A/N: A big thnk you to Drivvenwrinth for being a most awesome Beta and dante_s_hell for hosting the H/C comment fic Meme where I found the prompt.
If there was one thing Tony could be thankful for; it was that his suit covered his hard breathing. It made hiding whatever-the-hell was wrong with him from the rest of the team so much easier. He would figure out a way to counteract whatever the arc reactor was doing to his body this time. He had done it before he could do it again. True that he had kind of had his father's help at the time – but he was not a child and he could do this on his own.
"Sir, your oxygen capacity has diminished a further two point nine percent."
"Noted," Tony panted out.
"Sir, it would be prudent that rest of S.H.I.E.L.D. be alerted to your condition should you lose consciousness while away from the mansion."
"Shut it J.A.R.V.I.S. I do not want any of them to know. They'll ground me for sure - and I will not miss out on the fun simply because I have a little chest cold."
"Sir..."
"Unless you're going to tell me there is some place I need to be or that dinner is served I suggest you keep your circuits closed and opinions to yourself. Understand?" Tony growled before going into a small coughing fit.
"As you wish sir."
The drawback to having an A.I. in your suit; damned if it wasn't like having Jiminy fucking Cricket on your shoulder all the damned time.
Once his breathing had returned to normal he headed in and removed his suit. Whatever the fuck he had was making him more than short of breath… it was making him really damned tired all the time.
"Anything you want to tell me Mr. Stark?" Fury asked while giving Tony a stern look.
"Sure; one plus one equals two and Mekong's has the world's best Hot and Sour Chicken soup."
"Excuse me?"
"No seriously, the soup is magnificent. Bribed the cook for the recipe; my chef still can't make it as well as that restaurant though. I suspect the cook left out a crucial element. Don't know if it's a cooking step or an ingredient. It's very frustrating."
"You know very well that's not what I'm asking you," Fury growled.
"No problems; no worries. Just a bit of a cough. I'll be right as rain as soon as I get some sleep. You and your boys have been pushing us all very hard these past few weeks. I'm just a little – well okay a lot tired," Tony informed him while patting the man's shoulder.
"Very well, see that you get some sleep tonight. iAfter/i dinner that is."
"Sir, yes sir," Tony replied with a mock salute. There was no way in hell he was going to be eating anything tonight. He was tired of vomiting every little thing he ate. Since food was causing that problem, the solution was fairly clear; avoid food at all costs. Though if he lost any more weight he was sure some of his teammates might start asking questions and then it would not be long until he was forced to go down to medical.
"Tony, Steve wanted me to inform you that dinner is in twenty minutes and that if you value your privacy you'll be there. Not sure what he meant by that… but I think it was supposed to be a threat." Bruce said as he passed him in the hall.
"Thanks big guy. Tell Steve I said he needs to loosen up and take some time to go and get his freak on or something." It was a damned shame Bruce wasn't a medical doctor. He would have happily gone down to medical if Banner were, the one to treat him… then he would have someone interesting to talk to.
Once he was finally alone and five feet from his bedroom door black spots started to swim before his eyes. He grabbed at the wall to steady himself. He briefly wondered if he should have actually paid attention to J.A.R.V.I.S. and sought medical help or at least let J.A.R.V.I.S. alert the gang.
"Easy there sir, just sit still. Help is on the way."
"Did you tattle on me J.A.R.V.I.S.?" Tony wheezed as he slid down the wall.
"Affirmative sir, I chose to not follow your orders when your oxygen levels dropped another one point two percent just by walking the short distance you have. Please forgive me; however, you are the only one with the knowledge to keep me functional. I could not lose you."
"If I didn't know better… I would swear… you just made a very long 'I love you' speech." Tony said with a faint chuckle between coughs.
"I prefer to think of it as protecting my interests' sir. However, you are welcome to interpret my words however you wish."
"I shouldn't have made you so damned perfect J.A.R.V.I.S." Tony groaned. He knew J.A.R.V.I.S. was keeping him conscious until one of his team mates arrived.
"Then, might I suggest that you recover swiftly so that you might correct your oversight sir."
"In other words 'Get well soon'?"
"Affirmative sir. "
" Will do J.A.R.V.I.S. Will do." He said softly with a slight smile on his face. With J.A.R.V.I.S. playing Mother Hen and the rest of the group being the AI's hands, he knew all would be well. Including his health.
~Fin