Chapter 7: Revelations
I said nothing as I stared at Stark. He said nothing and smirked innocently at me. I smiled back at him, long and wide enough to make him uncomfortable. Then I got up and left. I wandered around aimlessly before finding an empty common room. It had a bookcase full of books and a large, black screen on one side. I walked towards the bookcase curiously. It was full of mostly scientific treatises and I picked one up. It sounded vaguely interesting, and I was never one for missing an opportunity to learn. I sat down and sprawled out on a couch. After an hour, I was actually interested in the book. It wasn't a book about magic, but it would suffice. I heard footsteps come in, but made no move, my nose still in the book.
"Hello, Banner." I said, still not moving.
"Hello, Loki. I see you found my safe house room." Banner said.
"I am sorry. I can move to a different room if it is too personal for you." I apologized.
"No. It's fine. I was just trying to find you. I thought you might be in here because of the books." Banner rambled a bit.
"Well, here I am. What do you require of me?" I raised an eyebrow.
"Oh. Umm. I just wanted to see if you would like to come to the lab with Stark and I. Thor said you shouldn't be alone. Although now that I think about it, you don't really want to see Stark, do you." Banner wrinkled his forehead.
"Thor said I cannot be by myself? He does know that I like to be alone, does he not? Or is it because he does not trust me." I said bitterly.
"How can you say that? Thor loves you. He saved you from Asgard, regardless of the consequences, disobeying his father to save you. He stopped us from hurting you and tried to save you so many times. Without his love for you, you would be in a pit somewhere." Banner exclaimed, shocked.
"Very well, Doctor. Where is this lab you speak of?" I stood up after marking my spot in the treatise with a piece of scrap paper.
"Oh, umm, just follow me." Banner scrambled to his feet.
I followed him out of the room, staying behind him and to his right. He looked back a few times, concerned with the fact that I made no noise as I walked.
"Are you all right?" He asked me.
"Quite fine. Why?" I asked.
"Well, it's just that earlier today you were bleeding heavily and dying. I'm not sure if you are really healed, or if you're acting like your fine for either Thor, your dignity, or to keep us off your back." He said sharply.
I smirked. "That ice bath did wonders. Having my magic back helped a great deal. I was able to heal most of my bodily injuries. I am almost fully recovered. If I was not, then I am sure that either you or my brother would notice."
"Oh, okay then. Here's the lab. Try not to take what Tony says to heart. He has your type of humor." Banner said softly.
I followed him to see Stark in his suit, suspended by his machines that were tugging at his armor.
"Geez, Tony. Are those bullet holes?" An unfamiliar female voice asked Stark from out of my line of sight.
"Lets face it. This isn't the worst thing you've seen me doing. Hey! Rage monster and Rudolph. Took you long enough." Stark exclaimed, seeing us in the door.
"What on Midgard are you doing?" I walked forward with my hands clasped behind my back to walk around him, regarding his suit.
"I have to fix my suit. What do you think I do here at the Avengers? Prance around sparring verbally with Spangles all day? I go fight threats to world peace. I ran into a surprise attack and one of my flight stabilizers got busted." Stark responded.
"Stop wisecracking and get to work, Tony. The sooner we get this fixed, the sooner Fury doesn't live up to his namesake." Banner took of his coat and rolled up his sleeves.
"Who is he, Tony?" The unknown female asked.
I looked at her. She was of medium height, freckled, orange hair. Not beautiful, but pretty in a delicate way. Judging by the way she hovered around Stark protectively, she was his lover.
"Pepper, meet Loki, Frost Giant, Norse God of Mischief, psychotic alien, and the guy who tried to destroy the world. Loki, Pepper Pots, my girlfriend. Don't worry, Pepper. He's fine now." Tony introduced us flippantly.
"Lady Potts." I gave her a half-bow. "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."
"Likewise." She recovered quite expertly from the shock, but still watched me warily.
"Why am I here, Stark?" I asked, still looking at Ms. Potts.
"We thought that you might want to learn more about Midgardian science." Banner added.
"Very well. Impress me." I smirked and sat in a chair next to Banner.
Over the next few hours, Stark and Banner taught me. Ms. Potts left halfway between. I learned so much, that even I received a headache. My mind whirled with new knowledge. In Asgard, science was a neglected hobby of few, magic preferred by all. I had always thought that Midgardians were dull creatures and that Asgardians were far more evolved, but I saw that I was wrong. We were just different peoples. Asgardians may live much longer, be stronger physically, and be worshipped by some Midgardians, but Midgardians were unique in their own way. They are inquisitive, much smarter and stronger in ways that Asgardians are not. Their lives are fleeting, but they seek to fill them with as much as they can. I marveled at this as I worked. I was able to look at Midgardians in a new light, instead of one blinded by arrogance and ignorance. I felt my soul stir from these new ideas, felt it start to glow underneath the layers of hate and anger. I shook my head in shock and disbelief.
"What's wrong?" Banner asked me.
"Nothing. I just realized how wrong I was about your race. I am in shock because I know the truth." I smiled a little.
"Okay. Well stop it. Any more freaking me out and Banner will have to beat it out of you." Stark joked.
"Don't bring me in on this. I just want to work in peace." Banner held up his hand in surrender.
"Hey. That reminds me. Who is Sleipnir?" Stark asked.
My smirk disappeared. I was spared an answer when my brother entered the door.
"Brother! I was wondering where you had slinked off to. What are you doing?" Thor asked curiously.
"I am helping Stark and Banner fix the iron armor. Banner is working quietly. And Stark is annoying me again." I leaned back in my chair and regarded Stark coolly with a smirk.
"Hey. Chill, Reindeer Games. I'm just keeping it light." Stark said.
"Chill? All right. If you say so." I smirked devilishly.
"Brother, what are you thinking? Oh no. Don't scare the mortals." Thor realized what I was going to do.
My smirk grew wider as I spread my hands, gesturing in small movements. Snowflakes started falling from the ceiling. The temperature dropped to subzero. I flashed into my frost giant form, just for a nanosecond. From the flinches and blanching that went around the room, that was enough for them. When a blizzard started, Stark had had enough.
"Hey, hey, hey. Quit it. Sorry for inadvertently getting you ticked off, but stop making it snow in here. My suit's gonna freeze up if this continues. Don't make your new nickname be Frosty." Stark warned me ominously.
"It is merely a jest." I replied as I ended the spell.
The room was covered in a thin layer of snow and the screens on the walls were covered in a thin sheet of ice.
"This is going to take forever to repair." Stark moaned while examining the screens.
"If you are so put out by it, I can fix it." I offered.
"Go crazy, Red-Nose." Stark grumbled.
"I'm already insane." I grinned.
I spelled away the snow and ice, and in a moment the room was clear.
"Thanks, I guess." Stark scratched his head.
"You are welcome. Now, if someone would direct me to my sleeping chambers, I would like to rest myself." I said, standing up.
"Umm, sure. Hey, Pepper." Stark tapped on his earpiece.
"Yes." Lady Potts's voice floated out of the device.
"Do you think you could guide our guest to his room? Please. I'll pay you back somehow." From his insinuating tone, the suspicion that she was his lover grew stronger.
"I'm sure you will. I'm coming over now." Pepper sounded tinny, her tone impassive.
"Bye, Pep. She'll be here momentarily." Stark hung up.
"I know. I could hear both sides of your conversation." I raised an eyebrow.
"Dang it. I really have to calibrate the system. It's supposed to monitor my sound waves from my throat so I don't have to actually talk. It should be silent." He frowned and removed the device, muttering to himself and heading back to his desk.
Lady Potts entered the room. "Okay. If you'll follow me, Mr. Odinson."
"It is Laufeyson, Lady Potts. Odinson is my brother and Odin is not my father, despite what everyone thinks." I smiled painfully.
"I'm sorry. And you can call me Pepper. Lady Potts is just too formal. Why do you and Thor call all women 'Lady'. It's kind of racist." Her heels clicked as she led me down the hallway.
I followed silently a step behind with my hands clasped behind my back.
"I apologize. I meant no offense. In Asgard, Thor and I were raised to always be polite to the fairer sex. Women are not warriors in Asgard. The only woman warrior is my brother's friend, Sif. Calling women 'Lady', is deemed polite and is ingrained in my psyche. Would Ms. Potts suffice?" I didn't know why I was telling her so much, perhaps because she was a good listener and did not shun me when she met me.
"That's better, but what do you mean that no women can fight? Here, in the United States, women can join the army and fight for their country. Women can be smarter than men and can have skills that men will never have. It just seems so ... Middle Ages." She spoke passionately.
"Asgardians age differently than you do. In two generations, there could be a gap of thousands of years. We do not change quickly. We rarely come to Earth. Indeed, the last time Thor came here before his banishment, humans wore horned helmets, wore animal skins, and fought wars with wooden ships and swords. Women can fight in Asgard. We are coming to accept it more and more. My mother, in fact, is an accomplished swordswoman. But she is of Vanaheim and the Queen. She is expected to be able to defend herself." I laughed wryly.
"Oh. Okay. Where is Vanaheim?" She blinked.
"Vanaheim is one of the nine realms. The race that lives on it are the Vanir. They are masters of sorcery and magic, and can see the future. They are kin to the Aesir." I smiled.
"Who are the Aesir?" She asked, wide-eyed.
"You are very curious, aren't you?" I smiled a real smile, my eyes twinkling.
"I'm sorry. It's just so interesting." She blushed a light shade of pink.
"It is quite all right. It reminds me of myself when I was younger. In answer to your question, Asgardians are the Aesir. It is the formal name for us." I smiled again.
There was something refreshing about her. I could see why Stark liked her.
"Can I ask you a question? It is rather personal, so if you feel that it is too intrusive, you do not have to answer." I asked hesitantly.
"Sure. Ask away." She responded immediately.
"There really is no polite way to ask this, but why are you with Stark?" I asked bluntly.
She blinked. "Wow. Umm. Okay. Tony was my boss when we first met. I was his secretary, so I basically kept his whole life together. I always thought that he was too obnoxious and too much of a playboy to interest me. Once he was kidnapped, I started to realize that I liked him as more than just a friend. I had to overload a reactor to stop Obadiah Stane from killing Tony, but the reactor would kill him too. He told me to do it, and I did. I thought that he was dead, but he wasn't. I realized that I loved him and found out that he loved me too. I stay with him now because we're partners, both in business and outside of it. He makes me laugh and we make each other happy. He's a good man, better than anyone I've ever met. Wow, I am really rambling. We passed your room."
We turned around and she led me to an inauspicious door. "Here you are."
She entered and I followed. I looked around. The walls, floor, and ceiling were white. From the entryway, I regarded the room. An indentation ahead in the left wall formed a small hallway leading to a small bathroom to the left. The indentation had a wall of mirrors facing out to the room. A small, blinded window was on the right wall. A medium-sized bed on the middle of the opposite wall extended out into the wall. A dresser stood between the bed and the mirrored wall. A bookcase stuffed full of books stood in the corner between the window and the dresser. A wingback chair sat near the bookcase with a matching footstool in front of it. I went over to a small silver panel above the dresser and placed my palm on it. The mirrors hissed open and revealed a closet full of clothes that were colored many different colors.
"Is it all right? I didn't know what your tastes were so I just went with everything. The room is white so you could add your personal style to it." Ms. Potts asked me nervously.
"I can change the color of the room as I like. The clothes are fine because I am not sure if I have a personal style anymore." I sat on the bed sadly.
"Why? What happened to you that would make you not know yourself anymore?" She perched next to me on the bed.
"Ms. Potts. I have been full of anger, rage, and hate for so long. I thought that my entire life was a lie. I refused my family and tried to kill my brother and father. I was sick, so very sick. I wanted to die so I fell into a void that I thought would kill me. It didn't, just spat me out onto a desolate rock. After I was captured at New York, my own father forced me into a barren cell and cast a spell on me so that I could not die of starvation and malnutrition, and took away my magic, while speeding up time for me so that I lived through a millennia in a year. I cried out for anyone to help me. I was tortured by the faces of the people I had murdered in cold blood. I realized my mistakes and my pain grew worse knowing that I could never atone for them. I fell into a coma-like state, only reviving once Thor rescued me. And now I am here, trying to set things right." I smiled sadly.
"Wow. That sucks." She said simply.
I nodded, then gathered myself and stood up, clapping my hands. "Would you like to see some magic?"
"Sure. What are you going to do?" She asked, a touch nervously.
"I am going to change the color of the room and change the clothes to a more Asgardian style." I said.
She gazed around in wonder as gold and green crept into the walls. The bed changed into a four-poster with rich pillows and sheets. The clothes in the closet changed into my Asgardian tunics, boots, and armor. The air hummed with my magic, and a faint otherworldly smell permeated the air.
"Wow. I like it." She managed to say.
"Hmm, yes. This is much better." I inhaled.
"Umm. I'll just go now if you're all settled in. Goodnight, Mr. Laufeyson." She made to go out.
"My name is Loki, Ms. Potts. You can call me as such." I called after her.
"All right. Goodnight, Loki." She smiled and closed the door after her.
I sighed and scrubbed my face wearily. I laid down on the bed and fell asleep.
Bad Loki! He can really prank when he wants to. What's up with all the random nicknames? Stark can really go stir-crazy. And Loki realized just how awesome we Earthlings are! Finally! It took him long enough. Pepper's so calm and cool and collected, and is really for women's rights!
BTW: If these Author Notes are annoying, I can stop them. (But only if you review!)
BTW 2: Definition of 'Vanaheim' is from the Marvel Wikia. No ownership here.