ficlets: tony&river
May. 22nd, 2008 12:48 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
amezriMore Iron Man/Firefly ficlets. They take place in the same 'verse, but not sure about the timeline. These I didn't read over again, really.. just typing up what I'd scribbled down on paper. Plus, it's late. So, sorry for any mistakes.
-----
Formulas and Coffee
The silence of the room is only occasionally broken by the slight fluttering of paper as River grabs another sheet. The solution evades her; the variables are wrong. No, not wrong -- missing. "Looking glass." She scribbles down numbers and symbols. "Down the rabbit hole." She puts the pencil in her mouth and looks at the paper in front of her, already nearly full. "Incomplete. Find the rabbit, solve for distance traveled." River reaches over and grabs a clean sheet of paper to continue her calculations.
Stark sits on his couch, watching her with keen interest. It had been nearly two hours since River had bounded in, asking him for pen and paper. He smiles slightly as he remembers how she'd snatched them out of his hands before plopping down on the carpet and laying everything out on his coffee table. He understands some of what she's writing -- quantum mechanics and astrophysics -- but while he's pretty good with numbers, this is a bit beyond him.
"Too far, not ready," the girl says. He's never sure if she's talking to him or to herself, so he doesn't respond. "Out of leaves," she says as she crumples up a piece of paper. "The tea party has gone mad." River throws the wad of paper over her shoulder and takes a new one.
Neither of them knows how she arrived. One minute Tony was in his workshop alone and the next, he was faced with a panicked, slightly crazy girl who was screaming and freaking out. Lately, Stark's developed a soft spot for damsels in distress, so he's let her stay in his house. He had asked Pepper to go out and buy the girl some new clothes and whatever else it was that girls needed.
"Take her offering," River says suddenly. "She tires of holding it."
Tony just stares. Was she talking to him or just babbling again?
River turns around. The look on her face is one she's given her brother countless times; the one that says, "you're an idiot." What she says out loud is, "Miss Potts has your coffee. It's getting cold."
He turns and finally notices Pepper standing to the side, a mug of what was once piping hot coffee in her hands. She smiles at him as she hands it over. "I didn't want to interrupt."
Nodding his thanks, he takes a sip. "How long have you been standing there?"
"Not long," Pepper shrugs. "A few minutes."
"Twelve minutes and twenty-three seconds," River says, still focused on her equations.
"Oh," is all Tony can say.
Pepper shifts on her feet, ready to leave now that her job is done. "Will that be all, Mr. Stark?"
Tony looks at her for a second before sliding over on the couch. "Have a seat, Miss Potts."
She opens her mouth to protest, but finding no excuses this time, she slides into the seat.
River smiles to herself and assigns variables to the tin man and his companion.
-----
Bullet Holes
"Are those bullet holes?" Pepper shouts. "Again!"
"Yes, again," Tony grunts as River helps him into the exam chair.
"You were going shopping!" Pepper fumes. "This is why we don't let you out of the house on your own." She hates it when he goes off in his suit and she hates when he gets shot at while he's on one of his missions. This is the worst of all, though -- people taking shots at him when he's just... him. Just Tony Stark.
River, meanwhile, works quickly. She's removed his shirt and reaches over for the instrument tray. She wouldn't ever be the doctor Simon was, but she had the medical knowledge and that would have to be enough. "He doesn't listen," she says as she gets ready to take the bullet out.
"No, he never listens," Pepper agrees. "What did he not listen to this time?"
"Nothing!" Tony tries to wave it off, impeded by the fact that his arm currently has a bullet lodged in it, so moving isn't really the best feeling ever.
"The girl gave him a warning. He ignored her." River huffs, trying to dig out the bullet.
"Hey!" he shouts defensively. "How was I supposed to know? You're always babbling to yourself-- ow!" She'd pressed in a bit harder than necessary. If he didn't know any better, he'd say she was doing it on purpose. "What're you doing, digging for gold?"
River sticks her tongue out at him as she extracts the bullet, dropping it on the tray with a clang.
------
Home Invasion
Mr. Stark had asked her to stay in and look after River while he went out for a spin. One of Tony's late night spins these days usually involved a gold and red suit and getting shot at. She's starting to worry about how late he is; he probably found some trouble and was playing superhero again.
"Not playing," River says.
"It really creeps me out when you do that," Pepper says, suddenly wishing she were elsewhere.
River is still focused on the television, flipping through the channels. "Can't be helped. Your thoughts are loud." She turns to look at Pepper. "Don't worry, he's unharmed. Tin man won't get in trouble tonight."
Surprisingly, that does make Pepper feel a little better. She still can't shake the feeling that something is wrong, though.
The two sit in silence for some time after that, River continuing to flip through the channels. Pepper is just about to suggest heading to bed when the younger girl suddenly gets to her feet. She opens her mouth to speak, but River cuts her off with a gesture.
"Quiet. They're coming. Heads full of noise." River grabs Pepper's hand and runs across the room, leading them down the stairs to Stark's workshop. She punches in the security code, making Pepper wonder how she knew it. "Not important," River says as she pushes Pepper into the room before shutting the door. "Jarvis, don't let her out."
"Yes, Miss Tam," the AI responds.
"River!" Pepper screams, pounding on the door. "What are you doing? Let me out!"
The girl shakes her head. "Have to keep her safe for him," she says with conviction. In a whirl of dark hair, she heads back up the stairs.
Pepper growls in frustration and pounds on the door one more time. What the hell was going on and why was Jarvis taking orders from her? "Jarvis, tell Tony to get back here, please."
"He's already on his way," Jarvis responds.
"Great," she mutters. The girl had completely lost it and she was stuck down here while River was upstairs doing god knows what.
Moments later, she can hear the faint whine of the suit's engines. She sighs in relief and heads towards the garage to meet Tony. By the time she reaches him, he's already got half the suit off.
"Okay, guys, watch the finish this time," he says to his robots. He looks up and sees Pepper. The smile on his face falls as he sees the distress she's in. "Pepper, what's the matter?" With the final pieces removed, he steps off the platform towards her.
"I don't know. Everything was fine and then suddenly River drags me down here and locks the door!"
"Jarvis," Tony calls out, "is River still on the property?"
"Yes, sir."
"Show me." Tony leads Pepper over to one of the monitors in the work area. Beside him, Pepper gasps at the sight. A dozen men, all dressed in typical up-to-no-good black, are circling the girl. Tony's impressed with how calm she's being, even as some of the men pull out swords and knives.
Seeing some of the men advance towards River, Pepper is moved to action. "What are you doing, Tony? We have to get up there and help her!"
"No, I think she'll be all right," he says calmly as he continues to watch the screen.
Positively livid, Pepper can't imagine what's "all right" about a young girl fighting... what are they, ninjas?
Tony is curious to see what the girl's skills really are. They'd had a couple sparring sessions and those usually ended up with him getting his ass handed to him. The worst part was that he knew she was holding back. Way back. Being too busy getting his face mashed into the mats, he's never seen her fight from this angle before. River is all fluid lines and graceful movements. Not a single motion is wasted energy. It was beautiful to watch, like a strange and violent dance.
Watching the battle unfold on screen, Pepper can't believe that River is defeating all of those men so quickly and making it look effortless. She grips Tony's arm without even realizing she's doing it. She feels him pat her hand reassuringly.
When River has taken care of the last intruder, Tony turns and smiles at Pepper. "Come on, Miss Potts, let's go have a chat with our little assassin." He leads the way to the door and finds... that it's locked and won't open. "Jarvis, unlock the door."
"I'm sorry, sir. Miss Tam told me not to let Miss Potts out of this room."
"Yeah, okay," Tony scowls. "That's awesome, but I'm here now, so unlock the door. And since when do you take orders from 'Miss Tam' anyway?"
Before Jarvis can formulate a reply, River is at the door, opening it to let them out. "Not nice, Jarvis. Didn't say to disobey the tin man."
Seeing the small patches of blood spray on the girl's clothes, Pepper nearly steps back, but Tony's hand is still holding hers and it keeps her in place.
"The threat has been neutralized," River says, sounding too much like a soldier. "Suggest effecting clean up immediately before they leave stains." She pauses, tilting her head to the side. "Your security measures are inadequate."
Pepper is unable to keep quiet any longer, the shock having worn off a bit. "River, how did you... where did you..."
Tony tenses. He's asked her about her training before and the replies were never pleasant. Whatever made her who she was, was done to her; it wasn't something that she'd asked for.
"Academy," River replies in a quiet voice. "Tried to make me not real, not a girl. Better now... since Miranda." She looks at Tony then. "Kept her safe. Protected the den."
"Yes, you did. Thank you," Tony says with a genuine smile.
River nods. She is thinking about Miranda now and all the things they lost there. It's only for an instant, though, and the moment quickly passes. River is suddenly bouncing on the balls of her feet like an impatient child. "Going to use your source box now!" She giggles and runs off, heading for Tony's office.
"Change your clothes first!" Tony shouts after her. He really didn't want to have bloodstains on his ridiculously expensive office chair.
-----
Formulas and Coffee
The silence of the room is only occasionally broken by the slight fluttering of paper as River grabs another sheet. The solution evades her; the variables are wrong. No, not wrong -- missing. "Looking glass." She scribbles down numbers and symbols. "Down the rabbit hole." She puts the pencil in her mouth and looks at the paper in front of her, already nearly full. "Incomplete. Find the rabbit, solve for distance traveled." River reaches over and grabs a clean sheet of paper to continue her calculations.
Stark sits on his couch, watching her with keen interest. It had been nearly two hours since River had bounded in, asking him for pen and paper. He smiles slightly as he remembers how she'd snatched them out of his hands before plopping down on the carpet and laying everything out on his coffee table. He understands some of what she's writing -- quantum mechanics and astrophysics -- but while he's pretty good with numbers, this is a bit beyond him.
"Too far, not ready," the girl says. He's never sure if she's talking to him or to herself, so he doesn't respond. "Out of leaves," she says as she crumples up a piece of paper. "The tea party has gone mad." River throws the wad of paper over her shoulder and takes a new one.
Neither of them knows how she arrived. One minute Tony was in his workshop alone and the next, he was faced with a panicked, slightly crazy girl who was screaming and freaking out. Lately, Stark's developed a soft spot for damsels in distress, so he's let her stay in his house. He had asked Pepper to go out and buy the girl some new clothes and whatever else it was that girls needed.
"Take her offering," River says suddenly. "She tires of holding it."
Tony just stares. Was she talking to him or just babbling again?
River turns around. The look on her face is one she's given her brother countless times; the one that says, "you're an idiot." What she says out loud is, "Miss Potts has your coffee. It's getting cold."
He turns and finally notices Pepper standing to the side, a mug of what was once piping hot coffee in her hands. She smiles at him as she hands it over. "I didn't want to interrupt."
Nodding his thanks, he takes a sip. "How long have you been standing there?"
"Not long," Pepper shrugs. "A few minutes."
"Twelve minutes and twenty-three seconds," River says, still focused on her equations.
"Oh," is all Tony can say.
Pepper shifts on her feet, ready to leave now that her job is done. "Will that be all, Mr. Stark?"
Tony looks at her for a second before sliding over on the couch. "Have a seat, Miss Potts."
She opens her mouth to protest, but finding no excuses this time, she slides into the seat.
River smiles to herself and assigns variables to the tin man and his companion.
-----
Bullet Holes
"Are those bullet holes?" Pepper shouts. "Again!"
"Yes, again," Tony grunts as River helps him into the exam chair.
"You were going shopping!" Pepper fumes. "This is why we don't let you out of the house on your own." She hates it when he goes off in his suit and she hates when he gets shot at while he's on one of his missions. This is the worst of all, though -- people taking shots at him when he's just... him. Just Tony Stark.
River, meanwhile, works quickly. She's removed his shirt and reaches over for the instrument tray. She wouldn't ever be the doctor Simon was, but she had the medical knowledge and that would have to be enough. "He doesn't listen," she says as she gets ready to take the bullet out.
"No, he never listens," Pepper agrees. "What did he not listen to this time?"
"Nothing!" Tony tries to wave it off, impeded by the fact that his arm currently has a bullet lodged in it, so moving isn't really the best feeling ever.
"The girl gave him a warning. He ignored her." River huffs, trying to dig out the bullet.
"Hey!" he shouts defensively. "How was I supposed to know? You're always babbling to yourself-- ow!" She'd pressed in a bit harder than necessary. If he didn't know any better, he'd say she was doing it on purpose. "What're you doing, digging for gold?"
River sticks her tongue out at him as she extracts the bullet, dropping it on the tray with a clang.
------
Home Invasion
Mr. Stark had asked her to stay in and look after River while he went out for a spin. One of Tony's late night spins these days usually involved a gold and red suit and getting shot at. She's starting to worry about how late he is; he probably found some trouble and was playing superhero again.
"Not playing," River says.
"It really creeps me out when you do that," Pepper says, suddenly wishing she were elsewhere.
River is still focused on the television, flipping through the channels. "Can't be helped. Your thoughts are loud." She turns to look at Pepper. "Don't worry, he's unharmed. Tin man won't get in trouble tonight."
Surprisingly, that does make Pepper feel a little better. She still can't shake the feeling that something is wrong, though.
The two sit in silence for some time after that, River continuing to flip through the channels. Pepper is just about to suggest heading to bed when the younger girl suddenly gets to her feet. She opens her mouth to speak, but River cuts her off with a gesture.
"Quiet. They're coming. Heads full of noise." River grabs Pepper's hand and runs across the room, leading them down the stairs to Stark's workshop. She punches in the security code, making Pepper wonder how she knew it. "Not important," River says as she pushes Pepper into the room before shutting the door. "Jarvis, don't let her out."
"Yes, Miss Tam," the AI responds.
"River!" Pepper screams, pounding on the door. "What are you doing? Let me out!"
The girl shakes her head. "Have to keep her safe for him," she says with conviction. In a whirl of dark hair, she heads back up the stairs.
Pepper growls in frustration and pounds on the door one more time. What the hell was going on and why was Jarvis taking orders from her? "Jarvis, tell Tony to get back here, please."
"He's already on his way," Jarvis responds.
"Great," she mutters. The girl had completely lost it and she was stuck down here while River was upstairs doing god knows what.
Moments later, she can hear the faint whine of the suit's engines. She sighs in relief and heads towards the garage to meet Tony. By the time she reaches him, he's already got half the suit off.
"Okay, guys, watch the finish this time," he says to his robots. He looks up and sees Pepper. The smile on his face falls as he sees the distress she's in. "Pepper, what's the matter?" With the final pieces removed, he steps off the platform towards her.
"I don't know. Everything was fine and then suddenly River drags me down here and locks the door!"
"Jarvis," Tony calls out, "is River still on the property?"
"Yes, sir."
"Show me." Tony leads Pepper over to one of the monitors in the work area. Beside him, Pepper gasps at the sight. A dozen men, all dressed in typical up-to-no-good black, are circling the girl. Tony's impressed with how calm she's being, even as some of the men pull out swords and knives.
Seeing some of the men advance towards River, Pepper is moved to action. "What are you doing, Tony? We have to get up there and help her!"
"No, I think she'll be all right," he says calmly as he continues to watch the screen.
Positively livid, Pepper can't imagine what's "all right" about a young girl fighting... what are they, ninjas?
Tony is curious to see what the girl's skills really are. They'd had a couple sparring sessions and those usually ended up with him getting his ass handed to him. The worst part was that he knew she was holding back. Way back. Being too busy getting his face mashed into the mats, he's never seen her fight from this angle before. River is all fluid lines and graceful movements. Not a single motion is wasted energy. It was beautiful to watch, like a strange and violent dance.
Watching the battle unfold on screen, Pepper can't believe that River is defeating all of those men so quickly and making it look effortless. She grips Tony's arm without even realizing she's doing it. She feels him pat her hand reassuringly.
When River has taken care of the last intruder, Tony turns and smiles at Pepper. "Come on, Miss Potts, let's go have a chat with our little assassin." He leads the way to the door and finds... that it's locked and won't open. "Jarvis, unlock the door."
"I'm sorry, sir. Miss Tam told me not to let Miss Potts out of this room."
"Yeah, okay," Tony scowls. "That's awesome, but I'm here now, so unlock the door. And since when do you take orders from 'Miss Tam' anyway?"
Before Jarvis can formulate a reply, River is at the door, opening it to let them out. "Not nice, Jarvis. Didn't say to disobey the tin man."
Seeing the small patches of blood spray on the girl's clothes, Pepper nearly steps back, but Tony's hand is still holding hers and it keeps her in place.
"The threat has been neutralized," River says, sounding too much like a soldier. "Suggest effecting clean up immediately before they leave stains." She pauses, tilting her head to the side. "Your security measures are inadequate."
Pepper is unable to keep quiet any longer, the shock having worn off a bit. "River, how did you... where did you..."
Tony tenses. He's asked her about her training before and the replies were never pleasant. Whatever made her who she was, was done to her; it wasn't something that she'd asked for.
"Academy," River replies in a quiet voice. "Tried to make me not real, not a girl. Better now... since Miranda." She looks at Tony then. "Kept her safe. Protected the den."
"Yes, you did. Thank you," Tony says with a genuine smile.
River nods. She is thinking about Miranda now and all the things they lost there. It's only for an instant, though, and the moment quickly passes. River is suddenly bouncing on the balls of her feet like an impatient child. "Going to use your source box now!" She giggles and runs off, heading for Tony's office.
"Change your clothes first!" Tony shouts after her. He really didn't want to have bloodstains on his ridiculously expensive office chair.
