Alright, new chapter. Thank everyone who gave a review, favorited, followed and read it. I hope that you all enjoy.

I'll stop using split PoV so much as soon as things start happening more, which will probably be soon. For now, this just makes it a little bit easier as I work out the story a bit, so enjoy it while it lasts or tolerate it while I come up with new shit to write.

"I'd be willing to bet that if we don't back down you and I will be the ones that are holding the crown in the end." Frontline~ Pillar


There came a point of time where it was inevitable the Tony had to pull himself away from his shop. In the past, it had always been one of the worse points in his life. This time, he really couldn't say he minded too much.

His eyes were sore and dry, his head ached and he was rather sore from having spend the most of two consecutive nights on the cold stone floor. He didn't like it: it made him feel old. He wanted nice, warm sheets, the soft glow of the tv, not to mention the mind numbing distance from his own mind that came with watching whatever happened to be playing.

Most of all, he didn't feel like being alone. It was another strange occurrence for him... he rarely got lonely, and when he did, usually people weren't around for him to just go to.

It turned out to be a bit awkward for him, even though he had known that there were actually people in the building when he finally stepped up into the living world. Thankfully it was only Bruce sitting the large table as he climbed the stairs, so no one was really there to notice his surprise and the one that was familiar enough with him to know to just ignore it.

Even as he was sitting down, it just felt... off somehow. Sure, he enjoyed spending time with Bruce and talking with him, knowing that he could talk about nearly anything without the other minding...even if the other scientist did fall asleep at the oddest times... but that wasn't what he wanted at the moment.

He didn't want to have an intellectual conversation where he'd have to at least try to make sense, -again a first- just someone to share companionship with for a while. He really wasn't sure who to go to for that.

Clint was too much of a joker and admittedly hyper for anything relaxing, and the air around Natasha was too tense, charged and almost uncomfortable for him to be able to... not to mention he wasn't fully sure if he trusted her. To fight by his side, of course. To not go running to Fury if he so much as coughed the wrong way, not so much. It wasn't her fault, of course... it was just because of who she was. And, well. There was always Steve.

He wouldn't have minded being around Steve, but they usually talked, or were actively doing something something else. He wasn't sure if he would be able to just be relaxed around him right now, not fully, with his present attitude towards him. He didn't want to step wrong again so quickly. Did that make him feel a little cowardly for even thinking it? Unfortunately, it did. The only reason he could admit that much to himself was simply because he was really too tired to bother with censoring his own mind.

It took him too long for his taste to realize the twilight was drawing into the room, casting shadows through the house even as the lights flickered on by themselves. Bruce looked up as the other man glanced around and set down the book that had been holding his attention. He actually looked slightly started himself.

"What?" Tony raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, I just thought you would be down there longer. You seemed pretty upset this morning." Ah, this morning then. That was good... at least he hadn't been down there for days like he normally was. He shrugged, but didn't respond and Bruce didn't wait long for one. At least he knew him well enough to realize that when he didn't feel like talking, he wouldn't, and now was probably one of those times. Especially not about what had happened earlier. It hadn't hurt or anything like Bruce probably though to be the reason for his quiet demeanor. It was just... private. It wasn't like him to be private about anything in his life, not by a long shot, but it felt right that this instance should be considered private.

So, instead of pushing it, Bruce just nodded and looked down at his watch with a smile. "Well, movie time... feel up to trying to join us again?"

He considered. It was what he wanted, really. Tv, warm room, people who wouldn't be trying to push him to talk or do anything. It would be nice. And hopefully Steve wouldn't have the same reaction as he previously had. This time at least he was better prepared to handle it. Instead of answering, he stood and Bruce took the hint. He looked tense, though.

"Oh, relax." Bruce just fixed him with a look before shaking his head slowly. Tony rolled his eyes. "Ok, would you prefer if I didn't go?" Bruce's eyes widened.

"Of course not... just, you know."

"Really, I'm a big boy, I can deal with it." Bruce nodded but didn't relax. Tony sighed before following after the other man to the elevator. The ride to what had been dubbed the movie room was silent but quick.

They exited the elevator in the same, easy silence, but the two assassins turned to stare at them anyway as if they had been shouting to one another at the tops of their lungs. Steve was sprawled out over the couch, eyes shut. He looked exhausted and Tony couldn't help the shot of worry that sparked through him. It wasn't natural to see the Captain tired like this.

Clint grinned in the scientists' direction. "What, actually going to stick around this time?" Steve's eyes shot open and he looked at Tony for half a second before blushing and glancing away, shame still filling his deep blue eyes. Well, that just wouldn't do... he grinned.

"One condition." Natasha raised an eyebrow and Steve's expression turned suspicious. "I pick the movie." Clint rolled his eyes.

"Yeah...no way in hell, metal head. You'd probably end up picking a documentary on space exploration or some shit..." Natasha rolled her eyes and turned away from them. Tony smirked.

"Too bad it wasn't a question." Clint winced and glared.

"Mind phrasing it like one?" Tony's smirk turned into a full smile.

"Jarvis, play file 36-487 sub-section b."

"Of course, Sir." Tony's grin widened as the lights automatically dimmed and the screen flashed to life. Bruce made his way over and sat in the corner recliner, all tension drained away from him while Tony collapsed into the couch between Natasha and Steve, pretending not to notice when the bigger man suddenly tensed.

Clint gave him a pained look from across the couch. "You have this movie in a file?"

He smirked. "I have most good movies stored in Jarvis, yeah. Saves time and space." Clint shook his head.

The second he was on the couch, music started playing quietly, and the sound of a prayer came from the screen.

"Oh, fuck. No... a religious movie? Come on, man, I thought you were better than this..." Clint was cut off as another voice, deep with an Irish accent cut in and a hint of recognition swept over his entire face, lighting it up from its former scowl. "Wait... is this what I think it is?" Tony nodded with another smirk. "Oh, fuck yes."

Natasha's eyes rolled again with a hint of a smile. Steve just looked confused. Bruce watched, confused as well until the two brothers stood to move to the front of the church before they left in the middle of the sermon, then his eyes widened too, a real smile spreading across his face.

"Boondock Saints?" Clint let out a small laugh at the semi-shocked question.

"Hell yeah. Awesome movie." Steve gave them all an odd look.

"Should I be worried?" Bruce smothered another smile.

"Why would you be?" He shrugged.

"It's a movie that Clint and Tony both approve of... and they've already started cussing and one of them just punched a dame." Tony smiled.

"Don't worry, Cap. It's a bit bloody, but I've had a feeling for a while that you'd like it." Oddly, Steve didn't look any less worried, though definitely more confused, but he nodded anyway and turned back to the movie. Even Natasha face broke into a smile... well, not quite a smile, but as close to a real one as Tony had ever seen on her that wasn't a full on fake. The room relaxed and he settled back and just enjoying the movie, muttering the lines under his breath. Clint quickly caught his voice and started doing the same.

He almost couldn't hold back a startled laugh... he'd thought he was the only one crazy enough to know this movie by heart. Sure, everyone who had seen it before knew the prayer, that was one of the main things he'd been looking forward to, when he chose the move, but having someone else murmuring along with him just made this movie even better.

Even Steve seemed to relax and actually enjoy the movie until about halfway through when he suddenly tensed up again and when Tony glanced over to him, his eyes were blank, lost. It didn't last long, and the corner of the other mans mouth moved to half-form a smile when he caught his eye, but it worried him. After that, he still quoted along with Clint, but his mind had left the movie.

S


Watching a movie with Tony actually joining was a strange experience, definitely different than when it was just the four of them as he had gotten used to. Usually they would watch silently, with Clint interjecting his opinion or an inappropriate joke- usually accompanied with a laugh- every now and then. He really wasn't sure if silence was possible with Tony there...

Clint and Tony both quoted the movie to one another under their breaths, each taking a brother both struggling not to laugh as they mimicked Detective Smecker. They weren't loud enough to be distracting but it did cause everyone to smile without realizing it at the oddest times. They didn't ever really smile at one another, they just smiled for the sake of smiling.

Natasha was really the only one who would catch herself before it could grow to anything more than a light flicker of her lips, but she still looked in either of the twos direction in anticipation, making it simple enough to figure out when something good was about to happen. Even Bruce seemed to relax and enjoy the movie more than he usually allowed himself to. They were small things, but it changed the atmosphere of the building into something more comfortable. It was... nice.

When the two brothers recited their prayer before killing their mark, Steve unconsciously tensed. He had the oddest sense of déjà vu and between one second and the next, he walking through a snow-covered forest with him team. Someone was laughing. The sound was intimately familiar and filled him with warmth, but he couldn't put a name to the one making the sound. Then it was gone, he was back in the Tower, staring at the Tv.

He shook his head. Nothing like that had happened before... it felt almost like a memory, but when he tried to think about anything about what had been happening, or even when it had been, he couldn't actually remember. It was maddeningly blank and he had to fight back another bout of anger... why couldn't he remember..? he had a nearly photographic memory, things didn't just slip away from him... expect this had. Maybe it had just never happened. That would make more sense. Well, it would have if it hadn't sparked such warmth in him that he hadn't felt for far too long. He yearned for more, and came up with nothing, again and again.

He finally gave up and forced himself to shrug it off to tried to relax into the movie again. It took more of an effort than he liked to admit.

Natasha shifted to glance over to Tony and Steve quickly followed her example- Usually their reactions to what was going on were as good as the movie itself- but frowned when the other man wasn't smiling and quoting along with Clint. He was staring at Steve, concern glazing his eyes. The others didn't seem to notice.

He felt his heart give a little jump at realizing Tony had actually noticed something had been briefly wrong with him. He was usually very good at hiding his reactions... Strange.

He attempted to smile back at the other man...it felt more like a grimace than a smile, but it must have worked seeing as Tony nodded slightly and turned his attention back to the screen. The dark man's reactions to the movie grew more subdued and some of the calm that had settled on the room just melted away. If the others noticed the change in atmosphere, they showed it no more than they had at his zoning out, and they continued to enjoy themselves. Which was a good thing... there was no reason to ruin every ones night... again... just because he couldn't control some of his reactions.

For the most part, Steve enjoyed himself as well, even if he was distracted. The movie was a bit gory and awkward, even sad, at times, but it was generally amusing and by the end he was actually smiling as they threatened a court-room full of people. That was something he had never seen himself agreeing with at any point in his life.

The credits rolled, and the others looked at one another, waiting to see if any of them were willing to do another movie. When no one moved to figure out which one sounded good, they stood to leave for the night, simple as that. Clint was grinning from ear to ear, but he looked exhausted as he and Natasha left, quietly murmuring to one another about Shield. Bruce was up and edged around the other two quickly, smiling a goodnight to both Steve and Tony as he passed.

Tony caught Steve's arm when he tried to stand, and he fought down a slight irritation. The others didn't notice that they stayed as they left for their respective rooms.

There was a short moment of complete silence in the room when the Tv shut itself off before Tony said anything.

"Seriously. You ok?" Steve nodded and Tony arced an eyebrow. He sighed and pushed the palms of his hands into his eyes.

"I'm fine. Just... you know. Weird flash-backs. I'm just tried." Tony's face went blank before he nodded. This time when Steve stood to leave, the other man let him. When he got to the door, he paused and shifted his head slightly to look back at the man and muttered a quick "thanks" he was sure Tony didn't hear. Caramel eyes drifted away from him and the door to stare at nothing.

And he was thankful, really, that someone actually cared enough to show concern. Was it a little weird that it just so happened to be the one person he hadn't been able to get along with since he had woken up in this new age, sure. But that wasn't really the odd part: the odd part was that it felt right that he had been concerned. It felt normal. It shouldn't have, he knew... that kind of behavior was the exact opposite of what anyone expected of Tony Stark. He wasn't supposed to care.

He got to his room and prepared for bed almost without incident- he'd managed to trip on thin air just outside his door when he hadn't been paying attention, and only saved himself from falling flat on his butt because said door had been there for him to catch his balance on- and he couldn't think of anything he wanted more than to just crawl into his bed and sleep.

But when he finally did, all he could do was stare up at the dark ceiling. He tried to close his eyes and they just shot open again without any conscious effort on his part. It was annoying more than anything... he wasn't even thinking about anything, he was tired, he should be asleep.

It lasted two hours.

He dreamed of ice. Ice and the cold- relaxing, numbing cold- just like every night since he'd woken up. This time, however, there was something different. Normally, nothing happened, he simply existed in the ice, he allowed himself to relax, allowed himself to let go because there was nothing to feel in that frozen waste-land he was trapped in, unmoving, unthinking. Normally, he simply was.

Instead of feeling the cold indifference the ice usually brought him, there was pain and loss jarring through his frozen form, so deep it made his bones ache. It made him want to scream, to cry, to live. But he couldn't move... he was trapped.

Suddenly the ice felt more like a cage than the comfort it usually was and he fought it, but nothing happened.

Ice cracked and flaked apart as he forced his eyes open to stare into the blue nothing that surrounded him. It was so bright and the melting ice burned as it struck his eyes but he forced them to remain open, drinking in the light. It was better than being trapped in the dark and the ice. A form shifted past the thick layer of ice the trapped him, slowly drawing closer, but was still too blurry to make out. It looked like it might have been a human. It reached out and pressed a hand to the dripping ice and the warmth seemed to radiate through the cold, trying to spark something in him. He just felt empty but for the desperate need to move, to find out what it wanted him to know. He forced his hand to move, try to catch the others hand through the frozen water.. the ice shifted...

And with a crash of thunder directly above his room, he startled awake. He wasn't sure whether he should he angry or grateful at the sudden awakening...

He jolted out of his bed and was scrambling to throw on a jacket before he fully realized he was awake, then he was out the door and jogging to the elevator, trying to control his shivering. His ice dream always made him cold.

His gaze shot to the gray sky the moment he stepped outside before he skidded to a halt. Rain poured around him, immediately soaking through the his night-wear as well as his thick jacket like they weren't there, his cold skin growing even more chilled. The clink of the elevator behind him didn't draw his attention away from the dark swirling clouds. The scuffling sound of someone tripping behind his made him turn, though, at the same time a familiar voice spat out a curse.

"Ow, fucking son of a cock loving whore." He almost broke into a laugh despite whatever was going on in the sky as he walked the two steps necessary to pull Tony back up to his feet, but shook it off again as his attention drew back to the clouds. Sparks of lightning flared across the surface of the massive front, and the muted roars of thunder seemed to soak into the sky, making the air feel dense, choking him with their muffled screams. He frowned. This wasn't going to be good...

Wind swirled around them momentarily before the clouds broke open to the force of an icy blue spear of light as sped through the sky and struck the tower. The force of it as it hit almost threw him off of his feet, but the warm, calloused hands suddenly gripping his forearms were enough to keep both of them upright.

A figure appeared in the light and Steve couldn't help but shiver again, this time not due to the chill of the downpour. It was a little too similar to his dream for comfort...And then the light was gone, and the sky gave one last peal of near-deafening thunder before the clouds evaporated in a short spurt of pounding hail that lasted all of three seconds before the storm stopped. The thickness clogging the air lifted and he felt like he could actually breath again.

Steve squinted through the water dripping from his now-soaked bangs over to the figure and as he should have expected, there stood Thor.

"Why do you get a dramatic entrance?" Clint's voice broke the night sky from where he was half leaning in the small covered elevator covered access area, Natasha and Bruce crowding in next to him to avoid the now-absent rain. "It's totally not fair to the rest of us, man."

Thor just grinned widely back at them.


And there's Thor. Now was as good a time as any to bring him in. I actually feel good about how this chapter turned out. Hopefully you guys do too.

I would just like to offer my condolences to any effected by the Tornado in Oklahoma this past week. That shit is crazy.