A/N: You guys…I don't even deserve you. You're all too perfect. I hated that last chapter, but you guys all seemed to love it, which makes me feel 200% better. You guys really know how to cheer a gal up. I love you, if I haven't mentioned a bajillion times. Annnnd I saw Avengers for the 3rd time, WOOH! But I'll stop rambling now and give you your chapter.

Back in the control room, Nick Fury stood at the head of the large, round table, the rest of the team sitting around him. Steve and I sat down beside Tony Stark as the Director began to speak.

"Before we get down to the heavy stuff, I'd like to congratulate all of you. You all did a fantastic job and have saved millions of lives. Not only us, but the whole world thanks you." Fury sighed, folding his hands behind his back. "Before we can all settle back into our lives, however, we need to decide on what to do with Loki and the Tesseract."

"They will both return with me, to Asgard," Thor demanded, his deep voice booming throughout the room. "There is no place safer for either of them. Loki will be punished and the Tesseract will return to its rightful place."

"Loki has to pay for his crimes—he needs to stay here to be punished," Natasha fought.

"You puny humans do not understand how to properly hold an Asgardian. You weren't able to hold Loki for more than a few days. He belongs in Asgard," Thor said, leaning forward on the table.

"He's right," Steve spoke up. "He's too dangerous to keep here—as long as he's on Earth, he'll find a way out. And I, personally, think the Tesseract needs to get as far from here as possible. Getting lost in the ocean was the best thing that cube ever did."

"I think you're all missing the big picture here," Stark said, leaning back in his chair and putting his hands behind his head. "That Tesseract will provide enough clean energy for the whole planet—thus providing less harmful gasses, saving the ozone layer, continuation of the human race, blah blah blah."

"Does the safety of mankind mean anything to you? That thing stays here, there'll be no human race to continue," Steve fired back. He and Stark had never truly seen eye to eye. Steve was a humble, down-to-earth man, while Tony…well, was a "genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist."

"I agree with Thor and Steve. What the world needs now is just some…normal," Banner added, trying to ease the tension in the room. Tony raised his eyebrows at him. "I want to study it as much as you, but sometimes you just gotta put what you want aside and do what's best." Tony scoffed, but didn't reply.

"So it's decided then? Both Loki and the Tesseract return with Thor?" Fury asked, receiving several nods of approval. "Alright. The Council won't be happy, but I've never taken their input into consideration before." The group chuckled in response. "There's also another problem we need to address. Everyone's living arrangements."

"I'd actually like to stay," Dr. Banner said rather quickly. "Sorry. But Tony and I were talking, and I feel like working for Stark Industries could be a pretty nice experience. I'm just going to have to try to stay stress-free."

Fury nodded in response. "We had figured that would be your decision. I'm aiming this more at Captain Rogers and Dr. Andrews, however."

"Oh my god," I whispered, finally realizing the obvious. How could I have not seen it? "My apartment…it's gone, isn't it?"

Fury let out a sigh. "We had someone go survey the damage last night—I'm sorry Dr. Andrews, but yes, it's gone."

My whole body seemed to go numb. "Was…was there anything recovered? At all?"

"Nothing significant enough to bring back. A lampshade, throw pillow, things of the such. Your apartment was at the heart of the battle, Doctor," Fury reported.

My entire apartment—gone, in an instant. My brother's old toys, my mom's wedding ring, my dad's college degree…gone. "I'm sorry, Dr. Andrews," Fury said, though his voice was not overly apologetic. "And Steve, you're apartment had been destroyed as well. The only things recovered were some clothes and a box of photos."

"That's alright," Steve replied, his eyes on me. "There wasn't anything else of much importance."

I wasn't going to let myself cry. It was just stupid old mementos, silly little things that…that held so much meaning. It was all I had left of them. "Well, I…I guess I'll have to move back to Massachusetts." Steve's eyes jumped up to my face, his jaw hanging slightly open. "I have family up there that I can stay with, and I should be able to find a new job…"

"Actually, Dr. Andrews," Fury began. "We had hoped that you would consider staying as the Medical Director here at SHIELD. We could use someone with your talents going into the future, and we could help you develop your skill even further. Tony has offered for both you and Steve to stay at Stark Tower until you find proper living arrangements."

My eyes widened and I looked over at Stark. "He says 'offered' like I had a choice," Tony added.

…Keep working at SHIELD? There were pros and cons with that. My life would never really be normal and I'd probably be tested like some lab rat. But…did I really want to try to be normal again? Instead of trying to fit in with society, I could show who I truly was here at SHIELD. Maybe we could find out why I had my ability and see if there was anything I hadn't already known about it. And, well…maybe I'd still get to see Steve.

"I'd like that," I said, not being able to hold back the grin that overtook my face.

"Excellent," Fury said, a smile actually appearing on his lips—it almost looked strange, so different than the usual grimace. "You and Steve will both be welcome at Stark Tower for as long as you need."

"As long as they need? You're pretty generous when you're giving away my things, aren't you, Patchy?" Stark cried, crossing his arms. It was amazing at how accustomed everyone had grown to simply tuning him out.

"So when are you and Loki going to head back?" Banner asked Thor.

"With Fury's permission," he began, "as soon as possible. Today."

Fury nodded, stroking his chin. "That's fine, the sooner the better. Central Park would probably be the best. Lots of wide-open space, one of the few places left around here not covered in rubble. I'd like you all present there, if that's possible—though I doubt any of you have a hot date tonight," he said with a laugh.

"Oh, I beg to differ—judging by the never-ending blush on Cap's face, I'd say he and Becky there have plans," Stark cut in, a smirk on his face.

"Oh, and you don't have any X-rated plans with Pepper?" Steve retorted and all of our jaws dropped. Steve, the gentleman he was, usually didn't bother replying to Stark, less anything so vulgar.

"See! He didn't even deny it!" Tony shouted, pointing across the table. I rolled my eyes, stifling a laugh. Even Fury let out a chuckle.

"Alright, you're all dismissed. Meet at Central Park in an hour. The helicarrier should be landing in Manhattan within a few minutes," Fury stated and left the room.

"Look at you," I started as everyone began to leave. "I didn't think you had it in you to come back with something like that."

Steve laughed and stood up. "That guy just knows how to get under my skin, and I don't know…it just sorta came out." I chuckled and we both walked out of the control room and made our way to our rooms. "Do you need a ride to the park?"

We stopped at my door and I nodded. "Yeah, that be great. I assume my cars been destroyed, with everything else…"

Steve's smile immediately vanished, and in a somber voice, he said, "I'm so sorry, Rebecca. I can't imagine what you've lost."

I swallowed and nodded, not wanting to have this conversation right now. "It'll be alright. I'll move on. I'm going to get changed, and I'll meet you outside once we've landed."

Steve offered me a smile, clearly noticing my change of topic, and with a wave, began walking farther down the hallway to his room. I opened the door to mine and sighed, imagining how much more my life was going to change in the next few days. Everyone kept saying how much they wanted life to go back to normal, but I didn't see how that was even possible anymore.

I was sliding on my brown leather jacket when I felt the ship hit the ground. I zippered up my duffel bag, having stuffed it with the few items I had on this ship, and walked out of the helicarrier. We had landed on the water just beside a large dock on Manhattan. I walked across the bridge, reaching the pavement, and spotted a sports car, a SHIELD van, and a motorcycle. "Dr. Andrews, I would seriously appreciate if you would stop drooling over my vehicle. Please go find your soldier and drool over him, instead. At least he wouldn't mind being slobbered on by you," Tony Stark commented, walking past me in a grey suit and a silver briefcase to the expensive-looking sports car. I rolled my eyes as Dr. Banner followed him, getting in the passenger seat.

"Sorry, Rebecca," he apologized for his friend, and the two drove off. Shortly after, Steve walked up behind me, grabbing my hand and leading me over to the motorcycle.

"I never picked you for a motorcycle-kinda guy," I commented as he sat down, nodding for me to sit behind him.

"And what kinda guy did you have me picked as?" he questioned as I wrapped my arms around his (incredibly firm) torso.

"I don't know," I commented, resting my head on the back of his shoulder. "I've only ever really imagined you driving military jeeps and such…and usually in red, white, and blue." I could feel his laugh ripple through his body as he drove off towards the park.

It wasn't a very long drive, and as we pulled up, the rest of the team started walking onto the bridge. Steve and I walked up with them, hand-in-hand. Thor was tugging Loki, done up with chains around his wrists and what looked to be a high-tech muzzle. Tony knelt down, opening his brief case, and pulled out the Tesseract, placing it inside a clear cylinder with a handle on each end. He handed it over to Thor, who reached out to Loki with it. They held the container, each with a hand on one of the handles, as Thor looked us over.

"Thank you all. I promise the Tesseract and Loki will no longer be a problem here on Earth," he said, nodding to each of us. Everyone nodded or smiled back. He twisted the handle he was holding, and he and Loki dissipated into the air.

"Well," Clint began, looking at the group. "I guess this is it…for now."

"Until we're all needed again," Steve added, nodding his head in agreement.

Natasha came up to me as we all began saying our goodbyes and gave me a hug, shocking me to no end. She had been kind, but could snap my body like a twig, so I had always been intimidated. "Good luck with Cap over there. You two deserve each other." I smiled and hugged her back.

I shook hands with the rest of the team, Stark pulling me in for a hug. "Even though you're my guests, I really don't want to hear any sex noises from you and the 90 year-old virgin. Please try to refrain. If I hear a single moan, you're both out." Steve, who was standing a few feet away shaking hands with Banner, turned towards us, his jaw on the ground and his face turning scarlet. I burst out laughing, both at Tony's comment and Steve's face.

"I-uh, I…I don't even know what to say in reply," Steve stammered, his eyes glued to the ground. Tony, who never usually laughed—just smirked—let out a chuckle.

"Good luck with that one," he said, patting me on the shoulder. He and Bruce got back in the sports car and drove off, I waving behind them.

"I, uh, well, I'm—"Steve stuttered, rubbing the back of his neck when it was just the two of us. I laughed once again.

"Don't be embarrassed," I insisted, grabbing his arm and removing it from his neck. "He was just being an ass." He continued to look at the ground, his face still a tomato. "Steve, seriously, don't be embarrassed, I didn't think anything of it."

Steve finally chuckled, his eyes meeting mine bashfully. "People didn't really say stuff like that back in my time, especially not in front of a woman."

I giggled and rolled my eyes. "They still don't, Steve, don't worry—you've just been oh-so lucky to meet Tony Stark."

We walked back to his motorcycle and he sat down, looking at me. "To Stark Tower, I guess."

I sat down behind me, extremely happy to get to wrap my arms around him once again. "Yup. We'll just have to refrain from the sex noises—I kinda need a place to stay for the next couple of months."

I could feel the heat radiating off his cheek as I kissed it.

A/N: I love writing Tony Stark. Simply love it. Almost as much as I love all of you. I'm going to be pretty busy this weekend, so I don't think I'll get to post until Sunday or Monday, so I hope you all have a spectacular weekend. Go see the Avengers. Love you!