A/N - as with the last chapter I updated elsewhere ... I been distracted. But. Hopefully I can focus enough to write more here soon. :D But yes. Thanks, robbiepoo and Arly Quinn for your lovely reviews. We have SO much drama brewing here with these ridiculous teenagers ...


Chapter 7: No One Wants A Good Mystery


While things had been moving forward at the Institute while Logan and K were gone, things felt as if they were stuck in one place at the tower. At least as far as James was concerned.

True, he'd been fighting a little cold, and sure, Maria had been making sure that he hadn't missed out on anything going on in the tower, but .. he wanted to know what was taking his parents so long. It wasn't that time with the Stark family wasn't fun - it was. He just … had enough. Especially since Sophia was getting tired of their usual hustle and bustle and had taken to just … cuddling on Tony or Jan or James.

Which meant it was just a matter of time before Tony started looking. It wasn't the first time James' parents had gone missing for 'too long'. It wasn't even the first time this had happened without them reaching out. But those other times had amounted to them being stranded somewhere ridiculous and well away from civilization, simply needing a pick up. This time... it felt different, and watching Tony, James was pretty sure he wasn't the only one who felt that way.

"It wouldn't hurt to just check, right?" Tony said out of the clear blue to Jan, who let her shoulders drop as she turned his way.

"How long have they been out of contact?" she asked.

"Only the whole time."

"And how long did they say the mission was supposed to last?"

Tony hedged. "Give them time, Tony. They haven't been gone long beyond what K considers normal parameters yet - and you know it."

"Yeah, but you didn't see the way she got things done, sweetheart," Tony said. "She'd finish her mission in record time so she'd have time to-" He stopped and let out a heavy sigh. "I suppose that's what she might be up to."

"I'd say that's a safe bet, knowing those two," Jan said, shaking her head before she leaned in to steal a kiss. "They're the two most dangerous mutants on the planet. Give them a little credit."

"And yet, both of them have been controlled and held captive for long periods of time. I'm not paranoid if I'm right."

"No. But only if you're right," Jan said. "And you know if you interrupt them while they're relaxing again, Logan will flay you."

"Also true," Tony conceded, the corner of his mouth drawing tighter as he considered it. "One more day."

"Five."

"Are we negotiating?"

"Yes." Jan pulled Sophia closer and half hid behind her.

He paused. "That's not fair. You can't use the kid."

"Sophia needs a snuggle, Tony," Jan giggled. "And you know she likes your snuggles best."

"Of course she does," he said, tipping his chin up.

"Five days."

Tony narrowed his eyes and reached over to scoop Sophia up - and she attached to him tightly. "Three," he said. "Soph needs mom, don'tcha, Soph?"

"Mmmhmm," she agreed, curling into him tighter - and that on it's own was enough to get Jan to lose some of her grin.

"Yeah, okay. When you put it like that. Three days," she said, nodding. "And I'll help if they're in trouble."

"Why don't you ask Uncle Scott?" James chimed in. "He's good at figuring out when Mom and Dad need help, you know."

Tony made a face, almost cringing as he turned toward James. "It's pretty easy for me to find them too, kiddo."

"Is it 'cause of the metal?" James asked.

"Yeah. It is, bud," Tony agreed, frowning as James made his way over to snuggle up.

The little guy's head had been pounding and he was exhausted from how hard it was to breathe from time to time. But their cozy little snuggle-fest didn't last too long. Not with the older Stark boys coming in from their shenanigans, anyhow.

"Hey Dad," Howard called out as he dropped his bag at the front door. The two of them had been 'helping' Peter with his webshooters - though by the amount of webbing the two of them were wearing, it was pretty clear that it had either become a webbing fight, or Peter had gotten tired of the two of them trying to one-up each other and he'd webbed them together in another 'sharing is caring' web. Howard vaulted over the back of the couch to get comfortable, and Steven slid up on James' other side and put his arm around James' shoulders.

"Are you still here?" Steven asked, grinning crookedly. "I thought you'd be home by now."

"He's going to say that every time he sees you now," Howard said. "Ignore him. He's not as funny as he thinks he is."

"I'm just saying … it's been a few weeks, right? And even though I love our almost baby sister," Steven said, reaching over to tap Sophie on the nose, "and our nearly baby brother-" which .. had James rolling his eyes. "I don't remember them staying this long."

Tony turned to Jan with the most pronounced 'I told you so' look on his face and Jan held her bottom lip between her teeth for just a moment before she stepped over. "Why don't you get those webs cleaned up?" Jan suggested, shooing both of her boys out of the room.

The instant James tipped his chin down, Jan paused and frowned as she watched the little guy. "I'm calling Scott," Jan promised. "Just … relax. We've got this."

"Okay," James said, and Tony patted his shoulder before he headed the other direction with a very sleepy Sophie to put her to sleep for a nap. Which left James alone just long enough for Maria to come over and carefully sit down next to him - being conscious of her dress sitting across her knees - something she only did when she was overthinking. Any other time, she wouldn't pay attention unless her mom scolded her to be more ladylike.

"Are you worried?" Maria asked quietly.

"I don't know," James replied as honestly as he could. It wasn't that he was scared exactly. He just … didn't like it when his parents disappeared without him and Sophie at least. Especially since Kitty, Jubes, and Katie had been doing everything they could to avoid extended family time in favor of team runs.

"Are my brothers being jerks? Because I can punch 'em where they don't wanna be punched."

"No, they're okay," James said, turning her way. "I guess … I just want to go home."

Maria's smile slipped just a bit before she scooted closer and wrapped James up in a hug. "Next time, we'll sleep over with you," she said, and when James wrapped her up tightly too, she broke out into a wide grin that James didn't see.

The two of them had started up some cartoons - sharing a blanket as they laid on the carpet with their feet kicked up behind them - when Jan came back into the room looking a little stressed. "James, Scott said he hadn't heard anything about your parents yet, but he wants you to come home for a few days anyhow."

James frowned, and Maria openly pouted. "Why?" They both asked - though with entirely different intonations.

Jan smiled and sat down cross legged next to them. "Well … it's awfully close to Nate's birthday and he wants you there for the party," she pointed out, but that had Maria pouting worse.

"Do I get to go to that too?" she asked, batting her eyelashes before she fixed her mother with an open, wide-eyed look that was obviously straight out of her father's playbook.

"Yes, I'm sure you can," Jan said. "But that's a few days away and Jean said that James' sisters needed someone to remind them to behave." She smiled warmly at James. "I guess that's you."

"No, I'm just the brother," James said sounding like it wasn't a good thing.

"Exactly. And you get to make sure she doesn't get too carried away," Jan said as she offered him her hand - and though James didn't look like he believed he could do anything to keep his sisters from doing anything dumb, he let her lead him off to get himself together for what looked to be even now, a temporary trip home.


"Who are you?" James asked, his eyes narrowed as he looked Noh-Varr over. The Starks had just brought him home to Westchester, and though Noh hadn't made any real headway with his attempts to get to know Jubilee more intimately, she also wasn't able to see everything Noh did and when James had walked into the room, Noh was discreetly smelling Jubilee's hair. That was something James had seen a million times with his parents. He knew what that looked like.

"Hey mini-Wolvie," Jubilee sang out with a grin, even as James wrinkled his nose past her at Noh. Jubilee followed his sight line then broke into a laugh. "Oh my God, you're so much like Dad sometimes."

"Who's the weirdo smelling your hair?" James asked, but that only had Jubilee blushing brightly as she turned to face Noh, her eyes narrowed as she took him in.

"This is Noh-Varr," Jubilee said as she turned back to James, doing her best to ignore the way she was blushing, made all the more difficult when Noh seemed absolutely fascinated by her blush. "He's a Kree explorer from another dimension. We rescued him, and for now he's staying here."

"Does Mom and Dad know about him?" James asked as he took a seat at the kitchen table with Tony and Sophia.

"No … we picked him up after they left on their 'mission'." Jubilee held her hands up in air quotes as she looked at Tony. "Hey Uncle Tony."

"So you think their mission was a private entertainment matter?" Tony asked. "Because if they're angling for another one, all they had to do was say so and they can stay gone until they get the job done."

Jubilee shrugged as James gave Tony a look. "I mean … they're like, totally older than dirt? So … you know … if they want to stop, they so can."

"How old is your boyfriend?" James asked, which had Tony smirking hard.

"He's not my boyfriend," Jubilee said quickly.

"He wants to be," James said, turning toward Noh. "Why do you want to kiss my sister? She's my sister. And you're pretty goofy."

"Your sister very attractive," Noh said, almost blinking at the little boy.

"That's all? James challenged. "She's pretty? If that's all, you better start running 'cause my mom will kick the snot out of you if that's all you think."

"Hey!" Jubilee said, stepping in front of Noh, unconsciously blocking him. "Mom and Dad haven't even met him. And we're not dating so just … stop worrying about stuff, okay?"

"Fine," James said, sliding out of his chair to leave the kitchen, even when Jubilee tried to stop him with the intention of hugging him. Of course, she caught him up easily enough and kissed his cheek as he squirmed and tried to get loose of her. "You're just as bad as Kate and Tommy."

"Hey, wait," Jubilee said, crouching down so the two of them were nose to nose - and still close together. "Kate is not with Tommy, got it?" She leaned closer so their foreheads were touching. "She's dating Kurt now."

James blinked at her a few times and warily glanced over at Noh. "Oh. Okay."

"You're not going to give Kurt a hard time?"

"I like Kurt."

"Well … maybe Noh is someone you'd like too," Jubilee said.

"I don't think so," James replied, shaking his head before he pulled away from her and headed for the stairs - more than ready to get to his room and his bed.

"James!" Jubilee shouted, stomping her foot as he zipped away. "Little brat," she mumbled under her breath as Noh came up behind her.

"Did I do something to offend him?" Noh asked.

"No, he's just being a little brother," Jubilee said.

"This entire planet seems to be ruled by their emotions," Noh observed. "Is that something that becomes less prevalent with age, or is this simply how everyone on this planet reacts?"

"Emotions aren't bad, alien dude," Jubilee said. "They make most things worth doing. So … loosen up a little. Relax."

When Noh frowned at her, Jubilee rolled her eyes and took a hold of his arm. "Come on, I need to do some shopping before my parents get back. We can take my Dad's Jeep. He won't mind."

"Is that some mode of transportation?"

"Um … only my parent's favorite," Jubilee laughed. "And I upgraded the speaker system so you know … totally the right ride to cruise in."


Meanwhile, Tony had taken the opportunity to grab Scott and make a beeline for the War Room - even if he did still have Sophia in his arms. "I think it's time to compare notes," Tony said, smiling to himself when Scott waved at Sophia and she grinned then buried her face in Tony's neck. "It's been too long."

"They haven't checked in with anyone at the tower?" Scott asked with a growing frown.

"Not so far," Tony replied. "Cap's starting to pace, if I'm being honest - and you know how much Cap doesn't like to get himself worried about Logan."

"He's got every reason to be concerned. If someone's making a play for them, they'd fall into the nastier category of kidnappers."

"And knowing what K could do on her own - I do not want to have to cross paths with her if someone is pulling the strings on both of them," Tony said. "I can find no scenario where that ends well."

"No. It would be catastrophic one way or another," Scott agreed. He let out a breath as he ran his hand through his hair. "Okay. So. What did she tell you?"

"Hardly anything," Tony said. "What about you and Logan?"

Scott let out a bark of a laugh. "You're being funny right? Because … yeah. He just said he had something they needed to do together and that it might take a week or so." He shrugged. "To be honest, I kind of thought he might have talked her into another baby."

"You know you can't really repopulate mutantkind by only using those two, right?"

Scott gave him a dry look. "We need to figure out where they went," he said, blatantly ignoring Tony's poorly crafted joke. "Do you still have that tech in place to find her metal?"

"I do," Tony agreed. "I even talked him into letting me analyze his, too. In case of emergencies, of course."

"How hard was it to get her to talk him into it?" Scott asked with a smirk as Tony took control of the screens and started pulling up tracking information on the holo table.

"Not as hard as you'd think," he said. "I told her I wanted to be able to find him if he wandered off alone - she just … told him he could fight her or go easy."

"Has to be more to it than that."

"Well, if there is - they kept it to themselves." Tony frowned deeper as he activated the trace remotely - and then sat back, concentrating on the results as they came in, absently playing with Sophia's hair. "Might take a while …. You know, since they never told us a general heading."

"Yeah, we hit the same kind of trouble when we're searching using Cerebro," Scott said. "Charles is a little quicker than Jean, but it still takes time to sift over the whole planet."

"And you can't find them as easy with Cerebro, right?" Tony said, finally turning toward Scott as the floating wire-rendering of the planet glowed one time zone at a time as Tony's program hijacked feeds from dozens of satellites in orbit.

"Yeah, they're naturally resistant to telepaths," Scott replied, though he was holding his breath as he waited for the results. He hadn't wanted to be the one to bring it up - but it had been longer than Logan had estimated. And the normal time that would have passed that would tip Scott off about it being a celebratory bit of lateness was even well gone, too. The fact that he knew Logan would have his comm off wasn't making him feel any better - and the fact that he knew the two of them had rented a car to get around wasn't very encouraging either.

But as Scott found himself lost in thought wondering where they could be … his only real focus was the wire rendered globe … and the fact that they were running out of time zones.

"I probably should have started in Madripoor," Tony muttered as the time zone just before that of Japan lit up.

Both of them leaned forward, waiting for the map to light up … and fully expecting madripoor or Tokyo to be illuminated brighter than the rest of the globe … only to stare as it lit up the same as the others around it. "They're not there …"

"We still have the rest of the pacific to cover," Scott said. "Lots of islands, atolls, and our west coast still."

"Yeah," Tony breathed out, frowning deeper and absently snuggling Sophia closer.

And several long, tense minutes later both Scott and Tony were simply staring at the fully-lit up rendering of the earth … with absolutely no hot spots.

"Are you sure it works?" Scott said after a long moment, turning Tony's way.

"Yeah. It does," he said. "It's found her before a few times. And its even found him a few miles underground. If they're not showing up … maybe they're deeper than that."

"This doesn't make sense," Scott said, frowning. "I thought this found the metal. Are you sure you used the right profile?"

"The alloy read out is right there," Tony said. "And even if they melted it down again, it'd show up." He held up both hands for a moment. "I'm not saying that's what happened, I'm just saying that there's no good reason it's not showing up." he let out a breath. "But … I'll check it out when I get home. There has to be something screwy. Maybe it's the remote access. I'll double check it when I get back to the lab."

"Good," Scott said, though the muscle in his jaw was working overtime.