Tony shot out of sleep, very confused. He was on the couch, not in the lab. Pepper was nowhere to be seen, and there were two wary assassins watching him. "Morning Tony." Clint said smirking and Tony just stared at him." I'm not in the lab." Clint chuckled and Natasha rolled her eyes. "What clued you in? Yeah, Pepper attacked you to get you to sleep."
Tony's eyes narrows and he stood quickly, eyeing the assassins suspiciously. "So you decided to watch me sleep? Why?" Clint rolls his eyes and Natasha leans back on the couch shaking her head. "Just making sure you get a full night's sleep for Pepper, she has a business trip to go to for the weekend." Tony's face falls and he sighs running his hands through his hair. "Pep's awful overprotective. You don't gotta watch me sleep and stuff. I'm just gonna go down to the lab, help yourselves to anything for breakfast." He shoots them an awkward smile before practically running out of the room towards the elevator.
….
Tony sighs when he gets into the lab and rubs his eyes. God he wished Pepper hadn't sprayed him, now he had so much more work to catch up on. He walked to his workbench and rolled his neck hearing a "pop" and flinching."Jarv?" He asked yawning. "Yes Sir? I'm quite glad to see you slept." Tony looked up and glared at the ceiling. "Oh yeah we're going to TALK about that later Jarvis. Bring up the Helicarrier blueprint and the layout plan of the new arrow/knife poison."
"Of course sir." The glowing plans immediately popped up in front of his face and he smiled tiredly. "Thanks Jarv." He quickly went to work on the new Helicarrier designs, giving the hull special attention. "Maybe if I put three energy towers we can alternate which ones to turn off and on to let people out without letting others in…" He murmured to himself reaching for a nonexistent cup of coffee then gasped. "Jarvis!?Where is my coffee?!"
"Sir you slept last night, you haven't gotten coffee yet." Tony frowned and sighed. "So I have to go upstairs and get the coffee?" Tony grimaced at the unappealing notion, and Jarvis didn't even dignify it with an answer.
"Mr. Stark, how good to see you again." Tony whirled around at the sound of the voice and saw Loki smirking wildly, leaning on the wall. "Loki, dude if you're gonna be popping in like this, get a bell. You're gonna give me heart attack or something. " Tony put a mocking hand to his heart and Loki just rolled his eyes and took a step towards Tony, an evil glint in his eye. "I told you I'd return soon Stark." Tony took a stuttering breath and nodded. "That you did." Tony just froze waiting for Loki to do something, to yell, or to attack him, but the god just stood there, watching him.
"Why exactly are you doing this Stark?" Tony just raised an eyebrow. "Doing what?" Loki's evil smile turned amused and curious, as if Tony were a toy he was intent on figuring out. It made Tony's blood boil and he had to take a few deep breaths to calm down in time to hear Loki's answer. "Why are you doing all of it? Working yourself into a coma and letting me, your greatest enemy, have control on whether you die or not, for a bunch of superhero's who barely stand you and a girlfriend who only wants you for your money and power?" Tony's heart constricted at those words and he tried to shake it off, just glaring at Loki.
"Because I love them, but you wouldn't know what love is though would you ODINSON?" Loki's glare turned murderous and he lunched at Tony holding a knife to his throat. "Do NOT refer to me as that again Stark. You dare speak to me like that?" Loki lowered the knife to Tony's stomach and Tony froze in fear as he traced Tony's skin with the end of it. "You're an unwanted murderer Stark. What right do you have to speak of love?" As Loki's words got sharper as did the touch on Tony's skin as soon he felt the sting of fresh pain and warm blood running down his torso. "You're precious Ms. Potts, can't wait to get away from you. She leaves all the time Stark, and we both know they aren't all for business trips. She could do better and she knows it. YOU know it."
Tony closed his eyes and tried to block out the hurtful words. Normally it was easier to block it out, but he could feel cold creeping into his mind and guessed that Loki was using some sort of magic to make him listen and remember. Damn, Tony hated magic.
"You have no friends that you didn't hire Tony Stark. That's pathetic, just. Like. You." Tony felt the knife dig deeper into his skin and winced as the blood flow of the cuts increased, before suddenly Loki pulled away. "Think on that awhile Stark." He said before disappearing in a wisp of green, and leaving a bleeding Tony Stark cursing at the cosmic cruelty that was magic.