Northern New York State, the Avengers' new compound.
Hermione stood on the vast lawn, the wind howling around her.
She glanced down at the time display on the compound wall, her brows knitting tightly.
"Goddamn time magic," Hermione cursed under her breath.
Dumbledore was missing. Until she found him, Hermione had no intention of showing herself, so Hogwarts would have to suffer for now, with Snape taking the blame.
Compared with the relatively peaceful Wizarding World, she was desperate to return to Marvel first and see how things stood.
As expected, just like at Hogwarts, more than a year had passed in the Marvel world.
She looked up at the buildings ahead. This was the new Avengers Compound Tony had built before she last left, replacing Stark Tower.
It should have been bustling, but now it was far too quiet.
Only a few former Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. recruited by Stark Industries were patrolling nearby.
She had been back for almost half an hour, and no one had contacted her yet.
That was a first.
Hermione sensed something was wrong.
With Tony's flashy personality, even if he didn't throw a welcome party, he should at least have piped up on the comms.
Either they were all out on a mission, or something had gone horribly wrong.
She closed her eyes, and her powerful mental energy spread like a tide, enveloping the entire compound in a second.
Sure enough, not a single Avenger was there.
The compound's security systems were running normally. Nothing was wrong with them.
But... what the hell was that?
Hermione opened her eyes and looked toward the compound's warehouse. A humanoid figure no bigger than an ant was climbing along a pipe.
A red-and-white suit, riding an ant.
Hey, wasn't that Ant-Man?
*Had she happened to catch him