Kyra dipped the SHIELD drama and headed across the map to meet Tony in Malibu. She rode her bike down Evans Avenue, speeding up until she teleported herself to California, coming up on Downey road. Kyra parked her bike next to a very familiar suit, smiling at the fans crowded around it as she went into the bar to meet the man himself.

Tony and Rhodey looked to the door as some day drunks hooted at the newest patron who'd come in wearing a green top and black leather pants. Tony smirked and returned to his food while Rhodey stayed turned, watching Kyra effortlessly smash a guy's arm against a bar stool. The man was probably twice her size, but acted half her age as he lamented over his broken limb.

"Hey, kiddo," Kyra greeted Tony as she came up behind them, nodding at Rhodes.

"Sup, Doc?" Tony asked her as she sat down at the table with them.

"Maybe planning an insurrection," she said nonchalantly. "You?"

"On speed dial with the president," Tony smiled at her before clarifying himself, "of Columbia. Got you into residency."

"That's great! You're the best," Kyra thanked him by stealing a fry off his plate before she ordered her own food. "So, who am I shadowing?"

"Don't know. JAR's got a list ready back at the house."

Suddenly, their attention was drawn to the tv where fashion police Joan Rivers was making fun of the new War Machine.

Kyra burst out laughing when she saw the redefined suit. "Switching to Team Cap now, Colonel?"

"It tested well with focus groups, alright?" Rhodey blushed with embarrassment.

Tony's mocking didn't help ease his mind. "I am Iron Patriot..."

"Please tell me mine isn't gonna look like that!"

"She needs a suit?" Rhodey asked, referring to the Asgardian.

"Yes, she needs a suit," Tony and Kyra said simultaneously, but both for different reasons.

"It's a ge-nu-ine Stark Iron suit. It's more valuable than Armani," she winked before kissing the designer on the cheek. "As... long as it doesn't look like the flag threw up on it!"

"Listen, War Machine was a little too aggressive, alright?" Rhodey added in his defense. "This sends a better message."

"So, what's really goin' on?" Tony changed the subject. "With Mandarin. Seriously, can we talk about this guy?"

"It's classified information, Tony."

The colonel looked between his best friend and the girl, sighing when it didn't look like they would let this go.

"Okay, there have been nine bombings."

"Nine," Tony repeated.

"The public only knows about three. Here's the thing, nobody can ID a device. There's no bomb casings."

"You know I can help, just ask. I got a ton of new tech, I got a prehensile, I got a...I got a new bomb disposal. Catches explosions mid-air."

Rhodey looked on worriedly as Tony rambled on all the ways he could help.

"When's the last time you got a good night's sleep?"

"Einstein slept three hours a year," Tony defended himself, "Look what he did?"

"People are concerned about you, Tony," Rhodey looked to Kyra, who had stopped eating as she focused on Tony. "I'm concerned about you."

"You're gonna come at me like that?"

"No. No, look, I'm not trying to be a dic..." Kyra elbowed him as children came up to their table.

"...tator."

"Do you mind signing my drawing?" The little girl asked, and Kyra smiled, her cheeks tinting as she remembered when she used to be just like that.

"If Richard doesn't mind. You alright with this, Dick?"

Dick sighed and leaned back in his chair, "Fine with me."

Tony smiled pleased and studied the drawing of himself in his Iron Man suit. "What's your name?" Tony asked the girl, but didn't bother asking her brother. "I loved you in A Christmas Story, by the way."

"...aliens, come on. They need to look strong. Stopping the Mandarin is priority, but it's not..."

Tony stressfully scribbled at the drawing as he listened to the colonel. "It's not superhero business, I get it."

Since when did the government get to decide when superheroes would be involved?

"No, it's not, quite frankly. It's American business."

America. America wasn't the entire world. There were other countries. Continents. Planets. Solar systems. Galaxies....

"That's why I said I...got it," he wanted to end the subject, his breath coming in hard.

Kyra, the student of magic and neurology, studied her friend carefully as his autography took long.

"Hey, Tony. Let's go take a walk."

"Are you okay?" Rhodey asked him with a concerned hand on his shoulder.

"I broke the crayon," he said with a hand running over his mouth. A strong reaction to something so trivial.

"Are you okay, Mr. Stark?" The little girl asked and Kyra got off her seat.

"Take it easy. Tony..." Rhodey called for a glass of water.

Before Kyra could get to the other side of the table, the boy had said something to Tony and suddenly he jumped off his chair and walked out.

"Wait a minute! Tony!" Rhodey and Kyra went after him.

"Sorry. Have to check on the suit..." Tony panted as he tripped over to it, "make sure... okay."

Tony quickly stepped into his Iron Man suit and collapsed to his knees.

"Check the heart, check the...check the...is it the brain?" He rambled ordered to his caregiver.

"No sign of cardiac anomaly or unusual brain activity," JARVIS reported.

"Okay, so I was poisoned?" Tony begged for a logical, outside invasion.

"My diagnosis is that you've experienced a severe anxiety attack," his AI said calmly.

"Me?" He couldn't believe the Ironman himself wasn't so... invincible.

Rhodey knocked on the Iron Suit's head as people gathered around them, watching Tony.

"Come on, man. This isn't a good look, open up."

"Sorry, I gotta split." Tony flew off in his suit, leaving Rhodey to scoff behind him. He looked to Kyra to ask if she could believe this, but found her to be gone as well.

The suit opened on the balcony of the mansion and Tony scrambled in, heading to get a drink to calm his nerves. His hand touched the bar top before someone restrained him.

"No, no!" Tony grunted as Kyra said the same words to walk him back to the lounge.

"Can't. Breathe."

"I know, I know." Kyra calmly assured him, stroking her slowly freezing hands over his face.

"It's okay, you're fine. You're okay. I'm okay," she grabbed his hand and pressed his palm over her chest, letting him feel her steady heartbeat.

"Nothing's gonna go wrong right now, Tony. You can rest," her fingers smoothed over his forehead. "You need to rest. You need to sleep."

She moved from in front of him to sit beside him, gently pulling him to lay his head on her lap, all the while assuring him that everything was a-okay.

It took a while for Tony to calm down, aided by Kyra's cool hands on him. She stroked her fingers over his face, through his hair, like a mother calming her stressed child. She continued her ministrations long after he had calmed down, unconsciously humming her mother's lullaby, which she had learned the words of during her stay in Asgard.

"It's easy for you," he opened up. "With me... it's like there's a guy called Ironman, and he's shiny and popular and... and amazing. Kids love him, and he's tough, everyone knows what he stands for..."

"And you don't measure up. You can't live up to Ironman. I get it. I can't fill the boots my mom made me, and you can't fill the suits you made you. You know what we both need?"

"Mhm. A good-"

"Sleep. We both need a good sleep," she winked at him.

"That... was what I was gonna say. I'm gonna sleep right here," he poked her legs around then settled back on them.

"I'll be right here."