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Tony jogged up the stairs of the marriage bureau and pushed open the doors, letting himself in. Cool air brushed over him, the air conditioners clearly working over time to combat the August heat.
Stephen, dressed in a suit and looking unfairly gorgeous, waited by the counter, arms crossed and dress shoe tapping a steady beat on the floor, though whether it was impatience or anxiety was hard to tell. Tony scanned the space next to him, but no one stood out as being with Stephen.
“So,” Tony said as he reached Stephen’s position. “Not many reasons someone texts me and tells me to dress nice and show up at the marriage bureau.” He leaned against the counter and arched an expectant eyebrow in Stephen’s direction. On the other side of the counter, the clerk was finalizing paperwork. Tony’s gaze flickered around again, searching for the person that should be there standing next to Stephen. Though he’d be damned if he knew who. Stephen had certainly never mentioned a relationship in the months they’d been friends. “Despite that, I still feel the need to ask why the hell I’m here?”
If Stephen needed a witness, Tony knew several people who would be higher on the list. Wong came to mind. If Stephen was just inviting friends to show up, well…
Tony could be supportive. He could.
Hell, he’d worn his nicest suit. For support.
Not because he needed some sort of armor between him and the reality of Stephen getting married.
The clerk nudged the paperwork towards Stephen who took it.
“I’m getting married,” Stephen answered, as though there were other reasons to be at a marriage bureau at 3:30 in the afternoon fifteen minutes before the place closed for the day.
Tony rolled his eyes, shoving down the entirely inappropriate jealousy. When a friend told you they were getting married, you were happy for them. Even Tony knew that. “Congratu—”
Stephen slid the documents along the counter to Tony. “To you.” He pulled a folder of paperwork out of thin air—showoff—and pushed it in Tony’s direction as well. “The prenup. I kept it basic.”
…
That…
Tony blinked a few times, replaying the last few moments in his head to make sense of it. It didn’t work. “To… me?” he asked.
“That’s what I said,” Stephen said. He gestured at the two different pieces of paperwork. "We’ve got fifteen minutes, by the way, so we can’t take too long.”
“I—” Tony paused, searched for the right words. “Don’t you think this requires some sort of communication? Traditionally people ask before they get to this point.” Normally people were in a relationship before this happened. He opened the prenup folder and skimmed it. It definitely qualified as simple, Stephen more or less said he had no interest in any of Tony’s wealth.
It was already signed and initialed everywhere Stephen needed to, just waiting for Tony to do the same.
Well.
Tony put the prenup down, examining Stephen whose gaze was focused on the clock on the wall, clearly counting down the minutes until the bureau closed. Tony wasn’t sure if that was insulting or not. Was Stephen anxious to marry him—and what?—or anxious to be done with the whole thing?
“I don’t particularly care for doing things traditionally,” Stephen commented, answering Tony’s question. “And neither do you.”
“Yeah,” Tony agreed. “But despite what people say about my spontaneity and lack of forethought, I still try to have reasons for why I do things.”
Stephen reached up and another paper appeared in his hand, seemingly plucked from thin air. He pushed it across the counter to Tony. “I considered that.”
Tony examined the paper; it was a list written in Stephen’s careful print. Tony knew how much Stephen hated writing things by hand. That the pain made it unbearable and the shake of his hands made it nearly impossible. The fact that he had…
Stephen had wanted to prove something.
He scanned the list once. His breath caught in his chest and he slowed down to start over.
1. Social bias that mistakenly believes marriage indicates greater personal stability.*
*Taking advantage of people’s preconceived notions is a favorite pastime of yours.
2. Financial stability* and health insurance**.
*I know you paid off my hospital bills the last time Wong forced me to go, don’t even pretend otherwise.^ This way you’ll stop having to come up with excuses.
^Wong knows you paid for his, too. This does not mean you need to marry him.
**Your insurance is ridiculously comprehensive and won’t care that I have ‘pre-existing conditions’.^^
^^I know you pay off people’s medical debt for fun, sometimes, but this is really a systematic issue. Not to say you should use your political sway to do something about that, but… what’s one more cause~ for you to champion?
~I’ll champion it with you.
3. Wong doesn’t think there’s anyone out there who’d marry me*, obviously, I have to prove him wrong.
*I’m aware that he’s employing reverse psychology.^
^I don’t care.
4. Note item 3: You love proving people wrong.
5. Colonel Rhodes and Miss Potts* have openly indicated you’re incapable of the commitment necessary for a longterm relationship, much less a marriage.**
*Stop letting people, even the ones you love, treat you like you need to prove your loyalty and dedication at every turn. You’ve already done that.
**You’re completely capable of it; stop doubting yourself.
6. Note item 5: You love proving people wrong—especially Colonel Rhodes and Miss Potts.
7. The press* will lose its mind.
*Everhart, in particular, will lose her mind. You know you can’t resist.
8. This will forestall the current conspiracy between the Cloak, FRIDAY, your bots, and Peter* to set us up with each other.
*One of them is a teenager and the others are various forms of non-human sentience. None of them understand romance in the slightest; it would be a disaster.
9. You’re already kind of in love with me* and I haven’t been able to stop thinking of that fact since I realized.**
*You’ve got terrible taste, but that won’t stop me from taking advantage^ of it.
^If you give me a chance, you won’t regret it.
**You fell asleep in the Sanctum last week, when I tried to wake you up, you said “love you, Stephen” and fell back asleep.^^
^^If you hadn’t been asleep, I’d have kissed you.
10. I am head over heels in love with you.*
*I always will be.
Tony swallowed hard. He looked up at Stephen, noting the way Stephen watched him with careful nonchalance. Desire clawed at Tony’s insides. “You know, the marriage license normally needs 24 hours before you can legally get married.”
Stephen shrugged. “Judges can waive that requirement. I called in a favor.”
Tony looked down at the list again, then glanced over at the license, certificate, and prenup resting on the counter, waiting for Tony to sign.
For a decision as momentous as this, one that could alter his life entirely—probably in unforeseeable ways—it was… easy.
“I kind of need a pen,” he said.
Stephen steadied himself on the counter, a strange, almost choked exhale escaping him, as though he hadn’t thought Tony’d say yes.
For someone who’d doubted whether this would work, Stephen’s plan had been incredibly bold. But that was just par for the course for Stephen.
The clerk immediately pushed a pen towards Tony, eyes wide and eager. Tony imagined he was going to have quite a story to tell after today. Tony wondered if anyone would believe him before either Tony or Stephen actually verified it.
“You a notary?” Tony asked him. Some clerks were, and he suspected Stephen had taken that into consideration to ensure they had what they needed to get this done. Stephen was thorough that way.
“Yes,” the clerk said, tone a little breathless in anticipation.
“We’re going to need to renegotiate the prenup, after,” Tony told Stephen as he signed and initialed the prenup, then handed it over to the clerk to sign and notarize. He wondered if they’d set a record for the fastest prenup, marriage, prenup renegotiation cycle. “Pepper’d kill me if I ignored the effect of marriage on SI, but otherwise, what’s mine is going to be yours. Potential alimony be damned.” He didn’t foresee it, because when Stephen said always… Tony believed him.
Stephen seemed like the forever type of guy.
Tony had been surprised the day he’d realized Tony was a forever guy, himself. He just hadn’t thought it’d matter. People like him didn’t get forever.
“I don’t need it,” Stephen said. “I just want you.”
Tony shrugged, because he could be persuasive; he wanted to make sure Stephen was taken care of, no matter what happened. “We can discuss that later.”
He barely paid attention as he signed the license and turned his attention to the certificate. They needed a judge before they could sign this particular document, but he suspected that just through the door down the hall, one was waiting for them, probably with a witness waiting—Tony wondered if it’d be a stranger, or if Stephen had roped Wong into this scheme. He looked up at Stephen. “Last chance to realize this is absolute insanity and back out.”
“Please note item 10 on the list.” Stephen smiled, expression soft and the love in his eyes so real that Tony wondered how he’d ever missed it. “The addendum is pretty important, too.”
Yeah, it kind of was.
He pulled the list closer and picked up the pen again and scribbled down one last reason for their list.
11. Because I* want to spend the rest of my life with you.** This seems like a damn good way to do that.
*Tony Stark
**Stephen Strange
He passed the paper back to Stephen, so he could put it in his weird little pocket dimension he’d pulled it out of. He didn’t want to wrinkle it, because that thing was going to be framed and put on a wall. Tony didn’t think he’d ever get tired of reading it.
Plus, items 4 and 6 had been right, Tony did love proving people wrong and didn’t mind rubbing it in people’s faces when possible.
He smiled at Stephen. “Come on,” he said. “We’ve got five more minutes before this place closes. No time to waste.”
Stephen took his hand, stealing Tony’s breath away—this was his future in his grasp—and Tony mentally added it to the list.
12. Your hand in mine feels like love.
Stephen gestured toward the door where the judge waited just beyond. He fell into step with Tony, matching pace as though they’d walked side by side for years.
13. You’ve treated me as your equal every step of the way.*
*No one ever has. I’ve always had to prove something.
The judge waited for them on the other side of the door gesturing for them to follow them to the front. Wong sat in a pew reading a book while he waited at the front of the room. Wong looked up, and Tony didn’t know if the expression on his face was flabbergasted or smug.
Stephen had mentioned something about reverse psychology.
14. Because you’re right; I do like proving people wrong.*
*Not just Wong or Pepper or Rhodey, but the whole damn world that told me I’d never deserve this.^
^Take that, Everhart.
Tony grinned as they reached the front. “Welcome,” the judge said smiling at both of them gently. “I’m honored to perform the ceremony for you today.”
“Thank you, Judge Nolan,” Stephen said. “I know this was short notice.”
Judge Nolan laughed, the sound melodic. She shook her head. “Oh, trust me, I wasn’t going to miss this.” She winked at Stephen. “Plus, you convinced my husband I wasn’t crazy when I said we had a fairy infestation. Even if it did end up being imps. I owed you.”
Stephen shrugged casually. “After this? We’re more than even.”
15. Because you’re so very good.* Probably better than I deserve.**
*Shut up and stop arguing; you are.
**I know you’d argue this, too. See item 13.^
^You make me want to believe it, too.
Judge Nolan turned to Wong. “You’ll be acting as witness?”
Wong set his book aside and stood, joining them. “So it seems,” he agreed, tone wry. He gestured at his standard robes and they transformed into a nice, if slightly outdated, suit. Wong examined them, then shook his head. “Last time I doubt whether they’re perfect for each other,” he muttered. “Only they would actually do this,” he told Judge Nolan.
Tony shrugged. What could he say? Stephen had made a very compelling argument.
16. Because you’re a little insane.*
*I am, too.^
^You realize this is insane, right?~
~Nothing has ever felt this right.
“They might also be the only people I know who I believe could actually pull it off,” Wong added, sounding exasperatedly fond.
Judge Nolan laughed, before turning serious. “Will there be an exchange of rings?” she asked.
Tony’s mind raced with possibilities, he had his nanites, and he could— Stephen beat him. “We have a somewhat non-traditional alternative,” he said. He sent Tony a wry smile. “I’d say sorry for the presumption, but I’ve been presumptuous since you showed up.”
Tony snorted. “That you have.” Was it shallow to say it was kind of hot?
17. You are insanely attractive.* And I’m not just talking physically.**
*Hey, I’m allowed to be shallow.
**Just so you know, I’m not always going to let you get away with this sort of thing.
Stephen pulled out two thin silver bracelets. Tony understood immediately, those were far better for Stephen’s hands than a traditional ring would be. They looked a little like the homing bracelets Tony had once used for his suits. Light glinted off the silver, and Tony noted strains of what looked like white marble spun throughout. Tony expected that the bracelets were neither silver nor marble, but he could figure out those details later.
“That works,” Judge Nolan said. “As for vows…”
Stephen glanced at Tony. “Not to be presumptuous…”
“Oh, why stop now,” Tony said, laugh escaping. “I’d hate to think you didn’t think this through. I’m sure I’ll manage something.” It sounded blithe and he knew it, but…
18. Because I admitted I loved you five minutes ago, but I’ve already got a list of reasons* why I want to marry you.**
*I really need to get you on my insurance ASAP. Because you get hurt way too often. You’re going to give me ulcers.
**I only regret that you beat me to the punch.^
^You’ll never let me forget it, either.
Judge Nolan cleared her throat. “If you two are prepared… We are here today to witness the joining of Anthony Edward Stark and Stephen Vincent Strange in matrimony. It is my great honor to officiate this ceremony; I welcome those here today to join in the joy of this binding of two separate lives together.” She nodded toward Wong in acknowledgment before turning to Stephen. “If you would like to begin with your vows before the exchanging of bands?”
Stephen nodded to her, but his attention was fixed on Tony. “Tony Stark, I don’t have anything grand or momentous to say,” he said quietly. “Just that I love you. That I will until my very last breath.”
Stephen smiled, soft and sweet. Tony’d never seen the smile from Stephen before, but it fit him, somehow.
“I knew I wanted to be a doctor as soon as I knew what a doctor was. I knew I wanted to learn the Mystic Arts the moment I realized it was real. I knew I wanted to love you from the second I truly knew you. I knew I wanted to marry you the instant I realized I loved you. And I know, right now, as I marry you, that I want to keep this forever.”
Tony swallowed.
19. You’re really in love with me* and I never want to lose that.
*Your taste is worse than mine is.^
^I guess it works out for both of us.
His turn.
“Stephen Strange,” he started. “I’ve got a very compelling list of reasons to marry you. Some of which might be better than others,” he teased. Everhart, after all, probably shouldn’t be a factor… Though it did show that Stephen knew him very well. “But there’s one that stands out. Because I don’t just kind of love you. I love you beyond a doubt.” He laughed. “And god, I never thought I’d say that. Because I’ve never known what I wanted, not enough to chase it. I wanted to create a better world with my inventions and let others tell me how to do that. I wanted to fix my mistakes and ended up making a bunch of new ones.”
Stephen looked like he wanted to interrupt, but apparently remembered that it was Tony’s turn to talk.
“I wanted to strangle you the moment we met and ended up in love with you, instead.” He paused. “Except, right now, I know what I want. I want to marry you; I want to love you for the rest of our lives.” He swallowed. “And after all these years, I think I’ve figured out how to go after what I want.”
Stephen’s eyes shone with unfathomable emotion.
No one really understood love, though a lot of people claimed to. But love transcended so many definitions, defied so many odds, filled so many empty spaces.
“I want you,” Tony repeated. "And this time, I'm going to get it right."
20. I am head over heels in love with you.*
*I always will be.
Judge Nolan stepped forward again. “Now, for the exchange of the bands?”
Stephen handed one of the bands to Tony. Tony ran his fingers over the cool metal and he found the slightest variation where the hinge hid.
“Stephen Vincent Strange, do you solemnly promise to love, honor, and respect Anthony Edward Stark for as long as you both shall live?”
“I do,” Stephen said. He reached out, opening the bracelet and gently securing it around Tony’s wrist. It fit perfectly, tight enough to stay in place, but not so tight it’d be uncomfortable.
"Anthony Edward Stark, do you solemnly promise to love, honor, and respect Stephen Vincent Strange for as long as you both shall live?”
Tony’s throat clogged with emotion for a moment, but he managed to make the words come out anyways. “I do.”
Stephen held out his arm and Tony fastened the band around Stephen’s wrist so that he matched Tony. He wasn’t sure, but he thought that, for a moment, both bands glowed.
He’d get answers for that later. Given it was Stephen, Tony supposed he’d be surprised if there wasn’t a magical element.
Judge Nolan’s smile could be heard in her voice. “In as much as you both have consented, by the power vested in me by the State of New York, I now pronounce you married. You may kiss—“
Stephen swooped in the moment he had permission.
Maybe if Tony had more sense, he’d have stolen a kiss before now, but at the moment it seemed perfectly fitting that he and Stephen had chosen each other before they’d ever figured this part out.
Tony pulled back a little, lips tingling with pleasure. “Not to be presumptuous—”
“I think it’s only fair,” Stephen acknowledged. “I’ve been presumptuous all afternoon.”
True. “But I think you owe me a honeymoon.”
“I think I can figure something out,” Stephen said, grin in his voice. “How do you feel about some dimension hopping?”
Well, Tony’d give it points for originality. He’d reserve further judgment until he’d seen what these dimensions looked like. “Sounds like a good way to avoid Pepper’s wrath.”
They pulled further away.
They had a marriage certificate to sign.
And then Tony had a list to finish.