Footpaths (part 4)

The next morning Tony spends two hours throwing up in the bathroom before sun even rises and by the time it's time to leave for radiation he feels tired and heavy as if he didn't sleep for three days. Happy drives him to the clinic, walks with him as far as he can and then waits right outside the door. Tony doesn't say anything but he knows Happy knows he's silently thankful and it's difficult for him to say so.

Tony's only glad his blood work is acceptable so he doesn't need a transfusion right now, he's not sure he could sit through it. It feels like his body is itching with some strange restlessness, as if the tiny mark he has on his abdomen from the radiation burns irrationally, and she just wishes he could fall into blissful unconsciousness but no such luck. When he's back at home and in his bed he can't fall asleep, turning in search for a more comfortable position every few minutes.

'Are you in pain, sir?' JARVIS asks quietly, concern clear in his voice, and Tony has to think for a moment before answering.

'No, not really, J, just – I don't know. I wanna rest.'

'Can I help you somehow?'

'Distract me,' Tony mumbles, wrapping himself tighter with the thick duvet. There is a moment of silence before JARVIS starts to talk about the newest robotics research that's happening in Europe, including as much details as possible, and it finally lets Tony relax a bit.

The next day continues in a similar manner and Happy calls Doc sometime around noon, despite Tony's protests and JARVIS reassurance that none of his detailed scans show any unusual anomalies. Tony's just exhausted and restless and he feels like he needs to do something so fucking much but he can't drag himself out of the bed.

When Doc arrives, Tony and JARVIS are deep in a discussion about the arc reactor's support systems for the future clean energy-run building, this way Tony can at least pretend he's doing some work.

Doc frowns when he enters the room filled with a soft blue glow, the windows half opaque and blocking out whatever little sunlight manages to get through the thick grey clouds and falling snow.

'Do you mind if I check up on you instead of your machines, kid? No offense, JARVIS, of course.'

'None take, Doctor. I will be pleased if someone takes a look at sir.'

'J, you were supposed to be on my side,' Tony mumbles, sitting up in the bed and ignoring the sudden bout of nausea that accompanies the movement, it'll pass in a moment. He managed to eat some soup yesterday and today, too, so it's not that bad.

'I am on your side,' JARVIS states simply, gaining an approving smile from Doc. He takes out his magical tools and proceeds to examine Tony, taking his vitals and asking questions, and then he has a look at Tony's most recent blood tests.

'I don't see anything –'

'Worse than usual, I know,' Tony ends for him. 'That's why I told Happy you didn't have to come. It's gonna pass, I'm pretty sure –'

'Your body is just tired with all that's been going on.'

'I know,' Tony admits wearily. He hates that Doc is right. 'But I feel good most of the time, I've been on a mission and it was fine. Got thrown around a bit, but I liked the change of atmosphere, it's nice to see something that's not concrete and asphalt sometimes.'

'I see you're just as talkative as always,' Doc notes, putting the stethoscope and everything else bag into this professional leather bag. 'Do you need some painkillers?'

'I'm not in pain,' Tony assures him, snapping his hand at JARVIS, who saves all the files and makes all the holograms disappear. 'I'm really not, don't look at me like that,' he adds, catching Doc's eye. 'It's gonna be fine, right?' He mumbles into the man's shoulder a moment later, burying his face in the crook of Doc's neck.

'It's gonna be fine,' Doc assures him firmly, wrapping an arm around Tony's back. 'Don't be scared,' he adds so quietly that Tony can barely make out the words. 'You're strong.'

'Mhm,' Tony murmurs, shivering slightly.

'Happy, we're going to the living room, make sure there is something to eat, a movie and tropical temperature, all right?'

'Sure thing,' Happy replies and disappears quickly, already talking to JARVIS.

'And you, kid, are going to take a shower.'

'Don't wanna,' Tony says into the fabric of Doc's jacket.

'Yes you do,' Doc assures him, wraps his other arm around Tony's thin frame and helps him to the shower.

They watch old Star Trek and Tony is basically force-fed warm soup, though he can't say it's not tasty and he's not hungry, and half into the third movie, Tony falls asleep, head in Doc's lap, with a blanket wrapped around the rest of his body despite the warm dry air filling the room.

It gets better the next day, not much but Tony can tell there's a change, so instead of sitting in bed he spends the day nestled into an armchair in his workshop, working from 4 a.m. to midnight with a few short breaks. Happy tries to protest but apparently Tony's brain decided that it won't shut off so he just rolls with it. It's nothing as wild as he used to do, anyway, and it's nice. Almost like in the good old days, if he ignores how heavy his head feels.

On Friday, Tony eats breakfast in the kitchen and when he's finishing, JARVIS speaks up, his voice filled with an equal dose of excitement and anxiety.

'I picked up an activity regarding the money trail you have me following,' he says and pauses, waiting for Tony's reaction. 'Sir?'

'We should follow,' Tony decides, sighing heavily. 'Same place again?'

'A hundred miles east.'

'So, more or less the same. Wait, any news from S.H.I.E.L.D. about the issue?'

'Director Fury has not sent you any message regarding the time you can see the weapons for yourself yet. And I do not pick up any additional information about the case in their databases.'

'So they're still behind us on tracing the bad guys, hmm? Are there any S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in proximity?'

'Three hundred miles away, sir. There are seven agents on a mission in the middle of an uninhabited area, an operation concerning local terrorist groups.'

'I need you to keep close tabs on the area and collect all info you can get, as always. No new sights of the weapons themselves? No strange shootings or something?'

'Negative.'

'We need to get to those people, then,' Tony decides, messaging his temples with practiced circular motions. 'J, I need you to take Mark VIII, it's the best for stealth, and fly there to get us some names. Can you do that?'

'I am not sure I should do that,' JARVIS says, stressing the word with what sound like hesitation. 'I am just an artificial intelligence.'

'I know what you mean, J, and we talked about that so many times… I never though Tony Stark's kid could have such self-esteem issues. And don't say anything. You know you're more human than most humans I know, I keep telling you that, are you ever going to really understand that?'

'Sir, I –'

'No, don't answer that. Sorry,' Tony says quietly, smiling briefly at the nearest camera. 'I'm being selfish.'

'I want to help,' JARVIS says, his voice a bit stronger. 'I want to do all I can to help, sir. I just still find it hard to believe that you would trust me that much.'

'I think I told that Fury last time, didn't I? I trust you with everything, everything, and I trust you to fly the suit by yourself and play Iron Man, which you are at least in a big part, and help me figure out this mystery and end it with the bad guys. It's our responsibility, isn't it?'

'It is, sir,' JARVIS agrees, and then, 'I will prepare Mark VIII for flight. It will be ready in three minutes.'

'No need to be anxious, baby, you'll blow everyone's minds,' Tony says before grabbing the last piece of toast from his plate and making his way to the workshop to see Mark VIII out. 'I just want you to keep safe distance and observe. We're not in hurry. You can do this for a few days, right? I want to be sure you're safe with the suit and that no one gets to notice you. We just need some names.'

'I will so my best,' JARVIS replies via the armor, and then it disappears and flies out of the room. Tony sighs, glances at his watch and nods to himself. Pepper is supposed to come over in the afternoon, for dinner and to talk business, since Tony hasn't managed to persuade her that she should make all the decisions about SI without him. She keeps insisting his words matter a lot, so Tony decided to indulge her and go over the new R&D plans.

They talk about business, eat dinner, drink alcohol-free fruit cocktails and then Pepper falls asleep on Tony for the first time in what feels like years. It's probably been years.

Tony lets her sleep like that until the movie they've been watching is finished, and then he wakes her up, feeling terribly guilty because she needs her sleep and rest even more than he does, but he knows he wouldn't be able to carry her to bed.

It takes him tightly clenched fists and a few long breathes to acknowledge that and he hates how useless it makes him feel.

'Pep, hey, sorry to wake you up,' he mutters, looking at Pepper's sleepy eyes, 'can you go to bed with me? The sofa's nice but it'll give you stiff neck, believe me, I tried, and I just can't – I need you on your feet, okay?'

'Sure, Tony,' she replies in the same hushed voice and untangles the blanket she's been wrapped with, takes his hand and taking slow steps, inaudible since she's barefoot, leads him to the bedroom.

Tony is pretty sure that it should be the other way round but Pepper doesn't mind.

She lays down close to him, still holding his hand, and Tony pretends not to hear her soft muffled sobs when they both try to just fall asleep.

Tony wakes up to a lovely scent coming from the kitchen through the open bedroom door and, wrapped with a dressing gown, he tiptoes through the living area. Pepper is making what looks like egg benedict, one of her favorite foods, and that makes Tony smile lazily.

'Morning,' he says, sitting on one of the high chairs, a cup of coffee already waiting for him. Like when she was his PA back in Malibu. 'Thanks.'

'I'm just saving myself from the pleasures of interacting with an undercaffeinated Tony Stark,' she replies cheekily, taking out the poached eggs with skilled ease and placing them on top of the slightly fried ham.

'Sorry for yesterday,' they say in exactly the same moment, then they look at each other for a long moment and start laughing.

'It's okay,' he assures her softly. Pepper nods.

'It's okay,' she repeats, pouring some sauce over the eggs and putting the plates on the table, her feet still bare and still moving soundlessly. 'Happy is out. I promised to take care of you today.'

'Or use me, Miss Potts,' he teases, inhaling the perfect scent of the food, thankful that he's stomach is not acting up anymore.

'Or use you, Mister Stark,' she agrees lightly and digs in.

'I want to expand SI medial,' Pepper tells Tony after dinner, when they are in the workshop, dividing attention between the files Pepper brought, and petting the bots. The miss Pepper so much, she used to be around them all the time, and even Tony's presence and Happy's help can't soothe them.

'Does that have something to do with… this situation?' Tony asks cautiously, waving vaguely at himself.

'No, it just seems like something worth doing,' Pepper lies. Tony nods in agreement.

'Well, that's good, because the amazing team of JARVIS and I has some great ideas half-developed, waiting for someone to pick them up and finish.'

'Does that have anything to do with this situation?' Pepper questions, looking at Tony with her head tilted, a small smile crawling onto her lips.

'No, it just seemed like something worth doing,' he parrots, making her smile a bit wider. They don't say anything more for a long time, focusing on working in an efficient tandem they've been practicing for so many years.

'I don't think it's a good idea, boss,' Happy tells Tony when he's finishing breakfast the next morning.

'You never do.'

'This time I especially don't think it's a good idea. You said neither Captain nor Romanov will be there, and Barton is out with Coulson, so that leaves what, you and Banner and Spider Man?'

'Only more of the reason to go, Happy,' Tony assures the man, stirring his coffee in slow circular movements. 'It'll be a light training. And it's been to quiet recently, so if we're called to something, an additional hour of training is always an advantage.'

'Boss –'

'I promise I won't get beat up much,' Tony cuts in firmly. 'Besides, they are both scientists, whether you want to believe it or not. I'm pretty sure we'll end up talking science. None of us likes S.H.I.E.L.D. too much, so I guess we can bitch about them and their crappy R&D for hours.'

'That sounds like a plan,' Happy declares mockingly and stuffs a donut into his mouth, giving Tony a clear sign that he won't talk about that anymore.

'Sure, sulk all you want, you'll be thankful when we revolutionize physics in one evening,' Tony states and takes a gulp of the almost-too-hot coffee.

When he's finished, he puts on Mark X and gets to HQ in a few minutes, only to find Bruce and Spider Man glued to a big screen in one of the labs, staring at all the controls displayed on the screen.

'What's going on here?' he asks, surprised that they don't jump at the sound of Iron Man's voice. 'Something interesting?'

'S.H.I.E.L.D. got yet another sample of wannabie supersoldier serum in their hands last week and they gave it for me to analyze and experiment with. It's actually pretty good. Want to have a look? I was just explaining Spider Man one of the experiments I did yesterday,' Bruce sais, moving closer to Spider Man to make a way for Iron Man to stand closer.

'I thought we'd at least pretend to train before we do something like that,' Tony confesses, his brain already processing all the letters and numbers on the screen.

'This totally beats training,' Spider Man says excitedly, stuffing himself with a chocolate bar.

'And I promised to make curry when we're done,' Bruce adds, eying Spider Man fondly, which makes Tony irrationally jealous.

That's new.

'Sounds like a plan,' Tony agrees, fascinated by one of Bruce's simulations in the corner of the screen. 'So, have you done the most interesting simulation yet? Gamma radiation?'

'I was planning to,' Bruce admits, hands already flying over the keyboard. 'Look, first we need to see how much time we'd need…' he starts, Tony and Spider Man listening closely, and they're completely lost in the project.

On Monday, back from the clinic, Tony asks JARVIS to prepare a full list of all the not quite finished medical projects they've ever worked on. They've been working non-stop on the arc reactor and Tony feels like he needs a break, given that the project is still far from complete, balancing all the details is just killing him, so a break to refresh his mind is very welcome.

'Any news about the weapons, J? Tony asks, staring at the task completion bar, the numbers changing from 35% to 36 and 37 in a moderate pace.

'It is not conformed yet, but I do indeed have a lead, it seems. There has been another money withdrawal from an account connected directly to the first one we investigated and while I was not able to see the person who made the withdrawal, I managed to locate their car and I am now following at safe distance.'

'Whoa, J, that's big, you're doing great!'

'Thank you, sir,' JARVIS says quietly, showing the progress of 63% 'I did not want to tell you before I was sure I could follow the vehicle.'

'That's all right,' Tony reassures JARVIS, smiling at the ceiling in a gesture of affection. 'That's all right.'

It takes JARVIS another twenty two seconds to complete the task.

'What do we have here…' Tony murmurs to himself, browsing the list; there seems to be everything, from an idea for a better MRI and an new generation of surgical lasers to rehabilitation assistant robots. Which does sound pretty cool because robots, Tony's always been an engineer and robotics specialist first and foremost. 'Why don't we work on this one,' he points to one of the project names on the screen, with a very promising description, and JARVIS blows up the schematics.

'Shall I order all the materials necessary for creating this unit? JARVIS asks and Tony just gives him a nod, the project is almost ready to be produced, there are only a few minor details he has to look at.

On Wednesday afternoon Clint messages Nate to ask if he has some time to hang out. Tony is feeling pretty acceptable, considering, and he's been sitting hunches over his new robots for far too long, so he has JARVIS settle time and place and flies back to the apartment to put on some normal non-stained clothing.

They end up in the chocolaterie they discovered in summer, reminiscing cycling, gossiping and commenting on random S.H.I.E.L.D. things over cups of hot chocolate. Clint doesn't ask about Steve, Tony isn't sure if he doesn't know anything or knows something but doesn't want to tackle the subject, instead, he tells Tony about the trip to New Mexico.

'We met with Jane and Darcy,' Clint starts, signing over his cup lazily.'I don't know how she's still Jane's assistant – not an intern anymore, mind you, she shouted at me for calling her that – since she doesn't know anything more than she did about science, but they seem to have some kind of a subconscious connection because Darce always knows what Jane needs and Jane is always so awkwardly thankful and keeps giving Darcy alcohol.'

'Sounds like fun,' Tony signs and Clint nods vigorously.

'Sometimes you're not sure you don't understand them because they're drunk or the research is simply that crazy. Or because they are pretending and making fun of you. They have great poker faces.'

'I haven't had a chance to note that, but I'll verify the next time we meet,' Tony assures Clint and drinks some of the thick caramel-flavored drink. 'So why did she request a meeting?'

'She said there've been some… spikes that we could find interesting. She thinks Thor might be paying us a visit sometime soon, although when you asked her to define soon, she just shrugged. So we've got to wait.'

'Couldn't she just tell you that on the phone?' Tony asks, smiling at the passing waitress, she smiles back and nods at him, so he knows she'll come in a moment. Clint seems like he needs another cup of chocolate and the raspberry flavored one seems like something Tony would like to steal a spoonful of.

'Well, it wasn't all,' Clint admits, pressing his lips together and making a long pause. 'It was actually Darcy's idea. She kept flirting with me like hell.'

Tony chuckles, politely pretending not to laugh at that, and waits for an elaboration.

'The last day we were there, Phil didn't just couldn't stand it, even though I swear I wasn't doing anything inappropriate, and –' Clint trails off, blushing slightly, which is very out of character for him.

'And?'

'He proposed,' Clint whispers, leaning over the table, as if he was afraid someone would overhear them. 'I said yes.'

'Amazing,' Tony signs, grinning like mad because hey, everyone's been waiting for that for so long, really. 'Congratulations,' he adds, focusing on the waitress for a second. He types his order – a piece of the most fancy torte the place sells – and shows it to the woman who nods. Then he adds to Clint, 'I'm proud. You need to celebrate. It's on me.'

Clint knows better than to talk Nate out of doing something he wants, so he just nods.

'So, Darcy?'

'She admitted she did it on purpose, 'cause she's heard all the love tales about us from Thor, did you know they talked on the phone very day she was here, by the way? So she decided we needed a push, since even Phil's… injury wasn't enough for any of us to make a move.'

'She's something else,' Tony declares, staring approvingly at the gigantic piece of cake that was just delivered to the table. Clint looks like a kid whose greatest Christmas wish has just come true, so Tony lets him enjoy the chocolate craze and they spend some time in chewing and almost-moaning filled silence.

A/N: Thank you for reading. I hope you liked this chapter :)