1. Sinners (B. Banner)

Chapter Eighteen

"Do you want to have that...conversation now?" Bruce whispers, it's his turn to sit on the bed watching Sarai, she cocks her head as she pulls on her jacket. He has never really had the 'talk' with a significant other before. He's never really had a significant other to have it with.

"If you do" Sarai assures him, Bruce nods. He kind of feels like he wants to get it over with, because he is slightly nervous about the outcome and if it is bad he just wants to get it out there and in the open. "Do you want to go first?" she asks, he nods again.

"Okay," he agrees. "Sara...I really like you" He admits. "And I feel like there is this connection between us...has been from the moment I met you" She smiles softly at him. "It hasn't been very long, so if you don't want to label us, then we don't have to..." she sits next to him. "I like what we have, and I like how it's going"

"So do I" she assures him. "Bruce, my life has been far from easy" He nods. He knows this. Even the story of her origin is enough to label her life as hard. "I've never really...." She pulls a face trying to figure out how to word this. "Rebekah was always the one that....had feelings for people" He raises an eyebrow. "It never ended well" She explains. "Nik...he's very protective over us"

"Do you think that your brother might...." he motions between them. "Hurt me?" She chuckles and looks at him.

"Bruce, darling, my brother might be an immortal hybrid, but I'm not like Rebekah, I hope he knows that when I do....catch feelings" Bruce chuckles and takes her hand. "It's not some...passing thing as it is with her, plus you are literally probably the scariest human in modern history" Bruce raises an eyebrow. "It's the surprise aspect" she offers. "One minute you could be talking and then...bam! Hulk in your face" he raises her hand to his lips and smiles against her knuckles. "You know...I really like you too, right?" she whispers. "And I too, like what we have...." she shifts slipping, pulling a leg up onto the bed to rest facing him. "Bruce, I don't need to label this, I just wondered what we'd tell people....because they're asking...." He takes a breath and nods.

"How about" he starts. "We are enjoying each others company...." she smiles and nods.

"That sounds perfect" she assures him as she touches his cheek. "Because....we are, right?" he nods in agreement. "Okay...then that's what we are doing..." Bruce stands and grabs his jacket from the bed and pulls it on. Sarai takes a breath and looks at him. "After we do this whole Loki thing, do you maybe want to go somewhere?" Sarai asks him, Bruce hums and nods.

"Yeah, sure, where did you have in mind?"

"I know a great little book shop" She offers with a smile. "It's not that far away" He raises an eyebrow at her.

"How far?" he asks, she chuckles and leans closer to kiss him.

"Only London" She whispers against his lips and pulls back. "Oh, and I know this great little tea place..." He smiles as she gets excited. "They make these tiny sandwiches which I like because I'm small and they make me feel big" He laughs and pulls her closer.

"You're so adorable," he tells her, she smiles softly and nods.

"I know" She agrees, he chuckles and kisses her.

..............

Loki stumbles back the second his eyes fall on Sarai, she raises an eyebrow at him, stood beside Bruce, Clint, and Natasha. Thor's hand on Loki's shoulder is the only thing keeping him on his feet. Clint glances between the two of them and smiles. This should be interesting. Whilst he is still mad at Sarai, he understands that she is powerful, and on their side, so seeing Loki seem so scared, after what he did to Clint, big bonus.

"He's scared of the tiny blonde" Clint comments to Natasha, amused. "Good to know" Sarai smirks a little.

"Where did you find it?" Loki asks Thor.

"She aided Banner during the battle" Thor answers. "We are friends?" Thor looks at Sarai who nods reassuringly to him. "We are friends" He offers with more confidence. Loki raises an eyebrow and stares at Sarai. "Though I would have assumed someone like you would have been aware of Sarai..."

"I had heard of its existence" Loki admits and then smirks at Sarai. "Had I known that it was so beautiful..."

"Hey" Bruce scolds as he takes a step closer to Loki. Sarai grabs Bruce's arm and shakes her head. "She...not it" Bruce corrects Loki.

"Thank you, darling" Sarai offers and looks at Loki. "And I am spoken for" she touches Bruce's arm. "Shall we get this show on the road, I have things to do"

"Agreed" Thor states and then glances around his new friends. Tony opens the Tesseract's case as Bruce steps closer to him, reaching into the case to pull out the Tesseract and places it in a glass tube, held by Thor. Thor gives Loki the other end, who reluctantly takes it, his eyes on Sarai, she gives him a look back before the Asgardians leap into the energy beam that erupts behind them. Gone. Then, one-by-one, the group splinters off, strolling into different directions. Steve rides away in his Harley. Natasha and Clint climb back into SHIELD cars.

"Well, that was rather anticlimactic" Sarai comments as she glances around. Tony hums in agreement. She loops her arm with Bruce's and he looks down at her. "Shall we?" She asks him, he nods and smiles softly at her.

"Where are you two going?" Tony asks watching them, Sarai throws out her hand opening a portal.

"London" Sarai answers with a smirk and then whistles. Spirit leans up from Tony's leg and runs through the portal. Sarai and Bruce follow him, the portal closing behind them. Tony swings his arms at his side, left standing alone.

"Oh," He complains and heads to his car.