This chapter: Loki visits Tony and they actually make some sort of progress.
Notes: I don't like this chapter, but it's getting me from a to b with some development so it'll have to do. Sorry!
And so maybe Loki did save him. He has to have done. Because the next thing he knows, Tony is waking up in his bed and he most certainly is not dead and it might've been a dream and Tony is confused now.
'Jarvis? What happened last night?'
'It's been a while since I've heard that question, sir.' The voice answers, playing the video feed from the previous night. Loki is nowhere to be found, and instead Tony just materialises in his bed at just after midnight. Tony is even more confused now.
He crawls out of bed, gets dressed and tries not to think about the fact that Loki (because it has to have been Loki because only Loki would do it so dramatically) put him into bed naked, and heads down to the kitchen, intent on finding someone who knows what happened yesterday.
Instead he finds Loki perched on the counter and drinking a cup of tea.
Tony has to do a major double take before he can splutter out a 'what?' and Loki just elegantly raises an eyebrow and smirks at him. Now Tony is completely and utterly confused and his head hurts and he just wants to go back to bed. But he knows he should probably find out what the hell is going on, so he takes a couple of steps into the kitchen, takes the cup of coffee Loki gestures to, hops up onto the counter next to him and decides to try again.
'So, what?'
'It is quite simple really -you were falling at a rather alarming speed, so I caught you and returned you to your bed.'
'Right. Care to explain how I was falling in the first place?'
'Certainly. It appears you were asleep. And flying. So-'
'When there was a malfunction I wasn't awake enough to fix it.'
'It appears so.' Loki looks at him out of the corner of his eye and Tony sighs.
'Why did you save me?'
'Because it simply would not do to have you flattened on a sidewalk.'
'Did you just make a joke?'
'Possibly.' Tony laughs, shaking his head and Loki chuckles beside him.
'Where is everybody?' He asks, gesturing around and the empty kitchen.
'Answering a call on the other side of the city. I had a feeling that you did not wish to reveal the nature of our relationship to them.'
'Our relationship?'
'Well, I had assumed that that was the appropriate term for it.' Loki answers, sounding unsure.
'I'm no expert in relationships, but I'm fairly certain that you're not supposed to disappear for months on end.'
'It was not months. It was barely even one month. And I had some… things to attend to.'
'That sounds menacing. So we are in a relationship then?' Tony questions, trying not to think about the gravity of that statement and how cliché it sounds and how desperate he is for the answer to be positive because he should not be desperate to be in a relationship with anybody let alone a goddamn... well, god.
'It may be extremely dysfunctional, but yes -I see no reason why we cannot define it as such.' And Tony also ignores the light feeling in his chest and that and he fights the grin that threatens to stretch across his face.
Tony sighs, leaning slightly into Loki, pleased when he doesn't pull away. 'Is this the part where we declare our love and ride off into the sunset together?'
Loki pulls away then. 'I do not understand that reference. And I do not think anyone mentioned love. I do not believe I even understand the meaning of that word anymore.' He says, quietly, and he ducks his head, looking into his tea. Tony feels like that is probably the most emotion he has ever gotten out of the man in this past three months of them dancing around each other, and he isn't going to let it slide.
Now, Tony isn't one for dramatic speeches, but it's hard to deny that he's been thinking that same thing recently. How can he define his feelings for Loki if he has nothing to measure it against? So he tells Loki what he's been using to get him through the night.
'I don't think love has a meaning. I think you define it for yourself. It's what you feel towards a certain person, whether that's as a friend, as someone you want to spend the rest of your life with, or somebody that you like having a little bit of fun with.'
'And we are the latter?'
'It would seem so.' Tony nudges Loki with his shoulder, smiling at him. 'I don't not love you. But I don't love you yet either.'
'I do not not love you too.'
They laugh again, and silence descends upon them. Tony hears the door open, and the comfortable feeling of someone against his side disappears, and Tony looks over at the empty space, laughing to himself and shaking his head as he jumps down and goes to meet the rest of the team.
Three days later sees Tony in his workshop, trying to work out a way to make his suit fly him home safely if he is to fall asleep or pass out while inside it, and it's turning out to be more difficult than he'd originally thought.
'A little magic might prove useful.'
Tony spins around, coming face to face with Loki, and he jumps, grabbing his arc reactor in shock. 'You need to stop sneaking around all silently.'
'Fine. I shall sneak around a little louder next time.' Tony smiles at that, and leans forward a little, taking the initiative when Loki doesn't pull away and pressing a chaste kiss to his lips. Loki follows him as he pulls away and lures him into a deeper kiss, tongues fighting and tasting, and god dammit Tony really has missed this, the fight and the cold and the taste of the magic, but he'll be damned if he's ever going to admit that out loud.
And now Tony is considering how many things that he won't say out loud and how many things he won't admit to thinking about but before he can get concerned about the amount of things he keeps buried, Loki crowds him against the workbench, hands on his hips, and his mind goes blank. They don't go any further than that. They just kiss, and Tony feels like he's back in high school again, but for once, he isn't trying to get the other party to go further -he's perfectly content just to stay at the kissing stage. He brings one hand up to play with the hairs at the nape of Loki's neck, the other hand coming to rest on his waist. Eventually, the need for air becomes too great and they pull away, Loki resting his head against Tony's forehead, eyes closed.
They stay like that for a while. Until Clint and Steve walk in and everybody freezes for an extremely awkward moment. But neither Loki nor Tony pull away, until Steve coughs and tells Tony that they need to talk to him and they'll be upstairs. Loki then places a brief kiss to the corner of Tony's mouth and does his disappearing act. Tony sighs, rubs at his forehead and turns towards the stairs.
When he reaches the top, he sees an intervention waiting for him. The whole team, plus Pepper are waiting for him with various looks on their faces, ranging from a twisted sort of pride (Natasha) to a look of utter scandal (Steve). Tony sighs and contemplates fleeing very fast in the opposite direction before realising that he can't outrun any of them (except probably Pepper, but only because she's wearing those heels) and resigning himself to what he knows will be an extremely fun conversation.
