Blackbird and Chameleon: The Intermission -

Sorry that this took so long to get out to everyone. Real life has been hectic and I'm juggling a lot (including getting up for work at 4am!) I have finally found myself a better job with more reasonable hours and I finally found the time to sit and finish this chapter, with the help of BickyMonster as always. Anyway, please enjoy this chapter.


Part Three

It had been a long haul struggle but Misty had finally convinced Coulson to enroll her in the same school as Teddy. Phil had been rather reluctant to allow it but the two of them were close and if they were going to get the young girl to do as she was told then giving her this was a good way to gain her cooperation. Teddy just hadn't had the heart to tell her that this was going to be his last year there. Next September he would be eleven and therefore off to Hogwarts.

Harry was hoping for a trouble free year, however, that illusion was quickly shattered at the end of the first month when the school phoned Harry at home. He wasn't thrilled to have to pack the twins into the car and drive them all to the school, to where Teddy and Misty were sat in the Principal's office looking rather sheepish. Also in the office with them was Coulson, who was stood, towering over the youngsters looking very formal and stern.

"Do I want to know?" Harry asked as he maneuvered his double pushchair into the small office. Fortunately for him the twins were having their mid-afternoon nap, though Harry knew that it wouldn't be long until they were awake and wanting feeding.

"Please, come in, Mr Rogers," the Principle said rather solemnly. Harry did as he was told, shutting the door behind him, knowing that this was a serious matter.

"What have you two done?" Harry asked as he looked from Teddy, to Misty, to Coulson. He was more than a little concerned about what could have happened, especially with the fact that Teddy was a wizard. Not that Harry allowed Teddy to bring his wand into school, that would have been asking for trouble.

"There was an altercation," Coulson said, keeping himself very calm and in control as he always did, his face free of all emotion. He had arrived before Harry and the principle had informed him of what had happened after a little bit of convincing, as the principle had wanted to wait for Harry to arrive first. Coulson was a busy man and he didn't have time to wait around, he was in the middle of assembling his team and his plane was almost finished, he didn't have the time to be dealing with Misty and her insubordinance.

Harry groaned, looking Teddy all over but not seeing a single scratch on him. After the summer of S.H.I.E.L.D. training that Teddy had had, Harry wasn't exactly surprised, however, he was a little confused as to why Misty was here as well. "I think you had better start explaining, young man," Harry said with a sigh, sitting down on the only vacant chair in the room. He wasn't feeling great and if he hadn't sat down then it was likely he was going to fall down. He had been so rushed off his feet with the demands of the twins that he had forgotten to have anything to eat all day.

Steve had left early for training, or at least that was what he had said as he had walked out of the bedroom while Harry had still been half asleep at the crack of dawn. It was a habit of Steve's, disappearing off to train, or do work for S.H.I.E.L.D.; Harry had given up asking for details and just let his husband get on with it, though he wasn't particularly happy about it.

"Brandon called Misty a freak and tripped her over," Teddy said, launching into a full on explanation barely stopping to catch his breath as he tried to justify what he had done. "He's been picking on her since school started and it's making her miserable."

"So…" Harry coaxed, wanting to know what had happened afterwards that had lead him being called into the school. He very much doubted that Teddy had taken what had happened lightly, especially not considering the strong bond that the two youngsters had.

"I hit him," Teddy said, hanging his head in shame at this fact. He didn't exactly regret doing what he did, Brandon had deserved it, in fact he had deserved it for a very long time. Teddy did understand, however, that he had probably gone a little bit too far.

"Hitting him is perhaps an understatement," the Principle said with heavy disapproval. "The boy in question, Brandon, has been taken to the hospital with two broken ribs, a broken nose and a severe concussion."

"Oh, Teddy," Harry said with disappointment, looking at his Godson with a frown. When he had agreed to the S.H.I.E.L.D. training he had never thought that Teddy would be irresponsible enough to use it against regular students.

"What is going to happen?" Coulson asked, just as disapproving as Harry, though just in his own way. He didn't think that his specialised training would lead to this. They had put a lot of emphasis on using the abilities that they had been caught with responsibility.

"I am sure you understand the seriousness of Teddy's actions," the Principle said sternly, and Harry nodded, Teddy's eyes fixed firmly on the ground in front of him. "I am afraid I really have no choice but to suspend him."

"What!" Teddy exclaimed, looking up at the Principle in outrage; he didn't want to miss his time at school with Misty. He went to say something more on the matter but was cut off by a serious look from Harry. Harry wasn't happy about the suspension either but he could understand that the Principle had little choice; Teddy had caused serious bodily harm to another student and they were lucky that the police weren't involved. He was sure that Coulson would have had a part to play in that and he couldn't have been more grateful.

"I don't want to be at school without Teddy," Misty said at once, the normally nervous and quiet girl speaking up for the first time in their presence. It was a shock to all of them, even Coulson, but especially the headmaster, who had been having several complaints from teachers that girl would just not contribute to her classes. "I won't go."

"Misty…" Coulson said, trying not to sound too exasperated with her, "you need to go to school. We talked about this before, your education is important. It is why we agreed to send you here with Teddy in the first place." The young girl, whom Phil had promised Fury he would take care of, was not the easiest charge.

Misty often refused to do as she was told simply by turning invisible, she rarely spoke and much preferred her own company, unless Teddy was there. He seemed to give her the confidence to be around other people. This was why she had needed one on one attention; there were places that S.H.I.E.L.D sent gifted youngsters to be raised and taken care of, to make sure they didn't stray on to the wrong side of the path, however, with Misty's gift and background it was thought that this kind of environment would not suit her.

"But now Teddy won't be here," Misty said quietly, sounding both worried and upset about this. She didn't have to come here, Coulson couldn't make her, all she would have to do was turn herself invisible and then they wouldn't be able to find her to send her to school. She hadn't found any friend's here other than Teddy. The girls were simply horrible; they fussed over hair and make-up and Misty was more than content to just sit and read a book but the other kids had called her a nerd for it, a freak and a loser. Teddy was the only one who ever spoke to her like a normal person, even Coulson treated her like a potential superhero that needed training and she hated it.

"Only for the next month, Miss Taylor," the Principal said, pulling a few forms out of his desk, needing for Harry to sign the forms to make the exclusion from school official. Harry knew that Steve wasn't going to be best pleased about this; the super soldier was strict about school work, saying that he wanted Teddy to do well and the news of the exclusion wasn't going to go down too well, Harry was sure.

"And the boy, Brandon, will he be punished?" Coulson asked rather formally, not happy that the girl in his care had been tormented so badly that it had ended in this way. Though, he rather admired the way that Teddy had stood up for Misty, it made him realise that he had made the right decision in allowing the two of them to go to school together.

She might have been a rather trying young girl but she was the way she was because of what had happened to her in her past, at least that was what Coulson assumed was the case. It had taken a lot for Teddy to gain her trust when they had gone to get her. She had been living in a homeless shelter claiming that she was sixteen despite only being eleven, not having wanted the Authorities to get involved. She had still not told them anything about how she had ended up there, or where her parents were. Only Teddy seemed to know and he was as tight lipped about it as she was.

"He will also be excluded for a month. However, seeing as he will be in the hospital for the duration of his exclusion it really won't be that relevant," the Principle said, his tone one of displeasure. He had wanted to expel Teddy completely for what he had done, but Phil Coulson had been adamant on the fact that that was not going to happen and it hadn't taken too much convincing after he had shown his badge.

"I won't come in without Teddy," Misty said in a huff. All she wanted was to make herself invisible but she knew that she would be in a lot of trouble if she did. Coulson had warned her that not everyone looked kindly upon those with special abilities like herself. It was one of the first things that he had drilled into her head, not even Teddy was stupid enough to use his morphing abilities in front of regular people. She felt entirely uncomfortable sitting in this office with so many people and instinctively reached out to take Teddy's hand, gripping it tightly.

"That is something we shall have to discuss at home," Coulson said firmly, encouraging Misty to her feet, Harry doing the same with Teddy having just finished signing what was required of him. The twins were starting to grizzle a little in the pushchair and Harry wanted to get them all home before the little ones began full on crying. No doubt Sarah would want her Daddy, as she always did, and Steve had gone off to some S.H.I.E.L.D. training program for the day.

"I can take Misty back to mine if you like," Harry said, maneuvering the pushchair so that it was facing the right direction as he watched Teddy picking up his school bag, Misty doing the same, both of them staying rather close to one another, their hands still joined. "I know you must have other things to do; your team must be coming along well by now. I don't mind looking after her for a little while."

"Thank you, and yes, we've recruited a few valuable members," Coulson said as they left the principal's office, shutting the door behind them, Misty and Teddy trailing behind them looking miserable. This was not a conversation that Phil particularly wanted to have in the middle of a public school, however, there was no one around with it being the middle of class and he didn't mind too much as long as it remained vague; it wasn't often that he got to talk to Harry after all.

"I would love to hear all about it if you want to come over for dinner later when you come to pick up Misty," Harry suggested. "Hopefully at some point soon I can actually meet some of the team, maybe even join them on a mission too."

"Hopefully," Phil agreed, definitely keen to have Harry with them, knowing what an asset he would be. "And dinner would be good, thank you. Are you going to be okay with both of them?" he asked, glancing behind them to make certain that both Misty and Teddy were keeping up. The two of them were talking in hushed whispers, but following at least.

"I'll be fine," Harry assured him, with a laugh, "compared to Sarah when denied access to Steve, Teddy and Misty are no trouble at all." He knew that he and Teddy would need to talk about what had happened, but he wasn't sorry to have an excuse to put it off for a while; there were still times when he felt completely in over his head when it came to being a parent.

"She certainly loves her father," Phil said looking fondly down into the pushchair where the little girl was grizzling unhappily, wanting food and cuddles. "She'll make a great Agent one day, they all will," he added, motioning subtly behind him to Misty and Teddy. He didn't want them to hear the compliment, not when Teddy was in so much trouble at least.

"I don't want to think of any of them as Agents," Harry said with a sigh as they exited the building, coming to a stop at the curb where Harry had managed to find a parking spot. "Though I suppose with me and Steve as parents it's inevitable, isn't it."

"It doesn't have to be," Phil said softly, his tone wise as always. "The twins will have your sense of adventure, though, I have no doubt about that."

"Probably," Harry admitted. "I just hope they get some of Steve's virtue," he added with a sigh, "and in the end I'll always give them the choice. I won't dictate what they can and can't do with their lives."

"I can't come here without you," Misty whispered to Teddy, clasping at his hand tightly in fear, glancing back towards the imposing school building. This place scared her, she had only managed to survive because of Teddy. Of course there had been a few occasions where she had turned herself invisible in the bathroom because she couldn't cope with the teasing.

The last time she had been in mainstream education it had been the same. She never fit in with any of the typical groups, she was always the outsider and was teased and bullied by everyone. It was why she had started just not turning up, it wasn't like anyone had cared that she wasn't going to school at home. As long as she wasn't in the house during the day they hadn't cared what she was doing.

"Then don't; they can't make you," Teddy said with a shrug. He wasn't keen on Misty coming here without him either. These kids were cruel to outsiders and with Misty the way she was and Teddy's strong british accent, it was fairly clear they they just didn't belong. Without him there to keep her out of trouble Teddy was sure that Misty was going to get a rough time of it.

"Come on, you two, in the car," Harry said opening the car door as he started to maneuver the twins from the buggy and into the vehicle. He was forever grateful for the muggle inventing that allowed car seats to be clicked out of the pushchair and clicked into the holder in the car meaning that he didn't have to fuss around with straps and all that nonsense.

"You sure you're going to be okay with the two of them?" Phil asked, watching critically as Teddy and Misty clambered into the large minivan type vehicle. It was no secret that Harry hated it, however seeing as he frequently had four children and a super solider to ferry around it had seemed like the most logical choice aside from a limo.

"I'll be fine," Harry said with a smile as he watched Teddy and Misty climb into the monstrosity of a vehicle. "I'll see you tonight, let me know when you're coming over and I'll make sure that tea is on the table."

-x

"Damn," Harry said, as he fumbled quickly for the oven glove when he realised that the dinner was most definitely cooked, if not a little overdone, if the smells coming from the oven were any indication. He had thought that he had put it in late enough to ensure that Steve would be home before it was done, but apparently his husband was going to be too late to eat dinner with their family again.

An involuntary shiver went down Harry's spine as he thought about how the Dursley's would have reacted if he had burnt their dinner. That life was now light years behind him, he was currently stuck in a different kind of hell; living in America with a man who had got him pregnant with his beautiful twin babies within the first few weeks of meeting each other and their marriage falling apart only a month after they had exchanged rings. This was never the kind of life that Harry had envisioned himself having and it made him crave the lonely existence he had had before, plenty of alcohol and even more meaningless sex.

"Okay, Sarah," he called out, when he heard his daughter whimpering from the room next door, where he had strapped her and her brother securely into their highchairs so that he could finish off their dinner. He could see them through the doorway, from where he was and could see that she was on the verge of a temper tantrum, slamming her little fists on the tray of her highchair. "I am sure Daddy will be home soon."

JJ was sitting watching his sister curiously, a gummy ring to aid teething stuffed into his mouth, drool dripping from his chin. Sarah had thrown her toys to the floor, much more intent to throw a fit than to sit quietly like her brother. Coulson was upstairs trying to convince Teddy and Misty to wash up before dinner, the two of them had been mysteriously silently upstairs all afternoon but, aside from taking them some snacks up at around three, Harry hadn't had time to check in on what they were doing, the twins running rings around him.

Sarah had taken her first wobbly steps today and Harry couldn't have been prouder of her. He knew that it was early for either of them to be walking, however, he had seen their development excel that of normal youngsters and he knew that it was all to do with the super serum and magic combination in their genes. He was half expecting JJ to start walking soon too, he was already confidently cruising around all of the furniture.

Rather suddenly, as Harry was trying to plate up dinner, he felt strong arms encircle his waist and lips press against his neck. Considering the only adult in the house was Coulson, Harry couldn't help but jump, pulling away quite quickly, turning to see who it was, praying that it wasn't Phil.

"Steve," Harry gasped out in relief, "for a moment there I thought you were Phil. I wasn't expecting you home." However, when Harry tried to move closer to his husband again, Steve backed up, looking at Harry rather suspiciously.

"Why would Phil be trying to kiss you?" Steve demanded to know. He had been in a rather good mood when he had arrived home but that had quickly evaporated. Now he was starting to wonder if Phil had been trying it on with his husband. Judging by Harry's reaction nothing had happened… yet.

"Because I wasn't expecting you home and he's the only other adult in the house," Harry tried to explain before he realised just how bad that sounded. "He's here for dinner and to collect Misty, he only arrived ten minutes ago, he's upstairs with Teddy and Misty."

Steve didn't say a word, picking Harry up at the waist and pinning him against the large fridge freezer, forcing the smaller man's legs to wrap around the super soldier's waist, pressing their lips together in a fiercely passionate kiss. "No one kisses you but me," Steve said with a low, possessive growl as he broke the kiss. "Understand?"

Silently, Harry nodded, rather liking this overly-possessive side of Steve. Taking charge, Harry threaded his fingers through Steve's soft blond hair, pulling him into a deeply passionate kiss, Steve's hands finding their way under Harry's t-shirt. It wasn't the most romantic situation, the smell of burning carrots surrounding them, the water having completely evaporated from the pan, Sarah screaming for her Daddy, not understand why he hadn't come to see her when he was so close; even JJ was starting to get upset through the lack of attention now.

"Not interrupting anything are we?" Phil asked in amusement as he stopped in the doorway to the kitchen, Teddy and Misty standing just in front of him, giggling amongst themselves at the state they had found Harry and Steve in.

Harry groaned as he broke the kiss, resting his head on Steve's shoulder. That one kiss had left him rock hard and wishing that they had time to go and deal with their erections, Steve having exactly the same problem. It had been a while since they had actually had sex, simply because Harry was always tired, falling asleep the second his head hit the pillow. Having two super babies and a magical almost-teenager was exhausting him.

"To be continued," Steve said in a lusty voice as he lowered Harry to the ground with one final sweet kiss to his lips. "Give me a minute," he added, directing this to Phil and the two older children, before heading into the dining room to see the twins, who were screaming for attention.

"It's good to see you two happy," Phil said to Harry, wanting to say so much more, knowing that the two had been having a few issues in their relationship, however, he didn't want to put worrying thoughts in the minds of Teddy and Misty, so he kept things subtle.

"I think I over did the dinner a little," Harry said rather sheepishly, hoping to change the subject, veering it away from the problems he and Steve were having in their relationship. He hated that it was such common knowledge to half of S.H.I.E.L.D. Though it didn't help that a few of their spats had happened while on S.H.I.E.L.D. property.

"I'm sure it'll taste wonderful," Coulson said with a smile, picking up on the need to change the subject. He glanced through to the dining room where Sarah was already in her Daddy's arms, cooing happily at her Dad while he fussed over JJ, who was still in his highchair.

-x

After dinner Harry finally had the chance to sit down and relax. Steve had taken Sarah and JJ upstairs for their bath and to settle them in bed. Teddy and Misty had once again disappeared up to Teddy's bedroom to do goodness knows what. Harry wasn't too concerned, he trusted his Godson to be sensible, he was fairly grown up for his age.

"Do you remember the young man, Grant Ward, who was training the young recruits?" Coulson asked as he brought out some plans and files for Harry to have a look at. He valued the young man's opinion and was keen to have him on board with the plans for a new team of agents.

"Yeah, he took special interest in the twins," Harry said with a nod. He recalled Grant Ward because every time he had called in to see how Teddy was doing during the summer training, Ward would come and talk to him. "You want him on your team?"

Coulson nodded in confirmation, selecting one of the files and opening it, sliding it in front of Harry for him to have a look at. "What do you think?" he asked. "His ratings are excellent, particularly in combat and espionage. Second only to Miss Romanoff."

"Well that's high praise if I ever heard it," Harry commented, as he looked the file over. He had seen quite a few personnel files now, ones that Coulson had asked for his opinion on, but not Ward's, and it certainly made for interesting reading. "I hope you aren't hoping for him to make many friends."

"Hmm," Phil hummed, nodding in agreement, "his people skills are a little… unrefined."

"As are Natasha's," Harry said with a smile, "perhaps being the best in combat and espionage comes with that burden."

"Natasha has her bond with Clint," Phil reminded. "I think that that helps. Grant has a rather unique relationship with the man who trained him but that's it."

"John Garrett, yes, he's down here, though I don't think I've had the pleasure of meeting him yet," Harry said. He knew that he was privileged with the amount of upper level S.H.I.E.L.D. agents that he had met. He and Steve were level eight, Teddy was already level 2, having proven himself in the field and at training.

"A good agent," Phil mused as Harry scanned over Ward's file with interest. Grant was a handsome guy that was for sure but he certainly wasn't Harry's type. He wasn't blond.

"I don't suppose you ever made heads of tails of that Hydra thing that George mentioned?" Harry asked curiously as he closed the file and handed it back to Phil.

"No, there is no trace of them anywhere, not since Red Skull, who Steve dealt with. I wasn't able to look too far into it, it's above my clearance level. Director Fury didn't believe that it was worth too many man hours; the word of one confused man isn't significant I'm afraid, not without more evidence."

"Understandable," Harry said with a sigh. "I do think that Ward is a good choice for the team. I'm jealous that I won't be able to join you on a more permanent basis."

"I am sure that we can make some arrangements," Coulson assured him. "You'll be a valuable asset for us, though you have your hands full here and not just with the children either."

Harry couldn't help but laugh a little; it was true, he did have his hands full, not only with the children but with Steve as well. He did love his life, though he wasn't sure he liked it being in America. It just wasn't what he had pictured his life becoming two years ago when he was still bedding a different handsome blond man every night.

"Always happy to help," Harry said as he got up from the sofa. It was getting late and he knew that it was time that Phil took Misty back to where she was staying. He only wished that he could have offered Misty a home here with them, but he knew that he couldn't, not with them being wizards. The Ministry was already being more than lenient with Steve and S.H.I.E.L.D..

"We should go," Phil said as he too got to his feet. The next few months were undoubtedly going to be busy but Phil was certainly looking forward to it. He was a little apprehensive about leaving Misty behind with the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent that was acting as her Foster parent, he was rather fond of the young girl, but his team and the work that Fury had asked him to do took precedent over everything. "Will you keep an eye on Misty? I might not be able to keep as close an eye on her as I would like over the coming months."

"Of course," Harry said at once, without a single second of hesitation. "Her and Teddy are inseparable anyway, it's hardly likely to be a chore," he added with a fond smile. He too was fond of Misty and he knew that that was an understatement when it came to Teddy. "If you need anything, Phil, don't hesitate to call."

"I'll keep that in mind," Phil said, knowing that he would be doing just that. Harry was smart and an exceptionally good Agent, his life experience was second to none. It was only a shame that Harry couldn't join them on the Bus permanently.

-x

September turned into October and finally at the end of the month Teddy was finally allowed back to school. Misty's attendance had been very hit and miss while Teddy had been absent, which had caused a lot of friction at her S.H.I.E.L.D. run Foster home. She had been using her ability to escape from the house so they couldn't make her go.

However, now that Teddy was officially allowed back, Misty had agreed that she too would stop refusing to attend. It had caused a little upset that Coulson was no longer around, his team and the missions that they were completing taking him all over the world. Misty missed Phil and was clinging to Teddy more than ever.

Harry had been invited to Pennsylvania as Phil had wanted his input on what was going on as there had been a number of suspicious deaths in the area. They had shared a video call instead and Harry had acted as a consultant as he had been signed up to do, though he had been itching to go and join them. It turned out to be a fairly simple solution, one of the left over Chitauri helmets from the Battle of New York had been causing the deaths.

However, when Harry got a call from Darcy on the third of November in the early hours of the morning, there was no way that he couldn't answer. She had tried to contact S.H.I.E.L.D. but to no avail and she hadn't known where to turn. Everything was in a mess, Thor was on Earth and then he wasn't again, Jane was missing and Darcy needed help. Harry had promised that he would be there as soon as possible.

"I have to go," Harry said as he threw some clothes into a backpack. Steve had climbed out of bed, wanting to talk some sense into his husband and was stood in the corner of the room near the door, arms folded across his chest, looking rather unimpressed.

"You can't just up and leave," Steve said firmly. He was absolutely terrified that Harry wasn't going to be coming back and he wasn't sure that he was going to be able to cope with the twins and Teddy on his own. Though he was fairly grateful that the children were all asleep, this wasn't something that they needed to see or hear

"I won't be gone long, I can use a portkey to get back in a heartbeat but I have to go. Darcy wouldn't have called unless it was important; Jane and Thor had disappeared off, she's on her way to check Erik out of a mental hospital for goodness sake," Harry said, trying to reason with his husband.

"You barely know this woman, you've never even met her and you've only met Jane once. Why do you care so much to just drop your family and leave on a whim?" Steve argued, not willing to let the matter drop. He wasn't going to let Harry leave him here alone with their three children, not without putting up a fight about it.

"We've been in contact a lot recently," Harry said with a sigh. This wasn't something that he had purposefully hidden from Steve, it just had never come up in conversation. Steve had been gone so much with training programs and side missions that Harry had just wanted someone to talk to. Jane was smart and inquisitive, she believed in science and Harry was centred in magic, they had some seriously intellectual debates over the video chat.

"You've been in contact?" Steve asked in surprise, unaware that this had been the case. "For how long?" he asked, wondering what else Harry just simply hadn't told him. For the last few months they had been fine, at least he thought that they had been. They at least hadn't been arguing at all, everything had been peaceful and Steve had assumed they had moved past the difficulties they'd been having.

"For months," Harry said with a shrug as he zipped up his bag rather roughly. He was still an Auror back in England, he did a lot of work from home and that still entitled him to certain privileges, including making portkeys without the need for miles of paperwork. This was how he intended to get to England but still be able to get home in a hurry if need be. However, in Harry's mind he needed a break and was therefore leaving his children with their father, this break was long overdue.

"You can't just leave," Steve said again, determined to make Harry see sense.

"I'll be back in a couple of days," Harry said, putting the bag on his back and withdrawing his wand. He had a number of odds and ends in his bedside table for this exact purpose, he took one out now, turning it into a portkey. There was nothing that Steve could say that was going to keep him here, he needed to get away for a bit and just do something that he was used to doing.

Going out, getting drunk and sleeping with a random blond was off the cards right now, that was something that he couldn't do to Steve. Going out and being an Auror turned agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. was the next best thing, it was something that he just had to do.

"Harry, please," Steve said desperately, not wanting to see his husband leave.

Harry sighed, knowing that he had very limited time until the portkey activated. "I love you," he said, going up on his tip-toes and placing a chaste kiss to his husband's lips. "If you need anything call me, I'll be back in a couple of days."

-x

Harry had felt a little awkward when he apparated into Erik's London apartment and no one was there, he had thought they would have been back by now. He did feel a little guilty about leaving Steve to deal with Teddy, Sarah and JJ but the man was their father and he had been gone so much recently, he needed the time to reconnect to the children. Putting down his things, Harry had debated what to do next. He had expected for Darcy to be here, the fact that she wasn't concerned him, especially seeing as Jane was currently missing too.

Harry had made himself at home on the couch and even set the fire going in the hearth in the twenty minutes that he had been alone in the flat, not knowing what to do. Then the silence had been shattered in a millisecond when the door to the small flat turned lab burst open and Darcy entered in her usual loud and confident manner, a strange man that Harry didn't recognize following in her wake, Erik Selvig just behind the two of them. The three just stopped upon seeing Harry sat there, not knowing how to react.

It was the young man that Harry didn't recognize to react first. Dropping the many things that he was carrying, the man jumped in front of Darcy as if to protect her and Harry laughed at his efforts, knowing that if he had wanted to hurt any of them then they would have been dead. Between his time as an Auror and then as a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, he was fairly confidence in his ability to shuffle people off the mortal coil.

"Harry," Darcy gasped out in shock. She had not expected for him to be there. When she had called him he had been in America and that had only been about an hour ago. It made no sense that he was there now, it scientifically wasn't possible. "How are you even here?"

"You called me…" Harry said, a little uncertain. He was sure that she had needed his help and had wanted him here, now he wasn't so sure. For a brief moment Harry was a little concerned that he had read too much into her phone call and made more of it than there was just so he could go on an adventure again, just like in the good old days.

"But you were in America," Darcy said, coming further into the room. The other man and Erick doing the same, closing the door behind them.

"Yes, I was," Harry said, finally realising what she meant. Jane didn't even know the extent of what he could do, not even Phil did, only the Avengers and Fury. Darcy knew even less, as far as these muggles were concerned he was just a man with abilities, like Steve or Thor. "And now I'm here."

"Yes, but how?" Darcy insisted, going into the kitchen and flicking the switch on the kettle. Her time in England had converted her, she had discovered that she genuinely really liked tea. She had been curious when she had come here, wanting to know what all of the fuss was about. She wasn't sure it was going to be the same when she went home to America.

"Darcy," Harry said with a sigh, "there are always going to be things about me that I can't explain to you. This is one of those times." There was no way that he was going to explain things to her, the girl was just too excitable about things and there was no guarantee that she was going to keep her mouth shut. It wasn't worth breaking the statute of secrecy. "What's going on, why did you need my help?"

As Darcy launched into her explanation about the convergence and how it was that she and Jane had come to be in England, Erik removed his pants and sat down at his desk in front of his computer. When Harry looked at him questioningly, Selvig shrugged. "It helps me think," he said without batting an eyelid.

"I think I'm ordering a take out," Harry said, running a hand through his hair, "chinese alright with everyone?" There were murmurs of agreement as everyone started to get on with what needed to be done.

-x

Steve hadn't been back to sleep since Harry had left in the early hours of the morning. He had no idea what to do with the two young babies that he had helped to create. Harry was usually the one to take care of family things, Steve thought of their arrangement as very traditional and he liked it that way.

It was almost six in the morning now, hours after Harry had vanished from right in front of his eyes using some magic trick of his. Steve still wasn't sure on all the details of that element of Harry's life. Sarah and JJ would be awake soon, screaming to be fed and with no idea that their mother was gone. It was then the madness was going to ensue.

Not only did Steve have the twins to deal with and worry about, but he had Teddy to concern himself with too. He would have to dress and feed Sarah and JJ, getting them ready to leave the house, which was a mammoth task all on its own. He was also going to have to get Teddy out of bed, fed and ready for school, not to mention actually get him there.

Steve honestly had no idea where to start with everything that he had to do this morning, he had been sat on the edge of the bed thinking about it ever since Harry had left. He felt utterly pathetic; he was meant to be a superhero for goodness sake, if only the adoring fans of Captain America could see him now, a quivering wreck at the prospect of taking care of his own children single-handed.

The only thought that prevented him from calling in reinforcements was that Harry had trusted him to be able to handle this. No matter how annoyed at his husband he was, Steve didn't want to let him down. Harry did this all the time, there was no reason he couldn't do it too.

A grumble of complaint in the room across the hall signalled to Steve that JJ was awake. It had to be his little boy because he never made any fuss, Sarah on the other hand was a screamer. She liked to make sure that she was heard and low and behold, not a second later her cries could be heard.

Getting to his feet, knowing that he had no choice but to just get this over with, he headed for the nursery. He wasn't sure how Harry had managed it; the cries were slightly less in the rest of the house, however the moment that he entered the twins room the screams increased to a deafening level. Sarah was stood up in her crib, shaking at the bars, her cheeks bright red from crying and tear tracks down her face.

Steve rolled his eyes, going to her first. She had been awake no more than a minute and already she had worked herself up into such a state. "Was no one here to give you any attention, little girl?" Steve joked with a smile as he reached down and picked her up. Sarah had ceased her screams the second her Daddy had come into the room but now she buried her head in his shoulder, putting her thumb in her mouth and only letting out the occasional sniffle.

JJ on the other hand was sat quite calmly in his crib, playing with his teddy. "Mama," he said, looking up and seeing his dad, "mama," he repeated again, getting to his feet and try to look around Steve for Harry. JJ was going to be the tricky one, he was overly attached to Harry, just like Sarah was to him.

"Mama will be back soon," Steve said to his son, manoeuvring Sarah so that he could bend down and pick JJ up. The little boy, however, was having none of it, flumping back down on to his nappy clad bottom and starting to sniffle.

"Mama," JJ said again, "mama, mama, mama," he demanded, hitting his little hands down on the mattress in frustration. Steve sighed, not really knowing what to do, he knew that if he tried to pick the little boy up then he was going to scream and thrash about and he didn't want to risk dropping Sarah.

"Why did it have to be twins," Steve mumbled unhappily, wishing that he had an extra pair of hands. "JJ, I'll be right back, I'm just going to take your sister downstairs alright, then I'll be back for you."

"Mama," JJ answered, making a cross face as he looked up at his dad. Steve could totally understand where his son was coming from, the little boy was besotted with his mother, and Harry had never been away from them, not since they had been born. He on the other hand had probably been away for about half their lives.

It hadn't taken him long to realise that he probably should have been around more. Harry had managed the two little ones and Teddy on his own for almost a full year now. He was struggling to cope for a couple days. He was going to have to get a grip, he was Captain America for goodness sake, he would not fall at this hurdle.

Putting Sarah in the playpen in the living room and making sure she was settled and had some toys to play with, Steve headed back upstairs for JJ. He could hear his daughter whining about being put down and left, the little girl craving attention, but Steve could not pander to her today. On the way back to the nursery, Steve stopped off at Teddy's room, knocking quite forcibly on the door with the aim of waking the ten year old up.

"Go way," a sleepy voice muttered from somewhere inside the room.

"Up, Teddy," Steve shouted through the door, "breakfast in ten, I expect you dressed and in the kitchen before then." There was some more unintelligible grumbling but Steve left the almost teenager to his own devices; he had been told what to do, there would be consequences if he didn't do it.

JJ was still slumped down in his crib when Steve returned for him. When the little boy saw that it was his dad once again rather than his mother, JJ folded his arms across his chest looking rather cross about the whole situation. "Want mama," he said with determination. Steve could tell that his son was going to give him a headache before the day was out.

When the twins were both in their highchairs and eating breakfast, Steve risked leaving them alone so that he could go and check on Teddy. The ten year old had still not surfaced from his bedroom and he needed to start getting ready for school. Steve knew he shouldn't have left the twins on their own but he honestly didn't have a choice, not if he wanted to get Teddy to school on time.

Hammering his fist on the door in an attempt to wake the ten year old, Steve shouted; "you had better be awake and out of bed." There was no response. Getting rather annoyed and fretting a little because he had left the twins all alone downstairs, Steve opened the door and stormed in. He had seen this used on other recruits during his time in the army and he was so fed up with Teddy not listening to him that he felt no guilt in grabbing one side of the mattress and lifting it, tipping the young boy out of bed and on to the floor with a bang.

"What the hell was that for?" Teddy asked in outrage as he tried to detangle himself from the mass of blankets that he had managed to become tangled up in.

"Watch your language," Steve said rather firmly. "Get dressed and downstairs for breakfast, we're leaving for school in twenty minutes!"

Not wanting to leave the twins for any longer than he had to, Steve turned and stormed from the room, leaving Teddy to just get on with it. There would be hell to pay if the young boy went back to sleep. Steve got the fright of his life, however, when he came back into the kitchen and both the high chairs were empty.

"Fuck," Steve yelled, looking all round the kitchen for any sign of Sarah or JJ. When he couldn't see either of them he moved on to the dining room which was also vacant. He even checked under the table, knowing that sometimes JJ liked to hide but there was no sign of either of them.

"Dad?" Teddy asked in confusion as he came down the stairs, JJ in his arms, "you realise JJ was upstairs on his own." Steve looked so relieved to see his little boy that he immediately swooped in and took him into his arms. "I think he was looking for Mum."

"Sarah's gone too," Steve said frantically, "help me look?" JJ was not happy about being back downstairs and in his Dad's arms, he wanted his Mum and would not stop calling out for him, hitting little fists against his father's expansive, solid chest.

"How did you manage to lose both of them?" Teddy asked in surprise as he began to help his Dad look in all the nooks and crannies in the hallway, checking for any sign that Sarah might have been there.

"I think they used their magic, did that disappearing and reappearing thing they can do," Steve said as he took JJ back into the kitchen and secured the little boy into his highchair once again, happy that he hadn't been hurt while on his little adventure. "Besides, I wouldn't have had to leave them if you had got out of bed the first time I asked."

"Wait, you're blaming me for this?" Teddy said in disgust as he came into the kitchen carrying a rather messy Sarah at arms length. The little girl had a broad grin on her face and was giggling happily. "I'm not the one who lost two one year olds," he snapped unhappily as Steve took Sarah from him, the little girl squealing in delight at being back in her Dad's arms. "Where's mum anyway? He finally get fed up of you always abandoning us and walk out?"

"Don't speak to me like that, young man!" Steve said firmly, not willing to accept any cheek from the ten year old. He really wasn't in the mood to deal with it. Sarah was babbling nonsense to her brother as Steve secured her back into her high chair, sighing as he realised that she would need to go in the bath as she had clumps baby cereal stuck in her dark brown hair.

"You know mum has never lost either of them, he never let Sarah smear her breakfast all over the T.V or the sofa and he would never leave JJ on his own upstairs," Teddy said somewhat smugly, "You're never here to help and he always manages just fine, you can't even cope for one morning." The twins were happily chatting away to one another, completely disregarding the argument going on in front of them.

"I'm trying, Teddy," Steve said with exasperation, hating that he just couldn't take care of his own children. It made him feel utterly useless, however, he was righteously angry at Teddy; he had only left the twins alone this morning because the ten year old hadn't wanted to get out of bed. "I would have appreciated you helping this morning rather than hindering."

"It's not my fault you're useless," Teddy snapped angrily, the raised sharp tones grabbing the attention of the twins who suddenly went very quiet. "Harry doesn't need help, he's learnt to get everything done on his own because you're never here. You don't even see how lonely he is or how sad, you don't care, all you care about is your next mission and it's pathetic."

"Wow, you're good at channelling your mum," Steve said with a sigh as Sarah began to snivell, not liking the argument that was going on in front of her. JJ on the other hand was just looking between his big brother and his Dad not knowing what to do.

Steve knew that Harry would never say the things to him that Teddy was saying but then he was never around to give his husband the chance. It was clear that Teddy, being as bright as he was, had picked up on more than a few of the issues that he and Harry had been having in their relationship. It had always been important to both of them that the children remained unaffected but it seemed that in that respect they had failed miserably.

"Whatever," Teddy snapped, grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl. "I'll see you tonight if you can remember or even be bothered to pick me up."

"Wait, I'm meant to take you to school," Steve said as Teddy headed for the door. Sarah was now screaming at the top of her lungs, arms outstretched towards Steve, wanting to be picked up. JJ was starting to sniffle, tears welling up in his eyes. He had always been the quieter of the two and he really didn't like loud noises very much.

"Forget it, I'll walk," Teddy snapped angrily. "One less thing to worry about for your tiny little brain," he added as he opened the front door and walked out, slamming it shut behind him.

Without worrying about Teddy, Steve was able to bath both Sarah and JJ without too much fuss, though his son was still desperate for Harry. Steve did call the school though, just to make sure that Teddy had made it in okay, which he had. He did feel a little guilty about the fact that Teddy had had to walk there on his own that morning but tomorrow it would be better, if Harry wasn't back that was and Steve had a gut feeling that Harry wouldn't be.

The experience of the morning rush and panic when Sarah and JJ hadn't been where he had left them had made Steve realise just how isolated Harry must feel. Harry didn't know anyone there and he did all of this on his own and without any complaint. It was no wonder that he had taken off at the first opportunity. It was clear that Steve was going to have to readjust his priorities a little because he couldn't leave Harry to do all of this on his own anymore.

-x

Things at Erik's calmed down after the Chinese food arrived, everyone had retreated to do their own things while they ate. Erik and Darcy were trying to figure out where Jane and Thor were, as they looked into everything they could about the convergence that was taking place all around them and tried to figure out what might happen as a result of it. Whatever was going on, it had to have something to do with wherever Thor and Jane had disappeared off to.

Harry had resigned himself to being sat on the sofa reading, thinking of his family and wondering how they were getting on without him and if Steve was coping with the twins and Teddy. He was startled out of his musings when the door to the flat burst open rather suddenly and two familiar faces walked in. Thor and Jane were looking serious and as if something was very wrong, which they were to find out it was.

"Harry," Jane said in shock at seeing him there, stopping rather suddenly at the sight of the Avenger sat on her sofa. She was more than a little surprised but beyond grateful that he was here; with Thor and Harry there to help it was bound to work out. At least that was what she hoped.

"Potter," Thor boomed with a smile, after hanging up his hammer and turning to face the people in the room, just as surprised as Jane to see Harry there, "it is good to see you again." The large man strode forward, embracing the smaller man in a tight embrace that had Harry struggling to breath. There was no doubt that Thor was as strong as he looked.

"It's good to see you too, Thor," Harry said as he was released and finally able to draw breath again. "Hi, Jane," he added with a little wave as Darcy pounced upon her friend, berating her for just upping and leaving with no explanation. Harry rolled his eyes a little as the group exchanged hugs and relieved greetings. Clearly Jane had been gone for a while and there was a lot to discuss.

Harry was thrilled to find himself in the middle of the action. He was more than happy to help stop whatever was going on. He loved being part of something again, these guys were no Avenger's team, except for Thor of course, but they were still a team and there was a mission to complete and a world to save.

-x

Between them it hadn't taken long to figure out where they needed to be, where the epicentre of the convergence was going to be on earth; in Greenwich of all places, much to Harry's surprise. Though it made sense with the activity that Jane and Erik had been observing.

Harry had been quite alarmed by Jane's description of what to expect; it was easy to tell that fluctuations in gravity were not a good thing, and though he wasn't sure what spatial extrusions were exactly, he didn't like the sound of that either. He had no idea how they were supposed to fight against something that was warping reality, and he wasn't even sure how it would react with his magic, so he was glad that Erik seemed to be several steps ahead of them in that regard.

"Are you sure I shouldn't be helping Darcy and Ian with the other sensors?" Harry asked in a concerned whisper as he followed Erik and Jane through a study hall. He knew that they both meant well, but it seemed fairly important to get them set up quickly and this was the only plan they had for the moment.

"No, they can handle it," Jane assured him, ignoring the person who shushed them, "we need to be ready."

Harry nodded his agreement, knowing that they needed to trust that Thor would be able to deal with Malekith. They had a plan, as rushed as it had been, and they would stick to it.

-x

Harry had stuck close to Jane and Erik, so as to better protect them as Thor had instructed, given the God of Thunder didn't want Jane to be hurt in this battle. They only had to keep Malekith busy until the convergence was over; it was still hard for him to just let Thor deal with the majority of the fighting and Harry did what he could to help, but he kept his word to his fellow Avenger.

When Thor had gone into the black and red mist of the Aether, Harry had been the one holding Jane back, stopping her from following, telling her that they had to trust that Thor knew what he was doing. He had got her back on track so that with Thor in the thick of things, Jane could do what was needed of her and destroy Malekith.

Though he hadn't been able to stop her from running to Thor when the asgardian had been unconscious and almost being crushed, he had been able to use his magic and help get them out of the way before the spaceship had fallen on them both. Not that it had been needed as the spaceship had vanished right before it had crushed them, disappearing through one of Erik's portals, much to their relief. The battle was won and the world was saved, but it was not over.

Harry had watched as a tearful Jane had had to say her goodbyes to Thor, who had needed to return to Asgard. After the way that Thor had left, he had needed to talk to his father. It had been hard to see him go, it always was but it was something that he needed to do and both Harry and Jane could of course understand that.

The weary warriors had then traipsed back to Erik's London flat and collapsed into bed, exhausted. Harry and Jane had shared a rather amused look however, when Darcy had taken Ian into her bedroom before the two of them had allowed their exhaustion to overcome them, unsure of where Darcy and Ian found the energy. Harry had honestly meant to call Steve when it was over to let him know what everything was okay but he had just been so tired he had made a mental note to do so when he woke up.

-x

When Steve woke up and switched on the television to see the early morning reports of Thor and Blackbird battling against a hostile alien force in Greenwich with a few unknown civilians, the super soldier had very quickly grabbed his phone, checking for messages but there were none. He watched the news report in a stunned silence, wanting to know desperately if there had been any casualties but none were reported, only a few minor injuries and even then they weren't confirmed as none of those involved had been available for comment. He tried to call Harry several times before giving up, knowing that he had to get Teddy up and ready for school, not to mention the twins.

It wasn't until Teddy was at school and the twins were happily sat in their play pen occupying themselves that Steve's phone finally rang. He grabbed for it instantly, realising that it was most likely Harry; it must have been about 5pm over in England, hours after the battle of Greenwich had taken place. It grated on Steve that Harry had only thought to call him now.

"Harry?" Steve said as he picked up the phone, desperate to hear the sound of his husband's voice. "Harry, is that you?" he asked when the person on the other end said nothing.

"Hi, Steve," Harry finally said with a hint of a smile in his voice.

"You had me worried sick!" Steve said, the relief that had washed over him was suddenly gone, replaced with a righteous anger at the fact that Harry hadn't contacted him right away to let him know that he was alright.

"I'm sorry I just left like that," Harry said at once, realising that he probably should have called earlier than this.

"No, Harry, the fight with Thor, it's been all over the news here!" Steve said angrily. "Couldn't you have called to let me know that you were okay?"

"I didn't realise you knew about what was happening over here. I've only just woken up. The battle was exhausting for all of us, no one else is even up yet." He honestly hadn't thought that Steve would have known what was going on or that there was anything for him to be worrying about.

"I haven't heard from you since you disappeared off yesterday in the early hours of the morning. Have you even wondered about how the twins are? Or Teddy?"

"Don't do that, Steve," Harry said with a sigh, "you know I've thought about you and the children. I never stop thinking about it, my whole life has revolved around you and the children for the last eleven months and not once have I ever complained because I love you all so much, so do not throw that in my face now."

"I'm sorry," Steve said, realising that airing their issues over the phone wasn't the best way to solve them. All that mattered was that Harry was safe, anything else could be discussed when Harry finally got home. "I just hate that I'm not there with you to help, that you're in so much danger and I can't do anything about it."

"Steve," Harry said with exasperation, unable to maintain his anger when he realised that his husband was worrying about him. "I'm an Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., the same as you, with the same clearance level and I'm more than capable of holding my own against anything this Universe can throw at us. Please don't worry about me."

Steve knew all of this. He knew that his husband wasn't weak and could easily hold his own but it still didn't sit right with him that Harry was off on this mission while he was stuck at home, struggling with taking care of their children. He wanted to admit that he just wasn't coping but he knew that he couldn't admit defeat. Steve didn't want Harry to think that he was unable to care for their children.

"I'm always going to worry about you, Harry," Steve said firmly, wanting his husband to understand this fact. "I love you, you're my husband, nothing is going to stop me worrying about you." He knew that he needed to respect the fact that Harry was away on a mission, the younger man had done it plenty of times when the situation had been reverse. Steve knew that he needed to accept that Harry needed this and not be so childish to demand that he come home. However, that didn't mean that he had to be happy about it.

"I know," Harry said sadly, feeling slightly guilty about the fact he had just left. He missed his three children terribly and he missed Steve too, however, he was also glad to finally be out of the house and doing something useful. Saving the day was something that had been programmed into him since he was eleven years old, suddenly becoming domesticated was never going to last in the long term for him. That was something that Steve had to understand, at least a little.

"Would you like to talk to the twins?" Steve asked with a weary sigh, glancing over to the playpen where Sarah and JJ were happily playing amongst themselves and thankfully had stayed put. Since the little trick that morning, Steve had been keeping a very close eye on them.

"Yes please," Harry said, feeling a little choked up all of a sudden, the overwhelming emotion of missing his two young babies washing over him. While dealing with the convergence and Malekith it was easy to push the desperate aching of his heart to one side but he did miss his family so much but equally he needed this time apart from them to regain his own life.

-x

Jane and Erik slept through to the next morning. Darcy and Ian woke up a few times, but they didn't resurface from the bedroom, though they could be heard rather clearly. Harry, on the other hand, barely managed a doze, his mind too busy with over thinking everything that he had talked to with Steve. He felt guilty that he had just left but he was happy that he was here and that meant he was feeling very conflicted.

Harry ate a hurried breakfast after getting a call from Coulson asking him to come join the team back in Greenwich. He left a note for the others, explaining where he had gone and why. He didn't want them to think that he had just vanished like Thor had done the evening before. Harry was a little excited to be able to join Coulson and his team on one of their assignments. He knew that now the mission with Jane and Thor was done he should have gone home, however, he just couldn't resist joining the team that he had heard so much about and had helped select as well.

What he wasn't expecting was being asked to join the clean up crew. Though he did have to admit that it was rather fascinating, not only because of what they were looking for but also to meet the team that Coulson had assembled. Of course Harry had met Grant Ward before, but the others he had only seen in paper format; finally meeting them face to face was actually rather nice. There was one team member that Harry hadn't had the pleasure of meeting via her file or in person and he was rather intrigued by the strange girl.

"Phil," Harry said curiously, "who's the girl?" he asked, motioning subtle over to where the curious dark haired girl was stood with Ward chatting away.

"That's Skye," Phil informed him. "She's a rather unique recruit on to the team." He had been keeping an eye on Skye for a while now and all her work with the rising tide and he knew that with a little training and discipline she was going to make one hell of a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. The poor girl just needed a push in the right direction after the rough start she had had, being juggled around by S.H.I.E.L.D. throughout her childhood.

Coulson was a little concerned that the same thing was going to happen to Misty. The young and gifted child was much like Skye had been in her younger years. Phil was just glad that Misty had found some stability with Harry and his family, it was something that Skye had never had and that was probably the cause of her going down the path she had chosen in her life.

"I don't remember seeing her file," Harry said conversationally. Phil had shown him the files of all those he had wanted for his team, it had made Harry feel important, knowing that his opinion was valued in things such as this. It hurt a little that he hadn't been consulted on the recruitment of Skye on to the team.

"She wasn't a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent when I recruited her for the team," Coulson said with a sly smile. "Her background is much as Misty's is," he explained. "Orphaned, juggled around by S.H.I.E.L.D. to protect her; she's quite the talented hacker and an asset to the team. Ward is her supervising officer, training her for field work."

"She couldn't ask for a better supervising officer," Harry said with a grin, watching the rather solemn man seemingly become tired of all the questions that Skye was asking. It felt so right for Harry to be there, to be part of their team and doing something productive. It had been so long since he had done anything like this, he had forgotten what it felt like to have adrenaline pumping through his veins. Changing a dirty nappy and doing laundry just didn't have the same appeal as S.H.I.E.L.D. missions.

"You know we could always use an extra body on the team," Phil said, looking to Harry meaningfully. He was fairly proud of his team at this point, they were all strong team players in their own unique ways and they balanced each other out brilliantly, but there was no denying what a great addition Harry would be.

"I wish I could," Harry said with a smile. "However, I have my own team back in the States that needs me more than you guys do." It did hurt him a little to turn Phil down but he knew that it was the right decision for him. "I'm happy to help out with this though, after all, I helped create the mess."

"If only Thor had the same social graces," Phil said with a sign, looking out over the mess of the battle that had taken place the day before. It had all been moved so that the general public couldn't come in contact with any of the alien ware from the spaceship, they didn't want another incident like they had with the Chitari helmet.

"If he could be here he would be," Harry said with a sigh, "he committed treason on his way out of Asgard and I think he's gone back to speak to his father and sort things out. His brother, Loki, died in the fight so I don't think cleaning up was at the forefront of his mind."

Phil had the decency to look momentarily appalled at himself but quickly regained his composure. He would not shed any tears for the passing of Loki, nor would he give it much thought at all besides how Thor had taken the news. Loki had, after all, killed him, even if it had only been for a few minutes.

-x

In truth Harry probably should have bid farewell to Jane and her team, as well as Coulson and his team, and returned to Washington to his family the following day. The clean up was done as far as S.H.I.E.L.D. was concerned but the mission wasn't over. Fury was sending Phil and the rest of his team to Norway to follow up on an incident there and Harry made the split second decision that rather than going home, he would be going with them.

It was five in the morning and Harry had just finished leaving a message for Steve to let him know that he was okay and that it was going to take a little longer before he could come home. It would have been midnight in Washington and he was sure that Steve, Teddy and the twins would all be asleep. He would call them later and speak to them when they were awake.

As he boarded the Bus, Skye caught his eye. He knew that she had been dying to talk to him when she had found out who he was, there just hadn't been the opportunity the day before with everything they had had to do. Knowing that it was pointless to avoid her forever, Harry took a seat beside her, readying himself for the never ending questions.

"You're an Avenger right," Skye said almost instantly as Harry had settled himself in his seat. "The Blackbird?"

Harry couldn't help but laugh, he had known that she was forward but even this wasn't expected. "I wouldn't say that I'm an Avenger," he said, still smiling at the thought, "but I am married to one, Captain America."

"Wow," Skye said with a low, impressed whistle, "wow." She was in awe of being in the presence of Harry, who, in her mind, was an Avenger. He fought side by side with the like of Thor, Hulk and Ironman, Harry was one of them.

"We have three children too," Harry said, enjoying the expression of shock on her face when he said this. It wasn't common knowledge that the children were biologically theirs as in the muggle world it was impossible for a male to have children but he knew that there were a few S.H.I.E.L.D. agents that knew. As far as they were concerned, it was part of his special abilities. He was super human just like Captain America and Hulk, an unexplained occurrence.

"How?" Skye asked in surprise, wanting to know every detail that she could. She was completely fascinated by Harry and his special abilities and wanted to know everything she could.

"We're going to be on the flight for a couple of hours," Harry said with a grin as the engines of the Bus roared into life as Melinda May prepared to take them to the sky. "Perhaps you should save some of your questions for later on."

"I have plenty to fill the time," Skye said, grabbing a notebook and pen from out of the bag at her feet. This only made Harry's smile broaden. He was going to rather enjoy talking to Skye.

-x

Steve received Harry's message when he was awoken at six that morning by Sarah's shrill cries. She was wanting attention but Steve just didn't have the energy to go to her. He was tired, more so than he had been since before he had become the man he was today. He remembered the asthma and other health woes he had had as a young man, but even then he had never before felt as run down and exhausted as he did now. He did wonder if this was how Harry felt all of the time. Steve had only been doing this for a few days, Harry had been doing it for months.

The message had been vague, that Harry was okay and travelling to Norway. This news had sunk Steve further into depression, thinking of Harry travelling further away from him. It honestly felt as if he was losing his husband to S.H.I.E.L.D.. Sarah's cries had quickly stirred JJ and now both of the twins were crying but still, Steve didn't have the energy to pull himself out of bed and tend to them, instead he pulled the duvet up, over his head and just started to cry.

-x

It wasn't until five that evening that Steve finally heard from Harry. The twins had just settled to bed for the day, after a full day of whinging and crying; neither Sarh nor JJ had taken well to Harry being gone. It was becoming one of Steve's biggest stresses and Teddy wasn't helping matters either, the ten year old was becoming rather rebellious and wouldn't listen to anything that Steve told him.

"Harry, it's good to hear from you," Steve said when he picked up the phone and heard his husband's voice at the other end of the line. Teddy was in his room watching the television though he was supposed to be doing his homework, however, Steve just didn't have the energy to have that particular argument.

"I left a message for you earlier, I didn't want to wake you up," Harry said, feeling a little guilty about not making the effort to speak to his family and he was now second guessing his decision not to try and see if Steve was still awake, "did you not get it?" he asked with concern.

"I got it," Steve said with a sigh, "how's Norway?"

"It was beautiful," Harry said, though Steve could tell from the tone of his voice that Harry could hear how upset he was. "Not that we got much of a chance for sight seeing, we were a little too busy for all that."

"Was?" Steve asked, picking up on Harry's use of past tense. It didn't sit comfortably with Steve that he might not know where his husband was or what he was doing.

"We're in Spain now," Harry said, though a little hesitantly. He hadn't purposefully not told Steve where he was going, but everything had happened so quickly. They had been investigating an object of Asgardian origin and, no sooner had they established that this was the case, had they all been flown to Spain to consult with the world's leading expert of Norse mythology. They still had work to do in Seville and would not be coming home just yet, not that Harry wanted to tell Steve that.

"Spain," Steve repeated hesitantly. Harry had left for London to help Jane and he had then jetted off to Norway with S.H.I.E.L.D. and now he was in Spain. It didn't seem like Harry was going to be coming home any time soon and it worried Steve. He knew that occasionally these missions got a little out of hand but the last thing he wanted was for Harry to get so caught up in S.H.I.E.L.D. that he forgot that he belonged at home with his family.

"I shouldn't be too much longer," Harry said, understanding that his husband was going to be fretting about how much longer he would be away. Though, as much as he understood how Steve felt he wasn't going to cut the mission short and abandon Coulson, he would finish this first and then he would go home, not before.

"You've been gone for days," Steve pointed out, though he knew that it would be useless. Harry would already know how long he had been gone and telling him wasn't going to make much of a difference to the situation. "We all miss you," he added rather pathetically.

"I miss you all too," Harry said sincerely. He couldn't deny that he missed his family, he just needed some time away from them to realise this.

"Come home," Steve pleaded, "please, Harry." He didn't want to share with his husband how much he wasn't coping, he refused to admit defeat but he just couldn't cope with the crying from the twins anymore, nor could he cope with Teddy ignoring everything he said and then doing the opposite.

"As soon as we're finished here I will," Harry said, feeling more than a little guilty over how desperate Steve sounded. "I should go, I'm tired and need to get some sleep, we have a busy day tomorrow." With the pain in Steve's voice, Harry wasn't sure that he could carry on with the conversation. It wasn't like they were getting anywhere. When Harry got home he knew that there would have to be a very long and serious conversation; they had a lot of issues that couldn't be aired over the phone.

"Fine," Steve said with a defeated sigh. He couldn't say anything that he wanted to say over the phone anyway. He didn't know what to say to his husband anymore and that pained him. Their relationship had never been easy but it had never been this hard either.

"I promise I'll be home soon," Harry said, wanting to give Steve that. He hated hearing his husband sound so defeated, he only wished that Steve was here with him and that they could have gone of this mission together. He knew that could never happen, not now they had Sarah and JJ and he wouldn't wish them gone for anything, he loved his troublesome twins.

"We'll see you when we see you," Steve replied before cutting off the line. He didn't want to hear promises from his husband, they were all empty words to him, nothing more. They would mean very little until Harry was home with him where he belonged.

-x

The next time Harry heard from Steve was the following evening. Harry hadn't been able to face calling again, not to hear Steve sound so dejected when there was nothing he could do about it. The team were in Ireland now, having come up against the Norse Paganists in a Monastery and won. It had been a hard won fight, both Grant and Melinda had been infected with the staff but both seemed to have recovered from it well.

Harry had received a few minor injuries during the fight and had been told to rest. He had been in bed, half asleep when his phone had rung. He had known that it would be Steve before he even answered, what Harry was not expecting was for his husband to sound so frantic.

"You have to come home," Steve said, "I don't know what to do." Harry could tell that it pained Steve to admit this, he was not one to ever admit defeat.

"Steve, calm down, what is it, what's happened?" Harry asked, a million and one things going through his mind. He imagined the worst possible case scenarios with Teddy and the twins, thinking the worst in the few seconds that it took for Steve to answer him.

"Misty is here, she's brought bags, she's saying she has nowhere to go and she can't stay with her foster parents because one of the other children there is hurting her!" he said quickly; it was a struggle for Harry to comprehend what he had said it was so rushed.

"Slow down," Harry said, taking a breath. "Why is Misty there?" he asked, needing to get to the bottom of what was going on at home.

"She said that one of the boys there was hurting her so she packed a bag and left. Now she's here and I don't know what to do," Steve said, a little slower this time but still as panicked.

Harry sighed, knowing that his family needed him but feeling as if he just wasn't quite ready to come home yet. He had had so much fun on this mission and he didn't want to go back to the boring normalcy of his life but he knew that he was going to have to. "Okay," he said defeatedly, "I'll be home as soon as I can, just let me finish up with things here, I won't be more than a day or so. Just put Misty in the spare room, feed her and whatever you do, don't force her to talk about it if she isn't ready to. It sounds like she's been through enough already."

"Why can't you come home now?" Steve asked. He wasn't sure how all this magic stuff worked but he knew that Harry had the capability to teleport and could be home instantly if he wanted to be, which he clearly he didn't want to.

"I can't apparate long distances," Harry tried to explain; he had already tried to explain this before but it didn't seem to have sunk into Steve's head, not that Harry could blame his husband for this; Steve struggled to come to terms with some of the modern day muggle technology, magic was a little beyond him. "It takes too much out of me and a portkey is the same. I'm tired and, if I don't do it properly, I could end up hurting myself. Let me finish up here and then I'll come home, I promise."

"Fine," Steve said firmly, more angry than anything else. He was furious that Harry wouldn't come home and help him. Looking after their own children was one thing, however, adding an orphan on to that list wasn't something that he had been expecting. Steve wasn't heartless, he wouldn't turn her away, he knew what it felt like not to have anyone, but that didn't mean he felt right about having her there.

Without another word Steve hung up the phone, realising that he was going to get no assistance from his husband at all. Harry was left feeling rather like he had let his family down but also feeling as if Steve should have been able to handle this. It wasn't like he had been gone that long. It had only been four days, he'd be home soon enough, shackled to the house, looking after his children, doing the school runs and being a house husband, living his boring, humdrum life while Steve went on all of the adventures and lived his life.

-x

While waiting for their next mission, Phil had put them up in a local Irish hotel for two nights. The team had needed the respite. Despite the panicked phone call from Steve the night before Harry had decided to stay. He knew that it wasn't the best idea and he would catch hell for it later but he wasn't quite ready to go home just yet. Tonight was the last night, however, tomorrow the team would move on to their next mission and Harry knew he couldn't go with them.

With that knowledge weighing down on him, Harry had come to the hotel bar to drown his sorrows. He was feeling pretty rotten in all honesty, knowing that he shouldn't want to be away from his husband and his children for such an extended amount of time, yet here he was, delaying going back to his family for just one more night.

He wasn't technically alone, Harry had chosen to hide himself away in a corner booth, Grant Ward, however, was sat at the bar. After his encounter with the Staff it was no wonder he needed to drink, it had shook both him and Melinda up a little. Melinda May just wasn't one to deal with her demons in public.

Harry was almost tempted to join Grant when he saw Skye go over and join him. He knew that Skye rather liked Ward so he left them be, watching rather curiously. When Grant finished his drink and left, clearly turning down an offer to join Skye in her room, Harry took his drink and went to sit beside her.

"Everything okay?" Harry asked, signalling the bartender for another round for the two of them. Skye nodded a little hesitantly, still feeling a little intimidated by Harry. He waited until they had been given their drinks by a man who reminded Harry a lot of Seamus Finnegan, before he tried again to engage her in conversation. "Apparently working for S.H.I.E.L.D. has its perks," Harry said, raising his glass to her.

Skye couldn't help but smile, raising her glass to chink against his, "I imagine that being married to an Avenger does too."

"In bed it certainly does," he answered as Skye took a sip of her drink and almost spat it back out again.

"I bet a lot of people would like to be in your position," Skye said, she knew that she certainly would. Captain America certainly inspired a lot of wet knickers.

"Same to you," Harry said, thinking just how much he would have loved to be in Skye's shoes, having the freedom to join the team, travel the world and solve cases.

"Want to switch?" Skye asked jokingly, finishing her drink and making it known to the barman that she wanted another.

"As much as I would love to, I'm not sure that you're my husband's type. Plus I don't think that my kids would be happy about that trade. Unfortunately my marriage isn't just about banging a superhero, it has a lot of responsibility added into it."

"Must be nice though, having a family," Skye said as their next round of drinks arrived. She didn't miss the sly wink that the blond barman gave to Harry either and it made her smile a little.

"Yeah, it is," Harry said, feeling a little horrible talking about this when he knew that Skye didn't have anyone. He had read her file, he knew that she was very much like Misty, pushed from foster home to foster home, constantly being surveyed by S.H.I.E.L.D. "You have the team now and even I can see that they're like family; hugely dysfunctional, of course, but which family isn't?"

"You're part of that," Skye said with a smile, "A distant cousin that drops by every once and awhile, someone everyone loves to see and wishes would visit more."

"Next time it's your turn to visit me. I have a ten year old that would love to talk computers with you," Harry said with a smile, thinking of how immersed Teddy had become in muggle technology since being at school in America and meeting Misty. Of course Harry had told him not to use magic round anything electronic as they couldn't be guaranteed what the results might be.

"I might just take you up on that," Skye said, grateful that she had had this opportunity to talk to Harry. She was seriously going to take him up on his offer, who wouldn't have? She would have been crazy to turn down the opportunity to meet Captain America. Plus their kids would be absolutely adorable, not to mention fascinating to study.

"Please do, seriously. Given the highlight of my week is often watching my 10 month old twins pulling faces at each other, I would love you to come and tell me what you guys have been up to." Harry was sincere in his offer, it would be nice to actually have friends in America; right now he was so totally alone that it was seriously affecting his mental stability.

"Next time we are around for a few days, I'll give you a call," Skye said as she finished her drink. For a second she debated on another but then thought better of it, they would be back on the job tomorrow and she needed to have her wits about her. "Right now though, I need sleep."

Harry nodded his head and downed the last of his drink, knowing that she was right and it was high time that they retired to bed. Harry would have a lot of explaining to do when he got home and he would need a clear head for it. The two of them paid up their tab at the bar before heading up to their rooms for the night.


I hope that this extra long chapter was worth the wait. I would love to know your thoughts. Please leave me a review and let me know. If I've planned it all out correctly there is only one more chapter for this Intermission story before I start on the next segment of Affliction of War which is Affliction of War: The Fall of S.H.I.E.L.D, which takes place over the events of The Winter Soldier and slightly beyond that.