Okay so...this is the last chapter i'm afraid :( See the bottom of the page for notes. I own nothing :D

Steve sat on a hard plastic chair outside the infirmary, waiting impatiently, knowing that just inside those doors, two of his best friends were fighting to save the life of the man he loved. Bruce had told him, in a rare moment of stability on Loki's part, that what he hypothesized was that Loki's organs were failing because the illness was hitting him so hard, and his body temperature was through the roof, especially for a frost giant.

He sighed. That's what bothered him most of all. Hypothesized. They had no real way to be sure because none of them really knew what Loki's vitals should look like, or how his body would react to anything. So far they'd tried giving him drugs to bring down his fever, but he'd reacted badly, so the two scientists in the Avengers were working round the clock to find an alternative that would actually work for their Jotun friend.

Steve jumped to his feet, knocking his chair backwards as Tony appeared in the doorway between the infirmary and the waiting room just outside. The inventor ran his hands a few times through his hair, sighing, and Steve knew he was thinking about needing a good drink. Steve stepped forward, anxiously waiting for whatever Tony was about to say.

"He's stable. Don't know how long he'll stay stable for, but Bruce is gonna monitor his condition. Fever's down, thank God for that, now we just have to focus on keeping him hydrated and cooled down. Not gonna lie, Steve, he's really sick, but we've got better control of it now. He'll be okay. He's sleeping, but you can go in and sit with him. He was asking for you, even in his delirium. He must think you're pretty special, Rogers."

Steve let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. It was okay. Loki was going to be okay. That's all that mattered, never mind the tiny part of him doing leaps of joy that Loki had been asking for him. He waited impatiently for Tony to move from the doorway, and rushed in, stopping still when he saw Loki on the bed. Still in his Aesir form, a relief because it meant he still had some strength in him, and some magic, the Trickster's skin was stark white even against the sheets he lay upon, small rivulets of sweat on his head, deep purple bags under his eyes. Bruce sat in the chair opposite the door, glancing up from his chart to give Steve a weak smile before standing and offering his place to the Super Soldier. Steve took it without argument, now was not the time for manners. He had more important things to think about, Loki's flutering eyelids being first and foremost on his list. He took his seat, grasping on pale hand gently in his, pressing a kiss to the elegant fingers and waiting.

"Steve?" It was barely a whisper, but it was still there. Steve felt tears prick at the corners of his eyes, and let the tears flow, unashamed.

"Hey, sweetheart. I'm here, it's okay. How're you feeling?"

Loki groaned softly, turning his head toward Steve, eyes drifting open until Steve could clearly see his stunning green irises. "Like Thor hit me with Mjolnir. He didn't did he?"

Steve chuckled softly, ceasing his stroking patterns on the back of Loki's hands, and moving his fingers up to cup the side of the pale face. "No, love, you know I wouldn't let him do that. You've been very sick, and it got worse, but Tony and Bruce and I are taking care of you now. It's all gonna be alright, I promise."

Loki yawned, eyes drifting closed again. "Mmkay..Love you Steve. Stay?"

Steve smiled fondly, pressing a chaste kiss to Loki's warm lips. "I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. Rest now, love. I love you too."

Over the next few days Loki was in and out of consciousness. His fever broke but he was still rather weak, falling asleep almost instantly after his first attempt at sitting up on his own. Bruce warned him against using his magic for a while, but of course Loki hadn't listened to that, taking the "I do what I want" stance on things. However, later in the day, when he found himself rousing from unconsciousness only to thrust his head into a bucket and regurgitate his lunch, he agreed that maybe his body wasn't quite ready to handle using magic again.

Steve laughed, watching through the window as Thor tried using the aeroplane technique to get Loki to eat a little more, only narrowly avoiding the fist thrown his way. Admittedly it would probably do Loki more harm right now than it would Thor, but the intent was there. Thor chuckled heartily, ruffling Loki's already mussed hair, starting the routine over again. They had been hard pressed to drag Tony out of the room once this routine had started, the playboy only too happy to record the spectacle and show it to the entire team. Bruce had smiled good naturedly and shoved Tony from the room, promising to check on his patient later in the day. As for Steve, noone had tried to pull him from the room, but he chose to let the brothers have this time to talk, and to bond.

The Super Soldier stifled his giggles as the God of Thunder stepped into the corridor, hair coated in the noodle soup he had been trying to feed his ill sibling. He noticed Steve standing there and shuffled his feet, embarassed.

"Uh...My brother appears to have gained much of his strength back..as well as much of his spirit. I believe I have you to thank for the latter, Friend Steve."

Steve felt blush creeping up his neck as he stammerd. "N-no no, I, I didn't do anything really."

Thor shook his head, and Steve stepped back a little as bits of soup went flying everywhere. "You have done much for him. He is happy again. I thank you." And the Thunder God strode away, leaving no chance for Steve to argue.

He shook his own head, smiling to himself as he walked into the infirmary, and his heart fluttered when Loki's eyes met his, emerald meeting sapphire. The smile on the God's face could have lit up the country, let alone the town, and Steve felt himself relax as he saw him. Everything was perfect as long as Loki was around.

"Hi, someones feeling better I see." He prodded Loki's legs gently, conveying his gratitude to every deity that this was true. Loki chuckled.

"Yes, thanks to Stark and Banner. And even a little thanks to Thor. I am feeling much better. Well enough to do this, even." Steve lurched forward as he found Loki's hands entangled in his shirt, pulling him until their lips crashed. Steve melted into the kiss, feeling Loki's tongue probing gently at his lips, parting them to allow him entry. They kissed for two glorious minutes before Steve pulled back, face flushed.

"Loki..I've been wanting to talk to you about that, and I ask that you don't interrupt until the end, okay? Let me get this out, I've been thinking about it for days." When Loki nodded his acceptance, Steve took a deep breath, steeling himself.

"Loki Laufeyson, or Odinson, or whatever you go by nowadays...Loki. I love you, more than I ever thought I could love anyone, even Peggy. Peggy was my first love, and it was amazing, but she died, Loki, and I lived. I have to move on. And I found you. You are so much the light in my darkness, just seeing you smile could keep me happy for a thousand years. You are so strong, and beautiful, and smarter than I could ever hope to be, and you've put up with so much bad stuff in your life, sometimes I don't understand how you aren't broken, but I'm so grateful you're not. I'm so grateful I found you, and that you're mine. I know the past couple of weeks have been insane, but I think even before then, I loved you. It sounds stupid but out in battle I would always be keeping an eye on you, and I told myself it was because you used to be our enemy, but in truth I was always wary of you getting hurt, always waiting to protect you from some evil, knowing you'd had enough in your life. The last few weeks have been insane, and scary, and amazing, and have made me realize I want to spend the rest of my life being insane and scary and amazing with you. I want to protect you and love you and cherish you with every fibre of my being, and I want to be able to truly call you , I've waited a long time to do this, because I wanted you to be healthy enough to remember it...and I asked Thor if there was a special way to do this where you're from, but he said I should do it my way and.."

Steve took a deep, shuddering breath, cutting off his own rambling, and knelt down on one knee. He looked straight into Loki's emerald eyes, glistening with unshed tears.

"Loki Laufeyson, will you marry me?"

Loki choked on his tears, bending his head to wipe away the moisture in his eyes, smiling uncontrollably. "Yes." He choked out, laughing as he said it. He swung his legs from the bed, ignoring how weak they felt, and threw himself into Steve's - his fiances- arms.

Steve let out a breath, shaking a little from relief. He felt Loki laughing in his arms.

"What's so funny?" He asked, pulling the God around to face him.

"Oh, nothing. Just imagining the look on Fury's face when we tell him."

Steve laughed, the sound ringing through the halls of the tower.

Oh yes, this was going to be fun. He was engaged to the God of Mischief, after all, the would always be a little bit of chaos in their lives.

But they would be alright, because they were together.

Okay so...thats the end! Im sad to see this fic go but i think its time to move on, this seemed like an okay place to end :P I hope you loved it as much as i did, let me know in a review!