Keeping a spirited pace, Loki and Sigyn walk down the halls of the TVA as people on a mission. "Are you sure you don't want to come with me?" Loki asks Sigyn. After making his discovery, the two raced out of the library, though Sigyn is seemingly intent on a different destination than Mobius.

"No, I've got to go ask Hilda a question about this Xandar thing. Besides, you need all the goodwill you can get from them right now after the stunt you pulled," says Sigyn. "But let me know how it goes. I'll probably still be in the library."

The two split up when Loki veers off the corridor and into the lunchroom while Sigyn continues down the hall. With only a little difficulty, Sigyn finds Hilda's office without having to ask for directions. She knocks on the door and a faint "come in" can be heard from the other side.

The door opens, but it's not Sigyn who opens it. Instead, she's surprised to see Ravonna Renslayer, the judge on her and Loki's cases, walk out of Hilda's office, casting her a quick tiny smile as she leaves.

As Sigyn approaches Hilda's desk, she turns towards the direction that Renslayer just left in, "Meeting with the boss?"

"More like bosses' boss, but yes," says Hilda as she closes up some folders on her desk. She motions for Sigyn to take the seat across from her which Sigyn gladly accepts. She's going to need to sit down for this."Did you find something in the files? I knew you would—"

"Actually, no. I'm here because I read something in my files—well, technically Loki read it to me and then I read it. It says that I'm Xandarian?"

Hilda's eyes go wide and she takes a deep breath. "Yes," she starts carefully.

But Sigyn cuts her off. "Then why wasn't that at the beginning of my tapes."

"Well, the tapes serve almost as a third-person point of view on your stream of consciousness. Of course, you were a baby then, so you would have no memories from Xandar."

"So did I—do I never figure it out?"

"Oh, no. You do. You just destroyed the tapes before you got to that part."

Sigyn rolls her eyes in response.

"I have the name of your parents right here if that's what you're looking for. Your mother's name is I—"

Not wanting to hear the name, Sigyn quickly covers her hands over her ears and closes her eyes, "—Nope, nope, no. I don't want to hear their names. All I know is that they let me be taken to a lab on earth to be experimented on. And for the record, I have one mother and one mother only. And her name is Inger Larsen. Whoever this other person is, they gave birth to me. That's it." A pang hits Sigyn's heart when she realizes she's likely never going to be able to see her mother again.

The look on Hilda's face deflates. She only wanted to help. She knows the future and the entire story about Sigyn's parents. Maybe if she just heard it she wouldn't be so angry at them anymore...But if the woman sitting in front of her isn't ready she should respect that. "I'm sorry, Sigyn. I was just trying to help."

"I know," says Sigyn honestly. The two share a moment of earnest silence, not uncomfortable or awkward in any way.

"You know, I'm surprised that Loki didn't just blurt the names out to you if he knew you didn't want to know who they were. Sounds like a very him thing to do," jokes Hilda.

Sigyn chuckles. "Honestly, me too. Making a promise with that man is like daring him to do the opposite."

The analyst alarm bells in Hilda's brain are ringing. The statement Sigyn made about making a promise with Loki...something just isn't sitting right with her about it. She tries to pass her questioning off as a continuation of the joke, "That's a good one. When did you come up with that?"

Sigyn immediately realizes that something is afoot and tries her best to continue to play along. "All the credit goes to Thor on that one. He told me lots of stories about Loki betraying him."

Both women are smiling at one another fakely, neither believing the other woman's words beyond the surface level. "Well, it's been nice chatting about being from another planet but I should get back to reading those files." Sigyn conveniently leaves out that Loki's likely already on his way to figuring the whole thing out and gets out of the chair, making a steady but not too fast pace towards the exit.

"Sigyn."

Shit. Sigyn turns back around to face her agent. "Yes?"

"Has Loki tried to make any deals with you?" asks Hilda as she fidgets with an expensive-looking pen at her desk. "Any...I don't know agreements...promises?"

"No," says Sigyn, doing her best not to look suspicious. "I would have told you if I did. And like I said, doing that would be stupid."

"Yes, it would be very stupid."

Sigyn immediately picks up on the double meaning behind Hilda's words; it's a warning of Loki's ways and a threat. "I'll let you know if he does though, okay?"

Hilda nods, leaving Sigyn to scurry out of the room and back towards the library.

~~~~~

The mission to Pompeii is a great success for Loki. Not as great of a success for the people of Pompeii, but that is neither here nor there. He's able to prove his theory to Mobius that the Variant is hiding in doomsdays to prevent himself from being detected by variance energy. So they race off towards the library to look into as many naturally occurring and spontaneous doomsdays as possible.

As he re-enters the library, Loki finds himself looking for Sigyn. Even though she may be annoying, she's a rather good researcher, something he suspects she picked up from her geneticist parents. That's right. He did learn a thing or two from her files.

She's not at the desk that they have claimed as their own, which confuses him because last he heard she was there. Has she tried to escape without him? But sure enough, once he stops moving, he hears the rhythmic sound of deep breathing coming from behind him.

Sigyn has fallen asleep on a bench, using a file folder as a sad makeshift blanket. She looks so peaceful, so...Loki curses at himself for what he's about to do next. He takes off his Variant jacket and places it on top of Sigyn so that she can use it as a blanket.

He smiles in satisfaction when, after a few moments, a still asleep Sigyn instinctively pulls the jacket closer to her.

Mobius smirks at the gesture and Loki catches notice of it. "Oh, don't look at me like that."

Slightly chuckling at Loki's sudden defensiveness, Mobius shrugs. "I didn't say anything." The two start to rake through the files, searching for the possible hiding place of the Variant.

~~~

When Sigyn starts to come to, the first of her senses to come back online is touch. The wood of the bench is boring into her side, putting pressure on her hip while her legs feel bare and cold. Her upper body has somehow managed to escape the cold and stuffy atmosphere of the library. Sigyn opens her eyes to see exactly where she is, not remembering exactly where she had decided to go and close her eyes for a minute. Evidently, it was a lot longer than a minute.

She lets out a yawn and opens her eyes to see that the thing keeping her warm during her nap was a jacket. A Variant jacket. Her mind is fogged by sleep, and it takes Sigyn a minute to process it all and realize where the jacket came from. It's Loki's.

She slings the jacket over her shoulder with her hand and proceeds to the desk she hopes he's still at. It would be embarrassing to walk around the entire TVA with his jacket. Luckily, sitting at the desk is Loki and Mobius.

She manages to catch the tail end of their conversation, Mobius mentioning something about Loki taking his job.

"Can I take your job?" asks Sigyn sarcastically, announcing herself to the two men who had yet to notice her.

"No, you cannot take my job. Although I'm sure you'd be great for advertising," says Mobius, making a joking reference to the popularity of the Avengers.

Loki, however, is too enthused about his find to engage in the squabble. "We found out where the Variant is hiding. 2050 Alabama."

Sigyn scrunches up her face. "Of all the places to hide, who would choose Alabama?"

"Alabama during an apocalypse," Loki adds.

Sigyn's eyes widen to the point that it becomes almost laughable. Her words come out as more of a statement and less of a question,  "Why the hell would they do that."

"Because this guy right here found out that the Loki Variant is hiding out in apocalypses to avoid causing any variance energy," says Mobius enthusiastically.

"Right. Anyway," says Sigyn. "Is this the part where you ask me to go to Alabama a few moments before an apocalypse?"

Loki waves off her concern with his hand. "Oh, it'll be fine. We just went to Pompeii and made it out just fine."

Sigyn can only blink in disbelief. She's learned too many things since waking up. She wants to go back to sleep. "I...I...don't know what to say. You two are...really something."

Not taking the insult like they're meant to, the two men wear goofy grins on their faces. Mobius bids Loki and Sigyn along with him so he can go and talk to the judge to get the mission approved.

Slightly trailing behind the agent, Sigyn takes the opportunity to hand Loki back his jacket. "Thanks."

Instead of simply thanking her, Loki starts off on a bit of an explanatory tangent, "You looked a bit cold. I thought you, um, could use it. Plus, I was feeling a bit warm so I didn't need it anyway."

Not believing him one bit, Sigyn smiles. "Thank you, Loki. I mean it."

Loki turns to the woman in surprise. The sincerity of her thanks is exactly that. Sincere. Not many people have ever thanked him and really meant it. Most of the thanks he got were for things he accomplished with Thor and his friends, and even then it was more so directed at them. He gives Sigyn a small, meagre nod as they continue down the hall.

~~

"You want me to approve deployment of a fully-armed task for to the Variant's potential hiding spot?" Ravonna asks Mobius, clearly not ready to easily approve the mission.

But Mobius is committed. He believes in this. "Haven Hills, Alabama. Corporate town, owned by Roxxcart until it's wiped out by the hurricane. All the food and supplies you need. If he likes it there's no reason he can't keep going back and just camping out, over and over."

"And this is all based on a theory from the Variant who just blew your previous mission?"

"Yeah, he's doing great."

Ravonna leans forward in her desk, needing to get her point across to Mobius in any way possible. "Mobius, as your friend, I have to tell you that trusting this man is not a good idea."

"No, I know," says Mobius. "But maybe he's worth the trouble. He just uncovered a huge hole in our security."

Ravonna can't understand how he's getting so close to the point but still missing it. "That's what concerns me!"

"I can handle him. Trust me. This is where we get our guy."

Ravonna once again voices her distrust in Loki. "You, I trust. But him?"

"Listen, Ravonna, every instinct is telling me this is where we nail the Variant." Ravonna takes a deep breath at Mobius's words. It's tempting. "Come on. You don't see me usually this worked up, right? I'm excited. I'm chomping at the bit."

Having finally been worn down, Ravonna agrees. But not before raising one last issue. "Fine. But you get to bring one of the Variants with you. The other stays here. I had a talk with Hilda recently and she was concerned about them working together. "

"That's what we wanted, isn't it?" asks Mobius.

"It's what you wanted," says Ravonna. "But we both know how dangerous they can be together when they have full access to their powers."

"Well, luckily for us, this Sigyn stepped off the timeline five years before she gets a handle on her powers."

"Mobius, I'm serious. If you want them both to come on that field mission you need to guarantee that they're loyal to us over each other."

"She's an Avenger, Ravonna. Out in the field if we walk into a superpowered Variant Loki we're going to need someone who packs a punch."

Ravonna purses her lips. "Then bring her with you instead of him. It's up to you which of them you choose."

Seeing that Ravonna isn't going to budge a second time and desperate to get his mission approved, Mobius agrees. Including accepting any and all consequences if the mission goes sideways.

Waiting for him outside of Ravonna's office, Loki gives him a look, questioning if the mission has been approved or not. "We're on." Loki leaps up off of the couch in excitement, giving a small fist pump to the sky as a not as enthusiastic Sigyn follows after.

~~~

Mobius and the two Variants strut into the locker room with a purpose. "We are doing some good work today," says Mobius, his energy still high from the thought of being the one to catch the Variant.

To Sigyn's surprise, Loki shares this energy. "I thought so too."

"I'm telling you, you actually help us catch this Variant and who knows, my friend." Mobius starts to take off his jacket to place it in his locker.

Loki leans against the wall to talk to Mobius. To Sigyn, their interaction looks so casual. As if they've been partners for years. "What, good enough for a face-to-face with the Time-Keepers?"

"I didn't say that. One step at a time." Sigyn's eyes go wide as she watches Mobius try and hand Loki's knives back to him. This man is absolutely insane. Even the god gasps at the sight of his knives being returned to him.

Luckily, Hunter B-15 walks by in time to snatch them out of Loki's hand. "Absolutely not."

"For the record, I agree with you," Sigyn calls out to B-15 as she walks away and puts them in a different locker. Out of the top cubby, she can see a dark reflective metal and she instantly knows that's where her gun is being stored. She files that information away for later, just in case she needs it.

"Hey, Loki, can you grab another Variant jacket? There should be another one in the supply closet down the hall," says Mobius. An excited Loki practically skips off, happy to be doing something. But Mobius's expression turns serious. Well, serious-ish. He turns to Sigyn after looking to make sure the coast is clear. "I need to talk to you."

Sigyn shifts uncomfortably. "About?"

"Loki," says Mobius simply.

"I'm listening."

Mind games have always been one of Mobius's specialties. "When I was...brainstorming plans with him he had suggested using you as bait for the Variant. We said no of course, but we're leaving you off this mission for your own safety. "

"You say that as if I didn't just beat him up in New York," retorts Sigyn, clearly a bit agitated by the statement."

"Listen, I know that. Him and his ego? He thinks he can beat you." And just like that, Mobius lights a fire under Sigyns ass.

Sigyn leans back against the wall, crossing her arms and scoffing. "Well, that's ridiculous."

Mobius closes his locker, putting his new jacket on and fixing the collar. "Of course it is. I'm just telling you that you have to stay behind as a precaution and so that nothing takes you by surprise."

Her face turns to a deadpan. "You act like him backstabbing me would be a surprise."

Mobius gives the woman across from him a smile and gives her a pat on the back. "There we go, that's the spirit."

"Let's head to the briefing room," calls Hunter B-15 to the rest of the room.

Sigyn turns to walk towards the exit, thinking over everything Mobius has said. Does she believe him? It does sound like a very Loki thing to suggest using her as bait, but Mobius telling her clearly has some sort of ulterior motive. Nonetheless, it serves as a stark reminder that Loki is known for his betrayals. And Sigyn doesn't want to be just another notch on his belt.

~~~

The minutemen plus Mobius, Hilda, and two Variants stand around in a circle as they're briefed on the mission by Hunter B-15. "Roxxcart is a vast superstore common to the era. It consists of a series of sprawling sections, including a large warehouse. This warehouse is being used by civilians as a shelter tryin' to ride out the storm. Remember, this is a class ten apocalypse. While the Variant shouldn't know we're coming, he could be hiding anywhere and should be considered hostile. So stay alert. Every time there is an attack, the Variant steals a reset charge. He's planning something. We just don't know what. So keep an eye out for the missing charges, and if you see a Loki, prune it."

From beside Sigyn, Loki gives a sarcastic smile to the group. "The bad Loki, preferably."

Sigyn can't help but want to stare at Loki and try and figure out what he's thinking. If only she could use her powers in the TVA. If she had time to talk to him she might be able to get a read on if he intends to betray her, but there's going to be no chance for them to talk. No time to plot any sort of escape, but if Sigyn is being honest, she doesn't even know if Loki wants to escape at this point. He seems rather enthralled by the idea of meeting the Time-Keepers. If anything, he's probably going to make a run for it on the mission and not look back.

The portals open up and the minutemen get ready to go through while Sigyn goes to sit on a bench. Christ, she's been benched. She's an Avenger who just saved the whole of New York City from an alien invasion and then a nuclear bomb, and she's been benched. Absolutely ridiculous.

"Hold on," says Loki as he notices Sigyn not lined up to walk through the portal. "Is she not coming with us?"

"We, uh, couldn't get clearance for both of you to come and Sigyn decided to sit this one out and let you go," lies Mobius, although it's only really a half-lie.

Sigyn nods, corroborating his story.

"She's going to stay here and not step a foot outside of this locker room while I'm gone. Right, Sigyn?" says Hilda as she adjusts her jacket.

Sigyn sighs with exasperation. "Or you'll vaporize me, blah, blah, blah. It's not like I've got anything else to do."

Satisfied with her answers, they all start to file through the portal to the Roxxcart, but not without Loki sneaking in one last unnoticed glance at the Avenger.

~~~

Sigyn's not sure how long they've been gone for, but she's taken to throwing a ball she found against the roof and then trying to catch it before it hits her in the face. Not her smartest game ever, but entertaining nonetheless.

Suddenly, an alarm starts to blare and a voice comes over the intercom, "All minutemen to the armoury."

Panic sets through her as she realizes all the minutemen will be headed towards her. Is this alarm for her, or is it related to the mission? Or even more likely, has Loki broken his promise and escaped without her and now they're going to kill her before she can escape too? Then Sigyn remembers something. Her gun is in the locker.

She can hear heavy footsteps coming down the hall, they would be in her locker room soon. She needs to decide. If she gets caught with the gun, they'll certainly vapourize or reset her, whatever they call it, but if she doesn't grab it and they attack her anyway, then she doesn't stand a chance.

Sigyn darts for the locker in a split-second decision, trying her best not to fumble with the lock before taking her gun and closing it. She loads it and shoves it into the back of her waistband so that her long Variant jacket conceals it. She only makes it a few steps away from Hunter B-15's locker before the minutemen make it into her room.

"What's going on?" Sigyn asks them as they head towards a newly formed portal. None of them answer her. At least they're not coming after me.

Those sentiments are apparently too soon because four minutemen enter the locker room and a portal doesn't open and Sigyn realizes this all too slowly. Two of them grab her by the arms, hoisting her up but luckily not checking her waistband for any weapons. Sigyn starts to struggle, not liking the fact that they've just come in and grabbed her with no explanation. "Hey, hands off the merchandise, bozos."

The minutemen remain silent as they drag her out into the hallway, Sigyn still struggling but saving her full strength for when she sees an opportunity to escape. She needs to wait for a portal to open or some sort of escape hatch because she can't just keep fighting forever. Sigyn's struggling slows down their pace quite a bit, only allowing them to move if they tug the woman forward with quite a bit of force. "At least tell me where you're taking me. You can't just grab people like this! Didn't your mom ever tell you it's rude? Oh, wait, none of you have moms!"

Thud.

The insults stop when Sigyn as soon as Sigyn hears the sound of someone hitting the ground behind her. It's not one of her guards and not her doing. Has Loki come back for her? She tries to turn around to look but they won't let her. The two guards who have functioned as more of a backup seem to think whatever it is, it's more important than Sigyn and run down the hall towards the noise.

The guards holding her seem to want to quicken the pace of dragging her down the hallway in the opposite direction as Sigyn hears the unmistakable sound of a fight breaking out behind her. Whoever is here is fighting the minutemen, and for the moment, it's good enough for Sigyn.

Never has Sigyn been more thankful for her time spent with Natasha. And she's been thankful a lot for that time.

Sigyn immediately drops all of her weight down into a squat, causing the much taller minutemen to lose their grip on her arms. Then, using all of her strength, she sweeps her feet underneath one of them, sending them crashing to the ground. Not wasting a moment, Sigyn grabs the fallen minuteman's baton and hits him over the head with it: one down, one to go.

The other minuteman brings his glowing baton towards Sigyn's face but she pushes it away with her own. Taking advantage of him being exposed, Sigyn gives him a rough kick into the wall but he bounces back. He lunges for Sigyn, trying to strangle her with both of his hands. Sigyn reaches for the back of her waistband, pulling out her gun and hitting him in the temple with the butt of it.

Whipping around, her gun loaded and ready to shoot, Sigyn gets to turn around to see who else is has an enemy in the minutemen. And it's not Loki as she expected. Instead, it's a blonde woman clad in a green cape and a horn circlet. Sigyn slightly, but only slightly, lowers her gun.

Ever the polite young woman her parents wanted her to be, Sigyn asks the other woman, "Who the hell are you?"

That's all for this chapter folks!

How will Sigyn react to Sylvie's appearance; will they be friends or foes? And what happens when Sigyn gets stranded on a strange planet with no way off but a Loki or two? Find out next chapter!

Wow! Already onto episode three, this is flying by! I originally had planned for Sigyn to go to Roxxcart but then I realized there's probably no way Ravonna would let both of the Variants go. Of course, it also helps that Sigyn now gets a really neat and unique introduction to Sylvie instead of just meeting her at the same time as Loki. Perhaps in the future after this book is done I'll finish it and release it as a one-shot!

Onto the chapterly memes: