Next chapter! I hope you like it, please let me know what you think! And thank you so much for the reviews, they make me happy.
I don't own the characters or places!
In the evening, Tony and Steve left the lab together with Bruce. He'd joined them about half an hour after their conversation about Bucky. Then they'd done more research on the Hydra base in Alaska. Tony and Bruce were close to finding the solution to their problem.
It had been Bruce's idea to build a transmitter that enabled the machine which prevented any use of technology. With their research, they'd even been able to define the needed frequency. The only problem was that they needed to get close to the reactor in Alaska, otherwise the transmitter wouldn't work.
They were discussing this now with Steve. However, the lack of information about the base made it difficult to plan anything. In the end, they'd agreed that they needed to have a look at it first. There would be a technology fair in Vancouver in a few weeks, Tony and Bruce wanted to use it as a reason to travel into that direction. On their way back, they would take a detour to Alaska. Steve would accompany them since he thought that it would be too dangerous for the two of them alone.
The kitchen was empty, apparently, the others had already finished dinner. Somehow, Bruce looked disappointed when he noticed that Natasha wasn't there anymore. Tony exchanged a look with Steve, who'd noticed it as well. He tried to hide his smile.
Nevertheless, Tony was also disappointed that Pepper wasn't there. He really wanted to see her and he couldn't wait for their weekend alone. They really needed time for themselves. Probably, she was already upstairs, waiting for him. The only strange thing was that she didn't check on him in the lab, she'd always done that in the past days. Maybe she was just tired from a day at work.
When they finished dinner, he said goodnight to Steve and Bruce and went upstairs. He found Pepper in their living room, looking out of the window. She had her back turned to him, so Tony couldn't see her face. She also didn't move when he approached her.
Without saying anything, Tony sat down next to her. He glanced at her from the corner of his eyes. He couldn't quite interpret the look on her face, it was a mixture of thoughtfulness and something else. Was it frustration?
They sat there in silence and Tony tried to find a reason for her frustration. However, he didn't think that it was something he'd done. But what happened then?
After about five minutes, Pepper turned to him. He smiled at her and raised his eyebrows. "It's good to see you, how was your day? You looked so thoughtful there, I didn't want to bother you."
A small smile appeared on Pepper's face and she chuckled. "You know that you never bother me." She leaned in and kissed him. "Work was alright, as usual."
"The new employees are nice?" Tony asked.
She nodded. "And eager to meet you, they were disappointed when I came alone." She told him and chuckled again. "I think they'll throw many questions at you when they finally meet you."
Tony grinned. "I can deal with that." He said and touched Pepper's cheek carefully. "You look tired."
"Work's been tiring." She replied simply, but he didn't believe her.
"Normally, you're not so silent after work. What happened?" His voice was soft now and he ran his thumb down her cheek to her lips. It made her close her eyes.
"It's nothing." She whispered and he knew that she wanted him to change the subject. However, it bothered him that something was wrong. Or at least it felt like it. He always knew when Pepper was hiding something from him.
"Pepper." He whispered and she opened her eyes again. "Didn't we agree to talk about everything?"
"I know." She was silent for a few moments. Tony knew that her hesitation meant something bad. "Can't we talk about it tomorrow?"
"And then you lie awake next to me the entire night, worrying about it." Tony shook his head. "I don't want that. So no, we talk about it now." He kissed her cheek. "You know that I love you? More than anything?"
Her lips twitched. "I do. And I love you too." This time, he kissed her lips and wrapped his arms around her shoulders carefully.
"So what's wrong?" He asked again, hoping that she'd tell him this time.
"Do you know that Maria Hill tells her people that you had a fight and that it's the reason why she isn't your assistant anymore?" He could hear the anger in her voice. And there was something else, probably annoyance? He couldn't quite place it.
"It's the truth, isn't it?" He asked, not knowing why this should be a problem. "Even if I'd preferred she didn't say anything." He shrugged. "But what do I care what a few SHIELD agents think?"
"She told them it was because you didn't like the way she worked for you." Pepper still sounded angry. And the look on her face told him that she didn't understand why he was still so calm.
"Also true. She was exhausting. Though I would have never said it like that." He ran a hand through his hair. "Pepper, what's wrong? She can talk about me as much as she want, I don't care. And you also shouldn't think about her, she's not worth it."
"Do you like her?" The sudden question caught him off guard, he stared at Pepper for a few seconds.
"What do you mean?" He asked with a frown.
"Maria Hill, do you like her?" Pepper asked simply, crossing her arms. And suddenly, Tony knew the tone of her voice. Pepper was jealous. What did Hill say to her that she felt this way?
"No." He replied immediately. "I don't like her. Never did, never will. And I thought you know that."
"I've been wondering why." Pepper said suddenly, looking insecure. "After all, she's a SHIELD agent. And can understand you in a way I never could."
He stared at her wide-eyed. "What are you saying?" He muttered, shaking his head. Alright, so the two women had a fight. And Hill had said some pretty mean things to Pepper. Maybe he should really throw them out… "Did you talk to her today?"
Pepper's hesitation told him everything he needed to know. Suddenly, Tony began to feel angry. No, he was furious. And felt the urge to strangle Maria Hill.
"Don't listen to a thing she says." Tony said slowly, the anger in his voice obvious. "She's a liar. And good at manipulating people. I'm going to kill her…"
"Tony." Pepper said suddenly and grabbed his hands. Was she afraid that he'd just run away and make his threats come true? "It was nothing." Her anger seemed to be gone, now Pepper was very calm. "She was looking for Natasha and we met in the kitchen. And then we talked and I might have asked her why she told lies about you. She got angry and then we both said mean things." She smiled at him. "It's stupid, you're right."
He leaned back and breathed in deeply. Pepper had confronted Hill with the lies she told about him? They had a fight because of him? He really wanted to kiss Pepper now, for defending him, even if it wasn't necessary.
"Why do you think that she could understand me better than you do?" He asked curiously, knowing that it must be something Hill said.
Pepper looked down at their joined hands. "Just an idea."
They both knew that she was lying and Tony wondered why. "Pepper." He leaned closer to her. "Be honest, please?"
"She said it." Pepper whispered and Tony could barely understand her.
"She said WHAT?" His loud voice made them both flinch. "I'm sorry." He muttered and squeezed her hands. "This took me by surprise."
"Sometimes, you can be so blind." Pepper said suddenly.
Tony frowned at her. "What do you mean?"
She rolled his eyes. "She's hopelessly in love with you. Even the SHIELD agents seem to know about this. Some of them were talking about 'her thing' for you." She felt uneasy telling him this.
Slowly, he let go of her hands. Pepper's eyes widened slightly, but Tony had already wrapped his arms around her and kissed her. Then he buried his face in her hair. "And you can be so stupid sometimes." He muttered. "No, I never noticed. I would have never noticed it, if you didn't say it aloud now. And do you want to know why?" Pepper didn't answer, so Tony continued. "I don't care how many women like me. I don't even notice when they do. Because I don't look at them in that way. And I'll never do that again." He leaned back so that he could see her face. "There's only one woman I see."
And then something he'd never expected happened. Pepper's eyes filled with tears. She tried to blink them away and shook her head. "God, I feel so stupid right now." She whispered and wanted to wipe away her tears, but he stopped her. Instead, he did it himself.
"Don't cry, Pep." He whispered. "You're perfect. There's nothing bad about feeling insecure sometimes. And what she said to you was really mean. Please don't let it get to you anymore, she just tries to anger you."
Pepper chuckled breathlessly, there were still tears in her eyes. "She was good at it." She muttered.
"Don't listen to her anymore. Please, for me?" Tony asked and looked at her pleadingly. This whole story with Maria Hill had to end, he really hated it.
Pepper swallowed. "I try." She muttered.
"No, not trying. Just do it, you're so strong, Pep. You can do that. We've faced worse things than Maria Hill, didn't we? I've never met a stronger woman than you." He kissed her cheek again, they were still wet with tears.
His attempt to cheer her up seemed to work since Pepper chuckled and smiled at him. "Alright, I won't let her get to me like this anymore. I promise." She kissed him on the lips quickly, but he deepened the kiss and pulled her closer.
"Only a few more days, then we'll leave." Tony whispered. "And then I'll have you all to myself." He felt her shiver at his words and grinned against her lips.
"You have me now too." She whispered and ran her hands down his chest. She stopped on the spot where the arc reactor had been once. His heart was racing now, like every time she touched him. Suddenly, she slipped her hands under his shirt and touched the scars softly. He closed his eyes and gasped. Then he pulled her closer until she was straddling him.
"When you're not careful, I might not let you go again." He muttered darkly and slowly began to unbutton her shirt.
"I can live with that." She smiled at him and her eyes were shining. Then she kissed him again.
"So what happened today? You said this morning that you needed to talk to Steve about something and that it was urgent." Pepper muttered later, when they were lying in bed together. Tony had his arms wrapped around her and Pepper used his chest as a pillow.
"It was about Bucky." Tony explained.
"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Pepper asked quietly. "Did Sam find him?"
"Not yet. He's still following Hydra. He was listening to one of their conversations." Tony summarized what Sam heard and his conversation with Steve. "We'll have to be on alert now. When Sam know where Bucky is, Steve and I will leave immediately. The three of us will be able to deal with him."
"I hope so. From what you told me before, he seems to be very strong."
Tony nodded. He'd seen a few records. He was very good, which wasn't a surprise.
"And when you don't find him?" There was concern in Pepper's voice.
"Well go to Vienna. I'm sure I can get us in, that won't be a problem. And then we'll get him there." Tony explained.
"And you really think the king of Wakanda is their target?" Pepper sounded thoughtful. "I've never heard of that country before."
"Not a surprise." Tony muttered. "And yes, probably. We couldn't find anyone else."
"The two others were also possible targets." Pepper reminded him.
"When you think like that, there are even more people who could be the target. Not just T'Chaka, Matthew Sitwell and Thaddeus Ross. However, they could be most interesting to Hydra." Tony thought of a few other names he'd seen on that list. One was even a SHIELD agent, Hill had managed to get one of her people in. Or was that the work of the new director? And Everett Ross would be there, CIA. He was working with Thaddeus Ross (nope, not related) and probably, he also knew things. But why would Hydra want to kill any of them? It just didn't make sense.
"I'm sure you're right with your guess." Pepper muttered, he could hear how tired she was. "Just be careful."
"We always are." Tony muttered and kissed the top of her head.
"When did our life get so complicated?"
Tony stared at the ceiling for some time. "I ask myself the same sometimes…"
"You'll leave with Pepper this weekend?" Rhodey asked and grinned at Tony. "This is a surprise. Normally, you never take time for yourselves."
Tony grunted. "We do that, but in the previous months, it was difficult."
Rhodey rolled his eyes. "You should go out more often. I bet it'll be good for you."
Rhodey had arrived early in the morning, when Tony had been in the gym with Steve. He was teaching Tony how to fight without a suit and he was making progress now that his leg and back were better. Rhodey had watched them, making comments all the time. After some time, Tony and Steve had both decided to ignore it and act as if Rhodey wasn't there.
In the afternoon, Tony and Rhodey went to the lab. Steve was staying upstairs with the others, they were discussing strategies (or at least they pretended to do it). Now Tony and Rhodey were sitting in the lab, Tony on his usual chair, Rhodey on the couch.
Tony ran a and through his hair. "Probably, I really need a holiday."
Rhodey laughed. "You really do."
Tony cleared his throat. "So what did you find out?"
Rhodey knew immediately what he meant since he got serious again. "They didn't call me back yet." He muttered. "Apparently, the mission is top secret. But you already knew that."
Tony nodded. "So they'll call you when they know something new?"
"Yes, and I hope they'll do it soon. This really seems to bother you."
"You know me too well." Tony muttered.
"Why don't you just throw them out when she's so annoying?" Rhodey asked curiously.
"It's not that easy." Tony said slowly. "They don't have anywhere else to go. And SHIELD's still doing very much to save the world and so on, you know that stuff. I've seen the reports, they're really busy. Without them, it'd look much worse. And we'd have more to do."
Rhodey nodded slowly. "Alright, I get it. When I get a call, you're the first one to know it."
Tony smiled. "Thank you, Rhodey. I don't know what I'd do without you."
Rhodey laughed. "You promised me something, don't forget that."
"Your chance might come sooner than expected." Tony said now and Rhodey raised his eyebrows.
"What do you mean?"
Tony told him about the base in Alaska quickly. "We might need your help. But I must warn you, it'll be hard without technology."
Rhodey shook his head. "Tony, are you crazy? You know that danger doesn't scare me off." He grinned again. "I will be helping the Avengers, that's so cool."
Tony laughed. "When you're there with us, you'll not say it again. Normally, our missions end in chaos."
"I can deal with that." Rhodey replied immediately. "Did you already tell the others that I'll join you?"
Tony nodded. "They're alright with it. Though Steve insists on you joining us on the strategy meetings. And you have to train with us."
Rhodey's grin turned even wider. "And when do we start?"
Tony told him about their trip to the technology fair in Vancouver. "On our way back, we'll have a look at that place. After that, we can start planning."
"Just tell me when I have to be here again." Rhodey muttered.
"No problem." Tony promised.
They stayed silent for some time, when Rhodey suddenly looked at him questioningly. "Your trip with Pepper, it has a reason, doesn't it?"
Tony ran a hand through his hair. "Can't we just leave for a few days without anyone thinking that we have a secret plan?"
Rhodey grinned. "So you have a secret plan. And she doesn't know about it yet?"
Tony held up his hands. "I don't know what you mean."
"Oh come on, Tony. You can tell me. I'm your best friend." Rhodey said and crossed his arms. "Or am I already replaced?" Tony knew that he meant Steve.
"Nope, you're both my best friends." Tony replied immediately, seeing no reason to lie.
"And Steve knows what you're planning." Rhodey concluded.
Tony sighed. "Alright, I'll tell you. But if you mention it to anyone, you can forget being an Avenger. You can even forget seeing the next morning, because I'll lock you into a room where no one will find you. And where you'll never see the sun again. Understood?" His tone was serious now and the grin on Rhodey's lips vanished.
"Alright, I promise. Now tell me what you plan!"
Tony smiled and began to tell him about his plan.
