After returning from Washington, Tony Stark issued a direct order: JARVIS was to breach and monitor all street-level surveillance around Clara's school and the small villa she lived in. Any irregularity—no matter how small—was to be reported immediately.
Tony finally understood something crucial.
As long as Clara wasn't starving or homeless, she would always say she was fine. Any grievance, any injustice—she would swallow it whole and never tell anyone. So Tony made a decision.
If she wouldn't speak, JARVIS would watch.
The moment something felt wrong, JARVIS alerted him.
On the inside of Iron Man's helmet display, a video began to play—footage pulled from the hallway camera outside Clara's classroom.
Ten minutes earlier, Clara had entered the storage room.
Then the door closed.
Several minutes later, two girls rushed out in a panic and fled the school. Surveillance confirmed they had entered the storage room an hour earlier.
It was unmistakable.
A premeditated case of school violence.
JARVIS continued streaming the live hallway feed to Tony's HUD. The closed door never opened.
Not once.
"JARVIS," Tony said grimly, "increase speed."
"Yes, sir."
Tony didn't waste time. Within five minutes, he arrived at the school.
The door flew open.
Clara lay motionless on the floor.
"Clara! Clara!"
Tony carefully lifted her head—but no matter how he called her name, she didn't respond.
"Sir," JARVIS reported calmly, "Clara's vital signs are stable. Full-body scan indicates a mild concussion caused by blunt-force trauma to the head, resulting in temporary unconsciousness. Possible aftereffects can only be determined after she regains consciousness. An ambulance will arrive in approximately five minutes."
"No," Tony said instantly. "Cancel the ambulance. I'm taking her home."
He scooped Clara into his arms and shot into the sky—back toward New York.
…..
Pepper Potts had just returned from the company when she saw Iron Man descend from above—carrying a girl.
"Clara?!" Pepper exclaimed. "What happened to her?!"
Clara's pale complexion made her heart clench.
"She was hit on the head with a stool," Tony replied as he headed inside. "Don't worry—just a mild concussion. JARVIS already ran diagnostics. She needs rest."
He went upstairs, motioning for Pepper to open a door.
It was a bedroom Pepper used occasionally before she and Tony officially became a couple.
After settling Clara in bed, Pepper gently closed the door.
"What exactly happened?" she asked quietly. "Why would someone hit her with a stool?"
"Same story you see in the news," Tony muttered. "School bullying. Teenage emotional disputes. I didn't exactly grow up normal—how would I know the details? Did you ever deal with this?"
"Of course," Pepper said. "There are always people who think they have the right to control others. But this? This is extreme."
Girls fighting usually meant hair-pulling or slaps—not weapons. What kind of malice did it take to go that far?
"Who did it?" Pepper asked.
"A classmate of Clara's—and the daughter of a bar owner," Tony said coldly. "I'll get to the bottom of this. They will face consequences."
When Tony learned that the girl who fled with Clara's classmate was Catherine—the same delinquent who had slapped Clara months earlier—his anger flared.
This wasn't something a prank could fix.
"Tony," Pepper said slowly, "how do you know so much about Clara's school?"
She caught the slip immediately, arching a brow.
"Uh—" Tony stalled. "I think I should notify Ms. Daisy."
And with that, he vanished downstairs like a gust of wind.
Pepper laughed softly.
That stubborn habit of his—saying one thing while feeling another—clearly wasn't going anywhere.
…..
Ms. Daisy was shocked when she received the news. She hadn't expected something this severe to happen less than an hour after school ended.
She immediately took the footage Tony sent and went straight to Jubina Loxter's home.
Jubina denied everything at first.
But once the video played—and a little pressure was applied—she broke down and confessed everything.
When Jubina's father heard that his daughter had been associating with delinquent outsiders, he grabbed her ear, ready to beat her—only for Ms. Daisy to stop him.
How could violence be used to teach a child?
No wonder Jubina was impulsive and aggressive—the root of it was right there.
With Jubina's confession secured, Ms. Daisy accompanied the police to Catherine's bar. Catherine was arrested and taken to the station.
…..
Clara didn't wake up until the following afternoon.
When she opened her eyes, she found herself in an unfamiliar room. Holding her aching head, she slowly looked around.
"How are you feeling, Miss Clara?"
The sudden voice made her jolt.
There was no one else in the room.
"G-Ghost?!" she blurted.
"I am the artificial intelligence butler JARVIS," the voice said calmly. "This is the Stark residence. After you lost consciousness, Mr. Stark brought you back to New York City."
After Clara woke up, JARVIS immediately notified Tony, who was still in the underground lab completing the final steps of a new Iron Man suit.
"JARVIS," Tony said, "tell Clara I'll be up as soon as I finish the last adjustment."
Upstairs, Clara's curiosity toward the AI butler was fully awakened.
"Hello, JARVIS," she said politely. "I'm Clara Johnson."
"Hello, Miss Clara. I am JARVIS."
"Don't call me Miss," Clara said quickly. "It feels weird. Just call me Clara."
"Understood. Let us reintroduce ourselves," JARVIS replied smoothly. "Hello, Clara. I am JARVIS."
His voice carried an elegant British accent. With her eyes closed, Clara could almost imagine a refined gentleman—but staring at an empty room made things awkward.
JARVIS noticed her discomfort.
Using the projector installed in the room, he manifested himself before her bed.
"JARVIS! Your body is a ball?!"
That gentlemanly voice paired with a floating orb felt even stranger.
"No," JARVIS corrected gently. "This is merely a data representation. I may alter my appearance into any form."
"Then… can you change it?"
"Of course. What would you like me to look like?"
"Well…" Clara thought. "Something that matches your voice!"
JARVIS's orb flickered—and reshaped itself into a young butler in a dark tailcoat: white shirt, black vest, bow tie, tailored trousers, polished shoes, immaculate hair.
The very definition of an English gentleman.
"Wow!" Clara's eyes lit up. "That's perfect! If you change forms, can you also match your voice?"
"Certainly. Shall we experiment? What form would you like next, Clara?"
"Do you have one you like?" she asked suddenly. "Pick something you like."
"..."
"My programming does not include a preference for physical appearance."
For the first time, someone had asked JARVIS what he liked.
He hesitated.
"You can try," Clara encouraged. "Something you think you'd like—and others would too. Actually… forget it, I'll pick!"
JARVIS transformed again—
Into Tony Stark.
The familiar face, even with just a slight glare, made Clara instinctively tense.
Meanwhile, while Clara and JARVIS were happily playing role-swap, Tony completed the final assembly of his new suit.
Stretching, he headed upstairs.
The moment he opened the door, a deep, lazy voice drifted out:
"There is no food better in this world than lasagna."
...
Why—
Why was there a fat, dumb orange cat standing in his room?!
--------------
T/N:
Access Advance Chapters on my
P@treon: [email protected]/PokePals