It had been a year since the battle of New York and rather than a celebration party, which was usually the style of Tony Stark, he sat alone in solitude, locked away in his bedroom. It was one year to the day that his friend Agent Coulson had passed away. A man who Tony had always pretended to dislike, whom he poked and prodded whenever they met, and whose orders he had disregarded. On the surface it looked like Tony couldn't have cared less for the SHIELD agent, but internally he had earnt the billionaires respect. He pretended not to take an interest, but Stark always paid attention. He had known about the Cellist in Phil's life, and even had offered to fly him over to Portland just hours before the fateful attack. At first the genius had been quick to call Coulson an idiot. Why did he go and take on Loki alone? It was a foolish thing to do. But that was Agent Coulson for you. He was brave, and he did whatever he could for the team, even if that meant sacrificing himself. After his demise, Stark didn't care anymore. Loki was going down whatever the cost, even it is was his own life. Tony couldn't be selfish and protect himself after Phil had so valiantly laid down his life. Sometimes Stark wished it had been him that had been killed – Phil was mourned by the whole team, not just the Avengers, but the entirety of SHIELD, and even his own girlfriend, Pepper Potts. Pepper had been to visit his grave today, but Tony just couldn't make it. It wasn't that he didn't want to go, he would just have never found the right words.
"Mr Stark, I'm afraid my protocols are being over-written. It seems you have a visitor." The well spoken voice of JARVIS broke Tony's thoughts, and his eyes swiveled over to the lift doors, an almost scowl crossing his face. It didn't even cross his mind that the only other person to bypass his security had been...Tony's jaw dropped, and he leapt off the bed as if he'd seen a ghost. "Mr Stark, we need to talk." A surprisingly healthy looking Agent Coulson stepped out of the lift, his usual small smirk on his face, dressed in strict SHIELD uniform. "H-how? JARVIS. Run a scan of the entire house. I want names of every individual inside this building."
"Certainly, sir." Came the always cheerful response from the AI, as Coulson walked towards him, briefcase in hand. "Sir, the only people present currently are yourself and Agent Coulson."
Tony shook his head in almost disbelief, despite the conformation. "N-n-no. You died. You can't be here. How are you here?" Phil didn't even try to apologise. "That's classified." He replied, an innocent smirk on his face. "Now are you ready to listen, or are we gonna have to hug it out first?" He teased, knowing it would have come as quite a shock to the genius. Phil had begged Fury not to come today; he knew Stark would never trust him again, but the Director had been clear. This was a problem only an expert in mechanics could solve, and no one had a better mind than Tony Stark.
Not caring whether he'd drunk far too much and he was imaging everything, or whether he was having a complete mental breakdown, Tony surged forward, pulling Coulson into a rather surprising hug. The Agent stiffened, an almost confused look on his face – this was not the behaviour he expected from the narcissist – before Tony finally pulled back. "Mention this again, and I will kill you properly this time...Phil." The billionaire turned his back with the hint of a smirk on his face, using the Agent's first name for only the second time in his life, and the first to his face.
"Now I've told you before, and I've told you again. Consulting hours are 9 til 12, Monday to Thursday. It's a Friday night."
Phil simply smiled. He was back. Tony was back. And even though things seemed back to normal, the dynamic had changed here. This time the other knew about the unspoken respect they carried for one another, and though it didn't have to be mentioned, both knew that there was a friendship here that could never be broken – not even by faking a death.