Heroes Assemble!

You Have My Word

"Excuse me, Miss Potts," the cultured voice of Jarvis said.

Looking up from her tablet, Pepper blinked, coming back to reality from the myriad of reports that she'd been reading, all to do with the running of Stark Industries.

"Yes, Jarvis?" she asked.

"The quinjet will be landing in five minutes," Jarvis informed her.

"It will? About time," she replied. "Thanks, Jarvis."

Without waiting for a reply, Pepper clicked off the pad before dropping it onto the top of her desk. As she rose, she instinctively flattened the front of her skirt before striding towards the door.

A short elevator ride later and she stepped out to see the landing deck of Avengers Tower across the room and out the glass doors. The deck itself wasn't large, but more than capable of accommodating a helicopter if needed, although its primary purpose was to berth the quinjet that was assigned the Tower.

A glint of metal off in the distance caught her attention and she smiled as she hustled across the room. It didn't take long for that far-off glint to resolve itself into the shape of the Avengers' quinjet. It banked hard before hovering just off the end of the deck, its stylized 'A' plain for all to see. Its manoeuvring thrusters fired, bringing it backwards, even as the tips of both wings folded up and in.

The instant that it touched down, servos built into the deck itself activated, quickly latching onto the wheels of the quinjet and drawing it backwards before locking it into place. As the turbines wound down to a stop, the rear ramp lowered and Pepper rushed forward.

"Pepper!" a beaming Tony exclaimed, his arms opened wide as he stood on the ramp.

"Tony!" Pepper exclaimed before bounding up the ramp to give him a great hug.

"Miss me?" Tony asked, his voice all playful. "Really, what am I saying? Of course, you missed me! Who wouldn't miss me?"

"Just this once, I'll admit that I did," she replied, before giving his cheek a lingering kiss.

It was only then, as she was pulling away, that movement over Tony's shoulder caught her attention and her eyes widened.

"Thor! You're back!" she exclaimed, pulling away from Tony to greet the tall, muscled man with a quick hug.

"It is pleasing to see you again as well, Lady Pepper," Thor laughed.

As she stepped back, Pepper took note of the remaining people in the quinjet. Harry, Clint and Matt were all expect. As was Peter, although his inclusion caused Pepper to frown. And then she saw the last one, attempting to stay hidden from view by keeping both Matt and Peter between them.

"Anthony Edward Stark!" she exclaimed, whirling about, her hands automatically settling on her hips. "What is the meaning of this? You took Doreen with you? It's bad enough that you took Peter out of school, but to take Doreen as well?"

"Hey, don't blame me, it's not like it was my idea," Tony replied, trying to defend himself. "She snuck on board. I didn't even know she was there until we were nearly in London."

Pepper stared at him, her eyes fierce, unblinking, making him visibly cringe away.

"Don't blame Tony, Pep," Doreen said, stepping forward, Monkey Joe riding in his usual place high on her shoulder. "I did sneak aboard without any of them knowing."

Pepper couldn't help but snort at that.

"Really? You really think that one of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s top spies couldn't detect you? Or Matt with his extraordinary hearing who can hear a heartbeat across the room? Or a full-on wizard?" she asked, shaking her head. "Maybe I should just ask Jarvis, hmm?"