Darcy Lewis, Pepper Pots, Thor, Tony Stark and his company and Peter Parker belong to their respective copyright holders and creators.

I just borrowed them for this fic.

Darcy Lewis was many things.

Pol Sci Graduate (Take THAT Culver).

Scientist wrangler (When she found whoever had coined the term, she would give them a cookie).

Taser of Norse legends (She wasn't even sorry anymore - because Thor loved her for it).

She was unflappable - mostly. You had to be when you were rooming with Avengers, were besties with afore mentioned Norse legend and worked for Pepper Pots. Because said Avengers often made pit stops at Pepper Pots' office and, well, you could not afford to drop Thor's favourite beverage on her important paper work.

She was also observant. She saw the dark circles under Pepper's eyes - and she put the concealer next to the pitcher of water for that purpose. Pepper was a grown woman, and very health conscious (she'd helped Darcy wrangle Jane to bed for needed beauty sleep), so the only other explanation was Tony.

Or the lack of Tony these days, if you wanted specifics.

But yeah. That was her personal life, not Darcy's.

So if she spent her nights awake because she couldn't sleep without Tony's arc reactor's light, or his presence - then Darcy couldn't stop her. But she could and did look for the right shade of concealor so that her boss wouldn't be caught unaware on camera. And if she put it between the water pitcher and the potted plant so only Pepper could see it, meh, what's another three minutes of her life? It made Pepper smile every time she looked up, and that was enough for Darcy.

Because that was another thing about Darcy: she was a good person.

She cared, genuinely, about the people around her. Especially the people who took chances on her.

Like Professor Ross, who pushed her to take that internship.

Like Col Rhodes, who enlisted her to help drag a barely sober Tony back to Avengers' Tower, which led her to meet Pepper.

Like Pepper, who offered her the job of her dreams working in PR for Stark's green energy campaign (Because climate change was real bitches, and Darcy loved watching Republicans fume when she proved it).

So yes, Darcy was many things.

But no one's perfect. So one could forgive Darcy for her response when, during a rare five minute break on Pepper's office's balcony, a pint sized punk in a red and blue suit decided to swing by.

Literally.

"Oww!" The kid was still choking and coughing by the time Security got there. "What - who even uses pepper spray anymore?"

"Me, duh." Darcy scowled, ammo still at the ready. "Never underestimate a strategically placed can of pepper spray. And well, my brand of tasers still isn't legal here."

"With good reason!" the kid pulled away before security could nab him. "Hey! I'm here with Mr. Stark!"

Darcy blinked. "Tony Stark?"

"Yeah."

"What the heck is Stark doing here?" This couldn't be good. The last time they'd fought badly enough, Tony had tried to apologise by buying Pepper a giant bunny. That had not ended well. No amount of flowers could make up for this fallout though - especially since Darcy was very sure Pepper was equal parts responsible for the break. She peered at the kid, recognition dawning. "You're Spiderman."

"Yup." The kid coughed again.

"Stand down guys," she told the security team, "the kid's one of the New Avengers."

"Who're you calling a kid?" said hero demanded as the guards shrugged and stepped away.

"You, punk." Darcy snorted. "I heard your star struck little voice when Pepper and I were reviewing the Airport fight. It was cute. Have you even hit puberty yet?"

"Yes!" he screeched, and she couldn't help it, she laughed. If she could've seen his face, she was sure he'd be blushing.

"Hey," she said, suddenly contrite as his shoulders hunched in embarrassment. "I tend to speak before I think. Sorry. No brain to mouth filter. You were actually really good. And of course, you made my inner geek swoon with the Jedi worthy take down of Antman so, good job."

The kid scratched his head. "I screwed up in the middle."

"Yeah, well." Darcy shrugged. "I can relate. I almost caused an interplanetary diplomatic fallout by tasing the heir of Asgard. We all make mistakes."

He stilled. "You're Darcy Lewis." The kid sounded almost awed. "Oh, no wonder Security listened to you. You're working for Ms Potts, right? That's kinda why we're here. Tony wants to do this PR spin before I officially sign on."

Darcy blinked before she checked her tablet. When she didn't see anything immediately, she checked what she called her "A list" on a hunch. It was a list of known Avengers and affiliates, with access restricted to her and Pepper. Sure enough, there was a tiny Red A next to a Peter Parker on her secured files. And then she laughed. "No way, you're my ten o clock?"

The kid shrugged. Sounded like he was grinning. "Looks like."

"Okay kid," Darcy grinned and hooked her arm around his. "Let's get a drink. Do you like coffee?"

"As long as it's not decaf."

If possible, her smile got bigger. "Oh, I like you."