"Not Really Dressed"
Skye was slouched in one of the visitor's seats at Stark Industries. After months of working with the Koenig brothers, she was in the habit of wearing a lanyard and security badge, so she had no problem with doing the same here. She saw Happy Hogan smiling with approval when he noticed her compliance with company policy. She also saw Maria Hill falter as she passed, and Skye smiled weakly, giving the tiniest lift of her shoulders. Hill walked on without comment, and Skye breathed a sigh of relief. She continued to tap her fingers on the arm of the chair, giving the appearance of staring at the shiny ceiling but really staying attuned to her surroundings.
She was here to see Pepper Potts. She had to be careful, in case HYDRA was tapping into the CCTV surrounding the building. They could be anywhere. They could even be in Stark Industries. But orders were orders.
"Will I get to see her soon?" she asked Hogan. He glanced down at her.
"I'll let you know," he said. "You didn't make an appointment—"
"I thought I had," she said. "I noted it down and everything. I had to reschedule a dental appointment to get this time, and do you know how hard it is to get to see a dentist? Not that I'm complaining, but my teeth will."
"But this is more important to you than your oral health?" he said, raising his eyebrows, before looking down her… okay, so she was dressed casually. So sue her.
"I don't have that many fancy outfits," Skye said defensively.
"If you're looking for a job—"
"Support for my work. But that's something I'd prefer to discuss with Miss Potts. I'm sure you'd be able to help, but my appointment… was supposed to be with her."
"I'll check to see if she has any free time available," he said, pulling out a StarkPad.
Skye shrugged. "I'm not in any hurry. Now I'm here, I'll stick around until she's free."
Hogan gave her a look of slight suspicion, and Skye carefully didn't look innocent. That would be a dead giveaway. He walked off, and she continued to play with the badge at the end of the lanyard.
Pepper looked up at Happy, and smiled when she noticed his bordering-on-grim expression.
"What's the matter, Happy?" she asked.
"Got a girl outside," he said. "She looks about twelve." Pepper raised an eyebrow. "Okay, she looks nineteen, but the point stands."
"And?"
"She's here to see you."
"Hence your worry," she said.
"Miss Potts!"
"I'm sorry, Happy. Does she have an appointment?"
"No, she doesn't, but she said that someone gave her one."
"Did she say who?" Pepper asked, frowning.
"I didn't ask."
"Is she wearing a security badge?"
"Yes, she is."
"Well, she can't be all bad, then, can she?"
Happy scowled. "Do you remember Aldrich Killian? His henchman kept his badge on."
"Yes, but your instincts told you not to trust him," Pepper said. "What do they say about this girl?"
He considered it. "Not much of a threat, but she's not exactly dressed up. It's hard to know whether that's her default setting, whether she doesn't have much, or whether she's subversive. She wants 'support for her work'," he did air-quotes, "and that could be anything."
"Hmm." Pepper craned her head to see around Happy, but all she saw was dark hair. "Is she short or just slouching?"
He grimaced. "Slouching."
"Poor Happy."
"I'm worried that you're not taking this seriously, Miss Potts."
"Well, do I have an appointment at the moment?"
"No. Someone's obviously tampered with your schedule, because your secretary has no memory of—"
"Of not making an appointment? Wow, I really should be worried."
Happy still looked pissed off. "Miss Potts—"
"Send her in. You'll be just outside, and I'll have my panic button nearby. Also, I'm wearing pants and you've been training me in self-defence. Come on, Happy. You've aroused my curiosity. Please." She indicated. He huffed, but he ushered the young woman in. Pepper looked her over: olive skin, long hair, brunette, jeans and checked button-up. Presumably her tatty bag had been checked at security, so Pepper wasn't concerned about that. Happy nodded, and stepped outside to wait. Pepper smiled at the young woman reassuringly.
"I'll admit, your motive for being here sounds vague," she said. The young woman nearly tripped over her own feet as she walked towards the table, and Pepper tensed at the quick movement. Then her world was tipped upside down.
"I could've faked one, but that wouldn't be any fun," she said. Pepper stopped breathing for a few seconds, before dragging in a huge breath.
"Oh my God," she said, looking away.
"Shit. I seriously wasn't expecting this. Not that I'm complaining or anything, because holy cow, you're Pepper Potts." The young woman was babbling as she lowered herself into the chair opposite. "This is kinda awkward now. But awesome! Don't get me wrong." She leaned her elbow on the desk and propped up her head. Her grin made Pepper's heart skip. "I'm a huge fan. Of your work, yeah, but mainly just… you."
"Thank you," Pepper said, aware that her cheeks probably matched her hair. "I should berate you for your words to me."
"What do you mean?"
Pepper unbuttoned her blouse, glancing towards the door. Happy wasn't looking at them, thankfully. Then she displayed her soulmark, scrawled across her stomach. 'I could've faked one, but that wouldn't be any fun'. Her soulmate's eyes goggled, and her jaw dropped. Pepper did up her shirt again, and tried not to laugh.
"Oh my God, I am so sorry. That's gotta be the worst soulmark of all time."
"Put it this way," Pepper said. "I figured it couldn't be implying… that if it was the first thing someone said to me. I definitely didn't want it to be the case, which is why I've been careful about any relationships. Always exchanging words first. Speaking of…"
"You wanna see yours," Skye said, raising her shirt. Pepper's handwriting, right there. "I try to be vague about my 'motives' because of you." She dropped her shirt back into place.
"You must've worried a lot of people, growing up."
"No." The young woman's face fell. "No, I didn't. Not with… no."
Pepper shook her head. "Isn't this terrible? I don't even know your name."
"Skye."
"With an 'e' on the end?"
"Yeah."
"And your last name?"
She shrugged. "No last name. Orphan. I've… got a hell of a past. I'm not sure whether you should get tangled up in it or not."
"Oh, sweetie," Pepper said, touching Skye's hand. "I heard someone say once that the present, as we speak, becomes the past. I'm already in your past. Have been for about…" She checked her watch. "Five minutes? And I'd like to be in your future."
"Really?" Then Skye's phone rang, and she swore. "Sorry. Gotta take this. It's probably my boss. He… he wants to talk to you, so if I hand it over…?"
"Of course," she said, nodding. Skye pressed a button.
"Hey, DC," she said. "Yeah, something happened. No, nothing bad. But she's, uh… she's my soulmate. DC? Are you there? Good, I was worried you'd fainted."
"Do you want me to talk to him?" Pepper asked. Skye bit her lip, clearly listening to the man on the other end.
"No, I don't… I'm with her at the moment. I only just told her my name. No, nothing else yet, because you interrupted us. Now you wanna talk to her? Okay, hang on a second. I'll put you on speaker. Because I happen to like my phone. Jeez." She tapped another button, and placed the cell phone on the table. "You can talk now, DC."
"Hello, Pepper."
"…Phil?"
"Sorry about the deception, but—"
"You're alive?"
"Clearly, since I'm talking to you."
"How do I know this isn't someone imitating your voice?"
"It isn't," Skye said. "Phil Coulson is my boss, and the head of New SHIELD. That's… our nickname for it. He wanted me to let you know he was alive, and then you could talk to him on the phone after I showed you the files, but then we got sidetracked, and… yeah."
"Pepper—"
"Stop," she said, holding up a hand, even though he couldn't see it. Or maybe he could? Who knew? "Do you need help? Is that why you're finally contacting me, because you have a favour to ask?"
"No," he said firmly. "I'm calling because I wanted to let you know that I'm alive. It's taken too damn long, but I haven't had much time to breathe, let alone think."
"It's been kinda busy, what with having to track down the bad guys, especially HYDRA and ex-SHIELD," Skye said. Pepper frowned at her, and Skye bowed her head, falling quiet.
"I'll make a clean breast of it to the Avengers," Phil said, because it had to be him. "But I wanted to tell you first, because you're my friend, and I… didn't want you to find out from anyone else. It's been hard enough bringing in Audrey."
"The cellist?"
"Yeah. She cried. Then she jumped me. Then she might've hit me. We got a bit… distracted. She'd love to meet you sometime, by the way. But it's too dangerous at the moment, and we're getting to know each other again."
Pepper stood up and walked away, facing the wall. "There has to be another reason for you to call, for you to send someone to tell me all this."
"Friendship isn't enough?" he asked softly.
"You've had years, Phil, years in which to tell us. Why now? What's changed to make it suddenly alright?"
"Nothing! It's just that… I told Audrey, which made me feel that I had to tell you. No ulterior motive. There are plenty of times I could've asked for favours, for funding, but I didn't. Because friendship matters more to me than any of those things, Pepper. I'd only come to you for help if it was the last resort."
She couldn't speak, so she remained silent. Eventually, he sighed.
"If you could please pass it on to the Avengers, I'd appreciate that," he said. Then there was a dial-tone, and the click of a button again. Pepper didn't look over her shoulder; she felt like any sudden movement might make her fall apart. She lowered her head, trying to hold back tears of disbelief and anger. How would Clint and Natasha respond to this? If Pepper felt this betrayed, it would be so much worse for them.
Did… did Maria know? She had to know.
And Pepper was a terrible soulmate. She turned, pasting on a smile, and opened her mouth.
Skye was gone. Only Happy was there, poking his head into the room.
"What happened?" he asked. "You weren't cruel, were you, boss? Just because I was suspicious… well, I'm suspicious of everyone. But she looked like she wanted to cry. Say." He stepped into the room as Pepper sank into her chair. "You look like you're gonna cry."
"Phil's alive," she said.
"Phil?"
"Phil Coulson."
"Phil Coulson? Wasn't he that guy from SHIELD who…?" She nodded. "Wow. And he's alive?"
"Yes," she said. "That girl's from SHIELD. She's the one who told me… well, she answered the call, and put him on speaker."
"Huh. But why'd she look like she wanted to cry? I didn't hear you yelling at her."
"I didn't speak to her at all after Phil called. Happy…" She gazed out the window. "Is she still in the building?"
"I don't know."
"You have to find her. Now."
"Sure thing, boss."
"She's… she's my soulmate."
His eyes grew rounder, but he didn't comment as he sent security to look for her. When they couldn't find her, it just confirmed Pepper's suspicions. After all, Skye was an agent of SHIELD; she could've sneaked out anywhere. Maybe with Phil's help?
"I need to call Tony," she said to herself.
If she needed to consult with her ex about a personal matter, she knew it was bad.
"I can hardly believe it," Jemma enthused. "You're so lucky, Skye. I know you admire her, and to find out that Pepper Potts is your soulmate? To find your soulmate at all, when I know you'd been losing hope? And, by the way, you're younger than I am, so it's silly for you to lose hope so soon."
"Ward and Cal are pretty big millstones to have around my neck," Skye muttered, her head propped up on her knees as she sat on the end of Jemma's bed. "Could you imagine how bad it would be if they found out who my soulmate is?"
"Yes, absolutely terrible," Jemma said, rolling her eyes. "The CEO of Stark industries, ex-girlfriend of Iron Man, friend of the Avengers. She must be the least-guarded person in the world, and certainly in no position to defend herself or be defended. I'm sure that she must be completely helpless."
"Sarcasm sounds so much worse in a British accent."
"I'll take that as a compliment."
Skye groaned in frustration, and leaned her head back against the wall.
"I just ran outta there, Jemma! I'm such a coward."
"She had quite a lot to process, and so did you," she said.
"Stop trying to sound reasonable. I hate it when you do that."
"Because I'm right?"
"You're the worst friend," Skye grumbled.
"No, I'm not. You're going to clean yourself up, find her phone number, and then get dressed in something nice. Then you're going to meet her, explain yourself, and you can both sort out this little misunderstanding."
"Little misunder—"
"Yes," Jemma said, frowning at her. "It could be so much worse, Skye. You're the one who ran out, as you said. It's up to you to fix things."
Skye hesitated, and then she nodded. "Right. I'll do it."
Sandwiched on the couch between Thor and Clint, Pepper stared listlessly at the television while the news played. JARVIS muted the sound.
"The hell, J?" Tony said.
"There is someone outside the gate, sir," JARVIS said. "A caller for Miss Potts?"
"Tell them to go away," she said. "Please."
"She is quite insistent, Miss Potts. She says that she is your soulmate?"
"…Show me."
The TV screen filled with a view from the security camera just outside the tower gates. Skye was there, and she looked at the camera when JARVIS presumably spoke to her. Then she held up a sign: 'Sorry I bailed. Drinks? I brought flowers.' She held up a bouquet. It looked like it came from a florist, not a gas station or supermarket. Pepper smiled at Skye's hopeful look.
"Tell her I'll be down there soon, JARVIS," she said.
"No, bring her up here first," Tony said. "We need to inspect her."
"Tony, she's my soulmate—"
"And you're our girl, Pepper. We're gonna protect you."
Pepper chuckled as she stood up. "Okay. But no scaring her off. I thought I had, and I'm not risking that again."
"Fine, fine."
It felt like hours passed before the elevator doors slid open, and Skye was standing there with a mixed bouquet, a rolled up sign, and a sheepish grin.
"Hey," she said.
"Hi," Pepper said, and she held out her hand. "I never introduced myself. I'm Virginia Potts."
"And I'm Skye, no last name," Skye replied, shaking her hand gently. "Your soulmate."
Daw! I was working on… one of the previous chapters, I don't know which one, but there was a party or something and Skye and Pepper met, and I decided that I wanted to pair them in a chapter, so this happened.
Please review!
