2267/Chipping Away

Chipping Away
Date of Scene:	29 June 2020
Location:	Stark Tower: Penthouse
Synopsis:	Tony describes some of the Brainiac situation to Pepper.
Cast of Characters:	Tony Stark, Pepper Potts

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Tony Stark has posed:
The request is not unusual. Tony asks for food a lot. It's a special interface where he quickly just pokes a button and it details out his current preference for what he wants. In this case? Cheeseburgers. One of the most common requests. The original ask was while Tony was in the Avengers' mansion, but Homer has since reported that Tony was returning to the Tower.

Some time later, a check-in will get a response that Tony did get back, and was in the lab, but has come out of the lab about ten minutes ago, into the penthouse.

Pepper Potts has posed:
Who has a 9 to 5 job? Not this girl. It's getting harder, though; the lines are blurring as to what is work and what is done simply out of compassion, affection, and, well.. yes. He's her best friend. And what else could she be doing with her night? Opera? Concert? Drinks? No, no and no.

Instead, she's got the bag delivery from Bobby's Burgers, courtesy of Bobby Flay's restaurant, home of the amazing burgers. They're cooked to perfection, medium rare, with chips on the side, sweet potato fries, with sodas.

The door opens, and the waft of cooked meat is in her wake. She's cheery enough, dressed down with her hair down around her shoulders. "Okay.. Dallas burger. Did you want your pickle?"

Crossing the room and setting the food on the coffee table near the couch, she does a quick search.

"Their coleslaw is amazing."

Tony Stark has posed:
"Of course I do; were you going to steal my pickle? Taking advantage while you suspected me distracted?" Tony answers, voice raised from where he is.

The jacuzzi set back towards the balcony area of the enormous penthouse is rarely in use; it's usually covered, or at most, has a little pool-cleaner drone wandering around in it as if lost. However, it is definitely occupied at the moment, with a brazenly exhausted Tony taking a breather amidst the heat and turbulent bubbles.

Tony pivots to face her, resting his forearms crossed on the edge of the indoor jacuzzi, chin on the back of left wrist. He's a toasty pink color, hair glossy from plenty of moisture.

Pepper Potts has posed:
"Tony?" She hears the voice, but now it's a matter of finding where he-

"Tony?" Tone and timbre have changed from the search to more of a 'what?' sound as she picks up the food and walks it out onto the balcony. It's an amazing view, as befits a penthouse of a multi billionaire, and as she approaches, she's got a laughing smile on her face. "I thought you completely forgot about this. I.." and she laughs softly again, "I think this is the first time I've seen you relax like this in a long time."

Setting the food down on a table near some 'outside' indoor furniture, she carries one of the sodas over with a warning, "Don't splash me."

Tony Stark has posed:
"Yes, clearly I am absolutely relaxed," Tony smirks, shaking his head. Tony looks more like he was hit by an exhaustion truck and then backed over at least once. He doesn't really move or sit up, but he does gesture grandly to the area next to the Jacuzzi which can house all sorts of goodies. Normally it's just alchohol, but food works as well.

"Are you eating with me? Pull up a chair or better yet, climb in here," Tony invites calmly, he waits for her to put the soda down while he wipes off his hands and forearms on a towel, still mostly immersed in the jacuzzi.

"No splashes, I promise. Saving my energy for continuing to save the world. No fun allowed," Tony says in mock sternness.

Pepper Potts has posed:
"Clearly," Pepper drolls back, "but the point stands. You're relaxing, as in, taking a break and doing something for you." There's a pause before, "Something that could be construed as good. Now, do you want to come out and eat your artery clogging dinner, or.."

The invitation to join him in the bubbling warm water is definitely a consideration, but when she sets the soda down for him, the answer first comes with a brief headshake. "I don't have anything to wear for it. It's not something that I put in my suitcase in case I have to travel, believe it or not." Her tones are still light, settled in a definite good mood; she's obviously gotten a couple of hours of sleep more than he.

"Mmmhmm... saving the world is serious business," is deadpanned. She's trying not to smile through that, and failing, purely because those green eyes are giving her away on it. "And you can have your pickle."

Tony Stark has posed:
"No suit, oh no," Tony says in a deadpanned sort of dismissive way. It isn't sarcastic, just a little bit playfully mock 'upset', but he doesn't push on it. Were she someone else of a supermodel variety that would have been a different reaction, but he's letting it go immediately. "Better not judge me, then." Which suggests things that may or may not be the case currently.

Tony smirks and accepts the soda, taking a deep drink of it, his gaze sliding towards the food, but some of the fronted energy leaks out with it. "Asking so much of me; getting up AND world rescue," Tony 'laments'. "Carol reminded me how critical I truly am today to outthink this AI. I have responded by promptly coming back and making a mistake. So now I'm here. Small decompress."

Pepper Potts has posed:
Pepper laughs again at the mock horror, the possibility that she'd go in as is? Or, find something to put on? She's lightly adamant, however, but she does pull her shoes off in an effort to get a touch more comfortable.

There's that deadpan once more, still easy to discern the amusement underlying them, "I don't think there has ever been a time when I've.. no. I just remembered." She's teasing!

Settling in one of the chairs now, possibly quiet encouragement to join her, her gaze shifts back over, and her brows rise, her tones lowering, the words coming slowly, "I was going to ask how the meeting went." She exhales in a sigh, fully sympathetic, followed quickly with a "What happened?"

Tony Stark has posed:
Tony rises; the distraction from the brilliant arc reactor in his chest no doubt drawing attention. Despite his playful tone about suits or lack of suits, he isn't nude, he does have one on. He picks up the big towel, efficiently drying off while he talks to her.

"Meeting went as expected, I think. New files, gathering up all the leads together. I recruited some of the Avengers to get some boots on the ground now that I've got the satellites. Some new procedures to track the ship are online now...." Tony smirks slightly, "Or are you asking about the mistake? Minor, just erased some things when I fell asleep on a console. Fully restored now, of course."

Pepper Potts has posed:
That.. hole in his chest really is hard not to notice. Life had indeed changed since Tony'd returned, and there are some things that still are hard to get used to. But, it's blue and bright, which means it's doing exactly what it should be: keeping him alive.

Pepper watches as Tony emerges from the jacuzzi, and maybe she's staring, but soon enough, she looks away to settle the food on the table properly. Anything to keep her attention from..

Taking a deep breath, she clears her throat and looks up again. "Oh.. Tony. Tell me you didn't drool." She is trying to keep it light, but it could have been hours worth of work. "So, now that the satellites are recording, are they catching anything?"

Tony Stark has posed:
Tony doesn't seem to notice if she's staring at him much, or at least he doesn't tease her about it if he does. There is a bit of a thoughtful look at her as he brings up the towel to drape it around his shoulders after buffing it through his hair. He drops onto a chair by where she's setting up the food, stirring around in a bag until he finds some fries to insert into his mouth.

"Nope; just had a nice imprint right here," Tony answers, gesturing over his left cheek. He begins the hunt for the cheeseburger she'd mentioned, while chewing fries and still talking. Best multitasking.

"Right, yeah, I've got them set up to track the ship. Best I can see right now, it's by Saturn. So... very close. I mean, considering where it could have been, anyway. Working on improving the tracking system. Or I was. I'll get back in there soon..."

Pepper Potts has posed:
It's Pep's turn to look thoughtful, even as she's pointing out the bag, grabbing it with a couple of fingers in order to move it closer. She shifts briefly, theatrically to check if there is indeed an imprint there, and grins as she raises a finger as if to 'wipe off' the bit of sleep set on his cheek.

Once 'done', she crosses her legs at her ankles, and looks to have a question on her mind. "So," she begins tentatively, "by Saturn." Raising her gaze up to the stars, or rather, where they would be if there wasn't quite so much light pollution, she asks softly, "Can you show me?" She looks back down, and a soft, almost embarrassed laugh exits, "I mean, I've just never seen a space ship before, and.. something in our own solar system.."

Tony Stark has posed:
"There isn't much to visualize yet. I've barely tracked the thing. Right now it'd look like Saturn and a smudge," Tony says, with a wrinkle of his nose in play at her as she attempts to wipe said sleep-smudge on his face. He doesn't mind, dark eyes following the path of her finger as it came in close, then diverting to meet her gaze. Tony's tired but there's a clear register of her slightly intimate touch at his face.

And then Tony promptly eats a fry. Yuuuum.

"When I have something worth looking at, though, you'll be one of the first to know," Tony promises her, pausing, and offering her some fries, while he picks up the soda with his other hand. The scent of food and eating has already revived him a little bit more, though with how tired he seems, it may not be for a long time. He's just overspent his reserves.

Pepper Potts has posed:
Pepper nods and smiles, her nose scrunching slightly in the expression. "Was just wondering, you know.." and she makes it sound a little more off-hand that perhaps she feels. She's interested in his work, above and beyond the need to save the world. It's a bit of him to share, and she makes a soft noise as she settles back in her seat, green eyes never truly straying from him.

"Mm.. the sweet potato ones are the best.." and she reaches to take a fry. It's the burger she's looking forward to, and she reaches for her little box. "You have a meeting with your engineers tomorrow at 3," Pepper licks her fingers even as she pulls out her BBQ drizzled sandwich. "For the car. They want you to be ready for the European tours by early fall." If, that is, he wants to be! "At least, that's the deadline they're giving themselves."

It's something nice, casual.. and non-Earth destructiony...

Tony Stark has posed:
"That's tomorrow?" Tony releases a deep breath in a rush, squinting upwards. "Okay. I've got a meeting with Justice Leaguers and some others tomorrow too. Might have to video call with the engineers, but urgh." Tony takes a bite of the burger, then chuckles a little, reconsidering.

"Then again, probably won't take long to put them on the right track of what I want. So, okay. See if they can slide towards the evening, though," Tony instructs, while they eat.

Pepper Potts has posed:
It's something that has nothing to do with work, but is something that Pep knows is also near and dear to Tony's heart. "Okay, conference call then," is offered softly. That, and she'd like to think they're going to come out on the other side, thanks largely to his work.

It's a quiet dinner under the stars; the jacuzzi still rumbles softly, the jets streaming and causing the water to stir. The lights of the balcony come from the recesses of the floor, giving a much softer illumination than harsh side lights.

Once done, Pepper smiles at her dinner companion; this is better than a dinner at the Russian Tea Room as far as she's concerned. Cozy. No real distractions unless they choose to be so. Still, as the food is finished, Pepper is working to clean up. She's leaning forward, her hair draping in front of her shoulders.

"Right.. now, you need to sleep," she says softly, "We have a full day tomorrow." Granted, doing completely different jobs, but all to the same end. "Go on. I'll clean up."