Chapter Text
Tony was granted barely three seconds of satisfaction from watching the Scarlet Witch and an Iron Man-clad Pepper Potts turn the hangar inside out before there was a hand on his neck, pulling him backward, and not today, no sir, he was done playing hostage. The men were disorientated, yelling and firing in Wanda’s direction even as her magic froze the bullets in mid-air. Ross alone seemed to have the presence of mind to stay smart, trying to pull Tony against him as he started making his way towards the exit, only for Tony to twist away and land an elbow right in Ross’s nose.
It made a satisfying crunch that Tony was close enough to hear even over all the chaos, giving him the opportunity to duck under Ross’s arm and wrench the gun out of his grip while simultaneously kicking him backward, so hard that the Secretary of State landed flat on his ass at Tony’s feet.
Tony was rewarded with a flash of panic from Ross as he stared down the barrel of Tony's newly acquired gun, blood streaming from his crushed nose, before his face turned cold and resolute. “You won’t do it.”
Tony cocked an eyebrow at him. “How sure are you about that?”
Some of the certainty drained out of Ross's voice. "You’d never get away with it. You’d spent the rest of your life in prison.”
“What, like the rogue Avengers were supposed to? How about when I plead kidnapping and self-defense in court, with an Air Force Colonel and the CEO of the largest energy company in the world as eyewitnesses?” Tony made a show of playing with the gun's safety. “You know what? I think I could absolutely get away with this.”
There was the sound of repulsors and metal, and Tony felt something heavy and familiar land beside him, and suddenly he didn’t want to spend a single second longer on the man now cowering at his feet.
“But I won’t. Enjoy prison, Ross.”
Tony flipped the gun around in his hand in order to deliver a knockout blow, but the Iron Man suit beside him beat him to it. The metal arm raised and shot a stun gun-style blow that knocked Ross unconscious, the general sprawling like a rag doll against the cold hangar floor.
Tony turned as the faceplate flipped up, revealing a very satisfied-looking Pepper Potts. “I had to sit through all those Accords meetings too.”
“I thought you liked meetings.”
“No, I go to meetings, because I’m an adult and professional and that’s—”
She didn’t get any further before Tony stepped forward and pulled her into a kiss. “God, it’s good to see you.”
“It isn’t always?”
"Of course, dear." Tony took a step backward, scouring the hangar until his eyes located Rhodey, currently being shielded from the carnage by a bubble of red energy. Satisfied that Wanda had the rest covered, Tony turned his attention back to Pepper, mind finally catching up to what his eyes were seeing. “But the suit. How—”
“How many years have I seen you fly these things? Please, it’s not that hard.” She gave him a playful punch on the arm when she saw his expression. “I’m kidding. FRIDAY did most of the work. This time.”
“I’m sorry, what do you mean this time?”
A new hail of gunfire made Tony leap for one of the gauntlets, activating a blue energy shield that encapsulated both of them. “Hey, Fri. Think you can get us to Rhodey?”
“I suggest you hold on tightly, Boss.”
Tony didn’t need telling twice, throwing his arms around the suit as Pepper gripped him tightly back, the shield staying intact as they were whisked across the floor to where Rhodey was lying, still protected by Wanda’s magic.
“Alright, alright. Let me down.” Tony scrambled down from Pepper’s hold, thankful that the red magic let him pass as he reached for his closest friend. Rhodey looked as relieved as Tony felt, letting Tony pull him off the ground for a clumsy yet fervent hug. “You good?”
“Good enough," Rhodey managed. "Tony…” Reluctantly, Tony pulled away from the embrace to follow where Rhodey’s eyes were rooted firmly on Vision’s remains.
“I know,” Tony said, even as his mind rebelled as hard as it could against knowing. “I know, but…” But Pepper was here, and Rhodey was here, and they were both okay, and he wanted to just enjoy that for another few brief moments before the enormity of what had happened sunk in.
And then, all at once, the chaos around them ceased.
Bullets that had been hovering clattered to the ground, the guns they had been firing from following suit. The men that had wielded them lay still, and although Tony did notice a handful of unmoving chests, most remained breathing. Ross hadn’t stirred, and Hayward was nowhere to be seen, and none of that mattered right now. They could deal with that later.
Right now, all they could do was watch as Wanda slowly approached the mess of vibranium and wiring on the metal table. She placed her hand against the still pulsing amber gem, before speaking one word.
“No.”
Tony was already reaching for Pepper even as she dropped down beside him, the blue shield enveloping all three of them as Tony pulled Rhodey tight against him with one arm and Pepper with the other.
The swell of magic that filled the air was different from what Wanda had brought with her on the initial attack. Tony could feel its rawness, the grief there, the rage, and under all of it, something warmer and stronger than the rest. That warm feeling grew as Wanda placed her hand on the stone, the light transferring to her instead, filling her from head to toe as the parts scattered across the table began to knit back together.
That was as much as Tony saw. The combined light of the magic and the gem were too bright, too much, and so Tony ducked his head and allowed himself to marvel in the unlikely miracle that they had won.
And then, at last, everything was still.
Tony allowed himself to peek over where he had been bracing his forehead in Pepper’s armored shoulder. He was greeted with the sight of a fully restored Vision, whole and alive in Wanda’s arms. The two were gazing at each other with a kind of wonder, soft and fiery and relieved all at once, locked in a moment so intimate that Tony looked away again almost immediately, feeling like an intruder.
There was a clang of metal as Pepper dropped to her knees with none of her usual grace or poise, clearly exhausted as she looked out at the sea of unconscious and dead bodies. “Oh. Oh my god.”
“That would be the post-battle crash,” Tony said quickly, scrambling up on his knees. “I’m going to be honest with you—they suck real hard.”
Pepper nodded. “FRIDAY, get this thing off me would you?”
The suit peeled away from Pepper as she tumbled forward into Tony’s arms, his automatically opening to receive her.
She thumped him on the back. “Stop doing this to me.”
“Hey! This one wasn't my fault.”
“I know, I know.” Pepper pulled back, wiping her eyes on her sleeve. Tony noted with a swell of affection that she seemed to have borrowed one of his undersuits for the trip. She tried for a watery smile. “Considering they got Rhodey too, and he’s the responsible one…”
“Why do people always think that? Oh wait, they didn’t go to MIT with us. They didn’t see what really went down.” Tony tucked Pepper into his side so he could reach a hand out to Rhodey. “James ‘Tomcat’ Rhodes.”
Rhodey took the offered hand, clasping it tightly. “I did have a good wingman.”
“That is true.”
“I mean, those cute little cheeks and long eyelashes? It was better than carrying around a puppy.”
“Hey.”
Rhodey took Tony's hand with both of his, expression turning serious. “They didn’t hurt you?”
Tony shook his head. “I’m never the one they hurt.”
“You know that’s not true.”
Reluctantly, Tony pushed aside some of the sheer relief that they had all gotten out of this alive, turning back to practical matters. “You’re hurt.”
Rhodey grimaced, looking down at himself. The battle in the hangar had taken out several of the overhanging bright lights, but Tony could see the myriad of cuts and bruises that were forming, not to mention whatever interior damage the electrical shocks might have done.
Tony made up his mind. “Hospital for you. Now.”
“Hey, that’s my line.”
“Well, I’m stealing it. I’m going to be the responsible one today.”
“I guess miracles do happen,” Pepper teased him, but she too was taking in Rhodey’s injuries.
“Yeah, and I’m going to guess any medics around here fled when they could.” Tony bit his lip, throwing a quick glance to where Wanda and Vision were still talking in low voices. He couldn’t quite bear to interrupt them yet. He turned back to Rhodey. “The suit can take you back to the Compound. We’ll follow right behind, this place has got to have cars.”
“What about…” Rhodey gestured around the hangar. "All of this?"
“You know what?” Tony decided. “For once, this isn’t our mess. So maybe we get to skip out on cleanup duty and just go home.” Oh god, home. Clean clothes, a shower, a cheeseburger, and then climbing into bed with Pepper to sleep for twenty hours. It sounded godly.
Rhodey wavered. “We’re going have to deal with this at some time, Tones.”
“Yep. But not today. Deal?”
Rhodey looked as though he was going to argue, before he closed his eyes and lay back, letting the exhaustion show. “I feel like I shouldn’t be saying this, but deal.”
“That’s the spirit. Now, go get yourself fixed.”
“Fine. But just know that if I don’t see you follow me into that med bay, I will find you and drag you down there myself.”
“Wouldn’t have it any other way, honey bear.”
The suit assembled around Rhodey, with FRIDAY programming the flight path for the Compound and carrying him through the hole Wanda had made in the hangar ceiling.
“We should go too,” Pepper said softly. “We don’t know if more people are going to come here. We should be gone before they do.”
“Yeah. I’m not fighting you on that one.” Tony looked back at Wanda and Vision. “So. Think I’ve figured out what all Vision’s super-secret missions were about.”
Pepper trailed her fingers down his back, smoothing out the aching muscles. “They’re very sweet together. She was beside herself when she found out Ross had him.”
“Right. And she knew that because..?”
In response, Pepper pulled an all too familiar flip phone out of her pocket.
Tony turned away, not wanting to look at it. “You called him.”
“I had to. You would have done the same if it were me.”
Tony would have. And yet, Wanda was the only rogue who had showed, and she had come for Vision.
The yawning emptiness in his stomach that Tony had resolutely tried to ignore since Siberia insisted on Tony's attention, but Tony refused. It didn’t matter if any of them hadn’t bothered to come and rescue him. His real friends were safe. And Pepper. Pepper had come.
“So.” Tony forced his tone to become light. “Are we calling you Iron Woman, now?”
“Definitely not. Although…” Pepper’s eyes followed where the suit had taken Rhodey away. “I can see the appeal.”
“Yeah?”
“It’s not something I want,” Pepper added quickly. “Not all the time. That said, I can’t deny that it was nice having a way to actually help with the rescue this time. Even if red clashes with my hair.”
“You look lovely in everything, dear.” Tony considered. “Rescue. Not a bad name. Maybe something in a nice blue?”
“That might be something we can discuss. Only for emergencies though. I’m tired of my fiancé being kidnapped—it wreaks havoc with my schedule.”
“Well, we’re not in danger of that happening again.”
Pepper grew somber. “There’s always going to be someone after you, isn’t there?”
“Probably. But not after your fiancé.”
“If you say that’s because you’re about to be my husband instead, I swear—”
“Because I’m about to be your husband instead, yeah. Hey.” He nudged her, even as she looked at him with her most familiar expression—fondly exasperated. “I got kidnapped today. So be nice to me.”
“And I just rescued you, so be nice to me.”
“What do you mean? I’m always nice to you.”
“Right, sure.”
“Name one time I haven’t been—”
A British accent cut him off. “We don’t mean to interrupt.”
Tony swiveled around to where Wanda and Vision had flown up towards them, alighting a few feet away. Tony scrambled to his feet, helping Pepper up with him. “Vis. Are you…”
Vision inclined his head. “Well and whole. Yourself? And Rhodey?”
“Fine. We’re both fine. Thanks to you, I guess.” Tony fidgeted, suddenly unsure of what to say, and Wanda’s presence in the near vicinity wasn’t helping. They hadn’t spoken since before the Accords, and even then they had barely spoken at all, the history of Wanda’s parents still raw between them. “You didn’t have to do...what you did.”
Wanda’s hand tightened in Vision’s. The fact they were holding hands at all struck Tony as oddly cute, even though he and Pepper were doing virtually the same thing. There was something innocent and new between and them. Young love, Tony supposed. It conquers everything else. He’d never really had it, so he wouldn’t know. Pepper had been the first and the last, and that was all he cared about.
“No, I did not have to,” Vision considered. “But I wanted to.” He squeezed Wanda’s hand back. “And so often we don’t get what it is we want, and so when life presents us with it, we should take it with both hands.”
“Even if that want is getting turned into scrap by sociopathic government types?”
“Even when that want is keeping the people you hold dear to you safe.”
Oh. Not having even close to an intelligible response to that, Tony looked again at Wanda and Vision’s entwined fingers. “Then you should take what you want.”
Vision looked up, confused. “I don’t comprehend.”
“Go,” Tony told him. “Turn off your transponder and go. Be together. I'll figure out a way to cover you. I…” He fidgeted little, finding comfort in Pepper by his side. “I’m sorry if everything with Rogers and I got in the way of whatever this is. That wasn’t fair. On either of you.”
Wanda’s eyes narrowed a little, as though she was calculating something. “I chose to run,” she said finally.
“And I chose to stay. But this time,” Vision looked down at Wanda, his expression tender. “If you’re willing, love?”
Wanda’s face broke in a smile. “Are you at last joining me permanently?”
“Nothing is permanent. But, for now—that is what I would want.”
Once again, Tony had the uncomfortable sensation of intruding on a private moment. Their love was just so open, both gentle and defiant all at once.
Vision held out a hand, which Tony took, before Pepper stepped forward and pulled the synthezoid into a hug. “Take care of each other."
“We will," Vision assured. "And the same to the both of you.”
Pepper nodded. “And know that this doesn’t rescind our wedding invitation.”
“Duly noted.”
Wanda hung back, only stepping forward at the last moment. “Stark.” Her eyes found the flip phone in Pepper’s hand. “You should know—the others are close. They were planning a rescue for this evening.”
Tony’s heart skipped. “If that’s true, why didn’t you wait for them?
“I came as soon as I felt the pain,” Wanda explained, indicating the stone in Vision’s forehead. “We are connected that way.”
“I…okay. Fine.” Tony wasn’t even going to touch that. Not today, at least.
“And I didn’t want any of them to be arrested in case this was a trap for them," Wanda finished. "A consideration Steve was aware of and did not care about. As long as he got you out safely.”
“Right.” Because of course. Because it was Steve Rogers, and he would always be determined to play hero, and keep his morals straight, and it had nothing at all to do with Tony really, and…and even as the regular tirade of bitter excuses made themselves known, Tony knew he was tired of them. “Thanks. Thank you—both of you. All the best, and everything."
They moved over to the hole in the ceiling, about to depart.
"Hey, Vis?" Tony stepped forward again. "What you were saying, about expecting something like this to happen?"
"I still believe something like this might. Power does not get to live peacefully."
"Yeah, okay, but, I guess what I'm trying to say is, even if what you said is true...if you get a chance to live a life, you should take it." He felt Pepper's eyes on his back, and smiled. "Especially if you have someone to live it with. Don't throw that away, okay?"
Vision smiled back. "Some apt wedding vows, perhaps."
"Perhaps. Oh, and if you miss it I'll be pissed."
"I wouldn't miss it for the world."
Vision and Wanda didn’t drop hands even as they flew away, to where Tony wasn’t going to question. They deserved time, and Tony wasn’t going to get in the way of that any longer.
He was jerked out of his train of thought by a phone being pressed into his hands. “So,” Pepper said. "I suppose we can’t let Steve carry out his dramatic rescue plan now that we're all safe and sound."
“Guess not.”
“He was worried,” Pepper assured him. “More than worried. I don’t think he was even in the country when I called."
“He better not have been, with all the bullshit Ross is trying to pull.”
“And see? You’re worried back. It’s been nearly two years, Tony. Don’t you think it’s time?”
Tony opened and closed the phone, trying to avoid seeing the single name in the contacts list. “You know, there was a moment back there, when Ross had me. As in, he really had me. I had to make a choice. Rhodey’s life or Vision’s.”
Tony looked over to where Ross was still sprawled unconscious in the far corner of the room. At least it seemed the aftereffects of Wanda’s magic meant that no one was going to wake up any time soon.
“And I chose Rhodey. And back in the Compound, when Ross had all of us. I chose to save you.”
Pepper threaded her arm through his. “We’re all okay now.”
He sent her a grateful look. “I know. But we might not have been. And in that moment, when I had to choose, it’s not that I wanted Vision to get hurt, or that I didn’t care, it was the opposite but…”
“But Rhodey means the world to you.”
“Yes. Don’t you dare tell him I said that.”
“You just guaranteed that I’m going to. That doesn’t mean that you don’t care about anyone else.”
Tony clenched the phone in his fist. “Yeah. And it just got me thinking, this whole time. I was so sure…” He swallowed, trying to get the words out. He’d never admitted this, not even to himself. “That Steve chose Barnes over me. That was all he cared about. He ditched me in Siberia, Pep, he…”
“I know, hun. I know.”
“But maybe none of that fight was actually about me. Not about hurting me, or beating me, or whatever. Maybe I just made him make a really crappy choice, and turns out being forced to choose between two friends is…not super fun.”
“Steve’s mistakes led to that choice having to be made too.”
“I know.” Tony pushed away the thoughts of a car crash, a security camera, a metal arm. “Still." Tony recalled the words he had offered to Vision.
You deserve a place in this world, and it’s not for anyone else to say whether you do or don’t.
"Maybe I was too harsh on him wanting to save Barnes. About trying to get him to turn him in. Hell, maybe Barnes deserves a life, and Steve deserves a friend, and whatever, but..."
"But?"
"But...look, I know we always say we're going to think big picture, but sometimes in the moment we don't, because we want to protect the people we care about, and if we're always thinking big picture then—"
"Then we become like Ross."
"Something like that. I was lucky enough to get out of today with everyone, and Steve didn’t get that chance, and that’s…well, maybe that’s a start. And that's what the book said was the most important step. Making a start."
"I knew you read that book."
"Of course I did, it was a present from you." Tony exhaled as he considered the phone one more time, before opening it up and sending a text before he could change his mind.
We’re safe. Don’t get arrested.
He got a reply back within thirty seconds, but shoved the phone in his pocket before reading it. “What?” he said off Pepper’s look. “I said a start. Not a magical fix.”
“It’s a good start, Tony.”
Tony let his eyes drift up to where Wanda and Vision had vanished. “Well, I hope those crazy kids are going to be okay. And while I can’t romantically fly you out of the ceiling, at least right now, I can hotwire us a car to get us the heck out of here.”
“Or we could just take the keys from where the cars are parked.”
Tony leaned in and kissed her. “Knew there was a reason I was marrying you.”
“I’m sure, somewhere along the line, I must have had a reason for agreeing to marry you.”
“Somewhere, definitely.”
“Must have misplaced it.”
“Happy will know.”
“Will he though?”
“Wedding ring. His pocket. Since 2008.” Tony looked over towards the exit to the hangar—to outside, and fresh air, and a brighter future. “Come on, Ms. Potts. Let’s go home.”