You sit in the Great Hall, at the Gryffindor table, bent over a piece of parchment, scribbling away. You finish and look around the room, and suddenly notice Peter and Michelle sitting in front of you.
You jump, "Gah! Where did you guys come from?"
Michelle ignores you and continues staring up at the teachers table.
Peter responds, "I was coming back from the bathroom. I ran into Michelle on my way here."
"Bruce is still not back yet...I hope he's alright." Michelle mutters.
"Oh, I've asked Tony about it." You indicate to the parchment, Michelle pulls it towards her. She reads it and looks startled.
"You can't just write to him, _____! Owls are being intercepted, it isn't safe." She says patronizingly.
You roll your eyes, supremely annoyed at Michelle thinking you were that incompetent, "Don't worry, Michelle. I wrote it in a code. Anyway, I figured I needed to tell at least one adult about Ultron. My scar hurt again last night in detention."
"This isn't right. What he's doing the school. What he's doing to you. Ultron...there's something about him." Peter mutters.
"I don't matter in this. Something much bigger could be brewing under his command—"
"You think he's working for You-Know-Who?" Michelle says in surprise.
"Well its a possibility, isn't it?" You shrug.
Michelle looks dubious, "I guess so. He could have him under the Imperious Curse, but it's unlikely. There's no way Strange wouldn't know."
You lean in close, "Yeah, but Strange didn't have a choice did he? Ultron was sent here by the Ministry."
Michelle nods, then unfurls a copy of the Daily Bugle.
"Anything more about _____?" Peter asks.
"Nothing." Michelle pauses, "Wait, look at this."
She slaps the paper down on the table, you and Peter lean in to get a better glimpse.
Michelle begins reading the article, "Trespass at Ministry: Elektra Natchios has appeared in front of the trial with charges of trespass and attempted robbery at the Ministry of Magic on the 31st of August. She was arrested when trying to break into a top-security door at one in the morning. Natchios was convicted and sentenced to six months in Azkaban."
Peter gapes, "She's in the Avengers...do you think she was framed?"
"Shush!" Michelle demands.
You all stop talking as Luke Cage walks past.
He looks in your direction, "Hey, you three, we're gonna be late for charms if you don't hurry."
"Right." Peter mutters.
You take the parchment and stand, "Go on without me. I don't really care if I'm late, I just wanna send this."
Michelle nods and starts hurrying away to charms.
Peter nods as well, takes one step, and then turns around, "No, I think I'll come with you."
"Pete, you don't have to do that..." You mutter.
"I want to, we haven't had a moment to ourselves."
You shake your head, "You don't want to be seen with me, people have been staring and whispering things. It's not worth it."
"Let them whisper and stare, I don't care what they think, and you shouldn't either, now come on," He takes your arm, "Besides, I haven't been able to tell you how I managed to get on the Quidditch team."
_
You step into the owlry, the floor covered in straw, hundreds of hooting owls resting on many roosts above.
"Hedwig!" You call.
She flutters down to you, and lands on your arm.
She regards Peter with caution, "It's okay," you coo, "He's a friend."
You fish a treat out of your pocket and give it to her.
Peter cocks a brow, "Friend?"
"Pete c'mon she's just my owl."
You give her the letter, "You know who it's for, Hedwig."
She flies out of the open window and soars away, out of sight over the Forbidden Forest.
You gaze at the forest, the same reptilian horses that had been pulling the carriages were soaring high over the trees. You frown, it was useless to point them out, for no one you knew could see. Well except Wade, but he was a year below you.
The door creeks open, you turn and see Miles Morales enter. Peter stands up straighter, as if to look more mature, and regards Miles with an awkward caution.
You approach Miles, and Peter stays by the window.
"Hi." You smile.
"Oh...hi. Didn't think anyone else would be up here." He moves to a brown owl. There is an awkward silence.
"Well, have you found a new Keeper for Quidditch?" He asks.
"Yeah my fri— boyfriend, Peter Parker." You beckon Peter over.
See Peter, I'll call you my boyfriend when it really matters.
"Uh, h-hey, man." Peter says awkwardly.
Miles nods and ties his package to his owl, "Well, you any good at Quidditch, Peter?"
"Well, good enough to make the team I guess." Peter shrugs, an awkward smile on his face.
Miles let's go of the owl and it flies out the window, he turns to you, "That was really brave, standing up to Ultron, _____."
You smile and stand up straighter, "Yeah...well it was the truth."
The owlry door burst open again, Stan Lee charges in, "Marvel, I'll have what you're sending." He says.
"What?" You say in surprise.
"I had a tip-off that you were ordering a large amount of dungbombs."
"You're too late, they're gone." You say, suppressing a smirk.
"Yep, I saw her send it." Miles says, grinning.
Stan regards him for a moment, and then turns to you, "No dungbombs, Marvel. Ultron's put enough on my plate." He says it almost kindly.
"Oh...no problem, Mr. Lee." You say, suddenly feeling bad.
He nods then leaves the owlry.
There is a silence for a moment as everyone processes what happened.
"Um, you weren't actually ordering dungbombs were you?" Miles laughs nervously.
"No."
"I wonder why he'd think you were." Miles pauses, "I'll see you around, _____." He extends a hand and you shake it, then he turns and exits the owlry.
You smile.
"Do...you think he still likes you?" Peter says cautiously.
"What? No. He's my friend. We may have gone to the ball together, but it was only because you didn't ask me in time. Besides, he's with Gwen and I'm...with you, right?"
"Yeah." Peter blushes and takes your hand.
_
You, Michelle and Peter are making your way back up to the castle from the Quidditch pitch. You and Peter are caked in mud from head to toe, and Peter's head hangs low.
"You, ordering dungbombs. I mean, c'mon." Michelle says, rolling her eyes.
"Yeah, I know it doesn't make any sense." You huff.
"Unless whoever tipped Lee off was interested in reading your mail. Isn't it weird that he got a tip when you decided to send a message to Tony?" Michelle points out.
You think, "Yeah, it does seem a bit weird. You figure it's Ultron?"
Michelle is the one who shrug this time, "I don't know."
Just then Liz appears close by, "Hey! Parker!" She shouts, "With the way your were blocking today, you'll be the best Slytherin player on the field!" She snickers.
"Get bent, Liz!" You shout back.
She sticks her tongue out and the other Slytherins laugh. Peter shakes his head as you all walk on.
"No, no, she's right. I'm useless out there, complete garbage." Peter frowns.
"It's only your first practice. Don't worry about it." You smile, pulling him into an embrace.
Michelle looks mildly uncomfortable.
He blushes, "You think so? I just hope I don't make a fool out of myself." He sighs.
_
The three of you all sit together in the common room.
Michelle sighs loudly and shuts her book with a snap and then hurls it into the fire. You and Peter look at her in surprise.
"I don't know how I'm supposed to pass the O.W.L.s in Defense Against the Dark Arts without any practice. Ultron is so...!" She swears.
She glances at you and Peter's stunned faces, "What are the two of you looking at?! Isn't it obvious! We've got to do something about him."
"Oh, I figured we'd have to do something about him when I was bleeding out all over the floor, Michelle." You say sarcastically.
"Well, poison should do the trick." Peter says.
Now it's you and Michelle's turn to look at him faces stunned.
"Peter...no. That's not what I meant, I meant about his teaching style. We aren't going to learn anything in that class." Michelle groans.
I was a bit more concerned about the torture, Michelle, not the lesson plans, is what you want to say. But you bite your lip and continue to listen.
"Yeah that's true." You nod.
"Well, I figured we should just do it ourselves." Michelle says, her eyes light up.
"Do...exactly what ourselves?" Peter asks.
"Defense Against the Dark Arts. We just teach ourselves." Michelle says, proudly.
"I don't know, Michelle..." you shake you head.
Suddenly, there is a tapping sound from the window next to Peter's head. He turns and opens it, and an owl deposits two letters into his hands.
The last Gryffindor in the common room had long left for bed, so the three of you were the only ones left.
Peter opens the letter, "Its from— it's from Charles Xavier, Oh," he picks up the second letter, "there's one for you too Michelle."
Michelle takes the letter, "The old Gryffindor Prefect? And head boy?"
"Well...read it." You push.
Peter nods and tears open the letter, careful not to disturb its contents, "Dear Mr. Parker, congratulations on becoming the one of new Gryffindor prefects. My path from such has lead me to a lavish ministry position, to which I work side by side with the Minister himself. Once I heard of this news, I realized I must give you some advice from one respecter of authority to another." Peter pauses and looks a bit shocked.
"It's likely you have been seeing quite a lot of _____ Marvel recently, and I've heard that you have established romantic ties with her. I must recommend you stop your relationship with that girl as soon as possible. She may be Strange's favorite, but Strange is not going to be in charge of Midgards for much longer. Your loyalties should lie with the Ministry of Magic, not Strange and Marvel's personality cult. Please, Mr. Parker, do not fear breaking up with Marvel. If trouble arises, go to Draven Ultron, a truly delightful man. I hope you will consider my advice to you, Mr. Parker. Don't let the unforgivable errors of Strange and Marvel lure you into destroying a perfectly good career. Charles Xavier."
"Mine says basically the same thing..." Michelle murmurs.
Peter looks up, aghast.
You clear your throat, "Well if you want to, ah, "break romantic ties" with me, I swear I won't get violent."
Peter tears the letter in half, "He must be the worlds biggest idiot. I only even talked to him like...I don't know, once?! And I'm pretty sure it was to ask for directions to the bathroom. And he wants me to break up with you? And he thinks Ultron is..." he consults the letter, "delightful?! The world has gone absolutely crazy." Peter sighs and hurls the paper into the fireplace.
"Watch it, kid." A voice calls from the fireplace.
Peter yelps, startled.
"Tony?" You smile, crouching by the fire.
"Right you are. I just got your letter, thought we should talk about it in person. Or...in fire, is more like it." He cranes his neck and looks at the burning letter, "What was that?"
"Letter from a former prefect who works for the Minister now." You frown.
"Full of garbage." Peter says, shaking his head.
"Except that he mentioned Strange won't be in charge for much longer." Michelle says.
"Can't say I'm surprised. Ross wants Strange out." Tony says.
"Why?" You ask.
"He's worried Strange is trying to turn everyone at Midgards against the Ministry."
"Well that wouldn't explain why Ultron isn't teaching us anything useful in Defense Against the Dark Arts." Michelle points out.
"Exactly, the Ministry doesn't want you trained in combat." Tony says.
You laugh, "What does he think Strange is gonna do, raise an army?"
"Well that's exactly what he thinks Strange is gonna do." Tony nods, "I'm sorry I can't tell you guys more, I have to go. I'll make sure to write. Now quick, get out of here!" The fire flickers out.
The three of you dart upstairs into your dormitories.
_
Michelle opens her addition of the Daily Bugle and shoots up in alarm, "I cannot believe it!" She says, slapping the paper down, nearly smacking you in the face.
You and Peter glance at her.
Peter turns his head down and starts reading the headline, "'Ministry Passes Educational Decree Number Twenty-Three: Draven Ultron Appointed Midgards High Inquisitor'?"
He looks at you and Michelle nervously, "What's that supposed to mean?"
"It says that the High Inquisitor has the power to inspect all of the teachers." Michelle says.
"You're kidding." You scoff.
"That's not all." Michelle raises the paper and begins to read from it, "The High Inquisitor has the power to terminate Professors as well."
Wanda and Pietro walk by.
"So, you've seen the news?" Pietro says.
"Personally, I envy you three." Wanda murmurs, rolling her eyes.
"Uh, why's that?" Peter says nervously.
"Ultron is inspecting T'Challa in your period. Ultron won't know what hit him." Wanda looks at Pietro wistfully, "Oh, to be a youth again, to experience the innocent glee of watching Ultron be destroyed by the greatest Head of Gryffindor this century."
"Well, we're expecting a full report after." Pietro nods.
"Complete with facial expressions." Wanda agrees.
And with that they wander off.
_
Professor Delphi stands before the class., "Greetings, my children. I sense now that many of you have already made the transition into the beyond!"
Ultron, observing in the corner, smiles evilly.
"Today we will be continuing our interpretation of prophetic dreams. Please divide into your groups and discuss your recent night time visions while using the text as your guide."
You and Peter crack open your books, while listening to Ultron and Delphi.
"And how long have you been at this post?" Ultron asks her.
"Nearly sixteen years I've been guiding my students to see with their Inner eye." Delphi smiles.
Ultron nods and makes a note, "Now, if you'll make a prediction for me?"
Delphi seems to swell with indignation, "The Inner eye does not see upon command."
Ultron raises his eyebrows and makes an extensive note, Delphi's face turns sour and she begins look across the room. She steps to you, and you slightly recoil.
"My dear girl, your dream diary, please." She says, sticking out a hand.
You nervously hand your diary to her, and she takes it with trembling fingers and gazes at it for only a moment. She drops it to the table and gives a little scream.
"My dear girl! These dreams are evil portends!"
You read from the page, "Dreamt I was at breakfast eating oatmeal with Peter." You blink slowly, trying to find exactly what was so evil about eating breakfast with your boyfriend.
Delphi stares at you for a moment, while Ultron stands in the background, making more notes.
"Uh, yes, yes, oatmeal! Are you telling me you cannot see the signs? The foretell of suffering and death?"
"Uh..." You mutter.
"Perhaps you are not as in the beyond as the others." She frowns and moves from your table.
"Well, if that's the best you can do Professor, I will be going." With that, Ultron steps out of the classroom.
_
Leaves, now molted brown drift off the trees and onto the sidewalks of Midsmead. It's finally October. Peter yanks you along, pulling you out of your thoughts.
"You might wanna look up, the streets a bit crowded today." Peter smiles, locking your fingers together.
You, Michelle, Peter and Ned walk down the crowed streets of Midsmead, avoiding swarms of other students.
"Uh, where exactly are we going, Michelle?" You ask.
"Yeah, where are we going?" Ned chimes in.
She ignores you both, leading everyone on confidently. She stops in front of a slightly seedy looking pub.
"There we are." Michelle nods.
"The 'Hogs Head', Michelle? Really?" Peter says.
She leads everyone towards it, "C'mon. I'll explain in a minute."
_
The four of you step into the pub. It's grimy and ill-lit. Shady looking witches and wizards sit uneasily in the corners.
Except for one corner by the front window, which is populated by loads of familiar faces, Luke Cage, Remy LeBeau, Gwen Stacy, Wanda and Pietro, Miles Morales, Wade Wilson, James Rhodes, Gamora Titan, Peter Quill, and Penni, just to name a few.
You look questioningly at Michelle, "Michelle, what the hell is going on?"
She smiles brightly, "These are few people I mentioned my Defense Against the Dark Arts idea to."
Few? This was half the damn school—!
Michelle sits down, you, Ned and Peter follow.
"You mean that passing conversation we had about teaching ourselves?" You wave your hands around, feeling overwhelmed.
Wade walks up and greets you, "It's good to see that the swooping evil I accidentally set loose in the castle hasn't gotten to you yet, ______."
You contort your face in confusion, "Uh, same to you, Wade."
Michelle beats on the table to quiet everyone.
"Um...Hey everyone, I thought it would be good if we met and talked over how we wanted to teach ourselves Defense Against the Dark Arts. Because we need to learn it right, and not that garbage Ultron is teaching." Michelle pauses and takes a deep breath, "Obviously, this will help us pass our O.W.L.s, but more importantly, it gives us the ability to protect ourselves from You-...from Thanos."
Several people jump or wince in fear of the name.
Michelle takes a shuddering breath, looking exilerated. She glances at you.
That was the first time she said his name. You smile at her achievement, and Michelle looks pleased.
"Excuse me, how do we know You-know-who's really back?" Peter Quill asks.
You tense up and turn red, "Let's just go. They all think I'm some sort of freak." You mutter to Peter and Michelle.
"Just wait." Michelle assures you.
Peter takes your hand and nods, as if infusing some of his strength into you. You take a deep breath, preparing to hear everyone out.
"Strange believes he is." Wanda says.
"You mean Strange believes her." James Rhodes says, pointing to you.
"That's true, but I think we're drifting from the purpose—" Michelle says nervously.
With some help from Peters reassuring touch, you pull some courage from deep within, "It's okay, Michelle."
You gaze at the crowd.
"I "believe" Thanos is back because I fought him last year. Strange's already told the school that. If you don't believe him, then you clearly won't believe anybody."
There is a tense silence.
"Well...anyway...uh, I think in order to learn right we need a teacher." Michelle says.
"But were all students." Ned shrugs, "None of us have the experience to—"
"Actually Ned. Someone here does." Peter nods.
Everyone looks at him, and he's staring directly at...you.
You look around in surprise, "Me?"
"I for one, would like to know why Marvel's qualified while the rest of us aren't." An unfamiliar sixth year says.
"Well, let's see— she's only confronted You-Know-Who himself four times and lived to tell the tale." Peter says defensively.
"I heard one of the portraits say you killed a Basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets with that sword in Strange's office." Gwen Stacy says.
You go scarlet, "Uh, well...yeah, I did."
"Holy shit, ____." Peter Quill says.
Everyone looks at him in surprise, but then they turn back to you, nearly everyone in the group looking awestruck.
"Can't forget she saved the Arc Reactor from You-Know-Who her first year." Wanda chimes in.
Luke Cage And Remy LeBeau's eyes are wide in astonishment.
"And last year she got through the Tri-Wizard tournament!" Miles smiles.
There are mutters of agreement.
You clear your throat and stand, "Wait— It all sounds great when you say it like that but, the truth is most of that was just luck. I didn't know what I was doing half the time, and I nearly almost had help."
"She's just being modest." Michelle cuts in.
"No, Michelle, I'm not. Facing this stuff in real life is not like school, in school if you make a mistake you get to try again tomorrow, but out there...when your a second away from being murdered or watching a friend die right before your eyes...you don't know what that's like." You falter, and sit back down in your chair.
Michelle places a hand on your shoulder.
"That's right, _____. We don't know what that's like. That's why we need your help." Michelle says, "So all in favor of taking lessons from _____?"
Everyone in the room raises their hand.
"Where are we going to meet?" Michelle asks.
"What about an unused classroom?" Ned suggests.
"That might work. I'll look into that." You nod.
"Okay, good." Michelle then pulls a parchment out of her bag, "I think we should put our names down so we can know who was here."
Suddenly people look uncomfortable.
"Honestly people...you think I'd leave it lying around? Plus it's enchanted." Michelle smiles.
Everyone looks more comfortable and people start coming up and eagerly sighing the parchment.
"So what should we call ourselves?" Peter asks.
"What about the Anti-Ultron league?" Gamora suggests.
"We'll need something that doesn't give away what we're doing." Michelle says.
"I think we should be Strange's Army." Penni says.
There is an exited agreement.
"Strange's Army it is then. S.A. for short." Michelle nods, "I'll let everyone know when we're going to meet."
Everyone scatters outside, and for the first time in a while you feel hopeful for whatever comes next.
_