The day, finally, came that Bruce decided to journey to Midgard with his friends. Soon after Jane's van pulled up to Tony's Malibu mansion, Jane called on her him on her cellphone. "We made it."

Tony said, "I can see you from the window."

"Are you and Pepper still not married?" asked Jane.

"You know it," said Tony.

Pepper stole the phone. "He won't ask me."

"Then you need to pop the question," said Jane. "This isn't the 1940's. I hope you have high ceilings because I have a very excited giant in my back."

"We can sit on the back porch," said Pepper. "What's his Geiger counter readings?"

"They're good," said Jane. "Last year, we could have came. His readings were acceptable, but you know Bruce - he wants much lower than acceptable. You'd get more radiation from using your cellphone."

xxxx

Tony grabbed the phone from Pepper. "Let me talk to him. I have a better idea." Tony put the phone in his pocket and ran to the white van.

While Jane and Thor were exiting the front seat, Bruce opened the back door from the inside and let himself out. His hair had grown since Tony had seen him and he also had facial hair - wild thick brown hair that looked like he didn't do more than comb once in a while. His skin was tanned with a few small freckles. His muscles were firm like one would expect from someone who worked outdoors, but nowhere near Hulk huge. The strangest of all was this huge man was in shorts and a tee-shirt. No shoes. He hugged Tony, picking up off the ground as he did. "It's been too long."

"Bruce, put me down."

"I didn't think this day would come." Bruce set Tony's feet on the ground.

Jane said, "He has this microscope in his house that he build himself and Bruce and I talk science while Thor and Sif relive the battles of their younger days. He, sometimes, says 'I wish Tony could see this.'"

"Did you build the house or the microscope?" asked Tony.

"Both. You would know that if you read all the letters I gave Jane to deliver." Bruce crossed his arms over his broad chest and stared at Jane.

"I gave him the letters." Jane stared back. "I can't force him to read them."

Bruce said, "Tony, did you read the letters?"

"Some of them," Tony admitted. "I get busy."

"You're busy?" Bruce said like he didn't believe him. "Jane and Thor are expecting their first. Sif and I are also talking children. Talking - she still makes me wear a condom. I'm not that I'm in a great rush to become a father, but I would like our children to grow up together. And you and Pepper still haven't tied the knot, yet."

"Some of us don't have a friend who is a prince and have to work," said Tony.

"I work. I hunt and take care of my fields - alone - I might add." Bruce down cross-legged on the path leading to Tony's house. "I no longer collect gamma radiation when angry; therefore, I've worked for these muscles. And I'm hurt that you don't read my letters. I read every word you wrote me. Some over and over."

Tony put a hand on Bruce's shoulder. "I'm sorry."

"You went about your life and forgot about me." Bruce stood up and started walking back to the van.

Pepper said, "Bruce, stay. I've read all the letters you addressed to both of us. I care about you. Tony can be a jerk sometimes."

"Alone?" asked Tony.

"I cleared my field without oxen. Read my letters; it's all there." Bruce picked up Tony, again, and rubbed a fingertip through Tony's hair while holding his squirming body with the other arm. "You live with your computers and your nice cars. And I sleep on a straw mattress and plow my own fields. Thor is my friend, but I haven't lived in the palace for years."

"I said I was sorry," yelled Tony. "Just don't drop me."

"Drop you? You're lucky I don't throw you." Bruce put Tony down gently. "I no longer turn into a raging beast, but I'm not someone you want to trifle with. Thor saw you read the letter about me killing a boar. You know what I'm capable of. Don't upset me."

Pepper said, "Bruce, was that necessary?"

"No." Bruce smiled. "But I feel a lot better and it's more satisfying than sitting in locus position, trying to smile with my whole body from my hair to my toes. Have you ever seen smiling hair?"

Pepper said, "Can't say I have."

Jane smiled then said, "I'm in the mood for pizza. Bruce makes the best pizza on Asgard. He grows all his own wheat and he has rows and rows of perfect tomatoes in his garden. However, Asgardians haven't really discovered the concept of adding spice to their meats. And I could go for some pepperoni."

"We salt our meats," said Thor.

"See," said Jane. "Salt is not a spice."

"I'll be right back. Farewell." Using his hammer to fly, Thor left and was soon out of visual range.

"I wonder where he's off to," said Tony. "'Let's feast' are his two favorite words."

Bruce said, "Those are my two favorite words."

xxxx

While Thor was gone, Steve and Natasha Rogers arrived at the mansion with 1 year old Howie. The adults sat around the pool to eat pizza while the baby sat in his mother's lap and chewed on a crust.

Steve said, "Bruce, I wanted to thank you in person for giving me the supersoldier formula. You've really been stable for over 3 years?"

"I'm one person now," said Bruce. "The golden apples worked. If I was going to revert back to Banner, I would have done so already. I seem to have a bit of the Hulk and Banner in me as crazy as that sounds."

Tony said, "You do have Banner's brown eyes."

"Jane says your radiation levels are normal," said Pepper. "You're free to stay here as long as you like."

"Thanks for the offer," said Bruce. "But I have a business to manage and a wife. I know a small farm is nothing compared to Stark Industries, but it's mine."

xxxx

Thor returned with Sif hanging over his shoulder. After leaping off Thor's back, Sif ran over to Bruce, hugged him then whispered in his ear. "I forget to pack the condoms."

Bruce smiled.

"What did she say?" asked Steve.

"That The Three Amigos are watching the house." Bruce lied. Actually, his neighbors would be watching his house. Not that there was anything to watch. The wheat had be sold and everything else stored for the winter - safe in the root cellar. The neighbors loved him because he gave them fresh meat when the snow was over three feet deep and he prevented a dragon from getting to their farms. "And they are going to do to my house what I did to Harlem. Oh well, I can always build another one."

"That's a movie with Donald Duck," said Steve. "No, that was The Three Caballeros."

Natasha squeezed his hand. "The Three Amigos starred Chevy Chase."

"I knew it was a movie," said Steve. "One point for me."

Arriving fashionably late to the party was a middle-aged man holding the hand of a much younger woman. They must have had access codes to Tony's front gate. The eight months Bruce lived at Stark Tower Tony never gave Nick Fury the code to the mansion or to the upper floors of Stark tower for that matter. After getting up from his lounge chair, Tony walked over to the couple. "This is Henry (Hank) Pym and his lovely associate, Janet van Dyne." said Tony. "Hank, Janet, this is Bruce and his wife, Sif."

"As in Dr. Bruce Banner?" asked Janet van Dyne.

Bruce growled softly.

"Bruce has been living on Asgard for over 3 years and no longer uses his surname," explained Jane Foster.

Bruce spoke in Norse, which resembled Norwegian as closely as Latin spoken on another world for a thousand would resemble Spanish or Italian, to Sif and Jane.

Sif replied back in Norse.

"Speak English," yelled Hank Pym.

"Sorry," said Bruce. "My wife doesn't speak English. You're the man who can shrink things. I like being the size I am. My psychologist would tell me to smile at my reflection in the mirror. I couldn't do it without laughing and gave up after the second try. The morning after I thought I was dying of ARS I looked at myself in the mirror and smiled. Really smiled."

"When I thought I was dying, I took a long hard look at myself," said Tony.

Jane said, "This isn't about you."

Pepper then said, "It's always about Tony. The world revolves around Tony. You should know that by now."

Tony said, "Hank, if it isn't too much trouble you could enlarge some clothes, so Bruce has something to wear while he's washing the clothes he's currently wearing. Everyone here but you, Janet and the infant has seen Bruce naked a bit too often."

Janet looked Bruce over from head to toe. "I wouldn't mind seeing him naked. Is your one-eyed wonder snake as big as the rest of you?"

Bruce blushed then whispered something to his wife.

"Janet, some decorum," said Hank.

Janet cooed, "Hank, you're all the man I need."

The end

xxxx

Author's Note: Thanks for all the support. Also, please tell me if I should write a pre-sequel about those eight months Bruce spent in Stark Towers or, at least, part of those eight months. Jane had mentioned Bruce letting the Hulk out more and the Hulk getting smarter. Bruce also talked about not being able to smile in the mirror. I hate writing earlier stuff because I know that what will happen, but my muse only came up with that story while I was writing this one. It would be a Bruce/Tony fan fiction with Tony wanting more and Bruce not seeing it.