[Third POV, Year 2001, Broken Loop, July 7th, Adrian's House]
"You really think so, Jackeline? I'm really the problem?"
While Adrian was talking and working on the car—yet to show Tony the arrests—at Adrian's house, his mother Laura was speaking with a woman in the living room, sitting on the couch in front of the TV, which was playing a commercial about toothpaste.
The woman Laura was talking to responded in a pretty serious tone, almost as if reprimanding her.
"Duh! It's obviously your problem! I mean yeah, I guess it can be kinda creepy that your son acts like an adult, but it's not like he is an adult. You told me he's as smart as Tony fucking Stark! Maybe when he acts like he knows what's gonna happen, it's because he recognizes patterns normal people don't. I don't know—but in the end, he is your son."
"I don't know, it's just that... what if he's one of those mutant freaks like on TV? They're dangerous and put people at risk!"
With her hands on her face, Laura was venting and seeking counsel from her friend. Laura and Jackeline had met at the end of April, quickly became friends, and spent time together. Jackeline had a PhD in Psychology, so Laura sought her help today while Adrian was with Tony and Edwin was dealing with some kind of musical matter Adrian had asked him to handle.
"While maybe your son could be a mutant, there's no confirmation of it. First of all, in my research to understand the psychology of mutants for my thesis, I found most mutants only awaken their mutation in puberty or through a high-stress or dangerous scenario. So unless you put your five-year-old son in that kind of situation, it's most probable your son isn't a mutant—just so fucking smart he seems like one."
Sighing, Jackeline kept explaining and talking to Laura. Her face was one of frustration and confusion. Looking at the clock on the wall, Jackeline realized her time was up and spoke again.
"Look, Laura, just appreciate your son for who he is right now, alright? Sadly, we can't keep talking—I have to go to work—but this conversation isn't over. We'll talk more about this later, alright?"
"Oh... alright then. Goodbye, Jackeline..."
Giving a nod and clearly somewhat tired, Laura said goodbye to her friend. Jackeline opened the front door, got out, entered her car, and started driving to work.
Ring! Ring! Ring!
Hearing her phone ringing, Jackeline picked it up and answered the call.
"Agent Trish Spencer, start with your report on the status of your mission and discoveries associated with it."
The voice of a man was heard on the phone. Jackeline—or, now being referred to as Trish—answered with a calm and even tone. The shift in personality from when she spoke to Laura was notable.
"Superior Fury, I've collected relevant information on the kid who got close to Anthony Edward Stark. According to the mother, the reason Adrian was able to approach Stark is due to the kid's genius-level intellect. She said the child created the LRAD device the government bought from Stark Industries, now being used by Navy patrol boats, and that the original device was the child's creation."
"Hold up—wait a minute. Are you serious, Agent? Have you confirmed this?"
"Yes. The boy's mother, Laura, showed me a video of the kid and his father testing the original LRAD—which lacked the Stark Industries branding present on all their products. She also showed me a video Adrian made while working on the new phones Stark launched. The date of the video was a month before their release, which supports the claim."
On the other end of the line, the man Trish referred to as Superior Fury was reviewing documents as he listened to the report. He stroked his beard, thinking carefully.
'So, a super genius, huh? Sadly, Stark noticed him before we did. Maybe we should send covert agents to subtly influence his ideals and make him patriotic. Smart kids are easily manipulated due to their lack of life experience.'
Thinking about ways to make Adrian an asset for the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division—aka S.H.I.E.L.D.—Fury spoke again.
"Is there anything else you think is relevant? Anything useful we can act on? If the kid really is the second coming of Da Vinci—or the reincarnation of William James Sidis—we need a plan to recruit him or at least secure his goodwill ASAP."
A little disconcerted and unsure why her boss compared the kid to a painter and someone she didn't recognize, Trish replied,
"Yes, sir. It seems the mother fears her son's intellect. She says it's unnatural, and she suspects he's a mutant because he's always acted differently—like knowing outcomes ahead of time, predicting what people will say, or knowing what to say himself. Although I believe it's improbable he's a mutant based on what we know."
"I see. Good job, Agent. Go to the nearest S.H.I.E.L.D. base as soon as possible. I'll talk with my superiors and begin drafting new plans on how to approach the situation."
With that, Nick Fury hung up and stood from his chair.
'We need to send more people. Influence the kid. Make sure his loyalty is to the country. And above all else—keep him safe.'
And with that, Fury's day continued. Meanwhile, we return to Adrian and Tony, who was now looking at a drawing and explanation from Adrian.
"You know I'm a kid, and while having bodyguards helps, I'd rather not take chances—so I want to build this to keep my family and myself safe."
"So you want to build this?"
Hearing Stark made Adrian nod while lightly scratching his head.
"Bold design choice."
"What? I like anime."
"Worst-case scenario, we'll end up with the world's most expensive Gundam model."
Hearing that made Adrian chuckle out loud, the reason was because what they said was identical to what Tony and Eric said in the What if series.
"Not a bad design i guess, but if you are asking me for help is because you want to do it fast, what is stumping you kid?"
"I need an interface, you know that consumes a lot of time to made, i wanted you to help me make an AI like JARVIS or at least teach me how"
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Author Note: Some other character interactions that happen in the background and that MC is not aware of, be grateful y'all.
Please add to library and give powerstones!