Jolene Strange and the War of the Worlds

Jolene Strange and the War of the Worlds

Disclaimer:
As always, I own nothing. Except Jolene Strange.

Rating:
M (Just to be safe)

Genre:
Action/Adventure|Drama|Hurt/Comfort|Angst|Family|Romance

Pairings:
IronStrange
PotterStrange
Ron/Hermione

Lyrics Used:
Celine Dion – "Ashes"
Shania Twain – "Soldier"

Has Anybody Seen My Soldier?

What's left to say? | These prayers ain't workin' anymore | Every word shot down in flames

'Cause I've been shakin' | I've been bendin' backwards till I'm broke | Watchin' all these dreams go up in smoke | Let beauty come out of ashes | Let beauty come out of ashes | And when I pray to God | All I ask is | Can beauty come out of ashes?

Jolene Strange stared at her computer sadly as the file she'd been saving loaded to a flash drive. She'd been jolted out of her inner monologue as her computer dinged, indicating that the file transfer had been completed. Of all the things she imagined doing before heading off to her final year at Hogwarts, this was certainly not on the list. But, then, being the daughter of the Sorcerer Supreme and IronMan – and being a witch on top of all that – her life had always been anything and everything but normal. She had weighed all of her options, carefully, and this seemed like the safest. Option one: she could have been honest with her fathers. But that would have only ended in her fathers trying to talk her out of her decision. Or worse: they'd come with her. Jolene knew she couldn't let that happen. She couldn't leave the muggle world without two of their strongest defenders. Option two … Now, that … That had certainly been tempting. She had considered wiping her father's memories of her; just like her friend, Hermione Granger, had done with her own parents. But, after careful consideration, Jolene had dismissed the idea as both cruel and impractical. Impractical because she knew that there were far too many other people who also had memories of her that she'd also have to wipe: Wong, the Avengers … Too many memories to wipe inconspicuously. And cruel because … Well, she thought back to her fathers' war against Thanos and The Snap … And, she knew … She knew that if either or both of her fathers hadn't walked away from that battle … She knew that her memories were all that she would have had left … And she wouldn't have traded them for anything else in the world. She couldn't bring herself to steal those same memories from her fathers. So, option three, it was. Lie to her fathers and leave them behind with her final goodbyes recorded on a video to be viewed in the event of her death.

"You know what to do, FRIDAY?" Jolene quietly asked her father's AI as she tucked her flash drive safely away inside her jewelry box.

"Yes, but I must say that I don't believe this is the right thing for you to be doing, Jolene." The AI replied, the concern evident in even her computer-generated voice.

"That wasn't what I asked, FRI!" Jolene warned, sternly.

"I understand the directives you've given me." The AI replied. Jolene was beginning to wonder if she was just imagining the emotions in the AI's voice as the computer deadpanned her response. "What I don't understand is why you've saved your video to a flash drive when I could simply play the video for your fathers on any number of different platforms."

"No, I wouldn't expect that a computer would understand sentimentality." Jolene mused, mostly to herself. "I saved it to the flash drive to give them something to hold on to. Something tangible. Something of mine that they could hold onto after … if …" She corrected herself, the unspoken words hanging in the air.

"I still wish you'd reconsider." FRIDAY replied, though she knew that the plea would fall on deaf ears. Even an AI could see that Jolene Strange had grown to possess a level of stubbornness that rivaled even the collective stubbornness of her fathers.

"You know I can't do that." Jolene replied, solemnly. "My friends have already made up their minds. They're wading into a war – I can't change that." She reasoned, darkly, as she finished packing the rest of her essentials into a bag. "But I can go with them. I can fight by their side. And, I can take a stand against Voldemort. You can't honestly tell me that either of my fathers would do anything any differently." Jolene finished packing the rest of her things and took another look around her room: the room she'd grown up in. A room she wasn't entirely certain she'd ever see, again. "I know what I have to do. I just need you to live up to your end of the bargain."

"You know I will." FRIDAY confirmed.  Jolene nodded as she slung her bag over her shoulder before sliding her sling ring onto her fingers.  With one final glance around, she froze for a fraction of a moment as she heard her father's voice calling for her from down the hall.  "Jolene?!"  Jolene shook her head clear of the second thoughts that crept up in her mind before raising her hands and conjuring a portal.  "Jolene!"  Jolene steadied her resolve before stepping through the portal.

Don't close the door when you leave | It's cold out | I need to see the air when you breathe | And say out loud

That you'll be home soon | Not to worry | You're gonna hurry back

Has anybody seen my soldier? | Standing all alone | Has anybody seen my soldier | Just tryna get home

"Jolene!" Stephen Strange called out. He'd been searching for his daughter all morning. The time was drawing near for him and Tony to take their daughter to England to catch the Hogwarts Express for the last time. He had been hoping to share a few meditation techniques to help her cope with the stress of the finals. He knew how much pressure his daughter put on herself to excel academically. She got it from him. Something he had always wished he could have avoided passing on to his daughter. "Jolene?" He called out again, having searched the kitchen, the living room, the library and come up empty-handed. As much as he tried not to, he couldn't stop the bud of worry that was slowly starting to blossom and bloom in his chest. It was unlike his daughter to be this hard to locate. "Jolene, honey?" He called out, passing down the hallway to his daughter's room. "Jolene? Where are you?"

"Can't find her, either, huh?" Tony Stark questioned, coming to stand behind his husband in the doorway to their daughter's bedroom.

"You've been looking for her, too?" Stephen questioned, fighting like hell to hold back his concern.

"Yeah, I thought we could all spend some time together as a family before she takes off for her final year at Hogwarts." Tony replied. "But I haven't been able to find her anywhere." Tony paused as he looked into his husband's eyes and saw the thinly veiled concern written in them. "I thought she was with you." He added, hating how the anxiety built up in his chest.

"I was hoping she was with you." Stephen replied, finally unable to hold the back the concern that had been building within him.

"Please tell me that this doesn't mean what I think it means." Tony all but begged his husband. "Please tell me that she's just playing some twisted idea of a prank or-or-or something!" Stephen knew Tony was on the verge of a panic attack and, honestly, he couldn't blame him.

"Tony." Stephen spoke calmly and steadily, forcing his husband to focus on only him. "Breathe." He commanded, softly. "I'm sure there is a perfectly…" But the Sorcerer's voice died away as he noticed something laying on his daughter's nightstand.

"Stephen?" Tony questioned, watching Stephen make his way over to Jolene's nightstand. "What is it? What's going on?" As his eyes wandered over to the nightstand, he found what had caught his husband's attention. A single piece of parchment. Jolene only ever used parchment when she was at school. When she was at home, she used her computer and/or her phone for everything. The parchment stood out stark against the rest of her room – at least to anybody that knew her.

Picking up the parchment in his chronically trembling hands, Stephen let his eyes roam over the page in his hand as a sickening sense of dread began churning over and over in his gut. "No." He breathed, shakily. This couldn't be happening. This had to be a new variation on the nightmares that tormented him. A frightening new addition to the collection of Stephen Strange's nightmares.

"Stephen?" Tony questioned, softly – almost timidly – as entered his daughter's room and moved to stand behind his husband. "What is it?" He asked, carefully, as his eyes landed on the parchment in his husband's hands. Reading over the words written in his daughter's unmistakably unique handwriting. "Oh, God." He breathed, shocked by his daughter's words.

Dear Dad and Pops

By now, I'm sure you've already figured out I am not home. Truth be told … There's a war coming. Not here. Not on Earth or at least … Not on the Muggle Earth. It's … complicated and … messy as hell. I wish I could fully explain it … The time that my friends and I have all been dreading is looming on the horizon. Voldemort is coming back. In a big way. Like Thanos on Titan big. Harry is the chosen one. He has to go toe-to-toe with Voldemort. One of them has to kill the other. It was written in a prophecy. Pops, I know you don't buy into that sort of thing, but … They're real! Okay? They just are. I don't have time to completely explain that. The point is Ron, Hermione and I have all talked it through. We are not about to let Harry walk into a war alone. If he's gonna take down the son of a bitch that killed his parents – and tried to kill him – then … he's gonna need all the help and the support that he can get. We're going with him. Don't ask, I won't tell you where we're going. That's kind of why I wrote you this letter. Easier for me to protect you by not giving you certain information if I'm talking to you in writing rather than face-to-face. Don't bother asking FRIDAY either. She doesn't have any more information than I'm giving you. That's by design. The less that you guys know, the better. I know you don't believe this – you probably don't  want  to believe this - but I do know what I'm getting myself into. I know the risks that I'm taking. Ron, Hermione and I all know that we are wading into a war. We know that it is going to be dirty and messy and yes … even bloody. We know that not everybody who walks onto that battlefield is going to walk away. We have accepted the fact that we may not ever make it back home. That's why, I left a video with FRIDAY to be played in the event that I don't walk away from that battlefield. There's also a hard copy just because … I wanted to give you something tangible … So … Yeah … There's that. Look I just want you both to know that I love you both more than anything. That's why I have to keep you both safe. Not only that but the Muggle World needs you. Please don't try to follow me. This is something I have to do. And, you know – if the roles were reversed – you both would do the same damn thing. Please just know that I love you both and I'm doing what I have to do to keep you both safe. And if you both care about me as much I know that you do … Please …  Don't  try to follow me. And, don't try to find me.

Love,
Your baby girl,
Jolene Rose Strange

Tony and Stephen shared a desperate look. "This can't be happening." Stephen muttered quietly. Turning on his heel, Tony started pacing the room anxiously.

"You mean like how our daughter can't be wading into a war?!" Tony half screamed. He knew he sounded crazy. For all he knew, he could be. All he cared about was that he and his husband had just found a letter written by their daughter that was one apology away from being a suicide note. "FRIDAY?!" He roared, just knowing that his AI would have the answers that he so desperately sought. "Tell us she's lying! Tell us that none of this is real! Tell us that none of this is happening!"

Stephen knew his husband was teetering on the brink of a breakdown. But he felt paralyzed by his daughter's words. How could this be happening?! His greatest fear was coming to pass. His daughter was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders and wasn't letting him carry part of the burden for her. Worse than that … She was walking into a war without him there to protect her. All he knew, with any degree of certainty, was that they had to find their daughter. Preferably before it was too late.

"FRIDAY?!" Tony roared, again, demanding answers. "Don't make me reprogram you! You know I'll do it."

"Boss." The AI began, softly. "Jolene has programmed me with specific directives–" She began to add, before being cut off.

"BULLSHIT!" Tony roared, tears stealing from his eyes. "I can – and I AM – overriding her!" He shouted. "Tell me where my daughter is, right now, or so help me, GOD!"

"I'm afraid I don't know anything more about Jolene's whereabouts than you do, Boss." The AI's tone verified her sincerity and the truth of her words. Even in his panicked haze, Tony knew that much. "All I can give you is the video that she recorded and instructed me to play for you in the event of her–"

"Don't you dare say it!" Tony hissed, dangerously.

"FRIDAY." Stephen interjected, fighting to keep his voice level and calm. "Just tell us whatever you can." He instructed, softly. Just then, the screen on Jolene's desktop computer came to life. Turning to look at the screen, Tony and Stephen waited on bated breath as they watched their daughter's face light up the screen.

Hey, dad … Hey, pops … Jolene began, clearly seeming anxious. Not to be all melodramatic but … If you're watching this then … I'd be willing to bet that … I am no longer among the living. Jolene paused for a moment to shake her head. Okay, yeah, even I'll admit … That was a little dark. Jolene added with a subtle smirk. But, in all seriousness. I'm sorry I had to be so secretive when I left, I just … I knew that if I had been honest about everything – about what I was planning to do … You would have forbidden it … Would have tried to talk me out of it … And, hell, Pops, you probably would have had FRIDAY put me on lockdown. Tony couldn't deny that his daughter knew him all too well. Or worse … You would have demanded to join me. As much as I would love to have you with me through all of this … I just … I can't take you away from the Muggle World. They need you both. If we fail … If Voldemort wins … I can't guarantee that he won't come after the Muggle World. If he does, he'll have worldwide genocide on his mind. The guy hates muggles and he'll kill them all – along with any witches or wizards that try to take a stand against him. Which is why we have to stop him. But I need to keep you both safe. I love you both … So much … I just … I want you both to know that you've both given me everything I need to take this chance. You've given me everything I need to stand up to Voldemort. Dad, you've taught me a lot of defensive magic that Hogwarts has never even heard of … Pops, you've taught me to be smart … Not to just rush in, guns blazing … And, you've both made the strong and independent woman that I am. If it wasn't for everything that you've taught me … I wouldn't have the courage to do this … To wade into a war and fight by my friends' sides … You've given me the strength that I need to be the hero that Wizarding World needs. And, if … If I don't make it back … I need you both to know how grateful I am to you … How much I love you both for all that you've done for me. Which is why I need you to do this one last thing for me … Don't look for me. Don't try to find me and DON'T come after me. The only thing keeping me sane right now is knowing that you'll both be safe. Just remember that I will always love you both and I will always be your baby girl. And, I want to leave you both with the only promise I can make, right now … If I make it out of this alive … I'll hurry straight back home to you both … That much I can promise. … I only wish I could promise you more than that. Jolene finished with a soft, sad, smile, as she reached forward to turn off the camera as the screen went blank.

Tony and Stephen just stared at each other in slack-jawed shock. They had always known their daughter to have a mind of her own. But, to just run off and disappear and wade into a war … Without them knowing? This was uncharted territory. Neither of them could think or even move for a long moment. What the hell were they supposed to do with this knowledge. Finally, Stephen seemed to return to his senses as he stormed out of the room. A moment later Tony snapped out of his shock, as well, and rushed after his husband. "Where are you going?"

"Going to find our daughter." Stephen ground out, stalking down the hall with a look of steely determination written on his countenance. After a fleeting moment, Tony tried to shake his head clear of the panicked thoughts. But, glancing around his daughter's bedroom, he couldn't get his daughter's words out of his head. "If I make it out of this alive … I'll hurry straight back to you both. That much I can promise. … I only wish I could promise you more than that." Tony admired his husband's ability to stay as clear-headed as he was. Right now, Tony didn't know how or what to think as he wrapped his arms around himself before sinking down onto Jolene's bed. "Aw, Jo … Why did you do that?" He whispered to the empty room.