Updated and edited. (26 July 2013)

Genre for my story is Friendship and Hurt/Comfort. Here's the Hurt/Comfort. . . . Poor Loki (and Thor.)

(Impromptu Separator)

Chapter Six

Oh How Loki Hurts

3rd Person

Avengers Tower - Earth

Unknown - Earth Calendar

In less than a month Loki had managed to get back most of his strength; just a few days ago he had walked around the whole floor, visiting everyone in their rooms, and even had enough strength to walk around the next floor and still make it back to his room on his own. The same thing has Thor worriedly pacing (though he is still happy to see his brother getting better) for early this morning Fury had come for Loki. He had told the team when Loki was first brought here 4 months ago that he would question him when he was healed and early this morning he came to make good on his promise. Thor's agitation at this is seeping into everyone else and the whole team is now sitting around agitated and nervous. Everyone quietly waits in the common room for Fury to bring back Loki or at least for Thor to go back to his own room.

"He's like a caged animal." Barton whispers quietly into Tasha's ear so that no one else can hear.

"I can't take any more of this." Tony says then quickly gets up and walks off to the elevators. Everyone turns and watches him go. Well, everyone but Thor, that is.

Barton turns back around then so does Tasha. They are sitting side by side at the bar, their backs to Thor who paces in front of the couches. Banner is sitting at the dining table fiddling around pointlessly on a computer, trying to ignore Thor and take his mind off what might be happening. Steve is sitting down in an armchair staring at the TV as if wiling it to come on or imagining what's on. Every now and then Thor crosses into Steve's line of sight, making the soldier frown when he does, but only very rarely does it occur.

Steve is use to this type of anxiety, it's like the anxiousness that comes before an impending battle is the way he sees it, even if Thor's constant pacing still makes him worry for the god a little. He, like all the others (minus Thor), sense the impending disaster; they all know what Fury can be like sometimes and now it worries them. They fear what shall be found and fear Thor's reaction.

Steve decides to attempt to loosen the tension by getting up and putting on a movie. Banner and the others move over to the viewing area and settle down to watch the movie.

"You might want to sit down Thor, there isn't anything you can really do right now, you can only wait. Allow the movie to take your mind off of it for the time being, okay?" Banner suggests, trying to placate the god.

Thor nods his head quietly and moves to sit down on the couch next to him. He still broods for the most part of the beginning of the movie but then he starts to relax and watch it. When it ends Steve takes no time in replacing it with another movie and before it is realized, it's midnight.

Tony had joined them when Lord of the Rings had been put in and is now slumped over, leaning slightly on Thor who is leaning on Tony as well, but only very barely. Dr. Banner has also fallen asleep and is slightly snoring with his head hanging limply against his chest. Steve had long since gone back to his own room and fallen asleep. The only two still (barely) awake are Barton and Tasha and they are now watching some romance comedy movie that they both enjoy. It does not take long, however, for them to fall asleep as well.

Everyone is awoken with the sound of J.A.R.V.I.S.' voice. "Excuse me, Avenger's, but you have a visitor."

Groggy and disoriented the Avengers slowly wake up. Tony sits up straight and shakes his head to wake himself up. Yawning and stretching Banner stands up only to stumble a little. "Careful." Tony says sleepily as he stands up slowly, groaning a little. He shuffles over to the kitchen to get something for breakfast.

Banner shakes Thor awake. He stretches and stays sitting there looking a bit like he's about to pass out again as he blinks sleepily. Tony sits down next to Steve who is wide awake and quietly munching away, eating a small bowl of cereal. Banner joins them after awhile with some oatmeal.

Barton and Tasha are curled up around each other still fast asleep before Tony wakes up enough to have J.A.R.V.I.S. blast a quick, loud horn in their ears. They awake up immediately, jumping awake from each other. Wide awake they look around a little bewilderedly, and then look around a little angrily before glaring at Tony a little groggily.

"Time to get up, love birds." Tony calls out to them and Tasha gives him a look as Barton stands up and stretches.

"What time is it?" Barton asks groggily as he slowly walks over to the kitchen.

"J.A.R.V.I.S.?" Tony prompts.

"It is 9:32 A.M., sir." J.A.R.V.I.S. replies.

"9:32." Tony tells Barton with a smile as if Barton might have missed it, causing him to scowl at Tony before he gets something to eat.

Tasha gets up and joins Barton, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "Ignore him." She mumbles tiredly to Barton.

"Hey, at what time did you two fall asleep at anyways?" Tony asks, now wide awake.

"Um. . . ." Tasha thinks for a moment, trying to figure it out.

"Sir, my records show that they fell asleep around 5 this morning." J.A.R.V.I.S. informs him.

"Oh wow." Tony says. "So . . . that's what . . . 4 and half hours? Of sleep?" Tony asks the two "master assassins".

They just scowl at him tiredly. He grins back at them as Thor gets up from the couch. He stumbles a bit on his way but manages to make it to the table where he sits down next to Steve and across from Banner.

"You look like you fell asleep at the same time as them, Sleeping Beauty." Tony teases as he looks at Thor.

"Want some coffee, Thor?" Tasha asks while Thor gives Tony a confused look.

Tony just rolls his eyes as Thor tells her "yes, please."

J.A.R.V.I.S. pips back up after they have all settled down around the table. "Your visitor is growing impatient, Sir"

"Visitor?" Tony questions, confused.

"It's why you're even up." Steve replies and continues on at Tony's confused look. "He said there was a visitor and that's when everyone began to wake up. I told him to tell them to wait while you all woke up." He explains.

"Ah. Let them in, J.A.R.V.I.S.," Tony says, taking a long sip of his drink.

"Yes, Sir." J.A.R.V.I.S. replies.

The elevator opens up a little while later and Fury comes walking in. "It's good to see all of you awake. I came in here earlier and most of you were passed out on the couches." He says as he walks up to them.

"You came in here?" Steve asks with a questioning look on his face, not remembering that.

"You were asleep too." Fury replies. "Anyways, I-"

"Where is my brother?" Thor interrupts and Fury sighs, glancing up at the ceiling then diverts his gaze to Thor.

"We will get to that in a moment, just enjoy your breakfast as I inform you all of what I've learned." Fury says.

Thor doesn't look too happy about that but he goes back to eating.

"Now," Fury beings, "as you all know, I had Loki questioned. I had questions like, where he got his army, was there someone else involved, and so on and so forth, and I got my answers. Loki got his army from someone known as the Other. The Other and Loki were both working for someone called Thanos. Loki gave us a warning. He said that Thanos is a lot more powerful and a lot more dangerous than the Chitauri or any other being we have gona against so far. This Thanos is who we are going to need to be on high alert for. Especially since he'll want Loki after his failure. Loki said that Thanos wants the Tesseract and probably still thinks that it's here on Earth which is what we need to hope for."

"And Loki?" Barton asks. He wasn't fond of the guy at all but he remembered how agitated Thor was last night, then he thinks of what Loki did to him and hopes that Loki got what he deserved.

"He's. . . . In pretty bad shape right now. . . ." Fury says.

"What? . . ." Thor looks up at Fury at this.

Fury sighs. "Something happened, seems like Thanos had some sort of safe guard. We aren't sure however, of that is exactly what it was. One moment Loki is perfectly fine next he's a wreck. We don't know what happened. We are trying to figure it out. I'm sorry Thor." Banner looks at Fury then Thor then back at Fury. He's about to say something when Fury interjects. "It's mental, Dr. Banner, nothing you can do." He looks at Barton. "I know that you probably want pay back after he pretty much pushed you out of your own mind, but this, this is different. Even after he 'played pull you out,' as you put it, I think you still wouldn't want to see him like this." Barton's bow furrows as he looks at Fury, not understanding. Yeah, he had a grudge against Loki, Fury is right about that, but what could possibly be so bad that he wouldn't want even Loki to go through it?

"I don't understand." Thor says. "Where is he? Where is my brother?"

Fury looks at him. "We don't know. It's like he's in two places at once right now."

"He does that have ability." Thor interjects. "He is able to be in two places at once with his power. But it was removed from him. I don't understand how he is able to do that right now."

"Thor, even we don't understand what is going on at this moment. All we know is that someone is playing games with Loki's mind in a way that would make anyone flinch."

"Uh, Fury?" Tony pipes up. "How do we know that he isn't faking it?"

"The way he is acting, it's hard to fake. That and his vitals are spiking in ways that no one can imitate on their own." Fury replies.

"Huh." Tony looks over at Thor for a moment.

He seems really upset and angry as he looks up at Fury. "And you don't know who did this to him?" He asks him.

"We suspect this Thanos guy that he warned us about did it, but we aren't sure. We don't know because he doesn't seem to be here with us." Fury replies. "He seems to be talking to someone every now and then, that's part of the clue, the other one is that sometimes cuts and bruises and other marks appear on his body. They seem to come from nowhere. We even saw one slowly being etched into his skin but we never saw what blade – if there was one – that did it."

This seems to really upset Thor. "Where is he now?"

"That's not a good idea." Fury says warningly.

"I don't care." Thor replies, seeming quite irate. "I need to see him."

"I can't let you do that, Thor. You need to either stay here or go back to Asgard. I know it doesn't seem right to keep you away from your brother right now, but there is nothing you can do there. Maybe if you go to Asgard and ask around you can find something out about this Thanos guy. That certainly would help Loki. If we find Thanos then maybe we can find your brother."

(Impromptu Separator)

Loki's vitals spike as he screams in pain, withering against invisible bonds holding him down on the medical bed in a top secret S.H.I.E.L.D. facility somewhere far away from the Avengers. The doctors inside the facility are freaking out; having no idea how to deal with the situation at hand or what is causing these things. Loki is in two places at once only this time he has been transported away much like when he talked with the Other once before. He is going through an incredibly painful torture there, like was hinted at by the Other once before, and it is magic that allows his mortal form back on Midgard to keep the scars and bruises from the torture.

Loki, at this moment in time, wishes for Thor but knows that it is futile, that his brother probably doesn't even know where he is, much less what is happening in reality. He tries to think of the funny stories Thor shared earlier to take his mind off the pain but it does not work. Nothing and no one can help him now. He does not know how Thanos found him, just that he did and that he is now starting to make good on his promise. Loki screams once more as a red hot blade presses into his skin.

Oh how Loki hurts.

Queue ominous music. Like the "dun dun duuun!" type.

Rrreeevvviiieeewww! It only takes a few seconds! (If it's longer than a minute then you're probably doing something wrong.) But please! Review!

And I know. It's a nasty cliffhanger. And you're really gona hate me for the next chapter. . . .