Tony Stark has spent the last seventeen days away from Stark Tower, shuttling between the Avengers facility in upstate New York and Washington DC. No longer, the hero but playing second string to politicians and statesmen as they argued and procrastinated achieving nothing. Waiting for him in the penthouse was his ex girlfriend and quite possibly ex friend now. He pondered the point on which Steve Rogers had stood firm. In the elevator, the silence filled by own doubts. Trust in yourself, in your own decisions, not policy makers out for their own ends.
Pepper Potts made her version of a smokin hot dirty martini, with four dashes of chipotle Tabasco and chilli stuffed olives. She handed Tony a regular dry martini with lemon peel not olives. "I need to clear the air. I want to scream and shout, but you need a friend now more than ever. We work well together, even when you're a prize jerk. Stark Industries is stronger, more diverse and more profitable with your vision and delegating day to day details and admin to others. I know you don't trust easily, but you don't let people in either." She sat next to her ex and held his hand. "you lost your sounding board after Sokovia. I miss Bruce because he got you in ways I didn't. That suit, your insecurities and those accords mean there is no room for us. In the last four weeks you have ignored me as a friend and as your co worker. I have needs too, Tony. Hurt, alone and in need of a friend, I have spent time with Rhodey. Your priorities are way off. Natasha and even the fugitives have made peace with your best friend."
Tony drank his martini down in one and watched as Pepper went to pour him a top up. "I've visited my guy five times. It's just." Tony pauses to accept his new drink. " feel like a failure, Pep. I picked this fight. We were played and my hope for a secure world is in tatters. Big picture. It's toast. Rhodey is positive. He knows with my tech, it's not the end of War Machine, but the price was too high. The whole game was to bring me down. It worked oh so well. Would you have not told me about Barnes murdering my parents, my mom."
She knew she was pushing all Tony's buttons, but she had to play hardball. "I can understand why Steve did not disclose what he knew. He was not beholden to you or the memory of your father, but a man as close as a brother. They grew up together, fought together. He carried a massive burden of guilt accepting his friend died." She did not voice her own views that Bucky Barnes was mentally incompetent... brainwashed. Any decent lawyer would prove him innocent. She had have discussed this with Stark Industries Attorneys. "Would I have kept silent? It's a minefield. To protect you, possibly. You don't need that hurt. You have grieved, made your peace and moved on. Your anger was understandable but the lengths you took it to, to try and kill Steve and Bucky. That was not the man I loved. Not the man your mother raised you to be." She drank her own martini.
Wanted to divert away from Tony's issues. "I have some hot gossip, Roscoe-Drevin are moving their headquarters to Geneva. Leaving only the bare bones here on the states. Half of Silicon Valley is rumoured to be following suit. I have scoped moving our energy division abroad as well. Ross is a dangerous man, if he runs for president our headquarters may remain here, but our manufacturing will not be. I have moved mountains to maintain our partnership with the Roscoe-Drevin Aerospace and Communications. We need their network to survive. Without them our phones are just pretty boxes." During dinner yesterday Paul has even suggested a nice cleaning job on Ross. Wouldn't it make all our lives better. With Paul moving, they would remain friends and only occasional lovers. He was happy with an open relationship, understanding life as a CEO of a multinational conglomerate was not conducive to normal relationships. She was offering a life line Tony, hopefully he would actually cease his obsession with being the hero now.
...
Natasha Romanov had observed Alex Rider before, through the sight of a sniper rifle. She had never questioned her handlers then, on her first foreign assignment. In hindsight those orders came direct from Hydra. She had not questioned MI6 using a child because she had started operations at the same age. She had not been punished, despite not taking a head shot. The place of the assassination was a statement to Blunt and Jones, hence the 22 rifle and normal bullet, not poison coated or lead tipped fragmentation dumdum. This man mimicked Pietro's close body language with his twin, yet Alex had met Wanda in prison. Had been kidnapped before the twins were orphaned. The facts stated he was psychically enhanced or attuned to Wanda. They would be a phenomenal team together in the field now. He would temper their greenest member with years of ingrained spy craft.
She also knew his lover from her years of wet work as well; when undercover oblivious to the danger as he had flirted with her seven years ago in Cambodia, but had made no attempt at seduction. Not a surprise when Ben Daniels was not interested in women, his team were gently joking about his new twink. Ignoring the lewd comments, Alex then picked up a box of metal plates weighting 40 kg like it weighted a mere 5kg and nimbly leapt to the opposite side of the Vha river across the installed pillars and the volunteer construction crew there. With the correct parts, the Stanchion connections were in place well ahead of the steelwork due to arrive in the next half hour.
The accident happened just after the crowds of spectators arrived and TV crew set up to see the last of the prefab plates making up new bridge connecting the gorge just south of Novi Grad be lifted into place. Two years the city had been split by a forty kilometres detour and surviving on one pedestrian bridge. The rebuilding of the medieval stone bridge in the town centre would take another two years.
On the other side of the gorge, a school bus full of children was on the top of the steep descent to the bridge assigned the task of being the first Vehicle to cross, when it's brakes failed, and there was nothing to stop it careering into the river, apart from the group of volunteer workers. All except one scattered to save themselves. With arms outstretched Alex stood and took the impact his feet pushed back to the edge of the divide, the bus and its passengers saved with inches to spare. The hero dropped to the ground exhausted, two deep imprints from his gloved hands on the Metalwork.
Natasha was by the side of the only casualty faster than anyone, checking him for crush injuries, friction burns and abrasions effortlessly cutting off gloves and boots with a ceramic knife from her wrist shealth.
Through heavy pants, as he gasped for air, a soft whisker in Russian stated, "l'm fine; just exhausted, Natasha. I doubt I can walk away anytime soon. Shit, that was close."
She had seen with her own eyes this young man was a strong as the Winter Soldier and Steve Rogers. With Dr Banner gone and their exile from Stark, the Wakandan's knew of their own brand of super serum. Ross in his bid for control had lost three super soldiers and had backed Tony's ideal of mechanical supremacy, not realising Stark would never give ideological control to anyone beyond Rhodey. Taking no nonsense she ordered "flex your fingers and toes, then rotate your wrists and ankles."
The medical team arrived and Alex was lifted onto a stretcher and taken to the medical tent. Natasha knew the drill from working with Steve, the doctor was less than impressed to be told drugs were useless. A helicopter had been called in by the British Army and would airlift the casualty to the hospital five kilometres away by air. The crane lifted the last plate into position after the site was cleared. The news tonight on Sokovian TV was the bridge opening and their own Avenger in attendance to save fifteen lives.
Alex let Wanda caress his hands and feet, checking for injuries. He was fine. Nothing a large meal and a good nights sleep wouldn't put right. He had heard about Steve's abilities from Sam and Clint. His own were evolving. Possibly due to arrested puberty because of cryofreeze or Banner's unproven theory about an exponential effect of the serum's potency dependant on stress response. The room silent, but he heard the litany of her worries and fears in his head. She suddenly stepped back, having sensed the arrival of Ben. The finishing of the bridge meant he was being redeployed. Their affair was over. Alex knew he did not have the luxury of a personal life. He now had to break that to a guy who wanted him to return to London, to a life that was no longer possible. The door had shut firmly on the possibility of pretending to be normal.