Will That Be All, Miss Potts? (Pepper)

[Amber Lee]

Just get today done and over with, she thought to herself as she boarded the elevator of Stark Tower yet again. Once you're finished you can go home and relax a little. You'll be one step closer to your ultimate goal.

Now that she actually had clearance from security to head to the upper floors, Amber couldn't help but smirk a little. Her rouse to get close to Tony Stark and make an impression had worked, albeit not in the exact way that she had planned, since his computer system had recognized the bug as being SHIELD technology. It looked as if her cover might be blown in some way as he began to interrogate her as being an agent of SHIELD, a young one at that, he had pointed out. Though she had to admit that being compared to the Black Widow was somewhat of a compliment for the girl, who had come to know the various members of the Avengers through some of the paperwork and material she had discovered in her late father's hiding places around the house. There wasn't much to work with since he barely seemed to spend a lot of time with his daughter, but it was enough to get her started.

The brunette ran her fingers through her hair once more to ensure that everything was in place, smoothing the pencil skirt that once again hugged her hips as she prepared to meet her new boss for the first time. Everything she had read about Pepper Potts suggested that the woman would be fairly easy to work for, aside from the insanity of her schedule as the CEO of a major corporation like Stark Industries. And considering how long she had put up with a boss like Tony Stark, she certainly had to give the woman credit for being patient and understanding in many ways. In those regards, she was sure that she was getting the far better end of the stick, working for someone who wouldn't require her to remove odd people from her bed in the morning and deal with the press over ridiculous antics.

Then again, working for Pepper also meant working for Tony in some way...and the young woman wasn't entirely sure how she felt about that just yet.

A ping sounded as the elevator reached its destination, the doors pulling aside to let Amber through before they closed again and the elevator moved back to the lower floors. She hadn't actually seen this level before, since she had by-passed it on her way up to see Stark directly the last time she had been in the tower. It looked far more professional than the upper floor, which resembled more of a living space than the ones beneath, so she could only assume that Stark intended to remain in the tower for extended periods of time. Why else would he install a kitchen and a rather spacious living room right in front of the landing pad he used while in the suit? And there were a few other people here at desks, she noticed, which made her feel a little less awkward than she had when she had found herself alone with Tony for the first time.

"Excuse me, I'm looking for Miss Pepper Potts?" she said, approaching the nearest desk. "I'm her new assistant." The woman behind the desk seemed to look her over once, as if trying to assess what kind of woman had been hired by Tony before she nodded toward a set of doors at the far end of the hall, a small wrinkle forming on her face as she tried to mask her personal thoughts. Amber nodded silently, deciding that now was not the best time to make any enemies at work (though it was sure to happen eventually) and began her way down the hall. She could feel the eyes all looking up at her as she moved, already making assumptions based on her age and appearance as her heels clicked softly on her way. They all thought they knew her, thought that she had made her mark on the boss man just like so many others before her in an attempt to secure her position here in the company. Well, was she going to prove them wrong.

The brunette raised a hand, knocking lightly on the door before she turned the handle and gently pushed it aside. She half stepped into the room, watching attentively in case she had caught Pepper at a bad time. "Miss Potts?" she called, looking toward the large desk before her.

[Virgina "Pepper" Potts]

[atrb=border,0,true] Virginia "Pepper" Potts [style=width:450; height:300; padding:25; text-align:justify; font-family:verdana; font-size:10px; color:white; overflow:auto] Pepper was standing on the other side of her desk, leaned against the wall looking out the window at the expansive New York skyline. She had a cup of coffee in her hands as she just watched the city move. She was wearing a smart, yet simple outfit. Modest as normal, just a royal blue sheath dress with a a collar that covered the sides of her neck a bit. She had a hard time covering up some of the remains from last night's rendezvous in her office. She had managed to pick it up though, for the most part. Her head turned when she heard her name from the doorway. Blonde hair falling straight down her back. She kept her jewelry to a minimum, most of it Tony had bought her (some as apologies, others as birthday gifts -when he forgot which was normally always-). All around, Miss Pepper Potts was just what the magazines portrayed her as, calm, cool, collected but alert. She knew everything that was happening in every floor of this building. Not because she was a busy body, but because she had to. Rebuilding the Stark name had not been easy after the reputation Tony had made. It was a big wall and the two of them had to unmake it, brick by brick. "You must be Miss Amber Lee. I was just going over your information." Pepper said, not a shortness to her voice in the slightest. True, she was a brisk speaker, but there was a warmness that she could have. Very pleasant. Her thin fingers beckoned Amber to come into the room, "Shut the door behind you please?" She said, moving to sit down in her chair, crossing her legs at her knee. She wanted to get to know the young lady better. It was important to Pepper, having been the assistant, to care for those employees closest to her. They had to be trusted considerably after all. "Pay no mind to them," Pepper murmured waving her hand dismissively after the door was shut. "They like to talk and try to make trouble. Once they see how good you are, and I'm assuming that you're good, they'll find someone else to gawk at." She said, touching the screen of her desk and flipping through Amber's file once more. Her blue eyes scanned over it quickly. Pepper was no genius, at least not like Tony or Bruce, but she was very intelligent. She picked up things faster than people expected and had in cunning wits what some more 'book smart' people lacked. Her eyes moved over Amber's face, looking from her ID picture up to Amber's actual face. Familiar... but where. Pepper was excellent with faces and names, you had to be if you wanted to be good at politics. "You look... so familiar. I can't quite put my finger on it." She murmured softly, her brows furrowing as she looked back down. While she was reading, her hand reached down to the top of her small cabinet under her desk. It felt around for a moment before producing two things: The Stark Industries badge and a very thin, clear tablet framed in black. The center was the faintest shade of sky blue. Her hand wiped across her desk and all of the papers moved off of the virtual desktop and she rested her forearms on the desk. "So tell me a little about yourself. Now, this doesn't have to be the normal, 'I'm a hard worker, don't mind staying late, and so on and so on'. As far as I'm concerned, from what I've read, you seem like I'll do well here." She certainly hoped the young woman enjoyed travel, there was to be quite a bit of it in their future.

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Standing by the wall
And the guns shot above our heads
And we kissed as though nothing could fall
Tags: Amber Lee
Muse: Pretty good
Notes: Sorry it took so long. WC: 652

Lyrics: Heroes -- David Bowie

Table Layout By BRY, 2012

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[Amber Lee]

The older woman seemed more than happy to invite her new assistant into her office, quickly brushing aside the antics that she was so sure would be playing outside of that door. She was sure to have been in this position before, Amber reminded herself lightly as she closed the solid oak door and moved gracefully across the room. After all, there were sure to be a large group of women who had all wanted the job she had previously had in Tony Stark's employ. She wasn't sure how Pepper had landed the job, but she had certainly proven to be more than capable of handling the billionaire and his playboy ways. That had to count for something. And besides, while Pepper was no super model, Amber couldn't deny that she was a rather good looking woman who could easily catch the eye of a man who wasn't used to seeing such a fire and determination in the eyes of another. And when you put Pepper in a large crowd of people like that, Amber couldn't help but think that she would find a way to make herself stand out.

She crossed the room with relative ease, glad that she had broken in her new shoes before she had decided to arrive on the job, as she felt that her attire would quickly become a must for this work environment. The young brunette took a seat across from Pepper, watching her calmly as she scanned through a few things on her desk and pulled out others that would find their way into her own hands eventually. All the while, a voice in the back of her head couldn't help but wonder how much Tony had actually told her about their encounter, if he had said anything to her at all. It wasn't exactly a typical run-in at the store or anything...

A smile crept across her lips. "I've learned to take what others say with a grain of salt," she said, sliding one ankle gently behind the other as she straightened in her chair. "Because often times, people tell you things that aren't true for a variety of reasons." Her thoughts immediately turned to memories of her father and the description he had once given her of the jobs he performed for a company that required him to travel a lot. As his daughter, she had always believed him, though she'd never really liked that he would go away for so long and not get a chance to spend longer amounts of time at home with her. Now that she knew the truth though, there was something in the very thought of what she had just said that made her a little bitter toward him, feeling that he had put his country and a million strangers he would never meet ahead of her and her mother.

Familiar? Good....that meant that Tony hadn't gone and told her about their meeting, or that he had somehow managed to uncover the old files that she had thought to be long destroyed or buried. Her father had taken a great many precautions to try and keep her real name from being used, for reasons she hadn't really understood until recently, and it was a little disturbing for the girl to know that he had the power to get to them so quickly. It was almost as if they were just sitting there on the surface for him. "Hopefully, in a good way," Amber said with a smile and a gentle laugh, brushing her hair from her face. "I wouldn't like to look like anyone who might not be on the best of terms with my new boss." But her questions, as casual as they were, had begun to make Amber a little uneasy. It was so informal, so unprofessional in most other places, that she wasn't fully prepared to try and answer.

She took a moment to think, attempting to rack her brains for something that might prove useful in her case. "Well...I enjoy music, classical in fact. My mother played quite a bit of it in the house since she's part of a string quartet. Books were always something that helped to pass the time when I was younger," she said, letting her hands rest in her lap. "I'm rather fond of some of the older pieces of literature." She paused, trying to think of something else that could possibly be of interest. All of a sudden, the young woman was struggling for something to say. A soft laugh pushed past her lips. "You'd think this was my first rodeo," she mumbled gently to herself.

[Virgina "Pepper" Potts]

[atrb=border,0,true] Virginia "Pepper" Potts [style=width:450; height:300; padding:25; text-align:justify; font-family:verdana; font-size:10px; color:white; overflow:auto] Pepper smiled, knowing when she was being assessed. This wasn’t her first time meeting someone who thought it was peculiar that Tony Stark’s right hand woman and girlfriend would be someone who looked so, well nearly plain. He dated movie stars and models years younger than him. What had been so special about this strawberry blonde in the office? Determination and will was what was different. She didn’t back down and didn’t take no for an answer, at least not easily. She offered the other woman a soft smile in an attempt at comforting her after the remark she had made of her looking familiar. It was true though, something about her face shape or maybe the way she carried herself… Something reminded her of someone but she couldn’t quite put her finger on whom. Pepper was well aware that she could be intimidating, Tony reminded her of that frequently, but the last thing she wanted was to scare off a potential assistant who got such high recommendations from Tony, and then upon seeing wasn’t just impressing him physically. Her mouth opened; about to tell the young woman that she didn’t need to answer if it made her uncomfortable, but it was too late. Her open mouth quickly turned into another gentle smile a that went all the way to her eyes, ”Classical music, I had a friend once who was dating a cellist. She played beautifully.” She mentioned idly, almost just a comment made in passing. She hadn’t hooked up any ideas yet and hadn’t been told anything by Tony, it was becoming obvious. Pepper’s smile persisted on her lips as the other woman struggled for things to be interested in. ”Its okay, I always hated that question in interviews too.” She said with a nod, looking down at the tablet and the badge thoughtfully. She seemed like she would be a good fit at the company and Pepper desperately needed an assistant since Tony was so involved in the Avengers now and seemed to be getting into more trouble than ever. It was hard having her eyes in so many places at once, she was going cross eyed from it all. ”Well, you certainly dress like you’re to take over the corporate world, which is good. The trick is to dress femininely enough that they remember their manners but masculine enough for them to know you’re in charge.” She said with a small wink after waving all the information off of her desk. ”There are two things that you will find most difficult working here, one is and will always be Tony. He’s calmed down a lot, but if he comes in, saying something crazy, you find me, call me, smoke signal me. Despite the fact that I’m not his assistant anymore, doesn’t mean that I’m not still his damage control.” She said with a smile, shaking her head a little bit, ”The other is the traveling. There’s going to be a lot of it. Stark tech is still up for question at the government level. I’m in D.C. almost twice a month and you’ll be expected to be there too baring family tragedy or some sort of contagious disease.” She said softly, pushing herself to stand, lifting her cup of coffee with her. It was a lot of time away from home. A lot of time away from those who meant a lot to you, and with the actions of Loki still fairly fresh on her mind… the fear of that meeting in the Stark Tower with Tony being the last she’d ever had. All the losses that they faced and Phil. Poor Phi---Phil! That’s the face! Her hand nearly dropped the hot cup as she looked at Amber. No, she wouldn’t say anything, probably no relation anyway. Pepper cleared her throat a little and pushed the tablet and blank badge closer to Amber. ”If you think you can handle those things, then the job is readily yours. I’m willing to negotiate salary, but I think you’ll find my offer acceptable. The badge will get you into all the areas you’re authorized which is most of them with the exception of Tony’s work space, where the suits are held, and a few other small places in the building only he and I have access to. We will get you set up with an official badge if you decide to stay. The tablet is yours for as long as you have the job, it is loaded with J.A.R.V.I.S technology and all of the scheduled appointments for the next two months.” She briefly showed Amber how to turn the tablet, and moved to the window again, narrowing her eyes at the cityscape. ”I can’t have people that are too afraid this close to the eye of the hurricane either, Amber. I’m not going to lie to you and tell you that this job will be safe and all daisies and rainbows. You’ve seen what happened the last few years here.” She turned to look back at Amber and offered another gentle smile to the brunette. She hoped this wouldn’t scare the girl off either, but it wasn’t fair to let her believe this was the safest job in the world. Pepper had been in harms way several times, more than she’d ever thought she would be, but she didn’t regret working for this company. Didn’t regret working for Tony Stark and now working with him. That was what she needed from Amber.

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Standing by the wall
And the guns shot above our heads
And we kissed as though nothing could fall
Tags: Amber Lee
Muse: Fantastic, lots of dialog though, lol.
Notes:WC 914. I'm so sorry about the delay, for real.

Lyrics: Heroes -- David Bowie

Table Layout By BRY, 2012

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[Amber Lee]

Pepper seemed to listen with a fair amount of interest, Amber noted as she began to speak in answer to the question presented to her. Oddly enough, most job interviews she had sat through in the past had never asked such a question of her, not really caring about what it was that made her an individual as long as she did the job that they wanted without complaint. Now it seemed that Pepper wanted someone who was relatively...well, for lack of a better word, normal. And the brunette could hardly blame her for wanting something like that when she had worked for Tony Stark all those years. It had taken only a short while of being in the same room as the man before Amber began to reconsider her plan and think of alternatives in meeting the same end. But now that he had unearthed the truth about her, she couldn't just walk away and pretend that their interaction had not happened. He knew far too much for her liking, and that made him just as dangerous as some of the people she was determined to deal with when she proved her worth to SHIELD.

A soft smile appeared on her lips as Pepper commented about her having a friend who had been dating a cellist. So, she seemed to have known her father better than she had thought. That might prove to be either a good or bad thing for her in the future, she wasn't entirely sure yet, though Pepper seemed far more trustworthy than Tony did, which set the girl at ease. "I'm rather fond of the cello myself, actually," came the simple remark, struggling to keep her smile from widening. But Pepper's comment on her clothing style came at the right moment for such a smile to appear, followed by a soft bout of laughter as the girl nodded her head in agreement. "They tend to underestimate the things we are capable of when we dress ourselves like women, no?" Tony had done a grand job of proving this point to her when they had first met face to face, especially when he realized that she had gotten her hands on some technology that wasn't necessarily what he wanted to see in his system. He'd been more than a little miffed to learn that a girl like her, who had initially been seen as something he could hit on, had managed to outsmart his security team and system in order to reach the upper levels of Stark Tower and get close to him.

Shifting a little in her seat, the brunette watched as Pepper pushed the badge and tablet across the table so that they were closer to her, explaining the things that would come to be expected of her when she officially agreed to be Pepper's assistant. Of course she knew of the dangers of being involved in such an industry, knowing that the other Avengers were so close by and closely connected with what she was about to do. She'd done her research as much as the common internet would allow before she began searching through her father's files, she knew about Pepper and Tony and the fact that SHIELD regarded him originally as a consultant. But she had to do this...not just for herself, but for her father. This was all for him. Her dark brown eyes fell on the badge and the tablet. "I understand the risks," she acknowledged, gently reaching out to gather the two objects in her hands. "And you needn't worry about family emergencies. I've become fairly independent in the last little while, with only my mother remaining. But I don't think I'm going to have to worry about her for a good long while."

She looked down at the blank badge that she had been given, the logo for Stark Industries written across the top in that same bold font that she had seen so many times over. And as Amber opened her mouth to speak again, she noticed that Pepper had turned away and began to speak with her back to the girl, her gaze fixed intently on something outside. All of a sudden, the lightness in her tone seemed to have been replaced with something far more serious, leaving the young woman to consider what it was that prompted such words before her new boss turned around again and offered a soft smile in her direction. It took a moment of thinking before the girl felt ready to answer, holding the badge and tablet close to her body before she slowly rose to her feet. "Most people would probably hear that and be quick to assure you that they could handle whatever this job threw at them," she began, lifting her dark orbs to look at Pepper. "Some might even turn and walk away right now. But I'd like to think that I have a far better understanding of what this job will involve than most people, Miss Potts. And I promise you that I will do whatever I possibly can in order to prove that I can handle this job. I'm young, I know that. There are probably better qualified people just outside this door, but...I owe it to myself to take this on, because I owe it to someone else as well."

[Virgina "Pepper" Potts]

[atrb=border,0,true] Virginia "Pepper" Potts [style=width:450; height:300; padding:25; text-align:justify; font-family:verdana; font-size:10px; color:white; overflow:auto] Pepper smiled a bit, seeing the other woman becoming more at ease. Also, she was relieved to see how well spoken Amber was. That was a big relief to the woman who spent a lot of time talking, briefing, explaining, and handling various issues that Tony got himself into. She was the mediator and often the one to diffuse situations that would turn badly. One thing seemed certain though, you did not want to be on the receiving end of Pepper yelling or getting frustrated. Her time stumbling over her words had now been reserved exclusively to arguments with Tony. "It's been said you can see how 'down to business' I am by how I dress on any particular day. Maybe you'll crack the code as well, you seem sharp enough." She said with a smile, having no idea how exactly she had gotten into Stark tower the first time. "As long as you are aware of the risks, and that it's quite an undertaking. Long hours, weekends... At least you'll get to go to really nice parties that will resemble a social life." She said with a teasing grin, but something about it made it clear that she wasn't all joking. She was being pretty serious about this, it wasn't an easy job in the slightest, but it seemed like Amber had that fire and passion in her eyes that she remembered in her own not too long ago. "I've been waiting a long time to find someone I felt as comfortable with hiring as I do you." Pepper mentioned honestly, though a little idly, almost in passing. She had heard the girl out and offered a nod to her, "Well, the job is yours, on a tentative basis for the next week or so, though I feel you won't have a problem handling it." Pepper sat her coffee down and smiled to Amber again, a broad, bright smile. Her hand rested on her desk as she looked at Amber's dark eyes with her pale blue ones. She really hoped she could handle the job, keep that fire... That much fire and she could go places, if she learned to handle it and not get burned. Pepper could help her and that was an interesting prospect. Normally, she wasn't much for mentoring, but something about Amber pulled her in and made her interested in it. "Something important to know about me, not what I like from workers or what I expect in how you handle yourself, you know that already, I can tell. I am very, very allergic to strawberries." She said with a nod. It was something that needed mentioned sooner, rather than later. She always felt bad when someone tried to be nice or suck up to her and bring her a smoothie or something and she had to turn it away or throw it in the trash because it had strawberries in it. "Anything I need to know about you medical wise? Just in case the need for an ambulance ever arises... again..." She was only half teasing about that.

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Standing by the wall
And the guns shot above our heads
And we kissed as though nothing could fall
Tags: Amber
Notes:W/C: 514

Lyrics: Heroes -- David Bowie

Table Layout By BRY, 2012

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[Amber Lee]

The way Pepper spoke to her made Amber feel as if the job really was being readily handed over to her, though she was sure that she'd be watched carefully for the first little while to ensure that she did indeed know what she was doing. That was only fair, she supposed. The last thing someone like Pepper would want and need was a girl to wander in here who was all smiles and ready to take the job if she couldn't handle the stress and pressure of working for a company owned by Tony Stark. When you rolled together his notorious playboy persona, the ridiculous amount of money he always threw round and the fact that his hero identity was public knowledge, she was fairly certain that Pepper would have her hands full with dealing with him, nevermind the rest of the company that she was running as well. "I think the wardrobe will be the part of the job that I'll need to get accustomed to the most," the girl replied with a small half-smile in the corner of her lips. Anyone who knew Amber (which wasn't too many people) knew that her clothing choices had always been based on comfort before style, which had left her behind in the fashion department when she had been going to high school. But now that she was employed by one of the top companies in America, things would definitely need to change a little.

Ah, there it was, she thought to herself. The comment that would assure of her Pepper's watchful eye for the next little while. And while part of her knew that this was going to happen anyway because of the risks and strains of the job, she couldn't help but wonder if Pepper was at all suspicious of her, since her predecessor had been an agent of SHIELD. And after all, Amber was still trying to get their attention after her father's passing. It struck her as a little odd that Pepper had not yet mentioned anything to her...though perhaps Tony had chosen not to tell his girlfriend that the young lady he had practically hired for her was the daughter of the late agent, which struck her as a little odd. But at least, if and when Pepper ever learned the truth, she'd have something interesting to remember the moment by. She could just tell that Pepper Potts would not take the news quite as graciously as Tony had. "I understand," she acknowledged with a nod of her head. "I promise that you'll never see or smell anything resembling a strawberry while I'm here."

Her next question, however, was one that Amber wasn't entirely certain of. She had no allergies of her own, so there was none of that to disclose to Pepper...but the other thing...her father had made her swear never to mention it to anyone, despite the fact that it was seen as a health risk. And exposing that to Pepper could lead her closer to discovering that Amber wasn't exactly being truthful about who she was, which could cause quite a gap between the employer and the employee right away. "When I was younger, I was, um...put in a rather dangerous situation. Should the need for an ambulance every arise, you'll note that there are several markers on my body that are not natural." She kept her wording as carefully placed as she could, not wishing to arouse too much suspicion from the blonde on the other side of the desk. "And I do sometimes experience a rather harsh amount of pain in my lower back from another...injury." That was perhaps as good as Amber could do. Unless Pepper ever wanted a physical examination from her anyway...