So we continue with Miss Potts for a few more chapters, and then we get into the nitty gritty/action :)

'Good morning Miss Potts.' Jarvis' voice echoed through the room.

I sat up and instinctively felt around for Tony. I knew he wouldn't be there, though I checked every morning just the same.

'Good morning Jarvis, is Tony in the workshop?' I asked getting to my feet.

'No Miss Potts, he left early this morning, Bruce is asking for you when you're ready.' I nodded. Left early in the morning, I couldn't work out where he may have gone, or who with. Panic arose within me, 'he didn't drive did he Jarvis?'

'No, Mr Hogan picked him up at quarter to seven.' Jarvis replied.

I sighed, 'thank you Jarvis.'

I got dressed and made my way downstairs. Bruce was sitting at the kitchen bench with a coffee in his hand; he stood up to greet me. He handed me a cup of coffee.

'Jarvis told me how you like your coffee.' He offered a smile.

I took a seat beside him, 'Jarvis is a godsend.' I laughed.

'Did you see Tony this morning?' Bruce asked me.

'No, I thought he would have bumped into you along the way?' I took a sip of coffee. The warm liquid was more than perfect on a morning like this.

Bruce shook his head, 'no, he must have left early.'

'How is everything going?' I cut to the chase, I knew there was a slim chance he would actually say anything but last night terrified me, I needed more information.

He looked at me for a moment; he must have seen the desperation in my eyes because he put his cup down and sighed.

'Pepper.' He began.

I held my hand up to stop him, 'I know he's your friend, and I know he's sworn you to secrecy.' I looked down at my hands, 'everything he does is a secret, I know he does it to protect me, just promise me you both know what you're doing.' I said honestly.

A wave of relief washed over me, I needed to get that out in the open.

Bruce sat quietly for a moment, 'I called you down to talk to you.'

'I know.' I said quietly.

He took a sip of coffee and looked back at me, 'I'm not going to lie, you've seen it just as I have, his condition is deteriorating fast. And in a few months he might not even remember who he is, or who any of us are.'

I looked at him dumbfounded.

'You need to be aware of that, you need to know that it's a very possible reality.' He added.

I continued looking at him like an idiot.

'Pepper?'

I shook my head, and then nodded, I opened my mouth to speak, I remembered the conversation I had with Rhodey. We had both decided that surely he would know that his symptoms were related to something neural, and of course he would know how dangerous that could be. Neither of us anticipated that it could be this bad.

'Pepper?' Bruce repeated.

I rubbed my face with my free hand, the other still clutching the coffee cup.

'Is it the Extremis?' I finally managed.

'Yes.' He said simply.

My suspicions were confirmed. I bowed my head. I knew when he first told me about the serum that it was too good to be true.

'What is it doing to him?' I asked.

'You need to let him tell you that, I can't say any more.' He said apologetically.

I understood, I wouldn't expect him to betray his trust, 'thank you.'

We sat in the kitchen for more than an hour, I watched the clock tick away the minutes. Neither of us spoke, neither moved. We sat silently acknowledging the direness of the situation in which we were both merely players.

My mind wandered to every sickening possibility of what was happening to Tony. It was neurological damage, clearly affecting him physically as well, that much I figured out. But what was the end result? What would the coming months be like? He would weaken, and tire out, but then he'd be himself again, just not the enhanced version of Tony. I mentally scalded myself. That was idiotic, and wishful thinking at its best. If the extremis was just fading away and ceasing to work, neither he nor Bruce would be this concerned. No, this was much worse, he was probably dying, and in true Tony Stark nature, he would never let on, or let anyone in. I suspected that Bruce had his suspicions too, but Tony would never divulge everything to him. The conflicted look on Bruce's face told me all I needed to know. I felt sick. I closed my eyes against the impeding nausea.

I felt his hand on mine.

I looked up at him; he offered me a weak smile. I knew that he was thinking the same. Tony was dying, and there wasn't anything either of us could do.

'Mr Stark has entered the building.' Jarvis announced.

Both Bruce and I stood up; I took the cups to the sink and began washing them. Bruce went down stairs to his floor and left me to my thoughts. It wasn't long before Tony had come to greet me. He wrapped his arms around my waist, I couldn't help but smile. I turned around to face him. I looked up into his eyes and reached up to kiss him.

'We have a dishwasher.' Tony whispered in my ear looking over my shoulder.

I looked back at the watery mess.

'You clean when you're stressed.' He said casually.

He knew me so well, I pulled him closer. I couldn't imagine having to live a day without him, I closed my eyes and held on to him. He rubbed my back and kissed the top of my head. When the symptoms were absent, everything was normal, just as it should be. He pulled back and planted a kiss on my lips.

'I got you something.' He said with a grin.

He slipped his hand into his pocket and presented me with a small velvet box.

'What is this for?' I asked curiously.

I opened the box, the most beautiful diamond pendant shone back at me.

'It's because I love you, and because you put up with me.' He smiled, 'do you like it?'

Tony Stark was definitely a man who knew how to please a woman. His smile alone was more than enough to forgive the constant worrying, and stressing. He knew me better than I knew myself sometimes, so I simply nodded, words were not needed.

He took the necklace out of the box and motioned for me to turn around so that he could put it on; I smiled like a giddy school girl. The small heart shone exquisitely.

He leaned in and wrapped his arms around me, 'it looks perfect on you.' He whispered in my ear.

I turned to look at him, 'is this what you were doing this morning?'

He nodded, 'I didn't get a chance to do so last night.'

'Where did you find a jeweller open so early in the morning?' I quizzed him.

'I offered the man from Dior a handsome fee to give me a private viewing of his collection.' He smirked.

'Of course you did.' I laughed.

He smiled and walked over to the fridge; he took a bottle of water and Advil and sat at the bench.

I looked at him intently, searching for any signs of pain or suffering. I saw nothing. I dared myself the delusion that last night was a bad dream and the conversation with Bruce never happened. But I knew that wasn't the case. I walked closer to the bench so that I was standing directly in front of him. 'Promise me you'll beat this.' I said firmly.

He looked at me with a faint smile, 'I'm trying, Pep.'

I'd love to hear what you think about this one, looking forward to your reviews!