Title: Six hugs a day keeps the doctor away Chapter 4 of 5
Pairings: None.
Warnings: The odd naughty word.
NOTE: I am SO sorry for the long delay. Real life got in the way a bit. This fic was originally only going to be 4 chapters long, but the final chapter was longer than anticipated, so I've split it into two :-)
Six hugs a day keeps the doctor away
Chapter 4 of 5
"Are you OK?" Bruce asked the next morning as Tony poured himself a cup of coffee.
"I'm fine," Tony replied. "Why wouldn't I be?"
"I was just worried you might be a little shook up after the whole fireball thing yesterday," Bruce replied. "It's not every day you give me a hug."
"Hug? I literally have no idea what you are talking about right now, but I'm completely fine, and thank you for asking."
"You hugged me and Nat last night."
"Jarvis?" Tony said, as he looked up at the ceiling.
"Yes, sir?"
"Inspect the water for illegal substances please. Bruce is plainly hallucinating."
"You did!" Bruce exclaimed. "Ask Nat!"
"Whatever, shared delusions," Tony said, as he inspected his eyebrows in the shiny steel surface of the coffee pot.
"I suppose you won't be doing magic any more after yesterday?" Bruce asked. "It's pretty scary stuff."
"Are you kidding?" Tony said. "Magic is great. I'll teach you if you like."
"You can teach me magic?" Bruce asked sceptically. "I thought you had to be born that way."
"Not so much born that way, but you do need a certain set of qualities."
"I don't get it."
"Loki explained it in a way that sounded like you need a certain form of intelligence, which apparently I have, and you probably have too, although obviously to a much lesser degree."
"I still don't get it." Bruce replied.
"Simple analogy. Some people are fast runners and some aren't, and even with all the training in the world, I'm never gonna run as fast as Usain Bolt, because I'm simply not built to do it, but I can handle complex mathematical formulas in a way that most people can't."
"So you're saying that magic is just math and if you are really good at math you can do magic?"
"I'm saying Loki was right, and magic is science. Math, physics, chemistry, all together," Tony replied. "You could totally do it. You want me to show you how to shoot a fireball?"
"I won't end up eyebrow-less like you?"
"I cross my heart, your eyebrows will be intact."
~o~
It didn't take Bruce long to master the art of creating fire in his hand, but he had insisted on doing it in the training room, with Dummy on stand-by just in case things got out of hand, and within a few hours he had destroyed one of Clint's archery targets with a glowing fireball.
"This is much easier than I thought it would be," Bruce said with a beaming smile. "How long did it take you to learn this?"
"A few days," Tony said, feeling slightly annoyed that Bruce had got the hang of it in less time. "But I'm a much better teacher than Loki."
"Really?"
"Oh yeah, when he explains stuff it's all wordy and like listening to Shakespeare recite a physics textbook. 'Thou art creating flame, breaketh apart yon dioxide of the carbon' etc. etc."
"I thought he'd be a really good teacher."
"Trust me, you're better off with professor Stark."
~o~
After the magic lesson had ended, everyone assembled in the kitchen for a dinner that Steve had slaved over for hours, but once again Loki had been absent and Bruce was starting to worry.
Every time he had attempted to speak to Loki in private he was either busy with Tony, or his bedroom door was locked and Jarvis said he was sleeping, but he decided to give it another try just in case.
"Loki?" Bruce asked, as he gently tapped. "Loki, can I come in."
"Mr Banner, sir," Jarvis intoned from the ceiling. "Mr Odinson is sleeping. He has not been sleeping well lately, as I'm sure you know, and I believe it would be a good idea to allow him to rest."
"Oh OK," Bruce replied. "When he wakes up can you tell him I wanted to see him?"
"Of course, sir."
"It's really important that I speak to him, so please don't forget."
"It is impossible for me to forget, sir. Please rest assured that your message will be passed along."
"Thanks, Jarvis."
~o~
Bruce decided to take a walk while he waited for Loki to wake up. He enjoyed wandering the streets of New York at sunset; he loved the cooling air and the way the golden sunlight reflected off the windows. He liked seeing people gather for dinner, laughing and enjoying each other's company, catching a small glimpse of other people's lives every time he passed a restaurant or café.
He hadn't been paying much attention as he walked, but when he looked up he was outside the Shawarma Palace, and the memory of the teams first meal together after defeating the Chitauri brought a smile to his face.
The door swung open as someone left and they held it open for him.
"Thanks," Bruce replied, even though he hadn't intended on going inside, but it seemed rude to let the door swing closed after they had been so polite, so he decided to collect a menu instead.
As he stepped inside the smell of freshly baked naan bread, lamb and sauces made his mouth water, and even though he had already eaten, he considered buying something anyway, but then he noticed a familiar figure, sat alone at a table with four plates in front of them, mouth open, mid bite, with a shocked look on their face.
"What are you doing here?" Bruce asked.
"What does it look like I'm doing?" Loki asked. "It's dinner time."
"Jarvis told me you were sleeping in your room."
"Jarvis is very helpful indeed," Loki replied with a smirk.
"You've got him lying for you now? What did you do, put a spell on him?"
"I had no need of that, Jarvis and I agree on many things."
Bruce pulled back a chair, and sat opposite Loki. "You know, if you're feeling better, you should start coming back to meals with the rest of us. You don't have to sneak off to eat alone."
"I'm fine," Loki replied.
"You've been talking to Tony?"
"I have, yes. I should not?"
"No, no, it's perfectly fine," Bruce said. "Has it helped?"
"I think so," Loki replied. "He does seem a little better."
"Tony seems a little better?"
"Don't you think he's been a bit melancholy of late?"
"I… I don't know."
"You don't know?" Loki asked. "Have you ever bothered to look past his layer of bravado, and his incessant talking to see the real Stark?"
"He does talk a lot..."
"He seems to spend an inordinate amount of time shut away in his workshop, hiding from other people. It isn't healthy." Loki pointed out.
"Wait… So were you really depressed?"
Loki smirked, and took a small bite of his bread.
"You faked it?" Bruce asked. "Thor was worried about you, how could you do that to him?"
"Ah yes, Thor is a wonderful actor when he has a purpose he believes in."
"Oh my god, Thor KNEW?" Bruce asked, and Loki stifled a snicker. "That's pretty low, pretending to have an illness that effects people you know."
Loki's expression changed to a look of dark fury, and as he slammed his hand angrily down onto the table Bruce felt a spike in his heart rate and fought to keep it under control.
"I have lived a thousand years and I have suffered anguish that no mortal could even begin to comprehend," Loki hissed. "You think I don't understand pain? You think I have not tried to end my life to escape the despair I suffered for centuries?"
"Sorry," Bruce replied, trying to calm himself down. "I didn't mean to make light of what you've been through."
"No, you should not assume things about me when you know nothing," Loki said, as he cleaned his hands with a napkin. "But my experience suffering from an illness of the mind has given me the ability to recognise when someone I care about is suffering from the same affliction."
"So you faked all this to get Tony to talk to you?"
"Are mortal brains really so slow that you forget that I am the god of lies?" Loki huffed as he threw his napkin on the table. "Jarvis came to me and confessed that he had calculated that Tony was spending 15.62% more time than average in his workshop, drinking 10% more, and suffering from 40% more nightmares of late, and he was worried about him."
"Jarvis came to you?" Bruce asked, and Loki nodded. "Why would he come to you, and not me?"
"Because Jarvis knew that you would have been like a bull in a china shop and stormed in asking about 'feelings' and 'emotions' and scared Stark back to his lab," Loki replied. "Jarvis said that if Stark thought he was offering me counsel he would reveal much about himself, and he did."
"So you got Tony to talk to you?"
"Stark often talks to me, although it is usually about cars, how much money he has, and his quite frankly disgusting adventures with supermodels," Loki said, "but during our trip to the aviary he spoke of how he created Iron Man. He revealed many things that I do not believe he has talked about before, and if my time with the mind healers taught me anything it is that sharing the bad things that have befallen you in the past really does make you feel better."
"So that's your big plan to help Tony? You lie and manipulate him into telling you things?"
"Do you people actually know anything about me?" Loki asked, sitting back in his chair. "The art of manipulation and lying are among my greatest gifts. Did you honestly think I would join your little group of heroes and all that would suddenly stop?"
"But you're supposed to be one of the good guys now," Bruce said. "Good people don't lie."
"Oh pish posh," Loki said, with a wave of the hand. "I see your politicians lie on the television every day, and no one accuses them of not being good people."
"Loki," Bruce said, leaning in closer. "No one really likes politicians either."
"Really?" Loki asked incredulously. "Then why do you let them rule you?"
"I… I actually don't know the answer to that," Bruce said, and Loki smiled triumphantly.
~o~
~o~
When the alarm that indicated that zombies, or aliens, or killer robots were attacking the city went off the Avengers quickly gathered in the main room of the tower where Tony was already busy sorting through the live video footage SHIELD was beaming to them.
"What have we got?" Steve asked.
"Looks like… the same alien soldiers we fought the other day, and a whole lot more of them, but this guy," Tony said, as he sifted out an image of a particularly large and burly soldier, "appears to be the leader."
"OK, everyone suit up," Steve replied, and then he turned to Clint. "Let's get the Quinjet fired up."
"Aye, aye Captain," Clint replied, then he, Steve, Natasha and Bruce headed to the hanger at the top of the tower.
"I will meet you on the battle field," Thor said, as he headed outside, spun Mjolnir, and then flew into the air.
"You OK?" Tony asked when he saw the slightly nervous look on Loki's face.
"I'm perfectly fine," Loki replied, as he was surrounded by yellow light and his simple tunic and trousers morphed into his battle armour. "Just don't set fire to yourself again."
"I'll do my best," Tony replied and Loki watched as he moved outside, and headed towards the landing pad, where his armour appeared, placed on him by robotic arms, in a manner that looked almost magical. As Tony blasted into the sky, Loki closed his eyes and teleported into the battle.
~o~
Tony, Thor and Loki had already cleared one street of the soldiers when the Quinjet touched down, and the back hatch lowered.
"What are the orders, Cap?" Tony asked, as he landed next to the jet.
"Fury said that the local area has been sealed off, and the police are working on evacuating the civilians from the surrounding buildings. Our orders are to eliminate the threat."
"In other words we wipe them out?"
"Pretty much, yeah."
"Awesome," Tony replied. "Plan?"
"Whatever you do best," Steve said, as he pulled his shield onto his arm, "that's what you should do."
"So general mayhem and destruction?" Natasha said, with a shrug of the shoulders. "I can live with that."
"Everyone move out," Steve announced loudly.
~o~
The alien soldiers had new guns. Last time the Avengers had fought them they had been armed with low quality laser weapons that hardly did any damage, but they had been upgraded since their last battle, and now they were exploding craters in the road surface, and spraying shrapnel across the street.
"Make sure you don't get hit," Tony said over the comm. "They've ramped the power up on those weapons massively."
"I hear you," Clint said, as he rolled behind a car, and loosed a volley of arrows. From his position on the floor he could see a group of the soldiers all aiming their weapons at one spot in the sky, and he said, "Tony, watch it, there's half a dozen of them-"
The soldiers fired their laser weapons in one volley, straight at Iron Man as he flew down the street, and as Tony dodged the blasts, one of the aliens let off another volley which clipped one of Tony's boots and sent him spiralling down into the street below.
"Jarvis, why the hell am I on the ground," Tony asked.
"I believe it's known as a 'lucky shot'," the AI replied. "The left boot mounted repulsor jet pack has been damaged and is out of service, sir."
"Can you work around it?" Tony asked, as he stood. "I need to get back in the fight."
"The damage is too heavy to reroute power. It appears that you will grounded until repairs can be made."
"Well, it's a good job I have other methods of transport now."
"Sir, I hope you aren't implying that you intend to perform a magic trick. I have seen the pictures on the internet of your last attempt."
"I thought I told you to stop going on Twitter."
"I didn't access twitter sir. I was on Tony Stark Without Eyebrows dot Com."
"That's up an running already, eh?"
"Yes, sir. The forum is particularly active. Would you like me to register you an account?"
"Jarvis."
"Yes, sir?"
Tony closed his eyes, and said, "Prepare for teleportation in three, two, one..."
Tony felt the familiar rush of air around him as he teleported, aiming to appear right behind the leader of the aliens who was perched on the flat roof of a diner directing the battle, but as he opened his eyes he found himself face to face with the creature, and something felt different.
"You have made a grave error," the alien said as it curled its fingers around Tony's bare neck.
"What the hell," Tony choked out, as he raised his hands and saw that while his armoured gloves were still on, his arms were completely bare.
"Why have you presented yourself to me in such a vulnerable state?" The creature asked as it plucked Tony's helmet from his head, leaving him almost completely unprotected. It tossed the helmet to the ground, and it landed next to the armour that Tony had teleported out of.
"Shit," Tony croaked.
The final chapter will be posted in the next few days :-)
