Thank you to everyone who read or reviewed the last conversation. You're so wonderful. You always keep me happy and writing. I adore seeing your comments. You make me sit down and focus. I absolutely adore you all.

Also, my 4 millionth word is somewhere in this chapter, per fanfiction dot net. (Probably a good 300,000 words are A/Ns and story rewrites, but I'm still counting it.) I've been writing fanfic since 2009. When I started, I didn't think I would ever get to this point where I've actually penned 4 million words worth of stories. I was terrified of writing publicly because of my disability. I thought I would be ridiculed for typos that I couldn't always catch. Your support over the years has kept me going through near-fatal car accidents, deaths in the family, and now a pandemic. I appreciate all of you being here with me for the ride.

Welcome back to the "bad" timeline.

I was initially planning for this to be an in-person conversation between Tony and Steve. However, during the rewrite process, I realize they're not quite there yet. Therefore, I switched it to text messages. They're still ridiculously awkward in person around each other and usually stress eat to break the tension. Although they do like to subconsciously touch each other a lot. Don't you just want to hug them until they get a clue? Or maybe a slap?

Conversation 19: Grilled Cheese for the Tony Potts Soul

Morgan's dad: Are you doing anything right now?

Steve: I'm just making lunch. Which you should join us for. You can't work on an empty stomach; you must leave Bruce's lab sometime. You've been there since you've got here. Have you even slept?

Morgan's dad: Yes, there is a couch here, and Laura brought me a granola bar yesterday. I think this is Simmons's lab. Which is evident from the minibar that I'm asking you to help me get rid of. I think this is phase 1 of the intervention that Laura from the "good" timeline is planning to do. Apparently, we all need lots of intervention.

Steve: It could be Deke's bar. If it's mostly Zima, it's his. He does work here a lot. That's all he'll drink because Simmons won't touch it.

Morgan's dad: I know and no. Although, I understand why he prefers to work here as opposed to the SI lab space. Which is entirely understandable. Also, I doubt the Zima thing is true. If she's this far gone, you need to worry about the hand sanitizer. I would know.

Steve: Point. The food will be done cooking in 20 minutes. You can eat a sandwich, as I take care of the alcohol. I can move it up to the bar in the main living area.

Morgan's dad: Or lock it in one of the safes. I need Simmons with just enough alcohol in her system to prevent withdrawal, so she can help.

Morgan's dad: Also, you don't have to bring me food. I do know how to cook now. I don't live on protein bars and smoothies alone anymore. The nonalcoholic kind, I'm not the mom from Hey Arnold.

Steve: Kamala and Robin love that show. Robin told me lots of grilled cheese, and tomato soup is usually involved at your house for lunch. Which incidentally is what I'm making.

Morgan's dad: Grilled cheese on homemade bread, and the tomato soup is fresh from scratch. I grow our tomatoes myself. I have become quite the culinary mine.

Steve: I know. Robin told me. She's usually more talkative after coming back from the cabin. It's good for her. I'm a little worried her only friend, outside of her sister, is almost 8 years younger than her, but it's been good.

Morgan's dad: I'm glad Morgan has a friend even if she is nearly 8 years older than her. She's almost like a big sister. This is good because, as you probably know, being an only child is lonely.

Steve: Being raised an only child is difficult. It would've been a lot worse for me if I didn't have Bucky.

Morgan's dad: That reminds me to let you know that Pepper had Hunter bring the kids to the city to stay with her at the penthouse. We thought it was best since we don't know precisely how long it will take me to decipher Simmons's notes to figure out what the fuck she did. Are you okay with that? I should've asked you that last night, but I got in the zone.

Steve: That makes sense. It's fine. I trust Pepper. Have you made any progress at all?

Morgan's dad: I already know how to get back to the past. Deke was copying my theories, and that's what he used to build the time watch. It should've taken him to our past, not other Laura's present.

Steve: Yet, somehow, it did?

Morgan's dad: From what I can make out of her notes, the monolith particles were somehow involved like you originally theorized. That is something I know nothing about because Simmons was doing all the research on that. Unfortunately, her notes are very incoherent—lots of stuff about doctors, butterflies, and somebody named Flint. Who is Flint?

Steve: Flint was the name of the Inhuman that put the White monolith back together in the alternate 2091 that allowed everybody to come back.

Morgan's dad: [Exasperated emoji]

Steve: I can understand how that can be difficult.

Morgan's dad: Difficult is getting your 4-year-old to fall asleep when her best friend stays over. This feels impossible.

Steve: I thought you didn't believe in the impossible?

Morgan's dad: That was before I saw half the world disappear. I'm a bit more grounded now. I really want to know what she did.

Steve: Have you tried talking to Clint? Maybe he knows something. I know he hasn't left the compound yet.

Morgan's dad: Widow already tried and got nothing. Although they did eat half of Hunter's cookies. I could really use one of those cookies right now.

Steve: You can't have your nanny come up here to bring us more cookies.

Morgan's dad: It's on the way back from Pepper's.

Steve: No. Also, shouldn't he stay with Pepper? That way, it's not two against one.

Morgan's dad: You're no fun at all. I hate it when you are logical.

Steve: I'll make you some brownies later.

Morgan's dad: Now you're talking. Your brownies are better than hunters cookies but don't tell him that.

Steve: Never. Do you think that maybe Clint would tell Laura?

Morgan's dad: Possibly. On the one hand, she's incredibly good at getting you to talk about things that you may not otherwise talk about.

Steve: This is true.

Morgan's dad: On the other hand, Clint is avoiding her, and it's tough to talk to somebody who is actively avoiding you. Although Laura said she would try.

Steve: This is true.

Morgan's dad: So why have you been avoiding me for the last five years?

Steve: You're very blunt sometimes. It's unnerving.

Morgan's dad: Sometimes, you need to be. It's a skill I got from the business world. Still, I would like for you to answer the question.

Steve: I don't know. Maybe it's a combination of shame and guilt. I wasn't there when you needed me, and we lost. If I just swallowed my pride earlier, maybe it wouldn't have happened.

Morgan's dad: You know I'm glad that you're at least willing to say that much. I shouldn't have said what I said to you when I got back. I was wrong. I was just lashing out, and I'm sorry.

Steve: No, you were right. It was the wrong time to ask you about what happened. You weren't well, and you lost someone you really cared about. I'm the one that needs to be sorry, and I am.

Morgan's dad: It's okay. It was the wrong time, but I understand why you were so frantic. Although, I really wasn't in the mood for you to go on another suicide mission.

Steve: I realize that too. Again, I'm sorry.

Morgan's dad: Two apologies back to back. I'm going to have Friday frame this.

Steve: So, what are we going to do?

Morgan's dad: Get Laura back home. I don't think any of us intended for this to become a time kidnapping.

Morgan's dad: Except for apparently Simmons.

Steve: True. After that?

Morgan's dad: You tell me. We will have time travel perfected. Your time heist can continue as planned. Although, please no more time kidnappings. Laura's lovely, but still no.

Steve: I don't know. We don't exactly have a lot of the Pym particles. Deke tried to reverse engineer the particles, but I'm not sure how far he got.

Morgan's dad: That might be another reason why he is now in an alternate timeline 2018 instead of our 2018.

Steve: Possibly.

Morgan's dad: Unfortunately, I can't look at his notes because Friday won't let me.

Steve: Have you asked your AI why you can't have access?

Morgan's dad: I'm afraid to ask too many questions when Deke is involved. Plausible deniability is always best with him.

Steve: I think it's time for you to ask anyway.

Morgan's dad: You may be right. Hey princess, why can't I access the Deke files?

Friday: Unfortunately, Sir, I cannot give you access because I do not have access to those files at this time.

Morgan's dad: You have access to all Stark employees' work, and Deke is a Stark employee.

Friday: I no longer have access to that information because it was transferred to Ana Jr. I purposely chose not to make a backup copy.

Steve: Who is Ana Jr.?

Friday: Ana Jr. is the name of the AI in charge of the Avengers and ATCU data networks.

Steve: I thought Friday oversees the Avenger network?

Morgan's dad: Not our network, but she oversees Laura's network. In what year is this Ana situated in?

Friday: 2018

Morgan's dad: I'm assuming the other 2018?

Friday: Yes. I sent this information to her so that she could help those Avengers. In exchange, she provided me with a list of everything her Avengers are doing to mitigate Thanos. They managed to remove the Mind Stone from Vision's head in summer of 2017. It is currently being kept in an undisclosed location.

Steve: They were definitely one step ahead of us. I wonder why they didn't destroy it?

Morgan's dad: That's good for us, though. When we dropped Laura back, do you think the other Avengers will let us borrow it?

Steve: Tony, if we remove the mind stone from Laura's timeline, does that mean that Thanos 2018 cannot complete the gauntlet? Therefore, he won't wipe out half of the universe there.

Morgan's dad: I fucking love you. Sometimes, you are a genius. Why didn't I think of that?

Morgan's dad: That's precisely what that means. I think we can do this together.

Steve: We always do better when we are together.

Morgan's dad: Ain't that the truth. Thankfully for us, the other Avengers are better at cooperation. Laura says it's the group therapy.

Steve: I'm coming over to you so we can have grilled cheese and strategize.

Morgan's dad: Perfect. I think we might be able to do this.

To be continued…

Look, strategy, and fluff. That needs to be a tag. See progress. Tony and Steve are better when they work together. Although the denial continues. Now taking bets on when they will actually get a clue.