Title: Protect My Heart

Author: Erik-in-CT

Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to Stephanie Meyer or Marvel Comics, and not myself.

Bella awoke slowly, her mind trying desperately to cling to the images that had flitted through her dreams. But eventually conciousness won the battle, and she sighed as she began to stretch. And then she came fully alert when her stretching brought her into contact with a solid form laying next to her. Turning her head slightly, she peeked her eyes open, and found Tony laying next to her, snoring softly into his pillow. Then the events of the previous night reinserted themselves in her mind.

After the disasterous turn of events starting with Edward showing up in Tony's bedroom, they had spent most of the rest of the night discussing how to handle the fact that a vengeful vampire was stalking them. It was long after midnight that Bella finally insisted on sleep for the mortals. "After all," she had said, "we still need to sleep, even if you don't Edward. And we won't be in any shape to do anything if we're exhausted." By some unspoken agreement, she had followed Tony into his bedroom once more, and had fallen asleep almost as soon as her head had hit the pillow. And apparently he hadn't fared much better, as he was sleeping still fully dressed. She wasn't sure where Edward had gone, but since the sun was shining brightly through the windows, she figured he had gone into hiding somewhere nearby.

Closing her eyes again, she tried to find an inner peace, and not worry about the threats looming over her head. There was nothing she could do about it right now, and so she would try to keep her calm. Feeling a shift against her, she opened her eyes again, only to find Tony watching her with a sleepy expression. "You're thinking too much," he mumbled, shifting to wrap an arm around her waist and pull her closer.

"Sorry," she said as she sighed happily, tucking herself against his chest, her cheek pressed against the low thrumming of his RT. She felt safe there, despite the supernatural horrors surrounding her.

"Don't be," he said quietly, his lips pressed against her hair. "Try and get a little more sleep. It's still early."

She nodded a little, but knew that sleep probably wouldn't return to her now. Not when she thought about what was going to happen soon. Once the sun set again, Tony and Edward would be out there, trying to find Victoria. And it was causing her too much concern. She couldn't bear the thought of either of them being hurt while trying to protect her. Why did it always seem that she put those around her in danger? She was just a magnet for trouble.

"You're still worrying, aren't you?" Tony asked with a small chuckle. When she answered him with silence, he pulled back enough that he could tilt her head up and force her to look at him. "Don't worry Bella," he said. "Everything will be fine." Then he leaned down and kissed her gently. She returned the soft affection, then sighed and curled against him again.

"Sir," Jarvis' voice interrupted the quiet, and Tony made an annoyed sound somewhere between a growl and a sigh. "Forgive the intrusion, but Ms. Potts is downstairs, and wishes to speak with you."

"Tell her I'll be down in shortly," he said, but didn't move from his spot next to her. "What does she want so bloody early on a Sunday morning?"

Though she didn't want to lose the warmth and comfort of his arms, Bella pushed back away from him, giving him a small smile. "Why don't you go find out before she comes looking for you?"

He grinned down at her with a look in his eyes that made Bella's stomach do a flip. "Alright," he said, his voice almost a purr. "But don't you go anywhere. I plan on finishing what I started before our interruption last night."

Despite her best efforts, Bella flushed red at his words, and turned to hide her face in the pillow. She heard him laugh, then the bed shifted and he was gone, padding silently out of the room. Peeking out of the corner of her eye to make sure he had really left, Bella turned and looked up at the ceiling above her. Figuring she had a little bit of time before Tony would return, she made her way to the luxurious bathroom attached to the bedroom, taking her "human" moments to feel more herself.

Tony was annoyed as he made his way downstairs to the main area of the house. Had his life always had this many disruptions? Or did it just seem more frustrating because of the current circumstances? Didn't matter either way, he was still annoyed. But it wasn't Pepper's fault, so he would do his best not to take it out on her. Putting a smile on his face that was usually reserved for bothersome reporters and TV cameras, he took the final steps down the stairs and found Pepper in the living room, tapping away on her PDA.

"Hey Pepper," he said as he brushed past her towards the kitchen. Coffee was definately a good idea. He'd been exhausted as hell for all the wrong reasons when he made it to bed, and had not slept a great length of time. He was aware of Pepper coming up behind him, and glanced over his shoulder at her as he set the coffee to brewing.

"Tony, I need to talk to you about your schedule for this week," she began with no preamble. Right to business, that was Pepper.

"Good morning to you too," he said with a smirk. Bothering Pepper was always a favorite sport of his. She never seemed to get ruffled by him, which only made him more determined.

"Good morning," she said flatly before turning back to her PDA. "Newsweek called and asked if they could move your interview for their next issue up from Thursday to Tuesday instead, and your meeting tomorrow with..."

"Cancel it all," he said in an even voice, watching her face. "The whole week. I'm taking a vacation."

She stopped tapping on her device, and looked up at him with a quirk of her eyebrows. "A vacation? Tony, you can't take a vacation right now. There's too much going on the next couple of weeks. I need you here and doing the job you're supposed to be doing."

"But you do it so much better," he replied as he fixed his cup of java. "My name on the building. That means I can take some time off of I want to. Corporate retreat, whatever. Make it work."

"I..." she paused, shook her head, and began tapping away again. "Will that be all, Mr. Stark?"

"That will be all, Ms. Potts," he said, finishing their customary exchange. Downing the drink in one shot, he gave her a wink, then moved past her and back towards the stairs, his mind already on the beautiful brunette waiting for him there. And he'd be damned if he let another interruption stop him this time.

Pepper did her best not to let her frustration get the best of her. Tony could be so...exasperating at times, but after so many years of dealing with him, she'd learned it was best to go along with his crazy ideas. Otherwise he'd sulk for awhile and make everyone else generally miserable, at least until some new idea raced across his mind, and he went off on another tangent. But if it was something as simple as cancelling his schedule for a week, instead of some of his crazier notions, then she could handle that. She'd have to make up some excuses to placate people, but she was used to that. And most people who had dealt with Tony before would understand. At any rate, if Tony wanted to take some time to himself, that just gave her a little bit of a break as well, which she definately felt she could use.

A short time later, she had finally made it back to her apartment in the city, and was looking forward to spending the rest of the afternoon and evening relaxing with a drink in front of her television with a good movie or two. But she felt uneasy as she entered her home. She could have sworn she had left windows open to catch the breeze, but they were shut with the shades drawn tight, drowning the room in darkness. Reaching out a hand, she flicked the light switch, but nothing happened. She began to get nervous, and started backing up towards the door. But before she could even make it a step or two, she felt something extremely hard push her roughly up against the wall. She tried to yell for help, but her voice was cut off by something pressed tight against her throat.

"Tsk tsk," a girlish voice said in the darkness. "You really should be a little more careful honey. You can never be too safe in the city." And then the lights flickered to life, and Pepper caught the briefest glimpse of a pale, red-haired woman looming over her, lips parted to show a vicious smile, before her world exploded in a fireball of pain.

Silence filled the apartment, broken only by the muffled sound of something falling to the carpet. A tiny rivulet of red stained the light floor, and green eyes stared sightlessly from behind a curtain of strawberry blonde hair.

Author's Note:

Please don't hurt me. I didn't mean to kill Pepper. It just sort of happened. It's a vampire story...someone had to die eventually.

As always, y'all are the best! Hope you enjoyed! See you next week. Reviews are welcome!