Once they reached his bedroom, Tony made himself scarce to allow Martha to change in privacy. A short while later, he returned with some freshly brewed Earl Grey tea for Martha in a mug he had bought for her to use while she was at his place. She was still in the bathroom when he arrived, so he set the mug on the nightstand and disappeared into his closet to change for bed.
"Tony?" Martha called through the door. "Are you decent?"
"Not if I can help it," he retorted while reentering the bedroom from his closet and pulling a tank top over his head. "I am dressed though," he added as he stole a quick sip of her tea.
Martha opened the door and peeked around the corner. "You're ridiculous," she replied. She disappeared back inside for a brief moment to switch the light off then emerged from the darkened room dressed in a white tank and grey yoga pants and tying a purple paisley printed scarf around her head.
"Are you cold?" Tony asked.
"No," she answered with a frown. "Why?" He gestured toward the scarf and she let out a tiny sigh. "I'm too tired to explain the science and complexities of black haircare to you right now, but you're more than welcome to read up on it yourself."
"You had me at science," Tony retorted with a smirk. "And since we're on the subject of reading…what was that back in the lab with Bruce?" He handed her the mug.
"Just what it looked like. One person admiring another's work," she answered before taking an experimental sip. As she lowered the mug, she noticed the design on the side of it. There was a heart with a sinus rhythm cutting through the center and the words 'cute enough to stop your heart, skilled enough to restart it' printed around it. Martha took one look at it and rolled her eyes, but Tony definitely saw a smile on her face just before she turned her back to him.
"Anything else you've been reading that I should know about?" He remembered that she had taken A-level physics and if her interest in the Rube Goldberg machine was any indication, she at least had passing interest in engineering. Not to mention, she did seem to enjoy seeing the inner workings of Stark Industries. Tony wondered if Bruce's was the only brain she wanted to pick.
"Hmm…" Martha paused to think. "Well I love Harry Potter. Oh and Shakespeare. Even more so after he wrote me a sonnet." She paused again. "Technically he wrote me 28 sonnets."
"Are you kidding me right now?"
"No, seriously. I met Shakespeare," Martha insisted as she sat on the edge of the bed. "Former time traveler, remember?"
"Kinda hard to forget," Tony replied. "But I wasn't talking about you meeting the Bard," he clarified. "Shakespeare? Sure. I can understand that. It's a classic. Harry Potter? Not so much."
Martha scoffed. "Okay, first of all, Harry Potter is a modern classic," she began defensively. "Secondly, how can you not like Harry Potter?"
"Easily. I hate magic," he told while moving to the other side of the bed.
Martha gasped. She turned to face him. "You cannot be serious."
"Witchcraft to the ignorant…simple science to the learned," Tony quoted. "Magic is what people turn to when the science gets too hard to explain. Don't understand something? Oh well, it must be magic."
"You sound like a snob," Martha commented into her cup.
Tony was in the process of pulling the covers back when he stopped to look her in the eyes. "No, I sound like an empiricist. Seeing is believing."
"I can just imagine your thoughts on religion then." Martha shook her head in disbelief before taking a huge gulp of tea. "I can't believe you don't like magic," she continued with a frown. "Honestly, there's nothing in the fantasy genre you like?"
"Nothing."
"None at all?
Tony shook his head. "None."
Martha paused thoughtfully. "Not even Tolkien?"
Tony slipped beneath the covers with a groan. "Especially Tolkien."
"Okay, but what about Star Wars?" Martha pressed.
"I prefer Star Trek, but I do like it," Tony admitted.
"A-ha!" Martha declared triumphantly as she set her mug down long enough to crawl into bed next to him. "I knew there had to be at least one thing."
"Sorry to burst your bubble, but Stars Wars isn't fantasy. It's science fiction."
Martha scoffed. "And you expect me to believe that the Force isn't magic?"
"Sentient microscopic organisms tapping into a force field is hardly magic," Tony retorted, gesturing to her mug.
Martha pursed her lips as she passed the mug his way. "That's a bit of a reach."
"Blame George Lucas then. I'm a trekkie," he told her between sips of tea.
"What about A Song of Ice and Fire? You know the series Game of Thrones is based on? It's supposed be fantasy for people that aren't into fantasy. There's even a whole family with your name," she joked. "The Starks of Winterfell. And everyone is fighting over the Iron Throne. Sounds like it should be right up your alley if you ask me."
Tony took another sip of tea and handed the mug back. "Sean Bean dies in that one right?"
Martha nodded as she lifted the cup to her lips. "You've seen it?"
Tony shook his head. "Lucky guess. He dies in everything."
"That's true," Martha admitted. "But the point is, you might like, if you tried," she continued. "And you don't have to worry because there's hardly in magic in it. I mean there are dragons, but they don't count because dragons are real."
Tony lifted a brow at her words. "Seriously?"
"What?" she responded defensively.
"Dragons are real?"
"Well it's not like they're currently flying about in the world, but dragons had to have existed at some point."
"And you're basing this theory on what exactly?"
"It's like flood stories. Too many cultures make references to their existence for it not to be true."
"You sound like you've thought about that a lot," Tony said with a teasing smile.
"I have!" She quickly finished off her tea and set the mug aside so she could give him her full attention. "I mean who wouldn't want to see an actual dragon? They're…"
"Magical?" Tony cut in.
"Majestic," Martha replied. She smiled brightly and her eyes lit up as she spoke. "Now hummingbirds, on the other hand, they are magical."
Tony smiled in spite of himself. "I didn't realize you were such an animal lover."
"I always wanted a dog when I was little, but my mum never let us have one. The closest I've ever came to have a pet of my own was for a few months in university when me and my flatmate Molly found a stray cat on the way home one night. Cute little thing. Loved to cuddle."
"The cat or the roommate?"
"Both actually. There was only one bed and we had to share." She sighed wistfully. "I should really give Molly a ring. It's been far too long since we've spoken."
"So you're telling me you have a history of snuggling up to people?"
Martha met his eyes. "Disappointed that you weren't my first?" she countered with a smirk.
"I will admit that I thought what we had been special," Tony answered with a dramatic sigh as he lay back against the mattress. "But there is something to be said for a woman with experience." He turned his head her way. "At any rate, you, Martha Jones, are full surprises."
Martha rolled onto her side, bringing their bodies closer together. "Well there's a lot you don't know about me."
Tony's gaze locked onto hers. "I look forward to learning more."
"I told you I'd answer anything you ask," she reminded him.
"Yea and the last time you started talking about your crush on Cap." Tony turned his eyes towards the ceiling. "Are you going tell me how dreamy Bruce is this time around?"
"I definitely detected a sensitive soul there," she said with a quiet chuckle.
"I hope you like green," Tony shot back.
"You mean like your eyes?" Martha teased. "I thought they were brown at first glance, but it would seem that I've mistaken."
"You're so not cute," he retorted. "You're gorgeous and sexy as hell, but not cute."
"Really? Because someone just gave me a mug that suggests otherwise." Without replying, Tony rolled onto his right side so that his back was to her. "Oi, don't sulk! I was only taking the mick!" Martha chuckled softly and playfully nudged to his shoulder, but he didn't turn back around. "Are you cross with me?" she asked seriously. When no answer came, she nudged him again more gently. "Do you want to spoon? Which do you prefer big spoon or little spoon? Little spoon, yea?" she continued without giving him a chance to answer, slipping into position behind him and looping her left arm around his waist. "Everyone likes being the little spoon."
Tony wasn't even that upset, but if he said his hissy fit was just a joke, then there was a good chance she'd pull away and he didn't want that. Height wise he had a good six inches on her, but the way she wrapped herself around him and almost seemed like they were meant to be that way. He took her left hand with his right and she laced their fingers together. "Please tell me I'm at least your second favorite Avenger."
Martha laid her head against his shoulder and chuckled softly. "Honestly, you're becoming a strong contender for the number one spot. It's not every day I get to curl up with one of the greatest scientific minds of our time." She lifted his hand so she could see the Brass Rat on his finger. "We should really compare notes one of these days. I know of some tech that you'd lose your mind over," she insisted as she lowered their jointed hands to their previous position.
That piqued his interest. "Oh yea?" Tony angled his head towards hers. "What we talking about here?"
"How about surveillance equipment hidden inside a special kind of contact lens that uses alien technology to exploit a solution to the EPR paradox?"
"Quantum mechanics?" Tony responded with a grunt of approval. "I love it when you talk nerdy to me." She laughed at his joke and he pulled her arm tighter around him. "You're fascinating, you know that? Amateur physicist, magic enthusiast, animal lover, serial cuddler…Shakespearean muse."
"Flattery won't make you my number one," she told him as she draped her left leg over both of his and hugged his back. "Just ask Shakespeare."
Tony used his left hand to guide her leg upward so it lay across his hip and then he rested his hand on her knee. "You give him a hard time too?"
"No more than he deserved. There he was laying it on thick while he had a bloody wife and kids tucked away out of town," Martha pointed out. "Not to mention that his breath was minging."
"I don't think I need to remind you of the stereotype about dental care on your side of the Atlantic."
"Keep taking the piss, you'll be the one in need of dental care," Martha threatened jokingly.
"You really gonna going there?" Tony scoffed. "First you bruise my ego and now you're threatening me with violence?"
"You started it. You went their first."
"The only place I'm going is to sleep," Tony retorted as he closed his eyes. "To sleep perchance to dream."
Martha moved her head so Tony suddenly felt the warmth of her breath against his neck. It smelled like Earl Grey with a faint hint of mint from her toothpaste. "In that case, sweet dreams."
Tony gave her knee a gentle squeeze. "Sweet dreams, Doc."
