Author's Note: I realize this is an obscure pairing, but the more I have played around with it, the more I think it really works. In a world without Tony, I might argue that Pepper Potts and Phil Coulson belong together. Hopefully, this story might convince one or two of you of the same thing. This is my first time writing for Ironman, even though I have been a longtime fan of the franchise and have enjoyed many fine stories from other writers, so I would appreciate any feedback you would care to give me.

And a huge (read: COLOSSAL, CATEGORICAL, ETERNAL) thanks to my beta reader and frequent muse kaheels for proofing every chapter of this story and really helping mold this story into what it is today. Seriously, there's no question in my mind that this story would not be complete if it weren't for her consistent encouragement. So thank you, kaheels.

Needless to say, I hope you enjoy the story. Now...

Deep breath in...deep breath out...here we go!

CHAPTER ONE: The Meeting

"Agent Coulson?"

He rose from his seat upon hearing his name and turned towards the familiar voice. "Miss Potts," he greeted in return, outstretching his hand.

She took it, smiling at him brilliantly. "So sorry to keep you waiting."

He returned the smile with a dismissive shake of the head. "No need to apologize. Though, I was expecting to meet with Mr. Stark today," he mildly observed.

"I know," she seemed apologetic. "I'm told that Tony is in transit this very moment returning from a meeting."

"A meeting?" Agent Coulson repeated. After several months of knowing Tony Stark, the representative from S.H.I.E.L.D. had become accustomed to being avoided and ignored outright by the billionaire; but this appointment had been arranged through Ms. Potts herself, and it seemed uncharacteristic of the efficient businesswoman to have double-booked her employer.

"Yes, it was evidently a very important 'meeting' which apparently took place in Atlantic City late yesterday evening. I was told about it only this morning," Miss Pepper Potts explained, the exasperation apparent in her tone.

Coulson inclined his head and gave a quiet, "Ah," in understanding.

The woman pinched her lips together in a rigid smile and nodded her head at him, as if to say, 'I know, welcome to my world.' After a short moment, what she actually said was, "So I'm afraid, Agent Coulson, that you'll have to settle for me this time. That is, unless you'd prefer to reschedule."

"Not at all," Coulson said, quickly shaking his head. Truth be told, while the neurotic and childish playboy that was Mr. Stark had a tendency to grind at the agent's well-concealed nerves, the lovely assistant was actually an acquaintance Coulson was quickly coming to admire, and even like. She was intelligent, competent, friendly, and a wonderful conversationalist. Coulson was starting to realize that he preferred working through her, simply because things actually seemed to get done when she was involved. It certainly made Coulson's job easier, and besides that, he just preferred her to Stark in practically every way.

He smiled at her kindly. "I'd appreciate any time you could afford me."

She smiled too, "Excellent. Then, would you come with me?"

He extended his arm to the side and bowed his head subtly, ushering her to lead the way, and she quietly obliged.

They had barely sat down at the conference table when Agent Coulson's phone began to buzz. His brow furrowed as he fished it out of his pocket and then looked at the screen. A nondescript gray silhouette was displayed above the words Unidentified Number, but Coulson knew instantly who it was.

He looked up at Pepper with polite regret in his eyes, "I'm terribly sorry."

She smiled and swatted at the air gently, "Oh, please, go ahead."

Coulson just nodded and tapped the screen, bringing the phone to his ear. "Sir?" he said, watching as Pepper retrieved a small planner from her breast pocket and began to write something into it.

"Yes sir, I just stepped into a meeting with Ms. Potts regarding-"

Pause.

"No sir, Stark is on his way from out of town...No, on his way back."

Pause.

Coulson scowled. "Yes sir, we're in the conference room..." His words sounded hesitant, like he didn't like where the conversation was headed.

Pepper looked up at the sudden change in Coulson's tone. The agent locked eyes with her as he listened to his phone intently. His expression became very serious and Pepper knew instantly that something must be wrong.

Pulling the phone lightly away from his mouth, Coulson said to her, "We have to go."

"Go where?" she asked. There was a nervous spike in her voice, but she offered no resistance to the agent's hand as he gently grabbed her wrist and pulled her towards the door, still listening to his phone. "What's going-"

Before the words could escape her mouth, a thundering noise rocked somewhere beneath them and the whole building shook violently. Pepper jumped with a scream when the large glass covering on the light fixture broke free and crashed down onto the mahogany conference table. Her heart pounded as she saw the chair she was sitting in moments ago covered in large shards of glass. Coulson looked over his shoulder and shared an equally relieved glance with her before saying into the phone. "They've just hit. Exit strategy?"

Another short pause and Coulson pulled the phone away from his mouth again. "Roof," he said.

Pepper nodded and pointed through the door, "This way," and she took the agent's hand and pulled him along.

The halls of Stark Industries were crowded with people frantically trying to get to an exit. Pepper ducked and weaved in between them, keeping her tight grip on Coulson but not looking behind her. She let out another scream when the building suddenly jolted with a second blast. She stumbled violently to the side and jammed her shoulder against the wall.

Coulson crouched lower to the ground as debris started to fall around them from the shake. He pulled her back to her feet. "You okay?" he yelled over the noise.

Pepper merely nodded, catching her footing again and noticing for the first time that the agent seemed to have produced a firearm from somewhere in the last several seconds. Tearing her eyes away from the gun and up into his remarkably calm eyes, she asked, "Who are they?"

The man frowned and shook his head. "I don't know," he said, "but we have to get you out of here."

The two made their way into the stairwell. It was a fight against the current, climbing the seven stories up to the roof as everyone else rushed down towards the lobby. Pepper knew a lot of these people, and felt the need to stop and make sure some of them were alright, but Coulson's gentle pressure at her back kept her moving.

Eventually, they broke free into the clean air. Pepper let go of Coulson's hand and doubled over, coughing away the light layer of dust from her lungs. A second later, Pepper gasped when she felt his steady hand land heavily on her shoulder. He pushed her backwards until he was gently holding her against the wall. It was strange how his hold on her was both firm and soft at the same time, but looking up into his face, the same could be said for the man's eyes. Pepper was taken aback. By precisely what, she wasn't quite sure.

Coulson brought the barrel of his gun up to his lips and quietly shushed her, silently telling her not to move from the wall. Pepper simply gave a weak nod as she watched the agent, gun aimed in front of him, make a thorough sweep of the building top. He disappeared out of sight for a brief moment, securing the area behind them, and then reappeared again a moment later.

Coulson nodded the "all clear" at her and then looked up into the sky, spinning around several times, checking the horizons. He brought the phone up to his ear again. "You still there?" he asked, bringing his other hand, still clutching his gun, up to shield his eyes from the bright noonday sun. "Well any day would be good," he quipped.

As if in response to his snark, a black S.H.I.E.L.D. helicopter appeared in the distance and headed straight towards them. The building rocked beneath them for a third time just as the helicopter arrived.

Coulson holstered his weapon and took Pepper's hand again, slipping his phone into his pocket as well. He gently touched her head and urged it downward. "Keep your head low!" he instructed over the sound of the aircraft's blades chopping through the air. "It's not going to touch down all the way!" With one hand pulling her to his side and the other protectively covering her head, Coulson crouched and hurried towards the helicopter.

A young agent opened the back hatch and reached his arm out once they were close enough. Coulson helped to hoist Pepper up to the agent's grip before pulling himself up into the helicopter and signaling to the pilot that they were safely inside.

As they started to rise away from the building, the young agent closed the hatch again and the volume level in the craft dropped from a deafening roar to a slightly less deafening clamor. Coulson felt a hand on his shoulder and glanced up at the junior agent. "Sir, Director Fury wants to speak with you as soon as we land at HQ," he said over the noise. Coulson simply nodded his response as he looked over to Pepper in concern.

He had come to realize that the woman was remarkably resilient when it came to most things, but he could see evidence of her obvious fear as she sat and panted from the ordeal. There was a pang of guilt somewhere in his chest as he felt somehow responsible.

She looked up at the junior agent. "Do we know who it is?" she asked.

"No ma'am, not yet."

She looked back at Coulson desperately.

"Don't worry," he said, grabbing her shoulder reassuringly. "We'll find out what's going on. I promise."

There's the first chapter! Please let me know what you think! Chapter two will be up soon.