"Put your weapons down!" shouts one of the policemen. Thor's still crouched, his arm around Odin. Sif's drawn her blade, stepping in front of Bruce, who glares at Thor as if saying send me out of this city before I break it.

"I have no weapons," Thor replies. Sif doesn't flinch.

"What about that hammer?"

"Are you treating me as a criminal?" Thor retorts, the sun beating down on him as he takes in a rather large van. Bruce's face turns green, and not from rage. What will they do to you if I surrender? "After all I've done for your—"

"You disappeared. You—"

"I'm not a citizen of your world!" Thor bellows. Screams of terrified people echo around them. I won't hurt you! he wants to cry.

"We only want to talk," says the policeman. "Debrief. You and Banner will be fine. And the woman and the man too." His face is so young, so earnest—it reminds Thor of Fandral. Thor's panic lessens.

He nods to Sif, who lowers her blade with a scowl.

"Liars!" Odin rages, staggering to his feet. "You're all—"

"Father—" Thor tries, reaching for him.

"Liars and—cowards—good for nothing—you're all bringing death; it's your fault death is coming!" Odin rants. He shakes his fist at the sky.

"Death?" shouts the policeman. Bruce backs away.

"Taze him," says a woman. "Take him down."

"No!" Thor leaps in front of his father, blocking the shot with his hammer. Bruce moans.

"It's okay," Sif shouts over her shoulder to him even as she aims her blade again.

"Put them down, or we'll have no choice but to shoot—"

"No, you put 'em down," comes a voice from above them. Tony. Thor's reputation might be as a god, but in this moment, he could sing praises to his friend. "Dude's just trying to get his dad."

"We're under orders to take in both Thor and Banner for questioning," reports the woman officer.

"Yeah, Banner doesn't look too good," Rhodey answers, hovering next to Tony.

"Your friends?" Sif gapes.

"That's exactly why we need to—"

"Mm, nope, don't think you do," Tony answers. "He's about to blow, can't you tell?"

Bruce stumbles back, looking around him in desperation.

"Bruce—" starts Sif.

"I think we'll take him to Stark Tower," Rhodey says. "Calm him down. Then you guys can talk."

"Those aren't the conditions of the accords you all signed," snaps the woman.

"Think of it as upholding the spirit but not the letter of the accords," Tony answers. "Thor, get a handle on your old man. Banner, you're with me. Rhodey, take Xena."

"Sorry, Father," Thor says, grabbing the man by his waist. Odin howls and kicks at him, but Thor soars towards the Avengers tower. Odin kicks him in the shin, knees him in the groin. Thor groans. Don't drop your father.

He collapses on the landing balcony, releasing Odin and rolling over. Tony and Rhodey touch down with Bruce, who staggers towards the edge, and Sif, who looks thrilled with her flying experience.

"They're going to come for you," Thor croaks out.

"It'll be fine," Tony says. "So that's where you've been, Banner? Hanging out in Asgard?"

"Asgard!" rages Odin, thrusting a fist up in the air.

"Father." Thor drags himself to his feet, stumbling over.

"What's the deal with him?" asks Tony.

"Loki was—pretending to be him. He sent him to earth—" To live homeless and alone. Because his brother is a monster. A Frost Giant and a monster.

Did you make him one?

Thor clenches his fists.

"Uh, okay," Tony says.

"We haven't met. I'm Rhodey."

"Sif," answers the warrior. "How are you doing, Bruce?"

He gives a weak thumbs-up. The green lessens from his face, but his eyes still scream in fear. What could have happened?

"Where's everyone else?" Thor croaks out, watching as Rhodey climbs out of his suit and grabs a cane, stumbling. "What happened?"

Tony shakes his head, biting his lip. "You missed a lot. Did you ever find out what those visions meant?"

Thor shakes his head.

"Maybe you did," Sif says. "Maybe it was related to Loki. By coming back, you stopped—"

"Or Thanos," Thor says.

"Thanos? Second time I've heard that name, and this time from a far more reliable source," Tony says. "We gotta talk."

"Loki," groans Odin.

"Loki did this to you, Father," Thor says, gripping his father's hands. Odin doesn't pull away this time. He looks at Thor with a half-smile as he starts to wilt in his arms.

"Loki," Odin repeats, looking up at the sun. "I miss him. He was… so smart."


"They're back!" Steve calls, sticking his head in Vision's room as he races down the hallway.

Vision closes the book he's been reading, authored by Jane Foster. Her research is truly remarkable. And yet he doesn't want to leave this room with its drawn drapes keeping out the brilliant Wakandan sunlight, doesn't want to meet the astrophysicist who devoted her life to researching other dimensions.

Is this what depression feels like? Vision wonders.

He remembers Wanda sitting in her room after the disaster in Nigeria. How she poured over the names, read statements from their families, looked them up on social media just to see who they were, the people she'd inadvertently killed. How she didn't sleep, how she grieved.

What will he do if Thanos comes for him? His friends won't let him turn himself over. He knows he should consider them foolish for that. But he's grateful. He doesn't want to die.

He doesn't want anyone else to die, either. And they're all at risk because of him.

Vision hesitates, and settles back down to read more, ignoring the chaotic voices chattering down the hall. He recognizes Wanda's, Scott's.

"Hey," says her voice from his doorway.

"I take it you were successful," Vision says as he rises, placing the book back down on the table.

"Jane's here. And Eric Selvig. They'll want to see you soon. Jane wants to run some tests on the mind stone," Wanda tells him, wrinkling her nose. "She claims she'll keep it perfectly safe." She steps closer to him, into the dusky room. He sees the questions in her eyes, but she won't voice them.

"All right." He doesn't have a choice.

"She wants to get settled first, though. Eric also thinks they'll be able to find some clues for where Natasha and Bucky might be. Clint's excited," Wanda informs him.

"Good." Vision fingers with the edge of the book, pressing his thumbs against the sharp corners.

"It's okay to be frightened," Wanda says. "I am."

Vision turns to her. Shadows line her eyes, no doubt because of all the missions she's been driving herself into the dirt for lately. Her red jacket's crinkled, and her shirt's half tucked and half untucked. "You're human, though."

"What are you?" she asks, crossing her arms.

"I don't even know," he admits, tapping the glowing gem in his skull. And that scares me.

"You're not a monster," Wanda says, tapping her fingers. "If anything, you're—you're safeguarding the gem. That stone. Using it to protect life, create life from it, not death."

Vision snorts. Was this how pathetic my attempts sounded? When he tried to comfort her after Nigeria?

If so, he's sorry. So, so sorry.

"Vis," Wanda says, stepping closer still and putting her hand on his shoulder. "We'll figure it out. Thanos isn't going to find you."

He shakes his head. "You can't guarantee that."

"If he does, I'll tear him apart," Wanda tells him, red glowing in her eyes, in her fingertips.

"I just feel like—like I'm the one who's supposed to know what's right, what's wrong, how to fix things. Instead I'm just finding that I'm flawed, I'm full of mistakes—what if Thanos gets me, or I make mistakes on my own and turn out more like Ultron than—"

"You won't," Wanda snaps. "You're—you're more human than you thought. That's a good thing." She smirks. "I prefer a humanized you as opposed to a holier-than-thou you."

Vision cracks a smile. "Have you forgiven me?"

"For now," she acknowledges. And her hands reach up, pulling his head down, and before Vision realizes what's happening, her lips are on his and he's catapulted into a world with just feelings—her mouth embracing his, her hand caressing the back of his head, something light and glowing and alive inside his chest. And he wants to believe her. All of the things she's said. I believe, because he has to, because she's here and he can.

I love you, he thinks as they pull apart. She's smiling, her eyes sparkling and he wants to see her happy more. If this is part of humanity, it can't be all bad. Maybe the mistakes even out with the joys.

He leans in to kiss her again.


Thor did not expect to see Jane when the six of them land in Wakanda, but Jane is exactly who he sees, crouched on the ground next to Clint, a woman with green skin, and a handsome man Thor assumes to be the king.

"We come in peace!" Rhodey calls.

Sif's smile stiffens at the sight of Jane, who rises, folding her arms.

And then Jane's eyes widen. "Is that your father?"

"Where are we?" howls Odin. "I want—you need to—"

"We're in Wakanda, with people who can help, Father," Thor insists. "Please—"

"Loki did something to him," Sif says. "Played with his mind. Left him on the streets of New York and impersonated him to take control of Asgard—"

"What the hell?" gapes Sam as he and Steve rush over. Steve freezes at the sight of Tony, who refuses to take off his suit.

"Bruce!" exclaims Clint as he appears, followed by Wanda and Vision. Thor smiles, pleased to see those two still helping out. "It's good to see you."

"Thanks," Bruce mutters.

A raccoon, a walking tree, and two men, one of whom is larger than Thor himself, appear. "Who are you?" Thor demands.

"Long story," says the king.

"You are the king here, yes?" Thor asks. "I humbly beseech you, from one king to another, that you would grant us an audience and a safe space for my father, the king of Asgard, for the time being—"

"This has to do with Thanos, doesn't it? Somehow?" asks one of the new humans, dressed in some sort of trench coat, that Thor doesn't recognize.

"Yes," Thor says in surprise. "Indeed it does."

"Figures," grumbles the raccoon.

"You again," moans Tony.

"Where's your spiderwebby friend?" taunts the raccoon.

"If he were here, I would kill him," says the one who looks like a mini-hulk.

"It's a talking raccoon," gasps Bruce. "Or else I've completely snapped."

"Eh, shut up," says the raccoon. "Like I haven't heard that one before."

"Maybe we should all talk?" Rhodey suggests. "About this Thanos character, and everything else?"

"Fine," gripes Tony. Rhodey shoots him a settle down look.

"Thanos is coming," moans Odin.

"I'll take your father," Sif offers, reaching for Odin. "If you want to talk." She nods towards Jane and bites her lip.

"Thank you," Thor tells her. Odin follows her like a child, and Thor wants to scream. Loki, how could you?

"You came back before two years went by," Jane states to him as the others file into the building, her eyes like steel. A bird hoots in the distance, and the humidity makes Thor feel as if he's been sewn into his clothing.

"Yes, I—" Thor stops himself. "What are you doing—"

"Working on finding Natasha and Bucky Barnes," Jane says. "Although I suppose now that you're here, my work's a bit irrelevant, isn't it?" Shame starts to coat Thor's insides.

"I'm sorry I left," Thor blurts out.

"Without a word, again," Jane says, as if he doesn't already know. Tears glisten in her eyes.

"I'm sorry—I had a vision—of death coming for all of Asgard—Heimdall was saying it was my fault—I had to—" A cloud passes over the sun. Thor's relieved.

"Thanos is in love with death, isn't he?" Jane asks. "Do you think it's related to that?"

"Most likely, yes," Thor agrees. You're still helping me figure things out, aren't you? "Jane, I—"

"Save it," Jane tells him, shaking her head. "I loved you, Thor. I can't—you left again—and if it happens again, I couldn't—"

"I know; my duties—"

"That's exactly it: your duties," Jane interrupts. "Thor, I understand why you do the things you do, okay? I know why you felt you had to leave. I just—that's not a life I want. That's not something I can bear. I'm sorry."

Thor nods. He knows it. He's known it for a while. He still feels as if he's been kicked in the chest.

"We should join the others," Jane says.

Thor agrees, following her in.


"You're Loki's brother," Gamora says to Thor as she leans against a wall, biting into a peach. T'Challa, Sam, Steve, and the Asgardian woman—Sif—all hover nearby.

Steve watches Thor's face as he nods. Anger, pain—Steve wonders what it would have been like for him if he found out that Bucky knew what he was doing all along. He can't imagine. It would crush him. Sympathy stirs inside him for Thor. And their father—he's resting now, but Steve shudders to think of what Loki did to him.

"I am," Thor confirms, grabbing a piece of mango set out on the table. Oranges, ruby-hued pomegranates, and plump berries cover golden plates.

"He's my brother too," Gamora says simply. Thor's jaw drops.

T'Challa's lips curve into a smile.

"Thanos adopted me," Gamora says. "He adopts those he finds, usually after destroying their worlds, and carves them into weapons. I remember when Loki came along."

"What do you mean?" Sif blurts out, popping several berries into her mouth and appearing mildly impressed with the Midgardian fruit.

"The Other found him. He was Thanos's servant. He kept Thanos's children in check. Loki had been falling through a void when the Other caught him." Gamora drops onto a chair next to T'Challa.

"What happened?" Steve can't help asking.

"He tortured him just like he tortured all of us. Torture to the brink of death brings some sort of orgasmic joy to that monster," Gamora says bitterly. "Loki was smarter than most. He tried to bargain. And Thanos agreed that if he took earth, he could rule it. But Thanos didn't much care for him taking earth. He just wanted the Tessaract, and death."

Thor covers his face with his hands.

"He asked me to help him once," Gamora says, looking at Steve, at Thor, at Sif, at all of them as if asking them to judge her. "I told him to get used to it. This was his life now. After so many years you give up hope."

Sam sighs. A slice of mango lies still in his hand. Steve can't eat. His stomach ties itself in knots.

"I'm sorry," T'Challa tells her.

Her eyes slip in his direction, confused. She shakes it off. "And then he managed to escape ever so briefly before he died. The Other had promised to hunt him down, you know. Make him wish for something as sweet as pain. If he hadn't gone to Svartalfheim with you, Thor, Thanos likely would have sent me and Nebula to retrieve him." She smiles again, staring out a window, where a bird lands on a green tree branch. "I thought he died on his own terms. And I started to think that maybe I could get away too." She grabs a pomegranate. "When Thanos lent me and Nebula to the Kree, I decided to escape. And ran straight into a group of losers."

"Losers?" questions Steve.

"People who have lost something," says Gamora with a frown.

Sam snickers. Sif shakes her head. T'Challa leans back. "That was brave of you. To go a different way."

"Something Loki apparently has not done," Thor says sadly.

"My sister Nebula is still missing in the skies too," Gamora tells him. "I won't give up on her. Don't give up on your brother."

"He needs to suffer for what he did to my father," Thor says, his jaw tightening.

"Isn't he already?" asks Gamora.

"I doubt it." It's not the same as with Bucky. Steve knows that. "You were turned into an assassin, a weapon." Like Bucky. "Loki had fallen long before that, hadn't he?"

Thor nods.

"Don't try to make me feel better," Gamora snaps.

"Loki can choose to redeem himself," says T'Challa. "Just like your sister. I chose not to continue on my path of vengeance. They can always make better choices."

Gamora studies him. Steve wonders if Tony will ever make a different choice. If Tony will forgive him.

Because he misses his friend.

"I don't think Loki deserves another chance," Sif says bitterly.

"Hey! Hey, Gamora!" Peter Quill pounds into the room. "That scientist chick might have a lead on where we can find your friends!"


What the hell am I doing?

Natasha can't sleep. They have a plan, albeit a tentative one, to get the staff. Even though Natasha isn't so sure she's going to stick to it precisely. If worse comes to worse, she can always appeal to Thor.

"We should trust each other," Loki told them.

And Natasha agreed, though she was partly laughing and partly crying inside.

Either way, they will get that staff. Natasha can see the pain riddling Bucky's face, and she wants to end it, wipe it away.

What if it's not that easy?

She knows. Natasha looks at her hands. Your ledger's dripping, it's gushing red.

The kind of wound you can't just stitch up and hope that scar's not too ugly. The kind of wound that hurts years afterwards, shredded insides, things not quite working how they're supposed to anymore. Once the Winter Soldier's gone, how much will you still be Bucky? What if it isn't what you thought it would be?

We'll figure it out, Natasha tells herself, peering out the window, at the pitch-black sky.

She kissed him, and she's not even entirely sure why. She likes the way he kisses. And you always meant something to me, she thinks as she watches him and wonders whether he's asleep, or just pretending. But she can't say just what.

They're both assassins. There's blood trickling from each of their ledgers. He understands and she understands in ways people like Clint and Steve, with all their innate goodness and honor, never can.

Do I really care, or am I just trying to keep myself from drowning?

Why is she even second-guessing herself? This isn't like her. Maybe it doesn't even matter.

Salmon and tangerine glows from the edge of the sky. Natasha sighs.

Something slams against their door. Loki and Bucky instantly shoot to their feet. Natasha tenses.

Someone shouts in a language Natasha doesn't understand, but she doesn't need to. The voice, gravelly and harsh, tells her everything she needs to know. Whirling around, she kicks out the window. Glass splinters. Shards slice into the ground below.

"Let's go!" She dives out, Bucky behind her and Loki on their heels.