The Aquarian Star: Toni Stark, Woman of Letters

Chapter 1

Natasha 'Toni' Stark is not a fool.

The world, especially the media, would always, see her as Howard Stark's daughter.

Inventor. Genius. Youngest MIT student. Wild Party Girl. Irresponsible. Scandalous.

No matter what everyone else has always thought of her, Toni had always considered herself her mother`s daughter. It was her mother after all, who hugged her close after Howard tossed aside her sketches into an overflowing pile on the corner of the desk before leaving for work.

It was her mother who kissed her goodnight, with stories of angels and demons who fought to take over the world. Her mother whispered stories of hunters who saved the world from werewolves, of friendly ghosts, of witches who`ve saved men from falling into thralls of sirens.

Toni remembers gentle fingers carding through her hair. ``Remember Toni, not all angels are good and not all witches are evil. The world will not always be black and white, or good and evil. Question what you know to be true, and accept that the truth is usually somewhere in between."

"But, how will I know Mama? How will I know what the truth is?"

"You won't always know mia stella. Trust your instincts my darling, and the truth will reveal itself in time."

Toni could easily follow in her father's footsteps, and would likely surpass him if she tried. She built her first circuit board at the age of five, easily drawing whispers from the engineers at Stark Industries. While other children drew pictures of dogs and flowers, Toni dreamed of robots and planes. Science came easily to her, and Toni loved taking apart anything she could grab in order to put them back together again, better than they were before.

When Toni wandered into Howard's office, she felt a jolt of pride as she saw Howard reach for one of her drawings for the first time. It was one of her most recent sketches from untouched pile on the side of his desk. She felt her stomach drop a moment later, when he scribbled over the piece of paper with the phone pressed to his ear.

Toni stormed out of the room, tears blurring her vision as she ripped up the pieces of her newest design. It was later when she burned the pieces in the fireplace of the living room that Toni realized for the first time, that no matter how good her designs were, Howard was never going to look at them.

It was not until hours later, when she found her ripped up design taped together and restored as much as possible alongside a tray of Jarvis' hot chocolate and a plate of Ana's famous cookies, that Toni decided that she didn't need Howard anyways.

She didn't.

While Howard spent all of his time looking for Steve Rogers, Toni could never understand his obsession and determination to find Captain America. Every once in a while, when her father was off heading expeditions on the ocean, Toni would sneak into Howard`s showcase and stare at the photographs on the wall.

No matter how much Howard raved on about how wonderful Captain America was, Toni could never really get herself to idolize him in the way Howard wanted her to. Why would she do that, when Aunt Peggy, was there in the flesh, every week?

When boys from school gave her cuts and bruises, Aunt Peggy showed her how to properly curl her fingers and ensure that they would never bruise her again. Jarvis and Ana were the ones to kiss her bandages and sneak her freshly baked cookies. Contrary to popular belief, it was not Stark Industries where Toni learned most about firearms. It was under the patient guidance of Agent Peggy Carter where Toni learned to load and unload a pistol with her eyes closed.

Even when Howard told her over and over again that the workshop wasn't a place for little girls, Jarvis would always lead her into playroom turned makeshift workshop, and gently sit her down. Her schematics and tools were always carefully arranged and ready for her.

"He hasn't seen what you can do yet, Miss Toni. Prove him wrong."

When she made her first robot, Toni proudly presented it to Jarvis. It was a little thing, with glowing blue eyes that sang Jarvis' favourite song on command. It was the first time that she saw Jarvis cry as he hugged her tight, thanking her for the gift and how honoured he was to receive it.

The first time Toni saw Ana cry, was after Ana got sick and had to stay in bed all week. Toni had worked all afternoon (with Jarvis' supervision) to make Ana her favourite borscht and carried it up to her on a silver tray. It had to be perfect, Toni told Jarvis, because how else would Ana get better faster? Ana pulled Toni into her side and cried into her hair. "Thank you sweetie, this is so wonderful of you."

The first time that Toni saw her mother cry, was after she stabbed a man with glowing red eyes who attacked them in the garden.

Toni was eight years old the first time that a demon tried to attack her. At the time though, she didn't realize what was happening until it was over.

A man dressed in a deliveryman uniform made his way around the back of the mansion, a large cardboard box in hand. Toni was sitting outside by the pond, throwing pieces of leftover bread for the ducks swimming past.

"I can make it happen you know."

Toni squinted up at the stranger. She couldn't quite make out his face as he blocked the sun. She must have been sitting in the sun for too long though, because for a split second she swore that his eyes glinted red as he studied her.

Toni narrowed her eyes, "What are you talking about?"

The man in front of her smirked as images flashed across her vision. Howard pouring over Toni's drawings on his desk. Howard and Toni bent over a workbench side by side. Howard brushing some grease out of Toni's hair, laughing as it only made it worse. A checkered picnic blanket spread out on the lawn as Maria, Jarvis and Ana looked on as Peggy and Howard chased Toni squealing gleefully around the duck pond. Howard beaming proudly as Toni stood in the labs of Stark Industries, showing off her newest design. "I am so proud of you Toni."

Toni jumped as she felt a warm breath in her ear, "Don't you want to work on projects with your father? Always so busy that man, never having enough time for you. He never wanted a girl you know, he was so disappointed when you turned out to be Natasha instead of Anthony. But…I can make him truly see and appreciate you… All you have to do is say yes."

Toni shook her head and scrambled backwards, heart pounding. How did he know all those things about her…how did he even know her name?

"Come now Toni, all I'm asking you to do is to say yes. That's all you need to do in order for you to get the happy little family you've always wanted. Just think, you, your parents, Jarvis, Peggy, Ana… all of you can be one big happy family. Just say yes."

Toni looked up at the man, eyes glazing over. Would it really be so bad if she said yes? Toni felt her eyes drooping closed as she stared back at the man, now kneeling in front of her. As the man slowly smiled, she looked once again into his red glowing eyes. At once she felt a cold chill slam into her body, as she started scrambling backwards. Stories of demons with pitch black eyes whispering into the ears of men, women and children quickly came to mind as she felt her stomach drop.

Remember mia stella, nothing good can come from making a deal.

Nothing is worth giving away your soul.

A shadow appeared over the pond, and as Toni looked up she felt a large hand cover her mouth as an arm moved to pick her up from behind. Remembering the drills that her Aunt Peggy taught her, Toni kicked at her captor's knees as she bit into his hand. As he cursed and dropped her, Toni ran for the mansion screaming for help.

As Toni ran as fast as she could towards the back of the house, she saw a blur in front of her before the man appeared with eyes flashing red as he grabbed her again.

"A pity, I guess we will have to do this the hard way. If you come quietly, I won't have to kill your moth-"

Toni gasped as her mother appeared behind the man and stabbed him with a long silver blade. The man staggered for a moment as his red eyes locked onto Toni.

"Even if I am dead, they will still come. For both of you. And by then, you will beg for death to come and take you away."

Toni's eyes widened as she saw the knife being pushed through the man from behind, blood dripping from the blade. Jarvis was suddenly in front of her, shielding her view as much as possible as he held her close.

Toni clutched at Jarvis as she clenched her eyes shut. She could hear the man, thing, shriek and swear even with Jarvis' hands covering her ears. When she finally built up the courage to take a peek, Toni could only gasp as what looked like black smoke, poured from the man's mouth as he collapsed to the ground.

Maria quickly ran to Toni, hands grasping everywhere. "Are you hurt baby? Did he hurt you at all?" Toni was pulled tightly into her mother's arms, hands pressed tightly against the back of her head as she felt hot tears on the side of her cheek.

Toni clung to Maria and didn't let go, even as Peggy and Ana ran outside into the backyard. Ana gasped at the sight while Peggy and Jarvis checked on the body. Toni tugged insistently on Maria's sleeve.

"He had red eyes. Red eyes…"

Maria tucked a stray hair behind Toni's ear as she stared at her daughter before carefully answering,

"Yes Toni, he was no longer a man but a demon."

Toni shuddered, "But why was he trying to kill us?"

Maria glanced quickly at Peggy and Jarvis, nodding as they silently agreed to discuss this later on. Maria turned back to Toni, with steel in her eyes,

"I'm not sure mia stella, but I am going to find out."

It was the first time that Toni had seen such a dark look in her mother's eyes. Whether at home with Toni, or at a party with Howard, Maria Stark always carried herself with poise and grace. No matter how heated the other women gossiped or the men stared, Maria Stark was pleasant and polite to everyone.

Toni didn't know it at the time, but she realized much later that the woman standing in front of her at that moment was not Maria Stark, but Maria Carbonell - member of the Men of Letters. A woman in a secret society of men who worked to gain knowledge of the mysteries of the supernatural. A woman who fought demons, ghosts, werewolves and protected the world every day with no one else the wiser. Or, at least that's what Toni understood at the time. It was rather hard to hear through the parlour door, even if she pressed her ear up against it.

Toni steeled herself as she opened the door a crack to peek inside the room. Mama was sitting across from Peggy and Ana as Jarvis brought out a tray of tea.

"Thank you Edwin. Where was I? Ah yes, before I decided to marry Howard, I was sent on a mission to investigate Obadiah Stane."

Toni could only see the back of her head, but even from far away she could see Aunt Peggy's sharp intake of breath.

"He's involved in this?"

Maria exhaled sharply, smoothing out her skirt. "Unfortunately. It was rumoured that he's been getting some supernatural help with business, but I still wasn't exactly able to prove how. I've been watching him for years, trying to figure out who exactly he's been working with, but whoever that's been has been very good at concealing themselves. No matter how much I've dug, I still haven't found anything conclusive."

Maria sighed as she stared into the fireplace.

"After Howard and I had started dating, someone had starting to kill off members of the Men of Letters one by one. I was forced to slow my investigation, and keep a low profile as best as I could…"

Peggy raised an eyebrow.

"By marrying Howard Stark?"

Maria laughed, "What better place to hide than in the spotlight? Who would suspect the wife of Howard Stark as a member of the Men of Letters?

Peggy snorted approvingly, "Fair enough, but that would also mean that you were also much more watched."

"Yes, unfortunately that also meant that I had to be much more discreet and careful with my investigations."

Maria glanced at the photograph over the mantle. It was taken right after twelve hours of labour when Toni came screaming into the world. Howard was away on a business trip, and wouldn't see his daughter until the next day. Jarvis had managed to snap it at the perfect moment. Maria looked exhausted, but she didn't care as she smiled down at her little girl.

"After I learned that I was pregnant, I stopped. The Men of Letters were slowly dying off, and I wasn't sure if I could do it on my own. I couldn't bear the thought of leaving Toni without a mother. And Howard…."

Peggy grasped Maria's hand and squeezed, nodding sadly, "Howard…"

They sat there in silence for a bit, sipping their tea. I better get back to my room before they notice, Toni thought as she slowly stood to go back to her room, leaving the door to the sitting room cracked open. It was surprising that Jarvis or Aunt Peggy haven't caught her yet, but they seemed distracted. Toni made her way back to her bedroom and crawled underneath her covers.

She could no longer hear the adults clearly, just the soothing tones of Jarvis and Peggy murmuring as her eyes drifted closed. The last thing she remembered before drifting off was her mother's worried voice…

"…I stopped looking, but I think I have to start again. Even after I stopped, we were still attacked. Toni was still attacked. If you all weren't there…I don't know what would have happened… I need to stop this…for good…."

Toni's eyes drifted shut, exhausted as she dreamt of red eyes, watching her in the darkness.

That night was the first of many that she dreamt of the red eyed man.

Shadows followed her as Toni ran through the mansion. A deep and chilling laugh would echo down the hallways as Toni darted through the hallways. There's no escape Toni, you will never be able to run from me. Toni ran and ran as her heart pounded in her chest. No matter what hallway or room she ran into, the shadows always morphed into the man with the red eyes. Suddenly he was there, and Toni was backed into a corner as he loomed over her. His arms reached out to grab her-

Toni shrieked as she jolted awake sobbing, knees pulled to her chest. Her chest was so tight, and it hurt so much. She couldn't breathe, she couldn't breathe, she couldn't breathe, she couldn't-

"Take a deep breath Toni, that's it darling. I'm right here, Mama is right here."

Jarvis turned on the light as Maria opened her arms. Toni slipped off the bed and launched herself into waiting arms. Warm arms encircled her as soothing words were whispered into her ear. Toni shook, hot tears streaming down her face. Maria scooped Toni up as she moved them to the bed, as Jarvis left murmuring about hot chocolate.

As Toni's breathing evened out, Maria shifted her on her lap so that they were face to face.

"Did you want to talk about it?"

Toni shook her head, burying her face into mother's neck, exhaling slowly. Lavender and vanilla. Her mother had always loved the scents, and never failed to put some on before she went to bed.

Fingers rubbing her back slowly and the soothing scent surrounded Toni as her eyes slowly drifted shut. Maria tucked Toni beneath the blankets, pulling the quilt under her chin.

I'm sorry Toni. I'm so sorry you got dragged into this…please forgive me.

The next day, Toni's education as a Woman of Letters began.

In addition to learning all she could about supernatural lore, Maria brought out all of the books that she could to help Toni learn what she did when she became a Men of Letters initiate. It didn't take long for Toni to absorb all that she could, and Maria would have been astounded if she didn't already know her daughter was a prodigy.

Latin texts to quickly be translated into English. Protection sigils were memorized backwards and forwards, and soon enough Toni was helping to teach Jarvis, Ana and Peggy how to draw them all over the house. Devil's traps were crafted, and exorcism rituals learned by rote.

Aunt Peggy had gleefully taken over the weapons training. Toni had learned how to load, unload and re-load various types of guns and pistols with precision and control. Jarvis had also decided to help out where he could; Toni was surprised to learn that he was a competitive fencer and spent many afternoons teaching her various drills.

She would have put all the other initiates to shame. Maria looked over at Toni fondly, as Peggy was teaching her how to shoot a pistol.

"Remember darling, anything can be a weapon. A pen, a bag, anything you can get a hold of will work."

Fighting seemed to be the only thing that Toni had to really work hard to learn. Her mind worked too fast for her body sometimes, and her body wasn't always moving fast enough to keep up. After watching a training session, Peggy had taken over Toni's training.

You don't go hard enough on her Maria, she won't be able to really defend herself if you keep going too soft on her.

As Peggy corrected Toni's stance and posture, Maria's eyes softened as Toni stumbled again.

"She has always been a fighter Ma'am, I think she will do fine in time."

Jarvis placed the tray down onto the table beside her. Hot tea with biscuits freshly baked from the oven set in front of her as Jarvis sat down beside her.

"I'm just worried that she's growing up too fast. Howard is already hard on her, and now this… she shouldn't have to deal with this at 8 years old. She should be tinkering in her lab playing with her next toy robot, not dreaming about red eyed demons chasing after her..."

A warm hand clasped hers gently. "We can't always control what happens to us in life, but at least this way Toni will be able to protect herself and decide for herself the path she wants to take."

Blood red eyes laughed at her as Toni screamed. Toni bolted into her bedroom, locking the door behind her as she ran into the closet. Her heart was racing in her chest as she clamped a hand over her mouth, muffling her shortened breath.

The bedroom door burst open as footsteps slowly walked towards the bed. Toni clenched her eyes shut as the footsteps drew closer and closer to the closet door. She held her breath as the footsteps stopped right outside the door.

For a moment, Toni swore that it was the pounding in her chest that would give her away.

A dark laugh came from beside her ear.

"Found you."

Toni screamed as she woke, drenched in sweat as her bedroom light was turned on.

"I've got you Miss Toni, I've got you."

Toni trembled as Jarvis took her into his arms, clutching as tightly as she could.

"I-I'm s-s-sorry Jarvis."

A hand patted her side softly. "It's quite alright Young Miss. There is nothing to be sorry about."

Jarvis said that there was nothing to worry about, but Toni still felt guilty. She could see how tired he, Ana and Mama were getting after taking turns in waking up and staying with her.

From that point on, Toni took short naps throughout the day. At night, she sat on her bed vigilante, keeping watch for red eyes in the darkness.

"I'll be back as soon as I can Toni, please be good for Jarvis and Ana. Your Aunt Peggy should be here in a couple days for your lesson."

Jarvis loaded her luggage in the car as Maria hugged Toni goodbye.

"Now don't be spending too much time in your workshop darling, I want you to be studying your lore as well."

"…yes Mama…"

Maria's eyes softened, "I promise I'll be back soon mia stella. I want you to take care of Jarvis and Ana for me while I'm gone, do you remember all of the protection sigils for the house?"

"Yes Mama! I'll do my best!"

Toni beamed as Maria placed a kiss on her forehead. "Of course you will darling, you've done such a good job already. I will see you soon Toni."

Toni waved as the driver pulled out of the driveway, even long after the car was out of sight.

"…and again Toni. That's it, don't forget to keep your guard up."

Toni huffed and moved her hands in front of her face, as Aunt Peggy circled her again.

"That's it! Remember, no matter how small you are, you can still use that to your advantage. Don't hold back, and always keep your guard up."

Alongside Jarvis and Ana's etiquette lessons, Aunt Peggy was continuing Toni's self-defence lessons. While still clumsy, Toni was getting better and better each lesson to Peggy's joy.

After a few more rounds, Toni finally collapsed onto the ground , breathing hard. She felt Aunt Peggy lying down beside her, and arms tucking her into her side.

Toni leaned in as she felt gentle fingers combing through her hair. Aunt Peggy brushed a hair away from her forehead and kissed it.

"You did well today Toni. We'll have to take a break from these lessons for a while darling. I've got some work I have to do and I'll be out of town for a while."

Peggy felt Toni's shoulders sag, as disappointed eyes shined back at her. Peggy felt awful leaving so soon, she had only been back a few days, and she was being called back to work already. Howard was, as per usual, away on SI business.

It has been months since Maria had left for her mission once again, spending only a day or two before heading out once again, but she was determined in tracking down the demon that had ordered the attack. Peggy tugged Toni close and hugged her.

"I'm sorry sweetheart, but I promise I'll be back soon. I'll take you out for ice cream when we get back. But for now, I have a present for you!"

Toni squealed as Aunt Peggy pulled out a small package leaning against her purse. Toni tore open the paper and gasped in surprise.

Two small teddy bears stared back at her. The first one was a light brown bear wearing the unmistakable red, white and blue uniform that she's seen so many times in her father's collection. He had a small cowl over his eyes and a round shield in his right paw. The other bear was a black bear with a dark brown Sergeant's uniform carrying a riffle on his back.

"I know how much you love the stories I've been telling you before bedtime, so I thought that while I'm gone, Steve and Bucky could keep you company."

Toni hugged both bears to her chest. Since Mama had left, Aunt Peggy would tell her bedtime stories all about the adventures she, Steve and Bucky would get up to during the war. Toni never cared too much about Captain America or Sergeant Barnes, no matter how many times Howard would tell her about them.

Toni loved how Steve was always brave and stood up to the bad guys, no matter how much smaller he was than everyone else.

Toni loved how Bucky told Peggy that he wasn't willing to follow Captain America into battle, but would always be right behind Steve Rogers.

Toni loved how Steve and Bucky would always look out for each other, how they always looked for each other no matter what happened.

It was the first time that Toni slept through the entire night without nightmares, as Steve and Bucky stood guard over her bed.

"…and that one?"

"That one there is Polaris, or the North Star."

Toni lifted her head from the blanket spread on the grass to glance at her mother. It was a clear, warm summer night, perfect for stargazing her mother proclaimed, as she led Toni behind the gazebo into the garden. A thermos of hot chocolate and scones half-eaten on the blanket beside them. as they stared up at the sky.

"It isn't the brightest star in the sky, but it marks due north and hardly ever moves, so sailors and travellers used to look for it to help them guide their way home."

Toni felt a weight settle onto her throat. Toni gasped as Maria secured a silver chain around her neck. A six pointed star encompassed by a circle of small diamonds gleamed back at her in the moonlight. A feeling of warmth settled in her stomach as Toni played with the necklace.

"This is the Aquarian Star, the symbol of the Men of Letters and of the Carbonell family. My mother had passed this down to me, and now I am giving it to you sweetheart. It will protect you and lead you to those who can help you when you need it the most."

"…Are you leaving again?"

"Yes, there are some things I need to check out for a little while."

"Can't I go with you?"

"No mia stella, you are starting school in just a few weeks and I want you to enjoy the rest of your summer before you leave."

"Do I have to go to boarding school? I could stay here and go to school here, then I can help you look…"

"No Toni, this is something Mama has to do on her own. Besides, I will feel better that you are safe at school."

"But-"

"This is not up for discussion Toni."

Toni scowled, crossing her arms as she turned away onto her other side. Maria's eyes softened.

"You have plenty of time to chase after demons once you are an adult Toni, if that is the path you decide to take. For now, just enjoy being a kid as long as you can alright? Study well, make some friends and enjoy school."

Maria turned Toni so that they were face to face and tilted her chin upwards.

"Even if you decide not to take the same path as me, I will always be proud of you Toni. You have a bright future ahead of you, no matter what you decide to do. No matter what you want to do, I will be happy as long as you are happy and safe."

Toni curled into her mother's side as they stared back up into the night sky.

"Happy birthday sweetheart."

"Thank you Mama."

No.

Toni Stark is not Howard's daughter. Toni Stark is the Goddaughter of Peggy Carter. Toni Stark is the beloved charge of Ana and Edwin Jarvis. Toni Stark is the daughter of Maria Stark, a Woman of Letters and living legacy of the Carbonell family.

"Remember Toni, Stark men might be made of iron. But, Carbonell women are made of stars."

A/N: I haven't written anything in a long while so please let me know what you think, and if you are enjoying this so far!