Iron Wolf

Chapter 8~ Angel In The Darkness

Tony's POV

"You sure you're going to be ok alone?" I asked Melody as she got out of the car.

"Dad, I'll be fine. It's the library, not a college party."

"Ok, ok. I just worry."

"Worry about yourself. Go have fun with Uncle Rhody. And tell him I said hi," Melody said, walking into the library. I had no idea why she insisted going to the public library when she had her own private library, but I wasn't going to say no to her socializing, even if it was just a little bit. I made my way to the bar Rhody and I had agreed to meet at and my eyes feel on the T.V. as soon as I sat down.

"Same suit, but painted red, white, and blue. Look at that. And they also renamed him Iron Patriot. You know, just in case the paint was too subtle," Joan said, while pictures of the repainted War Machine suit displayed on the screen.

"It tested well with focus groups, alright?" Rhody said, defensively.

"I am Iron Patriot..." I mocked. Really, the whole thing was pretty stupid.

"Listen, War Machine was a little too aggressive, alright? This sends a better message," Rhody continued.

"So what's really goin' on? With Mandarin. Seriously, can we talk about this guy?" I asked, flashes of Melody occupying my mind. I had to know what was going on. How else could I protect her? I moved closer to Rhody, letting him speak.

"It's classified information, Tony. Okay, there have been nine bombings."

"Nine," I repeated, processing what he said.

"The public only knows about three. Here's the thing, nobody can ID a device. There's no bomb casings," He continued.

"You know I can help, just ask. I got a ton of new tech, I got a prehensile, I got a...I got a new bomb disposal. Catches explosions mid-air," I offered and he nodded.

"When's the last time you got a good night's sleep?" He asked

"Einstein slept three hours a year. Look what he did?"

"People are concerned about you, Tony. I'm concerned about you. Melody's concerned about you. Did you know she texts me every other day asking me to talk sense into you since she apparently can't?"

"You're gonna come at me like that?" I asked. How dare he use my daughter against me.

"No. No, look, I'm not trying to be a dic..." He was interrupted by a little boy and girl who approached us, "...tator."

"Do you mind signing my drawing?" The little girl asked.

"If Richard doesn't mind. You alright with this, Dick?" I asked.

"Fine with me," He said.

"What's your name?" I asked the little girl, signing the drawing.

"Erin," She answered.

"I loved you in A Christmas Story, by the way," I told the little boy.

"Listen, the Pentagon is scared. After what happened in New York... aliens, come on. They need to look strong. Stopping the Mandarin is priority, but it's not..." Rhody trailed off.

"It's not superhero business, I get it," I finished.

"No, it's not, quite frankly. It's American business," He replied.

"That's why I said I...got it," I said, looking at the drawing. As cliche as it sounds, I suddenly didn't feel good. I placed my hand on my face, trying to snap out of it.

"Are you okay?" Rhody asked, genuine concern in his voice.

"I broke the crayon," I said, looking at the late crayon.

"Are you okay, Mr. Stark?" Erin asked.

"Take it easy. Tony..." Rhody said.

"How did you get out of the wormhole? How did you get out of the wormhole?" The little boy whispered. Was this because of the Christmas Story comment? I shot out of my seat, the chair groaning as it slid across the floor and I walked off.

"Wait a minute! Tony!" Rhody called after me but I kept walking.

"What'd he say?!" I snapped.

"Tony!" Rhody called.

"Sorry. Have to check on the suit...make sure...okay," I said, stepping into the Iron Man suit that was parked outside the bar. I collapsed to my knees, exhaustion taking over.

"Check the heart, check the...check the...is it the brain?" I asked the AI.

"No sign of cardiac anomaly or unusual brain activity," JARVIS answered.

"Okay, so I was poisoned?" I asked.

"My diagnosis is that you've experienced a severe anxiety attack."

"Me?" I asked, incredulous. I didn't have anxiety; there was no way I was having an anxiety attack. I heard Rhody knocking on the suit's head before I saw him.

"Come on, man. This isn't a good look, open up."

"Uncle Rhody, please get out of the way," A familiar voice said. An angelic voice. Probably the only voice that actually made me feel safe. Loved. Melody.

"Dad, listen to me. It's ok, you're ok. Everything's ok. Just talk to me," She whispered only loud enough for me to hear.

"Sorry, I gotta split," I said, picking her off and boosting into the air. I held onto Melody tight. It wasn't that she couldn't naturally fly because she could. She could easily fly alongside me. It was the fact that she was the only thing grounding me, even though were we hundreds of feet in the air.

She didn't complain once as I gripped her hard enough to bruise. She just laced her arms around my neck and let me do what I needed to. After a few minutes of comfortable silence, we landed on her balcony.

"Do you want to talk about it?" She asked, looking up at me. Her eyes weren't accusatory, they were understanding; like she didn't expect me to do or say anything.

"Not particularly."

"Well, your only other option is to spend the next hour and a half watching The Little Mermaid with me. It's your choice," She shrugged as if this was the most normal thing in the world. And then it hit me. This was normal for her. If this really was an anxiety attack like JARVIS said, then it was no wonder she was handling this so well. She was used to having her own anxiety attacks; she had an anxiety disorder. It's why her idea of socializing was going to the library, not going to a party.

"Fine, but you had better get out all the good snacks," I said and she smiled.

"I only eat the best junk food." I hugged her after everything had been set up.

"Thank you," I said.

"For what?"

"For just being you." My angel in the darkness.