"Peter Benjamin Parker!"

She wasn't his mother – not even his adopted mother – but Pete still flinched at the reprimand in Pepper's voice.

"Sorry."

Tony chuckled.

"Don't be," he told the boy. "You should have heard what she said when she first saw it."

Pepper threw her husband a look, but didn't disagree. Pete was still staring at the kitten Peter was holding.

"What was that?"

"Flerkin," Wong replied, clearly amused by the young man's response. "We told you."

"Yeah… but I didn't think…" he trailed off, looking at Nutmeg. "Is he okay?"

"He's fine," Peter told him, rubbing the kitten's head. "It isn't the first time he's done it."

"That's insane."

Peter smiled.

"Right?"

"And the marble that he ate?" Pete asked, reaching out and very gingerly touching Nutmeg's side. "It's not in his stomach, right now?"

"Not when he eats it with the tentacle things," Strange told them. "From what we've researched whatever goes in his mouth the regular way goes to his stomach for digestion and elimination. If it goes in through the other maw – the dangerous one – it goes into the pocket dimension."

"In theory," Tony said.

"Correct."

"So the marble should be in this pocket dimension as we speak," Wong said.

"Now we find out how well the spell works…" Strange said, looking pleased. With himself, or with Nutmeg being so willing to do what they needed him to do, no one knew – and he certainly wouldn't tell, would he? He turned to Wong. "Ready?"

"You're both going?" Pete asked, looking concerned.

"No." Stephen didn't look surprised by the question. "We can't. Someone has to guard the sanctum."

"But it would be better if you were both wherever you're going?" Tony asked the sorcerer supreme.

"Since we're not sure where that is?" Stephen replied. "Or how big? Or what might be there waiting? It wouldn't be a bad idea, of course. But we can't leave the sanctum unguarded and I won't be gone for any longer than necessary."

"We could guard it," Tony told him.

Wong snorted.

"Not a chance."

"Why not?" Stark asked, reasonably. "We're pretty good at protecting the earth, right? The sanctum is on the earth…"

"So, technically, we're already protecting the sanctum," Peter concluded, looking excited.

Strange smirked.

"I appreciate the offer, guys, but there is no way in hell that I'm going to leave you in charge of the sanctum."

"You don't trust us?" Tony asked.

"He knows you," Pepper said, before Stephen could. She was smiling. "He knows that the minute he left you in the sanctum, alone, you wouldn't be able to resist reaching out and touching the first shiny object you saw. And who knows what reality you would end up in?"

"What?" Tony's expression was innocence personified. "I wouldn't do that."

"Me, either," Peter assured her.

Strange raised an artful eyebrow and gestured toward Pete.

"Evidence shows that you would…"

"I could go with you," Stark offered, unwilling to allow his friend to go alone. Who knew what was going to be there? Besides, Stephen had been his best man – and was Romanoff's boyfriend. He couldn't let him plunge head first into something that sounded pretty dangerous. "That way you have back up."

"I appreciate the offer, Tony," Stephen told him – meaning it. "But this first trip is going to simply be in and out to see what I find."

He didn't mention that Tony didn't have a way to teleport himself away from the dimension if things were dangerous.

"And if you find something horrible?" Natasha asked.

"Then I return, immediately, and we make a plan."

"Which is exactly what happens even if he finds a sunny beach with a rainbow," Wong added.

None of them – except Wong – looked too sure about the idea of this initial mission, but Strange didn't give them any time to think about the worse things that could happen. The cloak soared back to his shoulders, attaching itself to his collar, and Stephen held up a hand, which suddenly began to glow a muted red.

"He's calling up the spell," Alec told Peter, who felt the tingle of magic. The boy looked over at Pete, but it was obvious that Pete had seen magic done many times. "Which makes sense, since he's Stephen's apprentice in his reality."

"True."

"Do you feel it?" Wong asked Strange, as all of them watched the light grow steadier and brighter.

"Yes."

"Feel what?" Tony asked.

"My destination." Strange didn't look worried, and Peter reminded himself that the man was as powerful as they came – and he had the cloak to keep him safe. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

"I'm going to the sanctum," Wong told them.

"But he said he'd be right back," Tony told the man. "Shouldn't you be here when-"

"Time works differently in the other dimensions, Tony," Wong replied. "He might be back in thirty minutes, or he might be back in thirty days. It's-"

"I can't stay another thirty days," Pete said, suddenly. "May's probably worried sick. She-"

"It won't be thirty days," Stephen assured the boy, who looked suddenly anxious. Of course, all of them knew how much Peter had loved (and still loved) his aunt, so it wasn't a surprise to any of them that the boy from the other reality wouldn't want to prolong the stress of his own version of May. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

Tony nodded, moving over to put a hand on Pete's shoulder – and the other on Peter's.

"We'll be here."

"Be careful," Pepper told the magician.

"Always."

He glanced at Natasha, and then there was a flare of bright light and he and the cloak were gone.

"That man certainly knows how to make an exit," Tony said, shaking his head, amused. He looked at Wong.

"You could hang out here while you wait."

The magician nodded his appreciation, but he shook his head.

"I'm heading back to the sanctum to prepare for the second stage of the plan."

"What's that?" Pete asked.

"Having the figurine isn't a guarantee that we can use it to get you home," Wong pointed out. "We need to know what to do once we get it."

"Oh."

"Don't worry," the man told him. "We'll figure it out."

He vanished, too – without the bright light to herald his motion – and Tony shook his head, again. The billionaire turned toward the boys.

"Are you alright?"

Peter nodded.

"Yeah."

"Pete?"

"Yeah. I'm okay."

"Good." He looked at the others, before turning to them, again. "We're going to go play cards. Do you want to come?"

"He's going to keep Natasha distracted," Alec told Peter.

She, of course, would be worrying about Stephen.

"No." Peter looked at Pete, but the other boy shook his head, as well. "Can we go for a drive?"

"Sure." Tony didn't even have to look toward Pepper to see if she agreed. It was still early, after all, and not a school night. "Don't forget the identity tech," he added.

"Okay."

"Where are you going?" Natasha asked, curiously.

"Maybe to the gas station."

He wasn't sure. He just knew that he was in the mood for a drive, and Alec agreed that Pete would be willing to go as well.

"If you do, pick me up a corn dog."

"Okay."

The adults left, with Tony pointing out to Natasha that she'd just had dinner, and Steve commenting that corn dogs aren't really the healthiest of desserts. Pete reached over and took Nutmeg from Peter, still examining the kitten.

"Do you think Frodo can do that tentacle thing, too?"

Peter shrugged.

"If he's a Flerkin he can. And there's no reason to think that my cat would be a Flerkin and the one you found in the same place and the same night isn't."

"I can't wait to get home and show Doctor Strange…"

"Think about it, first," Peter advised Pete set Nutmeg up on his cat tree. "They all freaked out when they found out what he was. Tony and Pepper didn't think he was safe and I had to basically throw a tantrum to be allowed to keep him."

"You think May would make me give him away?"

"I don't know… maybe you could figure out a way to ease them into it."

"Tentacles and jagged teeth and pocket dimensions aren't really something you can ease someone into."

Peter grinned.

"Right?"

They headed for the door, leaving it open so the baby Flerkin could move about the compound freely.

"Can I drive?" Pete asked, looking much less worried than he initially had.

"No."

"Awww."

Peter smirked.

"That doesn't work on me," he reminded Pete. "Besides, you don't live around here in your reality. You'd get us lost."

Pete just rolled his eyes, amused, and not bothering to point out that they couldn't get lost with Peter in the car, too.

Grinning, the boys headed for the garage, already discussing where they might go.