A/N: Usually when I do co-writes I have one person's writings in bold and the other in Italics or regular, but this one goes back and forth enough it'd get annoying. So again, I'm Tony and SuicideSquadGirl13 is Loki.
Tony wasn't sure whether to be impressed or jealous regarding Loki's gift-selecting skills. Pepper had simply adored the book he had given her, stating that she had been dying to read it but was too busy to go out and find it. She had even hugged him as thanks.
The billionaire wondered, as he sat at his desk tinkering with his current Iron Man Mark, how the strange man had come to be so familiar with gift getting, and why he was so enticing. Perhaps it was the challenge he had presented - "You have yet to impress me." Men can never refuse a challenge, can they? Too much pride to back down, especially when "impression" was involved.
Tony absent-mindedly toyed with the power thrusters in the hand piece of his suit, constantly glancing at the time until it was time for him to get ready for his date - not date! Just going out with a new friend… Totally not a date…
"Sir, You have phone call," Jarvis said from overhead.
Tony quirked a brow and picked up his phone, his brow furrowing at the "private caller" title on the screen. He tapped the screen anyway, holding it a few inches from his face. "Tony Stark."
"You're a very hard man to reach Mr. Stark," Loki smooth voice wafted through the phone
"Not at all, if you know where to look," Tony corrected, wondering just how hard Loki had tried to reach him.
"Trust me I've looked for a good while," Loki said "Eventually I had to call in a favor."
Tony smirked. "A favor? From whom?"
"Save that question for tonight's date," Loki said, Tony was pretty sure he was smirking on the other line.
"Will do, Stranger," the billionaire agreed. He noticed the clock on his screen reading six o'clock. "Hey, I should get ready. You don't exactly live around the corner."
"I don't," Loki said "With my lifestyle I should be getting ready as well."
Tony raised a brow but thought it better to save that inquiry for their date as well. "See you in an hour, Stranger."
"See you as well," Loki said before hanging up.
Half an hour later, Tony was getting into his favorite cherry red Spider, ready to pick up his date.
He pulled up in front of the house that belonged to the address that Loki had given him and turned off the car. He got out, marveling at the amount of effort that must have gone into decorating the outside. As he ascended the porch steps, he wondered if Loki lived here alone. He took a breath and rang the doorbell. Tony was surprised to see a man taller than Loki come to the door with white face paint on.
"Can I help you?" the man said with a very heavy accent.
"Uh…" Tony hesitated. "I'm here for Loki…?"
The man blinked slowly before turning his head and shouting "Loki!" before talking in a different language. Loki then came to the doorway, addressing the man in english. "Thanks for the wake up call Victor."
Victor snorted. "Have fun, and you so owe me."
Loki smirked at him before addressing Tony. "Shall we?"
"So many questions," Tony stated as he led Loki to his car. Being a gentleman, he opened the passenger door for Loki to slide in. He ran around the front of the car and slid into the driver's seat. "When do I get to ask all my questions?"
"Well, you can ask basic questions now," Loki said. "And more personal questions when we get to the restaurant."
"Alright," Tony agreed as he started the engine and began the drive to the restaurant. "How hard was it to get a hold of me tonight?"
"That's not a basic question," Loki said with a slight smirk.
Tony raised a brow. "How so?"
"That question requires a more...elaborate answer," Loki said.
"Intriguing," Tony mused. "Asking who that guy was that answered the door is probably a personal question, huh?"
"I can answer part of it now," Loki said "And if you're still curious, I'll elaborate later."
"What's the partial answer?"
"His name is Victor, he's my friend and roommate," Loki said "If you want to know more, you'll have to ask later."
Tony nodded as they pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant. "I wasn't sure what you liked so I thought we'd start fancy and work our way down," he explained, turning off the engine and opening his door. He ran around and opened Loki's door as well. "You did say I'd have to impress you."
"I did, didn't I?" Loki said stepping out out of the car gracefully.
"Does this suffice?" the billionaire inquired, leading Loki to the front door of the restaurant.
"It does," Loki said "But what I'm more curious about is your wine choice."
"I'm more of a rum or tequila man, myself," Tony admitted as the waiter led the duo to their reserved table towards the back of the restaurant. "But you can order any wine you like."
"Chardonnay," Loki said "It's my drink of choice."
"Sophisticated, aren't you?" Tony teased as they sat down. "We'd like a bottle of Chardonnay," he told the waiter.
"You'd be surprised about the things you don't know about me," Loki said.
"Care to elaborate?"
"If I'm to elaborate," Loki said leaning forward slightly with a grin, "You need to start asking questions."
Tony smirked, assuming that he was making progress. "How hard was it to contact me tonight?"
"Extremely," Loki said taking a sip of wine "Next?"
"Elaborate."
"I had Victor hack into your company's personal line to get that information," Loki said nonchalant.
Tony frowned. "I'll have to talk to Jarvis about that," he mused, tasting his own glass of wine. "What's the extended answer about Victor?"
"His full name is Victor Von Doom, he's a Roma gypsy from Europe with a degree in computer science," Loki said "For him hacking computers is both a job and hobby; but he's a cosplay model in his spare time."
"Cosplay, huh? Like ninety percent of teenage girls?" Tony smirked.
"Somewhat," Loki said with a smirk "But he serious enough to take up the garage, the kitchen, most of the dining room, the spare room we have upstairs, and half of the backyard with his cosplay items."
"I've met some teenage girls with the same habit," Tony stated. "That explains the face paint, then."
"Yeah, he was heading to a photo shoot," Loki said smirking "I think he was supposed to be a sugar skull."
Tony decided against inquiring as to what a "sugar skull" was, figuring that it was better for his sanity if he not know. "Why did you want me to take you out?"
"You interest me," Loki said with a shrug "And I believe I interest you as well."
"Well, I am very interesting," Tony shrugged.
"I figure you would be," Loki said with a wink "Inventors are always curious."
"So what do you do for a living, Stranger?"
Loki froze before saying. "I'm a forensic pathologist."
Tony raised a brow. "Didn't see that coming. What got you started with that?"
"I've had an obsession with death since I was 8," Loki said "Finding out how people died only fueled my obsession, so 8 years of school later I'm one of the most well respected medical examiners of my field."
"Impressive," the billionaire complimented, taking a sip of wine. "Eight year old, huh? That's a little young to be fascinated by death."
"Well, you were taking apart engines by then I believe," Loki said.
"Yes, I was. But engines aren't once-living human beings with cuts and bruises and diseases."
"No, That's what makes it worth wild," Loki said "You get to know them in a new light, that's why I like studying the death; New secrets to expose."
"A very curious person, aren't you, Loki?" Tony mused with a soft smile, glad to be learning something new about his date.
"I'm alway curious." Loki said "Now what about you Anthony, anything about you that should interest me?"
"I'm an open book, Stranger," Tony stated. "Ask me anything. What would interest you?"
"Well for starters, What made you become an Inventor?" Loki asked.
Tony hesitated before replying. "My dad. Have you heard of Howard Stark?"
"Yes, all the medical students used to rave about him," Loki said "Couldn't stand it."
"Yeah, I wasn't his biggest fan either. But I was a fan of his work. It was the only thing we could connect on, and after I got over trying to impress him, I decided that I really enjoyed science and engineering."
"That's nice," Loki said with a smile "What's the greatest thing about being an engineer?"
"Doing it all myself," Tony answered instantly. "I do all the work myself. Just me and my stuff. I can build any piece of technology I need."
"Interesting," Loki said tilting his head "Anything your personal proud off?"
"My suits, mostly. Full-body armored weapons. I can fly, blast things, take extreme amounts of damage with little physical damage due to how thick the suits are," Tony explained.
"That sounds amazing," Loki said "The closest thing I've done to top that, is that I've caught a serial killer."
Tony raised his brow in interest. "A serial killer, huh? That's impressive. Were you helping the cops?"
"You could say that," Loki said sipping his wine looking to the side.
"You definitely have to elaborate now."
"My adoptive brother is a detective," Loki said "Him and his partner couldn't figure out what was going or where to start so, he called me and figure it out for them."
"Helping family out," Tony summarized with a small nod, taking a sip of his wine. "Can't say I know how that is."
Loki shrugged. "Also, I forgot to inquire about your assistant, did she like her gift?"
"Yeah, actually," Tony replied, still suspicious of Loki's talents. "She loved it. How did you know what to get her? You've never even met."
"I have a way with the ladies," Loki said before winking at Tony "And men too."
"How did you come to have this 'way'?"
"A friend of mine, who just so happens to put up with my crap," Loki said "Much like your assistant."
"A lady friend?"
"Yes, a russian lady friend."
Tony smirked. "Russian?"
"Yes," Loki said "She has a much venom as a rattlesnake, and will emasculate me if I offend; that's probably why we're friends."
"Sounds a bit like my assistant," Tony mused. "Though she's not as rough and mean as a rattlesnake."
Loki laughed. "I'm pretty sure she'd love you."
The rest of the date flowed smoothly, never a lull in conversation or an awkward pause. Tony and Loki had polished off the wine by the time the check came. Tony handed over one of his many gold cards before leading Loki out of the restaurant towards his car.
As he started the engine and pulled away from the street, he shot Loki a contented smile. He hadn't been on an actual date in a long time - it was always a one night stand with a random news girl or some fan. He didn't really "date." It had been a different experience, but a pleasant difference. A break from crazy women.
He pulled up in front of Loki's house and parked the car, opening his door and running around the other side to open Loki's.
"Such a gentleman," Loki said as he step out.
"You said to impress you," Tony reminded, closing the door behind the taller man.
"I did," Loki said "And you have, but I'd like to see you again."
"Tomorrow night?"
"I actually have work tomorrow," Loki said "But I go on break around 1:30."
"Can I visit you?" Tony inquired, walking Loki up the steps to his house.
"Sure," Loki said "Lunch date?"
"Sounds great."
"You should come by around one," Loki said "If there's a homicide before then, you might need to wait a while."
"Will I get to see you in action?" Tony grinned.
"Maybe," Loki said "And if you're good, you'll see more action later."