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Thor coughed nervously as he looked from Loki to Bruce and back again. "Well I have come to realize that perhaps father was being a bit harsh with you, brother... and, I do not wish to see you treated that way."
Loki narrowed his eyes and said with contempt, "Do you think me a fool, brother? I have been treated 'that' way for longer than you care to realize, and I am far beyond taking notice of Father's opinions any longer."
Bruce glanced Thor, the desperation in his face cutting him deeply. He doubted he could get Loki to at least give his brother a chance, but there was nothing to lose in trying. He turned to Loki. "Maybe not your father, but what about your brother? He's desperate to help you."
Loki laughed bitterly at the words of the scientist. "And perhaps you're more blind than he ever was."
"So have I. Bruce is right... You, are right. I have no wish to subject you to Odin's contentions. He may not be a father to you, Loki, but you will ALWAYS be my little brother. Let me help you." Thor gave a sympathetic smile and reached out to touch Loki's shoulder.
Adjusting his glasses slightly, Bruce wondered if what Loki said was a shot but before saying anything disregarded the thought of comment. Instead he went on a more sympathetic angle. "You have someone who cares about you. Loki. Maybe the only one who still does. Why would you want to risk losing that?"
Loki visibly flinched at his brother's attempt to brush his shoulder, though didn't recoil away once he held his hand there. Towards Bruce he looked down to the floor and whispered dejectedly, "It would not be the first time I've lost everything I knew."
Thor frowned at Loki's words more than his flinch. "I- I cannot bring that back for you, Loki. Though, Valhalla knows I wish I could. I do, however, refuse to let it happen again." Thor removed his hand from Loki's shoulder and became very serious. "I do not want to have to strand you on some god forbidden rock. If you do not allow us to help you I will have no choice, though, brother."
Loki suddenly looked up at Thor and scrunched his eyes in anger. Did his brother truly wish to help him? How could he, if he threatened to strand him if he did not accept his offer?
"What could you possibly do to help me, Thor?" Loki sneered. "I have murdered countless Midgardians and do not have an ounce of sympathy left for them." He laughed to himself as he muttered with a sudden smirk, "And that wasn't even the best part…"
It took all of Thor's self control not to raise his voice. Instead, he balled his fists and tried to explain. "As I said I do not WANT to harm you, but if it will protect innocent lives then I will find the most desolate moon I can and spend eternity watching over you there. I do not care if you have sympathy for anyone, I do not care if it brings you pleasure to see pain. I only care that if it makes you happy, you can cause pain to me. Midgard has no value to you. Leave these people out of our fight. I would love to spend eternity with you here rather than in darkness, but that will have to be your choice, to at least TRY to care."
Loki paused at Thor's unexpected response and widened his eyes in surprise, though he quickly narrowed them again to hide his sudden doubt… the doubt in who he thought he had become...
Bruce wanted to step in and say something. But Thor's speech sounded convincing enough to him. What else was left to say? He'd be crazy to turn his offer down. Especially when every Asgardian would be after him.
...And then again, Loki never seemed all that mentally sound when he's challenging Earth, his own home, and where ever he got his army, surely. "Or I could Hulk out and make sure you go home. But I believe in second chances. If Thor is this devoted, I'd rather not get in the way."
Loki frowned in distaste at his predicament. He wanted to trust in the brother he knew so desperately that it almost ached. At the same time, however, he wanted to spite them both for chastising him. "You do know I had a bigger motive in mind then simply getting back at you, yes? I am not so narrow minded as to kill without purpose."
He paused, knowing he would receive backlash for that comment alone, but ignored the possible consequences. "What do you expect to do if I were to accept your proposal?" asked Loki suddenly. "I do not wish to stay here for reasons beyond simple lack of interest. You could not even hope to aid me in the trouble that is to come if we were to remain in this realm."
He paused again, saying regretfully, "There is no realm where I can remain, whether it is with company or without. So it is better that I am alone."
Thor was about to say how it didn't matter – that without Loki, Thor himself was really alone. Yes, he had Jane and the Avengers, but they were not there since the beginning. They would never be able to replace the way his brother made him feel. He knew he couldn't, though, or Loki might take advantage. "If you accept... I will do anything, everything. I will not stop until something works; that is my promise to you."
"Then it is a promise you will have to break… brother," He said regretfully. He had finally sincerely called Thor 'brother'. He had said it before, yes, but… he had never meant it as of late. "You cannot save me. Not then and not now. I will be but a memory from this point forward."
Thor's eyes began to water. "But, why... why brother? Please...don't leave me. I am no mighty warrior without my little brother to fight for." Thor wanted only to grab Loki and never let him go but he was so afraid of pushing him away more.
Growing more serious as it looked like this was going to go bad, Bruce threatened, "Then we'll have to fight you. I'd rather not. Actually it won't be me fighting," he added as his eyes flashed green.
Pulling at a sleeve, Bruce didn't realize that subconsciously, he really didn't want to do any of this again. He really just wanted to go back into hiding. How did he even end up here again? He hoped desperately that Thor would talk sense into him, but it didn't look like that was going to work.
Thor, out of emotional pain, turned cold eyes on Bruce. "You will NOT touch him!
"What else can we do, Thor?! If he won't go with you willingly-" Bruce took a breath so as to not look as threatening with his temper flared.
Loki had to turn away from them, growing even more uncertain than he already was. "I… I do not wish to leave you any longer, brother. And I will not fight you, Banner, even if you wish to do so. You cannot take me any place in the nine realms where I will not be harmed. All I wish is that you do not follow me where I tread, as it is unsafe."
He paused in harsh memory and said in a low voice, "I should have died back on that ledge, Thor. When I fell into nothingness. At least then it would have been less painful."
Thor was about to growl out another threat to Bruce but then stopped as he heard Loki's words. "You mean the Chitauri, don't you? That is why you are acting this way! No, brother, you deserve to live. You deserve to be happy as the rest of us. The Avengers have fought the Chitauri and won once. We can do it again should they ever return. Even if the others will not... I will face them all alone if I must. I will protect you until my last breath leaves me. I love you too much; it shall be far worse to lose you than to lose to the Chitauri."
Loki looked back at his brother with sudden admiration, something he hadn't felt since a painfully long time ago. But his small and genuine smile faded as he remembered the situation.
"What you say sounds like a deal breaker, Thor, but it is not the truth." In saying this, he unknowingly confirmed Thor's suspicions of the Chitauri. "You think you can stop them, but you cannot. May I remind you that you only were able to defeat those that came with the other four? With just ourselves and Banner, we are pathetically outnumbered, and I must confide in you something you will most likely deny but should here anyway."
Thor puffed out his chest. "Then I suppose we will just have to bring the others together yet again. Bruce... I will need you for that." Thor gave the scientist a pleading look.
"W-wait I-" He looked between the two. Loki was set in his ways of doing what he wanted and not caring what happens, and Thor was willing to do whatever it took to save his brother. "Thor even if I- What makes you think the others will help him? We just fought AGAINST him."
"Banner is right, brother. They will not be keen on aiding me, and even if they did, you do not know the power of the one who will be after my hide. What I wished to confide in you was this: the army of Chitauri you 'Avengers' fought were nothing but untrained soldiers."
"They may not aid YOU but then would certainly defend their planet. Trained or untrained there is no force that does not have some match."
Trying to piece together what should be done, Bruce ran a hand through his hair and fingered the cell Tony gave him in his pocket. The team would certainly team up again if the fate of the world was in danger – he was sure – but they'd probably end up forcing Thor to take him home or to a different realm so as Earth wasn't in the crossfire once again. And frankly that's what he wanted to do.
"No amount of force can defeat them. That much I am sure of. But if you wish to be thick-skulled, brother, then go ahead and try. Just know that when it comes down to it, you will not die for me."
Thor's mouth twiched to a smile. "Because you will fight for me?"
Loki looked up at Thor with sad eyes as he said, "That's one way to word it, I suppose…"
Thor missed Loki's meaning and only smiled wider. "Well Bruce, will you help us then?"
Hoping he wouldn't regret going along with this eventually, Bruce sighed and nodded, "Yea I'll- I'll give Tony a call. We can figure things out from there." At least they were trying to work together now. It was the only reason Bruce was going along with this. And for now at least getting the team together would work for both of them. Pulling out the cell, he stared at the screen a moment as if deciding once and for all this was what they really wanted to do. Then punching in 'one' as Tony's already set speed dial, the phone started to ring.
"Stark." Tony simply answered as he didn't even take his hands off the wheel to do so. Still on his way home from dropping Bruce off at the airport, he almost swerved a bit at hearing the scientist's voice on the other line. He had hoped he'd keep in touch and call sometime, but he never expected it to be so soon. "Brucie. Miss me alre- Wait what."
Expression rapidly changing from amusement to a mix of shock and confussion, he asked, "What's this about?" A moment of silence as he listened to Bruce explaining his call. After Bruce paused from finishing, he looked for the nearest turn around. "...Dammit."
To be continued! Obviously, heheh.
Writing credits...
Loki/editing of chapter by Moki Hunter (me)
Bruce and Tony by Angry Mushroom
Thor by Soul Stained Blue
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