Fic: Stars and Snow Cabins
Title: Stars and Snow Cabins
Rating: PG 13 for a little swearing
Warnings: none
Disclaimer: I own nothing! Just playing in this sandbox.
Summary: Tony thinks it's a good idea to go heli skiing in New Zealand. Bad stuff ensues.
Author's notes: Written for its_always_been
Thanks to Milly for beta reading and for reminding me to write in past tense.
The first afternoon, Tony’s vocabulary consists of ‘cold, cold coldcoldcold coooollllldd’. In the evening, the word ‘motherfuckin’’ was added.
Pepper’s was a little more expansive, including phrases such as ‘Ican’tbelieveIletyoudragmeintothis’, and ‘I will kill you’.
All this happens five hours after the avalanche ambles, and then roars down the side of the mountain that Tony had insisted would be best for powder snow. It had started off so brilliantly. The sun was glorious, and in a weird way, kind of warm as it shone down on the south island of New Zealand. Tony was terribly impressed with himself, having built a pair of ski goggles based on the tech of the HUD system in the Suit. And they were hot-rod red and gold. Pepper was only convinced to come through Tony’s bribing - promising to be good in the next eight board meetings, and to not refer to her blackberry in any derogatory terms for the next month. But her breath caught at the sensation of the helicopter cruising between the peaks, and at the sight of nothing but bare snow conifers, immaculate sky and untouched snow. The breathless glee that shone on her face when they stopped for a break made Tony so happy he felt it in his toes.
But now, after they had come out of the avalanche unscathed, the sky had turned white, visibility dropped to basically nil, and the wind was so strong they had nearly been knocked over multiple times.
It was hour or so before sunset that they hit the tree line, and a few minutes later, they found they snow cabin. Quickly, they do a stock take: a few old blankets, some books, and a kite. Not much to go on. It also crossed Tony’s mind that with the wind and snow behaving as they are, it wouldn’t be very long before the cabin is snowed under.
Later, as Tony lies on his back trying to sleep, he thinks. They told him that with the GPS systems in their snow jackets, they’d be picked up in only a matter of hours, should this sort of thing happen. But that avalanche was beyond insane, and he’s picked up enough about the weather from having flown through it to know that this storm shouldn’t be named after anything less than a demon.
-----
When Tony woke in the morning, the wind was gone, but visibility was still zero. A few hours later, Pepper thought she could hear the distant rumble of a helicopter. They both knew how appallingly low the chances are of their single flare being spotted, given they’re in a whiteout, but Tony insisted they try.
It breaks Pepper’s heart to see the hope dissolve from Tony’s eyes when three hours later, they sat, still unrescued in their cabin.
It was nearly dark again, and the cabin had finally been snowed under when they were lying side by side under their snow gear and the old blankets. Tony managed to convince Pepper they should strip off and lie together to share body heat, but she instigated a strict ‘underwear on, no touching’ policy.
She spoke first: ‘You know, this isn’t what I’d had in mind for the first time we’d be nearly naked together’.
A part of Tony was stunned, whilst another fist pumped the air at Pepper ever having wanted to be naked with him. Trying to remain cool, he looked over at her and tries to mimic her casual tone. ‘Oh yeah?’
‘Yep. I’d wear that blue dress that you loved so much, and you’d wear your tux. Armani,’ she added specifically. ‘We’d go to a concert, and it would be glamorous and romantic. Afterwards, I’d whisper to you, and you’d smile, and we’d go back to your mansion, and, well, yeah,’ she blushed.
Tony loves how much thought she had clearly put into this, and vows that no snowed-under cabin would get in the way of him making the evening Pepper described a reality.
Later, when the wind caught its breath and the world around them fell silent for a few moments, Pepper, with her eyes still closed, asked Tony what he missed. The question came as a surprise, and at first a lot of things came to mind. But before answering, he thinks, really thinks about his answer. Pepper is about to prod him into replying when the list gushes from his mouth. ‘Flying in the Suit. Cuban rum. The idling purr of my favourite hot-rod. Rhodey’s bad jokes’. In his head, this list also contained “the way Pepper’s hair catches the light late in Summer. The sight of her car pulling up to the mansion”.
He nearly forgot to ask her the same question, but he does, and like him, she paused before answering. ‘The stars’, she nods, as if reassuring herself that she’d said the right thing. ‘Yep. The stars. Just one more time.’
They were found the next day. Apparently they were so far off from where their guide thought they were, they were found in the eleventh cabin their rescuers had tried.
The first man who managed to get inside the cabin was terribly short and was wearing a forest green jacket. For a second, Tony wonders if there really were Hobbits in this part of the world. Then he realised the wonderful implications of there being other people standing in the cabin.
They both had to be helped to stand, what with the cold and lack of food, Tony’s arm was unceremoniously placed on the shoulder of a man he doesn’t know. The man supports him out of the cabin and through the tunnel of snow that had been carved out for them.
The sky wasn’t completely blue, there were still a few messy patches of cloud in the corners of the sky. He hears Pepper cough quietly behind him, and the sun hurts his eyes.
It’s perfect.
Tony only saw glimpses of Pepper in the next few days. Between hospitals and PR and sleeping he lost track of time. It’s nearly a week after they get back, and until now both of them have been kept inside with strict curfews by a combination of doctors and psychologists. But now they’ve been let off the leash, so Tony nested in the ‘shop till well past his bedtime, and Pepper sat on a couch nearby, getting reacquainted with her blackberry.
They shared a quiet dinner in his kitchen, and when the plates were cleared, Tony takes Pepper’s hand and leads her out onto the deck. There he takes half a step back, tips his head down and motions with his arms to the sky.
The light pollution stains half, but beyond that, the ocean inks the scene above them perfectly.
He gives her the stars.
She drinks the sight of them in contentedly, reaches for his hand and settles her chin on his shoulder.
It’s more than enough.
----
Let me know what you think!
Rating: PG 13 for a little swearing
Warnings: none
Disclaimer: I own nothing! Just playing in this sandbox.
Summary: Tony thinks it's a good idea to go heli skiing in New Zealand. Bad stuff ensues.
Author's notes: Written for its_always_been
Thanks to Milly for beta reading and for reminding me to write in past tense.
The first afternoon, Tony’s vocabulary consists of ‘cold, cold coldcoldcold coooollllldd’. In the evening, the word ‘motherfuckin’’ was added.
Pepper’s was a little more expansive, including phrases such as ‘Ican’tbelieveIletyoudragmeintothis’, and ‘I will kill you’.
All this happens five hours after the avalanche ambles, and then roars down the side of the mountain that Tony had insisted would be best for powder snow. It had started off so brilliantly. The sun was glorious, and in a weird way, kind of warm as it shone down on the south island of New Zealand. Tony was terribly impressed with himself, having built a pair of ski goggles based on the tech of the HUD system in the Suit. And they were hot-rod red and gold. Pepper was only convinced to come through Tony’s bribing - promising to be good in the next eight board meetings, and to not refer to her blackberry in any derogatory terms for the next month. But her breath caught at the sensation of the helicopter cruising between the peaks, and at the sight of nothing but bare snow conifers, immaculate sky and untouched snow. The breathless glee that shone on her face when they stopped for a break made Tony so happy he felt it in his toes.
But now, after they had come out of the avalanche unscathed, the sky had turned white, visibility dropped to basically nil, and the wind was so strong they had nearly been knocked over multiple times.
It was hour or so before sunset that they hit the tree line, and a few minutes later, they found they snow cabin. Quickly, they do a stock take: a few old blankets, some books, and a kite. Not much to go on. It also crossed Tony’s mind that with the wind and snow behaving as they are, it wouldn’t be very long before the cabin is snowed under.
Later, as Tony lies on his back trying to sleep, he thinks. They told him that with the GPS systems in their snow jackets, they’d be picked up in only a matter of hours, should this sort of thing happen. But that avalanche was beyond insane, and he’s picked up enough about the weather from having flown through it to know that this storm shouldn’t be named after anything less than a demon.
-----
When Tony woke in the morning, the wind was gone, but visibility was still zero. A few hours later, Pepper thought she could hear the distant rumble of a helicopter. They both knew how appallingly low the chances are of their single flare being spotted, given they’re in a whiteout, but Tony insisted they try.
It breaks Pepper’s heart to see the hope dissolve from Tony’s eyes when three hours later, they sat, still unrescued in their cabin.
It was nearly dark again, and the cabin had finally been snowed under when they were lying side by side under their snow gear and the old blankets. Tony managed to convince Pepper they should strip off and lie together to share body heat, but she instigated a strict ‘underwear on, no touching’ policy.
She spoke first: ‘You know, this isn’t what I’d had in mind for the first time we’d be nearly naked together’.
A part of Tony was stunned, whilst another fist pumped the air at Pepper ever having wanted to be naked with him. Trying to remain cool, he looked over at her and tries to mimic her casual tone. ‘Oh yeah?’
‘Yep. I’d wear that blue dress that you loved so much, and you’d wear your tux. Armani,’ she added specifically. ‘We’d go to a concert, and it would be glamorous and romantic. Afterwards, I’d whisper to you, and you’d smile, and we’d go back to your mansion, and, well, yeah,’ she blushed.
Tony loves how much thought she had clearly put into this, and vows that no snowed-under cabin would get in the way of him making the evening Pepper described a reality.
Later, when the wind caught its breath and the world around them fell silent for a few moments, Pepper, with her eyes still closed, asked Tony what he missed. The question came as a surprise, and at first a lot of things came to mind. But before answering, he thinks, really thinks about his answer. Pepper is about to prod him into replying when the list gushes from his mouth. ‘Flying in the Suit. Cuban rum. The idling purr of my favourite hot-rod. Rhodey’s bad jokes’. In his head, this list also contained “the way Pepper’s hair catches the light late in Summer. The sight of her car pulling up to the mansion”.
He nearly forgot to ask her the same question, but he does, and like him, she paused before answering. ‘The stars’, she nods, as if reassuring herself that she’d said the right thing. ‘Yep. The stars. Just one more time.’
They were found the next day. Apparently they were so far off from where their guide thought they were, they were found in the eleventh cabin their rescuers had tried.
The first man who managed to get inside the cabin was terribly short and was wearing a forest green jacket. For a second, Tony wonders if there really were Hobbits in this part of the world. Then he realised the wonderful implications of there being other people standing in the cabin.
They both had to be helped to stand, what with the cold and lack of food, Tony’s arm was unceremoniously placed on the shoulder of a man he doesn’t know. The man supports him out of the cabin and through the tunnel of snow that had been carved out for them.
The sky wasn’t completely blue, there were still a few messy patches of cloud in the corners of the sky. He hears Pepper cough quietly behind him, and the sun hurts his eyes.
It’s perfect.
Tony only saw glimpses of Pepper in the next few days. Between hospitals and PR and sleeping he lost track of time. It’s nearly a week after they get back, and until now both of them have been kept inside with strict curfews by a combination of doctors and psychologists. But now they’ve been let off the leash, so Tony nested in the ‘shop till well past his bedtime, and Pepper sat on a couch nearby, getting reacquainted with her blackberry.
They shared a quiet dinner in his kitchen, and when the plates were cleared, Tony takes Pepper’s hand and leads her out onto the deck. There he takes half a step back, tips his head down and motions with his arms to the sky.
The light pollution stains half, but beyond that, the ocean inks the scene above them perfectly.
He gives her the stars.
She drinks the sight of them in contentedly, reaches for his hand and settles her chin on his shoulder.
It’s more than enough.
----
Let me know what you think!