"Long Years Ago"

Tony Stark was twenty-two when he met his soulmate at a science convention. That's what he was calling it, anyway; it was really a social gathering of scientists and engineers, but everyone pulled out their favourite specs, their private joys, to show off. Representing Stark Industries, Tony had decided to surprise people with his ideas for a portable computer without a single button. The technology was close to being perfected… sort of… Well, it would be if he was allowed to design more and go to fewer board meetings. But Obi insisted, and Tony trusted him to know what was best.

He talked to the other scientists, nearly all of them older than him. Despite the Stark name, they didn't think he was even half as capable as his father. Well, he'd show them all one day. The most powerful and beautiful weapon to use against the enemy.

He was making minor adjustments to the computer's design when he bumped into someone near the table. Tony looked up into dark eyes set in a young face, and backed off a step. Dark Eyes scanned him with a smirk, and then noticed the design. He tilted his head to get a better look, and Tony fought the impulse to hide it behind his back, make the guy work for it.

"You gonna show me yours in return?" he said. Dark Eyes straightened, his eyebrows drawing together.

"If you think it's worth that," he said, pointing to the design. Tony's jaw dropped.

"Here?" he said.

"I suppose a bedroom would be more private for seeing each other's… assets."

"No, I meant, I found my soulmate here?" Tony mussed up his hair. "Shit. I've been trying to avoid these things for years."

"This is only my second time at a science gala, but I am definitely enjoying myself." He looked Tony over again, his eyes more heated this time. "I hope to enjoy myself even more upstairs, in the room I booked."

Tony grinned, and held out his hand. "What's your name?"

"Victor."

"I'm Tony."

"Yes, I know that."

"Where do you work, Victor?"

"I am studying, but I plan to open my own business in spring. One of my rivals is here." He nodded towards a group. "Reed Richards."

"Richards? That crackpot?"

Victor laughed heartily. "You are cynical, Mr. Stark."

"Tony, please."

"Tony." He said it slowly, seeming to savour it. He drew a folded blueprint out of his suit pocket. "I am interested in improving space travel, among other things."

"Wow." Tony's eyes gleamed as he looked over the designs. "You know, what I'm working on could be used on this, at least the micro-sized components."

"The size of technology is one of the few things in life which should get smaller," Victor said, stroking a finger down the side of Tony's arm. He shivered as Victor folded up the plans and tucked them away. "We can talk about this later. I would love to see my words on you."

"I'd love you to see them," Tony admitted.

"Come upstairs?"

"Which floor?"

"Seven."

"I'm on six. Just let me get into something more comfortable, and I'll meet you there. Room?"

"Eighteen."

"If I take more than half an hour, call out a search party."

Victor chuckled, running a finger down the centre of Tony's back and pausing at the base of his spine. Tony didn't know whether he wanted it to continue or not. Considering that they weren't alone yet, it was probably best that Victor stopped.

"Don't be longer than fifteen minutes," he said. "We'd better take separate elevators, or I'll end up having you against the wall, and damn anyone who interrupts."

Tony didn't whimper, not even close. But he hurried all the same.

He was on floor seven as well, but he alighted on level six and then ran up the stairs. It was ingrained in him that he never let a potential enemy know where he was staying. He was supposed to be able to trust his soulmate, but he'd read horror stories about millionaires being taken advantage of. Victor was still a student, looking to start up on his own. So Tony carefully stored his dummy plans in the safe, and his real plans in plain sight, just disguised. They were in three different places, an extra safety precaution.

Then he stripped, grabbed supplies, and dressed in much looser clothes. He had a message sent to Obi's room, telling him where he would be, and slipped a note under his door just in case the verbal message wasn't delivered. Then he walked along the hall, around the corner, and up to room 718.

The seconds after he knocked dragged by, and he was tense enough to snap by the time the door opened.

"I hope you have more clothes somewhere, because these won't last the next two minutes," Victor said. Then he yanked Tony into the room by his shirt-front, crushed their lips together, and slammed the door shut. He pressed Tony into the wood, keeping him pinned with his mouth, and with a thigh between Tony's legs, while he ripped the shirt clean apart. Tony groaned, his hips twitching, as a hot mouth made its way down his chest.

"Got… stuff…" he said, pulling out the lube and condoms with slack hands. Victor took them, threw them onto the bed, and returned to Tony. His zipper was nearly torn, the button snapped clean off, and Tony had to shuffle off his designer leather shoes before they fell victim, too.

This was steaming heaven, and he wanted more of it.

"You'll get more," Victor promised. With a strength Tony didn't expect, he lifted Tony in his arms and carried him to the bed. "You won't be able to walk in the morning."

"What about you?" Tony asked. He was a Stark; he wasn't going to be pushed around all night. Victor smiled smugly.

"I'll let you top," he said. "But I can guarantee you'll never want anything else in you but me, and you'll only ever be content when I'm drilling in to you."

Tony keened softly, and tugged at Victor's clothes.

"Off," he said. "Take `em off. All of it. Wanna see you."

"Where is your mark?" Victor asked, stripping while Tony enjoyed the show.

"Back of my lower right leg," Tony said, and he angled it for Victor to see. Victor's grin turned even more evil. Tony hadn't thought it was possible.

"Mine is here," he said, pulling off his shirt. Tony's handwriting curled over his shoulder. If that's where their soulmarks were supposed to meet while they bonded… He blushed uncharacteristically.

"I don't think I'm that bendy yet," he said.

"We'll practise. After we bond, the greatest pleasure will be felt when we are connected there."

"In other words," Tony said, but he trailed off when Victor shed his final pieces of clothing. His mouth dried up when he saw what he'd be working with. God. "I-in other words, I'd better get used to receiving."

"Once we have left the hotel, I will procure something to keep you a little stretched all the time," Victor said, climbing onto the bed between Tony's legs. "Right now, you know what I want."

Tony lay back down, his heart fluttering, and he began to look forward to years of this.

When Victor left before he woke up, Tony's heart shattered.

2015

"Seriously, who does this guy think he is?" Clint grouched over the comms. "Why can't he just stay in Latveria? At least when the Fantastic Four isn't overseas? If he's just doing it to pull Reed Richards' pigtails, there's no point in inconveniencing us…"

"All super villains have to be spectacular," Steve said, grunting as he heaved a Doombot over his shoulder. There was a clang as his shield met another one. "In their own ways. I guess he was just ready early, and figured why the hell not?"

"Bastard," Tony said, flying from one end of the road to the other, and blasting robots off the sides of buildings. He'd perfected the locking system – well, kinda – so that it did minimal damage to anything other than the target. The fewer repairs which had to be made, the less likely the public was to bite them in the ass for, you know, saving their lives. They really should've just retired to Asgard, and seen how civilians handled super villains without super heroes (and heroines) around to rescue them. Asgard appreciated heroes.

"How many are scanning, Iron Man?" Natasha asked.

"Six left on the radar – wait, nope, just took out a couple. Okay, four. Two near you and Hawkass, one near Cap, and one with… Doom. He's here."

"He had to be somewhere," Steve pointed out. Tony hated it when he was being reasonable during battle.

"Can I please go beat him up?" Clint said.

"Help Natasha—"

"I'll see Doom," Tony said.

"Tony—"

"We don't need diplomatic skills right now, Cap. I'm the closest… got him in sight…"

"Don't shoot, Tony! The last thing we need is war with Latveria?"

"A puny country such as that?" Thor boomed over the comms. Tony was gonna have to lower the mic volume on Thor's gear. "`Tis nothing."

"Fine, no killing Latveria's ruler," Tony grumbled, and he landed near Doom. The dictator turned to look at him, mask still in place. "But it doesn't mean I'm not gonna 'have words' with him about messing up our weekend plans just `cause he has it in for Reed Richards."

There was a name Tony hated, and the memories it brought up of a great night and a terrible morning. The worst morning ever. Even Afghanistan was mildly better than waking up alone after a night – the only night – with his soulmate.

"Hey, asshole," Tony said, retracting the Iron Man face plate. He stopped before Doom. "Wanna do this face-to-face or something? Look, the Fantastic Four isn't here at the moment, so, just… in the future, if you could leave a message, and they'll get back to you about suitable fight times as soon as possible, okay? In the meantime, I'm gonna have to take you into custody."

Slowly, Doom removed his mask. Tony recognised that face instantly, even though it'd been twenty years or so, and he moved back.

"What?" he whispered.

"We meet again, Tony."

"Victor? You were… science student… business… shit."

"I remember putting that dirty mouth of yours to good use."

Tony blushed despite himself. He was in the Iron Man suit, but he hadn't felt this vulnerable in years.

"Yeah, before you left in the morning," he said. "I guess I dodged a nuclear bomb there, didn't I?"

Doom – Victor – no, Doom frowned.

"I was informed that I had a meeting with a money-lender interested in my business," he said. "I gave my contact details to Stane, and he told me that he would pass them on to you. The money-lender agreed to finance me and my work… but you never called."

"You…" Tony clenched his fists. Just an excuse, he told himself. "You weren't there. You left without waking me—"

"You are a notoriously bad sleeper. I had worn you out, and Stane suggested that I leave you to—"

"Obi? Obadiah Stane, the guy who stabbed me in the back several years ago? Who turned out to have been working against me – and controlling me – for a long…" Tony felt the blood drain from his face, and saw Doom realise it as well.

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"He must have arranged the loan—"

"You would've gotten there on your own merits," Tony said, blinking back the sweat dripping down his face. "I'd seen your work. Just… please tell me." He folded his arms, and swallowed. "Am I the reason you became a super villain?"

"You're not the reason I gained super strength, but the experience did leave me bitter."

"I'm sorry." Tony bowed his head, hate and guilt and regret welling up inside him. "I shouldn't have—"

"Your father trusted him, and you trusted him. You had no reason to think he would—"

"Yeah, but it always happens in stories! The rich guy pays off the poor waitress to stay away from his brother, or tries to, or arranges it in some way… He must've known we'd meet again eventually. We're soulmates."

"You're what?"

Tony turned his head, and saw the rest of the Avengers gathered behind him. He gulped, and stood aside.

"Turns out he's my soulmate," he said. "The one I thought I'd lost."

"You did lose me," Doom said. Tony's heart – the one he thought he didn't have – sank like lead. He knew he shouldn't want the villain, but… this was Victor. The guy who'd made Tony think, made him laugh, made him feel more than he'd ever felt before in just one night. Made him cry when Tony hadn't even cried for his parents' death.

Filling with despair, Tony brought the Iron Man face plate back into place.

"Now we've got that cleared up, I'm gonna go start on the paperwork Steve's probably gonna insist on," he said, hoping that the tremor in his voice was filtered out. "Later."

He shot into the sky, disconnecting his comm. unit before the others could start yelling at him. Not his fault he didn't connect the pieces. He'd never had any real interest in Victor von Doom, steered clear of the name 'Victor' whenever possible.

To find out they'd fought against his soulmate several times? That he'd nearly killed Doom himself on no less than three occasions? That… he'd never been the one to abandon Tony, but that it was just more of Stane's treachery?

There were no words for how much that hurt.

It was on the news that night. The fight, that is. Thankfully, no one had found out the tie between Iron Man and Doom. Tony had no idea what he would do if the public ever found out the truth. Hope that they thought it was all some giant prank.

He wished it was.

He wished neither of them had been fooled.

He wished that he hadn't indulged in forbidden memories the minute he started to clean off in the shower.

…He wished his mom was here to tell him what to do.

"When were you going to tell us?" Bruce asked, settling beside Tony on the sofa.

"Tell you what?"

"About Doom."

"I didn't know," Tony said. "That he was my soulmate. I knew my soulmate's name was Victor, but I thought he'd decided I wasn't worth it. I avoided any Victors I could after that, didn't even look at pictures of him, so I didn't know. Didn't…"

"Didn't want to think about it."

"Yeah." Tony rested his chin on his knees, his arms wrapped around his shins. "What a goddamned mess."

"Do you want to see him again?" Natasha asked, sitting cross-legged on the floor in front of Tony, facing him. He inhaled shakily.

"I… wanted everything," he said. "It sucks that it'll never happen. I screwed up." He rubbed his hands over his face. "Should've tried to find him myself. I could've told myself he'd lost my contact information, but I'm Tony fucking Stark. It's not like it would've been hard to walk up to the front desk of Stark Industries and say 'My name is Victor. Could you please tell Tony Stark that I'm here to see him?'"

"And maybe he should have tried. But you're Tony Stark, and he was a relatively unknown name in science. If you didn't contact him, wouldn't he take it as a sign that you thought he wasn't good enough for you? Why would he push for something?"

"Why should he?" Tony said, rubbing his itchy eyes. "I'm just another screw-up who believed a traitor's lies when I should've known that we were meant to be together. If we'd bonded right away, this never would've happened."

"Why didn't you bond?" Bruce said. "I would've thought you'd jump at that chance."

"Because… the position would be… awkward. For me. I could do it now, since you've been teaching me yoga—"

"When you remember to turn up for lessons—"

"But he didn't want to push me that far on the first night." Tony smiled bitterly. "I should've known a considerate guy like that would be worth chasing. Probably would've just told myself that he only wanted me for one night, and he didn't want to risk being found."

"And now?"

"And now…" Tony sighed. "You don't need to do this."

"Tell us, Anthony," Thor said sternly.

"Look, he's the enemy now. Our enemy. He does bad things, we stop it, people are happy… sometimes. Since when do the good guys marry the bad guys?"

"Marriage?" Natasha said.

"I… only thought about it that night. It's what happens, right? Meet soulmate, get to know soulmate, marry, bond – or the other way around – and live happily ever after. It's all garbage nowadays, but I thought that's where we'd end up. Live happily ever after in a mansion full of labs for experiments, maybe a couple of adopted kids or pets or whatever, not that we discussed that. I think he would've been down with that. I mean, if I was, he had to be, right? That's how it works. Fate matches people together."

"If he turned things around, stopped playing the super villain," Steve said. "Would that change things?"

"I think we'd all be happier. At least I wouldn't hate myself for lo— wanting him."

"Sir?" JARVIS said.

"Yeah, J?"

"If you have made up your mind, Victor von Doom is waiting in your bedroom, or room seven-eighteen as he insists on calling it tonight."

JARVIS brought up the video feed for Tony's bedroom, and his breath caught when he saw Victor relaxing on the bed, one foot tapping the air. He looked at his team-mates, who were all smiling at him. Well, what d'you know.

"Goodnight," he said, and he vaulted over the back of the sofa. The elevator was already waiting, and he waved off the wolf whistles and cheers of encouragement as the doors slid shut.

"Dr. Banner has asked me to remind you to bear in mind the principles of yoga," JARVIS said. "For maximum flexibility, he said."

"Thanks, buddy, but no one's allowed to peek at Daddy tonight except Daddy's soulmate, okay?" Tony said.

"Absolutely, sir. Only the standard monitoring of your health."

"And Victor's."

"Of course."

"But hopefully I'm gonna be the one worn out by morning."

"Judging by the smile on your soulmate's face, I believe that he will deliver on that, sir."

As soon as the doors opened again, Tony was racing through to his bedroom. He skidded into the doorframe in his enthusiasm, and began to strip.

"Seriously, no foreplay," he said as Victor stood up from the bed. "Just minimal prep. I wanna feel this the rest of the weekend."

"You'll feel it everywhere," Victor said, peeling off his clothing with much more finesse.

"Including my hip joints?" Tony said. "I'm bendier now, and I'm not gonna risk losing you a second time."

"Never again. I will always know how to find you."

I don't even know. This pairing was suggested by kogouma, another of my loyal readers. I hope it was okay. More feelsy than I'd imagined, but meh.

Please review!