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Tony had been walking on pins and needles since the Rogue-vengers had returned. Despite the fact it was him who had approached the UN for appeals, despite the fact it was his idea to house them in the same place he was, and despite the fact he had made arrangements with T'Challa to fly directly to the compound. He hadn't talked to any of them yet, making sure he kept busy with the new Avengers and SI business. His luck wasn't bound to hold out forever and he knew that. It only made him more tense.
He ran into Clint first. Hawkeye had hurled some pretty nasty comments the last time the two men had been in the same place, claiming that if you didn't watch out that Tony would break your back. The way he had called Tony a futurist made it sound like he was calling Tony something dirty. He'd been so pissed. Pissed and willing to put the blame fully on him and not on Cap, the Cap that wasn't here checking on them. Then again Steve coming to the Raft meant he was arrested. It wasn't exactly a place with visiting hours. It had twisted Tony up at the time, out of all the Avengers he would have said he and Clint got along the best.
He and Cap never saw eye to eye. Thor was a literal alien with a very shaky grasp of how things were done on Earth. Bruce seemed more content to disappear than to interact with anyone. Widow was just a hard read. He liked to think they got along but next to Fury Natasha was 'the spy'. Wanda just straight out hated his guts. Clint though? Clint could have been a friend.
He'd just turned a corner into one of the common areas and found himself face-to-face with Clint. The only silver lining was the fact that Clint seemed just as surprised. Then, in just a fraction of a second, his expression turned ugly. "Well look who it is. Our Jailer. Come to check and make sure we're still here?"
Tony's face hardened and he took a step back in self-defense. "I'm not your jailer, Barton." Given everything he did to get the US to allow them back calling him a jailer was just an insult straight and simple. That didn't seem to matter to Clint who folded his arms over his chest but thankfully stayed where he was. "Funny cuz I distinctly remember someone telling us we can't step off compound land. If that doesn't make it a jail, what does it make it huh?"
It took everything in Tony's control to keep from snapping. To tell Clint that he was only here because of the strings pulled and the favors called in. Likely he wouldn't care so why bother? "If you have an issue with it then talk to the UN or the President of the United States Barton." Seeing Clint's lips parting, no doubt in a savage comment he simply brushed by the archer and kept going. In hindsight, he would realize that would be the kindest exchange he'd have with the rogues. The encounter would still leave him shaken and even more on edge.
---
Tony did his best to keep out of sight but given he hadn't gotten around to putting a coffee pot in his workshop he eventually had to head to the communal areas not long after the encounter with Barton. This time it was Wanda. He didn't notice her, too busy making a beeline toward the coffee pot. Sadly that wasn't mutual and Wanda noticed him. He heard her before she saw her.
"Stark."
His shoulders instantly went up towards his ears before he forced himself to relax and turn around. He still had a death grip on his cup though, he wouldn't be able to stop himself from doing that. "Maximoff." Tony kept his voice neutral in an attempt to keep things as civil as he could. He shouldn't have bothered. The moment he spoke a light tiny of red color entered the witch's eyes. "It's bad enough that we're trapped here, we shouldn't have to deal with you too."
That honestly stumped Tony, he wasn't pushing his presence on anyone. He was going out of his way to avoid them. "This is a communal area. I have just as much right to be here as you do." Forget the coffee, he was willing to go without if it meant getting out of there faster. Wanda was between him and the exit though and he wasn't willing to go near her. Not after she'd been in his head when they first encountered each other.
Wanda just sneered at him. "That doesn't seem fair, the murder can go anywhere he wants but the rest of us are stuck here like criminals." It was on the tip of his tongue to point out she only joined a Nazi murder cult to get revenge on him, hurting and killing people in the process. That she had killed people with her little display of power in Lagos. Not to mention triggering the Hulk into hurting people in Johannesburg. She was a criminal. "That's not up to me. You're stuck here till the UN can trust you." It seemed like he was repeating the same line over and over. Likely it wouldn't be the last either.
Rather than answer the Scarlet Witch raised on hand, red magic glittering around her fingers. Tony's breath froze in his lungs but thankfully a moment later Vision phased through a nearby wall which distracted Wanda enough for Tony to dart out of the room. He made a mental note to tell Rhodey about the encounter. Attacking another Avenger would be enough rope to hang with.
A coffee pot was installed in his workshop less than an hour after that.
---
Rather than running into Natasha, she seemed to go out of his way to find him. Not an easy task these days to say the least. It was still fairly early in the morning, most people didn't hit the gym till after lunch, unless you were Cap then you were in there at 5 in the morning. He had thought he'd be safe. Fate had other plans clearly. As he panted and sweated on a treadmill Nat managed to appear next to him, startling a surprised yelp out of him before he hit the stop button. He leaned over the handles, desperately trying to get his breath back, and waited. After all, it was just a matter of time before she gave her two cents, the same as Barton and Maximoff.
"I'm disappointed in you." It came as a soft reply and he had to admit it made him flinch hard, harder than the Witch's cruel words and Barton's cutting comments. "Nat..." He was quickly cut off as the redhead kept standing next to his treadmill. "I thought you had changed from when I did that personality profile on you. I thought you started caring about more than your ego."
Anger bloomed red hot in his chest and made him stand straighter. He had one hand clenched by his side. "Come from you that's a laugh. Does anyone really know you? You're so busy playing every single side I don't think even you know where your loyalty lies."
Rather than rising to the angry in his words Romanoff simply shook her head. She turned towards the door, seemingly done with what she had to say. Before she left though she gave one last parting comment over her shoulder which caused Tony's heart to seize in his chest. "Ironman yes, Tony Stark.. still not recommended."
---
When it became clear that the only one left to approach him from the Rogues was Cap himself Tony became twice as twitchy. He was a long-tailed cat in a room of rocking chairs and was well aware of the fact. He took every effort to avoid the common areas, he even begged Vision to bring him food when it was dinner time. He stayed in his workshop, one of the only places he felt completely safe in.
He had his head bent over his table, tinkering with some fine wiring in one of the Ironman gauntlets when the door of the workshop hissed to announce Vision's arrival with his eggplant parm. Grinning brightly he turned off the soldering iron and spun in his chair to happily greet the android. His smile froze on his face when he noticed it wasn't just Vision. Steve was standing next to him.
The smile slipped off and he noticed a vaguely uncomfortable look on Vision's face. "I apologize Mister Stark. Captain Rodgers insisted on coming. He said he had something important to talk to you about." Inwardly Tony was cursing, over the situation, over Steve being in his safe space, at Vision for being naive enough to believe Steve when he said he needed to talk. He knew this wasn't going to be a conversation.
As Vision set a Burger King bag on the table Tony mentally resigned himself to another round of 'let's blame Tony for everything'. And sure enough, as soon as he straightened up in his seat Steve stood straighter. Like it had turned into some kind of contest. "Tony.." Just the one word had the engineer mentally sighing.
"Rodgers." He tried to remain as cool as he could, which was effective because Steve's eyes just got harder. "You're making things so much harder than they need to be." Like a flash Tony was on his feet, his hand once more curled into a fist by his side. "I don't know what you're talking about Captain.
Rodgers gave a decisive snort. "You know exactly what I'm talking about. You're avoiding us. How can we be a team again if you won't interact with everyone? If you think you're so much better than us." A hot retort was on the tip of his tongue. Did none of these guys realize everything he had done simply to get them in the country? Not to mention clearing them so they were no longer considered criminals? That every time he was in the presence of an Rogue Avenger he was verbally torn apart and blamed for everything? Not just some of the blame which he would have gladly shouldered but all of it?
Judging from the look on Rodger's face the answer was no. "I'm doing the best I can. I'm busy. Sorry if I'm not holding hands with everyone and singing kumbaya." There was no way to keep the bitter tone out of his voice. "That's exactly what I'm talking about!"
Tony flinched at the raised voice and subtly moved so that his table was between the two of them. Rodgers wasn't done though. "You're so self-absorbed Tony. If it doesn't directly affect you then you don't care. What about Clint? You know Laura divorced him because you locked him up on the Raft? Wanda's not allowed to go back to Sokovia because she'd been labeled a terrorist. I haven't seen Sam since we got back because the Military is grilling him about some 'so-called thief'."
For a brief moment, Tony was confused then he realized that the Military was holding Wilson accountable for stealing the wings. Which were government properties leased to them by Stark Industries. No wonder they hadn't seen Wilson. The government wouldn't want Tony to stop making them defense stuff for their guys on top of refusing to make weapons. Of course, Rodgers would blame that on him too.
"I didn't force you guys to do anything. You're the ones that told 112 countries that you don't need to be held accountable for your own actions. That you can do what you want damn the consequences."
Steve slammed a fist down on the table in front of him, triggering Tony into raising a hand that suddenly had a gauntlet on it. "Damn you Stark! If you hadn't been so willing to be someone's lap dog then none of this would have happened!"
Is that what he seriously thought happened? Jesus, he knew Rodgers was a soldier [not even that really] but was he so dense he didn't understand politics?
"Get out." Rodgers froze, seemingly startled and surprised at the dismissal. Tony didn't understand why. His table now had a huge dent in it from the force of a Super solider fist and Tony had a gauntlet aimed at his face. "We're not done.."
"Yes, we are. Get out or I'll make you." It was ironic that the words he were a reversal of words Rodgers once spoke to him. FRIDAY, bless her little AI heart, tried the room's defenses, and instantly machine guns dropped from the ceiling. "Captain Rodgers I insist you remove yourself from the area." Thankfully Rodgers listened that time and left.
It took Tony a solid half an hour before he was willing to put down his hand. The food ended up going cold and being thrown away.
---
Tony had no idea what time it was or how many drinks in the bottle he was. He still had his wits about him of course but the steady drum of his thoughts seemed softer now. Softer than they had been all day long. He was still in his workshop only now no one had access, not even Vision. Oh, he could phase through the walls if he wanted but that wasn't the sort of thing Vision would do.
He stared out of one of the ceiling-to-floor windows, eyes locked on the starless sky and simply didn't think of anything. He didn't think about anything the Rogues said, didn't think about why he had tried so hard. Didn't think of anything till a sparkle of orange in the corner of his eye caught his attention. Puzzled he sat up straighter and turned towards it to spot one Wizard strolling through a portal as if he belonged there.
"Stark, I need to talk to you."
It was the last straw. He couldn't take anymore. "No." He slammed his heavy-bottomed glass on the table before Strange could get another word in. "I don't want to hear it. I don't care how you think I should have tried harder, that I could have done more. I don't want to hear all the things you think I should have done differently. How I should be someone different. I don't care. Leave."
Silence greeted him but he couldn't tear his eyes away from the half-empty bottle in front of him. A second later there was a whisper of cloth, but rather than moving away, it was moving closer. "I said!...."
He broke off when he spotted the look on Strange's face. A look he hadn't seen on anyone's face today. Calm, sympathetic, understanding. He swallowed hard. He wanted to look away but he couldn't pull his eyes away from Strange's blue/green/grey gaze. He watched, wide-eyed and dry throated as Strange moved closer and closer till he was sitting across the table from Tony.
"Tony. You did everything you could. You moved mountains when no one else could. You bent over backward. They're lucky to have you." There was no deceit or lie in Stephen's voice. No pity. He didn't know what to do with that. Clearly, it showed on his face because Stephen reacted across the table and took both bottle and glass and put them out of his reach.
"I don't know what they said to you but they're wrong Tony. You do so much for so many people. Anything else than gratitude is unacceptable." He had to look away, he couldn't help it.
"I mean every word, Tony. " He couldn't help the amused smile that flickered onto his face. Interesting how fast he'd gone from Stark to Tony. He cleared his throat a moment later, trying to keep the blush off his face. "So...what did you need Dumbledore." He got a huff for that.
"You know what? It can wait. Why don't you show me what you're working on?"
Surprised Tony stared Stephen in his eyes, taking a moment to marvel at the color. He was actually interested. None of the others could even be bothered to fake it, outside of Barton who was more interested in the arrows he was making for the archer. "... yeah, ok. I can do that."