Disclaimer: I own nothing!

Chapter 10

Peggy and Bucky had been the first to see them arrive back at the hotel, and Peggy soon had them in a tight hug, and was smiling widely as she had spotted the ring. "I'm so happy for you both!" She said, just before Bucky ambushed them in an even tighter hug.

"You finally actually asked her! Damn Steve, I thought you were never going to do it!"

"Hey, I was just trying to find the right moment."

Suddenly the lift doors opened, and Natasha stepped out. She stopped short at the sight of Bucky all but having the two of them in a headlock and grinned. "Did you actually get round to asking?"

"Bucky, can't breathe!" Eve said. She was sure he was not fully aware of the strength of his metal arm. Considering that was the one he had hugged her with, it was starting to cause problems. He quickly released both of them at that.

"Sorry, Eve," he grinned.

"We should go let the others know," Steve grinned. That grin had not left his face all the way back to the hotel, and Eve was sure it was not going to leave any time soon. Yet again, she was the same.

"Congrats both," Natasha grinned.

They all got into the elevator. "Any idea of a date yet?"

"I've only just asked her Pegs," Steve laughed.

"Well, if we could do it before any way to get everyone back to their time line is found then that means Peggy and the Commandos will be there in full," Eve pointed out. "All your friends."

Steve nodded. "Yeah, I do like that idea. Do you have any preferences?"

"Well, there needs to be time to plan a wedding," Eve said.

"If you rope Pepper into it that will help. She has good connections after being Tony's PA for so long and now running his company," Natasha pointed out.

"Then let's find out about the longest waiting time something might take and then go by that one. For example if the soonest any venues are available is February and everything else can be arranged before then we can choose a date then," Steve suggested.

Eve leant into him. "I like that idea," she said. She knew that Steve would be happier if his friends could be there, and she had grown to like them too. Even the agents Peggy worked with were nice enough. If always a little surprised at her and Natasha. It would be really nice to have them at the wedding.

The elevator opened and she looked at Steve. "I think we should probably go and see my dad first."

"Can I get my shield first?"

Eve laughed. "You managed to ask him for permission to marry me, I think you've done the hard part."

"No, that was hypothetical. As far as he's concerned you could have still said no."

Eve just laughed again and tugged on his hand, leading him down the hall to Loki's room. She knocked on the door and a moment later he opened it. "Eve, is something wrong?"

Practically bouncing, Eve held up her left hand. "Steve asked me to marry him!"

Loki surprised both of them by smiling and then hugging Eve before holding out his hand to Steve to shake. "Congratulations. If there is anything I can do to help with the preparations, let me know."

"Thanks dad," Eve grinned. "We got accosted in the lobby by Peggy, Bucky and then Natasha, so they may have already told everyone."

"Yeah. We might want to tell someone else just to be able to have the chance," Steve said, craning his neck, just in time to see Thor come out of a room and head straight for them almost at a run.

"Congratulations on your engagement!" He said loudly as he approached them.

"And I think now all of London knows," Steve muttered.

Gwen leant into him. She had a feeling that tonight was going to last longer than they thought. She was wrong. The night went fast. It was the next morning where things started to stretch out.

The first they heard of it, was when there was a knock on the bedroom door. Steve had opened it to see a member of the hotel staff there, smiling, and holding up a basket full of various goodies. "The management sent me to give you and Miss Potter this, as a congratulations for the happy occasion, on behalf of the hotel," she said.

A bit shocked, Steve accepted the basket and thanked her. "Could I ask, how did they know?"

"It's all over the news, Captain," she said, before leaving.

"Eve, we might want to turn on the news," he said, closing the door.

Frowning, Eve picked up the remote and turned on the TV, before switching to This Morning, where they were just finishing up a story.

"And back to our main story this morning, news of a very special engagement reached us earlier on, Eve Potter and Steve Rogers, most notably known as members of the Superhero group The Avengers, have gotten engaged last night," the man was saying, "And we do have quite a treat now, the full video footage caught of the exact moment of the proposal."

The image changed to one of both of them in the park. And it did show the entire thing. Whoever had filmed this had been close enough to pick up on everything that was said.

"How did we not even notice?" Steve said.

"We were more than a little preoccupied," Eve said, but it bothered her too. If that had been a wizard then it could be a lot worse than their moment, which was meant to be private, being publicized on national, and most probably international, television.

The hosts of the show were back on and talking. "This is going to be the first ever superhero wedding," one was saying.

"Indeed, some people online are already talking about it, people are imagining it's going to be as big as a royal wedding. Speculation is rife around the whole thing. When is it going to be? Who will be there? What will she wear, and for that matter what will he wear? Will it be military dress uniform for the Captain, will Eve Potter look into her father's heritage and wear something from Asgard and if so, what that would be."

Eve sighed. "We aren't going to get any peace or quiet, are we?"

Steve wrapped his arm around her. "Not until all this dies down. Let's go talk to Pepper and Tony, see what they say. They're the ones with the most experience dealing with the press."

What Pepper and Tony suggested was another interview, something to answer at least some of the questions going round.

"It didn't really work the last time," Eve said.

"Trust me, this will stop some of the speculation," Pepper said.

"We can organise it for tomorrow, before we go back," Tony said. "There's a lot of reporters already outside the hotel. And an awful lot of studios are already reaching out. Even from back home. In fact, doing two, one here, one there, would probably be a good idea."

Steve rubbed his eyes and sighed. "Fine, whatever helps us do this in peace."

So, the next day, they were in a television studio once more and doing an interview. Not once did Eve let go of Steve's hand. Pepper, Natasha, Peggy and Angie had all helped her with an outfit. The dress was green and had long sleeves. It fell to her knees and was made from a warm material. Then, there were the thick black tights and black ankle boots, and a black dress coat. "It'll look smart and keep you warm when outside," Pepper had said. "And there's no obvious brands, which makes it easier for people to imitate your style- people like that. It looks like something anyone could wear."

Eve had blushed at the reminder that she had fans that liked to imitate her, especially what she wore. Steve had just thrown on black trousers, a blue shirt and a heavy jacket. But he still looked damn well perfect. He could have turned up in tracksuit bottoms and a vest top and people would not have cared, Eve thought.

When they were sat on the sofa and the cameras were rolling, the television hosts kicked things off. "So, what made you propose in Britain, Steve?"

"I've just been trying to wait for the right time, and I had been building up to it. That it happened to be here was not a specific choice. The night had already gone well, and we were enjoying ourselves, and I just couldn't think of a better time," he grinned.

"Eve, what was your first thought, when Steve got down on one knee to propose?"

Eve smiled up at her soul mate. "That I couldn't believe that just deciding on a random apartment had led to that moment. If I hadn't moved in, me and Steve wouldn't have met when we did. We may never have met."

"So, has a date or time been set? Any decisions been made?"

"Not really. Pepper Potts has been in contact with a few wedding planners, who we'll meet with and decide who would be best to help us out. After that, the plans will develop from there," Steve answered.

"We really don't have anything worked out. The only thing that's been decided on is that the rest of the team are obviously getting invites," Eve added.

"Already rumours are starting up, that you two might be already having a baby?"

Both of them denied that heavily. "That's not happening at the moment," Steve responded.

"It wouldn't really be the best idea. Right now we still have issues with the wizarding community," Eve explained. "Not too long ago, I and a few others were attacked and I was hurt. It's definitely not the best time for us to have children right now, and we both know that."

Steve was nodding. "We both want them, one day, just not right now. There's an awful lot to do and deal with. Us having children would just put those same children in danger, and we don't want that."

"You want to get this issue resolved. What exactly is the issue the wizards have?"

"As far as they see it, I have broken their biggest rule. Do not reveal that magic exists. I made a personal choice, that day in New York, to protect my soul mate and the people of the city I live in, and that meant having to use my magic. I didn't think of the law, or of the many cameras in the city, but of the threat at that point. And I acted. And I don't regret it, not for a moment. But they do. They are terrified of change, of being forced into the light, but there are so many wondrous things magic can do. They could use this opportunity to merge with the world at large, prove we can help in so many ways, but they are digging their heels into the sand. And blaming me. They think that, by holding me accountable, things will return to normal. But that is never going to happen now."

"And they are in for a shock if they ever come after you again," Steve said, pulling her into his side.

Loki was staring at his wrist. He had been for the last half an hour. It was no longer scarred over. Her name was back, as if it had never left. Lily Potter, which had once been Evans. He stood abruptly and left the room. He had to go and talk to his daughter. This affected them both.

A/N: Sorry for the wait. What do you think?