-Unbetaed, non native speaker so please kindly point out any mistakes.
-Warning: dark humor.

"Stark, are you OK?"

Strange picked him up from the floor and did quick meticulous checking whether he had any injury. Like a professional doctor, he did it quickly without any tell-tale signs. It was a handy skill to instil confidence and to stop any unnecessary panic. Tony forgot that the Doctor part in Doctor Strange was not a fancy made-up name like Peter said but a well-earned title.

Tony was surprised that Strange was concerned about his wellbeing despite his supposed aloofness. He was glad that the wizard's instinct kicked in and did whatever magic he did to save Peter and him from being splashed in their crash landing. A wizard and a doctor. That was not something you saw every day and he had seen murderous AI robots and aliens.

For the first time, he noticed that Strange's hands were full of scars. They also shook slightly. He also noticed that Strange winced when he moved certain ways.

"I'll live. I didn't know that you cared."

"I just don't want my ally to die on me. It'd look bad on my perfect record." Strange didn't dare to look him in the eye as he said that. Tony understood. Like him, the doctor didn't like to show any emotion. "I'll go to check on the boy."

"I'm OK." Peter chimed in. Tony forgot that he had super hearing. "We're in another planet. Hoo." Peter did some somersaults. Then he sobered up. "I'm going to be so grounded."

Strange approached the boy. "I'm sure Stark would find some way to convince your parents. Let me check on you first. You'll be less grounded if you don't sustain any injury."

"I'm fine."

"I know. I just need to check for my conscience. Will you do it for me, please?" Strange practically smiled and pleaded with both arms opened.

That gesture did something funny to Tony's non-existent heart. Well, anything to do with Peter would tug into his non-existent heart.

So Strange could be gentle and caring if he wanted to but he preferred to maintain his aloof persona. It was also the first time he saw Strange smiled. His smile made him look human and not like the ethereal being he tried to project.

Peter crouched in front of Strange. The doctor followed suit and did some examination like he did for Tony but with more smiles and gentleness.

"Wow, you really take your made-up title thing very seriously."

Strange looked amused and quirked his left eyebrow. "Yup. I didn't see anything wrong with you. All clear."

Peter raised both arms and stood up. "Yoo hoo. I'm OK, Mr Stark, so quit your worrying."

Tony shook his head. "If you listen to me, then I don't need to worry." He looked at Strange. "Thank you for doing that."

Strange shrugged and stood up. "Just don't want to break my ..."

"Perfect record. Yeah, I know. Don't you want to check on yourself. You still have blood on your forehead and face."

Strange winced as he touched his forehead and face. The cape also did the same but Strange swiped it away. "Not now." The cape stopped. It was one of those things that need to be seen to be believed.

Strange's blood already dried so it didn't stain his hands. "I'm fine. I've had worse."

"Are you? I won't be after being abducted by an alien who looks like Squidward and being probed and used as a pincushion."

"Don't be so crude. There is a boy back there. I think he looked a bit more like Voldermort. At least the alien didn't use pop-culture method of probing." He winced as he imagined that. "But the alternative also left nothing to be desired. I didn't know that you are a SpongeBob SquarePants fan." He smirked as he said that.

Tony shrugged. "I know stuff. The good question is how do you know Squidward came from SpongeBob SquarePants? You also take this Harry Potter thing very seriously. You haven't answered my question. Are you OK? Don't want my ally to die on me."

"I'm fine."

"Your answer will be more convincing if you don't wince when you move certain ways."

"I've had worse. If you worry that I won't be able to fight, don't. I still can." Strange huffed and turned his back.

"They did say doctors make the worst patients. I can't imagine something worse than being a pincushion. Is that the reason why your hands have scars?" Tony walked to face Strange. Well, he was never known to be a quitter so when he worried about someone, he would follow through even if it annoyed the hell out of the other person. Pepper said that was one of his finer qualities.

Strange lowered his head. "My hands were ruined because of a stupid accident that was totally my fault for being an idiot. While my accident had been unpleasant…" Tony snorted at the understatement of the century. "…I'm not new to pain and being tortured and killed multiple times so I'm fine."

"From your expression and tone, you're totally not fine. I'm sorry to hear what you've been through. "

Strange answered automatically like it was rehearsed. "Thanks. I won in the end so that's all that mattered."

Stark would like to hear that story but when Strange was ready. "Did you say killed multiple times? How are you even alive? Do wizards have different meanings of being killed than the rest of us muggles?"

"Well, I did get killed and I was truly dead. I put myself and Dormammu into a timeloop using this thing that Voldermort wanted." He pointed at the green pendant. "So I came back to life whenever I died."

Strange was so casual in saying that he died that Stark couldn't help but respected him. This guy had balls. "I don't see why you consider yourself winning if you die."

"Well, Dormammu got tired of killing and torturing me in the endless time loop so he gave up. I asked him to leave Earth alone."

"So you basically won against Domino by annoying the hell out of him."

"Yup. And bargaining. You find me annoying so I might as well use it to my advantage."

"How many times did you die?"

Strange shrugged. "I don't know. Around 2000 times perhaps?"

Tony's jaw dropped. "How are you even functioning now?"

"I've got to do what I've got to do and move on. No need to harp on about the past."

Tony could see why Strange said he prioritized the Stone over him or the boy. He was the big picture kind of guy and always looked to the future. However, Strange also said his answers too readily which meant he had them rehearsed. He might be functioning but he was not 100% OK. It was not the time and place to probe. "Wizards seem to take pain and suffering to the next level."

"Only if I have to and there is no other way. I'm not a masochist. When I said I would put the stone safety over yours, it doesn't mean I'd leave you to die if there is any other choice. It's just the worst case scenario."

"I understand. You don't need to explain. Are you sure you're OK? You don't sound OK to me."

"I hate being helpless. It was like after I got my accident all over again. When I annoyed Dormammu, I was in control. When I was suspended mid-air and couldn't move, I felt so helpless which was worse. I meant the pains were not something I was a fan of but being helpless was something else entirely. You must think I'm crazy."

"Actually, it's not crazy. I also hate being helpless." He remembered the time when he was back in the cave in Afghanistan, or when he got palladium poisoning, or when he was in Siberia. "I understand what you'd been through."

He could see Strange sympathized with him through his eyes. That guy's eyes were very expressive. The doctor nodded curtly. "I'm sorry, Tony. I wish things were different for us." He patted Tony's shoulder. The doctor didn't even realize that he called him Tony.

At that moment, Peter barged in and exclaimed. "You guys were taking too long. I've been out and the air is breathable."

Strange reprimanded him. "You should've waited for us. I could just cast some spells to make the air breathable."

Peter's eyes widened. "Could you? That's so cool. Come on, Doc, let's go out." He pulled at the doctor's hands.

The doctor followed Peter.

Tony called out. "Be careful. Strange, I've something to say to you."

Strange turned and quirked his left eyebrow. What was wrong with this guy and his eyebrow?

"I don't find you annoying."

For the first time, Strange smiled at him. "The feeling is mutual."

Notes:

-I know there was not enough time after they crashlanded, Stephen checked on Tony and they went out. But yes, this is fanfic. I'd prefer writing quieter moments between characters rather than fix-it as I really don't know how to "fix" Infinity War.
-I really want to make it more fluffy and angst free but somehow some angst seeped in. In my mind, Stephen also didn't mean to divulge so much to Tony but somehow my muse plowed on. I should put a stop to my muse and work on my WIP.
-I saw a blog here comparing Stephen and Tony. They have different personalities and characteristics.
doctorstrangessanctum dot blogspot dot com dot br /2018/03/doctor-strange-isnt-iron-mans-copy dot html