Differences

Watching Pepper leave, Tony could only turn to Hermione with a pleading look.

"Why would you think I'd take your side when you two fight?" Hermione said bluntly.

Tony had no answer.

Of course. Pepper bought the girl clothes and snacks every day and took her out for delicious food, practically spoiling her like her own daughter.

All he did was bicker with her and trade insults. She had even forced him to bark like a dog. Any idiot would know whose side she would take.

"Besides, she's still angry right now." Hermione sighed like a world-weary elder, her hands clasped behind her back. "You'd better leave her alone. You'll only make things worse. I'll go put in a good word for you later."

Tony blinked his agreement.

Hermione waved her wand again.

Tony's body went slack, and he could finally move.

Pepper had already used that time to get far away. Only the echo of her heels remained at the end of the corridor.

Tony didn't keep chasing her. He sat on the couch, looking unusually lost.

"Did I do something wrong?" he murmured.

Seeing his dejected expression, Hermione rolled her eyes helplessly.

"I'm just a twelve-year-old kid. Why are you asking me for dating advice?"

"Who's dating anyone?" Tony retorted instinctively, his voice suddenly rising.

Trying to cover himself, he said, "I just want to make up for my past mistakes and protect the world. Stark Industries' weapons can't become tools for slaughtering civilians. That's my responsibility. I have to find out who's pulling the strings."

Hermione folded her arms and shook her head.

"I'm starting to see how hard it is to be family to you superheroes."

"They have to keep everything running behind the scenes while worrying all day about you going off on adventures and never coming home."

"And now, on top of all that, they have to go out and gather intelligence for you themselves. That's just too much."

With every sentence Hermione spoke, Tony looked a little more embarrassed.

After struggling for a long while to find an argument, he finally managed, "She's not family. She's just my secretary."

Hermione's eyes widened.

"Not your girlfriend?"

"No."

"Just your secretary?"

"Yes."

Hermione was stunned. "She's not your girlfriend, but she still works her heart out for you? How much are you paying her?"

Caught off guard, Tony raked a hand through his hair in frustration.

He suddenly realized he had always taken Pepper's efforts for granted.

He had been so absorbed in his own world that he had completely overlooked the person beside him who had always quietly cared about him.

"Forget it. She doesn't have to go." Tony stood up. "I'll figure something out myself."

"I'll go instead," Hermione suddenly offered.

Tony paused. "You?"

"Sure." Hermione shrugged. "Pepper's been so good to me. I have to repay her somehow."

After all, Pepper was the only person who had genuinely treated her well since she came to this world, without any ulterior motives.

Natasha... was still an agent at the end of the day.

"You're just a kid. This isn't your job," Tony refused.

"Really? And which kid made the famous Tony Stark bark like a dog in his office?"

Tony's face darkened instantly as unpleasant memories resurfaced.

Hermione loved seeing him deflated. With a stifled giggle, she said, "I'm off. You can stay here and savor those memories."

With that, she ran out of the room laughing, leaving Tony to sulk alone.

Tony watched her go, grinding his teeth in irritation, yet the corners of his mouth couldn't help lifting.

Once out in the corridor, Hermione hadn't gone far before she spotted a familiar figure.

Pepper hadn't left at all.

She kept staring toward the laboratory, her expression full of worry.

The moment she saw Hermione, Pepper hurried over.

"Is he... all right?"

Hermione found it amusing how Pepper's words never matched her feelings.

"What could possibly happen to him?" Hermione waved a hand. "He was just asking me to put in a good word with you."

Pepper's tense shoulders visibly relaxed.

Hermione moved a little closer and looked Pepper up and down, mischief glinting in her eyes.

"Pepper, I really want to know. How much does Tony pay you?"

Pepper blinked, unable to follow Hermione's sudden change of subject.

"What pay?"

"Your salary as a secretary at Stark Industries." Hermione analyzed it with a perfectly straight face. "You take care of everything he eats, drinks, and does, put up with his awful temper, and now he even wants you doing spy work. How much would someone have to pay to hire a secretary like you?"

Pepper smiled helplessly.

"This isn't about money, Hermione. You don't understand. Tony..."

"Oh..." Hermione deliberately drew out the word, looking as though she'd suddenly understood everything. "So it's not about money. That means there's something else going on between you two."

Pepper faltered, her face reddening.

Of course she heard the implication in Hermione's words.

The girl was far too precocious.

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

Pepper took a deep breath and tried to change the subject. "I'd better help him after all. With that personality of his, who knows what kind of mess he'll make if I don't?"

"Then shall we go together?" Hermione twirled her wand, and their figures gradually blended into the air.

Pepper stared in surprise at her transparent body.

"You can do this kind of magic too?"

"Of course. I use it all the time to sneak into the Restricted Area."

Pepper: "..."

After winding through the corridors, they strolled brazenly into Tony's office, which was now Obadiah's office.

"Good, he's not here. Let's get to work."

Hermione deftly picked up the USB Drive and plugged it into the computer on the desk. "Pepper, keep watch for me."

Watching Hermione's hands move so fast they blurred, Pepper was speechless.

She must do this sort of thing pretty often, huh?

The Wizard School... really is an amazing place.

When the progress bar reached eighty percent, footsteps suddenly sounded outside the door.

Pepper went pale and mouthed, He's back!

Hermione didn't even look up. Her fingers continued flying over the keyboard as she lightly pointed the wand in her other hand toward the door.

The handle turned halfway, then stuck.

"Hm?"

Outside, Obadiah frowned and tried twisting it twice more. "Is the lock broken?"

He took out his key.

At the same time, the progress bar filled.

Hermione pulled out the USB Drive and drew Pepper into a corner.

The door opened.

Obadiah walked in and stood there for several seconds, his gaze sweeping over the desktop, the chair, and the curtains before finally settling on empty air.

Less than a meter away from him, Pepper held her breath.

"...Strange."

Muttering to himself, he walked toward the desk.

Two transparent figures slipped out behind him.

In a deserted corner downstairs, Hermione lifted the Disillusionment Charm, and the two of them became visible again.

"All done!"

Hermione handed the USB Drive to Pepper.

"Thank you, Hermione, but I won't give this information to Tony. I'm going to send it straight to S.H.I.E.L.D.," Pepper said.

Hermione nodded. It made no difference to her.

Whether they gave it to S.H.I.E.L.D. or Tony, Obadiah would make his move against Tony before they finished investigating.

It was time to watch the guy get taken down a peg for the second time.

Late that night, beneath Stark Industries, in a workshop that had never appeared on any building plans.

Obadiah stared at the access logs on the screen, his face grim.

Someone had used his computer that afternoon.

He replayed the surveillance footage over and over. The office door had opened and closed, yet not a single person appeared on-screen.

"Did someone cut out the footage in between?"

He switched off the screen, recalling the faint trace of perfume he had caught when he entered the office that afternoon.

It had been faint, but he recognized it. Only one person in the entire company wore that brand.

"Pepper..." Obadiah chuckled darkly. "Tony, is she really the only person you have left to turn to?"

As for why the surveillance had failed, that was probably down to one of Tony's little toys.

A secretary and a wastrel tinkering away in his garage thought they could take him on?

He turned around.

Behind him, a steel giant nearly three stories tall stood silently in the shadows. Its chest was hollow, missing only a heart.

"Soon, you'll be able to move."