I was running on the treadmill at 2,000 miles an hour when Tony walked back in, followed by a woman with strawberry blonde hair and a kind complexion. I turned the treadmill off and ran over, falling onto the couch.

"How fast were you going?" Tony asked, wide-eyed. I shrugged.

"2,000 mph." His jaw dropped.

"How fast are you improving?" I thought back.

"A week ago, my fastest was 1215." He nodded.

"Not bad for a street rat." I quickly threw my pencil at him. "Ow! What was that for?" The woman spoke up.

"Tony, you don't just call a kid a street rat!" she exclaimed, walking over to me. "Can I sit down?" I shrugged. "How old are you?"

"Sixteen." She smiled.

"You're doing great for a sixteen year old living on their own, especially with powers like yours." I smiled and looked at Tony.

"See this? This is the kind of talk that gets a teenager to like you." He stuck his tongue out at me. The woman laughed.

"My name's Pepper Potts," she said. "I'm Tony's secretary."

"Well, secretary is a light term," Tony said. "She's my-"

"I'm the one who makes sure he doesn't get into trouble." She paused. "Well, more trouble." I smiled.

"So you're his girlfriend?" She nodded. "Why are you here?" She chuckled under her breath.

"You really never miss a beat, do you?" I shook my head. "Well, Tony told me about your situation and said you didn't trust him." I nodded. "Do you trust me more?" I shrugged.

"I don't really trust anyone," I said, "but at the moment, I do trust you more than him, yes." She smiled.

"What would we have to do to gain trust?" I thought about it.

"I don't know that you'll be able to gain my full trust in under five years, but enough trust for me to go with you?" I thought. "One simple thing." Tony smiled.

⇔

Tony Stark's P.O.V.

As I landed in front of the building in Amsterdam Christine had named, I frowned. It was a building with about three floors, and a few of the windows were boarded over. There was an alleyway to the left of the house. I stepped into the alley beside it and looked around. It didn't look like anyone was here. Key word: look.

"I didn't think you'd actually do it," I heard. I looked around and saw Christine phase into view.

"Were you, like, in the wall, or were you just invisible?" She smirked.

"When I phase, I move so fast that I'm invisible to the human eye," she said. "Well, most human eyes, at least. I seriously doubt there's anyone else like me." I shrugged.

"In this world? Ya' never know." I looked up at the building. "So what is this place?" She sighed.

"This is where I grew up." She walked over to the wall and picked up a small stone. She backed up to the other side of the alley and threw the rock at a window on the second floor. It was opened after a minute, and a girl with lilac colored hair looked down at us.

"Chris?" she asked. Christine nodded.

"Hey, Iyune," Christine said. "I have someone with me who can't get in on his own. Can you let down the ladder?" She nodded and let down a makeshift ladder. I climbed up, a cool breeze brushing past me, and stepped into the room. There was a set of bunk beds in the corner. One was covered in drawings and paint splatters. The other was made up with sky blue sheets, waiting for a kid who would never sleep in it again.

"I thought I said to get out of town," the girl, Iyunae, said. Christine nodded.

"I know," she said. "And I did. I took Trina to London and left. I've been in New York for the past week." Iyunae sighed.

"You need to get out of here," she said. "Holt's been in an even shittier mood since you left." Christine smiled.

"Not a problem," she said. She looked at me. "She can't fight a billionaire Avenger."