Chapter Text
Stephen wasn't exactly surprised to wake up caught in Tony's octopus arms instead of separate on the bed. The look of warning from Rhodes was returned with a rueful shrug and a gesture at his trapped state. Rhodes rolled his eyes but quietly left them alone. Thankfully, Stephen was off that day because when he looked again he saw Tony watching him thoughtfully. The doctor had a good idea what would happen next and he wasn't sure if he wanted to encourage Tony's fresh obsession over him or try to force him to back off. The choice was taken out of his hands before they even got out of bed.
"You're one of mine now," Tony said with quiet confidence.
"It's been a long time since I haven't been," Stephen admitted ruefully. "Like I said yesterday, I won't fight this."
"The time trance," Tony said, nodding in understanding. "I have to clean house and dodge SHIELD's attempt to get me under their thumb but this isn't going away any time soon, Merlin."
"Heaven forbid," Stephen murmured with a smile tugging at his lips.
"You might have a bit of a cheat code with me but you know that's not enough to get on top," Tony smirked.
"Literally or figuratively?" Stephen teased lightly. His response was to be kissed breathless.
"Yeah, that's what I thought," Tony breathed softly as he allowed Stephen to catch his breath. "You move like a lover or a protector when it comes to me and you responded perfectly to my kiss without even noticing. I don't give things up easily when I care about them. You show every sign in your reactions that I treasured you in those other timelines."
Stephen looked away, embarrassed at being caught when he wasn't trying to get Tony interested. When he wanted the inventor to have a choice.
"Not in all of them," Stephen said quietly. "I cherish the memories of when you did choose me even as just a friend but I won't try to recreate it. You are not the same as in those other timelines and it would be a disservice to expect you to be the same. It would be an insult and possibly a delusion to expect things to be the same or for you to choose me in any capacity when you don't have the same memories. If you need me you only need to call but I will not insert myself into your life without invitation, not with how I could slip into those other memories and habits. You deserve..."
Tony cut him off sharply. "To make my own choices, not be told what I am doing and feeling and making it out to be for the best to abandon you. I thought you said you knew what it meant in my book, clearly I was mistaken."
"No, I know what it means," Stephen corrected quietly. "My own wishes aren't relevant in this is all."
"Nope, not buying it," Tony glowered. "What are you trying to duck out of?"
"I..." Stephen hesitated and then caved, answering in response to Tony's determined look. "If I could have what I want I would stay with you in whatever way you would be willing to have me, even as just a servant if that was what it took. I know you've had to deal with stalkers and people being obsessed with you so I thought... Well I suppose it doesn't matter what I thought. It isn't possible anyway, not if our world is to survive the Mad Titan and Dormammu from the Mystic side."
"If you try to pull the time loop stunt again I am not giving you back to the other Sorcerers," Tony growled in barely suppressed fury over the incident.
"There was no other way," Stephen said in defeat. "I doubt that I will find a different way this time either. I barely survived it mentally the first time."
What went unsaid but both understood was that he hadn't actually survived it physically the first time since nearly every loop he had suffered and died. The possessive and protective glint in Tony's eye told Stephen that the inventor was serious about finding a different way if he didn't want Tony to step in. Stephen knew he couldn't fight Tony seriously and win. He couldn't bring himself to seriously hurt the inventor and he knew it.
The shift in Tony's hold from octopus comfort to restraining was unexpected. At the same time Stephen had known he wasn't going to escape Tony even if he had tried. Tony's firm scowl told Stephen that Tony had figured him out enough to know what he probably would have done next.
"You know that I am a possessive bastard, right? That you are my Merlin?" Tony asked with deceptive calm.
Stephen swallowed a suddenly dry throat but nodded his silent agreement. Tony smirked at the concession and rewarded him with a kiss. When they came up for air Stephen knew that Tony wasn't letting him quietly fade away out of his life even if the hope of that had originally been almost non-existent.
Tony watched him, probably recognizing that Stephen was incredibly off balance with the shifts happening between them. In truth Stephen feared that at least some of this was a dream. He also knew a way to provoke proof but the consequences were not exactly easy to handle if he truly wasn't dreaming.
"Oh, you think this is a dream or a nightmare," Tony chuckled in realization. "No, it's not. I'm probably moving way too fast with you but if I ever kept you captive as an enemy and took a fancy to you none of this should be too far off."
That's when it clicked. This wasn't lovable, silly, playboy Tony trying to flirt aggressively with him while getting information or Iron Man firmly staking a claim. This was Merchant of Death Tony making sure that his wizard understood his place in Tony's world.
"I'm sorry it took so long to realize my place, my Lord Merchant," Stephen murmured. "I will try not to forget again."
"I may be Iron Man but I will let the Merchant loose to keep you now that I know some of what you survived for me," Tony said, quietly confirming Stephen's assessment. "Your work contract will be either completely bought out or amended to give me priority by the end of the week. I saw your watch collection and you will soon have a new special one from me which you will wear from now on."
"I can stand on my own, you know," Stephen said conversationally as he got his mental balance back.
"That doesn't mean I will back off," Tony smirked playfully, easing back on the Merchant of Death vibes.
"Stephen?" The Ancient One's voice asked very carefully. Stephen groaned as he recognized the question and battle readiness in the single word spoken from the bedroom doorway.
"Hello, Mother," Stephen sighed, acknowledging her claim while also indicating that whatever she was seeing wasn't a problem.
"Hm, I will see that tea is ready by the time you both are ready for the day," the Ancient One informed them expectantly. "The paperwork for the adoption has gone through by the way. The Council of Masters is quite put out at your official recognition as my son."
"Of course they are," Stephen said grumpily. "Half of them think we are lying about the time incident and the other half think I should be blamed for it happening in the first place and be placed on trial for capital punishment. Not a single one of them actually investigated either or I would have had to sit through multiple rounds of questions. So far you are the only one who has asked me anything resembling more than gossip seeking."
"I have corrected a number of them publicly," the Ancient One informed him. "They should not be assuming the worst, nor should they blame you for this when it was clearly the Eye of Agamotto which caused this. I expect your suitor to court you properly or I will be quite cross."
The Ancient One left them to get dressed as they lay briefly stunned by her words. True to her words tea was waiting on them as Rhodes made everyone breakfast out of what little Stephen kept in his pantry and fridge. Rhodes and Doctor Yinsen watched her cautiously as they assembled the meal and the Ancient One worked on the various beverages.
"I will be informing the other Masters that you were protecting the fact that your suitor also was caught in the event. It might get a few of them to actually pay attention for a time," the Ancient One said, eyes dancing with mischief. "I am certain that Mr. Stark will have few troubles with visiting Kamar-Taj. I believe that today is your day off? You will be returning with me."
Stephen groaned in humiliation and focused on his tea while Rhodes laughed outright at his misery and Tony smirked at the heavy suggestion.
"I can't come unless Tony does. There has been some concern about activity from the Tesseract around him without the artifact being anywhere near him," Stephen corrected. "I need to continue monitoring him."
"That does somewhat explain the additional activity from the Eye of Agamotto," the Ancient One said thoughtfully, cutting off the laughter from Rhodes. "Time and Space are ever entwined after all."
"I need to make a few calls after breakfast," Tony informed the Ancient One as he accepted his plate of food and cup of tea.
Stephen noted that he made no objections to the replacement for his beloved coffee. A fact that had his blood brother's eyebrows rising in quiet surprise.
"There were timelines when you also came to Kamar-Taj, Anthony," the Ancient One informed him with open amusement. "It seems that you are quite serious about Stephen or you would have objected to the tea. Although, you did eventually acquire a taste for truly quality tea. I will allow Stephen the headache of starting your training. It will be enlightening for both of you. When you both are ready I will finish your training personally as I did in the now defunct timeline."
"I don't really want to turn to Dormammu out of jealousy," Stephen muttered.
"There should be no risk of that as you well know," the Ancient One said disapprovingly. "You know perfectly well this time that he didn't cause your car accident on purpose and no one is whispering to you that Anthony only wants you as a slave."
"Oh?" Tony asked with open interest. "That explains a few things even without a lot of the bleed over I got when I touched him mid trance."
The Ancient One froze briefly before continuing the motion of sipping at her tea. Stephen winced since he knew he was in for a lecture later.
"Yes, I figured out that touching him when he was still in the green field trance thing was a mistake. No, I don't regret it," Tony drawled. "Yes, I will listen and learn about the basic safety stuff when it comes to magic that I am clearly missing. No, I don't think Stephen could see me move to touch him or possibly move safely at all if he could to dodge my touch at the time."
"Well, that does cover a number of things that I would have inquired about in my lecture to Stephen," the Ancient One primly acknowledged.
"We were under a severe time crunch and that was the only safe time I thought we had," Stephen defended himself. "We also couldn't afford to lose the coming confrontation."
"We will discuss your use of the Eye of Agamotto later," the Ancient One said severely.
"I take it this Eye thing is important?" Rhodes asked tentatively.
"The amulet is part of the reason the Order of Kamar-Taj even exists," Stephen admitted with a wince. "Don't tell your superiors about it. If it must be mentioned then call it a religious object that must be returned to the Order if something happens. I don't plan to be carrying it around but better there is something in place rather than losing it. That would be the equivalent of at least five heavy nukes in the wind without activating the amulet. If someone activates it the danger level goes up enormously even if they have training on how to handle it."
"So what you did on Titan?" Tony asked very carefully.
"An attempt at finding a safe path through a minefield with a blindfold on and a string with a magnet on the end. Better odds than we had without it but still ridiculously dangerous in and of itself," Stephen sighed. "And I have enough training to mostly use it safely."
"Yeah, I am definitely not giving you back if your Order makes you do the time loop fight again," Tony said flatly, ignoring the low impressed whistle from
Rhodes. "You are definitely one of mine."
"Time looped fight?" The Ancient One asked, dangerously calm. Stephen winced so Tony answered for him.
"That's one I got partial bleed over from," Tony sighed. "Dormammu, I have come to bargain was his opening line at the start of each loop. Not sure about where the weird landscape and space is from though."
"You are definitely grounded," the Ancient One told Stephen flatly. "I want the full story but if nothing else hearing that you are under partial punishment for the time incident will make a few of the Masters happy."
"That's fair," Stephen said weakly.
"So how badly did you screw up?" Rhodes asked brightly. Stephen gave him a sour look but it was the demanding look from the Ancient One that had him answering honestly.
"Strictly speaking in accordance with the rules taught to beginners? I committed a capital crime but the end result kept our planet from being eaten as a snack by Dormammu," Stephen admitted. "On Titan I used it more in line with what is allowed but still an emergency measure. I was desperate with Dormammu and wasn't exactly sure that I was doing anything except traping us together for eternity. As long as I held the loop in the Dark Dimension Earth was safe."
"Where was I?" The Ancient One asked archly. "I hardly think that I would have allowed you to turn yourself into his torture toy for eternity."
"Dead, less than two hours," Stephen said stiffly. "You died in surgery after taking a fatal hit in that fight and told me with astral projection how to fix my hands. I believe you also admitted that you could never see past your moment of death no matter how hard you tried."
"The amulet tested you and you passed," the Ancient One grimaced. "The incident with Dormammu obviously has more to it than has been said but it was just as clearly part of the Guardian test. I will have to report to the others that you passed the amulet's test during the time incident and that is why everything is still stable and relatively sane. As a warning, Dormammu will remember your confrontation should you face him again. On the bright side the others literally cannot refuse your place as my Heir as the amulet will not work for anyone else now. It might work for me as a courtesy for past service but I find that unlikely. We never got on that well and it would have demanded a heavy price from me if I had tried such a stunt with it. The fact that you appear to have very little damage from that fight is a miracle."
"You speak as if it is alive," Yinsen said with a frown.
"Magical artifacts of sufficient age and/or power tend to develop personalities as well as a certain amount of self," Stephen explained to the other Doctor. "The combination tends to create... Well, I term them Living Artifacts. They can act with actual thought and on their own without direction at times."
"Like Jarvis," Tony said softly. Rhodes, who had been mildly interested to start, froze as it clicked for the man.
"Yes, if you were assessed as your creations being magical in nature then you would likely be classed as a Master Technomage, Master Enchanter, and Master Artificer," Stephen smirked. "All of your children count as Master Works regardless."
Tony cursed while Rhodes burst out laughing.
"Tony isn't really fond of magic. It's been used against him to many times," Stephen explained to Yinsen. "I plan to make him get over some of that so that he can more easily escape the next time he is captured or trapped."
"Finish your breakfast. Today is likely to be very busy," the Ancient One instructed.
They followed her direction and got ready for the coming day.