Sorry this is so late at night. I almost forgot...
Steve pushed the door to the ground level open, being careful to know exactly where his walking stick was so it wouldn't get shut in the door again.
He entered the lobby area, his cane tapping against the marble floor. It was so quiet in here. This place never seemed to have a peaceful moment so hearing the silence was rather eerie.
Steve stepped out further into the hall, his head twisting to the left towards the seating area. There was a few chairs and sofas in there that the apartment owner, Tony Stark, liked to use. Bruce Banner, another apartment resident, also liked to relax out here on the main lobby floor. But now, Steve could hear no one shifting around, or even breathing in the small space.
Next Steve turned his head towards his right, his ears straining for any noise that Tony was wandering around in his office or standing around at the "concierge" table. Otherwise known as, the place Steve dropped off his rent money every month. But again, there was no sound other than Steve careful maneuvering over marble.
Steve frowned and made a soft noise at the back of his throat, like a hum and a "humph" mixed together. It was mostly to reassure Steve that his ears hadn't decided to suddenly stop working and that he still could hear the environment around him.
Steve walked over to the chest high counter. "Tony?"
Silence returned to the lobby area.
Steve frowned. Today was the day he was supposed to be receiving his $100 "return" money. He had been counting on getting it today so that he could walk to the bank and put it into savings before he decided to spend it on something stupid like music or another braille book. The small bookstore that he shopped at only had a few of them every now and again, and they tended to be more expensive.
Steve called out again, hoping that the owner would magically show up, like the man was prone to do. But it didn't look like Steve was going to be having that luck today.
Steve felt that small hesitation he always got when he thought about the cash he was supposed to receive. Tony had randomly started giving it to him about six months after he started living here. Even now, looking back, the reason for the money was... vague, at best.
Steve was walking out to eat at a local café for lunch when he heard a throat clear behind him. It was obnoxiously loud and extremely drawn out, so Steve knew exactly whom he was going to deal with next.
"Hey mouse-boy!" Tony Stark, the owner and fellow resident of the apartment complex, shouted out. "Where are you popping off to today? Still working at that advertisement company? You know I didn't lie when I said I would take you on as a secretary. Who wouldn't want a cutie like you?"
"As charming as ever," Steve muttered under his breath as he turned around to face the approaching voice. Louder, he said, "Mr. Stark, what can I do for you?"
"Mister Stark." Tony repeated "Oh how I love you calling me that. Makes me feel important. But in all seriousness, call me Tony. Easier on the tongue. As for what you could do for me, well, you could do a lot of things for me. Except my taxes. Or maybe moving my couches. I would have to ask Thor or someone to help me with something like that. But then there's his brother…"
Steve mentally counted to ten as the owner continued to blather on. The man didn't seem to have an off-switch. When he reached fifteen he decided that he probably wasted enough time.
"Well, if that's everything…" Steve took a step backward to signal that he was leaving the conversation. Or one sided monologue, whatever you wanted to call it.
"Oh, oh, wait. I actually did need to talk to you about your rent for the next few months."
Steve stopped in his retreat. "Is something wrong?"
"What? Oh, nothing wrong per se, just maybe some things we need to sort out."
By now the man was about 5 feet in front of Steve. Steve made sure to keep a careful estimation of how close Stark was to him. Of everyone in the apartment, Tony was the worst about sudden physical contact. It was like Tony needed to have a hand on whoever he was dealing with at any given moment. It was at about this distance that Tony would inevitably touch Steve. Whether on his arm, or his back, or one very annoying time on his head. At first, Steve had tried to make a point of showing that the contact made him uncomfortable, but by now he was kind of use to it.
"What needs to be sorted out?" Steve questioned further.
"Well, you see," There was the hand on the shoulder. It slowly started to push him towards the left and towards the office room that Tony sometimes worked out of. "I recently became interested in this new… business. I had wanted to start running it full time. But I ran into some money issues. At first I thought I could easily by-pass these "issues", but it has been brought to my attention that it would be illegal."
"Illegal!"
"Yeah, pesky IRS codes and such." Tony continued. "So, I realized that in order to make my business work I needed to work in a different direction. So I am changing your rent."
Steve shrugged the hand off and turned towards Tony. "You're telling me that because you wanted to start some crazy, new business venture that you are upping my rent! That breaks the renter's agreement-"
"Woah, Woah, Woah!" Tony interrupted loudly. "And when did I say I was increasing your rent? I remember saying that I was changing your rent."
Steve took in this new information. "You're… lowering my rent?"
"Yep!" The hand was back on his shoulder, now easing him into the office room door. "I need to lower your rent by a hundred bucks." The hand now shoved Steve towards a chair in the center of the room. After stumbling a bit, Steve's fingers found the edges of the leather seat. "I was thinking of changing your renter's agreement, but I thought, 'That would be a big waste of time' so instead, I wanted to just pay you back the $100 every month." The drawers of the desk in the room rattled as Mr. Stark pawed through them. "Now I remember I put it somewhere, but I can't quite remember where it is."
"Wait, wait, wait. I don't get it." Steve interrupted… whatever Tony was trying to do at the moment. "Why would you lower my rent? It doesn't make sense for you to pay me money if you are having financial issues with your new business!"
"Ah, well there were some issues with paying my employees and making all the money even out with my tax returns. It's a lot of technical legal stuff. Nothing you have to worry about. Everything I'm doing now is perfectly within the laws. Well, at least 25% within the laws. Can you do that? Be a percentage within a law? Or is it like a line? Like you're on one side or the other? It would be much easier for V if there was a percentage of the law. He would probably be within 25% of it. But then Hugo Weaving wouldn't get the recognition he deserves."
Steve rolled his eyes at Tony's chatter. It cost too much emotional energy to react to these talks. Steve had realized quickly that getting anxious about every little thing Tony said was too much. Tony was going to do whatever he wanted anyways, it was better to sift through the chatter to what you could actually do about it.
"So you're going to pay me back $100? Every month?" Steve clarified.
"Yep!" Tony chirped, another drawer rattling open. "Every month you get a surprise present for being a good tenant. Or not so good tenant. Doesn't matter. Just come by the desk and I'll give it to you, and you can spend it on whatever you like! A haircut, nice shoes, more giant baggy jackets that look terribly unflattering. You know I do know a tailor who could make you some very nice coats. She's great with adjustments and is in charge of my entire wardrobe. Great woman. I could give you her number-"
Steve held up a hand, trying to stop the flow of words. "Wait, you're gonna pay me back every month? Why don't you just lower the payment on my rent?"
"That's boring!" Tony exclaimed, "And there's all this legal stuff if you are trying to change renter agreements, so it would just make sense if I called this a monetary gift."
"I pay you, $1650 a month, and then you pay me back $100 in cash?" Steve asked, before Tony could get distracted.
"Exactly."
"Why don't I just give you $1550?" Steve asked annoyed. "It would decrease the amount of transactions we have."
"But then I wouldn't get to look at these 100 dollar bills!" Tony cried out. "You know they really do have Benjamin Franklin on them? He looks exactly like a long haired Anthony Hopkins. Same disapproving frown and side eye. Of course Benjamin Franklin never scared a young Jodie Foster. Though I guess she wasn't too young, since she wasn't some prostitute. Did you know that Jodie Foster and Alexandra Hedison have recently gone to London. They are quite the sight together. I always like Jodie Foster. Great actress. "
"So, you're gonna give me $100 right?" Steve interrupted whatever Tony had moved to talk about next.
"Huh? Oh, yeah . 100 bucks, right up front." The shifting noise of paper filled the office again as Tony searched his desk. "And… here it is! Of course I would leave it under the Avengers folder."
Steve stood up, holding his hand out in front of him. He might as well make Tony do all the work. "Avengers?" he asked, half interested.
"Huh?"
"You said Avengers file. What's that?" Steve expanded.
"I did? I said that? No, I didn't. You must have misheard." Tony muttered. "Well, here is your money." A single bill was placed in Steve's upturned hand. He could feel the cotton and the way it was soft in the middle but still crisp on the edges. It was also at this point that he realized that he wouldn't be able to tell what type of bill it was. But that was less interesting than the…
"You said Avengers," Steve repeated. "I know I heard it. What is it?"
"You have a real eye for detail, you know that?" Tony chuckled at his own joke while Steve rolled his eyes behind his sunglasses.
Tony had avoided the question and he was starting to sound a little defensive. He even went so far as to insult Steve's blindness. Did Steve hit a nerve when he asked? What was it about "Avengers" that made Tony nervous?
"What is the Avengers?" Steve asked bluntly, not allowing any room for Tony to sneak away from this topic.
For the first time since Steve had met him, Tony stayed quiet. It actually worried Steve. He thought he might have actually angered the easy-going apartment owner, something he had never heard happen before. Steve was thinking of apologizing and letting the whole thing go, when Tony took a breath.
"It's just a group I'm trying to set up. I know a few people with similar interests and I thought it would be nice if we could all work together on… things."
Steve tilted his head at the answer. Why was Tony so nervous about something like that?
"Do you guys do illegal things?"
"Oh, you know, the usual, murder, mayhem and madness!"
Steve sighed, the tension rolling out of him. He should have known Tony wouldn't give him a straight answer. "Right."
"Oh, before you leave, how are you getting on at the apartments? Having any trouble with the other tenants?"
Steve thought about Loki and Thor, wondering if he should say anything about what happened between them and Bucky. 'But it worked itself out in the end,' Steve thought, before shaking his head. "No, nothing has been bothering me."
Tony was silent for a second, before he asked, "What about the Russian?"
"Who, Natasha?"
"No, no. The other Russian, your neighbor. You know, dark hair, lots of black, broody. Though I guess the only thing that would help you is the broody part."
Steve frowned. "Bucky's great."
"Bucky? I thought his name was James. He better not have forged his ID."
Steve sighed. "His name's James, but he asked me to call him Bucky. He's really helped me settle into my room. He's a great friend."
Tony scoffed. "Friend, huh? Guess that wouldn't be the word I would use, but I don't like glowering towers of muscle." Steve opened his mouth to comment, but Tony continued. "Look, just know that if anything happens, you can come and talk to me about it. If you don't like whatever you and comrade are doing, I can help out. Kosher?"
Steve blinked at the offer, realizing that Tony was looking out for his safety. It was an oddly touching sentiment, even though Steve didn't need it. Bucky wouldn't hurt Steve. "I'll keep it in mind," Steve compromised.
"Good."
A silence covered the space following the heartfelt feelings. A small cough from Tony pushed Steve into saying something to end the awkwardness.
"Well, you should have fun with your little club. I have to get goin'. I want to grab some groceries on the way home and I don't want to be out late when I'm carrying bags."
Steve stood and turned towards the door, trying to be careful not to bump his leg into the leather chair. He worked his way over to the door, finding the knob on his first try, and opening it slowly.
"Oh, Steve." Tony's voice stopped him, "Please be careful on your way, I don't want to lose a little blind mouse."
Steve let out a huff. Of course the man couldn't leave things well enough alone. He stepped out into the hall, slamming the door behind him.
A group of like minded people called the Avengers. After that one moment Steve never heard of this group again. But that didn't stop Steve from wondering about them. Tony never spoke about them, and nothing changed in the world of the apartment, just that every month Steve got a $100, like clockwork. Maybe Tony just made the story up so that he could give Steve money, or something.
Steve didn't understand why Tony felt like he still needed to pay Steve money, but Steve decided to just let the situation slide. When he first arrived here he would have never been so lax about something like this. He had been too proud about doing things on his own and not allowing anyone to pity him for what he could no longer do. He would have thought that Tony was just handing out money to him because he was blind and the job he worked at, though fun and filled with a group of great people, was not the most well-paying job.
But by the second month of dealing with Tony Stark, Steve had realized that the man was anything but delicate. The man never saw his disability as anything more than something he could poke fun of. The man basically lived on insulting everyone around him.
At first, Steve could barely stand the man. He was having a hard enough time adapting to his new world without someone shoving his face into his problems after every sentence. It took Steve a very long time to realize that these insults meant more than face value affronts.
As Steve interacted with Tony more and more, he realized that, for Tony, if you couldn't handle the extreme amounts of sarcasm and mockery that came your way, than you weren't worthy of being a friend. And by now, that's what the two of them had become. Steve liked listening to Tony's way of talking. It was always so fast and so energetic.
The man was still weird, there was no mistaking that. He had this strange obsession with pop idols, talking about them for days on end; about their jobs, their families, what they were wearing, anything about them really. And he never stuck to a genre, like music or acting. If you were famous, Tony Stark knew about you.
The man also seemed to go into long bouts of "hermitage". He would stay in his room for days- almost made it to a week, once- and then come out tired, hungry and cranky.
And he always smelled of gunpowder, fire, and smoke. Steve had mentioned it to the man once, not really minding the smell, but wondering where it came from. Tony had laughed for five minutes straight before clapping Steve on the back and calling him "amazing". Then the man started wearing heavy cologne and using intense smelling soap. But Steve could still smell the underlying burning scent. Of course Steve didn't tell Tony. It must have been really embarrassing to be told that you smell by someone, and Steve didn't want the older man to feel embarrassed.
But despite all of his oddities, Tony treated Steve like he treated everyone else. It was nice to feel that people weren't walking on eggshells around him all the time.
Steve shoved back from the counter, turning towards the exit. It was apparent that Tony wasn't here right now. Maybe he was stuck in his room doing… whatever he did.
Steve marched towards the open-air. He would just have to collect his money when he got home.
Tony Stark (aka Iron Man)
MO: 6 victims, all ages, races, and genders. All victims were famous celebrities who recently fell from popular opinion due to personal comments or situations. All victims had a piece of mail delivered to the doorstep of their vacation homes, perhaps to show a sense of insider knowledge. The bombs are home made, with a specific concoction of flammable and combustible material that is specific to the Iron Man attacks. All but one bomb have been non-lethal, only leading to scarring or burns. The single lethal bomb was the fourth and had an added component of bullets and iron nails. It was first thought to be an escalation, but the following bombs showed it to be an outlier.
Tony Stark loves to have attention. He gets it in the most... inconvenient way. The assault on other famous people. He tends to target those that he feels have abused their popularity. He keeps a detailed account of all of his victims, taking out news clippings of them before and after his "present". He especially loves written pieces about himself, "the Iron Man". He has a flare for the dramatic as well as a love for the explosive. He is obsessive about the people he watches as well as his craft. He has a science based mind, and is rather comfortable in the presence of larger "predators" such as the serial kidnapper "the Hulk".