The Unknown Variable

(Beta'd by Espacole as of 5/6/14)

Oi, you, yes you right there! I know you still think I own something! But I don't so scat before I sue you!

;)

I still couldn't believe it…four months. It had been four months since the fight with Stane, and nine since Tony and I had met.

I still couldn't believe it.

I doubted I ever truly would. Sometimes, it all seemed so surreal that I expected to just wake up and still be strapped to my wired in the hospital.

It had been over a year since I created my first Core…I hadn't even noticed the anniversary had gone by until a sharp pain coming from my Core caused me to collapse.

I hadn't thought about the poisoning very much since I had discovered it. The original algorithm I had ran estimated, that I probably had about a year or so before I…went terminal.

However, since I had collapsed a few days ago… and noticed that the lines scattering my chest had doubled in size in the past few months, I reran the tests, and after doing my own medical diagnostic, I estimated I had about four months… unless it accelerated, then I could have less.

I wasn't sure and not for the first time I wished that Dr. Millod was still alive…or that I could talk to Tony.

However, how on earth was I supposed to tell my Dad that I was dying? It was like telling him I was his daughter all over again, although this time, there would be no happy outcome.

Mortem was worried I was becoming depressed, and he tried his best to keep me happy and cheerful. It worked well enough when he or Tony was around. But those random few hours where neither of them were there were always hard.

The violin helped, I had given up trying to solve that mystery long ago. It was simply not worth dwelling on.

Too bad I couldn't convince myself that neither was dying…I wished myself luck on that.

I grinned softly as I watched Dad walk into the lab with Rhodey following him. Between the two men, Dummy, and Butterfingers, there were seventeen bags of food being carried in from Happy's car.

Dad had been gone for four days this time, and this was his way of making it up.

Rhodey didn't stick around, he just dropped the bags onto the kitchen counter and after giving me a hug and patting Tony on the back he left.

"What'd yah get?" I asked, as I walked up to the sea of plastic bags.

A tired grin spread across Dad's face as he started pulling out every kind of goody you could think of.

"Well, there's blackberries, smoothies, ice cream, peaches, twizzlers, skittles, pringles, chocolate fondue…" The list seemed to go on and on, and I started to wonder if Tony bought the whole store. That might have been better. "…prime ribs, T-Bones, snicker-doodles, chocolate éclairs…"

Oh yeah, that was another thing. Nothing appeared to be in order. Everything was random, one second Tony would pull out stake, and the next candy…there was a very large variety.

"I've also got pancakes, crab cakes, mangos, tuna salad, lobsters, kiwis, snap peas, tacos, blueberries…" Tony continued the large, random mixed variety of food.

"I'm deathly allergic to blueberries." I commented, cutting Dad off.

Tony froze the blueberries in hand before looking towards me and smiling lightly. "Your mother was as well."

Later that night, after we had feasted until we were nauseous, we were both on the couch watching the Matrix Trilogy.

About halfway through Matrix Reloaded Dad pulled off his button up he had on, leaving him only in his white tank top.

That wasn't what surprised me. No…it was what hit me…the moment that my eyes fell upon Tony's Arc sitting in the center of his chest.

'Shit…' I thought to myself. I wasn't the only one with a Palladium Core, and I was an idiot to forget that fact. Thinking about my own poisoning, Tony had about a six, seven months before the symptoms would appear, and if my own progress was anything to go by, a year to live.

But there was no way that I was letting Tony die… even if I did. No, I swore to myself that I would find a solution. If not for my sake, then for my father's,

Tony was around for a week this time before he was called off somewhere.

Since he was gone, Mortem and I went out to the movies…in Albuquerque I Flashed there…he did his whole…disappear into shadows thing. I still hadn't come up with a name for it. I had asked Mortem what he called it…but he had just looked at me weirdly before laughing and told me to come up with a name. I had to roll my eyes at my new boyfriend.

Tony had gotten me the driver's ed. manual, but I hadn't even opened it. I mean, if I was going to die around my sixteenth birthday away, what was the point in learning how to drive?

Mortem didn't agree with my dreary logic, he kept trying to get me to read it and get my permit. But I just didn't care.

Along with finishing my dissertations, working with Jane, bonding with Dad …dating Mortem, sparring with him, and just chilling out, I tinkered with my suit some more.

I added a vest; it had many clips and latches to hold things. The vest was the thicket of the outfit, and would zip up tightly against the chest, giving me extra protection against bullets and knives.

Because of all of the sparring with Mortem, which had become more of a game recently, I was quite efficient with hand to hand combat.

Mortem had also taught me how to handle the throwing stars and had gotten me throwing knives.

We had set up many dummies in the abandoned warehouse and Mortem had painted targets onto different areas on the bodies, showing me the best places to strike.

Personally, I thought I was doing quite well.

While Tony was more efficient with explosions and long distance fighting, close quarters combat along with hand to hand.

Numerous other gadgets had been added to the belt that sat slanted on my skirt. There was now knock-out gas, stink-pellets, smoke screens, flash bombs, thin wire, real laser pens, mints, (Mortem had snuck them in there…not sure why) and four flash-keys with untraceable and unnoticeable ready-hacking programs that I had created myself. Mortem also wanted me to have a Taser, but since I was practically a walking one…I refused. Now, most of those gadgets were Mortem's idea. They were the more…standard and conventional items.

However, there was also my father's contributions to my little gadget belt.

He had made me bugs disguised as pennies, packets of gun that worked as concealed pepper spray, hairpin trackers, little metal disks that when stepped on stank so badly you would knock yourself out, holographic dots that could copy an image and relay it on an moving object, (people and machines alike) rolls of thin plastic like material, that when comes in contact with any surface (except my gloves, they were covered in the antidote) would become a layer of extreme super glue.

There was also, small mechanical butterflies that would create loud noises and bright lights, perfect for distractions, (I swear he was drunk when he made these) hormone enhancing spray…yeah, I never even wanted to think about that one, powder that would explode when stepped on, small balls that released a pheromone that rodents loved, and a box that would project some sort of video that would cause you to lose the last fifteen minutes of your memory…on level one.

He also changed my belt so how it created an electromagnetic field, using my sparks to power it, so it would repel bullets, knives, or anything else made of metal…but myself and his suit.

Sometimes, I had to admit. Tony was way above my level in genius.

"So," Rhodey asked drawing my attention away from my Tablet screen. I scowled at him before looking back down.

I was running a few different programs and simulations to see if I could find a substitute element… or element mixture, to replace the Palladium.

And. He. Was. Distracting. Me.

Tony glanced up between me and Rhodey, he was working on the blueprints to the Mark V (we had switched to roman numerals because it was shorter and easier) which was supposed to be a portable, easy to assemble suit.

I usually helped, in my spare time. But tonight, tonight I wanted to see if I could make some progress.

And. He. Wasn't. Helping.

"So," Rhodey said leaning over my shoulder causing me to close the searches. Least he get suspicious.

"What?" I snapped, narrowing my eyes at him. I hadn't slept well last night, another nightmare, and my chest had been throbbing all day. It was not a good time to be bugging me.

Rhodey raised his arms in surrender at the sound of my tone. "Hey, give a guy a brake here. I was just wondering, between you and Tony. Who do you think is smarter? Does the daughter outshine the father? Or does the father still rule the castle?"

My eyebrow twitched again, he interrupted for that? "That was the worse…whatever that was…ever." I stated as I went back to my searching.

I heard Tony approach from behind and sighed, he wasn't going to let this go. Not until he got an answer.

"So? What do you think Tony? Still the shiniest apple at the cart?" Rhodey said and I closed my Tablet with a snap.

"That was the worse metaphor ever. And trust me; I've heard some bad ones!" I stated as I gave Rhodey a chilling look.

"Hey!" he protested as Dad started laughing.

A small smile appeared on my face as both men started laughing hysterically.

"I'm glad you all find me so amusing." I commented, a smirk on my face.

It took a moment for them to calm down, and when they did, we sat in silence…until Tony decided to talk and ruin it.

"Well, to answer your question," Tony started, Rhodey interrupted and said,

"Be truthful Tony."

I rolled my eyes, but decided to add my two cents.

"I think," Tony continued his face stony.

"Tony!" Rhodey warned, and I wanted to smack him. Stop interrupting!

"Totally…" I started and both of us turned to look at each other as we said,

"Dad,"

"Penny."

We stared at each other before bursting out into laughter.

"Wait…so you both think the other is smarter?" Rhodey asked, confused as to how that worked, and why Tony admitted that Penny was smarter. He really was seeing another side to his friend. "How does that work?"

Dad and I smiled at each other; we had already had this conversation.

"Well, while Penny got her diplomas earlier than me," Tony started,

"And Tony has more experience," I added,

"She/he is definitely smarter." We spoke in union, than we turned and glared playfully at each other.

Tony and I sighed, before he continued. "Penny had more…motivation, time and reason, to learn in her childhood."

"While Tony had more comfort and space to experiment," I said with a smile.

"So she's much more knowledgeable, study wise, then I was at her age." Tony stated fondly.

"Tony gained the experience and ability to understand something so completely, he can modify it without thinking." I admitted gazing up at my dad. "I'm have no were near the understanding… the comprehension that Tony has of everything, the way that everything just clicks."

"But," Tony added softly, "I have no doubt, that by the time you're my age, you'll surpass this old man. And trust me, I don't understand everything."

I rolled my eyes and playfully shoved him. "Dad, stop it. You're not old!"

"Oh thank God!" Tony exclaimed hugging me. "I was worried for a moment."

"Dad!" I exclaimed warmly a smile spread across my lips, and the Palladium poison out of my mind.

Rhodey stood there silently, not for the first time since he had discovered his friend's daughter, they had seemed to forget he was in the room.

During the past four months, he had the opportunity to see Tony flourish around his daughter. He became…no he embraced his real self. For it had always been there, Tony was just no longer hiding from it.

If Tony ever showed the world who he truly was, they would be surprised.

So would Pepper be…for that matter.

Done, another chapter. Hope you enjoyed it. I do believe what I typed about the level of intellect between father and daughter to be true.

Hope you all have enjoyed it. Thanks so much to everyone, especially Espacole.

Cp