Loki stared intently at the cookbook, making sure he was doing everything right. More than ever he had to do this right. Tony loved Ms. Potts and she had the flu. If Loki served her subpar chicken noodle soup he'd be furious.
The god took a tentative sip of the soup and was satisfied with the results. He chucked the soiled spoon into the sink before grabbing a bowl and clean silverware. He scooped up a hardy helping for her before placing it on a tray along with a cup of hot tea.
He carefully carried it down the hallway then hesitated in front of the bedroom door. During his whole stay here he'd only caught glimpses of its interior. It was a sacred place and Loki would only taint it.
He lightly knocked on the door and Tony granted him access. Loki tried not to swing his head around, staring at every inch of the room- the large TV on mute playing the news, the discarded clothes at the foot of the bed, the disheveled sheets, trashcan full of used tissues, the mini-fridge in the corner, Ms. Potts' propped up in bed with a book, Tony sitting in an armchair that had been in the living room earlier in the day. The engineer's legs were propped up on the bed, his feet barely touching hers.
Tony took the tray from Loki and quickly situated it in front of the strawberry blond woman. Tony read her expression as she took a sip of the chicken noodle soup. She faintly nodded.
"Tony, you could always take him to the charity ball. He's a shape shifter after all." She said after blowing on the steaming tea.
"What? And risk him sullying your image and reputation? No way." Tony flicked his hand dismissively, ignoring Loki's presence behind him.
"Loki, come here." Ms. Potts called for him and Loki completely froze, not used to being directly talked to by her. He glanced at Tony who gave him an annoyed look for not immediately complying. He walked to Pepper's side, standing between the couple. She took one of his hands in her own. Loki stared at their joined hands, not used to such a tender touch. "You can shape shift into anyone, right?"
"Yes." His voice cracked and he cleared his throat, feeling awkward in comparison to how composed she looked despite being sick.
"Perfect, there's a charity ball tonight that Stark Industries is hosting. As the CEO I'm expected to be there, especially since this is my pet project. You'll pretend to be me and go as Tony's date. You don't have to talk to anyone or make any speeches." Her kind smile lost its softness, making Loki tense up. "If you mess this up you won't like what comes after it." She let go of his hand.
"Jarvis, pull up some footage of Pepper at various events and put them on screen in the living room. Reindeer Games may know how to take it like a woman, but I doubt he knows how to act like a lady."
"Footage from the last five charity balls have been uploaded on screen, special emphasis on decorum." The AI announced.
"Thanks." The CEO and engineer began promptly ignoring Loki. He easily got the hint and left, casting one last glance around the room.
As expected everything was already set up when Loki got to the living room. Loki tugged a soft blanket around him, settling himself on the couch.
The videos were exceedingly boring with no audio. He learned that Ms. Potts always sandwiched someone's hand with her own two when she shook hands, that she never drank more than one champagne flute, she was a wonderful dancer, but usually declined any invitation to do so.
Loki tried to pay attention to her, but his eyes kept drifting to Tony. He'd never seen him so… charming. Even without hearing him Loki could tell that every word he spoke impressed.
It occurred to Loki that Tony could probably charm them all if he wanted to. He could rule them all, but he chose not to. He knew the limitations that leadership instilled.
Tony could lead, but chose not to. Loki tried to lead, but wasn't strong enough to do so. It was just another one of the countless ways Tony was better than him…
Loki watched the videos on a loop until Jarvis announced he needed to get cleaned up for the event. When he got out of the shower there were a pair of heels and a dress hanging on the door, waiting for him. With an ease that came from years of practice Loki shifted his form. He examined himself dispassionately in the mirror. Different face, same person.
Jarvis told him to go to the living room. Ms. Potts was waiting for him there, a makeup bag in hand. She smiled amused.
"So this is what it feels like to have a twin." She gestured for him to sit down before she started doing his makeup. He'd never been this close to her before and he made a special effort not to make any movements that may startle or annoy her.
Shortly after Ms. Potts had finished Tony walked around the corner, fixing his cufflink.
"Pep, a little help?" He gestured to the unknotted bowtie around his neck. She went over to him while sniffling and easily tied it properly. "You sure you're going to be fine here by yourself?" Tony asked, gliding his hand up her bare arm.
"I'll be fine. It's you two I'm worried about." Tony glanced at Loki who was still sitting on the couch, legs crossed the way Ms. Potts always did.
"Don't worry. He'll be on his best behavior and I'll keep him within arm's reach at all times." As he spoke he looked at Loki in a clear warning. Loki couldn't afford to mess this up.
"I'll be good." He assured them, trying to look demure.
"See, everything is going to be just fine. Now go back to bed and get better so that we can lots of awesome celebratory sex tomorrow." He started steering her back to their room.
"Celebratory?"
"The Burke group is going to be there tonight. I plan on wrapping up negotiations with them before the silent auction begins." For some reason the redhead scoffed. "Come on, you know their CFO loves me and I think his daughter is trying to get into MIT. One call from me and she's in. I can close this deal."
"Oh, I have no doubt that you can. You are aware that this is a charity function, usually people don't like conducting business during those." Pepper said and it was Tony's turn to scoff.
"If they had it their way, all their employees would work through Christmas." He gave her a brief kiss on the cheek. "Go to sleep and I'll join you in a few hours, okay?"
"Fine, just be sure to keep that thing," she pointed to Loki with her thumb, "out of trouble." They disappeared around the corner and Loki relaxed a bit.
Tony reappeared a moment later, a long coat draped over his arm.
"That's one of Pepper's favorite dresses so don't spill anything on it." Tony said to Loki while handing him the coat. He put it on and briefly admired the quality of the material. It was finer than the things Tony usually provided him with.
Tony tugged on his arm and Loki followed him obediently.
It had been so long since he'd been outside of the tower. Everything was surprisingly loud and he was grateful when he was ushered into the spacious black car waiting for them.
"Ms. Potts." The driver said kindly. Loki nodded with a smile, playing his part.
Inside the car Tony sighed and leaned back in his seat, eyes falling shut. Loki sat beside him, but kept distance between them so that he wouldn't be tempted. He wanted to reach out and assure Tony that everything would be fine, but knew his words would just fall on hollow ears.
Instead Loki just stared out the window at the dark city. There were no obvious marks of his misguided invasion and everyone looked either happy or in a hurry. Some were smoking cigarettes and Loki fleetingly wondered what the appeal was.
When the car stopped and the driver opened the door Loki moved to get out, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder.
"Don't fuck this up." Tony warned once more.
Loki nodded before exiting the vehicle. He was surprised by how many people were outside, flashing cameras and shouting questions. It was overwhelming, but Loki was quickly centered again when Tony looped his arm around Loki's waist. Tony waved at the various people with a well rehearsed smile in place.
They all called out for him and Tony responded to each of them with short answers that were hollow yet charming.
So this is what admiration felt like, what it felt like for the public to love him instead of see him as the shadow of a greater being. It was breathtaking and short lived when he realized they were admiring Ms. Potts and Tony, not Loki.
Inside the large building a well dressed man helped Loki take off his coat.
Loki enjoyed the most likely subconscious touches Tony kept giving him. He'd touch Loki's arm and hand periodically as if checking to see if he (Pepper) was still there. He'd brush against his (Pepper's) hip. While talking to others Tony would bring him (her) closer, as if trying to include Loki (Pepper) into the conversation. And then he'd falter in his touches, remembering that the oddly silently person beside him was in fact not his lover. Loki could always see when he remembered. There would be the quickest flicker of disgust in his eyes before he hid it once more. When that happened Loki always looked down at his half full champagne flute and calmed himself. Now was not the time to be wanton, especially when he was pretending to be someone as regal as Ms. Potts.
Loki shamelessly took advantage of the situation and hoped that Tony wouldn't notice. He held onto the crook of Tony's arm the way he'd seen Ms. Potts do in most of the videos. He didn't hide the unbridled love in his eyes when he looked at the engineer. He laughed freely at Tony's jokes and fixed his bowtie when it became crooked. He wanted to steal a kiss from him, but knew that would be pushing things too far, especially since Ms. Potts never showed that level of affection in public.
"Come on. I have to make a speech." Tony whispered to Loki, clasping Loki's hand which was resting on the crook of Tony's arm. Loki silently followed him. When they reached the privacy of backstage Tony immediately dropped Loki's hand and put distance between them. At the edge of the stage he handed Loki his half finished drink. "Wait here."
Tony brushed down the front of his tuxedo before the woman on stage announced him. There was a rush of applause which Loki joined in on as Tony walked to the podium.
Loki watched on in admiration as Tony made a speech about clean energy and the importance of the next generation. He was more watching the man then actually listening to the speech- until he felt a dark presence sneaking up behind him. Loki glanced at the metal rigging of the curtains and saw the reflection of a man dressed in a tuxedo. Loki didn't react until he was standing next to him.
"I thought you were supposed to be making this speech." The man said with a tone that meant they knew each other, but weren't particularly close.
"Sore throat." Loki lied effortlessly, taking a sip of champagne to burn time until Tony came back.
"So what is SI working on now-a-days? I find it hard to believe clean energy is your only focus." He moved closer to Loki, smiling almost conspiratorially.
"Clean energy is important for the future and a field in need of improvement." It was a line Tony had said not ten minutes prior. Loki was starting to feel panic edge closer to him. If he said the wrong thing this man would know something was wrong- and if he knew Tony would definitely know and Loki would be the one to suffer because of it.
Thankfully Tony finished his speech and headed over to them. He gave Loki a brief nod before glaring at the unnamed man.
"Hammer, I pulled out of the weapons industry and let you have my leftovers. You trying to steal my CEO now?" Tony asked while pulling the look alike to his side. Loki melted against him, not able to help himself.
"Just discussing business, nothing having to do with you." Hammer smiled with too many teeth.
"Yeah, because my name isn't the same as the company's or anything." Tony rolled his eyes before placing his hand on Loki's lower back and guiding him away. "Be sure to donate a hefty penny, Justin. You might as well do something nice in your life for once."
"Yeah, you too Tony." Loki could tell that Hammer was searching for a good comeback, but the moment went by too quickly and he was left with only his drink in his hand.
"I tried not to talk to him-" Loki said in a panicked whisper when they were out of hearing range.
"Stop, stand up straight. Pepper would never be seen in public slouching." Loki corrected his posture. "Just tell me what you said."
"That I wasn't making the speech because my throat is sore and that clean energy is important. Is that okay? I'm sorry I didn't know what to do-"
"Hush Bambi." Tony pulled Loki into his arms and the god caught his breath. "You did a good job. Hammer is just a weasel. Pep would have handled him the same way." Tony ran his hand down the exposed skin of Loki's back. The god sighed contently, feeling warm and almost loved. "The night is only half over though. You have to keep up the act. Can you do that for me?"
"Yes, I can do that, anything for you." Loki whispered, not wanting to let go of him. Tony kissed him on his forehead and Loki was certain this must be a dream.
"I'm so proud of you, Loki." The god gasped, completely freezing. Tony had never referred to him by name before, not directly at least, and definitely not while they were embracing. "All you needed was a firm hand and proper incentives." Tony kissed him again, this time on the cheek. It took everything Loki had not to turn to meet Tony's lips with his own. The engineer pulled back and Loki bit his lip to keep from whimpering at the loss of contact. "The silent auction is about to begin. Everyone is waiting for us."
Tony laced his fingers with Loki's and walked with him back to the crowded room. Even as Tony began talking to various people he never let go of Loki's hand- something he didn't even do when he was with Ms. Potts. He didn't let his hand go the whole night, and Loki couldn't help but feel that maybe there was actually hope, that maybe Tony might feel at least the slightest affection for him.