6909/Enchantingly Unconscious

Enchantingly Unconscious
Date of Scene:	12 July 2021
Location:	Stark Tower: Penthouse
Synopsis:	Pepper brings in some magic to help Tony's enchantment problem.
Cast of Characters:	Tony Stark, Pepper Potts, Amanda Sefton

---

Tony Stark has posed:
"Those are /so good/, you should have one," Tony has commented from his location at the couch, smushed down. He WAS sitting on it a little while ago, but is now seated on the floor, leaning against the couch itself, with a variety of (emptied) liquor glasses nearby. Same clothing as before.

Tony's bizarre behavior, caused by what may very well be mind-control, a mind-slug, pod person, or other enchantment has melted into the distance and given way to something stronger: alcohol. Tony's quite drunk, and only semi-functional: which has kept him from doing any major or drastic actions that could further impact his life.

He'd already been spouting love-obsessed nonsense and tried to quit the Avengers to pursue a woman he's never met -- so keeping him from harming himself via liquor has been the current state of affairs. Happy needs to 'tag out' on Stark babysitting duty, but notifies Pepper all the same -- he needs to sleep, it's her turn, but he fed the inventor quite a bit. She should not have trouble.

Hopefully.

Pepper Potts has posed:
It all started with a trip. Tony takes those, Pepper isn't always along for the ride. A couple of times ago, she was. This last time? She was not. There is still work to be done, after all. Second quarter reports to be filed with the SEC, to be reported to the Board, with all that carries with it.

Tony knows this, and yet he left.

Sure enough, she'd gotten a phone call the first night away; how he was doing, he missed her, and such. Second day... third day, she receives a frantic (for him) text from Happy talking about how Tony's acting strangely, spouting his undying obsession for a woman he'd never met after arriving home. And, on top of that, was gearing up to buy her pharmaceutical company.

Once home, Pepper discovered first hand exactly HOW strangely Tony's been acting. He'd entered her office, and rather than the usual hug, the murmured words of how much she was missed, or even the lilting conversation of how dull everyone was, and how they all need to finally be dragged into the Twenty-first century, she was met with 'it's over between us'.

The reason? A woman he'd never met. This woman even has a name, but right now? Not important.

Once declaring his undying obsession, he'd left her office, leaving her quite angry, sad, stunned and dumbfounded.

To her credit? One of her first moves was to make sure that Stark Industries was safe from his sudden bit of insanity. He had to be crazy, right? And why? Because he broke up with her? Sounds stupid on the surface, sure..

Tony Stark breaks up with his girlfriend for someone else. Pepper could point to headlines over the last 10 years that say that exact thing. So why should she be any different?

Because she's not. She is different.. right?

So.. who to call first?

Steve. Tony's friend, and inarguably one of his best friends, absent Rhodey. The upshot there? Steve taking Pepper's advice to get the man drunk to the point where he can't actually physically leave. There's more than a little guilt that rides there.

Way more than a little.

Still, it's not right. Things aren't right.

So, while Tony has his confessor, Pepper has her own. Only this one is a 'help me, Obi Wan.. you're my only hope' sort of path. She's certain he's been mind.. played, but what's the fix?

***

Pepper brings Amanda to the Penthouse, and now, dressed down and looking a touch stressed, she gets the report from Happy. They're talking quietly, out of the way of Tony, and as the Head of Security and another close friend to the obsession-dumb man, green eyes keep flitting towards the seated and (be)sotted man.

"Okay, Happy.. thank you, by the way." The tenor sounds weary already, though through it, she's determined, if not a little bit worried.

"Okay, Tony.."

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Amanda got the gist of what was going on from Pepper, when the red head arrived unannounced back at the Dakota. What ensued was a late night of tea, followed by a dram or two of whiskey, as Pepper tried so very hard to explain to her best friend just why and how she knows she's different than every other woman Tony has dated.

Thing is... Amanda didn't need much convincing. She's seen the two of them together. She knows devotion when she sees it. And she knows she's never seen even a hint of that level of devotion from Tony Stark toward any other woman he's been shown with on tv or the internet. It's a body language thing. The gypsy performer is *very good* at reading body language. Around Pepper, Tony's swagger goes from Mr. Cool to Mr. Caught. And happily so, or she's no judge of character at all.

So, it really took no arm-twisting at all to get the sorceress to agree to come take a look at the man. Skilled as she is in the arts of both illusion and hypnosis, even if what ails him isn't magical in nature, she still stands a very good chance of figuring it out. Maybe even counteracting it... depending on who laid the 'curse'.

Providing, of course, it's wasn't an Asgardian who wielded the spell.

Thus, she stands with ehr best friend, quietly watching the drunken fellow, but with an invisibly open Third Eye and the hope whatever is wrong will become more apparent as she observes.

Tony Stark has posed:
The haze of liquor (and reek of it) doesn't mask that there's obvious magic here. There's a pulsing halo of it around and fluxing within Tony's face: very front and forward, and it is connected very clearly to a magical object on his person.

A simple glance says it is a very expensive looking watch, but a magical eye will instead understand that it is cloaked to seem like it fits in - as opposed to what it actually is: a cursed bundle of metals, roots, and hair from the head of the person that is the focus of the obsession. All of it woven together, the little hooks from the metal sunk into the skin of the wrist on that side.


--

Nobody: "...."

"I am not tired," Tony replies to nobody. Nobody really asked.

"I'm not sure I should have another. I hold my liquor well. But Happy did not drink as many. It was not very fair...."

Pepper Potts has posed:
There is the urge to take the glass away from Tony, away from his reach, but if she does that, then there isn't the tether to keep him in place. And Pepper doesn't want him going anywhere. So, second best?

Pepper crosses the short distance, and sits forward on the couch that he's seated in front of, and smiles tightly. "Happy isn't as accomplished as you are, Tony. You beat him again." She's trying to keep her tones conversational if not a touch soothing in that 'let's not do anything hasty' sort of tenor.

Green eyes flicker back towards Amanda before she sets her attention back to Tony. "No, no you're probably not. But, you've had something to eat, so.." there's a pause as she considers, and then, "have you given any more thought about that repulsor field?"

Distract! And, to double down on that, Pepper rises immediately after to move to the bar in order to get the scotch down to pour a new drink. Work and alcohol.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Amanda's eyes pause for a moment on that enchanted glow around Tony's face and follow the source of it down to the !watch on his wrist. "I found it," she says softly, not really wanting to attract Tony's attention. She crosses to join Pepper, albeit at a more oblique angle and on his left side so she can get a better look at that tangle of sympathetic fetish magic.

Now, she looks to get his attention, just to see how he'll react. "Hey, Tony," she smiles. "Did you get a new watch?" She's watching the way his wrist turns, noting the claws that sink in and looking to see if there's even a hint of blood around those punctures or if it's siphoning the life energy blood gives into itself to sustain it. She certainly expects the latter. "I don't think I've seen that model before." She reaches out a hand to him, palm upward in polite entreaty. "May I?"

Tony Stark has posed:
"What did I need a repulsor field for?" Tony asks, blithely out of it. It's a rather normal disorientation for when he's really under a heavy dose of alcohol. Happy really did his job here, Tony's not able to functionally be as obsessive about anything while his body can't quite respond correctly.

"I was thinking of flying somewhere, though. But that's not it..." Tony orients to Amanda next, shifting his lucid attention to what she's on about. He lifts his hand and immediately lets her have his hand and wrist, no trouble there. He's not protective of it. "Looks a bit like my father's, doesn't it?" Tony observes. "It's not my tech, though. Pepper, have you seen my newer tech watch?"

There's a pause.

"HOMER, locate my latest wrist peripheral; use the homing device," Tony asks the ceiling.

"It is in your suitcase, sir," HOMER replies helpfully. "It was removed two nights ago; health records from it were terminated at that time as well."

Pepper Potts has posed:
Happy deserves a raise, absolutely. He's done his job, but not without a little guilt.

All for the cause, right? Tough love, but in reverse.

Pepper reaches for the bottle of scotch and lifts the stopper, talking while pouring the next. "No," and she shakes her head, "You don't have any appointments, so that's not it." She's more than happy to encourage that thought.

Amanda cues in on the watch; Pepper had noticed it and at the same time hadn't, but nothing strikes her as odd about it. New watch, looks expensive. He gets accessories as a matter of course. She can't even begin to count the amount of Rolex' he has, or Longines. They're simply.. there.

Pepper has the glass in hand and with her free hand, stoppers up the bottle again before padding back to where Tony sits on the floor.

"No, no it's not. But it doesn't look like.." and she offers up the glass to him before coming up short, "The records were terminated? Tell me they weren't deleted, HOMER."

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Amanda takes Tony's arm in her hands and tilts his wrist gently back and forth as if looking at the band. And, indeed, she *is* looking at the band. Just not the band it looks like. Her lips purse slightly for a moment before she glances at him and smiles. "It's lovely..."

She doesn't let go of his wrist, though. Her fingers run gently over the band. The two mundanes can't really see, though Pepper's been around Amanda often enough to recognize that 'look' she gets in her eye when she's concentrating on a spell. In this case, she's starting to slice tiny hairs and tangled roots, especially around those thorns and claws that seem to be digging into his skin. There's eldritch fire around her fingertips, shaped like cat claws that catch the hairs and divide them from the roots that power the magic and the metal that anchors it.

She's seen better-made enchantments. This one is quick and dirty. Painful, at its heart, she expects. Obsessions are usually like that. It's why love potions never truly work. The pain always wins in the end.

She slowly becomes aware it probably wasn't made by the person who donated the hair that represents the obsession. There's the faint scent of burning hair as her magic weaves its way through the tangle, burning out the focus the hair provides, but also drying out those roots and scraping them away. Where the magic touches the metal, however, it turns it brittle and cold. Not burning cold, perhaps, but cold enough that it might cut through Tony's drunken fog. Finally, she taps her fingers lightly against those bits and pieces, watching them crumble.

As they fall away, they become a pile of ash and soot on the table she holds his arm above. In the end, all that's left to be removed are those claw like pieces -- which is when her eyes glow golden with a power Pepper would most definitely recognize. Amanda is using healing magic to soothe the skin and force the pieces out. They contract briefly, but strain against the golden warmth that creates a strong barrier between his skin and their seeking points.

Finally, like teeth, they tumble to make divots in the ashes. "I'm afraid that was a very cheap knockoff," she says, releasing his hand. "I suggest you stick with your own tech, in the future."

Tony Stark has posed:
"No, all records remain intact, Ms. Potts," HOMER clarifies in explanation. "Only health recordings after that point are unavailable, due to the removal of the monitoring." So Tony'd had his health under monitoring for whatever reason. Though due to previous problems, that may not be any weird surprise that he'd quietly been wearing his own brand of 'fit-bit' to keep track of some of his health habits. Perhaps to improve?...

"Ouch, hey," Tony grumps, actively trying to fight Amanda once she starts burning things on his arm, and the scent of scorched hair makes him believe, of course, that she's hurting something on him. "I need that limb," he adds, but his strength isn't really there, compared to magic that can hold the situation firm. Still, he's strong, and it does hurt.

Finally the teeth give way, leaving somewhat deep cuts, that start to bleed almost immediately, in a halo of damage on that arm. Tony reacts as if kicked in the head. He looks around, entirely confused. "Ummmmmmmm," Tony begins.

"... I think I blacked out," he reports, still drunk, but disoriented by all of it. "I'm home. Alright." Blackout drunk acceptance.

Pepper Potts has posed:
Amanda's attention to the watch has gained Pepper's attention as well. Things are apparently not as they seem?

While this is not why the pair are friends, it doesn't hurt having someone in the magic corner, as it were. Though, to be fair, Pepper would do anything for her friend as well. Each have their own special skill set, and more often than not, they do compliment the other.

Her head cants, and the glass is set to the table instead, her gaze now flickering between her best friend and, well, her other best friend. She knows that look of concentration on Amanda's face; she's looking at something completely different than what she herself can see, she's certain. And apparently there is //something// to see there. The time, the attention on the bits and pieces all looks a little strange, and when the watch is removed quite differently than simply unbuckling the band, brows rise in a touch of both alarm and concern. "What is-"

HOMER's assurances fall on mostly deaf ears, her attention set elsewhere. It vaguely falls in, and perhaps later it'll strike her that Tony's been keeping an eye on his health. After this is done..

Pepper knows about Amanda's healing abilities too, so while the bleeding may be there, it probably won't be for too much longer. Instead, Pepper stares at Tony, studying him, trying to make that determination as to whether or not he's.. home, home.

Nodding her head ever so slightly, her words are tentative, "You don't remember anything?" Though, to be fair, it'd be an honest guess; scotch on the table, and at least a day's worth of boozing with both Steve and Happy. "Yes, you're home." Okay, she'll be that helpful.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
No, the bleeding won't stay there for long. Amanda's golden touch sees to that. And her grip is firm enough, even when he struggles during the removal of the watch, that he's not pulling away from her. Not until she's done.

She she does finally release him, and that golden light fades from her eyes and her fingertips, she glances over her her friend. "I can probably purge him of some of that alcohol, if you want," she tells her. "But it might be better to let him sleep it off. That thing has battered him pretty hard. I doubt he's actually slept since he put it on."

She peers at Tony, now, concern in her eyes. "What's the last thing you *do* remember?" she asks him, head canting faintly.

Tony Stark has posed:
Tony gives both women a sort of furtive, analytical look. He's quick - and there's a lot of that quality of him gathering information around him to determine what's going on so that he doesn't look foolish or unaware. He's a type that will cover his own butt when possible: and in a case like this, that personality trait is surfacing. The assumption that he was and is drunk, but that it's not /so/ bad: the delusion is real.

But all of that is very Tony, and not a part of the obsessive manic.

"I mean, I was drinking at a party. There was a lot. Some business deals. Did somebody drug me?" Tony guesses, pivoting to that. From his perspective, it's more logical. He then more significantly takes in that Pepper's at his side, and grabs her hand to pull it over and hold it against his cheek near his eye, with a deep, grumbly little noise, eyes closing for a few long beats. "Urgh, you come with me next time. I did great on the business deals, but that was a /lot/ of partying, I guess," Tony says. He's warm; he adjusts her hand to use it some to cool his cheek, then turns his face a bit to kiss her fingers and then release her. It's autopilot, comfortable, a natural thing.

Pepper Potts has posed:
It's to Tony's credit (and ability?) that a day of drinking with Steve and then Happy still sees him mostly upright, even if it's on the floor. Pepper sits down, glances towards Amanda again and nods her acknowledgment to the suggestion, agreeing to it readily. "I think that's a very good idea. Sleeping it off." Though to hear about how Tony'd been 'battered' through the illusionary watch, has her pressing her lips into that thin line and looking back at him with a soft 'mmm'.

She's seated back on the couch, perching on the edge, at his side. There's a softly audible breath taken in when he takes possession of her hand to press it against his cheek, and she sits without moving for a heart beat before she takes her other hand to run it through short hair. "Something happened at that party, because you came home and promptly broke up with me." Now, however, isn't the time to quiz (read: Interrogate) him about the party, who was there, who could possibly have done something to him. "Next time, I'll definitely come." At least that is said with a touch of .. humor? It's a promise, too.

"'Mands, I need to talk to you." There's a pause before she adds, "Later." After Tony falls asleep. While she's not going to quiz him about the party, she is going to attempt to get to the bottom of all this. She's got a whole lot of questions, and knowing her friend, Amanda probably does too.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Amanda really hopes Tony's affection means he and Pepper are no longer 'broken up'. On the cusp of starting a new, if questionable, relationship herself, she knows she doesn't want to bounce that news off her friend while she's potentially grieving for the loss of the one relationship Amanda's seen her in that actually... works. Weird as it is.

Still, as Tony muses out his recollection, all she can really conclude is that it was a fairly ideal time for someone to put the whammy on him. She purses her lips in thought, a faint crease to her brow. She'd recognize the flavour of that magic, if she came across it again. But its just as likely to have come from a black market goblin as a hedge witch or back alley wizard. Not to mention, it didn't necessarily come from wherever Tony ran across it.

She nods to Pepper, as her friend says they need to talk. "We will," she promises. She looks at Tony. "Should we pour this one into his bed?"

Tony Stark has posed:
"Breaking up? That doesn't sound like me; I don't want that," Tony observes, puzzled. "I'll review the tapes later," he jokes, but isn't seeming to take her serious about that he did that. "But right now I'm good to blame somebody like Loki." Logical.

"You guys can talk," Tony supplies helpfully, then, turning some and scooting as if to get up... but the booze wins. Instead, he rotates and puts his forearm and then his head on Pepper's lap. "I'll just shut my eyes a minute, but I'm listening." He has his eyes closed, but bats his hand in a 'go ahead' motion.

That quiet eye-closing rapidly changes to some sleepy grunts and if not interrupted, he'll just sleep there. He's free of the magic driving the weird obsession, and can actually just rest, finally.

Pepper Potts has posed:
"No, no it didn't," Pepper concedes. She'd known that it //didn't// sound like him, but anyone but Steve and Amanda would have simply thought it was a bitter ex-girlfriend that didn't want to believe Tony'd moved on, like he had so many, many times before. After all, this is the longest he's ever been in a relationship. A whole year! Ish.

"And, you do that. Just ask HOMER." Or JARVIS. Though, he'd also probably tell Tony that she attempted to lock down Stark Industries so he couldn't give the company away in a fit of obsession. "As to whether or not it was Loki, we can ask Thor tomorrow." Though, it's easy to blame the Trickster, even if it's not him.

She's not pulling away from him as he tries to get up and fails. She's still there, serving as that bit to rest on, to fall asleep next to, even as she still idly runs fingers through the mussy short brown hair. "Just shut your eyes. I know you'll be listening." She pulls her attention back up from the floor-cast Tony to Amanda and chuffs a soft, humored breath, her words just above a whisper. "He'll be fine here. He'll be ready to wander into the bedroom in a few hours."

It's that other bit that she wants to give her friend a 'heads up' on. Pepper continues in hushed tones, "I'll pull the guest list from the parties he attended. Maybe you'll recognize a name from the list?"

Amanda Sefton has posed:
"I doubt it was Loki," Amanda says as Tony begins drifting off. "I know the flavour of his magic, now." He's spent enough time in her Library. Of course, she knows him. "That wasn't it." She gestures to the ashes. "That was... rudimentary. Rough. Complete, but unfinished." She gives a wry smile. "You know, like a carpenter who makes a box that will hold something, but doesn't bother to sand the edges or stain the surface."

She shakes her head. "Loki would never be so crude. He has too much pride for that."

Still as Pepper offers the guest lists -- albeit not this very second -- she nods. "It's possible. However, whomever made the trap wasn't the the focus of it. We don't even know what the purpose was." She levels a serious gaze at her friend. "Was it an attempt at a hostile takeover? Or was it merely an obsessed stalker trying out a love charm that could never work the way she hoped? They're two very different intents that could still use the same technique, though the latter seems far more likely given the poor quality of the charm."

Pepper Potts has posed:
Pepper nods slowly, the hair still sliding through fingers. It's unconscious, the way she strokes his hair; she probably isn't completely aware she's doing it.

"Not his style, then. It wouldn't make sense. I mean, he really hasn't said anything directed at Tony, or done anything. I think Thor would have warned us." She would //hope//, anyway, that the Asgardian Avenger would.

As for that guest list? She will definitely have it for her friend, and the pair can go through it. Pepper can put her observations in, such as 'what company they represent' and the like.

"See, that's what I don't know. Tony was dead set on being with her, on buying her company. Pharmaceuticals. Why would anyone want .." Pepper pauses and shakes her head. "The woman, the CEO, wasn't interested in selling her company. I did a little digging on the woman in question." Like a woman scorned? "I don't think it was her, then. Maybe someone who would benefit from a buyout? They knew we wouldn't do a hostile takeover or a leveraged buyout. So, they tried to force a merger by making Tony obsessed with being with her?"

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Amanda nods slowly to Pepper's speculation. "Misdirection seems likely. Even the shoddy charm. I don't think it was designed to last forever. But it had two very clear effects, that I can see. Firstly, it focussed all your attention -- you and he both, really -- on that woman and that company. Secondly, however, it was going to drive him to absolute physical exhaustion. I don't doubt it would have killed him, if it didn't burn out first." Her expression is very serious when she says that. "I'm certain he hasn't slept since he put it on. Too long without sleep and even the Great Tony Stark is going to suffer..." And eventually die.

She doesn't like to say it aloud, but she wants her friend to understand this was as likely an attempt on Tony's life as anything else.

Pepper Potts has posed:
"Three purposes," Pepper adds. "To divide us." After all, they're a team, and if there are any disagreements between them, no one on the outside knows it if they're trying to look in. The thought that it could have also been an attempt on his life, however, has her leaning over to lay her cheek briefly on the top of his head. She is always in fear of losing him while he's doing the Iron Man thing, momentarily forgetting that he is a target as just ol' Tony Stark. Because there is no such thing as //just// Tony Stark.

She nods her head slowly in acknowledgement even as she turns her head to lay a kiss on the top of that brown, mussy head of his. "Then getting him drunk until he passed out was the best shot we had at getting him to sleep." As much as she hated it, it was the only course of action she saw; and apparently it was going to benefit two-fold.

"'Mands, thank you for finding the cause and taking care of it.. I owe you.. we owe you." Again.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Amanda nods. "To divide you, yes. One way or another, it would do that." Whether they simply disagreed about the company, they broke up, or he died... it's all the same destination, in the end.

She waves a hand lightly, faintly dismissive as Pepper says she owes her. "No. Beyond the fact we're friends, you've done enough for me, and likely will again. There's little point keeping score." That's just friendship. Family, really. A gypsy's family.

"I'll be interested to see those guest lists. And I suggest that we scrape that dust up into a baggy I can take with me and dispose of properly. Crude or not, it had enough power to it. I'd rather not leave it lying around, contaminating this place." She looks around. "We really do need to talk about warding, I think..."

Pepper Potts has posed:
Pepper smiles tiredly, the stress and fatigue also catching up with her. Doesn't help that she's got a sleeping Tony at her leg. Sleep begets sleep. She'll probably now have bad dreams about losing him, even though they've saved him from that particular manner of death.

"Right. No, I just want you to know that it's appreciated." Even if they're friends!

"We'll get that list. Maybe have JARVIS or HOMER do background checks on them. Quick rundown of phone logs. Nothing that they couldn't do within an hour or so." A few parameters, and it should be easy, right? "Let's get that dust cleaned up, before one of the cleaner robots vacuums it up and something happens."

She's not disengaging herself from Tony quite yet, though. "About that warding, though? You may want to talk to Tony when he wakes up. He's been running some tests, and I think he'll be very interested in it." Jungle, notwithstanding.