Awakening

Ok...so this didn't get posted nearly as soon as I thought it would! First I had the insanity of the end of school, then adjusting to getting a job...then readjusting as I got moved to a new department only a few weeks later. Thrown in Comicon, vacation planning, and my sister moving in and you can see how busy I've been!

But considering this chapter's over 7,400 words you all better be thankful! (and the size makes up for the lateness...right?)

FIVE CHAPTERS LEFT AND COUNTING! XD

**This chapter is dedicated to CerfvolantI, who is the 1,000th favoriter of The Unknown Variable! This is for you!**

Penny's POV

Once our minds had been made up, it was surprisingly easy to get the ball rolling. As it wasn't even five o'clock yet, (to think that Emerson had barely taken up an hour of our time…) Tony and Jarvis were quick to 'invite' a reporter to the Tower. Her name was Linsey Justen, and she was one of the most respected and intelligent reporters for the New York Times.

It was easy to get the name Stark on her interview/story list, though I had no doubt that the woman was trying and failing to figure out how she had missed the fact that she was interviewing Tony Stark. I also had a feeling that Justen would be extremely confused as to what the interview was about. (Considering we just put the Stark name down, and not any additional information.)

The interview was going to be happening on the Stark floor sitting room, one which is rarely used. Dad and I were both getting dressed into slightly more formal clothing. Jarvis had instructions to keep everyone off of the Stark floor until after Ms. Justen left. Neither of us wanted to deal with the possible backlash from the Avengers and Co until after the interview.

I just hoped that Dad had told Pepper...or we might end up in trouble.

Shaking the thoughts from my mind, knowing that we would just deal with problems as they arose, I continued digging through my closet, looking for a particular top. I had no flipping idea where it was! I was currently in a nice pair of black jeans, my boots, and a bra. I had already put a dark blue headband in my hair and spelled the white in my hair with an illusion. I really wanted to wear this nice but comfy dark blue silk blouse, but I couldn't find it! It was like it had vanished, and it was really irritating!

"You know luv, sometimes I really wonder if you're a genius or if you just have a tendency towards brilliance."

Blinking at the sound of my Bonded's voice and sensing his sudden appearance, I spun around to see him sitting on my bed, an amused twinkle in his dark eyes.

"What're you talking about?" I demanded, a bit harsher than I meant. My nerves were slightly on end at the prospect of actually becoming known to the world and while I didn't want to admit it, I wasn't in the mood for Mortem's teasing.

My Bonded rolled his eyes and a calming wave of emotion washed over from his side of the Bond, soothing me instantly.

"That's cheating." I pointed out in English with narrowed eyes, and no, I wasn't pouting!

"Actually," Mortem said, also switching to English. "It's not. And can you summon or not?"

I blinked at him for just a moment, before I was overcome with an urge to smash my head into the wall.

"Bloody hell, I'm a moron." I muttered to myself as I summoned the shirt with a wave of my hand. It flew out from under my bed, and I glared at the offending object.

"But you're my moron." Mortem teased me as I slipped the shirt on.

"Oh shut up you!" I mock glared at him and throwing a color changing charm in his direction, which he reflected with ease. "Are you here for a reason or just to mock me?"

"Just to mock you," He replied simply with a shrug, before a smirk settled on his lips and he said, "and to enjoy the view."

Conjuring a pillow, I launched it at his head as he vanished into the shadows, laughing his head off. I tried not to smile, but I couldn't help it. We'd been teasing each other for so long it was weird not to do it.

"I'll get him for that." I muttered to myself as I examined a tube of lip gloss, mentally debating on whether or not to put some on.

Shrugging, I pulled the top off.

First impressions were rather important after all.

Third POV

New York Times renown reporter Linsey Justen would never admit it to anyone, but she was rather nervous as she climbed out of the cab at the foot of Stark Tower. She had only noticed the fact that Tony Stark was on her interview list for the day about an hour and a half before, and she had no idea how the name had appeared.

Justen was almost certain that the name hadn't been there the last time she looked, and she was sure that the editor had never assigned her a story regarding Stark. But she wasn't one to turn down a story -even an unknown one- and any story regarding Stark would be huge. The man hadn't given a one-one-one interview since he went missing for three months in the middle of a hot war zone. So Justen was very intrigued on what the story here was; intrigued enough not to ask too many questions.

Taking a deep breath to steel herself, she straightened up, pulled her shoulders back, and slipped on her most professional mask before striding confidently through the large glass doors.

Tony on the other hand, wasn't interested in anything at the moment. In fact, he was rather irritated. Making sure that none of the Avengers and Co were on his floor was easy enough, as none of them ever really wanted to be on his floor, but keeping the interview from their attention was proving to be rather difficult.

Especially since Phil was currently in the Tower; and was pretty much the only one besides Rhodey and Pepper who would wander onto the Stark Floor whenever he wanted.

Which is why Tony found himself staring down the agent as soon as he stepped off of the elevator onto the main Avengers floor.

"Agent!" Tony exclaimed happily, slipping one of his subtler masks on to not make Phil suspicious of things.

"Tony," Phil nodded the greeting, however his eyes were just slightly narrowed in suspicion, causing Tony to mentally curse. "Why has access to your floor been revoked?"

Tony didn't even twitch, and if anyone else had been there they probably would've been impressed.

"Oh," Tony just shrugged in response, stepping around Phil to continue down the hall. "I've got a few bots cleaning the carpets and stuff upstairs. Insania was over, and it didn't end well for the floors, or walls...or anything really."

Tony's answer was smooth and actually made sense, and the billionaire was hoping that Phil would buy it.

Sadly, he didn't.

"Going to the lab?" Phil switched tactics, eyeing the nice pair of slacks and suit jacket he had thrown on. Seeing Tony wearing semi-casual clothing was weird.

"Nah," Tony said, knowing that if he said yes Phil would be able to point out that he was dressed a bit nicely for the lab. "Insania turned my other clothes pink-she had been aiming for Pen-and so I grabbed the first thing I saw."

Phil 'hmm'ed, but noticed that he still didn't get an actual answer out of Tony regarding where he was heading.

All of the sudden, Pen appeared in a swirl of sparks. Phil's eyes narrowed just a touch as he realized that the younger Stark was also dressed up a bit nicer than usual.

"Getting coffee?" Penny asked her father after greeting Phil with a smile.

"Yup," Tony said cheerfully. That was the whole reason he came down here. (Jarvis would deny it, but the AI had moved all of Tony's good coffee to this floor in the attempt to make him interact with the other Avengers more; and it'd worked.)

"Get me a peppermint hot chocolate?" The redhead Immortal asked, causing her father to look at her in question.

"You can't get it yourself, why?" Tony asked the 'younger' girl and Pen just smiled mischievously.

"Oh, I have to get Mortem back for teasing me." She said before vanishing again in a swirl of sparks.

Tony rolled his eyes but strode into the kitchen anyway, Phil following him silently and thoughtfully.

"Hey, Tony!" Barton greeted him, and Tony nodded to the archer who was currently crouched on top of the counter besides Bob the fridge. "Going somewhere?"

"Nope," Tony answered as he grabbed the two steaming mugs beneath the coffee machine (that could also make hot chocolate). The coffee machine beeped happily, and Tony smiled at the small (and one of his newest) AI that he had yet to name.

"Thanks kiddo!" Tony told the small robot before chuckling at Barton's exasperated expression.

"So weird." The archer muttered and Phil simply shook his head.

"Oh, and unless you want to get covered in pink slime you might want to avoid my floor for a while, Katniss." Tony called out over his shoulder as he strode back out of the kitchen. "Pass on the word!"

Phil and Clint shared a look once Tony vanished, both of them silently wondered how on earth this had become normal.

Out in the hallway, Tony smirked as he stepped into the elevator. That had gone rather well.

"Sir, Ms. Justen just entered the building." Jarvis reported, and Tony nodded as he sipped at his coffee.

"Alright, direct her to our private elevator and make sure that the three of us remain undisturbed for the next two and a half hours."

"Of course, Sir." Jarvis replied. He would make sure that everything went smoothly.

A few minutes later, the Stark private elevator dinged as it stopped on the highest floor. Silently, Jarvis opened the door to reveal Linsey Justen, who blinked as she came face to face with Tony Stark.

"Ms. Justen, it's a pleasure to meet you." Tony said swiftly as he stepped forward and held out his hand. He wasn't wearing his usual sunglasses, which was one of the first things Justen noticed as she also stepped forward and shook Tony's hand.

The next thing she noticed was that he was actually in jeans, nice jeans but jeans all the same, and that the floor seemed surprisingly quiet for whom supposedly lived in the Tower with Stark.

"The pleasure is mine, Mr. Stark." Justen replied with a dazzling smile that almost rivaled Tony's own. "I'm afraid that I don't have any questions prepared for you, as I am a bit in the dark regarding why I am here."
If Justen was uneasy about admitting this, she didn't show it. Just as Tony didn't reveal the fact that he already knew that.

"Oh, that's no problem. I'm sure that you'll do perfectly fine." Tony reassured her with his signature grin that would normally cause the recipient to swoon. The billionaire turned on his heel and started leading Justen down the hall.

"We will be talking in the sitting room, and don't worry I've already arranged it so we won't be disturbed." Tony grinned at Justen again, making the reporter wonder just what she was actually doing there. If the woman hadn't known just how in love Tony Stark was with Pepper Potts, she would've thought he was trying to enamor her or something.

"Is there anything Jarvis can get you?" Tony asked, and if any of the Avengers had been present, they would've been shocked at how well Tony played host when it suited his needs.

"Water would be lovely." Justen replied quickly as she stepped past Stark and into a tastefully decorated sitting room that was the obvious work of Pepper Potts.

"A bot shall bring you a glass of water in a moment." Jarvis said swiftly, and Tony was pleased to see that Justen hadn't even twitched at the sound of Jarvis' voice. This reporter was swiftly gaining Tony's respect.

"Thank you, Jarvis." Justen said with a nod as she glanced up at the ceiling, and Tony's respect for the woman grew even more.

Tony settled down in a comfy white armchair as Justen sat down on the opposite but equally white couch. Justen noticed that there was two steaming mugs on the table. The mug to her left was obviously Tony's as it was red and gold colored, though she was confused as to whose mug the dark blue one was.

A comfortable silence fell upon the two for just a moment, before a small panel in the wall slid back and a small robot (who looked a lot like a miniature Dummy except with two arms and camera in the middle of his slender body) rolled into the room. The small bot, who Penny had named Sev, was holding a thin metal tray with a glass of ice water on it.

Not a drop split as Sev rolled over to the two. Justen watched in suppressed amusement and awe as the small bot stopped at her knees and lifted the tray up with a high pitched whirl. With a small smile on her face, Justen picked up the glass.

"Thank you." She said nicely and saw Tony beam at her out of the corner of her eye. The woman was surprised, he almost seemed proud that she had been nice to the little bot.

Sev whirled happily as the try folded up and vanished into compartments on his arms. Tony chuckled and shooed the bot away with a hidden smile.

"Good job, Sev." Tony said, patting the chirping bot on the head. "Now go make sure your brothers aren't causing too much of a ruckus."

The small bot whirled happily before rolling away, and if Justen thought Tony's behavior or the situation was odd, she didn't show it.

This gained the woman points in Tony's mind, and the genius became more confident and pleased with his choice of reporters.

Another moment of silence hung between the two, but it was not uncomfortable, and it barely lasted a moment before Tony broke it.

"Alright, let's cut to the chase." Tony clapped his hands and leaned forward his expression started the woman as she had never seen Stark look so serious. The closest comparison she could make was when he told the world he was Iron Man at the press conference, but that look bared even compared.

Justen immediately sat up straighter, her attention and interest suddenly peaked. She pulled a note pad and fountain pen out of her handbag and positioned the tip just barely over the paper. Tony didn't say anything, but he was impressed that the reporter actually still used hand written notes.

"You are here to meet someone, someone very special." Tony started and Justen's curiosity practically flooded her as confusion also wormed its way into her heart.

Who on earth was she going to meet? Why was Stark doing a private interview? What on earth could be so important?

The questions once again flooded Justen's mind and she almost didn't hear Tony when he continued on.

"All information you gather here tonight...every single relevant detail you learn is to be put in an article that will be printed in tomorrow's morning paper. You shall not speak of, or communicate any information you learn here to anyone (except your publisher when he reads the article) until after the article has been printed. If I find that you have leaked any of the information you are about to learn you will suddenly find yourself unable to gain a respectable or profitable writing job anywhere on the globe, sporting a rather horrid reputation."

Justen couldn't help but gulp at the dark look on Tony's face and the dangerous glint in his dark eyes that promised the truth of every word. She nodded slowly but surely. She was slightly insulted that Stark would think so little of her, but from what she could understand….this was big. Bigger than she could ever imagine.

Then the rest of his statement registered in her brain and the woman blinked.

"Mr. Stark, you want me to write a proper article in less than twelve hours?!" She exclaimed in slight disbelief, she had heard that Stark always expected the best, but even she couldn't write a complete, thorough article in twelve hours! Not to mention that there was no way the editor would allow it to be printed in the morning edition!

"Yes." Tony answered simply, not even blinking as he held her disbelieving daze.

"But, that's not enough time to gather secondary sources and back up facts...not to mention write the actual article! There's also no way that my editor would allow such a late article into the morning paper!" Justen literally gaped at the billionaire as a devilish smirk spread across his lips and his eyes gleamed.

"Oh, I think you'll find it's quite possible." Tony said smoothly in his velvety voice. "Especially with the right motivation."

There was a brief moment of silence as Justen's brain took that in, before she narrowed her eyes at him.

"Are you threatening me?" The reporter asked and Tony just chuckled.

"Not at the moment, Ms. Justen. I'm just saying that...significant motivation will appear soon enough."

Another tense silence before Justen broke down and sighed.

"Alright, just what is this article about, Mr. Stark? Who is it I'm going to meet?" Justen resisted the urge to rub her temples, though her the slight clenching of her jaw and hands gave her away to Tony.

The man smirked as the air rippled next to them and Penny appeared, leaning on the white arm chair that was beside Tony's.

The youngest Immortal smiled softly at Justen's stunned face as she moved around the chair and settled down in the chair and reached out her hand.

"Hello Ms. Justen," Penny said charmingly with a dazzling smile, her green eyes practically glowing. Not a hit of nerves or unease was shown, and if Mortem had been physically present he would've rolled his eyes. Aequivalere was a rather good actress after all.

The reporter's eyes almost bugged out of her head. Not only had a teenage girl, who was obviously a mutant, just appear out of thin air, but she looked remarkably like Stark's old underage PA… She blinked. She swore that if the girl was the same if not for the green eyes.

The reporter blinked again as she realized why that smile seemed to similar, it looked just like Starks! Starting to feel faint, Justen tried to open her mouth to say something but not a sound came out. Instead, Tony's chuckle echoed around the room and Justen's eyes widened just slightly as she realized that Penny's hand was still hovering in the air.

She shook the teen's hand quickly, still trying to work through her shock and rampant thoughts to ask a question.

However, before she was able to, Penny said, "My name is Penella Piper Maria Stark, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Her smile was practically blinding as her lips widened even further, Tony's satisfied smirk almost just as wide.

"I'm sure we'll be great friends!" She exclaimed happily, her vivid green eyes almost glowing.

Justen just nodded slowly, her brain shattering into a million pieces. She was just glad that she hadn't fainted...for she had been right.

This was bigger than she had ever imagined.

10/28/12
6:55 am
New York City

It wasn't even seven o'clock yet, and gossip was already spreading like wildfire between those few people currently awake in the city. Only a few people had managed to actually sit down and read the morning edition of the New York Times, so few had physically seen or even read the main headline of the day's paper: Stark's Secret Mutant Daughter Finally Steps Into Spotlight. But between the power of the internet and human's love of gossip, the news was already spreading.

Very few actually believed the headline, let alone sat down and read it. There had just been too many "Stark Child" scares over the years for the headline to be believable, even if it was published by a respectable paper and a very reputable reporter. Even more dismissed the article simply because it claimed that Stark's supposed kid was a mutant, which everyone knew would never happen.

The few people who did believe it, couldn't help but freak out a bit. They were enraptured by Penny Stark's story...of Howard's betrayal, Penny's secret birth and health struggle, Evanna's birth, Penny's time as Piper, her part in the Afghanistan incident, her real identity being revealed to her ignorant father, and everything that came afterward.

Of course, the story had been edited. All information regarding Immortals, and much of Penny's past and exploits had been edited or left out of the story given to Ms. Justen. Pen knew that Fury would appreciate SHIELD being left out of the story as well.

To those few that read the article, the fact that Penny was Piper and also Electra was a shock but they almost couldn't believe how well the pieces fell into place. They wanted to know more, those few that believed, and so when the morning news was interrupted with a special report from Tony Stark's emergency press conference, many eager eyes tuned in.

It was as if the world was holding its breath, waiting to see if the latest bombshell from Tony Stark was true...if there really was another Stark alive and well.

For the inhabitants of Stark Tower, and everyone else connected to Penny, it was just another morning.

The handful of Tower occupants who were still sleeping when 6:57 came around and Pepper's scream echoed through the Tower were quickly awakened. Most of them (aka: Clint) tried to go back to sleep, but as Pepper's loud voice continued to echo through the many halls and floors of the Tower, they (Clint) decided that it was best to get up and investigate what the noise was about. (Aka: yell at Tony for making Pepper screech like that.)

The scene Clint and Natasha walked in on at 6:58 was not unusual one...and yet there was something about it that just screamed "important".

Tony was standing in the middle of the communal kitchen in one of his best suits, glasses donned, shoes polished, and Stark phone in hand.

Pepper was standing less than two feet from Tony, her face red from yelling, hair pulled up into a bun and a striking blue dress suit on.

Bruce and Steve were both awkwardly hanging around in the background, while the small coffee machine bot was chirping away cheerfully with Bob the fridge… who's speaking ability kept vanishing and reappearing depending on the day and Tony's mood.

All in all, not an odd scene. But it was Pepper's words that got the spy's attention.

"YOU CANNOT HAVE A PRESS CONFERENCE WITHOUT FIRST LETTING ME KNOW! ESPECIALLY WHEN SAID PRESS CONFERENCE IS IN THE LOBBY OF STARK TOWER!"

Clint and Natasha shared a look, before sneaking around the couple and standing with Bruce and the Cap.

"I did tell you!" Tony protested, pulling the sunglasses off of his face as he rolled his eyes.

"FOUR MINUTES BEFORE THE PRESS CONFERENCE STARTS DOES NOT COUNT!" Pepper yelled, her eyes narrowed and arms flying through the air.

Tony took a step back right as Pepper took a step forward.

She took a deep breath, which seemed to scare Tony more than her yelling, and said calmly, "You will tell me what you're up to right now or so help me…" Pepper's threat was interrupted as Phil stored into the room.

"Why on earth is Fury calling me in saying that no one at SHIELD can get a copy of the NY Times?" Coulson demanded, his voice just as chilling.

Tony's pause was barely noticeable, but he was still saved from answering as Jarvis joined the conversation and said,

"Sir, it's seven o'clock...are you ready?"

Unknown to everyone else, it had been the combined effort of Jarvis and Penny that had kept their plans a secret. (Tony had been busy arranging everything.)

A smile split across Tony's face and he nodded enthusiastically.

"Yup!" He chirped, "All clear Jar."

"Alright, Sir." Jarvis replied as everyone exchanged a worried look. "Good luck."

"Thanks, Jar." Tony smiled up at the ceiling just as Pepper's eyes widened.

"Tony, what are you talking…"

However, the red head was cut off as Tony suddenly slid on his sunglasses and yelled, "Hit it Pen!" Before vanishing in a swirl of sparks.

"What the hell are those two up to!" Pepper yelled in frustration, practically throwing her phone against the wall.

"I have a feeling we are about to find out." Phil said as Jarvis toned in,

"If you would turn your attention towards the west wall…"

A projection suddenly covered the wall and everyone silently wondered what the hell was going on as a news reporter appeared, obviously standing in the Tower lobby.

"...waiting for Tony Stark to appear. No one knows exactly why Mr. Stark has called this sudden press conference; however, there is speculation that it is connected to the questionable article that appeared on the front page of the New York Times this morning…"

The kitchen groaned as a whole as the headline was shown on screen.

"God...Tony, what've you done?" Pepper asked as Phil texted Fury.

He would want to watch this.

All chatter ceased as Tony slowly walked out on stage. His hands were in his pockets and his shoulders were back. Pictures were snapped like mad as reporters spoke quietly into their microphones.

Clearing his throat he pulled off his sunglasses and gave the crowd the most serious look they had ever seen on the billionaire genius.

"There are have been some questions on the authenticity of the article written by Ms. Justen that appeared on the front page of The New York Times this morning." He paused just long enough to give a few specific reporters the evil eye. Jarvis had been monitoring the situation and had told them who had been dragging Pen's name through the mud the worst.

"I have gathered you all here today to prove that the article was not a hoax." Tony continued, strangely serious and almost instantly the reporters roared at they all started throwing questions at Tony.

"SOMEONE GET ME THAT ARTICLE, NOW!" Fury yelled as agents rushed about, papers flying through the air as Tony's face played on the large screen of the 'Carrier deck.

Nick's eyebrow twitched as he realized just what it was that Tony had been hiding from him the last few hours. That man was dead mean. He caused Nick just as many headaches as his blasted daughter!

Back at the Tower, Tony silenced them with a well placed glare, Jarvis flickering the lights and letting a few whistles play over the speakers for backup.

"I am only going to say this once. Neither of us are here to repeat the story we gave Ms. Justen last night, so if you want the story regarding the fact that I do in fact have a daughter, than you shall just have to read the article for yourself." He glared pointedly at a specific reporter who had his hand half raised in question.

"I am just here to clarify, and specify." Tony said simply, not caring at the moment for the chaos he was leaving in the wake of his speech.

"Yes, it is true that I had an almost fiance during my college years. No, I wasn't always a playboy. Obviously I was able to keep our relationship from the press. No, I didn't know about the fact that Penny existed or the real reason for Evanna's departure until last year in Afghanistan. Yes, my daughter masqueraded as my PA until I found out about her. Of course I have been aware of the fact that Penny is a mutant since I knew she was my daughter, and I've always known that she's Electra. Has this changed my views on Mutants? It may have made the issues more personal, but my stance is the same as it always has been. If anyone even suggests that Penny is anything other than my daughter you'll be introduced to my lawyers regarding underage libel laws."

He paused long enough to take a deep breath and giving every reporter a very chilling glare. He was hoping to nip as much of this in the bud before it started, but he knew that the aftermath was going to be insane either way.

Tony was going to do his best though.

A few reporters gulped, and feeling satisfied, the billionaire continued.

"Yes, the Avengers know about my daughter, though they didn't know she was Electra during the invasion. Penny has always been supportive of me as Iron Man, though I can't always say the same about her being Electra." Here Tony cracked a smile and a lot of the tense atmosphere broke as reporters and cameramen alike laughed lightly.

Tony took a deep breath. "The truth is, my daughter is a brilliant person, one I want the world to get to know. I worry, just like any father...though I bet most fathers will be pleased to not have to worry about super-villains."

More laughter erupted from the crowd as more and more people relaxed. Many of the reporters wondering how they would spin this new overprotective fatherly side of Tony; after they got a few pictures of this mysterious Penny though.

"Anyway, I'm sorry that this is going to be so short, but considering I never told my girlfriend or team about our plan I'm sure they're waiting backstage to chew my ear off." Tony cracked another smile as reporters. "However, just because I'm going to step back doesn't mean that we're quite done yet."

Everyone perked up in anticipation, and seeing the brightening smile on Tony's face they hoped that they were guessing right.

"So, without further ado, though I might throw a few more threats in…." Tony paused for dramatic effect before throwing his hands in the air, "may I introduce, my lovely, almost-as-brilliant-as-me, and just-as-kick-ass, daughter: Penella Piper Maria Stark!"

With a large smile on her face, Penny walked onto stage. She was wearing a dark green dress that fell to her knees in a waterfall style after wrapping around her midsection tightly. She was wearing tall black heels, and had a black and green headband in her hair. Opals strung in silver hung from her ears, the Hallows ring sat on her finger, and she was even wearing the necklace that Mortem had given her.

Pen waved to all of the reporters, who were clicking pictures as fast as possible, before turning on her heel and giving Tony a playful glare.

"Just as brilliant? Who's the one with more degrees? Oh, right, that's me, Daddy." Pen gave her father a cheeky grin and Tony glared playfully back at her, though mentally he was pouting at how quickly she had turned the press into putty in her hands.

"Well, I built the Iron Man suit." Tony pointed out, trying to hide the grin that was spreading across his face. That would ruin the show after all.

"You mean the suit that I helped you build." Pen responded quickly and swiftly, causing laughter to echo through the room, and across room around the globe.

"Oh come here." Tony said before darting to grab his daughter into a tight arm locked hug.

"Dad!" Penny exclaimed in fake horror as she teleported out of his arms with a dramatic show of sparks. "You're embarrassing me and ruining my hair on international television!"

Everyone's eyes had gone wide at the blatant use of Pen's powers, before laughing at the put out look on Tony's face.

"Well, I'm only going to be able to get away with it once." Tony shrugged, as if that was the answer to the universe. "Besides, it was the opportunity of the lifetime."

"No," Penny corrected as the reporters continued to laugh and click away. "The opportunity of the lifetime is putting a video of Pepper chewing you out on YouTube."

Tony's eyes widened in actual horror this time as Pen went off of the rough 'script' they had outlined.

"You wouldn't dare."

"Oh yeah? Try me."

The two had a mini glare down before Tony smirked and walked off the stage.

"You wouldn't dare….unless you want all those pictures of you and Mason asleep on the couch together to be posted on the Stark Industries Facebook page. Not to mention the cache of baby pictures I found online..." Tony wandered off the stage with a satisfied smirk as Penny look on in horror.

(They had agreed that Mortem's public name was going to be Mason, not that the Immortal liked it...but neither father nor daughter had cared.)

"I thought I deleted all of those!" Pen almost cried, her green eyes wide in 'horror'. Though she was wondering how he had gotten her baby pictures.

"Sorry, I guess you missed a few." Tony taunted over his shoulder, before waving to the laughing press and finally vanishing from sight.

Penny crossed her hands over her chest and glared at the back of her father before stilling, as if just hearing the laughter for the first time. With a perfectly sheepish smile on her face, Pen turned and waved shyly to all of the reporters.

"Um...hi." A bunch of reporters waved back or said hello.

There was a brief moment of silence before Pen rubbed the back of her neck. "Well, this is embarrassing."

That broke all of the tension as both the reporters and Pen laughed. Walking up to the podium and grabbing the microphone.

"So, since I'll have to save my father's sorry hide from his angry Co-CEO in a few minutes… I'll only take five questions." Pen gave a dazzling smile as the volume quadrupled in the room as almost every reporter was practically jumping up and down to get chosen.

Pen scanned the loud and obnoxious crowd before pointing towards a reporter towards the back who had nothing more than a voice recorder, a notepad, and a pencil.

"You, in the striped shirt in the back!" Pen called out, and the man's eye widened comically as the crowd went instantly silent.

It took the man almost a second to snap out of his shock before he asked, "Don't find this too intrusive Ms. Stark, but what exactly is your mutation?"

Penny smiled at the man before answering,

"Well, I suppose you could say that I have electrokinesis, or control over electricity if you would. It's a rather simple ability, but as you've seen I've gotten rather creative with its use." Pen answered simply but thoroughly. It was completely true, she had gotten pretty creative with her electrokinesis before she her Awakening.

The reporter nodded in thanks before jotting down even more notes, impressively keeping the recorder pointing at the stage.

"Next?" Noise broke out almost instantly as everyone wanted to ask the Stark heir a question.

"Alright! You, in the purple and blue blouse!" Pen pointed to small time TV reporter with long black hair and dark skin.

"Ms. Stark, after your mother's death, what caused you to go undercover as your father's PA? You spoke about how you became your father's PA in your interview with Ms. Justen, but you never really addressed your reasons. Why didn't you just approach your father with your identity?" The woman asked and Penny was instantly impressed with the thought out and thorough question.

"Nice question." Pen praised as everyone went practically dead silent. "The truth is that a year ago, my father was a bit of an asshole."

Broken laughter flickered across the room and Pen gave an apologetic shrug. "Ok, so he still is sometimes. But that's not the point. I had grown up watching my father through the media, and hearing stories about him from Mom. Before...keeping me secret was the only way Mom could afford my health bills, as sad as it sounds. Sure, she could've tried to approach Tony for money but she was scared that he would reject us. My mother put my own needs first, though she had never meant to keep to keep me a secret forever. She made me promise, before she died, that I would track down my father and tell him the truth."

She sighed but continued anyway, knowing that she had the audience enraptured."So, once I had stabilized my health, I tried to find a way to approach my father. I didn't want to go through a third party, and I definitely didn't want to get thrown into the spotlight. I had seen all of the false accusations that had hit the news over the years...I was scared that if I spoke up, I would either be brushed aside, or not believed."

Penny wasn't mentioning the fact that being Tony Stark's PA paid rather well and she had had a backlog of hospital bills to pay at the time. She was still rather irritated that Tony had paid them off for her after coming home from the cave.

"I wanted to be able to get close to my father...get to know him before I came clean. So when a position for an assistant PA popped up, I applied. I had thought the chance slim, especially because of my age...but hey, when have Starks done anything normal?"

Penny grinned as many of the reporters chuckled and nodded. Howard had been eccentric, Tony was definitely eccentric, and it was looking like Penny was too. They all knew that Starks were anything but normal.

"Of course, Dad being Dad we just had to get kidnapped and spent three months in a cave, but hey, it ended up forcing me to come clean so I suppose I should thank 'em." Penny chuckled at her own joke and there was a few weak laughs though no one knew exactly how to respond for that.

"Obviously he didn't throw me out or we wouldn't be here!" Penny exclaimed to break the tense atmosphere before moving on. "Alright then, next question!"

"You, with the overly large hat." Penny blinked as she realized some of the outfits a few of the reporters were wearing. "Wow, you must really know my dad well if you know what can catch his attention."

She paused, tilting her head. "And I guess it works on me to. Weird."

"Ms. Stark, how did the Avengers react to your presence? How did they feel about a teenager helping them battling aliens?" Large Hat Man asked and Penny had to give it to the reporters, they really knew how to catch a Starks attention.

"Fair question," Pen said as she leaned against the podium in thought. "I'm pretty sure the conversation went something like this: "Daughter? You don't have a daughter!" … "Sure I/he does/do." … "Call me Penny!" … "You should've have let her come along!" and "Not like I could've stopped her…."

"Very condensed and summarized but that's the gist of it." Pen said, rubbing her throat a bit from trying to imitate the various voices.

Everyone was blinking at her, and she realized that they were all staring. Couching, Pen tried going to the next question.

"Anything else?"

Thankfully for her, that broke the shock and hands shot into the air again.

"The only reporter in here wearing all black!" Penny selected cheerfully, pointing out the man in a completely black suit. She had a feeling that he was some sort of government employee rather than a reporter, but she didn't care.

"What is your connection with the rogue mutant group known as the X-Men?" He asked, practically sneering.

This got him some rather unpleasant looks from those around him, and a heated glare from Penny.

"For your information," The Immortal drawled coldly, counteracting her glare. "The X-Men are heroes, just as much as my father and his friends in not more, and I will not stand insults to them."

She pinned the man with her glare for a few minutes longer before letting her gaze soften and drift away from the now rather unnerved man.

"I consider Professor Charles Xavier to be a close friend of mine, and the X-Men important allies. They were kind enough to be on standby during the New York incident, and even stepped in and assisted us. If anything negative is said about them, or mutants in general, I will take as a personal insult."

Penny's bright face turned cold again.

"Daddy and I don't appreciate personal insults….he's rather overprotective you know."

The dead silence was enough to show that the message got through, so Penny smiled and continued on.

"Alright then...last question."

More hands raised in the air, though it was noticeably less than before.

Trying not to roll her eyes, Pen picked a the reporter who had Peter Parker at his elbow.

She smiled at Peter, who just blinked up at her in shock as the reporter asked his question.

"Why do you have red hair?"

She blinked, looking at the reporter in shock for a moment as many people tried and failed to hide their chuckles. The man turned red as Peter turned to stare at him in shock.

"You know, I really have no idea." Penny admitted. "Mom doesn't know anything about her family so it could've been a gene, but personally...I think my mutation just wanted me to be more interesting! After all...it turned my blue eyes green after some rather extensive electrocution. Not that that makes much sense...but hey! Not even Dad and I have the answers to everything!"

More laughter echoed across the hall and Penny was glad to see that the press seemed to be wrapped around her little finger rather well. Or at least the majority of the reporters there.

"Anyway, that's all we have time for today...please don't try sneaking into the Tower or hounding Dad and I. We have some rather extensive and creative security systems and I don't want Dad making me clean up after you lot!"

Laughing at the uneasy looking people eyeing the walls around them in suspicion, Penny blew a kiss at the cameras before vanishing in a swirl of sparks.

Penny collapsed onto the floor of the Stark sitting room, leaning back against the couch.

"God I'm glad that's over." Penny moaned as she took her heels off and threw them across the room.

"Fuck!"

Pen's eyes snapped open to see Clint on the floor, having dodged her shoe attack. She gulped as she realized that Phil and the other Avengers were already in the room.

"Damn it...really need to start scanning rooms before I teleport it." She commented to herself/Mortem and her Bonded moaned.

"Your how old now and you still haven't gotten into the habit of that? How often have you gotten into trouble because you didn't scan ahead of your jumping?" Mortem asked, poking the Bond rather hard.

"I think its time for explanations, Ms. Stark." Phil said with narrowed eyes as Clint climbed back into his seat.

"Oh shut up." The Immortal groaned, putting her head in her hands. They probably should've thought this part through.

Oh the other side of the Multiverse, in a dimension that was barely formed, a certain purple haired Immortal bowed to the darkness.

"It shall be done my Lord." Fati said, emotionlessly, having learned how to curb her tongue.

"See that it is." The Ancient being hissed. "Do not fail me again, Fati. Or you shall pay with your Existence."

In Cor, Insania watched in all in sadness. While her Elder Sister could no longer see Aequivalere's future, she knew all too well what lay ahead for her little sister.

A lone tear rolled down her cheek as Insania realized that there was nothing she could do to save her sister.

Alright, I'm apologizing again for not updating...but the length of this chapter surely makes up for it! Right!? Right?! … No? Oh well, I tried.

Hope you enjoyed it, and I should be able to update soon since I'm finally getting used to having a weird working schedule…

Anyway, I'll try to update soon!

Cp