"You aren't in charge of shit, Obadiah. I am. And because I am, I'm leaving Pepper in charge until I'm able to actually understand what's happening in this company. This company has my grandfather's name, has my dad's name, my name, Obadiah Stane," Grey said as clearly as she was able to while being so furious, she was surprised sparks weren't flying from her fingertips. "My dad is missing, and you're sitting there with your thumbs up your ass because you hope that if the fatality clause kicks in you can swoop in like a white knight and take over as Majority Shareholder and CEO, isn't that right?"
Obadiah didn't know how this girl knew what she did, but he was very careful to keep that expression off his face. It took every bit of all his experience standing in front of vulture reporters to keep him so professionally faced.
"Young lady, I only want what's best for Stark Industries. You're not ready to lead a company of this size. You haven't graduated yet, and you're too young."
"Actually, the fatality clause that my dad put in states that as long as I'm over the age of eighteen, I'm perfectly fine to inherit the entire company, unlike papaw's that mandated Dad be twenty-one. So, at the end of the month, Stark Industries will fall to me to take care of," Grey said, talking to Stane like he was an idiot. She gave him her best dimpled smile, but it didn't reach her eyes. A twitch of her thumb had her eyes glowing. Stane took a hurried step back. "You will never have control over my company, Obadiah Stane. Your reign is done. Step down or watch your world burn."
"Grey, that's enough," Pepper said softly. In the space of a blink, Grey was brown-eyed and giving Stane a genuine smile. Obadiah almost believed he imagined it, but the image of her glowing eyes would haunt him for years to come.
"This is my company. And as is my right, I will be leaving Pepper in charge until I graduate from college or turn twenty-one. You can stay on as COO, but if you ever presume to make demands of me again, I will have you fired so quickly your head will spin."
"You can't."
"Accept the olive branch, Stane, or pack your shit and get the fuck out," Grey said. The shift in her voice made it clear she wasn't asking. Stane nodded, swallowing hard and Grey and Pepper left his office.
"I'm so sick of that man," Pepper murmured as they got to the elevator. Grey just snorted her agreement. "He called you 'young lady' are you sure we can't fire him yet?"
"Not until dad's back. If I make too many changes too quickly, the Board will have me painted as a grieving daughter, doing everything she can to destroy what took her father from her," Grey said bitterly. "And that will fuck us over so fast even Dad won't be able to fix it. Hey, is there a Business for Dummies book or something I can read so I can help point us in the right direction correctly? Young lady, Jesus, that's so ick."
"I'm sure we can stop at the bookstore and see what's in the business section," Pepper offered as the elevator started the descent. "And I can help here and there, I do have my degree in it."
"Please never try to put me in charge, of anything really. It's very likely a bad idea." Grey scrunched up her nose at the idea, but Pepper's thoughts were running in a different direction. Grey had been showing, time and time again, that she had what it took to lead. Not just the family, but the company, the Avengers, anything that needed done, Pepper suspected Grey would find some way to accomplish it. "Unless it's like a family dinner. I love getting to play hostess."
"What if I put you in charge of Marvel Comics?" Pepper asked as they stepped out of the elevator. "CEO of Marvel Comics, you'd be in control of what all they do, the characters they write. Didn't you say you wanted to scoop them up to bring in funds?"
Grey blew out a rush of air as they waved goodbye to the receptionist. She didn't think Pepper was wrong, she had mentioned just the other day, using comics about Captain America to eventually pay for what the man would break. Once Tony came out as Iron Man, and the rest of them announced their own suits, it would be easy marketing.
"It's not a bad idea, but how could we justify it? Unless we… Does Sharon have Peggy's account of what happened during the war?" Grey perked up as if she'd had an idea. "Combine it with Bucky's accounts, and, well, me… We could say we're buying them to share the legacy of Howard Stark as part of our new family first motto."
"Our new what now?" Happy asked as he opened the back door for the girls. Grey blinked at him like she hadn't noticed the car pull up. Grey simply scrunched her brow and dove into the back seat, reaching for her notebook.
"After dad gets back, we'll be shifting Stark Industries direction away from weapons. We need to figure out if personal devices is going to be enough to cover the loss we'll feel. I also planned on bringing the hiring practices straight into 2021 because I'd forgotten just how discriminatory things were." Grey paused, leaving her mouth slightly ajar as she scribbled down notes in a barely legible script. She switched pen colors and kept going, writing backwards in the notebook. By the time Happy pulled them into traffic, she'd filled three pages.
"I'll pull Sam up from legal and have her start drafting contracts and a buyout offer. We'll keep it in our back pocket until Tony's home." Pepper's voice went hoarse at the reminder where Tony was, but she was quick to shake it off. She knew Tony Stark, and he had already figured out a way to get out of the desert and back to them. She just had to be patient. And then she'd tell him. Or something. "Then you can do whatever it is you're rambling about under your breath."
"I think I can write a movie about Captain America's origins," Grey said, sounding slightly breathless. "Or at the very least, write a short novelization about it that a skilled scriptwriter can turn it into something for the big screen."
"By the time Tony gets home?" Happy asked, impressed. "You think you can write a whole two-hour movie in two months?"
"I think I can do it in a weekend," Grey said, still scribbling in her notebook. "I feel a manic episode coming, so yeah, gimme a pot of coffee, a decent Spotify playlist and a keyboard I can actually feel, and I can crank it out in a day."
"Fifty bucks," Happy said to Pepper, winking through the rearview mirror. Pepper nodded her agreement. She knew Grey could do it. He frowned and pulled out his phone. It was ringing. "Rhodes?"
Pepper couldn't hear what was being said on the other side, but she definitely didn't like the look on Happy's face. She reached over and nudged Grey, pulling her attention away.
"Happy, spill?"
"Jarvis just told Jim there's intruders at the New York house. All they took was one of the photos of Grey," Happy said, pressing his foot down on the gas. He weaved through traffic, speeding along. "It's Hydra. They're coming for Barnes."
Grey groaned and pinched the bridge of her nose. Trust Pierce to fuck up her plans of a peaceful week. She was turning nineteen at the end of the week, and Grey actually wanted to enjoy it this time around.
Happy thanked Jim for the update and ended the call. The highway zipped along underneath them as Happy approached speeds only Tony Stark used consistently.
"All I wanted was cinnamon rolls on my birthday, if he fucks with that, I'll kill him timeline bedamned," Grey complained.
"What do you want to do for your birthday? You're turning nineteen, that's big!" Pepper said, glad for the subject change. They could worry about Hydra once they were home.
"I'm turning twenty-five," Grey snapped. "I'm turning twenty-five and I have to pretend I'm young and cheerful and not old and jaded. I'm twenty fucking five and my mom's not here."
Grey took a harsh breath and glared at the notebook in her hands. Her hands shook violently as she tried to control herself. Pepper flushed, feeling guilty for forgetting. It was easier to forget that she wasn't just Grey Stark, daughter of Pepper's best friend. It was easier to just believe the story. Grey murmured an apology and shook her head.
"What do you usually to do to celebrate?" Pepper asked, pulling the attention away from Grey's tears.
"We do cinnamon rolls for breakfast, every year, on everyone's birthday. There's the birthday plate, mug and hat. We would always cajole dad into singing it in Dutch, after we sang it in English. Presents are always at breakfast, but we usually do a big dinner too. Cinnamon Rolls, bacon and hazelnut coffee 'cause it pisses off dad." Grey smiled brightly at her notebook, but Pepper could see the tears in her eyes.
"Then we'll do cinnamon rolls and bacon for breakfast on Saturday. We'll do the hazelnut coffee instead of the Grogg we bought this week," Pepper offered. "I don't have a plate or mug or even a hat, but I do have an ugly pink shirt that says birthday bitch from when I was in college that you can wear. And we can't sing in Dutch, but we can all laugh at how tone deaf Happy is."
Grey barked out a surprised laugh at the description of the shirt and smiled at Pepper. Happy grumbled, pretending to be annoyed with their teasing. It was almost jarring then, to see how serious Bucky and Jim were, as they pulled to a stop in front of the house. They looked as though it was the first day, as if they'd lost Tony all over again.
"They'll come here next," Bucky said, instead of hello as he opened the door for Pepper to climb out of. Grey scooted out after her and reached for Bucky, taking his hand in hers. "They took Grey's picture, likely to have Pierce confirm it's her. Then they'll come here, probably Saturday, since they'll discover it's her birthday. They're dramatic fuckers. Call Sharon and Tripp, get them back here."
"Everyone keeps a weapon nearby at all times." Jim wasn't taking no for an answer. "Everyone here knows how to use one in an emergency, so one stays close. Pepper, I'd prefer it if you stayed here until the threat passes. Barnes, will they only try once?"
"Depends on how it goes. If they fail bad enough, yeah, Hydra won't risk discovery by attacking twice." He spoke of hydra so casually, Grey felt pride burst out of her chest. He's taken to therapy like a duck to water. He was healing. It was good. "If they think they can get in and out once, they'll do it twice. I'm going to stay hidden in the nest – I can't risk them getting me back."
"We'll stay up in shifts with you, Bucky, not hide you away. And with Jarvis in the house, he can warn us the moment someone is inside." Happy looked determined. "And we won't let them take you back."
There was a loaded moment between the men, before everyone fled to the safety of Jarvis' sensors.
"Lock it down, Jay," Grey said. "Absolutely no one in or out without my approval."
"Right away Miss Stark," Jarvis said.
"Great, now what?" Jim asked sarcastically. "We wait?"
"No, now we wait for Sharon and Tripp to get here, and we watch the season six finale," Pepper said. "I've missed the last three episodes, so I recorded them. Movie night!"
"Season six?" Jim asked.
"Grey's Anatomy. It's season six, I've been avoiding spoilers all week, let's watch it! The last finale was awful."
"What happened at the last season finale?" Bucky asked, pretending to be interested.
"Season five? George and Izzie. Season six's finale is terrible," Grey said firmly. "If we're watching this, Pep, you said three episodes? Happy, let's put together a snack board and some drinks, Bucky, will you head to the closet in the hall and pull out the knitted blanket and two boxes of tissues?"
"Is it that bad?" Pepper asked in alarm, watching Bucky walk off. "What happens?"
"Season nine is worse," Grey said, aiming for reassurance, but missing by a mile. "Season seven has a musical episode which is great. Everyone can sing well except for Meredith, which just cracks me up."
Line Break
Sure enough, by the time Grey got up to let Tripp and Sharon in past the security blockade provided by Jarvis, Mister Clark had already shot Reed Adamson and Alex Karev, causing Happy and Pepper to freak out respectively. Once Tripp and Sharon had settled in the makeshift "adults-only" blanket fort, Mister Clark was glaring at Derek Shepherd, and Pepper was sobbing into Bucky's other side.
"So, all that and we don't know what happens next until when?" Bucky demanded, having no idea how cable TV shows worked.
"We have two options, we can ask Grey to spoil it, or we wait until September."
"September?" Bucky echoed, outraged. "We have to wait four months to find out if Derek survives? Grey, tell me, I need to know."
"Anybody who doesn't want spoilers should go far away," Grey said. Pepper and Sharon fled the room as quickly as they could, giggling as they did. Tripp and Happy left too, leaving Grey alone with Bucky and Jim, both staring at her in expectation. "Derek lives. Everyone does, except for Mister Clark, Reed Adamson, Dr Percy, and a few unnamed people. Yang is briefly traumatized, collapsing in an OR next season."
"And the baby?" Jim asked, gesturing to the TV.
"Miscarriage. Meredith has a D&C procedure by herself. They try for a baby pretty much all next season. Baby happens in season eight."
"Terrible season ending," Bucky complains. "And we're just supposed to wait?"
"That's how cable TV works," Grey explained. "The season runs from fall through to spring, right with the school year. Most TV shows try to end the season on something resembling a cliff hanger to ensure everyone comes back the next season."
"I think I hate cable," Bucky said, causing Jim and Grey to burst out laughing at the half-pout clear on his face.
"I've got more TV shows I can't wait to introduce you to. Arrow, Flash, just wait." Grey smiled, and for the first time, she didn't look like she was holding the weight of the world on her shoulders. Bucky smiled at her and put his arm around her shoulders. Grey couldn't help but smile back at she reached up to hold his hand. "Gonna turn you into a pop culture junkie. Wonder if Hot Topic has clothes your size."
Jim, who knew good and well what was sold at Hot Topic started laughing as he tried to leave the living room. It didn't work, as by the time he got to the hallway, he started picturing Bucky as one of the high schoolers with way-too skinny jeans with tears in them, a flannel tied around his waist, and a band shirt on. It was such a natural image in his mind that Jim had to lean against the wall to try and catch his breath. Every time he tried to stop laughing, he'd look at Bucky, or Grey, and he'd start again.
"What's his problem?" Bucky asked, watching Jim nearly collapse as he laughed.
"He acts like I won't put him in Hot Topic clothes too, Damn Jim, it ain't that funny," Grey said, even as she started to giggle too.
"Snake bites," Jim choked out, pointing to Bucky. Grey immediately started cackling, falling off the pile of blankets as she rolled from side to side. "Oh my God, all I can picture are snake bites."
"What is going on here? Jarvis?" Bucky looked heavenward for help.
"Snake Bites is a popular type of lip piercing that involves having a piercing on either side of the mouth, like so," Jarvis said, and flicked the TV on. There was a picture of Bucky, this time with the 2008 signature snake bites. Jim and Grey looked at the picture and howled with laughter.
"Save that picture for me, Jay," Grey gasped as she finally calmed down a little. Jim kept laughing as he returned to his room. They could hear him laughing all the way down the hall. It made them smile.
"Bedtime?" Bucky offered. Grey yawned and nodded, letting Bucky pull her to her feet. "Jarvis, remind me when I wake up and I'll clean this all up. Who's on watch first?"
"Mister Hogan and Tripp are taking watch tonight, Sergeant Barnes," Jarvis said as they walked down to Grey's room. "I've secured all the exits and opening windows and will continue to monitor. If there's anything that happens, I will bring it to your attention."
"Thanks Jay. 'M not letting them take Bucky. Gotta protect my boy," Grey said. She beamed up at Bucky as they entered her room. "You can stay here again if you want."
"I'll stay," Bucky said softly. "Get some sleep, Grey."
Line Break
Very few things could wake Grey up in the middle of the night. Bucky's nightmares didn't wake her, Pepper bustling in to set out clothes for a press conference hadn't either. But if you turned off her rainstorms sound in the middle of the night, she would, without fail, sit up and glare around until she found the culprit.
Grey became aware something was off at roughly three seventeen in the morning. It was still forty-five minutes too early for her alarm to go off, and it was still dark outside. She opened her eyes under the sleep mask and glared into the darkness, trying to pinpoint what had woken her. She squinted and raised her eyebrows causing the fabric to shift slightly around the bridge of her nose, giving her a small amount of vision in the dark.
Bucky wasn't lying next to her, but that wasn't unusual. He often woke up before her, or even stayed up the whole night. It wasn't silent, but her sounds weren't there. Neither was the soft glow of the nightlight in the corner. A gentle head roll showed her that the battery-operated alarm clock was dark, and her phone wasn't glowing either. She frowned into the darkness and rolled over.
"Hurry before she wakes up," someone hissed. Grey was very awake. "Keep going with the stupid activation phrase!"
There was another voice, talking in Russian. Grey didn't know what he was saying, but she did recognize the words. Civil War.
Grey quickly and quietly stretched out her arm under Bucky's pillow, while hiding the movement that removed the sleep mask. She'd never been more grateful that Bucky slept with at least three guns in arms reach.
"You really should've killed me first," Grey snarled, rolling over and firing into the man holding a notepad. The Russian words stopped as he dropped to the ground, two bullets in his chest. She sat up, uncaring that she wasn't wearing a shirt and quickly fired two shots at the man standing in the corner before turning to the last man - he was holding Bucky down, he was a super soldier too. She shifted her aim, prayed, and fired once. The bullet went through his skull, and he dropped like a sack of potatoes. All three men were laying on her bedroom floor, cooling while blood spread, soaking the edges of the rug. "Rhodey!"
Grey's scream, and the sound of five shots being fired, woke the rest of the house. Everyone ran toward her room, Sharon and Pepper were the first to arrive, Sharon carrying a gun, and Pepper toting a baseball bat. Jim stumbled in, bleary eyed, clutching the gun Bucky gave him. Happy and Tripp were noticed in their absence.
"What happened?" Pepper demanded, her eyes flying from the three dead men to Bucky curled up on the floor, to Grey, nearly naked and clutching a handgun. "Grey, report!"
"No idea. Where's Happy, where's Tripp? Jim, they were on watch, find them, Sharon, toss me that shirt," Grey said, flicking the safety on and reaching for the clothes. Jim sprinted out of the room, shouting for Jarvis, Happy and Tripp all in turn. No one answered the increasingly frantic shouts.
Grey got dressed, ignoring shaky hands. She climbed out of bed and flinched when her barefoot touched the blood-soaked rug. It squished uncomfortably, and Grey felt bile crawl up her throat. She forced it down and knelt next to Bucky, cradling his head in her lap, shushing him quietly all the while. His metal arm was held at an awkward angle.
"I've got them," Jim said quickly as he ran back in. "Unconscious, not dead. Tripp's probably gonna have a concussion, it looks like he went through a wall, Happy was just coldcocked. Can't get through to Jarvis, what did they do?"
"EMP," Grey answered softly, running her fingers through Bucky's hair. She could feel the other Asset's blood pooling around them where they were laying. She hid her grimace behind quiet soothing noises.
"No, I would've been able to reboot Jarvis by now," Jim said, shaking his head. "Pepper, call the feds. Sharon, call Katherine see if she has any contacts anywhere that know anything about Hydra. Pepper, after you're done with the FBI, get a medic here."
"We don't have phones, Jim," Pepper pointed out.
"Tripp's a medic," Sharon said absently.
"Tripp's unconscious," Jim reminded her.
"Fuck."
"Hydra uses repetitive EMPs, to ensure a constant blackout, it goes off every five seconds or so, preventing a reboot. Find the device, destroy it, we get Jarvis back." Grey said, trying not to shift her leg to stop the blood from drying on her. She could feel a panic attack building in her chest and tried to force it down.
"And how do we find it?" Jim asked.
"Do I have to do everything?" Grey demanded harshly, glaring up at Jim. His face softened, but before he could protest, Grey had already clambered to her feet and was hauling Bucky to his. He followed her, cradling his left arm. It was stuck at an awkward angle, and Grey was certain it was painful like this.
Grey left a trail of bloody footprints behind her as she stormed off to the kitchen and started pulling wine bottles down from the shelves. She opened three and pocketed the corks. A drawer was opened, and toothpicks and paperclips were added to her collection. Three giant ceramic bowls were filled with water and scattered around the open space.
"What are you doing?" Pepper asked.
"Science trick," Grey grumbled. She stabbed the toothpick and the straightened paperclips through the corks and had them floating in the bowls. Sure enough, in five second intervals, the corks would twitch and spin in the water. "Now can someone smarter than me do the math required here?"
"What do you need?" Jim asked, stepping forward.
"The EMP is fucking up true north or whatever. These makeshift compasses are pointing to the EMP, we just have to triangulate, and I don't know how to do that." Understanding dawned on Jim, and he picked up a pad of paper and a pen and started on the calculations.
"How do you know to do this?" Sharon asked, looking impressed.
"Uh, I watched Fitz do it, in the future," Grey said absently, watching Jim work while keeping an arm tight around Bucky's waist. "The Watchdogs are going to use this type of technology in a few years to try and cause mass panic. Fitz used this exact trick to figure out the EMP's location to destroy it."
Jim looked at the numbers in front of him, then darted down the hall, back to Grey's room. He returned, holding a device that looked like a Walkman. He passed it to Grey who immediately smashed it on the floor. It shattered like glass.
"That was satisfying," Pepper said, watching the pieces scatter. "Grey, you and Bucky get cleaned off, use your dad's shower since your room is a crime scene. I'll be by with clean clothes for you. Jim, head down to the lab and reboot Jarvis, get the lights back on. Sharon, go see if you can't wake up Happy and Tripp. Once the power's back up I'll call the FBI, can you page Katherine?"
"I already sent out a legacy alert, our bracelets aren't affected by EMPs," Sharon explained. "They use analog technology. Reinforcements are coming. Jim after you get Jarvis up, do a perimeter sweep."
"Copy," Jim said as he ran down to the lab. Grey sighed and tugged Bucky in the direction of her dad's bedroom and ensuite bath. She hesitated as they passed her room, clearly conflicted, but Bucky just tugged her along. He was twisting his left arm as he slowly regained use of the prosthetic.
"C'mon, let's get you cleaned up," Bucky said softly. Grey let him pull her along, the events of the morning finally catching up with her. She didn't cry, which later she would be thankful for, but she was shaking like a leaf in a hurricane. Bucky didn't bother with formality or anything fancy, he merely started the water, and pulled Grey under it with him.
Line Break
Of course, as Pepper was finally able to call the FBI, somehow, the press heard about it. Jayne felt like she'd never driven so fast in her life. She was the second person to the Malibu Mansion, after the distress call was sent out. FBI Agent Thomas Willow was the first on the scene.
"What happened?" Jayne demanded, shoving her way in the front door. Grey was sitting on the couch, cocooned in blankets. Pepper grabbed Jayne and pulled her through into the kitchen, where there wasn't a federal agent.
"Hydra came to take Bucky back, Grey shot them all. FBI is here, we're phrasing it as an attempted kidnapping," Pepper explained in a hurried whisper. "We also think Grey's in shock, and the bet's out on whether or not Bucky is gonna blame himself or Hydra. Talk to Happy if you want in the pool."
"We're betting on this?"
"We bet on everything, especially if Tony is involved. His daughter has his same ability to get stuck in weird situations." Jayne looked skeptical, but Pepper just gave her a wry grin. "Once the FBI leaves, we'll talk it all through with Grey."
"Where's Bucky?"
"Hiding in his nest, he doesn't want the feds to know about him just yet." Jayne squinted at Pepper suspiciously. "Let Grey explain, alright?"
"Right, I forgot, I can't apply real life logic to the Starks," Jayne said. She shook her head and pulled Pepper's tablet out of her hands. She was going to need to start drafting the article they were going to put out about this. Jayne flopped down on the couch next to Grey and sighed. The pile of blankets pretending to be a girl leaned precariously to the side, threatening to envelop Jayne. Jayne leaned against it and shoved, knocking Grey back against the arm rest of the couch.
"I killed three men," Grey whispered.
"Yep." Jayne replied.
"I've never even hit someone in anger before. Oh, sure I've thought about it. Aiden. Kelvin. That guy at the bar that tried to touch Kellie, well I did hit him, technically," Grey was babbling.
"You punched him?"
"He reached across the bar top to touch my friend Kellie, so I grabbed his arm and yanked. His head smacked the shit outta the bar. No stitches, just a severe loss of dignity."
"Bet he learned to respect women real quick," Jayne said. She shoulder checked Grey back against the arm rest. This time she heard a tiny giggle. It made Jayne smile knowing that her friend was going to recover from her actions.
"Bucky respects women. Pepper started ranting about women's rights and Bucky looked like God herself was speaking to him." Grey said. "I think I'd do anything to protect him."
"There's nothing wrong with that, Grey," Jayne said softly, this time letting the pile of blankets lean against her. "He's had a hard life."
"We had sex in the shower," Grey mumbled. Jayne twisted to look at her in surprise, and the pile fell over. Jayne pushed blankets aside until she could see Grey's face.
"Was it good?"
"That was the first orgasm I'd ever had," Grey whispered, lowering her voice even further as Pepper walked back in the room with FBI Agent Willow. The coroner was gathering the bodies in Grey's room. "Not my first time, but definitely the best."
"I'm going to want all the juicy details, for when I write your biography one day," Jayne said, smiling down at Grey. "Now, can we dig you out of these blankets so these very nice FBI people can take your statement and leave?"
Grey nodded, and the pile of blankets shook like the Whomping Willow, and Grey emerged. Her hair was still wet from the shower, but she was free of any blood. She was wearing her dad's MIT hoodie, and Jim's Air Force sweatpants.
Grey, Pepper and Agent Willow went to the kitchen, so Grey could give her statement. Jayne left and headed to the lab, where Bucky was indeed hiding.
"In the shower, really?" Bucky didn't jump, likely because he heard her coming. He did blush though. "She'd just killed three people."
"She'll be the first to tell you that fascists don't count as people." Bucky said, fiddling with some tool he'd picked up. "But yeah, maybe not my best decision?"
"Actually, it was the right decision. I'm just judging you for it." Jayne flopped into one of the chairs and kicked her feet up on the desk. U waved his claw at her from across the room. She waved back, a bright smile on her face. She loved the Stark Bots. "In the shower, really? Isn't that difficult? Last time I tried to have sex in the shower, my ex dropped me and broke his own foot."
"I have super-strength. And she's very small." Bucky still wouldn't make eye contact with her. "I'm not going to drop her, I… She's everything."
"She does have that effect on people, yes. And yes, she is very small. Was her mom short?" Jayne smiled, knowing that no matter what Stark-related craziness Grey was going to go through, Bucky had her back. And the rest of her.
"Had to be. But even Tony isn't that tall, not in press photos," Bucky said. "Well, at least not next to Pepper and her heels."
"We shouldn't probably be glad that it's Grey that's usually threatening to throw her shoes at us," Jayne mused. The day after the press conference, Grey threatened to throw her shoe at Barnes for having the audacity to support the Army football team over Navy. Jayne hadn't realized that was an argument people could have during the off season. The lights around them flashed blue.
"The FBI agents have left," Jarvis said. "Grey and Colonel Rhodes believe it is safe for Sergeant Barnes to come out of the lab."
Bucky was out of the lab before Jayne could finish turning around. She huffed and grinned.
"Men," Jayne said with fond humor.
"Indeed Miss Vittori," Jarvis said, the walls flashing blue around her.
"Jarvis, would you tell me about Grey's father?" Jayne asked, leaning against a table. "What was he truly like?"
"Sir… Defies explanation. He can act like nothing short of the perfect socialite, or a playboy as the media will say," Jarvis paused, and Jayne would've accused him of gathering his thoughts, if he were a real man. Or maybe Tony's genius was so great that he created true life. "But when I see him with his daughter, he is an entirely different person. Sir might be a genius, but she can think of things that never would have occurred to him. I believe Sir will change the world for her."
"I think she's gonna do it first," Jayne said, smiling up at the ceiling. "Or, more likely, she'll raze it to the ground first. She carries the weight of the world on her shoulders. Jarvis, is Grey keeping secrets from me?"
"Of course, she is, Miss Vittori," Jarvis said. Jayne wanted to say he sounded amused. "That's what makes the Starks who they are."
Jayne scoffed but kept the smile on her face as she left the lab. She couldn't wait to figure out the father daughter duo that was going to change the world. She'd even picked out the title of the Memoir she was going to write at the end of this crazy adventure. The Iron Family. "Starks are made of Iron."
Line Break
"Miss Potts, you have a call coming through to your tablet from the Stark Industries Headquarters in Dubai, it is rather urgent, you might want to take it," Jarvis said as the walls flashed blue in the living room. Pepper didn't hesitate to snatch her tablet out of Sharon's hands and accept the call coming through. She was greeted with a frantic hello, before the employee switched to Arabic. A translation appeared at the bottom of the screen, courtesy of the Stark Industries Translation service, a still new prototype that made talking to international offices a breeze in an emergency when no translator could be reached.
Grey staggered back, tears already gathering in her eyes as she read the words on Pepper's screen. A mass shooting in Pakistan. The casualty numbers were already past eighty and were expected to keep climbing.
"Stark Weapons were used to shoot up a mosque?" Jayne gasped, paling rapidly as she pressed her hands to her mouth. Bucky wrapped Grey in his arms, letting her bury her head in his shoulder. Even professional Pepper had tears in her eyes as the PR rep from Dubai filled her in on all the details. These weapons had serial numbers that, according to the Stark Industries manifest, had been faulty and marked for destruction.
"We'll need to release a statement, Jayne will you write a piece? Stating… I don't even know," Pepper said, losing her breath halfway through. Grey let out a shuddering breath and pulled away from Bucky.
"That we had no idea that these weapons were still intact, let alone in someone's hands. A full internal investigation will be launched, to discover how these weapons didn't get destroyed. We will, of course cooperate with any external investigation brought forward. Stark Industries would like to offer our sympathies for the families of those affected by the Ahmadiyya Mosques shooting." Grey rubbed at her face and tried to smother a sob. "We would like to donate some amount of money to cover medical bills for survivors and funeral costs for the casualties. Any other donations will be matched up to some other amount of money, ask someone from finance. I'd also like to make a personal donation directly to the Ahmadiyya Mosque for repairs and renovations, or whatever. Pepper, will you make a personal donation on behalf of my father?"
"Of course. Jayne, after you finish your piece, reach out to Christine Everhart at Vanity Fair, we'll release a separate personal statement through her, keep her in our good graces," Pepper said, her tone implying she was echoing someone else's statement. "I'll never understand your machinations, Grey."
"Slytherin Politics are a fine line to walk, the sharpest edge of the dagger," Grey said airily. She gave a dainty smile before turning serious again. "Let's get to work, I want the first statement on our site before we update the Stark Industries twitter. Happy, call someone in finance and get me a number for both the donation, and the matching, then get IT on the phone and have them get everything set up and ready to go. Jim, use your contacts, I want those weapons catalogued and brought here. It's evidence against Obadiah. Pepper, you're going to have to have a press conference ASAP, we need to be the ones that let the world know our weapons are in the wrong hands. Then start coming up with ideas to raise our stock that's sure to tank the minute this is known."
"What can I do?" Bucky asked, his eyes worried. Grey seemed to melt as she looked at him. Her shoulders softened and she finally seemed to breathe. "Would you please take care of the house? We need groceries, I for one am out of shampoo and with this on our plates, we don't have time to go grocery shopping. Will you?"
"Of course. And don't worry, I won't forget the cinnamon rolls. I'll get everything we need." Bucky pressed a kiss to the top of Grey's head, patted Pepper on the shoulder, took the car keys from Happy, and strolled out as if he hadn't a care in the world. Grey knew that Jarvis would send him the grocery list, and would keep an eye out for him, but she still worried.
"Okay, we have to get damage control done, I know we've had a shitty ass morning, especially me, but we've got work to do. Anyone mind if I borrow Tripp and Sharon?" Everyone shook their heads and dived into the assignments passed out by Grey.
"What are we doing?" Tripp asked as they followed Grey down the hall.
"Despite being a badass, I'm now terrified to step foot in my bedroom, will you help me move my shit into Bucky's room? I wouldn't ask, but I can't bring myself to do it. Jarvis, will you schedule a cleaner to come in and disinfect this entire room? Wrap them in a billion and five NDAs if you have to, but I'm not going to trust this room until it stops smelling like blood," Grey said, her breath coming fast. Tripp put his hand on her shoulder, trying to offer comfort, but she jumped.
"Of course, Miss Stark, I'll get someone scheduled right away. And might I add?"
"Of course, Jay, all you want," Grey said, tilting her head up to smile at the cameras hidden in the ceiling.
"You did a remarkable job, protecting your family, this morning, Miss Stark, Sir would be proud."
Grey teared up and tried to hide it but beamed at the ceiling. She clearly couldn't find her voice and mouthed a thank up to Jarvis.
"Let's get your stuff moved, how about this, Tripp and I will bring it to you, you go to Bucky's room and start putting everything away. We'll have Jarvis order you another dresser since we know Barnes doesn't have one."
"Already ordered, Agent Carter," Jarvis said. Even though Bucky wasn't there, he still flashed the lights blue before he began to speak. "It will arrive tomorrow afternoon."
"Perfect. Alright, let's get everything moved over, I need a nap." Tripp laughed at that, which caused Grey to relax. Everything was going to be fine.
Line Break
Grey shoved the cinnamon roll in her mouth in one big go, grinning with her eyes as Pepper and Jim tried to keep the horror off their faces at her lack of manners. Bucky was doubled over laughing, one hand clutching his knee as he tried to force breath back into his lungs.
"You're just like Howard was in the war," Bucky finally gasped out. It took a few minutes for him to finally remember how to speak. He made one sound, vaguely like a seal's bark before he stood up. "I watched him do that with his rations. Had absolutely no table manners."
Grey tried to say something through the cinnamon roll, but no one, not even Jarvis had a guess at what she said. She rolled her eyes but gave up on talking with her mouth full. After a few seconds, she was finally able to say, "Bet dad got all his manners from Mister Jarvis and Nana."
"Sir said it was Mrs. Jarvis that taught him manners, and Maria for etiquette," Jarvis said, the walls blue. "Mrs. Jarvis also taught Sir all he knows about cooking, which he does fairly well."
"Awh, Mrs. Jarvis! Poor dear. Didn't she knit Aunt Peggy a gun holster?" Grey asked idly, scrunching her nose. "They were really close, you know. Poor Mister Jarvis, he was the sweetest man I'd ever met, adored Ana and papaw. No one was more loyal to the Stark Family than Mister Jarvis."
"Indeed, Miss Stark," Jarvis said, the walls flashing blue. "Sir always spoke fondly of my namesake."
"You remember him?" Sharon asked. "I barely remember Mister Jarvis."
"I saw his adventures with Aunt Peggy. I've been dreaming about Roxxon recently. Aunt Peggy worked with a man, Vanko? It'll come to me." Grey looked at Pepper, and when she was sure no one but Jarvis and Bucky were looking, winked. Pepper wondered what hints she was dropping this time. She also wondered how Grey was this good at being a chess mistress. She was six steps ahead, even when things surprised her. Pepper figured it was proof – all the Starks were geniuses, even the pretend ones.
Line Break
Grey sighed as she watched the waves of the ocean. Pepper had surprised her with an ocean front mani-pedi, and Grey was a pile of Jello in the setting sun. Pepper was holding a glass of chilled white wine, smiling idly as she watched the sun keep dipping lower.
"I finalize the sale of my condo tomorrow," Pepper said, finally breaking the silence. "I'm moving in completely, Happy's already arranged getting my stuff moved."
"Good. I don't really trust Hydra to not come at us again."
"Barnes said they wouldn't, not with the publicity over the supposed kidnapping attempt."
And hadn't that been the burn. Despite Agent Whatever-his-name-was swearing it would stay hush hush, and despite Jayne being the only reporter on the property, it got leaked to the press anyway. Stark Heiress Revealed – Three Men Dead. Jayne was able to quickly take over the narratives, hinting that they suspected it was an attempt to take me to my dad. Only for mere hours later, for a Muslim hating lunatic to use Stark guns and grenades to slaughter people during Friday prayers. That was a much harder story to control.
Jayne ran the article on The Stark Family's rage and sympathy on behalf of the victims. Christine wrote the piece on the financial contributions, covering the cost of ninety-four funerals and the hospital bills for another hundred and twenty. That Grey Stark was personally covering the cost of repairing the mosque, on her own birthday no less, was exactly the shining press they needed, after Tony got back from Afghanistan.
"What's the game here, Grey? What does your chessboard look like? You aren't surprised by anything, even the surprises. I can't tell if you can actually see the fucking future, or if you're fucking with my head, but I cannot keep following you blindly while you treat everyone like chess pieces!"
Grey sat up and looked at Pepper, who looked one inconvenient sneeze away from erupting. And then she started laughing.
"In 2020, something bad happened, and I took it as an opportunity to figure out how to survive the end of the world. I would move back to my parents house, who has five acres of land, solar panels and geothermal heating. And I turned it into a story, my step-by-step plan to survive the ultimate worst thing. And I researched for it. All sorts of bullshit I didn't actually need to know, but I thought would enhance the story in tiny little details that people wouldn't notice until the third, or fourth read through. And I kept doing it. How would I survive being involved in the Harry Potter books, or in the Hunger Games, or in Twilight." The line of Pepper's shoulders relaxed. Grey wasn't a chess player; she was a writer. "I did it for this too, you know. This exact scenario is why I kept laughing that first night. I was in the middle of writing this fanfic. And I've read so many stories, stories where these flimsy two dimensional characters have to face real world consequences, and a logic that wasn't "Plot." And I'm crazy, Pepper, I wrote a fifteen-year timeline of all the movies, the TV shows, tiny snippets, comic events, and real-world bullshit like elections and gun violence. I was so ready for this, and it actually happened – another reason I'm sure I've actually gone round the bend and I'm drooling somewhere in an asylum."
"You were ready for this?" Pepper asked, shocked. "All of it? But what about the sneaky machinations, that wink?"
"Honey I'm twenty-five years old. I've been reading Harry Potter fanfiction since I was nine. That's sixteen years of story after story of teenagers playing politics and running a revolution without letting the adults know. Giving the tiniest hints, so small that the victim doesn't know it was foreshadowing until it's too late. Slytherin Politics? Everything you say and do can be used against you if you don't follow the proper etiquette. And that can ruin you."
"Everything?"
"Draco Malfoy once assassinated Voldemort and the only hint that it was coming to him and the audience? Was that Left-Handed Draco Malfoy pouring the pot with his right hand. Biggest plot twist I ever saw. Had to go back to reread it, still couldn't see it coming."
"You're playing with Christine," Pepper said, hoping Grey would elaborate.
"We don't need her until later. She's going to bring us the final piece of evidence against Stane, the final nail in his coffin, and she's going to hand it right to dad."
"How? She likely hates your father, most people who sleep with him end up hating him."
"We're going to give her stories. She'll never publish something first, but she'll always be second, right behind Jayne. We give her enough, she'll come to us when she has an interesting story. And if we play this right, she'll convince herself she's our biggest supporter. I mean come on; she's got how many awards? We need her to run the Avengers' PR for us."
"I'm certainly not doing it," Pepper said, relaxing. Grey grabbed her wine glass and tapped it against Pepper's. "Are we ready or tomorrow?"
"Jayne and I finished the piece yesterday. It's a glowing review of the things dad's done in the past ten years, a promise that I don't want to make any changes at the moment, and plan on leaving you in charge until I'm qualified, or dad's back. It hints that we're going to start looking into Green Energy without being obvious to investors. Christine has a piece for you and why you're the best person to head the company, because you're a woman and you understand that it takes the help of absolutely everyone to make America safe. Republicans will use it to push the stay-at-home women angle, while everyone else will see it as women empowerment."
"And Stark Industries?"
"I've kidnapped a few interns and they're going to bring me some of the policies the company has in place, the HR stuff, the PR stuff, all of it. And the direction of the company, basically they're printing out everything and bringing it to me. I dunno if my world is just farther advanced, or if Stark Industries is still in the dark ages, I saw a policy, did you know that employees with natural hair are required to wear a silk press to work so their hair doesn't cause a distraction? It's in the employee manual!"
"No fucking way, what?" Pepper nearly spit out her wine as she turned to stare at Grey in dread. "Oh God, we are in the dark ages."
"It's on my list, I'll fix it," Grey promised.
"Are you going to fix everything?" Pepper asked.
"If I have to," Grey said, solemnly. "You guys deserve it, you know, all the good things? The fair world, the love, the family, the happily ever after? You all deserve it, and I really think I can make it happen."
"I want to help. When are you asking Barnes about hand-to-hand training?"
"I'm giving him some time. At least a month for therapy and adjustment. I don't want him to think we brought him here just to use him the same way Hydra did. Plus, I don't want to trigger him. PTSD is a bitch for people who do a six-month tour, Bucky's done a sixty-year tour."
"Well, whenever, I want in. Hand to hand, and I was thinking batons. Or just a bat."
"Firearms training too, just in case, yeah?" Grey asked, looking over, worried. "Maybe Sharon and Tripp can come back for a week or so and help with the hand to hand. I'm sure SHIELD has some combat secrets we could stand to learn."
"Sounds good to me. Are we going to have enough hours in the day for this? Combat training, weapons training, all this research, and Stark Industries?"
"Not to mention Jarvis and I are about to build a particle accelerator in the sub-basement."
"A what?"
"Maybe better you don't ask yet," Grey said wary. "Won't do you any good. I won't blow anything up, and Jarvis is telling me exactly what to do."
Pepper squinted at her suspiciously but chose to refill her wine glass instead. Grey gave her a grin that sent chills down Pepper's back. They tapped their glasses together again and enjoyed the setting sun.
Line Break
05/30/2010
Stark Industries, New Leadership
Jayne Vittori
Stark Industries is a family owned and operated company, despite the sheer size of it. And because of this, the CEO title comes with a fatality clause. While Tony Stark won't be declared legally dead for a long while, the company cannot continue to operate without a head. And today is when that fatality clause kicks in.
Howard Stark's fatality clause stipulated that his son, Tony Stark, must be twenty-one before he could take the seat – leaving it in the hands of COO Obidiah Stane until 1995 when Tony could finally take over, and grow the company to its current size.
Tony's fatality clause says that he trusts Grey to take over at eighteen, should it be necessary. He believes that he raised her right, and she can handle the responsibility of the company.
For those unfamiliar with the history of Stark Industries, here's a brief update on what you might need to know. Howard Stark founded the company in 1940, just before the second World War kicked off. It was a public company, funded by the government with weapons contracts. In 1982, after the mysterious death of his personal assistant, Howard privatized the company to protect its assets. In 1992, after the death of both Howard and Maria Stark, Obadiah Stane undid all the privatization of Stark Industries, growing the companies profits. When Doctor Tony Stark took over in 1995, shortly after his twenty first birthday, many people were surprised to see that he kept Stark Industries as a public company.
Grey Stark took over as CEO of Stark Industries today as the world continues to search for her dad. I had the privilege of sitting down with her today to discuss the change.
"Do you think you're prepared?"
"Absolutely not, I have no idea what dad was thinking, handing everything over to me at eighteen! I haven't even started college yet; I took a gap year to travel. But his trust in me is not misplaced. I've been preparing for this since I was four. I used to pretend I was royalty, that was what got me through all the extra stuff. Business, diplomacy, etiquette, I tried ballet, didn't take, but I stuck with the violin. I am my father's daughter."
"I think the burning question is, are you going to change the direction of the company, now that you're in charge?"
"Dad has done incredible things as CEO and Director of R&D at Stark Industries. Not only did he go out of his way to create new body armor for our troops, he also donated a large portion of the body armor to local law enforcement around the country. Our nine-millimeter handguns are a favorite among police officers, and dad was generous enough to fit all Los Angeles police officers with new weapons at a severe discount. We want to continue that trend, helping people when they need us most. I don't really believe I'm qualified to make changes, yet."
"Is that why you're leaving Pepper in charge?"
"Dad trusts Pepper with everything, including me, and I'm the best kept secret in the world. She has her degree in business, and she's been running Stark Industries for the past two years in everything but name. I trusted her to make sure dad got where he needed to be, and I trust her to grow the company while I can't. Every decision of hers goes through me, and all my ideas go through her. We're a family company at our core. We operate as a family."
Stark Industries might be the largest company in the world, but at her core, she is a family owned and operated company, something that was often forgotten in the past. Grey expressed her hope that, when her dad is home, they can remind the world who the Starks are.
Line Break
Grey sighed as she sprawled on the floor of the living room, surrounded by a laptop, a tablet, two notebooks and more pens than she could've possibly needed. She thumped her head to the floor and groaned into her papers.
"Trouble?" Bucky asked from the couch.
"Yes. No. I finished the Captain America, the First Avenger novel. I ended it with him being found by the Russian Oil team, then being in the SHIELD headquarters, pretending to still be the SSR and running out because he realized it was a set up. He breaks out of SHIELD HQ and runs into modern day Times Square. Where agents surround him, and he's greeted by Director Fury. But I don't want to expose SHIELD yet. Nor do I want Fury investigating how I know all this stuff."
"Isn't the X-Gene common knowledge?"
"No. It's something Peggy and Howard found after the war, and they did it on accident. Even I don't know the details of exactly how they discovered it, but they went nuts looking for other mutants, it nearly got Aunt Peggy killed, and killed her husband." Grey tried to remember if she knew there were mutants in the MCU. She knew Fox technically owned the X-men and because of that there were no mutants, but Sharon (canon or not) knew about it. And so did Tony. So, Grey had no idea what was actually going on here.
"Wait, hold on, did you say you finished the novel? How the fuck did you write a novel in less than a week?" Bucky looked down at Grey in bemusement, with a hint of fear in his eyes. Grey just beamed at him.
"I can have Jarvis print you a copy if you wanna read it, you can tell me if I missed anything!"
"You wrote a book, in a week."
"No, I transcribed a movie in a week, let's not act like I wrote anything original; this is- can I call it fanfiction if it wasn't a movie, but a slew of visions? Probably not. The point is, I didn't do any hard work, I just wrote it out."
"I'm still impressed. Take the win. Jarvis, how long until you can print this book our girl wrote?"
"I have taken the liberty of using the fabricator to print several copies of this book, already bound. They are ready, waiting in the lab."
"Awh fuck me," Grey said as she flopped her head back down on the floor. Bucky let out a gleeful cackle as he vaulted the back of the couch to run down to the lab to grab the books. Grey raised her head, a soft smile on her face as she stared after him, his first true laugh echoing through the halls. "Jarvis, I really think I love that man."
"Do try not to tell Sir that until after you and Miss Potts have him in therapy," Jarvis said back. Grey's laughter echoed with Bucky's.