Notes: In which the brothers actually have a chance to visit together, and the adventure comes to an end. Also, reference is made to a real train journey.

Warnings: None, except for maybe an awkward final few sentences. It was just time to bring this to an end. Thanks to everyone who's been reading this piece of nonsense, you are all much appreciated! (Also: my next planned story is a bit of RPF fuff that can't go here, so please feel welcome to check the LJ linked as my home page in a few days, if you're interested. I promise harmless Avengers-cast fun!)

Chapter Eleven

It was, perhaps, only to be expected that Thor refused at first to believe what had happened to him.

"You say I was a cat, brother?" he asked incredulously.

"Technically, a kitten," Loki replied, wishing he had a cup of tea. The extra hour of sleep he had managed, after waking with his brother on his chest, had not done him nearly as much good as he had hoped. When Thor had begun to wriggle and stretch a few minutes ago, Loki conceded defeat and the brothers came downstairs. George was not back from his monthly trip to the woods, Mitchell was still asleep, and Annie was apparently allowing Loki time for the reunion, or possibly the explanations. He could not condemn her for cowardice, considering he would have been glad to turn that task over to almost anyone else, himself.

Whatever the reasons, Loki and Thor were sitting on the couch together, and Loki did not feel up to facing the electric kettle unassisted. Particularly not when Thor seemed determined to stay as close to him as possible. He had no desire to spill boiling water all over both of them.

"But I am sure I would remember, if I had been a kitten," Thor argued. "I do not feel as though I have been a kitten."

Loki squirmed closer to the arm of the couch, which was already digging into his side. "Do you not? I feel the need, brother, to point out that you are even now practically sitting in my lap."

Thor blinked in surprise, looked down at the two of them, and realized it was true. "I am very sorry, Loki," he exclaimed, moving hastily a few inches away- far enough at least to avoid breaking Loki's legs.

Loki might have taken that as evidence his brother was fully restored, had Thor not emphasized the apology by affectionately rubbing his cheek against Loki's. He sighed. And then, aware he was probably not helping matters but unable to stop himself, he reached up and scratched the back of his brother's head, right where it met the neck. The sound Thor uttered in response was not quite a purr, but it was perhaps close enough to have fooled any but another cat.

A moment later, Thor sat bolt upright and looked alert as they heard the kitchen door open. Loki wrapped an arm around his brother to remind him to stay where he was, and so George was able to enter the house without having Thor greet him by rubbing against his shins or anything similar. Under ordinary circumstances that would be funny enough Loki would be unable to resist, but George was tired and dirty and really not in the mood to deal with kittenish overtures from a being practically twice his size.

He blinked sleepily at the brothers, and smiled. "Hullo, Thor. Good to see you back."

"I am very glad to be here," Thor replied politely. "Thank you for inviting me."

"Does everyone else know- ?" George asked, attempting to be subtle but making significant faces that would have been apparent to Thor even had he still been a cat. Thor looked from George to Loki with a concerned expression, and Loki found himself rubbing his brother's head reassuringly.

"Jane and the Avengers?" Loki replied. "I have not spoken to them. I believe it is still the middle of the night in most of the United States, and frankly, though Tony Stark is in England right now, it is too early for me to deal with him. I sent text messages to him and to Jane when we got home from our meeting with the witch, and that will have to do for now."

George had just nodded in agreement when sounds began to emanate from the pocket of Loki's leather jacket as it hung on its hook by the door:

"There's a man who lives a life of danger

To everyone he meets he stays a stranger

With every move he makes, another chance he takes,

Odds are he won't live to see tomorrow.

Secret agent man, secret- "

"Coulson," George said unnecessarily, halfway through the verse, and because he was on his feet already he went across to retrieve Loki's mobile and toss it to its owner.

There was no point rebuking him for thoughtlessness, because Loki did not think of it either: one does not throw things in the direction of a kitten, unless one intends for them to be pounced upon. As the phone made its short flight, Thor instinctively sprang from his seat on the couch and batted at it with an open hand.

The phone hit the wall, the back flew off and the battery skidded under the couch. George let out a guilty yelp, Thor looked startled, and Loki very quietly rested his forehead in his hand, wondering whether he could justify calling in sick to work today. (He took fewer actual sick days than nearly anyone else at the school, but far more abducted-by-super-powered-beings days, which surely had to be counted as the same thing.)

Loki cast a quick gathering spell to find and return to him all the components of his mobile. Perhaps he could also think of some sort of engineering spell that would be able to repair the damage. Probably Tony Stark knew one already. He glanced at Thor with a tired smile.

"Still feel quite sure that you have not been a kitten, brother?"

Thor sat quietly down on the couch and folded his hands in his lap.

~oOo~

Loki eventually made it to work, and got through the day despite repeatedly having to interrupt himself to answer calls from various Avengers, Jane, and the friends of Jane who had apparently gotten his number from her phone. After fielding the fourth call from a persistent and inquisitive being named Darcy, Loki found himself distracted by the question of whether he should set a ringtone for her, and what song it should be. Something catchy and very silly, he thought. Perhaps ABBA might have something appropriate.

Just before lunch, the strains of (naturally) Black Sabbath's "Iron Man" interrupted his efforts to clean the storage cupboards in one of the science classrooms. Ordinarily, Loki left his phone set to vibrate when he was at work, but today was a special occasion. And besides, he was alone at the moment.

"Hello, Tony," he said, setting down his duster to rub his head in a pre-emptive sort of way. Surprisingly, he had not yet developed a headache, but it seemed likely this deficiency was about to be remedied.

"Hi, Loki," Tony greeted him cheerfully. "I hear Thor is your big brother again. How's he doing? Does the adorable collar with the bell on it still fit him? Did you have to give him hard crunchies for breakfast? Has anyone explained that the box of dirt in the bathroom isn't for him?"

"No, no, and I did not think to mention it," Loki admitted. "I suppose I shall have to hope for the best. Have you yet spoken to him?"

"Nope, he didn't answer when I called him," Tony said. A cold knot of anxiety was just forming in Loki's stomach when the other man went on breezily, "But Annie used his phone to send me a text a few minutes later. She says he's still figuring out thumbs, but he's fine. Where are you right now?"

"I am at work. It seemed difficult to justify asking for the day off," Loki explained.

Tony laughed. "Yeah, because God forbid the God of Mischief shouldn't be responsible. Okay, look, I have a proposition for you."

"Have you indeed?"

"Yes, and don't sound like that. Have I ever led you astray?"

"Well, I seem to recall an incident last summer," Loki replied ruthlessly, "when you and I were planning to interview someone we suspected of being a minor player in a nefarious scheme. I believe you told me it would be a fairly simple transaction. As I remember it, I ended up spending several hours in the villain's lair, disguised as a woman and wearing extremely uncomfortable shoes."

"Yeah, I remember that. You looked really pretty, though. No, seriously, Loki. Listen up."

"Very well," Loki grumbled, "I am listening."

"Okay, I've been thinking." Loki forbore to make any sarcastic comments. Not that any of them would have been appropriate anyway: Tony after all really was a genius. Tony went happily on, "For one thing, I feel bad about Thor. He was so excited about coming to visit you."

"I had meant to suggest he remain with us for a few more days," Loki interrupted. "Just until he is comfortable in his own form once again." And has ceased trying to sit in the laps of those of whom he is fond. Although… Loki permitted himself a momentary mental image of Tony's arms and legs flailing, cartoon-like, under Thor's bulk. That would be amusing, but what might happen if instead he picked Bruce Banner- or worse, Natasha Romanov- did not bear imagining.

"Yeah, that's a good idea. Pepper's actually got meetings in Rome next week, so the plane can make a little detour and pick him up in London, if you can get him there in one piece. One normal piece, I mean. Not a pet-shaped piece."

"Bristol has an airport, you know," Loki said.

"Really? That's awesome, that's what we'll do, then. I'll send you the details later. But here's the thing. Like I said, I really do feel bad about your visit getting all messed up."

"It was hardly your fault, Tony."

"That's pretty rich, coming from you. And I also feel bad for being kind of a jerk to you on Monday, when Coulson and I were at your place. I mean, I know I was worried, but I should have stopped to remember he's your brother, and if there was anything to be worried about, it'd be a lot worse for you."

Loki opened his mouth to argue, and then closed it again. He should have remembered he had nothing whatsoever to teach Tony about feelings of guilt.

"If you are asking my forgiveness, Tony, consider it granted."

"Oh, well, that's really nice of you," Tony said, in a flippant tone which Loki did not believe for a moment, "but what I really wanted to do was offer a… sort of a replacement for the visit."

"You do not need to do anything of the sort," Loki said patiently. "Really, Tony."

"Just listen to me for a minute. And remember, Thor will love this."

Loki sighed. Tony Stark bent upon making amends was something of an irresistible force. He leaned his hip against the nearest desk.

"I am listening."

~oOo~

By the time Loki got home, Thor had remembered how to drink from a mug, although for safety he confined himself to plastic ones. He and Annie were sitting on the couch, drinking tea and watching Pride and Prejudice while they waited for the others. George and Mitchell had early shifts again, and arrived home shortly before Loki did, George looking inclined to go to bed and sleep for a week.

"I have been speaking to Tony," Loki said without preamble, as he brought his own mug of tea into the lounge to join the others. "He made quite an interesting suggestion."

"And what is that?" Thor asked, his manner really very much as normal. It was a great relief.

"Well, he has been looking into- " Loki began, and then broke off as a tiny red dot appeared on the coffee table. Thor dropped his mug and slammed both hands down on top of it, nearly cracking the surface of the table. The dot appeared on the back of one hand, and Thor clamped the other hand on top of it. The dot vanished, and Thor cautiously opened both hands to see if he had trapped it.

"Mitchell," Loki said warningly. Mitchell, unable to suppress his giggles, aimed the laser pointer at him. The red dot appeared in the centre of Loki's belly, Thor turned, and Loki cast a summoning spell that delivered the pink spray bottle into his hands. Thor blinked rather wildly at him, clearly about to pounce. Loki, in sheer self-preservation, fired a short burst at him before directing a long and purposeful blast at Mitchell. "Stop that. You are the one who detests shopping at Ikea, why would you encourage my brother to destroy all our furniture? It is also your responsibility to wipe up this tea. Brother, I apologize. Have I gotten you very wet?"

Thor, who had retreated to the other end of the couch (which happened at the time to be occupied by George, who was now making inarticulate noises, as well as fruitless efforts to dislodge Thor from his lap) gave one hand a distasteful shake. "No, I am only damp." With a return to his normal expression, he removed himself from George's lap and added, remorsefully, "I am very sorry about that, Loki. And George. I do not know what got into me."

"It was not your fault," Loki assured him, casting a look at Mitchell that promised venom and entrails if there was a recurrence. (The threat was of course empty, since the entrails in the myth belonged to one beloved of myth-Loki, which meant the only candidates available to use upon Mitchell were George and Loki himself.) Annie firmly took the laser pointer away, and Loki put the water bottle down. "Now, everyone be sensible for a moment." Raising his voice to be heard over Mitchell's renewed snickers, Loki explained, "Tony informs me of a journey which runs for three days through a very scenic part of Scotland, and is taken on a very comfortable train. He has offered to send the two of us on it, this weekend. He thought it might help us to forget the events of these last few days."

"Have you told him I have forgotten them already?" Thor asked wryly. "Except, apparently, for the part where I have the urge to arch my back and hiss if something annoys me." Since he apparently did not remember biting Tony, Loki chose not to remind him. Thor looked wistful. "I did very much like the part of Scotland we saw last summer, and a train would be an ideal way to travel. Such a trip would be very pleasant."

"Tony thought you would like the idea," Loki agreed. "And I think I would like to see Scotland again, myself." He remembered almost nothing of the previous visit, having scarcely been in his right mind for most of it. Everyone knew this, and so he did not remind them. "Very well, we shall contact Tony and accept his very kind offer. Would you like to do so, brother, or shall I?"

Thor looked dubiously at his large hands and admitted, "I think I would prefer if you did, brother. I am still not confident in my ability to manipulate any communications device."

"Very well," Loki agreed. "Although, speaking of communications devices, perhaps George would be kind enough to set up Skype for you, so that you might speak to Jane. The rest of us can occupy ourselves elsewhere."

Thor cast a look of hopeful appeal at George, who smiled at him.

"Sure. Won't take a minute. I'm sure she's waiting to hear from you."

"We spoke earlier today, but I unfortunately kept dropping the phone," Thor said. He then admitted shamefacedly, "And then I seem to have pounced upon it, which broke the connection, and also the phone- "

"Well, knocked the back off it," Annie chipped in.

"- and may have caused Jane to believe we were under some sort of attack. Annie was compelled to send her an email to explain matters."

"Jane understood," Annie waved it off.

"And Skype won't be any trouble," George promised. "You don't have to touch anything at all. Just get one of us to close it down for you once you're finished, okay?"

Thor nodded earnestly. Loki decided that "occupying himself elsewhere" might most conveniently take the form of having a nap, which he did.

That was Wednesday. On Wednesday night, Loki left Thor in sole possession of the bedroom, and betook himself downstairs to sleep on the couch. He left his brother, who was always warm, with the striped bedspread and the brightly-flowered light quilt, and dragged the ridiculously heavy, down-filled one downstairs with him. The lounge was colder at night than his bedroom, and between that and the fact the couch was too short for him, Loki fell asleep curled into a ball with the quilt pulled over his head.

He woke some hours later, under the impression that he was sleeping with an extremely affectionate rhinoceros. One apparently bent upon squashing him into a paste on the cushions of the couch. Apparently, when sleepy and lonesome, Thor still forgot he should not use his nearest and dearest as a mattress. It really was just as well Jane was not here.

Loki would have preferred not to push Thor onto the floor again, and indeed he momentarily considered shapeshifting into something small enough to crawl out from under his brother. Fortunately, he caught his sleepy brain before the thought could be translated into action: probably turning into a mouse was not the best of ideas, when sleeping with a being who believed himself to be a giant cat.

Thor landed in a heap on the floor, sat up in confusion, and then docilely followed Loki when he took his pillow and quilt back up the stairs to the bedroom. Loki spent the rest of the night crushed into the wall, for once in his life genuinely missing the extremely large bed he had slept in, alone, back in the days when he had lived in Asgard. Even at that, however, he now found himself calculating exactly how many cats might have shared it with him before they all began to feel crowded.

On Thursday morning, Thor accompanied Loki into the kitchen. In a very hopeful sign, he sought out bread, butter, cheese and a skillet, and with considerable skill made for his hosts a delicacy called grilled cheese sandwiches. There was now nothing wrong with his command of his thumbs.

Loki spent Thursday night alone on the couch. On the one hand, he was grateful to be able to sleep untroubled by squashing or suffocation, or even by tickling fur in his nose.

On the other hand... it really was rather lonely.

On Friday morning, Thor voluntarily filled the bathtub with water and deliberately bathed. Loki found himself hanging around outside the door in case his brother called for help, but nothing untoward happened: Thor emerged looking shivery and a little alarmed, but clearly unharmed.

Since Annie had already done more than her share of the work of entertaining the guest, and since Thor no longer displayed any tendencies that caused Loki to worry he might attempt to prey upon the children, Loki came home at the lunch break that day and took his brother back to the school with him.

It being Friday afternoon, Loki did not feel too guilty for the disruption this caused to the business of the school. The disturbance was considerable, of course, but Thor was nearly as charming in his own form as he was as a cat, and most of the teachers were women- although, really, Thor's heroic aspect was nearly as appealing to men, who mostly wished to be like him, as it was to women.

It was only when Thor was on the playground being swarmed by children that it occurred to Loki that even quite recently, before the events of the previous summer, this visit would never have happened. As much as he loved his brother, and as much as the children's actions figures amused and touched him, Loki would not have brought Thor to the school, to invite comparisons that could never favour himself. He was not sure what it meant, that he was now standing just outside the door, on a short break from his duties, watching with amused affection as Thor held a ring of ten-year-olds entranced with some story or another.

Well, he did know, really. Everyone, including the humans he knew and loved, adored Thor. He had always seen that as natural, to be expected, much as he now assumed the same of all who met Annie. Indeed, as the incident with Black Annis demonstrated, Loki was surprised and offended if he met any who felt differently.

What was new was the fact he was also now aware that liking Thor did not mean the affection these humans felt for Loki was all transferred to Thor, or that they wished to trade brothers on a day-to-day basis.

Indeed, judging by the look of humourous exhaustion on the face of the teacher now supervising the playground, some of Loki's particular humans might even prefer Thor in rather smaller doses, as an occasional treat. At a glance of frank appeal from the teacher, Loki stuck his hands in his pockets and strolled out to retrieve his brother.

Thor was coming to the payoff of his story, which as he came within earshot Loki suddenly realized was about a hunting expedition to Niflheim. He was aware of a moment of anxiety, wishing he had explained to his brother about the "anti-blood sports lobby" that existed in Britain. It was, as the humans would say, a good bet that at least some of these children, particularly the girls, were in sympathy with that point of view.

Fortunately, Thor had by now spent enough time on Midgard to either be aware of the soft-heartedness of a great many humans, or to know there were some stories considered by adults to be inappropriate for children.

"My companions and I were backed against a cliff, escape hopeless, weapons lost or broken, the great beast roaring as it advanced," Thor declaimed. Loki was unable to remember whether this event had actually even happened, but he could not deny it was a good story. "And then, as I looked to left and right, I realized my brother- hello, brother- was missing. I knew in my heart that he had fallen to the creature, and been eaten."

"I had not," Loki assured everyone, with a smile.

Thor smiled back. "And then, from the west, came an even larger monster, slavering and rolling its reddened eyes. The beast menacing us paused- " Thor struck a pose that rather reminded Loki of a carnivorous dinosaur, deep in thought. Several of the children ceased looking alarmed and began to giggle. "The second monster roared and pawed the frozen earth, at which the first turned tail and fled.

"Naturally, of course, this left us in straits even more dire than before, as the second beast approached us, its aspect ravenous. And then- " Thor paused, the suspense terrible.

"- He turned into Loki!" shouted a couple of the children, who were apparently familiar with the narrative conventions of stories involving magical shapeshifters.

"Indeed he did," Thor agreed cheerfully. "And as fond of my brother as I am, I confess I have never been quite so happy to see him as I was at that moment."

Loki did, in fact, remember the incident now. Thor and his friends had been grateful indeed to be rescued. It was, he recalled, quite two days before they began to mock him for low cunning and cowardice in resorting to such trickery. (The children, of course, having been raised on Midgardian tales in which the hero uses cleverness to defeat the mindless might of the villain, seemed satisfied with the outcome of the story, especially since the hero of this particular tale was a friend of theirs.)

For his own part, Loki had never admitted to Thor exactly how frightened he had been, when the monster turned toward him and he thought it might stand and fight. He liked to hope he would not have made a second shift into the form of a bird and left the others to their fate, but honesty, at least inside his own head, compelled him to admit he was not at all sure.

And such was the change in his relationship to Thor that he admitted as much, as they walked into the school together.

"I could not blame you for so doing," Thor admitted. "Not, at least, now that I have gotten over the assumption that of course you should have been happy to sacrifice yourself for the rest of us, despite the fact there was no particular love between us at the time. Mind you, brother, that would have been the first time you ever abandoned us, so I really cannot imagine you doing so." Thor grinned. "Fortunately, your assumed shape was alarming enough to do the trick. Truly, when you came snarling and salivating toward us, I was myself hard-pressed not to faint in terror."

"You would be best-advised to leave the lies to me, brother," Loki replied tolerantly, and cut off Thor's protests with the remark, "I have received permission to leave work early today, so that we might pack and depart for our trip. Only I really must first ensure the upstairs lavatories are cleaned. I don't suppose you would care to assist me?"

"I would be glad to," Thor replied, without hesitation. Loki permitted himself a moment to reflect that Heimdall must by now be horrified indeed with the adventures of the crown prince: to first spend several days in the small and cuddlesome form of a household pet, and to then take up duties better suited to a servant. It was hard to decide which part would seem most ignominious.

Of course, since Loki had absolutely no idea what passed through Heimdall's mind at any time, he conceded it was quite possible the Guardian was amused rather than horrified. Whichever it was, Loki would never know.

Mitchell drove the brothers to Bristol Airport for their flight to Scotland. George and Annie accompanied them, Annie sitting in Loki's lap in the back seat owing (mostly) to a lack of space.

"Have a wonderful time," she said, kissing him goodbye before he got out of the car, while Thor positioned himself in front of the door so as to conceal them- or rather, Loki, who would look most peculiar indeed- from the eyes of any passing humans.

"Thank you. We will see you in three days," Loki replied, and then scrambled out of the car to join his brother.

~oOo~

The brothers did, in fact, have a wonderful time, although Loki was uncomfortable to begin with: the train was quite ridiculously luxurious, so much so that Loki, who was frankly out of the habit, felt rather a fraud when they embarked. He felt even worse when he overheard another guest remark that a similar trip could be made on something called the Caledonian Sleeper for a fraction of the cost.

And, strangely enough, he found himself wishing he and his brother could share a sleeping compartment, rather than each in one alone.

However, Thor was so delighted with the train, with their friendly fellow-travelers and railway employees, and especially with the scenery, that Loki soon cheered up, resolving simply to think of something nice he could do to make it up to Tony later. Scotland really was very beautiful, and though he remembered little about his previous visit, Loki enjoyed seeing vistas he recognized from various television programs.

At one point, they even passed over a dizzyingly high bridge Loki recognized as having been featured in the Harry Potter movies, the one on which Harry, Ron, and the flying Ford Anglia were nearly run down by the Hogwarts Express. Loki would have felt much sillier about his excitement over this detail, except that the same guests who had discussed the cheaper train were equally thrilled by it.

By the time the journey ended, Thor had made a number of new friends and extended to them invitations to visit him in the United States. Loki, too, was sorry when the trip was over, but he was beginning to feel just how tired he was, and he looked forward, rather guiltily, to returning home. He would miss his brother very much when he left on Tuesday, but otherwise it would be nice for life to return to normal.

As their flight descended back toward Bristol on Monday evening, Thor peered out the window at the airport below. "I believe I see Tony's aircraft waiting for us."

Loki's heart gave a painful thump. "I thought… were you not to leave tomorrow?"

"I received a message last night. Pepper had a change of plans, and besides, brother, I think I have monopolized you and your friends for quite long enough."

Loki bit his lip, hoping he did not look quite as stricken as he suddenly felt. "I hope I did not make you feel unwelcome- "

Thor leaned over and pulled Loki into a tight embrace. "Do not be ridiculous. No one could have been a better host. Have I not a delightful catnip mouse, and an adorable red collar with a bell on it, as souvenirs to prove it? I am only sorry to have proved such a troublesome guest."

"You were not," Loki insisted. "It was a wonderful visit, especially now that all has ended well and we have had some time together as ourselves. You will come back soon?"

"As soon as possible," Thor promised. "Perhaps you could ensure the local witches and wizards know my intentions are harmless?"

"I will indeed," Loki promised, and then the plane was landing. The brothers disembarked, to be met by the housemates and immediately hand Thor over to Pepper Potts. Loki hugged his brother once more, and then Pepper shepherded Thor away to Tony's private plane as though she feared he might have another sorcerous misadventure right there in the airport.

Loki nearly fell asleep in the car on the way home, which delayed his realization the housemates were behaving rather strangely.

"What?" he finally demanded, looking around at the bright-eyed regard of his friends. "Either I have something amusing on my face, or you are all up to something. Which is it?"

"I am shocked that you could be so suspicious," Mitchell said primly, glancing at him in the rearview mirror before returning his eyes to the road. Annie reached over and dabbed at his chin with the cuff of her sweater, but somehow Loki did not really believe this was the real issue. George merely looked at him with a smile that was simultaneously bewildering and reassuring.

He was still confused as they parked the car and approached the house, at which time the sense of suppressed glee and excitement from his housemates was such that, in another life and with other people, Loki would have been seriously worried about what sort of trick they might be planning to play on him.

At the very least, he would have objected to entering the house first. But since his housemates would obviously not boobytrap a door so that anything fell upon his head, Loki unlocked it and stepped inside.

There was the immediate sound of a tiny stampede, and two little shapes came flying out of the kitchen, through the lounge and the entry hall, and went galloping up the stairs with their ears laid back and their tails streaming behind them. At the landing, where the stairs turned, they stopped and stood looking: two diminutive black-and-white shapes, one with white toes and a white chin and locket, the other with a white shirtfront and a sort of black cape. They turned their ears forward and stared as if fascinated down the stairs.

Loki stared back, feeling slightly light-headed. "Are those- ?" he asked, although the answer to his question was obvious to any but an idiot. Loki, however, felt rather idiotic at the moment. He took his eyes off the two little creatures for a moment to look back at his friends, whose smiles were by now engulfing their faces.

"We thought- " Mitchell began. "Well, aside from the whole business about him being your brother, you seemed to really like having a kitten, so we thought- "

"There's always someone in the paper, looking for good homes for kittens," George added. "And we figured- "

"We- or anyway, you- are about as good a home as a kitten could want," Annie spoke up.

"Or two," Mitchell agreed.

"Have they names?" Loki asked, too overcome to process the compliment.

"Not yet," Annie said. "We thought you might like to do the honours."

Loki looked back up the stairs, then extended his hand and wiggled his fingers. The caped kitten immediately came scampering down the stairs, followed more cautiously by the mostly-black one. Loki knelt, and the caped kitten jumped onto his leg, then climbed up his shirt. Loki caught the tiny animal before it could scramble down the neck hole.

"That one's the boy," George announced. "The queen is a little more reserved."

Loki stopped juggling the kitten and stared. "The what?"

"Queen," George repeated. "That's the name for a female cat."

"I thought that was 'tabby,'" Annie objected.

"No, tabby's the striped pattern, like Thor was," George insisted. "A female cat is properly known as a 'queen.'"

"You do know the strangest pieces of information," Loki congratulated him, as he picked up the second kitten.

"Says the alien sorcerer," George snickered. Annie poked him.

"Let's think of names for them," she suggested.

"Elizabeth," Loki replied instantly, screwing up his face as the girl kitten reached out to nibble on his chin.

"Elizabeth?" George repeated weakly.

"Well, she is a queen. And we are hardly going to call her Frigga," Loki replied reasonably.

"And what do you want to call the boy?" Mitchell asked, the note of suppressed glee back in his voice.

"Philip?" Loki suggested.

"Isn't that Agent Coulson's first name?" Annie asked.

"I can't imagine that would matter, since we never use it," Mitchell pointed out. "It might be confusing if we called the little fellow 'Agent.'"

The kittens began to squirm, and Loki set them carefully down on the floor. The caped kitten- Philip- immediately pounced upon his sister- Elizabeth- and the two wrestled ferociously before charging back up the stairs.

Mitchell looked suddenly guilty. "They've already sort of claimed your bed. You… might not get a lot of sleep tonight."

Loki, still gazing up the stairs, felt his smile widen.

"Marvelous," he said. "Annie, is the wand-feather-toy still in my sock drawer?"

"That's where I put it," she replied. Loki whirled, hugged each of his friends in turn, and dashed up the stairs after the kittens.