UGH this chapter was so fun to write! After all of the misery and sadness I've been throwing at the characters, I wanted to raise the mood a little by just having a feel-good chapter. :D I felt like I did pretty good with the humor, and it was so fun making Thor so clueless about so many things... xD

Enjoy!

Disclaimer:

I do not own the Avengers movies, the Marvel franchise, or any of the characters. That all belongs to Marvel Studios. Everything to Marvel Studios. Any added dialogue, plots, or characters are mine, but nothing else. I don't own it.

Chapter Twenty-Five - Comedic Comfort

Cities flash past me. The repulsor power on my hands and feet blast me into the distance and colors spin around me as landscapes dart past with lightning speed. Regardless of my astonishing speed, the War Machine suit can't go fast enough for my taste. These past few months of missions, orders, and acting only when granted permission have worn me down, and I can't seem to speed up enough to satisfy my growing anticipation. I need time to really ignore the rules for once.

A contact pops into view on my heads-up display. Tony. I answer the call while scanning my surroundings for obstacles. "What's up, genius?"

"Ha ha, you know I love a little self-promotion."

I chuckle. Ahh, I'd forgotten how much I'd missed his egotistic comments. "A little? That's understating things."

"Where are you?"

"Close."

"Fantastic. You'll see the new compound soon if you're anywhere near Queens."

"I'm a little ways out, but with the speed of this thing, I'll be there in no time."

"Glad you could come out, buddy. The authorities didn't hammer all of the fun out of you?"

"I've been saving it all for a party just like this. Stack up those bottles, Tony. We'll be celebrating and raising glasses."

"Yeah, about that– ." Tony clears his throat.

"Oh-no, what did you do now?"

"Pep's keepin' a close watch on me. She's got the eyes of a hawk, let me tell you… Anytime I've tried to sneak even one glass of scotch or something, she takes it right out of my hands."

"What did you do?"

"What did I do? What did she– ."

"Tony."

"I might've gotten a bit hungover yesterday morning."

I roll my eyes. "My gosh, Tony– ."

"Quit hassling me, Rhodes. I don't need another person yelling in my ear every time I take a look at alcohol."

"Let me guess. You're going to find some way to break the rules and distract Pepper so you can have a drink."

"Look, can't we argue about this later? Maybe after the party?"

"We can let it go for now, but as your babysitter, I'm bringing this up in conversation later."

"Babysitter? Take it down a notch, sour patch."

I emerge from the clouds to find the Avengers compound below, glistening in a gorgeous white. The marvelous upgrade smiles into the sky. I hover in the air and shake my head, laughing. Dang, Tony, you really finalized this place.

"What's so funny?"

I shoot toward the top of the compound. "Oh, nothing, I'm just observing the scenery."

"Cityscapes? Boring. Got better things to look at. Just wait till you're here– you'll be blown away."

"Hopefully not blown out of the sky." I touch down on the roof, grinning to myself. "Wow, this scenery's spectacular."

"You really love cities that much? You didn't used to. That mission must've really been hard on you, pal."

I exhale in satisfaction. "Ah… It's good to be home."

"Yeah, nothing like… Wait, where are you?"

Tapping my foot on the smooth stone, I murmur through my speaker. "You know, from up here, you really need to repaint. The Avengers symbol looks a little bland from the roof."

A few seconds ensue, highlighted by the thumping of footsteps and the buzz of an ended call. Soon after, Tony stumbles onto the roof, panting.

I saunter over to him, slapping his back a few times. "How you been, Tony?"

"Not bad, all things considered." He rights himself, brushing his pants. Patting me on the shoulder, he ushers me inside. "Come on. Take off that clunky suit and I can brief you about these uneventful past couple weeks. I'm sure you've got a good bunch of stories planned for party time…"

By the time the Avengers are gearing up to leave for Queens, I send Tony on his way with a kiss, a warning, and a promise to be watching.

I wag my finger at him as he skips to his flashy orange car.

"So you'll be staying here, Pep?"

"No, I'll be right behind you. I just need to check on Bruce and Clint."

"They're no fun, staying behind when a wonderful game room is waiting to be filled."

I glare at him. "You know that Clint's situation is bad, Tony. Be serious, if you can."

"Serious? What's that mean?" He raises an eyebrow.

I wave the statement off. It's no use. "Have fun, but no drinking."

"Always looking out for me, Pep. See you there."

Not ten minutes later, I'm yanking open the door to Queens's best game room. Neon colors blind me as I step in, spiraling around my brain. ACDC rock music grates my ribs and vibrates the floor. I freeze in the doorway, one thousand regrets swimming in my head. Okay. It's all right. It's just a party. I hold my chin up and take a deep breath. One of Tony's crazy parties, more like it. Handle it like a champ. Like a champ…

The first one to find is Tony. I discover him standing on an empty bar table, dictating his audience about his heroic deeds. There's not a glass in his hand, not one bottle around him, much to my relief. Rhodey stands nearby with his own personal crowd. Tony leaps from the table, whacking Rhodey's back with a gauntleted hand. "Take it away, Rhodes! Tell your story!"

I tilt my head to one side, curious of what story rendition will come from Rhodey's mind this time.

Arms spread wide, feet planted, Rhodey inhales. "So I take the tank, fly it right up to the General's palace, drop it at his feet, I'm like, 'Boom! You looking for this?' "

I stifle a giggle at the complete silence that follows. Scattered, unenthusiastic claps break the quiet. Tony shrugs. "Sorry, Rhodes. Who wants to hear a better story?"

Everyone cheers.

"I know just the man." Tony hollers into the next room. "Point Break, get your royal behind in here!"

Another growling voice bounces back. "Forget it, Stark, the fate of the universe is in my grasp!"

Tony rolls his eyes. "Fine. That man is playing Galaga. Leave him to his games."

As I move into the other room, echoing sound effects from the ancient game twinkle into the atmosphere. Thor hutches over a tiny arcade, his giant hand closed over the joystick. Fingers jab the buttons with immense force and pitch shots toward the incoming cosmic mob.

Thor grumbles, his veins bulging from a sweaty neck. "These blasted creatures– they don't know who they're dealing with." The enemies spiral downward. "I'll rid the world of every single one of you. Starting with the grasshopper." He points at a green and yellow winged creature leaving the screen. "Ha! He's running. Amateur." Breaking off with a cry as a huge swarm of 8bit masses descend, he jams the joystick to the left and rips it off. He glances from the lever to the game and gives up, rising from his seat and stomping into a separate hallway.

I trail behind him, messing with my ponytail. Not long after, we open into a smaller room where Scott and Wanda sit across from each other on couches. Scott waves his arms and squints at Wanda, his mouth set and firm.

Wanda's hands twitch and her eyes turn red.

Scott flicks his wrist. A card appears in his palm and he gasps. "Up-close magic. What'd you think of that, Scarlet Witch?"

Wanda leans back, smirking. "I knew what you were going to do." She plays with a festering sphere of red on her fingers.

I don't wait to see Scott's reaction to Wanda's clairvoyance as I accompany Thor into the yard out back.

A basketball hoop is stationed erect in a concrete field with a cluster of Avengers flocking its root. Thor strides up to join them, making four in number. The others, Sam and Vision, have all eyes on Peter.

"So this is a game called Horse." Peter gestures to the space.

"Horse?" Thor scratches his chin. "Why is there a game named after such a heroic animal?"

"Uhhh…"

"Please, continue, Parker." Sam nods at the teen.

"Anyway, the rules are simple. We all take turns making a basket in whatever way we want. The rest of the players have to get the ball in the hoop the same way as the first shooter did. If not, you get a letter as a point. Your goal is to not get points."

Vision scrutinizes the basketball in Peter's hand.

"If you fail at getting a basket five times, then your points, or letters, spell out the word 'horse' and you lose."

Sam rubs his hands together. "Ooooh, this is gonna be good. I was amazing at this game as a kid. You're all going down."

Peter takes the first shot and conducts a simple throw. One succeeds, the other two gain hapless Hs. Sam pivots in an athletic circle, his sneakers squeaking on the old pavement, and swerves to shove the ball into the air.

He misses the hoop by a yard.

Thor and Peter find his failure comedic while Vision enters the situation with a calm, analytic presence.

Vision's turn. Gripping the ball, the android surveys the basket for a long couple of minutes like a predator observing its prey. Without warning, he ascends from the ground, his cape flying out behind him, and floats to the target, ignoring the protests around him. He drops the basketball in the net and drifts back to the ground.

I snicker, covering my mouth with a hand.

Sam folds his arms. "You can't do that, man. It's against the rules!"

"I believe Mr. Parker said that we may make a basket any way we'd like?" Vision tips his head expectantly at Peter.

"Yes, but– not everyone can fly."

"It doesn't matter, Vision." Thor scoops the ball into his muscled arm. "I'll dominate everyone in this cursed game." With a great leap, he lobs the sphere forward and wrenches the hoop clean from the stone.

Collective gasps spring into being.

Tony starts a slow clap from the sidelines. "Well, that was one heck of a game, wasn't it?"

AUTHOR'S NOTES: While I was writing the party scenes, I had AC/DC, Tony's rock band of choice, playing throughout the entire writing process. I got in the mood!

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