The years passed without fanfare, reshaping the world in ways too subtle to see.
Much changed through the quiet choices of a single hand, yet the shape of the world remained familiar.
Some fates bent under new winds, others stood unmoved and all, in the end, returned to where they were always meant to be.
— Nine Years Later —
December 21, 2008, Manhattan, New York
Arthur Hayes, vanquisher of dark lords, ancient beings, and cosmic threats, did not like crowds.
He liked peace. Quiet. Order.
He especially did not like shopping — not at the busiest time of the year, in a place designed to overload every mortal sense. He did not enjoy standing in line behind someone arguing with a cashier about expired coupons, or dodging toddlers who launched themselves across aisles like tiny, sugar-fueled missiles.
And yet, here he was.
Standing in the middle of FAO Schwarz, a toy store that smelled vaguely of plastic and peppermint, arms weighed down by shopping bags, while his four-year-old daughter marched ahead like a queen surveying her kingdom.
"Daddy, hurry up!" Elena called, waving him forward with royal authority. "We still have three more stores to visit!"
Arthur tilted his head back and let out a suffering sigh. "Ele, we've been at this for three hours. Why couldn't your mother take you?"
Elena spun on her heel, dark hair bouncing, and gave him that look — the one that said You should already know the answer. "Mom has the rare full day off to be with Tris, and I didn't want to disturb her. Besides," she added with a little huff, "shopping with Mom is boring. She likes to talk to everyone. We'd still be in the first store if she came."
Arthur knew Elena was right. His wife was having one of her rare breaks. Though their family had wealth enough to last generations, she loved her work with unrelenting passion, and moments like these — when she truly rested — were few and far between. And shopping with her, while endearing, would indeed be exhausting. She collected people the way others collected stamps — warmly, endlessly, joyfully. And while he adored that about her… errands with her took ages.
"You're right," he conceded. "I'm faster."
"And Dad, you're free anyway," Elena added with a sly smile. "All you do is play with us and watch TV all day."
Arthur didn't reply to that, though inwardly he was complaining. While he looked free playing with his family and watching tele the whole day, his consciousness was split between a number of clones doing various things. Researching and deciphering advanced alien technology. Training in various disciplines. Monitoring activity on Earth and even on distant alien worlds.
He was many things. But "free" was not one of them.
"You could have made a list," Arthur tried one more time. "Winky could have gotten everything."
"No!" Elena's foot stamped with determination. "I want to buy them myself. Only I know what everyone likes. I want every present to be perfect." She was already marching toward the next store. "This is important, Daddy."
Arthur could only follow. And complain. And carry.
But he did it with a smile — because he understood what she wasn't saying: she wanted time with just him.
Two more stores. Each stop came with intense deliberation, whispered commentary ("Do you think Lily would like this unicorn?"), and the occasional dramatic sigh when something was out of stock.
Arthur followed, mumbling complaints under his breath about surveillance cameras and crowds.
Elena rolled her eyes. "Dad, you're acting like someone's watching."
"Someone is," Arthur muttered. "Your Uncle Fury is probably laughing his only eye out right now: 'Top-secret file — Hayes spotted purchasing glitter pens and stuffed unicorns.'"
"He's not that boring," Elena said… though she giggled anyway.
Finally — after what felt like an eternity to Arthur — they finished their shopping and trudged toward the car, a black, nondescript SUV sitting under festive streetlights.
"Can we take the long way home?" Elena asked as she climbed into the back seat. "Pleeeease?"
Arthur could have apparated them home in a blink. Could have opened a portal. Could have asked Winky to teleport them. But Elena loved car rides, especially during the Christmas season when all the houses were decorated.
"Of course, princess," he said, already resigned, but not unhappy about it.
Traffic was horrible, as expected for late afternoon in December. They were stuck behind a line of taxis when Arthur's phone rang. The caller ID made him sigh.
"What do you want, Stark?"
"Is that any way to greet your better?" Tony's voice practically dripped with smugness.
Arthur groaned. Their… relationship had evolved into something bizarre over the years. It had started with enmity, shifted into petty sabotage, and somehow landed in a territory that might qualify as friendship — though both would deny it under oath.
Back when Phoenix Group had expanded into New York, Tony had covertly sabotaged the launch purely out of spite — delays, technical mishaps, mysteriously disappearing permits, the works.
After Arthur discovered Tony was behind everything, he started his revenge. Not wanting to show magic to Tony too soon, he started making trouble the normal way. Supply chain disruptions at Stark Industries, harmless pranks at his factories, nothing dangerous, just enough chaos to short Stark stocks profitably.
It had escalated until Obadiah himself had intervened to broker peace.
After that… well, the rivalry stuck. Tony had a deep, personal need to prove he was superior. Arthur had a deep, personal talent for winning anyway.
Somehow, they'd ended up here. Not quite friends. Not quite enemies. Something indefinable and occasionally amusing.
"My better at what? Drinking? Narcissism? Questionable life choices?"
"Driving," Tony said smugly. "There's a race in Monaco next week. Invitation only, very exclusive. I'm challenging you to a duel."
"We've done this before, Tony. It's boring. We both know the result."
"Not this time, Hayes." Tony's voice shifted into his I built something dangerous again tone. "I've designed a car that will destroy you. Technology always beats skill."
"You spent time designing a car just to beat me in a race?"
"I had a week off after finishing the Jericho system upgrades. Needed a hobby. And what better way to spend it than creating your inevitable defeat?"
"I'm busy next week."
"Cancel it. What's more important than defending your honor?"
"A Christmas gathering with family."
"Oh, come on! Christmas parties are boring. Just a bunch of people pretending to like each other while drinking and—"
"You're wrong, Uncle Tony!" Elena's voice piped up from the backseat. "Parties are fun! Racing is boring. Besides, Daddy will win anyway. He always does."
There was a pause, then Tony's voice softened completely. "Is that Princess Elena with you? Arthur, you should have said something. Hey there, sweetheart."
"Hi, Uncle Tony!"
Arthur smirked. For all of Tony's ego and bravado, the man turned into pudding around children. It was honestly the only reason Arthur kept him around. That, and Tony's genuine brilliance made for interesting conversations when he wasn't being insufferable.
"Of course parties are important," Tony backpedaled immediately. "Way more important than any silly race. Are you having a big party?"
"The biggest! We're going to London to see all Daddy's friends and my friends. I bought presents for everyone. Even you!"
"You did? Well, now I definitely need to up my gift game. Your present will be at your house before you leave, promise."
"Don't make it explode this time," Elena said seriously.
"That was one time! And it was just sparklers!"
"Very big sparklers," Arthur interjected.
"A design oversight! Anyway—" Tony cleared his throat. "Tell your dad he can't avoid the race forever. After the holidays, it's happening."
"Daddy doesn't avoid anything," Elena said loyally. "He just thinks you're silly."
Arthur could practically hear Tony's indignation through the phone.
"I am not silly. I am a serious scientist, engineer, and businessman."
"Who builds cars just to race my daddy," she added, very reasonably.
"That's... that's research and development!"
Arthur's smile widened. "Give up, Stark. You won't win this one."
"Fine. But Arthur, after New Year's, you and me. Monaco. Don't think you can hide behind your daughter forever."
"I don't hide behind anyone. But fine, after the holidays. Prepare to lose."
"We'll just see about that," Tony grumbled. "Goodbye, Princess. Arthur, don't you dare swallow my gift."
"I don't need to. My gift will always be better than yours anyway."
"I—hey, that's not—"
Arthur ended the call, chuckling.
Elena giggled from the backseat. "Uncle Tony is funny when he's mad."
"He's always funny. Just not in the way he thinks."
They inched through traffic, Elena humming a children's song under her breath.
Near a traffic stop, Arthur gave a slight smile and looked toward a high-rise building. A sudden bang echoed through the street, startling a few pedestrians — but the traffic kept crawling forward.
"Daddy, what was that?" Elena asked, looking around.
"Probably someone's tire bursting," Arthur said casually, and the SUV continued on.
—
High above, on the terrace of a high-rise building…
A sniper lay dead, a clean hole through his forehead. The last thing he'd seen was his own bullet performing an impossible U-turn and coming straight back at him. He'd had no time to understand. No time to react.
One second, perfect shot lined up on the black SUV below.
The next, darkness.
—
Twenty minutes later, the father-daughter duo rolled into their quiet suburban neighborhood — tree-lined streets, tidy lawns dusted with snow, chimney smoke drifting lazily upward. No gates. No guards. Just homes, laughter, and the occasional dog barking behind a fence.
It wasn't the luxurious mansion Arthur had once lived in.
But it was home — and far better for the kids.
No extravagant displays of wealth. No obvious security. Just a normal house on a normal street where his children could have something resembling normal childhoods.
Winky appeared as they pulled in, striding toward the car. She had grown stronger alongside Arthur over the years, and in her true form she resembled the storybook elves mortals always imagined. But here, she wore her practiced human disguise — the Hayes family's friendly, efficient nanny.
"Let me help with those, Master Arthur," she said, already lifting packages with such subtle magic that it looked like normal carrying to any curious neighbor.
"Winky! I got you something too!" Elena announced as she bounced out of the car. "But it's a surprise so you can't look!"
"I wouldn't dream of it, Ele," Winky replied solemnly, though Arthur caught the pleased glimmer in her eyes.
Elena sprinted toward the house, excitement propelling her forward. Arthur parked the car in the garage and made his way up the steps.
Waiting in the doorway, their one-year-old son Tristan perched on her hip, stood his wife - Eileen Hayes.