Ruin (Thor x Loki)

by Starklanterncorp

This story was for some reason previously removed from the site but I have re uploaded it as the the author himself said he will never ever upload it again so I doing him a favor . There no way this story is ever going to be removed from the internet so I re-uploaded it for your pleasure.

Loki woke, and Thor was not there. He patted the sheets beside himself, drenched in sweat, but found … nothing. He staggered out of bed then and made his way to the bathroom, hunting about frantically. No Thor. It somehow seemed desperately important that he found his brother.

Eventually, he sat down at Thor's writing desk, putting his head in his hands as he did. It irritated him that he needed his brother the way he did. It bothered him badly! But …

He could hear talking then, and if he strained his ears, there was Sif's voice. At first he couldn't understand, but the longer he focused …

He could hear Thor's every word. Fear tugged at his heart, and his stomach clenched.

Well, that was what he got for eavesdropping. He rubbed his forehead, and tried to open one of the books, to read something, even in the low light ….

"Did you hear that?" Sif asked, suddenly straightening, any hint of her head bothering her instantly vanishing.

"Hear what?"

"Shh!" the warrior snapped, her head turning back to the open window. "He is awake, I should not keep you from him."

Thor looked at her, expression asking what he wouldn't voice. Had Loki heard?

Probably.

"Do you need assistance getting back to your own window?" He asked aloud and Sif only shook her head, a sad half-smile on her face.

"Good night, my prince, and thank you for your company," she inclined her head and then was off, moving silently along the rooftop. Thor watched her go and then looked back at the window. He really should have gone further away, but he had not anticipated company outside his window.

His re-entry into the room was less than graceful, but he managed not to fall flat on his face. He saw Loki sitting at the desk, squinting at a book that he obviously couldn't read in the low light. Thor padded over to his brother and drew him back from the book, hugging the trickster against his chest. The thunder god braced for whatever might come, as he murmured his brother's name once.

Loki tensed. He wanted to shout at Thor about being so stupid as to wager his own future on someone like himself. "Well, me being your 'only' from now on went rather quickly, didn't it?" Loki asked, anger in his voice, not at Thor, but at himself. He would pretend it was jealousy that made him angry. After all, he hadn't been supposed to hear any of that conversation. Let Thor think him petty.

The words hurt. Of all the things he could have guessed might have come from his brother's mouth, Thor didn't expect this. Had Loki really not heard? Or was this a ruse?

It didn't matter though, because the words still stung and they certainly struck somewhere deep. "Think very carefully about what you are saying," the blond god murmured softly, forcing himself to be still, to not react. Not yet. He kept holding Loki back against him.

Loki pulled away, shaking his head. He didn't bother with shoes, he just … he couldn't be here. He kept backing away from Thor until he slammed right into a wall, and then with a flash-touch to his Seiðr, he was gone.

Thor's reflex was to reach out for his brother, to grab him, but Loki had already vanished. Gone.

Where to? There were hundreds of places that his brother could have disappeared to. Thor would never find him, it was too easy for Loki to slip past him. He thought to recruit Sif and the warriors three, but even with their help, if the trickster didn't want to be found… Slowly Thor sank down into the chair that was still warm from when his brother had been sitting in it. A feeling of complete helplessness coming over him that took him by surprise.

"Brother …"

Heimdall looked away from the city of Asgard, turning his back on the capitol and gazing out into the endless space that surrounded the nine worlds. He heard the heavy breathing of someone who had been running hard, and the cool breeze of a familiar magic carried passed him.

"If you intend on throwing yourself off the bridge, let me dissuade you. It won't do any good, you didn't die last time," the guardian rumbled as Loki came within earshot of him. The two brothers, did they never stop getting into trouble? They almost made Heimdall feel old. The trouble wouldn't stop though, not so long as Loki was alive and Thor kept following him like a lost puppy.

At least for the time being he only had to manage one of them.

The faintest of smirks touched Heimdall's face and he made sure to keep his back to the sorcerer. Last night was the first time he'd ever seen Thor look quite so full of despair, not that Loki looked much better. The trickster would have found out eventually, and it seemed that no one liked the conditions that Thor had demanded.

"I didn't come here to throw myself off. I came here to think. I was rather hoping you'd gone for a walk somewhere," Loki grumbled, sitting down on the edge of the bridge. So what if the old guardian was here! It didn't change anything. He just needed to … think. To come up with a plan, with any kind of plan.

"And leave the bridge unattended?" Heimdall couldn't help but chuckle, careful to keep his expression serious, he turned to face the unhappy sorcerer. "I am not so careless, you shouldn't be either," he spoke the words with care, eyes moving once more to the city and taking mental note of what was happening.

"You cannot change what has already been decided, you know that," the guardian rumbled, golden eyes going back to Loki. Just because he saw and heard all, when it suited him, did not mean he always followed the intent behind his far-sight. The all-seeing-eye of the nine realms was not a psychic. "Yet you would scheme to undo what has been fought so hard for. Do not think too hard, sorcerer, otherwise you will find yourself down paths that not even your brother will be able to bring you back from." Being the guardian was a lonely job and it often left far too much time to think.

Loki chuckled. "It is selfish to say that I want to make the decision for him. To say that he should not throw his life away after a monster like myself. I have no say in it, and you know it." Loki stated.

The statement was purely rhetorical, but oddly enough he found the sullen and stern gate keeper solid company in the moment.

"The illusion of control is something cherished by all beings within the nine realms," Heimdall said with the slightest of shrugs. "In reality, neither you nor your brother are in control of your fate. Not any more than the All-Father is in control of his, or I of mine. It is all pre-written by Those Behind the Veil, and their fate is written by a being even greater than themselves. But take that illusion away—" The guardian glanced at Loki. "—and we become enraged, for we truly believe that our actions are our own. That we are above the beasts that we rule over. We are not, and it matters not if we are the knowing manipulators or an unwitting participant."

He shifted his gaze back to the blackness of stars and space. "The short answer, the one that you already have, is 'no'. The question that you must consider, however, is what you do when you realize you have no control. Would you do as the Chitauri would have you to do? Give up yourself? Or do you fight?" There was a low growl in the gate keeper's voice. Loki had made the decision once, it was a question of if he was fool enough to make the same choice twice.

Loki snorted, and after a long pause, replied.

"I do not know the answer. I seldom tested myself, only let my brother fight my battles for me, or manipulated others into doing the same. Perhaps it's clever, but to some degree, it is only cowardice. My father is right." Loki tilted his head to stare out at the stars, finding himself wishing his brother were here, and finding that his hope, while shaken, had yet to be extinguished.

"You don't know?" Heimdall sounded incredulous and then laughed. "Loki, the trickster, the great manipulator and demi-god of mischief does not know? Oh that is rich," At least the boy was aware of his role as one who pulled the strings. Just this was not answer enough, though. It was too passive. Too elusive. Loki would need conviction to face what was yet to come. "You are wrong about one thing, however. It is not cowardice. True cowards never move from behind the veil of deceit. True cowards will never fight."

Heimdall was moving now, pace sedate, and he came to stand next to where Loki was sitting. "So we come to the heart of the matter again: are you willing to fight? Or go lamely into the darkness?" He rumbled. It would only take a single motion to push the trickster off the bridge, perhaps a second more to lift him up by the scruff of his tunic and cloak and suspend him over the emptiness of space. Heimdall resisted for now, curious to see if Loki would give him the answer, the only answer. Even if there was no control, there was always inspiration, always hope. If there was hope then people, animals even the tiniest organisms would fight. Would Loki?

"I would assume I can fight. I used to like to … before. Before Thor became so good at it that I was afraid to—it isn't important. I can fight." Loki said, looking out to the stars with a kind of resigned exhaustion.

Heimdall snorted. No spirit was left in the trickster, it was as if it had all been leeched out of him by the Chitauri. A pity, really. Loki was not and had never been a passive being, it was not in his nature. Now he was just saying what needed to be said, and he was playing along. There were some truth to him, some frankness, perhaps the only honesty Heimdall had ever heard leave the boy's lips. It was not unappreciated, but now was not the time for sentiments and passive self-pity.

The guardian knew the trickster was tired, knew very well what strain his body was under, but time was in too short a supply to gentle the boy into conviction. So Heimdall would have to speed up the process.

"Then fight."

Those words were the only warning he gave before swooping down like a giant black and gold bird and plucking Loki up from where he sat by the collar of his tunic and cloak. "Show some life," he held Loki out over the side of the ruined bridge, golden eyes burning. "Because this, this is not fitting for one who would stand by the side of the king of Asgard. He might see the life in you, the fire within your ice, but I see nothing but a broken child. Prove me wrong. Fight, least I lose interest in you and throw you back for them to find. Show me your conviction or are you just a wretched runt leftover from Laufeys' conquests?"

Loki hung there for a moment, dangling off the edge of the bridge. The enormity of the insult took a moment to process. Normally he would have shrugged it off, but there was a sort of dark anger brewing. A rage at his captors, a rage at his father, and something that he had never possessed before came roaring to the forefront. Unbridled temper. Fury. Not just that, but the desire to utterly destroy in a way that he hadn't even felt for Thor.

"My mother … was a good person." Loki whispered. "I … might be a monster, but I am a person too…" The words were not a shout, they were a shadowy whisper. Cold spread through his entire body, each beat of his heart driving enraged ice through his veins. He knew he was changing, knew his eyes were turning crimson, and instinctively he knew that he could hurt with his aura if he wanted to. Both hands came up then, and grasped onto Heimdall's wrist. The burst of Seiðr crawled outward slowly, like a lazy serpent uncoiling. He thought about hurting, he thought about driving back. His magic was deep in his chest, roiling. He could touch it now!

The remains of the bridge began to tremble and echo, and the air grew cold and thick. Both of their breath stained it, and then there was a low rumble, like oxygen itself was straining against the power building within the sorcerer."I AM A PERSON!" He snarled, and as he did, Heimdall only had seconds to realize his error. The burst of Seiðr was like a small bomb blast.

Loki's fingertips caught the side of the bridge before he fell, and Heimdall flew backwards, skidding across and barely stopping before falling off the shattered end. Loki pulled himself back up, ice orbiting him now in a sort of personal wind. "I AM NOT A THING TO BE WON OR LOST. I AM A MAN TO BE RESPECTED—" he paused, red eyes glowing, expression turning just slightly sadistic "—And I will beat that respect from you if I must." The half-giant whispered the last words.

They still carried sharply, and the bridge had yet to cease trembling. It was ringing now, as his chakram had against his palms. His fists were clenched in rage, and he stalked towards Heimdall. It was blood he wanted.

Heimdall would have applauded the outburst had he not been on the receiving end of it. The guardian had landed hard, his golden armor cracking and his sword sliding away from him. He would have moved to pick himself up, but his body was not responding. So the little runt had some force after all, not just the magic that the casket had granted him. Here was the fire that Odin had been so worried wasn't there. Here was the life, the fight. And it was surely about to end him.

He had warned Odin about this, told him that pushing the barely recovered youth too hard would cause damages that could have drastic consequences. Odin had insisted. A test within a test, fair enough. Heimdall supposed that between being frozen, the insult and now being thrown back on his ass, somehow in the grand scheme of things he and Loki were even. Oh, but was the second son of Odin ever furious now. Even when he had posed as king, Heimdall had not seen this side of the trickster.

Odin All-Father was certainly going to owe him one for this.

Heimdall tried again to sit up. Loki was stalking towards him now, surrounded by his own personal ice storm of rage. Well that was a new trick. It was then that the guardian realized that he could not, in fact, feel his toes and he was fairly certain that he felt a broken bone grinding against the metal of his armor. "Now that is more like it," he murmured, golden eyes taking in the sorcerer approaching him and then closing. Preparing for the inevitable.

It was then that a familiar and annoying voice called out above them.

"Found you! Found you! Found you!"

Heimdall opened his eyes and saw Huginn soaring overhead. He'd neglected to keep track of what Thor was doing. Apparently, the thunder god had not let his upset consume him. There was the sound of hoofbeats, and they broke up the sound of the magical hum running through the bridge. Not a moment too soon, either. Loki's whirlwind of ice was getting dangerously close.

"Loki!" Sif called out, kicking her horse to go faster, but Thor was ahead of her. The thunder god got closer than she before his horse spooked from the bridge vibrations. Giving up on the beast, he dismounted, tumbling once before running to his brother. There was no time for thought, no time nor analysis of the situation. He just had to act.

Thor reached through the wind storm of ice, hissing softly as the crystals cut his arm. He didn't pull away though, instead he reached until his hand closed around Loki's wrist. "Brother!"

Loki spun on Thor then, rage redirected. He was baring fangs at his brother. "WHAT?!" he hissed, barely stopping himself from attacking Thor too. He was breathing hard, and it was all he could do not to throw an ice-dagger at the noisy raven overhead.

"Thor!" Sif screamed, her hand going to her sword, about to throw herself between the two brothers. Thor put a hand out signaling for her to stop. She did, but only just.

Thor's eyes were wide, and he wanted to shrink back from the angry frost giant. He had never seen Loki this angry or this barely in control of himself. The sorcerer's words had carried all the way down the bridge, and he and Sif had not needed Huginn to spot the mage. For a moment, the thunder god was almost afraid, but then he stepped forward into the ice storm. "Brother," He grit out. "I respect you. I love you!" Thor brought a bleeding hand up to touch his brother's face. "You are right, you're not a monster. You're a person, my brother, my lover."

The thunder god's eyes were soft, honest and unafraid, because this was his brother. This was the being that he would give up everything for. "Nothing will ever change that. I will always love and respect you."

Loki snarled in response, the sound feral, and his teeth snapped the air between them in a gesture of animal outrage. The anger was slowly dying though, as was his hold on his Seiðr. Thor's calm gaze soothed the anger inside of him, and gentled it. The touch to his face, a warm glow, began to push the ice back. There was a groan, and a sigh then, and the thrum left the bridge as Loki's frost aura fell. The trickster deflated then, staggering, and the cold left him. His hair was damp, like it was covered in dew, and his clothing was soaked in the melted ice. He shivered, his eyes never leaving Thor's.

"It's all right," Thor promised, bringing an arm around Loki's waist to support the trickster. He moved his hand to Loki's temple, stroking his hair back as he pulled him closer. Behind them he could hear Sif approaching, giving them both a wide berth and staring at them with awed eyes. "I was worried about you," the thunder god whispered, his voice trembling minutely. "Let's go back. We can wash and go back to bed."

"I think," Loki whispered, pausing to laugh and as he did, he coughed blood. "I think I killed Heimdall. Why don't you help him to the healers?I can … I can go back. I can … " Loki started to stagger harder. He just had to … make it back. Wash up … and think about—this was all his father's fault. He knew he'd fallen right into the trap, he'd just not been able to help himself. He frowned at the broken Bifrost, watching blood from the corner of his mouth splatter it. Frost giant blood…

"No! He still lives!" Sif called down to them from where she was crouched next to the guardian. She stood and came back to the brothers, giving Loki an appraising glance. "Thor, you help Heimdall, I'll take Loki, they both need healers." Leaning closer, she studied Loki. "it looks like you over did it." She said privately as she gave the sorcerer a sympathetic smile.

Overdoing it was something that the female warrior was quite familiar with.

"Come on," she slipped under Loki's arm, supporting him. "No arguing. Let's go." With that she started to drag Loki away from his brother, but Thor stopped her for a moment longer to lean over and gently kiss his brother's lips.

While Sif helped Loki, Thor went to Heimdall.

"What did you say to him?" Thor asked as he crouched down by the guardian.

"Things that I'll not repeat in a thousand lifetimes. You have made a good choice, Odinson," Heimdall groaned as Thor helped him up and over to his horse. "Leave it at that."

Thor took care to make sure he and Heimdall rode well back behind Sif's horse. Who knew if Loki would get a second wind and make another pass.

Somehow the healer knew they were coming. She was waiting for them outside her room with a tiny smile of amusement. She tended to Loki first, and then to the guardian of the Bifrost, chuckling to herself all the while.

"It'sabout time you got put in your place," she hummed in amusement to Heimdall.

She had just finished giving Loki a final look over, wanting to be certain the healing stones had not missed anything. "Now you," she shook a finger at the exhausted trickster. "Sif you should have told him not to over-exert himself! No wonder he's in such bad shape. Young Odinson, you are to go take a hot bath now and eat some warm soup. Some lean protein, fish perhaps, would be good for you right now and rest. Off with you now, shoo," she said ushering the brothers and Sif out of the room. Heimdall was left in the healers tender graces, and Loki refused to even look in his general direction as he was helped from the room.

The trickster barely made it up the stairs before his right knee refused to hold him anymore. It was exhaustion, not injury, that bore him down. Thor and the warrior woman both carried him the rest of the way, and it was Sif who helped him into the bath then, while his brother went to go raid the kitchens. It was then that Loki discovered, to his great delight that the bleeding seemed to have ceased. "I think … the bleeding has stopped," The sorcerer murmured. Oh please let it be over! Let it all be over! He had told them that he could walk but they had not listened …

"Oh?" Sif asked as she pulled his clothes off and helped him into the bathtub. "Lucky bastard," she scoffed, splashing water over his back. "While we're speaking of good news, I think you should know that I'm not sleeping with your brother." She found a bath bucket and filled it with water, pouring it over his head while he considered that.

"Even if you were, it would be your business." Loki spluttered. He shivered at the hot water and stayed silent. He didn't know what to say, and eventually he busied himself with soaping his hair and washing the reek of magic off of his skin.

Sif snorted and shook her head, taking the soap from Loki and set about scrubbing and rinsing his back. Her touch was gentle, but she did pinch his side just once, muttering that he needed to eat more before leaving him to soak.

She ran into Thor as she was leaving the bathroom, and gave him a tired smile. The thunder god had a plate of smoked salmon, some rice mixed with vegetables, and a mug of mead.

"Who did you have to bribe to make that?" she asked, stealing a snow pea off the plate.

"It was already set out and warmed actually," Thor shrugged. He had a very strong feel that someone had just been waiting for this to happen. "There is more in the ice boxes if you're hungry."

Sif shook her head. "No, I'm tried, and your brother is too. Go check on him before he falls asleep in the bath and drowns."

Thor nodded at this, and set the plate and mug down on the bedside table before gathering a towel for his brother.

"Oh, Thor? One more thing."

He stopped and looked at her.

"Hogun knows," she warned.

"I thought he might be among the first to figure it out before the formal announcement," Thor was too tired to worry right now. He could do that later.

"What would you have me do?"

"Nothing, I'm not ashamed, and there is no reason for me to hide. Do not worry," he gave her a sad smile and then stepped into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him.

Loki had sunk down until just his eyes and nose were above the water. He glanced to Thor as the other entered the bathroom. He wasn't sure what his brother would think or say, and honestly he was already nervous. Nervous now because he didn't know where the power he had experienced on the bridge had come from.

Thor smiled at his brother and sat on the edge of the tub. He looked like one of those large water reptiles on earth. "You can't stay in there all night, you know?" he murmured softly. "Your food will get cold, and you'll get all pruny." He dipped his fingers down into the water and watched the ripple they made run into the ones caused by his brother's heartbeat. Thor just quietly drank in and appreciated being able to see his brother naked like this and then slowly his digits drifted over to stroke Loki's ribs, thinking carefully on what he had seen happen. The power that Loki had displayed, not even Laufey had that sort of power. Not without the help of the casket. Then … had it come from his mother? Could the mage use both his illusion magic and ice magic now?

"Your power," he said thoughtfully. "It was different just now than it has been in the past. Not an illusion, but actual ice magic. I wonder, is that from your mother's blood? You said she was strong wasn't she?"

"I wish I knew," Loki admitted after a long silence. "But I do know now that my frost form … it doesn't hurt unless I want it to." The sorcerer frowned. "What happened this night? That—I don't know if I was in control of that."

Thor just nodded, studying the water. A small cut on his hand from the ice was stinging a bit, but he ignored it in favor of resting his fingers on Loki's belly. He started to trace patterns over the pale skin and around the trickster's navel. "We'll figure it out. I'm sure you'll understand it better as you use it more."

There wasn't any blood in the water now … so did that mean? Well, that was good news if that was the case.

His rumination was interrupted, though, by the stinging worsening in his hand. Apparently a wound from frost giant magic could really last. In all the excitement he'd not asked the healer to see to it. The wound were small.

Loki arrested the motion of his brother's hand, frowning, and then lifted it up above the water. This … this was something he could mend. It was small. Besides, he'd already overdone it, so pushing himself a bit more wouldn't make a difference either way.

He gathered what was left of his Seiðr and then let it pool, cool and soothing to the tips of his fingers. The blue energy left them, skimming across the surface of his brother's hand, and the mage watched the tiny cuts mend.

Thor shivered as the cuts healed, Loki's magic made goosebumps rise on his skin. He would have protested that it was nothing, and his brother need not waste the energy, but the deed was already done. He took Loki's hand then, cradling it in his own with great care and pressing his lips against the back of it.

"Brother …" he started to say, but bit back the words. There were hundreds of things he wanted to say to try and fix what had driven Loki to the bridge. Instead he only gave the illusionist's hand a gentle squeeze. "You should rest," he murmured quietly.

The trickster did agree, and slowly he slunk from the tub, toweling off quickly, and being sure that … yes. Yes, it had stopped. So had some of the pain, but then again, perhaps the tablet was still working. He wrapped the towel around his waist, and then smelled … Food? He glanced to his sibling curiously. Making his way back to the bedroom, he glanced to the plate at the bedside, and then back to Thor. For him?

Thor followed his sibling, shedding the shirt and boots he'd frantically pulled on earlier, and yawned. He gave the trickster a nod when he saw the hesitation.

"Gone on, it's for you," he told Loki, pausing to search for something in the drawer of the little bedside table. "If I have to take it back, Muninn and Huginn will eat it," he teased gently, finding what he was searching for and sitting on the edge of the bed. "So don't let it go to waste."

Loki perched to the edge of his brother's bed, and found that he somehow had an appetite despite everything that had happened. There was still a knot of worry in his stomach, but he could push it aside. He had to. Itwas like his Seiðr demanded he eat or else. The plate was gone in moments, and then the trickster turned his gaze back to his brother.

Thor was surprised to see the food be devoured so readily, but he gave a nod and a smile of approval when Loki glanced back at him. No scrapes for the ravens tonight, they would be sorely disappointed.

"Good," he murmured and moved across the bed to sit behind his brother. If they could manage to keep him eating, before long Loki might actually start to fill out again. The mage had always been lean though, and his magic put additional demands on his body. Thor knew it would take time, but soon the trickster would look healthy again.

Thor slowly stroked fingers up along Loki's spine and placed a whiskery kiss on one shoulder. "It has been a long night, relax," he encouraged as his fingers worked the cap off the vial he'd taken from the drawer. Tonight was just to soothe, to ease the emotional wounds that had been so inflamed.

When his hands were slick with oil, he put the cap back on the vial and set it aside. Resting both his hands on his brother's shoulders Thor started to massage his brother's back.

Loki startled at the first touch, and then slowly let himself ease back into his brother's hands. He needed this. He needed it desperately. His mind was overwhelmed, and it was all he could do to just silence it, and let his brother fill that empty place inside with touch.

As a boy, he hadn't been as often hugged or touched as Thor had, and later not at all. He was physically deprived of touch, and just to be valued like this went a long way to comfort him. This … this he could fight for.

Thor's hands slowly worked down Loki's back and sides, strong fingers finding every tense muscle, every knot and teasing it loose. The thunder god moved to rest his head on the top of Loki's shoulder as his hands found their way to the small of his brother's back, kneading and dipping just barely below the edge of the towel to target the base of his spine.

The thunder god didn't say anything, there had been too many words lately. Words that only mixed things up and made them more confusing. Words that hurt. Words that needed to never be said again. When the muscles that he stroked had calmed, were softer beneath his hands, Thor lifted his touch upwards again and brought his hands up to rest on Loki's neck. He rose up on his knees be

PART 22 IS BELOW THE CUT: VVV

Thor held his brother close and thanked those-beyond-the-veil that his hands didn't tremble as he washed the trickster's back. Loki was alive, he was here right now. Everything was going to be fine. They would have breakfast and all would be well.

That didn't stop him from worrying, though.

Thor wasn't known for deep thoughts or profound ideas, or even for really thinking that much about anything he didn't have to. But right now, and despite his best efforts to hide it from himself, he was shaken. He worried for his brother's health, for his mind and spirit, and more so, how breakfast would go with his fellow Avengers. He was exceptionally concerned with how Loki would behave around Bruce Banner, as he was not keen on seeing if a frost giant could beat The Hulk.

When every inch of Loki was scrubbed and the mage's hair was washed, Thor hastily bathed himself and turned off the water. Stepping from the tub, he grabbed one of the towels from the nearby table and wrapped the trickster in it before lifting him out of the bath. He then perched his disgruntled sibling on the counter while he located a second towel and dried himself as well

Loki knew he looked strangely small in the towel, and very pale, even more so than usual. He might have seemed contented to a casual observer, but that was just the calm surface of a powerful river. The roiling emotions beneath were very vulnerable, and thus, by nature, defensive.

"Am I to wear your clothing? I can glamour something else, but I don't know if I really want to exert the effort this morning," the trickster said, glancing to the sweats and T-shirt on the floor. No matter what, he knew he was not going to fit in most Midgardian clothing.

"Until we can find clothes that fit you, it might be best if you just wore mine, I don't mind," Thor said as he placed a kiss on his brother's forehead. He then finished drying himself off and tugged his fingers through his blond hair. If his sibling looked like less of a threat, then he would be more readily accepted, and Thor did secretly think the mage looked rather endearing in the oversized sleep clothing. Of course, he would ever say those words out loud. At the very least they would probably earn him a scorpion in his pillowcase.

Thor pulled on jeans and a long sleeved shirt that he'd taken out before they had come into the bathroom. Midgard seemed colder than the last time he had been here. Then he towel dried Loki's hair, and pulled a second long sleeved shirt over his brother's head. It would hide more of him that way, and make him feel less exposed. The only solution for pants, however, remained sweats. So Thor helped him into a spare black pair that he had found in the wardrobe.

Boots were still the only foot wear they had, but at least they were something familiar, and now that they were finally dressed Thor realized he had no idea where anything was in Stark Tower. They could start by process of elimination, he supposed. There were only so many floors in the building …

"I thought you said you knew where we were going!" Loki snapped, able to see his breath in the hallway. He smelled food in the other direction, and he could use a spell if need be, but Thor was determined that they would arrive at their destination if they kept walking.

They were most certainly lost when a tiny mechanical voice from above announced that they had to take the elevator up.

This has made Loki frown, and Thor absolutely panic.

It took the illusionist a moment to explain artificial intelligence to his sibling, who he was fairly certain still did not understand. That was about normal, though, and by the time The Jarvis System had guided them back on track, it seemed that everyone within Stark Tower had migrated to the kitchens for breakfast.

Since Thor had so boldly thrown the door open to the commons and kitchen, they were all now looking at Loki. Some of their expressions were blank, and a few unsettled.

While Thor wasn't entirely sure how much he liked Jarvis, his concern over the building's AI was forgotten as the smells of breakfast reach him and … oh were those Poptarts? He cast a glance at the box sitting on the counter but decided that it was best to wait until the stares directed at his brother were not so … unfriendly.

Steve had given them a nod of his head, his own mouth full of toast, but that was about as much communication was offered from the rest of the Avengers. The silence was starting to get painful and Thor really wanted Poptarts, but there really wasn't a good way to go about doing this. He almost wished for Sif's company. She was better at this sort of thing.

When a full five minutes had passed, Thor looked from his brother to the rest of the Avengers and then to the Poptarts for the millionth time. He grabbed Loki by the wrist and dragged him across the kitchen.

"Are those strawberry Poptarts?" he asked Tony as they got closer to the center of the kitchen, trying not to sound too overly hopeful.

"If you need me, Brother, I think I shall await you back in your room." Loki said, knowing he was not welcome. He had bowed just slight, and was beginning to back away towards the door when Tony neatly intercepted him.

"Here to threaten me today?" Loki asked, sound imperious and a bit tired.

"Nope, here to give you some coffee. You do like coffee, don't you?"

Loki glanced to the playboy, expression cautious. "I have not had the human drink, no," His brows raised.

"Look, just take the cup and sit down, got it Rock of Ages? The sooner you finish breakfast, the sooner we can get this over with."

"This?" Loki asked.

Thor had grabbed a Poptart, and had been about to try and convince Loki to try one. But then the man of iron was distributing coffee, and talking about the day's activities.

"Where do you keep coming up with these names?" Thor interrupted as he shoved half the pastry in his mouth. Oh yes, strawberry. "Can I get a cup of coffee too?"

It was Clint who passed a mug of the stuff to him and Thor took the box of Poptartswith him as he followed his brother and Tony to sit at the table. He too was curious about what exactly 'this' entailed, but the strawberry pastries won out over inquiry. He then offered one to Loki, who looked like he might be a bit sick.

There was an odd sort of nervous satisfaction to the trickster that could not be denied, and while he was anxious and wanted nothing more than to escape and hide in a dark corner, he took a long swallow of the drink he had been offered. It didn't seem poisoned.

It was bitter. Sweetened with something, and thin cow's milk had turned it murky. It wasn't bad though, bracing and hot and it cleared out the afterglow of sleep, sex and exhaustion. Loki didn't sit at the table so much as perch, and every motion said that he was ready to run for his life at any moment.

He did not sit in his normal far-kneed sprawl, no. Clearly, he was in a sprinting position.

Thor devoured the entire box of pastries when it became obvious that his brother would not be having any. He let his leg rest lightly against Loki's under the table, and gratefully accepted a plate of "real breakfast" from Steve, while Natasha stared at him in small amazement, asking the same question that Darcy had some time ago: how could anyone eat a whole box of Poptarts and still be hungry? Thor shrugged and started to eat at a more sedate pace. His blue eyes watched those around him with the knowledge of a seasoned warrior, ready to intervene at a moment's notice.

It was Steve who also finally passed a plate Loki's way, hash browns, eggs and bacon. "Eat," he encouraged. "It's far cheaper and tastier than sending you to the hospital for them to fill you with artificial sugar." He didn't mention who was footing the bill for the visit, there was enough tension in the room as it was.

Loki glanced to Thor, and then down to his plate. He swallowed hard. Everyone was watching him. He used his fork to interestedly push things around, hoping that would substitute for not actually being able to eat while being polite. For the most part he didn't recognize anything on his plate, though the eggs were probably earth chicken eggs, and the meat that of the porcine family.

He was careful not to look at Thor, and instead, he took another drink of hot coffee. That at least seemed non-threatening.

Steve was watching him, and he wasn't quite sure what to do. He did not want to make a move that was un-mannered. He just could not ….

That uncomfortable silence had settled again and Steve sighed, leaning over with his own fork to explain hash browns to Loki. Thor, it seemed, ate without regard for what was actually going into his mouth. His brother was more cautious.

"Hash browns come from potatoes, a starchy root. The green bits are spring onions, the red bits are tomatoes, the yellow is cheese and the pink bits are ham. The rest is the same as yesterday," he explained as he dissected the food.

Natasha looked like she was fighting down a smirk and had turned to look the other way as the soldier explained breakfast to the trickster.

Thor gave his brother the slightest of nudges, trying to get him to eat. He really did not want a repeat of what had happened in Asgard when Loki's nerves had gotten the better of him at dinner. The thunder god took a long drink of his own coffee, trying not to notice how Loki's hand trembled slightly where it held thefork. The illusionist did not do well under this sort of pressure, and there didn't seem to be a good way to relieve it.

"I… must apologize, but I still do not feel well. Perhaps I might finish my plate at a later time?" Loki asked Steve, almost a bit too hopefully. No, his voice had commanded the eyes of the others, and they were watching him like predatory animals.

Loki started to stand then, he really did need to be going now …

Steve's brow knitted and he was about to protest that Loki hadn't even started his plate, but then the trickster was starting to stand. The soldier made to stand as well but a wave of a hand from Thor made him stay seated.

The thunder god stood and turned. It took him only two steps to catch his brother by the wrist and pull him back against him, pressing Loki's face against his chest and placing himself between his brother and the gazes of the other Avengers.

"Just breathe, Brother," Thor told him. He knew Loki wanted to run, direct confrontation was not the trickster's strong point. If Loki fled now, he would only be followed and it would not end well. His brother needed to eat, or he would be ill again. To achieve that, though, the thunder god had to think of a way to calm him down.

"Let … let me go." Loki hissed fiercely. His body was weak, and the unspoken threat was null and void. "They're … staring. I don't … not now!" He tried to turn and run, but he couldn't.

"Point-Break, why don't you and your … ah … 'brother', go sit over at the bar, it's quieter," Tony said with a tiny smirk. Yeah, you could hear a pin drop right about then, or a trickster squirm. Tony wouldn't normally be so generous, but he didn't really want to be around a guy who routinely conjured snakes when he was in the middle of an anxiety attack.

Thor strongly considered reminding the man of iron of his proper name, and that he could dent the metal helm that Tony wore with a single , in favor of not worsening the situation, he dragged his panicking brother in the direction of said bar on the other side of the kitchen. In the end he did have to bodily pick up his brother up and place him in one of the high seated stools.

"The more you panic, the more you will draw attention to yourself," Thor murmured to Loki, careful to still keep himself between the trickster and the others. He knew Loki was scared, but that would only make things worse.

Steve came over a few minutes later with Loki's uneaten plate. Walking around the bar, he offered it to the trickster again with an apologetic look. "I'm sorry about the others. Are you going to be all right?" he asked quietly.

"It is the fate of a beast to be a spectacle," Loki said softly. "Their silence is better than I deserve." He took the offered plate then, and as Thor sat between the trickster and the rest of the kitchen, and Steve remained, hovering, Loki allowed himself to take a slow bite. The food was good. He just had no appetite for it.

Steve's brow knitted at the words but Thor shook his head slightly and the soldier was silent on the matter.

"It's cooler now than when we were last here, how much time has passed?" The big god asked.

"A few months, it's winter now," Steve said.

"Winter?" Thor asked.

"Yeah, with snow, do you have different seasons in Asgard?" Steve raised and eye brow.

"Asgard has wet and dry seasons, but I've only seen snow and ice in Jotunheim. Very strange."

"It's not so bad," Steve said with a chuckle, glancing back at where Loki was picking at his food. The blond soldier got up then, and went to paw through Tony's pantry, much to everyone's interest.

The soldier returned with a purple wrapper of biscuits that were covered in chocolate on one side.

"Try these, they're a little easier on the stomach," He offer a few of them to the trickster.

Loki hummed in curiosity as he struggled the package open, regarding the contents. They had chocolate on them and … he took one, and took a curious nibble of it. He nodded then, and dipped the biscuit in his 'coffee' and took a bite. That … that was much better. He devoured three more quite quickly, and then had to pause to let them settle.

"They are good," The trickster murmured.

Thor gave Steve a grateful look and stole one of the wafers to try for himself. They were good, and if his brother would eat something it would help. Even if it was just an entire pack of these strange little biscuits. Perhaps later the illusionist could be convinced to eat a real meal, then again, Thor was not above bribery with chocolate.

Steve looked relieved that the trickster finally ate, and smiled at Loki.

"Not one for a heavy breakfast, huh?" The soldier was clearly trying to think of other things to feed the mage. There was a muffled conversation going on in the other part of the kitchen and Thor glanced up to see Natasha approaching them with two glasses containing a sort of orange liquid.

Loki looked up at her, his expression like that of a cornered animal. A cornered animal that didn't know if it were going to be killed or stroked. He sighed, and then tilted his head, taking the offered container curiously. "What … what is this?" he asked softly. He sniffed at it, and it smelled sweet, but almost as acidic as the coffee. He looked to Steve cautiously, as if wondering if this were a trick.

"Orange juice," The Widow said, walking around the bar to stand next to Steve and set a second glass front of Thor. She was watching them closely and Steve gave her a funny look, but she said nothing. "It's not poisoned," Natasha assured him. "It comes from a citrus fruit by the same name. The vitamin C won't hurt you either, you look like death warmed over."

Thor wrinkled his nose at her words, but he took a sip of the offered drink. His eyebrows raised as he tasted it, it was good! Very good!

Loki had finished his coffee, so he saw no harm in tasting the juice if Thor did. He only sipped at it curiously at first, and then finding it to his liking, he easily finished the other half of it. He was growing sleepy again, though. Combined with what was, for him, a full stomach and the afterglow of sex, it left him finally looking glowing and serene. The anxiety had gone out of the mage along with his energy, and he just wanted to find a quiet place to go back to sleep.

Natasha arched a brow as she watched the trickster drink the juice, she seemed to be enjoying a private joke with herself.

"Don't fall asleep in your hash browns trouble-maker," she murmured, a smile tugging on the corner of her mouth as she took the empty glass and heading back over to where the rest of the Avengers were.

Steve watched her go and was fairly certain he saw some money exchange hands. The spy looked triumphant. Thor was then stealing his brother's plate to eat what he had only poked at. When he was done, he asked the super soldier a question. "At the risk of intruding, is there a place we can go outside my room, that is quiet?" The blond god questioned Steve, knowing well that Tony Stark was not about to let Loki wander around the tower unchaperoned, but he didn't want his brother to feel like a prisoner. Loki, however, was looking like he was too tired to care about where he ended up.

"I can find out, just a second," Steve said, giving Loki one last look before going over to talk to Tony.

Loki took a few bites of eggs, bacon, and hash browns between Thor's devouring. He just wanted to taste. He had just eaten a strip of bacon when his eyes finally slid closed and he began to lean on Thor, tilting on the bar stool.

Thor had wondered if it was possible to sleep-eat, just like one might sleep walk, and so far Loki was proving that it might be. He slid a hand around his brother's waist to stabilize him so he didn't fall backwards, and moved the now empty plate out of the way to guide him to rest his head and arms on the bar. The trickster's breathing was slow and steady, but Thor knew that sleeping on a bar stool was a bad idea, and looked back at where Steve was talking with the rest of the Avengers. Natasha was looking incredibly amused by something, Fury looked unhappy, as always, and everyone else seemed a little less hostile than they had been initially.

Fury came up to Thor, giving the dozing trickster a glance before looking at the thunder god. "We have reason to believe the Chitauri might be inclined to attack again. Your brother has the most experience with them and at some point we need to have a … conversation."

"You mean you wish to use him for information?" Thor said, staring the director down calmly, but his eyes had narrowed slightly.

"Not to interrogate like a prisoner, just to talk," Fury said, trying to pacify the over protective thunder god. "He can consider it part of his amends. We just want to be prepared, I'm willing to bet that the force we saw was only a small fraction of what they have."

Thor frowned. "They don't have the Tesseract, so why would this be a concern?"

"The willing always find a way, surely you know that? I'd just like to be prepared to meet any future threats," Fury met Thor's gaze, and after a moment the large god nodded.

"Later, yes. I'm sure a discussion could be arranged."

"Good," Fury looked asclose to pleased as he ever could be and Thor gathered his brother up in his arms. Evidently they were going back to his room, as Tony was in a deep conversation with Steve and it seemed like there would be no speedy end to it. Now, was it five floors down? Or six? No matter, Thor would figure it out eventually.

Loki was sound asleep when Thor picked him up, and he slept through his brother's failures to make it back to their room. He even slept on when Thor banged his head into the edge of the door-frame. All he seemed to want to do was rest, and when finally he was curled up with cloak and lion plush on the bed, he was dreaming. His thumb rested by his lower lip, and he murmured to someone in his sleep.

Thor let his brother sleep until early afternoon, when lunch had come and gone. The other Avengers had taken to 'visiting' the thunder god and keeping him company. Which even Thor knew was really just a nice way of them saying they didn't trust Loki yet. They asked about his family, about Asgard and there was a great discussion between the thunder god, Tony and Bruce about how the Bifrost had worked and how its destruction now affected the nine realms.

The conversation had eventually turned to the nature of the chakram that Loki had been armed with when they'd initially found him. There was obvious concern about the fact that the trickster had been re-armed, but after some explanation they calmed down a bit.

"The spear and glaive never suited my brother, he always liked knives better, they complimented his magic. To re-arm him was one of our father's tests, to give him a small bit of trust, you see," Thor explained to the two men of science, glancing once to the bedroom where Loki slept.

"There were … conditions to acquiring the weapons and it just so happens that the pieces that called to my brother were those of his blood. The set once belong to his birth mother. When I saw him practice with them, it was as if I'd seen him truly alive for the first time." There had been something about being reunited with that tiny fragment of his past that had made Loki glow, that had made the light return to his eyes. Thor sighed quietly. "He … is not the beast that you saw months ago. Brutality, is not in my brother's nature and I fear for the damage that the Chitauri have done to his spirit and mind."

"So what does, or rather did, the chakram actually do?" Bruce asked curiously. "Was there some old echo of his mother's magic on it or something like that?"

"I am not gifted in magic as he is, it would be better just to ask him yourself. Have him show you even, the idea is not so distasteful is it?" Thor stretched and got up to go check on his brother while he let the two men turn this idea over between themselves.

Once in the dim bedroom, Thor shut the door and went over to were Loki was curled on the bed. His brother hadn't even rolled over from where he'd been initially laid down.

"Brother," Thor sat on the edge of the bed and gently rubbed his back. "Brother you should wake up, you'll sleep the day away at this rate. You've already missed lunch." The last bit was a tiny lie, there was some strange earth fruit sitting on a plate for him in the little sitting area of Thor's quarters, however he did need to prompt his brother into the land of the living.

Loki woke only when Thor took to rubbing his sternum with his knuckles, and then he sat up with an indignant snort. His hair was tangled from being wet and slept on, and gray eyes were actually quite a bit more green. He looked around, and then flopped back down to the bed. "Sleeping the day away was exactly what I had in mind," Loki rumbled. "What is it that I must be awake for?" His look was nothing short of petulant.

Thor pushed the messy hair back from his brother's face, looking around for a comb to untangle the black snarls before they became worse.

"I am making sure you eat something so you don't end up in a coma or the hospital again, it has been several hours brother." Thor started to rub lightly at Loki's forehead in an effort to push away the disgruntled look. "Perhaps you will accompany me up to the roof while there is still daylight? I hear the days are shorter here during their winter season, and I tire of recycled air."

He was purposely waiting on telling Loki that Tony and Bruce were in the other room, that would probably end with his brother under the bed and snarling.

"And … we may be able to get Hvítabiôrn returned to you. If you are willing to get out of bed of course," he murmured quietly.

"Would they really so foolishly return me my weapons? I am just a mindless beast to them!" Loki snapped, but he did sit up. There was a hint of hope on his face, and his breathing was a bit unsteady. He could sense that there was someone else nearby. Sense the energy that glowed in the one called Tony, and the sense of anger that came from the lost beast named Bruce. Yes. They were here, and he could feel them. That meant that his Seiðr had recovered a little. Was that possible?

"They have not called you thus," Thor said calmly, locating a comb on the bedside table and moving to sit behind his brother he started to work the knots out of his hair. "However, they do not know you, not the true you. The first impression that you made might indicate that you are such a creature, but you and I both know that is not the case. You may now have the chance to change that." He shrugged. "I do not think that willingness to learn and see changes in another is foolishness." His brother was tensing and his eyes were going to the door of the bedroom, so he knew then. Could tell that the others were there, was his magic alive again? If so it was even more essential that his brother eat some of the fruit in the other room.

Loki let Thor brush his hair until it was no longer a tangled, and then he stood, adjusting his clothes. He still smelled clean, though there was a stiffness in his back and legs from their foray this morning. "We shall go then," he sighed, though the expression on his face was not overly hopeful.

Thor rested a hand on the small of his brother's back, placing a kiss on the corner of his mouth before letting his hand fall away and taking the lead out of the bedroom.

Tony and Bruce had been discussing something and immediately fell silent when the two brothers emerged. The tension immediately skyrocketed and for a moment Thor had been fairly certain that Bruce and his brother were going to lunge at each other, or that Tony was going to get thrown out of a window again. Nothing happened though, and Thor and Loki sat on a couch opposite the two other men. The plate of fruit from earlier was sitting on the table between them, and Thor realized that he was going to have little luck getting his brother to eat while the other two men were staring them down.

Loki's expression was neutral then, the one he used when his father was outraged or his mother was very displeased with his father. If he didn't do anything to attract unnecessary attention, he wouldn't be drawn into the crossfire. If he were lucky, it would give him a chance to learn things that might be to his advantage later, and so he was as still as a statue, waiting, to see who would speak first.

The silence had started to becoming awkward, and if someone didn't start talking, it seemed as though it would become a silent staring contest between the two Avengers and Loki. No one was willing to give ground first. In favor of time, Thor reached for a piece of fruit and spoke first.

"So have you given it some thought?" he asked Tony and Bruce. The thunder god was fairly certain that if nothing else, Tony Stark had a room set up for testing his own mechanical devices and modifications he made to his iron suit. Surely the idea of testing the chakram there had occurred to the scientist. Or rather, they'd poked at Hvítabiôrn and the chakram had drawn its power in, as some magical things tended to do, like turtles hiding in their shells when they don't want to be bothered by strangers.

Tony shrugged and glanced at Loki. "Isn't a single use weapon a little … quiet for you Rock of Ages? It's a bit old school, not as eye-catching and flashy, unless there's a trick attached to it?"

"Of course there's a trick," Bruce rolled his eyes. This was supposed to be the god of mischief they were talking about, there had to be a trick to it.

"Well Legolas and I have a bet, you see—"

"—You know he's going to win, you lost the last one," Bruce muttered, looking back at Loki and deciding to get straight to the point before Tony made an even bigger ass of himself. "So this weapon of yours, what does it do, exactly?" He hadn't seen a chakram in use before, none of them had and given that this one was from another world, it probably didn't work the same way it would have normally.

"Does it matter?" Loki asked softly. "It is not that I wish to be uncooperative, I simply wish to know what good this knowledge would gain you. After all, your organization has a tendency to do unwise things with weapons beyond their scope of knowledge, and that does bring you all sorts of trouble." Loki crossed his legs, leaning back against the couch. He left the 'like me' unsaid, but highly implied.

Bruce smiled slightly, as if that was the answer he had been looking for. "Simple. Human, curiosity," he spread his hands out as he shrugged. "It tends to kill cats rather quickly, but it seems as though you have a few to spare. Besides, if we don't know what it does, then who better to help us understand than the item's master? It's not like we could hope to mimic your innate magic, after all, we're only human."

Tony snorted at that statement and Bruce glared at him out of the corner of his eye.

"Then there is the ever present matter of Tony's bet and his pride, which I don't even bother to consider into the equation," Bruce smirked slightly. "I certainly don't want to keep it, and as far as I know Fury has no plans of holding onto it either. We just all want to know what the damn thing does."

"Your brother speaks highly of your skill with it," Tony stretched and took a piece of fruit from himself. "Kind of like a mother bragging about her honor student. So do you care to indulge us?" he asked, taking a bite out of the fruit.

Loki snorted, all the while wondering what an honor student was. "Do you think your facilities can withstand my use? I fear it's not as dramatic as Mjolnir, but might be more deadly at immediate contact point." Loki licked his lips, and felt the tingle of magic surging along his arms at the mere thought of holding the beautiful weapon again. "I can hold back, of course." He tilted his head teasingly, giving Tony a look that was almost playful. Loki responded to sarcasm the way flowers responded to a spring rain.

Tony snorted, not one to back down from a challenge. "I have a room for weapons testing, it should more than contain your … demonstration." Just how much damage could one little ring do anyway?

Thor was considering saying something, but Loki had that hungry look in his eyes, and the thunder god couldn't bring himself to ruin the trickster's fun.

Tony had noticed the change in the demi-god's demeanor as well, and leaned forward slightly in response. "Please, don't feel like you have to hold back. I'd like to see a bit of the real you, well, so long as it doesn't involve me being thrown out a window," he chuckled.

Bruce looked like he was having the same thoughts that Thor was, but also wisely choose the path of silence.

Loki chuckled. "Your director will be all right with this?" Loki asked. "This really … I don't want to be blamed for an alien attack," He said tiredly. "I just do notfeel like taking a beating from the green beast today, if you'll forgive my reservation?" He asked, even though his hands were flexing needfully.

Tony studied the trickster, his eyes going to watch the thin hands grasp at air. The conversation was starting to feel a bit like dangling a piece of meat in front of a starved dog.

"This is my house," Tony smirked. "I can do whatever I want, Fury has no say. What's he going to do? Kick me out of the Avengers?"

Bruce was watching Loki too, but his expression wasn't as playful as Tony's was now. "Assuming you don't throw the thing at me, you should be fine." He closed his eyes for a moment, as if having a silent deliberation with himself and then looked at Loki, taking a piece of fruit from the plate, a slice of pear and offering it out to him. "Besides, unless your magic involves opening portals directly to other dimensions and results in an alien attack we should all be fine."

Thor eyebrows slowly rose and threatened to blend in with his hair at those words. Technically Loki could teleport, if he had the strength to right now without killing himself the thunder god didn't know. Thor also had never seen Loki teleport more than two people, let alone hold open a portal for … No. No he was just going to be quiet on this one and eat another piece of fruit.

Loki shook his head at the offer. "No thank you, I will be fine," the trickster said.

Tony led him to the weapons room, where Loki needed no help locating the container that held his chakram. They had picked up Clint and Natasha along the way, and they both were watching Loki suspiciously while giving Tony furtive glances from the corners of their eyes. The billionaire was clearly insane.

"How did you know?" Bruce asked quietly, as Loki picked up the weapon.

"I can feel it. Like a second pulse. Like a missing part of me," Loki murmured, and as he brushed his fingertips over the runes near the edge, the chakram gave a ringing hum and leaped to life, frosty blue tracing around and over it again and again. The weapon was practically purring with happiness at being back in its master's hand.

Thor watched his brother hold the chakram, and even Tony didn't have a witty remark to make as the power vibrated off the weapon and its magic mixed with the trickster's.

"Is this truly wise?" Natasha whispered to Thor.

"That depends on your point of view," the thunder god said. If they still saw Loki as a deranged madman then yes, this was an incredibly stupid thing to do. However, if they could see him as a person trying to rebuild himself, to right his wrongs and grow as a being, then perhaps this wasn't such a foolish thing to do.

Nick Fury, on the other hand, seemed to be a firm believer in the former opinion.

"Stark! Just what the hell do you think you're doing?" the director stormed into the weapons room.

"Well if you use your keen sense of observation, I know it's hard with only one eye—"

"—I did not give you permission to—"

"—It's my building, my lab and my equipment, AND-" Tony smirked. "It was my Jag that got ruined by hitting him, so therefore I reserve the right to do whatever the hell I want."

"Not under my command—"

"—You keep making the mistake of actually thinking that I'm still listening to you," Tony turned and went over to where Loki stood.

"Stark! I will—"

"—Not. Listening." Tony waved a hand dismissively at Fury. The director turned to Thor who just shook his head and went to stand by his brother's side. Not one to be ignored, Fury stepped directly in front of Loki as Tony made to lead them to the testing room. And held his hand out.

"Give me. The weapon. Now." Fury grit out. "I don't trust you."

"Don't give it to him," Tony said.

"You stay out of this Stark. Give it."

"Don't listen to him. Come on," Tony grabbed Loki's elbow, meaning to lead him around Fury but the director would not have it.

"Give it to me or I will have you confined again," Fury's eye locked onto Loki's with an angry glare. "And your brother will not be permitted to free you."

Loki smirked. "It was not my brother who freed me. But one of yours." The trickster was not intimidated. "And I would gladly hand you the weapon, but you see, it's charged now. I should truly discharge it before I … give it to you, unless you would like to be missing a hand as well as an eye," the mage said smoothly.

He offered the ring out obediently, and it glowed as brilliantly as a dozen suns, Loki's swallowed indignation feeding it into a tiny solar flare.

"Oh! Glowing! Glowing means not good, right?" Steve asked as he walked through the door and almost ran right into the chakram that was being held out. He had to do a funny little limbo-like dance to avoid the weapon.

Fury moved his glare to Steve, and then back to the trickster. "If our sensors detect even a quiver in the time-space continuum, you will be sorry. I will bury you so deep under the ground in chains so thick that not even the Hulk can break them, and you can rot there for all eternity!" he hissed at Loki before turning and stalking out the door. "Don't you dare come running to me when the place is in ruins, Stark!" Was his parting remark.

"That's what the insurance policy is for," Tony called after him before looking back at the glowing ring. "So how are you charging it? Or is it a combination of your power and its own?" He peered at the metal then, careful not to get too close although he was highly fascinated by the weapon.

Thor watched the director go, fighting down the urge to go after the man and put him through a wall. Instead he just moved closer to his brother's side and rested a hand lightly on the small of his back to steady him.

Loki was very used to being threatened. He knew two things. One. Thor would never let what he had been threatened with happen. Two. They couldn't keep him if they tried.

"My magic is like my mothers. She infused this with her Seiðr, and so her magic responds to mine. It is charged now, because it was sleeping while you were investigating it. My touch has awoken it. Now, if you don't mind, it would be best if I let this energy go instead of trying to neutralize it."

"Seiðr? Magic? What's the difference?" Steve asked, looking at the chakram now that he was no long in danger of having his head taken off by it. His questions would have to wait as Tony and Bruce seemed to appreciate the urgency of having to discharge something that was humming as unhappily as Hvítabiôrn was.

It was Tony who led them down the hall to the testing room. On one side of the room where was a shielded, windowed alcove that was supposed to protect against shrapnel and explosions, and also controlled the release of targets. Thor opted not to go into the little room, even as the humans did. Instead he stood by his brother's side for a moment, studying the walls around them.

"Dazzle them, Brother," he murmured softly to Loki before taking a step back and out of range of the chakram.

Loki blew him a kiss, smirked, and then turned towards the targets at the far end of the hall. He knew the cameras were on him, and so he put on a small performance.

Raising his hand, he let the power flow through him, raising the air around him into small blue orbits. The chakram began to sing, and a wind with no obvious source lifted his hair up and away from his shoulders, just as chunks of rubble and dust joined along with it. The ring lit even brighter, now physically painful to look at. He focused on the targets, and then with a fast overhand throw, the weapon was off like a comet. Impossibly fast it took out three of the targets, shattering them into a fine spray, before arcing back directly at Loki.

He held out his opposite hand, and faithfully it slapped into his palm with a deafening ring, slowing to a stop as the trickster clapped it between the flats of both hands.

He had held back a bit, and the chakram was still glowing brightly, eager for more.

"Well then, Son of Stark, was that sufficient?" Loki asked. If he'd given it a bit more, it would have continued right through the armored side of the building like a hot knife through butter.

There were several long seconds of stunned silence and then Tony's voice, slightly breathless with amazement, could be heard over the intercom.

"Wow. Rock of Ages, I have to say I'm impressed. I see you're still glowing, want a few more rounds?"

Thor was chuckling from where he stood behind his brother. Well they had asked for a show, and a show they would receive.

Loki kept going until Tony was out of dummies, and he had run out of neat visual tricks. It had gone for a while. In the end, when at last he was starting to feel a bit sweat damp, the mage had called a halt to showing off. He held the chakram serenely, and it was now only the runes that glowed. The trickster was exhausted, but he would never admit this in front of Tony, instead he just gave his brother a smug smile, and strutted from the floor.

"You always were quite the showman," Thor said with a smile. He fell into step beside his brother as they exited the testing room, his hand drifted to Loki's back again. Thor knew just how exhausting using the chakram at that intensity could be. He also knew that it would have depleted his brother's energy, and that it would be wise to get food in him while the adrenaline was still high, and before his body could crash. "Beautifully done brother," he praised softly as Tony and the rest of the Avengers came out of the observation room, all of them looking amazed, although Stark seemed a little sadder, and Clint a little smugger as they approached the two brothers.

"So ,does she have a name?" Tony asked, glancing at the chakram with new respect. It wasn't such a dusty old-school weapon after all.

"Her name is Hvítabiôrn," Loki said, offering the weapon out to Tony. The runes were no longer glowing. "I am sure the data I have just offered to you will prove to be invaluable?" The trickster asked, watching money sheepishly change hands again. Briefly, he wondered what they were betting on. "Take it, she is still hot to the touch, but should not burn your hands."

His stomach growled loudly then, and Loki quirked a brow down at it.

"Well … one of the computers might have … exploded," Tony mumbled under his breath. Very carefully, respectfully, he took the weapon and turned it over, studying the glowing runes, which seemed to fade the instant his hands touched the metal. "That aside however, yes. It's … amazing. When you throw her like that, it's almost as if she becomes plasma." He handed the chakram quickly back to Loki. "She belongs with you that's for sure."

They might have been able to mimic the Destroyer, but this was completely untouchable, it was something within the demi-god. It was a link between the weapon and its master and something that went far deeper and to his mother before him. Science couldn't ever come close to explaining it. This thought was even more greatly reinforced when Loki took the chakram back and the runes glowed again.

"I think dinner is in order," Thor said as the stunned silence started to take over. Steve quickly seconded this idea, it seemed the super soldier had remembered their discussion at the hospital. Loki's magic fed on his life force, and it would devour and damage him if he wasn't properly nourished.

"Yeah, steaks sound good? Protests? None? Okay, excellent!" Tony said, giving the testing room a last glance before leading the way to the kitchens. He was going to be up all night crunching numbers and trying to rescue data from the ruined computer. That was fine, he would have company he was sure.

Loki used a bit of the torn hem from his borrowed shirt to fasten a carry loop for the weapon. It sat contentedly at his waist then, tied to a *sweat pant belt loop, and he followed after the others back towards the kitchens.

Even as they entered the room, the trickster's vision went double, and it was all he could do to walk a straight line. He had to settle for leaning on Thor, as Natasha brought him a glass of that … orange juice again. This was downed so quickly the sorcerer nearly choked, and Steve guided him helpfully to the nearby table to sit down.

Thor sat next to his brother, content to let Tony be the man of his own kitchen and press buttons that made half the meal cook itself. He was also afraid that Loki was going to pass out and fall out of the chair. A head injury was not needed right now. Steve was hovering about looking anxious until Thor finally told him just to sit down, which he eventually did.

Natasha and Clint stood nearby, talking in low voices while Bruce helped Tony cook. The atmosphere was excited, a welcome change from how hostile it had been earlier that morning.

Loki shared a confused look with Thor. Why was everyone now getting along so well? All he had done was blow things up. He wasn't certain, but there was a plate of cheeses in the middle of the table, and when no one was looking, the Trickster helped himself. The kitchen smelled good, like roasting boar, and the sorcerer sighed. He missed home.

Thor shrugged, humans were strange like that. Perhaps it was being able to see the trickster act naturally, combined with seeing him as they had the day prior, that the Avengers felt less threatened by him. After all the confrontation with Fury could have gone far worse than it did.

It was Natasha who gracefully slid into the seat next to Loki, watching him steal cheese with a smirk.

"You're going to spoil your dinner trouble-maker," she told him quietly.

Loki glanced to her, tilting his head at her to acknowledge her presence. She wanted something. She wasn't trying to gut him like a fish, though he never once doubted that should the opportunity present itself to put a knife in his ribs, she would.

"It seems that one of you is absent. Mister Stark is without his mistress?" Loki said calmly. "Has there been a falling out?"

It was always good to change topics.

Natasha smiled sweetly at the trickster. "Oh no, nothing like that. She has just taken a leave of absence. Perhaps for the better, I understand she wasn't too pleased when she heard you threw her lover out a window. I think you've more to fear from her than you do me, trouble-maker," she smirked slightly. "It is rude enough to threaten," she arched an eyebrow at Loki. "Your Hvítabiôrn, she belonged to your mother is that right?"

"I've not threatened. I simply ask because, well, no matter." Loki glanced away. "As for my weapon, yes. It was my birth mother's." Loki said, expression completely neutral. He had another piece of cheese as his stomach continued to protest loudly.

Natasha's eyebrow arched a little higher and she rested her cheek on her hand and studied the trickster as if she was fascinated by him.

"If you continue to eat nothing but cheese you're going to make yourself sick," she said with a shrug. "Given your circumstances, I take it you never met her then?" she continued, a distant expression on her face. "I have just one memory of my mother," she said softly. "It was watched her take her last breath, it's one I wish I didn't have, but it's all that I can remember. It's nice to see someone able to put their memories to use."

Thor was giving the spy a very strange look, Natasha was after something, and her disclosure was a little unsettling.

Loki glanced to her. "I had a chance, though not in a way you humans would understand." There was no arrogance in his words. "What is it, then?" Loki asked patiently. She wanted something. But what. That was the same question he was very certain everyone in the room was wondering, as even the archer was studying her with interest now.

Natasha's far away expression vanished, and her eyes narrowed just slightly. So the trickster could be direct after all, and that was the part that she wasn't sure if she trusted. That was the danger.

Slowly she pulled off the long black gloves that covered her hands and sat a little straighter in her chair. "I want to see something," she said simply, her hands hovering close to the trickster's face. "May I?"

Loki glanced to Thor, who shrugged at him. The trickster didn't sense danger, really. If it was what he needed to do to make amends.

"See what you like," Loki said patiently. His eyes were showing a bit of green around the blue.

Natasha glanced once to Thor and then her eyes focused on Loki. Carefully she rested her fingertips on his cheeks and tilted his head, placing her face just millimeters from his as she studied him. There was the slightest of tremors in her hands as stared into his eyes. For a moment the spy held her breath and frowned and her fingers went down Loki's neck to touch the much-faded bruises there, before going back up to his face.

Her expression softened and she slowly sat back, her hands leaving the trickster's skin. This was the being, the young man that Fury would have had her kill when he thrashed on the end of that chain in that horrible underground cell. "I'm glad I didn't kill you. I like you much better like this," she smiled, the expression true and warm. "Stay out of trouble now," her fingers went and pushed back a few stray strands of his hair. When Loki wasn't taking over the world in a manic fit of insanity, he was rather likeable. Although she knew her opinion of him was greatly influenced by everything she'd seen, from that first cell, to the holding tube and the hospital.

The spy stood and placed a kiss on the top of Loki's forehead before turning and walking back to Clint. They exchanged a few words and then left the kitchen.

"It seems your Director does not much care for me." Loki said, still confused, fingertips tracing where hers had just been. Her touch had been different from that of Steve's. Her scent was different. He watched her leave in a way that he did not watch many women, although there was no lack of loyalty for his brother. He didn't get to think any further before in front of him, a plate loaded with steak and some sort of strange vegetable was laid. There were also mashed potatoes and gravy. Loki quivered then, like a starving kitten before a bowl of milk.

He gave Steve a look of appreciation, and then question. His. Really his?

"Oh Fury doesn't care much for anyone who doesn't play by his rules," Tony said, carrying his own plate over as Steve passed a plate to Thor. "Where did those two go? Oh wait never mind, the Widow is just staking her claim," he chuckled. "Possessive woman, I wouldn't recommend stealing Clint from her again, she might scratch your eyes out … Dude." Tony stopped talking to the mage and watched the expression that Loki had fixed on Steve. It did not relent, even as the super soldier sat down on Loki's other side.

"Hey, is … are you seeing this too?" Tony asked in a whisper to Bruce, who glanced at the trickster. Oh yes, Loki was trembling, like an animal begging for a treat. "Thor, do you not feed people in Asgard or what?" Tony asked and Thor shushed him with a wave of his hand.

Steve looked back at Loki in surprise. "What? What's that look for? Why are you … Oh." The soldier answered his own question. Loki had to be reminded that he wasn't fully a prisoner. The mage's mentality was certainly damaged, not that anyone present could blame him. Many of them had taken time to 'domesticate' as well. "Go on it's your plate, eat before you pass out and we have to take you to the hospital again. Go on, dig in soldier!" The super-soldier encouraged as he settled into his seat.

A/N: * Before you complain, yes, some sweat pants come with belt loops and pockets.

Chapter 24

Loki glanced back to Thor like a lost puppy, eyes wide briefly before he put on his face of calm control. He followed her, expression curious and perhaps a bit cautious. His own emotions had no place here, he was to accompany her. This was a test, he was almost completely certain of it.

The spy led the sorcerer out to the SUV, tucking the bags in the back seat and motioning for Loki to get in the front passenger seat. She had touched his hand, and without meaning to, he wiped it off on his pants. She started the car once they were both belted in and wove her way into the traffic. The ride was a silent one and slowly they moved away from the city.

"I want to show you something trouble-maker," Natasha said as the concrete gave way to trees.

They drove for nearly an hour before the spy turned off the main road and down a dirt path into the woods. Soon after that, she brought the car to a stop in front of a lake.

"Come on, out," Natasha motioned for Loki to follow her as she let herself out and started walking down to the sandy beach. The wind was cold as it came off the lake and blew her hair about even as she tucked it behind her ears over and over again. The spy gazed out over the water, her expression unreadable, but she had a hand in her pocket, holding something.

Loki let himself out of his harness, and the car, and kept pace with her. He wouldn't ask her if she should be alone without her man at her side. She was as independent and as fierce as Sif. She was in no danger here.

He looked out over the lake, green eyes curious. He towered over her, and yet she was unafraid even now. Even after, he had threatened to destroy all she loved. Then again, he considered, a human or an Aesir could face horrors unimaginable that would make such a thing seem fairly small. When she halted, he glanced to her pocket, and then back to the water again. He wasn't sure why they were here. But he appreciated being free of the pulse of the city for a time.

Natasha didn't look at the trickster, but started to speak, her voice almost lost in the wind.

"This is my quiet place," she told him. "No one else knows about it. Not Fury, not Clint. It's out of SHIELD's satellite range. A blind spot."

She gazed out over the lake a little while longer. Then she took her hand out of her jacket, in it was an old photograph. Silently she handed it to Loki.

It was a snapshot of a young, sickly looking girl. Her hair was a ratty mess and she was too thin, her eyes were hollow and empty. The nightgown she was dressed in was dirty as was the rest of her.

"I was six when my mother died. My father sold me to a john to pay off a drug debt. I killed my first man when I was twelve. He put his cigarette out on the back if my neck. That's when the Russian government took interest in me, he was one of their agents you see. They tend to not like it when you do that," she explained, her eyes still fixated on the lake surface.

"The government trained me. Cleaned me up. Told me that men would consider it an honor to be killed by a woman so beautiful as myself. I never believed them," her expression was strained. "I never believed I was beautiful. It was always said in lust, in a disgusting feral way …"

She glanced at Loki then. "You have someone who sees you as beautiful. Even when you don't feel it. Even when you don't believe it. Someone who will never lie to you and wants to spare you of all the hurt that the world would place on you," Natasha tilted her head as she gazed at the trickster. "You're lucky in that regard, trouble-maker," her voice was soft.

"Clint was the first one who ever told me I was beautiful, who made me feel like I was more than just a tool with a pretty face. There are some days I still don't believe him. On those days, days like you're having today, I come here. You can too, whenever you like." She crouched, letting her fingers dip into the water that lapped at the edge of the sand.

Loki looked to her quietly. "For a human, you are quite amazing," was all he said. He hadn't really meant to say it, but he had anyway. He looked out over the lake, expression dark and hard to read.

He wanted to go home, and when he closed his eyes, he swore he could see his mother's face. His birth mother's and Frigga's. He knew Heimdall watched, was watching this now. Him, this lake, the Lady Widow. That his mother was beside the gatekeeper, looking down, and worrying. He gave them the slightest of smiles then, turning his face up to the sun in the brisk and cold hair. Just for a moment, he existed. He just was, and it was good.

Natasha watched the trickster and then slowly stood. "I'm just human," she smiled slightly. "This place has a centering effect. That's why I like it. It's even nicer in the summer. You're welcome here any time, just keep it a secret." She started to walk along the small beach, her own face upturned to the sun.

A gust of wind came off the lake, blowing the spy's hair about and for a moment the back of her neck was revealed, the old silver scar perfectly placed in the center of her neck right over the spine, but she made no motion to cover it. "Come on, walk with me. You'll feel lighter for it."

Loki kept pace with her, but eventually the walk became a jog. This world, this forest, it was different, as were the creatures within it. The run became a sprint, and eventually he found himself up in a tree, overlooking the forest and the lake. This planet was not devoid of life, and he …

He settled down, eyes intense, hungry. The giant inside of him liked this place.

Natasha watched him sprint, smiling as he vanished from sight and reappeared at the top of a tree a little way up. Loki … he would be all right. He was drinking in the view, and his expression was one that she had worn herself when she had first come here.

The spy walked a little further, picked up a rock from the beach, and threw it out onto the lake, watching it skip over the water. The sorcerer needed to let off of extra energy, it would make the rest of the day easier. She took her time walking, tracing the trickster's footsteps until she came to the base of the tree that Loki was in.

"Whenever you are ready trouble-maker, there is lunch waiting for us," she called up the tree. A deer startled at the sound of her voice and Natasha leaned back against the bark, eyes closing and slowly letting a breath go. "Just take your time," she murmured quietly with a smile. "But remember you have a lover to return to, who misses you very much."

Eventually, Loki was coaxed down from the tree and reluctantly packed back into the vehicle again. He was silent, contemplative. His eyes were studying every detail, every animal. His breathing was slow, much calmer than it had been before, despite the fact that they were returning to the city. He was tired, but unable to sleep. Not when there were so many things to see, to distract himself… He eventually unbuckled his seatbelt so he could see better, glancing from window to window. Was it snowing? Had he seen snow?

Natasha took a little bit longer of a route back to the city when Loki started to press his face against the window.

"You've never seen snow?" she asked as she put the window down. "It's nicer when you're away from the city; things tend to turn gray there." The snow was falling faster, and in fat flakes that swirled about and into the car as they drove. "It's cold," she warned him as Loki put his hand out to catch a flake of it. Natasha was grinning; it was like having a small child, someone who was in total awe of the world around him. This expression, this curiosity and amazement was a new look for the trickster and Natasha found that it was contagious. She couldn't help be grin as they pulled into the open lot next to a small, run down building.

"Russia was always full of snow," she said. "I never liked it much; it was always bitter and cold. When I finally saw summer, though, I realized that winter was just as amazing in its own way. The heat and cold fit together so perfectly." She sat in the car for a moment before shutting it off and motioning for Loki to follow her out into the falling snow.

"I've seen snow but not … human snow," He murmured softly. "Nor in a city. Is this the first snowfall?" vaguely, he remembered his birth mother singing a song about the first snow. He had been so young that he should not have remembered at all, but he did.

He held out his hand, watching the flakes fall into his palm. The flakes did not melt, and eventually he blew them off his palm, watching them sparkle. He wondered where they would go next.

"Yes," Natasha said, pulling a jacket on as she stood beside the trickster. "The first of the season." Their breath came in white clouds as they stood there and watched the snowfall all around them. Finally, the spy shivered and stamped her feet, how Loki wasn't cold she didn't know, it was probably some demi-god quality. "Come, let's get lunch." She hooked her arm in the sorcerer's and pulled him towards the building.

The building turned out to be a restaurant, the smell of garlic, fresh bread and lots of herbs washed over them as they entered it. The place was empty, Clint had done well. Speaking of the archer, where had he and Thor gone?

Ah, there, sitting at a table, having a very serious conversation with the thunder god. Half a bottle of red wine was gone. Thor looked like he had … a bad case of allergies. His eyes were red and there was a pile of used napkins on the table.

Thor seldom cried. Loki didn't know what he had done wrong, but it must have been horrible. His heart sunk into his stomach as he guided Natasha to the table, and then letting go of her arm, approached his brother in the empty restaurant. The trickster tilted his head to one side, and the look on his face was apologetic, his brow working. He put his hands in front of himself, and they wrung at each other as he glided closer. He had to have … done something unforgivable.

Thor had been resting his head in his hands, fingers knotting in his hair. The conversation had stopped some time ago and Clint had just been patting his arm. Natasha and Loki were more similar than anyone realized, and loving people like them was always difficult. If anyone had ever asked about the spy and the assassin, the answer was always a firm 'no'. Natasha said it wasn't love, they weren't 'in love', but they just were. They just fit perfectly as Natasha and Clint.

The assassin looked up when Natasha and Loki had come closer, the spy sliding down into the seat next to him. Without even being asked, Clint poured her a glass of wine and she took it without hesitation, taking a long sip from it.

The archer tapped Thor's arm lightly to get his attention and Thor dropped his hands to the table, about to speak when he saw Natasha. Natasha being here meant that Loki … He saw the trickster then.

Loki had a distressed look on his face and his hands were clasped in front of him, looking like he had when they'd parted ways. Thor didn't think, all that mattered was that the trickster had come back. His brother had returned. The sad look on Thor's face vanished and it was one of hope.

"Loki!" Thor stood and in a single motion had lifted his brother into a hug and was holding him tightly. He had been afraid that the sorcerer would not have come back. Had worried that he had failed his lover one too many times, and this last time in a way that was unforgivable. One of Thor's hands went to tangle in the trickster's hair and he buried his face against Loki's neck, breathing in his scent. The one that soap and weather could never cover.

Loki didn't know why he was being hugged, but he knew he wanted it. Thor drove back the cold, and when he did set him down again, curled him into the safety of his side as he settled him at the booth. "You must have been waiting a long time, aren't you hungry?" Loki asked, just trying to not make any mistakes again. He regarded the bottle of wine. Midgard wine? A glass… sounded wonderful. Thor was wonderful. He just wanted … everything to be good again.

"I have had good company and good wine to keep it off my mind," the thunder god murmured. He reached for the wine and poured some into the empty glass that sat in front of his brother and offered it to him. "It was not so long," he reassured his brother. In truth, he had waited much longer for Loki to return in the past. He had even given up when he thought his brother dead, but now Loki was at his side again and Thor didn't want to drive him away.

Thor slid the glass of wine over to his brother. "Clint tells me this place serves a food called 'Italian' and says it is very good. You must be hungry as well, Brother," the thunder god had a hand firmly on Loki's waist, pressing them hip to hip, as they sat.

"I don't know if I am hungry, but … I know you are, Loki said softly. He took a long slow sip of wine, and sighed. This was not mead, but it had a nice warmth followed by a bittersweet bite. It was definitely good. "I have had pasta before, a long time ago. It is good. A kind of noodle with sauce and other toppings." Loki encouraged his sibling.

Thor nodded and looked through the menus. Several things were pronounced wrong and he had to ask what most of the items were, but eventually an order was placed for Thor (the lasagna) and the humans (various Alfredo and Parmesan chicken dishes). It was at Natasha who made the executive decision to order for Loki (a shrimp scampi with heavy cream sauce) before the trickster could protest. Then she asked Clint how he'd been able to secure the restaurant. Typically, the place was closed during this time between lunch and dinner, but there were ways to get around that, Clint explained.

Natasha chuckled and took another sip of her wine, and a waitress brought a bowl of bread sticks.

"Go on, eat, both of you," the spy encouraged as she took a bread stick of her own, dipping it in a spiced oil that was poured into a shallow dish. "The meal will be out shortly. This is just an appetizer."

Loki watched Thor eat, and then stealing just the end of one of his bread sticks, he dipped it in the oil offered, and took a bite. It wasn't bad, so he stole the rest of it. He had a second glass as he waited for their meals, green eyes interested in the décor, the texture of the leather seats on the booth, and Thor's warm shoulder against his.

When the meals arrived, Loki was served last. Which was fine with him because he wanted to see what everyone else was having, and so that he could learn the names of the dishes. When his plate was set in front of him, he stared at strange-shelled fish tails, and a fragrant cheese sauce on noodles. He wasn't really hungry, but he curiously stabbed one of the fish with a fork, blinking at the buttery juice that oozed out. Good then? He chewed thoughtfully, and then, after spitting out the fibrous fan from the end of the tail, worked out a better method for eating the little creatures. Everything was edible but for the fanned tips, so he would grasp them by that…

"So those are shrimp?" Thor asked, studying his brother's meal with curiosity. They did not have such creatures in Asgard, let alone ones so tiny they could be eaten! His own plate was layered meat, cheese, pasta and spinach with a sauce that made it very good. The meal was warm and delicious, there was little conversation and a great deal of drinking and eating. Thor's hand never left where it was wrapped around Loki's waist, though.

"All that is left for today is to see Tanekka," Natasha said, smiling to herself slightly as the 'not hungry' trickster continue to eat. The day had gotten late and with the snow starting to fall, it wasn't wise to do more driving then was needed. Not that anyone could really doubt the hawk's driving skills, but it would be better not to wreck right now. Suit shopping and measurements could come later. "Thor have you seen snow before, here?" the spy asked.

"Only in Jotunheim, where the frost giants reside. Does it get that cold in Midgard?"

Clint and Natasha shared a curious look before the assassin decided to answer. "It gets cold enough. We're a bit further north so we'll see a lot of it about mid-season. It'll shut down the city if it gets really bad, for now though it'll only be a few inches, just enough to enjoy. After that, it's just over-kill." Sharp blue eyes went to Loki where he was gnawing on the shrimp. "How are you liking the shrimp and snow, Trouble-maker?"

Loki had run out of shrimp and moved on to noodles. He nodded once, the look in his eyes feral as he wolfed his meal. Snacking had led to true hunger, and the trickster didn't stop until his plate was empty. A third glass of wine was had, but then he began to doze on Thor's shoulder. Green eyes had lost their anxious look and were sleepily content. Of course, he still had to survive a haircut, a manicure, possibly a pedicure, and most definitely a shave. Of course, he didn't know that yet. He was just lost in being adoringly near his brother, and enjoying the comforting weight of his weapon at his weight. Yes. Better.

Thor had cleaned his own plate, and finished his umpteenth glass of wine. When Loki started to lean against him, he shifted so he was leaning back against the inside wall of the booth. He pulled his brother back against him, settling him so he could doze a bit more comfortably. Loki was in his arms again, he had eaten and the trickster even looked calm. Thor's hands were resting lightly on his hips and he didn't want to let go. The glamour woman could wait, he just didn't want to let Loki go again.

Clint and Natasha seemed to be having a conversation with minimal words. Natasha looked a great deal more relaxed, and Clint had a small smile on his face.

It was starting to get dark despite the early hour, and that was when they finally paid and left. The two brothers had actually fallen asleep and had taken some shaking to get to wake back up. Thor had paused to examine the fresh snow, still white and unpolluted, and then they had piled into the SUV. Clint was driving again, and he took them into a very different part of town.

When they had stopped Natasha had led them to a small, colorful shop, and an elegant black woman greeted them.

"Natasha