Disclaimer: I only own Rory Hayes and her father.

~R~

Steve had chased after Rory down the busy New York sidewalk and was able to convince her to calm down. He knew what Tony had done to her room was a bit excessive, but Rory knew it was coming sooner or later. Plus it wouldn't clean itself. Steve tied another garbage bag before setting it outside of Rory's bedroom. He looked around the still covered room and ran a hand through his hair. Rory was busy pulling down more party streamers and silly string with a scowl on her face. He was glad they removed the fog machine and dry ice from the room, but he regretted having Rory in the room once the fog cleared. The bed was covered in plastic wrap and post it notes along with the dresser and windows. The closet, however was closed so Steve hoped Tony didn't do anything to her clothes. How wrong he was. Rory roughly pulled the sliding door open and just stared inside. Steve had walked over to her to see if his suspicions were correct, but he ended up muttering a curse to himself. Tony was definitely in trouble or he would end up being buried six feet under by the end of the week.

Steve sighed as he watched Rory try to pull another streamer from the wall only to have it refuse to come off.

"Damn you, Tony." Rory muttered as she tugged on the streamer. A hand was placed on the small of her back as Steve reached by her and pulled the streamer down for her. He held it out and dropped it in the bag. Rory let Steve take the bag from her hands and push her toward the door.

"Take a break. I'll get the rest of the streamers and silly string." He said with a warm smile.

"Thank you, Steve." She replied letting herself slide down the wall to the ground. Her head rested against the wall as she watched Steve work. Rory could see the muscles ripple in his back as he reached up and grabbed a handful of streamers pulling them down. She knew they had grown closer since the Faust incident, but she didn't know how much further they'd go. She liked Steve that much was certain, but she liked him as more than a friend. Rory continued to watch Steve work as she slowly let her eyes drift shut.

"Rory…Rory wake up." Steve said gently shaking her awake.

"How long was I asleep?" she asked stifling a yawn.

"Two hours. I cleared most of the silly string and all the streamers. Now all we have left is the bed, windows and dresser."

"Great! Now how about we get some food before we tackle those?" Rory slowly stood up and popped her stiff back.

"Sounds good." Steve replied watching as Rory disappeared around the corner.

He had just turned back to the remaining silly string when a cough from the doorway caught his attention. He glanced over his shoulder at Rory standing in the doorway with a pamphlet in her hand.

"How about pizza? It seems Tony took it upon himself to empty out my fridge and trying to thaw anything will take a while."

Steve couldn't help but shake his head. He dropped the garbage bag onto the floor and followed Rory into the kitchen. She leaned against the island and ordered their food while Steve grabbed a glass of water.

~R~

Rory and Steve cleaned up their mess and proceeded to finish cleaning Rory's room. Steve was busy pulling the post-it notes off the window when the phone rang. Rory and Steve looked at one another before Rory grabbed the phone and answered.

"Hello?"

"Rory? This is Pepper. I heard what Tony did and I want to apologize for his childish antics."

"There's no need for you to apologize, Pepper. I kind of had it coming, but I wasn't expecting this much. Oh, and you wouldn't happen to know what he did with all my clothes?" Rory asked looking over at Steve.

"That's actually why I called. He thought it would be hilarious to hide them and now he doesn't remember where he put them. No one messes with a woman's clothes and gets away with it, so we are going to buy you some new clothes."

Rory groaned which caused Steve to quirk an eyebrow in question. When he locked eyes with Rory she merely shook her head and held up a finger telling him to wait.

"Thank you, Pepper. Just let me know when and where to meet you tomorrow."

"Just meet me at Stark Tower around noon and we'll take the limo."

Rory hung up and placed the phone back in the cradle. Steve couldn't determine the look on her face, but from her expression earlier it must have something to do with Tony. Rory turned toward her bed and sighed. The plastic wrap and post-it notes seemed to be mocking her. She started pulling off post-it notes and stacking them in her hand when something caught her eye. She leaned over the bed and plucked the bright blue post-it note from the sea of yellow and turned it over. On the back was the familiar handwriting of Tony Stark and only two words, Your Move.

The post-it note sailed through the air bouncing off the rim of the trash can as Rory plucked the rest of the notes off the bed before depositing them. She examined the plastic wrap to see where she should start. She released a frustrated sigh and grabbed a pair of scissors from the desk drawer and carefully cut the plastic wrap. Once finished Rory turned to find Steve had finished with the desk and window and was watching her. She quirked an eyebrow when they made eye contact and Steve looked away.

"Listen Steve, it's getting late so how about you stay here for the night?" Rory suggested turning away from Steve. She balled the plastic wrap in her hand and tossed it into the trash can.

"I don't want to intrude…" he began to reply.

Rory put her hands on her hips and smiled, "I asked you to stay so you won't be intruding. Besides, I could use a bodyguard in case a certain someone decides to pull another stunt like this one."

Steve laughed and nodded. Rory's smile brightened. She turned toward the bed and got down on her hands and knees searching under the bed. Steve blushed and looked away when his eyes landed on Rory's butt as she knelt down. He waited a few minutes before turning back around just as Rory stood back up, a set of sheets in hand.

"I haven't finished setting up the guest room, but it has a bed and it is better than sleeping on that couch. Trust me that couch will kill your back in just a few hours." She said exiting her room and entering the guest room across the hall. Steve followed behind her and helped in making the queen sized bed.

They passed the time watching television and having a few drinks. Every now and then they would sneak glances at each other only to end up being caught. Steve was flipping through the channels when Rory yawned. She pressed a hand to her mouth to stifle the yawn.

"I think I'm going to call it a night. I'll see you in the morning." She stood up and stretched before pressing a hand to her head. A sharp blinding pain blurred her vision causing her to become unbalanced. Steve shot up and steadied Rory.

"Whoa easy now. Everything alright?" he asked worry laced in his tone.

Rory blinked a few times to clear her vision as she leaned against Steve. "I think so. It's probably just the beer and lack of sleep."

Steve reluctantly let Rory go as she checked to make sure she could walk. He watched as she made her way out of the living room and into the hallway. He listened as her bedroom door opened and clicked closed behind her.

Rory leaned her back against the door as the room spun around her. She squeezed her eyes shut and leaned over as her stomach became queasy. She took a few deep breaths waiting for her stomach to settle and the room to stand still. After a few minutes, Rory straightened up and slowly made her way to the bed. She pulled back the covers and climbed into the cool covers. Once her head hit the pillow she was out, until the nightmares started again.

It was well into the night when Steve heard whimpering followed by shouts. He shot out of bed and ran into Rory's room. She was thrashing about on the bed, sweat running down her forehead as she struggled to get away from something. Steve approached the side of her bed and called her name.

"Steve…No…You need to get out of here. It's not safe." Rory muttered catching Steve off guard. "Faustus…"

Steve had heard enough when Rory began writhing in pain and screaming as tears rolled down her cheeks. Rory's eyes shot open as she screamed and grabbed her head. Steve sat on the bed and pulled her into his chest to comfort her. He rubbed her back soothingly as she quieted down. They sat in silence for a long while neither of them moving as Steve ran his hand through her hair and held her close. Rory had wrapped her arms around his middle and cried into his shirt until she couldn't cry any more. She slowly pulled away from Steve and wiped her eyes as Steve rested his hands on her shoulders.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he quietly asked.

"I don't know how to explain it. Something happened after I broke Faustus' mind control. I've been having these nightmares every night and every time the outcome is different."

"How so?"

"I have to choose between my life and yours, but no matter what I choose one of us dies. Namely me…I don't know what to do." She answered hanging her head.

"Rory, look at me." When she didn't move Steve lifted her chin forcing her to look at him. "Everything is going to be alright. Faustus isn't going to hurt you. I won't let him, not this time. However, I think you should have Dr. Banner check you out. See if he can find out what is causing these nightmares. Agreed?"

With a nod of her head, Rory settled back into bed. Steve moved to leave when Rory grabbed his hand. He turned and looked down at her.

"Please stay." She whispered as her grip on his hand loosened. Steve didn't say a word as he slowly climbed onto the bed. Rory scooted over to give him more room and lay on her side. She closed her eyes knowing he was there next to her. She allowed sleep to overcome her once more hoping the nightmares would stay away for the rest of the night.

~R~

The following morning Rory awoke to the sun shining in her eyes. She groaned and tried to roll over only to feel a weight around her middle. Her eyes landed on the lightly tanned skin and followed it up to its owner. Steve was sound asleep as Rory blushed and tried to wiggle her way out of the bed. She stopped when Steve pulled her closer. She patiently waited until his grip loosened a little bit more and she was able to slip away. Rory had to admit she missed the warmth from Steve's body, but she had to meet Pepper in…two hours.

"Ah crap…I didn't mean to sleep this late." She muttered quietly approaching the bathroom.

Rory stopped mid-step when she realized she didn't have any clothes to change into. With a heavy sigh she turned on her heel and exited the room. Walking into the kitchen she grabbed some left over pizza and took a bite when there was a knock at her door. Rory took another bite of her pizza as she answered the door.

"Pepper, what are you doing here?" Rory asked after swallowing. She moved out of the way and let Pepper inside.

"Tony forgot to mention he took all of your clothes so I brought you some of mine. I just hope they fit." She replied handing Rory the bag.

"Thanks. Just let me go change and I'll be right out. And feel free to make yourself at home."

Rory lightly jogged down the hallway toward the spare bedroom. She didn't want to wake Steve, especially after he spent the day helping her clean up her apartment. He deserved the break. She quickly changed and put her hair into a bun. She checked her appearance one last time and left the room. After peeking into her bedroom to see Steve still sound asleep she quietly closed the door and went to the living room.

"Let me just scribble a quick note and then we can be off."

"House guest?" Pepper asked.

"Mhmm." Rory replied as she found a piece of paper and a pen.

"Is it someone special?" Pepper inquired with a knowing look.

Rory looked up from her note and eyed Pepper closely. The other woman gave her a smile and the look all women give their friends when they have a guy over. Rory rolled her eyes and finished the note before setting the pen on top.

"Let's just say it's a certain Captain. Now can we please go? I need help planning revenge on Tony. I was thinking going after his Iron Man suit." Rory said grabbing her phone and keys as they left.

The hours flew by as Pepper and Rory shopped and swapped stories. Pepper laughed as she held up a pair of lingerie and Rory made a face. She dropped it back on the table and pulled Rory toward the shoes. Pepper grabbed a box from the shelf and nearly tossed it at Rory.

"Here try these on." She said turning back to the shelves to look.

Rory sat down on the bench and opened the box. Her eyes widened in horror at the high heeled shoe. She slowly pulled out one of the heels and proceeded to slip it on. Pepper emerged from the shelves and stopped. Her eyes landed on Rory as she tried to walk in the heels and she couldn't stifle the laugh quickly enough. Rory shot a glare in her direction and stiffly walked back to the bench.

"How about a different pair of heels where they aren't six inches high." She grumbled stuffing the shoes back into the box.

"Fine, try these on. I think you'll like these." Pepper chuckled taking the box from Rory's hand and passing her the other box.

Rory read the name on the box, Kurt Geiger, she wasn't one to follow the latest fashion trends nor did she know who the popular designers were, so shrugging she lifted the lid and pulled out the sleek black peep toe heels. She slipped them on and carefully stood up and walked around. Rory had to admit it had been awhile since she last wore heels and now she knew why, but she decided to buy them just in case. The women finished looking at shoes and moved on to the clothing. Rory stood back as Pepper mixed and matched outfits, asking for her input each time. Pepper had Rory try on everything and choose the ones she liked best.

The day was winding down as they made their way to the limo. Each of them had their arms full of bags as they laughed. Rory accidently bumped into someone and turned around to apologize when she caught the man's eye. Her breath hitched in her throat as he smirked and continued walking.

"Rory, what's wrong? Rory?" Pepper asked.

"It's nothing; I just thought I knew him from somewhere." Rory answered turning back around.

"So you and Steve huh? Are you two a couple?"

"No. He is just a friend that's it."

"That's a shame because from what Tony told me, he never left your side after your encounter with Faustus."

Rory froze, "Really?"

"Yes silly. I think he likes you and that blush on your face this morning proves you have feelings for him to. You should tell him."

"I don't know…" Rory said with uncertainty.

"Oh and I know the best place for you to do it! Tony is having party tomorrow and you and Steve are invited."

"I'm not much of a partier, Pep."

"Oh come on it will be fun! Besides you don't have to stay the whole time just come for a few hours and then you can leave. It might be your best chance to get back at Tony."

Rory smirked as they reached the limo. She nodded as Happy helped load the bags into the trunk. Pepper slid into the limo as Rory followed behind her. They drove off unaware of the man following behind them.

"A party? Sounds interesting and it will be the perfect time for my plan. Until we meet again Miss Rory Hayes." The man chuckled.

~R~

I am not dead! I promise! I am truly sorry for keeping you all waiting and I want everyone to know I am not abandoning this story! I've just been so busy with work that I completely forgot about my stories, but fear not I promise to update this story more frequently now that I have the time.