Convincing Kara
Back in Malibu, Tony sat down at his desk and clapped. “Wake up, Daddy’s home.”
“Welcome home, sir.” JARVIS greeted. “Congratulations on the opening ceremonies. They were such a success, as was your senate hearing. And may I say how refreshing it is to finally see you in a video with your clothing on, sir.”
Because he couldn’t help himself, Tony laughed at the humor is AI gave off. In the corner, You pressed the button on his smoothie without the top, making the contents fly everywhere. “You! I swear to God I’ll dismantle you, I’ll soak your motherboard, I’ll turn you into a wine rack for Kara.”
Turning back to his work, Tony made a disgusted face. “How many ounces a day of this gobbledygook am I supposed to drink?”
“We are up to 80 ounces a day to counteract the symptoms, sir,” JARVIS informed him.
Tony checked his palladium levels and frowned as JARVIS read out his results. “Blood toxicity: 24 percent. It appears that the continued use of the Iron Man suit is accelerating your condition.”
Taking a moment to understand what that meant, Tony sighed. “Kara’s still here, right?”
“Yes, she just arrived home from dropping Miss Layna off at school.” The AI informed him.
“Tell her I need her down here,” Tony said quickly, then turned to lift his arc reactor out of his chest.
“Another core has been depleted,” JARVIS told him.
“God, they’re running out quick.” He said quietly.
Taking the core out of the reactor, he saw that it was rusting and burned through. He went to work changing it and listened as JARVIS spoke again.
“I have run simulations on every known element, and none can serve as a viable replacement for the palladium core. You are running out of both time and options. Unfortunately, the device that’s keeping you alive is also killing you.
“Miss Stark is approaching. I recommend that you inform her of…”
“Mute,” Tony said quickly and watched as Kara walked in.
“What’s up? JARVIS said you needed me?” She asked curiously and stared at him. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?” He wondered.
“You just…look off.” She bit her lip. “Anyway, what’s up?”
“Do you ever think about the future?”
Now she was completely thrown off guard. “What are you, my father?”
Rolling his eyes, she shook his head. “I’m serious, K. Are you ever…jealous because Dad made me CEO?”
“Tony…no.” She assured him. “I had a taste of that life while you were…gone. But it isn’t for me. I mean…if I were the only one left, like if you hadn’t…” She paused. “I would run it without hesitation. But I’m happy being in charge of IT and helping behind the scenes.”
“Okay, …good.” He said and stood. “What do you think about letting Pepper take over as CEO?”
“I’m sorry, what? What the hell are you talking about?” She was worried, and she didn’t bother to hide it. “Tony, what’s wrong?”
“I just…I want to focus on Iron Man! It’s basically where all of my focus has been lately anyway.” He sighed. “Pepper has been doing my job for years, and I just…I mean, if you want the position, take it. Otherwise…”
Kara felt like she’d been hit by a truck. “Tony…let Pepper take it. She deserves it, and I don’t want it. But when Layna comes of age, if she wants it…”
He held his hand out. “Full transferal of everything goes to her. I wouldn’t take that away from her.”
“Good. Now tell me what’s wrong with you, really?”
“Nothing’s wrong! I just want to stop being the idiot who can’t focus and gets everyone in trouble.” He yelled out. “Can I show you something I’ve been working on?”
The younger Stark didn’t answer but walked forward and wrapped her arms around him in a hug. “I’m sorry.” Then she paused. “But, I’ve seen your new suit, Tones.”
This time he smiled at her. “It’s not for me.”
“Tony! I told you I don’t want anything to do with that! I have a daughter to think about, and I can’t just…fly off and leave her every time you need help taking down a crime ring or something.” She reminded him. “Layna has to be my first priority.”
“I know. But…I can’t do this all by myself. The world needs you, Kara.” He paused and clicked a button to open a panel on the far wall. “You have to have these powers for a reason.”
“Tony, I told you, I…” Her voice trailed off as the suit display emerged in front of her.
Kara’s breath caught in her throat as she slowly walked forward. The skirt and boots of the suit were red and matched the cape that hung behind it. The seam between the bodice and the skirt was made of gold titanium alloy, still in its original color. The bodice, which Kara’s eyes focused on instantly, was a dark blue and held an S looking symbol in red on the chest. Her hand reached out to touch it gently.
“I figured I would match the suit to your outfit from the night you saved my ass,” Tony said quietly from his desk. “The S icon…well, I know it’s on your necklace and you never take it off, so it had to mean something important.”
“It was my mother’s necklace.” She told him, tears filling her eyes. “It’s not an S. It’s my family’s coat of arms. The House of El.” Then she paused. “And this alloy…is that?”
He nodded. “From the first suit I made here. That way, there’s always a part of me watching out for you. The suit itself is lightweight and has an earpiece with JARVIS built-in. It’s also bulletproof, like you, so that’s nice.”
He walked forward and sighed in defeat. “Please think about it. I understand that Layna needs to be protected, and she will be. The world doesn’t have to know who you are. But as confident as I come across…I can’t shoulder this burden alone.”
Kara didn’t respond but kept her gaze on the suit. She was amazed at the lengths Tony went to make her happy, and she couldn’t fault him for needed help. He was only human, …and even an alien like her needed help sometimes.
“I was thinking ‘Supergirl’.”
Shaking her head, she turned to face him. “What?”
“For your name. I mean, it describes you perfectly.” He told her with his signature shit-eating grin.
“Supergirl?” She laughed. “You really have given this a lot of thought, haven’t you?”
“I wouldn’t have made the actual suit if I didn’t believe in you.” He put his hands on her shoulders. “Just think about it. I’d never force you to do anything; you know that. But think about it. For me.”
Staring at the suit again, Kara nodded. “Okay. I’ll think about it.”