A/N - For those MCU fans, and for those who never have seen or don't remember the Thor movie, here is a recap of what that last scene was about and about the 'event' in the desert that alerted every magical sensor in the world.

Thor was exiled by his father Odin to Midgard (earth), stripped of his Godly powers, and his hammer Mjolnir was 'charmed' so only one who was worthy could lift it. He then threw it through the Bifrost to Earth, where it crash landed in the desert.

This activation of the Bifrost is what the magical sensor nets detected. The last time it had been used for a visit to Earth was centuries earlier (if you recall in the Thor movie, the Asgardians came to Earth en masse in about the 14th century or so to help the humans fend off the Frost Giant invasion in the north).

Thor, assisted by Jane Foster (the woman who was laying in the tumbleweed), broke into the SHIELD facility to try and reclaim the hammer. However, he was unable to lift it - because he is not yet 'worthy' of regaining it. Odin thought he was essentially a spoiled 'boy' and needed to learn some hard lessons.

A lot of things are going on in the Background with SHIELD at the moment, but since you can see all of that in the movie, I will mostly be focusing this part of the story from Bella and Harry's viewpoints, except for where they are directly interacting with SHIELD characters.

So that's what was happening there, in a nutshell. I recommend seeing the Thor movie, it was great. It, the 1st Iron Man, the 1st Avengers movie - all were FANTASTIC. Besides Black Panther and perhaps Winter Soldier, the rest of the Avengers story line movies were not quite as good (just my opinion, of course) as they favored action over substance, which gets boring after a while.


Previously:

Harry felt himself holding his breath: he had no idea what was going to happen now, no idea what Hermione would think of all this. Who was this man, who brazenly and with no weapons breaks into a guarded facility to steal an alien artifact, and acts like it belonged to him?

Even as the thought raced through his mind, the man's hand suddenly closed around the hammer, and the feeling of magic surged around him. Harry let out a breath, waiting for something to happen... But then, a second passed with no change, and the man's expression changed; his confident demeanor became tense, and he tugged, clearly having expected to be able to lift the hammer.

The man tried again, and when the hammer didn't budge, he moved a second hand to the handle, and used his legs to try and wrestle the hammer off the mound. His motions became more frantic - desperate even - and when a large bolt of lightning lit the skies and thunder followed, the man seemed to collapse in humiliating defeat. He turned his head to the sky, his expression lost, and cried out what to Harry sounded like 'why father', just as a deafening bolt of lightning crashed down.

As the man slouched in defeat, the SHIELD guards approached and cuffed him. Harry finally lifted away, flying himself clear of the facility to a reasonable distance so he could apparate back to Washington, his mind filled with many questions.


Washington DC - two days later

Harry was on his last day of his visit, and very pleased with how everything had turned out.

After returning from Puente Antiguo, he had a long mirror call with Hermione; He portkeyed her the recordings he had made straight away, and when they spoke the next day after she had reviewed the data, she had a few theories of what the item might be.

"Harry," she said, sighing, "I really wish I could have been with you. There are so many charms you might have cast that could have probed the hammer that would have told us much more."

"I'm sorry, Hermione," Harry said, shaking his head ruefully. "But I am not a researcher, I don't know any of those kinds of spells."

Sighing again, Hermione nodded. "I know, Harry. I'm not mad, not really. I'm just...intrigued and curious: you know I hate mysteries."

Chuckling, Harry asked the obvious question. "Any ideas?"

Even through the small mirror, he could see her brow wrinkle as she set her powerful mind to work. "Well, had you not told me the item was 'of alien origin' I might not have a clue where to even begin; but those runes on the side, Harry? I found some old references to them. They are old Norse symbols - from around the 13th century - and the three interwoven triangles are called the 'Triquetra' symbol. It's basically very similar to our Futhark runes, and the Danish and Norse translations I have claim it was basically a rune used for defensive force, 'giant thorn', and disruption."

"Okay," said Harry. "Not sure what 'giant thorn' is, but the others are clearly power runes."

"Yes," said Hermione. "The Triquetra symbol was fairly widespread, but the only reference I could find that related to a hammer in any way was actually found in an internet search, and not in the Department of Mysteries."

"Guess muggles know a thing or two, eh?" Harry said, laughing.

Hemione smiled. "More like the Department really needs to get a better system for organizing their books and records. I've been trying to get funding for a Charms Master to create a spell that allows indexing, like a library's card catalog system." She paused for a moment, knowing Harry was humoring her; she'd complained about this often enough. But, as usual, she couldn't help herself and her imagination ran away with her, and her eyes lit up and she spoke more quickly. "Oh Harry, if we had the funds, it would be so great, I think that.."

Harry interrupted her. "Hermione? Please? Another time."

Blushing, Hermione took a breath, "Sorry. You know how I get." When he nodded, she continued on more quietly. "Anyway, the only reference I could find was to a legendary hammer that belonged to the God of Thunder, an Asgardian named 'Thor.'

There was a long silence after that as Harry thought back to the large blonde he had seen. That man was certainly strong but was no God. And he couldn't lift the hammer, so it seemed unlikely he was this 'Thor.'

He shook his head. "What do you think, Hermione?"

She shrugged. "Legends notwithstanding, I can't really make any other deductions without actually getting close to that hammer. And if security was as tight as you said, that might be impossible."

They chatted for another few minutes, with Hermione politely asking about Bella; when she saw Harry's face light up through the mirror, she was secretly thrilled for him.

As Harry's mind turned to Bella, he let himself relax with his drink, thinking about the two days he'd spent with her. Every moment she wasn't in class, they were together. He finally met her magic tutor - who he had to admit was actually a very good teacher - and she demonstrated some of the spells she was working on. As expected, she was very good at certain kinds of magic but not so good with others, but she was making good progress.

On a more personal level, they had moved to the official 'dating' stage. They'd admitted that they both were very attracted and interested in one another, and made more plans to get together, with her coming to London during a long weekend in October, and she invited him to come back over Thanksgiving. Harry also promised to see her for a weekend here and there when he could, and their evening the night before - when they finally took their relationship to a more physical level - was quite amazing. They were just very in tune with one another.

And she was utterly breathtaking in the moonlight, her beautiful, soft pale skin almost ethereal under the silver rays of moon.

Yes, he wouldn't be forgetting last night anytime soon.

Harry gulped the rest of his drink, finished getting dressed, and walked downstairs to pick up Bella. They were having a late lunch today, and then they would come back here for a couple of hours before he finally headed back to London. She had been the one to suggest coming back to his room, blushing while she did so but not looking away from him. The sexual tension between the two of them was pretty intense, and there was a sort of unspoken certainty that they would cross the last threshold today; and Harry honestly couldn't wait. He didn't think he had wanted a woman more than he ever had before, at least since the first time he'd been with Ginny, so long ago, and Bella just pressed all his buttons.

Crossing the street with a smile and a single red rose in his hand, he saw Bella just exiting her apartment building. She seemed to jerk to attention suddenly, as if she sensed him, and her eyes snapped right to his - still across the street from her - but he could see the wide smile that lit up her whole face when she spotted him.

When the light changed, Harry crossed with the other pedestrians, and greeted Bella with a tender kiss. "Good afternoon, Bella," he said softly.

"Hi Harry," she answered with sparkly eyes, a dusting of pink in her cheeks.

Harry's gaze roamed over her, taking in her beauty. She had her hair pinned up, away from her face, falling down to her shoulders in soft curls. A light blue denim jacket, a red blouse, and a pair of jeans and white sneakers made her look casually beautiful.

When she saw him looking at her with such obvious admiration, she blushed a bit harder, and tried to distract his ogling. "Is that for me?" she asked coyly, gesturing to the rose.

Harry blinked, embarrassed himself at his blatant staring. "Um, yes, yes, it is." He recovered his humor and gave a slight bow. "For you, my lady." And he presented the rose to her.

Bella gave a soft chuckle. "Thank you, kind sir." She too the rose, held it to her nose for a moment and gave him a gentle smile. He nodded at her, completely smitten, and offered his arm which she gladly wrapped her own around.

They walked slowly, enjoying the warm afternoon, chatting and laughing as they passed through the beautiful Georgetown University campus. Bella pointed out different buildings, telling him about her classes and her teachers. Harry was a good listener, and he honestly thought he could listen to her all day. She was not a very verbose person - much different than Hermione and Ron - and thus her words seemed, somehow, more meaningful. She was thoughtful and would often pause before answering a question or voicing her thoughts, and he found it very relaxing and even a bit sexy. He himself was fairly quiet and introspective, keeping many things to himself. He found that he was enjoying teasing out her secrets, and he liked that she kept him on his toes.

They had a pleasant lunch at a small Italian restaurant, Bella enjoying pasta and Harry having their Branzino, which he thought was cooked very well. They had a glass of wine each, but neither wanted to get tipsy. As the afternoon went on, the little touches and glances increased in frequency and intensity: the atmosphere between them was charged, and neither wanted to dull it with alcohol.

They walked back to Harry's apartment hand in hand, both quiet but full of anticipation. Despite the rising tension, however, Harry tried to keep any conversation light. He could tell Bella was very nervous, and he really didn't want her to be. They had not discussed their previous relationships in any real detail, but Harry had the feeling Bella - despite her obvious attractiveness - didn't have much of a dating history and he did not want her to feel any pressure.

When they finally got back to Harry's hotel, Bella's hand had gotten a bit damp and shaky, and Harry noticed her pupils were dilated. The ride up to the elevator seemed endless, and when they finally got to his room and he shut the door behind her and turned, he was suddenly pressed against the door by her body as her mouth met his in a passionate kiss.

He moaned into her mouth, their tongues gently touching. His arms snaked around her back, pulling her tightly against him, letting her feel his desire for her, loving that she was so responsive and seemed as eager as he was.

And just as they backed into the room, ready to fall onto the bed, his mirror that was linked to Hermione's - sitting on the wooden table - began to vibrate.

Harry ignored it, barely registering it: nothing was going to distract him from the beautiful girl in his arms. After a few seconds, it stopped, and they finally fell to the bed, tearing at each other's clothes.

But then, it began to vibrate again, and both Harry and Bella looked at it in annoyance. They waited until it stopped, held their breath, and it started a 3rd time.

"Merlin's balls," Harry muttered, making Bella giggle.

"Maybe you should see what they want?" She said, her voice full of frustrated humor. She sat up, fixing her top, which Harry had mussed up quite thoroughly. "Just...be quick about it."

Harry chuckled, running a hand through his messy hair. He stepped over to mirror, answering it in a huff. "What do you want, Hermione?" he asked tersely.

Immediately, Hermione's face filled the screen. "Harry! The sensors went crazy again, just a few minutes ago! It was just like the first time! A huge spike, coming from the southwestern US!" Her hair was frazzled, and she had a manic look in her eye.

Taking a deep breath to will his arousal away, he switched to Head Auror mode almost seamlessly. Bella watched this in fascination; it was like another persona seemed to just emerge from him, like he was putting on a coat. His entire demeanor changed, his shoulders stiffened, and his right hand - his wand hand - clenched without him probably even being aware of it.

Bella was not able to 'switch off' as easily as Harry could; she had not fought in any wars or slept in tents where her she could be discovered at any moment, where a life-or-death struggle was around every corner and you had to always be alert and ready to fight at a moment's notice. Bella guessed that, having to figure out a way to overthrow a maniacal Dark Lord would train your instincts pretty well.

Trying to emulate him, she willed herself to calm, to slow her heavy breathing, She wiped her sweaty palms on the bed sheet, and tried to ignore the tingles in her body.

Harry, meanwhile, hesitated for a few seconds as he looked over at Bella. His eyes locked with hers, seeing the same desire there he suspected was in his eyes, and he wanted to curse at the bad timing; he hated that he was going to do this, and he was filled with regret at the decision had knew he had already made. "I'm heading back out there. I want to see what's going on - before SHIELD has a chance to grab whatever it is that is causing this."

Hermione nodded. "I thought you might. I'm coming with you; my portkey is already set, and I'll be there in 1 minute."

Harry was amazed. "How do you have a portkey already set? You don't even know where to go?"

Hermione smiled. "Harry, after you told me about your visit to the desert, I had considered that there might be a need for us to go out there again. So, I got your coordinates when you mirror called me, and I setup the portkey."

Harry shook his head in amazement; Hermione was always, always prepared. It was one of her greatest qualities. He took a breath, and decided he'd at least make a token attempt to dissuade her from what was certainly going to be an illegal portkey trip. "Hermione, you know if your portkey to me it's going to trigger an alert with the MACUSA aurors. Your only allowed to portkey to their designated spots. This could cause us some trouble later on."

Hermione actually laughed at him. "Well, Harry, we've broken rules before, and it's never stopped us. And in this case, it's better to beg forgiveness than wait for permission. This is too big to just ignore."

Harry laughed ruefully, acknowledging that she was right.

"Also," she added, as he watched her through the mirror as she grabbed her always-packed beaded bag, "I expect they are so busy right new with the sensor event I could probably slip through. I imagine every alert sensor they have is overloaded right now, same as ours."

Knowing she would come anyway, he waved away her objections. "Okay, okay, come on through."

"Ten seconds,." she said, and a few moments later, there was a loud pop and Hermione suddenly appeared a few feet above the floor of the hotel suite, moving her feet like she was walking down an escalator and landing in a tight crouch, like a cat landing from a leap.

Bella's eyes opened wide in surprise; she'd traveled by portkey back in London, and landed painfully on her butt! Hermione's landing had been so clean, even better than Harry's!

Hermione, meanwhile, grasped Harry in a quick hug and then turned to Bella. "Oh! I didn't know you were here! Hi Bella!" Hermione said, and took two purposeful strides and, to Bella's surprise, hugged her as well. Stepping back just a foot, Hermione held her by the upper arms, her eyes dancing over her face. "You look great, Bella! Harry is hopefully behaving himself?"

Bella blushed, but Hermione's enthusiasm was infectious. Laughing, Bella nodded. "He is doing a pretty good job." And she held up the rose that she still clutched as evidence.

"Good, good," Hermione said, chuckling. "Sometimes he can be such a boy, and boys are sometimes clueless." But then, she looked at Harry with a scrunched nose, and took in his dissheveled state. She then turned to Bella, raised an eyebrow, and when Bella blushed fiercely, Hermione raised her hand to her mouth to smother a laugh. "Sorry, sorry, I guess my timing could have been better?"

Harry grumbled, but Bella just laughed, overcoming her shyness she surprised them both. "Trust me Hermione, better now than 5 minutes later."

There was a brief pause, and then both Harry and Hermione were laughing. Shaking her head, Hermione gave Bella a wide smile. "Thank goodness, then; I've no need to see any of that." And then, face turning serious again, Hermione had turned back to Harry. "We should go now. Grab whatever you need."

As Harry grabbed his own bag from the table, Bella let her eyes wander over Hermione. She was dressed in muggle jeans and a dark blue sweater; nothing about her outfit screamed 'Witch.' The woven bag that was crossed over her shoulder - similar to the one Harry carried - could easily have passed for a regular handbag.

Bella startled when Harry stepped up to her, his hand on her arm. "Bella, I'm so so sorry about this. But this is really important." Bella nodded: Harry had told her about his trip to the desert.

"Yes," she said. "I understand, you need to go."

Happy that she was so understanding, he gave her a quick kiss. But before he could turn away, Bella grasped his left hand, holding tightly. "Harry, I want to come with you,"

Harry blinked in surprise, completely unprepared for that. He saw, however, that her jaw had firmed: she was serious. "Bella, this will be dangerous. We have no idea what might be there. You've barely any training. This is not the time to show me how brave you are."

She shook her head stubbornly. "I know that, Harry. But do you remember that night at your home in London? I had no training then, either, and I stopped those two wizards from shooting you in the back!" Her voice had risen in volume, and she took a deep breath, trying to appeal to him rationally.

"Bella, this is very different. You were forced into that situation; here, you are willfully walking into danger."

Bella opened her mouth to refute him, when suddenly Hermione cut in. "Harry...you really aren't the one to lecture people on staying behind."

Bella's head whipped to the right, her mouth falling open as she looked at Hermione wide-eyed. The older Witch gave Bella a small smile before turning back to face Harry. "You know I'm right, Harry."

"Why are you doing this, Hermione?" Harry asked with gritted teeth, frustration clear in his expression. He didn't want to admit to Hermione how much having Bella there would worry him. He had just met her, really: he wasn't ready to risk her.

Hermione tilted her head, and took a few moments before answering. "Call it a feeling, Harry? Maybe because I see something in you that I haven't seen in a while, and you need to see that she's strong?" And then, in a quieter voice, she added, "maybe she needs to see it herself too?"

Bella gave Hermione a thoughtful look, resolved that she would consider her words carefully later. But for now, though, she sensed victory.

However, even as a small grin began to form on Bella's face, Hermione turned back to her, her lips tightening into a tight frown. "Bella," Hermione said, "Harry is right. This will be dangerous. You must listen to everything we tell you, no questions, okay?"

Bella paused for a moment, and when she saw Hermione's mouth tightening, Bella nodded quickly. Hermione gazed at her with a very authoritarian - and somewhat scary, if Bella was honest - look on her face, and Bella nodded again. "I promise."

Hermione nodded in return, and pulled out her wand and cast a spell on the bracelet around Bella's left wrist, a blue leather strap with an Egyptian beetle symbol on it. She muttered something Bella didn't hear clearly, and then she waved her wand one last time and touched the bracelet, incanting the words 'Hotel Home' and 'Portus."

Stowing her wand in it's holster, Hermione gestured with her chin towards the bracelet. "That is now a voice activated emergency portkey. If we tell you to bail-out - or there is trouble that we can't handle - you call out the words "Hotel Home' and you will be transported here to this room. If that happens, you need to leave and go back to your apartment, just in case MACUSA shows up after tracing the portkey. If they are watching, and decide to investigate, you will have anywhere from two to five minutes to get out of here, so don't tarry. Do you understand?"

Bella nodded jerkily, the speed at which this was happening suddenly overwhelming her. Hermione held her wrists, looking into her eyes. "Okay, Bella?"

"Yes, yes, I'm okay. Hotel Home, got it."

Hermione's eyes roamed Bella's face for another few seconds, before she nodded, satisfied at whatever she saw there. "Do you have your wand?" Hermione asked her.

"No," Bella admitted, suddenly ashamed she hadn't brought it. "It's in my apartment, across the street."

"Okay, first stop is there. Let's go get it, but quickly. We are on a time crunch." As they swept from the room, and got into the empty elevator, Hermione turned back to her. "A friendly piece of advice? In the future, since I know Harry got you the invisible holster, you should carry your wand with you whenever you can. And certainly ALWAYS carry it when you know you are going to see Harry. He is sort of a trouble magnet."

As they walked out of the lobby, Bella giggled at the phrase Hermione just used. Bella looked at Harry, who chuckled with her - Bella had told him about her being called 'a Danger Magnet.'

Hermione looked between the two with raised eyebrows, aware they'd just shared a private joke, but didn't press for details.

Less than five minutes later, after retrieving Bella's wand, the trio made their first of several apparation jump directly from Bella's apartment, disappearing with a small POP. They would soon be arriving in Puente Antiguo, where the local time was 1:30 PM.


A/N - This chapter was 8k words, so split it into 2. That means chapter 15 is just about done, and should be up this weekend. Let me know if you are still enjoying, stats for story are way down...