Beacon.

Iron Man 3 - Reprecutions*

A/N: sorry it took a while but it's summer now so I got more time.

Bern Technology Summit, Switzerland, New Years Eve. 1999.

"Why do I let him talk me into this stuff Happy?" Kindle asks as she massages her temples and surveys the party before her.

"Honestly Kindle, he's had so much to drink... That lecture earlier about the computer chip thingies... I think he made all that up." Happy tries to excuse Tony's behavior.

"The integrated circuits? No. That was brilliant." Kindle sighs. "Let's go to Switzerland to ring in the new century Kin! It will be fun! I'll stay right with you the whole time!" She looks up at Happy with uncharacteristic tears threatening her eyes, she blamed the already sizable quantities of champagne she had drunk tonight on her emotional state. "It's like college all over again Happy, I'm Tony's little shadow in the corner while he makes out with all the hot chicks."

"Kindle. I don't think..." He begins.

She waved him off. "It's ok Happy. You would think I would be used to it by now. I'm going to my room... you know. If he decides to care." She nods at Tony who is flirting shamelessly with a very pretty brunette who also happens to be an experimental virologist. Her work sounded fascinating but it was pretty much the story of Kindle's life that if Tony was around she was invisible. Being the second smartest genius in the room didn't mean much.

She snagged a bottle of Cristal on her way to the elevator and never even noticed Happy running interference with the skinny blond man with thick glasses and a pronounced overbite as Tony and the brunette, whose name was Maya, stumble over.

"Half hour till the ball drops." Happy tells Tony and Maya.

Tony is heading towards the elevator, his eyes  firmly on Kindle's retreating figure. "Hey, where is Kindle going? Is she ok? I..."

"Tony Stark? Great speech, man!" A drunk party guest bumps into them and Hogan moves the man away from Tony.

"Move along, pal."

Tony blinks. "I gave a speech?" He asks with a disbelieving blink. "How was it?"

Happy shrugs. "Kindle said it was brilliant."

Tony smiles happily. "Oh good. Then it was!"

"Actually it was unintelligible." Maya Hansen offers.

Tony looks at her. "You just didn't understand it. Trust me, if Kin thought it was brilliant it was."

"Mmm-hmm." She hums.

"Speaking of which, where is she? Is she ok? I saw..."

"I think she has a... headache." Happy offers lamely.

Tony's face falls. "I screwed up! I left her alone!" He hits his head with this hand. "On new years! In a strange country! Oh I am in so much trouble!" He looks around panicked. "What do I do? Chocolates? Cheese? A knife?"

"I would not recommend a knife right now." Happy points out. "I'll take you watch shopping in the morning and you can take her on one of those sound of music tours of the alps and she will forgive you." He waves Tony and Maya towards the elevators.

"Where are we going?" She asks.

Tony checks her out. "Uh, to town on each other, probably back in your room. Cause I also wanna see your research."

Maya smiles at him. "Okay, you can see my research, but that's... I'm not gonna show you my "town."

"Mr. Stark" As Tony & Maya are walking away a man intercepts them. "Ho Yinsen."