So how did the Starks spend Christmas? Surprisingly, just like every family does it—gorging on holiday meals and just being together. And heck, we were all together.
Dad and Katrina took the jet to Orlando and arrived in time for Christmas dinner, which was a surprise to all of us—but hey, we'd just come back from the dead after finding the world's most wanted terrorist on the most festive time of the year, so, my parents' divorce aside, they made an exception. And if anything was awkward between them and their respective new partners, at least I had Tony and Pepper.
"Good Christmas for you, Iz?" Tony asked later, as I sat on a corner of the couch nursing my very own glass of champagne. He settled in next to me.
"Pretty good," I said.
"It's about to get better." He pulled something out his front pocket. A folded paper napkin, with the holly pattern that Mom was obsessed with during Christmas. "Open this."
I did. Scrawled in the center was a note in Tony's handwriting.
To Whom It May Concern,
I, Anthony Edward Stark, hereby appoint my niece, Isabella Renee Stark, as the sole heir to my estate, and future CEO of Stark Industries.
"No," I said in disbelief.
He beamed. "Yes."
"Really?"
"Really."
"But—" I couldn't think of anything to say. Luckily, Tony could speak enough for both of us.
"Look, you've come a long way from the kid who stole my designs last year. You proved it then. You proved now. And I may have lost everything when the house went down, but when it comes down to it, all that really matters is…what I leave behind." He looked at me thoughtfully. "Finding someone to inherit my legacy after Pepper used to be a pain-in-the-ass kind of thought, but then you came along, and heck—I don't know, it was just perfect."
"Did this idea just come to you over Christmas dinner?" I said numbly, still unable to believe this was happening as I fidgeted with the napkin.
"It may have occurred to me somewhere in between infiltrating the Mandarin's hideout and the House Party Protocol, either one of those moments when I was pretty sure I was gonna die," Tony said flippantly. "Anyway. You'll accept it, right?"
I looked down at the paper.
"It's a draft- not official, we'll sign a legit one first chance we get, but I do mean it. You're smart, creative, resourceful, not afraid to let anything or anyone stand in your way, always thinking big…"
What is wrong with you, Stark? Just tell him yes!
"Fuck yeah," I blurted out, and hugged him tight as the tears came rushing out.
"What is going on here?" Mom said, noticing us. Tony just handed her the note. She and my father stared at it, stunned. Pepper took one look over their shoulder and smiled at Tony brightly.
"Whaddaya think, Potts, did I make a good decision?" He asked her.
She nodded. "I couldn't have picked anyone better."