Chapter 3: Tragedy
After the excitement of Brigid's first scuffle, Astrid, Declan, and Tony all settled in for a cup of coffee once she had gone to bed.
"You should put this one in the book," Tony said. "First dustup. . You'll never forget it."
"Why Tony, do you think I'd forget?" Astrid asked.
Declan was flabbergasted. "Am I the only reasonable adult here? Brigid just beat up a kid!"
"Yes, but boring," Tony said. "Come on, Declan, you would've done the same thing, just like me."
"I wouldn't beat up a child!" Declan cried.
"And that's why I'm glad one of us rubbed off on her," Astrid said with a wink.
Declan was dumbfounded. "You seriously think it's funny that she pummeled another child?"
Tony and Astrid looked at each other before replying. "Yes!"
"You two are unbelievable," Declan declared, knowing he'd lost this argument.
"Declan, honey, she has to learn to protect herself somehow," Astrid said. "I'm just glad she learned it now rather than never."
"Well, she pretty much said everything," Tony said. "Brigid's definitely got more Norse in her than Irish, like mom. Look, I know you don't like the violence part but think of this: you won't have to worry about your daughter when she grows up because she can already kick ass.
"Maybe I'll just have her kick yours," Declan said with a crooked grin.
"Aww, I knew you'd see it my way," Tony said, becoming giddy at the prospect of his "niece" being a great fighter.
Suddenly, there was a terrifying scream from the other side of the house.
"Mama! Papa!"
Astrid, Declan , and Tony raced to Brigid's room, out of fear she was being kidnapped or worse. To their relief, Brigid was safe and sound, but she was shaking like a frightened animal and her skin was whiter than death as sweat poured down her skin.
Astrid sat on the bed and held her daughter as Tony and Declan sat close by.
"Brigid, sweetie, what happened?" Astrid asked, grateful her daughter was safe but concerned she was in such a state.
"I...had a nightmare," Brigid whimpered.
"Tell me," Astrid said.
Brigid held her mother and father tightly. "We...were going somewhere...I don't know where...but you and father disappeared. And I could not reach you! I tried to run, but I couldn't get to you!"
Brigid broke down and sobbed as Astrid held her.
"Oh, shhhh, there now, little one," Astrid said. "It was just a dream. I promise. That will never happen. Mama and Papa aren't going anywhere."
"Dreams are just overactive imaginations," Declan said. "Mama and I are right here with you and Tony. We're not going anywhere."
And Uncle Tony will be right here with you too," Tony said.
Brigid sniffed. "I can't sleep. I don't want the dream to come back."
"Well, how about I help you chase the dream away?" Astrid suggested. "Would you like that?"
Brigid nodded. Astrid tucked her in under her blankets and sang her a lullaby as she cuddled close with her daughter under the blankets.
"Don't leave, Papa. Please," Brigid begged.
"You'll be safe, Brigid. I promise," Declan said. "I'm not going anywhere."
Declan leaned down and kissed her head. "Now, go to sleep and no bad dreams. I promise."
Tony took his turn to brush a kiss upon Brigid's head. "Kick the dream's butt like you did that mean boy."
Brigid giggled as Tony gave her one last kiss goodnight. "Good night, Leprechaun."
"'Night, Uncle Tony," Brigid said.
With her mother's breath on her ear and her song in her head, Brigid drifted off to sleep, her dreams eased by her mother's voice and her father and uncle's presence.
Four years later...
"Mama! Uncle Tony!"
Astrid, Tony, and Declan came rushing into Brigid's bedroom where they found her screaming and sweating in her sleep once more, worse than she had been years ago.
"Brigid, Brigid, wake up, sweetie," Astrid whispered, in poorly hidden distress .
Brigid still did not wake but continued to moan in her sleep as sweat poured down her head like rain.
"Brigid, honey, papa's here," Declan soothed, desperate to quiet his distressed daughter.
"Wake up, Leprechaun, come on," Tony said.
Brigid snapped awake, shaking and sweating, and burst into tears. "Mama! Papa!"
Declan held his daughter, and Astrid held her close.
"Brigid, darling, you're safe," Declan said.
"We all are," Astrid said.
Brigid composed herself long enough to speak. "It's always the same dream. I keep seeing you die. It's so real! Where does it come from?"
Astrid looked grim, as if she could feel something troubling, but she shook her head. "I cannot say, little one, but dreams pass in time."
"It's always the same one," Brigid said. "It won't go away!"
Astrid brightened with an idea. "You know, maybe we need to escape, so the dreams can't follow us."
"Really?" Brigid asked.
"That's a brilliant idea, Astrid," Declan declared, excited that Brigid may get some relief from her terror.
"I think we should see where grandma came from," Astrid said, "And where I grew up: in Norway."
"Well, nothing ever happens in Norway," Tony said. "The dreams definitely can't follow you there."
"Bite me," Astrid said sourly, throwing her friend a dark look. "But yes, grandma is from there, so am I, and so are the Norse Gods that came down there thousands of years ago."
"Wow!" Brigid exclaimed.
Tony shrugged. "Well, if she's sold, so am I."
"We'll have fun, right, Uncle Tony?" Brigid asked.
Tony's face fell. "Brigid, I'm afraid this trip is just for you, mommy, and daddy."
"But Uncle Tony!" Brigid protested.
"I have to stay and take care of things here, but I promise, I'll have surprises for you when you get back," Tony said.
"I hope it's a jetpack," Brigid said.
"A jetpack!" Tony chuckled. "That will be a welcome challenge. Go on, you better start packing, little leprechaun."
Brigid scampered away to pack.
"A jetpack? Where did she get that from?" Tony asked, giving a knowing eye at Astrid.
"The girl just wants what she wants," Astrid said with a shrug. " did you mean you're not coming?"
"Well, if you're going on a vacation, I am the face of Stark Industries and someone has to present the Jericho missile if not my two treasurers," Tony replied. "Don't think I don't see what you're doing."
"Oh? What was I doing?" Astrid asked, pretending not to know what Tony was talking about.
"You're using Brigid to get out of this presentation because of your beliefs," Tony replied.
Astrid chuckled bitterly. "I don't care what anyone thinks, Tony. If you did l, you'd be coming with us. But I will go to hell before I advertise genocide before taking care of my daughter. . Maybe you should do that with your children, if you have them."
The next day, Declan, Astrid, and Brigid settled into their car on their way to the airport.
Tony gave little Brigid one last hug goodbye before she climbed into the backseat.
"We'll give you a call at the airport and when we land," Astrid said.
"Great," Tony said. "I'd hate to get sick of you."
"Hey, you have fun and tell me about all your merriment when you come back. Okay, Leprechaun?" Tony asked.
"Deal," Brigid said. "Uncle Tony, do you think I'll meet Thor or even Loki in Norway?"
"Well, I think anything is possible, Leprechaun," Tony said. "And when you come back, I'll have that jetpack for you."
"I can't wait!" Brigid said excitedly.
Brigid gave Tony one last hug and climbed into the car and waved as she drove off.
As their journey waned into the night, the Regan family was still a long way from the airport. Declan turned to find Brigid fast asleep in the back seat.
"Is the little one asleep?" Astrid asked.
"The SandMan has visited her," Declan said. "Is there a Norse God of Sleep?"
"That would be Nott, the God of Sleep," Astrid said. "And it seems he has visited."
Declan chuckled. "Tony really loves our girl. You'd never hear him tell us a god exists. Not any god, Norse, Christian, nothing. But listen to him sing for our daughter."
Astrid laughed. "Well, it's not hard to see why."
Just then, there was a rumble of thunder.
"Did you hear that? Where did the thunder come from?" Declan asked, fearful of what might come next.
Brigid roused by the rumbling thunder, rubbed her eyes as she woke. "Mama, are we there yet?"
Before they could blink, lightning struck, sending a tree crashing down.
"Look out!" Declan cried.
Astrid swerved to avoid the falling tree, nearly crashing into another car.
"Mama!" Brigid cried.
,With a chilling metallic crunch, the car spun out of control, rubber burning and releasing its fumes, crashing into a median. With glass shattering and metal warping in stress, the car came to a final chilling stop.
Unaware of the tragedy that had befallen Brigid, Tony was on his cell phone, desperately trying to call Astrid. There was a feeling, like an itch that Tony could not scratch. Astrid had always checked in with him, especially when it came to Brigid and her well-being. Tony had waited for hours and he had not heard one word from Astrid or Declan.
"Astrid, don't try to ignore me," Tony said. "You said you'd call me. You should be on the plane by now. Where are you?"
"Jarvis, can you tell me if the Regan family have boarded their flight to Norway?" Tony asked desperately.
"Sir, I have no record of the Regans checking in or boarding their flight," Jarvis replied.
A cold chill ran up Tony's spine. His stomach began to twist and it made him sick to think what happened to Brigid and her parents.
"Jarvis, can you track Brigid's cell phone?" Tony asked shakily.
"Yes. Her location stops sixty miles west of here, sir," Jarvis replied.
Tony jumped in his car and skidded down the road, his tires screaming. Terrible thoughts were racing through his mind. He wanted to believe it was just nerves, but the feeling something terrible had happened would not go away.
Tony used Jarvis' directions to track Brigid's location until he found a car smashed into the median. Tony froze as he saw the wreck. His body nearly shut down, wanting to deny the truth.
"Jarvis, are you sure this is where Brigid's location stops?" Tony asked.
"Yes, sir," Jarvis replied.
Tony jumped out of his car and raced to the twisted mess. The airbags were already deployed, much to Tony's dismay. Tony felt sick as he saw the chaotic sight.
Please be alive. Please be alive, he begged.
"Brigid! Astrid! Declan!" he called.
No response. Tony felt cold and sick as he willed himself into the mess. He desperately took a pocket knife and deflated the airbags to find Declan and Astrid motionless in the front seat.
"Astrid, Declan! Hey, talk to me," Tony whispered.
Tony put his finger to their necks and his heart sank. He did not want to believe it, but he knew he had to. His best friends were gone, and the worst part was, if their daughter lived, he had to tell her. Tony held back tears as he heard a small voice call out to him.
"Uncle Tony."
Tony's heart leapt as he opened the door and pulled a bloodied Brigid from the back seat. Brigid screamed as he did so, tears streaming down her face. Brigid was bleeding from her head. Tony shuddered as he noticed glass embedded in Brigid's abdomen and her legs were twisted and bloody.
"It hurts! Uncle Tony, it hurts!" she cried.
Tony ripped off his jacket and placed it over Brigid. "Shhh, easy, easy, Little Leprechaun. Uncle Tony is here. You're gonna be alright."
Tony called on his cell phone for an ambulance before turning back to Brigid. "Help is on the way, Little Leprechaun. Just hold on."
Tony took branches from nearby trees and constructed them into splints for Brigid's ruined legs.
"Brigid, sweetie, this might hurt a little. I have to make a splint for your legs," Tony said.
As gently as he could, Tony put the makeshift splints on Brigid's mangled legs. As he set her bloodied legs, Brigid could not help but scream.
"I know, I know it hurts," Tony said, his heart breaking every time Brigid screamed.
"Mama, where's Mama and Papa?" Brigid asked.
Before Tony could answer, the wail of the ambulance interrupted him, and Brigid was hastily loaded into the vehicle with Tony at her side. With Tony holding her hand, Brigid was rushed to the emergency room where Tony waited for an eternity. It did not take long for Tony to get anxious as he waited in the lobby with no answers.
What is taking so long? Why haven't I heard anything? he asked impatiently.
Tony had already felt like a failure to Will and Astrid. Now Brigid was in pain, possibly dying and he was not there for her. It was painful for him to sit without answers. At long last, the doctor emerged.
"Mr. Stark, I'm Doctor Christine Palmer," said the doctor. "You're a friend of Brigid Regan's?"
"Doc, please can you tell me what's going on with Brigid?" Tony demanded. "
"I'm afraid I can't divulge that to you, Mr. Stark," Dr. Palmer said, not wanting to destroy her career for a billionaire . "Money can't buy everything."
"You can, actually, because, as it turns out, I'm her legal guardian, so start talking damn it!" Tony said testily.
Dr. Palmer sighed. "Mr. and Mrs. Regan are dead, killed upon impact. Brigid was a little luckier, but not much. We just took her from emergency surgery."
"What else is there?" Tony asked, growing sick with worry.
"Her legs were shattered, a minor concussion, and the worst part is that glass we removed from her abdomen," Dr. Palmer said. "She's lost a great deal of blood. If she had waited any longer she could have joined her parents."
Tony wanted to vomit at the thought of the little girl he loved fighting for her life. She was too young to be in such pain. He couldn't bear it if she died because of him.
"Is she going to be alright?" Tony asked, the fear nearly choking him.
"She's in very critical condition but only time will tell," Dr. Palmer replied. "We can only make her comfortable until then."
Tony waited until Dr. Palmer left him and he collapsed in his chair. A wave of grief drowned him. His friends were dead, their daughter was near death. If she lived, he would have to tell her her parents were dead. Tony lost himself in his tears.
A/N: Poor Brigid! What is Tony to do? Let me know how I'm doing with the reboot! Thank you!