1. Nothing is mine.

2. Nothing is betaed.

3. This didn't go in the direction I was anticipating.

4. Sorry.

After all was said and done, after the clean-up of New York City, after Thor took his brother away, Tony Stark sat in the ruined top level of Stark Tower. He sat on his couch, among the dust and debris with a tumbler of untouched whiskey by his side. Pepper is right. I do have to stop drinking. He pulled out his mobile, thumbing through the missed calls section. Pepper Potts - 7 missed calls.

Tony sighed and called Pepper.

"Tony!" Pepper cried out, barely able to keep the panic from setting in. "What happened? Are you okay?"

"I'm Pepper. I'm fine. Where are you?" Tony asked, the resignation creeping into his voice.

"We're sitting at LaGuardia. They're not letting anyone move," Pepper said. "Tony..."

"Don't worry. I'll get them to start moving the planes," Tony said. "I'll come get you myself."

"You will?" Pepper said, her surprise evident.

"Yeah...just wait for me, will you?"

"Of course."

"Pepper?"

"Yes?"

"I love you. You know that, right?"

"Of course I do. I love you too. Tony, you're worrying me," Pepper said. Tony could picture his Pepper, sitting in the private plane, teeth worrying her bottom lip. He smiled a little at the thought.

"I'll be there in fifteen minutes," he said and gently hung up the phone.

Tony made it to the airport an hour later.

He pulled up his car next to the plane and waited patiently for the door to open. When it finally did, Pepper practically leaped into his arms. He held her tight as she struggled to keep a calm composure. "Come on, let's get you situated," he said as he put her luggage into the trunk of the car. "Hmm. Your eyes are red. Tears for your long lost boyfriend?"

"Tears of joy. I hate dating," Pepper quipped as a tear slipped down her face.

Tony laughed and pulled her into a one armed hug. They remained like this for several minutes until Pepper felt more control of herself. Tony felt her shift in his arms.

"Tony, come on. I feel a talk coming on and I don't want to have it here in the car," she said and pulled back. He nodded and drove them back to what was left of Stark Tower.

"Oh, my god," Pepper said after surveying the damage.

"Yeah, I know," Tony said, his hands in his pockets. "I have plans to rebuild...with extra facilities," he said trailing off.

Pepper quirked an eyebrow. "Does this have something to do with Phil and the mysterious Avengers Initiative?"

Tony didn't say anything, turning towards the window and frowning. It had hurt them all to know that Phil had died, to know that he had kept those silly cards in his breast pocket. He had faith in them - in all of them - and they had let him down. It was unfair and so very wrong. They were now a team and despite Fury being Shield's leader, it was Phil Coulson who was the heart.

"Tony?" Pepper asked. "What's happened?"

Tony felt Pepper come up to him. She placed her hand on his arm as she came into his view. Pepper gasped as she saw the tears streaming down Tony's face.

"Tony? Tell me, what happened?"

"Oh, Pepper. Oh, my beautiful, brave Pepper," Tony said and turned towards her. "We all fought so hard and in the end it didn't seem to matter if we couldn't save him."

"Oh, no. No. No. No," Pepper said, realizing what he was trying to say.

"Phil went up against him, by himself. I don't understand how someone would do that," Tony said, letting Pepper pull him into her arms.

"Well, you put your life in danger every time you put on the suit," Pepper replied, tears slipping down her face.

"I do it to protect you," Tony said fiercely.

"Well," Pepper said in between sobs, "maybe Phil did it to protect all of you."

Tony pondered Pepper's statement, letting it sink in. He realized that he would have done the same for any of his teammates if given the chance. Hell, he did attempt to lay down his life flying the nuclear missile into space and into the Chitauri fleet.

Tony's heart broke a little more with the realization that he had just squandered a chance on a missed friend.

See something wonky? Let me know. Otherwise, thank you for reading.