You spent the entirety of the next day getting your ass chewed for letting Loki go. He was still a war criminal and was only not in jail because of Stark's tech and his work with the team. The only person who didn't yell was Thor. He knew what you did and why.

You listened to Cap's and Tony's tirade in silence, accepting the lecture for your decision.

"Y/N, why did you do this?" Cap finally asked, gentling his tone when you hadn't responded at all to his massive lecture. He was going into 'I'm not angry, just disappointed' mode.

You looked up at him with angry determination in your eyes. "It was the right thing to do," you told him firmly. "Rules be damned, it was the right thing to do, Cap. Keeping him prisoner here wasn't right. He's done nothing except help the team since he's been here,"

"Until yesterday when you brought him home in chains," Tony reminded you.

"That was the right decision too. Getting him away from the people who hurt him and messed with his mind was the right thing to do despite how I had to go about it," you answered more softly. Your instinct was still not to argue for fear of being kicked from another family.

"And now he's gone! Doing who knows what!" Tony shouted. You looked down at your lap, prepared to let him get back to his tirade. They'd already been going at you for hours.

"Enough!" Thor stepped in front of you, pushing Tony and Cap back from where they had been standing over you, yelling. He turned to you then and knelt in front of your interrogation chair so he was at eye-level with you. "You saw the future yesterday, little sister. Was this the future you saw?" he asked gently. You were going to have to ask him why he'd changed his term of address for you, but that was a problem for a different day.

"I saw all of the possible futures surrounding the outcome of our trip to Asgard," you told him softly.

He nodded. "And this was the best path?" He had gentled his voice even more. You hesitated, you couldn't explain what you'd seen. "You do not have to say what you saw." He must've seen that particular hesitation before, probably from Frigga. "Just answer this: was this the best choice for everyone, based on what you saw?"

"It was," you answered softly with a nod to cement your words.

Thor nodded once, stood, and pulled you to your feet. "Return to your chambers. I will deal with the others. They will not turn you out over this, put that thought from your mind," he added when you hesitated. He knew you too well.

"Thank you," you told Thor, grateful that he was saving you. You ran for the safety of your suite before Cap and Tony could get past Thor to try to stop you.

Thor came up with dinner for you awhile later while you were sharpening daggers in your living room. He knocked politely on the door to your suite and you felt bad for answering with a dagger in your hand. You vanished the dagger back to stack on the coffee table sheepishly when you realized who it was. "Sorry," you murmured and stepped back from the door to let him in.

"I brought you dinner,"

"Thanks," you replied, taking the plate from him.

"I have convinced them that this was the best decision. I would still recommend spending the evening away from them. They are still upset. They are going to try to hide Loki's absence from SHIELD for as long as they can. Let us hope he returns before SHIELD finds out,"

"I hope so too," you told him. "Thank you for helping me. You didn't have to, especially since I did let Loki 'escape',"

"Will he choose to return?" Thor asked gently. You wouldn't have told him about the future. You knew instinctively not to overshare what you'd seen, but this was about his brother. He deserved answers. He had also vouched for you because of the visions. He really deserved answers.

You looked up at him, letting him see the tears in your eyes. "I hope so. My decision was still right, Thor, even if it hurts now. This was the only path that could possibly lead to him choosing to come back to us. The only path where he could be happy,"

Thor pulled you into his arms and let you cry. "I will kick his ass for hurting you when he gets back," Thor promised. It was such a silly normal thing that it made you laugh and halted your tears. "He loves you. When he gets that through his thick skull, he will return,"

"Thanks, Thor," you told him softly as you stepped out of his arms.

"Call me if you need anything, little sister," he bid, placing a kiss on your forehead.

"Where did 'little sister' come from all of a sudden?" you asked him with a smile. You didn't mind, but just wanted to know.

"You are betrothed to my little brother, Lady Sigyn," he replied with a fond smile. You laughed.

"So I am...apparently. Maybe I should take Sigyn as my superhero name, and convince Stark to make me armor like Sif's..." you mused. "Once he stops being mad at me for making the right decision. Guess I'm going to have to make my own armor," you sighed heavily. After the day you had, you didn't think they were ever going to get over what you did.

"They have already forgiven you. They are your family,"

*

You snuck down to the kitchen the next morning, hoping you were early enough to beat anyone else there. You had no such luck. Nat never slept and was in the living room watching the news while she cleaned her guns. You tried to slip past without her noticing, but that effort was doomed to fail. "I'm not mad at you. Unlike the boys, I have some brains," she said pleasantly before you made it past the living room.

"You're not?" you asked incredulously. You figured everyone was pissed. You understood their feelings, even if they were wrong. She shook her head.

"Before I worked for SHIELD, I made a name for myself using my skills for anyone, without care of the consequences. Fury sent Barton to kill me when I got on SHIELD's bad side. He made a different call and now here we are. Point is, I know first hand how those different calls go. You made one for Loki. I know you well enough to know you didn't make that call without good reason, just as Barton hadn't. Cap and Tony will cool down soon."

"Thanks, Nat," was all you could say. She nodded and went back to her guns. "Have you eaten?" you asked. She hadn't, so you made breakfast for both of you. You set her plate on the table in front of her and sat on your usual spot on the couch to eat yours. You looked over to Loki automatically, but remembered that he wasn't there. You hoped he'd be back soon. You had forgotten how lonely it was around here without him. Especially since almost everyone was mad at you.

"If anyone asks, or cares, I'm going to see Doctor Strange," you told Nat after you'd finished breakfast and cleaned up the dishes. She nodded absently, looking over something she obviously didn't like on her gun.

You teleported to the front step of the sanctum and opened the door. "Doctor?" you asked when you walked inside. You hadn't actually checked to make sure he was here, but if he wasn't, you could bother Wong in the library until he returned. You weren't surprised when a golden portal appeared in front of you.

"Through here," Doctor Strange called on the other side of the portal. You stepped through the portal and ended up in his office. "Where's that boyfriend of yours?" he asked. He still didn't trust Loki, but appreciated Loki's knowledge of magic. He also wanted Loki to not be alone in the sanctum.

"Off on a mission," you told him, trying to sound like nothing was wrong on that front. You were a practiced liar, and you weren't even lying. Loki was off on a mission to find himself and hopefully come to the right decisions about his life.

You sat in the chair on the other side of his desk and weren't surprised when a cup of tea appeared in your hand. "To what do I owe the honor?" he asked.

You smiled at him. "Well, I have an update for you, plus it's a good day to get started on your hands, if you have time..." He inclined his head.

"I will always have time for that project," he replied dryly, making you laugh. "But why is today a particularly good day?"

"So apparently I'm full Asgardian..." you started and took a little too much pleasure from his shock.

"I thought you were human?"

"So did I until a few months ago when Loki told me I had to be half because my magic was so strong. We found out yesterday that I'm actually full Asgardian," you briefly gave him your real name and the essentials of the story. "Anyway, the reason why today is a particularly auspicious day is one that if I tell you, you must swear to keep a secret," you told him firmly.

"I will not betray your trust," he answered calmly and sipped on his tea.

"Asgardian women lose their magic for a few days every month. Tomorrow I won't have my powers, so today is a good day to get started," you explained as succinctly as possible. He opened his mouth to ask questions, but obviously thought better of it.

"What do you need from me?" he asked instead. You smiled and set your tea down.

"I just need to see your hands," He took his gloves off and laid them aside, placing his hands in the middle of the desk where you could see them. You looked over them, using a light touch and a tiny bit of power to see how bad the damage was. "Get comfortable, this is going to take awhile," you told him as you called up your healing gift. He resettled in the chair and you got to work. You noticed that there was an astral projection of him nearby, reading a book, and keeping guard. You appreciated the thoughtfulness of making sure you knew you were protected and safe here.

It was hours of work later when you felt your power flickering. You were out of power for the day. It took effort to break yourself away from an unfinished healing, but you somehow managed to break the connection, pulling your hands away from his sharply. "Sorry, it'll probably take a few more months to finish the healing," you told him sheepishly.

He shook his head. "Thank you for helping. They already feel much better," he answered as he put his gloves back on.

You stayed and talked with him for awhile longer and he gave you a couple of sorcery texts to take with you. "Mind giving me a lift home?" you asked. You hated asking, but your power levels were too drained to teleport across town.

"Of course," he replied, obviously understanding that the reason you were low on power was because you'd spent it healing him. With a circle of his hands, a portal appeared in the room.

"Thanks! I'll stop by again soon!" you told him before you stepped through the portal. He liked your presence, even if he disliked Loki.

*

The next morning you woke in pain and afraid. You automatically reached for a dagger; you had them spread all around your suite right now. These next few days were going to be hell. You hadn't made an alternative plan since Loki wasn't here. Maybe you should've stayed at the sanctum. At least most everyone there wasn't mad at you, but that would've involved telling Strange about Loki's disappearance and then he would've been mad at you too. So you were alone without your powers in a tower full of people who currently hated you.

Great.

Something caught your attention on your nightstand. You looked over at it confused. You hadn't remembered putting anything there last night. You smiled when you saw what it was: a teapot that was steaming, a cup of tea that had already been poured, a collection of tea bags, plenty for the next few days, and a note.

You picked up the note and read it, recognizing the elegant script immediately.

My Sigyn,

I have shielded your suite. You are safe even though I cannot be there with you.

Feel better, my darling witchling.

~Loki

You grinned too brightly at the note and sipped your tea, recognizing his healing brew the second you tasted it. He would come back. He still cared for and loved you.

He needed a little more time, but he would come back.