By the time Tony woke up again, his internal clock was telling him that a few hours had passed by. Morning was gone and afternoon was had crept up on them. Tony was aware of it as he opened his eyes - a positive sign. Getting any kind of sleep after an episode like that was pretty rare. Usually, after he rambled at someone, he'd end up going to work until he pretty much dropped from exhaustion. This was the first time since before everything went wrong that Tony had been able to go back to sleep so quickly, and with someone there soothing him down.

While on the one hand, that was good, it also meant that Tony had to deal with the one part that he really, really hated. The awkward after-conversations. The time where people would ask him questions and want answers. Where they'd start to poke and pry and try to find out what was going on with Tony and why he was so messed up.

Tony wasn't even going to get a moment to try and gather himself, either. Neither Clint nor Natasha had moved from where they'd been when Tony had fallen asleep. He knew that immediately. Not only could he still feel Natasha at his feet, or Clint's hand in his hair and his lap under Tony's head, he could also hear Natasha's low voice. She was saying something in Russian - no, reading something. There were no pauses for conversation. She was reading something, the low sound almost as soothing as Clint's petting.

Now that the panic wasn't as strong in Tony as it had been, it left plenty of room for embarrassment to creep in. Tony wanted nothing more than to just keep his eyes closed and teleport himself out of here. Anything to avoid having to face them after acting like that.

Thank the Norns he hadn't said anything particularly embarrassing. Sure, he'd told them about the lip sewing thing, and that wasn't great. But, it wasn't like SHIELD could do anything with that information if the two decided to share it. The rest of the stuff he'd babbled about hadn't been all that important. No, it was more the fact that he had babbled, that he'd been so panicked he hadn't been able to calm himself, that was the problem here. Tony hated being weak in front of people. But he'd just... he'd needed. He'd needed so damn badly, and the people that he usually went to - and the one he wanted more than anything - weren't available.

At least he'd managed to do pretty well. Putting Bruce in a stressful situation probably wouldn't have been smart, and Tony and Steve were still sort of feeling one another out right now. Out of everyone, Clint was the one that Tony got on with best.

That didn't mean he wanted to have to face them in one of the most awkward 'morning after' moments ever. Kicking someone out of bed after a night of sex? Easy. Leaving their place afterward? Still easy. Dealing with people in a post-panic-attack moment? That never got any easier.

It looked like Tony's time to worry about it had run out, however. Something must've clued them in that he was awake. Natasha's voice trailed off, and Clint paused in his petting.

The room was quiet for a long second before Clint broke it. He flattened his hand on Tony's head and rubbed just a bit with his thumb. "You actually awake this time, Tone?"

Tony stubbornly kept his eyes closed. "No."

He heard Clint's low laugh, felt it shake his head, and Natasha's touch briefly squeezed before letting go. Tony really shouldn't lay here and continue to push his luck. The fact that they'd stayed with him like this was amazing. No need to push for anything more than that. Keeping that in mind, Tony made himself open his eyes, and he slowly pushed on the couch until he could heave his body upright.

Time spent sleeping on a couch - no matter how comfortable the couch was - had made an impression. Tony had to stretch his arms out above his head to make his joints pop and loosen. The position tugged on his arc reactor, making him grimace and quickly drop his arms back down, one hand going to rub around the edges of it. When he opened his eyes, he found both his companions watching him. Or, more specifically, his chest.

The fact that no one had asked yet about his reactor was kind of surprising. Tony had expected them to start asking why he had it the instant they learned about his physiology and his magic. He'd been so sure they were going to ask why he needed it at all, and he hadn't looked forward to answering them.

Nor was he in the mood to do it now. Tony brought his hand up from the reactor and rubbed it over his face as he tried to smother a yawn. When he dropped his hand down, his masks were in place, and he offered Clint and then Natasha a sleepy smile. "Thanks for the bodyguard, guys. An the ears earlier." He flushed a little and shrugged one shoulder awkwardly, trying to play it off as uncomfortable but, hey, no big deal, right? Nothing to see here. "Sorry I freaked out. Usually, I just stick with JARVIS, or I call up Rhodey and ramble his ear off, but, well..."

"Hey, man, no, don't apologize for that." Clint waved a hand even as he shook his head for extra emphasis. "It's what friends are for, right? Besides... out of our group, if there's anyone who's gonna come close to understanding some of that shit, it'd be us."

"He's right," Natasha said, startling him. Tony turned to look at her and found that she was watching him once more with that intense stare that made Tony feel like she was trying to inspect his insides. "You and Steve aren't that comfortable yet, and we all try to minimize what we expose Dr. Banner to. And Loki, well," she paused, and her eyebrows went up a bit. This time it was Natasha who put on the mask, a knowing one that said she'd seen all his secrets. It was the kind of look that made plenty of people spill them. All it made Tony do was brace. He should have known that he wouldn't be able to. He wasn't the least bit prepared when she said, "This had something to do with Loki. You've been fine all week until he returned."

Tony's insides froze over. On the outside, he lazily wiped a hand over his mouth and gave her his most quizzical look. "Huh?"

Natasha couldn't help probing for information, he knew. It was in her nature. She'd been raised and trained to be a spy. The things the Red Room had done to make her - those weren't things that were easily shut off. However, that didn't mean that Tony had to like it. Especially when she looked at him and asked questions like: "Is it because the mythology says that Loki underwent the same punishment? Or is there some personal history between the two of you we don't know about?"

"We never met before all this crap started," Tony lied easily. Is it really a lie when Loki doesn't remember anything? Tony ignored that thought just like he ignored quite a few others.

The look Natasha gave him made it clear she didn't believe that. "You put yourself on the line and gave up a secret you've been keeping your whole life just to rescue him from mind-control."

"I would've done that for anyone!" Tony insisted.

Natasha shook her head. She opened her mouth to speak, only to pause, eyes narrowing on him for a moment. Whatever she saw on Tony's face had her expression going lax in honest surprise. "You're in love with him."

Those five words hid Tony hard. Like a fist to the gut, or a slap in the face. The urge to deny it - loudly and vehemently - hit Tony hard, and was quickly squashed. His mask never once slipped. Eyebrows rising, Tony made sure his look was incredulous, and just a little amused. The kind of look that clearly asked if she was on drugs or something. Then he shook his head. "Now you're reaching, Romanoff."

"Am I?"

Tony let his smile grow a little more. At the same time, his gaze sharpened into something distinctly dangerous. "Quit trying to apply your human standard of emotions to whatever you think you've read off me. Do I like Loki? Yeah. Is he hot? Hell yeah! But I'm not in love with him. I learned a long, long time ago not to do something as stupid as fall in love with anyone. Now," Tony pressed his hands against his knees and pushed himself up off the couch. It gave him the leverage to glare down at her and make his next words that much sharper. "Let me make something clear. As much as I appreciate your help earlier, don't think it means that I'm some weak mortal for you to play around with and manipulate. I suggest you don't try playing your little mind games with me. Otherwise, I might feel like playing games of my own."

He didn't give her or Clint a chance to say anything. In a blink, Tony was gone.


When Loki had said that he had something to take care of, Tony had figured they wouldn't see the mage for at least a few days.

What he hadn't expected was to get a call that afternoon, not even a full twenty-four hours after Loki left, from Nick Fury of all people, calling the Avengers to assemble. Tony had JARVIS call everyone up to a conference room on the communal floor. When they arrived, Nick was on a video screen along the far right wall, and Tony stood near the head of the table.

Nick wasted no time once everyone was in the room. "It looks like your new friend is causing a lot of trouble downtown," Nick said, sarcasm heavy on the word 'friend.' The video screen he was on switched to show a video of what looked to be downtown Manhattan. There was a lot of screaming, and the camera itself was shaking and grainy in a way that made it clear it was a cell phone - and not a very good one. But it was enough for Tony to make out Loki fighting against someone... green. That was the best impression that Tony got from this other person. Lots of green. Then there was a shield up, and the person-thing-whatever that Loki was fighting against went flying into a nearby building, and the video stopped.

"Damn." Clint let out a low whistle. "Remind me not to piss him off."

"You're telling me you hadn't figured that out already?" Bruce asked in a low murmur.

Tony ignored them, though he privately agreed with Bruce. Of all the people in here, Clint should've been aware of just how dangerous Loki was. The guy had been in his head, after all. "Any word on who that is?" Tony asked.

Nick came back on screen and shook his head. "No, an at the moment, I don't really care who it is. Get your asses down there and contain this before civilians get hurt."

The video cut off abruptly in true Nick fashion. Drama queen, Tony thought, shaking his head. When he turned to face the others, he found Steve standing nearby, already in uniform and looking serious. Natasha was in her uniform as well and was just as serious as Steve was, though her gaze was sharper, assessing, as it ran briefly over Tony. She was smart enough to know that Tony was their best bet at figuring things out when it came to Loki.

Bruce and Clint were sitting side by side at the table. How on earth did all these people get in uniform so quickly? Clint was already in his as well! It had to be a spy thing. Or a SHIELD thing. Maybe a soldier thing? Maybe a human thing. None of them had magic so they couldn't call up a change of clothes like Tony could, so maybe they accounted for that by learning how to change quickly.

"We need to figure out what we're walking in to," Steve said, drawing the eyes of everyone in the room. But Steve had eyes only for Tony as he turned and asked him, "I thought he was going to take care of something and be right back?"

"Maybe this is what he's taking care of." Tony shrugged. He hadn't exactly quizzed Loki on what he was taking care of. Allies they may be - it didn't mean Loki told him everything. "I say we focus more on getting there and stopping things before they break too much of Manhattan. We can always ask him afterward."

He had a point, and they all knew it. "How're we gonna get there, though?" Clint asked, looking around the room. "I don't know about you, but I don't exactly keep a jet in my back pocket."

Was he serious? It was like they forgot who they were talking to here. Tony beamed at them at the same time that he shook his head. Did they forget who it was they were talking to here? "You guys are ridiculous. You do realize who designed your fancy SHIELD jets, don't you?" He didn't wait for them to answer before he started to head towards the door. "J, get the quinjet ready, and prep my suit. Let's go find out what our favorite Mischief God is up to."


It didn't take long to get everyone loaded onto the jet. Normally, Tony would've been flying ahead on his own, but this was the first time they were all going to fight together as a team, and he had to force himself to swallow down the pride that insisted he'd be just fine on his own. It was the same part of him that was trying to tell him that he needed to hurry ahead and save Loki, keep him safe from whatever threat he was up against. Instincts that hadn't had any need to be used in such a long time were now roaring to the forefront, and it was hard not to give in to them.

Instead, Tony tried to focus on what he could do, not on what he couldn't. That meant working with JARVIS to try and get some video feed of the fight. Clint was piloting the jet, with Natasha as his copilot, which left Bruce and Steve in the back with Tony. Bruce didn't look all that happy to be there; he was obviously hoping that his skills weren't going to be necessary. Neither the doctor half of him or the more angry half.

Tony felt like he was vibrating inside his suit. "Tell me you got something, J."

"I believe I may, sir," JARVIS answered. A hologram appeared in the middle of the jet, startling a soft exclamation from Steve. The man hadn't quite gotten used to modern technology, let alone technology the way that Tony used it.

Usually, it amused Tony. He liked to poke at Steve for it, even just a bit. However, at the moment Tony was too caught up in the image that was playing in front of him. Or, more accurately, the people it showed.

"JARVIS, do we have any information about who that is Loki's fighting against?" Steve asked. He'd at least gotten better about that part of things; he'd address JARVIS now, less awkward about asking him for things.

He didn't need JARVIS to answer, though. Tony could do that all on his own.

"Amora," Tony said darkly. He fought back the urge to snarl at the image on the screen as he watched her fling a ball of energy at Loki, who narrowly avoided it by ducking down by an overturned car. What the hell was she doing here, fighting Loki? For as much as Tony hated her, he knew that sometimes she and Loki had allied with one another. They'd worked together on a couple projects despite Tony's protests - Tony's anger towards her had been a source of amusement for Loki on more than one occasion.

Loki let out a low laugh and pressed his shoulder against Anto's. The two were side by side in the library where Anto had been studying when Loki came to him with his latest scheme. "You are being utterly ridiculous."

"I'm not the one proposing to work with the Enchantress, am I?" Anto shot back. He pulled away from his brother and deliberately turned his head. He did not need to look at Loki at that moment. The last thing he wanted was for his younger brother to see how truly hurt he was. Loki would recognize it if he saw Anto's face. The younger mage knew Anto far too well to keep secrets from him. To keep up the deception, Anto made his voice composed, that perfect tone he had learned to employ that gave away nothing; a skill he'd rarely had to use against Loki. "Far be it for me to speak where my advice is unnecessary. You will, of course, do as you see fit. I wish you the best of luck, brother-mine. Now, if you have no need of me, I've something I must attend to."

He got only a few feet away before Loki was calling to him. Anto slipped out the library doors and quickly turned to the right. He was steps from an easy exit when Loki caught up to him. The firm grip stopped Anto in his tracks and kept him from going any further. Loki wasted no time in twisting them both until they were pushed into the shelter of a nearby alcove where no one would be able to come upon them without being noticed. Once he had Anto there, Loki stood them face to face, green eyes bright with worry. Loki's expression was open in a way it only ever was with those he trusted. "You are angry with me."

Those words had Anto softening despite himself. He wanted to growl at Loki about how stupid his scheme was. He wanted to call him a fool for even thinking of trusting Amora of all beings. Deep inside, he wanted to ask 'why her?' But he let none of that show. Instead, Anto softened, as Loki always seemed able to make him do. "No," he said, voice quieter than before. "I am not."

Loki's brow furrowed. Then his expression turned to one of surprise, and of understanding. His voice was gentle when he spoke again. "I meant this as no slight against you. I know how little you like to perform such things where others may witness."

"You think me so concerned about the opinions of others that I wouldn't grant you aid when you need it?" Anto demanded.

"No," Loki shook his head, lips twitching into a small smile. "Never, brother dear."

Oh. Loki didn't think Anto afraid - he was protecting Anto. Keeping him from doing something that would end with him mocked, because he knew Anto would never turn him down. Would always help him. Loki was protecting him from that. That was... that was almost worse.

In the privacy of that little alcove, Loki let out a laugh that was both teasing and warm all at the same time. Then he pressed forward and wrapped himself around Anto in the kind of touch the half-elf often craved and was so rarely allowed. Loki understood that Anto's very nature demanded these kinds of touches. Just as he respected the need to keep it hidden from others who would perceive it as weak. However, like this, when they were alone, he never held back, never denied Anto the touch he needed.

Loki pressed their foreheads together until their breaths mingled. "Amora is a useful tool, one to be picked up and discarded as needed. You are my brother, foolish though you may sometimes be. You are far more important than she."

The memory was just one of many instances that they'd had to deal with Amora. It was back when she'd been only a nuisance. One that Tony had disliked, yet tolerated. Then she'd grown older, bitter, and her tricks had become far worse. She'd messed with them all too many times. Loki might've been willing to forgive her or use her, but Tony never had. Not when he'd had to be the one to erase some of her spells from both his brothers.

"Stark?"

Steve's voice drew Tony back from his memories and his own personal anger and into the present once more. Tony turned his head, meeting Steve's gaze through the Iron Man mask Tony hadn't even realized he'd closed. Judging by the slight concern he found in Steve's eyes, Tony must've drifted long enough to worry him.

Trying to pretend like he hadn't just gotten lost in his memories, Tony flashed a smile he knew they all couldn't see. "Sorry bout that, Cap. My brain's big and old, it takes a bit sometimes to sort that information out."

"You with us now, old man?" Clint called out from the front of the jet.

Tony flipped him the finger. Then he got right to it. "Her name is Amora, and the guy with her is Skurge. She's known as the Enchantress in a lot of places. She's got power that's almost on-par with Loki in a lot of ways." At least, it had been the last time he'd seen her. Tony grimaced as he thought about that and quickly added on, "It's been a while since I've been around her, so I don't know what she's been learning lately, but she's never been afraid to get her hands dirty."

With one hand Tony reached out and manipulated the images in front of them, pausing it and isolating one section of it. Then he zoomed it in until they could all see the man standing near Amora's side. The guy was just as nasty as Tony remembered him being. "This is Skurge, an he's loyal only to her. You won't be able to turn him from her - ever. Amora is the only person he cares about. His love for her and his bloodlust are pretty even, actually. He's a damn good fighter, but he's stupid in some ways, an he makes mistakes if you piss him off enough."

"So distract him, make him angry, and he'll be less likely to focus on protecting her," Steve said.

First Tony nodded, then he shrugged and held one hand up, waggling it in a so-so gesture. "A bit? I mean, all it'll take is her calling out to him an he'll abandon any fight to come to her aid. But he's also pretty confident she can handle herself most of the time. Which, let's be real - she can."

"You're filling me with confidence," Bruce chimed in. He didn't look all that happy about what he was hearing. Not that Tony could blame him. He knew Bruce wasn't a fan of letting out the Big Guy. That was something they'd have to work on.

For now, Tony flashed him a grin. "Don't worry, Brucie Boy. All we really need here is a bit of a distraction for Skurge. None of you guys are equipped yet to handle magic attacks - which, hey, JARVIS, make a note to get the anti-magic equipment started up tonight. But you've got Loki an me. Right now, Loki's just barely holding his own. Which means adding in my magic should be enough to stop her."

Not that he was looking forward to it. So far, Tony hadn't been able to figure out whether or not Loki and Thor were the only ones who'd forgotten Tony, or if there were more. The last thing he needed was Amora recognizing him and outing him to everyone here. Especially in front of Loki.

If he was careful and just fed the magic to Loki, and kept his mask on, Amora shouldn't be able to tell. That was his hope at least.

Steve seemed to agree with the plan. He started directing everyone else, leaving Tony free to go ahead and head towards the back of the jet. He could fly the rest of the way there.


Flying with a voice other than JARVIS in his ear was a strange sensation for Tony. He was used to hearing JARVIS talking to him; the two of them worked together perfectly. They'd had plenty of time to practice it. Plus, JARVIS tended to put concern for Tony above pretty much everything else, which meant that, more often than not, their opinions were the same. Though there were plenty of times that they were different - Tony putting himself at risk to help others, while JARVIS wanted nothing more than for Tony to come out of something safe.

But having the voices of the rest of the Avengers in his ear? Yeah, that was going to take some getting used to.

"Coming in for a landing a few buildings down from the scene," Clint told him.

Tony had just reached the scene himself. "Don't waste time coming in quiet. Looks like we need any distraction we can get right now." At the moment Amora and Skurge were side by side, battering away at a shield that Loki appeared to have desperately tossed up. It was just barely holding the two of them back. Seeing it, Tony tilted himself forward and took careful aim. "All right, JARVIS, what do you say we have some fun?"

His love for JARVIS grew even more when Tony heard the music the AI put on to blare from the external speakers. Motorhead's "Bye Bye, Bitch, Bye Bye" played nice and loud as Tony swooped down towards the fighting trio. The music had all of them looking up, and it had a few chuckles sounding in his ear. "Nice choice, Iron Man," Clint said, still chuckling.

"Credit goes to J on this one." Tony's voice carried plenty of pride to it. He always loved when JARVIS showed initiative like this.

There was no more time to think about it or crack jokes. Tony sent a few repulsor blasts into the ground right in front of Amora and Skurge, forcing them back a few steps, and then he came in for a heavy landing just a foot in front of Loki. "All right, everybody, playtime's over."

Amora sneered openly at him, and Skurge lifted his ax in open challenge. "I think not," she said.

"I had a feeling you'd say that." Without wasting any more time, Tony sent three more blasts, one right after the other, just enough to create a bit of chaos between them. That gave him enough time to move back towards Loki's side. Despite the mask, Tony grinned at him. "Hey there, Rudolph. Looks like you started the party without us."

Loki threw his head back, his helmet nowhere in sight, and used one hand to push some of his hair back from his face. He was dirty, sweaty, and obviously starting to tire, yet his eyes were bright, and he smirked at Tony like this whole thing was some great big joke. "Yes, well, perhaps in the future you'll take less time to prepare."

One of Loki's hands went up abruptly, blocking the attack Amora sent his way.

The reminder of their fight had Tony going back to what he'd originally come back here for. "Oh, right. Well, you left without your accessories, so I had to take the time to stop and pick some up for you. You forgot your earrings," Pausing, he held out his hand, a communicator in his palm. He was grateful when Loki took it, and, after a second of looking it over, slipped it into his ear. He must've learned about them somehow; maybe while he had Clint under mind-control.

Tony kept his hand where it was and opened just that gauntlet so that his bare palm was there for Loki to reach out to. "And you forgot this."

This time Loki hesitated, clearly unsure, but when Amora shrieked and threw another attack their way, the trickster reached out and laid his palm over Tony's.

Their magic leapt at the chance to be together once more. It reaffirmed Tony's belief that, while Loki didn't remember him, his magic at least did. The two reached out to one another and twined together easily, falling into place just as they'd learned how to do as children. As soon as the connection was made, Tony fed his magic down the line. It was essentially refueling Loki's depleted magic as well as giving him a power boost.

As soon as Loki had enough magic - more than he'd started with, really - the two drew their hands apart. Tony laughed at the incredulous look on Loki's face. "Just because I have to be careful about who sees me use that stuff doesn't mean I can't help out." The gauntlet slid back into place, and Tony activated his boots once more. "The rest of the team will take care of distracting Skurge. You and I get the Big Bitch herself. Let's take her down before someone ends up getting hurt."

As soon as Tony blasted upwards, outside of Loki's shielding, he saw that the others had arrived on scene. Everyone knew the others had arrived. Steve must've decided that there was going to be no waiting around to see if they needed Bruce or not. Hulk was there, landing right next to Skurge and roaring furiously at him.

Damn. Seeing the Hulk on video had been pretty damn impressive - it couldn't hold a candle against actually seeing the big guy in action. Hulk let out another roar and sent Skurge flying with a single blow of his fist. "Well I'll be damned," Tony twisted through the air and moved towards Hulk, completely unconcerned. Hulk could damage his suit, sure, but it'd take a lot, and it wasn't like it'd do any serious damage to Tony. At least, not damage that he couldn't heal from.

Tony floated himself in the air in front of Hulk, a few feet back just to be safe, and he flipped the faceplate up, ignoring Steve's sharp "Iron Man!" as well as JARVIS's concerned "Sir!"

"Hey there, Big Guy," Tony said easily, beaming at the Hulk. With one hand he used his thumb to point behind him where Skurge was just starting to get up. "You see that guy over there? I need you to smash the hell out of him. Sound good?"

The grin Hulk gave at that was huge. "Hulk smash little angry man!"

Tony couldn't help it - he laughed. "That's right. Show the little angry man who's boss, buddy! Just make sure to watch out for the rest of us, all right? We're on your side."

That made Hulk snort. He gave Tony a look like he was stupid. "Hulk no smash Magic Metal Man."

Magic metal man, huh? Tony liked that. He grinned and gave Hulk a thumbs up. Then he was snapping his faceplate back into place and was up in the air again.

"You are completely insane, Stark," Loki said bluntly. He must've figured out this was more than just something to let him listen in, then.

"You get used to it," Tony told him helpfully.

Natasha's voice cut into their banter. "We've got Skurge contained between us. You two think you could stop playing long enough to take care of Amora, or would you like us to handle that, too?"

Right. Time to get down to business. Tony circled them all just to get his bearings on what was happening. Loki hadn't stopped fighting while Tony talked with the Hulk. He and Amora were another block to the East, battling against one another with balls of magic and flying debris. The rest of the Avengers were circling the area Skurge was in, keeping him pinned in without making it obvious, while Hulk was having fun punching the guy into another building.

A couple of repulsor blasts brought Amora's attention back up to Tony. She blocked them quickly enough that they didn't hit her, but they also drew her attention enough that the ice Loki sent creeping up from the ground managed to catch hold of her ankles. It was halfway up her calves when she took notice of it. A furious shriek echoed in the air. Then, in the next second, the ice around her shattered, shards of it flying with bullet-like precision. A few hit the suit hard enough to scratch it just the slightest bit. Holy shit. "I don't remember her having that kind of power."

"Neither do I," Loki said.

Amora cast a wave of air Loki's way that was strong enough to send the trickster flying backward. Then she spun, and Tony saw the green light of a spell being cast towards him. He moved in just enough time to avoid getting hit by it. "She's got way more power than she should. It's been a long time since I saw her last, but there's no way in hell she should be this strong. No way."

It wasn't Loki or the other Avengers who answered Tony. It was JARVIS - and what he had to say wasn't good. "Sir, I'm detecting two distinct magical signatures from Amora."

Tony furrowed his brow. "What?"

"Iron Man, what's going on?" Steve called out.

"Just a sec, Cap, wait. J, you're sure about that?"

"Quite, sir." A second later JARVIS was running the information on Tony's HUD for him to see for himself.

Sure enough, the energy signatures that were coming off of her didn't match up. There were two distinct ones that Tony could see. Taking a small chance, he opened himself up just a little, trying to carefully feel for her magic. That was the downside in putting runes to hide his magic all through his armor. It kept his magic hidden, yes, but it also meant that it took some effort for him to reach out and sense anyone else. He had to reach past his own shields to do it. The next suit would have something better, but for now, this was what he had to work with.

What he found only backed up the data. What the hell? "Amora's registering two energy signatures."

"What?" Loki asked, sounding just as surprised as Tony, while at the same time Natasha asked: "What does that mean?"

"It means that she has more power than just her own," Loki answered before Tony could. "She is being fed power from somewhere. We need to try and trap her and figure out where so that we might cut it off."

Yeah, that's what Tony was thinking, too. He dodged another of her spells and tried to think quickly, his mind racing with the inflow of data. Only one plan held any sort of chance at working. "Okay, Loki, we need to bait and switch. I'll play like I'm distracting her so that you can get a good shot in, an once she thinks she's got me out and focuses on you, I'll come flying in."

"Oh, is that all?" Loki asked dryly.

Snorting out a laugh, Tony sent his suit flying forward. Time to try and distract.

He shot blast after blast at her, trying to do everything he could to draw her focus towards him. Tony knew that Loki would take an actual shot if he saw an opening, so there was no reason not to do his best at this. He dodged her attacks and sent in blasts of his own until he saw an opening. Then, bracing himself for just how much this was going to hurt, he let himself miss on a block so that her blow - a wave of hardened air - sent him barreling backward. Tony discreetly used his own magic to cushion the blow and catch him so that he didn't hit anywhere near as hard.

Amora was already turning to Loki by the time Tony recovered. When Tony looked over, he saw the blades of ice in Loki's hands that were already starting to fly through the air, one right after the other, distracting Amora perfectly. She was too busy blocking to notice Tony flying towards her until it was too late. He barreled into her, and the two hit hard, knocking her off her feet before she had a chance to fight back. Tony's arm closed around her, and the two of them flew to the side of a nearby building where Tony slammed her up against the wall.

It was there, with her right up against him like this, that Tony's awareness of her magic really flared to life. The other power was strong enough that Tony could sense it even through the shielding on his suit.

Even if he hadn't been able to, the flare of blue in Amora's eyes would've made it all clear.

"Shit," Tony swore lightly.

Amora grinned at him. "Hello again, little one." The voice was hers, but the words weren't. Something older and far more powerful was speaking through her. "I wondered if I'd see you again."

Oh fuck. Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck.

Those were the only words Tony could think for a moment. He knew who that was speaking through Amora - and he knew he had no hope in standing up against him. Last time Tony had saved Loki's mind only because they knew one another, because their magic had worked together, and because he'd caught Thanos off guard. This time, Thanos was ready for him. Had in fact been waiting for him, it would seem.

Tony tried his damnedest not to let his panic show. "Aw, see, now I feel special." The flippant tone was natural; it gave away nothing of how quickly his mind was racing away inside. "I wish I could say the same for you - either one of you. But, see, I'm not really a big fan of sharing, and both of you seem to have this thing for trying to take my stuff."

The laugh Amora gave was nothing at all like her usual smoky, husky chuckle. That sound was meant to entice men. This one sent chills down Tony's spine. "I do believe he was mine first - as he shall be mine again. I thought about killing you for taking him. Now, I think I might let you join him. You interest me, little one."

"Sorry, I've been told I don't play well with others," Tony said.

He felt the magic building up inside of Amora, felt as the other magic started to fill her, pushing her own seidr down, and Tony knew he only had seconds before it would strike. Just seconds in which to protect himself.

Without wasting another moment, Tony charged up the repulsor in his hand and let go of her throat to send a blast right at Amora's face.

The resulting crash of power - repulsor and magic - sent the two flying back from one another with enough force to send her through the building and Tony down a few blocks. He hit the ground hard, suit bouncing and rolling before finally coming to a stop.

Pain from more than just the fall had Tony dazed. The backlash of magic had been just as bad; he felt it through every single inch of him like he'd been hit by a truck.

People were shouting in his ear, and JARVIS's worried voice, and then someone else was right there grabbing hold of the suit and trying to leverage him upwards. Tony almost fought against that touch until he recognized who it was. Loki was carefully lifting up the top half of Tony's suit. His face appeared in front of the mask, letting Tony get a clear view of Loki's furrowed brow, his frown, and the blood that dripped down the whole left side of his face.

"Iron Man - report!"

That was Steve's voice, sharp and clear. Tony gave a low groan and tried to help push himself up. "Alive. Though not entirely happy about it." He was already trying to stand up, though. They couldn't waste time lying here. Not when Amora was out there powered up by Thanos.

Only, Loki put a firm hand on his shoulder and held him in place. "Stay down."

"Amora..."

"Is gone," Loki said, cutting him off. "She and Skurge vanished before you fully came to a stop."

Oh, well then. Tony stopped trying to sit himself up for the moment and just let his suit slump back down towards the ground. "Everyone make it out okay?"

"A few bruises, but we're all fine," Steve answered. Natasha chimed in her agreement, and Clint added a cheerful "Good up here!"

There was the sound of a Hulk roar - their big green buddy checking in. Everyone was safe and alive. For the moment, that was what mattered. They'd deal with the rest of it soon enough. Just as soon as Tony could haul his suit back up. He popped the faceplate open and let a bit of fresh air inside to try and help that along. When he did, he found Loki outright smiling at him, a look that was so familiar it sent pangs through Tony's heart.

Tony couldn't help but smile back. He tried to cover up whatever might be in his expression by falling back on a familiar standby - humor. "We really gotta stop meeting like this, Princess. People are gonna start to talk."

"I often find they have little else to do," Loki said dryly.

Chuckling, Tony let his eyes close, just for a moment. Just long enough to draw the good feelings in and let them push back the darker ones. A moment was all he could allow himself, though. There was too much else that was going on.

When he opened his eyes once more, any signs of playfulness were gone. "Everyone, let's gather up and meet back at the jet," Tony said. He looked up and met Loki's eyes and saw in them the same kind of seriousness he knew was in his own. "We need to talk."


Getting everyone together took a little bit of work. First, they had to make sure that everyone really was okay, that none of them were hiding anything. Then they had to get to the Hulk and calm him down enough for him to turn back into Bruce. That was where it came in handy that Hulk liked the 'Magic Metal Man.' Tony was able to fly to him and talk for a bit and, after a little conversation and some gentle prodding, Hulk shrank back down to Bruce. When they gathered Bruce up, Tony made a mental note to get to work on some pants for the poor guy.

After that, SHIELD showed up to handle the aftermath of everything, and Tony lost track of things a little after that. The next thing he knew he and the team were taking the Quinjet up to the Helicarrier for a debrief. As little as Tony liked the idea of going onto the Helicarrier, he was smart enough to know it was best to make this report in front of everyone instead of having to do it multiple times.

On the ride up there Tony found himself a bit amused by the bodyguard he seemed to have gained. After that last blow sent Tony flying and gave him the magical equivalent of a concussion, Loki seemed to have taken it upon himself to sort of stand guard over Tony. Why, Tony wasn't quite sure. Loki had his own personal code, he knew, and he was the type to pay back a debt. Either he was protecting his ally here, or he was repaying what Tony had done for him when he'd given Loki magic. Either way, Loki had set himself up at Tony's side, and his glare made it quite clear no one was getting close unless Tony wanted them to.

He stayed at Tony's side even after they landed and they were taken into a conference room similar to the one they'd met in last time.

Nick and Phil were both waiting for them. Not any real surprise; what Tony had looked at in SHIELD's files suggested that Phil Coulson was supposed to be the Avengers liaison. So far, that hadn't come up, but Tony had a feeling that was going to start to change now that the Avengers had made their first public appearance. Tony took a moment before he stepped out of the suit to have JARVIS send a message to Pepper to give her a heads up about the fight, and about starting some of the Avengers PR that they'd discussed. Best to get on top of that.

Just like last time, Tony left his suit against the wall, free to record everything, and stepped carefully out of it. Only, this time, Loki was right there at his side as he did, ready to lend a hand without being overbearing about it and showing everyone just how weak Tony might actually feel.

"I'm starting to sense a pattern here," Nick said as they all made their way in. He had his arms over his chest and was glaring around the room at them all. That glare ended up settling on Loki. "Each time we've had to call together, it's been because of you. Wanna explain what exactly happened this time?"

Tony smothered a grimace. He could've told Nick that was the wrong tone to take with Loki; coming at him accusing him was only going to put his back up.

To his surprise, the only attitude that Nick got was a cold look and an even colder tone. Otherwise, Loki was calm as he said, "I received a message from Amora requesting we meet. We are not friends, but we've worked together in the past, and we have an understanding. While we might fight if we cross paths, we've never tricked or trapped the other, and we've never sent messages. I had no reason to suspect any different this time around."

"I'd say she wasn't in the mood to be friendly this time," Steve pointed out. He took the seat near the head of the table, close to where Nick was while still being with the rest of the team. Natasha and Clint sat across from him, and Bruce - who was thankfully clothed in what looked like a spare set of SHIELD sweats and t-shirt - slipped down into the seat between Steve and Loki, leaving Tony on the far end.

Nick took the other end, with Phil staying standing at his shoulder. "I'd say not, Captain. We've got quite the mess down there to clean up now, and a lot of press to work on. All because you and your girlfriend," again, another glare at Loki, "couldn't keep yourselves under control."

The word 'girlfriend' had Tony tensing for reasons he deliberately chose not to think about. That had him reacting before he could get his mouth under control. "Instead of bitching at us about things we can't change, why don't we focus on what's actually important here?"

"Oh?" Nick arched one eyebrow at him. "An what's that, Stark?"

"How about the fact that it wasn't just Amora in there?"

The whole room fell silent. At the same time, the tension skyrocketed. All eyes were on Tony now. He shifted just a little in his seat to try and ease some of the ache that was still there. The fact that it was there at all wasn't overly reassuring. It said a lot for the power that Thanos had. To be able to attack like that, through someone else, and still pack that much of a punch? It was a sobering thought.

"JARVIS and I registered two magical signatures in Amora," Tony told them, elbows coming to rest on the armrests and his hands linking together in front of him. Calm, casual, relaxed, no outward sign of pain showing anymore. His look was pure business. "When I got closer to her, I could see the blue flashing in her eyes. Amora's not the one in control right now.

"She was the one to seek the meeting with me," Loki said slowly. "I had contemplated reaching out to her see about adding her to our list of allies, but I hadn't decided yet."

Just barely did Tony keep from snorting at that. "Yeah, well, three guesses as to why, and the first two don't count."

"So you're saying she's mind controlled like Loki was?" Bruce asked.

Tony shrugged and held his hands out briefly in a sort of 'well, yeah?' gesture. It was the only logical explanation. That was even without out him having spoken with Thanos. Something that Tony wasn't quite sure he was willing to pass on. There was no need for them to know what the two had said to one another. If the others found out that Thanos was looking to not only recapture Loki but to try and take Tony as well, it'd only make them worry. There was no reason for that.

Natasha folded her hands together on the table and leaned in enough to look down at Tony. "Do you think you could help her the way you helped Loki?"

Just the thought of that was enough to have Tony reeling back. His lip curled up in a look of blatant disgust. "Norns, no!"

The vehemence of his reply surprised quite a few of them. "Why not?" Steve asked.

Loki spoke up before Tony could. "It is idiotically dangerous. The fact that Anthony did it once and survived is both amazing and stupefying. To chance it again would be tantamount to suicide, especially now that the Mad Titan is aware of his presence and his seidr."

"Yeah, that." Tony jerked his thumb towards Loki, agreeing wholeheartedly with what he'd said. Though he couldn't resist adding on "Plus, y'know, there's the whole part where I wouldn't piss on her if she were on fire."

That had Clint huffing out a low laugh. He was slumped back in his chair already, but he tipped it back a bit more to peer at Tony from behind Natasha. "No love lost between you two, I take it?"

Tony flashed him a grin that was more a bearing of teeth than anything else. "Understatement of the year, sweetheart."

"We can't just leave a strong witch in the hands of the guy who wants to take over the universe," Nick pointed out sharply.

"She's not that strong," Tony grumbled. She wasn't. Or, at least, she hadn't been. The fact that she was drawing power from her connection to Thanos wasn't a good thing. It gave her a lot more power than Tony liked.

Nick shot him another of those glares that were probably supposed to be intimidating. "Strong enough. She sure seemed to be kicking your ass, Stark."

Hey now, wait a damn minute! Tony sat up straighter in his chair. This time, he didn't bother holding back his glare. "That's only because I'm not after flashing my seidr to the world and lighting up a sign that says 'Here I am, come kill me!'" Tony threw his hands up in the air at that. Then he brought them back down and used one hand to make one, sweeping gesture that took in everyone in the room. "Do any of you understand the part of things where I came to earth to hide? You think Tony Stark has enemies? It's nothing compared to my old life. So pardon the hell out of me if I'm not eager to go hanging up neon signs telling everyone in the universe who can sense magic where to find me. There are other ways to deal with problems."

"What do you suggest then, Mr. Stark?" Phil asked, speaking up for the first time since the meeting had started. He'd stayed at Nick's blind side the entire time; calm and cool, hands folded in front of him. His attention was on Tony now, and there was nothing threatening or challenging in his gaze. Not even when it slid over to include Loki as well. "You two are our magic users. What do you think we should do?"

"Kill her," Tony said instantly. He wasn't joking, either. However, even before the protests started, he'd known they weren't going to accept that as an answer. Not even Loki looked pleased by it. Rolling his eyes, Tony slumped back in his seat. "Fine. I mean, it'd be the smart solution, especially with Thanos wrapped so tightly in her head, but if you don't want to, whatever. I might be able to make a way to contain her somehow. We do that, we can call Thor back down here and ship her off to Asgard. They'd be the best suited to hold her until someone could be called in to help break the connection."

That plan, at least, seemed acceptable. Tony zoned it out for the most part as the others started to try and plan what to do the next time. The idea of handing Amora over to Asgard didn't sit right with him. The humans here obviously thought that giving her to Asgard would be a kinder fate.

Tony and Loki exchanged a look while the others were talking. They both knew the truth. Maybe Loki didn't know it as deeply as Tony did; he understood enough, though. Sending Amora to Asgard, leaving her under Thanos's control, giving her to Odin to deal with - it would be kinder to simply kill her.


Tony was more than ready to find his bed once the team finally got back to the tower. He trusted his suit over to JARVIS to get back downstairs; his AI took remote control of the suit and started it down the ramp, taking it inside. Tony enjoyed the looks of surprise from the others. If only they knew all the things JARVIS was capable of doing.

One by one the rest of them started to file their way out. Tony was one of the last to rise, and he dragged his aching body forward, with Loki just in front of him and Steve following behind him. Tony had every intention of getting off the quinjet and making his way in to find a nice warm bath before he was forced to focus on anything else. He needed to heal the magical channels inside him that were still aching a bit. It'd left him with something almost like a magical hangover.

Before Tony could go far, a hand closed over his shoulder. "Tony." When Tony turned to look, he found Steve standing there. The man cast a look over at where the others were already mostly inside, and Loki was lingering close by, and then he brought his gaze back to Tony. "I just wanted to apologize. That whole meeting was a bit of a mess, and it seems like it brought up a lot of history for you. I know we don't know your past, and I know I've been one of the ones pushing the most for it, but... we've all got things we'd like to stay hidden, an lately it seems like you're not getting a choice on having all of yours brought out for everyone to see. So I guess, I just wanted to say I'm sorry for that."

The more that Tony got to know Steve, the more he could see the guy that Howard had used to talk about so much. Despite the hand that life had dealt him, Steve was just an all-around good guy. It's what made him and Tony butt heads so often - Steve saw the world in black and white, while Tony tended to live in the shades of gray, often tipping a little more towards the darker end of the scale.

But... despite all that, Tony found himself liking Steve anyways. He liked the kindness in him that ran deeper in him than it did for anyone else here on their team. Steve was their moral compass; the one that would help them stay on the good path. And when things required a different path, well, that's where Tony would step in.

"It's fine, Steve." Tony's tone was a whole lot gentler than it would've been earlier. He drew in a breath, trying to steady himself, and snuck a look over to where Loki was still lingering. The other mage had slowed himself down to try and wait for Tony, yet he couldn't stay out here, not without making it clear that's what he was doing. It left him no choice but to finally step inside. Once he did, Tony brought his gaze back to Steve, and he found himself saying more than he'd intended. "Amora and I just... we have a bit of a bad history. It's not some state secrete or anything like that - it just brings up some unpleasant memories."

"Is there anything we can do to help?"

The fact that he honestly meant that was enough to make Tony smile. He brought a hand up and patted the one that was still resting on his shoulder. "You're a good guy, Cap. But there's nothing you can do here. Amora," Sighing, Tony stuffed his hands into his pockets to resist wringing them together. "I don't have to like her to help her."

Steve looked him over, taking in every bit of the expression on Tony's face. Then he smiled. He gave Tony's shoulder one last squeeze before letting go. "You're a good man, Tony."

Unable to help it, Tony laughed. "No, I'm really not." His grin grew wide enough to crinkle his eyes. "But thanks anyway."