Something you may not know about me, I don't really care for shipping or slash or anything of that nature. I don't have anything against it, i'm just simply not intersted. However, when you're alone, at night, and about to go to sleep, strange thoughts creep into your head.

This was one of them.

As much as I don't care for it, I have to admit it turned out better than expected.

I'd also like to thank my bata Lynn Heartnet. I emailed this to her randomly and asked her to edit it for me. So thanks, and you all should check out her stuff cause I can assure you, shes much better than myself XP

Don't own anything other than the idea.

Tony Stark awoke from a nightmare. Laying in bed, sweating, he lurched up onto his elbows and reached his hand up to the arc-reactor in his chest. He panted in relief. It was still there. He bent his knees up, folded his arms across the top and gave himself a way to steady his shaking torso. Throwing the covers off, he sucked in deep breaths of air as he tried to bring his overall temperature down.

He remembered it vividly, the nightmare. Of course no dream starts as a nightmare. In fact in the beginning, it was a great dream. Just him, floating, free through water. The water didn't rip, as much as, brush across his face as he fell deeper. Then a small drop of what looked like black ink, sank down into the water. Strands of it swirling in the water like a drop of food dye in a clear glass. He watched it fall down towards him. As it got closer to him, it formed a shape. At first glance, one would have said it was a hand.

But no one simply glances at hell.

The fingers of the hand came down into a point and the claws embedded themselves in the sides of his arc-reactor. The water that once allowed freedom, now confined his screams. He remembered feeling as the metal chamber ripped apart from his bone, his muscles, his skin. The claws pierced the walls of the metal socket as they continued to rip the self-made organ out. As wires continued to be dragged out of his chest, there was a sudden jerk. He watched as the still pulsating heart was lurched out of his chest. It was wrapped in wires as it was pulled into a second set of claws. Eyes formed in the smoke, no irises, no defined shape but they laughed at him. It glanced over to his heart, his eyes flooded themselves with fear, and smiled at him. He looked back at it as a squeezed his heart once, forcing the organ to beat in ectopic intervals. Deciding to do further damage it crushed the remaining parts of the arc-reactor and held the two organs over Stark's eyes. To see your own organs held in front of your face is something that quickly engraves itself in your eyes. The blood from the heart and the acid from the reactor dripped into his eyes, blinding him as it burned into his skull. It was that burning that woke him.

He blinked, as if testing his eyes to make sure they were set in reality. It was all a bit hazy but he could still feel the claw digging into the sides of the synthetic heart. What would've caused a dream like this?

To most, the reactor was simply sitting in his chest; it was just a piece of metal keeping him alive. But nerves had grown all around it, as if trying to protect the still human part of him that was beating under it. As he started to drift back to sleep, a voice startled him. Instinctively, he sat up. He was on edge, but who wouldn't be after a dream like that?

"Tony?" Steve murmured in concern as he rolled over to comfort his lover. Noticing the perspiration that soaked through the younger man's shirt, he sat up and placed a settling hand on the man's back.

"It's nothing, just a dream." Stark growled in response, shrugging off the hand and rolling onto his side to try to hide his face from Steve. Sensing that he was still fairly shaken from something, Rogers snaked his arm under Tony's and wrapped it protectively across his torso. In an attempt to calm the smaller man, Rogers placed a light kiss on Tony's neck.

"I'm here, Tony," Steve whispered as he started to fall back asleep. He moved his hand in small circles on Tony's chest, trying to soothe him. "This is mine." He said as finger-tips gripped the edges of the arc reactor. Tony's eyes shot open and he gripped Steve's hand. "It's mine." He said again with more conviction; his finger tightening around the arc-reactor. Tony's hand relaxed and simply rested over top of Steve's. His already How could he tell? How did he know exactly what he needed? However these were stupid questions. Of course he knew. He always knew.

Cute right? Anyway thanks for sticking around. As you can guess this is my first and only Stony so any feed back is helpful. And yes, I know I spell Tony differently. XD

~N.S