Iron heart

one

He didn't know the whole story of how it happened, which is probably a good show of where it started. but somehow he had ended up in yet another cave, with a girl still unconscious no older than 23 at most.
......................................................................,................ 45 hours earlier ......................

Tony Stark smiled as the camera flashed at yet another gala, his bruises seemingly nonexistent from when he and Rogers met up face to face. they hadn't seen each other since, the cell phone he had been given still went untouched.
meanwhile he flashed a smile at Parker to the side, the nearly sixteen year old flashing one in return. this gala was the same as all of the others for Stark Industries with drinks dancing, and as Tony was getting used to no Pepper and no Avengers. For the foreseeable future the avengers were nonexistent. Captain America, Black Widow, Scarlet Witch, Falcon, and Hawkeye were all still hiding in wakanda doing god knows what with the king.

Tony was still being iron man, though the accords made that easier. The accords were working slightly, seeing as they were made for more than one person.
He was doing one mission a week, two if he tried hard enough.
The missions had to have help though, seeing as he was still one man even with the suit on. Spider man, though he was on the table as Oversight had recommended, Tony was clear in waiting at least a year or so before going down that road.
Rolling his shoulders he walked over to the bar saying simply 'give me the best you got' handing them a few fifties and taking what they gave him sipping it nodding. Rhodes who would usually come to these things with him had physical therapy tonight, so naturally Tony said he could handle one night by himself. and so it went, small talk, dancing with multiple partners, drinking, and repeating the cycle. he was only 38 so all the ladies still saw him as a bachelor (I made him younger in this story just because). Seeing no one of interest at all, until Christine evearheart came over this time with no pen and paper just a sympathetic smile
"Hello Tony." she said bitter sweetly
"Brown" he said in return as she ordered herself a drink before turning her attention back to him.
"What brings you here?" He asked noting her lack of a recorder.
"Sadly not my journalism" she turned and waved her hand just slightly in the direction of a certain young man
"My fiance, he works for Intel and got invited."
He smiled as her fiance smiled at them eyes twinkling.
"I was hoping I could get him to hop ships. he's an expert in design, and I interned him when he was in school so"
Christine nodded, "yes he's told me all about interning at SI."
They sat in silence for a few moments, just staring at the lights.
"I'd like to apologize Mr.Stark"
He searched his mind for whatever for
"What for?"
She started up at him greenish blue eyes glinting in regret
"For being so cruel to you eight years ago. The day you were kidnapped to go to Afghanistan, and basically become iron man, I had nothing to offer you but bitterness."
He chuckled "its fine, before what happened next I probably deserved it."
She shook her head "but I did it again a year later siding with Hammer who ended up being a jackass."
He laughed at this "he was"
"Even though you were saving the world while dying of palladium poisoning."
He choked on his drink
"W-what?"
She smiled slightly "word gets around fast."
The bartender gave the lady her drink, which Tony once again rolled out a few more fifties for it.
"What are you trying to say Brown"
She stepped slightly closer "what I'm saying is I'm sorry. and that you did the right thing with the accords, it's good work that your doing. its not your fault if half the used to be avengers seem like they had something up their arses"
Then she leaned forward and hugged him, which Tony awkwardly returned
" Have a nice life Mr.Stark"
He smiled as she left with the click of her heels to her fiance, him kissing her cheek as they met each other. Yep, he was paying for the wedding expenses.Seeing that it was eleven, and even though the fun doesn't start until after midnight he was really done with the party. done with the ball gowns, the etiquette, all the people that only saw him as one thing or the other. the man before iron man or the one after/right now. Saw him as the end to the great era if the avengers, it the superhero still trying to save the world. So he sipped his drink small chatted some more and was truly not living at all. all the women all looked the same to him. either equally to Pepper, party girls, old, or taken. He missed the world before iron man in these moments, if only slightly. when he picked up girls like cars, and had no quims about it. Now, not so much between his anxiety, invisible butler, hero stuff, and the nightlight in his chest. Not to mention though he was getting better, Vision still tended to walk through walls which while the man was used to it, many girls wouldn't be. not to mention he was still a heartbroken lump of clay because of Wanda still. he sent her a cell phone, she sent him all the stuff he'd given her. Honestly even though their crash was kind of totally his fault, even he couldn't blame her for leaving.

So with great superheroing comes great celibacy, which was how things had gone since him and pepper split. Even worse was how okay he was with the split, mostly because of the freedom they had both acquired because of it. The freedom that allowed him to walk into the chilly parking lot at least an hour before the event was over. everything seemed normal, humming AC/DC while fumbling with his watch to help him find the car. as he found the right one, and walked over to the car things got exciting.

A dart came out of nowhere stabbing him in the shoulder injecting him with something not nice. he hissed making a feral sound reaching back and pulling it out looking at it
"The hell" he asked no one
in that moment he threw the dart into the car locking it tight enough and putting the settings so no one would be able to lift or open it regardless. he'd be proud of its capabilities, if it weren't for the small factor that he was loosing consciousness. fast. the world got dizzy as he regretted leaving the party early, insuring that it would never happen again. he thought about Christine Evearheart and what she'd said about the accords and how nice she was, which was the last thing in his mind before everything went black.