Note: Set in season two, while Fitz, Hunter, and Coulson are on the run. Canon-divergent from then on.

"In the Pub"

Fitz was tempted to compile a database of the number of pubs by country, make graphs comparing land area and population. The results could be interesting. Then again, someone had probably done it already, so it'd be a waste of time and resources.

Much like him. While Hunter and Coulson were on the run, he was drinking. Not much (sort of), but it was a waste of time and money when he should've been looking for them.

"I'm a terrible friend," he informed the hooded person on the stool beside him.

"Can't be worse than me," the stranger replied.

Fitz may've been drinking too much, when he thought about it, because while the words seemed familiar – voice, too – he couldn't work out why.

"Brain damage sucks," he said, hoping to stretch out the conversation.

"So does alcohol poisoning."

"Wouldn't know about that. I come from Scotland; I can hold my liquor." He squinted at his glass. "Usually. I prob'ly shouldn't be drinking on medication."

The stranger snorted, and tipped his glass towards Fitz. "Never stopped me before."

Fitz clinked their glasses together, drained his, and signalled for another. It's not like he had to drive anywhere. The stranger also signalled for another drink, and they toasted each other's health.

After more self-pitying chatter, they stumbled out of the pub before they could be thrown out, turned into a darkened alleyway, and Fitz blew the stranger against the wall. Then the man pressed him against the brickwork, and used his hand to reciprocate while they kissed messily. Not one of Fitz's better ideas, but it felt damn good. Climax cleared his head somewhat, and he took himself back to his motel room, full of self-loathing as he peeled off his sticky clothes.

Right. As soon as he felt more sober, he'd commence evasive manoeuvres. Real SHIELD would find him, and they'd come after him when they found out the truth about Fury's cube. Better to get to Coulson as soon as possible.

Fitz checked his watch, where a little light flashed, telling him that there was vibranium nearby. That way he didn't have to check on the cube, and draw attention to its location. He'd probably check anyway, though; it seemed to be malfunctioning, because he was sure it'd been flashing earlier. While he was at the pub.

Weird. But that was a concern for the morning.

Light hurt. It was days like this where Tony wondered whether Montgomery Burns had the right idea about blocking out the sun.

Then he reminded himself that Maggie Simpson shot Mr. Burns. Due to an unrelated matter, and Tony knew better than to steal actual candy from babies, but… ugh, he was so hung-over. It felt different, and he had no idea why. Did someone slip him something while he was out on the town? Okay, he should've known better, but he wore a hoodie! The disguise worked for Romanov and Rogers; why shouldn't it work for Tony?

Because she's a spy and Captain America wears a cowl, he reminded himself, and he groaned into his pillow. Fame had its downsides.

"J, where's Brucey?" Tony mumbled.

"Dr. Banner is preparing coffee for you, sir," JARVIS said.

"How did I get home?"

"You walked, sir, until Mr. Hogan picked you up three blocks from the tower. You have been in worse states before. In fact…" Here, JARVIS paused. "You were happy."

"…But I'm a melancholy drunk nowadays," Tony said.

"Captain Rogers has left another card for Alcoholics Anonymous taped to the bathroom mirror, sir. And every door between here and your workshop, as well as every refrigerator."

"I have the worst friends."

"They care about you, sir," JARVIS said. Tony snorted, and winced at the resulting ache along the bridge of his nose.

"Why was I happy?" he asked, forcing himself to sit up. Slowly.

"Mr. Hogan informed me that you were saying 'I met him, I finally met him'. Then you fell asleep on the backseat, sir. Do you recall to whom you were referring?"

Tony gingerly rubbed his temples, trying to remember anything of last night. He licked his lips, crusted at the corners, and wondered what the hell he'd drunk. There was definitely a foreign taste… did he kiss someone? Was there anything on social media about it?

"J," he said, and he swung his legs around. "Are there pictures?"

"No, sir. You were not recognised; and if you were, there is no evidence online."

Tony didn't know how to feel about it. He didn't like being able to solve mysteries, so unless he had his own evidence somewhere…

"I think I kissed someone," he said. "If Happy was right, it must've been a guy. But I'm having trouble remembering."

"Dr. Banner has brought tea as well," JARVIS said. "Perhaps they will help?"

"`Kay," Tony said. He heaved himself to his feet, and then had to head straight for the en suite. Once most of the alcohol was out of his system – from both ends – he cleaned up and left his bathroom. Bruce, bless his big green heart, was waiting. Tony went straight for the tea, hoping it would settle his stomach. Bruce didn't speak until he'd drained half the mug and started on the coffee.

"Happy told me what you were saying," the doctor said, and Tony sighed after he swallowed three mouthfuls. "Do you think it was your soulmate?"

Good thing he was holding the mugs, because Tony would've dropped them.

"Oh," he said. "Yeah. Maybe." A flash of light-coloured, curly hair flashed past his eyes. The trace of a foreign accent echoed through his ears. 'I'm a terrible friend.' Oh. "Shit, I think so. I think I met my soulmate."

"And you didn't bring them home?"

"I… I don't think I even got his number. Or his name." Wow, he'd sunk to new lows if he didn't even get the most basic information about his soulmate, let alone remember him. And after the time they'd spent sulking together and then getting it on… in an alley. God, it was like he was living a cliché. The dictionary definition of the start of a young adult dramedy.

"Oh, Tony," Bruce said.

"JARVIS," Tony said.

"Here are your movements from last night, based on the tracking chip in your phone," the excellent AI said, producing a screen. "You attended only the one bar. Shall I access their security cameras?"

"Yep, oh most wonderful artificial intelligence."

Bruce made sure Tony ate something substantial while JARVIS found the cleanest images of the man Tony had talked with (and later jerked off, he was pretty sure).

"Do you wish me to run facial recognition?" JARVIS asked, while Tony stroked his soulmate's virtual cheek. Bruce was sniggering at him.

"Yeah," Tony said. He felt like he'd seen the face before last night, but then he was hung-over, or possibly still a bit drunk, so it's not like his memory was reliable.

"Done."

"…That was quick."

"It is Dr. Leopold Fitz, sir."

Tony nearly choked on his mouthful of pancake. Bruce patted and rubbed his back, and Tony managed to swallow.

"One of my soulmates is Leo Fitz?" he said. "Of FitzSimmons?"

"Apparently, sir. I cannot find anything on him other than the information in your personal database."

"My youngest soulmate is one of the brightest engineering minds that isn't mine," Tony murmured. "Brucey, I've gotta find him. I have to find my soulmate. He worked for SHIELD, but he… he couldn't be HYDRA, which means he's in danger from them. I have to find him!"

"Okay, okay," Bruce said. "We'll start looking, Tony. But why don't you get clean first? Shower, brush your teeth, sober up. Get into nice clothes. Between us, it shouldn't take long. Maybe we'll even have his location by the time you get back out here. Alright?"

Tony nodded, and nearly tripped over as he ran back to his bedroom.

Fitz tried not to think about his shameful behaviour. The medication made it hard for him to remember anything he'd said, but the bitter taste in his mouth and ache in his scalp from someone pulling his hair made it pretty clear what'd happened. He didn't even remember much of a face – not the part of the body he'd been paying attention to – and he had more pressing matters. Like finding Coulson, and hoping he knew where Hunter was.

The function on his watch that detected vibranium was working perfectly, so last night was an anomaly. Or the trick of a drunk man's eyes. The cube was still intact, and he had an idea about how to open it. There was nothing wrong with his mind, just the nerves.

He proved it to himself by finally making contact with Hunter and Coulson. He felt a little worse for wear, and took advantage of the bathroom to splash cold water on his face. Hunter's instructions pounded through his head, and for once nerves didn't make his hands shake. Fitz lost his tail, at least for a couple of hours. He knew where to meet Coulson and Hunter. It was simply a matter of getting there.

He managed to evade the Fake SHIELD agents for longer than he suspected. In fact, he began to think that he'd rejoin his boss and friend without detection… which probably jinxed him, to be honest. When he noticed that his tail had resumed, way too close to the meeting place, he began to run. Whether it was instinct or not, he got moving, weaving between people and resisting the temptation to look back over his shoulder. He heard a whirring sound getting louder, almost to a roar, and looked at the sky as something large hurtled in his direction.

There wasn't a chance for him to defend himself, and it would've been impossible anyway. Because within seconds he'd been swept into the air by Iron Man, or someone in an operational Iron Man suit. He held on tightly, determined not to be dropped by whoever this was.

"You're safe now!" the suit said. And it really did sound like Tony Stark. Fitz's eyes widened astronomically. "They won't get you!"

"W-who are you?" Fitz shouted. "You can't be…"

"Your soulmate? Tony Stark? Yeah, I think so, but I'd like to check my mark on you as soon as possible."

Fitz realised that the meeting point was fast disappearing into the background.

"Erm… I was supposed to be meeting up with someone, actually," he said. "From work? They'll probably have seen you taking off with me… that might be them calling now, in fact…"

"I'll intercept it."

"Oh God," Fitz muttered, and he held on tighter. If Stark heard Coulson's voice he might drop Fitz, which wasn't a good idea.

Instead of Stark's grip loosening, it tightened like his arms were a pair of clamps, nearly squeezing the breath out of Fitz.

"We'll talk about this later," Stark said. "Back at my place. Right now, I'm taking my soulmate home."

Fitz would've loved to see or hear Coulson's reaction to that piece of news, but he had to content himself with trying not to die. He trusted his soulmate to get him somewhere safe… although wouldn't it take awhile? He was hardly dressed for being out in the open at this altitude.

"Don't worry," Stark continued. Or should Fitz call him Tony? No, not until he knew whether they really were soulmates. "We're not flying all the way to New York. Hawkeye is picking us up on the way. Tell me you remember the other night?"

"I… some of it? My meds… they might've made it harder to remember things… and I swear I don't usually get drunk…"

"Have you met our third yet?"

Fitz shook his head. "I'm guessing you haven't, then?"

"No."

"Oh."

They were silent the rest of the way to a `jet in the sky. Natasha Romanov was there, co-piloting for Clint Barton. Fitz had met them both before, and wondered whether that was part of the reason they were there. Romanov nodded shortly when he waved to her, and said something to Barton in what sounded like Russian. The Iron Man suit peeled apart after the ramp closed, and Tony Stark stepped out.

"Is this your writing?" he asked, raising his shirt.

"You're not beating around the bush, are you?" Fitz remarked nervously, even as he stepped forward to look. He wished he could remember the meeting, hoped that he eventually would. Perhaps bonding…? No, he couldn't think like that. He ducked his head, and smiled as he nodded again. "Yes, that's mine."

"Show him yours," Romanov said.

"Might need help with that," he said, tugging at the corners of his shirt. "Hang on. I don't usually wear a suit, and my hands… after the brain damage…"

"You mentioned something like that, but I couldn't find files anywhere," Stark said, obliging Fitz by unbuttoning the lower half of his shirt. He turned around to show off the mark on his back, and pictured Stark spooning behind him, holding him close and protectively.

"Good girl, Skye," he murmured to himself.

"My writing," Stark said. He stroked the side of Fitz's soulmark, and then whirled him around. "It's you. It's… it's been a long time. I've wanted to meet you, Dr. Leo Fitz, for a very long time, and you're my goddamn soulmate. One of them."

"It would be hilarious if our third was also an engineer," Fitz said, trembling as Stark pulled him closer.

"It would be terrifying for everyone if he or she was!" Barton called over his shoulder.

"Or very good for the modern world," Romanov said. Fitz felt dazed as Stark nuzzled behind his ear and pressed gentle kisses down his neck, beard scratching his overly sensitive skin.

"I-if Jemma and Banner turned out to be soulmates as well, think how much we could a-advance… advance…" That was terribly distracting, and Stark's chuckle caused his mind to blank further. "What, you can't be stopping now, can you?"

"We'd better sit down," Stark said, tugging Fitz over to the side. "And your phone's ringing again."

"Damn it."

"And there's another plane on the radar," Barton said.

"Might be… my boss," Fitz said. "Or the people who were after me. Well, the people they work for. I don't know."

"Who was coming after you?" Stark said. "And do you know how hard it was to track you down? I'm just glad I was there to rescue you."

"I had it under control," Fitz grouched. "I just needed to get to the stairs and then the rooftop. I would've made it easily." Stark looked put out. "But… thank you. I'm not a field agent, so it's reassuring that you were there, in case… in case I hadn't made it up there before they caught me."

"Who are they?" Romanov asked.

"They're… calling themselves SHIELD, but they're not really SHIELD."

"Is there a SHIELD?" Stark said. "That would explain why Phil Coulson was on the other end of that call."

"What?" Strike Team Delta chorused.

"He's the n-new director," Fitz said, feeling small as he sank back. "Of real SHIELD. The other one, the fake one, is being run by Robert Gonzales."

"He's alive?" Barton said.

"And trying to access Fury's cube, which I have to get to Director Coulson. Fury elected him the new director. He needs the cube." After a second's thought, something occurred to him. "There's vibranium in the arc reactor, isn't there?"

"That's…" Stark glanced away. "Classified."

"No. I've turned off the alert on my watch for now, since I know the cube's here, and it's made of vibranium. But the red light was flashing while I was in the pub the other night, and I thought it was malfunctioning. It wasn't, though. It detected vibranium nearby… yours."

"You have a vibranium detector in your watch?" he said.

"Better than checking the cube's location all the time, in case there was someone watching. The other SHIELD's been following me since I left. Jemma helped me smuggle the real cube out, leaving a fake behind. As soon as possible, I want to get her out of there. We're outnumbered… there's no way we can get the base back at the moment."

"You're not really going back to SHIELD, are you?" Stark said, frowning.

"It's my job."

"You said you left it."

"Well… that's true, but I'm loyal to Coulson. And Simmons… she's still there."

"We'll get her back for you, I promise. You'll both be safer with us. Work for Stark Industries. Technically you'd be working for Pepper, not me, so there wouldn't be a conflict of interest."

Fitz paused, considering it. Their work for SHIELD had taken a turn from what they'd both expected. It was mostly terrifying, and full of betrayal.

"I think May's co-operating, but I'm not sure why," he said. "Simmons is covering for me… we need to rescue her. I can't abandon Director Coulson if he's going back to SHIELD, or Hunter. We've all been betrayed by those we trusted one too many times. In my case, I nearly died for it." He clenched his fists, and Stark… Tony covered one of them and held on.

"What happened?" he murmured.

"Nearly drowned. Jemma saved me, but I… have problems. My hands shake, and words… sometimes…"

"Can I get Bruce to have a look at you? Please. It'll make me feel better. I'll get the best doctors I can—"

"I'd prefer to heal slowly than risk my brain in someone else's hands," Fitz said.

"Okay. That's fair enough. And we'll pick up anyone you want us to. Coulson was supposed to be our handler. A step down from director of SHIELD, but we have to do a lot of yelling at him. We'll collect all your friends for you." He squeezed Fitz's fist. "I promise. I'll do anything for my soulmates, so until I've got both of you prepared to be shamelessly spoiled."

He half-smiled. "I can live with that. For a little while."

"So tell me about yourself, anything SHIELD didn't have on record before your files went missing."

"Before Skye deleted them. Oh hell, we have to find Skye. Coulson and Hunter don't know where she is!"

"And we'll keep watch for her as well," Tony said. "But come on. I'm trying to get to know you here."

"You'll have to reciprocate, y'know," Fitz said. "I refuse to believe everything that's been written about you in the tabloids."

"…Really?"

"Yes. Can I see the Iron Man designs as well?"

He laughed. "Of course."

Two months later

The last several weeks had been hectic. As soon as they'd returned to the tower, they'd met up with Coulson, Hunter, and – Fitz was ecstatic to see – Mike Peterson. They were all immediately offered a place to stay, and Tony demanded to examine Mike's enhancements, with Bruce's help. This was after the Avengers spent nearly an hour chewing out Coulson for not telling them that he was alive, followed by him explaining everything which had happened to him since then.

After that, he introduced Hunter and Mike to the Avengers, and Tony showed off his soulmate to those he'd never met. JARVIS (and Fitz was possibly the most excited about meeting him) informed them that Pepper Potts had approved Fitz and Simmons working for Stark Industries in the science division. Coulson was adamant about restoring SHIELD… until he was swayed by Captain America's earnest puppy-dog eyes. Hunter said he went where Coulson went, so they organised a meeting for him with Maria Hill.

The next day, Fitz woke wondering whether it'd all been a dream, until he realised that he wasn't on a SHIELD base, wasn't in a cheap motel, but was instead in a literal bed of luxury. A guest suite in Stark Tower, because he refused to go straight to bed with his soulmate, especially since they hadn't met their third yet. Once one pair met, it usually didn't take long to find their third.

They didn't expect the circumstances.

Hunter had currently joined the hunt – and yes, there were jokes about that – for Bucky Barnes. Tony said that Steve and Sam clearly thought they were being covert about the search for his parents' possible killer, but they really weren't. Coulson and Hill had talked for a long time, both about his position as Avengers' handler (she promised to contact Fury for him) and Hunter's position as Coulson's assistant off the field, and civilian wrangler on the field. It was made official by the time Barton and Romanov infiltrated 'real' SHIELD and rescued… evacuated Simmons.

Tony's prediction came true.

"Hello, Dr. Simmons," Bruce said, shaking her hand. Jemma beamed.

"I've read all your works, and I'm such a great admirer," she babbled.

Tony guffawed. He knew Bruce's words, he managed to tell Fitz between giggles, which explained the baffled look on the doctor's face. Simmons was delighted to find her soulmate, and Pepper and Coulson were simultaneously hopeful that they wouldn't be bad influences on each other, and dreaded the possibility that they might instead bring about the end of the world through Science!.

Skye was spotted in Wisconsin the next week, with her father of all people, and JARVIS had contacted her on the phone she appropriated. He'd told her where to wait, and when the no-eyed man tried to take her he instead disappeared with her father, while she made a run for it. The available Avengers picked her up and brought her back to the tower for a relieved reunion.

Hill hadn't heard back from Fury, which meant they hadn't. And then Tony picked up Ultron, and he and Bruce tinkered with it while old New SHIELD caught up with each other. Mike was still with them, and was surprised when, like Captain America, he managed to move Mjolnir the tiniest bit.

Which was when Ultron chose to make his appearance, one month to the day after Tony and Fitz met. It was war, with fighting amongst the Avengers as much as against Ultron. Skye used her powers to shake the robot apart before he could escape.

"Told you I had them under control," she said. Simmons hugged her.

The living room was broken, and there were some minor injuries, but the threat had been stopped before it could wreak havoc on the world. Skye and Tony spent a few good hours making sure Ultron hadn't managed to infiltrate the internet.

JARVIS… well, it was a good thing both Fitz and Skye kept backups, otherwise they'd have lost him altogether. Tony was working night and day restoring him when Gonzales contacted Coulson through Fury, to say that Coulson could come back to SHIELD since it turned out that he was supposed to be in charge.

"No, thank you," Coulson said. "I'm happy here. I'll even send you the cube. Good luck figuring out how to open it, by the way." Then he hung up, before turning to the team. "Alright, Wilson and Rogers sent me a message last night to say that they found… the Winter Soldier—"

"I know it's Barnes," Tony interrupted. Coulson paused, raised an eyebrow, and Tony raised his hands in surrender.

"And they want to bring him in. Until a decision has been reached, they're keeping him at the same facility where the Maximoff twins are being held until they've gotten a handle on their powers." With Skye's help, of course. "Wilson's still administering therapy to them part-time. He also wants to introduce you to Ant-Man, who helped them rescue Barnes from where he was caught in a machine. You may've heard of him. Scott Lang?"

"Name sounds familiar," Tony said, already on his StarkPad.

"He was arrested for exposing company fraud," Natasha said. "That's what it boils down to."

"He stuck it to the man and got punished for it," Skye said. "Sounds right."

"Ah yeah, another engineer," Tony said. He showed Fitz, who was cuddled beside him, the screen with his dossier. "One of many I've looked at hiring before, but then he was in prison and… well…"

"You'd heard of me," Fitz said.

"It's easier to poach SHIELD agents when you work with SHIELD, or have before. I expected to meet you sometime. Wait, Ant-Man." He frowned. "As in Hank Pym? He knows Pym?"

"Wilson wants to bring him here," Coulson repeated. "I don't know whether he's thinking about as a member of the Avengers, or simply a potential ally. Either way, what do you think?"

"Hey, one more brain to pick, right?" Tony said. Fitz cleared his throat. "And any friend of the Falcon…"

Coulson nodded. "I'll let him know."

In retrospect, they should've seen it coming. But honestly, who could predict what Scott Lang's first words would be when he met Fitz?

"Hi, how are you doing?" he asked, shaking Fitz's hand firmly.

"I'm… fine, thanks," Fitz said. They were expecting to meet their soulmate soon, but another superhero? Intimidating. Tony wasn't close enough to hear the conversation, and Lang's eyebrows were rising. "Let me introduce you to our third… I hope."

"Wow," Lang – Scott – said softly. "Okay."

"Tony!" Fitz called, and Scott's eyebrows shot up further. His jaw dropped. "Come over here!"

"Coming, cupcake," Tony said, strolling over and eyeing Scott up and down. "I wasn't expecting you to be that shocked when we met."

"You have no idea," Scott said, and he glanced at Fitz. When Tony's eyes widened and he also looked at Fitz, he nodded, trying not to grin too widely.

"A trio of engineers," he said. "Who's going to tell Coulson?"

"Ooh, let me do it," Tony said, a wicked gleam in his eyes. He stole Scott's hand from Fitz. "Tony Stark. It's a pleasure to meet you, Scott."

"Pleasure's all mine," Scott said. "Um… I hope you don't mind kids. My ex-wife has custody of our daughter, but if I had a job and was living with my soulmates I might get partial custody. She's at school, elementary school. I'm sure she'll love both of you."

"I'll get on and design a floor for her," Tony said. "I have plenty of spare ones. You can have one of your own, if you want, or share with her for however long you want."

"You were married?" Fitz said.

"Became a necessity," Scott said. "Neither of us had met our soulmates, and we married for Cassie's sake. Now Maggie's found her soulmate…" He shrugged.

"The number of partners I've been through is the stuff of legends," Tony said, "so I don't have any ground to stand on."

Fitz felt the pressure when they both looked at him questioningly. He hadn't even discussed this with Tony. A passing mention of his former crushes on Simmons and Mack, and that was all.

"I'm still young," he mumbled. "Wanted to wait for my soulmates."

"You're adorable, and I should feel more ashamed of myself for wanting to drag you straight to bed," Tony said. "But I'm respecting your decision."

"I need to tell Cassie and Maggie about this first," Scott said. "And… you want me to move in here?"

"You can work for Stark Industries," Tony said. "For Pepper."

"No conflict of interest that way," Fitz added. Scott looked relieved.

"Thank you," he said.

"And we can discuss the rest over a drink," Tony said.

"Not the kind which occurred when we first met," Fitz said.

"You're gonna love this story, Scott."

I know, I haven't replied to all the reviews on the previous chapter yet. I'm so relieved that many of my French readers were able to reassure me that they were okay, and their families and friends as well.

Okay, so I've worked for this on a few days, but I had an epileptic seizure this morning. It meant I had the day off work, but I'm never in the best state of mind afterwards, and definitely couldn't have written anything. It's late at night here, so I'd better get on and edit and then post before bed.

Please review!