Chapter Text
Penny didn’t know how long she stood there in Pepper’s arms, but when she finally pulled away, the storm inside her had dulled to a simmer instead of a full-blown hurricane.
Pepper gave her a long, searching look before sighing. “Come on. You should get some rest.”
Penny shook her head. “I can’t. Not yet.”
Pepper didn’t push, but she didn’t leave either. Instead, she walked to the sink and grabbed a washcloth, running it under cool water before pressing it into Penny’s hands. Penny took it without a word, pressing the damp fabric against her knuckles. The sting was grounding.
For a few moments, silence stretched between them. Then, quietly, Pepper said, “You did good today.”
Penny scoffed. “I don’t feel like I did.”
“You didn’t let them win.”
“I didn’t win either.”
Pepper hesitated, then said, “Maybe not. But sometimes, surviving is its own kind of victory.”
Penny didn’t have an answer to that. She just pressed the washcloth harder against her bruised knuckles and forced herself to breathe.
Pepper leaned against the counter, watching her carefully. “Are you planning on seeing them again?”
Penny let out a bitter laugh. “Not if I can help it.”
Pepper nodded, as if she’d expected that answer. “They’re not done with you.”
“I know.”
And that was the problem, wasn’t it?
The Avengers weren’t the type to let things go. Especially Steve. He had a way of digging into things, of picking at wounds until they bled all over again. If he thought there was unfinished business between them, he’d find a way to bring it back up. And the others? They wouldn’t let this go either.
She wasn’t naive. She knew they were just waiting for another opportunity to corner her, to try and get the last word in. Maybe to guilt her, maybe to justify themselves. Maybe just to make sure she wasn’t a threat.
Because that’s what she was to them, wasn’t it?
A problem to solve. A loose end to tie up. A Stark who refused to fall in line.
Penny exhaled sharply and turned to Pepper. “If they come looking for me again—”
“They will.”
Penny swallowed. “Then what do I do?”
Pepper’s gaze softened, but there was steel underneath it. “That depends. What do you want?”
Penny blinked. “What?”
“Do you want to fight them?”
The answer should have been simple. But it wasn’t.
Because as much as Penny wanted to hurt them, as much as she wanted to make them pay for what they did, she also knew that fighting them wouldn’t bring her father back. Wouldn’t change what had already happened.
It wouldn’t give her peace.
She gritted her teeth. “I don’t know.”
Pepper reached out, brushing a strand of hair behind Penny’s ear. “Then figure it out. But don’t let them make the choice for you.”
Penny looked down at the washcloth in her hands, the fabric stained with faint traces of her blood. “And if I do want to fight?”
Pepper didn’t hesitate. “Then we make sure you win.”
Something sharp and hot curled in Penny’s chest at that. A flicker of something dangerous. Something almost like hope.
She met Pepper’s eyes. “You’d help me?”
Pepper’s lips pressed into a thin line. “I won’t let them take anything else from you.”
Penny exhaled, the weight on her chest shifting, just a little.
She still didn’t know what she wanted. Not yet.
But she knew one thing for sure.
Whatever came next—
She wouldn’t face it alone.
The next day, Penny and Pepper stepped outside their building, only to find the Avengers waiting for them.
Steve, Sam, Clint, Wanda, Bucky, and Scott.
Penny’s jaw clenched. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Pepper stepped forward, standing between Penny and the so-called heroes. “You have some nerve showing up here.”
Steve’s gaze was hard. “We’re not finished.”
Pepper arched a brow. “Oh, I think we are.”
Clint smirked. “You really think you can just walk away from this?”
Penny stepped up beside her mother. “We already did.”
Wanda’s eyes glowed red. “You’re not off the hook.”
Penny smirked. “And what are you gonna do about it?”
The air crackled.
Scott moved first, his fist swinging toward Penny’s face—
But she was faster.
She dodged, grabbed his wrist, and twisted. Hard. Scott yelped as she sent him crashing to the ground.
Sam lunged at her, but Pepper was already there, delivering a brutal strike to his ribs that sent him stumbling backward.
Clint aimed an arrow—but Pepper grabbed a stray piece of metal from a nearby car and threw it with pinpoint accuracy, knocking the bow from his hands.
Bucky charged, but Penny ducked under his swing and slammed her knee into his stomach. He grunted, staggering back, but before he could recover, she delivered a sharp kick to his chest, sending him flying.
Steve tried to grab Penny’s wrist, but she twisted, using his momentum against him. “You should’ve stayed gone,” she hissed, landing a punch that sent him skidding back.
Wanda’s hands burned red, and she hurled a blast of energy toward Pepper—but Pepper sidestepped and threw a stun device, watching with satisfaction as Wanda was forced to shield herself.
In seconds, the Avengers were on the ground, groaning, struggling to rise.
Pepper stood over them, adjusting her blazer. “I warned you.”
Penny wiped a bit of blood from her lip. “Stay down this time.”
Steve looked up at them, eyes dark. “This isn’t over.”
Pepper sighed. “Yeah, it is.”
She took Penny’s hand, turning away, leading her back toward the building.
And this time, the Avengers didn’t follow.