"We're burdened with pain so we can experience pleasure," Tony excused airily as he accepted the bottle, letting York work out which one he'd put his focus into if he had to choose. Maybe he didn't really know the difference; there was enough of an overlap in a fully wired human brain to make a distinction mercurial. Maybe that was just Tony's.

"I didn't say I needed a high dose. I don't need anything," he was quick to answer; quick enough that he pressed his lips together and counted a beat, like if he got back on a normal rhythm now, no one would notice. "An experiment. Nothing serious. The Agrii, you know, they can be patient, thoughtful, and they've got this...thing on their back, that makes them not so thoughtful. It's their fault, they know it, apologies don't really cut it. So I thought, what they need is a little clarity. Something to help them think. A little reprogramming."