"You're okay?"

Peter smiled, glancing over at Pepper. He had a feeling that she was taking advantage of having him alone in the car to double-check on his mental and emotional wellbeing.

"You'd be correct," Alec agreed. He was amused more than concerned, and that made Peter amused, too. "She and Tony are worried, but aren't sure how worried they should be. That will depend on your reaction to it all."

"So they're worried about me being worried? But not worried about the demon thing?"

"Correct. They're deferring to Stephen and Wong when it comes to the demon thing, as you put it. The two have been dealing with demons and other things that the mainstream populace would call supernatural before they came to know them – and they have the backing of not only the other sanctums but also the Avengers, if it should come to that. Now answer your mom before she turns the car around and goes home because she thinks you're freaking out."

"I'm okay," he told her, smiling. Not only because of Alec, but because it was good to be loved that much, wasn't it? "It's pretty far fetched, after all. Right?"

"It's crazy."

"But Stephen and Wong are good at what they do, right? I don't really need to worry about some demon coming looking for me. Not to mention the mind stone will give us a heads-up, first to Vision, and Wanda – and probably Natasha."

"So you're not worried?" Pepper asked.

"Not at all." He tried to sound confident, and must have succeeded, because she lost the concerned expression he could see, even while she was driving. "You and Tony shouldn't be, either."

"We're not," she said. "Not really. For the same reasons that you aren't. We'll just have to wait and see, and listen to whatever Stephen and Wong suggest."

"Yeah."

They drove in silence for a mile, or two and then Pepper looked over at him.

"Tell me about MJ's new boyfriend."

Peter rolled his eyes. He'd rather talk about demons, really.

OOOOOOOO

"What did you find out?"

The minor demon – who wasn't that minor, unless it was being compared to a monstrosity such as Dormammu was – cringed, affecting (either sincerely, or just to keep from offending) a subservient manner.

"There are conflicting stories, my lord, heard second-hand and directly from witnesses. Some say the light is a myth and that it simply solar flares causing mass delusions among those who speak out and say that it is more than a mere light."

"In multiple solar systems?"

"It is one of the explanations I have found. There are others."

"Others?"

"Some believe in this light and say that it has healed the populations of entire worlds." The demon hesitated, then. "Others have said that some have been destroyed. It may simply be wishful thinking, of course, my lord. I've been told many things. One story told of a prophesy that Thanos was trying to fulfil. A tale of a boy who was destined to unite the stones and save the universe."

If a planet-sized demon lord could roll its eyes in derision, Dormammu would have.

"A boy."

"Yes. A human one, at that, from the stories I have heard, since."

"What about the one called the Collector? What has he said?"

"That the light is real, and that it can, most definitely, heal those who have injuries, but he will not or cannot say where it originated – beyond that the power stones were involved."

There was a terrifying silence, and the demon waited, its fate uncertain as its master decided whether it should be punished for its failure to bring the information that had been demanded from it.

"He has one of the stones," Dormammu said, finally.

"Yes – but it was lost to him. When Thanos came for it, it was not in his collection when the Titan sought to wrest it from him. The word is that it was returned to him, however."

"He has it, now?"

"That is the rumor."

"Did he go get it from wherever it had been?" Dormammu asked – more to himself than to his underling. "Or did someone bring it to him?"

"I am uncertain, my lord."

"That is a question to be answered."

"I will find out, my lord."

"The magician has his, again, as well," Dormammu said, his eyes flashing with a mixture of anger and fury. "He had it with him when he came to speak to me. Whoever took the stones to gather them and defeat the Titan must have returned them to those he wrested them from. Where are the others? And who returned them?"

"I do not know, master."

"Find out. Someone must be willing to provide you with an idea of who this person was – or if it was a single person, or a group. Bring me that information."

"Yes, my lord."

OOOOOOOO

"What are we looking at?"

"You don't think it's a bit out of line for you to do this?"

"What? No. of course not. I'm just looking out for Peter's friend, right?"

Romanoff didn't look convinced.

"Uh huh."

"What did you find out?"

The assassin rolled her eyes, amused at the way Tony Stark was more than willing to utilize what was probably the most intense spy network in the world to vet a teenaged boy. MJ wasn't his daughter, of course, but Natasha knew that he was fond of the girl and clearly wanted to look out for her – even if she wasn't dating his son, any longer. If they, technically, ever had been an official item.

"His name is Brad Robinson. He's 17 and a senior at Peter's school. He'll be graduating this next year, and is already accepted on a pre-admin scholarship to Stanford."

"In California?"

"That's the one."

"Any record?"

"Bank robbery, a couple of years ago."

Stark frowned.

"Really?"

"Of course not, Tony. He's clean. One shoplifting incident last year, but that's not a real concern. He doesn't have anything else we need to know about, and his mom is a teacher at Peter's school and his dad is an architect. Nothing about any of them is raising any red flags for us."

"So SHIELD is good with him coming to the party?"

"As long as Peter is."

"He says that he is. Pepper's making sure, today."

"I'll let Fury know."

"Anything you need from me?"

"Are you sure you want a haunted house?"

"Yeah. Stephen said he'd set it up."

"I know. Wong is actually working on it, from what I've been told. It sounds like it's going to be pretty complex – but that's Wong for you, so I wouldn't expect less than that, really. And they're going to be using magic, he says, in the working of it."

Tony nodded.

"He asked me if I cared, and pointed out that anyone who saw it would assume that we were just using tech to impress our party guests."

"We'll get a preview the day before, once he sets it up."

It was clear that she was looking forward to it.

Tony was, too. But he was also a little cautious.

"Make sure he understands that they're high school kids, alright? I don't want anything too scary, or too bloody, or anything."

Romanoff nodded.

"I'll talk to him."

"I appreciate it."