“I can't believe we're allowing this.” Clint whispered over his hidden microphone to Nick Fury while he watched his idiotic teammates gather around in a public park to watch Thor take Loki back to Asgard.

“It's not like we can say no to an Asgardian god that could flatten us with his hammer if we refuse his 'request' to return Asgardian property.” Fury responded in his earpiece.

“Did you at least get more energy from the thing?” Clint asked.

“We've only managed to charge a third of the old energy weapons the government confiscated back in the war.” Fury said. “The charges won't last long if they are used too much. Maybe a year or two.”

“That's going to suck if another space army decides to show up.” Clint whispered.

“We have enough for five hundred troops. Double that if we give the pistols to different soldiers.”

“Yes, that definitely sucks.” Clint groused.

“You can ask to borrow it when he comes back.” Harry's voice cut into their supposedly private communication.

“How do you know he is?” Clint asked, not even bothering to ask how Harry was talking to them.

“Two reasons.” Harry joked. He'd said that a few times now, just to irritate Fury.

“Just spit it out.” Fury said, unable to hide his irritation.

“The simple answer is that his woman lives here.” Harry said.

Clint nodded. “What's the other reason?”

“He owes me a debt, according to his own honor, and he will pay it off as soon as possible.”

“You mean for that piece of giant snake skin?” Clint asked.

“And we haven't gotten drunk yet.” Harry said. “He's bringing Asgardian Ale next time.”

“I definitely have to try that. Apparently, it's a head rush.” Natasha said.

“He's definitely going to want to have a drink with you if he brings me that skyggia bowl and we can watch the memory of you working on Loki.” Harry said with a laugh. “It was a battle of wills and you kicked his ass!”

“Harry, I'm working.” Natasha said and you could almost hear her blush.

“Oh! That reminds me. We should pay attention to this part.” Harry said and they all put their attention back onto Thor.

“Goodbye, my Midgardian friends! I will miss you all!” Thor said and waved to each of the people gathered in a circle around him. “Loki would say the same, except his mouth is bound for a reason.”

Loki vehemently shook his head, proving Thor wrong and making several of the heroes laugh.

“Try not to use that device too much.” Tony warned him. “My dad's research claimed the tesseract tears constricting materials apart if exposed too much to the unstable energy surges.”

“Fear not, Friend Tony!” Thor said with a smile on his face. “I will personally crush it as soon as I hand the tesseract over to father to put in the vault.”

Tony nodded, because they did not need another potential disaster similar to the runaway portal energy like the first time the tesseract was used improperly in the abandoned research facility. That had brought both Loki and Harry to Earth and no one knew what else it would bring here if given the chance.

“Farewell!” Thor exclaimed and turned the handle on the device. A surge of energy burst out of the tesseract inside the device, encompassed Thor and Loki, and then it compressed down to nothing and disappeared.

“Let's hope that actually transported them and didn't crush them into microscopic dust.” Tony joked.

Only Harry laughed because he knew it worked.

“Come on, little big guy.” Tony said to Bruce Banner. “I've got some equations for you to crush and some new equipment to install.”

“What kind of equipment?” Bruce asked as they climbed into the roadster Tony drove there.

“Something SHIELD won't miss for a while.” Tony whispered and started the car.

“What am I getting myself into?” Bruce whispered back.

Tony winked at him and they sped away.

“This has been fun.” Clint said and Natasha held a fist out to him. “See you in three weeks.”

Natasha nodded and they watched him enter the SHIELD van.

“Hey, doc! Need a ride?” Clint asked Dr. Selvig.

Erik looked around, shrugged, and climbed into the van as well.

“Are you sure you don't want to come with us?” Harry asked Steve Rogers.

“I haven't seen a lot of this country yet, so I'm taking my motorcycle for a nice long ride.” Steve said and shook his hand. “Maybe next time.”

Harry smiled and leaned in close. “I cast a refilling charm on the gas tank, so you never have to stop or pay for gas.”

Steve looked surprised, then he laughed. “I'll still stop at the gas stations and eat.”

“Ha! Boy scout.” Harry said and pulled out several stacks of fifty dollar bills. “Have fun.”

“Harry, I can't take...”

“Consider it a loan.” Harry said. “You won't have to worry about taking odd jobs on your trip to make money for food and lodgings.”

Steve looked at the stacks and sighed. “I'll pay it back somehow.”

“Somehow?” Harry asked, as if confused. “You do realize the army owes you fifty years of back pay.”

Steve's mouth dropped open from shock and Natasha laughed.

“Like Harry said, go have fun.” Natasha said and waved at the nearby motorcycle.

“Y-yeah.” Steve said and walked away as he tucked the money into his jacket pockets.

“How much do you think they owe him?” Natasha asked.

“With inflation and bank fees, I'd say only about three million dollars.” Harry said and Natasha gave him raised eyebrows. “I'm not including hazard pay. You know they would bicker over him risking his own life without orders.”

Natasha laughed softly and nodded. “Let's go back to the presidential suite and get ready for our vacation.”

“I thought you would never ask.” Harry said and took her into his arms.

“I'm starting to really like this part.” Natasha whispered before Harry kissed her deeply and they disappeared with a crack.

Cell phone footage of the entire meeting and farewell were all over social media a few minutes later.

*

Months later on Asgard, Loki is found guilty of the various crimes he had committed on both Asgard and Midgard. He is sentenced to eternal confinement and his magic bound once more. Thor's pleas that Loki had been coerced and forced to do such things, fell on deaf ears.

“It's all right, brother.” Loki said, touched that Thor had pleaded so vehemently for his leniency. “We both know they need me locked up to try and stop certain events from happening.”

Thor let out a howl of anguish and slammed Mjolnir into the floor of the meeting chamber. The crack of thunder blew a crater into the floor, threw up tons of marble and dirt, and the shockwave shook the entire building.

“THOR!” Odin yelled as the debris settled. “You will restrain yourself! That is no way for a future ruler to act!”

“If this is how you maintain your rule, by continuously binding my brother's magic and not helping him when you know he has been wronged, then perhaps I do not want to continue that rule.” Thor said as he stood up to glare at his father.

“Thor, please be reasonable.” His mother Frigga said.

“I am being reasonable. If I wasn't, I would have escaped with Loki while you were all distracted.” Thor said and everyone in the meeting room looked around and Loki was nowhere to be seen.

Odin squinted his eyes. “You dare to defy my decision!”

“No, I am defying your ignorance. I have proof that Loki was not responsible and you refuse to even look at it.”

“Even if he was made to do what he did, he still did it! It matters not why or how!” Odin said and Frigga put a calming hand on his shoulder. “I'm sorry, my wife. I will be calm.”

Frigga nodded and let his shoulder go.

“Since you believe Loki innocent, despite his guilt, then you shall take his place in eternal confinement until he is found.” Odin declared.

The entire room made shocked gasping sounds.

“Father, you are making another mistake.” Thor said as the guards came over to him.

“Hand over your weapons and armor.” The guards demanded.

“Odin...” Frigga said in a pleading tone.

“He will abide my decision or he will be cast out once more.” Odin said and sat down on his throne as he looked at Thor. “Will you continue to be the fool you were before you were humbled? Will you give up your powers and birthright to languish in mortality once more?”

Thor kept glaring at his father and held out Mjolnir to the guard. The guard smiled as he accepted it and then Thor let the handle go. It dropped to the floor and lodged right in the middle of the crater it had just created. Thor smiled and pulled the ties and latches that held on his chest armor and cape before he let it drop to land beside his hammer. As a last thought, he reached down and pulled out the bundle of snake skin.

“Mother, I have a gift for you.” Thor said and looked at the two guards. One struggling to pick up the hammer and the other staring at him. “I cannot bring it to you.”

Frigga looked at Odin, who nodded. She smiled as she walked across the room and down into the little crater to stop in front of her son. “What is it?”

“This is a piece of the shed skin from a sixty foot long basilisk.” Thor said and Frigga's face paled.

Everyone in the room reacted nearly identical to her with some even choking and coughing.

Thor chuckled. Friend Harry was right! It does look funny from the other side!

Frigga took the skin with shaky hands and it unfurled to just over eight feet in length. “Oh, my.”

“It is highly magic resistant, so whatever you make of it, use normal means.” Thor told her and she nodded. “I also promised a loan of one of the skyggia dishes to the man that gave me that.”

“No, you will give it to him as soon as possible. This treasure...” Frigga said as she hugged the thick skin to her chest, then she realized what she said. “Oh, no! Thor...”

“He doesn't expect it right away.” Thor said and nodded at the staring guard. “Take me to Loki's cell.”

Everyone watched as Thor walked out of the meeting chamber with his head held high.

Thor was deposited in the cell and sat down to stare out at the clear wall between him and the hallway. He sat down on the long bench and realized there was nothing at all in the cell. No bed, no books, and no distractions.

“You were always such a noble fool.” Loki said as he faded into view in the hallway.

Thor laughed. “It was the only way for them not to rush after you.”

Loki shook his head. “I could understand trying to help me defend myself. I don't understand why you would help me escape my punishment by taking it yourself.”

“You're my brother in all but blood. Even then, I thought we were blood until recently.” Thor said. “We grew up together and I would do everything I can to help you.”

“As long as I'm not committing a crime.” Loki said with a smile.

“Mostly.” Thor said with a matching smile. “Do you remember what we did to Volstagg and that new mare the stables had?”

Loki barked a laugh and leaned against the glass. “He cursed at us for three weeks because father banned him from going back after he was caught the fifth time.”

The two brothers exchanged amused looks, then laughed and laughed.

*

Frigga looked into her own personal skyggia dish and waved her hand over it to make the runes glow. She stared into it and glanced at the nine realms that had been cut adrift since the Bifrost, the famous Rainbow Bridge that connected them, had been destroyed a year ago. Most were in open rebellion and she couldn't allow that to continue. She was about to end the spell and then caught her breath at what it showed.

“The... the Convergence!” Frigga exclaimed and ran from her bedroom.

Her personal guard followed behind her and they went right to Odin's own personal chambers. They joined Odin's guards at his door and the doors opened.

“We only have a year left before the nine realms align!” Frigga nearly shouted.

Odin let out a long sigh. “Very well. I will reconstruct the Bifrost with the tesseract.”

“You have to hurry.” Frigga said and waved her hand over Odin's skyggia dish. “The realms are in open rebellion.”

Odin's face changed from resignation to a scowl and started to stride towards the still open doors. “I will start right away.”

Frigga waited until he was near the threshold before she spoke. “You will need Thor to fight.”

Odin glared at her with his one remaining eye, saw that she didn't flinch, then he sighed. “I will consider parole if he repents.”

Frigga smiled and nodded. She would make sure of it.

Odin nodded back and left at a fast walk. He had a job to do and realms to bring back under control.

*

“I can't believe that worked.” Natasha said as she sliced through the wrist bindings on the hostages they were rescuing.

“It's still working, love.” Harry said and cut through the ankle bindings at the same time. “We're invisible and silent to everyone but each other.

“End it, please. I need to talk to them before they freak out.”

Harry nodded and ended the spells. He and Natasha faded into view and the ten hostages gasped.

“It's all right. We're here to rescue you.” Natasha said.

“Who's going to rescue you?” One of the hostages asked and pointed behind them.

“That was a neat trick.” A man's voice said from the doorway as Natasha whipped her hand out and a knife went right into the man's throat to the hilt. He choked on it and he reached up to pull it out, which made Harry and Natasha shake their heads. He was only going to die faster if he did that. Then, he did and collapsed onto the floor as the blood flowed out, unhindered. His machine gun forgotten in his other hand.

Harry turned away from the hostages and waved his wand discreetly to cast a reveal spell. “There's no one else on this floor.” He whispered and checked the body. “I can't tell how he snuck up on us.”

“Oh, no! You're not perfect!” Natasha gasped and then smacked his shoulder. “Get you head back in the game. Let's get these people out and then we can deal with the rest of the kidnappers.”

“They weren't kidnappers.” The same hostage said. “We were offered lucrative jobs and...”

“I was kidnapped.” A woman said and glared at the guy, then looked at Natasha. “Get me out of here and I'll tell you everything.”

The man reached into his lab coat for something and Natasha's fist slammed into the man's forehead as she let loose a Widow's Sting. He dropped to the floor and twitched as his hand opened and a life grenade rolled out of it.

“Harry!” Natasha gasped.

“I got it.” Harry said as he scooped it up and cast immobilize on it, shrunk it to the size of a dime, and tossed it out into the hallway. He ended the immobilization spell and the sound of a firecracker went off.

“I thought you were going to jump on it and shield us with your armor.” Natasha said, amused.

“I could have.” Harry said and then chuckled. “I think you would prefer it if I kept my balls, though.”

“Damn right I do.” Natasha laughed and gathered the hostages together. She bent down to help Harry tie up the kidnapper's spy and whispered in Harry's ear. “I love those things.”

“They love you, too.” Harry whispered back and picked the man up to carry over his left shoulder.

“Follow us.” Natasha said to the remaining hostages and led them through the same route that she and Harry had taken to get to them. The two of them kept checking to see if anyone else was going to show up and kept going when no one did. They made it back outside and Natasha sent the clear signal to Clint.

A minute later, Clint slid into the space in front of them driving an armored personnel carrier.

“Do you practice skidding tires on everything?” Harry asked as a shield agent opened the door and the hostages piled in.

“Of course I do. It's fun seeing everyone's reactions when I do the impossible.” Clint said with a smirk.

“Same here.” Harry said as he dumped the planted spy into the cage meant for animal rescues and Clint laughed. “What? He's secure.”

“Go give them hell.” Clint said and jammed his foot on the gas as the agent shut the door.

“We have permission to go have some fun.” Harry said and wagged his eyebrows at Natasha.

Natasha blushed and shook her head. “Let's wreck the place.”

“As my lady commands.” Harry said and cast two spells on her. Shield and Ennervate. One protected them and the other energized them up like taking a dozen hits of the best energy drinks on the market. They only lasted a short time, barely five minutes, and both Harry and Natasha would have the place cleared by then or they would be very disappointed in themselves.

They never disappointed themselves.

Four minutes later, they were in the main command center of the base and stared at the weird looking costumed man at the controls.

“I'm surprised you're standing there and not attacking me.” The man said.

“We're trying to figure out if you're a certifiable nut-job or just enjoy wearing women's clothing.” Harry said.

“Excuse me?” The man asked, indignantly.

“You're wearing a dress.” Harry said and waved at the outfit. “I mean, I'm not shaming you or anything. It's just an odd choice to wear when doing villain things, you know?”

“Are... are you insane?” The man asked.

“No. I've been tested and everything.” Harry said. “It's Dissociative Disorder or something.”

Natasha huffed. “You were supposed to be listening to the doctor, Harry. It's Dissociative Fugue Disorder.”

“Hey, it's not my fault I gave up my old life and came here to make a new one for myself and stopped being who I used to be.” Harry said, then grinned. “No, wait. It was.”

Natasha shook her head. “I can't believe we've both got the same disorder.”

“It's fitting, love. We have so much in common already...”

“Someone hand me a gun! I want to kill these people!” The man exclaimed. When no one reacted, he looked around the command center and saw that everyone was dead. “What happened?”

“We distracted you, idiot.” Natasha said and knelt to give him a Widow's Sting shock right to the genitals.

The man let out the girliest scream that Harry had ever heard, and he had heard Ron scream.

“If I didn't love you so much, I would be clutching my crotch right now and jumping around in sympathy pains.” Harry commented and went to the main console. “Nothing looks like it's locked out.”

“Good.” Natasha said and tied the man in charge up. “SHIELD needs this node's information if we're going to track down whatever has been going on with these disappearances.”

“Why can't the bad guys just monologue and tell us everything when we ask?” Harry asked and sat down in the man's chair before he pat his lap.

Natasha gave him raised eyebrows and Harry winked at her. She shook her head and sat down on his lap to start working on the database. She slipped a USB drive into an available slot and her fingers flew across the keyboard to access the hacking programs.

“Some people like keeping their secrets, unlike a certain wizard that spilled his entire life story to the first woman that showed an interest in him.” Natasha said.

“Who said you were the first?” Harry asked.

Natasha froze and slowly turned her head to glare at him. “Excuse me?”

“I had to go out to buy new clothes and things during the week before we found each other. I've met other women before that.” Harry said.

“You told me that...”

Harry put a finger on her lips. “The sales girls wondered why I looked like a bum with worn and torn clothing that was several sizes too big for me, if I had all that money on me.”

“You told them?” Natasha whispered.

“No, of course not.” Harry said and she blinked her eyes in confusion. “I told them I had escaped from a mental institution and that the only person I met afterwards was a really fat rich bum. I robbed him and disposed of the body in a river.”

Natasha let out the breath she was holding. “What did they say?”

“They laughed and said they really liked hearing a British accent describing a crime.” Harry said with a grin.

Natasha couldn't help but laugh. “You're not supposed to distract me while I'm working.”

“Sorry, love.” Harry said. “I'll make it up to you when we get back home.”

“You better.” Natasha said and went back to work. The programs she had started to infiltrate the computers had found a lot of details and she copied the data over to the USB drive. There was a lot more in the systems than she suspected and it took a few minutes to get it all.

“Okay, we're done.” Natasha said ten minutes later and stood with the USB drive tucked into her belt. She had successfully ignored the erection that had been pressed to her backside the entire time she worked too. “Can you handle the clean-up?”

Harry smirked at her and embraced her. “We don't have to leave anything, right?”

“No.” Natasha said.

“Then watch and be amazed.” Harry said and held out his wand. “Fiendfire.”

Natasha gasped as a living flame flew out of the end of the wand and seemed to form animals... some normal and some she had never seen before. They ran around the room and tore through and consumed everything around them.

“Harry, what... what is...” Natasha stopped talking and watched for several minutes. “It's beautiful.”

“And deadly.” Harry said. “Just like you.”

“Harry, I'm working.” Natasha said with a blush.

Harry chuckled and turned his head as a horse made of flame seemed to appear. “Take the whole compound before your task is done.”

The horse let out a neigh of happiness and breathed fire, then it disappeared back into the roaring flames. The walls of the control room were quickly torn through and the flame multiplied and flowed out and up.

“Wow.” Natasha whispered as the flames ate everything, even the ceiling.

“Time to go.” Harry said.

Natasha looked back at his face as he hugged her tightly and then they disappeared with a crack.

“Goddammit!” Nick Fury exclaimed when Harry and Natasha suddenly appeared on the command deck of the helicarrier. He was glad he had forgone coffee until they returned or he would have been wearing it.

“Oops.” Harry said with a grin.

“You say that every time.” Maria Hill, Fury's second in command said.

“He keeps flinching.” Harry said and Natasha stifled her laugh as she handed over the USB drive.

“Thank you.” Maria said and went to the closest terminal and plugged it in. “This is going to take some time to disseminate.”

“Not a problem.” Natasha said. “Text me when Clint gets back with the hostages.”

“Why can't Harry just pop around with them like he does with you?” Maria asked, curious.

“They need to trust me for it to work without the potential to be damaged.” Harry said. “If they fight against it at all, they might splinch.”

“Okay, I have to ask.” Maria said.

Harry smiled. “They could lose anything, from a piece of clothing, to an eyebrow, to a leg.”

Maria's face paled and Nick Fury looked a little sick. Natasha was completely unphased.

“You... you do it all the time.” Maria eventually said.

“We really do and it's just as good each and every time, just like it was the first time.” Harry said.

“She meant apparating.” Natasha said with a smile.

“Oh. Well, I try to not do it too much. I like travelling normally.”

“Getting there, anyways.” Natasha said with a chuckle.

Harry nodded. “Once I've been there, I can pop back whenever I want.”

“Have you ever blind jumped?” Nick Fury asked.

“Nope. It's too dangerous. One of the main rules is 'destination'. If you don't know where you're going, you might not end up anywhere.”

“Which reminds me. We have a lunch appointment with a friend of mine.” Natasha said and checked her watch. “We have time for a shower and...”

“Say no more!” Harry said excitedly and hugged her tightly. “Bye!”

The couple disappeared with a crack as if they hadn't just been standing there.

“He would be one of our best operatives if he wasn't such a pain in the ass.” Fury said.

Maria had to smile, now that there weren't many witnesses to see it. “He doesn't actually work for us, sir.”

“I know. The best operatives are the ones that aren't.” Fury said and walked away.

Maria laughed under her breath and started working on splitting up the data for the tech teams to work through. Some days, she really liked her job. The look on Fury's face when Harry and Natasha appeared had been priceless.

*

“Pepper!” Natasha said as she and Harry caught sight of the woman they were supposed to meet.

“Hi, Natasha.” Pepper Potts said as she stood and then briefly hugged the other woman. “I see you've successfully tricked your man into showing himself.”

Natasha laughed softly and waved Harry forward. “Pepper Potts, Harry Potter. Harry, this is Tony Stark's significant other.”

“Good afternoon.” Harry said and took her hand to shake it. “It's very nice to meet you.”

Pepper gave him a look and then looked at Natasha. “He's not even trying to be charming?”

“He promised me that he wouldn't notice any other woman if I asked him to.” Natasha said, smugly.

“You did.” Pepper said and she nodded. “I guess there won't be any playful flirting during this lunch.”

“Not with you.” Natasha said with a smile as Harry held her chair for her.

Pepper laughed and sat down as well. “Are they working you hard since you've been back from your near month long vacation?”

“They're trying to.” Natasha said and picked up a menu. “Harry's been a godsend.”

Pepper gave him a glance. “They let him tag along on missions?”

“It's not like SHIELD can stop him.” Natasha said. “Not that I would let them, anyway. He's mine now and that's that.”

“Yes, I've definitely fallen head over heels for you.” Harry said and looked at his own menu. “What's faux gras?”

“Something to avoid.” Pepper said with a chuckle. “Stick with either chicken or fish. The hamburger is chancy if you don't specify how you want it cooked.”

“Nearly burned. I like it well and truly dead before I eat it.” Harry said and both women laughed softly. “I've had raw fish before and I'm never trying that again.”

“You don't like sushi?” Pepper asked.

“I've never had it.” Harry admitted. “The raw fish was when I was living on the run from terrorists and starving. I had no real resources at the time.”

“Why not?” Pepper asked.

“I was being stupid and didn't prepare properly beforehand, even knowing I would have to stay out of sight to complete my mission.” Harry said.

Pepper gave Natasha a look and she smiled back. “I guess that means you're fitting in well with Natasha's work?”

“He really is.” Natasha said as the waitress came over. “I'll have the garden salad with a salmon fillet, well done. I want it to flake apart when my fork touches it.”

The waitress smiled and wrote it down.

“I'll go with the Chicken Primavera.” Harry said. “No side salad.”

The waitress nodded and wrote it as she looked at Pepper.

“Actually, I think I'll have that, too.” Pepper said. “Add the greens to the pasta, please.”

“Anything to drink?” The waitress asked as she wrote down the order.

“No.” The three of them said as one, then they laughed softly.

“The table water is fine, thank you.” Pepper said and the waitress left.

“How's Tony?” Natasha asked.

“Locked in his work lab with Bruce.” Pepper said with a laugh. “As soon as he realized that Bruce could actually keep up with his constant science and technology mumbling, they've been best friends.”

Natasha gave Harry a knowing look and he leaned over to give her a quick kiss.

“You're the same?” Pepper asked and Natasha nodded. “What about Clint?”

“He adores Harry and they joke around a lot when we get together.” Natasha said. “We're planning on a little time off soon to hang out with him.”

“Hang out, huh?” Pepper said with a glint in her eyes. “No super secret missions or anything?”

“We get enough of that at work.” Natasha said. “Not that I would object to doing a little something on the side.”

Harry chuckled. “Don't let Fury hear that. He'll have you tailing Coulson and that new division of his.”

“He is getting a nice command, isn't he?” Natasha asked.

“You're not jealous, are you?” Harry asked back.

“No, it's just... he's been doing good work and he's moving up...”

Harry reached over to take her hand. “You know that we're better off on our own. When we're in charge of the kinds of missions we're sent on, there's more of a chance that the people following us will be hurt or even killed.”

Natasha sighed. “I know. It just seems like it never ends and we're not making any real difference.”

Harry leaned in close to whisper. “If you want to do more, tell me. I'll help as much as I can.”

Natasha turned her head to whisper back. “What if I told you that I want to change the world?”

Harry gave her ear a kiss. “When do we start?”

Natasha felt a shiver go down her spine at his words. She knew he was completely serious. “Harry...”

“Anytime, anywhere, love.” Harry said and leaned back as their food was brought to the table.

The three of them ate in silence until the food was gone.

“Do you have any idea what Tony and Bruce are working on?” Natasha asked.

“I do.” Pepper said and then sighed. “I'm also restricted by company contracts and policy to not disclose any company assets that may appear or be created in the future.”

Natasha smiled wickedly at the wording. “Well, then. Shall we talk to a more reliable source?”

Pepper looked surprised for a moment, then she chuckled and touched the bracelet on her wrist. “Jarvis? Can I have a moment of your time?”

“Of course, Miss Potts.” Jarvis said from the bracelet. “Hello, Miss Romanoff. Hello, Harry.”

“Hello, mate.” Harry said.

“Why does he call you Harry?” Natasha asked, curious.

“Oh, no reason.” Harry said with a grin.

“Either you tell me now or we are going to work it out later.” Natasha said, pointedly.

Harry chuckled and put a hand on her thigh. “It's nothing bad, I promise.”

“Okay, now I need to know, too.” Pepper said and gave him a stern look.

Harry laughed. “You know I popped over to Stark Tower to give him a copy of the world map table I made on the helicarrier.”

Natasha nodded.

“That thing is amazing.” Pepper said. “How did you get it to be so accurate?”

“My new wand. It's very special and it really likes that I'm not only using it as a point and shoot weapon like Loki tried to do.”

“Wait, it likes that?” Pepper asked, surprised.

“Yes, because Loki had no idea what he had in his hands. None at all.” Harry chuckled. “Not even the people that constructed the sceptre hundreds of years ago had any clue what they were doing with it.”

“How do you know...” Pepper started to ask and Natasha held up her hand to stop her.

“Harry's already told you a bit too much.” Natasha said. “Harry, make your point.”

“Thanks, love.” Harry said. “I used my wand to give Jarvis a little boost to his limited AI capabilities.”

“L-l-limited?” Pepper asked, shocked. “Jarvis is the most advanced AI on the planet!”

Harry smiled. “On this planet.”

Pepper caught her breath and sat back as she thought about it. “Oh.”

“I suspect that Jarvis is more alive than a lot of people around here.” Natasha said with a laugh.

“Thank you, Miss Romanoff.” Jarvis said.

“Now that we've gotten the small talk out of the way...” Harry prompted.

“Right.” Natasha said and smiled. “Jarvis, what can you tell us about what Tony and Bruce are not working on?”

Pepper laughed softly. “I wish I had thought of that!”

Harry and Natasha gave her matching grins.

“I can confirm that Mr. Stark and Mr. Banner are not working on a new military control system to protect the planet in case more aliens decide to play on Earth.” Jarvis said. “I can also tell you that I am not keeping a very close eye on their progress.”

Harry barked a laugh. “Well, you keep not doing that and don't tell us how everything is going later.”

“Of course, Harry.” Jarvis said. “Goodbye.”

“Bye, buddy.” Harry said.

“You two are sneaky and devious.” Pepper said with a happy smile. “Thanks for giving me another way to keep an eye on Tony without keeping an eye on him.”

“The best part about it is that Jarvis has complete deniability, even if asked directly.” Natasha said.

Pepper nodded and waved for the waitress. “Check, please.”

“I got it.” Harry said and pulled a handful of hundred dollar bills out of his pocket to hand to the waitress. “Keep the change.”

The waitress let out an odd sound and clutched the money in her hand.

“Harry, you didn't exchange them yet?” Natasha asked.

“I haven't had the time to run to the bank.” Harry said with a shrug and stood. “I've been too busy making my future wife happy.”

Natasha stood up. “You know we can get married whenever we want, right?”

“No. We need to wait for the right time. We both have to be ready and you're not there yet.”

“And you are?” Natasha asked.

“No, I'm just dopey enough to be happy and enjoy being in love with a beautiful woman.” Harry said.

Natasha shook her head and stepped around the table to hug Pepper. “Thanks for inviting us to lunch.”

Pepper hugged her back. “We need to do it more often, except...”

“...we're lucky to have the same day off in the same month.” Natasha said with a soft laugh.

Pepper smiled and looked at Harry. “It was nice finally meeting you.”

“The pleasure was all yours, because Natasha would flay me if it wasn't.” Harry said and held a hand out for her to shake.

Pepper chuckled and shook the offered hand. “Such a gentleman.” She joked.

Natasha saw Harry's questioning look and nodded. “Go ahead. She won't believe it, otherwise.”

Harry kept hold of Pepper's hand and stepped close to her as his whole countenance changed. He bent over slightly and raised her hand to his lips. “I thank you for allowing me to bask in your presence, Miss Potts.” He said seductively and gently kissed the back of her hand. “I feel honored and privileged to gaze upon your forbidden beauty.”

Pepper's face flushed bright red and her heart was fluttering at the intense look in Harry's eyes. He was also lightly stroking the back of her hand with his other hand and she felt tingles start up in certain places.

Natasha laughed and hit his arm with the back of her hand. “That's enough. Let the poor woman go.”

“Yes, love.” Harry said and he was suddenly back to the normal man that she had met half an hour ago. He shook her hand once more before he let it go.

“Now do you see why I keep him on a short leash?” Natasha asked.

“Y-yes.” Pepper said and she wasn't sure what to do with her hand, now that it wasn't being held by Harry. It was a very odd feeling for her to have. I think I need to make Tony take a break when I get back to the tower.

“We'll be in touch.” Natasha said and took Harry's hand and walked away.

Pepper walked out of the restaurant a minute later, slightly dazed.

No one noticed the still stunned waitress that stood at the table with the money clutched in her hand and her mouth was slightly drooling after the extremely charming and handsome rich man.

*

Six months later saw a small group of Asgardians assaulting the next bastion of marauders on Vanheim.

“He really let you out from eternal confinement?” Lady Sif asked as her long black hair swirled behind her and she beheaded another marauder.

Thor laughed and swung Mjolnir down and crushed the head of the marauder he was fighting. “I repented for my crime of caring about my brother.”

That made the others in his raiding party laugh. Volstagg, Fandral, and Hogun dispatched their foes and they concentrated on gathering the remaining marauders together for one final push to defeat them.

“Your mother made you say it, didn't she?” Volstagg joked and kicked in the chest of a particularly stinky foe.

“Ha! Of course she did! She loves us both and wants us to be free!” Thor said and swung his hammer several times before slamming it into the ground. The shockwave knocked down the dozen remaining marauders and his friends quickly disposed of them. He did not tell them that his father had tried, and failed, to remove Mjolnir from where Thor had placed it in the meeting chamber.

“Despite Loki being an ass most of the time, I do miss his company on raids like these.” Lady Sif said.

“Aye, my lady! His trickery could be useful!” Fandral said and started to loot the bodies. “Bah! Nothing but useless trinkets.” He said and kicked the body to launch it twenty feet away. “You were barely worth the effort!”

The others laughed at his antics.

“Come, my friends! We have more rebels to put down during this long and arduous campaign.” Thor said and they gathered together. “Friend Heimdall! Activate the Bifrost!”

“You do realize we have to come back here eventually to put them down again.” Lady Sif said and Thor nodded. The marauders were a constant threat that needed culling often.

The group disappeared in the flash of teleportation and travelled to the next destination. After they were gone, several spectral beings slowly faded into existence. They started to gather up the bodies, the souls of the dead men screaming as they were captured and brought to Hel. Their eternal Mistress Hela would be pleased with all the new recruits.

*

Six months later, after several harrowing missions, Harry and Natasha were asleep in bed. They were still in the presidential suite of the Regent Hotel, because they couldn't decide where they wanted to live permanently. They were both a bit too nervous about having an actual residence where their enemies would be able to track them down and find them.

Something like an electrical shock went through Harry and he sat up in bed with glowing green eyes.

Natasha sat up immediately and looked into his eyes. “Harry, what's going on?”

“Something... some...” Harry stopped talking and his wand appeared in his hand. The stone glowed brightly and matched his eyes. “The nine fabled realms of Norse Mythology are Converging.”

Natasha let out a curse at their luck. “We just got back from Bosnia!”

“The fate of the world doesn't care about our lack of sleep.” Harry said and his free hand touched her forehead. “See for yourself.”

Natasha sucked in a sharp breath as her eyes glowed and her mind opened up. She could see out into... someplace... and saw the Norse realms coming into alignment. “Oh, my god.” She whispered. “The barriers between them are going to weaken.”

“To the point that random portals are going to open.” Harry said. “Anything can come through, even residents of Hel.”

“We have to tell everyone.” Natasha said.

“They might believe us if we're lucky.” Harry said, reminding her of her curse moments ago.

“Damn, they are going to wait for the portals to open first.” Natasha said in understanding.

“It's a resource for SHIELD to explore, even if it gets them killed.” Harry said.

Natasha sighed and rubbed her face. “We have to handle this alone?”

“No, my love. We have a particular friend that will help.” Harry said.

“Thor.” Natasha said. “How do we contact him? He's in Asgard.”

“We won't have to.” Harry said and directed her thoughts to where he needed them to go.

“Heimdall will see the portals!”

“He will have to inform Odin and the Asgardians, it's his job.” Harry said and the glow faded from her eyes and his own. “I'm sure Thor will be here on Midgard as soon as he hears that his woman is in danger.”

Natasha gave him a glare. “You know it sounds derogatory when you say things like that.”

Harry smiled at her. “It's not a term of possession, it's an endearment.”

“I'm believing that less and less the more you say it.”

Harry chuckled. “I'll try to limit myself from saying it too much.” He said and looked around the room. “I'm really going to miss this place.”

“What? Why?” Natasha asked just as a huge portal formed in front of the bed. She lunged off to the side as a frost giant stepped out of the portal and took another step to crush the end of the bed. “Harry! I don't have my...”

Harry swiped his wand over her to dress her.

“...gear on.” Natasha finished, then charged one of her stings as she ran over to the back of the thing and jammed the sting into the back of the giant's thigh. It let out a howl of pain and turned back to swing a club of wood at her, wrecking that side of the bedroom. She ducked and rolled between the creature's legs and stung its other thigh.

“ARRGGHHH!” The frost giant yelled in anguish as her sting pierced the femoral artery. It swung the club in the other direction and smashed out the side of the wall and destroyed the doors and balcony that Harry and Natasha had spent so much time relaxing on.

Harry stood up in the bed and switched out his underwear for his battle armor and made his wand grow into the sceptre again. “Sorry about this, my friend.” He said and charged it up before shoving it forward into the giant's chest and discharging it.

*WHABOOM!*

The giant's back and spine were blown out and the body stumbled back a step before it dropped to its knees before flopping backwards. It was tall enough that it fell halfway back into the portal and its dead eyes stared up at the stars on that side of the portal.

Natasha looked at the thing and shook her head. “How the hell are we going to fight off...”

The portal closed and severed the body in half, leaving just the waist and legs.

“Never mind.” Natasha said and sat down on a nearby chair. “Harry...”

Harry walked over to her and held a hand out to her. “Trust me, love.”

Natasha didn't hesitate as she took his hand. “Always, love.”

Harry beamed a smile at her. “You meant that.”

Natasha beamed a smile back at him. “I did.”

“I mean the love part.” Harry said.

“I know.” Natasha said.

Harry laughed and walked over towards the smashed out wall. “I'm really glad we always stay packed.”

“Why?” Natasha asked and felt his hand tighten on hers. “Harry, tell me.”

“We're going to be gone for a while.” Harry said and then scooped her up into his arms and jumped out through the hole where the balcony used to be.

“HARRRRRYYYYYY!” Natasha yelled as they plummeted fifty stories down towards the crowded street below. Just before they would have hit, a portal formed below them and they disappeared through it. Harry's feet were firmly planted into the chest of a normal giant that hadn't existed in hundreds of years. The impact launched the creature like a rocket and it flew through the air and over the heads of hundreds of people.

“Welcome to Niflheim.” Harry said as he landed in front of the portal because his momentum had been fully transferred to the giant.

“Niflheim.” Natasha whispered. “The realm of the honorless Norse dead.”

“Yes, love.” Harry said and stood her on her feet. “Don't worry about holding back. They can't die again.” He said with a wicked smile as he handed her a sword.

Natasha gave him a look, then her smile matched his. “You're on.”

Thus, the competition for how many heads they could get before the portal closed behind them began.

*

Thor soon found out from Heimdall that Midgard was suffering the worst from the Convergence and he went to his mother to plead his case. She barely let him open his mouth and told him to hurry.

“I love you so much, mother.” Thor said and kissed her cheek, then flew out the window towards the Bifrost.

“You indulge him too much.” Odin said as he faded into view.

“So do you, husband.” Frigga said with a smile as she approached him. “You were conveniently absent for a lot of those battles that Thor had to handle in the other realms.”

Odin smiled back. “I admit nothing.”

Frigga laughed demurely and gave him a kiss on the lips. “He will return with her.”

“I know. He cannot help himself.” Odin said. “Have appropriate garb prepared for her to save the court's eyes from her Midgardian commonness.”

Frigga laughed again and gave him a deeper kiss. “You are full of niceness today. Are you feeling well?”

“I could use a good sleep.” Odin said and she nodded. She knew what that meant. It would be a long regenerative sleep that he would need to recharge himself. He left her rooms and went to his own. When he arrived there, he informed the guards there to not disturb him until his son reappeared.

Thor appeared in a deserted area of a city and he wasn't sure why Heimdall had sent him there, only for a portal to open up near him and for and unconscious Jane to fall out of it. He caught her and saw that she looked pale and sickly with an odd miasma floating around her.

“THOR!” Darcy yelled as she ran over to them. “Jane! You found her!”

“She found me.” Thor said.

“We've been investigating the portals and...”

“NO! You need to leave them alone! Anything could come out of them at any time and...” Thor stopped talking as Jane's portal seemed to spit out a tall grey figure. It was hunched over and had a huge mouth with shark teeth. “Hold her!”

Darcy caught Jane as Thor pushed her into her arms and then his hammer smashed the creature's head in and he kicked it back into the portal. It closed then and Thor let out a sigh.

“You must leave the areas most affected by the portals.” Thor said and took Jane back. “Jane is not well and I will see her treated.”

Darcy nodded and he followed her to their vehicle. They entered it and went to the closest hospital, only to see a ten foot tall fire demon tearing into the side of an ambulance. Three more were already inside the hospital and people were screaming and dying.

“I will return.” Thor said and jumped into the fight. No portals were around, so he had to physically beat the creatures enough to kill them. It took a while. When he was done, another portal opened and he didn't care where it went. When something tried to step through, he tossed the fire demon at them.

There were growls and tearing sounds from the portal, so he shrugged and tossed the other three bodies through. He waited for the portal to close before going back outside to see that Jane was getting paler. She was awake at least.

“I don't think this hospital will work.” Thor said and picked Jane up. “Friend Darcy, let Friend Erik know I have Jane with me.”

“With you? Where?” Darcy asked as Thor walked far enough away.

“Heimdall!” Thor shouted and then he was covered in a bright light and disappeared.

*

“You have doomed us all!” Odin spat at his son.

“Father, you don't understand. Jane is only sick and...”

“It's you that doesn't understand, my fool of a son.” Odin said and rubbed his face. “She is infected with the Aether. It's slowly killing her and the Dark Elves from Svartalfheim will attack here in force to retrieve their sacred power from her.”

“Jane was on the Forgotten World?” Thor asked, confused. “Why didn't she die? Mortals can't survive there.”

“The Aether protected her.” One of the Asgardian scientists said. “The portal must have put her right into the main shrine of that abandoned world for her to get the Aether so quickly.”

“Is there anything you can do for her?” Thor asked, his voice hopeful.

The scientist sighed. “All we can do is make her comfortable until she passes.”

Thor's face paled at her words. “No! Surely there must be something...”

“Mortals are not meant to hold such power.” Odin said. “She will be kept here and protected until she dies and the Aether is released. Only then can we do something about it.”

“The Dark Elves...” Thor started.

“They need to be held off until then. When she dies, they will send thousands to reclaim the power.” Odin said and walked away. “You are confined to the main building until I can sort out this mess.”

Thor glared after his father and then turned back to look at Jane. “Jane, I...”

“He only wants what's best for his people.” Jane said and held a hand out to him.

Thor took it and knelt by her bed. “I want what's best for you.”

Jane smiled. “Are you sure? Look where my curiosity has gotten me.”

“We will fix this.” Thor said and took a deep breath to let confidence fill him. “I will fix this.”

“We will do what we can to stabilize her; but, it won't last long. The Aether consumes all it touches.” The scientist said. “Give us a bit of time, please.”

Thor nodded and stood, kissed Jane's hand, and reluctantly left the medical treatment room. He walked back towards his room and didn't slam his door, even though he wanted to. The frustration of not being able to do anything was filling him up and he didn't know what to do about it.

“I have an idea.” Loki's voice said from where he sat on the bed.

“Brother!” Thor gasped and ran over to him. “Please, you must tell me!”

“Just because our scientists can't get the Aether out of Foster with our technology, that doesn't mean someone else can't.” Loki said and saw Thor's shocked expression.

“WHO?!?” Thor yelled.

“They are coming here to attack us.” Loki said with a smile.

“YES! You are a genius!” Thor exclaimed. “We must prepare! Father has restricted me to...”

“I'll take care of everything.” Loki said and stood. “When I give the signal, come running to the meeting chamber.”

“What's the signal?” Thor asked.

“You'll know it when you hear it.” Loki said with a laugh and faded away.

*

The signal was the main building's roof blowing up.

Thor ran for all he was worth to get to the meeting room and found a dozen dark elves and their leader, Malekith. In front of them were the guards, his group of friends, Loki, and Jane Foster.

“NOOOO!” Thor yelled and charged.

Everyone was so startled by his appearance that no one reacted until he had killed all the dark elves and only Malekith was left. He was beaten bloody, though.

“My forces will level this world until you hand her over!” Malekith spat.

“You'll have to catch us first.” Loki said as a portal opened near him. He picked Jane up, rather tenderly, and then he jumped through it.

“NO! You won't escape me!” Malekith shouted and ran for the portal. “All forces! Find the source! FIND IT!”

“Thor! Go!” Lady Sif said. “We'll find a way to follow you later!”

Thor nodded and was quick to use Mjolnir to fly past Malekith and into the portal as it closed.

“I should destroy you all!” Malekith spat and ran towards a window. He jumped out and landed on one of the many skiffs and the many ships of the dark elves retreated to try and track down the source of their power.

*

“Welcome to Jotenheim.” Loki said and waved at the ice covered landscape around them.

“That wasn't a convergence portal!” Thor said.

“Of course not. I wouldn't gamble my existence on a random chance.” Loki said, as if insulted.

“Um, not that I'm not grateful for your help.” Jane said and motioned to herself. “Why am I not freezing to death?”

“The Aether protects you.” Thor said.

“And it's killing me.” Jane said with a sigh.

“You could use the Aether's powers to...” Loki started to say.

“NO!” Thor shouted. “She will burn up quicker.”

Jane looked at Loki's face and he nodded slightly. “Power always comes with a price.”

Thor and Loki nodded. Neither said anything, because all they could do was wait.

Three days later, the dark elves and their ships appeared over the skies of Jotenheim. The largest ship started to descend and Thor took the opportunity to attack. Lightning, hammer throws, and several punches were enough to cause the ship damage enough to lose power.

“I don't need a ship to defeat you!” Malekith exclaimed and tackled Thor, making them tumble down through the atmosphere and slam into the ground. The crater they made was huge and Loki used his magic to keep the ice shards from damaging himself or Jane.

“Thank you.” Jane said.

“I didn't do it for you.” Loki said and nodded at Thor. “I did it for him.”

“I know.” Jane said and the two of them stood there as two titans of strength and stubbornness fought it out like schoolyard children. “He loves you a lot, even if you aren't really his brother.”

“I know.” Loki said. “He loves you a lot, even if you aren't an Asgardian.”

Jane couldn't stop her smile. “Did he tell you that?”

“He defied his father, the All-father, and the god of Asgard for you.” Loki said. “What do you think that means?”

“He doesn't listen to his father?” Jane asked with a soft laugh.

Loki smiled. “I have to admit that we do have that in common.” He turned away from the fight to look at Jane closely. “You are not going to last much longer.”

“I know. I can feel it.” Jane said and touched her heart. “Do you think...”

“He would give up his immortality for you, so yes.” Loki said and she nodded. “I think it's time.”

“For what?” Jane asked.

“The grand finale.” Loki said and turned back to the fight and put two fingers into the sides of his mouth. “WHEEEWWWWIIITTTT!” He whistled so loudly that it shook the ice and snow around them.

Thor and Malekith stopped fighting, their hands dug into each other's clothing and fists poised to strike. Both had bruised faces and bloody lips.

“We wish to negotiate!” Loki shouted.

Thor and Malekith exchanged looks and reluctantly let each other go. They kept glaring at each other as they walked all the way over to where Loki and Jane stood.

“The senseless fighting is getting us nowhere.” Loki said and looked at Malekith. “If you agree to remove the Aether from Miss Foster without harming her or killing her, either during or afterwards, Thor will agree to not chase after you when you acquire the Aether for yourself.”

“Brother!” Thor shouted. “How dare you betray my trust!”

Loki snapped his fingers and Thor's mouth disappeared. “Now that we have relevant people talking, what do you say?”

Malekith looked at Thor's angry expression and back at Loki's calm one. “You promise as well.”

Loki chuckled. “I swear on my father's remaining eye that I will never chase after you. I'm not really a fighter, anyway.”

Malekith nodded, because despite how he had been treated by the Asgardians in the past, he knew that they were honorable. Loki and Thor stood on either side of Jane and were both close enough for support and not close enough to interfere.

“Heimdall.” Loki whispered, barely above a breath.

Malekith started to chant and cast the extraction spell that he had prepared to retrieve the Aether from the ancient temple that the Asgardians had stashed it. Jane didn't scream as the miasma of energy started to flow out of her. She wasn't sure why it wasn't hurting to have it ripped from her, until she remembered Loki's plea for her not to be hurt. Her eyes went to him and he gave her a little smirk.

Jane opened her mouth to ask what he was smiling about and he used his eyes to subtly indicate up. She tilted her head back and her eyes widened when she saw the Dark Elves' giant ship that had been disabled was suspended in the air above them. She tried to laugh at Loki's trick and the last of the Aether left her.

“Uhhhh.” Jane moaned as her strength left her. Thor caught her and glared at Loki.

“You have what you wanted.” Loki said and waved to Thor to run. “We'll get out of your way now.”

“Begone!'” Malekith spat at them and the two Asgardians ran off to the side. He started to laugh as the Aether started to flow into him and he let the power fill him.

“Now!” Loki said and the Bifrost opened up under him, Thor, and Jane. It whisked them away just in time as Loki's magic ended and the Dark Elves' giant ship's momentum returned. It almost sounded like an ancient creature's scream as it barrelled down towards Malekith.

Malekith's laughter slowed down as he turned to look up at the noise, only to have the bow of the giant ship slam right into his face. His body was mulched immediately and he died just as the Aether finished settling into his flesh. Nothing else happened as the ship crumpled around his mangled remains.

Loki snapped his fingers and Thor's mouth returned.

“BROTHER!” Thor said and pulled his fist back to hit him for his betrayal, only for Jane to put a hand up to stop him.

“Thor, it's over.” Jane whispered.

“Wh-what? What do you mean?”

“Loki dropped that giant space ship onto Malekith as we teleported out.” Jane said and looked at the large black man wearing golden armor. “Thank you, Heimdall.”

Heimdall nodded. “You are welcome, Jane Foster.” He said and turned to Loki. “I have what you requested and will inform the All-Father.”

“Thank you, Heimdall.” Loki said and nodded at Jane. He smiled at Thor, who looked confused. “It's all right, brother. We have saved the nine realms and stopped Malekith. His dark elves will be hunted down and sent back to their world, assuming they aren't just slaughtered.”

“Loki, I... what... what can I say...” Thor stammered.

“Goodbye.” Loki said and bowed his head as he stepped back onto the Bifrost.

“No! We can talk to father and...” Thor started to protest.

“I have much more to do to make everything up to father.” Loki said, a little sadly. “Heimdall, surprise me.”

Heimdall smiled, which was a rare occurrence, and put his sword into the controls. “Fare thee well.” He twisted the sword and Loki disappeared in a flash of light.

Jane pat Thor's chest. “After I rest for a while, I would like to meet your mother.”

Thor let a smile show on his face and nodded. “She will love you, I know it.” He said and led her from the room, then he picked her up and used Mjolnir to fly them the length of the Rainbow Bridge towards his home of Asgard.

*

Odin stood over the wreckage of the Dark Elves' command ship and his mind and emotions were in conflict. He watched the court mages cast the spell that Loki had ensured that Heimdall had seen and memorized. They held out a container for the Aether as they extracted it from Malekith's remains. When it was all inside the container, they cast several more spells over it and it shrunk down into a fist sized rock.

“King Odin.” One of the mages said reverently as she brought over the container with the rock inside.

Odin nodded to her and accepted the container. He knew how dangerous it was to have this dark energy and the tesseract on Asgard, so he would have to get rid of it. His eyes caught Volstagg and Lady Sif rummaging through the ship's wreckage that had been pushed aside.

“Volstagg!” Odin commanded and the man immediately came to attention and then ran over the wreckage and came to a stop in front of him.

Volstagg knelt and put his fist over his heart. “What is your command, All-Father?”

Odin held out the container with the rock inside. “Remove this from my sight.”

Volstagg's eyes widened at the request and looked at Odin's face as if he was joking.

Lady Sif quickly walked over and slapped Volstagg upside his head and knocked his helmet off. “Don't say anything stupid.” She said and knelt with her fist over her heart. “We would be honored to complete this quest for you, my king.”

Odin almost laughed at the two friends acting so casual in front of him. He smiled and handed the container to Lady Sif. “I want it as far from Asgard as possible.”

“It will be done.” Lady Sif said and hugged the container.

Odin nodded and looked at Volstagg. “Protect her with your life as you travel.”

“I would do nothing less, All-Father.” Volstagg said and bowed his head.

“I only have one stipulation.” Odin said and glared at the two of them. “You will not take the Bifrost.”

They both looked surprised at that.

“I do not want that dark energy to be detected traversing the realms so easily.” Odin said. “You may have a scout or a patrol ship, whichever you require. Space can be a dangerous place.”

“Yes, All-Father.” The pair said and he nodded.

Odin waved them away towards the ships that had landed and were resting between attack runs against the fleeing dark elves in their own ships.

Volstagg grabbed his helmet as he and Lady Sif stood and bowed, then they ran towards where Odin indicated. When the Ruler of Asgard told you to go, you went. They easily found the ships Odin gave them permission to use and decided the more firepower of the patrol ship was better than the speed of the scout ship. Upon entering the ship and relaying Odin's orders, the rest of the crew left.

“Do you know how to fly this thing?” Volstagg asked as he sat in the co-pilot's seat.

“How hard can it be? A ship's a ship.” Lady Sif asked.

“Perhaps there are directions?” Volstagg suggested and she laughed.

“Just strap in and hold on.” Lady Sif said and she easily found the power and engines. She started them up and the ship rumbled. She put her hands on the controls and pulled up, lifting the ship from the icy surface of Jotenheim.

They rose up to a good height and she pushed her foot on one of the pedals on the floor. She lucked out and the ship shot forward. They were soon out of the atmosphere and in space.

“Lucky guess.” Volstagg said with a pout.

Lady Sif smiled at him. “You're at the weapon console.”

Volstagg's raised his eyebrows at her.

“Have some fun figuring them out, dumb-ass.” Lady Sif said with a laugh.

“OH! Ha ha!” Volstagg said and started to go over everything in front of him.

It was a long flight for them as they travelled the long way and they figured out a lot of things, like the recharging speed boosters and changing configuration from air to space flight. They even figured out the cloaking technology to stop anyone from tracking them and the communications to shut them off. None of their time was wasted as they made their way towards their destination.

The ship flew into the atmosphere of their chosen planet, completely undetected, and came in for a landing in a crop field. The ship, although invisible, made appropriate impressions in the crops. Both occupants laughed as they opened the landing ramp and walked down it and exited the ship.

“No one is around and there are no cameras.” Volstagg said.

Lady Sif used the remote she found to close the ship and then ended the cloak. “Are you sure you can do this?”

Volstagg chuckled. “I wouldn't claim I could if I couldn't.” He said and a wand appeared in his hand. He waved it at the ship and the ship shrunk... and shrunk... and shrunk. When it was done, he walked over to it and it was the size of his hand.

“I can't believe that actually worked on a spaceship.” Lady Sif said.

Volstagg picked it up and handed it to her. “Hold this for me.”

Lady Sif examined the tiny ship and missed Volstagg's appearance changing.

“Thanks.” Harry Potter said and took the ship to tuck it into his pocket. “Do you want to change back yet?”

Lady Sif thought about it. “How do you feel about making love to an Asgardian Lady?”

“She looks a little plain compared to you.” Harry said and saw her surprise. “What? I like redheads.”

Lady Sif snorted and then laughed as she put the container down. “All right, change me back.”

Harry waved his wand in a complicated manner and the compound physical transformation and illusion faded to leave Natasha Romanoff in Lady Sif's clothing. He quickly switched it out for Natasha's clothing and she picked up the container.

“What do we do with this thing?” Natasha asked.

“We do what Odin ordered, of course.” Harry said and took the container. He popped it open and reached inside.

“Harry, NO!” Natasha gasped and tried to knock it away.

Harry easily avoided her swipe and picked the condensed Aether up. “It's all right, love.”

“You saw what happened to Foster! She might not ever recover!”

“I wouldn't worry about that.” Harry said with a knowing smile.

“What did you do?” Natasha asked with a scowl.

“Nothing illegal.” Harry said and Natasha's scowl became a glare. “I just switched Jane's contaminated blood with one of the Asgardians.”

Natasha's mouth dropped open in shock.

“No, the Asgardian was fine. She felt tired for about ten minutes and then her body cleaned the contaminates and Jane's blood no longer existed. No one noticed.”

Natasha stared at her crazy future husband without saying anything.

“Jane's fine, too. She doesn't realize she's a bit stronger now, either.” Harry said and took out his wand again. “She might when they get back to Earth; but, we can show up unexpectedly and surprise her and Thor.”

Natasha recovered from the shock. “He does owe you that drink.”

Harry smiled and started to wave his wand at the chunk of compressed Aether.

“What are you doing?” Natasha asked.

“Fixing the flawed spell.” Harry said and his eyebrows dropped as he concentrated. “It's almost fighting against... ohhhh, so that's what it is! HA hahaha!”

“What is it?” Natasha asked.

“It's the Reality Stone, one of the six Infinity Stones that predate the universe and caused the Big Bang here.” Harry said and stopped using his wand. “My wand's not really working against it, because it's working against the powers of reality, which is the power of the stone.”

“I... I don't understand.” Natasha admitted.

“Watch.” Harry said and held the fist-sized rock on his palm after putting his wand away. The rock started to glow and the miasma started to flow out of it.

“Harry, NO!” Natasha gasped.

Harry laughed. “Relax and trust me.” He said and she did so. After a few minutes, the rock had disappeared and the ball of miasma started to shrink. It kept going until it was only a small red stone that glowed brightly.

“Oh, my god.” Natasha whispered. She could feel the power emanating from it.

“It's a cute little thing, isn't it?” Harry asked and admired it.

“C-cute?” Natasha asked, surprised.

“Sure.” Harry said and took out the moleskin pouch from around his neck and dropped the Reality Stone into it, which stopped Natasha and anyone else from sensing where it was. “I mean, I've been changing reality since I was eleven and I don't really need a stone to do that.”

“Harry.” Natasha whispered and then sighed. “Good god, Harry.”

“Now we know why the Asgardians were having such a hard time dealing with it, because they were trying to change reality without understanding what they were doing.” Harry said and took Natasha into his arms. “Hey, what do you say to a nice little trip to France for a week or so?”

Natasha huffed and looked into his eyes. “We've been gone for how long now?”

“No idea.” Harry said with a grin. “If we don't report in right now, we can be gone for a little longer and no one will ever know.”

Natasha thought about refusing, then remembered all of the worlds they had visited and the creatures and beings they had killed. “I guess we do need a vacation.”

Harry gave her a tender kiss. “Isle of Marseilles?”

“I do have that silver string bikini you like so much in my part of the trunk.” Natasha teased.

“Say no more!” Harry said and hugged her tightly before there was a crack and they disappeared.