Avengers - Time Rift: Iron Maiden

Chapter 10 - Between a Rock and a Hulk Place

Darcy had to meet Jane in New Zealand and would be gone for two weeks. Tonya dropped Darcy at the airport and felt something knot in her stomach as she watched the plane take off "Never knew one person leaving could make you feel this empty" she mumbled making her way back to her truck to lose herself in work back at Stark Industries. Tonya checked her calendar and started to think about the inevitable social events she'd surely be drug to by Darcy. The brief smile that crossed her face at the thought of going to parties and dinners with Darcy on her arm disappeared as one resounding thought filled her head "I have no idea how to act at those damn things". Tonya ran toward the entrance and called for Pepper catching her attention as she left the SI complex. "Pepper I kinda need a favor" Tonya said looking at the floor. Potts tried not to laugh "She's so hard on the outside but every time she needs to ask for help or a favor she gets so flustered, but I suppose with her history it's not something that's easy for her to do" she thought to herself putting her arm around Tonya's shoulder "Of course dear, if it's anything I can do I'll be happy to". Tonya smiled slightly "Well you see Darcy goes to these conferences and everything, right? The tech isn't an issue for me. I can keep up with that, most of it's old hat for me actually. My problem is ..." Tonya took a moment to catch her breath. "I think I understand. You're more than intelligent enough so my guess it's how to behave in certain social situations?" she asked saving the younger girl from having to admit a weakness. Tonya looked at her with a grin "Exactly. I mean, who the hell needs like four forks anyway?". Pepper tapped a fingertip to her temple for a moment in thought before she replied "You know now that I think about it, you're right. Fortunately this happens to be something I specialize in ... having to cover for Tony's common barrages of social faux pas. I'm just glad that lately they don't involve lingerie models or holding up red plastic drink cups with no hands ... in the middle of a formal dinner". Tonya grabbed her stomach as she laughed "Yeah, didn't need that mental picture. I think I just threw up in my mouth".

Tonya kept herself busy with work and projects as well as packing Darcy's belongings and getting them moved to her apartment. She also took the opportunity to return to her own time where she discovered one of the other remaining members of the retrieval team had recovered another data packet in their current time. She hated going back to make her reports, the more time she spent with Darcy the less her own time and apartment seemed like home and things that didn't bother her before she started to find almost intolerable. It was however a good opportunity to use the more advanced technology to fabricate pieces she would need for her new projects and bring back a few pieces of equipment that would make production and maintenance easier. Outside of work and her Mark V project she kept herself busy learning social graces from Pepper, killing time with Barton, helping Tony by hinting at armor design improvements. What she enjoyed most however was chatting with Bruce and Natasha, she seemed to feel more at ease around Banner as they were both considered monsters of one sort or another although that's not how Tonya saw Bruce at all. Natasha would take her out to lunch since the science talk at the level Bruce and Tonya enjoyed tended to bore her to tears.

It was a week into Darcy's business trip and Tonya stayed late in the tower completing the torso plate assembly and reactor fittings in her portable armor suits when Coulson came over the com. His voice was frantic "I need you to get to Montana ASAP" he said "Banner was working on a new serum to keep ... the other guy from jumping out to say hi and it went south. General Ross has two F-22 Raptors with orders to eliminate him before he gets to the nearest town. I need you to figure out how to shut Banner down before they get to him". "Party time Juliet, I need a dress. Self powered booster and load up the counter measures. Light weaponry only, I don't want to hurt these boys just give em a spankin". "Right away Miss" Juliet replied as the modules Tonya requested were attached to her suit as she approached it from hall and she stepped into the armor. "I'm on it. Not exactly sure how I can stop Banner, I'll have to come up with something on the fly ... literally" she said as she blasted up through the open skylight in her lab at the tower "But I can at least give Ross a migraine".