A Heart Break In Time

There Shall Be No Knifing One Another.

I pulled myself together and Morgan followed me our to the kitchen. Sam had just walked in with a pizza and Morgan and I yelled "pizza!" And ran to the table. Pepper laughed and Sam rolled his eyes as I tried grabbing a slice before he even set it down.

We ate together, making jokes and laughing. Morgan told me the new knock knock joke she learned and I burst out laughing. I was still laughing when my phone went off on the table.

2 unread messages from Bucky.

Pepper saw my phone and raised an eyebrow. "Bucky? Isn't that kind of weird? Steve's best friend?"

"Why? The other one's right here?" I pointed at Sam.

"I'd like to think I'm Switzerland in all this." Sam smiled. I picked up my phone.

Just checking in.

Everything ok?

I picked up my slice of pizza and dangled it over my face, grabbed a huge bite and taking a quick selfie and sent it to Bucky.

Cute.

I smiled and put my phone away, joining into a conversation between Sam and Morgan about why exactly she can't take him out flying.

"Daddy did it all the time." She frowned.

"That's because mommy didn't know about it, dear." Pepper laughed.

Flashback

I pushed my way through the crowd and heard a reporter talking to Tony. "Hey, Mr. Stark! When is somebody gonna kill this guy? Just sayin'."

Tony turned to him and I could see the rage on his face. "Is that what you want? Here's a little Holiday greeting I've been wanting to send to the Mandarin. I just didn't know how to phrase it until now. My name is Tony Stark and I'm not afraid of you. I know you're a coward, so I've decided" he took his sunglasses off, "that you just died, pal. I'm gonna come get the body. There's no politics here; it's just good old-fashioned revenge. There's no Pentagon; it's just you and me. And on the off-chance you're a man, here's my home address: 10-8-80, Malibu Point, 9-0-2-6-5. I'll leave the door unlocked.That's what you wanted, right?" Tony took the phone and threw it at the wall as I approached him.

"Hi, Tony Stark. I'm Talia Aimilios, a friend of Natasha's. I think I could help. I was... nearby the incident."

Tony looked me up and down. "You're a kid."

"Haven't been a kid since before I was a kid." I smirked at him. He opened his passenger door for me and we both climbed in, he drove off.

"What do you know?" He asked while switching lanes.

"His name. Mandarin. It's an ancient Chinese war mantle, meaning 'adviser to the King.'"

"Yeah, I got that. Anything useful?"

"Something doesn't add up with his methods. It's almost..."

"Theatrical."

"Yes, exactly. I just wish I had a visual of the crime scene..."

Tony gave me a quick glance and smiled. "I know someone who has one."

We get to his lab and Tony tells me where to sit while he talks to Jarvis.