We arrived back at the facility without anymore disruptions and Phil and a team had run out to greet us. When they dragged Loki out of the back of the car, my mixed feelings only increased. He wasn't putting up a fight at all. In fact, he didn't seem bothered that he was here. The men that took him into the building were being rather rough with him and I thought about saying something. But that would've, more than likely, made me look worse and I was trying to convince them that I was doing a lot better than before.

I avoided being near Loki when we got back in. S.H.I.E.L.D. was sending out operatives to the basic warzone we'd just come from and I went with Clint, Thor, and Steve to have a look at the damage done to them. Thor looked like he'd suffered a punch to face because blood covered it and Steve just looked banged up by this point. His metabolism was practically supernatural. Clint was the one we were worried about. His leg wasn't in the worst shape and he hadn't suffered a concussion when he fell; he'd just been knocked out. It could've been a lot worse but it meant that if they had to go out again soon that Clint was basically going to have to stay in one place the whole time. "Hey, what about that stuff they gave me for my hip?" I asked. The people working on Clint seemed to have no clue what I was talking about so I dropped it even though it was incredibly suspicious. It wasn't like we'd been working with people from a totally different company out there. Those medics belonged to S.H.I.E.L.D. so how come the ones in New York, the ones at the "better" facility, had no idea about the miracle medicine that healed my side without a scar in under five days?

I decided not to question them. I didn't have the time when Loki was being locked up. His quarters were supposed to minimize his magic. I know that I'd suggested it and they'd been prepared anyway, but I worried about what else it could do to Loki. It could probably make him incredibly weak and while I guess that's exactly what we wanted, I couldn't help but feel bad for him.

After I couldn't distract myself and the others any longer, I approached Director Fury and Phil, who were standing outside of a holding room. Apparently, Loki had no idea there was a two-sided mirror and he didn't even know where he was. My breath caught in my throat when I saw him on the other side of the window, sitting as though the effort of that was just too much for him. I turned away almost immediately and I noticed that Thor did the same. We'd left Clint with the medics so we were minus two Avengers (Bruce was still coming down from being the Hulk) at this apparent spur-of-the-moment meeting. I crossed my arms and moved back to stand between Steve and Thor, who were still in their banged up costumes. Natasha was pacing, for once looking less than perfect. Tony didn't appear to have any outward expression. Phil was staring through the two-sided mirror into the holding room and my heart felt like it was going to explode. I was entirely too nervous.

"Is it hurting him?" I asked, after standing in silence for what felt like a lifetime. Fury shrugged. He wasn't going to give me a straight answer. It felt like he probably still didn't trust me.

"What's the plan?" asked Tony. "Are we going to interrogate him?" Fury nodded in response.

"Unfortunately, Barton was the perfect choice for that," said Phil. "We wanted him to see a familiar face."

"What about Natasha?" asked Steve. She shook her head. "Thor?" Thor froze beside me but I knew that he would do it if they asked him.

"I doubt that. Why would we provoke him by putting his prime target in front of him?" asked Phil.

"He's not the main target anymore," I said. "He wants to kill all of us. So it doesn't matter who you send in. More than likely, he'll try to hurt any of us."

"If that's true and you really don't care who we send in, why don't you do it?" I scoffed.

"That's a pretty great joke, Phil." Steve shifted beside me, obviously getting antsy, and that's when I realized that it was an actual suggestion. "You can't be seriously asking me to do that."

"You're a pretty good choice, Charlotte," said Fury, finally speaking. "He's comfortable around you and he trusts you."

"I don't know about trusting me but-"

"He trusts you enough that he'll believe you when you tell him that we aren't watching the conversation you have."

"He's not an idiot, don't you know that by now?" Even though I was opposing the idea, I knew that I would have to give in and do it. It was probably a test to see whose side I was really on. "Look, Loki and I are on pretty bad terms right now so I doubt he's going to believe a word I say."

"You're actually considering doing it?" asked Steve. I shrugged, trying not to come off as nervous as I actually was. "You can't."

"He is very dangerous," said Thor.

"Not in that room he isn't," said Natasha.

"You either do it or you don't, Charlotte. But you are my first choice for it after Clint," said Fury. So that's why Natasha had shaken her head at Steve suggesting that she do it. She knew beforehand. Clint's Black Ops training would've been perfect for interrogating Loki though.

"How should I go about doing this?" I asked, giving in.

"You don't have to interrogate him," said Steve.

"Yeah, I actually do," I said, giving him a look while gesturing at Fury with a turn of my neck. I hoped it was enough of a signal to get him to understand the trouble I would be in if I refused. "So how should I do it?"

"Well, certainly be less emotional than you usually are," said Tony.

"So you want me to play good cop/bad cop all by myself?"

"I think that sounds like a legitimate plan. Don't let him think you still care for him."

"Hell, let him think you've moved on to someone else," said Phil. I glanced over at Steve, almost unconsciously.

"I can do that," I responded, my mouth suddenly dry. "I take it that I need to find out whatever those things were."

"I would appreciate knowing what the hell they were," I heard Clint say as he emerged from the hallway. I nodded. I'm sure other questions would come to my mind once I was in there.

"Will you give me a wire?" I asked Fury and he nodded, walking away to retrieve one. Steve shook his head down at me.

"I don't think that it's a good idea for you to talk to him," he said.

"I don't much like it either but they are right. He might tell me things that he wouldn't tell any of you." Thor was rigid beside me, obviously worried about how I would handle it inside the holding room.

Fury walked back, carrying a wire and also a S.H.I.E.L.D. outfit, one of the elastic body suits that zipped up the front and had the logo on each arm. I'd never been offered one before. "Change into this and get the wire on," he said.

"Are you serious?" I asked, my mouth agape. This was a field agent's outfit. I'd only ever seen Maria Hill or other serious employees in one. Certainly, someone like me wouldn't be given one lightly.

"It'll give you an official look and will more than likely, make him nervous," said Phil. Of course, it was merely a dream.

"Of course, it's not permanent," I responded, bitterly, walking off and into the bathroom. I got changed in flash, staring at myself in the mirror longer than I should have and admiring the gray and blue and even the belt around my middle. It somehow made my body look incredibly appealing and almost sexual. Perhaps that was the reason I was being told to wear it. I wasn't a huge fan of tight clothes but I'd always admired these suits and this one seemed specially designed for me. I was determined to earn it now, at whatever cost.

I walked out after I'd adjusted my earpiece. I was hoping they would prompt me if I somehow lost my footing in the conversation. I noticed the stares I got from the Avengers, aside from Natasha who was rolling her eyes at their behavior. Thor just stared at me, as he had the time I'd been in my towel. Steve was looking at me also and that made me feel great and nervous at the same time. Tony and Clint just looked agape and stared up and down at me but before either one of them made a comment, I said, "Don't get used to the show," and then I turned to Fury and Phil. "So lemme go through this once; I'm not supposed to let him know that ya'll can see him and are monitoring the conversation, right?" They nodded. "Does that mean I should just act like it's a casual visit or something?"

"I actually think that's a pretty good idea, especially if you act like you're coming in to taunt him. Not obnoxiously, of course. If you make him mad, he won't answer you," said Phil. I nodded, fiddling with the belt on my suit.

"I guess I'll play it cool and let him do the talking."

"You'll be good at it, Kent," said Fury. "If you put your mind to this, then you will be incredibly successful and he'll tell you what we need to know."

"Or he'll play a game with me, as usual. Or he'll just assume that I'm playing a game with him, which I am."

"Or he'll injure you which is also pretty possible," said Steve. I ran my fingers through my hair and began pacing. He was right.

"Hey, I helped construct the rooms he's allowed in," began Tony, "and they are full proof against his 'magic' or whatever. He can't do a damn thing to us."

"Well, what's the plan from here?" I asked. "I interrogate him, he either answers me or he doesn't, and then what? You can't send him back to Asgard. You didn't make sure the aliens left. We don't even know what they are."

"Think a little bit right now, Kent," said Fury. "We can give him an ultimatum on that. We say he either makes those things leave or we kill him."

"You cannot kill him!" declared Thor. I shook my head at them too, showing I was on Thor's side of the argument.

"You literally can't kill him," I said, although I wasn't totally sure it wasn't possible. With his powers weakened, they could probably do quite a bit of damage to him.

"Give him the ultimatum and find out where he has the cube," said Fury and I knew the conversation was done. He began unlocking the outside handle of the door and my heartbeat quickened. The Avengers moved back and out of sight of the doorway, although Steve paused for a minute before giving in and standing back with the others. I exchanged a nervous look with him and then I opened the door to the holding room and stepped inside.

Sorry this chapter is so short! I'm debating writing the next part in third person so I kind of wanted to separate it and also, I just haven't been able to update this week so I thought I should!