justprompts frustrated
justprompts: http://i48.tinypic.com/v5ee50.jpg
The flight from LA to New York passes in complete silence for Pepper. She takes a seat at the back of the jet and immediately puts on her headphones, even though she leaves the iPod off. She needs to hear herself think. She's having trouble getting herself oriented because the mountain of things she has to deal with is growing in direct proportion to how deep the hole is being dug around her.
Stark Industries is in a free fall. It's worse than it was after Tony first announced that they wouldn't be making weapons anymore. Pepper is being vilified in the press, but she's been expecting it. Never mind that Tony has never been the one running the company's day to day interests - first there was Obadiah and Pepper imagines that if there is a Hell then Obadiah is having one excellent laugh at her expense right now and for the past year it's been her. People want to believe that if someone's name is on the building that they're the ones in charge. It reminds her of children at a birthday party who find out the little bunny rabbit was inside the magician's hat all along.
Her list of priorities shifts from moment to moment. At this moment however her biggest priority is cold and clear: get the Iron Man suit out of the hands of the military. SI's chief legal counsel Burt was going to be meeting with her after Hammer's presentation to talk strategy.
It's not going to be easy. In fact, she's well aware of the fact that it may not even be possible to put that genie back in the bottle but she's going to do what she can. If it means going to the Supreme Court - they have the resources to do that. If it means pressing civil and criminal charges against Rhodey? Pepper's more than willing to go there too. What he'd done had been in violation of every one of Tony's civil liberties not to mention in violation of the Stark Industries patents. Rhodey. Pepper hasn't allowed herself to try and contact him. She doesn't trust herself. Rhodey is a conversation for another day. She'll add him to the list.
One small bright spot in the insanity has been Natalie. Pepper tells herself she didn't steal Tony's assistant out of spite - but she knows that was part of it. More than that, Pepper had needed help. Someone sharp. Natalie was it and once Tony and his antics weren't part of the equation Pepper and Natalie fell into a comfortable rhythm. Natalie wasn't one to chat or waste time or need to be told anything more than once. When Pepper needed something taken care of, Natalie did it, did it well and moved on. Pepper respected her a lot. Most people when faced with the kind of first week Natalie had been would have been in the corner sucking their thumb from the fetal position. When it's over she'd going to hire Natalie as her assistant and find a nice Playboy bunny to help Tony.
Hammer's presentation starts out ridiculous and goes steadily down hill from there to appalling, revolting and horrifying.. Sitting there in the audience, Pepper is frozen in her seat as wave after wave of suits rise up from below the stage. Each of them a reminder of Obadiah's suit. Smaller in scale but no less terrifying. The piece de resistance is Rhodey standing center stage in Tony's suit while Justin Hammer and his drones all salute.
Not only is she not surprised when Tony flies in and lands on the stage. She is also not surprised that all Hell breaks loose. When the drones start shooting after Tony, Pepper curls up in her chair and holds her purse over her head as the glass rains down and people start screaming.
She headed backstage with Natalie to find Justin in the middle of it all. He tries to blow them off, but Pepper doesn't believe him for a minute. Not when Tony had clearly asked him where Ivan Vanko was. She's not going anywhere until she finds out.
...but in this instance Pepper is nowhere near as efficient as Natalie. Natalie, who in one swift move, pins him to the table and makes him her bitch. Natalie Rushman - who isn't really Natalie Rushman from Legal after all. Pepper wonders if Phil Coulson isn't working in the SI mail room.
Pepper calls command central for NYPD. She doubts Justin masterminded anything more than his dance number but clearly he was part of it.
Sections of the park are being cleared with a head count to compare against the number of people who'd come in. It would give them a rough estimate. It's after the last of the drones launch off the stage that another window pops up on the computer screen. Pepper can suddenly hear Natalie and Tony talking. Tony calls Natalie Agent Romanoff which Pepper makes note of it to add to her growing list of "Things Tony Has Done That PISS ME OFF"... then he says it. The thing that makes her go cold down to her core.
"Yes, for the moment I'm not dying."
They talk back and forth for a minute after that but Pepper honestly has no idea what she's said or saying. It doesn't matter because they both have work to do still. Everything else will have to come later.
When the officers come for Hammer, Pepper steps aside.
"I see what you're doing...trying to pin this on me. That's good. That's good. You're starting to think like a CEO."
Just like that, Pepper is seeing the more serious and less clownish side of Justin Hammer.
"...you think you're making a problem for me? I'm gonna make a problem for you..." The cops tug at him. "I'm gonna be seeing you again real soon."
The officers offer to take her with them but she can't go. Not until she knows the park is clear. Not just of guests, but employees too.
Standing on the steps in front of the pavilion Pepper can't believe the wreckage. The Expo had been beautiful and bright and it was reduced to broken glass and charred concrete. She's one the phone with security when the drone nearest her starts to flash red and beep. But by the time it fully registers what's going to happen Tony is barreling straight towards her and wraps an arm around her waist. She barely has a chance to take a breath before they are off the ground and hurtling into the sky. She can't see the explosions because she can't open her eyes but she can hear them coming from all sides and she can feel the heat of the flames licking at her legs and the soles of her shoes. She can't breathe, think, or scream and all she can do is hold on to Tony hope they don't die.
On the roof Pepper knows they talk. There's banter and even a kiss and she's glad Rhodey is alive and safe because that's how it is with family. You may want to kick their ass but you don't want anyone to hurt them. Others aren't going to be so lucky. Pepper's not a genius but she's good with numbers. There are people dead and people wounded and there's more than just the remains of Howard Stark's dreams beneath the pavilions.
When Pepper tells Tony that her body literally can't handle the stress she's only exaggerating slightly. It feels like she's drowning and every time she kicks her way to the surface again she only has time to take a single breath before being pushed under. She says she quits. But she won't. There's still work to do and it's not in her to leave it unfinished so when she gets back to the house, Pepper showers, changes and goes in search of Tony because she's not ready to stop kicking yet.
The flight from LA to New York passes in complete silence for Pepper. She takes a seat at the back of the jet and immediately puts on her headphones, even though she leaves the iPod off. She needs to hear herself think. She's having trouble getting herself oriented because the mountain of things she has to deal with is growing in direct proportion to how deep the hole is being dug around her.
Stark Industries is in a free fall. It's worse than it was after Tony first announced that they wouldn't be making weapons anymore. Pepper is being vilified in the press, but she's been expecting it. Never mind that Tony has never been the one running the company's day to day interests - first there was Obadiah and Pepper imagines that if there is a Hell then Obadiah is having one excellent laugh at her expense right now and for the past year it's been her. People want to believe that if someone's name is on the building that they're the ones in charge. It reminds her of children at a birthday party who find out the little bunny rabbit was inside the magician's hat all along.
Her list of priorities shifts from moment to moment. At this moment however her biggest priority is cold and clear: get the Iron Man suit out of the hands of the military. SI's chief legal counsel Burt was going to be meeting with her after Hammer's presentation to talk strategy.
It's not going to be easy. In fact, she's well aware of the fact that it may not even be possible to put that genie back in the bottle but she's going to do what she can. If it means going to the Supreme Court - they have the resources to do that. If it means pressing civil and criminal charges against Rhodey? Pepper's more than willing to go there too. What he'd done had been in violation of every one of Tony's civil liberties not to mention in violation of the Stark Industries patents. Rhodey. Pepper hasn't allowed herself to try and contact him. She doesn't trust herself. Rhodey is a conversation for another day. She'll add him to the list.
One small bright spot in the insanity has been Natalie. Pepper tells herself she didn't steal Tony's assistant out of spite - but she knows that was part of it. More than that, Pepper had needed help. Someone sharp. Natalie was it and once Tony and his antics weren't part of the equation Pepper and Natalie fell into a comfortable rhythm. Natalie wasn't one to chat or waste time or need to be told anything more than once. When Pepper needed something taken care of, Natalie did it, did it well and moved on. Pepper respected her a lot. Most people when faced with the kind of first week Natalie had been would have been in the corner sucking their thumb from the fetal position. When it's over she'd going to hire Natalie as her assistant and find a nice Playboy bunny to help Tony.
Hammer's presentation starts out ridiculous and goes steadily down hill from there to appalling, revolting and horrifying.. Sitting there in the audience, Pepper is frozen in her seat as wave after wave of suits rise up from below the stage. Each of them a reminder of Obadiah's suit. Smaller in scale but no less terrifying. The piece de resistance is Rhodey standing center stage in Tony's suit while Justin Hammer and his drones all salute.
Not only is she not surprised when Tony flies in and lands on the stage. She is also not surprised that all Hell breaks loose. When the drones start shooting after Tony, Pepper curls up in her chair and holds her purse over her head as the glass rains down and people start screaming.
She headed backstage with Natalie to find Justin in the middle of it all. He tries to blow them off, but Pepper doesn't believe him for a minute. Not when Tony had clearly asked him where Ivan Vanko was. She's not going anywhere until she finds out.
...but in this instance Pepper is nowhere near as efficient as Natalie. Natalie, who in one swift move, pins him to the table and makes him her bitch. Natalie Rushman - who isn't really Natalie Rushman from Legal after all. Pepper wonders if Phil Coulson isn't working in the SI mail room.
Pepper calls command central for NYPD. She doubts Justin masterminded anything more than his dance number but clearly he was part of it.
Sections of the park are being cleared with a head count to compare against the number of people who'd come in. It would give them a rough estimate. It's after the last of the drones launch off the stage that another window pops up on the computer screen. Pepper can suddenly hear Natalie and Tony talking. Tony calls Natalie Agent Romanoff which Pepper makes note of it to add to her growing list of "Things Tony Has Done That PISS ME OFF"... then he says it. The thing that makes her go cold down to her core.
"Yes, for the moment I'm not dying."
They talk back and forth for a minute after that but Pepper honestly has no idea what she's said or saying. It doesn't matter because they both have work to do still. Everything else will have to come later.
When the officers come for Hammer, Pepper steps aside.
"I see what you're doing...trying to pin this on me. That's good. That's good. You're starting to think like a CEO."
Just like that, Pepper is seeing the more serious and less clownish side of Justin Hammer.
"...you think you're making a problem for me? I'm gonna make a problem for you..." The cops tug at him. "I'm gonna be seeing you again real soon."
The officers offer to take her with them but she can't go. Not until she knows the park is clear. Not just of guests, but employees too.
Standing on the steps in front of the pavilion Pepper can't believe the wreckage. The Expo had been beautiful and bright and it was reduced to broken glass and charred concrete. She's one the phone with security when the drone nearest her starts to flash red and beep. But by the time it fully registers what's going to happen Tony is barreling straight towards her and wraps an arm around her waist. She barely has a chance to take a breath before they are off the ground and hurtling into the sky. She can't see the explosions because she can't open her eyes but she can hear them coming from all sides and she can feel the heat of the flames licking at her legs and the soles of her shoes. She can't breathe, think, or scream and all she can do is hold on to Tony hope they don't die.
On the roof Pepper knows they talk. There's banter and even a kiss and she's glad Rhodey is alive and safe because that's how it is with family. You may want to kick their ass but you don't want anyone to hurt them. Others aren't going to be so lucky. Pepper's not a genius but she's good with numbers. There are people dead and people wounded and there's more than just the remains of Howard Stark's dreams beneath the pavilions.
When Pepper tells Tony that her body literally can't handle the stress she's only exaggerating slightly. It feels like she's drowning and every time she kicks her way to the surface again she only has time to take a single breath before being pushed under. She says she quits. But she won't. There's still work to do and it's not in her to leave it unfinished so when she gets back to the house, Pepper showers, changes and goes in search of Tony because she's not ready to stop kicking yet.