Secret Santa For Arc Reactor, M, F, Allergies, MCU Tony Stark, MCU Pepper Potts, Movieverse Sherlock Holmes

[SleepingPhlox]

Hooooo boy, @Arc Reactor , when I found out I got you for this year's Secret Santa I was over the moon because, well, look at the fandoms you like!  And also you're cool and great and I was more than delighted to help bring cheer to a fellow Tony Stark fan!  Instead of picking one of your prompts to do one story from, I decided to do little short stories for all of your preferences!  But if there is one in particular that you like and want to see developed into something further, let me know.  It's not like writing about these fandoms isn't my favourite thing ever or anything. 

I will be putting up the stories in this same topic.  Here are some summaries for anyone who might want to skip to something they might prefer over others.

1.  "Sacrifice", MCU Tony Stark, M, cat allergy, Tony/Steve relationship.  Tony overhears a conversation that breaks his heart and decides to do what's best for Steve.

2.   "Solution"  MCU Tony Stark, M, unspecified allergy, Tony/Steve relationship.  Tony is suffering bad allergies during a public speaking engagement and Steve wants to find a way to help him.

3.  "Surrender" MCU Pepper Potts, F, pollen allergy, Pepper/Natasha relationship.  Pepper doesn't want to let Natasha see her vulnerable.  Natasha just wants to look after her girlfriend.

4.  "Surreptitious" Movieverse Sherlock Holmes, M, dust allergy, Holmes/Watson relationship implied  Holmes, dust, and hiding from bad guys do not mix.

 

_________________________________________________________

1.  Sacrifice 

If there was one thing Tony Stark could count on, it was that for the first time in his life he was loved and secure and belonged somewhere and everything was undeniably, unmistakably rock-solid.  He had spent his life looking for something he’d never been really sure of, until he’d found Steve and he’d known all at once what he’d been missing all this time, because now he’d found it.  And nothing could ever take it away from him.  It was the one thing he could count on.

Until he happened to be passing by Natasha’s room and heard Steve’s voice, of all voices, in there.  

That in itself wasn’t unusual.  They hung out and trained together and Tony wasn’t the jealous type.  Or rather, he used to be, but he trusted Steve implicitly.

“Yeah, I know, I know, but I needed to see Jenny, and you said I could always drop by whenever I couldn’t bear to be without her any longer.”

What, what?  Why?  Why would he be saying that?  Tony crept closer to the door and tried his best to listen in.  He couldn’t hear Natasha’s voice, only Steve’s?  Was he on the phone?  

“Yes, I know I need to tell Tony eventually...yes, I know you’re doing me a big favour by letting me use your place...come on, can you imagine his reaction?  This is pretty much his worst nightmare...no, I can’t do that either.  I’ve fallen in love with her.  I can’t imagine life without her...I just, I can’t, I’m too afraid of what he’ll say.”

Tony reached up and brought a hand to his eyes.  He couldn’t really believe what he was hearing.  Slow, shaky breaths failed to quell the pounding of his heart.  He turned to go, retreat back to his penthouse to lick his wounds and plan what was to happen out of all of this.  He’d make it easy on Steve, he loved Steve far too much to make this even more painful for him.  Even if it meant he had to absorb the lion’s share of the pain.  What was a little more pain, after all? 

But something kept him here and he felt rooted to the spot.  If Steve loved Jenny that much , who was he to stand in the way?  As much as it hurt, as much as it physically felt as if someone was grabbing his arc reactor and attempting to tear it out of his chest by way of brute force, if it meant easing the burden on Steve, he would give him his blessing here and now.

But before he could knock on the door Tony heard a gleeful laugh and a “I know, I love you too, you sweet, sweet thing!  But I gotta go for a while, okay?  I’ll see you really soon, Miss Pretty, and before you know it you’ll get to see me every single day” from inside.  Tony winced, and nearly fled.  So she was inside?  This was nearly more than he could bear.  Would he have to face her, or would he be spared that fate?  No, he could do this, he would stand firm.  He hoped, at least, Jenny could make Steve happy.

Steve all but jumped out of his skin when he opened the door and saw Tony standing there.  Tony realised too late that there was no really good reason he should be standing there and boy was this weird right now.  Tony mumbled an awkward “hi”, not able to bring his gaze up to meet Steve’s beautiful blue eyes, the eyes he had gotten lost in so many times before.  What was he supposed to say?  How was he supposed to explain himself.

“Tony...” Steve said hesitantly, casting a furtive glance back at the now-closed door.  “Uh...how did you even know I was here?...not that I’m not happy to see you of course, it’s just-”

“I heard you,” Tony blurted out.  “I know about Jenny and I just want you to know that I’m not going to stand in your way.  More than anything I want you to be happy.  Even if I have to suffer.  And I’m not saying that to guilt trip you, I’m saying it because I love you.”

A smile spread across Steve’s face as he grabbed Tony and squeezed him in an ebullient embrace.  Tony felt his eyes began to prickle as he buried his face in Steve’s shirt.  He hadn’t cried since he was six, and he’d forgotten what it felt like.  He hadn’t expected it to be so...itchy.

“Oh, Tony!  Thank you!  Thank you so much!  This means the world to me!  And I promise, I’ll keep the effect on you to a minimum.  My bedroom only, and she won’t go near the rest of the penthouse and-”

“Hold on,” Tony said, sniffling and drawing a hand under his nose.  “I’ll support you but I think I draw the line at you continuing to live at my place, much less bringing your...”  He had to pause to rub his nose, which was weirdly irritated now.  “Girlfriend to hang out in it.”
“Girlfriend?  I’m sorry, Tony.  You’ve lost me.”

“Je-hhhhh...Jenny...hehhhhhh...”

Steve laughed, which seemed wholly inappropriate given the circumstances.  “Tony...Jenny’s not my girlfriend.  She’s a cat.”

“HehhIHHHptchhhhu!”

“And that’s why I’ve been keeping her at Nat’s place.  I’ve got cat hair all over my shirt and look what it’s doing to you.”

“Hehhhh...ISSSHHHchhhh!...ugh...okay, I can’t tell if I should be relieved or not,” Tony joked.  “Because I...hhhhhehhhh...I...hehhhPTCHHHgghh!...I’b dot really a cat person.”

“I know, I know,” Steve said sympathetically, putting his hand on Tony’s shoulder.  “But she’s so little and fluffy and she was found in a box on the street in my old neighbourhood and I just fell in love with her and wanted to give her a happy, comfortable life.”

Tony sniffled and shook his head in defeat.  “A’d you see, thad’s why I fell id love with you.  You’re too good to actually be re-...hehhhISSHHHcchhh!...real.  Okay, bring me inside and show me this little madam that’s stolen your heart...and don’t...hehhhPTCHHHgghh!...give me that look.   That look there, the one that you always give me right before you ask me if I’m sure about something.  I’m sure.”

_______________________________________

Fun fact:  "Jenny isn't my girlfriend, she's a cat" was a sentence from the Duolingo language learning app that I thought would make a good fic and filed it away in my brain to use someday, and I finally got to do that!

 

[SleepingPhlox]

2.  "Solution"

Steve could never understand how Tony actually seemed to like public speaking.  And not only like it, absolutely revel in it.  If there was an opportunity for a moment for all eyes to be on him, for the attention of countless people to be turned to him, Tony would take it.  He would seek it out.  Not, of course, that Steve minded.  It meant that Tony was only too happy to take on the public demands of celebrity life, and he could play Supportive Boyfriend from the background.  Steve had gotten more comfortable with publicity in recent time, out of necessity, but he still preferred to keep as low a profile as possible.  Besides, Tony loved to shine, and he did it so well, so why not let him?

The only problem was that Tony didn't seem to be enjoying this particular moment in the quite literal spotlight.

"So what that means for the future of energy is...ohhh man, hold on again...hhihhhTCHHhhh!...excuse me.  Anyway.  The future of energy..."

Steve watched from the side, leaning on the wall, his usual affectionate smile replaced by a frown of concern.  He had reminded Tony to take his allergy medication, warned him that the news had plastered a great big high pollen count warning over the weather forecast.  Now, whether or not Tony had heeded that was another guess entirely.

He should have reminded Tony again, he knew full well that Tony had enough on his mind with planning and rehearsing the speech and getting ready.

"And you can reasonably predict from this...from th-...this...hihhhPTCHHhhh...excuse me...from this trend that...oh for-...hihhhESSHHHggh!.."

This time there was no "excuse me", only an exasperated sigh.  It was clearly getting to him.  Oh, he was doing his best to keep up a semblance of his usual confident appearance - straight back, shoulders pushed back, one hand held behind his back while the other gestured with measured precision, but he was clearly flagging.

"...and you'll be able to take non-renewable energy out of the equa-...equation...by...hihhhPTCHHhhh!..."

He really needed to do something.  Not only was Tony clearly suffering but at this rate it would take him twice as long to get through the speech.  But Tony wasn't exactly the sort to just give up like that.  He wouldn't be easily persuaded to cut it short.  No, it would take something like...

Perhaps a little technical difficulty?

"...so we're making this available to...hihhhESHHHcchh!...we're making this...hehhhPTCHHgghk!...we're ma-"

And then his face was a picture of utter confusion as he suddenly found his voice not ringing out clearly to the entire hall, not even loud enough for the front row to hear him unless he shouted.  He shot a glance back at Steve, who eyed the array of speakers and then shrugged as if to say:  Hey, anything that runs on electricity is not my strong point.  Tony signalled to his waiting audience that he'd just be a moment, and then trotted off the stage, managing to look quizzical and exasperated at the same time.  Of all the things that could possibly go wrong, suddenly losing sound really shouldn't have been one of them, and he really didn't need any more frustrations at this moment in time.

Steve merely leaned casually against the wall, offering a shrug laden with wide eyed innocence in response to Tony's questioning look.  The how on earth would I have any idea what's going on here didn't need to be spoken, his expression conducted it through the air.  Tony sighed and approached the sound area, preparing himself to perform a very thorough diagnosis and...

"It's unplugged," he said, raising an eyebrow at Steve.

"Oh my, how could that have possibly happened..?"

"Come on, I don't have t-...ti-...hehhhESSHHttchh!...time for this.  I need to fi-...nish...hihhhKTCHcchh!..."

Steve smiled and handed Tony a travel pack of tissues.  "No, what you need is to take some allergy medicine, have a drink of water, and sit here for a few minutes.  And if that helps, maybe I might just consider letting you go back out to finish your speech."

"You are very bossy," Tony sulked, but he sat down anyway.

[SleepingPhlox]

3.  Surrender

The thing that had defined Pepper Potts for her entire life was that she knew exactly who she was and what she wanted and had complete confidence in her abilities to find a way to get what she wanted.  Or at least that’s what she’d always thought.  Up until the curvy redhead had waltzed into her life and turned everything she thought about herself on it’s head.  

Yes, sure, she’d convinced herself for a while that she was just jealous of the competition for Tony.  Until Tony had been out of the picture for a while and Natasha - though she’d still known her as “Natalie” back then -  was still there, breezing into her office several times a day, and Pepper couldn’t help but notice that her heart seemed to beat a little quicker every time Natasha’s bouncy red curls and perky curves entered her view.

Much like her heart was beating right now.  Of course, things were a little different now.  Pepper had come to terms with the thing she was most surprised to discover about herself, and Natasha was much more of a permanent fixture in her daily life.  Still could make her heart go wild though.

“I’m about to make a coffee run, Miss Potts,” Natasha purred in her husky voice, ladling on a decent amount of seductiveness absolutely on purpose, amplified by the wink she gave as she perched on the edge of Pepper’s desk.  “Will I get your usual?”  She eyed Pepper curiously as her ploy was met by a startled deer-in-the-headlights look rather than the subtle swoon it usually evoked.

“Um...coffee run...yeah...I...I don’t think I’m in the mood for coffee right now...”  Pepper’s voice fluttered as her breath hitched, but it was obvious she was putting all her energy into controlling herself right now.  Pepper was all about control.  No vulnerability, no weakness.  Even when her suffering was written all over her face with all the subtlety of a tacky flashing neon sign.  Her nose was pink, her eyes red and watering, eyelashes matted together from the tears, and wetness pooled in the uncharacteristic bags under her eyes.  It was only a matter of time until...

She raised a slender hand to her face.  “Hiihhtssccch!....Tsssssh!...hihhh....hihhhtchhh!...Tcchhssshh!”

Natasha raised an eyebrow and gently plucked a tissue from the box on the desk and held it out to her.  Her brow furrowed as Pepper seemed to turn away in an attempt to hide her face even as she reached gratefully for the tissue and folded it over her nose with both hands.

“Sweetie,” Natasha purred.  “I know full well the pollen count is off the charts today, and I could hear you from out there.  You’re suffering so why don’t you tell me how I can help so I can take care of my girlfriend the way I want to?”

Pepper shook her head, still attempting to keep her face hidden.  “I’b fide, really, a’d...hihhTSHHH...tchhhhh!...hihhshhhh!...tchhhhu!...I’m so sorry...”

“Sweetie, you know I think you’re the most beautiful woman in the world.  And nothing is going to change that.  Not a red nose or watery eyes, not anything.  Also, your sneezes are adorable.  So please, please, please tell me how I can help you because I’m not going anywhere until you do.  Okay?”

Pepper slowly turned to face her, a grateful and sheepish smile spread across her face.  “Adorable?  Really?  You don’t think that’s a little much?”  She allowed herself a little laugh, slowly starting to thaw her resistance to the situation.  This was a relationship, an honest-to-goodness real relationship, and she was going to have to start letting Natasha see her, warts and all.  Even when she wasn’t in control.  “Okay, honestly...I ran out of antihistamines and I couldn’t bring myself to go out like this and get more, especially with what the pollen is like out there.  If you helped me with that, I’d be so grateful.  And then...maybe come back and spend some time with me?  Even if I...hihhhhTDSHHHH!...hissshhh!...hihhhshhhhu!...ktchhhhh!...cad’t stop sdeezing to save by life?”

“Anything for you,” Natasha said with a smile.  “Besides, like I said, most adorable sneezes I’ve ever seen in my life.”

 

[SleepingPhlox]

4.  Surreptitious

"Holmes, are you sure we have the right place?" Watson asked quizzically, eyeing the interior of the small cottage with suspicion.  He might not have the keen observational skills his companion had, but he was in possession of a pair of eyes, and he could very clearly see that something didn't add up here.

Holmes bristled, the mere thought of the question offensive to his very nature.  "I am sure.  I am always sure of everything I say.  I wouldn't say it otherwise."

There was a nearly imperceptible waver in his voice that might seem to indicate a small amount of hesitancy behind his declaration, that perhaps he was a little less certain than he professed to be.  But of course, Watson had his suspicions that he knew better.  He hadn't gotten to know the eccentric man so well without learning a thing or two about his peculiarities.

"Yes but are you sure you're sure?  I don't think anyone has been counterfeiting anything in here.  I don't think anyone has set foot in this place much less done a single thing for a few years at least..."

The cottage was in a state of slight disarray, furnishings and decorations that were at least two decades out of fashion sat undisturbed where they had watched over the passage of time long enough to collect a generous layer of dust.  It was the dust that Watson had noticed most particularly.  Try as he might, he couldn't quite find a place where it had been noticeably disturbed.  No living person had disturbed this place in years, he was sure of it.

He was also sure that Holmes's nose had noticed the heaping quantities of dust lying around.  That was one of Holmes's little peculiarities.  Even a small amount of dust could send him into paroxysms of sneezing that seemed to last forever, always accompanied by streaming watery eyes and of course no end of complaining.  One would think, Watson often lamented, that this would cause the eccentric detective to become fastidious in keeping his home clean, yet Holmes would stubbornly ignore the growing piles of dust, sneezing more and more until Watson gave in and cleaned the place yet again, just to get a reprieve from the constant noise.  

And true to form, Holmes already seemed to be succumbing to the dusty irritation of the cottage, his face contorting with comical dramaticness, nostrils flaring and upper lip pulling up, exposing his upper teeth.  And of course, Watson couldn’t quite help but stoop to some good natured needling.

“Getting to you a little bit, is it?  The dust, I mean?  Goodness, there is so much of it.  I’ve never seen a place so coated in the stuff.  I wouldn’t be surprised in the least if you happened to be suffering terribly right now.  I mean, your nose must be utterly tormented, I would imagine...”

Holmes glowered at him, a clear signal that his teasing had landed effectively.  Oh, he adored Holmes with all his heart, naturally, but of course adoration and teasing weren’t exactly mutually exclusive.  For Watson, they went hand in hand as a matter of course. Not that it was something Holmes always appreciated.

“N-Not...hehhh...in the...hehhh...the least...hehhKTCHHeehhuuuh!....HNNNGKTchhhheehhh!”  He lifted his chin and rubbed his nose haughtily.  “Not in the least.  Sorry to disappoint you.  You know, you seem so interested in my sneezes, one might almost think you had some sort of fixation with the-....hhhhhhehhhh...hehhhMMPHHtchhh!...them.”

“Just looking out for you, dear boy,” Watson chuckled, then froze when Holmes held up a finger.  At first he thought it may signal another impending sneeze, but then Holmes raised the finger to his lips and it was at that moment Watson realised there was a look of true alarm  on Holmes’s face.  And then he heard it.  Voices.  Footsteps.  Nearing the front door.  It seemed this place wasn’t as abandoned as he’d thought it was.  Surprisingly, Holmes seemed just as taken off guard.  That wasn’t a good sign.  He was usually just one step ahead of everyone else, at the very least.  Usually it was more like several steps ahead.

So Watson was relieved to hear Holmes utter the words: “Ah, yes, there it is. To be expected really.”

And then at the next moment he was pulled into darkness.

Watson blinked as his eyes adjusted to the light.  It was nearly pitch black in here, a small slat of light streaming in from somewhere he couldn’t quite place.  This room was smaller, quite cramped, and he found himself uncomfortably pressed up against Holmes.  Of course, not that they hadn’t willingly found themselves in a similar position before.  The space was crammed with desks and machines of some sort, it smelled powerfully musty, and he could see dust dancing in the singular beam of light.  Though, to this place’s credit, it was much less dusty than the main cabin.  He could hear voices on the other side of the wall, hovering dangerously close to their hiding place.

Holmes sniffled, his nose quite close to Watson’s ear, then whispered “By the way, dear boy, in case you needed it spelled out, we’ve found the counterfeiting equipment in a hidden room.”

“Thanks, but I think I managed to grasp that one for myself.  What do we plan to do now that we’ve found it?” he said drily, then added as a response to hearing Holmes’s desperately quivering hitching breath.  “Don’t you even think about it, do you hear me?  I have no interest in being found by dangerous criminals cowering in the dark.  Holmes?  Are you listening?  Holmes, I mean it.  Oh good heavens, at least muffle it into a handkercheif if you really can’t help yourself.”

“I...hhhhhehhhh...havehhhhhhh...n’t got...hehhhhhh...one...”

In one fluid movement, Watson had grabbed his own handkerchief from his pocket and clamped it firmly over Holmes’s nose and mouth.  Just in the nick of time.

“HhehhhMPPHHHHgghh!...haaahhhhhMMMPHHHcchhhu!...hihhhPTCHHHHggghhh!...hihhhEHHHHsssshhh!”

Watson winced at the volume of the cursed sneezes.  Even with the handkerchief, there was no way they hadn’t been heard.  And while Holmes seemed completely occupied with fending off another harsh volley of itchy allergic sneezes, Watson’s main concern was the voice on the other side of the wall that barked “Hey, did you hear something?  Came from in there, it did!”

“Holmes,” he whispered urgently.  “They know we’re here.  This is a problem!”

“HehhhhESSSStchhhuuu!...HeehhhDTCHHHHeeeeeh!...Dot a probleb at all.  You take the left, a’d I’ll t-...hiiihhhKTCHHHeeeehh!...take the right.”

 

 

[Arc Reactor]

Oh my... I have no words. 

Phlox, you are -- in simple words -- a blessing. 

Wow. 

Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you so so so much. You are truly a dream come true. Every single one of these was absolute gold. You really made my day. 

First of all, poor Tony thinking Steve was cheating on him was just so heartbreaking. And then when he found out Jenny was a cat? And IMMEDIATELY started sneezing? Oh my... *faints with happiness* And then, and then, and then!!! Going into the room where the cat was even though he was already sneezing up a storm just from Steve's shirt?!?! 🤩😍

And then Tony FORGETTING TO TAKE HIS ALLERGY MEDS ON A HIGH POLLEN DAY?!?! SNEEZING IN FRONT OF AN AUDIENCE?!?! *hyperventilates with excitement* That was just... genius. 

Oh and my babies Pepper and Natasha... I am in love. The two most powerful redheads in the MCU? Dating? Being Soft? Taking care of each other? SIGN ME UP!

The last one. Oh, Holmes. Oh.... I just... imploded. phewwww, that was... just... so majestic. So... hot... beyond words the English language can describe. 

@SleepingPhlox you have truly given me everything I wanted for Christmas this year. Thank you so much for being so amazing, for writing so beautifully, for giving me above and beyond what you needed to. I feel so lucky. I hope you have an amazing holidays and an amazing New Years. 

[AngelEyes]

On 12/24/2018 at 7:42 PM, SleepingPhlox said:

“Oh, Tony!  Thank you!  Thank you so much!  This means the world to me!  And I promise, I’ll keep the effect on you to a minimum.  My bedroom only, and she won’t go near the rest of the penthouse and-”

“Hold on,” Tony said, sniffling and drawing a hand under his nose.  “I’ll support you but I think I draw the line at you continuing to live at my place, much less bringing your...”  He had to pause to rub his nose, which was weirdly irritated now.  “Girlfriend to hang out in it.”
“Girlfriend?  I’m sorry, Tony.  You’ve lost me.”

LOL

 

On 12/24/2018 at 7:44 PM, SleepingPhlox said:

“Getting to you a little bit, is it?  The dust, I mean?  Goodness, there is so much of it.  I’ve never seen a place so coated in the stuff.  I wouldn’t be surprised in the least if you happened to be suffering terribly right now.  I mean, your nose must be utterly tormented, I would imagine...”

Oh Watson!

These are great!

[Shamaël]

I can only comment on your last part with Sherlock Holmes, which I really enjoyed. You have Watson and Holmes perfectly.

On 12/25/2018 at 2:44 AM, SleepingPhlox said:

“HehhhhESSSStchhhuuu!...HeehhhDTCHHHHeeeeeh!...Dot a probleb at all.  You take the left, a’d I’ll t-...hiiihhhKTCHHHeeeehh!...take the right.”