In order to rise from the ashes, the phoenix first must burn.
Elliott Stark was not important. In a lineage of geniuses and billionaires, she was known only as the illegitimate daughter of the most successful Stark; no more than a footnote...
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new york presbyterian. nov 3, 1998
That morning was a flurry of waking up and meeting Elliott and doctors, running their final tests and tossing around confusing medical terms, some of which Tony recognized from different textbooks he'd read in college out of boredom.
By the time the Starks had been green-lit to leave, it was nearly lunchtime.
Since she'd woken up, Elliott had mostly been nodding yes or no to questions from men and women in white coats, her father sitting by her side. Pepper paced around the room, chewing on her nails and ranting softly to Rhodey, who listened with his arms crossed and back straight.
Throughout all of it, the young girl stuck to Tony like glue.
After all, she was in a strange place surrounded by strange people, with a bump on her head and a sudden lacking of memories. She didn't know Tony, but he said he was her dad; she knew what that meant, and she trusted him.
Unfortunately, as much as Tony tried his best to bear his soul and grin and be a father, he was still new at it, and wasn't doing exceptionally.
The first time Elliott tried to climb into his lap, the man worriedly mumbled something about disliking hugs and set her back down on the bed. Still, he held her close and covered her eyes when they pulled the IV from her arm, and allowed her to bury her face in his shirt when they pricked her thumb.
The second time she tried, he grew tense, body rigid as he fumbled nervously. Thankfully, it was only a minute before doctors took her to be measured and weighed.
The third time the young girl tried, he let her. He still freaked out a little, though.
But as the minutes ticked by, Tony began taking in information, noticing and learning things about his young daughter. She liked jokes and firetrucks and could sing the ABCs backwards. She also moved —a lot.
However, she didn't talk much. The lights in the hospital were too bright and her head felt like it had been hit with a hammer. When her father asked why she was so quiet, the doctors simply told him that they'd expected the behavior, though they hadn't thought she would take such a liking to him so soon.
