6

6 Years Later

"Where's your father?" Obadiah questioned Astrid.

"Most likely in the palace gambling," Astrid answered before sending him a look, "you got this?"

Obadiah nodded and she got up from the table. She sent a few smiles towards the occupants that had been around them, and getting one in return. Astrid had gotten popular as soon as she entered MIT. Several magazines had stated she was following her father's footsteps in becoming one of the greatest minds of America. She found them incredibly amusing, as did Tony.

Speaking of Tony, he was standing at one of the Craps tables. She would say she couldn't believe him, but she could. She smiled at one of their security guards before moving toward the table as he tossed some die down. Happy greeted her with a nod of his head, easily spotting the tall teenager. She had hit her growth spurt the year before and was easily identified in a crowd.

"Any luck?" She asked her dad.

"Oh, hey there sneaky feet," Tony greeted in response before taking a swig out of his cup of alcohol, "what's bothering you kiddo?"

"Nothing much, this is a good excuse to get away from Obi while he accepts your award in your stead," She answered as he handed her the die, "bet for 11 and don't pass it."

Tony smirked as he accepted the die back. Astrid flagged down a cocktail waitress and ordered a Shirley temple. Happy shook his head in amusement as both father and daughter watched the woman leave. They were two peas in a pod. Had been for a few years, as soon as the kid expressed interest in going to MIT and working on cars Tony had taken her under his wing completely. It also left little time for her to act as the brown recluse, though she still acted when she could. He gave her a high five as her little advice paid out big. Tony put some of the funds to the side so he could cash it in. He wasn't about to not give his kid a piece of the winnings.

"You might make Rhodey mad," Astrid informed him as she gave the cocktail waitress a smile as she accepted her drink with a small 'thanks', "you only agreed to be here because he was handing you the award."

"I'll make it up to him," Tony waved off her worry.

"As long as you don't forget Pepper's birthday, you're golden," Astrid informed him and she watched as he paused in his actions, "Dad…it's tomorrow."

"She already got herself something, didn't she?" Tony asked as he threw the die again.

"Yeah, a dress," Astrid answered sipping at her drink, "I got her something to go along with it."

"You reminded me a week ago, didn't you?" He finally asked.

"Dad, she knows you get forgetful sometimes," She informed him in a good-natured tone, "if you're really interested in getting her something, we can stop on the way to the jet."

Tony didn't mind the sound of that and nodded to Happy. It wouldn't be the first time his kid saved his ass when it came to buying Pepper a gift, or reminding him to do so. She always father him with her while Christmas shopping so he wouldn't forget to get his assistant something. It was one of the reasons why Pepper had so many earrings.

"I was told that if I was the one presenting the award, you'd actually show up for it," Rhodey stated as he came up to Tony.

"And I'm very honored," Tony said as he picked up some die and turned towards the brunette at his shoulder, getting her to blow on the die, "c'mon honey bear."

"I don't blow," Rhodey said before knocking Tony's hand away, releasing the die and watching as he lost the bet, "see that's what you get."

"Well, we did show up if that makes you feel any better," Astrid said getting the man's attention.

"You shouldn't even be in the palace," Rhodey commented giving her a dirty look, "how'd you make it past security?"

"By being tall enough to be mistaken for an adult?" She answered finishing her drink, "Don't worry Uncle Rhodey, I know better."

Rhodey muttered something under his breath and Astrid smiled. She knew how to butter him up. She had met Rhodey back when she was a child. Tony had showed up for one of her school events and Rhodey had been dragged along. She had won first place and had gained an uncle all in the same day. She was good like that. The only person that hadn't fallen for her charisma was Obadiah, much to her chagrin. It would make life so much easier if he had. Alas, she couldn't get everything in life. She was handed the award by her dad, and she looked down at the glass globe on a stand. It was ostentatious and something that would find its way into someone else's hands. She passed it into the hands of a Caesar talking to a group of women.

"You better not forget that you have to be in Afghanistan tomorrow," Rhodey informed Tony and Astrid paused for a few seconds, "don't be late."

Jericho was important, she kept chanting to herself. It was difficult to ignore the fact that she didn't want him to go. He was her dad. That was her biggest failure really, getting attached. Not that Tony made it easy, the time they spent meant a lot to her. Oddly enough, he was her hero, and she wasn't ashamed to say that. Astrid shook her head as Happy opened the door to the car. She was about to get in when she heard movement coming towards them.

"Mr. Stark, Christine Everhart from Vanity fair, mind if I ask you some questions?" A blonde woman asked as she hurried towards them.

"Is she cute?" Tony asked Happy, and he gave a charming grin towards the blonde when he received a positive.

"Gonna take a bet on this one?" Happy asked Astrid as she let out a sound of disbelief.

"No, I don't do fools bets," She answered, "I've got online class tomorrow, so I would like to get some sleep."

"Don't count on that," Happy chuckled and she made a very teenage expression of disgust.

He drove them to the airport where they got on the private jet. Astrid stayed clear of her dad and Christine and decided to play a game of chess against Happy. He was close to the door so he could keep an eye on her dad. It cost him the game, though it was unlikely he was going to win anyway. It was a relatively short trip and soon Astrid found herself sitting at her desk, typing away at her laptop. She must've fallen asleep at one point because she found herself dreaming for once. It was all disconnected images that she could figure out. One was of a child's hand reaching for a shell. The sand had been clear, but the weather was cold. Why she remembered the temperature she wasn't sure. It might've been integral, so she filed it away for future thought sessions.

"It is currently eleven in the morning, you have gotten eight hours of sleep it is imperative that you get up," Jarvis informed her causing her to jolt awake.

"I'm up, I'm up," She muttered as she sat up in her chair before leaning back, "have I missed class?"

"Fortunately, you have not," Jarvis answered as she yawned, "you have an hour before your class starts."

"Thank you, Jarvis," Astrid said as she moved to put the earpiece in and synced it with her bracelet.

Online classes were easy for her, it allowed her time to spend with her father or talk with Pepper. It also let her stay in her home. MIT was a great school; she just didn't want to travel across country to attend. Her eyes narrowed in thought. What in the first world problem, she mused.

"Happy birthday," She greeted Pepper as she came down the stairs.

"Your father is unbelievable," Pepper informed her without looking up from her paperwork.

"Oh no, what did he do now?" She winced.

"Made Rhodey wait for three hours straight," Pepper answered, and Astrid's wince increased, "what's your class today?"

"Norse Mythology," She answered glad for the change of topic, "I think we're starting on Loki."

Astrid never really thought much of it, but how did they know Loki was a Jötunn? The people of Earth knew he was a frost giant, but the people of Asgard didn't? She wondered how that worked. Odin could possibly keep Loki from reading anything from Earth regarding their people, but she doubted it. She sighed quietly before reaching into the fridge for an apple. She couldn't really ask any from Asgard could she. She'd ask Frigga if she could simply because the woman had seemed to have the patience of a saint. She had to deal with Thor and Loki.

"Your favorite god," Pepper lightly teased.

"What can I say, I like mischief," She shrugged, "what's on the birthday agenda?"

"Dinner with some friends," Pepper answered, "I just need to finish the last of this paperwork."

"I'll leave you to it, and enjoy your birthday."

Pepper shot the grinning teenager an amused glare as she headed up the stairs to her room. She needed to get everything ready for her class. Which she sat through with a blank expression due to being bored. The topic was interesting, but the teacher was so boring. She tilted her head back till it touched the headrest of her chair before opening a new window on her laptop. If she was going to be bored, she was going to design some modifications for her glider, and possibly start constructing a better suit that wasn't made from latex. If she could create something like the iron man suit, she'd be happy. She looked at the suit blueprints and paused, it reminded her of Tom Hollands spider-man, the spider-man that would be in the universe she was currently in. Small world, she mused in amusement before adding a few modifications as the teacher droned on.

"These specifications would work with the glider in mind," Jarvis stated as she rotated the model, "but how would you power it?"

"That's the million-dollar question," Astrid muttered as she sat back, "I don't know of anything beyond the arc reactor that could power the suit, but the glider already runs on a specific blend of rocket fuel and petrol."

"Would you like me to bring up schematics for the arc reactor?" Jarvis questioned.

"Yes please," Astrid answered, "I doubt that I could get it to a small enough size to be usable, but studying never hurt anyone."

The blueprints for the reactor were brought up and she eyed the circular design. She couldn't help but akin it to a doughnut. She was able to move it around and soon she was looking above it, the math for the creation of it was insane. She thought her equations for the glider was impressive, it had nothing on renewable energy that hadn't existed in the fourth wall. She started to type up some equations to try and make it smaller, not even thinking about the fact that she was doing the math around the same time that her dad would go missing in Afghanistan. The thought soured her mood instantly and she cursed her inability to not get attached. It was hard not to.

"Jarvis, could you make the background to my laptop the picture from my birthday?" She asked.

"Certainly," Jarvis confirmed.

She closed the windows for a few seconds, her lecture still going, and saw the picture of her, Pepper, and Tony at Disney World. She was wearing silly mouse ears with Tony while Pepper gave them an amused smile. The picture had been taken by Happy, and was missing Rhodey simply because the man had gone to get something to eat. It made her smile before it dropped slightly, it was hard to inform anyone that she had lived two live previously and remembered them. It was the fastest way to get a premium room in a psyche ward. Wade was good with it because he could interact with the fourth wall, sometimes she believed that he had seen her before she passed.

Astrid was fooling herself; she was forgetting information and she was aware of it. She hadn't remembered it in her previous life either. Piper never thought to delve into her memories as May and Ben had made sure she knew what to do, taught her how to make coffee and tea. She wondered why she was forgetting things when everything else was intact. It made no sense. She huffed quietly before noticing a small notification on her laptop. She raised a brow; she typically didn't get emails from people. She opened the app and froze. WWW_wadenation starknet stared back at her and she refused to get her hopes up. It was the same handle he used back in the previous timeline. She hesitated for a few seconds before opening the message.

Hey there Spidey!

I bet you're confused by the fact that I was able to send you a message, I'm just as confused as you are. I got the strangest feeling to send this your way before noticing that the panels were detailing your background. I'm not part of a hivemind, which is what I'm betting you are thinking right now, but observant. You seem to be suffering from memory problems, which is totally normal for a woman your age. I wouldn't worry too much; everything will be clear soon. I'd say come and find me, but you can be scary when you want to. Such is the frosty way in which you live.

Keep being a good spider,

Wade.

He insulted her like he usually did. She stared at the words for a few seconds before letting out a low chuckle. Of course, in times of trouble Wade came to her giving words of wisdom. Observant instead of a hivemind. That made sense, but not too much. She closed the email and archived it. When she got low, she'd read it again. He knew that her memory was spotty, but believed there was nothing to worry about. Wade had always been like that; he was a go with the flow kind of person, and it was impressive. He was also insane like she was, which was nice. She closed the app and logged out of her class when the professor finished. Her homework was simple, and she was able to get the questions done. Whoever said that college was difficult compared to high school was lying. Most professors don't care what was done in their classes if the work was completed and turned in on time. She once ate banana chips in one of her English classes back when she was going through her first run of college. It had annoyed the professor, but she was a top student, so she didn't get yelled at. She did apologise to her fellow classmates, merely citing that she wanted to see how far she could go before the teacher snapped. No wonder she got along with Tony and Wade; they were very similar personality wise.

Astrid waited for hours, hoping that Jericho wouldn't happen that her dad wouldn't be stuck in Afghanistan in an area she couldn't find. She wouldn't spare anytime and would immediately try to find him. She sat back in her chair and continued to work on the suit and glider, she also tried her hand at minimizing the arc reactor. It wasn't going well, her math kept getting jumbled and it just wasn't making any sense. She ran her hands through her hair in frustration before gently tugging on the long strands. She hated it when things didn't make sense.

She was pulled from her frustrations when her mobile phone rang once before stopping. Her brows furrowed and she picked it up, flipping the top open. She had a single miss call from Tony and a sinking sensation filled her. Tony had been taken, but he had tried to call her one last time. She slammed a fist down on her desk and barely paid it any attention when it cracked in half. She needed to work out her frustration and anger. If she didn't then she wouldn't be able to think clearly about what she needed to do. She headed to the driveway while sending Happy a message telling him that she wanted to go to the gym. He gathered something had upset her and didn't push for answers. It was one of the things she really liked about Happy, the man knew when to push someone and when not to.

"You need to square your shoulders more," Happy informed her as they circled one another in the ring.

"My style doesn't require the squaring of shoulders, but I'll try just for you," Astrid informed him as she slightly squared them to create a solid defense against his punches.

Astrid wasn't lying when she said her style wasn't suited for boxing. The Way of the Spider was a style she learned from Shang-Chi when her senses went haywire once. It worked with her spidey sense and allowed her to use it effectively in combat. It was one of the reasons why Happy was currently getting his ass handed to him by her. She was able to sense his attacks and adjust accordingly. She was holding her punches, not really wanting to hurt the older man. It also allowed him the joy of acting as a mentor, something she knew he enjoyed. Maybe one day she'd be able to inform him that she acted as a vigilante, but it wasn't anytime soon. She ducked under a punch that was meant for her head and she responded with a slight tap to his stomach that caused him to stumble a bit.

"I'm stronger than I look, how heavy do you think metal is?" She teased him with a slight grin that reminded him of Tony's.

"Oh, it's on kiddo," Happy informed her as he regained his breath.

Astrid chuckled at his reaction as they went back to sparing. It ended in a win for her, and a loss for him. He was breathing heavily as she unwrapped her hands with a small smile on her face. She jerked in surprise when a ringing filled her ear. She had forgotten that she had the earpiece in.

"Miss, your father has gone missing," Jarvis informed her, just as her phone started to go off.

"Thank you, Jarvis," She murmured before reaching for her phone and answering it, "this is Astrid."

"You need to head home," Pepper sternly informed her.

"Is this about Dad going missing overseas?" Astrid asked.

"Yes, just do it," Pepper tersely confirmed.

Astrid paused for a few seconds. Pepper had been crying and she didn't know how to deal with that. The woman was a pillar of strength to hear how upset she was, caused a churning in her stomach. She turned towards Happy and informed him that she needed to head home. He gave her a serious look and motioned towards a television that hung on the wall in the gym. She looked and her expression became grim. It was a news report about Tony's disappearance.

Astrid was put on house arrest until the following day, and she soon found herself growing bored by herself. Jarvis stayed quiet as she turned towards Tony's alcohol cabinet and walked up to it. She had been able to hack into it and grabbed a few bottles. She would rather deal with a hangover than the guilt she was feeling. Guilt was an ugly emotion, and one that made her unsure of what to do. She opened up a bottle of scotch and started to drink it straight from the bottle. It would not be her finest hour, and she ignored the warning from Jarvis about excess drinking. Her Dad was missing, the man she wasn't supposed to get attached to in the first place! She was allowed to grieve a bit before kicking her ass into gear and starting the search for her dad. Her metabolism made it nearly impossible to get intoxicated, so she had to truly try.

She was prepared for hurricane Pepper the following morning, even as she chugged down some of the scotch.