𝐨𝐨𝐢. 𝘪𝘳𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯
✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧
In the middle of a dessert in Kunar Province, Afghanistan. A convoy drives off in the dessert playing "Back in Black" by AC/DC.
"Oh hey! I love this song!" A third year muggleborn exclaimed, bobbing their head to the music. Some other muggleborns and half-bloods murmured their agreements as they also jammed out to the song.
"Really? We're starting with this?" Rhodey asked, turning to the three siblings in disbelief. Romie pursed her lips. "As much as we don't want to, it's necessary."
"Is that why she isn't here?" Pepper asked, clenching her fists tightly. The three nodded, shooting glances towards their father who was sitting completely still.
In the armored car, three Airmen are shown with stiff, battle-worn faces. The fourth person, a woman, is seen wearing a black, clearly expensive, suit that clung to her figure. A pair of designer sunglasses sat on her nose and her hair was pulled up into a sleek, smooth ponytail.
"Fuck she's hot." Ginny muttered, Luna laughing lightly.
"Could you introduce me to her?" A 7th year Slytherin asked, looking at Regulus. The student shrunk in his seat when both Regulus and James turned to glare heatedly at him, for completely different reasons.
"Oh, Lord Potter is so lucky." Lavender sighed dreamily, eyeing the woman on screen while Parvati giggled, nodding in agreement. Aurora rolled her eyes at the two girls.
"Damn, that’s Rory’s mum?" Blaise whistled lowly, wincing when Daphne whacked him on the back of the head.
This woman was Toni Stark, billionaire, playgirl, genius and philanthropist. Toni leans back in her seat, swirling a glass of scotch in her hand. Making eye contact with the Airmen, who avert their gaze, Toni scoffs.
She pushes her sunglasses down a bit with her free hand as she speaks,"I feel like you're driving me to a court-martial. This is crazy. What did I do? I feel like you're going to pull over and snuff me. What, you're not allowed to talk? Hey, Forrest!"
"She doesn't even have respect for others," Steve scoffed, crossing his arms. "Oh, please shut the fuck up. It’s called breaking the ice, something you should be familiar with considering you were a popsicle for 70 years." James snickered as the super solider looked at Sterling in shock.
One of the Airmen grins, fidgeting with his NY Mets watch.
"We can talk, ma'am." Toni turns to the soldier beside her, Jimmy, in slight surprise."Oh, I see. So it's personal?"she jokes, letting out a gasp of mock offense. The driver lets out an amused laugh.
"No, you intimidate them."Toni blinks as she turns to look at the driver. A soft smile begins to form as she says,"Good God, you're a woman. Thank goodness honestly, I'm surrounded by men daily, it's exhausting. No offense by the way."The other soldiers laugh, saying it's alright.
"I honestly... I couldn't have called that. I mean, I'd apologize, but isn't that what we're going for here? I thought of you as a soldier first."
"Women shouldn't fight. That's a mans job. Women are meant to be housewives," Molly Weasley screeched, Bill and Charlie wincing as they covered their ears.
"Oh, but kids can?" Aurora snapped, glaring at the woman. She never did like Molly. The woman seemed to determined to be some sort of authority figure in her life and kept pushing her to date Ron.
"I'm an airman."The woman stated proudly, drawing another smile from Toni.
"That's great! May I just say you have, actually, excellent bone structure, there. I'm kind of having a hard time not looking at you now. Is that weird?"
The soldiers in the vehicle laugh and chuckle as the woman blushes."Come on, it's okay, laugh."Toni smiles, happy that she'd broken the ice.
"Ma'am, I have a question to ask."Toni turned to the soldier beside her with a raised brow.
"Okay, well one. Don't call me ma'am. Makes me feel old and I'm only 37. Two, go right ahead."
"Is it true you went 12 for 12 with last year's Maxim cover models?"
"That is an excellent question. I'm afraid the answer's no. That's just a rumor. Anything else?"Toni stated, lifting her sunglasses and tilting her head.
Some of the younger occupants that understood the implication blushed.
"Why would she turn down models?!" An older student exclaimed in outrage. James smirked, leaning back in his seat knowing it was because of him.
"Ew. I do not need to know about mom's sex life." Harley gagged, Peter nodding in agreement. Sterling snorted, wrapping an arm around his girlfriend's shoulders. "Wimps." He smirked when they flipped him off.
The soldier next to her, Jimmy, raises his hand making Toni look at him amused."You're kidding me with the hand up, right?"
"Is it cool if I take a picture with you?"Jimmy asks sheepishly and Toni smiles.
"Yes. It's very cool."Jimmy pulls his camera out and hands it to the soldier in the front seat."I don't want to see this on your MySpace page."
Jimmy puts up a peace sign for the photo."Please, no gang signs. No, throw it up. I'm kidding. Yeah, peace. I love peace. I'd be out of a job with peace."
"What does she mean by that?" Ron asked judgingly.
"You'll see," was all the reply she got. Wanda frowned at the implication, shooting her twin a disappointed gaze that he didn't even notice. She didn't understand how he could forgive Toni Stark after all she did.
"Come on. Hurry up. Just click it. Don't change any settings. Just click it."
Just as the picture was about to be taken, something hit and blew up the vehicle in front of them. Gunshots and such were heard and hitting the side of their vehicle.
Pepper closed her eyes, turning away and shoving her face into Rhodey's shoulder as he held her. James looked away from the screen, not wanting to see the woman he loved be hurt. Sterling, Harley and Peter all covered their eyes, hating the fact that people were about to see their mother being harmed.
Happy shrunk down in his seat, feeling sad for his long time friend and boss. Regulus covered Luna's eyes, instructing Ginny to do the same, not wanting the two girls to see what was about to happen. The three siblings all shared shocked looks, not having been told any of this.
"What's going on?"Toni questioned, sitting up straight looking panicked.
"Contact left!"The female soldier shouted.
"What have we got?"Toni asked again, receiving no reply as the soldiers around her panicked, getting ready to fight.
Toni watched as the driver stepped out to go into combat, immediately getting shot down.
"Jimmy, stay with Stark!"As the soldier in the front seat got out, beginning to shoot but was also shot down.
"Stay down!"Jimmy pushed her down to the floor.
"Yeah."Toni nodded, ducking out of sight.
"Son of a bitch!"Jimmy exclaimed, frustrated. He began loading his gun and opened the door.
"Wait, wait, wait! Give me a gun!" Toni sat up, extending a hand to stop Jimmy.
Everyone watched in horror at what was happening on screen, especially as this was muggles doing this. Pietro winced, the guilt resurfacing as it had when he learned Toni had been the reason he was alive.
The rogues all looked in shock at what was happening, none of them having known this had happened. Toni never spoke much on her past or how she'd become Iron Woman. Nick sighed, looking down and feeling like he failed his goddaughter somehow.
"Stay here!"Toni watched helplessly as Jimmy turned back around only to be gunned down too, holes piercing the vehicle. Toni's hearing and senses were dulled a bit as she climbed out of the vehicle, stumbling a bit as an explosion went off near her.
She go some of her hearing back and ran and dove behind a rock for cover. She pulled out her phone to contact and call for help when a bomb landed next to her. She looked over to see it say: Stark Industries.
Wanda's eyes widened in shock at what she was seeing. She felt a surge of guilt as she stared at the screen.
Regulus stared blankly at the scene, not giving any sign of what he was feeling. Bellatrix scowled, fingers itching to grab her wand to harm whoever would dare hurt her cousin. Andromeda and Narcissa both caught their breath, staring at the screen in fear.
Toni eyes widened. As she tried desperately to scramble away, she was too late. The bomb exploded making her fly through the air.
"Whoa!"
She hit the ground hard, senses dulled again. Feeling a pain in her chest, Toni pulled her shirt of out the way as blood started to pool. Looking at the bulletproof vest underneath, she sees it has obviously been torn through by explosion. Toni chokes, looking up as the screen pans out, turning white.
The screen suddenly dissolves into a crosshatch of gold and brown, shown from Toni's point of view. Voices are heard in the background, speaking a different language. Suddenly, the sack is removed from Toni's head and her cut, bleeding face is revealed as she blinks harshly at the sudden intrusion of light.
"Who the fuck are these people?!" A 5th year yelled.
"Kidnappers maybe?" Another suggested, receiving deadpan looks at the obvious answer.
In the background, soldiers holding guns are lined up. One is being pointed at Toni's head. In front of her, two are seen standing there. One is holding a camera in front of her face. The camera pans out slowly, showing Toni's bloody chest which is covered in bandages. The other soldier is shown reading off a piece of paper in Urdu.
IRON WOMAN
"Is she okay?" Daphne asked slowly, the three Potter's snorting drily but not bothering to reply.
"Does she look okay?!" Sam asked incredulously. He may not like the billionaire currently but he would never wish this on anyone.
The words 'Las Vegas, 36 Hours Earlier' appear on screen.
"Toni Stark."
A stage is shown at the center of a banquet hall. On either side is displayed pictures of Antoinette Stark."Visionary. Genius."A magazine cover with Toni in the center is shown.
"American patriot."A photo of young Toni is shown next, only a moment later being replaced by a photo of Howard Stark.
"Even from an early age, the daughter of legendary weapons developer Howard Stark quickly stole the spotlight with her brilliant and unique mind, defying all odds."A brief shot of the crowd shows them paying rapt attention.
"At age seven, she built her first circuit board."A black and white photo of a young Toni next to an older boy is shown next.
"Seven years old?! Oh, you have to introduce me to her, please." Hermione begged, turning to her best friend and looking at her with wide brown eyes.
"I'm sure you'll meet her soon, Mia." Rory snorted, shaking her head as the muggle-born groaned impatiently.
"At age eight, her first engine."An image of Toni sitting atop a motorcycle with a man standing behind her is shown.
"And at 17, she graduated summa cum laude from MIT."Next, another magazine of Toni is shown.
"Holy shit!"
"She built an engine at eight?!"
"Seventeen? Wouldn't she have been a student here though?" Remus commented, looking at the self-proclaimed children in confusion.
"Yes, well she was also studying at MIT as well though. It's not as hard as it sounds." Morgana shrugged, feeling quite proud knowing that that was her mother.
"My fiancée's a genius." James proclaimed, smiling happily at the screen. "You have to propose first before she's your fiancée, Potter." James' smile dropped into a pout. "I'm working on it."
"What the hell is 'summa cum laude'?" Blaise muttered in confusion. Tracey, who actually kept up with her muggle heritage, answered, "It means with highest distinction. Basically it means she's very smart."
"Then, the passing of a titan."A magazine cover of Howard Stark, along with information regarding the car crash, is shown on the large screen.
"Howard Stark's lifelong friend and ally, Obadiah Stane, steps in to help fill the gap left by the legendary founder, until, at age 21, the prodigal daughter returns and is anointed the new CEO of Stark Industries."
"CEO at 21?" Andromeda raised her brows, impressed.
Sterling and Peter sighed sadly. They missed their grandparents every day. Their mom always made sure to visit their graves each year, bringing the two of them with her.
A FORBES magazine cover of Toni and Obadiah then appears. The audience, including Obadiah himself, applauds.
"With the keys to the kingdom, Toni ushers in a new era for her father's legacy, creating smarter weapons, advanced robotics, satellite targeting. Today, Toni Stark has changed the face of the weapons industry by ensuring freedom and protecting America and her interests around the globe."
The slideshow ends with an American flag, a Toni Stark posing in front of it as she looks off-screen. The audience roars with applause.
A light shines down on James Rhodes as he steps onto the podium, smiling at the crowd as the applause dies down.
"As liaison to Stark Industries, I've had the unique privilege of serving with a real patriot. She is my friend and she is my great mentor. Ladies and gentlemen, it is my honor to present this year's Apogee Award to Miss Toni Stark."
The audience applauds as a light shines down onto Toni's empty seat.
"She ditched her award?" Blaise laughed.
"Toni?"Rhodey repeated, looking around. In the audience, Obadiah Stane shrugs as he gets up, moving towards the stage to collect the award.
The six closest to Toni all glared as the man came on screen. "Ugly bastard." Sterling had never liked the man.
Rhodey and Obadiah shake hands."Thank you, Colonel."Obadiah says as he takes the awards.
"Thanks for the save."Rhodey takes a step back, Obadiah turning to face the crowd with a smile.
"This is beautiful. Thank you. Thank you all very much. This is wonderful. Well, I'm not Toni Stark."
"Obviously," Susan stated sarcastically, the three Potter children chuckling at her.
"He's too ugly to be mom," Romie claimed, disgust overtaking her features. Her mother was the most beautiful woman she'd seen and that was only in pictures. She couldn't wait until she could finally meet her in person.
"But if I were Toni, I would tell you how honored I feel and what a joy it is to receive this very prestigious award. Toni, you know... The best thing about Toni is also the worst thing. She's always working."
"At least he got that part right," Callum snickered softly, his sisters murmuring in agreement. "Oh hush. You're exactly the same." Morgana mused, Callum beaming in pride.
He barely got to know his mother but he adored the comparison's to her. "Not as much as Sterling though," Romie snickered, her siblings smiling in amusement.
"Who the hell is Sterling?" Sirius scoffed, crossing his arms. "Oh that'd be me." The Potter heir held his hand up with an easy smile. He'd heard a few things from his uncle Regulus regarding his other uncle. None of them were pleasant. James smiled at his eldest, proud of how far he'd come.
The scene changes. Dice are thrown as Toni is revealed to be at a casino. She is surrounded by a crowd of people, cheering her on.
"Work it!" A wide smile appears when she wins, blowing kisses to the crowd around her. "Come on!"
A woman beside her begins to caress her shoulder while another woman behind her wraps her arms around her hips. Toni ignores them completely.
"That is disgusting. Women shouldn't love women. Same sex couples should be ashamed of themselves," Molly sneered, crossing her arms as she turned her nose up in disgust. Ginny frowned, shrinking in her seat after seeing her mother's agreement.
"People can love whoever they want to. If a woman loves a woman, who cares. If a man loves a man, who fucking cares?" Regulus snapped. Pietro looked at him in interest. He'd met him a few times over the years but the speedster had never known if the other was interested in men or not.
"Don't pretend you actually think that. You're just as homophobic as mother," Sirius spat harshly, Regulus just scoffing. "Why would I be homophobic when I myself am gay you daft bastard," he hissed, rolling his eyes when he saw Sirius' jaw dropped in shock.
Some looked to where Walburga and Orion were sitting, expecting the woman to speak out. Instead she just seethed quietly, glaring at her youngest who smirked. Seeing Pietro's reaction after the reveal, Aurora smirked and leaned towards her brothers "Looks like uncle Reg has an admirer." The three all turned to look between their uncle and the speedster.
"Fifty bucks that Reg makes the firstmove," Sterling speaks, turning to his siblings with a smirk. "Oh, you're on." Peter muttered, knowing that their uncle would rather drown to Inferi again than confess his feelings first.
"You are unbelievable."Toni turns just as Rhodey comes up behind her, getting her attention.
"Oh, no! Did they rope you into this?"Toni gasps.
"Nobody roped me into anything!"Rhodey almost shouted."I'm so sorry."Rhodey sighed at the sincerity in her voice and continued.
"They told me that if I presented you with an award, you'd be deeply honored."He crossed his arms, eyeing the two women who were still standing far too close to his friend, practically sister.
"Of course I'd be deeply honored. And it's you, that's great. So, when do we do it?" Toni looks at the crowd surrounding them for a moment.
"It's right here. Here you go."He passes her the award as Toni requests one more round.
"There it is. That was easy."Toni smiles apologetically at Rhodey."I'm so sorry."
Rhodey sighs, not being able to stay mad at Toni for long."Yeah, it's okay."
"Did she really not care about the award?" Ron asked in disbelief.
"'Course not. She doesn't see the point in them," Pepper shrugged.
"How many does she even have?" Draco asked in interest.
"She's lost count, I believe. I think it's over 250 now though." James stated, his voice bored though he held a smug smirk while many jaws dropped at the number. Sam whistled lowly, impressed by the sheer number. He knew she was famous but not that famous.
"Wow! Would you look at that? That's something else."Toni passes the award to the woman who caressed her shoulder before turning back to the gambling game, gathering some chips.
"I don't have any of those floating around."She comments drily before announcing to the crowd."Uh, we're gonna let it ride!"
Picking up the dice, she turns to the woman who'd been flirting with her. She lifts the dice towards the woman's mouth."Give me a hand, will you? Give me a little something-something."
The woman grins seductively and blows. Toni then turns to Rhodey."Okay, you, too."Toni holds the dice out to Rhodey, a playful glint in her eyes.
"I don't blow on a woman's dice."He states, looking at her exasperatedly.
"Out of context, that sounds so wrong," Blaise snickered, Daphne, Theo and Draco rolling their eyes at their friend.
"Come on, honey bear."She goads. "J would do it."
"I miss those times," James pouted. Some assumed it was because he missed the gambling but those that knew him knew he missed them because it was before everything had happened.
"Good for him. I don't blow on a woman's dice."he repeats, knocking Toni's hand away causing the dice to roll."There it is. Lieutenant Colonel Rhodes rolls! And..."
"Two craps. Line away."The dealer announces.
"That's what happens."Rhodey shrugs.
"Worse things have happened. I think we're gonna be fine."She says nonchalantly, turning to the dealer."Color me up, will ya?"
The screen changes to show Toni, Rhodes, and Happy leaving the casino, a bunch of guards behind them.
"This is where I exit."Rhodey gives Toni a quick hug.
"Alright."
The two release each other, Rhodey backing away as he reminds her,"Tomorrow, don't be late. Tell loverboy I said hi and give my godsons a kiss goodnight for me."
"Aw, you do love us." Sterling and Peter both teased, Rhodey narrowing his eyes playfully at the two.
Toni nods, smiling softly."I will do exactly that."
"She was late wasn't she?" Rhodey scowled, crossing his arms with a huff. Pepper smirked, patting her boyfriend's shoulder as he pouted.
"I'm serious!"
"No, I am," Sirius joked, Remus groaning as he rolled his eyes. "He's still doing that? It's such an awful joke." James groans, throwing his head back in annoyance. Sirius pouts as many seem to agree with his brother.
"I know, I know."Toni waves him away, continuing her path forward. She hands over her award to Caesar."Render unto Caesar, that which is Caesar's. There you go."
"She gave it away?!" Draco spluttered in disbelief.
"Like I said. She doesn't really care for things like awards." Draco frowns but nods in acceptance.
Outside of the casino, guards follow Toni to her car when she is stopped by a reporter.
"Miss Stark! Excuse me, Miss Stark!"the reporter shouts, Toni pausing in her steps as she turns to the blonde reporter."Christine Everhart, Vanity Fair magazine."
"Can I ask you a couple of questions?"
"She's cute."Happy whispers to Toni, who tilts her head in thought.
"She's alright?"Toni turns around, facing Christine."Hi."
"Hi."
"Yeah. Okay, go."Toni sighs, raising a brow as she focuses her full attention on the woman, which intimidates Christine slightly.
"You've been called the da Vinci of our time. What do you say to that?"Christine questions.
"Absolutely ridiculous. I don't paint."Toni states flatly, not bothering to hide her already growing boredom. She hides a smirk as Christine shifts in discomfort at Toni's stare.
"Is she really that intimidating?" Astoria asks curiously.
"Yep." The twins state proudly.
"Hot," Tracey whispers to herself, Astoria giggling at her friend.
"And what do you say to your other nickname?"Christine asks eagerly."'The Merchant of Death'?"
Toni's face remains impassive as she replies,"That's not bad. Let me guess. Berkeley?"
"Brown, actually."
"Well, Ms. Brown." Toni begins, stepping forward slightly as she looks on at the blonde."It's an imperfect world, but it's the only one we've got. I guarantee you, the day weapons are no longer needed to keep the peace, I'll start making bricks and beams for baby hospitals."
"You rehearse that much?"Christine raises a brow, though it's clear she's intimidated.
"Every night in front of the mirror before bedtime."
"I can see that."Toni smirks at the reporter's visible frustration. "All I want is a serious answer."
"Okay, here's serious." Toni crosses her arms, tilting her head. "My old man had a philosophy, 'Peace means having a bigger stick than the other guy.'"
Christine shakes her head."That's a great line coming from the guy selling the sticks."
"My father helped defeat the Nazis. He worked on the Manhattan Project. A lot of people, including your professors at Brown, would call that being a hero."Toni stated, her eye twitching in annoyance.
"And a lot of people would also call that war profiteering."Christine refuted.
"Tell me,"Toni slides her sunglasses to the top of her head."do you plan to report on the millions we've saved by advancing medical technology or kept from starvation with our intelli-crops? All those breakthroughs, military funding, honey."
Christine stutters for a second before shaking her head."You ever lose an hour of sleep your whole life?"
"Definitely," A 7th year Ravenclaw mutters, many of their housemates nodding in agreement.
Toni chuckles drily."If I lost an hour of sleep, I wouldn't look as good as I do. You probably have though, I mean those bags under your eyes.."Toni clicked her tongue as she looked the woman up and down."Go home and get some rest darling. You clearly need it."Toni smirks, winking at the woman. Turning to Happy, he nods and opens the door, letting Toni inside.
"Your mother is my new favorite person," Ginny exclaims, Fred and George nodding in agreement.
Once the doors shut, Toni rolls down the window, her sunglasses back over her eyes."Have a nice night, Miss... Everhart, was it?"Christine fumes as Toni smiles, the reporter watching angrily as the car pulls away.
✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧