"Sorry, kiddo. You're staying here."

It feels like that is the only thing Mazzy will ever hear ever again ever.

"But, Daddy, you know I can help," Mazzy whines, dragging her feet as she mopes behind her dad.

"No. Not when you're nine years old," Tony tells her, raising his eyebrows a bit. He's tweaking his Iron Man suit just a little before the Avengers leave on their little mission. Mazzy is a big distraction, though, and she is making it take a whole lot longer than he originally wanted.

"I'm arguably a better person to go into a fight than you are because I've got superpowers and you've just got your suit. You should really let me come, Dad. What's the worst that could happen? I get a broken arm and it heals in, like, five minutes. Plus, I'm strong and I can help. For real."

"I'm sorry, is the word no not yet in your vocabulary?" Tony asks. Mazzy only rolls her eyes and crosses her arms. "Look, Curly Sue; the answer is no. You're staying here with Maria, and you're gonna go get fitted for new hearing aids."

"Pshh," Mazzy blows out the side of her mouth. "I only really need one."

"You need both. And you need them to fit you better, anyway. If they fit you correctly they wouldn't have fallen out in the first place," Tony explains.

It was incredibly frustrating when he got Mazzy back and discovered that whatever serum they pumped into her veins wouldn't fix the damage done to her auditory cortex. It can fix up her skin when she gets scrapes and cuts, it can mend her bones when they break, and it can keep her alive when she otherwise wouldn't survive.

The one weakness of that serum is that it can't fix her brain. It can't fix her auditory cortex or her cortical deafness. It can't fix the areas around her hippocampus that were damaged during the escape. It can't cure her retrograde amnesia.

But, for Tony, that part is a relief. The serum can't help her remember how she got it in the first place. Of course, there is always the chance that exposure to those memories could make her remember them, but he doubts that will ever happen. He won't let her get near any of the people she was with when she was taken ever again. It's better this way, even if Mazzy hates it.

"Why is Maria taking me? Why can't you?" Mazzy complains. She doesn't really care who takes her to the audiologist, to be honest, but she wants to either convince her dad to stay back or to let her come with him. She's hoping that maybe he'll cancel the appointment.

"Because I have to go stop my murderous robot son."

"Ugh," Mazzy groans, tossing her head back in complaint. "I can't believe you're not letting me come with you. That's so mean."

"You're not going to guilt trip me. It's impossible," Tony tells her. "I'm heartless."

"Well, I can at least try."

"It's not working. Go get your shoes on and be good for Maria," Tony says. He turns away from his suit to see Mazzy glaring at him. He puts his hands on her shoulders and squeezes. "How are you gonna feel if Ultron takes me out and the last thing you did was glare at me? Huh?"

Mazzy's glare drops into a frown. "Don't say that! It's not funny," she says.

"It's a little bit funny," Tony says. He lets go of her shoulders and turns back to his suit. "I'll be back before you know it, Maz. Be good. I love you."

"Yeah, I love you, too. I'll be good, I guess," Mazzy huffs.

She walks off, heading to her room, where her shoes are. She sort of wants to disobey him and sneak onto whatever jet they're taking to find Ultron, but she remembers how that turned out last time. Plus, she does need new hearing aids and she doesn't mind hanging out with Maria.

Maria is always nice to Mazzy. Most people are. Most people are just nice to kids in general, just because they're kids. But Mazzy doesn't know Maria very well yet, and she's hoping that Maria will like her for more than just being a kid. Maybe she'll like her for being smart. Maybe she'll like her for being funny. Or, even better, maybe Maria will like her enough that she'll answer the questions that no one else will.

When Mazzy gets to her room, she sits herself on the ground and slips her shoes on. They are pink, high-top Converse, and she likes them very much. She wants to draw stars on them with a marker. Maybe she will someday.

"Mazzy?" That is Maria's voice from the outside of the door. She knocks twice, gently. "You ready to go?"

"I'm ready," Mazzy calls out. She ties her last shoelace and hops up off of the ground, making her way over to the door. She swings it open and sees Maria waiting for her on the other side, a small smile on her face. "Hi."

"Hey, sweetheart. Ready?" Maria asks.

"Yeah. Except I don't like being called sweetheart, mostly," Mazzy replies.

"Oh. I'm sorry."

"It's okay."

"Let's get going, huh?" Maria says. She gestures down the hall.

"Good idea."

The two of them walk down the hall together, side by side in silence, until they get to the elevator. And then they get into the elevator and stand in more silence as it lowers them to the ground level of the Avengers Tower. This is painfully awkward. Mazzy wants to ask about it, but she doesn't think they are on that level yet, so she has no idea what to say at all.

As they are standing in the elevator, Mazzy notices the manila folder tucked beneath Maria's arm. Her eyebrows furrow and she chews on her lip. "Is that a file about me?" she asks, gesturing to it.

"Yeah. We'll need it for the audiologist," Maria says with a nod.

"Oh," Mazzy murmurs, nodding her head. "Cool..."

"Mhm," Maria hums. The elevator dings and the doors open up, releasing them from the metal box of awkwardness. Thank goodness.

While the two of them walk to Maria's car in silence, Mazzy takes the time to think through a plan. A way to get answers without Maria realizing it. Now, Mazzy knows Maria isn't at all stupid. She knows Maria is super smart and will probably see everything coming. She also knows, though, that Maria is nice. Nat loves her, after all, from what Mazzy can tell. Maria is nice and will answer questions from Mazzy because Mazzy is just a sweet, little girl. So if she starts off slow and careful, maybe it will work.

On top of that, Mazzy doesn't know what Maria knows she knows. There is no comprehensive list of all the things Mazzy isn't supposed to know. Or, at least, Mazzy assumes so. It would be pretty rude to make a list of all the things she isn't supposed to know and share it with everyone but her.

If Mazzy ever finds out her dad made a list like that, she will kick him right in the shins, she decides.

Maria and Mazzy make it to the car and Mazzy climbs into the backseat, furrowing her eyebrows when she sees the booster seat in her spot. She does not like sitting in a booster seat. It makes her feel little when she is big and strong. That's what she says, at least. Really, she is little and strong.

Still, she doesn't really need the booster seat because, no matter what happens to her in the event of a car crash, she will be just fine because of her magic powers. Maybe, she thinks, it should be called Mazzy Magic. Secret Mazzy Magic, really, because the reporters and news people aren't really supposed to know much about it. The pouty-lipped lady sort of ruined that, though.

"So, how far away is this audiologist?" Mazzy questions, raising her eyebrows at Maria through the rearview mirror.

Maria smiles. "Look at you and your big vocabulary. Audiologist," she says.

"Well, that's what it's called, right?" Mazzy asks just to be sure. It will sure be embarrassing if she is wrong about it. No one likes being wrong about things.

"No, you're right. Don't worry," Maria confirms, glancing back at her through the mirror. Mazzy feels better knowing that. "It's just impressive for a nine-year-old. But you are a Stark, I suppose."

Mazzy shrugs, turning her attention out the window and watching the buildings slowly go by. Preferably, the buildings would be flying by, but who is she kidding? They are driving in the streets of New York City. All there ever is is traffic.

"Just because I'm a Stark doesn't mean I'm automatically smart. You should have seen how long it took me to figure out common denominators. Golly. I hated those," Mazzy reminisces, shaking her head. Fractions suck, and what sucks even more is that she still has to work with fractions in all the math she is doing now.

"Hey, fractions are hard. I get it," Maria says in agreement.

The first step to getting answers is for Mazzy to get Maria's guard down. So far, it seems like it is working, but Mazzy can't be so sure yet, so she keeps going.

"It was hard for you, too? Did you go to a public school, or were you homeschooled, too?" she asks. A good way to get someone's guard down is to get them to talk about themselves. People love talking about themselves.

"I went to public school, yeah. It's not all that great, though. Trust me," Maria says, laughing a little to herself. Mazzy doesn't understand that. How could it not be fun if you get to hang out with a bunch of other kids, and even get time to play outside? That sounds so fun. "Other kids get really obnoxious the older you get. What about you? Do you like being homeschooled?" Maria asks.

Oh, jeez. Maria is asking questions now, too. Maybe she knows what Mazzy is up to.

"No. It's really boring. It's like homework all day long," Mazzy answers anyway. Now she has to find a way to switch the topic and get this plan back on track. Maybe it is better to just jump right into it. No, no, no. No need to rush. But if she could just hint at it... "But it's good I'm homeschooled, though, right? Because if I went to real school then I would have missed a lot of stuff when I was sick, right? Do you remember when I was sick?"

Immediately after asking it, Mazzy bites down on her tongue and looks back out the window. That was not smooth, that was not slick, and that was not inconspicuous. Bad move. Bad, bad move.

Maria takes these questions like a champ, knowing exactly how to slide past them without revealing a single thing. "I didn't know you back then, but I hear about it sometimes," she says. No information revealed. Darn it.

Well, Mazzy already ruined the plan so she thinks she might as well just go for it. "What do you hear about it? I can't even remember it."

"I've heard just as much as you have," Maria answers with a shrug.

Goodness gracious, she is good at this, Mazzy thinks. She needs a shocker question. Something to catch the professional secret keeper off guard. "What's the medicine they put in me called?" she decides on asking.

And for a second, Mazzy thinks it might have worked. Maria is quiet for just a few seconds. But then she picks herself up and answers smoothly. "You'll have to ask your dad that one. All the science stuff— it sometimes flies right over my head."

Mazzy huffs quietly to herself in the backseat. Mission failure. "Yeah. I'll ask him sometime," she says. But she knows that if she asks him, he won't give her any answer, either. He probably won't even try to be smooth with it and lie like Maria. He'll just try and distract her with something else. Maybe a popsicle or something.

✭

Kicking her legs back and forth impatiently, Mazzy sits in the waiting room of a doctor's office. It is technically an audiologist's office, but that doesn't have that nice ring to it, and the feeling is just the same. Boredom.

It feels like it takes forever, but it is only about ten minutes before a woman comes into the waiting room with a clipboard in her hands and says, "Mazzy Stark?" And Mazzy shoots up out of her chair.

Maria and Mazzy follow the woman through a maze of hallways that feel a little bit too small for comfort until they reach a little room with a few machines and three chairs. The woman gets to sit in the rolly doctor chair while Mazzy and Maria are forced to sit in the regular old person chairs.

"So," the woman begins, "you're here for a new pair of hearing aids?"

Mazzy nods. "Yeah. My dad says they're too small for me now," she answers, leaving out the part about one breaking by being stepped on by an evil robot. That is one of those things that she isn't supposed to talk about in public.

"Alright, we'll get you set up with a new pair as soon as possible, but we'll have to run some tests and do a fitting first, and then it'll take a little while before they're ready for you," the woman explains in a professional doctor voice.

"Okie dokie," Mazzy says.

"I'm Dr. Harrison, just so you know."

"Nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you, too, Mazzy," Dr. Harrison replies with a polite smile. She then turns her attention to Maria. "And are you the mother?"

"Oh, no. I'm a friend of her father's, but I have all the information you'll need," Maria answers, gesturing to the file in her lap. She glances at Mazzy out of the corner of her eye, wondering if she'll have any reaction to talk about her mother, but she doesn't seem to. Maria isn't sure if that is good or bad.

"Perfect," Dr. Harrison says. She takes the file gratefully and starts typing away at her computer, murmuring the words to herself as she goes. "Nine years old, deaf since age six, due to severe head injury, has been here before," she murmurs under her breath.

Severe head injury?

Sicknesses aren't really severe head injuries. That doesn't make any sense. None at all. Mazzy stares at her shoes, repeating the words to herself in her head so that she'll remember to write them in her notebook when she gets back home. Severe head injury, severe head injury, severe head injury.

"Okay. So now, Mazzy, I'm going to ask you some questions about your hearing," the audiologist says, rolling her rolly doctor chair closer to Mazzy's. Mazzy nods in understanding. "When you're without your hearing aids, can you hear at all or can you hear some things?" she asks.

"When things are real loud I can hear them, I think. Like an explosion. I think I could hear an explosion. Just really, super muffled and all," Mazzy explains.

"So, if I were to scream in your face, would you be able to hear me?" Dr. Harrison asks, raising her eyebrows.

Mazzy lets out a little laugh. "A little, but I probably wouldn't be able to tell what you were saying."

"Should we test it out, do you think?" Dr. Harrison teases.

"No!" Mazzy giggles, shaking her head.

"I guess I'll just have to take your word for it, then," Dr. Harrison says, shrugging her shoulders. She writes a little bit on her papers on her clipboard. Mazzy wishes that she could read it. She doesn't like people writing things about her on their clipboards. "And with your old hearing aids— I see you've only got one in today— have you had any trouble hearing?" Dr. Harrison asks next.

"I can't hear whispers well at all. It's annoying because I love to hear when people are whispering about me," Mazzy says, crossing her arms and leaning back in her chair. Being able to hear whispers would be really helpful for her current mission.

"That's fair. I love to hear when people are whispering about me, too," Dr. Harrison replies. She writes on her clipboard again. "Anything else?"

"Not that I can think of," Mazzy replies, shrugging her shoulders.

"Alright. And you don't sleep with your hearing aids in, do you, Mazzy?" Dr. Harrison asks, narrowing her eyes.

"No," Mazzy answers, thinking the answer is really quite obvious.

"Oh, phew!" Dr. Harrison huffs dramatically, pretending to wipe sweat from her brow. "You have no idea how many kids come in here complaining that their hearing aids aren't working only to find out that they're sleeping with their hearing aids in! It's crazy!"

"Oh, brother. Kids don't like listening to what they're told these days," Mazzy says, rolling her eyes.

Maria lets out a small laugh, nudging Mazzy's arm with her elbow. "Your dad's right, you know. You do talk like a grandma," she says, a soft smile on her face.

"I guess you're right," Mazzy says with a huff.

"Nothing to be embarrassed about. It just means you're wise," Maria tells Mazzy, giving her shoulder a squeeze.

"Okay, okay. Back on track, now," Dr. Harrison interrupts, adjusting the way she's sitting. She rolls her chair over to the machines that are sitting idly in the corner. "We need to run these tests and get this done, honey. You wanna come on over here for me?" she asks.

"Yeah." Mazzy gets off of her chair and makes her way over to the machines.

"Have you ever taken a hearing test at school?" Dr. Harrison asks.

"I'm homeschooled," Mazzy says, shaking her head.

"Oh, yeah. I forgot. You're Tony Stark's daughter, aren't you?" Dr. Harrison says.

"I'm Mazzy Stark," Mazzy replies.