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“I told you I have everything under control.”
“Under control? That thing destroyed the whole building.” Tony pointed to the ruins of the former city library. “It almost killed Peter!”
“I admit it was more resilient than I first thought," Stephen conceded. The threat had taken them by surprise, an eldritch horror being that had slipped through a temporary rift between dimensions. In the end, he had not been able to defeat it, just managed to send it home.
His words didn’t make Tony less angry. The man took everything personal when Peter was involved, and the unconscious boy had to be brought to Doctor Cho by The Falcon. Friday hadn’t told any update yet on the boy’s status and the uncertainty killed him. And since there were no more monsters he could take his anger out, he targeted the next best thing: Strange.
“How did it even get here? I thought you had some kind of protection to prevent exactly this shit! Or why didn’t you use your glowing jewelry to see it coming and stop it before it started attacking the library?”
Stephen got defensive. “You know it doesn’t work this way.”
“No, I don’t! All I know is that it’s your job to keep these kinds of Cthulhu monsters out of the city. And if you can’t do the one job you’re here for, tell me, what are you good for?!”
“Tony”, Rhodey interjected warningly to stop him, but Tony didn’t listen.
“You’re always so high and mighty about how your stupid magic is superior to everything. But whatever happened to Peter today, that's on you!”
“Tony!” Rhodey’s voice was sharp. He had placed a hand on his friend's shoulder and Tony jerkily turned his head toward him.
“What?” Tony saw the very judging face of his best friend.
“That’s enough.”
Tony opened his mouth to disagree, because if it was about Peter, it was never enough. But when he turned his head back to Strange, he fell silent.
Stephen’s jaw was clenched, but his eyes betrayed the true feeling behind the stern face. The sorcerer turned around and left through a portal.
The other Avengers on the scene looked at Tony, awkwardly.
"That was uncalled for," Rhodey chided him.
Friday chimed up in his ear. “Doctor Cho said that Peter will be fine. He has a concussion and a few broken ribs.”
Tony closed his eyes for a moment, sighing. He was relieved about the news, but still he didn't feel any better.
~~
“Hi dear.” There was a PR smile plastered on Tony’s ace, even if he didn’t feel like it.
The receptionist at Metro's looked up and froze for a moment, surprised to see who was speaking to her.
“Tony Stark!”
Good. That usually helped.
“Yes, that’s me. I’m here for Stephen Strange, former doctor and surgeon of this hospital.”
Something shifted in her face and with a more neutral voice she asked, “Are you related or part of his family?”
“No.” Tony shook his head. “But the thing is-”
“Then I’m afraid you can’t visit him.” Her mouth became a thin line. Maybe she wasn’t a fan of him after all. Some people were still hung up on what SI used to sell in its early years.
But this wasn’t the first time Tony had to work with a tough crown and he didn't give up that easily.
“And isn’t that quite the inconvenience? You see, I came all the way here to talk to him. If you could just give me any information on where I find him, I’ll be out of your hair.” Tony was all smiles and charm. “If not, I might occupy you for the next, let's say, two hours, and I’ve been told I can be quite annoying.” As if to punctuate his words, he reached across the table and took her post-it pad, playing with it in his hands.
For that he earned a judging look from the receptionist. But at that moment the phone rang and she took the call instead of scolding him.
Tony waited until she forwarded the call, willing to make good of his threat. After she hung up and noticed that he was still standing at her table, she narrowed her eyes.
“Fine, Mr. Stark, I can give you one piece of information.”
Tony beamed. “Excellent. I knew we would come to an agreement.”
“Doctor Stephen Strange may no longer practice medicine here, but he is still a doctor. Not a former.” Tony was baffled by the venom in her voice, as if he had personally insulted her. "Now, please leave."
She turned to another visitor who needed help and Tony actually took a step back.
That wasn’t how he thought this would go.
But he didn’t want to leave yet, not without talking to the sorcerer, and so, while the receptionist was distracted, he slipped past her. He knew Strange was somewhere in this building. Wong had told him after Tony had asked him about Strange – after there had been radio silence between the two men for two weeks. Apparently Strange had just returned from wherever a Sorcerer Supreme usually went in his adventures and his sorcerer friend had sent him straight to the hospital, because he had looked worse for wear.
Tony started his search in the ER on the ground floor and looked around inconspicuously. As inconspicuous as it was possible for a celebrity like him.
He was used to the mixed reactions he received, but it hadn’t been this bad as since before Afghanistan when SI was still selling weapons. Some nurses stared at him, outright hostile. Others ignored him completely.
Tony glanced into rooms and tried to listen in, to hear if the name of the sorcerer was dropped.
“Mr. Stark. Why are you sneaking around my ER?” He turned around and, oh, he actually recognized that one. But he wasn’t sure if it was a good or a bad thing that Christine Palmer of all people approached him. “Do you need medical help?” Her gaze slid over him in a professional manner to see if she would spot any obvious wounds or injuries.
“I’m visiting a friend.”
“Really?” Her voice would have brought any other man to his knees immediately. With a rueful face, a bouquet of flowers and an apology on his lips. “I’m pretty sure you don’t question friends what they’re good for.”
Ouch.
“He told you that?”
“Stephen didn’t need to tell me anything,” Christine explained. “You two had your disagreement right beside the paramedics and they love to gossip.” She reminded him of Pepper right about when she was about to lecture him, and sure enough Christine continued, taking a step closer to him. “Stephen may no longer work here, but we still consider him one of us. And we don’t take insults to one of us lightly. So when I ask you why you want to see him, your answer is better going to be ‘I’m sorry and I want to apologize’.”
There was a very unique kind of loyalty between the members of a medical staff. Something even an Avengers could not interfere with. They were a tight group of people. Strange might be an asshole but he was their asshole. The now sorcerer had been once one of them and would always remain one of them. At least in their eyes.
Tony knew when he was defeated.
“I’m sorry and I want to apologize.”
Christine smiled sweetly and totally fake. “I’ll ask him if he is in the mood to see you.”
Tony swore to never let her meet Pepper. Each of both women alone was scary enough, together they would be unstoppable.
The nurse left him and disappeared through a door nearby, which she closed behind her.
Tony followed anyway.
It was a typical ER patient room. Stephen sat shirtless on the bed and bandaged his own arm – that told something about doctors being the worst patients. His body looked like a zombie horde trampling all over it. His whole torso was littered with bruises and cuts, and the gauze in his face suggested that it didn't look any better there.
The nurse whirled around when she heard Tony enter, her scorn fully back on. "You're not supposed to be-"
"Christine." Stephen's voice was raspy. He could move his lip only so much, or it was in danger of bursting open again. "It's fine."
Christine, judging by her face, disagreed. “Sometimes I miss the asshole you used to be”, she told him.
“Really?” Stephen asked, amused.
She smirked. “No.”
She left the room, not without a last dirty glance to Tony, who raised his hands in defense. He received the message.
“I don’t think she likes me,” Tony said after she had closed the door.
“Shocking.”
“I know.”
The men looked at each other. Stephen’s shoulders were tense, as if he expected Tony to continue his rant from their last meeting.
Just as an uncomfortable silence threatened to spread, Tony spoke up first. “Listen, because of the other day-”
“You weren’t wrong.” Okay, Tony wondered, what was it about medics interrupting him today? Stephen didn't even look at him, his gaze fixed on his work on his arm. "I know I haven't been doing this hero gig as long as you. Or not nearly as long as the ancient one. But I’m doing my best and-”
“No. Stephen, no,” Tony disagreed. “I shouldn’t have said that. I was scared about Peter and put my anger out on you. He is fine, by the way.”
“I know. Wong told me Peter visited a few days ago.” Strange was still not looking at him. He struggled to wrap the bandages because his fingers had started shaking.
Tony stepped up to him and took the bandage in his hands to continue the work. Stephen clenched his jaw but didn't resist the help. Maybe he just wanted to prevent another fight. Still, the sorcerer refused to say another word about what had happened.
Tony felt like he was running into a wall and so he changed the subject. "What chew you up and spit you out like this, anyway?
Stephen glanced up at him, then to the side. He reminded Tony of Peter when the boy knew he had done something, Tony wouldn’t be happy about. He waited until Stephen spoke again.
“I visited that eldritch Kalaravren and made sure it won’t surprise us a second time.”
Tony paused, his mouth open. “Stephen.” The sorcerer had faced this monster all alone, after they had had trouble standing up to it even as a group last time? No wonder he looked so battered.
Their eyes met again.
“I’m sorry.” Tony sighed. “Please stop doing this reckless stuff.”
Stephen snorted. “That’s rich coming from you.”
Tony shrugged, a small smile on his lips. “Was worth a shot.”