One Year Later:
"Peter, I swear to god, if you try and stop one more crime ring alone I am going to lose my mind." Tony says, spinning his fork violently in some spaghetti.
I snicker at him as Peter sinks into his chair a little bit, clearly not expecting he was about to be busted.
"Aw man, Cas did you tell him?" He asks me.
"Wasn't me, Pete. He's probably right though. Those guys are tough." I tell him.
"Well they weren't so tough when I had them webbed to a wall." Peter replies and I laugh. Aunt May, my mom, Pepper, and Tony do not look as pleased.
"Peter." Aunt May warns, raising an eyebrow.
"Geez, fine. I'm sorry, Mr. Stark. I'll call for backup next time." He concedes.
"I'll help. I've been itching for a fight recently." I tell him and Tony rolls his eyes.
It's true though. After the final Thanos battle, things have been far too calm for my liking.
Out of pure boredom, I finished my degree online, though it honestly means little at this point. Mostly it was just so my mom could proudly hang my diploma on the wall.
She now lives in a very nice apartment, courtesy of Tony, right next to my own new apartment in upper Manhattan. Our windows both overlook Central Park. Tony lives with Pepper in the penthouse of the building next to us. He owns the whole building, though I don't think he does much with any of the other floors.
My mom and I spend a few nights per week eating dinner here at Tony's place. Peter and his aunt usually join us as well. Peter and I have grown incredibly close, and I feel like I'm somewhat of a mentor to him. I'm at least a tutor to him, because I help him with his homework more often than I would like to.
We've become our own little kind of family.
Which, as it happens, is about to grow by one member. Tony and Pepper are about to have a little girl. Pepper is hilariously pregnant, and Tony waits on her hand and foot. I could not be more excited to have a little sibling of my own.
"I think I'm good on the fighting thing for now." Tony replies.
"Yeah, you better be." Pepper answers playfully, patting her baby bump.
"Hun, could you pass me the butter?" My mom asks me.
"Or course." I reply. I raise a hand and the metal butter dish floats over to my mom.
I realized very quickly after I got rid of my powers that I felt an odd sort of emptiness without them. But I also knew it was out of the question to inject it back into my blood.
So, Tony came up with a brilliant solution. We infused the substance back into the scars on the palms of my hands and my forearms. I can use the powers of the substance, but it isn't floating around me and infecting my heart or my brain anymore.
Tony also gifted me with my old black suit, only this time along with the sturdy silver metal already woven into the fabric, Tony infused the rest of Substance X we had leftover into my suit. Wearing the suit makes me feel safe and powerful, just like when the substance was actually in my blood. I'm eternally grateful to Tony for yet another thing.
Cap returned to the compound with Sam and a quiet yet seemingly kind man named Bucky Barnes. They came back from Wakanda together a few months ago, and I've honestly never seen Cap smile as much as he does around "Buck." They're truly comfortable around one another, and it makes sense since apparently they are childhood best friends.
Everyone else stops in from time to time, but for now the galaxy is doing all right. The past year has gone pretty much without any bumps in the road.
We rest. We live our lives. We always stay in touch. And above all, we are family.
Of course, the ache of missing Loki undercuts all of this new happiness.
I have my mom, Tony, Dylan, and the other Avengers always within close reach, yet there's always a little piece missing. Loki has taken part of my heart with him on his adventure in space.
I wish I could at least talk to him, but it's not exactly like they have great cell reception in outer-space. It's been one year, one month, and three days since he left. Not that I've been keeping track.
Tonight is no different as I move around the food on my plate, not feeling hungry now that thoughts of missing Loki are creeping into my mind.
"I think I'm going to get a little fresh air for a minute, if you'll all excuse me." I smile, trying to seem cheerful so they don't question me.
"Alright, do you need me?" My mom asks. I shake my head and walk out to the balcony, shutting the door behind me.
The night air is chilly now that the sun has set, and I pull my sweater around me as I lean over the railing of the balcony.
I stare up at the sky, knowing he's somewhere up there right now. Maybe he's looking back at me.
After a few minutes of sulking, I hear a sudden whoosh sound behind me as the wind chimes rattle. I don't turn around, because it gets disappointing always thinking Loki will pop up at the slightest sound I hear. It's never actually him.
"Why the long face, love?" I hear from behind me.
My heart skips a beat. I straighten up, a smile stretching across my face. Could it be true?
I turn around and there he is, standing like a beautiful vision silhouetted against the stars.
"Just thinking about someone special." I reply with a grin, leaning back against the bars to tease him, "He left me all alone here, though."
"He must be a fool, then." Loki smiles back, inching towards me. I can't hold back any longer, because I feel like I could burst from happiness.
I run up to him, giggling like a schoolgirl, and jump into his arms.
"Oh, definitely a fool." I smile, and then I bring my lips to his.
Kissing him again after so long feels better than I could have ever imagined. My heart lurches, my stomach ignites, and I quite literally begin to float off of the ground, pulling Loki up with me.
He looks around confused as we levitate.
"I'll have to catch you up on some things." I laugh, showing him the silver of my palms.
"I can't wait to hear every little bit of it." He replies, and I bring us back down to the balcony.
"You'll have to tell me about Asgard too. And Thor." I tell him and he nods, but his attention, like my own, is elsewhere.
All I can think about are his lips, and being as close to him as physically possible. I pull him into me again, letting myself dissolve into him. Home again, home at last.
We finally break apart again to come up for air, though we don't loosen our grip on one another, and I take a moment to scan every inch of his face. It's even better than I remembered it.
"I missed you." I sigh, and the exhale feels like a breath of relief.
"I missed you more." He replies, putting his forehead to my own. "I'm sorry it's been so long, but Asgard is finally safe enough to lose one of its protectors."
"For how long?" I ask the question I've been dreading. Does he have to go back?
"For as long as I have with you." He answers, and the final weight is lifted off of my chest.
"So what do we do now?" I ask him, smiling and running my thumb along his jawline.
"We live our lives, Cassidy Martin. May they be beautiful, brutal, long, and happy. And most importantly, together." He tells me and I laugh, because the way he talks sometimes is so beautiful that it seems other worldly.
He picks me up and spins me around, and as I look up at the stars spinning above me I know I'm exactly where I'm meant to be.
Loki is right, now is the part where we get to live our lives. Now is the start of happily ever after. I look back into the house to see my family still sitting around the table laughing. My friends are close by too, and they'll always be around if I need them. And most importantly, Loki is here now.
And everything is right again. The people I love are all surrounding me.
Loki and I have thousands of years to explore the universe together, and I know we will and it will be spectacular...
But for now, everything I need is right here on Earth.
"I love you." I smile up at Loki. I've never meant anything like I mean this. I know it with every fiber of my being, and with everything I have. I love him, always and forever.
"I love you too. Endlessly." He replies, and I know he truly means it too. He is my person, and I am his person.
He meets my eyes, and I see my future in them. That beautiful green. I knew those eyes would get me into trouble. I've loved every moment of it.
And after all is said and done, after the heartbreak and the betrayal and the raging battles both within myself and without myself, I finally feel complete.
I am Cassidy Martin. I am proud to be her.
THE END
(Of the beginning.)