Now or Never

Chapter 16 ~ Let's go get this son of a bitch

"Isn't that cute," Natasha says as she comes into the room, waking us both up with the sound of her voice.

I groan and look around. We're in the living room where we were last night. I look down at Rocket who's yawning as he stretches on my lap. I then remember the new information we found.

"Nat, we got something to tell the team," I say to her.

"That can wait until after we find Thanos." She tells me.

"That's what this is..." I trail off as she walks away to get the team and I groan.

Rocket just shrugs and we wait for the team to come piling in. Rhodey comes in wheeling Tony in a wheelchair with him hooked up to an IV. Rhodey gives Tony a bowl of food too as the rest of the team comes piling in. Bruce gets up the holograms that display the ones we lost.

"It's been 23 days since Thanos came to Earth," Rhodey speaks up.

"World governments are in pieces. The parts that are still working are trying to take a census and it looks like he did... he did exactly what he said he was gonna do. Thanos wiped out... fifty percent of all living creatures." Nat explains to Tony.

"Where is he now? Where?" Tony asks as he looks at all of us.

I open my mouth to say Rocket and I found him, but Dad speaks up before I can.

"We don't know. He just opened a portal and walked through." Dad says with his arms crossed as he leans against a table.

"Uhh actually—" I start.

"What's wrong with him?" Tony asks, cutting me off, as he looks at Thor who is seated far away from the team.

"He's pissed. He thinks he failed. Which, of course, he did, but you know there's a lot of that going around, ain't there?" Rocket says from his position on my lap.

Tony stares at the raccoon unbelievably. "Honestly, until this exact second I thought you were Build-A-Bear." He tells him.

"Maybe I am." Rocket says to him.

"Honestly Uncle T, this isn't the weirdest thing you've seen before," I say to him and he raises his eyebrows in agreement as I play with Rocket's fur and pet his head and behind his ears.

"We've been hunting Thanos for three weeks now," Dad speaks up, getting everyone back on track. "Deep space scans, and satellites and we got nothing. Tony, you fought him."

"Who told you that? I didn't fight him. No, he wiped my face with a planet while the Bleecker Street Magician gave away the store." Tony says.

"Sherlock just gave away the stone willingly?" I ask.

"That's what happened," Tony answers me. "There was no fight—"

"Okay," Dad mumbles.

"—'cause he's unbeatable." Tony finishes.

"Did he give you any clues, any coordinates, anything?" Dad asks.

Tony makes some kind of fart noise before speaking. "I saw this coming a few years back. I had a vision. I didn't wanna believe it. Thought I was dreaming." He says, getting off-topic.

"Tony, I'm gonna need you to focus," Dad says to him.

"And I needed you. As in, past tense. She needed you." Tony points to me. "That trumps what you need. It's too late, buddy. Sorry. You know what I need?" Tony says as he stands and knocks his bowl of food over. "I need a shave. And I believe I remember telling all of you..." He stands as he rips out his IV.