I FINALLY FINISHED IT! WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! IT IS ABOUT DAMN TIME!

In regards to my father's secrecy, it made a lot of sense when he took the time to explain to me of the palladium poisoning. It was almost like a cancer spreading throughout his body, killing him slowly, and what child wants to hear that their parent is dying? I now understood that my father wanted to protect me, you know, being his only child and all that. It all started several months after his announcement to the press that he was Iron Man. It was almost impressive that he'd been hiding this for months on end, but it still pained me to realize that he was going through this alone. It suddenly made much more sense why we'd been having those serious talks about responsibility over the Iron Man suits. Then, he finally admitted the reasoning behind choosing Pepper to run Stark Industries and wanted to wait until I was older with more experience before finally handing the company to me. That was when the feeling of determination kicked in, and we were all escorted back to the mansion where we could work. There was a small window of time before the palladium poisoning would resume its course and kill my father, meaning we had to work fast. By the time we get down to my father's workshop, dad pulls me away from all the SHIELD agents in the room and over to a secluded corner.

"I'm sorry about all of this- -" Dad started.

"You couldn't have exactly prevented this, so stop putting all the blame on yourself." I cut him off. "It sucks that I had to find out this way, but...in your shoes, I know this wasn't easy." I mutter softly. "So what matters now, is that we make use of the time we have left. Make an impact on the world, you know?" I give him a small smile.

Dad blinks away tears, and I find myself surprised because he rarely gets emotional like this. He plants both of his hands on my shoulders, as if to steady himself, before he plants his forehead against mine. I remember in my early childhood that he used to do this to calm me down, and it always seemed to put me at ease for some reason as my eyes fall shut.

"I love you so much, you know that...right?"

I feel a lump in my throat and also blink away tears, but for some reason, I still find myself smiling and hoping that this feeling of fulfillment and happiness never fades.

"I love you too, dad." I respond with sincerity.

Finally he pulls back and plants a kiss to my forehead lovingly before ruffling my hair. Phil Coulson approaches us after ordering some SHIELD agents around. I smile politely at him as I wipe at my eyes and pull myself together.

"So uh...you're also here to basically supervise me and my dad?" I asked.

"Mostly, yes...if your father steps out of line though, I'll taser him and watch Supernanny as he drools on the carpet." Phil told me.

"I wouldn't stop you..." I chuckled.

That would be something I'd like to see. It sounded hilarious.

"How's your throat?" He asked.

"It's fine. It's almost completely healed, and I don't really need the bandages anymore. So far so good." I mumbled.

"I didn't know burns could heal so fast." Phil gave me a skeptical look.

"I don't know how this shit works...I guess I'm just a quick healer." I shrugged.

"And you or your father don't find that suspicious at all?" Phil raised an eyebrow.

"Do you think it's weird? We've never really put too much thought or looked into it. I've always just been a fast healer." I blushed.

I averted my eyes feeling uncomfortable and just continued to watch the SHIELD agents swarm in.

It was honestly surprising that Director Fury, or rather SHIELD, had a lot of my grandfather's research. Boxes upon boxes were stacked throughout the entire workshop and I find myself at a loss of words in regards of where to start. Howard Stark seemed to be an interesting individual, a genius for certain, something my father inherited from him. I become curious about what kind of a man he must have been, but from my father's tales, he was anything but kind to him. However, regardless of his cold attitude, it would have been interesting to meet the genius that founded Stark Industries.

And not to mention the man involved with creating Captain fucking America in WWII.

As I rummage through the boxes, Fury mentions to my father that Howard Stark had been working on something huge before he passed away in that tragic car accident with Maria, something that would make the Arc Reactor look like a AA battery. Finally, after having a much needed talk with my father, Nick comes to me and places a steady hand on my shoulder, which has me pause to look at him.

"Tyra, your father's gonna need your help, whether he wants to admit it or not. I trust that you'll be able to steer him on the right path, show him the way. You're a smart kid, Stark."

I find myself perk up in confidence at Director Fury's words, and smile as I give him a firm nod. Fury returns the smile and lets me get back to work. Hours pass as the two of us work diligently and sort through Howard Stark's files and works, and my dad for the hell of it, finds some old films that he decides to fire up to see if there was any useful information. But then, I hear Howard Stark addressing my father as if he's alive and in this very room with us. I stare at the projection with surprise and awe as Howard's voice fills the room.

"Tony, I know you're too young to understand this, so I thought I would put it on film for you...I built this for you." Howard Stark gestured to a diorama of the Stark Expo Building and everything that surrounded it. "And someday you'll realize that this represents a whole lot more than just peoples inventions. It represents my life's work. This is the key to the future." The camera zoomed in on the Stark Expo statue that was next to the building. "I'm limited to the technology in my time, but one day you'll figure this out. And when you do...you'll change the world. What is and always will be my greatest creation...is you."

When the projector comes to a stop as the film ends, my father appears to be in some sort of shock. I also find myself at a loss of words, it was creepy and almost surreal that it happened. In the darkness, I make my way over to dad and place a comforting hand on his shoulder. Dad reaches back, and pats my hand gently.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

He seems to be in a daze of some kind, or just trying to process all of this, but he's silent for minutes. Finally, he gets up from his spot and glances at me with sadness before pulling me in for an embrace. Instinctively, I tense up at the contact, but as time passes, I relax in his hold and find myself returning the hug.

"If I ever suck at parenting, you'll tell me right?" Dad mutters.

I can't help but chuckle at that.

"I don't think anyone's good at parenting. But you're doing okay so far."

"I realized I'm more like my old man than I originally thought. Just...don't be afraid to tell me anything okay?"

My smile fades when his hold tightens just slightly, and I realize he's being completely serious.

"Yeah, of course." I reassure him.

Dad drove by Stark Industries I think to apologize to Pepper for his behavior lately again and to take the diorama that was mentioned in Howard's film. As for me, I found myself utterly exhausted from the events occuring over the past several weeks, finding it hard to keep up. Coulson notices how tired I am, and immediately has me sent up to my room.

"But I need to help- -"

"You can take a break, Stark. I'll inform you when your father returns. Knowing him, he'll take his sweet time getting back." Coulson smiles.

"You're sure?" I hold back a yawn.

"After everything that's been happening, I think you need some rest." Coulson tells me.

I find myself blushing as I start unwrapping the bandages around my neck.

"Could you...um...could you help me with my neck- -" I stammer. "My dad usually helped me with this- -"

Coulson realizes what I'm asking and nods.

"Yeah, sure."

I sit over on the cot settled over at a corner of the workshop before retrieving a medkit with the necessary items. Coulson is quick and careful with his hands as he removes the rest of the bandages and puts cream on it. I feel his fingers brush my neck softly and shudder as they come to a stop. I then realize Coulson is staring at my neck in complete surprise.

"Your wounds...they're almost completely healed." Coulson mutters softly.

"Is something wrong?" I ask worriedly.

"No, nothing." Coulson shakes his head. "Everything looks fine."

After wrapping a new bandage around my neck, he gives my knee a small pat before walking away.

"Get some rest, I'll let you know when your father returns."

I find myself at a loss of words, but lay down on the cot as Coulson leaves to go upstairs. The moment my head is on the pillow, I fall into a deep sleep.

FLASH!

"You're Loki! Brother of Thor!" Selvig smiled.

The man with slick black hair and emerald eyes glared at Selvig before pressing the staff he held to his chest. His eyes turned black before becoming a shade of blue. The hairs on the back of my neck stand tall and slowly I make my way over to the Tesseract, putting it inside a case as quietly as I possibly can as to not draw attention. When I glance at Director Fury, he looks just as nervous as I feel, giving me a very small but curt nod that tells me to take off running as soon as I can with the Tesseract. As the raven-haired man talks down to Fury, I inch very slowly over to the exit before his eyes immediately dart over to me. He smirks devilishly and points the staff in my direction, and I find myself frozen in fear.

"I wouldn't leave if I were you, darling. I still need that."

Fury steps forward, getting his attention once more.

"This doesn't need to get ugly." Fury spoke lowly.

"An ant has no quarrel with boot." He started moving forward.

"Are you planning to step on us?" Fury looked at the man in disbelief.

I find myself ignoring the conversation as I glance around frantically for any possible escape route when a mind-controlled Selvig moves towards the exit I'm near. As much as I don't want to hurt Selvig, I can easily defeat him and haul ass out of the SHIELD base if I'm quick enough. Fury glances at me one last time, realizing what I'm up to, and slowly moves his hand down to draw his gun.

"RUN!"

My breath quickens, but I quickly move anyway, executing my plan and knocking Selvig to the floor by hitting him with the case. I run as fast as I can to the exit and almost make it there before I feel a sharp pain in my leg and realize that Clint, also under mind-control, had shot me. I fall to the floor, the case skidding away from my grasp. I begin crawling towards the case, a renown determination as well as adrenaline setting in. I find myself screaming when my injured leg is grabbed and I'm being pulled across the floor. The raven-haired man is picking me up with strength I didn't even know he had, before his face is nearly inches from mine as he inspects me head to toe with a menacing gaze.

"Let go of me!" I glare at him.

I struggle against the man, desperate to get away.

"You are an odd Midgardian...you look... familiar. Have I threatened you before?" He raises an eyebrow.

Using a maneuver that Natasha had taught me, I bring my knee up to his groin, making him release me from his arms before I swing my fist and hit him hard in the face. He doubles over but recovers quickly.

"No mortal has ever been able to hit me so hard. What exactly are you?" He hissed at me. "You're going to deeply regret resisting me, you foolish woman."

Before I can blink, he moves with speed I didn't know he possessed, and kicks at my injured leg roughly until I fall to my knees. He grabs me by my hair and forces me to look at him.

"What to do you with you..." He nearly growls.

FLASH!

I'm nearly screaming and crying when I wake up, my very being filled with fear. Before I realize it, Agent Coulson is running down the stairs with my father before they make their way over to me. My dad is holding my face in his hands inspecting me for any wounds.

"Hey! Tyra! Look at me! What's wrong?!"

I look around the room frantically, and it takes me a few minutes to remember where I am or what was happening.

"Where- -where am I?!" My voice cracks.

"You're at the mansion, Tyra! Hey! Look at me!" Dad urges.

Dad forces me to look at him and stares at me worriedly.

"Jesus Christ." He breathes out. "You gave us a heart attack, you alright? Bad dream?"

I merely nod and find myself at a loss of words, terrified beyond belief as I cry and hug my father desperately. I hadn't felt this kind of fear before, or have a nightmare like that before.

"Miss Stark, your leg..." Coulson mutters.

Dad gently pushes me back and looks down to find a giant circular bruise on my thigh. Coulson gently prods at my thigh, and I whimper at the pain.

"She must have hurt herself in her sleep." Dad sighed.

Dad stands up, pulling me up with him before ushering me up the stairs.

"Come on, let's make you something to eat huh?"

I merely nod in response, unable to find any words for what the hell just happened. A dream that felt too realistic, a bruise the size of a bullet on my thigh where I was shot in my dream?

This has to be more than a dream...but what?

It's about half an hour later that I've finally managed to regain my composure before I see boxes full of pieces of what appears to be from Howard Stark's diorama of the Stark Expo. Dad actually takes his time with me, making sure I'm stable enough to help him rebuild the diorama, or what could be hidden within it. I hold a cup of oolong tea to calm my nerves and together, me and my father move to rebuild the Stark Expo diorama. It only takes another half an hour, before my father is able to scan the entire model and analyze it further on a holographic projection in front of us. As soon as dad turns off the lights, it comes together slowly, but I reach for the building that represents where the Stark Expo is.

"It's a cell..." I realized.

"A cell?" Dad comes over with a curious expression.

I hold up the holographic Stark Expo building and hand it to him.

"The Stark Expo is the nucleus, and the entire city is meant to represent the cell." I clarified. "Do you see it?"

Dad stands exactly where I am and closely observes before he too, sees what I'm referring to and nods.

"What is it you are trying to achieve?" JARVIS asked.

"We're discovering- -correction, rediscovering a new element." Dad replied.

"He fucking...wow...your dad was so intelligent." I smiled brightly.

"Intelligent, but a shitty father." Dad rolls his eyes.

"Look!"

Using the hologram, I peel everything off in layers until the Stark Expo, being held in my father's hand, was the only thing that remained.

"The diorama was just a disguise, dad. Look!" I laughed excitedly.

"A disguise for wha- -holy shit, you're right."

Dad's eyes widened when he finally realized where I was getting at.

"It's the molecular and atomic structure for the element he was creating..." Dad grins.

Dad ruffles my hair before planting a kiss to my cheek.

"Nice job, baby girl. Don't know what I'd do without you." Dad tells me happily.

With the help of JARVIS, the two of us begin to build a particle accelerator. Honestly not what I thought I'd be doing today, but all I could think about were the possibilities of this new element should this all work out smoothly.

It could reignite the Tesseract! This element could rival the power of the Tesseract! I can't believe we didn't discover this damn element sooner!

Soon enough, we're all ready to go with the device we managed to put together, and get to work quickly. We put on our goggles on in order to shield our eyes from the blinding lights. As soon as dad flips the switch, two beams of light collide together, creating a third beam of light that dad and I have to steer together using only a wrench. The destruction the beam had caused was unavoidable, but finally, we get the beam into a container for this new element. When we flip off the switch, the only we see and hear, is the hum and blue-ish glow of the new element. We turn back on the lights, slowly making our way to the new element and holding it in our hands. It all feels too surreal, but it's here and it's all because of us.

"Congratulations...you've just created a new element." JARVIS told us.

"Holy shit...we did it. We did this! Oh my god!" I grinned. "Do you realize how much clean energy we could produce with this?!"

"Don't contain all your excitement at once." Dad teases.

Out of pure giddiness and excitement, I practically tackle dad into a hug and squeal.

"This is amazing! What should we name the element?" I asked.

"How about badassium?" Dad smirked.

"As awesome as that would be, I don't think anyone will agree to this name. Pepper would have your ass on a platter if you did that." I chuckled.

"It was worth a try..." Dad shrugged.

It was then that there was an anonymous phone call. At first, we assumed it was Coulson and answered the call without thinking.

"Incoming call with a blocked number, sir." JARVIS informed us.

"Coulson! How goes everything- -"

"Hey, Tony. How are you doing?" A familiar Russian accent spoke up. "Double cycle."

I froze in my spot and gently held my throat remembering our previous encounter.

But...he was reported dead in prison...how in the fuck?

"Huh?" Dad asked.

"You told me double cycle is more power. Good advice..." Vanko chuckled.

"You sound pretty sprightly for a dead guy." Dad mumbled.

Yeah...which brings me back to the question of HOW THE FUCK IS HE ALIVE?!

"You too." Vanko replied.

How did he- -

Dad quickly put on the mute button and started telling JARVIS to trace the call as Vanko kept yammering away. Something told me deep down, I already knew where he was.

"Now the true history of Stark name...what your family did to my father in 40 years... I will do to you in 40 minutes...starting with your daughter."

He...he's going to the Stark Expo wasn't he? That's the first place he'd go. He probably thinks I'm there.

I felt dad reach over for my hand and grasp it tightly in comfort and reassurance. Dad turns off the mute button quickly to keep him on the line.

"Sounds good. Let's get together and hash it out." Dad spoke up.

"I hope you're ready..." Vanko lowered his voice dangerously.

With that Vanko hung up.

"Trace incomplete, sir." JARVIS said.

Shit snacks.

"I think I already know where he's headed." I spoke up.

"You do?" Dad raised an eyebrow.

"Seriously, think about it. Where's the first place Vanko would go, and where he thinks I might be? Who has a huge grudge against Stark Industries? Who has enough money to hire Vanko, fake his death, and get revenge against the great Tony Stark?" I blurted out.

"Justin Hammer." Dad realized. "We gotta get moving then, Pepper and Rhodey are over at the Stark Expo."

"I'll get the armor ready. Put the new element in and run a diagnostic." I ran off.

Dad put the core with the new element into a new arc reactor and I smiled inwardly as the reactor accepted the core.

"Just get out the armor out for the two of us, JARVIS! Uggh...tastes like coconut..." Dad then grimaced. "And metal...Whoa...AW YEAH!" Dad yelled suddenly.

It was if he was filled a burst of energy as he stood up out of his chair, the glow on his chest much brighter than before.

Oh the possibilities of this new element.

After getting suited up in the armor, we flew to the Stark Expo with one thing on our mind: getting everyone safe from Justin Hammer and Ivan Vanko. It shouldn't surprise me that Justin Hammer basically bought for someone's freedom, a terrorists freedom at that, but hey- -

Justin Hammer was willing to do whatever it took to get Stark Industries AKA my father.

So in all honesty, it shouldn't surprise me at this point that Justin Hammer was incredibly fucking stupid for an 'intelligent guy'. My anxiety is through the roof when we finally make it just in time for Hammer's presentation, and guess what it was- -it was his own line of Iron Man powered suits.

No doubt he had Vanko help him with that since he was familiar with the Arc Reactor technology.

Amongst all the empty drones, there was actually one person inside one of the suits of armor, it was Rhodey of all people. I'm almost insulted that Rhodey was mad enough at my father to consider helping out Justin Hammer, but I try to think of the bigger picture, getting everyone out of here safe and sound before Vanko or Hammer made their move. The two of us are brought out of our thoughts when Justin Hammer comes over, the fakest smile plastered on his face when he approaches us.

"Yeah! Give it up for Iron Man and Woman huh?" Justin smiled.

Who even came up with Iron Woman anyway? Like really? Nothing cool?

The crowd clapped and cheered even louder. We both went over to Rhodey and put our arms around his shoulder while waving to the audience. We connect to Rhodey's comm easily before speaking to him.

"There's trouble." Dad told Rhodey.

"There are civilians present and I'm on orders…let's not do this now." Rhodey said.

"You have to trust us, Rhodey. All these people are in danger. You're gonna have to trust us for the next five minutes." Dad replied.

"Why should I listen to you?" Rhodey questioned.

"Because for one thing, he's working with Vanko." Dad mumbled quietly.

"Wait, Vanko's alive?" Rhodey nearly shouted.

Feeling impatient, I decide to stop beating around the bush as the facepiece to the helmet peels back and I confront Justin myself.

"Alright, Hammer...where is he?" I asked.

Justin knows very well who I'm talking about, but continues to play dumb.

"Who?" Justin smiled innocently.

"Vanko, you smart ass. Don't play games with me...you won't like losing." I glared at him.

"Are you threatening me, Miss Iron Woman?" Justin smirked.

"Wow, so you're slow too? Gotta give you props. It probably took a few more seconds to realize that, huh?" I retorted.

"You don't know, who you're dealing with, lady- -"

"No. You don't know who you're dealing with. I won't ask again. Where's Vanko?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Justin wouldn't budge.

"Fine...you had your chance. Don't say I didn't warn you."

I stopped what I was doing as soon as I could hear faint beeping from behind me. When I turned around, I saw all of those drones, including Rhodey's armor, light up and flicker.

"Oh no. The whole systems been compromised! Get out of here! NOW!" Rhodey yelled at my dad.

And then everything turned into chaos before I could blink.

Immediately, I shield Justin from ricochet bullets and glass that was falling from the ceiling. Justin looks at me with wide eyes, not expecting me to even remotely care about saving him.

"I- -I, holy shit- -I could just kiss you right now- -"

"Dude, you're way older than I am. I'm nineteen. Just...no." I look at him in disgust.

I ignore anything else and follow the drones, along with Rhodey and my father, outside the building. People are running and screaming in panic as the drones are flying rampant and doing damage. As dad attempts to help get Rhodey's suit back to normal, I help with protecting the civilians and take down every drone around the area.

"What's the status on Rhodey's suit, guys?" I asked.

"I'm fixing Rhodey as we speak. I couldn't find Vanko though, he's gone." Natasha replied.

"How did you get this comm line- -"

"You're really going to ask that right now?" Natasha teases.

"Is Rhodey's suit back online yet?" Dad spoke up.

"I'm on it Stark, it's almost done." Natasha responds.

"Dad, all the civilians are safe over here, I took down all of the drones in the area so it shouldn't be a problem. I'm gonna head for your location now." I told him.

"Alright, see you soon, baby girl."

When I get a trace of dad's armor, I make my way over to some Japanese garden and see my father fighting Rhodey off. It takes about several minutes of the two of us holding Rhodey back before he slumps to the ground.

"Reboot complete. He should have control now." Natasha spoke up.

I could hear Rhodey sighing in relief as he finally had control over the armor again.

"I'm reading a significantly higher output from your suit now…" Natasha informed dad.

"Yeah…for the moment I'm not dying…" Dad mumbled.

"Wait…did you say you're not dying?!" Pepper asked frantically from the other line.

DAMN IT NATASHA! YOU LINKED OUR COMMS WITH PEPPER?!

"What?! No! I'm not dying!" Tony tried to cover up what he said, but failed miserably.

"What's going on?!" Pepper yelled.

"….okay I was gonna tell you…." Dad tried defending.

"Sure you were…" I muttered to myself.

"WHEN WERE YOU GOING TO TELL ME THIS?!" Pepper screamed.

"I was gonna make you an omelette and tell you!" Dad yelled.

"An omelette? Really?" I raised an eyebrow at dad.

Dad went over to Rhodey and the facepiece to the helmet pulled back. Rhodey looks ready to vomit and cry at the same time, but manages to hold back.

"Uuuuugggh….you can have your suit back…" Rhodey groaned.

"You alright?" Dad asked worriedly.

"Yeah I'm managing…look Tony…I'm sorry- -" Rhodey began.

The two are interrupted when loud crashes surround us, when the dust and dirt settles on the ground, we find ourselves surrounded by more drones with more heavy artillery. My blood runs cold immediately but I don't have the time to dwell on it as everybody's facepiece slides back on.

"This oughta be fun." I muttered.

Soon enough, we're in an epic battle with the drones. It proves to be a difficult challenge, more so than the previous drones I dealt with, but with Rhodey and my father, it goes much more swimmingly.

"Rhodey! Tyra! Get down!" Dad yelled.

We quickly ducked as dad spun around in a circle using a powerful laser to cut the remaining robots up in half, as well as the trees surrounding the garden.

"You should have just done that from the beginning." I grumbled.

I got up from the ground and wince in pain.

"Sorry, I can only use it once. I had to make it count." Dad replied.

"Oh...nevermind." I find myself blushing underneath the helmet.

"Heads up, you've got one more drone coming...this one looks different though." Natasha told us. "The repulsor signature is significantly higher..."

Through the ceiling came another bulkier and gun riddled Iron Man armor with Ivan fucking Vanko inside, the man we'd all believed to be dead.

"This is just great..." I rolled my eyes.

Vanko's helmet pulled back and he simply smirked at us.

"Good to be back." He said.

"...this ain't gonna be good..." Rhodey mumbled.

"You think?" I replied sarcastically.

Vanko spread his arms out wide and out came more electrical whips like the ones in Monaco.

These looked much more powerful though...and painful

Rhodey moves in front of dad and I, raising his arm as he prepares to fire something at Vanko.

"Stand back. I'm gonna get this guy with the Ex-Wife." Rhodey declares.

Soon, a tiny rocket launches out of Rhodey's armor and heads straight for Vanko. It immediately bounces off of Vanko's armor before falling into a puddle of water nearby and sizzling out.

Oh Rhodey...sweet dear Rhodey...

"...Hammer Tech?" Dad asked.

"...yeah..." Rhodey replied dejectedly.

That's when things get dicey, as Vanko practically has our asses handed to us on a platter. Despite there being three of us against one man, Vanko is definitely a formidable opponent and is able to evade our attacks easily. Vanko even manages to hit us back even harder in his attacks by using those whips attached to his armor. I get back up just in time to see that Vanko has my Rhodey and my dad by their throats and I start to panic. However, dad seems to have a plan, and raises his hand at Rhodey.

"What are you doing Tony?!" Rhodey questions.

"Guys! Fire at each other! NOW!" Dad yelled.

"Got it!" I replied.

When realizing what my dad is doing, I raise my hand and prepare to fire a repulsor beam as Rhodey does the same. As soon as all three of the beams collide together, it creates a massive explosion. For the next minute or so, I'm stunned as I lie on the ground, hoping that our little reckless plan worked. I nearly sigh in relief when I find Vanko on the ground, finally dead this time. The facepiece pulls back and I'm breathing heavily for fresh air.

"Holy shit. We just did that." I smile weakly.

As we all slowly get up from the ground and pull ourselves together, I make my way over to dad and Rhodey. Dad gives me a weak high-five and smirks at Rhodey. However, our victory is short lived when the destroyed drones around us begin to emit a faint beeping sound. As seconds pass, the beeping only gets louder and faster. My eyes widened immediately as I realize how many of the drones I'd destroyed were at the Expo.

"That asshole set these things to self destruct! We've gotta get out of here!" I shouted worriedly.

"Pepper!" Dad realized.

We all flew out of there in a rush. Rhodey and I went in one direction and dad in the other, as he goes to the Stark Expo to save Pepper. From above, I was thankful that there were no casualties when the drones explode.

"Come on Tyra, this way! We can rest up here in the meantime!" Rhodey tells me.

I follow Rhodey until we're on the rooftop of a random building, where ironically, dad also lands as he holds Pepper in his arms. As Pepper practically shoves my father away from her with a panicked scream, dad gets the helmet off of him. Before I can say anything, Rhodey merely holds up his hand to nonverbally tell me to not intervene. I just sit back and watch awkwardly and with curious eyes as I watch the events between Pepper and my father unfold.

"OH MY GOD! I CAN'T HANDLE THIS ANYMORE!" Pepper shouts frantically.

"What do you mean you can't handle this?" Dad asked.

"I LITERALLY cannot handle the stress! You are gonna get yourself killed and make your daughter an orphan one of these days! I'm not going to be apart of it!" Pepper ran her hands through her hair.

"Everything's fine, okay? I think I did an okay job!" Dad gestured towards the flames in the city.

"That's it…I—I quit…I'm leaving and I'm not gonna come back."

Pepper spat out and tried walking away, but dad grabbed her hand preventing her from leaving.

"What did you just say? You're DONE?" Dad looked angry. "That's surprising…okay it's not surprising. I get it…you don't have to make any excuses."

"I'm NOT making excuses! I literally cannot handle the stress!" Pepper cried.

Dad paused looking slightly depressed.

"Y—you're right….you deserve better. You were a good friend and you've taken such good care of me and Tyra…you've been through a tough spot and you got me through it so…" he trailed off.

"Thanks…for finally understanding." Pepper wiped away some tears from her face. "Let's talk clean up."

"Tyra and I will handle everything…"

"What about the press?" She asked.

I realized that dad and Pepper were leaning closer together.

Oh god...are they gonna...?

"What about the press? That could take like a week or something…" Dad mumbled.

"A week is like dog years to you…" Pepper rolled her eyes. "It's like the president." She grumbled.

THEY ARE! YES!

As I anticipated, the two shared a romantic kiss, and I couldn't help but smile at the sight.

"Weird…" Dad breathed out.

"No…not at all." Pepper smiled and bit her bottom lip.

Dad pulled Pepper in for another heated and passionate kiss.

"I thought it was kind of weird." Rhodey spoke up.

I can't help but laugh at Rhodey's timing, unable to keep the grin off my face.

Oh Rhodey...you just had to ruin the moment.

"You both look like two seals fighting over a grape." Rhodey teased.

"I—uh…I just…uh…quit…." Pepper stammered.

"Yup…that's it…"

"You don't gotta do that…we kind of heard the whole thing…" Rhodey told them.

I take off my helmet and playfully shove Rhodey who ruffles my hair.

"You can be such an ass." I giggled.

"I'm your godfather, don't talk to me like that." Rhodey smirks teasingly.

"Ummm….you should get lost…" Dad told Rhodey.

Dad hooked his arm around Pepper's waist.

"We were here first…" Rhodey retorted and put his hand on my shoulder.

"You kicked ass back there by the way…" Dad smiled.

"You too." Rhodey chuckled.

"HEY! What about me huh? Don't I get any credit?" I huffed and folded my arms.

"Yes…you were awesome too, Tyra."

Rhodey shook his head and chuckled before looking at my dad once more.

"Listen my car got taken out in the explosion, so I'm gonna need to borrow your suit a little longer…" Rhodey said.

"Not okay with that…" Dad replied.

"Wasn't a question…" Rhodey tells him.

With that Rhodey took off in the armor. After several seconds of awkward silence I finally spoke up.

"Honestly it's about damn time one of you made a move." I said.

When I see my dad actually blushing, I can't help but laugh even harder than before.

The next day, I'm asked to come in to meet Director Fury to debrief about the events that transpired last night and discuss other matters. I come in dressed casually, not really sure what to expect as I give Fury a brief report to save us all time. What really has me surprised is when he hands me a file that has my name on it in bold lettering. The first thing I see is about the Avengers Initiative and immediately I pause as I look down in surprise.

"Tyra Elizabeth Stark is qualified to be an Avenger?" I read the file aloud.

Okay then...that's a thing I guess.

"Well unlike your father, you're a little more responsible..." Fury chuckled.

I read Agent Romanoff's observation and report on me.

Unlike Anthony Stark, his daughter Tyra shows much more promise. She's mature for someone at her age, has good sense of morality, is very inquisitive, and is willing to do whatever it takes to protect those around her. Observing Tyra Stark was an interesting experience, however, she was able to see through my fake identity and my time undercover was shortened because of it. Her intelligence and observation skills display her potential amongst SHIELD.

"I mean besides that little slip up from the hearing in Washington D.C. I think you're qualified for this...You just need a little training." Fury tells me.

"Training? And who would do that?" I raised an eyebrow at him skeptically.

"We will."

I turned around and saw two agents standing at the door. Agent Romanoff and...

HOLY SHIT SNACKS! It's that guy from my dream! Clint, right?

"Is something wrong Miss Stark?" Fury shook my shoulder.

I recoiled from Fury's touch and then took a deep breath.

"Uh yeah...I'm just...this is deja vu..." I whispered.

All eyes are on me as I fidget uncomfortably in my seat and look down awkwardly.

"Agent Stark, what are you referring to?" Nick questioned.

"It's kinda hard to explain- -" I started.

"So try your best." Natasha intervenes.

Natasha walks over, grabbing my chin gently to force me to look at her. Natasha has an almost sympathetic look on her face, but I'm sure it's to calm me down.

"I uh...well...I have these dreams and...they're more real than I expect them to be if that remotely makes any sense at all." I blurt out.

"You have...dreams?" Natasha repeats slowly.

"It's kinda how I found out about you being a spy..." I tell her.

At this, Natasha perks up with interest as she glances over at Fury. They share a curious look, before probing further.

"Before we'd even met, I had a dream with you in it. It was...all of us at the doughnut shop at first, and then I had another with you and that guy Clint over there and- -"

"Really?" Nick raises an eyebrow. "How long have you had these dreams?"

"I mean, they happen more frequently now, but it's been years. It just...I feel like it's too much of a coincidence to be considered mere dreams now. I...I'm scared of...Clint." I admitted.

"Scared? Why?" Natasha looks back at her fellow companion.

"Clint shot me in his dream, and...it involved the Tesseract. There was also an unknown face- -but he was extremely powerful, holding Clint and Dr. Selvig under mind control. Just so out of this world..." I muttered. "I know it sounds completely far-fetched but..."

"But what?" Fury asked.

"When I woke up, I found a bruise on my thigh where I was shot in my dream, the exact size of a bullet."

I hope you guys liked it! It's okay if you didn't! I just wanted to get this done and over with, so I could start on the Avengers movie! LOOOOKKKKIIIII! WHOOOOOOOOOOO! I know I probably rushed the ending of Iron Man 2 and I apologize for that, I also couldn't get the script online. All I kept finding was that Abridged Iron Man 2 movie script online...it was so damn annoying! Anyway...next chapter starts with...THE AVENGERS!