Ana Jarvis was a very clever woman who couldn’t have children. Maybe not as intelligent as Howard Stark, or as beautiful as Maria Stark, but she had an iron will and observant eyes the broke through any kind of mask. Therefore, it wasn’t a surprise for her husband when she walked firmly into the kitchen, slammed her hands against the table, and demanded where her little bug was.
Her husband watched her, a playful smirk adorning his face, amused by the fierce determination he had fallen for long ago. Once he had spoken the location, she shot forward, walking as fast as the heels could take her, and barged into the south wing of the mansion.
Just as her beloved husband had informed, the kid had hidden himself behind a tool box in the attic.
Ever since he was young, her little bug had loved to explore with his hands, which came with its pros and cons. She adored to watch him invent and fix small things in the house, but needed to be present before the child set something (or himself) on fire. He grew though, too soon for her liking, and didn’t need as much supervising as before.
The attic was a perfect hideout for him. Howard Stark never let the boy inside any of the underground labs, so the mischievous child had built himself a private lab. At the beginning, it had only consisted of a table and some flickering lights. But with the passing of the years it had become a much cozier atmosphere. Three tool boxes were constantly at use, including an old record player the Ms. Carter had gifted him. Better lights, one big window, protective eyewear.
“Anthony? May I come in?”
A loud ‘yeah’ was heard and she made her way in. To her amusement and small amount of worry, the boy, now nine, was flaming a small metallic tube. His hair spiked in tameless directions, stained in oil and other god-knows-what substances.
“Anya! Come here, I’m almost done!”
Gloved fingers found her hand and beckoned her to go near. The child's eyes beamed in excitement.
“What are you doing, bug? Is it another project?” She asked.
“Yes, my biggest one so far!” He dove under a car jack, sustaining as rather small but heavy base. “It’s my first robot with actual A.I.!”
Ana shook her head in laughter.
“Alright bug. Show me.”
With another gleaming smile, the oil stained locks disappeared again, then put, then down again. Cables were connected, along with countless buttons. Finally, the boy stood back.
“Ready, anya?”
“Of course, bug.”
With a push, an electric force boomed on the robot and, slowly, it began moving its sly arm up and down.
“Tell it to do something?”
“Alright. Say hello.”
The robot waved its human like hand.
“Pat Anthony.”
It approached the kid, who ventured back. The robot swaggered and clumsily bumped into many things. The kid let out a noise of indignation.
“Dumb robot.”
Ana chuckled. “What will you call him?”
“Dumm-E.”
Th robot beeped cheerfully, and, after a few minutes of adoration, was shut down. Ana scooped the boy in her arms.
“Well, my little bug, why don’t we go tell Mr. Jarvis to make something to celebrate?”
Bright eyes shined. “Can you make us hot chocolate?”
“Of course, little one.”
In just a few days, the boy would be sent off back to boarding school, only able to send home letters and a phone call twice a week. Just as Maria always did, she would enjoy the last few days she could spend with the young one.
Ana Jarvis was a very clever woman who was never able to have any children. But that didn’t mean that she didn’t have a son.