At the door of Stark Tower

[justakidfrombrklyn]

He doesn't really have a phone anymore, at least not one that isn't a burner on the end of it's life, and that phone never had the number he needed in it, so he didn't call ahead. Instead, he's just there, heading for the front desk to see if perhaps, just maybe, he has a friend here. Or at least an ally.

"Steve Rogers for Tony Stark, please?"

Comments

[actuallyhasaheart]

Tony leans back against the elevator wall, gestures lazily to one of the sensors, and keeps on grinning.

"Oh, you know. Same-old same-old. Inventing, dodging assassins, defending the free world, you know, the usual. You?"

[justakidfrombrklyn]

"Pretty much the same thing, other than, uh... the inventing," he admits, glancing around. He's not quite sure what Stark knows about everything, other than what's been plastered all over the internet at this point, but he's happy to pretend like everything was hunky dory, or as close to it as it ever got.

[actuallyhasaheart]

"Well, we can't all be super-geniuses."

Tony refrains from giving Steve a friendly thump on the shoulder as the elevator comes to a stop, merely gesturing for him to follow out into his penthouse.

"Okay, so, this floor is totally secure these days," he comments as he heads behind the bar. "Just so you know. Did a complete refit during repairs, you know, about the time Fury chatted me up for some shiny new Starktech for those flying fortresses of his."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

He winces at the mention of Project Insight.

"I'm assuming it's secure FROM SHIELD as much as anything else, right?"

[actuallyhasaheart]

Okay, Tony just has to give him a Look.

"Really Steve, this is me we're talking about, you think I'd let them have any backdoor I didn't already know about? Of course it is."

He gestures to a barstool, pours himself a couple fingers of whiskey, and something a little... stronger. For Steve.

"Give that a try. Me and Bruce distilled it ourselves."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

He looks at it for just a moment before taking the glass and taking a sip. It tastes like rubbing alcohol... but it does seem to give him the kind of buzz he remembers from some of his old cough medicine, so he keeps it near him.

"How's Bruce doing? I'm assuming he's been here working with you."

[actuallyhasaheart]

"Oh, he's doing great! Yeah, you'll probably see him around sometime, even though I refitted an entire floor for him. Maybe you can pop in and say hi."

Tony sets the bottle (okay, okay, repurposed flask, complete with masking tape and Bruce's handwriting in green sharpie, because he has a sense of humour) next to Steve's glass.

[justakidfrombrklyn]

"Maybe," but he sounds beat.

"I uh... well, I really hate to ask this, but given the current situation" and the fact that he can't remember anything but watching Fury die on his living room floor, "I'm kind of out of an apartment. And a job, I'm sure you've noticed. So I was wondering if you... might have a couch or two I could crash on?"

[actuallyhasaheart]

"How's a bed sound?" Tony offers instead, because yeah, Steve sounds beat.

[justakidfrombrklyn]

The relief pouring off of him is palpable.

"I could definitely use a bed."

[actuallyhasaheart]

"I kinda figured," Tony said, grin turning wry. "You want another drink, or...?"

[justakidfrombrklyn]

He shakes his head, because he's already asking enough of Tony.

"So... how much do you know about what happened, if you don't mind me asking?"

[actuallyhasaheart]

Tony takes a sip of his drink, and licks his lips before answering.

"Enough. I know enough."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

He looks at Tony a little more firmly now.

"Do you know about what I'm doing now?"

[actuallyhasaheart]

"Having a drink?" No, he can't help himself.

[justakidfrombrklyn]

And Steve actually looks genuinely angry for a moment before breathing out and letting some of it drain away.

"Do you know about Bucky?"

[actuallyhasaheart]

Oops. Tony hadn't meant to actually piss Steve off, just... poke him a little.

"Your BFF from back in the day, right?" he asks. Only he's not stupid, farthest thing from it, and the way Steve reacted... "Except there's something more going on, I'm guessing, than a trip down memory lane."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

He swallows, audibly, and nods.

"They... the things they did to him. I read the whole file and I almost puked. He looked into my eyes and he didn't even know me."

Except for when he'd looked into his eyes and HAD known him and both had been more painful than the bullet wounds ever could be.

[actuallyhasaheart]

Aaaaaand that needed a replay.

"Hold on a sec, are you saying he's still alive? Because I could've sworn you were the only successful super-soldier type to come out of that whole mess."

Tony takes another sip of his drink, and raises an eyebrow at Steve. Because, really?

[justakidfrombrklyn]

That startled him a little, because apparently Tony Stark actually knew LESS than him about something. Steve wished he could enjoy that a little.

"He's alive," he said, voice firm, "and he was being used by HYDRA as an assassin."

He breathed out and ran a hand through his hair before rubbing at his face. This whole thing.

"Apparently, something Zola did to him before I got him out back in the war helped him survive the fall. He was picked up, fitted with a new arm, brainwashed..."

He pulled up his bag and held out the folder ever so carefully.

"My Russian's not great but it's all in there."

[actuallyhasaheart]

"Well... fuck." Tony takes the file though, and starts leafing through it.

[justakidfrombrklyn]

Steve's going to let him read that while he drinks some of the interesting alcohol that Stark gave him. He has a feeling that if he doesn't drink it quick, it won't have a chance.

[actuallyhasaheart]

Well it is pretty high proof; Tony and Bruce made it special for Steve.

Tony's own drink is forgotten for a while, as he works his way through the file. It's. Bad. And the little wrinkle of concentration between his eyes from reading handwritten Russian slowly morphs into a frown line, until he has to put the file down, and knock back the rest of his drink in one go. And then pour himself another, fuck.

He knocks the second drink back, and runs a hand through his hair, before turning the page. It's horrible, and fascinating, all at the same time.

[justakidfrombrklyn]

"Getting the gist of it, Tony?" he asks, and it's quiet and a little bitter, but surprisingly, not at Tony.

"They called him the Winter Soldier. But it's Bucky. I know it is. Some part of him still knew me."

Even if he almost killed me.

[actuallyhasaheart]

"Yeah," Tony replies after a moment for his brain to parse English again. "Yeah, I'm getting it. Fuck. They seriously fucked him up, Steve. Big time." He shakes his head, and resists the urge to pour himself a third drink, even though he thinks he deserves it for wading through the Winter Soldier file.