Disclaimer: i do not own marvel

Chapter 30

Tony was at the hospital, the same one as when he had caused a car accident with his reckless behavior. It was the same one where Bob had been admitted earlier. At least Thor had managed to take him somewhere familiar. Back to the beginning...I am waiting for you, Vizzini! Tony shook his head. Maybe his brain was a bit scrambled; then again, that would make him Westley and Loki would be Buttercup and he'd cast Fury as Humperdinck and if it didn't hurt so much to laugh, he'd be on the floor. As it was, he was wheezing in pain and delirious laughter. Ow.

Not that he had any plans on staying here obediently; certainly he had better things to do. Protecting Loki from him own stubbornness, for instance.

Whoa, who would have thought I would utter such a sentence?

First, however, he needed to escape the clutches of one God of Thunder and one hospital staff. The first doctor who rushed in with a stethoscope waving around his neck got the full brunt of his anger. "Thor! Put me down! And you!" Tony's wild brown eyes flashed toward the young doctor. "Don't you dare come closer! The last thing I need is a doctor prying at me." Well, technically he did need a doctor; his limp was clearly visible now that Thor had finally let his feet touch the floor. There wasn't any use in hiding the angry red wound; it had already caught the healer's attention.

"Surely you jest, Man of Iron. Even warriors such as we need to tend our wounds." Thor frowned. "There is no shame in wounds received in battle. It is a great honor!"

For fuck's sake, why did Thor have to talk in such a loud voice? Tony swore he could hear his head ringing and spontaneously split open from the booming noise Thor's vocal cords produced. Swaying slightly, he used the pristine white hospital wall to steady himself. He grabbed the metal bar with one hand while the other sought a cool, spotless surface. Leaning his forehead against the cool surface, he tried to take a breath and winced.

Who was he kidding? If it wasn't for some sort of support, he would probably end up in a undignified position on the floor. One that could not be blamed on large quantities of alcohol, a midnight encounter, or a "Pepper, you've seen me do worse" scenario. Somehow, in his mind, none of those things were as embarrassing as un-heroically falling on the floor, in a public hospital no less, just because his legs refused to take him elsewhere. He moved forward relentlessly, dead set on getting his way. Each step left a dull, mucky grey handprint on the clean walls behind him.

Even in his state, he managed to cast a rather impressive "do not fuck with me" glance to the young approaching physician, who staggered in his footsteps and brought his eyes down to the ground. Tony's supposed victory was short lived as a more experienced nurse came into view. And by experienced, the engineer meant a mean-looking elderly woman who wouldn't take shit from anybody, even Tony Stark. He had to admire her guts though, especially since she was bringing in a wheelchair.

"Don't you dare," Tony warned. He wasn't an invalid yet. No way in hell was that damned nurse getting him in that damned chair in front of the already gathering damned public.

"Friend Anthony," Thor rumbled, urging him to sit.

Tony frowned at Thor, confused. The big man sounded awfully quiet and worried compared to his normal self. Tony could feel a large hand holding him up, supporting him when his legs wanted to give way. The young doctor rushed in to help. Gone was his earlier hesitance caused by the bitter comments from the celebrity genius. He'd also been encouraged by the no-nonsense nurse. Thor somehow managed to clear the hallway of strangers and people standing by just hoping for a spectacle. Gods could be menacing, after all. Worried lines creased the doctor's face and Tony even saw a flash of panic before professional urgency took its place.

Why was the floor so close?

There was something in his arm, some sort of foreign object that really did not belong there. It itched and he didn't like it. If Tony could stretch just a bit more, he could scratch the burning itch or pull it out. Not that it mattered, his body wasn't reacting to anything he wanted it to do. The needle, once he figured out what it was, was in his wrist to stay.

Blurred movements around him told Tony he was on a stretcher, being moved to god only knows what room in the hospital. Panic filled him. It was a public hospital, after all, and these doctors where not his own. None of them knew what truly laid within his chest or what a single wrong movement could induce. A faint noise escaped him. He wanted it to be a warning, it was supposed to be a warning, but he knew it came out a soft, moaning sigh. Slowly, he started drifting off again. The last thing he heard was the familiar clacking of high heels on the floor.

"Pepper." Tony's last coherent thought was that he hoped he passed out charmingly and not like a drooling half-wit. After all, he had a reputation to uphold.

Everything smelled like stale disinfectant when he woke. This definitely meant he wasn't at home. Home did not smell so gruesomely bad; oil, sweat, and sex held a much richer and preferred aroma. The sheets around him were uncomfortable, wrinkled and kind of damp, which he can only assume was probably because of his sweat. He struggled to keep his eyes open for a moment, but the lids seemed so heavy and the light was blinding. Eventually though, he could start to see basic shapes in the environment. One of the shapes was distinctly human-shaped and talking impatiently to what appeared to be a doctor-shaped blob, given the whiteness of the torso.

"Um..." Great going there, smooth opening line, Tony.

"Tony!" A relieved, feminine voice that could belong to no other than one Ms. Pepper Potts called out to him. He couldn't deny it was comforting to hear her. However, his heart gave a painful lurch in longing for another voice.

Still blinking his eyes, he heard her sniffling slightly as she approached the bed. "Don't even think about trying to get up," he heard her whisper as she leaned in to adjust his pillow. Honestly, he wasn't even considering it as a possibility right now.

"I should have known it wasn't over, these visits to the hospital, constantly worried if you're going to make it or not." Her voice trembled slightly, but held mostly steady. Tony loved that strength about her, how she had always managed to keep her wits about her in high-stress times. He was never sure how she did it; he needed alcohol. He shook his head, missing something she said as his mind drifted. As she sat beside him, she continued. "Sometimes, I think you're meant to give me heart attacks, as a way to keep me on my toes."

He could hear both the smile and the worry and he hated making her worry again. That's why it hadn't worked for them. He couldn't handle the guilt. At least with Loki... He reached out blindly, grasping for her hand.

Gradually, his eyes adjusted to the blinding white light in the room. After blinking a few times, he took in his surroundings and Pepper. She had been crying and her eyes were red and swollen from spilled tears. She must have seen the surprise in his eyes because Pepper gave him one of those soft almost motherly smiles.

"It's rude to stare Tony," she admonished him, squeezing his hand gently. Pepper was a strong woman, one of the strongest he knew. She wouldn't break down into tears just because he broke a leg. Whatever it was that upset her this badly, it was serious business.

"How bad is it?" He rasped. He watched her fidget, her fingers running through her hair as she sighed. She handed him some ice chips to soothe his throat. The feel of the ice melting in his mouth and trickling down his throat reminded him of a familiar taste of winter and he winced. "Give me the unedited version."

"What is the last you remember?" she asked hesitantly, tucking an errant hair behind her ear.

?" she asked hesitantly, tucking an errant hair behind her ear . This was the first time Tony had been unconscious for several days, hanging onto life by a thread. Each time he was hurt, the hell Pepper put herself through got worse. They have have ended their romantic involvement, but her heart still ached every time the phone rang with bad news regarding Tony. It was the one thing she would never get used to hearing.

"Passing out on the hospital floor. Elegantly." Tony smiled.

"Due to severe blood loss!" Pepper scowled at him, voice high and loud with worry and annoyance. "You were almost gone, Tony. When I saw you like that, again..." She pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to control her tears. "It..." her voice broke, "It hurts to see you like that. I called your personal doctor and Bruce before I arrived here. Dr. Banner brought one of your spare arc reactors, in case we needed to replace it."

Tony's breath caught and he immediately touched his chest, feeling the cold metal object through his shirt. The reactor still emitted a steady healthy glow. It was safe and functional, keeping him among the living. His doctor and Bruce both knew of his condition, but there were only a few people on this planet he trusted enough to come close to his "heart." The thought of anybody besides himself, Pepper, or Loki touching it was panic-inducing. Loki. I trust Loki enough to let him touch it.

Pepper saw the panic flit over his face at the thought of the reactor having to be replaced. "It was still in one piece and functional, Tony, thank God." She shook her head, her eyes tearing up and her voice rough as she continued. "I don't think you would have survived any more trauma."

She reached out to touch him, gently, as if he was fragile. "You had internal damage to your organs," she whispered, "a punctured lung, severe head trauma, a few cracked ribs, a dislocated shoulder, a mean cut on your abdomen, numerous cuts and bruises. To be fair, you looked like a torn rag doll. It took four hours just to stop the internal bleeding, but they did it." She paused, throat tight. "Again, you were brought back from the edge."

Tony let her speak, listening to every word. He had been through worse, well, maybe not physically but mentally. Torture usually meant being conscious. He still felt pain while breathing and he ached everywhere, but there was one thing he knew. I am one lucky son of a bitch. If Loki hadn't gotten there when he did...

He looked at his hands, flexing the stiff fingers. The last time he had seen them, in the near-darkness of the tunnels, he had seen and felt the small cuts caused by torn metal. Now, his hands were clean and covered with healing scabs already fading scars. He frowned. This was not good. "How long was I out?" he asked, worriedly. And more importantly, what happened to Loki while I was out?

"Approximately five days; they kept you asleep to let your body heal." She was positive that Tony got the underlying message: You WILL stay. Still, she worried, knowing Tony well enough that when he wanted to do something rash, he would. Normally at the most inopportune moment, with the most fanfare and the most danger. If the worry Tony felt for Locke was anything close to how she normally felt for Tony, she really couldn't blame him. However, she'd do everything in her power to make sure he didn't hurt himself more than needed in the process.

"I need to go back to the tower." I need to find out what happened to Loki.

Pepper sighed, shaking her head. She stood, straightening her skirt. "You can have that discussion with Bruce and the doctor. I think they'll let you though, under certain conditions."

Tony sighed and scowled at his ice chips. God, how he hated conditions. Conditions never meant anything good. In the end, he would either talk his way out or smile in agreement while walking out five minutes after agreeing. One important question remained unasked, however. Tony wondered how much Pepper already knew about Loki. He looked at her, the question still unspoken. Probably everything.

She smiled softly, running the back of her fingers down his cheek. "I don't know where he is Tony, but I have Jarvis working on it." She took his ice chips from him and placed them on the bedside stand, laughing briefly at his scowl. "Now, go back to sleep. You look awful."

Leave it to Pepper to read him like an open book.

She walked out the door, leaving him alone in the vacant white room. Well, it was vacant except for the giant bouquet of flowers. To match the giant bouquet was a giant card in shape of Iron Man. Probably Clint's idea. It said "Get well soon, Man of Iron" in all caps and the entire team's signatures were on it. What hurt more than he expected was the missing name, the strict, elegantly written signature belonging to one Locke Ladislav, ex-god of Mischief and Chaos.

Unconsciously, his body had listened to Pepper's words. Before Tony had time to realize it, his body sank into the warm embrace of sleep, his dreams filled with thoughts of Loki.

Big thanks to swordmisstress, she is an awesome beta

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