*C85 - Troubles, Problems, and Solutions.

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'Inner dialogue/thoughts'

"Normal dialogue"

[System]

[Diary entries]

(Word Count: 1,903)

~ The following day, in the peach blossom café with Luke ~

"Okay, I can't take this anymore." Luke voiced, turning his attention to the pair of blondes moping by the counter, "Can anyone tell me what's wrong with these two?"

Luke had come a little later into the café than he usually would have today. He had spent most of the night finalizing the gift that he had prepared for Wanda. From the life he lived in the simulation, he found that Wanda was a big fan of music and thought that he could leverage on his vast knowledge of songs from his original world.

However, as soon as he walked into his café, he noticed that Crystal and Pietro had storm clouds hanging over them. While he was initially unbothered, it had already been more than 30 minutes and neither of them had yet to say a single word.

"Don't mind them, Luke." Wanda sighed, "Pietro came back late last night and has been behaving this way since then."

"Okay, but do you know why?" He asked.

"Oh yeah. You remember that huge battle that took place in Los Angeles a few weeks ago?"

"The one where you and these two knuckleheads didn't listen to me and almost got yourselves killed?"

"That's besides the point. Focus up, Luke." Wanda replied, turning her attention to Pietro, "Apparently, thanks to that battle, most of the fun places and places where we can hold birthday parties are all still closed. They tried going to the parks and stuff but with all the aforementioned places closed, almost everyone and their mother now frequent these open spaces."

Luke nodded his head in understanding. "Ahhh. So, no birthday venue means no birthday party. And since there's no birthday party. . ."

Instead of following Luke's train of thought, Wanda instead asked a question, "Wait, I can understand Pietro's doom and gloom, but Crystal?"

"Oh, don't mind her. Crystal just loves birthday parties." Came April's voice as she, along with Pepper, joined the group at the counter. "And between you and me, since the party is for Pietro, it doesn't take for a genius to figure out why she's all doom and gloom as well." She added in a hushed tone as she sat beside Wanda.

"April, Pepper, good morning." Eve, the morning shift's cashier, greeted, "What can I get for you?

"Good morning, Eve, just the usual please and one extra doze of Espresso, all to go."

Hearing the order, Luke raised a brow. "Extra Espresso? Isn't that a little too much caffeine for a day?"

"Most days, sure. But as I'm sure you've heard about the news last night, Tony's been working non-stop trying to get to the bottom of it."

"Ah, I suppose the extra is for Tony then?" April asked.

"Oh, God no. It's for me. I can already see the pile of work stacking up." Pepper replied, which caused a round of chuckles.

While the order was being prepared, the café entrance bell jingled as Natasha walked into the café. Spotting her friends, she, much like Luke, was confused at the behaviour of Crystal and Pietro. Luke had explained the situation to Natasha, to which she acknowledged but also asked a question of her own.

"Why don't we try asking Pepper if Stark Industries has any sort of party rooms where we can host the birthday celebrations? I've heard Tony's an avid partygoer, so he must have some places set up for these things."

At Natasha's question, both Crystal and Pietro raised their heads and turned towards Pepper, with hope restored in their eyes. However, they were once again disappointed by life. "Sorry guys, the kind of parties that Tony throws aren't really meant for kids. The places can also be a little too, grown up."

Aside from Crystal, Pietro and Wanda, the rest of them nodded their head, understanding the unspoken meaning behind Pepper's words. However, this did not deter Natasha, who then asked a follow-up question, this time directed towards Luke.

"Then why not here in the café after closing hours? The café floor might not be the best place, but we've got the lounge upstairs and your office space. A little bit of decoration and boom, we've got our party venue."

Once again, the hope returned to Pietro and especially to Crystal, who immediately perked right back up at the suggestion, "Can we, Sully? I'll clean it up afterwards, I promise!"

Luke shook his head in amusement, "Wouldn't be a party if you cleaned up. I'll hire a cleaning service after the party, other than that, café space is all yours if you can get it all set up in time, Pup."

"YES!" Crystal exclaimed as she immediately rushed off from the counter, dragging Pietro along with her. "We've got a lot of planning to do!"

". . . And there they go." April remarked.

"They grow up so fast." Luke added, wiping an imaginary tear from his eye.

"By the way, you could just hire a cleaning service to clean the entirety of the café you know. That way, money wouldn't come out from your pocket, and you can use the café funds." Natasha commented. At her suggestion, it was Luke's turn to perk up as his eyes were replaced with dollar signs.

As all this was happening, April sighed once again, "One of my close friend's still a basically a child, my boss is a greedy and money-hungry person, and my best friend's about to lose her hair from stress-"

"Hey!" Pepper voiced, clearly unhappy yet amused at April's sudden remarks.

Natasha simply tapped on April's shoulder. "You'll get used to it, nothing ever seems to be normal in this part of town. Anyways, I'll go clock in and start the shift. See you around, Pepper."

~ At the same time, with Obadiah Stane ~

"Mr Stane, do you understand the charges that are put against you? We've got enough damning evidence that if you're lucky, you will spend the rest of your days in jail. If not. . ." The prosecutor let his words hang in the interrogation room.

It had been a full day since Stane had been arrested and brought to an unknown site, which he assumed was a black site operated by the CIA. Stane was currently berating his mind, trying to figure out just what went wrong and when.

Everything had been going smoothly, he had already built enough funds, shares and support within the company to take over leadership after Tony's death. However, the people he had hired for the assassination had failed, and subsequently demanded a larger ransom from him after discovering who Tony was.

He had agreed but told the captors that he would not send the payment until he had proof of Tony's death. However, both Stane and the captors had different ideas. Inwardly, after receiving proof of Tony's death, he would have sent a private team to silence the captors in the name of avenging Tony. This would not only tie up loose ends, but also improve his public image.

On the other hand, the captors would not kill Tony until he had built the weapons that they wanted. As Stane was still trying to gather information on where Tony had been kept, 3 months had quickly passed by. By that time, Tony had miraculously escaped, and thanks to the commotion he caused, the military had been the first to arrive at his location.

Moreover, since Tony's return, thing's had just kept going downhill for him. Tony's sudden closure of the weapons manufacturing department had caused much chaos within the company management, but seeing as Tony still held the majority share position, his decision was final, and Stane could not do much to reverse it just yet.

But there was still a play he could make. He had gotten most of the upper management's approval and only needed a few more before he could call for an injunction on Tony, on the grounds of the company losing profit and value due to Tony's decision. Stane had almost succeeded, when he was suddenly visited by the FBI and subsequently arrested.

This led to his current predicament. 'There is a mole. The only way the feds would have gotten wind of the things I've done is if someone specifically told them. But the question is, who?'

"Unless you tell us everything we want to know." The interrogator continued, "We can make a case for you, based on the grounds of your cooperation. It's your choice, Mr Stane. Think about it." he finished before exiting the room, leaving Stane alone, handcuffed to the table.

Meanwhile, Stane was not bothered with the words of the interrogator. He knew that he would be released soon, as he had friends in higher places. But more importantly, he had dirt on these friends. 'If they don't get me out, then they know that I will drag every single one of them down with me.'

Unbeknownst to Stane, while he was currently contemplating his next move after his eventual release, the interrogator was having an argument with the person in-charge of the facility.

"You can't be serious. . ." The interrogator started, "Look, Carl, we've got all the evidence we need right here to prosecute him! You can't pull the plug right now, not at this important moment!"

"It's not my call, Roger." Carl replied. "Orders from higher up. Stane is free to go, and unless you want to be the one in there instead of him, I'd suggest you follow orders." Carl said in finality.

Irritated and desperate, Roger took a deep breath before storming back into the interrogation room. Seeing his reaction and knowing what was going to happen next, Carl sighed before following after him.

"What did you do!" Roger demanded as he walked into the room. "Who do you have so high up that-"

Before he could finish, Carl had interrupted him. "That's enough! Roger shut your mouth or so help me I will arrest you myself."

Roger wanted to retort, but Carl had cut him off again, "Not another word. Now, release him."

Roger stood for a moment, unwilling to follow the order. However, another look from Carl and with the other FBI personnels entering the room, he could only relent as he released Stane from his hand cuffs.

Finally free, Stane rubbed his wrists before speaking to Carl, "Are we done?"

Carl's gaze hardened. He was also unwilling to let Stane go but knew that if he did not follow the orders from higher up, then his whole career, and possibly his family, may be put in jeopardy. "I believe we are for now, Mr Stane. But make no mistake, if we get so much so as a feeling that you've made one wrong move again, you will be back here. Do I make myself clear?"

Stane simply huffed, not acknowledging the empty threat of Carl. Just as he was about to exit the room, Roger spoke up.

"This isn't over, Mr Stane. You will face the law, I promise you that."

Stane stopped, turning his head slightly to side. "Good luck."

- End of Chapter 85 -

Next time in *C86 - Something big is happening tomorrow!

In response, Luke looked around to see if she was talking to anyone else, and after confirming that she was giving the hint toward himself, he took a few deep breaths to calm his nerves. 'What the hell is happening here? Am I nervous? ME? I FACED A GIANT, FUGLY SONNAVABITCH ONE ON ONE, AND YET I GET NERVOUS BY THIS?!'