For public people, Tony and Kendis had tons of secrets. Both individually and as a couple, but never from each other. They had learned the hard way what kind of damage hiding things from each other could do.

The public saw Tony as an offensively adoring, eccentric billionaire genius playboy with more money than sense. They saw the superhero gleaming in red and gold titanium alloy.

What they didn’t know was how far Tony would go to protect his spouse.

The public saw Kendis as a radical-as-hell Black mechanic aristocrat.

What they didn’t see was the magic and the sheer amount of power curled up inside her, waiting to pounce like a panther in the dark. Nor did they see the sway she had over death itself.

Kendis and Tony kept their secrets to protect not only themselves but everyone they cared about. A superhero with family and friends was a liability.

“We got too much to lose to put everything out there,” Tony said with uncharacteristic seriousness. “You have enough targets on your back. We don’t need to add more.”

Kendis agreed, and that was why Concord House was not only unplottable and warded, but also under a Fidelius Charm. Kendis and Concordia, the spirit of the land itself, were the secret keepers. But that wasn’t the only thing that kept the Concord House safe. Tony had installed enough tech upgrades to make the house into a veritable fortress.

Their home was a true sanctuary, different from Hogwarts, a place that pretended at safety but was anything but. Different from Grimmauld Place and the memories that haunted every corner, and certainly different from the grim European elegance of the Blackmere estate.

This was a place Tony and Kendis had built together. This place was theirs in a way none of those other places had ever been before.

So, to the public, Kendis and Tony never mentioned the change of address. To everyone else, Kendis had packed her things and finally moved in full-time to Tony’s Malibu mansion.

In reality, Kendis and Tony had quietly moved to the Concord House. The lack of press attention around this new milestone in their relationship had been a blessing.

The biggest thing was that Kendis did something she never thought she would ever do.

One day, Kendis, Richie, Hortense, and Isiah were all sitting down to lunch, with Alke under her feet, ready to pounce on any fallen food like the little beggar she was. Kendis took the key out of her hand and slid it across the table, right next to the containers of leftovers she had cooked earlier.

“What is this?” Hortense asked, picking up the key in confusion.

“Well, I know that you and Isiah have been talking about getting a bigger place.”

“Yeah…” Isiah said, confused.

“Well, you three have already been read in for the Fidelius Charm.” Kendis shot Richie a look. It had only been a few weeks since Kendis found out that Richie was immortal and Richie found out that Kendis was a witch.

Kendis coughed and felt her cheeks flush. “Well, I don’t want my place to sit empty, and…”

“Dis, no!” Hortense gasped.

“You can’t be serious!” Isiah said.

“What the hell?” Richie added.

Kendis put her hand up. “Look, I don’t want to sell the place to a stranger, and you guys were talking about moving.”

“This is a lot, Dis,” Isiah pointed out.

“This isn’t like some kind of company town, is it?” Hortense asked.

Richie just stared at her with wide eyes, and Kendis shook her head.

“No. You will buy it fair and square. Also, that portion of the compound will be in your name.”

Hortense stood up and started to pace, which she somehow managed to make look graceful. She threw up her hands. “It was one thing when you sent us to that private island, but now a house? A bloody house, Dis? Are you effing mental?”

Kendis pinched the bridge of her nose. “Yes, a house, because you are my dear friends, and Los Angeles real estate prices are mad. But also, I love you, and I want you to be happy. I know that you two wanted a bigger place because you wanted to start a family.”

“How—” Hortense froze.

Kendis shrugged. “Neither of you are as subtle as you think you are.”

Hortense’s mouth dropped open, and she stared at Kendis, speechless.

Isiah caught Hortense’s arm on her next rotation of pacing and squeezed gently. Hortense shot him a look, but then sighed.

“We have been talking about getting married,” Hortense said quietly. “Having babies, not because it’s required of me as a Cooper, but because we have so much love to give and we wanted to give it to a child.”

Kendis felt her eyes sting with tears. “You would be wonderful parents.”

Hortense took out a tissue and dabbed her eyes. “Oh, hush.”

“We didn’t tell you because you had so much going on and—”

Kendis walked over to Hortense and pulled her into a hug. “Joy is not a zero-sum game, and I will never be too busy to celebrate the two of you.”

Hortense’s and Isiah’s eyes met as they had a brief, silent conversation with each other.

“Can we think about it?” Isiah asked. “It’s just…”

Kendis softened. “Of course.”

It took a few days before Hortense finally agreed, and Kendis had to argue Isiah and Hortense down about the price. Kendis wanted to let them buy it for a dollar and be done with it. Hortense argued that the price should be higher, and after a week of passive-aggressiveness only known to British people, Hortense and Kendis came to an agreement.

It was bittersweet. Not because Kendis wasn’t happy to sell her place. No, that house had so many memories. It was where she had really gotten started on her path, the place where she had raised Alke and built her small family of lost souls.

Kendis picked up the last box, took in the empty place, and sighed.

Tony came up beside her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “Any regrets?”

Kendis looked at him with a small smile. “None.”

Kendis and Tony lived away from the public eye in a house that was more fortress than mansion, and every time Kendis gave out a slip with the address on it to a new person who needed refuge and sanctuary, every time they added another lost person to the family people had started calling the Assembly, because the joke was too good not to use and it always flustered Steve, Kendis realized something.

Even though her life with Tony had been built on secrets and convenient truths, the cost had always been worth it.

Because some secrets were cages.

But sometimes, secrets were also doors to something better.