September 2014, Avengers Tower, Training Room
Harry stood to the side of a large field where a couple dozen people were listening to Captain America talk. Some were in suits, with their identity unknown to most, others were in training clothes, not feeling the need to hide their alter ego. Steve was currently teaching take down techniques to help facilitate quicker take downs and less damage.
"How is it?" Maria Hill asked as she walked up next to him. Harry glanced at her and saw that she seemed tired.
"Fine. Most of them have very little actual training but have found interesting ways to use their abilities." Harry said as he watched Steve spar with a couple of heroes from Spain, one of which started tossing out pink balls that had the interesting ability to lock onto who she targets. Her teammate would then hit the balls with a debilitating compound secreted from spines in his hair. "Those two are quite the team. They should have no issue with low level criminals, but don't have the firepower for large scale incursions."
"That's not surprising. Fury spent a long time finding people with enough strength to carry the mantle of 'Earth's Mightiest Heroes'." Maria said as Steve corrected the posture of the male in the duo. "The girl, Buscadora I believe, doesn't have any other abilities besides her homing projectiles, but she can control their density making them quite the attack. Espinas on the other hand has quite the load out, enhanced strength, high durability, can breath underwater, and secretes a paralytic through the spines on his head. They work quite well together, not to mention that they both have a level head and can easily lead a rapid response team in Spain or western Europe."
"That's mainly what we're looking for though." Harry said as he waved his hand creating a soft wall to catch Dino, an aspiring hero from Italy who couldn't stop mouthing off at Natasha who just got done tossing the boy. "Some of them are…fresh." Harry said as he and Maria watched a nervous looking guy, with muscles much too large for that level of anxiety, get put into a sleeper hold by the lithe woman he recruited in London. "All of them have the heart to do the right thing though and that is the best quality." Harry finished as Hugo, the big man, was helped to his feet by Lionheart.
The training camp lasted the full week before they were all dropped off home. The day after the new recruits left the Avengers had a meeting at the Penthouse. There they doled out assignments based on what they learned and the impression they each got. Thor was adamant that Hugo be given more authority.
"Thor, why should we give Hugo a higher position?" Harry asked, quelling Clint and Tony who were arguing with him.
"He is mighty!" Thor said with a bellow as he stood up with his hammer. Looking down he saw unimpressed looks from everyone in the room. Coughing he sat back down.
"That's it?" Harry asked to clarify. When Thor nodded Harry just hung his head and rubbed his temples. "Thor, we're picking leaders for teams and points of contact for the agents working with SHADE. No offense against Hugo, but would you trust him to relay orders and submit paperwork?" Harry asked again as he looked up at him
"Well…no." Thor said with a sigh as he pouted and leaned back into his seat. Harry rolled his eyes at the Asgardian. Thor spent lots of time on Earth nowadays but he is still thousands of years old and lived with the mindset of the strongest fist gets the biggest slice for most of his life. Harry was constantly laying things out for Thor to get a better understanding, not too dissimilar to when he would field questions about muggles from his magic born friends.
Harry's eyes swept over to Clint and Tony who were both grinning in victory and sighed again. You'd think with Tony's intelligence he could word things to make Thor understand, but Tony was a bit of an ass and loved arguing. Clint on the other hand was a child and was always on one side of an argument even if he didn't really care. Rubbing his temples again he leaned up and looked at everyone.
"So we're in agreement?" Everyone nodded, even Thor with some reluctance. "Good. Maria, take point on this and start recruiting support staff, focus on veterans and nurses. With our new medical developments we won't need a lot of doctors, Tony and I have a short list for them. Next would be operational bases. Get with Fury and plan out sites for cohabitation between the two groups. This will lessen the cost of logistics and provide opportunities for SHIELD to receive back-up when facing anything outclassing normal agents." Harry paused and looked Maria directly in the eyes, "I'll tell you the same thing I told Fury when I started this. These are heroes, they are not mercenaries or agents to be used by SHIELD. I know Fury gets into some shady things and I don't want my heroes being pulled into that swamp, you got me?" Harry asked, not breaking eye contact.
"Yes sir." Maria said with some respect. She knew Fury had overseers and expected something like this to happen. With Harry explicitly stating otherwise she would be free to deny anything coming to her desk that went against SHADEs mission statement.
"Great with that out of the way I'm off to spend time with my kids." Harry said as he stood up and helped Nat to her feet. The team wandered off to do their own thing as Harry and Nat both beelined the .
"Harry, wait up!" Tony said as he jogged up next to them.
"What's up gear-head?" Harry asked as they continued through the portal into Harry's foyer. The first thing he saw was Sazala curled up near the ever burning fireplace to the side. It was an odd spot for a fireplace, but Harry built it before realizing no one else had a floo here. Now it worked as a space heater for the large Basilisk.
"I wanted your help with something." Tony's voice pulled Harry away from the snake. "I was thinking instead of a fancy dinner we could have a cookout here." Tony said with some emphasis on an unsaid phrase. Harry's eyes widened before he grinned.
"Of course buddy. This weekend?" Harry asked.
"No, I want to do the operation first." Tony said seriously, removing the grin from Harry's face.
"Sure. Let me make the arrangements, we'll start in three days." Harry said as he pulled out his phone to look over some information. "Hank should be available, we'll call in Dr. Cho as well."
"What are you two talking about?" Natasha asked from the side causing both of them to jump, forgetting she was even there. "Did you really forget I was here?"
"Of course not." Harry said unconvincingly. He told her the general idea and about Tony's upcoming surgery to remove the shrapnel in his chest. "We finished our first Med-bed a few days ago. With it, the surgery should be quick and complication free, but having actual doctors on call would be much safer."
"Fine, but tell Pepper." Nat said as she walked away. Harry looked at Tony who seemed torn on the idea of telling Pepper.
"Just tell her. Last thing you want to do is lie to her about it. Because if you survive she might just kill you." Harry said as he went to follow his girlfriend giving Tony's shoulder a pat.
/OO-HP•SoS-OO\
It took 4 days to get everyone together. Harry was scrubbed up with Hank, Doctor Cho, and a few of her assistants, Tony was laying on the new Med-bed covered in a sheet below the waist and a dome of glass encasing the entire bed, Pepper, Natasha, and Happy were waiting outside the room watching through an observation window.
"Everyone ready? You ready Tony?" Harry asked as he looked down at his friend who removed his arc reactor and already felt sluggish. Tony just gave him a weak thumbs up. "Let's do this."
The surgery was quick and clean. Waiting a few tense moments for Tony to be unconscious, the bed started rapidly. First the housing for the arc reactor was removed with precision lasers, leaving a gaping hole in his chest. The Med-bed, paired with Dr. Cho's cradle technology, started printing new bone to the side as small grippers and incisors started removing the tiny shrapnel in his heart. In barely an hour Tony was sealed back up with no shrapnel left in his body and a sizable swathe of new skin on his chest. Pulling him out of the Med-bed and into a regular hospital bed Dr. Cho and Hank ran a battery of tests confirming that everything went perfectly. Harry let loose a breath he felt like he was holding the entire time before removing his scrubs as he left the room.
"How is he?" Pepper asked immediately.
"He's fine. Everything went perfectly." Harry said with a big smile as Pepper hugged him hard. Nat came over and pried her off before being grabbed by the worried CEO. Harry just chuckled as he collapsed into a chair and looked at the ceiling. "Everything was great." He said quietly to himself before he closed his eyes to relax.
After the surgery it took Tony 2 days to start fighting being confined to a hospital room, but was overridden by his prospective wife. After 5 days they finally let him get up, but his activities were limited in scope and Pepper banned him from the lab until he was better. Harry snickered to the side and Tony sent him a glare in response.
"Well now that Tony's off bedrest, how about a cookout?" Harry asked, getting a speculative look from Nat and a grateful look from Tony. Pepper and Happy, who was standing behind Tony, agreed so Harry got planning. He invited everyone who took part in the surgery and a few of the X-Men. Xavier was still upset and declined the invitation but sent his regards. Harry understood where Charles was coming from but had no qualms about Magneto's punishment. Jean and Scott both agreed to come, Logan was always down for some brew and good food, and Ororo had evidently already been invited by Natasha.
The team was all informed about Tony's successful surgery and planned to party at the tower and were pleasantly surprised about the cookout. Harry even invited Bucky, who had been spending an increasing amount of time amongst the team. He called up Rhodey, who had made occasional stops during Tony's recovery, and invited him. Of course the kids would be there so Harry asked Clint to invite Laura and his kids for a weekend trip to the house.
With everyone agreeing, Harry spent most of the next week setting everything up, getting all the food, and ensuring Pietro and Teddy didn't make any messes around the house. Wanda was of course helping him by keeping the two boys in line. Harry watched her reversing some accidental magic and remembered her reprimanding the two for starting a small food fight in the kitchen not that long ago. Harry's smile sobered up though when he realized she was growing up so fast. Shaking himself loose of his own thoughts he looked at the decorated backyard.
While most everyone coming was under the impression it was a congratulatory cookout, Harry knew Tony was preparing to propose and he wanted it to be special. So he put the extra effort in and was happy with the outcome. The garden area behind his house had the bushes trimmed, flowers were still in bloom due to the magic shielding the house from the already biting wind of Britain, the grill and smoker were both fired up and already cooking, he conjured enough tables and chairs for everyone, and fairy lights hung across the air suspended with magic.
"Ready?" A voice asked from right behind him. Smiling Harry turned and scoped his girlfriend up into a hug, swinging her around before setting her down and giving her a kiss. Nat blinked her eyes at Harry's excitement, "I'll take that as a yes." She said before giving him a wink and walking away with an extra sway to her hips.
Harry rolled his eyes at her but didn't look away until she was back in the house. He took a few breaths to calm down, Nat could clearly tell he was excited about the evening and he didn't want to give anything away.
Similar to a landslide, after the first person showed up they were all entering the house at a quick pace. Harry greeted them all and let them walk outside, most of them being common guests at his home knew their way around.
"Hey buddy!" Tony greeted as he walked through the . "Everything ready?" he asked quietly as he shook Harry's hand and used his other hand to squeeze his shoulder. Harry just gave a small nod as he made eye contact, letting him know he had the music and lights all ready for him. Harry greeted Pepper before walking outside with them.
With Tony and Pepper being the last to arrive they entered the backyard and saw a large group all standing or sitting around snacking and drinking. In the large field behind the garden Clint's kids were running around with Pietro and Teddy playing a random game Harry couldn't figure out at a glance. Several people shouted out greetings as Tony and Pepper entered the party area. Rhodey and Happy were standing there with drinks in their hands chatting with Scott and Logan. Tony was pulled away from Pepper by them, and Pepper smiled as she joined Ororo, Natasha, Jean, and Laura in another group. Hank, Bruce, Dr. Cho and her assistants were all talking shop and the new Med-Bed, Thor, Steve, and Bucky were trading war stories off to the side, and Wanda was watching over Pietro and the kids.
Harry frowned when he realized Wanda didn't really have any friends around, before sighing and moving over to the grill. That's not something he could control, she spends a lot of time at the X-Mansion, but still didn't seem to connect with anybody. Suddenly he had a strange thought about taking her to his world and letting her interact with the younger versions of his friends and had to suppress a chuckle when he imagined how she would react to Luna.
With those thoughts looping around his head Harry finished up the food before calling everyone to eat. Dinner was loud and boisterous, the kids were all telling their parents what they had been playing, a version of tag evidently, but Pietro was it and had to tag multiple people within a certain time or he couldn't win. Wanda was now talking with Nat and Ororo about her training and the magic she had learned most recently while Teddy was laughing as Harry ribbed the speedster for losing at tag to a bunch of kids.
Eventually people finished eating and they started grouping up again, but before everyone could walk away Tony, holding Pepper's hand, called everyone's attention.
"I just want to say thank you to everyone who came today." Tony said as he looked at his gathered friends. His smile was much softer than usual as he looked at the people who were there for him in a time of uncertainty. 6 years ago he had one friend, a dedicated driver, and an assistant that he secretly loved. Now he had several close friends, his girlfriend, soon to be fiancé he hoped, and a team that always had his back. "It means a lot to me that you all supported me when I decided to have this surgery." He said as he tapped the spot where the arc reactor used to sit. "Now I want to take the time to share something special with all of you."
When he finished talking the lights hanging above them all congregated above Tony and Pepper making a spotlight effect. Music started playing as he turned towards Pepper and dropped to one knee. Pepper's eyes were moist as she held Tony's hand and covered her mouth with the other.
"Pep, you are one of the most important people in my life. I haven't always been the most stable of men, but you have stayed by my side through times that many would abandon me. You've worried for me as I took to the skies as Iron Man. You guided me when I felt lost and supported me when I wanted to change for the better." Tony said as he looked up at Pepper. A box appeared into his free hand and it slowly opened revealing a white gold band and three stone set. The diamonds sparkled under the fairy light as Tony continued, "Virginia Potts, Pepper, will you marry me?"
Pepper couldn't find her voice and nodded enthusiastically. Tony grinned wider than anyone had ever seen as he slid the ring onto her left hand ring finger. Cheers erupted from the audience as the fairy lights all floated back to their original positions. Tony and Pepper thanked everyone as they approached to congratulate them. Harry approached the couple with Nat and was pulled into a hug by Pepper and Tony who thanked him for setting everything up.
The rest of the night was boisterous as people drank, chatted, and laughed. Tony was floating around like he was on top of the world. Harry ribbed him about taking so long and Tony was about to retort on his situation when the hair on the back of his neck stood up. He looked over his shoulder and saw Natasha near Pepper giving him a smile that promised pain so he just grumbled before laughing it away.
It took a few hours for the cookout to wind down. Now Harry was watching as the last of his guests left through the and couldn't help but feel like life was going to get a lot better.
AN:Hey guys this is the final chapter for Deviation, next up Rise of Heroes!
It'll take me a few days to get the next set of chapters ready and the story line organized but I'll be back in a few days to a week.
Thanks for reading and I hope you are enjoying it so far.