So because I just went and saw Spider-man homecoming which was a gift, but also came out a bit after I started this fic. This fic is now AU until I figure out how to fit spidey's timeline. Also I know that you all want Isabella and Tony to get out of the cave. It will happen and I have a plan. But it'll be a few chapters. I have a plan, and the extent of time they spend in the cave is part of that. It's coming, but some other stuff has to go down first.

I have a plan y'alls.

- xoxoxo, PotionInMotion

"So"

We both sat there taking glances at each other and smiling.
"Do you two have something to share with the class?"
I cocked my head to the side.
"Do we, you tell me?"
Loki was in front of us and I could tell the moment he popped up he caught on to the differences. How interactions had changed just...slightly. A pinch of romance in the cave now that the God of Mischief was snorting up like crack.
"Well your close up to each other, and that's close considering how cozy you two usually are." he said smugly.
I got to watch the scarlet blush Isabella's pale cheek. Like watching fireworks go off just from that.
"I have no idea what your talking about Loki?" she replied in a false innocent tone with a bewildered expression on her face.
"Neither do I?" I said joining her

Loki sighed "I've lived over a thousand of your mortal years, I know these things."

I gasped dramatically "You do?"
I looked at Isabella who was smiling at me.
"Whatever do you think he means?"

She giggled "I think he wants in on the secret."
"But no we mustn't tell him."
"He is a God, he should know."
"I already know, just tell me." Loki growled.

I dropped the dramatics in an electronic heartbeat and said dead seriously sighing
"Isabella and I are a respected romantic couple now."
I watched in his eyes as the lights came, and I could see excitement come in rolling like waves in the sea.
"Finally at last." He said after about two minutes of silence.
"I can die peacefully now knowing that my one wish has come true."

"Which is?" Isabella asked in a passive tone.
His smile just got bigger and he said warmer than kid tv shows
"For you two to be together, happily ever after."
"It's only part of one" I mused, "the fairy tale doesn't end with the captives still being in captivity."

I almost felt bad for being the buzz kill but, it was worth it. There was a chance Loki would work faster.
"Because a love story that takes up a whole cave, is a pretty sad story."

Isabella nodded,"running a relationship can only go so far this way."

Loki was hating how we just poured waters all over his candles but that was okay. It had been three more months in this cave, and though me and Isabella were taking this extremely slow (I hadn't even kissed her yet). Running an actual relationship which was tough for both of us, was awkward being trapped in this cave.
This wasn't how I imagined spending Fourth of July which was two weeks ago.

"But I am happy that you're happy we're together." I said at the end of it all.

Loki shrugged his shoulders,
"It's fine honestly. You two are tired of this cave I get it. Believe me though we are working as fast as we're able to get you two out. Its hard seeing as we still only have a general idea of where the two of you actually are."

Isabella's eyebrows went up,
"really, where?"

"Europe. The problem is when we try narrowing it down its still fairly large. All of Russian and her neighbors could be where you are. Plenty of mountains, plenty of caves, and plenty of low temperatures."

"Hmmm... did you know that before I went to college, the most east I've ever been was Albuquerque."

I nodded "Good to know we've made some progress on that since."

"I know, before we didn't ever have a general idea of where we were."

"So... Russia, or somewhere else as cold and equally suspicious." I said cheekily.
"Natasha will be happy when she finds out we finally have something in common."

"At last."

The newly started relationship was going slow, but it was going. I honestly didn't care that I had never gone this slow, or actually really gone through all the steps in a healthy relationship. Even though we were in a cave where we had spent the last ten months or so, this one thing made it all worth it. In my now 39 years of life, I hadn't really ever had a nice normal healthy relationship. I restate we were in a cave, somewhere in Russia, and I was having the closest thing to a normal healthy relationship than I ever had outside all the stone, Pepper included. Which made my love life look really sad, but then again I looked at Isabella's past love life and I was devastated. Baby steps were good, walking on egg shells also good, and I was okay with that. I was dealing with someone who was so stereotypical in the character in a hallmark movie yet all at once not. There were things she hadn't told be about doucheward, and she probably wouldn't ever tell me. And I was alright with that as well.

Honestly, she was still a virgin so there was really nothing to make me that upset. Not to mention she was pretty chill with the fact that I was in bed with girls when she was a baby. The fact that I was 17-18 years older than her didn't really bother her either. Honestly if this was the 60s she'd totally be a hippie for how chill she was with everything.

Yes, the depressions still came and went on a basis but that was normal. I helped as much as I could, but they happened to me too. Being trapped in a small cave does that to you. So maybe we heard or felt something that wasn't there once in a while, that was okay. For the first time in years, years, I was happy with the way things were going.

I wanted out of the cave though, if not for me than for Isabella. Every month Loki would give a small bottle of magic potion to her, I knew what it was for. None of us wanted being in this cave to risk the chances of her getting to feel a kick of a baby from inside her one day. From what I got from listening in on all the whispered conversations between the two of them, it had to be changed every little while. The longer we spent in this cave, the worse it got.

I really wish I had paid more attention during health class in high school.

Now that we were able to take care of that precious part of her physiology, it was getting better. My dreams of holding her hair back on a round of morning sickness wasn't a complete failure. Who would think that my hopes and dreams were being saved by the man that had sent an alien army to take over earth and tried to kill me. I was okay with that too.

No Captain America to bother me or his precious best friend, no more betrayal, no more meetings, no more listening to Pepper tell me how I should act. No more avengers.

I wanted back out of the cave, don't let anyone convince you otherwise, there were just things I didn't miss. And things that when I got out would be fixed.

The Accords would be trashed, me and Pepper would go to a truly estranged relationship, and Isabella would want for nothing. Rogers could just go suck it. More science, more workshop, and less loneliness. Because after discussing anything and everything about the future with Isabella, she'd made it clear that even if she never lifted a wrench she was going to hang out in my workshop regardless of what I wanted in that department. And I was alright with that.

My future outside this cave was set. And the one inside this cave was too.

We'd just gotten to the holding hands stage, and I was genuinely happy about it. Suddenly holding her in my arms late at night during sleeping time had a different feeling to it. I wasn't alone anymore.

I could recount hundreds of memories of loneliness from before I was even 10, my parents leaving for each and every holiday to go holiday. My robot puppys that I had created. Jarvis tried, he really did, but he had his own family to go back to. All the evenings with me and my schoolwork and circuit boards.

Suddenly that wasn't the case anymore. I was assured even without them needing to say that I wasn't alone. Not anymore. No one was going to smash a shield into my chest ever again. Yes, my company was an insane God, and my way too young girlfriend but thats okay. They were better than the groups of spies, and super soldiers I surrounded myself with before hand.

But I still would have Black Widow in my friend group, even if she did sell me out.

I was alright with things now, and coming to terms with them. I liked the fact that Loki had brought us a deck of cards now, and that we had more to do. I liked the meaningless meaningful conversations I had with the two.

Believe it or not, I liked that Loki was the kind of person with the type of loyalty to wipe out anyone that tried to back stab or otherwise cause us harm. I loved them both, and it was different than with anyone else.

I wanted out of the cave, but some things were nice. And they were one of them.