"Please be seated, honored guests. Tea or coffee?" The sharp voice materialized from the ether once more.
Pepper and Happy settled cautiously onto the plush sofa facing away from the staircase, their eyes darting around the impossible room. "Coffee, please," Pepper managed.
The words had barely left her lips when an elegant silver tray materialized in the air before them, bearing two steaming cups of coffee alongside crystal containers of cream and sugar that caught the firelight like captured stars.
Pepper lifted her cup with trembling fingers and took a tentative sip. Her eyes widened in genuine amazement—the coffee was absolutely exquisite, better than anything she'd tasted in the finest restaurants of Manhattan.
"So," came a new voice, crisp and authoritative, "you've invested one hundred thousand dollars in my services. What exactly do you require?"
Gemini Black emerged from the balcony doorway like something from a Gothic fairy tale. Pepper found herself staring at a girl who couldn't possibly be older than fifteen—raven-black hair framing porcelain features, dark eyes that held ancient wisdom despite her youth. She wore an elaborate Gothic dress that belonged in a Victorian manor, and carried herself with the casual arrogance of someone who'd never doubted her own power.
"You're... the proprietor?" Pepper asked, struggling to reconcile the child before her with the supernatural establishment they'd entered.
Gemini settled into the ornate chair across from them with fluid grace, lifting a delicate teacup from a tray that appeared at her elbow as if summoned by thought alone. "Naturally. My time is precious, as is my patience. State your requirements clearly. If you lack faith in my abilities, you're welcome to leave."
Pepper moistened her lips, weighing her options. After witnessing the impossibilities within this shop—floating parchments, self-igniting candles, materializing staircases—she decided to take the ultimate gamble.
"I need you to locate Tony Stark. Confirm whether he's alive and determine his exact location." Her voice carried the weight of desperate hope.
Gemini sipped her tea with maddening casualness. "And what compensation can you offer for such services?"
Pepper had anticipated this question. "You accept cash and gold, correct? For accurate information—ten million dollars cash, or two hundred eighty kilograms of pure gold."
One elegant eyebrow arched upward. "My, my. Such confidence in your resources. Are you quite certain you can deliver such sums?"
"The cash can be here within hours. Gold would require additional time, but yes—I can provide either." Pepper's voice carried absolute conviction.
"Acceptable. Five hundred thousand cash as initial payment. Deliver it, and I'll locate your missing person." Gemini lounged back in her chair with the languid confidence of a cat who'd cornered a mouse.
As Tony's most trusted assistant, Pepper held legal authority over his vast financial empire. Without hesitation, she wrote a check for the requested amount and handed it to Happy, who departed immediately for the nearest bank.
Less than thirty minutes later, Happy returned, breathing heavily as he dragged an enormous steel case up the mysterious staircase. He opened it before Gemini, revealing neat stacks of crisp hundred-dollar bills that seemed to glow in the candlelight.
Gemini snapped her fingers with casual authority. The bills began flipping and counting themselves with supernatural precision, creating a soft rustling symphony. Within sixty seconds, the case fell silent.
"Perfect. Every cent accounted for." Gemini's approval carried the weight of a royal decree. "Now I require a photograph of your missing person, along with something containing his genetic material—hair, preferably."
Pepper immediately produced Tony's photograph from her purse. After a moment's hesitation, she withdrew an electric razor and carefully shook out a small collection of whiskers onto the table.
Happy stared at her with undisguised amazement. Pepper's cheeks flushed slightly. "Don't look at me like that. I have to be prepared for any eventuality in my line of work—even the most... intimate requests."
"Coby!" Gemini called behind her. "Bring the Crystal Scrying Dish immediately!"
"At once, Miss Gemini!" The disembodied voice responded with house-elf efficiency. A magnificent crystal dish, larger than a serving platter and perfectly transparent, materialized on the table between them.
Gemini directed Pepper to place both photograph and whiskers into the dish. From her sleeve, she withdrew a wand of pale wood that seemed to shimmer with inner light—elder wood with dragon heartstring core, though Pepper had no way of knowing such details. With a gentle tap, the contents burst into ethereal flames that burned without heat.
Gemini captured several wisps of the rising smoke with her wand, her voice dropping to an ancient incantation: "Reveal Trace."
The captured smoke began swirling above the crystal dish, slowly coalescing into a vivid, three-dimensional image that made both Pepper and Happy gasp aloud.
There was Tony Stark—unmistakably him despite his current condition. He stood in what appeared to be a cave, wielding a hammer as he worked molten metal on a crude anvil. His expensive suits had been replaced by torn, bloodstained clothing. His usually immaculate appearance was now haggard and desperate, but most shocking of all was the strange device glowing in his chest, visible through his torn shirt.
"Tony!" Both Pepper and Happy cried out simultaneously, their voices cracking with emotion. Despite his transformation from billionaire playboy to cave-dwelling prisoner, they recognized him instantly.
The background revealed rough stone walls and primitive conditions. Another figure moved in the shadows beside Tony, though the image wasn't clear enough to identify the second person.
"I need geographical reference," Gemini stated with clinical precision.
Happy immediately opened his laptop, pulling up a detailed map of Afghanistan and positioning it before the young sorceress.
Gemini studied the map briefly, then touched her wand to a specific location in the desert region. Happy frantically recorded the coordinates, his hands shaking with excitement.
"Your initial request has been fulfilled completely." Gemini leaned back with satisfaction. "Please settle the remaining balance promptly. I trust you wouldn't enjoy discovering my debt collection methods."
Pepper continued staring at the image of Tony's desperate situation, her heart breaking at his obvious suffering. "Two million additional—can you extract him from that place?"
Gemini's eyebrow arched with interest. "Such generosity! You harbor romantic feelings for this man?"
Pepper's face flushed crimson. "Absolutely not! He's my employer. I'm simply using his resources to ensure his safety and return."
"You possess the legal authority to commit such funds?" Gemini toyed with her wand, studying Pepper's face for any sign of deception.
"Complete authority. I can have two million in cash delivered to this establishment by tomorrow evening at the latest. I want him rescued immediately!" Pepper abandoned the scrying image, focusing entirely on the enigmatic girl before her.
"Revised terms," Gemini announced with businesslike precision. "Your previous balance of nine and a half million dollars in cash, plus five hundred thousand in premium gemstones—I accept only the highest quality specimens. Deliver everything, and I depart for the rescue operation immediately."
Pepper rose to her feet and extended her hand with corporate formality. "Agreed completely. Give me twenty-four hours to arrange everything."
Gemini also stood, hesitating momentarily before extending her own hand. This was proper Muggle etiquette, wasn't it? She hadn't misremembered the protocols?
Pepper grasped the girl's surprisingly strong hand, squeezed once firmly, then departed with Happy, their footsteps echoing down the magical staircase.
"Miss Gemini," Coby materialized the moment their guests had departed, his expression troubled. "Are we truly venturing to Afghanistan? The regional wizards can be... quite unreasonable. And extremely hostile to foreigners."
"What cause for concern?" Gemini waved dismissively as she headed toward the upper floors. "I've examined that location thoroughly—there's no trace of magical activity within a hundred-mile radius. I've memorized every magic-related map on the planet, Coby. We'll be operating in purely Muggle territory."
She paused on the staircase. "Prepare dinner—I want Beef Wellington, perfectly executed. And pack our traveling supplies. We'll be departing soon."
"Immediately, Miss Gemini!" Coby bowed and vanished to fulfill his duties.
Gemini returned to her private chambers and retrieved a small, ornate mirror from her bedside drawer. After adjusting its magical frequency, she called softly, "Ted? Teddy!"
A young boy's face materialized in the mirror's surface—vibrant red hair, intelligent gray eyes that sparkled with mischief. The moment he spotted Gemini, his hair shifted to bubblegum pink with excitement.
"Gemini! Finally! You've been ignoring my calls for weeks! Where are you hiding? When are you coming home?"
"Silence, Teddy! Don't interrogate me about my location—I won't reveal it, so abandon any thoughts of reporting to the adults." Gemini's tone brooked no argument. "I require equipment: a high-quality magical tent, suitable for extended field operations."
"You're broke again, aren't you?" Ted's voice carried knowing sympathy. "Otherwise you'd simply purchase one yourself. Why not return home? Everyone's worried sick—even Godfather Harry keeps asking about you!"
"Your godfather is not my concern!" Gemini's eyes flashed with irritation. "Focus on my request: magical tent, international express delivery. What's the fastest possible arrival time? And don't attempt to trace the delivery address—you know such methods won't work on me."
Ted Lupin sighed with the weariness of someone far older than his eleven years. As the newest student bound for Hogwarts, he felt completely helpless when dealing with his formidable young aunt. Her explosive relationship with his godfather Harry Potter had become legendary throughout the British wizarding community—their arguments were the stuff of Daily Prophet gossip columns.