The Dreaming, true to form, has seen fit to return Tony – only to snatch away Bakura instead. Tony was never all that close to him, honestly, but his heart aches for Pepper, and it kills him that she and Gene have both had to go through this. He's used to the indifferent whims of the Dreaming by now, but it still sucks.

And when life sucks, what's the front line treatment? That's right: ice cream. (And emotional support. He's less certain of his skills in that area. He can definitely do ice cream, though, so let's start there.)

Tony hasn't gotten around to building a new liquid nitrogen generator, but it turns out freezing technology is easier to come by in Aifaran than it was in Keeliai. So he'd made a batch of what had been the household favorite back when they'd all been living together, and begged a favor off of one of the restaurants with the appropriate equipment to churn it up for him.

Now he's standing outside Pepper's townhouse with the insulated tub under his arm. He knows she's been overworking herself – so has he, though for different reasons – but he's pretty sure she'll be home right now. He didn't tell her he'd be coming, hoping that she might enjoy the surprise. He knocks.