Disclaimer: not mine.

Steve was gone from his bed the next morning, presumably so that their teammates didn't walk in on anything untoward. Stark sighed, lacing his fingers together behind his head. He was surprised to find himself a little disappointed. Waking up next to the man that made him feel unbelievably alive would have perfected his day. Last night had been more than amazing; it was one of the greatest nights of his life. He felt gratified and left still wanting at the same time. Taking a deep breath, he let it out slowly; he hadn't felt this good in a very long time.

"Good morning, my friend," interrupted a deep, cheery voice from the door. Thor stood there, his long blonde hair falling around his shoulders. The man looked more rested than the previous night, but no less grim. "Come, it is time to eat before we set off for battle." Tony nodded as he swung both legs over the side of the bed, letting the blanket cover his naked unmentionables. He stretched tall, the corners of his mouth remaining turned up. Not even the looming threat of the Chitauri would bring him down.

He suited up—except for his helmet; that he carried tucked into the crook of his arm. By the time he shuffled out of his room, the rest of the Avengers were filing out as well. He caught Steve's eye and was offered a secretive smile. Tony returned it with a wink, his heart actually skipping a beat. They now had something very special to keep between them.

They ate at a long table with Odin at the head. Small talk discussing battle strategy was about all that occurred before it was time to head out. A small glow infiltrated his stomach each time he and Steve stole a glance. Butterflies flew when he noticed that Steve looked a little different—happier, almost. Tony felt like a schoolboy again when he walked outside next to the American icon.

The battle was much louder outside the hallowed halls of the palace. Fireballs were easily seen exploding along the horizon and the ground shook beneath their feet. The Asgardian soldiers appeared to be doing a decent job keeping the Chitauri contained because the residential district looked intact—quiet, but untouched. The Avengers stood shoulder to shoulder, looking out over their assignment. Tony felt something wiggle its way into his hand. Looking down, he saw Steve giving it a gentle squeeze. Perplexed, he looked up and the look in Steve's eye made him melt inside.

Pulling his hand away, Tony secured his helmet. "Ready?"

Everyone nodded, looking grim. With a mighty roar, Banner released The Other Guy. Clint and Natasha were swept onto his back and the Hulk was off in a flash, drunk already with bloodlust. Swinging Mjölnir, Thor followed. Captain America secured his shield a little tighter and laid a hand on Tony's shoulder; it felt warm even through the metal. "We don't want to be late, do we?" he asked. Tony smirked behind his HUD.

"Better clench, pretty boy." If Barton heard him say that, he'd probably never hear the end of it. Then they were off, his thrusters much less of a drain on his power output.

The battlefield wasn't a very nice sight. Soldiers—Chitauri, Asgardian and some unidentifiable were strewn everywhere. From his birds-eye view, the destruction was horrific and immense on a grand scale. It was—to him at least—such a shame to waste so many lives on something that might not even matter ten years later.

Captain America apparently shared the sentiment. "How horrible," could be heard from the comm link that connected the Avengers to each other.

"Agreed," was the curt response from Hawkeye, who undoubtedly was seeing more of the battlefield than they.

"The portal should be 1,500 years on our nine." Cap' was dead-on, as usual. JARVIS pulled a close-up view on Tony's HUD and sure enough, the Chitauri were spilling out of the pale blue ring of light. It didn't appear to be as bad as originally thought—maybe the Asgardians were holding better than was being reported.

"Plan?" Tony asked when they drew near. The response from Rogers was instantaneous.

"Hulk, leave Hawkeye on that cliff. You, Black Widow and I will cover the left flank from the ground. Thor, Iron Man, we need you in the air covering the right. Push them back until they have no choice but to enter the portal."

Wow. Tony didn't realize just how much of a turn-on it was to hear Steve barking orders.

Wow, really not the time.

Tony banked hard to the left, the ground rapidly approaching. When he was close enough, Cap' let go and hit the dirt, rolling to absorb the impact. Tony pulled out of the dive before he face planted into the nearest rock.

He heard the Hulk unleash a might roar followed by panicked screams and a chorus of cheers. Bits of the enemy began to fly and the Asgardians doubled their push, inspired by the green monster ripping everything to shreds.

Rockets flew from the launchers on his shoulders, all hitting multiple targets. He serpentined through the hordes, trying to lead them back towards their wormhole. A few more acrobatics and he had the attention of more Chitauri than he could handle. He could see Thor summoning his lightning, trying to take some of the pressure off.

The three on the ground were spread thin, ushering their foes backwards. The Black Widow was leaping from target to target, using Captain America and the Hulk as propulsion, doing a great job dodging the swarms of aliens around them.

"Cap' watch your six." As Steve turned, an arrow cut in front of his nose and buried itself in the Chitauri's neck. He raised his shield to block the blow from the next one.

On the opposite side, Tony hit the ground, his suit rattling around his body. A part of the metal dented in on his shin. Pain shot up his leg and he was severely hoping it wasn't broken. He tried to stand and immediately collapsed with the weight he placed on it. "Fuck, fuck, fuck!" he shouted as a Chitauri rose above him, ready to drive the spear down into his face.

"Iron Man—you okay?"

"Yup. I got this," he managed through grit teeth. As the spear flew towards him, Tony caught it barely inches from his helmet. A solid kick with his good leg pushed the creature back and his thrusters finished the job. Carefully he maneuvered himself back into the air.

"Cap', Widow's in trouble!"

Rogers turned to look for the redhead at Hawkeye's warning. One of the aliens was lobbing a grenade at the surrounded assassin. He was ready to throw his shield when the Hulk's battle cry pierced the air and his large green frame sailed into view. He caught the grenade mid-air and grabbed the Chitauri that threw it in one hand. With the other, he stuffed the grenade down its throat and tossed it into a crowd of its comrades. It exploded, clearing everything in a five-foot radius.

"Don't give an inch!"

They continued like that for hours, taking blow after blow, pushing their bodies and equipment to their limit. Blood, dirt, sweat and who knew what else covered them as they continued to drive the Chitauri back from whence they came. Casualties—some Asgardian but most alien—continued to pile up.

"We've got 'em! Thor, have Odin push his men forward!"

"He is already moving."

A phalanx six soldiers deep was even now on the move. The Allfather was bringing up the rear. With the support from the Avengers, he had little trouble getting closer to the portal.

Odin stepped up, some of the soldiers breaking from the phalanx to form a tight circle around their king. He reached out both hands, the glowing cube of the Tesseract cradled within. From above, Tony could see Odin's mouth moving. The cube levitated from his hands, spinning quickly. It moved on its own towards the giant circle of light.

"Cap' you've got movement! They're heading towards Odin!"

In the sea of dark forms, Tony could identify the blue streak racing easily in the direction of the Allfather. He also saw what the other hero could not: the portal pulsating with energy, shrinking rapidly in on itself.

"Rogers! Let his men take care of it! That portal's collapsing!" But his words came too late.

In the blink of an eye, the portal shrank to the size of a marble, all the energy within packed tight, eager to be released. When it did, it exploded outwards, throwing everyone in range at least thirty feet. Several of the soldiers that moved in front of Odin to shield him from blast lay motionless, their bodies burned to a crisp and their armor slightly melted. There was no sign of Captain America when the dust settled.

"Hawkeye—do you see him?"

"I lost him!"

"We need to deal with the remaining Chitauri first!"

In a flash of his red cape, Thor had his father by the waist and Mjölnir was leading the way back to the palace.

The remaining Avengers made quick work of the leftover foes—well, as quickly as they could, anyhow.

"I got 'im," came Hawkeye's voice. Tony roughly snapped the neck of the alien warrior in his hands and descended slowly to the other man's position. He favored his leg something terrible when he landed.

Captain America was half-buried under a pile of rubble, his eyes closed and practically everything bleeding. Half his cowl was gone, separated at the eyeholes. The exposed part of his body was singed crusty-looking black. The rest of his suit hung on by mere tatters. Clint was removing the rocks that had the rest of him trapped before the rest of them got there.

"Is he breathing?" Tony pressed a button and his mask retracted. It was hard resisting the urge to kneel down and take the Captain into his arms, but the throbbing in his leg was doing its very best to assist.

"Yeah, but not very well. We need to get him—" a loud grunt paused Clint midsentence. The Hulk lumbered over to them. With no effort whatsoever he cleared the remaining debris. Carefully, like he was picking up a child, he lifted the Cap' from the ground.

"Let's get him back," Widow said as she climbed onto the Other Guy's back. Clint followed closely behind her.

"See you there." A grim look overtook Tony's face, but he hid it by sliding his faceplate back into position. His thrusters rose him up carefully. The pain in his leg was nothing compared to the concern raging in his gut. Seeing Captain—Steve—like that, bloody and almost broken was sickening. The American icon shouldn't look like that…ever. Gritting his teeth, he quelled the anger rising up and was just about to take off when something out of his peripheral caught his attention. Well, it was more like his HUD zooming in on something that wasn't Chitauri.

He glided over. A crumpled form lay atop a bed of bodies, unimaginably pale and eerily still.

Tony shook his head once. Twice. He had to be hallucinating. Closing his eyes, he reopened them but the figure was still there. It was Loki, looking like the saddest ragdoll ever.

"To hell with it…" he muttered, pain finally starting to get the better of him. He grabbed the trickster unceremoniously by the collar and took off to the palace.

"I said: 'stop touching me!' I want Dr. Banner. Get him for me now or else—"

"Or else you'll kick and scream while your broken leg flops around uselessly?" Dr. Banner walked into the room, the Asgardians attendants dispersing immediately.

"No. I was going to rip it off at the knee and bludgeon them with it," Tony pouted leaning back against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest. "How's Capsicle?"

Bruce barely glanced up as he snipped off the remainder of Tony's pants, ignoring the 'hey! Those were my favorite!' that followed. "Stable. For now. We need to get him back to Earth. Being on Asgard appears to be slowing the serums regenerative properties."

He swallowed the lump in his throat. "And Loki?"

"Mm…" the doctor pursed his lips, dabbing at the open wounds along Tony's leg. He could see where the shinbone separated and he was thankful it hadn't pierced the skin. "They've got him contained. He's still unconscious. Pretty beaten up, too." He smiled thoughtfully, finally looking up at Tony's pained expression. "You should see how Thor's obsessing over him. Odin actually asked him to leave."

"I knew it!" Tony huffed. "Thank you for finally proving my—aah!" the doctor reset the bone. White-hot flashes of pain caused Tony to push himself up off the bed, trying to get away. "You could have warned me you son of a bitch!"

"Better you don't see it coming," he said in a soothing voice. "Here." A bottle like the one Rogers brought him was pushed into his hands. "It'll help dull the pain until we get back to Earth." By the time he finished splinting Iron Man's leg, two-thirds of the bottle was gone. "Think you can stand?"

"I think I can stand—on one leg. Walking on one leg is another story entirely." Gingerly he sat up on the edge of the bed. Banner rolled his eyes and pulled on of Tony's arms over his shoulder. He relied on the larger man for most of his weight support. It took a little time and effort but they managed to make it to the door. "Let's go check on Cap'."

It took the pair nearly twenty minutes to limp down the corridor, Tony adamantly refusing all offers of a piggy-back ('if there's no bit or saddle involved I don't want it').

When they reached Steve's room they found that all the other Avengers, including Thor, were already there and hovering over his bed. Seeing Tony and Bruce approach they parted like the Red Sea. Tony had a hard time keeping his Moses jokes in check, even after seeing the banged up body of his teammate.

Steve was heavily bandaged—almost comically so. His chest rose and fell in a slow, off-rhythm. The burns that covered his body, which should have been healed already, looked like they barely began the process. Banner definitely understated the severity of the now slow-moving serum.

The arc reactor on his chest dimmed as his heart constricted. This was no way for the American hero to look.

"Thor, if we don't get him back to Earth…" Romanoff was heard saying. The demi-god's expression remained neutral, his thoughts clearly a million miles away. Still, he nodded, turned and looked at Stark.

"And it seems the man of iron needs to return as well. I am sorry to have brought you into this, my friends." The walls carefully guarding his emotions crumbled in an instant, leaving him like an exposed, lost child.

"Nonsense. Without us you'd be up to your ears in alien and without your brother. This is only a…well, this sucks, but it could be worse."

Thor smiled, a silent thanks for Tony's words. He took a deep breath to collect himself. "Let us return you to Midgard." He bent low and lifted Steve gently out of bed. Walking carefully, he led the team (with Barton now under Tony's other arm to speed up the process) back to the great hall they arrived in. There was still a glowing circle of symbols on the floor. The blonde stepped into it without hesitation, still holding their unconscious teammate. The others followed suit, Tony in particular not looking forward to the return trip.

And he was right. Once more he was dumped on the floor, jarring his leg. He drew careful breaths through his nose to avoid passing out. Of course, if that was how he landed…how did—he breathed a sigh of relief as Thor was the only one standing. He looked amusedly perplexed at the bodies on the ground.

"Lead the way," he said.

Keeping the string of swear words contained in his head, Tony pushed himself into a sitting position. "J-JARVIS—will you show our guest to infirmary? Make sure he gets properly hooked up. Alert me the moment there's a change in vitals."

"Right away, sir. Will you be joining him, sir?"

"Nah. Just bring me a bottle of scotch."

"Very well, sir. I'm also to inform you that Ms. Potts is most insistent that you call her immediately."

"Yeah, I'll get right on that." He grunted a little when Banner hauled him to his feet. Tony leaned back into the broad chest, grateful for the stability. Bruce held him close, letting him relax for a second. "Take me to the lab."

Together they hobbled to the elevator. It seemed like an eternity passed before they reached the quiet comfort of his tech haven. The doctor helped lower him into a chair. A bottle of scotch was already waiting on his worktable.

"Go check on Cap'," Tony said, rummaging through his drawers. He emerged victorious a few moments later with a Vicodin. Popping it in his mouth, he washed it down with some alcohol.

Bruce raised an incredulous eyebrow. "You gonna be okay?"

"Yeah, yeah," he waved absently, already pulling up files. "We just don't need to lose the—the face of the Avengers." With a soft pat on the shoulder, Banner nodded and left.

Tony sighed, running a hand through his short, dark hair. There was a lot to do. The others could watch over their teammate while he continued something he should have done—for all of them—months ago.

You're so cute when you sleep, you know that? You should really get out more. What do you say we go for pizza one night?

Steve's voice echoed deep in his dreams. It was soothing, arousing—a little too rousing. Tony started to stir, the voice fading into reality. "Tony. Wake up, Tony."

A little bit of drool clung to his bottom lip as he raised his head off the hard table. Blinking, he wiped his mouth quickly and looked around. There was Steve, in the flesh, smiling down at the bedraggled brunette. He straightened up, embarrassed at being caught in such a state. "Cap', you're up! You're alright!" was all he could sputter.

"Better than ever," the blonde smiled down. One handed rested on the back of Tony's chair and the other propped him up from the work table. His eyes were bright, as if he'd never been hurt at all.

"JARVIS! I thought I said to let me know when his vitals changed."

"My apologies, sir. Dr. Banner sensibly suggested that I let you sleep."

"I'll deal with you later. What was that about pizza?" he rubbed the back of his hands in his eyes, trying to get the sleep out.

"Oh, um. I just figured you might be hungry. You like pizza, right?"

"Mm…" Tony's swiped his hand across his face. "—no. No, I've got work to finish. I've been—"

"Holed up in your lab since we got back, I know." There was a hint of disapproval in his voice. "Bruce says you haven't left in three days."

Three days? It felt like only hours. The mix of pain medication and constant work flow must have addled his time perception. "I'm almost done. Your armor needs some more adjustment before I can start production."

A gentle hand was rested on Tony's. "That's very sweet, Stark, but what's the use if you cripple yourself in the process? I'm sure the other Avengers would appreciate upgrades too."

Tony snorted. "All except for Bruce, maybe. Have you seen his pants? Maybe I should use that material for everyone else. I'd love to get my hands on…" he paused, realizing his sentence hadn't come out quite the way he meant it to. "Right. Pizza it is. Only…let's order in. Saves me a little trouble." Tony stood, resting his weight on his good leg as he hobbled out from behind his chair. The cumbersome boot was much more comfortable than the make-shift splint Banner strapped to him, but it was no less a pain in the ass.

Steve's eyes widened. "What did you do to your leg?"

"I'd love to say I broke it rescuing you heroically from a swath of Chitauri, but no. I just took an alien to the knee. No big deal."

Chewing on his bottom lip, Steve looked thoughtfully at the other man. "I'll have JARVIS order for us and you can show me what you've done instead." He moved to pull up another chair in front of Tony's work space.

Tony leaned forward instead. "How about," he traced a gentle finger along Steve's jawline, pulling him closer. Their lips met and Tony swore he saw sparks. "How about food and then we close up shop for the day?"

A little flushed, Steve opened his eyes and stared. He wrapped his arms around the other man's waist and crushed him to his chest, the kiss much more passionate than the previous. Tony groaned as his fingers tightened reflexively around Steve's shoulders for balance. "Why don't we let everyone else know you're alive first?" he said when they broke apart.

"Because I want you all to myself for a little while."

"But your leg…"

"We'll work around it." Tony shoved some things off his desk, loving the heated stare he was getting from the Cap'.

Oh dear. His problem was getting much bigger.

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