"You are not going to sing?"

Tony shook his head, waving away the notebook with the song lists that Peter was offering him. The boy smirked and moved to Ramonda, who took it, politely, but knew she wasn't going to know any of the songs – not even the rhythms. Tony looked at T'Challa, who had asked the question.

"You're all better off if I don't," he assured the king of Wakanda. "Pepper has a great voice and can carry a tune, nicely. I screech like I saw a mouse, or something."

"Don't listen to him, T'Challa," Pepper said. "He can sing. He does it all the time."

"In the shower doesn't count, Pep."

"The acoustics are best in the shower, though," T'Challa pointed out.

"You could do a duet with mom," Peter told Tony.

"No," Pepper replied, shaking her head. "It wouldn't be a duet, at all. It would be me singing, and him moving his lips and pretending to be singing."

"Besides, it's time to move the party to the next stage." Tony smiled, standing up, and waving Shuri over to the table where her brother and mother were sitting with Stephen, Natasha, Pepper and himself, watching as the others enjoyed themselves. Shuri walked over, coming to a stop to stand beside Peter. "Are you ready for cake?"

The girl nodded, smiling. She'd never had a birthday cake, and had looked them up online, and had asked MJ and Ned – and Peter – about them, only to find that anything could be a birthday cake, since it was usually based on whatever the person having the birthday enjoyed the most.

"I am."

"Good." He looked at T'Challa. "Hold onto your hat."

"I am not wearing a hat…" the young king said, confused.

Stark wasn't listening, though. He put a couple of fingers to his lips and whistled, loudly, getting everyone's attention at the exact moment that Ned finished the latest song that he'd been warbling. Everyone turned to face him, expectantly, and he raised his hands to keep their attention on him.

"Alright, everyone. It's time for cake. You all know the drill." He looked at Fury, who was lounging against the entrance where the light switch was. "Nick?"

The lights were dimmed and Peter took Shuri's hand, walking her over to the side of the room where the rest of the party foods had been cleared off the table by the wall. Now there were stacks of brightly colored paper plates and plastic forks. He smiled when he felt her actually tremble, and knew it was excitement. Peter leaned toward her.

"Don't freak out," he whispered.

"What? Why?"

He simply squeezed her hand, and looked expectantly at the double-door that led to the corridor. It opened, suddenly, and in the dim light the cake was rolled into the room. As it was, the crowd began singing happy birthday to her, and Shuri's eyes glittered happily in the light of seventeen candles that were artfully distributed on each of the three tiers of the magnificent cake.

"Amazing…"

Peter smiled, but he definitely agreed. The cake was three layers, and wide. It was white cake, with a base of white frosting. Over that, however, was a depiction of each of the different ecosystems that made up Wakanda; jungle, desert, grasslands, and then the capitol city, which was magnificently done in edible spun sugar. In the place where the desert faded into frosting there was enough room for 'Happy Birthday, Shuri' to be written in green, and gorgeous frosting roses on every tier.

The singing finished, and there were cheers – both because it was tradition, and because she looked so pleased at the cake. And the attention, maybe?

"You have to make a wish and blow out the candles," Peter reminded her. "Just like we talked about."

She nodded, closed her eyes for a moment with a smile, and then opened them, again, and with an easy puff, blew out the candles – to another round of applause. The lights came on full, again, and Tony and Pepper joined them by the cake. As did a couple of servers, who would cut it – and dole out ice cream to go with the slices, for anyone who wanted some.

"You made your wish?" Tony asked, pleased with how it had turned out.

"Yes. I w-"

"Nope," he held up his hand. "No telling, or it won't come true."

"Oh."

"So, we know it's tradition in your country not to receive birthday presents. Because of that, we told everyone invited that they weren't supposed to bring you anything. Most people listened," he said, casting a sidelong look at Lila Barton, who giggled. "But as hosts of your party, it's a tradition for us that we give you something. Since it's also a tradition in our country that teens are presented with a gift that signifies their passage into adulthood, Peter, Pepper and I put our heads together and came up with the only thing that we could think of to give you, that you don't already have. Something that exemplifies the independence that comes with being a little older – and the responsibility that follows."

The crowd was silent, watching as Peter dug into his front pocket and pulled out a small box, that was wrapped in blue paper and had a bow on it. He handed it over to Shuri.

"What is it?" she asked, curiously.

"You'll see," Tony told her. "Right after we all have cake."

"What?"

The billionaire smirked, amused.

"You can't open it, yet, Princess," he told her. "Not until later."

She groaned, but Peter laughed, and hugged her.

"It'll be great," he assured her, cheerfully. "Let's have some cake."

The others all gathered around, too, and everyone was served cake and ice cream, and retreated to the many tables and the various conversations that were going on. Peter sent Shuri to the table with a piece of cake that had a part of one of the roses, along with chocolate ice cream, and then he and Tony served T'Challa and Ramonda, who was holding the blue-wrapped box and examining it with interest.

"Is it alive?" the older woman asked, curiously.

"No."

"Explosive?" T'Challa asked, taking the box and then holding it to his ear as he shook it.

"It is not," Tony answered. He handed Pepper piece of cake without an adorning scoop of ice cream, and then settled beside her, pleased at how curious they all looked. "She already has a puppy, and she doesn't need any firecrackers."

"Perhaps you can give me a hint?" Shuri suggested, smiling when Peter sat next to her. His plate had a large slice of cake and plenty of ice cream. "That is a tradition, too, is it not?"

Ned sat down next to him, and MJ joined them, as well.

"She's right," the teen confirmed, knowledgeably. "It's tradition to allow one hint."

"One hint, then," Tony agreed.

The girl looked expectantly at Peter. He hesitated, and then smiled.

"It's yellow."

Shuri frowned.

"That is a description. Not a hint."

"It can be both."

"I do not understand the tradition of setting the cake on fire before consuming it," Ramonda said, hoping to distract her daughter. "It obviously is not a true test of the worthiness to eat it. Correct?"

Seventeen candles weren't that much of a challenge, after all.

"The ancient Greeks used to do it," Ned replied before anyone else could. "They'd burn candles as offerings to their gods. But they used to make round cakes for birthdays – to symbolize the moon. With candles as a special tribute to Artemis."

"I didn't know that," Peter said.

"It is an interesting custom," Thor commented, walking up just in time to hear the explanation. He was holding a plate with a piece of cake that dwarfed the ones Peter and Ned had.

"How do they celebrate birthdays on Asgard?" Pepper asked him, just as Natasha sat down with cake, handed to her by Stephen.

"Our friends ply us with alcohol until we fall down."

"Why am I not surprised?" Romanoff asked, amused.

Tony turned to Peter, raising his fork to point it at the boy.

"No Asgard birthday parties for you."

Peter smiled, ignoring Ned's disappointed noise and Thor's guffaw of amusement.

"Okay."

OOOOOOOO

Despite the fact that Tony's piece of cake wasn't very large, he lingered over it – and the cup of coffee that he was having with it. Not because it wasn't good; it was delicious. But Shuri was watching him, expectantly, and she was tense with excited expectation. When Tony was done with his cake, she would assume that that signified that the official parts of the party was over. People could still eat cake, or whatever, and could sing, and play the games in the corner, but they would be free to go whichever way they wanted, with no other tradition to follow.

The cake was the climax to a birthday party, so she understood, and when Tony was finished with his, then she could open the blue box.

The only problem with that was that Tony didn't seem to be in any hurry to eat his cake. He practically nibbled it, talking to Ramonda and T'Challa and ignoring her intense scrutiny as they discussed how Wakanda was faring, and what interesting things the two had been up to. Peter smirked, exchanging a glance with Pepper. Ned and MJ had both finished their cake and wandered back to the karaoke corner, while other classmates were dispersed amongst the other activities, enjoying themselves and the company of so many interesting people.

Shuri was not adept at hiding her impatience – as they all already knew. T'Challa and Ramonda better than any.

"The whole theme of this party is supposed to be that you're spending it with the Avengers," Tony said, taking another tiny bite and looking at the girl. "So we were going to do some photo ops, tomorrow, to give you a chance to have some pictures to remember the weekend. Some for Peter's friends, as well. With Thor here, though, tonight, we think it's a better idea to do them, now. This evening. In case he leaves before tomorrow. Interested?"

She forgot her impatience enough to look excited.

"Of course."

"Will Ironman be in the photos?" T'Challa asked, pointedly.

"Of course."

Peter gave the king of Wakanda a sly look.

"Will Blank Panther?"

The king's smile was amused.

"I am not an Avenger."

"It's a pretty cool suit," Peter said. "I'd like a picture of you in it. With me."

"Will you be in the Avenger ones?" Ramonda asked the boy.

"I can't," he told her. "Most of the kids at school don't know who I am. So it'll just be Peter Parker."

"I think Peter Parker is pretty amazing," Ramonda said.

Which made Peter blush, pleased at the compliment. That made Shuri and Pepper both smile, too.

"Who all will be in the pictures, then? Shuri asked, curiously "Ironman, obviously. Black Widow and Captain American. I presume Carol? She is a superhero, if not an Avenger, correct?"

"Hawkeye is here," Peter added. "And, of course, Thor."

"And one more special guest…" Tony said, finishing the last bite of his cake and tapping a button on his watch.

The light blinked, which was a signal to those who knew what was going to happen that it was happening, and not to be alarmed. The rest looked up, curiously, from whatever they were doing. Peter turned, expectantly, toward the double door, and Tony, Pepper and Natasha all looked that was as well.

It was only natural that the others at the table looked that way, too.

With a booming noise, the doors opened, and were suddenly filled with a very large form. A hulking form, to be precise.

There were several startled noises, and more than a few people – even those who had known what was going to happen – took a step back as the Hulk walked into the room, dressed in only those stretching pants, and muscles bulging everywhere. The monster looked around, slapping his chest, lightly.

"Where's the birthday girl?" he growled.