Mad Dash
The Random Scenario Meme
HOW IT WORKS:
❧ Post a comment with your character's name, canon, and any preferences you have. (You can choose your own scenario or let others decide.)
❧ Go to RNG. Enter 1 - 6 to choose a scene, then 1 - 20 to choose a prompt
❧ Play out the scene.
❧ But, play nicely. If someone doesn't want to play something out, please ( Read more... )
Tony had sent Pepper back to California to do a few more things concerning the Malibu home. He was supposed to oversee some maintenance and upgrades. He would have preferred to trade tasks with Tony, but he was needed at the Tower and for a few meetings with Fury in the city. Once he settled back into the Malibu home he was actually fairly happy that Tony asked him to return. He had missed being here. He had grown attached to New York's close quarters, but suddenly the space granted to him by the house was appreciated.
Most of the works had gone home for the afternoon. Pepper had taken pity on the exhausted looks and ordered them out. He could use a little peace and quiet as well. He didn't fancy eating his dinner to the sound of banging and clanging. He settled onto the couch once they left and grabbed a book he had brought with him. He didn't get much reading done when he was in the company of Tony and that was on a regular basis. It was nice to be able to relax and enjoy his book.
His shoulders tensed at the sound of the door. He finally climbed to his feet and dropped his book onto the couch cushions. He made his way to the door and pulled it open to find a familiar redhead. His smile grew right about the time hers did. "Ms. Romanoff." He paused for a moment just to take in the new look before he found his words. "Tony's still in New York."
Reply
She tapped a finger against the file in her hand. "And please, call me Natasha. I'd correct you and make you call me Agent, but I don't think it's necessary. I'm not here entirely on business."
The former Russian seemed to remember herself and the smile was tucked back away, but the brightness remained in her gaze even as she continued to appraise the man in front of her. "I hope Malibu is treating you well once again."
Reply
Pepper nodded his head slowly. "Yes. I left for DC the night Coulson finally looped Tony in on the situation. I was in the air when the battle was happening. I saw most of it on the news." He tried to keep his composure on the plane, but he was watching the destruction of his home. He was watching the human race be torn apart. It was hard for him to sit on his cushy plane and know that he couldn't attempt to even help in the slightest. He wasn't a fool. He didn't believe himself strong enough or capable enough to enter that fray, but he could have aided others in getting people to safety.
"Tony's overly fond of the use of the word Agent. I'm fine without it." The word reminded Pepper of Phil. Tony had broken the news to him once they had a moment alone. He had grown to like Phil Coulson. He was a smart man. Extremely polite and very interesting. Tony was constantly at odds with the man, but Pepper found him very decent. There weren't many people out there like him. "I think I'm all businessed out. So--do come in." He side stepped and held the door open wider for her.
A laugh escaped him as he shut the door once she was inside. "It's much quieter without Tony. I took the liberty of shutting JARVIS off for the night. I prefer the privacy." He wasn't a fool to think that JARVIS was spying, but he didn't need everything done for him. That was Tony. "Though I'm in a constant state of panic now that I don't have eyes on Tony. I can't help, but wonder if he's about to blow up Manhattan."
Reply
Her eyes dipped at the mention of Coulson, her jaw tightening briefly in an effort to hold back a small wave of emotion that still hit whenever she thought of the agent. She did miss him. He'd been paramount in her training in SHIELD. To not have him now stung. "I can assure you it did not do any of it justice. However none of us would be here without Tony."
Natasha's eyebrow crept up briefly before the smile returned. "I shall remember that. And thank you, if I am intruding on anything then feel free to kick me out soon enough." She brushed past Pepper, the contact light and barely noticeable as she stepped into the home she hadn't entered in several months. It did seem different without the presence of Tony or JARVIS.
"I can't say I blame you. I feel the same whenever I get time away from SHIELD. Privacy is a privilege these days, and not something to be taken for granted." She turned back to face Pepper. "I can assure he's being well looked after by Dr Banner. Bruce is a good scientific foil for him. He won't be allowed to blow up anything."
Reply
He was aware of how the loss of Phil Coulson would affect his team. He knew that the people close to him would feel it. He had a feeling all of SHIELD was still dealing with it. He mentally kicked himself for even bringing the man up. He would have to watch himself the rest of the night. He didn't want to cause Natasha anymore pain. He had a feeling she had experienced enough of it to last her multiple lifetimes. There was something in her eyes that clued Pepper in. He would mind his tongue.
"No. Company is nice. The only company I've had is multiple workmen who don't really like me that much. I haven't quite figured out the reasoning behind it though." It could have been Pepper's rules. These were rules that Tony had set up though. He was simply enforcing them to keep him happy. If Tony felt that things were slipping then he would be flying down here to handle it. He'd rather have Tony there at this particular juncture. He needed some air.
He had heard a lot of about Dr. Banner. He met him very briefly before his flight to California. He was nice from what he had gathered. Tony had not stopped talking about him since he made it back to Stark Tower. It was almost cute. Tony had found a new bestfriend. "As long as he has some sort of adult supervision I may sleep easier." He made his way back to the couch and took a seat. He motioned for her to do the same. "Is the folder for me?"
Reply
She tried to shrug off the sadness, get the brightness back into her eyes but between nearly losing her best friend to Loki, and then losing her mentor to the same monster, it all hurt. The Battle of New York had put her through the ringer. The truth was she was looking forward to spending time with Pepper. He didn't expect more of her. He wasn't looking to her to save the world right in this moment. She could use a little normalcy.
Natasha smirked faintly. "For anyone else that would probably be heaven. I'm happy to provide a breath of fresh air where company is concerned though. But before you even try and ask, no I'm not going to take my top off and pick up a hammer. You'll just have to wait until Thor visits for that."
She followed and made herself comfortable on the sofa before crossing her legs and offering up the folder. "It is, yes. And I promise there's still some SHIELD eyes and ears keeping an eye on Tony whether he wants them to or not." Inside the folder was a recording. Some of the SHIELD surveillance of the Battle of New York. "I realise that the news has been quite extensive with footage, but I thought you might appreciate something a little less... sensational."
Reply
"Let him down easy." There's a small part of him that was happy she didn't find Happy to her type. When she first entered their lives things had been very scattered. Pepper was struggling to maintain his sanity with Tony giving him control of the company. Tony was pissing his life away and Happy was following him into the jaws of Hell until Pepper put his foot down. In breezed Natalie Rushman and their jaws all hit the floor. Pepper was more discrete about it though. He kept his composure and remained professional. He didn't fancy sexual harassment lawsuits like Tony did.
Pepper chuckled softly when she refused to take her shirt off. "I wouldn't dream of asking you. It's a little too presumptuous for me." He had no doubt that the idea of Natasha Romanoff topless would be very interesting, but he tried not to engage in thoughts like that. She was a woman and she deserved respect. That unfortunately meant keeping his mind clean of thoughts like that. Plus he had work to do. He couldn't let himself wander off to that image as much as he would have loved to.
He looked down at the folder and took it slowly. He turned it over in his hands as he listened to her talk about its contents. He smiled warmly at her and nodded. "Thank you. This is very generous of you, Natasha. Tony's been a little light on details. I think he feels that I'm going to worry." Pepper could worry, but he was trying to get a handle on that. Most of his worry was warranted though. Tony played Russian Roulette with his life like it was a good time. "Would you like a drink?" He asked suddenly looking up from the folder.
Reply
Natasha tucked a red curl behind her ear. "Of course. I'm not looking to crush the man's heart. He just needs to understand there's boundaries." Her gaze stayed on his face for a moment as she tried to gauge his reaction. She might have smiled when she thought she saw some relief there.
"I sometimes forget you're not your employer. Thank you for not being so presumptuous. I promise not to ask you the same thing. Our shirts will remain in tact." And she tried to keep her own mind free of any straying thoughts despite wondering repeatedly what Pepper might hide under the Gucci suits.
"You'll be proud of him after watching this, though I don't doubt for a second you're not already. I just think this might give you some better insight. Some of the audio's in tact. If anyone asks you didn't get it from me." Her eyes flashed playfully with a warning, but she had no wish to punish Pepper. She was mostly teasing. "No one would blame you for worrying. We certainly all had our moments, but thankfully it's over. And yes, thank you. I would. Whatever you're having is fine."
Reply
Boundaries was a good thing. He was happy she had boundaries with Happy. He never felt jealous around Tony because nine times out of ten he put his foot into his mouth before he got a woman into bed. Sometimes he got lucky with women who had little to no self respect, but Natasha wasn't like that. He didn't see her falling for his bosses charms. Happy was a good guy. He wasn't like Tony. He could have easily swept Natasha off her feet at some point. Least that was what he assumed. Pepper hadn't tried in so long that he often forgot the moves. His life was Tony Stark. It was hard to find time to date or anything even remotely close to romance.
"Of course. A woman has to have her boundaries." He didn't dare hint around and try to figure out if her boundaries include him. He wasn't a child. Also he was a little terrified that they might. Maybe she didn't want to be involved with anything related to Tony Stark. His job was taking care of Tony Stark. He could understand the hesitance. "It happens to a lot of people. They believe that because I've been with him for so long that we must be very similar. We couldn't be more different if we tried." They were like night in day in how they handled situations. Pepper wasn't sure if he could have survived Afghanistan like Tony had.
"He has this new annoying habit of making me proud. Very strange." Once upon a time he was happy when Tony Stark didn't show up to events hungover. Now he actually felt himself swelling with pride when the man swooped in to save the day. They had come a long way. "Of course. Mums the word." Pepper rose from the couch and smiled as he made his way into the kitchen. "I must say I was relieved to hear from Tony that you managed to make it through all that. It couldn't have been easy." He had worried just a touch. Not that he underestimated her skills. He just knew she was human like Tony. He worried.
Reply
And while Happy was the opposite of that, he still wasn't what she liked in a man. He was a little too good for her. And while Pepper's record was pretty spotless he'd worked for a man like Stark. He understood the grey areas without feeling a need to apologise for them, or be sympathetic about them. No walking on eggshells.
Natasha's smile made a brief reappearance. "But there will always be exceptions to those boundaries. The people that make it behind the walls." They didn't include Pepper at all, but she knew she had to be careful for both their sakes. If Tony got wind of it there might be no hearing the end of it. She also didn't want Stark hindering or helping. "That's probably more of a relief than I should admit to, but I am glad to hear it."
The woman finally cracked the mask and started to laugh. "It's strange for all of us, believe me. He managed to single-handedly put Cap and Thor offside. Bruce likes him because of the fact they can share knowledge and speak the same language. Barton... Hawkeye... wasn't exactly around for most of it." And that was where she left it considering not every part of the battle had made it into the press. There was an urge to want to talk to someone about it all, but she didn't want to make Pepper that person. He didn't deserve it out of the blue. "I suppose that depends on your definition of making it through. I didn't exactly escape without compromise of some kind, but I did my part. I might have even enjoyed it, but I think that says more about me than I would like." Her expression softened a little as she watched him. "I wanted to see you before now. A lot of times, actually. I just thought staying out Stark's way for a while was better."
Reply
"How many people have made it past your walls?" It was a innocent question, but if you were paying attention you could see the hope in Pepper's eyes. Luckily he was in the kitchen. His eyes weren't that clear at this distance. He wanted to be behind the walls though. He was aware that a woman in Natasha's line of work had to have secrets. She had fooled the whole group very easily. She probably came with things to sort out. Pepper was fine with that. His life had been fairly static until he started working for Tony Stark and he was getting used to more exciting notions. Her life was probably ten times worse than Tony's, but that didn't stop Pepper from thinking about her. He was only human and she made a helluva impression on him.
He hadn't had the opportunity to meet Steve Rogers or Thor. The way Tony described the both of them wasn't always accurate. Tony's descriptions were often checkered by how he felt about that person at the time. What Pepper got is that Tony was extremely irritated by Steve and found Thor to be infinitely amusing. He would have liked to have met the infamous Captain America though. He had heard quite a bit about him from Tony and footage from the forties. All that wasn't reliable though. Meeting a demigod wouldn't be so bad either.
Pepper pulled the cork out of the wine bottle he had left on the counter. He took a glass in one hand and poured. "We are who we are. You shouldn't apologize for enjoying being in a fight. It's just part of you." Once he had filled her glass he carried it back into the living room. He paused in front of her and licked his lips. "I can understand that. You wouldn't be the first woman who didn't want to visit me at work for fear of Tony." Not that he was implying they were together, but he understood her hesitance. "It was probably for the best. He's still not your biggest fan. He holds grudges longer than any normal person." He held out the glass finally.
Reply
Natasha blinked at the question, her eyebrows rising slightly but then she settled back into the sofa and considered the question seriously. "Two, neither of whom I've dated. For a man to make it past my walls and date me, well, that would be quite a feat." But she wasn't saying it to scare him off. She wanted Pepper to have that hope, but she also wanted to be honest. She wasn't used to dating and trusting a man with all sides of her. She was used to Barton being behind her walls. He was her partner and her friend and he'd earned. But he hadn't been someone she'd dated. There'd been a couple of nights away on missions where things had turned sexual but it was basic human need and nothing more. "I wouldn't mind so much if someone wanted to try," she finally added. Just to make it a little clearer.
Natasha would have been happy to make introductions but Steve was off doing whatever it was Captain America did after a battle. Lone wolfing with his motorcycle and Thor was caught between Asgard and Jane Foster. Not that she'd blame the demi-god for either.
"I know, it's why I'm really not interested in pushing my luck. Better we keep in our separate corners when we can. I didn't want to put you in the middle of anything either. You deserve some peace and quiet when you can get it," Natasha replied as she reached for the wine glass. She let her fingers brush Pepper's and smiled when their skin made contact. "Thank you."
Reply
"Guess we all need companionship. Even heroes." It was true. She had saved New York. Maybe not single-handed, but she had. Her, Barton, Tony, Thor, Steve, Bruce and Coulson were all heroes. They wanted to protect this place and that meant something. She was a hero if you asked Pepper. They all were. He didn't particularly like saying that in front of Tony though. His ego was already out of control on a regular day. He didn't need to constantly inform the man of his superhero status. He had the internet. He made use of his time and read the stories about himself.
Pepper paused for a moment when their fingers brushed. He exhaled finally and moved to sit next to her on the couch once more. Maybe this time just a bit closer. The direct contact had been nice and it was possible he wanted that feeling to return. It was kind of like his first day running things at Stark Industries, but better. Much better. "I wouldn't mind being in the middle. You're the type of person you want to be in the middle for." Tony could harp all he wanted about Pepper liking Natasha. He would go off about how she was pure evil and state examples, but he didn't care. Tony was just being a child and Pepper liked her. She wasn't typical.
He lifted his arm to rest it along the back of the couch. His body turned to face hers on instinct. His glass of wine was on the side table behind him. It had long since been forgotten even before she showed up.
Reply
"We're not different to any ordinary person. I think it's a want everyone has even if they don't admit to it. I might be used to being on my own, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't welcome the companionship." Even if the word 'hero' was still something she was getting used to. Not once had it been used to describe her before now. Even then she wasn't sure that it had. Mostly it applied to Iron Man, Thor, and Captain America. Perhaps even the Hulk. His image had changed considerably in the eyes of the public.
Natasha crossed her legs in towards Pepper and mirrored his move to face her as she took a small sip of her wine before cradling it in her hand. She wasn't one to blush easily, or admit to flutters in her stomach but there were moments she really did enjoy the closeness of a man. Especially an attractive one. "Oh, well, maybe next time we'll get you in the middle. Though I have to admit it's nice not having to share this time with a third party."
Reply
"I'm gonna be honest. I don't think anything is ordinary about you, Natasha. That's just one man's opinion." There was something about her from the moment she entered the gym. Pepper watched her movements closely. Sometimes he just couldn't take his eyes off the way her body twisted and turned. It was hard not to notice these little things about her. He wasn't a teenage boy anymore. He didn't write poems or pine over girls. The poem thing had been a brief moment when he was in elementary school. They were almost always atrocious. "I have to agree with you there. I always did want a moment or two alone with you before." Back when she was just Natalie Rushman.
He looked down at the couch for a moment before a smile spread across his face. He finally looked up and nodded quickly. "I have to admit that when you showed up the three of us had a hard time not noticing you. Happy and Tony were tripping over each other at the sight of you." He preferred not to think about what was running through his head. There was nothing professional about it. "I think you were the prettiest woman we had seen in a long time." He was just being honest. The sass and sarcasm was taking a break tonight. It wasn't needed. "I think the fact that you demolished Happy helped to put you at the top of all our lists."
Reply
Natasha's smile widened as she tilted her face up towards Pepper's. "It's the opinion of a man I happen to rate quite highly. I've always liked you even though I know it didn't seem that way in the beginning. I respect you, and I admire what you do. How you do it. Maybe you think you're ordinary, but it isn't so. There's certainly something extraordinary about you, Pepper, even if I can never quite put my finger on what. Oh, I hope then that this moment can live up to expectations."
Natasha nudged his leg with her foot. "They're welcome to trip over each other. I don't need obvious. I don't need over the top. Happy is sweet, but I'd break him. Even if it would keep me at the top of all your lists. And Tony would only be interested for as long as it took to get me into bed. Then he'd move on to the next conquest. And while I'm an adult and I can handle casual encounters I don't think I want empty sex anymore. You're a handsome man, Pepper. I've always thought that about you."
Reply
Leave a comment