Tony enjoyed taking walks around the city. Well, whenever the paparazzi would bother leaving him alone, that is. Luckily, today was one of those days where it was too cold for the damned reporters to bother to get out of their cozy little homes and pester the billionaire.
It was below water's freezing point and small snowflakes were drifting lazily through the air. He shoved his hands deep into his pockets and trudged along the sidewalks, being ignored by any other pedestrians because of the sharp cold. He looked towards up the street and decided to grab a cup of coffee from the nearby Starbucks.
He stepped inside the door and walked towards the counter, manned by a teenage boy with light blonde hair, electric blue eyes, and a small scar above his lip.
"Hello, sir, welcome to Starbucks. How may I help you today?" The boy asked. Tony glanced at the menu for a moment before deciding on his drink.
"I'll have a venti Dark Chocolate melted truffle mocha," he said, and before the boy could even tell him the price Tony slapped a fifty onto the counter. The boy gaped for a moment, before beginning to ring Tony up.
"And uh, kid, keep the change," Tony added. The boy nodded quickly and asked,
"Name?"
"Tony," Tony replied, and went over to a table to wait for his drink to be ready. He sat by a window, and looked out. The window overlooked the local park, which was slowly being covered by a thin layer of snow. Tony then noticed something very odd about the park. It was nearly empty, except for one bench. A small girl, she couldn't have been more than sixteen, sat and knit. Tony couldn't get a clear view of what she was making, but he could tell it was big, almost blanket size. And blue. He looked at her for a moment later before,
"Tony," the billionaire playboy stood up as his name was called, and made his way over to the counter. He picked up his drink, nodded thanks to the boy at the counter, and left the coffee shop. Walking slowly, he began making his way towards the park, continuing to look at the girl.
She wore thick round glasses and had short, dirty blonde hair beneath a worn-out purple hat. Her coat was a light grey with fuzz around the hood, and was obviously not new. She didn't wear anything on her hands, probably so they would be free to manipulate the knitting needles, but she wore a pair of jeans and snow boots that looked several sizes too big. At her feat was a fabric bag, it looked handmade, and the yarn was coming out of it.
Lying next to her was a dog, a mutt of some sort. It looked like a mini German Shepherd, with a black chest and large ears that flopped over and ended in a point. Around the dog's neck was a dark blue collar, the same color as the thing the girl was creating, and a tag that Tony couldn't quite see.
The girl stopped knitting for a moment and leaned down to pet her dog, who licked her hand affectionately. She then reached into her bag and took out a measuring tape, seeing how big her project had gotten, no doubt.
Tony took a drink of his coffee and then walked purposely over toward the girl. The dog noticed him first, turning his head and giving a soft, "yap!" Causing the girl to turn to see what had caused her dog to create the sound. Tony gave her a small wave and sat down next to her.
"So… Watcha making there?" Tony asked, gesturing towards the knit piece. The girl stared at him for a moment longer, not saying anything, before quickly scrambling to semi-hide her project.
"Nothing, it's not really anything," she muttered, a deep blush settling into her cheeks. Tony rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, it's something. And going off of your embarrassed reaction, I'm guessing it's for a crush, or a hero of some sort," he winked as he said. The girl's blush got deeper, and a strand of hair fell into her face.
"I know, I have that effect on people," Tony said, waving his hand around in a nonchalant gesture. He took another sip of his drink.
"So, what's with the pup?" Tony asked, gesturing towards the dog.
"That's my dog. His name is Cap. Like Captain America," she said quietly, almost so Tony couldn't hear. Tony snorted slightly and looked down at the dog.
"I'm sorry, bud," he said to the canine, "I guess they messed up on your birth certificate. Your name was probably supposed to be Iron Dog," The girl gave a small smile at this.
"His name is Cap because I got him at the shelter. He was the smallest skinniest dog there when I got him, really underfed. Then I took him home and helped him, and now he's strong. He's a trooper and a soldier," she said, "plus, I got him after the battle of New York. You're Tony Stark, right? So you were there. Well, my mom and I were trapped in a building and I was scared I was going to die. Then Captain America came and he saved us. I feel like I need to thank him, so I made this," She then brought forth what she was working on, and Tony was slightly taken back. It was a large, thick blanket with Steve's shield knit right onto a blue background. The handiwork was incredible, though there was a little bit at the top that was unfinished, probably the part she was still working on.
"I want to give it to him to say thanks. I made a blanket because I know he was frozen in the ice for so long, and I want to make sure he isn't cold and afraid again," she said. Tony was very touched. He had never thought of the Avengers of touching people's lives like that. Sure they punch a few villains, take out a few bombs, save a few lives, but he never thought of the people they were saving as… People.
"I don't know how to get it to him," she continued, "I'm just a nobody who moved here because my home was destroyed in the alien attack," Tony turned to look at her, realizing he didn't even know her name.
"What's your name, kid?" He asked.
"Lauren," she replied.
"How about this, Lauren," he continued, and quickly drank the rest of his coffee before pulling out a pen and scrawling his address onto the side of the cup, "when you finish that blanket, send it to this address. I know the Captain personally, and I will ensure that he gets it,"
"Really?" Lauren asked.
"Really," Tony agreed. Lauren surprised Tony then by giving him a huge hug.
"Thank you," she said.
Two weeks later Steve Rogers had just gotten back from a mission from S.H.I.E.L.D. and Tony had invited the Avengers to crash at the tower whenever need be. Well, Steve needed it. He had to get out of the S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters for a while. When he stepped into his personal bedroom, he was surprised to see a lumpy package sitting on his bed. It was wrapped in brown paper and tied with string, and it had a small handwritten note on it. Picking up the note, Steve read,
This isn't from me, Gramps, so don't even get that idea. This was handmade by a kid from New York to say thanks, so treat it with care. If I remember right, her exact words were 'I want to give this to him to say thanks. I know he was frozen in the ice for so long, and I want to make sure he isn't ever cold and afraid again.' So, yeah. This was handmade by a girl named Lauren.
Steve set the note aside and carefully undid the wrappings. When the paper was aside, he was greeted by a large, knit, thick, blue blanket with his shield stitched right into the center, so large it took up nearly the entire blanket. He looked it over and noticed that down in the right hand corner, in careful lettering, were the words, 'To make sure a warm man is never cold again. Thank you, Lauren'
Steve laid the blanket out over his bed, then lifted it up and wrapped it around his shoulders. He held it tight and sighed. He would be brave now not because he had to, but because he knew that his bravery helped others. He would be brave for the girl named Lauren.
So, what did you think of my little avengers fluffy one shot? Good? Bad? Should I do more oneshots? This idea just sort of came to me and I had to write it down. Also, what is your opinion on a series of oneshots focusing on each of the avengers seeing a kid being bullied and how they deal with the situation?
Anyway, I need to sleep. My brain doesn't work very well on pure coffee... So, yeah. Speaking of coffee, I have only been to Starbucks twice in my life, so I'm sorry for any inaccuracies I had in that little part. K, I have to go now. Ciao!