" by Oneirataxia_girl "

a part of me wonders on repeat, what would happen if I disappeared? would anyone worry at all? would they even notice that I'm gone?

would my death or disappearance change the course of time? could the speck on the timeline that is me, truly mean a thing to the rest of history? is there a single part of me, that would remain behind? is there any piece of my heart that wouldn't die?

I can't imagine a world where my image is remembered. I can only picture the ones that I love crying over a hole that goes six-feet underground.

and in the end, my breath slows with my heart beat. tears escape me as the world hangs on the edge of disaster. as feelings begin to fade, i look to the sky in blissful wonder. I've always loved the rain, whether it's a goodbye or a different kind of hello.

written by...   katie

THE BOY WHO DIDN'T DIE — ANTHONY EDWARD STARK WAS A HORRENDOUS DISASTER. The only son and heir of the late Howard and Maria Stark. The youngest CEO the world had seen. An orphan in mere seconds one cold night, in December 1991. A child who didn't know how to register such a loss. A man in charge of his future, and so many others. The prodigy was not what the world was expecting.

A lucky screwup. A kid bent on destroying his father's legacy. A rich child running wild. A man built from mistakes.

All things the reporters and tabloids wrote describing the eccentric Stark. What none truly knew, was that the boy knew no better.

They marveled at his father's machines and inventions. They gawked at him like he was a sheep set up for slaughter. They approached him with forced smiles hiding jagged teeth. They told him to be more like his father, but that, that was the only thing he was terrified of becoming.

Tony Stark couldn't remember the last time his father ever said "I love you". At this point, he barely even remembers what the man looked like at all. His father had treated him like a creation all his life. And like all of Howard Stark's creations, he was either a prize-winner or a piece of junk locked in a safe.

Tony Stark is everything his parents created. Their only child that can only be judged by their highest awards. That can only be compared to their known mistakes.

Tony Stark believes himself to be exactly what the tabloids claim he his. No matter what he tells his friend. "I'm fine." No matter what he tells Jarvis. "I'm fine." No matter what he tells Peggy and Daniel. "I'm fine." And he puts on that mask that he's designed oh so well. He smiles and he laughs and he drinks, boy does he drink.

Tony Stark denies needing help as he hires Pepper Potts. "I'm fine." He denies wanting security as he drives Happy Hogan instead of the other way around. "I'm fine." He denies wanting a relationship despite the women that he meets. "I'm fine." But then again, he's never seen any of them after the one night.

At least, up until this night.

Tony doesn't actually see her. His drunk memories remember the curly haired woman he slept with almost ten months ago. But the ghost of the woman he once spent the night with is gone. In her place is a car seat holding a baby that's oh so small and a letter filled with so many curses that it barely tells him more than the birth certificate does.

He doesn't ask for a DNA test, he doesn't have to. The mother of his firstborn child made sure that him and her baby were stuck together like glue. A DNA test attached with only his name still on it and a birth certificate with no mother listed.

That's how one night in 1996, Tony Stark became a father without notice.

The tabloids had another reason to call him a screwup. "Now he's knocking up random women!" They would scream and shout. The company had another reason to look down on him, whisper that he wasn't ready for full control. "He'll sink the whole company in a year!"

But Tony Stark finally had a reason to prove himself wrong. The genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist found his fit in the flimsy mask he had fashioned years ago. He found his strengths in convincing everyone that he knew nothing and everything that was going on around him. He convinced the world that he was exactly what they had already decided he was.

In reality, in his mansions and houses, he wasn't Howard and Maria Stark's son and heir. He wasn't the CEO of Stark Industries. He wasn't a playboy or drunk. In his home he was Tony, and to his daughter he was Daddy.

Tony had never fallen in love before that night in 1996. When he looked at the face of his daughter he knew he was all in. He didn't want to accept help from Jarvis or from the Carter-Sousas, but there are some things that he has to accept that he can't do. And so he lets them in, he takes notes and accepts their advice. Because the one thing that he has no clue how to do, is raise a kid. Especially so that Eleanor Isabel Stark doesn't end up like him.

ENTER SARA ZAYDEN MORSE — THE BLACK SHEEP OF HER OWN FAMILY. Born into a military family that took service and loyalty to the core, Sara Morse never was quite understood. The glasses wearing red head was not an athlete. She wasn't fearless and reckless. Sara Morse was different from the people that were supposed to be closest to her, and they couldn't understand her in any way.

Her childhood had been lonely. Sara wasn't a social butterfly like her younger sister or a sports "hero" like her older brother. She liked science and math, she liked reading and her time alone. Sara was considering an odd duck, and her family never quite got the notion that their teasing hurt her to the core.

It wasn't long before a divide grew between Sara Morse and her family. It wasn't long before a canyon grew between them all. It wasn't long before the shouting started. It wasn't long before she was leaving and not looking back.

And there she was, struggling to stay afloat in a harsh world of student debt and unfunded ideas. A girl with a too small apartment to jokingly call home and no idea as to which direction to turn.  A woman that thought she had found her purpose, yet was barely holding on to what she thought she wanted.

That was until she heard the news — Tony Stark had screwed up and had a kid. The billionaire, playboy, genius was also looking for someone willing to raise his little girl.

"Why not?" Sara thought. She had always been good with kids. She practically raised her little sister as often as her parents were out doing drills or running errands. She filled out the application with plenty of fake-sincerity, fibbing where she could. And if she was completely honest with herself, telling stories of raising her little sister and taking care of older brother... it made her miss her family. Maybe she wasn't really lying after all.

Somehow it worked. Somehow she ended up in Tony Stark's mansion opposite of the man himself, a baby not even three months old, and a woman who reminded Sara of her own mother with her own four year old in her lap.

Somehow, when the interview was over they smiled and shook her hand. The older woman looking a lot less threatening as she congratulated the woman on her new position. Welcoming her into the house a week later and signing her official contract with the strawberry blonde she soon learned was Mr. Stark's personal assistant. Sara blinked and before she knew it she had found a place in life.

Sara Morse was slowly entrapped within the people Tony Stark called family. Soon she was joking with James Rhodes about Tony's college years. Soon she was accepting tips from Peggy and Daniel, sweeping Gracelyn Carter-Sousa into her arms and treating her like her own. Soon she was watching out for Pepper as they worked together to keep the Stark family together. Soon she forget when he went from the professional Mr. Stark to a gentle Tony.

And before she knew it, Sara Morse was a part of the Stark family.

Eleanor Isabel Stark had learned to call her Sara. The four year old surely was a genius in the making, and Sara treated her like one. In between tea parties and building train tracks, the two would cuddle together and Sara would help Ellie read to her. She raised her to want to learn, and Ellie was dedicated to it.

Ellie wasn't the only person who dragged Sara deeper into the Stark family... she was just the first.

Tony Stark and Sara Morse had an unspoken agreement with each other. One that Sara didn't truly know if Tony knew about, or maybe he just acted in her lead.

They looked after each other.

Tony knew she had no contact with her family. Sara knew that he had no one but the few she was in contact with. So they let life do as it wishes and mold them into the people that Ellie needed.

When Sara and Ellie fell asleep on the couch, a Disney movie playing on repeat, he would turn it off and carry them both to their rooms. When Tony fell asleep at his desk or workbench, she would drape a blanket over him and shift him just so his neck wouldn't hurt too much.

As the two spent more and more time together, Tony began to wonder if more could grow between them. He knew she was genuine. He knew that she gave her all to Ellie. He knew that she had found a passion in raising his little girl. He saw that loving spark in her eyes... yet he doesn't remember when he started wondering if she would ever look at him like that.

But gosh he wanted her too.

Maybe that was why he pushed himself to try harder.

Except Anthony Edward Stark was a horrendous disaster, and in 2001, he remade a mistake he doesn't even remember making.

SARA ZAYDEN MORSE
the mother figure

selfless. misunderstood. different.

" some families can be complicated,
others just seem to come together "

(( bryce dallas howard ))

ANTHONY EDWARD STARK
the struggling father

disaster. trying. sacrifice.

" the world likes to see what they want to, and I've been giving them just that since I was a kid "

(( pedro pascal ))

ELEANOR ISABEL STARK
the little genius

brilliant. mistake. growing.

" why is everyone always so interested in talking to me? I don't care what they have to say "

(( young! jenna ortega ))

ADRIAN HARMONY STARK
the little irony

learning. unwanted. chaos.

" well, why can't you be selfish? just once
can you give me the Tony the world sees "

(( yaya gosselin ))

" featuring "

pepper potts... gwyneth paltrow
james rhodes... don cheadle
happy hogan... jon favreau
natasha romanoff... ana de armas

as well as

peggy carter-sousa... felicity jones
daniel carter-sousa... enver gjokaj
young!gracelyn carter-sousa... cailey fleming

" by Oneirataxia_girl "

it's september 2nd, 2022 which means I just turned 17 sjjsjs!! I'm so excited to get this fic out there and I hope that you all enjoy💕

hello all and welcome to "heart of irony" although it's the third book in my series (in timeline order) I'm keeping a firm hold on "bound by debt" until a later date as it doesn't contribute much to the series until phase three.

heart of irony is a Tony Stark fic but it's also a lot more than that. it's a coming of age story for his daughters. it's a found family fic. it's a slowburn love story featuring two people who have experienced two very different although similar kinds of love from their families.

Tony and Sara are adorable together and it was a challenge to try to write their dynamic in the synopsis because they are just so so so complicated. it takes them time to get to a point where they find themselves getting into a relationship, and a lot of heartbreak and incidents happen in between.

if you were paying attention, you probably saw mentions of Peggy and Daniel (and Gracelyn) in the synopsis. this fic is part of my marvel au series "flocci non facio" alongside "union's valkyrie" which means that Carter-Sousa is canon in this universe. Peggy and Daniel are, in fact, Tony's godparents, as they always should've been. This means that little Gracelyn Carter-Sousa makes a few cameos in this fic, same as a teenage Gracelyn makes a few cameos at the end of "uv"

the following section holds the warnings and disclaimer for this fic and series.

WARNING... this fic contains the following content: mature themes such as war, murder, killing, kidnapping/torture, misc weapons, a variety of mental illnesses (depression, anxiety, ptsd), foul language, general violence, made up science, death, angst, and romantic scenes to a certain extent. mentions of drugs/alcohol, as well as mentions of abuse of the previous. mentions of r*pe and sexual assault.

DISCLAIMER ── the mcu is owned by Disney, Marvel Studios, Stan Lee, and other significant creators and writers, so all familiar characters, plot, and dialogue belongs to their respective owners. HOWEVER ── the FLOCCI NON FACIO SERIES, is an au and I own my own plot lines and diverges from the canon timeline. Sara Morse, Eleanor Stark, and Adrian Stark are strictly my characters. They have their own ties to the mcu but at the end of the day their characters and individual plots belong to me. DO NOT STEAL MY WORK

THE CAST ── unfortunately the mcu cast is incredibly problematic. so welcome to a very recasted or floating casted mcu!! even as the series continues, you'll see more recasts that will lead to au plotlines!!

as you can already tell, Tony and Natasha have been recasted. in "uv" Bucky and Peggy are recasted.

GRAPHICS ── story gif made by Oneirataxia_girl  and every tint else that you see in this chapter was made by me!!

the FLOCCI NON FACIO series is a very very very long series that is most definitely still in the works!! there are so many ocs and hopefully cameos as well as multiple ties as characters jump from their regular scenes to others!!

UNION'S VALKYRIE
book one
( cpt. america, first avenger — agent carter )
bucky barnes x hannah rogers

— in which Steve Rogers' little sister finds herself invited into the Super Soldier Program. as things fall apart for the Rogers' they find their own path into the army... and save Hannah Rogers' crush - Bucky Barnes.
— PUBLISHED

BOUND BY DEBT
book two
( captain marvel — the marvels )
carol danvers x delmira of thanos

— in which a daughter of Thanos is sent by Ronin to capture and return with the Kree warrior known as Vers. along her way, the alien discovers that maybe she doesn't owe everyone what she thought she did. and maybe, just maybe, she can find a life instead of servitude.

HEART OF IRONY
book three
( pre-iron man i — iron man iii )
tony stark x sara morse
— you are here.

OUTCAST'S CHAINS
book four
( thor — thor ragnorak )
loki odinson x estrid revondottir

— in which the little witch under the teaching of Queen Frigga meets her son, Prince Loki. and although the rumors surrounding the younger prince of Asgard are odd, she finds him to be a more thoughtful and caring person than he's described as.

FLOCCI NON FACIO
book five
( the avengers + cpt. america, winter soldier )
steve rogers x dr. marabelle carson
sam wilson x lai yikao
hannah rogers x bucky barnes

— Steve Rogers was found in the ice only a year ago, but in the year to follow he's had a lot to handle. 70 years have blown by, Hannah is now older than him, he's been thrown into a whole new world, and now the world is under threat once again. but in between the nightmares and alien attacks, is a quiet office in an unmarked building with a woman that makes him feel a little more normal.
— Sam Wilson would admit to being a bit of a hot head. even living with a therapist did little for his random flares of anger. maybe it was just all his pent up frustration after Riley died. but when he lashes out at a woman in a park for running into him, he soon comes to regret it as he meets the same woman at a fundraiser for the veterans' center. the main benefactor, in fact. and she's blind.

dedications

hecatespells girlofstarlight -crrashingwavves moonqlow  orxngeheart andorss  Winter326 darthvvderr Oneirataxia_girl  a-angzls  DestinyDezired tzar-of-torture -sanascribbles  jenslovebot princesscamillia13  _BlackWolf02_ -JIMINSFAVBLACKIE LovingMyLifeAlways  Phxntom-Spider  scvrletxreads

and to everyone else reading this who loves marvel as much as I do!! welcome to the FLOCCI NON FACIO series, book three, HEART OF IRONY!! I hope you enjoy!!

started ── July 17, 2022
rough draft ── written in March 2022
ended ── tbd