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Tony was quite a loner sometimes, if he was honest.
Quiet solitude seemed to suit him, whether it was simply working by himself down in his workshop, tinkering with his suit, or even whenever he went out anywhere.
So far only three people had ever managed to break through Tony’s bubble of solitude and actually gotten to spend a fair amount of time with him without him wanting to retreat into his workshop, or just away from them in general.
These people were Rhodey, Pepper and Peter.
Rhodey, his best friend, who always knew when Tony needed space, and when to not let him have said space because it would end in disaster, such as Tony drinking himself into oblivion.
Pepper, his ex-fiancé, who was constantly doing things for him and trying to keep him from doing anything too stupidly dangerous, which was honestly kind of failing, but she tried.
Peter, the kid who was so enthusiastic about everything, saw the good in everyone, and still somehow seemed to look up to Tony, even after everything. And of course how excited he was that half the time he’d be bouncing off the walls- literally.
So it was understandable that Tony couldn’t quite fathom the feelings he had around a certain Sorcerer Supreme.
Sometimes, he’d just feel annoyed and frustrated with Stephen, who could match him blow for blow in any verbal fight, equally as snarky as Tony was and always able to hit some kind of nerve while Tony couldn’t even seem to make a dint.
Other times, he’d feel stupidly happy, almost like he was on a high, and then the sorcerer would leave, and Tony would feel almost deflated, and would find himself constantly wishing Stephen would come back during the rest of the day.
It was confusing, conflicting, and it messed with Tony’s head, but for some reason he seemed to love every second of it.
On the times that Stephen made him feel frustrated and annoyed, he’d almost feel like he was at a point of hating the sorcerer- he never could say that he did hate Stephen, but he often felt close.
The days when he felt deliriously happy around the sorcerer, Tony would almost feel like he liked him, but again, he could never say that he did, but still often felt close.
And then there were the days, like today, where his emotions just made no sense.
Stephen had been annoying him all day, snark and sass just flying back and forth between them, yet Tony still felt happy, as if Stephen hadn’t made that comment about how stupid inventors could be and how they could be making important things that could save lives instead of new phones.
“You’re completely insufferable, Strange.” Tony picked up the gauntlet that he’d been tinkering with, peering at the adjustments he’d made and frowning, placing it back on the bench and leaning over to reach for a tool.
The sorcerer clicked his fingers, and in a glow of golden magic the tool shot away from Tony, who glared at Stephen.
“Give it here. I need that.”
“No, I think I’ll keep it. As a souvenir.” Stephen waved his hand, the tool floating slightly higher in the air.
“Strange, you better give me that tool or I will get one of my suits and beat your magical ass into the ground.”
“I’d like to see you try, Stark.” Stephen waved his hand again, the tool floating back down to settle within Tony’s reach, who quickly snatched it up, glaring at the sorcerer, not trusting that he wouldn’t steal it again.
He returned his focus to the gauntlet, silence filling the room for a moment, but a comfortable one.
“You are probably the most annoying person I’ve ever met,” Tony said, setting down the tool now that he’d finished with it. “Actually, not probably, you are the most annoying person I’ve ever met.”
Stephen leaned across the bench, closer to Tony than he was before, and the billionaire could swear that the world could hear his heart beating.
“Is that why you keep me around?” Stephen asked innocently. “To annoy you all the time?”
Tony threw down the tool that he’d just picked up in exasperation. “Screw you, Strange.”
“Oh, you wish,” Stephen said, making Tony’s cheeks turn pink.
“I hate you.”
“That’s nothing new.” Stephen shifted away from Tony a bit, conjuring a small amount of magic in one hand and watching it lazily.
“Idiot,” Tony said, rolling his eyes, before picking up the tool again and resuming his work on the gauntlet.
Stephen leaned close to Tony again. “We’re not all geniuses like you. I mean, I was only the top neurosurgeon, but we can’t all be geniuses like the great Tony Stark, now can we?”
Normally, this would hit a nerve, and Tony would be fighting to keep himself calm and stop himself from blasting the sorcerer with a gauntlet, or at the very least slapping him.
But coming from Stephen, it honestly didn’t sting. It felt more… playful. Less serious than any other conversation or banter he’d ever participated in.
“No, I guess not,” he agreed, studying the gauntlet again and letting out a small hum of approval before replacing the gold panel and sealing it up again.
Stephen leaned even closer to Tony, despite this being almost physically impossible, but hey, who was Tony to question a sorcerer, for God’s sake?
“Well, I suppose I’ll be back to annoy you later.” Stephen winked at Tony, then pushed himself upright, opened a portal and stepped through.
Leaving behind him a dumbfounded, slightly flustered Tony Stark, still holding the gauntlet that he’d been tinkering with in one hand.
*-*-*-*-*-*-*
“Spidey’s down!”
“The kid?” Tony’s voice, unsteady with fear and worry, made its way through the comms. “Where is he?”
“Just a block away. By the building that they just destroyed.” Rhodey’s reply was swift, and almost immediately Tony was flying in the direction of the ruined building.
“Kid! Pete!” Tony was panicking, just a little. Okay, a lot, but this was Peter he was looking for. The kid. Who he really shouldn’t have let come on this mission.
He spotted the kid lying amongst some of the rubble; he looked so young and small, way too young to have had anything happen to him.
Tony’s suit retracted into the arc reactor, the nano-tech particles folding away, and Tony knelt down next to Peter’s limp body.
Before he could do anything, however, a slight fizzing noise came from behind him, and suddenly a hand was on his shoulder.
“Let me take it from here, Stark.” The familiar voice of the Sorcerer Supreme met Tony’s ears. “He’ll be safe with me.”
Tony nodded numbly, getting up and stepping back to let Stephen examine Peter.
Rhodey’s voice crackled over the comms again. “Tony! We need you! Now!”
Tony glanced back at Stephen uncertainly, and the sorcerer nodded.
“Go. I’ll take care of him.”
Tony, tapped his arc reactor, the suit expanding outwards as he took a final glance at Stephen and Peter’s limp body before he flew back towards the battle.
The few aliens that they’d been fighting before seemed to have banded together, in a fairly coordinated attack.
Tony landed beside Rhodey, and lifted his hands, weapons at the ready.
At Rhodey’s signal, the two began firing, along with Vision’s beams of power from the mind stone.
Only a few moments in, Tony realised that Rhodey and Vision could have handled this themselves, and he mentally thanked them from giving him a distraction so that he could take his mind off of the kid for a bit.
It only took them a minute or so to take out the aliens, and Tony and Rhodey took a moment to catch their breath.
When Tony finally looked around, he spotted Stephen walking towards them, an exhausted but very much alive Peter leaning on him for support as he walked.
“Thank God,” Tony muttered under his breath, his face plate retracting, followed by his helmet.
He quickly covered the distance to meet the sorcerer and Peter, instantly putting his arm around Peter to take some of the kid’s weight.
Later, when Peter was safely in the medbay at the compound, Tony sought out Stephen.
He found the sorcerer sitting alone near a window, just seeming to look at the view.
“How is he?’ Stephen asked, without turning around. Tony honestly wasn’t shocked that Stephen knew he was in the room.
“He’s fine. Thanks to you.” Tony walked over, his hand settling on the back of the chair that the sorcerer was sitting on, fingers curling over it.
“Glad to hear it.” Stephen glanced up, meeting Tony’s gaze. “You know he was practically dead when you got to him.”
“He- what?” Tony’s mouth went dry. Peter had been nearly dead ?
“Practically dead,” Stephen repeated. “I guess being a former doctor pays off, huh? And of course a little magic.”
“Well, thank you.” Tony almost tensed up when he felt Stephen’s hand slide on top of his own, but managed to stop himself.
“You’re welcome,” the sorcerer replied, giving Tony’s hand a gentle squeeze before retracting his hand.
*-*-*-*-*-*-*
Tony was back in the workshop, this time tinkering with Peter’s suit, muttering to himself as he added features and upgrades and safety procedures.
He wasn’t so much surprised as he was mildly annoyed when the familiar fizzing sound came from behind him and Stephen stepped into the room.
“Back again, are we?” Tony didn’t even look up as he spoke, continuing to work.
“Surprised?” Stephen moved around so that he was in front of Tony, on the opposite side of the billionaire’s workbench.
“Not particularly.” Tony set down his tools, satisfied with his work, and he moved on to another feature.
“I’d expect nothing less.” Stephen glanced at what Tony was doing, as if he’d understand it, which he wouldn’t- he’s not in any way able to make anything even remotely like this.
“So, what’re you here for, Dumbledore? Just wanting to annoy the shit out of me?”
Stephen raised an eyebrow as Tony met the sorcerer’s gaze. “Dumbledore? Really?”
“I’m quite proud of that one, actually.”
“I’ve heard better. Way better.” Stephen folded his arms, leaning against the wall behind him.
“Like what?” Tony found himself leaning slightly closer to the sorcerer. “What have you heard that’s possibly better, Harry Potter?”
“A lot better than anything the genius Tony Stark is coming up with right now.”
Tony threw the closest object to him at Stephen, which happened to be a mug. The sorcerer ducked and the mug shattered against the wall.
“That was my favourite mug.”
“You’re the one who threw it.”
“Because you were being annoying.” Tony folded his arms.
“I’ll grant you that,” Stephen relented. “But Harry Potter? Seriously?”
“Yer a wizard, Stephen,” Tony said in a terrible impression of Hagrid. Stephen let out a small laugh.
“I didn’t know.”
“Well, now you do.” Tony turned back to his work with a nonchalant shrug.
“Tony, I’ve been meaning to ask you something.”
The billionaire looked up. Stephen hardly ever called him by his first name.
“Yeah?”
“Are you free anytime soon? And possibly interested in going on some cheesy first date? With me?”
For a moment, Tony was too shocked to speak. Then, swallowing, he answered.
“Well, I don’t know, I’ll have to check my schedule, but I might be able to make time for you, Dumbledore.”
“I take it back. I take it all back.”
“Too late, sweetheart. The deed is done.”
“Please never say ‘sweetheart’ again in your life.”
“I’ll make an effort.” Tony grinned. “You’re going to make my life a living hell, you know that, right?”
“I do try,” Stephen replied wryly.
“I can tell.” Tony glanced at his watch. “Oops. I’d better go. I’m late for another meeting. But how’s Friday night sound?”
“Friday? Sure.”
“Great! See you at 7, then?”
“Yeah.”
And this time, it was Tony who left behind a dumbfounded, slightly flustered man in the workshop, wondering exactly how the hell he got so lucky.