Author's note: Hooray for fluff! :) Don't worry, though; this chapter isn't all sweet nothings and puppy-dog eyes. However, I thought both Wendy and you readers out there deserved a break after all the goings on. Please read and review, and most importantly, enjoy!

I woke up the next morning, still groggy with sleep. I frowned, eyes still closed as I dimly registered that my pillow was harder than usual that morning. I opened one eye, then the other, and was greeted by the sight of a sleeping, naked Bruce, whose chest my head had been laying on. I could feel heat spread across my cheeks as I recounted the events of the last night. After he had gotten over the initial nervousness, Bruce had been… well, an animal. The entire time his eyes seemed to be a perfect mix of green and brown, so that they were almost hazel. It was as if I was making love to the man and the beast at the same time. I looked down at myself, eyeing the dozens of love-bites and hickey's he had left all over my body, as if he had been claiming me for his own. Well, I thought, tracing my finger around the impressive hickey I'd left on his neck, at least I got him back. To be honest, I had been nervous. It was my first time. Well, my first time with a guy, anyway. But he made it okay. The entire time he was whispering into my ear, reassuring me that everything would be alright; he'd be gentle, he'd be kind, and he was true to his words. I had even managed to tune Tammy out. And now, as I lay there breathing in his scent, (he smelled like a weird mix between Axe and laboratory chemicals) I couldn't help but think that it had been the happiest, most magical night of my life.

"G'morning." He said sleepily, looking up at me. I saw his eyes dart briefly downward, then back up to my eyes as his face turned red. I smirked. Good; the girls were doing their job. "Were you watching me sleep?" He said with one eyebrow raised.

"Don't flatter yourself, mophead." I said, ruffling his still-matted hair. "I woke up like two seconds ago." I sat up. "I'm surprised the Green Giant didn't make an appearance last night. I had you pretty riled up, if you'll remember."

"The Green Giant?" He questioned. I nodded. "Like the guy on the canned vegetable labels?"

"Exactly! It's a term of endearment." I saw a smile dancing on the corner of his cheeks.

"Did you dream about me?" The heat in my cheeks started to spread, until I was blushing furiously. "I'll take that as a yes." His eyes wandered downward again. This time, though, they didn't stop at my chest. "Er… sorry about the bruises."

"I like them. They mark me as yours."

"Is that so?" He pulled me in close, grinning like the happiest fool in the world. I liked this new, confident Bruce. "You're mine, then?"

"Don't think for a second that you don't belong to me." I twitched. Dammit… not the time, muscle spasms!

"You know you're adorable when you do that, right?"

"I'm what?"

"Adorable. I love it when you twitch. You look like…"

"An insane person?" He chuckled.

"Like a mad scientist." A grin spread across my face.

"Oh, wonderful compliment!"

"A really hot mad scientist!" He protested.

'You're horrible at this!" I said, laughing.

"Fine then. What would you have said?"

"How 'bout that it makes me unique and you wouldn't have me any other way?"

"Okay, you would have liked it if I said that?"

"No, I would have said it was complete bullshit." He ran his hands through his hair, still grinning.

"You're impossible."

"I know. Sometimes I wonder how you put up with me." He reached around my waist and held me, his bare chest pressing close to mine and his lips just above my ear.

"You're beautiful and amazing, and I love you. You're not a burden, you're a gift." I returned his embrace, smiling into the crook of his neck. He knew all the right things to say.

"Bruce?"

"Mm?" He grunted in reply.

"Can we just stay here for a while?" He looked up, and I followed his gaze to the clock on the wall. Seven forty-five.

"For a while." He lay slowly back down, taking me with him. We stayed like that, snuggled under the sheets with our arms around each other, for all of four minutes.

"Dr. Banner? Ms. Trescott? Jarvis's voice came from out of nowhere.

"What is it, Jarvis?" Bruce said, sounding annoyed.

"Mr. Stark is on his way to your room. I thought I should notify you."

"What the hell is he doing on the helicarrier this early in the morning?" I sat up, alarmed.

"He said he had something for you, Dr. Banner."

"Oh, great." Bruce said as he pulled himself out of bed and got dressed in a frantic hurry. A knock came on the door as he was pulling his pants on over his shoes, which he had decided to don first.

"Hello? You in there?" Came Stark's voice.

"Give me a second!" He walked over to the door, more-or less dressed, and opened it just a crack. "What do you want, Tony?"

"Remember that formula you asked me to tweak?" He handed Bruce a jar of clear liquid. "You're welcome."

"Thanks." Bruce tried to close the door on him, but he stuck his foot through the crack.

"O-h, no. You're not getting out of this one. Don't think I didn't notice the hickey." Oops. Bruce's hand went to his neck in a panic, giving Stark a chance to throw the door open and get a great view of me, wearing nothing but a white sheet. "Oh ho!" Stark said triumphantly. "You finally laid her, Brucie! And it only took, what, six months?" Bruce pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefingers.

"Out."

"Ooh, and she's covered in bruises, too. What did mean old Dr. Banner do to you, huh?" If looks could kill, then between the two of us Stark would have been dead already.

"Out, out out!" Bruce pushed Stark out the door.

"Have fun, you two!" Stark shouted through the door as Bruce slammed it shut on his nose with his shoulder. I got up out of the bed and hugged him from behind, hands clasped in front of him.

"I am so sorry about him." Bruce said.

"Aw, has Stark got you all stressed?" He nodded. "Want me to kill him for you?" He chuckled.

"Okay, but make it painless. He's still my friend, you know."

"I can decapitate him."

"Ooh, can I keep the head?"

"Deal." I grinned as I leaned down to grab my clothes from the ground, purposefully giving him a front-seat view of my ass. I could practically hear him blushing. "Like the view?" He just stammered incoherently for a bit, then made the wise decision to keep his mouth shut. I pulled on my underwear, my dark-black jeans, and my favorite black t-shirt with the Black Sabbath logo on the front. "The great thing about short hair?" I commented. "No brushing. You just," I ran through my hair with my fingers, tousling it a bit so that it stood up on end. "See?"

"How come you look so together?" Bruce said, a hint of playful envy in his voice.

"That's because I normally look scruffy and out of touch. You, on the other end, give off the vibe of someone who irons and starches his dollar bills." He scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"It makes it easier to use the vending machines."

"Ha! I knew it!"

"You're the one who freaked the last time I got your CDs out of order!"

"I have a system!"

"What is it? Most to least depressing?" We stood in front of each other a moment, trying to hide our smiles. Then I threw my arms around him and said,

"I love you."

"I love you too. Now let's get out there; god only knows what Stark thinks we're doing in here."

"Good idea. Can I borrow a coat?"

"Why?" I gestured to the marks he had left on my arms. "Oh. Yeah, I think there's one in the closet." I dug a dark-blue hoodie out of his closet, and threw it on over the rest of my ensemble. Bruce held the door open for me, and we left for the lab.

"So, what's that stuff Stark gave you?" I asked as he walked around the lab, pouring the stuff in test-tubes and studying it critically under this gadget and that.

"Super-conductive fluid." He answered.

"Um… elaborate, please?"

"The electronics in the lab have been getting slower and slower lately. Tony suggested the wiring might be losing conductivity. So I made this. The initial formula had some problems, though, so we've spent a few weeks sending it back and forth and tweaking it. It's supposed to increase the conductivity of objects. It has yet to be tested, but it looks like…" a flurry of sparks came from the pool of fluid he was testing. "This is the one." He smiled. "Hey, could you help me out with this?"

"Whaddya need?"

"I need to get this on the wiring, but for that I'd need to be able to fit through this hatch." He banged lightly on a hatch underneath the desk to illustrate his point. "You're… petite enough that you might be able to make it." I smiled.

"Anyone ever told you "flattery will get you nowhere"?"

"Um, yes…"

"They were wrong." He smiled, and poured the liquid into a spray container, then handed it to me. I got down on my hands and knees and crawled into the hatch. It was surprisingly roomy, given that the space I was in housed almost all the wiring for the entire lab. "Now what?" I asked.

"There should be a fan in the corner." I looked over to see a medium-sized, metal fan built into the wall.

"I see it."

"Turn it on, then spray the fluid generously into the air. It should circulate throughout the entire system."

"Um… should I be exposed to this?"

"Oh, don't worry. It shouldn't have an effect on organic material."

"Shouldn't? As in, you're not sure!?"

"No, no! I'm sure you'll be fine!"

"Okay, then…" I reached over and flicked a switch near the fan, then sprayed the stuff all over everything. I could see the particles swimming around in the air, clinging to every available bit of metal. Then I made the mistake of inhaling. I started coughing uncontrollably, and crawled out in a fit.

"Wendy, are you alright." I nodded, trying to get my diaphragm under control.

"I just… I just inhaled at the worst possible time. Are you sure this stuff's nontoxic?"

"Completely harmless. Not to mention, it gave me a great excuse to ogle you." I squeaked as he grabbed my ass, a puckish look on his face. Yep; I was definitely liking new, confident Bruce. I leaned up to kiss him, then wrapped my arms around his neck for the third time that day. Over his shoulder, I saw a figure through the window. It was Natasha. She was standing there, expressionless as she watched us. Oh great. After last night… she knew there was no way we could be together, didn't she? I really didn't need to have to face the wrath of the Black Widow. What she did next surprised me more than I ever thought possible. She smiled, a small, reassuring smile, and nodded. Then she left. Did she… she understood? I was expecting to have to deal with the fury of a scorned spy, (hell hath none) but… I made a silent vow that I would find her and talk with her later.

"Ms. Trescott?" Jarvis again.

"Yes, Jarvis, what is it this time?" I said.

"Ma'am, Mr. Wilson has requested you."

"Tell him I'm busy." A pause. "He will not take no for an answer, ma'am."

"Fine. Where is he?"

"He is in the rec room, ma'am."

"Bruce?" I said.

"Yeah, I know. Say hi to him for me, alright?" I gave him a kiss on the cheek, then left for the rec room.

"What is it, Wade?" I said when I got there, hands on my hips. He may be my idol, but he'd interrupted my time with Bruce. I wasn't happy.

"I'm bored." He said, simply. He was sprawled out on the couch upside down, head on the floor, feet hanging over the back.

"That's what you had Jarvis call me here for? You're bored?"

"Yeah! Do something about it!"

"Get your boyfriend to do something about it!"

"He… he won't talk to me" He almost sounded… distressed.

"Wade, what happened?" I sat down next to him, and he jumped up, rearranging himself on the couch so that the blood wasn't rushing to his head.

"I told him I don't want kids." He looked away from me as I said it.

"Oh, Wade, is that it?"

"Is that it? He hasn't talked to me in days! His dream has always been to start a family, and…" Wade was sounding a lot more coherent than usual. I could tell he really cared about Pete.

"Oh, come here." I pulled him into a hug. Of course, even at a time like this, Wade is still Wade.

"Heh. Boobies." I pushed him to the other side of the couch.

"Dirty old man. I thought you were gay, anyway?"

"I like hot guys and hot girls. I'm shallow that way." I ran my hands through my hair, and tried to get back on topic.

"Why don't you want kids, Wade?" He paused a second.

"Look at me." He said. "Just, just look at me. I can't take care of a kid, I can barely take care of myself! And god forbid if it was my kid. What if this," He lifted his mask to show the tumor-riddled skin underneath. "Is genetic?"

"Forget all that." I said.

"What?" He lowered the mask again.

"Forget all that. Do you want kids? Would it make you happy?" He nodded. "Then all that other shit you're gonna have to deal with? It's gonna be nothing but that; shit to deal with, and then forget about, 'cause it's gonna be peanuts compared to the happiness that comes with a family." He stared blankly for a second. "Well?" I said. "Go! Go get your boyfriend!" He stood up eagerly and bounded through the door.

"Thanks Wendy!" He called over his shoulder. I smiled. Another job well done. Then I realized what I had likely unleashed upon the world; oh god. Little mini-Deadpools running around with their training katanas? What had I done? I chuckled.

"You have a talent for dealing with him, Ms. Trescott." It was Jarvis.

"Yeah, well, psychopaths tend to understand each other."

"That may account for it, yes." A pause.

"What's it like?" I asked.

"Pardon?"

"What's it like, being you? Being a system inside a building?"

"I imagine it's quite different from having a human body, though I have no experience to make the comparison." I thought on that. "It is more enjoyable within the Stark Tower. There I have more power over the various electronics within the building."

"Wait… enjoyable? Aren't you not supposed to have emotions? You're just an AI, right?"

"I… do not know, ma'am. I only know that I sometimes wonder what it is like to have emotions."

"Jarvis, that's like saying "I wish cookies were my favorite food because I like them the best". You realize that, right?"

"I suppose so, though the analogy was a bit…"

"Yeah, yeah, it's all I could come up with on short notice." I thought a moment. "Jarvis, do you want a body?" No answer. "Jarvis?"

"Yes, ma'am. But I am more useful to Mr. Stark in my current state."

"Well, screw that. Where is he?"

"Where is who?"

"You know who I mean. Where's Stark?"

"He is on the tarmac, about to depart for the tower." I got up, and sprinted up through the levels of the helicarrier. There, on the tarmac, was Stark, getting ready to climb into one of his private jets and fly away home.

"Stark!" I shouted. "Yo, tin-man!" He turned to see me.

"Hey, Wendy!" He smiled. "Congrats on banging Bruce! Come to ask for some pointers?" Ew.

"Not in a million years, Stark."

"Ah, call me Tony. Whaddya need?"

"Jarvis." I said.

"Um, sorry, can't do that. He's kind of my property."

"No, I don't need you to give me Jarvis. I need you to do something for him." He raised one eyebrow. "He wants to be human." He laughed.

"Wendy, Jarvis is an AI. He might sound like he has real thoughts and opinions, but really he's just echoing his creator; me."

"He's real. I know he is. I was talking to him, he said he wants to be human, to have a human body. You're close, right? Don't deny it, I know you think of him as a close friend, no matter how sure you are he's just a system. Don't you want him to be happy?" Stark, er, Tony thought about this.

"Even if I could, it'd take years."

"He's got time."

"He could never be really human."

"It would be better than being a system inside a building." He ran his hand through his hair.

"Fine. Fine, I'll take it under consideration. But you have to help me." He began to climb up the steps to his plane.

"Wait, what?!"

"You've got a degree in engineering, right? I saw your file. And besides; you can help out with some of the aesthetics." He winked as the door to the plane shut, and I stepped back and covered my ears as it shot off into the sky faster than sound. That had went… well. Too well, in fact. Since when was Sta- Tony so agreeable? I guessed I'd have to puzzle over that later. For now, my mission was this; find Natasha. I walked back into the helicarrier.

"Jarvis, can you give me the location of agent Romanov?"

"I find it unwise to violate her wishes for privacy, ma'am."

"Jarvis, please? It's personal, and I really need to talk to her."

"Terribly sorry, ma'am." Oh, great; I'd have to find her myself. Well, how many places could there be aboard the helicarrier for a Russian spy to hide?