Alrighty! Sorry this one took me a little longer to get out, folks! My weekend got a little filled up by an overnight stay on Alcatraz but I wanted to make sure to push this baby out before the two-week mark had passed between it and the last chapter. And I did, one day shy of the mark. Whoo! Haha, anyway, huge thanks go to those who reviewed the last chapter: shine lots, I'm a Nerd and Proud, kingdomheartslover13, Guest, kittygirl998939, and TheFriendlyStake! Reading your feedback always makes my day. :)

Chapter 6

Tony worked from home for a week. Not so much because he didn't want to go into the office but because Steve, Pepper, Happy, and his lawyers all conspired against him to make it happen. Well, they might have all independently thought it up but they combined forces as soon as they realized each other's intentions. Pepper would drive over every day to deliver paperwork and manage her end of the business across the desk next to his in the study. They had entirely taken over the room and kept the door closed off throughout most of the day to keep noise and the rest of the pack out.

That system worked for only so long before Tony's temper started to flare at being cooped up for too long. It was actually Pepper who threw in the towel and demanded that they move Stark Industries back to the Tower despite the safety risks. Steve wasn't happy about it but he definitely understood. The woman had lasted longer than most would have crammed into a single room with Tony Stark for eight hours a day.

But while Steve agreed that they should move back, he had some stipulations. The first was something Tony had already been planning on doing: hire a private security team. The second was that Tony was going to have to personally take more drastic measures to ensure his own safety. And the third was that Steve was going in with him. It surprised Steve that the demand that bothered Tony the most was the second. Maybe it was just because Steve had taken it upon himself to decide how Tony should protect himself a little better. But, really, given the fact that he had been shot at the last time he left work it wasn't too out of left field that Steve wanted Tony to wear a bullet-proof vest.

Tony had minded the vest the most because he had already known the other demands were inevitable. After all, he had already promised the police that his security team would be coming back and he knew that Steve would want to come with them. He was also very aware that he had been under watch since the shooting by the entire pack. They had tried to be subtle about it at first but Tony would have to have been blind—or human—not to notice Clint stalking him at a distance when he went out for a run three days ago. It didn't matter that Clint had been almost silent as he moved; Tony's senses had picked up on the Bird almost as soon as he had jogged out into the woods behind his house. After that the pack had realized that Tony knew they were there but that he hadn't stopped them.

Steve had just given up on trying to be coy about it and after Tony started going back to work he simply started following Tony. If it wasn't Steve than it was Bruce or Clint, but Steve was the most obvious about it. He just stood at Tony's door like an on-duty sentry guard for eight hours. It put the professionalism of the body guards Tony had rehired to shame.

Despite his mate's looming presence going back to work wasn't as hard as Tony had thought it might be. The maintenance crew had patched up all of the bullet holes in the front of the building so there were no reminders of the drive by. And nearly all of his employees were treating him like some sort of god. Well, more godlike than usual. Surviving two assassination attempts in such a short span of time had them fawning over him like never before. It definitely wasn't the worst sort of attention in the world, though Tony wasn't able to relax until he had closed himself up in his temporary office.

Half a month went by in that manner. This time around, Tony didn't fire his security staff and endured it. He may be impatient and impulsive but he was capable of learning lessons and having someone try to gun you down outside your own building was a pretty decent wake-up call. He wouldn't ever say it out-loud but it helped to have a member of the pack around. No matter who it was they kept the security guards for crowding quite so closely around him and didn't make Tony feel quite so claustrophobic.

Pepper tried especially hard to make everything normal for him and the company, and it wasn't long before he was scheduled to make his first appearance outside of his make-shift office. Mentally he was more than ready for it but Steve insisted on personally prepping him for the encounter. Which was ridiculous. He was going to a meeting in his own damn building. He knew the room he was scheduled to be in, he knew the people he was going to meet, he wasn't getting any mail delivered, it would be fine.

Steve glanced up as Tony heaved out a huge sigh. "This is stupid."

"It's not stupid, Tony. This is about saving your life." Up until now Tony had successfully managed to talk his way out of wearing the bullet proof vest Steve had obtained from SHIELD but today no amount of distraction or negotiation on the Cat's part was going to change Steve's mind.

They were in the small, windowless room Tony had taken over as his office while a construction crew put the finishing touches on Tony's old office. Steve had taken a peek at the damage on one of his first days following Tony to work: the damage had been extensive and there were some serious structural problems that had been created due to the explosion. The construction crew had essentially been forced to strip the entire office down to the studs and rebuild it from scratch.

Steve heard the door to the room open and Pepper stepped through, closing the door firmly behind her. "Tony, the meeting starts in fifteen minutes. Would you please just put the vest on so there might be a chance we can make it on time?"

Tony rolled his eyes but, realizing that he was outnumbered, grudgingly yanked his tie off and began to unbutton his dress shirt. "…You're both way too serious. How about some smiles?"

Steve didn't appreciate Tony's attempt at a joke and neither did Pepper. Her lips pressed into a tight frown. "Someone is trying to kill you!"

"And they've done a hell of a job with it so far, haven't they?"

Shaking his head, Steve helped Tony pull his dress shirt off. He was wearing a tank top underneath, subconsciously adding another layer to guard his scar from view, but it would help to make the vest more comfortable. "They would have managed it if you were human."

Pepper nodded her agreement then strode over to Tony's desk and flipped through a small stack of paperwork. "Once Steve checks you over we can head downstairs. Where did you put your notes?"

Tony glanced back over his shoulder at her as Steve began to strap the vest over his chest. "What? What notes?"

"The notes I told you to write up for the meeting?"

"Did you make that a question because you weren't sure or because you expect me to remember it if you make your voice go up at the end?"

Steve frowned and tugged a little too hard on one of the side straps to tighten it up. "That was rude."

But Pepper only waved it off, far too used to Tony to take anything like that personally anymore. "It's okay, Steve. This is normal, which, quite frankly, is something I need more of right now." Tony smiled then turned his lips down in an overly serious expression as she turned back to him. "You're meeting with some of our western investment brokers and will be discussing the transfer of a lot of money so you will actually have to pay attention to what they say."

Tony already looked bored. "Can't you just do it?"

"It's your money, Tony. Unless you want to change the name to Potts Industries and transfer all of your money to my bank account?"

"Nah, I'm alright. Besides, people might get the wrong idea about our relationship and you know how sensitive Steve can get about that sort of thing."

Steve and Pepper scoffed at the same time and shared a look over Tony's shoulder as Steve walked around him to tighten the straps up in the back. Pepper then gave up looking through the paperwork on Tony's desk and straightened. "That's what I thought. Now, I'm going to go make sure everything is in place. I'll see you in a few minutes."

Grunting as Steve finished adjusting his vest, Tony flicked his chin up in a quick acknowledgment. "Sure, Pep. Make sure that there's some water waiting for me, will you? This vest is going to make me overheat. Bottled water, not that shit tap stuff. And make sure it's cold."

Pepper spared Tony one final look before slipping out the door to make sure that everything was properly prepared. As she closed the door Steve decided that the vest was wrapped around Tony's torso as seamlessly as possible. It was form-fitting so Tony was able to pull his white button-down over it. "See?" Steve smoothed a hand down his mate's chest before he helped him do up the buttons. "No one will even know you're wearing it."

Tony snorted and let Steve finish up his buttons as he snatched his tie back up and began to redo the knot around his neck. "Oh, yeah. It looks totally natural."

Alright, so it did give his front an unnaturally straight edge but no one would notice unless they were looking for it. "Put the jacket on."

Tony hissed but finished up with his tie and snagged his suit jacket off the back of his chair. He yanked it on then pointedly held his arms out for Steve's inspection. "Do I pass? Can I go down and be CEO of my own company now?"

"Almost. Here." Reaching up, Steve bit his lip in concentration as pulled a small radio receiver from his pocket and carefully slipped it into Tony's ear. It was similar to the type they used while out on missions but clearly not as technologically complex. Because this wasn't technically a SHIELD mission, Phil hadn't been able to procure the best gear. From what he had told Steve it wouldn't be able to change its shape if either of them decided to shift but it was going to have to do. "We're using these to stay in constant communications with you."

Steve took it as a compliment that Tony let him fiddle with the earpiece until it stayed in place. But he wasn't expecting anything else but Tony's dry sarcasm. "Really? We're doing the whole 'secret agent' thing for a meeting?"

"And we're using code names over the line to increase security."

Again, they didn't have access to the same level of technology they usually did and so had to use a standard radio channel so it was possible that whoever was coming after Tony would stumble across it.

Tony rolled his eyes harder than Steve had seen in a while. "Oh my god…Which codenames?"

"SHIELDs."

"So you're 'Captain' and I'm 'Ironman'. You're ridiculous."

Steve shrugged. There was no such thing as being too prepared. "One of the members of your security team is also a SHIELD agent. Technically it's not going against any rules because the man is legitimately a member of both professions. Phil just made sure that his resume made it to the company you hired your security team from."

Tony opened his mouth then seemed to think better of whatever he was about to say. With a shake of his head, Tony's gaze fell to his hands as he buttoned up his suit jacket. "You're too much, Agent Rogers."

"I'm really not." This was the least he could do and it wasn't nearly enough. They had agreed that Steve wouldn't follow Tony into his meeting and he had only agreed after he had Natasha help him run a thorough background check on everyone who was scheduled to be in the meeting with him. Luckily he wouldn't be far away and would be in a position to keep an eye on the room Tony was in. It helped that while he wouldn't be going in with Tony, the rest of Tony's security team would be. It had to be enough for now.

Releasing a small grunt, Steve cupped the back of Tony's neck and leaned down to connect their lips in a deep kiss. A moan slipped out of Tony's throat and closed he his eyes as he parted his lips for Steve's tongue. Steve's hands moved down to clutch at his mate's shirt and for the first time that afternoon really hated the vest too because it kept him from pressing up against Tony's chest. Pulling away slowly, Steve nipped at Tony's bottom lip as he straightened up and Tony let out a breathy laugh. "Wow. You must really be worried about me."

The smile that had welled up Steve's lips died. "Someone has to be since you're not."

Tony smirked at his reprimanding tone and took a step back away from Steve. "So, I assume you'll be lingering in the shadows somewhere?"

"If you want to put it that way, yes. Phil agreed to meet me out on the street and we're going to stakeout the building in an unmarked van."

"Oh, good. They'll never suspect a thing."

Steve crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm not particularly worried about whether they notice us or not. Up until now they seem to be willing to attack if you're alone or if you're surrounding by witnesses."

Tony huffed out a breath then spun around on his heels to make his way towards the door. "You're wasting your time."

"I'll be the judge of that." Any further retort caught in Steve's throat as he watched Tony walk away. After having Tony for a mate for so many years, the sarcastic comments had done nothing to dull his worry for the Panther. "Stay safe."

"Please. You say that like I'm ever anything else."

"I, don't even—" Steve shook his head. "I'm not going to answer that." But he did know what he wanted to say next. "I love you."

Tony paused with his hand on the doorknob at those words and when he answered back the mockery had finally left his voice. "I know. I'll see you soon."

O~O~O~O~O

The meeting had to be the slowest, most useless thing Tony had ever been forced to sit through. Alright, that was a lie, but this was definitely in the top ten. He had considered just walking out after the first five minutes but it actually seemed legitimately important. That, and he knew Pepper would probably try to castrate him if he did. She had stayed for the first fifteen minutes but had been called away by an important call from a Japanese shareholder. Before she left she had given him a very clear silent warning to behave. They weren't making it easy on him though. It felt like being back in high school being lectured on something he already considered himself an expert in.

Frowning, Tony glanced over his shoulder out the window. They were up on the fifteenth floor of Stark Tower so it had a great view of the city streets below. But they weren't what drew his attention away from the four business men and women in front of him. He didn't know what he was looking for as his eyes skimmed over the buildings around him. His gaze continued down to the street and he shook his head.

There was a white van parked on the sidewalk with a plumbing logo plastered on the side. At least SHIELD had put some sort of company name on it so someone didn't call the cops on them for loitering in a vehicle that just screamed 'child molesting kidnapper'.

"Mr. Stark?"

Tony's eye snapped back to the meeting. "Yes?"

"Your thoughts on buying shares in the wind farm in California?"

That would be problematic since he had hadn't exactly been paying attention. So he just shrugged and nodded. "Sure, I love Californian wind. Make it happen."

The woman who had been speaking froze up a bit at his sudden declaration, apparently caught off guard. Shaking herself off, she raised her brows expectantly. "I'm afraid I'll need a more detailed opinion than that, Mr. Stark."

Shit. Oh well. "Then can you go back over whatever you were just talking about for the past five minutes?"

Everyone in the room let out a small sigh but no one seemed too surprised. As they launched back into their proposal Tony tried to keep his attention locked on them but that itchy feeling that had him scanning out the window in the first place was still there and Tony could feel the hair on the back of his neck stand up. It was the same sensation he got when someone was staring at him. Which was ridiculous, because who would be staring at him? The people already in the room with him were giving him funny looks but that wasn't what was causing it. He knew Steve was watching him but from the inside of a creeper van so it wasn't him either. But his instincts had never led him wrong before and the tingle on the back of his neck wasn't going away. He must have gotten seriously paranoid over the last month, but that had to be a reasonable reaction to almost getting killed twice.

"Mr. Stark? Is everything alright?"

Tony startled a bit at the voice but used the momentum to straighten up in his chair as if that had been his attention all along. "Yeah. Yeah, sure." His gaze darted over to where the four most senior members of his security team were standing at attention against the wall. They didn't seem to be on edge about anything. Of course, they were human so they missed a lot just due to their natural limitations. "We were talking about opening up a new wind farm in the San Joaquin Valley."

"We were."

"Alright." He just wanted to make sure they were still on the same page. So now that that was all cleared up, "I want to go over the…the…" Tony's voice trailed off when something caught his eye on the table next to him. With his senses on high alert the anomaly would have been hard to miss. It was a small red dot, no, a laser dot. Tony's eyes flashed up and flew over his managers. None of them had a laser pointer, and given the location of the dot…

Tony's eyes widened and he threw himself out of his chair just as the window behind him shattered and the papers he had had in front of him exploded into the air as a bullet tore through them and embedded itself into the table. He grunted as screams ripped out around him and the security guards lurched forward and dove on top of him, tackling him to the ground. A little late.

Tony squirmed and resisted the urge to use his strength to throw them off. He settled instead on elbowing one of them in the side but they stayed right where they were, ignoring him completely in favor of speaking into their earpieces.

"Shot fired, sniper! Originated from the building directly east of the tower. Ironman secured. Get someone out there now!"

One of them finally turned to face him. "It's alright, sir, we've got you."

Tony snorted, his words slightly distorted with his cheek pressed up against the carpet. "I feel safer already…"

He didn't actually. He felt like he couldn't breathe and that wasn't just because he had three men resting on his back. They were just human and were actually being careful about not putting too much weight on him. No, it felt more like there was an elephant on his chest and for half a second he wondered if the bullet didn't actually hit him because something in his chest hurt. But, no, he had a vest on, and he hadn't felt any impact from a bullet. Oh shit…Shit, even he couldn't deny it any more. Tony's fingers dug into his palm and he gasped for air as his heart pounded and stuttered. Just keep breathing, just breathe.

"Sir? Sir?"

"J-just shock. The shock."

"Don't worry, Mr. Stark, calm down and take a deep breath."

Easier said than done.

O~O

"Shot fired, sniper! Originated from the building directly east of the tower. Ironman secured. Get someone out there now!"

Throwing his receiver down, Steve was out of his seat before Coulson even had the time to look up from his monitor. "Let's move!"

Steve wrenched open the back doors to the van and leapt out, a battle calm falling over him and blocking out the rising panic in his mind. They had parked right under the window where Tony was going to have his meeting so they were already in a good position. His eyes immediately found the building the security team had mentioned and scanned up the tall façade covered in steel and glass looking for any inconsistences.

And then he saw it. Human eyes may have missed it but Steve's certainly didn't, the quick reflective flash as a window was quickly moved back into place on one of the middle floors. The windows weren't designed to open and close so the fact that one of the window panes was being replaced was just too obvious to ignore. Quickly counting up the number of floors to the window, Steve raced towards the front of the building. He had to get up to the sixteenth floor. He didn't even wait to see if Phil was behind him, everything in his mind focused on one thought: stop whoever had tried to kill his mate.

It was a generic office building, each floor filled by a number of businesses based on the directory on the wall. But Steve bypassed it completely and ignored the secretary as she shouted some question at him. There was an elevator but he didn't take it, knowing that if the sniper was smart he'd be more likely to take the stairs to try and avoid being seen.

He slammed the door to the staircase open so hard the concrete in the stairwell cracked where the metal handle banged into it. There were some office-goers on the lower floors and Steve only took the time to make sure he didn't hurt them as he sprinted by them, ignoring their shouts of surprise. None of them were carrying a big enough case to hold even a disassembled high-powered rifle or had the sharp metal and sulfur scent that humans who habitually used guns had. So Steve kept running, taking the stairs two at a time as he raced up the floors.

He was on the fourteenth floor when he found him.

The man, who looked innocuous enough, was quickly walking down the steps and as his shoulder brushed past Steve's the smell of gunpowder filled Steve's nose. Steve immediately tensed and looked over to see that he was carrying a medium-sized case. Not long enough to fit a gun—unless you disassembled it first.

"Hey, wait! Stop!"

Steve knew he had the right guy when the man took off. Steve's hunting instincts automatically kicked in and he turned to give chase, his pulse roaring in his ears as his gaze zeroed in on his quarry. The man was clearly in flight mode and had already made it down to the next floor but if he thought he was going to be able to outrun Steve he had another thing coming.

Grabbing the rail, Steve jumped over it and dropped down one and a half floors, landing down onto the concrete steps below in a crouch and cutting off the man's escape path. The man was so startled that he almost fell onto his ass as he skidded to a stop. "How the fuck-? Oh shit. You're a Shifter."

Steve's eyes scanned the man and again took in the case and the casual yet concealing clothes that would be exactly what a man would wear if he wanted to look inconspicuous and unrecognizable. Steve wanted to kill him. He didn't know what condition Tony was in. They had said he was 'secured' but in what condition? This man could have injured his mate and all Steve wanted to do was tear into him. But he wasn't an animal that had to be put down. He could control himself. But he couldn't keep the low growl in his throat from slipping out as he spoke. "You're coming with me."

"Like hell I will!"

Steve could smell the anger and fear on him and wasn't surprised when he spun around and ran back up the way he came towards a landing. He was reaching for the door that would have led into the main part of the office building but before he could even reach for the door handle Steve crashed into him and rammed him into the wall of the stairwell. It was a little harder than necessary but Steve didn't feel any sympathy for the sniper as he released him and the man slumped down to the ground.

Crouching down, Steve grabbed the front of the man's jacket and forced him into a sitting position. "Why did you try to shoot Tony Stark?"

The man was grimacing and when he coughed specks of blood flew out. He had forgotten how delicate humans really were. But he still wasn't sorry for it. The urge to dig his claws into the man's skin was still running hot through his veins and it took everything he had to keep his fingers buried in the man's leather jacket instead. "I—I can't, can't breathe."

"If you can talk you can breathe. Answer my question: why did you shoot Tony Stark?"

"I, I don't know! I was paid to, it was just a job!"

"Who paid you?"

"I don't know." Steve snarled and tightened his grip on the man's jacket. "I don't know! I don't know! I never met the guy, never saw the guy, he just sent me the job and the money! Said the other guys weren't doing the job right so he came to me! That's all I know, I swear!"

That wasn't the answer he wanted to hear. In the back of his mind Steve caught the sound of footsteps hurrying up the stairs behind him. He had heard them for the last few minutes but only recognized what they really were when they got closer, stopped, and he felt a hand roughly grab his shoulder. Steve growled at the unexpected contact and, without ever turning his eyes away from the sniper, scented the air to identify who was behind him. Oh, right. It was Phil. Phil had come in with him.

"Steve! Steve, let him go." The SHIELD agent sounded worried, the anxiety in his tone the only thing that brought Steve's focus away from the sniper enough to listen. "Let him go, Steve. I've got him."

"Phil…" Steve blinked down at where his hands were curled into the fabric of the man's jacket and the red marks blossoming on the man's skin from the pressure Steve was putting on his neck and chest.

"Let him go."

Steve realized he was shaking and released his fingers. The man fell to the floor in a gasping pile and Steve let Phil push him away. "The police just arrived on scene. Go to Tony. I'll take care of things from here."

Oh god. Shaking himself off, Steve turned and made his way back down the stairs. It was only then that he realized that five police officers had been hot on Phil's tail and the blood ran from Steve's face as he stepped aside to let the men run by. He knew he had almost made the biggest mistake of his life and that he owed Phil now more than ever. There was a very high chance that if he had been allowed to continue with the sniper his anger would have overwhelmed him or he would have accidentally caused the man permanent injury, or even killed him. Both would have been extremely bad, particularly with the cops so close.

His anxiety over what might have been didn't last long though, replaced entirely with new worries over the welfare of his mate.

He had to get to Tony.

Steve ran down the rest of the way down the stairs, burst out from the building, and sprinted across the street, shoving his way past a gathering crowd and circle of policemen until he saw the doors to Stark Tower opening and Tony being herded out by a swarm of security guards.

The policemen trying to control the folks milling around tried to stop him but then a female deputy noticed him anxiously standing anxiously at the edge. Her eyes lit up in recognition and she waved for the officers around her to stand down. "He's okay! You're Stark's husband?"

Steve didn't bother to correct her with the fact that they technically weren't married and just nodded. She had probably recognized him from the news and he had never been as grateful for the press coverage he and Tony got. "Yes, thank you." She waved him through and Steve was off like a shot. "Tony!"

Tony's head bobbed up as Steve called his name and began to push the security guards around him away as Steve hurried over. Steve quickly took their place, wrapping a protective arm around his mate's shoulders as he led them to a car Happy had waiting for them.

"Just take me home."

"Tony, you're shaking." Steve hadn't seen Tony like this before and it scared him. Had he been shot after all? But Steve couldn't see any blood.

"Home."

"Okay. Come here." Steve bundled him up and tucked him into the car then ducked down and slid into the space next to him, wrapping his arm back around Tony's shoulder as soon as he was able.

O~O

Tony groaned out a protest but Steve wasn't having it, apparently eager to hold on as tight as possible to him. He was proved right when Steve pressed a hard kiss on Tony's forehead and nuzzled his cheek.

Tony could smell Steve's worry rolling off of him and wanted to comfort him but his chest was still aching, pains shooting through his upper body like small electric shocks, and he felt like he might throw up. In fact it was all he could do to not vomit all over Steve. He didn't know if the nausea was a symptom or a mental reaction to the terror that was building in his gut. The sensation of Steve's arm wrapped around his shoulders helped, kept him from spiraling completely into a blind panic. Just barely.

"Tony…"

He could tell a question was on the tip of Steve's tongue but cut him off before he could ask it. "You get him? The guy who took a shot at me?"

Steve nodded and pressed their foreheads together as if wanting to press as close to Tony as he was physically able. Meanwhile Happy started the car up and carefully pulled away, making sure not to run over the mob of people who had gathered around to see what all the noise was about. "Yeah, I chased him down. Phil has him now and the police were on their way when I left. Hopefully we'll get some answers soon."

"Good. This is getting old."

"For you and me both." Steve's arms tightened around him. "I had trouble controlling myself when I caught the sniper. I might have really hurt him if Phil hadn't been there."

Tony couldn't help but smile even though he knew what the consequences would be if Steve had actually injured the man. "I can't say I would've minded but it's probably better that he stopped you. There's going to be a media firestorm after this anyway but that would have made it even worse."

"…I'm glad I made you wear the vest."

Tony really did smile at that although it still felt forced. His chest was still hurting like a son of a bitch. "I'm glad you made me wear the vest too…Although he was aiming for my head, which wasn't protected. So, you know, it wouldn't have done much good then."

Steve shook his head and pressed a kiss against the corner of Tony's mouth. It was sweet with an edge of desperation and it was enough to keep both of them quiet for the rest of the ride home.

When they got back to the manor they were the only ones home. Even Peter was still in school which suited Tony just fine as he stumbled up to their bedroom. Steve followed him the whole way and kept one hand firmly on Tony's waist as he let him lead the way. They only separated when Tony pushed away from him and made his way to the en suite bathroom.

After making sure that Steve was going to stay outside, Tony shut and locked the door behind him then threw open the medicine cabinet and dug through it. He had filled it with a bunch of crap since Shifters usually didn't need to take any kind of medication but he had always been fucking special, hadn't he? There was no drinking this away.

His fingers had starting shaking again by the time they closed around a small pill bottle in the back and it took him a moment longer than it should have for him to unscrew the child-safe cap. Before he could second-guess himself, he slid two of the pills into his palm and swallowed them dry, gripping the edge of the marble counter to steady himself as he felt them slip down his throat. His chin jerked up and he stared at his own face in the mirror, cursing under his breath at the white pallor of his skin and the sweat beading up on his forehead.

Tearing his gaze away, Tony's eyes landed instead on the pill bottle. Clopidogrel. He hadn't ever wanted to touch this damn bottle again but after that last little display he couldn't deny that it felt like a heart attack. But what the hell did he know? He had a new heart now; he hadn't had any problems in almost twenty years. The symptoms, they could easily be shock. Small panic attacks.

It was just situational.

It would pass.

There were a millions different ways to rationalize it. Hundreds of different things it could be besides the terrifying idea that his heart was going to give out on him again. So he would go with those. He would go with the other options because he had to.

He lingered in the bathroom for one more minute but when he found himself avoiding looking into the mirror entirely he knew that it was time to leave. So he unlocked the door and cautiously slid it open. Just as he suspected Steve was right on the other side of the door looking for all the world like he had been about to break it down. His hands immediately went to grab onto Tony's shoulders and he ran his palms up and down Tony's arms. "Are you alright?"

Jerking his head down in a tight nod, Tony swallowed, his voice thick in his throat. "Yeah. Nothing you need to worry about." Tony closed his eyes and leaned into his mate's touch as Steve tenderly ran his fingers up to his shoulders again then back through Tony's sweaty hair and down to his neck.

"Of course I'm going to worry about you…" Steve brought one hand to rest against Tony's cheek and ran his thumb across his cheekbone before letting out a small tisk and gently tugging Tony towards the bed. "Here, sit."

"Don't baby me." That was the last thing Tony needed right now, to feel even more pathetic than he already did.

"I'm not. You really look like you're about to collapse." Finding himself unable to argue, Tony grudgingly obliged and let Steve sit him down on the edge of their bed. He wasn't ready for Steve to kneel down in front of him though and rest his hands on Tony's thighs. The Wolf's voice had gentled into a soothing tone, like he was trying to calm a spooked deer. "Tony. Tony, you're hiding something from me."

Hell yes he was. "Can we just…not talk about it tonight? Is that too much to ask for? Considering my day, I think that's reasonable, don't you?"

Tony's words seemed to hit a raw nerve because Steve brows pinched together and he nodded after just half a minute. "You'll tell me eventually." It wasn't so much a question as a statement.

Tony really hoped he would never have to, but with the way his luck went, "Yeah. I'm sure you'll hear about it eventually." Hopefully not from a coroner but—No. Tony shook his head. His bad heart hadn't killed him yet and it wasn't about to after all this time. "Listen, Steve, I'm tired, okay?" And he really, really was. He was emotionally wiped from almost getting shot in the back of the head and then hearing that Steve had caught the guy and he was freaked the fuck out by the realization that his heart might not be as strong as he had thought. He just wanted to close his eyes, wake up the next morning, and find out that the last three months had all been a weird nightmare.

"Then you should sleep."

Yeah, that's what Tony was trying to get at but—oh. Tony's mind cut off as Steve stood, kicked off his shoes, then climbed beside Tony to lay down in his usual spot on the bed. "Uh, you know that 'I' and 'you' are separate things, right? Just because I want to rest doesn't mean you have to."

Steve attempted to smile as Tony crawled up the bed and nearly collapsed next to Steve. "I know. But I want to. I want to be here."

Tony snorted. "Right. Whatever, it's your bed too I guess."

Despite how much he wanted to stay up and convince Steve that he was being an overprotective idiot he felt his eyelids start to grow heavier. The warmth and security from having his mate next to him was lulling him further into unconsciousness. Tony hummed as Steve kissed the back of his neck and curled over his mate. "Go to sleep, Tony. I'll watch over you."

He growled low under his breath. He didn't want to be watched over. And he was even more upset by how damn comforting it was to know that Steve would stay up and make sure that he was alright. "...don't need you to…"

He closed his eyes and exhaustion threatened to knock to him out. He was so tired. Steve's arms tightened around Tony's waist and he nestled his face into the crook of Tony's neck. "I will anyway."

O~O~O~O

Tony furrowed his brow as he woke up, the quiet was broken by his phone ringing. He tried to ignore it but it just kept ringing. And ringing. And finally it was just too damn annoying for him to ignore anymore. Rolling over, he pawed blindly towards the nightstand. A moment later a larger hand rested on top of his, stilling his movements, before a second hand pressed his phone into Tony's palm.

"Here."

Tony grunted in thanks and pulled the phone to his ear. "Hello?" He had no idea what time it was and couldn't even scrape up the energy to open his eyes and check the clock or see how much light was coming through the windows. So instead he rolled back over and pulled a pillow over half of his face.

"Tony, it's Pepper. I wanted to make sure you're okay. I was waiting to hear from you but then you never called so I started to get worried and—"

"Hey, slow down. Sorry to worry you." And Tony truly was. He knew how much Pepper cared about him and he could only guess what sort of stress she had been under for the last few hours. "I'm fine. I was just taking a nap." To try and sleep off the lingering pain in his chest. But he wasn't going to tell her that.

"What happened with the sniper? I called the police but they wouldn't tell me anything."

Tony couldn't help but smile at the idea of anyone denying Pepper anything. She could be a force to be reckoned with when she wanted something and he was sure that she put whatever officer she had communicated with through the ringer. "Steve apparently chased him down." The mattress dipped as Steve sat down next to him and began to run a hand up and down his back. It felt nice and Tony closed his eyes and arched his back into Steve's touch. "I don't know all the details myself but I guess the police have him now, so for the moment it's not my problem."

He could hear the frown in her voice. "Tony, it is still your problem!"

"Can't I just have a break? One night of not thinking about someone trying to kill me?" Tony had been trying to joke but some of his real desperation to pretend like everything was alright must have leaked through into his voice. Steve's hand paused on his back and then Tony felt the mattress dip again as Steve leaned forward to wrap his arm around his waist, his hand reaching up to press against Tony's chest.

The solid heat and weight against his back were enough to calm Tony back down but it was the way Steve's hand was pressed against him, the way that his fingers seemed to spread across the entire center of his chest and the gentle pressure of his palm on Tony's skin that really soothed him. It felt like Steve was holding his heart in. He must have done it subconsciously but all Tony wanted to do now was curl up and go back to sleep. Whatever silent plea had been in Tony's voice hadn't been lost on Pepper either. When she spoke next her tone had softened. "I just want you to finally accept that this is serious. But it sounds like I don't have to try and convince you of that anymore."

She never really had to. But she hadn't known that. "Yeah. I got it."

"Okay, well…" He heard Pepper sigh and he knew that all the fight had left her. She probably hadn't expected him to give in like that. "I'm just glad that you're alright. You should get some more rest."

"Sounds good."

"Don't worry about work. I'll take care of everything for the next week or two, however long it takes for you to get back on your feet."

Wow. She was actually offering to do his job for him this time. She must have been even more worried about him than he had initially thought. "I wouldn't be able to work even if I wanted to. I'm pretty sure Steve is going to tie me to the bed if I try to leave. And not in the fun way."

"Good. Then he, Coulson, and I are on the same page."

"Coulson?" What did he have to do with it?

"I called him before I called the police."

"Why?"

"Because unlike you, and the police, he will actually tell me things if it means keeping you safe."

"Great…"

"You sound tired." She wasn't wrong. Tony didn't know how many hours of rest he had gotten but it felt like he could still use about a dozen more. "I'm going to let you go. Stay safe."

"Sure. I'll talk to you soon."

"Good night, Tony."

O~O~O~O

It turned out that Tony had slept for fourteen hours and by the time he made it out of bed it was late morning the day after the sniper had taken his shot and Tony was more than a little disoriented. Worse was the ache that still remained in his chest.

And that had been the last time he had slept.

It had been three days now. Three very rough days.

Tony wasn't scared of whatever assassins might still be after him, he was afraid that their next attempt might startle him enough that his heart would blow. Every time he felt his pulse begin to speed up he was worried that he would die. He was scared of being too happy, of being too worried. He was scared to fucking sleep because he didn't know if he'd wake back up again. But he was the most afraid that someone would notice. That someone in the pack would figure it out and then there would be doctor's visits and suddenly it would all be real. Though maybe he could start running some tests of his own down in the workshop to try and gauge how bad it was. And to find out how much time he had left.

He was heading down to the basement when he was waylaid by Peter. The young Wolf nearly jumped onto him and Tony felt a stab of guilt at the broad grin on Peter's face at seeing Tony out of his room. He hadn't made the time he should have for his son. But at least Peter didn't seem to hold anything against him.

"Hey, Dad! Do you want to come outside? Pop and I figured out how to spin a big enough web to sit on. It's pretty cool."

Well, the shop could wait for a couple more minutes. Tony was fully aware of that fact that once he got down there he was likely not to resurface for another few days so figured he owed Peter a bit of time. "Sure, sport."

Peter's grin widened and he pulled himself away from Tony and grabbed his hand. Wary of moving too quickly, Tony dragged his heels as they went out to the backyard. Tony glanced around as they walked out onto the deck. "Show me what you got."

Releasing Tony's hand, Peter bounced onto the lawn and ran over to the edge of the grass where three trees were standing close to each other. "Here, look!" Tony did, sticking his hands in his pockets as he strolled across the lawn. He couldn't figure out what Peter was so excited about until he drew a bit closer and the light changed. Peter's grin softened and grew shy when he realized Tony had spotted it. "Do you like it?"

The web was huge, about twice the size of a regular hammock and hanging at a forty-five degree angle. But more than its size, what really amazed Tony was it complexity. The webbing was thicker than you would find in a regular spider's web, and a bit thicker even than what he had seen Natasha use, but the strings still looked delicate and were arranged in an intricate pattern radiating out from a center point. And Peter had made it. A swell of pride welled up in Tony's chest and he moved in to get a closer look. "It's something alright. You're getting pretty good."

Peter looked like someone had just told him Christmas had come early. "Natasha showed me how to spin small webs and then Pop and I worked out how to make them big. Try sitting on it!"

"I don't know." It looked like he would go right through it and he wasn't eager to ruin all the work Peter had put into it. That, and he wasn't really looking forward to sitting on it, falling through, and landing hard on the ground beneath it. A jolt like that didn't seem like it'd do his already aching body any good.

"Go ahead! It held Pop up."

Tony raised a brow. He wasn't that much smaller than Steve but Steve definitely had a couple of pounds on him. Assuming Steve sitting on it hadn't compromised its structural integrity it should be able to hold him. And Peter seemed really excited about this. "So, should I just sit on the edge or what?"

"Just jump right in the middle, like this!" Peter backed up a few steps then launched himself at the web. The fibers stretched as he hit then bounced back but Peter stuck tight to the web and peered expectantly up at Tony. "You'll probably stick though, so try and land on your back."

"Alright." Seemed simple enough. "Here goes nothing." Gauging the distance, Tony took three steps back then jumped, letting his spine twist midair so that by the time he hit the web he hit it butt first. His heart lurched awkwardly in his chest but he kept it together as he landed right beside Peter and the web flexed under his weight then snapped back into place. When the fibers finally stopped vibrating he tried to adjust his arms and found that said appendages were stuck tight. "Well you're right, it's sticky."

Peter laughed, a happy, nonjudgmental sound that Tony loved to hear. The engineer in him couldn't help but be impressed by the weight capacity of the delicate strands beneath him. "How much weight can this hold?"

Peter looked around and Tony saw the Wolf's own mind working as he assessed the web strands. "I'm not sure yet. Whatever Pop weighs, plus some. I was thinking maybe we could work on it down in your workshop and figure it out. I mean, if you have the time."

Tony tried not to get choked up at that. "Sure. That sounds great." He hoped he would have the time. As Peter grew older he was showing more interest in science and testing scientific hypotheses and Tony really couldn't have been prouder. He had to wonder if Howard had ever felt that way about him.

Peter nodded and they fell silent for a while. And it was actually relaxing, just laying back and looking out over the backyard and up at the sky. It was a nice day, blue sky with a couple of clouds. It had been a while since Tony had spent any significant time outside. And it was nice just to be next to Peter for a minute. Tony loved his scent: it was a little bit him, a little bit Steve, a little bit Pack, and Peter's own unique smell that had grown to mean everything to them.

"Hey, Dad…?"

"Hmm?"

Peter bit his lip and glanced over at him. "This stuff that's going on, the person who's after you…is it really bad? I read the story online but no one here tells me anything about it but it sounded bad…"

And there went the peace and quiet. But Tony knew he had to put the kid's fear at ease. He didn't want him having nightmares or anything over this. But at the same point he didn't want to lie. "I don't know what you read, Pete, but believe me when I say that we're all doing everything we can to get that guy. And the whole pack is in on it now so you know it won't be long until it's over. Your Pop, Clint, Thor, and Natasha, they're the best there are at what they do. They'll take care of it."

"And you're going to be okay?"

"Everything will work out." It was a non-answer but as long as Peter didn't realize that it would be alright. But that was a good reminder that Tony should probably get to work. "Now how am I supposed to get out of this thing?"

"Uh…"

That wasn't a promising sound. Tony looked over at Peter with one brow quirked up. "Hadn't thought that one through, huh? Well how did your Pop get out?"

Peter shrugged apologetically. "Clint came by and cut him out."

Clint had reported to SHIELD about two hours ago. "Awesome…"

"Sorry."

Seeing Peter's expression fall, Tony shook his head. "Well, there are definitely worse people to be stuck with in a giant spider web. And I'm sure someone will come check on us soon." With the way Tony was still being watched it was almost guaranteed. "In the meantime though, tell me a little about what's going on with you. How's school?"

They passed probably about an hour that way. Tony couldn't be sure because he couldn't reach his phone in his pocket but it felt like an hour. As he had suspected though, before long Thor emerged from back of the house and it didn't take the Lion long to figure out where they were.

The large blond had a huge smile on his face as he bounded over to them. "I see you have fallen into quite a dire circumstance!"

Tony rolled his eyes and tried to sit up but, no, he was still stuck fast. "Laugh it up, Simba."

"Do you require assistance freeing yourselves?"

Before Tony could respond, Peter answered back. Answered back as he leaned up and scooted down to the edge of the web. "I can get out but you need to cut the web around my Dad."

Tony blinked in surprise and tried to move but it he couldn't budge an inch. "You could get out?"

Peter nodded and hopped off onto the ground as Thor moved around to the back of the web to inspect it. "Yeah. I can climb on the web."

Tony still didn't get it. "Why didn't you leave?"

Peter looked up like it was the simplest thing in the world. "I wanted to stay here."

"You could've gone for help."

"But then we wouldn't have talked."

Huh. "I guess not."

Before he could think too long on the subject he felt Thor pluck at the webbing behind him. "I shall fetch a knife from Natasha's room and will cut you down in no time, my friend!"

"Take your time."

Luckily Thor didn't take his time and once he had found a knife made short work of cutting Tony out of his sticky prison. Tony had been worried that Peter would be upset to see his web destroyed but he simply watched and chatted as Thor worked. After his feet were back on the ground Tony thanked Thor, gave Peter a quick hug, and then went back into the house. After changing into new pants and a new shirt—and tossing the webbed set into the garbage before Steve could see—Tony finally headed down to his shop. When he got inside he made sure to lock the shop up tight. He didn't want anyone stumbling across this project.

Tony got to work building a heart monitor from scrap parts lying around. It took a little bit of trial and error but it was simple enough in theory, especially in comparison to other machines Tony had built, so it didn't take him too long to figure out. It would have taken a lot less time if he had called Bruce but didn't want the Beta to know what he was up to because it wouldn't take him long to connect the dots.

Soon Tony had a fully-functional heart monitor personalized to his needs and strapped it on. "Are you getting a reading, J?"

"Yes Sir. Your heart rate appears to fall within the normal range for a Shifter your age and with your activity levels."

"Okay. Okay, that's good. Heart rate normal…" That was tentatively good news. Was it possible that it really was all in his head? "Start recording a detailed analysis on heart rate and any irregularities in rhythm. Make a note that I am now injecting tracers into my arm…"

He should probably run it through some more strenuous tests but hypothetically it shouldn't do any permanent damage. The tracers would let JARVIS track the blood flow in his body and only had half a chance at leaving any sort of chemical by-product in his system. Pulling the cap off of the needle with his teeth, Tony pressed down on his arm until he could clearly see a vein, stabbed the needle into it, and injected the tracers into his bloodstream. "Ah, shit. Burns a bit…There we go." Tony flexed his fingers and watched as a darker stain slipped through his veins surrounding the injection site. "Can you get that on your scanners?"

"Yes Sir."

"Great. Track it as it runs through my system. I want to know about any blockage."

A holographic image of his bloodstream appeared in the center of the room, JARVIS marking the blood where he was able to identify the tracers in white. "It will take a few moments."

"Yeah. I figured." It would take a bit for his blood to circulate through his body. Flexing his hand again, Tony watched the tracers spread, faintly visible beneath his skin. It was easier to see on the hologram.

But this was it. He was going to find out what was going on.

Fear curled cold in the bottom of his stomach and, after another minute, Tony turned and picked the tablet he had sitting on his desk. "JARVIS…Start a new document file for me on my private server. If…anything happens to me, email it to Pepper."

"Very well, Sir. What would you like the file name to be?"

"…'Last Will and Testament'."

There was an unusually long pause before the AI spoke again. "You don't seem to be in good health, mentally or physically. Perhaps I could call Dr. Banner instead—"

"Thanks, J, but I don't need your advice right now, okay? Just open the file onto my pad."

All of his physical property, including the house and all of his possessions, along with whatever he had in the bank and in stocks was going to Steve Rogers. A steady percentage of the company's earnings would be put towards charitable donations. And ownership over Stark Industries would go to Peter Parker, to be run until Peter was of age by Pepper Potts. Along with the company, Peter would receive the rights to all of Tony's inventions and creations, including those not yet fully developed, whatever he had written down on scraps in the workshop, and in files on the network…

Tony paused as he typed. That was a lot to put on Peter, a lot for a boy his age to carry. But Tony didn't doubt that he could do it. Peter was naturally smart and Tony hadn't always been a great parent but he had made sure to help Peter nurture that intellect. He would never be a Stark or have the same level of engineering ingenuity either Tony or Howard had but he was the best person Tony could think of to carry on the Stark family legacy…

Tony saved and closed the document then tossed the Stark pad back onto the desk. He couldn't do this now. "How are we doing on that scan, J?"

"Sir, my scanners are picking up some irregularities—"

Shit, shit, shit. "Cancel the scan. Stop the test."

"Perhaps you should—"

"No, nope. Just, forget about it." Tony clawed at his arm where he had injected the tracers into his veins and wished that he could suck them back out. But he didn't want to do this anymore. He would run the tests later. Or never. Never was good.

Tearing the heart monitor off, he scrambled to shove all the equipment back in the right drawers and on the right shelves. What the hell was he doing? And what the hell was he supposed to do? He didn't want to go through this again. He shouldn't have to! Wasn't doing this as a kid enough? Hadn't he paid his dues?

But no, fuck that. This wasn't going to be like things were when he was a kid. He was an alpha, god dammit! A powerful one at that, and he wasn't going to be coddled anymore, even by himself.