This is set after CA: Civil War. It's a teensy bit AU, you'll see. ;)

This is inspired COMPLETELY by the fic: 'Reckless Abandon' by Deception's Call. That fic is AMAZING please go check it out.

Disclaimer: MARVEL belongs to MARVEL. Not me. Kinda self-explanatory.

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Abandoned. That's what I am.

The Avengers? Ha! There are no Avengers anymore. Not for Tony Stark anyway.

Why?

Because they abandoned him.

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After their 'civil war', the Avengers scattered.

Natasha disappeared, being the spy that she is.

Clint went back to his family - he doesn't know whether he'll stay there for good.

Steve, Wanda, Sam and Scott are hiding out somewhere, fugitives.

Rhodes? He's dead. Didn't survive the fall. They couldn't save him.

Vision? Ha! No-one knows.

Thor is still in Asgard.

Bruce is still missing.

But what about Tony?

They've forgotten him. He's sat in his lonely tower, his only company being his own robots.

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He's heard Pepper found someone else.

He tries to convince himself that he's happy for her, but his heart yearns just to be with her again, to stroke her soft hair again, to feel her smooth lips against his.

But he knows she's happier now.

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Tony tries to distract himself from the pain the way he always does; drowning himself in his work.

So he makes suits - knowing full well he'll never use them.

After all, there's no Iron Man anymore.

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"JARVIS, buddy, you there?" Tony asks one evening.

"For you, sir, always."

For the first time in eight months, Tony smiles.

O-O

It's been a year now, and Tony keeps holding on. He continues building, fixing his bots. They're his only family now, he can only talk to JARVIS.

He has to look after his family.

He lost his previous one.

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Tony loses the ability to sleep. He just can't anymore.

He resort to pills.

But they don't stop the dreams.

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A year and a half.

Tony keeps tinkering, but his heart isn't in it.

He soon gives up.

And sits. All day. Thinking. About the life he used to live, that he'd give anything to live again.

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Two years, and Tony's broken.

"JARVIS? Are you there?" he asks the ceiling.

He doesn't get an answer.

JARVIS is broken. Tony can't fix him.

Because he's broken too.

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His bots break too. Now Tony Stark is truly alone.

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He's gone mad, he's sure of it.

He can never stop the voices ringing in his head, Clint's jokes, Natasha's jokey threats, Thor's booming laugh, Steve's old-fashioned tone and Bruce's gentle voice.

Rhodey's teasing.

And Pepper. Oh Pepper.

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He's considered suicide.

Why not? he asks himself. Who would miss you? Who would even notice?

"No-one," he mutters darkly to himself.

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Two and a half years.

He's going to do it.

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PLEASE REVIEW!!

~KiTTzu