Tony Stark (tonysastark) wrote in aafterthebattle, @ 2012-09-14 13:36:00 |
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Entry tags: | aurora watson, tony stark |
Who: Tony Stark and Aurora Watson
What: Tony shirks his responsibility for a drive up to Connecticut with Ms Watson
When: The day after Thor hands out the journals
Tony had been dealing with the Thor and Loki situation almost exclusively and decided he really needed a break. Maybe a night out on the town. He used J.A.R.V.I.S. to find the phone number of a certain businesswoman who had visited him before and decided to give her a call. He didn’t actually think she’d want to go out on the town with him, but he could pretend to care about the situation that had brought her to him the first time.
He dialled her number as soon as J.A.R.V.I.S. gave him the information and waited for her to answer. “Don’t be busy...” He murmured.
Aurora was in the middle of work when her phone rang with an unlisted number. Actually it wasn’t necessary work so much as tying up the loose ends that a certain director from some agency she wasn’t familiar with had sent her way. Generally she would send the call to voicemail, but she had a few calls recently that had been unusual that she decided to answer. “Hello...?”
Tony blinked when she actually answered and couldn’t help but grin. “Miss Watson! How are you doing? How are the mountain trolls treating you?” It surprised him a bit, but he was actually pleased to hear her voice, even if it was just hello.
Ah, Tony Stark. It didn’t surprise her to be speaking to him, really. He had enough resources that he could get her number easily enough, and it was her work number anyway. She smirked. “Mister Stark...” It took a moment to debate how to speak to him, but she decided quickly. “I’ve been avoiding them with the treatment I’ve gotten and assistance given to clean up the mess. How can I help you?”
“I was just wondering what you were up to... I need a break from everything and I thought you might too.” Hopefully.
“Everything like what?” She paused again, then added casually, “I’m stocking the bar in my hotel room with tea so it looks like I haven’t had anything.” The smirk almost crept into her voice, but she held it off just enough that it sounded a bit snarky.
Tony blinked, then grinned more. “You are? That’s pretty clever! I’ll have to try that next time.” He paused and cleared throat. “Privileged information, I’m afraid, but let’s just say I’m dealing with some frustration that doesn’t involve lawyers or money. Maybe I could take you to a nice place for dinner, or... you know. Whatever you’d like.”
“You have time to waste on me while you’re dealing with privileged information? That’s almost impressive.” She wasn’t sure what he was after, but she really didn’t think he wanted more than another woman on his arm. “What sort of time frame were you looking at, precisely?”
“Whenever you’re done with work, or if you’d like a break now...” He sighed a bit, “it’s not wasting time, Miss Watson, it’s getting to know you better.” Tony paused for a moment before continuing, “I’ll tell you more about J.A.R.V.I.S. if you’d like.”
Looking at the time, Aurora shrugged. She didn’t have anything until about 2 pm the next day, and she was still curious about that system of his. “I could find some time now, sure. Where?”
“Why don’t you let me pick you up? Where are you?”
“Really?” She smiled, letting it come across through the phone. “You mean you haven’t tracked me down with your superior positioning system? I’d have thought you would jump on that as soon as I answered.”
In all actuality, Tony had (well, J.A.R.V.I.S. had, technically), but he didn’t want to appear too desperate (or too much like a stalker), so instead he said, “oh, now, that’s no fun, is it? And it seems more like stalking than I’d like. Really, I just... I’d like to get to know you better. No womanizing, or playboy attitude. Promise.”
Her eyebrows lifted curiously. Did he mean that? It sounded unusual for this leopard to change his spots, but one meeting together might tell all. “Ah ha... Well, I’m in the Waldorf-Astoria, and I can meet you in the lobby if you like. You’re what...five minutes away?”
“Give or take, depending on how I drive.” His lips quirked, but he continued, “let’s say ten just to be safe. That way I can seem early. Don’t stand me up, okay?”
“And give up the chance of seeing how you are without the womanizing playboy attitude? Never.” She nodded and cleared her throat. “Ten minutes, Tony.” With that, she hung up the phone and made her way to the elevator. She didn’t look at all like she had been working, and in fact could pass for a woman relaxing or heading out for a date.
He opened his mouth to say more, but he heard the silence and realized that she’d hung up on him. She hung up on me, he thought in slight surprise, but then he grinned. She was fun, he decided in that moment, and he wasn’t about to let that go without testing it. He practically ran to the elevator and demanded J.A.R.V.I.S. make it go faster so he could get to his garage. The temptation to use the suit was palpable, but he was already to one of his (many) cars and he wasn’t going to stop.
Tony jumped in and revved off quickly, not relaxing until he was in front of the Waldorf-Astoria. Six minutes. He sped, but the cops knew him by now and new where to send the tickets to. He smirked a bit, then hopped out of his car and went to the lobby, running a hand through his hair and clearing throat.
Aurora wasn’t about to look desperate by any means, so she was filling out a paper at the concierge desk when he stepped inside. “You’ll have that delivered, won’t you?”
“Yes, Miss Watson. Of course,” the concierge replied as she slipped him a tip. “Right away.”
Turning around, she looked at her watch before glancing about as though she hadn’t seen Tony enter the lobby, and then walked toward his general direction.
Tony smirked a bit. He knew what game she was playing, and he found it rather amusing. He looked casual until she got close and then drawled, “oh excuse me? I believe I’m here to pick up a Miss Watson... Have you seen her around? It was important that I get here in less than ten minutes, and I did.”
“Why...I’m Miss Watson.” She looked at her phone even though there was a perfectly good and expensive watch on her wrist. “And you made it with a minute or two to spare.” She quirked an eyebrow and offered her hand. “Mister Stark, isn’t it? We’ve met once...”
He couldn’t help but laugh as he took her hand, shaking it firmly before offering his arm. “It’s Tony, actually. Shall we? My car is waiting.”
“And my name is Amelia,” she said, wondering if he would remember her first name as she took his arm. “What do you think we should do? Drive to the countryside of Connecticut or something?”
“That’s not right! You’re named after the southern borealis,” he proclaimed, smirking as he leaned over and murmured, “Aurora.” He grinned and led her to the car, opening the passenger door for her. “We could, if you’d like that.” He paused, then grinned a bit, “in fact, why don’t we? Let’s just... forget we’re important for a while and just drive.” He hopped back into the driver’s seat and looked at her, his expression one of amusement, though his eyes suggested he wouldn’t quite mind getting away from it all.
She got into the car easily and fastened her safety belt, nodding while closing the door. “Then let’s.” Anything that might actually prove he wasn’t trying to show off to her would be nice, and she was close to shutting off her phone anyway. “We should drive until your system decides we should do something else, perhaps...?”
“Eh... J.A.R.V.I.S. already thinks I should be back at the tower in case things go sideways.” He started the car, then headed the way he needed to to get them out of the city. “I ignore him sometimes. A lot of the time... He hates it.” Tony smirked and shook his head, then glanced at her curiously. “So you really want to know about J, huh?”
“He’s intriguing,” she admitted. “I’m not often intrigued, but that does. You even give him personality and he’s free roaming intelligence. It’s unique.” She brushed a wrinkle from her skirt and grinned softly. “I’m not going to steal him. I know he’s far too vast to even attempt to copy. I simply want to know the reason behind him...unless it’s only to feed your ego. If that’s it, I only want to know how he lasted so long.”
His lips quirked. “No... it’s not to feed my ego. He’s... well, his name stands for Just A Really Very Intelligent System, but he’s named after the family butler.” Tony wasn’t a fan of going on about his past, but somehow he knew her curiosity wouldn’t be sated with just that. “Jarvis was the only one who cared about me, and he was the only one I could talk to... So when he died... I built J.A.R.V.I.S. as a sort of memorial.” He shrugged. “Over the years I’ve rewritten his programming to give him more freedom and more personality so he could at least try to keep me in line. Or tell me when I’m being stupid about something.”
Tony smiled just a bit. “I guess it’s kind of crazy, but I can’t get rid of any of the machines I’ve built. They all have some sentimental meaning to me, and I consider J.A.R.V.I.S. as... well... a family member.”
She listened as he went on about the butler and found it somewhat endearing that he was actually so nostalgic. Clearing her throat softly, she nodded. “Well, that does make sense.” Here was a side of him she hadn’t expected to see. Her voice was soft as she continued. “Now he’s always with you...even if you sometimes wish he wasn’t, mm?”
He nodded, lips curling in amusement. “And he’s always awake.” Tony couldn’t help but laugh as he continued, “I remember once when I was pretty young, I woke up in the middle of the night wanting something stupid... milk, or ice cream, God only knows, and I wandered into Jarvis’ room to wake him up and he said, ‘really Mister Stark, you do not need milk at three in the morning!’ But I told him it was urgent... He fell asleep again pouring it.” Tony chuckled more, shaking his head. “Then he blamed me for spilling it. In fun, of course.” His voice quieted a bit as he continued, “he was always there for me...”
She felt a little bad snickering at his chuckle and the story, but it was amusing. After giving the quiet respectful moment for the once-living Jarvis, she brushed her hair back behind her ear. “There is always one person in life like that. At least he was there.” Aurora smirked lightly and looked at the road. “And now you’ll always have milk when you need it.” She took another moment before shrugging. “Anything is better than being depressed, though, don’t you think? Now you have limitless possibilities.”
Tony nodded, lips quirking. “I don’t do the whole depression thing anyway. When it gets close to that there’s always some emergency I have to go take care of, so I don’t have time to be depressed.” He glanced at her curiously, then looked back to the road. “So what was your childhood like? You and your brother get along, or are you like oil and water?”
Aurora smirked. Well, if he was sharing something, it was only fair that she did as well. This wasn’t the playboy womanizer she knew all about, so it wouldn’t hurt to take a chance. “Oil and water mostly, but in the sense that I’m the one carrying him. It wasn’t always like that, but when he went through a massive break up, it crippled him.” She shook her head and scoffed. “It’s almost ridiculous how much he relies on me, but at least I know he’s slightly capable of doing things on his own. He uses the bathroom like a grown up and dresses himself...and at least he has an assistant. Henry is considerably bright for a college boy.” She chuckled. She had to, because if she was removed from the situation, it really was amusing.
Tony couldn’t help but clear his throat a bit. Her brother sounded a lot like him and he wasn’t entirely happy about it. “Well... sometimes people become dependant without realizing it...” He thought of the issues he’d had with Pepper and shook his head. “I didn’t know my own social security number until Pepper left.” He shrugged, not willing to focus on that mess. “Now I’m more dependant on J.A.R.V.I.S. rather than another person... Which sounds sadder than it really is,” he smirked.
“It sounds like you decided to cut your dependency out of your life so you could be self sufficient. You created J.A.R.V.I.S. to assist you and here you are using your own creation for actual assistance and knowledge.” She smirked. “I only wish John could do that. He’s still figuring out his PDA.” After a pause, she grinned. “I’m still not sure he’s aware he has a social.” Another pause as she turned to look at him curiously. “So what changed?”
“What changed with what?” He wasn’t sure if she meant with Pepper, or with J.A.R.V.I.S. either way, he wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to answer, even if he did say he would discuss J.A.R.V.I.S. in more detail.
She shrugged. “What changed to make you want to be more independent? Pepper left or you wanted more freedom with J.A.R.V.I.S. and your creativity?” She wasn’t sure why she was prying apart from honest curiosity.
“Pepper left. I realized I had to take care of myself, but I get pretty preoccupied, so... I have J.A.R.V.I.S. there to help me. It’s not necessarily that I wanted to be independent, it’s that I had to become that way. It’s just... the way of life, you know.” He sped up a bit as they were finally out of the city and leaned back comfortably in his seat. “I just... need to figure out what I really need,” he finished lamely.
“That’s a cop out.” She said it matter-of-factly and shrugged, looking out the window as the trees looked much more pleasant. “You really just need to enjoy whatever you’re doing instead of looking for what you think you need. We’re going for a ride in the country, and where is your mind? On computers?”
“No... Actually it’s on... the idea that this is nice. And that I’m enjoying myself. You’re fun,” he grinned, glancing at her again before focusing on the road once more. “I like that you call me on my bullshit... And that I feel comfortable enough to be nostalgic around you. I’m really not like that... Most of the time.”
Aurora chuckled. She wasn’t used to being called ‘fun’ by any means, but she was used to people knowing that she called them on their bullshit. “And you’re not drunk or anything, are you? I know your preference for scotch and other great drinks. I just need to know if this seatbelt might not be enough for the ride.” She found herself winking at him, and instantly hated herself for it.
Tony smirked and shook his head. “Totally sober, promise. If I’m not I have a driver.” He paused a moment before continuing, “I’m not that irresponsible.” Now. But she didn’t need to know about that. He smirked again, “soon enough I’ll have J.A.R.V.I.S. driving my cars for me, just to be safe.”
“That would be an interesting adjustment to your cars.” Her phone beeped and she picked it up to smirk at the alert. “Mm, and you might want to be sure that doesn’t ruin your car’s warranty.” It took her a moment before she explained her phone’s alert. “There’s a sushi place nearby, unless you had other plans.”
“Warranty? Pft. I don’t care about those.” He paused and grinned a bit, “oh yeah? You want to go to the sushi place, then? I ask because I know a great fish place up in Connecticut... I mean, I like it, but it’s lady’s choice today.” He grinned a bit, relaxing more as he enjoyed the feeling of the wind in his hair. For some reason, the air in the country made him feel better.
“What is their specialty? And don’t say fish, because there are some specific dishes fish can be in that might be more of a specialty than fish and chips.” Looks at him curiously, thinking how surprisingly peaceful he appeared to be.
He laughed. “Well, uhhh... they make a mean tilapia and risotto... And by mean I mean awesome.” He shook his head with a grin, “honestly, you’d have to look at the menu. They do more than fish and chips though, I promise.”
She chuckled and shook her head. “That’s fine. I’ll trust you until you screw me over with lies or something. We’ll have mean fish. They deserve to die anyway, I think. Nice fish can live.”
He mock gasped and said, “what?! I would never do that. I might... not say stuff. Simply because... I don’t like worrying other people.” He shrugged a bit. “Probably not the best strategy, but that’s how I’ve always been.”
Her eyebrow rose a little. “You? Don’t like worrying other people? How does that work?”
“I... don’t talk about things. And I... well. Sometimes I lie. But it’s only because I’m trying to protect people.” He sighed. “I was dying... about a year or so ago... And I didn’t tell anyone because I didn’t want everyone worrying about me. Pretty much my whole life I’ve been an asshole and had everything handed to me. I guess now... I’m trying to make up for all that.” Tony shook his head a bit and frowned. “It’s why I’m so deep into clean energy now... why I became Iron Man...”
Aurora couldn't help but be surprised at how he was sharing, though she schooled her face to not show it. He was turning a new leaf over, so it seemed, and he didn't want to be an asshole...that much was certain. She figured there were two ways he had been close to dying, and perhaps that is what changed him.
"So you're something of a philanthropist hero with a former selfish playboy complex? Interesting mix. You intrigue me. Do people tell you that often?"
“No. Usually I’m called a selfish bastard.” His lips quirked just a bit. “And it’s still a little true... I guess because I like being recognized for my work. But I’m also egotistical. I admit it, at least, unlike a lot of people.” He slowed the car a bit when J.A.R.V.I.S. warned him about a police trap up ahead and his mouth twitched a bit. “I guess the best way to describe me is complicated. I’m trying to be a good guy, but old habits die hard sometimes...”
"And what do you want me to call you," she asked, smirking at the warning. "Complicated? Probably just Tony, I guess." Her phone rang and she sent it to voicemail, but instead of an alert to it, her phone rang again, making her sigh as she answered it. "Yes?" She was snippy at being interrupted and the pause that followed was filled with her pursing her lips. "Sell the assets and fire him... No, I don't think that's too harsh, he'll collect unemployment and go apply at the competitor. They'll hire him and suffer the consequences. Cut him now... Good... Yes I am. Leave a message next time."
She didn't end with goodbye, she simply hung up and breathed a sigh of relief. "No rest for the wicked."
Tony’s eyebrow quirked at the way she responded to the phone call, but then he figured he’d probably have responded the same way for being interrupted. Maybe not with firing whomever, but then again, he didn’t know the story (and he wasn’t about to ask. This trip wasn’t about business, it was about getting away from it).
“Maybe you should turn that off,” he suggested, lips quirking a bit. “We’re out here to have fun, after all,” he said with a glance to her before focusing on the road again. “Mine’s off, after all. Well, Jarvis can get through, but no one else. Oh, and yeah, I’d prefer if you’d call me Tony, but only if I can call you Aurora.”
"You have Jarvis; I don't have any assistance like that." She shook her head. "It was a little fun to get rid of a dead weight, but you're right. This is sort of a mini vacation." With that she silenced her phone and smiled lightly at him. "Certainly, Tony, I don't want you calling me Miss Watson...not that I think you would anyway."
She ran her fingers through her hair and rubbed her neck, removing a knot. It wasn't often she could relax, and she was surprised that she allowed herself that luxury, even if it was only temporary.
“Well, I could... I mean, if you really wanted me to. But I don’t think you do.” He smirked a bit. “Everyone around you calls you either Miss Watson, ma’am, boss, or some variation of those. Except maybe your brother. You need someone who isn’t going to fumble and bow to your every whim... Not that I’m going to be rude to you, but really, having someone treat you with respect while being their own person... It helps.” He paused a moment before clearing his throat, “not that I’d know anything about that or anything...” Save for the part where he totally did, of course.
She laughed. "Except you definitely do. How many people kiss your backside when you just wish they had told you how they really feel about you?"
“Well to be honest, I prefer the ass kissing,” he laughed a bit, then shook his head once more. “But that’s where my friend Rhodey comes in. He tells it to me like it is, which I may not like, but it’s necessary. I’d probably have an even bigger ego if he didn’t keep me in line.” He paused for a time before continuing a bit more quietly, “I think being Iron Man helps with that, too. I come across as a hot shot and act like I don’t play well with others, but after losing... a friend...” Tony’s lips pursed just a bit as he thought not only of Yinsen, but of Coulson as well, and he had to clear his throat to continue, “Well... There are more important things than being all flash and ego...”
"You're coming across as more than two dimensional right now, Tony. Should I keep your reputation secret?"
He smirked. “I’d appreciate it. No one really needs to know I’m a pushover. Imagine how bad corporate takeovers would start going!” He took a deep breath and sighed, relaxing a bit more. He really hadn’t planned on telling Aurora so much about himself, and he very nearly wondered if he was getting played as she hadn’t really given much information about herself -- a thought that caused him to immediately tense up again.
“So... I’ve been going on and on about me... What about you? Did you always want to be part of a corporation, or did you have plans like being a world class ballerina or Olympian when you were a kid?”
There it was, the question thread about her now. She smiled. "I actually wanted to be an animal handler when I was younger. Anything dangerous, really. I liked taking control of situations even as a girl. John saw it when I trained our dog to purr, but he couldn't get the dog to stop piddling on his shoes. He bit my brother often." She shook her head, "I miss that dog."
“You... wait, how do dogs purr??” Tony, admittedly, didn’t know very much about animals at all. He had never owned any, and as far as he was concerned, his machines were his pets and they were better than live ones because they didn’t make messes. Still, he was pretty sure that cats were the ones that purred, not dogs.
She smiled more, clearly rather proud of herself. "They have the capability, they just don't tend to purr often. You really have to work at it, especially when their instinct is to whimper as our dog's was." Aurora shook her head. "It doesn't matter anyway. I just knew I would have to do something that gave me the ability to teach...or train." She paused. "Perhaps to rear, really. It's all the same."
Tony was still confused about managing to make a dog purr, but the idea that she may have actually managed that was... sort of scary. Especially as it wasn’t really in a dog’s nature (or, well, he assumed it wasn’t).
“That’s... huh.” He was rather bemused, the more he thought about it, and he grinned a bit. “What got you interested in technology, then? I mean, why aren’t you off in Africa teaching lions to talk or something?”
"Interestingly enough, a summer course I took in elementary school...it showed me a different way to train and that people were more complex than animals. Teaching a dog to purr is harder than training a human to use their resources, yet easier than reminding humans to use common sense. Tragic, really."
Tony smirked. “Well, I think if everyone used common sense there wouldn’t be a need for me, and that would be truly tragic.” He once again slowed the car as they got to the restaurant he’d mentioned, and he was rather surprised they’d gotten there so quickly.
“Huh, so time does fly when you’re having fun.” He smirked a bit and parked, then hopped out of the car and walked around to get her door for her. “Shall we?” Tony grinned boyishly and offered his hand to her.
She was barely at undoing her seatbelt when he had gotten to her door. It was sweet the way he acted, and she smiled at him, taking his hand to stand up. "Thank you." Once she stood, she brushed her skirt off, then took his arm. "Let's eat some mean fish," she smirked.
“Just don’t train them to purr or anything,” he said with a wink, opening the door to allow her to enter into the restaurant ahead of him.