Worthy

Part 24 - Do It For Me

You follow Nat to the meeting room, Thor trailing behind you. When you enter you find Fury pacing back and forth in a clearly heated debate with Tony and Bruce. "Finally," Fury exclaims as he sees you. "Wanna explain what the hell happened?" He marches towards you and Thor. "I gave you one simple instruction and you two spent your time talking about your feelings?"

"Now wait one moment Fury," Thor takes a stand in front of you; Tony about to do the same, but Fury shuts them both down.

"You were supposed to be ensuring that the tesseract was secure, and get valuable information from Loki." He stares at both of you. "Not have a group therapy session. Thought you were past all that Brooks?"

"Watch it Fury," Tony shouts across the room; anger still surging through him from his encounter with Thor. You put a hand up to Tony stopping him.

"I'll admit, I dropped the ball," You take a step closer to Fury. "But don't you dare bring up..."

"Seems its been happening more often these days," Fury turns back to Thor. "Stark was right, you two can't work together." Before turning back to you, a look of determination setting in. "As of right now Agent Brooks, you're on the bench."

"Oh come on Nick," Nat cries out.

"Fine," you spit out, never taking your eye off of Fury, but gesturing a nod towards Nats direction; thanking her for the support.

"Now, about the tesseract..." Fury starts before Thor interrupts him again; a look of guilt washes over him as he tries to focus on Fury, but can't help but look at you.

"As I've told you, there is no safer place in the nine realms than Asgard," Thor exclaims. "I was personally assured of that before my return. But if you are so lacking in your trust, Dr Banner is welcome to return with me to take your readings." You give him a wary look; he meets your eyes, sadness filling his. "As for Loki, that's a boundary that we're not ready to cross."

"But..." Fury tries to interrupt but a crash of thunder surrounds the room. "Fine," he spits out. "But you and Banner go now. I want a report on my desk by the end of the night." Thor gives a small nod, while Bruce opens his mouth about to say something, before Nat just pats his back, stopping him.

Fury throws a dirty look your way, as he stops beside you. "Get your head in the game Brooks," he whispers before walking out the room. Tony walks over to you, placing a hand on your shoulder reassuringly.

"If you're ready Banner," Thor starts to walk out, not meeting your eye. Bruce rolls his eyes, sighing dramatically before following.

"You ok Kate?" Tony asks as your eyes follow Thor as he walks away. Butterflies rise in your stomach at the thought of Thor leaving. Despite knowing that your relationship was nowhere near where it had been, a panic settles in you; the last time Thor had left for Asgard had caused all this mess, what would happen now? You simply nod at Tony, before running to catch up with Thor and Bruce.

As you catch up to them on the lawn, Bruce throws you a huge smile, while you grab Thor's arm. He's shocked to see you standing there, but a slight grin etches on his face. "How....how long will you be gone?" You ask nervously; Bruce's smile gets even bigger.

"I'm only escorting Banner to the vaults; we'll be as long as he needs." Thor shrugs.

"Couple of hours tops Kate," Bruce shouts out, making you sigh in relief, you didn't even realise you'd been holding that breath in.

"I need you to do something," you hesitate, wary of his reply. The last few days have been hell - and even though you'd just found out the truth, you didn't want Thor to leave. But there was another reason you had chased after him, something that was going to be important for both your futures if you were to reclaim your friendship. "I want you to talk to Loki."

"No," he shakes his head. "Kate, my brother is nothing but a snake...." You place a hand on his arm; a warm sensation fills his body as he revels in your touch, instantly making him know, he'll do what you've asked.

"Please Thor. Do it...." you hesitate again, wondering if you were asking too much of him. "Do it for me?" Thor nods at you and takes a step closer, nerves rising in your stomach once again. How was it possible for you to switch from hating him so desperately, to wanting to keep him as close as possible?

"For you," He takes your hand and places a gentle kiss to your hand. The memory of the first time he had done floods your mind, making you smile, filling your body with a sensation you hadn't felt in years: joy.

Completely terrified, you wrap your arms around him, pulling him into a hug. He hesitates at first, before wrapping his muscular arms around you, pulling you in closer. Savouring his smell and warmth, you can't help but smile into his shoulder; Thor was right, you had missed this, you had missed him.

Locking eyes with Bruce, you roll your eyes at his childish grin, before pulling away from Thor's embrace, blushing as you look down at the ground; his eyes never leaving you. "Well," he eventually clears his throat before stepping back towards Bruce, a slight reddening of his cheeks almost making you laugh. "Can we talk again when I return?" You simply nod.

"Have fun," you shout over to Bruce, who gives off a clumsy salute, whilst still grinning before the explosion of light takes him and Thor back to Asgard.

As you turn to walk back into the compound, you watch as Fury leaves the building. Your eyes meet as he climbs into his SUV; a sudden pang of guilt enters your stomach, but you shake it off. Fury was right, you needed to get your head straight and focus on what was important. With one last look to the sky, you walk in, wondering how you were going to be able to prove your worth to him again.