Who: Darcy and Tony When: Early June Where: Stark Tower What: Tony’s gone a bit batty Rating/Warning: Low/None Status: Complete
Pepper would freak out. Pepper would be absolutely freaking out if she saw Tony this evening. Sure, it was after hours, but he was still in Stark Tower. He should be more presentable. Tony had changed into pajama pants and a wife beater, and was wearing a robe over the ensemble. It was completed by a cookie in one hand, a glass of milk in the other (laced with irish cream) and bunny slippers on both feet. He was wandering through the building, saying hello to the security guards. Working late. He was always working late lately. He had to find the cure before it was too late to be working late.
Darcy too was working late. She was working late because her boyfriend had bailed on her. Again. It seemed to keep happening. He said he was working a case. And she’d believed him at first. Now she couldn’t help but think that maybe something else was up. This always happened to her. She’d been writing something when she lost track of the time. She hadn’t wanted to go home so she’d continued to work.
Now she was leaving and as she was, she paused because she was pretty sure she’d just seen.. “Tony? I mean. Mr. Stark?”
Tony turned at the sound of his name. He raised an eyebrow. “I thought the only people left were the security guards and the rats.” He said, taking a step closer. He lifted a hand and offered her a cookie. “Surely work isn’t keeping you here so late.”
She reached out and took the cookie from him. “Nah it’s not really work. It’s mostly me not wanting to go home, I guess.” Darcy shrugged a little. “I probably should have left like.. a long time ago. Lost track of time.”
“I know that feeling.” Tony said, nodding sagely. He looked tired. Old. Older than normal, anyway, and he felt old. The blue circle glowing through his undershirt was unmistakable and undeniable. “Why don’t you want to go home?” He asked, wondering if it was the same reason he didn’t want to go home.
That look on his face was pretty familiar. Not that she looked old, but she definitely knew that tired thing. She wished that she could help, though that science thing was more Jane’s thing than Darcy’s. “Cause it’s.. I think I’m going to get dumped. Again. For like the zillionth time. I don’t really want to deal with it.”
“Oh.” Tony frowned a bit. He was pretty good at commiserating. He shoved his hand in the pocket of his robe and pulled out a flask to offer to her. “Well, it’s his loss. Or hers.”
The flask wasn’t that surprising. Though she was kind of amused that it was in his robe. She took it and then took a drink. “Thanks. Yeah it’s his loss. And the guy before that. And the guy before that. It’s ridiculous. What are you avoiding?” Cause he clearly was.
“Sleep.” Tony responded. it should have been obvious by now that something wasn’t quite right with Tony Stark. There were strange lines under his skin. He was sweaty and fidgety, lethargic at best and drunk at worst. Things that were rarely seen in the megalomaniac. “Having the day end. It would mean that another is about to start, and that one may be the last one.”
Darcy ahh’d slightly and nodded her head. Yeah she’d noticed those ages ago. Because she tended to see things that other people ignored. She frowned and nodded her head. “I get that. I’m sure you’ll figure it out. I’m pretty sure you’re not dead in any of the dreams I’ve had.” Not that she met Tony in said dreams, but she knew of him. Avengers and all that.
Tony raised both eyebrows. “...I’m in your dreams?” He asked. This was news to him. He barely knew the girl who worked for him, but she was dreaming about him? “Steve’s in your dreams, too?” His slightly drunk and palladium poison addled mind meant Steve Rogers. Surely she knew that already.
She made that wishy washy motion with her hand. “Not.. technically. My dreams are about Thor and Loki. But I was with Jane when the thing in New York happened. Wait.. do you know about that yet? Or am I spoiling you? Anyway.. we were put in seclusion by SHIELD cause Loki.. well he’s an asshole. So I know you from there. And Thor would have said something if you were dead after that. And Steve.”
“I know that something happens in New York.” Tony said. He wasn’t thinking too much about that now, his dreams were still about the palladium poisoning and whatever it was that Nick Fury injected him with that made him feel better temporarily. “I see. Well, it’s good to know I haven’t died yet.”
There were technically things that Darcy remembered seeing on television about Tony in her dreams. That race in Monaco or whatever. She wasn’t going to spoil someone though. “Yep, that’s always a good thing. But I know they suck. The dreams I mean. We can all commiserate. Have you tried taking anything to get to sleep?”
“No.” Not besides drinking a bunch. But he never seemed to have Dreams on the nights when he drank himself to bed. “Not yet. Do you find it helps?”
“Yeah sometimes. It’s addictive but sometimes you really just have to sleep, you know?” And even if you got addicted, it was worth it. At least that’s what Darcy figured.
Tony nodded. Oh, he knew. “Debating going for something like that pretty soon, actually. It might be a good idea to get some sleep, considering the projects I have going on.”
“You should. I mean you just.. look tired. In a nice way that won’t get me fired.” Really. Darcy was pleasant. “If you don’t get sleep, who knows what might get all messed up.”
She was absolutely right. And being right would never get a Stark Employee fired. He nodded once, then lifted the flask to sip from it. A long moment passed, and he nodded once more. “You’re right. I should head to bed. Don’t stay too late. Get yourself home safe and sound. Should I call a car service for you?”
“Right. You sleep. I’ll sleep. Both is good. I won’t. Promise. Get some rest.” Darcy smiled a little. “Nah I got my car out in the parking lot. See you tomorrow, boss man.”