It's starting to get late, and TVA Loki is getting antsy.

Mobius was supposed to be back tonight. It is tonight. Where the hell is he? He is coming back, isn't he? He has to be. He told Thor that he would be, and he will.

... He'd really like him to be back now.

"Did he tell you when tonight he'd be back?" Loki asks his brother.

Thor shakes his head. "Only that he would return tonight."

"Early tonight? Late tonight?"

"I don't know, Loki," Thor says, exasperated.

Loki nods. That's okay. That's fine. It's fine that Thor doesn't know. It's fine that Mobius isn't back yet. It's all fine, and it's going to continue to be fine until Mobius comes back and they can all go talk to Odin.

... It doesn't feel fine, though.

"Are you sure he said he'd be back tonight?" Loki asks his brother.

Thor lolls his head back in frustration. "Yes, Loki, I am sure he said he'd be back tonight. Give it time."

Loki plops himself down on Mobius's bed, fidgeting uncomfortably with his fingers. He knows he's getting annoying. He'd stop it if he could. He's just... he's really worried about his friend.

Could something have gone wrong? The TVA can't be too thrilled with Mobius right now. What if Renslayer got to him? What if he got pruned again? Or locked in an interrogation room? Or, worse, one of their horrid time loops?

Sylvie asks the next question: "Did he tell you that this is where he was coming back to?"

Loki pauses, thinking that over. It's a fair question. He doesn't necessarily have to come back to his room. This doesn't have to be his return destination. He could open a time door anywhere in Asgard – or even out of Asgard, if that's what he wants. Maybe they're waiting here for no reason.

"No, he didn't," Thor admits, "but this is where he went to the TVA from, so I imagine this is where he'll return."

"Where'd he send you back to?" Sylvie asks.

"My own chambers," Thor answers. "Another reason I assume he'll return to his."

Loki nods slowly. That makes sense. It's a round-trip ticket between his room and the TVA. He's going to come back, and he's going to come back here.

... Unless something happened.

Unless he got hurt.

Unless he can't make it back.

Loki runs his hands down his face. This is miserable. He just wants his stupid little human back. Is that too much to ask?

"He'll be here, Loki," Sylvie assures him. "Just give him time."

"I don't want to give him time," Loki mumbles. "I've given him enough time." He's had all day to do this. And it's not like he's still working on transcribing the future. He sent Thor back with the transcripts hours ago. There's no reason he should still be back at the TVA.

And then a Time Door appears.

Loki lets out a sigh of relief. He's okay. Everything's okay.

Mobius steps through the Time Door, as nonchalant as can be, and, with his TemPad in hand, he moves to close it...

And then he sees Loki, and he pauses. His gaze flickers to Sylvie and Thor, and then he looks back at Loki. "Uh... Hi?"

Loki pushes himself to his feet. "Oh, I'm so glad you're okay," he breathes.

Mobius furrows his brows. "Why would I not be okay?"

"You've been gone all day," Loki reminds him. "I was starting to think the TVA got to you."

Mobius huffs a laugh. "The TVA hates you; they don't hate me."

That earns a puzzled – but amused – look from Thor, which Loki ignores.

Mobius closes the time door, and he asks Loki and Sylvie, "So, Thor told you everything, I'm guessing?"

"He did," Loki says, "and really, Mobius, thank you for this." He offers his friend the most sincere smile he can manage, because, truly, he does mean this sincerely. He owes Mobius the world for this. After all, Mobius is quite literally saving his world. With what they know now, the threats they know to prepare for, things are going to go a lot differently this time around.

Mobius shrugs. "Well, I still think it's a bad idea," he admits, "but hey, if you're sure this is the right call, we'll go with it. Just don't blame me if it goes south, okay?"

"It's not going to go south," Loki assures him.

"But if it does," Sylvie adds, "I promise, you're off the hook."

Mobius cracks a smile at that, which makes Loki feel better about this whole thing. He's not still pissed at them. He's okay with this, to some extent. And, most importantly, he came back. He didn't just give them the information they wanted and then disappear because he's sick of them.

"You guys talk to your dad yet?" Mobius asks. "Figured out what you're gonna do now?"

"That's what we were about to do, actually," Loki tells him.

Mobius scoffs. "I've been gone all day, and you still haven't had a chance to talk to him?"

"Well, we were waiting for you."

Mobius stares at him.

Then he turns his attention to Sylvie to stare at her.

And then, last but not least, he stares at Thor.

"You were waiting for me," he repeats slowly.

"Of course we were," Loki says. Of course they didn't want to just ditch him.

Mobius scoffs, a look of utter disbelief on his face. "Why the hell would you do that?"

Loki frowns. That's... not quite the reaction he was expecting. He thought they were doing a good thing. He thought it would help, having Mobius around not only to answer questions, but to voice his own concerns, too – of which he appears to have many.

"Because you're one of us, dumbass," Sylvie deadpans. "We weren't just going to not give you the option."

Mobius shakes his head to himself. "Well, it's an option I'm gonna have to turn down," he says. "Seeing your dad right now is actually the last thing I would want to do, but I appreciate the offer."

"Are you sure?" Thor asks. "It might be beneficial both for us and for you."

"I have never been more sure of anything in my entire life," Mobius says.

Loki's just plain confused, and he makes sure that it shows on his face. He doesn't understand. Why wouldn't he want to have a say in what happens next? Why wouldn't he want to help them? To help himself?

Mobius must see his confusion – which was the goal – because he sighs and says, "Look, Loki, I've seen your dad when he's mad. He is terrifying. And considering I just spilled his deepest secret, the last thing I want is to be around when this goes down."

Loki frowns. "He's not going to hurt you, Mobius." How could he even think that? He's a guest here. He belongs here. Even if Odin's upset – and, he supposes, he likely will be – he's not going to hurt him. Especially with Loki and Sylvie and Thor around, he wouldn't dare.

"I don't know that," Mobius says. "And I don't plan to get close enough to prove it." He claps his hands together once, signaling an end to the conversation. "But you guys go see your dad, and let me know how it goes."

Loki's frown deepens. "Are you sure?"

"I'm sure," Mobius assures him. He looks over at Thor. "Hey, you told the other Loki about this, right? He knows what's going on?"

Loki's instinct is to roll his eyes at the mention of the other Loki, but, given that this is something the other Loki should definitely be involved him, he can't really fault his friend for asking.

"I did," Thor says evenly. "He's chosen not to join us."

"Ah." Mobius nods understandingly. "Well, as long as you told him." And with that, he ushers them toward the door. "Now go talk to your dad. I'll see you in the morning."

Loki's frown deepens further, which he didn't know was possible until now. "You're not going to wait for us to come back?"

Mobius huffs. "Loki, I've been in the TVA all day," he reminds him. "I'm gonna be fast asleep before you even find your dad." He flashes his friend a smile, clapping him on the back. "But I'll see you in the morning, and you can let me know how it goes then."

Loki forces a smile of his own. "Okay, well, we'll see you in the morning, then."

Mobius nods once. He seems to be just about done with this. He must really be tired.

"And, again, Mobius," Loki adds, "thank you for this. We owe you."

Mobius just shrugs. "Hey, if you don't use this knowledge to get everyone killed, I'll consider that a win in itself."