I know, I know! It's early for Christmas stories. But it's inching ever closer to the holiday season, and with cooler temperatures, (and friggin' Walmart already whipping out the Christmas decorations! I KNOW, right?!) I can't resist uploading some more warm and fuzzy holiday Pepperony fluff. So, happy reading! :D :D
Soon the kiss broke, and they smiled at each other. Pepper patted Tony's chest affectionately and he gave her a flirty smirk before she stepped away, grinning at him. He went back to carefully placing the rest of the stars Pepper had folded on the tree's delicate branches, and then he retrieved the can-lid ornaments they'd made from the kitchen table, while Pepper went about threading the sewing needle with the embroidery thread she'd found. She'd unwound a piece from the spool that was several feet long, and then pulled it to where the two ends met at equal length- or would, once the one end was cut from the spool. Realizing she needed something sharp to do this with, she frowned and pursed her lips as she looked around for something near by that would suffice. But coming up empty, she first glanced in Tony's direction, to see if he was watching, and then quickly bit through the thread with her front teeth to cut it.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk," she suddenly heard, coming from Tony clucking his tongue in disapproval. "I saw that. Your teeth are for chewing food. Not biting through things, Miss Potts," he teased.
"Oh, shut up," she jabbed back. Then they gave each other a playful glance, and Tony went back to hanging the lid ornaments.
Pepper then knotted her thread, and settled in on the couch with her bowl of popcorn, carefully stringing each piece to the very end of it. Tony soon finished what he was doing, and stood back to admire his work. "There we go. Best Decorating Job ever, I must say. This tree could almost compete with one of my mother's fancy-dancy designer trees back in the day," he joked. Pepper giggled.
"Oh, of course it could, yes," she playfully agreed.
Tony grinned at her over his shoulder, and then turned his eyes back to the tree. His brow then furrowed, as an idea to make it even better had come to mind. But the only problem was, he wasn't sure he could get what he needed to do it.
"Hey, Pep?" he asked, after a moment.
"Hmmmm?" she hummed, still stringing popcorn.
"You didn't happen to see a black Sharpie or something like it lying around anywhere, did you?" he asked. "It doesn't even have to be black, necessarily."
Pepper paused for a moment to think, and then spoke. "Not that I'm aware of, but there is a junk drawer in the kitchen. You might find one there," she offered.
Tony nodded. "Junk drawer. Got it," he muttered, as he bustled off toward the kitchen. Pepper cocked an eyebrow in curiosity as she watched him do this, but then shrugged and went back to working on her Garland after he disappeared. She heard him opening drawers, and rifling through them, muttering to himself as he searched.
"It's to the right of the stove!" she called out, trying to be helpful.
"Yep! Found it!" Tony called back. After a few more moments of rifling and muttering, Pepper heard an "A-HA!" come from the kitchen. She smiled and chuckled to herself.
"Does that 'a-ha' mean you lucked out?" she deduced, as Tony trekked back into the living room and over to the tree, uncapping a black permanent marker as he went.
"That I did, Potts. That I did," he purred as she watched him start writing on one of the lids.
Pepper craned her neck and gawked to see what he was writing, but she couldn't make it out from where she was sitting. "What are you up to over there?" she finally asked.
"Ah, ah, ah, Pep. It's a surprise. Gotta wait till I'm done," he instructed.
"You are always full of surprises, Tony Stark. I'll give you that," she commented, and he smiled to himself. After a few moments, he capped the pen and swiveled around.
"Okay. Done," he said. Pepper stopped what she was doing, and raised her eyes to look at him. She gave him a curious look.
"Come 'ere. Now, I can show you," he said, motioning for her to come to him. She set her garland-in-progress down and stood up, taking his out-stretched hand. He then pulled her to him and into his arms, and he softly kissed her temple as she grasped one of the ornaments to read what he'd written on it. She gasped softly at what she saw. Then a broad smile spread over her lips, and she blushed. It read:
Merry Christmas, Baby. I love you, Tony.
"Oh, Tony! Merry Christmas! And I love you, too," she replied sweetly, as she turned her gaze to look at him. He grinned at her, and she gave him an appreciative peck on the lips. Then she turned her eyes back to the tree, and picked up another one, which read:
All I want for Christmas is YOU
She chuckled. "Well, ditto," she purred, giving Tony a sidelong glance and a flirty smirk. Tony pumped his eyebrows, and then smirked back at her.
Finally, she read the last one, which said:
T+P = X-Mas Merr-eee
This made Pepper giggle, and then she turned her gaze to meet his eyes again, which were sparkling giddily. "Clever," she commented, with a wry smirk. "It even rhymes."
Tony grinned and nodded. "Yep. Sure does," he said, proudly. "You like them?"
Pepper gave him a big, loving smile of approval. "Oh, I love them. Thank you," she said, leaning in for a tender kiss. Tony happily kissed her back.
When it broke, they both let out contented sighs and smiled at each other. Tony moved his hands from around her body to her upper arms, and slowly rubbed them up and down. Pepper gazed at him for a moment, and a soft smile ghosted over her lips. Tony gave her a slightly bashful smile, and then cocked an eyebrow. "What? What're you looking at me like that for?" he asked softly.
Pepper smiled more broadly, and shrugged. "It's nothing, I'm just..." she started to say, but she paused to collect her thoughts. "Really glad that it's you that I'm stranded in a blizzard with on Christmas Eve," she admitted.
Tony stopped rubbing her arms, and he gave her a curious look. "Yeah? Well, me too, Potts," he said with a smirk.
"Yeah?" Pepper asked, with a knowing smile.
Tony nodded. "Yes, ma'am," he cooed. "After all, I'm a pretty handy guy to have around. I mean, come on! Who else do you know that could do all the stuff around here that I have?"
Pepper rolled her eyes. "Oh-kay! I should have known better. I was trying to go for a tender moment, there, but..."
"I built a fish trap, for one. Out of...almost nothing," Tony prattled, ignoring her previous statement.
Pepper scoffed. "Which hasn't caught any fish, might I add!" she rebutted.
Tony pointed at her. "Hey, that's not my fault! The mountain lion probably pilfered it, okay? But besides that, who bagged the Christmas goose? And cut down the tree? And found the food stash in the cellar? And..."
"Alright, alright! You win! You get the Best Boyfriend award! Happy?" Pepper interjected loudly, but with a good-natured smile on her face.
Tony pursed his lips, and nodded sharply in satisfaction at her relenting. "Damn right," he said, trying not to smile back. "I'm a fu-..."
Pepper's eyebrows shot up. "Bup, bup, bup! Watch the language," she warned pointing a finger at him. "It is Christmas, after all," she reasoned.
Tony gave her a wry smile. Then he recanted and tried again. "Fine. Gosh-darned legend in the making, here. Better?" he asked expectantly.
Pepper bit her lips together, and nodded. "Mmmm-hmmmm. Much. Now come here and give me a kiss, legend," she purred wantonly, before slowly planting a kiss on his lips. Tony moaned in approval and cupped her check, deepening the kiss.
After a few moments, when the kiss broke, Tony nodded again. "And don't you forget it," he said, making Pepper giggle.
"So, now that your work here is done, do you want to come help me with the garland?" she asked.
"Gladly," Tony replied, and they both moved to take a seat on the couch. Tony grabbed the knotted end of her garland, and Pepper took back up the needle. She placed the bowl of popcorn back in her lap, and threaded another kernel down the line, but this time only going about halfway. Tony then took it the rest of the way to the end of the thread, lining it up next to the previously strung kernels, as Pepper started a new one. Pepper smiled in satisfaction at their working together, and he smiled sweetly back.
"This will go much faster with two people, I think," she said, and Tony nodded in agreement. She threaded another kernel and another, over and over again, with Tony repeating the same process as the first few. They each fell silent in concentration in the meantime, while the radio continued to softly play Christmas music in the background.
Soon, Bing Crosby's rendition of Silent Night began to play, and Tony noticed that a fond smile had spread across Pepper's lips. They continued to string the popcorn garland silently, but when the verse began, Pepper began to softly hum the melody. Tony noticed this, but stayed quiet, not wanting to interrupt her. Instantly, he found there was something very soothing about her humming. In truth, he always had. And it was because his mother used to hum, and even sing, a lot of the time while she worked. His mother had a beautiful voice, something he knew his father had lost appreciation for as the years had gone by, if he'd even had an appreciation for it at all to start with. But Tony always loved to hear his mother's singing voice. And now, he was getting treated to another lovely female voice again with Pepper's humming.
Thus far, she hadn't noticed that Tony was watching her as she hummed, until she looked up to see him staring at her, with a look of fondness in his eyes. She spluttered and chuckled softly in embarrassment. "Sorry. I...guess I didn't realize that I..." she began, but Tony interrupted her.
"No, please. Don't stop. I love it," he explained.
Pepper spluttered again, and gave him a sheepish smile. "Well, thank you, I guess?" she replied bashfully.
"Choir kid growing up? Band nerd? Theater geek?" Tony wagered, with a cocked eyebrow.
Pepper smiled coyly, and teeter tottered her head from side to side. "A...little of all of them, actually," she sheepishly admitted.
Tony's eyebrows shot up in surprise ."Reeeeallly! My, my, Potts. The secrets you keep! First role play, now this?" he teased. Pepper chuckled. And he gave her a playful wink. "Well, I think you have a beautiful voice. And I would love to hear more." This made Pepper blush. But he went on. "Honestly! You feel like breaking out in song, Pep, you do it. I am all ears."
Pepper gave him a curious look, and then chuckled bashfully. "Well...alright, then. I...suppose I could. If the moment strikes," she agreed.
"Of course," Tony replied politely. He let a moment go by before he spoke again. "My mother liked to sing, you know," he revealed.
Pepper smiled. "She did?" she asked.
Tony nodded. "Mostly Opera, but also some old show tunes. 'Try to Remember' was a favorite in our house, mainly because she knew how to play it on the piano, too, so..." he drifted off. And then awkwardly cleared his throat, in the anticipation of revealing something to her he hadn't told another soul. "In fact, the uh...the piano? In the living room? It...was hers," he admitted.
Pepper's eyes widened, and her hand flew to her chest. "You're kidding! Oh my gosh, Tony! I always wondered about that!" she exclaimed. Tony chuckled at how this revelation was tickling her so much.
Pepper chuckled, too, at how amused he was at her. "So, do you play?" she asked excitedly.
Tony shook his head. "Sadly, not much more than Hot Crossed Buns," he replied sheepishly. "Ma tried to teach me, but I didn't have the knack. I was more interested in building stuff than plunking songs out on the ivories. But when she died, I...guess I couldn't bare to see it go anywhere else than where it sits today."
Pepper's eyes suddenly went glassy, and her chin began to quiver. "That's beautiful," she murmured, as her voice gave out from emotion. She sniffed and delicately wiped a forming tear from her eye, giving Tony a sheepish smile. They both chuckled warmly, and Tony reached up to gently brush a tear from her cheek with his thumb. She sniffed and smiled again, then shook her head. "I'm sorry," she said. "I guess the sentiment just got the better of me."
Tony smiled warmly at her. "It's okay," he said. "It's adorable, in fact."
Pepper giggled again, and smiled warmly. "Like I said- you're always full of surprises, Tony Stark," she murmured.
She then glanced down at the garland, and realized that, as they'd been talking, it had become quite long, and her bowl was nearly empty. "Should I pop some more?" she asked, first rummaging through the remnants then looking at him.
"Yeah. For eating," Tony joked.
Pepper gave him a wry smirk. "Is the legend hungry already?" she teased.
"No, but I'm going to need to load up on the carbs for later," he jokingly explained, pumping his eyebrows flirtatiously.
Pepper giggled. "Ah, I see. Well, in that case," she joked back. Feeling satisfied with the length of the garland, she then knotted her thread near her needle, and then bit off the bit by the eye. She stuck her needle in her spool of thread, and then motioned for Tony to give her his end. He did so, and she carefully stood up off the couch, with an end in both hands, and walked to the tree. Tony followed.
He watched as she carefully arranged it horizontally between the branches, draping it like a sash near the middle. Once she was done, she stood back to admire her work. "It's meager, but I think it's lovely all the same," she said.
"It's awesome. And so are you," Tony purred, pulling her into his arms.
Pepper gave him a bashful look, and smacked her lips. "Aww," she cooed teasingly, giving him a loving grin, and a tender kiss. He smiled, and kissed her back.
But then, Pepper squeaked softly, and broke the kiss.
"What? What happened?" Tony said, giving her a questioning look.
"A star! I almost forgot! You can't have a Christmas tree without a star!" Pepper cried eagerly. She then swivelled around and walked toward the kitchen, with Tony following closely behind. He watched as she reached for the roll of tinfoil that was still sitting on the table, and unrolled a long piece, which she then ripped into fourths. Then she stacked them on top of one another, and proceeded to fold the whole thing into a giant Star of David.
After a few rounds of pulling and sharply creasing the points, she held it up for him to see. "There!" she exclaimed. "What do you think?"
Tony reached for it. "I think it's perfect," he said, as he took it from her. "And I get to be the one to put it at the top!" he cried, spinning around and briskly walking back into the living room. Pepper chuckled at his enthusiasm, and followed him.
He was just resting it on the two smaller branches right below the very top one when she reached his side, and then he delicately leaned it back toward the upper most branch, the star covering it almost completely. "Voila!" he cried.
"Oh, it is perfect," Pepper cooed happily.
"Yep. It couldn't be more so, in fact," Tony agreed, reaching to pull her back into his arms, and smiling at her intently. Pepper shifted her gaze from the tree to his face when he did this, and she smiled at the sparkle she saw in his eyes. He smiled back.
Just then, 'Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas' came on. "Oh-kay! Now we're talking," Tony swooned, and Pepper grinned. "Come on, Potts. Dance with me. We gotta. The song is too good not to," he instructed.
"Don't mind if I do," Pepper replied sweetly, and Tony grasped one of her hands and brought it to his chest, as he took her around the waist pulling her tightly to him. They began to sway as Judy Garland's voice worked to blur the edges of time and space around them, to where all that was left was for them to gaze into each other's eyes as they basked in the warmth and romance of their new found love.
"I could do this every Christmas," Tony murmured after a moment. "Spend it like this, I mean. Together. With you."
Pepper smiled lovingly at him, and nodded. "So could I," she agreed, her voice soft and dreamy.
Tony gave her a warm, broad smile. "Well, alright then," he purred in delight. "Good to know, Potts. Good to know."
Pepper just grinned, and then moved to lay her head on his shoulder. Tony rested his cheek on the top of her head, but not before placing a soft kiss to it. He then heard her sigh in approval, and he smiled to himself, and slowly closed his eyes, relishing every sensation the moment could surrender to him. Never has there been a Christmas as good as this one, he thought to himself. And I don't want there to ever be one again that ISN'T. Visions of being old and gray, and still dancing with the woman who was currently in his arms every Christmas Eve from this year forward warmed his heart to no end. So, then and there, he promised himself that he'd do all he could to make that wish come true.