Not a lot of Loki in this chapter, but just bear with me : ) I want to get the stage set for more to come!

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I practically ran over to Thor as he came in through another door on the far side of the room. He picked me up and swung me around in a bone crushing hug. At least it would have been to a normal person.

I heard Stark snort. "Pul-ease," he said sarcastically, drawing out the word into two syllables.

I ignored him, already putting him on the list of people I probably wouldn't like here. "Where have you been? I tried to call dozens of times. "

He put me down, an annoyed look entering his bright blue eyes. "These people took my… my…"

"Cell phone?" I asked laughing.

"Yes. My cell phone away the moment I set foot on their base in Tennessee. They would not allow me to make contact with anyone."

I looked down. "Same old SHIELD," I said.

Thor nodded. "So. Did you locate Loki?" he asked me lowering his voice.

I sucked in a breath. What could I tell him? That I had found his brother and fallen head over heels for the god of mischief? He didn't seem to notice my hesitation, and I was spared answering his question when Fury spoke up.

"So I take it you two know each other." The question was directed at me. I nodded my head. "So that just leaves Barton. Stark!" Fury barked. "That is not a toy!"

I looked over at Stark who was holding a rather dangerous looking piece of equipment. It resembled a gun, but the end curled out in different directions. To tell the truth, I had no idea what it was.

"Calm down, Chief," he said in his lazy voice. "I'm fixing it." He emphasized the last sentence like he was talking to a five year-old while waving the gun around.

Fury glowered at him. If he had had both eyes it would have been one hell of a death stare. "I told you not to call me that, don't forget who is your superior, son," he shot back.

Stark waved him off. Yup. Definitely on my black list.

Fury went over and took the gun-like object from Stark's hands. "Make yourself useful and go find Barton."

Thor had been watching this affair with a look of utter bewilderment. Rogers had looked up from a book he was reading and was looking on with disgust. Banner seemed to be amused.

Fury turned back to me. "This little task could take him all day seeing as it's something he doesn't want to do," Fury said. "Let's get you to the debriefing room. "

The debriefing room was two levels below the headquarters that Thor had been in. I followed Fury down the hall and into a room with reflective windows. You know, like the ones you only see in detective movies? The lights were dim and I could barely make out a table and chairs. I walked over to them and sat down. Fury turned on a lamp on the table.

That was better.

"So, Miss Parker," he said. "What's your specialty? Judging by the footage we caught of you stopping that robbery you obviously have some skill in the martial arts." I snorted.

"Actually, I don't have any professional training. I figured all that out on my own. I'm a physics major, not a warrior."

"Even better. With training you'll be ten times stronger and faster than you are now. But. Something tells me there's more to you than meets the eye. What is it? Telepathy? Ability to disappear? Super strength?"

I looked down at my hands folded neatly in my lap. Could I trust him?

"And how do you know Thor?"

I looked up, a snap decision taking place in my brain. I decided to trust these guys. "It's all connected really," I began.

"Oh? Then please. Do tell," he said, almost mocking me.

Then I told him about Thor, how I got my powers, coming to New York to work, etcetera. I conveniently "forgot" to mention anything about Loki other than the fact that I had been trying to locate his whereabouts.

When I was done, Fury looked at me, weighing my words and deciding whether or not to believe them. Then he stood up. "Thank you very much, Miss. Parker," he said. "Based on what you've told me you will make a fine addition to our team. With a little training of course."

"Wait. Do I have a say in any of this?"

"Just come to the meeting tomorrow morning. 08:00 hours. Sharp. Don't be late. We'll show you to your quarters for the night."

I stood up, a sinking feeling entered my stomach. I had the feeling I would be here for a while.

My rooms branched off of the main room where I had met the others. It was nice, but it wasn't home. It was also very blue. Everything from floor to ceiling was a shade of dark blue. The bed was made of a dark mahogany wood, but the bedspread was a simple blue cover. The entire outer wall was a glass window, and I could see New York City's skyline.

Fury gave me a few minutes to myself, so I washed my face and brushed my hair out, pulling it back in a pony tail. The bathroom wasn't much better as far as color scheme. Everything was a bright white. The toilet, the shower, everything. It was almost blinding when I turned the light on.

There was a small walk-in closet on the far side of the room. I held my breath, expecting a lime-green closet, but to my pleasant surprise it was a nice, normal mixture of browns and white. Black clothing lined the racks. I had always looked good in black.

I pulled a pair of leggings down as well as a form-fitting short-sleeved shirt. Lining the floorboards were several pairs of boots. I checked each one. Size ten, just my size. Clearly, SHIELD had never meant on letting me go anywhere.

I put the shirt on and stepped into the pants. I slipped the boots on, tucking the form fitting leggings into the boots. The shoes were surprisingly comfortable.

Lastly, I slipped my leather jacket on over the tank top. It all went together perfectly. I pulled the knives out of my pocket and examined them. I hadn't had much time to look at them.

One was a pearl-handled switchblade. I launched the spring and the blade shot out. I set the blade back into place and turned my attention to the other. This one was a boot knife. And, lucky for me, I now had boots to wear it on. I slipped the sheathed blade down inside my right boot, though, so it wouldn't be in plain sight. Its weight against my outer ankle felt reassuring.

I heard a knock on my door. "Come in," I said quietly. Thor stuck his head in.

"You look prepared," he said to me. I smiled at him.

"I feel prepared."

"So you have been roped into this as well, then." It wasn't a question.

I nodded. "But, really. What else was there for me to do?" I asked.

He let out a laugh. "Well, tomorrow we start your training."

"Training?"

"Yes. Fury wants you to be as fit and ready to fight as the rest of us," Thor replied.

I crossed my arms, shaking my head. "I hope he realizes I could take him down in an instant."

Thor smiled again. "He is much stronger than you give him credit for. There is food outside if you want it," he added.

As if on cue my stomach growled.

"Ok."

I followed Thor outside to the common area. Fury had brought in sub sandwiches. A lot of sub sandwiches.

Thor walked over to the table and handed me one, taking three for himself. Rogers had done the same. I looked over at Banner who was sitting in the corner with a huge textbook in his lap, nibbling on a piece of crust. Everyone was sitting in different spots, spread as far away from each other as the room allowed. This was no team. They couldn't stand each other. I went over and sat down at a table next to Thor.

He had already scarfed down a sandwich by the time I reached him. A piece of lettuce was caught in his beard.

My thoughts drifted to Loki. The two brothers were so different. Thor was so caring, so morally centered. Loki was conniving and scheming, not caring who he hurt as long as he got what he wanted. It bothered me that Loki was the one I wanted to talk to right now. What did that say about me?

We know what we are, but not what we may be. I could still see his flowing script on cream colored paper. Oh. How I ached for him right now. No. I pulled myself from those thoughts. If I was going to work for SHIELD I was going to have to push all my thoughts about Loki away. Keep my mind on the mission at hand.

I knew exactly why I hadn't said anything about Loki to Fury or Thor. That bothered me even more than wanting to be with him. Why on earth had I chosen him? Out of all the possibilities he had been the one I wanted from the moment I met him.

I looked down at my half-eaten sandwich. I suddenly wasn't hungry anymore.

"Are you going to eat that?" Thor asked me, pulling me from my thoughts.

I looked down at the sandwich again, then slid it over to Thor. "I'm pretty tired," I said to Thor. "Long day and all that. I think I'm going to go to bed." I looked over at the clock on the wall. It was only seven p.m.

Thor looked at me. "Ok. Sleep well. You have an even bigger day tomorrow." I forced a smile, pushed my chair in, and made my way down the hall to my room.

I walked into the blue room and made a beeline for my bag. I changed out of my new clothes and pulled on a pair of sweats and t-shirt that I had grabbed before I left home. I grabbed the bag I had slipped my toothbrush, toothpaste, and face soap into, then turned to go to the bathroom.

I stopped dead when I saw another piece of cream colored paper sitting at the foot of the blue bed.