Author's Warning: If you're avoiding the smexy, read about 6/8ths through. Once it starts it's smexy until the end.

... ...

Loki extended a tendril of power to slam open the doors to his chambers and then close them after he'd passed through. He walked straight through to the balcony and held on to the rail as he stared blindly out into the night. How dare they imply he was a tool of the Chitauri and their masters. He made his own destiny, he…he shuddered at the memories of being trapped into taking actions he abhorred. No, the Other and the Mad Titan had not controlled his mind, but they could see and hear through him and knew his actions and words. Even the knowledge that they could do that much was humiliating. They could also deliver excruciating pain…pain that could continue for untold stretches of time while doing him no physical harm. "One is down," he reassured himself. "Still one to go."

The sound of his doors opening gently caught his attention. He turned to see Frigga ushering a slighter redheaded figure into his chambers. "We've left a change of clothing in here for you, dear," Frigga told his lady. "I imagine you'll wish to bathe before you see your friends."

Loki frowned, wondering what had taken them so long to get Kara a simple remedy for her headache. "Mother? Kara? Where have you been?"

Frigga smiled. "Oh, Loki, I thought you'd still be with your friends from Midgard."

"I-no, it became…" he trailed off, unable to tell his mother that he'd probably destroyed any chance of future acceptance by them. Frigga had been overjoyed when Thor had told her of the kindness they had shown him upon his departure.

"What's wrong?" Kara asked.

Of course, he thought. She could likely feel his discouragement. "It's nothing, my lady. How is your head feeling? You overdid it today, did you not?"

She frowned at him. "Nice change of subject. And no, I was fine until another one of your idiot brother's friends pissed me off." She turned to Frigga as her cheeks flushed. "Um, sorry. Thor isn't really an idiot, but his friends, well, they are very close-minded and it just makes me angry."

"It's quite all right, Kara. I understand. My eldest is not always the most understanding or tactful of men and I much doubt his friends here are any better. Though I have liked what I have seen and heard about his friends on Midgard. They seem fine people."

Kara snickered. "Hmm. Well, the three he met when he was banished are okay. But the Avengers? One is an egotistical flamboyant genius. Another is a holier than thou soldier, yet another has really horrendous anger-management issues, the other two are, well, assassins. And then there's me. I'm not too sure he's made great choices on our world either."

"He's fortunate to count you as a friend, Kara," Loki insisted. He shrugged. "And despite their issues, I-I will admit the others are, at least, no less worthy than any other friends he has made."

"Wow, you're in a generous mood," she teased and stepped in close. He looked at her and then up at Frigga. His mother had lifted one eyebrow and her expression seemed to be saying 'well?'. He wrapped his arms around Kara and hugged her close. "Perhaps I am. Regardless, Sif has ample reason to distrust me. Don't hate her on my account."

His mother smiled, and turned back to the door. "I'd best be going. After Kara has her bath, my son, perhaps you can take her to reassure your friends before the two of you retire. I'm certain they are anxious to know she is much recovered."

Loki stared at her. Apparently Frigga fully expected Kara to be staying the night with him and…approved? "I will, mother. Thank you and good night."

"Good night, Loki, Kara. Sleep well."

… …

Wow. Apparently Loki's mom approved of them sleeping together. Unless Loki had more than one bed in here. "Um, did she just, um…"

He smirked briefly and then kissed the edge of her mouth. "She did."

"Well, okay, then." She frowned up at him. "So what happened with the guys?"

"They make…assumptions as to my actions."

"So, they nailed something you'd rather they hadn't," she guessed.

Loki glowered at her, confirming it. "It does not matter. Are you ready for a bath, or do you need to eat first?"

"I had dinner with your mother. We had a lovely chat." Kara grinned as he groaned. "Don't worry, she didn't share embarrassing young Loki stories. She was a lot more interested in what I do and what's going on with S.H.I.E.L.D. versus the Avengers and such."

"What is going on?" he asked.

"We all resigned. Tony and Pepper set us up as a non-profit organization, and we're contracting our services to S.H.I.E.L.D. and friendly governments for non-emergency tasks. For emergencies, we'll do whatever we can without worrying about who is paying for it. Stark Industries Legal department is working on getting liability waivers from, well, pretty much every government in the world and the United Nations. S.H.I.E.L.D. has already signed theirs and the U.N. is scheduled to vote on it shortly."

"Good. S.H.I.E.L.D.'s council had unpleasant plans for you."

"Yeah, we read the files you…or, should I say, some mysterious hacker provided to us." Kara wrapped her arms tightly around him and buried her face in his neck. "I missed you so much."

"And I you," he admitted. "Kara, you do know that once the tribunal meets…"

"Yes, I know. And they'll be sending us all back to Earth just as soon as they can manage it. I really don't want to think about that right now. Can you please just let me hold on to the illusion that I'm not going to lose you again? At least for tonight, okay?"

"Very well, love. We have tonight."

… …

"Who the hell is this and what is she doing here?" Nick Fury grated as he burst into the new laboratory in Avenger's tower where they'd moved Foster and Selvig's equipment once the artifact had been removed from Earth. He glared at the perky blonde who was holding an animated conversation with Darcy Lewis. She looked up at him and stood.

"Beth Anderson. I'm with them," she said, pointing at Banner, Romanov and Pepper Potts.

"She's signed all of the confidentiality agreements, Nick," Pepper said as she came over to them. "Beth was a big help with Kara earlier, she's going to start her internship this spring at NYP, with a goal of specializing in trauma care."

Darcy snickered quietly. That couldn't be a good sign. "Miss Lewis, you had a comment?" Nick asked before he had second thoughts.

The dark haired and totally irreverent girl shrugged. "She's also Cap's main squeeze. They're really cute together."

Nick closed his eye and rubbed his forehead. He had to ask, he'd have thought he knew better by this point, but apparently not. "Fine. Don't. Touch. Anything," he ordered and strode to where doctors Foster, Selvig and Banner were examining readings. "What's happening?" he asked them.

Jane Foster looked up with a frown. "The wormhole feedback was abruptly cut off. We're not getting any more anomalous readings."

"Which likely means they were successful in closing the gate in Asgard," Erik Selvig interpreted helpfully. "It appears Loki was telling the truth. Otherwise the gate would still be open I would think."

"Wonderful. Now how do we get our people back?"

The two scientists shrugged and looked highly uncomfortable. "We don't," Jane said quietly. "At least not until and if someone on Asgard brings them back."

He looked over his shoulder at Pepper and the other women. "Have you told them this?"

Bruce Banner spoke up. "Pepper is aware of it, she's already contacted Stark Industries and had them release the General Power of Attorney that Tony set up giving her full control over the company. She also has the same for the Avengers interests. Beth guessed. She looks like a stereotypical dumb blonde, but she's really sharp."

"Saves breaking bad news." He frowned as Pepper joined them.

"I've sent a copy of Beth's paperwork to your inbox. I imagine you want to review it personally," she said with that irritating and somewhat smug smile she used to keep Stark in line.

"Fine." He pulled out a data pad and established the connection to his inbox. Opening the lengthy document he skimmed through it, stopping in surprise when he came across the name. "No, that…damn." He did a quick search and confirmed the connection. Bethany Margaret Carter Anderson was named for her great aunt, British expatriate and U.S. Army General Margaret Carter, Steve Rogers' handler during World War II. Her grandfather, George Carter, a British Member of Parliament had been Peggy's brother, and his daughter had married American Dennis Anderson, a decorated member of the U.S. Marines who had signed on with the Secret Service after serving in Vietnam. Nick sighed.

"Something wrong?" Banner asked.

"I hate coincidences," he said, and showed the search results to the scientist.

"Oh boy. I don't think Steve has any idea." He frowned. "For that matter, I don't think Beth does either, though she did mention that her entire family thought Captain America was the greatest hero ever."

"Very few people knew that Rogers and Carter had an emotional attachment. He was lost before they ever had a chance to act on it."

"Oh boy."

… …

"Hey, Bruce," Darcy called out. "Pepper thinks we should all head back upstairs. Now that the equipment is all hooked into the central system Jarvis can monitor it and let us know if there's any changes. Natasha's down with heading up, what do you say?"

He shrugged. "There isn't anything we can do here. I don't see why not. Nick, you going to hang?"

"No, thank you. Unlike some people I have work to do even when we are not in the middle of a crisis."

"Hmm, touchy, are we?"

"Don't start, doctor. You'd be on a constant rampage if you attempted to do my job."

Bruce smiled. "No doubt. I'll wish you a quiet evening, then." He watched as the S.H.I.E.L.D. Director nodded and headed for the elevator.

"So, what do you think? Movies to take everyone's mind off of things?" Darcy asked as she plastered herself up against his side.

He tried not to sigh. His attempts at discouraging her had been a waste of time. Not that he wanted to discourage her. For all her flightiness she was really very bright and her flippant attitude was kind of fun. But she was at least fifteen years younger and he didn't want to think about what kind of danger he could be to her if his other suddenly took control. "Okay. But we'll have to go with non-romantic comedy. Otherwise we're going to have three women crying outright and a fourth trying to convince us that she'd never cry under any circumstance whatsoever."

Darcy rolled her eyes. "Gotcha. Stark's got a stash and a half. I'll give Jarvis the parameters and have him give us a good assortment to choose from. Beth and I can get the popcorn and drinks going. Erik says he's going to go read, he's got a pile of technical journals he needs to catch up on so you'll be the only rooster in the hen house."

Oh joy. "Hmm, maybe I should go to the lab, I've got work to do."

"Oh no you don't, buster. You're not leaving me alone with them. I'm going to need someone to help keep the conversation on safe topics, got it?"

Great. He couldn't hold up his end of a conversation under the best of circumstances. "I suppose," he finally conceded. If he didn't, Darcy would no doubt follow him to his lab and then he wouldn't have the insulation provided by the other women. She was really determined and, if he let himself think about it, very attractive. He was doing his utmost to not think about it. The last thing he needed was to find out the hard way how sexual need affected the other guy.

… …

Steve looked up as their door opened. Kara walked in clothed in some kind of funny looking dress similar to what Queen Frigga had been wearing. He had to admit, it looked good on her. The dark green was a nice contrast to her bright hair. Loki entered behind her and glowered at them. "Hey, doc, how are you feeling?" he asked, reminding himself not to mention the extent of the treatment she'd received since it was supposed to be a big secret from Thor, Kara and Loki.

"Much better, Steve. Thank you. How's the leg?"

"Good. It barely even hurts. They said I could lose the brace tomorrow if I promised to take it easy."

"You'd better listen, too." She grinned at him. "When we get home, Beth can play doctor with you."

He blushed furiously as the others laughed. "She doesn't have to play anything," he muttered. "She's going to be a doctor soon."

"I know, I'm just giving you a hard time because you called me doc again. If we're going to have five doctors around the place, that's going to get really confusing."

"Yeah, okay, uh, Kara. I'll try to remember."

"Thank you, Steve." She turned to Thor. "And how are you doing?"

"Very well indeed, Lady Kara," he boomed. "Just a good bit of itching here," he said as he pressed a hand to his solar plexus.

"Glad to hear it. Loki got to experience the joy of donating meng mein energy. He lasted a few minutes longer than you did."

Loki gave his brother a smug grin. "I've always had greater…stamina than Thor."

Steve frowned. He knew that was a double entendre just from Loki's tone, but…oh. He closed his eyes and tried to fight down the blush. "Seriously?" he muttered. "Do you always have to twist everything, um, that way?"

"I'm certain I have no idea what you mean, Steven," Loki claimed. Steve could hear the smirk in his voice, he didn't have to look at him to see it.

"Yeah, right." He tried not to sigh. Stark and Barton were wearing ear to ear grins at his expense. "What were our losses?" he asked, trying to change the subject. Silence reigned. When he looked up at Loki and Thor their identical expressions of grief shook him. Loki cared every bit as much about the people of this place as Thor did.

"Far too high," the younger prince whispered. "Twenty-five Æsir dead, hundreds injured. Nearly a hundred citizens who were not Æsir dead, another hundred and fifty injured, many gravely. If I had found the damned artifact before they'd managed to get it in place…"

"That's a lot less death and injury than we had on Earth," Clint offered.

"Æsir are, for all intents and purposes immortal, Barton. It is not the same thing at all. And there are perhaps ten thousand or so of us-them, all told, not billions as there are of you humans. It is an immeasurable tragedy for which I am responsible." Steve tried not to stare as Loki folded his arms across his chest and stared at the ground. The god looked miserable and Steve felt for him.

"Loki, it isn't your fault," Kara said as she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

"Then whose fault is it? Had I not fallen into the Void, they would not have known where to look for the power they sought. Even had I died before they recovered me, they still would have smelled its magic upon my body and would have traced it back."

Thor had reached Loki's side and he embraced his brother from behind. "Brother, if that is the case then it is all of Asgard's fault as we drove you to that point with our careless treatment of you. You will not face the tribunal alone for this, I will proudly stand beside you and claim my share of the responsibility for what has befallen us."

"Um, Thor?" Tony asked. "Do you think they'll hold this thing after they see about getting my suit recharged?"

"I do not know, Tony, yet I believe so. I have been told the Tribunal will convene in the afternoon."

"Good." Tony looked at him and Clint. "Guys, I'm not going to speak for the two of you, but, well, the only way they're going to blame Loki for this shit is over my dead body."

"Considering what we know now," Clint agreed, "I'm up for it. How about you, Cap?"

It was days like this that Steve was proud to be Captain America and a member of the Avengers. "It would be an injustice to do anything less. And I should be out of this brace by then. I'm with you."

Loki shook his head and sighed. "You are all insane. Every last one of you." Yeah, Steve thought, Loki may have said the words, but his expression was, for the first time since he'd turned up in Central Park, hopeful.

… …

Kara smiled as Loki held open the door to his rooms for her. He'd escorted her, like a knight of old, from the guest chambers back to the Royal Wing. Someone had been in while they were gone. Lights were lit and a table was set with covered dishes. "More food?" she asked.

"Yes, I never finished the evening meal. I suspect Thor asked this to be delivered." He stopped and brushed long fingers along her cheek. "Did they mean it, do you think?"

"Of course. None of us blame you for what happened in Asgard." She shrugged. "We don't even really blame you for what happened in our world, not anymore."

"I was not under the control of the Other or his Master," Loki insisted.

"They had some kind of hold on you, though. Your eyes were blue up until the point the Hulk pounded you into Tony's floor. We figure that they could see what you were doing and maybe even hear what you were saying. But you had free will, so you could manipulate things to hopefully stop them. And you did." He frowned and stared at the floor. "Loki, it was brilliantly done. I don't think anyone else could have managed to minimize the damage the way you did. The only thing we really couldn't figure out was why Manhattan."

"Hmm. Well, the Chitauri do not maneuver very well. In a more open area, they would have been able to spread out and disperse before they could be stopped. It was far easier for the Avengers and the military to protect the populace and contain the enemy than it would have been most anywhere else."

"Then the only thing you didn't plan for was the nuke."

"Didn't I?" he said with a slight smirk. "On the contrary. I did not pull that information on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s council during my recuperation. I'd visited them before, well, the three of them that had the most sway over the others. I would have been quite disappointed had they not sent the device."

She gaped at him. "But…what if Tony hadn't decided to be a hero?"

He shrugged. "I believed either he or Thor would do so, but if I was wrong, I would have done it myself. I would not have survived it, but by that point, I didn't care. Thor was aware of the menace and would warn Asgard, and the Chitauri horde would have hesitated to attack Midgard again."

"I'm glad it didn't come to that. Even if I lose you, I-I'm grateful to have had you in my life, even for a little while." She swallowed a sob. "Not that I want to lose you, but…"

"It seems inevitable."

Kara decided it would be best to change the subject. She didn't want to spend what would likely be their last night together in tears. Turning, she looked around the spacious chamber, trying to find something to talk about. Her mouth dropped open in shock as she noticed a framed pencil drawing that had to have been sketched by Steve Rogers when he took a turn on watch after Loki had been placed in her bed to recuperate from his injuries. The large and detailed drawing showed herself sprawled on Loki's chest, face turned toward his. The detail was amazing. "Oh…when did Steve give this to you?" she asked.

"The entire team come up to say farewell," he said quietly as he stepped up behind her and enfolded her in his arms. "I was rather…stunned."

She smiled. "Loki, when you're not purposely being an ass, you're very likable, you know."

"I actually do not know that. I-I've never been liked for myself before."

Turning, she hugged him hard. "Well, we liked you. Even those of us who wanted to hate you and fought it every step of the way ended up liking you. Of course, we're not exactly normal people. Every one of us is a misfit in some way or another." She shrugged. "I guess once we got past the Norse god and crazy destructive stuff, it seemed like you were one of us."

"Thank you, love. I wish I could be one of you, but I much doubt fate will be that kind."

… …

Loki closed his eyes as Kara's arms tightened about him once again then drew in a sharp breath as a decision he hadn't even realized he'd been considering was made. If Odin released him within her lifetime, he would return to her and spend every minute she had left loving her. When she died, he'd mourn, but at least he would have the memories of being loved so fully. "I love you, sweet Kara," he told her as he reached down to lift her into his arms.

She smiled up at him. "I'm never going to get over that, you know. I really never thought you could feel the same way about me."

"We're even, then. I never thought I could feel so strongly about anyone." He grinned at her. "Notice I said anyone, not any mortal."

"I did notice that, thank you. I guess you've decided we mortals aren't all that bad after all."

"Hmm. None of you are ordinary mortals. I've decided exceptions can be made."

Kara fell backwards laughing as he set her down on his bed. "You are so impossible," she finally managed. Reaching up to stroke his jaw she told him, "And so perfect for me. Now, how the hell do I get this outfit off? It has so many hooks and laces I don't even know where to begin."

"You don't." He smirked at her confusion and reached out with his magic. The dress vanished from her body and she gasped when the cool air of his chambers flowed over her bare skin. "I've sent it to the wardrobe." He sent his own clothing away and then leaned down to kiss the astonished expression from her lips. "You have your work saving devices, I have work saving magic."

"Huh. I think I like your way better." She wriggled back until she was fully on the bed. "Coming?" she asked playfully.

"Not yet I'm not," he growled and covered her body with his own, claiming her lips in a ravenous kiss. He moaned as her taste ignited a deep need within him. A need to make her his and only his in a way no one else could. "Kara, how is your energy?" he asked.

She blinked and tried to focus. "Uh, um, great, actually. That herbal stuff they gave me for my headache kind of recharged me. I feel like I could take on an army."

"Could you take on a Jötunn?" he asked, trying not to sound too hopeful.

Kara's mouth dropped open as she realized what he wanted. "Oh." She blushed. 'I-yes, but we can't take too long, we'd have to be well, quicker than we usually are."

"I think we can manage that. Be sure to tell me when it's too much, hmm? I don't want any harm to come to you."

Her smile was wicked. "I'm more worried about harm coming to you. After all, you'll be intentionally starting a fire in me."

"I'll take that risk," he whispered in her ear as he let his form shift. He could feel his body temperature drop rapidly and saw his much cooler breath condensing in the warm air. He trailed his tongue along the tendon that ran from her shoulder to behind one delicate ear and then nipped the lobe sharply. She moaned as he moved back to her sweet spot and sucked the skin that now seemed so hot into his mouth. "So beautiful, my lady of fire," he murmured.

Her moans trebled as he moved to take a hardening nipple between his teeth and tugged on it sharply. His fingers found its twin and twisted it until she arched beneath him. "How is it you make me burn, my god of ice?" she asked hoarsely.

He grinned as he released her nipple and trailed both fingers and kisses down her creamy skin. Her nether curls were, a distant part of his brain noted, all the same shade, in the middle of the range of those that graced her scalp. He parted them, enjoying the contrast between the cobalt blue fingers of his Jötunn form's hand, the auburn of her pubic hair and the pink tinted cream of her inner folds. "Love makes you burn, my beautiful lady," he crooned.

She shrieked softly as he plunged two fingers into her already wet canal. The heat of her natural lubrication was scalding in this form, but he reveled in it. "God, Loki…I-I can't tell you how good that feels," she groaned, lifting up to draw his fingers even deeper inside. "Thought…thought you were god of mischief," she continued. "Think they got it wrong." Kara moaned as he withdrew and then thrust his fingers deep inside again and then shrieked as his cool lips closed on her clitoris. "So good," she hissed as he flicked it with his tongue while continuing to thrust slowly in and out of her sex.

He sucked strongly on the small bud as she continued to come undone beneath him. Her hot fluids were now soaking his hand and dripping down her thighs and his cock was so hard it began to pain him. Pulling back, he asked, "Can you take more, my love?"

"Always," she told him. He shifted on the bed and settled her thighs up and back. He checked her expression and was reassured to see her watching him avidly. Smirking slightly, he positioned himself and slowly, carefully slid his staff into the burning core of her sex. He groaned as her tight heat enveloped him. It was just short of excruciating, but at the same time, exquisite. "Loki," she moaned. "That's so…so…amazing."

… …

Kara whimpered as his cold staff pressed deep within her. The sensation was indescribable. There was an underlying heat within the cold, as his blood pulsed through the veins, and it…traveled, in a line, with a beat that was not noticeable when his flesh was warm. The ridges that ran across the rest of his body continued down his staff and the feel of them added an amazing counterpoint to the cool silky feel of his skin. She shuddered as he withdrew and then pressed in again, his long fingers tightening around her thighs as he groaned. "So hot, my love," he whispered, then those startlingly red eyes flashed open and the corner of his mouth lifted in a grin. "In all ways."

Trust Loki to make her laugh, even in the middle of mind-blowing sex. "Stop," she finally managed. "No time for teasing, remember?"

"Damn. Very well, sweet Kara. No teasing." She gasped as he thrust home sharply, shivering as the icy sensation traveled all the way to the entrance of her vagina. The cold triggered pleasurable spasms that made her arch her back, desperate to take him deeper still. "More, my love?" he purred.

"God, yes, Loki." He began to thrust in earnest then, pounding hard and deep as she continued to moan. Her skin tingled and goose bumps arose as her body tried to trap her heat against the onslaught of Loki's frigid flesh. The hard ridges roughly stroked the inside of her canal adding to the already overwhelming sensations. Loki pressed her legs back even further and leaned in to capture her lips. His tongue thrust inside her mouth and she closed her lips around it, sucking hard on its cold, supple surface. Kara forced herself to look directly into his blood-red eyes and moaned at the incongruousness of the heat within them. He pulled back, releasing her lips and she gasped as he turned his attention to her clit, rubbing and pinching it with chilly fingers.

"Come for me, my darling girl," he hissed, moving his other hand to sharply twist first one nipple and then the other. "Give me all of your heat, love."

A bliss-filled scream escaped as the cold pleasure shot through her entire body. She arched up off the bed and felt the now scalding heat of her come soaking both of them as waves of sensation rippled through her. The shuddering spasms continued, giving her a high from which she felt she would never come down. Her vision began to dim, but she couldn't let go…had to let him know. "Loki!" she shrieked. "Love…you…always…you…"

… …

Author's Notes: Okay, I don't know about the rest of the Loki Lovers out there, but I've been fantasizing about this since they showed Loki in his Jötunn form in Thor. Sigh. Was it as good for you as it was for me? ;P

Thank you all again for all of the review love.