How the Agent met the Engineer
Oh c'mon, you know it’s true. Everyone else will agree with me too.
Right guys?
…
Ha! See, I told you so!
Ow! Okay, I'll stop, promise.
Alright, so where was I?
Oh, Right!
Okay so, as I was saying…
Quite some time ago, not long after our main protagonist was born, we see a man of suitable stature standing outside of a large mansion. This man is tall and broad and dark in a multitude of ways. He stands with pride and assurance as he gazes at the grand building before him. Yet his eyes have a sheen of uncertainty and he struggles not to clench his fists in anxiety.
Although many of you may not realize this, we are looking at a young Nicholas Fury as he stands in front of the Stark estates' large double doors.
He is currently in the simple position of an agent left with the highly important task of communicating with the infamous Howard Stark.
'I can't believe she just left me here to do this by myself…'
Nick suppressed a sigh and finally knocked firmly on the door.
The sound rang through the courtyard with a finality that made him want to curse Peggy for sending him out to do the job she had been given in the first place.
"Oh c'mon Nick! It's not that hard. I just need you to talk to Howard for me. That's it."
Nick sighed and looked at Peggy, who had a barely noticeable glint in her eyes that he couldn't quite identify.
"Look Peggy, I get that your busy and all, but that doesn't mean you can just run around and leave your work in the hands of other agents without any good reason." Nick replied, crossing his arms over his chest as he spoke.
"But I do have a reason."
"I said a good reason."
"Needing a vacation is a perfectly good reason!" Peggy exclaimed indignantly.
"Peggy..." Nick sighed.
Peggy softened her stance slightly and placed a shockingly gentle hand on the young man's shoulder. And he really was quite young. Only nineteen and already an agent of three years.
'He really ought to relax more. He's far too young to be this serious.' Peggy thought as she looked into his confused dark eyes. 'This will definitely do him some good. He needs this.'
"Look, Nick, I know that it seems ridiculous, but I really need you to do this for me. Please? Just think of it as one friend doing a favor for another."
Nick still seemed unsure but his resolve had finally wavered. Peggy grinned as he sighed once more, ignoring the glare that he sent her way afterwards.
If there was one thing Nick Fury hated more than anything, it was having an argument with Peggy Carter. It had nothing to do with the arguing itself though. It was just the results that bothered him. It was an undisputed fact of life after all.
Peggy always won in the end.
Nick was pulled out of his slightly sulking thoughts as the door opened and a man of at least fifty years of age with salt and pepper hair and bright blue eyes greeted him with a formal nod.
"Hello Agent Fury, welcome to Stark manor. If you would please follow me, I will escort you to the sitting room." The man said with an obvious British accent.
"Right, thank you." Nick replied with a nod of his own.
He followed the man into a lavishly decorated sitting room that looked out over the beautiful gardens behind the manor. It took almost five minutes to get to it and they hadn't even left the first floor.
'This house is way too big…' He couldn't help but think as the man turned to him once more.
"I apologize for the inconvenience but Master Stark is currently away at an important business meeting and will not be returning for another hour or so. If you would like, I could leave a message for him or you can remain here and wait for him to return." The man said politely.
Nick blinked and suppressed the urge to flip the coffee table nearby. Instead, he cursed Peggy internally and replied to the waiting man in front of him.
"I think it would be better if I just waited for Mister Stark to get back. But thanks for the offer…"
Nick paused and looked at the man pointedly.
"Jarvis, sir. My name is Edwin Jarvis and I am the Stark family's butler. It is a pleasure to meet you sir." Jarvis replied.
Nick rose from his seat and held a hand out to him. Jarvis raised a surprised eyebrow but smiled warmly at him as he took the offered appendage. His hand was calloused, his fingers long, and his grip firm. An honest handshake.
"Nick Fury, nice to meet you too." Nick said with a small sense of relief.
He was about to say something else when a small woman in a maids uniform appeared in the doorway.
"MisterJarvisI'msosorrybutcouldyoupleasecomehelpmewithsomethingI'mafraidImayhavemadeamistakewiththewashing!"
Nick blinked and wondered if she always spoke like this or if it was just something she did when she was panicked. Jarvis sighed and turned towards Nick once more.
"I'm so sorry sir, I'm afraid there is something I must take care of right now. If you would please excuse me, I will return shortly." Jarvis said with an apologetic smile.
Nick nodded in understanding and watched as he walked over to the maid and followed her down the hallway. The sound of the maids panicked words mixed with the calming tones of the still unruffled butler slowly faded until it was nonexistent and Nick sighed as he returned to his seat.
It seemed like it would be a while before he got anything done. He gazed out the window for a time before the sound of someone rushing down a set of stairs caught his attention.
"Jarvis! I finally fixed the toaster! I even made it better! It's faster and it shouldn't burn…"
The enthusiastic voice faded out as a young boy no older than five skidded to a halt in the doorway. He was very small for his age, with a mop of wild brown hair that seemed singed at the edges and a pair of big brown eyes that seemed far more intelligent than they really ought to be. He froze for a second before fidgeting nervously. He held a toaster in his hands that looked newly polished and, according to what the boy had said, freshly repaired. It might need to be repaired again if he kept fidgeting like that though.
"You might want to be a bit careful there." Nick said without thinking. "Keep moving like that and you'll drop that toaster."
The boy stopped fidgeting, instantly, and flushed slightly in embarrassment. He nodded and quickly fled out of room.
Nick, mostly out of curiosity and partially out of concern, followed him and ended up in the nearby kitchen.
It was large and roomy with a well-sized island in the middle of it and a small open space on one of the countertops where a toaster probably belonged. The boy was carefully putting the toaster onto said countertop with a surprising amount of ease for one as small as himself. When the toaster was safely settled on the marble surface, the boy turned to him with a look of wariness in his eyes mixed with blatant curiosity.
"Um, are you one of Daddy's business partners? Cus' if you are he's not here and Jarvis said that he wouldn't be back for a few hours."
Nick blinked at the child in front of him and suddenly remembered that Mister Stark had a son.
"Yes, I suppose you could say that I'm a business partner. Jarvis informed me of your father not returning for a while so I decided to just wait here for him."
The child blinked at him and tilted his head to the side.
"Are you from SHIELD?" He asked curiously.
Nick hesitated for a moment before deciding that it wouldn't hurt to be honest.
"Yes, I am. Agent Nick Fury, nice to meet you."
"Anthony Stark, nice to meet you too." Anthony's hand was incredibly small in comparison to Nick's own, but it held the same firm grip as the butler and even more confidence as well. "Why didn’t Aunt Peggy come this time? Is she okay?"
Anthony asked this with a concern that was not usually associated with Peggy Carter. It made Nick wonder why Peggy asked him to do this when there was a small child with an obvious attachment to her waiting for her to arrive.
"She's fine but busy, so she asked me to come in her place for the time being. I hope that's alright with you."
Anthony calmed a little before fidgeting slightly.
"That's fine. I was just hoping that I could show Aunt Peggy the improvements I made to my toys this month."
He said this with such a sad and disappointed expression on his face that Nick did something without even thinking about it.
"I could see the improvements you made, if you want."
"Really?"
The look on this child's face strengthened his resolve and he nodded before holding a hand out.
"Of course, you mind showing me the way though? I haven't been to your house before so I'm not sure where I need to go here." Nick replied honestly. Anthony beamed at him and grabbed his hand enthusiastically.
"Okay!"
Then the boy dragged him away and started talking about all of the new improvements he made to his toys over the past two months. All the while, a small warmth started to wriggle its way into his chest as he was led astray by this strange child with wild hair and big eyes.