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Previously: Tony and Ed had returned from visiting Peggy in Washington D.C. and Tony and Pepper had discovered Ed's secret about her gender during Obadiah's 2nd visit.
Mid-November
"Miss?"
I blinked, looking up at the ceiling from my tablet. "Have you been calling me, JARVIS?"
"Only twice, Miss," he replied. Well, that was one of my better days then. Sometimes it took many tries and once, JARVIS had even resorted to turning the lights on and off… "Sir wishes to pass along the following message: 'Ready to be proved wrong about a flying suit?'."
I rolled my eyes at that message. "He can't be serious," I mumbled, debating for a moment whether to go downstairs or not.
Oh, what the hell…
I rolled off my bed and made my way to the workshop, JARVIS unlocking the glass door as I reached the bottom of the staircase.
I glanced around the area, spotting…
The silver suit of armour Tony was wearing was bringing up memories of my brother and his larger, bulkier armour, of all those years he spent in it and how the blood seal cracked during the fight on the Promised Day.
Of how… I still didn't know if my last transmutation had worked or not… If he was alive or not…
"Why the long face, Short Stuff?" asked Tony, pulling me back to the present.
"My arm," I replied quickly, coming up with another excuse as I massaged my face. It was partially true considering I was still armless even though Tony had managed to construct a full set of armour that was supposedly able to FLY…
"Easy there," chuckled Tony seeming to be in an overly good mood. "The internal mechanism of your arm is being built tonight and I'll run tests on it tomorrow."
My mouth hung open, not having expected an actual update on the progress on my arm. Especially considering he hadn't mentioned the construction of it at ANY point today. "Why the fuck hadn't you told me before now?"
He just smirked. "Because you hadn't stopped asking about that arm all week. Payback."
"You are such an asshole," I mumbled, shaking my head in frustration. "But at least it's a start."
"Good, focus on the suit now. Arm, later." I rolled my eyes but motioned for him to continue. "Good. Nothing like this where you're from I'm guessing?"
Ever since mentioning that I came from another world, Tony enjoyed asking random questions about Amestris. Not always insightful or requiring hour-long explanations but he did bring it up.
Like now.
"Suits of armour existed. Ones that SUPPOSEDLY fly, no," I replied.
"It will, don't worry about that." He then pointed towards a desk set up not too far with multiple screens and equipment placed on it. "You can follow what's going on from there, Short Stuff."
"I'll believe it when I see it," I huffed, heading towards said desk and flopping onto the chair.
Tony, meanwhile, picked up the final piece, the face mask, putting it in place and it locked.
He was officially, completely covered in metal armour.
"JARVIS are you there?" asked Tony, his voice muffled from the helmet.
A moment later, the screens in front of me turned on, making me jump in surprise. Even the… eye slits on the armour lit up in the same bluish-white glow as that circle in the armor's chest. Whatever that was… It was fitted in the hole in the chest piece I had previously seen.
"At your service, Sir,"
I blinked, hearing JARVIS' voice from the screens. It was… weird, having gotten used to his voice coming from the ceiling and not a specific point in front of me.
"Engage heads up display." Even Tony's voice came from the screens! Maybe I was hearing what was going on IN the helmet.
Well, this could be interesting.
"Check."
The screens flickered for a second before images appeared. As the ones on the side had information on the suit and… many other things, the middle screen showed…
I glanced up at Tony and then the direction he was facing. Going back to the screen, I could confidently say that it was showing me what he was seeing.
It hit me once again how far technology had progressed in the last 60 years…
"Import all preferences from home interface," said Tony.
"Will do, Sir."
"Alright, what do you say?"
"I have indeed been uploaded, Sir. We're online and ready."
The last screen began showing the same images as the middle one but with… information overlaying on top of things in a pale blue colour, even focusing on certain items specifically before moving onto others.
I then saw myself on the screen.
Glancing up, Tony had turned to face me and I swore he must have had some smug look on his face.
"I won't mention that this is impressive," I mumbled, glancing back at the last screen and seeing information appear next to my face.
"You just did. You –"
"WHY IS MY NAME ON THIS AS… AS…?!" I cried out, leaning in close, rereading that damn nickname Tony kept calling me. "I HAVE A NAME!"
"Yeah, 'Short Stuff'. I already told you that's what I would be calling you. Besides, it's gender neutral." I flipped him off, opening my mouth to yell at him some more but he cut me off, addressing JARVIS instead. "J, do a check on control surfaces."
"As you wish."
I grumbled not amused by the use of that blasted nickname as I stared at the suit, specifically how different pieces moved around before settling back in place. I had not thought that those parts would be so mobile on the suit itself!
"Test complete. Preparing to power down and begin diagnostics," said JARVIS and I blinked in confusion.
Well, that was a bit of a let down…
"Uh, yeah," said Tony quickly. "Tell you what. Do a weather and ATC check. Start listening in on ground control."
Uh… What the hell was he talking about? ATC? Ground control? I briefly spotted on the last screen images of airplanes appearing, flying over the city.
"You can't be serious," I mumbled in shock. He wasn't –?
"Sir, there are still terabytes of calculations needed before an actual flight is –"
"JARVIS!" interrupted Tony in a warning tone. He WAS serious! "Sometimes you got to run before you can walk."
"Even I know that's not what the expression is!" I called out in exasperation. "And you can't actually think you can go FLYING out there when JARVIS just said –"
"Short Stuff, is that concern I hear in your voice?"
I snapped my mouth shut as those words sunk in. Concern? I couldn't even look at Tony, look at the armour as I processed…
I was concerned.
But, it must be because of the flying aspect. I didn't like flying or even the idea of flying in a metal tube DESIGNED to do just that and here Tony was, wanting to fly in a metal suit of armour!
Damn, I may actually be concerned about –
"It'll be fun. Watch the monitors," said Tony, turning to face the exit of the workshop, bring his heels together and arms pressed to his side. "Ready, JARVIS? In three, two, one."
Part of me wanted to shut my eyes to not witness the train wreck but the other part was beyond curious to see if it would actually work.
Thankfully, the second part won out.
Tony and the suit lifted off the ground with the help of some powerful propulsors on the hands and feet. They emitted a bright, bluish-white light and I squinted to be able to watch Tony lean forward slightly to –
I jumped back as the space where Tony had been standing but a moment before was –
Yelling.
My gaze snapped to the screens, my heart hammering until… until I realized Tony was yelling out in happiness as he flying.
I blinked as that thought settled in.
Not the flying surprisingly but…
Tony. Happy.
Overjoyed.
This may have been the first time I had heard him like that. In months.
MONTHS.
It hit me harder than expected.
"Have your eyes closed, Short Stuff?" laughed Tony, drawing my focus on the screens.
And what he was seeing from his suit. He was going around a…
"What's that?" I asked, squinting at the agglomeration of lights and metal structures, not being able to make out exactly what I was looking at.
"An amusement park. Didn't you ANY have fun growing up?" replied Tony as the image focused on a large, circular structure, on a seat in particular where two children were sitting, eating ice cream.
And the younger of the two knocked the scoop down, keeping eye contact with Tony.
I chocked back a chuckle at the sight before realizing… "You can hear me?" I asked, glancing around the screens and the equipment, wondering… how?
"Of course, who do you take me for?" Before I could answer that, he added, "Enjoying the view?"
The image changed from the 'amusement park' to a clear sight of the city… skyline and… and…
I shook my head, looking away as I felt nauseous at the sight.
"Nope," I groaned out. "Flying is still not for me."
Tony chuckled and, after a brief glance at the screen, he was SPINNING!
I just groaned again.
"Handles like a dream," stated Tony happily.
"Great…" I don't know why I glanced at the screens again but, when I did, more nausea crept up and I placed my head between my knees, not understanding how he could be enjoying this.
"Alright let's see what this thing can do. What's SR-71's record?" asked Tony after a moment.
A what's record?
"The altitude record for fixed wing flight is 85,000 feet, Sir," answered JARVIS.
I blinked in confusion, lifting my head to carefully glance at the screens, wondering what they were talking about as I hoped I didn't become nauseous once again.
"Records are made to be broken!" said Tony as all I could see was darkness and… was that the sky?
Wait.
85,000 feet VERTICALLY?!
"You're crazy," I said, leaning against the desk, my head in my hand as I watched the altitude number continue to increase.
"Sir," said JARVIS after a moment, "there is a potentially fatal buildup of ice occurring."
My ears perked up at the word 'fatal'.
"Keep going," replied Tony, ignoring the warning.
"Tony, what –?"
"Higher."
I just stared at the screens, at the altitude that kept increasing along with the amount of flickering that the images were doing. That… that was not a good sign…
Why –?
And then the screens turned black.
"JARVIS!" I yelled out, standing so quickly that the chair clattered to the floor behind me. "What HAPPENED?!"
"Connection with the suit has been lost. Attempting to reconnect as we speak," he replied in his overly calm tone.
"Is he still flying?"
"The suit seems to have powered off, Miss."
"Seems to have WHAT?!"
My heart was hammering as I remembered how fucking high up Tony had flown.
Falling. He was FALLING and my mind was already going through how damn fast he was falling straight down.
The impact could… could…
"Is there SOMETHING I could do?!" I yelled out, searching, scanning the equipment that lay in front of me for… ANYTHING!
"There is a manual flap deployment switch on the suit that Sir can use to break the ice accumulated. He –"
There was a pause and I held my breath for several seconds?
"He what?!"
The screens flickered on and I stumbled back at the sight of the incoming STREET! Tony yelled out as he flew past cars and –
I yelled out as I fell back, having tripped over the forgotten chair behind me.
I groaned, laying on the ground for a moment as I calmed down from that scare.
Tony had literally fallen like a stone because of the accumulation of ice on the suit and had been less than a few meters before becoming a pancake on the street. And JARVIS nor I could even help.
'Fatal'.
Even though he got on my nerves several times a day… I didn't want to lose Tony.
I had lost enough people; he didn't need to be added to the list.
"Fucking asshole," I mumbled, finally deciding to push myself up and see where Tony –
I stumbled again at the loud bang from upstairs before a second one followed and –
I blinked in shock.
Tony had crashed through the CONCRETE ceiling and landed onto one of his many cars, folding the metal like it was aluminum paper.
As dust and rubble settled around him, he…
I didn't even try to hide my laugh as DUM-E began spraying Tony with a fire extinguisher.
"Yes, this is hilarious," groaned out Tony, leaning his head back as DUM-E finally stopped spraying him.
I tried to say something but I still couldn't stop. I couldn't even catch my breath!
All those previous emotions just flooded out as – almost – hysterical laughter.
"You'll be in so much trouble when I get up," grumbled Tony as he seemed to have difficulty rolling off the car he had wrecked.
"IF you get up," I chocked out, finally managing to somewhat get my laughter under control.
"Anyone tell you you're a pain in the ass?"
"You do, constantly," I replied, finally getting to my feet and watching him almost turn on his side. "Need help, Old Man."
He sputtered in surprise, falling back to his original position, making me laugh again.
"Who are you calling OLD?" he gasped, almost sounding overly offended.
It isn't DUM-E," I replied, finally heading over to him and holding out a hand.
"Less we forget who is well into her 70s," he mumbled, eyeing my hand – think he was eyeing my hand considering he still had that face plate on – before reaching out and grasping it. "You sure you'll even be able to help?"
I squinted, not particularly caring for the implication but… the suit of armour did break through CONCRETE.
Well, here went nothing.
I pulled as Tony pushed himself up and the strain on my arm was instantaneous.
The suit was FUCKING HEAVY!
But, my stubbornness kicked in and I dug my heels as I pulled even more. With our combined efforts, Tony managed to finally get off the ruined car.
"Well, Short Stuff, size is deceiving."
I clenched my fist tightly, frowning up at him. "I have half a mind to kick you back onto that car," I grumbled, actually sending a swift kick to his shin with my automail foot.
"Hey, hey! Careful with the suit!"
"You mean the death trap! You fell! Twice!" I even waved my arm towards the gaping hole in the ceiling.
"I FLEW! You seem to have conveniently forgotten that part."
"And you forgot about the falling."
"Some modifications need to be made. No hassle.
I threw my hand in the air as I whirled around and headed towards the staircase. "Fine, be stubborn, I'm going back to my research."
I was going to conveniently to talk about my stubbornness though.
I caught sight of Tony's reflection in the glass before opening the door as he removed the face plate of his armour. I could make out the smirk on his face, probably also thinking about my comment. Before he could say anything, I just flipped him off, opening the door and climbing the stairs two at a time.
Tony's POV – In the Lab
It had taken several – long – minutes to get the suit off but, once it was, Tony stretched, feeling muscles protest and aches increase.
Maybe breaking through two floors had not helped his situation.
As he walked around several desks, he made a mental note to change the composition of the metal in the suit to something lighter but just as durable or, better yet, even more.
He could maybe avoid creating more holes in his house in the future with that change.
Coffee?!
Tony spotted a mug on top of a wrapped box and beelined towards it, smiling slightly. He didn't particularly care how long it had been sitting there, he just wanted that caffeine.
He picked up the mug and –
Pausing for a moment, he spotted a small note on the wrapped box saying 'From Pepper'. He took a sip of the cold coffee as he attempted to remember when she had brought said box down to the –
Oh, when Obadiah had first visited…
Tony frowned slightly as the man's second visit came to mind. It hadn't been pleasant as Tony had been on the receiving end of Obadiah's manipulative tactics.
Thankfully, he had grown up seeing those same tactics used on others that he could evade them for as long as he had before they had been blindsided by Ed's arrival and her disguise.
Once again, Tony couldn't believe she had gone with a 'psychologist' as an occupation.
With a frustrated sigh, Tony put the coffee mug down, refocusing on what lay in front of him as picked up the box and ripped the paper off. Inside was…
His previous frustration seeped away, a small smile spreading across Tony's face at the sight of his old arc reactor in the glass container along with the message 'Proof that Tony Stark has a heart' engraved around the reactor itself.
Of course, Pepper would have done something like that even though Tony had told her to throw that arc reactor out. For once, maybe it was a good thing she hadn't listened to him.
It hit him that she did care about him and that thought…
He didn't know how to feel about that.
"She would have freaked out seeing the test flight," he remarked out loud, shaking his head. "She cares too much. Probably the only one who does…"
"Sir? If I may," said JARVIS after a moment.
Tony frowned slightly, placing the case down as he turned towards the screen JARVIS had opened nearby. The time stamp on the video that appeared read that night, not long ago, during his test flight of the suit. However, what was being shown was right there in the workshop, focused on Ed at the desk with the screens.
She seemed focused on what she was looking at until…
Tony shook his head, an amused smile crossing his face when he saw her lean forward, groaning. She truly was not a fan of flying.
Several moments passed and Tony took a sip of his cold coffee as he watched the scene unfold.
Until the suit shut down.
Tony… He had not expected that level of reaction from Ed. She had shot to her feet in panic, even knocking back the chair so violently, it fell to the floor with a bang.
So many variables were going through Tony's mind and, for a rare moment, he was unsure about what he was seeing or how he even felt about it.
Yes, he had teased her before the flight about caring but…
Had he been right?
Had she been worried? Had she truly cared…?
But they annoyed each constantly, at least twice DAILY. And those were GOOD days!
Tony shook his head, taking another sip of his coffee before wincing at the sight of Ed falling back in surprise the moment the screens lit back up.
He stared at the screen for a moment longer before moving away, mumbling to himself, still confused as to Ed's level of reaction. It had been a joke he had made, a simple joke to get under her skin before the flight but…
Her arm.
Tony sagged into a chair, leaning his head in his hand, feeling stupid that he hadn't thought of that possibility before.
She had even mentioned it before the test flight!
"She does know that her arm would have been made whether I was there or not," he mumbled, putting his cup down, not in the mood for it anymore.
"If I may, Sir," began JARVIS, "her reaction was genuine."
Tony frowned slightly at that comment, wondering just how far JARVIS' programming would go with these 'interventions'. Yes, he had given JARVIS a personality that would update and evolve during the years but this input was getting out of hand.
He hadn't forgotten how JARVIS called her 'Ed' when he didn't call anyone else by their nickname.
"If it's any consolation, Sir," added JARVIS and Tony wondered what other surprise was in store for him, "she seemed just as surprised by her level of reaction as you currently are."
Tony scoffed, shaking his head.
However,…
It was a slight consolation.
"Fine, thanks," he mumbled, glancing at the screen again in time to see Ed's other outburst of her kicking the suit and storming off.
Childish came to mind seeing her.
He caught himself before a smile broke across his face.
Tony sat there for a moment longer, even after the recording at stopped and the screen had gone blank.
Did Ed truly care?
Did he?
With a huff, he suddenly stood and grabbed his cold coffee, heading towards the staircase to… to tease Ed. Yes, that was it.
She probably thought he would never see that footage.
And he was going to be able to embarrass her.
The moment he reached her open door, he glanced around the messy room, taking in the scattered papers and books all over the floor and bed. The origin of said mess was sitting on the floor, at the base of the bed, several sheets of paper in hand as she was reading from a book two feet away, squinting as she did.
The whole set up didn't exactly surprise Tony.
Considering Ed still hadn't reacted to his presence, he leaned against the doorframe and studied the nearby papers, wondering what she was researching this time. The subject seemed to change several times a day from experience and tonight's winner was…
He frowned, not particularly sure what it was. He noticed chemical symbols but also… were those ruins? Nordic ruins?
Maybe they weren't relevant together and she had jumped from one to the other.
She had done that in the past as well.
Tony's attention was pulled back to Ed in particular as she began mumbling under her breath before crumpling the papers she had been holding, squishing them into a ball against her leg and tossing them to the corner.
"Should we consider getting you a desk?" he asked, watching in amusement as she jumped in surprise, finally turning towards him.
"How long have you been standing there?" she gasped out.
"Not long," he replied with a shrug. "So, desk? Yes or no?"
Ed glanced around the room, probably taking in the mess she had created. "I can't promise it'll get tidier though…"
"It's your room, Short Stuff. I don't care about how tidy or messy you keep it."
That got a chuckle from her as she glanced around once more. "Fine, a desk may be a good idea."
Tony smirked, pushing off the doorframe and turning around. "Mark the date, JARVIS, Short Stuff finally said I had a good idea."
"Dully noted, Sir," replied JARVIS as Ed sputtered behind him.
"ASSHOLE!"
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