Pawprints

When Tony came to, he was being watched- or more likely, stared at- by Joe.

Upon seeing Tony wake up, Joe flinched so hard it was almost comical, before scrambling out of the room like the Avengers were chasing him. Tony would have laughed, except he was pretty sure he had a concussion and his leg was aching a lot. Joe came back with Bob, and started babbling nervously, "What should be do? Should we tell the Boss? He woke up too early! What should we do, Oh God, what should we do?"

Bob put his hand on Joe's back and rubbed it, saying soothingly, "It's okay, I'm sure we can find a solution. Anyway, he's all tied up with the ropes and stuff, so he can't escape." Slowly, Joe's breathing stopped.

They were like an old married couple, Tony thought bemusedly. He would have tried to make kissy faces at them but there was a gag tied over his muzzle so they couldn't see his mouth.

Well, he did it anyway.

At that moment, the door to his cell slid open, and the Big Boss, as Joe and Bob called him, stepped into the room. Joe and Bob immediately shot up and scuttled behind him.

As Tony got his first proper look at the head honcho of this entire kidnapping, he saw a bald, bearded man with slanting black eyes.

Tony felt something akin to recognition flare up inside him. He'd seen this man before, but where?

"Hope you have been enjoying your stay here, Tony." The man grinned widely at him.

If he wasn't a dog, he would have replied with a one-liner sure to make the man angry, but he settled for glaring daggers at him.

"All matters aside, I must tell you how happy I am for you to finally join us." The Big Boss paused for a moment, before resuming. "I haven't introduced myself yet, have I? You can call me Q. I'm sure you don't remember me, do you? But of course you would forget, am I right?"

"This guy has a thing for rhetorical questions." Tony noted wildly. His heart rate was speeding up as he struggled to remember where exactly he had seen this man and why he seemed so familiar...

"One word," Q held up one crooked finger, his smile going bitter, "Afghanistan."

Instantly, Tony remembered. He was the man who walked beside Raza on the day he had woken up. He had been fleeing along with the others as Tony had knelt beside Yinsen's dying body...

"Oh, the Merchant of Death remembers!" Q clapped his hands in mock delight. "But wait, didn't he kill off everyone in the 10 Rings?" Q lowered his voice to a hiss as he stared into Tony's eyes, " Evidently not."

"I was there when you used your flamethrowers- very clever, by the way- and me and my brother, someone who you probably don't remember, we ran off to hide. My brother was young and innocent when he joined, the seniors such as my friends treated him as their family. Even Raza didn't pick on him as much as us. We found some empty crates, away from the other bombs. I was foolish, believing that the crates would help protect us. That we were clear out of the blast zone. I went into the crate first, my brother's back facing outwards as we huddled there. The logic behind this? He had always been stronger than me, and sturdier. It was only logical to put him on the outside, where he would face the blast more directly."

Q seemed lost in memory as tears started sliding down his cheeks. After waiting five minutes for him to continue, Joe cleared his throat hesitantly. The low rumbling sound seemed to snap Q out of it as he whipped back and snarled at Joe, "Shut up." Finally, he continued.

"The explosion caused the crates to collapse, and we were buried under mounds of rubble and dust. I have to scars on my back to prove it. I was safe from the blast, protected by the very rubble that had injured me. My brother was not so lucky. The explosion was strong enough to kill. I can still feel the pain when I heard him scream. He was my little brother, all that I had left of my family. I turned unconscious as the rubble shifted." Q stopped for a moment to swipe away the tears in his eyes.

Turning back towards Tony, Tony had to hold back a flinch as Q's eyes were full of rage. "Imagine my agony when I woke up to see my brother dead."

Stalking towards Tony, Q grabbed Tony's face. Tony swallowed a whimper as Q's fingernails dug into his cheeks. "I grieved as I escaped to New York. Seething with anger on that stupid press conference, where you pronounced yourself as 'Iron Man'. Time and time again I thought you had died, and you came back to life like a cockroach. I wanted to kill you, but you were too well protected to do anything that would kill you for certain. I bided my time, watching as the Avengers grew and you became more powerful. I knew there had to be a moment where you were vulnerable, completely vulnerable." Q let go of Tony's face roughly, his scowl giving way to a slightly crazed smile.

"And I knew that moment had come the second news started circulating around my network that Tony Stark had been turned into a dog. No one wanted to try anything- After all, Tony Stark would still be protected by that infernal robot JARVIS. But, I had something the others did not have- alien tech. I just had to find the right people willing to pay the right amount of money, and there it was. An easy plan to get revenge. Seems cliche, hmm? But it worked, didn't it? Now, your future is in my hands and the price will be paid." At this, Q started laughing maniacally.

Cliche? Yes.

Creepy? Yes.

Did Tony think that this man was insane? Hell, yes.

Tony was shaken out of his thoughts by Q's oily voice. "The Avengers will be given a choice. Pay the ransom of a hundred million dollars and the technology of the Iron Man suit and you will be released safely. If not, you will die. Simple enough, right? I will even give them the location of where you are being held. Obviously, the Avengers will come in either guns blazing or stealthily. I will be prepared for both. As my men fight, hopefully killing some pesky Avengers, I will be in this room, waiting for them. When they burst in," Q stepped closer to Tony and shot a finger gun at his head, "Boom. Kill you. And the Avengers will watch as a member of their team, their family, dies from a gunshot wound."

Tony couldn't help but shiver at the mental imagery. Sensing Tony's fear, Q's grin widened as he continued, "I have no doubt that I will die after that particular murder, but I did get my revenge after all, and that's all that counts."

"You're crazy." Tony wanted to shout. "You're a lunatic." He settled for looking away in disdain. Q turned away mockingly in return. "Enjoy your time belittling disgusting ol' me in your head, Tony. I don't think you can do that after you're dead."

As Q slammed the door shut behind him, Tony was left in the room with Joe and Bob, who were currently staring at Tony in fascination. Looking up, Tony prayed to whatever deity out there that the Avengers would find a way to get him back- preferably without him dying.