Introduction – Part 3

~*2 Years and 3 months Later*~

Alex spent the next two and a quarter years bouncing around the United States. She would travel to each of the fifty states along with Canada and Mexico and spend anywhere from three to ten days in each place followed by a week at home. For the first year she had spent that time at her Malibu beach house but during her initial trip to New York she had found a place to build her home and once it was completed she spent her breaks there.

Within the first two months she had stuck to New York and the surrounding states. Quite early on she had discovered a forest in the heart of Wisconsin called the black river forest and it was perfect for what she wanted. It was a beautiful pine tree forest that made the air smell delicious with several small lakes dotted throughout the area and lots of crisscrossing connected rivers and small streams.

At the side of one of the larger lakes was where she had decided to build her perfect home. She was going to have it designed to her specifications and she had contacted Zungar immediately for his help. He had immediately set about purchasing the majority of the land and getting her in touch with several architectural designers and building contractors to help her design and create her perfect house. The Goblins helped with the negotiations with several construction companies in order to get her the best price.

Her house once completed had six floors, two below ground and four above. The first basement level was split into two parts; the first part was an underground pool designed to look very cave like and lit up with a mix of purple, blue and green fairy lights and candles giving the room a certain atmosphere, the second part was a three space garage containing her two cars, an Astin Martin DB9 in quantum silver and a Jaguar XK convertible in dark purple, the third space held her motorbike, a jet black Kawasaki Ninja. The garage opened out to a ramp at the back of the house leading onto the road leading out of the forest.

The floor below was a heavily warded open place area, the only way into the floor was through a small access door hidden within the garage and was both magically and password protected. It was lined with tables and cabinets along with a small boxed off area which contained a small time dilation area. There were piles of Wizarding equipment around and cabinets full of ingredients and different magical components. There was a set station for the sterilisation of equipment, one set up for ingredient preparation and several stations with various styles of cauldrons for her experimentation and brewing. On the opposite side of the room was a table set with a laser inscriber, usually used for diamonds, and soldering iron for delicate inscriptions.

The main floor of the house at ground level was an open plan, rustic living room, kitchen and dining room with beautiful views in every direction from the lakes and surrounding forest. The amount of windows made the entire floor look open, bright and airy. Just outside the front door was a set of steps leading down to the lake with a hot tub part of the way down on the left, following the same direction to the other side of the house was an outside cooking area equipped with a barbeque and stone pizza oven, boxed off slightly by a seating area surrounding a fire pit.

On the other side of the front door was a small slightly separate cabin made specifically for her house elves. It had a small kitchenette and seating area along with a single bedroom as per the blushing house elves request. The cabin was situated near a garden that had been set up by Winky and a recreation of each of the elves little hobby huts from the Malibu house.

The first floor consisted of the master bedroom with ensuite bathroom, a not much smaller guest room and separate bathroom. The remaining two rooms were linked by a curtain partition, one half full of her ever growing collection of clothes and the other stocked with her collection of shoes and other accessories.

The next floor was very simply three guest bedrooms with simple ensuite bathrooms. She didn't know why she wanted guest bathrooms when she had no intention of inviting anyone here but she had decided to have them just in case.

The third and final floor was open all the way to the roof. It was filled top to bottom with all her No-Maj books with a warded doorway behind one of the many book shelves that was the entrance to the circular tower that contained her magical library. To one end of the main room was a comfy seating area near a floor to ceiling window near an open fireplace, it had a faux-fur rug lay in front of it on the hard wood floor and several plush armchairs dotted around with little side tables.

During her time at either home she had studied and taken all her exams in the no-maj world, taken her driving test and gained her citizenship. It was within this time that she had started her project into combining magic and technology. She had managed with some of the older technology but it seemed the more sophisticated modern technology became the harder it was to combine with magic. This meant that unfortunately her project had hit a bit of a road block, she needed to learn more about current technology before she could make any further progress.

While she was waiting on that she had looked into a scientific theory that for the current level of science and engineering within the no-maj world was just not possible. However with some slight applications of magic it not only seemed viable option but more than likely an extremely successful endeavour. The perpetual motion generator was a worthy project in her mind; it would help her get even more off the grid than she already was.

~*8*~

It was early November when she received the annual invite, that she had missed for the last few years due to travelling. She had all her mail for the no-maj world sent to a post office box that she had set up in New York. She would go to check it approximately once a month and had the same set up in the magical world with either Winky or Dobby going to check it once a month.

Every year in late October/early November she would receive an invite from Stark Industries inviting her to the company's New Years Banquet. She had always sent her belated apologies but maybe now would be the time to make an appearance. She could use the opportunity to find out the nuts and bolts of the company and maybe she could pick the brain of someone from the technology part of the company to get some ideas for her own projects.

That had led her to the here and now. It was the 31st December 2000 and she had booked herself into the Hilton hotel in Los Angeles for two days and one night. The hotel was only a short drive away from the main headquarters for Stark Industries where the banquet was being held.

Having decided to dress for the occasion. She had on a long sheer black and grey, one shoulder gown with a satin over the shoulder train draped elegantly down her back to her ankles with the dress going slightly lower until it touched the floor. Her black and red hair was artfully curled up into an elegant but slightly messy bun with stray curls dancing around her face. Her lips were painted deep red with her eyes done in a smoky purple style. Her nails were done in a black and red manicure that perfectly matched her platformed stiletto heels. She had just slid the final pin into her hair when the room's phone rang from her bedside table.

"Hello" she answered swiftly.

"Hello Miss Black" the receptionist spoke "Your limo has arrived for the evening"

"Thank you" Alex said with an unseen smile "I will be right down" she said before replacing the receiver back on its hook.

Turning to face the room she grabbed her small black clutch bag from the bed, opened it to check she had everything she needed inside and headed for the door. She had decided to rent the limo for the night to indulge a little but also to provide her with an excuse later so she could leave at a reasonable time. As she left the hotel the driver exited the front of the limo and walked over to the back door to open it for her to get inside.

"Thank you" she said to the man politely as she stepped off the curb and prepared to step into the limo. She paused with one foot in the car and turned to the driver "Just so you know I will be leaving the party at exactly 1am. If you drop me a text once you get outside it will give me the excuse I need to escape. You however will be free for the rest of the night barring any emergencies but you'll still be paid for the full evening. If they're close by you are more than welcome to go and ring in the New Year with your family if you'd like"

"Thank you Miss" the driver said with a thankful smile "I will most definitely take you up on that offer"

"No problem" she said as she stepped into the car and shuffled into her seat. The driver quietly closed the door behind her before swiftly moving to the front of the car. Settling into the driver's seat he started the limo and smoothly pulled out into the Los Angeles traffic. The drive was quite a short one, just a mere twenty five minutes later he pulled up to Stark Industries Headquarters. The driver remained seated as the Valet stepped forward to open her door.

Stepping out of the limo she stood on the sidewalk beside the valet and paused. She simply wanted to take a moment to admire the building in front of her. It was a majestic building, not necessarily to her taste as it was very modern, almost futuristic. It fit the company well and suited their company slogan 'Changing the world for a better future'. Taking a deep breath she smiled at the valet as he closed the limo door behind her and retook his position to wait for the next arrival.

Walking up the steps she approached the entrance, which was very well lit despite the earlyish time. There was a tuxedo-wearing maître'd proudly stood behind the lectern. Beside him was a red and gold rope partition, behind, stationed with trays full of champagne flutes stood a diagonal line of several waitresses.

Approaching them quite quickly despite her heels she stood before the main person he welcomed her with swift precision. "Good evening madam, may I see your invitation"

Alex opened her clutch and retrieved the small embossed card that acted as an invitation and handed it over to the man. He scanned the card against his StarkPad and checked the information it provided. It probably wasn't obvious to a lot of people but she saw the man take in the details of her face as if to compare it to an image he was seeing on his tablet. It was swift and discrete and she wholeheartedly approved.

Unclipping the red velvet rope he gave her a smile that would have made Mona Lisa proud. A waitress was quick to approach and with a slight bow offer her the tray of champagne for her to take a glass. She said quiet thanks before returning her attention to the maître'd.

"It's a pleasure, Miss Black, if you could make your way straight forward into the banquet hall a seating chart is provided" he said with that same ambiguous smile as he hooked the rope back into place and retook his station with a final word "I hope you have a wonderful evening"

"Thank you" Alex said as she headed in the indicated direction "You as well"

Stepping through the set of double doors she checked her location on the display board before her and headed to her designated table. On the table settings there was a small sheet of paper with the night's agenda artfully written. It was now twenty past five so she was about ten minutes earlier than the agenda indicated the start time would be. According to the writing there was to be a thirty minute grace period for guests to mingle before the food and presentations started at six o'clock sharp.

Taking a sip of her champagne she looked around the room, it was currently mostly empty, just another couple f early arrivals, a few waitresses straightening things up unnecessarily and a small group of technicians doing the final checks on all the equipment up on the stage. She suppressed a groan as she noticed that the majority of the early arrivals were all a lot older than her, they all had the same snooty attitude , their noses with all tilted skywards and they all wore an identical holier-than-thou expression on their faces. The rest of them were at least two decades younger than the first group but wore the same pompous expression on their faces.

The atmosphere once people started to notice her appearance was a familiar one, and she hated it.

Suddenly she once more felt like a muggleborn surrounded by pureblood elitists, it was horrible and something she thought she'd never have to experience again. She definitely didn't like the predatory looks that appeared on some of the men's faces when they took notice of her looks, her obvious wealth and the fact she appeared to be alone. The greed that sparked in their eyes and the scheming expressions that crossed their faces was most definitely disconcerting but was also something she was slightly more used to.

Hopefully they would be smart enough not to approach her tonight, she didn't want to cause a scene but she would most definitely send them crying back to their mothers if the need arose.

Turning back to her table she sipped her champagne and decided to remain seated for the first part of the night. She didn't want to provide or encourage any opportunities for them to approach her and make idiots of themselves and she was unsure if she could curb her tongue when the night hadn't even started yet.

Unnoticed by Alex she had also caught the attention of another person who was the main attraction to the night's events.

~*8*~

Anthony Edward 'Tony' Stark walked onto the stage rechecking all his equipment after the technicians had all left. It was a nervous habit more than desire to see if they had gotten anything wrong and often popped out whenever he was tasked with public speaking. He much preferred winging it but he knew he couldn't do that here, it was too important to the company for him to be that careless. Making things up on the spot however came naturally and didn't give him time to worry about what to say as he had often already said it. He was adjusting the microphone that was wired into the podium for the speeches when the sound of clacking heels was heard approaching him from behind.

Turning around he spotted the tall strawberry blonde women who he called both his Personal Assistant and his friends, Virginia 'Pepper' Potts. Tugging uselessly on his jacket he unnecessarily tried to straighten it as he returned her smile uncomfortably. She was perhaps the only person who knew how much these kind of things bothered him and although there was nothing she could do to help she always tried.

"Everything is set and there is ten minutes till the majority of the people are due to arrive" Pepper said leadingly "The bar is open, why don't you go get a drink to calm your nerves"

"Ok, that's a good idea" Tony said with a nod of his head as he glanced around the room. Before he could take a step his gaze landed on a young red headed woman he had never seen before. His eyes flickered briefly around the room noting that he wasn't the only one who was taking notice of her. "Hey Pepper, who is that?" Tony asked with a jerk of his chin in the girl's direction.

Pepper smiled slightly, if there was one thing that could distract Tony Stark it was a pretty girl. She took note of the table the girl was sat at and consulted her StarkPad "That is Alexandra Black, she bought shares in Stark Industries a couple of years ago after recently moving to America and was looking for some investment opportunities for her family monies. This is the first event she has ever attended usually she just sends belated apologies"

"Where'd she move from?" Tony asked with limited curiosity. People who came from family money were usually pretty predictable and boring in his opinion but there was something different about this girl.

"She was raised in Surrey, England" Pepper said reading it of her tablet. All investors were required to pass a security check due to their government and military contracts, so they often had quite a bit of information on investors.

"Huh" he said pulling his gaze away and walking off the stage to the bar in the next room. He couldn't help but keep part of his attention on the young woman in question who looked a combination of exasperated and frustrated as a few young men tried to talk at her despite her obvious annoyance.

~*8*~

Alex sighed with relief when a woman not much older than her stepped up to the podium on the stage and announced for everyone to take their seats as the night was about to start. Five minutes later everyone was finally seated and a swarm of waiters and waitresses descended on the banquet hall with their first course.

Closing her eyes Alex took a deep breath and tried to regain her calm by strengthening her Occlumency shields. She had the unfortunate luck to be seated next to one of the vultures she had spotted earlier and if this guy kept up his behaviour she was soon going to escalate from slapping wandering hands to outright punching him in the face as obviously the first reaction wasn't getting the message across properly. She prayed to any deity that was willing to listen that the food and presentations would be enough to keep the man distracted but she honestly wasn't holding out much hope.

She gave the waiter a small smile as he placed the small plate in front of her containing a prawn and smoked salmon salad. Gratefully she accepted the glass of white wine offered with their course by the second waitress immediately behind the first. She hummed to herself as she ate, she appreciated the fresh fish but she usually avoided salads as she had never really seen the appeal nor enjoyed the taste of a bunch of leaves on a plate.

Glancing around the room she smothered her giggles when she spotted a couple of the older stuck up women sipping their wine through pursed lips with their pinkies in the air as if in a salute to their superiority. It reminded her, rather unpleasantly, of her Aunt Petunia.

Her attention was called to the stage when an older bald man with a neatly trimmed beard approached the podium. "Hello everyone" he said with a charming smile fixed to his face "and welcome to the Annual Stark Industries New Years Banquet" he paused briefly for the polite applause before continuing "For those of you who don't already know I am Obadiah Stane, business partner of Tony Stark and Stark Industries Second in Command. I am going to provide you with a brief overview of the agenda for the night followed by an introduction to Stark Industries for any new people in the room tonight. Next will be a video showing our past accomplishments and more notably contributions"

"Following my speech the fish course will be served followed by another video presentation of our current and ongoing projects. The main meal will be served preceding a talk from Tony Stark himself detailing the future progression of the company. Finally dessert will be served and the ball room will be opened where there is a well stocked bar and some light music so everyone can network and get to know each other better, ready to ring in the New Year" Stane paused once more for the obligatory applause before he started his speech.

As his speech progressed Alex's frown deepened, the more Stane spoke about their work with the military to keep their country safe the more her instincts were telling her he was a liar. When he said he looked forward to the days where their weapons would no longer be needed she could tell it was an outright lie. Shaking her head slightly she looked away, it was the trouble with being a weapons manufacturer, if the wars stopped there would be no more need for the weapons they produced rendering the company unnecessary.

After his speech the lights dimmed and a small video began to play showing examples of some of the past accomplishments of Stark Industries. It showed Howard Stark and how he stated the company with his revolutionary weapons systems that assisted them in winning the Second World War. It showed his work on the Manhattan project and he cooperative work on Project rebirth that was fundamental in the creation of the super soldier serum and the evolution of Captain America. The video then switched to more modern times and explained that after the death of Howard Stark Stane took over until Tony turned twenty one and established himself as the head of Stark Industries into a new age, an age not just about weapons but making advancements with technology as well.

The video came to a close and the lights brightened again as the waiters once more descended and circulated the room in one smooth choreographed rotation. Old plates where removed and replaced with the fish course and new glasses of white wine were provided. The food was a delicious looking sea bass with a carrot purée and some lightly pickled vegetables.

As she sat enjoying the fish course she half wished she hadn't set the limos return time for one in the morning. It was only just nearing quarter past seven and the food and presentations weren't due to finish until nine. This meant she would have four hours to kill before her limo arrived to pick her up. She couldn't really leave a New Years Eve party before they rang in the New Year at any rate without it being considered rude which meant without a suitable excuse to leave she was going to have to endure mingling with the other guests before that time came.

After everyone had finished Stane once more stood up and approached the podium and spoke to the room "I hope everyone enjoyed the fish course" he said and waited for he murmured agreements to settle before continuing "Now I would like to introduce a brief presentation about our current and ongoing projects"

He retook his seat and the room darkened once more as the video began to play. A deep voice told the story of the innovative advancements Stark Industries had made within the past year within the realm of communication. It showed the advancements they have made with the cell phones and the continued foray into computer technology including the newly release StarkPad for modern, mobile computer work. It was followed by a brief overview of the weapons designed and created for the government and finished with a Stark Industries promise for the future, with their advancements they were hopeful that they could bring the world into a new era of safety and communication.

The video ended and the lights once more brightened as the waiters returned with their main course. It was a beautifully cooked rack of lamb served with a celeriac mash and a fig post sauce with some seasonal greens.

Alex was quite delighted with the choice of meat; it would be her first taste of lamb that had been properly cooked. Her only other experience of the meat was during the Easter feasts at Hogwarts where they served over cooked legs of lamb for the masses. She had to admit she enjoyed it immensely. She enjoyed her main course with a rose wine she had requested in place of the offered red, she had discovered quite early on in her travels that she did have the taste buds required to enjoy red wine, she found the drink too bitter to enjoy especially with the red meat it was so often served with.

This time the dishes were cleared immediately as a small booklet was left in their place for the next part of the presentation. Finally it appeared to be time to hear from the man of the hour as a man she assumed was Tony Stark stood from the head table and approached the podium.

She had to admit he was nothing like she was expecting. She assumed he would be another of the peppy rich kids that half filled the room, with a highly intelligent team of geniuses behind him which kept the company on top. As he began to speak she found that this was not the case.

At the podium stood a suave young man, he was well dressed in a crisp tuxedo. His goatee was trimmed to perfection with his eyes partially hidden behind a pair of light purple sunglasses. His hair was styled into a messy quiff and he wore an easy smile on his face. She could tell he knew the effect he had on people and he enjoyed it thoroughly but she could also tell the façade was somewhat misleading to the truth of the man.

When he started to speak she could tell he knew what he was talking about. There was not stumbling or hesitation over the words, no hint of indecision when he spoke to answer questions or explain something further. He was the genius behind the companies continued success.

The only downside he could see was while he was undeniably attractive he also not only knew it but often used it to his advantage.

The start of the talk consisted of explanations on how Stark Industries were going to fulfil the military contracts they currently held. This included exclusive new body armour and missile targeting systems, as well as armour plating for their vehicles. He then went onto discuss the newest soon to be released StarkPhone with the introduction of video calls along with the newly release tablet computer and where they hope to progress with them. He then demonstrated the use of the holographic keypad and built in security system with fingerprint access.

Alex was undeniably impressed. The extent of his technological advancements was fascinating and she was very much looking forward to whatever they came up with in the future. She was still hugely put off by the weapons they had in production and she hated that to an extent she was currently profiting off the war efforts, she just wished there was a way for her to guarantee her money went in the direction of the technologies they were creating instead of the weapons.

Tony unfortunately chose that particular moment to switch to discussing the new missiles they had in production with advance heat seeking targeting systems and cascading damage feature. He finished his speech by saying Stark Industries would always be ready with weapons to fight for the freedom and peace of the American people and would do everything they could to stop the growing threat of Terrorism.

Alex was happy to feel his honest hope for a future without the need for his weapons.

As Tony retook his seat the waiters descended for the final time of the night and circulated the room with dessert. As the dessert was placed in front of her Alex internally squealed with delight, in front of her was a decadent looking layered chocolate mousse, with three varieties of chocolate each separated by a layer of sour cherry sauce.

If only it was a little bigger she thought to herself as she thoroughly scraped the sides of the glass with her spoon, it would definitely satisfy her sweet tooth then, as it was she was resisting the urge to ask for seconds.

~*8*~

Once she had practically licked the dessert glass clean Alex took one quick look around the room. Upon seeing the majority of the people were happily chatting away as they slowly ate their desserts she quickly left the room and entered the ballroom. She had hoped there would be somewhere in this room where she could settle herself in and avoid as many people as possible in a place like this.

To one side of the room was the bar with one end open and the other bending to a corner around a very well placed pillar, a pillar that partially hid two seats at the bar. As she sat in the seat closest to the wall she smiled when she noticed she could see most of the room from this position. As she settled into her seat and adjusted the length of her dress around herself the bartender came through the door behind the bar.

Noticing her immediately he approached and asked "Good evening miss, is there anything I can get for you?"

"Hi, what rose wines do you have? Any zinfandel?" Alex asked softly.

"Yes, shall I get you a glass?"

"You might as well leave me a bottle, I have no plans to move from my current position and don't want to half to keep bothering you when the vultures inevitably descend" Alex explained when she saw the perplexed look on his face.

"No problem miss" he said with a suppressed smile as he went about collecting her a glass and put the bottle of wine in an ice bucket for her.

"Thank you" she said with a smile as she poured herself a glass and settled in for a few hours of people watching before she could politely leave.

As the rest of the guests entered the room along with a dozen waiters with trays of various nibbles. She watched as they all entered, she very nearly snorted as the parade of people seemed to give off an even worse impression than the one in front. It was almost like watching a pedigree dog show only it was old rich people determined to prove who had the biggest stick lodged firmly up there arses. It looked ridiculous.

She just really didn't get that mentality. They weren't appreciative of what they had, they just took it for granted that it was there and always would be. If they ever ended up losing all their money they wouldn't know how to live without it, not in the real world.

She could admit she liked to indulge and enjoyed having the money she did but that came from having nothing. She had lived through so much at such a young age that now she had the chance too she wanted to enjoy a approximate facsimile of a childhood. A time without responsibility where she could do whatever she wanted just because she wanted too. She had vowed to herself that she would live her life to the fullest from now on; she wouldn't go back to merely trying to survive. If she could work out a way to help someone along the way then great but she was going to have fun and not in a way that was reliant on her having money although that it would help.

However if the opportunity to irritate and annoy some rich fuddy duddys presented itself she would take it as a welcome element of pleasure that she would enjoy exploiting.

She had been relaxing at the bar for about an hour when the seat beside her was pulled out and someone sat down. She didn't bother to look over; they'd either leave her alone or be dealt with appropriately.

In the last hour she had only left her position once. That had been for a very good purpose and probably the only kind of situation that would have garnered that reaction. A slightly chunky older woman had bumped into a young waitress causing her to drop a tray of nibbles that she had just finished offering to the group of people nearby. The woman, dismissive of her own fault in the situation turned and started to loudly berate the young girl while the others did nothing more that watch.

It wasn't in her nature to sit on the sidelines when something like this was going on and she wasn't about to start that particular trend. So she strode over and quickly put herself between the arrogant woman and the poor waitress that didn't deserve to be shouted at. Staring straight at the woman with a look of pure loathing she sneered "I congratulate you madam on your voluptuous figure, but do try to keep it to yourself in future. It would be just awful if someone were to get hurt due to your own carelessness" she then immediately turned away from the woman dismissing her as insignificant and knelt down to help the waitress recover the fallen food.

"Thank you" the waitress aid with a tremulous smile.

"No problem sweetie" she returned with a smile "I love getting to insult idiots like that, they're usually too stupid to realise they've been insulted the majority of the time. Which causes me a great deal of amusement" she flashed the girl a mischievous grin which grew a slight laugh from the girl as she relaxed slightly in response.

"Thanks" she said once more as they stood looking much more relaxed than she was a moment prior before they both stood and she returned the tray to the kitchen and Alex returned to her designated seat at the bar.

The person who had seated himself beside her didn't say anything for a while and just watched her as he waited for the bartender's attention to turn to him. As the man approached the unmistakable voice of Tony Stark said "Hey barkeep, scotch on the rocks"

Alex was still set to just ignore him, after all he may well have come over here for some peace and quiet away from all the clamouring investors all of who were desperate for a piece of him. She had heard quite a few people simpering at him throughout the night offering up their ideas even though each one sounded more ridiculous than the last. Not one of them was a realistic idea and seemed to come straight out of a science fiction novel. She had a feeling if it wasn't for the strawberry blonde woman who had positioned herself near him at all times he might have said something far more entertaining than the polite dismissals he was currently offering.

"Hey, are you having a good time?" Tony asked with a hint of sarcasm that if you would have been easily missed. He couldn't deny his interest in the girl he'd spent most of the night watching her and found himself genuinely intrigued. She obviously had money, she wouldn't be here if she didn't but he couldn't seem to get a proper read on her other than her earlier reaction to the incident with the waitress.

Alex eyed the man for a moment before she decided to play with him a little "Is it that obvious?" Alex said in a slightly airy but petulant voice "I'd much rather be in Time Square like I had originally had planned but Daddy insisted I came here instead" she pouted obnoxiously at him all the while internally laughing at the grimace that flickered across his face once she had started to talk.

Tony tried really hard to keep the grimace off his face, honest he did, but he was already seriously regretting coming over here. He turned to stare across the bar as he responded politely "Oh, are you a dancer?"

"Oh no" she simpered hiding the smirk that tried to break free when she saw how uncomfortable he was getting, as she fluttered her eyelashes at him and continued in such a disgustingly simpering voice that she made herself cringe almost as much as his reaction to the voice amused her "I was just going to be one of the dancers in the crowd but I was hoping I would get caught on camera and get to be on TV"

Tony took a deep breath and briefly turned to face her as he said "Well I'm sure you'll get there next year"

"Yeah" she said in a breathy sigh "I suppose but that's sooo long away"

Clearing his throat he turned to look at her directly this time ready to make his excuses and leave when he spotted the spark in her eye. It was a spark he knew well from his own reflection and his lips started to twitch in response "Oh your good" he said as his lips spread into a smirk "You almost had me there"

"Given your reputation I thought it might be appropriate" Alex said in her normal voice her accent showing through fully as she laughed.

"Any other occasion most definitely but when I'm surrounded by investors Pepper makes sure I behave" he answered with a grin not at all bothered at being tricked.

"Pepper?" Alex questions before partially answering the question herself "the statuesque strawberry blonde that seemed to have been on guard all might?"

"Yes" Tony said laughing "I don't think many people realise that's what she's doing though"

"Ah well" Alex said with a wave of her hand "The looks of pleading you send her way when one of the many arrogant sods get started on a particularly dense idea gave the game away I'm afraid"

"So you've been watching me huh?" Tony retorted with a smirk.

Returning the smirk she replied immediately and without hesitation "About as much as you've been watching me"

They locked each other in an intense stare that neither seemed willing to break, it took a couple of moments, but then Tony broke with a laugh and asked "So are you enjoying your hiding place?"

"I am" Alex said with a slightly smug smile "It saves the idiots in the room seeing as I currently don't have someone to act as a leash"

"Ah" Tony hummed to himself as if he understood completely which he probably did "Fair enough"

"And besides I'm not exactly hiding" Alex said and continued before he could interrupt "If I was you would not have been able to find me"

"Maybe you only wanted to be found by me" Tony flirted.

"That was awful" Alex responded immediately shutting him down.

"I know but it was worth it" he replied with a unrepentant grin.

Alex laughed slightly as she grabbed her wine and took a sip.

"So what brought you to the states?" Tony asked.

"I needed a change of scenery" she answered softly.

"I've got to admit you're a lot different than most people who come from family monies" Tony hinted.

Alex, never being one for subtlety answered simply and without hesitation "My parents died when I was a baby. I didn't know anything about the money I had until I was nearly eighteen" Three months before my eighteenth birthday in fact.

"Oh, sorry" Tony winced slightly fearing he might have offended her.

"It's no problem" she shrugged not bothered in the slightest. It was hard to miss what you never had and she had come to a realisation during her time with the goblins. The sadness she felt upon the mention of her parents was more due to her mourning the childhood she could have had . It was after all impossible to miss people you had never known.

"So, how are you enjoying America so far?" Tony asked unsubtly changing the subject.

"I like it so far" she answered before elaborating a little "I've been travelling around the states since I got here and only just covered them all a few months ago. Just in time to receive your invitation in fact Mr Stark" Alex said with a smile.

"Cool, have you found a place to settle?" he said with a grin. He was surprised to find himself enjoying the conversation without the aspect of serious flirting going on "And call me Tony, Mr Stark makes me sound old"

"Alex" she offered simply, she figured since he knew she was from family money he probably knew her full name "I bought the majority of a forest in Wisconsin about two years ago and had my house built there whilst I was exploring. I also have a small beach house in Malibu which I bought before I arrived over here so I alternate depending on what weather I am in the mood for"

"I live in Malibu at the moment as well" Tony offered.

"I love it there don't get me wrong but between living in England and then going to Boarding School in Scotland I'm just not used to that level of heat" Alex admitted sheepishly.

Tony laughed slightly even as he nodded "Yeah, I have an AI that keeps the temperature of my house regulated so I don't need to worry about that unless I want to be able to feel it"

"How difficult was it to make your AI?" Alex asked with curiosity "For someone like me with only a basic knowledge of science and engineering, would it be doable?"

She would love to try and make an AI, but after witnessing the advancement to almost sentience that Mr Weasley's car had gone through when exposed to the level of magic Hogwarts possessed it made her wary of trying to blend magic with such advance technology.

Maybe it would be something to consider in the future.

"With only that level of knowledge it would be impossible" Tony said firmly "You need advanced knowledge of computer programming and robotic based engineering"

"Ah Fair enough" Alex accepted with a shrug.

Tony watched her for a moment. He could admit he wanted to flirt with her, she was a beautiful and curvy woman and he was only a man after all, but despite that he was enjoying himself and he refused to ruin it. Besides he honestly didn't think she would fall for his normal seduction tactics, she seemed smart though and had a mischievous quality that he enjoyed. If he was lucky maybe she would let him get to know her better.

"Not to bring down the mood or anything but I am curious" Tony said in warning before he asked "What made you decide to invest in Stark Industries?"

Alex looked at him for a moment debating whether to actually tell him the truth. It wasn't in her nature to lie nor was it in her to pander to the oversensitive egos of others so in the end she did what she usually did and was completely honest to the point of too blunt "My accountant was very persuasive when I first came to America" Alex explained "Not long after I arrived your share went on sale and he convinced me it wasn't an opportunity to be missed" she said enjoying the surprise that filled his eyes at her transparent honesty "I came here tonight for several reasons but mainly to see if it was an investment that I wanted to continue"

"Have you made a decision yet?" Tony couldn't help but ask.

"No" she admitted with a frown "I love your research and development in technology but the weapons aspect puts me off. Combined with my account sending me word that the focus has started to shift more onto the weapons manufacturing" she shrugged showing her indecision.

"Military contracts are unfortunately getting more demanding at the moment" Tony admitted.

"I get that" she said with a frown "Threats are getting worse by the day and the military need weapons to combat that ever growing threat but it doesn't make me comfortable to be funding their creation. The flip of that is your technology which is amazing and is going to change the world and I want to be able to say I was a part of helping you to achieve that" she finished with a frown.

Tony couldn't help but admire her blunt honesty. He was so used to people blowing smoke that her blunt responses were a nice change of pace "I think we have contracts set out for that" Tony said with a frown.

"I did sign a contract to that effect but I don't have any guarantee of that. No way to track where my money is going or being used within your company" Alex admitted her concern "I have bad past experiences that lead to me being slightly paranoid"

"If you want I can arrange for you to come and meet me at my home in Malibu next time you're in the area and I can run a check for you" Tony offered for once without any ulterior motives. "If the money goes to the accounts Pepper looks after for me then it's going to the right place for technology, Obie monitors the accounts for the weapons department. If it's going to the wrong place I can change that and even backdate it for you so it's always been going to where it should have"

"You don't seem like the type to arrange meetings and look out for investors" Alex said with a smirk while she searched his face, she couldn't ignore the little voice in the back of her mind wondering what was in it for him.

"Oh yeah" Tony smirked in return "What type of person do I seem like then?"

"The type to avoid them as much as possible unless there no alternative" Alex half stated half guessed.

"Ha, you're not wrong" Tony admitted "I have never arranged to meet an investor before but I do make exceptions for people I like"

"Ah, so you didn't come over here with the intention of trying to get me into bed" Alex teased with a smirk and a knowing glint in her eye. She watched delighted as he very obviously choked slightly on the sip of whiskey he'd just taken.

Clearing his throat he decided to answer honestly "I am not going to lie the idea did cross my mind especially after you dropped the air-head act" he admitted "I realised pretty quickly you weren't that sort of girl but by then I was enjoying our conversation so I decided to stay anyway. I don't think I've ever quite met a girl like you"

"At the risk of sounding completely cliché, there are no girls like me" Alex said with a cheeky grin "but thank you" she said graciously accepting the compliment for what it was. She bit her lip slightly in indecision, his offer seemed genuine and really there wasn't a lot to lose. Reaching over she grabbed her clutch off the bar and she pulled out her cell phone before handing it over to him "I can't remember the number so you can just add your own and send yourself a text or something"

"This phone is crap" he said with a wink as he took the two year old StarkPhone from her and did as requested. He enjoyed the crooked smile he got in return probably more than he should have. Once he finished he gave the phone back and she put it back into her bag.

"Thanks" she responded snarkily before expanding "I don't use it for much so as long as it still works I don't see the point of upgrading"

"Fair enough" Tony nodded, he didn't know how he'd be if he didn't just get the upgraded phones as they came into production as the owner of the company.

"And Tony, Thank you" she said earnestly, she continued at his enquiring look "For letting me fund just part of your company"

"No problem" Tony shrugged "normally I'd say something pacifying about our weapons being needed to protect our country but I can tell that wouldn't be appreciated"

"You are not wrong" Alex nodded with a slightly bitter smile "it would have resulted in me selling my shares immediately"

"Do you mind if I ask about your aversion to weapons" Tony asked cautiously.

Not willing nor able to go into her experiences with war and being used as a living weapon for Albus Dumbledore's Greater good of the Wizarding World. She decided to go for a simpler but no less honest answer "In my opinion violence just creates more violence. Giving America bigger weapons just makes other countries create bigger weapons in order to be able to compete. In the end, it's usually innocent people who pay the price. It's a chaotic cycle of destruction"

"So it more the people in charge and those who control the weapons than the actual weapons themselves" Tony deduced looking quite surprised "I'll admit I do enjoy making weapons more for seeing all the different things I can come up with and create than because they're weapons. I've never fired one barring demonstrations though and lately government contracts have been getting more demanding which has been taking away a lot of my creativity with them. This company was originally built on weapons I don't know if that will ever stop"

"Do you dislike the moniker the press have given you?" Alex asked bluntly "the merchant of death, it seemed to me that it should be your dads legacy seeing as you introduced the technology aspects to the company"

"Yeah I hate it" Tony admitted. He was quickly growing used to her bluntness, so much so that he didn't even flinch at the question. He was honestly finding it rather charming and more than a little refreshing. There was no hidden agenda, just good old curiosity. No air, no graces, she was just unapologetically herself "Right now I'm helping to keep our country safe with the weapons I build so I keep going in order to help them as much as I can"

"Fair enough" she said accepting the answer. It was an entirely different scenario than what she went through and she knew due to those experiences she was more than a little biased "Maybe you should try and add some different projects under the Stark Industries Banner. Something to help you counteract the stigma"

"Like what?" Tony asked curious if she had some actual ideas or if she was just offering some sound advice.

"You could donate some of your older models of body armour to law enforcement in high risk areas" Alex mused mostly to herself "Or maybe create some self defence devices like tasers and pepper sprays for people to buy as protection. Maybe some kind of security systems for shops and places to use" she rambled on as a final idea struck her "Ooh or maybe something the police can use to knock out cars electrical systems"

"You actually have some pretty good ideas" Tony said with a smile as he made a mental list of her suggestions for him to consider another time "But over all I don't really care about other people opinions of me"

"That's fair enough and I'm the same in that regard" Alex admitted "but in doing stuff like that now means that in the future should you ever decide to stop doing weapons altogether people will be less likely to question your motives because it's something that been coming all along"

"That's actually a very good point" he said nodding his head in agreement "I'll consider it, it might be a good sell considering Obie and the rest of the board goon about a future no needing weapons this will be putting their money where their mouth is scenario. It will also make it so we have a backup in place if for whatever reason weapons become obsolete"

He mused on that for a moment before deciding to change the subject "So moving on to happier things what kind of things are you interested in beside travelling?"

"I mainly travelled because I'd never had the opportunity to before combined with wanting to explore my new home country and find a location to settle down" Alex explained softly "I've still never been anywhere other than the UK, USA, Canada and Mexico so I'm thinking of enjoying two holidays a years in different Countries around the world would be a nice plan for the future"

Here she paused and considered how to answer him. No matter the temptation just to see and revel in his reaction she simply couldn't admit to her main projects. Her imagination ran with it as she tried to imagine his reaction should she admit to a) trying to blend magic and technology and b) trying to find a way for no-majs to enjoy the benefits of magical healing without discovering what it was. She answered with a slight smile on her face "I want to set up facilities to benefit war veterans both in mind and body, to help them reacclimatise to their new situations and help the integrate back into society"

"Really" Tony asked perhaps sensing a deeper meaning behind her words.

"Yep, but that's just my wider project" Alex explained "Closer to the now I am trying to build my own motorbike" that will have the ability to fly she added on in her mind.

"Are you going for a standard combustion engine?" he asked.

"I'm going to start my research there" Alex said before explaining her wider project with the concept "I'm hoping to be able to create some kind of clean energy generator. Maybe something in the realms of kinetic energy before delving into nuclear fusion" seeing the look on his faces she spoke before he could ask any questions "I'm only just starting the research phase of this project so I don't know a lot yet"

Tony nodded his understanding "I think I have something that might interest you. If you like I could invite you over in a few days to show you the energy source that powers this place. I think it could give you a alternate line of research for you to consider" tony explained before asking "Do you think you can pull it off?" he hoped she wouldn't get offended by the blunt question as he hadn't been.

"I don't have any degrees or anything" she answered with a shrug "But I've always been a quick study so I'll figure out what works for me" she finished with a smile showing no offence had been taken.

"If you want to run anything by me your welcome to drop me a text or a call and I'll see if I can help" Tony offered.

"Thank you" Alex said "I may just take you up on that offer"

"May this be the start of a beautiful friendship" Tony said as he lifted his glass in cheers. Alex returned the gesture and they clinked their glasses together in agreement.

They ended up chatting long into the night only pausing from the discussions to ring in the New Years with the other guests. At one in the morning the driver texted to let her know he was outside. Surprisingly she found herself quite sad to leave. Tony Stark was nothing like she imagined and she had enjoyed her evening far more than she ever imagines she would. The remaining hours had been filled with sarcastic comments and witty remarks, they ahd run comedic commentary on some of the more amusing actions of the other guests. When it came time for her to go Tony walked her out to her car and they said their goodbyes. Both of them were left feeling like maybe, just maybe, they had found a true friend. Someone that wasn't after something from them or was willing to betray them for a price. Just a nice genuine comraderie, from two completely different but similarly unique individuals.

AN: Please read and review. DarkRoseTales xo