And now for chapter five. We should hopefully return to a more normal schedule now for the rest of this fic, if we're lucky. Thank you everyone for being cool about it.

I'd also like to reiterate here that barring some catastrophic event in my real life, this story won't be abandoned! The number of reviewers that were practically begging me not to was a little saddening. I can't blame you though, there are fics I love that were abandoned years ago that I still check periodically, hoping… and I don't want to put anyone through that with any of mine!

Pairings: I figure I'd include numbers, at least for the top pairings so everyone can get an idea of how possible their fave is, so for Harry we have:

No pairing/Gen: 14 votes

Hermione: 8 votes

Luna: 7 votes

Daphne: 5 votes

And for Loki we have:

Tony: 12 votes

No pairing/Gen: 3 votes

Sirius: 2 votes

I'm impressed with the number of rarepairs in the reviews as well, which you will all probably get to see at some point in my new story, which brings me to…

The Obligatory Plug: My second Harry Potter fic is now up on my profile! It is a collection of oneshots revolving around fandom tropes, secrets, and all kinds of drama. The next chapter is about secret relationships, so take your pairing suggestions for HP on over there and you'll probably see them written!

Extras: As usual, thank you to Terra King for being awesome and making me think about details that I never would have otherwise.

And a shoutout to a couple reviewers who shall remain nameless for now for correctly guessing bits of future plot, some of which was very specific. Did you guys steal my notes somehow?

With a call for Heimdall and a rush of color, Harry, Thor, and Natasha disappeared from Avengers tower and reappeared just before the gates of Hogwarts, close to where Harry and Thor had left from earlier. Harry had no idea what the time was, but it was clearly late at night. Very few candles were lit in the castle windows and there were no students wandering about so he figured it must have been past curfew. Thor pushed the heavy iron gates open like they were nothing, and their odd group of three strolled across the grounds.

"So what does this place actually look like?" Asked Natasha. "It's just rubble to me." Her expression was blank, but her stiff gait revealed her discomfort. She was powering through the compulsion that told muggles to leave through sheer force of will.

"Oh, right. Er… here." Harry murmured as he recalled the Muggle Repelling wards. He reached out a hand to the woman beside him, blushing furiously. She arched a brow at him, amused, but took it. The tiny smirk faded from her face though as she was finally able to see Hogwarts in all its glory. Natasha carefully catalogued the sensation of magic flowing from the point of contact between their joined hands as she took in the view.

"Huh. Impressive." She visibly began to relax, paranoia lessening as her perception was no longer being altered.

"It is indeed a fine building!" Thor said. "...For Midgardian craftsmanship." He added cheekily. Harry normally would have argued against that, but even with his love for the old castle he had to admit that Asgardian architecture was literally quite beyond anything on Earth. They continued across the expansive lawn. The giant squid waved a tentacle lazily in greeting as they passed by the lake. Thor looked ready to bound over to it, but a sharp glance from Natasha brought him back in line, disappointed.

As they neared the doorway to the Entrance Hall, the great wooden doors opened of their own accord, revealing Professor McGonagall standing within. She looked even more stern than usual; tired and the least collected than Harry had ever seen her. It must have been even later at night than he thought. Her expression softened slightly upon Harry coming into view before hardening once more as her eyes roved over the two Avengers on either side of him.

"Welcome back, Mr. Potter." Professor McGonagall said dryly. "...and guests."

She turned away without another word. Harry followed, belatedly remembering that he could let go of Natasha now that she was past the outside wards. He yanked his hand away. Natasha opened her mouth, likely to make a teasing comment, but closed it again as she caught a glimpse of the Great Hall and its remarkable ceiling.

"I can see why you like it here." She told him quietly.

They walked the rest of the way to the Headmaster's office in silence, though the paintings they passed were not so; whispering and staring from their frames. Thor had to be subtly pulled away by Natasha from a painting of a group of Vikings. One of the men at the forefront of the painting with wild hair and wilder eyes was jumping up and down and pointing excitedly at the god. Thor waved at him apologetically as they rounded the corner.

Professor McGonagall spoke the password to the Gargoyle guarding the entrance to Dumbledore's office ("Ice Mice"), and the familiar spiral staircase came into view. Thor brushed past Harry to follow McGonagall, and Natasha fell to the back of their group, keeping Harry placed protectively between the two Avengers.

Professor McGonagall opened the door to the office without knocking, leading them into the considerably crowded rounded space. There were a number of people scattered about inside whom Harry did not recognize. He did however spy Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and Remus, as well as the House Heads. The new Defense professor, Moody, was also present. Harry scanned the crowd, hoping to see Sirius standing amongst them, but was disappointed.

Headmaster Dumbledore sat behind his desk, as usual, with blue eyes twinkling behind half-moon spectacles, also as usual. But his expression appeared off to Harry; out of place amongst the serious and pensive faces surrounding him.

"Oh Harry dear, I'm so glad you're alright!" cried Mrs. Weasley as she swept Harry up into a suffocating hug. It was thankfully short-lived as Dumbledore called for everyone to be silent.

"Please take a seat everyone." Said Dumbledore, conjuring three additional chairs in the empty space directly before his desk. Fawkes trilled happily as Harry came near. Harry petted his head apologetically, focusing on the phoenix to avoid the many eyes on him.

"Sorry about yesterday, Fawkes." He whispered. The bird warbled neutrally in response and leaned into his hand. Dumbledore cleared his throat, and Harry sat down, once more in the center between Thor and Natasha.

"Yes. You gave us all quite a fright, my boy. There was a rather large uproar when you disappeared. Now, would you and your companions mind explaining yourselves?" He peered at them over his spectacles, eyes searching.

"Er… well, Thor took me to see my mother, who really is Loki. He was telling the truth." Harry said. "I have proof here…" Harry remembered, pulling the DNA results from his pocket and unfolding them.

"It's a muggle test, to see if people are related." Harry explained simply as he pushed the papers across Dumbledore's desk. He wasn't sure how familiar the Headmaster was with muggle science. Dumbledore said nothing as he read the results carefully.

"We also have photographic proof." Natasha spoke up, pulling a set of glossy images from one of the many pockets of her suit. Harry blinked at her in surprise as she slid them over as well. He didn't remember any photos being taken. From his upside-down view, he could see that they were of himself and Loki side by side at breakfast, one while in male form and one in Lily's. There were timestamps in the bottom corners. They must have been pulled from JARVIS's security footage.

"There is video as well, though I'm told that electronics won't function here. We would be happy to take you outside of the wards if you'd like to see it, unless you wizards have a spell for this?" Natasha spoke in an oddly sweet voice, as though she were trying to appear as harmless as possible.

"Wait, she's a muggle?" One of the men seated behind Harry asked incredulously. Uncomfortable mutterings broke out amongst the room's occupants in response. Mr. Weasley however, looked downright excited by this revelation.

"That's Black Widow! One of the other Avengers from the newspapers!" Exclaimed another, causing a new flurry of whispers.

"Er… Professor Dumbledore, who are all these people?" Harry asked.

"Times were very dark during the first rise of Lord Voldemort, Harry." Dumbledore said as he looked up from the documents in front of him. "The Ministry could only do so much, so I founded and led a group of talented young witches and wizards in the hopes of standing against him: the Order of the Phoenix. While your...unexpected journey was not likely related to Voldemort, I thought it prudent to summon them once more in order to find and return you safely home."

Harry wanted to ask more questions about the Order, such as: why did they have to be here right now for this conversation? but that short description appeared to be all Dumbledore cared to explain. Where Harry once may have accepted the simple explanation, with his new perspective on the man it was just another infuriating example of things being kept from him.

"Now, who here can vouch for the accuracy of these muggle tests?" The Headmaster asked the room.

"I can." Called out Remus. He squeezed Harry's shoulder as he moved past him toward Dumbledore. He paused as he caught sight of the photographs, wide eyes filled with pained emotion. He picked up the DNA results and read them over quickly.

"Muggles have a way to test blood and tissue to see if it matches another's, somewhat similar to the potions we have in order to test someone's lineage. These results...appear to be genuine." Remus said, swallowing thickly as he handed the papers back to Dumbledore. He stumbled back to his chair and collapsed into it, staring blankly ahead as he processed the news.

"They could have been easily faked." Came a nasally voice from behind the rest of the room's occupants. Harry turned around in his seat to see Professor Snape emerge from his shadowed position leaning against the wall. The man sneered as he passed. He picked up the test papers, face pinched. Harry glared at him. Thor and Natasha did the same.

"Now Severus," Dumbledore placated. "I trust Remus' judgement. After all, these people have no reason to lie, yes?" He looked deeply into Thor and Natasha's eyes in turn. Thor frowned while Natasha met his gaze evenly. Harry watched with amazement as Snape rounded the desk to inspect the papers and reacted similarly to Remus. The Slytherin Professor's emotions were kept in tighter control, but he couldn't quite hide the shock from his expression and...hurt? as he took in the photographs. His face quickly reformed into its usual sneer while he resumed his original position by the wall.

"However," Dumbledore continued. "I cannot release Harry into your care. If Lily Potter, or Loki, as the case may be, is willing to meet and prove herself capable, then we may talk. Until then he shall remain here in the castle."

Harry frowned. 'Prove herself capable'? What exactly did that mean? And 'then we may talk'? He couldn't even make a simple agreement without giving himself an advantage! Natasha and Thor seemed to have picked up on it as well.

"Of course," Natasha said pleasantly. "Loki wishes to talk to you too; about multiple issues, but is unable to travel easily in his current state." She crossed her legs, straightening her spine as she leaned back in her chair.

"I'm sure, leading an alien invasion and pretending to be a dead woman must be terribly taxing." Snape said snidely. Natasha just smirked, not bothering to face him.

"Believe what you will. I do have to wonder though; do you really think that you, any of you, have a chance against two gods? Plus the Avengers who took care of that invasion for you all."

"Loki is innocent. My brother was not in control of his actions that day." Thor added, who had turned in his seat to glower at Snape.

"That is good to hear, Mr. Odinson." Dumbledore smiled as he folded his hands before him on the desk, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. "I would be remiss in my duties if I were to allow Harry to fall into the hands of a mass murderer, you understand."

You mean like all the times you left me to face Voldemort alone? Harry thought sarcastically.

"I will require some proof of that as well." The Headmaster said, pleased. Natasha's eyes narrowed. So that was his play; to discredit Loki and the Avengers in order to keep Harry in his control and away from them.

"The artifact responsible for the mind control is currently being held in a secure facility for study. I can't allow you access or any further information about it than that."

A small smile appeared on Dumbledore's face for a split second before disappearing into a neutral expression. Natasha folded her arms, closing off her body language in a calculated display of insecurity. Got him, she thought, avoiding the man's eyes as Loki had instructed so that he would not overhear her internal crow of victory. Now he would believe himself to have the upper hand. The Wizarding world was not up to speed on the muggle news, where Loki's innocence had been revealed to the public days ago. Dumbledore thought he could use the god's current negative image in the eyes of wizards against him in order to keep Harry away.

"We must also speak about my nephew's safety." Thor said. "He has told us of the adventures he has had here, and Loki is most displeased, as am I." He added, with a razor sharp edge to his voice. Dumbledore's eyes glittered dangerously.

"I can assure you that Hogwarts is one of the safest places in Britain. Our wards are some of the world's finest." He said.

"Not fine enough!" Thor said loudly. Natasha reached across Harry to rest a hand on the god of thunder's arm in warning.

"What he means is, while you may be well protected from outside threats, it's the ones inside that are cause for our concern. Like, say, giant snakes?" She said dryly. Several Order members seemed startled or confused by the pointed remark while the Weasleys twitched at the reminder of the incident that had nearly killed their youngest child.

"I assure you that security has been tightened since then, and there were extenuating circumstances regarding the incidents young Harry has been involved in."

"Such as…?" Natasha pressed.

"That is a topic best discussed in private, I'm afraid." Dumbledore smiled genially, deftly dodging the question. Fine, she'd let that slide for now. Loki could handle it during his own conversation with the man.

"It is getting quite late. Further discussion will have to continue at a later day, for now let us say our goodbyes and retire to our beds." Said Dumbledore. The Order members began to rise from their seats, which they vanished with whispered charms, and gather around the fireplace. The Weasleys hung back. Mrs. Weasley pulled Harry out of his chair and into another hug.

"Don't you ever do something like that again! Oh, when the Headmaster told us you were kidnapped it worried us so much!" She exclaimed as she crushed Harry against her. She finally released him after a long moment.

"I wasn't kidnapped Mrs Weasley, I agreed to go with Thor." Harry said, but Mrs. Weasley just hummed a noncommittal sound and eyed the two Avengers suspiciously as she said her goodbye.

Everyone disappeared into the emerald flames (or walked out through the office door, in the case of the professors) until it was only Professor McGonagall, Remus, and an unknown dark skinned man in the room with Harry and the Avengers. Dumbledore instructed McGonagall to escort Harry to his dorm and the other man, Kingsley, to escort the Avengers from the castle before he took his leave as well, through another doorway that presumably led to his own private living quarters.

Professor McGonagall directed them through the hallways that led to Gryffindor tower, tight lipped and silent once more. Thor and Natasha had chosen to walk with them before leaving toward the other end of the castle. Remus and Kingsley trailed behind. Harry fell back until he was in line with his old Defense Professor. Kingsley moved ahead and to the side, giving them a semblance of privacy.

"You know where Sirius is, right?" Harry whispered. Remus nodded.

"Mum? Er… Loki, wants to meet with you both, and help prove Sirius' innocence. He said to get to Avengers tower in New York as soon as possible." Remus seemed to be slightly choked up by the news, but nodded once sharply.

"I… still can't wrap my mind around this." The werewolf admitted. "It's unbelievably strange."

"Stranger than magic?" Harry asked cheekily. Remus snorted. They walked for a few minutes more before arriving at the tower entrance. The Fat Lady peered at them curiously from her frame. Professor McGonagall said the password and the portrait hole was revealed. Harry turned to the two Avengers. Thor spoke first, placing his hands on Harry's shoulders.

"I am very grateful to have met you, and I look forward to getting to know everything about your life. Fare thee well, nephew. We will meet again soon." He drew Harry into a hug, surprisingly gentle despite the man's size and strength.

Natasha did not hug him. Instead she smiled, a real one this time rather than the fake cheer she had shown Dumbledore.

"See you soon." She said simply. "Try to keep out of trouble for us. Taking over the Wizarding World would be a pain." But we would do it, if necessary she did not say, but Harry heard it anyway. He swallowed. He had only known these people for little over a day but already they had shown far more kindness to him than most.

"Thank you." He said quietly. "Really, for everything." There was a chorus of goodbyes, and suddenly Harry was alone in the darkened Common Room. He trudged tiredly up the stairs, the exhaustion of magically induced jet lag finally catching up to him. He snuck into his dorm as quietly as possible so as not to wake anyone and got ready to sleep.

Harry dropped down onto his four-poster bed, drawing the heavy red curtains shut around him. He exhaled a long breath. What a ridiculous, incredible start to his fourth year. He had discovered his real family, and a kind of extended one in the Avengers, and they were all literal, actual gods and superheroes! He had even called Loki 'mum' while talking to Remus. It had been awkward; the word strange and foreign on his tongue, but he could maybe see himself getting used to it at some point in the distant future. Maybe only when Loki was in female form though. Harry might not care about his mother's unique gender identity, but calling a man 'mum' was just rather weird to him.

He rolled onto his side as thoughts swirled through his mind. The meeting with Dumbledore had been strange. Had all of those other wizards been there to ensure that Harry was handed over to them? Were they really expecting a fight? The Headmaster's vague answers to their questions had been irritating as well. Harry wished they could have discussed the Dursleys and found out just why he had been sent there, but he was grateful that Natasha hadn't brought it up in front of so many people.

His thoughts grew more anxious as they turned to the following school day. What were the other students going to think? Draco Malfoy and the other Slytherins were likely to have several insults prepared. And the rest...Hogwarts students' opinions of Harry were very fickle; he'd learned that in second year with the whole 'Heir of Slytherin' fiasco.

He clung to the knowledge that he would see his family again soon, and Sirius would be freed. He let the warmth of those ideas lull him off into a deep sleep.

Outside of the Gryffindor tower, Professor McGonagall and Remus split off from the other three, to go to bed and use the Floo in McGonagall's office, respectively.

"I hope you and Mr. Potter know what you are doing." She muttered to the werewolf as they turned the corner.

"I hope so too." He replied.

Natasha and Thor were left with Kingsley to take the long walk back to Hogwarts' main gates. The Russian spy checked her surroundings subtly for paintings that weren't asleep in their frames before speaking.

"Fancy running into you here, Agent Shacklebolt." She said lowly. Kingsley nodded. Thor's head whipped around to look back and forth between the two, surprised. "I always wondered what you kept in that arm holster, never would have guessed it was a wand." They had not worked together, but had been introduced and she had passed him a few times in the halls of SHIELD Headquarters before.

"Director Fury was not aware that you would be coming along on this particular excursion or I'm sure you would have been briefed." He placated.

"Please, like something as simple as an unexpected agent would be enough to trip me up." She scoffed in return.

"My apologies, Widow. I didn't mean to offend." Said Kingsley. "I joined SHIELD after a superior officer took interest in my work during a joint investigation with the Aurors; wizard police." He explained. "I've been feeding SHIELD information on Dumbledore's Order and a few other people of interest within the Ministry for a few years now."

"It is good to meet another Shield brother in arms!" Exclaimed Thor. "We must meet and drink if you are ever within the city. You must tell me more stories about this Midgardian magic." Kingsley seemed rather thrown by the offer, but quickly composed himself and nodded.

"Of course. I'm quite a fan of the Avenger's work, and with Harry Potter involved, Director Fury will likely have me working with you all sometime soon as your liaison to Magical Britain. We can speak more then." He said.

They continued to make simple small talk all the way to the main gates. Thor and Natasha then disappeared in a burst of light, leaving behind yet another large symbol burned into the grass. Kingsley shook his head at the ridiculous form of travel before apparating away to his own home. He had quite the report to write on tonight's events.

Unbeknownst to Harry, he was not the only person in Hogwarts who was awake at the current late hour, staring at the ceiling. Albus Dumbledore frowned pensively as he recalled the encounter with the two Avengers.

It had been surprisingly difficult to read their minds. The thunder god's was utterly foreign, his alien biology rendering his thoughts unreadable and Albus' Legilimency useless. The woman on the other hand was frustrating in an entirely different way. Whenever he successfully made the required eye contact, her thoughts were carefully simplified, thinking repeatedly only of what she would say next, drowning out any important reactions. He hadn't the time to delve through her memories, though he had noticed a peculiar area of her mind was blocked off by something similar to Occlumency but not quite. She had also avoided looking into his eyes for the majority of the conversation.

Thor and Black Widow… they seemed straightforward enough, and their proof of Lily's true form was rather convincing. They had even returned Harry within 24 hours as promised. But as much as it would please him to see the boy reunited with his mother, Albus could not let Harry live with her in New York.

It wasn't that he didn't trust the god with Harry, if Lily truly existed within him there was no way he could possibly harm his child. It was for exactly this reason he could not let Loki take his son back. Harry needed to die in order for Voldemort to be truly defeated. Lily would never allow that to happen. For all of his skills of manipulation, Albus could never circumvent a mother's love with any amount of logic and flowery speech.

He would keep the knowledge of Voldemort's Horcruxes to himself for now. He was confident in his abilities to take care of them. Voldemort had taken ten years to make an even remotely close to successful attempt at getting his body back, so he had plenty of time. Perhaps he would make plans for Harry to continue in his stead if the worst were to happen. He would have to take precautions when it came to passing on the information however; it wouldn't do to have knowledge of Horcruxes falling in to the wrong hands.

Albus Dumbledore and his chosen few were the only ones capable of handling such an important task. He could not possibly trust the Aurors or the Avengers to be successful in defeating Voldemort. He was the Leader of the Light, and the only person Voldemort even feared. He was the most necessary figure in this fight, and he would be ready when the time came for him to step in after Harry's death. He would defeat the Dark Lord once and for all and restore his family name to greatness. Then perhaps he would finally assuage his guilt that he had carried since the tragic death of his sister, Ariana.

He drifted off to sleep to thoughts of the future, and dreamt nonsensical dreams of snakes and wolves.

"HARRY!" Came a shout followed by a breeze caused by Harry's four-poster's curtains being violently thrown open as Ron loomed over him. Harry stirred as the rest of their dorm mates reacted to Ron's yelling.

"Harry!" Echoed Neville in surprise.

"M'up." Harry mumbled into his pillow. He sat up slowly, blinking blearily at the orange blur that was his friend. He felt as though he had not gotten nearly enough sleep, despite falling unconscious just minutes after lying down.

"Glad to have you back Harry. We'll catch up with you later!" Called Dean as he herded Seamus and Neville down the stairs to the Common room.

"Where have you been mate? What happened?!" Ron demanded. Harry reached for his glasses first and put them on before answering.

"I… met my mother. She really is Loki. I went to Asgard for a bit, and then I met the Avengers." He summed up quickly. He'd save the longer explanation for Hermione, who was sure to appreciate it more than Ron and ask him a million questions.

"Wow that's… that's just crazy. Absolutely bonkers." Ron told him. "But, er, isn't Loki a bad guy? And, you know...a guy? How is he your mum?" At his friend's utterly baffled expression, Harry began to explain Loki's story as he got dressed and ready for the day. He picked up the shirt with the Avenger's symbol off of the floor, folded it carefully and stuffed it into his trunk. Ron gave it a funny look, but the odd reaction was quickly forgotten as they commiserated over how insane Harry's situation was.

As Harry shoved supplies and books into his bag, Ron gave him a rundown on the school's reaction. Most students were simply confused by Thor's claims, others (the Slytherins) had tentatively accepted it as truth in order to gleefully spread their opinions about Harry's new 'filthy halfbreed' status. A decent portion of the school was excited to have a classmate potentially related to an Avenger. These were mostly fangirls of said Avenger. The staff had remained frustratingly silent on the entire matter. Dumbledore had also temporarily locked down the owl mail wards to prevent students from writing to the Daily Prophet about Harry's disappearance.

"Thanks Ron." Harry said. They walked down the stairs to the Common room together, which was luckily completely deserted. Breakfast had already started, so with a few quick dodges into hidden corridors the two of them were able to avoid running into any fellow stragglers. They finally reached the Great Hall. Harry took a deep breath and braced himself for the numerous questions and insults that were sure to be flung at him. He and Ron walked through the doors together.

It was going to be a long, long day.

Whew, that's chapter five done. The first half of it fought me like crazy before I finally just focused on Natasha and let her rule the dialogue. Turns out I really enjoy writing her. I also finally understand what other writers mean when they talk about characters controlling what they write.

Sorry you don't really get to see the reactions yet, it just didn't flow right and I'd like to keep the chapters somewhat consistent in length. I think I might actually be incapable of writing more than 5000 words at a time. *shrug* Remember to review with your thoughts and vote for your pairings!

Chapter Fun Fact: I imagine that the painting Thor was fascinated with was of the cast of the tv show Vikings. The man jumping and pointing being Floki, of course. Also, why has nobody written fic yet about the Hogwarts paintings being of characters from different fandoms? I guess I have a new one shot to write now…

Next Time: Harry makes a new friend and attempts to navigate his classes and the school's gossip. Various Avengers play therapist for Loki, who isn't adjusting as well as he pretends to.