At the office door, Stark stopped cold. Phil Coulson—decked out in a Stark Industries security uniform—was crouched low, ear pressed to the wood like a career eavesdropper.
S.H.I.E.L.D., Stark thought. More like the Squat-and-Listen Bureau.
Li Ming gave him a sidelong look. "I thought you had security walk him out last time. Didn't realize you quietly hired him back into your own department. Excellent taste."
Stark pinched the bridge of his nose, disappointed in everyone with a badge, then tugged at the cloak draped over his shoulders. "You said this thing makes people ignore us. What about sound?"
Li shook his head. No sound dampening.
Stark leaned in close to Coulson's ear and rasped, full horror-movie tremor: "Heh-heh… re-turn… my… liiiife…"
Coulson jolted, whipped his head around—saw no one. The cloak held. All he learned was that someone had made him. After a long sweep of the hall, he backed off, muttering about Stark's latest prank tech.
Li rolled his eyes while Stark grinned until his ribs ached. "End of the time tour," Li said, pushing into the office.
Pepper was waiting, finger stabbing the empty spot where Stark had vanished, then at Stark himself walking through the door. "One second you disappear, the next you stroll back in. Tony, I need an explanation that doesn't involve me losing my mind."
Stark tilted his head toward Li Ming—permission? Li shrugged. "Say what you want. Just don't try it yourself." He glanced at the liquor cabinet. "Got beer?"
Stark sniffed. "Do I look like a beer guy?"
Pepper caught the shift between them. The hostility had thawed; Stark wasn't brushing Li off, just giving him the kind of glare reserved for equals. She sighed, picked up the phone. "Can someone bring beer?"
"And peanuts!" Li called, peeling off the cloak.
Pepper's mouth flattened. "Beer. And peanuts."
Stark bristled. "Ordering my assistant like you're Kreacher now? My office, my assistant."
Li ignored him, dragged a chair to the window, and sat with a view of the city.
"You're welcome, by the way," Stark muttered, rubbing his temples. He guided Pepper to the sofa and pointed at Li. "Long story short: wizard. That's how I got back alive."
Pepper listened to Stark's play-by-play, then turned a skeptical eye on Li, who was already cracking peanuts. "You want me to believe in wizards? Why not just say God saved you?"
"Don't believe me?" Stark gestured upward. "Invisible car on the roof. Want a look? Kreacher's inside too."
He started for the door. "Austin, I'm taking her up."
Li waved him off, gaze fixed across the skyline. A woman with red hair and a long rifle was already staring back through her scope. He raised two fingers in greeting, amused.
With Stark's coaching and Kreacher's welcome, Pepper toured the impossible RV. By the time she came back down, her skepticism had given way to something else: curiosity.
Stark caught it instantly. He moved between them. "I'm suddenly homesick for my bathtub. Pepper, grab some groceries? And get my usual." He glanced at Li. "Does Kreacher only cook Chinese?"
"No. He's good at everything," Li said absently, still watching the sniper.
Pepper nodded, lips pressed tight, and left.
Stark joined Li at the window. "Who are you waving at?"
"A woman who once put a blade through my roof. Back before it flew." Li's smile sharpened. "Want to take a ride?"
Pepper's voice drifted from the doorway. "Groceries first."
Stark squinted into the distance, frustrated without a scope. When Pepper was gone, he lowered his voice. "On the roof, Kreacher welcomed her in, but I heard him mutter… something ugly. 'Mudblood.' Is he all right?"
Li's face sobered. "Kreacher once tried to destroy an object. Evil, but not alive. It failed. The thing twisted him—left scars you can't see."
Stark's eyes narrowed. "Not a person. An object." He glanced at Li's staff. "You didn't lift anything from my car to study, did you?"
Stark raised his hands, innocent. "Not today. Want me to bring in a discreet medical team? I can control the narrative."
Li shook his head. "Leave him. I have reasons." He studied Stark. "Why invite me here? You don't usually host strange men."
Stark exhaled, humor fading. "Because I don't know who I can trust."
The memory of cave walls pressed in. He'd seen Stark-tech in terrorist hands—crates stacked high, his itinerary leaked in advance. Someone inside had sold him out.
"I need cover until I finish my suit," Stark said. "Mark II. After that, you're free." He hesitated. "And… I've already ordered you a gift."
Li's eyes flicked to the faint pulse of energy in Stark's pocket. His smile curved. "What kind of gift?"
"Something to make your car vanish from radar and thermal. A clean ghost."
Li raised his glass in a mock toast. "Now that's how you hire a wizard."
Li Ming knew exactly what Stark had slipped into his pocket. Probably a clipped leaf from the RV's apothecary garden. With Kreacher patrolling the place, Stark wouldn't have had the window to steal anything serious.
But he understood Stark's mind: paranoia painted as "due diligence." A man who believed the world ran on physics suddenly found himself in a duel with magic. Of course he'd start running tests.
Li Ming let it slide. If Stark could reverse-engineer an anti-magic suit from a dried leaf, then maybe it was time for him to retire to some quieter universe. He wasn't worried. Wizards could train forever. By the time Stark even drafted a schematic, Li Ming planned to be strong enough to drag a sea monster into orbit and barbecue it on the sun.
Besides, the arc reactor in Stark's chest wasn't a triumph yet—it was a countdown. Palladium poisoning wasn't "maybe," it was math. Li had already planned to hand over a few vials of potion. Better to let Stark think he'd stolen something.
He offered his hand. "Deal."
They clinked glasses just as Pepper pushed through the door, grocery bags in her arms. "Gentlemen, can we go? I want to see the flying car."
Li gave one last lazy wave to the redhead across the avenue—Natasha Romanoff's rifle still glinting under the skyline. Then he turned to Pepper. "After you've had Kreacher's cooking, try not to fire your chef."
"I already want to," Stark muttered, draining his glass.
They headed for the roof. Stark stopped, pinched his nose. "Bathroom. No peeking."
Pepper blinked. "Sometimes Tony is… a child."
Li Ming hid a sigh. Stark was headed right for the warding circle he'd carved during the time jump. He was checking his proof. Always testing. Always doubting.
By the time Stark crouched to pocket the sliver of skin he'd left behind, Li was ushering Pepper into the RV.
Across the avenue, Natasha pressed a finger to her comm. "Director, 'Austin' never came back out."
In a black SUV, Nick Fury's good eye narrowed. "He still in the building, or did he portal out?"
"Want me to infiltrate and check?"
"Head for Stark's place," Fury decided. "And bring the agent who can't be hypnotized."
Pepper had flown enough that planes barely registered. A flying house was something else. She pressed her face to the window like a kid, watching pedestrians below frown at nothing, their eyes sliding off the RV.
By twilight, Stark pointed at the Malibu coastline. "Garage. I've got your upgrade waiting."
Li parked. Pepper whisked Kreacher and the groceries toward the kitchen. Stark stayed behind, patting a stack of crates. "This took some thought. Hope you like it."
Supercar? Pointless—the wizard already owned a flying fortress. Jet? Slower than his teleport trick. Mansion? The RV's interior could host a soccer match. So safety it was: stealth packages to make the RV invisible to radar, thermal, and satellites. Plus a few Stark-brand comforts, because genius had to leave its signature.
Li waited until Pepper was out of earshot, then tapped Stark's chest. The arc reactor hummed beneath his palm. "That thing's saving you and killing you. I've got a fix. Antidote for palladium poisoning. Side effects minor."
He produced a row of vials. "Life, or ear-steam. Your choice."
Stark blinked. "Ear… steam?"
Li uncorked one, sipped. A curl of vapor streamed from his ear.
Stark doubled over, laughing. "You've got a vintage train parked in your skull."
"Demonstration," Li said calmly. "Sip a little, you steam a few minutes. Down the whole vial, you whistle like a kettle till morning."
Stark's grin faltered. "…Fantastic." He tilted one vial, watching the blue glow. "How long does it last? When do I take it?"
"Every three days?" Li said with a shrug.
Stark shot him a look that translated to "lose the question mark."
Li raised his hands. "I don't have charts for palladium poisoning. I know it restores health. As for dosing—" He clapped Stark's shoulder. "Have J.A.R.V.I.S. run the numbers."
He left Stark frowning at the vials.
Li had just stepped into the great room when his head turned, eyes narrowing. "Your security needs work."
"Meaning—?" Stark started.
"Meaning," came a voice from the shadows, "for a playboy's fortress, it still only took me a minute to get in. A lifetime in my line of work."
Nick Fury stepped into the light, already at the bar, pouring like he owned it.
"J.A.R.V.I.S.?" Stark barked.
"I'm here, sir," the AI replied smoothly.
"At least the AI's fine. Where's Pepper?"
Fury waved a hand. "Didn't touch your assistant. Saw you three rolls up from the garage." He slid three glasses across the bar and lifted one toward Li Ming. "Long time, Austin. Nice casual suits these days. Tell me—part mouse? You hide too well. I've been hunting you longer than I'll admit."
Stark moved between them, voice cool. "Sorry—who are you? If you want an autograph, call my assistant."
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