Chapter Four
Author's Note: Hey guys!
Well, now that we've checked on Happy, I bet you are all wondering how Pepper is. Well, here you are.
The first thing Pepper Potts noticed upon awakening was her cheek was cold.
As sensation returned to her body she came to realize her whole body was cold and stiff from lying on a hard, unyielding surface.
With a jerk she forced herself to stand and look around. She tripped in the semi-darkness, reached down, and groped until she found her purse. Her phone was gone, naturally. She made a mental note to ask Tony to invent a phone that looked like a lipstick when she got out of here. Whenever that would be.
Something caught her eye and she stared, recognizing the ancient carvings and seeing the bas-reliefs on the walls. This must be the Temple of Courage Tony had told her about. Excited, she began to search. There were supposed to be hundreds of weapons here but the only things she found was a flashlight and a black and yellow parka. The colors reminded her uncomfortably of Gene but she was in no position to be choosy. She shrugged on the garment and zipped it up, feeling warmer. The flashlight still worked and with warmth and light Pepper searched for an escape.
The walls were uniformly gray, lacking cracks or crevices. There was what looked like a huge set of stone doors as in the previous temple but they refused to open and Pepper vainly struggled to pry them apart.
Great, she was miles from the closest human settlement in the middle of a glacier. No provisions and no way to communicate with the outside world even if she could get a signal down here. Her situation was officially more hopeless that Peru. Death by stone dragon was preferable to starvation and she slumped to the floor in hopelessness.
Pepper didn't remember falling asleep until she heard the familiar welcome whoosh of boot jets and the sound of stone grating against stone as the doors opened. She didn't move fast enough and fell forward, landing near a pair of white metallic boots. She pulled herself into a sitting position and looked up.
Iron Man stood before her in his arctic armor. A mauve dufflebag was slung over one shoulder and on his left gauntlet he balanced a flat wide box. "Did you order an extra large thin crust?"
"Tony!"
Questions multiplied and ran about her brain like gamboling puppies. "How did you find me? Why am I here? Did you fly me here in your armor or did I get here by plane? You know, you could have left me a note saying you'd be back so I wouldn't think I was just abandoned when I woke up. Where's my dad? Gene didn't get him, did he? If you flew me here why didn't I freeze? How did you get me away from Gene? Is Gene in jail? Is he in SHIELD jail? I hope you brought my phone. Did you find Happy? Is Happy okay? He was shot!"
"Whoa, Pepper." Tony backed up a step and tried to ward her off. "I'll answer all the questions I can but give me a few minutes, okay? It was a long trip."
Her best friend was here to save her and it was all she could do not to burst into tears of gratitude. Pepper smiled, lifting her arms so he could help her to her feet. Everything was going to be okay now.
After setting the dufflebag down he hugged her carefully and the faceplates slid back to reveal his smiling visage. His eyes remained wary from some reason.
His arm slid companionably around her shoulder and he began to lead her deeper into the temple. "There's something I need to show you."
"Oh...wow..." Pepper breathed as she looked around. Tony gave her the tour after they ate. The large underground cave had been separated into a multi-room apartment. There was a bedroom and a bath, a kitchenette, and a living room with monitors and an entertainment center. A generator with a Stark charge provided heat and light and the wall of ice outside provided natural insulation. There was also a locked room Tony wouldn't let her see.
"What's in there?"
Tony looked embarrassed and didn't answer her right away. "I made a room for myself. It's where I keep my...guy...stuff. Can't risk Roberta finding it."
"Guy...oh." The meaning of her friend's words finally sunk in and they couldn't look at each other for several minutes.
Pepper cleared her throat and rapidly changed the subject. "So, um. Nice place you got here. Very cozy."
"Yeah, isn't it great?" The boy was eager to show off his work. I got the idea to renovate this place when Ghost broke into the armory. Never hurts to have an alternate base no one knows about, much less can invade." At Pepper's nod he continued. "It's pretty deep down here, doesn't even show up on a satellite scan. You'd have to use sonar to detect it."
"But..Gene could..." she reminded him worriedly. Really. Gene could find her anywhere. He had found her anywhere. Happy too.
Tony went on, blithely unaware his companion wasn't really paying attention.
"It's safe from all manner of electronic scans but that's also part of the problem." He smiled apologetically at her and continued. "Installing DSL or a WI-fi connection would be nearly impossible here, so no cable or internet. But don't worry. Tony crossed the room to the entertainment center. "I brought in the popular movies in the entire catalog of every major movie studio. Plus all your favorite shows available on DVD. And all the latest Hex-Box games."
Curios, Pepper went and checked out a very familiar name on a metal collector's tin. "Hey! Where did you get 'My Little Brony: Friendship is Awesome!' Special Edition? It's not even out yet."
Tony crossed his arms over her chest and grinned confidently. "I can get anything I want, remember? The show's creator was a friend of my dad's. She's cool."
The redhead smiled despite herself. "Your dad hung out with a lady who animated technicolor horses? That rocks!"
The teen laughed. "I know, right? Dad knew a weird mix of people."
Tony's eyes went unfocused, remembering. Pepper tried to keep him from slipping into a funk.
"Okay. I have entertainment. What about food?"
"Well, Miss Potts, allow me to direct you to the luxurious pantry." Tony pitched his voice to sound like a game show announcer and walked her over to the fairly large room.
It was arranged neatly with rows of spices, bagged dried fruit and shelf upon shelf of boxes and cans of food organized by snack, entree, and side dishes. Rhodey must have been in here.
"It's mostly cans of course and a few shelf stable things. If you get really desperate there's some MREs and dehydrated food. I put in some sodas and boxed milk too. Cooking utensils and pots and pans are in the kitchen, but," Tony shrugged in apology. "Sorry there's no fresh produce. I wasn't expecting to have to use this place so soon."
Pepper nodded, looking around distracted. Tony knew he couldn't put off what she really wanted to hear any longer.
"You wanna know what happened."
"Yeah."
Tony sighed and retracted the Mark II armor then led his friend to the couch. He sat her down gently and gave her the look of someone forced to impart some horrible news.
"Well, the Mandarin attacked you, as I'm sure you figured out." He let out a breath and looked at her with sad exasperation. "I told you to stay home."
Pepper dropped her eyes into her lap, ashamed. She knew this already and had been berating herself ever since. She didn't need to hear it again. "Condescending much? Even if I'd stayed in and avoided Happy, Gene still would have come after me. Maybe Happy too. At least there were witnesses."
"I'm sorry," Tony inhaled and continued. "I think he was planning on kidnapping you but he just left you there. I don't understand it." He shook his head in confusion.
The redhead shrugged. "Maybe his goal wasn't really abduction. Maybe it was some kind of warning. You know, for all of us. 'I can get to you any time I want so watch out.' "
He considered her words thoughtfully. "I wouldn't put it past him. It's kind of over-the-top super villain for his taste, don't you think? I thought he preferred to be more subtle than that." He looked at her and she was surprised at his frankly admiring expression. "Good thinking by the way. Pepper Potts, Private Eye is on the case."
"Um, yeah." Pepper fidgeted, twisting her hands in her lap. "Happy? How's Happy? Is he okay? Does he know where I am? Is he asking for me?"
Tony refused to look at her while he spoke. "Gene only stunned you but Happy was hit pretty hard." His voice was heavy with sorrow and another emotion the girl couldn't name. Guilt, maybe? Because he hadn't been there to protect her and Happy? She couldn't be sure. Usually her heroic friend wore his thoughts and emotions on his face for all to see but she couldn't read him today. The redhead suddenly wondered how he'd gotten her away from a crime scene with dozens of witnesses and no one spotted him.
He swallowed and went on, his voice cracking as if from strain. "Happy's in the hospital. He's in a medical coma in the ICU but the last I heard he was stable for now. He's breathing on his own and his brainwaves look pretty normal but I don't know if any damage was done to his spine."
He tried to be gentle but the redhead began to cry softly. He's seen girls cry before and they usually sobbed and wailed loudly. In contrast Pepper's sadness seemed more genuine. He found it strange to see someone so loud and vital could weep so gently but grief affected people differently. Tony watched quietly as her face became red and blotchy, eyes overflowing as her nose ran. She was still beautiful. When he could take it no more he pulled her close and held her until she exhausted herself and her tears subsided.
"I'm sorry," she sniffled. "I think I wiped my nose on your shirt."
He couldn't help but laugh at that. "I really needed to know that. Relax. I think I can afford a new one."
"Yeah, because you seem to have seven of those. Whitney really needs to take you shopping and buy you a clue."
Tony shuddered in mock disgust but was secretly pleased she was sounding more like herself. "Why do you hate me so much, Potts?"
Pepper separated herself from her friend and exhaled in relief. "So. When can I go home and see Happy?"
Tony frowned. "I thought you understood."
"What? If you mean do I understand Gene's an evil douche nozzle then yeah, I got the memo." Pepper didn't like where this was going. Tony seemed weird today. Edgy.
Tony Stark faded away and for a moment all she could see in his eyes was Iron Man. "Like you said, Gene could attack you again, even mess with Happy in the hospital. You have to stay here for a few days until Fury can get the paperwork signed to get you moved to the helicarrier. Your dad is already there. You'll be safe here," he told her reassuringly. "Sorry about the communications blackout but at least it'll be harder for anyone to track you to this location."
Pepper didn't know how to respond. She knew everything he said was right given the situation but she didn't want to acknowledge it. She wished she'd never heard of the Makluan rings or met Gene Khan and sometimes...though she hated to even think it...never met Tony Stark. Being his friend was complicated and dangerous but usually worth it; even if it meant getting kidnapped or chased by ring guardians. For better or worse, Happy was now paying the price for her decision to befriend Tony.
Fortunately her friend chose to misread her troubled expression and took her hands in his.
"Hey. Happy's young and in great shape. I've sent the Stark medical team to help him get better. He's going to make a full recovery. Trust me."
He leaned in and for a crazy minute she thought he was going to try and kiss her on the mouth. At the last second he moved and gave her a brotherly kiss on the forehead.
Oh, duh. Of course it's wouldn't be a REAL kiss, with him dating Whitney. Arrogant much, self?
"Always." She tried to smile gratefully at him and withdrew her hands from his grasp. He frowned unhappily but let her.
Tony stood up and deployed his armor. He was uncomfortable about how Pepper would respond to what he had to say next. "I have to go. Roberta wants to have a family dinner tonight. I'll be missed."
She rose to her feet and looked up at her armored friend hopefully. "You'll be back, right? Maybe with Rhodey?"
He froze and flushed guiltily. "Uh...Rhodey doesn't know you're here. I let him believe Gene had you."
Hands on hips, Pepper tilted her head to the side and raised an eyebrow. "Wait, what?"
Tony ran his fingers through his hair, a nervous habit he couldn't quite get rid of. "I thought it would be better if everyone thought the Mandarin had you to throw Gene off-balance. If they don't know anything, no one can let anything slip. You'll be safe and Gene won't have a clue. He'll be too confused and defensive to attack you again."
Heaven knew she was confused. She was sure Tony understood his logic but then again he was a genius.
"Okay. But lying to Rhodey? You never keep secrets from Rhodey. Wouldn't it be better to keep him in the loop?"
"If you can fool your friends you can fool your enemies, right?" Tony smiled at her unconvinced expression. "Hey. Once you're safely in SHIELD custody I'll come clean and tell him everything. Don't worry. Then you can both be mad at me and play a rousing game of 'Whack-a-Tony'." He gave her hair a fond ruffle and his face plates slid shut.
"It'll all turn out okay, Pepper. I'll be back as soon as I can."
He activated his bootjets and the stone doors slid open. Pepper stood aside to avoid the arctic air rushing in and they slammed shut again, leaving her alone and hopelessly confused.
The sound of the rolling food cart woke Rhodey from a troubled sleep and he rubbed his face, smooth chin becoming raspy with new growth. He'd been allowed to move to the ICU waiting room and the medical staff kindly lent him a Murphy bed.
His mom had allowed him to skip school and attend what he could via Shype. She remarked with gallows humor that hanging around hospitals was becoming a habit for their family. Being a responsible foster mom she had asked about Tony's absence but he told her Tony was coordinating with his contacts to search for Pepper, if she was still alive. Mom was optimistic, the way parents have to be in these sorts of situations but he wasn't sure any more. Why hadn't Tony contacted him? It had been twelve hours!
"Rhodey."
He looked up and saw the familiar, welcome sight of Whitney Stane. He smiled at her until he noticed she had the Irwin twins with her. That was strange. Had he been there Tony would have joked they were usually hibernating this time of day.
Whitney must have noticed the questioning look on his face because she smiled wryly and said, "I thought all of Happy's friends should be present right now."
"Thank you all for being here." Without Tony or Pepper, Rhodey felt as if he had to be not only Happy's but their spokesperson as well. His eyes traveled over to the cheerful brown-eyed susans being held by Rona Irwin. The bright golds were a sunny contrast to the goth girl's demeanor. It lacked its usual bristling hostility and she seemed melancholy as her brother's pale hand gripped her shoulder in support.
"Nice flowers. I bet Happy will love them."
At Rhodey's gentle words the pallid girl began to cry, the bouquet shaking in her hands until Whitney gently pried them from her. The tall boy stared at her brother in bewilderment, who shrugged.
"I-I've known Harold-Happy...since kindergarten. He was always nice to me. He defended me against bullies, not because he thought girls were helpless but because he felt four on one wasn't fair. Our teacher was going through a divorce and he picked brown-eyed susans for her every day. They were her favorite so he told her they were his too. E-Even though he's really allergic!"
The last word was a loud wail and a few passing interns looked disapprovingly at the distraught girl. Rhodey thought they could all go to hell. Sure, Happy shouldn't have those flowers in the ICU if he was really allergic but Rona's kindness and concern for an injured friend was what mattered. He
carefully took her away from her brother and into a compassionate hug. The dark haired girl continued to weep and he marveled at the hidden depths in this girl he barely knew. Rhodey felt guilty for always dismissing her as a typical angry goth/Soapbox Sadie. Wow. Happy had an impressive protective side.
Rhodey would even call it heroic. It amazed him he could pass these people in the hallway
every day and know so little about them.
Rona rubbed her eyes, soft with reminiscence. "I know everyone thought Happy was nothing but a big dumb dope and while the truth might be on their side, he was more than that. He was really kind and treated everyone the same. He didn't care who had money or who was popular. And the funny thing is, he didn't do it to prove a point or be self-righteous. It was just his nature."
Whitney nodded in agreement. "Yeah. That sounds like Happy."
Tears abating, the black teen let the black-clad young woman go. Bistre eyes met gray and when he spoke it was with conviction. "Don't be so quick to put him in the past tense, Rona. Happy is going to recover. He's strong and healthy. This is nothing. He hasn't woken up yet because he's in a medical
coma, not a real one. Once that wears off his body will heal itself. We'll all be here for him when he's ready. Don't write him off just yet, Rona. This is far from over." Rhodey smiled at her. He wondered if Happy knew of all the people he'd inadvertently drawn to himself just by being...Happy. Probably not.
Rona smiled at him while she cried and Rhodey handed her a handkerchief he always kept in his pocket. His grandmother had berated him as a child, saying a true gentleman always had a handkerchief on his person. Now he was glad he listened.
The slim dark girl wiped her face. "Thank you, Rhodey." Her expression regained a touch of its former self. "I can't say I think much of your best friend but you're okay. Maybe Stark has redeeming qualities too."
"And that's what I've been telling you for months." Whitney told her saucily and the two friends grinned at each other. Rhodey exhaled and felt more relaxed than he had in days.
It may be too early to be optimistic, but hope was all they had at the moment.
Yes. Pepper is indeed a "Brony". So is Tony. Rhodey has yet to come forward and admit it.