#resckue

all the while thoughts of tony's offer dancing within her head.

The little gala wasn't all that long ago. Tony made a brief but shellshocking appearance that seemed to have annoyed Tarleton if the way the man had been questioning his capabilities and designs-- And the armed militia of guys that they had attacked the new MetLife headquarters.

Thankfully, no loss of life.

In part? That may have had something to do with that project he had been testing out. The one that stood now at that staggering six and a half feet tall, having just shaken off bullets and rocket launcher fire. Tony would never be so forward as to show up on the doorstep of AIM without reason. The lab and their armed guards were not quite the kind that could have been prepared for the IM mk. 12.

"Oh- Hello again, Pepper." Towering, stomping through the doorway, his faceplate lifting to expose Tony's face beneath.

pepper has had them destroyed.

nice tux, by the way.

A grin touches the edges of his lips, though he tried to fight it. The compliment straightens his spine subtly while a flat palm runs over the front of the jacket. With a little play-self awareness, he exaggerates a little pose and stretches his leg out.

"Yeah? You don't think it makes me look too puffy?" Backs of his fingers press against his jawline. Auburn eyes sparkle as his gaze turns on her in turn. Not as chastely as he was going to pretend. They were still just business partners. This thing he was feeling? Couldn't exist, couldn't happen.

a minute ago you were dead!

"If you wanna get technical? My heart stopped, but my brain still functioned!"

The faceplate is lifted, his half prone form hunched over itself. The armor weighed about as much as an Abrams, so there wasn't much in the way of movement until some of the other systems came online. The built in defibrillator had used the last little bit of auxiliary power, what hadn't been used for that kept his other organs in stasis so he didn't go into shock. Reinforce the chest plate for future use, thicker lines of the minimal Adamantium brace-- He'd have to cut the extra weight somewhere though.

"But hey! I'm here! I'm alive, we're good!" Somewhere in the distance, a small canister bursts, one of the final bits of collateral from the former fight. AIM invading had been expected, he hoped that they got everyone out safely. What she was doing here was--

liked for a starter

i don't even celebrate my birthday. no one cares.

Most of the time, he thinks about how his parents, even his mom, were usually too busy to give him proper gifts. It was often an endeavor of making him pick something out himself, and them buying it for him. A grin pecks at the edges of his lips, leaning his head back to look over his shoulder at her while he works.

"If it makes you feel any better, my best ever birthday gift was something I bought for myself, so my track record for birthdays is about the same." Wasn't even tool related for once.