This is going to be an interesting one folks, some plots lines are finally going to cross threads, a few interesting characters will make their debut, and Ben will get a fairly big revelation. Let's get back to the action.

Infinity Chapter XX

Ball Room Blitz Part I

Avenger's Tower, New York City, October 31st, 5:00 PM EDT

"Man...how are you so good at this?" Ben muttered as "GAME" flashed on-screen for what must have been the thirtieth time as Fetch's chosen character, this time Ike, appeared celebrating, and in a break from reality, reached out of the screen and gave her a fist bump.

"Is that really a question?" Fetch asks, raising an eyebrow.

Ben opened his mouth to respond, thought better of it, and changed tracks: "Sorry you're still stuck here, instead of at Xavier's...with people that might actually be able to beat you at this game.

It had been ten days since the Avengers were originally planning to drop off Fetch at Xavier's Institute. Still, an almost comical series of events had afflicted the Institute, which led to the postponement of her visit. It had started as something called a "Dead Pool situation," which, from Tony's cackling laugh and the displeased look on Daisy's face when that had been announced, led Ben to believe that whatever that was, it wasn't very pleasant. From there, it had snowballed, with a good handful of the school's teachers currently dealing with something on the Moon. If anything, Ben was even more intrigued to meet the academies' staff and founder, but it would have to wait at least one more day before he could go to drop off Fetch with the others.

"Right, because I'm definitely hating being 'stuck' living with superheroes, with their robot butler, state-of-the-art entertainment system, and a personal fridge stocked full of my favorite snacks." Fetch snarked, smiling up at him.

"I am not technically a robot or a butler Miss Fetch." Fridays interjected, her hologram emerging from the 'glass' coffee table in front of them, "But I am glad that you're having a good time."

"Sorry, and it has." Fetch stated, looking up at Ben with a smirk, "Getting to kick his butt at video games has been pretty great too."

Ben narrowed his eyes playfully, "Think you're getting a big head there, kid. Time for me to even the playing field."

"Oh, yeah?" Fetch asked as he transformed, shrinking down.

"Yeah, Grey Matter is the smartest being in...well, probably the city." Grey Matter stated, with a sharp-toothed smile, "I think I can figure out strategies to beat you in a kid's game."

She laughed, "That is still so weird."

"Enough talking, let's game!" Ben stated, hoping around the controller, his mind already moving a mile a minute.

She nodded, and they began to play, though she still seemed to have an edge. However, out of the corner of his eye, Grey Matter could see her face begin to fall ever so slightly.

"Ben...do I really need to leave?" she asked, looking at him.

He stopped his attack that would have sent her character soaring off the platform and paused the game with a tap of his foot, turning to look at her.

"Well, I don't honestly know that much about Xavier's, but they can help you figure out your powers, help you get strong, let you be around kids your age that know what you are going through." Grey Matter stated, "There is a higher statistic likelihood of continued happiness and developing friendships in that scenario than here."

"But...what if I don't like it there." Fetch muttered, "What if they don't like who I am. I'm different."

"Well, you don't know if any of that is true, now do you, as they say about assumptions and all that." Grey Matter remarked, "And I would argue that all of the kids at that school are pretty "different." Which is never a bad thing, by the way."

"No, I don't mean my powers, I-I mean..." Abigail began, stuttering slightly and looking a little afraid.

"Hey," Ben stated, leaping up onto the back of the couch next to her, "The only opinion that should matter when it comes to who you are is your own. That being said, I think you're pretty great, and I'm sure those kids will too, as long as you don't beat them too badly at video games."

She laughed and nodded, "Thanks, Ben. I am gonna miss this place."

"You'll be back, pretty sure I already saw Daisy drafting up some future paperwork," Ben stated with a grin as they picked up their game, "Had a big red 'A' on it."

"Really?" Fetch asked, giving him an excited look, and this time he decided to get in a few dirty hits, "Hey!"

"I mean-" he paused as the doors of the elevator opened, revealing Wasp dressed in a beautiful black dress with a yellow belt, black gloves accented with gold, a necklace set with topaz, and a pair of fairly nice-looking sunglasses. She talked to a hologram that showed an image of Bruce, slightly disheveled and standing somewhere partially darkened.

"I am sorry, Jan," Banner stated, looking a bit sheepish.

"It's fine, Bruce. It was just so sudden." Wasp stated, waving him off but around the corner of the couch Ben say her facial expression fall slightly as Banner looked over his shoulder in the hologram.

"It was sudden for me too, but if Gamma Radiation is being detected at the Zoo, that is definitely something that needs to be looked into," Bruce states, his eyes flicking to another screen out of view as he began to type away.

"Of course." Jan agreed, shifting her stance slightly, leaning into the screen with a smile, "I was looking forward to tonight, though."

"Really?" Banner asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I was really looking forward to dancing with...well seeing you dance, let's say." Jan amended with a smile.

"I have two-left feet, likely would have been a good laugh to quite a few people." Banner returned with a slight smirk.

"Maybe, maybe, but it would have been nice...to spend time doing something that isn't just fighting crazy people and aliens," Jan stated, softly, her eyes shifting over to where Fetch and Ben were staring at her from the couch, their heads turned at the same angle.

"I definitely don't disagree, Jan, but I thought you liked fighting." Banner remarked.

Janet laughed lightly, "You're right...it...just be careful, Bruce, and you owe me a dance when you get back."

"Duly noted." Bruce stated, "Though, I think the Big Guy will still be able to hold his own here if it comes to it."

"I would hope so, see you later, Bruce," Janet said with a soft smile.

"Have a good night, Jan.," Bruce returned.

The call ended, and she sighed before turning to look at Ben and Fetch.

"What was that?" Ben asked.

"There is a charity ball at Linda Carter Children's Hospital, raising money for children affected by the Dome. Bruce was going to be my...plus one, but Fury needed him for something at the Zoo," Wasp stated with a bit of a huff.

"Well...what about the others? I'm sure they could go with you." Ben offered, narrowing his eyes slightly at her behavior.

"Daisy is on the West coast working on something for Coulson and his team, Hank is back in Central City looking into the Particle Accelerator with Dr. Snow," she bounced her eyebrows at that with a smirk, eliciting a shake of Ben's head, "And Tony's just gone."

"He's gone?" Ben asked in confusion.

"Yeah, he does that, disappears for a few days, and shows up like nothing happened. Might just be doing business for Stark Industries, but he could also be partying it up in Mardipoor for all I know."

"Huh," Ben muttered, filing that info away along with the multitude of other things he would have to Google when he got the time.

"So I could go alone, which is a bad look for a charity event based around something we're dealing with personally." Janet noted, "Or you're my new plus one, though not as a weird little frogman."

"What about Fetch?" Grey Matter asked, nodding to her.

Janet looked at her, "She could come with free food, a bit of dancing, good music, if, of course, she's comfortable with that."

"Do I need to dress up?" Fetch asked, looking a little suspicious.

"I can pick something out that I think you'd love," Janet stated.

"Can I keep my hoodie on?" she asked, tugging at the hood.

"Of course, if that makes you comfortable," Janet stated with a soft smile.

"Okay, sounds kinda cool." Fetch stated.

Grey Matter shifted back into Ben, "I'm guessing I don't have a choice in my apparel?"

Janet smirked, "No, but I promise you'll love it."

"I promise you'll love it!" Olivia stated, leaping about outside the Vet Clinic within the Bronx Zoo.

Donald and Dr. Connors shared a look, the latter speaking up, "Why are you so set on going to this ball?"

"I don't actually want to go to the ball." Olivia stated as she picked up Snipper as he threaded between her feet and danced around with him for a few seconds, "Though that would be fun. You guys can dance if you want or get some free food."

"I like the sound of free food," Donald said earnestly, as Connors sighed and put his head in his hand.

"If not the ball, what are you actually seeking to do, Olivia?" Curtis asked, giving his ward a serious look.

Oliva stopped dancing and looked up at him, her eyes glinting with green light very briefly, "There are children at the hospital that need my assistance. I can help them. Like I did you."

Curtis looked down at his returned arm, tracing the scales with a finger. She had helped him, changed him beyond his wildest imagining, but she had saved his life. He'd also come to enjoy his new form, even though he still pondered how he would eventually return to his family.

"Alright, but I don't know if I should go along." the Doctor stated, gesturing to his reptilian features, "I feel as though I might stand out."

"Don't worry about that." Olivia stated with a smile as she draped Snipper around her neck, "This is going to be fun."

"Well, this is going to be fun." a bombastic stated as five individuals stared down from an opposing roof towards Linda Carter's Children's Hospital. Two limousines had just pulled up front, depositing quite a few well-dressed individuals, while others were bedecked in outlandish costumes.

"So much money is going to be thrown around in there." another voice noted, with a deep Australian twang, "Are you sure we can't filch a few pockets."

"You are on contract," a snide, demanding voice stated over the comms, "Pickpocket on your own time, besides I assure you that you will be well compensated for your time. AIM always pays its dues."

"Fine, fine," Boomerang remarks with a sigh as he finishes picking his teeth with one of his oddly lethal implements. Across from him, staring at him fairly disconcertingly, is a man dressed all in green, spinning an oddly high-tech flute between his fingers.

"The plan is simple. You and the Piper are to take out any guards that get in your way, while several drones and Mr. Marko provide an ample distraction for any intrusive do-gooders by attacking the ball itself."

"Ready and willing." a deep voice stated over the comms.

"Meanwhile, I will be following Mr. Rathaway and Mr. Harkness to acquisition our targets harmlessly and effectively. Yes, yes, but why can't we partake in a little showmanship." Mr. Atsuhiro asked, leaning forward on his cane, dressed in clothes resembling a street magician with a white mask with a vibrant smile covering his face.

"Because show-manship is likely to bring the Avengers down on top of you." the voice returned, "But please, do put on a show if you wish. The data I could collect from them bouncing you across the ballroom could be quite informative."

"Spoilsport." Compress muttered, turning and leaning back against the railing and looking up at the OPs leader.

"Collect the children, return to me and collect your payday. It is all very simple. Do well, and there will likely be more work for you all in the future. Fail, and well, I don't know where Nicholas Fury is sending Gifted individuals as most of his prisons have been cracked wide open, but I imagine it is not a kind place at all."

"And you promise that the Children will not be harmed?" the OP Leader asked, speaking up for the first time as she stepped from the shadows.

"I wish to help them, truly, on top of wanting to understand whatever might have caused the Dome and their sickness in the first place. To do this, I need them under my care."

"If you are lying to me…" the woman stated, her eyes hard as she fiddled with a section of her vibrant pink and blue hair.

"Then I am assuredly a dead man. I am not your enemy, my Lady. I, and therefore AIM, truly wishes to help those children. I brought you into this because of your reputation, honor, and, more importantly, your skill. If the others bungle this operation, it is on you to make sure it is salvaged in some fashion."

"Flattery won't save you if this all turns out to be false."

"Oh, I am well aware. Now, I hand the reigns over to you. Carter founded this hospital, and while I do not put much stock into conspiracy, the woman was believed to be a practitioner of the arcane arts. So everyone, stay on your toys and make good use of the gear AIM has gifted you." the voice stated.

"Good hunting." the AIM agent finished, the smile audible in his voice.

"Especially you…" he paused as there was the sound of shifting flesh, cracking bone, and sparking circuits as an immense sniper rifled emerged from within the woman's arm as she dropped to one knee and scoped in on the latest trio of individuals entering the hospital, revealing a brown-haired man in a dark green tux, a brown-haired woman dressed in yellow-and-black, and teenage girl dressed in a purple hood and a blue frilled dress.

"Nagant."

So...this was mostly set-up, and I apologize for that, BUT Ben and Olivia's paths are finally crossing!

At a ball.

On Halloween.

At a Hospital owned by one of Marvel's more obscure magic practitioners.

While a bunch of AIM-backed mercs are trying to kidnap a bunch of kids affected by the Dome!

Should be fun, yeah?

Also, uh, yeah, I might have decided to tack on another clan of superheroics to this fic. I can't promise who might make an appearance down the line, but hey...you never know.

Next time, a bit of relationship building, more characters reveals, and a whole lot of chaos! This has been VerBeeker, signing off!