Disclaimer: I do not own the Avengers or any other Marvel characters. I only own my OC.

A/N: I know this is a super late update. Hope this chapter is good enough for you guys. Anyways, regarding this chapter, in case it wasn't clear enough, Grace will be bisexual as I've mentioned in my AU story Blue And Red. Her sexual orientation becomes more apparent later on in the story, specifically when close to the Avengers: Age of Ultron story-line. Though you get snippets of her struggling and questioning how she feels here and there as the story progresses.

I also do not own The Wizard of Oz, or anything associated with it. I have a need to point this out but despite The Wizard of Oz being considered a classic, the history behind the making of the film isn't all sunshine and rainbows. I've read about the horrors that the actress Judy Garland had to endure while filming the movie. It's so sad. In my opinion I think Judy Garland was a beautiful person inside and out and it hurts to know what she went through. Before and even after The Wizard of Oz. Given the young age Grace is at right now she wouldn't be aware of any of that. Her whole attention is on the fantasy the movie has created. However, it is something she later would learn about, just as many of us have.

Edited 4/26/2019

I saw Avengers: Endgame...and my heart is broken. Please excuse my cries that are being heard all around the world. I feel a need to say that I do plan on following the movie story line with this fanfic, so...be prepared for that. Enjoy all the fluff while you still can.


"She had an immense curiosity about life, and was constantly staring and wondering." ― Henry James, The Portrait of a Lady


Chapter 6: Curiosity and mistrust

With a look of utter fascination, Grace Stark turned to the next page of her book. The six year old was reading, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. So far, Grace was loving the book just as much as the movie. Her dad gave her the book a few days after she had seen the movie with him. She loved the movie for various reasons. The fantasy appeal was strong, the bright colors introduced when in Oz were breathtaking, and it was difficult not to sing along to, Somewhere Over the Rainbow.

One of the other things in the movie that held her complete attention was the character of Dorothy. Or rather the actress who played Dorothy. Judy Garland (as Grace had figured out the actress's name later on) in the movie was very pretty. Grace couldn't help but admire her whenever she was on screen. Which was the entire movie since she was the main character. Given her age the admiring was done in such an innocent way. It wouldn't be until years later that Grace realized just what those feelings were really about.

"How's the book?"

Grace right away recognized that voice. She spared Pepper a look. "So far so good." She told the older woman who was at the entrance of her bedroom.

"I love that book." Pepper added her opinion, smiling. "I remember seeing the movie and then wanting to read the book afterwards." After a brief pause she moved onto her next question. "So, you finished the math problems Claire left you with?"

Grace nodded her head. This time her dark brown eyes didn't leave the page she was currently reading. "Yes."

"And how was it?"

The concentration she had faltered. "It was..." Grace tried saying a comprehensible word but all that came out was a groan. "Ugh."

The way Grace frowned reminded Pepper of the way Tony would frown. The redhead wanted to smile at how adorable she looked. She, however, knew doing that would probably add to Grace's frustration. She instead settled on a more positive approach. "Keep trying." She told the young girl. "Math wasn't my strong suit either growing up...but I never gave up trying."

"Dad helped me." Grace told Pepper happily. She had been grateful that her dad had taken time to explain each math problem she had. "I understand the problems a bit more after he explained things to me. Not that Claire didn't explain them well because she did. It's just dad was..."

"His usual carefree self." Pepper finished for her.

Grace smiled. "Exactly."

"Your dad has a way with creating fun anywhere he goes." Pepper said, slightly shaking her head, amused. "He calls it a gift."

Grace hummed. "What a gift." Speaking of gifts...it was then that she finally noticed what Pepper was holding. "What's in the box?" Grace gestured to the small brown box the older woman had. On top of said small box was a coffee mug and underneath were several papers. The young girl wasn't surprised to see the redhead hold that many items, let alone in one hand. Since moving in with her dad, Grace right away had taken notice with how poised Pepper was. Therefore her graceful skills weren't what drew her curiosity. No, she was more interested in what was inside the small brown box.

Pepper had to smile at her question. Grace was ever the curious child. "I guess you can say it's an early birthday present for your dad."

Grace knew her dad's birthday wasn't until May. That was months from now. She knew this right away because her own birthday was in May. Her birthday was on the fourth of May, while her dad's was on the twenty-ninth of May. Still, it was nice to hear that Pepper got him an early present of some sorts. Grace wasn't at all bothered, nor was she asking where her early present was at.

Grace wasn't one for really celebrating her birthday, even at her young age. She never liked the attention. This would be something that would follow into her teen and adult years. The Stark girl gave Pepper a smile. Despite the simple wrapping, Grace could tell this present had meaning behind it. "You're gonna give it to him right now?" She questioned softly.

Pepper nodded her head. "Yeah, I'm going to the lab." She let out a small huff. "I've been trying to buzz him to let him know Obadiah is here too but he hasn't come up. So either he's too into his work, or he's just purposely ignoring me."

Grace would have to go with the second option. Except she wouldn't say her dad was ignoring Pepper because she thought her dad was ignoring Obadiah instead. She totally would. Grace let her gaze linger onto the small brown box before looking at Pepper again. She was really curious to find out what was inside. However, she found it rude to ask what she got her dad. Perhaps if she went with her to the lab her dad would open the present. Thus ending her anticipation. "Can I go with you?" She asked her, putting her book aside.

"Sure, come on." Pepper answered, and immediately Grace got up from her bed and made her way towards her.

"Do you want me to help carry anything?" Grace politely asked her. She was hoping Pepper would hand her the small brown box. Maybe holding it would give her a clue as to what was inside.

Pepper smiled at her politeness and eagerness. She could tell what Grace wanted to hold. Pepper though decided to amuse herself. "How about you hold the coffee mug for me."

Grace wanted to sigh but she nonetheless listened. "Okay."

The two of them then made their way downstairs to where Tony's lab was located. Grace watched Pepper punch in the pass code to open her dad's lab, storing the numbers into her head. She followed the redhead further inside the lab until they just about reached where her dad was at. Pepper carefully set aside the papers she had been holding, along with the small brown box.

Grace put the coffee mug next to where Pepper put the small brown box. The six year old was holding in her movements even though she was very curious to find out what it was. She hoped her dad would open it then and there. However, her dad had yet to properly greet them. His attention was on the robotic arm he was working on. Grace, having been down in the lab a few hours prior, recognized it right away. The robotic arm matched the robotic leg her dad had been working on as well. Perhaps he already finished building the robotic leg given he was now focusing on the robotic arm instead.

"I've been buzzing you. Did you hear the intercom?" Pepper asked Tony.

Tony briefly nodded his head. "Yeah, everything's...what?" He questioned once having processed what she said.

"Obadiah's upstairs." Pepper informed him.

"Unfortunately." Grace muttered. Pepper, who had been closest to her, glanced her way. The redhead hadn't heard her clear enough to know what she said but Pepper could tell the young girl had said something. Grace quickly gave her a forced smile before breaking eye contact. Pepper's puzzled expression faltered when she heard Tony respond again. This time he was more in tune with the conversation. Well...sort of.

"Great, great." Tony halfheartedly answered. "I'll be right up."

Pepper paused, frowning once having a good look at what was laid over the table in front of her. "I thought you said you were done making weapons." She stated once Tony lifted the robotic arm. It was then that she saw how he was wearing the robotic arm over his actual right arm.

"This is a flight stabilizer." Tony assured the redhead.

Pepper's eyes widened. If she had known he was working on something that dangerous looking she never would have brought Grace with her. Pepper drew Grace closer to her, putting her behind her taller form. The six year old peaked her head out wanting to see what was about to happen. "Tony, don't you dare fire that thing in here." Pepper warned the older Stark.

"Don't worry, it's completely harmless." Tony reassured her offhandedly.

Grace found Pepper's concern to be heartwarming. She appreciated the slight over protectiveness the redhead had. It reminded Grace of her mother Louisa. However, Pepper would have freaked if she had known Grace had been down here when her dad was working on his project. In fact, Pepper would have yelled at Grace if she told her how her dad flew while she was in the same room as him. Well...not so much as flew but more like was thrown in the air. Still, it was best not to tell Pepper about any of that.

Remembering the (failed) flying incident from hours prior prepared Grace not to jump or gasp in place with what happened next. Both Pepper and her watched as her dad flew back from the blast he fired from his robotic arm. Pepper was definitely more shocked than Grace. Luckily, Tony hadn't hit the wall but instead ended up landing on the lab floor.

There was a few seconds of silence before Pepper's distressed voice erupted. Grace looked up at the redhead, ready for her to get all mother hen now.

"What were you thinking?!" Pepper shouted at Tony. Grace had to hold in the giggle she wanted to release. Even though Pepper had raised her voice she knew the older woman was really angry.

Tony couldn't take Pepper's freaking out seriously at the moment. He instead was focusing on what had just occurred with the blast. He let out a groan as he began standing up. "I didn't expect that."

A few more seconds of silence passed before Grace raised one of her hands. She took a step to her right side, coming out from behind Pepper. "I did. I totally did."

Pepper then directed her wide eyes onto the young girl, while Tony released a chuckle. This caused Pepper to close her eyes briefly and let out a sigh. Those two are so much alike, the redhead thought. Now even though she didn't want to smile, Pepper eventually ended up smiling anyway. Sometimes it was hard not to crack a smile when around those two. Even after watching her boss fall onto the floor from a robotic arm blast. Though if Pepper were being honest with herself that wasn't the weirdest thing she had seen Tony do, and she had a feeling it wouldn't be the last.


Grace left to go upstairs with Pepper. She really didn't want to since Obadiah was upstairs waiting but Pepper did say there was pizza. However, her appetite went away when she saw it was just plain cheese pizza. That wasn't the kind of pizza she liked to eat. Not to mention her appetite also went away once she was told that it was Obadiah who brought the pizza. Perhaps it was bratty that Grace was refusing to eat the pizza Obadiah brought over...but she just didn't like the older man. She doubted she would ever grow up to like him in the slightest. Just a feeling within her was telling her not to trust him.

Luckily it didn't take long for her dad to meet up with them. Her face instantly lit up when she saw her dad again. The nervousness she had from being in the same room with Obadiah faltered thanks to her dad's presence. She briefly wondered if he had ended up opening the present Pepper gave him. The need to ask was there but Grace decided to ask later.

"How'd it go?" Tony asked, once making his way to where Grace and Pepper were sitting on the living room couch. After taking a seat beside Grace, he saw the pizza box on the living room table and connected the dots. "It went that bad, huh?"

Obadiah, who was playing the piano, responded without sparing Tony a glance. "Just because I brought pizza back from New York doesn't mean it went bad."

Tony didn't buy that one bit. "Uh-huh. Sure doesn't. Oh, boy." He muttered once he opened the pizza box. It was cheese pizza, which was the order he liked but he knew it wasn't Grace's. His daughter was pretty set on the kind of pizza she would eat...and this wasn't the peculiar order she favored.

By now Obadiah had stopped playing the piano. His attention was now all on the oldest Stark. "It would have gone better if you were there."

Tony quickly dismissed that comment. "You told me to lay low. That's what I've been doing. I lay low, and you take care of all..."

"Hey, come on." Obadiah made his way over to him. "In public. The press. This was a board of directors meeting."

Grace's posture became stiff when she saw Obadiah take a seat next to her dad. She discreetly moved a bit closer to Pepper, not wanting to cause a huge fuss. Grace was glad Pepper at the moment was focusing more on whatever she was typing on her laptop. In order to calm down, Grace kept reminding herself she was between her dad and Pepper. She did her best to keep her gaze onto her dad as the conversation between him and Obadiah kept going.

"This was a board of directors meeting?" Tony inquired.

"The board is claiming you have post-traumatic stress." Obadiah informed him. "They're filing an injunction."

Grace didn't need to be an adult in order to know that this wasn't a good thing that was being told to her dad. The expression her dad now had on just confirmed this.

"A what?" Tony questioned, flabbergasted.

"They want to lock you out."

Tony shook his head, feeling more upset. "Why, cause the stocks dipped forty points? We knew that was going to happen."

From where she was sitting, Pepper decided to announce the correct amount. "Fifty-six and a half."

"It doesn't matter." Tony retorted, giving his red haired assistant a glance. "We own the controlling interest in the company."

Obadiah let out a sigh. "Tony, the board had rights, too. They're making the case that you and your new direction isn't in the company's best interest."

Tony almost lost it right there after hearing that. "I'm being responsible!" He earnestly declared. "I've been responsible now for a while, haven't I?" He retorted to Obadiah before looking at his daughter. Tony felt his emotions flare with parental love and protectiveness. Grace was the sole reason why he had been acting less heedless now. Why he was taking the initiative to be a better person than before. She was the main reason why he was doing this secret project of his. So he could be a person that she would be proud to call her dad.

Tony saw the worried look his daughter had and that made his heart clench. Not wanting to worry her more than she probably already was, Tony offered her a smile before gently booping her nose. That got Grace to release a low giggle. Once having amused his daughter, Tony faced Obadiah, turning serious again. "That's a new direction for me, for the company." He told the older man. Tony though began to lose bravado after seeing the look Obadiah gave him. It sort of reminded him of the way his father Howard would look at him. Tony did not like that.

Tony then turned to look at Pepper. The redhead had an unreadable expression that caused Tony's words to get jumbled up. "I mean, me on the company's behalf being responsible for the way that...this is great." He finished saying once realizing he had nowhere to go with that.

"Oh, come on." Obadiah started to say as Tony got up. "Tony. Tony."

Tony gestured to his daughter to follow him with the free hand that wasn't holding the pizza box. "If you'll excuse me. My daughter and I will be in the shop." Grace of course was happy to follow her dad.

"Tony." Pepper started to say in that motherly tone of hers. "It's late, she should go to bed."

"I know, I was only kidding." Tony responded lightheartedly. He didn't need to see Pepper in order to know she had instantly calmed down.

Grace was disappointed she wasn't going to the lab again. However, her disappointment went away and her guard went up once Obadiah stood next to her dad. Grace made sure to put distance between her and Obadiah, resulting in her huddling behind her dad. Though none of the adults noticed this.

"Hey, Tony. Listen. I'm trying to turn this thing around, but you gotta give me something. Something to pitch them." Obadiah said, his gaze landing on the arc reactor that was on Tony's chest. "Let me have the engineers analyze that. You know, draw up some specs."

Mistrust grew behind Grace's dark brown eyes but she felt relief with what her dad said next.

Tony had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. Obadiah had already asked that question countless times. Each time Tony refused and this time wasn't going to be different. "No. No, absolutely not. This one stays with me. That's it, Obie. Forget it."

"Alright, well, this stays with me, then." Obadiah told him as he grabbed the pizza box from his hands. "Go on, here, you can have a piece. Take two. For you and Grace."

"I don't like that kind of pizza." Grace quietly said. By now she was standing next to her dad and had an unreadable expression.

Obadiah frowned, staring down at the little girl. "What?"

"She likes her pizza to have pineapples and black olives." Tony answered, jumping into the conversation. This was something Grace was very grateful for. "She also likes brunt crust." He added that last part with an even more lighthearted tone than before.

"Burnt crust?"

Tony shrugged his shoulders. "What can I say? She's a weird kid." He said, throwing an affectionate smile at Grace. If it had been anyone else, Grace would have probably felt insulted being called weird. Except coming from her dad she knew being called weird was a good thing. She knew in her six year old mind that it was an endearing term. Therefore, the young girl returned the smile. Tony smiled once more before looking at Obadiah again. "But I'll eat both pieces. Thank you." Tony then looked at his daughter.

"How about I fix you something to eat before you go off to bed?"

Grace smiled and nodded her head. Her smile faltered when she heard Obadiah's voice again.

"You mind if I come down there and see what you're doing?" Obadiah asked Tony. However, Tony just walked away with Grace by his side, not sparing him a glance.

"Goodnight, Obie." He nonchalantly announced, causing Grace to giggle. Even Pepper who was still sitting in the living room had to shake her head somewhat amusingly at Tony.

None of them had taken notice of the brief look of anger that crossed Obadiah's features.