You Send Me

1.

The first time it happens, it's in the middle of a battle. Some self proclaimed 'King of the Earth' with another army, this time a bunch of a mutants, who somehow managed to take the President hostage. Of fucking course.

So they're in DC, fighting fire breathers and shape shifters and invisible men like it's nothing (because really, compared to their other battles, it's easy). Clint is on top of a building, taking out who he can from above and warning the others. Natasha and Steve have the streets, fighting off wave after wave. Thor and Hulk are just all over the place, electrifying and smashing, respectively. Tony's soaring overhead, blasting airborne mutants and dropping to the ground to help overwhelmed team mates every once and awhile. It all works out pretty well.

Eventually, they start making their way to the general area in between the Smithsonian museums, where today's super-villain awaits their arrival.

"This is it, the boss battle." And they hear it twice, once out loud and another time through the comm a few milliseconds later, "Just like in the video games, yeah? Except we don't have any extra lives."

"Clint?" That's Natasha, "Shut up."

Steve intervenes with the calm but commanding voice of Captain America, one he only used while suited up, while he was the leader of the World's Mightiest Heroes and all that jazz, "That's enough, both of you. We need to keep quiet, we're getting close."

Doing as their told, no one speaks again until they're ambushed by another batch of mutants in between the American History and Natural History museums. They easily jump back into action, some more literally than others, and it isn't too long before the number of mutants seems to be thinning drastically.

While shoving the edge of his shield up into a man with spikes sticking out of his body like a porcupine, Steve catches a glimpse of the 'King', regularly known as Dr. Jordan Pryce, standing on the steps of one of the museums. It distracts him too long, however, because soon he's being knocked to the ground by a blast of… Smoky, shadowy something. It freaks him out a little bit, honestly, but he doesn't have much time to wonder what it is, because, out of nowhere, Tony is there helping him up and blasting the mutant who had shot at him, "Hey, Cap."

"Hey," Steve answers breathlessly, sniffling a little as he looks around to survey the conditions of the fight.

"Listen, before you go all Captain America again," Tony gets out, taking care of another mutant somewhere behind Steve, "I just saw Pryce."

Steve flicks his shield and it hits about seven of them before returning to the Captain, "Me, too. Check it out with me?"

"Great idea…" Iron Man grabs the back of his suit with both hands, grinning under his mask, "Clench up, Starship."

And then they're in the air, any thoughts about what the hell a starship is leaving his head as they fly out of the fray. It's over as quick as it begins and soon they're back on the ground just in front of Pryce, who offers them a flippant smirk, "Hello, boys."

Steve opens his mouth to speak when suddenly, probably loud enough for Jordanto hear, Thor's voice booms through the comm, 'Oh, my friends! I have forgotten to congratulate you on your wonderful new relationship!'

"Thor!" Steve snaps, trying desperately to ignore the way Pryce is snickering at them, "Not the time!"

'But Steven, I have yet to congratulate you! I caught you both 'making out' the day before yesterday and-'

"Thor," Tony cuts him off again, though he sounds like he's trying not to laugh himself, "We're kind of busy right now. Just save it for later."

'Fine, Man of Iron,' There's a brief pause in which they can hear a crushing sound, indicating that Thor probably just took another mutant out, 'Later.'

Thor forgets to congratulate them, anyway.

2.

The next time it happens, it's movie night. Clint picks a horror movie, since it's his turn, and no one really argues because his second choice is Lord of the Rings ("Because of Legolas," Tony says one day, and Barton doesn't even try denying it) which he's picked way too many times before. They're glad for a break. Steve's never heard of this movie before, the Exorcist, but he gets pretty excited, anyway. Everyone, except for Thor who doesn't know what the hell it is either, sends him sympathetic, knowing looks. He doesn't know why.

Halfway through the movie, he figures it out. He's managed to shrink himself down small enough to hide in Tony's side, much to the older man's amusement, and is pretty much watching only half of the time. Thank God it's dark, because Natasha and Clint would never let him live this one down.

Thor stands to go get himself a drink, but Steve doesn't even notice. He's caught up in a suspenseful moment, they all are, that's sure to end in someone or something jumping out of nowhere in the movie. He can't bring himself to look away, though.

So they wait for it.

And wait.

And wait.

And wait.

And then…

"Anthony! Steven! Your cuddling reminds me that I haven't yet expressed how happy I am that you're together!"

They all scream, every single one of them, so thankfully no one but Tony notices how he actually nearly falls off the couch in fear.

Thank God.

3.

The third time it happens, it's three o'clockin the morning. Steve has, for once, somehow managed to get Tony to sleep instead of staying up all night in the lab. He tries to convince him that he isn't tired, that he doesn't need any sleep, but Steve shoots him one of those looks and the genius is giving in, not as begrudgingly as he wants to seem.

So that's where they are, curling around each other and sleeping soundly, when the blonde's eyes blink open. He can remember, when he was little, if he had a nightmare, sometimes he go into his mother's room and just stand there, stuck between waking her up and going back to bed. She was always so tired, so he'd feel guilty for waking her up, but he was still really scared and wanted to be comforted. It didn't matter what he thought, though, because usually she would wake up on her own if he stood there long enough. She said it was because her body could sense someone else was in the room, staring at her. He never understood what that felt like… Until now.

The first thing he sees is bright blue eyes way too close to his, causing him to yelp girlishly and bolt into a sitting position. Right into the intruder.

"Ow!" Steve hisses and clutches his head, chest heaving for breath after being terrified.

"Ah, Captain, I am sorry to have startled you… And injured you." That's Thor's voice and when Steve turns to look, the God is rubbing his own forehead with a frown.

He feels Tony shift next to him, then, grunting out as he blinked groggily, "The hell is going on…?"

Steve moodily slumps his shoulders and continues holding his head. Jesus Christ, it was like slamming your head against a solid rock! "Thor happened."

Suddenly, the younger Stark of the two he knows (or, rather, knew) is sitting up next to him, sighing in exhaustion, "Dear Lord… What are you doing, Thor? It's the middle of the night." He isn't his usual snarky, cheerful self, which just proves that he really did need the rest, "And I swear to God, the other God, not you, if you say a word about congratulating us on being together, I will take you down." That's more like it.

"Well, I simply…" Steve can see the realization on Thor's face as it finally seems to dawn on him that maybe this wasn't such a great idea, "Right, yes, I apologize. I should not have woken the both of you up at such an hour for such a trivial matter. I will let you go back to sleep, then. Goodnight, my friends."

"G'night," Steve replies, the ghost of a smile on his face. He really couldn't stay mad at Thor for very long, the guy was like a giant puppy or something.

"'Night," Tony echoes as Thor closes the door, falling back into the pillows with a groan, "And I was having such a lovely dream about you, too."

Steve laughs, sleepily and quietly but still a genuine laugh, and leans down to kiss Tony, "Just go to sleep, Stark."

Tony cuddles into his chest with a yawn, "Aye, aye, Cap'n."

4.

The fourth time it happens, they're in a meeting.

"So let me get this straight," The gruff voice of one of the councilmen fills the conference room where Fury, Steve, Tony, Hill, and Coulson sit around a large table, "You believe you work better with just the six of you?"

"Honestly, sir, that's exactly what we're saying." Steve's voice is all polite soldier, not authoritative CaptainAmericaor regular, sweet Steve Rogers.

Phil nods his agreement, clasping his hands together on the table top and leaning forward, "I've seen them work together before, for what it's worth. It's like watching a perfectly oiled machine with custom made parts. Add one wrong piece and the whole thing falls apart. In this case, anyone and everyone else is that one wrong gear."

"We're already a chemical time bomb, in the words of our friendly neighborhood green rage monster," Tony adds offhandedly as he plays with his phone, "Anyone else added to the mix would possible destroy the world and all that, so…"

There's a long pause while the Council thinks this over before the woman speaks, "Fine, the Avengers Initiative will not recruit any new members… For now. So onto the next topic, then. We believe that Avengers should not-" She's interrupted by a cell phone ringing loudly. Steve's cell phone, to be exact. The whole room, Council included, turns to glare at him.

"Cell phones, Captain, are usually turned off during meetings." Fury's steady gaze lives up to his name and it sends a startled Steve in action.

He scrambles for his pocket, hurriedly pulling out his phone and glancing at the buttons. Which one ignores a call again? "I know, sir, I'm sorry, I forgot I had it on, I didn't-"

"Steven!" There's Thor shouting through the phone and, oh shit, what has he done?

"Oh my God," Tony sighs heavily, having a feeling he knew what was coming, "You turned the speaker phone on, Steve!"

"What does that mean?!" He's pressing random buttons now, but nothing's working.

Oblivious to the commotion on the other end of the line, Thor continues on, "Tony is present as well? Wonderful! Today marks the anniversary of the day you two found out your love was mutual, does it now? Six entire months!"

Tony's raising his voice now, pointing at the phone almost angrily, "Hit the button next to the green one! No, Steve, it's white, hit the white button!"

"I'm trying!" Steve yells back, too-big-fingers stumbling over the two-small-buttons.

"You do not sound happy, friends," They can practically hear the frown in Thor's voice as Phil reaches over and takes the phone out of the Captain's hands, "Is this not a joyous occasion for-"

Coulson has apparently done the impossible, found and pressed the right button, as Thor can't be heard anymore, and the agent is now holding the phone to his ear, replying calmly, "They'll talk to you later, Thor. Goodbye."

He hangs up and an uncomfortable, awkward silence settles over them. Even the Council is shocked into silence.

Until…

"So… This relationship won't interfere with your performances, will it?"

5.

The last time it happens… It's finally alright. It's during a wedding in the dead of winter, because Tony refused to be cliché and get married any other time of year ("We're superheroes, dear, we don't do normal.").

Bruce, Clint, Natasha, Pepper, Thor, and Jane are in the wedding party (Bruce and Pepper end up being the Best Man and Maid of Honor, respectively, despite Tony's insistence that he isn't a bride so there shouldn't be any bridesmaids).

So they're at the reception with friends and acquaintances, just no family. Neither of them have any left, after all. That's okay, though, because they're part of a team now, their own dysfunctional little family that isn't connect by blood but still counts anyways.

The newlyweds sit together, eat together, greet and chat up guests together, laugh together, do everything together, because tonight is their night and they can now. It's great. Wonderful. Amazing. One of the party guests will later tell a reporter that they literally never left each other's sides and, while she didn't know him incredibly well, she's never seen Tony Stark smiling so much. It's a real smile, too, no a fake one to impress and charm. A 100% authentic, delightful smile.

That same smile is still on his face as Steve takes his hand and tugs him out onto the floor for their first dance as a married couple. It's an oldie from the 40's, I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire by the Ink Spots, because even Tony agreed that their first dance would not be to ACDC. No way in hell.

Steve isn't much of a dancer, anyway, and Tony doesn't mind, for once not caring about giving the crowd a show, so they just hold each other tight and sway slowly. Though the talking quiets down to near silent chatter as everyone watches the happy couple, still no one but Tony can hear the blonde singing along in his ear. And he loves every second of it.

"Tony?" Steve stops singing after awhile to speak to him, murmuring still as he looks into his husband's dark brown eyes. He's honestly never been happier.

"Hm?" Tony hums just as softly and presses closer, another smile gracing his lips. A beautiful smile. The most beautiful smile in the whole world, the Captain thinks.

"I love you." There's so much more to it than that, though, so much more. He wants to say it all, to let Tony know how in love he is. That he'll do anything for him, that he will never let him go, that… That… He doesn't even know anymore, though, because there's just so much emotion and feeling balled up inside him that he can't explain it, can't describe it, can't untangle it. It's just there. But that's okay, because he knows Tony can hear all the depth to those three words when he says them. Tony can hear it because he feels the same.

"I love you, too, Steve."

And Steve smiles back, all sweet and loving and gorgeous and his, because yeah, he caught the intensity in Tony's voice, too, "You're perfect. Really."

Shaking his head playfully, Tony snorts and leans in to close the gap between their lips, "I think you've got us all mixed up, Captain Rogers. You're the perfect one."

"Captain Stark-Rogers," Steve corrects gently, bringing a hand up to brush a stray strand of hair off of Tony's forehead, "And… How about we're both perfect, okay? Together."

The song ends suddenly, before Tony can answer or kiss Steve or anything, and everyone is clapping. It brings them out of their trance and they step apart, hands clasped together. They share a private sort of smile and then return to their table, where the rest of the wedding party is waiting.

Pepper touches Tony's shoulder as he finds his seat next to hers, "We're going to make our speeches now, alright?"

"Alright, go on then," Tony smirks slightly, nodding at her, "Talk about me and how awesome I am."

"How awesome we are," Steve cuts in without missing a beat, playfully rolling his eyes at the other and squeezing his hand, "Stop being so conceited."

"Aw, but Cap, you're supposed to love me just the way I am!" The philanthropist pouts, which only serves to make Steve chuckle and press his lips to his cheek.

A couple minutes later, Bruce stands and taps his fork against his glass. The whole room slowly hushes and soon they're all staring at him in anticipation, waiting to hear what he'll say. His speech is every bit as socially awkward and shy as he is in front of anyone but the team, but he sometimes sends his 'family' little, happy grins, grins he really reserves for them. Anyway, despite his withdrawn demeanor, the speech is really quite sweet. He talks about how he's known the both of them for five years so far, knew them as a couple for three and a half of those, and he's spent enough time around the two of them, one on one and with a group, to be able to tell when they're legitimate about what they're feeling. And he can tell now that the pure bliss on their faces is real. They truly make one another happy, so what more is there to say?

Pepper stands next, because she's Maid of Honor and maybe there's a certain order to who speaks when with these things. Tony doesn't know for sure, though. She goes on to say that she's known Tony Stark for longer than she thinks is healthy, which earns laughter from everyone one, but she's never once seen him so alive. There was a time, she admits, when she hoped she could be the one to bring that kind of life, that kind of joy and love, to his eyes. But that was never meant to be and, knowing now how his life turned out with someone other than her at his side, that's probably for the best. She smiles warmly, eyes watering with happy tears while she pulls them both up for hugs before falling back into her chair.

Clint's up then and there's no beating around the bush with him. He cuts right to the chase, begins almost as soon as he's standing and everyone is quiet again. Love is something you don't understand, won't understand, unless you're in it. Unless you're feeling it. And even then, no two people love exactly the same, so you'll never truly understand anyone's love but your own, if you're even lucky enough to understand that. So he doesn't have much he can say about Steve and Tony's love, except what has already been said. They make each other happy, anyone can see that. They complete each other; make one another whole, and no one in this room, no one in the country or the world or the universe or anywhere beyond that will ever understand it. No one but them. Then, just as abruptly as he started, he stops and sits back down. It stuns everyone for a moment, because no one, not even the Avengers, knew Clint could be so deep and serious.

After that, Natasha rises and clears her throat. Her usual confident poker face is gone, replaced with one colored with a whole lot of different emotional crayons. That helps make her relatively short speech seem just as heartfelt as it really is. She spent weeks thinking of what she was going to say up here, she tells everyone. Weeks. Trying to make her words do their relationship justice. But love is indescribable, just like Clint said. So what was she doing, spending so much time worrying about it? It would only end up sounding fake and well-rehearsed, anyway, so she figured she'd just improvise. And here's what she's got; Tony Stark and Steve Rogers are in love. That's it. Because that's all any of them really need to know. Then she offers the newlyweds a smile, quickly blinking away the tears that are beginning to well up in her eyes, too. Damn weddings.

Then Jane is standing, totally messing up the whole boy-girl-boy-girl pattern. Huh. Maybe there wasn't some universal order for the speeches that everyone knew but Tony. Or maybe she just went 'fuck it' and stole Thor's spot. Either way, she begins to speak. She's been a friend of the Avengers for a long time now and, while she doesn't know them as well as they know each other, she feels like she knows them pretty damn well. By now, she can't say much that hasn't already been said, but she just wants everyone to know that they make each other happy. They take care of each other when one is sick, refuse to leave the stiff, uncomfortable hospital chairs if one of them is injured until whichever it is can return home, stay up all night comforting the other in case of nightmares. They balance each other out perfectly and honestly, she's never met two people who were better for each other than them.

When Jane is back in her seat, Thor climbs to his feet and grins brightly at everybody. "I have but one thing to say to my dear friends, something I have tried to say to them over and over again since the very first day they got together," He turns his head and dims his grin down to a genuinely-happy-for-them smile, "Congratulations."