Chapter 3: Revelations

******The Next Day******

Pepper gave Tony a frustrated look. "What were you thinking, Tony? Anything could've happened? You didn't think Happy would tell me what you did last night?" she asked.

"I'm so going to fire the little traitor!" Tony complained.

"He works for me now, remember? You can't fire him," Pepper reminded him with a smile. "Buffy's sister could've been hurt. From what I could discover, she has no training. I did an extensive background check on Buffy and Willow. Willow's parents are college professors. She's an only child. Nothing criminal in her background. Buffy's had some problems, but nothing alarming. She may be unusually strong for a woman, but she's got the training. She had an ex-boyfriend who was Special Forces with the military. He obviously taught her a thing or two."

"Pepper, there's more going on. You saw the video! They were fighting demons! One of them works for Stark Construction. I find it too coincidental," Tony said.

"So you're going to talk him into volunteering for your experimental robotic eye? Are you insane?" Pepper asked incredulously. "It's nowhere near ready for human testing!"

"Any guy who spent his high school years battling monsters is a risk taker," Tony pointed out. "I bet Xander will jump at the chance for what I'm going to offer him. I need a new partner in crime. The government is a little mad at Rhodey for helping me with the Mandarin. They got him working overseas for the foreseeable future. They're trying to keep me from corrupting him further."

"He's a soldier, Tony. You know he can't be a cowboy like you. He has a chain of command he has to follow," Pepper said. "Maybe you should contact Fury about Buffy. She could already be on his radar."

"And if she's not? I don't want him to snatch her away from me," Tony said.

"Just use more finesse. Please?" Pepper asked.

Tony smiled at her and gave her a light kiss. "I will. These girls are tough, though. I don't think you should worry so much. Their entire hometown was destroyed in an earthquake. Buffy said Xander got his eye gauged out by a guy who had it in for her. They aren't going to quit me so easily," Tony said. "Besides, I really do need Willow to run my lab."

"Remember that the next time you try to conduct experiments using them as bait," Pepper admonished with a fond look of exasperation.

Tony grinned unrepentantly. "I gotta go down to the lab. Catch you later," Tony said. He went to the private elevator in his office that went directly down to his lab.

Tony found Buffy and Xander waiting in front of his lab. Xander stood up when he spotted Tony stepping off the elevator.

"Glad you both made it," Tony said with an easy smile. "Buffy, Happy wants to meet with you to fill you in on the perimeters of your duties. He was my bodyguard for many years. Don't listen to him when he says it's why he got an ulcer."

"Okay," Buffy said slowly. "Shall I come back down here when I'm done?"

Tony handed her a small tablet. "Ask JARVIS. He'll tell you where I'm at," Tony said.

"Who's that?" Buffy asked, examining the tablet.

"Jarvis stands for Just A Rather Very Intelligent System. I am whatever Tony wants me to be. I take care of him," a voice from the tablet said.

Buffy was so startled she almost dropped the tablet. "Excuse me?"

"JARVIS is my A.I. He runs all my systems," Tony explained. "Think of him as the most efficient secretary ever made or imagined."

"Secretary?" the voice said, a note of offense in his voice.

"Sorry, JARVIS!" Tony said. "You know you are much more than that. I got a schedule to keep. Take care of Buffy." He motioned for Xander to follow.

"Wait!" Buffy called out. Both men stopped and looked at her. She stepped toward Xander. "Don't let our too charismatic and intelligent boss talk you into agreeing to anything experimental!" she ordered Xander. "Not without Will's okay."

"You think I'm charismatic?" Tony asked with a pleased grin.

Buffy rolled her eyes and ignored him. She waited for Xander to nod. "Yes, mother," he said patiently.

Buffy turned and walked off. Tony chuckled. "I thought I had it bad. At least I get to sleep with Pepper. You have two beautiful women telling you what to do and you're not sleeping with either of them?" Tony prodded as he stepped through the secure doors into his lab.

Xander sighed. "Yes, they're the boss of me most of the time. Usually they know best. Experience has taught me to trust them," Xander said.

Tony gave him a curious glance. "That's very trusting of you, especially since Buffy admitted that she's the reason you lost your eye," Tony said.

"Buffy takes too much responsibility for everything," Xander said. "She wasn't responsible for what Caleb did to me. I'm the one who insisted on fighting when I knew I was out of my league. I knew the risks—I always did."

Tony thought his comment was very revealing but refrained from probing further. "It's good to have people you can depend on," Tony said. "I've only recently learned the benefits of working with a team."

"Yeah, I saw," Xander said with a grin. Unlike Xander's, Tony's work with the Avengers had been documented and aired live on television.

Tony found himself liking the young man more and more. He decided to cut through some of the bullshit. He pushed a button and up popped a large TV screen. "I want you to watch something that I find fascinating. I'm hoping you can shed some light on some things for me," Tony said.

Xander nodded and watched the screen. He looked dismayed when he saw the footage of their final battle with Adam and the Initiative. It was clear the facility had been recording him, Buffy, Riley, Giles, and Willow. Even Spike was on the video. He glanced nervously at Tony, who paused the video.

"You can imagine my surprise to uncover an entire undocumented species of sort in your previous hometown of Sunnydale, CA. What's even more curious is that you and your friends seem quite prepared to fight such creatures," Tony remarked. "Care to explain?"

Xander sighed. He should've known his boss's offer to give him back his eye was both too good to be true and came with strings. "I'm not sure you'll believe me," Xander said.

"Oh, you'd be surprised," Tony said pleasantly. "I fought Thor, a demi-god who rides lightening. Then helped him defeat an alien invasion. There's not much I can't handle. Nothing surprises me anymore."

"You wanna bet?" Xander asked with a grin. Buffy might hurt him later, but he knew Tony was never going to stop until he knew all there was to know. So he proceeded to reveal Buffy's secret and his life with her. Tony listened without comment, his eyes giving away nothing. When he stopped talking, he waited for Tony to say something.

"So my new security guard is not an inhuman or just well-trained but is a vampire slayer? One that was called to fight vampires, demons, and any other supernatural creature when she was just fifteen years old? Your old town was on a hellmouth, a place of mystical energy that calls to all kinds of evil creatures? The earthquake that destroyed the town was really you and your friends permanently closing it?" Tony asked, a note of incredulity in his voice. "Did I get it all right?"

"Yep," Xander said in resignation. Here was the part where he'd get fired or laughed out of the room. Giles and Buffy were so going to be pissed.

Tony was silent a moment. He had thought he was prepared for anything Xander might tell him. It seemed he was wrong. "Slayers have existed for centuries?" he clarified.

"Willow or Buffy could explain it better or Giles. You should talk to Giles," Xander said.

"He was her Watcher and posed as your high school librarian?" Tony asked.

Xander nodded. "He's in England now with Faith," Xander said. "Or was. I mean Faith isn't in England anymore. She's in Ohio."

"Who is Faith?"

"Another slayer," Xander said, then winced. He probably shouldn't mention the other slayers. Giles was going to kill him.

"I thought Buffy was one of a kind," Tony questioned.

"Well, she was until she died once. A vampire drowned her at the end of our sophomore year," Xander explained. "When she died, another slayer was called. I gave her mouth to mouth, and she came back to life. Most slayers usually fight and die alone. Buffy has always had us. She's the oldest known slayer in history. Well, except for Faith. Faith was called our senior year after the second slayer was killed. She's about two years or so older than us. She's never told us exactly," Xander said. "But Buffy has been fighting the longest."

"A dangerous occupation," Tony observed, his mind racing with all the data. These kids were saving the world when Tony was doing nothing except the occasional tinkering.

"Yes, it is," Xander said soberly.

"And that's how you lost your eye?"

"We were battling the First. Caleb was his disciple or something," Xander said with a shrug.

"The first what?" Tony inquired.

"The first evil," Xander said. When he saw Tony's face, he smiled in sympathy. "Yeah, it's a bit insane sounding."

"So what skills do you bring to the team?" Tony asked.

"None. Not really," Xander said looking down. Then he met Tony's gaze. "I mean I've killed my share of vampires. I've mostly used my face as a punching bag to distract. On occasion, I've proved useful. I've saved Buffy's life a few times and Willow's twice."

Tony somehow knew that there was much more to this young man than he was saying. "The saving of a life is never a minor thing," Tony said sagely. "So why are you guys in New York?"

"We're retired. Mostly. I mean Buffy and Will did kill a lot of those alien creatures who came around our neighborhood. I may have picked off one or two. Buffy sometimes stops muggings, as you know. There's so many people in this city that the real crime gets in the way of the supernatural crimes," Xander said. "Faith has a team of people helping her in Ohio where the other hellmouth is located. It's her turn, so we decided to get a life and came here."

"No ulterior motive?" Tony asked suspiciously.

"None. I got a job with your construction company as soon as we came here. The girls went to school. Buffy finished her degree in history while Dawn started at NYU," Xander said.

"And Dawn? What's special about her?" Tony asked.

"Dawn is perfectly human with no superpowers," Xander said carefully. That's one secret he would never reveal.

Tony could sense there was more to what he was saying. However, he decided that he'd grilled the guy long enough. "So let me show you what I've been working on," Tony said.

Xander was surprised. He had begun to believe that the offer of a new eye was just a pretense to get him alone. "You're serious?" Xander asked.

"Look, I'm sorry for giving you the third degree. I can't help it. I have to know everything all the time. It's the way I'm made. I hate being blindsided. But I really am working on a project that could help you. I need a risk taker to take a chance. It's not safe being on the cutting edge," Tony shared. "I almost killed myself more than once perfecting my Iron Man suit, but then I nailed it. The risks were so worth it."

"You think I'm the guy you're looking for?" Xander asked in surprise.

Tony gave him a wide smile. "I know you are!" he said confidently. This guy spent years fighting evil without any special skills at all and had managed to survive. It was a miracle he'd only lost an eye. Tony could give him a real ability to fight once again. He'll never be the same.

******Two Hours Later******

Buffy stood pacing outside Tony's lab. He was in there with Xander and was ignoring her presence. She pulled out the tablet and touched the screen. "Are you sure you told him I was out here waiting?" she asked.

"Yes. He is aware," JARVIS replied.

Buffy sat back down in the chair. She knew that as his guard she should probably get used to cooling her heels waiting on Tony. It was just she was worried. Tony had Xander in there with a promise to give him a robotic eye. Just the thought of all the bad things that could happen to Xander once Tony started "experimenting" on him had her worried.

She sent Willow a text with her concerns.

"Relax! Those things take time. Nothing is going to happen without us knowing exactly what's involved," her text replied. Buffy sighed, knowing Will was right.

Finally, the door opened. "Buffy, you can come in now," Tony called out.

She went in, her eyes immediately going to Xander's. He looked the same; however, he gave her a guilty glance. Buffy put her hands on her hip. "Okay, spill. What did you do?"

"He had a video of you, Buff. I had to tell him," Xander said defensively.

"What video?" Buffy asked.

"The one of you fighting vampires, demons, and other monsters in Sunnydale," Tony supplied. "JARVIS can access Top-Secret files."

Buffy was silent, not sure how to respond. "So you know I'm the slayer," she said simply.

"I have a million questions," Tony said eagerly.

Buffy held up her hand. "First, I want to know exactly what you want with Xander," she said.

"It's okay, Buffy. He's just showing me what he's working on," Xander assured her.

"I told Xander about my robotic eye. If I adapt it to the human body, he could have x-ray vision, thermal night vision, and a cool laser weapon that'd shoot out of his eye," Tony said smugly.

"Would he be able to actually see normally?" Buffy asked with a frown.

"Of course! That's just the beginning," Tony said. "I need a new partner. Xander is going to assist me in my lab."

"I am?" Xander asked in surprise.

"I need someone besides me to design for. The military won't let me make any more Iron Man suits for anyone but them. I mean I can make them for myself. I'm making one for Pepper—they can kiss my ass—but I'm having to think outside the box," Tony said.

"I thought Willow was your robot girl?" Buffy asked.

"Oh, she is. She's going to do all the official work in the lab with my scientists. Xander will be my personal assistant," Tony said.

"Why me?" Xander asked perplexed. The guy was the coolest man ever, but Xander was feeling like he'd been run over by a steamroller. Tony had so many exciting ideas. He was like Buffy and Willow rolled up in one. The brains of Willow with the energy and intensity of Buffy; it was a fascinating and exhausting combination.

"Because you interest me. You seem to have no super powers, no physical enhancements that would give you an edge, yet you willing threw yourself into her fight. You risk your life again and again fighting things you really had no business doing. That interests me. You have potential. You have heart. Skills can be taught. Gama rays can turn you into a superfreak, but having heart makes you special. It makes you someone I want on my team—someone I want working with me," Tony stated.

Buffy loved Xander with every part of her. He was her rock, her best friend, her conscience. To have someone with so much experience and influence see in Xander what she'd seen and known for years made her want to hug him. She gave Tony a brilliant smile. "He is pretty special," she said softly.

Xander looked embarrassed. "I already have a job. What will the guys think?" Xander asked in concern.

"Don't worry about them. I'll tell your supervisor I've pulled you off the sight to work on a special project for me," Tony said. "I'm eccentric. He won't blink an eye. I'll double your pay."

Xander blinked in surprise. Then he held out his hand. "You got yourself an assistant!" Xander exclaimed with a grin.

Tony shook his hand, pleased. "Perfect!"

"Don't be talking him into anything that will hurt him," Buffy said with a warning look at Tony.

JARVIS interrupted. "Sir, Nick Fury is here to see you."

"Tell him I'm busy. Next time make an appointment," Tony said dismissively.

"He's on his way down," JARVIS said.

Tony frowned in annoyance. He looked at Buffy. "Time to earn your pay. Don't let him in my lab," Tony ordered.

"He can't get in here anyway," Buffy pointed out.

"I don't want him bothering me at all," Tony said. "Make sure he gets that."

"Who is he?" Buffy asked.

"Someone who thinks he's more important than he is," Tony said with a smirk.

Buffy felt like she was being set up, but she nodded and walked to the exit. The door closed behind her.

A short time later, a very tall, dark skinned man stepped off the elevator. He, too, wore an eye patch. Buffy stared at him in bemusement. It seemed that Xander wasn't as much of a novelty in Tony's world as she originally thought. She stood in his path, giving him an apologetic smile.

"I'm sorry. Mr. Stark doesn't want to be disturbed," she said reasonably. "You'll have to come back another time."

Nick frowned down at the attractive blonde. A new assistant. Tony never learned. "JARVIS, open the door!" Nick called out.

The door opened. "Don't let him in, Buffy!" Tony called out. He was watching them on his monitors, a huge smile of anticipation on his face.

"What are you doing?" Xander asked him.

"Fury needs to learn he's not the baddest guy around," Tony said with a smirk.

Nick tried to go around Buffy. She moved and blocked his path once again. "I told you to come back at more convenient time for Mr. Stark," Buffy said coolly.

Nick narrowed his one eye at her. The petite blonde didn't seem phased by his superior height or his one eye. "I don't care what Mr. Stark says. I need to see him," Nick Fury replied, trying to go around her once again.

Buffy again stepped up to him, and this time held her hand up and shoved him slightly against the chest.

Nick grabbed her hand to remove it. Buffy took his intentions as hostile and twisted his wrist. She had him flipped on his back, her foot against his neck before he realized what happened.

Tony peeked his head out of his office, laughing. "Buffy, I'm giving you a raise! You managed to knock the head of S.H.I.E.L.D. on his ass in less than a minute," Tony said with a smirk.

Buffy frowned at her boss. "Excuse me?" she asked. She quickly removed her foot from his neck and moved back.

Tony reached out and offered his hand to Nick Fury. Fury got to his feet and glowered at both of them.

"Buffy, meet Nick Fury head of S.H.I.E.L.D—Strategic Hazard Intervention Espionage Logistics Directorate. SHIELD for short," Tony said.

Buffy looked aghast and apologized, "I'm so sorry!" Giles had told her all about this group of Master spy network. They were responsible for organizing the Avengers movement.

"Fury, meet Buffy Summers, my new personal security guard," Tony said proudly.

Nick looked at her with interest. "You are a lot stronger than you look," he observed.

"Yeah, I get that a lot," Buffy said modestly.

"She's my superhero, so keep your hands off of her," Tony announced.

"Superhero?" Nick wondered.

"She's a bona fide vampire slayer," Tony announced proudly. "Bet you didn't know those existed!" He loved knowing something before Nick Fury. "Fury is a master spy. He prides himself on knowing everyone's secrets."

"I take it he doesn't tell you any of those. At least not any he wants to keep," Buffy said, giving Tony a dark look. "Not only did I not share mine with you, but I don't appreciate you sharing it with every Tom, Dick, and Harry you know."

"It's Nick, not Dick," Tony said with a grin. "Although I personally think dick is appropriate."

"Are you quite done?" Nick asked Tony. "I needed to discuss something with you."

Tony gave a long-suffering sigh. "Fine. Why don't we go up to my office?" Tony suggested.

"You think?" he said sarcastically. Tony just grinned. He turned to Buffy. "Why don't you and Xander take a lunch break? Bring me back something tasty."

"Are you sure?" Buffy asked doubtfully. It was kind of early for lunch.

"Yeah. I'll be in my office until you return," Tony said. The two men walked off.

Buffy looked at Xander. "He set me up! He wanted me to knock that guy on his ass!" she exclaimed.

Xander laughed. "He's got to be the coolest boss on the planet!" he enthused. "I think I'm in love!"

"I'm something, but it's not love," she said dryly. "He's blabbing my business to everyone he knows. What part of secret identity does he not get? You did tell him it was a secret identity, right?"

"I figured it was a given. The man's IQ is unmeasurable," Xander pointed out. "Besides, that guy wasn't just anyone. He looked important. We should go see Will. She can give us the details on SHIELD's head guy," Xander suggested. Buffy agreed.

*****Tony's Office******

Tony greeted Clint, otherwise known as the Hawk, waiting outside his office. "I didn't know you were here," Tony said, greeting him with a smile.

"Fury's made a few new enemies lately," Clint said with a smile. "I pulled guard duty."

"Someone's gotta do it," Tony said with a grin. "You should meet my new guard. She's a tigress. She knocked Fury on his ass."

"She took me by surprise," Nick said with a glare.

"It wouldn't have mattered. I wasn't kidding about the slayer thing," Tony said. "I didn't know when I hired her. She saved Pepper's life. Pepper was mugged literally across the street yesterday."

"Is she okay?" Nick asked in concern.

"She's fine," Tony said. "What's up?" He went through his office door. The two men followed.

"I need you to contact Dr. Banner. He's gone AWOL. It's concerning," Nick Fury said.

Tony didn't look concerned. "He won't return your phone calls? Not a call for concern. I don't either," Tony said with a smirk.

"He was supposed to join with Steve and get some testing done. Both have undergone severe physical activity lately. We want to run some tests on them," he said.

"Why? They're fine. Both are damn well indestructible," Tony said.

"They are the only known subjects to be affected by gamma rays. We don't know if it ever wears out or the effect on the heart and other major organs," Nick explained.

"What can I tell you? Bruce doesn't check in with me," Tony said.

"In case he's screening my calls, will you give him a call?" Nick said.

"Sure," Tony said. Nick waited expectantly. "You mean now?"

"Yes, now!" Nick said in exasperation.

Tony snickered and dialed Bruce's cell. It went to voicemail. "Hey, this is me. Call me as soon as you get this. I got this one-eyed pest wanting to check in on you," Tony said, smirking at Nick, who rolled his eye.

"If he calls you back, call me, okay?" Nick asked.

"Sure, but don't you think you're overreacting?" Tony said.

"We've been keeping an eye on Banner for years. His Hulk is deadly and unpredictable as well as not very controllable. It concerns me that he's out of contact," Nick said.

"I'll see if I can track him down," Tony offered.

"I appreciate it," Nick Fury said. "Now do you want to explain what you mean about your new guard being a slayer?"

Tony grinned. "You guys may want to sit down for this," Tony said.

When Tony was done, the two men stared at him without blinking. Finally, Clint said, "Bullshit!"

Tony laughed. "Not bullshitting. The girl is the real deal. I have video proof. Not the best quality, but I'm sure JARVIS can clean it up," Tony said.

Nick Fury looked thoughtful. Then he said, "There has been a high number of reports the past few years of woman possessing unusual strength. I had mostly chalked it up to rise of feminism and women finally gaining equal ground with their male counterparts."

"Don't let Natasha hear you talk that way," Clint warned.

"JARVIS, where is Buffy now?" Tony asked.

"She is in the elevator with Mr. Harris. They have just left the new robotics lab," he replied.

"They're probably on their way out to lunch," Tony said. He looked at Clint. "Here's a chance for someone not caught unaware to test her reflexes." He smirked at Nick. "Let's see how Clint does."

Clint shrugged. He'd been knocked on his ass by a woman before. Unlike most men, he knew firsthand how capable a woman could be. He never underestimated the opposite sex. "A superior fighter doesn't a superhero make," he said.

"Maybe not. But she's the real deal. You'll see," Tony said. He led the men out of his office, determined to prove to them that Buffy Summers was not just talented. She was the slayer.

******Chapter End******

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