The Girl in the Iron Mask
Chapter 2 – Family Feud
Jasmine smiled as she stood in front of her bathroom mirror after getting out of the shower and began drying her hair. In many respects, she inherited a little bit from both her parents in terms of looks. She had her dad's dark brown hair – which had side bangs and was cut to just below her jawline – and her eyes were shaped like his. She had her mom's pale skin and her eyes were blue like hers.
Once her hair was done, she grabbed from her closet and pulled on a pale golden dress, with no sleeves, a belt just beneath her chest, and a flowing double-layered skirt. She then applied mascara, gold eyeshadow, blush, and peach lipstick. Simple but elegant was how she liked it. Besides, if she put too much on her face would puff up.
She chose a pair of open-toed heels with ankle straps, a translucent shawl to wrap around her shoulders, and a golden headband with a small flower to wear in her hair. For jewelry, she took a simple rhinestone necklace, earrings, and a bracelet. When all was said and done and she looked at herself in the mirror, she was very pleased with the result.
Giving into her little-girl fantasies, she twirled around once and struck a pose. "Caliente*," she said in her best seductive voice.
"Jarvis," she then said, "what time is it?"
"Almost five p.m. Miss," he replied.
"Oh, better hurry!"
Jasmine quickly rushed out of her room and downstairs as fast as she could to the living room, where she saw her parents walking in.
"Hey guys," she said as she leaned on the railing, "What do you think?"
Her mom couldn't help but chuckle, while her dad gave a smirk and said, "Not, too distracting."
Jasmine could only roll her eyes. But after looking over both her parents, she said, "You don't look too bad yourselves." Her mom was wearing her strawberry blond hair up and wore a ruffled black dress, and her dad, who made a playful face at her remark, was wearing a navy blue suit and tie.
"Last time to check for anything," he then said, "Speak now or forever hold your peace."
Jasmine and Pepper quickly thought over what else they might need, when they gave their verdict. "I'm good," Jasmine said, "You Mom?"
"Good to go," she nodded.
"Alright then," Tony smiled as he held out his arms, "Let's be off."
Pepper took hold of his left arm while Jasmine took hold of his right. As they started for the front door, Jasmine couldn't resist a little skipping and saying in a sing-song voice, "We're off to see the wizard!"
Suddenly, her dad gave her a quick nudge and said in a stern, yet playful voice, "Don't even think about it."
After making sure her dad wasn't looking, Jasmine rolled her eyes. Killjoy.
Before long, she was sitting in the back seat of the car while her parents sat together up front. She could see as she looked behind how the sun was now beginning its daily descent, splashing a golden-red color on the horizon. But that wasn't all she noticed. It wasn't long before she saw how unusual her parents were acting. Usually, when they were all in a car together, they'd be carrying on in conversation with one another. But tonight, they weren't even inviting her in on the conversation. They were talking to each other in low voices that she couldn't understand. She knew there was likely a reasonable explanation, but she still felt weird about it. She didn't interrupt, though, for fear of getting on their bad side.
But by the time they got to the restaurant, the strangeness of the previous situation was replaced by the annoyance of the current one. Now Jasmine was just concerned at how everyone there would react. Whenever they went out in public they'd often have to be wary of the attention they'd receive: usually unwanted. For the most part they did attract curious stares the moment they stepped out of the car; some people even pulled out their cameras.
But suddenly Jasmine bumped into a boy about her age, who did seem a bit cute, if it wasn't for the way he looked at her and how he said, "Hey, you're way prettier in person."
Without thinking, Jasmine took the drink he was holding and splashed it in his face, flouncing away afterward with her parents. Though she did feel a bit sorry when she heard him say, "I was just trying to be nice!"
She did, however, get a smile back on her face when Tony leaned over to her and muttered, "No one will ever doubt you're my daughter."
Before long, they'd gotten a table and drinks, and had just ordered when Jasmine noticed that her parents were talking in low voices again. Now she didn't care if she was going to get on their bad side, she had to speak up.
"Hey, what's up with you two?" she asked.
Instead of getting frustrated with her, they both sat straight and looked calmly at her.
"Uh, sweetheart," Tony said, "your mother and I have something to tell you."
"Uh huh," Jasmine nodded, her eyebrows raised in curiosity.
"But, you might not exactly like it," he said.
"I can take whatever you throw at me," she assured him, "Besides, if I'm gonna run this industry I need a level head."
"Okay then," her dad said. He then paused for a brief moment before finally saying, "Your mom is going on a business trip to Europe for about a month and, I'm going to be working late for about the same time."
Upon hearing those words, Jasmine didn't know what expression to make. Though she might have looked level-headed on the outside, inside it felt as though an atom bomb had been dropped in her mind. Too many different emotions to count went through her head: confusion, sadness, anger, regret, frustration, etc. It kept building until she finally abruptly stood up and stomped away defiantly down the hall, away from her alarmed parents. She didn't care if she looked like an immature child, she just wanted to vent and get away from it all.
Tony and Pepper could only watch as Jasmine walked away, when Pepper said, "I'll go talk to her."
"No I'm gonna go talk to her," Tony said in a rather irritated tone as he stood up.
Pepper immediately grabbed his wrist. "Honey, don't yell at her. It's the last thing she needs."
"She needs to be straightened out." He then walked down the hallway, determined to find Jasmine and give her a good talking-to.
He eventually found her in one of the outside gardens sitting near the fountain in the center, arms crossed and her head down.
"Jazz."
"Leave me alone," she said, looking away from him.
"I can't. I'm your dad. It's my job."
She didn't respond, only scooted to the left, away from him, keeping her head down and eyes to the ground. This made Tony dead-set on getting some words out of her.
"Are you gonna talk to me or do I have to raise my voice?" he asked.
When he heard mumbling nearby, he looked up to see that a small group of spectators had gathered nearby. He smiled and awkward smile and put his hand up.
"Please excuse us," he said. They all shrugged their shoulders and left, letting him turn back to his daughter.
"Well?" he asked, crossing his own arms and tapping his foot in impatience.
Before long, he did receive a response from Jasmine, if a rather sporadic one. "I'm sick of you doing this!" she exclaimed, now looking him directly in the face.
"Doing what?"
Jasmine stood up, her feet planted firmly on the ground and her hands, now fists, on either side of her. "For three years now you and Mom have been blowing me off! I hardly see you anymore! You know, I see my friends more than I see you!"
Tony replied with just as much passion, "Look, for your information your mom and I aren't too crazy about this either! But I can't just quit being a CEO! And you're gonna be running it too one day."
"Oh is that why you married Mom and had me?" Jasmine asked, "Just so you could have an heir to your multi-billion dollar kingdom? I knew it; you love your job more than me!"
"I never said that!" her dad nearly shouted, "And you know that's not true!" But then, when he saw that he might be making a scene, and that he was actually hurting Jasmine's feelings, he took Pepper's advice, took a breath, and calmed down, but just enough.
"Look, I love you and your mom more than anything," he said, putting his hand on her shoulder, "You don't know how fortunate we feel to have had you come into our lives."
Jasmine shrugged his hand off and turned away from him, crossing her arms again. "I just wish you'd actually think about me for once."
"Jazz, I think about you twenty-four-seven," he said calmly, though impatience was building within him.
She spun around to face him again. "Were you thinking about me when you didn't see me and Danielle in the school play this year?"
"I got someone to record the dress rehearsal performance."
"It's not the same!" she exclaimed. Just then, the passionate fury in her voice came to a head, and she shouted, "You know what? Go ahead and live at work! Go and love your job more than me! Go and be a jerk for all I care!"
"Okay let's get one thing straight, you will not talk to me that way little miss priss!" Tony raised his voice, not bothering to calm down, "In fact, do you want us to go home right now?"
With that voice, Jasmine felt like a little girl. True, she felt fortunate that her dad wasn't one of those who hit, but his voice was enough to turn her mood on its head. She breathed out a heavy sigh in response, and shook her head no.
"Alright," her dad said in a slightly calmer voice, "Then you will listen to me and start acting your age. Do you understand me?"
Jasmine only nodded and muttered, "Yes Dad…I'm sorry."
"Okay," her dad nodded back, now completely collected. He offered his arm. "Let's go. Your mom's waiting."
Jasmine nodded again and slipped her arm into his. He escorted her back down the hall, and back to their table, where they found that their food had been served.
"Are you two alright?" Pepper asked, "Did you have a good conversation?"
Jasmine only shrugged her shoulders while Tony gave a nod.
"Okay I'll, take your word for it," Pepper smirked.
The next few minutes passed mainly in silence while they ate, until Jasmine spoke up, "Mom, when are you leaving?"
"Tomorrow at noon, actually," Pepper replied in the nicest way she knew how, "Would you like to come to the airport with me?"
"Sure," Jasmine nodded, "I'm sorry for behaving the way I did."
"Apology accepted," Pepper nodded back, smiling. Jasmine couldn't help but smile back. Her mom could almost always brighten a situation.
But by the time they got home, the darkness that covered the late evening sky filtered into Jasmine's mind as she remembered what her parents had told her. She could only breathe a sigh of relief at coming back to the familiarity of home, but the relief was short-lived.
"I'm going to bed," Jasmine said. She didn't wait for a response from either of her parents before walking up the stairs, though she did hear her dad wishing her good night.
She immediately changed into her pj's and washed the make-up off her face, until she realized that she didn't want to go to bed that much. She still felt tired, yet restless at the same time, like a feeling inside her was preventing her from sleeping until it was appeased. It often happened with her. Sometimes she needed a certain something to help her wind down. After lying in bed for a while and thinking it over carefully, she decided that a movie or something similar would probably be okay.
Jasmine looked through the movies she had in her collection, but none of them seemed just right. She needed one that would take away the bitterness she was feeling while also calming her down at the same time. Almost every one that she had didn't fit the job description, until, suddenly, one lone movie fell to the floor. Intrigued, she knelt down, picked it up, and read the title: Home Movies Vol. 1.
She raised her eyebrows in surprise. She hadn't seen her family's home movies in a long time. But realizing that she didn't have any movies left, she shrugged her shoulders. Why not?
She then strode over to her TV, put it on, and sat down on the edge of her bed.
The first one showed a hospital room. Pepper was in the bed – with unkempt hair but a beaming face – and holding Jasmine, while Tony held the camera.
"Okay," he said, "so, here we are. It's Valentine's Day, and we are in the maternity ward at the hospital, where mommy dearest had our little girl about three hours ago."
Dozens – if not hundreds – of faint yet persistent shouts were heard outside the open window.
"And the press is also here," Tony said grimly, "What a shock."
Pepper was smiling proudly. "Oh Tony, get a good look at this beautiful face."
Tony zoomed in on Pepper, but she quickly caught his trick. "Not me, the baby!"
"Oh, right, yeah," Tony said in mock surprise as he shifted the camera to look at Jasmine. She was bundled up in white blankets, her face was small and round, a patch of dark brown hair covered her head, and her big blue eyes were already open, looking around at her new world.
"Who do you think she looks like more?" Tony asked.
"I think her father."
"Figures." Jasmine could almost feel her dad smirk behind the camera. "You gonna be a famous inventor like your dad?"
"Whatever she is, we'll be proud." Pepper looked at Tony with serious eyes.
"Of course, of course. And, what have we named her?"
"Jasmine Antonia Stark," Pepper replied.
"Yeah. You heard right ladies and gentlemen. We've named our daughter after a Disney princess."
"Oh Tony!" Pepper exclaimed, "I love it. And she looks like a Jasmine."
"I guess."
"And she's our Jasmine." Pepper then leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek.
"Yes, she is," Tony agreed, his tone of voice soft. Jasmine could almost feel her heat melt hearing it.
There were a few more segments, but Jasmine decided to skip ahead to the last one. This time, Pepper was holding the camera, and in view was a large building that appeared to be a school. Jasmine recognized it immediately; it was the one she went to for her elementary years. Kids ranging from the ages of five and eleven were coming out to greet their parents.
"Well here we are, waiting for Jasmine after her first day of kindergarten."
She turned the camera over to Tony. His arms were crossed and he looked like he was hoping not to get harassed by any small children that weren't his.
"Say hi honey," Pepper urged him.
Tony only pressed his lips together in response.
"Can you at least smile?"
For a split second, Tony did as she said, when suddenly they heard the joyful shout of a little girl that they instantly recognized. "Mommy, Daddy!"
Pepper turned the camera to see a five-year-old girl in a blue dress heading across the yard straight for them. Tony immediately held out his arms to her. "Sweetheart!"
"Daddy!" Tony picked her up and spun her in a circle before holding her close and kissing her.
"Did you miss us?" he asked her.
"Yeah," Jasmine nodded eagerly.
"You missed us? I knew you would!"
"Mommy!" Jasmine waved happily at Pepper, who was laughing behind the camera and waving back at her.
"Say hi Jasmine!" she said.
"Hi!"
"Oh, oh, Tony!" Pepper suddenly exclaimed in alarm.
"What?" Tony asked.
"You're standing in an ant bed!" she replied before showing it on camera.
"Huh?" Tony immediately looked down and saw that Pepper was right. But instead of making a big scene for everyone else to see, he made a scene for only Pepper and Jasmine.
"Oh Jasmine we'd better get out of this!" he exclaimed as he sidestepped as though to get them off, "Don't want to get bitten by the ants!"
Jasmine and Pepper both laughed at such an unexpected scene.
"And I definitely don't want them to get you!" Tony then used his free hand to tickle Jasmine, causing her to laugh even harder in the pure delight of a young girl. She then wrapped her arms around his neck and said, "My daddy."
Tony, in a rare show of such affection, hugged Jasmine back with his free hand, saying, "My Jasmine."
At that point, Jasmine turned the movie off. She didn't want to watch anymore, though she didn't know why. She didn't know if it was because she was tired, or because she was too filled with a wild mix of pure emotion to continue any further. All she wanted to do know was crawl into her bed, and listen to the ocean's waves outside.
She pulled the covers up to her chin, thinking about all that had happened in only a few hours. She found herself missing those days when she was young and innocent, free of the world's taint. Why did it all have to go away? Why couldn't she be as close to her mom and dad as she once was? She didn't know the answers to either of these questions, and feared that she never would, at least not any time soon.
The last thing she remembered before falling asleep was the feeling of one or two tears falling slowly down her cheek, wondering if she would ever escape this emotional prison, and if she could ever find the determination to make her own mark on the world.
*1: Translates "Hot"
Reviews would be appreciated.