Tony liked to think he'd always been open with Izzy, told her everything she needed to know.
He'd been angry when her heard her telling Banner about the job offer, but really, what he'd withheld was much bigger.
He watched Izzy and Pepper, chatting about wedding plans over dinner. There was something he hadn't told either of them.
"Izzy? Pep? I have something important to tell you both."
They froze and turned toward him.
"I never meant to put either of you in harm's way. And I want to say I'm sorry to you both."
They seemed to sense there was more.
"My suits? Iron Man? They were a distraction. From the two people in the world who matter most. But I'm going to change that. I've been in touch with some doctors. They think that they can remove the shrapnel, make the arc reactor unnecessary. I'm starting out new. I'll always be Iron Man. But I don't need the suits to do it."
Izzy and Pepper stared.
"Tony… are you sure about this?" asked Bella.
"Yes, absolutely," said Tony. "No more distractions. I activate the Clean Slate Protocol tonight, all the suits blow up. Izzy, you can continue, your suit will remain untouched. No more Iron Man, no more of the whole Silver-Shield-is-a-sidekick stuff. You were never my sidekick, though."
He stood up. "I go in for the surgery next week."
"You're sure about this?" said Pepper.
"Absolutely. Izzy, you want to take that job offer, I will support you all the way."
"What job offer?" asked Pepper.
"S.H.I.E.L.D. wants Izzy to help them. I know, these are all big changes, but I think they're long due."
Silence followed this.
Izzy stood up, pushing her chair back. "I haven't decided whether I will take the opportunity yet. But thank you, Tony. Excuse me, I have to… I just need to think."
She walked to away and up the stairs, heading toward the roof.
Pepper studied Tony for a moment. "Are you sure about this, Tony?"
"Yes. You don't want me to."
"It's not that. Being Iron Man… how do you just walk away from that?"
"Like you'd walk away from any job, Pep. The time feels right."
"And what's with you not telling me about Bella getting a job offer?"
"It never came up, and I didn't think Izzy would actually consider it until she told me this morning that she hadn't said no yet."
"What do they want her to do?"
"They want Silver Shield to help them deal with people with super powers."
"Tony, I lost you, or I thought I did. And Phil's dead. I don't think I can handle losing her too, if something goes wrong."
Tony would have preferred to think Fury would put her only in situations where she would be reasonably safe. But no, Silver Shield would be put in the front lines, where she could do the most good, and her age wouldn't matter.
"Did Barton have anything to do with this?"
"No." As far as Tony knew, Izzy hadn't seen Barton since that night when Aldrich Killian died.
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Bella ran onto the roof, ignoring the pelting rain.
She sat down on the edge, staring down at the lit streets below them.
Sometimes, she needed to talk to someone who wasn't Tony. Banner had filled that role, but he was out for the evening.
Barton hadn't shown up, and she didn't really want to talk to him. She was embarrassed by her reaction upon discovering the tracker, but wasn't ready to face him yet.
Iron Man was what she'd known Tony as. She'd been there since the suit was first designed. For him to just give it up… everything was too much.
She glanced down at the watch. Body temperature fairly normal for now, but she shouldn't push it.
"Quite the surprise, wasn't it?"
Bella spun around, skin burning as if she were about to catch on fire.
Barton stood behind her.
"How'd you get up here?" she asked. "You know what, I don't care."
"We suspected Stark was planning something like this from what we heard he was doing."
Bella didn't reply.
For a moment, there were only noises from the streets below.
"I'm sorry," said Bella. "For being mad at you about the tracker. I know you were only trying to help."
"Apology accepted. How is stabilizing Extremis going?"
"Not well. In a grown adult, it would be easier, but my body is still changing, and that makes it much harder. Tony says we might have to wait five or more years to do it completely. In the meantime, I suspect what we can do until then will be very limited."
"So, I heard about the director's offer."
"Are you going to suggest I accept?"
He shook his head. "I wanted to suggest you don't give him your decision until you're absolutely sure."
"Don't worry. I'm considering it very carefully."
"What did he tell you he wanted?"
"He wasn't particularly specific, but he said something about dealing with other people with superpowers – that they might be more willing to listen to me than S.H.I.E.L.D."
He nodded. "Just remember, the director doesn't always tell the truth."
"Oh, believe me, I haven't forgotten. But if you don't trust the director, then why do you work there?"
"Because, now, when it all comes down to it, they're what stands between the world and much weirder worlds."