Chapter Three

'So, there are probably a few things we should discuss before either of us sign anything,' Tony said a few minutes later. Loki hadn't been kidding; Tony's appetite had suddenly expanded, and everything on his plate looked delicious, his stomach apparently having no end. At least, he hadn't found it yet, and he'd already eaten half a loaf of bread. 'Like the invasion, for example,' Tony said.

Loki raised an eyebrow as he pierced a piece of bacon with his fork- and Tony had no idea how he did that, because bacon was a bitch to eat with utensils. 'If you're looking for an apology, you won't get one,' the god said. 'Well, not one that's completely sincere, anyway,' he corrected. 'I do regret destroying your city. The more time I spend here, the more I realise that not all you Midgardians are worthless beasts.'

'That's good to know,' Tony snorted. He had no illusions; he knew that Loki wasn't a good guy. Then again, neither was Tony. But Loki was a god; their moral codes, however small, were vastly different.

'I wasn't controlled, at least not like your little Hawk was,' Loki continued. 'The Other- the one in command of the Chitauri fleet- had a certain hold on me, I will admit. But those actions were my own. Desperate as they were, I led the army here of my own will.'

'Was it completely your will, though?' Tony asked. ''Cause your invasion was kind of half-assed at best.'

Loki smirked. 'I didn't want to rule Midgard, if you were concerned about that. I never have. Just like I never wanted to rule Asgard. There are too many rules, too many people you must listen to, when you rule as a King or Emperor. I much prefer to be in the shadows, pulling the strings, working my... magic, you could say, from the background. Being a King means listening to the problems of the common folk, something I care little about. At best I hoped to be Thor's right-hand, the voice of reason and intelligence when he needed help. I never wanted to sit on the throne- any throne- myself.'

'Good to know,' Tony commented. 'So you weren't mind controlled, but this... Other, had a certain kind of power over you.'

'He was always watching,' Loki nodded. 'He created a link similar to what the sceptre had over Barton and the others. He couldn't control my every thought and movement, because a puppet would not make a good commander. He needed me to be able to think for myself. I needed to be able to adapt to any type of situation. The Other was just there, lurking in the background, making sure that I did what he wanted. The green beast knocked that hold free when he used me to redecorate your living room.'

'Which was awesome and I'll never say otherwise,' Tony interrupted. ''Cause seriously, seeing the bastard who threw me through a window in my floor was just really fucking cool.'

'And I would think the same if it were an enemy of mine,' Loki agreed. 'I threw you through a window, as you said, I cannot fault you for taking pleasure in my pain.'

'Well, not in your pain,' Tony corrected, 'just... in seeing you in the floor.'

Loki smirked and slid a piece of bacon into his mouth, chewing slowly and swallowing before continuing. 'When the Other found me, I was not in any state to deny his requests, or that of the Mad Titan's.'

'Mad Titan?'

'The one who truly wanted the Tesseract,' Loki said. 'Midgard was, unfortunately, just the planet holding it at the time. The Mad Titan cares little for this planet. It is a gateway to Asgard and the other Nine Realms.'

'And now that it's not here?' Tony questioned.

'I'm not sure,' Loki admitted. 'He could very well come here to kill the heroes who defeated his army. That would take time, though. Without the Tesseract he has no way to move his fleet to this planet quickly. And Asgard will always defend Midgard, because Midgard is the gateway to Asgard.'

'So we get protected because Asgard wants to protect itself,' Tony summarised.

Loki nodded. 'Basically, yes. It's why Thor is your planet's protector. Protect Midgard and you protect the Nine Realms.'

'Cool,' Tony said. 'So we mortals are basically caught between two bigger powers, really.'

'Mm,' Loki hummed with a slight nod. 'But remember, you are no longer mortal.'

Tony smirked. Oh, yeah... awesome.

'We'll deal with that if it happens,' Tony decided, brushing the subject aside. 'You don't wanna rule Earth anymore, that's all I care about.'

'You rule it already,' Loki commented, mirth dancing in his green eyes. 'With your technology, your wealth, and your status. I have researched you since we fought. You can make an entire room kneel with a few simple words.'

Tony grinned at that, remembering the press conference after returning from Afghanistan. He'd asked the room to sit and they had, no questions asked. Maybe Loki would have faired better if he'd just been sweet and charming instead of all insane and murderous. Then again, if Loki had really wanted Earth, he would have succeeded, no matter what SHIELD threw his way.

'So,' Tony cleared his throat and stood. Loki watched curiously as the newly-turned god hunted around for a piece of paper and a pen, which was actually harder to come by than it should have been. Steve and Bruce both liked using pens and paper, whereas Tony preferred StarkPads and other technology. 'So,' he repeated when he re-took his seat opposite Loki, 'we should write down exactly what we want from this deal. I'm assuming that you'll make the contract binding once we sign it?'

'Enchanted paper signed in blood,' Loki told him. Tony just nodded; yeah, magic was weird, moving on.

'Okay then,' Tony nodded. 'Rule one, of course, is that we can't betray or kill the other.'

'We will need to word that carefully,' Loki said. 'Because there may come a time where we have to appear as though we've betrayed the other to escape a hostile environment.'

'Like if SHIELD captures me and I pretend to turn on you to have a better chance of escaping,' Tony said, and Loki nodded. 'Yeah, we can word that in somehow. Some type of clause that lets us pretend to betray the other without really meaning it.'

'We will also have to decide on whether or not that stipulation extends past our agreement to destroy SHIELD and the World Security Council,' Loki said. Tony looked up at him. 'Do we want to continue to work together with the safety of no betrayals after our current enemies have been vanquished?' Loki asked. 'Or will we revert back to being enemies once SHIELD is taken care of?'

'I'd rather stay partners, in all honesty,' Tony said. 'I'm assuming that you have just as many, if not more, enemies as I do. There are business rivals out there that I'd like to take down a peg or two, that's not to mention whatever other insane individuals will step forward after SHIELD's destroyed. Having you on my side, someone I can actually trust, would be a great benefit.'

'And you would be willing to help me with my enemies?' Loki questioned. 'I have many, and most of them come from other Realms.'

'I'm confident when it comes to my suit and my intelligence,' Tony shrugged. 'And now I'm physically stronger and will live longer, so... I'll need some enemies to fight over the next few hundreds years.'

Loki chuckled and pressed his fingers against the paper Tony was doodling on. He easily slid it from beneath the inventor's hands and towards himself. 'May I?' he asked, gesturing to the pen. Tony handed it over and Loki hummed as he looked down at the sheet. 'Let's see what we can do...' he murmured and started jotting down his own ideas.

{oOo}

It took hours, of course. Tony and Loki were both suspicious bastards, and still didn't trust each other, at least not until the contract was signed. The argued over every point, over every sub-point, and were constantly trying to re-word everything so that they got the better deal.

It was all moot in the end, though, because later that night when they were finally done- and Tony's back was seriously starting to ache from sitting in the same position for so long- the contract was something that they both felt comfortable with. Every agreement was equal and fair for both of them, because Tony and Loki had both fought tooth and nail for it to be so. Even with the inclusion of the Golden Apple, they were still equal partners.

'Finally,' Tony groaned when he finished reading over the final contract. Loki had summed a piece of parchment from wherever the fuck he kept that shit, and had muttered a spell over it to make it binding. He'd then written everything out with a quill- in English, so that Tony could understand it- and given it to the human to read over.

'Now we just have to sign,' Loki said and drew a dagger from his boot. And, okay, where the fuck had that come from?

'You gotta show me how you hide weapons like that,' Tony commented.

Loki smirked. 'I will make you a few daggers. They are always handy, and easily concealable.'

'Awesome,' was all Tony said.

'There is something I need to do, before I sign this,' Loki said, making Tony arch an eyebrow.

'Go on,' he murmured.

'As I'm sure you are aware, I am not Æsir by birth,' Loki said.

Tony frowned. 'What?'

Loki mirrored the expression. 'You know that I am adopted.'

'Well, yeah,' Tony nodded, 'but... wait, you're not the same species as Thor?'

'No,' Loki said, seeming surprised that Tony didn't know that. 'I am Jötunn; a Frost Giant.'

Tony blinked. Loki stared. 'I have no fucking idea what that is,' Tony admitted. Sure, he'd dabbled a bit in Norse Mythology since Loki had dropped out of the Tesseract, but he had, like, a thousand things to do, and reading up on Loki's life hadn't been at the top of his list.

Loki looked... like he had no idea what to say to that. His frown deepened a bit before he shook his head. 'I will have to discuss this with you further at some point, because as my partner you should know this about me.' He didn't seem pleased about it, but whatever. 'My point is that I am not Æsir; the form you currently see is not what I actually look like.'

'Oh, okay,' Tony said. 'So, what, you have actual horns or something? Scales? A tail?'

Loki huffed, looking torn between amusement and anger. Tony wasn't sure what to make of that.

'No,' the god shook his head. 'Just blue skin and red eyes. My body temperature is much, much lower than that of a mortal or an Ás.'

'Okay...' Tony hummed. He was intrigued, really, because a blue space alien? Awesome, plain and simple. But Loki... well, he didn't look happy about sharing this information with Tony. In fact, he didn't look happy about the whole Jötunn thing at all... there was a story there, Tony knew, and he wondered if Loki would share that at some point in the future.

'My point is that my magic differs when I'm in my Jötunn form,' Loki continued. 'Certain things bleed over; my body temperature is always much lower, I am able to manipulate and create ice, and I have a higher tolerance for the cold. But when in my Jötunn form, some things are easier.'

'Because it's your true form,' Tony interrupted. Loki hesitated before nodding. 'So can you use your magic easier when in that form?' he asked.

'I am unsure, as I don't like to be in that form for too long,' Loki admitted.

'Well that's just stupid,' Tony stated, making Loki scowl. 'No, seriously,' Tony said, sitting up and leaning further over the counter. 'You hate your Jötunn form, I can see that. But it's an asset. You being blue and throwing ice? Not something that SHIELD will expect. Or Thor, either, if he knows how much you hate it. You should use it to your advantage.'

Loki just blinked at him, looking slightly stunned. Clearly he'd never thought of that before.

'I'm just saying,' Tony shrugged. 'If you don't wanna be in that form, then by all means never change; it's not up to me. But if it gives you an advantage, well...' he trailed off and stood, going to get more coffee. When he got back Loki had composed himself, and he continued his first topic, clearly needing to digest what Tony had said.

'I need to be in my birth form for this contract to bind us properly,' Loki said. 'The Æsir form I wear is mostly a glamour; a spell that the All-Father, and then I, used to mask what I truly am. But it still changes things, like my magic and certain... features about my body. In my Jötunn form, you will be bound to who I truly am. It will bind us more tightly together and more deeply.'

'Whatever you think is best, Dancer,' Tony shrugged. 'You're the magic expert here.'

'Dancer?' Loki said, eyebrow raised, clearly not amused.

'You're just jealous that you have no nicknames for me,' Tony grinned cheekily. Loki rolled his eyes. 'So, let's get this thing signed,' Tony decided to move on. 'I'll feel a lot better about this entire situation if we can't suddenly stab each other in the back.'

Loki nodded and closed his eyes. It took a lot of concentration for him to melt into his Frost Giant form; despite how much he despised it, he'd been practising since he escaped Asgard. Like Stark had said, it was an asset, and Loki would be a fool not to use every trick he had. A few minutes passed and nothing happened, at least not to Stark's eyes. Loki felt his magic flicker and seep into his bones more thoroughly than usual. He felt the ice cold tendrils of his Jötunn magic- the part of him that so easily manipulated ice- creep up on him, making his skin feel cooler.

Stark gasping was the first hint that Loki's true form was taking hold. The second was the cool shiver that swept over Loki's skin. When the god opened his eyes it was to find his hands and arms blue, frost beginning to spider across the counter-top from his fingers. Loki quickly reined in that magic, forcing it deep beneath his skin. He looked up at Stark, who's eyes widened when he saw the true colour of Loki's own.

'Wow,' Tony hummed. 'Okay, so you really, really look like a different race. The Æsir look exactly like us humans, but damn...'

'Yes, it is hard to hide what I truly am when in this form,' Loki agreed, going for the dagger he'd left sitting beside his and Stark's contract.

'Do the raised lines mean anything?' Tony asked. 'Or are they like fingerprints?'

'I have no idea,' Loki admitted. 'All Frost Giants have them.'

'Should look into that,' Tony mused, eyes roaming over Loki's face. Loki paused, his own eyes on Stark's. The human didn't seem terrified or disgusted or... anything that Loki was expecting. He just looked fascinated, like he wanted to touch, to study, to find out just how different Loki was. But Stark, he... he was unbiased, Loki realised. He hadn't grown up with stories of Frost Giants coming into his room and eating his flesh. He just saw Loki as a different creature, a different race; one different to his own, but not inherently evil.

Loki chuckled humourlessly to himself. He wondered if he would be more accepting of his own skin if he hadn't grown up with tales of bloodthirsty monsters. Just another way that the All-Father had failed him. Loki was a monster. But the All-Father had made him that way.

Loki shook his head, not wanting to dwell in this skin for too long. He would explain about the Frost Giants- and about his coming to be a Prince of Asgard- at a later date. For now he just wanted to get Stark firmly on his side. If they could not betray each other, then Loki had nothing to fear from Stark knowing everything. Only disgust.

Stark jolted when Loki cut his palm, but quickly calmed when Loki dipped the quill into his blood and signed the contract. He then sealed his skin with a quick burst of magic; Loki was by no means a skilled healer, but he knew enough to heal small wounds and broken bones. And, of course, he could heal himself quite easily.

'Your turn,' Loki said and handed the dagger across to Stark.

'Your skin's awesomely cold,' Tony commented when their fingers brushed.

'Frost Giant,' Loki reminded him.

'Yeah, yeah,' the human chuckled. He sliced his own palm, not even wincing at the gash he caused, and dipped the quill into his own blood. When he'd signed his full name- as Loki had instructed- Loki slid the parchment towards himself and held a hand over it. All it took was a few muttered words to bind the two together, the words written out now a baseline for their relationship. Stark gasped as the magic washed over him, and shook his head roughly, swaying on his stool. 'Yeah, wow, magic.'

'Mm, I should have warned you,' Loki murmured. 'Now shut up, I need to concentrate.'

Stark poked his tongue out- Loki saw it before he closed his eyes- but the god ignored him as he concentrated on sinking back into his Æsir form. It took longer than before- because despite what Sif and the Warriors Three thought, magic was anything but a trick- and Loki felt slightly drained when he settled into his familiar skin. He could easily fight off an attack, but he wouldn't be using his magic for unnecessary things.

'You need anything?' Tony asked.

'Hmm?' Loki hummed, his eyes- green once more- shifting to the genius.

'You look a bit tired,' Tony said, prodding at his injured hand. 'Magic takes it out of you, huh?'

'Magic is but a muscle, Stark; another extension of my person,' Loki said. 'Throwing a punch takes energy, as does throwing a spell.'

'Magic's another form of energy, one that you use your body to control,' Stark nodded. 'So it makes sense that it'd take just as much effort to wield as something like hand-to-hand fighting would.'

And with those few words, Stark showed that he understood more than Thor and his friends ever had. Stark, a mere mortal (former, really) from a tiny blue planet, only forty-five years of age, understood more about Loki than the people who had known him for 1047 years. It was equal parts disturbing and exhilarating. Finally, Loki had found someone who could at least understand certain parts of him, and Stark had only known him for mere weeks, really.

Oh, he would definitely never regret stealing an apple for Stark. A mortal lifetime was not enough for this brilliant, mad creature.

Stark was still touching his wound. It had stopped bleeding, but had yet to close up; clearly Stark's faster healing factor was already in effect.

Loki rolled his eyes and reached over, grabbing Stark's hand and making the human yelp. He then smiled when Loki healed his wound, the god only using a very small amount of magic to do so.

'Thanks,' Stark said.

'You're welcome,' was Loki's simple reply.

Tony grinned at him before jumping to his feet. 'So, I'm starving. We've been sitting here all day- literally all day- and I need, like, five containers of something delicious. You like Chinese, right?'

'I have no idea what it is,' Loki admitted.

'Rice, vegetables, and meat in sauce,' Tony said.

'Ah,' Loki hummed. 'I would prefer all vegetables, then. Meat slows my magic. It is easier to replenish when the meat of animals isn't in my system.'

Tony looked absolutely fascinated by that, his fingers twitching, like he was fighting not to throw Loki down and examine every inch of him.

'I can explain that over dinner,' Loki said, and a bright, slightly-mad grin lit up Stark's face.

'Oh, yes, you will,' he nodded. 'Vegetarian it is. So I share Thor's appetite now, huh?'

'It is a result of our semi-immortality,' Loki said. 'We burn energy much faster than mortals, thus we need more sustenance.'

'Right-o,' Stark said. 'Vegetarian, okay. You go make yourself comfortable in the living room, I'll order, and we'll watch a movie or something.'

'Very well,' Loki agreed easily, standing slowly and turning.

'And magic talks!' Tony called. 'Don't forget that!'

'As long as you teach me your Midgardian sciences, than I have no problem imparting some of my knowledge,' Loki retorted.

'Oh, yeah,' he heard Stark's glee-filled voice. 'This is gonna be awesome.'

Loki chuckled as he walked into the living room. Really, SHIELD had no hope, not with him and Stark working together. Loki let a smirk take over his face. This would be so much fun.


Author's Note: Just in case I didn't make it clear; basically, part of the contract stipulates that Tony and Loki cannot physically harm or betray each other. Tony can't just take a knife and stab Loki or vice-versa, because the magic binding them will kill them if they do so. So Tony could stab Loki, but then he'd die for breaking the contract. Also, they can't sell each other out, at least not really; they can lie and pretend they're betraying each other, like... Tony telling SHIELD where Loki is and what his plans are, but if he really did it the contract would, of course, take it back from him; an eye for an eye and all that.

Cheers,

{Dreamer}