Greetings, all!

The response I received to the last entry was overwhelming, but I wasn't sure if I could keep going with this little story at the same pace, so I took a break from fanfiction. Now I'm returning to our troupe of heroes, and I hope you will continue to enjoy and review their misadventures! I can't guarantee instant updates this time around, especially with the closing of the semester and a busy summer ahead...

Nevertheless, I do hope these new entries bring a smile to your day!

Much love,

Alassiel

Entry #31: Manhattan [or, "How the Great Avengers Expedition Came About"]

Clint's office window had been opened to let out the smoke (and the door to the hallway had been tightly shut).

Thor, Nat, and Tony had managed to clear away the rubble where the garage door used to be.

Steve had appeared about five minutes later with a towel wrapped around his waist, soaking wet hair, and a look of complete and utter bewilderment on his face. The rest of the Avengers had irritably explained what had happened, and he had gone back to the bathroom to get dressed and help them clean up.

Once everything that needed immediate attention had been dealt with, the Avengers assembled in the living room: Loki on the couch, Thor standing next to him, Clint still in his chair (and still wearing his purple pajamas), Natasha sitting on the armrest of Clint's chair, Dr. Banner leaning up against the wall, Director Fury standing in the middle of the room, and Steve sitting awkwardly on the floor in one corner, as there were no other seats available.

Before Fury could open his mouth, Clint growled, "Fury, I hope you know that you have successfully ruined my life, and also that you had better be paying for all the home repair on my to-do list…"

Fury cleared his throat. "Yes, Clint, SHIELD will pay for everything and fix all… damages done to your house."

"And the appliances," added Clint. "Don't forget the appliances."

"Yes, of course. But that aside, and having taken note of the wear and tear done to Clint's personal home despite SHIELD's efforts to improve the security—"

"My personal home did not need improved security," Clint cut in. "It needed improved company."

Cap immediately blushed, and Tony and Bruce both fidgeted, but Thor's beaming smile never faltered.

Fury cleared his throat again. "Moving on then. All things considered, I believe a vacation is in order."

Clint immediately released a grateful sigh. Standing up, he reached out to shake Nick's hand. "About time," he groaned. "Thank you. Thank you so much, Director Fury… I only hope that Loco's new jail warden knows what he's getting himself into, 'cause boy, you sure blindsided ME." He laughed shakily.

Director Fury did not accept Clint's hand. Instead, he clarified, "That's not the kind of vacation I meant."

Clint pulled away, paling. "What kind of vacation did you mean?"

"It's more like a mission," Fury informed him. "A survival mission. Obviously sending Loki to your house was a bad idea—"

"You just realized that?"

"—so as Head of SHIELD, I have made an executive decision to relocate the team."

Natasha raised a hand. "Relocate?"

"Well, something like that. It's obviously too dangerous to try containing Loki here in suburbia, so you are all going to be spending some quality time out in the middle of nowhere. Think Timbuktu."

Clint sat back down and put his head in his hands. "So you aren't sending Loki away?" he surmised, his voice a little strained.

"I am. I'm just sending you with him. This way, not only will Loki be unable to destroy your house, but SHIELD will have the unique opportunity to use some new satellite tracking equipment. I'm sure Stark knows what I'm talking about. Loki won't be able to make one single move without the top agents at SHIELD headquarters knowing about it. It'll be like having him in a virtual cage."

"I am not a beast!" Loki interjected, looking rather haughty.

Everyone except Thor gave him incredulous stares, wondering exactly how he could say that with a clean conscience.

Fury resumed his instruction. "You have until tomorrow to pack anything you might need. I'll send Coulson with the van. From here, you will be driven to the airport, and once you reach your destination, a van will be rented for your personal use. Unfortunately, you'll have to hike the last ten miles, and then set up tents once you've reached the campsite. Only take what you think you can carry."

"Put up tents?" Stark repeated, wide-eyed. Up until that point in the conversation, he had been texting Pepper on his cell phone, but now Fury had his full attention. "You mean, like, tent-tents? But that's uncivilized!"

Fury hid a smirk. "Oh, I thought I'd try to make this as fun as possible for you all. Like a real vacation."

Dr. Banner was smiling. "I'll make trail mix," he offered immediately. "And help everybody pack up."

Clint looked like he was on the verge of having a stroke. Natasha was patting him on the back. "We'll have fun! Won't we Clint? I know how you like roughing it."

"Not with HIM!" Clint was quick to point out, glaring across the room at Loki.

Loki grinned back, displaying most of his perfectly straight, white teeth. Being trapped in Clint's house had been a complete drag, but he decided that he might like 'camping' better. Oh yes, this would be fun. This would be very, very fun…

As always: review for an update! ;)

~Alassiel