Tony stared around the Tower with drug influenced eyes, his arm hung limply in the sling and idly he realized he was sleepy. His brown eyes drooped slightly as he fought back the increasingly fuzzy feeling his head was currently experiencing. He didn't realize he was leaning sideways until he felt the solid lines of Steve and idly realized he was tucked into the taller man's side; were it not for Steve's physical presence right there he would have kept falling sideways.
"Oh, Tony." There was warmth in the voice and fondness, but Tony's hazy mind was scrambling to figure out why everyone was giving him those looks. "Let's get you to bed." Steve moved to guide him towards the elevator, but Tony discovered he wasn't going to be moving from his current spot. Especially since the world was losing focus and he could feel his mind shutting down. Needing to reboot from the physical and emotional trauma of the day; the drugs were only speeding up the process but Tony was a fighter. He wasn't going down yet.
"I don't want to move." He mumbled, tripping over simple words, focusing every last bit he had left on pushing back the drowsiness. "Everythings…fuzzy." Tony closed his eyes and moved his uninjured arm to his forehead trying to will away the effects of the medication.
"Dad?" Peter's voice came from his left and sounded concerned. "It's ok. SHIELD gave you some medicine for the pain…you're just tired."
"Hmmm." Tony hummed idly as he tried to right himself, but only succeed in leaning heavily into Steve's side.
"I've got you." Steve moved carefully making sure to keep Tony upright as he carefully scooped his teammate up into his arms. "There. We'll get you upstairs. Peter can you grab his medicine, a couple water bottles and meet me in Tony's room?"
"Sure." Peter collected the pills from Coulson who held the bag out silently and then headed towards the kitchen while Steve went to Tony's room.
Once the others were sure their teammates and the newest member were gone Natasha looked around, "He is so far gone over Stark it almost isn't funny."
Clint nodded and dropped into a chair. "It is only a matter of time."
"I thought the Man of Iron preferred females?" Thor sounded confused as he looked at the others, not having any awareness of the bet that Natasha, Clint and Bruce had placed.
All eyes turned towards Coulson who stared back at them with a blank stare. "Well? Do you know if Stark swings that way?" Clint raised an eyebrow. "I'm sad to admit it, but I can never figure out someone's preference until I'm seeing them in action or they've told me straight out."
Natasha's lips twitched, "During the entire time I was undercover at Stark Industries I never heard anything about Tony having any male lovers. It was all females otherwise we might have sent Clint instead."
Coulson frowned, "We would have sent someone else over Barton." His voice was firm and Clint grinned wickedly.
"Pepper would know." Natasha sounded thoughtful, "But I have never heard anything of him taking a male partner or entertaining the idea. Wouldn't it have been in his file somewhere?"
Bruce frowned and looked at the doorway, "Is this going to end in tears?" a tense silence filled the space as each member tried to figure out if it mattered to Tony what sex his partner was or if Steve was about to get his heart broken. There was always the potential that if Steve made a move Tony would react negatively or freak out. The possibilities seemed endless at this point.
"When I found out that Stark was going to be on the same team as Captain America I was thinking this was going to be the other way around. Especially since Steve Rogers lived during World War II and we all know the feelings of people back then about same-sex partners." Coulson frowned. "Now I have to worry about Stark being traumatized further than he already is at this point. I don't think he has noticed…" he trailed off as Clint snickered slightly. "Having your friend come on to you out of nowhere might not help with Stark's…issues."
"I think Tony believes its friendship. The whole time I was observing him I noticed that he didn't seem to interact with others very well." Natasha sighed as she sunk into a chair as well. "Though he was dying during that time so it might not be the best experience to base an opinion off of…plus there was a lot of alcohol involved during some of it. We all know Tony has a public persona that he puts on for everyone outside of his closest acquaintances. Tony would probably prefer to spend all his time in his workshop with his bots and JARVIS. Steve is almost always around him…"
Tony was half asleep by the time Steve reached his room. "Ok, Tony. We need to get you into something more comfortable." He looked around the room as Peter came in, "Can you set those on the bedside table and grab something for him to change into? The extra set of clothes he changed into is not going to work." Peter wandered over to the dresser and started pulling open doors until he found nightclothes. He grabbed some red night pants and walked back.
"I figured it would be easier to not put him into another shirt." Peter held the pants out for Steve who stared at him and then Tony who was still supported in his arms.
"Ok, Tony. I'm going to put you on your feet and then you're going to need to put these pants on." Steve carefully put Tony on his feet and watched as the other man swayed with his eyes barely open.
"Sleep." He moaned and tried to find his bed.
"Change clothes first."
Tony stared at the pants Steve was mentioning before looking at Peter who was watching them and then at himself. "Umm…help?" he asked with a slightly hopeful tone. Steve's cheeks tinted pink slightly as he tried to ignore the implications of Tony's request. Tony wanted him, Steve Rogers, to help him undress.
"You'll be fine."
Peter watched the interaction and noticed the look on Steve's face before a light bulb went off. His eyes snapped to look at Tony who was so far gone from the drugs and sleepiness that he didn't appear to be aware of much of anything.
"Please, Steve." Tony took a step and swayed again. "I can't really lift my arms." He blinked slowly and heard the sigh that Steve released.
"Fine." It earned a relieved grin as Tony moved to unbutton the front of his pants and moved them down as best he could. When he couldn't move anymore without feeling pain he stared at Steve who carefully moved forward so as to assist Tony. He instructed Tony to lean on the bedside table as he carefully removed his pants before helping him step into the night pants. Tony blinked down at him as Steve carefully stood before moving to help Tony out of his shirt. "I'm going to remove the sling so we can get your arm out of your shirt and then we'll put it back on, ok?" he made sure to explain everything he was doing so if Tony had an objection he could make it.
"Is it going to hurt?" he asked carefully not wanting that again. Tony was tired of being in pain, of having to ice down his Iron Man suit testing injuries and being poked by SHIELD Medical Staff. He was going to blame Fury. Somehow it was his fault. If they would just leave him to himself, let him deal with his own injuries everything would be fine and he wouldn't have to worry about someone possibly damaging his Arc Reactor. The machine that kept him alive.
Steve locked eyes with him, his face a mask of seriousness. "I will do my best to make sure if you feel any pain it will be minimal."
"Ok." Tony shifted his injured arm, mindful of the wrap on his side and gritted his teeth. He watched as Steve carefully removed the sling making sure he lowered his arm slowly before Steve moved to take the shirt off. Tony felt a slight twinge of pain at the movement, but the drugs running through his system dulled any he might have experienced.
Peter watched the entire scene feeling overly protective. He knew Steve Rogers was a good man who obviously cared about Tony, but in Tony's current state he was unable to really focus on anything going on. So Tony needed someone to protect him because he wasn't in any position to do so himself. Eyes watched Tony's face for any sign of pain or distress, but Steve was careful, professional and made sure any time he touched Tony it was for a necessary reason. Peter relaxed, he didn't believe he had enough strength from that spider to best Captain America, but he could help Tony out if needed. This was the closest he'd ever really gotten to a father figure in his life since his biological father had disappeared so many years ago, someone who cared for him, nurtured his interests and dropped everything in order to give Peter a stable home with a family.
"Ok. If you need anything say something to JARVIS and he can let one of us know. You're not to lift anything. JARVIS, you'll make sure Tony doesn't hurt himself further, right?" Steve asked the AI as Tony got under the covers.
"Of course, Captain. If Sir requires anything I'll make sure to inform one of his teammates." Steve smiled slightly as he looked down at Tony who was burrowed in his covers. Soft breathing could be heard as he noted that Tony had already given up the battle of staying awake.
"He has a medicine schedule. Do you need me to let you know or are you already hacking into SHIELD to get the information?" he sounded amused while he watched Peter check Tony over.
"Already obtained the necessary information. Has Mr. Stark had anything since the Medical staff of SHIELD last noted his dosages?" JARVIS asked before listing everything he had from the file.
"No. He hasn't had anything. Tony has close to four hours before his next pain medicine dosage." Steve headed towards the door leaving Peter in Tony's bedroom.
As it turned out Tony did not like being prevented from working on Iron Man repairs. It wasn't a big shock. Once he'd figured out which movements resulted in pain and which didn't Tony wanted to be down in his workshop. Not the little one he'd had built for his personal floor. He'd also been dodging Fury's calls for several days. Peter was currently down in Tony's workshop watching as Tony moved about looking over the damaged Iron Man suit. He wasn't picking anything up but manipulating the holograms with his good hand. Picking parts he wanted to keep and making improvements as he went. Dummy was lifting whatever he could to help Tony and hovering closely as Peter watched from the couch. It was then that he heard an alarm going off and JARVIS' voice interrupted.
"Director Fury has overridden the access codes, Sir, with his own."
"Fuck." Tony groaned as he sunk down in his chair as Peter looked up and stared at the door. "Don't let him in…" he trailed off as Fury was already coming into the workshop. Dummy was aware of Tony's injuries; now hearing the distress as well as already having record of Fury's interactions with his creator he quickly moved across the floor before Fury's mouth even opened. "You don't have authorization to be down here, Fury."
"Stark! You have failed to—" Nick Fury's voice was raised as Dummy intercepted him and began shooting him with the fire extinguisher. Tony was up and moving before Fury could react as Dummy had moved from spraying Fury to physically shoving him towards the entrance. Peter clapped a hand over his mouth so he wasn't laughing out loud as Fury's eye started twitching. He started to move into action as Tony stepped between Dummy and Fury just as the SHIELD Director drew his gun.
"You so much as scratch my bot and I'll kill you with my bare hands." Tony's voice was steel as he stared into the barrel of Fury's gun. "One fucking scratch."
Dummy whirred angrily and rolled across the room towards the emergency panel that Pepper had forced Tony to install in case he was unable to call for help. The bot activated it even as Peter was moving across the workshop to Tony's side on the off chance he was needed. He didn't like the look on the other man's face and had no problem tapping into Spider-Man's strength, speed and abilities if it meant keeping his new dad safe from harm. Keeping it a secret be damned.
"You'll not ignore me, Stark!" Fury was in Tony's face, eyes narrowed in anger. "You're a part of SHIELD, the Avengers Initiative, which brings you under my command."
Despite his injuries Tony was still going toe to toe with arrogance, disdain and anger present on his face. "You're not my boss. Not my leader and you are sure as hell not in charge of me! I don't have to answer to you! I'm not jumping when you say jump. I'm not a soldier, Fury, and as I told Steve once I will not march to your fife." His features twisted into a mutinous expression.
The door to the workshop opened and Steve Rogers was striding across the floor towards the two yelling men. "Director. What are you doing here?" he questioned, tone cool and eyes hard. Steve moved close to Tony and Peter causing Fury to back up a few steps. He was the leader, he was in charge of the Avengers and their welfare was the most important thing to him. Tony was injured and therefore vulnerable. Steve would be lying if he said he wasn't protective of those he cared about and the fact that Fury seemed to have tried to corner the wounded man didn't sit well with him.
"This has nothing to do with you, Captain. I'm here with regards to Stark." Fury gave Steve an unimpressed look before his eyes shifted back to the injured Tony who was still glaring at him.
"With all due respect, sir, Tony has been temporarily placed in my care while he is recovering from his injuries and I don't believe having you yelling at him is good for his recovery. I will have to ask you to leave Avengers' Tower immediately. You'll not be permitted back on the premises until otherwise stated." The threat was obvious in Steve Rogers' tone as he shifted slightly in front of Tony. Captain America was obvious in every line of his body and the command in his voice. Dummy raised the fire extinguisher in what could only be described as a threatening manner. "Dummy seems to agree with me."
Director Fury drew himself up and met Steve's eyes, "I will not forget this insubordination, Captain."
"As I will never forget your deceit and the distress you caused my teammates." His voice was even and full of restrained anger. Tony stuck his tongue out at Fury in what was a decidedly childish manner. "The door is that way." Steve jerked his head towards the exit and watched as Nick Fury turned on his heel before heading towards the door. "JARVIS, make sure he goes straight towards the exit."
"And revoke any clearance that anyone who I have not already vetted through your system currently processes. This overriding of my security cannot go on any longer! I want Fury's access codes and override codes removed from my system. All of them." Tony began to move towards his work area with Dummy following. He turned towards the bot and ran an affectionate hand down Dummy's braces. "You did a good job protecting me, didn't you?" he grinned slightly. Dummy whirred happily as he waved the fire extinguisher in a manner reminiscent of victory.
A voice behind Tony stopped his progression towards his work, "What is this I hear about you standing in front of Director Fury's gun?"
Tony winced slightly, "He was going to shoot Dummy and all Dummy was doing was trying to protect me." Peter looked between the two of them and recognized the look on Steve's face. He beat a hasty retreat towards the exit glancing back before heading up the stairs.
"Fine." It was obviously painful for Steve to say that, "But next time please don't do something that stupid. What if he'd fired before he realized you were there? While I understand that Dummy is very important to you he can be repaired if something does happen, but you're a human and therefore cannot be repaired as easily."
As he listened to Steve's words Tony glared off to the side, "He can't just threaten my bot like that, Steve. Dummy is mine and no one hurts what is mine. I won't stand for it. And in my own home! Fury just thinks he can come in here, order me around and expect me to follow his orders like a good little soldier. They didn't even want me in the Avengers' Initiative. They wanted Iron Man but not Tony Stark; which really isn't all that surprising considering that no one really wants Tony Stark. I don't need SHIELD. Iron Man was created without any awareness of SHIELD's existence."
Steve stared at Tony taking in the broken arm, the various cuts and bruises, the slightly wild hair and the defiance. Who wouldn't want Tony Stark? He wanted so badly to wrap the other man up and shield him from the world. It wasn't logical. Couldn't be normal. Who could have these kinds of irrational feelings all the time? "That's not true. We want you. The Avengers want you…we need you, Tony. Who cares what Fury said before? If it wasn't for you New York City would have been blown off the Earth. All those innocent people would be dead. Everyone in this Tower would be gone. You're important Tony, you're worth so much. Look at everything you've achieved, all those you have saved and now you're working on a clean energy project that will only benefit others."
Tony sighed, "Must be the medication. It's messing me up."
He would allow that scapegoat, Tony obviously needed it. "Must be. Did you eat anything with your pain medication?"
The look on Tony's face said it all. "I planned on eating, but I wanted to get these upgrades put in." Steve glanced around to make sure Tony hadn't been lifting anything. "It was hologram, Steve. No lifting." It was slightly bitter.
Tony was pouting and Steve knew that the other man hated not being able to get his hands dirty, to build machines, tear machines apart…invent. His injuries were preventing Tony from doing what he loved and the other man was obviously bitter about it. But the damage to his side and the broken arm needed to heal. There was nothing he could do to help. "Let's go upstairs." He watched as Tony glanced around the room before nodding slowly. He'd been down there for nine hours anyway; a break might not be too bad. Steve looked over at Dummy, "Thank you Dummy for watching him and calling me. Sometimes Tony needs someone to protect him."
The bot whirred at him before grasping Steve's shirt with his claw. Dummy tugged on him. "I'll watch him for you, how is that Dummy?"
At this Dummy released Steve's shirt before rolling away. Tony slowly made his way over to Steve. "Thanks for chasing off Fury. I've really got to take out all of those security codes and fix the—"
"Tomorrow."
The sigh was slightly pained, "Fine. Tomorrow." Tony had just wanted to escape his room. He loved that bed and being able to work on a few concepts on his Starkpad, but he'd been confined to the Tower since he'd come back from Medical. He wanted fresh air. "Can we go…somewhere? I want out. I need out…if I can't work on my projects I need to move. Anything."
"Sure. Anywhere in particular you want to go?" Steve glanced over at Tony as they moved up the stairs.
"What haven't you seen yet?" Tony offered a slight grin as they reached the top of the stairs.
Steve paused and gave it honest thought as his mind went over all the places around New York City that he had yet to visit. They've ventured out of New York on a few occasions, but there were still a few close to home he'd not checked out. "The Metropolitan Museum of Art?"
"Is that a question or a statement?" Tony raised an eyebrow as he headed towards the kitchen. He was past due on his medicine.
"I didn't know if that would appeal to you or if you were hoping for something else."
A sigh escaped, "I've been there for events, charities and fundraisers…I've never actually visited the Museum so I'm not really aware of everything it has to offer." Tony took his pills and turned back to Steve, "I wouldn't mind a trip to the Met. But first let's get some food."
Tony was grinning at him from inside the limo as they headed back towards Avengers' Tower. He'd dragged Tony around the whole place. It had been closing and a few words from Tony granted them a private viewing of the Museum after hours. "So?" Tony raised an eyebrow, "What's the verdict?"
"My favorite Art Museum to date."
"I've lost track of how many Museums I've been to since everyone moved in to the Tower." Tony leaned back in the seat and closed his eyes as he listened to the sound of the vehicle, Steve's breathing and the hum of the Arc Reactor. It was peaceful and relaxing. "Never thought they would be enjoyable." The smile on his face was soft now.
He didn't realize what he was doing until he'd leaned forward and captured Tony Stark's lips with his own. They were soft and warm and everything he'd imagined. All of his senses were filled with Tony and Steve wished he could capture the moment because he was terrified it was a dream. A soft gasp reached his ears as Tony's eyes, hooded, looked at him.
So I might have left a 'little' cliff-hanger...
I'm torn on my favorite part for this chapter...I do love Dummy.
