July 12th, 2021
A/N:
I know, I know, I know. I am SO super sorry. I literally meant for it to be two weeks not three but yet here we are. I hope this excuse is enough. I just had a massive job switch and went from working 20 hours to working 40 hours. I now work at a camp where I am taking care of 5-10-year-olds. It's a very long day and at the end of it, I usually eat dinner and then go straight to bed. My weekends are my only downtime now so I try to spend that with my family. I know that this isn't an excuse but I hope it is an explanation.
Once again please follow my Instagram page for this fic, (delaneys . world . of . fanfiction). Hopefully, spacing out the words will help you guys see what the page is. If not, message me and we can figure it out together. On the page, there's bonus content and if you do fanart you can send it to me there. I already have my own personal peen up right now. I also will be posting some bonus pov's like what Pepper and Happy are doing right now, Tony's eulogy to Helen, and even some letters from Ron, Harry, and the gang! Be sure to follow for all that exclusive content.
Thank you to my Beta Luke, our marvel expert for editing this chapter. Luke who is Boots to my Dora the Explorer, The Cheddar to my Captain Holt, The Ferguson to my Winston. (Yes, I will keep adding more every week because Luke HATES it and also name these shows/references in the comments). Also a massive shoutout to my amazing ghostwriter ElianaIsabella who literally edited this chapter at the drop of a hat. I couldn't have gotten this chapter out to you guys without her. *insert clapping emoji*
Now for questions! If you have any pressing questions or just want to make some observations about the fic, ask any questions and I will try to answer them.
annieharp84: Thank you so much. Glad that it was a surprise for you, I wanted to make it sort of obvious and kinda not. Honored to be in your top 5!
AntheaFoxdale: That's why I do those torturous cliffhangers. It keeps you all on your toes muhaha.
BookwormsParadise: Actually 3 weeks. Again I am SO SORRY.
CallaRose4ever: Absolutely I 100% agree. I think that Tony, Nat, and Steve should've lived. I understand that their contracts were up but there was a way they could've kept their characters in the MCU. Peggy was also married to a good guy who made her happy. She also had children with that person so he completely fucked up everything that was supposed to happen for her. Definitely, no flirting with Uncle Tom. Hope that this chapter explains her connection to 'Uncle Loki'. Steve will eventually get better but the initial shock of her looking like Peggy is still new to him. He doesn't really know how to react, so he acts like a dick. Hope you enjoy the new chapter and as always I love seeing your in-depth reviews.
saralinn: Hopefully the rest of your stories uploaded some content over the last 3 weeks and you weren't too deprived of your favorite fic. Hope you enjoy it!
jessa9110: I'm glad you like the choice of Loki. But I have to ask why did you suspect Clint?
petuniatc: You would be assuming correctly. Hermione and Peggy were very close before going to Hogwarts and before Peggy's diagnosis. Peggy was Hermione's strongest female role model in life. That is where Hermione learned that through hard work and a little bit of knowledge and patience anything is possible. I wouldn't be surprised if Marvel has something sinister up their sleeve as far as reboots go.
lumosavis135: Thank you so much! It's comments like these that make me keep going. It's faltering to be called one of the best marvelxhp xover on this site so thank you so much for that. There may or may not be some Hermione and Steve action before Bucky and Hermione but we will see. Thank you again for another wonderful comment.
LGSgotTaken: My apologies for messing up the Phases but still. I've only seen the first episode of Loki but I think they explained Steve's time-traveling, rule-bending pretty well. I just wished that Black Widow, Iron Man, and Captain America could've lived on forever.
Stille und regen: Thank you so much my exams went very well thank you. Yeah, Tony and Hermione's plans never really go well. Thinking about making that a constant thing in the fic. I liked the fact that Steve was so blinded by her appearance that he didn't even care about the differences because for him she is Peggy. Whereas Bucky had more time with Hermione so he WANTED to see the differences. I agree Same is going to be a great Captain. Thank you again for another amazing comment.
Keira-House M.D: You may have to wait for awhile for the warm and fuzzy Hermione and Steve but the ice between them will thaw eventually. If you want more information on Uncle Tom then this is definitely the chapter for you!
crity2re: Okay so after I read your comment I went back and watched that scene. You were 100% right and I thank you for bringing that to my attention. Again I apologize for getting the Phases wrong. Again I never thought about Tony and Steve's deaths and ending that way. It opened up an entirely new perspective for me. As for Uncle Tom or Loki, all will be (or most at least) will be revealed in this chapter. Thank you again for such thought-provoking comments because they really help me shape the characters in future chapters.
Also, I have not seen anything other than the 1st episode of Loki so please no spoilers please, and thank you.
I own nothing but the storyline. If I owned Marvel or Harry Potter I would've starred in the films. Oh and married Sebastian Stan.
Previously:
"There's not many people who can sneak up on me," Loki said with a smirk that would beat Draco Malfoy's.
"That was always half the fun with you and me," Hermione said looking up to meet his eyes. "Hello, Uncle Tom."
June 24th, 2012 Aboard the Mobile SHIELD Headquarters (9:13 am) Banner's Lab
Everyone watched on the monitor as Hermione approached Loki hesitantly. Tony was nervous, sure Loki couldn't use his powers and was in a cage that was literally built for a giant, green rage monster. But he couldn't help but worry for his newly discovered daughter.
They watched as Loki suddenly halted. Before turning around to face the young witch.
"There's not many people who can sneak up on me," Loki said with a smirk.
"That was always half the fun with you and me," Hermione said looking up to meet his eyes. "Hello, Uncle Tom."
Everyone froze at her words, then they all looked at Tony. He just stared at the screen in utter disbelief. He couldn't believe it. Why the hell didn't she tell him? Was she working with Loki? He hoped and prayed that it wasn't true. It couldn't be.
"Did you know?" Natasha asked confused.
"No," Tony said, not looking up from the screen. "I met the girl like 3 days ago. Maybe you should be asking him." Tony said pointing to Thor. Loki was the God of Thunder's brother, if she called Loki her Uncle, it was likely that she had met Thor at some point.
"That is not possible. I've never met this child before and she is not of Asgard or Jotunheim. I would've felt it." Thor told the SHIELD agents.
"Did she ever mention an Uncle Tom? Was he at the funeral?" Coulson asked Tony quickly. They needed to know more and fast. The more Loki and she had a chance to talk, the more they could conspire. Tony may have brought a traitor on board and they didn't even know it.
"She mentioned him briefly. No, he wasn't at the funeral. According to her, he'd show up every couple of months, stay for a few days and then leave. He was a friend of her dad's. They met in college or something." Tony said quickly, trying to give them all the information he could. "I know what you're all thinking but it's not true. She wouldn't just betray me like that, betray SHIELD like that."
"You know that? For a fact?" Fury questioned seriously.
"No offense Mr. Stark, but you met this girl like 3 days ago. How much do you even know about her?" Coulson asked him seriously. That made Tony's blood boil. If they even thought about hurting his daughter, traitor or not. He was going to blast them all to hell.
"You touch a hair on her head and I swear Fury I'll-" Tony started, threatening the director.
"Tony calm down," Bruce said placing a hand on the billionaire's shoulder.
"Isn't that what I should be saying to you?" Tony said angrily, shaking Bruce off. Before realizing that that was a little too far. "Banner I'm sorry-"
"You don't have to apologize Tony. She's your kid, I get it." Bruce said, genuinely forgiving Tony. He turned to the three agents and said, "Look, you only met her for 2 minutes. I've spent the last couple of hours with her. I'm sure she can explain. Give her a chance before you light your torches."
"Fine. But she's in for a serious questioning after this." Fury agreed reluctantly.
June 24th, 2012 Aboard the Mobile SHIELD Headquarters (9:13 am) Loki's Cell
"There's not many people who can sneak up on me," Loki said with a smirk.
"That was always half the fun with you and me," Hermione said looking up to meet his eyes. "Hello, Uncle Tom."
Hermione waited for him to say something or react but nothing came. She stood there for what felt like minutes, feeling like a total idiot. It was him, her Uncle Tom. She knew from the second she saw the television screen back on the plane. She wanted to tell Tony, she truly did. But there wasn't time. There was no time for them to be alone and as much as she trusted Bruce, she knew they were being watched. It wasn't SHIELD's business what happened to her family and even though he was a murderer at the moment, Uncle Tom or Loki or whatever his name is, he's still family.
Hermione had had enough of this shit. The silent treatment. She wanted answers. Deserved answers.
"What? Now you're all quiet? You never used to be like that, what changed?" Hermione asked, sarcasm evident in her voice. He looked her dead in the eye but showed no emotion. Hermione huffed in frustration. "Fine. I'll tell you what changed. Let's start with the last few days. Mum and Dad died, did you hear? You know? Your brother in all but blood, or whatever the fuck you two used to say. The funeral was yesterday, wish you could've been there but it seems that you were a little too busy. Stealing from a government agency, you know, the one that Grandma Peggy built? Oh! And my biological grandfather, apparently. Yea… Howard Stark. When you didn't show up at the hospital, my biological father, Tony Stark did. Helped plan the funeral, got me packed, is helping me grieve. You know, everything you should have done? But no! You were too busy trying to start a war instead of helping your niece through literally the toughest time of her life."
Hermione finished her rant, livid. Over the last few days, all Hermione had wanted was her uncle to pull her safe into his arms, telling her that everything will be okay. She wanted the uncle who had taught her how to play chess and speak french. Who had shown her self-defense, and fighting techniques. Not this sorry excuse of a man in front of her. He hadn't said a word to her since she had stepped into the room.
"You're still not going to say anything?" Hermione asked angrily. Loki stayed silent, staring at the ground, huffing in annoyance. Hermione had had enough. "Look at me." She said sternly and angrily. When he said nothing she decided to hold nothing back. "LOOK AT ME!" She yelled, tears threatening to fall down her face. She wouldn't let them fall, not for him. "LOOK AT WHAT YOU'VE DONE. YOU HURT INNOCENT PEOPLE. YOU HURT ME. YOU MISSED YOUR BEST FRIENDS FUNERAL AND LEFT YOUR NIECE TO DEAL WITH IT ALL ALONE AND YOU CAN'T EVEN SAY ONE WORD TO ME!?"
Loki looked up at her, finally meeting her gaze with a sad, far-off look. "What do you expect me to say?"
"I WANT AN EXPLANATION," Hermione yelled, not being able to calm herself down enough to speak to him at a normal volume. "I WANT TO KNOW HOW YOU CAN GO FROM BEING MY UNCLE, THE MAN WHO TAUGHT ME TO RIDE A BIKE AND SKATE, AMONG SHIT TONS OF OTHER THINGS, TO A GENOCIDAL MANIAC TRYING TO TAKE OVER THE WORLD. I WANT TO KNOW HOW WORLD DOMINATION WAS MORE IMPORTANT THAN FAMILY."
"This was for my family. For you." Loki said with more confidence, he approached her closer through the glass. Hermione couldn't help but give a breathy laugh of disbelief. She couldn't believe her ears.
"That's the most utterly ridiculous thing I've ever heard." Hermione said with an incredulous look on her face. "How in the hell does ruling the world benefit me at all?"
"Because it benefits people like you and I." Loki explained to her, irritated at her lack of understanding.
"People like us?" Hermione asked dumbly. She had a feeling that she knew what he meant, but how could he have known?
"Don't play dumb with me Hermes-" Loki tried to speak before she FURIOUSLY interrupted him.
"Don't call me that," Hermione said sternly. What the hell gave him the right to call her by her nickname after all the pain he had caused her. "Don't you EVER fucking call me that again. You don't have that right. Not anymore."
If Loki was hurt by her words he didn't show it, he simply reassured his composure and continued on with a simple:
"Very well," Loki began to pace his cell in boredom. "It benefits people like you and I. Magicals. People who can do the extraordinary, without any rhyme or reason."
"You know nothing of my powers," Hermione said firmly. He couldn't have known, not after all of this time.
"Oh? But don't I?" Loki said stopping his pacing to flash her a cocky smirk. "Who do you think taught you to focus it? To harness and use every bit of magic that you are capable of? Who did you think molded you into the witch you are today?"
With every open-ended question that he threw at her, he took a step closer until his face was as close to hers as the glass would allow.
"How long have you known?" Hermione asked in a whisper, narrowing her eyes at the trickster god.
"Since the day I met your mother. Your father introduced us when things got serious between them." Loki said once again, beginning his pacing. "I had sensed something off the first time that I met your mother, it must have been your magical signature. When I first met you I could sense something off about you but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. It wasn't until I held you in my arms that first time that I knew you were special. I remember your father and mother were busy unloading groceries when I first arrived, your father just handed you to me. I was the one to hold you during their wedding ceremony, remember?"
Hermione scoffed at the ending remark. Of course, she knew it and she knew that he was using it for sympathy. How dare he use her parents now after everything she had been through in the last several days. Luckily Moody had prepared her for interrogations of all kinds, including personal.
"So did you only become friends with my father because he was dating a woman with a magical child? Did Heimdall tell you about me and my future so you signed up for the same Mythology and English major as my father? What was your plan there?" Hermione questioned, she couldn't leave anything to chance. She knew that before her father switched his major to Dentistry, he was trying to become a Mythology and English professor. In that Mythology course is where Loki and her father met. She of course knew of Heimdall, Thor, Loki, Odin, and the Bifrost from her father. Norse mythology was always a shared passion between Uncle Tom, herself, and her father. Heimdall knew all, past, present, and the future. He could've easily foretold a prophecy or fate for Hermione that Loki could use to his advantage in the future. She couldn't be too careful with her questions. Hermione wanted answers.
"No, no, no," Loki reassured her in a flat tone. "You were never planned. Meeting your father and yourself was purely accidental."
"Then why the hell were you attending a muggle college?" Hermione asked curiously. He was a Norse God! Why attend a university that would offer no value to further his knowledge?
"I was curious," Loki said with a shrug. Hermione almost wondered if that was his explanation. But knowing Loki she knew that he wasn't finished. "It was the beginning of the end of my time on Asgard. I finally started to notice that I was always second best to Thor and that I never really fit in with anybody else. So I decided to investigate. I knew that Midgardians had their own versions of how adventures of the nine realms really took place. I wanted to know if there was some truth to that."
"I had Heimdall tell me where I could study these Midgardian tales and he happened to recommend the same university and course that your father attended. We sat next to each other and never really talked. We started with Greek tales, the Sumerians, West African, Japanese then finally Norse. That is where I learned the true nature of my heritage. That Odin had stolen me and raised me to be Thor's lackey. Of course, when Odin informed me I did have to pretend that I was caught completely off guard. One of the best performances of my life if I do say so myself.
"Your father thought that I was only passionate about the subject, not furious over my father's betrayal. He was the only one who had any kind of sympathy towards my situation. He didn't know that I was the same person that we were studying, but he had sympathy for me. That is where our friendship truly began and well...you know the rest."
Hermione stood in silence at his story. She recalled that Thor had said something about Loki being adopted earlier and obviously remembered that he was taken in by Odin in Norse mythology. However, before today she never believed any of these myths to be real. She could sympathize with him from the adoption standpoint. To be told something for more than 1000 years, then to be told you've been lied to is a tough pill to swallow. But that didn't excuse everything that he had done in the last 72 hours.
"You've known me since I was 4. Why not tell me about my powers? Why wait? I had to wait until Professor McGonagall showed up at our doorstep when I was 11! You could've trained me, helped me." Hermione said in a flat interrogative tone. "I remember feeling so guilty that I had to keep it a secret from you. I wanted to tell you every day. But you knew the entire fucking time."
"What could I have told you? Oh yes by the way I'm a Norse God, the God of Mischief and Lies actually, and by the way, you are a witch? You all would've called me mad!" Loki exclaimed. He could not explain the feelings he had watching Hermione interrogate and berate him. This little girl he watched grow into an incredible young woman was the only thing he ever truly cared about over the last couple of centuries. Her and her parents. They were the only ones who ever truly understood him. They knew that he had problems with his own family and gladly welcomed him in theirs with open arms.
As much as Hermione was still furious with him, she still understood his point. If he had just told her one day that she was a witch and could do all of these incredible things, she would've had her parents check him into a mental hospital. "It still would've reassured me that I wasn't a freak." Hermione retorted weakly, knowing there was no answer that would put her in the right.
"Believing you were, made you stronger and you know it," Loki told her. She didn't know whether that was a backhanded insult or a compliment. "Besides without telling you, I aided you in controlling your abilities. Through the small and undetectable things."
"Am I going to be getting an explanation as to how or…?" Hermione asked, confused. How could you control magic without using it? Loki could see the gears in her head were turning. He knew that look, the rare look of confusion that Hermione got when she didn't know the answer to something. Loki knew exactly what to do, he smirked before saying:
"I think I'll leave you to figure that out, dear niece." Loki looked up towards the camera where SHIELD was watching them from before looking back to Hermione. "Something tells me that your newfound father and his merry band of misfits will want to talk about," -He gestured one finger between them- "this."
"I still have so many fucking questions, like why weren't you at the funeral and-" Hermione started rambling once again but was quickly interrupted by Loki.
"We will have our time to speak, I assure you. But for now, you must be with your family." Loki assured her, speaking softly. Hermione saw his hard look fall for just a moment after he finished his sentence. Before he brought his cold demeanor back up, that same cold look he had given her in Germany. It was like he didn't recognize her. Unless you had learned all she had so far in the wizarding world you never would have noticed what she did. When his face was as cold as it was in Germany, his eyes were blue, a far-off, glazed over blue. But when he started talking to her that look faltered. His eyes returned to that bright green color that she remembered, the color she associated with her Uncle Tom. It was like he was fighting something off internally.
'Something like the Imperius Curse…' Hermione thought. But she quickly shook that idea from her memory. It was impossible. Her magic and his magic were completely different. Besides, who would be powerful enough to Imperius a god? She could name several wizards who fit that category. But why wouldn't they just take over the world themselves? Hermione shook those thoughts away. She had bigger problems right now. Her father and SHIELD being two of them.
With one final look at her Uncle, she turned around and started walking towards the door. Before stepping through it, she put her hands on her head expecting every SHIELD official to be pointing a gun at her on the other side of the door. With a shaky breath, she stepped through the door.
June 24th, 2012 Aboard the Mobile SHIELD Headquarters (9:28 am) Banner's Lab
As Hermione stepped through the door she looked around to see no SHIELD officials in the room. Other than of course the people who were in the room before she went to see Loki. She slowly removed her hands from her head feeling slightly stupid. She looked at the floor, nervously twiddling her fingers, and biting her lip. Fury coughed loudly to get her attention.
Hermione reluctantly looked up to see a room full of confused and angry people. She knew that Fury's cough was her cue to speak.
"I suppose I owe all of you an explanation," Hermione said guiltily.
"You suppose correct," Natasha said to the young witch sharply before turning to look at Fury. "I'm going to talk to Loki. See if I can get anything useful out of him."
It wasn't until Agent Romanoff left the room that Hermione began.
"I suppose you all have a lot of questions so why don't you start with those." Hermione didn't want to look at Tony just yet. She wasn't ready to see the only family she had left be disappointed in her. She just couldn't do it.
"Let's start with the most important question. Are you working with Loki?" Fury asked in his curious yet booming voice.
"Absolutely not. I know that it means nothing to you but I swear on my parent's graves that I am not working with him. I would never. I just needed that closure and I was hoping that somehow he would become my Uncle Tom again and tell me what I needed to know." Hermione told them.
"I believe her," Thor said backing the girl immediately.
"You haven't heard anything else from her, you seriously believe her just like that?" Coulson asks curiously. Thor doesn't trust people very easily ever since Odin and Loki lied to him. Coulson knew that so for him to trust Hermione again so easily there's got to be a reason.
"She has heart. She had every opportunity to break Loki out of the glass...cage...thing. But she didn't. She swore upon the graves of her recently deceased parents. Unloyal people do not do that. Besides, she protected all of you during Loki's attack. Why do that when he could've killed you?" Thor pointed out to them all.
They all knew he made a solid point. She had had every opportunity to help Loki and betray them and she took none of them.
"Screw it. I'll buy it. She had every opportunity to take the Hulk out too and kill us all. With her and Loki's powers, they could've teleported off of this thing and taken over the world. Left all of us for dead. I believe her." Bruce said standing up for her.
"I've been taught not to trust anybody so don't take it personally if I don't trust you, but I believe you." Coulson added. He trusted Thor's judgment; if he trusted the girl then he had no choice but to trust him as well.
Hermione's heart warmed at the trust given to her, but her father had not yet spoken about how he felt.
"Any more questions?" Hermione asked them, but really she was asking Tony. She just wanted him to talk to her. To reassure her that he wasn't pissed at her.
"I thought your dad was a dentist. But you and Loki discussed the fact that they were both English and Mythology students." Tony finally said, breaking his silence. Hermione chuckled slightly at that. Her father was a genius yet the only question he has at the moment is the simplest one to answer.
"That's an easy one. Dad changed majors after he met my mom. They both discussed the pros of dentistry and my dad took a class and found he enjoyed it. So he switched majors his second year. Uncle Tom-... I mean, Loki continued with English and Mythology for 4 years until graduation."
Tony nodded before walking across the room and giving her a hug. He knew that he had scared her for a minute there by not responding to her. She needed reassurance that he wasn't mad right now. Hermione returned the hug pulling away after a minute. Tony still kept a protective arm around her shoulder.
"So how often would you see Loki? And when did he first get introduced to you?" Fury asked her, trying to get as much information as possible. Not that he didn't trust Agent Romanoff to get the information out of Loki. But he needed to be prepared for anything.
"I was 2 when my mum and dad started dating and my dad brought Loki around about 6 months later. I would see him often when he was in school. Most nights he was my babysitter for my parent's date night." Hermione said with a reminiscent, breathy laugh. "But after graduation, everything changed. I was around 6 and I remember he started coming around less and less. He would show up at odd times, stay for a week or two then leave. He never told us when his next visit would be. But he would still come around every other month and he never missed a birthday or holiday."
"As I got older though, the time between visits became longer and he started missing Easter and New Year. But it was when I went off to school that I noticed a real change. I would maybe be lucky to see him for a day or two during the summer holidays. He would always drop off Christmas presents on the doorstep the night before, never staying to celebrate with us. He did however send letters to me constantly through my parents. The last time I saw him was August of last year. He was there for a day before stating that he had business in America. I can only imagine that that had something to do with New Mexico."
"That was another thing he never told us. Now I know why. But he never told us what his job was. Just that it kept him busy. Every time we asked he got sad about it so eventually, we stopped asking. Does that answer your questions?" Hermione asked Fury politely. She understood that this was strange for all of them so she wanted to answer as many questions as possible.
"You keep mentioning this school of yours-" Fury started but was interrupted by Coulson. The agent handed him a tablet.
"I think you're going to want to take a look at this sir," Coulson suggested.
"What are you doing Stark?" Fury asked Tony angrily. 'Guess he knows about the security breach.' Hermione thought to herself. Tony shrugged, looking at his own tablet and bringing up a screen for Bruce.
"I was wondering about that myself. What are you doing Fury?" Tony questioned.
"You were supposed to be locating the Tesseract." Fury said.
"We are," Bruce added. "The signature is locked and sweeping for signals now. When we get a hit we'll know its location within a half-mile."
"Yeah, then you get your Cube back. No muss, no fuss." Tony said before looking at his screen once again. "Though I must ask. What is "Phase 2'."
Just then Steve and Bucky walked into the room and slammed what looked like a very large gun onto the nearest table.
"Phase 2 is SHIELD using the Cube to make weapons," Steve told them all angrily. Bucky was quiet but looked absolutely furious. Steve looked at Tony. "Sorry, the computer was working a little too slow for me."
"Rogers, Barnes, we gathered everything related to the Tesseract. This does not mean that we are making…" Fury began to explain to the two soldiers. Hermione knew this type of explanation was the same one that Professor Dumbledore used with Harry. Now she knew where they all stood. Rogers and Barnes are the golden children and everyone else does the hard work for them. Not her. Not this time. No fucking way was she going to be a puppet in anyone's game any longer. She didn't mind helping Harry because he was her best friend. But Steve and the rest of SHIELD had been nothing but suspicious of her since she arrived. The only one who'd been kind to her was Bucky.
"I'm sorry, Nick," Tony said bringing Hermione out of her trance. Tony turned the tablet over towards Nick. "What were you lying?"
"I was wrong, director. The world hasn't changed a bit." Steve commented.
That was when Natasha and Thor walked into the room.
"Did you know about this?" Bruce asked Natasha. Hermione noticed that he asked her like he trusted her or knew her. She'd have to ask the doctor about that later.
"You want to think about removing yourself from this environment Doctor?" Natasha asked Bruce, concerned and almost scared.
"I was in Calcutta. I was pretty well removed." Bruce reassured her, insulted that she really had so little faith in his ability to maintain control.
"Loki is manipulating you." Natasha tried to tell him.
"And you've been doing what exactly?" Bruce retorted.
"You didn't come here because I bat my eyelashes at you," Natasha said back to him. She said it in a tone that was angry but reassuring so as not to invoke the Hulk.
"Yes, and I'm not leaving because suddenly you get a little twitchy," Bruce said ending that discussion. "I'd like to know why SHIELD is using the Tesseract to build weapons of mass destruction."
"Because of him." Fury said simply, pointing at Thor who until this moment had said nothing. Hermione just watched in amazement as this team of amazing people fell apart at the seams.
"Me?" Thor asked in confusion. Fury then turned to point at Hermione.
"And her. Last year we had a visitor from another planet who had a grudge match that leveled a small town." Fury explained. "We learned that not only are we not alone but that we are hopelessly, hilariously, outgunned."
"My people want nothing but peace with your planet," Thor argued.
"But your people are not the only people out there, are you?" Fury said. "And what about little miss witch over here?"
"Me?" Hermione asked.
"Don't think I haven't forgotten about this 'school' of yours." Fury said. "I think it's time that we have a little conversation about that."
"Sure I have nothing to hide," Hermione said with a slight bite to her tone. This was not the time nor the place to be having the conversation.
"If there's a school that teaches you about control of your powers, that means there has to be more of you correct?" Fury asked.
"That would be correct. Not just in England but in just about every country. We have hidden communities and believe me you can tear the world apart brick by brick, but you will never find them. Don't even begin to think about using us as your own personal magic army because believe me better people have tried." Hermione told them.
"So if the communities are all hidden from humans how the hell do you exist having two human parents?" Fury questioned again.
"This is a bigger conversation but all you need to know right now is that there's Pureblood, Muggleborns, and Half-Bloods…." And so Hermione told them all about the differences between blood status. Now of course most of them had questions like the genetic components. Basically all the questions Tony had. At the end of the question and answer section, Fury said:
"Now do you all understand what I was trying to say earlier?" Fury said, trying to get everyone on his side. "All of you billionaires, super-soldiers, gods, witches, rage monsters, assassins are still not the only threats out there. The world is filling up with people who can't be matched, that can't be controlled."
"Like you controlled the Cube?" Bucky asked, speaking for the first time.
"Your work with the Tesseract is what drew Loki to it, and his allies," Thor told Fury. "It is a signal to all the realms that the Earth is ready for a higher form of war."
"A higher form?" Steve asked.
"You forced our hand. We had to come up with something." Fury said.
"A nuclear deterrent." Tony, Bruce, and Hermione said at the same time. But this time there were no giggles following behind it.
"Because that always calms everything down." Tony finished for the group.
"Remind me again how you made your fortune, Stark." Fury retorted.
"I'm sure if he still made weapons, Stark would be neck-deep…" Steve started before Tony interrupted.
"Hold on. How is this now about me?" Tony asked in disbelief.
"I'm sorry, isn't everything?" Steve questioned.
"I thought you humans were more evolved than this," Thor commented.
"Excuse me?! Did we come to your planet and blow stuff up?" Fury argued.
"You treat your companions with such distrust." Thor retorted.
"Are you boy's really that naive? SHIELD monitors potential threats." Natasha attempted to reassure.
"Captain America's on threat watch?" Bruce asked in disbelief.
"We all are," Natasha told him.
"Wait, you're on that list?" Tony asked the agent, referring to the soldier. "Are you above or below angry bees?"
"Stark, so help me God if you make one more wisecrack..." Steve said in annoyance.
"Threat! Verbal threat! I feel threatened." Tony joked.
"Show some respect," Steve demanded.
"Respect what?" Tony asked.
This bickering went on for a while and Hermione was losing control. Whenever she got too overwhelmed her magic would go crazy. She needed quiet. Now.
"SHUT IT!" Hermione practically screamed, a small burst of energy hitting the men. They all went to talk to her but found that they had no voice. "Now will you all shut up and listen?"
Okay, guys! I hope you all enjoyed that chapter, especially after 3 weeks. I am sorry for the cliffhangers but I have to do something to make you guys stick around.
Ok for last week's poll question, Luke won (How on god's green earth did THAT happen?) which means the score is now:
Delaney-4
Luke-2
This week's poll question is do you prefer MCU MJ or her original counterpart? Luke believes that the MCU MJ is terrible and he prefers her original counterpart. I however believe that MCU MJ is a fresher, more realistic, and modern MJ. No this over-sexualized teenager girl for Peter Parker to faun over. She's a strong woman who doesn't take anything from anybody.
Please leave any name suggestions for Hermione's Avenger's name in the comments because I am really loving some of the names suggested!
Alright, that's all for me this week, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Finally, I just want to thank you all so much for reading and for giving me all the support. It is what keeps me going. See you all next week! (Hopefully)
-Delaney