A/N So I am alive. I wrote this with the intention of submitting it in a reddit writing contest but it didn't meet the word count so I thought I might as well post it on here. It's unedited so please let me know of any errors. Enjoy.
Tony shot up, sweat dripping down his forehead. Once again nightmares pulled him from his sleep. Since the Battle of New York, he hadn't had a full night's sleep and it was slowly starting to take its toll; the panic attacks were becoming more frequent and his mood swings were pushing away everyone around him, even Pepper. Her quiet breathing was the only thing to be heard in the room and he was grateful that his tossing hadn't woken her.
Slipping softly out of bed, Tony headed down to the workshop to work on his latest project. Dumm-E beeped quietly in greeting as he entered, twisting and turning his arm from his place in the corner. Slowly lowering himself down onto one of the steps, the weary man took in everything around him. He had developed the suits to help, to protect but it felt like that making had done the opposite. Everywhere he went, disaster followed. He longed for the days when all he had to worry about was stopping McGonagall from finding his latest invention or working out ways to sneak past the wards to the girl's dorms. Back then, everything was so simple because everything had rules but since returning to the Muggle world after his father's death, Tony's life was a whirlwind of women, disaster, and death. He'd considered going back to the magical world many times, but he couldn't leave the Muggles to defend themselves, especially after what happened in New York.
Reaching into a nearby draw, he withdrew his wand from amongst the clutter that came with being a mechanic. Eleven and three-quarter inches of oak, with a Horned Serpent's horn as the core. The day he got his wand, in that small shop hidden in the warren of New York, was the best day of his life. There was an instant connection between the boy and the wand, and so far had never served him wrong.
Tony was originally meant to go to Ilvermorny but had demanded that he go to Hogwarts, the greatest magic school in the word. His mother caved into his begging and pleading and with some persuasion, so did his father. The seven years he'd spent at Hogwarts was the best of the life because he could finally free to express himself around his people.
The light began to flicker as the great Tony Stark began to cast, starting with small spells and slowly increasing with difficulty. When he built the house, he lay down certain spells that allowed him to combine technology with magic, allowing him to combine his two loves. There were small spells scattered throughout the house designed to make life that little bit easier: ones to stop your eggs from overcooking, ones to organise his files, ones to adjust your shower temperature to just how you like it. Sure, he could do all this with technology, but magic could always do the job better.
A small smile flickered across his worn face at the sight of hundreds of birds flying out of his wand tip, changing from canaries to doves to ravens. With a flick of his wrist, they disappeared; the only sign there had ever been any birds was a single raven feather sitting atop a pile of paperwork. The sight reminded him of the first time he'd experienced a dementor.
Tony's aunt had been a warden at Azkaban, and one summer decided it would be a good idea for Tony, being a reckless teenager, to come have a look at the prison and see what could happen to him if he followed the wrong path. As soon his feet set down on the cold rock outside the prison, he felt what little happiness he had drain out of him as the terrifying creatures moving above began to descend towards him. His aunt cast her Patronus, a swan, to protect them both but she was too late. Tony has experienced that bone-chilling sorrow that the dementors bring and that feeling stayed with him forever. In his darkest nights, when he'd drowned his emotions in alcohol to escape the pain of losing his parents, he'd felt like he was surrounded by those dementors once again, this time with no escape.
Sat there on the cold workshop step, Tony could sense those dark thoughts begin to surround him once again. Twiddling his wand in his fingers, trying to copy a trick he'd seen Clint do, he focused on every happy thought he has. There weren't many, but almost all of them contained Pepper. Concentrating hard on those thoughts, he stretched out his wand and whispered, "Expecto Patronum". Out of his wand burst a wolf, silvery and strong. When he was first able to cast a Patronus, it has been a fox: a sneaky and solitary animal. However, after the events at the Stark Expo, it has changed, reflecting his feelings towards a certain ginger CEO. The wolf looped around the room, sniffing continuously, before stopping at Dumm-E. Tony could have sworn that the wolf smirked at him before attempting to pee on the robot. Of course, nothing happened but Dumm-E still beeped in displeasure, swinging his arm around in anger. It almost looked like he was shaking his fist at the glowing animal. Chucking his breath, Tony whistled and the canine instantly came bounding towards him, before flopping down at his feet.
Suddenly, the hairs on the back of his neck pricked up as he felt a wet, slobbery lick up the back of his neck. Turning quickly, Tony discovered the source was a silvery, fluffy she-wolf. Grinning mischievously, she jumped over Tony and landed on her mate. They rolled down the steps, biting playfully and nipping at each other's tails. Looking around for the source of the Patronus, Tony spotted a tall shadow in the doorway. His ginger hair witch descended the steps towards him, tucking her wand into her long ponytail. Much to Tony's amusement, she was wearing fluffy Ilvermorny socks. Of course she was. They'd met by accident; she had applied for the job of his assistant and he'd taken her one without either realising the other was magical. It came as a great shock when Pepper had dropped a glass and Tony had automatically saved it with magic. After that day, Pepper had become his most trusted confident in everything. Slowly but surely, they fell in love.
She sat down next to him, letting her head fall onto his shoulder. They sat there, watching their patronuses play and taking comfort from the feel of their skin touching until they fell asleep on one another. The two wolves curled up at their feet, intertwining to share warmth, and slowly faded from existence as the rays of morning sun came dancing through the windows,