A/N: 10/9/2014 Sorry I haven't updated, but I ordered a keyboard for my tablet (which I'm using right now) so assuming my triple A batteries hold up I should be able to update all my stories more frequently.
Hyne: You are absolutely right. The only thing Pepper did on Thor's list that corresponded to him was when she tickled him at the end of the previous chapter, but I kind of did that on purpose. If she does every single thing on the list from the start, it'll be too obvious. So I'm going to have it be hit-and-miss with the first few chapters, and then they'll become more frequent and obvious, which will ultimately lead to Thor's revelation. Sorry, I should have made that more clear from the beginning, lol XD
This chapter is quite long, so I hope it makes up for my lack of updating thus far.
Reading time: about 20 mins.
Disclaimer: I do not own The Avengers. Or McDonald's.
Chapter four: Smile~
'Number 3. Smile. If you are happy to be around him, try and project that happiness as much as possible. Being happy is attractive, and smiling is the way you show the world that you are.'
"Hi, Thor. What'cha doing?"
The god of Thunder jolted in his seat, hastily covered his notebook, stuttering out a, "H-hello, Lady Pepper! How are you faring this fine evening?"
The ginger-haired woman shrugged as she made her way around to the front of the couch, not seeming too interested in what he was doing. And for that, he was thankful.
"Oh, not too bad. I've been dodging Tony for the past half hour; he's been begging me to go to the movies with him to watch some silly sci-fi film. I keep telling him I'm not interested, but he just doesn't seem to get the hint."
Pepper sighed, sitting down next to the blond Avenger.
"Certainly I need not inform you that Sir Stark has the entire Tower under surveillance?" He inquired, holding awkwardly onto his notebook.
"That's correct," She replied, turning to him and smiling brightly. "And he probably will find me here in a few minutes...but if I tell him I'm already occupied with someone else..."
She left her sentence dangling, and Thor tilted his head to the side, considering what she was implying.
"Are...you saying you wish to indulge in a pastime with me?" He asked hesitantly, unsure if he was understanding correctly.
"Well," Pepper said, smiling and looking down at her hands. "I do have a dinner that needs cooking."
His face lit up. "As in...Midgardian cuisine?"
She nodded, smiling widely. "Yep."
"With meat?"
"Oh, of course."
"And...and a stove?"
"Yep."
"And oven?"
"Affirmative."
"...And I would be permitted to handle these devices?"
"I wouldn't have it any other way."
Thor smiled, and Pepper smiled back, both of their faces broad as could be.
Upon invitation from the redheaded woman, the god of Thunder enthusiastically followed her into the kitchen. He wasn't quite sure what to make of her opinion of Sir Stark; should he just rule him out as a possibility for Pepper's affections or assume she was simply playing 'hard to get' as the magazine had said?
All of these questions and more flooded through his mind, but he pushed them to the back of his head as he followed the tall, commanding woman into Stark Tower's gourmet kitchen.
Cooking was an interesting thing to the Asgardian warrior.
He was perplexed and mystified by the way Midgardians prepared their food, and was especially taken with the appliances related to them - namely, the stove and oven.
Pepper was patient with him, and took her time showing him the different functions and uses for the various appliances. Her encouraging demeanor and pleasant voice made it more of a fun activity than an actual learning experience, and in her presence, Thor felt at ease. She truly was an amazing woman. It was no wonder there were so many prospects for her.
"And then we put it in the oven," Pepper said, gesturing to the chicken in the large pan Thor was holding.
"Like this?" He asked, opening the oven door and making the motion to stick it on the rack.
Pepper's brows furrowed as she looked at a text from her cellular phone. "Uh, yes, that's it," she said, not looking at him as she texted the person back.
In all honesty, he hoped that it wasn't Sir Stark on the other end of her communication device. He was having a splendid time with Lady Pepper, and he would feel disheartened to have to leave her company.
"Earthen cooking is a very wonderful activity" Thor said happily, gently setting the seasoned chicken down on the oven rack.
He let go and removed his hands, withdrawing them a bit too fast as he accidentally bumped against the inside of the oven. Hissing, he yanked his hand away as though he had been scorched (which he had) and slammed the oven door shut in his panic.
Pepper abruptly looked up, eyes widening in alarm as she saw Thor cradling his hand.
Stuffing her phone back into her pocket, she ran over to him. "Oh, what happened? Did you get burned?" She asked in a concerned tone as she tried to spare a glance at the hand he was so closely guarding.
"It would appear so," he replied, pain in his voice.
Pepper sighed sadly. "Oh, I'm sorry! I should have told you to be careful. Aw, this all my fault, here..." she took him by the arm and led him over to the sink.
Her grip was gentle as she directed his hand beneath the faucet and turned it on to all the way cold. Thor winced, but only for a moment. The cold water washed over the back of his hand, and he exhaled in relief as he let his body relax.
"I had no idea the art of cooking could be so life-threatening," he said, suddenly uneasy as he glanced back over at the oven.
Pepper pursed her lips to keep from chuckling. "Yes, I suppose it is pretty dangerous. People have died from it, so I suppose it really is something to be taken seriously..."
"I shall never wish to touch an oven again," he said remorsefully. "This burn is worse than that of an Asgardian dragon."
"Yeah, I bet it hurts like a...dragon. Uh, look, just run it under the faucet for a few minutes and it'll go away." Pepper instructed.
Thor nodded, and waited idly as he watched her move about the rest of the kitchen, bustling with the energy of an Asgard woman. Dare he say, more energy than an Asgard woman. As he silently regarded her, one thought stuck out from all the rest that came to mind.
In another life, Pepper Potts would make a fine woman of Asgard.
After dinner was done, Pepper went about setting the table.
Thor's hand still stung quite unpleasantly, but he insisted on helping her with her duties. She had told him to stand with his burnt hand under the water faucet for a few minutes. He stood there for thirty.
"Okay, I told JARVIS to tell them all dinner's ready," Pepper said, rushing to set the silverware beside the plates Thor had set down.
"There is no need to rush, Lady Pepper. I am sure they will thoroughly enjoy your skills in cuisine," Thor comforted, hiding the urge he felt to wince due to his burnt hand.
"Our skills," Pepper corrected, smiling widely.
Hawkeye entered the room. "...Am I early?" He asked, slowing his pace to a halt.
Pepper ran over to him. "Just on time, actually." She reached up and hugged him. "I'm glad you came," she said warmly.
The action didn't go unnoticed by Thor, and he made a mental note to give points for Hawkeye.
"Had to. It's better than Nat's cooking, that's for sure," he replied, smirking.
"Oh, Clint..." she rolled her eyes. "You can sit wherever. Make yourself at home."
Hawkeye did as he was told, and Pepper jogged up to meet Happy, who had just walked in.
Once everyone was arrived and seated, JARVIS announced Pepper's permission for everyone to dig in.
It was quite nice, really; the chicken and vegetables and bread biscuits she and Thor had made were very scrumptious (well, at least to Thor). The Thunder god was quite proud of himself, knowing that he had helped to make such a wonderful meal, but was a bit disheartened that no one made to make mention of it.
Eventually, Tony (of all people) was the first to credit the quality of what they had made.
"Wow, Pep. This chicken is...how should I put this? ...'Exquisite'." He complimented, finishing his sentence in a French accent as he took out his iPhone.
Pepper's face brightened. "Well, thank you, Tony. I'm glad you...are you taking a picture?"
"You know, before Instagram I used to spend so much time wondering what my other friends' food looked like?" Tony said offhandedly, raising his phone and snapping a picture of his full dinner plate.
Pepper sighed and rolled her eyes, though jestfully. "Whatever. Anyway, don't you want to know who helped me make all this?"
"Mm...not really," The billionaire said, fiddling with his apps.
Pepper scoffed and looked at Thor. "Un-believable," she muttered, voice low so as only he, Clint, and Natasha could hear.
"Well, I wanna know," Bruce said, taking a heaping bite of his dinner. "And I know it wasn't Natasha."
Natasha rolled her eyes and Clint smirked, chest vibrating with the chuckle that was trying to escape him.
"I assisted," Thor spoke up, smiling proudly.
Everyone's heads suddenly turned to him, disbelieving looks on their faces.
"You?" Steve remarked, eyebrows lifting.
Thor nodded. "Aye."
Tony blinked, expressionless. "...JARVIS?" He asked suddenly.
"Yes, sir?" The AI replied.
"Is the kitchen still intact?"
"One moment, sir."
"Tony!" Pepper scolded.
"What?" He asked innocently, holding his arms up in a half-shrug.
"You know very well 'what'! Thor worked really hard to help make this!"
"And that should be reason enough for me to trust he didn't destroy my kitchen?"
"Um, Yes!"
"The kitchen is fine, sir," JARVIS returned.
"Yeah, we're having a bit of a moment, here, JARVIS," The billionaire replied, holding up a hand to signal him be quiet.
"As you wish, sir."
"He is not a child, Tony! He's a...grown man for God's sake! I think he can handle a little cooking just fine," his assistant argued, gesturing to her left in the Asgardian's direction.
"Wait, so, you're telling me, that you didn't have...any accidents? At all? Not one?"
She went silent. "...Well, he burnt his hand, but-"
"A-HA!" Tony exclaimed, pointing at her. "So you admit, he's dangerous in the kitchen-"
"Cooking in general is dangerous, Tony! And you can't-"
"I OBJECT!" Her boss dramatically exclaimed, throwing his napkin down and getting out of his seat, pointing an accusatory finger at her.
Pepper furrowed her eyebrows, standing up as well. "Well, I object!"
"And I object to your objection."
Everyone - Bruce, Happy, Thor, Steve, Natasha, Clint, and even JARVIS - were silent.
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"...Could you pass the salt, please?" Bruce asked quietly, looking warily between the two arguing individuals.
Huffing, Pepper plopped back down in her seat, Tony doing the same, and grabbed the little glass container of salt and passed it roughly to the timid scientist.
"Thanks..." he said quietly, gaze lingering no longer than a second on any one person seated at the table.
The silence that followed was tense, the only sound coming from Bruce's use of the salt shaker. He handed it back to Pepper after he was done, and she set it neatly back in its place beside the pepper and chicken.
Tony decided it was safe to speak again. "May I have the pepper, Pepper?"
The woman glared at the ill-executed pun, and she took a graceful bite of her food as she replied, "It's in the middle of the table."
"Oh, is that the middle of the table, now?"
"Yeah, it's between you and me."
"..."
"..."
"...JARVIS?"
"Yes, sir."
Without another word, a long robotic arm descended from the ceiling and grabbed hold of the salt shaker, movements jerky as it handed Tony the desired object.
Pepper's mouth fell open.
"You know," he said, ignoring his assistant's expression as he salted his chicken. "My doctor told me to eat more Chik-Fil-A. And by denying me salt, you're going against doctor's orders."
"Really?" Natasha asked, smirking with a quirked eyebrow.
"Well, he actually said less McDonald's. But I'm pretty sure I know what he meant."
After the strained dinner, everyone gradually departed to go their separate ways.
Tony went back to his workshop, Bruce went back to his room, Clint and Natasha went out, Happy went back to oversee security, and Steve went to the Tower's library to finish reading a book.
Thor and Pepper were still in the dining room, gathering up the stray dishes and leftover food.
"You are a wonderful cook, Lady Pepper," Thor said suddenly, as though he had been thinking about it for quite some time.
Pepper smiled. "Thank you, Thor. At least someone appreciates me."
She stacked the plates into her arms, gathering the used silverware as he saved the uneaten morsels.
"As you should be," he replied, cradling what was left of the chicken. "Midgardian women are excellent at household activities. Or so it would seem. I have met only a few."
"Well, that's the thing, Thor," she said solemnly. "We Midgardian women often don't get the recognition we need or deserve"
Thor followed her into the kitchen. "Well, if you were an Asgardian woman, you would be worshipped as rightfully so for your unmatched skills with meat and ovens."
Pepper laughed, opening up the dishwasher. "That's a bit much, don't you think? Here, put that in the fridge."
Thor opened said fridge, pleased that it was cold rather than hot, and did as he was told. "Not at all. In Asgard, women are warriors, and have little time to attend to cuisine or home. You would be cherished, and worshipped as one of your Earthen goddesses."
"Ha! If only, Thor. If only."
Thor sat in his quarters in Stark Tower, going over his notes.
He hadn't really had the chance to make any notes, per se what with the preparing of dinner and the altercation between Pepper and Sir Stark, but he had paid extra special attention during dinner.
This was the first note he had had trouble with, he realized. Pepper smiled at everyone. Didn't she? It seemed like she did. So how was one to tell if she was 'flirting', as the article had said, or merely intending to be friendly?
He looked once more at his notes.
'You can tell he's interested if he smiles back at you and tries to hold your eyes a bit longer than regular friends would.'
Well that didn't help any.
Exasperated, he simply put a tally for every one of the male Avengers, giving Hawkeye an extra for the hug he and Pepper had shared.
A/N: I used one of my favorite movie lines in the dinner scene, towards the end. Can you identify it? I also referenced the famous 'objection' from Ace Attorney. I just couldn't help it XD
Anyway, I think I'm going to write either a series of short stories/oneshots, or drabbles for various Pepper pairings with each of the Avengers men..And then, when I'm done with that, I'm thinking of writing various Black Widow pairings with each of the Avengers as well. We'll see.
'Til next time!