4085/Not Quite Mother's Day Breakfast

Not Quite Mother's Day Breakfast
Date of Scene:	08 May 2016
Location:	New York-199999
Synopsis:	Pepper's second mother's day is a bit different from the one the previous year
Cast of Characters:	20, 204, 301

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Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    On a day like this it was easy enough to persuade Jarvis to keep quiet and turn off any alarms set to wake up the rest of the household. For one, it's a Sunday. Secondly, it's not just any Sunday. It's Mother's day, and like last year Toph will take it seriously. It does help with Tony assisting her in her plan as well. This year there's nothing to be sad about either, since the whole family is here.

    The door to the master bedroom slowly slides open, and an early warning comes in the form of Buster as he runs into daddy and mommy's room with a soft meow, easily jumping up onto the bed. The second arrival however is less quiet however.

    "HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!"

    Sure, she's somewhat clean, but Toph hasn't bothered doing her hair properly this morning. Nor has she bothered to wipe off her t-shirt and pyjama bottoms from what she has been doing so far this morning; making breakfast. Said breakfast is carried in on a large tray that seems overfilled with items. Lucky Pepper, she gets breakfast in bed this year as well. Well, they all get breakfast in bed from the looks of it. Toast, sandwiches, two large mugs of coffee, hot chocolate for herself, smoothies, omelette, some fruit, and... are those chocolate croissants?

    The tray is set down at the foot of the bed, and Toph beams brightly. "I'll be right back with the presents!" And then she's hurrying out of the room and downstairs, giving Tony and Pepper a moment to wake up properly and process it all.

Pepper Potts (204) has posed:
    After last night's Kobold trouble, potts had slept a bit like a brick, though with an assortment of strange dreams. She had been dozing, enjoying having a morning off (at her mother's insistance, and after Carolina visits, Pepper /always/ needed more downtime), until she registers the cat jumping up onto the bed. ONe eye opens, and she reaches down, wriggling her fingertips at Buster to entice him for scritches -- and then Toph arrives.

    Pepper gives a bit of a jump, her eyes going open as she pushes herself up to a sit and stretching her arms out. "Mother's day, already? It's almost better than Christmas." she offers as a joke, leaning over and kissing Tony's forehead.

    "Oooh, are those croissants?"

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
Tony HAD been roped into assisting Toph with this plan. It seems to be coming to fruition a lot /earlier/ than he expected though, and he startles awake blinking blearily at the shouting, muttering something about messing with the wrong guy, his right arm flailing reflexively to shield Pepper beside him from whatever the threat is.

And then, oh yeah.

He wipes absently at his forehead where Pepper's kiss landed and scratches at the night's growth of scruff on his face. "They look awfully burned," he observes warily of the croissants, unaware of their chocolate nature. "Maybe I should taste test them first. Make sure they aren't poisoned," he adds, humor creeping in as his brain wakes up. He yawns, leans over and buries his face comfortably for a moment in the crook of Pepper's neck and sholder, planting a wet kiss there. "I don't have to get anything for YOUR mom, do I?" he wonders. "I don't know the rules. I also don't want her coming after me with knives."

Pepper Potts (204) has posed:
    "You gave her a fantastic vacation to the carribean. Fancy boat trip with Stan. Very expensive. She didn't want to 'wake you up' to thank you after the kobolds yesterday." Pepper replies, running her ha nd over Tony's hair a moment. She curls against him slightly, and rests her head against his. "You're a very dutiful son-in-law."

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
"Oh, good," Tony agrees absently, as if he really had set up all of that and just forgotten for the moment. "So now all I have to worry about is patching that hole in the basement. And making sure the vault hasn't been breached. And getting you a new car," he grins. "Alas, you're not my mother so you'll just have to wait for Christmas..." A little grunt escapes him as he leans forward to pluck up a piece of melon from the tray. He takes a bite out of it, and then with deliberate lack of grace he smushes it at Pepper's mouth, laughing silently. So romantic.

Pepper Potts (204) has posed:
    /So/ romantic. Pepper wrinkles her nose and draws back, giving a momentary laugh. "Hey, hey, hands off my breakfast. You're not a mom, is he Buster?" she questions, trying to get the cat on her side.

    #TeamPep

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
"I don't know..." Tony muses, regarding the cat playfully, reaching out one hand to waggles his fingers at him. "I DID do my fair share of staying up late nursing him and wiping his little butt to make him go poopies."

Buster stares at Tony. Then at the hand. Then walks over to the tray to methodically steal a piece of bacon. There's gratitude for you.

Since Pepper spurned his offer to hand feed her, he pops the rest of the melon bit into his mouth instead and leans back against the pillows with a low groan of pleasure as he stretches his legs out under the covers.

"But what is all this /my/ breakfast talk? I thought this was a, what's mine is yours, what's yours is mine kind of arrangement we had now." His lazy smiles turns rather lascivious as he smirks and lets his eyes travel along down the curve of her back and the shape of those long legs under the covers. He reaches out to poke her with a toe. "Of course I'm willing to make payment, if that would be a more equitable arrangement," he suggests, cocking one eyebrow.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Only some minutes passes by before the sound of Toph rushing back upstairs can be heard, and then she's there, carrying two boxes, one fairly large and one very small, as well as a white card with dots on it. Obviously a handmade card with Braille writing on it. "Open the largest box first!" Toph insists, holding it out for Pepper to take as she scoots onto the edge of the bed next to the breakfast tray.

    In the larger box Pepper will find several garments. On top, a dark yellow business jacket, folded at the wrists to have white cuffs that match the painted wooden buttons. Underneath that is a dark blue polo shirt with 'PP' embroidery on the chest pocket in silver. A snug pair of black jeans, a matching belt with a gold clasp as well as yellow sneakers with white soles and laces can also be found in the box, meant to be a matching outfit.

    In the smaller box there's jewellery, obviously something Toph has made herself. An intricate bracelet made of various beads in different shapes. Among those shapes is an arc reactor set with a sapphire in the middle, as well as a badgermole, a heart, the Rescue helmet and a sleek cat. All of the beads are in different materials, ranging from gems to polished metal.

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
Tony might just audibly let out a slight 'aww' as Toph returns with presents, foiling his incredibly lazy attempt at seduction. "You're making me look bad, kid," he complains, putting up a hand by his mouth nominally to prevent Pepper from hearing, but then whispering loudly, "I didn't get her anything. What should I do?" This is nominally true; though he does intend to take her to a very nice dinner later. With or without her mother as she chooses. His own mother having been dead for the last 25 years, it's not a holiday he's really thought much about for a long time.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "At least you're here /this/ mother's day and not skipping out on it," Toph replies with a teasing smirk, tring to not think about how empty it felt last year this time of year. Then she scoots over to punch Tony in the shoulder. "But don't worry. I can cool down on gifts for father's day if you think I'm being too generous."

Pepper Potts (204) has posed:
    "Ooh, not only breakfast, but presents too!" Pepper gives a smile, and she reaches down, accepting the large present first. She opens it up and -- "Ooh! Yellow! Must be the spring collection coming in!" and she leans against Tony, and whispers in his ear: "You can make it up to me later."

    And when Pepper opens the smaller gift... she reaches up, and presses her fingers to her lips a oment. She runs her fingers over the beads, instantly recognizable. Buster, a heart, Stinky (to her, every badgermole is Stinky, it just stuck), -- Rescue... and she brings the bracelet up.

    And then her stomach gives an unpleasent gurgle... "oh.." Potts states, and reaches to hug Toph, wrapping an arm around her and hugging her to her a moment.

    And her stomach gurgles /urgently/. "... /oh/...!" Pepper protests, and then she slides out of bed, pajama pants waggling before she makes it to the bathroom, and there's an unpleasent gurgling coming from Mrs. Stark.

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
"I can't imagine what I could possibly /need/," Tony states serenely, stretching out an arm to trace a line down the back of Pepper's t-shirt with the back of his hand, and then tapping his fingers in a light percussive pattern at the small of her back. "--When I already have everything I could possibly /want/."

His 'moment' is suddenly ruined when Pepper makes a most unsexy noise and bolts out of bed. "Was it something I said?" he quips reflexively, but he's already throwing the covers back -- they fall in a silken cloud over Buster who sits tensely with eyes wide at mommy's sudden exodus -- to follow her to the bathroom. Thank god he wore boxers to bed last night.

"Honey?" he calls out from the doorway, not quite poking his head in as he figures she might want to retain some dignity. "Was it the croissants? I told you they looked fishy."

He shoots Toph a baffled look, not that she can see it, but the 'what the hell' shrug is just kind of an automatic reaction to the noises coming from within.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "Of course you get presents!" Toph replies. Nice presents instead of flowers who will only wither and die anyway. When Pepper opens the large box, Toph beams at Pepper's delight. "It's made by Tomoyo, I told her to get something that fit your style." Unique clothing isn't bad, now is it? Better than anything you can get in a store!

    It's hard to 'see' anything through the bed as it doesn't carry vibrations like earthen materials does (thankfully...!), so the blind teenager looks a bit hopeful when she waits for a verbal cue on what Pepper thinks of the second gift. Especially since she made it herself. When she's pulled in for a hug though, she gets her answer, and Toph looks mighty pleased as she hugs into Pepper, burying her face against her torso. All before her eyes suddenly pop wide open, a sudden look of brief confusion there.

    And then Pepper bolts for the bathroom.

    Tony's comment doesn't earn a response at first, and Toph sits there for a few seconds on the bed. When he voices his suspicions about the croissants though, Toph lets out a slightly offended 'huff'. "Those croissants were perfectly fine, dad! I bought them, you honestly don't think I can bake? And I'm not like Egg Slayer, as my cooking won't kill you!" With that she slides out of bed and walks over the floor towards the bathroom. On her way she even has the guts to push Tony aside so she can enter, not really caring about dignity and whatever most people might be worried about. Instead she heads on over to where Pepper is kneeling over the toilet, gets down on her knees as she makes sure to help pull Pepper's hair out of the way, and then she leans in close to press her ear against Pepper's side, a look of concentration on her face. Some seconds pass before she speaks up.

    "So... when /were/ you guys going to tell me about Bitchin' Camero?"

Pepper Potts (204) has posed:
    Pepper is not used to having help in the bathroom. She fiddles a little bit, embarrassed clearly and reaching for a towel when Toph comes in to hold her hair, and then feels her ear press against the side of her own stomach. She tilts her head, and then her eyes go wide... and then when Toph speaks up...

    Pepper, who thought that after facing down Koh, dealing with Tony dying multiple times, fighting a former Confederate general and raising a teenager thought she could deal with /anything/ finds herself at a loss for words. A late period wasn't anything /new/ -- there was stress, and the worry of other things going on... but at that, her hands go to her mouth. And she looks up to Tony, her eyes wide.

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
Tony allows himself to be shoved aside, his eyes following Toph with a bemused little smirk on his face. "What are you talking about?"

There is genuine empathy in his voice though when he continues, "You okay, Pep? Want Jarvis to call the doctor?" She's nursed him through enough hangovers to know what it feels like.

Since Toph has already barged her way into the bathroom he shrugs and follows her in, heading directly to the sink to get his wife a glass of water to wash out the taste of sick. And he turns toward her, glass in hand, and pauses at her look of evident shock.

"...What?"

He actually checks to make sure he is, in fact, wearing boxers.

Pepper Potts (204) has posed:
    Pepper glances down at Toph, and embarrassedly, and hurriedly pulls her hair into a ponytail. "Well." she begins, and folds her hands over her stomach, looking at Toph. "Sometimes a woman is... just running late with certain things. And I didn't want anyone to start buying things, or freaking out and being overprotective until I was sure about something... and... your dad didn't know.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    The earthbender doesn't move, clearly listening intently with that super freaky hearing of hers. Though she does blink once she hears the reaction from her parents.

    "... wait, you /didn't/ know?" she asks, then purses her lips as she closes her eyes. "Explains why I didn't hear it before today, then."

    Not being able to see the shocked look on Tony's face, Toph instead hears the change in his own heartbeat and breathing, and she reaches out to take the glass from him and hand it over to Pepper if he's still frozen in shock.

    "You're telling me," Toph snorts about the reference to periods, "blasted body can't decide if it wants to be late or early half of the time!" Lucky Tony, we are also discussing womanly woes to make this morning even better.

    Since Pepper seems to be doing better now that she's thrown up (better not do that later when they're eating breakfast), Toph rises to her feet. "Guess I have to get started on bending toys next."

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
Tony's still a little behind the conversation. At first he actually thinks Pepper is referring to Lao, then remembers that he is 'dad'. After a quick blink to clear that confusion he gets back to the regular confusion. "I didn't know what?" he asks, but even by the time the last word is out his brain has already started to analyze the what Pepper just said. "Why would you be freaking out--" he hasn't done anything freak-out-worthy lately, has he? "Or.... buying... anything... you..."

His hand clenches in a sudden spasm around the water glass. Fortunately he is not possessed of superhuman strength like some people, and it doesn't shatter in his hand. It just sloshes a little, before Toph gently removes it from his hand. "You're /late/?" he repeats, his voice ratcheting up an octave.

Pepper Potts (204) has posed:
    Pepper reaches out with her hand out to take the water from Tony, getting up to her feet when Toph takes the water from Tony, and Potts sits back down, back against the bowl. She looks up at Tony, her eyes tearing up slightly, her shoulders rising and her hands coming up in an 'I-don't-know' fashion.

    "I'm late." she confirms, giving a nod of her head and pursing her lips.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Cue Toph rolling her eyes at Tony's comments. Isn't his brain usually running faster than other people's? That's what he's bragging about most of the time anyway. With a sigh she wonders /why/ Tony insisted on having The Talk with her nearly two years ago, especially since he doesn't seem to be getting it /right now/. "No, mom's not late," she points out and rests her hands on her hips. "She's pregnant, dunderhead." Man, his voice is nearly getting as squeaky as her own.

    It seems like her parents will need some earthbender logic in all of this.

    So Toph lets out a heavy sigh, reaches out to grab Tony's hand before yanking at it, clearly trying to make him sit down on the floor next to Pepper. "What the crud are you two freaking out about? It's not the end of the world, it's not neo-Saiyans coming to blast up Malibu, no spirit monster that's coming to eat one of us, no Confederate plot to make people suffer... you guys obviously had a great honeymoon," she can't help but make her Oogie Face (tm) when she says those words, "and now there's a Bitchin' Camero." Here she leans over to press her ear to Pepper's stomach again. "Either that or mom grew another heart, which I find rather unlikely."

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
Tony feels the yanking on his hand, kind of a dim sensation through a sudden fog. But he doesn't move. His arm just goes kind of limp and he stands there staring at Pepper. Or maybe through her. His eyes aren't really focused that well.

"I'm not freaking out," he mumbles. "I just... why didn't you... I thought... we were... excuse me," he finally manages to stammer, turns and walks a bit shakily back into the bedroom. Leaving the two ladies on the bathroom floor.

From there he goes directly to the balcony - Jarvis has the sense to open the door for him as Mr. Stark himself is clearly not quite all there and would have walked right into the glass - and he stands there, his hands tight around the railing as he stares out over the Pacific and tries to remember how to breath the salt air.

Pepper Potts (204) has posed:
    Pepper gives a slight smile, and ruffles Toph's head as she leans back against her stomach, hearing that tiny little heartbeat... and then Tony did just what Pepper was afraid he'd do.

    "Tony?" Pep asks, and her face gives away her sinking feeling. "/Tony?/" she asks again, and watches him walk from the bathroom to the balcony...

    Pepper leans back a moment. "... well. There was a slight miscalculation... jetlag. Automatic update on the phone. Just... forgot the whole birth control thing for two days..." Pepper admits. And she leans forward, her face in her hands.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Not freaking out my ass!

    Toph throws her arms up in exasperation at her dad and how poorly he seems to handle this. Though she does remember what he said before. Being responsible for a completely new life. Knowing just how messed up his relationship with /his/ father was... Hearing Pepper's tone though makes Toph mellow down, and she hugs into Pepper. Well, seems like this time it's /she/ who has to give /them/ support. "It's not a bad thing, is it...?" she ventures. Pepper doesn't seem to be freaking out like Tony is, but then again Pepper is more levelheaded. When Pepper leans forward and places her face in her hands, Toph strokes her back. Her expression betrays her feelings easily enough; torn between which parent she should talk with. Maybe Tony needs a few seconds to himself, right now. So she sits there with Pepper, quiet for a few minutes.

    "You know what I wrote on the card I made for you? 'Thanks for being the best mom in the multiverse'. You'd be an awesome mom to your own kid too if that's what you're afraid of." With that she wraps both arms around Pepper and gives her a tight hug, then carefully lets go and rises to her feet, heading out of the bathroom, through the bedroom and to the balcony door.

    Through her feet she observes Tony for some seconds, wondering how the hell to stop his little freakout. Ah, to hell with it."There was a reason I accepted you as my supervising officer, you know," the blind girl begins quietly. "Do you really think I would have begun staying here and been here for so long if you two were horrible?" Toph asks sincerely. They know she's had a history of running away from home before her world unified. "Or that I would have let you two adopt me? Sure, you could have gotten the paperwork and all, but heh, good luck keeping me in a home where I'm not happy."

    Then she takes a few steps forward, crossing her arms sternly across her chest. "I know you're freaking out, but right now you're freaking Pepper out too when she needs you." At least she's giving him some space instead of walking right up and trying to punch sense into him.

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
Tony honestly does not hear most of that. Well, his ears hear it but his brain doesn't register anything beyond 'I think someone might be talking to me.' He just stares out over the ocean. After a minute his hands release from the railing, but only for his right hand to distractedly twist at the ring on his left. He draws in a deep breath, in through the nose, out through the mouth, the way he's trained his body to automatically cope with the tight feeling in his chest. It's been a while since he could say he could FEEL his heart thumping against the back plate of the reactor. Tears are pricking at his eyes but don't quite fall.

A few more deep breaths, the muscles across his shoulders tense and shuddering with each exhalation.

Finally, he turns his head fractionally, acknowledging Toph standing on the balcony with him. "No, it's just... I was wrong," he says, vaguely. His brow furrows in a little frown as he turns to go back into the house.

He walks back to the bathroom doorway... and hesitates there a moment, before setting his jaw determinedly and stepping across the threshold. "Sorry," he mutters, and he knows that's not an adequate apology for what he just did and he can't quite look Pepper in the eye. He's not sure where to look, in truth, though he finally settles for the general direction of a modern art sculpture hanging on the wall. "Are you... okay?" he asks in a soft voice, awkwardly.

Pepper Potts (204) has posed:
    Pepper looks up as Tony comes back in. She had been sitting with her back against the toilet, fiddling with the bracelet from Toph. She settles her hands to her side, and when Tony looks away from her, her face falls, and her shoulders rise up. "I'm Pepper Stark." she states, "I punched Serori in the head. I think I can handle this." she replies to him, taking a deep breath.

    "... I didn't say anything because I didn't want you to freak out, and do precisely this. You're going to overprocess it, reach far, /far/ past reasonability and you're going to lock up for three days trying to turn it over and look at it from every angle. But there's... Tony... isn't this something you wanted?" she asks, alittle bit of fear creeping into her voice.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Waiting for a response from Tony, Toph stands still and just listens. He's clearly shook up, isn't he? It's easily heard in how his heart beats, how she can sense the shrapnel moving along with every myocardic contraction, the shortness of breath that he usually doesn't have.

    When he does speak up she stands still. He was wrong? About what?

    What matters is that he realizes that Pepper needs him right now, and so Toph lets Tony pass by her without another comment. Instead she lets out a heavy sigh and flops down, deciding that the two might need a moment alone. Even if she /can/ hear them perfectly well from where she's sitting. Pepper is right though, Tony is overprocessing it, making it way more complicated than it needs to be.

    Her own expression is pensive as well where she sits, idly reaching out to bend part of the floor into a small ball, one that Buster knows well enough how works as he lets out a 'meow' and leaps off the bed to chase it, a game he and Toph have played many times before.

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
Tony blinks hard several times as Pepper speaks, his face twitching in discomfort at knowing just how /right/ she is, and finally he raises his hands to his face, pressing his palms into his eyes as if that will help stop the thoughts racing in his head from bursting out. "Nnnnngh!" he declares inarticulately, a noise of sheer frustration.

"No -- I mean, no not no /that/, just... Ugh." He drops his hands from his face. "I'm sorry," he sighs, finally looking at Pepper's face. His eyes are red and puffy, and his cheeks are streaked with wetness now. "I'm sorry," he repeats, a bit more steadily, and he crouches on the floor beside her. His eyes wander to the general area of her abdomen, but he blinks and forces his gaze back to her face as if he's not quite ready to go there yet. He looks her in the eye, forces a somewhat frantic, strained smile and goes back to what he said not long ago on the beach below the house. "I will never not love you. I just... I've only just gotten used to the idea of being /married/, honey. You know? Finally wrapped my head around the idea that it was okay, we were finally /here/, I didn't have to deal with the uncertainty anymore--" he catches himself on the verge of rambling and stops himself by biting his lip.

Tony reaches out to touch Pepper's cheek, his fingertips ghosting over her skin in the same tentative, delicate manner as when he'd first come fully clean with her over the depth of his feelings. The tense smile on his face relaxes fractionally. "I just said -- I had everything I could possibly want. I was completely content. But... now I know I was wrong." His hand drifts lightly downward until it rests lightly on her belly.

"Now," he says softly, "I have everything I could want."

Pepper Potts (204) has posed:
    She had given a half-start at the sound that arose out of Tony's throat. She had started to get up, concerned, until she realized something was horribly going on. ... Tony was crying.

    The woman had tried to stand, her stomach giving another lurch as she catches to his words, holding to them. His fingers touch her cheek, she reaches up, her fingers brushing over his. Pepper gives a smile, and she leans her head against him, her fingers reaching up and entwining with his on her belly. She takes a deep breath, and speaks up:

    "Tony. I love you. I will always love you. And this... this is another little challenge that we'll face together. With Toph's help." She states, giving a nod to the girl. "... she's already proven she is an /awesome/ babysitter.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Back and forth the ball rolls over the balcony floor, guided by minute movements of Toph's hand from afar as she sits there, eyes closed as she 'watches'. Buster carefully bats at the strange moving ball, unaware of what's going on and just doing his cat business. Luckily it appears that Tony is done freaking out for now, good. Because Pepper sounded really scared there, which she can kinda understand. With how much Tony babbled about not being ready for a baby and to take such a step, it was sort of to be expected, right?

    A slight smile crosses her lips where she sits as she overhears some of those words. Seems like the crisis is averted.

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
Tony grins. He still looks a bit manic, a bit terrified, but there can be no doubt he's /happy/ at this development. He's going to be a dad. Well, okay, technically he's already a dad, but this one will look like him. He'll get to be there from day one. He'll get a chance to do better than his own father did. And with the one woman he'd ever WANT along with him for such an undertaking.

"...Are you feeling better?" he asks, giving a quick glance around the room. "I mean, not that you aren't still gorgeous sitting on the floor by the toilet, but." He braces himself and tightens his grip on Pepper's hand, inviting her to use him as a ladder if she wants to get up.

After puking her guts up like that he can only imagine she must need to refill the tank. "You feel up to breakfast now?" Maybe not the whole thing but... his mind casts for something simple that an upset stomach could handle. "...toast?" he suggests.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Buster lets out a slightly irritated meow as Toph bends the part of the floor back into place, and he paws carefully at the spot where the fun rolling thing was, as if trying to dig it back out.

    As it sounds like they're about to get out of the bathroom, Toph rises to her feet as well, scooping Buster up to make sure he doesn't try to leap off of the balcony again and head out on an adventure in the great Malibu wilds. Only once Jarvis has closed the doors does she let the cat down, all before she walks over to sit down at the foot of the bed. Well, her chocolate is probably cold by now, but the omelette seems to be still somewhat warm.