A shorter chapter on this one right now ( though it is one with a few nostalgic moments thrown in.) But more to come soon! I'm already working on the next update!

Thank you to my readers! Your loyalty, support (and patience with me!) means so much! :D :D

Pepper watched as, shortly after, Tony pulled her past self to the dance floor, and into his arms as they began to sway. She couldn't help a soft smile from spreading over her lips at his impetuousness that night. And when she realized it had, she blushed, and grinned even more, shaking her head in disbelief at how she was so easily recalling that evening. She intently watched her mirror image awkwardly remark on how embarrassed she was by the attention they were getting.

"Am I making you uncomfortable?" Tony asked.

"Oh no! I always forget to wear deodorant, and dance with my boss in front of everyone I work with in a dress with no back," she whispered in syncopation with her former self.

"Well, you look great and you smell great. But I could fire you if that would take the edge off?" Tony quipped in reply.

Present Pepper giggled to herself at his antics, and shook her head again. "God, he looked so handsome. And I was so nervous. It's a wonder I could even get any words out at all," she mused fondly. She continued to closely watch the pair dancing, noticing that when they'd both stopped talking, and her past self had adverted her eyes from his gaze, Tony's had stayed on hers. At the time, she remembered that she'd detected this in her periphery, but just chalked it up to her being merely his point of focus, as he regularly kept his eyes trained on her when contemplating something in their every day conversations. But this time, it was different. Because this time his gaze was...affectionate.

Pepper's eyebrows raised at this realization, and her eyes scanned the whole of his face, taking in the slight upward quirk of the corners of his mouth, and the sparkle in his eyes as he watched her previous self for those few spare seconds. Then she chuckled again, understanding fully now that he really had cared for her during this time. Seemingly, as much as she had cared for him.

"Those big brown eyes," she murmured, smiling fondly at her husband's former self gazing at her in this way. "Little did he know, they used to get me every time. Not hard to figure out why I had to look away."

But the moment was interrupted as she read Tony's lips to say, "How 'bout a little air?" and her former self agreed.

Pepper then hurried to make her way through the crowd and follow them to the roof. Eventually, she caught up to them on the stairwell, and fell in behind, listening intently to herself prattle on to her then-boss about hating being the center of attention, and (for whatever reason she believed this to be a logical segue at the time) that, because of this reason, she wouldn't want to have to endure a large wedding because all of those eyes staring at her in a dress would be far too much for her to take. Which made Pepper giggle. Her former self must've sensed how random and revealing this statement was, because she swiftly backpedaled, realizing she'd made it sound like she expected Tony to get down on one knee at that moment, and propose.

However, Pepper noticed Tony seemed perfectly at ease with her having blurred the line between their professional relationship and their personal lives. In fact, she gathered, he seemed to be quite enjoying the fact that she'd let herself relax, if only momentarily, in his presence. And this made her smile to herself.

Once they'd made it to the roof, Pepper stood at a distance to watch as the couple walked to the retaining wall, and began to jabber back and forth about the difference in perception of what had just happened between them.

"That was totally weird..." she heard herself say.

"Totally harmless," Tony interjected.

"Totally NOT harmless, by the way..." Pepper's past self retorted.

"We were dancing. There wasn't anyone watching..." Tony argued.

"And you know why?" Pepper continued, ignoring his argument to finish her own. But Tony cut in.

"I think you've lost objectivity. We just...people just...we just danced!" he countered, shrugging.

"No, it was not just a dance! You don't understand! Because you're you, and...e-everybody knows exactly who you are, and how you are with girls, and...all of that...which is...perfectly fine..." past Pepper rebutted.

This made Pepper scoff, and shake her head. "That certainly wasn't my most honest moment. But who was I at the time to say otherwise?" she muttered, as she continued to listen to her former self's words. But then she noticed something else. As her previous self was speaking, Tony had quieted himself, and a change of expression ghosted over his face. He'd pursed his lips, and raised his chin, signifying a touch of discomfort, and defense. Not to show any defiance to her, necessarily, but more as a result of the embarrassment he seemed to feel for his previous behavior, while (poorly) attempting to appear unfazed by her mentioning how everyone, herself included, was well aware of his womanizing reputation.

Of course, she hadn't presumed to think that he wasn't already aware of the public's opinion of him, or even minded it, for that matter. But she could see now, from this perspective, that he was, at the very least, regretful of his behavior. And the only logical reason why he'd feel this way, she concluded, was because...

"He cared about what I thought of him," she finished out loud. And knowing this now made her feel somewhat ashamed for continuing to judge him even after the fact, as deserved as it may have been, and as much as it she guessed it had been part of the force behind him changing his ways for good, and ultimately winning her heart.

Pepper huffed, no longer satisfied with where she stood, and walked right up to where her and her husband's previous selves were standing, who were now moving in for what was supposed to have been a kiss. She chewed her lip as she watched, the angst-filled mix of emotions from that moment resurfacing in her heart now stronger than ever. This made her briskly swivel to face her husband.

"I know you can't hear me, but I have to say this," she began emphatically. "I wanted to kiss you. With every fiber of my being, I did. And for months after this, I think I..." but she suddenly stopped, realized her mind was on the cusp of recalling another memory. "Yes," she gasped, her eyes widening, and her lips curling up in delight and excitement. "I know I did! I regretted not doing it! I knew it was for the better! But don't think for a second that I was actually happy that we didn't!"

Just then, their former selves pulled back from the embrace, and Pepper stopped talking. She took a step back to watch the rest of the scene unfold, as her past self suddenly requested a drink, and Tony left her side, dejected. She spun around to watch him as he walked away, while her former self babbled behind her about getting an extra dry, extra dirty vodka martini, sounding so clearly smitten and thunderstruck in the process.

Pepper sighed heavily from the gravitas of the moment, and then slowly turned back around to her previous self. She shook her head. "Oh, if you could only see yourselves now," she mused, with a smirk before lowering her eyes to look at the rings on her left hand.

But soon she was interrupted, as the scene around her began to get swallowed up by enshrouding darkness. Pepper looked around her, her eyes wide with worry that this memory was going to vanish, just before she, too, was enveloped in the black abyss.

XxXxXxXxXx

Suddenly, Pepper awoke with a start, and briskly sat up in her hospital bed, inhaling sharply, as the clouded dreaminess of her mind slowly cleared, and she realized she was back in the physical, present-day world again.

She looked around the room, and slowly let the air out of her lungs. The images of her dream were still vibrant in her mind's eye, and this made her smile. "I remembered!" she gasped, chuckling, as tears of joy filled her eyes. She chuckled again, raising her hand to wipe them away. Then she turned to reach for the phone, as the overwhelming urge to call Tony washed over her. She had to tell him the good news. But also, she couldn't stand to not have him by her side for one second longer.

XxXxXxXxXx

Tony laid on the hood of his car, gazing up at the night sky, with one arm propped behind his head, and the other hand's fingers drumming absent-mindedly on the space in his chest where the arc once resided. His mind was churning, as it always did when he had a problem to solve, with possibilities and potential solutions to fixing Pepper's memory. I can't just sit and wait, wondering if it'll come back, he'd mused. We've come so far for her to be stuck in past. For US to be stuck in the past.

But his thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the ringing of his phone beside him. It vibrated simultaneously, and rattled itself down the slope of the hood, until Tony swiped it up and looked at the screen. What he saw instantly made him sit up in panic, as the caller id read Cedars-Sinai Hospital.

"Shit!" he breathlessly exclaimed, his heart dropping into his stomach at the possibility that something bad had happened with Pepper. He quickly swiped his finger across the screen to answer the call.

"Yes! What is it?! What's wrong?!" he gasped in panic.

"Tony?" he heard Pepper say on the other end.

He frowned in confusion. "Pep? You okay? What's going on?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she replied, and he let out a silent exhale of relief as she went on. "Actually, I...think I'm more than fine."

He raised his eyebrows in curiosity. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"I mean, I...think I'm starting to...remember," he heard her say.

Tony abruptly stood up at the news, his eyes dancing around in excitement, trying to comprehend what she was telling him. "Remember?! As in..."

He heard Pepper chuckle. "Yes," she answered knowingly. "As in, I think I'm getting my memory back!"

"What? How! What happened?" he challenged, unable to help the broad grin spreading over his lips.

"I fell asleep after you left. And dreamt I was at the Firefighter's Gala. And you were there. And we danced. And then we..."

Tony froze, holding his breath waiting for her next words. But he couldn't help it.

"Went-up-to-the-roof-where-we-almost-kissed-but-then-you-hesitated-and-asked-for-a-drink-so-I-left-to-get-it-but-then-I-screwed-up-because-I-never-came-back?!" he spewed out in one breath.

An awkward silence fell between them, and Tony grimaced at having just verbally vomited all over his wife.

"Um...y-yeah, actually," she sheepishly replied. Then he heard her chuckle. "And it was absolutely wonderful!" she exclaimed, her voice giving out with emotion.

Tony gasped in surprise, his face beaming. "Hold on! I'll be right there!" he exclaimed.