A/N: 10/12/2014 How's THIS for a quick update?! Eh, eh? *nudges ribs* Okay I'll stop gloating now T_T But seriously, though, with any luck, I'll be updating this and my PepperxLoki fic on a much more regular basis :)

Hyne: Hey, you reviewed! :D Thanks for the positivity, it really seeps from my Kindle screen and into my brain...you know. In a good way. Oh, and thanks for the encouragement to do those oneshots. I agree that the same old pairings can get very old and dull. I plan on getting some of them posted before the end of this story, and if not, definitely by the end of this year ;)

Guest: YAY, you got the reference! :D I love Mr. And Mrs. Smith, too. Very good film. Thanks for the positive review. I, too, felt like the cooking - though totally unplanned - deepened the undertones of their relationship :)

sailorraven34: lol I'm glad you liked Bruce in the last chapter. And yeah, Tony's doctor definitely has some explaining to do XD

Anywho, here's another chapter! Enjoy it! :D

Reading time: 18-20 mins.

Disclaimer: I do not own The Avengers.

Chapter Five: Same Place, Same Time~

'Number 4: Be in the same places as him. This can be difficult to do, but it will give you more chances to talk to him. The more you are around him, the more he'll take notice.'

Thor read his notes as he waited at a crosswalk in inner-city Manhattan.

He went over them again and again in his mind, completely oblivious to the stares and gawks from the people standing around him. He had to memorize them. If he didn't, he wasn't sure how much longer he could go on without someone taking his notebook from him to see just what he had been doing for the past week, and if that happened - Odin forbid - all of his previous efforts would be lost. Pepper would know what he was trying to do, and all would be in vain.

The light changed to the 'walk' signal, and the god of Thunder crossed the street with the Midgardian pedestrians, not bothering to look up from his notes as he made his way to the Stark Industries building, red cape flowing majestically behind him.

As he began to climb the steps leading up to his destination, a voice called out to him.

"Thor!"

He turned and looked down, finding Pepper Potts clutching a briefcase in one hand and smiling up to him from a few steps below.

He quickly hid his notes.

"Lady Pepper!" He greeted, surprised. "What business must you attend to this wondrous day?"

She chuckled. "Oh, nothing much. Tony's got this meeting going on in ten minutes and I'm going to join him. You know, CEO stuff and all that."

He didn't know. Not really.

"So what are you doing? It's quite the coincidence running into you here," She said pleasantly, walking with him up the steps.

"Oh, nothing of much importance," he replied, smiling as they reached the crystal-clear set of double glass doors.

"Hm. Sounds like you need something to do," Pepper mused, looking at him with a funny glint in her eye.

Thor didn't really understand what she was implying, so he merely made a noise of agreeance and smiled as he held the door for her.

Once inside, they walked for a bit before Pepper finally clarified what she had previously been suggesting.

"Do you want to join Tony and me at the meeting?" She asked, and Thor's eyebrows lifted.

"Pardon?" He said, perplexed.

"Well, it's just that these meetings are really boring for me and, well, it'd be nice to have someone other than Tony by my side." She rolled her eyes. "Besides, you said so yourself, you have nothing better to do. So what do you say?"

The Asgardian looked at her with uncertainty. Although he couldn't deny that this was a perfect opportunity to observe and collect information regarding her love interest, he also knew from Tony and Fury (and various other outings) that Earth meetings were often dull and very boring, most undesirable. Nevertheless, he had to take notes, and he couldn't find it in himself to say no to the pretty CEO staring up at him.

"Very well, Lady Pepper," he said finally, albeit reluctantly. "I shall accompany you to this meeting."

Pepper's face brightened like an Asgardian Ulfbhert (not that she would know anything about those) and hooked her arm with his as she switched hands with her briefcase.

"Alright, then." She smiled broadly at him. "Let's get going."

They walked up to the elevators, stepped inside, and Pepper pressed the button leading to the floor of the board room.

"Pep!" Tony called, just as she and Thor entered the room.

"Tony," Pepper greeted.

Tony stared at the towering god standing timidly - however ridiculous it may sound - behind her, obviously curious as to why he was present.

"Oh, Thor and I ran into each other on our way in," She explained. "He said he didn't have anything to do, so, I invited him along. You don't mind, right?"

Her boss looked to his fellow Avenger with a strange look in his eyes. "No, course not. If anything, he's an advantage. I mean, who wants a giant Norse god on your back if you don't accept a business proposal, right?"

If he wasn't mistaken, Thor would say it was as though the metal man didn't actually want him there...but that was preposterous.

"Okay, perfect," Pepper said, following Tony as he pulled out a chair for her.

'In meetings, if seating is optional, sit next to him every so often. Sit next to him at lunch or dinner when there's an opportunity.'

Thor stood in his place, mental note taken, unsure of where to sit. All of the chairs looked equally important to him; was there a difference in where one seated themselves?

"You can sit here, Thor." Pepper smiled welcomingly at him, patting the black leather chair beside her.

Thor complied, walking the short distance to her and seating himself in the swivel chair.

"It spins!" He said delightedly, smiling in awe as he spun himself around.

Pepper laughed. "Yes, it does. Only the best for our clients. Isn't that right, Tony?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah." Tony slouched in the seat next to hers, fiddling idly with his phone.

"Can we begin the meeting, please?" A new voice said.

The three individuals looked up simultaneously, eyes landing upon an old man on the other side of the room in a pinstripe suit. He looked at them in an indecipherable manner - not necessarily mean, but not welcoming, either - and waited patiently for a reply.

Pepper shook her head free of hesitance. "Oh, uh...of course! We're ready when you are, Mr. Eisenhardt."

The man walked to the head of the table, two others following him in - a man and a woman - and seated himself accordingly, his two companions doing the same.

He introduced them. "These are my business partners, Mr. Creed and Ms. Darkholme. They will be attending the meeting and offering input when needed."

Tony smiled. "Perfect. Good to know."

He turned and gave Pepper a 'yikes' expression before sitting upright in his chair and addressing Mr. Eisenhardt.

"So, what brings you to Stark Towers?" He asked, folding his hands together on the table.

"I have heard tell that you make weapons," Mr. Eisenhardt replied, a calculating glint in his eye.

Tony resisted the urge to snort. Duh. "Uhh, yep. What's your preference? Bombs? Robots? Missiles? Dummie Guides?"

"What I have in mind," the old man said, "Is a very specific type of weapon."

"Okay, then. Why don't you tell me what it is and then we can get down to business?"

"Very well, Mr. Stark. Are you aware of frequencies and the human brain?"

"About as much as any scientist is, why?"

"I would like you to build a..."

Thor tuned them out.

It wasn't that he was uninterested, just that he was restless...well, and uninterested. He adjusted himself in his rotating chair, resisting the desire to spin himself around again; he knew Pepper would disapprove.

With nothing better to do, he looked at Mr. Eisenhardt's companions, who were seated across from him.

The man, Mr. Creed, looked very rough. He had a scruffy beard and long brown hair that looked more like a mane than anything else. The corners of his lips curled up ever so slightly into what could only be resembled as a snarl, and he reminded Thor of a rabid animal, common in Asgard.

The woman, Ms. Darkholme, tall and blonde with a pleasing complexion, was far more business-like than her partner. She sat, straight and attentive, as she analyzed the conversation Thor was too uneducated and uninterested to pay attention to.

Her cool eyes slid over to his, sensing his stare, and the god could have sworn that the color in her irises shifted into...something else. He may have been mistaken, but he had no time to be sure as he blinked, her eyes flicked, and then it was gone.

As he slowly grew more alert, he realized that his mortal friends might not be as safe as they appeared. He glanced at Pepper, who was smiling and answering a question to something or other, and as he compared the demeanor of the two groups of very different people, one thought came to mind;

There was definitely something wrong with those two Midgardians.

Thor suffered through the meeting, keeping his mouth closed about his opinion of his friends' clients, and was relieved when said meeting was adjourned.

He followed Pepper out of the room, Tony close behind, and waited until Mr. Eisenhardt and his two companions were out of earshot before mentioning anything about their strange behavior.

He walked briskly up to the ginger-haired woman, intent on sharing his thoughts, but Tony beat him to it.

"Well they were weird," He said, not looking up as he messed with an app on his phone.

"Yep," Pepper agreed.

Thor looked between them. "...So you sensed it, too?"

They stopped walking and looked at him.

"Sensed what?" Tony asked, confused and a little annoyed.

"T-their behavior," he replied. "Did you not think it odd?"

Pepper tilted her head to the side. "Well, I suppose so, but...I don't know. I kind of just figured they were...you know," the two men looked at her. "Different," she finished, shrugging as they picked up their pace again.

"Well, certainly, you are not going to make weapons for them, are you?" Thor asked, hesitant but insistent.

"Pssh. Of course not!" Tony scoffed from beside Pepper. "Look, don't worry about it. JARVIS sent me their stats earlier this morning; there is no way I'm going to trust them with one of my babies."

Pepper snorted.

They all huddled into the elevator, and Pepper pressed the button for the ground floor as Tony continued to mess with his phone and Thor flattened himself against the wall to give them more space.

He noticed Tony grunt in anger beside him, and he looked over to see what he was doing.

"What is this?" He asked curiously, watching a yellow animated bird fly across the screen.

"The most annoying game in the world," the shorter man muttered, and the bird ran into a pipe. "DAMMIT!"

Pepper jumped at his sudden use of language - or maybe it was just his volume - and whipped her head around to give him a scolding look.

"...What?" He asked. "Flappy Bird is infuriating."

They exited the elevator and made their way outside, skirting along the sidewalk to Tony's car.

"Hey, Pep, watch this."

The billionaire jogged past them and slid across the hood of his Ferrari, landing on the other side and, with the press of a button, opened the passenger side door for his assistant.

'If he plays sports or other activities, or just really wants to show you something he thinks is 'cool', make it a priority to go and see him perform or look at what he has to show you, whether it's a new car or his favorite video game. There's nothing like scoring that winning touchdown and seeing a beautiful girl in the stands, or like sharing your most prized possessions with said girl.'

As Thor made the mental note, Pepper lifted her eyebrows appraisingly. "Wow. I didn't know a Ferrari could do that."

"I made some adjustments." Tony smirked in the way that one often did when they knew all along that their target audience would be impressed.

He climbed into the driver's seat, and Pepper and Thor followed suit, sitting in the passenger's side and (just barely) squeezing into the back as the billionaire playboy started the car and drove away.

After some fast food and driving around for a bit, the trio headed back home.

Tony tossed Happy the keys and told him to 'park it', disappearing into the garage (no doubt on his way to the basement) as Thor followed Pepper into the building that served as their home.

On their way in, they passed Steve, walking casually out the front door with a bag over his shoulder.

"Sir Steve!" Thor greeted cheerily, and the star-spangled Captain paused in his stride to smile at them.

"Thor, Pepper, hey," he said, nodding to them.

Thor didn't miss that his friend's eyes lingered on Pepper's far longer than his own.

"Steve!" Pepper smiled. "Where are you headed off to?"

"Oh, you know. I was thinking about heading over to the gym and hittin' a few bags."

"Oh...well, you know the Tower has plenty of-"

He held up a hand. "I know. No offense to Stark, but...I just don't like it, hahaha..."

Pepper tried to contain herself, but ultimately laughed with him. "Oh. I hear you there. It can be a little..."

"Frustrating?" Steve finished.

She nodded. "Yes, exactly. Tony obviously wasn't thinking of a relaxing environment when he decided to place the gym right next to his work room."

"I heard that!" Tony's shouted from the garage.

Thor, Pepper, and Steve all exchanged looks, as children would do when they've just been caught saying something they shouldn't have, and they chuckled lightheartedly together.

"...Well, I'm gonna get outta here," Steve said, shifting his gym bag on his shoulder.

"Oh, okay. See you later." Pepper smiled, waving as the blue Avenger bid her farewell.

As Steve departed, Thor moved to walked beside her as they entered their not-so-humble abode, and upon noticing his friend's slightly sad behavior, asked,

"Are you well, Lady Pepper?"

The woman in question turned to him, surprised, as JARVIS let them in through the door.

"Oh, uh...yeah. Why wouldn't I be?"

"It is just that you seem disheartened by Sir Steve's departure."

"Oh, it's nothing. We just agreed to watch a movie after I got home, and...well, I guess he forgot, haha." She waved offhandedly to demonstrate her indifference, but Thor knew better.

"You are aware that if you truly wished to, you could have offered to see him to the gym, are you not?"

Her eyes widened. "A-and watch him work out, like some kind of weirdo? No thanks, haha!" She looked down at her folded hands. "Besides, I...I wouldn't want to impose. I know how much of a nerve-calmer punching bags are for him." She chuckled at the irony of her statement, and Thor nodded in understanding.

"Very well. I shall return to my quarters for the evening," he said, announcing his departure.

"Oh, I'll walk you," Pepper said, eyes bright.

He nodded. "As you wish, Lady Pepper."

The two friends stopped in front of the door as they reached his room, and Thor thanked her for taking the time to accompany him.

"No problem," Pepper said, shaking her head dismissively.

Thor smiled and turned to enter his room, and as she began to walk away, he said,

"I am sure Sir Steve's memory merely failed to serve him in regards to your plans. He will no doubt accept your future offers."

Smirking, Pepper replied, "I'm sure you're right. But we've been spending a lot of time together as it is, and, as they say; absence makes the heart grow fonder."

His eyebrows twitched as he contemplated her words, and as she walked away, he received the oddest of feelings within his chest.

He closed the door to his room, and sat down on his bed.

It wasn't a bad feeling, he decided.

Just different.

He pulled out his notebook.

'Be careful about being around him all the time! You don't want to look like a stalker, so be selective and play things off like they're random or pure coincidence. Plus, as they say, absence makes the heart grow fonder.'

Hm.

Thor reread the words, scrunching his eyebrows together as the foreign feeling continued to swirl within him.

Choosing to ignore it, he fished out his pen and merely gave tallies to Sir Stark and Sir Steve.

A/N: And here, we have the inklings of what is to come ;)

Though I doubt that you would recognize them unless you were a hardcore fan, Mr. Eisenhardt was Magneto, Mr. Creed was Sabertooth, and Ms. Darkholme was Mystique, all from X-Men. I really like the X-Men, and they're in the same universe as The Avengers (Marvel) so I thought, 'why not?' I was gonna have the guy be Professor Xavier, buuuut I chose Magneto because...well...just because.

Also, an Ulfbhert is just a fictional Asgardian animal I made up, although I did get the word from a documentary I watched about a really awesome-for-its-time Norse/Viking sword.

Reviews are encouraged, but not forced ;)

'Til next time!