As soon as they appeared in the lounge at the Tower, they were greeted by a "Who the hell are you?" from a very stressed-out Clint. Tony on the other hand didn't seem perturbed or surprised to see them. In fact, he seemed quite delighted.

"Awesome! That's how you brought the good doctor home the other night. He wouldn't tell me," said Tony, alternating between approval and pouting. "Anyway, may I tell them now? My science bro over there said that it was all very hush-hush and that you didn't want people to know…and I am nothing if not discreet." At her nod of acquiescence, he ignored the huffs and snorts of derision from the rest of the group at the end this statement and continued on talking as if nothing had happened. "Let me have the honor then of performing the introductions here, M'lady," Tony said in his usual irreverent manner before pointing at the other men in the room. "This uncharacteristically rude fellow is Clint Barton aka Hawkeye and this strapping young man is Steve Rogers aka Captain America. Gentlemen, this is my Bookstore Lady aka Coffee Shop Girl aka Pretty Witch aka Brucie's Gal aka…"

"Hermione Granger…" another deep and distinctive voice cut in as its owner stepped into the room, "…aka Member of the Golden Trio aka former Undesirable No 2 and Heroine of the Second Wizarding War in Britain aka the Brightest Witch of her Age…"

"I think you missed one, Mr. Fury," Hermione said with a sigh. "You forgot aka the Pissed Off Woman Who Is Going To Kick Kingsley's Arse The Minute That She Gets Back To England For Bringing Her To The Attention Of A Man Like You In The First Place." She took a deep breath and sighed again. "The answer is still No, by the way!"

"Now, now, Ms. Granger. You can't blame my cousin for knowing what an asset you would be to my little team of special agents. You, of all people know how important it is to make sure that the bad guys don't stand a chance…"

"With all due respect, Director Fury," Steve interrupted politely. "I'm sure that Ms. Granger is very good at…whatever it is that she does. However, I don't think that this is the best time to be on recruiting duty – especially when one of the members of your little team of special agents is in trouble.

"Yes, you are quite right, Mr. Rogers." Nick Fury said smoothly. "Ms. Granger and I can certainly continue this conversation later – especially since you all are such good friends now," he said with a significant glance over at Bruce and Tony. Then he turned his attention to his ringing phone. He listened for just a moment and then he turned back to the group at large, "The Helicarrier is in route and will be here in about an hour. Estimated trip at top speed will be an additional seven hours after that."

"Eight hours!" Clint exploded. "Tasha needs us now!"

Hermione looked at him for just a moment before turning towards Fury. "How good is your relationship with the magical community here?" Hermione asked him.

The man actually looked sheepish for a minute before he quietly admitted. 'Nonexistent."

"Bloody hell, no wonder you won't leave me alone!" she exclaimed irritably – and the other men in the room looked at her in surprise. "You definitely need to work on your PR skills because that lack of foresight eliminates the possibility of all forms of magical travel. We can't get an emergency portkey or get emergency international Floo access and I don't have time to cut through all of that bureaucratic bullshite today. The paperwork alone will take several days and I just don't have the pull here that I do in England to hurry the process along. Also, I can't apparate that distance – especially with passengers. That leaves trying to land on a moving object that I have never even seen before. That's not great, not great at all! However I will try…but I definitely can't go in blind. Tony, can you quickly pull me up a picture of a big open space inside this Helicarrier thing…someplace with an easily identifiable feature?"

"Yes, ma'am!" he exclaimed snapping a sloppy salute that made Steve wince. "I just love it when a beautiful woman takes charge!" Tony added and threw a wink over at Bruce. "This is now all of us, by the way. Jarvis couldn't reach Thor, so I guess that Hammer Boy has gone all inter-dimensional on us for the time being. Therefore, let's proceed without him and just head on to the nearest monitor station then." With that, he quickly led the way down the stairs and into a room that had one of his large clear monitors in it…and nothing else. He touched it to activate the screen and then asked Jarvis to pull up the Helicarrier photo schematics.

"You're not supposed to have access to those, Stark!" Fury growled.

"Yeah, well, I am not supposed to do a lot of things." Tony answered. "When has that ever stopped me, though?" he commented casually while scrolling through pictures. "There!" he exclaimed, pointing to one of the main storage bays that sported a bright orange door. "Will that do?" he turned to Hermione as he touched the screen to enlarge the photo.

She studied the picture for a minute. "Yes, I think that I can do that." She then turned to the SHEILD Director. "Fury, get back on the phone to the Helicarrier and tell them to turn around and head on to the target site. They don't need to waste the time to stop here first. Then she looked up at Clint – who was eying her with some unease. "It will shave off at least an hour – and possibly more - if we don't have to wait for the Helicarrier to come to us. I'm sorry that I can't do more." He nodded, just a bit confused as to who this woman actually was and what exactly was going on. He didn't know her and he didn't trust her – no matter what Tony and the Director said about her! However, he was willing to go along with the situation, for now, if it could get him to Natasha quicker.

"Alright boys," she said, adding to the sense of urgency already present in the room. "Now, I can only do two of you at a time." She paused for just a second as she realized what she had said before she quickly added, "Not one word, Tony!" The man in question then shut his mouth with an exaggerated snap. Hermione couldn't help but to laugh at that and noticed that even Nick Fury's lip had curled up slightly before she continued. "So, who's first? Mr. Fury? Mr. Barton?" The two men nodded, a bit hesitantly, but neither one of them would admit their uncertainty. Therefore, she continued. "I will be right back," she said to Bruce. Then she wrapped an arm around each of the two preselected men. "Just a warning, though…this will probably make you feel sick at the other end!" she explained. Then, before they had a chance to respond, all three of them disappeared with a loud Pop!

"Did she just…?" Steve sputtered.

"Yes, she did! That's my Bookstore Lady!" Tony said proudly. "Jarvis, can you pull up the live feed from this particular bay."

"Right away, Sir." The AI responded and the live video flashed up on the screen just as the three travelers popped into existence there. The three men on the other side of the monitor watched, amused, as Director Fury lost his lunch and as Clint teetered on the verge of doing the same. They couldn't hear what Hermione said, as it was a video-only feed, but they did see her wave her hand and Fury's mess vanished. Then she patted Clint on the back reassuringly, before she popped out of view again.

In just a second, she arrived back in the room with them. "Next?" she announced pleasantly, as she held her hand out to the Captain. "Mr. Rogers?"

"Please call me Steve, Ms. Granger. That was quite impressive," he said as he gently took her offered hand.

"Thank you…but you must call me Hermione," she said with a smile and she slid one arm around his waist. "Tony, are you coming now or with Bruce?"

"I'll come with the Cap. I don't want to end up wrestling with a giant enraged green bean while teleporting…or whatever the hell this is. Jarvis…switch to emergency systems while I am gone… you know the drill."

"That I do, Sir." Tony nodded at this affirmation from his AI system and then wrapped his arm around the witch. He had time to throw another wink at Bruce before they also disappeared with a pop.

Bruce watched the feed on the screen and was pleased to see that karma immediately paid Tony a visit for that green bean remark when the multibillionaire also decorated the floor of the bay at the end of his trip. Steve, with his super soldier engineering, was unaffected, of course.

He watched Hermione vanish the mess again, and thought that she looked a little wobbly. How much is this taking out of her? he wondered. He waited for her to pop back into the Tower room and then immediately gathered her up in his arms when he saw her sway. "Rest a minute," he commanded. Surprisingly, she listened without an argument. Proof of her exhaustion, he thought. "Is it too far for you?" he asked concerned.

"It's not the distance," she whispered. "It's just really challenging to land on a moving vehicle – especially a fast one. Think of it as magical momentum, Mr. Physicist. Plus, taking multiple passengers is always difficult – even under the best of circumstances."

"We can wait…" he started to say.

"No. You're the last one…and I actually like you!" she said with a lighthearted wink. He was suddenly overcome with gratitude for this wonderful woman whom he knew was downplaying the risks of what she was doing…all to help someone she didn't even know. He bent his head to close the distance between them and kissed her gently.

"Thank you," he said… "on behalf of all of my friends."

"No thanks needed," she replied dreamily. "Just keep kissing me like that."

"Gladly," he said, and repeated his actions.

Hermione then looked up at the screen and sighed. "We should go. They are waiting for us," she said and indicated the four men who stood around the bay - just talking. Probably arguing about me, she thought and sighed, as she watched Clint gesticulate angrily at whatever Tony just said. She couldn't help but to wonder what his problem was with her.

Then she popped out of the lounge and into the bay for the last time. However, this time she was the one who looked like she was going to be sick. She placed her hands on her knees to try to regain her equilibrium, but it didn't work. A few seconds later, both Bruce and Tony moved quickly to catch her as she fell to the floor in a dead faint.

She came to just a couple of minutes later in Bruce's arms while the men argued over her head.

"She said it was a magical problem," she heard Bruce say. "She overtaxed herself by transporting us all so far and so fast. Plus, we never had dinner. You called before we had a chance to eat."

"I say that we take her to the med bay anyway and at least give her some fluids," said a voice that she recognized as Tony's.

"Just put her in a bed, so she won't be in the way, and then we can get down to the business of rescuing Tasha." That sounded like Clint. Why does he sound so rude when I did this to help his girlfriend? she wondered.

"Don't touch her!" Bruce growled and Hermione thought that his eyes had probably flashed green.

"Now, Mr. Banner…." she heard Nick Fury say in warning – and knew it was time to act before things went any further.

"Stop it, all of you!" she said weakly. "Someone, hand me my bag, please."

"Hermione!" Bruce exclaimed in relief and she was able to open her eyes enough to see the worry on his face.

"I'm alright," she reassured him and reached up to give him a pat on the cheek. "It just took a little bit more out of me than I realized. My magic just needs a couple hours to…recharge…if you will. Think of it as magical dehydration. I have a potion that will help." At this point, Steve picked up the bag that had fallen on the floor when she fell and handed it to her.

"Here you go, Miss…um…Hermione."

"Thank you, Steve. Bruce, could you help me to sit up a bit. Thanks." She then undid the bag with a spell while Nick Fury looked on with interest. "Don't even think about it, Fury," she growled. "My bag is off limits to anyone who doesn't want to be hexed or cursed to oblivion." To the bewilderment of the men, she then reached into the small tote bag almost up to her shoulder and rummaged around for a moment until she pulled out a smaller bag. This one she opened and looked at the arrangement of small bottles for a moment before selecting one and downing it.

"Don't be alarmed, but this is going to look really weird," she warned them – right before the steam started to pour out of her ears. After just a few seconds, however, it had all cleared and Hermione was able to stand on her own two feet with no problems.

"Just a Pepper Up potion," she informed the men who were all now staring at her in amazement. "Think of it as a shot of magical energy. I'm fine now. Therefore, as Clint said…we can get down to business. Someone else will need to lead the way, though, since I have never been here before." Then they all followed as Fury lead the way out of the storage bay with Bruce and Hermione bringing up the tail.

"Are you sure you are alright?" he asked as he gathered her close to his side. "I must admit you had me frightened. Even Tony was a bit worried." Bruce explained as they walked down a corridor.

"Nah," Tony replied as he looked back and shook his head. "I told the Doctor that you just needed a kiss – like Sleeping Beauty. I even volunteered for the chore."

"The chore!" Hermione exclaimed indignantly, as if she had been really insulted. "I'll have you know that it would have been a pleasure to kiss me, Tony. Just ask Bruce! At least now, however, I won't have to sanitize my mouth…and face…and the rest of my body just for good measure!" The group then entered a conference room at the sound of the good-natured laughter from several of the men who had heard her - despite the overall seriousness of the situation.


The laughter and goodwill didn't last long, however, once they reached the conference/briefing area and the discussion began – especially after Hermione announced her plans.

"I'm going with you," she said clearly in a voice that broached no argument. Fury just nodded with a pleased gleam in his eye.

Clint Barton, however, obviously disagreed with her statement. "Look, Ms. Granger…we appreciate your help with the transportation, but this is…our friend…and our fight here. It is an Avengers matter. You may have a magic wand or whatever, but that doesn't mean that you have the knowledge or skills to work with us. I don't care if you are screwing Banner and/or the green guy or not…You are not one of us. You will just be in the way and then we will have to rescue you, too. I mean, shit, you just passed out!"

There was a collective gasp from the rest of the group and a deep growl emanated from Bruce's direction. Hermione knew without looking that his eyes were now green. Without turning around, she held up a hand behind her in a placating gesture and the growling stopped. Both Tony and Fury noticed this with great interest, but Steve was looking at her face. He saw the sadness that flew across it at Clint's words, and he suddenly felt like punching his thoughtless friend himself. However, before he could say anything, Hermione composed her features, stood up, stalked over to the archer at the opposite end of the table, and spoke in a quiet voice.

"Mr. Barton, Bruce spoke highly of you. Therefore, I know that you are probably quite a nice guy in any other situation, but that you are extremely worried about your girlfriend right now…and that is why you are lashing out at me in anger and fear at this moment. Let me make one thing abundantly clear, however, that is the only reason that I am not hexing your bollocks to the wall right now for that highly inappropriate comment about my sex life. Enjoy this reprieve – especially since it is the only one that you are going to get." She paused for a moment to look around and her eyes landed on the man that she had known the longest. "Tony, please go sit with Bruce." He looked surprised for a moment, but then moved over to the seat next to his friend that she had just vacated. He nodded his understanding at the implication that the doctor would need to be kept calm for whatever happened next so that he wouldn't shift into the big, angry, and green guy. Hermione nodded back and said, "Consider this as my job application, by the way." She then turned towards the man in front of her again. He had gone deathly still and everyone could see his hand twitching - as if he wanted to grab…and use…one of the arrows that obviously were not there at the moment.

Hermione saw the movement, but ignored it as she continued. "As for my knowledge and skills... it is quite possible that I am more prepared than you are for this fight! I think that you should understand that I have been fighting a magical war since I was eleven years old. I have been tortured and cursed to a point where most people have been driven mad with the magically-induced pain and I will forever carry the scars to prove it - including the fact that I no longer have the ability to bear children because of it." Here she paused and pulled her shirt up and over her head, before throwing it unceremoniously to the floor. This put her carved arm and the thick purple scar that ran diagonally over her abdomen from under her right breast to her left hip, as well as all of the smaller ones on her neck and shoulders, on display before she continued. "Despite all of that, I have fought werewolves, trolls, vampires, and giants as well as the soul of the most powerful dark wizard ever…and I have lived to tell the tale."

She moved closer to him, looked up into his eyes that winced at her closeness, and studied them carefully for a minute. She saw the conflict in them and softened her voice. "I have also seen the effects of the Imperious curse enough to know that you have been placed under it before. You can always tell by the eyes. Some dark wizard has controlled your mind and body at some point before and you are terrified that it will happen again…that's why you don't trust me." Loki, she heard someone say in quiet amazement behind her but she didn't turn to see who it was. Instead she kept her eyes locked on the man in front of her, who trembled and threatened to lose his composure at his memory of that time. "I am a witch of the Light – not of the Darkness, Clint," she explained softly. "You never have to worry about me harming you or yours – unless you threaten me or mine. Do you understand?" He nodded, completely unable to speak. "Good!" she said as she closed the distance between them and pulled him out of his seat to hug him warmly until his trembling stopped. "Now let's go and rescue your Tasha…I can't wait to meet her!"

"That was some resume!" she heard Tony's delighted voice say behind her. "You're hired! Welcome to the Avengers!" She turned to look at him with a smile, and saw Steve's eager nod, as well. However, her eyes were drawn to Bruce instead. He looked at her with the green eyes that she had expected to see and everyone else grew even quieter and they watched him with bated breath as he stood up quickly and stalked over to her. They had all seen the Hulk transform before and knew the damage that he could cause – especially in an enclosed space like this. How close are they exactly? Would Hermione be able to calm him? they all wondered. However, the two that they were watching completely ignored the rest of the group as he gently touched the scars on her arm and stomach and she shivered at the feeling. Then to the stunned astonishment of their audience, she shifted into her lioness form and gently pushed the man to the floor, so that she could speak to the bigger one inside of him - especially since she realized the vast danger potential of the situation.

She rubbed his face with her velvety soft head and then looked straight into his eyes, which were still intensely green. Pretty Witch have bad hurt marks! the Hulk keened sadly, but only Bruce and Hermione could hear him.

"I'm sorry that you had to find out that way, Big Guy," she said back to him in the way that only he could hear. "If we had not been interrupted earlier, I would have willingly shown you all my scars back at the apartment. However, I want you to remember what I told you, I am not hurt anymore. I also know without a doubt, that you won't let anyone else hurt me either…and that includes yourself. Therefore, I would really appreciate it if you didn't come crashing out here right now, smashing things, and potentially plunging all of us to our deaths…and that includes sending me to mine, remember." The Big Guy thought about it and then said, Hulk not hurt Pretty Witch or Pretty Witch Lion Kitty! Hulk wait to smash! Hulk make sure nobody hurt! Hermione could help but to smile at that.

"Thank you, Big Fellow. However, if anyone tries to hurt me, you are more than welcome to stop them – unless I tell you not to, okay? In fact, I am sure that you will get to smash some things very soon. We are going to rescue Nat, remember? Therefore, I would really appreciate it if you would send Bruce this memory and then let him come back so that we can figure out our rescue plans. I am sure that I will see you again in just a little while, anyway!" Then the lioness climbed off of him so that he could stand up and smoothly transformed back into her human form. The man with her didn't say anything. He just bent down and picked up her shirt off the floor. He then moved to slide it over her head and she smoothed it down. Only then did he meet her eyes…brown to brown…as he pulled her gently into his arms.


For his part, Bruce had just sat there at the table listening to Hermione's story in dread. He also knew why she asked Tony to sit with him and just waited for the moment of truth…as he wondered if she would be able to magically transport him to the containment cell in time. Then when she pulled off her shirt and he saw her scars, he felt his rage boil up and knew that he was about to transform.

That was until Tony actually looked him in the eyes, despite the green, and said, "Goddamn, Nerd Boy, that woman is something! How did the two of you end up with a hot witch like that, anyway?"

Bruce knew that Tony was just using humor to try and defuse the ticking timebomb that he had become. However, somehow it had worked. He felt the Other Guy rise to the surface…but he stayed there. Then they both watched Hermione as she hugged Clint and, even though they didn't like it, they knew that it signaled a peace between the new allies. Soon, it was all over and they went to make sure that their witch was really alright.


Tony actually waited until they finished their kiss before his natural arsehole tendencies took over. "Well, since the obligatory pissing contest, the Let me freak everyone out by turning into a large man-eating wild animal situation, and the subsequent make-out session are now over, let's have our briefing. Then we can all get something to eat, get our gear together, and get some rest before we have to go blow some shit up, or smash it, or throw our shield at it, or shoot arrows into it, or whatever it is that Hermione does…"

"Spoken like a true leader, Tony!" Steve said, the sarcasm obvious in his voice.

"Do you know any silencing spells, Witchy Woman?" Tony asked turning to Hermione.

"Yes, I do, Tony," she responded with a smile at Steve. "I know several of them, in fact. However, something makes me think that I am going to have to save them all up to use on you!"