Tony turned around to the barrel of a Smith & Wesson M1899. There stood Winnie in a red robe fist locked on the ivory grip of the handgun. "Put it back before this roscoe blows a hole through your skull Mr. Banner," she commanded.

"Winnie please," he commanded, "I desperately need this stone-"

"Like you desperately needed my ass? This ain't no bash you creep! Put it down!"

"Can I just explain?"

She lowered the gun, strong arms to her sides. She looked him dead in the eye, "What is a good reason for stealing from me?!"

He had no choice. He absolutely could not leave without the stone. He also didn't want to risk getting shot. The last time he had a gun pointed at him, the brainwashed man behind it didn't hesitate to pull the trigger. He wasn't going to chance it being absolutely defenseless in time where gun laws were relatively loose.

"This is going to sound absolutely insane but… Winnie, I'm not from this time. I'm from the year 2017 and I was sent here to get this stone."

She looked at him confused and in an instant the gun was back in his face, "Are out of your fucking mind! How god damn stupid do I look?!"

"Wait, wait, wait! Please! Winnie! I can prove it! I swear to you I'm telling the truth!" he backed away bumping into the glass case behind him.

"You're gunna' prove… you're from the future… you have got to be joking…" she was not letting up.

"Here look!" Tony reached into his pocket pulling out the Iris. Maybe if she saw the magic of the Iris she would finally believe him. He began moving in a circle as he was instructed to from Dr. Strange. Fiery sparks lit and the portal began to open. Tony heard a loud thunk and turned to see Winnie wide eyed and gun on the ground.

He looked at her big blue eyes that were looking on terrified.

"Do you believe me?" he asked her.

She looked at him not answering, still stunned. "This can't be real..." she finally said.

"I know this seems crazy but I need this stone to protect my world, really our world… for your grandchildren I guess. This stone is of absolute upmost importance. See this box?" he asked holding it up to her, "this box will allow the stone to leave June 10th 1916. Do you understand?"

Her pout lips made no movement. She looked between him and the portal and back to him.

"No," she said.

Still holding the Iris up to hold the portal he pulled her in by the waist kissing her. She didn't fight him. "I'm sorry I used you, but I don't think less of you for what happened between us."

She stepped away, "I don't give a shit what you think of me." He admitted to himself he was a little surprised at that, apparently people of this time were more inappropriate than he thought. "I do think I'm hallucinating though."

"I'm sorry Winnie, but… thank you for everything tonight. I have to go."

She nodded quietly, "Ok." She picked the gun up off the floor, her eyes never leaving his.

Tony took one last look at her and turned his attention the portal. He held up the box to push it through first. He shoved his hand forward… and it bounced back. "What the-", he tried again.

He tried over and over to pass the box through the portal but he felt like he was punching a water balloon. "What the hell!" He tried once more holding the box within his fist with great force against the barrier. The effort became too much as he pulled back dropping both arms in labored breathing. The portal vanished.

He turned to Winnie, "This should've worked…"

"Performance issues?" she asked crossing her arm under her bust.

"Is that a stab at earlier? I feel like your referencing earlier." His fists were on hips in complete confusion coming back into the situation at hand. "I don't understand what's happening…"

"Well that makes two of us…"

He already not only spoke to her but then slept with her. There's not much more he could probably ruin. He faced her and explained, "Look, this is an infinity stone, I think there's about six of them total and it has special powers that will help us defeat this," he didn't really want to even try and explain Thanos, "threat we're facing. This containment box broke some kind of magical barrier that has kept it in this date. Maybe the stone can't cross paths with the magic in this box? But if I take it out, it won't cross over either because of the previous barrier…" he stopped noticing himself beginning to think out loud.

"You mean June 10th?" she asked skipping over the majority of his explanation. He noticed her features soften, even in the dark, trying her best to understand.

"Yes, so tomorrow, this stone wouldn't have been here. There was some kind of magical barrier keeping it here but the box disrupted it. I was supposed to go back through this portal to June 10th 2017."

She looked over the hard wood floor avoiding his gaze trying to reel all of this magic nonsense in. She looked out into the half empty street; those out there not paying any mind to them through the window. Not that they could see very well into the store front without the bright edge of the portal.

"I have no idea how I'm supposed to get this back to my time…"

She turned back to him, "If the stone can move through time in that box, why don't you just burry somewhere and dig it up in your time?" she thought she sounded like a fool in this discussion like some kind of enabler to his crazy antics. But after witnessing this… "magic", what else could she do but believe him?

Tony didn't know if it was the panic that rushed him that made him overlook that option but he figured it was the only way to get this stone to the future.

He smiled at her, "You're brilliant and I think that may be my only other option. Do you have a shovel?"

Winnie agreed getting some proper clothes on, putting her handgun away, and grabbing a shovel from the back closet. Tony noticed a small safe behind the counter.

"Hey Winnie?" he called as she walked back into the room, "Can I borrow this safe to put the box in? Precautions…"

"That safe was pretty expensive but… yes go on, grab it."

He complied as they walked together from the store and down Broadway. They probably looked odd carrying a safe and shovel but he had stopped caring. They traveled a few blocks and around not finding just the right spot. Tony worried that if a building were to be put up the safe would be dug up and the stone would be taken. He needed a place he knew would be vacant in his time.

He suddenly stopped, "That's it! I know where to hide it, follow me."

They walked a few more blocks turning down Bleecker. They walked side by side in silence.

"I'm really sorry about all of this Winnie, and sorry for taking this from you."

She grinned, "It ain't that big of a deal, a bald woman in a hooded coat dropped it off this morning. Didn't want money for it or nothing."

"Interesting…"

Tony stopped in front of large building that may or may not be the Sanctum Santorum in this time. He walked around the back of the mansion, Winnie only paces behind.

"Here," Tony said pointing to a small plot of earth next to an Oak tree. He handed Winnie his jacket, safe on the ground, keeping his box and Iris in his pockets, and took the shovel from her. She stood by fixing a new code to the safe as he began to dig.

She stayed silent placing his box inside the safe. She was still trying to take in this man and his story. She wouldn't have believed him if she hadn't seen his magic. But she did see it, so she had to believe him right?

Tony dug a hole that was good four feet deep. He was panting and out of breath. He picked the small safe off from the dew covered grass and lowered into its dirt time capsule. He climbed out and threw the dirt back over top. To cover his tracks he saved the grass he dug up and placed it back over the hole.

He stood back next to Winnie, "I really hope this works."

"Me too, for your sake."

Tony held out his arm. She smirked grabbing on and he walked her home.

They arrived half past midnight back to her store. They stood inside as she placed the shovel back into the closet and Tony replaced his jacket to his torso.

She stood before him hands clasped together, "I guess this is good bye for real this time Mr. Banner."

He grabbed onto her hands, "My name is actually Tony Stark. But yes, you're right. Thank you again Winnie. You're an amazing woman."

"Thank you. I'll miss you."

He leaned down and kissed her one last time, "I'll miss you too." This wasn't love, but he genuinely liked her for who she was. These kinds of people did not cross his attention very often.

He stepped back once more opening the portal back to his own time. He turned to her and asked, "By the way, what's the code for the safe?"

She grinned, "Six, ten, seventeen."

Tony put one foot through the portal, "Good bye Winnie."

"Good bye Tony Stark."

Tony stepped through the portal and back into his own time. The tether of the Iris led him back to exactly where he started. Stephen Strange, Wong, and Bruce banner stood before him.

Bruce asked, "You're back already?"

"How long was I gone?"

"Literally one second…"

Strange sighed, "The time he spent there is not relevant to ours." He turned to face Tony, "Did you get the stone?"

Tony handed off the Iris to Strange and put his hands back in his pockets. He quickly realized he was back in his own clothing with all of his items once more. "Uhh… yea, it's buried out back…"

"I'm sorry, what?"

"The stone wouldn't cross the portal in that box so I did the next best thing. Hopefully it's still there."

Wong pondered aloud, "I guess the stones cannot intercept each other. The Ancient One's barrier must have depleted this blocking force between the stones."

"I think your right," Strange agreed, "Let's go get that stone."

The four men made their way out back and to the spot Tony buried the safe. The tree looked slightly bigger but mostly untouched in 101 years. Tony pointed to the designated spot, "It's right there, you got a shovel."

Strange laughed, "A shovel, that's cute." He lashed a flat hand out ward conjuring what looked like a bolt of lightning striking the ground. Debris flew in the opposite direction leaving a decent sized crater. Tony peered into the hole seeing the corner of the safe. Without waiting he hopped into the hole pushing the dirt away. He lifted it up and onto the grass. He brushed away more dirt from around the locking mechanism hoping 101 years underground hadn't ruined it. The dial was hard to turn but he managed to sequence the numbers correctly and open the door.

Tony smile as he grabbed the containment box. But upon further inspection, he discovered a letter.

Bruce noticed right away, "What's that Tony?"

Tony removed the envelope that had his name on it. "It's for me."

Strange took the box from Tony asking in a miffed tone, "So you interacted with someone from the past? Figures… does anything look like it's changed?"

Tony looked around, then once more to the other three men, "No. Not at all."

Wong cleared his throat, "They say our paths are all prewritten. Maybe you were meant to go back all along."

Tony looked down at the letter in his hand. "Maybe…"

Tony and Bruce ended up leaving and traveling to the Avenger headquarters in upstate NY. Strange would guard the stones until their space tyrant guest had arrived. Tony was to make the proper preparations for his arrival which may or may not include using that outdated cell phone to ring a Captain Convict and merry band of federal offenders.

Bruce decided to take up Tony's offer on a shower and retreated to a private area. Tony sat in his own private quarters with the door closed. He was dead tired but could not possibly ignore Winnie's letter.

He tore open the envelope and read the note within.

'Dear Tony,

So much has happened in the past year since you left. I generally don't get so sentimental but I feel like this is something you should know. And I'm only digging up this safe once. What happens from here on out… well, look me up and read about it.

I'm not mad you're gone, not at all! In fact, I'm glad you came and I'm glad you were able to show me such a good time. I'm happy to have met you. If anything, I think we would've been great friends. And I'll cherish our night together for as long as I live. Not that I would even be able to forget it considering we created more than just a bond. You don't know it yet, but you had given me the greatest gift of all.

About a month after you went home, I discovered I was pregnant.'

Tony immediately stopped reading. Then reread her sentence a couple more times. This child couldn't possibly be his, could it? Did he accidentally impregnate a woman from the year 1916? He felt his heart sink and forced himself to read on.

'I hadn't been with a man in well over eight months considering how busy I was opening my shop and all. I was scared and a little worried about having a baby out of wedlock. But remember I told you about my offers? Well, I took George up on his.

I told him my situation and he loved me so much he agreed to take the place of this baby's father. Within the next two months we were married and I was the new Mrs. George Barnes.'

Tony cringed, he had come to absolutely hate that name. But he read on hoping she spoke more about this alleged child of his.

'My mama figured out pretty quick what the deal was. She was disappointed but said I had made the right choice in marrying George and told me how lucky I was he was willing to raise this baby that wasn't even his. I love George, but it honestly only feels right some of the time.

Well, I had a pretty good pregnancy other than the usual nausea and swollen feet. This little hellion was active and moved nonstop, I thought it would walk out by itself. But on March 10th 1917 I went into labor at about 4 am. By 6pm I had finally given birth to a boy. And I'm so sorry you couldn't be here to see your son.'

Tony took a deep breath. It was a boy. His heart was racing a mile a minute. Could this all be true? Did he really have a son he left 100 years in the past? He saw there was a little bit more to her letter and read on.

'You should see him Tony. If photographs weren't so damn expensive I'd put his picture in this letter for you. He was a little small, 5lbs. 8oz. and 19" long. He's got your hair color and chin and the biggest, bluest eyes I'd ever seen. He's so beautiful. And a beautiful child deserves a beautiful name.

Unfortunately I was not to pick it. George, and his obsession with politics, suggested a name we both agreed on. James Buchanan Barnes.'