By the time the Avengers had heard the screaming and gotten to the chamber, everything was already over. They had found Thor, a broken, tearful, shell of a man, cradling and rocking Loki's crumpled, bloody body in his lap as he wailed and muttered things unintelligible.

It had not taken long to figure out that Loki had perished. Several others had taken to tears as well, leaving Jane, Wanda, Thor, Darcy, and Quicksilver almost completely incapacitated. Several times Steve, Tony, and Erik attempted to pull Thor from his brother's body, only for Thor to roughly throw them away, screaming curses and threats and insults, before resuming his rocking and muttering, his wailing reverberating around the room; matched only by Wanda and Jane's cries.

So they had waited longer, Quicksilver attempting to console his broken sister, Darcy and Erik consoling Jane, and the rest of the Avengers sitting around in stunned and saddened silence. So they waited, and waited, and after a long time, Steve got up to try once more. He knew that Thor could not hold the body forever. He motioned for Tony to follow, so Tony, saddened as much as everyone else at the tragedy, got up to follow, as they approached Thor slowly. Thor's wails had lessened as the time had gone on, and he sat mostly in silence now, and it seemed to them his tears had stopped, and he simply sat silently, staring off into space and cradling his brother's body.

"Thor," Steve attempted, reaching out to lay a hand on the large Asgardian's shoulder. He braced himself to be thrown off, but nothing happened, and Steve thought that perhaps Thor had tired himself out. He continued, treading carefully, "I think we should take you upstairs. I'm sure you'd like to be alone, and staying here can't possibly be helping you."

Steve awaited a response, but received not even a recognition. He glanced at Tony, who shrugged and shook his head. Tony reached out slowly, carefully, lifting and maneuvering Loki's body from Thor's lap, making a show to Thor of setting the body down gently, making sure that the head was rested with care.

As Thor did not respond, Tony and Steve gripped him by the underarms of both sides, lifting him slowly with some difficulty, pulling him to his feet, and steadying him. When Thor still did not respond, Steve said, "We're gonna take you back to your room, okay?" He motioned for Tony to follow as they assisted the God of Thunder up to his room.

Once they had left, Wanda broke free of her brother's hold on her, rushing over to the God of Mischief's body, which lay as they had left it, face up on the floor. She knelt beside him, staring at the strange color of his skin, and wincing at the chill of it as she brushed his cheek with her fingers gently. She realized that this was the first time she had touched him.

He was cold.

It seemed as Thor or Steve had close his eyes at some point, for there were closed now...and Wanda was silently thankful for that. Her tears still flowed, and she watched as some of them dripped onto his face. She wiped them away, stroking his cold skin as she cried. "You fool." Her voice was a whisper, dripping with venom and anger. "How could you?"

It had taken a whole of almost four hours to clear everyone from the room, and to get everyone away from the body, which still held a dagger lodged in the chest cavity. Steve still had a hard time believing what had happened. It had taken Thor a whole five hours to finally tell them what had happened, and even then he was so far from himself that it almost scared them.

Finally, after Steve had made sure that everyone was calm, did he decide to speak, as they all sat around what seemed to be a living room, sulking and sullen and in every sense of the word generally sad. His voice broke the perpetual silence and rang out like a bell, stinging everyone's ears as he spoke, "We...need to have a discussion." He paused, gazing around at everyone, "A big one." He was met with only silence, the other simply staring at the floor or wall or something or another, Wanda and Thor still teary-eyed and rather unstable.

"Loki is dead." Steve felt rather stupid saying such an obvious thing, but he knew that it needed to be said aloud. "I know everyone's rather shaken over this, and rightfully so. But we really need to discuss where we go from here."

He received some halfhearted nods from around the room, but no one really attempted to show much interest. He continued, "Loki held most of our allies, and now we're stuck in a realm we barely understand, with no way back. Unless Thor can find us a way off of this planet. Plus, I don't think the Frost Giant's are gonna take kindly to us pretty much killing there new king. This was a terrible loss...for all of us."

"Yeah, that doesn't sound good. Look's like we're up shit's creek without a paddle, huh?" Tony stated, looking uncharacteristically sullen himself. Everyone stayed silent before he continued, "I mean, it's only a matter of time before someone comes looking for Loki. With him being King of the Jotti's or whatever and the leader of the small dark guys someone is bound to notice that he's missing."

"You're right." Steve agreed, "If they think we killed him...they'd imprison us. Or kill us. Or-"

"Yeah, yeah, that's enough." Natasha cut him off before he could do any more damage with his words. "But are you forgetting we still have to deal with Doom. We only have four days left." The room was then filled with sighs and gasps, as they remembered exactly what lay in store for them by then. Steve sighed, "Yeah, I know. I was kind of counting on the forces Loki had promised."

"Why the hell would you count on anything a trickster says?" Bruce asked, irritated by all of this and tired beyond belief, before saying in a quiet voice, "I'm sorry."

Steve nodded to him that he was forgiven, before he stated, "Because we had no other options. What other allies did we have to choose from? We almost didn't make it last time this happened, and I was hoping we'd have better back up this time..."

"Well it's not like Loki betrayed us or anything. He's dead!" Natasha exclaimed, rolling her eyes. "Even if he was going to..." Suddenly she felt ashamed of what she was going to say, "He...never got the chance."

"I don't see how this could have happened...They're brothers!" Bruce exclaimed, "This is horrible."

"Agreed." Tony said, munching on what looked to be some kind of pastry, "We might never get home."

Then everyone was glaring at him. "What?" He asked, taking another bite and shrugging it off, and turning away from the group to face the wall in what Natasha assumed was a pout. The silence crept up on them once more, but this time it was a heavy, regretful, saddened silence.

It made the air itself hard to breath...stifling.

Natasha spoke then, if even to just break the heavy silence, "How's Thor holding up?"

Steve answered her grimly, "Not very well, I'm afraid. He's still...a pretty big mess." Steve looked up at the ceiling, sighing deeply and trying to think of a way to get morale up at least a little bit. But he doubted that anything would help at this point. They were definitely down in the dumps; that was for sure. He wasn't sure what left there was too do. He knew a lot of them just wanted to give up. And Thor and Wanda were both pretty much completely dead inside.

What were they to do?

"Maybe one of us should check on Thor?" Natasha asked, "Or Wanda?" She shifted in her seat as she gazed around at them, "It hit them both pretty hard."

"You're right," Steve agreed, "We probably should, but," he sighed, "The best thing for them right now would probably be a little bit of alone time. We'll check on them soon."

"There is one thing I'd like to know though." Tony's voice rang out clearly, a bell in a room of silence.

"And what's that?" Natasha asked, leaning against Bruce who still looked rather tired, as they had tried earlier to console one another. Tony continued, "How the hell Loki...God of nothing but Mischief...brought Quicksilver back to us...and that creepy elf guy..." The silence was perpetual once more.

Wanda lay on her bed, the room dark and the door closed and locked; her face buried deep within her pillow. The pillow was by far soaked by now, and still the tears leaked from her eyes, wetting it even further. The sobs had stopped long ago, now the tears just dripped from her eyes like rainwater as she turned her head to the side, gazing at the wall next to her, taking a deep breath of fresh air.

Her head hurt, as did her chest from all the sobbing and crying she had done.

Her and Jane had even cried together for a short time, Jane telling her about the time she had met Loki and how Loki had saved her life. Loki was not all bad...and Wanda had seen that.

She regretted not being able to tell Loki how she felt. She had had so many chances...and the kiss they had shared that day...

A new series of sobs overtook her, and she wished they would stop...they hurt. But they continued anyway as she curled up into her self, stuffing her face back into her pillow and half wishing she'd suffocate to death. But she could never do that to her brother. Especially not after Loki had brought him back for her.

She had meant to talk to him about it, to thank him...to show him how thankful she was for him going to such measures to retrieve her brother. She had remembered him telling her once, the day before Quicksilver had been returned to her in fact...he had looked as if he regretted saying but he had said it none the less. He had told her, in nay a whisper, 'I could never imagine the pain it would cause me to lose Thor...'

She had assumed from the very start that Loki still cared for his older brother. There was no hiding it. She did not doubt Loki's abilities, and she was sure that if he had truly wanted his brother dead he would have assured it.

Wanda knew the strength of a sibling bond firsthand.

She had contemplated suicide at the beginning, but had pushed the thought out of her head. It would have solved nothing. Finally her sobs seemed to quiet down, but the tears still flowed, and the occasional sob still escaped every now and again. "Oh Loki..." She whispered, "If only I had had the chance..."

It was then that she felt a subtle pressure on her consciousness, the gentle press of another's magic. She sat bolt upright in bed, fear and anger engulfing her immediately, as she gazed around the dark room, unable to see clearly because of the lack of light. "Who is there?! Show yourself!"

She called her magic to her fingers, not yet releasing it, but keeping it ready should she need to defend herself. Then she heard a small rustle come from the corner of her room, as a large form melted out of the shadows, coming together to form a familiar silhouette.

"If you wish," came the reply, followed by a sigh, and tears sprang to her eyes immediately, her eyes widening as she gasped, clasping a hand to her mouth for fear she might scream.

Loki, in all his glory, skin back to normal, eyes a vibrant green, fully adorned with his armor and horned helmet, scepter in hand, stood before her, looking like he was somewhere between wincing and being nervous. After a few moments of awkward silence, their eyes locked, and they stared at each other for a long time. After a little while, Loki spoke, soft and quiet, "Hello, Witch."

"Loki..." Her voice was a broken whisper.

And then she was on her feet, barreling toward him. Loki went stumbling back into the wall as she rammed into him with her body, sending them both into the wall rather hard, as she wrapped her arms around his neck, burying her face into Loki's breastplate, gripping that signature green cape that always adorned his armor, and sobbing.

Loki looked down at the mortal beneath him, stunned as she cried into his armor, gripping his cape with both hands tightly. Gently, hesitantly, Loki wrapped his arms around her small form, pulling her in close to him, as she shook with the force of her tears. He gently rubbed circles into her back, before bringing a hand up to cup her head, rubbing it gently, careful not to push her too hard into his armor. After a few moments, her shaking slowed, and the sobs had all but stopped entirely. He let her go as she pulled away. He opened his mouth to speak, but before he could get anything out, her hand came down hard across his face, the slap echoing loudly throughout the room.

Loki turned his head back toward her slowly, taking a deep breath, having expected this type of reaction. After a few seconds the rage on her face dissipated, being replaced by a look of fear, joy, and...something Loki could not place...besides the anger of course.

Her voice was soft when she finally spoke, "Loki..."

"Yes?" He asked, gazing at her, awaiting what she had to say. After a few more moments she finally responded, saying, "You have your magic back."

"Yes." Loki replied, waiting for her to continue.

"Loki...how could you?" She took a deep breath, "How could you put me through that? I thought...I..." She went silent as the tears threatened to overcome her once more. Loki simply sighed, his gaze upon her softening, "I...I had too...I...I did not intend for it to hurt you so badly, I..." Loki struggled for the words to say as he watched her tear up again, so he blurted, "When I saw how bad it was hurting you I had to tell you the truth." His eyes widened, as he gulped, Wanda gazing at him incredulously, "What do you mean, 'the truth'?" Her eyes blazed red in fury, as Loki laughed nervously, trying to think of a way to cover his mistake. But had no such luck.

He sighed defeated, "I...did not die, because of this." It a wave of his hands, a book materialized in his hands, and he held it up for her to see.

"What is that?" She asked, looking it over in awe.

"It is the book of Hel. It controls the dead, and the lives of the living." Loki stated as he waved his arms once more, the book vanishing from his grip. "If names are written in a certain way, then one may...keep themselves from...perishing." Loki paused to allow Wanda to take in what he was saying before he finished, "I did so before Thor sealed away my magic. I figured that if I killed myself, my magic would be restored; and I was correct. And now here I am."

All he received was another slap, hard, across the face for his explanation. He sighed deeply once more, as he said to her in a soft voice like velvet, "I am truly sorry, I...never meant to hurt you. I did not even consider...I was a fool to not think of this."

Wanda was silent as she studied him with her eyes, and Loki prepared himself for another blow that never came. Instead, he felt Wanda reach up and grab one of the horns of his helmet in a tight grip, pulling him roughly down to her size, before she crushed their lips together, holding him in place by his helmet and kissing him roughly, pushing herself against him with all her might.

Loki gasped in surprise, before relaxing against her, gently cupping the back of her head to hold in her place, as he gently kissed her back.

His other arm snaked around her waist as he pulled her up toward him, straightening up and holding her tightly against him, as her hand gently released his helmet and instead cupped his face with both hands. She let out a loud sigh as she felt his arm tighten around her.

She could not imagine losing him...It had been a living hell to know that she had almost lost him...especially without telling him how she felt. But she would not do so again.

She kissed him once more, before pulling away an inch or two, looking into his emerald eyes, saying, "I think I love you, God of Mischief."

Loki did not answer, but instead kissed her once more, this time deeper, holding less back. Wanda moaned quietly in response as Loki slid his tongue into her mouth, and was slightly surprised when she offered no resistance to him.
He continued to kiss her as she felt her arms reach up behind his head, her magic unlocking his helmet as she slid it off his head, dropping it to the floor beside her and tangling her hands in his black hair. Loki moved his hands from her head down to her waist, before he slid her unzipped jacket from her shoulders, as she wiggled her arms to ease it's removal.

Loki's kisses progressively lowered, until he was kissing her neck, sucking gently and leaving small marks in his wake, listening to the small groans she emitted every time he would suck just a little bit harder. He shivered as a wave of excitement shot through him, as she raised his face back up to her, kissing him once more. She reached out for him, grabbing his hesitant hands and placing them on her hips, before returning her hands to his neck, stroking his hair gently.

He rested his hands on her hips for a few more seconds, before they traveled under her shirt, up her sides, rubbing gently, and Loki giggled as Wanda shivered, whispering into his lips, "That tickles." His hands stayed rooted to her sides, rubbing gently, until Wanda herself audibly whined, kissing him a little harder once before taking his hands and moving them to her chest.

At first Loki was hesitant, but at her insistence he began to fondle her, pushing her bra out of the way and pinching a nipple gently, earning a delighted noise from Wanda, that sent shivers down his spine. As he did this, he felt her slip her hands away from his neck, traveling down the front of his armor, and stopping at his waist, where the heavy armor broke off into combat pants.

Wanda kissed him just a little more passionately, trying to distract Loki as she worked her magic, using it to undo his pants. It was when she reached down toward them that Loki finally took notice, grabbing both her wrists in a tight hold, pulling his face a few inches away from hers, his voice a deeper tone than he remembered it, "Uh uh uh," he smiled a mischievous smile crossing his face in a rather malicious way, and then suddenly he was pushing into her.

Wanda gasped as she was forced backward by his enormous weight, and he kept on her until she was falling backward over the edge of the bed, the mattress cushioning her fall as the large Asgardian fell on top of her, holding his weight so that he did not crush her small mortal form.

He was back on her in a second, kissing her heatedly, slipping his tongue into her mouth, and moaning lightly as she responded accordingly. She wrapped her legs around him as he moved between them, careful not too crush her with his weight or his armor. She moaned loudly as she felt him press against her; and his kisses moved down once more as they traveled down her neck, down to her shoulder, where he bit down, hard.

"Ah!" She wiggled a little bit, but then still, arching up beneath him as a moan escaped her. Loki smiled into her skin, the insistent throbbing between his legs beginning to cause him mild discomfort. He sighed into her neck as he stilled his movements; there was nothing he wished to do more than to lay with her right here, right now, but he knew that he risked early discovery the longer he stayed. And such...activities might draw even more unwanted attention.

He sighed again, kissing her deeply once more, before using absolutely all of his willpower to remove himself from her, leaning back and standing back up, taking a few steps backward from the bed, leaving a devastated Wanda on the bed in his wake.

"What? Where are you going?" Wanda asked him, sitting up to watch him as he redid his pants and reached down to grab his helmet from the floor, placing it back onto his head and locking it in place. Once he was finished, he answered, "Now..." He searched for a way to say this without having her be angry with him, "Now is not the right time. Believe me, there is nothing I'd want to do more but..."

"But what?" Came Wanda's angry voice as she put her jacket back on, not sure if she should be angry or not, missing the warmth of his body on hers.

"I cannot...be discovered right now. I have not finished...Ahem." He cleared his throat in the middle and hoped she had not heard the last part. He did not think she had, and he was silently thankful for it. He gazed at Wanda, then back to the door, then back again.

Because of what he was planning...he was not sure if he would ever get this chance again. And he really didn't want to pass it up because he...

He hoped she would not hate him.

"But why? What stops you from being with me? Is it me?" Damn. Loki sighed. He had hoped to avoid this. But he did have a plan B that he had accounted for. He sighed, stringing together a what he hoped was convincing explanation.

"No, that's not it at all!" Loki exclaimed, and he crossed the room over to her, grasping her by the wrists, "You see, I had...an ulterior motive, for hiding from everyone." Wanda looked up at him with large eyes as he continued, "Asgard is in a state of...unrest, I would say. I needed to finish what I was doing there before I returned. So you see, if I was to be discovered to early, they would never let me out of their sights long enough to finish my task. Do you see?"

Wanda nodded, "Oh. I understand now."

He reached up to stroke her face, "Good. Oh! That reminds me, I made something for you. I couldn't help but notice how...unprotected you are when you fight, so..." Wanda watched him in curiosity as, with a wave of his hands, a set of armor appeared in his hands. Wanda gasped, "Is that...for me?"

Loki nodded, setting it on the end table beside him, "Yes. I made it especially for you. It's been...enhanced also." Wanda gazed at it, as it set on the table. It was crafted beautifully in silver Asgardian metal, with red trims and a small scarlet cape in the back. The helmet was what she enjoyed most about it though. The helmet was not so much a helmet as it was a faceplate, and on the face plate were two small horns, not even close to the size of Loki's, but still they were there.

"It's beautiful." Wanda thanked him, in awe.

""It will protect you, above all. That is all I was concerned for." Loki replied, "Now, I must leave." Loki turned toward the door, getting ready to cloak himself with magic, when he felt Wanda's hand clasp his wrist, pulling him away from the door and back to her, a smile on her face.

"No. You're not going anywhere."

Thor sat, staring at the stone floor. The image kept replaying itself in his mind over and over. He watched the betrayed look in Loki's eyes, he watched his brother's graceful form crumple and fall...And it was all his fault. Sure, Thor had watched Loki 'die' twice already, but nothing had compared to this. Watching the blade pierce his brother's chest, watching him fall, the life leave his eyes as his skin turned gray at the loss of blood...

It created a pain so deep within him that he wanted nothing more than to lie down and die beside his brother. He was no Asgardian, he was no prince. He was no God of Thunder. He had killed his younger brother. His family.

He didn't even have any tears left to cry. His eyes stung and his head hurt, his wrist throbbed, and the wounds on his chest had begun their bleeding again...a painful seeping that began to bleed through the bandages the longer he left it go. He could not even sleep. Every time he closed his eyes he saw his brother's bloody body, staring up at him with empty eyes...

Thor's hand subconsciously raised to rub against the bandages on his chest; He winced as he did so; even now they hurt severely, and even movement hurt. He had remembered the warning Bruce had given him...not to move to suddenly or he would rip open the wounds...and he had.

But Thor assumed he deserved it. He relished in the pain they caused.

It made him feel a little better.

He remembered falling unconscious and...he began to wonder if it had really been a dream, when he'd seen his mother and father. But then a strange thought occurred to him. Maybe he had actually died. Maybe the dream was some type of warning, or a premonition...maybe to this. Maybe he hadn't figured it out in time. Maybe he could have stopped Loki...the maybes went on and on, making his head spin and his heart hurt.

It was then that he fully noticed the location of the stab wounds on his chest, and his eyes widened in realization as he gazed down at them, surprised.

He should be dead.

It was then that it dawned on him and he headed for where the Avenger sat, discussing their most terrible situation. The room went silent as Thor entered, and he looked around and felt rather awkward as he asked, "What were you discussing?"

Tony answered first, "I asked how the hell Loki brought Quicksilver back to us."

Thor inhaled deeply, "I think I have an answer for that." The room went silent as everyone, especially Quicksilver, leaned in to listen as Thor began his speech. "You see, in Asgard, unlike here, we are raised knowing of the vast knowledge of our lands and the various other realms, including history, lore, and the such. They also teach of Valhalla, and Hel, the lands of the dead. The ruler of the dead is an ancient Goddess named Hela, who holds what we call the book of Hel. It holds the names of everyone ever born or created in all the nine realms. When they die, there name is either crossed out of the book, or check marked. My father told me that it is the book that allows Hela to control the dead. It is possible that Loki somehow managed to...apprehend...the book himself."

"You're kidding me?" Jane's voice rang out, "You're saying he not only went to the afterlife, but stole a book, and defied the laws of life itself?"

Thor nodded. "That is exactly what I am saying."

"But...then...that would make him..." Steve began, but quieted down in thought. Thor finished it for him, "A wielder of untold amounts of power."

And then everyone was suddenly a little afraid of Loki. Steve asked, "Do you know for certain that Loki had this, this, book of Hell?" Thor nodded, displaying his injured chest to them all, "I assume that he changed my name in the book as well. Obviously, I should be dead. But here I stand, recovering as if this were not a mortal wound, when it obviously is. I'm sure you can see where I'm coming from."

They all nodded, in awe.

Tony, who had been silently listening for most of the conversation, suddenly spoke, "If Loki has the power to keep people from dying, than what's to say that he can't do that to himself too?"

Then suddenly everyone was jumping from their seats and running for the chamber.

When they entered, it was not what they found that shocked them; but what they didn't find. Loki's body was gone, the dagger that had rested in his chest was now imbedded in the ground; the pool of blood that had seeped from the body spread on the ground.

No body is sight...

"No!" Thor bellowed, "It's not possible! Where is his body!?" Thor demanded, gazing around the chamber, than back at the Avengers, a sullen look on his face. "If we can't find that body...then that confirms it. Loki has...the book."

Loki hesitated above her, but was reassured by a gentle kiss on his lips, as she pulled him toward her with her legs, which stayed firmly wrapped around him. His armor lay in a pile on the floor, along with whatever Wanda had been wearing, and her bedroom sat locked, the darkness thick and perpetual. He positioned and prepared himself, but then stopped to ask her, "You have done this before, no?"

There was a moment of silence, before Wanda shook her head no. Loki deadpanned, but sighed defeated. He placed a gentle kiss on her lips to reassure her as he warned, "Then this will hurt."

"What?" Wanda asked, suddenly nervous. But Loki smiled at her, kissing her again lovingly, "Don't worry, I would never hurt you on purpose. It will hurt, but only at first." She nodded in agreement with him, relaxing and leaning her head back on the bed as he whispered in her ear, causing her to shiver, "Then I promise nothing but the purest of ecstasy." Loki giggled, steadying and positioning himself. Loki began pushing himself into her slowly, going as easy as possible, gasping at the tight heat that surrounded him, resisting the urge to begin moving as Wanda let out the beginnings of a squeal.

"Silence!" Loki hissed, clasping a hand to her mouth as fast as possible, "Shhhh..." Loki whispered, holding her mouth as tight as possible, as he pushed the rest of the way into her, stopping only when he was sure e was sheathed to the hilt within her. He watched as her eyes filled with tears, but they did not spill over. She blinked them away, gazing at him. After a few moments of agonizing stillness, she nodded for him to continue. He removed his hand from her mouth, as he kissed her again. When he pulled away she said quietly, "Go ahead. Move."

He began his thrusting slowly, and was relieved as movement began easier with each of his thrusts. It had been such a long time since Loki had been with anyone...and she felt so good.

Wanda moaned as his thrusts began to go deeper, and when he was sure she was ready, they got just a little bit harder, faster...

He did hold back however, for fear of breaking his delicate little mortal. "Loki," His name left her lips as a whisper, and her moaning increased with his movements.

"Do you like this?" Loki asked, unsure of whether or not he was pleasing her, but the moans he received in response were satisfying enough for him. He could have lasted much longer, but he doubted that mortals had the same amount of stamina that they did in Asgard. He sped up his movements in time with hers, as she groaned, "Ah, Loki, I'm gonna..."

She didn't finish, but Loki didn't need her too. He new what she was gonna say. "I know darling, me too." Loki answered her, as his movements got a little more erratic.

It was when her moaning got louder, her toes curling, muscles clenching, that she clamped down around him in her ecstasy, and he released...deep within her, as he thrust a few more times before stilling above her, both of them sweaty and breathing hard, Loki resting his forehead on her shoulder, wide eyed and thoroughly mind fucked.

"I love you." Wanda's voice was quiet as she tried to slow her breathing.

Loki hesitated...before he answered finally, "I love you, too."

"The body's nowhere to be found." Natasha said to Steve and the rest of them, who sat in the Chamber. Moments ago they had all split up to search the area for Loki's body, but none of them had been successful n finding it.

It had taken them about two hours to do so, and now they were back together, and Thor's face became suddenly extremely serious. "Then that's it then," Thor said, gazing around the chamber, before bending down to pick up Loki's dagger, that sat embedded in the floor where Loki's body had rested. Thor gripped it, staring at the familiar blade for a few long moments, hands gripping the handle tightly.

"Then he has the book."

"You mean he's alive?" Steve asked, gazing at Thor who continued to stare at the wonderfully crafted blade in his hands. "That is exactly what I am saying." The room went silent, before Steve spoke up once more, simply out of curiosity. "Why would Loki disappear like that for so long? What could he possible need to do that he had to hide from us?"

Thor thought for a long time, gazing around, before saying, "I...I don't know..." Then it hit him. If Loki had been alive since the Dark World, then that would mean that he had done something very similar to this...why would Loki...and that's when everything began to fall into place.

"No..." Thor whispered, "No, Loki...you..."

"What is it, Thor?" Natasha asked, confused by his sudden silence. Thor answered her after a few more minutes of silence, "I think...Loki..."

"Tell us!" Steve yelled, everyone beginning to get tense.

"I thought Loki had been dead since the Dark World. But he proved me wrong. As I'm assuming he did this time as well. And you all know that Loki's every move has been for a singular purpose. To gain the throne of Asgard."

"Yes..." Steve encouraged, waiting as Thor began speaking once more.

"After I thought Loki had been killed I spoke to my Father...though I'm not sure he really was my father anymore, but I told him...that I wanted to be with Jane. I...I was a fool. Thinking my brother had perished I...relinquished my rights to the throne. And what other purpose would Loki need to get away from us for a time other than..."

"Usurping the throne." Steve finished Thor's sentence for him, as he watched Thor's hands clench into fists, a look of anger spreading across his face. He raised his right arm, holding it out, and suddenly Mjolnir was flying toward him, landing perfectly in Thor's outstretched hand. Thor then turned to the Avengers, a look of anger and determination on his face.

"We need to get to Asgard, immediately."

"And how do you plan on getting us there without Loki?" Tony asked, startling quite a lot of people, who must have forgotten he was there because of his constant silent. Thor smiled, answering, "I could use Mjolnir. Or," He laughed, "I could call Heimdal."

"Okay." Tony shrugged, satisfied by the answer. Thor nodded, "Then let's go." He looked up to the ceiling, getting ready to call Heimdal, but he was interrupted by Quicksilver, who waved his hand in front of himself.

"Hey," Quicksilver asked, a concerned and rather worried look on his face, "we can't leave yet!"

"Why not kid?" Clint asked, rubbing his shoulder, which happened to be incredibly sore.

"Because," He said, "Wanda's missing."

'And it all comes together...'