There are an awful lot of angry eyes when the rainbow light breaks into fractals and dissolves into the visible stream. Tony steps back, lifting his hands ever so slightly. Rogers looks like he wants to punch him, but he just squares his jaw instead and somehow makes Tony feel small and inadequate.

It must be something that men from that era can do. His dad used to give him that same look.

Tony exhales very slowly and squares his shoulders. It’s time to pretend he doesn’t care.

Striding forward, out of the intricate pattern that the Bifrost left, Tony slips his hands into his pockets. “Sorry, got called away. What did I miss?”

“Tony?” For some reason, Tony keeps on forgetting about Pepper. His stomach flip flops as she pushes through the others and flings her arms around him.