Chapter Text
Tony just wanted to escape for a while. If he could do that for a longer period of time, better.
But no. Howard Stark - way before he died and in his will - made it clear that this humongous of a responsibility a.k.a. Stark Industries was for no one else but him, being his only son and sole heir.
That was why he suddenly flew out of New York to his favorite vacation house in Malibu one Tuesday morning, to think things over.
It was on his second day of "soul searching" that he met someone who would change his outlook in life and, eventually, his choices forever...
He has just docked his yatch and was walking out of it when he noticed somebody hiding behind the rock formation along the shore. Thinking that it might be paparazzi or a local trying to get some shots of him or his sanctuary, he went down and walked towards the, from how he recognized, woman with red hair.
"Hey, hey, this is trespassing. Go before I get you collected," he shouted from meters away. He was alone in the private cove because he sent everyone away to leave him in pseudo-peace. This incident would not take that away.
The woman didn't move one bit. With her body hid, all he could see from where he stood were her hands clinging on the huge rock, her red hair and her watery eyes which spelled fear.
Tony walked closer to her until his eyes caught the bleeding wound on her forehead, a few scratches on her arms, and her seemingly naked body, basing on her bare shoulders and the upper part of her chest.
"Miss?" His initial coldness turned into worry.
Was she... abused?
"I... Wait..." He immediately ran back to his yatch, since it was nearer than the house, and picked up an unused towel and robe.
As he made his way back to her, his mind still battled if this is some kind of a trap... But he saw her eyes again and his heart was flooded with concern.
"Miss... Here... Can you cover yourself if... if you're naked? Then I can help you out," he carefully threw the robe and towel her way and they landed on the rock.
The lady barely moved. She stared on the fabric, looking clueless.
"They're unused, clean," he clarified, in case she was concerned about hygiene. But in her state, would she really care about that?
A few seconds passed and she still did not move; just looked at him and the fabric alternatelty.
Is she in shock? Probably?
Tony found time to study her again. She was pale... Her hands and lips started to tremble. Eyes were still watery but no tears streamed down her face. Her cut just below her hairline, above right eyebrow, was still bleeding a little.
Instead of waiting for her to move, he had to do it himself. Else, she would die of freezing, or possible bleeding in other parts of her body, or its combination.
"I will go there... I'll help you."
He slowly walked to the other side of the rock so that it still separated them and he would not see her body if she was indeed without any piece of clothing. She jerked and appeared to try to move but she could not.
"Hey, don't worry, I won't hurt you." He raised his sunglasses to his head and attempted to appease her. "I won't hurt you. I'll..." he gently grabbed the towel and robe. "...cover you?"
The lady's eyes looked more anxious until she closed it - no, shut it - obviously afraid of what evil he could do.
Tony took the opportunity to move fast and wrap the towel around her followed by the robe which he did not try to wear properly on her anymore. He basically just made her into a burritto, as he pushed all unnecessary thoughts behind - including his own body's reaction. Inside, he knew that he as a genius, billionnaire, playboy philanthropist may be a lot of nasty things in other people's view, but he would never take advantage of a woman who looked like hurting and weak... no matter how beautiful she is.
He stepped back again after he wrapped her, and saw her slowly opened her eyes, seemingly surprised that she was unharmed. She looked up to him then to her wrapped body; Tony did not know up to which part the clothing were able to cover though.
"Can you move now? Or... do you want me to..." he motioned to go to her side of the rock.
She did not respond. She just looked down, and her long, wet, red wavy hair curtained over her face.
"Hey, miss?"
No response. No movement.
Tony decided to help her up and bring her out. He figured, her legs or feet might be hurting, or worse, wounded too. It was starting to get dark and he could not just wait or leave her there. He silently wished that the towel and robe covered up to her thigh so it would not be too difficult for him if he had to carry her.
Slowly again, he walked towards her space - this time, to her side of the big rock. His eyes focused on her red hair but his peripheral view was able to note that she was covered, specifically the parts he was not supposed to see, because her legs were folded as she sat on the sand.
Tony knelt behind her and fixed the robe over her to wrap it better while the towel still concealed her upper body.
"I'll just carry you to the yatch, okay?" he said after he made sure that the robe would not fall anymore.
When he did not get an affirmation nor refusal, he carefully lifted her and walked back to where he came from. She did not try to free herself, her eyes just stared up to him. Tony felt it and when he looked down, he caught her dark brown eyes. There was no fear in them anymore and they were less watery. He was no mind reader, but he sensed awe or wonder from her stare.
"I look good, I know," he spontaneously said to lighten the mood.
No response. She just continued to watch his face, as if she was fascinated of him.
They reached his cabin and he put her down sitting on his bed, not minding the sand they both took with them from the shore, sticky on their legs and feet.
"Guess you need to freshen up?" he suggested.
Her eyes were just on his and made no reply again. He was starting to feel more conscious, a feeling too rare for him, but this lady seemed to be looking at him differently... specifically, on his eyes.
Instead of dwelling on it, he walked to the bath and opened the door. "You can take a shower here. I'll hand you a shirt and -"
He stopped with what he was about to say when she tried to stand up but immediately fell on the floor.
"Hey!" Tony attended to her as she curled up and he carried her back to lie on the bed instead, thinking that she might still be feeling too weak to move on her own, add to that the tight wrap-around he made. "Hold on, don't move."
He picked up an oversized shirt from his closet and went back to her. There was no other way then but to do it the hard way... he covered her lower body with his sheets and carefully peeled the robe and towel off of her. Then very quickly, while avoiding to stare at her body, he guided her to wear his shirt that would surely look like a dress on her small frame.
"Whew..." he blew off a breath he did not notice he held while he walked back to the bathroom door, far from her.
When he looked back, she was staring on his shirt, then he watched her as she lifted her hands and took out a necklace concealed by it.
Tony's eyebrows furrowed. He did not see that she wore one earlier. Well, that just meant he did a good job of not staring at that part of her body.
The very fine lace which looked like just a piece of nylon string held a small white pearl hanging on her chest.
The lady looked his way again, to his eyes. She placed her right palm on the upper left part of her chest and bowed her head. When she raised her head again and stared at him, he figured that she must have been saying either "thank you" or "i'm sorry" with that gesture.
But... why was she not speaking? Is she mute? deaf?
He decided to try one more time. "If you are saying thanks, then you're welcome, no biggie. If you are sorry, don't be, you aren't causing any trouble... at least, not yet," then he smiled a little.
"I'm Tony, by the way. May I know your name?"
Her face was devoid of even just the expression of acknowledgement that she understood everything he said.
Just when he was about to speak again, the lady took off her necklace and enclosed the pearl in her hands, one on top of the other, then closed her eyes as if she was praying.
It took her more or less five seconds before she opened her eyes again and looked at him, to his surprise.
"Y-you..." he pointed a finger to her and swallowed an invisible lump in his throat. "Your... Your eyes turned green!"
Her lips curved into a small smile. Finally, a positive response from her, but for a not-so-positive tone of him.
"Who are you?! What... How..."
The lady started to mumble some words, but he knew they were not actual words. He spoke and understood English, Spanish, Italian and Dari, and was somehow familiar with other major world languages like Chinese, Japanese and Arabic, but he hasn't heard of anything alike to what she just uttered...
And heck, it was stranger that he comprehended what she meant.
"You understand me, don't you?"
It was what she said but it wasn't what he heard, he was sure of that.
How on earth...
"I do not know how I can explain this to you without causing fear... but if you will listen to me, I will try to make you understand."
Again, she spoke string of phonetics that made no sense to his ear, but his mind seemed to have automatically "translated".
"Who are you?" he asked one more time.
She bit her lip as she looked down.
"This is the easiest way to explain who I am, but please, do not be afraid," she looked up to him again. "I thank you for the goodness you have shown, and I will not repay that with harm. Just look at me and listen, I beg you."
With her pleading eyes, Tony calmed himself a little and did exactly what she asked. His eyes on her, he waited for what she has to say.
The lady slowly removed the sheets from her waist down and before he could look away to avoid seeing her bare, his eyes widened in disbelief as he saw greenish scales and fins instead of her legs!
"Y-you're... y-you..." Tony could not get words out of his mouth. His feet seemed planted on the floor, too, that he could not run.
"I am a mermaid."