A/N:

Yeah, I don't know what happened to the end of that chapter, sorry! Thanks for mentioning it so I could fix it. ADDITION: it keeps putting that "at least on the end.. there's nothing else to the chapter. This site is driving me nuts.

OOOOOOO

"When are you planning on working on your ship?" Peter asked Quill.

He looked at the others, and shrugged.

"We're doing some repairs on the ship's skin, right now. Obviously those are harder to make sure they're done right when we're in space, so we've been taking advantage and pretty much going over it inch by inch. Once we're done with that, then we can start worrying about the inside."

"A few days, at least," Rocket said.

"If you work on it over the weekend, could Ned help?"

Quill shrugged, again, but looked at Tony to make sure he didn't have any objection to that. Stark didn't shake his head, or anything, so Peter nodded.

"We can do that."

"Great. Thanks."

"What is he doing today?" Clint asked Tony. "Is he cleared to be out of bed?"

They were interrupted by the arrival of Carol and Nick, who both looked Peter over, carefully, before joining them at the table. Carol had seated herself next to Groot and reached up and ran her finger along Nutmeg's furry head, eliciting a purr that they could all hear.

"He's good for a little while," Stark replied. "But I don't want him doing anything too strenuous." He looked at Peter. "Hear that? We're getting you back on your feet, let's keep you on them. Yeah?"

Peter nodded.

"Right."

"Is he grounded to the compound?" Clint asked.

Tony frowned. He and Pepper hadn't actually said anything about Peter being actually grounded to his room, or to the facility. He looked over at his son, whose expressive brown eyes were suddenly hopeful and uncertain.

"I suppose not."

"I'm making a training run down to North Carolina. We'd only be gone part of the day."

"Back when?"

"Whenever you say," Steve answered, readily. "We're doing a couple of flyovers to test our new stealth tech and a couple of alert readiness alarms on some military institutes. We're not even going to land, really."

Peter looked much more hopeful, now, and Tony couldn't have said no if he'd wanted to, now.

"Nothing strenuous," he repeated. "I don't want you looking tired when Pepper comes home. Got it?"

"Yes."

Tony leveled a look at Steve and Clint – both nodded.

"We won't let him do anything dumb," Clint promised, not bothering to hide his amusement at Tony's protective dad act.

Which wasn't an act, really.

"I am Groot?" the tree said, to Clint.

And suddenly his big brown eyes looked hopeful, too, somehow.

Barton looked at Rocket for translation – although he was pretty sure what was being asked.

"He wants to go, too," the racoon confirmed.

"I don't see why not," Steve said, smiling at the craziness of taking a teenaged tree on a training run. Wild enough to be taking a teenaged superhero. "We're not landing, so no one will know."

"Stay out of trouble, though," Rocket told him.

"I am groot."

The tree looked happy, and he handed Nutmeg over to Carol.

"We'll be leaving in half an hour," Clint said, glancing at his watch. "Meet us on the pad."

"Sweet."

Peter excused himself to go change into his flight suit, and Fury frowned once he was gone.

"You sure he's up to that?" the director asked, uncertainly.

"He's just going to be in the jet," Clint said. "We won't let him fly, even – not with his brace. It'll give him a distraction from his tyrant father taking away his phone."

Which made Carol smirk.

"Grounded from the phone… the horror."

"It's worse now than it was when you were a kid," Steve told her, amused. "Way back in the olden days."

Danvers' eyes were lively.

"At least we had phones when I was a kid."

"Burn…" Clint approved.

"Have him back before Pepper comes home, will you? Then he can be there when she drives in and she won't have to worry about him."

"We can do that." Steve looked at Danvers. "Want to come?"

She shook her head, caressing the furry body she was cuddling, just then.

"Nope. I'm going to keep the Flerkin company."

"Speaking of…" Fury said, reaching over and plucking the kitten from her grasp, turning him upside down and rubbing his belly – all while looking at it intently. "Does Peter know what his kitten is?"

When Nutmeg's true nature had been revealed to them, Danvers had been shocked, but Fury simply looked like he was vindicated. And rightfully so, since he was the one who had been most suspicious of the kitten since Peter had brought him to the compound.

"He does," Tony confirmed. "And let Pepper and me know in no uncertain terms what he thought about us not letting him keep him."

"A Flerkin is a dangerous creature," Gamora said.

They'd been shocked, as well; most of them had simply assumed Flerkin were myths – although Drax said that he'd fought one, once, and had come out only slightly wounded.

"We know that," Tony agreed. "Now."

"He isn't a danger to you and your people," Mantis disagreed. "He likes you."

"You can feel that?" Fury asked, surprised.

Of course, she was an alien, so what did he know?

"I can."

"Probably shouldn't spread the word about his true nature, though," Rocket said, reaching over and stroking the kitten's head. It was a freaking Flerkin, after all. Who wouldn't want to be able to say that they've touched one? "People find out about him, and they might come looking for him."

"To kill him?" Tony asked, frowning.

"Some. Others to take him. Or to worship him."

"He's a kitten."

"He's a legend," Gamora corrected. "There are some weird cults out there. Some people believe a flerkin will save the universe, someday."

Quill snorted.

"People are crazy."

"Besides," Clint said, amused, as well. "Peter beat him to it."

"The Collector is rumored to have had one," Gamora told them with a smirk.

"Had?" Tony echoed.

"It rebelled and gobbled up half of the collection before they were able to muzzle it – and he never got those items back."

"What did he do?" Steve asked, curiously.

"No clue," she admitted. "But it was probably returned to wherever he purchased or stole it from."

"Well, we'll keep ours a secret," Stark said. "But he's surrounded by superheroes, so if someone came, they'd find much more trouble than he's worth."

"He's a lot of trouble on his own," Carol said, looking down at the kitten. She'd heard the stories, after all. "Aren't you sweetheart?" she crooned, baby-talking the kitten, who was purring ferociously, now, under all the attention.

Steve rolled his eyes.

"You'll keep an eye on Jack for me?"

"Of course."

OOOOOOOO

It took a ridiculously short amount of time for Ned to get through the security that Doctor Thompson had on his personal medical files. The study period wasn't even close to being over when he made a triumphant sound, and hit a key on his laptop.

"Got it."

"What does it say?" MJ asked, curiously, looking over his shoulder.

"Called out yesterday because his patient injured his hand in a car accident."

MJ frowned.

"Car accident?"

"That's what it says. 'Suspected trauma from hitting the steering wheel."

"Not an airbag?" Mj asked. "He wouldn't be able to drive, yet. Not in the sling."

"It doesn't say," Ned told her – and Flash. He looked at the other boy. "Your dad's records are meticulous, but all it says is that there was a concern that the hand and arm were further injured, and when he looked them over, they were healing well enough that he suggested the bandages stay off, Peter wears a brace to protect the hand, and that he starts physical therapy as soon as possible."

"Maybe that's why Peter isn't available for two weeks?" MJ supposed. "For physical therapy?"

"That's stupid," Flash disagreed. "It's something you do a couple of times a day – at the most. Not something that would keep you off your phone. If he hit a steering wheel and not an airbag that means that the car he was driving didn't have an airbag. Probably that fancy one that he's always showing off."

Of course, all the cars at the compound were flashy – if they were Tony's, especially – but that was a good point. MJ frowned, concerned, and looked at Ned.

"Can we see if there is any security footage of the accident?" she asked. "There are cameras all over the avenger facility, right?"

"It didn't say where the accident happened," Ned pointed out.

"They have cameras, though, right?" Flash pressed.

"They do. Duh."

"Then hack them and see what you can find out."

"No." Ned actually already had hacked Karen – and he knew Peter already knew that (since he'd been the one to ask him to do it) and he was pretty sure that Tony knew, too. The guy was Ironman, after all, and probably the smartest person on the planet. "Breaking into your dad's files is one thing. The Avengers are my friends, though, and I won't go behind their backs. If it's something they want to share, then they will."

He was secretly thrilled at being able to say the avengers were his friends. Cheerful enough about it that he was able to ignore MJ's scowl and the way Flash rolled his eyes.

"Seriously?"

"Yup." Ned hit a few more buttons on the keyboard, clearing the data that was on the display and wiping out any evidence of his presence. "Sorry, guys. We'll have to wait and see what Peter has to say about it all."

"At least we know he's not dead."

MJ and Ned both looked at Flash.

"Seriously?"

They both wondered why he suddenly cared at all about how Peter was doing, but knew if they asked, directly, he wouldn't give them an honest answer, anyway.

He shrugged.

"You never know, right?"

"I need to study," Ned finally said, after staring at him for a few moments.

Then he'd do what Tony said and maybe send Peter an email. Just to see what he said – presuming that he answered.