Tony sighed heavily, leaning back in his desk chair. His eyes and head were throbbing. That's what he gets for staring at a computer screen for nearly 36 hours straight. Stretching out his limbs, Tony climbed to his feet. He was in desperate need of food, sleep, and a shower. Possibly not in that order. Tony rode the elevator up to his penthouse floor, then walked into the kitchen.
"Okay, let's see what we've got here."
Tony opened the fridge and squinted at all it's content. Nothing seemed very appealing.
"Jarvis."
The A.I.'s british voice sounded out through the empty room.
"Yes sir?"
"Call that italian place down the street and order me my usual."
"Yes sir."
Tony made himself a cup of coffee, sat down at the island countertop, and waited for his food to get there. He laid his head against the cool stone, wishing he would have went to bed instead of ordering food. Tony was drifting in and out of sleep when he heard a small noise. He looked up and came nose to nose with a green eyed black cat. Tony stared at the animal. Not sure what to do.
"Jarvis. Is there a cat on my counter or am I losing it again?
"Your mind is sound sir. There is indeed an animal currently with you."
Tony stared at the cat, who in turn stared right back.
"Well what the hell is it doing here?"
"Don't you remember sir. Miss Potts asked you to babysit her cat for a month while she was on vacation."
Tony thought for a moment then sighed.
"Oh ya. I totally forgot. Why the hell did I say yes?"
Tony sighed again then took a sip of his coffee. The cat continued to stare at him.
"Okay furball, enough with the staring. You're starting to freak me out."
Tony reached out his hand, intending to pet the cat, but the animal dodged it. Tony stared at the cat again, shaking his head. Tony looked over and saw the note sitting on the end of the counter. How had he missed that? Tony picked up the note and read.
"Dear Tony, thank you for watching my cat. I have left some of his things in a bag by the door as well as his litter box. His name is Orpheus and he doesn't really like to be pet by strangers so I wouldn't try unless you want to get scratched. I'll be back by the end of the month. Thank you again. Peper."
Tony set the note down. The cat, Orpheus, had moved off the counter and was now sitting on the couch, staring out the large windows.
"Jarvis, look up the meaning of the name Orpheus."
"Orpheus. The name is Greek in origin, meaning 'the darkness of night'. Orpheus was a greek poet and musician who went to the underworld to retrieve his dead wife. He charmed Hades, the god of the underworld, into letting him leave with his wife, but he was not allowed to look back at her until they reached the surface. Orpheus was almost out of hell when he glanced back, causing his wife to draw back into the underworld."
Tony thought on all this for a moment.
"Huh. Wonder why she picked that name. Oh well, not important."
Just then, Tony heard the doorbell ring. He had completely forgot about food with the cat and all, but now he remembered he was starving. Tony collected his food and sat at the counter again. He loved spaghetti, especially meatballs. Tony shoveled mouth fulls into his mouth, as Orpheus jumped up on the counter again. The cat stared at the food, sniffing the air curiously. Tony picked up a piece of meat ball and rolled it over to the cat. The animal stared at it for a moment, then at Tony.
"Go on, it's good."
The cat licked the food hesitantly, determining it's taste. Then, quick as lightning, gobbled the small piece up. Tony chuckled lightly, tossing the cat another piece.
"See. What did I tell ya."
After the food had been consumed, and the trash thrown away, Tony decided it was time for a shower.
"Okay Orpheus, I'm gonna go take a shower. Try not to get into anything too dangerous okay?"
The cat, seemingly ignoring Tony, began exploring his new environment. Tony walked back to the bathroom, peeled off his clothes, and stood under the hot spray of water. His muscles relaxed, each knot slowly working it's way out. After about an hour, and a moment where he nearly passed out from exhaustion, Tony decided it was time to get out and go to bed. Stepping out of the shower, Tony wrapped a towel around his waist, then walked out into the hallway.
"Orpheus?"
Tony searched the living room, but could not find the cat.
"Jarvis, where's Orpheus?"
"Sleeping on your bed sir."
Tony walked into his bedroom, the cat's eyes instantly snapped open to look at him.
"Hey there little guy. I thought you got stuck somewhere or something."
The cat continued to stare at Tony. He was curled up in a little ball, laying on the right side of the bed. Tony walked over to the dresser and pulled out a pair of silky gray pj bottoms. After drying and dressing, Tony moved over to the bed, slipped under the covers, and turned out the light. Orpheus continued to stare at him.
"You know, it's very hard for a guy to fall asleep when you're staring at him."
The cat didn't move, didn't blink. Tony reached out his hand, the cat tensed a little, but remained where he was. Tony held out his hand an inch from the cat's face. The animal stared at it a moment, then sticking his little nose out, began sniffing Tony's fingers. Tony smiled. He wanted his little house guest to be comfortable around him, even if the cat wasn't going to let him pet him. The cat laid his head back down and closed his eyes. Tony took the hint and did the same.
Tony knew he was having a nightmare. He knew that the scene he was in was one from months ago, but still, he couldn't change it. He was falling, dead in his suit, but still aware of everything around him. The hulk didn't save him this time. Instead Tony hit the ground, then everything went dark again. The darkness split, like a curtain being drawn back from a stage, and he was now on the floor of his tower, Loki's boot pressing down on his chest. The staff pointing down at his face. Tony screamed, thrashing out to get free, but he was stuck. Tony shut his eyes, willing the scene to change. He heard a voice calling him. It was his voice. Loki's voice.
"Tony, open your eyes."
Tony whined, he didn't want to. He just wanted to sleep. Why wouldn't the dreams just let him sleep?
"Tony."
Tony squeezed his eyes tighter, tears streamed down his face. He could feel the god sitting on top of him, pinning his arms down by his head.
"Why can't you just leave me alone!? All I want to do is sleep, but I can't! I just keep reliving it night after night! The invasion, my death, and you torturing and killing me until I finally wake myself up screaming! Please just let me be!"
Tony was sobbing now. He hated it, but he was just so tired of it all. The god was silent, but remained where he was. The room grew still, the only sounds were of Tony's sobs.
"Tony. Open your eyes."
Tony sighed solemnly. His pleas of mercy would go unanswered yet again tonight. Tony opened his eyes, resigned to his fate. The god was looking down at him, but he was different than the other times Tony had seen him. He was not smiling, or laughing at him cruelly. Instead, the God looked down at him with something along the lines of worry, or pity. Tony didn't know what to make of it. This was so unlike his normal nightmares. The god released Tony's arms, reaching down to wipe away the human's tears. Tony flinched when Loki's hand brushed his face.
"Calm down mortal. I will not harm you."
The god moved so that he was no longer sitting on Tony, but was now lying next to him.
"W-what are you-"
Tony couldn't even finish his sentence as the god pulled him against his chest. Tony lay there, frozen, as Loki rubbed his back and stroked his hair. He just couldn't understand it.
"Close your eyes Tony. No more dreams for tonight."
Tony could feel the darkness creeping in again, ready to take him to a new scene. In the morning he would think on this. Figure out why his mind was dreaming this up, but for right now, he had no choice except to follow what his mind laid out in front of him.