PEPPER POTTS

Pepper Potts CEO of Stark Industries Professional Worrier "What would you do without me?"

[prcfessionalpctts]

hope-v-dyne :

@prcfessionalpctts

Power moves were something that Hope felt she excelled at.  And of course she would, she’d been a DA in New York City.  You didn’t get there without pushing a few buttons.  Or a lot of them.  The game was a little more slim here, which threatened to make a pretty boring existence for Hope, but at least there was Virginia Potts.  There was something delicious about jibing at the woman, who would have held her own in New York if she ever dared to try to get out of the prison of this small town. She had no idea why Virginia Potts had left the big time to come here willingly, and that was what was intriguing about the woman, that more than anything else.  But regardless, she was on the opposite side of almost every case and that meant that Hope had to crush her.  In every way she could.  It made life a little more interesting, in any case.

And for right now, Hope’s power move of the day was simple in it’s aims and execution.  Kill with kindness.  The case wasn’t set to start for another few minutes, but Hope had gotten in early, and set up at her table in the court room, sipping coffee and going over her notes again.  She stood when she saw Virginia’s tell tale shock of red hair enter the room and smiled.  "Good morning Virginia,“ she said sweetly and offered her the other coffee she’d bought that morning.  "I thought you might be running a little behind again and took the liberty,” she said, setting the coffee on the defense table and turning back to her own.  "But since you’re here now, maybe we can talk settlement again.  You know that this isn’t going your way, Ginny, and it might be better to pack it in now.  We can take the afternoon off and do lunch, on me.“  She looked down at her phone and hummed.  “Di Ciccio’s sounds nice, I can get us a table at noon.”

Virginia wasn’t used to being the anything less than the best. She’d excelled at passive aggressive, truly aggressive, and subtle undermining. But she was starting to think she’d met her watch with Hope Van Dyne. The woman seemed one step ahead, no matter what Virginia tried to do. With an exaggerated smile, she reached into her purse and pulled out a pristine bag of muffins, which she dropped onto the table with a quiet plop. “Why, what a coincidence. I was passing by the coffee shop on my way over here, and I couldn’t help picking up an extra muffin for my esteemed opposition. I noticed how hard this case has been for you, and thought you looked like you could use something extra to eat.” Virgina smiled through gritted teeth, trying to land every blow she could without being outright cruel. “I know you haven’t had much time to stay up on personal care recently. Don’t worry, it’s not that noticeable.”

Virginia turned and sauntered away, making sure not to look back even when Hope directly addressed her again. “Unfortunately my client still doesn’t want to settle. He’s innocent, and he won’t be claiming anything else, even for the sake of an easier sentence. You’d know that if you paid attention in the prelim hearing.” Virginia shook off the nickname and smoothed down her skirt, willing herself not to be ruffled by the other woman. “But....I suppose I can find the time to discuss a settlement. We might as well try to work together for a peaceful resolution.” Simply for the sake of being difficult, which was honestly a mainstay in their relationship, Virginia shook her head. “Better make that twelve thirty. I have a meeting with Judge Thompkins at 11:45. You know how he likes to ramble.”

[prcfessionalpctts]

PEPPER POTTS BIOGRAPHY

Virginia Potts grew up perfect. She was the perfect daughter, the perfect student, the perfect friend. She succeeded at every task, no matter how difficult. Her father walked out on the family when she was very young, and her mother put an insane amount of pressure on her to achieve greatness to such a degree that no man would ever think about leaving her. For a young girl, that kind of pressure can be damaging.

Virginia embraced it, though, and after doing her time at the local community college, she went on to attend Harvard Law School. It was there that she met Tony and finally felt like she might have someone who wanted to be with her despite (or maybe even a little because of) her hard-work and dedication. After college, Virginia went on to become a high-profile lawyer. For several years she was happy working in the big city, with other important, respected people. Eventually something drew her back to Deerfield, though, and she set up her practice in town. Despite living close by, she doesn’t speak to her mother, but they both prefer it that way.

For Virginia, the biggest challenge both personally and professionally has been Hope Van Dyne. The star prosecutor and Virginia’s biggest rival in the business, Hope has been like a tack in Virginia’s shoe since the day she started practicing law. Being the highest caliber lawyers in town, they frequently find themselves pitted against each other in the courtroom. But the animosity doesn’t stop there. They have vastly different personalities, which often leads them to butt heads in their personal life as well. Let’s just say that an after-work get together for the law firm has never ended well.

[prcfessionalpctts]

“Peter Parker.” Pepper breathed when she saw the kid, so much smaller than she’d realized he was before the stone. She had Tony to thank for bringing a kid into their lives that she hadn’t realized she’d be so worried about, but she didn’t mind much. What was one more person to worry about. “Peter Parker,” She said louder, motioning him down the hall of the Avengers Compound towards her. “Come here. We’re getting you some food and a change of clothes.” She ordered, voice firm but friendly.

@spidcrsenses

[prcfessionalpctts]

motherfu-ry :

Can somebody get me a damn cell phone and a status update before I end up stuck in some fucked up, stupid ass, hellstone, again. And I know you all have gone and done something I’ll have to clean up so the quicker the better. Thank you.

Relax, Mr. Fury. Please. We wouldn’t want you to burst a blood vessel or something before we get a chance to have our scientists look at you. You did just literally explode out of a mystical object that you were being trapped inside of. It wouldn’t be surprising if you were a little off-center for a while. I’ll have F.R.I.D.A.Y. call Tony, alright?

[prcfessionalpctts]

pictro-mcximoff :

You know what really sucked about being able to move so fast? Your body metabolises alcohol much faster than the average person, meaning that despite sitting at the bar every day that week, Pietro had yet to feel even the slightest buzz. “Do I look like I want to talk?” He barely even glanced at the person sitting on the next barstool. Pietro barely looked at anyone anymore. It was supposed to be him. He was supposed to be the one that died and Wanda was supposed to live. What use was it being brought back to life in a world that had nothing to offer you?

Pepper had dealt with Tony for long enough to know when someone was using alcohol to numb the pain they felt inside. She clasped her hands and took a seat next to him, face pinched with worry. She’d also known Tony long enough to know when it wasn’t working. “I wasn’t going to talk to you.” She motioned around them at the bar, and--on an even larger scale--the compound around it. “This place belongs to my fiance and I. Sometimes I like to come by and make sure everything’s in working order.” Pepper had heard stories of the boy from what remained of SHIELD, as well as from Tony, and she knew about everything he’d lost. That kind of suffering couldn’t be eased with something like bourbon or scotch. “Sometimes I find kids who look barely old enough to drink downing enough liquor to give Steve Rogers alcohol poisoning.” She said, giving him a knowing glance. She wouldn’t tell him to stop, but it would have been nice if he got the message and decided to cut himself off.

[prcfessionalpctts]

mariaxhill :

Maria hadn’t really given much thought to what she’d find on the other side of the rift.  She didn’t expect much of anything honestly.  Maybe to fall into another, equally horrible world, but at least some place she could die feeling like at least she’d tried.  At the most, some place where she could get some kind of message out before she finally ended up dying.  Both were pretty bleak, but Maria couldn’t really logically hope for anything better.

So when she opened her eyes and saw Pepper looking at her, she let out a weak kind of laugh that ended in a sputtering cough.  "This is really not the hallucination I thought I’d get, but I’ll take it,“ she muttered, more to herself than to Pepper.  "I..yeah, I think so,” she added, deciding to just go with it, but was shocked when Pepper was actually able to touch her.  That shock woke her up a little more and she looked up into Pepper’s worried face, shock, confusion and hope on her face.  "It’s you?“  She let out something of a laugh and lifted one hand to touch Pepper’s cheek, just to make sure. "Hi,” she added, letting out another shocked laugh.  "I really did it?  I made it back.“  She grinned and then frowned, the pain in her side making her breath hitch.  "Wait, the rift…I have to…”  She tried to sit up, and groaned.  “Everyone’s still out there, I have to tell them to come through."  Maria was determined to make it to her feet, and leveraged herself off of Pepper’s shoulder before lifting a hand to her, as if she had the strength to help her up.  “Where are they?  Tony, the rest of them?  We might not have much time.”

Pepper let out a choked laugh of her own, concern and confusion bubbling up inside of her like a pot ready to boil over. She’d been on edge for days, weeks, maybe even years, and now it felt like it was all piling up to become too much. “I’m not--This is real, Maria, I promise. I’m here. You’re safe.” They were empty words, empty promises, made from a woman built for offices and board meetings instead of battlefields. Maria was the strong one, the protector. She was too smart to believe that Pepper could really protect her. But the platitudes kept coming anyway.

“It’s really me.” She promised again, eyes scanning her injured friend, trying to categorize the worst of her injuries and remember them, in case she needed to tell a doctor something. The pain was clearly making Maria loopy, because Pepper had never seen her like this before. She’d never wanted to see her so out of control and scared like this. So broken like this. “No no no, Maria, please. Don’t move yet. I had F.R.I.D.A.Y. call for help, someone will be here in a minute.”

For a moment, she had a surge of hope for the future, for what was to come. But just as quickly--it was gone. “Oh....Oh no. The rift--it closed. There’s nothing left to come through.” But that wasn’t what Maria needed to hear. What were they always saying on medical shows? Never give the patient bad news when they couldn’t handle it. “But we can get to them,” Pepper added hastily. “If they’re all really out there, we will get them back. I promise you that.” When she saw Maria move, she tried to stop her, but she wasn’t quick enough. For someone so injured, Maria was surprisingly quick to her feet. She ignored the offered hand and pushed herself off the ground, hiking her pencil skirt up her thighs slightly so it didn’t rip as she stood. That would only be another unnecessary complication. “They’re--they’re at the lab in the Compound. They’re safe. They’ve been looking for ways to fix this mess Thanos created. You may just have the answers they need.” She said as she wrapped her arm around Maria, careful to avoid the areas that she’d noticed Maria was protective of. She didn’t need to hurt her friend worse, but she also couldn’t allow her to fall.

[prcfessionalpctts]

captainmarvcls :

Spending the past few months in a confined space with a handful of other people, Carol had found herself in quite the routine with them. They all had specific things to do and it all seemed to work out quite well, but once she was back on Earth she came to the realization that’s not how everyone else functioned, especially not in these near end of the world circumstances. Things were getting better, slowly but surely, however there was still this sense of dread that a lot of people she had come into contact with couldn’t seem to shake. As she heard the woman rant about the coffee pot, Carol couldn’t help but to laugh softly. “Trust me, I know that but a lot of people are quite scattered brained right now.  Maybe you could put a note by the coffee pot reminding people they need to clean it out, it does get quite gross when it isn’t properly cleaned out.” she said, scrunching her nose up a bit in feigned disgust. 

“I know there’s a lot going on,” Pepper conceded. “But that’s no reason to stop acting like reasonable adults. Believe me, I’ve been in the business world for years, I know irresponsible when I see it, and it’s not these people. I think they might just be lazy.” Although the prospect of writing up a whole sign just to have people ignore that too didn’t seem all that appealing to her (she remembered the Office episode where Pam tried to get her coworkers to clean up the microwave and just made herself look like a controlling snob), she smiled and nodded. “That’s definitely a good idea. I’ll have to see if I can get Tony to program F.R.I.D.A.Y. to tell off anyone who tries to escape without cleaning up as well. Maybe the combination of those two things will be enough.”

[wtloki]

Oscorp hell [open]

[prcfessionalpctts]

wtharryosb0rn :

“ HOLD MY CALLS! ITS NOT A DIFFICULT TASK!” He shouted at the new secretary. The last one ashed away. Along with his dad, along with his dad’s assistant. That left him here, alone  as head with this HUGE corporation. With ALL these people needing answers. An on top of it Tony fucking Stark wasn’t answering his calls!

He let out a loud crazy laugh feeling like he was going to lose it. He heard someone call him. He turned around. “WHAT IS IT? If ITS NOT FROM IRON FREAKING GHOSTING MAN. I DONT WANT TO HEAR IT!” He took a deep breath. “Sorry.” He took another breath to calm down. “What can I help you with?”

Pepper--who, despite all of her training, and experience, and status as CEO of one of the top Fortune 500 Companies in the world, had never taken to bratty young boys who felt entitled to their position because they were born into it--stared at him in surprise for a moment, flipping the S.I. binder in her hands closed with a crisp snap. “Are you quite done with that outburst, Mr. Osborn? I was told there was someone....capable handling this company. If the stress proves to be too much, I’ll have to make a few calls and see if I can’t suggest to the members of the board that they bring in some outside control, at least until you turn twenty-one.” She said, her voice soft with concern because she knew what he must be going through after losing his father. And, while she was sure the kid was nice enough, she knew what running a company called for, and she never would have wanted a kid his age handling it. Even Tony had advisors and stand-ins controlling the company for him when he was that age. “You are aware, Mr. Osborn, that Stark Industries stock is up thirty percent since you took control of Oscorp? That’s not a coincidence. Your investors are flooding to us. Do you have advisors? Someone managing the day-to-day decisions? Any help at all here?”

[prcfessionalpctts]

peggys-value :

Peggy had just been about to comment on how she couldn’t quite believe that there was actually a gal named Friday who had everything under control but then she heard the other woman say ‘interface’. She stayed quiet, attempting to piece together the information as fast as she was getting it but before she could stop herself she’d slipped up with a, “Jarvis?” Blinking, she shook her head slowly. Surely Jarvis hadn’t become some sort of robot… Then, it hit her. “Sorry, I’m a little behind on the times over here. Do you mean Tony Stark? As in, Howard Stark’s son? I’m… Peggy. Peggy Carter and I’ve been making a list to answer just that question actually but I feel as if I’m constantly running out of paper.”

And that was the moment when Pepper realized her mistake. It was the accent really, distinctive and crisp in a way she hadn’t heard it for years. But she’d definitely heard it before. Not to mention she’d seen young Peggy Carter’s portrait about a hundred times since meeting Tony. “Oh my--Peg--Ms. Carter! You don’t know me. I’m Pepper. I work here. Well, not here, but I...I’m sorry, this is kind of crazy for me.” She paused for a moment, staring at the woman in front of her. She’d known people came through the rift--people who were supposed to be dead--but she hadn’t known someone so influential was among them. “I did mean Tony Stark, yes. I’m, well, he’s my fiance.” But that wasn’t relevant to this conversation, so she set down the files she was carrying and extended a hand. “It’s very nice to officially meet you, Ms. Carter. I was well acquainted with your....older self. Please, if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask me. I’m always here. I mean it, I pretty much never leave this building anymore,” She chuckled.

[prcfessionalpctts]

col-rhodes :

“Yeah, but come on, Pep. You know a good 75% of the time he’s just talking out of his ass anyways,” Rhodey teased, but, as always, there was no bite to his words. He and Tony lobbed a lot of crap at each other over the years, but at the end of the day, Rhodey loved Tony more than he knew what to do with. When other responsibilities had pulled him away, had made it so that Rhodey couldn’t keep as close an eye on him as he’d like, Pepper had stepped him. She kept pace with him from the get-go, completely forgoing the adjustment period Rhodey needed during their early MIT days. “Hope you’re slowing down and sleeping, though. Just ‘cause Tony’s a pathological insomniac doesn’t mean you have to be. Seriously, how have you been handling all this?” This being people coming back from the dead, aliens attacking New York (again), and the revelation that half the world’s population was still kicking it somewhere in another realm.

“Yeah, well. Rest easy with the knowledge that if I’m doing something stupid, Tony’s involved, and if Tony’s involved, you probably already know about, and have also probably unwillingly gotten involved.” Rhodey wordlessly placed his palm on the side of Pepper’s coffee cup, keeping it from pouring into her lap. It was the kind of thing they did for each other all the time, making up for each other’s momentary lapse in coordination.

Rhodey pretended to think about it. “Yeah, but what if it’s something really cool? What if he finally finished that turbo-powered espresso machine? That’s, like, fourteen shots a minute.” He pushed himself off the bench with a small wince and held his arm out for Pepper. “Anyways, my first order of business, as your assistant, is to fax every barista in the city the proper spelling of your name, ‘cause this is just getting ridiculous.”

“Seventy five sounds low.” She said with a grin. Teasing Tony was always something they enjoyed, something they were good at. It was what had first bonded them, and it was a failsafe fallback for moments like this. It was almost a language of their own, a way of remaining connected over the years when life had pulled them all in different directions. “Of course I am, I’m not twenty anymore. I know I have to get at least five hours a night.” She was joking, really, and she needed him to know that, because he didn’t need more to worry about. She was a grown woman who could take of herself. And if she chose not to, that was her decision. “I’m kidding, don’t go mama bear on me. You, though....I want to know how you’re doing with all of this. You were right in the middle of it. Tony’s told me some--not enough--and I can tell it’s weighing on him.” Out of everyone in her life, Pepper trusted Rhodey most to tell her the truth. To treat her like an adult and not coddle her. “What’s it really like out there? How are people taking this?”

It was one thing to know the truth. To know that their loved ones were still out there, but it was yet another to be in Rhodey’s shoes. To feel responsible in part for getting them back. She couldn’t help feeling relieved that she’d never gotten herself more involved in the hero life. “That is how it normally goes, isn’t it?” She asked, failing to suppress her grin. They made quite the team. “Oh, thank you,” She laughed a little and set the cup down so no more near-misses happened. “I swear you’re half my brain sometimes. I don’t know what I’d do if you had ashe...” She trailed off, light tone faltering. They had lost so many people already, she couldn’t imagine the thought of losing Rhodey too.

“I’ll be happier if he can figure out how to clean the coffee machine we already have. No need to add a turbo boost if you still clog the machine with a week’s worth of coffee grounds.” None of them needed fourteen shots of espresso a minute, though she didn’t doubt that they’d all put the machine to good use if it were something Tony was actually thinking of building. Actually, Rhodey’d come up with that pretty quickly, there was no proof Tony didn’t have one in production. She’d have to check on that when she got home. “See, I knew I should have gotten an assistant a long time ago. In return, I won’t pull a Devil Wears Prada hell-boss move, and dump the coffee on you or anything. We can order lunch in, alright?”

[prcfessionalpctts]

how do you deal with all the avengers?

Well, I’d like to say well, but I’m sure poor Bruce would argue that point if asked. I might have yelled at him about not doing the dishes recently. It’s definitely a problem, but I could have been much nicer about the way I handled it. Overall, though? I think I’m handling a bunch of superpowered strangers living down the hall from me about as well as anyone would.I don’t know how Tony does it.

[prcfessionalpctts]

did you know tony had sex with so many women?

I was Tony’s assistant long before anything romantic happened between us; I would have had to be blind to have missed the encounters he had with different women. That being said, I have complete and total faith in Tony now, and I know he would never do anything to betray that trust. I wouldn’t be marrying him if that were in question.

[prcfessionalpctts]

lastofthevalkyrie :

Val almost spit out her coffee. She quickly hid the other coffee pot she was drinking from behind her back. She probably should have used a cup but who had time for that. She needed as much caffeine intake as possible. It was a pretty good substitute for liquor. Had a far better taste most of the time. “I’m not saying it was me, but I also not saying it wasn’t me.” The other woman looked like she could throw down, and surprisingly Val wasn’t in the mood for once. She backed up and deposited her half full coffee pot on a counter.  “But let’s say it was me, just for fun. I’ve never seen a pot like this before. How would one clean the pot out?” She gently took the pot out of the other lady’s hand. Val actually didn’t know how to do dishes. They cleaned themselves on Asgard and Sakaar. It was probably a good skill to learn. She had no money and helping to clean could be her way to pay to stay.

The fact that it was another woman she was yelling at slowed Pepper’s rage a little, because there certainly weren’t enough women around the Compound, and she desperately felt the need for more (so scaring them off with arguments about coffee was undoubtedly a bad idea). But it didn’t last long. She was a feminist, and she was fully prepared to get equally angry at anyone for being an inconsiderate houseguest. “Could you say whatever you’re saying while you do the dishes?” Pepper asked, more an order than a question. Though, honestly, the woman in front of her did not seem like someone who took orders easily. “Great, thank you. You may be the first person to actually ask me that and not just pretend they know so I’ll go away. Here, I’ll show you,” Pepper offered, taking the foam wand they used to clean out the inside of glasses and mugs and handing it to the other woman. “You dump the coffee down the drain, full the pot with water and soap, and then you brush this thing around inside of it. It’s pretty simple.” Really, she was just relieved the conversation hadn’t devolved into a massive argument. It was a fifty-fifty chance around here. “I’m Pepper, by the way.”

[prcfessionalpctts]

doctor-bruce-banner :

Bruce winced just a little when he saw Pepper’s intense gaze slide over to him and saw that it was only moderately softened by noticing it was him.  "Well,“ he said and anxiously lifted his glasses off of his nose and then replaced them.  "I mean.  I do that most of the time now.  Or attempt to.  It’s kind of…what this whole place is about?” he said hopefully.  "And to be honest, we did just get a rift closed to another dimension, and I was pretty involved in that…“

He trailed off when Pepper finished her question and felt his lips purse into something close to a frown.  He wrinkled his nose.  "Not as such,” he said.  "But I was really onto something last night when I-“ Bruce tried, but then found himself with a handful of coffee pot.  Oh good.  Dishes.  Just what he wanted.  He thought about it a moment and then turned to the kitchen sink and started to wash.  "He’s all of Tony’s and my worse qualities exemplified to the nth degree in a single man, I have no idea why you don’t hate him like the rest of us,” he said, his words halfway between a grumble and something light that was almost a joke.  "I would say I could be of assistance, but I don’t think anyone is ready to trust my judgement about anything right now.  I’ve been pouring through Reed’s notes, and it’s definitely all him.  Only he could brag about himself in his tech notes.“

Bruce started to shrug and then sighed.  “I’m sorry.  You really do too much to take care of us and we’re not as appreciative as we should be.”

Watching him fidget wasn’t pleasant, because she truly did care for Bruce, and she knew what a bad idea it was to make him uncomfortable, but she was stressed, and tired, and she’d had nowhere hear her daily level of coffee yet. “That’s....fair. You guys do seem really busy down there. I’m sure it’s not easy.” She agreed, feeling a little like an asshole for even asking. Of course he was, of course he had been. Of course he would be until the world was fully and completely saved. Voice soft, face kinder than she’d had it before, she smiled at him. “Thank you for all of your hard work, Bruce. I know it can’t be easy to handle all of this.”

But her sympathy wasn’t enough to spare him from his rightful share of housecleaning duties. She’d give him a free pass after he saved the world. Or cured cancer. One of the two, definitely. “You have to remember that I put up with Tony at his worst for years. And I still agreed to marry him. I think my tolerance for asshole scientists might be higher than yours. And anyway, I don’t have a personal stake in the matter. My honor and diplomas aren’t on the line every time he invents something before I do.” Pepper suggested, shrugging slightly. Now that her hands were empty, she found herself fidgeting a little. She and Bruce should be talking about something important, something that mattered. But they weren’t, and she couldn’t bring herself to send the conversation in that direction.

“I trust your judgement.” She promised, hoping that was enough to make up for her earlier harshness. He hadn’t deserved the full force of her anger, especially when he was only 1/16th responsible for the mess. “It’s really not that much work. I just set F.R.I.D.A.Y. to babysitting protocols and call it a night.” But his words were touching, and she appreciated the thought when she hadn’t had a full night of rest in weeks. “Thank you, Bruce. Really. It means a lot that you notice all the little things it takes to keep this place going. For what it’s worth, I’m really glad you’re here.”

[prcfessionalpctts]

anthonyxstark :

(( @prcfessionalpctts ))

New York City, Earth. The day of “The Snap”

Getting back to Earth after he had wanted nothing more than stay in that wreckage of a planet, had been one of the hardest things Tony had ever done. And he had once built an arc reactor out of scrap in a cave. But this was different, he had just witnessed the result of his failures. As he had held Peter, Tony had wondered if instead of pursuing this threat alone, if he had listened to Steve and fought together… It was too late for ifs.

Tony was certain that if it had not been for Nebula, he would’ve gladly curled up in a ball and let the weight of his bad decisions crush him. And it wasn’t that she had offer words of comfort -Tony would’ve pushed those away- no, she had been loud and angry, and that had made Tony snap out of his daze. They managed to make it back to Earth, and with even a greater effort, to New York.

The whole place was chaotic, and Tony felt that would be the same for every corner of the world. Tony was scared. He didn’t know what to expect, what he would do if he walked in to find Rhodey gone. To come home and…

❝Pepper❞ he whispered to himself, tears forming on the corner of his eyes, his breath had almost stopped at the sight of the red hair. She was safe. Tony ran up to her, he wasn’t sure what he would say, he should’ve listened to her. When he reached her Tony sank to his knees and hugged her legs, ❝we never should’ve left Malibu…❞ he said in a shaky voice.

It seemed like Pepper was always waiting. Waiting for the board of S.I. to approve her plans, waiting for news on her friends, waiting for Tony to come home again. Waiting to know if Tony was even alive. She’d long ago come to terms with the uncertainty that life with Tony would bring (a part of her craved it, even. Probably because of the years she’d spent cleaning up his messes, the drama felt more familiar than peace), but it worried her none-the-less every time he disappeared on her.

She’d gone to the only place she could after the world fell into ruins (after the businessmen she was meeting with turned to ash mid-handshake) and sworn she would wait for Tony there. The compound was crowded, busier than she’d ever seen it, with people she hadn’t seen in years wandering all around. It pained her to think that Tony might not get to see it this way.

But she still had a business to run, and promises to make, and people to comfort. She couldn’t allow her grief to destroy her. She’d set up shop at the massive island in the kitchen of the Avengers Compound, tablet open in front of her and day planner filled with scribbles and short-hand no one else could understand. But it was impossible to focus. She felt Tony everywhere, heard his voice echoing the halls like he was in another room and not on another planet. And not potentially....

And then he was there, as if her thoughts had brought him into being, tired looking and dirty, worse for wear in a thousand different ways, but still alive. She dropped the tablet to the floor with a clatter and wound her arms around his shoulders, hands buried in his hair. “Tony. Oh my god, Tony.” She breathed. “I didn’t think you were going to make it. I mean, I knew you would, but I was starting to doubt myself.” She could feel her composure falling away slightly, leaving her exposed and raw like a nerve. “Tony, I--” She broke free from his grip, kicking off her heels and kneeling in front of him in one movement. “You have no idea how much I’ve missed you.”

[prcfessionalpctts]

col-rhodes :

Pepper. He bit back a smile at the quip about her shoes, so relieved that she’d found him instead of someone else a little less blunt and a little more misguided. Pepper always knew what to say. “Hey, Pep. I almost feel like I should take the coffee from you, your mouth’s running so fast. But I’m kinda hungry, so.” He reached for the scone, the paper making a pleasant crinkling noise between his fingers. She was a goddess, honestly. The first bite already had him feeling better and he came to the slow realization that he had once again slipped into bad eating habits - he had to keep reminding himself that he was far too old to be skipping lunch.

Chewing pensively for a moment, they sat in silence as Rhodey watched a beady-eyed pigeon peck curiously around some gum stuck to the sidewalk. “Don’t worry too much, alright?” he said finally, turning to offer her a tired, crooked smile. “I’m fine, I just need to see Tony for a tune up. Thought I could go without for a couple days while he was busy with this whole rift thing, but I guess that was dumb. Learned my lesson.”

Rhodey was almost certain she didn’t have prior plans to ‘head back to the compound’, but he needed the lift and he’d been proud enough for the day, so he let it slide. “Yeah, that sounds good. I can be your assistant for the day, you know I take really good notes.”

“My mouth always runs fast, it’s a side-effect of running the business. Or...Maybe it’s a side-effect of living with Tony. You kind of have to move fast to keep up with him. Or he leaves you in the dust,” She added with a laugh, thinking back to all the times she and Rhodey had been left tagging along behind Tony with barely any clue what they were getting themselves into. Together they could usually keep control of the other man, but they’d had some close calls in the past. She handed him the scone, glad he hadn’t refused to take the food from her. She was a strong woman, capable of a lot of things, but surviving round-about arguments about chivalry was never one of her strengths. She was grateful that Rhodey had never tried to pull that macho bullcrap on her.

It wasn’t easy for her to keep her mouth shut, to wait for him to offer her a clue as to what he needed in the moment, but she respected him too much to try to be his mother. She would wait as long as he needed. Even if the wooden bench really wasn’t that comfortable against a polyester pencil skirt. “I’m not worried, who’s worried?” She asked, but there was no way she was pulling that off successfully. “You realize that you’re asking me to go against my very nature here, right? There’s not a day that I don’t worry about you and Tony. Even when you’re just enjoying yourselves at home. I know how much trouble you two can get into.” And how much they’d both try to hide if they thought it was best for the other person. They could both be selfless idiots sometimes, which is exactly why they needed her. Nobody else would have spent as many years as she had, trailing along behind them and telling them what they needed. Oh god, maybe she was Rhodey’s mother.

“I’ll make sure he takes a look at you. And you aren’t allowed to let him pull you off to see something cool he’s working on until after he’s adjusted everything. Got it?” It was easier said than done, but she had faith in them. Or maybe she’d have F.R.I.D.A.Y. keep an eye on them. “You’re going to spoil me. I might actually have to get my own assistant after this. Or just lock the door and keep you from ever leaving my office.” She checked her watch, cup with Peter Potts scrawled on the side in cursive tilting dangerously. “The car should be here in about ten minutes, so we won’t have much of a wait.”

[prcfessionalpctts]

awwarrowno :

Clint continued sipping his coffee. “Bold of you to assume I’ve finished with the pot.” From years of experience he knew that brewing a second pot would get rid of the coffee at the bottom. He was only on his third pot, there was a need for more. He knew he probably wasn’t welcome here after he fought against Tony, but those were just semantics. Sure, he had to slip past security to get in but that was a need to know piece of information. “You looked stressed out, should I bring Pizza Dog out? She’s very cute and cuddly.” Lucky was in the other room, munching on pizza that was supposed to be Clint’s. Lucky was too sneaky for her own good. You turn her back on her and suddenly there goes dinner and now you’re drinking coffee getting in trouble for not washing a coffee pot.

“Agent Barton,” She said evenly, face neutral. She honestly couldn’t keep up with who they were and weren’t friends with now that the world had ended (she needed to have Tony make her a list of something), but last she’d heard Clint had taken a plea deal with the government and tapped out of the vigilante game. “I’m surprised to see you here, I thought you were under house arrest.” Not that something as trivial as ankle monitors and government agents would be enough to stop a highly skilled superspy, but she’d thought F.R.I.D.A.Y. would be more than capable of alerting the security team. Pepper really had to have someone look at upgrading her system. “....Pizza dog? I don’t think we should have dogs in here, several of our, ah, more otherworldly guests have expressed a dislike of the fact that we keep animals as pets and not as food.” Realizing he’s gotten her off topic (probably intentionally, he is a superspy after all), she extends a hand for the pot. "Hand it over. You can use a mug like everyone else in the house. Understood?”