Author's Note: Aha! Enjoy the fluffy goodness my friends the new and improved beta version! Many thanks ravingbeauty.
You're No Hero
Chapter 1- Your room is waiting for you
Steve Rogers was often called a man out of time.
It was, unfortunately, an apt description. He was a relic of the 1940s, a time so much simpler than now. Things seemed to move so much differently here and people seemed to move so much faster, he couldn't help but feel left behind.
Overwhelmed and confused, he had clung to a small spark of hope he had found – Howard Stark had a son. A son who was a superhero in his own right. Steve had eagerly looked forward to meeting this man, hoping against hope that some of Howard would be there. Howard Stark had been a great friend to him; maybe Anthony Stark could be a great friend as well.
It had not gone well.
Howard Stark's only child had been nothing like him. The difference had made Steve angry, causing him to lash out at the man for no good reason. As the last vestiges of hope disintegrated, his one tenuous connection to this new world had vanished in an instant.
Frightened, he had attacked, saying the worst things… hateful things. And after all the dust had settled following Loki, Steve Rogers had been plagued by guilt. Tony, as he liked to be called, was more than what Howard had been; he was a hero in every sense of the word.
-#-#-#-
The blond man woke in a cold sweat, images of the war dancing in the darkness of his mind. Memories and nightmares were one and the same as they haunted his nights – memories of battles fought long ago, all but forgotten in this place and time. Tonight it had been new battles, and the worst a lifeless metal man falling from the sky.
He rubbed his furrowed brow with a shaking hand. It had been two weeks since they sent Loki and Thor home, two weeks of his own mind and loneliness.
Tony had offered them all accommodations at what was now known as Avengers Tower, but the team had scattered. Bruce promising to return when his work abroad was done, Natasha and Clint had missions to finish, Thor had gone home, and Steve… well, Steve hadn't a good reason not to take Tony up on the offer. Most it had been his own conscience that had stopped him; he'd been so unfair to the man.
Steve was still in New York, though, in a small, Spartan room SHIELD had given him. Drowning in a sea of complex technology, he glanced toward the small, black device they called a cell phone. He had yet to master sending messages through the device, but he could dial and press the green button to call someone.
At the moment his fingers itched to call a certain someone who lived several blocks away. He glanced at the bedside clock, heart sinking when he noticed it was midnight. Too late to call, or possibly too early, he supposed. No doubt Tony would be out somewhere, a beautiful dame on his arm. Howard had always had a woman on his arm; Tony probably got it from his father.
The super soldier stood and climbed out of bed to stand before the open window, letting the night breeze cool fevered skin. They said the city never sleeps; Steve believed it. He exhaled shakily as he stared out at the lights.
He felt like he was going under tonight, like he was standing at the brink, the deep depression threatening to crush him.
Finally giving in, Steve moved to the 'cell phone'. Brow furrowed in concentration, as he gingerly dialed in the only phone number he knew. "Hit the little green button," he murmured, holding the device to his ear, waiting on tenterhooks as it rang, and rang, and rang.
"Stupid, he was sleeping," he chastised himself softly, about to hit the red button when a voice came through.
"Yup. Hello, Cap." It was Tony. He sounded a little out of breath, but it was the nicest sound Steve could have heard. The blond man opened his mouth to speak, drawing a blank; he hadn't thought that far ahead.
"Cap, you ok?" Tony sounded concerned.
"Yes, I'm fine," he replied softly.
"It's late to be calling," Tony replied just as softly. Steve closed blue eyes in pain.
"You're right, I'm sorry. I don't know what I was thinking. Goodnight, Tony." He pulled the small device from his ear hitting the red button, Tony's instructions echoing in his head, green for go… red for stop.
He looked down at the now silent technology, vainly hoping it would ring.
-#-#-#-
Several blocks away in the now more airy Stark Tower, the owner was looking curiously at his own phone.
Tony stood in the middle of his gym clad in only sweat pants. A notorious insomniac, he rarely slept when he was working on a new project or his nightmares got the best of him. Tonight it had been the nightmares.
Feeling very alone and decidedly sorry for himself, the genius had decided to give the punching bags a go. He'd had them installed for Captain America, but as the man had yet to knock the stuffing out of them, Tony had thought he'd go a round or two.
He'd been completely in the moment. The physical activity had brought him a sense of clarity, his mind calming instead of spinning in a million different directions.
It was also awesome to beat the hell out of something; no wonder the Cap was so fond of it.
Oblivious to everything around him, he was startled when JARVIS interrupted; Captain Rogers was calling. The conversation with the big man had been confusing and more than a little worrisome. The genius was about to call him back when he paused; he'd do one better. Forgoing his usual smart attire, he tugged on a zip hoodie over his bare chest.
"Don't wait up, darlin'," he called to the AI before jumping in the newest addition to his collection, a 40s roadster in sky blue.
It took Tony all of fifteen minutes to get to Cap's crummy little apartment – SHIELD had not been generous. Of course he'd known that before his little visit. Tony had made it his business to keep an eye on the blond, which included knowing his whereabouts at all times. He didn't think of it as stalking, though; it was more obsessively shadowing.
Moments after parking, he was out of the car, up the stairs, and knocking on the door of apartment 303. There was a pause before he heard shuffling feet and the door opened a fraction.
"Stark?" was Steve's the incredulous greeting.
The dark haired man in the hall gave an ironic salute, "None other."
The door opened further, the blond stepped back to allow the other man inside.
The small cramped place did nothing for the billionaire; it was barren and barely habitable. It was a place to sleep, not to live. It did, however, have a nice view of the city through the large window.
Finished with his casual perusal, Tony sat uninvited in one of the hard chairs near the window. "I got an interesting call tonight," he said offhandedly as he watched the other closely.
The Cap sat slowly on the other chair. "Ummm, yeah…" he said, looking away as a faint blush covering pale cheeks. Steve had no idea what to do or say. Unsure why Tony was here at all, but oddly grateful for the intrusion.
They sat in silence for a while, which took the blond aback; usually Tony talked a mile a minute. For the moment, though, he seemed perfectly content to sit and say nothing.
Eventually Steve took the initiative, deciding to get something off his chest. "I'm sorry," he blurted, avoiding that intense dark stare.
The other raised an eyebrow curiously. "For what?"
Captain America shifted nervously. "For what I said… when we met…" he finished lamely. Tony didn't think his eyebrows could go any higher. "It was cruel and mean… and not me. I was upset and taking it out on you unfairly."
"Well, thank you, but totally unnecessary, Cap. I've had worse said about me and I wasn't exactly kind back."
The other man gave him a weak smile.
"Why don't we start again?" Tony offered. "My name is Anthony Stark, but for you, Tony." When he held out his hand, the man from the past gripped it firmly.
"Steven Rogers, call me Steve." They grinned at one another, the blond man feeling the callused palm cool against his own.
As they sat back, Tony's haphazardly zipped sweater slipped, revealing the blue glow of his arc reactor.
Curious, Steve pointed, "You wear it all the time?"
Looking down, surprised, Tony smiled a little sadly, "Sort of have to. It keeps me alive."
Blue eyes looked at him curiously. "Well, it's a bit of a story," Tony grinned. "If you want to hear it…." At the offer, Steve nodded eagerly settling back in his chair. Tony buried his hands in the hoodie's pockets and began to talk, hesitantly at first, but gaining strength and cadence as he went.
The billionaire had meant only to give him the abbreviated version, the watered-down story he'd told Pepper and Rhodes. The one that didn't make people feel bad for him.
As he spoke though, he found himself spilling the whole story – the truth of his confinement, his fears confronted, and a brief friendship so powerful that he held the memory close to his abused heart.
Steve watched and listened intently, taking everything thing in. It was somewhat surprising when he realized the man before him wasn't teasing and wasn't joking; they were talking as friends would.
"So, Steve, what about you?" Tony asked after he'd reached the end of his story. "Tell me how you ended up frozen in the Arctic."
The blond looked at him curiously, "You, who makes it his business to know everything, don't know?"
Amused, Tony smiled, "I know most of the preliminaries, but the real story has been lost. I want to hear it from the horse's mouth, so to speak."
Steve smiled widely, "I got that one."
When they finally finished talking, the sun was beginning to peak over the horizon; they had talked the night away. Stretching, Tony gave a small yawn. "Well, I'm tired out now." He gave the blond man a dozy smile, not missing the sudden crestfallen look that crossed his honest face.
Steve didn't want Tony to go. He'd enjoyed talking to him, as hard as that was to believe. He'd felt kinship with the man; they had connected tonight and if Tony left, he'd be alone in this bizarre world again.
Standing, the shorter man flexed sinewy muscles and ran a hand through his tousled brown curls. "So, I'll see you at the tower in an hour or so?" he said casually.
Steve looked at him, a small glimmer of hope in his eyes. "At the tower?"
Nodding, Tony smiled, "Your room is waiting for you."
-#-#-#-
Clutching his duffle under one arm, Steve Rogers looked up at the massive structure, awed and a little nervous. Taking a bracing breath, he reached forward and pressed what had to be a doorbell.
A very polite voice answered, "Captain Rogers, please come in. Mr. Stark is waiting for you on the 50th floor."
"Thank you," Steve yelled back at the little box, then stepped into the bustling lobby. The structure had taken a serious beating during the battle; now it was crawling with workers busily making repairs. They paid him no mind, though, as they went about their business and Steve headed back to the elevator.
Elsewhere in the tower, Tony was a nervous wreck.
"He's on his way, sir," JARVIS announced.
His dark head nodded absently as contemplated whether to change – again. Showered now and dressed in jeans and a plain black t-shirt, Tony hoped he looked good without trying. Faced with the Captain's imminent arrival, however, he was having second thoughts.
Practically vibrating with nervous energy, Tony paced around what he had decided was the common area. While repairing the top floors of the tower, Tony had made some modifications; now the tower's living space would accommodate all the Avengers when they finished whatever they were doing and finally moved in. He'd made an effort to make sure all the quarters would suit everyone's needs, and he'd taken special care in setting up Cap- he stopped himself – Steve's room.
Then the doors dinged and Tony whirled as a very welcome figure stepped out. "Hey, welcome to your new home," he smiled as warmth flooded his chest, the blue glow of his arc reactor pulsing warmly.
Steve found himself returning the smile. He had tried to dress a little less like an old man, opting for jeans and t-shirt. It was white, Tony noted right away, and oh so tight. Silver dog tags clinked softly as the man moved.
"Wow," Steve breathed, looking around.
Smiling proudly, Tony gestured, "I'll show you your room, then take you on the grand tour."