A/N: Normally, I work my fic around canon, but this is the first time that I've decided to write something completely AU. As a result, there are only very mild spoilers for Endgame in the last part of this. I've never written the Avengers in a group setting, either, but I had to try after seeing Endgame. Title taken from the Imagine Dragons song of the same name. Thank you for reading!
He arrives on Midgard the same way he did six years ago.
There is no platform this time, of course – no scepter in his hands, either – but he appears amidst the rubble of the old SHIELD facility with the raw energy of the space stone pulsing around him.
He is not surprised that they are waiting for him. In fact, he counted on it. Mortals may be fleeting, weak creatures, but they can be surprisingly intelligent on occasion. Besides; these so-called heroes are not entirely mortal, are they?
"Do not attack!" a familiar voice calls, and Loki feels the weight of the past few weeks instantly lift from his shoulders. Thor. Thor is alive. Thor has survived all that Thanos did to the universe. His sacrifice was not in vain.
He lifts his head, eyes falling on his brother first.
"Loki?"
He raises his hands in a placating gesture, unsure of how well he will be received. "Brother," he begins, voice still a bit raspy from Thanos's cruelty, "I swear to you on my life – no matter how meaningless a thing that might be – that my death was not a ruse."
"But you're alive."
He winces. "Well, yes, but only because I – "
Loki breaks off abruptly at the sight of Thor rushing at him, bracing himself for the typical pain and anger that accompanies his resurrections. Instead of being thrown to the ground by Thor's fists, though, he is nearly lifted off his feet by the overwhelming force of…a hug? Loki's mind goes blank for a moment as Thor wraps his arms around his brother, clinging to Loki with all of his impressive might.
It only takes a moment for Loki to overcome his shock at the unexpected gesture. Squeezing his eyes shut to hold back his tears, he returns the hug with his own strength, depleted though it may be.
It took him far too long to realize it, but he knows now – without a doubt – that there is no Loki without Thor, and no Thor without Loki. They've always worked best side by side.
That's why he has come back. It's finally time to make things right.
"Loki," Thor says, voice muffled by Loki's shoulder. "I'm so sorry, brother. I'm so sorry."
"For what, you oaf? You did not strangle me to death."
"For calling you the worst. I did not mean it. You have never been the worst, even when you were mad."
Loki huffs a laugh. "'Were?' I'm fairly certain I still am."
"Uh, hate to break up the family reunion," another voice interrupts from across the clearing, "but if you're done hugging your un-killable brother, Thor, we still have work to do."
Stark. Loki pulls away from Thor, eying the man encased in what appears to be a brand-new, high-tech red and gold suit. He needs all the Avengers on his side, but he needs Stark more than the rest. The man is not called "genius" on Midgard for nothing. But how is he going to convince any of them that he has changed? He does not have enough time to win their trust slowly.
Well, he thinks to himself, you're called Silvertongue. Now is the time to live up to that name.
Clearing his throat, he takes a step forward. Thor keeps his hand on Loki's shoulder, grounding him. "Avengers," he begins, unsure of even how to address them, "I must…apologize. My actions against you and your world were not…kind."
He almost sighs at himself out loud. So much for Silvertongue.
Barton laughs, leveling his arrow at Loki's chest. "That's the understatement of the decade."
Loki meets his eyes for a moment before looking away to the other heroes. If his pretty words will not serve him now, he must turn to that which he had kept secret for so long – the truth. It's not a pleasant idea, but he does not have a choice. They do not have much time to change things.
Taking a deep breath, he continues, "They were not actions I would have undertaken on my own. I was forced into attacking your home; Thanos manipulated me, both physically and psychologically. I – "
"Bruce and Thor told us." This time, it is the Captain who steps in. Loki has to bite his tongue to stop himself from commenting on the frankly ridiculous appearance the man has now adopted. Rogers is standing up for him; he cannot belittle the soldier's bushman hair and beard. "We know you're on our side, Loki."
He breathes a sigh of relief. Who knew that honesty could be so powerful? "Thank you." Thor squeezes his shoulder, and the brothers exchange a look – Loki to express his gratitude, Thor to express his pride at Loki's bravery. The look in Thor's eyes is –
Wait. Eyes?
"Your eye," Loki blurts out, forgetting the importance of his mission for just a moment.
Thor laughs. "It's a bit odd, isn't it? Useful, though, particularly in our battle against Thanos. It was given to me by a very sweet, talking rabbit. You must meet him."
A sweet, talking rabbit.
Perhaps Loki is not the mad one after all.
"You can catch up on the way to the compound," the Widow says, interrupting his thoughts. "Once we're there, you can get cleaned up, and then you can tell us why you're here."
Loki nods, unsurprised that she of all people would be the one to recognize that he is here for a purpose.
Barton reluctantly lowers his weapon. "And we're just gonna ignore the fact that he somehow got the Tesseract back when, last time we saw it, it was attached to a purple maniac's magic glove?"
Loki cannot help himself. He smirks. "The 'purple maniac' is no more, but I'm afraid you'll have to wait for the rest of that story."
He heads for the clearing beyond the rest of the old facility's rubble, spotting the ship the so-called Avengers used to travel here. He does not even look back to see if they are following him.
He doesn't have to. He knows they will.
It feels absolutely wonderful to actually be clean – to wash his hair and face, and to get out of his torn, bloodied leathers. He dons the casual Midgardian clothing that Thor had left for him on the bed without complaint. Though he hates to admit it, the baggy gray pants and long-sleeved green shirt are both soft and comfortable.
He makes his way down to the conference room they had all agreed upon meeting in once everyone was settled in, even though he is early. He rather likes the idea of simply sitting in one place and doing nothing for a short time, without worrying that he should be focusing on something more important.
It seems he is not the only one to have had this thought. Seated at the far end of the long table – and looking as awkward as ever – is none other than Bruce Banner. He looks up from the paperwork before him at the sound of the door, giving Loki a small smile.
"Hello, Bruce," Loki says softly, taking a seat not far from the doctor.
Banner's smile grows the slightest bit. "Hey, Loki. It's…it's good to see you."
They lapse into a companionable silence, Banner returning his attention to what he had been reading before Loki entered the room. Loki can't help but wonder at the peaceful, calm aura that surrounds the doctor, easing his own troubled thoughts about what he must do soon. He never thought that he would willingly sit beside the human hiding the rage-filled beast that is the Hulk – but after all they have been through together, he can accept the almost-friendship that they share.
So much has changed over the last few years.
"Can I ask you a question?"
He looks at Banner, watching as the man takes off his glasses and begins to fiddle with them with one hand. He inclines his head in invitation. "I don't see why not."
"You died."
Loki smirks. "That's not a question."
Banner sighs. "I know; I'm getting there. I'm guessing you told Thor how it all went down? You explained to him how you came back?"
"I did."
"Would you tell me?"
It is strangely kind of him to ask. He has seen so much of Thor and Loki's world, now, that he almost has the right to demand the answer. How can Loki deny him this?
Just as he is preparing himself to answer, though, the rest of the team files into the conference room, joining them around the table. Banner nods at Loki once they are all seated.
Taking a deep breath, he begins his tale. "Hela was not destroyed when Asgard burned."
Banner blinks in shock, but quickly takes the information in stride. "Okay."
"When I died, she welcomed me to her domain – but it wasn't long before she summoned me, tasking me with something that she claimed was…dire." Loki sighs, rubbing a hand across his eyes tiredly. "She was displeased with Thanos. He promised her that he would use the Infinity Stones to send half of the universe to her realm, as a gift to her. When he finally collected the stones, though, he only captured a random half of all living creatures within the soul stone itself. None of them are dead."
He pauses, acknowledging the disbelief – and the unabashed hope – in each person's expression.
Stark leans forward. "Are you telling me that everyone we lost – everyone we love – is still alive, somewhere?"
"I am. Hela sent my spirit back to my old body, with the power to bring them back, on one condition: that I find Thor, and ally myself with him and you to bring about the end of Thanos."
"I thought you said he was already dead," Barton accuses, glaring.
"He is dead now," Loki continues, "but Hela wants greater revenge. She wants us to travel back in time to the day that I invaded your planet, and stop him there, before he can even begin to set his plan in motion. That's why she gifted me these."
He glances at his brother, pretending he doesn't need the reassuring nod Thor gives him to continue. He pulls the Tesseract from its hiding place, letting it settle in his palm with a familiar hum of power. With his other hand, he reaches into the space between realms again, this time setting the Midgardian sorcerer's amulet down on the table before him.
The room falls completely silent.
Loki's voice grows even hoarser as he continues to speak. "She gifted me these so that I might return to the exact moment and place where it all began those years ago. She killed Thanos herself and extracted these from the Gauntlet." He laughs. "Obviously, she did not trust me with the completed Gauntlet. Even I see how horrible an idea that would be. But she did trust me enough to give me this second chance."
The heroes around him exchange looks as he finishes and sets the Tesseract down on the table beside the Eye of Agamotto.
It is the Widow who finally breaks the silence. "You're asking us to give you that same trust. With the knowledge you'll have of this potential future that we're living, how do we know that you won't use it against us to win the Battle of New York?"
"You don't," he admits. "But as you have said, I know how this future goes. I know how my story ends – with pain and tragedy, leaving my brother and my people behind when they need me most."
Barton rolls his eyes. "So you're doing it to save yourself."
Loki resists the urge to roll his eyes right back at the mortal. Did the archer not hear what he just said about Thor and Asgard?
"No," Stark says, surprised, studying Loki as he leans back in his chair once more. "I think that's actually the first non-selfish thing I've heard him say."
Thor places his hand on his brother's shoulder again. "My friends, I assure you that Loki speaks the truth. And while I had my reservations at first, his plan is quite good. He means to use the time stone to return to the night of our mountaintop battle. Do you remember it?"
"You mean the time I beat both you and Tony?" the Captain teases, eyes bright.
"Yes, yes," Thor replies, grinning, waving his hand dismissively. "But that is beside the point. My brother knows the exact moment that he will reveal Thanos's presence to our past selves. I asked him a question, that night."
"'Who controls the would-be king?'" Loki quotes wryly. He meets Barton's glare with a direct, unguarded expression. "This time, I will tell him the truth."
Still, Barton seems unimpressed. "And how is that gonna work out for any of us when that thing can get into your head any time it wants?"
Loki frowns. He had hoped that certain details of his bargain with Thanos – such as the Other's ability to call on him through the scepter – had gone unnoticed by Barton while the archer was under the mind stone's influence. It seems he is not that lucky. "For many years, I have been able to conceal myself from Heimdall, the watchman of Asgard. So long as the scepter is not in my hands, I can use that same concealing power to keep myself from the Other's grasp."
"You will be safe as well, Clint," Thor interjects. "Once Loki has told us everything, I myself will use the scepter to free you and Erik Selvig from the mind stone's control. You should be yourself once more but hours after the events that took place in Stuttgart."
"And we'll believe Loki when he tells us the truth," Romanoff murmurs, "because none of us will remember this future. Back then, he hasn't lied to us yet."
Loki nods. Though it will wound his pride, he will tell them the truth – all of it. His relationship with Thanos will be exposed for the painful, imbalanced thing that it was.
As if he is reading Loki's mind, Rogers gives him an approving nod. "That will take a lot of courage, Loki. I'm grateful that you're willing to do this for us – for everyone, really."
"We all are. Grateful, I mean." Banner smiles at him, and Loki can't help but smile back.
"We should begin soon. Hela urged me to be quick about my return."
"Yeah, about that." Stark removes his orange-tinted glasses and places them on the table. "You've got a problem, Reindeer Games. The time stone won't get you back to where - when? - you want to be. Not on its own, at least. Strange's assistant, Wong, explained it to me after I got back to Earth."
"Strange?" Loki growls.
"He's an Earth wizard, apparently. He's the one that wears that fancy necklace you've got there."
"I know who he is."
"Well, he said that the stone can destroy reality as we know it if you 'unwind' time too far. So we need something to stabilize the stone's power – something like the Gauntlet."
Loki groans in frustration. Why is nothing ever easy for him? "And where can I find this stabilizer?"
Stark grins. "Lucky for you, you know someone who can make one. Actually, you know someone who has already started to make one."
Loki rolls his eyes, but he begins to grin back. He knew that Stark's intelligence would aide his mission. "So you're not as useless as you seem," he quips. "I'm thrilled."
Stark laughs as he stands. "Back at ya, Reindeer Games."