2013.04.03 - Don't Share with Tony

The Stark Industries main offices are on the middle floors of the Tower, and Pepper's on the twenty third floor. From the outside, it's clear that her office is one of the few with the lights still on at this late hour, but even though the majority of the building is empty, the lobby's security is still in place, just like at the Baxter. 
"JARVIS, what do I have left on my schedule for today?"
"One interview, Miss Potts. With Agent Coulson of SHIELD."
Pepper looks up from her computer at that. "When?"
"In ten minutes, Miss Potts."
The relationship between Stark Enterprises and SHIELD, however is considerably closer than relationships with the Baxter Building. Like times in the past, Agent Coulson has little difficulty navigating the building's security set up. He's already come up and is actually waiting in the lobby, answering an email on his Blackberry.
He's keeping an eye on the time, he knows that Pepper is busy. If not busy squared. He's seated on the couch, next to a plain white box filled with several delicious cannoli, freshly fetched from Mama Anita's in the Bronx.
Jarvis states for Pepper, "Agent Coulson is waiting for you now Ma'am. He's early. Shall I invite him in or would you prefer he wait?" His precise, melodious British tones fill Pepper's office.
Pepper Potts locks her computer's screen and clears her desk of any paper work spread out on it. "Invite him in, JARVIS. Why didn't you tell me he was already here?"
Jarvis deadpans, "You did not ask, Miss Potts. Unlocking your door now."
In the secretary's room outside Pepper's office, Jarvis announces, "Miss Potts will see you now, Agent Coulson." He stands and gather's the box to his side and says, "Thank you, Jarvis." He doesn't know it, but he feels that Jarvis is at least a little on his side due to his civility. He approaches the door and opens it, stepping into the immaculate, spacious office. His first view is of the skyline of Manhattan, and his second, Pepper herself. He gives her a big smile. "Pepper, so good to see you again." He approaches her desk with his gift of cannoli. "I have found something you'll want to know about, these may be the best in the city..."
Pepper Potts stands from her desk and steps around it as Coulson enters her office. "Phil, how are you?" She looks at the box, then detours to a side cabinet in the room, opening one of the opaque doors and pulling out plates and silverware. Real ones, not paper plates and plastic. "Really. What are they and where did you get them?" The sideboard appears to be set up as a minibar or something of the sort, because a second door reveals beverage containers of every imaginable sort ... except the souvenir variety. "What would you like to go with them, water, tea, coffee?"
Phil Coulson smiles. "They go great with Tea, coffee or cocoa. How about Tea? I'm not picky as to what kind. They're cannoli from a place called Mama Anita's. Traditional, but with a little bit of a twist. They do a mix of ricotta and mascarpone, and it's flavored with orange water and a little cinnamon. They include chocolate chips in the cream, and dip one end entirely in chocolate, and roll it in crushed hazelnuts." He opens the box revealing four of the classic looking Sicilian pastries in little paper wrappers. "They're simply divine. Don't share with Tony, these are just for you and me."
Pepper Potts glances back at Phil and raises her eyebrows at the cannolis before pulling down two tea cups (not coffee mugs) and filling a small electric kettle from a water carafe. "They sound absolutely evil. JARVIS, please don't let Tony know that I'm eating dessert without him." She starts the kettle to heating the water, then prepares two open-ended paper filters with black tea leaves from an unmarked metal tin. "So, I'm guessing you didn't ask to meet with me solely because you wanted to share those cannolis."
Jarvis intones, "So noted, Miss Potts." Phil chuckles. "Of course not. If that was the only reason, I'd have just sent you a box." He takes two cannoli out of the box and puts one on each small plate, then closes the box. He knows Pepper, if she had more than one right now she'd probably disparage herself for going off her diet.
"No, I'm here to talk to you about that thing with the Kryptonians, or clone Kryptonians, whatever it was. When Superman was subdued. Captured. I understand you were one of the first people to get the word out of what was really happening." He offers Pepper her plate of divine goodness.
Pepper Potts ahs and takes the plate, setting it at the small table taking up another corner of her office, one she actually had brought in just a few weeks ago because working lunches and even working dinners are becoming the norm. "I should have guessed that. Do you want me to begin at the beginning?
The Agent takes a bite of his cannoli and sighs wistfully. "If you don't mind. The tech boys at HQ wanted to hack Jarvis but I told them it wouldn't be necessary." He gathers up his own plate and sets it down opposite Pepper's plate and takes a seat on the sleek, modern chair. "Just tell me what happened and I'll try and save my questions till the end." He takes a bite of the cannoli and grins for a moment, before watching Pepper and turning his listening on.
Pepper Potts smiles. "I can tell you, or I can have JARVIS email you recordings and transcripts." The kettle starts to boil and clicks off. Filling both cups through the open-ended filters supported on the edges of the cups by thin sticks, she carries the cups over to the table and sits. "Though, I suspect there are a few things that happened outside the building that might have been missed. So, both?"
Phil Coulson accepts the cup that Pepper's carrying and stands briefly so she can sit down. Hardwired gentleman's reflexes are hard to overcome. "That would be very kind of you Pepper. I find it very useful to hear first hand accounting of what happened, those are the things that most often lead to important and sometimes vital questions. The analyst teams will be drooling to get a hold of your footage, naturally. How is Tony, by the way?" He blows lightly on the tea, taking a small sip.
Pepper Potts sets the steeped Yunnan tea leaves aside but leaves her tea to cool a bit longer. "He's fine, or so JARVIS tells me. He's apparently been holed up in his workshop with some new project he refuses to tell me about. You know how he can get." She finally takes a small forkful of the cannoli, and smiles blissfully. "Oh, I am SO not telling Tony about this place. It's /mine/."
Phil Coulson shares that triumphant little smile with Pepper. "If he's good, we'll let him buy some for some gala or other. And yes, I do know how he can get. It's why I asked. But I think I'm getting a little off track here." He decides to let his tea steep for a little longer before drinking any more and sets the cup down. He grins. "I'd offer to give you the contact information for the restaurant, but I'm sure Jarvis has already gathered it and made it available to you." There is a slight pause, before Jarvis replies. "Indeed I have, Agent Coulson."
Pepper Potts nods, taking another small bite of the cannoli before starting to relate what she can of the events Coulson has asked about. "I was here, typing up an email. Something out the window caught my attention out of the corner of my eye. When I looked, I didn't see anything strange so I started to turn away again and that's when I saw something, someone? I saw someone slam into that building over there." She indicates the building visible through the window, the still under repair sections visible even at night. "About that same time, JARVIS told me to get to to the safe room on the fifty first floor."
Agent Coulson swirls his tea in his tea water and decides it's sufficiently steeped, and removes the Teabag, setting it on the saucer. He nods encouragingly to Pepper as she relates her story. "Did you go, or did you do something else?" He takes his cannoli and bites the chocolate hazelnut end and lets it start to dissolve slowly in his mouth. He can't help but make a yummy noise. "Mmmm. JARVIS, it's a shame you don't have taste buds." There is a slight pause before JARVIS replies, "It would be simple binary data to me, Agent Coulson, therefore a waste of resources."
Pepper Potts finally picks up her teacup and uses it to hide a smothered snicker. Once she's sure she won't start laughing aloud she continues. "I went straight there, though right before I got to the doors..." she hesitates, clearly remembering. "One of those attacking people slammed Superman into the window. I was honestly expecting them to smash right through, but they didn't. Instead they fell, and I ran into the safe room. Then I asked JARVIS to patch me into every communication channel he could, including SHIELD."
Phil Coulson nods, chewing slowly and swallowing his cannoli and takes a sip of tea. "That's what our records show, that you, Stark Tower, was one of the first agencies to take note of the event. We had bloody little warning of it when it happened." He takes another sip of his tea. "You contacted the Baxter Building as well, I believe?" he asks over his teacup.
Pepper Potts nods, eating the cannoli with the smallest bites possible to make it last. "I did. I didn't get a reply from anyone, but JARVIS said the line was active, so I didn't think on it too much. There were other people answering me. Hawkeye, but a female voice. Some other people I can't remember right now."
Phil Coulson nods and blows on his tea some more. "We've got audio recordings of the actual conversations, Pepper, I'm mostly looking for impressions, thoughts, reflections, afterthoughts, that sort of thing." He sips his tea and sets it back on the saucer before taking another bite of his cannoli, leaving him only a very little bit left. He savors that bite for a little while. "Is Dr. Banner still working with Stark Enterprises?"
Pepper Potts nods. "Well, mostly it seemed that everyone was caught by surprise." She pauses at the question about Dr. Banner. "Yes, so far as I know. Tony left strict instructions not to question it if he chooses to go walkabout without telling anyone. I do know that on that day JARVIS directed him to the safe room same as me, but he never arrived. I got a note from JARVIS later that Bruce left his glasses on the roof and I went and got them for him." She looks down at her plate. "He told me the other day that they're new."
Phil says, "Well, given his..." He casts about for a word, "Condition, it's probably for the best. That was kind of you Pepper. Given his condition, I rather doubt that any direct testimony would be of any use." He rubs the bridge of his nose briefly, clearly thinking about something. "Is there anything else you remember about the attack, the response, or the things going on outside the building?"
Pepper Potts is quiet for a moment, picking at the remains of the cannoli for a moment. "Just one thing. The only reason they stopped was because Superman surrendered." Of course, that's probably not truly a momentous announcement. But it sure made her feel like things could not have gone worse. "After that, I spent most of the rest of the time helping JARVIS coordinate the emergency and rescue crews to get to anyone who didn't have time to evacuate."
Phil Coulson nods and pops the last of his cannoli in his mouth and chews it all up. He follows up with a generous swallow of tea. "Well, Pepper, I appreciate your time. I know that I'll need to schedule some follow-up time, particularly with Tony and Dr. Banner, once as many of the facts that we can gather have been collated." He sets his teacup back on his saucer, and stands. "I know how busy you are Pepper, I'm glad we had this chance to talk. Let me know when you can get me in the book with Tony and/or Dr. Banner."
Pepper Potts moves to stand also, leaving her unfinished cannoli and tea. "As soon as I can pin them down I'll let you know."
Phil Coulson gives Pepper a nod. "It's a shame we only have time for our friends during crises" he says. "I know the way out." He heads for the door and with a click, he's gone, on to his next assignment.
Category:Log