ready for flight
air combat maneuvering
rating: g
characters: Pepper Potts, Natasha Romanoff
warnings: none
summary: They are talking about birds, not a boy. But there are currents in conversations, just as there are in the winds, and neither of them speak lightly.
author's note: Written for crazy4orcas's prompt of "Teamwork, Pepper and Natasha :)."
“Have you ever seen a songbird drive off an eagle?” Pepper asks as the jet cruises towards Los Angeles, her manicured hands folded neatly in her lap. Natasha tips her head to one side and waits patiently, silent. “I saw it once, when Tony thought it would be a great idea to run off to a secluded cabin somewhere for a few days. He’d had another spate with Obadiah and both of them needed to cool their heels before talking again. So Tony sulked in the basement refusing to design more warheads, and I sat on the deck chairs watching the sunsets.”
She glances out the plane window, her thoughts clearly somewhere other than the limitless sky on the horizon.
“It was spring, pollen season, but the baby birds in the nests were all starting to fledge. Getting their feathers, trying out their wings, moving enough to attract the attention of the predators with sharp eyes. There was a nest in the trees just on the shoreline that I could see, and, well, so could the ravens and hawks.
“This bald eagle came down one evening, while the storm clouds chased each other over the lake, clearly intending to have a snack. And the parents just rose out of the trees, beating their wings against the winds, until they were a few feet above him. I didn’t realize how big bald eagles were until I saw those little birds next to him.”
Natasha catches the distracted twitch of her lips, how they pull down for a heartbeat for settling back into an unaffected line.
“They did the most incredible thing. I mean, these little birds against a huge raptor capable of tearing them apart without thinking about it, and they didn’t give up.” Pepper looks back at Natasha with other words in her eyes, the cream of her suit contrasting with her crimson nails. “They dove at him, over and over, each time working furiously to get just high enough for another dive. And the incredible thing is, it worked.” Her demeanor shifts and eases back into the casual storyteller, all while her voice remained light and reminiscing.
“It must have been five minutes before it became too much of a hassle for the eagle. He turned and kept flying along the shoreline, and the nestlings were safe - for another day, at least. Tony insisted on leaving two days later, predictably with an armful of plans, and I never found out how many of the babies survived.”
Natasha watches Pepper, reading everything there that the CEO of Stark Industries won’t say aloud, and wonders if Tony ever realizes the red on his suit doesn’t come from whimsy alone.
She nods once, holding Pepper’s sharp blue gaze. It is not a gesture to tell her that the message has been received and understood; they would not be the women they are today if such things were needed. It is a promise.
If SHIELD ever moves against Anthony Stark, Natasha will stand with him.
“With a love like that, perhaps the nestlings survived,” the Black Widow comments quietly. Pepper smiles faintly with real warmth.
“I’d like to think so.”
If they have anything to say, at least one iron-feathered flier will survive too.
rating: g
characters: Pepper Potts, Natasha Romanoff
warnings: none
summary: They are talking about birds, not a boy. But there are currents in conversations, just as there are in the winds, and neither of them speak lightly.
author's note: Written for crazy4orcas's prompt of "Teamwork, Pepper and Natasha :)."
“Have you ever seen a songbird drive off an eagle?” Pepper asks as the jet cruises towards Los Angeles, her manicured hands folded neatly in her lap. Natasha tips her head to one side and waits patiently, silent. “I saw it once, when Tony thought it would be a great idea to run off to a secluded cabin somewhere for a few days. He’d had another spate with Obadiah and both of them needed to cool their heels before talking again. So Tony sulked in the basement refusing to design more warheads, and I sat on the deck chairs watching the sunsets.”
She glances out the plane window, her thoughts clearly somewhere other than the limitless sky on the horizon.
“It was spring, pollen season, but the baby birds in the nests were all starting to fledge. Getting their feathers, trying out their wings, moving enough to attract the attention of the predators with sharp eyes. There was a nest in the trees just on the shoreline that I could see, and, well, so could the ravens and hawks.
“This bald eagle came down one evening, while the storm clouds chased each other over the lake, clearly intending to have a snack. And the parents just rose out of the trees, beating their wings against the winds, until they were a few feet above him. I didn’t realize how big bald eagles were until I saw those little birds next to him.”
Natasha catches the distracted twitch of her lips, how they pull down for a heartbeat for settling back into an unaffected line.
“They did the most incredible thing. I mean, these little birds against a huge raptor capable of tearing them apart without thinking about it, and they didn’t give up.” Pepper looks back at Natasha with other words in her eyes, the cream of her suit contrasting with her crimson nails. “They dove at him, over and over, each time working furiously to get just high enough for another dive. And the incredible thing is, it worked.” Her demeanor shifts and eases back into the casual storyteller, all while her voice remained light and reminiscing.
“It must have been five minutes before it became too much of a hassle for the eagle. He turned and kept flying along the shoreline, and the nestlings were safe - for another day, at least. Tony insisted on leaving two days later, predictably with an armful of plans, and I never found out how many of the babies survived.”
Natasha watches Pepper, reading everything there that the CEO of Stark Industries won’t say aloud, and wonders if Tony ever realizes the red on his suit doesn’t come from whimsy alone.
She nods once, holding Pepper’s sharp blue gaze. It is not a gesture to tell her that the message has been received and understood; they would not be the women they are today if such things were needed. It is a promise.
If SHIELD ever moves against Anthony Stark, Natasha will stand with him.
“With a love like that, perhaps the nestlings survived,” the Black Widow comments quietly. Pepper smiles faintly with real warmth.
“I’d like to think so.”
If they have anything to say, at least one iron-feathered flier will survive too.