Cara felt much more rational as she pushed herself up from the dirt. Although, Steve, rightfully, watched her very cautiously. She shrugged in a noncommittal apology and glanced around curiously for what had made the noise.

Stark lowered his hands. "It's about time," he muttered, turning away irritably. "We were about to have a mess."

Cara glared at the billionaire. It was already a mess. She hadn't quite understood what Loki's plan had been. Now that she knew, she wasn't happy in the least.

"I did not realize I was late." She spun around to identify the voice behind her and was met by the sight of a large blonde man with a hammer. Between newspaper stories and Loki's descriptions, she recognized him instantly. Somehow, however, she hadn't quite expected him to be so big.

The man caught sight of her and grinned widely. "Little Wolf!"

"Huh?" She didn't have time to phrase a proper question when she felt herself crushed in an embrace and lifted off the ground. She got the distinct impression, as she was attempting to continue breathing, that Thor was a very open with his emotions. She was pretty sure, although he'd never met her before, that she had his approval, although the "Little Wolf" thing would probably remain a mystery for a little while longer. "Nice to meet you too, Thor," she gasped as he set her down.

He beamed widely at the small crowd, taking note of each face. No one but him was particularly pleased, although some of the Avengers – namely Banner – looked somewhat relieved. "Where is Loki?"

Cara crossed her arms and waited patiently for someone else to explain. She couldn't help but feel some level of satisfaction, however, that she wasn't the only one who had been poorly informed. There was a good reason why she preferred living on her own.

"I think we just got him loaded into the helicopter," Bruce casually replied, slipping easily back into his cool, carefree demeanor. He shoved his hands into his pockets and strolled towards the aircraft. Cara couldn't help but like the man, in spite of his time bomb-like quality. His quiet, reserved, and completely carefree attitude was usually somewhat contagious.

She couldn't figure out whether that was supposed to be an invitation or a dismissal, but Thor seemed to make up his mind rather quickly. He stalked decidedly after the doctor. Cara followed after him, wishing she knew what the Thunder god's plan was.

She had to bite her tongue to keep from speaking when she rounded the corner to peer into the cabin. Loki, eyes haunted and downcast, had been outfitted with the same muzzle-like contraption she'd seen him wear in the papers. He was strapped into his seat securely, buckles tightened down on his shoulders to prevent him from moving and handcuffs chained to the floor between his feet. His captors were taking no chances, and Cara found herself wondering, not for the first time, about the specifics of Loki's reputation with S.H.I.E.L.D.

"Brother!" Thor called, obviously unconcerned with the restraints and simply happy to Loki. Steve laid a hand on Cara's shoulder as they gathered outside, delivering a silent warning. She was beginning to wonder whose side he was rooting for. He clearly didn't mind locking the Trickster up for the rest of eternity, but the whole protective bit was giving Cara an opening to work with.

Loki's eyes shot up to meet the sparkling blue gaze of his brother. Cara watched her own emotions flash across his face – surprise, anger, confusion. His gaze flickered uncertainly between the faces in the crowd, trying to figure out what was going on.

Thor beamed down at Cara, who had crossed her arms and was glaring at him. She got the distinct feeling that they were in this mess because someone had neglected to let S.H.I.E.L.D. know that Loki was serving his sentence on Earth, in the Allfather's wisdom. From the slight flush she saw creeping up his neck, she knew she was right.

"Fix this," she stated pointedly. If no one was going to listen to her, maybe they'd listen to him. Or at least to his hammer.

In an instant, Thor flipped a switch within himself. His happy, open demeanor disappeared to be replaced by a king's wrath. His very presence demanded respect and obedience. Cara felt a shiver creep down her spine as his stern gaze fell upon his friends.

"Release him."

"Did you really hear what just came out of your mouth?" Stark's quip perfectly annotated the expressions on everyone's faces, including Loki's. He looked to be just as surprised as everyone else that Thor was demanding his release.

"Loki has paid for his crimes. You have no authority to punish him further."

"Somehow I doubt he's had that dramatic of a change of heart in a year. Especially when you consider the fact that he's on Earth again. Or hadn't you noticed?"

"The Allfather had imprisoned him on Midgard. He is not here by choice. And if he was the same man he was a year ago, he would not have been able to leave his prison."

"You have to be joking."

While they argued, Cara decided she would take Thor's support as permission to start working on getting Loki free. The muzzle was the first to go. His amused gaze followed her as she explored the contraption, wondering what in the world there was to be amused about. They were only arguing for his life a few feet away. There was a latch at the back of his head that looked important, so she worked on prying it up, doing her best not to get distracted by her cheek brushing against his. After that kiss, she got the feeling she'd have plenty of time to be distracted later.

"What did I tell you about taking my stuff?" The discussion behind her continued, conveniently trapping the attention of nearly everyone present. Cara kept part of her attention on Agent Summers, who was eying her darkly from outside and looked like he was still deciding on the best course of action regardless of whatever the Avengers would decide.

The muzzle came free with an audible release of air. Loki took a deep breath as she tossed it over her shoulder and started working on the buckles on his chest.

"If you keep saving me like this, people will get the idea that you're the dominant one in this relationship," he commented quietly.

She paused and let her eyes widen in mock surprise. "You mean I'm not?"

"Just because you keep finding me tied up everywhere does not mean you're in charge."

"I never said it did," she smirked. "I was under the impression we'd agreed on my dominant role the first time I gave you a haircut."

"When you get me free this time, I'm definitely going to have to revise your opinion."

"Not now, dear. People are watching."

"If that's your only objection, I know a nice little cave in the woods – "

"That you'll never get to unless I rescue you."

"I'll remind you that I'm only here because you're the one who needed rescuing."

"Details," she shrugged as the straps on his shoulders loosened. He still couldn't stand up because of the chain between his feet. She frowned as she studied the handcuffs. She needed the key – and she knew just where to go looking for it. She glanced up at Summers's darkened face. Before she could ask nicely, however, Thor strode over and yanked the chains up from the floorboards. "That works too, I guess," she muttered as she rose to her feet.

The big man already had his brother in a crushing hug. Cara, fully aware of the history between the two, watched carefully as Loki's tumult of thoughts and emotions made him pause for a moment before returning the embrace. Thor obviously had a great deal of affection for the smaller man – even after Loki's malicious actions and words. Cara felt a sliver of anger grow in her heart as she wondered why he hadn't intervened earlier in Loki's sentencing.

Realization hit her like a ton of bricks. "You were the one sneaking around outside the cave at night," she accused, ruining the happy moment of reunion.

Amusement danced in the Trickster's eyes as Thor stumbled to defend himself. "I wanted to make sure Loki was alright."

"'Alright'? He was chained to the floor with acid dripping in his face. How does that constitute 'alright'?" She could hear the Avengers muttering behind her. It was the first time she'd been open about how she'd found Loki all those months ago. She knew the description didn't do the punishment justice, but by their reaction she knew they got the basic idea.

"I was forbidden from interfering."

"So you stopped by to watch every once and a while? You could have done something instead of waiting for me to come along. What if I hadn't showed up?"

"You really didn't know he was there?" Loki laughed, shaking his head. "For a hunter, you're fairly oblivious."

"I thought he was a wolf," she protested. "A very big wolf. I slept with one eye open every night even after the snows came."

"That's not the way I remember it," Loki teased.

"I did not mean to disturb you. I had hoped my presence would go unnoticed."

"Stealth has never been your strong point, brother."

"And you could have said something." Cara turned her disapproving glare on laughing green eyes. "How did it slip your mind to mention a large blonde bear was snooping around?"

"I thought you knew," he shrugged, sharing a brief conspiratorial glance with his brother. "Besides, I had rather more interesting things to pay attention to than my brother spying on me."

Cara plopped herself down in one of the seats and muttered about no one ever telling her anything.

"This is really what you're going to be upset with me over?" Loki smirked, standing beside her. "There's a whole list of better things you could choose."

"Oh yeah? Like what?" Cara had a decent idea what some of the responses would be, but she couldn't very well deprive everyone the chance to complain about the Prince of Lies.

"Invading the planet," Stark chimed in as the Avengers decided to join the conversation. It was tense, but she supposed no one could see a way around it now that Thor had deemed Loki "redeemed."

"Destroying S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters."

"And the helicarrier."

"Technically that was you, Bruce."

"And whose fault was it that the other guy made an appearance?"

Loki smirked. "I'm definitely okay with taking credit for that."

"What happened to the change of heart?" Steve smirked.

"That doesn't mean I can't still take pride in past achievements."

"Like when you promised Freya in marriage to the mason? I believe he turned out to be a frost giant, if I remember correctly." Thor's eyes danced as Loki protested.

"That horse should not have been able to help build the wall. I maintain that was Odin's fault."

"That wasn't the only thing that horse shouldn't have been able to do."

"I thought we weren't going to bring that up again. Ever." Loki crossed his arms as the rest of the party perked up in interest. He glared at his brother while making a half-hearted move to cover Cara's ears. "You shouldn't listen to his stories," he muttered as she moved deftly away, grinning.

"Sleipnir is my favorite nephew. You shouldn't be so hard on him brother."

"You have a kid?" Cara asked dryly.

"I told you shouldn't listen to him. Sleipninr is happy in the stables – well taken care of and well loved."

"It's no place for someone who bears such a strong family resemblance."

"He does not look like me." Loki paused. "Except for the eyes."

"Horses don't usually have green eyes, brother. You can't deny he got it from you."

"Horse?"

"Your son is a horse?"

"Yes, keep up with the conversation, Stark," the god of mischief continued to glare at the beaming blonde man as the rest of the Avengers tried to work out the details of the story. "They don't usually have eight legs, either, and that's definitely not something he got from me."

"Or his father."

The cabin burst out into laughter as the pieces fell together. Even Barton, who hadn't joined in the teasing, couldn't keep a satisfied grin from stealing across his face. Cara decided she'd have to get the rest of the details later after the horse jokes had died down. At the moment, she was more concerned with the hairs rising on the back of her neck. Her skin prickled uncomfortably as she recognized the feeling. Years of experience and playing cat-and-mouse with the wolves had taught her to heed her senses carefully, and they were telling her that someone close by was hunting.

Time seemed to slow as she spotted him. It was almost too late. The sight of the .45mm barrel was instantly sobering – especially when it was pointed at Loki's back. No one else was paying attention. They were all still laughing. The hammer was already cocked back – there was no time. Cara launched herself from her chair, unthinking, just in time to intercept the bullet.