A/N: I'm working on my Loki costume, and let me tell you. His mask is a pain in the you-know-where. I'm scared of his vest thing.

Disclaimer: If you're on the ninth chapter, you should know by now that I don't own any of the characters in this story. None with names, at least. Yes. I own the chubby mall cop. ;)

Chapter nine

Time to Say Goodbye

When Clint and Natasha wake up, they find the kids gone. The agents scramble off of the couch they had been sleeping on and search the house, calling out the children's names. There isn't any answer. They meet back up in the living room and go into the front yard together. The three little ones aren't there, either. Then the two partners head out the back door. Loki's kids aren't there, either. Clint turns to Natasha with a look of dread in his eyes.

"Loki's gonna kill us," he whispers.

Natasha still looks determined. "Not if he doesn't know. All we have to do is find them and get them to promise not to tell him that we lost them."

Clint nods, liking the sound of that idea. It's always Natasha who gets the good ideas. Always Natasha who knows what to do in times of trouble. She's the redhead with the plan.

When the phone rings from inside, Clint's eyes go wide again. He runs inside and answers the phone trying not to sound too breathless. He fails.

"He-he-hello-o?"

"Barton, you said that you could take care of them!"

Uh-oh. Angry dad on the phone. Clint doesn't even know how the black haired god knows that his kids are missing. Then he hears the laughter in the background. Little boys' laughter. A pair of little boys laughing. Must be Narfi and Vali. But how in the world - any of the worlds - did they get all the way to the hospital so fast? Without a car, to boot.

"Um, we can. It's just...we fell asleep last night, and...they kind of...got away?"

"I can see that. It is very clear that they got away. But the point of babysitting a child is to keep watch over them. Which you obviously did not do. Is it really so hard? You and Miss Romanoff said that you could take care of them, and you have not. You let them get halfway across town before you even noticed that they were gone. What if one of them had been hurt? What if Hela had gotten hit by one of those bloody cars you mortals are so insistent upon using everywhere you go? What if she had died!?"

Clint can tell that Loki is panicking. He isn't just mad, he's scared. He believes that those things could have happened.

"You're right. That could've happened, Loki. But it didn't. So just calm down, will ya?"

"Did you not hear me? I asked you to watch over them! You know, in Asgard, you would be killed for letting them get so far away. For putting them in danger."

"Well, we're not in Asgard, are we? We're on Earth. Where there aren't those crazy laws! Do you want me to go get them for you?"

"You think I would trust you? Just get out of my house and lock the door. You will never even look at my children again. Do you understand me?"

Clint opens and closes his mouth. He doesn't really know what to say to that. He didn't mean for this to happen, so why is Loki acting like he sent the kids out on their own on purpose? Why is he acting like he let them go on some stupid quest through a strange land? Then it dawns on him. He did. Loki's children aren't used to Earth. They don't know how much different it is. They don't understand the dangers of this world. Clint doubts that they have even been near a street unless they were in a car themselves. Three little kids - one with crutches - just walked all the way to the hospital, which is at least seven miles from Loki's house. The streets are pretty busy to and from the hospital, too. And they didn't have any adults with them on their perilous hike.

"Look, Loki. I'm sorry. I really am. Is there anything I can do to make up for it? I mean, I know that you're pretty upset. I am, too. But there's gotta be something that will make you not hate me, at least. We were such good friends."

Clint can hear Loki sigh. He sounds like he's almost ready to forgive the archer. Then he says, "The only thing you can do is just stay away from them. Stay away from all of us."

Natasha notices the look on Clint's face and moves closer to him. She can't hear anything on Loki's end, though, so she doesn't know what's going on. She looks at her partner and asks softly, "What is it, Clint? Is everything okay?"

Clint answers with a shake of his head. He says into the phone, "Okay. That's fine. I'm sorry. I really am."

"That's all well and good, but being sorry does not, by any means, make it all better. This isn't just some scrape that you can kiss it and make it better. This is real, Barton."

Clint is dumbstruck. He says quietly, "Right. Where do you want me to put the keys?"

"There's a loose brick beside the steps. Slide it out and put the keys in the hole. The brick should go back in easily. Just leave them there."

"Okay. Anything else?"

Loki is quiet for a moment before saying, "No. There isn't anything else."

Once they end their phone call, Clint turns to Natasha. He looks extremely upset. He says quietly, "I messed up. Big time."

Loki sighs and slips his cell phone back into his pocket. He looks at his family. Hela and the twins are crowded around Sigyn, who holds the new baby. She gazes up at him with a tired, sad expression. She tries to smile, but Loki can easily tell that it is forced. He moves over to her and gently strokes back her hair.

"I'm sorry, darling. I thought they would be able to take care of them. I guess I was wrong."

Sigyn closes her eyes and leans against his touch. She doesn't blame Clint or Natasha, but can't help but feel a little let down. She had trusted them just as much as Loki. Maybe more. Things had been going so well, too. She cracks her eyes open slightly and peeks at her three children, each trying to get a better look at the baby. Why had they left in the first place? Had one of the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents hurt them in any way? No, that can't be it. They look too happy. Maybe it was because it was the first time that they had gone more than a day without their parents.

She opens her eyes fully and addresses Vali, "Why did you three leave?"

Vali looks a bit embarrassed as he says quietly, "We missed you."

Sigyn smiles faintly. She says, "You worried us, sweetheart. You could have been hurt. You do realize this, right?"

Vali nods. He feels like he has let his parents down. Like they had been counting on him to keep his siblings in line, and he had failed on his one very important mission. His voice is so soft that it is barely audible when he whispers, "I'm sorry, Mama. I didn't mean to scare you."

Sigyn leans up and gently kisses his forehead. She says softly in his ear, "It's okay now. Just promise me that you won't do it again. Can you promise that?"

Vali nods slightly. "I promise."

Sigyn smiles again. "Thank you."

Clint slides into the driver's seat and closes the door. He buckles his seatbelt and puts his hands on the steering wheel, his eyes straight ahead. Natasha can tell that he is fighting off tears as she fastens her own seatbelt. She wishes she could say something, but doesn't know what to say.

Clint swallows and asks quietly, "You think they'll find them?"

Natasha nods. They had put notes in the kids' bedrooms, explaining why they wouldn't be able to see them anymore. The notes were hard to write, because both of the assassins were fighting off tears. It seems like the hardest enemies to battle are your own feelings.

Clint nods and takes off. They can hear the gravel crunching under the car as it moves slowly down the driveway. Natasha watches the receding house as Clint backs away from it. Before long it is hidden behind trees as Clint drives down the road. He seems to be driving a lot slower than usual, and Natasha believes that it's because he isn't quite ready to say goodbye to the kids. He isn't ready to not see them anymore. They weren't only little kids to babysit, but friends. People who didn't care about who they used to be or what they did for a living, but who knew them as people who would take care of them and play with them. As these thoughts invade Natasha's mind, she feels tears prick at the corners of her eyes. It wouldn't do to cry, though. She might mess up her makeup.

The radio stays off for the entire ride. This is strange, because usually Clint has it turned all the way up, blaring his music as he speeds down the road. This time it is the complete opposite. He drives much more slowly than usual and the silence is harder to deal with than the overly loud rock music.

Natasha pulls her book out, but finds herself reading each line multiple times. She just can't keep her mind wrapped around it. Her thoughts keep going back to the look Hela gave her when she had said, "I don't want them if I can't be here. They won't be as pretty."

Clint has to slam on the brakes when the same car as before runs a red light. He breaks into a grin and shouts, "Three times! They've almost hit us three times!" If Natasha wasn't shocked enough by his words, she gets her fill when he starts laughing like a maniac. Luckily he's still able to drive properly.

"Clint, what's wrong with you?" She sounds very concerned. Very, very concerned.

Clint shakes his head. "Nothing. I just can't believe that this happened. It just seems so...staged."

He makes a last-minute decision and turns into the hospital parking lot, earning a few honks from other drivers. Natasha's eyes are wide and she's holding onto the sides of the seat tightly as he whips into a parking space. He unbuckles and climbs out of the car. When he's out, sliding the keys into his pocket, he looks down at Natasha and asks, "Are you comin'?"

Natasha nods hesitantly and unbuckles her own seatbelt. She gets out of the car much more slowly than Clint did. She is pretty worried for his mental health and stability. She really is.

"Cliiiiint? Are you okay?" She drags out his name, making herself sound even more unsure.

Clint nods fervently. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just want to say goodbye. And maybe we'll be able to convince Loki not to be such a stick in the mud."

Natasha nods slowly. She has a bit of trouble keeping up with him as he bounds up to the hospital. He's already taller, and he's moving so quickly that it is incredibly hard to keep up with him. She usually doesn't have so much trouble, and she's amazed by how determined his long strides are.

When they finally get up to the doors, Clint holds open the door for a little girl in a wheelchair. They have to stand forever, because apparently her whole family went with her. There's a woman holding a baby, maybe the girl's mother. Then there's her father, three siblings, a grandmother, a grandfather, and some other couple walking with them. Clint taps his foot, growing impatient. But he holds the door anyway, too polite to close it on the family.

After the procession passes, the two S.H.I.E.L.D. agents walk up to the desk. Clint gets there ahead of Natasha, unsurprisingly.

"We're here to see Sigyn."

The woman looks up over her glasses, unimpressed. "Sigyn who?"

Clint looks at Natasha. "Uh...um, well...Sigyn...Lokiswife?"

The woman rolls her eyes. "I assume you know her? Even if you don't know her name."

Clint nods. "Yeah. She's a friend."

The woman looks down and pulls open a drawer. She flips through several files before pulling one out and handing it to Natasha. "Here you go. These are her papers, explaining her condition. Be sure to follow all the rules. Last I checked she had a migraine, so be quiet. I don't want to have to shove you out, but I will if needed."

Natasha nods, muttering her thanks. She looks down at the papers and says, "Come on, Clint. Follow me, this time."

Clint grumbles, but follows her down the hall. When they reach Sigyn's room, Natasha stops him.

"You know when I'm really easy to anger? When I have headaches and stuff? Well, Sigyn's gonna be that way. So be quiet."

"You mean I can't say anything?" Clint looks very upset. How is he supposed to convince Loki to let them still see the kids if he isn't able to talk?

"No, you can talk. Just be quiet about it. Whisper if you have to."

Clint nods. Natasha opens the door slowly, trying to keep it quiet. She cringes when it squeaks.

Loki whips his head around and snaps, "What are you doing here? Who let you in?"

Clint answers bluntly, "We did."

Natasha elbows his ribs. "Can it."

Clint rubs his side, casting her a death glare. Loki practically growls at them. He steps toward them, and Clint can see a flash of how he was when he was being controlled. Angry. Very angry.

"Get. Out."

Clint holds up his hands and spews out in one breath, "Wejustcametogetyoutoletusseethekidsmorebecausewer eallylikethemandwedidn'tmeantoletthemgetaway."

Natasha facepalms. She evidently isn't impressed by his 'speech'.

Loki raises an eyebrow. "Come again?"

Clint takes a breath before saying extra slowly, "We just came to get you to let us see the kids more because we really like them and we didn't mean to let them get away."

Loki seems to contemplate this for a moment. He looks over at the kids, who are sleeping quietly on either side of Sigyn. Vali and Narfi are on one side and Hela is on her other. The baby has been taken back to the nursery so Sigyn could have a bit more peace. The woman's pale blue eyes watch Clint and Natasha tiredly.

Loki turns back to the agents and begins slowly, "Well..."

Clint can feel more tears well up in his eyes. No, no, no, no, no! He can't cry now! That's not manly! Loki looks shocked by the archer's tears. He hadn't expected that.

"As loath as I am to say this..."

Clint's eyes widen in hope. A single tear slides down his cheek.

"I suppose you can still visit. Sometimes. Not often. Once a month. No, every two months."

Clint looks happy, but still not as happy as he could.

Loki sighs and says reluctantly, "Fine. You can visit as much as you want. Just call first."

Clint flings his arms around Loki. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! Thank you so much!"

Loki hesitantly returns the hug. He definitely wasn't expecting that. "Um...you're welcome?"

Sigyn smiles slightly. Her head falls back and she closes her eyes. Natasha walks over to her and asks softly, "Is there anything I can do to help?"

Sigyn shakes her head. Her voice is even quieter than the first time they met when she says, "No. I'm just really tired."

Natasha nods. The redhead has a slight smile on her face as she looks at the children. They look so peaceful in their sleep. When she looks more closely at Hela, she sees the tiniest of smiles on her lips. After seeing this, she decides to look at the boys, too. Narfi's mouth hangs open slightly. He snores, but not loudly. When she looks at Vali, she's surprised to see that his eyes are cracked open a bit. They snap shut all the way when he realizes that she's looking at him.

Natasha's smile grows. He was awake for the whole thing.

A/N: I had you going there, didn't I? You thought it was going to be really sad, didn't you? Muhahahahahaha!