A/N: Another one-shot! I know what you're thinking, 'Where's the update to *insert other story name here*?!' Hold your horses, I'm still working on them! XD Anyway, some fluff this time, or brofluff, as I like to say. A little bit o' hurt/comfort. No slash, as per usual. Sorta post-Avengers, kinda changes the 'shawarma scene' at then end of the movie, lol.

Rated T for: meanieness (that should be a word and you know it), minor language, some adult themes toward the end.

Enjoy!

Memories at the Back of My Mind

The man of iron- or Tony, as the man had insisted on being called -was saying something about there not being a line, which Thor found utterly confusing, although it appeared to be a jest. The god of thunder stood at the back of the 'shawarma' market, arms crossed boredly, waiting for the strange human to finish speaking to the man behind counter.

"Want anything, blondie?" Captain Rogers looked at Stark. "Not you, Captain Boy Scout," Tony turned to Thor and lowered his dark eye shades, "you. Anything? Sandwich? Barbecue? Pancake? Venison roast on a spit? No but really, they only have shawarma here." He smiled crookedly.

Thor nodded absently, "Yes, however, I know nothing of this 'shawarma'..." He noted several pictures of the strange food, then knew that he would have to choose between them as something similar had been required at the 'diner' Jane had taken him to his first time on Midgard. "Choose for me, if you will," Thor added with a small smile.

When Stark nodded and turned to Bruce Banner to speak, the thunderer suddenly remembered his brother, sitting in the Midgardian 'car' outside. Is he hungry? Thor wondered. Perhaps I should bring him some, as well. But he knew Loki; if he brought him food without asking first, he would no doubt reject it, if only out of spite.

Thor sighed, then mentioned to the others his purpose, but did not wait for their approval as he walked out of the building and moved toward the black vehicle across the street. Another similarly colored vehicle, which Barton had called an 'SUV', was parked behind the first car. The two agents of SHIELD leaned on the first with their backs, presumably enjoying the sun.

The two barely seemed to notice him as he approached, lost in their own quieted conversation, the archer smiling as though they shared a secret known only between them.

Thor frowned a little when he couldn't see his brother through the glass window of the car, thinking that perhaps his brother had lain down in his exhaustion, but when he approached, the seat was empty.

The agents quieted as Thor frantically searched the car with his eyes. "Where is Loki?" he asked, trying to keep panic from his voice.

"Uh..." said the archer, suddenly nervous.

The Black Widow's eyebrows raised by a fraction, then looked to her partner, saying nothing.

"What?" said Barton to her, his tone defensive as he crossed his arms.

"Where is my brother?!" Thor bellowed, growing frustrated. He looked to the SUV. "Is he in the other vehicle?"

Romanoff shook her head, still looking at Barton with something in her eyes Thor couldn't decipher. "Clint," she said finally, voice flat.

The archer rolled his eyes then jerked his head in the direction of the back of the vehicle. Thor frowned. The mortal sighed. "The trunk," he said with resignation.

Thor narrowed his eyes in confusion. Then, looking at the back end of the car, realized what the human meant. His eyes widened and he pointed in anger. "In there? You- you put my brother in there?!"

Barton shrugged, but eyed Thor warily. "What? He was mouthing off at us, he-"

"Open it," Thor ordered, voice nearly a growl as he walked and put his hand on the top of the car. He hissed when the heat from it hit his palm, catching him off-guard. Thor stared at the hard metal. It's hot... it's... His eyes widened suddenly. "Open it!" he yelled at the other two.

Barton was in the process of removing the keys from his pocket, but he paused. "What-"

But Thor couldn't wait, he hit the top of the 'trunk' with a fist, forcing it open. The lid swung open, and to Thor's dismay, revealed an unconscious, sweating Loki, still shackled with the magic-suppressing cuffs, of course.

The two mortals appeared next to him. "What the..." said the archer. "He was just in there for like five minutes, tops."

"Actually, it was more like fifteen," corrected Romanoff as she watched Thor scoop up his brother.

"Whatever," said Barton. "He was screaming at us for most of it." Romanoff pursed her lips, saying nothing. "What? The guy survived the Hulk, like a little time in the trunk is gonna kill him," he smirked.

Thor glared at him as he passed them then noticed Captain Rogers running toward them.

"What happened?" asked the soldier with some concern.

"Nothing!" yelled the archer. "He's probably just faking-"

"Captain Rogers," interrupted Thor, "may I use your 'SUV' to cool off my brother?" The thunderer couldn't help the note of panic in his voice, and the captain seemed to notice.

"Sure... sure, here," he motioned to Romanoff. "Keys?" he said impatiently. The Widow threw them without hesitation and the soldier opened the larger vehicle and held the back door open. "Do you need anything else?"

Thor stepped inside with Loki still in his arms, sitting down, only to realize it was hotter in the vehicle than outside. That won't do... "Can you open all the doors?" He then scooted so Loki's legs at least were not on his lap but on the seat next to them.

"Yeah sure," murmured the captain as he opened all four doors. "I'm curious," he said with some reluctance as he opened the second door, "what's- what's wrong with him? I mean..." he opened the last door and stood outside, watching the two. "I mean, is he okay?"

Agent Barton yelled from where he was trying to shut the dented trunk of his car. "We-" Natasha glared at him. "Okay, I put him in the trunk of the car. Come on, he was being a smart ass, I wasn't gonna leave him in there or something... probably." He slammed the lid harder, without success.

"What's wrong with you?" scolded Rogers. "You put someone in the trunk of a car in this heat?"

Barton turned to the captain and spread both arms wide. "He survived the Hulk. How was I supposed to know-" he motioned toward the two gods "-this would happen. What the hell, anyway?"

Thor ignored everyone except Rogers. "Captain?" The man turned to him. "May we use the," the god searched for the words, "air conditioner?"

The mortal nodded, but grimaced. "Actually, uh..."

"Here." Romanoff was suddenly standing next to the car. "I'll do it." She retrieved the keys and started the car then helped Rogers close all the doors. She then walked away without even acknowledging the other two as she and Barton walked inside. At first warm air filled the space, then finally it cooled, and Thor sighed in relief, positioning his brother better in his arms.

Rogers joined them, hopping in the front seat, then turned around. "Is he okay?"

Thor held tightly to Loki, concern radiating from him. He shook his head absently. "I believe he will be... soon." The truth was, Thor only hoped so. In the past Loki had always had his magic to help with his 'overheating problem', which had always seemed strange to everyone... at least until now. All this time, to think, that was why.

Now that everything was settled, Thor noticed a slight tremor running through his brother's body, as if he were cold. It had been so long since anything like this had happened...

"So..." tried Rogers, obviously curious.

Anticipating the question, Thor shook his head good-naturedly. "I do not believe Loki would approve if I..."

The captain put up a hand. "No problem, it's none of my business. I'll, uh," he backed up and pushed the door open, "leave you to it, then. But, um, do you need anything else?"

The god nodded. "Some water?"

Rogers smiled and nodded back, shut the door, then joined the rest of the team inside the building.

A small groan escaped Loki's lips and Thor jerked his head back to the supine form of his brother in his arms. "Loki?" But the trickster's eyes were still closed, barely stirring. His face was flushed and sweating- which was good, not sweating was worse -and his hair was sticking to the skin along his neck and face. Thor tentatively removed the strands and held him against his chest.

How long had it been since this last happened? At least five hundred years, Thor realized. In their earlier years Loki had had to avoid strenuous activity outdoors during the summer. Enough that he had been teased endlessly about it in their youth- and even still when they had reached adulthood. Although Loki said nothing about it, choosing to retaliate with tricks and pranks on those who so much as looked at him wrong, Thor knew the younger prince had always agonized over the reason. Thor, and everyone else for that matter, almost thrived in the heat of summer, enjoying the sun and grass and activity that came with the midday sun. But Loki, even without his problems with the heat, was always reluctant to join them outdoors, preferring his books and study indoors, in the cool. The trickster had always grinned and rolled his eyes at Thor's concern, saying his problems with the heat was a blessing in disguise, ensuring that he would never have to join the brutes- his words -outside with their 'mindless sparring in the dirt'.

It was for this reason that Thor tried to go on quests only in the winter, or autumn and spring months, so that his brother would join him. Fortunately, once Loki's magical abilities improved, the trickster had joined him even in the summer. Thor had been endlessly overjoyed, even going on quests for rumored ancient tomes hidden in aged halls that Loki would prefer, as opposed to what Thor and his friends typically quested for. After Loki had caught on, he insisted he didn't need the thunderer's pity- which, of course, it wasn't -although Thor recognized that if his little brother were truly upset, Thor would have found a prank awaiting him at home instead of a few scathing remarks in the moment.

Captain Rogers opened the door suddenly, returning Thor's attention to the present. "Here you go," he said, handing a water bottle to the god. "Anything else?" he asked, eyeing Loki.

Thor shook his head, "Thank you, captain, you are a true friend. I am sure... Loki would thank you as well..."

He gave a friendly snort. "Yeah," the captain smiled, brows raised. "I'll head back inside, holler if you need anything else."

Thor smiled once again at the mortal and nodded once, although it was more of a bow. The captain left.

Something stirred in Thor's arms. Loki's eyes were fluttering open, although his body remained still.

"Loki?" whispered Thor, not wishing to awaken his brother if he needed more rest. Still, he wanted to know if he was well.

Nothing happened as the eyes fell closed again. A few moments passed, and Loki began stirring again. He leaned in closer to Thor, the side of his face against the armored chest. The mischief god mumbled something sleepily under his breath as his shackled hands lifted and joined his face against the cool metal. Uncertain what to do with this uncharacteristically affectionate display, Thor remained still, almost afraid to breathe.

A few minutes passed before the green eyes slowly cracked open, then frowned a little at the sight. "Th-Thor?" he said, confused. "What's...happening." He swallowed.

"Here." Thor opened the bottle and tipped it to Loki's lips.

The younger god licked his lips and without thought drank half the bottle before nearly choking and lowering it. He coughed and then, for the first time, seemed to notice where he was and that he was in Thor's arms. "Thor," his voice was a warning, "what are you doing?" The green eyes stared harshly at Thor, the pupils tiny in the bright sun shining outside.

"I am sorry, brother, but you... were unconscious..." Perhaps not the best explanation-

"The mortal, he-" the trickster's eyes darted around, remembering. Then his eyes narrowed dangerously, but he said nothing further. Well, thought Thor, that is not good. If Loki spewed angry and venomous words at you, you would soon be hurting- even if not necessarily physically -but if Loki was silent, words forgotten, anger brewing- Well... even Thor admitted he found his little brother somewhat terrifying at those times.

For some reason this made Thor hold Loki tighter to his chest, as if he wished to protect his little brother from himself, his own- recently -uncontrollable anger. The trickster didn't seem to notice for a moment, but when his face was nearly crushed to Thor's shoulder he growled.

"Thor," he said. The older god lifted his brows innocently. "Put. me. down."

"I...do not believe that is wise," Thor said hesitantly. "You know how weak-" he grimaced at Loki's slightly widening eyes, "-you get," Thor finished through his teeth.

Loki's eyes narrowed the next moment, "I am not asking."

"I don't care," said Thor, still feeling like he was walking on eggshells. "You will remain here until you are better," he said with as much authority as he could muster without angering his little brother.

Loki seemed about to struggle, but the various expressions crossing his face- and very quickly -told Thor the younger was aware he would only make a fool of himself if he tried. "Fine," he finally said, although clearly unhappy about it. It was amusing, almost, as Thor realized that no matter what Loki tried he still looked like he was pouting. The thunderer controlled his face enough not to smirk, fortunately.

"But," continued Loki, "why must you..." he searched for the words, "hold me like this. I will be fine if you-"

"No," said Thor firmly, and at the last moment he remembered why he had always held Loki this way in the past. "You know my armor's metal is meant to always stay cool." And to emphasize his point he gathered Loki a little and pressed him to his chest.

The younger god seemed about to burst with anger as he bared his teeth, but controlled himself at the last moment and closed his mouth, breathing heavily through his nose.

For a moment Thor wondered if Loki had always been this stubborn when he needed help with his 'problem'. He thought back to all those centuries before. Hm. Apparently he had. Troublemaker, his brother had always been, even when it was in his best interest to cooperate.

It was true, though, about Thor's armor. In the earlier days, before the court sorceress had learned to enchant certain metals with a cooling spell, warriors had to endure the heat of wearing armor, and it often caused problems on the battlefield. Thor had never had to experience this problem as the new technique was developed around the time that he had begun his training. Loki, of course, had never been fond of wearing armor anyway, although he had often expressed a desire to wear the 'cooling armor' if only for its unique feature. In his later days Loki had tried to find a way to enchant leather armor, without much success- something to do with the materials, he had said. But when he had found a way to keep himself from overheating he gave up the pursuit of enchanting his leather armors.

Thor smiled at one memory of when, after a particularly glorious battle, he had grabbed Loki in a bear hug, and, to his confusion, the trickster had barely struggled against Thor as he was wont to do. Thor had frowned then, and then teased him, but later realized Loki liked his armor and its coolness against him. From that moment on Thor had forced even more embraces on his brother after each battle, although Loki had learned to struggle more properly by then; Thor knew better, it was all for show on both their parts. Well, Thor did like to embrace others, especially his family, but still- if he could help his brother even that small bit, then he would.

"What are you grinning at?" hissed Loki in his arms.

"Loki," Thor continued smiling, "do you remember- do you remember how I used to embrace you after-"

"-After each battle, nearly breaking my ribs every time?" Loki finished for him, an elegant eyebrow raised. "How could I forget," he said sardonically.

Thor frowned at him. "I did not... break your ribs..."

"I didn't say you did, I said you nearly did. But of course I rarely expected an oaf like you to know your own strength," he finished haughtily with a dark smirk.

"Very funny," Thor huffed. It was interesting how Loki could use something that most people would consider a compliment- Thor's strength -and turn it into an insult. Loki Silvertongue.

The mischief god appeared somewhat satisfied, eyes half closing suddenly. Still tired, then, Thor noted. Always hiding what you see as weakness, brother.

Thor found his thoughts drifting again to their younger days, before Loki's magic could aid him. He had rarely collapsed from his condition, if only because he seemed to disappear before it could happen. But Thor knew better, the young god was hiding, not wanting the others to see. He wasn't fast enough a few times, though, once in particular. They had just defeated a fire drake- a fairly small one, actually, but Thor and his companions were young. Thor was too lost in the frenzy of battle to notice where Loki was, or to see if he was faring well. And after the battle, his little brother collapsed despite not having taken any injuries. Loki had always been a long-ranged fighter, using his magic and his throwing daggers, thus he rarely took injury on their quests. The beast had not been difficult to defeat, but its fire was, well, fire. Sif and the Warriors Three had been laughing at the trickster's stumbling about, although they knew better than to continue after the younger prince collapsed. A few other warriors were not so wise. It was that day Thor had cut off all ties of friendship with those- and anyway, how could they be friends if they laughed at his little brother when he was hurt?

There was another memory that Thor was fond of which happened the winter after that same incident. Thor, Loki, Sif and the Warriors Three were questing in the mountains west of the main city, searching for a rumored lair of an ice beast- which Thor had secretly hoped was a frost troll. Although they had found nothing their search led them to the highest peak in the dead of winter. Smiling widely, Thor had, without thinking, teased his friends about complaining about the cold as they shivered together, and he furthered his taunts when he noted to them how Loki stood by with only a layer of leather to warm him and the trickster wasn't even shivering. His friends had glared at him; Loki had said nothing- which was strange, Thor had thought at the time. Loki was ever quick-witted, ready with incisive barbs with which to needle their friends. A week later, when Thor was sparring with his favorite sword- since he had not yet been given Mjolnir -he noticed that there was an enchantment on the blade. Or several, noted a sorceress when he asked. It would never rust, dull, and would cut through most mundane metals. Somehow, the thunder god knew it was Loki who had enchanted the blade. Thor said nothing to him, and Loki remained silent as well.

The sword still held a place of honor in Thor's personal armory, beside Mjolnir's resting place.

"Thank you, brother."

"What?" Loki looked up, frowning. Thor's mind rushed back to the present, and it was then that he realized he had said that aloud.

Thor shook his head, a little flustered at not having a good reason for saying that. "Nothing, brother. I-" he smiled apologetically, uncertain what to say. Why should I apologize, anyway? All I said was 'thank you'. What was wrong with that?

Loki stared at him suspiciously for a few moments, then sighed and settled back down, looking out the window. "Why are you thanking me?" he asked quietly.

"Nothing, as I said," Thor searched around for something to say.

"You call yourself my brother and yet I should think the brother of the god of lies could muster up something better than that," he said coolly, corner of his lip quirking.

"So now I am your brother?" Thor said in mock disdain, although he hoped his tease wouldn't put Loki in a foul mood; the trickster was prone to emotional outbursts lately, the smallest thing pushing him over the edge.

Oddly, it seemed to have the opposite effect. Thor expected a clever retort, but instead, Loki's eyes glazed over a bit as he stared out the window, saying nothing. The chain of his restraints clinked, then only a moment later, his face was blank again, eyes moving to Thor.

"Where are the others?" he asked with as blank an expression as Thor had ever seen.

"Getting food," the thunderer replied just as blankly. He suddenly remembered why he had come out here but didn't wish to leave Loki alone- for more than one reason. And anyway, he supposed he could give Loki some of his own food if the others didn't bring any for the trickster. Looking at the younger, Thor realized he was still sweating. "Loki, are you still warm?"

The green eyes narrowed slightly. "What does it matter? I'm well enough-"

Suddenly, Thor decided his little brother's pride was not worth so much that he should suffer, so he pulled him to his chest.

"Thor! Stop!" he protested, squirming, earlier resolution to not struggle forgotten. His legs and arms flailed as he, unsuccessfully, attempted to get away, or perhaps to fall to the floor- which would be undignified, but Loki didn't seem to care at the moment as long as he was away from the thunderer.

"Brother, you must cool completely, you know this! Let go of your pride for just a moment!" Thor all but yelled at his seething sibling.

With apparently nothing to say to that, Loki screamed, "I'm not your brother!" into Thor's shoulder. Despite that, he stopped struggling and even held onto Thor, almost angrily, as if he might as well embrace his humiliation fully since there was little choice. His breathing was ragged, and even that somehow came out angrily, almost a growl with each exhale.

In surprise, Thor had mostly let go of his clinging younger brother but slowly wrapped his arms around when he realized Loki would tire quickly and would probably be even more angry if he fell backward without support.

Loki's face was downcast, away from the thunder god, cheek resting against the cool metal, hands gripping the edges of the armor tightly, knuckles white.

Hesitantly, Thor spoke, "Loki..." A pause. "You will tire quickly if you continue to-"

"Shut up," spit out the trickster. Although, after a few moments he relaxed, still not looking at the older god. When another few minutes passed, he settled more comfortably against Thor, face still pressed into his chest, hair tickling the thunder god's chin.

And for a while there was nothing but silence. The city was quiet, for the most part, although sirens in the distance could occasionally be heard. The shock of the attack was still heavy on the crumbling buildings and still lingered between the two godly brothers.

The silence was nice but Thor felt the recently uncovered memories still itching in the back of his mind. "Loki," he said quietly. The trickster didn't move. "Do you... do you remember when we travelled to the western mountain pass, to look for- for an ice troll that I thought was living there?"

The mischief god remained still, breathing, saying nothing.

"And- and we found nothing," Thor smiled fondly, "and it was cold- so cold, but you were the only one who was unaffected; you strode by us like it was nothing, smirking, that way you do. And our friends-" Loki did stir at that, eyes flicking to Thor's for a moment. "Alright, my friends... we couldn't make it down the mountain before nightfall." Thor grew more excited at the memory. "And-and we all had to sleep in the same tent because it was too cold." Thor's smile widened. "And we all insisted you sleep in the center since you were the warmest." His smile faded a little. "None of us understood how you could not be freezing like the rest of us." His smile returned. "And when Fandral tried to lay behind you, you nearly lodged a dagger in his eye and insisted that I sleep next to you even though I wasn't as affected by the cold as the others." Thor's brow furrowed. "Who was it that lay on your other side?" He asked, trying to remember.

Silence fell again for a moment, then: "Hogun," Loki said quietly, not looking at Thor.

"Of course!" Thor said cheerfully as the memory returned. "Yes, yes... But oh yes, before we settled on Hogun, you wanted Sif to lay on your other side, but she refused. I believe... ah yes, she was on my other side, I remember now. Although..." Thor frowned a little, but continued to smile. "Did Sif not change her mind as the night grew? She returned to your side..."

Loki nodded.

"And then," Thor burst out laughing suddenly at the memory, "and-and in the middle of the night she- she nearly killed you when she felt," he laughed more, "when she felt something- what did she say? Something 'poking her'..." He couldn't help but laugh again, more heartily, tears entering his vision. Even Loki was almost smiling, his lips quivering, trying to keep from laughing. "But," Thor continued, mouth wide, "but only to find that it was only one of your throwing daggers." He wiped his eyes with one hand, still chuckling, trying to calm down.

And then, suddenly, Loki's eyes once again flicked to Thor's, a mischievous twinkle behind the green, and he whispered, "So I told her."

Thor couldn't help it, he burst out laughing again, slapping the seat. And even though he only saw it out of the corner of his eye, Loki did smile, if only slightly, and perhaps only at Thor's unseemly display, but still... He was smiling, and Thor did his best to ignore it, like a faint shape in the darkest night- if one looked at it too directly, it would disappear.

.

Only a few minutes later, when Thor's body had laughed itself out, the others returned, food in hand. Loki quickly jumped off of Thor, then sat with his usual blank mask in the seat next to him, staring out the window at nothing. He had cooled off enough, Thor thought- and anyway, he didn't wish to humiliate his brother more by forcing him to continue with the others watching.

Food was passed to the two gods, to Loki's slight surprise- although only Thor noticed, and perhaps the Widow -as they continued on their way.

Loki refused to eat, and Thor did not try to force him, having already tread in deadly waters enough for one day.

A/N: Eeehehehe! Non-con huggles! My evilness knows no bounds! And Clint, you meanie! Ehh, well, actually I can't really blame him, considering that Loki was meanie to him first. ;D Still, doesn't it feel like grade school all over again? Lol. I think canon!Loki would be far less cooperative than this, but hey, there wouldn't be any fluff if he were that in character, right? And maybe Loki got that muzzle to protect him from his snarky self? X3

Hope you guys liked!