California State has no clear seasonal changes, and all the year round it feels like the most beautiful summer in people's memories, with fierce sunlight and cool evening breezes.
The helicopter's rotor blades sliced through the heat wave and swayed the nearby palm trees violently, left and right. Before the helicopter had even landed, a shiny figure of gold and red zipped out with a whoosh and, after drawing a beautiful arc in the air, landed with a loud thud.
With a click, the faceplate opened, and Stark picked up Helen, who ran into his arms, and rubbed his rough, bearded chin vigorously against her little face, making Helen scream loudly.
Pepper, stepping down from the helicopter, pushed Stark slightly in dissatisfaction, tossed her head back, and signaled him to push the baby carriage while she herself reached out to hold Helen, but Helen had grown quite a bit and she couldn't hold her anymore.
Helen leaned into the baby carriage to look at Little Morgan, who had also grown a lot. Shiller and Eddie also leaned over.
"Babies really change every day," Shiller exclaimed, remembering how wrinkled Little Morgan had been when he was just born, looking just like a red rat. In no time at all, he had grown plump and fair.
Stark stowed the Mecha away. He wore a floral shirt with shorts and flip-flops, and adorned his beloved sunglasses, shooing everyone away as he pushed the baby carriage forward, remarking, "Babies' skin is very delicate and shouldn't be exposed to such strong ultraviolet rays for long. Why haven't Matt and the others come down yet?"
"He sure does act like a father now," Eddie teased.
At that moment, Matt and his wife Erica finally descended from the helicopter. Little Jack, who Erica was holding, wobbled as he walked, but everyone was surprised. Helen ran over from beside Pepper, astonished, and exclaimed, "He can walk already!"
Erica smiled and replied, "Yes, Little Jack is almost a year old now, and indeed he started earlier than other kids. The doctor said his neck bones are better developed than other kids his age, so walking isn't a problem now."
Erica guided him over. Shiller lifted Little Jack, observing his vigorously kicking legs, and said, "He's developed really well, his legs are so strong."
"In fact, a bit too strong," Matt sighed, massaging his back before adding, "When I was changing his diaper, he kicked me and it hurt for a week."
Everyone laughed, and Eddie curiously asked, "Is Jack his real name?"
"Oh no, his real name is Thomas," Matt explained, "We call him Jack because that was his grandfather's name."
They continued chatting as they walked toward the house, which wasn't far from Stone House and soon arrived.
It was Stark and Matt's first visit here, so they kept looking around. Stark spread his arms and plopped onto the sofa, crossing his legs, and commented, "The decor is not bad, just a bit small."
He was on the right side of the living room, which was a sunken area. On the far right, there was a huge floor-to-ceiling window offering a view of the cliff and the beach, and a bar to the left of the window where one could sit and watch the sunset over the beach.
"This window was specially made for you," Shiller said as he started mixing drinks fetched from the fridge. "Once the kids are a bit older, they'll play in the swimming pool by the beach or cliff, and we can sit here, watching over them to prevent them from doing anything hazardous."
"What could be more hazardous than that slide you built?!" Eddie exclaimed but still moved behind the bar to start taking ice from the ice maker.
It was still early, and they weren't planning on drinking alcohol, so Shiller opened several fresh coconuts. Gray mist mixed the coconut water and oil to create a creamy white beverage. Shiller even added a few drops of lemon juice to cut the richness, refilled the drink back into the coconut shells, inserted straws, added two flowers on top, and Helen handed a coconut to each of the ladies.
Stark, sitting on the sofa, watched with eager eyes as Helen made several trips without bringing him one; even the mice got a coconut. He then started giving Shiller murderous looks.
It wasn't until Shiller personally handed the last coconut to him that Stark grunted, picked up the coconut, bit the straw into his mouth, and then, as if remembering something, said, "Eddie, were the new photography equipment you ordered still on the East Coast?"
Eddie paused, then responded, "Shoot, I forgot. That batch of equipment is still in the warehouse. Are you starting to shoot today?"
"No need to shoot the whole documentary this time—just the wedding eve and the day of the ceremony should suffice," Stark scratched his head. "I just want to shoot some videos and photos of Helen—might even use them at her wedding someday."
Shiller knew that Stark probably felt he had been neglecting Helen a bit lately and had found this excuse on purpose, but Helen wasn't a clingy little girl; she was having too much fun in Battleworld.
But Shiller didn't plan to burst Stark's bubble—his emotionally rich and sensitive nature was a treasure to the world and also his own antidote. Besides, giving him something to do would keep him from constantly giving lectures about every detail of his house's interior decoration.
Eddie thought for a moment and said, "I meant to bring it with me, but I forgot while packing. Should I catch the next flight back to get it?"
"Let's not do that," Stark shook his head. "You brought a regular camera, right? Just taking some candid photos doesn't require anything too fancy."
"Of course I brought it," Eddie responded, retrieving his equipment bag from his room. He pulled out a video camera, a regular camera, and even a digital camera. Stark tried operating the video camera and then, like a curious baby, started filming everything around him.
"Why don't you use your phone?" Shiller asked.
"Phone cameras are an affront to the art of photography," Stark declared. "Even if it's the celebrated iPhone, known for taking good photos, it's still like dog poop compared to real professional gear."
Pepper, who was using an iPhone to take photos of Helen, grimaced.
"I definitely wasn't talking about you, Pepper! You surely have the magic to turn poop into something miraculous."
"Yes, like marrying you!"
Eddie walked over to pick up Little Jack, amusing himself with the toddler, who is most adorable at this stage. They wobble as they walk, babble as they talk, aren't very mobile, find it hard to express themselves, yet react to adults' antics, making them quite fun to tease.
Eddie covered his face with his hands, then opened them again before covering once more and opening up, making Little Jack burst into giggles.
As he covered his face and opened his hands again, Venom suddenly emerged, enveloping his face, baring its large teeth with a grin. Little Jack cried out in fright.
Eddie roared at the air, "Venom! What are you doing!!"
Venom's voice was equally puzzled, "Why doesn't he cry when you play with him?"
Eddie opened his mouth, not sure what to say. He couldn't exactly tell Venom it was too ugly and scared the child, could he? Venom would surely fight him over that.
Rushing over, Eddie picked up Little Jack to console him. It seemed as if the child was only scared by the sudden scary face, but once he realized it was Eddie, he started babbling again.
Eddie, completely unable to understand him, decided to look for Matt. Matt tried to console him for quite a while but couldn't figure out what he wanted. When Erica got her hands on him, Little Jack waved his hands frantically.
"... Teeth? What about the teeth?" Erica, holding Little Jack, looked baffled at the two men.
"Ha-ha, he must like my teeth!" Venom popped out again, covering half of Eddie's face. Little Jack looked surprised and then started clapping his hands while laughing.
Dick said somewhat helplessly to Matt, "You really should do something about your son's taste."
Stark was in the living room on a call, apparently with Steve. After hanging up, he exclaimed, "As expected, Los Angeles is jammed up again."
Shiller said in surprise, "Didn't they take the shuttle?"
"It's the shuttles that are jammed." Stark shook his head as if in disbelief, "When there are cars, there's traffic; when there are shuttles, there's shuttle traffic. Is Los Angeles cursed or something?"
"You should send a Mecha to fetch them."
"That's exactly the problem. Carter is in the early months of pregnancy; she can't endure any bumps. Otherwise, they would have already arrived by helicopter. My Mecha might be safe, but it's hard to ensure a smooth ride."
Shiller paused, then asked, "When is Steven due? Maybe he can open a Teleportation Portal?"
"He didn't tell you? He can't make it; the Elder Council Hospital is short-staffed. Except for showing up on the wedding day, don't expect him."
"I'll go." A voice arose by the door, and Shiller looked up to see Loki.
She was wearing a colorful Bohemian dress, a huge hat adorned with a string of flowers, and sunglasses that covered most of her face, matching Stark's style perfectly.
"How did you get here? Did you finish with the issues in Battleworld?"
"Not yet, but since Bruce went, I finally got a moment to relax." Loki sighed deeply, stretched lazily, and said, "I've been so exhausted lately. I need a proper break."
She grabbed at the void, and her Magic Wand appeared in her hand. With a gentle wave, a Teleportation Portal appeared, and she stepped through. Shortly after, Captain America Steve and Carter walked out of it.
As soon as Carter emerged, she began vomiting, causing Loki to exclaim in shock, "That's impossible. I used the smoothest type of Teleportation Portal. How could this happen..."
"It's not the portal; she's just experiencing early pregnancy symptoms." As Steve spoke, he helped Carter to the sink where she continued throwing up for a full three minutes as everyone gathered around.
"How could it be this severe?" Pepper said, "When I was three months pregnant, I felt somewhat unwell too, but I never vomited like this. Have you guys checked with the hospital?"
"Of course, we did. The doctor said it varies from person to person. Unfortunately, Carter is more sensitive." Steve kept patting Carter's back and said, "But I think it might be because of my genetic modification..."
"That has nothing to do with it." Carter retorted between vomits. "Didn't we get it checked at S.H.I.E.L.D? The embryo's developing normally."
"You don't expect him to learn how to wield a Shield in the womb, do you?" Stark approached, frowning, and said, "Just because it looks normal on the surface doesn't mean everything's fine. Why not have a check-up in my lab?"
Steve gave Stark a helpless look, which Stark understood immediately—probably Carter didn't want to go, fearing if the baby's discomfort was due to superpowers, it would make Steve feel guilty.
"Lady, even if not for the baby, you should take care of yourself. If there is anything abnormal with the child, the entire care plan for the pregnancy has to be revised, and regular monitoring ensured to keep both of you safe..."
Stark gently pulled on Pepper's arm, who then stepped forward to persuade, "Continuing like this isn't the way; any reason isn't worth avoiding medical advice."
Steve pulled Stark aside and asked, "Are Wanda and the others coming too? Maybe she could help take a look."
Stark clearly trusted his equipment more, but seeing Carter's poor condition, forcing her to undergo a check-up wasn't an option. Jarvis also had life-scanning capabilities, which might be a suitable alternative.
"They arrive this afternoon," Shiller said from the side. "It turned colder in New York today, and Billy caught a cold. They were worried the child might not acclimate here, so they stayed with Professor X first. They'll bring them over when Professor X comes for the wedding."
Stark calculated the time internally and remarked, "Wanda's brothers should be walking by now, right?"
"More than that, they already know how to fly."