#strangeiron au | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

space-mermaid-writing · 1 year

Text

Is this seat taken? [IronStrange]

Summary: “You know, when someone is asking you to watch their stuff, the one thing you shouldn't do is run off and abandon said stuff.“

Stephen looked at him over the edge of his book and raised a brow. He didn't even wonder how Stark knew. “Your stuff was perfectly safe.“

“Yeah, sure.“ Tony’s words dripped with sarcasm.

(Your regular coffee shop AU but they still have their powers)

Relationship: Tony Stark/Stephen Strange

Tags: Coffee Shop AU, different first meetings, they still have powers, fluff, strangers to lovers, bamf Stephen, Stephen keeps his magic a secret until the last second, a lot of banter, soft idiots falling in love

Ko-fi | Read it on AO3 | Masterlist | Word count: 6.6k

Author’s note: I started this last year, abandoned it and recently dug it out to finish it. Bon appetit.

Is this seat taken?

There was this small coffee shop in Greenwich Stephen liked. It was just right around the corner of the Sanctum and sometimes he went there to read and enjoy one of their brews.

The Sanctum was his home, but sometimes it was too quiet. Stephen was still a people person, even after all these years. He liked the buzz around him, like feeling the energy of life.

Like today.

Of course, it was rush hour and the shop was crowded. Stephen joined the queue and scanned the tables while waiting his turn. They were all occupied, but at some there was still at least an unoccupied seat.

There was a woman with a fidgety baby – no thanks. At the next table another young woman, clearly waiting for somebody. At the one in the corner sat some guy with a hoodie, base cap and sunglasses combination, working on a laptop. He looked kinda sketchy, but was probably the quietest of them all.

He ordered and waited at the side for his cup. With that in his hand, he went to Sketchy Guy. “Is this seat taken?“

He got a short glance in response, but it was enough to recognize the man. “Help yourself.“

Stephen didn’t reveal his discovery. He was here to read. And so he sat down and opened his book.

They sat in a comfortable silence until his table neighbor rolled back his shoulders and stretched his arms. “Gotta run somewhere quick. Can you keep an eye on my stuff?“

“Sure,“ Stephen hummed with the indifference one typically had toward strangers.

The other man gave him a quick, scrutinizing glance before taking off his sunglasses and placing them on the table. Then he went to the restrooms.

Stephen used the interruption to magically refill his drink. The rush hour had died down and the barista behind the counter had time to take a breath and refill the baked goods.

That actually wasn't such a bad idea, Stephen thought. His stomach could use some food. With a small flick of his fingers, he laid a protective spell over the table and then stood up to take a look at the cake of the day.

Refills were one thing but Stephen wouldn't be the reason that took the coffee shop out of business.

With a plate of apple pie he went back to his seat to continue reading.

Stark came back and put on his sunglasses again. Stephen hardly minded him. Until he heard a scoff.

“You know, when someone is asking you to watch their stuff, the one thing you shouldn't do is run off and abandon said stuff.“

The sorcerer looked at him over the edge of his book and raised a brow. He didn't even wonder how Stark knew. “Your stuff was perfectly safe.“

“Yeah, sure.“ His words dripped with sarcasm but for once Stephen didn‘t take the bait. He wasn‘t here to start an argument and – honestly – he simply didn‘t care enough about that man‘s opinion. So he kept his tongue silent, while Stark packed his belongings into a backpack and left.

At last Stephen had the table to himself.

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

When Stephen entered the coffee shop two weeks later, it again was rush hour. He should really keep a tab on time, but after three exorcisms in one week he deserved a break. Unfortunately a lot of people seemed to think the same.

Scanning the crowd while waiting for his drink he weighed his options.

There was a free seat next to someone on their phone. Distracting.

Two teenagers. Nobody wanted to sit with teenagers.

And then there was… well, at least this was going to be entertaining.

Stephen took his cup to the table in the corner. “Is this seat taken?“

“Help your-…“ Brown eyes met blue ones. “…nope, absolutely not. Liars don’t get a seat at this table.” He was apparently quite petty and still didn’t take their last meeting well. Stephen didn't let it bother him and sat down anyway.

"Didn't you hear what I just said?" Stark asked. He was wearing sunglasses and a baseball cap indoors again, as if that would suddenly make him unrecognizable. The glasses weren't even fully tinted.

“I did. The thing is, I’m not a liar, Stark.”

Stark leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. If he was upset that his ridiculous attempt to remain incognito had failed, he didn't let it show. Or perhaps his annoyance at Stephen's presence simply outweighed it. "Is this some kind of practical joke? Did someone from the team set you up to annoy me?"

Stephen opened his book and flipped through until he found the right page. “You don’t have a lot of faith in your team.”

“What’s your deal then? Is this for your youtube channel? Any hidden cameras?”

“I just want to read in peace and enjoy my coffee.” Demonstratively, Stephen pointed to his book.

Stark was not very convinced. “I’m keeping my eye on you.”

“I’m flattered.”

Silence spread as the two men went about their work. But Stephen could not concentrate, he was hyper aware of his surroundings. It might have been because he was running on too much coffee and too little sleep. Or maybe the last demon he had exorcized had cursed him after all, before the sorcerer had managed to banish him back to his own dimension.

After a few minutes of reading the same paragraph over and over without really taking in what it said, he rubbed his forehead – and caught Stark's gaze, who was indeed watching him as announced.

"Okay, I'm curious," Stephen said, "if you're that paranoid, why ask a stranger to watch your stuff in the first place?"

"Statistically speaking, someone is less likely to steal if you give them the task of watching."

“So, you asked me because you didn’t want me to steal your stuff.” He huffed a laugh. “I’m not interested in your technology.”

Tony raised a brow. “You sure? I saw your phone last time. It’s the most ancient thing I’ve seen this century and you could really use an update. Not that you would have gone far with the stolen stuff.”

“I’m offended how little you think of my abilities of thievery.” Stephen wasn’t offended. He was amused. This conversation was way more interesting than his book. Yeah, he really needed a good, solid 20 hours of sleep. Maybe more.

Stark was about to retort something – Stephen's words only reinforced Stark's sour mood – when his phone made an alarming beeping noise, interrupting the two men. The engineer sighed and put on his sunglasses.

“Is it really this important, Fri?”, he asked no one specific in the room. Then, “Fine, I’m on my way.”

Stark turned his face to Stephen. “You’re lucky I gotta go. Someone is attacking the city hall using ice blasts.”

The corners of Stephen's mouth twitched up. “Do you need someone to watch your stuff while you’re gone?”

Stark was still wearing the glasses so Stephen couldn’t see the roll of his eyes, when he collected his laptop and left with a muttered, “Asshole.”

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

It was 2 am when Stephen entered the coffee shop. Surprisingly he wasn’t the only patron at this ungodly hour. There were two students at a table in the back with various books and notes clattered in front of them, fueling on more caffeine than was healthy for them. With a small smile, Stephen recalled his days in medical school and later as a resident. It had been good times. Sometimes he felt that even back then he got more sleep than he did now as the Sorcerer Supreme.

The late opening hours of the coffee shop were among the reasons why he loved it. With a book and a cup of tea, he sat down at a table by the window. Despite the late hour, he wasn't tired, but there was an eerie mood in the air and he kept his third eye open – masked by a simple glamour – just in case.

The door of the coffee shop opened with a soft ring and a few minutes later a shadow fell on the sorcerer. He looked up and spotted Tony Stark, wearing his sunglasses and base cap as usual, even though it was the middle of the night.

“Three times’ the charm, I heard.” He looked tired, had dark circles under his eyes and a cup of coffee in his hand.

“Apparently,” Stephen replied.

Stark waited a moment, but Stephen didn't offer anything else. He sat down anyway, although enough other tables were unoccupied. Tonight he was not looking for privacy, but distraction.

Stephen seemed to notice that, because he pushed his book away, turning his attention to the other man instead.“How did it go the other day? The City Hall is still standing, so I guess you were successful.”

“Yeah. We got her before she turned it into a winter wonderland. She is currently under investigation with those powers.” Stark sipped his coffee. He was careful just to share information that made the news anyway, not sure how much he trusted this man in the coffee shop he seemed to meet quite regularly. He side-eyed Stephen. “So, you’re always sitting here with your books. Are you secretly the owner of this coffee shop, who likes to go undercover and talk to people? You know, like offering them life lessons.”

Stephen chuckled. “I can barely afford a beverage here every now and then. I definitely don’t have enough money to open a shop and keep it running.”

“What’s your deal then? What language is this even?” Curiously, Stark peered into his book.

“Sanskrit.”

“Gesundheit.”

“I read it for work.”

“Must be either an exciting field of work or an extremely boring one.”

“I find it quite interesting.”

There was a pause, before Tony said, “Don’t tell me all the details at once.” For the fact that this man could drive him up the wall with ease, he was quite secretive about his own person.

There was a small smirk on Stephen’s lips. “I will tell them, if you spill yours.”

Stark mirrored the smirk. “Touche.” He was sure that between the two of them he held the more delicate secrets with the Avengers and Shield, but he understood the sentiment. “Are you a librarian?” he asked anyway, because he was intrigued by this man who wasn’t intimidated by his name and face.

“No, that would be Wong,” Stephen said. “My work is more on the practical side.”

Stark had lots of follow-up questions. “What is the practical side of a librarian? Are you secretly going on adventures to retrieve long lost artifacts? What is this book even about? And what’s a Wong?”

“Excuse me, gentlemen.” They were interrupted by a barista, who stepped to their table and looked apologetic. “We would like to close.”

The men looked up in surprise. The students had disappeared and the barista had put the chairs up on every other table but theirs. They were the last patrons.

"Yes. Yes, of course." Stark got to his feet and reached for his jacket. Stephen followed him. “Sorry for making you work overtime.”

The barista politely waved it off, his voice full on customer service. “It’s fine, really. It’s just…”

“You want to go home and sleep. We get it.” Tony made sure to add an extra tip in the jar for their trouble.

No sooner than they stepped outside the door the sign on the window behind them was flipped to 'CLOSED'. The morning shift would arrive in a few hours, but until then the two men were without a place to pass the time.

Stark turned his head to Stephen. “Need a ride home?”

“I live only a few blocks away.”

“I’ll walk you. The streets can be dangerous.” And with that he started moving in the direction Stephen had pointed. The sorcerer followed him. He didn't mind Stark's company, it was nice. So was the silence in which they walked.

It might have been the late hour, but neither of them felt the need to continue their previous conversation or to start a new one.

It took them only a few minutes to reach the doors of the Sanctum.

Stark eyed the old building. "I don't know what I was expecting, but it fits with your weird books."

Instead of being offended by this, Stephen followed Stark's gaze and tried to see the Sanctum through the eyes of a stranger. To him, it was the epitome of home. He had never felt as much at ease anywhere as he did here. Even the expensive penthouse apartment he had lived in when he was a neurosurgeon didn't come close. Maybe his parents' farm when he was a little boy. But not even that anymore, since Donna left.

The building might be old, but it was reliable. It was a safe haven. And only those who needed it could see it.

He turned his head back to Stark.

“Why did you visit the coffee shop in the middle of the night?”

The inventor tilted his head, not questioning this weird change of topic. “Call it the side effects of my line of work.”

And didn’t Stephen understand that way too well? It was the same for him. He walked up the steps to the door.

“Hey,” Stark stopped him. “You never told me your name. I call you Annoying Coffee Guy in my head but, you know, a name would be nice.”

“It’s Stephen. Doctor Stephen Strange.”

Tony raised his eyebrows. He couldn’t help it, it sounded kinda made up. But whatever. “Nice to meet you, Stranger.”

Stephen rolled his eyes, but his smirk betrayed him. Behind him, the Sanctum door opened on its own. "Goodnight, Tony." He stepped into the dark interior and behind him the door closed again.

If Tony smiled on the whole way back to his car then, well, wasn’t that anybody’s business but his own.

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

“So, your doctor title isn’t in some weird linguistic field but you’re an actual doctor.” Tony didn’t even pretend to look for a different table, before he sat down.

Stephen looked up, hiding the fact that he was pleased about it. “You googled me,” he said instead.

“I bet you did the same after realizing who I was.”

Stephen did a thing with his eyebrow, like Tony just said something really dumb. “I didn’t need to google you. Everybody knows who Tony Stark is.” He has the courtesy to keep his voice low enough for others not to listen in on that part. “It’s hard to ignore when your face is plastering the news every few weeks.”

“Well, what can I say? The press loves me.” Tony’s smile twisted into something more professional he used in interviews. “Don’t believe everything they say, though. That story with the Bengal tiger was definitely exaggerated.”

Now Stephen raised one of his eyebrows and Tony wondered how it was possible for a man to be this expressive with these?

“I will keep it in mind.” It was Stephen’s only comment on the matter, before he turned back to his book. It was a sign for Tony to pull his laptop out and start working.

There was a comfortable silence between them. The coffee shop around them was in full swing and Tony liked having background noises.

He was absorbed in his work until a voice interrupted his thoughts.

“Excuse me. I don’t mean to bother you. I just wanted to thank you for the help you do around here.”

Tony knew the game. Despite his – admittedly poor – disguise of 'just add a base cap', he was often approached by people. And it was fine. He always tried to make time, even if it was just for a minute. He switched to his PR smile he wore like a second skin and flashed it to the person (an older woman, apparently another patron) – and he was just about to open his mouth when he noticed that the older lady was actually talking to Doctor Strange.

Bewildered, he needed a second to close his mouth. That was a new one.

Stephen smiled politely at the women. “Of course. I’m happy to help.” He eyes wandered briefly to Tony, he had definitely noticed his misapprehension and it seemed to amuse him.

“My granddaughter was one of the kids with… bad teeth.” The lady paused for a moment as if to add something else, but then didn’t.

Tony thought it was weird, but Stephen didn’t bat an eye.

“Are the new teeth working well?”

“Yes, very.”

The doctor nodded, satisfied. “I’m glad I could help and that your granddaughter feels better. I’m making sure the tooth fairy will leave her alone in the future.”

The older lady smiled and left to get back to her own table.

Tony looked at Strange. “I didn’t know you were also a dentist.”

Stephen was not. But explaining that he had fought a tooth fairy gone rogue would be too soon in their… whatever they had going on.

So instead, he deflected.

“You first thought she was talking to you,” he stated, still amused about the fact.

“Well, naturally. No one told me, you are some local doctor hero.” He emphasized the word mockingly, but his words were genuine.

“It’s complicated,” Stephen said cautiously. “It hasn’t been the same since…” He trailed off, looking at his slightly trembling hands. After all this time it still wasn’t easy for him to talk about it.

“The accident?” Tony helped out and Stephen nodded. Of course Tony found the articles from it when he did his research. It was one of the first things that came up in google when you put in his name. Stephen wondered if that would still be the case if he hadn’t completely disappeared afterwards. Maybe if he had started working as a consultant or continued as a researcher, it would be different.

“Some scars never truly heal, I guess.” Tony’s words interrupted his trails of thought. The engineer put his fingers on his own chest, where the arc reactor had been for many years.

Their eyes met and there was a certain understanding between them. They were both middle aged men, both with their own demons and trauma.

“Do you like what you’re doing now?” Tony asked and Stephen nodded.

“I can’t imagine doing anything else.” And he meant it. “What about you? Being Iron Man can’t be easy.”

“Oh, I tried to live another life. To do something else. Didn’t work out. I come as a package deal.” Tony’s breakup with Pepper had been all over the news when it happened. They had broken up and he made her CEO. One of the best decisions of his life, even if it had been heartbreaking. But they worked better as friends. A lesson he learned the hard way.

Tony didn’t know why he added that last sentence. Or maybe he did, but he wasn’t ready to face that reason yet.

“I figured.” Stephen wanted to say more, but at that moment his phone rang. Since there were basically only two people who had his number, he glanced at the display (it didn't even have a touch screen, Tony noticed in dread. It really belonged in a museum).

"It's work," Stephen apologized and stepped away for a moment.

Tony emptied his coffee. His eyes fell back on his laptop, which still had his latest project open. He saved the progress and turned it off.

“Sorry, that was Wong,” Stephen said, coming back. “There was an incident at work. I have to go.”

“I’ll walk you.”

For a second it looked like Stephen was going to refuse, but then he nodded and they both packed up their things. It wasn't far to the Sanctum and he wouldn't lose much time walking instead of opening a portal in the next back alley.

He had told Tony that he lived and worked in the same building. So the engineer was not surprised when he took that direction. They walked most of the way in silence, each preoccupied with their own thoughts.

Only when they were almost at the Sanctum did Tony speak up again. “So, Wong, the librarian, is your co-worker.”

“And friend,” Stephen added fondly.

Tony turned his face to him. “Are you two… like a thing?”

“What? Wong? No!” The sorcerer chuckled. “That would be weird. No, I’m not seeing anyone.” He met Tony’s eyes, amused, but there was also the inevitable counter question. "What about you?"

They had arrived in front of the Sanctum and stopped. Although Wong's call had been urgent, Stephen lingered, not wanting to leave the company of the engineer yet. Standing in front of him, the difference in size between them was much more present than when sitting at the table. It was endearing to watch Tony look up to him, while he took a step closer to him.

“I’m seeing someone right now.”

“Yeah? Is he any good?” Stephen asked huskily.

“I guess there’s only one way to find out.” The air grew thick around them. They were definitely having a moment, Tony felt it – and then they were interrupted by the ringing of a bicyclist who sped past them way too close.

"Hey!" Tony jumped back, but managed to stay on his feet without stumbling. Stephen had sidestepped into the other way and looked equally surprised.

“Jeez, kids these days. You okay?” Tony asked.

“Yeah.” Stephen did a subtle gesture. The cyclist wouldn’t get far with a now flat tire. The sorcerer was not petty at all.

He looked at Stark, who shrugged his shoulders. “I guess work is waiting for you.”

“I guess.” Stephen was unwilling to have their moment ruined by a random bicyclist and he walked back up into Tony’s personal space. “I was wondering if you would like to–“

“Yes.”

“You don’t even know what I was going to say.” Stephen raised an eyebrow.

“It doesn’t matter. I’m in,” Tony replied breathlessly. His eyes darted between Stephen’s eyes and his lips. “Also, I’d really like to kiss you. Wanted for a while actually.”

The sorcerer smiled. His trembling hand came to rest on Tony’s cheek, holding him gently, before kissing him. Tony closed his eyes, leaning more into it.

Unfortunately, it had to remain a short kiss, a soft promise for the next time they would see each other. Stephen wished they had more time, but duty called. His fingers brushed over Tony’s skin when they broke away from each other.

There was just one more thing he had to do, before he left. Because Tony deserved the truth.

“I have to tell you something.”

“What is it?” Tony knitted his brows. This sentence after a first kiss usually came with nothing good. He braced himself for being told that Stephen was still in a complicated relationship, maybe even married. Or terminal ill. None of these options were appealing.

And Stephen probably could have found better words. But he was distracted by Tony, by his closeness, by the kiss, his scent, his brown doe eyes and their dark lashes. He may be the Sorcerer Supreme but he was also just a man. Which was why he blurted out, “I can do magic.”

Tony laughed, relieved, and to Stephen it was the most beautiful sound on Earth. “I’m sure you can. But wait for it for an actual date, alright, magic man?”

“I’m serious.”

“I’m looking forward to a demonstration.” Tony nipped Stephen’s lips, partly because they looked delicious and partly to shut him up.

Behind them the Sanctum’s door opened. Stephen really had to go.

“I’ll see you soon.”

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

Wong was not amused that Stephen had taken his time to arrive and Stephen felt a bit guilty because it turned out to be an actual emergency.

Despite everything he was a responsible human being. And therefore he sent a text message to Tony (he had no idea how or when the engineer had managed to save his number into Stephen’s phone) before he disappeared from this dimension for some time.

S: “Hell broke loose. Won’t be in the city for a few days. Text you when I’m back.”

T: “Do your worst, magic man.”

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

Stephen was gone for a week. It felt even longer in the dimension, which Mephisto had invaded and which he and Wong defended.

Time worked weird like that.

When he returned home, he fell face first on his bed and slept for 30 hours straight. Afterwards he felt recovered enough to contact Tony and invited him for a date. He was aware that he had to clear it to the engineer what his actual job was.

Tony would understand, he was sure.

Stephen needed three tries to magick a good enough outfit. The first was way too formal, the second too casual. He settled for dark pants, a grey sweater that shows off his arms in just the right way, and a red scarf that is the Cloak of Levitation in disguise. The sorcerer knew if he tried to leave the cloak at home, he would just follow him like a lost puppy anyway.

The restaurant they agreed to meet was in midtown. Tony arrived first and stood up when Stephen entered the room. The engineer rocked a classic black and white combo and looked incredibly handsome. Before today Stephen had only seen him in hoodies to blend in, but today Tony had made sure to impress his date.

They sat at a table at the window.

“Good to see that hell spat you out in one piece,” Tony joked and Stephen froze for a moment, thinking what Tony knew. But then he remembered the text message he had written to the engineer, before he left.

“You have no idea.”

They ordered and toasted when their drinks arrived.

“About what I said the other night,” Stephen started. “About magic.”

“Ah yes, I’ve never dated a magician. What party trick can you do?”

“It’s no party trick,” the sorcerer scoffed. He couldn’t blame Tony for not being serious but it bothered him anyway.

Fortunately, Tony relented. “Of course not, sorry.” He gestured for Stephen to continue.

“I think you have the wrong idea of wha-…” A big shadow approached the window they were sitting at, growing larger and larger. Stephen reacted on instinct when a car that had been flung across the road crashed into the window. Glass shattered and people screamed in shock. Green glowing lines appeared, covering the car and the shards, before someone got actually injured.

Stephen stood on his feet, the eye of Agamotto on his chest on full display and open.

Tony stared at him – as did all the other guests.

“What the fuck?!”

Stephen turned his face to him. His brows were drawn together in annoyance at the interruption and because there were clearly dark forces responsible for this, but his eyes were sorry.

"As I was saying… magic."

He moved his fingers and turned time back. The window repaired itself, the shards reassembled into a solid surface, and the car flew back. Stephen didn't return it the whole way back, but dropped it halfway in the street – like it had been picked up from midair. Until he knew who or what had thrown it, he didn't want to risk it coming hurtling right back in his direction again.

Tony, in the meantime, had also jumped to his feet. “You have a lot of explaining to do.”

“To my defense, I told you about the magic. It’s not my fault you didn’t believe me before.”

“Oh, so it’s my fault then?”

Stephen did not answer, his gaze was directed outside. Cars didn't just fly through the air. He noticed that the asphalt of the street was moving almost like something was pushing from underneath.

"I'll be back in a minute."

He took a step toward the window and the red scarf around his neck changed back into the cloak, which settled around his shoulder. At the same time his carefully put together outfit changed into his blue robes. With the second step he suddenly stood on the other side of the glass.

The cloak took him into the air so that he could get an overview of the situation. There was a crack in the asphalt that was spreading further and further, stretching along the entire road and causing chaos in the traffic.

That wasn’t good.

Tony jogged out of the restaurant, using the door, you know, like a normal human being.

“Hey! You don’t get to leave mid-argument! God, now I know how Pepper felt all those years. Are you actually wearing a cape?”

“It’s a cloak.” Stephen landed beside him. “Can this conversation wait until we figured out what’s happening here?”

“Fine,” grumbled Tony, not at all happy about giving in. “But only because this looks really bad.” He touched the house unit on his chest and the nanosuit bled over his body. He followed Stephen, who moved back into the air

“Friday says it’s all over the city, centered in Crotona Park in the north. Seems almost like something tries to break through.” Crotona Park was about eight miles away. Child’s play for his suit’s speed. “Can your magic keep up?”

Stephen smirked and opened a portal. “Can your tech?”

Oh, it was on! Tony hated the magic man. He wanted to kiss his stupid face.

He hesitated only slightly before he followed through the portal. It helped that Stephen had stepped in first and that Tony could actually see the other side. There wasn’t a black void. So he told himself it was fine. And it kinda was.

There’s even more chaos in the park. The earth was broken up, vaulted and something like lava leaked out. Some trees were on fire and there was smoke. It looked like Armageddon or the Judgment Day.

“Remember when I told you I wasn’t in town because hell broke loose?” Stephen had moved up next to him and Tony opened his face plate.

“Please don’t tell me…”

“They did the same in the twenty-third dimension. They are probably here because they are not happy I stopped them.”

Tony wondered briefly who ‘they’ were but anything related to literal hell couldn’t be nice. “Well, can you stop them again?”

“Yes, but you need to evacuate the park.”

“On it. Backup is on the way.” Friday had told him on screen that the team had already been notified, suited up and would hopefully arrive any second now.

Stephen dived right into… whatever it was he was doing. His fingers and arms moved in intricate gestures and gold glowing mandalas appeared, sealing the cracks and extinguishing the fire. The sorcerer was clearly in his element here.

Tony watched the man in awe before the readouts on his screen reminded him, he better got to work too. He set about getting the people out of the park.

Stephen did his best to prevent Mephisto from breaking into this dimension. He repaired crack after crack and fought back the attacks.

Wong appeared at his side. Alarmed by demons knocking in the city’s wards, he helped it to contain hell. He whirled around and cast his spells at every dark aura he noticed.

A smaller demon slipped out of a crater that had formed and jumped onto the armor of Tony, who had the misfortune of being closest to him. Wong created Crimson Bands of Cyttorak to catch it and hurl it back to where it had come from. Tony spun around and returned the favor by blowing away another demon that had just crawled out.

Stephen appeared from somewhere. “Tony, that’s Wong. Wong, Tony.”

Tony opened his face plate just to show his bewildered and very pretty face. "...what kind of ninja monk library do you guys operate?"

Because those robes, the acrobatic Moves of the librarian, and their glittering powers were pretty much the exact opposite of the ancient books and weird building Tony had associated with Strange. He was missing something and he didn’t like that feeling.

Any response was interrupted by the arrival of the Avengers, who were now checking in with Tony via comm. He gave them a rough summary of the situation, though he wasn't quite sure of it himself yet. But the words of the magic man had been clear and for now Tony decided to stick to them, because Strange clearly had more of an idea what was going on.

He joined the Avengers in getting the civilians off the battlefield, but let Friday keep an eye on the mages.

“How do we stop this? Nothing we do has any effects on it.” Rhodey asked his friend, as they tried to eliminate more demons with gunfire side by side. Unsuccessfully.

"They are Mephisto's creatures. Non-magical weapons are useless against them." It was Stephen who answered him and Rhodey turned to him, his brows drawn together, at this sudden and unexpected interference of this private conversation. “Excuse me, who are you?”

Tony sighed. “Rhodey bear, this is Stephen.”

“That’s Coffee Guy Stephen?” Rhodey asked skeptically. “He is the exact opposite of what you told m-…”

He was interrupted when a huge red hand erupted from the ground between them. Immediately, Stephen created a spell to hold the king of hell back. Wong rushed to his aid, but even together it was only a temporary solution.

They needed something stronger, Stephen realized.

This date was not going at all as planned. It was probably the worst date ever – without being too dramatic.

“I’m gonna end this nonsense once for all.” With these words, his cloak carried him high into the air.

Tony and Rhodey had been closest to the red hand and had been thrown back as it broke through the ground. Fortunately, their suits had caught them before they hit anything.

“What is he going to do?” Tony asked.

“Probably something extremely stupid,” Wong grunted, struggling to hold that spell on his own.

“I take it back,” Rhodey said to his best friend. “He is exactly your type.”

Stephen hovered over the battlefield. It looked bad. Not only had the ground turned into a crater field, more and more creatures from hell were slipping through the cracks.

With determined gestures he pulled powers from other dimensions, gathering them in his hands. He needed enough to shove back a force as great as Mephisto, the King of Hell, and to seal the tears between their worlds. In other words: he needed a lot.

He didn’t go for complicated spells or a finesse technique. He went for raw power and determination. His fingers drew golden light from the air that filled his body. The screams of the people decreased for him and he no longer heard the crackling of the asphalt tearing apart. His ears were filled with a white noise of static, almost like electricity.

Stephen closed his eyes and concentrated on this feeling, centering it inside him.

When he opened his eyes again, they glowed faintly, and he shot a giant beam of magic to those arms that tried to crawl onto Earth.

The red arms twitched, the clawed hands tried to grab hold, but had to retreat eventually. They moved back until they were gone.

Stephen took a breath and put his palms together. "I need your help for this, friend," he whispered to his cloak. Then he shot down to earth, gathering the last bit of energy he could muster between his hands. Only just before the center of the torn rifts did he slow down a bit, but his impact on the ground could still be heard loudly.

The sorcerer poured magic like water into it. Golden light shot along the cracks, stitching them back together until they were gone.

As the crater beneath Stephen repaired , he was thrown backward by the force of magic. His loyal cloak caught him midair, because the sorcerer had no more energy to do it himself.

He definitely overdid it. He hadn’t been to full capacity anyway after last week and now he was drained even further. But it was fine. Mephisto wouldn’t get his hands on Earth today.

The cloak descended Stephen slowly. His eyes were still faintly glowing, an after effect from summoning these immense powers. His feet touched the ground and he stumbled as his knees buckled. The cloak immediately helped him by carrying his weight.

Tony was the first to approach him, jogging up to him “Holy shit, Strange. That was… incredible. Hey? Are you alright?”

“’m sorry,” Stephen mumbles. “I should have… I didn’t mean you to find it out like this.” He wanted to reach for Tony, when he noticed the strong trembling of his hands and retreated. They were even worse than usual and wouldn’t be of any use in the next few days.

“It’s fine.” Tony hugged him anyway, his suit retreating into the house unit on his chest.

It was not the right place nor the right time for the talk they definitely had to do. The streets were back in one piece but there was still chaos:cars were turned on their roofs or even stacked in piles, people were still in panic. The sirens of various ambulances were on full blast.

The Avengers did their best to start the clean up but also glanced at the sorcerer curiously. Wong was probably on his way to capture the demons that managed to escape.

Tony’s hug was tight and Stephen inhaled the scent of shampoo, sweat and smoke. He tried to hug back, but it felt awkward with just using his arms. His hands hung useless.

“I’m fine,” he repeated. “Just need some sleep.

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

They met up a few days later when Stephen was back on his feet.

The sorcerer was grateful the other man had taken care of the cleanup and the press after the fight, so he and Wong could return to the Sanctum.

That was also where they were sitting now: in one of its cozy rooms with a fireplace. Stephen had made coffee for them both and his cup hovered in the air beside him. His hands were bandaged and still hurt, though less badly than right after the fight.

“You should join the Avengers.” It was the first thing Tony said after Stephen explained his magic abilities to him.

“No.”

“No?”

“Look,” Stephen sighted, because he had dreaded this conversation. “I appreciate you asking but we – the order of the Mystic Arts – are trying to be subtle. We operate in the background.”

His hands had healed enough to use magic and with a motion of his finger he guided the cup to his mouth.

Tony raised his eyebrows. “Okay, first off: what you did there in the park was anything but subtle.”

And didn’t Stephen know that. He was glad that Wong had backed him up when the elders had voiced their dissatisfaction about the incident.

“Secondly, so you’re telling me, you’re not only secretly a wizard, but also in a cult?”

“It’s not a cult,” Stephen said automatically.

“Uh-hu. A secret society with old ass looking robes? Definitely a cult. I hope you’re at least allowed to date or I will have a word with your cult leader.”

That made Stephen perk up. After everything that had happened Tony still considered dating him? That was more than he had hoped for.

“Well, technically,” he drawled and Tony braced himself for whatever Stephen would throw next at him. He couldn’t be sure with these wizards. “… I am their leader.”

Tony cracked a smile and laughed. Because of course he was. Everything with this magic man has been fucking strange so far and Tony loved every minute of it.

#IronStrange #Tony Stark / Stephen Strange #Tony Stark x Stephen Strange #Tony Stark / Doctor Strange #Tony Stark x Doctor Strange #SpaceMermaid #spacemermaid writing #marvel #strangeiron #mcu #coffee shop au #is this seat taken

78 notes · View notes

catxtopia · 2 years

Text

We’re Not In Kansas?

Summary: It was turning out to be a relatively lovely end to a hectic day. So naturally the universe had to throw a wrench in there somewhere. Said wrench came in the form of a strange flying object shooting out of the sky.

(Or: Iron Man 3 AU, where Tony crash lands in Nebraska and meets a small town doctor by the name of Stephen Strange)

Pairing - Tony Stark/Stephen Strange

Word Count: 17,448

AO3

NOTES:

I completely forgot that this movie took place during winter/Christmas. I wrote half of this from memory before pulling the movie up and- look I can’t be fucked to change it!! I had this image in my head of corn fields and warm breezes so that’s what you’re getting goddamn it!

I left out a good chunk of the movie so it’s not a total rewrite. I am not good at action so a lot of that happens behind the scenes if you will, and I didn’t want to get into the whole Mandarin side of the plot so it's only mentioned once. Maya? Maya who? She’s off in some lab somewhere totally fine, no need to bring her into this.

Also I used Rose Hill as the town name for simplicity's sake, you can assume the towns look pretty similar just different nature settings lol.

I just wanted small-town-farm-boy Stephen to meet Tony, ok? That’s all you need to know! Please enjoy!

...........................................

The quiet chatter of crickets and rustling of late night critters milling about, buzzed over the wide expanse of corn fields and dusty roads. The sun had set hours prior, causing a quiet hush to befall the land. All other inhabitants had retired for the night or were at least on their way to doing so. The faintest of breezes danced through the looming corn stocks, making them sway too and fro gently.

It was calm and peaceful out here in the middle of nowhere. Just how Stephen liked it.

He was driving home from a long day of making house calls. Being the only doctor in town made his schedule pretty busy, hence his late night drive home. He sped down the back roads, tires of his rather rusty blue pickup truck coughing clouds of dirt into the air. His family's farm was the furthest out of town, a near forty minutes away, and the only way there was through dirt and rock. Despite the rough terrain, Stephen enjoyed it way out here where there was no traffic or overhead lights. Nothing but the moon and stars to guide you home.

Stephen tapped his fingers along the edge of his opened window to the radio. Lukewarm air raced past, ruffling his otherwise perfectly kept hair. It was a beautiful night, the temperature just right to let the windows down. Fresh greens and the musty smell of dust was like a balm on Stephen’s tense shoulders. He could lean back and simply let the road take him. Bats, Stephen’s ever loyal companion in dog form sat with his head happily hung out the passenger side window. His floppy basset hound ears whipped all around in the wind, a big goofy smile lined his face.

It was turning out to be a relatively lovely end to a hectic day.

So naturally the universe had to throw a wrench in there somewhere. Said wrench came in the form of a strange flying object shooting out of the sky.

It wasn’t entirely uncommon for shooting stars to make an appearance in the night sky but this thing was far too low and moving at an alarming pace. It was too small to be a plane and yet too big to be a drone, not that Stephen had ever seen such a thing way out here anyways. Whatever it was, it was on fire and hurting straight for an unsuspecting cornfield just up ahead.

It cashed into the ground with a thud, sending dirt and broken stocks flying up in its wake. Stephen slammed on the breaks immediately, causing Bats to howl in alarm. He jerked the wheel to the side of the road and cut the engine. His instincts were kicking in and before he realized it, the doctor had grabbed his medical bag from the trunk and was dashing his way across the field.

He pushed this way and that around shoulder height corn stocks. He couldn’t see anything of the crash sight, just lazy smoke puffing up into the air. There were at least no screams or cries for help, perhaps it’d just been a harmless object. A few minutes of running and he was breaking through and finally getting a good look at what he was dealing with. Suffice to say the object was no plane. In fact it was a man- a suit of man rather.

Stephen stopped short of the device, his brain took in what little information he could around the adrenaline running through his veins. As he stepped forward to inspect the smoking suit, an arm shot up. Stephen faltered again, watching on guard as the arm grabbed at the face of the suit and plucked the plate off, revealing a blooded human beneath. That Stephen could work with.

“Hey, hello sir, can you hear me?” Stephen asked calmly as he knelt down beside the man. He leaned over the suit, searching his face for any recognition or sign he heard. The man was gleaming with sweat and had a handful of scrapes across his nose and forehead. He furrowed his brow and squinted back when Stephen got up close to him. “You’ve been in an accident, I need you to stay still for me, ok?”

“Accident… that what they call falling outta the sky these days?” The man groaned. He closed his eyes briefly, seemingly collecting himself.

“I wouldn’t say you stuck the landing so something must have gone wrong, therefore, accident.” Stephen hummed back as he assessed the suit and however the hell he was going to get it off. Engineering wasn’t really in his job description.

“Corn.” The man grumbled.

Alright a concussion was definitely on the books, note that. “I am sorry?” The doctor asked.

“Field. Where are we, upstate?”

“We are about five miles out of Rose Hill, Nebraska.” A mechanical voice chimed, startling Stephen. He leaned a little away from the iron suit, a perplexed expression on his face. Finding a man in a tin can was one thing, hearing that tin can speak was entirely another. What the devil was going on here? And why did Stephen have to be the one burdened to deal with it.

“Why!?” The man shouted, confusion and terror flashing across his injured face. He began to fidget and look this way and that as if answers would be written in the dirt around him. Stephen placed a firm hand on the man’s chest to steady him. “Jarvis, not my idea! What are we doing here? This is thousands of miles away! I gotta get Pepper, I gotta…” His tangent died off as his breathing became erratic.

“I prepared a flight plan. This was the location.”

“Who asked you!?” The man shouted again, voice leveled with distraught. His brows were furrowed in a painful grimace as he breathed deeply. Stephen’s brain was firing off in alarm, knowing all too well the signs of shock and panic. But before he could reach out to snap the man out of it, a haggard command of, “Open the suit!” was yelled.

With a movement that looked far too sluggish for a machine of such power, the metal suit began unfolding like a torn apart lego set. The man immediately shot up into a seated position. He shuddered and groaned with each huff of breath. Ever so slowly he started looking around the little impact zone, taking in the burnt corn and piles of dirt around him. He grabbed at his left arm, rubbing circles near his wrist. It was at that point that he realized he wasn’t alone.

“No broken spine then, that’s good at least.” Stephen commented from where he’d finally given up his assumption this man was in a medical crisis and instead sat himself down on a mound of dirt. He examined the man’s face, followed his neck and down until he stopped on the glowing orb in his chest. Ah. Really it was rather disappointing how long it took Stephen to realize who he was looking at. What other billionaires flew around in flashy tin cans?

“Uh- sorry who are you?” Tony pointed accusingly with his right hand, leaving his left cradled close to his chest. He looked curious but not really alarmed.

“Stephen Strange. I was driving by when I saw your little crash landing.” The doctor nodded towards the mess of machinery Tony still sat atop of. He looked down and pursed his lips as if conceding Stephen’s point.

“And you just decided to investigate? For all you know I could have been the next big bad villain ready to take over this unsuspecting-” Tony paused and took another wary look around him before he settled on, “-field.”

“I am annoyed that I can’t even take that as a joke anymore, all things considered. Such strange times we live in.” Stephen rubbed at the pinched tension between his eyes. “But no, I am a doctor. Figured someone might need one after hurtling out of the sky.”

That lit up the billionaire's eyes. He snapped his fingers, “Ah! A doctor you say? Well what’s your diagnosis, Doc?”

Stephen leaned his elbows forward onto his knees, “A few scrapes and bruises, possible mild concussion. With a little Neosporin you might just live.” He shrugged. The adrenaline of before was finally wearing off. An aching weight was settling over the doctor's bones, making him abundantly aware of how late the hour was. Gods he wished he was in bed already.

“Don’t suppose there is a town nearby?” Tony asked as he slowly heaved himself up to his feet. “Hey J-”

“I actually think I need to sleep now, sir.” Jarvis’s scratchy voice echoed from the sparking armor.

“Jarvis.” Tony turned to look down at his suit. An eerie silence was his only response. “Jarvis?”

Stephen suddenly felt as though he should look away from the stricken expression upon Tony’s face. Like a man realizing for the first time that he’s on his own. Lost in the middle of nowhere with no easy way of getting out. Later when Stephen goes over this encounter, he would realize that expression was the reason he intervened.

“Well, no use standing around out here.” Stephen slapped his knees and clambered to his feet. He grabbed his bag and then tossed it onto the iron man suit. Tony pulled his head out of its sorry state to watch the doctor move around him. At least he snapped out of it fairly quickly.

Stephen leaned down by the feet of the armor and then begrudgingly lifted one after the other with a quiet groan. Christ it was good he had some amount of muscles from working on the farm, otherwise there’d be no way this thing was getting moved. “Are you just going to stand there or are you gonna lend a hand, Mr. Superhero?”

A small grin started spreading over Tony’s crestfallen face, lighting into one of mischief. “Seems like you’ve got it handled, Doc.” He chimed and hopped off his suit towards the head. Despite his words he leaned down and gathered the shoulders of his suit into his grasp. “Lead on, cowboy.”

“I resent that.” Stephen hissed through his strain to lift the armor. He shuffled backwards, testing his steps, before heading off towards where he left his truck.

It took them a fair bit of time navigating around corn stocks, many of which broke off or were highly disfigured by their trampling. Stephen felt a pang of guilt for the farmers that’d have to clean up this mess, much less the stock they were losing. He’d be sure to apologize later.

Eventually, however, they made it to the road and after a little jimmy rigging, they managed to get the damn suit into the trunk. Stephen closed said trunk with a huff and then began dusting off his hands.

Tony leaned on the side of the vehicle, breathing heavily from the work. He wiped his hand across his brow and frowned at the dirt, sweat, and blood that came away. “If you could drop me off at the nearest town, I’d be mighty grateful, pard'ner.” He asked in a ridiculous southern accent.

“Firstly, Nebraska not Texas. Secondly, absolutely not.” Stephen turned without further warning to head towards the driver’s door. Tony’s eyes widened in alarm. He hurried to the passengers door, unsure if the man intended to just ditch him but he wasn’t about to risk it.

“Seriously? Then what the hell was all that? You just gonna run off with my suit?” Tony accused as he flung the door open. He was momentarily stunned into silence as a dog jumped straight into his face. “Shit!” He shouted, stepping back to get out of the way, but the door kept him close enough for Bats to hop his front paws onto his chest and begin his slobber filled assault.

Stephen grinned over the coughing and gagging coming from across the way. He lazily fished out his keys and started the truck. As soon as Fleetwood Mac started up on the radio, Bats calmed down and assumed his position of sitting front and center.

Tony spat and huffed, rubbing aggressively at his cheeks to get the dog furr and other fluids off his face. “Gah!” He shouted and dropped his hands so he could throw a scathing glare Stephen’s way.

“Are you getting in or what?” Stephen asked from his very relaxed and bored looking position behind the wheel. His left arm was hanging over the window, fingers tapping at the top of the frame.

“Depends where you’re taking me.” Tony countered. He lifted one foot onto the truck and grabbed the handle of the door for support. “I know how horror movies start. You lure me into your car, take me out into the middle of nowhere, what’s a poor gal like me supposed to do with no phone or weapons?”

“You very obviously do not know horror movies well, because you just gave away the information that you have no phone or any protection.” Stephen countered with a shrug. “Also, don’t know if you noticed but you’re already in the middle of nowhere. I could’ve easily killed you by now.”

“Which means you’re either into some kinky shit or you’re going to ransom me.”

Stephen hummed thoughtfully, “Either way, you’ll have to get into the car.”

Tony held his ground, staring Stephen down with a squinted gaze. He pursed his lips and looked to be really going over his options before he grinned and shrugged, “Good thing I am into kinky shit and am rich.” He then pulled himself into the truck and slammed the door closed behind him.

Bats wagged his tail happily at his new companion.

With a flick of his wrist, Stephen put the car in drive and sped off down the dusty road. It was minutes further down before he said, “Town is forty minutes in the opposite direction and I’ve had a long enough day as is. My place is just up ahead, you can crash there for the night. I’ll take you to town first thing in the morning.” He could feel Tony assessing him from his peripheral.

After a moment of silence Tony asked, “You got any tools at your place?”

“As much as one needs on a farm.” Stephen frowned. “Nothing fancy like your tin can back there.”

“Don’t need fancy.” Tony assured in that horrendous southern accent again. He grinned when he saw Stephen roll his eyes. “I just need some things to tinker with…”

……

“This is it!?”

“I told you it’s a farm.” Stephen sighed as he dropped his medical bag on one of the counters in his garage. He decided he would leave the sorting and restocking for in the morning. He was absolutely beat for the day. By the time they’d pulled into the property it was nearing midnight. The main house was dark, Stephen’s parents having already headed off to bed. Luckily for him, Stephen had his own loft apartment above the garage, which was a little away from the house. There was no need to sneak an extra person into a house with his parents, how utterly awkward that would have been.

Beverly and Eugene were used to Stephen coming and going as he pleased. He was an adult after all and he occasionally worked odd hours. He lived on the farm for the convenience of his parents rather than any true desire to stay there for himself. The land and the animals were a difficult job to deal with, one his elderly parents didn’t want to give up. They weren’t as young as they used to be and an extra hand went a long way for them. So he helped where he could and they gave Stephen his space when he was tired of it all.

Tony shuffled around in the cabinets of tools that in fact had very little. It wasn’t like they needed much outside of repairs and replacement parts for the machinery outside. This wasn’t a lab. Stephen didn’t know what Tony expected but he was obviously disappointed.

“I don’t think I can get my suit started with this.” Tony groaned as he held up pruning shears.

Stephen snorted at the put upon expression on Tony’s face. He looked like a child pouting, bottom lip pushed out and everything. He wandered over to examine the man’s findings and had to admit it was all pretty abysmal. He really didn’t want to deal with this right now. “I am guessing you weren’t out here for the view.” He suddenly commented with a resigned sigh. This wasn’t going to be an easy fix was it?

“Afraid not.” Tony tossed the garden scissors back into the cabinet. “Kinda end of the world business actually.”

“Christ.” Stephen sighed again, this time louder and with more pain. He rubbed at his temples as he thought. “There are some stores in town you could rifle through tomorrow. In the meantime, standing here worrying about it wont help. Come with me.” He nodded towards a flight of stairs off to the far side.

Stephen propped the door at the top of the stairs open for Tony and Bats to slip inside. It was nothing grand or fancy, just an open loft space. A few steps away from the door was a decent sized bed and living room set up, and to the opposite side of the room was a kitchen and dining area. Stephen kicked the door shut behind him and lazily tossed his keys into a little dish near the door. He followed that by also kicking his shoes off.

“You can have the bed, I’ll take the couch.” Stephen yawned and made his way over to a dresser to pull out a change of clothes.

Tony slipped out of his own shoes and carefully walked around the whole loft, taking in every nook and cranny. To the untrained eye it might just seem like perusing, but Stephen could tell the man was definitely checking his exits and the security of the place. He couldn’t blame him, stuck in an unfamiliar building with a stranger? He would have done the same thing.

“Here.” Stephen tossed a shirt and some sweatpants onto the bed. He was pretty sure they’d be too big, but better to offer something rather than nothing. With that, they both began an awkward dance around each other as they got ready for bed. Ten minutes later the lights were flicked off and they were both tucked into their respective spots, trying desperately to sleep.

……

Beverly hiked up the stairs to her son's loft apartment above the garage. In her arms was a basket of fresh laundry. She knocked once and softly popped the door open once she got no reply. It wasn't too unusual for her son to sleep in on weekends after all, but she had a large breakfast marinating in the kitchen that she had every intention of sharing. They didn’t eat together very often, but she’d heard the boy come in rather late last night and knew a little food never hurt to liven someone after a long night.

"Stephen, honey." She called as she made her way into the loft. She made it only a few steps before faltering. She blinked once. Twice.

Lying face down with his arms and legs spread wide was an unfamiliar man in her son's bed. The sheets were tossed messily over his sure to be naked body. A pair of sweatpants laid to one side of the bed, looking like they’d been abandoned in the night. And a shirt that she knew to be Stephens was shoved up around the man’s shoulders. Curious.

Beverly took one look before gently setting down the basket of laundry and quietly making her way out again.

A quick trip into the garage led her to her missing son. Stephen was bent over his medical bag, replacing and organizing equipment.

"Breakfast is ready dear." Beverly gently laid a hand on her son's arm, giving a soft squeeze.

Stephen looked up with a smile.

"Your friend is welcome too. Preferably dressed of course." Beverly smirked over her shoulder as she made to leave.

Stephen couldn't even utter a word out before she was gone.

…..

The table was quiet, aside from the scraping of silverware against plates. Stephen sat awkwardly hunched over his eggs and toast, trying to focus on eating and remembering what all he needed to get done today. This inopportune breakfast was throwing a bit of a wrench in his schedule, but he hadn’t the heart to turn down his mothers invitation. Not that she’d let him slip off without feeding his guest anyways.

Said guest was currently sipping at the coffee that’d been prepared and scanning the morning paper without a care in the world. His brows furrowed every so often and his foot tapped an anxious rhythm but overall he seemed perfectly fine with this arrangement.

His parents on the other hand… Beverly was smirking nearly the whole time, shooting Stephen glances between bites of her muffin. She’d pointedly glance at Tony and then back to him with a raised brow, inviting Stephen to comment but the good doctor elected not to engage. His father looked rather annoyed with the whole affair, which wasn’t too surprising.

A rustling of paper jolted Stephen out of the glaring contest he was having with his mother. Tony smacked the folded up paper down onto the table and tilted his mug at it in an accusatory fashion.

“Apparently I am dead.” He grunted and took a swig of coffee.

“Oh that’s a bit of a bummer.” Beverly frowned.

Stephen glanced down at the headline describing Tony Stark’s tragic demise. He hummed thoughtfully and took a careful sip of his tea. “I suppose that’s for the best.”

“Well now that’s not very polite, Stephen.” Beverly chided. She swatted at her son with her napkin.

“Yea, have some respect for the recently deceased.” Tony grinned. He leaned towards Stephen with his chin cushioned against his hand. The display earned him an eye roll from both Mr. Strange’s.

The elder of the two rose from his chair with a grunt. He deposited his plate by the sink and made his way off towards the front door. It slammed behind him, leaving an ugly silence in its wake. Beverly was quick to sweep it away however.

“Oh don’t mind him, a bit of a recluse that one is.” She winked at Tony and then nodded towards the discarded paper. “That was quite something there, inviting terrorists to your house. What kind of a tactic would you call that?”

“An idiotic one.” Stephen grumbled around a bite of toast. That earned him another stern look from his mother.

Tony for his part did look a little chastised. “He’s not wrong. I wasn’t in the best place to be making decisions like that.” He admitted with a shrug. In fact he’d realized that not an hour after making said decision. He’d just been so angry, let the paparazzi get in his head while he was vulnerable to subterfuge. “A friend of mine was hurt in the last bombing. I was angry. I am angry. But putting myself and those close to me in danger wasn’t the solution.”

Beverly nodded solemnly, her face was set in the perfect display of sympathy. She was a very sincere woman and made no show of hiding it. Stephen chewed slowly across from her. He pushed his plate slightly away and glanced towards the somber mechanic beside him.

That sure as hell didn’t sound like the arrogant playboy philanthropist Stephen had read about. It wouldn’t be the first time the media had gotten the image of a celebrity wrong. However, Tony had made quite a show of it all himself in the past. Perhaps the ending and saving of the world had humbled him.

“We all make mistakes.” Beverly smiled reassuringly. “Especially when grief is mixed in.”

….

The ride to town was a rather uneventful one all things considered. Stark didn’t make nearly as much a fuss as Stephen had expected him to. He kept mostly to himself, gazing out the window probably to get a better lay of the land now that it was daylight. Bats occasionally clambered onto Tony’s lap to get a good mouthful of the wind rushing by. The mechanic didn’t take too kindly to it at first but well into the drive he succumbed to rubbing at the pups flopping ears, a small resigned smile on his lips.

Fields of corn passed by in blurs for miles. Every once in a while a small house would pop up, its paint always chipped and driveway always dirt. They didn’t pass any other cars but Tony was a little startled to see a couple riding horseback along the road at one point. So very uneventful and boring, how did people live like this? It was another handful of miles before they started making it into town.

They passed only a handful of buildings, most of them in rather rough shape. One particularly broken square of rubble caught Tony’s eye. A smattering of flowers and memorials lay solemnly around what looked to be a wall of a house, now nothing more than toppled over brick. “What’s the story there?” He asked, nodded towards the site.

Stephen glanced over briefly before focusing back on the road. He was nothing if not a careful driver it seemed. “Chad Davis. He was ex-military, won a bunch of medals in the army. Some folks said he went crazy and made a bomb, then he blew himself up right there.”

Tony watched the rubble growing further away in the side mirror. “Six people died, right?”

“Yeah.” Stephen replied.

“Including Chad Davis?”

“Yep.”

Tony nodded slowly. He hadn’t caught a great glimpse at the site but he was sure he’d only seen five shadows. That didn’t make any sense. Six people and one of them didn’t leave behind a mark? The gears were turning in Tony’s head, clicking and clacking into various combinations that could solve this puzzle. “There were only five shadows.” He muttered.

The doctor shifted beside him, his demeanor suddenly becoming a little antsy. He looked annoyed, or maybe not so annoyed but rather unsure how to tread here. He tapped his fingers against the wheel and sighed. “People have seemed to get it in their heads that the shadows are some celestial imprint.” He shook his head a little. “As if they are the marks of the souls that went to heaven.”

Tony raised a brow, which Stephen met with a roll of his eyes. He didn’t seem like be bought any of the stuff he was saying. “Except Chad Davis. He went to Hell, so no shadow.” He finished the statement off with a dramatic spooky wiggle of his fingers as though he was casting a spell.

Tony grinned at the display. “I take it you don’t believe in all that?”

“Absolutely not.” Stephen scoffed. “I don’t partake in the religious rhetoric that festers in small towns.”

Tony hummed his agreement. But that still didn’t answer what actually happened. “Still begs the question.”

“His mother still lives here, she’d know more. She’s at the bar more times than not these days, we can check later tonight.” Stephen rested his arm against the open window, tapping his fingers on the rusted blue metal. It was at least worth a shot. Tony needed more answers before he could move forward with any of this mess.

Stephen pulled the truck up outside a small general store and cut the ignition.

“That’ll be you over there,” He leaned over and pointed to the couple store fronts along the road. Across the street was a diner and further down the bar. “I have to go meet with a patient around the block. If you need me I’ll be at the red house.”

Tony whipped around as Stephen climbed out of the truck. “Wait- you’re not coming with me?” He quickly followed suit out of the car, Bats jumped down after him. He didn’t wanna sound needy but he hadn’t a clue where to look for the things he needed. It’d be so much easier if the town resident at least gave him a hand.

Stephen grabbed a hefty brown leather bag from the trunk, a very vintage looking monstrosity if you asked Tony. He remembered seeing it last night. That thing looked like it belonged in a medical museum. He half expected for the doctor to pull out a bone saw. The man rounded the car with a very unimpressed look on his face. He nodded towards the stores again.

“I am a doctor, not a mechanic. The only doctor here in fact so I am a busy man. Just because you decided to fall out of the sky and I offered - out of the kindness of my heart, mind you - to help you, doesn’t mean my schedule is any less full.” Stephen stated as he checked the time on his watch. Geeze even that poor thing looked like it belonged in the 50s.

“Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go. Everything you need should be over there. I’ll be back in an hour.” Stephen turned to leave, he made it five steps before he stopped and glanced back over his shoulder. “Try not to cause any trouble, Stark.” He then resumed walking away.

Tony scoffed and then looked down at Bats who sat at his feet patiently wagging his tail. “Is he always such an asshole?”

Bats barked happily in reply. He stood and trotted around in a circle a few times before looking back up at Tony and barking again. “I take it you’re my tour guide then. Lead on, Sir Bats.”

……

Roughly forty minutes later, Tony was shoving the last of the supplies he required into the back of the truck. There were a handful of boxes filled with tools and wires, things he hadn’t seen present at the Strange household that he’d need to fix up Mark 42. Hopefully he’d get this show on the road pretty quick, every minute of wasted time was another possible person getting blown up or worse.

Tony hopped down from the trunk and crouched to scratch at Bats ears. “Alright, should we go find your daddy?” He smirked to himself at his wording. Truly he was a child.

Like a drone zeroing in on its target, Bats trotted off away from the stores. Tony was quick to follow, a little amazed the creature seemed to know where he was going. His nose was down, sniffing left and right in a zigzag motion down the sidewalk. He turned the corner, heading towards a residential area.

Tony spotted the red house Stephen had previously mentioned he’d be residing. It was a decent size and even had one of those ridiculous white picket fences around the front lawn. Tony could just make out Stephen helping an older woman out onto the front porch. He steadied her arm and eased her down onto a quaint little bench swing. The woman was smiling pure sunshine and patted Stephen’s hand in thanks as he pulled away. Oddly enough Stephen was smiling just as kindly back.

By that point Bats had spotted his owner as well. He barked cheerfully and rushed past the jarred gate and up the steps to greet Stephen.

“Oh sweet boy!” The woman gasped. She leaned down to pat the excited pup. “I was wondering where you were, assistant Bats!”

Tony grinned at the nickname, of course the dog came with on Stephen’s house calls. Sick people loved animals, right? He shimmed past the gate himself but stopped at the stoop of the stairs, unsure how to tread here. Stephen was technically on the job, right? He probably should have waited in the car. Curiosity killed the cat and all that.

As if sensing his thoughts, the little old lady turned her gaze on him. She had big glasses that comically magnified her eyes. “And who’s this then, Stephen dear?” She asked with a voice made of honey. The doctor shifted beside her.

Before he could answer, however, Tony grinned and gave a wave. “Just a friend, visiting from out of town.” He brushed off easily. Really the less attention the better- which Tony never thought he’d be saying.

“A friend, you say? Of Stephens? Why that’s something I’ve never heard of.” She cackled. The wooden swing created beneath her as she rocked back from the force of her laugh.

Stephen hardly suppressed an eye roll. He radiated annoyance, and yet his tone was still relatively kind as he replied, “yes well, stranger things have happened, Mabel.”

“Oh I jest, dear boy!” Mabel patted Stephen’s arm affectionately. She really was the embodiment of the stereotypical grandma figure. “Why, I can’t remember the last time Stephen left town. How ever did you meet?” She turned her attention back to Tony, the question obviously for him. Stephen looked again like he wanted to reply but the mechanic beat him to it.

“Oh ya know, my ride broke down out here and he swooped in like a knight in shining armor. He picked me up and put me back on my feet. You know what they say about doctors, catch yourself one of those and you’re set for life.” Tony gushed. So much for less attention. It was worth it to see Stephen struggle for control of the conversation.

Mabel’s magnified eyes lit up and her smile grew tenfold. “Oh how romantic!” She gasped, hands flying to clutch in front of her chest as though she just witnessed a proposal.

Stephen, poor thing, was sputtering and very nearly red in the face. “That is-”

“Oh wait till the girls at the dinner hear! You know we’ve been trying to get this poor young thing to meet someone nice for ages. Of course fate would have to intervene. Dreadfully sorry about your car breaking down, but what a wonderful outcome!”

“Nooo,” Tony gapped, he could roll with the best of the gossips. “but he’s such a catch! I mean look at those cheekbones.” He paused to lean a little closer to Mabel. Cupping his hand over the side of his mouth he stage whispered, “Must be the personality, he can be a bit prickly.” And gave a cheeky wink.

Mabel nodded solemnly. “He means well thought. Dear Stephen has been looking after me for years. Why if not for him I wouldn’t have made it nearly this far. He’s an excellent doctor, very sharp. I tell him all the time what an absolute blessing he is. Isn’t that right, Stephen?”

“Yes Mabel, thank-”

“But he does have a bit of an attitude.”

“-you…”

Tony tossed his head back with a laugh. “I like you! Mabel, was it?”

“Oh yes, Mabel Witlock.”

“Alright! We should be getting on our way Ms. Witlock.” Stephen interrupted with a fierce clap of his hands. He still looked a little flushed in the face but it was undetermined whether that be from embarrassment or anger. What a fun game to play.

Mabel smiled knowingly at her doctor. She patted Stephen’s arm as he passed towards the stairs. “Oh take care, Stephen. It was a pleasure to meet you-”

“Tony. You can call me Tony.” The mechanic grabbed Mabel’s outstretched hand in a gentle shake. They shared a smile and nod before Tony hurried off to catch up with his ride. Stephen had already marched himself to the road. Damn his long legs.

“And here I thought you’d have terrible bedside manners.” Tony cooed as he slowed next to Stephen. The man looked mostly recovered, but let it be known Tony doesn’t let things go. “That was really adorable back there. You, helping the little old lady. Very chivalrous and all that.”

Stephen scoffed, “I was simply doing my job, Stark. Do you not treat your staff with basic forms of respect?”

“I wouldn’t say I treat them like my nonna, no.” Tony swayed to catch a glimpse of Stephen’s eyeroll. He rocked back with a satisfied smirk on his lips.

“Considering I’ve known her since I was a child, it’s not that big of a deal. You’re forgetting this is a small town, everyone knows everyone. In fact half the elderly population here probably babysat me when I was growing up. A city boy like you wouldn’t understand.”

Now wasn’t that just the stereotype of the century! “Now you just sound like your father.” Tony just barely restrained himself from sticking his tongue out.

“He hasn’t said a single word to you yet.”

“Doesn’t have to, I can practically hear his internal monologue. Damn city slickers, get off my lawn!” Tony shouted in a butchered country accent. He lifted his fist to wave about and furrowed his brow to get a really good old man effect going. It all rips a laugh from the doctor. Which is a breath of fresh air to hear, Tony doesn’t think he’s heard anything sweeter. It brings a genuine smile to his face.

Stephen shook his head, laughter dying to a hum. “Don’t take it personally. You should have seen his expression when I told him I was going off to college. I might as well have stabbed him in the back, would have been less of a betrayal.”

“Don’t tell me you traded in your cowboy boots for loafers!” Tony gasped.

“How else does one get a phd?”

Tony paused, tilting his head to the side in thought. “I guess online school didn’t reach all the way out here?” He pondered aloud. “For all I know you guys just draw names from a hat and that’s the job you’re elected to do here. No phd’s needed.”

Stephen looked to the sky as if trying to find the strength before he glared over at Tony. “I’ll have you know, I went to Columbia. Top of my class.” They rounded up to Stephen’s beat up blue truck by that point. He opened the door for Bats to jump inside, patting his head along the way.

“You don’t say… What the hell are you doing back here then?” Tony wondered aloud. Usually once people left their hometowns they didn’t come back.

“Long story. Did you get everything you needed?” Stephen inquired as he hauled his bag into the trunk, eyeing the boxes sitting nearby.

Touchy subject then, Tony noted. He patted one of the boxes with a nod, “Should have everything I need to get outta your hair.”

“Desperate for an escape, are we? Oh whatever would the world do without Tony Stark for a day.” Stephen grinned. He leaned forward to rest his forearms on the edge of the trunk, staring down the celebrity hero on the other side.

Tony moved to mimic the doctor's stance, “Probably go up in flames, given the state of affairs right now.” It was said in jest but Tony couldn’t help the seed of fear that slipped in there. No, the world could do without Tony but they needed Iron Man, and last time he checked they were the same being. Because of that, Tony wasn’t allowed breaks. He had to be on constantly, he couldn’t waste his time galivanting out here in the fields while people were dying back home.

“So that all falls on your shoulders? No one else can save the world?” Stephen frowned, the snark of before instantly taking the backseat. He might be an asshole on most days but the way Tony said that statement felt too heavy.

Tony shifted uncomfortably. “Not with this. This is my mess to clean up.” He admitted. His fingers drummed along the rigid metal beneath his hands. Taking responsibility for things, that’s what he was supposed to do now, right? Accept you made mistakes, own up to them, and fucking fix it before it grows any worse. He was trying. Goddamn it he was trying so hard.

Stephen watched the mechanic squirm beneath his gaze. “You’re not responsible for other people’s actions.” He said sternly. He knew what self doubt and hatred sounded like and this man, who saved the world not months ago, didn’t deserve to be questioning himself.

“I am if they are in direct correlation to me-”

“No.” Stephen held up his hand, stopping Tony in his tracks. The billionaire has explained the situation earlier to him. Something along the lines of this maniac blaming Tony for his lack of help years ago, and perhaps a bit of spite for being such an asshole to the guy. “Passing on someone’s science project is not a means for domestic terrorism. Even if you left them hanging. You’re allowed to say no. You’re even allowed to be an asshole if you want. None of that warrants all of this.”

Stephen sighed heavily and pushed his hand back through his hair. “You’ve saved the world from an alien invasion for gods sakes, I think you’ve well made up for any tomfoolery in your past.”

That was… well. Tony was a little stunned into silence for the first time in his life. “That was probably better than anything my therapist tried to tell me… you sure you're in the right kind of medical field, doc?” He was obviously deflecting but what did Stephen want him to say? Geeze they just met yesterday and already Stephen was a better acquaintance than ninety percent of the people closest to him. Pepper and Rhodey excluded, of course.

“Oh shut up.” Stephen pushed away from the truck and moved to get inside. Tony was quick on his heels to follow.

“Just saying, very inspirational stuff!” Tony called, chuckling as Stephen slammed his door shut loudly. “Hey all this trauma dumping is making me hungry, when are you going to feed me?”

…….

The breeze was rich with summer wheat. A squeak of plastic cutlery shifting against styrofoam to-go boxes is the only sound besides the rustle of nearby crops.

Tony and Stephen sat quietly on the trunk of Stephen’s rusty old truck. Sitting around them were various containers from a nearby diner. Stephen had sequestered his new marvel away to the outskirts of town. They parked atop the highest hill, which for Nebraska was really only that, a hill. You could just about see the whole town from up there.

After their morning running between Stephens clients and needing to get Tony's supplies, they were in need of a little break. Boxes of various electrical equipment sat beside them, a show of their hard work.

Tony chewed his burger slowly, contemplating the surroundings. Fields and dirt, aside from the practically one road town. It was rather dull, but it had charm. He certainly wouldn't survive here but to each their own.

"So," Tony cleared his throat, tossing aside his empty containers. "How does a top of his class doctor end up staying in a place like this?"

Stephen paused his chewing, pointedly narrowing his eyes at the tin man across from him.

Tony stared back, unfazed. "I googled you." He explained. "You have quite the list of hospital ears ringing. You could be anywhere, and yet you choose here."

Stephen sat his utensils down slowly. He swallowed and put his things aside. "It's honest work. The people here, they don't have the resources-"

"Your talents are wasted here."

Stephen squinted at the land around them, lips pressed together tight. There was a strain around his eyes. "You're a special kind of douchebag aren't you."

"Thank you." Tony smiled.

"My sister." Stephen eventually summoned the words. "She passed suddenly just after my graduation. My parents weren't in any position to run their business and grieve at the same time. I'd just moved out of the dorms so I came back to help them take care of things."

"How many years ago?"

"Fifteen.” Stephen poked at a fry with his fork, he didn’t talk about this often obviously. It was hard to vocalize, but it’d been so long since he’d made any admission out loud that it felt almost therapeutic. Maybe he never actually had said it out loud. “They never really got over it." Stephen sighed.

Tony nodded. Eventually he turned his softened gaze on Stephen. "Did you?"

Stephen was again quiet for a long while. His mouth twitched as though to speak a few times before he chuckled uncomfortably and moved to hop off the trunk. "Says the man with ptsd."

"Hey, we're talking about your trauma right now, not mine!"

Bats clamored off the truck bed after Stephen, barking cheerfully as the man dropped his leftover fries for the pup to gobble up. He started cleaning up their trash, piling it all in their to-go bag and tossing it into the back seat. While he was back there he grabbed a red rubber ball and meandered back to Tony’s side. By the time he was done, Bats had finished eating his treats and noticed what was in his owner’s hand.

Stephen smiled as his trusty companion’s tail began wagging back and forth like a little propeller. He tossed the ball up and down with one hand, watching as Bats hopped back and forth with the motion. After a little teasing he eventually gave in and chucked the ball into the field. Bats took off after it with all his might.

“Like a Bats outta hell.” Tony grinned.

Stephen rolled his eyes fondly and took a seat on the edge of the trunk once again. A comfortable quiet had fallen over them as they watched Bats tumble around in the long grass like a tiny lion hunting its prey.

Tony was the one to break that quiet, obviously not quite finished with their earlier conversation. “Do you have any other siblings?”

Stephen breathed in deeply and let out a long breath. “A brother.” He nodded. “Victor. He moved away pretty young, and doesn't want anything to do with me. Which is fine, the feelings mutual.” Jeez he hadn’t thought of his brother in a while either. After Donna, things got estranged in the Strange household. Last he heard, his brother was off with some Morgana lady.

“Cutting out the toxic family abscess, nice.” Tony hummed his appraisal.

“You know a lot about toxic family abscesses?” Stephen asked.

The grin on Tony’s face honestly said it all. “Boy do I! Although mine lie more in the Daddy Issues category.” He winked for further effect. Stephen shook his head, deeply regretting asking. “But he’s dead and so is mom. Water under the bridge.”

Bats trotted his way over to the duo, proudly holding his rubber ball high in the air for all to see. His jaw clenched and unclenched to make the toy squeak like a little car alarm going off. They both smiled at the gleeful hound. Stephen leaned down to wiggle the toy from the pup’s jowls and threw it again into the tall grass. After a few more throws to wear Bats out, the trio started getting ready to leave.

Tony shoved the trunk closed while Stephen helped the tuckered out pup into the front seat. When Tony joined them he patted Bats head and rubbed at his floppy ears. “Who’s a good boy?” Tony sang. Bats woofed and wagged his little tail this way and that. Stephen was whipped relentlessly by the appendage as he stuck the car into drive.

“Alright alright, calm down.” Stephen chuckled, batting Bats back. “Where to, Stark?”

….

Dusk was just starting to touch as Stephen pulled into town. The streets were mostly empty, save for the local pub crawlers and late dinner takers. He pulled into a small bar off the main road and then motioned for Tony to follow him out.

Stephen walked in first with an air of nonchalance. A few rounds of “Hey Stephen!” were shouted from various corners of the establishment. He waved kindly and threw a greeting or two back on his way towards a table. Tony smirked at the man’s apparent popularity. He couldn’t blame them, hell he was drawn to the mysterious doctor just as badly.

It’d only been a day since his house was blown to smithereens and he’d face planted into Nebraska, yet he couldn’t shake the feeling of being glad he was here. Had any other doctor picked him out of that corn field, Tony wasn’t sure he’d be having as swell of a time. There was just something about Stephen. Maybe his wit or his charm, that inherent kindness just below his guarded exterior. It was all fascinating to the mechanic. He couldn’t help the bitter taste in his mouth at the thought of having to leave.

Stephen guided the two to a small table off to the side. A waitress swung by to grab their drink order before disappearing again. As they waited for the drinks, Stephen took a sweeping glance around the room. He looked bored and uncaring but Tony could tell he was evaluating the crowd. His gaze faltered for all of a second before caring on until he returned to casually looking back at Tony.

“She’s the blonde in the navy sweater.” Stephen nodded his head ever so slightly in the direction he spoke of.

Sure enough Chad Davis’s mother sat by herself, nursing a glass of amber liquid. Tony didn’t look too long, but could see from there she had a file sat in front of her. Strange, expecting company was she?

“Guess that’s my cue.” Tony slowly started making his way over to her. He stopped short of her table with a polite smile and asked, “Mrs. Davis, mind if I join you?”

Mrs. Davis glanced up from her glass. She eyed Tony up and down lazily before shrugging, “Free country.”

“Sure it is.” Tony nodded and dropped down into the creaking wooden seat across from her.

As if preparing for battle, Mrs. Davis drew in a deep breath before sighing it back out again. She leaned back in her chair, looking tired beyond belief. “Alright, where do you wanna start?”

“I just wanted to say I am sorry about your loss. I wanna know what you think happened.” Tony responded carefully. He eyed the folder lying close by before returning his full attention to the woman in front of him. He must have been right, she was waiting for someone.

“Look.” She sighed. “I brought your damn file, you take it and go.” She dropped the aforementioned document in front of Tony and waved him off.

Tony paused briefly before slowly flipping open the folder to take a glance. Pictures of Chad Davis in the army greeted him first, followed by a MIA document and various other paperwork. At first glance it all seemed straight forward. That’s when he noticed a series of pictures taken of fellow team mates, their names and status. A familiar name stood out.

Tony dropped the folder closed and glanced quickly towards Stephen, who was still sitting where he’d left him. He was twirling around a water and trying not to look Tony’s way too suspiciously.

“Look, Mrs. Davis I don’t think your son killed himself. I guarantee you he didn’t kill anyone.” Tony assured her seriously. “Someone used him. As a weapon.”

Mrs. Davis stared at Tony for a moment as if she’d seen a ghost. It took her a minute to gather herself before she leaned forward and whispered in a broken voice, “You're not the one who called me here, are you?”

Before Tony could answer, a badge was smacked down on the table between the two. They both pulled away quickly, staring up at a woman in a black suit who’d suddenly appeared. Her lips were twisted in a sneer as she spat, “Actually, I am.” Then followed the statement by grabbing Tony by the arm and slamming him face down on the table.

From the corner of Tony’s eye he could see Stephen lunging from his seat. Around him voices shouted out, various “Wows!” and “Hey there’s!” but Tony could only hear his heart beginning to pound in his chest. All the noise of the bar blurred into a violent hum, pressure building at the back of Tony’s head.

Stephen was beside him before he could even blink, a vicious glare thrown at the woman currently manhandling him.

“What’s going on here?” Stephen asked sternly.

“It’s called an arrest.” The woman answered as she cuffed Tony’s hands behind his back. Once sure that he wasn’t getting away, she turned to regard the nosey citizen. Her eyes raked over Stephen slow and calculating. She cocked her head to the side and asked in a curious tone, “Strange, is it?”

If he was surprised by this stranger knowing his name, Stephen didn’t show it. He crossed his arms and leveled the woman with his best put-upon glare. “Doctor Strange. And you are?”

“Homeland security.”

Tony struggled against the cuffs quietly behind the woman. He kept his gaze locked on Stephen the whole time however, concern swelling in the pit of his stomach. This lady sure didn’t seem like she was interested in playing nice, and he’d be damned if he let Stephen get in the middle of it all.

“Are we good here?” Homeland security replied.

“Hardly. I am going to need more information than that.”

“That’s a little above your pay grade, doc.”

“For an enforcer of the law you sure don’t know how said law works, do you? He’s entitled to know why he’s being arrested.”

“Alright, I was hoping to do this the easy way here but-” The woman leaned in towards Stephen, a sinister gleam in her eye. Behind her back Tony watched as her hand began to glow a pulsing orange. His eyes widened and heart dropped. For a moment he feared he was going to have another goddamn panic attack, but he acted on the adrenaline before it could take hold. He kicked out the woman’s legs without an inch of remorse, causing her to tumble to the ground and land roughly on her glowing hand.

“Stephen, go!” Tony shouted, stumbling to his feet after the doctor. They pushed their way through the crowd and back out into the parking lot where Stephen’s truck still sat.

Bats perked up in alarm as the two men clambered into the car. Stephen struggled with his keys, his hands shaking ever so slightly. It took him a few tries to get the key to go into the ignition, but he eventually got the darn thing going. As he went to hit the gas however, a pair of glowing orange hands slammed upon the hood of the truck, leaving large indents in the metal.

“What the fuck?” Stephen gaped. “That- is she glowing?!”

“Floor it!” Tony shouted.

“I- I am not gonna run over a human being!” Stephen shouted back. His hands gripped at the wheel so tight his knuckles were turning white.

Tony flailed about beside him, unable to gesture with his hands. “She’s barely human, it doesn’t count!” He argued. Bats barked loud and angry, Tony was sure the dog absolutely agreed with him.

Stephen took deep breaths and shook his head, “I cannot in good conscience hurt someone- I am a doctor! I took an oath!” This yelling back and forth was getting nowhere and the freaky lady was starting to- yep she was climbing onto the hood.

Fuck it.

Stephen closed his eyes and let out a scream, mirrored by Tony as they jolted into forward motion. The tires screeched angrily as they ripped across the parking lot. Glowing lady held on for a good while until Stephen jerked the wheel, sending them onto the street. They could barely hear her yell over their own screaming as she went flying over the side of the car.

“Holly shit!” Tony shouted, head whipping back to watch Ms. Homeland Security barrel-roll along the pavement. She laid still once she came to a stop but Tony could tell she wasn’t done. Her limbs twitched and head turned slowly to watch the truck speed off.

…..

Stephen was shaking.

The two had arrived back to the farm well into the night. The lights were all off in the main house, the Strange’s having all already turned in for the night. Even the lingering farm animals were all locked up safe in the barn.

They parked outside the garage, cutting the engine as soon as they came to a stop. Stephen hadn’t said a word the whole drive back, and the mechanic had been too tired - and preoccupied trying to get the handcuffs off his wrists - to break that silence. Not until Tony noticed the man had started shaking.

“Hey-” Tony started quietly. He was of course still handcuffed so he couldn’t reach out like he wanted to. Damn he was getting too comfortable with near death experiences. Of course Stephen was freaking out, any sane person would after being chased by a lady made of lava. He should have been more aware of the maelstrom building in Stephen’s nerves.

Stephen didn’t register dropping his keys to the floor as he leaned back, limp in his seat. They’d been too heavy for his unstable fingers to grasp. He stared out the front window at the handprints dented into the hood.

“I killed her.” Stephen whispered, voice cracking over the syllables.

Tony’s head whipped towards him, a struck expression crossing his face. “Hey no, no you didn’t kill her!” He argued. He shuffled to the side, letting Bats hop over him so he was sitting right beside Stephen. “I looked, she was moving, she’s fine.”

Stephen sucked in a shaky breath. His fingers gripped at his jeans for a long moment before beginning to rub along his thighs in a rhythmic motion. He closed his eyes and breathed out long and hard, and then repeated the motion of breathing in deep through his nose and out through his mouth several times.

“I still hurt her.” Stephen whispered, voice wavering with each careful breath he took.

Tony resisted the urge to be snarky, his mouth tended to run off when he was uncomfortable. Or really all the time, let’s be honest. But he didn’t want to upset the doctor any further. To Stephen this lady was probably just some coocoo who snapped. Sure he had an inkling she was dangerous but to a pacifist doctor type like Stephen, he probably didn’t think violence was the answer. Stephen didn’t know this superheroing shit could get you killed.

“She would have killed us.” Tony said with no room for argument. Stephen’s brows furrowed at his words.

“You don’t know that-”

“Everyone wants to kill me.” Tony cut that train of thought off before it could fester. He shrugged as though being a target wasn’t a big deal. “Hell, I am technically dead right now and jacked up super villains are still after my head!”

That earned him a strained chuckle. Stephen was eventually able to slow his jittery hands and even out his breathing. Tony sat patiently the whole time, he could honestly learn to take some notes to help deal with his own recent panic attacks.

“Why do I get the feeling that pleases you?” Stephen shook his head, beyond done with this man’s antics.

Tony grinned all the while, definitely the cat who got the cream. He wiggled his brows playfully, “What can I say? A little danger keeps the blood pumping, doc.”

With a final huff of breath Stephen straightened his back and opened his eyes. He glanced over at Tony, feeling a pang of guilt for how worried the man looked. He hid it well around his usual cocky grin but the way he angled towards the doctor with his full attention hardly felt relaxed. He was facing Stephen, leaning his left side against the seat to counter out his awkward balancing act with no hands. He had his head tilted towards Stephen’s shoulder, mere inches and his chin could have been resting on it. He looked like a kicked puppy.

Stephen leaned a little to meet Tony’s gaze. He felt the unbearable urge to do something lame like kiss his forehead. He settled for brushing a stray hair back into place upon Tony’s head. He smiled softly. “Let’s get you out of those handcuffs.”

A cheeky little grin spread across Tony’s face at the comment. He tipped his chin the rest of the way forward to fully rest on Stephen’s shoulder and smugly replied, “Is that the only thing you wanna get me out of?”

“Insufferable.” Stephen scoffed and shoved Tony’s head back with a palm flat against his forehead. Tony tipped off balance and landed back against Bats, earning an annoyed bark and face licks in retaliation.

…..

The soft patter of keys clicking away on a keyboard echoed around Tony. He was hunkered down in Stephen’s little kitchenette. All the lights were off around him, the only light coming from the laptop resting in front of Tony. He hadn’t wanted to wake the doctor, who’d just nodded off a few hours ago. He laid only a handful of steps away in the bed in the middle of the room so Tony was trying his hardest not to be too loud. Damn loft floor plans.

He’d just gotten off the phone with Rhodey, who’d given him passwords to access the AIM files he needed. He was now currently going through video after video of Aldrich goddamn Killian interviewing soldiers for his little stem project.

He grit his teeth as he looked through the Extremis Phase 1 Testing videos. Groups of people were being strapped down and injected with the product. Over the length of the video the patients began glowing orange, their skin darkened and cracked like rocks splitting across lava. Amazingly missing limbs began growing back, as if they’d never lost them to begin with.

“That’s incredible.”

Tony nearly fell out of his chair from alarm as he whipped around and came face to face with a sleepy looking Stephen. He gripped his chest and puffed out a hard breath. “Jesus don’t you know not to startle a man with heart issues!”

Stephen chuckled and leaned back out of Tony’s space, “It’s a good thing there is a doctor on hand.” He started making his way around the kitchen, grabbing two mugs and a box of tea.

“If you’re making the leaf juice, I’ll pass.” Tony grumbled. He focused back on the video still playing as Stephen scoffed in the background. The video resumed with the testing but it seemed as though something was going wrong with one of the subjects. Killian shouted for everyone to evacuate. The clip cut to the subject screaming in agony as his body glowed brighter and brighter, looking like he was about to pop. And just as suspected an explosion erupted from the struggling man, blowing the lab apart in the process.

Tony leaned back in his chair, stomach turning at the images. “A bomb that’s not a bomb.”

“Sorry?” Stephen yawned. He watched the kettle on the stove warm to a boil and then proceeded to pour the steaming water into the mugs.

“The bombs, they’re not bombs they are people.” Tony sighed and rubbed a hand down his face.

Stephen leaned his elbows on the countertop as he slowly stirred his steaming tea. His brows furrowed at Tony’s comment, not quite understanding what the man was getting at and honestly not awake enough to comprehend anything anyways. He took a tentative sip and then sat the mug back down but kept his hands wrapped it, savoring the warmth.

“Aldrich Killian thinks he can play god, make a chemical that can regrow limbs and cure any illness. Sounds like a dream, right? Except the side effects are walking jackolanterns blowing up town square.” Tony closed his computer and wandered over to lean on the counter opposite Stephen. “Chad Davis was the bomb. This chemical caused him to overheat like a hot pocket.”

“Lovely visuals, thanks.” Stephen grimaced. He stared down at his hands in thought. “I’ve heard that name. Killian. Read some of his papers.”

“Please don’t tell me you’re pen pals or something-”

“It was one email, calm down.” Stephen rolled his eyes. “I just brought it up because I remember him living in Miami at the time, he was building up some facility down there. I assume you’re going after him, yes?”

Tony regarded Stephen before conceding he had a point. “Yea, I have Jarvis working on it.”

……

“It’s totally fine, sir. I seem to do quite well for a stretch and then at the end of the sentence I say the wrong cranberry.” Jarvis cheerfully spoke from the head of Tony’s suit.

Tony blinked once, twice.

“And sir, you were right. Once I factored in available AIM downlink facilities I was able to confirm Doctor Strange’s intel. It appears your next destination is Miami, Florida.”

Stephen, the smug bastard, grinned from across the room. He sipped loudly at his nearly finished tea. Strewn out between them were bits and pieces of the Iron Man suit connected to various wires and batteries that the two had managed to snag on their last trip to town. Tony had set up shop in the garage, not wanting to take up any more room in Stephen’s actual residence.

Tony clapped his hands together, “Alright, good work team.” He plopped down onto a nearby stool and began typing away at the laptop nearby. “What’re our levels at, Jar?”

“Minimal charging.” Jarvis replied solemnly.

Tony ripped his hands away from the computer and stood abruptly.

“The power source is questionable, it may not succeed in revitalizing the Mark 42.”

“What’s questionable about electricity!?” Tony shouted. A wave of unbridled unease began making its way down his spine. Like a shot of liquid ice trickling quickly through his vines and accumulating in a big twisted ball in his stomach. It felt like a physical punch to the gut. Tony staggered away from the table.

Goddamn it, it was happening again. How many times was he going to have to sit through one of these freak outs? Was once not enough? Twice? Christ when were they going to end!

Jarvis’s voice slowly muffled into nothingness. Tony’s ears felt stuffed with cotton, he could hear nothing but the ringing alarms in his head and the rapid thump thump thump of his heart. Pins and needles pricked at his fingers, slowly making their way up his arms. He was losing feeling, it was just fuzzy beneath his skin. Was he having a heart attack? A stroke?

As Tony made his way to drop to the floor, he felt a pair of arms grab him around the waist. He was gently lowered to the ground rather than uncontrollably dropping like he had planned. He sat his hands against the arms around him, trying to make out the feeling of the other person. Stephen? Was it Stephen? Most likely.

His vision swam for minutes, speckled with black spots. He tried to breathe, knowing it was the only thing he could do right now to ground himself. It was just so hard when he could barely even make out if he was breathing at all. Over the pounding of his heart and the shaking of his limbs, he couldn’t tell.

Something cold was gently pressed against the back of his neck and in the next moment Tony felt his consciousness being ripped back to the present. He gasped and blinked several times, slowly taking in where he was and accounting for all his limbs. The needle like sensation dulled, the blurry vision cleared, but his heavy breathing and light shaking persisted.

“That’s it. It’s ok, Tony.” A gentle voice soothed like a balm on an open wound.

Tony relaxed back against the hold around him. The cool press of a damp fabric against his neck shifted, rubbing carefully behind his ears and along the curve of his shoulder blade. Tony sighed and leaned into the touch.

After an unknown amount of time Tony felt well enough tethered to sit forward on his own again. He breathed a moment before peeking back over his shoulder at the man sitting behind him. Stephen was leaned up against a cupboard with his legs parted to fit on either side of Tony. He had a carefully calm expression on his face. A wet rag sat between his hands. He fiddled with it, obviously nervous.

“Putting something cold on the back of your neck helps.” Stephen explained. He looked adorable. “The uh nerves behind your ears pick up signals when you're having a panic attack, overriding those signals with the cold sensation can help calm you down…”

Tony slowly started smiling and eventually grinning at the silly doctor behind him. He was trying so hard to be helpful. God, when was the last time someone cared about him like this? Pepper and Rhodey were always there, always kind and wonderful and everything Tony needed. He would never discredit their worth. It was just that this, this thing with Strange, it felt different. This guy who he met only days ago had wormed his way into his heart like a thief in the night. Now he was listening to said man ramble on about medical facts Tony couldn’t give a single shit about but he’d kill for it to never end.

“Thanks, doc.” Tony eventually interrupted.

Stephen nodded. “Anytime, Mr. Mechanic.”

Mechanic, huh? Tony hummed thoughtfully as he glanced up at the mismatched bits of Iron Man laying across the table. He didn’t have time to wait for a full battery charge, but he could maybe bide some time. Guess he’d just have to build something if his suit was out of commission.

“Hey Stephenie, mind if I borrow your car?”

…..

“Here.” Stephen flipped the latch on his watch and pulled it from his wrist. “Use this, it’s got an alarm built into it. That way you’ll know when your suit is done cooking.”

Tony took the time piece into his hands carefully. It was the same he’d spotted the doctor wearing earlier. The black leather strap was worn down, obviously a well loved piece of wrist wear.

“It's a limited edition so I am obviously going to want that back.” Stephen crossed his arms.

“Obviously.” Tony grinned. “Or is this just your way of saying I have to come back to visit you?” He teased playfully. If he was being honest there might have been a shred of truth hidden somewhere in that comment. Cause who was he kidding? He wanted to come back for Stephen after all this was said and done. He just hoped that was something Stephen wanted too.

Stephen rolled his eyes affectionately, “I should be owed compensation for all you’ve put me through, Stark.”

“And yet you want to see me again?” Tony stepped forward, batting his eyes. Say yes, please say yes. Gods what was he, some desperate lady in waiting? He’d not been able to shake the tight lump in his throat since he came to the realization it was time to go. He didn’t want this to be the end.

The doctor pursed his lips like he was holding back a grin. He closed his eyes for a long moment, and then opened them to look Tony straight on. His face softened, “Yes, Tony. I want to see you again.”

A gust of air rushed from Tony’s lungs. He immediately tried to play it off by nodding and looking down to fiddle with the watch still in his hands. “Good. Cool.” He couldn’t stop the smile that pulled at his cheeks. “Cause ya know, you’ve not even seen my real toys. You think Mark 42 is cool, just you wait till you see my lab- or well…” He paused, no house means no lab. “Shit no lab, right, um-”

Stephen gently brushed his fingers over Tony’s cheek, saving him from the stream of nonsense coming out of his mouth. “I think I’d rather spend a little more time with you than your bots, so don’t sweat it.” He froze as the doctor leaned in to lay a soft kiss against his other cheek.

…..

It started shortly after Tony had left. The vans. They were black, unmarked, and most importantly never seen before around here. They sat parked in various places Stephen often frequented. At first he paid them little mind but as he kept noticing them, the further curious he got.

"Take care Stephen!"

The doctor smiled and gave a wave over his shoulder as he left his clients house. He was heading to his truck when he saw it. A black van sitting across the street. He watched from the corner of his eye as he sat his bags in the trunk.

Bats barked cheerfully from the back seat, excited to be getting on the road again. This was their last stop so it was now time to head home.

Stephen hopped into the diver seat, giving a hearty head scratch to his faithful companion. "Ready?"

The engine roared and off they went down the road. Minutes later the black van followed.

It was only once they were out of town that Stephen really noticed. A sinking feeling sat heavy in his stomach as bright headlights flashed in his rearview mirror. He kept his hands steady on the wheel, speeding up gradually. The van sped up as well.

Mere seconds later Stephen was lurched forward. The van rammed into his back. Before he could even react, the truck was flipping into the ditch and straight into an electrical pole. The only thing Stephen would remember is the soft whining of Bats and the slide of a van door opening.

…..

Waking up zip tied to a rusty old bed frame was not written on Tony’s agenda for today, and yet here he was. It wasn’t even the oddest position he’d woken up in before, although it didn’t make the situation any lighter. At least the bed was standing up and he wasn’t subjected to lying down. That would have been a different kind of party.

Last thing he remembered was breaking into one of Killian’s AIM facilities. In retrospect taking out a mansion full of guards with a littering of hand made weapons from a hardware store probably wasn’t the greatest planning, but Tony thought he’d done pretty good all things considered. Now though? Now he was thinking he probably should have brought backup. At least he still has Stephen’s watch ticking away on his wrist. As long as he waited long enough, he could blow this dusty, rusty, popsicle stand.

A quick scan of the room revealed a more or less dungeon vibe, with a mad scientist twist. There was a smattering of tables all lined with medical equipment, test tubes, and computers with various stats and readings on what Tony could only assume were Extremis samples. The rest of the room was dark and dingy, a concrete hole in the ground.

Tony rolled his eyes at the whole thing. How stereotypical could these villains get, honestly. He was interrupted from his musings by the echo of shoes on cement.

“You know what my old man used to say to me? One of his favorite of many sayings. The early bird catches the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.” Killian announced as he made his way down the stairs and over to one of the few tables. He was wearing a ridiculous cream colored suit that really just made him look like a Bond villain.

Tony lolled his head to the side, tracking the man’s presence around the room. “Not still pissed off about Switzerland, are you?”

“How could I be pissed at you, Tony?” Aldrich grinned. He sat a briefcase down at the table before turning to give the mechanic his full attention. “I am here to thank you. You gave me the greatest gift that anyone has ever given me.” He gushed as he took tentative steps towards Tony’s hanging body. With a dark gleam in his eye, he leaned in and said breathlessly, “Desperation.”

Turning to pace in front of him, Killian professed. “If you think back to Switzerland, you said you’d meet me on the rooftop, right? Well for the first twenty minutes, I actually thought you’d show up. And the next hour I- well I considered taking the one-step shortcut to the lobby if you know what I mean.”

“Honestly, I am still trying to figure out what happened to the first mouse.” Tony lazily replied. He refused to give this manic an ounce of satisfaction.

“But as I looked out over that city,” Killian continued without missing a beat. “I had a thought that would guide me for years to come. Anonymity, Tony. Thanks to you it's been my mantra ever since. You simply rule from behind the scenes. Because the second you give evil a face, a Bid Laden, a Gaddafi, a Mandarin, you hand the people a target.”

Christ. Tony’s brow twitched with annoyance. “You’re something else.” He spat. This monologue was getting dull, but a quick glance at Stephen’s watch said he still had too much time to waste. Willing himself to not lash out, Tony asked, “What’s next for you in your world?”

Killian’s eyes lit up from where he’d taken a seat at the desk he’d laid his briefcase at. He turned slowly to catch Tony’s eye. “Well, I wanted to repay you the selfsame gift that you so graciously imparted to me. Desperation.”

Well that didn’t sound good.

As if on cue, the doors upstairs slammed open and a gurney was led down a nearby ramp.

"It really is wonderful, live test subjects." Killian hummed as he slowly rose to meet the party.

Several men filed in around the body, that of which was outfitted with suspensions for the patient's hands to be elevated. The person was wrapped thoroughly in gauze and bandages, many of which were speckled with dried blood.

"Tragic really, a simple accident causing so much damage." Killian snapped on a pair of gloves, very dramatic like. The men around him moved a tray with needles and various tools within Killians reach. "But you know those back water roads." He continued casually. "One little bump and you're in the ditch. And with no hospitals nearby… well the damage could be irreversible."

Up until that point the scene was really only disturbing at most. Tony couldn’t see the injured patient around the various men, and as horrible as it was to witness some poor innocent lackey get pushed around for show, that’s all it was. A poor innocent lackey. Someone Tony didn’t have any ties to. At least that’s what he thought. Until Killian opened his goddamn mouth and ruined it all.

Tony stiffened. The men continued to stand guard around the bed, preventing the mechanic from getting a good look. He needed them to move. He needed to see, to be sure. It couldn't be-

The zip ties enclosed around his wrists strained with the force Tony put into yanking forward. He grit his teeth, heart pounding loud in his ears. This couldn't be happening. Stephen wasn't supposed to be here. He was a civilian, he was supposed to be home, with his fields and his dog. But no he was lying there wrapped in bandages and unconscious. And his hands, christ, what had they done to him…

"Stephen!" Tony called. The man laid still on the gurney, not a single twitch or hum of response. Perhaps it was a blessing he wasn’t awake to feel the most likely excruciating pain he’d be in.

Tony cursed internally, the boiling rage beneath his skin had him shaking from the force. Goddamn it, how could he let this happen. If Stephen died because of this, he didn’t know how he’d ever feel ok again. Guilt mixed with the rage until a toxic concoction of hate bubbled inside, oh how he was going to rip Killian apart.

Killian hummed as he prepared a needle. "Worry not Stark, he lives. Barely. You see I wanted to show you first hand what my little science experiment is capable of. And to do that I needed a truly damaged volunteer."

"Volunteer." Tony spat. The metal of the bedframe he’d been tied to creaked angrily.

Killian chuckled. He flicked the syringe and then lowered the point to Stephen's arm.

Tony yanked viciously against his restraint. "Don't you dare touch him!" He yelled uselessly. His screams did nothing to stop Killian from breaking skin. He could do nothing but watch as Extremis made its way into the doctor’s blood stream.

And that's when the convolutions start.

It was jerking moments every few minutes, as if Stephen was being startled awake without actually waking up. His eyelids would twitch and brows furrow but he wouldn’t rise from his slumber. The jerking eventually turned into full body shivering. The tell tale sign of the chemical working through his system was showing by the orange glow of his veins.

Meanwhile, Killian had lazily snapped off his surgical gloves and started directing his men what to do and where to go. He appeared to be getting ready to leave, which should have alarmed Tony but the mechanic couldn’t pull his eyes from the beads of sweat forming on Stephen’s forehead.

“I am not sure if you can tell, but the body is trying to decide whether to accept Extremis or just give up.” Killian mused. He stopped next to Stephen’s head and ran the back of a finger along the moisture growing at his temple. A fascinated little smile pulled at his cheeks. “And if it gives up, I have to say the detonation is quite spectacular. But until that point, it’s really just a lot of pain.”

Tony jaw popped from clenching his teeth so viciously. He tried not to show the turmoil this was putting him through, but it was a tough thing. Standing there, unable to do anything was tearing him apart from the inside out.

“While this has been fun, I really must be going.” Killian sighed regretfully. He waltzed over to Tony with his hands tucked in his pockets. He looked far too smug for a man Tony planned to rip apart in the near future. He stopped just far enough away to not risk getting kicked.

“You’re a maniac.” Tony ground out.

“No, I am a visionary.” Killian corrected eagerly. He leaned forward and patted Tony on the cheek like one does a dog. The mechanic stood still, not giving into the desire to bite.

With that Killian turned away in a flourish. He made his way to the stairs, but stopped to look back at Stephen’s now withering form. His eyes raked over the man’s frame, and then glanced up to Tony. “He is quite the specimen.” Killian purred. “Perhaps when this is all over I should rekindle that connection we had.” He left that pondering thought with Tony, disappearing through the doorway soon after.

The silence that lingered was mind numbing.

The men that were left to stand guard milled around the room at leisure. It was a small relief that they didn’t go near Stephen or mess with the tubes and wires he was hooked up to. Tony thought he’d go mad watching the doctor lay there panting and shaking as though consumed by a raging fever. A chime from his wrist, however, pulled him away from that dark path.

The alarm had finally gone off, looks like time had worn out.

…..

“Come on Steph, you promised we’d go swimming!”

A soft crunch of tall grass snapping under barefoot rose from the otherwise undisturbed meadow. It was followed by giggling and the unmistakable chatter of children running, awakening the quiet land. The sun was high in the afternoon sky, blazing hot just like all sticky July summer days in Nebraska. A mop of brown hair bounced along the tips of the overgrown brush, heading for an opening to the river.

Stephen breathed slowly, feeling sweat trickle down the back of his neck. He watched his excited sister feet ahead of him. He’d promised her a trip to the river and today she was cashing in. It was steaming with heat, really a perfect day to be relaxing in the cool tides. The air was hazy, rippling like a rock plunging into water. You could visibly see the hot thick soup that was humidity weighing heavy on the land.

Stephen gulped down a bout of nausea that wrestled in his stomach from the heat. It felt like being cooked from the inside out. He feared his insides would boil and explode before he’d make it to the water.

Donna was already gone from sight, damn her agility. Stephen sighed and hurried along, one foot in front of the other. It was vexing how tired and overwhelmed he felt. Perhaps a heat stroke was setting in? Although he’d barely been out here long enough. He trudged his way through the lanky grass, brushing his fingers over the tips of their blades. He jerked his hand back however as a sharp pain along his hands blinded him. It lasted only a moment but nearly knocked him over. He stared down at his hand, bewildered to find nothing out of the sort. Perhaps something bit him, or the grass nicked him just right…

“Stephen, hurry up!” Donna yelled, well within the cover of nearby trees. Stephen could just make out the sound of splashing and excited giggling. Well at least she was having fun.

“Coming.” Stephen tried to yell but the words stuck heavy in his throat. He breathed deeply, or tried to, finding it hard to gather air into his damp lungs. God what was wrong with him? It wasn’t like he was out of shape, he walked through brush like this all the time. It was just as though all the energy had been zapped from him, replaced rather with burning lead. He was weighed down, drowning.

A scream rippled through the air, startling Stephen from his melting demise. He stumbled to a stop, head snapping towards the river bed where he knew his sister to be.

“Donna?” He called.

No response.

Mustering all his strength, Stephen quickened toward the trees. He gasped for air as he broke through the brush, eyes traveling the expanse of the rumbling stream before him. The river was rushing by, a strong current pulling anything and everything in its path. How odd, the water was always calm in this part.

“Donna?” Stephen called again, stumbling down to the bank where he saw his sister's few belongings.

“Stephen, help!” Donna cried from just down the way. She was gripping onto a slimy cluster of rocks on the opposite side, chin just barely above the water. The current pushed ruthlessly against her, splashing gulps of water straight into her face.

A bout of dread lurched hard in his stomach at the sight. “I am coming, hang on!” Stephen shouted back. He hurried into the tide but stopped suddenly as the water made contact with his ankles. It was hot. The water was scorching hot. Stephen flew back, landing hard on the muddy incline with a scream. His skin blistered and smoked, angry red and white bubbles puckered his exposed flesh. He went to grab at his ankles but the sharp pain in his fingers from before arose again, this time spreading along his entire hands.

“Steph please!-” A gurgle called from across the stream. Donna was slipping below the water line. Her eyes were wide with fear and fingers clawed desperately at the rock for purchase.

Stephen watched in horror as Donna lost her hold. She was swept soundlessly into the current. Stephen rushed the water, burning be damned. He could feel nothing but sweltering pain along every inch of his body as he dove after his sister. He didn’t know how long he lasted, for before he knew it he was losing consciousness. The world around him blurred into darkness.

…..

The next thing Stephen knew he was jolting awake to the smell of fire. A black sky was high above him, clouds of billowing smoke rising after it. All around him were parts of building equipment and burning metal. Where the absolute hell was he?

A series of beams and broken bits of what looked suspiciously like iron man suits started raining down around him, startling him out of any sort of trance he’d been in. On top of that the king of dramatic entrances himself suddenly dropped out of the sky. Stephen’s throat caught as Tony, barely covered in a suit of armor, caught himself a foot off the ground with his one working repulsor. He flailed through the air and landed with a resounding thunk and clatter of metal on concrete.

All was still as Tony groaned and sat up. He looked in rough shape but at least he was moving. Stephen was just pushing himself to his feet when he caught sight of a smoking shadow lumbering towards Tony. The creature's body was badly mangled and burnt to a charcoal black. The skin, which was basically just ash at this point, was cracked in spider web like patterns, revealing a glowing lava like substance below.

As Stephen got closer he could just make out the burning man ranting. He was spitting in rage, shouting something about being the Mandarin all along. Stephen didn’t care what he had to say, all he knew was this walking smore was clambering at Tony with the intention of violence. Making a quick scan of the area, Stephen grabbed for the first thing that could be used as a weapon. He snatched up a metal pole and swung it over his shoulder as he neared closer to the man. Without further ado, Stephen rammed the pole as hard as he could into the fire hazard, sending him flying across the way. He landed straight into a collapsing scaffolding, causing a massive explosion.

Tony sat stunned around his pile of flaming robot parts. He blinked and slowly closed his dropped jaw. “Yea, I got nothing.” He said, stunned into silence.

Stephen turned in the direction, taking note of the aches and pains spreading slowly along his bones. “T-Tony?” Stephen whispered at the sight of the billionaire a couple feet away. Stephen shuffled towards the mechanic, desperate to close the distance between them.

The last thing he remembered before waking up was driving off the side of a road. Nothing around him was familiar, it was all highly disorienting. He just killed a man for god sakes! Or not a man perhaps but something sentient at least. Tony was the one drop of comfort in this pool of unknown, and he’d be damned if he didn’t reach out and grab it.

Tony staggered towards him, he quickly grabbed onto Stephen, halting his stumbling. “Easy, easy. I’ve got you.” Tony hushed. He wound his arms around Stephen’s waist, holding his shaking frame until the man managed to get a better hold of himself. Even then he kept his arms firmly in place.

Stephen gripped at Tony’s shoulders, fingers clenching around the mechanics damp undershirt. He eased up only a little once he was sure Tony wasn’t going to move away. “What happened?” He managed to squeeze out around haggard breaths. As he started settling down, more questions started assaulting his brain. “Where are we? How did I get here?- Did I just kill that guy!?”

Tony tightened his hands on Stephen’s sides, giving a little squeeze in hopes of grounding the man as he said slowly, “Hey, just take some breaths for me, ok? I will explain everything, I promise.” He nodded as he spoke, watching the doctor’s eyes carefully for signs he was registering what was being said. He gave a smile when he got a tentative nod in reply.

Stephen closed his eyes and did as Tony asked, taking in careful breaths. He focused on the brush of the hero's thumbs rubbing soothing circles just above his hips. He also started taking further note of how he was feeling. There were aches that lingered in his arms, legs, and especially his hands, that weren’t there the last time he remembered. His head was swimming in a fog, a fog that felt like scorching steam. Gods, was he always this hot? Or was it due to the fire blazing around them?

“That’s it. How’re you feeling, Stephen?”

Stephen sighed. “Like I’ve been run over by a truck.” He laughed with no real humor.

“I mean, you’re not too far off.” Tony winced. “First, there is something I need to tell you.”

“Well that’s not alarming at all.” Stephen frowned.

“What’s the last thing you remember?” Tony reached a hand up between the two of them to grab hold of Stephen’s cheek. He rubbed his thumb over the man’s tantalizing cheekbones and waited until Stephen met his gaze.

“I was driving home and some van drove me off the road. I must have been knocked out.” Stephen struggled to remember anything more but nothing came to mind. He leaned into the soft touch and Tony’s hand.

“Right, ok.” Tony nodded. “So don’t freak out but you were hurt like- really bad in that crash, Stephen. Killian’s men took you and they gave you Extremis.”

Stephen jolted back like he’d just been slapped. He looked down at his relatively fine looking body, he didn’t look like he’d sustained any injuries. He tentatively pulled his hands from Tony’s shoulders and examined his shaking digits. He could faintly see what looked like scars along the backs of his fingers.

“The majority of your injuries have healed from the chemical-”

“But it’s still inside me.” Stephen finished nervously. “Am I gonna- What’s going to happen to me?” His brain very kindly started recalling those testing videos he’d seen Tony watching at the farm. Was he going to explode? Gods he really didn’t want to be a hot pocket. For all he knew he had hours before the fireworks would go off, maybe minutes. Did he need to back away from Tony? He didn’t want to hurt the man.

As if sensing the oncoming maelstrom brewing inside Stephen, Tony moved his hand from the man’s cheek to rake through his hair. “Nothing! I promise. I’ve already got people working on a cure, you’ll be fixed up before you even know it.” He swore, tucking some stray hairs away from Stephen’s face.”You’re going to be fine.”

Fine seemed relative. Stephen wasn’t sure he’d be completely fine anytime soon. How did hero’s do this all the time? This living on the edge, juggling your life for the sake of others, it was all so draining. This was honestly the most action he’s had his entire life, and he was pretty sure he was tapped out from here on.

“What happened to Killian?” Stephen asked cautiously.

Tony lowered his hand from Stephen’s hair and placed it gently back on the man’s waist. He looked over his shoulder and nodded towards the scorch marks on the ground. “That guy you jousted into the building? Yea that was him.”

Stephen followed Tony’s line of sight. There was nothing left but a blazing fire and broken equipment. Somewhere in that raging inferno was a rotting Aldrich Killian. “Is he-”

“Probably…” Tony shrugged. He turned back to catch the doctor’s gaze again with a reassuring smile. “Don’t sweat it, Doc. The guy was a literal terrorist and about to rip my head off. I think I owe you one. Actually, I think I owe you many ones.”

“You can start by getting us the hell out of here.” Stephen countered. He could also really go for a drink.

“That- yea we should definitely do that.”

…….

It was a quiet afternoon on the farm. One of those breezy days where the wind rustled the leaves and grass just right, bringing about a little nature made melody. The sun played peekaboo around fluffy white clouds, warming the land just enough to not be unbearable.

Stephen sat far off in the field under a towering old oak tree. Laying on his propped up knees was a book and off to the side of him was a little basket covered by a checkered towel. It’d been a while since he had a moment of peace like this, left alone to his own devices. He could just sit here, breathing in the fresh scent of nature and just be.

Naturally the metallic hum of repulsors overhead had to interrupt the sanctuary Stephen had made for himself. It lasted only a minute before there was a solid thud followed by the shifting of metal on metal, and then all was quiet except for the soft crunch of shoes on grass. Stephen didn’t even bother looking up from his book when a warm weight suddenly dropped beside him. His shoulder was jostled as the peace intruder shifted against the tree and nudged their way closer.

Stephen eyed the hand that was sneaking over his thigh and making tip-toe like steps with each finger. They stopped a breaths width from his hand, then oh so gently started tracing lines along the back of his fingers. The touch brought a fond little smile to Stephen’s face.

It’d been a little over a month since Extremis had officially vacated the doctor’s body. It was by far not an enjoyable process, but Stephen couldn’t complain about the company he got through it. Despite having a destroyed house to deal with and all the business that came with being a superhero, Tony spent nearly the whole time by Stephen’s side. When Stephen wasn’t being poked and prodded in the lab, he was given free rein of Tony’s private quarters in the tower. Together they watched movies, ate nice food, and spent long afternoons just chatting. It was a nice change of pace to all the chaos they’d been through previously.

Now, a month later, and all that was left to remember the event was a slight tremor in Stephen’s hands. The nerve damage done by the car crash hadn’t healed properly and apparently never would. Tony was very conscious of this fact and took extra care around his hands. The man had tried to solve the issue numerous times but nothing had helped. Stephen had also looked into countless remedies but alas, no luck.

Closing his book, Stephen surrendered his hand over to Tony. Their fingers tangled together in a loose hold. “Hello, Tony.”

“Hey, Doc.” Tony greeted with absolute delight. He was giving Stephen a goofy little smile when the man turned to look at him. “Did you bring the goods?” He asked, wiggling his brows.

Stephen snorted at the display and reached over with his other hand to grab the basket he had sitting beside him. He plopped the wicker object onto the mechanic’s lap and had to press his lips together to stop from grinning at Tony’s beaming expression.

Tony’s feet rocked back and forth in front of him and fingers wiggled as he ripped away the cloth cover. “Yay!” He sang and scooped up a slightly wonky looking hazelnut cookie, courtesy of granny Mabel. What they lacked in appearance they more than made up for in flavor.

When news got out about Stephen’s “car accident” and subsequent recovery time spent with Tony, the residents of Rose Hill had started sending get well gifts the doctors way. One of those many gifts was a batch of Mabel’s finest baked goods. Tony had taken one bite and hadn’t been the same since. Now whenever the elderly lady knows Tony is going to be paying a visit, she makes sure to have a batch ready to go.

And that’s the thing isn’t it? Tony visiting. It’s happened at least once a week, every week since Stephen had returned home. The mechanic will hop into his suit and fly off to the farm at random intervals, much to the confusion of those closest to him. Often they’ll plan these meetings, a lunch here or a movie night there. But Tony has also gotten into the habit of just dropping by whenever he wants - as though he doesn’t have to fly across several states to get there. He always claims to be bored, but Stephen can tell beneath the aloof exterior, the man is just trying to escape his wandering mind.

Sometimes Stephen thinks Tony is just paranoid of things happening to the doctor. That he just needs to check and make sure with his own eyes that Stephen hasn’t been tossed in a ditch or kidnapped by the latest baddie. Other times, Stephen thinks the man just misses his company. Either way, it is heartwarming to hear repulsors flying overhead.

Who knew one day Stephen’s heart would skip beats to the sound of Tony Stark outside his window.

Stephen watched in amusement as Tony scarfed down cookie after cookie with little to no restraint. By the time he’d had his fill, the man was looking a little green. “You’re a menace.” Stephen rolled his eyes.

In answer, Tony slid down to rest his head on Stephen’s lap. He sighed dramatically and dropped his hands onto his stomach like a satisfied cat stretching out in the sun. “You can’t expect me to stop at one.”

“Five maybe.” Stephen argued. He settled one hand on Tony’s chest while his other began gently combing through the man’s hair.

“I did stop at five, so I am well within my rights!” Tony closed his eyes, taking in the lovely breeze and calming brush of fingers toying with his hair. He reached up to lay his hand over Stephen’s on his chest. “How’re you, Stephenie?” He asked into the quiet space between them.

Stephen hummed, he could tell the question was centered at his hands. Lifting a finger to run along Tony’s palm he said, “I might be onto something.”

“Oh?” The mechanic quirked a brow but didn’t open his eyes.

“Only issue is it’s in Nepal.”

That got Tony to crack open an eye with a dubious expression, “Please don’t accidentally join any cults.”

Stephen honestly didn’t expect anything other than that response, even he was skeptical. “I think I’d make a great cult leader.” He mused.

“Yea, you would.” Tony agreed easily. “That’s the problem. You’d get all these beautiful wives and have no time for me!”

“Ohh, so it’s not that you’re worried about me getting stuck in a cult, it’s that it would take up all my available time for you.” Stephen grinned. What a ridiculous man.

“Exactly.” Tony nodded. “I am just looking out for priority number one, me.”

“You’re insufferable.” Stephen adored him.

“You love it.” Tony shrugged as though it was the most common knowledge in the world. And maybe it was. Stephen wasn’t sure he could pinpoint exactly when that started being a thing. If he was being honest with himself he wouldn’t change their little back and forth bickering for anything in the world. He did love it. Gods, Stephen thought maybe he even loved Tony. And wasn’t that something?

“Heaven knows why.” Stephen sighed. Knocking his head back against the tree trunk behind him, he looked up to the sky as if the answers would be written there. Meanwhile, Tony had gone back to closing his eyes and relaxing into Stephen’s hands.

“Some people say I am quite charming.”

Stephen snorted and looked back down at his sleepy companion. It was a rare and beautiful thing to see the man so at ease, not worrying about the next meeting or alien invasion. The tension wrinkles were smoothed over and the pouty little frown he often wore was wiped away. He looked so peaceful. Stephen leaned down and placed a feather light kiss against the mechanic’s forehead. “You’re something alright.” He whispered against Tony’s skin.

Always the opportunist, Tony tilted his head back to catch the doctor’s lips with his own. It was an odd angle, but they hardly minded, too caught up in the sweet sensation of being close. It lasted only a moment, but that’s all that was needed to warm their steady hearts. With soft smiles, they rested their heads together and let the delicate sounds of the farm envelope them.

The End.

#I FINISHED IT #hot damn I can't believe I did it #I've had this AU in my brain for years #I drew some art for it even #its kind of my baby #lmao #I can't promise its any good #but I tried lol #ironstrange #ironstrange au #iron man 3 au #tony stark/stephen strange #fanfiction #strangeiron

54 notes · View notes