THE GIRL BEHIND THE SUIT

Chapter 2

"Morgan, are you up yet ?", Pepper called out, fidgeting at the end of the stairs.

She did not want to go upstairs directly to Morgan's room, she knew Morgan wouldn't like that. Yet she had to go, just to see for once what her daughter was up to.
She was always up to something or the other. Often she got into serious trouble.

"Morgan!", Pepper slowly began climbing up the stairs. She reached the door and knocked softly.

No reply.

"Morgan, are you there? Can I come in?", Pepper asked with her hand on the doorknob.

She heard Morgan's voice, but couldn't figure out what she said. Just a faint whisper, so unlike Morgan.
She opened the door and found her lying on her bed, covers pulled up. The room was more messy than usual.

"Hey", Pepper said sitting down at the foot of her bed. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know mom. Just feeling nauseated, a bit too much", Morgan said slowly.

"I warned you that'll happen if you're surviving on junk food!"

"I didn't have junk food!"

"Oh yeah?", Pepper said as she looked around the room. Quite soon she spotted a smashed paper box under a book titled 'The Wonders Of The Quantum World'. She pulled out the box. Doughnut King, as suspected.

"Then, what is this doing here?" Pepper narrowed her eyes. "You didn't put much effort in hiding it did you?"

"Its last Monday's."

"Morgan".

Morgan closed her eyes and sighed. "Fine, I was hungry."

Pepper threw the box in the dustbin,"You are never hungry when I cook."
Morgan smiled, "Well, you don't make doughnuts, or cheeseburgers."

Pepper rolled her eyes, wondering why she was so much like Tony. She did resemble Pepper in her looks, except in the eyes of course. Still, she seemed to have too much of Tony in her. How that was possible, Pepper had no idea. Morgan got just so little time with her father.

"Don't go to school today, hon. Just take a day off."
"Yeah, I will" Morgan said after sometime. Usually she wouldn't have missed a single day of school. But today was different...

"Do you want me to stay back today? I can take a day off too", Pepper offered.

"No!", Morgan almost sat up on the bed. She calmed down quickly and said, "I mean, Mom I can take care of myself!"

Pepper raised an eyebrow. "Sure. But I hope that also doesn't mean you'll have more cheeseburgers the minute I'm out of the house".
"No. No cheeseburgers, I promise."
"No junk food?"
"Fine Mom!", Morgan cried.
Pepper laughed. "Okay, I'll be back soon, take care."

-----*-----*------
Morgan watched her mother's car pull out of the parking lot. She sighed.
It wasn't easy, lying to her mother, she'd had to do a lot of preparations and stage-play; her mother would have never found out the paper box if Morgan had not meant for her to.

Morgan hated having to lie to her mom. Yet she had to, because her mother would never understand, never allow Morgan to take any risks. She didn't understand, Morgan had a duty to perform. A duty that made it necessary for her to take risks.

Morgan opened her closet. She put on her new black coloured long coat and her dark brown sunglasses, she didn't want to be recognized easily. Before going out, she placed her fingertips on the cold glass of a framed picture on her desk.

Five year old Morgan and her father, both smiling , in front of a small tent in their backyard. Morgan was looking at the camera, grinning, but Tony's eyes were on her, as if in awe of his daughter. It was their last picture together.

Morgan drew in a sharp breath, and left.

The new headquarters of S.H.I.E.L.D. was nearer to their house. They'd chosen a less populated area for their activities, so as not to cause a mayhem in the main city.
Pepper had also wanted to shift somewhere quiet far from the main city, nearer to the headquarters, to provide Morgan some amount of safety.

Safety, the very word felt suffocating to Morgan. When has Tony Stark worried about his safety, did any of the Avengers worry about their safety? No. Then why should she?

She parked her car a outside the compound so that it wouldn't attract anyone's attention. She was going to walk inside when the armed security stopped her.

"ID please maam?" one of them said.

I don't have the whole day, idiots! Morgan thought and quickly texted to a number on her phone.

A few seconds later, their cellphone rang. Before any of them could pick up. Morgan spotted a woman in a black suit walking toward the main gate from the foot of the tall building, with a phone to her ear.

"Yes ma'am", the security said into his phone and quickly opened the gate.

As Morgan walked inside, the woman extended her hand, Morgan shook it with evident interest in her eyes.

"Hello Morgan Stark. Nice to finally meet you", the woman said. Her face only registered a faint hint of recognition. She looked middle aged, with some grey streaks in her hair , tied up in a top knot. She was wearing a black suit, with the familiar symbol of S.H.I.E.L.D. inscribed on the tough fabric.

"You must be Agent Hill", Morgan guessed.
The woman nodded. "Call me Maria."

They walked wordlessly into the glass elevator of the building.

"So, does Mrs. Stark know about this?", Maria asked once they were in the elevator, although she knew the answer.
Morgan sighed, "No, and I'll like to keep it that way."
"Oh yes, of course. No one would know anything unless Fury wants them to."

They reached the topmost floor of the building. The cars parked inside the compound looked like Hot-wheels toys from the height.

Maria led the way through the wide passage way, the walls of which were lined with CCTV cameras. She turned to a narrower passage on the left, at the end of which was a pretty much normal looking door. She stopped there and was about to knock when a familiar voice shouted, "Come in".

They entered.

The room had glass walls on two sides, the other two which acted as large magnetic boards to pin documents were covered with papers and pictures. At the centre of the room was a semicircular desk and three leather seats. Fury sat , with his face half turned towards the door, as if he had been looking outside before they came in.

"Morgan Stark", Fury greeted, turning fully towards them now.
"Hello Mr. Fury". He didn't look much different from the last time Morgan had met him. I wonder if he'd at least be more sensible now, Morgan thought.

Maria exchanged a look with him and left.

"Sit," he said motioning towards the chair facing his. Morgan complied.
"So, how's Mrs. Stark doing?"
"You swore--", Morgan began in an alarmed tone.
"That she'll not know about this, of course she won't!", Fury completed her sentence. He pressed two fingers to his forehead. "God can't I even ask a normal question?"

"She's good", Morgan replied. "And I don't want to get her into this, so as to keep her that way."

There was a moment of silence.

"Listen kid, you would have to admit it to her someday or the other. What would you do then?"
"I'll... I'll find a way. You do not need to worry about that right now." Morgan frowned. Fury still didn't look convinced.

"I have the right to it Mr. Fury, he left it to me! Not to you, not to mom either."
Fury looked up at her. She had that same obstinacy in her eyes.

"You owe me", Morgan said, Fury closed his single eye. "Trust me on this, I can do better than you think."

"Fine", he slapped the table with his hand and got up. Morgan smirked. "I hate to do this kid, but you've earned my trust, nevertheless".
He went to the door, Morgan followed close behind. Fury turned around to look at her and shrugged lightly.

"We have no right over it. It's Iron man's heart after all, it only belongs to the Iron maiden."