Okay, guys the next chapter is up! :D Sorry for the wait, I did a bit of rewriting, it was horrible and I'm not sure how much better it is...Well if anyone's a better judge than me, it's you guys!

Disclaimer: IMAA in NOT mine...Jeez I hate the disclaimer so much, but oh well, that's life for you.

"Stop!" Howard shouted. "Stop it!"

Howard stepped forward ready to defend 'Annie' from Sim. The screams stopped. Part of him wanted to hear them again, it meant hearing his son's voice again. But if it meant letting someone get hurt just to hear his voice, he would rather never hear the voice again.

Sim kicked 'Annie' hard in the side. "Look what you've done! *Kick* You've brought too much attention to yourself."

Annie fell to the ground and 'she' clutched at her side with the hand that didn't bear broken fingers. Sim towered over her and laughed. He bent over and pulled her back into a standing position as 'Annie' tried to pull away. Before Annie could make any progress, Sim already had his Hands around the bandages around her throat area. He tore them away until they were shreds on the floor.

Howard and Rhodey caught a glimpse of a scar, before 'Annie' was shoved harshly against the railing that hung over the first floor. Rhodey stepped forward, worried she would fall, but a hand pulled him back again.

Sim didn't say anything as he proceeded to rip the laces of the dress 'Annie' was wearing. Howard and Rhodey could hear Annie protesting in Tony's voice. But, Sim didn't listen to a word that was said. He just pulled the dress down so it hung off of 'Annie's' hips.

"Want to see?" Sim asked spinning 'Annie' around.

Revealing that Annie was not a girl, but a boy. And it was definitely confirmed when Sim pulled at 'Annie's' hair. It was a wig. It revealed short, raven colored hair. And there stood in front of them, Tony Stark.

…

Pepper's eyes once again snapped open. Her breath was labored and her chest was heavy. Her mind felt fuzzy and her sight was blurred. She felt as if she weighed a ton. That or she felt as if her whole body was compressed under a semi.

It wasn't so cold anymore and she realized she had a gown on now. She blinked, in attempt to clear her blurry sight. The room had become an awful lot darker, but it was still bright enough so she could see around herself. Not that there was anything to look at. As far as she cared, she was in the middle of nowhere.

She closed her eyes, trying to remember what had happened before she ended up in this place in the first place. But found herself unable to even remember any of it really.

She sighed as soon as the only thing she was really remembering was the fire. Of course, it was just her mind playing flashbacks of the dream she just had. Her mind was so caught up in the nightmare, she was having issues with what was real and what was real.

She looked down at herself again, worried that she might find that she had gotten hurt and somehow, missed it. Maybe that's why she was having so much issues. Maybe she just lost so much blood, that she was becoming delirious. So delirious to think that she was floating in a white room, unable to move. And that her outfit seemed to change every time she woke up. Varying from being naked to being in dresses and even once she was in a tuxedo. It could also be causing the constant black outs she was having.

But when she looked down, she found herself wound free. At least from what she could tell. Or remember.

What on earth was going on?

…

"Tony?" Howard breathed out. "Oh god…son…Y-you're…?"

Sim laughed. "Surprised huh?"

Howard hardly heard the man, he was too busy trying to control his erratic heartbeat and labored breath. He placed a hand on Rhodey's shoulder to steady himself, but found that the teen was shaking, himself.

"I wouldn't blame you." Sim laughed. "He plays one hell of a woman doesn't he?"

Howard threw the man the best glare he could through his shocked face. He was feeling a bit lightheaded. That was his son. His son was alive. Tony was alive.

"I mean, at first I thought it wasn't going to work!" Sim continued. "I thought there was no way that anyone in their right minds, would believe that Stark was a girl. But I found after a few months of training and practice, I could make it work."

Howard clenched his hands into fists.

Sim paced in front of Tony, who was kneeling on the ground, clutching at his bleeding face. He had a bright smile on his face as if he just won an award.

"It's amazing how well it worked out." Sim said, as if giving himself a pat on the back. "Except for the issue's we've encountered with his heart, I'd say, everything turned out perfect! At least until, that worthless redhead had to go peeking her nose where it didn't belong." Sim practically growled at that last part.

Rhodey opened his mouth, ready to say something, because he could see Howard was nowhere near being ready to talk, but before he could say anything, he noticed Tony's head snap up at the mention of Pepper.

"What did you do to her!?" He spoke, his voice shaky.

"Oh nothing, I did what had to be done." Sim said, smiling 'sweetly'.

Rhodey noticed the level of fear in Tony's face. "You didn't."

"I didn't kill her if that's what you mean." Sim replied jokily.

Howard and Rhodey watched as Tony clutched at his chest as his fingers shook. His whole body seemed to shake and he looked like he was having trouble breathing. His eyes closed as he shot his arm out to grab the railing, holding on so tightly, his knuckles turned white.

"Tony…?" Rhodey breathed as he stepped forward. But stopped when Sim bent down next to Tony.

"It's happening again isn't it?" Sim asked, his voice almost purring. "Do you need some sleep?"

Tony looked up, looking like he was trying to catch his breath. "Leave me alone." His voice rigid.

"Tony," Sim said, patting Tony on the back.

Howard stepped forward again, ready to fight anyone who decided to stop him, but found himself frozen before he could get any closer. He couldn't seem to make himself go any closer for some reason. It just felt…off.

"Tony, you know I did what I did, to protect you right?" Sim said, sounding like he actually 'cared'.

Tony pushed Sim away with a bloody hand. "Where is she?"

Sim laughed, shaking his head. "I don't see why you care so much about her! I mean you hardly even know her!"

Rhodey blinked, confused. Tony's known Pepper for at least a year before he went missing. That should count for something right? Unless…Rhodey paled. Had he lost his memory?

"I remember her!" Tony shouted, glaring at the man before him. "Of all the things I don't remember, I remember her!"

The smiled on Sim's face faded and disappeared. "Listen to me now, drop the subject now, and I'll be sure no one else has to get involved."

Howard looked around to see if he was the only one, other than Rhodey, that wanted to do something. The old woman who'd held them back, looked worried, but distressed. A few of the other servants that gathered around, looked concerned or scared. And at least one of them looked like they would run.

He couldn't stand just standing there, letting his son be hurt like he was. He was his father, it was his duty to keep his son safe, and what was he doing? He felt horrible and useless. He had to think fast. It wasn't safe to just barge into a fight, but he's was emotionally unstable right now. He wasn't paying attention to the risk.

"Tell me where she is!" Tony's voice shouted, bringing him out his thoughts. He focused in on his son. Who then, broke into a fit of coughs. He looked so distraught, he looked like he might have a panic attack.

Which maybe he was considering how breathless he seemed to be, and how scared he looked.

Sim smiled wickedly. "So, what if she was where you think she is?"

Tony paled. He was visible shaking and sweating. "Let her go!"

"And what if I say no?" Sim questioned, twisting the shard Howard noticed he still had, in his hands.

"I'll go find her myself." Tony stated, his voice shaking.

It happened so fast, no one had time to do anything about it. It was too late, by the time they realized what had happened. The shard was already embedded into Tony's side.

Howard didn't hold himself back, he launched himself at Sim.

Jeez, I had most of this planned since the beginning and yet I still seem to have surprised myself. I just hoped you guys like it! :) I worked so hard on this!

Fun Fact: I hate drinking. I don't know why, but I hate drinking, especially water. I'll drink it for the sake of staying at least a bit hydrated, but to be honest, I've been to the hospital once or twice from dehydration...So guys, DON'T do what I do, DRINK YOUR WATER!

Today, I got up to walk down stairs, but got really lightheaded and pretty much fainted on the stairs... O.O I'm just seriously lucky that the stairs were CARPET and that I fell BACKWARDS instead of FORWARDS... My mom said it was because I wasn't drinking enough water (Hence the Fun Fact), and that my room was almost 80 degrees hot. Yeah, I'm really not setting the best example for my little brother...

Well, my health aside, hope it was good! I'm off to work on some more stories! And don't worry, I've been forcing myself to drink tons of water, because yes, I've become at least a little bit concerned for my health.

Bye! :D

P.S. Have any of you guys played the new Tomb Raider game? It is AWESOME! I've been playing that, and it's really fun!