The Magus In Marvel

The aroma of freshly prepared pancakes permeated the air as Rin eagerly carved into her stack, the syrup glistening beneath the warm morning light filtering through the expansive windows of Tony Stark's Malibu mansion. Despite her composed and battle-hardened demeanor, watching her relish a simple breakfast illuminated a truth that Tony had unconsciously overlooked—she was, fundamentally, still a child.

Not that he would dare voice such an observation aloud. The sheer force of her denial would likely trigger a spontaneous system shutdown in J.A.R.V.I.S.

Instead, he nursed his coffee, covertly studying the way her petite feet swung beneath the chair, an unconscious habit betraying her true age. The sharp, tactical glint that usually adorned her eyes was momentarily dulled by the pure satisfaction of indulging in warm, syrupy goodness. Her battlefield presence, unwavering confidence, and calculated decision-making had misled them all. Even among the Avengers, the natural inclination had been to view her as an anomaly rather than a child. Only Pepper had instinctively treated Rin for what she truly was, perhaps drawing from her extensive experience managing Tony himself.

(Though she remained unaware, her mentality had not been entirely unaffected by the regression of her physical form.)

Tony had intended to broach a serious subject this morning—Arnim Zola, the enigmatic Nazi scientist-turned-digital consciousness. However, as he watched Rin savor another bite of her pancakes, he made an executive decision to delay the discussion. There would be time to address the ghosts of the past, but for now, allowing her a moment of undisturbed normalcy felt more important.

"Tony, your house is defective," Rin announced flatly, standing before the sleek, wall-mounted smart panel with an expression of supreme displeasure.

Tony looked up from his coffee, one brow arching. "Kid, that's a cutting-edge Stark-designed AI system. It's not defective—you just have zero tech literacy."

Rin crossed her arms, glaring at the blinking screen. "I pressed the thing. It beeped. Then it beeped again. And now it won't stop blinking."

Tony exhaled and set down his coffee. "What exactly did you press?"

A pause. A faint hint of guilt crossed Rin's face before she muttered, "All of them."

A sharp electronic chime cut through the room. "Warning: Emergency lockdown sequence initiated. Engaging countermeasures."

Rin took a deliberate step back. "...That sounds suboptimal."

Tony sighed, already moving toward the panel. "J.A.R.V.I.S., override whatever disaster this tiny mage just set in motion."

"Certainly, sir. Would you like me to enable child lock features?" J.A.R.V.I.S. inquired with a distinct note of amusement.

Rin stiffened. "I AM NOT A CHILD!"

"Uh-huh," Tony murmured as he rapidly typed in override commands. "For someone who can hurl magic projectiles, you navigate technology like a Victorian noble encountering a light switch for the first time."

Rin huffed, arms still folded. "I wasn't trained to use machines. I was trained to be a magus. Technology is—"

"—a pointless distraction, yeah, yeah. Meanwhile, you can't even open the fridge without triggering DEFCON 1."

Rin scowled but refrained from further retorts.

"Speaking of which," Tony continued, grinning, "since you're on such a winning streak with buttons, why don't you order yourself a smoothie? Voice command's right there."

Rin hesitated before clearing her throat. "Uh… Smoothie."

"Please specify flavor," J.A.R.V.I.S. prompted.

She frowned. "Uh… strawberry?"

"Processing… Error. Command unclear. Please repeat."

Rin turned to Tony, her expression one of quiet betrayal. "It's mocking me."

Tony laughed. "No, that's just voice recognition struggling to parse your mage-infused stubbornness. Try again—say, 'J.A.R.V.I.S., make me a strawberry smoothie.'"

After a moment of reluctance, Rin did as instructed. The kitchen hummed to life, a robotic arm assembling and blending the requested drink with seamless efficiency. Within moments, a freshly prepared smoothie was placed before her.

She blinked at it. Then at Tony. Then back at the smoothie.

Finally, she picked it up and took a sip. "Fine. Maybe your weird technology isn't entirely useless."

Tony smirked. "And that, kid, is what we call progress."

Rin took another sip, her gaze flickering toward the smart panel as if assessing a newly discovered enemy. Then her eyes landed on the coffee machine, its blinking display casting an ominous glow from across the kitchen.

"Wait… Do I have to talk to that thing too?"

"Yep. Unless you want to manually brew it, which, considering your track record, would probably end with the fire department at my doorstep."

She narrowed her eyes at the machine before reluctantly addressing it. "Uh… coffee?"

"Please specify strength and blend," the machine responded.

Rin let out a slow, measured exhale. "This is absurd. Just… make coffee."

"Error. Command unclear. Please repeat."

Tony grinned as he watched her mounting frustration. "C'mon, just say it properly."

Through gritted teeth, she finally muttered, "J.A.R.V.I.S., make me a black coffee."

The machine hummed, steam rising as a fresh cup was swiftly prepared. Rin stared at it with a level of disdain usually reserved for existential threats.

Tony, smirking, patted her head. "See? Not so hard."

She swatted his hand away before muttering under her breath. Then, as if suddenly struck by a horrifying revelation, she whispered, "I think… I think technology might be my greatest enemy."

Tony burst into laughter. "Congratulations, kid. You've just had your first existential crisis over smart home appliances. Welcome to the modern world."

Rin scowled, taking a long sip of her coffee. 'I don't know… Between Thanos and technology, I'm starting to think the latter might be the greater evil.'

(A/N: A small slice-of-life chapter amidst the constant hyperactivity of the Marvel universe, giving the characters a chance to breathe and enjoy some lighthearted moments. Even heroes need a break sometimes! Getting back to business in the next chapter.)