"My Protocols are Being Overwritten."
I was landing on the Stark Tower's Penthouse top level balcony when I received Coulson's call. "Sir, Agent Coulson of S.H.I.E.L.D. is on the line," JARVIS said.
"JARVIS, who is accompanying Agent Coulson?" I wanted to verify if the people Mystic said are going to ask for my help are from S.H.I.E.L.D. and if Seraphine is with Coulson.
"A male S.H.I.E.L.D. agent came in with Agent Coulson. He is currently in the first-floor Lobby. Sir."
"Tell Coulson I'm not in. I'm actually out." I said once JARVIS told me Seraphine isn't with Coulson while I was walking towards the inside of the Penthouse as the Iron Man suit was being disassembled and pulled from my body by the robots installed on the balcony's landing.
"Sir. I'm afraid he is insisting."
"Close the line, JARVIS. I got a date." If whatever S.H.I.E.L.D. wants with me at this time isn't related to Seraphine or Mystic, then it can wait for later. Right now, I want to enjoy the rest of my night with Pepper.
"Levels are holding steady…I think." Pepper said while she is staring at a holographic monitor being projected vertically on top of a table next to the windows closest to the tower's Penthouse lower level balcony. The monitor is showing the tower's energy readings.
"Of course they are, I was directly involved. Which brings me to my next question: how does it feel to be a genius?" I asked her while I'm walking towards her.
I stopped once I reached her. I'm standing close enough to her to invade her personal space, and she has her back to me and is facing the monitor still looking at the holographic energy readings. I turned off the monitor when I reached the table.
"Well, ha, I really wouldn't know now would I?" She answered me as she turned around and faced me after I turned off the monitor.
"What do you mean? All this came from you." I made a circular motion with my right index finger and then pointed at her.
"No. All this came from that." She said and touched my arc reactor with her right index finger.
"Give yourself some credit, please. Stark Tower is your baby. Give yourself... twelve percent of the credit." I said to her touching both her arms and mentioning a decision I had made, earlier when I was working on the energy project, to give her a percentage of the Tower. I was thinking of using it as part of an excuse to convince to take a few days off and go on that vacation I was planning. However, now that Mystic told me about Seraphine, the vacation is going to have to wait for later.
"Twelve percent?" She said as she is walking away from the table and towards the center of the living room.
"An argument can be made for fifteen," I said following her.
"Twelve percent? For my baby?" She said while she is kneeling and sitting on the floor in from of a coffee table at the center of the living room, which contained chilled champagne bottles and glass flutes.
"Well, I did do all the heavy lifting. Literally, I lifted the heavy things. And sorry, but the security snafu? That was on you."
"Oooooh."
"My private elevator..." I'm saying to her while she is pouring champagne in one of the glass flutes.
"You mean OUR elevator?" She corrected me, filling up another glass.
"...was teeming with sweaty workmen. I'm going to pay for that comment about percentages in some subtle way later, aren't I?" I said, continuing with my previous sentence as I'm reaching the table and sitting on the floor next to her.
"Not gonna be that subtle." She said and handed me a champagne glass.
"I'll tell you what. Next building's gonna say 'Potts' on the tower."
"On the lease." She said and moved her glass to click it with mine.
I pulled my glass back before her glass touched mine. "...Call your mom, can you bunk over?" I said to her trying to get her to stay the night in an attempt to try to avoid staying up all night obsessing about Mystic and Seraphine.
"Sir, the telephone. I'm afraid my protocols are being overwritten." JARVIS said to me.
I grabbed my cell phone from the table and picked up Coulson's call. "Stark, we need to talk," Coulson said over the phone.
"You have reached the life model decoy of Tony Stark; please leave a message." I was saying holding the phone in front of me.
"This is urgent," he said.
"Then leave it urgently," I replied.
At that moment, the elevator door opened and Coulson appeared. "Security breach," I said to JARVIS.
"That's on you," I said gesturing to Pepper.
"Mr. Stark," Coulson greeted me.
"Phil! Come in." Pepper said grabbing her glass of Champaign from the table, standing, and walking towards Coulson.
"Phil? Uh, his first name is Agent." I said, standing and following Pepper.
"Come on in; we're celebrating." She said to Coulson.
"Which is why he can't stay," I said to both of them as we reached Coulson.
"We need you to look this over," Coulson said to me holding up a Starkpad for me to take.
"As soon as possible." He continued.
"I don't like being handed things," I told him holding my champagne glass and refusing to take the Starkpad.
"That's alright, `cause I love to be handed things. So, let's trade." Pepper said to Coulson.
She passed her glass of champagne to Coulson and took the file from him, then took her champagne glass back from me and passed me the file.
"Thank you." Said Coulson.
"Official consulting hours are between eight and five every other Thursdays," I told Coulson as I'm opening the Starkpad.
"This isn't a consultation." He said.
"Is this about The Avengers? Which I...I know nothing about." Pepper said to Coulson while I'm walking towards the holographic monitor table.
"The Avengers Initiative was scrapped, I thought, and I didn't even qualify," I said.
"I didn't know that either," Pepper said to Coulson.
"Yeah, Apparently I'm volatile, self-obsessed, don't play well with others," I said placing the Starkpad on the table and connecting it to the table.
"That I did know," Pepper said.
"This isn't about personality profiles anymore," Coulson replied.
"Whatever. Miss Potts, got a second?" I called Pepper.
She walked over to me while I'm transferring the files to the holographic table. "You know, I thought we were having a moment." I said to her when she reached me.
"I was having twelve percent of a moment. This seems serious, Phil's pretty shaken." She said to me turning her head to look in Coulson's direction for a moment and then returning her attention to me once more while I'm opening the files.
"How did you notice? Why is he, Phil?" I asked her looking at her.
"What is all of this?" She said looking down at the images on the tablet.
"This is, uh.." I said stammering in surprise and gesturing with my hands to enlarge the files and project them in the air around us. Multiple windows with the profiles of the Avenger appeared.
"This." I tried to continue looking around at the multiple projected videos and windows displaying information.
There are images and videos showing Captain America in action, the Hulk attacking the army at Culver University; a tall, blond, long haired dude fighting a giant robot; and other images. I'm starting to wonder if this is in anyway related to those people that Mystic said need my help, but they can't be from S.H.I.E.L.D. because Seraphine isn't with Coulson.
"I'm going to take the jet to D.C. tonight," Pepper said turning her head from side to side to look at the multiple projections.
"Tomorrow," I told her not wanting her to leave just yet.
"You've got homework. You've got a lot of homework." Turning her attention to me again.
"Well, what if I didn't?" I asked her looking at her.
"If you didn't?"
"Yeah."
"You mean if you finished?" I nodded my head.
"Well, um...then..." She hugged me and whispered in my left ear her plans for later.
"Square deal," I said to her.
Then, she kissed me. "Work hard." She said and walked towards Coulson.
"Is there any chance you are driving by the airport?" She asked him.
"I can drop you there. I need to talk to Mister Stark in private about something Director Fury needs. If you could wait about twenty minutes, I will take you to the airport." He said to her, surprising Pepper and me.
"Ok. I will wait for you downstairs. Then." She said and took the elevator to the first floor. Whatever Coulson wants to tell me is obviously super classified because he didn't mind for Pepper to look at the Avengers initiative information, but he didn't want her to know about whatever this is going to be. I have a feeling that my suspicions are right, and this is related to the problem Mystic mentioned.