They arrived in the middle of the throne room, save and sound.
Nothing unexpected had happened.
Thor was relieved, but that didn't mean that he imagined his friends were safe now.
Danger was still present but for the moment he could breathe again.
Odin stood in front of them and welcomed the Avengers with open arms.
Loki stepped back and tried to hide behind the broad shoulders of his brother from the eyes of the old man and he whispered: "Give me Rogers, I'll take him to my room and figure out what's wrong with him."
When he saw Thor's frown, he even begged him to do it. "I can't face Odin right now, please brother."
That seemed to be the truth.
Thor saw the pure desperation in the tricksters' eyes and decided to let him have it his way for now.
There was time enough for him to talk to Odin.
Whereas Rogers problem was much more pressing. So he handed the still sleeping captain over to Loki and both of them disappeared in the blink of an eye.
"Thor, my son, I see you've succeeded. You're friends are alive again." Odin said as he hugged his son briefly.
Thor began to explain to his father that it had not been his success. Loki had been the one to persuade Hela to free the souls. But no one knew what he'd given her in return.
And the dark voice hadn't delivered on his promise to cast the Avengers back into hel.
So unfortunately, it wasn't over yet.
Tony added that it was probably best for them to return to earth as soon as possible.
Loki had the edge over them in Asgard.
With no powers at all, they were like sitting ducks.
Although Banner knew that it would be foolish to stay here, he wished that he wouldn't have to return to earth all the same. A life without the Hulk! It was all he ever wanted, since the first time he turned into the green monster. But to stay meant to be vulnerable, and he had absolutely no desire to end up in hel again, or worse. "Okay then, let's head back. Er…where's Rogers?"
"Loki took him to his room. He tries to figure out why he hasn't woken up yet." Thor answered the question and was met with disapproval.
"Unbelievable! You left the captain alone with the crazy guy? You were the one who said he's not to be trusted." Tony rolled his eyes.
Loki had laid Rogers down on his own bed.
There was still no sign that he would make an attempt to wake up soon.
It seemed that he was dreaming though, because his eyelids were fluttering and his breathing was unsteady.
Maybe, Loki thought, he could enter the captains dream and with that find out why he refused to wake up like the others did. It was worth a try.
Loki placed his hand on the Avengers forehead, closed his own eyes and concentrated.
Dense fog started to slowly lift, a picture formed itself inside Lokis mind.
He saw a landscape, miles and miles of snow and ice.
Rogers was still buried in the snow, only his head could be seen.
The god knelt down next to him and said: "Steve, wake up."
Although Rogers opened his eyes, his answer was the opposite of his action: "I can't."
"But why?" Loki asked.
"I don't want to feel like I fell out of time again. If I wake up, all my friends will be dead. I know it."
Loki sighed.
So that was the reason.
He was relieved that it hadn't been something Hela or his dark voice had done.
"Steve, listen to me. This is your dream. I came here to tell you that everything is fine. I promised you that I would make it all better again. And I did. Your friends are not dead. They are here, waiting for you to wake up. So do it now."
And with those words, Loki left Rogers dream and found himself still standing next to the bed in front of the sleeping captain. But he wasn't alone anymore.
"What did you do to him?! Tell us immediately!" Tony demanded and Barton, Romanoff and Banner eyed him suspiciously. Behind them Thor and Odin were guarding the door.
"What's that all about? Thor, I told you that I would try to wake Rogers up. That's all I did." Loki defended himself.
Right on cue, the captain opened up his eyes and yawned.
"What's going on? What happened? Did I miss something? Man, don't tell me I slept for another 70 years!" The exasperation disappeared from his face when everyone shook their heads.
"See, I didn't do anything to him. He's fine. So I suggest you all go back to Midgard now."
"I'm usually not on a level with you, Loki, but I have to say, I like your suggestion. I could use a decent drink. There is an exquisite bottle of Whisky waiting for me." Tony smirked. "Anyone care to join me?"
"I'll join you under one condition: You have to fill me in on what happened while I was sleeping. I guess Asgard won the war?" Rogers asked and was glad to see Thor nod in response.
That's all he wanted to know for now. All of his friends seemed to be fine, too.
Only the look on Lokis face was hard to decipher.
Was he afraid of something, was he nervous?
Ah, it was probably just because of Odins presence. That man made him nervous as well.
Rogers got up from the bed and joined his friends. Banner patted him on the back. "It's good to have you back, Steve."
Loki agreed to open up a portal again, that would bring them back to earth.
Thor wanted to go with them, but only to make sure that everyone got home safe and sound.
He asked Loki, if he could keep the portal open for about five minutes, so that he could say goodbye to his friends and return again. Loki had no problem with that and seconds later, Thor stood on the Stark Tower, right next to his friends.
"I'll go back and try to find out what this other Loki is up to. He didn't even attempt to throw you back into hel. He must've changed his mind, but why? Anyway, it is much wiser for you to remain on Midgard. If Loki attacks you here, you'll be able to defend yourselves. I must go now, but I'll come back if there is anything you should know."
They said goodbye and the portal closed right after Thor had stepped through it again.
"Other Loki?Hel? Guys, you really have to tell me how long I slept. I mean seriously...what happened?" Banner, Barton, Romanoff and Tony looked at each other and laughed. The desperate and confused look on Rogers face was priceless.
"Don't worry, we'll fill you in" Natasha said.
They were all happy to be back on earth in one piece and powerful again. Although in the back of their heads, they couldn't stop wondering why the dark voice inside Loki hadn't interfered and even let them return to earth without a fight.
Maybe Thor would find the answer.