A/N: And here we are. The final chapter. Thank you to everyone who's stuck around this long! I hope it's been a good read.

Loki surged upright with a gasp, a bucket appearing in his lap courtesy of Ik just in time for him to hurl his guts into it, Mantis's hand flying to his hand instead of his head. Gamora held his hair back while Peter braced him. As he finished, Ik showing up to snatch his bucket back and briskly clean off his face, Mantis started to let go.

But Loki grabbed her hand, holding her in place. "That rage," he rasped. "Was that you?"

She nodded, eyes wide. "I hope it did not-"

"Thank you," he interrupted gently, interlacing their fingers. She beamed, antennae glowing proudly as she shared some of the happiness with him. Smiling, he leaned against Gamora, and after a startled hesitation, she wrapped her arms around him, tucking his head beneath her chin.

"I am Groot?" he asked in hopeful concern.

"Yeah, does this mean you remember?" Peter said.

In response, Loki held out his fist. Peter returned the gesture, a grin breaking across his face. Groot clapped, and even Drax and Rocket sagged a little in relief.

"So sweet," Ik said, waving his hand at the most cluttered corner of the cabin. The items disappeared, an arch appearing in the wall. Outside, a straight, wide path through the garden and trees opened up. "That will take you to your ship. Now shoo. Visitors once a century is enough for me."

"Someone carry me," Loki moaned.

"How about Drax?" Rocket snickered. "Bridal style?"

"Sounds good to me," Peter agreed brightly.

"No. No, no, that's all right," Loki said quickly, swinging his legs off the table. Mantis and Gamora steadied him, but he found himself caring more about their warmth than their support.

Ik grabbed the coat Peter had draped over a chair and tossed it over Loki, ignoring the human's protest. "Keep him warm," Ik ordered, adjusting Gamora's grip to pin the coat in place. "And do not be surprised if he does little but sleep for a few days."

"I'm right here, you know," Loki muttered.

Gamora shook her head in affectionate exasperation. "Thank you, Ik. We won't forget this."

"Yes, yes, very nice of you. Now shoo."

"Come on," Peter said, beginning to leave but pausing to make sure Loki kept up. "Let's go home."

-MCU-

Loki sat at the table, wrapped in both of his coats, one of Peter's, and three blankets. Still, he clutched a cup of tea in one hand, having no real intention to drink it, rather just embracing its warmth. His cheek rested on his other hand, holding him up to look at the screen.

"So you didn't fake your death," Thor said slowly. "You really… you really were hurt?"

Loki nodded, drawing one leg up to alleviate the phantom pain in his torso. "Badly."

Thor buried his face in his hands. "And I left you there."

"You didn't know, Thor. You were hurt too, and you said you were crying, so you were probably shaking, so it's entirely possible you just missed whatever pulse I had left."

"That doesn't change the fact that I- When did you last sleep?"

Loki smothered his yawn. "It's been a few hours."

Thor scrubbed a hand through his hair. "All right, you rest. When you get back, I'm hugging you to death."

"Uh, no, no, that's not necessary-"

"Nonsense," Val chimed in, leaning into frame. "I will take any opportunity watch you try to squirm away from him."

Loki pursed his lips. "I feel the love."

Ramonda leaned into frame, glancing over him. "Are you sure you're warm enough?"

"I'm wearing a sweatshirt, three layers of leather, and the three best blankets on the ship," he said, not without affection. "I won't freeze."

"That is what T'Challa says," Ramonda pointed out. "And he is often wrong."

"Yes, well, I believe I understand freezing slightly better than the rest of you," Loki joked, stifling another yawn.

A new weight settled around his back, twiggy arms wrapped around him. "I am Groot!"

"And apparently I'm a tree hugger," he added, patting Groot's hands. "Thank you, Groot."

"I think he's the tree hugger, actually," Thor said.

"Groot, I said bring him another blanket, not be another blanket," Rocket groaned, tugging the teen away. He tossed a blanket on in Groot's place, hopping onto the chair beside Loki to adjust it.

"I have finished preparing the broth," Drax announced, setting down a bowl of steaming food.

"Thank you," Loki said, thankful that his appetite at least had been unaffected by this whole mess. Drax watched, unblinking, as Loki tasted the first spoonful. He smiled, flashing a thumbs-up. "Delicious."

Drax clapped Loki's shoulder. "You are a smart man. It was a favorite of Hovat's."

"I can see why," Loki said, picking up another spoonful.

"No, you can taste why," Drax corrected.

"…Yes. That."

"Perhaps we should end this call?" Ramonda suggested, smiling softly.

"I just want to- are you sure you remember everything, Loki?" Thor checked.

Loki rolled his eyes. "Yes, Thor, I remember that time a year ago when you decided to try-"

"Yeah, he's fine. See you on Earth!" Thor said quickly, the screen going black almost before he finished, but not quite before Loki heard Val start demanding to know what Loki had almost said. Loki smirked, already eager to see the fallout when they reached Earth. That would make the impending bone-crushing hug worthwhile.

Drax pressed his hand to Loki's forehead, bending down to peer into Loki's eye. "Are you certain you are all right? You are quite chilled."

Loki batted him away. "I appreciate the concern, Drax, but honestly, I'm fine."

Drax leaned back, but quietly admitted, "I just do not wish to lose you. It took much effort to rescue you, after all."

Loki chuckled. "What did the three of you do to find us, anyway?"

"Nothing we are ever speaking about again," Rocket stated with a shudder. At Loki's narrowing eyes, he added, "Nothing you wouldn't have approved of, either, Cow Lord. And that is the clearest answer you're ever gonna get."

"Fair enough," Loki said. "Thank you for doing… whatever it is you won't speak of."

"I am Groot," he explained.

Loki choked on the broth while Rocket smacked Groot upside the head. "You spent the day in the stall of a public restroom? All three of you?"

"Ugh, that's disgusting," Peter said, coming downstairs, followed by Gamora and Mantis.

"Agreed, but you idiots had to go and get yourselves captured," Rocket retorted, "therefore making it entirely necessary for us smarter ones to huddle in a bathroom!"

"I am Groot!" Groot agreed. Immediately before nibbling a leaf on his shoulder.

Rocket's shoulders slumped. "Every damn time…"

He walked off to take over piloting, tugging the teen with him. Drax followed them with a shrug, probably to sit down and start snoring two minutes later. Gamora and Mantis moved deeper into the ship. Peter plopped down beside Loki, peering at the broth.

"Drax's?"

"Yes."

"Is it actually good?"

"Yes, actually."

"What's in it?"

"I've made it my policy not to ask."

"That's probably smart," Peter said, dipping one fingertip into the broth and licking it clean. "Damn, that is good."

"Listen," Loki said after a moment, setting his spoon down, "I shouldn't have gone on the mission. You were right."

"Ooo, say that again."

Loki pursed his lips.

"Right, you were going for a heartfelt moment, sorry," Peter amended quickly. "And no, you shouldn't have gone. But I also should've made you stay. And it's their faults for deciding to capture us. So, really, you should only get about twenty percent of the blame here."

"None for Nova Prime? You chewed her out quite readily. And unfairly, some might say."

Peter scratched behind his ear. "Yeah, I do owe her a bit of an apology, I guess. There's no way she can remember every criminal all of us have histories with. But she is our only real backup out here, and I think I got the point about that across quite nicely."

"That you did," Loki said.

Peter gestured at Loki's head. "What happened in there, anyway? You were having some pretty intense reactions."

Loki shrugged. "Just facing my worst memories, punching myself in the face… As one does."

Peter considered that for a moment, mouth open as he decided what say. Ultimately, he settled on, "We've done weirder."

"Yes," Loki muttered, "we definitely have."

He yawned, and Peter clapped him on the shoulder. "You should get to bed, buddy."

"Definitely," Loki agreed around another yawn. The moment he started to stand, his blankets started slipping off, and he froze. "Help."

"Dude, you can live without these for the walk to your room," Peter complained even as he caught them.

"I'm cold."

Peter arched an eyebrow. "You realize how ironic this is, right, Mr. Let's Freeze Everyone Else On The Ship?"

"I won't lower the temperature again, just hold the blankets."

"Never?" Peter checked, pushing Loki back down as he tried to stand.

"Yes, never!"

"Sweet," Peter said, finally letting Loki rise. Once Loki was curled up on his bed, boots and all, he dropped them. "You good?"

"Can you ask Gamora to come here?" he asked from beneath the blankets. "I need to talk to her."

"Yeah, sure. Good night, Loki." Peter paused, the doorway creaking as he leaned on it. "I'd say don't let the bed bugs bite, but I don't think they can actually get to you."

"Even better. Good night, Peter."

-MCU-

Gamora leaned into Loki's room, not seeing him at first. "Loki?"

The blankets rustled, and a moment later, his head popped out, hair disheveled and eyes half-shut. "Oh, hi, Gamora," he said, pushing himself upright.

"I can come back tomorrow-"

"No, I want… I want to do this now."

"Ok…" Gamora said, perching on the edge of the bed. Those words are rarely good.

Loki avoided her gaze, picking at his hands. "In that trance, I had to confront my worst memories from recent years. And the third one…"

Gamora winced. "It was me."

"Yes," he answered. "And… no. You showed up, but you weren't the fear. The first two were things I think about almost every day, but yours… I had entirely forgotten it. Which, I suspect, was your intention, seeing as taking care of me could quite easily have gotten you killed."

Gamora ducked her head. "I was hoping you wouldn't remember that."

"Why?"

She sighed, picking up the sketchbook and brushing her fingers over the happy scene. "You're not the only one scared by our actions back then, Loki. We weren't kind to you, but on the occasions where you found the strength and courage, you weren't kind to us either. I suppose, somewhere in the back of my mind, I always find myself waiting for you to snap. To do to me what you did to Beb. And if you didn't remember those times I snuck into your cell, I guess I thought it would make that moment hurt less."

"Why do it in the first place, then?"

Gamora shrugged. "The same reason you saved Jane. The same reason you didn't rule Asgard with a tyrannical fist. It was just that little bit of rebellion against what we were expected to be."

"That's not it."

Gamora turned back to him. "What do you mean?"

"We did those things because Thanos failed. Because even when he had direct control over us, we were never entirely what he wanted us to be. When we were visiting Earth, Ramonda more or less guessed that our fear of each other is what bonds us, but after earlier… I don't think so. I think we've bonded because we know that, even though Thanos didn't completely beat us, he still created a darkness within us, a darkness that we let win.

"That darkness will always be there, tempting us to do the unthinkable, and knowing that terrifies us. That was my fear, not you, and it's a fear we share. But seeing in each other a person that beats it back every day, that somehow found a lover and friends and family despite it… That's why we stick together. That's why we fight for each other, even if we're bloody terrified of each other."

Gamora couldn't restrain a weary laugh, hunching onto her elbows as it faded to a sigh. "We've saved each other's lives multiple times in the last few years, and yet we still cannot put the past behind us."

He reached out hesitantly, chilled fingers resting on her arm. "Let's change that."

She bit her lip. "What I did-"

"I forgive you," he interrupted, gentle but firm.

"Why?" she asked bitterly. "Because I helped you a couple times when I thought you were too wounded to remember?"

He shook his head. "Because you're like my sister. Because you've protected me since the beginning, even from myself, even when I was a stranger, even when it could have gotten you killed. Because even when our guards are up, we laugh together, we mess with each other, and we carry the others home when they get drunk. I forgive you because we're a team, you and I, a team who has fought through a hell of a lot to get here, and I don't want to lose that because we were trying to survive."

"You really mean that?" Gamora whispered.

Loki paused, as if searching for words, but ultimately leaned in, brushing a kiss against her forehead. She smiled softly, warmth radiating from the brief gesture. "I do," he murmured, pulling back.

Gamora swiped at a tear threatening to fall. "You should do this more often."

Loki gave an amused huff, running a hand through his hair. "I have a reputation to uphold, Gamora."

"Would a hug ruin that reputation, Prince?" she teased. "Because you feel awfully cold."

"Hug me," he pleaded.

She smiled, already tucking him against her, setting the sketchbook back on the nightstand and slipping under the covers. He snuggled against her, asleep in moments. Gamora tucked the blankets more securely around him, covering his vulnerable form as best she could. And for a little while, she just watched over him as he slumbered with ease. Trusting her without question.

"And when you wake, we'll both know who we are," she murmured, echoing the answer she had given him a lifetime ago. Yet, it wasn't an echo, for it had changed in every way imaginable. Where once it was a promise of darkness, now it promised a far brighter future than either one had dared hope for back in that cell. A promise both could finally, truly make to the other.

"Thank you… brother."

A/N: And just another, final thank you to all of you!