Office Hours, Monday

[screwyoumarvel]

Steve was holding a special set of office hours this Monday, the better to lecture the hell out of at least one teenage costumed hero. Possibly two, if that blonde girl showed up, but he didn't know who she was and was pretty sure she hadn't known who was behind the Captain America uniform, so he wasn't really betting on that one.

But if Tony Stark didn't show he'd go and find him.

((NFB due to sekrit identities, please!))

Comments

[screwyoumarvel]

"What train thing? How many times have there been?"

[hoorayimrich.livejournal.com]

"...three now." He was a badass hero, Steve. Bad. Ass.

[screwyoumarvel]

"You're a teenager," Steve said, sounding pained. "This stuff is dangerous."

[hoorayimrich.livejournal.com]

Tony's bruises agreed with that statement!

"So? It's not like I haven't worked at an adult level for, oh, all my life," Tony replied. "A.I.M. was trying to kill Tony Stark, not Iron Man."

Actually, they did try to kill Iron Man, but that was a minor detail.

[screwyoumarvel]

"AIM is a pack of idiots dressed as beekeepers," Steve said.

What? It was true.

"And I don't care what level you've worked at, you are not an adult. You are a minor, and a student I am responsible for."

[hoorayimrich.livejournal.com]

Shhh. His universe was still young when it came to evil organizations.

"So, what then? Two years makes that big of a difference in your mind?"

[screwyoumarvel]

"At your age? Yes," Steve said, because duh. "Yes. Two years can make a huge difference." Who knew, Tony might even grow a sense of self-preservation. One could dream.

[hoorayimrich.livejournal.com]

Ahahahahahaha. Oh, Steve. Dream big.

"And in two years, my company could be gone if I 'act like a normal kid'."

[screwyoumarvel]

"I don't know your situation," Steve said calmly, "and I'm not telling you to act like a normal kid, because you're not a normal kid. You're Tony Stark. You're a genius. Although acting like a normal kid sometimes might be good for you. I'm telling you to not fly around half-cocked and acting a lot more stupid than I know you are in a suit of robotic armor, because I want you to live to see eighteen."

[hoorayimrich.livejournal.com]

Like almost sending a train into a crowded intersection? Oops.

"I can't just stop," Tony replied, gripping the arms of the chair. "I know this isn't a game and that I can really get hurt. I figured that out when someone killed my dad in a plane crash. But I can't just let--people get away with this."

He was using emphasis, Steve. Fear him!

[screwyoumarvel]

"You could die," Steve told him. "And you can't do anything, or fix anything, if you're dead."

Barring certain circumstances, conditions may vary, consult your universe's rules.

[hoorayimrich.livejournal.com]

"I should be dead now," Tony snapped. "But I'm not."

Familiar issues? Maaaaaybe.

[screwyoumarvel]

"So, what, you've decided to court death?"

[hoorayimrich.livejournal.com]

"No, I've decided to do something to protect what I have left."

By recklessly placing himself in danger. WAIT UNTIL HE MEETS THE HULK.

[screwyoumarvel]

"By dressing up in a robot suit and going off half-cocked and getting yourself killed."

Don't ask how Steve knew Tony was going off half-cocked. He just did. He knew Tony Starks too well to expect anything else.

[hoorayimrich.livejournal.com]

"I've done just fine so far." A beat. "Other than the A.I.M. thing."

[screwyoumarvel]

"Uh-huh," Steve said, totally not buying that for a moment.

[hoorayimrich.livejournal.com]

Damn it. "I'm getting better."

[screwyoumarvel]

"Uh-huh," Steve said again.

[hoorayimrich.livejournal.com]

"Well, it's not like I'm expecting crazy guys in weird costumes to show up." He came from a normal wor--ahahahaha. Oh, oh man. Almost managed to type that.

[screwyoumarvel]

Steve almost went with 'uh-huh,' again, willing to let Tony talk himself into a corner, but he couldn't resist pointing out, "You thought that once you had a costume no one else could?"

[hoorayimrich.livejournal.com]

"...I don't really think I started the trend, to be honest," Tony replied. "S.H.I.E.L.D. has been following the Tong for years and that Mandarin guy has mentions way back when I was a kid."

Which he wasn't anymore. He was an adult. Yes.

[screwyoumarvel]

"You're still a kid, Tony."

[hoorayimrich.livejournal.com]

"I'm a kid as much as you're just a teacher."

[screwyoumarvel]

"You're a kid, and I'm a teacher," Steve said calmly. "I never said I was just a teacher. I am, however, a whole lot older than you."