Work Text:
Tony was in a slump. He couldn’t focus. Ambient noises from all around seeped just-so through his headphones, but not the right kind. It was distracting. He always worked best with a certain amount of noise, the hum of the server room usually the perfect environment. Stimulating but not distracting. He had tried music but always found it didn’t really fit. ‘The modern sound’, as Prism had called it, was just as grating as the constant ruckus coming through the door.
He would try making his headphones soundproof for when he had to work in different places—an easy feat when you had the right tools—if it weren’t for it making them impractical to wear on missions. He needed to be able to hear any adversary coming in any situation, especially when he did not have another agent at his back.
He had been trying to work through an especially difficult problem with a new type of Daemon an agent had encountered on their last mission. It needed to stay isolated from any other devices to avoid it infecting the main servers; thus Central had assigned him the room he was in. It made him miss his usual workplace.
He had been at it for three hours now, and his progress had been frustratingly slow. He needed a break. With a sigh he pushed himself away from the desk he was sitting at. The rolling whirr of the wheels was a nice sound over the loud noises of people passing through the halls. He should find a different place to work when he came back. This clearly wasn’t a good fit.
Closing the door behind him he stepped into the hallway, wandering around aimlessly. A nervous energy making his hands jitter. Brian should have a free day today. He could go see him. Maybe that would clear his head a bit.
—
When the door opened he was greeted by a moody expression that quickly morphed into one of surprise. Tony must be interrupting something. He was about to apologize and turn away when Brian opened the door further and ushered him inside. His apparent irritation at being interrupted forgotten.
The room was standard make—a bit messy but not unclean. And filled with mostly standard furniture and some personal decorations. The desk against the wall drew his attention. The chair half turned away, it was clearly the spot Brian had been sitting before he answered the door. Tony walked closer, trying to see what it was that had captured his attention in such a way, what made him so irritated to be called away from.
On the desk was a watch. It’s mechanical guts carefully laid out around it alongside multiple bottles and brushes; the desklamp’s light focused on it for the perfect view. The mechanism looked interesting. No electronic wires in sight. He turned to Brian, who had followed him from the door, and asked about it. He was interested; it was different from the robotics he usually worked with, but not dissimilar. The care Brian took with the materials for cleaning it showed that he clearly knew more about it.
Brian was excited about his interest, that was clear as day. His face had brightened at his question. There was a sparkle to his eyes that wasn’t usually there. It made him look younger, less burdened. Tony liked it.
He explained the process of cleaning he had been working on, lighting up with every question Tony asked. At a certain point he got up and ushered Tony over to the other side of the room. There, against the wall, stood an imposing closet. Dark brown with shining golden accents. The handles clearly regularly polished. Also an antique, he explained proudly, made from real wood even. It was one of the more rare items of his collection.
With a careful motion Brian opened the double doors revealing the well filled insides of many items displayed on the thick shelves in neat categories. It was clear there was a system that Brian knew by heart as he talked about the display; A shelf with watches, three lighters with engraved designs (they still have the original wicks!) and of course his beloved hat and coat, and their predecessors. And so on.
Tony smiled as Brian explained what years the items were from, what materials were used, and, very important, how to use the item. He should be working right now, but he rarely saw Brian so excited. He clearly loved his collection. It was as if a layer of fatigue had slipped off of his shoulders by its presence. And now that he thought about it, he was feeling better too.
Brian pulled open the lowest drawer of the closet and pulled off the cloth covering its contents. It was filled with rows and rows of drives. Some older than others. Some even that Tony did not recognize the make of. The physical casings of digital antiques.
Brian thumbed through the rows, clearly looking for something specific, until he pulled one out and looked back up at Tony.
“I’ve heard you complain about not being able to focus for weeks now, maybe putting something like this on will help” he said as he handed Tony a small drive; it was a more modern one, he thankfully wouldn’t need a converter to use it. He took it with careful hands and put it away in the pocket of his waistcoat. A piece of Brian’s precious collection. He would not lose this, he’d make sure of that.
—
Later, when he got back to his desk, he would remember the small treasure in his pocket and play the files. It would be one of the best decisions he ever made. As since that day noises could no longer break his focus. He had something better to listen to.