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Chapter Text

Steve carried on with life after Tony left. Some days it still surprised him just how easy it was to trick himself into forgetting that the bed was always cold in the morning without Tony laying there beside him.

He went to work every day of the week, barely stopping to power down when he finished a job.

Sometimes he would find himself lingering restlessly outside Stark International after dragging himself home after a mission, only to walk away without getting up the nerve to go inside; Natasha gave him dark looks when she ran into him in HQ afterwards, but she never said anything about his spur-of-the-moment trips.

He knew she was angry with him; she wasn’t the only one angry either. He was furious with himself for what he had done, but he just couldn’t seem to figure out what to do even with Bucky whispering suggestions in his ear.

He tried phoning Tony a few times, desperate to hear his voice. He was always sent to voice mail and it was never satisfying. Tony hadn’t bothered to record his voice, so instead of hearing Tony’s dulcet tones when he called, Steve was greeted by an emotionless robot who asked him to leave a message after the beep.

It made him want to throw his phone out the window.

It was hard leaving messages when he knew Tony wouldn’t listen to them. They were pointless fragments of dead code and empty bytes left behind for the computer to play with, but he sent them nonetheless, leaving a soft ‘I miss you,’ at the end of every one.

Three months passed like a death march.

He was lonely, oh so lonely without Tony around; he asked Sharon Carter out on a date one night and she agreed even though he had kept postponing their coffee dates in the past. She had been real nice about it too. She had listened to Steve ramble on about his life and the Avengers with a smile on her face all throughout dinner. They had shared dessert and afterwards he had walked her home.

“It doesn’t have to mean anything,” Sharon said with a coy smile, leaning back against her front door. She was beautiful in the moonlight, just like Peggy had been all those years ago and he was pretty sure that he could love her given time.

He debated on saying yes, toyed with the notion of waking up with her the next morning. It felt wrong to even think about crawling into her bed; so many layers of wrong weaved together, a whole quilt of wrong. He had gotten that first date he had been craving, but it wasn’t what he had wanted. She wasn’t Tony; she would never be Tony.

She smiled at him, drawing him in for a kiss and for a few seconds, he was blissfully unaware of the aching hole in his chest where Tony Stark had once been. “Come in for coffee,” she said, pressing another kiss to his lips, her red lipstick still perfect, like one of those magazine cover gals. “I’m not looking for a relationship here Steve – I don’t need commitment. All I’m asking is that you come to bed with me for a night. We can think about what comes next later – just… come to bed, baby.”

Steve swallowed hard, pulling back. He could hear Tony’s words in her voice; but it was all wrong. It was all talk, no heart. Tony had been soft around the edges, his hands rough but gentle even when he had been irritated. Sharon’s fingers in his hair were rough and painful, like she was trying to tug him into her house; it was too different. She wasn’t Tony; she would never be Tony. “I can’t,” he said gruffly, being gentle as possible as he pried himself free from her grasp. “There’s someone I really love, and this… this feels wrong.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Is it Tony? The guy you were talking about tonight?”

“Yes,” he mumbled, looking down at his feet. “I’m sorry. I guess I kind of wasted your evening.”

She patted his cheek, dragging her thumb along his cheekbones. “You don’t have to be ashamed of it you know. I’m not going to chew you out for being in love. Besides, I had fun.” She took his hand still trapped in hers and pressed a kiss to his knuckles, something Tony had done a thousand times over and Steve felt his insides freeze up; he stiffened, swallowing down the waves of grief he had been battling for the past month.

“Why don’t you talk to him?” Sharon asked softly.

“He won’t talk to me,” Steve said, trying to force himself to relax in her grasp. It wasn’t her fault he felt like this; it was no one’s fault but his own. “I’ve tried to leave him messages, and he never calls back. He said he never would. I guess he’s just keeping his word.”

“Have you tried dropping by his place? Talking with him about it in person? I mean, you seem to be a really sweet guy Steve – he’ll probably take you back if you apologize,” Sharon said.

“I don’t think he’ll let me in,” Steve sighed, scratching his head. “I think he’s had enough of me. I guess I’m afraid to push.”

“Have you even tried?” she asked, rolling her eyes at him when she saw him shake his head. “Then,” she said, taking his face in her hands; they were small hands, nothing like Tony’s but at the same time they felt strong. “Go talk with him in the morning. If you really love the guy, talk with him. He’s an Incubus, right?”

Steve nodded again, ashamed that he had never been able to will up the courage to go talk to Tony face to face.

“Maybe he just doesn’t understand what love is? Have you ever thought of that?” She gave his cheeks a squeeze. “I mean, where he’s from they don’t exactly have love, right? They just have sex. They don’t do the whole marriage shtick.”

“I… yeah. I guess that’s right,” Steve agreed.

“Then explain it to him if he doesn’t understand. Take him by the hand and tell him that you love him and that you’ll do whatever it takes to win him back,” Sharon chuckled. “If he doesn’t understand and he tells you to fuck off, then that’s his loss. You might get lucky, and either way you’ll know the truth.”

“What if,” Steve said, taking in a sharp breath through his nose, “what if he’s moved on already? It’s been three months, Sharon. What if he doesn’t want me? What if he never wanted me?”

“You’re not going to know unless you ask! Get off your lazy super soldier ass and go find out for yourself!” She squeezed his cheeks again, laughing when he smiled shyly at her. “You have my number. If you need to talk, or you decide to come in for coffee sometime, I’m here for you.” She unlocked her front door, shooing him away with a wave of her hand. “Now go home you big lug. Get some sleep – plan what you want to say to your guy – and well, if it doesn’t work you took the shot. That’s life. You do with it what you can.”

Steve smiled, stepping backwards down the steps as she waved goodbye. “Thanks Sharon,” he called out, pushing through the white picket fence; she really was Peggy’s niece after all. Peggy always had been good at getting to the heart of problems without all the bullshit. He would miss Peggy no matter what happened in his life, no matter who he tried to date; but she was gone. Tony on the other hand was not. Tony was still here. He could make things right with Tony; they could talk, and if that didn’t set things right, well, then Sharon was right. That was life.

“Good luck Steve!” She blew him a kiss from her doorway, laughing.

He rounded the corner and started for home with a spring in his step.

Steve arrived at Stark International just before six a.m. ready and raring to go. He spent the next thirty minutes thinking hard about what he was going to do, his brain finally having caught up with the rest of him. While he knew what he wanted to say, and he had gone over it at length the night before as he was falling asleep, he wasn’t sure he had it all worded out right.

He looked down at the crumpled piece of paper clutched in his hand, reviewing the list he had made with nervous anticipation. This list was one of the best pieces of writing Steve had done in his life; the page was filled with all the things he wanted to make sure Tony knew, most of it so embarrassing he had been afraid to put it down on paper in case he dropped it and lost it somewhere.

It was silly that he needed notes for something as simple as this; he had been memorizing battle tactics, statistics and maps for years, but somehow he couldn’t seem to say it all without something to hold in his hands.

He stared down the main doors, swallowing hard and tucked the list into his pocket. Three seconds later he turned around and dashed back to the road.

Nope.

Definitely not ready yet.

He sat down on the edge of a granite planter, resting his elbows on his knees. How the hell had he thought this was simple? This wasn’t simple – stopping bad guys was simple, destroying Hydra’s weaponry was simple. He didn’t know what this was, but it was so far away from simple it would have been lucky to see simple in the newspaper.

“Are you Steve Rogers?” A voice asked.

Steve looked up, startled. A formidable looking redhead met his gaze head on; she was dressed in a navy pencil skirt and white blouse with her hair pulled back in a tight ponytail. Her matching navy jacket looked a little like it ate wrinkles, chewed them up and spat them back out. She smiled at him, but it wasn’t a friendly one; it was one he had seen Agents use on suspects they were busy interrogating under bright lights.

“Yes, I’m Steve,” he said as he stood up, wiping his sweaty palms on his jeans before offering her his hand. She took it with that same not-quite-pleasant smile still on her face, giving him a brief but firm handshake.

“I’m Pepper Potts – Mr. Stark’s assistant.”

“Howard’s assistant?” Steve asked, letting his hand drop. He hadn’t expected to see Howard this early in the morning, even if the man did tend to wake up at the crack of dawn; there was an unspoken rule that Howard Stark didn’t work until he was good and ready, and most of the time he wasn’t either of those things until well after noon and several shots of brandy.

Pepper’s smile thinned considerably. “No Mr. Rogers. I’m Tony Stark’s assistant.”

“Oh,” Steve said. “I forgot he had one.”

Pepper nodded, watching him so carefully Steve was pretty sure she was busy reading his mind. “I’m sure you did,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest. “Can I ask what you’re doing here?”

“I came to talk to Tony,” Steve said, clearing his throat. “I wanted to clear some things up with him.”

Pepper raised an eyebrow, tapping her foot. “And just what did you want to clear up? You broke up with him. He was pretty clear about that. In fact, he specifically requested that I be on the lookout for you so you couldn’t harass him.”

“Harass him? Why would I harass him?” Steve asked in horror. “I wouldn’t do that!”

“I’m sure you wouldn’t dream of it Mr. Rogers, but Tony has requested that you not be allowed in the building, and frankly I’m just following orders. You’re not coming in,” she said. “I’ll call security if I have to, but I really don’t want to do that. I suggest that you vacate the premises of your own free will. It would probably look bad if Captain America got hauled away in handcuffs.”

“But I – But Tony likes me! I would never do anything to hurt him!” Steve protested, taking a step forwards; one look from Pepper sent him two steps back, feeling oddly chastened. He stuffed his hands in his pockets. “I care about Tony,” Steve said in exasperation. “I would never do anything to intentionally hurt him.”

“Mr. Rogers,” Pepper said, getting right up in Steve’s face with absolutely no concern for her own safety; her nostrils flared as she spoke. Her eyes were so filled with fury it was hard to not flinch away from her gaze. “I get that you think Tony should have you in his life, but you haven’t been around him for the past three months. He barely eats or sleeps, and when he does, he does so only in the presence of his inventions. He doesn’t leave his workshop unless he’s physically threatened with being dragged out of it – and you know what? You’re the reason that happened. Now I don’t know you very well, but I think what you did was reprehensible. You need to grow up and get over yourself. You do not own Tony Stark – you do not get to blow a hole in his world and then come waltzing back in whenever you feel like it.”

She rose up on her tip toes, staring Steve right in the eye. “And if I catch you back here Mr. Rogers, I will not hesitate to punch you out myself. Do I make myself clear?”

“But I – I’m not – I…” Steve stuttered, taking another step backwards. He had to jump back up onto the curb, nearly stumbling into traffic. “Yes ma’am,” he said, his heart hammering in his chest as car after car honked at him; he pulled his hands out of his pockets, turned and stumbled off down the street like a chastised child, knowing that Pepper Potts was watching his every move. He had never felt so small before in his life, even when he had been without the serum.

Steve stood in the line at Dave’s Coffee shop for a full ten minutes, gnawing on his lower lip as he tried to figure out just what had gone wrong. He had met trench commanders who were less threatening than Pepper Potts; part of him was glad that Tony had someone like her looking out for him, even if she had basically called him a crumb to his face. To be fair though, at this point he was fairly certain that he deserved whatever he got.

He took out his wallet and pulled out the crumpled twenty he had been saving; it had been the first bill he had ever taken out from a bank machine, and for some reason he had never been able to spend it, stashing it away as if it were some kind of magical totem. He dropped the bill on the counter, scrubbing a hand over his face. “Can I have a triple shot chocolate mocha with extra whipped cream please,” he said to the barista. Bucky would have given him shit if he had found out about the mocha, but it was either drown himself in sweet chocolate or go destroy a few punching bags, and he really didn’t feel like trekking all the way back to SHIELD to take out his frustrations.

“What size would you like sir?” The Barista said, reaching for the stack of cups beside her.

Steve stared down at the twenty sitting wrinkled and pathetic on the counter. “The biggest you have please,” he said. He took his pitiful excuse for change back when his order had been rung in and stood against the wall waiting for his drink. Great, he thought as he juggled his change, things just seemed to get worse and worse. He hung his head. The list had been good too – he had been so sure that Tony would understand what he had been thinking if he read it out to him. He reached into his pocket to pull it out, wanting to crumple it up and throw it in the garbage where it belonged.

He frowned, searching every pocket he had.

The list was gone.

He froze. It wasn’t like it was the end of the world, he reminded himself, trying to stay calm. He must have dropped it somewhere – that was all. It wasn’t as if it had his name on it after all; no one would know what it meant. He looked around the shop trying to appear casual, nervous sweat dripping down the back of his neck.

Nope.

Nothing, there wasn’t a single piece of paper on the ground.

He thanked the barista and grabbed his drink, slipping out the door as fast as he could without spilling it all over himself.

There was nothing on the road.

He scanned his surroundings as he walked, peering around planters and garbage cans in a kind of frenzy, needing to find that damned piece of paper. He paused at the crosswalk, peering ahead to see if he could spot anything on the road or in the gutters; no luck, the streets were clean except for the normal leafy refuse that clogged the rain gutters.

He mentally listed everywhere he had been, squinting at street names as he walked; it had been in his pocket at Stark International, and then he had walked three blocks to the left and four to the right. It should be here somewhere – it wasn’t like he had dropped it at – oh.

He found himself back in front of Stark International; Pepper Potts was standing right where he had left her reading over a piece of very familiar paper. She looked up when she heard him approaching still skimming the list Steve had been searching so frantically for as if it was a business report she was proof reading.

“I uh…” Steve stuttered, unsure how to politely put the words ‘Give it!’ into a sentence that wouldn’t end up with him being slapped in the face.

Pepper folded the paper up into its original square, tapping it against her palm. “So,” she said, staring Steve down. “I take it this little gem is yours?”

Steve opened and closed his mouth; not a sound would come out. Frankly, he was grateful that nothing had, because he was pretty sure that at this point all that would have come out was inhuman squealing.

She smiled at him. It felt like the sun had come out, melting the cold from his bones. She took his mocha, pressing the note into his hand and took a tentative sip; her eyes widened in shock when she got a good taste of what she had traded for. “Good god – are you trying to rot all your teeth?” she coughed, waving her hand in front of her face. She didn’t bother returning the drink though. She sipped at it again as he toyed with his reclaimed note, licking mocha off the lid. “Don’t think the mocha bought me off –You’re still an idiot for what you did by the way, but you’re starting to seen like more of a decent human being to me if that helps,” she said with a chuckle, wiping her mouth on the back of her hand.

“I know,” Steve confessed, stuffing the note into his pocket so that he couldn’t lose it again.

“So you wrote that note, huh,” Pepper whistled. “May I ask why?”

“I wrote it because I wanted him to hear all the stuff I couldn’t say. I feel so stupid for not being able to get any of it out,” Steve sighed.

Pepper took Steve by the elbow and walked him over to the nearest bench. She sat down, patting the space beside her. “Sit,” she ordered, and he did, clasping his hands in his lap for lack of anywhere better to put them. She cradled the massive mocha against her chest, licking chocolate off her lips. “Alright, I think we need to try this again from the beginning,” she said, smiling at him again with that warm-as-the-sun smile. “So, what did you do?”

“Did he tell you why we broke up?” Steve asked, forcing himself to look her in the eye.

Pepper spun the coffee sleeve around in a circle, thumbing thoughtfully at the cardboard edges. “He told me that you said some very mean things to him,” she said, “but he was very vague about it all. I sort of assumed that you’d told him to go to hell or something.”

“I guess I kind of did,” Steve sighed. He hadn’t meant the fight to go the way it had, and he had been just as responsible for the outcome as Tony had been. He would bear that burden till the day he died if Tony told him to push off forever, but until then he would do his best to believe that anything was possible with a little hard work; if Tony wanted him gone though, he would go.

Pepper cocked her head to the side, but didn’t look angered by the admission; she seemed more curious than anything. “So what actually happened?”

“I met him when I went into his world. The Succubus and Incubus citizens were involved in a civil war, fighting over who should rule and who should be exiled. As a result, the losers were being thrown through a portal when they were caught, basically being sent off to their deaths. It was brutal,” Steve said, shaking his head. “By the time SHIELD got wind of what was going on most of the refugees had frozen or bled to death. Some of them survived, but they didn’t seem too happy about it. I’m probably not supposed to say anything about this, but I think you need to hear it to understand the whole story.”

Pepper paled, sipping at the mocha again. She offered it to Steve, who waved it away. “So the Avengers were called in,” she said, resting the cup on her knee. “And you found Tony out in the snow?”

“No, he wasn’t in the snow. Thank god for that. I decided to go through the portal to try and figure out what was going on,” Steve said. “It was probably one of the stupidest things I’ve ever done. No one else could get through after me and I couldn’t get back out. I ended up having to talk with the ruling faction to arrange a deal to get everything set right. I ran into Tony on my way to talk with his mother, the former Queen.”

Pepper whistled. “You went all the way into another world and he what, he followed you out?”

“I guess you could say that,” Steve said wistfully. He cracked a smiled. He hadn’t thought of it that way before. “He asked me a thousand questions when we first met – wanted to know all about Earth and the technology we had access to. Of course, that wasn’t the only thing he wanted out of me.” Steve chuckled.

Pepper patted him on the shoulder. “Don’t feel too embarrassed. Believe me, I’ve been around him long enough to have seen worse by now,” she said with a crooked smile.

Steve smiled back. “He grabbed me and kissed me. Well, to be fair, that wasn’t the first thing that happened. I ended up punching him in the face first because I thought he was trying to use his powers on me,” he said, looking sheepish. That first meeting still haunted his dreams; he would have taken that punch back in a heartbeat if he could.

Pepper raised an eyebrow. “And was he?”

“I think he was – but I don’t think he meant to do it on purpose. Whatever he used though, I was immune to it anyway, so it didn’t really matter. I guess we both kind of helped each other get what we wanted,” Steve shrugged. “I liked him the first time I saw him, but well, I’m not exactly the most experienced guy when it comes to romance.”

“Honey, I don’t think anyone can be an expert when it comes to romance. We all end up messing things up sometimes,” Pepper murmured. “To tell you the truth, I don’t think Tony’s any better off than you are. If I didn’t know he wasn’t human, I’d think there was something very wrong with him some days.”

“He’s not that bad,” Steve protested.

Pepper patted him on the shoulder again, clearly not agreeing. “Steve,” she said, “he doesn’t have any idea what he’s supposed to do half the time when he’s around other people. His father tried to take him to one of his charity galas and Tony looked like he was going to have a charisma overload when people started moving towards him. He’s a good schmoozer, and he sure knows how charm the pants off of people, but leave him alone for a few minutes and he’s liable to put his foot in his mouth.”

“He can be blunt,” Steve agreed.

“Blunt is putting it mildly, but with a brain like his people usually tend to make exceptions,” Pepper said with a shrug. “So he followed you through the portal huh?”

“Yeah. I woke up and he was in my room, half frozen and dripping wet. I guess he didn’t realize how cold it would be in our world,” Steve said. “Of course I warned him about it, but I don’t think he was listening.”

“He was naked, wasn’t he,” Pepper grumbled, taking a large gulp of mocha.

“He was naked a lot of the time,” Steve said, sighing wearily. “I had to take him out and buy him clothing, or else he would have been wandering around buck-naked all the time and honestly, it was a little distracting.”

“Just a little?” Pepper snorted.

“Alright, alright. It was really distracting. He even crawled into the shower with me once,” Steve said. It hadn’t really been all that bad; he wouldn’t have minded if Tony had showed up in his shower again, but he never had.

“That doesn’t surprise me at all,” Pepper laughed. “He likes to work naked in the lab sometimes. It’s beginning to become a problem.”

“You’re kidding!”

“Sadly, no. That’s how I met him the first day I started working for him. Let’s just say I was tempted to file more than one sexual harassment claim by the end of the day,” Pepper muttered.

“Oh Tony,” Steve sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Oh, it wasn’t Tony’s fault.” Pepper smiled brightly. “It was Howard actually. He grabbed my ass three times. Tony punched him in the face for me. Tony’s very sweet when he wants to be.”

Tony had punched Howard in the face? Steve couldn’t help the grin that broke out across his face. He wished that he could have been there to see Howard’s expression when it had happened. It would have been priceless.

“I filed a complaint with HR afterwards. Howard hasn’t come within ten feet of me since,” Pepper said. “But get to the good part – what exactly happened in this fight of yours? I’m assuming there was some kind of buildup.”

“He wanted me to move into his apartment with him. Offered to have my friend and roommate Bucky come with us so that we could all live together,” Steve murmured. “But I couldn’t say yes. I froze up, and I couldn’t say yes.”

“And he just left?”

“He was convinced that we were dating. We hadn’t said a word about it, and I know – he didn’t know what it really meant to date, but it felt like he had just…” Steve looked down at his hands. He had thought about this for a long time now; it shouldn’t have been so hard to say, and yet it was. “It felt like he thought I was property, like I had to say yes because he wanted me to say yes. It felt like I didn’t really have a choice anymore. He told Howard that I was his intended spouse and I didn’t know what to think.”

“I don’t blame you,” Pepper shook her head. “If someone did that to me I’m not sure what I would have done.”

“Last night, I went on a date with the niece of one of my old friends. I thought I could move on, that it was all over with, you know?” Steve shook his head. “But I couldn’t do it. She wouldn’t have been Tony, and it wouldn’t have been fair to either of us.”

“So you went home all by yourself?” Pepper asked, cocking her head to the side.

“No one else seemed right. She asked me out before I met Tony, and we kept missing each other. I guess it wasn’t meant to be from the get go,” Steve said. “She asked if I would spend the night, no strings attached.”

“And did you?”

“No,” he said. “All I could think about was Tony and how I wished that argument had never happened.”

“I take it that it wasn’t much of an argument. You told him no and he reacted badly – said something mean, right? When he gets mad, boy you’d better watch out,” Pepper said.

“We both said angry things we regretted. I wanted to tell him that we should start over from the beginning – to do it the right way around instead of just assuming everything but I couldn’t get it out,” Steve said. “And then he was gone. I guess I was afraid of what it meant – of what he meant to me.”

Pepper’s phone started beeping wildly. Her eyes widened; she grabbed for her phone, staring at the time. “Ok, don’t take this the wrong way, but we’re going to have to cut this short. Tony’s going on a trip to Afghanistan in an hour,” Pepper said, standing up. She tossed the mocha into the garbage can, grabbing Steve by the arm. “You’d better hurry up if you want to catch him – come on!”

They ran to the elevator; security didn’t seem remotely concerned by the large blond man running after Pepper, the pair of them looking more than a little crazy. They slipped into the elevator and made it up to the workshop floor in time to see Tony strutting towards them, dressed in a tailored grey suit that would have heads turning so fast people would get whiplash. He had his sunglasses on, looking every inch the dandy.

Steve fought against his throat as it threatened to close up. This was it – he had to do this now, or else –

“What’s he doing here?” Tony growled, shoving past them into the elevator. He pressed the main floor button with his tail, arms crossed tightly over his chest as he held the door long enough for them to get in with him. “You’ve got until we get to the main floor,” he said as the doors snapped shut, “to say what you want to say and then I’m gone.”

“I want to start over,” Steve said quickly. He fumbled to pull his notes out of his pocket, but the damned thing wouldn’t come free.

“That’s nice. You want to start over,” Tony snorted, looking at Pepper. “He wants to start over – are you hearing this bullshit?”

“I think he’s serious Tony,” Pepper said softly, moving backwards to give them some space. “Listen to him for a minute – please.”

“Oh, I’m sure he’s serious. He gets turned down by his lady-friend last night and he wants to start over again here. I’m really impressed Steve.” Tony smirked, lowering his sunglasses so he could look Steve dead in the eye. “You’ve really become quite the player. You’d think you were the Incubus.”

The elevator doors snapped open; Steve struggled out after Tony with Pepper hot on his heels. He pulled the note out of his pocket, weaving in and out of employees, trying to keep up with Tony who was shoving his way through the crowd. “Tony – please. Don’t leave – give me a chance to talk!”

“No, Steve. No. You didn’t want me then, and you don’t want me now,” Tony snarled. He threw open the main doors, strutting over to a Mercedes that had just pulled up at the curb; Happy stepped out and opened the car door, ushering Tony in with a polite hello, flashing Pepper a winning smile before he seemed to notice Steve’s presence.

Tony leaned out to gesture for Pepper to get in. “Come on Pep, we’ve got a plane to catch.”

Steve did the only thing he could think of. He took the note and pressed it into Pepper’s hand as she was pulled into the car, jumping back as Happy shoved his way in between them.

“You’d better back off buddy,” Happy growled, shoving Steve in the chest.

Steve let himself be pushed back, trying to catch one last glimpse of Tony through the window as he vanished behind the tinted glass.

Happy adjusted his blazer, nodding to Steve. “Mr. Stark is leaving now. If you’ve got business with him, leave a message. And if he doesn’t want to talk to you,” Happy grunted, nodding to the car, “then you had better stay the fuck away or I’ll break your legs. Understand?” He stalked around the side of the car, giving Steve the evil eye.

“I’m sorry, Tony,” Steve said, letting himself be pushed into the crowd as car pulled away from the curb. He wished he could have said something better but the only thing that came out was another miserable ‘I’m so sorry’.

Steve drowned himself in work. SHIELD sent him out all across the globe, bouncing him from mission to mission and he doesn’t even complain when some days he was too tired to think straight; he charged off into battle and destroyed everything in his path instead of thinking about what he had lost, taking solace in the fact that the world was just a little bit safer when he was done.

Bucky stuck close to him as much as possible, making sure to watch Steve’s back just like always.

The Avengers themselves had been set out infrequently, and while Steve liked being around them, they didn’t feel quite like family the way they once had. Maybe it was because he felt like his heart had frozen over. His mood was probably dragging them all down; he plastered a smile on his face and forced himself to spend time with them even when he would have rather curled up in a ball by himself in the ten-by-ten room they gave him at every new base he visited.

It never did really get any better; some days it got less complicated though. By the time he was dead tired and bone weary enough to be ordered home, he was ready to face the fate he had brought upon himself – a dark and empty life devoid of the light that had once been Tony.

Bucky punched Steve in the shoulder, jarring him out of his daze; they were crammed together in the middle row of Coulson’s SHIELD issue mini-van. The other Avengers were sprawled across their own seats, celebrating a job well done.

“You glad to be home?” Bucky asked, stretching out like a cat against the door. Steve shrugged weakly, leaning back against the seat to try and shy away from another assault against his already sore arm. He had blocked a blow with his shoulder on the last mission, and while the knife wound had healed up, the deep tissue bruise was still there.

“So, did you talk to Tony?” Natasha said. She leaned over the back of her seat, resting her chin on her clasped hands.

The entire van went silent as they waited for Steve to respond; he tried not to feel too self-conscious, but it was a damned near thing. He settled for answering while not looking directly at her, wedging himself comfortably against Bucky’s muscled shoulder when Clint started to lean across the seat towards him too. “I haven’t heard from him. I’ve been a little busy. There wasn’t really any way to get in contact with him when I was overseas, and well, by then I figured it would just be better to let him go,” Steve said, trying for nonchalance.

Natasha’s eyes widened. “You don’t know, do you?” She pursed her lips, looking from Bucky to Clint who shared in Steve’s confusion.

“What?” Bucky grunted, “Did we miss something? You’re acting like aliens invaded while we were gone.”

Steve frowned, pivoting in his seat enough to get a good look at Natasha’s face. She had never seemed overtly expressive to Steve, but at the moment she looked as if she might cry; maybe there was just something in her eye, because a split second later the look was gone, replaced with a steely gaze that would have had Steve wetting himself if he hadn’t known she wasn’t intending to disembowel him any time soon.

“You haven’t heard about how his trip to Afghanistan went?” Natasha asked. “About the assault on his convoy?” She let out a loud sigh when he stared blankly at her. “About his kidnapping?”

Steve went stiff as a board; he nearly brained Clint when he jerked forwards. “Kidnapping?” Steve’s voice was shrill, picking up octaves he hadn’t even known he possessed. “What do you mean kidnapping?” He gripped the seat by Natasha’s head so hard the foam spent a few seconds imprinted with the shape of his fingers; the plastic backing cracked so loudly it was almost like the sound of a gun going off.

The van jerked into SHIELD’s main parking lot as Coulson steered them safely out of traffic. Steve was practically out the door before they had even stopped.

Natasha kept pace beside him as he fumbled for his phone, desperate to find it. She grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and he stilled, the fight going right out of him.

“Steve,” Natasha said softly, leaning closer so that he could hear her better. “He was kidnapped a month ago by insurgents in Afghanistan after he and Howard went to go present the new Jericho Missile system he designed. He has been found – he’s alive, and he’s fine, but they only got him back four days ago. Do you understand?”

Steve gave a slight nod, his eyes watering from the way her fingers were digging into his neck. Tony – oh god. Tony. “Is he alright?” he managed to choked out. His hand slipped out of his pocket with something grasped loosely in it. He recognized the feeling of his phone against his palm a moment too late. It dropped but didn’t hit the ground.

Bucky snatched Steve’s phone out of the air, resting a hand on Steve’s shoulder when it was safely in his hands; the other Avengers gathered around Steve, shielding him from view with their bodies so that the security cameras couldn’t see him.

He was glad for them. These were his people – his family. He wiped at his eyes, straightening up when Natasha let him go.

“He’s fine Steve – he’s a little banged up, but he’s fine. At least,” Natasha said slowly, looking to Coulson for conformation, “I think he’s alright. He was hazy on the details – hasn’t spoken to anyone since they pulled him out of the desert aside from the nurse on duty.”

Steve relaxed; his body feeling weightless and free. “Alright. He’s alright. I… I guess we should debrief.”

“You can call him you know,” Bucky said, waggling Steve’s phone in his face. “I bet he’s not going to hang up on you this time.”

Steve stared blearily at the phone. Would Tony want to talk to him? He had been away for so long – and Tony, well Tony had said his goodbyes that day at Stark International, hadn’t he? Steve didn’t like the thought of giving up – he never really had been able to accept failure, but this time he couldn’t seem to see things ending well if he pushed on.

“No,” he said finally, taking his phone back from Bucky. It was still warm from being in his pocket, but there was nothing comforting about the feel of it in his hand; once he might have pressed speed dial, called Tony without a second thought, but that was then and this was now. “I’ll phone him later. He deserves to have a break from all the insanity. He doesn’t need me adding to his stress.”

“Are you sure?” Bucky asked, sounding surprised. “I mean, you… alright. If that’s what you want.”

Steve nodded slowly, straightening up. “It is. We’ve got work to do, and it’s not going to do itself. Let’s start the debriefing now. I want to go home and get some sleep. God knows we could all use a few z’s.”

The others nodded, murmuring their agreement; they had worked themselves close to exhaustion, and the ride in the van had been far from restful. Steve led the way inside, stuffing the phone back into his pocket without another glance at it.

It was nearly midnight when Steve and Bucky found their way home. They had debated on just staying the night at HQ, feeling utterly drained after the chewing out Fury had given them, but had opted to go home solely because it meant being able to avoid checking in again the next morning. Steve had no urge to go out on international missions again – at least not without a few months of rest at his back.

His phone was like a brick in his pocket, a constant reminder that he should be calling Tony; it hadn’t rung once, and he hadn’t had a single text or voice mail left behind for him to answer either.

They rounded the corner ready to drop off to sleep in their own beds, thankful that they had been able to get themselves home without a chaperone tagging along behind them. There was a man sitting on the floor beside their door, hunched over with his elbows resting on his knees. As Steve got closer he noticed that the man had scraggly grey hair; his skin had a washed out look to it, and while the grey made the man seem old, the skin made him seem more sickly than elderly.

“Excuse me, sir? Are you in need of any – Tony?” Steve gasped, dropping down to his knees. Tony looked up, his eyes focusing slowly. He reached out and grabbed Steve by the shirt, pulling him closer. “Steve? Is that you?”

Steve felt like crying; he swallowed back his tears, taking in Tony’s ragged appearance. While Tony was dressed in a designer suit, his pale dress shirt was wrinkled and sweat stained; bandages with frayed edges peeked out around his neck and sleeves. Tony’s fingers and hands were wrapped tightly in bandages that were stained an unnatural pinkish grey, just a little on the side of filthy.

Steve touched the side of Tony’s face without thinking, running his fingers over the square bandage taped to the Tony’s cheek.

Tony winced, cracking a weak smile but didn’t pull away. “Can we go inside? My ass fell asleep a few hours ago, and I’m kind of tired,” he said.

Bucky dug his keys out of his pocket and unlocked the door, pushing it open. “You need help getting inside? You look like hell, buddy.”

“Yes, please,” Tony grunted, trying and failing to stand. He rested his head against Steve’s cheek as Steve hefted him up, whimpering when the centre of his chest collided with Steve’s meaty shoulder. “Careful.”

Steve shifted Tony’s weight gingerly, moving him as easily as he might lift a house plant; he had never been more aware of his super strength than he was now. He was terrified of pressing too hard in case he crushed Tony’s bones. “How badly are you hurt?” Steve asked, carrying Tony to the couch. He set him down and began to check him over, fingers moving quickly to the buttons on Tony’s shirt.

Tony grabbed his hand, lifting his head sluggishly. “No,” he said, “Leave it – its fine. You don’t want to see what’s under there, trust me.”

“What happened?” Steve asked, rocking back on his heels. He wanted to pull every piece of clothing off Tony to find every bruise, every scratch – everything that had been done to him; whoever had kidnapped Tony would be lucky to escape alive when Steve got his hands on them. He moved to pull his hand away, and was surprised to find that Tony didn’t want to let him go.

Tony squeezed Steve’s hand, stroking Steve’s knuckles and the calloused pads of his fingers. He shifted against the cushions, tugging Steve closer until he was almost in Tony’s lap. He wrapped his arms weakly around Steve’s middle. “Can I stay for a few days?” Tony asked in a whisper. The bags under his eyes seemed more pronounced than ever, the grey to his hair growing lighter and more silvery by the second. He let Steve go and tugged his jacket off, letting his tail free.

The sight of it made Steve’s heart ache.

Tony’s tail was limp and grey, looking like it was a piece that had been pinned to Tony’s body after it had been swiped from some child’s Halloween costume. It twitched as if recognizing Steve and then lay miserably still against the cushion, the once lively limb going deathly still.

“Of course you can stay,” Steve said soothingly, smoothing Tony’s hair down. He took Tony’s jacket and hung it up, coming back with a blanket. He draped the blanket over Tony’s back, smoothing out the creases; Tony’s shoulders seemed more bony than they had been, the soft flesh that had once been there turned to lean, lithe muscle. Had he been starved? Or was this the result of forced physical labor?

“What happened?” Steve asked again, sitting down beside Tony. He had gotten his hands on a copy of the SHIELD reports on Tony’s kidnapping during the debriefing through Natasha, but the papers hadn’t said much other than that Tony had been held by insurgents for ransom. Seeing Tony like this made him sure that something much more sinister had happened in that cave.

It had scared him that SHIELD knew so little about the kidnapping. What made it worse was that the one person who had known had neglected to tell anyone about it; Howard had kept his mouth shut and his head down even after he was back in an American hospital being treated for the injuries he had received during the attack.

The only way SHIELD had found out what was going on was when Pepper Potts had come to Agent Coulson privately, spilling the beans without fear of Howard Stark’s legal threats; she had been banged up and scared half to death, but that hadn’t stopped her from making sure Tony was alright. Steve was going to send her a few dozen roses when he got the chance, maybe even a bunch of those nice shoes she seemed to like; he wasn’t going to mince words when he got to Howard. How the hell could he have left his son alone to rot in a cave? Didn’t he care at all?

“I was going to demo the Jericho missile with Howard,” Tony began, tugging the blanket tighter around his shoulders. “It was supposed to just be a little wine and dine – you know, kiss up to the army so that they’d buy more Stark products. Howard figured it would be good if I got out there as the new face of Stark.” Tony snorted. “He said that I needed the practice chitchatting because I was too rude to people and if I didn’t watch it someone was going to teach me a lesson.”

Tony yawned, eyes half lidded. “I uh… I,” he looked around the room, seeming startled. “Wasn’t I just sitting in the hallway?”

Steve repressed a shudder, gesturing for Bucky to come closer. He pressed the back of his hand to Tony’s forehead, but could find no trace of fever. Concerned, he ran his fingers over Tony’s skull, but not a single bump was to be found. If it wasn’t a concussion or a fever, what could it be? Memory loss didn’t just happen unless you had some kind of brain damage, or a disease of some kind. And for that matter, Tony was an Incubus so he shouldn’t have had been susceptible to problems like that.

But that wasn’t entirely true though, was it.

Tony had a human father.

Would that make a difference? He had healed broken bones before, so why the bandages – why the dark circles around his eyes?

Steve gently rubbed the back of Tony’s neck, trying not to worry about the way Tony started leaning sideways as if he was made out of putty.

Bucky did his own examination of Tony’s skull, his fingers teasing sluggishly through Tony’s greasy hair. “I’ve got nothing,” he said, sitting down on the coffee table. “He doesn’t feel warm either.”

“Steve?” Tony slurred, his eyes blinking open again. “How did I get here?”

“We came in from the hallway, remember?” Steve said calmly as to not frighten Tony. “I picked you up and carried you here.”

“Oh,” Tony mumbled, his eyelids drooping further. “Ok. Good. Can I stay here? I’ll be gone in a few days – don’t worry.”

“You can stay for as long as you like Tony. I like having you around, remember?” Steve said, pulling the blanket back in place.

Bucky shot him a concerned glance, nodding towards the kitchen. Steve eased Tony onto his side, carding his fingers through Tony’s hair; he tucked a pillow under Tony’s head when he was sure that Tony had nodded off and slipped away, following Bucky to the fridge.

Bucky eyed Tony over the counter. “There’s definitely something wrong with him,” he said, opening up a box of granola. He reached for a bowl, setting the box down to forage for proper cutlery. “More so than usual, I mean.”

Steve stole a handful of granola from the box as Bucky went for the milk. He watched Tony sleep as he chewed, hunger clawing at his belly. If they had spent the night at SHIELD, they might not have found Tony out in the hallway until morning; the thought of Tony lying there all alone left a sour taste in his mouth, and he was tempted to spit out his mouthful of granola to keep from gagging on it. He picked out the pieces of sliced almond from his handful of granola as he waited for his stomach to settle, nibbling at them one at a time.

“They ran him through medical, didn’t they?” Steve asked once he ran out of almond slices.

“According to the reports, yeah, they did. They didn’t find anything wrong with him aside from a few broken bones and an ‘anomaly’ in his chest,” Bucky said, slurping milk right out of the jug. “There was mention of something called an Arc reactor – Tasha didn’t put it in the official report because she didn’t think it was smart to give SHIELD any inside information when it came to Stark Tech. The Arc reactor is copyrighted – Howard came up with it when he was younger. No one else in the world can build them – at least not a stable versions. He’s got a massive version of the thing powering one of his factories, but other than that he hasn’t touched the blueprints in years.”

“What’s it do?”

“It’s an electromagnet,” Bucky burped. “I didn’t really ask. Didn’t want Howard hovering over me like the buzzard he is. He was touchy enough when I asked him about the Jericho missiles. Wouldn’t say fuck all about his reasoning behind the trip aside from the fact that it was apparently ‘important’.”

“You knew?” Steve sputtered, crushing the granola box by accident as he reached for another handful. “You didn’t say anything – you knew?”

Bucky shook his head, waving his hands at Steve, his bowl set aside so fast the milk sloshed up over the side. He gasped as he swallowed down a massive mouthful of milk and granola. “I knew about the missile and the trip – not the kidnapping. Howard didn’t say anything was wrong; no one had any idea that it hadn’t all gone as planned. Fury had me watching SI when I wasn’t on missions with you, but other than that we were pretty much in the dark. We’re lucky Fury suspected that something screwy was going on, otherwise Tony might still be wandering in the desert.”

Steve relaxed marginally, even though the wrath in his mind was still blazing. “So Fury knew?”

“No – weren’t you listening? We only found out about the whole thing a few days after Tony managed to rescue himself. He built some kind of robot armor and used it to destroy the camp they had been keeping him in. He barbequed all the terrorists and flew off. Again,” Bucky said, picking up his bowl again to fill it with more milk and granola, “this is all off-the-record stuff. Tasha couldn’t even mention it on SHIELD property in case the damned microphones picked it up and accidentally dumped it on the Council’s doorstep. If they heard anything, the shit-storm would have gone out of even Fury’s control. You know how they are. The Council would have had us picking a fight with the entire goddamned country if they thought someone was doing unsanctioned deals with the enemy; that’s their job.”

Steve leaned against the counter, staggered by the information. He had known that the Council wasn’t trustworthy, but he had never expected that they would willingly arm terrorists. Weren’t they supposed to be standing for American values? Weren’t they supposed to be protecting people?

“They’re selling bombs to terrorists?” Steve asked in disbelief, his voice shaky.

Bucky nodded. “They’ve been doing stuff like this for years, Steve. This isn’t exactly news. Tasha and I – when we were in with the Red Room we saw a lot of bad shit. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Council helped push things along just to build the Cold War stockpiling up. You know what things get like when people think war is coming for them – people were scared, and scared people are the easiest to take advantage of when things get hard.”

“So what do we do now? He’s sick – if what you’re saying is true, we can’t take him back to SHIELD,” Steve murmured.

“Yeah, that’s for sure. Can’t have him walking through the door with an Arc Reactor in his chest,” Bucky sighed. “They’d rip it out to send it down to R&D.”

“It’s in his chest?” Steve yelped. “You’re kidding – but he was in a cave for Pete’s sake! Were they experimenting on him? Why didn’t you guys say anything earlier! I would have called him!” He wished that he had picked up the phone instead of stubbornly putting it away. He had been so stupid – why hadn’t he just given Tony a call?

“They weren’t experimenting Stevie – believe me, I know experimenting,” Bucky growled darkly. He tossed his bowl into the sink, scowling at it as the mushy granola trickled into the drain. “They were trying to fix the damage they caused to his heart. One of Howard’s old bombs, the stuff they sold off on the black market, ended up exploding during the attack. According to Tasha Tony took shrapnel to the chest. Most of it’s embedded too deeply to be removed.” Bucky motioned to his chest, pressing a hand over his heart. “They can’t get it out even in a state-of-the-art hospital. It would kill him.”

“But he’s supposed to heal!” Steve snapped, feeling itchy all over. He scratched at his neck. “But he’s not healing.”

“Bingo,” Bucky said, rapping Steve on the shoulder with his spoon. “So what do you want to do?”

“What can we do?” Steve sighed.

“We can wait – see how he looks tomorrow morning,” Bucky said. “But I’m not so sure that’s a good idea at this point. He looks like death warmed over.”

“We can call Doctor Strange,” Steve said quietly. He fumbled his phone out of his pocket. The good Doctor’s name and number had been in his directory ever since that fateful trip through the Succubus’ portal, punched in well before he had even gotten onto the plane to come home.

“You think he’ll know what to do? He put everything he knew into that report months ago,” Bucky said skeptically. “I mean, I know the guy’s got voodoo magic or whatever at his beck and call, but I doubt he’s going to be useful unless you want a charm bracelet or something.”

“We’ll never know unless we try,” Steve said, pressing the phone to his ear. “Hello? Doctor Strange? This is Steve Rogers – Captain America, yes. I know we’ve never met personally, but I need to ask you for a favor.”

Strange didn’t bother with taking a car service, or even with the door for that matter. He teleported directly into their living room even before Steve could end the call and hovered over Tony’s greying form with an inquisitive frown on his face. His cape made the living room seem smaller than normal; he nearly knocked over the coffee table when he turned to motion for Steve to come closer.

“I believe you are a very lucky man Captain,” Strange said, sounding a tad more amused than the situation called for, “if you had called me three days from now your friend would have been in an irreversible coma.”

Steve flinched. “It’s that bad?”

Strange hummed something that sounded like a song – filled with sounds and words Steve had never heard before – and then touched Tony’s forehead, pushing the sweaty strands of silvery hair back. Purple light shimmered around the pair of them, flickering and vanishing almost before Steve could register that it had been there in the first place.

“You see his colouring, correct?” Strange said softly.

Steve nodded; it was hard not to just grab the man and shake the information out of him as if he were some strangely dressed piñata. “I see it,” Steve said grimly, “What does it mean?”

“This, my dear Captain, is what happens when an Incubus or Succubus does not mate for more than six months. Colloquially, it would be referred to as a drought. I’m sure you’ve heard of that sort of thing before,” Strange chuckled, giving Steve an all-knowing smile. “With a demon of Tony’s persuasion, sex is a complicated and vital affair. One could say that he can’t live without it.”

“Wait,” Bucky said, his face contorting in disgust, “You’re saying the guy didn’t get laid and he’s what… shriveling up or something?”

“Essentially,” Strange sighed, “yes. He is losing the battle his power and biology have drawn him into, ostensibly not understanding the implications.” He levitated into the air with his legs crossed underneath him; it was an odd sight to see, especially in the middle of their living room. “Being outside his world is dangerous for him. He is tolled every day he spends away; his energy is syphoned off to feed the collective. Those who do not produce do not survive, and so he should be constantly refilling his reserves every chance he gets.”

“Why wasn’t this in the briefing you gave to SHIELD?” Steve growled, barely containing his rage. He was getting sick and tired of having to harass information out of people. He had thought the army had been good at protecting their secrets, but apparently they were nothing compared to SHIELD’s consultants.

“At the time I had not been able to study an Incubus or Succubus at length. They are illusive dream creatures, hard to pin down unless you have the correct spells. It took me months to create a portal strong enough to get me into their world, and another just to get back.” Strange stroked his beard, staring pensively down at Tony. “Believe me, had I known sooner I would have informed you. He is a good man despite his demonic bloodline. He is capable of so much in our world – worth so much more than any common engineer.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Bucky grumbled, sitting down at the kitchen table. “Tell us something we don’t know.”

“I have been watching your friend for quite some time now, but my work kept me detained elsewhere,” Strange murmured. “I had hoped to have a greater understanding of their culture to give to you, but until now there was not enough to write down. They are intensely private creatures, spreading information only in exchange for sexual favors.”

“I appreciate the help,” Steve said, “but it would have been nice to get a heads up before something like this happened.”

Strange smiled at Steve, as if he had just said some great joke. “There’s no need for anger Captain,” he said, hovering quiet contentedly over the coffee table. “I have the information you seek, although it was intensely draining to get it.” He sighed. “I fear I will need many, many showers before I am as I was.” He laughed to himself, rolling up his sleeves.

“Nevertheless, the problem at hand will not solve itself. First,” he said, cracking his knuckles as he stretched out in the air, “there are things you must come to understand and accept. Your friend is from a culture where only lust is recognized as an acceptable emotion. Their children grow up with this imprinted on their minds – very few leave their world except through dreams to collect progeny, and those who travel far almost always die. They are ill-equipped to deal with the hazards of a multi-emotional world – their intelligence is generally base, their wishes tinged with greed. They do not share, and do not take theft lightly.”

“So they’re all a bunch of horny bastards who don’t like people with sticky fingers,” Bucky snorted. “We already know that.”

“While that may be the case, they have their own folklore – tales of creatures and humans who have not responded to their charms as expected,” Strange said.

“You’re talking about the Immune,” Steve said sharply.

Strange started clapping, clearly pleased with Steve’s answer. “Bravo – right on target. The Immune are the quintessential gods and goddesses of love in their world. They embody an aspect of the Incubus and Succubus psyche which failed to develop – they are the only beings that they would have to woo, to win over by romance. Romance itself is a notion they know quite well. They dream of it – lust for it, as it were. Every single being in their world dreams of having a mate who is there willingly, without charm or power binding them together. Most assume that love is a lie, an old wives tale created by their Queen to give them false hope. Some believe, others…” Strange shrugged. “Others believe that there is no such thing – that there is no other reason for existing other than the propagation of their species.”

“So, what? Steve’s some kind of sex god to them?” Bucky laughed. “That’s insane.”

“He’s the pinnacle of achievement and honor. The root of all things good in their world. They dream of one day finding peace, of finding love amidst the lust. However most cannot fathom the depths of the sorrow love can bring with it. They don’t understand pain or suffering – and most of all they don’t understand what romancing someone is really like. They believe that what they will in their minds will come to pass with no effort on their part.”

“That sounds about right,” Steve sighed wearily. “He seemed to think we were getting married.”

Strange smiled softly. “He would. You were the one who chose him – out of all other creatures in his world, you sought him out and asked for his assistance.”

“I asked him for directions so that I could find his mother,” Steve grumbled, “I wasn’t exactly seeking him out back then. Besides, he’s the one who really helped his people out – if he hadn’t stepped in, the two Queens probably wouldn’t have agreed to anything.”

“Ah,” Strange said, pointing at Steve with a long slender finger, “but you didn’t expect him to help. You were grateful when he did, were you not? You gave him a task that did not involve breeding, and you thanked him when he completed it. Surely you can see what that would do to him?”

“I don’t understand,” Steve said, putting his head in his hands. Sure, he could see what Strange was talking about, but he wasn’t really sure he had done anything that special. He had asked around – brought a few people back to the world they belonged in, but he hadn’t been trying to woo anyone. He hadn’t been propositioning Tony – had he?

“My dear Captain,” Strange said tiredly, “You understand perfectly. He followed you out of his world and came to yours because he cares for you. He gave up his birthright to be here. That is not a trivial act.”

“From what I remember, he said he didn’t have much of a birthright,” Steve argued.

“He had a place at his mother’s side as a dream-gazer – a profession able to direct and control the dream flow and energy levels within their world. He is Earth-born. They are not to be taken lightly,” Strange growled. “By coming here he could have incurred the wrath of his entire world. His mother could have had him strung up – or, of course, he could have been sealed up as she was.”

Steve felt a shiver run down his spine. He could still see Queen Maria’s naked and filthy form chained up to the obelisks keeping her restrained; he had seen her misery firsthand. If that had happened to Tony, he didn’t know what he would do. “I didn’t know,” he said softly. “What am I supposed to do?”

Steve looked down at Tony’s sleeping form in wonder, astonished by the lengths Tony had gone to in order to follow him back to Earth. At the time he had assumed that it had been because Tony had wanted to see Earth’s technology with his own eyes, to cultivate and adapt everything he came in contact with so that he could learn and grow. It seemed strange that someone would go through all that just to see him. Super soldier or not, he wasn’t the most interesting person in the world. There were a thousand other guys and dames out there that lead far more interesting lives. Sure, he helped save the world every now and then, but it wasn’t like he had been the only one. He was part of a team, every one of them just as important as he was.

“Your ignorance of the matter is nothing to dwell on Captain. You have a choice to make now, one that I am loath to force any man or woman to make,” Strange said softly. He gazed down at Tony, who whimpered in his sleep, his smile turning bittersweet. “Tony can be revived, his energy restored if you are willing to, ah, as they say – take one for the team.”

“Oh god,” Bucky groaned, banging his head on the table. “This just keeps getting better and better.”

“I can’t do that,” Steve sputtered, his face going bright red. “He can’t consent to anything! He barely remembered that we carried him inside from the hallway!”

“A simple kiss will give him enough energy to become clear headed once more,” Strange said, dropping down to the ground. He walked over to Steve and patted him on the shoulder. “I have faith in you Captain. Talk it over with him – I’m sure he had his reasons for not sleeping with anyone after arriving here.” He hesitated, pursing his lips. “Whatever decision you come to, know that it does not need to be you who he sleeps with. He can regain his depleted energy through procreation with any partner. Were you reluctant to do so, you could perhaps find yourself someone willing to do the deed in exchange for money.”

“I’m not buying him a hooker, if that’s what you’re saying,” Steve grunted, glaring at Strange.

Strange shrugged, letting his hand drop from Steve’s shoulder. “It is your choice. But as I have said – speak with Tony. Find out what he wants to do. All you need to do is give him a kiss and he’ll perk right up. After that, it’s all up to you. If your friend over there wants to lend you a hand, that could work too,” Strange said with a smirk.

Bucky didn’t bother looking up from the table as he flipped Strange off.

“I didn’t think so,” Strange chuckled. “Think about it Captain, but don’t wait too long.”

Purple energy began to swirl around Strange as he was pulled into another dimension. He vanished, leaving his words floating in the air. “He has three days until his coma becomes permanent. Choose wisely.”

Steve sat down on the floor beside the couch, his knees finally giving out. He felt like he was running a low grade fever; his face was hot and sweaty, not entirely comfortable. He leaned back against the armrest brushing his bangs out of his face. “Oh Tony,” Steve sighed. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

Bucky snorted loudly from the table, his breath nearly knocking the place mat onto the floor; it dangled on the edge, its frayed edges flopping back and forth. Bucky grabbed for it, tugging it back up onto the table, taking the time to smooth the wrinkles out with the flat of his hands. He cleared his throat, pushing his chair back. “So, uh… I think I’m going to go out for a while,” he said, standing up.

“Why?” Steve asked. He blinked at Bucky for a second before remembering Strange’s instructions. “Oh,” he mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck. “Uh, yeah. That’s probably a good idea.”

“No shit it’s a good idea,” Bucky said. He disappeared into his room, returning with a duffle bag and his jacket. He made for the door and then let out a loud sigh, backpedaling until he was beside the kitchen table again. He set his things down and turned his chair around, sitting on it. “You know,” he said, twiddling his thumbs, “You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.”

“What?” Steve looked up, startled. “What are you talking about?”

Bucky sighed dramatically, hunching forwards. “If you really, really don’t feel comfortable sleeping with him, I can do it for you.”

“Bucky,” Steve said, his voice strained, “You know I can’t ask you to do that.”

Bucky shrugged, clasping his hands over his knees. He nodded towards Tony, wiggling his fingers. “It’s not that big of a deal Steve. You know this isn’t my first rodeo.”

“I know that,” Steve grumbled. “I know.” He grasped for words, gnawing on his lower lip until it was sore. “Is this really our decision to make?”

Bucky frowned, his gaze falling on Tony, who hadn’t moved in inch since Strange had left.

It was strange to see the Incubus so quiet, so still. It was almost like he had been drugged, the sleep completely unnatural. Steve ruffled Tony’s hair, feeling just how brittle and fine it had become. If he hadn’t known that Tony aged differently than humans, he might have thought the man had aged by fifty years. He wanted to gather Tony up in his arms, to hug and kiss him until it was better again, but a part of him was certain that it wasn’t what Tony really wanted. Sure, Tony had hugged him – he had been outside the door waiting, but if what Strange had said was right Tony had been coasting on fumes. He probably hadn’t known what he was doing, and there was no way Steve was going to force him into anything against his will. He would cut his own foot off before he let that happen.

“Then let’s ask him,” Bucky insisted, straightening up. “Pucker up and give him a kiss. We’ll see what he wants to do and then you can get all mopey on me. Time’s a wastin’.”

Bucky was right. Steve went up onto his knees kneeling in front of Tony’s prone form. There wasn’t any time left to waste. It was now or never. He ran his fingers through Tony’s hair again, leaning down and pressed his lips to Tony’s; it wasn’t much of a kiss, just a chaste little thing, lips pressed to chapped lips but it did the trick.

Tony’s eyes fluttered open lethargically. He twisted his body so that he could peer up at the owner of the lips pressed against his own. The smile on his face was unmistakable; Steve tried to pull back but found his ear trapped in Tony’s hand, Tony’s lips pressed firmly to his. “Steve,” Tony mumbled softly against Steve’s lips. His pale face flushed with colour as his body started healing itself.

“Hey,” Steve said, cupping Tony’s face in his hands. “Are you with us?”

Tony blinked at him slowly as he sat up; he let go of Steve’s ear with reluctance, pleased when Steve allowed himself to be pulled between his knees. He winced when he lifted his arms to wrap them around Steve’s neck, grimacing in pain. “When have I ever not been with you?”

Steve smiled in relief. He bumped his forehead against Tony’s, wrapping his arms around Tony’s middle mindful of the bandages hiding injuries he didn’t know nearly enough about. He would ask about them later, but for now he was just glad that Tony was Tony again.

Tony pressed his lips to Steve’s again with a loud smacking noise. “This is real, right?” He pulled back when he realized that Steve wasn’t kissing back, raising an eyebrow. “Steve?”

“It’s real Tony,” Steve said quietly, stroking the side of Tony’s face. “It’s real, and I’m so glad you’re alright.”

Tony’s smirk faltered. “What’s wrong?” He seemed startled when Steve lifted his tail up to show it to him. He took his tail from Steve’s hands looking embarrassed. “Whoa,” he said, giving his tail a shake. “I uh…I swear it’s never done that before.”

“We called in help,” Steve said, taking Tony by the chin. Part of him wanted to rip Tony a new one for being so irresponsible, for ignoring something that could have killed him, but he couldn’t bring himself to be angry; he couldn’t fault someone for not wanting to sleep around. “Doctor Strange is the Sorcerer Supreme of our Universe. He said that you haven’t been replenishing your energy for the past six months.”

Tony looked sheepish. He let his tail drop, rubbing his thumb against Steve’s jaw, playing with the stubble he found there. “I didn’t think it had been that long,” he admitted, bowing his head. “It’s normally not like this – I’m not normally like this.” He let out a huffed sigh, bumping his forehead against Steve’s again. “I just…I guess I didn’t feel like having sex.”

“Strange said that you have three days until you fall into a coma and die Tony,” Steve murmured, aware only vaguely that he was crying harder than he had when he had first woken up from the ice; it felt like the world had gone out of step, everything gone from it except for Tony. “I don’t want you to die honey.” He held Tony close, rubbing circles on Tony’s back. “Please don’t die. Don’t leave me here alone.”

Tony sniffled, burying his nose in Steve’s neck. “I don’t want to die either,” he murmured, his tears smearing against Steve’s skin. “I don’t want to leave you.”

Bucky stood up and grabbed his things off the table, pushing his chair back in; he was smiling, slightly teary eyed too although he looked like he would deny it if anyone said anything. “I’m going to hit the road then. Let me know when it’s safe to come home again. And seriously,” he said, his eyes narrowing. “No fucking in the living room. I’ll know if you do – so don’t you dare.”

Steve’s ears felt so hot he was sure they were going to melt clean off his body; Tony’s squeak of a laugh made him pretty sure that he wasn’t the only one embarrassed. He looked up and started laughing when Bucky gave him a loose salute, his bag slung over his shoulder. “Thanks Buck,” he said, wiping his eyes.

“Not a problem Cap,” Bucky said, starting for the door. He stopped, not turning around. “Seriously – do your business in your bedroom. I don’t care how much you two love each other, and yes I know that the couch is Scotchgarded,” he growled, turning on his heels. “But I will end you both, so help me god, if I find one single hair on that couch – anything else and it’s open season on Incubus and Super Soldier.”

“Fair enough,” Steve chuckled, reaching down to pick Tony up; the Incubus was like a pillow in his hands, so light Steve was afraid he might float clean out of his grasp.

Tony wrapped his legs around Steve’s waist, grinning over Steve’s shoulder. “I could get used to this,” he purred, nuzzling Steve’s throat.

“For the love of god,” Bucky yelled, throwing the door open. “Keep it in your pants until I’m not in the room!” He slammed the door behind him and locked it, but by then Steve was already halfway into his bedroom, and he could have cared less if the neighbors knew what was going on.

Tony’s fingers worked frantically at Steve’s waistband, trying to rip open the khaki’s like they were the last bit of wrapping paper on his first Christmas present. He grinned as Steve started to gingerly unbutton his shirt one button at a time.

“Need a hand there?” Tony coaxed Steve’s fly open with one hand, tugging at Steve’s briefs.

Steve rolled his eyes and wiggled out of his grasp, moving his way down the line to the next button in sight on Tony’s shirt. “You’re hurt. I’m not going to rush anything,” Steve grumbled. The buttons gave way easily even though more than a few were buttoned up wrong; the sight of each new greyish-pink strip of bandage made Steve’s stomach turn.

“It’s fine,” Tony murmured gently, stroking the side of Steve’s throat. “It doesn’t hurt.” He pressed a kiss to Steve’s forehead, leaning back on his elbows to enjoy the show as Steve slowly continued to tenaciously go after the buttons; a lazy smile played across his lips as Steve got his shirt open, the fabric brushing against his hips. “You make taking all the little things in life ridiculously sexy. Did you know that?”

Steve smiled, turning away to shuck off his pants and shirt; it wasn’t as if Tony hadn’t ever seen him naked before, but this time it felt more intimate, as if this was the first time they were on the same bed together. He moved to help Tony out of the rest of his clothing and then paused, fingers hovering tentatively over Tony’s belt. “Did you want – because I can wait or you can – I guess,” Steve mumbled, swallowing his words down.

“It’s fine Steve,” Tony chuckled, his eyes twinkling with mischief. He unbuckled his belt and unbuttoned his trousers, slowly lifting his hips so that Steve could get a hand underneath him; he arched his back as Steve gently tugged the trousers off, pulling Steve’s hand down against his groin. He let out a pained groan when Steve’s palm brushed against his tented briefs, rocking shamelessly against Steve’s hand.

“Someone’s eager,” Steve noted with a laugh, taking the time to tug Tony’s socks off one toe at a time.

Tony shed his shirt, casually dumping it over the side of the bed. “Of course I’m eager,” he growled. “I’ve been waiting six months for this.”

“Same here,” Steve murmured, wriggling out of his briefs. He had been hard ever since his knees had hit the mattress, and it felt like his cock was getting harder with every word tumbling from Tony’s mouth.

Tony’s eyes widened; he ran his tongue over his lower lip as Steve moved across the bed on his hands and knees. “Wow,” he murmured, gulping in air. “I forgot just how good you look naked. I could eat you right up.”

Steve smiled, running his fingers down Tony’s belly, snapping the elastic on Tony’s briefs. “So,” he said, clearing his throat. “How are we going to do this exactly?”

Tony stared at him as if he had started talking in tongues. “What?” He sat up sluggishly, hunching forwards, his eyes eating Steve up with every sweep he made of Steve’s body. “What do you mean?”

“Well,” Steve coughed, drawing nervous circles on the sheets, “I mean, for your condition – do we have to do this any way in particular?”

“My condition? What the hell are you – oh.” Tony’s jaw dropped. He scrubbed a hand through his hair, a mixture of annoyance and confusion on his face. “Right. My condition.” He was gorgeous even with his obvious weight loss, his figure more chiseled than it had once been. He started picking at the bandages bulging over his sternum, something metallic and circular peeking out from underneath with each nervous twitch of his fingers. A faint blue light stained the white strips of fabric there; the bandages slid and suddenly the room was painted blue as the light that bounced.

Tony hunched his shoulders, trying to yank the bandage back in place, clearly unhappy by the light. It was strange to see Tony so curled and small; he wasn’t exactly delicate, but there was definitely an air of injury to him, something sharp and angular when he had been so much more soft and rounded before.

Steve rested his hand on Tony’s shoulder, hoping to give him some comfort. “Are you alright?”

Tony sighed. “I’m fine,” he muttered. He looked up and at once Steve knew that there would never be another person for him – not after Tony; the thought of him vanishing from the world made Steve’s heart heavy and his eyes water again.

“Have you ever done this before?” Tony asked, clearing his throat when his voice threatened to break.

Steve shook his head, shifting so that he was pressed up against Tony’s body, their thighs just gently touching. “No,” he said. “I’ve been with a woman before, but I’ve never done this with a guy.” Peggy had been kind with him, her body sweet and supple in ways he hadn’t known a body could be. They had slept together a few times before the war ended, but the act had been more from frenzy than love; with Tony it felt different. He wanted to take all the time in the world to make him feel just how loved he really was. He wanted to make all those wasted, stupid months up to him.

“I see,” Tony sighed. “Are you sure you want to do this? Because I don’t want you to think you have to do this – I mean, this is something big right? For humans? They don’t usually just jump into bed together unless they’re in a relationship right? And well…” Tony grimaced, looking down at Steve’s finger still drawing in the sheets. “We’re not. In a relationship I mean.”

“Tony,” Steve said, as he leaned forwards and kissed Tony on the lips, “You’re the only guy I’ve ever thought about like this.”

Tony ran his fingers through Steve’s hair, pulling Steve closer for another deep kiss that left them both gasping for air. “If you’re sure,” Tony panted into Steve’s mouth. “If you’re sure, I wouldn’t mind doing this with you.”

“Oh gee,” Steve chuckled, pushing Tony flat onto the bed, straddling his hips. He leaned closer until they were chest to chest, taking care not to put too much pressure on Tony’s ribs. “You make it sound so sexy when you say it like that.”

Tony laughed, tweaking Steve’s left nipple in retaliation, earning a soft grunt for his efforts. “Well I do know sex,” Tony purred. His voice seemed to go directly to Steve’s cock, because soon it felt like it was made of steel, his every nerve alive and on fire.

Tony nibbled and sucked marks all over Steve’s pectorals, eagerly mouthing over his sternum and nipples. Steve gasped, his mind hazily supplying that each new mark branded him as Tony’s and only Tony’s. Even if they wouldn’t last, he would still remember where they had been, where each nip had landed, each press of lips to flesh a blessing. He slid his hand between Tony’s legs, squeezing his cock; Tony let out a long throaty moan pushing up against Steve’s hand, the fabric of his briefs becoming damp.

“I’d like to learn– if you want to teach me what to do,” Steve whispered in Tony’s ear.

“Oh yeah?” Tony gasped.

“Yeah,” Steve said, nodding feverishly.

“Well,” Tony murmured, tapping a finger on Steve’s lower lip, “the first thing to do is probably take my underwear off.”

“Oh?” Steve said.

Tony smirked, sliding his hand around Steve’s hip to play with his ass; he pressed harder, fingers skimming over flesh that was suddenly realizing it had never been touched before. Steve nearly went face first into Tony’s chest, shivering at the unexpected contact.

“Of course,” Tony murmured, moving his hand back up so that he could cup Steve’s left buttock. He gave it a firm squeeze when Steve kissed him, lifting his hips so that they were pressed together cock to cloth covered cock. “It’s so much better skin on skin. Honestly, I can’t understand why you humans insist on wearing clothes all the time when you can just walk around naked. Takes the stress out of the day when you can just bend someone over something and give it to them,” he purred in Steve’s ear.

Steve gasped, pushing back against Tony’s hand. “Tony – god yes!”

Tony kneaded Steve’s flesh in an unforgiving rhythm of left-than-right. Steve panted, pushing his face into Tony’s neck as the calloused fingers explored his flesh, never pressing in only rubbing over the tight pucker.

“Oh god - Tony – Tony!” He had never felt like this before, had never lost himself so completely. Even Peggy hadn’t touched him like this; he couldn’t get enough and when Tony slowed to a halt it was like torture. His balls ached horribly as his cock rubbed a wet streak up Tony’s thigh.

“Take my briefs off,” Tony said, his voice rough. He let his hands still, rubbing soothing circles on Steve’s abused buttocks. “Come on baby, get me out of them. I want to feel you so bad.”

Steve obliged, tugging the briefs down Tony’s hips so fast he was surprised that they hadn’t just ripped clean off. He worked the fabric down Tony’s legs, waiting for Tony to toe them off and then sank down, pressing his cock against Tony’s. If there was a heaven, this was it; he could have stayed here like this forever and he wouldn’t have ever regretted it. He shifted ever-so-slightly, grinding them together; Tony’s cock was like fire against him, every new inch of skin turning the blaze into an inferno.

“How do you want it?” Tony whispered into Steve’s ear, lifting his hips as Steve rutted against him. “You want it hard baby? Do you want me buried deep inside you?”

Steve nodded, sweat dripping down his throat. “Yes – please, anything.”

“You have lube?” Tony twisted to free his tail from where it had been trapped underneath his leg; it flexed and wiggled as if working out kinks and then slithered towards the dresser wrapping around the handle.

“It’s in the top drawer,” Steve grunted in between bruising kisses. “It’s in there with a bunch of other stuff so be careful.”

“Alright,” Tony grunted, his tail working to gather the tube of lube as he began to knead Steve’s ass again, spreading him out. He licked his index finger and started working it inside, rubbing his cock against Steve’s when Steve tensed at the intrusion. He swirled his finger slowly before withdrawing, brushing against things inside Steve that had him see stars.

Steve groaned; there was a click, the sound of liquid squirting and then something was pressing inside him, something much, much bigger than Tony’s finger had been. He gasped as Tony’s hands began to knead his ass again, realizing just what it was that was pushing in and out of him.

“Is that your tail?” He blurted as his body begged for more.

“Of course,” Tony purred, nuzzling Steve’s cheek. “This way I can open you up and give you a squeeze at the same time. Do you like it? Or should I stop?”

Steve shook his head, arching up into the next thrust, almost wailing as the tail picked up the pace. “No, no it’s good. So good,” he whimpered, reaching down to fist his cock. He tugged at the crown, thumbing his slit again and again, eyes squeezing shut. “Tony…” The tail inside him felt like it was getting bigger, the thrusts working deeper and deeper until he felt oh-so-full. He spread his legs, aware that Tony was working a finger into him alongside his tail and moaned loudly, releasing his cock so he could grab a hold of the sheets instead. He wouldn’t last long like this – not with Tony pushing into him from behind and rubbing at him from the front.

Tony seemed to notice because suddenly Steve was on his side with Tony pressed up against his back. His tail slipped free to wrap firmly around Steve’s throbbing cock; Steve let out another whimper, wanting to complain at having been left so empty.

Tony kissed his ear. “You alright?”

Steve nodded slowly, shivering at the sensation of sweat trickling down his back.

Tony’s cock was so much bigger than his tail had been; Steve had to bite down hard on his lip to try and use the pain to stop himself from coming right then and there. He could feel Tony’s moan vibrating in his shoulder, felt his leg being lifted up so that Tony could thrust deeper.

Tony’s fingers dug into Steve’s muscular thighs, holding on tightly as he thrust again and again. “Steve,” Tony murmured, his tail tugging at Steve’s cock in a way that made Steve think he was going to overload on bliss, “You’re so tight honey, so fucking tight.” His thrusts became more erratic, each move sending jolts of pleasure through Steve’s body.

“Oh god – Tony!” Steve gasped as he came, wrapping his fingers around Tony’s tail.

Tony grunted; he gave one last thrust, and came pressing his face into Steve’s shoulder. He panted, resting his cheek against Steve’s sweat slick skin, his fingers digging into the meat of Steve’s hip. His tail released Steve’s cock to flop lifelessly onto the mattress, curling around the mess it had made as if celebrating a job well done.

“Whoa,” Tony puffed out. “That was different.”

Steve wiped at his sticky belly, his eyelids drooping as the exhaustion he had been fighting all night finally came crashing over him; he lay there, blissfully hazy, listening to the sound of Tony panting in his ear. If the world could always be like this, then maybe it wasn’t so bad to be free from the ice after all.

He felt Tony pull out, the slow tug of his sore muscles dragging him back into reality. He rolled over, taking Tony’s face in his hands, watching in awe as the grey hairs and pale skin started to change colours; Tony’s brown hair and neatly trimmed beard became darker than ever. His olive skin seemed to outright glow, his pallid complexion gone in stages. His tail turned obsidian black again, and it was livelier than ever. It began to stroke Steve’s back, dipping down to tease its way between his legs until Steve had to lean forwards or else risk rolling onto it.

“So,” Tony smirked, rubbing at the patch of lube Steve had inadvertently smeared on his cheek. “That was fun.”

Steve kissed Tony, smiling when he felt Tony’s tail wrap around his thigh as if begging for attention. “Yeah,” he murmured warmly. “I guess it was alright.” He started giggling when he saw the annoyed look on Tony’s face, and gave him soft butterfly kisses until the unhappy expression went away. They lay together kissing, tangling their legs as their energy waned.

Tony crawled up onto Steve’s chest, grimacing when he moved too fast. He rested there, licking his dry lips as he settled in. The arc reactor dug into Steve’s chest a little, but it wasn’t entirely unpleasant; his bandages were scratchy even though they were half soaked in sweat, yet Steve was completely at ease.

Steve tangled his fingers in Tony’s sweaty hair, feeling content for the first time in ages.

“I guess we need to talk now, huh?” Tony said after a minute, fidgeting under Steve’s touch. He sighed, flopping forwards so that he could rub his cheek against Steve’s chin. “I uh… I think we should probably… yeah.” He sat up again, peering down at Steve his expression changing from resigned to hopeful when he realized that Steve wasn’t shoving him away. “I mean, you’re here – so you don’t hate me, right?”

“I never hated you,” Steve said. “I could never hate you.” He smiled when Tony kissed him on the tip of his nose.

“I missed you,” Tony murmured shyly. His tail reached down and snagged his pants where they lay crumpled on the floor, lifting them up so that he could fish something from his pocket. He pressed the wrinkled square of paper into Steve’s hand, rubbing his nose against Steve’s chin again. “This was probably the only thing that kept me going when they had me in that cave,” he said.

Steve sat up, peering down at the scrap in his hand; Tony made himself comfortable on his lap, happily taking up residence against his chest. The paper was wrinkled from having been folded and refolded over and over again. The soft blue lines on the page had faded into nothingness, leaving behind just a hint of handwriting. He thumbed at the paper; it was so worn it seemed ready to fall apart. He had little trouble recognizing what it was; this was his note.

Tony had gotten a hold of it after all.

Steve’s eyes watered; he rubbed at them, trying not to smear tears onto the fragile paper. “You read it?”

“Of course I read it,” Tony grumbled, flicking Steve in the forehead. He rested his head on Steve’s shoulder, his arms wrapping around Steve’s middle. “Pepper slipped it to me right before the presentation. I didn’t find it until after they had me,” he said, cuddling closer. “It was the only thing they let me keep.”

Steve hugged Tony tightly; he pressed his nose into Tony’s hair, letting the note drop to the blankets. “Oh honey,” he murmured, “I’m so sorry they took you. If I had known I would have come for you.”

“I know,” Tony whispered, closing his eyes. “I knew you would. I figured they would want to keep it quiet – no one wants Captain America traipsing around their evil camp, right? That would probably be bad for business.”

“Still, I wish I could have been there.”

Tony gave Steve’s bicep a squeeze. “You were with me,” he said. “I had you in my pocket, remember?”

Steve smiled, wiping his nose on the back of his hand. “If you say so.”

“It could have been worse. They either didn’t know or forgot that I understand all of your human languages. Every time they sent videos off to whoever it was they were contracted by, I heard what they were jabbering on about. They even gave me a translator slash assistant to work with. He was…” Tony broke off, resting his face against Steve’s shoulder. His body shook with sobs he refused to let out.

Steve stroked Tony’s hair, resting his head against Tony’s.

“He was a really nice guy Steve. Yinsen was a professor – really knew his shit too. We didn’t get to know each other that well and I… I wish I had asked him more questions – I wish I had been able to help him get home to his wife and kids. God – what the hell is wrong with me? Why are my eyes leaking – is this normal? For humans I mean?” Tony sniffled, swiping at the tears on his cheeks. “It’s never done this before – I’ve never – It feels awful. Why is this happening?”

“You’re never felt sad before?” Steve asked, startled.

Tony shook his head. “No. We don’t really do anything other than fuck and sit around in my world.” He wiped at his face again, glaring at the tears smeared on his skin. “This is normal? I’m not going to suddenly keel over and die am I? You’ve felt like this before?”

Steve smiled. “I’ve felt sad lots of times.”

“Really?” Tony sounded skeptical. “I mean, I know you’re Captain America and that you’re basically the epitome of truth and justice, but you wouldn’t lie to a guy from another world, would you?”

Steve chuckled. “I wouldn’t lie to you. Lots of people get sad. It’s normal – nothing out of the ordinary or to be afraid of if that’s what you’re thinking. I know I’m not the best at dealing with it, but I do know what it’s like to lose people, and I’ve got good ears if you ever want to talk about it.”

“I appreciate the offer, but… no, I really don’t want to talk about it. I don’t even want to think about it,” Tony grumbled, wiping his eyes on the back of his arm. “I don’t like this feeling. I wish it would just go away.”

Steve rubbed soothing circles on Tony’s back, mindful of the bandages. “Unfortunately, that’s not how feelings work, honey. They kind of do their own thing.”

“Well, they suck,” Tony sniffed, bumping his head against Steve’s shoulder again. “I don’t know how you put up with them all the time. It feels like I’m going to go crazy.”

“I feel the same way sometimes too. I guess it just goes away after a while. Sometimes it’s hard to think about the people you’ve lost, but it hurts less over time,” Steve murmured.

“Is that why you don’t look at that box in your closet?”

“Yeah,” Steve replied, kissing Tony’s forehead, “sometimes it hurts too much to look at the stuff in there, but I don’t think I can ever get rid of it.”

“I think I know what you mean,” Tony sighed. “I just wish I had helped him, even if it was a little bit.” Tony hung his head and suddenly Steve could feel tears dribbling down his chest.

“Yinsen sounds like he was a wonderful guy. He helped you get back home and he was willing to risk his life for you. I’m glad you met someone like that. You deserve to have nice people in your life,” Steve whispered in Tony’s ear. “He must have really liked you.”

Tony nodded in agreement, wiping his nose on Steve’s shoulder. “He was really kind about everything, even when they hurt him. Your note made it a lot easier to forget that I was stuck in that shithole though. Did… Do you really fell all of the stuff you wrote down?” he asked.

“Of course I do. I wrote it down so I wouldn’t forget a single word,” Steve said. “I can say it out loud if you want. I was practicing when we were apart, praying that you’d give me a second chance. I’m sorry I couldn’t say it to you like I planned.”

“No, don’t be sorry,” Tony said, pulling back so that he could look Steve in the eye. He kissed Steve like he would die if he didn’t, capturing Steve’s lower lip between his teeth before letting him go. “I have a confession to make,” he said, looking sheepish.

“Oh? What did you do?” Steve smiled, capturing Tony’s tail playfully in his hands. He wiggled it under Tony’s nose until Tony cracked a bit of a smile.

“I sort of spied on you while we were apart,” Tony admitted, his tail flopping back and forth in Steve’s grasp.

“You were spying? What do you mean?” Steve asked, raising an eyebrow. “I think I would have noticed if you were following me around.”

Tony smiled harder, as if trying to force the expression to stick. “I broke into your files,” he said, addressing Steve’s bellybutton. “I uh… You said that I didn’t know you, and you were right. I didn’t – I really didn’t and I guess I didn’t realize how important it was to you. I wanted to – you know, to get to know you for real. But by then you were mad at me, and I’d already made an ass of myself by telling you never to call me again and I… it wasn’t like I could just ask you out.”

“So you broke into SHIELD’s secure files and decided to snoop around instead?” Steve teased. “That must have been fun.”

“Yeah,” Tony said, perking up slightly. “But that wasn’t all I did.” He licked his dry lips, scratching the back of his head. “But I also … ok. This is going to sound really crazy, and I’m really, really sorry … but I sort of followed you on your date.”

“My date?” Steve frowned. When had he had a date?

OH!

He scowled, shaking his head at the absurdity of forgetting that he had gone out on a date in the first place. “You saw me with Sharon?”

Tony nodded slowly, a bitter look creeping onto his face. “I saw you two kissing. So I left.”

“You left?” Steve repeated softly.

“Yeah,” Tony sighed, “I left and then you showed up at my place the next day and I didn’t know what to think, you know? It was hard enough seeing you all the time through the security cameras, and then all of a sudden you were right there and… in person. If Pepper hadn’t stopped you I don’t know what I would have said to you.”

“Security cameras? What cameras?” Steve asked, baffled. He hadn’t been anywhere with cameras except for when he had been sequestered in SHIELD and he had only gone there a handful of times before he had gone to talk with Tony that last time. “What are you talking about?”

“Oh,” Tony shrugged. “I maybe, sort of, kind of installed cameras in your apartment to keep an eye on you, you know – in case something bad happened.” He laughed nervously, leaning away as if he was about make a daring attempt at a backwards roll. It was oddly endearing the way his own tail patted him on the head, as if it was embarrassed by what he had done.

Steve shifted his weight, pulling Tony closer so that he wouldn’t fall off the side of the mattress. He may have been annoyed at being spied on, but he wouldn’t have wanted Tony to hurt himself; besides, the thought of Tony watching him all the time was kind of a turn on. The thought of Tony always watching, of Tony seeing every little detail of his life made something warm uncurl in his stomach. Steve’s face felt hot just thinking about it. “So you were spying on me the entire time?”

“Sort of,” Tony said, pushing his index fingers together. “I mean, it’s not like I was spying on you in the shower or anything. I was strictly watching the living room and your bedroom. And the kitchen. And the hallway.” He flashed Steve a smile that bordered on manic. “If you think about it, I probably kept you from getting robbed, and if you had been I would have known about it two seconds after it happened!”

Steve groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Tony, you can’t just spy on people. That’s not polite.”

Tony scowled, bumping his head against Steve’s shoulder. “But it’s not like I was doing it because I’m a creep – I just wanted to make sure that you were alright. You know,” Tony let out a sigh, gnawing gently on Steve’s collarbone. “I wasn’t there to watch out for you and you’re not immortal; even with your serum, you don’t heal like I do.”

Steve ruffled Tony’s hair, resting his hand on the back of Tony’s neck. “I appreciate you looking out for me,” he said, “Just… maybe don’t do that to anyone else? I don’t think other people will be as understanding.” He slipped his fingers back into Tony’s hair, massaging his scalp; he was glad that Tony had told him instead of simply finding the cameras one day while doing housework. God knows what Bucky would have done if he had been the one to figure out what had been going on. He didn’t want to have to get blood cleaned out of the carpet; not again.

Tony sagged against him, becoming dead weight in Steve’s arms. “Does this mean I’m forgiven?”

“Forgiven?” Steve chuckled. “What are you talking about? I don’t think you need to be forgiven – at least not from me. Bucky on the other hand would probably appreciate it.” He let himself get knocked backwards, his legs pushed apart as Tony huddled against him. “Sure, you shouldn’t have put in surveillance equipment without permission, but it wasn’t like you were stealing things or beating people up. How did you hide the cameras by the way? I thought SHIELD was the only one with equipment like that?”

Tony pulled the blankets up over them, his tail dragging the pillows and sheets closer; he was nesting again, and Steve was glad to be surrounded by everything soft, pleased to be tucked away so safely.

“I found one of the ones Howard gave them and built it again from scratch. It was inefficient – poorly designed and made of cheap parts – I won’t bore you with the details but by the time I was done with them they were the size of a pea and had high definition lenses,” Tony yawned, idly doodling blueprints on Steve’s chest with his finger. “I can show them to you tomorrow if you want. Maybe your team can make use of them or something. You do spy things, right?”

“Yes, we do spy things,” Steve laughed. He let out a rather unmanly squeak when Tony drew on an especially ticklish patch of skin just above his hip. Tony’s finger lingered, his tail wrapping comfortably around Steve’s left arm; it wound itself around Steve like a living bracelet, the tip patting Steve on the elbow as if to say it was ready for them all to go to sleep.

“Steve?” Tony said quietly, his body going limp as he wrestled valiantly against sleep.

“Yes honey?”

“We’re going to do this again, right? This isn’t just a once every six month kind of thing, is it?” Tony mumbled.

Steve stroked Tony’s hair, his limbs feeling heavy as he slowly lost his own battle with exhaustion. “I’m keeping you,” he whispered. “I’m…. fine with it being for forever if you are.”

“Ok,” Tony agreed, snuggling closer. “That sounds good to me. Forever it is. I’m keeping you too.”

“But I get at least one proper date of out this,” Steve groused sleepily. “I want a real date – and a do-over.”

“What’s a do-over?” Tony yawned, peering at Steve with one eye.

“It’s when you start over again when something bad happens, pretending that it never happened in the first place.”

“Oh, I get it. Ok. So, you only get the one?”

“Yes,” Steve said. “Only one. But sometimes you can give someone a few more if you really like the person.”

“Hm,” Tony murmured. He patted Steve gently on the forehead, not even bothering to look at what he was going; he nearly got Steve in the eye in the process. “Ok. Well, if we both get one, I’m alright with that.” He let his hand drop onto the pile of sheets, adjusting everything so that it was arranged just so as his tail tapped impatiently on Steve’s arm. “But you owe me one,” he said with a grunt, tugging a sheet out from under his hip, displeased with its positioning.

“Oh?” Steve murmured, already half asleep.

“Yeah,” Tony said, flattening down the unruly sheet. “You have to move in with me now.”

“I do?”

“Yep,” Tony mumbled drowsily. “You do.”

“Well, alright then. I guess I can do that as long as you forgive me for being such an idiot,” Steve said, rolling over. Tony rolled with him, tucking himself under Steve’s arm so that Steve’s nose was bumping pleasantly against his ear.

Steve watched lazily as Tony pulled the blanket up over his head, snagging it by the edge to keep him from completely vanishing from sight. “And we’re still bringing Bucky with us,” Steve said, lifting the blanket up so that he could stare down into Tony’s sleep clouded eyes.

Tony scowled at him, dragging the blanket back down. “Fine,” he mumbled into Steve’s chest, his breath hot and sticky against Steve’s skin. “But we’re going out for breakfast first before we tell him.”

“Deal.”

They woke up to the sounds of the last few songbirds in the city serenading the garbage men; it was the first bit of good sleep Steve had gotten since they had fought. When he reluctantly crawled out of the nest Tony had made for them, he was afraid at first that he hadn’t woken up at all. Tony looked like a beautiful dream dressed in the morning light even with bandages wrapped lazily around his middle; he smiled crookedly up at Steve. His tail swished back and forth under the blankets as he went up on one elbow, wrapping itself gently around Steve’s waist, binding them together.

“Hello gorgeous,” Tony purred, batting his eyelashes. He gave Steve a gentle kiss on the lips, smirking when he saw the way Steve’s eyes crinkled at the corners. He rubbed at the wrinkles, seemingly fascinated by them. “I see someone’s in a good mood,” Tony murmured, stealing another kiss as he leaned closer.

Steve hugged him close, sighing in contentment. “It’s hard not to be, with you here.”

“Oh, well, that’s true.” Tony nodded all-knowingly, nibbling delicately on Steve’s earlobe. His tail loosened enough so that it could reach up and smooth down Steve’s bedhead. “So, we’re going for a breakfast date, right?”

“Yes,” Steve agreed. “But I think the people at the restaurant would appreciate it if we showed up smelling a little better than we do right now. We’re going to have to shower first.” He picked at Tony’s bandages idly, peeking underneath; he saw nothing but smooth unblemished skin there, nothing that would need a bandage. “I wonder if we’ll have to change these,” he mused.

“I probably don’t even need them anymore,” Tony hummed, sitting up. He perched himself on Steve’s stomach, blindly searching for the clips holding the mess of bandages together. “I healed last night while we were sleeping,” he grunted as he found what he had been looking for; they had been stealthily tucked under his arm, likely to keep him from accidentally knocking them loose. He tugged them free, his tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth, his brows furrowed in concentration. “Can you?” He gestured to the bandages and Steve gladly took them from him. Tony lifted his arms in the air as Steve untied him, his eyes locked on Steve’s as more and more skin appeared; each tantalizing strip was smooth and scar free, just like Steve had suspected.

When he reached the lumpy mound in the middle of Tony’s chest, the skin was no longer quite so virginal. Steve’s breath hitched; he had known that the Arc reactor was embedded in Tony’s chest, but he hadn’t known what it looked like or how deep the device was sitting.

The reactor was beautiful and terrifying at the same time. The brilliant blue light it emitted was almost ethereal, and for a few seconds Steve wasn’t sure if what he was looking at was real; it seemed like something magical, like it had been plucked from a dream. He ran his finger around the silvery outer casing, amazed by the way the metal was perfectly shaped and level with Tony’s flesh.

He eyed the scar tissue built up around the arc reactor, wincing internally as he thought about how much bone and muscle had been carved out of Tony’s body to get it in place; the doctor must have had a hell of a time getting everything level once he was done, and he didn’t even want to think about what it would have been like in that makeshift operating room.

Each scar was uglier than the next, yet they was a testament to Tony’s will to survive, a badge of honor even if they did looked out of place on Tony’s chest. When Steve looked up again, Tony’s smile was gone, having faded into a pained grimace.

“You built this all by yourself?” Steve asked in awe, pressing his hand to the centre of the arc reactor.

Tony flinched at the contact.

Steve moved his hand way, rubbing soothing circles on Tony’s back instead, hoping that he hadn’t done something horribly wrong. “Sorry,” he said, “I hope I didn’t hurt you. Should I have not – I should have asked before I touched – I’m sorry.”

Tony shook his head rigidly. “No, it’s ok. You can touch it if you want.” He sighed, running his fingers through his hair. “It’s Howard’s original design; I just made it more compact and efficient.” He squirmed, looking a little like he wanted to start wrapping himself up again to hide the arc reactor from sight. “I know it’s messy – I’m sorry it’s so ugly.”

“It’s beautiful,” Steve said. He traced the scars around the reactor with his fingers, pleased when Tony smiled shyly at him; unfortunately the look didn’t last.

Tony grabbed Steve’s hand, pulling it away from the arc reactor, biting his lower lip like he was thinking about chewing clean through the thing. “You’re not freaked out by it? I mean,” Tony murmured, rubbing his thumb over Steve’s wrist. “Yinsen made a mess when he put it in, although I guess I can’t really blame him considering he saved my life and all. It’s not like he was working with the best tools or anything either. I was lucky they had a hack saw and a few scalpels on hand, so I guess I shouldn’t complain.” He scowled down at his chest in displeasure, digging at one of the largest scars with his thumbnail. “I thought it might clear up last night, but I think I was too badly hurt to heal over the old wounds. I guess the shrapnel’s in there for good now.”

“What does that mean?” Steve asked, gently pulling Tony’s hand into his so that Tony would stop tearing at himself; the skin near the scars was rapidly turning an ugly shade of pink, and Steve was afraid that Tony might draw blood if he kept at it.

Tony let out loud sigh, drumming his trapped fingers on the inside of Steve’s wrist. “It means that I have shrapnel embedded in my heart. The reactor is an electromagnet – you know what that is, right?”

“I know what a magnet is Tony,” Steve said, rolling his eyes.

Tony poked him in the nose; Steve mock bit at his finger and Tony yanked it away, scowling.

“Let’s just put it this way. If the arc reactor gets taken out, then the shrapnel will start moving around again and I’ll die,” Tony said.

Steve swallowed hard. He had talked with enough veterans to know about shrapnel and its effects on the living, but he had never thought it would need to stay so stubbornly in place. The thought of a tiny metal fragment being the end of Tony made Steve’s head spin.

Tony wiggled in his grasp, pulling Steve closer so that he could rest his forehead on his shoulder, hiding his face. “It’s not that bad you know. As long as I’ve got my spare, things are just peachy. I’ve got a bunch of them at home – don’t give me that look. I sent Jarvis a message this morning to make a few extra so that I can give you one to keep with you,” he said nonchalantly. “It’s not a big deal.”

“It doesn’t damage easily, does it?” Steve fretted. “I mean, it’s not like it’ll just break down, right?”

Tony shook his head and sat up, looking a tad insulted by the insinuation that his tech might somehow spontaneously fail. “I designed it to be able to withstand anything you can throw at it. Believe me Steve, it’s not going to just fall apart or be destroyed if it gets hit with a bit of gravel. It would probably be easier to kill me by just lopping off my head. There’s one downside though,” he scowled gloomily at the reactor again. “I’m not exactly pretty anymore, now am I? I mean look at me – it’s hideous! I don’t even feel comfortable looking at it, and I’m the one who made the damned thing.”

“Tony,” Steve said softly, kissing Tony’s forehead, “to me you’re beautiful no matter how many scars you have. And you know what? I’d take you with the scars any day if it meant you were healthy and safe.”

Tony chuckled, the darkness leaving his eyes. “You really don’t mind? Not even a little bit?” When Steve shook his head, Tony tugged at the remaining bandage, yanking it free. He balled it up in his hand and then hurled it onto the floor with all of his might.

“Back home,” Tony sighed, scrubbing a hand over his face, “I’d be a pariah because of this,” he said, gesturing ruefully to the scars. “People who have defects have to cover up. There are laws about it – pretty shitty laws too. The ruling class was already pretty annoyed with what I did to my hands. Callouses aren’t exactly sexy even if they do feel pretty hot. My mother would probably have a hissy fit if she saw me now.” He leaned heavily against Steve, staring down at his hands. “But you don’t want to hear about that, now do you.”

“I do,” Steve said, lifting Tony’s chin up so that he could giving him a quick peck on the lips, “I want to know everything about you, remember?”

“Everything?” Tony asked, pushing Steve’s hand back against the arc reactor. He stared at it, admiring the way the blue light was painting Steve’s skin. “Everything everything? Or just some things everything? Wait – that sounds crazy. I mean everything.”

“Everything,” Steve agreed solemnly. He lifted Tony up giving him another lazy kiss. “Besides,” Steve said with a soft smile, their noses touching, “I’m in this for the long haul, remember? Nothing you say is going to scare me off.”

“Oh? Nothing at all?” Tony teased, kissing Steve again.

“Nothing,” Steve smiled, “will ever scare me off.”

Neither of them had wanted to go too far from their comfy bed but unfortunately, the weeks of covert Avengers missions had finally taken their toll on Steve’s stockpiles. After a brief but informative look at the cupboards, they had decided that unless they wanted to take a chance and eat that last bloated can of expired beans, they would have to go out. They had breakfast at a small diner across the street from Steve’s apartment called Daisy’s Fry-up.

Tony sat across the table from Steve, lethargically prodding a salt shaker as he watched Steve order half the menu from memory. He bumped his feet playfully against Steve’s when the waitress walked off, the bemused expression on her face making him snort in laughter. “You sure do eat a lot,” Tony quipped. He pushed his tail off of the table, giving it a dirty look when he noticed that it had taken the pepper shaker with it as a trophy. He struggled with it in the oddest game of tug-of-war Steve had ever seen, cursing under his breath when it rapped him on the top of the head with the pepper shaker.

Tony won in the end although it was a close fight. He set the pepper shaker back in its rightful place on the table beside the salt shaker and the little ceramic box filled with Splenda, smirking to himself.

He started rifling through the sugars, lifting out and inspecting every last packet.

How many times had Tony had done something as simple as this? Had Tony spent any time sitting down at a table for breakfast since he had last eaten with them in their cramped apartment? It seemed like forever since they had been together last. The way Tony was eyeballing everything, made it seem like Steve wasn’t the only one who hadn’t been going out on the town.

Having finished with the sugars, Tony moved on to sort through the stacks of jam, scouring the various plastic packets with pursed lips. He held one up for Steve to look at, flapping it back and forth by its plastic tab. “What’s this stuff?” he asked.

“It’s raspberry jam. We had raspberries before, remember?” Steve said, tapping the other jam containers. “They’re all different types of jam. It’s a preserve people make by boiling down fruit. You usually put it on things like toast and pancakes.”

“Oh,” Tony said, frowning at the packet as if he suspected it to be lying to him somehow. “But why do they make jam? What’s the point? I’m assuming that it’s for a reason other than sheer vanity.”

“Fruit last longer if it’s preserved like that. It goes out of season, even with the technology we have.” Steve yawned into his hand, leaning against the table; it was nice and comfortable on his side of the booth, although he wouldn’t have minded if Tony had chosen to sit beside him.

He debated on giving Bucky a quick call to tell him that they had worked things out, but hesitated. A few more hours of privacy would be great and making that call would likely have them packing up their things for the big move over to Tony’s apartment instead of crawling back into his comfy bed.

“We don’t have seasons in my world,” Tony sighed, dropping the jam back into the pile. “Everything pretty much stays the same. It gets so boring.” He perked up when the waitress brought them the first of their three round breakfast, picking at the different types of food Steve had so kindly ordered. The pancakes made him smile and nod; the eggs and sausages seemed to make him a little more wary.

Steve pushed the syrup across the table towards Tony, starting in on his omelette. “You didn’t look up breakfast foods?” he asked through a mouthful of ham, cheese and eggs.

Tony shook his head, stealing a forkful off Steve’s plate with a cheeky grin. “After I took that first cooking class I thought it was a waste of time learning that stuff by myself. I was sort of hoping you’d show me all about it, seeing as how eating is your favourite thing to do.”

“It is not,” Steve grumbled, smothering his buttery toast with jam. “Wouldn’t it be faster if you learned about it by yourself? You read so fast, I was kind of expecting you to have looked all this stuff up by now.”

Tony shrugged. “I’d rather learn about it with you. I like the idea of being surprised by new things sometimes.”

“Well, alright, if you insist. I don’t mind showing you the ropes.” Steve grinned, offering Tony half of his jam covered toast; he had picked the raspberry, and the look on Tony’s face as he licked the jam off of his fingers was priceless. It looked a little like he might open up one of the packets and start devouring the stuff.

Steve had to admit, the idea of feeding Tony made him feel all warm inside; he could already think of a few special meals they could share. He wouldn’t mind trying out a few new things himself, and there was a whole city out there filled with strange and exotic food just waiting to be explored.

The thought that Tony wanted to share that with him, well, that was something special. Steve could feel his cheeks burning, and he was fairly sure that it wasn’t because of the salsa he had just scarfed down. “That sounds like a good plan,” he said.

“Of course it is.” Tony grinned, swiping a hunk of the apple crepe to Steve’s right. His eyes glazed over as he ate with reckless abandon, getting powdered sugar in his beard as he went back for more.

Steve laughed, reaching over the table to rub the sugar away; Tony leaned against his hand, his eyes half closed in ecstasy.

“I’m a genius, Steve. All my ideas are good.”

Steve chuckled, digging back in to his food.

The table in between them exploded; dishes and food flew everywhere, their quiet little breakfast ruined in an instant. Cutlery flew through the air and embedded in the walls, narrowly missing Steve’s face and Tony’s tail. Steve dove without thinking getting Tony out of the way as the tables behind him suddenly reared up and sprang forwards like charging horses. He heard Tony’s startled squawk as he rolled them both to the left and prayed that he had gotten them out of the way in time. The rogue tables crashed down onto the booth, smashing into the padded seats so hard the wooden frames and table shattered.

Fluff and splinters flew into the air, nearly blinding him.

Steve was sure that he had yelled Tony’s name, but it was like the world had suddenly become devoid of sound, every scrape and shout swallowed up.

Tony’s fingers dug into the waistband of Steve’s khaki’s as he was wrenched backwards across the floor by his tail.

Tony was screaming – he had to be, but there was no way to tell if it was because he was in pain or just startled. Steve grabbed for Tony’s hand and managed to keep him from being yanked through the hole in what had once been the diner’s front entrance; Tony’s eyes widened, his mouth snapping open as another soundless scream tore from his throat.

Time seemed to stand still. A hazy shape appeared behind Tony; it bent down, trapping Tony’s tail in its grasp.

Sound returned with a sullen pop. Tony’s screams blared in Steve’s ears like an air raid siren gone horribly wrong.

He dove forwards refusing to let go of Tony’s hand and tried to punch the figure as it took shape – she blocked his blow with her bare arm and sent him flying backwards, ripping him from Tony’s grasp effortlessly.

Steve recognized her as her hair blew out of her face. Her magic flowed around her in a string of pink and purple pearls, hovering in the air amidst the flakes of drywall and sawdust. Queen Maria Collins Carbonell did not look pleased.

She scowled at Steve, her beautiful features distorted with rage. “Stop this foolishness,” she growled, tugging harshly at her son’s tail. Tony whimpered, struggling against her but couldn’t break free; there was fear in his eyes, but it did nothing to dissuade his mother’s fury.

Steve pushed himself up, his palms bleeding where bits of broken crockery had pierced his skin. “Lady,” he said, gritting his teeth as he yanked a splinter from his palm, “You’d better have a good reason for disturbing our date.”

Maria laughed shrilly at Steve. She tugged at Tony’s tail and he was jerked backwards across the gritty floor hissing in pain, leaving a clean patch of tile in his wake. Her tail whipped forwards, tearing at Tony’s clothing, stripping him with terrifying efficiency.

Tony tried to fight her tail off with his own tail but wound up bound by the wrists by hers, kneeling at her feet as if in penance; he panted, twisting and turning in her grasp, trying to kick at her.

“You have been very bad Tony. Why must you make things worse?” she snarled. She looked down at her son, checking him over and shrieked, gesturing to the arc reactor. Her lips curled in disgust. “What have you done to yourself child?”

“I didn’t do anything,” Tony protested, struggling against her tail. He flushed in embarrassment, looking down at his nakedness, his cheeks peppered with pink. “I can’t – you can’t just wander around naked here! Stop it!”

Maria released Tony’s hands so that he could cover himself, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears. “This false modesty doesn’t suit you, boy. You’ve been here too long – corrupted your flesh so willingly. I thought you were smarter than this. You should have come home long ago!”

“I don’t want to go home!” Tony spat, plucking the remainder of his shirt from the ruins of the booth. He covering his groin with the scrap of fabric; it had been one of his favourite shirts, the first one Steve had given him. He looked sadly down at the strips of fabric scattered across the floor, shaking his head. “I never wanted to be there, and you’re not taking me back.”

“Of course I am,” she hissed. “You have no choice in the matter!” She stepped over the remains of their breakfast, her skin somehow remaining unmarred by the broken glass and scraps of metal littering the room. She stood in front of Steve, seeming to tower above him despite her shorter stature. The air around her seemed to blur around the edges; warmth unnaturally radiated from her body. She stared down her nose at Steve, pushing herself into his space. “You were given a gift human, and you chose to steal from us? I should kill you now and save my sister the trouble.”

Tony scrambled to his feet, dropping his shredded shirt; broken glass pierced the soles of his feet as he struggled past his mother, but he didn’t seem to notice that he was leaving bloody streaks in his wake. He threw himself in front of Steve, his arms held out in front of him as he took up a fighting stance. “He didn’t do anything! I left on my own!”

Maria sneered at Tony, baring her teeth. “Don’t lie to me boy. I hate it when you lie.”

“I hate our world – what the hell made you think that I wanted to stay there forever? I don’t want to be chained to a goddamned rock! I want a life!” Tony growled. “You can’t have him – I won’t let you!”

“I’m not here for him,” Maria sighed wearily as her tail wrapped around her thigh. “I am here to take my son – the foolish creature who slipped through a portal he had no right to use – home where he belongs. No one will have you now unless you fulfil your role as Earth-Born. Who would want such a disgusting Incubus? I can’t believe my own blood would do something so utterly thoughtless.” She grabbed Tony by the arm, yanking him towards her and he stumbled, his blood-slick feet making him slip on the tiles. He hit the floor on his knees with a yelp.

“I won’t go back,” Tony said, trying to wretch his trapped arm free from her grasp. “Let me get my armor and we can fight this out fair and square.”

Maria snorted angrily, her hair tumbling down around her shoulders in silken waves. She leaned down, glaring at him. “You would threaten me with one of your toys? You would threaten your mother? You would threaten your Queen?”

“I’m not threatening you! I’m just asking for the chance to fight you on equal ground!” Tony insisted. “You know damn well I have no chance against you here or anywhere else – not like this. So why not fight me fairly? Why sully your magnanimous image dragging a weak little Incubus back to your nest? Wouldn’t you rather fight a more impressive battle?”

She frowned. “Is that what you think I came here for? Battle? To fight tooth and nail with an Earth-Born? Do you think I am here to cause chaos and havoc in the lives of petty little mortals?” She let his arm drop, taking his face in her hands. Her nails dug into his cheeks. “My boy, I am here because you have suffered. You nearly died. You will come home and keep me company as you did before. You will be safe with me this time, I promise. My sister will do nothing to harm you.”

“I don’t want to go home,” Tony said, struggling in her grasp. “I want to stay with Steve!”

She stood up, looking reluctant to break contact with her son’s skin and turned slowly to face Steve; the red crescent-shaped marks on Tony’s face stood out against his skin, vicious and brutal in the flickering fluorescent lights.

“You’ve corrupted my son,” she growled. “You will pay for what you have done.”

Tony lurched forwards; he tried to grab his mother by the leg but she pushed him away as easily as she might flick at a feather. Her magic filled the air again, the scent of cinnamon becoming so overpowering Steve felt like he wouldn’t ever be able to breath clearly again. He sneezed so hard he saw double. His eyes burned and watered as pain shot through his body; his every nerve felt as if it was rubbed raw.

“I haven’t done anything,” he coughed, wiping at his eyes with the heel of his hand to try and restore his vision. “I love him – I’d never do anything to hurt him.”

The air became cold around Steve’s face. He blinked as his vision cleared.

Maria looked shocked, but that didn’t stop her from attacking again. Her tail snapped through the air like a whip, wrapping around Steve’s throat; he scrambled and grabbed it, squeezing at it with all of his might.

She sneered at him, clearly amused by his actions. “You think a little pressure will hurt me?”

He tried to use his momentum to slide closer to the remains of their booth where his shield lay in its bag; if he could just get to it, things would be alright he told himself as his brain tried to fight off asphyxiation. He cursed his sneakers for their lack of tread, punching at her tail as hard as he could while twisting his lower body to try and wedge his foot somewhere that might hold strong.

“Mother – stop it!” Tony cried out, grabbing her by the leg again. “Stop it!”

“Give me one good reason,” she said softly, her eyes locked on Steve. “And it had better be good.”

“I… love him…” Steve wheezed, kicking her in the chest.

This time she staggered, her tail loosening enough for him to break free. He skidded backwards and out of range, fumbling for the straps of his bag; he had his shield out before she could strike again, panting as if he had just run a marathon.

The next blow from her tail was deflected with a meaty gong.

She hissed in surprise pulling her tail back. She rubbed at it with her delicate looking hands, paying special attention to the spade-shaped tip. “How dare you!”

“I’ve already told you – I love him and I’m not going to let you take him. You’ll have to kill me first,” Steve said, ready to strike at her again. “I don’t want to fight you ma’am, but he’s the most important thing in my life and I won’t lose him – don’t make me do this.”

Maria glowered at him and hopped backwards, nimbly avoiding the remains of a broken light bulb. Her eyes darted from Steve to Tony assessing the situation and then, to Steve’s surprise she went still. She dropped her arms to her sides, wrapping her tail around her waist. “Alright,” she said. “If you can prove that you love him, I’ll let him stay here with you.”

“And just what do you want me to do?” Steve asked, lowering the shield enough to get a better look at her.

She was paler than before, her cheeks painted with blotches of crimson. She panted, her chest heaving as she tried to draw in more air; her black tail was ringed with white, her irises and hair peppered with grey.

“Tell me the three things my son loves most about this world,” she said in a deathly whisper. “If you can’t he’s going home and you will never set eyes on him again – not so long as I draw breath.”

Steve stared at her blankly for a moment. After all the trouble she had gone through, it seemed like an oddly simple way to beat her.

He smiled.

This was easy.

He knew this; he knew Tony, even if they hadn’t exactly exchanged life stories yet. He set his shield beside his leg, straightening up and spoke confidently. “He loves cheeseburgers,” he said locking eyes with Tony. “And he loves technology.”

“And the third?” Maria prompted, irritated by the delay. “What of the third? Or do you not know?”

“He loves me,” Steve said, knowing that it was true beyond a doubt. Tony had come back to him even though he hadn’t had to – he hadn’t run around flaunting his new singleness, or played endless teasing games. He had stayed alone, burying himself in his work, barely existing on his own; he had planted cameras and watched Steve when he had thought Steve was merely going on with his life.

It had struck Steve as odd at the time that someone as sweet and beautiful as Tony wouldn’t just move on; but Tony hadn’t, and he had almost died because of that choice. He knew now that it was the cave that had kept Tony away and nothing else; he had seen it in Tony’s eyes the night before, seen the way his note had been read over and over again until it was wrinkled and tattered beyond repair.

Tony wouldn’t have come back to him if he hadn’t been in love. He would found someone else to share his life with if he felt nothing. He could have had his pick of every eligible man or woman in the world, but instead he had come back for Steve; it could have been said that he had never really truly left to begin with.

Maria raised an eyebrow, swaying from side to side. “That’s what you think he loves? You think he loves cheeseburgers, technology and you?”

Steve nodded firmly. He didn’t need her to confirm what he saw in Tony’s eyes. He may not have ever been in love before, but this was it; he was sure of it. He leaned his shield against the wall and walked past Maria, scooping Tony up in his arms, danger be damned. Tony wrapped around him easily, burying his nose in the crook of Steve’s neck as Steve lifted him and tucked an arm under his scraped buttocks.

Steve settled Tony against his hip, kissing Tony’s hair; the scent of cinnamon poured from every pore on Tony’s body but instead of blinding Steve with its intensity it seemed to make things all the more clear. Tony’s tail wrapped around Steve’s left arm, wrapped tight enough to hurt, refusing to be pulled free.

Maria stared at the pair of them, flabbergasted; she looked like she wanted to say something but remained silent instead. She turned to peer at the remains of the diner, staring at the waitresses and waiters who stood frozen in shock by the kitchen door; she knelt and plucked the square porcelain jam container from amidst the wreckage of their breakfast and pulled a plastic container of jam free, staring at it as if it contained all the riches in the world. “Is this… fruit?” she asked quietly, looking up. Her eyes were wide, her expression startled; the rage had gone, leaving curiosity in its wake. She gazed at Tony, who turned awkwardly in Steve’s grasp to look back at her.

“They have to preserve it here because of the way their weather works,” Tony murmured.

Maria flipped the package over, running her finger over the text at the back, huffing out a throaty laugh. For a second Steve thought she was reading over the nutritional information; she flipped it back over and squeezed the package into the container, tucking the entire thing under her arm. She sighed, scrubbing a hand over her sweaty face.

“Officially, you’ll be living here as our ambassador to Earth,” she said resignedly. She stalked towards them, the container bouncing against her meaty hip.

Steve remained relaxed, Tony’s weight grounding him. They had won; he thought to himself in triumph, they had won.

Maria stroked the side of Tony’s face, scowling when she saw that he had managed to get his face coated in dust; her nail marks had healed up already, gone without hassle and she seemed unaware of what she had done. She licked her fingers and wiped at the first dusty patch of skin she could find, grumbling to herself. “They will call you back when he dies you know,” she said.

Tony nodded, grimacing as she wiped at another patch of dirt slightly closer to his eye. “I know,” he said. “I’m a genius, remember? I thought this out months ago.”

She rolled her eyes, pinching his cheek gently. “Then you had best remember to use your damned brain next time. I expect to hear from you at least once a month. You will write to me, won’t you?” She smiled, her expression genuinely warm.

Tony nodded, pressing himself closer to Steve as she threaded her fingers through his hair, picking out bits of plaster with each sweep she made. “And you’ll behave, won’t you? You’ll keep up your energy. I don’t want to have to come back here to drag your shell home. It’s bad enough when it’s one of the others and you know how much I hate death.”

“I know,” Tony grumbled, batting her hand away. “I know.”

She let out a shuddered breath, turning her attention to Steve, who found himself straightening up to his full height under her gaze; her hand moved to his hair, her fingers tenderly plucking bits of wood and fluff free. Her gaze suddenly turned so menacing Steve was surprised that the paint on the walls behind him hadn’t started peeling in an attempt to get as far away from her as possible.

“And I expect you to keep him safe. If I hear about him being injured or killed, you will suffer,” she growled.

“Yes ma’am,” Steve said, nodding. “You can count on it.”

She smiled again. “Good,” she said. “We’ll meet again.”

She kissed Tony on the cheek, her tail patting Steve on the head and was gone in a swirl of pink and green light; those in the diner let out a collective sigh of relief, staggering free from cover.

Steve looked around and caught sight of their waitress sneaking around the kitchen counter towards them.

He gave her a sheepish smile. “Sorry about the mess.”

She held out her apron, smiling weakly in return. “Uh, I think you’re going to need this,” she said, gesturing to Tony.

“Thanks,” Steve said, all too aware that he was now standing in the middle of a disaster zone clutching a naked man, albeit one he loved dearly. He wrapped the apron around Tony’s backside, fussing over the cuts and scrapes on Tony’s shoulders; they were healing over already, but it still felt a little like he should be doing something to clean them up. He yelped when Tony’s hand was suddenly in his front pant pocket, fishing around. “Tony!” he cried out, horrified.

Tony smirked at him as he worked his hand free, pulling out Steve’s phone; he wiggled it in front of Steve’s face.

“Oh thank god,” Steve exhaled, bumping his forehead against Tony’s. “For a second there I thought you were going to do something very inappropriate.”

“No, I’ll save that for the bedroom. Make Bucky bring me clothes,” Tony said as he wrapped his arms around Steve’s neck. He grumbled when the apron slipped using his tail as a makeshift belt to hold everything in place. “And then we’ll go home.”

“Yes Tony,” Steve laughed, hitting speed-dial with his thumb. He held the phone against his ear, clearing his throat as Tony’s heels tapped impatiently against his hip.

“Bucky? I’ve got a favor to ask you,” Steve said. He was pretty sure Bucky was going to give him hell, but at least this way they would be going home without getting stuffed into the back of a cop car.

Tony leaned backwards, waving to the waitress. “Can we get the rest of our stuff to go?”

The waitress looked nervously over to her boss, who was busy staring blankly at the damage that had been done. “I think he’ll be… alright with that,” she said, shuffling through the mess towards the kitchen.

“Oh,” Tony called out, giving her a wink as he wrapped his arms tighter around Steve’s neck. “And bill Howard Stark for the food and the mess. I’ll make sure it goes through, don’t worry. Pick any number you like. He’s good for it.”

Steve rolled his eyes and hung up the phone.