A Complicated Web

Chapter Five: Geek Out

"This is so cool," Hiro said for the umpteenth time as they completed the ten cent tour of Stark Tower. Thanks to the help of whoever those guys were Tony had requested, their stuff had been moved to their respective rooms with ease. And since there wasn't really all that much to unpack, they'd all been more than willing to accept the offer of a look around the building. Tony had returned by the time they'd gotten their stuff unpacked and offered them a look around.

Fred seemed to be jumping up and down with excitement every time Hiro found something else to ogle over, almost like he was taking special delight in his reactions. Of course that could have been because he'd already seen all of this before and just wanted to see how everyone else would react. And since Hiro was the one who'd most looked up to Stark, it only made sense that he'd get the biggest reactions out of him when taken on a guided tour by said man. It was like unleashing a kid in a candy store.

"Fred, you're being more than a little creepy," GoGo commented as she glanced at him with her usual dose of sarcasm. "Would you please stop?"

Honey's phone flashed as she took yet another picture. She made sure to not include anything that might be considered proprietary. Her aim was more on those in her group and their reactions to all the cool tech Mr. Stark was showing them. "You have to admit it is really something," she defended. "I don't blame him for being excited."

Hiro seemed to move from one place to the next as he inspected everything presented like it was some kind of sacred relic. His eyes only seemed to get bigger when they were shown one of the many labs housed inside the tower. "I really have died and gone to heaven," he breathed, a goofy kind of grin plastered to his face.

Wasabi, even though he was equally impressed, managed to stay more observatory than ogling. Physics were more his thing, and though there were a lot of cool things here, Iron Man wasn't his idol. He nodded at something Tony said, though he couldn't remember what it was afterwards. His thoughts were more preoccupied with mentally going over everything he'd brought with him, especially his notes. He wanted everything to be perfect for the showcase. After all, he was getting close to graduating. Most of them were, to be honest.

"And that's just about everything worth seeing," Tony said as he stopped in the middle of one of the hallways just off the elevators. "Everything else is either a repeat or is still in a state of repair."

Honey pushed her hair back behind her ears, then decided to just redo her ponytail. She hadn't bothered with the usual bun, mostly because they'd been on the road. "I kind of wish we'd activated Baymax and brought him along to see all this," she said as she took one last picture.

Stark's brows lifted at the reminder of the healthcare bot. "Ah, that's right. You were going to show him to me once you got settled in," he reminded Hiro. "I'm curious. I heard he's an artificial intelligence designed for use in the healthcare division, am I right?"

Hiro couldn't help but beam with pride. "That's right. My brother created the program. I just recreated the body, with a few improvements." He seemed to swagger a bit, despite mentioning his brother's creation. "I think of him as a gift from my brother." His expression softened as he thought about that first time Tadashi had shown him Baymax. It wasn't quite as painful anymore, though it did make him a little sad.

"I heard about what happened," Stark replied. "I think I would have liked to meet him."

Hiro returned his thoughtful look for a somewhat wistful smile, his throat thickening a bit with emotion. "I think he would have liked that." He cleared his throat, trying to loosen the tension as he got his emotions back under control. Tadashi would have loved this, all of it. He's always with me, he reminded himself, mentally tapping himself on the chest. Right here.