It was one of those days where Tony had just felt too wound up to do anything constructive. Heâd had been working on perfecting his friendâs new eye which now just needed the colours balancing out and some of the weight distributed better. It had taken some doing as well as a million and one conversations about what could be added, what she wanted it to do with regards to movement and was she sure she didnât want a digitalised heat tracker installed.
He was only slightly joking.
There was still Dum-ees circuitries that needed tweaking and some parts definitely needed upgrading and the arc reactor powered car ⌠Heâd just showered and just no. He needed to get out of his little cave and just do something for himself.
Nat was out, no doubt visiting the other couches she draped herself across. he did miss her company even if most nights they just shared the same space. No words to exchange. There had been fewer since most of her conversations started with how you feeling? or more directly, from him, was the focus of the complex procedure. He knew she worried it might not work and it was something he needed to remind her that could be a reality.
Raising to his feet, Tony pulled a tight smile and patted Dum-ee as he gave a concerned chirp. âIâll be okay bud, just hold the fort till I get back. Jarvis, power down the lights. and begin diagnostics on all current projects.â
He wasnât sure how or even why he ended up at the infirmary. A weak case of just following his feet that felt strangely familiar. Years ago heâd visited orphanages just to spend time with the children who wound up there and just offered them his time and affection. There were large sums of funding too but that was neither here or there.
Following a few signs, he wound up in the maternity station. The staff were a little surprised to see him and a few comments were shared and laughed over. One or two of the children were âfoundlingsâ with little tags attached to there tiny ankles stating just that. It was heartbreaking and another trigger that as a growing community they needed to do more, though funnily enough one of the staff was nursing her own and without though had expressed enough to keep the youngest happy and gaining its strength.
âDo you mind if?â gesturing to the small cot and Tony was sure the poor woman was close to falling off her chair with both shock and delight.
âYouâd like to? ⌠of course, Mr Stark! Just be sure to wash your hands, sheâs due a feed in the next half hour so if youâd like you can give her that tooâ
She was so small, little fingers just barely wrapping around his finger as he gently rocked her. A little fussing but nothing a few soft-spoken words couldnât soothe. Only then did he catch the lonesome figure standing at the glass screen, the staff seemed to pay her no mind but he was curious. it was hardly a respectable hour. Tilting his head he kept his gaze firmly on the young woman who seemed to be looking back with a deer caught in headlights expression. With a slight nod of his head, he gestured for her to come in. To sit down if she needed or even to just say hello to some of the small bundles.
Rahne blanched under Starkâs gaze, almost choking on her own spit with the nervous swallow sheâd forced down her dry throat. She could feel her eyes begin to prick with tears at how wide they were, reflecting the moonlight like a true wolf in the night, trying to place them anywhere other than on the dark brown eyes that held her firm. Steady. Kind and welcoming as she noticed how he was nodding for her to come in. Inviting her to join him with a happy smile. A smile sheâd never seen before in any textbook pictures, but maybe that was her mind playing tricks on her.
Then, she had The Fear. The Fear that only a chaotic spaz who doesnât know how to emotionally handle themselves would know. Did he know? Know sheâd only gotten herself in trouble time and time again since she got- no. No, he doesnât know because she was invisible. A face in a sea of nameless, mutant, superhero faces. He didnât know her. Was he just being...kind? Offering a stranger the opportunity to indulge in a conversation with his brilliance? Or, give him the chance to tell her, to her face, to âget lostâ?
Rahne waved those thoughts away, choosing to look at facts that she could see right in front of her rather than relying on the preconceived notions sheâd come to believe in her studies. Maybe the only rational thing sheâd done in what seemed like years. He was cradling a child that didnât belong to him, and by the tag attatched to the babyâs foot, she didnât seem to belong to anyone. âFoundling.â Rahne read the word like reading her own eulogy. A child left behind. Unwanted (as far as she knew, but projection was strong with this one).
She wanted to believe that Starkâs choice to come there that night to hold some babies that needed to be held was some sort of publicity stunt. A chance to further his grandeur as the greatest man and hero to ever grace planet Earth. But who was around to care for that sort of thing anymore? The hospital staff? No, it was late at night with no cameras, no journalists, nobody around to impress. This was all Stark.
Eventually, she sucked in a shaky breath and made way for the entrance to the ward. She ducked her head inside the soothing room, keeping her eyes on the babies that she passed, smiling at their restfulness. She chose to stand on the other side of the crib from Stark, curious eyes hidden behind fiery strands of stray hair as she sighed contently at the baby he was rocking back and forth. She swore sheâd never seen a child more peaceful in her life.Â
It was a few heartbeats before she realized Stark was waiting on her to say something. She scrambled her brain looking for something, anything to say.
But once she thankfully passed on, âso, you come here often?â like a blessing from God himself, she resigned to resting her cheek on her folded arms as she leaned against the crib for support, never having been more unsure of herself. However, she somehow never felt safer at Haven than she did at that very moment, surrounded by warmth and serenity created by the nurses that cared for these children. Even passing them by on her way in, Rahne knew they all loved their jobs and each child inside the ward like their own.
She didnât have to wonder why not a single child was crying, or upset. Maybe if sheâd slept here sheâd never have had the nightmares that kept her wandering in the cold the last four nights. But, perhaps, that was hopeful thinking.Â
The nightmares would never leave her just like they never left the rest of the wakeful Haven residents that she passed on her late-night wanders. Everyone a zombie to their own mind even if the infection hadnât reached inside the protective walls yet. Yet.
Regardless, at least these children were safe and in good hands. That she could rest easy on. She wondered if similar thoughts were running through Starkâs head in that moment, not that she had nearly worked up the courage to ask him yet. But he was awake as well at this ungodly hour. Something mustâve kept the genius from his bed.
