Previously on Avengers in Sunnydale:

Though she was sure the words Tony spoke next were not magical
in any way, they still sent a shiver of power down Willow's
spine. Tony looked up into the video screen and in a commanding voice ordered, "Avengers… Assemble!"

Chapter 5

While still looking at the other Avengers in the video screen,Tony said, "I'll brief you guys when you land at Stark Castle. There are a few things I don't want Fury to know yet and I wouldn't put it past him to bug this call." Tony watched Clint subtly nod his head to tell Tony that Fury routinely monitored their transmissions. "Take the time to make sure we have a full complement of toys before you get here," Tony insisted. "I'm pretty sure Sunnydale can manage another night without the full Avengers," he joked.

Steve Rogers shoved aside his irritation at losing the bet with Thor and quickly shifted his thoughts towards his team. "I think we should probably take the new cargo version of the Quinjet. If Bruce starts to get irritated, we can just open the back hatch and toss him out," he stated without any hint of sarcasm.

Buffy was expecting some sympathy chuckles for whichever of Tony's friends was Bruce, but she was surprised when his friends looked thoughtful instead. She watched as her uncle looked directly at the guy with the 5 o'clock shadow and haunted eyes. "Your call, Bruce," Tony said simply.

Bruce rubbed his chin in thought for a moment. "I think it's probably a good idea. Give me an hour and I think I can rig up a seat with quick release rollers that would speed up my departure if 'the other guy' decides to pay a visit," he stated. Buffy's eyebrow arched in further surprise when the rest of Tony's friends looked relieved at what Bruce had come up with. "Hold on a minute, Tony. I just remembered something," Bruce said. He stepped off screen for a moment and then came back into view holding an aluminium briefcase. "A courier from the Baxter Building dropped this off. He said it was the rush project Reed Richards had been working on for you," he told Tony.

"Oh thank god, Reed came through," Tony swore in relief. He looked back up into the screen. "The contents are actually for you, Bruce," he stated.

"What is it? Some new isotopes to study? " Bruce asked, intrigued.

Tony seemed to squirm a bit and then finally said, "Erm... underwear actually."

Bruce blanched and then stared at his friend. "Hey, Tony, you're a great friend and all, but I don't think of you that way. Besides, isn't lingerie usually a gift you give closer to valentine's Day," he joked.

The only response Tony felt was appropriate was the extension of his middle finger. "Ha... ha... smartass," he replied. "I went to Reed to see if he would make you some underwear based on the intelligent fabric he uses for his suit," he explained.

Bruce began to look concerned. "How did you manage to get him to release these?" he asked. "Reed keeps the process he uses to make the fabric a close secret," he added.

Tony sighed and replied, "I showed him video from the Toronto incident."

"Shit," Bruce swore.

******Flashback******

Baxter Building, New York

Tony Stark hummed along to the rock music being played in the elevator as he rode it to the top of the Baxter Building which housed the headquarters for the Fantastic Four. He was coming with a special request for his old schoolmate, Reed Richards. When the doors opened, he was let out into a large lab full of computers and lab equipment that even he was hard pressed to guess the nature of.

Reed Richards sat at a desk on the far wall and his hand was stretched 50 feet across the room to type commands into a console. His neck stretched out and around a large gas chromatograph so he could look at Tony. "Tony, good to see you," he said and then brought back his limbs and neck into regular proportions.

Tony was about to reply when he felt a quick kiss on his cheek. He turned to look at the empty air and then watched as Sue Richards materialized in front of him. Back when the three of them were in school, Tony had a brief fling with the then named Sue Storm before she started dating Reed. "Hey, Sue," he said warmly.

"Hello, Tony," Sue replied. "How's Pepper doing?" she asked.

"She's doing well. She asked me to tell you she's looking forward to your girls' night out Friday," Tony relayed.

The roof opened above Tony and he looked up as figure made up of flames flew into the building. Tony smiled and waved at Sue's younger brother. "How's it going, Johnny?" he shouted.

Johnny Storm landed in front of Tony and changed back into his human form. "Not bad, Tony," he replied. Johnny had heard Tony was stopping by and made it a point to be there. The Human Torch was supposed to go on a mission to South America the next day and wanted to ask Tony if the rumors about the Brazilian Women's Soccer team being hero groupies was true.

Reed walked over to Tony and shook his hand. "What can we do for you that Stark Industries can't?" he asked in a good natured fashion.

Tony took in a deep breath and then decided to just get right to it. "I need you to make several pair of underwear out of the same stuff you make your suit," he said quickly. "It's not for me, it's for Bruce," he hastily added. The three members of the Fantastic Four looked at Tony oddly. Tony sighed and held out a flash drive. "It'll be easier if you watch this," he suggested. "Just before you do, you should know it's rather... graphic," he warned them.

Reed took the flash drive and stretched his arm to plug it into a computer on the far side of the room. A large video screen descended from the ceiling and showed that the computer was loading the video file. "Before you press play, I have to ask if you if you know about Bruce's little problem," he stated.

Reed nodded. "You mean 'the other guy'?" he replied.

"Yeah, the Hulk," Tony stated. "Last week, Bruce and I attended a conference on applied sciences in Toronto, Canada," he said. "We weren't expecting any problems so we split up and went to different lectures in separate buildings," he told them. "Halfway into the talk on applied nanotechnology, I got a text from Bruce who was sitting in on a panel talking about the effects of radiation and the x-gene," he explained. "The text said Victor Creed had just smashed his way in and was trying to abduct the scientist sitting on the panel," he said.

"OK, so you guys were nerding out and Sabertooth crashed the party. What's the big deal?" Johnny asked.

Tony ran his hand through his black hair. "Like I said, we weren't expecting any problems. It was the one time Bruce decided to wear bikini briefs," he replied. Tony gestured towards the large video screen. "Just press play and you'll see why the world as a whole needs your help," he suggested.

Reed pressed the button and they watched a video taken from the perspective of Tony's Iron Man suit. Iron Man launched up into the air from a parking garage and angled over to a hotel across the street. A battered Sabertooth flew past him as the mutant was booted across town. An instant later, Iron Man's field of view was completely blocked by a pair of lime green butt cheeks as the Hulk leaped after Sabertooth. The green beast's deep voice could be heard chuckling and saying, "Hulk Naked!"

The image shifted as Iron Man rocketed after Hulk, hoping to keep the collateral damage to a minimum. He landed in a park where he found a very naked Hulk abusing Sabertooth. Ben Grimm had the unfortunate timing of walking into the lab at that very moment. He was eating ice cream out of a large salad bowl using a large wooden spoon. The spoon fell from his numb fingers as he saw what was happening on the video screen. "Dafuq are you guys watching?!" he demanded, scared that they might actually tell him. After a few more moments of watching, the Thing spun around and walked quickly out the room. "Butterflies and kittens... butterflies and kittens," he chanted, trying hard not to think about what he had just seen.

Reed pressed the stop button and turned off the video screen. He had a sickly green tint to his skin. Sue had become partially transparent as she lost concentration due to the scene she had witnessed. She took a deep calming breath and forced herself to become completely visible. "Tony, I could have gone my entire life and been happy not to have seen that," she scolded him.

Johnny was still staring at the now blank video screen. "I don't know if I want to laugh, or go curl up in a fetal position around a teddy bear and cry," he remarked.

Tony put a reassuring hand on the younger man's shoulder. "If it makes you feel any better, I didcurl up into a fetal position afterwards," he admitted. "Of course it was around a bottle of scotch rather than a teddy bear, but you get the point," he said.

Reed looked over at Tony, shaken by what he had witnessed. "Tony, no one should ever have to see something like that," he said. "I'll have the items ready for you by the end of the week," he promised.

********End Flashback********

"Have you shown the video to anyone else?" Bruce asked, barely keeping his anger in check.

Tony smirked before asking. "Just one other person, and I gave him a copy of the flash drive," he replied. "Logan says we're his new best friends and we should each be expecting a case of cigars come christmas time," he said.

The image of Wolverine rolling on the floor laughing at Sabertooth's misfortune helped Bruce's anger seep away. "OK, just no one else," he pleaded. Tony nodded in agreement. Desperately wanting to change the subject, Bruce looked down at his watch. "It'll probably take us a couple of hours to do a full load out and then we'll head over to California," he said.

"OK, sounds like a plan," Tony stated. "I'll expect to see you guys first thing in the morning," he said before pressing the button that would change the video screen back to the large painting it had been when the Scoobies had first come into the room.

Buffy got up from the couch and walked to stand near Tony. Guessing from the pained looks on Bruce's face, she decided not to ask about whatever the Toronto incident was and why it involved underwear. Instead she decided to ask about why his friends were so open to the idea of tossing one of their own out the back of an airplane. "Your friend Bruce not a good flyer?" she inquired.

Tony shook his head no. "No, Bruce is fine with flying. He just has anger management issues," he replied causing Buffy to look even more confused. Tony noticed Buffy's look of disbelief. "I'll tell you all about my friends when they get here," he promised. "I don't want to ruin the surprise," he added with a smirk. Buffy rolled her eyes and plopped back down on the couch.

Thinking about his friends brought another strange group of people living under one roof to the forefront of Tony's mind. He turned to look at Giles. "Giles, now that I know demons and magic are more prevalent than what I thought, I just have to ask you something," he stated.

"I'll answer it if I can," Giles replied.

Tony nodded in thanks before going on. "Last week I walked in on my friend Steve channel surfing," he said. "Steve stopped on a show that was so bad it grabbed our attention and just wouldn't let go," he stated. "Considering all of the horrific shit Steve and I have seen over the years, that's saying something," he added.

"What were you guys watching?" Dawn chimed in.

"Jersey Shore," Tony admitted reluctantly.

Giles took off his glasses and cleaned them in an effort to hide his amusement. When he was sure he wouldn't laugh, Giles put his glasses back on. "I'm fairly certain I know what your question is, so I will answer it before you ask," he stated. "Yes… Oompa Loompas are real and they canmate with humans," he told Tony.

When Pepper realized exactly what Giles was implying, she let a disgusted, "Eeewwwww!"

Giles nodded towards Pepper in agreement. "Precisely," he said. The awkward silence formed by everyone thinking of the star of Jersey Shore was shattered by the sound of an ordinary doorbell ringing.

"Huh... I would have thought the castle would have a gong or something," Tony muttered as he made his way to a bookcase on the far wall.

Xander gave a half smile before saying, "It did, but Mast... Dracula said it gave him headaches."

Buffy looked down at her watch and frowned at how late it was. Late night visits usually meant only one thing in Sunnydale. "Are you expecting anyone?" she asked her uncle.

"Nope," Tony replied as he found the book he was looking for. He pulled it out slightly, activating the hidden switch. The bookcase slid into the wall and then to the right, revealing a narrow passageway that dropped into the basement. Two gleaming brass poles ran the length of the passageway from the ceiling to the floor of the basement below them.

Willow furrowed her brows when she saw the poles. "I didn't know Dracula was a fan of the old Batman show," she stated.

Tony spared a glance at Willow and then looked at the poles as if seeing them for the first time. "That actually makes more sense than what I was thinking," he admitted. Before anyone could ask, he added, "I thought they were for really tall and skinny strippers." Pepper rolled her eyes and Dawn let out a full guffaw. Tony looked at Buffy and winked, causing her to smile a bit. "Give me a couple of minutes to change and then youcan go open the front door," he told her. Buffy nodded, knowing that Tony was a fast learner when it came to things that went bump in the night. Tony reached out with his hand and grabbed the pole before jumping down. He managed to throw in a complete spin around the pole before disappearing from sight, the hours spent at gentlemen clubs paying off.

The doorbell rang four more times as Buffy counted down the minutes. When she reached 5 minutes, she walked calmly down the entryway to the front door. The rest of the Scoobies were used to the drill and hid in the drawing room, waiting to add back-up if needed. The doorbell rang one last time as Buffy opened the door quickly and stepped back, ready to fight. She let out a snort of irritation when she saw the familiar blond vampire framed in the doorway. Spike was holding a paper bag in his left hand and his right arm was held out so Buffy couldn't see what else he was holding.

"Hello, Pet," Spike said cheerfully. "I saw that you lot were having a party so I nipped down to the liquor store and picked up some beer," he stated while lifting the paper bag slightly.

Buffy's frown grew more pronounced. "Go away, Spike!" she ordered. "This is a family gathering and you were not invited," she said acidly. "Besides, you know I hate beer," she added as almost an afterthought.

Instead of walking away, Spike just put on his usual charming smile. "Come on, Love, that's not very nice," he chided. "Besides, I also brought a party game," he told her. Spike pulled in his right arm and showed he was holding a goblin like demon off the ground by the collar of his dirty brown robe. "It's called 'Let's all beat the piss out the dirty, spying bugger'," Spike said, his voice becoming menacing.

The sounds of Iron Man's repulsor boots firing drew Spike's attention. Without thinking about it, the old vampire tossed his prisoner to the Slayer, turned around, and took up a protective stance in front of the door. His eyes grew wide when he watched Iron Man gently land on the gravel drive a few meters away. The red and gold armored figure was tapping a Louisville Slugger baseball bat across one palm. The bat looked like it had been put into the world's largest pencil sharpener because the end dwindled down to a needle fine point. "Damn... that's a big stake," Spike said in awe. He quickly regained control of himself. "Overcompensating for something, mate?" he taunted.

Dawn, who had always had a hard time following her sister's orders, walked down the entryway and squeezed past Buffy to get outside. "Hey, Spike," she called out to her friend.

Spike tightened his jaw and swore silently that he now had the only two humans he really gave a damn about in the middle of what looked like could become a nasty fight. "Niblet," he replied, putting out an arm to keep Dawn behind him.

Dawn sighed and ducked under Spike's arm. She strode to where she was standing on the gravel halfway between Iron Man and Spike. Turning her head, she looked at the vampire. "Spike, this is my uncle Tony Stark. Tony, this is Spike," she said introducing the two men.

"This vampire a friend of yours?" Iron Man's deep voice inquired. Jarvis had used the suit's various sensors to determine that the guy who looked a lot like Billy Idol (but with better hair) was not alive. He readied the suit for a quick launch of the super stake if Dawn said no.

"Yes," Dawn replied.

"No," Buffy said at the same time. She winced at the hurt look she got from both Dawn and Spike who had turned to look at her. "Well, not exactly a friend," she amended.

Spike let the end of his lips curl as he smiled slightly. "If we're not exactly friends, then how about we be 'friends-with-benefits'?" he suggested.

Buffy rolled her eyes in disgust and punched the goblin for no other reason than she was frustrated. "In your dreams, Spike," she scoffed.

"Everytime I close my eyes, Buffy. Every damn time," Spike replied wearily, looking his one time arch nemesis in the eyes. It was Buffy who looked away first.

Dawn looked over at Tony and rocked back and forth on her toes. "Well, that was awkward," she stated. Believing in the creed of it being easier to ask for forgiveness than permission, Dawn said, "Come on in, Spike."

Spike smiled down at Dawn who had closed the distance between them. "Thanks, Niblett, but the invitation has to come from someone who calls this castle home," he reminded her. In truth, he had been a little shocked when his earlier attempts at getting into the castle had been blocked. Whomever had bought the old place already thought of it as their home. Spike turned around again as he heard the crunching of gravel as Iron Man walked towards him. The metal man stopped within easy striking distance with his overgrown stake.

"Will you give me your word you won't hurt anyone inside my home?" Iron man asked, his voice even and measured.

Spike sighed loudly. He tapped his forehead, figuring Buffy or Dawn would tell their uncle about his chip eventually. "Those bloody wankers from the Initiative stuck a chip in my head that causes blinding migraines if I try to hurt a human," he informed Tony. Spike thought for a moment before speaking again. "The chip protects the Scoobies and any other human inside. On top of that, I swear on my unlife that I will never hurt Buffy or Dawn," he promised. Spike leered a little at Buffy and added, "That is unless of course Buffy likes it rough."

Buffy was going to say something snide, but Tony beat her to it. "Ah-hem, over protective uncle in super high tech armor holding a really big stake standing right here," Tony reminded Spike. He let the silence grow to an uncomfortable level before chuckling and letting his faceplate retract so Spike could see his face. "Come on in, Spike," he said with a smile. "Before I forget, what type of beer did you bring?" he asked.

Spike nodded in thanks and handed over the beer to Tony before walking into the castle. "Guinness, of course. I may be dead, but even my muted sense of taste won't let me drink American beer," he told Tony. Once inside, Spike took the goblin demon back from Buffy. He turned to look back at Tony. "I know you asked me not to hurt anyone inside the castle, but I really had my heart set on beating information about Glory out of this little ponce," he admitted.

Buffy saw Tony's eyes darken with remembered pain. "No torture unless absolutely necessary," he ordered.

Buffy had Willow look up her whatever they could find on Tony before they were picked up for dinner earlier. She knew Tony had been held captive in Afghanistan and could only imagine what they had done to him. "OK, but we really need all the information this little prick can give us," she said.

Tony smiled at Buffy, his grin making her let go of her anger. "Then it's lucky that I have the world's best interrogator on her way here," he told her thinking of Black Widow's legendary skills.

********Avengers in Sunnydale********

The sun had risen only an hour ago and Tony stark was standing at the back of the castle in front of a large, open lawn. He wasn't normally a morning person, but a few hours of breaking in the master bedroom with Pepper had really refreshed him. Buffy and her friends were slowly filtering out onto the porch since he had announced his friends from New York would be arriving soon. Spike was standing inside the castle, careful not to step into any direct sunlight. Pepper was giving the vampire company and stood next to him, sipping her morning coffee.

All eyes swung upwards when the sound of giant repulsors echoed off the stone walls. A dark gray jet hovered over the castle, the three repulsors on the bottom glowing a bright blueish white. The two rear facing repulsors fired briefly and the Quinjet eased into position over the lawn. Within moments, the large jet was settled on the ground, it's landing gear sinking into the soil. The back hatch lowered to the ground and the Avengers walked slowly out of the jet.

Buffy's eyes quickly swept over the group and she had to admit her first impressions told her these were fighters like her. The first man out had short brown hair and a handsome face. He was carrying a green army duffle bag in one hand and had a round shield strapped to his back. The shield was red, white, and blue with a white star in the center. Giles' startled gasp drew her attention for a moment.

Giles was staring at the man with the shield like he couldn't believe what he was seeing. Every British child was taught in school what the man who had tipped the balance of war against the Nazis looked like. Giles had studied Captain America even more in the Watcher's Academy. Dr. Abraham Erskine, the man who invented the Super Soldier Serum, had been a rogue Watcher who believed he could use science to create a male version of the Slayer. Captain America's exploits during WWII proved that Dr. Erskine was correct. "My god, that looks like Steve Rogers," Giles muttered.

"Who?" Anya asked, not having paid much attention to things while she was a vengeance demon.

Dawn blinked her eyes a few times as she looked at Steve Rogers. Her history class had just finished a section on WWII and she had done her research paper on Captain America, mostly because of how cute she thought he was. "You know, Captain America," Dawn replied. Anya just shrugged her shoulders, still not getting the reference.

Tony spared a moment to look back at Dawn and winked. "I'll see if I can get Cap to give you an autograph," he joked, confirming the identity of the Super Soldier. Steve walked up to Tony and shook his hand, putting his other hand on the billionaire's shoulder in a gesture of condolence.

The next man out of the jet was dressed in what looked like black, leather armor. He had a bow and quiver of arrows strapped to his back. Buffy watched as the man's eyes swept over everything, filing away places that would give him the best field of fire. He walked over, shook Tony's hand, and took a place on Steve's left side.

A redheaded woman wearing a black, skin tight leather suit walked out of the jet next. She had matching pistols resting in holsters on her hips. Her wrists were encircled with bracelets made of shiny black tubes. Her costume and obvious beauty drew an appreciative, "She's hot!" from Xander. He flinched slightly when both Willow and Tara gave breathless mutters of agreement. The woman walked up to Tony, gave him a gentle hug, and then went to stand next to the archer. Giles frowned as he fought to remember where he had seen the woman before.

Buffy watched as the guy named Bruce walked out and looked around the property. His eyes held the shadows of someone who was always waiting for the other shoe to drop. He gave Tony a rough hug and then stepped back. Buffy's Slayer enhanced hearing let her hear Bruce whisper to Tony, "I'm going to have email Reed. These are the most comfortable pair of underwear I've ever worn. Although, I'm still not sold on the color." He frowned and cast a questioning glance at Tony. "Seriously, purple?" he inquired.

"Sue said she thought it would look good with green," Tony replied, hiding a smirk. Bruce shook his head and took up a place next to Black Widow.

The last person out of the jet was a tall, well built man. He had blond hair that flowed down around his broad shoulders. He was wearing a black t-shirt and blue jeans. A large hammer made out of something that looked like the cross between stone and metal hung from his belt on his hip. Dawn looked at her sister. "If he doesn't tell us what conditioner he uses, I say we ignore Tony's rule about torture and get it out of him one way or another," she joked. Buffy nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly.

Thor grasped Tony's forearms in an ancient showing of friendship. Tony arched an eyebrow at his friend and looked back at the jet. "How come you flew with the others?" he asked, knowing Thor could fly on his own and usually preferred to.

"Beverage service and in flight meals," Thor replied simply, grinning.

Tony smiled at Thor and went to stand next to Steve. He pointed at Buffy and then Dawn. "Guys, these are my nieces, Buffy and Dawn Summers," he said. He pointed out the Scoobies one by one as he went on. "That's Giles, Willow, Tara, Xander and Anya," he stated. He pointed into the house. "The blonde guy standing next to Pepper is called Spike," he said.

Tony stepped away from the Avengers and pointed at the Super Soldier. "Everyone, this is Steve Rogers. Most People know him as Captain America," he stated. "And before you ask, yes, he really is the same guy that handed the Nazis and Hydra their asses thanks to the work of Dr. Erskine and my grandfather, Howard Stark, Sr.," he added.

Tony walked down the line introducing his team. "This is Clint Barton, codename Hawkeye," he said. "Clint's the best archer in the world, and I mean that literally," he told them. Tony took a step and stood next the redheaded woman in black. "This is Natasha Romanova, codename Black Widow. She's considered the best interrogator alive and lives up to her nickname in combat," he said. "Together, she and Clint are probably the world's two most dangerous spies," he boasted.

Tony took another step and stood next to Bruce. "Everyone, this is my good friend, Dr. Bruce Banner," he said. Bruce smiled at Tony making a public showing of their friendship even though he knew how dangerous "the other guy" was.

"Does he have super powers or is he just a regular guy?" Xander asked, showing his usual lack of tact. Truth was, Bruce looked like an average guy and Xander was hoping to have someone to talk with.

Tony sighed and Bruce nodded, letting him know he was OK with his family and their friends knowing. "You ever seen the news when they talk about a giant, green guy trashing everything in sight?" The Scoobies all nodded their heads. After the green monster had first made national news, Willow and Giles had spent weeks trying to find out what it was. In the end, they had decided it had to be a new type of ogre they had never encountered before. Tony playfully hit Bruce in the chest with the back of his hand. "When Bruce gets mad, his mean, green side comes out to play. We call him the Hulk," he told the Scoobies.

Giles took off his glasses and wiped them with a cloth. "Oh my!" he muttered under his breath.

Tony ignored Giles and jerked his thumb at the guy with the long, blond hair. "And the male model over there is the Norse god, Thor Odinson," he said, letting the simple statement stun the Scoobies. Tony stepped back into line next to Thor. "We're the Avengers," he said proudly.

Anya had been stunned for a moment, but as soon as she regained her senses, she let out a loud, ear splitting squeal. "Oh my gods, oh my gods, oh my gods," she repeated as she ran up to Thor. "It's really you! You're even more handsome in person. Of course you are, you're you," she babbled. Thor looked sideways at Tony who just shrugged, not knowing what was up with Anya. Anya noticed the look and decided she needed to explain herself. "I used be known as Aud Emmasdaughter. I ran the Brownshold's chapter of your fanclub. I had every wood carving they made of you," she gushed.

"Aud Emmasdaughter?" Thor repeated, the name teasing at the back of his memory. "Were you the one who kept sending me your undergarments at every winter solstice celebration?" he inquired.

Anya let out another deafening squeal. "Oh my gods, Thor Odinson remembers me," she shouted happily.

Giles took off his glasses and cleaned them again. "Good lord, Anya may have possibly been the world's first fangirl," he muttered to no one in particular.