Work Text:
Day 21
Dark
Stepping out of the elevator the first thing Steve notices is the lack of light. Tony’s lab is dark. But that isn’t all. Tony’s lab is empty.
“Jarvis?” Steve waits a few moments but there is no answer. The automatic lights don’t turn on, no screens flicker to life, nothing happens. Moving back into the elevator Steve calls for the floor he shares with Tony. The turbo lift gets him there in a few blinks. The huge area that serves as their living room is also empty but he can hear shuffling from the bedroom. The French doors are open showing Tony tossing stray bits of tech into a bag.
Tony doesn’t look up when Steve comes into the room but he says, “I’m almost done here then I’ll be out of your hair.”
Steve blinks and takes a step toward his fiancée before asking, “What do you mean?”
“The lab has already been emptied and moved, there’s just the matter of my personal effects. Pepper has arranged for a very discrete moving company to be here within the hour,” Tony says to the half-finished piece of machinery in his hand.
Steve narrows his eyes at Tony, takes another step and says, “Movers? Tony, I don’t understand. What’s going on?”
Tony sighs, “I thought ‘movers’ was self-explanatory. I’m going to back to California. Today.”
“Back to California? Why would you do that?” Steve comes to stand next to Tony and puts a hand on his arm saying, “Tony, talk to me.”
Tony drops the circuit board into the bag, muttering, “Natasha called me when you ended up in the hospital.”
Dropping his hand to his side Steve groans under his breath. Tony looks at him out of the corner of his eye and continues, “She told me who you ran into, and what you asked her for. You’re going after him.”
Steve clenches his jaw but doesn’t deny anything. Tony nods slowly, his voice echoing defeat when he says, “I won’t try to stop you. Hell I want you to go. That’s why I’m leaving.”
Opening his mouth to protest Steve is cut off when Tony says over him, “You need to go, Steve. I know that. This is the only way I can really help you. I’m not Ironman anymore so the least I can do is give you an excuse to disappear for a while without anyone really questioning it. Pepper said she has something already in the works and it should go public by the end of today. You can have the Tower as a home base if you’d like. I won’t be back. I’m leaving you codes for almost unrestricted access to Jarvis. He can help you look so use him.”
Tony pauses and takes a deep breath. Looking up at Steve he smiles crookedly, “Bring him home.” Gathering up the bag of parts Tony moves around Steve and out the door. Moments later the elevator dings and he is gone.