Chapter Text
Vision blinked. Once. Twice.
"Does Mr. Stark know that you are also a magic user?"
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Percy blinked as his mind jerked to a halt, sending up screaming alarms at the back of his brain which echoed around his skull, all other thoughts having suddenly fled. The Vision was looking back at him with equanimity, his bright eyes curious and contemplative, waiting patiently for the red head to speak.
In the cold, echoing black of Percy's mind, a figure emerged from the shadows waving a scroll that had STATUTE OF SECRECY printed on it in big, bold letters. The small figure, which looked like the unholy love child of a goblin and a house elf, bent over panting as if it had run a great distance before collapsing heavily unto its back. It waved the scroll halfheartedly one more time before giving a great shuddering sigh.
Thankfully, it was enough to pull Percy from the stupor he'd fallen into at such and unexpected question, his mind jump starting once more into a riot of thoughts, plans and actions. They flew through his mind at break neck speeds as he plucked them closer, studied them and discarded them as useless.
Fortunately, Percy thought well on his feet. He wasn't a closet Slytherin who'd survived at the backward, corrupt Ministry of Magic for years on luck or looks alone. He'd been taught a lot of hard lessons in his life and he remembered them every one and took them all to heart,
He knew how to keep a straight face and navigate difficult situations by the seat of his pants. He knew how to deflect, subvert, cajole and flatter. He knew how to wrangle, persuade, provoke and bandy. He knew how to pull attention away from himself or toward himself at the situation demanded and how to obfuscate things until no one knew what the hell was going on.
He also knew how to lie through his fucking teeth and run like hell.
"I have no idea what you are talking about." He informed the android softly, his voice even and his smile bland and on the edge of courteous. "Please excuse me."
Turning sharply on his heel, he made a brisk pace down the hall way and out to the garage, not stopping until he was behind the wheel and buzzing himself out of the large gates. It was only when he was a good five miles away from the mansion did he ease the car to the side of an empty road.
He'd been driving on auto-pilot, a fact that concerned him as he had no recollection of anything since he'd faced the Vision and had basically fled the scene. It was only as he was blinking stupidly in the Malibu sun that he realized that his heart was thundering in his chest, his knuckles white against the steering wheel. His thoughts flew around his head like a quidditch match from hell. All snitches that flitted around, playing keep away; quaffles that zipped past in a blur and bludgers that slammed around, making a right racket in his poor skull.
He swallowed heavily, fumbling in his pocket for his phone then staring at his hands as they trembled. His logical mind informed him that he was having a panic attack but that information did him slim to no good as all the usual methods he usually used to deal with anxiety seemed just short of impossible.
"Get a fucking grip on yourself man." he scolded himself, pressing his back into the car seat and pressing his palms into his eyes. He took a few deep breaths, his chest aching from what felt like steel bands wrapped around his ribs. "Not even being on the run with Potter made you fall apart like this."
The sun is hot on the back of his neck by the time he calms down, his suit soaked through with sweat. The air is dusty and dry but there is a breeze and soothes his face and provides some comfort. His mind much more calm and clear, he sends out a couple of texts, smoothing over his abrupt departure from the mansion and starts the car.
The ferry trip to the island was spent in contemplative silence, his arms folded and pressed against the railing. He waved absently at the old men sitting in front of the tavern and hustled over to the Gringott's branch office. A sizable amount of galleons got him a Floo connection to MACUSA and he was stumbling into Wendy Higgs' office, coughing and dusting soot from his light coloured suit.
Sanderson was there, growling and spelling the ash from his clothes as Percy collapsed into a nearby chair. A cup of strong tea appeared at his elbow from a sweet looking house elf and he accepted it with heartfelt thanks.
It didn't take long for the story to come tumbling out until he's sitting in the chair, contemplating his tea leaves as if they held the answers to the universe.
"I just went blank. Didn't know what to do. I just left. I kept thinking about the statute."
Sanderson snorted from his own perch on the edge of Higgs' massive table. "You did good to get out of there. The Android may have information about us but you haven't been given clearance to discuss anything with him or Stark."
Wendy hummed thoughtfully around the rim of her cup. "I didn't even think to put a clause about that in the agreement we drafted when we started this whole thing. I always thought that by the time we involved Stark, it would be more like the 'shit hit the fan' type situation. it didn't even occur to me that this whole thing with Maximoff could blow your cover."
Her clear eyes caught his in a piercing glare. "Do you need an extraction?"
He blinked back at her, stunned. "I… no."
Did he need extraction? No. He'd taken this job because it was something he'd wanted. Something he'd come to love and appreciate. He'd been clear with Wendy since day one. he was not a spy or MACUSA agent. He would not be reporting or compromising his Boss's work nor privacy in anyway. All he'd agreed to do was keep an eye out for the Infinity Stones.
He may have secrets of his own. He may have a new name and a new life but it was a life he'd built himself and worked hard to make worthwhile. He had friends, family even and he'd come to respect and love those people with an intensity that often left him breathless.
So.. No. he didn't want extraction. He didn't want to walk away.
"I need permission to tell Mr. Stark about my status as a magic user." He set the cup aside and took a deep, fortifying breath. "I need to tell him the truth. It's time."
Wendy quirked one silvery brow. "He's been very vocal about how he feels about magic. What if he wants nothing to do with you after this?"
Percy rubbed just under his ribs with his fist, making a face at the stabbing pain he felt just there. Tony was very shy about trust and it had taken Percy a long while to cultivate the easy relationship they had now. Too lost that would be nothing short of devastating. Still….
He closed his eyes. "Then it would be his choice to make."
The blond nodded sharply, pulling a small scroll out of her desk drawer. She handed it to Sanderson who quickly left the office, his long coat flapping behind him. as the door closed behind him, Wendy stood and came around the large desk, perching on the chair next to Percy's.
"By the time you get back to Malibu, the paperwork should have gone through. I've made sure that the President herself has been informed of the service you've been rendering for us."
He gave her a sharp look but she smiled and shook her head. "Nothing official. No paperwork like I promised you. Just conversation over tea."
"Thank you Wendy." Percy spine all but melted into the chair. "For everything."
"I should be thanking you." Her smile widened. "This whole thing with Maximoff is going to affect a lot of things in the future, most of them in a positive way for MACUSA and the Wizarding US. We've opened up lines of communications with many of the power players that can only serve to benefit us all as we go forward. I have a feeling that whatever's coming is going to need all of us working together for face and you've helped make that much easier than before."
The redhead flushed at her frank praise, ducking his head and running his hand through his windblown curls. Soon enough Sanderson's patronus burst through the closed door to inform them gruffly that Percy had been granted permission to speak openly about the wizarding world to one Anthony Edward Stark.
Percy rolled his eyes at the wording. As if Tony would keep such a secret from Pepper or Rhodes. Thankfully, there was a way around that because Stark had already been given special dispensation to know about the world and they couldn't really sanction him if he chose to speak to those in his close circle. Proximity alone made it necessary for the whole household to be in the know.
Percy himself just would not volunteer information and would only engage in conversation if it had been brought up by someone who'd already been in the know. It was a bit of a work around but he could work with that.
They shook hands, saying their good byes as Wendy through floo powder into the fire. His journey back was no less wild and tumbling but he managed to step out into Gringott's with his dignity intact. His journey back to the mansion was more sedate and helped to calm him. He was still nervous about his Boss would respond to knowing that Percy wielded magic but he felt brave enough to face it head on.
The worst thing would be if Tony looked at him with betrayal in his eyes. He'd come to care too much about the man to see him hurt. He'd seen that same look in his father's eyes too many times and to face that again would rip out his heart.
Merlin, he'd grown too close. They'd seen him for who he was, accepted him as a real person and not a Weasley of a Gryffindor or a Ministry Toady. He'd just been Percy, stripped down to chassis and totally out of fucks to give. And they'd pulled him in to this weird and wonderful circle of crazy and gave him a place in it that seemed carved out for fit him perfectly.
Pulling into the quiet garage with its climate control hum felt like both a comforting embrace and the calm before the storm. He wasn't sure how long he'd been sitting in the car when the man he'd been thinking about leaned casually against the car. Tony was in some comfortable jeans and a band t-shirt. Regular workshop fare. There was a coffee cup in his hand and a contemplative look on his face. His mouth twisted when Percy finally met his eyes and he took a slow sip of his drink.
"So I'm guessing that those circles are finally overlapping huh?"
"Wh…. What?" Percy's eyes snapped wide, his jaw gaping open in shock. "I mean… what?"
The genius chuckled and made the same silly circle motion that Percy had flailed over in his kitchen what seemed so long ago.
"Friday seemed concerned when you left earlier and when you drove out of here like a bat out of hell, she was concerned that your agitated state could put you in danger while driving. So she tracked your phone." he paused and raised an eyebrow. "All the way to New York."
The man hummed. "I have to admit, even in the IronMan suit I would not have been able to clock cross country in less than five minutes. Imagine my surprise when she reported that you were back in Malibu less than an hour later. I even checked her codes in case there was a glitch. Hell, Jarvis even looked it over."
Percy couldn't form words, only able to stare helplessly at the brunet, his mouth moving mutely. Tony tilted his head to the side.
"Ok then, how about the fact that your background check puts you as an only child but I have both verbal and pictorial evidence that you have several siblings. Then there's the time with the weird jamming signal and the subsequent Bag of Dicks fiasco. Not to mention the group heart attack we almost had with screaming compact disk from your brother. That poor falcon."
Percy choked a bit but stayed silent. Tony sipped his coffee and blithely continued.
"Or maybe let's talk about that weird gold spinny thing that you gave me that I can't make heads or tails of but sends all my scanning equipment wild. Or that the strange readings I've been recording at different times around you and around some of the items in your room."
Percy dragged a hand down his face, letting out a huffing breath. "Merlin."
"Or the fact that you call out names like Merlin, Hecate, Circe and grouch about Morgana's frigid titties in casual conversation. At first I thought you were in some kind of cult or maybe a practicing pagan but that's not it is it?"
Percy slumped down in the bucket seat of the car with a pained groan, pulling his hand away from his grimace. He forced himself to look up into serious brown eyes.
"You're not that far off actually." he gave a mirthless laugh. "When you break it down to brass tacks. It is kind of like a pagan cult. Which is equal parts hilarious and terrifying when you think about it."
He slowly opened the car door and stepped out, straightening his suit and running a hand through his hair before turning to his boss.
"I had to go to New York. I needed something very important from there."
"So you did go. It's not a glitch. Near instantaneous travel." Tony murmured under his breath, his mind racing behind dark brown eyes. "If I didn't see footage of Strange's fucking portal on my own balcony, I would have called you crazy. But you're not crazy are you? You're magical."
"There are rules…"
Tony rolled his eyes. "… to the circle. I know"
"This is serious." Percy shot him a glare. "I had to go get special permission to even talk to you about this. This isn't like Strange who can go about willy-nilly flouting his power to any muggle on the street. I had no intention of being snatched up like some…."
He broke off with hissed swear, shaking his head and taking a calming breath.
"Let's just say that things are different for me. There are heavy restrictions for speaking out of turn. We’re very secretive about all of it. Things are getting a bit better now but there's been a set way of doing things since before I was born." He shrugged. "And now, even though u have explicit permission to tell you, it's still hard. I've always been a rule follower. It's been like that since I was a child. It's just a thing that I have to deal with ok?"
Tony's brow was crinkled with concern but he just nodded. "Ok."
"I'm… There's…." Percy struggled as he leaned against the car as well, folding his arms across his chest more a kin to a hug that anything else. "Fuck. I'm a wizard alright? With the wand waving and flying broomsticks and everything. There's a lot of us. We live in secret in magically protected spaces. I grew up in a magical home and went to magic school and eventually went to work for the Ministry of Magic before fleeing the country to help a persecuted young man reunite with his escape convict girlfriend. After that I ended up here where I got a job working for you and…. and…. "
He felt winded and adrift after all that, his arms hugging himself tighter as he stared at his shoes.
"Wendy asked me for a favour. They got me on the list for the interviews for your PA. I told them I would not spy on you or anything like that. I'm not some kind of agent. I'm a fucking paper pusher really. She said I didn't have to. All I had to do was to keep an eye out for the infinity stones. The invasion of New York really shook them. When you deal with Dragons and Unicorns every day, you don't expect aliens to be the things that turns your world on its head."
Percy bit his lip, his fingertips digging into his arms.
"I said yes. I didn't have anything else to do. Nowhere else to go. I'd been wandering around for such a long time, leaving everything I'd ever known behind. I just wanted a place to be. To settle down for a while. I just wanted a place to belong."
He felt tears stinging his eyes and blinked them away rapidly, staring off into a far corner of the garage.
"You see me. You and Friday and Jarvis and everyone else. You look at me and you see me." he admitted softly. "I haven't had that in a very long time. I… I don't want to lose that."
The silence stretched for long moments between them until the brunet finally spoke.
"Who said that you have to lose that?"
Percy turned to look at him in surprise. "I came to you under false pretenses. I lied about who I was to get the job. I've been keeping information from you from the day I met you. How can you trust me now?"
Tony's lips turned down as he shrugged, counting off on his fingers. "First of all, almost everyone I know approaches me under false pretenses. Everyone wants something from me, no matter what they tell you. I never expected you to be different. It’s the way the world works."
"Secondly, I knew from day one that you weren’t truthful about your background. We did a thorough one on you before hiring you and most of what we found didn't match up with what I'd seen of you. Remember when I came to that shitbox apartment and all but told you that you were a puzzle I intended to solve? Yeah, that was a thing."
"Thirdly, we all have secrets. There's a bunch of shit I don't tell a lot of people. There's a lot I don’t want to tell and a lot that I can't tell. That doesn't make me a bad person. It makes me responsible to the protection of my interests and in some cases, observant of the law. I can't judge you for doing that same thing."
He shrugged with a small smirk.
"And lastly, I trust you because in all the time that you've spent working for me, you never given me cause to doubt your honesty. You treat my kids with respect and let both Fri and Jay all up in your business 24/7 without a complaint. You've done wonders in making my life easier and you take all the craziness that comes with being who I am in stride. I mean, you have to be a little weird and crazy to fit in so well in this madhouse, am I right?"
Percy found himself chuckling along, the tight feeling in his chest slowly fading.
"Actions speak louder than words for me. After everything that’s happened to me, it's hard to trust people on face value alone." The genius gave a sigh and drained the last of his coffee. "And what I've come to realize is that I trust you Ignatius Percicles Westerly."
Percy made a face. "It's Weasley actually. If we're going there. Percival Ignatius Weasley. I had to change it with being on the run for my life from the ministry and all."
"Ah." Tony grunted in surprise. "Okay. I'm think I'm gonna need to hear all about that. And soon."
"You're going to want to hear about a lot of things, I think." the red head grinned in return. "But don't worry. I have permission to tell you all about all of it."
The brunet's smirk grew as he gave Percy the side eye. "So, I guess I'm a part of your circle now?"
Percy's sharp bark of laughter echoed through the garage.