Chapter Text
Pepper got the text just as the shareholders were spilling out of the room after the meeting. The phone in her pocket buzzed in a specific rhythm, informing she’s been assigned a new job.
Not from SI though, no. From someone she’s been working for since her college days.
The official story went that despite her coming from a not-so well-off family, Pepper fought against all odds and thanks to her hard work, she graduated at the top of her class. The real story, however, was a tad darker.
In short, money had been tight, and despite the grands and stipends, it wasn’t enough to cover all her expenses. That was, until she was approached by someone who promised a handsome compensation if she could get a certain job done. The stranger had kept their word, and suddenly, a whole new world of opportunities had opened up for her.
The process was always the same:
Receive the assignment, carry out the assignment. No questions asked.
“No questions asked,” she reminded herself, sighing. She didn’t have that many people she was close to, yet she hoped to never see the day when she was ordered to take out one of her loved ones.
Well, the things have been going really well for her lately. She was bound to run out of luck sooner or later, right? And besides, better she do it, rather than some other assassin who might not be that merciful with their methods.
Pepper looked regretfully at the two coffee cups in the holder. They were from Tony’s favorite place, which he wasn’t allowed to visit that often because of the amount of caffeine they put in the drinks.
At least he won’t feel anything.
There were many things in the world set on killing you – spiders, snakes, random people… all the things others would’ve said. Not Tony. If you asked him, he would reply that the thing most likely to do one in were habits.
Those had the biggest tendency to catch people off-guard. Things they do without realizing.
Those make you easy to track down and kill.
It was the reason Tony liked to have as little routine in his life as possible; he slept – or more like crashed – when he wanted and where he wanted, skipped meetings, canceled appearances last-minute and appeared without announcement. In his younger years, routines were prevented by partying, alcohol and drugs.
Which, yeas, was ironic, as the latter two had the ability to kill him just as easily.
But in the end, it served its purpose well. Tony created a public image of himself as unreliable so good nobody with a plan would be able to get him.
Well, that, and the fact Tony was more than capable of defending himself. After all, the nickname Merchant of Death was a thing long before he inherited the company.
Before going wild at MIT, there’d been a boarding school Howard shoved him in after he’d grown tired of all of Tony’s stunts to teach him a lesson. All Tony’s needs were taken care of, except pocket money. And where Howard failed to provide, someone else took the opportunity. It wasn’t free of course; all they needed was a little favor. Neither party had nothing to lose in case it didn’t work out, but in the end, it did.
Until now.
It all had to come crashing down with a single text, no different from countless of those he’s received before. Nowadays, they called only when they needed him to take out someone who was too up the chain for a regular hitman, but this…
For a moment, he thought it was merely some sick joke from his employer. Tony waited and waited, and still, no ‘April fools! We’re not actually asking you to take out probably the most important person in your life’ text came, even though it was nearly fall.
It was just his luck, right?
Tony looked regretfully at the two steaming tea mugs. At least she won’t feel anything.
The elevator dinged, announcing the arrival of his fiancée. Tony chased away the gloom from his face, plastered on a smile, steadied his hands on the tray as he spun around. “Hey, Pep!” he called out.
She rounded the corner and froze in her tracks, a cup holder lifted in front of her. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion at the mugs. “Okay, what did you do?”
“Oh wow, is it my birthday or something?”
“Don’t change the subject, how many lawyers do I have to call to fix whatever you did this time?”
“I didn’t do anything! Is it really that hard to believe?”
“Yes,” she stated.
He huffed. “Unbelievable. I wanted us to have a nice, relaxing evening with your favorite tea, and this is what I get in return. So cruel, Ms. Potts. So cruel.”
Pepper’s brows knitted together. “I thought you didn’t like my tea?”
“Things you do for love,” Tony replied, squashing the tingle of guilt blooming in his chest.
“Heh,” she shook her head and placed the cup holder on the counter, “looks like we had the same idea.”
Tony hummed, the guilt returning with full vengeance. “Yeah, though I appreciate it, I don’t think we’ll be able to have a nice evening if I’m doped up on caffeine,” he said, lifting the tray a little. He couldn’t afford to allow Pepper’s kindness to become a setback. His employers always expected swift results. Tony didn’t listen to that traitorous little voice telling him not to do it.
“True, but,” Pepper said and pushed the coffee forward, “given your sleep schedule, you will crash twenty minutes into the evening.”
“Who are you and what have you done with my fiancée?” Tony asked in mock suspicion. “The real Pepper would’ve chased me to bed, and not for any fun activities.”
“You’re so ridiculous.”
“And handsome, and hilarious,” he set aside the tray before approaching with mischievous smile until his hands wrapped around Pepper’s waist, “and incredibly smart.”
Pepper chuckled. “Don’t forget humble.”
“That too.” Tony let go, steadying his hands against the edge of the counter. He didn’t trust himself handing the mug to Pepper. Instead he nodded to the tray. “Let’s drink that before it gets cold.”
“But this will get cold too,” she pushed the holder forward. “I know you’ll drink cold coffee during your engineering sprees, but you have to admit, hot coffee is better.”
“I can deal with cold coffee. This tea is disgusting when it gets lukewarm. You said so yourself.”
Pepper shook her head. “Coffee, Tony.”
This was useless. Neither of them wanted to budge.
It was time for plan B.
Tony sighed. “Let me get you some sugar,” he said and turned around. The knife he left lying next to the microwave – hidden out of Pepper’s sight – glinted in the evening sun as he turned it around in his hand. He would have to do this quick. Knives weren’t his forte, he preferred different means of getting the job done, but he knew where to strike for painless end.
He whirled around, the blade clashing against another blade instead of sinking into the flesh.
Tony gaped. Blinked. Pepper, holding the other blade, mirrored his expression.
“I can’t explain,” he blurted out, falling on his usual stalling tactics to come up with an excuse.
Pepper grimaced. “Can you?”
“No, I can’t,” Tony’s admitted, “but can you?”
“I, uh…”
The damage was done.
They stared at each other for a brief moment, then, without looking back, they both scrambled through different doorways.
Crouching, Tony put his hand over his watch and pulled. The nanoparticles shifted, wrapping around his wrist in a snuggly fit. He took a deep breath, steeling himself before treading back into the kitchen. “Pep? Honey?” he called out, hand outstretched in front of him. Whatever his fiancée planned to attack him with, the gauntlet’s speed would be no match for it. “Let’s talk about this, okay?”
His only answer was silence.
Fine, he thought, let the game begin.
Holding his breath, Tony listened. More silence. She was probably still holed up in whatever room she fled to. Taking it as a good sign, Tony went to round the corner—
And was promptly met with a chair to the face.
He managed to step back just enough for the wall to take most of the impact, but not enough to avoid the broken-off leg hitting him in the forehead, raining splinters in his eyes. Tony raised his gauntlet and fired, not caring enough to aim. Through the sound of the cupboards shattering, he could make out Pepper’s retreating footsteps.
“Using your superhero tech?” she called out from somewhere. “Where’s the fairness in that?”
Tony hissed at the pulsing pain in his skull. “All is fair in love and war. And this looks like both.”
Pepper huffed. “Well, in that case—“
She didn’t finish. A small canister landed in the middle of their white rug. The light on the side blinked three times, then it started spinning around, filling the place with smoke.
“Really?” Tony asked. “You think you’ll be able to hide in this? It’s thinner than your patience for late meetings.”
“Do you think I need it to hide?”
A plate hit Tony square in the chest, knocking the wind out of him. Another one hit his shoulder. Tony fired a shot in the direction it came from, but not before the third one caught him in the stomach.
There!
Tony caught a glimpse of strawberry blond hair ducking behind the armchair. He rained a barrage of shots at the piece of furniture like it just insulted his mother, making the woman abandon her hiding spot. She sprinted out, jumping and rolling out of the way of them all.
Tony couldn’t help himself but admire her skill.
Pepper threw herself behind the kitchen counter. “You aim worse than you cook!” she shouted. “And that’s saying something.”
“Who do you work for?!” Tony demanded, ignoring the jab. He focused on stalking forward, one step in front of the other to avoid the glass.
“Who do you work for?!” she shot back, lunging forward with a short knife. The point hit its mark. The gauntlet shot out several sparks and went quiet.
Tony swiftly kicked the knife out of Pepper’s hand – an action she thanked him by ramming her knee into his stomach. She didn’t let her to stop her, though. One moment, her hand was empty, and the next second she was clutching another one.
Her movements were far fiercer than what Tony’s ever seen. He knew she had some pretty strong muscles underneath her usual business attire, but he attributed it to those Pilates classes… which in hindsight was probably just a cover to meet up with her own organization.
Damn. As much as he hated to admit it, Tony was out of his waters here.
Improvised plan C it was.
Tony threw himself at her, sending both of them plummeting onto the rug. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting. It sure did nothing to slow Pepper down. She climbed on top of him and raised the knife up. Tony didn’t let her bring it down. He got his leg to his chest, planted the sole of his shoe into Pepper’s stomach and kicked out with all his strength, sending her flying.
Wasting no time, Tony scrambled behind one of the couches for tactical retreat. By the sound of it, Pepper did the same.
“Why you have to make everything harder for me, Tony?” The words were strained, like she spoke through gritted teeth.
“Because you’re so cute when you get angry,” Tony quipped back while tapping away at the dead gauntlet. He cursed under his breath.
His bare hands would have to make do.
It was now or never. Something told him he wouldn’t get another chance.
A soft rustle of the fabric indicated the woman was getting ready to strike too. Tony shifted his stance, ready to pounce—
“Whoa, what the hell happened here?”
Tony froze. Fight forgotten, he recklessly stuck his head out. What saved him from getting his eye stabbed out was Pepper doing the same.
In the doorway stood Peter Parker himself. The intern Tony has acquired through some competition, and whose skills were enough to keep him around. It didn’t take long before he became both his and Pepper’s favorite. Hell, Pepper even befriended the kid’s aunt!
Tony’s gaze slid to the duffel bag slung over the teen’s shoulder. “Oh shit, it’s Friday.” If his head wasn’t already hurting, he would’ve smacked his forehead. He completely forgot that they agreed to babysit the kid during the weekend while May went to a work retreat with her colleagues.
“Uh, yeah,” Peter said. Looking around, he shifted on his feet. “Why is the living room looking like a tornado came by?”
“Uh.” Tony shot a quick glance at Pepper.
“One of Tony’s experiments escaped,” Pepper said, the lie slipping effortlessly from her lips. Now seeing her in action, Tony wondered how many times she lied to him exactly like this.
“Not my fault. Dum-E was playing around with the fire extinguisher again and short-circuited it. That’s why it went crazy.” And how many times he lied to Pepper like this. “It’s all taken care of now, don’t worry. Go drop off your bag to your room before you take root in there.”
“O-kay,” Peter turned on his heel and headed to the guest room that was pretty much his at this point.
“He stays out of this,” Tony said the instant he couldn’t hear the kid’s footsteps anymore.
“You don’t have to tell me that,” Pepper shot back. “I’m not the one who almost blew him up.”
“That was one time! Why do you keep bringing it up?!” Tony hissed, but secretly he was relieved they were on the same page.
Pepper tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. “Don’t think you’re out of the woods. I can still make it look like an accident.”
The footsteps returned, silencing any and all retorts. Peter pattered back into the desolate living room, now changed into a comfy midtown hoodie and a pair of sweatpants. “So, what are we doing today? Are we going to the workshop after cleaning here?”
“Actually,” Tony drawled as he looked around, “I was thinking we could just order pizza, watch a movie and have a nice, quiet evening. May said you had several big tests this week, so why not kick our feet up relax?”
In truth, any other day, Tony wouldn’t hesitate to being the kid to the workshop. Tinkering helped him relax. But there was no way Tony would leave Pepper unsupervised up here, all alone, with enough time to plan how to carry out her vow.
Better to keep an eye on her.
“I’m in a mood for something spicy.” Just to make sure Peter won’t accidentally eat his in case Pepper slips. The kid couldn’t handle too spicy things. “Pep?”
“Vegetarian, please.”
Ah. She was adapting the same approach.
Peter rolled his eyes, huffing in a way Tony learned he was joking. “Just say you guys don’t want to share.”
“You’re right. We don’t want to share. We’re greedy, rich people that get our kicks off by not sharing pizzas with teenagers,” Tony deadpanned, then nudged him in the ribs. Right in the spot where Peter was ticklish. “Don’t worry, we’ll make it up for you by getting you an extra-large one.” God knew the kid could eat.
Peter perked up at that. “Can I get the mushroom one with extra cheese?”
Tony reached out and ruffled the kid’s hair. “You can get whatever you want.”
“And cheese-filled edges.”
“Let’s clean a bit before the pizza arrives,” Pepper said and flipped the couch back into the intended position, faking a strained heave. “I’m not sitting on the floor.”
Peter went to put the chairs back to the table when his eyes lit up. “Oh, sweet! Is that from the coffee shop at the end of the street?”
Before he could lay his hand on the cup, Tony closed the distance between them in four quick strides – catching Pepper’s horrified expression from the corner of his eye – and smacked the whole holder away. It landed in the sink, spilling both coffees down the drain. Peter blinked. Tony blinked too. “You’re not allowed to have coffee, remember?” he said once he regained his composure.
“That’s right, sweetheart,” Pepper agreed. “We wouldn’t want a repeat of last time.”
“Killjoys,” Peter muttered and got back to cleaning.
Thirty minutes later, Friday announced the pizza delivery guy was waiting downstairs.
“I’ll get it!” the kid shouted and practically ran into the elevator.
Tony crossed his arms and shook his head, smiling in the direction Peter disappeared to. “I swear he could eat an elephant.”
“Well, he’s growing,” Pepper nodded along and folding her arms. However, just as quick as it showed itself, that smile disappeared.
The atmosphere shifted, going from the brief moment of calm to a chilling cold in a matter of seconds. The tension could be cut with a knife.
“We could have another go at each other before he gets back,” Pepper said.
“True,” Tony agreed.
“But we would make more mess.”
“Also true.”
They both hummed, glaring at each other. Neither of them moved.
“Seems like we’ve reached a stalemate,” Tony said after a while.
“For now,” Pepper replied. “We’ll have to use plastic cups since you obliterated the whole cupboard.”
The elevator dinged, signaling Peter’s arrival Beaming, he strolled back into the room, pizza boxes raised above his head like a trophy.
“If you can get this excited about pizza, then we must be doing something wrong,” Tony teased. “But enough talking and let’s eat. You know how Pepper gets when she’s hungry,” he winked at the kid. “She could kill a guy,” he whispered loudly.
Pepper narrowed her eyes, then spun around and knocked the plastic cups off the kitchen island. To an untrained eye, it would look like an accident. Tony knew better. “Ah,” she sighed and began to bend down.
“Wait, let me,” Peter said.
The instant he was down, Pepper’s hand moved, sending a small throwing blade at the man. Tony threw himself on the ground, then jumped back up just as the kid was standing up.
Peter slowly leaned to the side, the confused expression on his face melting into a worried one. “Uh, Mr. Stark…” he pointed behind his mentor.
Tony turned around, making a show of acting surprised. “Oh, hey, how did that get there?”
Pepper shrugged. “I have no idea.”
“That looks dangerous,” Peter said.
“Don’t worry about, it, kid,” Tony stepped around, casually throwing his arm around the kid’s shoulders, “let’s eat before the food gets cold.”
“But Mr. Stark—“
“Hmm?”
This time, Peter pointed to his shoulder; or more precisely, to the cut on his shoulder. Huh. There was no blood, but it appeared he didn’t dodge as fast as he thought. “Oh, this. Yeah, this is fine.”
“Are you sure?” Damn it, the kid was getting uneasy. “That rip wasn’t there before.”
“I guess you just didn’t notice it,” Tony said. “Don’t worry, you go pick the movie, I’ll go change in the meantime,” he finished, giving him a little push towards the couch.
A weak smile appeared on his face, and that was enough for Tony. He blinked at him, then disappeared down the hallway towards their bedroom. Opting for faster pace so Pepper wouldn’t have too many chances to tamper with his food, he almost missed the wire stretched between a bottom cabinet drawer and a doorway.
“Heh,” Tony muttered to himself, stepping over it, “nice try.”
Seriously, who would ever fall for something so obvi—
Something whizzed by his head, making Tony jump out of the way. He looked up just in time to see a small, steel ball rolling to a stop. The wall where it hit was decorated with a nice, deep crack.
“Everything okay, Tony?”
“Yeah!” he called back into the living room, adding a mean look.
Traps. Okay, okay. Two could play that game.
After changing, Tony made a quick work of leaving some surprises for Pepper before returning to the living room. Both Pepper and the kid were seated at the sofa, already munching on their pizzas. Tony’s box remained unopened.
“Hurry up so we can start,” Peter said.
“Okay, first, don’t talk with your mouth full,” Tony took his box and sat down so Peter would be sandwiched – or more like a barrier – between him and Pepper, “and secondly, I doubt you’ll make it past the first half of the movie.
Peter huffed. “Please. In the end, I’ll be the one throwing the blanket over you.”
To the kid’s credit, he lasted almost until the end of the movie. The combination of exhaustion from school and full stomach was too strong opponent for him.
The TV turned black as Pepper hit the remote, drowning the room in silence. She looked him up and down, then, without looking away, reached to her ankle and pulled out yet another small knife.
Tony waded his finger. “A-ah-ah! Not fair,” he whispered, mindful of the sleeping teen wrapped around him like a baby sloth. “You know very well I can’t move right now with the kid asleep on me. And how many of those things do you have anyway?”
“Enough.” Pepper copied his volume, then took a step closer, twirling the knife in her hand. The edge glistening in the dull light. “Didn’t you say everything is fair in love and war?”
“Come on, Pep,” Tony groaned. “That’s really not fair. That’s like… waking up a kitten that fell asleep on your lap. It’s a felony.”
Seconds passed by two of them just staring at each other.
Pepper caved in first.
She hid the blade back into her ankle strap before walking to the other couch. “Fine.”
“So, you stay on your side and I’ll stay on mine?”
Peter’s spidey sense has been on edge ever since he stepped a foot into the tower. At first, he wrote it off as a regular sensory overload, which would make sense all things considered. It tended to flare up when he was overwhelmed.
But then the weird things started happening.
The malfunctioned robot. The knife in the wall. That random thud of a body rolling out of the way Peter was too familiar with when Mr. Stark was out of sight.
There was on denying it. Someone was making attempts at their lives and they were hiding it from him.
Peter frowned, determination burning in his eyes. He won’t allow anyone to hurt Mr. Stark and Ms. Potts. He’ll get to the bottom of this and stop the person, even if it was the last thing he’d do.
Still, the question stood – how will he protect them without revealing his secret identity?