𝐢 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐬

༻ ❁ ༺

July, 2008

          IT HAD BEEN TWO MONTHS since his return and Charlotte was glad that he had now completely recovered from his injuries and he seemed to be back to his quirky self and ways.

When her summer vacation began, Charlotte felt like she was able to relax for the first time in a very long time. She had been behind in her school work for the past few months, but she breezed through her school work with the help of Hugh and was outstanding in each of her lessons.

Pepper had been in the middle of her usually crammed work schedule, and even though she insisted on taking Charlotte into the office with her, to give Tony some space, he reassured her that he would look after Charlotte, no problem. What his wife did not know was that as soon as her car disappeared from the driveway, Tony had Happy bring his car around and the pair made their way to the US Air Force Base where Tony had arranged to meet Rhodey.

It was nice for her to see her dad spending time outside his workshop, and entirely out of the house when he had spent so much time alone there in the last few months. She found it odd that her father unexpectedly didn't want her to keep him company in his workspace anymore, but she just didn't mind as long as he was around her.

"Why are we visiting Uncle Rhodey here?" She asked, holding Tony's hand tightly.

"I need to talk to him about something." A familiar voice is heard when they walk inside the hanger, just as a plane rolls overhead. With her uncle at the helm, Charlotte sees a group of young men and women, presumably new recruits, standing in a semicircle.

"The future of air combat, is it manned or unmanned? I'll tell you, in my experience, no unmanned aerial vehicle will ever trump a pilot's instinct, his insight, that ability to look into a situation beyond the obvious and discern its outcome, or a pilot's judgment."

"Colonel?" Tony speaks up before Rhodey can continue any further, causing the group to turn and look in their direction, a collective look of surprise passed across their faces. "Why not a pilot without the plane?" He added.

Excusing himself from the group, who were now talking excitedly amongst themselves, Rhodey approached them with a smile on his face. "Look who fell out of the sky, Mr. Tony Stark," He shook his friend's hand, patting a hand on his back. "Hey, baby girl," He ruffled Charlotte's hair and she hugged him tightly, making her uncle kneel down to her level. "Oh, I've missed you too. But you've got to stop growing. I can't keep up with you." He stood back on his feet and turned to Tony. "You know, I'm surprised to see you."

"Why?"

"I swear I didn't expect to see you walking around so soon." He admitted.

"Well, I'm doing a lot better than walking," Tony stated with a smug grin.

Rhodey crossed his arms and gave his friend a questionable, if not wary look. "Really?"

"Yeah. I'm working on something big. That's why I'm here. I want you to be a part of it."

A small smile crept past Rhodey's lips. "You're about to make a whole lot of people around here really happy, cause that little stunt at the press conference, that was a doozy," He stated with a sense of humor and a shake of his head. Charlotte wondered if her dad was referring to whatever super-secret project he was currently working on, all day and every day.

Tony hesitated for a few seconds in an attempt to find the right words. "This is not for the military. It's different."

This explanation earned a curious glance from Rhodey. "What? You're a humanitarian now or something?" He raised a brow. He didn't exactly want to sound harsh but he was growing impatient.

"I need you to listen to me - "

"No," It was now Rhodey's turn to cut Tony off. "What you need is time to get your mind right. Whatever happened to you out there, it was traumatic." He passed a glance down to Charlotte, noting the obvious concern on her face. "What you need to do is go home, spend some time with your daughter. God knows how much she missed you."

A tight-lipped grin is offered by Tony, but the hurt is visible in his face as his friend pushes forward. "I'm serious," Rhodey concluded.

"Alright," Tony's response was barely a whisper as he nodded to his friend, his face fell completely.

"It was nice seeing you, Tony. Take care of him for me, sweetheart." Rhodey said, more softly towards Charlotte as he ruffled her hair. She watched as her uncle turned his back and walked away, clearly finished with the conversation at present.

Charlotte watched as her dad's gaze followed after his friend as he turned his back and walked away from them without a second glance. She spoke timidly, she did not like to see him so sad. "Dad? Are you okay?"

Composing himself quickly, Tony looked down at her, a forced smile on his lips. "I'm all right, honey. Let's go." He took her hand and the pair started to walk away from the hanger.

"But, dad - "

"Do you want waffles? I want waffles." He cut her off, gazing into the distance. "I think that will make me feel better."

Charlotte didn't know why her dad looked so unhappy. She frowned at him, "Okay, dad. Let's get waffles." She knew, even though she was still young, that he didn't want to talk about stuff that bothered him and made him sad. He would typically flip a switch and totally overhaul the conversation, and it was something she had just learned to cope with. She once asked her mom, but all she said was, 'your dad is a difficult man. Try not to worry.'

Charlotte, however, always worried.