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[sciencesquid]

WELCOME TO YOUR PRIVATE CHANNEL, OCTAVIUS. FOR SECURE COMMUNICATION, USE 015.03.020.15 *** OCTAVIUS has joined 015.03.020.15 <OCTAVIUS> You've reached Dr. Otto Octavius. Please leave a message.

Comments

[heyunderoos]

Yeah, the Tony Stark I knew. He's from a different point in time though.

[sciencesquid]

I see.

Where will he be staying? Not at Hill House, I assume?

[heyunderoos]

A-Tower has a dormitory floor, so, I'm probably going to have him live there. It feels like the best option.

[sciencesquid]

That makes sense. The whole tower used to belong to him. It'll feel more like home to him.

[heyunderoos]

He's also... very New York? He wouldn't want to live in hill house. This is already a big shock for him. I don't want to make it worse.

[sciencesquid]

Of course.

Well, I suppose I'll meet him sooner rather than later.

[heyunderoos]

I'll probably try introducing him to people when he's kind of more settled. Maybe Bucky would be a good idea? Bucky's super nice, so is Steven.

He and Beck can't ever meet, or it'll be a disaster.

[sciencesquid]

Because Beck blames Stark for his own poor decisions, correct? If they got into a fight right now, which of the two do you think would win?

Purely hypothetical. From what I've heard, Stark is very formidable and Beck is... Beck. I'm curious whether monsterhood would tilt the odds in Beck's favor.

[Obviously they can't be allowed to fight for real. That'd be- No. No, no, Otto would step in if he saw it happening. For Peter's sake, at least.]

[heyunderoos]

Beck blames Stark for anything in his life going wrong tbh. He's still hung up on his tech being named BARF. I dunno how to even tell him without it becoming a whole thing.

I'm not sure since both of them can be... um, bitey I guess. Quentin more than Mr. Stark.

Probably? He's stronger now by a lot. Mr. Stark is also kind of unhinged right now for different reasons. Last time he saw me, I died, so he's... struggling.

[sciencesquid]

[Don't smile at BARF, don't smile at BARF-]

So they're both wild cards, and neither of them would come out the victor. I see. Unfortunately, they can't stay ignorant of each other forever. If the network doesn't raise attention to either's presence, it'll be another incident where all monsters are forced together in a smaller space.

[heyunderoos]

Well, its more likely Mr. Stark won't even know who Quentin is, so we kind of have that as a positive...?

I doubt Quentin could even try to pull anything on Mr. Stark either. He'll automatically just kind of scream at him and stomp off.

[sciencesquid]

Depending on the circumstances, screaming and stomping may just be damning for everyone else around them. And if Stark doesn't know who Beck is, the screaming and stomping is likely to intensify.

Trouble is, I have no idea how to minimize it beyond hoping one of us happens to be there too.

[heyunderoos]

I didn't think my life would involve babysitting so many grown men and trying to manage their feelings.

Is this better or worse than being stabbed?

[sciencesquid]

That's comparing apples to durians, dear boy. And it isn't your job to be managing their feelings. At most, you can try to keep them from ripping each other apart.

[heyunderoos]

At least you know what you get with one of them. The other just stinks and is full of surprises.

If it becomes too much, I'll like... bail. I can't always help either of them.

[sciencesquid]

That would be for the best. They're grown men. If they haven't learned how to fight their battles with civil words by now, they may need to learn the hard way.

Though I suppose in Beck's case, it would be learning the hard way for the fourth(?) time.

[heyunderoos]

The problem is, learning the hard way usually means a fist fight or enough of a fight, someone has to clean up after them.

I thought Quentin actually being in a serious enough relationship that the two might get married would like... temper some of this? Is that dumb to think?

[sciencesquid]

No. No one has to clean up after them. If they choose to get into a fist fight, it's their responsibility to clean up. That's another lesson to learn.

Marriage isn't a fix for a stubborn nature, I'm sorry to say. If anything, a spouse's loving support is validation for the idea that one's on the right course and nothing needs to be changed.

[Is he thinking of Rosie? Yes. Absolutely.]

[heyunderoos]

Mr. Stark might need to learn that a little more. I'm just worried about him. Quentin too, but not on the same level.

I thought marriage is supposed to support and challenge you? Like, you can't be your best self without someone pushing you to grow right...?

[sciencesquid]

I'm sure he'll be fine. How many times has Iron Man saved the world and narrowly avoided death, again?

I'm sure it depends on the marriage, but I don't believe there's any push for growth in most of them. Instead, it's settling into a routine both are comfortable with.

[heyunderoos]

Yeah, true. Right now he's from a point in time where we lost so... he's having a rough time. I need to stop worrying about him as much, but idk.

I guess that's fair. May always said she and Ben were challenging each other every day, so I just kind of assumed.

[sciencesquid]

No, I understand. It's alright to worry, and to offer a helping hand, but don't get too carried away.

It's possible that the challenge was the routine they're comfortable with. And even then, there's different sorts of challenges, from intellectual to emotional.

[heyunderoos]

Getting carried away is kind of Mr. Stark's whole M.O, Otto. Its... a thing.

I'm trying to remember specifics, but, my head feels so scrambled lately. Doesn't help I've died twice semi-recently. Not sure what I've forgotten yet.

[sciencesquid]

It's alright. I don't need the specifics. Ultimately, each marriage is a little different. As long as it works, it works.

The main takeaway is that Beck getting married has the potential to change him, but not the guarantee.

[heyunderoos]

Yeah, I figured. I'm just thinking I guess.

I'll hope for change. Steven is a good influence on him.