Disclaimer: Not mine. Obviously. Just borrowing them.

Notes: Thank you so much for your interest in this story guys! Enjoy! All mistakes are mine. I apologize in advance for any typos or grammatical errors.

When Plans Go Awry

Had everything worked out as he imagined it would, he could be halfway to Pepper.

Or better yet, they could be together, resting comfortably in their newly repaired home in Malibu. They could be listening to the lulling sound of the crashing pacific waves, drinking wine, or scotch, or both.

But things were rarely that simple, and Tony Stark never did anything the conventional way anyway. He ran before he could walk.

Except this time around, his legs were taken out from under him, and he could barely walk let alone run.

To make matters worse, his team had been seriously compromised and picked apart by a pair of teenage kids with a vendetta. And he was pretty sure they all blamed him.

In any case, if they didn't, he blamed himself.

Partly…at least. For failing to make Ultron the change the world needed instead of the monster that they would all come to fear now.

No good deed goes unpunished.

So here he was in the company of an old…friend...feeling like a fucking imbecile, punishing himself not for creating Ultron, but for creating him before he was ready. Before they all were.

How would he tell Pepper? What would she think of his latest botched attempt at world peace?

"Before you go…" Tony stopped Fury in his tracks before he could exit the barn and leave him to drown in his own thoughts.

Surprised and pleasantly so, Tony grinned when Nick extended his arm out to him with a phone in hand. "Call her yourself Stark. It's a secure line, but keep it short. I will be around back waiting for it."

"Kind of bulky for SHIELD gadgets isn't it?" Tony quipped and pressed on when he saw Nick's annoyed reaction. "Oh no never mind that's how you guys operate isn't it…what with that monster of a Helicarrier you made me retrofit."

Nick rolled his eye. "Are you done?"

Joking aside, Tony nodded and walked towards a corner of the barn where he could be alone with her. Figuratively speaking.

His fingers dialed, slowly, the familiar yet rarely dialed number. He never had to dial Pepper. Ever. He always had Jarvis for that. A wave of regret hit him as he waited for her to answer.

"Virginia Potts…" Instantly his lips pulled up into a small smile.

"Hey…" Tony stated casually.

"Tony!" It tore him up inside every time he heard the worry in her voice. They both knew it came with the job, though. He was Iron Man, and she was his worried yet proud girlfriend that waited for him every night while she took care of the business. He did not fight the smile at the memory of that conversation. It felt like so long ago. "Tony I saw the news! Are you alright? I was waiting for your call, I couldn't reach you, my phone, the network, everything is down. Are you OK?"

He took a minute to pull the nearest barrel of what he guessed was generator fuel to the corner with him so he could sit. "Hey Pep. Calm down. I'm alright." Tony sighed. "Um Jarvis is not, though." He began. "I uh…I might have done something…I think I messed up." Finally feeling the gravity of the situation, he allowed his walls to go down so he could grieve the loss of his artificial but ever-trustworthy friend.

"What happened?" Pepper questioned calmly.

"I started all of this mess." He rubbed the bridge of his nose as he shut his eyes tightly. "I thought I could create something that could replace all of us. So we wouldn't have to do this every time. So we could lead normal lives and still have lookouts. All I wanted was to keep everyone safe." Tony paused. "It wasn't supposed to happen this way. Or this fast-we were so far from anything concrete-and then-"

"Slow down." Pepper soothed him and he wished he could feel her hands smoothing the stress away from his shoulders like she always did. "What are you talking about? And try to give me the simplified technical-jargon-free version, please."

He nodded to himself. "I used the scepter's energy to create Ultron."

"Ultron? But you and Bruce talked about it being years away. In fact, you both felt it might never happen. That it was just something to work towards."

"I know we did. But I saw the opportunity and I took it. Except that it didn't go as planned. I never saw this coming. It all happened way too fast. One minute we're calculating weeks-months of trials, and the next a rogue legion suit is crashing our victory celebration with talk of exterminating us in the name of world peace."

He heard her heavy sigh on the other end and he shook his head. Even she faulted his eagerness to create Ultron. Did no one understand what his goal was?

"Pep I know that you think that was selfish and care-"

"Stop." Pepper interrupted him mid-sentence. After another sigh she proceeded. "I know why you did it. I don't think it was the smartest thing you could have done, but I understand what you envisioned." Tony breathed with relief at her words. He was not sure why he doubted her. She was his only anchor in this world, why would she ever let him float away without a safety line? He chastised himself for his earlier conclusions. "What happened to Jarvis?"

Clearing his throat he looked down to his boots. "Ultron destroyed him."

"How…how did he…it…manage that?" There was that worried tone again.

"From what I pulled up, he just did. Ultron fired everything he had and destroyed Jarvis. No questions asked, he just did it." Anger began to bubble to the surface, and it boiled more when he heard the quiet that surrounded them both. "I know this is bad Pepper, but I will fix this." He promised.

"I know you will, Tony. But without Jarvis you're on your own. And I won't have access to you." He could hear the anxiety in her words. "I could always count on Jarvis to update me on your vitals…your missions. I won't have that anymore. I'm lucky you called me otherwise I would still be sitting here, in the dark, wondering how you are. How did you call me anyway?"

Suddenly remembering he was on borrowed time, he looked around for sign of Fury coming to collect his phone. "Fury let me borrow his ten-pound phone. Very retro." He attempted to lighten the mood some.

"Can you keep it?" Pepper jumped to ask.

"No can do. Old man Deacon will come hunting for it any minute now." He grinned.

Tony could hear his redhead fight the laugh that he earned from his joke. "Thank him for me anyway, please." Ever the polite one. He smiled at that.

"You got it."

A moment of easy silence engulfed them as they simply relished the sounds of each other's breathing.

Pepper was the first to speak, effectively bringing them out of the rhythmic sounds they found comforting. "How's Bruce?"

"You saw that too, huh." He stated rather than asked.

He could see her nod at him. "Gave him a run for his money, if you ask me." Tony knew she said that only to boost his ego.

"Yeah about that…we bought a building down there."

"We did huh. Are you talking about that pile of rubble that used to be a skyscraper?" He could hear her smile.

He cleared his throat. "Um…the very same one." She knew how to provoke his nervousness. Always.

"I thought you had made progress with Bruce. You mentioned Natasha had an effective method to calming him out of code green." Pepper asked after a few more seconds of silence.

"She did…does…still." He tried to make sense of what he attempted to say. "Ultron found allies in a couple of…kids…enhanced kids." Tony paused. "One of them is a blur...literally. The girl…she plays mind tricks. She toyed with us all. Playing on our fears. Who knows what she made Banner see. He won't speak of it."

"Mind tricks? She could be the cause for your visions then?"

"I suspect as much." A small nod escaped him.

"Tony…"

"I know." He interjected. "I'll be careful."

"You better." She added quickly. "I kind of like having you around all of the time. Even if I am babysitting you half the time." Her joke was playful, but in her voice he heard a slight shake. It came up every time they had a discussion such as this one. When they both realized the mission was likely to end with casualties, or serious injuries at the very least. "I can't babysit you from China. And I can't order Jarvis to update me so no pressure, but I'm leaving you in charge of you."

"I can manage." He retorted with a sad smile.

"With the first number." She played along. "What will you do for the other eight?"

"I'll wait for you for the other eight." He stood up from the barrel and walked over to a smudged window that over looked Barton's land.

"That means you can't die." Pepper responded seriously.

Tony nodded. "Then I won't die." He closed his eyes and placed his forehead on the glass. Once again they listened to each other's breathing.

If there was anything Tony hated more than anything it was making Pepper promises he might not be able to keep.

He did anyway just then, more for her than for him. Because if he left her with any doubt at all, Tony knew she would worry endlessly.

Pepper was the strongest woman he knew, but even she had her limit.

He was the cockiest most confident guy he could be, but even he was no fool. Assuming he would escape unscathed was not something he did. Not anymore. Not since New York.

Because he was human.

"Want to wrap it up, Stark? I got places to be." Tony jolted from the intruding sound of Fury's voice. The moment now gone.

"I gotta go Pep. Fury wants his brick back." He sounded somber despite his playful jab at the man. "I'll come get you myself when this all over. I'll see if Fury can call you with reports, but I can't promise anything. Love you."

He wanted to talk to her a while longer but when he saw Nick's exasperated stare he knew it was time. "Love you too." Was the last thing he heard before he pushed on the end call button.

"I'll see what I can do, Stark." Tony nodded gratefully when he realized Nick would not make a lame joke about his tender moment with Pepper. Sometimes the man surprised him.

"Thanks. And um...thanks for the phone. Pepper's words not mine." He finished knowing he could not walk away from him without one last wisecrack. He was grateful, but he was still Tony Stark.

Tony did not look to see if and when Fury walked out of the barn before he made his way to the tractor he had walked in to fix in the first place.

Fixing things was Tony's thing. He had told Pepper as much after the entire Mandarin ordeal. And with a great deal of work he had made everything right with Pepper's situation and with his reactor. Now, he was in a situation where he once again had to fix something. And he would fight to fix it. So he could go get his girl.

There you guys have it. Another small Pepperony scene.

See you all soon!