A/N: This chapter wasn't supposed to be so important to the story, but I ended up making it the basis for like the next 5 chapters. Oops. I'll just say that this chapter was an ABSOLUTE PAIN to write. Mainly because I didn't plan and then ended up publishing the first chapter without realizing what a mess it was. So I had to rewrite this whole chapter again. And I still haven't fixed everything. I honestly thought that since it's summer, I'd have more time, but 24 hours is just not enough time to cover all my mistakes.

Anyway, in this chapter, we get to see Pepper meet Adie which is something I have been looking forward to ever since the idea first popped into my head. Adie's relationship with Tony and Pepper is my favorite because they end up becoming like her parents and we all know that Tony is still a child so now Pepper has two teenagers to look after lol.

So this chapter is a tad bit longer than the last one, but just wait till chapter 3...;)

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"Abracadabra."

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Adelaide was in a guest room, trying to find out more about what had happened before she opened her eyes. She was lying on the bed, staring at the ceiling, raking her brain for any sort of memory, but there was absolutely nothing. Adelaide didn't have a single memory of her 13 years of life before she opened her eyes today. How was that possible?

She stood up, the dull ache in her head returning, and walked into the bathroom. Somehow, everything in Tony Stark's penthouse managed to look so expensive, she couldn't even imagine the zeros that trailed after the number. The bathroom was fully equipped with everything anyone could ask for, yet all Adelaide wanted was cold water. She turned on the sink, changing the water to the coldest temperature possible and splashed a handful of it onto her face.

"Think," she mumbled to herself.

Use your measly brain and think. What had happened?

Think. 

Splash!

What had happened?

Splash!

Come on, Adelaide.

Splash!

Think!

Splash!

THINK!

The teenager looked into the mirror at her own reflection. Her face stung from the ice-cold water. It had turned red – from anger or the water, she did not know. Her electric blue eyes seemed to shine brighter than the overhead lights.

Adelaide thought she must be imagining things, but her blue eyes almost seemed to be glowing. She stared into them, until suddenly, her head exploded with pain and she fell to the ground, screaming in agony. She opened her eyes carefully, uncurling from the fetus position she had fell into. There was a ringing in her ears, but it was bearable. Adelaide scrambled up, realizing she wasn't in Tony's guest bathroom anymore.

She was in a car, sitting in the backseat. There was a little girl sitting next to her, happily playing with her doll and humming to herself. The girl looked average with her brown hair, except her big blue eyes were abnormally bright. Adelaide studied her carefully. She had seen those eyes somewhere before...

The girl didn't seem to notice her and continued to play with her teddy bear. Adelaide grew confused. Wasn't she just playing with a doll two seconds ago? Her mind was just messing with her, Adelaide told herself.

She looked past the girl and out the window, trying to figure out where they were. It was clearly very late in the night and the car was driving over a broken road, running through some unrecognizable woods. There were no signs or lampposts. Just the dark and scary woods.

The ringing in her ears faded away and she could hear two voices conversing in the front seats of the car.

"I'm worried, Henry," the woman said, "She's still a little girl." The woman looked like the older version of the girl sitting next to her. They shared the same chocolate hair and electric blue eyes. Adelaide assumed the woman must be the girl's mother.

"I am too, Ava," the man said, his eyes still on the road, "but we've done the best we could. She's safe." Ava didn't look assured.

"This – all of this – it's unfair to her. She's just a child!" Henry reached over and grabbed his wife's hand. He glanced at her for a second, but his eyes were still fixed on the road. Ava stubbornly looked out the window, a deep frown on her face. The woman looked tired and her eyes were filled with guilt and regret.

"Ava, listen to me. Our daughter's power will make her the most powerful person in the world. No one will be able to touch her," Henry said. Ava softened, looking down at her hand holding her husband's.

"Not even him?" she whispered.

"Not even him," Henry said firmly. The man's eyes glazed over with determination. No one was going to touch his daughter as long as he was alive. Ava looked out the window again, her gaze beyond the dark trees.

"I hope you're right," she whispered. He squeezed her hand.

"Just watch, Ava. Our daughter will avenge us," he said, looking at his wife, "I promise."

His attention wasn't on the road now, he was watching his wife's beautiful blue eyes that made him fall in love with her many years ago. Those bright eyes were what got him through the dark days of their life. They both shared a sad smile that seemed to hide a thousand stories.

Adelaide looked at the little girl sitting next to her again. She was holding a small, green dinosaur now, humming a familiar song. Their daughter was oblivious to the conversation her parents were having, happily playing with her...doll. Wasn't it just a dinosaur?

Adelaide looked ahead again, silently watching the road. She felt a strange sort of comfort sitting in the car, like her heart was finally content. She was in the right place.

Then, in the distance, Adelaide could see a pair of headlights coming towards them. That car was driving on the wrong side of the road, she realized. It was coming right at them at it wasn't slowing down. Adelaide looked beside her. The little girl was still playing just as happily. Henry was saying something to Ava, his eyes not watching the road. Adelaide felt the air leaving her lungs. She struggled to find the right words to say.

"Watch out!" she screamed, but no one heard a word. The car was dangerously fast and dangerously close. She closed her eyes. She couldn't breathe.

Ava screamed, "HENRY!"

Henry's eyes grew wide and he spun the steering to the right, but it was too late. The car crashed into theirs and Adelaide instinctively embraced the little girl, but her hands went right through. Both cars skid off the road, theirs hitting a tree. Adelaide sat up, looking around at the damage. The little girl was barely conscious, like her parents. She seemed confused as to what was happening.

"Momma..." she whispered painfully. There was a trail of blood running down from a wide gash on her arm. Adelaide had to do something. But what?

"Adie!" someone yelled, but Adelaide barely heard the voice. She was panicking.

Outside, a black car appeared next to theirs. Adelaide watched through the shattered window as the driver got out and opened the back door. Another man stepped out, in the middle of reloading his gun. His dark eyes locked onto their car, narrowing as his thin lips curved into a smile. Adelaide watched him in terror. She was shaking in fear. Somehow unaffected by the disturbing sight of the accident, he gracefully walked over to whatever was left of their car, casually bending over to see the couple.

"Adie!" someone yelled again.

Upon seeing him, Henry's eyes narrowed. Even with the blood on his face, Adelaide could see the hatred embed into his expression. On the other hand, Ava was trying to keep her fear and pain from showing. The woman kept subtly glancing into the backseat, at her daughter. The man seemed to notice this.

"Adelaide!"

A terrifying smile appeared onto his face. The smile not wavering, he aimed his gun at Henry's head. Adelaide gasped, reaching out before she realized.

There was nothing she could do.

She screamed.

The ringing in her ears returned and then, all at once, everything went black. Adelaide felt herself falling. She opened her eyes, gasping for air. She scrambled up, pushing herself away before she realized it was only Tony.

"Hey, hey, it's just me," he said softly. Adelaide was struggling to breathe, sweat rolling down her forehead. Her hair was sticking to her neck and she was completely drenched in sweat. The teenager was shaking from fear.

"I heard you scream and then I found you like this. Are you okay?" he asked.

Adelaide looked into his brown eyes, breathless. Her throat felt raw as she said these next words.

"I know who my parents are."

-----

Tony had forced Adelaide to take a cold shower to clean the sweat and then get some rest. He had given her some of Pepper's clothes which loosely fit, considering Pepper was much taller than her. Even then, Adelaide was grateful to change into a sweater and sweats. Although the shower cleaned the sweat, it did nothing to her memories.

Our daughter's power will make her the most powerful person in the world.

Adelaide sat down at the foot of her bed, staring at the long scar on her arm. The memory was still so vivid. She looked at her shaky hands, clenching and then unclenching them. There was nothing special about her, not as far as she knew. Other than her massive migraine, she felt painfully normal. Then why did her parents believe she would become the most powerful person in the world? Adelaide looked into the mirror. Her blue eyes had turned dim, unlike before and they looked exceedingly dull. Her wet, brown hair certainly added to the 'dull' effect, making her seem absolutely normal. How was she supposed to be the most powerful person in the world?

Our daughter will avenge us.

Adelaide felt as if she was missing a big piece of a puzzle. What couldn't she remember? What was her life like before she had opened her eyes? Why were her parents killed? What had they done? If she was the most powerful person in the world, then why couldn't she have stopped the accident? The frustration maddened her.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Adelaide said quietly. Tony walked with Pepper trailing behind him.

"See, I told you she's real," Tony started, "And she hasn't ran away yet. Which means I'm a good babysitter." Pepper rolled her eyes, not bothering to hide her smile.

"Fine, I believe you. Now go," she said, lightly pushing him out. She closed the door behind him. Pepper carefully sat down on the floor, next to the teenager.

"Adelaide, right?" Pepper asked softly. Adelaide nodded.

"How're you feeling?"

"I'm fine," Adelaide answered. Pepper looked at the girl's reflection in the mirror.

"How are you really feeling?" she asked. Adelaide sighed.

"Like I was hit by a train," she said, making Pepper smile. "Thanks for the clothes," she added after a second, "I'll give them back before I leave."

"What do you mean leave?" Pepper said, "You are in no condition to leave. Especially not now, when you can't remember anything. You're staying with us until we can find your parents –"

"My parents are dead." Pepper looked at her in dismay.

"What?"

Adelaide closed her eyes, thinking of those last moments in the car. She couldn't feel any remorse because she didn't even remember what they were like. The memory of the accident was all she remembered of them.

"Is this from the memory earlier? Tony told me about it," Pepper said after Adelaide didn't say anything. The girl nodded.

"I am so sorry Adelaide," Pepper said quietly. Adelaide shook her head.

"I don't remember them. I only know their names. Henry and Ava," she said. Adelaide was caught by surprise when Pepper hugged her. After a moment, Adelaide hugged her back awkwardly, a strange feeling settling into her chest. Was it comfort? It felt kind of...nice.

"We'll fix this," Pepper said, pulling away, "I promise. And until then, you're staying here."

Adelaide didn't really want to stay. She wanted to go out there and find some answers, but she knew her best bet was to stay here and let Tony and Pepper help her find those answers. And, the teenager had nowhere else to go. She knew no one else besides these two. She would find her answers faster if she let them help. Maybe she would even be able to find the man who killed her parents.

"Thank you," she said. Pepper smiled and stood up, patting her shoulder.

"I'll go tell Tony. We can decide what do next tomorrow. It's getting late and you need some rest," Pepper said, "Let me know if you need anything, I'll be back before you go to sleep." Adelaide nodded. With that, Pepper left the room, quietly shutting the door behind her. Adelaide stared at the door for a second before looking away.

Our daughter's power will make her the most powerful person in the world.

That sentence. That damned sentence. It had been running around in her mind for hours, yet she couldn't figure it out. Were her parents royals and now she was supposed to take the throne? Is that the kind of power they meant? No, Adelaide thought, they can't be royals.

Maybe her parents believed she had some kind of powers. Like Thor or the Hulk. Magic, perhaps? Maybe she was a witch, like that one from Harry Potter. Adelaide looked around the room, trying to find something to experiment on. Her eyes landed on the hairbrush sitting on the dresser, in front of the mirror.

Our daughter's power will make her the most powerful person in the world.

She closed her eyes and focused her energy on moving the hairbrush with only her mind. She stretched her left hand out, trying to direct the energy towards it. She moved her hand around, but nothing happened. The hairbrush stayed in the same place.

"Abracadabra," she whispered, feeling kind of stupid. Again, the hairbrush didn't move. Of course it didn't move. What was she expecting? Sparkles and light coming out from her hand? This is pointless, Adelaide told herself, you're not powerful, you're average. This was stupid. She felt stupid. She didn't have any magical powers. If anything, her little experiment had made her even more angry at herself.

Adelaide groaned and stood up to grab the hairbrush herself for her tangled hair. She hadn't bothered to brush it after her shower, not really in the mood to do a hairstyle after she watched her parents die. Adelaide sat down in front of the mirror, rhythmically brushing her hair. She watched the brush smooth out her hair, straightening it. It was almost hypnotic.

Our daughter's power will make her the most powerful person in the world.

She focused watching the hairbrush to avoid thinking about the sentence. It would just mess with her mind again.

Our daughter will avenge us.

The hairbrush, she told herself. Just watch the hairbrush. Don't think about anything else.

I promise.

Adelaide realized she was gritting her teeth, trying to stop thinking about the memory. Angrily, she threw the brush to the floor. She couldn't take it anymore. The voices in her head were relentlessly saying the same thing over and over again. She was going to lose her mind thinking about what they meant. Adelaide had to figure out what her father meant. She needed to know her power. The girl looked at her reflection in the mirror. Her face was colored with anger and set with determination.

Our daughter's power will make her the most powerful person in the world.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Adelaide picked up the hairbrush off the floor and tried to control her anger for the moment.

"Come in." Pepper walked in, a kind smile on her face.

"Hey, I just wanted to check in to see if you need anything before you go to bed." Adelaide forced a smile.

"No, I'm good," she answered.

"Okay," Pepper said, "Well, goodnight, then."

"Goodnight." As much as she appreciated Pepper checking in on her, Adelaide wanted this conversation to be over as quickly as possible. Pepper began to close the door, then stopped halfway, opening it again.

"Oh, and Adelaide?" Pepper asked.

"Yeah?"

"Please try not to worry too much. We're going to figure this out, just give it some time, okay?" Adelaide bit her lip. Little did she know, Adelaide did not want to give it any time. She wanted her answers right now and she was going to get them right now. But Adelaide nodded, for her sake and Pepper's.

Pepper smiled gently. "Goodnight, Adelaide."

As soon as the door, was shut, Adelaide began planning how she was going to get her answers. Then, moments later, the perfect plan struck her.