Hey guys :) I desperately needed some Pepperony this week, so this chapter is coming sooner than I planned to. I hope you like it :D

Tony held Pepper close and asked Jarvis with a shivering voice:
"Hey Buddy, would you check Pepper's Vitals please?"

Even though he was incredibly relieved that he had found her, he was afraid about her condition.

"She has to be in the suit for that, Sir..."

Tony didn't want to leave Pepper's side, but he had to know what was wrong with her in order to get her better soon. Quickly, he dressed her in the suit and kissed her cheek before he closed the faceplate.

"Hurry, Jarvis", he mumbled and while Jarvis was busy analysing, Tony collected as much wood as he could find nearby. Shortly after he had managed to light a fire next to her body, which still lay on the ground inside the Iron Man suit, Jarvis spoke up again:

"Sir, Miss Potts is hypothermic and probably still under shock. Besides that she has a lack of oxygen, caused by her stay in the cave and I assume that also caused her breakdown. I already infused oxygen in the suit so she should awake soon."

Tony sighed.

"Thank you, buddy", he whispered and sat down on the ground next to Pepper. Usually it was really hot in Japan around this season, but the volcano eruption reduced the temperature a lot and Tony was glad about the fire. It would warm Pepper up again so he could bring her home, he wasn't able to fly with her right now.

Suddenly, the mask opened up and Pepper looked at him.

"Tony...", she whispered and tears welled up in her blue eyes.

Without thinking Tony kneeled next to her and helped her out of the suit, before he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. He didn't want to let her go, didn't want to think about that he had nearly lost her.

Pepper saw everything through a veil of darkness and coldness. Her body still felt numb, but she knew Tony wouldn't leave her again, that he would do anything to get her better. Even though he held her in his arms tightly, her body still shivered and Tony pulled back to look at her.

"You have to get out of these wet clothes, Pep...", he stated and caressed her cheek softly.

She looked up at him and nodded - her blue eyes were still rigid and empty and Tony nearly couldn't recognize her. Slowly, she pulled the dress over her head and slipped out of her underwear. Normally, no naked woman could escape Tony Stark, but seeing Pepper sit on the ground helplessly nearly broke his heart. He pulled his own shirt over his head, glad that he wore a muscle shirt underneath, so Pepper couldn't see the dangerous links around his arc. He handed it to Pepper, who put it on and smiled thankfully. Well, at least she tried. Sitting down next to her again, Tony leaned against a nearby trunk and pulled her body close again. For a while they just sat there and Pepper stared into the crackling fire, trying to clear her thoughts, but she couldn't. The heat of the fire only reached her body slowly and she snuggled closer to Tony, she knew, right here in his arms, nothing could ever harm her again.

Tony... the man who had saved her life, who held her close... the man she was finally sure she was in love with.

"Tony..?", she whispered and looked up at him. "Thank you... That you didn't gave up on me..."

Tony knew that was the perfect moment. It was just like in one of those sappy Hollywood movies: The hero saves his girl and they live happily ever after. But this wasn't a movie, it was the harsh reality, where he had nearly lost Pepper and didn't even know if he would survive himself. He wrapped his arms even tighter around her body and looked deep in her eyes - everything he cared about right now was her. It was his duty to get her safe, afterwards he could still worry about his condition. No matter how, they couldn't stay here, but Pepper was too weak to stand the long flight to the house of Mr. and Mrs. Mioko.

Just as Tony wanted to say something, he heard a crack behind them and turned around hastily.

"Hey, what are you doing here? This is my property!", a deep male voice spoke up.
A big and muscular man was standing behind them and he didn't seem to be happy about the fire Tony had lit. He had light brown hair, green eyes and wore a jeans together with a red checked lumberjack shirt. He looked nothing like a Japanese, which probably explained why he spoke English. Behind him stood a cart which was half filled with wood.

As Tony had turned around, the angry expression of the man changed to a surprised one and he gasped:

"Oh my god... You're Tony Stark! What happened? Does it... well is it because of the eruption?", he asked and looked at the suit, Pepper and back at Tony.

"I would rather explain that some other time...", Tony answered and stood up.

"My...", he didn't know how to call her. She was far more than his assistant for so long already. Friend? Best friend? Love of his live..? Tony sighed and continued:

"Pepper and I need a place to get back on track, where she can rest..."

The man nodded vigorously, looked at Pepper again, who still stared into the fire absently and said:

"Of course... My cabin is not far away. I have to work in the woods the whole day, but you can rest there."

Tony nodded thankfully and wanted to say something, but the man didn't stop talking.

"My name is Thomas by the way. I came here seven years ago and this piece of land is everything I have. That's why I didn't let them evacuate me..."

Thomas noticed that Tony was barely listening and quickly added:

"Let's go..."

Tony put out the fire and took Pepper in his arms again while Thomas loaded the suit on his cart and they walked further into the woods. Pepper snuggled up onto Tony's chest as he carried her. Everything seemed so simple now and she knew he would get her somewhere safe. Slowly, she could think straight again and she felt that everything had changed between them since Tony came to her rescue. It felt like home in his arms and wrapped her arms around his neck, snuggling even closer. Pepper didn't want to think about if he was the right decision anymore, she just knew she couldn't hide her feelings any longer.

After a short time they reached the cabin and Thomas brought the suit inside. Tony followed him and set Pepper down on a little sofa.

"I'll be back in the evening", Thomas said. "You can feel just like home"

"Thank you for everything, without your help I wouldn't have known how to get her better...", Tony answered and looked over at Pepper, who smiled at him softly. Thomas said his good bye and Tony went to the bathroom to wash and prepare a bath for Pepper. As he came back, she laid on the sofa with her eyes closed and Tony sighed. He didn't want to break her peacefull slumber, but the bath would heat her up again and she had to eat something before she could sleep. He kneeled down next to her and kissed her forehead softly to wake her up. Pepper shot her eyes open and looked at him.

"I prepared a hot bath for you... it will be good", he whispered.

Pepper nodded and sat up, suddenly feeling very dizzy. Tony noticed immediately and steadied her, helping her to walk to the bathroom. As they had reached it, Pepper pulled the shirt over her head and blushed when she gave it back to Tony. It was just now that she realized nobody had seen her naked for a very long time. She looked up at Tony, who was focused on her face and smiled softly. Pepper smiled back and as she carefully stepped into the hot water her body suddenly relaxed. She let her head fall back to rest on the edge of the tub and sighed contently.

"Can you make it by yourself...?" Tony asked carefully. "I don't want you to fall asleep and... well"

Pepper looked up at him and her voice sounded a lot stronger than before.
"Don't worry"

Tony nodded and left the bathroom to get them something to eat.

He quickly found something that looked like pancakes in the fridge and heated them up in the oven, while he decorated the table and cooked some meat. He finished his work, just as Pepper came back from the bathroom, wrapped up in a towel. She already looked a lot better than she had when he had found her, although she seemed to be very tired.

Pepper smiled at him softly, before she sat down and they ate in silence. Well, Pepper ate, Tony spent most of the time staring at her. He still hadn't supressed the fact that she was here with him and alive. As Pepper looked up she saw his loving expression, his eyes sparkled and a smile played on his lips. Suddenly she realized this wasn't the first time he looked at her like this, she just had never noticed.

They stared into each others eyes and a warm, comfortable feeling spread through Pepper's body. Tony was relieved that she could smile again, and the sparkle in her blue eyes came back slowly. Nevertheless, she looked incredibly tired and Tony stood up, beginning to clean up. Pepper stood up as well and stood behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist.

Even though Tony knew she was still exhausted and needed to rest he couldn't hold back any longer. He turned around in her arms and cupped her face with his hands and pulled her up. He softly caressed her cheek with his thumb before he finally closed the distance between them. His stomach seemed to explode as her lips met his in a soft but passionate kiss. Pepper's body seemed to burst into flames when he pulled her closer, craving to feel even more of him. The kiss was long overdue and everything Tony had expected it to be. One of Pepper's hands was on the back of his head, pulling him even closer, the other one around his waist.

Her lips were soft and inviting and Tony couldn't bear to let go. His hands were on her waist holding her as close as humanly possible, never breaking the kiss.

It felt like hours until he finally pulled back to breathe and drew Pepper close to his chest.

"I thought I lost you...", he mumbled shakily.

Pepper looked up at him and whispered back:
"You could never loose me..."