Marvel, start by marrying the Scarlet Witch

"I'm back!"

It was evening when Carl Apparated home. Wanda was in the kitchen, effortlessly using magic to prepare dinner.

Carl didn't always bring Wanda along on missions. He only took her when there was a potential for combat, using those moments to help her build real-world experience. Most of his other tasks involved things like finding lost pets, putting out fires, or saving civilians—jobs he could handle solo, often with just a flash and a well-placed spell. If he could avoid being seen, he did.

Still, despite their attempts at subtlety, Carl and Wanda had been featured in the news multiple times over the past week.

Initially, the public didn't believe in their existence. Until now, the only widely acknowledged superhero was Tony Stark, and Tony operated through advanced technology, something people could wrap their heads around.

But Carl and Wanda used magic—genuine, reality-bending magic. Even Carl's use of ninjutsu, which to the public appeared to be spells, added to the mystery.

Most people were skeptical. They dismissed it as high-tech illusion, assuming the "magic" was just some cleverly disguised Stark-level engineering, and that the photos and videos were all movie-style special effects.

It wasn't until more and more people saw them firsthand—saw Wanda levitate a burning car off a highway or Carl disappear into smoke mid-air—that the public was forced to accept the truth.

Magic was real.

After dinner, Wanda handed Carl a flyer.

"May dropped by this afternoon with little Peter," she said, smiling. "She left this and asked if we'd like to go with them tomorrow. Apparently, it's going to be quite the spectacle."

Carl took the flyer and glanced at the bright image printed across the front: a panoramic shot of the open-air exhibition venue in Queens.

The text read:

"Hammer Industries' New Tech Showcase!

Experience epoch-making inventions—sea, land, and air combat robots!

Fireworks show to follow! Everyone welcome!"

"A fireworks show?" Carl grinned. "Sounds like a plan. Let's go."

He had originally dismissed the idea of attending the Hammer Industries expo. In fact, he'd told Jack to toss the formal invitation they'd received from Hammer into the trash.

Carl already knew trouble was brewing. With Ivan Vanko lurking in the background and Hammer's overreach in robotics, it was guaranteed chaos. He'd avoided it for the sake of safety—and because he'd been busy grinding through side missions to earn more time for the small worlds.

But seeing the anticipation in Wanda's eyes made him reconsider.

Sure, they might not get to enjoy the scheduled fireworks at the end—but they'd definitely see plenty of mechanical fireworks when things went sideways. That could be fun too, in its own way.

"Great!" Wanda beamed. "I'll call May back. She's waiting for an answer."

As she stepped aside to make the call, Carl casually opened his mission panel. He scrolled through the side quests list out of habit.

Just as he reached the end, a new mission refreshed before his eyes.

"New Mission: Stop the robot riot at the Hammer Industries showcase.

Reward: 30 days in the small world."

Carl chuckled softly.

"I thought the system was slacking, but turns out it was just fashionably late."

He'd noticed a pattern by now. Whenever something big was about to happen—anything famous or potentially world-altering—the system would usually generate a mission around it. But he hadn't seen anything about Hammer's expo until just now, and for a moment he thought he'd misjudged.

This reward confirmed otherwise.

The side missions he'd completed over the last week—pet rescues, robberies, fires—had barely netted him a month's worth of time in the small world.

And now, just for stopping a robot uprising?

Another full month's reward.

But it made sense. Most of his previous enemies were just thugs with guns. The robots Hammer was rolling out were military-grade threats—potentially deadly, especially for the crowd that would gather.

Stopping them was no small feat. And the system knew it.

Just as Wanda ended her call and Carl closed the mission panel, the doorbell rang.

"Ding-dong! Ding-dong!"

"Pietro, at this hour?" Wanda asked, heading toward the door. "Coming!"

It was already half past nine. The only person who ever visited them this late was Wanda's brother.

But when she opened the door, it wasn't Pietro at all.

A bald, middle-aged woman in flowing golden robes stood there, radiating calm and power. The color of her attire resembled that of a Tibetan monk, yet her presence was anything but traditional.

"Good evening," the woman said warmly. "I'm looking for you and your husband. May I come in? My name is the Ancient One."

Wanda blinked, momentarily confused.

"The Ancient One?"

Carl, still in the living room, instantly stood up at the sound of that name.

The Ancient One.

Leader of Kamar-Taj. Sorcerer Supreme. Guardian of the Time Stone.

This was serious.

"Why is the Ancient One here?" he thought. "Is it because of the magic we used in public recently? Are we in trouble for bending too many rules?"

Carl's expression tensed slightly, though he quickly composed himself.

"Wanda," he called calmly, "invite our guest in. Please, make yourself at home, Ancient One."

He forced himself to remain composed, but inwardly his mind was racing.

Unlike S.H.I.E.L.D., HYDRA, or even the Hudson Group's corporate rivals, Carl didn't consider those earthly organizations a real threat anymore. He'd grown strong enough to handle them.

But cosmic entities and mystical orders were another matter entirely.

The Ancient One had lived for over five centuries. She didn't just cast spells—she could manipulate time, travel across dimensions, and negotiate with beings from realms far more dangerous than Earth.

She borrowed magic from entities like Dormammu and didn't even bother paying the price.

With all of Carl's power, he was still leagues away from her level. He couldn't win a fight with her—he probably couldn't even run.

She rarely left Kamar-Taj or the sanctums unless a crisis was brewing.

Even during the Chitauri invasion of New York, the Ancient One had only defended her sanctum and left the rest of the city to the Avengers.

So why visit now?

He took a slow breath, steadying himself.

Well, at least she rang the doorbell instead of opening a portal and dragging them off for trial.

That was... something.

He'd find out her intentions soon enough.