Chapter Text
“We were going to go out for the day,” Emma said to Cassia and Hermione over breakfast, motioning between herself and Dan. “Have some lunch, catch a movie, things like that.”
“Have fun,” Hermione grinned.
“Make Dan pay for lunch somewhere expensive,” Cassia joked, also grinning.
“What were you two planning to do today?” Dan asked them.
“We both have some research we want to do,” Hermione said. “And Cassia wanted to do a bit more revision, and we both have one of our online classes.” They were both studying several subjects in the non-magical world thanks to some online courses Pepper and Jane had helped them find. Cassia was now almost finished with school level work, while Hermione was moving through more advanced topics. Both Dan and Emma had been thrilled with this, and were more than willing to help them go through the work when they may have trouble with it.
“Well, enjoy and don’t forget to take a break every now and then,” Emma said. Both girls had a tendency to simply immerse themselves in their work. And she wanted to make sure they both remembered the outside world still existed.
“We will mum. And if we don’t, you can be sure one of the others will,” Hermione said, smiling.
Hermione was getting worried. Her parents had been gone a lot longer than they should have been. The others were trying to calm her and reassure her, but it did not ease the worry. Suddenly an owl flew in, dropped a letter on the coffee table and flew out of the room. It was addressed to her.
“Wait, let me check it for curses,” Loki said. He reached out to it but before he touched it, his hand glowed. Then he nodded. “There is nothing there. It is safe.”
Hermione picked it up and opened it. “Miss Granger, it saddens me that it has come to this method, but if you and Miss Potter do not come alone to the MACUSA building by 8PM tonight then you will never see your parents again. Albus Dumbledore,” She read out loud, hands trembling. She let out a sob. “They have my parents!”
“Shit,” Natasha cursed. None of them had thought that the wizards would bother with non magicals. They had underestimated them, it seemed.
“Right, we need to come up with a plan and do it quickly,” Steve said.
“If I and one other go into the building under an invisibility spell we should be able to locate them, and get them out,” Loki said.
“Then the rest can remain here and on guard against another attack,” Sif nodded.
“But what if they hurt them?” Hermione asked.
“I want to come with you. At least if it comes down to it, I can be a distraction to help you get Emma and Dan away,” Cassia said. They were her family. She would not just let the wizards harm them.
“No. No way are we playing into their hands,” Tony said, shaking his head. “You’ve already sacrificed enough and been under more than enough threat. We aren’t just going to use you as bait again. Last time was hard enough.”
“Last time they didn’t have anyone we cared about!” Cassia retorted, anger flaring. They had been training even harder since she had gone on that one mission. And since then SHIELD and other allies had been raiding multiple tactical points they learnt of as well as slavers bases. Which was probably what had pushed Dumbledore to this point. She would not let them leave her behind on this, and felt Hermione agree with her through the bond.
“There has to be something we can do to help,” Hermione insisted. “I don’t want to be left behind on this one. Not when it’s my parents at stake here.”
Pepper took hold of Hermione’s hands in hers. “We all care about your parents, Hermione. No one here wants to see them come to any harm and we will do everything we can to get them back. But we’re never going to be willing to risk either of you, especially when there are other options available. If Loki went on his own he would be a force to be reckoned with. If another person joins him, the Wizards won’t know what hit them.”
“I’ll go,” Bucky said. “I’ve told you enough stories by now that you know very well just what I can do. If the others stay here, then we all know the Wizards cannot get to you and Loki and I can rescue Dan and Emma before the deadline and before the wizards harm them.”
“And what if they’re not at MACUSA?” Cassia asked. “What then, when we run out of time?”
“Cassia, they want to torture and enslave you and sacrifice Hermione,” Bruce added. “And then we would have to make a choice between you. They wouldn’t keep you in the same place. Coming for you first means risking Hermione’s death. Going for Hermione first would mean risking you being tortured to insanity or worse. You can’t ask us to risk that!”
Neither girl had noticed Natasha and Clint coming up behind them. “But you can’t just ask us to sit around!” Hermione said.
Neither of them were going to budge, and they could end up doing something incredibly stupid. Both Nat and Clint had decided on a plan without checking with the others. That way they had plausible deniability. At least for this part. The two moved, almost as one, the small needles entering the girls arms, the contents acting quickly.
Nat caught Hermione and Clint caught Cassia as they crumpled. “What did you do?” Jane asked, eyes wide.
“They were about to pull some stupid stunt that would have gotten them into danger,” Natasha replied, putting Hermione down slowly on the couch as Clint did the same for Cassia. “If we put them in the Nest and lock them in there until this is all sorted, they will be safe.”
“They’re not going to be happy you drugged them!” Thor pointed out.
“Better to ask forgiveness,” Clint shrugged. “They’re safe here, Bucky and Loki can go and rescue Dan and Emma and everything will work itself out.”
Steve sighed. “Let’s just hope we can get Hermione’s parents back in one piece. And then it will. Hopefully.”
They moved the two witches up to the Nest. Jane, Pepper and Bruce stayed with them and the others left, Tony ordering JARVIS to seal the room until the mission was complete or they had to admit failure. Which was not an option.
“Right, I think it’s best if it is just Loki and Bucky that go in. Thor, you and Natasha should take up position outside but out of sight. If anything goes wrong, you’ll be back up. The rest of us will wait here, suited up, just in case the wizards decide to attack, thinking we’re distracted,” Steve said and quickly got an agreement. If the wizards did attack, and somehow got past them, at least Bruce was up in the Nest with Jane, Pepper, Hermione and Cassia. Any attacker would be hard pressed to deal with an angry Hulk.
Loki and Bucky were silent as they headed through the large building. They were heading for the holding cells. Before they even got there, they came to a stop at the sight of two Aurors. They were each levitating someone unconscious. The Grangers. Loki threw up privacy shields and nodded to Bucky. They would not be disturbed. Both moved into action, knocking the two Aurors unconscious and causing Dan and Emma to hit the floor as their magic failed. Loki moved to examine them both while Bucky covered him. His heart dropped. Neither Dan nor Emma had a pulse. And both were stone cold. They had been dead for a few hours already.
He felt the others anger rising as he informed them through the bond. And their sadness. They had all liked Dan and Emma. And, even if they hadn’t, this would only hurt Cassia and Hermione.
“We should take these wizards back with us,” Bucky asked. “Find out what happened.”
Loki nodded, waving a hand. Both wizards were bound together and Bucky grasped the bonds, before placing his free hand on Loki’s shoulder. Loki placed a hand on Dan and his other on Emma before teleporting them all out and to the medical lab that had been set up in the tower. Both he and Bucky picked the Grangers up and placed them on a bed each before they dragged the wizards down to the main lounge where the others were waiting, faces grim. Thankfully Hermione and Cassia were both still out of it. They would at least have answers by the time they woke up.
Loki used a spell to wake the two wizards up. “You won’t get away with this,” One of them groaned.
“Do you think they’ll talk?” Tony asked, looking out the window just as Thor returned, landing on the balcony and holding onto a pissed off Natasha. She came in first.
“They will once I’m through with them.”
“There is an easier way,” Loki said. “I can read their minds. And that will ensure we have the truth.”
“We’ve got our shields up, you won’t get anything,” the second wizard said.
“Do not be so sure,” Loki replied, crouching down in front of the man. His shields were pitiful. They may as well have not been there at all. Loki saw everything. These two were the ones who had kidnapped the Grangers and taken them to MACUSA. Then, once Dumbledore had seen them and just nodded, the President of the American Magicals had ordered their deaths. This was before the letter had even been sent. Before anyone knew the Grangers were missing. Once they had them, the wizards believed them useless and that Hermione and Cassia would just come, trusting that Emma and Dan would be released, not knowing they were already gone.
Loki stood, having shared the information through the bond. “We should kill them both now,” he said. “Leave their bodies in the entrance of the MACUSA building.”
“Or we can send them to SHIELD for the time being and let Hermione and Cassia know what’s happened when they wake up,” Steve said. “I’ve seen the Icebox, that’s no picnic, and it’s where these two will end up.”
“Fury said SHIELD had only a few more things it needed to get before they moved on the magicals,” Natasha said. “What use are these two? None, they’ll just take up cell space that could be used for more valuable prisoners.”
“I would like to see these two dead as well,” Bucky said, “But I think that idea should be shelved at least until Hermione and Cassia know what happened.”
‘That would be the best idea,’ Jane chimed in through the bond, and they heard Pepper and Bruce agree. Hermione and Cassia deserved a say in this.
Cassia felt groggy as she came round. “Urgh,” she groaned as she hoisted herself up. “What the hell?”
“I’m afraid Clint and Natasha acted a bit in haste and drugged you and Hermione,” she heard Bruce say.
She looked round and saw him, and that they were in the nest. Looking to her side, she saw Hermione was stirring and that Pepper and Jane were also in the large room.
“Cassi?” Hermione muttered, eyes flickering.
“I’m here Mya. And from what I’ve been told, we’re going to need to be a bit pissed with Clint and Nat for a while. They knocked us out.”
She helped Hermione sit up, and felt the nerves coming from the bond and the others. As well as something else… something sad.
“What happened? How long have we been out? My parents, are they OK?”
Pepper pulled both girls into a hug. “Loki and Bucky left not five minutes after we came up here. But they were already too late. I’m so sorry, but the wizards never intended to let them go.”
“Are you saying my mum and dad are…”
“It happened before they even let us know they had them, Hermione,” Bruce said softly. “I’m so sorry. But there’s nothing we could have done for them. They were gone before they wrote the note and sent it.”
Hermione let out a wail and latched onto Cassia, sobbing. Cassia felt tears of her own slip out as she began to cry. Dan and Emma had treated her as their own and she had always felt loved with them. And now they were just gone. Hermione had lost her parents too now. Why did they have to lose people now? Shouldn’t things have been safer now, here in New York?
“Tell me they’re going to pay for this,” Cassia murmured.
“We’ll do what we can,” Thor said as the others came up into the Nest, to be there for the two girls.
“Report, Hill,” Fury barked, looking up from his desk at the Agent.
“Confirmation from Captain Braddock in Britain that Excalibur is ready to go, sir. We’ll be able to coordinate a timed attack on the magical headquarters both in America and Britain with them by the end of the week. Hopefully, we can stop any escapes, but if not, we’ll have enough captives from the attacks to retrieve intel on the ICW headquarters to round them up and also to deal damage to wizarding governments through the rest of the world.”
Fury nodded. “Good. Put everyone on alert. I want to be ready to go as soon as possible. Make sure no one gets cocky either. Even if we do take two ministries, there’s still the other countries wizards.”