"There may be no way out of my prison," Loki's voice growled into Tony's ear as he pressed up behind him, forcing the man's chest against the wall, one hand clasping both of Tony's arms above his head, his other sliding along the strip of exposed skin between his shirt and the waist of his jeans, "But there is no escape from me. Tony Stark."
He was warm; wearing only a thin linen shirt and trousers. None of the leather armour or golden embellishments that Tony remembered. His body was slim and chest defined against Tony's back, he could feel ribs through the clothes. Yet, the strength with which Loki held him was more than Tony would be able to overcome.
"Surely, you should no longer be surprised," Loki whispered smoothly, Tony could feel the grin on the guy's face, "We've been here before."
The hand on his waist stroked his skin delicately, easing its way under the line of his trousers. Tony bucked violently at the movement, a vain attempt to escape that served only to amuse his captor. Hot breath brushed against his earlobe as Loki's hand moved lower.
Loki chuckled darkly before tutting into his ear, "Such protestations, Mr. Stark. How long will you deny yourself? You, of all people, are no stranger to bending to temptation."
Tony woke with an incoherent yell, sheets bunched in his fists and a thin sheen of sweat coating his brow. Breathing heavy, laced with the dying remnants of panic, he collapsed back onto his pillow, rubbing the back of his hand across his forehead as he stared up at the ceiling.
That was the fifteenth time now Loki had featured rather prominently in his dreams. And it pissed him off. In the three weeks since the two 'gods' had ascended to wherever it was they came from, the one thing that Tony had wanted to do was forget about them. A feat made almost impossible when his sworn enemy continued to show up in his dreams - nightmares, he corrected himself, they were definitely nightmares. No matter what the bulge in his trousers told him.
With an irritated snort, he rolled onto his side and checked the glowing clock on his bedside table. It was 4:30am. He groaned into his pillow, he would never be getting back to sleep now.
Feeling very much like he assumed Steve had after his first awakening, Tony pushed himself out of his bed and drifted groggily towards the bathroom, hoping a cold shower would help to wake him up a little. As well as shake the lingering memories of the nightmare from his thoughts.
It didn't help.
Once out of the shower, he dressed in a loose top and tracksuit trousers and left his room to the kitchen to make himself a strong coffee.
"Sir, Captain Rogers is in the gym if you were to prefer some company," Jarvis spoke over the intercom.
Tony shook his head silently as he held the mug of steaming coffee under his nose, watching the waking city of New York through slightly narrowed eyes, using the smell of the drink to begin waking himself. Although, apparently, Captain Rogers had already been informed.
"Morning, Tony," Steve greeted, far too cheerily for Tony's liking, as he strolled into the kitchen, "You're up early."
"No shit," he muttered into his mug before lifting it to his lips and taking a mouthful.
At Tony's tone, Steve's mood seemed to reign in and he paused to regard him scrutinising manner, "Again?"
There was silence as Tony licked his lips, trying to remind himself why he had confided in Steve in the first place. Ever since, the guy had been fussing over him constantly, as it was more than usual for Tony to get up and wander around in the night, it was rather frustrating to have Captain America run around after him making sure he was alright.
"It happened again didn't it," Steve pressed, a statement rather than a question, knowing Tony well enough by now to tell when he was properly flustered.
Tony turned quickly, "What does it matter?" he asked forcefully, before seeming to regret his reply and ran a hand through his hair and looked at the floor, "Yes. Ok? It happened again," he muttered feebly, before taking a swig of coffee and moving back to the kitchen counter to busy himself making more.
Steve hesitated, unsure how to respond, "The same thing?
Tony broke away from fiddling with his coffee machine, "Can we not, do this whole therapy thing?" he asked holding his hands up in front of him, "I don't know why I even told you. It's fine."
"Because it's not fine," Steve told him earnestly, "This isn't normal, Tony."
"They're just dreams Steve," Tony replied, going back to his coffee.
"Recurring nightmares involving Loki," Steve corrected, a note of annoyance in his voice as Tony refused to accept that there was any worry in this, "There could easily be something more to it."
"Like what?" Tony asked, eyes wide, "Mind-control? Stealing my secrets while I sleep? Steve, the guy is in a different dimension! As powerful as he claimed to be I doubt he could do that. Seriously drop it before I tie you to a chair and put Star Trek on repeat."
Steve glared at him before sighing, "I'm asking Thor later."
Tony blinked and frowned, "I don't think you can telegram Asgard."
Steve rolled his eyes, "No, but if you had listened to anything that Director Fury has been telling us, Thor is coming back later today," he replied, already turning to leave in that irritating habit he had of walking away at the exact moment when he knew Tony wouldn't have a comeback.
Mr Stark simply stood and glowered as the Captain left the room, finishing his coffee in a few burning gulps before heading head off to look for some kind of information as to this apparent godly visit.