Heroes Assemble!

Ain't No Thing Like Me

"Hello, Luna Lovegood," Harry smiled.

"Apparently, congratulations are in order, Harry?" Luna remarked, gesturing at the banner.

"Yeah, only happened Saturday," Harry admitted.

"I'm happy for you," Luna beamed and leapt forward to hug him.

Harry couldn't help but laugh as he hugged one of his oldest friends back.

"Harry?" Skye asked, materialising beside him, a raised eyebrow and a small smile on her face.

"Skye. I'd like you to meet Luna Lovegood," Harry said, breaking off the hug. "Luna, this is Skye, my fiancé."

"It's a pleasure to meet you ..." Luna began before trailing off, her head cocking to the side. "You picked a nice name for yourself but your true name is also quite nice. You might consider using it more."

Skye's eyes widened and her startled expression met Harry's own amused one.

"Luna's magical, like me," Harry explained. "and has a ... unique way of seeing the world. We actually went to school together."

"You did?" Skye asked, latching her arm through Luna's. "That'd mean that you know all the juicy goss of young Harry. Tell. Me. Everything."

This time, it was Harry's turn to don the startled expression.

"Before you get into that, how about you tell me what brought you here, Luna," Harry suggested.

"Oh, that's easy. I need your help to find a brand new creature," Luna beamed. "I don't know what it's called just yet, but it can be found in San Francisco and looks like this."

Here, Luna pulled out a picture from her purse and handed it to Harry. He took one look at it and cocked his head.

"Um, Luna, that's an ant," he stated.

"That's just what it wants you to think," Luna said, leaning forward to whisper conspiracally.

"It does look rather large for an ant," Skye remarked, peering over Harry's shoulder.

"Did someone say something about ants?" Sam asked, stepping into the conversation.

ooo00ooo

"Well, I suppose if mountain views are your thing, this'd be considered acceptable," Tony remarked as he and Rhodey approached 'Central City', the old Army base that had apparently been given to the team responsible for preventing the global catastrophe in Montana.

The two cut their repulsors so that they were hovering over the area and took it all in.

Central City was primarily a mountain. The face of it, though, proved that it was no ordinary mountain. There was a large concrete structure built into the base of it, much like a great doorway. And while much of the mountain retained its natural shape, this side of it had been hewn so that it appeared almost sheer. In three places, there were 'balconies' cut into the rock, enhanced by concrete and glass.

An infrared scan of the mountain was inconclusive, as Tony expected, and the plans for the place had been purged from any computer system that he could hack into. That saying, if he'd been the one to design the place, he would have built a lot more levels than one would expect.

"I'm still not sure that simply turning up like this unannounced and without an appointment is a good idea," Rhodey said.

"Nonsense," Tony countered. "Who doesn't like getting a visit from me. Besides, we're Avengers, every door should open at our approach."