The Pirate And His Sea

Chapter 6: How Tony Met Him

Following the man hesitantly, he said, "The Majing Corporation Building. You know where it is, right?"

The other man flashed him another smile. He seemed to be inclined to always have bright shining smiles that practically blinded you in their cheerfulness. Tony wasn't sure if he liked him for it or not. "Of course. Ah, here we are." Stopping in front of a brick building, he went to a small cargo unit that was pressed into the alley leading to the back lane. He unlocked it quickly – the padlock seemed to be made of some strange bronze metal that Tony had never seen before; that was interesting – and slid open the hatch to reveal a gleaming black and green motorcycle.

Tony couldn't help but let out a whistle. "Impressive," he admitted. It was a good motorcycle, close to a Megelli Sports model, and was obviously well loved, with no scratches and barely any dirt. He idly ran a hand down the seat while the man reached into the unit and grabbed two helmets, handing the second to him. As he wheeled the motorcycle out onto the curb, Tony glanced back at the building. It was (surprise!) a bar, the small sign by the door reading 'The Golden Fleece.' "This your bar?" He asked, strapping on the helmet.

The man laughed, another brilliant smile that Tony was coming to like crossing his face, and seated himself on the bike. "Yeah; I've had for it a couple years now. Wouldn't work anywhere else." He motioned to Tony. "Aren't you going to get on?"

Tony mumbled a few choice words under his breathe but threw his leg over the motorcycle, settling behind the other man. He only had a second to grab a hold of the other's sides before their rapid acceleration nearly tore him from the vehicle. They zoomed from the quaint street and into a more bustling part of town, despite the early time. They took the corners at barely legal speed, and Tony watched in morbid fascination as the needle on the speed gauge didn't once slip over or under the 45 m/h mark. Damn was this guy good; he didn't flinch at all, not even once! It did make him think if he'd ever gotten a speeding ticket before... And that reminded him, he didn't even know this guy's name.

"Hey!" He shouted over the wind, placing his mouth near the other's ear, "I didn't catch your name!"

"And you let me drive you here anyway?" There was a sarcastic snort but the man shrugged as they began to slow down. The Majing Corporation Building was ahead, and they wheeled to a gentle stop in front of the doors. "It's Percy," he told Tony.

"Percy," Tony rolled the name around on his tongue as he slid off the bike. Pulling the helmet from his head, he handed it back to his new friend (acquaintance?) and took a few steps back. "I'm Tony."

"Yeah, I already know who you are, Stark." Percy revved the engine a bit and prepared to take off. "Who knows, maybe we'll run into each other again. See ya!" And with that he was gone, shooting off around the corner with a frightening grace.

"Huh." Tony eyed the street. "Interesting. I know where he works, so maybe sometime I could drop by... Oh look! The coffee shop's open!" With that he rushed off to get his dearly needed life-giving drink, and the matter of the mysterious Percy was shuffled to the back of his mind, but it lingered, and he found himself wondering.
————
And it was three days later that Tony did drop by, though he was completely sleep-deprived and almost hallucinating when he did. After staying away for thirty-five hours and ingesting probably a dozen cups of caffeine, he had been in the process of trying to find a name for his newly finished robot when the title, 'Percy' popped up in his head. Immediately it made him think of the black-haired man, and being in the slightly delirious state he was, he decided it was an excellent idea to go and visit him. He climbed into his car, which was thankfully controlled by JARVIS because it wasn't possible for him to drive safely, and wheeled off to the small bar called 'The Golden Fleece' he'd found those days ago.