[IC] Hooked on a Feeling

[Morose]

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Guinevere Stark

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To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
Wow. Dead to me, Lando. Should've taken out lab life insurance on you.

To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
And I'm sure the nurse can deal with it.

To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
Try not to let your dad break New York though? It'll make the traffic awful if he does...

She then paused, hearing new information being given in a lecture for the first time it what felt like an eternity. She put her phone back into her pocket without having to be told, even picking up her pen and taking attentive notes on the subject. For a moment, she was able to forget about the rest of the world and her problems. She was just happily absorbing new information, though it wasn't too much of an intellectual challenge. The teacher over explained concepts, meaning that whenever the teacher posed a question to the class, Guin was already five steps ahead of them - at least. It often felt more like 5! than just 5.

But there was also another good reason for her to be paying attention. The group sitting at the cluster of desks to her right had started talking about a few kids who all were given an in school suspension for beating the crap out of that Banner kid. They weren't laughing about it, at least, but Guin wrote down the names of the culprits on her pad of paper. Step one was completed ahead of schedule - and she could still use Flash for completing step two. Step three was going to be the real fun part.

Meanwhile, about fifteen minutes passed between Banner hanging up and him arriving at the school, driving the least flashy of Tony's cars - which was still incredibly expensive looking. He honked his horn. "Lance, buddy, you okay?" he asked, pulling up to the curb and opening the door for Lance to get in. He then pulled out a small flashlight. "Going to give you a quick medical examination, just to be safe..."

[BlueSky44]

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Lance Banner

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He looked at his phone, letting out a laugh at it now. Guin's reactions to him going home were hilarious to him, and it definitely brightened his mood at the idea of leaving the school to go to Stark Tower, or to the apartment, he didn't really care much for either option. Though he doubted that he'd get any sort of choice in the matter. He did wonder where his dad would take him when he showed up.

To: Guin Stark
Whatever, your loss if you didn't take that life insurance.

To: Guin Stark
That's what I thought, but I'm pretty sure my dad was pissed off that it happened at all.

To: Guin Stark
Yeah, that is the reason that I requested to wait outside of the school for him, didn't think it was a good idea to risk it.

He sent the messages off in quick succession as he waited for his dad to show up. By the time his dad pulled up, he was sitting there reading a book, holding it with one hand and kept the other on the ice pack that probably needed to be cold again. He let out a sigh when he pulled up, putting his book away as he got into the car, and was blinded by the flashlight. "I'm fine..." he muttered, before sending off another message to Guin.

To: Guin Stark
Well, looks like this is going to be fun, last time I had a medical exam was a few months ago when it was kind of required for me to have one, yay... I wish you could help me with dealing with my dad overreacting...

[Morose]

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Guinevere Stark

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Lance wouldn't get any replies from Guin - in fact, his messages only showed as delivered and not as read. The genetics lecture was managing to hold her attention - meaning that it was receiving just about all of her attention. She didn't even want to go into biology or anything along those lines. She just was completely thrilled with the prospect of finally talking about things she didn't already know. Genetics being a scientific field was another bonus. She didn't even notice when an airplane glided gently onto her desk. The teacher certainly didn't notice as well.

"Stark, you've got a note..." Peter whispered.

Guin blinked a bit, turning away from the lecture with a bit of disappointment as she flattened out the airplane in order to read the message. She smirked a bit. This would circumvent any need for phase two. She could skip right to phrase three with this information. She jotted down a reply on the piece of paper, before wadding it up and throwing it over her shoulder. She figured it'd end up in the hands of the right people.

Meanwhile... "I'll be the judge of that, buddy," Banner argued, flashing the light in Lance's eyes. He was relieving to see that Lance didn't have a concussion or anything. The school nurse had managed to treat all of Lance's injuries correctly - which Banner saw as a minor miracle. "Alright, you're fine. You shouldn't be texting now anyways - you need to rest. I've got work to do, so you can rest in one of the rooms at Stark Tower."

Lance's phone would then finally go off:

To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
Hey, at least yours didn't lock you up in rehab.

[BlueSky44]

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Lance Banner

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"I do not need to rest! If I had things my way they wouldn't have called you in the first place..." he said, not looking at him, just staring out the window. "Besides, not like something like this hasn't happened before," he muttered as they drove. He didn't care if his dad found out about the previous times he got beaten up, none of it really mattered to him anymore. The only question he would want to avoid is why would they attack him.

His dad calling him buddy reminded him of the conversation with Hammer the day before, and for some reason he had kept the guy's business card, and it was in his coat pocket. He wanted to keep that conversation out of his head for as long as possible, since he didn't really care much for the man that he had met for only a few minutes. He ignored his dad saying he shouldn't be texting and looked at his phone.

To: Guin Stark
Hey... Don't be like that... So, how's the plan to beat up those guys going? Since I'm guessing that is what you are going to be doing...

[Morose]

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Guinevere Stark

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Guin glanced at the text from Lance in her pocket, knowing that her words had likely hit their intended mark. She hated the fact that her father had sent her away to rehab - and she hated her mother for what Maddie had done to her while she was there. Sure, initially she had claimed to hate Tony for sending her there. But truthfully, she hated the decision and not her father. There had been some low points at rehab where she actually had been cognizant of the need for her to be there - but overall, she had hated the experience.

To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
If I told you, you could testify against me in court.

Besides, it'd be a few hours before she could make those responsible pay for what they had done to Lance. Her scheme wouldn't be entirely finished until the next day, in which they hopefully would be bruised and nearing expulsion if it all went to plan. No one got to hurt her friends and get away with it. And if she didn't make an example of these punks now, what would stop the next group of assholes from trying the same thing?

Meanwhile... Banner took in a deep breath, having a death grip on the wheel. He wasn't stupid - he'd suspected that Lance had been getting beaten up at school but he hadn't been able to prove it. Hearing him admit it, though - it was like someone had just put a knife through his heart. He only ever wanted to protect his son and knowing that he had failed to do that...it was a bit of a nightmare. "You are going to rest and tomorrow, you're going to take lessons in fighting with Happy," Banner informed Lance as he pulled into the garage.

[BlueSky44]

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Lance Banner

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"I do not need to learn fighting or anything with Happy! I generally choose not to fight, otherwise I risk turning into a free laser show and blind everyone within 50 feet of me. It literally took all of the energy I had to not do that in the middle of the school! I choose not to fight back because to me it is completely pointless!" he said, glaring at his dad now. Now that they weren't in the school, he didn't have to try and prevent his powers from showing, and his entire body was starting to glow with a faint light. "Besides, I probably would accidentally blind him permanently anyway!"

When they pulled into the garage, Lance hardly waited for the car to stop before he grabbed his bag and got out, ignoring his dad entirely now as he went to the elevator. He was still glowing slightly, but he didn't care, he did not want to talk about all of this right now, especially since he couldn't control his powers, and was slightly fearful that his dad might hulk out or something. He pulled out his phone again and noticed Guin's message.

To: Guin Stark
What makes you think I'd testify against you? I think they deserve it personally.

[Morose]

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Guinevere Stark

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To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
Oh, you wouldn't betray me willingly. But you'd be put under oath and then asked a question - and we both know you never break the rules...

To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
So it'd be something like this -

To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
"Hey, did Guin Stark beat the shit out of these boys?"

To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
You: Well, she did so...Hell yes, sir. Your holiness...

To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
(And that's where they drag me off to Azkaban and I die alone).

To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
But in a shocking twist, you cash in the insurance policy! Because apparently death in prison is covered by your provider!

Guin chuckled as she put her phone away again, getting up and collecting her things as she moved to the next class of the day. Her classes were tolerable at best without Lance there. Though to be fair, she only had one other day's worth of experience to reference for that claim. This level of tolerability could easily be a one time fluke that would never be achieved again as long as Lance wasn't at school. Sure, some of the other kids did seem nice - there were a few she identified already as not being complete idiots - but was that enough to base a friendship off of? She just didn't know.

Meanwhile, Banner parked the car and got into the elevator with Lance, just making it in time before the doors closed. He knew that Lance wasn't happy with him and he didn't blame him - but it also didn't mean he was just going to let Lance treat him like this. Tony had been giving him some advice on parenting and he needed to define roles - to make sure Lance knew that he was the kid and Banner was the parent. "You can't talk to me like that - I'm your father," Banner mumbled, pressing the button for the lab floors. "And you are going to learn how to fight from Happy whether you want to or not. You can't keep on getting beat up at school!"

[BlueSky44]

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Lance Banner

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To: Guin Stark
Hey! I wouldn't be that bad you know!

To: Guin Stark
Ok... Maybe I would, I'll admit that one...

To: Guin Stark
HELP!!! MY DAD IS SAYING I NEED TO LEARN TO FIGHT FROM HAPPY!!!!!!

He sent the messages off quickly before his dad got into the elevator. "Yeah, you sound really confident about that," he said with an eye roll as they rode the elevator upstairs. Lance left the unspoken You and I both know that I'd probably be better off if you weren't my dad. "I don't even want to fight... People tend to fight me, it's not like I choose to get dragged into it... And I personally don't even care if I get beaten up or something...

Lance thought of maybe sending another message off to Guin, but decided against it in the end as he waited for the elevator to stop. "Besides, if they hadn't hit my head, you probably wouldn't even know about it still, which would have been nice..." he muttered, still not looking at him. He was starting to think that the elevator needed to hurry up so he wasn't stuck in it with his dad much longer.

[Morose]

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Guinevere Stark

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Guin burst out laughing when she saw Lance's text, as she walked from genetics class to her math class. Happy did have some skills - he actually used to spar with her father - but Lance was acting like training with Happy was the end of the world. When her father became Iron Man and Romanoff was assigned as a shadow at Stark Industries, Black Widow taught Guin how to fight. The lessons were painful, grueling, and lengthy - but she learned a lot from Romanoff. She doubted Happy would be able to do much more than tire Lance out. If anything, Happy was more at risk of Lance blinding him than anything else.

To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
First world problem much? :P

To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
I think you'll be fine. Besides, Happy's a big old softy. At least you aren't getting Romanoff to train you.

To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
Worst case scenario, just run reactions with sulfur until Banner can't stand the smell and he leaves you alone...

Meanwhile...

"You might not care, but I do, Lance!" Banner snapped, before taking a breath and running a hand through his hair. He really didn't want to Hulk out in an elevator - again - especially with his son around. He didn't know how the Hulk felt about Lance and he didn't really want to find out anytime soon. There were several questions in his life he didn't need answered and that was one of them. "And it's important to know how to defend yourself..." he added as he got out of the elevator on one of the lab floors. "Lance...Get some rest, okay buddy? I'll come check on you in an hour..."

[BlueSky44]

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Lance Banner

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To: Guin Stark
So? I'm not worried about the sessions as much as I am worried that I'd blind Happy for long periods of time, or maybe even permanently...

To: Guin Stark
Actually, I'm worried I'll blind anyone who fights me! When those kids were hitting me I had to use all of the strength in my body in order to make it so I didn't blind everyone in a 20 foot radius, and my dad doesn't get that at all!

"If I knew how to control my powers, odds are that I could hold my own in a fight. Learning how to punch people only gets you so far in life," he muttered, still not looking at his dad. When the elevator stopped on the lab level, he just nodded, before the elevators closed again, but he had no intention to go lay down or something. He waited a few moments after his dad had walked out before he hit the button for the ground floor. He was planning on walking around for a while, anywhere but the Tower, and he'd have roughly an hour before his dad went to go look for him.

He stepped out of the elevator, slung his bag over his shoulder, and walked out the front of the building. It had been a while since he truly had wandered around New York, and since he wasn't arguing with his dad anymore, the light surrounding him had faded away. His dad was not someone he cared to spend much time with, and being at Stark Tower and not being with him was almost as bad. He sent off one last message to Guin.

To: Guin Stark
You would be proud of me, I am not listening to my dad, and am off to go wandering around New York...

[Morose]

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Guinevere Stark

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To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
I'm not proud - I'm jealous.

If she wasn't fairly certain her father would make good on his promise to ship her back to boarding school, she would've walked out of her math class and gone to join Lance on his first step towards rebellion. She was tempted to ask him to take photos of his adventure, that way she could have J.A.R.V.I.S. generate a scrapbook page all about Lance's day playing hooky. But it also seemed like a bit more effort than it was really worth. She was slightly surprised that he wasn't just heading back to school - that seemed more like the Lance Banner type of thing to do.

To: Lando Calrissian (Lab Husband <3)
You should come break me out of school somehow.

She pulled out her headphones in math class, putting them in as she sat in the back and cranked up her music, working on the problem set. I'm a Believer started playing as she worked, her phone out on her desk so she could see any messages that came in from Lance. This teacher seemed to not care too much - she was doing the homework, so the teacher didn't have any issues with Guin listening to music as she did it.

[BlueSky44]

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Lance Banner

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To: Guin Stark
Sadly, I only have an hour or so before my dad decides to go looking for me, which sucks... Honestly, surprised he didn't hulk out on me earlier. He thinks that I'm "resting" in Stark Tower and is supposedly checking on me in an hour. Not enough time to really break you out or anything, sorry Guin.

He sent the text off with a smile. For once, he was the one wandering around doing other things, and Guin was the one stuck inside a classroom or something. For the first time in years, he truly felt free without a worry in the world. On the streets of the city, he didn't have to worry about angering his dad, causing him to make a mess, and there wasn't anything really stressful that might cause him to freak out and his powers to go crazy. Today, he was being someone completely different than the kid that he usually was, and it was strange to him.

Once more, his thoughts returned to the conversation he had with Justin Hammer the day before, and now that he was alone, he pulled out the business card, and turned it over in his hand. If he really wanted to piss his dad off, he would call Hammer, but he didn't know if he should. The guy seemed like bad news to him, and he had only just met the guy. He decided that when Guin got home from school, he'd tell her about it.

To: Guin Stark
Hey, there's something I want to talk to you about when you get back to Stark Tower after school...

[Morose]

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Guinevere Stark

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The rest of the day passed relatively uneventfully. Banner checked on Lance an hour later than he said that he would and was none the wiser that he had snuck out of the tower. Guin didn't receive detention or a suspension, which was a bit of a happy surprise. However, by the time she was due back at Stark Tower, she was still at MidTown Tech. She had gone into the chemistry lab, picking the lock to the door as soon the teacher was gone. It didn't take her too long until she found what she was looking for. This was a bonus phase of the plan. She then crept out of the room, before heading to the lockers of the perps and pushing the nozzle of the squirt bottle through the vents, before spraying the inside with amines.

"Awesome revenge plan part two, check," Guin said to herself with an amused smile. Their lockers would reek like rotting fish for months. And they wouldn't be able to find the source of the odor no matter how hard they looked. She had emptied the squirt bottle and she slipped it into a recycling bin, putting in her earbuds as she walked out of the school. The last part of the plan would be taken care of that evening. She'd corner them in the alley on their way to Flash's party, beat the shit out of them, and then leave. It wouldn't be too hard to track their phones. She had gotten the names of the kids responsible and most phone apps, especially with social media, had some version of location services.

Eventually, she made it back to Stark Tower and took the elevator up to the top floor, dropping her bag on the couch. "So Dad - what'll today's lecture be on?"

[BlueSky44]

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Lance Banner

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Lance spent a while, just walking around. He had gone to the library, spending some time there just reading peacefully. It was nice, not having to worry about Guin interrupting him for once, though he wondered what was going on at school. He was really curious as to what it was that she had in mind, and it worried him that she might get into some major trouble or something. There wasn't much he could do to stop her, after all, she had a mind of her own, one that was very hard to change.

His thoughts kept wandering back to Justin Hammer, and their conversation the day before. He tried to focus on other things, but was finding it to be more difficult as the day wore on. The guy seemed like bad news, and he did not know what was going on with him, and he had fully decided and committed to telling Guin about it when they got some time alone, though that was near impossible with their lives. Lance wasn't quite back to the tower yet, less than a block away now.

At the Tower, Tony walked up and dropped something in front of Guin. It was her stash, and he was just staring at her, saying nothing.

[Morose]

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Guinevere Stark

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Guin's breath caught in her throat and her amused slightly taunting smirk vanished from her face as Tony dropped the bag in front of her. She bit her lip, trying to think of what to do or say. She knew that he was beyond angry - anger from him was something she could deal with. It just meant a screaming match between the two of them. No, his silence terrified her and she pulled out her headphones, bundling them up in her pocket as she finally remembered how to breathe. She opened her mouth in an effort to explain herself, but her chin started to wobble and then tears sprang up in her eyes.

She was glad Lance wasn't there yet.

Guin tried to look away, but she couldn't bring herself to. She was staring at Tony, knowing that he could easily send her back to rehab for this. She hadn't even used since she got out. The stash was just there as a safety net - or at least, that was what she told herself. She'd been intending on using the night before but she hadn't. However, if she had thought telling Tony that would help her, she would have done so in a heartbeat. "I see..." she whispered. "Good choice in lecture material..."

[BlueSky44]

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Lance Banner

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Lance stopped outside of the Tower, looking up at it, before his mind went back to Justin Hammer. Once more, he pulled out the business card, just looking at it still. Odds were telling him that it would be a bad idea to call him, but he was wondering what Hammer had in mind, and asking about the "internship" or whatever might help him to be able to figure that out completely, as opposed to just sitting there, trying to figure out what was up with the guy.

Before he could stop himself, he pulled out his phone, biting his lip, trying to think of what he would say to him. Nothing instantly sprung to mind, and he just looked at the card, and back at his phone again. Before he could change his mind, he dialed the number on the card, and hit call, putting the phone up to his ear. He wasn't sure what he would say to him, but he was about to find out.

"Care to explain yourself? Or do you need to go back to rehab," Tony finally said, staring at her.

[Morose]

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Guinevere Stark

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"Go for Hammer," Hammer answered just a few seconds after Lance called him. Guin wasn't nearly as quick with her response time to Tony. She sat down on the couch numbly, knowing that she had to say something or she really would be shipped off to rehab again. Rehab had been one of the worst experiences of her life and she never wanted to go back there again. Her eyes were watering and she dried them on her sleeve, missing already when all Tony had to yell about was her mouthing off at teachers.

"I never used any of that...," she said quietly, looking down at the ground now. She felt like she was going to be sick to her stomach. How did she explain to him what was going on? She didn't know what to say - did she tell him she got the stash because she thought she might want it again? And sure, she had already told him she never used any of it - but would he believe her? And even if he did believe that she was telling the truth, which she was, would he decide against sending her away to rehab? Her mind was going faster and faster as she kept on generating more and more questions she simply didn't know the answer to.

"Please don't send me back there..."

[BlueSky44]

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Lance Banner

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"Uh... Hi, Mr. Hammer... It's Lance Calrissian... We met yesterday? Anyway, I was just kind of curious... What would the internship you offered me involve exactly... I mean, what would I be doing at Hammer Industries... I'm curious and I want more information before I can make a final decision..." he said into the phone, taking a deep breath. He still didn't walk inside of Stark Tower.

He wasn't too sure what he would say to Hammer after that, but it didn't really matter, he just needed more information in general. This guy had been acting strange the day before, and his smile had definitely been faked, but he didn't know why. Tony kept looking at Guin, before he shook his head and sat down on the couch. This whole thing was bugging him, a lot, and there wasn't much he could do about it. Except work to prevent Guin from relapsing.

"Look, I don't care if you didn't use any of it, what matters the most is that you had it still. Damn it Guin we've already been through this already, don't do it again. You can't keep doing this!"

[Morose]

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Guinevere Stark

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Hammer paused before he launched into an explanation. "We have a big presentation coming up at the Stark Expo, buddy. It's our chance to shake up the playing field. Now, I can't tell you any specifics without you officially coming on board and joining us as an intern, but the project will be key to making a strong showing at the Expo. It could make or break a new direction that we're interested in pushing our company."

Guin nodded at Tony numbly. She knew that he was right - that this was dangerous. And there wasn't really anything she could say to make things better. She'd made her choice and replenished her stash. Wiping her eyes on her sleeve again, Guin glanced up at Tony before looking at the ground again. The ground didn't seem to be nearly as judgmental as her father was at the moment. "I know...I...I...I don't know why I got a new stash..." she mumbled. She peeked up at him again before instantly regretting it. "Please don't hate me..."

[BlueSky44]

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Lance Banner

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Lance paused when Hammer started talking, and he was not getting much information from the guy at all. Which made him even more sure that something was up with him, since all he did was basically tell him things that he already knew. The Stark Expo was coming up, yeah, everyone knew that. It was also common knowledge that Hammer Industries wanted to put on a show for everyone there, and hopefully surpass Stark Industries at their own show. He needed to talk to Guin and see what she thought about it.

"Alright, I'll call you back in a little bit to tell you whether or not I'm for sure interested or not in this," he said, before he hung up the phone and went into the building, hitting the top floor button in the elevator.

"Look, I will never hate you Guin, you need to know that. I'll let you off just this once... Let this be your warning, however. If I ever see this again, or even hear a rumor that you might be using again, then there are going to be consequences," he said, giving her a hug, before taking the drugs and walking away. Lance had by now hit the top floor, and walked by Tony, who looked at the black eye he had, before heading back to the labs.