Hulk ran and ran over cars, being careful to not dislodge the little girl on his shoulder. He held Loki in one arm as they made the long journey back to the tower, back to where the puny humans lived. His head kept hurting from where the bad sorceress got into his head and he wanted to let the human deal with it. The sun had progressed across the sky, nearing the halfway mark.

Before long they heard fighting and shouting. Hulk slowed down, feeling the girl on his shoulder lean into his neck and heard her breaths even out into sleep. Hulk nodded to himself and searched for the red, white and blue soldier or the silver armed assassin.

"Hulk?"

Iron Man flew towards him after destroying a doombot and Hulk itched to get into the battle. Hulk could also see some of the X Men fighting alongside the Avengers. The lady who could summon storms and the man with goggles over his eyes fought a few doombots at once. The human man who had claws was fighting alongside the Cap.

"Hulk needs Cap."

"Is that… Loki? Reindeer Games?" Tony questioned, flying closer to Hulk's arms and flipping up the faceplate. "Cap and Bucky's daughter… is she okay?"

"Hulk saw Amora."

Tony's eyes widened. "Luckily, we received help from the X men. We're not as thinly spread as usual today. Barnes! Cap!"

Iron Man flew even closer and held out his arms and Hulk dropped Loki into them.

"Hulk was worried about the little witch then the puny god came."

Bucky came running towards them and stopped at Hulk's feet. He could feel sweat on his back even though it was winter and cold. He holstered the pistol that he had been fighting with and watched as the Hulk kneeled down as far as he could. Bucky then walked up and gathered up Brianna into his arms. "Hulk, what happened to my daughter?"

"Apparently, Hulk ran into Amora," Tony said as he flew down to stand next to Bucky. He turned swiftly and aimed a repulsor blast at an approaching doombot. He still hadn't found Dr. Doom anywhere and… AIM was back, of fucking course. He watched as the organization's ships and soldiers entered the battlefield. "Damn, where's Reed and the others when you need them?!"

"Bucky?"

"Cap." Tony said, nodding at him when Steve came running over.

"Hulk, you can go back to smashing things. Thanks for taking care of her," Steve spoke, going over to Bucky's side and peering down at Brianna, who was still asleep. He briefly glanced at Loki, who hadn't woken up in Tony's arms.

"Hulk smash!"

Tony watched as the big green giant man ran off, seeming to drop kick a doombot as he waded into the battle. "Just don't piss off Logan anymore, Hulk!"

A groan drew Tony's attention to Loki, who was twitching in his arms. Tony watched as Loki's eyes opened and then hesitantly set the mischief god on the ground but still supporting him with a metal arm. Loki's green eyes glowed briefly before his Asgardian armor once again flowed over him. "Loki, buddy, you okay?"

Loki stared at Tony and smirked. "I am just tired. I shall explain later. Captain, Amora was after your daughter."

Steve looked up to Loki then appeared to look at something beyond him, raised his shield and threw it. They all heard a yelp from an AIM soldier then they returned to looking at Loki.

"Why would she be after Brianna?" Bucky asked. "She didn't even know her or of her."

Loki took a step closer with help from Tony and glanced down at the little girl in Bucky's arms. "That girl had a prophecy about her in another world."

Steve caught his shield and stared at Loki with wide eyes.

"Another world?" Bucky repeated, tilting his head. "What do you mean?"

"Friends, this is no place for this," Thor said as he flew towards them. Mjolnir was sparking with thunder. "Wait until the battle is over."

"You're right," Steve remarked, seeing Natasha and Clint come over. When they stopped by the others though, Clint had his back to them as he continued to fire arrows. Natasha had stolen a gun from one of the AIM soldiers and was using that to fight even as she watched the others. "Loki, would you mind taking Brianna back to the tower?"

"Or to what's left of it?" Tony muttered. Loki rolled his eyes. "Cap, there's a mansion that was owned by my father not too far from here. It should serve as a safe enough place for them both until the battle's won here."

"Good. Thank you, Tony."

"Brother, take care of yourself," Thor spoke. "And of the girl."

Loki shrugged off Tony's supporting arm and held out his hands. Bucky hesitantly stared at Loki before handing little Bria over to Thor's brother. "Don't you dare let anything happen to her."

Loki nodded and cradled the girl in his arms carefully. "I will not. You have my word."

"We'll be there as soon as we can," Steve murmured, coming over to kiss Brianna on her forehead. He ran his hand through her hair gently then stepped back.

Loki took a few steps back from the group and vanished. Steve watched the team for another minute before smiling grimly. "Alright, Avengers. Let's clean this fight up."

Brianna woke up an hour later to an unfamiliar setting. She was in a bedroom, that much was clear. She wrinkled her nose at the scent that permeated the room. She could smell dust and dirt that had been here for years and then she remembered. She shivered then jumped down from the bed she had been put on, minding her left leg. "Papa? Dad?"

When she didn't receive an answer, she hesitated before looking around. The other furniture in the room was shrouded in white sheets, including a bedside table, a desk and then there was a door in one of the walls. She guessed that that led to a bathroom as she opened it and poked her head inside. She winced at the smell, vaguely remembering cleaning Grimmauld Place with the Weasley's.

"Hulk?" She whispered as she walked back to the middle of the room. There wasn't much light in the room, as the only window in the room was covered. She turned around, looking over the room when she heard a hissing sound. She tilted her head and walked toward the sound, heading over to one of the corners of the room. Brianna stopped right before the bed and couldn't see anything that would have made that hiss so she dropped down to the floor, raised the white sheet that hid the crawl space, and looked underneath the bed. It was so dark underneath the bed that she almost missed the rather dark black snake coiled in a far corner.

Brianna yelped in fright then when the snake turned its' head toward her, she could see it open its' mouth to scent her. The snake was lying coiled in a nest of dirty sheets that were once white but she could see at least four snake skins that had come off during molting.

You are a speaker?

Brianna remembered her entire second year at Hogwarts, how she had become an outcast when people had seen her talk to that snake. She was about to crawl back out when she thought of her new dads and their team. Maybe… maybe she wouldn't have to be thought of as a freak anymore. When she had told Bucky and Steve that she was a witch, they didn't immediately back away from her and call her a freak. They didn't turn pale or red from anger.

She turned back to the snake, looking into its' black eyes.

"Yes, I'm a speaker," She replied in parseltoungue. Do you live here?

The snake raised its head to be able to look her in the eyes, closing its' mouth. Yes. I live here. I've never met a speaker before. But I am only 2 human years old so that probably doesn't mean anything.

The snake was obviously female if the voice was anything to go by.

I guess there are rats around here then? Brianna asked, crawling even further under the bed. Where is this place anyway? I don't know where I am.

I haven't seen a two-legger in a long time. They must have abandoned this place. There is a weird smelling two-legger around here somewhere. He dropped you off here then went to move around house, muttering words in a strange language.

"Hmm, that must have been Loki. Oh! He..."

"Brianna?"

Brianna turned around carefully under the bed to see the other door in the bedroom open and Loki walked in. He stared around the room, seeming to look for her. Brianna couldn't see his face from down here but he appeared to not have been injured. She tilted her head but nodded, crawling back to poke her head out from under the bed. "Yeah. Where's my papa and dad? Where's the Hulk?"

"They're still fighting," Loki replied, walking over to the bed and crouching to look down at her. "They asked me to look after you until they finished. Now why are you under there?"

"I found a friend," Brianna exclaimed, turning back to stick a hand towards the snake. She heard the snake slither towards her then she felt it move up onto her arm. "See?"

She crawled out from under the bed all the way and held out her arm proudly.

Loki's eyes widened and he took a few steps toward her, seeming to glow. "Little Bria, that snake is venomous. It could bite you."

"Yeah, but she won't bite me. I can talk to her," Brianna exclaimed, looking down to the black snake whose full size fit her arm from shoulder to the end of her fingers. "She said she's been living here but that she's the only one. I couldn't leave her alone!"

Loki stared at her, eyes widening even more.

"What?" Brianna asked, eyes narrowing.

Loki warily shook his head as he slowly grinned. "Your dads are going to have their hands full raising you."

"What's that suppose to mean?" Brianna retorted.

"I would be honored to teach you," Loki remarked, fully leaning down to be at eye level with her. "Your magic has the potential to be powerful. Amora already guessed that."

"Okay..." Brianna trailed off. "Are you a wizard?"

Loki nodded. "Not one like you though. I am a God."

"A god? From where?"

"From Asgard," Loki remarked, green eyes glowing briefly before a witch light appeared above them. The ball of green light hung, suspended in the air and lit up the entire room, making it seem less gloomy.

"What's an Asgard? Are there more people like you there?" Brianna asked, excited. She stared at Loki as he stared back.

Loki snorted. "No, there's no one like me where I'm from."

"Both of my dads wanted to know if there are phoenixes in Asgard?" Brianna suddenly remembered, wishing that they would get here soon. She missed them. The black snake on her arm slithered up to curl around her neck, flicking out her tongue at her neck in a reassuring movement. Brianna giggled at feeling the snake's tongue against her skin.

"Phoenixes?"

"Yeah, like fire birds? I have one for a friend."

"May I meet your friend?" Loki asked, standing up and picking her up a second later. "And your new friend?"

"Fawkes sometimes can't come," Brianna said as Loki walked out of the room and into the hallway. She watched as they passed by a lot of rooms and she could have sworn that she saw a lot of computers in one of the rooms with an open door. "He has to… He said he has to uh… 'keep up appearances'? What does that mean?"

Loki turned to look at her, raising an eyebrow as he continued to carry her down a set of stairs. They walked down another hallway and through what seemed like a kitchen to an entry hall. "Oh?"

"When I saw you fall, I called him. He didn't come," Brianna said sadly, eyes lighting up as she heard familiar voices through the house. The black snake around her neck squeezed a little, just enough for her to reach up a hand to pat its' head.

Loki grinned, knowing Steve and Bucky's reaction to having a daughter who could speak to snakes would be something to behold. "Well, sometimes, friends can't always make it. I couldn't always go to Thor's aid when he called."

"But why?" Brianna asked, looking up into Loki's eyes. Her green eyes were sad and Loki could almost see the grown up Brianna Lily Potter in her. The woman who had given her life for the British wizards in that other dimension, or so Heimdall had said when he had seen her for the first time in this one. Thor had insisted on learning what he could from Heimdall, about the girl, and then had passed on what he had learned to Loki.

Loki sighed and tucked a strand of hair behind Brianna's ear. She grinned at him.

"Some friends have other duties, other loyalties elsewhere," Loki hesitantly offered.

Brianna looked at him then nodded then wrapped her arms around his neck. He stiffened then heard her whisper. "Thank you for rescuing me and the Hulk from Amora."

"You're very welcome, Miss Potter," Loki murmured, returning the hug. Brianna pulled away after another few seconds then gestured for him to put her down. He obliged her, lowering her gently to the floor and watching as the black snake resettled itself around her neck.

"Loki?"

They both turned and headed towards the front door with Brianna speeding up into a run.

"Dad! Papa!"

Loki turned the corner of the hallway just in time to watch Brianna run right into Bucky's arms as the former assassin kneeled down to catch her. He watched as she wrapped her arms around Bucky and attempted to burrow into into him. Steve knelt down too and wrapped his arms around both of them.

"Amora tried to take me," Brianna muttered. "I don't want to go with her. Ever."

Bucky grimaced, glancing up to Loki as he replied. "You won't have too, sweetheart. We'll keep you safe."

Loki saw the Hulk arrive on the front yard through the front door and Tony touched down on the porch. Clint and Natasha were on Clint's bike and they both wandered up into the entry hall. Thor followed them, looking his team over for any injuries before stopping beside Clint.

"Well, that was a..." Clint trailed off, seeing Steve glare at him. The archer stared at Steve then reconsidered what he he had been about to say. "That was horrible. Is it like, National Villains Day or something?"

Brianna giggled as Steve picked her up and placed her up on his shoulders.

"They probably do it just to mess with you, Barton," Bucky remarked with a grin.

Clint flipped him off as Tony came in.

"Stark," Loki said as he walked over to Tony.

Tony looked him over then looked the house over, or at least looked at what he could see from the entry hall. Tony's brown eyes turned hard briefly before he focused on Loki. The god studied him before pulling Tony into his arms for a kiss.

"Ewww," Brianna muttered, hiding her eyes by ducking down to place her head on Steve's.

Everyone laughed. Bruce finally made an entrance, walking through the front door and looking around.

"Man of Iron, what is this place?" Thor questioned as he looked around. The entry hall was big and as he had flew towards the address, he had seen that it had three floors. It clearly could house a lot of people.

"Brianna, do you have a snake on your shoulders?" Bucky asked, raising an eyebrow as he looked Brianna over.

"Uh, yes?" Brianna replied hesitantly, looking down at Bucky and the others as everyone's attention was drawn to her.

Steve looked at Bucky before glancing at Loki, who shrugged.

"Little bug, why do you have a snake on your shoulders?" Steve asked, eyes drawn up to almost look at her.

"I can talk to her!" Brianna replied excitedly. "Can I keep her?"

"You mean, there was a snake here? Here in my father's mansion?" Tony enquired, also looking up at Brianna.

"Ah, Tony," Loki murmured. "That is why you are shaking in my arms."

"I am not shaking," Tony retorted.

"You can talk to snakes?" Bucky asked, eyes widening.

"Yes."

Brianna crossed her arms and sat up.

Bucky laughed at her expression, her narrowed green eyes. "Yes, you can keep her. If you can talk to her, you can keep her. I don't see why not."

"YAY!"

"Buck! That snake could be venomous!" Steve exclaimed, his eyes wide.

"I am not worried," Loki remarked, turning to look at the three of them. "She's a speaker."

"What exactly is that?" Steve asked, sounding worried and tired.

"I will explain later," Loki said then he glanced up to Brianna, who was watching the conversation with bright eyes. "You will need a name for your new friend."

"She's black," Brianna murmured, as Bucky picked her up off of Steve's shoulders and lowered her down to the floor. "Maybe I could name her after a goddess?"

"Uh, sure. I'm definitely no expert in naming snakes," Bucky responded.

"How about Nyx?" Loki suggested. "The Greek Goddess of night."

"Yeah. I'll see if she likes it."

They all watched as Brianna started to hiss, looking down at where the black snake had slithered down to her hand.

"That sounds really weird," Bruce said.

"Are you sure that's a language?" Clint asked. "'Cause it could be a disease. Or she could be speaking in tongues."

"She is not," Loki retorted, crossing his arms and glaring at Clint.

"She likes the name," Brianna spoke, looking up at everyone. "Is this our new home?"

Tony sighed and glanced at everyone. "I already ordered stuff to be brought here. The remodeling crew will be here in the morning. I figure you guys can go spend a few nights at your own apartments while this is set up."

"Thank you, Tony. I appreciate that," Steve said as Brianna reached out for his hand. He instantly reached out and took hold of hers as she grinned up at him.

"I'm sorry about the tower," Bruce said. "I… had called the British Department of Education."

"It's fine, Brucie," Tony teased. "We expect it occasionally."

"What did they have to say about Brianna?" Natasha asked, looking at the little girl.

"They had no file on her until three months ago," Bruce explained. "And when they found her, there were signs of starvation, torture and dehydration among other things."

Both Steve and Bucky's eyes narrowed dangerously. Bucky flexed his metal arm while Steve's fingers tightened on his shield.

"How could they have no file on her?" Clint asked, looking at Bruce as Loki pulled Tony through the hallway and into a room.

"Apparently, she just appeared out of nowhere," Bruce quoted. "Those were their words, not mine."