young man who smiled and let Justine go on her way. Justine couldn't help but wonder if the secretary's bubbliness was his natural personality or a façade created because she was the boss's daughter.

That was something that Alex probably didn't have to worry about, Justine couldn't help but think. Alex was just such a people person that everyone liked her for who she was as a person, not because of her famous last name and the fortune attached to it. It was one of the many things that Justine had been jealous of Alex for, but realized that she needed to adopt if she was to get anywhere in the world.

She was humming to herself as she wandered the halls of Hammer Industries, making her way to the exit after having spent a few hours talking to various employees and asking them about their projects. She was looking down at her phone when a voice caused her to stop and look up.

"You are boss's daughter, no?"

Justine looked at the somewhat-scary looking man, who was poking his head out from what she assumed was his workshop or office. "Y-yes," she said, hesitantly. "I'm sorry, I don't think we've had the pleasure."

The man almost smiled at her. "See you around."

Justine wasn't sure what to do as the man closed the door without giving her his name. Red flags appeared all over the place. Why bother getting her attention if he wasn't going to even introduce himself?

And, why did he look so familiar?

Justine quickly turned and walked down the hallway, eager to get as far away from the new employee as possible. When she arrived at the front desk, the secretary smiled at her.

"Did you manage to surprise him?"

Justine temporarily forgot about her white lie and it took her a moment to realize what the secretary meant. "Oh, yes. It was a smashing success." She looked over her shoulder and then back at the secretary. "The new employee…what is his name?"

"Oh, I'm not sure," the secretary replied. "Mr. Hammer didn't introduce him to anyone. It was all very hush hush, if you know what I mean."

Justine's eyes narrowed. "No one knows who he is?"

The secretary shook his head. "He was just here, all of a sudden. Not from the United States, as far as anyone has been able to guess. He speaks English relatively well, but it's clearly not his first language."

Justine could tell that much from the 30-second conversation she had just had with him. "Thanks," she said, smiling at the secretary. "I'll see you again soon."

Justine turned and left the building, heading towards the main street to flag down a taxi. What was the big secret about the new employee? Why would Hammer not have introduced him to anyone?

She did not having a good feeling about this at all.

Tony and Alex had moved down to the workshop to conduct their research. Even though she knew that she was supposed to focusing on finding a solution to their palladium problem, Alex was actually enjoying going through her grandfather's belongings. She really didn't know much about either of her grandparents, aside from what was public knowledge. And, now that it had been revealed that Howard Stark was one of the founding members of SHIELD, Alex felt like she didn't even really know who he was at all.

She knew that Howard and Tony didn't get along. She knew that Howard had founded Stark Industries and was a genius. And, she knew that he and her grandmother, Maria, had died about 5 months after she was born in 1991 in a car crash. Stark Industries Archives research told her that he had been active during World War II and had known the World War II hero, Captain America, which had then been confirmed by Tony.

She knew him as a historical figure, not as a grandfather.

"Dad?"

"Hmm?"

"Did your parents like me?"

Tony looked up from the notebook he had been reading and looked at his daughter, who was sitting on the floor in front of Howard's box with her braced legs stretched out in front of her, crossed at the ankles, and her back resting against the side of the white cushioned chair she had previously been occupying. "Are you kidding me? They adored you."

"Really?"

"Absolutely," Tony said. "They spoiled you rotten, actually. You, my dear, probably would be even more spoiled than you already are if they were still around."

"Is that even possible?"

Tony smirked. "We'll never know." He looked back at Howard's notebook. "You were the center of their world for the short time you were in it before they died. Mom had started looking into sending you to the best schools before you were even born. Dad was in the process of setting up trust funds and the like. No expense was spared."

"Then, how come you and Grandpa had such a strained relationship? I know that you and Grandma were close, but what happened with him?"

Tony sighed. "I don't really know," he replied. "But, I'm sure that becoming an unmarried, single father at the age of twenty-one didn't help matters."

"Isn't that what all parents dream of for their children, though?"

Tony let out a laugh. "Don't get any bright ideas," he jokingly warned her, which earned laughter from Alex. He looked at her again. "My dad showed you more attention than he ever showed me."

"I feel like that has to be an exaggeration."

"If only it were."

"If what you say is to be believed, why was he, supposedly, giving me so much more attention?"

Tony shrugged. "Maybe he felt that you were his second chance. He could be to you what he wasn't to me: present and accounted for." He put on a smile, feeling the awkwardness descend over the room. "They loved you then and they would have loved you now. They would have been so proud of you, just like I am."

Alex gave him a small smile. "Thanks, Dad. I wish that I had been able to get to know them." Alex reached into Howard's box and pulled out a film reel. "Ooh, there's a movie! Can we play it?"

Tony nodded. "Go for it. It may help."

It took Alex about ten minutes to get the projector and screen set up but, when she did, she sat back down in the cushioned chair and temporarily abandoned Howard's box. Tony was still flipping through the notebook as the movie played.

The film was basically bloopers of Howard making the Stark Expo introduction back in the 1970s, with a somewhat cute cameo by a young Tony. Alex was smiling at her father's appearance on the screen until Howard started yelling at him and then the smile slipped from her face. She glanced at Tony, who was now watching the screen in a glare-like fashion, before turning back to watch herself. She moved to get up when she thought that the film was over, but then Howard appeared once more.

And, her outlook on her grandfather completely changed.

It was a message that Howard had recorded for Tony. He spoke about how everything he had done was for Tony and how Tony was his greatest creation.

Alex looked at Tony with a smile on her face as the film finally ended. "Words cannot even express how much I absolutely loved that."

Tony looked down and let out a laugh as Alex moved to clean everything up. "Didn't help us figure out a solution though."

"True," Alex said. "But, I'm hoping it will heal other festering wounds."

Tony looked at his daughter, watching her as she put the projector and film away. "Hey, let's call it a night," he said, changing the topic. He stood. "I'm ready to bust out of this joint. You?"

Alex bent down to clean up Howard's papers and put them back in his box. "Well, yeah, but we can't. They have us surrounded, remember? House arrest until we figure out whatever Grandpa was trying to tell us from beyond the grave."

"They can't possibly have every entrance and exit covered," Tony replied. "What do you say you and I head out tomorrow and get some fresh air?"

Alex stood straight and crossed her arms. "It would be nice to take a break and get a change of scenery."

"Perfect," Tony said. "So, tomorrow morning, meet me back down here and we'll escape from our version of prison."

"Really, Dad? We escape from doing work so that we can come to…work?"

Escaping the house had not been as difficult a feat as Alex had pictured it being. She and Tony quite literally just…drove away. Granted, Tony was driving at top speed, but still.

Tony pulled the car into Alex's parking space at Stark Industries. "You're CEO, you should be checking in every once in a while to see how things are going."

"Yes, because you did that so often when you were in charge."

The two of them both got out of the car and shut their doors at the same time. "I take offense to that."

Alex smirked as they started talking to each other from either side of the car. "Dad, I was an intern here for about two years and not once did I ever see you come to my workshop to see how things were going."

"You specifically stated that you did not want special treatment. I was only following your instructions."

"So, giving me a t-shirt on my first day was you not giving me special treatment?"

"Don't diss the shirt! You wear it all the time."

"I can't help that it's comfortable."

"Back to my original point, it's good to drop in on the staff. It shows that you care."

"Then, why did my friends tell me that they have only really ever seen you briefly, in passing, not long enough to actually have conversations with?"

"Because, when your friends started the program, I was kind of being held hostage in Afghanistan."

"Ouch, really? The Afghanistan card? Come on, you're better than that."

"You seem to forget that I once had an office here."

"I can't forget. I now occupy it." The two of them started walking towards the door. "So, why are we really here?"

Tony glanced at his daughter before opening the door. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Alex stepped inside with Tony close behind her. "You can admit that we're here so that you can apologize to Pepper for what happened at your birthday party."

"Why would I make a special trip just for that?" Tony scratched behind his ear. "But, while we're on the topic, just exactly how mad is she?"

Alex chuckled. "Oh, she's furious," she replied. "I'd say that you should go out and buy her something to help make up for your stupidity, but we're already here." She put a hand on his shoulder. "Just think before you speak, alright? I don't want you making anything worse."

She turned and started walking away from him. "Wait, you're not coming with me?" Tony called after her.

Alex turned and continued to walk backwards. "No, I feel like this is something that you have to do on your own," she replied. "Besides, I have nothing to apologize for."

She turned back around before Tony had a chance to say anything else and disappeared down one of the halls, saying hello to everyone and stopping to answer any questions that her employees might have had during her absence. She headed down to the workshops and labs – as she normally would have done, not just because Tony put the idea into her head – to see how everyone was doing with their projects. Everyone seemed to be making great progress, including Quentin.

Quentin only glanced at the door when he heard it open and returned his focus back to his work when he saw who had entered his workshop. "What do you want?"

Alex slowed her pace only slightly. "Really, Quentin? That's how you're going to talk to me?"

"What else do you expect? It's not like I'm going to be excited to see you."

Alex's eyes narrowed. "I expect a little more respect," she said. "We may not be together anymore, but I am still your boss."

"Is that something that you are just going to keep reminding me about?"

"I will when I feel like you've forgotten," Alex replied. "Honestly, Quentin, I don't expect you to like me, necessarily, but I expect you to be a little more mature about this."

Quentin looked at her. "Can I help you with something, Boss?"

This time, Alex rolled her eyes. "I just came to see how your work was coming along."

Quentin arched an eyebrow. "Checking up on me, are you? Making sure that your resources aren't going to waste?"

"Not just you," Alex said. "I've already talked to everyone else." Quentin shook his head and Alex was silent for a moment. "I'm sorry that you're so hurt, Quentin. But, I was hoping that we could still be professional. There's no reason that we can't still work together."

Quentin stared at her for a moment and then nodded. "Let me show you what I've come up with."

He then proceeded to give Alex a demonstration, showing her everything new that he had come up with since the last time she had seen his work with holograms. Alex had to admit that it was quite impressive. "That was awesome, Quentin. Nice work!"

"Nice enough to gain a spot in the Expo?"

Alex couldn't believe what she was hearing. "You're kidding, right?"

Quentin shrugged. "Why would I be kidding? You know that I want to make a presentation."

"And, you know what my answer to that has always been."

Now, it was Quentin's turn to roll his eyes. "Come on, Alex. You know that my work is good enough."

"I've never said that it wasn't good enough," Alex said. "But, you aren't allowed to cut corners. You have to go through the same process as everyone else. No exceptions." Alex turned to leave the workshop. "Maybe next time."

"My work is the best damn project to come out of this company in years!" Quentin yelled after her. "Otherwise, you would not be wearing those braces!"

Alex stopped in her tracks and slowly turned around. "Or, are these braces the best thing that has come out of the company because they actually help people?" She countered. "Honestly, your work has no practical purpose at the moment. Perhaps I should call Disney for you. I'm sure they'd love to utilize it for their rides."

"You may have broken my heart, but I will not allow you to discredit my work. My work will change the world!"

She decided to ignore the comment about his broken heart. "Perhaps it will. But, it's not happening today," Alex replied. "That is strike two, Mr. Beck. Believe me, you do not want to know what happens when you get all three."

Alex turned and left Quentin's workshop, closing the door just as she heard him throw something across the room. She made her way to Pepper's office, but not before running into Natasha in the hallway.

"I was wondering where you were."

Alex winced as she stopped in front of the SHIELD agent, not surprised in the least that Natasha had been alerted as to their escape. "I know that what we did was wrong…"

"Has any progress been made?"

Alex sighed. "Look, there's no reason why we can't take a break. We've been cooped up in that house for days. Even the smartest of minds can't work twenty-four/seven."

"I figured that's all that you'd be doing, considering what's happening to your father."

Alex reminded herself that Natasha's annoyance stemmed from Alex and Tony breaking the rules. "We'll figure it out."

Natasha nodded. "I hope so. For your sake." She sounded genuine, which made Alex feel a little bit better about their encounter. She picked up some papers. "I'll see you in a few minutes."

She walked off in the opposite direction and Alex continued on her journey to Pepper's office. Opening the door, Alex stepped inside to hear Tony and Pepper bickering. "I take it that the apology hasn't gone particularly well?"

"Oh, no, he decided that he wasn't going to apologize," Pepper said, as Alex closed the door behind her.

Alex stopped. "Dad, really?"

Tony turned to face his daughter. "I decided to tell her something instead."

Alex's eyes widened. "Did you now?"

"But, the words just aren't coming."

"Well, by all means, don't let me stop you."

Pepper looked between the two members of the Stark family as Alex laid herself down on the couch. "What is going on with you two?"

Tony turned back to face Pepper and tried to express his thoughts and feelings, but the words truly did stumble from his mouth. Alex looked at her father. "Christ, I can see why people write your speeches for you."

Tony sent his daughter a glare. "That's not helping."

Pepper then jumped in, almost ripping Tony a new one for his recent behavior and, in particular, his naming Alex CEO while he was still perfectly capable of running the company himself.

"Alex has enough on her plate worrying about what is wrong with Spinal Tap to have to also worry about running a company," Pepper was saying. "Not to mention that she is still so young! What were you thinking, Tony? Were you even thinking?"

"Well, yes, that's why I made you…"

Pepper held up her hand. "Not another word." She looked at Alex, who was trying to look indifferent to their conversation by playing on her phone. "Alex, I know that you're dealing with a lot right now, but you're still welcome to come to New York with me if you want to."

Tony looked at Pepper. "How come she gets an invitation to New York and I am told that I am not going?"

"Because I don't have the urge to throw anything at her at the moment," Pepper replied.

"Besides, it's not really an invitation when you're the boss," Alex chimed in. "In any other situation, I would be all over a little getaway, but I don't think it's wise right now." She glanced at Tony, whose eyes were telling her not to say much else. "I've got to focus on Spinal Tap."

Pepper nodded and gave her a sympathetic smile. "I totally understand."

Natasha and Happy made their entrance at that moment, with Natasha telling Pepper that their flight was going to leave in 25 minutes. After saying hi to Happy, and with the conversation becoming background noise, Alex found herself looking at the muted TV screen. The O'Reilly Factor was not only taking stabs at Tony and Pepper, but also at Alex herself, questioning why Alex was put in charge – again – and whether or not Alex was going to give it up like she had last time.

So, not only was the public questioning Tony's Iron Man promise, but they were also questioning her and Pepper's capability to run Stark Industries.

Alex tore her gaze away from the screen when she felt a hand on her shoulder. "Don't pay attention to that," Pepper said. "I don't."

Alex gave her a smile. "Have fun in New York."

Pepper nodded. "I'll call you when I get there."

Alex sighed as Pepper and Happy left the room, knowing that Pepper would only get her voicemail and barely listening to Natasha and Tony talk to each other as she shut the TV off completely. She adjusted herself into a sitting position as Natasha walked towards the door.

"Alex, can I trust you two to go home and stay home?"

Alex mock-saluted the undercover SHIELD agent. "Yes, ma'am." Natasha closed the door behind her and Alex stood, turning to face her father. "That was a complete train wreck."

"Hey, it's hard to tell someone that you care about that you're dying."

Alex arched an eyebrow and crossed her arms. "You didn't have nearly as much trouble getting your words out with me."

"You don't make me tongue-tied."

Alex started laughing. "Oh my god, that's adorable."

She was still laughing as she walked toward the door, with Tony in hot pursuit. "What's adorable? I haven't been described as adorable ever in my life."

"Not even when you were a kid? Cause you were a pretty adorable kid."

Tony closed his eyes almost in frustration. "My adult life."

Her hand was on the door handle when she turned back to face Tony. "You like her."

Tony rolled his eyes as Alex opened the door and headed out of the office. "You didn't answer the question."

"Tony and Pepper sitting in a tree," Alex sang. "K-I-S-S-I-N-G…"

Tony sent her a look as he walked alongside her. "Very mature. What are you? Five?"

Alex laughed again. "I'm just saying that it's adorable because I've never seen you like this over a woman before," she explained. "All of your girlfriends – with the notable exception of Mom – never really made it past the one night stand stage. You've never had a problem with getting 'tongue-tied' with them, at least in the verbal sense…"

"Alexandra!"

"Oh, like I'm wrong?" Alex replied. "Just admit it, Dad. You like Pepper. I mean, anyone with eyes can see it."

Tony cleared his throat. "Shall we head to the car now?" He asked, changing the topic of conversation.

"I just have to stop by my office for a moment and then we can go. I think I left the book I was reading here before we were made homebound," Alex replied. "You can go to the car, if you want."

"No, no," Tony said. "I'd love to see what you've done to the place."

They turned the corner and saw the doors that led to Alex's – formerly Tony's – office. "I really haven't done much," she said, opening the door. "Thinking of hanging some pictures, but that's about it."

"Aw!" Tony said, as Alex walked to her desk. "You took the diorama down!"

"Oh, yeah, I did do that," Alex replied, as Tony took the tarp off of it. "I wanted to put it in a place where more people could see it."

Tony took a closer look at the diorama as Alex found her book. "Have you ever really taken a close look at this before?"

"Not really," Alex replied. "Never really had a reason to. Why?"

"Come here," Tony said.

With book in hand, Alex walked back over to where Tony was standing. "What am I looking for?"

"Just look at it closely."

Alex did as she was told. It took her only a moment. "Wait a second…"

"Exactly," Tony said. "We need to take this home with us."

Alex turned to him. "How? There is no way that this is fitting in the trunk of the car."

"Do we have access to a truck?"

"You know something, I think we actually do," Alex replied. "One of the interns drives a truck. Give me ten minutes."

As Alex left her office to find the intern in question, Tony turned back to the model Howard had created decades before.

Their problems might have just been answered.

I hope that you like this new chapter! Please let me know what you think!