Stephen and his constant companion came back to life in the barren wasteland of Titan. He took a deep breath of the dusty, thin air and relished in it before he even opened his eyes. Tony did it, he thought and smiled in delight. The delight didn't even fade when he realized that he was alone on a foreign planet. He'd known that that would happen - he was the very last one to be resurrected, after having made sure that everyone else got out of the Soul Stone, and the returned Guardians of the Galaxy had left the planet hours ago. They hadn't known that he had also died, after all.
He would get home. He just needed a little bit more time to gather his strength, meditate and flex his aching and stiff muscles before he could start his first attempt at conjuring a portal home. It would take time, he knew. But he would return to Earth in due time, stronger and readier than ever to take up his duties as Guardian of the Sanctum once again.
Thank you, he told the one person thousands of lightyears away who had made it all possible. I knew you could do it.
Despite their short acquaintance he would miss having Tony in his life. The man had been a breath of fresh - and snarky - air in Stephen's life that had become a little bit dull in the verbal sparring these last few years. Wong was good, no doubt about that, but he wasn't on Stephen's level. Tony was. Tony was on Stephen's level in everything that mattered and on a couple more beside that.
It's not about you, he reminded himself again. Tony would be happy with his soon-to-be wife; Stephen would be content.
The Cloak hugged him and Stephen gently caressed the fabric in thanks. "Hello, old friend," he whispered before he settled down for a little bit of meditation. He didn't feel quite strong enough for standing up yet.
In time. He had rather a lot of that now after all.
Stephen sank into a trance and didn't even notice the first tendrils of green spreading out from under him. The Cloak looked at and touched the leaves and the emerging flowers for a few minutes before it also settled down after enveloping Stephen fully.
It would watch over and protect Stephen while the sorcerer gathered his strength.
*
Hold on, Stephen. I'll get you home.
Tony had refused every offer of help on his mission to go back to Titan to bring the very last one of the lost ones back. He'd kept his explanations vague, unwilling to discuss the tangled mess of emotions inside of him. Even the ship was his - enhanced by Asgardian and Chitauri tech of course - but mostly his own design. His own inventions were the only ones he could really trust after all and his only companion was FRIDAY who was needed to run the ship. She was more than enough entertainment on the way to Titan and on the way back he would have Stephen's company. Hopefully he would be in a state to actually interact with Tony. If not… Tony had made sure to have enough medical equipment on board. Stephen Strange would get back home alive, Tony was not prepared to accept any other outcome.
The last memory he had of Stephen haunted him and Tony only hoped that Stephen wasn't too hurt and able to survive on the foreign planet until Tony could get to him.
"There's still someone I have to get home," had been his only explanation and only a handful of people knew who he meant and where he had to go.
He would never forget the look Pepper had given him when he'd confessed to her that he would take his experimental ship on a trip into deep space to save the wizard she'd only met briefly. They both had known that it was a kind of goodbye and their last embrace had been bittersweet. It had been coming for a long time and all the hoping in the universe wasn't going to change that.
"Take care of yourself and call me the second you're back," she had demanded of him and Tony had gladly agreed.
All things considered it had ended better than it should have. Tony had almost bit his tongue bloody in the attempt to keep in the desperate "I'm sorry" that wanted to escape but he wouldn't insult Pepper like this. "Take care of everything here in the meantime," he's said instead and Pepper had let him go with a wave and tears in her eyes.
"Good luck," had been her last words to him.
"Boss?" FRIDAYs voice broke him out of his reminiscing. "We're approaching the target. But…"
No. Ice cold fear gripped his heart and he looked up in alarm. "What?" he snapped.
"The sensor readings are all wrong for what we have on record from your first visit. According to that this planet should be a barren wasteland."
One single person should be easy to pick out among all that dead stone and metal…
"Are there no lifesigns?" Tony hated the way his voice broke. Don't let me be too late, don't let me be too late. What if he came back sooner? What if Thanos hurt him too badly? Is there water on this dustball? The questions were all here, but not the answers. Don't be dead. He couldn't lose Stephen. Not now, after only having just found him on this crazy trip through space and time.
"There are too many, boss. Here, look." The holographic screen that appeared in front of him showed him a planet that, at a first and hurried glance, could double as a double for earth. More green than blue, so less oceans, yes, but without a doubt a living, healthy planet.
"Are we in the right place?" Tony's voice had become a whisper as a thousand possible scenarios came to mind at once.
"Positive. Galactic coordinates from the Benatar, as well as from the Mark L suit, confirm that yes, this is the planet known as Titan."
"Can you," he broke off to gather his thoughts. Stephen, are you down there? "Calibrate the sensors to human lifesigns only. You know our position from the first visit - search in that area. He couldn't have gone too far." Please, I need you to be alive.
"Already done. There's a sign that might be human but it's overlaid with so many others that I can't be sure."
It was in the right location. It was exactly the location he'd seen Stephen fade away. Good enough.
"Search for a place where we can set down without disturbing anything if possible. I'm going to get ready."
"Got it, Boss."
'Getting ready' basically meant throwing on an armor over his clothes these days and could be accomplished in about one or two seconds. After a quick scan of the atmosphere he left his head and hands bare but was ready for a full cover-up should it be necessary.
"Here are the coordinates." FRIDAY sent them to his glasses and Tony followed the marked path for a couple of minutes until he came into a clearing he vaguely recognized from before.
The barren landscape had been transformed. The lush vegetation was in a shade of green Tony had never quite seen before and the flowers were beautiful but completely new. Not so the turquoise butterflies that were fluttering all around but were concentrated on the spot were Stephen was sitting on the ground, deep in meditation.
The sight was so spectacular and so beautiful that Tony didn't do anything but stare for a long moment. The Cloak noticed him first and raised a corner to wave at him before it beckoned him closer. Tony followed the invitation after a heartbeat.
The Cloak reached out to him and by instinct Tony held out his right hand. He smiled when the fabric wound itself around his wrist and squeezed it in greeting. God help him, he liked that opinionated piece of fabric.
"Stephen?" he asked quietly after he's fallen onto his knees just like years ago when he'd tried to get Stephen out of a panic attack. He carefully reached out to touch Stephen's arm and when the Cloak didn't intervene but drew back to allow him full access he permitted himself another smile and took a relieved breath.
It took a couple of minutes but finally Stephen shuddered, blinked and opened his eyes. They were even more beautiful than in Tony's memory and his smile became a delighted grin. "Hello, Wizard," was his greeting. "You taxi home has arrived." He wanted to say so much more, he wanted to wrap Stephen in the biggest hug ever, he wanted to laugh and cry at the same time.
Stephen just looked at him. "Tony?" he finally asked confused. His voice was raspy and Tony could have hit himself for not bringing water with him. "What are you doing here?"
The stupidity could be explained by lack of food, water and adequate mental stimulation, Tony supposed. It sure as hell wasn't in Stephens nature or otherwise Tony wouldn't be here. He hoped that it wasn't more and that Stephen hadn't come back wrong or something like that.
"I'm here for you, Stephen," he finally said as gently and calmly as he could. "To get you back home." With the hand that wasn't still in the Cloak's grasp he carefully touched Stephen's face. His left arm wasn't was it once had been but state-of-the-art medicine, his own nanotech and a little bit of magical help from Wong allowed him some range of movement and a relatively pain free existence. It was more than Stephen had, Tony knew. He let his eyes drop down to Stephen's trembling hands, folded in his lap. His fingers, at least, still worked and he still had all the feeling in them. Tony used them to gently stroke over Stephen's face and brush away dirt and dried blood. "I'm sorry it took me so long," he finally said. Sorry for taking so long to put everything right again; sorry for being so late in coming for you; sorry for all the missed time.
Stephen just blinked at him for a long moment, clearly overwhelmed and not really comprehending. He looked adorable and Tony just knew that this had been the right choice. This was the man he'd met in myriad timelines and who had always given his everything to help Tony set things right. This was the man with whose echo he'd fallen in love with in a hundred different ways under a hundred different stars. But now it was the real thing not some fata morgana, destined to slip away as soon as Tony left this or that particular timeline to return to his own.
"Come." He stood up with a groan and held out his hand. After a moment Stephen took it and let Tony help him up. "It's time to go. Except," he hesitated for a moment when an awful thought occurred to him. "You don't want to stay, do you? I mean there's more here than last time, granted, but still… Earth is better, isn't it?"
Stephen still just stared at him and the worry began to creep back.
"Stephen?"
Stephen blinked once again before he shook his head. He stared at Tony for a long time before he reached out and settled a trembling hand on the right side of Tony's face. Tony leaned into the contact and smiled encouragingly. Stephen's fingers wandered over his face and into his hair, carefully brushing through it. Suddenly there were tears in his eyes and his voice was choked. "How long?" he asked. "By the Vishanti, Tony, how long has it been?"
It took him a second to get it. "Oh, you mean the hair?" He put his own right hand on his hair, suddenly embarrassed at the lighter shade and the white that had creeped in over the last few years. "Or do you mean the wrinkles?" His face had fared better than his hair and he was glad about that. He didn't want to be too old for Stephen.
"Don't evade, you look stunning. How long, Tony?"
The compliment didn't even reach him at first but after a moment he beamed. "Good, so do you," he whispered before Stephen's impatience became too much to witness. "Seven, almost eight, years, since you've left. About a week since we got you all back. I came as fast as I could as soon as I realized that you weren't on Earth," he finally confessed and was surprised when Stephen jerked back in shock. "You didn't know?" he asked. "It's what you saw, isn't it?" Had he done something wrong, had he missed a detail that should have been obvious and had dragged it all out for far longer than necessary? Had he…
Suddenly Stephen lunged forward, put his arms around Tony and just hugged him as hard as possible. "Thank you, I'm sorry, I didn't know, I'm sorry, sorry, I'm so sorry, I should have…" Stephen, usually so calm and collected was crying actual tears in his arms and Tony didn't know how to react, despite being familiar with that reaction. He could still feel the bruises Peter had left when he'd clung to Tony like a drowning man to a lifeline.
"Shh, it's okay," he finally said while hugging Stephen back and drawing soothing circles on his back. "It's just the shock, pretty much every one of the lost ones reacted like this when they realized what happened. Shh, I've got you, you're alive and you're safe. I've got you", he repeated over and over again.
"'The lost ones'", Stephen finally whispered a few minutes later with his head still buried in Tony's neck. They were back on the ground by now, Tony's suit was back in its casing and the Cloak was draped around both of them. "Is that…"
"What we're calling the ones gone in the Snap, yes," Tony answered. "You know us humans, we need a name for everything. It seemed fitting."
"Gone, but not forgotten and always with the hope of being found again?", Stephen offered and if Tony hadn't been already hopelessly been in love with him he would have fallen in this instant.
"Exactly. Which is why I'm here. I'm glad that I've found you. Ready to go home now?"
One of the butterflies settled in front of them and he watched as Stephen raised his head and really looked at his surroundings for the first time. Stephen took a moment to gather himself before he held out a hand to the butterfly. It fluttered onto his hand and Stephen studied it for a while.
"Yes," he finally said. "Take me home, please."
He let himself be helped up by Tony again before he stared with wide eyes at their surroundings. He seemed to really see them for the first time. Stephen was not only the most beautiful man but the most beautiful being Tony had ever seen in his life.
Let me read this right, Tony begged of a forgiving universe which had them granted a second chance. I don't want to fuck this up before it even started. Carefully he put his hands on both sides of Stephen's face and caught his eyes. Telegraphing his every thought and wish he leaned forward to finally get the kiss he'd dreamed about for years.
After a moment of stunned indecision, Stephen leaned into him, put his hands on Tony's hips and surrendered to the kiss with a delighted shudder.
The butterflies still danced around them but neither of them saw them while the Cloak made sure that none of the little things could disturb them.