Cassidy Scott-Stark

All But One

You're usually fine with all horror movies, but Christ was this one boring. Without realizing, you and Loki fell asleep during the movie. 

You begin to stir, after feeling a piece of your hair being moved from in front of your face to behind your ear. As your eyes open slowly, you see Loki looking down at you. Now you realize that you've been sleeping on his shoulder. 

"Sorry, I did not mean to wake you. You happened to look very peaceful, minus that one piece of hair," Loki says with a small smile. 

"Don't worry about it. Sorry for falling asleep on you. Must have been a very entertaining movie if this is how we wound up," you say causing both of you to laugh. 

"It's already 7am, and as much as I would prefer this current position, others will be waking or entering this room soon." Loki's eyes are still locked on yours, as his hand that is naturally wrapped around your shoulders begins rubbing your upper arm.

Out of habit, you bury your head further into Loki's shoulder, "Ughhhh think we can just take a "sick" day?" 

Instead of from Loki, you get an answer from the kitchen, "Doubtful, but nice try." Your eyes widen when you recognize the voice is Tony's.

You and Loki turn your heads to the kitchen, to see Tony, Nat, and Steve. 

"Good morning, by the way," Tony says as he takes a fork-full of waffles. 

"Uh....hi. How long exactly have you....." you begin to say but are cut off by Nat, "Long enough for Netflix to ask 4 times if you're still watching," she says with a knowing grin plastered on her face. 

"Right, well...." you're at a loss for words, but then Steve chimes in, "Relax, we talked your dad out of waking you both by putting the TV at top volume, with surround sound." 

Loki had gotten up, and is walking back with some tea in hand for you and himself. 

"So are you two...?" Nat takes a sip from her coffee and points between you and Loki.

You both exchange a look, "We're making amends," Loki answers. You nod and take a sip of your tea, "Yes, that. This is really good, by the way."

Loki smiles sitting back down next to you, "Of course it is, love."

As you were drinking your tea, Tony stepped out to take a phone call. 

"I think we need a shopping day," Nat comes over to you.

"Absolutely! After training and lunch?" You put your mug down and Nat nods. She heads off to train, but is stopped by Tony as he reenters the main room.

"Suit up and pack a bag. We have a mission," Tony says in one of the more serious tones you've heard on him since moving in. 

"Pack a bag?" Steve questions from the kitchen. The look of worry on Tony's face, added to how he had said that last sentence, immediately sends everyone to pack.

You start to walk away and pack yourself, but your dad stops you. "You're sitting this one out, kid," Tony says. 

"What? Why?" You know you're not a fighter per say, but you're helpful nonetheless on missions. 

"We've dealt with this group before. This isn't going to be easy, and I can't risk anything happening to you," He puts his hands on both of your shoulders.

"But I can help! My powers....." you try to talk him into letting you go even though you know it won't work. 

"Are very good, and we can....I can, always count on you. However, I need you here, safe, with Pepper," Tony pulls you into a hug before hurrying off to prepare himself.

About 30 minutes later, the whole team is ready to head out. You and Pepper hug Tony goodbye, and your eyes meet Loki's before the elevator closes and they're gone. 

The next day, you and Pepper are watching the news, when word about the mission begins to stream. You see footage of Tony flying in the air, while the others are on the ground fighting. You turn your head to Pepper, whose eyes are filling with concern. The temptation to simply turn off the TV is strong, but you know that would do zero good for either of you.

Whatever town they're in is damaged quite a bit, cars, buildings, fires, debris on the ground. "It's alright; they've got this," you try to say with confidence to reassure Pepper, and yourself.

As you're watching, a surge of energy goes through the ground, knocking everyone on the team over, including whoever it is that they're fighting. With that, the camera feed cuts for a few seconds, and you hold your breath.

A news reporter comes on the TV screen next, "We have confirmation of Iron Man still in the air. Casualties are still not determined, but expected."

Pepper pulls you into a hug, which thankfully hides the fear on your face. 

JARVIS booms through the compound, "Incoming call from Mr. Stark."

"Pepper? Cass?" You then hear Tony's voice coming through a bit garbled. 

"Thank god!" Pepper releases from the hug, but still tightly holds your hand. 

"We're on the jet heading back. We'll be there in a few hours," Tony says. You can tell he's out of breath, but it's still the most welcoming sound you can hear. Before either of you can reply, the call drops and the longest wait begins.

You and Pepper decide to make some cheeseburgers for when the team returns, getting your mind off of the whole situation and what you've seen on the news.

Just when you're about done, the elevator opens and you both see Tony. Pepper runs up and hugs him. Even having been in the Iron Man suit, his face is cut up, and his arm is in a sling. 

"Come on, Cass," Tony beckons you to him. You slowly walk-up to him, before throwing your arms around him as well. You feel him hug you tighter, and you notice the rest of the team begin to enter the compound as well. Most are in the same state as Tony. Everyone looks exhausted, beaten, and defeated. Then you see Thor.

You turn from his gaze, back to your dad, releasing him from the hug, "Dad, where's Loki?"

No one says a word, but you can read their eyes. "No......"

You can hear a pin drop in the room, "Wh-when the energy surge happened, one of the aliens came from behind Loki....." Tony begins, never taking his eyes off of you. 

It feels like someone has opened your chest, and is using tweezers to pull off pieces of your heart, one by one, "No....no, no, no......." It's as if that's the only word left in your vocabulary, and you're stuttering as tears fill your eyes.

"We did everything we could on the way home, but I'm so sorry....." Bruce explains from a few feet away. You can hear everything being said, but you cannot look in anyone's direction. Your body now fails you and you fall into Tony's arms. The voices of everyone around you are there, but it's as if you're under water. Everything goes dark as you grip onto Tony's shirt.

"Cassidy? Cass, please open your eyes," You hear a voice like an echo, but you're still crying and can feel as though you're still in Tony's embrace.