Working Title : Loki & Annie

101 Moving Parts

0213 hrs

Tony was in his lab, tapping a pencil against the countertop to the beat of the pounding music. He used his free hand to swipe through a dozen holographic screens that hovered in front of him. A faint frown sat on his face as he took in way too much information at one time, his mind was working on multiple problems at the same time, mostly in the background of the issue he was trying to solve. A curt motion instantly shut off the music.

"J, put my electronic signature on everything Pepper has emailed me." Opening a bag of dried, organically grown, diced apricots he took out a pinch of the sticky fruit and chewed thoughtfully.  

"Sir, I must remind you that Ms. Potts has requested that I not allow that to occur unless you have actually read each item requiring your signature."

Tony stopped chewing, "Hey! Who's your boss? Me or her?"

"Ms. Potts. Sir."

 Tony scowled, "Don't forget I made you. I can unmake you too."

"I'm terrified. Sir." This time J.A.R.V.I.S. spoke in a monotone, making it clear how probable he thought Tony's threat was. "I will provide the reports on your tablet."

"Just wait till you ask for that upgrade, then you'll be sorry." He was back to tossing handfuls of dried apricot and chewing while studying the information in front of him. A quick swipe and another screen became Tony's focus, he asked absently, "How's the furniture for Junior's room coming along?"

"There is a delivery date in three days."

Tony scowled. "Three days? I put a rush on it. Paid for the order to be moved to the head of the line." He tossed a few more pieces of diced apricot into his mouth and chewed vigorously.

The tone used was that of a parent trying to explain why birthdays only came once a year, "Sir, you ordered custom furniture of a very specific kind. The craftsman stated that the delivery schedule also included delivery. I feel that is an exceptional timeframe."

Tony didn't appear impressed, "I thought it was all ready built, it just needed the customizing details added."

Now there was a firm note to J.A.R.V.I.S's reply, "Three days, Sir."

Tony shrugged and rolled his eyes while saying under his breath, "Should have just manufactured it myself." He set a mental reminder to come back to this conversation in two days and focused back on the information in front of him. Using his snack bag to point at another screen that had photos cycling through at one every second he asked, "Why's that so dark?"

"It's two-twenty in the morning, Sir. A time that is usually dark."

"Hey! No sassing, Mister. This is a no sassing zone. Except for me. I'm the sass master and the only one allowed to sass." He wiped a hand across his black t-shirt as he muttered, "Getting a little big for your britches, J. I'm gonna need to have a come to Jesus meeting with you." He snorted a laugh, "A come to Tony meeting." There were more chuckles under his breath.

"Sir. Perhaps I could suggest that you take a nap so that you can be functioning and coherent tomorrow."

Tony opened his mouth to give a sarcastic answer when one of the screens caught his eye and he tossed his snack bag on the counter. "Bring up screen twelve and enlarge times four." All signs of tiredness were replaced with an expression of intense concentration. His eyes darted over the picture, taking in all the information as he studied the satellite photo. "J, who's seen this?"

"I can follow this to a S.H.I.E.L.D. server where it shows that it has been analyzed and is waiting to be sent for secondary analysis." If J.A.R.V.I.S. could be suspicious it would be shown in his tone, "I must say that I feel this information is not up-to-date."