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Tony grinned. "I make no promises," he said. "Go see the girls, they were asking after you. Go on, shoo, I have preparations to make and prompts from Pepper to ignore."
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Coulson resisted the urge to roll his eyes, but left Tony to his own devices for the moment. Turning, he left and went to go find the girls.
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The girls had settled in the living room for a while looking up more lore and jotting down notes about some of the old Norse myths. Doreen looked up first and waved.
"Hey Coulson." |
"Hello," Coulson replied. He absently made a mental note about her current research. "Stark said something about you wanting to talk to me?"
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"Just checking in, making sure you're not overworking yourself." Doreen grinned. "Clint has recruited us to the cause, apparently."
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Coulson quirked a bit of a grin at that.
"I see," he said. "Rest assured, I'm not overworking myself. Scout's honor." |
"...I don't know if I trust that because it's you, or not trust a word you say because it's you," Doreen admitted. "I wouldn't be able to tell if you're lying."
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Coulson just smiled serenely and didn't confirm or deny anything.
"Don't trust him," Clint's voice came from the ceiling. "He wouldn't know a vacation if it bit him." |
"I'm going with Clint on this one, you're always carrying a pad or a notebook or something," Doreen said. "I'd try to take it away from you but I get the feeling I'd get knocked on my ass first."
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"Probably," Coulson agreed, not even attempting to deny that one. "But I'm not overworked."
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"Uh huh." Doreen eyed him for a few moments before she shook her head. "Why don't you stay for dinner? Bruce is cooking and Thor is supposed to be back tonight."
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Of course he knew that Thor was going to be back that night, he wouldn't be doing his job right if he didn't know that. Coulson almost politely refused on the grounds of work, but that would have completely countered his argument of not being overworked, so he nodded.
"I'd be glad to," he said. |
Doreen grinned and settled back in with her book for a little while, figuring she could get a bit more research done before things started happening.
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Thor did make it back, albeit a little earlier than even he had anticipated, but he didn't come up to the shared floors immediately. Instead, he made a quick stop on one of the living floors, and when he did make it upstairs, he was a bit quieter than usual.
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Once he was back upstairs, though, things got a bit busy. Bruce finished dinner, and there was the normal madness as people got their plates, and someone turned on a movie, which meant that the living room got converted into the theater, with pillows and couches and chairs enough for everyone to be comfortable. Doreen ended up sitting on a couch with Thor.
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Before the movie, though, Thor had made up a second plate and disappeared with it. When he came back, it was without the plate, and he grabbed his own before sitting down on the couch. It took him a few moments to really get back into smiling and laughing with everyone else, but he did.
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His brief disappearance hadn't escaped Doreen, but she stayed quiet about it, figuring that was his own business. For now, anyway. She could ask him about it later.
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Thor stayed through the movie, but did briefly disappear right afterwards. He came back quickly, however.
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"Got things on your mind?" Doreen asked quietly as the rest of the team chatted and debated a second movie.
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Thor blinked and looked at her.
"Ah, forgive me, I must seem quite distracted," he said, managing to look a bit embarrassed. |
"A bit," Doreen agreed with a little smile. "But it's not a problem. We've all got concerns. But if you decide you want or need to talk about it, I'm here."
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"I appreciate the offer, fair lady," Thor said. "But I fear these particular troubles are mine alone to bear."
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"Ah, that kind of trouble," Doreen said with a knowing nod. "Well, if there's any other way I can help you, let me know."
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Thor nodded.
"My thanks," he said, even though he knew he was likely to handle things on his own. It was still nice to have the offer extended. |
Doreen left him be for the moment, instead settling down again as the team turned in another movie. But she did stay settled in next to Thor.
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