I sat in the bathroom staring at the wall as I waited for the tests to show if I was pregnant or not. I didn't know what test would be more accurate, so I bought one of each.

After I bought them, I came back to the tower. Every step I took felt like I was waking through concrete. I made it back without any problems and went straight into the bathroom on my labs floor. I didn't want to do it in my bathroom just in case Loki walked in.

I sat, hugging my knees to my chest, with my head down. It was the only position that felt comfortable to me. If the test was negative, then I'd just go on like nothing had happened, but if it was positive...

'Was I ready to be a parent?'

'Was Loki?'

'Did Loki even want children with me? He was with me under the understanding that I didn't want children... and we'd be having a child without being married! And he was a prince!'

'Would this affect his standing as Asgard royalty?'

'What would his mother think?'

'Oh, my god, is Frigga gonna hate me?'

But then, I thought about holding a baby with Loki's black hair and green eyes, and my nose and lips. Suddenly, I wasn't as afraid. The main reason I didn't want a kid was because I was afraid. Afraid I'd mess it up. Afraid the world was too messed up. But, thinking about Loki, sitting on the couch, reading our child one of his favorite books, I suddenly wanted that more than anything in the world. I just didn't know if I wanted it right this second.

When it was time, I took a deep breath and wiped the tears from my face. I pushed myself off of the floor and walked over to the counter top with the six different pregnancy tests that laid innocently on a paper towel. I was shaking, and scared, but ready to know for sure.

I picked up the first test and turned it over. It was one of those electric ones that literally told you 'pregnant' or 'not pregnant' with either a smiley face or a frowning face.

When I turned the test over, I saw the unmistakable smiley face with the word 'pregnant' next to it. I stopped breathing as my brain processed. I quickly grabbed one of the other tests and flipped it over. A dark pink plus sign gave me the same answer, pregnant. It didn't take me long to look at the others to see that they all confirmed the first one.

My throat swelled and I suddenly missed my mom more than anything. I wanted her here to comfort me and tell me everything I would need to know about how to have a kid. I wanted her here to be excited and sad with me. My heart hurt knowing that she would never get to meet my son or daughter, none of my family would.

My next thought was about how I would tell Loki. I didn't know if he'd be excited or scared. And if he was scared, would it be for the same reasons as me, or would it be because it wasn't what he wanted? If he knew, would he go crazy trying to keep me safe? He'd already said that if it were up to him I'd never see the rest of the Avengers again. And, if they knew I was pregnant, they would let him. Tony alone wouldn't let me help if he knew, let alone everyone else.

I couldn't tell them... at least not until after Ultron. I wasn't far enough along to start showing, and pregnant women could still workout until the eighth month. Fighting a robot that could think for itself was definitely a workout, so it was basically the same thing, right?

Right, I decided. I could do this alone until we defeated Ultron. Only one more week. I could definitely handle that. I'd handled much worse than this. This was nothing.

I collected all of the tests and boxes and shoved them back into the pharmacy bag. I walked out of the bathroom and into my lab before throwing the bag into the biohazard bin so no one would see it. I then sat on the small napping couch in the lab and took a minute to come to terms with everything.

After a few minutes, I went back into the bathroom to slash cold water on my puffy face. I looked into the mirror and saw that my eyes were a bit red, but not too bad all things considered.

From here on out, I had to act like everything was perfectly fine. I couldn't accidentally give something away. I dried my face and looked into the mirror one more time before leaving the bathroom.

As I was stepping out of the bathroom, I ran into someone. I would have fallen if they didn't catch me.

"Are you alright?"

My heart stuttered for a moment as I looked up at Loki.

"Fine." I managed to say. His brows were pinched together and I could tell that he didn't believe me.

"You're lying." He told me. "I could feel your distress through the ring."

"Oh," Stupid ring and it's dumb abilities. "I'm just missing my mom." I said. Technically, not a lie. Loki's expression turned sad and he pulled me closer to him. I wrapped my arms around his waist and hugged him tightly. I tried not to cry again, but a few tears managed to escape and run down my cheeks.

"I wish I could help." Loki whispered into my hair.

"You do help." I sniffed and wiped away my tears. "Just by being here. I miss her, but I wouldn't go back if it meant leaving you." I assured him. He pulled back some and smiled down gently at me.

"My brave, little kitten." He said and wiped another tear away with his thumb.

"Im only brave because I have to be." I chuckled to lighten the mood.

"Well then, you'll have to be brave for just a bit longer." Loki told me. "Stark found another HYDRA base. He thinks it's the one we've been looking for. We brief tomorrow morning before raiding the base that same night."

My breath caught. I didn't have a week to prepare for Ultron... I had twelve hours...