Work Text:
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Bruce held out whatever tool it looked like Tony needed next. "How badly damaged is Dummy's programing?"
Tony glanced up from positioning a screw. "His programing is fine."
Bruce waved a hand at the mess of parts that Tony had scattered across the workbench. "This is fine?"
Tony blinked and then looked surprised. "Oh. No, no. This is just Dummy's body. Dummy is in U right now." Tony pointed at the robot across the workshop that was hovering over the parts of Butterfingers still on the trailer.
Bruce cocked his head. "Okay. This you are going to have to explain."
They both turned their heads as the door hissed to let in Steve.
"I got sandwiches." Steve smiled at them and made a detour to pat U on his housing before coming over and looking down at Tony's work area. "Clear a spot for me, Tony."
Tony huffed, but shoved things out of the way with Bruce catching the few tools that fell over the side.
Steve sat sandwiches on wax paper down in front of each of them. He gestured to Dummy's parts. "How's it coming?"
Tony nodded as he chewed.
Bruce checked his sandwich before replacing the bun and smashing it flat with his hand. "Tony was about to explain to me how Dummy is currently in U's body."
Steve turned to look at the robot. "The one over there is U, right?"
"Yes." Tony put his sandwich down. "When I went back to Malibu, U wanted to stay here because he hates traveling. Dummy and Butterfingers don't mind it. Dummy actually likes road trips. They still can communicate because I have them all hooked to Stark secure wireless servers."
Steve nodded. "So when your house was attacked Dummy bunked in with U, like apartments inside U's housing?"
Tony glanced over at U. "More or less. Butterfingers went first because he'd been damaged. Dummy hung on until he was falling into the ocean. He ended up part with JARVIS in the suit and part with U. As soon as J was back up and running he ported Dummy all into U. They insisted I fix Pepper first."
Bruce pushed his glasses up to rub the bridge of his nose. "Your drunk equation was more than enough to go on for figuring out how to fix Extremis."
"Yeah, which is why I didn't feel too guilty leaving them all in the same housing until after I had surgery."
Steve cocked his head. "Wait, Butterfingers is in there too?"
"Yeah." Tony finished his sandwich and pulled the servo he'd been assembling to the arm housing back towards himself. "JARVIS has been talking to them so they all know what's going on. It is sort of like being in a waking coma. They can't move U, but they share all the input from the sensors."
Steve nodded thoughtfully. "Yet, they still wanted you to fix Pepper before themselves?"
"Yeah, they like Pepper the best."
"Sir, the children would like entrance into the workshop."
Tony glanced over at the door where Clint and the kids were standing. He shut down the soldering tool. "Sure, let them in."
Thomas came to the edge of the table and put his hands on the edge, while looking over the tools and parts very carefully. "Hi."
Tamsen pulled Clint with her as she went over to U. "Hi, robot."
Tony snort. "His name is U. Don't hit him, you'll teach him bad manners."
"Okay!" Tamsen hugged U's arm and turned to Clint. "Up, please?"
Clint lifted her onto his hip. "Wow, you are heavy and feel like you're running a fever."
Tamsen leaned away from him as they got near Tony. "Hold me, please?"
Tony frowned and took her from Clint. "What? Why are you clinging?"
"Tony." Steve shook his head at Tony.
Tamsen clung to Tony's shoulders. "Is it a lab in here?"
"No. I'm more of a mechanic. You know, I fix things." Tony picked up a small screwdriver and held it in front of Tamsen. "I won't put you in any of the labs I do have."
Tamsen took the screwdriver and turned it over and over in her hands. "What are you doing?"
"Fixing U's big brothers. Want to help?"
Thomas bounced up and down. "Can I help too?"
Tony nodded. "Sure."
****
Bruce enjoyed watching Tony guide the kids through helping him. Steve leaned against the counter and watched between helping hold the heavy parts in the right spots. "He is a good parent."
Steve nodded. "I read over the list of books he has JARVIS compile for him. I didn't even know there were that many books on parenting."
Bruce looked up at him. "Why did you look at them?"
"The kids aren't going anywhere. I don't expect Tony to make us move out, nor do I think he's going to move him and the kids out." Steve smiled at Bruce. "I figured how I babysat in the old days probably changed with everything else."
"Ah." Bruce smiled as they ran a function check on the rebuilt housing. "Looks like they are finished with Dummy."
****
Dum-E knew that OwnerTony was working on rebuilding Dum-E's body. The explosions that had damaged Butterfingers and the house structure had been much bigger than OwnerTony would make himself.
Dum-E listened to OwnerTony explaining Dum-E's parts to the smaller humans. U queried him to ask if he wanted to port to JARVIS' server so he could port to his rebuilt body sooner. Dum-E told him that it could wait for OwnerTony's command.
Dum-E liked pleasing OwnerTony. The facial expression labeled 'smile' was rare enough on OwnerTony that Dum-E was very pleased with UserBruceHulk's efforts to help OwnerTony smile more frequently.
"Okay, JARVIS, ask Dummy to port for me."
Dum-E didn't like porting. It felt like being pulled slowly apart. JARVIS queried him and Dum-E sent the affirmative to the port command to execute it.
Dum-E rebooted in the rebuilt body. Dum-E's body. Function checks, movement checks, pings to the network all showed upgrades and improvements to speed and data handling. Dum-E turned his camera towards OwnerTony.
OwnerTony was smiling wider than Dum-E had ever witnessed. Dum-E nudged OwnerTony's chest where the small arc reactor had been.
"No, buddy, I don't need it anymore."
Dum-E swung around looking for the spare. OwnerTony had nearly disassembled the last time he'd been without it.
"Woah, woah. Dummy! J, what's his problem?"
JARVIS queried him and Dum-E sent back the concern as he continued looking for the spare. OwnerTony had put it in a new box. It had been on the self in Malibu, but Dum-E knew his current location was New York. It would take too long to retrieve.
"He appears to be looking for the Mark 1 spare arc reactor, sir. He thinks you need it to function."
"Shit." OwnerTony appeared in Dum-E's search grid. "Hey, easy, Dummy. Look, lookit."
Dum-E froze and focused on the camera command, 'lookit.' OwnerTony opened his shirt to show his smooth chest.
"I got it fixed. Here, check my heartbeat if you want."
Dum-E pressed his pincher's pressure sensitive sensors to OwnerTony's chest. There was a steady thub-thub. Dum-E queried JARVIS for the proper thub-thub pattern. Dum-E didn't have that input stored locally.
JARVIS answered with the proper 'heartbeat' pattern and information on OwnerTony's operation to remove the arc reactor. Dum-E wrapped himself around OwnerTony.
"Oh. Huh." OwnerTony stroked Dum-E's sensors. "Thanks, Dummy. Want to help me fix Butterfingers?"
Dum-E carefully moved away from OwnerTony before Dum-E caused the shaking program to be triggered in OwnerTony. Dum-E rolled over to Butterfinger's wreckage and hung his pincher down.
"Yeah, I know how bad it looks. Bring me the pincher and don't drop it."
Dum-E carefully grasped the requested part and started towards OwnerTony. UserCapSteve came to help.
"Here, let me help, Dummy."
Dum-E adjusted his hold as UserCapSteve pushed up from the bottom.
****
Tony had been lulled into a false sense of security, he'd known that because he'd not had a panic attack since he'd blown all the suits. Yet, all it had taken was hugs from his robots, Steve smiling at him and telling him he'd done a good job...What was that even?...and Tony was huddled in a corner of his workshop while Dum-E pulled Bruce over to him.
"Uh, Dummy, I'm not really... Never mind." Bruce crouched down in front of him and Tony grasped pathetically onto Bruce's sleeves. "Okay, Tony, I need you to match my breathing."
Tony could hardly focus, the need to hide was overwhelming. Bruce tucked Tony's hand against his neck and took the other hand between his own. Tony could hear him breathing, slow and steady.
Gulping air, Tony tried to force his eyes open.
"No, no. Tony, relax and just work on breathing."
Tony tucked his face against his upper arm and did what Bruce said.
****
Bruce held Tony and forced down the knot of worry that could bring out the Hulk if Bruce wasn't careful. He coaxed Tony into slowing down his breathing and held onto Tony's hand until the trembling receded, and it looked like Tony was going to flee.
Pulling Tony closer, Bruce hugged him.
Tony whimpered and let his head rest on Bruce's shoulder. "I fucking hate this."
"Yeah, I know." Bruce rubbed Tony's back. "Do you have any idea what triggered it?"
Tony pulled back a little and looked down at his hands. "I'm in this city. I thought I was over it, Bruce."
Bruce's eyebrows drew together. "Tony, you had things happen to you and you can't expect it to just stop bothering you because you destroyed the suits and removed the shrapnel."
Tony blow out a breath. "I think Extremis could cure you."
Bruce snorted. "What and have Hulk drop out of me like Tamsen dropped out of Thomas? Oh, no."
With a frown, Tony leaned to look past Bruce's shoulder to the rest of the workshop. "Dummy, move so I can see. Where's Steve and the kids?"
"Steve took them upstairs to get them sandwiches just before you pulled away from Dummy." Bruce moved over. "Speaking of...Dummy, he'll be alright."
Dum-E nudged Tony's foot with his pincher.
"Sorry, Dummy, I'm sort of broken right now."
Bruce patted Dum-E and then held out his hand to Tony. "Let's get you up off the floor."
****
Dum-E connected to his charging unit and worked through all the logs that JARVIS gave him from the days after Dum-E had been completely ported into U. After reviewing them, Dum-E queried JARVIS to ask for the blueprints for the Marks.
JARVIS queried back to ask why Dum-E wanted them. Dum-E explained that he wanted to develop a new Mark for OwnerTony to help stave off the shaking program OwnerTony didn't like running.
JARVIS gave him input for a Mark 43, which Dum-E had not witnessed OwnerTony working on. Dum-E queried to have a summary printed. Dum-E knew UserBruceHulk would help convince OwnerTony to work on it.
****
Bruce looked up as his lab door opened without a verbal greeting from anyone. Dum-E trundled in. "Oh, hi...Dummy. Are you supposed to be out of Tony's workshop?"
Dum-E pincher held some papers and he shook his head no as he moved towards Bruce.
"Okay." Bruce emailed Tony as Dum-E dropped the papers beside his elbow and nudged him on the bicep. "Alright, I'll look."
Tony breezed in. "What are you doing up here, Dummy? I'll send you to a community college and let them put you in a bot war."
Dum-E dropped his 'head' and Bruce absently petted him as he looked over the Mark 43's plan summary.
"Tony, what was the last Mark you were working on before you used Clean Slate?"
"42. Why?"
Bruce held out the plan summary. "This one is numbered 43."
Tony snatched the papers from him and absently rubbed Dum-E as he read them over. "Dummy brought this to you?"
"Yes, just now."
"Huh." Tony patted Dum-E. "Go back to the workshop. J, make sure Dummy gets back."
"Yes, sir. Maybe I say that the proposed plans for the Mark 43 looks feasible, sir."
Tony rolled his eyes as he sat down next to Bruce. "Uh, huh. JARVIS, go silent on this room for four minutes."
"Yes, sir."
Tony flipped through the plan summary again before saying anything. "I don't know what Dummy was thinking, bothering you like that."
"I think he was thinking I could talk you into making a suit." Bruce tapped the counter near Tony's hand until Tony looked up. "He is worried about your safety, Tony."
"He's the oldest, you know. I made him when I was fifteen. I guess I should expect some rebellion, he's past his teens."
Bruce smiled. "It is rebellion to want you to be safer?"
Tony frowned. "I'm not safer with a suit. I'd go out and fight the next invasion if I had a suit." Tony pressed his hands to his thighs. "Pepper was so happy when they blew. Happy, Bruce. I don't get it."
Bruce bit his lip. "I don't know what she was thinking, but since she'd just been nearly killed I'm betting a lot of it was relief you were both still alive."
"You know there was one suit, one of the heavy hitters, that JARVIS didn't blow. Instead he fried it in place so the crane the armor was holding up wouldn't collapse."
"You had a lot of them?"
"Yeah. Mark 7 is what I took into battle here."
Bruce blinked. "That was the newest one, then?"
Tony nodded and squinted down at the Mark 43 plans. "There were a lot of tweaks. One for space, one for deep ocean exploration, one for Hulk to spar with, several general purpose with different weapon variations, and Mark 42 I could mentally call." Tony frowned. "That was a bad idea."
"Why was that a bad idea? Because of the suit came to you during a nightmare and scared you and Pepper?"
With a shrug, Tony fingered the edge of the plan summary. "Partly. I thought at the time if I could call it then I'd feel safer. Better than the suitcase armor, which I'd started keeping behind the couch in the living room." Tony cocked his head. "Wait a minute, when did I tell you about Pepper? I thought you were asleep?"
Bruce smiled a little and ducked his head. "I, uh, might have looked like I was sleeping."
"You are a lying lair who lies." Tony poked Bruce in the ribs. "Thanks."
Bruce nodded. "No problem. So...you building a new one?"
Tony frowned down at the pages. "I don't know."
****