Hey guys! So I was thinking about my Parental Differences story thing and this popped into my head and no it's not a one-shot. I have a five day weekend so expect several updates in the next few days. Also, I'm half-way through the first chapter of my P.D. related fic. Hope you enjoy this!

Diclaimer: I do not own Alex Rider.

"Alex, are you sure you'll be okay while I'm gone?" Jack asked for what could have been the thousandth time that day. Alex resisted his urge to roll his eyes at the sweet turned annoying concern.

"It's only a fortnight, Jack," he replied shoveling the last of his cereal into his mouth.

"I know," she said. "Think of all the danger you could get into in that timeframe." Alex laughed a little at that, had to, but she was ultimately right. It took very little for Alex to find himself in some sort of trouble.

"I'll be fine Jack. Don't worry," he told the American.

"I wish you could come," she said softly not liking the idea of putting an ocean between them after all Alex had been through. "I'd love for you to meet my family."

"Me too," Alex said honestly. "But I have end of year exams."

"I know. Are you prepared for them?"

"Yes, Jack," Alex said some of his annoyance finally making its way into his tone.

"Are you packed?"

"Yes, Jack."

"Are you sure you'll be okay?" Alex groaned. This would go on forever if allowed to. He couldn't really blame Jack for being worried about him. He truly wasn't in the best of conditions after returning from Australia. He was a little messed up and a little sad. Jack could tell and it sent her now constant worry into overdrive.

"I'll be fine Jack," Alex replied wondering if he was really telling the truth.

After school that day Alex rode the tube over to the Royal and General Bank on Liverpool Street. It felt weird going there and not being worried about being sent on a mission. It was also weird to be going there to discuss his home situation with the heads of SO. Alex had always been faintly uncomfortable with this street, even more so after being shot, but now he was downright freaked.

Alex had told Jack not to worry but if truth be told, he was a little stressed about the situation. He'd only just gotten back to school and now Jack was shipping off to America for two weeks for her sister's wedding. He wondered what his temporary guardian was going to be like and if he knew the person. Probably not, he thought. It's more than likely an SO operative. Alex groaned at the thought. He was tired of being around these people and he certainly did not want to live with one of them. He didn't care what they were like when 'off the job' (if that was even possible in a career like this), he wouldn't go.

Alex entered the bank through the underground parking garage, taking the elevator to the lobby. When the doors opened he immediately spotted Mrs. Jones wearing her typical business suit and sucking on a peppermint. She spotted him a millisecond later and walked over to him. He didn't bother stepping too far away from the elevators; they'd be using them again anyway.

"Alex," she greeted. "How are you?'

"I'm fine," he replied stiffly not wanting to make small talk with her.

"Good. Let's head on up," she replied ignoring his cold disposition. The short, five minute journey to Blunt's office was silent. It wasn't that Alex didn't want to talk to Mrs. Jones; there was just nothing to say.

When they reached the unmarked door leading to the nondescript office Mrs. Jones simply walked in without knocking, Alex following close behind. He dumped his backpack and duffel bag of necessary items by the door and took his usual seat in front of the desk. Mr. Blunt had yet to look up from the file he was reading which turned out to be Alex's if the tab on the side was telling the truth.

"Interesting reading, Mr. Blunt?" he asked innocently and the grey man closed the file and laid it on his desk.

"Very, Alex," he replied. "Miss Starbright's flight left twenty minutes ago."

"I know," Alex said wondering why Blunt would care but then, he probably had them being watched more than they thought. "Where am I going?"

"Your temporary guardian lives five blocks south of Brookland," Mrs. Jones told him.

"Terrific," he said sarcastically. "Who are they?"

"His name is Andrew Rosten," Blunt said. "He's with the SAS." Alex winced internally. He and the SAS had never really gotten along expect for his brief and fragile truce with Wolf during the Point Blanc raid. He'd worked with Fox, or Ben, but the man was MI6 not SAS. He wondered who this guy was and if they'd met. "We've checked him out thoroughly and he is trustworthy," Blunt continued. "We contacted him a week ago and he agreed, though he still has yet to be briefed on the details of your identity."

"You didn't tell him who I was?" Alex asked a little surprised. He would have expected them to tell the man something.

"No," Mrs. Jones answered. "We were unsure of how much information you wanted to be disclosed." Alex was even more surprised at how creepily considerate they were being. Then again, after the Scorpia incident Alex had been seriously searching for a way out. He was tired and his last two missions did little to help. They probably didn't want to push him over the edge and lose him as a tool.

"Um, thanks," he replied not sure how to respond. Blunt, characteristically, ignored the attempt at gratitude.

"Now that this guardian business is discussed, we have a rather important matter to address," he said.

"Like what?" Alex asked fighting his urge to point out the previous topic was hardly 'discussed'.

"Your trust fund."

"The one Ian set up?" Alex couldn't understand where this was going. The Rider Trust had been started by Ian after Alex's parents had died. It was a way to make sure that when the boy turned twenty-one he got most of what his parents had left him without it being picked apart too much. When Ian had died those assets had been added to the trust with Jack supposedly the one managing it all. Alex had a theory that MI6 did most of the controlling of the rather large trust fund.

There was enough money in it for him to live a life of luxury if he chose to. There were also several large properties tied to the fund as well as stocks in some major London businesses. John and Ian may have been spies but the Rider family had always had various interests in London.

"Are you familiar with a woman named Tara Kopp?" Mrs. Jones asked. Alex ran the name through his mind and came up with a blank.

"No," he said.

"Well, she's an old girlfriend of your Uncle's," Mrs. Jones said and Alex's eyebrows almost disappeared into his hairline. "They broke up a few months after you went to live with Ian."

"What does this have to do with the fund?" Alex asked.

"She has been trying to gain custody of you," Blunt said cutting to the chase. "We believe she's after your trust fund."

"Why?" Alex asked. Custody? He didn't even know this woman. Did Jack know?

"We know she knows about it," Mrs. Jones said. "We have information suggesting that she wants something from that fund."

"Are you going to tell me this information?" Alex asked already knowing the answer to that question.

"No, you don't need to know the details at this time," Blunt said.

"You just need to be aware of it, Alex," Mrs. Jones added. "We're handling it."

"Fine," Alex gave in. They wouldn't tell him anything so he moved on. "Who is Tara Kopp?" he asked. Blunt handed him one of the many files littering the desk and Alex opened it. He scanned quickly through the information taking in everything that looked important. There was picture in the file and he studied it closely curious about the woman who had actually dated his uncle. She was pretty with long brown, straight hair, a round face, tanned skin, and piercing green eyes.

"Kopp used to be a SO operative," Mrs. Jones said and Alex looked up in surprise.

"Used to be?"

"She washed out," Mrs. Jones told him.

"What happened?" Alex asked thoroughly curious.

"She was incompetent," Blunt replied vaguely and Alex let it rest. The file didn't contain more than the basic details he may need to know. He wondered what had happened to her.

"Is she dangerous?" Alex asked his tone purposefully mild. The last thing he needed was another family betrayal but maybe this time there'd be a heads up.

"We are not sure," Blunt replied. "She's been abroad for the last five years and we're looking into where she was and what she was doing now."

"Do you think she knows about me?" Alex asked.

"We are not sure but it is very unlikely," Blunt said and Alex could hear the warning in his voice. Blunt, apparently, was going to treat her as hostile.

"Fine," Alex said with a small sigh. Just what he needed. Another random person he didn't know popping up from the past.

Blunt had arranged for Alex to be driven to his temporary guardian's home. The driver was an older man who'd been a field operative in his day but thirty years, a few pounds, and a permanent limp later and his job mostly consisted of driving the heads of SO to wherever they needed to go. Alex had refused to sit in the back of the car opting for the passenger seat instead. The older man didn't work for him and Alex didn't want it to appear that way either. The driver gave him a small smile at his respect and they drove off in silence.

Alex thought hard on what he'd been told about Tara Kopp. He'd never known his uncle to have any kind of intimate relationship with any woman before. But the Rider's were nothing if not private, even amongst themselves. There was something to be said about the never ending secrecy in his family and Alex couldn't tell if they were born that way or just raised that way. He wondered briefly if this Tara woman would be a problem but then decided that he'd worry about it when or if the time came.

He may be a spy but he was also fourteen and the thought of his SAS guardian was freaking him out. He didn't know anyone by the name of Andrew Rosten but then when did the SAS ever use real names? They hadn't even told him if he'd met the man before or not. Alex thought about Fox and Wolf, the SAS men he knew the best. Fox seemed okay and so did Wolf, although it had taken being kicked out of a plane for the man to lay off. If his guardian was like Wolf Alex didn't know what he'd do, he was fresh out of planes to kick people out of.

There wasn't a whole lot he could do. If things got too bad he could always go crash at Tom's place. Alex hated that idea; Tom's house was more dangerous than Iraq at the moment with his parents at each other's throats constantly. Alex marveled at Tom's ability to keep his sanity with some of the positions his parents' fighting pushed him into. Going to Tom's house was something he'd only do as a last option. Besides, he'd only be there for two weeks, he could deal.

"Here you go," the driver said pulling up in front of a rather nice looking building. "Here's the code to get in the front door and the flat number." Alex took the paper with a "Thank you," and got out retrieving his things from the back. The old man gave him a smile and a parting wave before taking off. Alex heaved a sigh and entered the building making his way to 3B.

When he reached the door he heard the distinct sound of a television and dropped his duffel on the ground to knock. A few moments later footsteps approached and Alex heard the sound of locks being undone. His sense of impending doom went into overdrive when the man wrenched the door open. They both instantly froze in shock, recognizing each other easily. The SAS man was the first to recover but his surprised look never left his face.

"Cub?" he managed to gasp out looking as if he didn't want it to be true.

"Eagle?"