This is something I wrote during school in my mathematics workbook … so yeah, I have a bit of that to catch up on. But it was worth it, if I say so myself.
Enjoy.
A dissected metal arm, laying on the street like a piece of junk. No one had noticed it, not before him anyway. It showed clear signs of having been there a while, it was dirty and pieces of metal were spread around it, here and there torn wires were visible. It had been kicked around and stepped upon by people in too much hurry to notice the oddity.
He however had noticed it. At first he had not paid it much attention, as at first glance it really did look like something to discard. Then he had seen the hand, he had thought it was a trick of the eye but at closer look he realized that it really was a metal hand. It was small, like that of a child and the fingers half curled like a normal hand would when its owner died. That in addition to the unconscious abuse made the arm a symbol of lost hope and sorrow.
Of course, Tony Stark did not think like that. That train of thought was far too sensitive for him. The reason he had picked it up was because it looked like something he could have created. Who else, beside him, could get it in their mind to create an artificial arm? Normally he would have tossed it but the arm looked far too complex to be created by just anybody. He took it with him for examination.
When he that evening examined the arm he was shocked at the result. It wasn't just too complicated to be made by anyone, it surpassed all technology he knew about. He doubted even he was able to make something like the arm. He was greatly troubled by its complexity as it meant that there was someone who was better than him.
The examination didn't only show that it was complex, it also showed that it was completely useless. The hardest part for Tony was to understand was where the arm should connect to the shoulder. He had never seen anything quite like it, it was almost … organic. Of course, that was simply impossible, wires weren't organic. Tony knew of no device to which this arm could be connected, and he had the most advanced machinery of all. The arm had put him at loss and he did not like it.
He spend several days doing nothing else but examining and testing the arm. He was unable to connect it to any form of electric source, the wires weren't meant for it. He could force the arm to move like a normal arm but it did not go smoothly, a worthless arm in his opinion. Though for some reason he could not bring himself to toss it. Something about it intrigued him.
It did not take long before Pepper became worried. It wasn't exactly uncommon for her boss to lock himself away, but for him to be gone for so long was different. Gathering some courage she walked down the stairs, she knocked but received no answers. Carefully she opened the door. It wasn't uncommon for her to find her boss doing weird things, this didn't even top it, yet strange it was.
He was holding an arm of metal, looking at it closely. For her boss to make human pieces didn't surprise her, what surprised her was that the arm was so small.
"Tell me", Tony said without looking away from the arm, "is there any company or person witm more skill than me when it comes to things like these?"
"Not that I know of", Pepper said truthfully.
"Apparently there is", Tony said with a frown. "I need to find whoever made this."
"It wasn't you?" Pepper asked, unable to keep her surprise from her voice, considering the size of the arm it shouldn't surprise her, but her reasoning was the same as that of her boss; who else than Tony Stark created something like that?
"No, but whoever did this is a genius", he proclaimed before suddenly putting the arm down. "I found it on the street."
"On the street?" she repeated skeptical. "Who would leave something like that on the street?"
"Exactly my thoughts, you are going to find out for me", he said casually.
Pepper gawked, she was used to her boss giving tough orders, but that seemed impossible. How in the world would she find the true creator of a metal arm that had casually been thrown on the street. It couldn't be possible that someone had lost it, you didn't just loose an arm.
"Where did you find it?" she asked, figuring she had to start somewhere. Perhaps she could find some clues in the area. Someone who in his spare time created artificial limbs or who missed an arm stood out regardless of how many people lived in the area. She doubted it was a corporation, they wouldn't loose it.
When Tony informed her about the area her eyes went wide. "But that's a slum", she said disbelieving. "Do you think it was stolen?"
"Possibly. Stolen, deemed worthless and gotten rid rid of. In that case I wish you luck", her boss said and smiled.
Pepper mumbled something unfriendly and reached out to take the arm when she saw the expression on Tony's face change from frustrated curiosity to shock. A loud noise came from behind her and she turned around quickly.
The sight that met her was indeed shocking. A boy, hardly older that twelve, had kicked open the door with a single leg, making the glass shatter. He was wearing black leather pants, a long red coat and a white glove on his left hand, holding the second glove in that same hand. He had his long blonde hair in a braid and his eyes were remarkably golden. It was however not his attire that shocked Pepper, not even the force required to kick open the door, it was the fact that he was missing his entire right arm.
"Don't touch that!" the boy yelled angrily and Pepper quickly withdrew her hand, there was no doubt that he meant the metal arm.
"Did you make it?" Tony asked skeptical as the boy marched towards the table on which the arm was lying. He wasn't too careful when he picked it up and Tony had half a mind to take it back, but he was still waiting for an answer.
"Stupid", the boy said and looked at Tony condescending, "how would I make something like that with only one arm? Of course I didn't make it, I need it though." Then he saw the state the arm was in and his face fell. For a moment Tony was afraid that the boy would start crying, but the expression he wore was far from tears, it was horrified realization. "Why is my arm broken?"
Pepper felt remotely sorry for the boy, despite his somewhat rude way of barging in. Tony wasn't bothered by the boy's horror, there was only one thing he cared about. "Who made this arm?"
The boy looked up, surprised at the question. "Eh, Winry Rockbell, a childhood friend." Then his peculiar golden eyes darkened. "She's going to kill me when she see this."
Now it was Tony's turn to be surprised. "Your age?" he asked to confirm it.
The boy shook his head and Tony allowed himself to be relieved. His relief did however not last as the boy soberly stated: "She's a year or so younger than me."
"I can't figure this out and a ten year old made this?" Tony called out horrified and stared at the metal mystery in the strange boys hand, his pride severely injured.
"The boy reacted faster and stronger than any of the adults present had held for possible. "WHAT DO YOU TAKE ME FOR? TEN? I'M ALMOST SIXTEEN!" Pepper could have sworn that the boy was going to hit her boss, but he didn't.
"But you're so …" Tony started but the boy quickly put the arm down and covered the designer's mouth. "Say it and suffer the consequences", he growled.
Tony didn't look impressed, but wisely kept his mouth shut when the boy removed his hand. "Can you introduce me to the person who made this? I have never seen anything quite like this, it is almost organic."
The blonde boy rolled his eyes. "How would it connect to the nerves if it wasn't organic?"
Tony and Pepper wore identical blank expressions. Neither had any idea what he was talking about. When the boy realized that he sighed and casually shrugged of his coat. Pepper was the executive assistant of Tony Stark and had seen a fair amount of weird, among those the device in her boss' chest keeping him alive. Despite that she couldn't help but scream when she saw what was underneath the boy's red coat.
Bolted to his shoulder was a piece of metal that clearly attached the arm to his body. Around the edges of the metal plate the skin had turned an unnatural color of purplish red.
Both the boy and her boss looked at her with skeptical expressions. Pepper turned red. "Who could bolt something like that to a child?" she protested, "It's sickening!"
"Oi, oi", the boy said condescending, "I chose this, I knew what I was in for." Then he turned to Tony who had not shown any sympathy, but was looking curiously at the blonde's shoulder. "This makes sure that the nerves can connect, when connected I can move the arm as if it is a regular one. Naturally I can't feel with it, but otherwise it is pretty much the same."
Pepper knew her boss hadn't noticed it, but she didn't think the boy believed his own words, he made it sound as if it was a burden. In her mind that made sense, how could something like that not be a burden?
Then Tony's mind returned to what he originally had wanted. "Introduce me to that Winry!" he demanded.
"No can do", the boy stated, "she isn't around anymore." His tone at those words was light, but Pepper didn't miss the bitterness in the boy's voice.
"What exactly do you mean by …" she started but fell silent at the boy's sharp glare.
"Precisely what I said", he stated, his tone indicating that he wasn't willing to take the subject further.
Naturally Tony didn't catch that. "But she said she would kill you if …"
"I'm not used to refer to them in past tense yet!" he called out angrily. "I couldn't introduce you even if I wanted to."
Once again Pepper didn't miss his choice of words. 'Them' meant he had lost more people than just his childhood friend. It was quite possible he had lost everyone, why else would he be standing there alone.?
That too was something Tony didn't catch. "Can you fix it?" He was looking hopeful, the only thing on his mind to learn the mysteries of the metal arm.
"I really hope so", he said, "if not …" He sighed.
"Can we help?" Pepper asked and started to blush when she saw the look her boss gave her. She, as his assistant, was in no position to offer such help. Tony did however not protest and waited for the boys answer.
"Normally I would have been able to do maintainance myself, but damaged as it is my skill might not suffice. At the very least I need someone to connect the nerves." The boy examined the arm closely. "Are these all the pieces?" he asked gesturing towards the small loose bits of metal on the table.
"All bits I thought belonged", Tony stated, "did I miss any?"
The boy shook his head. "It doesn't appear like it." He bended the fingers of the arm and looked satisfied. He poked at it some more. "Looks like all the important parts are still intact. The wires need to be mended and the outer parts are dented. I think I can do this, I just need the tools."
Tony pointed at a red box in a corner. "Go ahead, as long as you teach me how this works."
The boy glared, then shrugged. "Fine."
While going through trial and error to fix the arm the boy did whatever he could to make Tony understand how the arm worked. Pepper stopped listening after a minute or so, she could never dream of understanding something that complex. What surprised her was that her boss had almost just as much trouble to understand the device.
Eventually he cried out. "How am I supposed to understand anything when it is broken? I should at least have something functioning to go by!"
The boy sat down, ceasing his attempts. "We do", he sighed and rolled up his the leg of his pants on his left leg, revealing another metal limb.
"What the hell happened to you?" Pepper asked horrified as she looked at the leg.
"I came to close to God", the boy said with a grim expression. And that was the only explanation he was willing to give them.
If either Pepper or Tony are out of character I apologize, it's been a long time since I saw Iron man. This story isn't set during any special movie/series/manga/whatever. It's a bit of a random one-shot.
Do however please leave a review, those are always so super special awesome.