There was a commotion following the explosion. The helicarrier had lost one of its rotors and everyone on board worked frantically to get it back up and running. Stark was already getting ready to putting it back together. Loki smiled. He had planned his exit from this cell since before he'd first seen it. There were agents on board of the craft that would release him, long having joined up with Loki and Natalia for disliking what S.H.I.E.L.D. was doing. There were allies everywhere and nobody seemed to notice the traitors amongst them. It was amusing. He expected Thor to come see him and was not disappointed when he appeared. Thor was an oaf often enough but he wasn't entirely stupid, nor oblivious to the fact that the explosion had been neatly timed with Loki's arrival. By the time the blond reached the room that hosted his prison, Loki had long been released from it. Only a copy occupied the space in it now for the sake of trickery. He needed Thor out of the way, away from the carrier. Without Thor here, he could cause the chaos he was after to unleash the Hulk. Or perhaps – hopefully – that had already started. Surely the explosion would make Banner lose focus. He hoped so.

"Brother, what have you done?"

"Thor… so good to see you," his illusion smirked.

Thor was not happy. He'd seen that expression on his face many times since their youth and rarely had it been directed his way so strongly. Thor had never enjoyed his brother's trickery very much but he'd loved him too much to truly be mad at him for long. This time, however, that love was stretched and tested more than Thor was willing to admit. The kind of mayhem Loki was after now couldn't simply be ignored or brushed off as a childish prank. Thor knew this. He realized the extent he'd go to and it worried him. This wasn't the brother he knew and loved.

"There are innocent people on board of this ship."

"Innocent is a stretch, from what I have heard of this organization."

"Loki, stop this madness," Thor pleaded.

"Too late."

A smirk was, in the end, all it took for Thor to charge. Loki knew what buttons to push to make him react and so the sudden move didn't catch him by surprise. Thor was impulsive, always had been. It made him an easy and incredibly predictable target. One would think after so many years of being on the receiving end of his tricks, he'd learn. He ran straight through the illusion, into the cell which was promptly closed by the real Loki as his copy faded into nothingness. He smiled, his finger tracing the button he'd just pressed. It was almost disappointing how easy that had been.

"Why are you doing this, brother? Does your hatred truly run so deeply?"

There was pain etched onto Thor's face and his voice rang deep with concern and the wish to understand. But Thor could never understand. He was the golden prince of Asgard. He was loved. He'd never been lied to. And he didn't know the state in which Loki had found Natalia in. He had no idea what this realm was capable of; the destruction and ruin that came with its progression and that of its people. Loki was doing this for Natalia first. He had no desire to explain to him. This wasn't for Thor to understand. Thor didn't understand pain and disappointment. He'd only ever known trust and the praise of the people. He didn't know what it was like to struggle; to have to fight for everything. As a prince, it had been easy for him. For Loki too. But Loki was different. Asgard didn't have a place for difference.

"No," he echoed softly, "You wouldn't understand. You have never understood. It matters no longer. Your love for this realm is misplaced."

He watched Thor struggle to break through the glass and stopping immediately when it made the whole apparition unstable. The fall would be long. Loki had little doubt it was survivable for an Asgardian. He pushed the button that released the cage and looked on as Thor crashed through the clouds, down toward ground. He lamented it for a moment or two and then left, striding through the craft unseen until he met with the quinjet that had brought Natalia here. They reunited with a hug and left the scene, not waiting to see if the carrier would crash or if Stark could fix the damage she'd done.

"Thor is here."

She froze for just a moment, then steeled herself again. She should have expected him to come. It didn't change her resolve. Whether Thor was here or not, they would go on with their plan; follow through with their own avenging. She would not let his involvement stop them.

"Let him be."

He smiled. Not even Thor would be able to stop them. He promised it to himself, for her sake. He wanted to see this realm know the pain it had inflicted on Natalia and the girls he'd found dead in the snow.

They set up the portal on top of Stark Tower. While Loki had been imprisoned by the mortals, Natalia had seen to finishing the work that would allow them to open the way to the chitauri home world. Together they stood atop the large balcony overseeing the city. Loki had his sceptre in hand. The chitauri were pouring through the gateway they'd opened, flying in to bring destruction to the city. He smiled. Natalia watched. The Avengers had come together to fight the invasion but the chitauri numbers were large and it would be no easy feat to win. They didn't join the fight. Loki knew she was itching to. She grew up a fighter; a warrior. When there was a battle, she wanted to be a part of it. Loki didn't feel that same kind of pull. He relished in the chaos that ensued but had little need to be a larger part of it. He would let her go, if she truly expressed a desire to. He knew she wouldn't. She would remain with him, seeing to his safety even if he did not need her to.

"Thor will be here soon. Or the Hulk," she said softly, "Are you prepared?"

"As long as you are with me."

She smiled and nodded. She would not leave his side. She was ready. The Hulk's roars rang loudly through the air. Facing the beast wasn't much scarier to her than many of the other foes she'd encountered in her life on Asgard. She had never fought a Jotun but she imagined them to be more terrifying than the green beast. Trolls certainly had her more on edge. She supposed a charging bilgesnipe also fit the comparison. She'd survived all of them. Nevertheless she worried, not so much for her own safety but Loki's. If Thor would join the fight against them seriously, he would get hurt. Thor was stronger than him and if Mjolnir would connect with him, Loki would suffer serious injuries. She hoped it wouldn't come to that.

"Get inside."

She didn't argue and went into the suite when she saw the Hulk approach, leaping from building to building to get closer to them. Loki followed her. He made her stay back but she refused to hide, merely keeping her distance so she would not be in harm's way. She noticed Thor coming too. The blurs of green and red moved rapidly closer until they'd both arrived. The Hulk had crashed through the window and Thor had moved in through the now already broken glass. Stark wasn't far behind, leaving dealing with the chitauri masses to Rogers, Barton and the local police force, as well as military reinforcements.

"Loki," she said before the others rounded in on them fully.

"I know."

The Hulk was on him before he could utter another word. He smashed him into the floor like it was nothing and Natalia acted quickly. She threw a few daggers at him, successfully distracting him from hurting Loki. He looked battered already and she was glad she hadn't let it go on. Thor didn't seem to care much. He probably knew that Loki was fine. He had certainly endured worse. She backed away on instinct when the Hulk turned his attention to her instead of the God in the floor (and it was definitely in the floor; he'd left a massive dent with Loki stuck in it). He made no further move to attack her however. Perhaps he deemed her too fragile to smash in like he had done with Loki. A few deep breaths later, she was walking to where Loki lay beaten on the ground, winded and panting. She could see that aside from distracting the beast, her daggers had done nothing to him. Physically, there wasn't even a scratch on him. She hadn't expected there to be but was still a little surprised. Thor stepped closer too and she wished she could move Loki. She wasn't strong enough to lift him though. He lay rather in the middle of the room which made standing between him and their assailants difficult for her. The Hulk was on her left, Stark still a bit in the back and Thor marching closer from right ahead of her. She kept her eyes on all three of them, fiercely standing in the way, her remaining dagger raised high. She would not let them get their hands on Loki.

"Natalia, please," Thor urged.

She shook her head, her face betraying nothing but her will to protect Loki at all costs. Still, her determination faltered for just a moment as she looked at him. She'd grown up with Thor. She loved Thor. But her loyalties would always be with Loki. She would not be swayed. She would not watch him get taken.

"You're not getting him."

"Listen, sweetie," Tony said and she immediately responded with a sneer and glare similar to Loki's, "Get out of the way."

Loki, still aware of the commotion around him and the potential danger it posed for her to be here, struggled to his feet. He grabbed his sceptre off the ground and stepped around her, finding his footing and orientating himself quickly. The Hulk had left him dizzy and hurting but he had been faced with the wrong end of Mjolnir before and in comparison, this wasn't so bad.

"Loki, no."

She helped keep him steady. Her free hand was still clutching one of her last daggers tightly, ready to strike at any of them at any moment, while her other pressed against Loki's chest reassuringly. If he would fall, there would be little she could do to stop it but the touch grounded him. She lifted her hand further when Thor approached, staring him down and daring him to come closer. She would not hesitate to use her blade against him. Nor would she leave the gun that was strapped to her thigh without its use if it became necessary.

"Don't. You're not getting him. Your involvement changes nothing, Thor," she said.

She'd never faced Thor like this before. They had sparred a few times but it had never been a serious match. Not like this anyway. They had never truly been opponents before. She knew Thor well and should it come to a fight, she was somewhat sure of herself. She couldn't take him out and she made no illusions to herself on the matter, but she could tire him out; pose as a distraction while Loki regained his strength.

The Hulk roared and lifted one of his massive fists, ready to leap and in a split second, Loki had visibly betrayed his fears. After getting pummelled by the beast quite a bit, he knew that she couldn't withstand the brute force of him. He hit as hard as an Asgardian, perhaps worse. Natalia would stand no chance. He pushed her behind him, readying himself to take the blunt of it and something in Thor's mind clicked. He only had a moment to react.

"Wait," he boomed, effectively stopping any movement with the force of his command.

"What is it, goldilocks?" Tony asked with an exaggerated sigh.

The Hulk had stopped but still glared at the pair of them. He wanted to smash them, put an end to this entire affair. Once they were taken care of, they could go and stop the chitauri.

"Brother…"

"I am not your brother."

Before Thor could finish his question, Loki glared at him. He held onto Natalia and teleported them away in an instant. It took the rest of his strength to get them far away from the battlefield and he collapsed the moment they touched ground.

"Loki. Loki, come on, don't do this to me."

Worried and afraid of the worst, she felt for his pulse, her heart beating loud and hard in her chest. He had never exhausted himself so fully when using his magic. She was relieved when she found the telltale sign of life and sat back on the floor next to him. He was alive at least. Now she could do nothing but wait for him to wake up again. She hoped nobody would find them here, wherever here was. Hopefully the chitauri would keep the Avengers too busy to look for them, especially Thor. She didn't even know where they were but she had no desire to leave the room and find out. She wanted to keep watch over Loki, make sure he would recover without any incidents. She didn't know how long that would take but she'd wait it out with him. It wasn't often that he made her worry like this. He'd always had his magic under control and wouldn't use it if it meant the depletion of his last energy. He'd done it once when she had still been small to protect her and it had only exhausted him so because he'd spent all day training. After that, she'd been more careful and he hadn't needed to resort to it again. Going this far was dangerous. Not so much here, on Midgard, where little could harm him. On Asgard though, it left him vulnerable. She supposed the same still counted here after all, but to an extent less worrisome. She could protect him against mortals. Against her own kind. Her thoughts drifted as she watched his unconscious body. Sitting idly wasn't one of her strong suits. She despised it. There wasn't much she could do but it drove her crazy to just sit there. She touched the tip of her dagger, the cold blade a nice contrast to her warm skin, and watched it reflect the light from the sun shining in. She'd lost a few in the attempt at distracting the Hulk. She hoped to retrieve them later. She didn't need them but they were important to her. Loki had gifted them. She rubbed the blade against the cloth of her trousers. Maintaining her weapons was usually a good way to pass time. Her worry would fade when he woke up again. She didn't like making him worry with her own concerns and so she took a few deep breaths and prepared herself for when he'd open his eyes again. She would remain strong and composed. Loki would be fine. He just needed time. Time she took to not think about Thor. Thinking about Thor meant thinking about Asgard; about Frigga and Sif and the home she'd had there. No, she would think ahead.


Without the sceptre Loki had they couldn't close the portal. The chitauri kept coming and S.H.I.E.L.D.'s scientists worked hard to try and find a way to shut it down remotely but none of them had even managed to get a close enough look at the machine to know what they were truly doing. Experimenting with the tesseract previously gave them some starting points at least and so they weren't completely clueless. But with Banner and Stark in the midst of the battle, two of their most brilliant minds were already occupied.

Thor was struggling. He'd never paid it much attention, the way Loki had always been so protective of Natalia. After seeing his face when the Hulk had been about to attack her, however, pieces he never knew existed seemed to slide into place. The suspicion of her mortality had him distracted from battle. Steve called him out on it when the team met up on the ground to come up with a viable battle strategy. He told them what he thought and was met with stunned silence.

"You think she's human?" Steve asked eventually.

"Why? Because Loki went all scaredy-cat on us?"

Thor ignored the remark and nodded toward the Captain in reply to his question. Clint forwarded the possibility of it to Fury who ran a check on missing person's to see if anyone fit her description. It was a worldwide search and even with the technology they had now, it would take some time. Time Steve wanted to use to hold back the incoming alien force rather than discuss how messed up all this was.

They split up. Tony took Clint to a higher vantage point from where the archer could keep an eye on a large part of the perimeter. Steve covered the ground. Thor and the Hulk had whatever they could get. Thor's lightning was an immediate help and the Hulk leaped around the aliens and took down as many as he possibly could. Tony kept the skies clear, or as much as he could anyway. The military force helped in leaving time for civilians to evacuate and keeping exits clear for them to get through. The NYPD did their best to contain the invasion to as few blocks as possible.

Time flew as they battled the incoming horde of aliens. The day was almost over but there seemed to be no shortage of newcomers. Fury had gotten backup offers from other superheroes and teams, as well as agents who were willing to go into the fight to give the Avengers a break. They all ran low on energy, all but Thor and the Hulk. Even Steve was tired and Clint was starting to struggle keeping his aim true. Tony too was exhausted. The respite they got from others taking over did nothing to lessen their worry for the city and its inhabitants but it at least allowed them to catch their breath. Tony and Banner both had a look at the tesseract to help any research in stopping it alone and they all went to the helicarrier to eat and take a nap. Steve felt uneasy, leaving the battle before it was finished but he knew his limits well. Thor wanted to continue fighting. Fury stopped him before he could hop back into it to talk to him.

"We haven't gone through every single report yet but we started with the obvious choices; Eastern Europe and America, and we found nothing that fits her description or name. Are you sure she's human?"

"I do not know for certain… but she has been with us for decades. It would be unlikely that you would be successful in your search."

"Did you say decades?" Clint asked, sitting on a desk next to them, "Like two, right?"

Thor frowned, confused for a moment. He watched as images flickered across the screen next to Clint so fast he couldn't remember what he'd just seen the next moment. One face replaced another. Then another, and another.

"No. It has been much longer than that. I have never questioned her origin but perhaps I should have asked more questions then. Loki has always looked out for her but it never seemed odd to me. I have done the same with him. I thought nothing of it."

"How is that even possible?"

Steve joined the conversation too now, unable to sleep. He'd settled for resting without it. Tony was working and stuffing his face with food. Bruce was working too. Clint was the only one who had actually gotten any sleep yet.

"It could be something similar to me. I heard there's humans who have powers that let them live for much longer without aging visibly too. It could be any number of things," he offered.

"We have a list of all those people," Fury said, "But I guess she wouldn't be on it anyway, considering she hasn't been on this planet for very long as a child."

"How do Asgardians age anyway? Are you kids as long as we are and then grow up into teenagers and adults or how does that work?"

"She has aged at the same pace as our children. We spent little time as children. The majority of our lives, we are adults, with few changes."

"You know, he's pretty possessive of her. Are they together?"

Thor made a disgusted face at the question. The mere idea of it was appalling. They were incredibly close, inseparable like he and Loki had been once, but not like that. Never like that. There wasn't a doubt in Thor's mind.

"No."

"That bad? He loves her. I could tell when we talked."

"He adores her, but not like you think. He has raised her since she was a child. They are family, nothing else. Natalia is his world… She and mother. They have always been able to help where I could not."

"He's a nutcase. I don't get it. She's nothing like that. I see why she'd stick with him, if that's the case, but helping him attack Earth when she's from here? I mean, this is a full scale invasion. She doesn't seem the crazy type that'd help with it. Just saying."

Thor let out a sigh. He felt defeated. What Clint was saying wasn't unreasonable. Natalia had often kept Loki from doing something terrible and he, too, could not quite comprehend what would have possessed her to help him in his endeavour to invade Midgard. She had never spoken of her past to him. It had always been only Loki who had had the privilege to know and perhaps his mother. Yet Thor could not see why she would want her home destroyed. Was what had transpired here truly so horrifying that she could justify all this destruction?

"Whatever the case," Fury interrupted, "They're still out there and we need to find them. I'm starting to think we need them to close that damn portal."

Thor nodded grimly. Despite all this, or maybe because of it, he wanted to bring them home now more than ever. He missed them both. Nobody did more than Frigga, however. She had been devastated when she'd found out about their disappearance and had regularly asked Heimdall if he had seen them. The answer had always been the same. It had only been a small comfort to know that neither one of them were alone. She couldn't imagine what it would have been like for Loki to go through all that pain by himself. And finding out about his adoption in such a way had pained him greatly. Thor felt responsible for it ever since finding out. He had never known Loki was adopted. The initial shock had lasted less than ten minutes. It didn't matter what race he belonged to; Loki would always be his little brother. There was nothing in the universe that could change this fact. He wished he could make him understand. He wished he could bring them home and start over; show Loki that he was loved. He had stopped paying as much attention to him as he should have. The way things had been when they had been children; inseparable and adoring of one another. He wanted to go back to it and never stop showing him that affection. Perhaps he could have prevented all this from happening. Maybe he would have never needed to lose his brother to hatred and bitterness. He wanted to make it right.