Dr. Guierre studied the picture that Tony had handed him for a long moment before he spoke. "You have a lovely family," he finally commented.
"Thank you. But my wife and my daughter are deceased," Tony informed him. "And I think my son might be next. That's why I'm here."
The doctor frowned. "How do you know he could be next?" he asked.
"Because they died from massive brain bleeding, and my son is exhibiting the same symptoms now that they had, just before they passed away. So I'm afraid he doesn't have much time," Tony explained.
The doctor flicked his eyes back up to Tony's. "What has caused this bleeding?" he inquired.
Tony shrugged. "We're unsure of the exact cause, but my wife's father and uncle both died from this same illness," he went on to say.
Dr. Guierre shook his head. "I am failing to understand, then, how time travel could serve to affect any type of genetic condition," he reasoned.
"But that's just it," Tony countered. "It wouldn't if that's all there was to it. However, nobody before them had it! It just suddenly appeared, coincidentally after they'd spent time working in the same factory, and then it carried on with my wife and then my daughter. And now, quite possibly, my son," he explained. "So you see, Doctor, I have only one last option here- to travel back in time to find out what caused this to happen in the first place, and do whatever I can to stop it."
The doctor thought to himself for a moment. "And what if...it truly is a genetic condition? And all our efforts will have been in vain?" he rationalized.
Tony nodded in acknowledgement. "I understand your apprehension," he said. "It's a big undertaking. But worth it, if I can save them. And if not? Then at least I'll know I've done everything in my power to try."
The doctor took another silent moment to consider this proposition. "I suppose that I would do the very same thing, if I were in your situation," he admitted. "How could a man not try everything to protect the people he loves?"
Tony smiled in relief that the Doctor was seeing things from his perspective. "My thoughts exactly," he said.
The doctor gave Tony a polite smile and then went back to examining the photo once more. "Your wife was quite lovely," he said. "What was her name?"
"Virginia. But she went by Pepper," Tony answered, then he shrugged. "Only because I started calling her that just after we met. It's a long story, but a funny one."
The doctor only smiled and nodded at this, but didn't ask to be told the story. So Tony went silent, and waited for his next question. "And your daughter," he said. "What was her name? And how old was she?"
Tony cleared his throat, trying to hide the instantaneous lump that had formed in it, since the death of his little girl was still so fresh. "Uh, Virginia Maria," he answered simply.
The doctor gave him a questioning look. "Maria. After your mother, correct?" he asked.
Tony smiled and nodded. "Correct. But we called her Ginny," he said, smiling despite the welling of emotion stirring in him at that moment. "And she was seven."
"Ah," the doctor cooed sympathetically. "What a shame to lose such a young life."
Tony slowly nodded, and then gave a wistful smile. "My girls. They were..." he said softly, unable to fight his voice growing hoarse with emotion. "...my world," he finished by saying.
"I'm sure. I'm sure," the doctor replied, while nodding in understanding. "And your son?"
"Howard Anthony. H.A. for short," Tony responded. He grinned with pride. "A chip off the old block. Well," he said. "Both blocks," he went on to say. "I'd like to think Pop would be proud of his namesake."
The doctor chuckled and nodded. "I'm sure he would be," he commented. "And he is how old?"
"Ten," Tony answered. He waited a few moments to see if the Doctor was going to ask any more questions.
"You say he has the same symptoms that your wife and daughter had? Before they were struck down by this...illness?" the doctor asked.
Tony nodded. "Yes," he said. "And it was only days before they died that we even knew anything was wrong."
The doctor cleared his throat and sat forward on the edge of his seat. He then held out the picture for Tony to accept. Tony frowned at this, his irrational irk about being handed things raising his hackles only momentarily until his logical mind quickly tamped it down, and he forced his hand outward to take the photo from the man. Once he'd done this, he quickly reached for his wallet and gingerly placed the picture back inside it, keeping the doctor in his periphery as he did this.
"Well, my boy," the doctor said. "I see no other way forward for you than to accept my assistance with this experiment. I'll make the arrangements to leave at once," he announced. "We simply must do all we can to save your family. Or, at the very least," he said, once again removing his eye glasses, and cleaning the lenses with the bottom hem of his shirt. "Work to give you some closure," he finished by saying.
Tony exhaled in relief at the doctor agreeing to help him. "Yes. Thank you," he said. But then his expression fell. "But let's hope it turns out to be the former and not the latter."
The doctor nodded, and replaced the spectacles on his face. "Yes. Of course," he agreed. "And it sounds like time is of the essence, now, as you've mentioned your son has become ill as well?" Dr. Guierre confirmed. Tony nodded in the affirmative.
Just then, Hannah came into the room holding a tray that was carrying a champagne bottle and two poured flutes.
"The Champagne, meine herr?" she said.
"Of course," he said. The doctor stood up. "Come come, my boy," he instructed, waving Tony over to where Hannah was standing. He reached for a flute, and Tony did the same. Then the Doctor held his out in front of him. And Tony raised his to meet it.
"To time travel, and saving your family," he said.
Tony smiled softly and nodded. "Hear, hear," he said. "I'll drink to that."
The doctor smiled softly back, and they clinked their glasses before each of them downed the contents.
"And now to pack for America with not a moment to waste," the Doctor said.
"America?" Hannah asked, looking at her employer in confusion.
The doctor snapped his fingers and then waggled his pointer finger in the air. "Right. I must catch you up, my dear Hannah. You are to remain here, and tend to the household while I am gone."
"Gone?" Hannah parroted with a brisk chirp. "For how long, meine herr?"
The doctor shook his head. "I don't know," he said. "Indefinitely."
Hannah gasped, nearly dropping the tray she was holding. "In-definitely?!" she cried. "What on Earth could you be doing indefinitely in America!"
The doctor smiled and smoothed his hands down Hannah's upper arms. "Important work, Hannah. Mr. Stark's family has fallen victim to a mysterious illness, and we are going to get to the bottom of what it is," he determined. He looked at Tony and the men gave each other an affirming nod.
But Hannah frowned. Then she began shaking her head. "I...don't know what to say to you," she said sadly, in her thick German accent. "But...I will miss you."
The doctor smiled. "I will miss you, too, Hannah," he said. He gave her a gentle smile, and then slowly reached to take the tray out of her hands. She numbly allowed it, watching as he made the motions, practically parylized with shock. The doctor then took her hands in his, and brought them to his chest, looking deeply into her eyes.
"Listen to me," he said. "I know of no other woman who is more trustworthy or capable of doing what I am asking you to do. That's why I know you will do beautifully, my dear Hannah," he told her gently.
"Yes, yes. I...I will. I promise," Hannah murmured back, still quite thunderstruck. "I will take care of everything."
The doctor just nodded and smiled in approval.
Tony couldn't help but smile at this exchange, as it recalled the memory of a very similar conversation that he and Pepper once had in his shop so many years ago. It was when she had helped him to change out the first arc reactor for the upgraded model. This made his heart ache for those days, when things were just beginning between them, and the future felt so full of promise. So long ago, yet still so fresh in my mind, he mused happily.
"Then I will leave you to it, eh? My dear Hannah?" the doctor gently concluded. And, much to Tony's surprise, Hannah actually smiled in reply.
"Of course, yes. Whatever you require," she replied dutifully, with a slight humble bowing of the head at the end. "Until you return."
XXXXX
It wasn't long before Tony and the Doctor were on the Stark jet headed back to L.A. The hour had become late and both men had decided to get some rest during the flight, so they bid each other good night, and retired to the plane's separate sleeping quarters not long after departure.
Tony was soon ready to settle into bed, but as he took his wallet out of his pants pocket, he remembered the photo he carried with him that he'd shown the doctor, and pulled it back out to give it a tender kiss, after which he propped it on the bedside table, before laying his clothes on a nearby seat. He then pulled back the sheet and blankets and climbed in, resting his eyes on his family, and smiling at them, running his gaze over every detail of their faces, even as his lids soon grew tired and he slowly drifted off to sleep...
Tony could hear the sound of water lapping on a shore, though it wasn't the familiar sound of waves from the ocean. It was more like the quiet licking of water onto dry land, as if by a smaller body of water, such as a lake. He tried to look around him, but the landscape was murky, filled with muted gray and brown tones. However, the smell of the place in which he found himself was that of earth. Moistened earth, almost peat-like in that he could detect a certain level of organic decay in the odor- much like that of a wooded area similar to a forest floor, he could only guess- though it wasn't unpleasant. No, he decided. It was actually quite calming to him, he found. And this surprised him. He wasn't familiar with it in the slightest, but for whatever reason, it made him feel as if he were...home.
This confused him, but as he tried to further his comprehension of this place, his ears perked to the sound of a child's laughter in the distance, echoing in his ears. It made him smile, as it reminded him of Ginny's musical laugh. But this was different, though female sounding in pitch as well, and it seemed to be moving around him, in the nearer distance. His brows furrowed as he tried his hardest to see from whom it might be coming. However, his vision had not improved even still, regretfully.
"Hello?" he finally called out. "Who are you? Who's there?"
But there was no answer, much to his disappointment. And it had also stopped at that moment, making the only audible sound coming from the water on the nearby shore once more, joined by what he knew to be a few random chirps from the birds in what had to have been the trees surrounding this body of water that he'd found himself next to. He smiled, listening to the peaceful tweets of each one, and the gentle breeze that had just picked up in the leaves of the tree branches wisped teasingly through his hair. He could feel the fresh air move across his skin, and his heart suddenly ached to be able to see where he stood, to finally discover why this place felt so foreign yet so familiar to him at the same time, but his eyes still could not make out this locale...
Just then, Tony's phone rang, and he jolted awake. He hurriedly sat up and swiped it from off the nightstand, squinting as the screen's bright light assaulted his still sleep-blurred eyes. He blinked and squinted even harder to finally make out that it was Marilynn who was calling. His stomach immediately dropped into his feet, for fear it was something about H.A., as he hastily answered the call.
"Hello? Marilynn?" he hurriedly said into the phone, his voice hoarse.
"Oh, darlin', I think you'd better fly home as soon as you can! H.A. has taken a turn for the worse! He's in a lot of pain, honey. And I can't seem to give him anything that will even take the edge off!" she reported.
Tony's heart sank, and he let out a gut-punched, heavy sigh. "Shit," he grunted, flopping back down onto his back on the bed, and smacking the mattress with a fist in frustration. He then ran his hand through his hair before scrubbing it over his face a couple of times. "Can I talk to him? Can you give him the phone?" he urged.
"Yes, hold on a minute. I'll give it to him," Marilynn replied. There was some rustling and muffled speech, and then he heard H.A. come on the line.
"Hello?" he heard his son say. His voice was weak and Tony could hear in it that he was exhausted. "Dad? Where are you? I'm scared."
Tony pursed his lips together, and knitted his brows. He nodded. "I know, buddy. And I'll be home soon, okay? I'm bringing someone with me who can maybe help us to fight what's going on with you. So just stay tough. I'll be there as soon as I can," Tony told him.
He could hear his son moaning and crying through the pain. "It hurts so much!" he finally said.
Tears instantly welled in Tony's eyes from the hurt in his son's voice, and he swiped angrily at them, frustrated that this was happening to H.A. at a time when he couldn't be there in person. He swallowed hard against the lump in his throat, and spoke. "I know, H.A. But Grandma and Rhodey will take good care of you until I get there. Just listen to what they tell you, and get some rest. I'll be there before you know it. I love you tons, Howard Anthony."
"I love you, too, Dad," the boy answered, and then Tony could hear him handing the phone off to someone.
"Hey, it's me," Tony heard Rhodey say. "I've gotta be honest man. It's not looking good."
"Then, I don't think we have a choice," he told his friend. "He's gotta go to the hospital. I'll meet you there as soon as we get back into town."
"We?" Rhodey asked. "Does that mean you got the Doctor to agree to come back with you?"
Tony nodded. "I sure did," he affirmed, with a weak, but triumphant smile. "And not a moment too soon, apparently."
"That's great news, man," Rhodey said. "Safe travels, then. We'll get H.A. to the hospital, and I'll see you when you're state side again, huh?"
"Sounds good," Tony replied. "And Rhodey?"
"Yeah?"
"Thank you," Tony said. "For everything. I don't know what I'd do without you."
"Yeah, me neither, Stark. But don't mention it," Rhodey joked, making Tony chuckle despite the grim situation. "Bye for now."
"Bye," Tony responded, and the call was disconnected.
The doctor looked on as Tony let out a long, disheartened sigh, and began working his jaw in thought. He hated feeling so helpless, but he knew there wasn't anything more he could do to help the situation at that moment.
After a few moments of staring at the ceiling, Tony realized he had no chance of getting back to sleep for the foreseeable future. So he climbed back out of bed, walked out the door of his bedroom, and into the main cabin of the plane- his thoughts of H.A, and also the bizarre dream that he'd had, weighing heavily on his mind. He intended to find something with which he could occupy his brain until he felt drowsy again, but soon realized he wasn't alone.
Tony halted, and laid eyes on Dr. Guierre, who was seated at a nearby table in a navy blue silk robe, looking out into the sky just beyond the wing of the plane. He appeared to be having pressing thoughts of his own.
The doctor spotted Tony, and came out of his reverie. "Apparently, your sleep was fitful as well, eh?" he asked, motioning for Tony to join him.
Tony smiled kindly and nodded. He walked to where the opposite chair was, and pulled it out to sit down. "Yeah. For a few reasons, actually," he began, as he took a seat. "I just talked to my mother-in-law, Marilynn. She's helping to look after H.A. while I'm away, and she told me he's taken a turn for the worse."
The doctor frowned. "Oh, my dear boy, I am so sorry," he replied. "What's to be done?"
"They're going to get him to the hospital," Tony informed him. He shrugged. "That's all we can do, really. This...condition. It moves so swiftly that once someone starts to show symptoms, all you can do is help them to stay comfortable until they..." Tony's voice broke, and he averted his eyes as they welled with tears. He pursed his lips and balled a fist, slamming it on the table angrily. "Damn it!" he barked, and the doctor furrowed his brows even further in frustration at Tony's heartbreaking situation.
"I wish I could tell you something other than to have faith," the doctor said. "It sounds so trite at a time like this, I understand. But I mean it as much as I possibly can," he went on to say. He waggled a finger at Tony. "Your father and I. As I've been able to recall, we were..." he paused to remove his glasses in order to clean then with the end of the robe's belt at his waist. "Quite close in our discovery, you see," he finished, before putting his glasses back on.
Tony's eyebrows suddenly raised, and he turned to look at the doctor with wide eyes. "You were?" he asked. "Like, how close?"
The doctor smiled. "I would venture to say...on the cusp," he replied slyly. "It would have been achieved at any moment, I am quite certain, had the project not been shut down."
Tony's expression softened, and an admiring smile spread over his lips. "So...we're gonna do this, then," he murmured, in awe. "That's what you're saying. The probability is..."
"Very much in our favor," the doctor interjected, smiling proudly back.
Tony's smiled turned into a grin, and he clapped his hands together once loudly. "Doc, that's...the best news I've heard in a while!" he exclaimed.
The doctor chuckled. "I am glad I could brighten your evening," he said, and Tony chuckled back and nodded in the affirmative.
But Tony's worry over H.A.'s rapidly deteriorating health once again took hold, and he furrowed his brows, and chewed his lip in thought. "I just hope it's the solution I really need," he said.
"And that's why I, too, am awake at this hour," the doctor explained. "I want to help you get your family back, Mr. Stark. Clearly. I only wish we knew for certain that once we do solve the riddle of the space/time continuum, that it is in fact, the very thing that we need in order to reverse any misfortune that has caused all of this heartache for you in the first place."
Tony took a deep breath, and tried to give the doctor an assuring smile. "Well," he said. "All I can say is that I seem to recall that a wise man once told me to have faith," he said, with a knowing smirk. The doctor chuckled coyly, and Tony grinned, happy to be able to break the tension, if only for a moment.
Tony then stood up, and motioned to the bar near the head of the plane. "So, as long as we're awake, what say you to having a night cap, huh? Something to help ease the stress of all of this?"
"Scotch, if you've got it," the doctor requested, and Tony smiled to himself. Pepper had allowed him to keep one bottled of his most expensive Scotch on the plane for guests and special occasions, and it seemed almost kismet now, that the Doctor shared the taste for his drink of choice.
"Doc?" he said, patting the man on the shoulder as he made his way to the bar. "I like your style."