QUIVER [IRON MAN]

02.

'Do you really think you can just put it in a safe
Behind a painting, lock it up and leave?
Do you really think you can just put it in a safe
Behind a painting, lock it up and leave?
Walk away now and you're gonna start a war.'

Start a War by The National.

"Phil!"

Easton and Pepper made their way toward the agent with open arms, to which he hugged them both placing a kiss to Easton's temple.

"Phil? His first name's agent," Tony interrupted their reunion by also standing from his seat, "wow! look - my entire family abandons me for a secret agent man, I can see the headlines now," he rambled to himself.

Easton simply rolled her eyes and hugged Phil's side once more as he attempted to balance the tablet tucked under his other arm, "hey kid, missed ya."

Easton eventually let Phil go, and moved to sit opposite him, turning to her father, "I don't think the press would blame us, Mr. I-like-to-turn-my-daughters-flat-iron-into-a-robot."

Tony stuck his tongue out at his daughter to which she returned, "come on in, we're celebrating!" Pepper spoke, filling another glass with champagne and offering it to the agent.

"Well," Easton started, "they're celebrating," she droned, as at 18 she wasn't yet allowed to touch a drop at Pepper's orders - the last thing she needed was two drunk Starks to tend to.

"Which is exactly why he can't stay," Tony whined from beside Easton, making her gag once more earning a shove to her side.

"We need you to look this over," Phil spoke, handing over the tablet which caught Easton's attention, "soon as possible."

Easton stepped forward, "ooh, chrome," she ogled, but Pepper stepped in front of her. She wandered off to her phone in a sulk, tapping away at another aimless game.

"I don't like being handed things," Tony stated, earning a scoff from his daughter who slapped her phone down next to her and sat up with a smirk on her face.

"I can think of dozens things you like being handed; scotch, whiskey, anything with you on the front of it," she spoke sarcastically towards her father earning an inward chuckle from both Phil and Pepper.

"Agreed," Pepper spoke, "but on the contrary, I love being handed things so let's trade - thankyou," she said, taking the tablet from Phil and giving him her glass of champagne.

"Official consulting hours are between eight and five every other Thursday," Tony remarked, moving further towards the two.

Phil held his ground, "this isn't a consultation," he replied, making Easton shoot up again and move next to her parents with wide eyes.

"Is this about the Avengers?!" She blurted out, remembering after that the information was classified. Still, she stood expectantly for his answer - the Avengers was a concept her grandfather believed in, and therefore she did too, "which I know nothing about, like, at all."

Phil smiled at the young girl, "unfortunately-" he was cut off by Tony, who turned to face Easton and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"The Avengers Initiative was scrapped, kiddo," he spoke, "and I thought I didn't even qualify?" he asked the agent, who nodded in response.

"I didn't know that, either," Pepper inquired, looking to Tony and Phil in turn for answers as did Easton, crossing her arms over her chest and tilting her head to the side.

"Apparently I'm volatile, self-obsessed and don't play well with others," he spoke in disbelief, rolling his eyes as though the statements weren't true.

"Seems like they got a pretty good profile on you, pop," Easton spoke, her voice again laced with satire with a foot out in front, tapping her soles against the floor.

"You know it's not that I'm not overtly proud of your inheritance of my pure golden sarcasm," Tony began with a wounded expression, "but tone it down a notch for your old-man, okay?"

This just made her smile with a nod, "this isn't about personality profiles anymore," Phil spoke from behind the family.

"Whatever," Tony disregarded, "ladies, do you have a minute?" He asked the two who nodded, Pepper leading her step-daughter over to where Tony placed the files down into his own databases.

"Y'know, I thought we were having a family moment," he started, but Pepper was quick to interrupt him.

"I was having twelve percent of the moment," she spoke with a smile on her face, high-fiving Easton in the process.

"Like a pro," Easton muttered, seeing how much both her and her father were rubbing off on Pepper, "Dad, this has gotta be serious - Phil seems pretty shaken," she spoke, nodding over to the Agent who stood awkwardly to the side.

"How did you notice?" Her father replied, "and why is he Phil, now?" He asked, jealously evident in his voice as he loaded up his databases with the new files.

"What is all of this?" Pepper and Easton asked simultaneously, making Tony eye the two and their likeness.

He expanded his arms, and a multitude of profiles appeared in holographics in the air around the three; images of Captain America and The Hulk roaring to life in their living room.

"This is, uh...." Tony spoke, searching for the right words, "this."

"Woah, this is insane," Easton muttered, studying the files in awe as a new one of Loki, Thor and a sceptre appeared in front of her, her dainty fingers tracing the fighting.

"I'm going to take the jet to D.C. tonight," Pepper spoke, still in awe at the files.

"Tomorrow," Tony counter-argued, as Easton practically begged with her eyes to let her in on the action.

"You've got homework, Dad," Easton spoke from beside him, "a hell of a lot of homework that I think I'll also take on as extra-credit," she suggested, taking in all of the information.

"Stop drooling, Einstein," Tony replied, taking Pepper off to the side to discuss while Easton de-coded some of the data, releasing more information onto the holographed screens.

"Wow, you're getting good," Phil spoke, walking up beside her and patting her shoulder as she continued to de-code, "S.H.I.E.L.D would have a field day with you, half our agents can't even do that."

"Don't sign me up for a job anytime soon," she spoke, content with the data she'd released, "I just wanna graduate high school, maybe go to college - my dad has his heart set on MIT."

Phil was about to reply, until Tony cut him off, "square deal, it's the last date," he spoke, kissing Pepper which made Easton shield her eyes in a mixture of fake and genuine disgust.

"Are we really doing this again?" She complained, "we need a code word or something guys," she spoke, making the two chuckle.

Pepper made her way towards her, kissing her forehead and walking towards the door with Phil, "I'll go pack my bag," she spoke, until her father stopped her.

"Nuh-huh squirt, we've got some homework to do," he said, placing both hands on her shoulders, "good thing you finished that biology project, huh?"

She smiled, looking back at the databases that flooded the room with sapphire blue files.

"Lets get started."