Not That Lucky

#28: A-SIDE

"Don't leave me alone with my thoughts. They'll kill me." –Timothy Khawlhring

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[2015-03-09] [09:32:12] [35.006205, -64.585011]

The quinjet atmosphere was tense and awkward. Tension was normal. This wasn't the first time the inside of this jet saw that kind of strain either before or after a mission. The awkwardness though? That was new. Even at their most stressful moments, Steve could always count on Tony or Clint to crack a joke or drag the rest of them into some lighthearted argument. Right now, Tony was sitting at the cockpit with his back to the group, despite the quinjet most definitely being on autopilot, and Clint was near the back fiddling with his arrows alone. Steve knew why Tony was pouting, but he wasn't entirely sure what had Clint in a mood.

Steve tossed aside his cowl and glanced over at Natasha. She was sitting a little ways away from Thor and Bruce, who were speaking quietly to one another, and she turned to catch his gaze. He nodded his head in Tony's direction. Natasha shook her head. He nodded to Clint, and she gave him a small smile. There were some situations where Tony needed a Natasha speech and sometimes he needed a Steve speech.

He sighed to himself. Apparently today was a Steve day.

Steve crossed the space towards the cockpit and took his place behind Tony's right shoulder, "Tony—"

"It's dangerous to distract the pilot. 9 out of 10 plane crashes happen because a 'more righteous than thou' ass distracts the pilot with a lecture."

Steve smirked, "I'd like to see the study on those statistics."

"Seriously, Steve." Tony replied. "I'm not in the mood."

"Well having this talk here rather than when we get to Johannesburg sounded like a good idea to me." He said. Tony didn't reply even when he gave the man a few beats of silence to do so. Steve sighed, "Tony, I get it you know—"

Tony turned so his seat shifted and it nearly sent Steve stumbling down the few steps that led up to the pilot chair. He leaned forward in his seat, eye to eye with Steve, "No, Rogers, I don't think you do. Because you still think I regret what I did."

Steve's eyes widened slightly, "Tony—"

"Stop saying my name in that tone of voice."

"—you made a robot who is now hell bent on bringing us to extinction." Steve's gaze hardened. "And you're telling me you don't feel a little bit responsible?"

Tony shook his head, "Ultron came out of my lab. That's on me, I get it. I fucked up, Cap. Sorry I'm not perfect like you—"

"I never claimed to be perfect!"

"—but don't you see what I've been trying to tell you?" Tony snapped. Steve felt himself losing his cool again and bit down his thoughts. This was the opposite of what he wanted to accomplish. "The Avengers are fallible. We need something, something that won't make mistakes or fail, we need—we need—"

"Ultron?" Steve scoffed.

Tony blinked at him once then turned his chair to face out the front again. Steve sighed in regret when he saw his friend's jaw clench in anger. He glanced out at the blue and white that flew past them. Steve wondered if he should back off now and try again after Tony had time to cool off. However, Tony surprised him by speaking up, "I know I'm responsible. Ultron was there, in our home, waging war. If Bruce had gotten hit and hulked out into New York, that would be my fault. If that fall through the glass had done more than sprain Rhodey's wrist, that would be my fault. If that drone had killed Aj and Helen—"