"It's me, hi, I'm the problem it's me," Grey mumbled under her breath, one headphone in as she forced herself to finish the stack of reports that had ended up on her desk for approval. "At teatime, everybody agrees. I'll stare directly at the sun but never in the mirror, it must be exhausting always rooting for the anti-hero."

"Don't think I know that one," Pepper said, knocking on the office door.

"I had Jarvis import my Spotify before my phone died. T Swift, does excellent things in the future," Grey said, scribbling her signature at the bottom of a packet, then knocked her headphone out of her ear so she could hear Pepper properly. "What's up?"

"Your dad just woke up, sore and cranky. So I'm avoiding him for now," Pepper said, entering the office and closing the door behind her. "I had a few questions about the investigation."

"You wanna know if I'm sure it'll work," Grey said, gesturing for Pepper to sit. "There wasn't one, in the movies. Dad came home, shut down weapons production, stock dropped, Stane knew about the reactor in his chest, though Tony thought you or Jim told Stane. Dad got locked out by the board, and then became Iron Man. We know the company keeps, because Stark Industries is known to inhabit the New York Tower's lower floors. And you become CEO, officially."

"What? Why?"

"Because Dad wants to be Iron Man. And unfortunately for us, this is a universe where we need Iron Man more than Tony Stark."

"Tony Stark is infinitely more important than Iron Man," Pepper said viciously, perceiving an attack on Tony. Grey just looked at her. Pepper held up a hand in apology.

"I know that. More than anybody," Grey said. "But I have to make sure the big important world ending events are taken care of. I know you like your chess metaphors, but I've got so many moving parts to keep an eye on. So many tiny references I have to drop at the right time to the right person so that when the world ends, people believe I saw it coming."

"Something happened," Pepper said, grim. "What?"

"Time passed. Hawkeye was supposed to come out, in November, of my timeline. I figured, once it passed, I'd know the TV show, but I don't. Which makes sense, because I'm not actually omnipotent, but if I'm not going to learn what happens next, I have to make sure I'm in a position to be trusted when I fuck up, cause I will fuck up."

"You don't need to learn what happens after Endgame," Pepper said seriously. "We're going to change it anyway, and once the outcome of the battle changes, everything else will too. Do you truly think the flag smashers you mentioned are still going to happen if half the world's population didn't suddenly vanish and reappear five years later?"

"That's not as comforting as you want it to be," Grey said. "There are factors at play that almost want me to let Thanos succeed."

"No way," Pepper said, not willing to believe there's be a world where 3.5 billion people vanishing into smoke was a good idea.

"I'm not going to change the outcome; I trust the players on the board to deal with it. I have what I need to ensure it," Grey said, tapping the cover of a SHIELD report labelled classified.

"Did you break into SHIELD?" Pepper demanded, looking at the SHIELD logo. Grey dimpled up at Pepper, her eyes not glowing, but still just a shade too yellow to be comforting.

"No. I did make friends with a few others though," Grey said. "When I told Maria, I didn't trust Fury as far as I could throw him, she was quite happy to give me the rundown on Carol."

"Miss Stark, your three o'clock is here," a young woman said from the door. Grey looked up at her and smiled.

"Pepper, you may want to beat it. She's a crafty one, I just need a short conversation with her, I'll see you at home for dinner?"

"Yeah. I've got the HR file you asked for, I'll leave it with Bucky for you," Pepper said, rising to her feet. "Grey, don't lose yourself to a story, okay?"

"Hey, Raina was my favorite character, where do you think I learned it all?" Grey dimpled up at Pepper again as the woman left. The assistant led another young woman, being shadowed by a man broader at the shoulders than both girls together. "Thanks, Castle, I appreciate this. Raina, take a seat."

Iron Man

"But it still doesn't explain why he had the serum in his trunk! Stark Industries hasn't toyed with that serum since Cap decided to spend seventy years as a freaking popsicle," Tony whined as he tightened something on the exoskeleton, he was building to house the suit. "You didn't learn anything, did you?"

"I barely remember the mission," Bucky said, handing over a different sized wrench. Tony took with quiet thanks, locking the bolt into place. "It was a retrieval, but I was ordered to leave no witnesses."

"Except for the camera," Tony said, trying not to pout. He wasn't used to not getting answers. "Jay, have you had any luck tracking down that video?"

"You'll have to ask Miss Stark for the video, Sir, if you are determined to watch it," Jarvis said, the walls around them flashing blue. "I believe Hydra has it on a closed server, one I cannot access without direct access."

"That's inconvenient. Keep searching through SHIELD and SI servers, with the access you have," Tony said, glaring at something on the exoskeleton. "This is wrong, Buck, pass me the soldering kit, if I leave this, it'll shatter on impact, cause irreparable damage to someone's leg."

Bucky was quick to pass it over, moving the paper blueprints out of the way.

"Why do you want the video?" Bucky asked.

"I need to get desensitized to seeing it," Tony said diplomatically. He paused to finish the soldering; his nose scrunched. "Grey warned me that in 2016 Cap's gonna start some shit over it, and it's gonna end up being shown to me. I don't wanna do something stupid in grief and attack you."

"You are remarkably calm about this." Bucky braced for the other shoe to drop.

"Grey warned me what happened. That Stane's behind it all doesn't surprise me, anymore. And yeah, it fucking blows that you killed my ma, but it was on Hydra's orders, and it wasn't exactly something you wanted to do, so I'm trying to be a good person about this."

"I was prepared for your anger," Bucky said softly. "I was the one that did it."

"Yeah, well, Hydra's really good at taking away people's free will," Tony said. He sat back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. The reactor glowed through his t shirt. He knew that this was going to be hard, even with the three months he'd been working this particular problem in the back of his mind. He knew, logically, that Barnes hadn't been fully present when Hydra ordered the hit on his parents. That said, he didn't have to like it that his mother's killer was sleeping with his daughter. "I don't like what you did. And if I could stop thinking about it, I really would. But I trust you. You've earned it, protecting Grey."

"She protects me," Bucky said, reeling with the open acceptance. He'd expected Tony, at least, to throw a fit about his living there. He'd prepared a go-bag, ready to leave if it was asked of him. But it never happened. Tony had shaken his hand. Tony trusted him.

"She protects us all," Tony corrected. "I think that's her real gift."

"Can she actually see the future?" Bucky asked quietly. "Hydra's dying to get their hands on enhanced people. They've experimented and gone insane looking everywhere. Dr List is practically a fanatic, and Whitehall… He makes me sick to my stomach."

"I think she's a genius," Tony said. "I think she can see connections that we can't even imagine existing. She doesn't just see the bigger picture, she can see everything, all at once. The big players, the little ones, even people we think aren't connected, she can find the exact right connection to pull."

"She says she's had them her whole life," Bucky said.

"Jim and I didn't believe her until 9/11. In the week before she would wake up screaming from nightmares of the attack. And then it happened. The most devastating attack on US soil since Pearl Harbor." Tony looked sick. "It was like something unlocked after that. She was proved right, we believed her, and then they started coming all the time. Her glowing eyes is a fun party trick she came up with, asked Jarvis to help her make it happen. She said it was important, so I didn't question it."

"Her eyes don't actually glow?" Bucky demanded, feeling cheated.

"Contacts controlled by the necklace she wears, with the power button on her ring. I think she's just dramatic." Tony frowned and started working on a joint on the exoskeleton, adjusting it with a wrench until it fell apart. He replaced a metal rod with another and started soldering again. "But if she says it's important, I've given up questioning her."

"She told you not to go to Afghanistan, didn't she?" Bucky asked, handing things over as Tony needed them. Bucky watched him place a hinge on right-side up, then flip it so it was upside down.

"Begged, actually," Tony said bitterly. "I told her no, it was my responsibility, not hers."

"She offered to go in your place?" Bucky asked. "Sounds like her."

"She called it my origin story. Told me that she could give me all the information I would need if I stayed home. I couldn't do it."

"Why?" That was the question Tony kept asking himself. Why had he gone to Afghanistan instead of believing Grey? Why hadn't he stayed in America where he'd have been safe? Why had he allowed a car battery to power his heart?

"Something Howard said to me once," Tony said finally. "Starks have responsibilities. Things we have to do, that's why Starks are made of iron. Except for the fact that Helen said I was anemic. I think I wanted to go. I wanted to change into the person Grey always told me I was. I wanted to give up the playboy ways, I want to settle down, build something worth it."

"And getting kidnapped was the best way to do that?"

"Blank slate," Tony shrugged. "I can do anything I want, now."

"You could before," Bucky said. "You're Tony freaking Stark. Hydra operatives have a blanket do not interact order on you. All of them. We are to either murder you outright or stay very far away from you. You're, what, the richest person alive? The smartest person alive? Who cares about everyone else? If I were you, I'd buy an island very far away and retire. Raise alpacas or some shit."

"Something was holding me back before. Maybe it was the near-death experience, or the torture, or having a car-battery attached to my heart, but I just don't care about what people think anymore. I'm going to save them from the bad things, because no one else is stepping up. SHIELD, the CIA, all those big, hulking intelligence agencies out there, they're not doing anything. Gun violence is just as bad as alien shit. If we're going to protect humanity, we have to do our best to help them too. We can't be the only ones that change, everyone has to."

"You sound like your daughter," Jim said from the doorway, spooking Tony. "You might wanna be careful about that, someone might call you a bleeding heart."

"I need a vacation," Tony said, leaning back in his chair. "Preferably one without terrorism."

"Last time I asked about that, Grey said something about Monaco, and threw her shoe at me," Jim said brightly. "You put that on backwards."

"What?" Tony's eyes flew to the hatch he'd soldered onto the suit. It was in fact, backwards. "Damn. Well, congrats, I just killed myself. I can't think anymore. I'm going upstairs."

"Stay out of the sunroom," Jim said. "That's what I came down to warn you about, Grey's taken it over. She's got both headphones in."

"Copy that," Bucky said. "Jarvis, keep an eye on her, if she goes more than twelve hours without food, let me know."

"Of course, Sergeant Barnes."

"What's she working on?"

"I think she's multitasking again," Jim said, following Tony back upstairs. "She had turned the south wall into a whiteboard, with plot points, and the east wall had Stark Industries policies plastered over them. I think she's reshaping the company again."

"Plot points?" Tony teased, pointing out that Jim had used the same phrase they'd heard from Grey dozens of times.

"I gave her HR's policies. She's fixing them," Pepper said as they entered the kitchen. "Did you know there's a rule in there that people with natural hair have to keep specific hairstyles, even if they're not lab personnel?"

"You're kidding me," Tony said flatly. Pepper was at the oven, several grilled cheese sandwiches on the flattop. Tony started going through the cabinets, gathering what he needed to make a tomato soup. "Okay, yeah, let her go nuts, but she has to get board approval to pass everything, I'm not getting involved. She might mistake me for the target."

"She threw her shoe at you, didn't she," Pepper asked, fighting a grin.

"Yesterday! The little brat smacked me with her sneaker after weapons training!" Tony pouted but blanched the tomatoes quickly. "And then she bitched me out in Russian, have you been teaching her?"

"No," Bucky said. "But I do talk in Russian a lot around her, maybe she's picking it up?"

"She's enrolled in duolingo," Jarvis said, flashing the lights blue. "She's taking Russian, French, Italian, and if I'm not mistaken, mandarin."

"She scares the shit out of me," Bucky said lowly.

"Bucky, keep talking to her in Russian, it'll help her grasp it. Tony, you start on the Italian, I know your mom had you fluent. I'll take French, and we have to hope she gets mandarin on her own," Pepper said, handing out assignments as she started grilling another sandwich. The first one was handed to Bucky.

"Good idea," Jim said, nodding along. "After she finishes this most recent power play."

"Should I go ahead and schedule the board meeting?" Pepper asked idly, glancing at Jim. "When do you think, the tenth?"

"That soon?"

"It's three days," Bucky said. "Call it. It's almost time for a quarterly meeting anyway."

"You've taken to Stark Industries really well, Barnes," Pepper said, smiling at him. "Shame you took Happy's offer instead of mine."

"He's giving me carte blanche to restructure security for him and make cuts. Firing incompetent people is very fun," Bucky said. He really liked his security consultant position. His whole job was to see who was up to the task and who wasn't. He'd already found four employees that were up to no good. They'd been marked in the system; Jarvis was keeping a list for them. "And weeding out the moles. It's fun to be the good guy for once."

"Oh good. Are you just doing security, or the whole company?"

"Can I do the whole company?" Bucky asked, excited. "Please?"

"Jarvis, give the Buckster full access to the company. Go nuts, kid," Tony said, throwing a wink at him. Bucky looked like a kid on Christmas as he reached for his tablet.

Iron Man

"Thank you, for your cooperation," Grey said, giving the board a mocking bow as they stood and left the conference room. Her family was quick to file in, curious about what she'd done. "Blind hiring practices, with AI removing any identifying information from applications. Completely restructured our compliance division, started the process for tightening relations between us and the SEC. Increased funding for safety for factory and production workers. Congratulations, Stark Industries now has the most modern and transparent reporting policies in the world."

"And that's just the beginning, apparently," Pepper said as she started reading the minutes of the meeting. "Did they get anything they wanted?"

"Nope."

"And what did you get?"

"Everything. We now comply with European standards for pay, medical leave, and vacation. I've restructured the work week to allow for a thirty-five-hour week, rather than forty, while still ensuring compensation matches that of a forty-hour week. Overtime is no longer mandatory, but optional, and limited to ten hours a week." Grey flipped through her folders until she found the one, she wanted, passing it over to Tony. "Everything you need to know about is here. Pepper, you'll have a full and complete report in your email inbox any minute now."

Pepper's tablet pinged, and she pulled open the indicated email. It contained a word document. It was eighty pages long. Pepper sighed and looked at Grey in exasperation.

"You got them to agree on an eighty-page document in under three hours?" Tony asked, impressed. Grey simply smiled, flashing her dad her dimples, and batting her eyelashes. "Right, scary hell-child. Well, I've finally finished your birthday present."

Grey looked at him, surprised. Tony gave her a wry grin and handed her a small box. She opened it to see a lovely watch. It was obviously the newest Stark Watch, modified, but it wasn't alone. There was a tiny earpiece, almost looking like a sticker, and a mouth swab. Grey didn't hesitate, recognizing the comms device for what it was, planting it in her ear, and using the swab to capture her DNA. Tony showed her where to put it on the watch, to start the activation. The watch glowed with a purple flame.

"Hello. I am Bambi, a learning AI designed to assist you in your day to day."

"Hi Bambi," Grey said, astonishment and joy spilling out of her. "I think you and I are going to be good friends. Dad, this is incredible!"

"I figured Jarvis had enough on his plate, and Bambi's servers are contained within the watch, so they're secure. You can trust them." Grey's eyes danced with ideas.

"Perfect timing too," Grey said. "I've got that interview with Christine tomorrow, she's doing a piece on me for Vanity Fair, which is just ridiculous."

"Not Jayne?" Pepper asked, looking up from the document.

"No, Christine needs a bit of love from us, keep her in our favor. Jayne's running pieces on the phones, the tablets, and dad's return. All while prepping pieces for Stane after his arrest. I want her to publish his deeds the exact minute he's been arrested." Grey fastened the watch to her wrist, just below her legacy bracelet.

"Won't that be suspicious?"

"Yes."

Pepper debated arguing, but decided it wasn't worth it. Grey knew what she was doing – they hoped – and could handle herself.

"These are good changes. When are they going into effect?"

"As much as I'd like to say immediately, the board did manage to argue for the New Year. That's usually when policy changes go through anyway. We're going to announce them, start sending out the new versions of the employee handbook, what have you. HR is on it." Grey sighed and ran her hands over her face. Bucky handed over a hair tie, allowing her to tie her hair up in a short ponytail. "I called Alice White, from Time Magazine? She's running a piece on our changes, through both Time Magazine, and she's gonna freelance a copy over to Wall Street."

"Exactly how many reporters do we have on staff?" Tony asked, curious.

"Just one, for now. Christine won't sign on until Monaco, and Alice really likes Time," Grey said. "She said she's willing to work with us though, so we should put her on retainer."

"What else do we need to know this week?" Tony asked, changing the subject. "What's on the schedule? I've been drowning in the suit design; I don't even know what day it is."

"Legacy dinner on the thirteenth," Bambi said through the watch's speakers. "The twins have shared their travel plans. Jean-Paul is stopping over in New York to grab Morita. Today is Tuesday."

"Oh yeah, I've got to prep for that," Grey said, scrunching her nose. "Oh, I need a nap today. I am so tired. Executive decision, I'm tapping out for the day. I'll take my paperwork home and get it finalized, Bambi, reschedule any meetings today for later in the week."

"What about your teleconference with the senator, that's this afternoon."

"Awh fuck. I'll do it from the house, it's in an hour, right?"

"Yep," Bambi said in Grey's ear. It looked strange for the family, not being able to hear both sides of the conversation.

"Fine then, I've gotta get home and deal with the one politician I know I won't kill," Grey said, rolling her neck so it popped, loudly. Tony shuddered and shook his head.

"How do you know you won't kill him?" Pepper asked, more worried than curious.

"I wouldn't take that from his brother," Grey said, hand on her heart. "It's closure."

Iron Man

Obadiah Stane parked his car in front of Tony's malibu house and climbed out, grumbling under his breath. Knowing about Tony's security, he shut up as he reached the stoop and rang the bell. He could hear it chime through the house and wondered if it would be Potts or Hogan that opened the door. It was neither.

"Stane! Tony can't come to the door right now, he's just in the middle of a story Trip's telling!" Sharon said brightly as she opened the door, her arm around Jean-Paul's shoulders. They each held a drink, and Obadiah could clearly see numerous people in the living room. Antoine Triplett, grandson of Howling Commando Gabe Jones, was in fact standing in the middle of the living room, a beer in his hand, speaking animatedly to what was obviously the rest of the legacies. Stane sneered at them, turning on his heel and heading back to his car, hands clenched into fists.

Obadiah knew Tony didn't have a relationship with them, he'd practically ensured it, starting the party that caused Tony's binge drinking so he would be too hungover to speak at Morita's commencement. From there, it was easy to convince Tony that they wanted nothing to do with him. Had he been played? Or had that bitch daughter of his intervened? She was always sticking her nose where Stane didn't want it.

"For someone involved in Hydra and other terroristic things, that man has a terrible poker face," Jean-Paul said solemnly. "He's being watched?"

"Closely," Bucky said, lowering his rifle, well hidden in a shadow Stane never would've seen. "Grey says we need him. For now."

"I need him like I need a bullet in the head," Sharon said.

"Well come on, I'll pour you one then," Bucky said, grinning. "You know that's a Hydra code word, often used for drops, right?"

"Really?"

"It's whiskey and water on ice," Bucky said, unloading his gun and putting it in a hall closet. "Did you see the cover?"

Sharon smiled, pulling out the copy of Vanity Fair she'd picked up at the airport. Grey Stark sat on a red throne, wearing a shiny gold wrap dress, with her signature red blazer draped over the arm. Her red heel was on top of the Stark Industries logo, a crown proudly on her head.

"Brilliant article," Jean-Paul said. "Read it twice on the flight over. How much did she have to pay Everhart to be that nice? She's got a reputation, and this was not expected."

"Christine's going to join the team, eventually," Grey said as they rejoined the party. "We want her to stay an outside player for now."

"A brilliant and fiery young woman, Grey Stark sees the world, not for what it is, but for how it could be," Pepper read out, opening another copy of the article. There were several scattered through the room. The one sitting on the piano bore Christine's signature. "Gifted with the ability to see the brightest potential in everyone around her. Grey is a woman we can expect to see in headlines for years to come; she is certain to become a trailblazer, shining brighter than her father at the same age."

"And wasn't that a blow to my ego," Tony pretended to whine. Grey laughed and threw a pillow at him, nailing him in the head. "I invented incredible things, but she's the shining star of the Stark Line. That's an actual line, on page three of the article."

"Christine did certainly go on," Grey said, sipping on a mug of decaf coffee. "But you know, I am a once in a generation mind, hiding behind beauty that would win over the Gods of yore. Or something to that affect."

"Come on, girl," Trip said, a wide smile on his face. "Saving the world and looking good, that's the real legacy of the Howling Commandos."

"You need a title," Lizzie said. "For the media, something snazzy that you can trademark. Have you given it any thought?"

"The Iron Family," Jayne piped up. "I slipped the trademark through a few weeks ago."

"You're going to be the cause of so many headaches, aren't you?" Brian asked. Grey merely flashed her dimples. "I'll call records, have them set aside a file cabinet for you."

"Katherine, if I give you a name, would you mind terribly setting up a meeting?" Grey asked, causing the agent's eyebrow to rise in curiosity.

"Depends on the name. Who would you like to meet, little bird?"

"Rosalind Price, possibly of NASA," Grey said, an enigmatic smile on her face. "I'm a fan of her work."

"Come on Grey, stop scheming for like, six minutes and just enjoy the party," Bucky said, dropping down next to her feet on the couch.

"Sorry, I've been working a different angle recently and almost forgot about her. It's been an itch."

"I'll get you a file," Katherine promised, tipping her beer in Grey's direction.

"What are you doing, now that you're back home?" Morita asked Tony.

"We're working on a way to track down and clean up whatever caches there are of Stark Weapons that aren't in proper hands," Tony said. He had a water in his hands. "After we start on that, if we manage to find any intelligence, we can use it to figure out how they got there."

"We know how they got there," Sharon argued. "Stane's been dirty from day one. Let me take him out, and you can move on! SHIELD can make it look like a boating accident killed him, you can mourn for the camera and rush the investigation!"

"Or we expose his crimes, give him a public trial that will find him guilty of many many felonies, and as the FBI escort him from the courthouse, he's shot by a Ten-Rings sniper, ten feet behind Tony Stark, giving a press conference about all his efforts to clean up the man's mess," Grey said softly. When everyone turned to her, her eyes were glowing.

"Do we have a Ten-Rings sniper?" Pepper asked.

"Hydra, Ten-Rings, tomato to-mah-toe," Bucky said back. Grey fought not to grin.

"That works, too," Sharon said. She couldn't help but laugh, "if you want to be all dramatic about it. Sorry I'm a spy, I think like a spy."

"Grey's a drama queen. But there is always a good reason for it," Jim laughed. "Honestly, I think every word in that article is true. I give it two years, and Grey Stark will be a household name."

"I give it two years, and Grey'll be Director of SHIELD," Trip bet. "Think she'd take Fury down in a heartbeat."

"I like Nick!" Grey protested. "But I like his teams better. He's the gift that keeps giving. And I can't wait for all the goodies. But he does have an obscene amount of secrets, he could even give me a run for my money. And that Index has to go."

"The gifted index?" Sharon wasn't really surprised Grey knew about it. At this point, Sharon was willing to believe the girl knew everything.

"I know it's supposed to be for safe keeping, but it feels very Number the Stars," Grey said. She shrugged. "Powered people are gonna become a lot more common in time. There's nothing we can do about that. They shouldn't be registered or forced into SHIELD service."

"You think they should be given free reign?" Trip asked.

"I think as long as they're not breaking the law, or hurting people, who cares if Joey can melt metal? It's no different from someone who can play an instrument."

"But what if they hurt someone?"

"Then they get arrested and go to jail? Same as if I do it," Grey said. "It doesn't matter what abilities a person has; it only matters what they choose to do with it. If they want to fight and save people because they can, great. Love that, sign here. If they just want to be left alone? Cool. Here's my number call me if you need me."

"Is everything you say an inspiring speech? Calm down," Trip teased. "We agree, mostly. But you'll never convince Fury to get rid of it."

"By the time it becomes an issue, I'll actually have to argue with Coulson about it." Grey rubbed at her face and sighed. "Actually, I'll need to talk to you about that at some point, Trip."

"What me?" Trip asked. "Talk about what?"

"Not kicking things in temples, for starters," Grey grumbled under her breath. She was heard, but not understood.

"It's a party, kid, relax," Tony said, throwing the pillow back at her. Bucky cheated and grabbed it out of the air in front of her. Grey, to her credit, didn't flinch.

"I don't know the meaning of the word, old man," Grey laughed, leaning back on the couch, and kicking her feet up on Bucky's lap. Sharon stood up, a smile on her face.

"Let me tell you a SHIELD legend, alright, you guy'll love this one," Sharon started, drinking the last of her beer.

Iron Man

"As glad as I am that you're back with us, alive and well, that press conference of yours was a kick in the teeth, Doctor Stark," General Morrow said, settling in his seat opposite Tony. Pepper and Grey sat on the other sides of the table of the empty restaurant.

"It would've been worse if not for Grey," Tony admitted, still grinning. "I was ready to cancel it all, shut everything down. Grey heard what I wanted to do and laughed at me."

"Loudly," Pepper teased.

"Granted, it was something I wanted to pitch anyway, but no one would've listened to me," Grey said. "This worked in everyone's favor. Stark Industries is projected to double profits this quarter on personal devices alone. Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile have both approached us for contracts."

"Impressive, but still not something that helps our troops," Morrow said. "We need those weapons contracts, to protect this country."

"Gun violence has reached an all-time high, Tom," Grey said shortly. "And Stark weapons are the most found on the black market. They're the preferred weapon of drug runners, cartels, and gangs. I don't want that to be what I put into the world. I won't have it. The military can find other weapons creators."

"I know you're right," Morrow said. He sighed and rubbed his hand down his face. "I know. But Stark Industries has the best weapons, our troops will suffer for the loss. And no one will want this to happen."

"We will continue to produce our body armor lines, as well as funding research projects as often as we can," Tony added, sitting back as a waitress stopped by with waters and menus. "We aren't going to leave you high and dry, General. This is what we have to do to move forward."

"Let's talk about something a bit more exciting, shall we?" Grey said, shoving a straw in her water and stirring the lemon wedge to the bottom. "Tom, we've looked at the potential design for the wings."

"And?"

"Repulsor technology would be best," Tony said, flipping a folder open and taking over the presentation. He talked about the potential for energy consumption, flight suits, and the logistics of how the wings would be controlled. Every time Tom asked a question, Tony would answer it, even at one point, scribbling out a long string of equations Grey couldn't hope to follow. Tom, however, was delighted by everything Tony was saying.

Pepper and Grey exchanged silent and subtle looks three hours after the men started talking.

"I hate to be the one to point this out, but the servers are itching to open the restaurant to the rest of the population," Grey said gently, breaking into the men's math bubble. They glanced around, and sure enough, Pepper's Stark Industries black card was already tucked back into her purse, and the servers were cleaning glasses at the bar, occasionally glancing at their table through the mirror. "And I think we should let them, we can continue this discussion tomorrow, in DC, can't we?"

Iron Man

"And it locks?" Tom asked, looking at the flight suit.

"It's a static lock. When the repulsors are active, it'll lock up the suit in a streamlined position to help with aerodynamics," Tony said. "We've designed locks to go on at the hips, the knees, and the ankles. We don't want them to have to do all that themselves. It'll hurt after a while."

"Found the pilots," Jim said, entering the warehouse. Grey looked away from the wing suit excitedly and caught her first glimpse of the birds.

"Sam Wilson, Falcon," Sam greeted, shaking Grey's hand.

"Riley del Sol, Hawk," the other man said, taking Sam's lead.

"Alison McGee, Allie, please, Penguin. I'm not a flyer, I'm just back-end support," she said a wide smile on her face.

"That's perfect, we were only able to get two suits completed," Tony said, taking over the presentation. This was something he was familiar with, and truly enjoyed doing. He talked about the wings, the suit as a separate entity, the weapons attached, and how to avoid scorching the back of their thighs when taking off.

"So, we're essentially going to want to hang glide when we take off," Riley restated, looking at the set up. "Jump out and coast before firing up the repulsors."

"Exactly," Tony said excitedly. "By then, the static lock at your hips will have switched on, and you should be fine."

"This static lock, is it going to stop us from moving? What if we're on the ground, using the wings to assist in hand to hand?" Sam asked, leaning to the side in his chair. Grey quietly left the room, and came back a few minutes later, carrying a water bottle. She looked annoyed at something but waved off Jim when he sent her a questioning look.

"The static lock can easily be disrupted," Tony explained. "It's literally static electricity and magnets. The locks are there to help you keep streamlined, not force you to stay streamlined."

"I see lots of core work in our future, birdbrain," Riley said to Sam.

"Great, abs for days," Sam complained. "I'd rather do cardio."

"Ha no," Grey laughed, beaming at the pilots. "I'd rather do core than cardio."

"So, when do we start?" Allie asked, looking up from the notes she was taking. "Or when do they start? General, are we being presented with comms? Who and when will our missions come from?"

"Oh, she's the smart one," Jim said. "What are these two then, the pretty ones?"

"Yes sir," Riley said lazily, grinning. Grey shook her head with a smile. "And the strong ones."

"Nah, I watched Grey throw a man easily weighing over three hundred pounds," Jim said. "She's the strong one."

"Pepper threw him too," Grey said defensively. She glared at nothing and left the room again.

"That is true," Tony mused. "My girlfriend scares the crap out of me. And she did that before she started hand to hand training."

"Will we be learning any advanced hand to hand?" Allie asked. General Morrow stood and handed each airman a slim file.

"This is just an overview of what you three are going to be involved in. You're going to work directly with Doctor Stark and his family. All of your missions will be classified. No one outside of the four of us, and their family are to know."

"And with that secret, here's one more you're going to have to keep," Tony said brightly. "This is the man who is going to be running most of our missions with Miss Penguin. He served in the Army and spent a ridiculous amount of time as a POW in Russia. Bucky Barnes. Buckster, meet the birds."

"What the fuck," Sam asked quietly as Bucky stepped out of a shadow behind Tony. He stood there, looking menacing, but ultimately normal in black tactical pants, and a tight blue shirt with a standard nine-millimeter in a thigh holster. His prosthetic was visible once the short sleeves ended.

"Who?" Riley looked at Sam, who clearly knew the man. A glance at the family showed that they were in on some joke centering the man.

"He's Captain America's best friend?" Sam asked, looking pale. "Served in WW2, my sister, she majored in American history, she told me about him. What?"

"Funny story," Tony said, trying not to giggle at the astonished look on General Morrow's face. "I'm sure. Grey pulled him outta God knows where while I was in the desert."

"Good to know you're going to get that reaction from everyone we ever meet," Grey pretended to pout. "No one even looks at me anymore, they all stare at him."

"I'll stare at you plenty, darling," Allie said, winking at the heiress. "Is this the big guy you threw?"

"Yep," Grey confirmed, blushing violently at the woman's attentions. Allie laughed brightly and turned back to her file. "Are there any more questions?"

"There's a lot of recon missions planned, what are we doing recon for?" Sam asked, glancing at the paperwork in Allie's hands.

"I'm so glad you asked, Wilson, that leads us nicely into part B of what we're not telling the press," Tony said. Behind him, a slide show popped up, and Tony's smile widened. "This is a sketch of what we're working on as a family."

Iron Man

Pepper read the text and felt like smacking herself. Of course, the Tony and Grey would've had to be investigated before the FBI and whoever else tore into the company, they wanted to make sure the whole company wasn't dirty. Pepper forwarded the encrypted message up to Jarvis, who sent it to the rest of the family. Pepper could see Grey read the message from the other side of the conference table. Her eyebrow twitched; it was the only tell that Grey was having a similar reaction to Pepper.

Tony, who didn't have a subtle bone in his body, outright shook his head at the message, before turning his attention back to the speaking board member. The three of them were hologram projected into the meeting, still in DC, but each in their proper seats. Grey leaned back in her seat, lounging comfortably, while looking rather arrogant. The speaker stuttered over his words at her movement.

"Let me see if I understand your longwinded thesaurus recital, hmm?" Grey asked, cutting across the man with steel in her voice. "You want us to vote on whether or not we should bar my dad from ever taking the CEO title at Stark Industries or any of her affiliates, ever again?"

"Yes, ma'am," he said softer than a whisper. Grey could only tell what he said because he nodded.

"And you want to put this to a vote, today, with him in attendance?" Grey asked, moving again so she could lean forward. She crossed her fingers together, elbows on the table and rested her chin on her fingers. "Are you aware I'm legally allowed to fire you?"

"Yes, ma'am," he said again, still soft as the wind. If one were to look close enough, they could see him trembling slightly under Grey's stare.

"Well, he's presented a motion, does he have a second?" Grey said, brightly, leaning back in her chair, relaxed, and smiling.

"I second," Richard Walsh said gravely. "I know it isn't what Kevin had in mind, but I think it's time a younger generation stepped up. I'm happy to see what direction you will bring us, Miss Stark."

"Those in favor?" Grey counted as hands rose. There was a pause, clearly waiting for stragglers. They didn't have the majority by one point. Pepper, Tony, and Grey all raised their hands, smug expressions clear to those that cared to look. Kevin's knees gave out on him, and he collapsed into his chair, his hand on his heart. Grey didn't spare the man a glance other than in disgust.

"The motion has passed," Richard said when it became apparent Kevin wouldn't. "You have our apologies, Doctor Stark, but even when the courts bring you legally back to life, you will be unable to resume your position as CEO of Stark Industries. You are, however, welcome to keep your title of Director of Research and Development. I call this meeting to a close, we all have better things to do with our lives."

"Bambi, tag him," Grey mumbled to herself as she closed out her hologram. She took off the VR sunglasses and shook her hair out of the clip. "Have Kevin removed from the company, buy any shares he has, and blacklist him. If he's willing to do Stane's dirty work, we don't want him involved in our ally's work."

"Jayne is set to publish the article on the move, is she clear?" Bambi asked, their voice only audible to Grey. Pepper and Tony sat together, reviewing files, waiting for Grey to finish her work.

"Yeah, give her the green light. Make sure Walsh doesn't have any overt ties to the usual groups, I think I'd like to keep him."

"Which collection?"

"Stark Industries; might be useful after the buyout goes through," Grey said, absently biting on a pen as she thought. "Stane's up to something, flag his passport, ask Katherine if she'd keep an eye on him. And send her my thanks for the heads up. Should've realized we'd have to get checked first."

"Tony didn't realize it either," Bambi pointed out. Grey hummed, unimpressed. "We've got flight clearance."

"Flight clearance came through," Grey said again so Pepper and Tony could hear. "Let's get out of here. If one more senator emails me, I'm gonna set congress on fire."

"Did you buy a senator?" Tony asked, mildly alarmed.

"Ew no, any idiot with money can buy a senator," Grey said, packing up her tablet and notebook. "I'm simply keeping an eye on a few interesting names."

"Interesting to who?" Pepper asked, hoping to get Grey to elaborate on her plans.

"Us," Grey said simply. Pepper sighed but smiled as they piled into the elevator. "God, I hate DC."

"Me too," Pepper and Tony chimed in. Grey smiled to herself as she glanced down and saw them holding hands.

Iron Man

"And you've done the math for this?" Grey demanded again, looking warily at the arc reactor on her hip, powering the boot thrusters.

"I've already done a test with the boots, kid," Tony said, scrunching his nose as he adjusted something on his computer. "I had to recalibrate it from my reactor."

"The math is different for the different reactors?" Jim asked, frowning.

"Dads has to divert a specific amount of power just for the magnet keeping the shrapnel out of his heart," Grey said. Tony had drilled construction of the reactor into her head. The two of them were the only ones that could manufacture a miniaturized reactor without blueprints. "So these are giving off more power than his does, we might need a lower output than he does to achieve base flight."

"The suit will handle all the inflight calculations, so we won't have to," Tony said, lecturing as he worked. He wouldn't admit it to anyone but Pepper, or his therapist, but he really enjoyed having people listen to his science babble. When he thought about the fact that they were interested in the science, and him, he felt warm. He wouldn't admit that either. "This is just so each of us can get used to maneuvering around before we strap on the suits."

"So that leaves us with the most important question of the day," Grey said, rocking onto her toes before realizing what she was doing.

"Frosty the snowman, do you want to learn to fly?" Tony finished, spinning around to look hopefully up at the assassin.

"Jesus, with the eyes," Bucky said, caving after four seconds. "Those are the real lethal weapon you created. Doesn't help they look just like Grey's."

"Is that a yes?" Grey asked, a soft expression on her face as she looked at him.

"Of course, I want to fly, what kinda idiot do you think I am?" Bucky said, grinning. Pepper held her fist out for a bump, the same excited grin on her face. "Let's get going!"

"What did yours factor in at?" Grey asked, nodding her head toward his similar set up.

"Ten percent was good for me, wanna start there?" Grey's eyes flickered, an image of Tony smacking into the ceiling coming immediately to mind. It was her favorite scene, to be fair.

"Let's start at five," Grey said, blinking rapidly. "I'd rather not smack into the ceiling. I rather like my nose, thanks."

Tony made the adjustments and hit the button without warning, sending Grey shooting up about a foot and a half before she caught her balance with a shriek and a curse. She balanced out, wobbling almost dangerously a few times. Tony adjusted the line of code until she looked relaxed.

"Two point seven, seems good for you," Tony called out. "Ten would've sent you through the roof, good call kid."

"Happy to be of service. Gods below I've gotta start doing more core work this is a bitch without a frame." Tony cut the power and sent Grey dropping to the ground. "Who wants to go next?"

Three hands flew into the air, Pepper's almost smacking into Jim as she tried to step forward too, intent on being first.

Pepper spent her flight with a wide smile on her face as she treated it like a surfboard. When she was dropped to the ground, she almost pouted.

Jim went next and swore, rapidly the whole time he was in the air. When he landed, he beamed at Tony, pride and love visible as he looked at the genius of his best friend.

Bucky kept a neutral expression the entire time he was in the air, not relaxing until he was on the ground again.

"I really don't like that harness," were the first words out of his mouth. "Jarvis, will you call Lilian, see if she's got time today?"

"Are you okay sugar?" Grey asked, hesitantly reaching out to touch Bucky's cheek. He caught her hand and pressed it to his face, giving her a small smile.

"Yes. I am. And the flying was amazing, that harness just brought up a lot of emotions."

"When you're ready, you and I can sit and design a flight harness that won't trigger you," Tony piped up. "This was only for this test flight anyway, and won't be present in any suit you fly."

"So sure, I'm gonna let you put me in a tin can, huh, Stark?" Bucky teased, relaxing from whatever bad memories he was still dealing with.

"Gotta protect my family," Tony said, strangely serious. Bucky gave him a long look, then smiled, his eyes crinkling at the corners with the force of his smile. Grey quickly wiped a tear off her cheek before anyone, but Bambi or Jarvis could see it. "Any other feedback, let me hear it or risk getting an uncomfortable suit."

"There's a good chance, at least once Grey and I are gonna end up pulling the suit on over a skirt and heels, can you make something that can adapt around those?"

"Probably not mark two, but I'll add it to the worklist. Our jobs should be mostly planned for a while, right?" Tony asked, glancing at Grey.

"Everything is on our call until 2012, then I'm sure we're all fucked," Grey said. She had her arm around Bucky's, trying to offer comfort.

"I want it to be standard, each model is embedded with a tracker, one not powered by the reactor, in case of emergency," Jim said. "And a way to reach out to us."

"I'll do you one better," Tony said, moving away from his desk. U came around the corner with six jewelry boxes in the basket on his back. "One for each of us, Happy too, when he gets back with groceries. Similar to the Legacy bracelets, but these are just for the family."

Platinum bracelets greeted them. Simple and plain faced, there wasn't a screen; when the gemstone was pressed twice, the coordinates lit up. The other bracelets lit up, the same coordinates, and the interior of the bracelet heated up, warning that someone needed something.

"Lilian is free only now, I gotta take this appointment, sorry," Bucky said, quickly pressing a kiss to the top of Grey's head as he left, his phone in his hand, and his new bracelet around his right wrist.

"We really gotta do something about that prosthetic," Tony said, shaking his head. "Anyway, anymore feedback?"

"Make sure you put something in our palms to prevent burn," Grey said, glancing down at the boot thrusters. "These can give off serious heat, and we all work with our hands, let's protect them, yeah?"

"Bucky designed tactical suits for us all," Pepper said, looking at the folder he'd handed her as he rushed out. "Flight suits, whatever you want to call them. Even gave us gloves!"

"Make mine fingerless, else I'll meltdown, please," Grey called out absently, still inspecting her bracelet.

"Me too, actually," Tony said, taking notes. "Jarvis, you've got the specs, how long?"

"I can fabricate a single suit in seventeen hours, sir," Jarvis said, flashing the walls blue. Tony beamed and flashed him a thumbs up. Grey could just almost hear the fabricators in the next room start working under Jarvis' guidance.

Iron Man

"Hey you," Grey said softly, walking out to the poolside, where Bucky was watching the sun set.

"Hey, come on out, it's beautiful out," Bucky said, not turning around. Grey walked out, a towel wrapped around her, her bathing suit just noticeable. She left the towel on a lounger and sat next to him, lowering her feet into the water. "In the early days, Hydra had a harness on me, to keep me in the chair. It just freaked me out for a moment. I'm okay, though, really."

"Good," Grey said, leaning against him. "Sorry I didn't realize it was gonna do that."

"It's not your job to protect me from every bad thing in the world, Grey," Bucky said softly, but firm. "Big things, yeah sure, a heads up would be fantastic, but I don't need you to try and anticipate my every panic attack."

"I know," Grey said, not sorry for her concerns. "I'd do it if I could, you know that, though."

"I know." Bucky let the silence go for a moment, enjoying the moment. "Katherine sent Jayne flowers."

"Really?" Grey asked, spinning around to face him. "Bucky Barnes, don't you tease me on this, really?"

"Told you she was Katherine's type," Bucky said smugly. "They met at the legacy dinner and Jayne said she felt like prey with the way Dugan's eyes followed her everywhere."

"Gods, Jayne is gonna eat her alive," Grey chuckled, knowing her friend was more than she seemed. She was almost as good at the game as Grey herself was. "Dad said that once Stane is dealt with, he's gonna devote his efforts to redoing that arm for you. Are you okay to wait?"

"If I was still with Hydra, they wouldn't even bother, I really don't mind waiting. Is he going to use the adamantium to fortify the suit?"

"Yeah, it's heavy, but not too much for the reactor. Pepper and I might have to step up our strength training though," Grey said, scrunching her nose up as she thought. The water felt good on her legs, so she pushed herself in fully, leaning against the wall. Bucky was quick to pull his shirt off and join her. "I think we should restructure our workouts a bit, lean more into the strength training, lessen cardio, increase weapons and hand to hand."

"You want to learn to fight with the suit on," Bucky inferred. "And be able to move while the suit is on."

"Dad said that in the mark one it felt like he was wading through swamp mud, best guess is that even with the sleeker suits, until we get to nano-tech, we're going to have to get used to moving differently."

"We'll all do a test run in the flight suit he's putting together now, and I'll work it out with Jim," Bucky promised. "And you're right, we're probably good on cardio."

"I'm sure Pepper's gonna keep dragging us on morning runs," Grey complained. "Hey, you got any tricks for dealing with a fear of heights?"

"Fall off a train," Bucky said dryly. Grey couldn't help the snort but tried to school her face.

"Take the jump, got it. We should go bungee jumping. Maybe not you, cause harnesses, and that arm… But I should go, get over this fear."

"You'll be afraid up until you get in the suit, then the fear vanishes. You know what you're doing, it helps."