Chapter 1: Truth or Dare
Summary:
At a bachelor’s party in Las Vegas, Kendis’s friends dare her to do something risky.
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
“I can’t believe you talked me into this,” Kendis sighed as she took a sip of her rum and Coke. “I could be at home with a good book.”
“Now, you are beginning to sound like Hermione,” Ron snorted, as he took a long pull of his beer and grimaced. He glared down at the beer in his hand. “How do you drink this shit?”
“I don’t,” Kendis snorted. “I have lived in America long enough to know how to avoid it.”
Ron laughed, “Smart.” He gave the beer one last glare, but he drank it anyway.
Kendis turned to her two friends. “Vegas, really? You could have had a tasteful wedding at your mother’s country club. But for some reason, you want to get married in the most cliché way possible.”
“Hey, it’s not cliché!” Seamus protested after taking yet another shot of whiskey. “It’s iconic.”
“It was either elope in Vegas or homicide,” Dean said, taking a sip of a bright orange cocktail.
“Hey, no admitting to premeditated murder in front of the Auror,” Ron protested. “I would like to have some type of plausible deniability.”
“My wedding colors are yellow and pink,” Seamus shuddered. “I think she thinks since I’m a poof that means that I’m a bloody girl.”
“Did she mistake you for Kendis?” Ron snorted, and Kendis flipped him off. It was on the tip of her tongue to correct him. She may have a feminine body and use she/they pronouns, but that didn’t make her a girl.
And every time Kendis tried to explain what being trans feminine meant, Ron’s eyes glazed over.
Her best friend used the correct pronouns and never deadnamed her, but Kendis knew that Ron didn’t get it.
“But going to a strip joint for your stag party?” Kendis sighed, “I thought you had better taste than that.”
Being stuck at Juicy Lucy’s on a Tuesday night was not what she thought was fun. With the pounding music, strobe lights, and the smell of smoke and stale alcohol. The strip joint was a sensory nightmare for an autistic person like her.
Kendi just wanted to spend the rest of their night in a dark hotel room listening to their favorite playlist. Instead, to manage the overwhelming stimulation, Kendis resorted to table tapping as a stim.
“Oh, come off it!” Ron rolled his eyes. “I saw you eyeing a few of the strippers. Besides, you can pretend to be above it all when I know you installed a pole in your bedroom.”
Neville, who had been quiet through this entire exchange, snorted out his lurid pink cocktail. “Blimey, Kendis.”
” Ron!” Kendis hissed,” You are such a blabbermouth.”
”Sorry,” Ron replied sheepishly.
Kendis rolled her eyes and looked back at the stripper, who was skillfully twisting her body on the bar. She is beautiful, with most of her dark mocha brown skin on display with only a neon green bikini top and g-string on.
Her long, silky, dark hair cascaded back as she arched her body, drawing Kendis's gaze to her generous cleavage that was barely restrained in the bikini.
Kendis felt her cheeks go hot, but she dutifully threw a few twenties on the stage. Being bi and experiencing a sexual drought was so frustrating. On one hand, Kendis didn’t have gender getting in the way of possibly hooking up with someone.
But dating in Los Angeles was, in a word, awful. And after her last disastrous attempt at dating, Kendis has pretty much resorted to using her right hand and her collection of toys to get by.
The way her body was buzzing at the mere presence of the stripper on stage told Kendis that she was long overdue for a good shag.
“You alright there, mate?” Ron said, slapping them on the back.
Kendis turned back to her friends. “Fine.”
“Now, I bet you 15 galleons that you won’t get up on the pole.” Seamus challenged.
Kendis shot a furious look at her laughing friends. Then she turned to Dean. “Are you sure you want me to get up there and shake my arse in front of your fiancé?
“Sure! Seamus is gay, so you don’t really do it for him.” Dean laughed and then looked her up and down with a smirk.
“And what about you?” Kendis glared at him. “Dean’s bi—“
Seamus rolled his eyes and threw his arm around Dean’s waist. “Don’t bother me none. Besides, Dean can look, but he knows I’ll kill him if he touches.”
Dean’s eyes softened, and he turned and gave a sweet kiss. Seamus melted into Dean’s touch. Kendis looked away as she tried to ignore the feeling of longing that rose inside of her.
Turning to Ron, she saw his grimace. “You’re like my sister. If you are going up there, then I’m going to head to the loo.”
Kendis rolled her eyes and then turned to Neville, who was fidgeting with the stim of his glass.
“Nev?”
He sighed and shrugged. “I wouldn’t mind seeing it. Ginny would be jealous that she missed it.”
Kendis was shocked because she thought Ginny had lost any remaining attraction to Kendis after she transitioned.
Kendis drained the last of her drink and then slammed the glass on the table.
“Fine,” Kendis said as she stood up on her feet. She was thankful she only had a buzz and was still stable enough to do this without embarrassing herself.
“That’s my cue,” Ron stumbled to his feet and made a beeline for the loo.
Kendis shook her head and quickly crossed the mostly empty club over to the bar.
She nodded to the bartender. “Can I borrow your pole for a song or two?”
The bartender blinked and then laughed. “I am guessing you’re not talking about my dick.”
“Nah mate,” Kendis chuckled, and gestured at the pole where the stripper from before went down into a split. Kendis’ eyes went wide and then looked away.
“I don’t know,” said the bartender. “Let me ask Lucy.”
After a quick discussion with Lucy (an older woman in her fifties who oddly resembled Julie Newmar), and after giving Lucy more money than Kendis usually liked to spend, Lucy finally gave Kendis the go-ahead.
Kendis found herself being escorted backstage. Standing there while a few other strippers shot her a few bewildered looks, Kendis called herself a thousand types of fool.
“Boys, gals, and non-binary pals! Get ready for a show like no other! For one night only, we’ve got a special treat, all the way from England! Kendis Black!”
Kendis took a deep breath and stepped onto the stage. If Kendis could defeat a powerful dark wizard at seventeen, then she could pole dance for five minutes.
Kendis took a deep breath and stepped onto the stage. Kendis’s friends dared her to do something, and she never refused a challenge.
*Rewritten: (07/16/2025)
Chapter 2: Step On The Wild Side
Summary:
After delivering a keynote speech at a tech convention, Tony heads to a strip club to blow off some steam and finds himself immediately attracted to Kendis.
Notes:
I was so surprised by the reaction to the first chapter that I decided to update weekly instead of bi-monthly, especially since I already have a lot of chapters ready to go! I am just having so much fun. And if you don't know I have a website for this series because I am a dork who enjoy designing websites and I wanted an option just in case something happens to my notion hub page or this account. I'm just weird about having backup options. Sometimes I will post extra behind the stuff there or I might drop an early update.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
With a smug grin, Tony Stark basked in the standing ovation from the audience. He stood there for a second, just soaking in all the adulation.
Then he gave the peace sign before pivoting on his heel and swaggering off the stage.
"That was wonderful, Mr. Stark." The organizer gushed. "Your theory on infinite fusion could revolutionize the energy sector—"
"Yes, yes." Tony waved him away. "Places to go, people to see."
He nodded to Happy and his other bodyguards, who were following closely behind him.
Obadiah, his second-in-command, had disapproved of Tony attending this convention. In his eyes, clean energy was just a hippy-dippy pipe dream.
In Obadiah’s opinion, Stark Industries was a weapon company, and that was all it would ever be. Tony, however, could see the advantages of branching out, since he wasn’t the type of businessman to put all his eggs in one basket.
Tony and his group caused quite a commotion as they strutted through the ARIA hotel and resort. He was thankful that he had his red sunglasses on that night because the flashing lights of the slot machines worsened his usual sensory issues.
They walked past a bunch of card tables, and Tony winked at a hot redhead who was giving him a lascivious once over but kept on moving.
Whenever Tony was in Vegas, he would spend the night gambling a small fortune away, but tonight he wanted something a little different.
Tony sighed in relief as they walked out into the cool air. Free from the smell of stale cigarettes and spilled alcohol. It was March, and the scorching desert temperatures dropped once the sun set.
Happy hurried in front of him to open the door of the black limo, waiting for him.
"Where to, boss?"
Pepper, his assistant, had allowed him to stay an extra day in Sin City as an incentive for him to be on his best behavior at this highly publicized event.
Not only that, she had also arranged a room for him at The Bellagio, his favorite place to stay in town.
He would never have gotten a moment's peace if he had stayed within sight of the convention goers.
"I need to blow off some steam," Tony said as he patted Happy on the back. "How about Juicy Lucy's?"
Happy lifted an eyebrow, but said nothing as Tony slid into the back of the limo.
Tony poured himself a finger of Glenfiddich neat and took a sip. He loosened his tie and smiled.
A night with lots of drinks and beautiful naked women was exactly what he needed.
Juicy Lucy's was a large rectangular brick building that had a simple lime green awning above two large black double doors and the words Juicy Lucy in cursive written across it.
The club hadn’t changed at all since Tony and Rhodey had discovered it a decade ago. Tony had convinced his best friend to come out with him to Vegas to celebrate graduation.
One last adventure before they shipped Rhodey off to basic training and forced him to become a responsible adult. Tony, however, was Peter Panning this shit to the grave.
He signaled to Happy, who opened the door for him. Even from the empty parking lot, Tony could hear the pounding bass of a rock song.
"Hey, all of you can either come in and have a drink on me or scram," Tony shrugged.
"Mr. Stark," Happy frowned, and Tony rolled his eyes.
"Don't be a party pooper, Happy." The big man just shook his head and excused the rest of the security.
Happy opened the door for Tony, and it took him a moment for his eyesight to adjust to the dim lighting and the neon lights that illuminated the bar.
The place was practically empty except for a bunch of guys in their mid to late twenties taking up one of the tables up front. His attention was immediately drawn to the woman in a white tank top and short daisy dukes on stage.
Tony felt his heart speed up and his face flush as he watched her gracefully flip and twist on the pole.
The spotlight illuminated her golden-brown skin, making the dancer look ethereal and untouchable. Her lean, muscular body was poetry in motion; controlled, powerful, and sexy as hell. Her long black cornrows swayed with every spin that mesmerized him. It was obvious from the way she moved that she didn't dance for the audience's approval; she danced because she truly enjoyed it.
Tony gave a low whistle. “Jesus!”
When the stripper spun down gracefully, she finally locked eyes with him. And Tony couldn't move if he wanted to. The noise in the room had fallen away, and his eyes met hers. This goddess was the only thing worth watching. A slow, dangerous grin curved her lips, and without breaking her rhythm, she slid down the pole—her bottle green eyes were hot enough to burn before she arched back into the next move.
That grin promised all types of filthy things that went directly to Tony’s cock.
"Mr. Stark.”
"Lucy." Tony took her hand and kissed it. "It's always a pleasure to see you again."
"If that was the case, you wouldn’t have stayed away too long." Lucy laughed. "Now, let's show you to the VIP area, and I’ll call my best girls to attend to you."
Tony gestured at the green-eyed beauty who was sauntering off the bar to the cheers of the table.
"How about her?"
A brief look of surprise flashed on Lucy's face, and then she shook her head. "She doesn't work here."
Tony's eyes went wide. "You allow customers to dance?" He playfully clutched his chest. "Why, I never!"
"I do if the price is right," Lucy said, with an enigmatic smile. "Now, how about I call Amber over--"
Tony promptly ignored the rest of what Lucy was saying, as he saw the woman coming out of the back, sliding a motorcycle jacket on, and walking over to the table.
One of the guys handed over what looked to be coins, and then a ginger man came over to her and whispered something in her ear.
Green eyes shrugged before she turned and headed towards the bar.
Was that her boyfriend?
Tony didn't care. He was going to shoot his shot, regardless. And if she left with him, then that was that guy's problem.
"Mr. Stark?" Tony shook his head and gave Lucy a sheepish smile.
"Sorry about that, Lucy," he said as his eyes followed his target for the night. "I think I'm just going to hang out at the bar."
Ignoring Happy and Lucy’s judging stares, he followed the dancer.
Tony's eyes were on the dancer's thick bubble butt, and he licked his lips. The green-eyed babe would be under him by the end of the night.
Tony wanted her, and Starks always got what they wanted.
*Rewritten: (07/17/2025)
Notes:
Tony finally makes an appearance! I know that people might find Tony a jerk but you have to remember that by his own admission that pre-Iron Man Tony was not a great guy. He get better as this story (and this series) goes on but right now he's an asshole. Now, you might have to wonder how Kendis falls for this jackass but you will have to wait and see!
The next episode will drop next Thursday on September 26th! Make sure you subscribe/follow this story so you won't miss it!
Chapter 3: The Devil You Don’t Know
Summary:
Tony is trying to persuade Kendis to leave with him, but Kendis is unsure if going home with the famous playboy is a good idea.
Notes:
We are back with another chapter of The Temporary Spouse! And this time we get to see Tony and Kendis meet! I just want to take a brief moment to thank all of you that have left kudos, who bookmarked, and left comments. This means the world to me. When I posted this story I was terrified no one would like it but here we are quickly getting close to 50 kudos! Thank you so much!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Kendis could feel eyes on them as they walked to the bar. In hindsight, Kendis should have expected that. They had spent five minutes stripping to a Black Keys song, so, of course, people would assume that they were a dancer.
Kendis did the best to ignore the stares and waved down the bartender.
"Nice set," the bartender said. "What can I get you?"
Kendis ordered the drinks for their table. Blackstreet’s ”No Diggity” came on, and even though they were out of breath from that surprise pole dancing, the beat still made them want to dance.
Kendis was bobbing their head to the music when they noticed a man take a seat at the bar.
Kendis pointedly ignored them, their fingers tapping on the bar.
"I haven't seen you around here before." The man finally spoke.
Kendis kept their attention on the bartender, who was filling their order, and shrugged. "I'm just visiting."
"Well, I was hoping to spend a little time with you."
Kendis snorted and turned to the stranger. He was a white man, about a few inches taller than Kendis, and her own average height. He had dark brown spiky hair, a neatly manicured beard, and a roguish grin that made their heart speed up.
He was obviously rich and not afraid to flaunt it in his three-piece bespoke gray Tom Ford suit and black Italian loafers that probably cost more than most people's monthly rent.
"Is that the best you've got?" Kendis snorted.
"Darling," the man said, with a wicked smile. "I can guarantee you that this is just the tip of the iceberg."
Kendis licked their lips and tried to ignore the zing of arousal that traveled down their body at hearing that.
The stranger was handsome, but there was no way Kendis should have been this affected by him. Hell, they had spent most of their adult life in Los Angeles, and in that city, handsome men were a dime a dozen.
Lucky for Kendis, the bartender came back with a tray of drinks.
"Thanks," Kendis said as they reached into their wallet to pay. The man slapped a Black Amex on the bar.
"I'm paying for the pretty lady."
Kendis winced. "Not a woman."
"Well, I'm paying for this person." The man corrected easily with a shrug.
"No, I can pay--"
"Kendis!"
Everyone turned to see Seamus running over to them with a big smile. Kendis frowned at their friend. Why didn’t he just wait for their drinks?
”Hey,” Seamus said, giving the man a weird look, then back to her. ” Can I talk to you for a moment? Alone?”
The stranger just lifted an eyebrow as Seamus grabbed their arm and took them away from the bar and out of earshot of their would-be benefactor.
"Kendis, do you know who that is?" Seamus hissed in their ears.
"No, should I?" Kendis shrugged.. "He's a bit of a prat."
Seamus rolled his eyes. "That's Tony Stark! Stark Industries? One of the richest men in America?"
Kendis's eyes traveled back to the man who had been chatting them up. Their eyes raked over his body, noticing the way his suit molded to his stocky, muscular body.
Then Kendis remembered seeing a picture in Engineering Today. Even now, Kendis could still picture that photo perfectly.
It was a photo of him in a workshop with his wild hair slicked back and in nothing but a tight black tank top and a pair of sinfully tight jeans.
Kendis hadn't cared at all what that article had been about. She couldn't help but be fascinated with his broad shoulders, thick, powerful arms, and a hint of those sinful pecs through his tank top.
She would never admit this to anyone, but Kendis had spent more than one night jerking off frantically to the thought of how those big calloused hands would feel wrapped around her cock.
"Are you blushing?" Seamus asked gleefully.
Kendis shrugged, "No. So he's a rich douchebag, so what?"
Seamus gave them a long look. "Your type is rich douchebags."
Kendis sputtered, "No!"
Seamus put up a hand to stop them. "Two words: Draco Malfoy."
Kendis winced because she had a brief fling with Draco Malfoy during their eighth year at Hogwarts. It hadn't lasted long, but the sex had been fantastic.
"Look, it's been a decade since Jo–"
"Don't." Kendis glared at him and looked away.
"Okay, I'm sorry," Seamus replied sheepishly. "But seriously, when are you ever going to get another chance to fuck Tony Stark?" Seamus shook his head. "This is Vegas, live a little!"
Kendis huffed and crossed their arms.
Seamus nudged them playfully. "I'll take the drinks, and you go have fun. Groom's orders." And then Seamus winked and grabbed the tray of drinks and walked away. over to the rest of the table.
Kendis threw a look at Tony, and their eyes met. From this distance, the man looked like he wanted to devour Kendis. And a big part of them wanted to know if he could back that look up.
"Bugger it all." Kendis thought to themselves and marched back over to Tony.
"Your...friend seems nice," Tony said, obviously fishing for information.
"Yep, I have known most of them since I was a kid," Kendis said with a sigh as they turned to see Ron arguing with Seamus, and then they turned and frowned at them.
"Your boyfriend seems pissed," Tony said as he followed Kendis's gaze.
"Ron?" Kendis snorted. "He's my best mate, and tragically straight."
"Straight?" Tony asked, then blinked as he came to a conclusion. "You're gay?" He asked, with a look of disappointment.
"I'm bi," Kendis corrected. "But even if Ron wasn't like a brother to me, I think my having a cock would be a deal breaker."
"So you're trans?"
"Yep," Kendis popped the pop annoyingly. "You got a problem with that?"
Kendis glared at him challengingly. She would hate to find out that Tony was a transphobe. As a rule, Kendis didn't fuck bigots, and it would be a shame if she had to walk away.
"Cool.” Tony nodded, ”What’s your pronouns?”
”She/They,” Kendis replied. ”And yours?”
Tony winked, then took another sip, saying, “He/Him.”
”Are you really cool with the bi and trans thing?”
"For the record: I'm bi too," Tony leaned forward, a shit eating grin on his face. "And I don't give a fuck if you have a pussy or a cock. I just want to get my hands all over you."
Kendis's mouth suddenly went dry, and they licked their lips. "Okay."
Tony reached over and put his hands around Kendi's waist and pulled them close. Close enough that Kendis could smell the hint of the intoxicating musk of his cologne.
"I am going to be honest with you," Kendis said as they licked their lips, their hand slid down his firm chest. "You're a prat."
Tony laughed. "Yeah, that's not the first time I have heard that."
"But you are a hot prat," Kendis said, their fingers tracing the open space of his collar. "And I'm horny."
Tony's hands brushed down their back to hold on to her ass. With their bodies flush together, Kendis could feel the hard length of his cock pressing against their stomach.
"And I really want to sit on your cock," Kendis continued with a moan.
"Oh, that is something I can definitely arrange." He signaled to a huge man who had to be his bodyguard and took Kendis's hand in his big, calloused one, and made a beeline for the door.
"Have fun, Kendis!" They heard Seamus shout over the music, and her friends erupted in laughter. Kendis flipped them off as she allowed Tony to drag her out of the bar.
Rewritten*: (07/17/2025)
Notes:
Welp, Kendis has decided to take Tony up on his offer. What will happen next? Well, you will find that out in the next chapter. The next chapter will drop next Thursday October 3rd! Before you make sure to check out the trans charities I featured and bookmark, comment, and leave a kudos! It really does help get this story out there to more people!
WARNING:
The next update will not be a regular chapter but an interlude from the antagonist of this story. He will be deadnaming and misgendering Kendis a lot through that interlude. So if this will be triggering for you please feel free to skip. You won't miss out on any new developments in the overall plot. I just wrote this because I thought it added a different context to the storyline and gives me practice with writing villains (which I struggle with).
I will, of course, put up a special trigger warning in that chapter and I will update the tags. But let me reassure you that this transphobic antagonist will get his comeuppance in the end.
Chapter 4: [Interlude] A Shot At Freedom
Summary:
[Interlude] Kendis’ former enemy, Chester Coil, is granted freedom from Azkaban prison
Notes:
WARNING: This interlude has a lot of triggering content because the antagonist Chester Coil is a horrible human being who is possessive and deluded enough to think he owns Kendis. Chester is going to deadname, misgender, and be overall inappropriate with Kendis. You will also get a sneak peek into Kendis and Chester's previous violent confrontation. If this update is triggering to you at all please skip it and wait until the next update.
Now on to the regular author note. This update is short and I'm sorry about that. It's spooky season and I'm author who writes spooky shit so I'm busy right now. I want to take a moment to once again thank everyone who has left a comment (even if it's just an emoji), bookmarked, and left a kudos on this fic. It means so much to me that you are enjoying reading this fic.
I also want to make an announcement that after trying the week by week update schedule, I'm going to have to go back to bi-monthly updates! Sorry about that, but my schedule is jam packed at the moment. I also want to point out the website for this fic that I created (because I'm a delulu dork) and there you might get early updates, extras I don't post on this archive, author commentary, and behind-the-scenes stuff. I suggest you check it out!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
It had been a long decade since they had last seen Harry Potter. Each day, each year, seemed to drag on and was colorless. Yet, the one thing he had going for him was patience. He knew if he waited long enough, one day he would see Harry again.
He pulled his legs up to his chest and shivered in the relentless cold of his prison cell. Azkahan was always cold, and no one cared enough that the prisoners died of exposure. The guards only cared about keeping them in the cells and checking them off a manifest as if they were inventorying objects and not people.
The man closed his eyes, and behind his eyelids, he could almost picture him. The details had faded a bit because of how much time had passed, but he would always remember Harry Potter. He had been beautiful; sublime the last time he had seen him.
His green eyes had been bright and almost glowing in the gloom of that cramped little apartment. Harry's eyes had shimmered with tears, and it had made him want to kiss them away. In his cell, the man wondered what Harry's tears tasted like.
Even in his pain, Harry Potter was mesmerizing. It had been 9 years, 10 months, and 24 days, and the only thing the man had left was the memory of his love.
He thought of the light brown skin, the messy, dark hair that fell in their faces, the full lips, and the scar. The scar that was a trophy of Harry's triumph over the greatest wizard who ever lived.
The sound of jingling keys ripped the man from his reverie. Even with the screams of the other prisoners, he could still hear the heavy footsteps of the approaching guards. The man was just grateful that the dementors had been destroyed during the war, and he would not be subjected to their tender mercies.
This time, the guard didn't carry a tray of food, and it was much too early for a cell inspection.
The guard slipped the keys into the lock and opened the cell doors.
"It's your lucky day, Coil."
Honey blonde hair, long and matted, fell around Chester Coil's face. Standing there, he was far from the impeccably groomed man he used to be. He had a messy, scraggly beard, and his clothing was only rags.
"What?" Chester croaked, his eyes going wide.
"Your appeal has been approved," the Guard told him. "Come on, your ride is here."
Chester just stared at him, but the Guard grabbed his arm and yanked him through the cell. He duly followed the guard down the hallway. The screams of the inmates seemed to get even louder as Chester passed.
It all happened in a blur but with a swish of a quail, his silver lime wood, basilisk core wand was in his hand again. His shaking fingers traced down the line of his precious wand. A wand Chester had only the slim hope of seeing again.
A while later, Chester stepped off the boat and onto the shore. He closed his eyes and sucked in the fresh air.
It had been a decade since he had last seen his beloved Harry. Ten years since he’d had his fingers around his neck.
"I will see you soon, my love," Chester whispered. Harry would be punished for his disobedience, and it would only be a matter of time until he learned to finally accept his place.
With a small, happy smile and a wave of his wand, Chester Coil disappeared.
Notes:
Welp! That was your first introduction to Chester Coil and as I warned at the beginning: he is a nasty piece of work. Now, how will Chester's early release from Azkaban will affect Kendis? Well, you are going to have to wait until the next chapter. And yes, the update will be a full chapter!
The next update will drop on October 10th and that will be the last chapter that you will get week-to-week updates! I'll see you then!
Chapter 5: A Knot Well Tied
Summary:
Kendis and Tony’s one night stand leads to unforeseen consequences.
Notes:
This is the first big plot point of this story and I'm so excited to be here! I am also shocked that this fic has reached over 100 subscribers, 84 kudos, and 64 bookmarks! This is so wild and I'm so excited so many people are on this wild ride with me.
I was also surprised at how many people came out of the woodwork to drag Chester (and rightfully so). I think that is the most comments I got on any chapter so far. Yes, Chester is horrible and he will get what's coming to him. *rubs hands together evilly*
This update is an actual chapter and we are back to regular scheduled programming. Now, I will warn right here and now that the chapter has dubious consent because alcohol did have a hand in Tony and Kendis's situation.
I want to remind you that I have a website for this series (because I'm extra af). I often drop chapters early on that site, I also post extra content such as behind-the-scenes blogs, character bios, world-building info, and links to all the trans charities I have featured so far!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Kendis knew they were in trouble before they even opened their eyes. The familiar feelings of the wards didn't brush over their magical senses. But more importantly, they were nude.
Kendis never slept nude.
Kendis could only hear blood rushing their ears. They felt like their heart was going to pound right out of their chest.
They ignored the sting of the sun in their eyes and the throbbing of her head as they sat up in bed, their wand unwaveringly pointed at a white man staring at them in surprise.
"Uh, what are you going to do with a stick?" the man said as he stared at Kendis in amazement.
"You would be surprised," Kendis bit out hoarsely. Their eyes swept over the unfamiliar hotel room. The hotel room was unnecessarily opulent with large floor-to-ceiling windows stretched across one wall and looked out onto the Las Vegas skyline. It had an open floor plan, and from the large bed, they could see a white rectangular sectional and two white recliners facing a fireplace. On the either side was a fully stocked bar that had a few empty bottles on top of it.
Kendis could afford a room like this, but it was something they would never splurge on. The man stood dressed only in a pair of suit trousers. Kendis's gaze raked over him, taking in the short, messy, dark brown hair, neatly trimmed beard, and toned muscular body.
They gasped as they spotted a gold ring on his finger.
The man smirked and raised it up so they could see it better, the utter wanker. "You got a matching one."
"What?!" Kendis squawked. Sure enough, on their ring finger was a gold ring.
The man took out a folded-up piece of paper and waved it in front himself. "You're Kendis Black, right?"
"Yes." Kendis felt sick to their stomach. They were pretty sure it wasn't all due to the massive hangover they had.
"Then yep," Thet man said in an oddly chipper voice. "According to White Wedding Chapel. You are the new Mx. Stark."
Kendis just stared at him in amazement, and they wondered for a second if they were having some type of nightmare. Surely, they would wake up and be back at the shop.
Kendis wrapped the sheets around them into a makeshift toga and hurried out of bed. They nearly stumbled over their feet as they rushed to snatch the paper out of his hands.
They read it once, then twice, and then a third time. But no matter how many times Kendis read the marriage certificate, Kendis Black was still legally married to Anthony Edward Stark.
"Oh, Merlin," Kendis said as they stared at the thing.
"Merlin?”
Kendis wondered if Tony would shut up so they could have a moment to hyperventilate.
"There were a few reports from the Bugle and some other tabloids, but since the Bugle reported about my alien love child last week, no one is taking it seriously."
"Why are you not taking this seriously?" Kendis snapped. "We got married."
"I would be freaking out more if you haven’t signed an NDA and a prenup." Tony shrugged. He pointed to a stack of papers on the coffee table. There was a chime, and Tony took out his phone and winced. "And my PA is already working on damage control."
Kendis wanted to know how in the hell Tony had those types of papers at the ready. They were also pretty sure that those papers were not valid because they had signed them when they were drunk.
Tony must have read the question on their face because he said," This isn't my first rodeo. This is like the third time this has happened to me."
"That's great." Kendis laughed hysterically. "This is bloody fantastic!"
"Look, we'll sign some papers, and my lawyers and PR team will make this look like it never happened."
Kendis ran their hand through their hair and took a deep breath. They were Kendis Black, the defeater of the Lord Dark Voldemort. They had literally stared death in the eye and won, and they would not crumble in front of their husband.
"Husband," Kendis groaned. "Oh my god, you’re my husband."
Kendis's existential crisis was brought short by the dulcet sounds of ‘Uptown Girl by Billy Joel’. They realized that it was coming from the pocket of their discarded shorts.
With the sheets in hand, Kendis shuffled over to their shorts and took out their phone.
Tony threw a look of disgust at it. "An, iPhone really?"
Kendis glared at him and answered the phone. "Hey, Hermione."
"Where are you?"
Kendis tried to come up with an explanation that wouldn't get them yelled at., as the ring on their hand glinted malevolently at them.
"I got lost," Kendis lied.
"Kendis--" Hermione started, but Kendis interrupted them.
"I know, I'm late. I'll be there as soon as I can."
"Kendis, the wedding starts in an hour," Hermione scolded. And Kendis checked the time on their phone. Sure enough, it was eleven am. Seamus at Dean's wedding venue was booked for noon.
"Kendis, you can't be this irresponsible, and what if--"
"I'll be there," Kendis promised. "I'll see you in fifteen minutes." They hung up before Hermione could go into a full-blown lecture on being a responsible adult. They loved their best friend, but once she got started, she was impossible to stop.
"Look," Kendis started to say as they picked up their top off the floor and, with some maneuvering, managed to slip it on under the sheet. "This has been great and all, but I'm late for a wedding."
"You are already married--"
"No," Kendis pinched the bridge of their nose. "My mates are getting married." Their gaze darted around the room, eyes quickly moving past the mess of the bed, and there at the end of their bed was their black jacket.
"Well, that's pretty cliché," Tony said with a laugh.
"Sod off, Mr. Stark."
"Gimme your phone," Tony said, and Kendis narrowed their eyes at them in suspicion.
Tony scoffed and snatched Kendis's phone out of their hand. He quickly typed something in.
"This is my personal number," Tony said. "Text me your address, and I will have my lawyers send off the paperwork."
"Fine," Kendis said as they snatched their phone back, and afterward, slipped their feet into their boots and rushed to the door.
"No goodbye kiss for your new husband?" Tony teased, and Kendis didn't even look back as they marched out the door and slammed it behind them.
Notes:
We have now gotten to the inciting incident! I love this chapter so much and it was so fun to write. Tony and Kendis have such a fun dynamic and I love a good enemies to lovers with a dash of accidental marriage. Now, the big question is how Tony and Kendis handle the fallout. Well, you are going to have to wait and see! But as the updated chapter count can attest? This is going to be a long and bumpy ride!
However, I have to, unfortunately, inform you that this is the last chapter for a while you will be getting week to week. I will be changing my posting schedule to every two weeks because this gives me time to fill the buffer. I have a lot of rough drafts and not enough chapters that are ready to be published.
I will publish weekly again once I have enough chapters ready for ya'll. The next chapter will drop on October 24th! The day before my 40th birthday! 🥳
Chapter 6: An Unlikely Conundrum
Summary:
Frustrated by the lack of answers, Tony heads to Kendis’ motorcycle repair shop to confront her and find out more about her past.
Notes:
Happy early birthday to me! My birthday is tomorrow and what better way to celebrate it than to give you an update! Would you believe that the rough draft of this story is almost done, and it is clocking currently at 46,000 words? Now, all I have to do is rewrite it and send it to my betas. One of the many reasons I went back to a bi-monthly schedule.
I also started writing the rough draft of the next book. I know my chapters are short, but I promise you that this is going to be a long ass fic!
If you want to get early updates, free digital merch (I made wallpapers and stuff) and exclusive worldbuilding/character info. I absolutely recommend you check the website I created for this series. And yes, I am that extra to build a website for a fanfic.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
There was something not quite right about Kendis Black.
When Tony woke up in the morning with a green-eyed beauty sleeping peacefully beside him, he had given himself a mental high-five for pulling such a hottie. His eyes had traveled over their tattoos, taking in the thick black lines on their body. Kendis had been lying on their side, facing away from him. And from Tony’s position, he saw a tattoo of a huge red and gold bird between their shoulder blades. Its wings had stretched against the length of their back, and their arms were covered with had been covered with a large snake amongst white flowers.
It had made him want to bend down to lick and kiss each one.
Tony had tried to remember last night, but his memories had been a little hazy. What he remembered had made him want to ask for another round. But Tony never did morning afters, he figured it was best to get dressed and get gone before things got awkward.
He hadn’t been all too happy to kill time in the restaurant downstairs. He kicked himself for not bringing Pepper on this trip. Over the years, Pep had gotten kicking clingy one-night stands out down to a science.
With a sigh, Tony had regretfully gotten out of bed and started to dress. What he had expected to find was leftover condoms, not a marriage license and a ring on his finger.
He also hadn’t been expecting to have someone point a thin stick in his face, either. And what the hell had that been about?
Now, his new spouse was gone, and Tony had to figure out what to say to Pepper to make her spare his life. He would, of course, buy her all the shoes she wanted, but Tony had a feeling that shoes would not cut it this time.
"Jarvis," Tony said. "I want to know everything I can about Kendis Black."
"Affirmative, sir."
Tony winced as he got another scathing text from Pepper, five missed calls from Obadiah, and a voicemail from Rhodey. It had to be the middle of the night in Afghanistan, so Pepper must have tattled to his honey bear.
Letting Pepper and Rhodey become friends had been an epic mistake on his part.
Tony called Happy instead.
"Tony," Happy said.
"Happy," Tony replied, nonchalantly "Tell the pilots to get the jet ready. We are heading out in an hour."
There was a long judgmental pause. Tony wondered when Happy had become this judgey? Then, a sigh. "Alright." Happy hung up, and Tony whistled to himself as he walked into the bathroom to take a shower.
"What do you mean this is all you could find?" Tony demanded as he stared at his tablet an hour later.
Jarvis was the most advanced artificial intelligence on Earth, but all they could find was a deed for 'Enchanted Engines' and an old Yelp page with a 4.0 rating.
Kendis Black was from Sutton Green, England, an orphan who grew up in foster care, went to a typical public school, barely passed their A-levels, and then spent a year backpacking through Europe and Asia before finally settling in Los Angeles.
There was a record of a work visa that they had applied for in 1998. They had worked under Consuelo Maynard for three years before they applied for dual citizenship.
And it was all bullshit. Whoever Kendis had gotten to set up their new identity had been very good, but Tony could still see the gaps. This identity was faker than plastic.
"What about facial recognition?" Tony asked Jarvis as he tapped on the side rest of his chair in irritation. He was considering getting a drink, but he hadn’t quite recovered from his last hangover.
And he was already on Pepper's shit list. No need to add fuel to that fire.
"Nothing, sir," Jarvis said, and if he didn't know better, he would say that his son was irritated. To make Jarvis express any emotions was a sign of how dire things were.
"That's not possible." Tony shook his head. "You are telling me that I married a ghost?"
Jarvis didn't reply.
"Pull up the CCTV from the hotel."
A window pulled up on Tony's tablet, and a video started to play. He watched as Kendis hurried down the hall, but the strangest thing happened every time they looked toward the camera.
Their face would immediately become pixelated or just plain out of focus.
"What the fuck?" Tony shook his head. "Jarvis, is there something wrong with the hotel's security feeds?"
"Not that I can tell, sir," Jarvis said. "I'm attempting to adjust for the disturbance, sir."
Tony sighed as he noticed that the quality of the footage didn't seem to get any better. He thought about the photos he had seen on the Bugle website. They had managed to get a shot of them huddled together outside the White Wedding Chapel.
The shots had been blurry, and Kendis’s face had been heavily pixelated. However, Tony had just thought that Jonah Jamison had just hired shitty photographers, but now even Jarvis was failing at capturing Kendis's face.
And then there was the way Kendis had waved that stick at him like it was some type of weapon. At the time, Tony didn't know what to think, but things just weren't adding up.
Did Kendis have some access to a new technology he hadn't heard of yet? Tony looked outside the plane window at the bright blue sky. He could see the airplane’s wings moving through the white, fluffy clouds.
Tony Stark was one of the smartest men in the world. Definitely smarter than assholes like Reed Richards or David Xanatos. There was no system he couldn't crack, nothing he couldn’t build, but before him, it was a mystery he hadn’t anticipated.
Kendis Black had been meant to be just a little fun. They had been sexy and snarky as hell with that British dry wit that always turned him on. And from the little he could remember, they had been wild in bed.
What he didn't expect was to be met with a mystery. And Tony was not in the habit of ignoring a good mystery. There was nothing that was going to stop him from unlocking all of his new spouse's secrets.
Tony looked at Kendis's pixelated photo. "Who are you, Kendis Black?"
Notes:
You know Tony hates mysteries, and he hates being kept in the dark even more. And yes, they are two strangers who got accidentally married. But Tony is determined to figure out Kendis and we shall see what trouble that gets him into. *cackles evily*
Now next update, we are shaking things up again with another aside. Thankfully, this is not a Chester Coil aside, so need to have a million trigger warnings. Ya’ll will get to see exactly what happened to Kendis after she left Tony’s hotel room and you might see some familiar faces.
Also, I plan on posting another story in this series that is basically a collection of short stories and snippets from other people in this giant universe. Get ready for crossovers galore!
The next update for this fic is on November 7th and the aside story will drop on November 5th! See you folks then!
Chapter 7: Interlude: Something Funny Happened on the Way to the Wedding
Summary:
Kendis drops by her favorite queer bar, Miscellany, to spill the tea about their adventures in Vegas.
Notes:
This week has been super hard! Hugs to all of my fellow American readers. Reading your comments and public bookmarks has lifted my spirits during this dark time. Thank you so much!
Now, this update is not a regular episode. This is an interlude in which I officially introduce The Miscellany crowd. Miscellany is a fictional queer bar that was loosely inspired by the tv show Cheers. If you want to know more about this bar or how Hercules and Ioalus fit in this universe. I urge you to read my short aside, 'Where Everyone Knows Your Name'.
I want to remind everyone that I have a website for this series that has character and world building info I don't put anywhere else, free digital merch (wallpapers and art), along with early access to chapters, author commentaries, and more! Abd I forgot to mention that those chapters will be interactive with clickable character bios and location info.
One last thing! There are no trigger warnings for this interlude other than the implied dubious consent of Tony and Kendis's previous drunken sexual encounter.
Now, please enjoy!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Kendis had always had a hard time making friends. Back then, Kendis had only been Dudley Dursley's black cousin. She had been lazy, a troublemaker, and constantly wearing Dudley's filthy oversized clothes. And in a town that was overwhelmingly white, it had reinforced her neighbors’ already horrible opinions about Black people.
And then, when you added her undiagnosed autism, it was easy to see why Kendis hadn’t made any friends until she got to Hogwarts. Ron and then later Hermione were the first people to really see her.
They weren't put off by her sensory issues or the way she’d had a hard time in big social situations or couldn't look someone in the eye while talking to them. Kendis had often gotten in trouble with Snape for the latter.
Even though Ron didn't quite understand the trans and non-binary thing, Ron, Hermione, and her dormmates had stuck beside her. They had been grateful, especially when living as her authentic self usually led to the loss of so many friends.
People didn't want to be friends with the freak, and it was so much like her pre-Hogwarts days that Kendis didn't know if they wanted to laugh or cry at the irony.
Yet, for Kendis, it was so hard for her to maintain her long-distance friendships. These days, they only saw each other on holidays and birthdays.
And nowadays, Kendis was so far removed from the person she had once been. She had a feminine body covered in tattoos. The name change had only made that more evident. This wasn't the little boy they had once known; she wasn't the broken war hero they had fought alongside.
But in Los Angeles, stripped away from the trappings of a hero, Kendis found it was easier to make friends.
When Kendis had stumbled into a little queer bar called Miscellany on Sunset Boulevard, she had only wanted a drink and a way to drown away her homesickness. Ian, with his curly blonde hair, dark tan, and bright smile, had just slid a beer across the bar.
She had learned two things that day: 1) Ian co-owned the bar with his husband Jason, and 2) Ian was a great listener.
Kendis had gone back to Miscellany, and over time, she had met and befriended so many lost souls just like her. As people from all over the world kept on coming to Los Angeles to start over and reinvent themselves.
Kendis knew that the moment she woke up married to Tony Stark, she eventually would have to make a trip to Miscellany to spill all the tea. Kendis desperately needed a kiki. However, before she could do that, she had a wedding to attend. She discreetly took off her ring and placed it in their suitcase. Instead of keeping the money for herself, Kendis could have sold it and donated the proceeds to her favorite charity. Despite this, she didn’t want to owe Tony anything and had a plan to give it back.
Kendis had slipped into their black suit and tie because they may present more feminine, but they preferred pants to dresses. And shortly after, while ducking Hermione's pointed questions and Ron's constipated looks, she had watched Seamus and Dean finally get married.
Kendis never told them that the trip to Vegas had resulted in two weddings and pointedly didn't think of that gold ring in their suitcase.
After saying goodbye to their friends before they disappeared along with their portkey, Kendis had gotten on Sirius's Bonneville Triumphant and made the trip back up to Los Angeles. The five-hour ride back through the deserts of Nevada and into California was long enough to give her time to think.
They had hoped they would be more clear-headed by the time they made it on I-5 and into the city proper. Kendis knew they should head west towards Burbank and home. But instead, they braved the traffic to make it to downtown Los Angeles and onto Sunset Boulevard.
The boulevard was busy right then, and the palm trees were swaying in the wind as they drove right past the more notable landmarks such as Sunset Plaza, Book Soup, and the infamous The Roxy and parked in front of a white square building, which was squished between a tattoo parlor and a furniture store. In front of it was a rectangular building, which was painted white and had two square windows that were set in purple frames.
Above the door was a purple and pink neon sign that said in cursive font: Miscellany.
Most people would walk right past it. It didn't really stand out much like the rest of the restaurants and bars on the West Sunset, and if it weren’t for the pride flag sticker on the right window and a bisexual flag on the other, people wouldn’t notice it at all.
Kendis parked their motorcycle up front and got off of it. They pushed open the door and immediately felt some of the tension they had been carrying since Vegas melt off as they took in the bar.
Every free inch of the wall was covered with framed photos or framed newspaper clippings. Ian always told her that there was a story for each one. As with a lot of places this close to Hollywood, there were a few signed photos of celebrities. A signed photo from queer actors and musicians, Rock Hudson, Eartha Kitt, Cary Grant, Billie Holiday, Cesar Romero, Greta Garbo, and even one of Ian and his husband Jason shaking hands with Barack Obama.
There were a few people at the brown wooden tables, and an active game was going on at the pool table in the corner. And the sounds of Queen's Fat Bottom Girls belted over the jukebox that was sitting in the corner.
Kendis went up to the bar and nodded to an old man with long white hair, a beard, and piercing blue eyes that spoke of power that Kendis didn't know how to ask about. The man only grunted as Kendis took a seat on one of the empty bar stools, and for a moment, it gave them a sense of deja vu.
"Nice to see you too, Emerson."
Emerson just grunted again and took another sip of his stout beer.
Thankfully, Ian, who was struggling to carry a large box out of the back room, made his way to the bar.
"Need help?" Kendis said, about to stand up.
"Nah," the man replied, and carefully put the box on the bar and then he grinned. "Kendis!"
"Hey," Kendis waved, and Ian quickly hurried around the bar and hugged her.
"Ian!" Kendis laughed and slapped him on the back. "You act like you haven't seen me in weeks."
"Well, I'm always afraid you are getting into some trouble if I don't see you for too long." Ian snorted. "By the way, Dom and Brian came by. They wanted to talk to you about something." Ian gave them a suspicious look.
Kendis winced, and Ian stared at her before she sighed. "I have no idea what Dom and Brian want from me." She shrugged. "Besides, I thought Dom had gone straight."
Ian snorted, and headed back around the bar, and started to unpack beer.
Kendis rolled her eyes at the unintentional pun, then sighed and looked at Emerson, who was still pointedly ignoring them. She thought about waiting until Ian and her were alone, but Emerson, despite his prickly behavior, was also a friend.
"Well, what happened?" Ian crossed his arms, and Kendis sighed.
"You remember that I went to Vegas because my two mates wanted to Elope?" Kendis started.
"Well..." Kendis as she thought about what she could tell her friends. They did sign an NDA. But Kendis didn't need to be an attorney to know she could fight it in court because she had been drunk when she had signed it. "I kinda got married--"
Emerson spit out his beer. He coughed for a few moments before he spun on Kendis.
"What?" Emerson asked.
"What the hell?" Ian said, shaking his head as he distractedly wiped up the mess off of the bar.
Kendis sighed. "It's kinda a long story."
Ian pulled a beer out of the box and handed it to her.
Then he leaned forward "Tell me everything."
And Kendis took a pull of her beer, which she noticed was a stout beer, and sighed. "Well, it all started at a strip club—"
Notes:
I hope that you enjoyed this interlude! One of my favorite parts of this series is that I get to revisit my old favorite characters. And I also wrote Hercules (who is actually canonically bi and Iolaus was his lover in the original myth) and Iolaus as two immortals who are very queer and very much one of those snowflake liberals Kevin Sorbo (the actor who played Hercules) complains constantly on Twitter about.
Yes, I did write that out of pure spite! Are you surprised? Writing spitefics is practically my calling in life at this point!
Any way, the next update will be a regular chapter. That chapter will drop on November 21st. And we will get back to Kendis's and Tony's reaction to their sudden marriage. See you then!
Chapter 8: Skeletons In The Closet
Summary:
Troubled by his encounter with Kendis, Tony decides to look into her further. His surveillance brings to light surprisingly new secrets.
Notes:
It's been a long two weeks, hasn't it? A lot has happened but I really can't talk about it yet. One thing is that the With This Ring series has unofficially hit 80,000 words. This is the total count of all the stuff I have written for this series (most are still rough drafts). I plan on gradually posting all of this on my usual bi-monthly schedule. I also plan to post some more asides once I get through this first story.
I will be consistently updating this schedule forever, and I have more than a year's worth of content.
However, you can't wait that long. I have a website where I post my chapters super early. I am already two chapters ahead on my website. Not only that you will get tons of free extras such as author commentaries, behind-the-scenes blog posts, free wallpapers, and more. On top of that, I will often give a deeper look into the series and the world I am building for it. So you will get character bios, location info, and more!
I highly suggest that you check out my extra af website!
One last thing, that I haven't addressed so far is the slight changes I made to Tony's character. In the movie, no one really addressed that Tony's mother is Italian. Much like the MCU didn't really feel the need to talk about Steve's parents being Irish. This is not me critiquing the MCU, this is just me stating facts. However, (for reasons I will go over in a later blog post on the website) I made Tony a second-generation Italian immigrant.
And his mother (who immigrated from Italy) made damn sure that Tony was connected to that heritage in many different ways. One of them is that Tony's first language is Italian, not English. You will see this come up occasionally in this series. I just wanted to alert you to that.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
"Who are you, Kendis Black?"
It was a question that rolled over and over his head as the days passed. It would rear its ugly head at the most inconvenient times. When he was working on newer and meaner weapons for the U.S. Government, he was every inch of the warmonger that the press called him in the media.
Tony would find himself thinking of his enigmatic spouse during board meetings, while on calls with Obie, and when being forced to deal with the minutiae that came with running a Fortune five-hundred company.
Kendis was haunting him like a ghost.
Tony dropped the spanner onto the workbench, ran his hand through his hair, and groaned. It had been days since Jarvis had come back with the results of his background check on Kendis. Tony had unapologetically hacked the FBI, the NSA, and several other alphabet agencies, but nothing had come of it.
In all of his years, Tony had never had a fixation with a person. With the exception of the few people he kept in his personal circle, the rest of humanity was both predictable and dull. He would rather spend his valuable time with machines. Machines were way more fun.
Yet, his mind kept going back to Kendis. It was not only the mystery they presented that interested him since he kept getting flashes of the feel of their smooth skin, the way Kendis had felt as he sank deep inside their tight cunt, and the flash of their bright green eyes. He also couldn’t forget how he had enjoyed the fact that they hesitated hadn’t to snark at him.
Tony had always had a weakness for people who could stand up to him.
He suddenly heard someone putting in the code for his workshop. , and he quickly adjusted his stiff aching cock before switching the screens and trying to pretend that he was working on the Jericho updates. Pepper entered the shop in her usual skirt suit, her Louboutin heels clacking against the concrete floor as she approached him.
"What can I do for you today?"
Pepper dropped a stack of paperwork on his desk and frowned. "You can get all of those signed by tomorrow, for starters."
She looked at Stark’s tablet and went down the list. "You have a nine o'clock meeting with the head of R&D. And the Director of The Museum of African American Art wants to know if you are still interested in donating the Archibald Motley piece."
"Yes," Tony answered idly as his mind started to come up with some fixes to the bugs in Jericho's targeting system.
"You also have a meeting with the Secretary of Defense about a new contract for the Air Force."
"Okay, it's been a while since I saw Secretary Gates."
"And this." She took out a manilla folder that had been tucked under her arm. "These are the annulment papers for wife number three."
"Spouse," Tony corrected her. "I believe they told me they were non-binary."
"Spouse number three," Pepper said with a put-upon sigh as she dropped the folder on top. of the paperwork "Three spouses in eight years. No more spouses."
"Ouch!" Tony put his hand to his heart. "What if I fall in love?"
Pepper rolled her eyes but didn't say anything. "Just sign the annulment papers. The lawyers want to get rolling on this before the press catches wind of it."
"Aren't we having the marriage records sealed?" Tony frowned as Dum-e whirled to him and handed him a smoothie. The smoothie looked more like motor oil than actual fruits and veggies.
"Sealing your marriage records takes time, and the Nevada courts are dragging their feet."
"You, sir, are a menace," Tony said to Dum-e as he handed the drink back to him. Dum-e gave him a sad mechanical whine. Tony patted the mechanical arm. "I'll drink it once you stop putting motor oil in it."
Dum-e whined again and sadly rolled away, back to the kitchenette.
"Tony," Pepper called out. He turned back to her and lifted an eyebrow. "Just sign the papers."
"Sure thing, Pep!" Tony said with an innocent smile that Pepper, who had been working for him far too long, didn’t fall for. "I'll sign them and get them right back to you!"
Pepper stared at him, narrowing her blue eyes, but said nothing as she turned around, her high ponytail swaying as she walked away.
"Program Enchanted Engines in my GPS," Tony ordered as he stretched and stood up.
"Sir, can I inquire what your plan of action is?" Jarvis asked.
"I think it's time I did a little fact-finding mission," Tony said as he grabbed his keys, slid into his white Audi R8, and drove out of the lab.
Enchanted Engines was located smack dab in the middle of Burbank, and with traffic, the 45-minute ride took an hour and a half because the 101 was always hell. The place took up most of the street and was protected by a black wrought-iron fence.
As he parked in front of the building, he smiled grimly. It looked more like a compound than a place of business. The property took up most of the street and was protected by a wrought-iron fence. The business itself was located in a light yellow steel prefab building that had two big garage doors. There was a row of motorcycles parked in front of the glass door.
Tony couldn't be sure from where he was parked, but he thought he spotted a sweet-looking vintage Triumph Bonneville next to a black Kawasaki ZX-6R. Across the large gravel courtyard was a white ranch-style house with a neatly manufactured lawn and picturesque garden.
The visual dichotomy was jarring.
Tony got out of the car and put on his shades. He frowned at the loud rap music blasting from one of the bays. Rap wasn't his genre, as he preferred Aerosmith to Jay Z, but he idly bopped his head because the beat made him want to dance.
He frowned at the bright sun, shoved his sunglasses on, and walked to the gate. He jumped as a big fucking black dog that looked more like a hellhound than an actual dog lunged at him from behind the fence. The gate jangled loudly as the dog pushed up against it.
“Holy shit!” Tony suddenly reconsidered his decision to come to Kendis’s place unannounced.
"Alke," shouted a familiar British voice. "Heel."
Alke immediately calmed down and sat down, but its dark, beady eyes followed Tony's every minute. And then Kendis walked out of the bay, and Tony immediately felt his mouth dry up.
After he had gotten home from Vegas, Tony had thought that he had been exaggerating how hot Kendis was.
They wore a thin tank top that showed a hint of their cleavage, mechanic coveralls unzipped to the waist, and their muscular arms glistened with sweat and motor oil.
Kendis's short curly hair was still messy as ever and those goddamn lips still looked lush and so very kissable. Yet, it was those emerald green eyes that seemed to almost glow in the sunlight that left him breathless.
Tony's jeans felt incredibly tight.
"Tony," Kendis coughed and quickly corrected themselves. "Mr. Stark, what are you doing here?"
"I wanted to talk to you about the annulment?" Tony answered.
"I'm surprised you are not making your lawyers do this." Kendis shook their head.
Tony shrugged and gave them his best smile. "What can I say? I'm a hands-on type of guy."
Kendis narrowed their eyes for a moment and then sighed.
"Fine," Kendis bit out. "Alke, go to your bed."
Alke obediently padded away. At least the dog was well-trained. Then Kendis hit something, and the gate pulled back.
"You can park inside," Kendis said. "Plenty of room."
Tony jogged back to his car and drove inside the compound. He parked right next to the Kawasaki ZX-6R. Then he grabbed the papers and got out as Kendis walked over to his car.
"Follow me." Kendis walked away, and he followed them inside the shop. The front reception area was pretty much like any repair shop that he had ever been to. There was a large reception desk with a register and a computer on top of it. Behind the desk was a plump Black woman around Kendis's age wearing a tight sheath dress and gold bamboo hoops that contrasted nicely against her rich umber skin and dark brown eyes. Her long black hair was done up in neat twists and fell just below her shoulder.
The woman looked Tony up and down and whistled. "Bloody hell! Is that---"
Kendis put their hand. "Not right now, Hortense."
Hortense rolled her eyes in a huff. "Shall I go tell Isiah to cover for you for a bit?"
Kendis gave a relieved smile, and Hortense sashayed out of the front lounge, and Tony followed them, walking around the desk and down a short hallway to a door. They opened the door, to reveal a small office.
“Take a seat, Mr. Stark,” Kendis said as they took a seat behind their desk. Tony sat down and sprawled as much as he could on the uncomfortable desk chair across from them. He took in the tiny space. A dark walnut desk took most of the room and squeezed in the corner was a file cabinet that had seen better days. Behind the desk was a black leather office chair, and on top of the desk there was a stack of papers and an actual honest god ledger; but no sight of a computer. ‘Who in the hell didn’t use a computer?’
Tony shook his head in dismay as his eyes took in the framed photos on the wall.
Framed photos of Kendis with different people adorned the walls. A group of redheads, who almost looked like they could be related to Pepper, surrounded Kendis. Another photo that caught his attention was a photo of a much younger Kendis standing with her standing between a redhead white man and a Black woman with dark brown skin and an enormous afro standing in front of an actual castle.
"Now, tell me the real reason why one of the richest men in America is hand-delivering legal papers. I thought you saved all of that for the peons." Kendis asked, breaking him out of his thoughts.
Tony thought for a moment about the many more delicate ways he could broach the subject of Kendis' fake identity. But in the end, he said fuck it, because Stark men didn't do delicate.
"Who are you?"
Kendis blinked. "What?"
"Kendis Black does not exist." Tony leaned forward on the desk. "I want to know who the hell I married.”
Notes:
Alright folks! Tony has confronted Kendis about her shady af background! How will Kendis handle it? Well, all I can say is that it's going to get heated! You are going to wait until the next chapter.
I want to take a brief moment to wish all of the people who celebrating Thanksgiving a safe and happy Thanksgiving. I am kindly asking that if you could take a moment of your time to give to an Indigenous person's mutual aid fund or charity that would be so appreciated. Also if you know of an Indigenous fanfic writer? Go read their fic, leave them a comment, and a kudos!
The next update will be on December 5th! But if you can't wait that long and you are eager to find out what happens next? Make sure to remember to check out the website! Happy Holidays!
Chapter 9: The Chemistry Between Us
Summary:
The confrontation between Kendis and Tony becomes intense as a new danger emerges.
Notes:
I don't know what's going around but I am sick. As I am typing this I am trying to ignore the feeling that I should be in bed and rolled up in a blanket burrito. But I wouldn't skip an update day for anything!
Especially when this fic has reached 200 kudos and 222 subscriptions, that is beyond anything I ever expected for this fic. And on the backend, I'm about to hit 90k To be fair, those are all unedited rough drafts but still that is way more than my original books and triple the word count of my last big fic Playing Hero.
I'm well into writing the next fic in this series, 'The Perilous Husband.' I'm not going to spoil anything, but I'm on chapter 12 and about 19k words into that fic. All of this is to say thank you. Seeing your comments, bookmarks, and kudos keeps me going even when I am sick as a dog.
Now, this chapter is when the explicit tag comes into play. It's NSFW and unlike the implied sex scene before there is no dub-con and that is all that I have to say about it. So I hope you enjoy the smut.
By the way, I wrote a little social media aside that goes in Tony and Kendis's first Friendsgiving. You can find it here.
And lastly, I want to take a moment to remind you that I have a website for the series (yes, I am that extra) that you should check out. It's your one-stop shop for author commentaries, behind the scenes sneak peeks, character and world-building, free digital merch, and more! And if you want to know about any updates to that site make sure you subscribe to the RSS feed.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Kendis just stared at their husband in shock. The part of her brain that wasn't screaming and panicking suddenly longed for a time-turner. She really wanted to go back to a few days ago and slap the shit out of her past self. 'Of all the men I had to marry, I had to marry this nosy bastard?'
"Nothing to say?" Tony taunted, and she rolled her eyes.
"No." Kendis shrugged as she did her best to fix her face. "I rarely entertain people's baseless accusations."
Tony gave an incredulous chuckle. "Baseless? Your records are faker than plastic."
Kendis snorted and then snatched the folder out of his hands. She flipped through the documents and knew she should send them to her attorney. Draco Malfoy was her barrister in England, but she knew he would have contacts, who were licensed in California.
She really wanted this man out of her life, and the sooner, the better. He had already dug uncomfortably far into her background. Kendis grabbed a biro and quickly scrawled her signature on the places conveniently marked by arrow sticky notes.
"Done," Kendis said. "Now get out." She handed Tony the papers and guided him to the door. He spun suddenly, and in a smooth pivot, slammed her against the door with a loud thump.
"What," Kendis squeaked. "What the hell are you doing?"
"I'm not leaving until you tell me the truth," Tony said, quickly pushing into their personal space. "I want to know exactly what you got me involved in."
Kendis snorted. "Mr. Stark, we are strangers. Once the papers are filed, we will go our separate ways. Now, if you don't mind? I have work to do."
"I don't like mysteries," Tony said, his fingers brushing against her cheek.
Kendis should push him away. She was not some helpless damsel in distress, and they had brought more than their share of pushy men to their knees. Yet, the logical part of her brain was overshadowed by the magnetic pull between them.
"What are you doing?" Kendis said, ignoring his question.
"Kissing you," Tony said, and the folder dropped, and the papers spilled onto the floor as he took her mouth in a long, passionate kiss.
Kendis moaned as their tongues fought for dominance while he rocked his hips against her. The feel of his rough beard and soft, full lips against hers should have been disconcerting since Kendis didn't sleep with many men, and the last person she had kissed had been a woman. But it only added fuel to her growing desire.
Her hands slid into his thick, dark brown hair as he continued to rock against them. Even through the barrier of his jeans, she could feel his ramrod-hard cock against their stomach. Kendis undulated her hips, groaning in disappointment at the lack of friction.
The two of them broke apart, panting for breath, and he pressed his head against hers. Their eyes met, and she melted at having this man's undivided attention. His dark eyes blazed hot with desire that it made her shiver.
This was a man who could devour her if she let him.
He pushed her up a few inches, and the change made her cry out. Although there was some friction, it still wasn't enough. Kendis's throbbing center ached for him, their panties drenching wet. In truth, it had been doing so from the moment they had spotted Tony lingering outside their gate.
"You want this, baby?" Tony asked, his voice low and husky, and Kendis felt like they were close to coming out of their skin.
"If you want me to go," Tony said, his tongue flickering against the shell of Kendis’s ear. "I'll go."
"T-this…" Kendis panted for breath. "This is such a bad idea."
Tony didn't reply as he moved his lips from her ear to her neck. His wet hot tongue licked across the long line of her neck, and then the sodding bastard bit the juncture between Kendis’s shoulder and neck.
And goddamnit, that had always been Kendis's sensitive spot!
"Fuck it all," Kendis swore as their hands went to Tony's belt buckle and quickly unbuckled it and dove inside his pants to wrap their hand around his thick cock. His cock was wet with pre-cum, and this made it all too easy for her to slip her hand up and down his throbbing length.
"Shit," Tony swore as he closed his eyes, jerking up into Kendis's hand. She kissed him again, swallowing his whines as she jacked him off. He rocked his hips faster as he gave into Kendis's demands. Her fingers deftly paused every so often to play with the underside of his leaking cock.
Then Kendis suddenly broke the kiss and deliberately slowed down her hand's pace.
"You are going to tease me now?"
Kendis looked down at his cock, which was red and hard for her. She glanced up and smirked. "No, I want you to come inside me."
"Yeah--, yeah, I can do that." Tony shuddered, then he gave her a sly look. "But you are still too dressed for this party, darling."
"You ain't said nothing but a word," Kendis said with a cheeky wink, and then they toed off their work boots and shoved off their coveralls, jeans, and panties in one go.
Kendis noticed that during the time it took for them to get undressed, Tony had slid his jeans and underwear down and was in the process of pulling a condom over his cock. He grabbed her by her thighs and easily draped them over his arms before he slowly slid inside of her.
Kendis sighed as he filled her perfectly. She was so glad that she had decided to drink a potion that would give her a pussy instead of a cock because she didn't have the patience to wait for him to stretch out her asshole.
Tony slid all the way out and then carefully slid back in.
"Now, who's the tease?" Kendis huffed and squeezed her pussy around him.
"Fuck!" Tony swore under his breath. "You're evil."
"I'm just someone who knows what they want," Kendis smirked. "Now put your back into it."
Tony stared at her for one long beat, and then, he pulled out and slammed back in. Kendis cried out at the sudden rush of pleasure. inside her body She held on and met him thrust for thrust, refusing to give the infuriating man an inch.
Tony leaned forward and buried his face between her small breasts as she bounced up and down on his cock.
He took one of her nipples into his mouth, and Kendis yelped at the feeling of his blunt teeth against her nipple before he licked and soothed it with his tongue. He flicked his tongue across the taut nub rapidly and then sucked it hard again in a cycle that seemed to go on forever before he let it go with an obscene pop and before he went on to torment her other breast in the same way.
And apparently Tony was a fantastic multitasker because he didn't let up on his relentless fucking. He slammed into her at a steady but rapid pace that made her see stars. Sweat dripped from his face onto her as the pleasure built, buzzing under their skin while their heart pounded in their chest.
Kendis’s fingers dipped down to her center, and she began to play with her clit.
"Oh, no you don't," Tony swore and then dropped his hold on one of her legs to reach with his wonderful calloused fingers to flick their swollen nub. Kendis screamed under his assault and after a few moments, they felt their entire body go rigid and then shudder as their orgasm washed over them.
Tony sped up then, slamming into Kendis over and over as he chased his own pleasure. It didn't take that long for him to come. He shuttered and groaned as he spilled inside the condom.
He rested his head on her chest, and Kendis sat there for a while, doing her best not to think about all the implications of what they had just done together. With a sigh, Kendis opened her eyes and saw a sickeningly familiar black envelope.
She was no longer in her office but in a dim room, and a man stood over her with a rictus-like grin on his face as he pointed his wand at her.
Kendis pushed Tony away, wincing at the pain of him jerking out of her. She quickly snatched up the envelope with shaking fingers.
"What's wrong?" Tony asked.
"Nothing," Kendis bit out. "Get out."
Tony blinked at her, and his eyes raked up and down her naked body. "It's like that."
Kendis slid the envelope into a drawer and quickly got dressed.
"That was a mistake," Kendis said. For a moment, she had forgotten why she stayed detached. The last person she had gotten close to had died in her arms. Kendis had left everything behind in Los Angeles, had started over, and built a life here. She was an ocean away and yet, this letter had still found her. Had still managed to slip through her strict magical wards to appear on her desk.
"What's wrong?" Tony quickly pulled up his pants, ignoring the fact that his thighs were still glistening with Kendis's juices. Kendis shivered suddenly as a blast of frigid air brushed across her skin and there was the sudden smell of brimstone in the air.
The feeling of dread got even worse. The last time she had felt this feeling, someone had died. Tony needed to leave before she had someone else's blood on her hands.
"None of your business," Kendis snapped. "Leave now before I call the police. I don't think you want that to get on the six o'clock news."
Tony frowned and stared at her for a long moment before he picked the scattered papers off the floor. He shook his head, turned to leave, and then paused and looked back at her.
"I don't know what's going on, but I can help you," Tony said, his eyes oddly sincere and with none of his usual playfulness. It touched something inside that Kendis refused to acknowledge.
"I don't need your help."
Kendis waited until Tony closed the door behind him and pulled the envelope out of the drawer. With shaking hands, she opened it and there was just a single line.
I found you.
Notes:
Shit has gotten real! Chester Coil is one piece of fucking work, isn't he? By the way, how did you like the sex scene? I swear to god, Tony and Kendis are so horny for each other, but it would probably kill them to admit it. 😂
This is a slow burn but doesn't mean that they can't fuck while they are angsting over their feelings. Please don't forget to leave a kudos or a comment. Seeing you respond to this fic always makes me smile.
The next update will be on December 19th! I'll see you folks, then. 🩷
Chapter 10: Bad Penny
Summary:
Troubled by his encounter with Kendis, Tony decides to look into her further. His surveillance brings to light surprisingly new secrets.
Notes:
Happy Holidays to all of you! I can not believe it's less than a week until Christmas. And Christmas and Hannukah are on the same day this year. 2024 has been one helluva year. Since this is the last chapter before the new year I want to take a moment to thank you so much for all of your support. I get the biggest smile on my face every time I see a new comment, a new bookmark, or kudos.
Not to mention, I do pay attention to the analytics of the With This Ring website. I know that ya'll are consuming my content on there. On my website, I drop chapters early and I also release author commentaries, free digital merch (wallpapers and such), and more.
So if you haven't checked it out yet, you totally should!
One last thing: this chapter technically starts some of the other crossovers I have mentioned in the tags. Hercules and Iolaus have already appeared in this fic and the aside, "Where Everyone Knows Your Name." If you want more backstory about how Hercules and Iolaus came to be a part of this fanfic, you will find it there.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Marriage was a trap. Tony learned this the hard way, watching his parents fight when he was a kid. For Howard Stark, his marriage had been a way for him to gain access to the Carbonella fortune and to produce an heir for his legacy.
But to the world, Howard had been a staunch family man. However, in reality, he had been coldly indifferent to his only son and had a steady string of women who cycled in and out of his bed.
Tony Stark was self-aware enough to know exactly where he had gotten his fuckboi tendencies from. But unlike his father, he was man enough not to succumb to the pressure and put another person through what his father had done to his mother.
Which, in hindsight, made his pattern of getting blackout drunk and waking up married to strangers even more perplexing.
He had gotten married to a man when he was nineteen and a woman when he was 26, but with the might of his team of attorneys, they had made his hasty marriages go away as if they had never happened. Hell, all of these years later, Tony still couldn't remember their names.
But there had been something different about Kendis Black from the very beginning.
His new spouse was undeniably hot with those bright green eyes and that sexy grin that made his heart skip a beat. Tony had wanted Kendis from the moment he had seen them spinning on that pole back at Juicy Lucy's. Because although Kendis wasn't some vapid beauty, they had a fire inside of them that was a match for his own.
And everything he knew about Kendis from his background check was a lie. What was their real name? Where had they come from? What were they hiding from? And if her reaction to that black envelope on her desk was anything to go by, then it was something pretty big.
But this time round, he couldn't stop thinking about Kendis. For once, it just wasn't about the fantastic sex or the way their pussy had felt as he sank deep inside of her. No, he couldn't stop thinking about her reaction to that letter. She had been angry at him, but he had seen right through Kendis's anger, and the fear in her eyes had stirred something inside of him.
Even days later, she was still on his mind. His gaze shifted from his desk to the unremarkable brown folder. For perhaps the millionth time, Tony picked up the folder and looked over the documents.
With a pen in hand, he flipped to the back to the blank signature line. He hesitated, his hand lingering above it, before angrily slamming the folder down on his desk.
He should just sign the papers and give them to Pep, but he was hesitant.
Tony hated feeling so indecisive. Whatever happened to the ruthless playboy image he had worked so hard to create? And why did Kendis get under his skin? She was just another notch on his belt and nothing more.
"Shit," Tony muttered while running his hand through his hair.
"Are you quite alright, sir?" Jarvis asked.
"Fine, Jarvis," Tony replied, curtly. "Let's me see the feed from the camera I left by the gate."
"I will remind you, sir, that nonconsensual surveillance is highly illegal in the state of California."
Tony rolled his eyes. "The feed, Jarv."
The tiny camera he had placed was near the gate on top of the security box. It was one of his inventions and was as small as a quarter. He watched, for a moment, as a bald Black man and Kendis walked out of the garage, her large dog following on their heels as the two talked.
And then suddenly the camera flickered once, then twice, and went blank. Tony's mouth dropped. "What the fuck?"
"I'm attempting to get the feedback up now, sir."
Tony went through the code and the blueprints for the camera. It had been solid work, and to his knowledge, there had been no bugs in it. Hell, Tony had been planning to pitch it soon to the board.
"Sorry sir," Jarvis replied. "I'm unable to reconnect."
"There is no logical reason for that camera to malfunction."
He felt frustrated and angry, and he knew that only spending some quality time with his work would calm him down.
"Jarvis, blackout mode. I don't want to be disturbed unless it's an emergency.", he ordered. "Put on my usual playlist."
Black Sabbath's Paranoid blasted over the speakers, and Tony rolled his eyes before he got back to work.
Time went by, only marked off by the switch in music from Black Sabbath to Pantera's Reinventing the Steel album and then on to his usual fair.
He finished fixing the bugs in the Jericho targeting system to get Obie and the board off his back. The board didn't know about the latest Mx. Stark, but Obie did, and he was just as bad as Pepper at badgering him to get the annulment pushed through as quickly as possible.
He ended up having to take out his frustration at pounding on a sheet of steel when he thought about it. Because it brought his thoughts right back to Kendis, and he brutally pushed those thoughts back and switched his focus to the non-lethal weapon prototypes he was working on. He knew he could at least sell The Secret Service on adding them to their arsenal.
Hell Ain't A Bad Place to Be by AC/DC turned on, and he idly bumped his head to his music as he slid on his welding goggles.
Thankfully, Tony managed to dodge all thoughts of Kendis for a while and finally slipped into the comforting headspace where he could work on his calculations and blueprints.
Tony took three days to come out of his latest binge, and when he did, he felt calmer and like he had his head on straight.
And the mental break gave him some much needed insight to why he couldn't stop thinking about Kendis and why he felt such a pull to her.
Kendis Black was a mystery he had to get to the bottom of. The obsession Tony had to get to the bottom of it had all the telltale signs of a hyperfixation. The upside to all of this was that once he got to the bottom of what was going on with Kendis, he could move on and get back to normal.
Besides, his pride demanded that he figure out how Kendis could dismantle his camera. It couldn't have just malfunctioned. It was a Tony Stark invention, and those didn't fail.
"Jarvis, give me any feeds near Enchanted Engines and run Kendis' face through the facial recognition database."
Mini video screens popped up on his desktop. Most of the businesses and shops that lined Victory Boulevard were closed. It was ten o'clock at night, and Tony wasn't all that surprised.
Tony motioned at Dum-e to give him another coffee, and the bot happily rolled over with a fresh cup. He patted Dum-e on the head and then shooed it away to finish the rest of its chores.
Tony stared at the screens for a bit and was about to switch screens to look over his camera's code when there was a movement. And even though the feed was shitty, Tony could tell it was Kendis getting on a black and red Kawasaki ZX-6R.
A moment later, the gates slid back, and she rode past the gates and into the street.
"Jarvis? Use her license plate number to track where she is going."
Video feeds popped up and disappeared on his computer, and then there was a map as he watched Kendis go down via I-5 South, and out of Burbank into Glendale, and then drove an hour south and later made it to Crenshaw Boulevard.
"Where the fuck is she going?"
Tony hacked into a nearby bodega's CCTV and smirked as he saw a familiar red 1993 Mazda RX-7
"Jarvis, call Dom Toretto."
"Sir?"
"I think it's about time I visit some of my old stomping grounds."
Notes:
Well, folks that is the last chapter of 2024! Don't worry because this entire series just hit 90k last weekend and I already have 20k of the next story in this series done. All I have to do is revise it and send it out to my betas.
Now, I'm going to warn you right here and now. You will not get a resolution of this cliffhanger next week. Next week, I have another Chester Coil interlude planned for you. But I promise you that it will be well worth the wait!
As with any Chester Coil interlude, I will warn you that it will be full of stalking, misgendering, and other evil fuckery. The villain of this story is not a nice guy, but I will promise you that he will get his in the end.
I will see you folks on January 2nd! And I can't believe I'm starting the new year with a Chester Coil aside! 😂 But that is how the cookie crumbles, I guess!
Happy Holidays and a very jolly new year!
Chapter 11: Interlude: Beautiful Prey
Summary:
Now out of prison, Chester Coil has set his sights on Kendis.
Notes:
Happy New Year everyone! I hope everyone had a fantastic holiday season. I spent the majority of my holidays on vacation and now I'm ready to get back to work. As I said in the last update the first chapter of the new year is a Chester Coil interlude. In this update, Chester is back to his usual transphobic obsessive stalker bullshit.
You get to see how Chester managed to get past Kendis's wards. I also give a bit more context as to why he is sending black envelopes. As a reminder: I have a website for this series where you get early access to all chapters, exclusive world building and character info, and free digital merch (wallpapers and such). You can find it here.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Chester looked over the copies of the Daily Prophet spread over his table and frowned. The news had surprised him, and he could feel a white-hot rage rush through his body.
With a flick of his wand, Chester upended the kitchen table and chopped the chairs into pieces. He stood panting for breath, his wand clenched tightly in his fist. It should have made him feel better, but it did little to quench the rage boiling inside him.
Harry was under some delusion that he was a woman. He even had mutilated his body, and dear Merlin, were those tattoos?
Chester stared at one photo of Harry with their messy hair falling on their face and their tight tee shirt and jeans clinging to the new curves of his feminine body; his arms and chest were completely covered with tattoos.
THE BOY THAT LIVED ADMITS TO BEING A DEVIANT?!
Chester snarled at the headline and crumpled up the paper. This couldn't stand. Harry had lost his way. His body belonged to Chester, and he had desecrated it. Chester stood and paced back and forth in his cramped studio apartment, which felt cramped.
He was used to sprawling mansions and having a legion of house-elves to cater to his every whim.
Yet, if he went home to Brierwell Manor, he would be under his parent's surveillance, and they would dissuade him from his mission. His family was an old pureblood one, and they would not tolerate a half-blood becoming a part of their family.
But once he brought Harry to heel, it wouldn't take much to get them out of the way. Chester walked past the mess on the kitchen table and made himself a cup of tea. He sighed as the taste of bergamot in his Earl Grey tea hit his tongue.
With a sigh, Chester walked back to the table and pulled out a folder. He still had some connections at the Ministry, and Harry had sent a letter regarding their inheritance. His barrister, Draco Malfoy, had filed it.
Chester's family had made their fortune as ward makers, and their wards guarded the most important places in the United Kingdom. So, it had taken no trouble at all to break inside Draco Malfoy's London Office.
The trip had been well worth it. Chester had discovered the letters Harry had sent to Malfoy; he had wondered then if he should take care of Malfoy. There had been rumors that Harry and Draco had been in a relationship, but there had never been any proof, and both had denied the rumors.
In the end, Chester reluctantly decided against it.
'Malfoy's time will come, but not right now.'
Chester took another sip of his tea and daydreamed about casting suffocatio (one of his favorite curses) on Malfoy. Avada kedavra was too quick and impersonal. Chester much preferred to watch as the life slowly drained out of his victim's eyes.
The satisfaction of a kill lasted longer that way.
With a sigh, Chester went back to the living room to the papers he had stolen from Malfoy's office. His thoughts returned once more to Harry, or Kendis as he called himself now a days.
He grimaced at the name. Once he showed Harry the wrong of his ways, Chester would make sure he changed it back. Chester and Harry were meant to be, and he would prove that to his beloved Harry.
Chester started to make plans. Harry had always loved the love letters he used to send them. He conjured a black envelope, white paper, quill, and ink. Then he wrote only a single line: "I found you."
He folded the paper, slipped it inside the envelope, and sealed the letter with a kiss. From reading Harry's letters, he knew that he owned a shop of some kind, lived in America, and that it was logical that he would have wards that defended against unknown owls. Besides, the owl post was easy to track.
This spell was a rare dark spell that delivered his messages more discretely, although just like with most dark spells, it came with a price. With the distance, it would take a lot of power to use. It was one reason the spell had fallen out of favor. Yet, Chester knew showing Harry his regard in this manner was well worth it.
Waving the wand, he said, "Maleficus Postalus! 115 South Victory Boulevard, Burbank, California. Harry Potter's Office."
Notes:
Chester continues his downward spiral of transphobic and stalker-y douchebaggery. He's a mess and poor Kendis is about to get it with both barrels.
Now, in the next update, we are back to our regular schedule program. We find out how Kendis deals with the reappearance of her stalker, we also get a peek into Tony's youthful shenanigans, and we finally get an appearance from Dominic Toretto and his crew from the Fast and Furious franchise.
The next chapter drops on January 16th but if you can't wait until then make sure you check the website I made for this series. I tend to drop chapters early on there!
Chapter 12: Dreadful Tidings
Summary:
Kendis buries herself in work to escape her problems with Tony, but ends up uncovering troubling news about a past enemy.
Notes:
Welcome back and I hope 2025 has been kind to you so far! This update is just a regular degular chapter so we won't have to deal with Chester's POV. This chapter takes place right after we left off in Bad Penny.
In this chapter, we get Kendis's POV of the time between Kendis and Tony's confrontation in her office and the bike race. We also get a little more information on Isiah and Hortense. Also, Alke makes another appearance and I'm not going to lie: Alke is my favorite side character.
One last thing, I want to take a moment to mention that I have a website for this series where you can find information on upcoming chapters, and where chapters get dropped super early. You will also get instant access to exclusive worldbuilding, character info, and free digital merch. Not to mention you can find a comprehensive list of all the transgender charities I have linked so far. You should absolutely check it out!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Kendis was used to hard work and often found solace in it during the hardest times of her life. But today, it only added to her frustration.
She was working on the carburetor of the 2008 Kawasaki Ninja 250 whose engine wouldn’t idle. Kendis had had been working on it for a few days and she only needed to check over a few things before she was ready to give it back to the owner.
And then, she would get started on working on restoring a sweet 1966 Honda CB450 SuperSport that had just come into the garage.
The owner of the bike was due to pick it up later that day, and she was nowhere near done. Kendis removed the carburetor so she could take it apart and repair it.
The moment Tony had left, she had written a letter to her attorney and rented an owl to send it to him. Draco Malfoy was still a massive git, but he was one of the best barristers in England and a shark in the courtroom. Also, he had protected her from the Ministry when her life had imploded all around her.
And now Chester Coil was sending her letters again, and she wanted to know how. Kendis could be overreacting. It could be someone’s idea of a sick joke, and she didn’t want to alert her friends and family back home until she had concrete proof. Besides, they would go into overprotective mode and demand that she return to England.
Draco would get to the bottom of it, and Kendis could trust that he wouldn’t sugarcoat the severity of the situation.
“Buggering fuck!” Kendis swore as she scratched against a piece of the carburetor. She dropped her wrench and cradled her bleeding finger.
“Dis?”
Kendis turned to see Isaiah hurrying over to her, and she sighed.
“I’m fine,” Kendis snapped. “Just a scratch.”
Isiah frowned down at her, and Kendis felt a pang of guilt. Although only a few inches taller than Kendis, Isiah had a husky build, unlike her skinny figure. He was bald with dark brown skin and a neat mustache, and his usual happy smile was replaced with a frown. And Kendis felt like she had just kicked a puppy.
Kendis sighed. “I’m sorry, Isiah.”
Isiah didn’t respond, and summoned his wand instead. He quickly muttered a healing spell and Kendis watched her skin re-knit backed together.
“Hey, remember, no magic during work hours.” Kendis chided him. “Muggles come in and out of here all the time. The last thing we need is the MACUSA on our backs.”
Isiah looked pointedly around the empty garage. “I think we are okay.” And then there was a beat of silence. “Anything you want to talk about?”
Kendis bit their lip as they considered it. Isiah was a muggle-born wizard, but unlike Kendis and Hortense, he was American. They had met at a trans-meet up at the LGBT center and bonded over being the only two Black people there. Isiah, being a wizard, had just been another pleasant surprise.
And while Hortense had gotten to see Kendis’s drama splashed all over the front page of The Prophet every day for ten months, Isiah hadn’t. The only thing Isiah knew about her past was that something bad had happened to Kendis.
Isiah clicked his fingers in front of her. “Earth to Kendis.”
Kendis shook her head and gave him a sad smile. “Sorry, Isiah.”
“What’s wrong?”
A vision of Josefa lying in a pool of blood flashed through her mind. Kendis pushed the memory away and shook her head. “I’m just having a bad day.”
Isiah put his hands on her shoulder. “You know you can tell me anything.”
Kendis patted his hand. “I am just having a bad day.”
“Do I need to kick Tony Stark’s ass?”
Kendis snorted. “I can take that white boy.” And then she winced at her choice of words because a few days ago, he had been the one to take her against her office door. She felt her cheeks flush, and Isiah wiggled his eyebrows at her. “It’s like that, is it?”
“Boy, stop playing.” Kendis slapped him playfully on the shoulder and went back to work.
The rest of the week passed and Kendis tried her best to bury her growing anxiety and doubts at work. By the time she saw the brown and white feathers of Malfoy’s, Ulysses Kendis was near ready to tear out her hair in frustration.
The owl flew through her living room window, clutching a scroll in its claws. Kendis took the letter before she gave him a few owl treats.
Alke padded over to the owl and gave his tail feathers a curious sniff. Ulysses gave a squawk and turned his nose up at her before he spun around and flew away. Kendis shook her head and patted Alke’s head. The dog’s nails clicked against the hardwood floor as she followed Kendis over to the sofa. They sat down on her burnt orange over sofa and Kendis chuckled as Alke jumped on the sofa and laid her huge black head on Kendis’s lap.
Kendis rubbed Alke’s head a few times as she tried to gather the courage to open the letter. ‘You will never know if you don’t open it,’ Kendis thought to herself, and with shaking fingers, she tore open the envelope.
Black,
They released Chester Coil from Azkaban last week. As your attorney, I was supposed to be notified of any recent developments related to Coil. Yet your letter was the first time I heard that there might even be a possibility of his release.
Upon further investigation, I discovered a technicality led to Coil's release last week. I'll skip the legal jargon: the prosecution messed up the case.
The Ministry is doing its best to keep it hush-hush, as with the election for Minister around the corner, they do not need another failure.
Unfortunately, a few days ago, someone got past my wards and broke into the office. They took nothing, but we both know how easy it is to copy documents by magic. Be careful. One lordship is quite enough, and I don’t want to inherit the Black family seat.
Sincerely,
Draco Malfoy ESQ.
The paper slipped from Kendis’s fingers to fall onto the ground. They closed their eyes and took a deep breath. She couldn’t hear anything beyond the blood pounding in her ears.
Chester Coil was out of Azkaban and walking free. Kendis had watched that man murder someone dear in front of her with no remorse, and the Ministry had set him free. An icy shiver went down her spine as she remembered the wide delighted grin he gave her after he snatched the woman she loved from her life.
Alke whined and nudged her head against her, but Kendis couldn’t move. She just sat there, looking at her shaking fingers.
The Ministry had let him go, and Coil was coming for her. Eventually, Kendis could move. Her fingers scratched at Alke’s ears while in her mind, she was screaming. ‘I should run’, Kendis thought, but they couldn’t do that. That would put a bigger target on her friends and family.
Kendis hadn’t told Ron, Hermione, or the Weasleys yet because she didn’t want to alarm them without proof, but now she had no choice.
She would not gamble with their lives. Her eyes trailed to the frame of a photo of Isiah, Hortense, and herself at the opening of Enchanted Engines sitting on the end table. She would have to close the shop for a while and make sure Hortense and Isiah took a nice paid holiday somewhere far away.
Kendis was wealthy enough that they could cover that easily.
Then she thought of Tony, and how he was determined to intrude on her life. Kendis had signed the annulment papers, and she hoped he would go back to his high-class playboy lifestyle. Because though he was an arrogant prat, Tony didn’t deserve to die.
Kendis had learned the hard way that anyone close to her would end up dead. Her parents, Sirius, Cedrick, Remus, Tonks, Fred, and her beloved Josefa had all met the same fate. Josefa had been the only one who truly accepted all of her; faults and all.
And Chester Coil had cut them down like it was nothing.
Alke sat up, her short, pointy ears standing up, and she gave a low menacing growl.
Kendis shivered again, but this time it was because it had suddenly gotten cold, and she could smell the sharp, acidic smell of brimstone.
Alke jumped off the sofa and hurried over to the corner, where there was a brief flicker of a shadow.
Her wand smacked into her palm, and she turned toward the flicker of a shadow.
Kendis got up and walked around the living room, dining room, then the kitchen, down the hallway where her bedroom, study, and the room she used to practice experimental magic, but all were clear.
Alke silently followed her as she made her rounds around the house and then went outside to double-check the wards.
There was nothing.
Her phone rang, and Kendis hurried back into the living room, where an old-fashioned rotary phone sat on an end table. All her friends teased her about still having a landline, but she had learned the hard way that technology and magic didn’t mix. In the past, Kendis had to dampen down her power to be even around a cell phone or a laptop.
The sensation had been uncomfortable as she’d had to walk around with a heavy weighted blanket on top of her.
She hated having to deal with it when she didn’t have to.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Kendis,” a male voice said. “It’s Richie.”
Richie had just moved here from Seacouver and was one of her favorite new customers. They had a lot in common and one thing was their interest in Los Angeles’s illegal street racing crowd.
Kendis looked around the silent house and then at Alke, who stood next to her, her tail wagging, and her tongue lagging out of her mouth.
“Yeah,” Kendis said. “What’s up?”
Richie quickly gave her the details about a race that was about to go down in South L.A. near Crenshaw Boulevard. Kendis knew she should stay home. Her life was already in danger, but this was the type of danger Kendis could control. Her life was a whirlwind currently, and she couldn’t resist the temptation.
“I’ll be there,” Kendis said, and then they exchanged a brief goodbye before she hung up. She looked down at Alke, who stared at her with big dark eyes.
“Don’t judge me.”
Notes:
Kendis finally got the official confirmation about Chester's release. Also, I hope you enjoyed the little cameo from Richie Ryan. Richie was one of my favorite characters from Highlander and I cried when he died in the series. I also recently found that the actor Stan Kirsch passed away in 2020 and I just wanted to honor both the actor and the character.
Now, I know I promised you an appearance of Dom Toretto and the Fast and the Furious crew but I forgot that they don't show up until the next chapter. I'm really excited because I love that movie so much.
Anyway, thank you so much for joining me on this wacky ride and the next chapter will drop on January 30th!
Chapter 13: The Quarter Mile
Summary:
Tony attends an illegal bike race, reconnecting with his old friend Dominic Toretto and his crew.
Notes:
I'm back again with another update. This one has got to be the most anticipated chapter so far. I'm going to warn you this chapter is short because I just wanted to capture Tony's POV but the next chapter will be 2k long. So you will get a long chapter next update to make up for it. This is where we get to see Dom and the crew from the first Fast and Furious movie.
Now, before you get your hopes up they will only show up in this chapter and the next chapter. I just like throwing in crossovers willy-nilly without rhyme or reason. I can't explain how my mind works!
By the way, everyone is queer here. So the pairings are Dom/Brian and Letty/Mia. Letty calls the Wizard of Oz nicknames gay and I think it's okay because everyone in this series is queer. But let me know if you want me to remove it and I will.
Before we get started. I want to talk about something serious. I have been getting comments from readers that basically say: "Kendis's stalker is not really a big deal because Kendis has faced worse." And I have some thoughts about it.
I won't go all into my thoughts right here because we will be here all day. However, will say that trauma doesn't give a shit if you are a BAMF. And old trauma does not make new trauma easier. I will leave it at that but I did post a blog post on my website for the With This Ring series.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
When Tony had first come out to Los Angeles, he had been escaping the specter of his parents. Around every corner in New York was a memory of his father and mother as well as of his butler Edwin Jarvis (a man who had been more than a father than Howard ever was) that it felt like he had been sucker punched every time he moved around.
Booze and drugs did little to take that away, and as a result, Tony fled to Los Angeles and then later to Malibu. He had built a mansion atop that cliff, and upon inheriting Stark Industries at twenty-one, he officially moved the headquarters to Los Angeles as his first act as CEO.
Tony had been fresh out of MIT when he moved to Los Angeles and with tons of time to kill while he waited to receive his inheritance, but even for him, there was a limit to how much drinking and fucking he could do.
His drunk driving arrest forced Tony to pick up a hobby or two. He also picked up a few more languages, learned to be a blacksmith, taught himself car and motorcycle repair, and became an illegal street racer.
The last thing was something not even Rhodey knew about. At the time, Tony had resented the fact that Rhodey had enlisted right out of college and left him alone to his devices, and he had just never gotten around to telling him. He knew Rhodey would give him the lecture to end all lectures if he told him.
Besides, it had been only three years, and when he had finally taken over as CEO of Stark Industries, he had become too busy to keep up with that particular bad habit.
But it didn't mean Tony hadn't kept up with the people in the community. So when he pulled up to the parking lot of the bodega on Crenshaw, his dark red 1953 Ghia Cadillac wasn't the only classic car parked alongside the shiny, souped-up foreign ones.
And if anyone was curious about its owner, Tony had worn a mask that he would never admit had been inspired by the Mission Impossible movies. It completely changed his facial structure. His face was rounder and clean-shaven. He now had wide-shaped eyes and a thin mouth, and his nose had morphed into a shorter snub nose. The only things that hadn't changed were his hair and eye color.
This mask had come in handy more than once when Tony wanted to go out without being recognized or mobbed by the press.
Tony, with his disguise firmly in place, wore a black Pantera T-shirt and jeans that didn't stand out all that much. The place was a showcase of people who were clearly there to show off their designer T-shirts, low-sagging jeans, expensive big chains, and sneakers that sometimes cost as much as the cars they bought.
Tony eyed a beautiful Black woman with long corn rolls that fell to her ass and who was wearing a halter and pleated skirt that showed off a lot of her dark umber skin.
'Find Dom now,' Tony chided himself. 'Ogle, women later." He walked towards the place where the camera had been located and found Dom's red 1993 Mazda RX-7.
Dom leaned against his car, his arm slung over his partner's shoulder. Tony had never met Brian officially, but he knew from his little intervention in that truck-jacking case what Brian looked like. And the photos didn't really do him justice. He was tall with light blonde curly hair, blue eyes, and a gorgeous, mischievous grin.
He looked like a combination of a cherub and a Calvin Klein model.
"What you are looking at?" A gruff-looking white man with a beard, wearing a tank top and jeans, rushed towards Tony.
"Whoa." Tony put his hands up. "Nothing, dude. I'm just checking out the car. This is a sweet Mazda."
Dom turned and gave Tony a look. "What's up?"
"Nothing, Scarecrow," Tony said. "Just a miscommunication."
"What the fuck?" The man said as he gestured to Tony. "Dom, you know this asshole?"
Dom blinked, and then he looked him up and down. Brian looked between the two with confused looks as he silently mouthed, 'Scarecrow'? Only Mia, draped all over a pretty Latina woman, remained unconcerned.
"Oh my god," the pretty Latina cackled. "That is so gay!"
"Stop it, Letty." Mia rolled her eyes. "You are just as gay as he is."
Letty pouted at her girlfriend, and Mia just shook her head and kissed her on the lips.
"It's okay, Vince." Dom threw an annoyed look at Vince and then Letty before he turned back to Tony with a small, wry smile on his face. "Besides, there is only one person stupid enough to call me that to my face." He pulled Brian forward, and the group followed behind him. "Hey, Tin man, I didn't think you would show."
The two exchanged a dap, and Dom shook his head. "You changed a bit. Didn't recognize you."
"Tin man? Scarecrow?" Brian asked. "What's with the Wizard of Oz references?"
Dom and Tony exchanged an amused look, and both shook their head. It was way before Dom got his crew, and it had involved too much tequila, a Tijuana jail cell, and a punch to the face.
"It's a long story." Dom shrugged.
Tony nodded in agreement. "Are they here?"
"Jinx?" Dom asked. "Yeah, she's racing tonight."
"You are doing bike racing now." Tony frowned.
"You have been gone from the scene a while." Dom shrugged. "Things changed."
There was a shout over the crowd, and people headed for the sidewalks. The street had been cleared and blocked. At the intersection of West Segumono Street, five men on motorcycles lined up, but he immediately spotted Kendis's sleek Kawasaki ZX-6R idling to them. One man said something to her and grabbed his dick with a laugh.
Kendis, with her black helmet and visor covering her head, simply ignored them, and a woman walked over to stand between them with a black-and-white checkered flag.
"On your mark!"
"Get Ready!"
"Go!" The woman brought down her white flag, and the bikes were off, a cloud of burning rubber trailing behind them.
"10 grand on Jinx," Tony said as he watched Kendis' retreating back.
Dom just laughed. "I don't take sucker bets."
Notes:
I know that this chapter was super short but that is because I wanted to write from Kendis's POV for the race itself. Now, Tony gets to see what his spouse is up to and there will definitely be consequences to his presence there. But you are going to have to wait until the next chapter to find out.
The next chapter will drop on February 13th! But if you can't wait, I'm pretty sure Chapter 11 is already on my website. Cya then!
Chapter 14: Fire and Gasoline
Summary:
Kendis participates in an illegal race, but afterward, she hangs out with her friends Richie Ryan, Dom Toretto, and his crew. To her shock, she bumps into someone she never expected to see.
Notes:
I'm so glad to see you folks again! The last chapter might have left a few of you dissatisfied because of how short it was. But this chapter is where I give you 2k of some premium Kendis and Tony interaction with a bit of Kendis being badass. I'm not going to spoil it for you but it's going to be so good.
As always, the next chapter should be already up on With This Ring's website, you get early access, exclusive behind-the-scenes content, and free digital merch. I suggest you check it out. You can also get a complete list of trans charities that I have featured in this series there.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
The speed was addictive, and the engine’s hum vibrated between their thighs as the rush of the wind whipped across their body. Biking was as close as she could get to the exhilaration of riding a broom.
Behind the helmet, Kendis's mouth split into a wide grin. She pushed down the throttle, pushing for every spare bit of speed. They smoothly bent their body around the curves, darting in and out of the traffic.
The neon lights of the city and the skyscrapers melded into one big bright blur but her focus was on the street ahead of her. The next turn would take her back to the finish line, and Kendis had every intention of winning.
In the corner of her eye, she could see a shiny green bike on her heels, but it didn't worry her in the slightest. Her life might be going straight to hell, but Kendis never doubted her prowess on a bike or a broom.
The posh wanker beside her thought his expensive Ducati Monster 696 was going to give him an edge against her, and she was delighted to show him how wrong he was. And even though this bike didn’t have any magical modifications it, Kendis knew her bike could wipe the floor with him.
Kendis sped down the street and in the distance, she could see the finish line. She leaned forward, pushing her bike as fast as she could.
50 miles
20 miles
10 miles.
The crowd and the finishing line drew closer and closer, and they were neck and neck out right now. Kendis could almost feel the other rider's desperation.
Kendis zoomed past the finish line and put her hands up as the triumph of her win rushed over her. She removed her helmet and, with her free hand, pushed back her sweaty and even messier hair from her face.
The man’s bike screeched to a halt beside her. He quickly ripped off his helmet and threw it in the crowd.
"You fucking cheated!"
"I didn't need to cheat," Kendis snorted. "I beat you fair and square."
The entitled prick walked up to Kendis and got into their face. "Two out of three."
"No can do, mate." Kendis shook her head. "I won, and you lost. Pay up!"
"Bitch," the man said and raised his hand as if he was going to slap her, but Kendis grabbed his hand in one smooth move, pivoted to the side, and twisted the wanker's arm. He cried out in pain as she forced him to the ground.
In the corner of her eye, Kendis saw movement but didn't move until security showed up.
"We got a problem here?"
The man sagged as Kendis quickly released his wrists and stepped back. "No problem here.
"Hey!"
Kendis turned to see her friend Richie approach her, pushing his white and blue Suzuki SV650 He was a white man, who was a bit taller than her petite height, with long curly strawberry blonde hair, and his wide guileless grin gave him a youthful look, though he was in his mid-thirties.
"That was fucking awesome," Richie said, as he gave her a high five.
Kendis eyed his blue and white leather jacket and jeans. "You racing tonight?"
"Yep, I need a little extra cash," Richie said with a shrug.
They lifted an eyebrow. "And you didn't come to me? You are aces around bikes, and you know that Isiah and I would love to have you."
Richie gave her a look and then sighed. "I don't know. I kinda like being freelance."
Kendis patted him on the back. "Let me know if you change your mind."
"Jinx!" The two turned as Letty and her girlfriend waved at her. There was a call for the next race, and Richie said goodbye as he made his way to the starting line. Kendis walked over to the group and saw that there was a new guy. He was a young white man, around her age. His appearance was unremarkable—average, with dark brown hair combed back, round dark brown eyes, a wide nose, and a cleanly shaven, sharp jawline. A strange sense of familiarity surrounded him, even though Kendis knew she'd never encountered him before.
"Nice race, Jinx," Letty said with a grin and gave her a high five. "And you took care of that guy pretty good."
Kendis laughed. "I hope none of you bet on him."
Dom shook his head. "The only fool around here is him." He nodded at her opponent being escorted out by security.
"You got a new member?"
Dom turned to the new guy, who pinged something on Kendis's radar. "Tin man?" He snorted. "Nah, just someone I know from way back.
"Nice to meet you…" she trailed off as their eyes met, and it clicked. Kendis had been a trained Auror and even though she couldn't sense any of the usual telltale magical signatures of a disguise charms or polyjuice, she could still tell when someone was wearing someone else's face.
But even if she doubted her expertise and instincts, Tin Man's eyes gave him away. Those all too familiar sharp, intelligent brown eyes seemed to pierce her soul with their intensity. There was only one man to date she had met who had eyes like that.
Tony Stark.
"You alright?" Brian asked, frowning.
Kendis took a step back and pasted a smile on their face before turning back to Tony. "Can I talk to you for a second?"
The others exchanged looks with each other but Tony shrugged with a shit-eating grin that made Kendis want to punch him. However, they did their best to keep a lid on their anger.
"Can you watch my bike for a moment?" Kendis asked Letty, who gave her a puzzled look but nodded. She quickly handed Letty her helmet and her bike. Then she spun round, grabbed Tony's arm, and pulled him through the crowd.
"Hey!" Tony protested, but Kendis gave him a hard glare.
She spotted a huge semi-truck parked nearby and pulled him around it before slamming him against it.
"Hey, if you wanted to get me alone, you could have just asked," Tony smirked.
Kendis’s fingers itched for her wand, but they were in a public space full of muggles and the last thing she wanted was for the MACUSA to come down on her for breaking the statute of secrecy. Luckily for her, she was powerful enough to cast a nonverbal notice-me-not spell.
"What the fuck, Tony?"
“Tony,” He frowned. “I think you have mistaken me for someone else, lady—”
“Anthony Edward Stark,” Kendis hissed as she poked him in the chest. “Don’t even try to play me.”
Kendis intently watched Tony and it strange to see those familiar brown eyes starring back her from such a peculiar face. He sighed and then winced as he did jazz hands, “Uhm, surprise!”
"What are you doing here?" Kendis hissed at him. "You are stalking me now?"
"You call it stalking, and I call it crime intervention."
Kendis gestured with their hands as if they wanted to wrangle his neck. "This is not funny, nor cute. You violated my privacy after I told you to get lost."
"And you are obviously in trouble and running from something."
Kendis froze and then she saw red. Tony yelled in pain as she threw him against the truck once more. With magic coursing through her, she yearned to hex the hell out of Tony. Thankfully, Kendis managed to maintain her hard-won control.
"I am a grown-ass adult and don't need a man to ride on his white horse to save me," Kendis snarled. "There is a reason why I'm single, Stark."
"So, what is it?", Tony asked, raising an eyebrow.
Kendis paced, running a hand through their hair before stopping in front of them.
"Anyone who gets close to me dies."
Tony stared at them with his mouth wide open. "Is that a threat or something?"
Kendis closed their eyes and took a deep breath as her anger was suddenly replaced with a deep bone exhaustion. "This is me trying to save your foolish life. I signed the annulment papers. Just file them and move on."
Tony and Kendis were literally from two different worlds. Tony Stark was a spoiled rich muggle with the world at his feet and had no idea who she was or what she had been through. He could never comprehend being forced to lead a war at seventeen. He would never understand how much blood Kendis had on her hands or know about the gut-wrenching pain she had felt witnessing everyone she’d ever loved die because of her.
Tony stared at them for a long beat and then straightened up, squaring his shoulders. "No."
Kendis eyes widened.
Tony came up close to them, scant inches away from them. "I may have overstepped with all the…" He gestured with his hands. "The surveillance."
"The stalking," Kendis corrected him, crossing their arms.
Tony rolled his eyes, and Kendis wondered if slapping him would be as satisfying as kissing him.
"But I'm not the type of man to give up on something I want," Tony said, reaching out with his hand to caress their cheek. Kendis shivered as those calloused hands brushed against their skin. His thumb wiped across Kendis lips and she tasted hints of citrus and metal.
"And…" Tony trailed off, and Kendis could tell he was fighting with himself. "I want you."
Kendis shuddered and bit back a moan at the rough, low tone. She wanted to give in, wanted to lean forward despite all the trouble he had brought into their neatly organized world.
But then a memory of a woman with her lovely hair around her face, and her blank brown eyes staring back at her flashed in her mind. And she realized that though Tony was an asshole, he didn't deserve her baggage. Didn't deserve the target on his back that being with someone like Kendis could bring.
Besides, this marriage was a temporary thing. Tony would get bored soon and move on.
Kendis moved back and shook her head. "Just give up."
Tony kissed them then, low and hot, his tongue flickering against Kendis's.
"Tell me you don't want me, and I will walk away and never look back," Tony said.
Kendis opened their mouth to say that, but something lodged in their throat. Tony had stalked them, and he deserved every bit of her wrath, yet there was something inside her that kept her from speaking the words. It was something that drew her to him like a moth to a flame.
And when he touched her, Kendis's body came alive. She hadn't necessarily been celibate since Josefa, but sex had largely been an itch she needed to scratch. Tony's touch was incredibly addictive, awakening her body in ways no one else could.
Kendis would never know for sure who moved first, her or Tony. But suddenly, her lips were moving against him and his hot, wet tongue battled hers for dominance as they passionately kissed. Kendis groaned as she rolled her throbbing center against his hard cock. The frisson of pleasure rushed down her spine as they rubbed against each other through their trousers.
She was already wet and wanting, and Kendis briefly considered unzipping Tony and demanding that he fuck her against the truck. But then she suddenly remembered where they were. They were outside, in public, and the back of the truck was the only thing keeping people from getting an eye full of Tony and her rutting against each other like animals.
Their only saving grace would be that people wouldn't recognize that she was getting up and personal with billionaire playboy Tony Stark.
Kendis jerked back, her cheeks flushed warm with embarrassment. "I...I am sorry."
"What?" Tony spluttered, but Kendis didn't give him a chance to say anymore before they spun on their heel and ran away as fast as their feet could carry them.
Notes:
I know ya'll are probably mad at me! If I know the sexual tension is killing me then you are probably getting it ten times worse! 😆 I promise you when these two clowns finally give in? The wait is going to make it so much sweeter.
And you got to see a little more of Dom, Brian, and the crew. And we also get to see one of my favorite characters from the Highlander series, Richie Ryan. Now, this is probably the last time you will see them in this fic but you will see them again in the asides to come.
The next chapter will drop on February 27th! I'll see you then!
Chapter 15: Jagged and Torn
Summary:
While celebrating her friend Hortense’s birthday, Kendis receives yet another unpleasant surprise from Chester Coil.
Notes:
Welcome back! In the last chapter, the sexual tension was off the charts. I know that ya'll are probably still mad at me but I promise you when these two clowns finally give in to their feelings it's going to be well worth the wait.
Now, that I think about it, I should probably add the slow burn tag to this. 🤦🏾♂️ I also want to note that you probably noticed that I changed date when this story was set. I was going to let this be pushed back to September of 2008 because, in canon, Tony actually spends his birthday in captivity. And then after I found out that Tony's parents died two weeks before Christmas, I was not going to let that stand. Tony deserves nice things, okay?
But I decided as the ultimate fuck to Marvel, I will be just changing Tony's birthday a few months back, possibly near fall (since it's my favorite season).
⚠️TRIGGER WARNING: Chester threatens to rape Kendis because he is a twisted and sick individual. I do not condone this type of behavior at all in real life. Be assured that Chester will NOT rape Kendis. I will make sure to add this to the tags.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
"Are you sure about this Kendis?" Isiah asked her, lifting an eyebrow. Kendis took her wand and with a muttered word and flick of the wand, the candles were lit.
It had been a few days since her confrontation with Tony, and she had desperately needed a distraction. And luckily for her, planning for Hortense’s birthday was the perfect distraction.
Alke whined as she paced back and forth. Her small pointed ears were perked and her little stubby tail wagged excitedly.
"No, Alke," Kendis said. "Cake is bad for you."
Alke sat at her feet and gave another mournful whine.
"You act like I never feed you," Kendis muttered under her breath as she waved her wand at the cake, and then it began to float in the air.
"Hortense is going to love it," Kendis replied to Isiah's earlier question. "Now, take this beggar out of here." She nodded towards the dog. "Give her a treat. I know Hortense has a stash hidden inside her desk."
Isiah gave her a sloppy salute and then whistled. Alke obediently got up and trotted behind him.
Kendis barely stopped herself from laughing at the dubious look he threw back at her before he disappeared down the hall. Hortense was the type of woman who said she didn't want any fuss on her birthday but then would get huffy when they didn't go all out.
Kendis examined the purple and white buttercream cake she had specially ordered from Hortense's favorite bakery on Alameda Ave.
With the purple and silver present tucked under her arm, she watched the cake float from the room. As Kendis entered the lobby, she saw Alke happily chewing at her treat. Great, that will distract Alke long enough for me to put the cake down.
But she paused as she saw Isiah suddenly pull Hortense into his arms. With her back to Kendis, Hortense rested her head on Isiah's chest.
Despite their obvious physical differences, Hortense and Isiah looked perfect together. Hortense was every inch the diva in her pink Eloquii pantsuit. But even in her four-inch Manolo Blahniks, Hortense was still a few inches shorter than Isiah's five-foot-eleven. Isiah, meanwhile, was all muscle; his white t-shirt and tight ripped jeans stretched tightly against his dark brown skin.
He was a poor trans muggleborn, and Hortense was the spoiled little pureblood who snubbed her nose at her family's legacy and ran halfway across the world. They shouldn't have worked, but they did.
If Hortense and Isiah are happy, maybe Tony and I have a chance. Kendis found her mind wandering back to Tony. Despite the class differences between Hortense and Isiah, they were both magical. Whereas Tony was just a muggle with delusions of grandeur.
She impatiently shoved Tony Stark and all the inconvenient feelings he brought up away.
With a sigh, Kendis considered returning to the break room and giving the couple their space, but Alke barked and trotted over to them. Hortense spun around, her eyes widening as she spotted Kendis and the floating cake.
"Kendis!" Hortense chided. "You shouldn't have!"
"Oh, hush." Kendis grinned, and then they began to sing, "Happy Birthday! Happy Birthday to you!"
Isiah's smooth baritone and Alke's loud, jubilant howls soon joined Kendis’s voice. Hortense couldn't maintain her stern look for long and her mouth broke into a wide, delighted smile.
"Blow the candles." Isiah kissed her on the forehead and gave her a soft smile. "Make a wish, sweetheart."
Hortense closed her eyes for a beat, and then she blew out the candles. Kendis and Isiah clapped and whistled.
"Now, the presents!"
Hortense perked up and practically bounced up and down as Isiah handed her a big, blue-wrapped box, which was tied with a bronze bow.
"Ravenclaw colors?" Hortense cackled. "Really?"
"It was an accident." Isiah shrugged sheepishly. "But I figured I couldn't go wrong with your old house colors. I know how seriously you Brits take house pride."
"You cheeky man," Hortense said as she slapped him playfully on the shoulder. And then she turned back, and with a wave of her wand, the paper slowly and neatly peeled away to reveal a white box.
Hortense was more than a receptionist. She practically ran the business side of things, and Kendis usually appreciated how meticulous and thorough she was. The woman was clever with a mind like a steel trap, but if Hortense took one more second unwrapping this present, Kendis was going to scream.
Alke huffed and plopped herself next to Kendis. She scratched between her dog's ears and glared at her friend. "Hortense, just rip the sodding paper."
Isiah laughed at Kendis's annoyance while Hortense rolled her eyes, but Kendis noticed the small smirk on the woman's lips.
Kendis shook her head at her friend's antics, but her sanity was preserved as the box was now completely stripped of paper and the infuriating woman opened it. Hortense gasped, her hands flying to cover her mouth.
"Isiah." Hortense looked at her boyfriend in amazement. "You didn't!" She turned back and pulled out a large purple Telfar bag.
Isiah leaned down and kissed her. "I saw you eying it when we went to Westfield."
Hortense shook her head. "It must have cost you a small fortune."
Isiah shrugged. "I had to save a few months for it. But lucky for me, my boss gave me a raise." He threw a grateful look at Kendis.
"That's why we both suddenly got a pay bump?" Hortense gasped and spun around.
"The shop has been doing well," Kendis said. "Besides, you both do good work."
Despite the size of the mechanic's bay and the overall size of the compound, the business was a small operation. It was mostly just the three of them, with some occasional help from Richie. Kendis was just lucky that she had found Hortense and Isiah.
"Kendis?" Hortense asked, breaking her out of her thoughts. Kendis shook her head and sighed. "Sorry, got lost in my head."
"Typical." Hortense snorted but gave her a fond, rueful smile.
Kendis rolled her eyes and handed Hortense her present. Hortense muttered the spell from earlier to unwrap the present, but thankfully she didn't see any further need to torture Kendis and quickly unwrapped it.
Hortense opened the box and frowned as she took out a brochure. "What is this?" She gasped as she read it, and Isiah quickly moved to read over her shoulder. Then his mouth dropped open.
"A month's vacation with an all-expenses paid trip to Isla de Mánea!"
"It's a beautiful island in the Caribbean," Kendis explained. "Bright sandy beaches, full-service luxury magical spa and resort, and tons of stuff you can do on the water."
Hortense spluttered, but Kendis put her hand up. "The portkey is in three days. Go have fun and take plenty of photos."
"Three days?!" Isiah shook his head. "This is on short notice. Don't we have to get the paperwork together?"
Kendis shrugged. "I pulled some strings."
"Kendis!" Hortense said. "This is so much."
"You deserve it," Kendis replied. "You two deserve this vacation."
"But even with Richie here, that would be too much work." Hortense shook her head. "We have plenty of clients booked for March."
"Cancel them. Explain to them that an emergency came up."
"Kendis," Isiah said, "We can't afford to close for a month."
"Actually, I can. And lucky for all of us, I'm filthy rich," Kendis said. "Moreover, this isn’t my only income."
Kendis was proud of her small business, but the endless disposable income she got from both her Potter and Black inheritance made her decision so much easier. "Besides, I had something come up back home and won't be around much. Your time will be better spent on a sunny island somewhere," she lied.
Kendis wanted these two people who were as much her friends as her employers out of danger’s way. The pace at which Chester was sending her letters was increasing, and after Isiah had found a black envelope in the break room a few days ago, she was not taking any chances.
I should send Alke away too, Kendis thought to herself. Alke had been her constant companion for three years, and she barely could handle being separated from her for the two days she was in Vegas.
It was as if her dog knew what Alke was thinking—she finished her treat and the dog came running over. Her dog whined and Kendis patted her on the head.
Kendis looked up just in time to notice that Hortense and Isiah were having one of those weird silent couple conversations with their eyes.
"If you are in trouble—" Isiah started to say, but Kendis quickly interrupted him.
"I'm not," she lied. If only Kendis could convince all her friends and family to go on holiday for a while. Ron and Hermione, of course, knew about Chester's acquittal. Kendis had a tough time convincing them to not drop everything and come to Los Angeles.
The only upside was the Ministry burying Chester's acquittal. This kept it out of the Daily Prophet, so she didn't get flooded with worried messages from her friends and family.
Hortense shook her head. "Kendis..."
"Please," Kendis begged.
Hortense and Isiah shared a long, silent look before Hortense finally told Kendis, "Fine."
Kendis gave a sigh of relief, and the couple started to talk excitedly about their upcoming trip. She was just using a spell to cut the cake when Alke growled. Kendis looked down just in time to see another black envelope appear.
"Kendis?" Hortense frowned at the envelope in Kendis's hand. "What is that?"
"That looks like the envelope I found a few days ago," Isiah pointed out.
"It's nothing!" Kendis said, and pasted on a smile. "Now, how about some cake?"
Kendis focused on the cake, pretending everything was fine even though she was about to lose it over another letter. Any appetite she had was gone the moment she saw the envelope, but Kendis managed to force herself to choke down a piece of the red velvet cake.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Kendis was able to make her excuses and she made a beeline for her office. Her fingers trembled as she opened it.
You are so beautiful when you cry. Will you cry for me when I come inside you?
Notes:
Chester is starting to escalate things and it's disgusting as always. Now, I know some of you feel that Kendis shouldn't be this shaken up but Chester's assault is way more personal than Voldemort. Part of any stalker's agenda is to mentally break their victims down and Chester is very good at his job. If you want to read more about my thoughts about this, read this blog post here.
Now, in the next chapter, things are about to get even more real. I'm not going to spoil it for you, but I suggest you buckle it up and get your crash helmets on! The next chapter will drop on March 13th! Technically this is the thirteenth chapter and I find it hilariously ironic that my chapter will drop on that day.
Chapter 16: The Deepest Cut
Summary:
Kendis, anxious upon discovering that Chester Coil is hunting for her, sends Hortense and Isiah away on vacation for their safety. However, this choice results in unexpected consequences.
Notes:
This goddamn chapter is one of the longest chapters in the entire story at a hefty 2883 words. It's also one of the darkest chapters in this story so far. I am not going to give a lot away but I want to give a TRIGGER WARNING for: explicit violence, gaslighting, victim blaming, and serious harm to animals.
If you want to skip this chapter, I will not judge you for it. It's rough! And on top of that it does end on a cliffhanger. If you can't wait two weeks to find out what happens next, you can find the next chapter already up on my website. I tend to drop chapters early there to make the wait a little easier on you.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Kendis unlocked the door to her shop. But even with the usually comforting sound of Alke's nails clicking against the linoleum, the shop was eerily quiet. She had just returned from Hortense and Isiah's place. They'd handed her the spare keys to their apartment, and she'd patiently listened to Isiah's careful instructions on how to care for his plant babies.
Then the couple had taken turns hugging her.
"Fire call us if you need anything," Hortense had said as she hugged Kendis.
"I will," Kendis had lied. She will do anything to keep her friends safe. And with them constantly coming in and out of the compound that Kendis both lived and worked in, they would be the easiest target for Chester. No one would hear from Kendis until everything was settled.
Kendis was trying to figure out how long she could avoid Ian and Jason before they caught on. She hadn't been back since those letters started arriving. She knew that the two men were far from being helpless muggles. Hell, she'd witnessed Jason and Ian intimidate countless Aurors and MACUSA agents who'd staked out Kendis at the bar, hoping to recruit her. She laughed as they practically ran screaming from Miscellany after Jason's threats.
But she didn't know for sure until a few months later when she saw them fighting a furious dragon shifter in the alley outside the bar. They weren't magical, but Jason was way too powerful and quick, plus Ian's injuries vanished in seconds.
In their bungalow's kitchen, late that night, they finally admitted Jason and Ian were Hercules and Iolaus. Kendis just sat there, staring at her superhero friends.
For the first time since she left everything behind in England, Kendis found herself spilling her past to the two men who clearly understood the weight of being a hero. That night as they exchanged stories built a tight bond between the three. Kendis viewed Ian and Jason as brothers, just as much as she did the Weasley brothers.
They were able to get involved, unlike the Weasleys who had distance as a barrier.
Nevertheless, Chester was her problem, and the less interference from her friends, the less she would have to worry. And so Kendis had no choice but to send Hortense and Isiah away. She remembered how Isiah had hugged her tight and said: "Be safe and don't do anything foolish!”
Kendis had laughed and shoved him away. And then Hortense and Isiah had shrunk their luggage and placed them in their pockets. They had both grabbed hold of a conch shell and then, a moment later, they had disappeared.
Now Kendis was here alone in the shop. Alke nudged her hand, and Kendis scratched behind her ears.
"It's just going to be you and me," she said with a sigh and then walked into the garage. Kendis had pretty much cleared her calendar for a month to deal with Chester.
She had started reaching out to her magical contacts and had even gone to El Caldero. It was the Wizarding capitol of the American West Coast, comparable to Diagon Alley.
Kendis had walked into Auror headquarters and finally made a formal report. She had been putting it off because she knew it was more than likely that they would brush off her concerns.
And Kendis had been right.
"This is a free country, Mx. Black." An Auror, who was an older white man by the name of Nelson Buckling, told her. "Unless you can prove that he is physically harming you, then there is nothing we can do."
Kendis had waved to the stack of letters she had collected. Chester had increased the frequency of his letters to every other day. She knew Isiah had been suspicious when he had found one in his toolbox, but he hadn't pressed her when she gave him a hasty explanation. Even Hortense had badgered her about the envelope that had appeared while Kendis had been cutting the cake.
"Sending someone a letter is not illegal," the Auror shrugged and then grimaced. "No matter how distasteful."
Kendis had stormed out of El Caldero, frustrated and close to tears. In the end, it had proved what she had always suspected: she was on her own.
"Come Alke," Kendis called out to her dog and did her best to push away her melancholy thoughts as they made their way further into the garage.
Isiah's side of the bay was messy with the tools drawers left open, and a dirty oil rag was left on the table with some nuts and bolts. While Kendis's side was neater as everything had a place and a spot.
Her autistic brain craved order, while Isiah was just a mess. In the early days of Isiah's employment, Kendis had always been getting on his ass about it. But then they'd compromised and now Isiah's mess stayed in his half of the garage.
The garage was too silent without the noise of Isiah's tinkering and constant singing along to the radio. Missing her friend, Kendis turned on the radio in hopes of shaking off her discomfort.
Paramore's Ain't Fun came on, and she bopped her head to it as she pulled a treat off the shelf and threw it at her dog. Alke delicately picked up the treat and trotted off to her cot in the corner before finally eating it.
"Spoiled rotten." Kendis laughed as she went to her side, where a few bikes waited for her. She liked to keep busy when she could and had a hobby of rebuilding classic bikes from scratch. Afterward, when Kendis was done, she would sell them at a fair price. Kendis's fingers caressed the seat of a black and silver vintage Norton Commando.
She always had a weakness for vintage motorbikes.
With a sigh, Kendis put on her coveralls and started working on installing the new cylinder block that had gotten in. Finding the right parts for vintage bikes was always a pain in the ass, and it had taken forever to get her hands on the right cylinder block.
Kendis gave a triumphant grin as they finished installing it. She frowned as she noticed that the news had replaced the music.
"In a move that surprises no one, billionaire playboy and inventor, Tony Stark, has been nominated for the Apogee Lifetime Achievement Award in Design and Innovation," the radio host announced. "But what we all want to know is who is going to be on his arm? As rumor has it Tony is dating heiress Hope Van Dyne…"
Kendis groaned and sat up before hurrying to the radio to turn it off. She took a deep breath and consciously unclenched her fists. Kendis knew from experience that she should take the press speculations with a grain of salt.
Besides, what did it matter if the rumors were true or not? Hadn't she told Tony to move on? This was for the best, as they had better things to worry about. Besides, Tony had ignored her boundaries and violated her privacy, making it clear that he was just another man who only saw Kendis as a pretty toy to use and discard when they realized she was far from perfect.
Kendis ran her hand through her hair and sighed. She and Tony going their separate ways was for the best. Death awaited anyone who got close to her and, although Tony was an arrogant fool, she didn't want him to die.
They glanced at Alke, and her dog threw her a very judgmental look. Kendis snorted. I think it is time to call it a night.
Her house was just as quiet as the garage had been, but it was a quietness that Kendis was more used to. She walked into the enormous great room that had six tall rectangular windows stretched across the wall and overlooked her neat lawn and main garage, which was only a short distance away.
Alke on her heels, Kendis walked past the overstuffed burnt orange leather sofas and cherry wood coffee table to the bookshelf where a simple wooden box sat next to framed photos of Hermione, Ron, and her while still at Hogwarts in the early days of her transition. They were the only photos of herself from before that she could stand to look at.
Beside the shelf was her old Gryffindor quidditch jersey, lying next to her broom. With a sigh, Kendis put her phone in a simple wooden box. The box was warded against magic and protected her phone against any interference from her magic.
Alke whined and barked, and Kendis rolled her eyes as she turned and walked into the kitchen. The great room and the kitchen were just one big room, and although she usually loved how big and airy that made her house feel, now it made her feel that much more lonely.
Alke barked and whined once again and Kendis turned to find her standing pointedly next to her empty food and water bowl.
"Menace," Kendis said with a fond smile. She pulled out Alke's expensive dog food and mixed the wet food with the dry.
And Alke put her entire head in the bowl as she devoured her dinner.
After she made Alke's dinner, Kendis walked into the living room and pulled out one of her Weird Sisters albums. Listening to some music should make the silence a bit more bearable.
She placed the vinyl on the record player and, with a flick of her wand, made sure the sound of the music was amplified enough that she could hear it throughout her house.
Kendis hummed along to Cruel Bind as she made her way back to the kitchen. Ugh, what am I going to eat for dinner? She considered cooking and sighed, as she hated cooking just for herself. Normally, Kendis would cook a big meal, and then give it to Hortense and Isiah for lunch. But with them gone, she had lost any motivation to cook.
With a sigh, Kendis opened the cabinet stacked with her pot noodles. Her favorite flavor was, of course, Bombay Bad Boy. Hortense always despaired of the stuff and couldn't understand how Kendis was able to eat only that for weeks at a time.
After Kendis and Alke's quick dinner, they both headed down the short hall to her bedroom. Kendis quickly stripped and headed to the en suite bathroom. She'd had a quick wash-up at the garage, but she wouldn't be able to sleep without a proper shower.
"You can't watch me take a shower." Kendis shook her head and pointedly closed the door in Alke's forlorn face. After a nice hot shower, she went back to her bedroom and put on her nightie before getting into bed.
Alke pointedly ignored her dog beg and jumped up beside her. Kendis scratched her small pointed ears and then grabbed her book: 101 Practical Uses for Charms. It had been a Christmas present, and she had been slowly making her way through it this year. She read a few chapters before her exhaustion finally got the best of her. And she put her book away, turned off the light, and fell into a fitful sleep.
The shattering of her wards ripped Kendis from sleep. Her wand was instantly in her hands and Kendis closed her eyes as she mentally traced over the spider web configuration of her magical protections. She'd been reinforcing the wards ever since Chester resumed his letters.
They should have been near unbreakable but her wards were in tatters. Kendis's eyes snapped open as she heard Alke give a low growl. Her dog stood in the middle of the bed, rigid as they stared at the door.
The grip around Kendis's wand tightened and her ears strained to hear the intruder, but. she heard nothing. Alke jumped off the bed and hurried to the door.
Then the door flew open and Alke jumped back, narrowly missing being hit. At the door was a figure of a man. The dim light from the cracked door of her en suite bedroom illuminated enough features to reveal Chester's face.
"I think it's time for you to come home, Harry."
Kendis shuttered at hearing her dead name. "My name is Kendis, and I'm not going anywhere with you."
Alke lunged for Chester, but he cast a quick Protego, and Alke flew across the room, hitting the nearby wall.
"Expelliarmus!" Kendis shouted, but Chester deflected it as well.
"Reducto!"
Kendis ducked and rolled as her bed was blasted into pieces. She got up on her feet and shouted, "Stupidfy!" But the bastard was too quick and wily, and Kendis narrowly avoided having the pieces of her wardrobe fall on top of her when he shouted another blasting curse.
"Petrificus Totalus!" Kendis shouted, and Chester was quick to get out of the way but not quick enough to dodge Alke. The huge dog jumped on him, and he cried out in pain as she sunk her teeth into his leg. He tried shaking his leg out of her grip, but Alke didn't give him an inch.
"Diffindo!" Chester violently slashed his wand, and Alke yelped and fell back. Alke yelped in pain from a large cut on her stomach.
"No!" Kendis screamed before she threw a blasting spell at Chester and he deflected it. Then the fight was really on as the two exchanged spell after spell. Furniture broke and glass shattered as blue and red magic collided and parried. Chester was powerful and wily like a snake, but Kendis had kept up her training. She dedicated countless hours to training in her magical dojo, constantly sparring with friends who surpassed her in speed and strength.
"You are too stubborn for your own good," Chester snarled. "It's going to be a delight breaking you. Crucio!"
Kendis cried and stumbled onto her feet. It had been a while since she had been under this curse, and it still felt like every nerve in her body was being lit on fire. She gritted her teeth and pushed through the pain.
Kendis suddenly noticed that in his fury, Chester was leaving his right side open and she took advantage of that. With a powerful swipe of her wand, she shouted, "Sectumsempra!"
Chester cried out and cradled his side. Blood seeped through his shirt and onto his fingers. "This is not over," Chester said, but instead of advancing, he disappeared with a loud crack.
Kendis panted for breath, her eyes darting around the hallway, but there was nothing. She heard Alke whine and, with her heart pounding in her chest, she ran back into the bedroom and kneeled beside her.
Her dog lay in a pool of her own blood, and Kendis's fingers trembled as an image of Josefa's body flashed in her mind. Her heart thumped as she smoothed a hand down Alke's fur.
"Alke," Kendis choked up. She needed to get help but couldn't risk apparating. She cast a statis charm that she'd learned during the war. It would keep Alke alive and keep her from further injuring herself.
Kendis shakily got up and headed back into the living room. It took her two tries to open the box, as her fingers shook so much.
Kendis unlocked her phone and went to her contacts. She was just about to tap on her veterinarian's number when her fingers slipped. Tears of frustration and rage rolled down her cheeks as she picked up the phone, but instead of Dr. Lan's brisk curt voice, she heard a familiar voice.
"Kendis?"
Kendis needed to hang up and would have, but her panic and fear slammed down hard on her. She tried to breathe but couldn't. Kendis gasped into the phone and tried to push the words out of her mouth. "Tony."
"Kendis, what happened? What's wrong?" Tony asked.
"Pan…Panic...attack," Kendis gasped.
"Oh, okay, breathe with me."
Kendis glared at the phone because it wasn't like she wasn't trying.
"In and out," Tony directed her.
Kendis forced air into her lungs and then breathed out.
"Again."
Kendis did it again. In and out, and slowly and gradually, the panic faded away. Kendis took a deep breath. "I…I think I'm okay."
"Kendis what happened?"
"I…I was attacked and Alke is hurt…" Kendis started and then stopped. "Look, I'll call you back." She ignored his shout for her to wait and hung up. Then Kendis called her vet. The sooner Alke got the help she needed, the better.
Notes:
Ya'll alright? I told you this was going to be a rough chapter. I hope that you are okay! Now, I know I left this chapter on a cliffhanger but I want to assure you that Alke will be okay. She will make a full recovery. And as for Tony? Well, you are going to have to wait until the next chapter to see how that plays out.
The next chapter will drop on March 27th. I'll see you folks then!
Chapter 17: Toil and Trouble
Summary:
After what happened in the last chapter, Tony rushes over to help Kendis, but he’s shocked to find out one of Kendis’s biggest secrets.
Notes:
The last chapter was a hot mess! And I'm going to tell you that the rollercoaster is not going to stop for a while. This is going to be another emotionally charged chapter but lucky or unlucky (depending on your perspective) this chapter is short. But don't worry, if you can't wait two weeks then you can find the next chapter already up and ready to go on my website.
On this website, not only do I release chapters early but I also have tons of goodies such as wallpapers, author commentaries, and so much more. I highly suggest you go check it out!
TRIGGER WARNINGS: For explicit animal harm and panic attacks.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
It was a miracle that Tony didn’t get into an accident on the way to Kendis’s. He suspected Jarvis was the only reason he made it to Burbank in one piece. It was Friday night, and the traffic was bumper to bumper on the I-405.
Various worst-case scenarios played over and over in his brain. Was Kendis hurt? Possibly bleeding out. With Kendis’s fake identity and her reaction to that black envelope, it didn’t take a genius to figure out that she was running from something.
His mind thought back to their last encounter. There had been anger, rage, and terror glimmering in her bright green eyes. And Tony had been surprised at his sudden need to comfort and protect Kendis.
Tony Stark didn’t do comfort and certainly didn’t make it a habit of rescuing damsels in distress. His past disastrous attempts at relationships had made it perfectly clear to him that getting any more involved with Kendis would not end well.
Tony shoved his conflicting feelings aside as he pulled up in front of her bike shop.
The first thing he noticed was the lack of police though across the courtyard, there was a white van parked in front of Kendis’s house. It made him wary and only added to his building anxiety. Tony snatched up his keys and hurried out of the car. He pushed the button on the security box.
“Hello?” Kendis called out.
“It’s Tony,” he announced. “Let me in.”
There was a long silence, and then there was a buzz and the gate slid apart to allow him inside. Tony ran across the courtyard, past the bike shop to Kendis’s house. He hurried past the van and up the stairs to the door.
The door was yanked open and standing in the doorway was a pretty hot East Asian man with long hair that was pulled back into a ponytail and had a blue ribbon wrapped around his forehead. He was impeccably dressed this late in the night in a starched white button-down shirt and tan chinos.
“Move,” the man ordered curtly. Tony opened his mouth to argue, but then he spotted two other men carrying Kendis’s dog on a stretcher. He grimaced when he noticed the dog’s torso was covered in white bandages.
Clearly, someone had tried to go through the dog to get to Kendis. The dog gave a pitiful whine; her snubbed tail wagging pathetically as she stared at Tony with her pain-filled dark eyes.
Tony watched as they carried Kendis’s cane corso (Tony may or may not have done some research after nearly getting his face ripped off the last time) into the white van that he noticed had a painting of a mountain with some clouds and a rabbit perched next to it with the words: Misty Heights Animal Clinic written in bold over it.
As Tony stared at the van, he was nearly run over by Kendis, who was carrying a bright blue blanket.
“Dr. Lan!”
“Kendis,” Tony called out, and took a step forward. However, Tony’s mouth dropped as they hurried past him to the hot veterinarian.
The man turned and waited patiently as Kendis darted over to him. “This is her favorite blanket.”
“Thank you,” Dr. Lan simply replied.
“Is Alke really going to be okay?”
“Alke will need surgery,” the man said. “But it’s probable that she will have a full recovery.”
“Thank you so much, Dr. Lan,” Kendis replied with a sigh of relief. “I’ll see you at the clinic.”
With a bow, he hurried into the back of the van, then it started up and drove towards the gate. Kendis clicked on the remote button and the gate pulled back to let the van through.
Now alone, Tony felt both foolish and ridiculous in his earlier panic. Clearly, she had her own Doctor Feel Good here, and Kendis didn’t need him to rush to the rescue. He did his best to ignore the rush of jealousy he felt.
He spun around, ready to bolt back to his car, when a hand landed on his shoulder. He turned around and suddenly he had his arms full of his spouse. They stood there on their front porch clutching each other, and Kendis’s body shuddered as she broke into sobs.
Tony didn’t know what to do or say. He was not really the emotional type, but in the end, he simply held her. Time seemed to stretch on, and his mind was going a million times a minute as he stood there and tried his best to comfort Kendis.
“Thank you,” She said after she had calmed down. Tony’s hands fumbled in his pockets and, to his surprise, there were a few napkins in his pockets. He handed them to her, and she gave him a watery but thankful smile.
“What happened?” Tony asked. “Were you injured?”
Kendis shook her head. “No, Alke managed to stop him before he could do more damage.”
“Him?” Tony asked. “Kendis, what’s going on?”
Kendis’s face was red, her eyes swollen, and her messy hair was all over the place. She looked broken and tired, and his arms ached to take her back into his arms. Kendis closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
“Chester Coil,” she answered with a shaky breath. “My stalker.”
Do you know what happens to people who get close to me? They end up dead.
“He killed your last partner,” Tony said, putting the pieces together.
“Josefa,” Kendis choked out, her eyes swimming with tears. “God, she was so beautiful, Tony! She had a long thick afro, dark ebony skin, and curves I would kill for. And was so clever and funny.” Kendis wrapped her arms around herself. “She would crack the most awful dad jokes, but they would always make me laugh even on my worst days.”
“Josefa was only twenty-three with an apprenticeship with the best tailor in Britain, and Chester snuffed her out like she had nothing.” Kendis shook her head as tears fell down her cheeks.
“Kendis—” Tony said as he took a step towards her. He didn’t know what to say, but he couldn’t just stand there and watch her fall apart. Maybe I am getting soft.
“No, don’t you get it!” Kendis shouted, her eyes blazing electric green. “Everyone I love dies!” And then suddenly, the lights in the house started to flicker, and the windows shattered. Tony pushed Kendis to the ground, covering her body with his own as the glass fell around them.
Tony screamed as he felt glass slicing into his upper left shoulder and his arms. But he still held his position throughout the onslaught.
Finally, the glass stopped falling all around him. But Tony didn’t dare move as an eerie quiet spread around them. He opened his eyes, and the porch was a complete disaster zone. There were broken parts from Kendis’s deck furniture scattered amongst the shards of glass from her window.
Tony winced as he sat up and examined the cuts on his arms and back. Then he looked down at Kendis, who gazed up at him with wide terrified eyes.
“Holy shit!” Tony barked out a hysterical laugh. “I married a witch!”
Notes:
Tony just had his big Darrin moment! Hopefully, he will handle it better than Samantha's husband did (and yes I am making a Bewitched reference)! 😅 Now the question is how do Kendis and Tony deal with the fallout from this?
Well, you are going to have to wait until April 10th to find out! I'll see you folks then!
Before you go! Please make sure to leave a kudos and a comment! Getting those really fuels the writing well.
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Chapter 18: White Flags
Summary:
Now that Tony knows of Kendis’s magic. She must choose between obliviating her new husband or finally revealing her past to him.
Notes:
Here we are at another chapter and it's been a wild ride for sure! Kendis is just going through it but I have to remind not only myself but all of you that she will get her lick back in the end! This is going to be worth it, I swear!
These next episodes are going to be really emotional because I am a sucker for angst and character development. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it!
🚨Content Warning: Explicit harm to animals and mental breakdowns.
📌Reminder: You can get early access to the next chapter and fun free merch on my website. Make sure to check it out!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
“Holy shit,” Tony barked out a hysterical laugh. “I married a witch!”
Kendis winced and wondered what she’d done in a past life to deserve such horrid luck. Tony kept gaping down at her, his eyes wide as saucers. His expression would have been hilarious if it wasn’t for the fact that she’d had a total and complete breakdown that had led to her having a huge surge of accidental magic.
Kendis felt her cheeks go warm, and she was probably as red as a tomato. She hadn’t had an accidental magic incident that bad since she was 15 years old.
“Can you get off of me?” Kendis said, and Tony quickly scrambled to his feet. He offered her a hand, and Kendis was thankful that he wasn’t shying away from her touch. She took his hand and stood up.
The glass, crumpled under the soles of her house shoes. Kendis was thankful that she’d put a charm to stiffen the soles of her shoes (because Alke had a stage in which she liked to use her shoes as chew toys).
Kendis felt like her heart was being squeezed out of her chest as she thought of her baby alone in that sterile clinic, even though she knew Alke was in good hands. Dr. Lan had been Alke’s veterinarian since she was a pup, and Ian and Jason had highly recommended him. And she was lucky that he took emergency cases.
“So magic?” Tony flailed his arms around. “Get back to the magic part.”
Kendis took out her wand and with a flick and swish, parts of her lawn chair flew through the air and assembled back together into a chair.
“Magic exists.” Kendis shrugged. “And I’m a wixen, not a witch.”
“What’s the difference?” Tony asked in an amazed voice before he walked over to the chair and poked it. “Whoa, it’s as good as new.”
Kendis could practically see the cogs in his magnificent brain spinning. He shook his head and then poked the chair again. “There have been some governmental experiments and studies at M.I. T and Stanford on energy manipulations, but nothing on this scale. And don’t get me started on the telekinesis and the ability to transmogrification on such a small intricate scale.”
Tony started bouncing up and down, and if he had been a dog, his tail would have been wagging back and forth. Adorable. She thought to herself and then shook her head. The way she was switching from emotion to emotion was exhausting. She needed to get off this emotional roller coaster.
“Wixen is the gender-neutral term for witch or wizard.”
“Wait, like Merlin?”
Kendis frowned, confused. “What?”
“Back in Vegas, you said: “Oh, Merlin.” Tony titled his head. “Merlin actually existed, huh?”
Kendis rubbed her throbbing head, and then she walked over to Tony and pulled him off the porch into the house. His eyes roved over her house, which was relatively neater than her porch. She pushed him as far as she could into her living room.
“The dimensions of this living room make zero sense.” Tony whistled as his eyes gazed over the cavernous great room.
“What can I say?” Kendis shrugged. “It’s bigger on the inside.”
Tony threw her a smirk. “Doctor Who, really?”
Kendis snorted as she pointed her wand at the window and said, “Don’t move.”
“Reparo!”
“Fucking hell!” Tony jumped as the glass flew back into the frame, fitting back together. “That was so cool!”
Tony hurried across the room to press his fingers against the repaired windows. “Wow! I want to run all the tests. Can’t imagine what type of data—”
“Tony!”
Tony stopped and turned to look at her.
“Magic and technology don’t really go together.” Kendis walked over to him. “Can I have your phone?”
Tony blinked at her. “I think it’s a little too early to start checking if I’m texting other people.”
Kendis rolled her eyes and made grabby hands at him until he took out his phone and handed it over to her. Kendis was surprised that his phone screen wasn’t cracked. If her iPhone hadn’t been put in her warded lock box, it would have been in pieces.
However, the moment Kendis touched the phone, the screen flickered once, then twice, and then froze for a second before it went black.
“What…” Tony’s eyes were huge as he indigently snatched his phone out of her hand. “That is impossible! This model has survived active war zones. Hell, Rhodey was shot once and the phone still worked.”
Kendis winced. “I would check your other electronics.”
Tony took a little remote out of his pocket. “Jarvis?”
There was nothing, and he shook his head in bewilderment. “This didn’t happen back at the hotel.”
“I am pretty powerful.” Kendis pinched the bridge of her nose. “For the most part, I keep my magic tightly controlled. You just happened to catch me at a really bad time.”
“Even when you are drunk or asleep?”
Kendis nodded. “Yeah, the side effect of the war.”
“War?” Tony asked in dismay. “You were part of a war.”
More like a War General and sacrificial lamb, Kendis thought to herself, but she was not opening that can of worms. It was already enough with Chester’s attack tonight. She shook her head. “Let’s get those cuts looked at, then I’m checking on Alke.” I’ll tell you the details later.”
Kendis took Tony’s hand and led him to the sofa. “Sit,” Kendis ordered.
“I’m not a dog!” Tony scoffed.
Kendis snorted, then dashed to the bathroom for some dittany. She was gone for a quick minute, but when she returned, Tony had moved from the sofa to her bookshelf and was reading ‘Dark Wizards of the Twenty Century’.
“Tony!”
He jumped and gave her a guilty glance. Tony looked like a kid whose hand was caught in the cookie jar.
With a roll of her eyes, she gestured toward the couch. With a sheepish shrug, Tony returned the book to its place on the shelf. He walked over and sat down.
Kendis pulled out her wand and quietly cast a healing spell. Tony’s eyes widened as the nicks and cuts began to heal themselves. “Wow, that is amazing!”
Instead of replying, Kendis thrust the vial into his hand. He eyed it suspiciously.
“What’s this?”
“That’s dittany,” Kendis said. “And it will stop you from getting any scars.”
Tony looked between the woman and the vial; with a shrug, he drank. “Ugh, that tastes terrible,” he grimaced.
“Most potions do,” Kendis sighed. “Now drink the rest of it.”
With a final, spiteful glance that she ignored, Tony sighed and then quickly tossed the rest back.
“Ugh,” Tony gagged. “Tastes like old dirty socks.”
Kendis clapped him on the shoulder. “Enough with the dramatics.” I need to go check on Alke. I don’t want her to be at the clinic alone for too long.”
Tony looked like he was about to argue, then sighed. “Fine, but I’m taking you.”
“No, that’s okay—”
Tony raised his hand, and she stopped. “You are in no condition to drive. Either let me drive you to the clinic, or I’m going to make you call a cab. Either way, you are not driving.”
Kendis wanted to protest that they were a grown-ass person who could take care of themselves, but she was too tired to even try. “Fine.”
“By the way, I have been meaning to ask.”
“What?” Kendis replied wearily.
“Why didn’t you call the cops?” Tony waved his hands. “Or like the magical authorities.”
“Did you know I used to be an Auror?” Kendis asked suddenly.
“Auror is the word for magical law enforcement,” Tony clarified, and she nodded.
“Yes, I joined right after I graduated from school. My father and godfather had both been Aurors. My heroes, and most of the people I looked up to as a kid, were Aurors. And after I graduated, I wanted to make them proud. So I joined the service.” Kendis gave a rueful chuckle. “We were taught that we were a band of brothers, that Aurors had each other’s back. But that was a sodding lie.”
Kendis shuttered as the memories of those years flooded back to the surface. “When Chester started showing up everywhere I went, leaving me gifts, and then leaving threatening letters, they didn’t take it seriously. They told me I was overreacting and that I should be flattered.”
Tony grimaced, and Kendis nodded in agreement. “Even when he started threatening Josefa, no one took it seriously. The Coil family was a respectable, pure-blood family with connections deep in the Ministry, and I begged them to do something, anything, to stop him. But they were too busy focusing on my change in gender expression to give a shit.
“And six months later, Josefa was murdered.” Kendis barely kept control of her magic at the familiar impotent rage surging through her. Josefa would’ve been alive today if she had just taken matters into her own hands. “Now Chester Coil is free.”
“Okay,” Tony replied quietly. “No police. So how about you stay with a friend?”
Kendis was glad she’d sent Hortense and Isiah to Isla de Mánea. She imagined what Chester would have done to her friends if they’d gotten in his path. Alke had barely survived the encounter.
As for the rest of her friends? Kendis realized Ian, Jason, and Richie would become overprotective and coddle her if she told them. Besides, although the three men were perfectly capable of handling themselves, she preferred not to involve them unless absolutely necessary.
Thankfully, even though Dr. Lan and his husband Wei Ying were good friends with Jason and Ian, Dr. Lan was not the type of person to gossip.
Tony sighed and shoved his hands in his jeans pockets. “Okay, then you are staying with me.”
“What? No!” Kendis squawked. Chester’s gunning for me, and he’s already hurt Alke to get to me. I don’t want anyone’s blood on my hands.”
“Kendis,” Tony said, uncharacteristically serious. “Do you know how many death threats and assassination attempts I get in a year?”
Kendis frowned, “What—”
“Danger doesn’t scare me,” Tony insisted. “Besides, the mansion has round the clock security—It’s practically a fortress!”
“Did you miss the part where I said mixing magic and technology was bad?” Kendis shook her head. Could your tech survive a magical attack?”
“Probably not, but it will give you enough time to run,” Tony replied, stubbornly.
“And what if I destroy your precious tech, huh?” Kendis crossed her arms and glared back at him. “What then?”
“I’ll fix it,” Tony replied, a shrug. “There is nothing you can break that I can’t afford to fix.”
Kendis could just stare at him with her mouth open.
“You shouldn’t be alone,” Tony insisted again.
Kendis groaned and slapped her forehead as she felt her resolve falling. “Fine,” Kendis finally agreed. “But only until Alke is released from the hospital.”
Tony narrowed his eyes, but then nodded. “Deal.” He waved her to the bedroom. “Now go pack a bag.”
Kendis huffed as she went to collect her things. She had a feeling this was going to be a long couple of days.
Chapter 19: Equivalent Exchange
Summary:
Tony and Kendis are forced to cut their heartfelt conversation short to check on her dog, Alke. After Dr. Lan, her veterinarian, reassures them of Alke’s recovery, Tony invites Kendis to stay at Stark Manor.
Notes:
Welcome back folks! I can't believe we are almost halfway through this fic. At the moment of writing this story, I already have 63,000 words written. I also plan for this series to be at least 5 large stories.
Buckle up everybody because we are going to be here for a VERY long time.
I also want to let you know that this is where things begin to take a turn. For at least the next 10 chapters the chapters are going to be a bit more introspective and as I work to build Tony and Kendis's relationship, so the Chester Coil subplot is going to simmer in the background for a while. I can't tell you much more about it without spoiling you. I just wanted to warn you so you won't get mad at the slowing of the plot's pace.
And finally, I want to thank you all so much for the people who are still here with me. I pay attention to every comment, kudo, share, and bookmark. I am so touched that you are as invested in this as I am. Thank you!
🚨Content Warning: Explicit harm to animals and mental breakdowns.
📌Reminder: You can get early access to the next chapter and fun merch on my website. Make sure to check it out!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
By the time Tony drove her to the Mountain Heights Clinic in Glendale, Kendis was already running on fumes. But Alke was her baby, and she always came first. However, Kendis had fully expected Tony to be dismissive of Alke’s importance in her life.
Kendis had been on a few dates where her companions were always surprised when she just couldn’t go spend the night with them without prior notice. They hadn’t understood that she had to go home and feed her dog. But since Kendis didn’t use technology at home, she couldn’t simply buy one of those automatic dog feeders.
Most people didn’t realize that Alke was, in essence, her child.
But Tony didn’t say a word. He just drove her silently through the night to Mountain Heights Animal Clinic. The exterior of the place was a white modern style building that stuck out like a sore thumb among the small and colorful stores.
“You have arrived, sir,” a mechanical voice said.
“Thanks, Jarv,” Tony replied as he turned into the parking lot. Kendis unbuckled her seat belt and was out as soon as Tony pulled to a stop. She hurried through the glass doors into the lobby.
She noticed the familiar baby blue and white walls, the matching square chairs, and the small glass tables laden with National Geographic magazines. Then her eyes fell upon the empty reception desk.
“Whoa!” Tony said as he looked around the clinic and frowned at the empty reception desk. “Where is everyone?”
It was late, but Dr. Lan was one of the best vets that offered emergency services in the city.
Kendis was surprised there weren’t at least a few people there, but glad at the same time that she didn’t have to deal with them. She was already on the verge of a complete shut-down and would rather be in private when that happened.
The door opened and a smiling young Chinese man, who seemed to be in his late teens or early twenties, walked up to them.
“Lan Jingyi?” Kendis called out. “Where are Lan Zhan and Lan Sizhui?”
“Out of town for some conference, so I’m covering for them.”
“Oh, and how’s Alke?”
“She’s in surgery,” Lan Jingyi replied with a shrug. “I would tell you to leave and go get some sleep, but I know you.”
“Too bloody right,” Kendis snorted and crossed her arms.
“And you...” Lan Jingyi blinked at Tony. “Do I know you from somewhere?”
Tony coughed and shrugged. “Nah, I just have one of those faces.”
Lan Jingyi threw him a skeptical look, but shook his head and turned to Kendis. “I don’t know how long the surgery will go on for, but I’ll make sure to let you know if there is any news.”
Kendis blinked back tears. “Thanks.”
Tony gave Kendis’s shoulder a comforting squeeze, and she turned to face him. “Let’s get comfortable. I guess we are going to be here for a while.” Kendis nodded and followed Tony as he led her to the waiting room.
Kendis sat on the uncomfortable chair, and Tony sat next to her. Her eyes went to the doorway that led to the short hallway where Dr. Lan was operating on her furbaby.
Alke was going to be okay. The thought ran over and over in her mind like a mantra. Kendis didn’t know what she would do without Alke’s comforting presence behind her.
Kendis ran her fists over her face and tried to push back the panic. What she didn’t need was another breakdown. She longed for her headphones to play her favorite playlist and for the comforting darkness of her bedroom.
‘Not so comforting anymore’, Kendis thought to herself as she shivered as her mind went back to Chester Coil. The man had invaded the sanctuary of her home.
“It’s going to be a delight breaking you.”
Kendis wondered if Josefa had felt the same terror she’d felt right before Chester had slit her throat with a cutting curse. He had been so close and even with all of her power, Kendis had frozen in fear.
“Tony?”
“Yeah?”
“Talk to me?” Kendis pleaded.
“About what?”
Kendis just threw up her hands. “About anything?”
Tony sighed and tapped his finger against his lips. “Well, you weren’t the only person who drunkenly danced at Juicy Lucy’s.”
Kendis mouth dropped as she spun on Tony, who gave her a shit-eating grin.
“You are lying!”
Tony rubbed the back of his head. “Rhodey bet me 50 bucks, and I still nailed it even though I was wasted.”
Kendis shook her head in amazement. “You are taking the piss.”
“Nope.” Tony shrugged. “College really didn’t take up most of my attention. And my M.I.T. professors made it a habit to kick me out of the labs when I pissed them off.” He gave a rueful chuckle. “I tended to blow things up a lot back then.”
Kendis was horrified at the thought of the Weasley twins and Tony ever meeting. Either Tony would end up shortening out some major city or they would build some Frankenstein monster that would certainly mean all of their certain doom.
“I had a lot of time on my hands, and I took a lot of different classes. Pole dancing was one of them.” He continued with a dismissive wave of his hand. “I also took ballet. Not to mention all the ballroom tutors I had growing up.”
Kendis winced as she thought of the one and only time she’d tried ball-room dancing. She had stepped on Parvati’s poor feet the entire night, and Ron had barely done better with Parvati’s sister, Padma.
“What?” Tony asked, with a shit eating grin. “I know there is a story there.”
Kendis thought about it, and honestly, the magic cat was out of the bag. And while the Triwizard tournaments had been an utter nightmare, in hindsight, the Yule ball had been a hilarious farce.
Besides, it would get her mind off of Alke, and right now she needed something to laugh at. “Well, it all started when the three biggest magical schools in Europe decided to hold a tournament...”
Kendis and Tony spent the rest of the night and the early morning exchanging hilarious stories of their past exploits. And even though Kendis stayed away from anything to do with the war with Voldemort, it turned out that she had a few funny stories.
It was hard to look back at her time at Hogwarts without focusing completely on the pain and death. But there had been good days, and it lightened something inside of her to be able to focus on something happy while she waited for any news on Alke.
“Let me get this straight,” Tony said. “Your school had a tournament that students had died in the past and your headmaster still thought it was a good idea.”
“In hindsight, Albus Dumbledore had no business as headmaster.”
“And I thought my high school experience was hellish when I was a ten-year-old freshman.” Tony snorted.
With a rueful shake of her head, she went on to tell him about her and Parvati’s awkward first dance together and how nervous they were about making a fool of themselves in front of everyone. She continued by explaining to Tony that she and Ron had ditched their dates, leaving Ron to spend the night brooding over Hermione and Victor Krum.
“In hindsight, that night was so wild,” Kendis said, sardonically. “I think the only fun I had was when the Weird Sisters came out to play.” Then Kendis had to explain quickly that despite the name, the Weird Sisters were a pretty good all-male rock band.
In exchange, Tony told her about replacing the blackboards with electric ones that would play the Weird Science by Oingo Boingo every time the Professor in his Fundamentals of Programming class attempted to write on it.
Kendis was surprised to find herself laughing.
It was so ridiculous that she could picture a younger and more reckless Tony pulling plenty of shenanigans at university.
Tony told her about Rhodey and how much shit they got in.
“Rhodey likes to pretend he was always a boring, responsible adult.” Tony shook his head. “But he has a mean streak a mile wide and can be petty as fuck under the right conditions.”
“My best friend Hermione is like that,” Kendis replied with a soft smile as she thought about her best mates back home. “She could always recite the rules verbatim, but when shit hit the fan, she was always right beside me and Ron.”
While they talked in the waiting room, the hours slowly passed. They swapped tales of their lives, discussing books and films they’d seen. Tony nearly had a fit when she told him she never watched Star Wars.
And then the subject switched to cars and, to her surprise, Tony wasn’t just some rich white boy with a penchant for street racing. He actually knew his way around cars and they had a heated debate over which was the best vintage car (Tony swore it was the 1967 Shelby Cobra while Kendis argued that it was the 1961 Jaguar E-Type).
Kendis knew that Tony had spent time street racing, but she was delighted to find out that Tony actually knew his shit about cars.
Peering through the glass windows, Kendis noticed the sunrise. She kept thinking about how long Alke’s surgery would last. Kendis wished it wouldn’t last much longer. She looked at Tony, who was busy typing a message on his phone.
“Tony?”
“Yeah,” He answered as he looked up to meet her gaze.
“Thanks,” Kendis said. “For being here and taking my mind off things.”
“No problem.” Tony looked away, shrugging. Kendis saw how red Tony’s neck was and shook her head. Who would have thought that even Tony Stark, despite his bravado, would shy away from a compliment?
The back door suddenly opened, and Dr. Lan walked out. Despite being in surgery for at least five hours, his scrubs and hair were pristine as always.
“The surgery was a success,” Dr. Lan said, in his usual curtness. “However, we need to keep her here for observation for at least three days.”
“So long?” Kendis said.
Dr. Lan’s mouth was pressed into a firm line. “It was close.”
Kendis closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Tony took her hand and squeezed it, and Kendis didn’t know what she would’ve done without him here. She logically knew that she could have called Ian and Jason, or hell, even Hermione or Ron. However, her friends would have hoovered and only made her slide even more quickly into the shutdown she had been dodging all night.
The bad thing about being autistic was that people often treated her like she was either some alien or like she was a fragile thing. Yet, she had led an entire war against the most powerful dark lord in over a century.
Kendis knew that they didn’t mean any harm about it, and most of the time it didn’t bother her enough to tell them to knock it off.
Tony, however, had simply given her what she wanted without any protest.
Kendis pointedly ignored the sudden warm feeling in her chest at the thought and focused her attention back on Dr. Lan, who stood silently in front of her.
“Can I see her?”
“Of course.” Dr. Lan nodded before turning and walking away. Kendis started to walk, but then looked back to find Tony standing there with his hands shoved awkwardly in his jeans.
“Aren’t you coming?”
Tony spluttered, an obvious protest on his lips, but Kendis turned and hurried to catch up with Dr. Lan. She heard Tony’s heavy footsteps behind her as he followed her, and she was glad. They walked down the short hall to a pair of double doors, and lying comfortably in a crate was Alke’s prone form.
“I just put her in the crate,” Lan Jingyi said as he nodded to the crate. “She was a good girl. Didn’t give us any trouble when we put her under.”
“Thanks, Jingyi,” Kendis said with a watery smile. Jingyi nodded, and Kendis hurried over to Alke’s crate. She crouched down and reached out to rub her big head. Her fingers went over to her heart, and Kendis bit back a sob as she felt the familiar thump-thump of her dog’s heartbeat.
Kendis sniffled and tried not to cry. She hated crying in public, but after hours of shoving her feelings down, the tears finally fell. Her body shuttered as a sob escaped her mouth, and she slapped a hand on her mouth.
Suddenly, Tony was there, pulling her up to her feet. Kendis turned and fell into his arms, and he simply held her as she cried. He hadn’t run at the first sight of emotions, nor did he get mad at her for probably ruining his t-shirt. Yet, Tony Stark was a man who gave Kendis the impression that he didn’t do well with emotions.
But this was the second time that Tony had comforted her. His big, warm, calloused hands rubbed up and down her back as she sobbed. “Alke will be up and walking around before you know it.”
Kendis just cried all of her pain out and all of her worries. At that moment, she didn’t give one shit that they were standing in front of Dr. Lan and Lan Jingyi. She just fell apart in the safety of Tony’s arms.
Notes:
Another chapter bites the dust! I know people are going to give me shit about Kendis crying so much but I firmly believe that everyone has the right to cry when they need to. I don't believe in that strong Black woman bullshit. Sometimes, Black women need to be vulnerable and good on Tony for allowing her the space for that.
Now, as a reminder for the next 10 chapters or so the Chester Coil plot is going on the back burner but his trifling ass will be back with more ways to traumatize Kendis!
The next chapter will drop April 24th I'll see you then!
Chapter 20: The Long Road Home
Summary:
During the long drive from Glendale to Malibu, Tony contemplates the night's revelations.
Notes:
Welcome back folks! This chapter is the first of many introspective, character study like chapters. It delves deep into Tony's feelings about Kendis and her revelation about magic and her stalker. Chester Coil will be taking a back seat for the next 5 chapters but his trifling ass will be back soon!
📌Reminder: You can get early access to the next chapter and fun free merch on my website. Make sure to check it out!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Tony was used to existing on little sleep but the events of last night weighed heavily on him. He could only give a sigh of relief as he drove up the winding hill that led to his mansion. After Kendis had a breakdown at the clinic, he gently escorted her to the car, but her quietness during the drive made him uneasy.
Her whole body was limp and practically unresponsive, and Tony wondered if he should have put his foot down on her going to the hospital. Kendis was autistic, and he had been scared that the overstimulation from being poked and prodded by strangers would push her over the edge.
When Tony first suspected he had ADHD, he did a lot of research into ADHD, and since Autism and ADHD had a lot of overlapping symptoms, he had gone down a long rabbit hole about being neurodivergent. And from that research, he knew Kendis was probably in the grip of a shutdown.
Tony wasn’t used to feeling so helpless. He didn’t know how to help her, so in the end he just left her alone and kept an eye out for her as he drove home.
During the long drive, he reflected on the evening’s revelations. Between one blink and another, he had slipped into another world where magic and fairytale creatures existed.
The scientist in him wanted to scoff at it all but with the evidence of Kendis’s magic back at her house, it was undeniable. He wanted to explore it all, test it, and quantify it, however, he was self-aware enough to admit (if only to himself) that the existence of magic terrified him.
Tony knew how to fix a circuit board, how to charm the pants off board members and military brass, and how to navigate the traitorous waters of high society. But magic? Magic was an unknown element, a wild card, and he didn’t deal well with things he didn’t understand.
And Tony could have left it, could have firmly shoved the existence of magic in the same mental box he had shoved the memories of his parents, Tiberius Stone, and everything that inconvenienced him.
However, there was something about Kendis that pulled him to her like a magnet, and the more he got to know her, the stronger the pull became. Tony had a feeling that Kendis was a kindred spirit. Kendis and him were orphans who carried the heavy weight of their parents’ legacy on their shoulders.
She hadn’t said it outright but Tony could read between the lines from the way she had talked about her past. Especially when they had brought up the reporter who had stalked her as a beetle; clearly desperate for information about Kendis and their group of friends.
Tony really had to control his rage over how Kendis was left to fend for herself as a kid. It made him want to go back in time and curse out every adult that had failed her.
Tony was surprised by his own feelings. If anyone had asked Tony two weeks ago if he had any protective instincts, he would have vehemently denied it. But the moment Tony had seen that black envelope on Kendis’s desk, and seen the terror in her eyes, he had immediately wanted to find the asshole who had hurt Kendis and introduce them to his fists.
And now that he knew the name of Kendis’s stalker, Tony wouldn’t stop until he found the son of bitch—magic be damned.
Once Kendis was asleep, Tony had Jarvis check the city's cameras—a slim chance, since magic messes with tech so much.
Tony’s fists clenched around the steering wheel. He hated being helpless, especially when someone he cared about was in danger.
And no matter how hard he tried to deny it because he resented that Kendis had him so out of character, he cared about her.
Thankfully, parking in his large circular driveway saved him from thinking much deeper about his feelings.
“Kendis,” Tony called out, his hand hovering over her shoulder as he thought better about touching her, especially after what had happened last night.
Kendis groaned, and Tony called her again, louder this time round. And Kendis jerked awake, shooting straight up in her seat. Her wand was in her hand.
Tony put his hands up. “It’s just me,” he said softly. “Tony remember?”
Kendis blinked and groaned before dropping her wand. Then she opened her mouth and closed it.
“S-sorry,” Kendis got out while shaking her head. Tony knew that when she was in a shutdown, it was probably hard for her to talk, so he shrugged off the apology and got out of the car.
Hurrying around to the other side, he opened the door for her and offered his hand. “Welcome to Stark Manor.”
Kendis simply nodded and took his hand as he helped her out of the car. Her wide, curious green eyes traveled across the mansion. She had missed her chance to take in the mansion in its full splendor because she had been sleeping but with the morning sunlight hitting the waves of the ocean just right, the mansion was still majestic.
However, she didn’t react, at all, as they moved towards the door. Tony put his finger on the fingerprint scanner next to the door, and it pinged.
“Welcome home, sir,” Jarvis said, and Kendis jumped.
“It’s okay,” Tony said, “That’s just Jarvis.”
Kendis frowned at him in confusion.
“I am Jarvis or Just a Rather Very Intelligent System, an artificial intelligence machine created by Mr. Stark. I take care of the house and anything that Sir requires from me,” Jarvis answered. “It’s my pleasure to meet you, Mx. Black. Don’t hesitate to ask if you need anything.”
“He’s my robot butler,” Tony said proudly. His bots were practically his children and to be honest, the closest he would ever get to having kids of his own. He loved all four of his creations, but he was most proud of Jarvis. “There is nothing on earth like him.”
Kendis’s eyes widened, and then she stared at him, for a moment. Her eyes seemed to pierce through his soul, and the corners of her lips curled into the barest hint of a smile.
“What?”
Kendis shook her head. “Sleep.”
Tony rubbed the back of his head and felt his cheeks flush. “Yeah, let me show you to the guestroom.”
They walked through a pair of glass doors into the foyer. He showed her the modern-style living room before leading her to two sets of stairs. The one on the right was a long staircase leading to his lab, but he hurried past it, and they climbed three short steps to a bigger area.
To the right, there was his small galley kitchen, which stuck out in his mansion. Tony could’ve had a massive industrial kitchen, but he knew he wouldn't use it and instead be forced to hire a private chef.
Past the kitchen, glass doors opened onto a balcony. The dining area was located on an open-air landing with a view overlooking the kitchen. On either side were separate staircases.
Kendis’s eyes traveled to each set of stairs and then, frowned at him.
“Yeah, I have no idea why I thought having so many stairs was a good thing,” Tony shrugged. “And I was the one to design the place.”
From the kitchen, Tony climbed the stairs to the second floor, walking past the modern dining room and down a long hallway. This route took him past the waterfall and his bedroom's double doors, then down the hall to the guestroom.
Tony opened it. “Rhodey usually sleeps here when he comes to visit. I gave him an entire wing but he refused to sleep there.” Tony shrugged. “He says it’s too far from the kitchen.”
In the guest room, there was a large Japanese-style oak bed with white linens on a taupe rug over hardwood floors. Two small matching oak tables with lamps hanging above them were positioned on each side of it. In the far corner of the room, there were two doors with one opening to the bathroom and the other to a walk-in closet.
Tony turned to look out through the ceiling-to-floor windows that framed a breathtaking view of the ocean.
Kendis patted him on the shoulder as she walked past him into the bedroom.
“So um.” Tony shrugged awkwardly. “I’ll leave you to it then.”
Kendis turned to him. “Thank you.”
“No problem,” Tony said as he pointed to the door. “I’m just going… Right. Um, see you later.”
Tony closed the door and made a beeline for his lab. He’d had enough emotions for the day and needed the comforting logic of some code.
Notes:
Tony has a lot of feelings and poor Kendis is suffering from a shutdown. As an autistic person myself, I know how bad they can get. Now in the next chapter, we will get to see how Kendis deals with the shutdown and other things I can't tell you yet!
Thanks so much for reading! I appreciate all the kudos, likes, and bookmarks. Getting those notifications always makes me smile. The next chapter will drop on May 8th Cya then!
Chapter 21: An All Too Familiar Fear
Summary:
Kendis does her best to settle into Tony’s guest room, but a restful night remains out of reach as nightmares relentlessly disturb her sleep.
Notes:
Welcome back! This chapter is yet another character study type of chapter, but this time from Kendis's POV. I really wanted to explore Kendis's autism here and her growing feelings for Tony. As I have warned before the next 10 chapters (yes, I had to extend the chapter account again) are really delving deep into not the relationship between Tony and Kendis but their own feelings about what's going on.
As much as I love writing the plot, at the end of the day, my character-focused and internal plots are my bread and butter. Let me circle back to focusing on autism. If you are autistic you may not experience a shutdown like this. Autistic symptoms are varied and different for every autistic person because AUTISM IS A SPECTRUM. I should know because I am autistic and what I am writing about is how I personally experience my shutdowns.
So please do not get upset if you experience shutdowns or meltdowns differently.
🚨Content Warning: autistic shutdowns, deadnaming, explicit violence, murder, and buckets of angst and trauma.
📌Reminder: You can get early access to the next chapter and fun merch on my website. Make sure to check it out!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Kendis didn't really give a shit about the decor of the bedroom. It was nice, but all she wanted to do was to lie down in a dark room for a few hours. She wanted to shut out the world and pretend that her life wasn't a complete and utter mess.
She squinted against the sunlight that spilled through the windows as she quickly crossed the distance to stare at the sky. Fluffy white clouds moved against a bright blue azure sky, while the ocean water stretched endlessly across the horizon.
Kendis looked for curtains or some blinds, but couldn't find any. They opened their mouth to ask but they couldn't get the words passed their lips.
"Are you in need of assistance?" Jarvis' disembodied voice made her jump, and it took everything in her not to summon her wand to her fingertips. Because Tony had already been generous enough to let her stay there, and it wouldn't be nice for her to destroy any electronics in the vicinity.
Kendis rubbed her aching forehead. She could use one of Madam Pomfrey's headache potion right about now. Tony said to ask Jarvis for anything, but she couldn't be bothered; muggle stuff didn't help much, anyway.
Kendis was ready to strip down and slide into those inviting sheets. She could barely stand the feel of her cotton t-shirt and her denim jeans. This was typical for her for a shutdown.
Kendis sighed and pinched her nose. 'I reckon I am going to have to ride this shut down the old-fashioned way.' Kendis closed her eyes and managed to push the words from her lips, "Jarvis…Light."
Suddenly, the curtains slid out from the wall to cover the windows. She sighed in relief as the room was only lit by the dim light of the lamps. Then she walked over to the bed and brushed her fingers against the white duvet.
It was just as soft as she thought it would be. 'This will do just fine,' Kendis thought to herself and then she stripped off her t-shirt, jeans, bra, and knickers.
Kendis grabbed her bonnet out of her duffle bag and slid it on her head before pulling out her mobile and checking for any messages from Dr. Lan's office. There was nothing and with a sigh, Kendis put her phone on the end table.
"There is a charger in the drawer that will fit," Jarvis said.
Kendis nodded in thanks and took out the charger and hooked up her phone. She wanted to make sure she didn't miss any messages or calls from Dr. Lan. He had said Alke was going to be okay, and he wasn't the type of person to sugar-coat a situation. But Kendis couldn't help but still worry about her baby.
Kendis shook her head and slipped inside the duvet. She relished the feeling of something soft against her skin. And lucky for Kendis, Tony was posh enough not to skimp on quality even when it came to duvets. Kendis slipped down the sheets and afterward leaned forward to turn off the lamp.
However, the lights were turned off before she touched the lamp, and Kendis hummed in thanks. The soft feeling of the Egyptian cotton against her body was soothing as she lay in the dark, but her mind couldn't quite shut off.
She wished she could hook her phone to a speaker, as she had a playlist on Spotify that she played when she was overstimulated. But since that wasn't possible, she had to make do with the silence.
Kendis couldn't help but second guess all of her decisions. Tony had insisted that she stay with him, but had that been a smart move? Should she have just gotten a hotel room? This wasn't Tony's problem, and if he had a lick of common sense, he should have run the moment she had lost it on her front porch.
Thank Merlin, Kendis had protections in place, which had shielded her magic from any muggle who might've been walking by the fence. But those protections hadn't saved her from the humiliation of having a magical meltdown in front of Tony.
Kendis felt her cheeks flush at the thought, and she turned in the sheets as she recalled how Tony comforted her when she gave into her tumultuous feelings and cried on his shoulder.
Kendis hadn't thought a man like him would be capable of caring for anyone other than himself. Because Tony was a spoiled, rich fuckboi whom she'd planned to just hit it with and quit before she went back to her normal, predictable life. But surprisingly, though he was spoiled, he cared.
Even when Kendis was at her weakest and most emotional, Tony had remained unfazed by her power. He had let Kendis lean on him without coddling her. Only Ron and Hermione ever saw Kendis' vulnerable side. Although Kendis had loved Josefa deeply, she had been too scared to let Josefa see that side of her.
The unpredictability of others made dating as an autistic person feel like walking through a minefield.
Yet, to her surprise, Tony Stark was not what she had expected at all. He wasn't the 2D caricature she'd assumed he was. Kendis felt a pang of guilt. As someone who has been part of the public eye, off and on since she was a baby, she knew all too well how the press could twist and construe something until it barely resembled the truth.
With Chester after her, it was probably safer for Tony to cut ties, but he'd stubbornly stayed by her side. And the Gryffindor inside her couldn't help but respect that courage.
Kendis pulled a pillow over her head and screamed.
'Why is everything so bloody complicated!' Kendis thought to herself.
"Mx. Black, are you alright?" Jarvis asked, startling her.
Kendis simply waved him off and wondered if Jarvis could even see her in the dark. But Jarvis kept quiet, and Kendis did her best to push her uncomfortable emotions aside. And in the silent darkness, it took forever for sleep to finally wash over her.
Kendis hurried up the stairs to the flat with a smile stretched on her lips. They had gotten off work early, and she knew exactly how they were going to spend her free time.
Kendis stopped in front of the flat door, and her smile faded away, only to be replaced with a concerned frown. The door was open and barely hanging from the frame. She walked into the living room and spotted the prone form lying on the ground in the pool of their own blood.
Crouched above the body was Chester Coil with his wand pressed against the deep slice across Josefa's mahogany brown skin while blood spilled down her front to join the pool of life essence around her.
"You never learn, do you?" Chester said with a tisk.
And then suddenly the body morphed and instead of Josefa, it was Tony laying there. His face was pale and empty of his usual cheeky expression; his dark brown eyes staring lifelessly back at Kendis.
Kendis felt her knees buckle underneath her. "No…Tony."
"It's your fault," Chester said as he stood up, shaking his head. "They both would still be alive if it wasn't for you. If you were only obedient, they would still be alive."
Kendis tried to get up, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't move. Chester walked over to her and jerked her chin up to meet his blue eyes, that were wild with madness. "Harry, when are you going to accept that you are mine?"
Kendis woke to the sound of glass breaking and screams coming from her lips while she held the wand in her hand. The lights were flickering in her room, and it took her a moment for the walls of Josefa's flat to fade away into Tony's guestroom.
Kendis closed her eyes as she tried to get her panic under control. 'Breathe, just Breathe', Kendis thought to herself as she took a deep breath and then let it out.
"Jarvis?" Kendis called out.
"Mx. Bl-" Jarvi's voice faded out. Kendis looked at the mess around her and rubbed her forehead. "Bollocks!"
This is exactly why she had been hesitant to stay here. Kendis' legs wobbled as she got out of bed, then jumped when Tony suddenly appeared in the doorway. His eyes went wide as he saw her standing there naked.
His eyes swept across her naked body, following the trail of the colorful ink of her tattoos that marked her body. Kendis shivered under his blatant appreciation of her body. Then she shook her head at her sudden switch of emotions, but arousal was better than pure panic.
"You alright?" Tony asked as he finally pried his eyes away from her.
"Uh—" Kendis said, her voice hoarse. "Nightmare. Sorry?"
Tony nodded. "Okay, I'll…Um…" he stuttered and then stopped. "I'll wait outside."
Kendis rubbed her forehead and wondered for the thousandth time if she had made the right decision coming here.
Notes:
Well, Tony and Kendis certainly got a surprise! 😆 It's a bit of a humorous ending to an otherwise heavy chapter. Now, the next chapter will get a bit of a let up on the angst. Now I can't tell you how because that would spoil the fun but I can promise you a lighter chapter! But if you want to know how Kendis and Tony handle this situation? Well, you are going to have to wait until the next chapter.
The next chapter will drop May 22nd! But again, if you can't wait until next time make sure you head over to my website. The next chapter should be already up. Until next time, folks!
Chapter 22: A Port In The Storm
Summary:
Tony attempts to bury his tumultuous emotions in work but is interrupted by Jarvis when Kendis has a horrible nightmare.
Notes:
Welcome back! I hope that life has been treating you well. This chapter we are going to take a little break from the angst. I love writing angst as much as the next non-binary person but I just needed something a little less bleak.
📌Reminder: You can get early access to the next chapter and fun free merch on my website. Make sure to check it out!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Tony knew he should try to sleep. He had been up all night with Kendis and before that; he had worked three days straight with only a few quick cat naps to hold him over, but Tony knew he couldn’t shut down his brain long enough to catch some sleep.
He could practically feel Jarvis’s disapproval, but thankfully, his A.I. said nothing. Heading back downstairs to his lab and straight over to his expresso machine, he saw a ping on his phone and picked it up.
His screen was full of notifications, text messages, and missed calls from Pepper, Rhodey, and Obie. It seemed that these days, he spent most of his time dodging the concerned messages of his friends and family.
And the source of all of his turmoil was asleep upstairs. ‘What the hell am I thinking?’ Tony shook his head as the expresso machine finished making his coffee, and he made a cup for himself.
Thankfully, his taste buds were immune to the steaming hot coffee. It came with inhaling the stuff since he was thirteen. Back then, drinking it had been the only thing that would calm him down, and his old butler Edwin Jarvis had allowed him to drink it.
Tony sighed and rubbed his tired eyes. It was around 5 am, and he might as well get some work done if he couldn’t sleep. The one good thing about being CEO of one of the largest weapon manufacturers on earth was that his inbox was full, all the time.
He wouldn’t be surprised if Pepper soon made an appearance to chew him out for not replying to them. Tony felt a pang of guilt, as he knew she was probably dealing with the brunt of Obadiah’s displeasure.
And when she came to finally give him a piece of her mind, Tony would apologize by buying her all of the designer shoes. But that was a problem for later, as Tony had better things to do than to worry.
Tony clapped his hands, and the bots rolled out of the station. “Time to get to work.”
For the rest of the day, Tony worked on some new ideas. Kendis’s situation brought his mind back to all the old ideas he had put away for disability aids. A few years back, he’d considered opening a branch of Stark Industries that would cater to neurodivergent people since he had ADHD, and knew how difficult it was to find proper help, as he’d had to find his own coping mechanisms. The oversized sunglasses he wore everywhere weren’t just a fashion statement, as his light sensitivity was a bitch to deal with, even on a good day.
“Jarvis, pull up the old schematics for the light glasses.”
Hovering above the holo table was a holographic schematic for the old glasses. He took another sip of his coffee as he studied his notes. ‘I can do better than this,’ Tony thought to himself. And he picked up a computer pen and started to scribble ideas on his holographic whiteboard.
As it often did when he was wrapped up in a problem, time seemed to lose all meaning. Before he knew it, the morning had passed and lunch-time was only acknowledged with a meal bar, and by the time he finally pulled himself from his work, it was well into the evening.
With a tired yawn, Tony put down his soldering iron and checked the time on his phone. He winced when he noticed his notifications had tripled.
“Sir,” Jarvis said, “Mx. Black is in distress.”
“What?” Tony jerked to his feet. “Give me a feed from her room.”
“I can’t, sir,” Jarvis said. “All of my cameras and sensors are malfunctioning.”
Tony ran his hand through his hair. “Shit, she warned me that could be a problem.” He remembered how her magic had fried his phone and the cameras he had planted at the bike shop.
Shaking his head, he hurried to the elevator. The ride up to the top of the floor seemed to take forever and when he arrived, he ran down the hall to the guestroom and threw the door open. Then he froze in the doorway as he stared at Kendis standing nude in the wrecked bedroom.
He dragged his eyes away from her to take it in. All the windows were bulletproof windows, so they hadn’t been destroyed but the end table was turned over, the lamps were broken, and the contents of the tables were strewn over the floor.
But as he took in the wreckage, he was unable to ignore the draw of all that fawn skin color on display. Back in her office in Vegas, he had barely gotten to look at the large phoenix tattoo on Kendis’s back because he had been too distracted to take time to appreciate her tattoos.
Yet, now Tony couldn’t help but take a moment to appreciate Kendis in all her glory. Her small breasts and her stiff brown nipples, the stark black intricate lines of a dragon wrapped around her lean muscular arms that went well past her elbows. On her other arm was a tattoo of a lion with a snake in its mouth and surrounding it were white oleander flowers.
He could see some more flower tattoos on her right thigh, but it was too far away to see what type. Then Kendis turned, and he saw a vine of lilies going down her leg. As he was still checking it out, she turned once again, and he saw a tattoo of a stag, a big black dog, and a monstrous-looking wolf.
“Just so you get the full effect,” Kendis said snarkily.
Tony’s gaze went down to the soft cock that was nestled in between her legs, and he licked his lips. He glanced away and called himself a fool ten times over. It was clear she was still upset yet. Here he was ogling her.
“Sorry,” Tony said with a cough. “You okay?”
“Yeah,” Kendis said sheepishly. “I had…a nightmare.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Tony said, still not meeting her eyes. “I-I’ll let you get dressed.” And then he hurried out of the room, his cheeks hot from embarrassment. Leave it to Kendis to make him feel like some horny teenage boy.
Tony leaned against the wall and took a deep breath while pressing his hand against his burgeoning erection. It took a moment to get himself under control before he opened his eyes and said, “Jarvis, get the repair bots in there, and fix the sensors and the cameras.” Then Tony walked down the hall to the dining room and made his way downstairs to the kitchen. He needed to eat something other than a dry cereal bar and some coffee.
Tony was happy to see that Jarvis was way ahead of him and had already turned on the coffeemaker. So he walked to the refrigerator and frowned when he opened it. There was just a six-pack of beer, some bell peppers, and a single white onion.
“Why in the hell do I have bell peppers and onions?” Tony wondered before remembering that Pepper and Happy sometimes used his kitchen to cook themselves some meals. And as long as they didn’t mess with his coffee, he was cool with it.
There was a cough and Tony jumped, turning around to see Kendis standing there. Tony hated to admit to himself that he was disappointed she was now dressed in a black Fall Out Boy t-shirt, a pair of ripped skinny jeans, and black combat boots.
“Are you afraid of color?” Tony blurted out.
“What?” Kendis asked with a frown. And goddamnit, even the way she wrinkled her nose was adorable!
“I noticed that you only wear the color black,” Tony said.
“Because black is my favorite color.” Kendis shrugged.
“And your last name is black?” Tony snorted, and Kendis rolled her eyes.
“It was my godfather’s last name, and I thought it would be a good way to honor his memory. Besides, the Black family was a bunch of pureblood bigots, and I know they are rolling in their graves at the fact that a Black, trans-autistic half blood is not only their heir but also took on their name.”
“Half blood? Pureblood?” Tony asked, and Kendis winced. “The long and short of it is that Pureblood refers to not having any muggles in your family. My mother was born from a non-magical family and my father was a pureblood.” Kendis gestured to herself. “So I’m a halfblood.”
“Yikes and let me guess.” Tony shook his head. “Purebloods hate anyone who is not pureblood.”
“Yep,” Kendis said as she walked into the kitchen.
“Wow, that is petty.” Tony nodded in admiration. “I approve of you sticking it to the bigots.”
“Anyway, Jarvis?” Kendis said as she gazed around the room.
“Yes, Mx. Black?”
“I”m sorry,” Kendis said with a sigh. “I am sorry that I hurt you.”
Tony threw Kendis an incredulous look, and even Jarvis was silent for a moment. To his knowledge, this was the first time anyone had apologized to Jarvis. Hell, Tony was Jarvis’ creator, and he had never apologized to him. And goddamnit, Kendis had Tony feeling guilty at the way he treated Jarvis.
“There is no need to apologize, Mx. Black,” Jarvis said, “And I’m not hurt. My central servers are not located within the mansion.”
“Kendis, you couldn’t help it—” Tony started to said but she put her hand up, and he stopped.
“Just because Jarvis is not human,” Kendis replied with a stubborn tilt to her head. “Doesn’t mean he doesn’t deserve an apology.”
“Mx. Black—”
Kendis shook her head. “Just accept the apology, Jarvis.”
“Apology accepted, Mx. Black.”
“Now, Tony…” Kendis clapped her hands. “Can I borrow your phone?”
Tony blinked and then he remembered that her magic had probably destroyed her phone. He slipped his phone out of his pocket and handed it to her.
“Thank god, I memorized Dr. Lan’s number,” Kendis murmured.
Tony poured himself a cup of coffee and watched as she called the Vet. It seemed every time he thought he’d gotten a handle on Kendis; she surprised him with something new. He pushed the thought away and got back to reviewing the specs for the light glasses. There was still some tweaking he had to do with the computer chip, but it was diffidently something he could eventually convince the board to invest in.
Tony nearly jumped out of his skin when Kendis tapped him on the shoulder, and he almost spilled his coffee.
“Sorry,” Kendis said as she handed him his phone.
Tony waved off her apology and then asked, “How is Alke?”
“The same. Dr. Lan said she is still resting.” With a sigh, she gazed at the ceiling. “Jarvis?”
“Yes, Mx. Black?”
“Do you have any ground beef?”
“In the freezer, Mx. Black.”
“Call me Kendis.” Kendis wrinkled her nose. “You calling me Mx. Black makes me feel old.”
“In the freezer, Kendis.”
Tony glared up at the camera again as Kendis smiled. “Why are you calling her Kendis yet? You refuse to call me Tony?”
Jarvis pointedly ignored him, and Tony threw up his hands, causing Kendis to giggle. She turned back to the refrigerator, pulled out a package of ground beef and put it on the counter. Tony watched as she washed the bell pepper and the onion before a small bot whirled out of the wall with a cutting board.
Kendis patted it on the head and goddamn it, the thing gave a whimpering noise of delight before it spun on its wheels and went back through the hole in the wall.
“You don’t have to cook, Kendis,” Tony said. “This is why we have takeaway.”
“I’m not cooking,” Kendis said, pulling a large knife from the butcher block and sliding the peppers, onions, and cutting board across to him. She then gave him the knife. We’re cooking.
“You really don’t want me cooking.” Tony took a step back. “I have burned water before.”
“Wonder-boy, if you can use a welding torch,” Kendis said, “Then you can cut up some veggies.”
Tony sighed and thought about arguing some more, but was man enough to relent because it was clear she enjoyed cooking and besides, it had been a while since he’d had a home-cooked meal.
“Jarvis, can you play some music?” Kendis swiftly changed the subject.
“Affirmative,” Jarvis confirmed.
“Put on Fall Out Boy’s Folie à Deux album.”
Tony turned and gav.e her an incredulous look. “Nope, you are not going to subject me to Fall Out Boy.”
“Fall Out Boy is brilliant.” Kendis snorted. “And just because you listen to old people’s music—” The opening bars of the song played over the speakers.
You could’ve knocked me out with a (feather)
I know you’ve heard this all before but we’re just hell’s (neighbors)
Ohhh…
Why, why, why won’t the world revolve around me?
Tony glared at the camera. “Traitor!”
Kendis threw her head back and guffawed, and he felt his chest clench with warmth. Tony couldn’t help but feel a little proud that he had made her laugh. He wanted to keep her always smiling and laughing, even at his own expense.
Notes:
I will refuse to apologize about the Fall Out Boy references. I absolutely agree that Tony is wrong about his opinions about the band and he is just an old fuddy duddy! I love both old classic rock too but Fall Out Boy has nothing but bops.
Anyway, Tony is falling hard and fast and he is only kidding himself! 😅 I also loved writing the domestic scenes. Kendis and Tony are so darn cute together. Now you are probably wondering what is going to happen next and unfortunately for you are going to have to wait until the next chapter!
The next chapter drops on June 12th! I'll see you then!
Chapter 23: Interlude: Twisted and Tied
Summary:
Unbeknownst to Kendis, Chester has decided to finally leave England in order to hunt her down in Los Angeles.
Notes:
Now, I told you in the last chapter that we were going to have to pause all the lovey domestic stuff to check in our favorite transphobic asshole (other than JKR but I digress) Chester Coil. This interlude takes place a few chapters before The Deepest Cut.
One last thing before I go through the usual spiel with you. There has been some updates about the Harry Potter tv show and then now with Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy from the movies) joining the cast of Cursed Child. It also been revealed by J.K. Rowling that the funds she is making from the Harry Potter fandom is going directly to funding a fund that is advocating for the further stripping away of trans people's rights.
With that said, I want to encourage everyone not to continue to boycott everything that gives JKR money including not buying of her books new, streaming the movies and the tv show, not going to the stage show, and going to the theme park. And instead consider supporting trans charities, mutual aids, and reading trans books.
🚨Content Warning: I am going to warn you right off the bat that this update will deadnaming, misgendering, stalking, thoughts about murder, and implied rape. If any of this will trigger, I urge you for to skip this interlude and wait until the next update!
📌Reminder: You can get early access to the next chapter and fun merch on my website. Make sure to check it out!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Chester hated America from the moment he set foot on it. It was tacky and loud, and he much preferred the calm English countryside or even the London flat he had been stuck in.
London had centuries' worth of history and culture, and, in his opinion, America had an inferiority complex and they were trying to make up for its brief existence by being as loud as possible.
A sneer touched Chester's lips as he glimpsed the towering Empire State Building; then, his portkey whisked him away.
His first impression of Los Angeles was the wall of humidity he hit the moment he stepped out of the portkey office. The heat hit him like a sucker punch to the face.
With some directions from an attendant from the portkey office and the liberal use of the point me spell, Chester found himself to El Caldero, Los Angeles's wizarding district. He would never understand why the portkey office wasn't in the district.
Upon reaching 'The Valley', Chester stood at the entrance of El Caldero. He pursed his lips as he studied the dilapidated building. Once pristine white, the walls were now a depressing gray, marred by graffiti and grime.
By the entrance, there were large, unkempt green bushes. Reaching the glass double doors, he noticed the faded lettering: Berdón Shopping Mall. With skepticism, Chester regarded the windows and doors. Because the windows and glass doors were very dark, it was impossible to see inside the building. He let out a sigh before tapping the doors with his wand.
The doors disappeared, and suddenly Chester was looking at a busy shopping center. Entering El Caldero, Chester was struck by its modern, clean interior as the doors once again appeared behind him.
The inside was composed of white curved glass walls. He looked up and, despite the outside appearance, they seemed to be an endless number of floors.
People came and went down the moving stairs, some dressed in the Wizarding robes but others in more modern and muggle attire.
Chester shook his head and walked across the cavernous lobby. He could hear the faint sound of soft instrumental music over the loud rush of people. The crowd pushed and shoved Chester at least twice before he reached the reception desk in front of the water fountain.
A short woman with dark copper skin and a neat short black bob was too busy reading her tawdry romance book to notice him. On the cover, a bare chest barbarian was kissing a woman in a torn dress. Chester barely resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose.
Chester coughed, but got no response. Then he coughed again, and the woman frowned and looked up. "Yes?" The woman asked, curtly. "Can I help you?"
Chester gritted his teeth. Diffindo was on the tip of his tongue, but he didn't need the attention that would give him. He didn't want to ruin the surprise for Harry.
"I need the directions to the nearest wizarding hotel."
With a tisk of her tongue, the woman pulled out a brochure and shoved it at him before she pointedly went back to her book. 'Deep breaths,' Chester thought to himself as he snatched the brochure and marched to one of the benches near a group of potted plants.
Checking the brochure, Chester learned of a hotel on the 22nd floor; after a few wrong turns, he arrived at Hotel Hex. By the time he received his room key, he was completely exhausted.
Chester wanted to go to Harry immediately, but he knew he had to rest. It would be so easy to slip up and make a mistake if he was tired.
And at night, when he slept, he dreamed about Harry. The feel of his smooth, light brown skin, his bright smile, his infamous lightning bolt scar, and the way those round glasses framed those spectacular green eyes.
Chester always woke up hard and aching for him. He vowed that one day soon, his dreams would become reality.
However, staying in bed all day would change nothing. He showered, dressed, and quickly apparated to Enchanted Engines. Chester rolled his eyes at the silly name.
With a flick of his wand, he cast the disillusionment charm and waited and watched it.
Even from a distance, Chester could feel the strength of the wards. Disabling it would take some time, but it was certainly doable. He heard a low barking, and he saw a huge black dog run to the fence. The dog paced back and forth and sniffed the air.
The unintelligent beast shouldn't be able to detect his presence from that distance. As it was neither a crup nor a known magical breed of dog, it shouldn't have magical abilities. But the beast still growled in his direction, baring its sharp teeth.
Chester grimaced. It would take some doing to get past the dog, but he wouldn't let something as ridiculous as a dog impede his plans.
But then Chester finally got a glimpse of Harry.
Covered in oil stains, Harry wore dirty coveralls, his messy hair pulled back in a short ponytail. Standing still, he gazed out at the street.
Harry ignored the dog that excitedly ran up to him, tail wagging, jumping up and down for attention.
'Can you sense me, my darling?' Chester thought as he stood straighter. Chester held his breath as those eyes unknowingly swept past him. Thankfully, the disillusionment spell held fast, and he remained undetectable. Chester's relief was short-lived as he confronted the full reality of Harry's fall from grace.
The most powerful wizard in the world, living as a Muggle woman. Chester couldn't imagine what type of mental illness he was suffering to make him live his life this way.
It hurt Chester to see Harry debase himself in this way.
Chester's finger itched to put his thoughts on paper. It was time to write another letter.
Notes:
Now that we've got that out of the way. We are going back to Kendis and Tony as they become increasingly schoompy and domestic. I'm not going to spoil it, but we are so close to these two clowns finally getting a clue about their feelings.
We are currently halfway through this story and we still have a long while to go before we hit the end, but I want to take a moment to thank you for all the kudos, comments, and bookmarks. I appreciate everyone. I can't believe that in August, it will be a year since I started this fic and I'm still so devoted to it.
Honestly at this point, ya'll going to have take this fic out of my cold, dead hands to get me to stop writing it! 😂
The next update will drop on July 10th! I'll see you there!
Chapter 24: Comfort In The Ordinary
Summary:
As they share lunch and later watch a movie, Tony and Kendis grow closer and learn more about each other.
Notes:
Welcome back! I have taken some time off from writing this fanfic, but for my readers ao3 and wattpad you did not see any interruption in your reading. This is because I schedule (or, since ao3 doesn't have a schedule option, pre-load) chapters ahead of time.
It's late May as I'm scheduling this post, and May has fundamentally been the worst month of 2025 so far. I had a death in the family and then a health scare with my elderly stepfather. But the one thing that has kept me going is this fic. Writing, Kendis and Tony have become my mental safe space.
I want to take a moment to thank all of my readers on both ao3, wattpad, and the website for sticking with me so far. September is the official one year of this fanfic and I could never anticipate the reception this fic has gotten. Not only are you reading about a trans love story, but you have raised hundreds of dollars for Trans people and trans charities. I truly have the best readers in the world.
In case you missed my previous author note, I want to remind you that there has been some updates the Harry Potter tv show and then now with Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy from the movies) joining the cast of Cursed Child. It also been revealed by J.K. Rowling that the funds she is making from the Harry Potter fandom is going directly to funding a fund that is advocating for the further stripping away of trans people's rights.
With that said, I want to encourage everyone not to continue to boycott everything that gives JKR money including not buying of her books new, streaming the movies and the tv show, not going to the stage show, and going to the theme park. And instead consider supporting trans charities, mutual aids, and reading trans books.
📌Reminder: You can get early access to the next chapter and fun free merch on my website. Make sure to check it out!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
It was nice to cook for someone else again. Of all the skills Kendis had gained while living at the Dursleys, cooking and gardening were the few things she still enjoyed.
Tony groaned around a fork. “This is delicious.”
Kendis looked down at her plate and hid a smile. It was nice to have her food appreciated again.
“You didn’t do any—” Tony gestured to the food and did some weird jazz hands.
“What?” Kendis frowned at Tony.
He sighed and huffed. “You didn’t magic the food.”
“No.” Kendis rolled her eyes. “You know what happens when I do magic around technology.”
“Yeah, remind me to give you a new Stark phone,” Tony replied distractedly.
Kendis rolled her eyes. “Your vendetta against my iPhone is ridiculous.”
“Steve Jobs can suck it!” Tony exclaimed as he swiped the last bit of beef casserole off his plate.
Kendis snorted. “You are utterly ridiculous.”
The two ate in silence with only the low tone of Overture by The Who playing in the background. Tony had bargained his way out of going through the whole Fall Out Boy discography, and Kendis could admit (only to herself) that she liked it. They found themselves bopping along to the music, but knew that if they told Tony they liked his old people’s music, he would be insufferable.
“How did you learn to cook like this?” Tony returned to the original subject at hand. “I am surprised that I didn’t burn the kitchen down.”
Kendis frowned at the self-deprecating tone.
“You were pretty handy with a knife,” Kendis argued. “And to be fair, I have been cooking since I was three.”
“Wait, since you were three?” Tony asked, his eyes going wide.
Kendis looked down at her plate, her appetite suddenly gone. She pushed her food around her plate as memories of her early childhood pressed forward in her mind.
“Yeah, I wasn’t always rich and famous.” Kendis shook her head. “Do you remember me telling you that my parents died when I was a baby?”
“Yeah, I remember.”
“Well, my mother’s sister Petunia and her husband, Vernon Dursley, raised me.” Kendis took a deep breath before continued. “Well, my Aunt Petunia was a muggle—”
“Muggle?” Tony asked. “Non-magical, right?”
“Yeah,” Kendis confirmed. “My Aunt Petunia despised magic and resented that my mom, her sister, was a witch. It was bad enough that my father was not only a Wizard but Black, as well. And she’s the sort that thinks interracial marriages are unnatural.” Kendis shuddered. “However, Vernon was worse.”
“Jesus, that is fucked up! ”
“Yeah, that’s a word for it. So when my parents died, they got custody of me and instead of raising me, they basically made me their slave.” Kendis fidgeted with the tablecloth on the table. “And that’s how I learned how to cook and clean from a very early age.”
“Please tell me someone reported them to CPS?” Tony half pleaded, half demanded, and Kendis looked up to meet Tony’s furious gaze.
“No, they are living the normal life they always wanted.” Kendis sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “Pretending that magic doesn’t exist and that they never had a nibling.”
Tony pursed his lips, his brown eyes burning with rage.
Before she could talk her way out of it, Kendis reached over and squeezed his hands. “Let it go, Tony,” she sighed. “I have.”
“Have you?” Tony lifted an eyebrow and squeezed her hand back.
Kendis bobbed her head. “Mostly. I sometimes think about hexing the lot of them, but hexing muggles is illegal, and they are not worth the jail time.”
Tony laughed, and Kendis smiled. It was kind of Tony to try to play the hero, but Kendis didn’t need saving; she was perfectly capable.
Besides, Tony being there for her through this, and allowing her to stay with him even after she had destroyed his guestroom was more than enough.
Kendis started to pick up the empty plates, but Tony took them out of her hand. “You cooked, so I’ll wash up.”
“Your bots will probably clean them.” Kendis pointed out as he dropped them in the sink and sure enough, a bunch of round bots rolled out of the wall and turned on the water.
“Yep,” Tony said unapologetically. “Why should I clean when I invented some awesome bots to do it for me?”
“Stop with the self-congratulations, Wonder-boy.” Kendis playfully hip-checked him. “What do you want to do now? I really don’t want to go back to sleep.”
“We can go to my lab,” Tony said.
“Sir has been working for 76 hours, 31 minutes, and 21 seconds,” Jarvis piped up.
“When did you become such a snitch?” Tony said as he crossed his arms.
“Your care is my top priority, sir.”
“How about we do a compromise? Do you really need to be in your lab to work?” Kendis asked. “We could watch some telly while you work on a tablet or something.”
Kendis watched as Tony thought about it for a moment and then he nodded. “Yeah, that is doable.”
They left the kitchen in the hands of the small helper bots, and Tony led Kendis back into the living room.
The room was some minimalist modern mishmash with sharp clean lines that were not to her taste at all. Though black was Kendis’s favorite color, her house leaned more maximalist in decor with dark saturated colors.
Kendis sat on the white sofa, which was, thankfully, more comfortable than it looked. She gazed at the coffee table and frowned at the five remotes sitting on top of it.
“I’m not going to even attempt to figure out which one works for what.”
Tony rolled his eyes and picked up a remote and a TV slide from behind a wall panel. “What do you want to watch? Wall-e, Star Wars: A New Hope, Fight Club, or Die Hard?” Tony asked while he scrolled through the movie menu. “Oh, there is the Godfather.”
Kendis frowned. She had watched Star Wars and Fight Club before but didn’t recognize the other movies. “The Godfather?”
Tony turned to her. “Tell me you have seen the greatest trilogy of all time.”
“I read more than I watch TV.”
Tony fake clutched his heart. “Oh my god, we must drop everything and watch it!”
Kendis rolled her eyes, but got comfortable putting her feet up on the glass coffee table. “Okay, wow me.”
Tony clicked on The Godfather Part I and a moment later, the opening titles appeared on the screen.
Kendis, despite herself, got caught up in the Corleone family drama. She flinched as she watched the gun violence on the screen. It was a strange culture shock for someone who came from a country that experienced little gun violence.
As the movie played, Tony split his attention between his tablet and watching it. He quoted the film word for word while he worked, from time to time.
“Tu ai sapiri ca chiddu che e’ successo tra mi e tu’ padri fu una cosa di “bizunis,” Tony suddenly said. “Eu aiu un grosso rispettu pi tu’ padri. Ma tu’ padri pensa a l’antica e tu nun.
Kendis threw him a startled look as he quoted the scene between Michael Corleone and Sollozzo in fluent Italian.
“You speak Italian?”
“Yeah, my mom is from Italy.” Tony shrugged. “However, she was from Sardina and not Sicily, so my accent was probably a bit off.”
“Your mom immigrated to America?” Kendis shook her head. “I never saw that in the papers.”
“You read about me, Glinda?” Tony wiggled his eyebrows, and she playfully shoved him as her cheeks warmed because she had been thinking about the hot as fuck photo of him in Engineering Today.
“No,” Kendis looked away.
Tony shrugged. “Most of that stuff in the rags is junk. My dad presented my mom to the public as the perfect All-American wife, but behind closed doors, my mom was very proud of her heritage. She believed in keeping traditions alive and fought my dad tooth and nail about incorporating Italian culture and language into my upbringing. Hell, my mom wouldn’t even speak to me in English until I was ten.
Tony chuckled ruefully, his eyes distant as he stared at the TV before he finally added, “It used to drive my dad batshit crazy.”
Out of the blue, Kendis announced, “My aunt’s English, my dad’s side is from Nigeria, and my grandmother’s family was an old Ghanaian pureblood family.” Kendis shrugged and added, “But I had little relationship with either side of my family growing up.”
Silently, Tony squeezed her hand.
A long silence fell between them as Tony continued to hold her hand, and she couldn’t draw her attention back to the movie. Though the two of them had fucked twice, having her hand in his made her feel shy and vulnerable. Her heart pounded in her chest and she felt her cheeks flush again in embarrassment.
“Can you tell me something in Italian?”
“What do you want to me say?” Tony asked, frowning.
Kendis waved her free hand. “Anything.”
There was suddenly a mischievous light in those dark brown eyes. “Sei così carino quando sorridi.”
“What did you say?” Kendis asked, leaning forward.
“Sei così bella che mi togli il fiato.”
Tony inched closer to Kendis, their faces inches apart. The nearness of his touch made her breath catch.
“Voglio baciarti.”
He brought his big, calloused hands up to caress her face. Kendis felt her heart pound in her chest as his finger swept back and forth against her cheek.
Tony was so close to her she could feel the heat of his body, smell the Corona on his breath, and Kendis wanted to lean forward and brush her lips against his.
She knew from previous experience that his lips felt heavenly against hers.
But as Kendis leaned forward, she heard a loud series of gunshots that made her jump, and she turned to see a gunfight on the screen. Tony glared at the telly, then sighed as he picked his tablet back up.
Kendis slumped back against the couch and wondered what the hell she was doing. Tony had definitely been going to kiss her and for a moment, Kendis had wanted to give in to her feelings.
She knew from the way his eyes had devoured her body earlier on that he still wanted her and this almost kiss hadn’t been her imagination.
But even though she couldn’t help feeling drawn to him, she knew Tony was at risk for being with her, and what the consequences of ignoring her common sense would be.
And besides, everything was already so chaotic, and Kendis didn’t need to add any feelings to this mess. With a sigh, she gave Tony one last longing look before she pointedly forced her attention back to the movie.
Chapter 25: Rude Awakening
Summary:
After Tony and Kendis fall asleep on the sofa, they are startled awake by the unexpected arrival of Pepper and Obadiah, forcing them to face unpleasant consequences.
Notes:
🚨Content Warning: This is the chapter where Kendis meets Obadiah and Pepper. I should have addressed this from the beginning, but I am from Texas, and I get "Good Old Boy" vibes from Obadiah. Honestly, he always felt like that character who says the N-word behind people's backs. There is going to be a lot of sexism and classism implied.
📌Reminder: You can get early access to the next chapter and fun merch on my website. Make sure to check it out!
⚠️ Edit (7/9/2025): You will probably notice that I took out all of the links to the trans charities that I had in the author's notes of all of my chapters. The reason for this is that I just found out that according to AO3's policies posting links to other non-profits and GFMs (in which I gain no profit from btw) is against their terms of service. I find that ironic since AO3 (which is a non-profit) is constantly begging users for donations, but I guess that doesn't count when I am giving them money.
So with that being said, I have deleted all of those links but they will still be up on my social media and on the website. And I can actually say that since my website for this series is completely non-commerical. I will also note that I do not want anyone to use this fic as a reason to go financially support J.K. Rowling. I have handy handy-dandy blog post that will tell you the reasons why and the best way to boycott anything that gives that woman money.
I urge everyone who loves this fic to take a moment to read that blog post, boycott HP, and support trans people instead.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Tony had slept many a night on this sofa. It wasn’t comfortable; it was so mid-century thing that his interior decorator picked out. But sometimes Pepper, Happy, or Rhodey found him passed out on the sofa when he was too tired to make the trip to his bedroom.
Sleeping on the sofa didn’t bother him. What did bother him was Jarvis’s constantly bugging him—Tony tried to turn on his side and away from his irritating voice, but there was something on top of him, or someone.
“Sir, Ms. Potts is here with Mr. Stane.”
Tony tried to rake his mind for his memories. For a moment, his brain was terrifyingly blank before it all flooded back to him. Tony jerked his eyes open, as there was a sudden movement on top of him. Kendis sat straight up, wand in hand.
“Kendis,” Tony hissed. “Put the wand down.” The lights flickered (which should be impossible with the way he set up the electrical system.
Kendis blinked, and then they gave him a sheepish look as they made their wand disappear (and he had to ask her how she did that).
Tony’s eyes traveled across the dim room. The TV was off, and the sun had long since set. Sometime during their Godfather marathon, they had fallen asleep.
“ETA Jarvis,” Tony said, as Kendis suddenly pulled away from him.
“4.3 minutes, sir.”
“Fuck,” Tony swore under his breath.
“I can leave,” Kendis said, and she was adorable with her dark riotous curls all over her face, green eyes bright with a faint crease from where she slept on top of him.
‘Focus, Stark’, Tony said as he rubbed his forehead. He could hide Kendis in a closet somewhere, but something made him stop. Tony was a grown-ass man, and Kendis was just... Well, he didn’t know what they were to him, but she was clearly in need of help.
Tony was just being a good Samaritan, and there was nothing wrong with that.
“One minute, sir,” Jarvis updated.
“No, stay,” Tony said.
Kendis nodded and straightened up as much as she could.
Tony offered a small smile, but before he could speak again, the front door opened, and Obadiah burst in, Pepper close behind.
“Tony!” Pepper’s eyes widened at the sight of Kendis on the sofa. “Please tell me you didn’t blow off your meetings again for a hookup.”
“I didn’t!” Tony gestured at Kendis. “We are still wearing our clothes.”
Obadiah's eyes traveled up and down Kendis’s body with a look that rubbed Tony the wrong way. ”Pretty,” Obadiah commented. “But not your usual type.”
Kendis huffed and frustratedly ran her hand through her hair. “Can you bloody stop talking about me like I am not here?”
“I can call a car,” Pepper said, strained. “It can take you anywhere you want to go.”
Tony and Kendis exchanged a long look. Tony was worried about Kendis, but he wouldn’t hold her if she didn’t want to be there. Kendis shook their head, and Tony inwardly sighed relief.
“She stays,” Tony replied firmly.
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Obadiah slapped a hard hand on his shoulder. “The Jericho demonstration is eight weeks. You can’t afford—Obadiah trailed off as he gave Kendis a smirk. “—any distractions.”
Obadiah was his godfather, and he loved him like a second father, but his high handiness was getting on his last nerves.
“The Jericho is ready to go,” Tony bit out. “And Kendis is not a distraction.”
Pepper and Obadiah both threw Tony a dubious look. Tony rubbed his forehead and asked tiredly, “Obie, why are you even here?”
“Tony, you responded to calls or texts for days,” Obadiah said. “You missed the meeting with Mitsui Group.”
“And Jarvis locked me out of the house.” Pepper put her hands on her hips. “I came by earlier, and he refused to let me in.”
Tony flinched, wondering whether to tell the AI off for locking Pepper out. As his personal assistant and one of his best friends, she was one of the three people (Rhodey and Happy) who had unlimited access to his residences.
Obadiah didn’t have that level of access. There were some things a person didn’t want their father figure to know about their pseudo sons. All of this is to say that it was highly out of character for Jarvis to lock Pepper out.
“Tony,” Obadiah called, snapping Tony out of his thoughts. “Can I have a word?”
Tony nodded, and then he turned to Kendis, who shrugged. Tony turned back to see Obadiah with a sour look on his face. “Yeah, let’s go.”
Tony followed Obadiah out of the living room and into the kitchen. Obadiah leaned against the kitchen island and narrowed. “That was Kendis Black,” Obadiah said slowly. “I recognize her from the photos from the background check I had done on her. That’s the woman you married in Vegas when you were drunk.”
Tony opened his mouth to tear into Obadiah about doing a background check. Then he realized how much of a hypocrite that would make him. It annoyed him that Obadiah had gone behind his back, but he was self-aware that to know that he had no right to get mad at his godfather.
“Non-binary, not a woman,” Tony finally replied. “And yeah, Kendis is my spouse.”
Obadiah shook his head and gave him a pitying look, “Please tell me you are developing feelings for her, they, it?”
“Kendis has she/they pronouns.” Tony bit out, starting to get pissed off at his godfather’s attitude.
Obadiah’s nose flared, but then he bit out, “Please tell me you don’t have feelings for her.
“No,” Tony shook his head. “I’m just helping her out for a while.” However, in truth, Tony’s feelings for Kendis were a messy maelstrom that he was terrified to parse or quantify.
“How long was a while?” Obadiah asked, crossing his arms.
“A few days,” Tony shrugged. “More or less.”
Obadiah took a deep breath, and he could see through the fake calm façade and that Obadiah was biting back some harsh words. He then pinched the bridge of his nose, and then he looked up at Tony.
“Tony,” Obadiah warned with a note of pity. “You need to nip this in the bud. We have been through this before. Remember Jasmine Roberts?”
“Who?” Tony frowned.
Obadiah shook his head. “Your first wife? The one who threatened to sell your nudes to The Daily News? How about Shayne Horton? Your ex-husband? He thought you were allergic to strawberries and tried to poison you?”
Tony vaguely remembered a hot blonde twink who kept giving him dishes that had strawberries in them. He thought the guy (Shayne) had some type of fetish.
“He tried to kill me?” Tony said, shaking his head bemusedly. “But Kendis is not like that.”
Obadiah snorted; Tony felt like listing all the times Kendis tried to protect him. All the times that Kendis had pushed him a way to keep Chester from targeting him.
Tony laughed, “No, seriously. Kendis is not like that, and she definitely doesn’t need the money.”
“Bullshit,” Obadiah replied bluntly. “You know how the game is played, Tony. She is not with you out of the goodness of her heart.”
Tony looked at him long and hard, and it was on the tip of his tongue to spill all that they told him. Kendis was probably just as famous as he was back home. Hell, she all but fled all of that when she left England.
Obadiah gave him a dubious look and Tony realized that Obadiah had taken one look at Kendis in her Fall Out boy t-shirt, ripped jeans, scuffed combat boots, and tattoos, and made all types of assumptions.
“No,” Tony replied slowly. “The last thing she wants from me is money or fame.”
“Tony,” Obadiah pleaded
Tony put up his hand. “Look, Kendis is only going to be here for a few days, and then she will leave.”
“You haven’t filed the papers,” Obadiah said, crossing his arms. “That’s what I want to talk about.”
Tony looked away and rubbed the back of his head. “Yeah, about that...”
“Tony, you are playing with fire,” Obadiah said as he walked forward and put his hands on Tony’s shoulders. “You need to cut her off before you get any deeper into this. It’s not only your feelings on the line. It’s the company. It’s your father’s legacy.”
Tony nodded because maybe Obadiah was right. Not about Kendis being a fame hungry gold digger, but about his father’s legacy.
And besides, Tony wasn’t cut out for monogamy. Tony was his father’s son in more ways than one. He never wanted to put a partner through the hell his father put his mother through.
“It will be only for a few days,” Tony reassured his godfather. “And afterwards I cut it off.”
“You’ll file the papers?” Obadiah challenged, and Tony nodded. Obadiah gave him a relieved look. “I knew you would see reason, son.”
Tony offered Obadiah a smile that was entirely fake. Tony believed his godfather only wanted what was best for him. However, his godfather was unaware of the full story. Obadiah relied entirely on assumptions and the false persona Kendis had constructed.
Yet, despite his words to his godfather, Tony couldn’t shake the sick feeling at the pit of his stomach he got when he thought about walking away from Kendis and never seeing them again.
But what in the hell did he had to offer Kendis, besides his money and fame? They were too good for Tony but he didn’t know if he had to the strength to let her go.
Notes:
Poor Tony! Obadiah is seeding those seeds of doubt, the fucker! Tony doesn't realize that his godfather is a snake in the grass and that he should take what he says with a grain of salt. Now, I'm going to admit here that you not going to see a whole lot of Obadiah in this fic (he has only one more scene in the fic near the end).
But in the next fic in the series "The Perilous Husband" (which covers the first Iron Man movie) he is going to be a big pain in Tony and Kendis's ass.
Anyway, I'm totally looking forward to the next chapter, which will be full of domestic fluff. But if you want to read that chapter? You are going to have to wait until the next update. The next update is July 24th!
I'll see you then!
Chapter 26: An Unlikely Synthesis
Summary:
A very suspicious Pepper presses Kendis for answers, and later, Kendis is invited into Tony’s lab, where she meets his bots.
Notes:
Welcome back, everyone! I hope everyone is having a good summer so far! This chapter is where Pepper and Kendis meet for the first time. Now, I'm going to be clear absolutely clear that there will not be any Pepper Potts hate in this house. If Kendis were a girl (for the record, they are trans femme non-binary), she would be a girl's girl. Besides, Pepper Potts is awesome, and I'll fight anyone who says otherwise. In this chapter, she is just overprotective of Tony, and from an outsider POV Kendis and Tony's relationship looks sus af.
I'm also really excited for this chapter because this is where Kendis meets the bots and one of my favorite side characters in the Iron Man movies is the bots. And I actually added some more bots than the original three because I'm a nerd and robots are adorable.
📣 ANNOUNCEMENT:I just finished writing the last chapter of this story. With that in mind, I will be changing the publishing schedule from 2 times a month to 3 times a month.
Also I'm in the process of rewriting and tweaking the previous chapters i have posted in order to make them easier to read. So if you notice any sudden changes to chapters? That's why!
📌Reminder: You can get early access to the next chapter and fun merch on my website. Make sure to check it out!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Pepper Potts was intimidating. Well, she would be if Kendis hadn’t grown up around fierce and intimidating redheads. Although Kendis thought she could give Mrs. Weasley a run for her money with the judgmental looks.
Kendis remained seated, appearing remarkably calm. With her legs crossed atop the coffee table, she examined the most significant woman in Tony’s life.
Pepper was pretty in a way that would have made her look twice if she hadn’t been already so tangled up in Tony. Long ginger hair slicked back into a tight bun, a faint trace of freckles over her beautiful face. She looked impeccable in a black skirt suit and red-bottom black leather patent Louboutin heels.
Everything about Pepper Potts screamed ruthless efficiency.
“What do you want?”
“What?” Kendis shook her head.
“What do you want?” Pepper crossed her arms. “Money? Fame?”
Kendis just stared at the woman for a long moment, and then she laughed. She laughed so hard that she had to wipe tears from her eyes. By the looks Pepper was throwing at her, she was probably questioning her sanity.
Kendis put her hand as she tried to gather herself. “I don’t need or want Tony Stark’s money, and I have had my fair share of fame, thanks.”
“If you are some corporate spy—”
“I’m going to stop you there.” Kendis shook her head. “I am a mechanic and I’m perfectly happy with my job.”
“A mechanic?” Pepper paused, bewildered.
“A mechanic,” Kendis confirmed, then she grimaced. “And Tony already did a background check.”
Pepper frowned at her, obviously bemused by the entire conversation. “If you want nothing from him, then why haven’t you signed the annulment papers?”
Kendis sat up, her mouth dropping. “I signed those papers a few weeks ago.”
"Then why haven’t hasn’t Tony filed them?”
Kendis just sat there, shocked at her core. When she handed Tony the signed documents back in her office a few weeks ago, Kendis thought he would hurry to be free of her. “I don’t know,” Kendis replied, dazedly.
Pepper stared at her, and then she paced back and forth in clear agitation. Kendis could only watch the woman as her mind whirled around and around in her head. She didn’t understand it.
Tony was a proud fuckboi. He wore it like a badge of honor, but then Tony had every opportunity to let her go. Hell, at one point, Kendis had practically begged him to leave her alone.
And although Kendis didn’t excuse or condone his stalking, she still felt anger at his invasion of her privacy. Kendis planned on kicking his ass if he ever did that shit again.
But Kendis couldn’t deny the warmth inside of her at how, in the middle of the night, Tony had driven across town to help her at one of her darkest hours.
“I see,” Pepper said, and Kendis looked up to meet the woman’s penetrating blue eyes. Kendis opened her mouth to ask what exactly she saw, but Pepper shook her head.
“I don’t know what you two are doing,” Pepper started. “But you better be damn sure about what you’re getting into. Tony was an asshole most of the time but was soft and vulnerable underneath that tough exterior. And I refuse to let another person break his heart.”
“Ms. Potts, we are just friends,” Kendis protested.
“Believe what you want to believe.” Pepper shook her head. “But if you break his heart, I will ruin you.”
Kendis stared at Pepper as she turned on her heels and marched away with the clack of her designer heels.
***
Tony was quieter after Pepper and Obadiah finished. It was near six o’clock in the evening, and both of them had missed lunch. They ordered Chinese and finished the rest of Godfather Part I, and then Tony quickly made his excuses and hurried downstairs to what Jarvis later explained was the entrance to his lab.
Holding onto her magic for so long usually exhausted Kendis. Holding a tight rein on her magic for hours, worn hard on her. But she was so exhausted that she couldn’t go to sleep.
Kendis flipped and flopped on the bed, trying to get comfortable. She wonders if more nightmares lie in wait for her. She hadn’t slept so well in ages as she did that afternoon, napping with Tony. Kendis had imagined it would feel odd in another’s arms, yet with him, she felt safe.
Pepper’s words whirled in her head, and she finally put a pillow over her face and screamed.
“Are you quite alright, Mx. Black?” Jarvis asked.
Kendis jumped, but she managed to keep a tight grip on her magic. “I’m fine. Is there anything like a phone around here?”
The wall panel slid open, revealing another small robot with a square body and two arms rushing towards her. It quickly opened a compartment in its belly and retrieved a sleek cell phone.
Kendis patted the robot on its head, “Thank you.”
The robot gave an enthusiastic beep and then spun around and rolled back into the opening.
Kendis checked the time. It was eight o’clock, and she still had half an hour before the clinic closed. Kendis had been damn lucky that Dr. Lan had been willing to come to her aid so late. His husband always complained that he went to bed so early.
Kendis had meant to call them earlier, but Tony had distracted her.
Lucky for her, she was able to remember the number of Misty Heights Animal Clinic. After a brief chat with Lan Sizhui, she was transferred over to Dr. Lan.
“Alke is still sleeping,” Dr. Lan said curtly. “No changes so far. I will update you if anything changes.”
Kendis quickly thanked Dr. Lan and hung up. She stared at the phone and wondered if she should call Jason and Ian. But Kendis wasn’t up to explain everything, and she knew they knew her well enough to pick up any emotional subtext in her tone.
Kendis decided to explore the mansion. Rather than being bored in the guest room, this would be better. Passing Tony’s bedroom, Kendis walked across the first floor. She, unlike Tony, would respect his privacy. However, she discovered a home movie theater, an indoor pool, and a fully equipped gym.
Jarvis ensured she didn’t get lost by guiding her during her walk. Her mind drifted back to her earlier talk with Pepper and the way Obadiah had looked at her. Those around Tony were justified in their suspicions of her. Kendis was a mysterious stranger who interrupted Tony Stark’s careful plans.
Kendis knew, honestly, her friends could have been much worse. Ian’s shovel talks were a thing of legend. The one and only time she ever bought a date to Miscellany, the poor bloke ran out of the bar screaming.
They wondered what Hermione and Ron would think of Tony. Kendis knew Hermione was a muggleborn who stayed updated on Muggle news, so she most likely saw what the gossip rags were saying about him.
They wouldn’t understand that Tony was so much more than that.
“Mx. Black?” Jarvis interrupted her thoughts. “Sir has requested your presence in the lab.”
Kendis’s smile fell, “But my magic?”
“Kendis, there is nothing you can destroy that I can’t afford to fix,” Tony’s voice suddenly broken over a hidden intercom. “Get your ass down here!”
“Fine,” Kendis huffed, but to her frustration, she still found herself biting back a smile. She hurried around the waterfall and down the circular stairs that led to a panel of a transparent panel of windows that looked out into space, a scene that was ripped right out of a science fiction novel.
The door beeped, and it opened with a hiss. Tony was studying the 3D green lines of a schematic that hovered in the air.
“Wow,” Kendis said as she walked into the room. “This is brilliant!”
“Isn’t it?” Tony looked up at her and grinned. “I may not be able to heal cuts or repair windows with a flick of a wand, but it’s still pretty cool.”
Kendis bit her lip, “Tony—”
Tony rolled his eyes, and he got up, walked over to her, grabbed her hand, and pulled her further into his lab. Kendis eyed the holo table, the bank of computers, and the old-fashioned jukebox sitting between another two groups of doors. “How many doors do you need for one space?”
Tony shrugged. “Can’t have too many exits.”
Just perpendicular to the doors was a kitchenette, where she spotted a fancy espresso machine. But she turned and her gaze went right past the table that had tons of scattered spare parts and a welding iron, and a line of cars that all together cost the net worth of a small country.
“Sweet Merlin,” Kendis shouted as she broke away from Tony’s touch and went over to the cars. It was a good mix of flashy sports cars, but it was the vintage cars that excited her the most. There was a 1953 Ford Flathead Roadster that was black but painted with red and gold flames, a sleek black 1949 Mercury Coupe, and Kendis barely bit back a squeal of delight as they spotted a gorgeous blue 1967 Shelby Cobra.
Her fingers hovered over the Cobra. “Please tell me we can take this out for a joy ride before I go.”
“You are as rich as I am,” Tony pointed out. “You could buy one of these yourself.”
Kendis wrinkled her nose. “She’s lovely.” They patted the hood, “But they would take up too much space and bring too much attention. Besides, you are one of the few people who know how wealthy I am.”
Tony walked to her and nudged her playfully on the shoulder. “Okay, then I will take you out for a ride,” he replied, his voice was abruptly low and seductive.
Kendis rolled her eyes and nudged him back, “I bet you will.”
There was a whirl of noise, and Tony swore under his breath as a huge robotic arm rolled towards them at breakneck speed.
Tony slapped his forehead. “I’m surprised he lasted this long.” He muttered under his breath. “This is Dum-e, and Dum-e knows better than to leave his charging station when we have visitors down here.”
Dum-e slumped, and it should be strange to see something made out of metal emote so clearly. Yet, Kendis, she remembered Mr. Weasley's old cantankerous Ford Anglia that had ditched Ron and her back in third year.
And not to mention Jarvis, who showed a bit of personality behind his stiff upper lip.
Dum-e gave her a dejected-sounding mechanical whine.
“It’s alright,” Kendis said as she reached out to pat him on the head. “I don’t mind.”
Dum-e perked up its head and then turned to Tony. His creator gave a put-upon sigh. There were a few whirls from a previously unseen corner, and Tony pitched the bridge of his nose.
“Fine.” Tony threw up his hands. “U and Butterfingers can come out.”
Kendis blinked at him, “You named your bots U and Butterfingers? Wow, I have heard some weird names—”
“I may have named them when I was drunk,” Tony mumbled under his breath, and Kendis laughed. But then, the two bots looked similar to Dum-e as both had robot arms, although shorter than Dum-e.
A few centimeters shorter than Dum-e’s.
They all looked identical to each other, but she spotted their names stamped on the side of their arm.
“Hello, Dum-e, U, and Butterfingers.” Kendis beamed at all three of them. During her brief stay so far, she had met a few cute robots, but she had to say that these three were downright adorable.
Dum-e’s exuberance reminded her of her old friend, Dobby. She felt a pang of grief. She had lost so much during the war, but she never expected Dobby to be one of them.
“You okay, Glenda?” Dum-e asked.
“Yeah,” Kendis laughed and did her best to shove away the familiar grief. “Well, it’s so nice to meet all of you,” she said with a grin. “I think we are going to be great friends.”
Dum-e offered his hand, and she shook it. And then he was dragging her across the room to a section where he had a sofa and a TV.
“Hey, let go of her!” Tony called out as he hurried after them. Kendis waved him off. She wasn’t worried, and then he dropped her on the sofa.
And then there were some whirls, and the TV popped on, and there was a movie title.
“Short Circuit?”
“Ugh, not again,” Tony groaned. “We’ve seen these movies a million times!”
“No worries, I never heard of it,” Kendis waved him off. “You go to work and I’ll hang out with your bots.”
A strange look passed over Tony’s face that she couldn’t quite decipher, but then Tony just simply shrugged and, with a last strange look, he walked back over to his workstation.
Notes:
And Kendis meets the bots! I love the bots and frankly, I feel they don't get enough love in the Marvel fandom. Now, the next update is going to be a very important update! I'm super excited, and I want to spill all the beans, but I know you will come for my blood if I spoil it for you.
If you can't wait until I publish that chapter? Then, hurry over to the website. It should be up already. Now the next chapter will drop on July 24th! I'll see you then!
Chapter 27: Ain't That a Kick in the Head
Summary:
As Kendis connects with Tony's bots, Tony has a startling realization about his feelings for her.
Notes:
Here is another update! I am so happy to be back with you. This chapter right here is a treat because we get to see Tony freak out about his feelings (oh my god, he is finally getting a clue), and on top of that, we get to read some smut.
As of right now, we are hurtling towards the end. We have about 13 chapters left in the temporary spouse, and with my publishing speed, I should be done by early next year on AO3 and Wattpad, but I should be done writing this fic in a few months.
Once I am done with this fic, I plan on going back and slowly editing and updating it.
Speaking of updating, I also want to announce that I will be updating the branding and the cover for this book. Kendis is getting a new faceclaim. I will make the old covers available on my website.
📌Reminder: You can get early access to the next chapter and fun merch on my website. Make sure to check it out!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Tony did his best to concentrate on his projects, but his eyes couldn’t help but travel to the sofa where Kendis was laughing at Johnny5’s antics while the bots whirled excitedly at their favorite parts.
Tony swore as he dropped a wrench on his fingers.
“Are you okay, Tony?” Kendis called out, and he turned back to see that she was looking concerned. He smiled and waved her off.
“Just being clumsy,” Tony said, and she gave him one last look before Dum-e grabbed her t-shirt to show her Johnny5 dancing to ‘You Should Be Dancing’ by the Bee Gees.
Tony should never have asked Kendis to come down here. Hell, Kendis was a walking magical time bomb, and she could do a lot of damage to his lab, not to mention his bots.
Earlier, when Jarvis alerted him that she was exploring the house, a video feed appeared. Tony was just about to turn it off, pretty sure that Kendis couldn’t find anything in the rest of the house to use against him. But then he saw her face. Kendis looked so lost and alone walking through his big, empty house. And before he knew it, Tony had given the command for Jarvis to invite her to his lab.
Tony brought up the schematics of the new rail gun he was working on for the Army, but froze as he spotted Kendis patting Butterfingers’s head; the shyest of his bots leaned into her touch.
And surely if she were using magic, Butterfingers would be a mess of metal and wires right now. But the youngest of his three bots snuggled into the caress, beeping at her.
No one, not even Obadiah, Pepper, or even Rhodey, ever treated the bots with such obvious care. To them, Jarvis and the rest of his creations were simply tools for Tony to use.
Most people never realized that way before he met Rhodey, Dum-e had been his first friend. And even though that relationship evolved into a parent/child relationship over the years, Tony never forgot the bot’s first intended purpose. Despite the vitriol he sometimes threw at Dum-e, he was still one of his most precious creations.
This wixen, who grew up in a place so far removed from technology, who had every reason to fear it, just accepted them with open arms.
His heart felt so tight in his chest that he felt like he was going too close to having a heart attack because all the confusion he had been struggling with suddenly faded away. In that brief moment of clarity, he was faced with one simple truth:
Tony had fallen for Kendis. The feeling that had been gradually building from the moment he woke beside her in that hotel room in Vegas was love.
Tony Stark was in love with Kendis Black.
The strength of his feelings for his spouse terrified him. What the hell do I know about love?!!! He screamed internally as he tried to focus on work, but he couldn’t move past this latest revelation. There had been so many truths revealed in the last 24 hours, but Tony was baffled by his own feelings.
Tony pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. Kendis was only here for a few days and would soon be gone. And Tony would go back to his normal life, and these feelings, as inconvenient as they were, would fade away.
Tony snorted and rolled his eyes at himself. At thirty-two years old, Tony knew himself well enough to know that fighting his feelings was futile. Tony didn’t fall often, but when he did, he fell hard. He had always been an all-or-nothing type of guy when it came to both his work and his relationships. It was one of the reasons he stopped getting close to anyone.
But a little over a month, Kendis had managed to burrow her way through his titanium defenses and make space for herself in his heart.
In truth, a part of himself wanted to run hard and fast from these feelings. He was Tony Stark, and he didn’t do emotions. But there was another part, bigger than the fear, that told him that running would be the biggest mistake of his life.
Tony took a deep breath as he desperately scraped together all of his courage and put his tools down, and walked over to the sofa. Kendis looked at him, and his heart was in his throat as he met her beautiful green eyes.
“Got any room for me?” Tony said, with a smirk that he didn’t feel, but Tony was a champion bullshitter at the worst of times.
Kendis grinned and scooted over. “Sure,” they said as they patted the seat next to him. Tony sat next to them and put his arm around Kendis. She gave him an inquisitive look but didn’t say anything.
Kendis laid her head on his shoulder, and Tony felt like his heart was going to beat right out of his chest as he wrapped his arm around her. He suddenly felt like he was 15 years old again, awkwardly trying to pull off the yawn and stretch technique he saw in movies.
‘Where did all of my charm and charisma go?’ He wondered to himself.
But despite his initial awkwardness, Tony gradually relaxed. He didn’t even try to pay attention to the movie. Tony could quote Short Circuit word-for-word. Tony enjoyed the feeling of Kendis in his arms.
His thoughts were a mess of emotions and thoughts. Can a relationship between them even work? The cold, logical part of his brain told him no. She was magic, and Tony was a tech genius, and he already knew that magic and tech did not mix.
They had so much stacked against them.
Tony knew that Obie would be furious. And what about the company? And don’t forget the press! The fallout in the press would be an utter shit show. And on top of that, they both would have to deal with the consequences of his knowing about the Wizarding World.
As the movie went on, his mind kept whirling at the possible consequences waiting for them if they gave this marriage a real shot. It was a recipe for disaster, but Tony couldn’t let Kendis go.
“Alright, bots.” Tony clapped his hands as the movie came to a close, and Johnny5, Stephanie, and Newton had long since driven off to start their new life in Montana. “Time for you to go back to your charging stations.”
The bots whined, and Kendis patted U on its head. “Go on,” Kendis said.
U gave another whirl, and then the three bots were rolling across the floor.
“Don’t spoil them,” Tony sighed.
“I can’t help it!” Kendis shrugged, “They are adorable!”
“They are not,” Tony argued back. “They are cutting-edge helper bots.”
They stared at him for a long beat, and he wished he could see what they were thinking. Kendis was a mystery that he longed to solve, but suspected he would never.
She scooted forward until their bodies were flush together and her warm, calloused fingers came up to frame his face.
“What?”
He licked his lips, and her eyes darted to them. Tony couldn’t hear past the pounding of his heart as he met her eyes. Those green eyes were dark with desire, and God Kendis was so goddamn beautiful it hurt.
For the first time in his life, Tony was afraid to move forward and take what he wanted. Afraid of what would happen if he finally gave in to his feelings.
She pressed her forehead to his. “Can I kiss you?” Kendis asked in a whisper.
“Y-yes,” Tony bit out, and then in the next moment, Kendis’ mouth was on his. He expected the kiss to be rough and hard, full of passion. But unlike their previous kisses, this one was sweet and slow.
As if they had all the time in the world and nothing mattered beyond the slow movement of their lips against each other. Her full lips felt divine against his.
His hands reached up and slipped into Kendis’s wild curls and tugged her closer as they kissed. And she gasped, her arm curling around his neck as Tony took the opportunity to slip his tongue between those sinful lips.
His tongue met hers, not in a battle, but in a dance; a rapturous meeting of equals.
Tony groaned into her mouth, his other hand sliding across her lean back. His hands slipped under her t-shirt, and Tony couldn’t get enough of the feeling of her soft skin. And then she was jerking away from him, and Tony panicked that he had fucked up.
Kendis was sitting on his lap, and he suddenly realized the hardness pressed against his stomach was her erection.
Tony felt something hard pressed against his stomach, and he realized it was her erection.
“I forgot to take my potion that will change and—” Kendis said, nervously.
“—Kendis,” Tony interrupted her. “I told you when we first met that I would take you anyway I can take you. That hasn’t changed.”
Kendis’ mouth split into a grin, “Okay.”
“Okay,” Tony confirmed, and he pressed his lips to hers. Kendis moaned as his tongue delved into her mouth with the type of single focus he usually gave difficult code.
Tony couldn’t help it. He was greedy, and he knew it.
Time held no meetings anymore. Tony just lost himself in the feel of Kendis against him and her mouth as they rocked against each other.
Even through their jeans, the slow grind against each other felt heavenly. But he needed more. With a quick finger, he pulled down her jeans, and her hard cock sprang free. It was as pretty as Kendis was. It was long and wide and somehow delicate, even for a cock. It was red and leaking. A part of him wanted to throw her down on the sofa and swallow it down.
But right now, Tony was too far gone.
His hands went to his belt buckle, but she brushed his hands aside and unbuckled his belt, and shoved his jeans down to his knees, and he was so wet that it surprised even him. His cock was leaking precome onto his t-shirt. Then Tony swore as her hands wrapped around his cock, and then she was sliding up and down his eager cock.
“Ah,” Tony said, as he threw his head back as he pumped his hips into her strong grip, his hands traveling across her back and down to her ass, which filled his hands perfectly. They rocked against each other, the pressure of Kendiis's exquisite hands on their cocks. And they couldn’t look away from each other as they kissed.
The allure of her eyes caught him in her web, and Tony was too far gone to escape. He just wanted to exist like this forever.
“I’m going---” Kendis broke off as she whimpered as his finger swiped across her taint and then her sensitive asshole. “I’m going to come.”
“Voglio che tu lo faccia,” Tony said. He was too gone to translate his Italian thoughts into English like he normally did. “Voglio vederti andare in pezzi per me.”
Kendis shuddered, her pace picking up as their two hard cocks rubbed and ground against each other. It was a race between them as they both careened toward their orgasms. And one moment passed, and then the next, and Kendis cried out as she spilled her seed across their stomachs.
It was another moment that Tony felt that familiar rush and as if his body had been shocked by electricity, as he shuddered and added his cum to the mess o their stomachs.
As they both came down from their orgasmic high, Kendis sat up and wrinkled her nose. “Time for a shower.”
Tony just sighed and kissed her softly on the forehead. “Come on, I have a hot shower with our names on it.”
Notes:
In this house, we support women and trans femmes with penises! I totally wasn't playing around when I said "interchangeable genitalia." And this is not the only time in which Kendis's cock makes appearance. Transphobes, run for your lives! 😏
Now, this is only the start of Tony and Kendis wrestling with his feelings. So buckle up for that! The next chapter drops August 7th! See you then!
Update On Wattpad, I had a few readers who wanted the translation for the Italian I put in there. I want to warn everybody that the Italian is from Google Translate. If any fluent people want to correct me? Please do! I appreciate the help.
"Voglio che tu lo faccia" ("I want you to do it).
"Voglio vederti andare in pezzi per me." ("I want to watch you fall apart for me.)
Chapter 28: Epiphany in Your Arms
Summary:
As Kendis and Tony finally give in to their attraction, she realizes her feelings for him run deeper than she ever expected.
Notes:
Welcome back! This chapter is all smut and feelings, which, in my opinion, are the best type of updates. I can't say a lot about this chapter without spoiling it but I have a feeling Kendis and Tony are not the only ones who are going to be satisfied. 😂
On to some big news! Since I just finished writing the final chapter of The Temporary Spouse. I am going to up the posting frequency from bi-monthly to three times a month! Once I am finished posting this chapter, I plan on going back and fixing some mistakes and inconsistencies.
If you want to see my full posting schedule, you can find it here.
📌Reminder: You can get early access to the next chapter and fun merch on my website. Make sure to check it out!
🏳️⚧️ Important: if you want to do your part to support trans rights, please keep yourself educated on anti-trans bills in your state and contact your local representatives. Also, this is your regular reminder to continue boycotting all Harry Potter books, movies, TV shows, games, and official merch. Every penny that goes to J.K. Rowling goes to her anti-trans hate group.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Kendis knew she should stop this. Kissing Tony was probably one of the worst decisions she had ever made.
In truth, Kendis was tired of running from her feelings. It was the way Tony looked at her that made the decision for her.
Tony had a reputation for being a heartless womanizer, but in that split second, Kendis saw the depth of his feelings for her. It was the glimmer in those dark brown eyes that both elated and terrified her.
There was only one thing she could do but press herself closer to him, to take his head in her hands, and kiss him.
And kissing Tony had been like she had finally come home. They never wanted to stop kissing him, and it didn't make any sense.
After Chester, after Josefa, and Kendis shouldn't want this, but Kendis wanted Tony. In truth, she had wanted Tony before she had even spoken a word to him.
It all started with that ridiculous photo in Engineering Today.
The reality of Tony had been much more complicated, but that deep visceral want still haunted Kendis. And she had tried to walk away, but she couldn't.
And after fooling around in his lab, they showered together. They couldn’t keep their hands to themselves as their hands caressed wet slick skin. And in truth, they had been more concerned about wringing more pleasure out of each other than any genuine attempt at getting clean.
It was all interspersed with laughter as they knocked their knees and elbows in the too-narrow shower.
Tony and Kendis silently agreed that getting dressed again was a waste of their time. So they padded nude out of the shower and over to the elevator that would take them to Tony's bedroom.
It had taken what seemed forever to make it there. Every few steps were interrupted with kisses. Some kisses were just their mouths nipping against each and others were an invasion of tongues.
It didn't matter; every press of his skin against hers was heaven. It didn't help that Tony Stark was a huge tease. His fingers caressed her breasts, then Kendis’s quivering stomach, the inside of her thighs; completely ignoring Kendis’s erection that was red and leaking with need.
Kendis gave as good as they got. Their hands ran up his toned chest and then down to grab his ass as they ground her aching member against his.
By the time the elevator made it to the second floor, Kendis was considering climbing Tony like a tree and simply taking what she wanted.
The elevator opened with a ding, and then suddenly Tony was sweeping her off her feet and into his powerful arms.
Kendis would never admit that she swooned at that. Although Kendis was bisexual she mostly fucked women. And with Ginny and then later with later in with Josefa. In those relationships, she was always expected to be the strong one.
For the first time in her life, Kendis felt they could simply let someone else be the strong one for once.
"I didn't get to do this the first time," Tony said with a smirk.
And then he was carrying her down the hallway. The doors opened, and Tony carried them across the threshold of his bedroom.
"Thanks J," Tony said, absentmindedly. "Privacy mood."
"Very good, sir," Jarvis confirmed, and then silence fell around them as Tony carried over the threshold. Kendis found the corny gesture oddly charming.
Tony carried over to the large, gargantuan bed that took up most of the space of the bedroom and tall floor-to-ceiling windows that overlooked the ocean.
Tony sat her down on the bed, and they bounced once on the bed. He took her head in his hands and brought his mouth against hers.
Kendis moaned as he licked into her mouth, and she wrapped her arms around him as she pulled him on top of her.
He ravished her mouth with his tongue and lips. He devoured her with a kiss, like he hadn’t eaten in ages. Kendis surrendered, allowing herself to be consumed by the overwhelming force that changed her life.
Tony finally broke the kiss, panting for breath. He pressed his head against hers as they both caught their breath.
"I want to take my time with you," Tony said, his voice all deep and full of desire. "I want to know how you taste on my tongue. I am going to make you feel so good, baby.”
"Merlin, Tony." Kendis hissed, and she pressed her erection up against his stomach.
"Are you going to let me, Tesoro?" He asked as he swept her curls off her forehead.
Kendis nodded.
"Use your words, Kendis," Tony demanded. "I want to hear them."
"Yes," Kendis bit out with a groan as Tony nipped at her chin. "Yes, please."
Tony grinned down at her with a devilish smirk, and then he kissed her again before he nipped at her chin. Then his wet, hot tongue made its way down the long line of her neck.
Tony’s big calloused hands trailed up her thighs prying them open as his lips made down chest. He bent down to suck her stiff nipples into his mouth. His beard tickling their breasts as she grabbed his hair and pulled him flush against her.
She giggled as his beard tickled her skin of breasts but then moaned as tongue flickered back and against her sensitive peaks.
Kendis gave in to the pleasure of his mouth and hands on her as his beard brushed against the underside of her breasts. Tony took them in hand and squeezed.
His other hand squeezed and pinched the other neglected nipple, and the bit of pain just added fuel to the burning inferno of her pleasure.
And when Tony had his fill of torturing the first breast, he switched to the second. He paid just as much attention to that peak as he did the other one. Licking and sucking it until Kendis was just a puddle of ecstasy.
Kendis never thought her breasts were all that sensitive before, but now she felt like she was coming apart by the simple touch of his mouth and fingers on her breasts.
Finally, Tony let them go. He kissed down her stomach and then he threw her a cheeky smirk as he once again ignored her throbbing length between her legs. He kissed her thighs and the insides of their legs but nowhere near the place she needed him.
"Tony," Kendis whined, but he simply smirked at her and then took her fingers into his mouth and sucked.
Kendis knew that she had promised she would allow Tony to take his time, but she felt like if she didn't come right this second, she would lose her mind.
Kendis wrapped her hand against her leaking cock. She whined as Tony knocked her fingers away.
"You aren’t coming until I'm inside you, Glinda," Tony said, his voice deep and demanding, which only made her even more desperate for him.
"Tony," Kendis begged, but Tony, the stubborn asshole, simply ignored her. Minutes stretched into what felt like hours as Tony worshipped every inch of her body.
For that stretch of time, Kendis was the entire focus of Tony's magnificent brain. And Kendis felt like it was crumbling apart at every touch, every kiss, every lick.
By the time he put his mouth on her cock, Kendis was near crying with the need to come.
He reached over and took out lube, condoms, and, to her dismay, a cock ring and lube.
"Something to take the pressure off," Tony said, with a shake of his head. Then rubbed lube on the inside of the cock ring and then wrapped it around Kendis's cock.
Then Kendis shouted as Tony swallowed her cock in one go. She put her hand in his hair, and Tony groaned around her as she pulled his hair.
"I’m not the only one," Kendis groaned. "Not the only one with a bit of a masochist streak."
Tony the bastard tightened his lips around her and sucked hard. It took every bit of her dwindling self-control not to spill inside that wonderful mouth.
Kendis bucked up against him and was thankful that Tony didn’t have a gag reflex. He gripped her hips and held her in place as he bobbed up and down on her throbbing length.
The suction was divine, and Kendis could only hold on and take it. And from the looks of it, Tony was enjoying every moment. His eyes were rapturous as her cock slid across his tongue.
"Tony," Kendis called out. "Please—"
Tony popped off her cock, his mouth red and swollen.
"No--"
Tony leaned over her and kissed her on the lips. She groaned at the taste of her pre-cum on his lips. He broke away from her and then he reached for the condoms.
"No condoms," Kendis croaked out.
Tony blinked at her, "What?"
"I am clean," Kendis shook her head. "I get tested regularly."
"Yeah, me too, " Tony asked, his croaked out. "Are you sure?
In that moment, she desperately craved to feel Tony spill deep inside of her. It was illogical, but she wanted Tony to leave his mark on her.
Kendis nodded, and then Tony kissed her again.
"I'm going to make it so good for you, baby," Tony promised. And he was lubing up his finger and pressing against her hole.
Kendis did her best to relax as he rubbed her hole and then pressed his finger inside of her. It didn't take her long to get used to the slight burn and stretch, even though it had been a while since she had last been fucked this way.
One finger was taken out and then replaced with two and then finally three.
"Enough," Kendis half demanded, half pleaded. Tony looked just as desperate as his. His cock, which had been ignored until now; was hard and red and leaking.
Kendis arched as Tony slid in inside of her, and even with the preparation, she could feel the ache of being filled. He stopped, panting for breath as he gave her a moment to adjust. Kendis was impressed by Tony's stamina and patience as he waited. After a moment, Kendis finally adjusted.
"You okay?" Tony asked, hushed.
“Yeah,” Kendis said. “You can move now.”
And Tony slid all the way out and then slammed back inside. Kendis cried out at how deep he was. The feeling of Tony inside of her and all around was indescribable, and she grabbed onto him. Her long legs wrapped around and pushed him impossibly closer as she met him thrust for thrust.
Tony fucked her slowly and steadily. The room was quiet except for the sound of the smacking of their skin smacking against each other and their moans as they surrendered to pleasure.
Tony and Kendis rocked against each other, sweat- slicked skin pressed together as they made love. And that thought caught Kendis by surprise. This wasn't just fucking, it was making love.
"Please let me come," Kendis begged. “Please!
Tony slides his hand between them. "Come for me, Kendis." His fingers fumbled with the cock ring, and then Kendis was throwing her head back as her body shuttered with the force of her orgasm.
And Tony took that as permission to speed up, his body slamming against hers at a rapid pace as he gripped her hips and took his pleasure.
Although he no longer spoke English, she recognized his words as slurred Italian.
"Sei così adorabile e sei tutto mio," Tony said, " Sii mio."
And then Tony went rigid, his eyes rolling back in his head as he spilled his hot seed inside of her.
"Non andare," Tony said. "Resta sempre con me."
Kendis didn't understand, but she held him close. She welcomed his heavy weight on top of her, holding her down on the bed, his length still so deep inside of her as shuddered under the force of his orgasm.
It hit her then that there was nowhere else she would rather be. Somewhere in the chaos of her life, Kendis had fallen in love with her husband. This ridiculous man had broken through all of her walls and made a home inside of her heart.
And that terrified her.
Translate:
"You are so lovely, and you are all mine," Tony said, in Italian. "Be mine."
"Don't go," Tony said (still Italian). "Stay with me always."
Notes:
I think all of us need to take a good lap after that chapter! 🥵 We are currently halfway through this fic, and the end word count is 71k words. We still have a lot to go, but by my calculations, I should be done publishing this fic by mid January 2026.
I want to thank all of you for sticking with me for NINE MONTHS AND 35k+ WORDS! It's been such a blessing to see people fall in love with Kendis and Tony and their love story.
With that being said, the next chapter will drop August 14th! See you then!
Chapter 29: A Facsimile of Forever.
Summary:
After spending the night together, Kendis and Tony share a quiet moment over a traditional English breakfast.
Notes:
How are you folks doing? I have been loving the last 3 or 4 chapters of Temp Spouse, and we've got a little more of domestic Kendis and Tony to go through. But these chapters really some of my favorite chapters that I have ever written!
As much as I love the drama and the plot, at the end of the day, I just want cozy slice of life romance, okay?
🛎️ Reminder: You can get early access to all chapters on my website. Also, I have changed the publishing schedule from 2 times a month to 3 times a month because if I didn't Temp Spouse would be finished until December of 2026. And I'm chomping at the bit to get to The Perilous Husband (aka Iron Man 1).
I have been reading comic books to prepare for that story because I really don't want to give you a rehash. I want to shake things up with both the MCU and HP verse. Writing this series would not be fun for me if I were just rehashing all of the Iron Man movies.
🏳️⚧️ Important: if you want to do your part to support trans rights, please keep yourself educated on anti-trans bills in your state and contact your local representatives. Also, this is your regular reminder to continue boycotting all Harry Potter books, movies, TV shows, games, and official merch. Every penny that goes to J.K. Rowling goes to her anti-trans hate group.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Kendis squinted against the sudden lights in her eyes as the curtains automatically drew back.
"Good morning. It's 7:00 a.m. and the weather in Malibu is 70 degrees, with scattered clouds. The surf conditions are fair with waist-to-shoulder high lines. High tide will be at 1:36 p.m."
A groan escaped her lips as she tried to shift, but the encircling arms squeezed her tighter. Kendis froze, her heart ramping up in her chest. As she was on the verge of using a wandless spell to retrieve her wand, Kendis remembered where she was and who was with her.
"Shit! What did I tell you about early morning wake-up calls?" She heard a familiar voice murmuring behind her.
"You okay there, Glinda?" Tony asked, his voice husky and low with sleep. And God, she felt a rush of heat go straight to her cock.
"I’m fine." Kendis’s grip on Tony’s hands eased, allowing her to look into his eyes. His hair was a mess, his eyes were sleepy, and he had a soppy grin on his face.
"Really?" Tony lifted an eyebrow.
"I had a little scare, but I am fine," Kendis insisted as she ran her fingers through his hair. And, goddamnit, the man's hair had no business being so soft. Tony closed his eyes and hummed.
"I'm going to be jumpy for a while." Kendis shrugged.
"Understandable with everything that’s going on." Tony gave a nod, took her hand in his, and kissed her palm.
Kendis felt her heart pound in her chest, warm with a feeling she now knew was love. Somehow, over the last few weeks, Tony had gone from being a stranger who annoyed her to someone she would do anything to protect.
"Glinda?"
Kendis leaned across the small distance between him and kissed him. She knew herself enough to know that if she hadn't pressed her mouth to his, she would have blurted out those words.
And Tony had already done so much for her that the last thing she needed to do was to project her feelings onto him.
Kendis had fully expected Tony to pull away because they both had the case of morning breath, but his lips still moved against her with slow, intoxicating movements.
This man kissed her as if he didn't have a worry in the world, and she would only admit to herself that she could spend the rest of her life kissing this man and still not be satisfied.
Tony pulled her naked body against him, her breasts pressed against his hard chest as both of their morning wood rubbed against each other.
Then suddenly, her stomach gave a loud, embarrassing growl.
Freezing, Tony ended the kiss and raised an eyebrow. Kendis looked away, her cheeks once again heating from embarrassment.
Tony burrowed his head in her shoulder and chuckled.
Kendis huffed in annoyance, but couldn't keep her lips from twitching even though Tony was laughing at her own expense. She pushed him playfully away for her. "Let's get breakfast."
Tony caught her hand as she tried to get up. "How about we order in and finish what we started?" He wiggled his eyebrows, and Kendis snorted.
"No bloody likely," Kendis shook her head. "I prefer to cook."
”I’m going to get some sleep while you are getting your Martha Stewart on.” Tony waved her off. ” He flopped down on the sheets and closed his eyes.
Kendis was tempted to make him help in the kitchen, but considering his lack of sleep and her generous mood, she decided not to.
Kendis rolled her eyes, and her gaze traveled around the bedroom. Much like the rest of the mansion, it was furnished in a postmodern style with a large platform taupe bed. Its headboard sat against a pale oak panel wall, and she could see the faint glow of lights reflecting from the top and bottom.
Just like in her guest room, the nightstands were built into the wall and had lamps seated on top of them. And on the wall between the nightstands, she saw a photo of Rhodey, Pepper, and Tony smiling cheekily into the camera, with Tony throwing up the peace sign.
On the other side, she noticed a sepia-toned photo in a gold picture frame, sitting on the nightstand. She picked it up and saw that the woman was beautiful with long blonde hair, tan skin, and dark eyes. And it was that familiar smile that told her this photo was of Tony’s mother, Maria.
Kendis had expected Tony to look like his father, but she could see from the shape of his eyes, nose, and smile that he had a lot of his mother in him as well.
Tony muttered something in his sleep and turned over, but didn’t wake up. Kendis shook her head and carefully put the frame back. As she padded on the wooden floor that was a shade lighter than the bed, she noticed a very expensive telescope standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows. Then her gaze landed on two narrow doors. Kendis opened the first door, and she found a palatial bathroom. It had Italian marble white floors, a light oak and marble counter that stretched the length of one wall, a vanity mirror with lights inserted on the side, and round lights in the ceiling. They were nothing like the flat fluorescent lights in her bathroom. One side was a large tub, easily big enough for a Quidditch team, and a glass-enclosed shower.
Kendis took a shower first, even though Tony had made sure to clean off any evidence of last night’s activities from her body. He had even changed the sheets before they finally fell asleep, tangled up together.
But she still didn't feel quite clean, so she padded into the bathroom and got into the shower. Sitting on the bench built into the shower was a basket of products, and Kendis was relieved to find a shower cap. Because her cornrows were on their last legs and Hortense wasn’t around to rebraid her hair. Besides, all her products were still tucked in her bag in the guest room.
Kendis hadn’t planned on spending the night with Tony, but she didn’t regret it. In hindsight, as she looked at the path that had brought her to this point, sleeping with Tony again had seemed inevitable. And Kendis knew she had been deluding herself that she could resist him.
What she hadn’t expected was for her to fall so fast. Kendis sighed as she longed for a good, long Kiki with her friends. However, she still hadn’t told Hermione and Ron that she had gotten married. And although Hortense and Isiah knew something had happened between her and Tony, they didn’t know more than that.
But Kendis knew she would spill all of her secrets to them the moment she saw their faces in the talking mirror. And that meant telling them how bad the situation with Chester was.
She had fully expected another one of his black envelopes to show up, but none had. However, Kendis knew Chester would never give up. And if she told her friends how bad the situation had gotten, she knew they would be on the first portkey to Los Angeles or, even worse, insist that she returned home to England.
While she stood alone in the shower, she could admit how ashamed she felt. Kendis, the defeater of who must not be named, had been minutes away from being raped in her bedroom.
She could admit how ashamed she felt as she stood alone in the shower.
Kendis shuttered and forcibly shoved those thoughts away. She would not let Chester ruin her good mood. She took one good look at all the dials and buttons on Tony’s shower and shook her head.
“Jarvis, can you turn on the shower?”
“Of course, Mx. Black,” Jarvis replied, and then water fell from the ceiling. Kendis did her best to enjoy the good pressure of endless hot water and not dwell on her feelings.
Half an hour later, Kendis stepped out of the shower and grabbed a towel. Using a drying charm would be faster and easier, but she’d already wrecked enough of Tony’s tech. Kendis sighed as she dried herself and then wrapped the towel around her waist.
On the counter, a small section of the wall slid apart to reveal another one of the tiny helper bots. It held out to her a green toothbrush still in its wrapper. Kendis patted the bot on the head as she said, "Thank you."
Excited, the bot wiggled, then quickly scurried back into its hole before the wall closed.
"Jarvis? Does Tony have any lotion?"
“Under the cabinet, Mx. Black,” Jarvis replied, and the cabinet under the sink opened by itself. Kendis was used to ridiculous magical places, so it didn’t faze her.
Chuckling, she examined the vast collection of skincare items that put Draco’s collection of tonics and creams to shame. During their eight-year relationship, they had shared a bathroom, and his skin care products had taken up most of the space.
Kendis laughed and grabbed Tony’s bougie vanilla scented lotion before sitting on the bathroom toilet and slathering the stuff on her skin. She loved how smooth her golden brown skin felt.
Kendis left the bathroom and found Tony sprawled on the bed. He was lying on his stomach, sunlight hitting his amazing back muscles as they moved with each breath.
Kendis was tempted to move the sheet and show her appreciation for that fantastic arse with her teeth and tongue.
She looked down at her cock that had gone down during her shower, but was now trying to make a valiant attempt to rise to the occasion.
Kendis grumbled, ”Behave,” then sighed and ducked into the closet.
This wardrobe’s bigger than most people’s apartments! Growing up in a cupboard, Kendis was blown away by the wardrobe’s size.
Kendis ran her hands over the designer suits, which were organized by designer name and color, before she studied the shoes on the shelf.
Even when she was presenting as a man, this was never her style. In her masculine appearance, Kendis didn't give a shit about what she wore as long as her body was covered up.
After her transition, Kendis had finally embraced fashion. But to both Hortense's and Draco's utter despair, her style only vacillated between Avril Lavigne and Joan Jett, as she only wore black clothes.
That morning, however, Kendis found herself gravitating towards a row of white button-down shirts that she was pretty sure cost more than her house.
She grabbed one and held it up to her face. There was a trace of Tony’s expensive cologne on the shirt; Kendis could smell it. Before she knew it, she was unbuttoning and putting it on.
Kendis turned as she heard footsteps and found Tony leaning against the door, completely nude; the shameless wretch.
"You look good in my clothes," Tony said as he looked her up and down.
"Thanks," Kendis replied with a shy smile before she crossed the distance between them and pressed her lips to his.
Tony hummed as he broke the kiss, ”I can get used to this."
"Go take a shower and get dressed." Kendis shook her head, but couldn’t help giving him another brief peck on the lips. "I'm going to get started on breakfast."
Kendis made a quick pit stop to the guest room to grab the Stark phone Jarvis had loaned her and called Dr. Lan to check on Alke. He assured her that Alke was recovering well and that she would probably stay at the clinic another day before she could pick her up.
With a disappointed sigh, Kendis made her way to the elevator and down to the ground floor, where the kitchen was.
She was amazed to see that, somehow, in the last 24 hours, the kitchen was stocked with tons of English food like blood pudding, her favorite Jammy Dodgers, and Batchelor's beans.
Kendis held out the can of beans. "Did you do this, Jarvis?"
"Yes, I took the liberty of ordering something that might better suit your palette,” Jarvis replied.
Kendis had lived in America for over a decade and only took brief trips back home to keep her friends and family from dragging her back to England, kicking and screaming. She was now used to American food but couldn't help being touched by Jarvis’s thoughtful gesture.
"Thank you, Jarvis," Kendis said with a happy smile.
"Pleasure Mx. Black," Jarvis replied.
Kendis grabbed what she needed from the pantry and then took out a pan. She first started with frying the bread because she was in the mood for an old-fashioned English breakfast. It would be a shame to let all of Jarvis’s thoughtful gifts go to waste.
By the time she heard Tony make it downstairs, she had finished frying the bread, the eggs, the sausage, and the blood pudding. All that was left were the baked beans. Kendis was singing along to Love and Happiness by Al Green, pausing occasionally to dance and click their fingers as she stimmed, when the music got turned down suddenly.
Kendis was singing, dancing, and excitedly stimming to Al Green's "Love and Happiness" when the music was suddenly cut.
She turned to find Tony watching her with an amused smile. Luckily, he wore a white ”Engineer I’m Not Arguing Just Explaining Why I’m Right” t-shirt, ripped jeans, and white Prada sneakers. He walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her. “I’m so lucky I got a spouse who loves to cook.”
“Still not June Cleaver,” Kendis said with a stern glare, but couldn’t repress the small smile on her lips.
“You are way better,” Tony said as he kissed her cheek. “Now put me to work. What do you need?”
Kendis directed Tony to cut up the tomatoes, and by the time he was done, the beans were ready. Tony went to grab the plates, and she put the beans on toast, eggs, sausage, blood pudding, and then tomato slices.
“This smells so good,” Tony said as he carried the plates to the island. “This brings me back to that weekend I spent in London a few years back.”
"Thanks. Jarvis bought the ingredients, and I couldn't resist."
"You did good, Jarvis.” Tony looked up at the nearest camera.
“Thank you, sir,” Jarvis replied.
Kendis wondered for a moment if this was how it would be if they were a real married couple, with her waking up next to Tony every day, making him breakfast, and sharing kisses with him in the kitchen. The only thing that was missing was Alke.
She bet Tony could charm Alke in no time.
Though Kendis loved Alke and missed her baby, her dog couldn’t completely fill the void. Even with friends, Kendis still felt desperately lonely, and she always secretly desired the kind of love her parents had.
Kendis always thought that type of love wasn’t in the cards for her. Her relationship with Josefa was the closest she ever came to it. Yet, even that was snatched away from her.
In the end, this thing between her and Tony was just a short interlude before she went back to normal life. But for the first time since Kendis had woken up in that hotel room in Vegas, she wanted to be married to Tony Stark.
Notes:
Who fell first, and who fell harder? Tony fell first, but wow, Kendis absolutely fell harder! 😂 I love that Kendis is delusional to think that Tony is just going to let her go when that boy is SPRUNG! Now the question is how Kendis is going to respond to that? Is she going to be brave enough to go after what she wants?
Well, you are going to have to wait and find out. The next update (because we update 3 times a month now) will be on August 21st. I also have a calendar on Google if you want to keep up with my publishing schedule.
Chapter 30: Love in The Fastlane
Summary:
After spending the night together, Kendis and Tony share a quiet moment over a traditional English breakfast.
Notes:
Hi, folks! Welcome back! This update is more of my favorite type of stuff to write! Sweet romantic fluff! And Tony and Kendis are still pretending that they are not ass over tea kettle for each other, but you know, I've got to add a dash of conflict to keep things interesting.
This chapter is not smutty at all, but it does fun, Los Angeles touristy things. If you are from the LA area and you find my stuff wrong, please let me know. I am always interested in hearing what you folks have to say. I had way too much fun trolling through local forums and subreddits for this.
📌Reminder: You can get early access to the next chapter and fun merch on my website. Make sure to check it out!
🏳️⚧️ Important: if you want to do your part to support trans rights, please keep yourself educated on anti-trans bills in your state and contact your local representatives. Also, this is your regular reminder to continue boycotting all Harry Potter books, movies, TV shows, games, and official merch. Every penny that goes to J.K. Rowling goes to her anti-trans hate group.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
“In a room full of dimes, you would be a hundred dollars,” Kendis sang out loud along with the radio. “If being fine was a crime, girl, they’d lock your lil’ fine ass up in a tower.”
As they drove down I-405 from Malibu into Calabasas, their fingers tapped a rhythm on the steering wheel.
“You have the worst taste in music,” Tony shouted over the music. Kendis flipped him off and sang even louder. Just because Tony only listened to classic rock didn’t mean that Kendis couldn’t groove to Bruno Mars.
It was a near picture perfect Southern California day. The sun was out, and palm trees swayed in the wind under a bright blue sky dotted with fluffy white clouds and sunshine.
Kendis felt a pang of hurt as they thought about how they usually took Alke out on hikes through the trail through Topanga Park on days like this.
The music cut out, scaring her. She looked over and saw Tony looking worried. He reached over and took her hand. “You okay there, Glinda?”
Kendis did their best to shove their worry and sudden melancholy away and gave Tony a small smile. “I’m fine.’
Tony opened his mouth and then shut it, but thankfully, he decided not to press the issue.
“Jarvis, turn to Life in the Fastlane by the Eagles,” Tony called out, and then suddenly the hard thumping beat erupted from the Shelby’s stereo. Kendis rolled her eyes at Tony, but she didn’t complain.
She was driving a hot car on a beautiful day with the man she loved. Her heart thumped rapidly in her chest, and her cheeks flushed red.
It still hadn’t sunk in for Kendis. They fancied Tony like mad, but still couldn’t bring themselves to confess.
Besides, telling Tony of her feelings wouldn’t change anything.
She had only another day or two left with him, and then Tony would walk out of her life, taking her heart with him.
‘Stop it,’ Kendis chided themselves. She wouldn’t spoil the little time she had left with Tony with her gloomy thoughts.
They were just turning into Encino when she saw a billboard for Go-Kart Racing. The address wasn’t too far, and she was curious if Tony was as good behind the wheel as his friendship with Dom Toretto alluded to.
Dominic Toretto didn’t hang around people who didn’t know their way around a racetrack.
“I don’t like that smile,” Tony remarked warily. “What are you up?”
“Oh, don’t worry your pretty little head about it,” Kendis said with a smile and turned up the radio and sang along.
“Oh, you are in for it now!” Tony said as he rubbed his hands with glee.
“Don’t get too cocky, love,” Kendis said as they got out of the car. “I am just giving yourself a chance to get beaten fair and square.”
Tony rolled his eyes, and then Kendis frowned as she started to notice a few people giving them looks.
“Tony, do you trust me?”
Tony paused and gave her a long look. “Yes...”
“Do you have any electronics on you?” Kendis bit her lip.
Tony’s eyes rose, “What do you want to do?” He did a swish motion to obviously mimic doing magic with her wand.
“Yes, that, but I don’t need my wand to do it.” Kendis just barely refrained from pinching the bridge of her nose. One of the few wandless spells she had learned during her seventh year was the notice me not spell. She could do it in her sleep. “Well, you are a celebrity, and I may have my tattoo.” She tapped her chest where the tattoo was, “But you don’t so...”
“Only condition,” Tony said, with a smirk.
Kendis lifted an eyebrow. “What?”
“You let me take pictures.”
“But the whole magic thing?”
”But everything,” Tony did jazz hands to refer to magic. ”Won’t it fry my phone like before?”
”There’s a chance,” Kendis admitted. ”But this spell won’t be as powerful. It won’t be like the magic surge you saw at my house. Why don’t you leave your phone in your car? I can cast it near something less technological and more private.
Kendis was wary about having her photos taken. The memory brought back painful times with the Creevy brothers and the Wixen paparazzi, but Kendis knew this mattered to him—their tattoos would prevent their face from being seen in any photos.
Yet, allowing Tony to take some photos was the least she could do after all that he had done for them.
Tony shrugged and then quickly dropped his phone on the driver’s seat of the Shelby. There was an automatic click.
They walked in the parking lot, then found a narrow alley between the side of the ticket both and the fence surrounding the racetrack. Kendis didn’t want to risk all the high-tech electronics built into the Shelby.
They put their hand on hands on Tony’s chest and then Kendis quickly cast the spell. They were thankful that it was one of the few spells they could cast both wandlessly and non-verbally.
Tony wrinkled his nose. “It feels tingly.”
Kendis snorted, “Go get your phone.”
Tony jogged to the Shelby for his phone, then hurried back.
“Got it,” he said, wiggling his phone in front of her. “Let’s go!”
As they walked, Tony intertwined his fingers with hers. Tony grabbed a quick photo of their feet as they walked to the front of the booth.
“I am not even going to ask,” Kendis shook her head.
Tony flashed her a cheeky grin that made her chest flutter, and then he dragged her to the ticket booth.
They both argued over who paid for the ticket, but Tony, the sly bastard, used his phone to transfer the payment quicker than Kendis could draw their wallet.
After going to the ticket booth, they walked over to where the go-karts were parked. Her gaze traveled across the track. Need4Speed Go-Karts was basically a converted parking lot that took up one entire block in the center of Brentwood. A wire fence isolated the track from the shops and restaurants in the neighborhood.
Tony froze, then he turned to her. She stopped and turned back to Tony, lifting an eyebrow.
“Who is the cocky one, mate?” Tony mimicked her accent badly.
Kendis rolled her eyes. “Put your money where your mouth is?”
Tony looked her up and down with a downright filthy smirk on his mouth that made her want to both simultaneously kiss him and punch him in the throat.
Kendis wasn’t someone you could push around, so she walked right up to him. Her hips swayed as she swaggered up to Tony and whispered in his ear.
“If you win, I will give you the dicking down you are begging for, and I promise it will be worth it,” Kendis whispered in his ear. She teased his ear with her tongue, and Kendis grinned when she felt him shiver.
“Deal,” Tony replied, a little breathlessly.
Kendis took a step back, and her smile grew impossibly wide. ”Good!” Kendis said, as she slapped him on the ass, “Now, come on, princess. I got a race to win.”
It didn’t take long for Kendis and Tony to pick out their go-karts. Kendis had chosen a blue one, while Tony had chosen red.
Tony had begged her to take a few photos of him in his go-kart. And Kendis gave in because she was weak, and Tony Stark’s puppy eyes were surprisingly potent.
For Kendis, it took her a moment to get used to the feel of the go-kart. They are very different from driving a normal car or one of her bikes. It was certainly different from riding a broom.
It was lower to the ground than she preferred her cars, but there was something exhilarating feeling the vibration of the Go-Kart’s engine going through her body.
They sat at the light, waiting, engine running. Tony gave her a wink, and Kendis laughed but kept her eye on the stoplight.
Red
Yellow
Green
Kendis slammed her foot on the pedal, and she was off, with Tony on her heels. She easily navigated the curves of her track.
Kendis took a sharp turn, but Tony was close, and then she swore under her breath as Tony crept a little past her.
“Buggering fuck, “ Kendis swore through gritted teeth and slammed her foot down on the pedal. The one thing that never changed about Kendis was that she was a competitive little shit, and Kendis never lost.
As far as Kendis was concerned, Tony’s sweet ass was already hers.
Kendis pushed the go-kart as fast as she could, and Kendis and Tony were neck and neck. Dom hadn’t lied when she had called him after the race to complain about ‘Tin Man’. Tony was hell on wheels and gave as good as he got.
The two were neck and neck, and Kendis was starting to worry, but thankfully her car could inch past at the last minute. Kendis braked, and the go-kart came to a screeching halt just over the finish line.
Kendis quickly ripped off her helmet and unbuckled herself from the cart. Moments later, Tony was out of his cart, but unlike the jackass at the last race, he wasn’t angry.
Laughing, Tony walked over and pulled her into his arms. She looked into his bright, shining brown eyes, and a stronger person than her could resist the urge to kiss him.
Kendis brought her lips to his and melted against him as sinful lips moved against hers. He moaned, and his arms wrapped around her waist to bring them flush together.
Time didn’t matter as they kissed passionately. Tony Stark was dangerous to her sensibilities.
Finally, the need to breathe superseded their need to keep kissing, and with a reluctant sigh, Tony broke the kiss.
“I think I will lose more often if the reward is a kiss like that,” Tony said, with a low chuckle that made her shiver.
Kendis snorted, and Tony shook his head.
“How about another turn or two on the track?” Tony said with a grin.
“You are not getting out of paying up.”
Tony winked at her. “I wouldn’t think of it!” Then he swaggered back to his go-kart.
Turned out that a turn or two turned into many loops around the track. On the next turn, Kendis lost, but then she got him back by winning in the end.
When they finally finished with the go-karts, it was well past lunchtime. They spent forever deciding where to eat. Tony wanted Chinese, Kendis Korean BBQ, but neither wanted burgers.
Kendis typically loved a good burger, but she just wasn't feeling it that day. They finally agreed on Mexican. Luckily for Kendis, Tony's favorite taco truck was parked near Brentwood that day.
They found the pink truck with bright yellow marigolds painted on the side and the words La Chiquita Mexicano written in white script font on the side.
There was a long line, and Kendis groaned. It would take forever to get their food. Tony took one look at her and snorted.
"I already texted Emilo and paid."
"You know the owner?" Kendis asked, eyebrow raised.
Tony shrugged. "I helped them out of a rough spot." He said nothing more, only met Kendis's silent stare before she sighed and shook her head. Tony could brag all day about his technological wonders, but when admitting anything that didn't adhere to the mask of a rich, spoiled fuckboi, he got uncomfortable—it was both adorable and frustrating.
Tony took a photo of the car, and she threw him a strange look. He shook his head. "Since your face can't be photographed and I have the whole--"
He did jazz hands, and Kendis wondered how many ridiculous euphemisms he was going to give for the magic he was going to come up with.
"I took a photo of the car," Tony shrugged. And sure enough, a bald, plump middle-aged Latinx man and a wide smile hurried out of the side of the truck. His hands were full of steaming white styrofoam containers and a carafe with their drinks.
His eyes scanned the parking lot, and his gaze traveled right past Tony and settled on the Shelby.
The man she assumed was Emilo hurried across the parking lot, and Kendis quickly ran over to help him with the takeaway. He looked her up and down and gave her a shit-eating grin.
"Leave it to Tony to have great taste in cars and women," Emilo snorted as Kendis grabbed the food. A part of her wanted to correct Emilo that she wasn't a woman, but in the end, she just let the misgendering go.
"Uh, thanks," Kendis replied awkwardly as she adjusted her hold on the food, and Emilo just waved and jogged back to the truck.
Kendis silently walked to an empty picnic bench and set down the containers. Tony grinned, then sat across from her, trouble written all over his face.
"I should tear you a new one for ordering for me." Kendis wrinkled her nose. "And how do you know I'm not allergic to anything?"
"Are you allergic to anything?" Tony asked, suddenly worried.
Kendis huffed and said, "No. You should have asked first."
"Guess, I'll trash this then," Tony started to pull the food containers across the table, and they slapped his hand.
"Stop that!" Kendis slapped his hand. "Now tell me which one is mine."
Tony threw his head back and laughed, then handed her one of the containers.
Kendis rolled her eyes and picked up her carne asada taco and took a bite. She moaned as the taste of the meat and the sauce hit her tongue.
This had to be the best taco she had ever had. Tony smirked at her before he dumped an illegal amount of sour cream and guacamole on top of his cheese quesadilla and scarfed it down.
It didn't take her long to eat her way through the rest of it. Her mouth was tingling with the result of the hot spices. Being British and growing up in a white family, she used to think salt and pepper was too spicy, but she learned how she was wrong when Kendis first moved to Los Angeles.
Now, after living here for close to a decade, Kendis was proud she wasn't guzzling down a bottle of milk after every meal.
"God, I need to come here more often," Tony said, as he took a Swiss army knife out of his pocket and popped the top off the guava-flavored and punch-flavored Jarritos.
"Guava or punch?" Tony asked, holding out the bottles. Kendis took the punch, and he took the guava. She smiled at him in thanks and slid it next to her plate.
A comfortable silence fell between them as they lost themselves in the food. And sadly, before Kendis knew it, she was taking the last bite of her taco and drowning the rest in her cold Jarrito.
"I'm taking Hortense and Isiah here for lunch when they get back."
"Your employees?" Tony asked.
"Yeah, they are more like business partners and friends than employees."
"I can understand that," Tony said. "Obie is my godfather and my business partner."
It took everything for Kendis to not wrinkle her nose at the thought of Obadiah Stane. She did not like the way he looked at her, like she was a piece a meat.
"He worked with your dad?" Kendis asked, carefully.
"Obie was my dad's best friend and business partner," Tony shrugged." The man has been COO at Stark Industries longer than I've been alive.
"I can understand that," Kendis nodded. "My dad and my godfather were partners in the Auror Corp."
"Your dad was a cop?"
"Yeah, I wasn't joking when I told you that everyone I admired as a kid was an Auror." Kendis shook her head. "I should have known the Auror corps weren't shit considering how quickly they framed my godfather for murder."
Tony choked on his drink. "What—"
"It's a long story," Kendis said, with a sad smile. "Let's just say the Wizarding World's justice system is just as rubbish as the Muggle one."
Tony gave her a long look, but he didn't press her. She took the awkward silence as an opportunity to change the subject.
"Where now?"
Tony shrugged. "This is your show."
Kendis thought of going back to the mansion, but it was still early, and she wasn’t ready for her time with Tony to end.
”I know the perfect place!” she grinned, snatching the keys from Tony.
Notes:
I live in South Texas, and I could not skip over the opportunity to put in Mexican food in this fic. Texas food is like 50% Mexican food, 25% BBQ, and 25% Soul Food! 😅 I do want to take a moment, though, to say that you should support the anti-ICE protests that are happening in L.A. right now. Since I can't link any mutual aids here because of A03's rules, I will urge you to help do your part to protect immigrants from Cheetolini's draconian immigration policies.
By the way, the next update for The Temporary Spouse is on September 11th. The next chapter will be full of pegging and smut, so you've got tons to look forward to! Until next time, friends!
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