"Would you two stop that? It's disgusting," Tony growled when he returned to the tower. You looked up from your Loki who you had been enjoying kissing.

"Why does everyone want to interrupt our fun today?" you whined at Loki, not moving from his lap.

He sighed and looked put-upon. "I don't know, love. Shall I throw him out the window for you?" he asked with an innocent smile.

"Not if he's nice," you told Loki and licked his nose to make him sputter. You giggled when he had the exact reaction you were expecting.

"Maybe, if you two would make out somewhere besides the living room where other people like to hang out you wouldn't get interrupted," Tony commented dryly with an extremely dramatic eyeroll.

You looked at him, then at Loki. "That doesn't sound right. Does that sound right to you?" you asked him with a grin.

"No, I definitely agree with you that shell-head is in the wrong. Now, shall I throw him out of the window for you?"

"I can throw him out of the window on my own," you reminded him. You yelped when a strong arm lifted you off of Loki's lap. You recognized Thor's warm strong arm immediately.

"Stop annoying everyone, Lady Wolf," Thor teased lightly and set you on your end of the couch. You stuck your tongue out at him and he laughed. You jumped off of the couch when the oven timer went off. Your fun would've been interrupted soon anyway, so you forgave Tony. This time. You and Loki were supposed to be making dinner since you had the afternoon off. You may have gotten a little distracted...

"Um...Cap?" you asked shyly at dinner. Everyone's attention turned to you. It was strange for you to be shy about asking or saying anything, so everyone knew when you got that way it was over something important and something you had to be careful talking around. Cap nodded his head to indicate he was listening. "D-do you have Loki assigned to anything in particular for the next couple of weeks?" you asked softly.

Cap thought that question over. "Not currently. Do I need to assign him to recon on the other side of the country?" he asked, half joking.

You shook your head emphatically. "Please don't. I don't think that would be a good idea." you replied quickly and looked back at your dinner before anyone could ask.

Tony laughed. "Should we just assign him to your service instead?" he teased, intending to make you blush.

He succeeded and you refused to look up from your plate, playing with the lovelock in your hair. "I know you're joking and think you're funny. But that might be a good idea..." you said softly, embarrassed. Loki took your hand and squeezed it, reassuring.

"I'll keep that under advisement," Cap finally said, knowing he wouldn't get any more information out of you.

"Since you won't stop touching the thing when you're nervous, what's with those braids anyway?" Tony asked, apparently not done teasing you today.

"They are exchanged on Asgard as a token of love," Thor replied, standing up for both you and Loki.

"You let her desecrate your precious hair?" Tony teased Loki, who glared in reply.

"My lady's token does not desecrate anything, plus it provides me immunity from some of the werewolves' magic," Loki added. Everyone stared at you again.

"Immunity?" Nat prompted when neither of you spoke again.

"Against the spell of silence," you told them, playing with the braid in your hair again. "The spell that affected you all at the Christmas party, until you were in physical contact with one of the werewolves. We figured out that a lock of my hair is enough to protect Loki from it,"

"That might be something useful for the team," Cap commented.

"If you think you're going to be fighting werewolves, especially pack wolves. Lone wolves and mercenaries probably don't know about the spell," you agreed. "But you can't all wear lovelocks. It's one thing for me and Loki to do it, since we're, y'know, dating, but it would be obvious for the rest of you. We'd have to come up with another way." Cap nodded and decided they'd look into it, but he was glad Loki had protection from it. Any of the team having protection was better than none.

*

You woke to a crash of thunder in the middle of the night. You jumped out of bed and looked out your window in time to see the flash of lightning across the sky. Excited at the beautiful storm, you bounced over to Loki's room to drag him out to go watch the storm with you. You knocked softly on his door, so you wouldn't startle him, then opened it without waiting for a reply. "Lo? Are you up? Let's go watch the storm!" you told him excitedly as you stepped into his room, not bothering to wait for an invitation.

Lightning flashed again across the sky and you saw the vaguely person sized small ball under the blankets in the middle of the bed. Thunder boomed and the ball under the blankets curled tighter, making a pathetic small whimper of distress.

"Loki!" you exclaimed and rushed over, climbing onto the bed in a moment. You pulled the blankets back to find Loki curled in a tight ball, his eyes shut tight and his hands over his ears. You wrapped your arms around him. "Shh, love. It's ok. You're safe," you told him softly. He whimpered again at the next boom of thunder. You held him and stroked his hair. You caught his attention and kissed him softly, gently. "It's ok, I'm here," you promised.

Eventually, you got him to relax enough that he laid his head in your lap, his arms wrapped around you while you sat propped against the pillows. You pulled the blanket up over him and stroked his hair, whispering that everything was ok.

"Brother? I'm sorry I did not come sooner. I was on a mission. Are you alright?" Thor boomed from the doorway.

Loki whimpered again at Thor's booming voice and another crash of thunder. "Shh, love," you told him softly, stroking his hair so he would calm again. "It's just your idiot brother," you told him softly. "Thor, can't you make the storm end?" you asked, hating seeing Loki like this; you didn't want him to suffer. He would hate it too when he was himself again.

"I sent it on it's way. It'll be over soon," Thor replied. He looked sadly at the pathetic Loki curled around you, who was slowly dozing off while you pet his hair, rubbed the tight muscles in his shoulders, and soothed him to sleep as the storm eased. "He has been afraid of storms since we were children. I have to admit that when I was young and stupid I made it worse by conjuring storms so he would spend time with me. He had looked to me to protect him and would always hide with me when he was afraid. It took me a regrettably long time to realize that what I was doing was wrong and that I was just hurting him while I pretended to help. About the time I realized what I was doing, he had put the pieces together too. I don't think he ever quite forgave me for it, though he still hides from storms with me if I am around,"

"Shut up, Thor," Loki grumbled an automatic response since he was mostly asleep. You and Thor both laughed quietly. You leaned down and kissed his hair.

"Shh love, go back to sleep," you told him softly. He smiled softly and settled more comfortably to sleep. "Thanks for letting me know and checking on him. I'm sure he appreciates your concern. Even if he displays it by threatening to stab you," Thor chuckled at that. "I'll take care of him,"

"Are you sure?" Thor asked, obviously seeming to think it was his responsibility to care for his little brother. The long ingrained habit was hard to break.

You nodded. "I love him too, Thor, and you helped by making the storm pass faster. I'll take care of him," you told Thor again.

He finally nodded. "Then I will leave him to your care. Call for me if you need me," he added before he'd leave.

"Go away, Thor," you teased, stealing one of Loki's most often used lines. Thor chuckled, catching your teasing tone, and kissed the top of your head.

"Yes, Lady Wolf," he replied with a warm smile, with one last concerned look at the Loki wrapped around you, he finally left. You continued stroking Loki's hair until he fell asleep.

You must've dozed off too, because you woke the next morning with your fingers wound in his hair. You smiled and moved enough to kiss his head. He groaned as his eyes opened again. "Y/N?" he asked softly.

"Morning," you told him with a smile as you unwound your fingers from his hair. He seemed so out of it. "There was a storm last night," you reminded him. He flushed.

"You saw-?"

"I saw nothing to be ashamed of," you told him firmly. "And before you start freaking out, no, I don't think you're a weakling for having a fear. Even high and mighty gods have to have some weakness," you teased him, earning a small chuckle for your efforts.

"Thank you," he finally said and sat up, still looking sheepish and embarrassed.

"Of course, love, I'd do anything for you, just like you'd do anything for me. That's how this works. We're a team and face things together," you brushed his hair back from his face and kissed him.

"What did I ever do to deserve you?" he asked softly when the kiss broke.

"Befriended the monster who was thrown into your life," you replied with a grin.

*

Samuel called you Thursday night before he and his mate came to town. Fenrir had made dinner reservations for the four of you for Friday evening. You confirmed the reservations and promised to see him and his mate then.

Friday evening came and you actually put on a dress, heels, and makeup to go to dinner. You wanted to make a good impression on Samuel when you met him. Loki, of course, was in a perfectly tailored suit.

When you got to the restaurant, Loki parked the car and came around to open your car door for you. You were quite used to his courtesy by now and waited for him, giving him the courtesy of not having to rush. You placed your hand in his offered one as you got out of the car. He smiled and lifted your hand to his lips when you were standing and he had closed the car door behind you. You smiled and placed your hand on his offered arm to walk into the fancy restaurant. It seemed Fenrir didn't skimp on his children.

You timed you arrival perfectly as you saw the two wolves walking toward you from another car. You squeezed Loki's arm and turned, drawing his attention to the wolves. Samuel looked just like his father, though the perpetual 18 of the natural born wolves. His mate was an adorable...alpha wolf, you realized when you caught her scent properly. You and Loki met the pair just in front of the door to the restaurant, though you stood to the side so you weren't blocking the doorway.

"Hello, Brother," you greeted Samuel and stepped forward to kiss his cheek.

"Little sister," he replied with a smile and kissed your cheek in return. "May I introduce my mate, Rachel of the Alpha pack?" You smiled and kissed both of her cheeks while she did the same.

"Samuel, Rachel, this is my boyfriend, Loki of Asgard," you neglected to give Loki the title of 'mate'.

Samuel caught the misstep. "He is not your mate? Father said..."

You flushed a little. "We're not married," you explained quickly. "Still courting." Samuel nodded, with a slightly malicious glint in his eye. He was going to give Loki the third degree to see if he was worthy of you. You saw that in his eyes. Rachel had an equally malicious glint in hers. They were both going to enjoy the game of evaluating and interrogating Loki.

They had just adopted you into the pack, but they were already overprotective of the Omega.

"It is a pleasure to meet you both," Loki replied formally. He hadn't missed the glint in the wolves' eyes either. He'd play the game, if only for his own amusement.

"Shall we?" Samuel gestured toward the door to the restaurant. You nodded and the four of you headed into the restaurant. Samuel spoke to the hostess and soon you were being seated. Loki pulled your chair out for you and kissed your cheek after he'd pushed you in. Samuel was doing the same for Rachel.

You discussed your lives over dinner. Samuel did accounting for the pack as well as select others. He also flew all over the country checking up on lone wolves and emergencies for his father. Rachel was the best divorce lawyer in the country from what you could tell. You told them about your work at Stark Industries and you and Loki both told them about working for the Avengers.

The moment all of the niceties were discussed the two foreign wolves began the inquisition of Loki. He played the game well, courteous and patient with the prying questions, deflecting those that would be an embarrassment to you.

"Guys, I think you've grilled him enough," you protested when the inquisition went too long.

"We have to make sure our little sister is being courted by an acceptable mate," Rachel replied, her tone kind, but her smile had a glint of the predator beneath. "Especially as he is not one of us,"

"He is a perfect gentleman, treats me like a princess no matter my form, my wolf likes him, he's my best friend, and I love him, isn't that enough?" you asked them as you took Loki's hand and lifted it to your lips to kiss the back of it. He smiled and flipped your joined hands over to kiss yours in return. Rachel and Samuel both smiled at your words and nodded. They turned the conversation away from grilling your boyfriend after that.

Rachel leaned over to kiss Samuel's cheek before dessert came. "I'm going to powder my nose. Y/N?" she asked. You nodded and folded your napkin as you moved to stand to join her. Loki and Samuel both stood as you and Rachel did. You stood up on your toes to kiss Loki's cheek.

"We'll be back in a minute," you told him. He nodded, obviously figuring out the euphemism. "Did you really want to go 'powder your nose'?" you asked Rachel with a smirk when you were out of earshot of the boys.

She grinned over at you. "Of course not, but that boyfriend of yours is as protective as any wolf with his mate. One of us had to ask you when you're alone if you're happy with him,"

"I'm extremely happy with him," you replied, knowing that she could smell the truth in your simple statement.

She nodded. "Good, Father will be pleased. He worries about you out here all alone, his 'little Omega'," you both laughed at that.

Samuel stopped you as you were heading to the cars. You sighed when he started to open his mouth. "I have plans for Winter's Moon," you told him before he could ask. He chuckled and kissed your cheek.

"You know I had to be sure. Call me if you need help," he told you firmly. You nodded.

"I would, but I won't need help," you told him, hugging Loki's arm tighter.

Samuel looked over at Loki. "Take care of our little sister. Call us for help if you can't handle Winter's Moon,"

"Samuel!" you glared at him. Samuel glared right back, and was surprised when you didn't back down. "Stop with the dominance games. They don't work on me, remember?" you grumbled. "And don't insult my boyfriend," you added. Samuel held up his hands in mock defeat. You reached into your purse and pulled out two envelopes. "Would you do me a favor?" you asked Samuel. He nodded and you handed him the envelopes. "When you get to the pack, can you give those to my brothers, Ethan and Daniel?" He nodded again and tucked the envelopes into his inside jacket pocket. "Thank you,"

"Anytime, little sister," he replied fondly.

"What were in the envelopes, little wolf?" Loki asked after the goodbyes were said and you separated to your own cars. He hadn't seen you make them or pack them in your purse.

"Letters and pictures of us and the team. They'll want to know that I'm ok and happy here. It'll mean a lot to them, even though they won't admit it or acknowledge it," you explained.

Loki kissed you softly. "Of course they will," he replied warmly, happy that you finally had a proper family between the misfits of the tower and the new pack.

*

"Um...Loki... can, can I ask for a favor?" you asked softly from the doorway to the library the day before Winter's Moon.

"I thought you were saving all of your favors for the next two weeks," Loki teased without looking up from his book, his hands were crooked over it, softly glowing green as he concentrated on whatever spell he was working on. He was concentrating so hard that he hadn't noted your shyness and stuttering over the question.

"Oh... I can ask someone else," you told him equally softly, hurt by his teasing when you'd been so hesitant to ask for a favor in the first place. You turned to leave while you considered who else might be willing to do the favor. Tony was out, he wouldn't do it. Thor was too loud and rough, he'd be a terrible choice. Nat maybe?

Bruce, you decided. He'd enjoy the calming chore.

An illusion appeared in front of you, stopping you, though you knew it was an illusion. You could smell the difference. "I was teasing, love. Sorry, I was distracted. This spell is finicky. Give me a minute to finish this spell so it doesn't blow up and then I'll help you,"

"You don't have to, you're busy. I can get someone else to help," you told him and tried to smile.

"I will help you," he said firmly.

"Well, if you insist," you replied and went to look over the books in the library until he was finished. The illusion vanished when you weren't running away.

You rushed over to him when you heard the explosion. He cursed and glared at the contained explosion inside a ball of green light. "That spell is finicky," you agreed as he vanished the contained explosion.

"Most finicky," he grumbled.

"What were you trying to do anyway?" you asked curious.

"Thor wants a better way to disguise Mjolnir than the giant umbrella he has to carry. He's used to hanging Mjolnir from his belt. However, Mjolnir doesn't like to be disguised as anything but an umbrella, and keeps blowing up all of my attempts," he grumbled. You laughed and kissed him.

"I'm sure you'll figure it out," you told him with a smile.

"You have more faith than Thor does," he replied.

"Well, Thor's a moron," you told him with a smirk and he laughed in reply.

"You said you needed help with something?" he finally asked when you didn't broach the subject. You flushed and hesitated, unsure. "Surely whatever it is can't be that embarrassing," he teased lightly.

You hesitated a moment longer, but finally started. "Winter's ending and the wolf is shedding, and it's itchy," you finally whined at him. "If I change forms will you brush out the loose hair?" you asked him softly, holding out the hairbrush you'd picked up from one of the pet supply stores.

"Of course. Why is that something to be embarrassed about?" he asked as you took his hand to lead him outside so the hair didn't get everywhere.

"Because it's another stupid thing about being a werewolf that just sucks. I can't fix it myself and I need to ask for help," you grumbled, hating asking for help. Loki chuckled and kissed the top of your head.

"There's no shame in asking for help," he reminded you. "Though why are we going outside?" he asked when he saw what button you'd pushed on the elevator.

"There's a lot of fur. Trust me, we don't want it inside the tower," you explained. You shifted forms behind the partition in the lobby that Cap had installed just for that purpose and wagged your tail as you bounced over to Loki. He petted your head and scratched behind your ears before you walked out together.

You actually walked to a park near the tower where he could sit comfortably on a bench and watch the silly mortals playing while he worked. You hopped up on the bench beside him, your eyes half closed as you enjoyed the feeling of the brush getting rid of all of the annoying loose fur. It was a nice day out, so there were a lot of kids playing and people walking through the park. You half listened to them, but mostly dozed.

"Puppy!" a small child announced, tiny feet running toward you. You opened your eyes and gave her a doggy smile and wagged your tail. The child patted you in that awkward adorable way that kids had, while Loki worried over how to stop her and not upset the mortals. He couldn't stab a child. You licked the girl's face. She giggled and ran back to her mom to tell her about the puppy. You laid your head back on your paws.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know how to stop her..." Loki told you, still fretting. You turned and licked his hand, it was no big deal and the more people who thought you were a dog and not a werewolf the better.

You perked your ears up and opened your eyes again when more footsteps approached your bench. "Sir? Your dog is supposed to be on a leash," you looked up at the officer. Shit. Officer. You sat up and wagged your wail, all adorable puppy, most definitely not vicious werewolf.

The officer's partner looked between you and Loki, took a double-take and grabbed her partner by the arm. "That's Loki and Omega," she hissed to her partner. He did the double-take then while Loki tried to look innocent and mischief free. He failed. Hard. He usually did when he was trying to look innocent.

"Are you sure?" he asked his partner, obviously unsure.

"Is there a problem?" Loki asked pleasantly as his golden horned helmet shimmered onto his head. At least he didn't summon a dagger to prove who he was. That was the most impressive part.

"There's no problem," the female officer said quickly. "We're sorry we interrupted. Let us know if you need anything." She grabbed her partner and dragged him away before he could cause trouble. Loki's helmet vanished and you laid back down so he could get back to work.

"How is there so much fur?" he whined awhile later. You snorted in laughter. You had warned him. "I could make an entire wolf out of all of this fur," he grumbled. He finally finished and you hopped down from the bench and shook yourself well to get your fur back into line. "Better?" he asked. You nodded and hopped up, paws against his chest to lick his face. He laughed and summoned a tennis ball. You yipped and dropped to the ground, wagging your tail at the silly trickster who was actually trying to play. He threw the ball, hard. You ran after it and trotted it back to him after you caught it. He threw the ball a few more times, though once he tried to trick you and not actually throw it. You huffed and glared at him. He chuckled and threw it properly.

*

You spent the next day playing video games with Loki and the others as they floated through the tower. They were all waiting to find out what Winter's Moon was. All they knew was that it started today. You'd warned Nat that she might have to help, but couldn't give her more detail than that.

You felt it all day, the wolf's growing agitation, the growing heat of desire. It was different than the overwhelming heat of moon fever, it was the warmth of love and the heat of lust that you had thought you'd never want answered. And yet.

"Darling, are you ok?" Loki asked that afternoon. His voice just excited the wolf, who knew exactly what she wanted and was really confused why you weren't just taking it when he was Sitting. Right. There.

You nodded, forcing the wolf back down for now. She wasn't insistent yet. You still had a little while before she got unbearable. You glanced at the sky through the window. "For a couple more hours," you told him.

He nodded. "Plenty of time for us to kill this monster," he told you, gesturing back at the TV. You smiled at him and nodded, getting back to the senseless violence of the game.

You saw the change in the guys during dinner when the wolf started fighting for control, started influencing them all with her desire. You felt the fear for a moment when their attention started to turn on you, but you bit the fear back. It wouldn't help. They wouldn't hurt you.

"Guys. Snap out of it," you told them firmly. "Think with the big brains. Don't forget what day it is," you grumbled when they were too sluggish to listen. You'd told them the date they needed to be wary of. They were still being affected by the werewolf magic. You sighed, feeling awful that you hadn't been able to warn them, though you hadn't really been sure they'd be affected, they weren't werewolves after all. Loki, however, was Loki. He seemed absolutely no different than usual and it made you feel so much better that he was your Loki.

"What's happening?" Cap finally asked, turning a deeper shade of red than you'd seen except the day he watched you stomp past him in lingerie after the robot battle. He had turned so many shades of read and hidden his face behind his shield so he could pretend he hadn't seen you.

"I'm sorry. I couldn't warn you," you told them softly. You stood, wrapping your arms around yourself as if that would make the wolf behave. It wouldn't. Nothing would until morning. Ok, that was a lie. One activity would.

Loki stood too, wrapping a possessive arm around you at the predatory looks of the other men. The wolf seemed to get even more excited that her mate was touching you, even if it was in such an innocent manner. "Loki," your voice was just this side of a whimper as you fought for control "I have to tell them. They deserve to know," you couldn't leave them in this state without knowing why.

"You can't," he reminded you softly. "They have to figure it out or convince me to have pity on them and tell them," he added with a smirk of mischief.

"Why isn't he acting stupid like the rest of them?" Nat asked you. She was watching the boys carefully in case she had to intervene.

"Because I am attracted to Y/N every day. The pheromones and magic aren't affecting me any more than usual," he started. You shook as the wolf demanded that you listen to her needs.

"I-I need to get out of here," you told Loki apologetically, ducking out from under his arm and heading to the elevator quickly. He let you go, staying behind to make the explanations and ease your mind.

"Her wolf is in heat, that's what this is, right? Wolves in the wild go into heat. It would make sense that a werewolf might too," Nat asked softly enough that you could pretend you hadn't heard her.

"Yes,"

"Two weeks of this?" Nat asked as she started going around the table. She smacked Tony on the back of the head, hard. "You're dating Pepper, get your pigheaded mind off of the werewolf,"

Why was the elevator being so slow tonight? You pushed the stupid button again, and kept pushing it until the elevator arrived.

"This should only be tonight, she said. Even I don't know what the rest of the two weeks entails. She hasn't been able to find a way to tell me," Loki's voice was worried. This chaos was already bad.

The elevator finally arrived and you ducked inside, jabbing the floor button repeatedly. You had to get back to your room before the wolf slipped your control and did something stupid that anyone involved would regret in the morning. You made it to your room and slammed and locked the door behind you. You sat against the headboard of your bed, pulling your knees to your chest, shaking as you fought for control, fought against the pull and desire, and demands of the wolf.

It was going to be a long, long, sleepless night.

You looked up at the soft knock on your door. Against your better judgment and all logic, you got up and padded to the door. You knew what was waiting on the other side. You knew. And still you unlocked the door and opened it to face the Loki on the other side.

"Loki-" you started, knowing you couldn't see him tonight. You couldn't force him, couldn't just do this because the wolf thought it was a good idea.

"Wait, darling, hear me out," he bid you softly, seeing that you were fighting to keep from closing the door in his face if that's what it took to not pressure him with the wolf's presence, especially since you couldn't be sure that you wanted it and not just the wolf wanting it.

You nodded once, fighting the shudder of the wolf's demands that you go to him and kiss him. "I'll leave if that's really what you want, but I refuse to let you suffer all night alone without at least making sure you know the offer is here and valid. Especially since it would be my sincere pleasure to enjoy a pleasant evening and a wonderful activity together with my love."

"But the wolf- downstairs, everyone-" you couldn't get a coherent sentence strung together, how could you explain your fears if you couldn't find the right words for them?

"I'm not affected," he reminded you gently. He had said that downstairs, and he obviously wasn't magic-struck like the others. The logical part of your brain realized that you could accept his consent. He wasn't besotted. "At least no more than usual," he amended, earning the barest of smiles. "And, if you recall, I made the offer to spend the evening with you days ago, and you confirmed then that I knew what would happen tonight. I won't force you, love, I swear it, if you tell me no, I swear I'll respect it," he paused and waited for your nod that you'd heard and understood his words. "You're not forcing me either, my darling little wolf, in fact, I have been planning how to ensure that we both most thoroughly enjoy our evening,"

You somehow managed to get even more embarrassed when you softly said. "But I-I've never-" you realized then, that even your human side wanted to enjoy this evening with Loki, as long as he could get past that one little obstacle of your inexperience.

He smiled warmly. "I guarantee that you'll enjoy it, nothing to fear, love. I am a god after all," he said with his mischievous smirk. You saw in his eyes that he had planned out exactly how this would go and knew that he would keep his word to make sure you both enjoyed the evening. You couldn't help giggling at his particular form of reassurance.

Reassured, you finally gave the wolf what she wanted and opened the door wider.

He smiled, relieved that you wouldn't be suffering alone. You stepped out into the hall and kissed him, wrapping your arms around his neck as you kissed him very thoroughly. He smiled when he broke the kiss, earning and whining growl when he broke it. "Patience, little wolf, we have all night," he said with a smile as he walked you backwards into your room, teasing you with light kisses to get you to move. "Yes, this will be such fun," he told you, the glint of fun and mischief in his eyes reassuring as he shut and locked the bedroom door behind him.