I own nothing. Not Avengers, not Mythology, not even Reese's Pieces.

Ryan picked up her sword, dusting it off tenderly as she did so.

She looked, over at where her father and Loki stood, discussing what was to be done with the unconscious Enchantress.

Loki was all for trussing her up, tossing her into a portal and making her Jotunheim's problem.

Her father appeared tempted by the idea, but in the end decided that they should probably just hand her over to the Einherjar guards back in the Capital.

"Oh for heaven's sake Rogers, can't you be unchivalrous for once?! She kidnapped your daughter and tried to blast her with a one way ticket to Valhalla! I say a good Frost Giant trampling is just what she deserves!"

"We have to give her a trial before we do any sort of sentencing Loki! That's just how it's done!"

"Ugh! Haven't you learned yet that if you put the villain in prison they just vow vengeance and escape to do more damage?! I mean look at me!"

Ryan shook her head as the two argued. Something's never changed.

Then her eyes turned to Amora, still lying insensible at the feet of the bickering men.

Ryan shivered a little as she looked at the woman, never before had she come so close to death… She could still feel her heart pounding inside her chest like Thor's hammer.

As her eyes flicked up to her father and uncle again, she thought about what Amora had said, about Loki being her…sort of father…

Was it true? Did he really adopt her as his daughter?

She looked at her sword, and could see frost creeping up the blade, starting from underneath her fingertips…

"Oh boy…" She whispered, "Dad is not going to be happy about this…"

"Ryan!" Steve called out just then, breaking into her thoughts. "Come on honey, let's go!"

"Coming!" She quickly wiped the frost from the blade with her sleeve, before running over to where a very put out Loki was using his magic to lift the limp body of Amora from the ground.

"Mark my words, she'll bat her eyelids at the entire court and be back to wrecking havoc in a week!"

"Less grumbling, more floating soldier!"

Steve turned from issuing commands to smile at his daughter, "Ready to go home Sweetie?"

Ryan gave a long, relieved sigh at the word. As much as she had wanted an adventure when this all began, home had never sounded so good.

She reached up, surprising Steve by taking his hand in hers, something she hadn't done since she had started going to Middle School.

"Yeah Dad, I'm ready."

"Well let's get a move on then!" Loki called, hefting Amora above his head. "I can't use my transport spell inside of Amora's fortress remember? We'll have to head outside if you want to hand her off to those moronic guards anytime soon!"

Ryan just smiled at the man's complaints, and reached out with her free hand to take his.

"Come on Uncle Loki, let's get one storm cloud out of the way before another breaks out."

Loki raised an eyebrow at this remark, but then he smiled and squeezed her hand, "As you wish my Princess."

Ryan felt her heart give a flutter at this remark, now knowing its full connotation, but she smiled back.

And so, hand in hand, with the Enchantress floating above them, the trio walked down the darkened hallway, past the frozen Skurge and out into the mottled sunshine of an Asgardian forest—

Where they promptly came face to face with a huge, scaly, antlered creature with extremely sharp fangs.

"Loki…" Steve asked, staring up at the creature. "What is that thing?"

"Bilgesnipe." Loki said, staring at the creature in shock. (In fact he was so surprised that he lost his concentration on the flotation spell and let the Enchantress thud to the ground).

"But I don't know what one's doing here; they don't live this far South..." Suddenly, his eyes widened in dismay, "Unless that little excursion last year with Thor…where one of my spells went out of control altered the climate enough to force one down…"

Steve let go of Ryan's hand with a groan, reaching up to lift his shield from his back. "Why is it always your fault?"

"Hey! It wasn't my fault the Ryan got kidnapped was it?!"

Ryan, feeling now was not the time to reveal that in a way it was, wisely kept her mouth shut.

Steve glared at Loki, who just shrugged and conjured up his spear.

"Don't worry Dad," Ryan said with a grin, lifting her sword as the beast began rushing them.

"I've handled worse!"

One Week Later…

Well, they won.

Of course they did.

They really couldn't fail to win, not with Captain America's strength, Loki's cunning and magic, and Ryan's magical sword flinging frost everywhere.

And also Thor and the Warriors Three happened to show up at just the right moment…

(Along with a host of Einherjar, brought just in case Amora had proved to be too big of a handful).

In the end, they managed to get Amora to prison, and Loki and the Rogers home on time to greet Mrs. Rogers, who was both pleased and amazed that the house was still standing, so much so that she almost didn't notice all their scrapes and bruises…

Almost.

Well, eventually they had to tell her what happened, and of course she was very upset about it all, as was Steve after Ryan reveled that the battle with the Bilgesnipe had not been the first time her sword had displayed such magical qualities.

That had led to Loki getting the Third Degree from Mrs. Rogers about giving her daughter a sword that could have accidently turned her daughter, herself or her husband into a popsicle—

Which had led to Loki confessing that it wasn't exactly the sword that was producing the ice…

Which had led to other confessions…

Which had led to Steve blowing his top, and only the intervention of Mrs. Rogers and Ryan (and Thor who'd come to check in on them) had prevented the man from committing regicide.

Steve had raged about Loki lying to them for twelve years and then about his selfishness putting his daughter in danger and that if he had really loved Ryan then he would never have messed with her magically or done anything to have put her in such a position.

Ryan had screamed about it not being Loki's fault and that it wasn't like he'd ever tried to take Steve's place as her father and he had helped to rescue her after all.

Mrs. Rogers had taken Thor aside and told him that it was probably best for everyone if he just took Loki home for a few days.

Loki had said nothing.

And he hadn't come back to the Rogers home since…

All the Avengers showed up at the Rogers home to offer solace and reiterate everything they'd ever said about how Loki should never have been allowed around their kids.

"I told you man! He totally was going to turn her into Mini-Loki! You're lucky you caught it in time!" Tony had said, patting Steve on the back consolingly.

"Yeah…I guess…" Steve mumbled, looking out into the backyard where Ryan sat in her tree-castle, knees pulled to her chest and eyes to the sky.

She had been uncommonly quiet that week, and every day that had passed without Loki turning up she'd seemed to pale and shrink a little bit more into herself.

"So…He's really gone?" Ria asked, obviously having refused to believe her father until she heard it from Ryan herself.

"Looks like it."

"But-but how are we supposed to fill out our summer inventory?! Frank and I have had the trip to the Blue Side of the Moon planned for months! We can't do that without Loki! My Dad will never let us go! Well… he might, but my Mom'll see to that he doesn't." Ria finished with a scowl.

Upon hearing this, Jaya looked noticeably relieved.

"But I was just about to finally get my parents to let me come over here while he was around!" Couler complained, "You know, as long as he was thoroughly sedated."

"I just don't get what the big deal is!" Ria exclaimed. "I mean, the guy wasn't one of my favorite people, but he wasn't a bad dude…as bad dude's go. I mean he hasn't tried to take over the world in years! It's not his fault that that crazy lady kidnapped you!"

"That's what I said." Ryan agreed without much passion.

"It's probably not really so much about Loki himself, but about the danger he could put you in…" Jaya added quietly. "The same sort of fuss happened with Fury back when my Dad wanted to adopt me."

"Which was absolutely ridiculous!" Ria scoffed, "I mean, it's been years and Uncle Bruce has never had an episode around you once!"

"Well, except for that one time that we snuck out into the city to watch the Avengers fight the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants."

"Oh, they weren't even close to us! And anyway, it's not like any of us have ever been hurt by any of Loki's escapades either!"

"Well…" Jaya began, but Ria cut her off before she could bring up the infamous and unfortunate "Noodle Incident".

"That was nothing! Besides, my arm healed, and Couler sees almost perfectly out of that eye!" She finished as Couler took a shot in the with his practice bow, missing his target by several inches and deflating the left front tire of Tony's new sports car.

"Look, can we just stop talking about it?" Ryan mumbled into her knees. "He's gone and he's not coming back. It's over."

"It's the end of an era…" Couler said gravely, readjusting his bow.

Ria smacked him upside the head, and sent another arrow into the left back tire of her father's car.

That Saturday night, Ryan lay in her bed, and looked out at the star she now knew to be Asgard.

"I wish I'd never wished on that stupid star…" She muttered, "I wish none of this had ever happened!"

She rolled over onto her stomach and with a muffled sob into her pillow she wished:

"I wish Loki was here right now!"

"Well, it sure took you long enough."

Ryan head shot up from her pillow like a rocket. Quickly, she wiped away the tears that where clouding her vision—

And then sprang from the bed into the man's waiting arms.

"Uncle Loki! You came back!" She cried, gripping onto him like a life buoy and sobbing into his chest, thus damaging his Chinese silk shirt for all time.

"Shush…Yes Princess, I'm back…"

"Why did you go away for so long?! I thought you weren't ever coming back!"

Loki sighed, and pulled her closer to him. "I…I only came back to…say goodbye."

Ryan's eyes widened in horror. "Goodbye?! W-whattya mean 'goodbye'?!"

"Your parents…my parents…everyone is right. I put you in serious danger by adopting you as my daughter. I've made a lot of enemies in my life and it's not like I've ever bothered to create a secret identity like the others to protect you…"

"I don't mind! I'm glad you did it! Anybody would be proud to be your daughter!"

Loki shook his head. "No, they wouldn't. Amora was right about a lot of the things I've done. I'm nothing to be proud of Ryan. My lying to your parents all these years, even if it was just a lie of omission proves that I still have a long way to go to prove myself trustworthy. If I had really changed as much as I wanted everyone to believe, as much as I wanted to believe, I would have told them about the spell years ago…"

"I don't care! Why do you have to go?"

He let go of Ryan so that he could look into her watering eyes. "Ryan Peggy Rogers, I love you so much! That's why I have to go. Because when you love someone as much as I love you, you have to think about what's best for them…even if it hurts you to do it…Do you understand?"

Ryan nodded slowly. "Y-yes." She hiccupped.

Loki pulled her close again, stroking her hair. "You are my greatest treasure Ryan. I was so lost when I found you that I didn't think I could ever be found again. But you found me, you saved me. The day I met you was the happiest day of my life, and every day since then has only added to that happiness. And I will never forget you my love."

Ryan sobbed even harder, and then pulled away so that she could look into his eyes. "I'll never forget you either. And when I'm grown up and an Avenger, I'll find you! Even if I have to have Ria build a portal or a rocket ship or something! I promise!"

"I don't think having Ria break the barriers of time and space will be necessary."

Loki and Ryan's heads whirled around to see the Rogers framed in the doorway of Ryan's room.

"We've talked it over." Mrs. Rogers said, walking forward, "And we've agreed."

"Agreed on…what?" Ryan asked, looking up at her parent's skeptically.

"That we all need to be willing to give someone a second chance." Her mother finished with a smile in Loki's direction.

"Or you, a twelth." Steve said with a slight smirk.

"Y-you mean…I can stay?" Loki asked in a hushed voice, obviously waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Mrs. Rogers nodded. "You can stay."

Then her smile quirked mischievously. "Besides…I don't know if I could get used to peace and quiet again after all these years. "

Loki leapt to his feet, still holding Ryan fast by one arm and embraced the surprised woman in a bone crushing hug. Then he released her and began to furiously pump Steve's hand.

"But I hope you've learned a lesson from all this Loki." Steve chided as his arm continued to rise and fall with Loki's excitement.

"Oh I learned it! I learned it whatever it is!"

Then his trademark smirk made its appearance. "But let's be honest Rogers, your feelings of moral duty weren't the only reasons you're letting me stay. Admit it, you'd miss me. You all would."

Steve rolled his eyes, "Well, we certainly wouldn't miss coming home to find our home and neighborhood in utter chaos with several lawsuits on our hands."

"Yes, those have to stop." Mrs. Rogers added firmly. Then she smiled again. "But…yes, we'd miss you."

Loki's grin broadened. "And you Rogers? Won't Mr. Stark blow a gasket over you letting me stay?"

Now it was Steve's turn to smirk. "Tony can blow as many gaskets as he likes. It's my house I'm putting on the line after all…But I do have to get you to sign this waiver saying that you'll stay at least fifty feet away from him and all his inventions at all times, especially in places with large amounts of windows."

Loki laughed out loud at this, and soon everyone was laughing along. (They really couldn't help it, his laugh was literally infectious).

"So," Mrs. Rogers managed to finally say, holding onto a stitch in her side. "Since we're all up anyway, what you say we make some of my famous Reese's Pieces Pancakes to celebrate?"

This statement was met with a chorus of cheers, and the whole family began to troop down the stairs, Ryan carried triumphantly aloft on Loki's shoulders.

"Let me know if you need any help Beth!" Loki called towards the kitchen as Mrs. Rogers began preparing the batter.

"Not on your life Loki." Steve cut in, placing a hand on the man's shoulder and steering him away from the kitchen.

"Ah Rogers, just a little! I promise I won't get distracted this time!"

"Yeah Dad! Let him help!"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Pretty Pretty Please?!"

"NO! And for Pete's sake Loki act your age! What self respecting adult says 'Pretty Please'?!"

The End

Wow! I can't believe it's over! I've had so much fun writing this, and I've been so amazed and touched by how many of you have chosen to Review and Follow me and my story! I hope that you've enjoyed it as much as I've enjoyed writing it! Sadly, all stories must end, and as much fun as "Uncle Loki" has been, I really feel like moving on and trying new things, as well as finishing old ones. Thank you all again so much, and I promise that if a plot bunny for this story ever enters my head and just will not go away, I'll write it for you! God Bless You All

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