"A Flerkin?"
Strange allowed a bit of disbelief to creep into his voice and the Collector scowled.
"They are real, I assure you," he told the sorcerer. "I know that most believe them to be myths, but I once held one in my collection."
"No longer?"
"It didn't like being a collectible. It rebelled and decimated an entire wing of my collection."
"Are they, truly, that large?" Strange asked. "I was under the impression that they were smaller creatures."
"Your information is correct. The one I had was about this big – and furry. It didn't show any indication of the dangerous nature that is inherent in the beast, either. In fact…" he hesitated and then shrug. "It was kind of cuddly."
"Until it at your stuff."
"Yes."
"What happened to the Flerkin?" Strange asked, curiously.
If it was the thing that ate the relic, then he needed to find it and get it back. Or at least find out how to access the pocket dimension that was contained within it. Or-
"I sent it back to the world it was found on."
"Is it still there?"
The Collector rolled his eyes.
"That was ages ago," he replied. "Eons. Time untold. A Flerkin has a long life span, certainly – although no one actually knows just how long – but it would be dead by now. And the Linkpin with it."
"Damn."
"Does this have anything to do with your young friend?" the ancient being asked, curiously.
"No." Strange wasn't about to let that particular bit of information out, now was he? "I have other things to worry about. The Linkpin is something I am interested in, is all. An oddity. More so, now that I know how rare they are."
"If you want to see one, you'll need to find a way to locate that reality," the Collector told him with a smirk. "The one here is certainly gone."
"Rare than a Flerkin, I guess." He forced his own disappointment to not show. "I appreciate the information, Taneleer. Thank you."
There was a shrug.
"One is forced to find distractions when one has survived as long as I have, Magician," he said. "My collection is all well and good to look at, but most of the exhibitions don't have an interest in conversing with me. Intelligent conversations are few and far between when you've lived as long as I have."
"I imagine so." He wasn't quite ready to become friends of any degree with the other being, but he could understand what he'd meant. "I'll show myself out."
"Of course."
The sorcerer vanished.
Annoyed at the display of power and sorely tempted to add such an interesting creature to his collection, Taneleer shook his head. He wanted that cloak, and he wanted the time stone – or course – but he was very much aware that it would take much more effort than he wanted to expend to be able to capture any of them, Not to mention trying to hold onto to them. He'd had a reminder of the damages caused by an unwilling display, already that day. The sorcerer with his abilities and his magic cloak might prove to be even more of a hassle than a Flerkin.
Not something he wanted to test, really.
OOOOOOOOO
"Clear?"
"Yes."
Tony looked around, anyway, just to be on the safe side, and pulled the little wooden lever on the small device on the table they'd set up. A moment later the tomato in the launcher went soaring through the air and landed about a hundred feet from them, somewhere near the middle of the field.
"Nice…"
Tony smiled, clearly pleased with himself.
"And that's just the prototype," he said. The finished product is going to be at least four times the size."
"You don't think that'll be overkill?" Pepper asked, pointedly.
"A pumpkin's a lot bigger than a tomato," Peter pointed out. He looked excited. "And there's more room at Jack's farm to launch them farther."
She shrugged, and then shivered a little. The weather was definitely changing, and winter was closing in along with the holidays. It was already getting dark and the security lights were shining on the field. A field that was strewn with miniature pumpkins, zucchinis, and now tomatoes as Pete and Tony had shown off their pumpkin chucker devices to her and Peter.
"Who's going to pick up the dead vegetables?" she asked, telling them that she was done observing for the evening. "I'm pretty sure Nick wouldn't approve of you leaving them splattered all over the field."
"The deer will eat them in the morning," Tony assured her. "Maybe not the tomatoes…" he corrected. "But the rest of it."
"If they don't eat the tomatoes I'll clean them up, tomorrow when I'm out of school," Peter offered. "Are you going to let Ned come, still?"
Tony picked up his little prototype and gestured for Pete to do the same with his, not wanting to leave them outside.
"What do you think, Pep?"
"Ned's pretty intelligent," she said as they all turned to walk toward the building. "He might catch on."
"Not if Pete wears the SHIELD thing," Peter replied.
"He might not want to, though," Pepper pointed out. "Is it uncomfortable?"
"No," Pete said, shaking his head. "It's not even annoying, or anything."
"But do you want to wear it?" Tony asked the boy, as Peter held the door for everyone. "You're the one who would have to maintain the story of being Benjamin, after all. We'll have it easy, because when we look at you, we'll be able to remember. You have to always remember on your own."
"It was nice spending time with the other kids," Pete said. "I know I haven't been here long, but it feels weird to be out here, away from the city and the bustle of things."
"So that's a yes to keeping your identity a secret if Ned comes out?" Tony asked.
"Yes."
"Pep?"
She wasn't any better at saying no to Pete than she was to Peter, really.
"I'm fine with it, then. I'll bring him in with Peter after practice."
Both boys looked excited by that.
"Alright." Tony looked at the two boys. "I don't want you up late, tonight. Plenty of time to goof around, tomorrow, when Ned's here."
"Besides," a new voice added, filled with amusement. "Peter needs all the beauty sleep that he can get."
Peter turned but found himself caught by Clint, who hadn't specifically come looking for him, but was always willing to find a good burn when he had a chance. The boy tried to wriggle free, but Barton had him in a good grip, from behind, and his hold was strong. Especially since Peter tried hard to avoid using his enhanced strength to escape when he was wrestling with Clint.
Pete watched uncertainly as the two struggled against the others' hold, but it was Pepper who stepped up to put a hand between the two.
"Not in the hallway," she told them, visions of someone falling hard and cracking their head open and bleeding all over the place. "Peter? Do you need anything?"
"No." His face was turning red from Clint's grasp around his neck. "I'm going to take the garbage out and then I'm going to go to my rooms."
Tony smirked.
"He means you, you know?" he said to Clint.
The archer wasn't offended and his grin proved it.
"He can try."
Pete looked at Pepper, uncertainly, but she smiled.
"Don't stay up too late," she told the boy. "I have a special assignment for you, tomorrow – provided no one manages to get you back home between now and then."
Pete looked interested.
"You do? What?"
She smiled.
"You'll have to wait until tomorrow. Clint?"
"Yeah?"
"Not in the hallway."
"Right, Pepper." The archer let Peter go, stopping long enough to ruffle the boy's hair, impudently. "Next time, Peter Pony."
"Bring it on, Arrow guy."
Tony snorted, amused at the interactions between the two – as he always was.
"Peter? Take my prototype to the workroom, will you? I'm going to go check on Ironpig and go to bed."
He had a long day ahead of him, too.
"Sure."
The boy took the miniature pumpkin chucker from his father and looked at Pete, who was holding his own little contraption.
"Coming?"
"Yes."
Tony offered Pepper his arm, and she took it with a smile, allowing him to lead him down the corridor. Clint smirked.
"When you're finished with that, go ask your cat where my arrowheads are."
Peter grinned.
"You need to keep an eye on your stuff, Arrow Guy."
Pete snorted, making Clint look at the boy.
"Don't encourage him, Pete. He's already a wise-ass."
The boys both chuckled.
"Sorry."