Oblivious

It had been 2 days. 2 days since Pepper got sick. Tony sat by her side always, ignoring the nurses’ warnings that it might be contagious. Cap watched Tony from outside the glass with worry. Tony held on to her hand, and never ever let go. He had been tested multiple times, always negative. Tony never went anywhere near the door. He hadn’t eaten or slept in 2 days. Nat and Pepper were in comas. Unresponsive, oblivious to everything. Tony just sat there, staring at Pepper’s pale face. The nurses would have made him get out by now, but Nick Fury had told them to let him do whatever he wanted, under S.H.I.E.L.D.’s responsibility.
Cap walked in and put a hand on Tony’s shoulder. He didn’t move. “Tony.”
Silence.
“Tony, you need to eat.”
More silence.
Cap pulled out a cheeseburger, Tony’s favorite, and laid it on the table next to Tony’s chair. Tony still didn’t move, and Cap left silently.
He came back later, about 5 hours later. The cheeseburger was still there, Tony was still in the exact same position. He sighed, pulled up a chair next to Tony, and sat down. Pepper had an IV sticking out of her wrist, and tubes running into her nose. She lay there, horrifyingly limp, and Cap realized how much pain Tony was in. It was hard enough for Cap, for a teammate he hardly knew to get sick and go into a coma, but for Tony, it was the love of his life.
“You need to eat.”
Tony didn’t even acknowledge Cap was there.
“Tony. You have to eat.”
Tony slowly turned to look at him. “I can’t.” He whispered.
Cap hugged him. And, for the first time, Tony didn’t resist.

Tony still never moved from Pepper’s room. Cap finally got him to choke down a cheeseburger, and he wished he could stay with him, but he wanted to research this virus. He went to the Helicarrier, and Clint was the first one to ask him how Tony was. He told Cap that Bruce had gotten back, but hadn’t been able to visit Pepper, because he was researching the virus from Natasha.
When Cap talked to Bruce, and he heard that Tony hadn’t left Pepper’s room since she got sick, his face softened. “Has he eaten?”
“Yeah, I made him.”
“Good. We don’t want him to work himself into a depression, so we’ve got to get him out of there, bring him back to everyday life. A couple of missions would do him good. I think you should be his partner, you’re trying to help him.” Bruce said.
Cap nodded. “Sounds good to me.”
They talked to Fury about it, and he agreed. He said that they could go to Russia, and take out a suspected Hydra base. Usually, they would have taken Nat to Russia, too, just in case they had to ask some locals, but under the circumstances, they couldn’t.
He went to the hospital, and practically dragged him out of the hospital, although Tony struggled a small amount. He never said a word, even after Cap told him where they were going. Cap piloted the helicopter to Russia, and landed in the snow, getting out, and throwing a white tarp over it, after Tony got out. Tony’s eyes looked fairly less dazed, and he was wearing the Iron Man suit. Bruce was right. It was doing Tony good, and Cap could see the change.
“So?” Cap smiled at Tony talking to him. “What’s next, spangles?” A bit of clarity shone through, and Cap smiled wider.

Tony felt better. He was extremely thankful to Cap for dragging him out of Pepper’s room, he couldn’t stay there much longer anyway, he couldn’t keep staring at Pepper’s lifeless body. Yet he couldn’t make himself move.
Now that he was out, he felt more like himself. He had a heavy heart, yes, but he felt himself become more functional as he stood out here, in a snowy forest of Russia. The oh-so-Russian landscape reminded him of Nat, but he pushed the thoughts of Nat and Pepper out of his mind. He felt guilty trying not to think of Pepper. You can’t think about Pepper right now! You have to do this right now.
Tony stood there in the snow, looking around. Steve stepped out from behind a tree, wearing civilian clothes. Tony tilted his head quizzically. “Why the boring clothes, Cap?”
“I have to go in looking like a civilian. When I call for backup, you come in, preferably with my shield, and/or suit. Go out with a bang.”
“Kay, so where do I go in the meantime?”
Cap was honestly surprised Tony was asking him to tell him what to do, but he didn’t let it show.
He shrugged. “The Hydra base in supposedly in a sushi place. So camp out around there.”
Tony nodded. He silenced the suit, apparently a new feature, and headed down to the sushi place. He landed on the ground in the alley behind the building. He pressed himself against the wall, so no one could see him through the window. “Ready, Cap.” He said, over the comms.
Cap walked down the street casually, walking into the sushi store, and asking what they had. Tony could hear everything through Cap’s speaker. “Depends on what you’re looking for, sir.” A feminine voice answered. The girl couldn’t be more than 20.
Cap didn’t say anything. Cap, what the heck are you doing? Tony thought, still pressed up against the wall of the sushi place. Cap stayed silent, then spoke up. “S-s-sorry, you just…..remind me of someone I used to know.” He seemed to step closer, because the girl’s breathing became louder. “ Which makes it all the more harder for me to do this..” Tony heard the girl try to scream, but Cap must have covered her mouth with his leather gloved hands. Then she went silent. “Sorry.” Cap whispered. “Tony, you can come around to the front now.” Tony did, and he saw the girl sitting in a corner, her wrists and ankles bound together, and she was tied to a metal pole. She was slumped over, unconscious, probably from chloroform. The girl was beautiful, slender, with a good figure. And she looked exactly like Peggy Carter had looked when she was young. She looked the exact same, except for the 21st century clothing, and her hair was long and straight. After seeing that she looked like Peggy Carter, Tony could understand why Steve wouldn’t stop staring at her.
“Come on, Cap.” Tony said softly. Cap yanked a couple of tarps that were around the shop down, and pulled them over the girl.
“Just in case anyone comes.” He explained to Tony. They found a door to a basement, but Cap groaned when they got to the bottom of the stairs. It hadn’t been a mistake. There had been a Hydra base down here, but, apparently, it had been cleaned out hurriedly, but Cap found a Hydra uniform shoved under a floorboard that proved that there had been a Hydra team camped out down there. Cap carried the uniform, and the Hydra pistol that he had also found, and Tony carried the girl to the helicopter. They took off, Steve piloting, and Tony looked at her name tag.
“Elisabeth.”
Tony bound her restraints tighter, and made a gag.
“Geez, Tony, cut it out. You’re going to make it look like we’re kidnapping her.” Cap said, with a smile.
Tony also blindfolded her.