"I retired for about a half hour, and you already lost my best friend?"
Tony rolled his eyes behind his tinted lenses as he regarded Barton standing in the doorway of the workspace. "Oh, look. Just what we needed. Someone else clogging up the lab."
Clint clapped him on the back as he walked past, flashing something between an amused smile and a grimace as he peered at the holographic computer screens and handwritten calculations sloppily scrawled across the desk in the center of the room. "Good to be back," he muttered sarcastically.
"You'll have to excuse him. He hasn't slept at all yet, we ran out of alcohol four hours ago, and we haven't heard from Banner," Rhodey called from his perch across the room. "Truth be told, I think we're all a little grumpy."
"Plus your fragile ego is probably telling you it's your fault, huh?" Clint said, nudging his arm.
"No. It's her fault," Tony replied, pointing to a corner where Wanda was sitting with her head in her hands.
"Tony." Steve's voice came as a warning.
"Sorry, you're right. Most of us in this room were all right there," Tony spat. "Most of us," he added with emphasis, glaring at Barton.
"Alright," Steve said. "You made your point."
"Did I?" Tony said angrily. "Twenty-two floors in this complex, one of which includes a start of the art recreation room and you all pick my lab as your favorite hangout. This isn't the time for team-building, Steve. One of us is missing, and the only person who could actually be of some use to me is not answering his phone right now so unless any of you have something constructive to add to this mission I suggest you all make yourselves scarce."
Steve sighed. "You're not the only one that's worried about her."
"Worried or not, we have to find her!" Tony snapped.
Steve looked to Clint. "Has she tried contacting you at all? Even somewhere you wouldn't necessarily think to look first?"
He shook his head, then gestured to Tony. "Don't you have some creepy Stark tracker tech? I bet you've figured out how to keep tabs on all of us."
A smile slowly started to spread across his face. "Finally, you've said something worth my time, Barton." He stood, reaching towards a screen next to a monitor that was replaying a recorded video of Wanda's blast on a loop.
Steve frowned. "We'll talk about that later. In the meantime, can you do it, Stark?"
"Course he can," Clint said confidently. "If Nat's anywhere on this planet, this guy right here will find her."
Tony froze, his eyes growing wide as his skin paled.
"Tony?" Rhodey said, his voice tinged with concern. "What is it?"
"What if she's not on this planet?" Tony asked, barely above a whisper.
XXXXX
Natasha searched through the cabinets, rummaging quickly for a clean plate and some silverware. She hadn't had a chance to learn her way around the new California building, but luckily this place was set up a lot like the one in upstate New York. In no time at all, she'd found all the ingredients she needed and got to work.
After awhile, she heard footsteps approaching in the hallway adjoining the kitchen and she looked up just in time to see Tony entering.
"Hey," he said, surprise evident on his face.
"Hey yourself," she said with a smile, replacing the lid on a jar of mayonnaise. "I didn't expect to see you up here."
"I was just breaking for lunch," he said, eyeing her cautiously.
"Oh, good. You're just in time," she replied, sliding the plate over to him. "I made you a sandwich."
"You did?" He asked, still with the tone of surprise.
"Yeah. I figured it's the least I can do after you've been working all day to help me. Thought I'd have to bring it down to you, though. Can I get you something to drink?"
He sat down at the table, eagerly accepting the sandwich. "Water, three ice cubes and a couple of mint leaves, please."
He gestured for her to sit across from him when she turned around with the water and she settled down where he'd indicated.
"You know, where I'm from you would never stop to take a break for anything, let alone to eat. I actually don't think anything short of an alien invasion would get you to pause for even a second," she said casually, watching him as he took a big bite out of the sandwich.
"Yeah, I used to be like that," he said. "Before I learned some other, healthier habits."
"What made you slow down?" She wondered, genuinely interested.
He hesitated for a few seconds before he met her gaze. "You did, actually."
"I did?"
He nodded. "Took you some doing. But you finally drilled it into me, how to recognize the signs that I need to stop for a minute before it becomes unhealthy and self destructive." He winked, a knowing smile spreading over his cheeks. "You are wise and all knowing."
She snorted. "It's kind of funny hearing those words coming out of your mouth."
"Speaking of wise and all-knowing," Tony started. "I know we said we would keep your… uh, situation on the down low, but I'm thinking we should probably tell Steve."
She raised a surprised eyebrow. "Yeah?"
"Yeah. He is the leader of this team and he should know when something's not right with one of his teammates. Plus, I think I could use his wisdom and guidance on this one."
"Huh." She took a bite of her sandwich, chewing on the corner thoughtfully.
"What?"
"Those words sound even funnier coming out of your mouth."
His eyebrows knitted together. "How so?"
"It's just that… you and Steve. You don't exactly… get along, where I'm from."
He didn't stop eating, but he was still looking at her and she could tell that she had his full attention. "Actually, you don't always get along with a lot of people."
She glanced up at him as he raised his glass to his lips, closing his eyes as he savored the flavor of the water while he took eight consecutive gulps.
"So that's why you always smell like mint…." She said thoughtfully, her voice trailing off.
"Hmmm?"
She shook her head. "Back home. You always smell like mint. I don't know, I guess I just always assumed it was some expensive toothpaste meant to cover up the alcohol on your breath."
He laughed, a real unguarded laugh, his cheeks reddening slightly and mirth shining in his eyes. "Exactly how messed up am I where you're from?"
She laughed too, slightly embarrassed that she'd said anything. "I don't know. Honestly, it's hard to tell with you sometimes. You're not exactly an open book."
"I'll bet you see more than the others do, huh?" He asked, his voice dropping several octaves.
She didn't say anything, finding it difficult to look away from the slightly intense expression in his deep brown eyes and she studied his face a moment. The same thick expressive eyebrows, glowing skin, spreading laugh lines, sculpted lips and neatly arranged facial hair that was the handsome, charismatic if not slightly irritating personality that she knew. But somehow this Tony was different, projecting a calm that she'd never seen before.
"It soothes me, helps to get the creative juices flowing inside," he said quietly.
"What?" She asked, taking a second too long to realize that he'd spoken.
"The mint," he clarified.
"Oh."
"Come on," he said, placing a steady hand over hers. "Let's get back to work downstairs and let's see if we can't get you back home soon."