Fic: The Quiet Before the Storm
Inspired by nickygabriel's picture, found here: http://i.imgur.com/TPKnBRi.jpg
Title: The Quiet Before the Storm
Word Count: 1013
Characters: Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, Virginia "Pepper" Potts, James "Rhodey" Rhodes
Relationships: pre-slash - Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Spoilers/Warnings: not applicable
Tonii did his best to sink into meditation, clear his mind as his fingers moved over the mechanics of the ship. Meditation, for him, had always been found in wires and bolts, in metal curved and straight and flexible. His mentor, Obi-Diea Kane, had told him often enough that everyone meditated in their own way. Everyone accessed the Force differently, saw it differently.
Approached it differently.
It was hard to find balance in the soothing motions, not when he was in this small ship with the Council’s pet, Steyv Ro-Jert. He could almost sense the other knight, too, even though he’d deliberately placed himself near the engines to distract his mind and disrupt the possibility of having his senses lap up against Steyv’s unwelcome presence.
“Thought I’d find you hiding here.”
Tonii opened his eyes and watched Virjiniara delicately perch on the walkway next to him. Clearing his throat, he murmured, “I’m not hiding, Pep.”
Her laugh was gentle, musical, and mocking. “Of course you are,” she said with that lilt all Felinds had to their speech patterns. “You’ve only expressed your disapproval of Steyv every single time Rho and I are your transport to your next assignment. And now he is with you on assignment?” She reached over and patted his arms, her claws barely pricking and catching in his tunic’s sleeve. “But I can understand why. He does seem very self-righteous.”
“You don’t know the half of it,” he murmured, but it was fake, pretense at being upset. Rather, he was drained, tired. Upset with the world and everyone in it, trying to find his balance again.
She leaned against him, her smile fading. “Would you tell me why this mission is so different? Why you have Steyv assigned to you?”
Tonii swallowed, throat clicking. After a few moments, she sighed and stood up. “Think about telling Rho,” she murmured. “He is your best friend, and he worries.”
He didn’t know what to say, but managed a tight nod. What could he say? That his mentor, his teacher, turned out to be Sith? That everyone on the Council expected Tonii to embrace the dark side, to follow his mentor’s footsteps?
That on some days, he could feel the boiling anger and betrayal, and believed them right?
Steyv was the Council’s pet, but he was also one of the few of their order who could fight Tonii to a standstill - the only other four were all in the field at the moment. Everyone else couldn’t touch his level; he had one of the most innate and instinctive connections to the Force that the Council had ever seen, and everyone knew it. Even those who were his peers were there because of practice, hard work, and intense dedication and discipline. Not that he didn’t have all of that and more, but he was often brought to task for his hedonistic ways, his indulgence in the material world when the Force was enough to sustain any decent Jedi.
He just wanted some breathing time, some distance from all that had happened in the past two weeks. He’d asked for a mission to get his mind off things and the Council had given him someone to make sure that Tonii didn’t do anything ‘dramatic,’ in the words of Councilman Fuir.
He hated it.
But in the end, he wasn’t going to argue with the Council’s decision, no matter how ridiculous he thought it was. Instead, here he was on the Rising Sun with his closest friends and one stuck-up knight, and he would make the best of it.
It was just a small planetary system called Hydra, after all.
***
It was later in the trip when Tonii’s luck at avoiding Steyv ran out. Admittedly, it wasn’t a particularly large ship, and the amount of time they’d manage to keep away from the other was more a testament to how much both Steyv and Tonii tried to keep out of the others’ way than anything else. As it was, Tonii hadn’t been looking too closely around the tiny kitchen as he searched for caf and ended up taking a step back - and stepping into Steyv.
“Oh, my apologies-” Steyv said immediately, even as Tonii grunted and muttered under his breath, “Sorry, Steyv.”
Then they stood there, staring at one another, before Tonii awkwardly wiggled the caf in his hand and said, “Wellll… I’ll be getting along then. Sorry to bump into you.”
“Have I done anything to offend you?”
The question took Tonii by surprise, and he paused and eyed Steyv’s earnest expression. “What gives you that idea?” he asked warily.
Steyv shrugged those broad shoulders. “You are distant. Refuse to be near me. You obviously resent my presence on this mission.”
“It’s a mission I’ve been given before and have done on my own,” Tonii said, feeling irritation prick at the corners of his temper even with his determination not to let Steyv rattle his calm and find reasons to label Tonii as a Sith-in-training. “Forgive me for wondering why now, of all times, the Council has decided I need a supervisor.”
Steyv frowned slightly. “Why would you assume the Council does anything for simple, straight-forward reasons?” he asked.
Which - Tonii supposed was a valid point, but still he let a smile drag his mouth into a skeptical smile, let his fast accent thicken into a drawl. “Oh, I’m sure there are multiple reasons for why you are here on this ship with me, but let’s not forget that one of those reasons is most likely to be exactly what it looks like: the Council can no longer trust me because of my mentor and so is giving me a mission to prove myself.”
The furrows in Steyv’s brown grew even deeper, but before he could say anything, Tonii ducked his head and said quickly, “I will see you when we land, Knight Ro-Jert.”
And if it was cowardice that made him leave, well. There were multiple reasons for why Tonii did things, too, and cowardice would be one in a long list of why Tonii shouldn’t stick around.
Title: The Quiet Before the Storm
Word Count: 1013
Characters: Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, Virginia "Pepper" Potts, James "Rhodey" Rhodes
Relationships: pre-slash - Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Spoilers/Warnings: not applicable
Tonii did his best to sink into meditation, clear his mind as his fingers moved over the mechanics of the ship. Meditation, for him, had always been found in wires and bolts, in metal curved and straight and flexible. His mentor, Obi-Diea Kane, had told him often enough that everyone meditated in their own way. Everyone accessed the Force differently, saw it differently.
Approached it differently.
It was hard to find balance in the soothing motions, not when he was in this small ship with the Council’s pet, Steyv Ro-Jert. He could almost sense the other knight, too, even though he’d deliberately placed himself near the engines to distract his mind and disrupt the possibility of having his senses lap up against Steyv’s unwelcome presence.
“Thought I’d find you hiding here.”
Tonii opened his eyes and watched Virjiniara delicately perch on the walkway next to him. Clearing his throat, he murmured, “I’m not hiding, Pep.”
Her laugh was gentle, musical, and mocking. “Of course you are,” she said with that lilt all Felinds had to their speech patterns. “You’ve only expressed your disapproval of Steyv every single time Rho and I are your transport to your next assignment. And now he is with you on assignment?” She reached over and patted his arms, her claws barely pricking and catching in his tunic’s sleeve. “But I can understand why. He does seem very self-righteous.”
“You don’t know the half of it,” he murmured, but it was fake, pretense at being upset. Rather, he was drained, tired. Upset with the world and everyone in it, trying to find his balance again.
She leaned against him, her smile fading. “Would you tell me why this mission is so different? Why you have Steyv assigned to you?”
Tonii swallowed, throat clicking. After a few moments, she sighed and stood up. “Think about telling Rho,” she murmured. “He is your best friend, and he worries.”
He didn’t know what to say, but managed a tight nod. What could he say? That his mentor, his teacher, turned out to be Sith? That everyone on the Council expected Tonii to embrace the dark side, to follow his mentor’s footsteps?
That on some days, he could feel the boiling anger and betrayal, and believed them right?
Steyv was the Council’s pet, but he was also one of the few of their order who could fight Tonii to a standstill - the only other four were all in the field at the moment. Everyone else couldn’t touch his level; he had one of the most innate and instinctive connections to the Force that the Council had ever seen, and everyone knew it. Even those who were his peers were there because of practice, hard work, and intense dedication and discipline. Not that he didn’t have all of that and more, but he was often brought to task for his hedonistic ways, his indulgence in the material world when the Force was enough to sustain any decent Jedi.
He just wanted some breathing time, some distance from all that had happened in the past two weeks. He’d asked for a mission to get his mind off things and the Council had given him someone to make sure that Tonii didn’t do anything ‘dramatic,’ in the words of Councilman Fuir.
He hated it.
But in the end, he wasn’t going to argue with the Council’s decision, no matter how ridiculous he thought it was. Instead, here he was on the Rising Sun with his closest friends and one stuck-up knight, and he would make the best of it.
It was just a small planetary system called Hydra, after all.
***
It was later in the trip when Tonii’s luck at avoiding Steyv ran out. Admittedly, it wasn’t a particularly large ship, and the amount of time they’d manage to keep away from the other was more a testament to how much both Steyv and Tonii tried to keep out of the others’ way than anything else. As it was, Tonii hadn’t been looking too closely around the tiny kitchen as he searched for caf and ended up taking a step back - and stepping into Steyv.
“Oh, my apologies-” Steyv said immediately, even as Tonii grunted and muttered under his breath, “Sorry, Steyv.”
Then they stood there, staring at one another, before Tonii awkwardly wiggled the caf in his hand and said, “Wellll… I’ll be getting along then. Sorry to bump into you.”
“Have I done anything to offend you?”
The question took Tonii by surprise, and he paused and eyed Steyv’s earnest expression. “What gives you that idea?” he asked warily.
Steyv shrugged those broad shoulders. “You are distant. Refuse to be near me. You obviously resent my presence on this mission.”
“It’s a mission I’ve been given before and have done on my own,” Tonii said, feeling irritation prick at the corners of his temper even with his determination not to let Steyv rattle his calm and find reasons to label Tonii as a Sith-in-training. “Forgive me for wondering why now, of all times, the Council has decided I need a supervisor.”
Steyv frowned slightly. “Why would you assume the Council does anything for simple, straight-forward reasons?” he asked.
Which - Tonii supposed was a valid point, but still he let a smile drag his mouth into a skeptical smile, let his fast accent thicken into a drawl. “Oh, I’m sure there are multiple reasons for why you are here on this ship with me, but let’s not forget that one of those reasons is most likely to be exactly what it looks like: the Council can no longer trust me because of my mentor and so is giving me a mission to prove myself.”
The furrows in Steyv’s brown grew even deeper, but before he could say anything, Tonii ducked his head and said quickly, “I will see you when we land, Knight Ro-Jert.”
And if it was cowardice that made him leave, well. There were multiple reasons for why Tonii did things, too, and cowardice would be one in a long list of why Tonii shouldn’t stick around.