It was finally done. After weeks of hard work it was finally finished: his suit of armor. He had tested the effect of the flight stabalizers paired with the thrusters around his lab, and after only a few casualties he felt confident enough to take to the sky. He had done the math in his head, and if he was right - which he always was - then he should have been able to pull it off without a hitch. Despite Jarvis' apprehension Tony had convinced him to go along with it. He took off through his garage and into the sky without much difficulty. He could only hope that the rest of his flight went as smoothly.
He could feel the adrenaline pumping in his blood as he took to the sky. He could hear his heart beating in his ears with every maneuver he made. Piloting the suit was somewhat easier than he had expected, though he hadn't taken into consideration the thrill of it all. He thought the experience would be more akin to piloting a plane, but as the wind rushed past his helmet he came to realize that it was nothing like that. In that particular moment the only thing keeping him from plummeting to the ground below was a metal suit of armor powered by the reactor in his chest. It was totally different from the safe enclosure of a cockpit.
One thing that's comparable to flying in a normal aircraft, however, was how amazing the view was from the sky. The city lights twinkled down below like stars brought to Earth. Through his visor he could see every detail; his vision magnified on the faces of passersby on the ground. He thought Pepper would have loved to see something like this, but then he considered the cross look she would no doubt give him once she found out about what he had made. Then an even more striking thought occurred to him; he wondered what Miranda would think of all this. Though the mere thought of her would have made him cringe weeks ago, he found himself taking a liking to her within the most recent days. He still thought her to be rather crude, and though she could hardly keep up with him on an intellectual level, he still had fun getting on her nerves. She made it so easy for him, too.
He wondered what Miranda would think of his newest creation. She didn't seem like the kind of woman who was easily impressed. He imagined she would be if she got to see a view like this. But mostly he could imagine the nervous look that would grace her face if she were ever to see what he had made. She would never admit it, but she worried about him. He could see it written all over her face. The thing was he couldn't tell whether her concern was genuine or out of a sense of duty. It seemed the more he thought about her the further he got from figuring her out. She was a complex puzzle unlike any he had ever seen before. She intrigued him, and he found himself wanting to know more about her.
He shook his head as he tried to free himself of any thought of her. Since when did he get so curious about the help? He never put as much thought into Happy or Pepper. Then again, he did extensive background checks on the both of them before hiring either of them. With Miranda he simply went by Rhodey's word. How did he know he could trust her with his life? He would remind himself to perform some personal research on her later. He had managed to convince himself that it would be in his own best interest. In the meantime, however, he would have to focus on the task at hand. He still had to test the flight altitude.
He soared into the night sky going higher and higher. He kept going despite Jarvis' warnings, so when the ice build-up froze his systems he had no one to blame but himself. He called out to Jarvis as he plummeted to what could only have been his demise. With no response from his AI he only had one option left. In his panic he managed to break the ice off the suit bringing the systems back online shortly after. A split second before he would hit the ground he powered his thrusters and took flight once more. He whooped to his success as he just narrowly dodged oncoming traffic. After having collected a sufficient amount of data he decided it was time to head home. His only problem left would be his clumsy landing. He made an attempt to land on the roof, but after overestimating the structure's weight limit he crashed down two stories and back into his lab. He thought he could hear Miranda's startled screams on his way down.
Miranda was sitting on the couch watching cartoons to pass the time. Pepper was given the night off, and, to her knowledge, Tony had isolated himself in his workshop once again. It was just a routine he had built for himself. She had come to learn that it was nothing out of the ordinary for him. It was something she had grown accustomed to. She had also become too used to the peace and quiet she had acquired in the past weeks. Because of this she was unprepared for the massive silver blur that came plummeting through Tony's ceiling. She recovered quickly, though, as she took off running down the stares. Her fingers typed in the passcode to the lab with a familiar steadiness. Her hands would soon hold her gun with just as much composure. She called out for Tony as she flung the door open. "Mr. Stark?!"
"Oh boy," Tony muttered to himself. He had a feeling he was in for some trouble.
Miranda couldn't see any trace of Tony, and she wasn't sure whether or not that was a good thing. The only thing she could make out was that thing that came crashing through the ceiling. It appeared to be made from some kind of metal chrome. The good news was it didn't appear to be any kind of explosive, or at least not any she had ever seen before. She immediately unholstered her handgun on sight, and cautiously made her way into the room. Upon closer inspection she realized what she was looking at. Sprawled out over the now crumpled heap that was once Tony's car lied a metal man, and it was moving. Miranda aimed her sight on her target. "Freeze! Don't Move!" she ordered. "What have you done with Mr. Stark?" Unbeknownst to her Tony was inside the metal shell giving his own demands.
"God dammit," he cursed. "Jarvis, initiate the external microphone."
"External microphone engaged, Sir," Jarvis confirmed.
Tony raised his hands defensively as he spoke, "Don't shoot me, you idiot." Miranda furrowed her brow at his poor attempt at placating her. It would seem she still didn't know who she was talking to. Tony continued, "On second thought, go at it. That'll be one less test I'd have to run. Just don't aim for the reactor. It's kind of like Star Wars; you shoot the core and the whole thing goes boom."
In case Tony's sarcasm wasn't enough of an indication, Miranda's attention was brought to the glowing blue light shining from the metal monster's chest. "Oh my God," Miranda breathed. "Mr. Stark, is that you?"
Tony removed his mask revealing his face underneath. "In the flesh," he said. "Now do me a favor and point that gun somewhere else." Miranda swiftly holstered her gun as she stared dumbstruck by what she saw before her.
"No, don't help or anything," Tony said sarcastically as he picked himself up. "I'm perfectly fine, I can get up on my own."
It wasn't until Jarvis had started removing the armor from Tony's body did she find her ability to speak. "What is this?"
"It's a suit of armor," he replied dryly. "Kind of like what you see at renaissance festivals except that mine is more high-tech and far cooler."
"And that stuff, the thrusters and the flight boosters-"
"Flight stabilizers," Tony corrected.
"All that was for this?"
"That would be the case, yes," he confirmed.
"So you flew and then you fell through the ceiling."
"I didn't fall, I just hadn't perfected my landings yet."
"That's not the point! Don't you have any idea how dangerous this is?"
"I do, actually. I've done all the math, I know all the risks." He had finally been freed of his suit and was facing her head on. He had become good at reading her in the last few weeks. He knew the look her face made when she was irritated. The look she was giving him now wasn't anywhere near that. If he had to guess he'd say she looked almost afraid.
"I should have known this would happen. I should have shut you down the moment I saw you tinkering down here." Her voice was contemptuous as she recalled the things she'd seen him working on.
"How?" Tony challenged. "How would you have shut me down? How could you stop me from doing what I want in my own house?"
"I would have duct taped your ass to the floor until you got this shit out of your system," she said threateningly.
"So you would use force? That's not very compassionate of you," he jeered.
"Do you have any idea what just happened here? I almost shot you." It was subtle, but he thought he had heard her voice crack.
"But you didn't," he reminded her.
"But I would have." Her expression changed again. This time to a look of distress. He wondered what she meant by that, and as he contemplated asking her he had noticed a difference in her body language. Her right hand went up to hold her chest, as if she was having trouble breathing. He noticed then that she was shaking.
"Are you okay?" He reached out a hand to touch her shoulder, but she shrugged his hand away.
"Don't touch me! If I ever see you in that suit again, I'm putting you on lockdown." She didn't wait for a reply, instead she turned and walked away as briskly as she could.
His anger flared up at this. "You can't keep me prisoner in my own house," he argued. "Where are you going?"
"I can't be around you right now," she called over her shoulder.
"You're mad at me? You just pointed a gun at my head, and you're mad at me? Get back here!" The door swung closed behind her before he could even finish his thought.
Ignoring his antagonizing shouts she climbed up the stairs, not allowing herself a moment's rest until she was out of Tony's line of sight. She was grateful that he decided not to follow her, as she didn't want anyone to see her in such a state. Her hands shook, and she wasn't sure how much longer her knees were willing to hold her up. It wasn't until she was safe inside her room did she allow herself to collapse to the floor. Her breathing hitched as she gasped for air. The implications of what could have happened played over and over inside her head. What if she had pulled the trigger? Would the armor he was wearing stop the bullet? And then there was Tony, who of course had to turn it into a joke. "Asshole!"
"Private Ridley, are you quite all right?" Jarvis' voice sounded overhead.
"I'm fine," she choked out.
"Are you sure you're not in need of some assistance?" Jarvis further inquired.
"I'm okay, Jarvis. I just need a minute." She took off her jacket to alleviate some of the constriction around her chest. It seemed to help. Taking deep breaths she lied herself down in the makeshift bed she had made on the floor. For a moment, as she stared up at the fluorescent lights in the ceiling she thought she was looking up at the hot desert sun, and with it she thought she could hear the sound of gunfire ringing in her ears.
Tony had no idea what just happened. The exchange he had just shared with Miranda was like none he'd ever had. Not even Pepper at her most exasperated was as volatile and confusing as Miranda had just been. He remembered contemplating on what Miranda would think of his invention and felt foolish for doing so. He never expected a positive reaction from her, but at the same time he didn't expect her to be so angry. Granted, he probably shouldn't have presented it to her the way he did. But the way he saw it, what use was a surprise if it didn't shock you.
With a heavy sigh and a fresh ice pack pressed against his throbbing head, he crossed the room to start on his notes when a brown package caught his eye. It was the package that Miranda had brought down with her the other day. He'd been so absorbed in his work that he had completely forgotten about it until that moment. Placed on top was a Post-it note that read "From Pepper". He smiled at the thought. When he tore open the paper he was surprised to find his original arc reactor with an engraving that read "Proof that Tony Stark has a Heart". Now that was truly shocking.
"I thought I told Randy to get rid of this," he muttered to himself thoughtfully. This was no doubt Pepper's idea, he thought. She was always the sentimental type. He wondered where he would be without her. The two of them had been through a lot together, including all those rumors of them dating that circulated throughout the tabloids. There was a time where he could imagine them both being together, but something changed in him after his captivity. He was no longer certain of his future.
Ridding himself of his anxious thoughts, he instead chose to occupy himself with his work. "Turn on the news, will you, Jarv? Let's see if we attracted any attention tonight."
Jarvis complied as Tony sat down at his desk. "Shouldn't you go after Private Ridley?" Jarvis inquired.
"Why should I?" Tony asked dismissively.
"Her heart rate seems to have excelled to an alarming degree, and judging by her coarse vocabulary she seems very upset with you," Jarvis enlightened.
"Let her be upset. She'll get over it."
"Sir, I really must insist," persisted Jarvis.
Tony heaved a disgruntled sigh as he hung his head against the back of his chair. "If I do this for you can we please go over my notes. We really have to make these adjustments."
"I would be happy to assist you, Mr. Stark." If Tony didn't know any better he would have thought he heard a hint of satisfaction in the AIs voice.
Turning back to his computer monitor he said, "Bring up security footage of her location." A window popped up showing a black and white image of her bedroom. The camera was positioned in the corner of the room just above her bed. All was still, and from what he could tell she was no where to be seen. "Show me another angle." The camera angle changed to the corner at the foot of the bed. There on the floor in a heap of sheets lied Miranda, her chest heaving up and down as she stared blankly at the ceiling. Tony's expression softened at the sight before him. "What are you thinking, Jarvis? Post traumatic stress?"
"The symptoms are all there, Sir."
Tony lifted a hand to his chin and rubbed the hair there. What could have possibly happened to her to make her be this way? He felt guilty knowing he was partly to blame for the attack that was crushing in on her at that moment. "What do I do about this?"
"You could start by apologizing to her," suggested Jarvis.
"Since when have you taken her side? Need I remind you she pointed a gun at me?" He knew he owed her an apology. He owed her an explanation, at the very least. But how could he? How could he explain to anyone what happened to him while he was in captivity? He tried telling Rhodey once, but every time he tried he felt his throat tighten up before he could get the words out. No, this secret would stay with him for now. "Keep me posted on her condition. If she takes a turn for the worse I'll call Rhodey to come get her. Right now we really need to work on these adjustments for the armor." He hoped that his dismissive tone was enough to cover up his cowardice.
