(I debated whether or not to go this route with Loki, but I thought it would be cute. The idea just wouldn't leave me.)

He managed to put it off for at least a week more before he was sure that Thor was ready to make it an order. Out of self-defense he headed down one floor to a laboratory that had been set up. Banner was already there, looking just slightly ill at ease and Tony was nearby, his hands moving through the air like an orchestra and moving transparent images in front of him. He frowned and made to turn around.

"Jarvis."

The door locked itself before he could get to it and Loki glared at Tony, who hadn't even looked at him. Banner gestured to a nearby padded table that was slightly elevated on one end, attempting to put on a reassuring smile. "I didn't think you'd appreciate him here, but I'll at least need his help for some of this. This isn't my area."

"You're the closest thing we have," Stark said, seemingly all business. "Up on the table, Frosty."

"Never call me that again," he hissed, but reluctantly did as he was told. He had to jump up just a little and he wasn't sure if it was because it was designed for a taller person or if it was just built that way.

"Lay down."

"Shouldn't he remove his clothes?" Tony commented, looking at a device in his hand.

Banner gave him a skeptical look. "You think that's necessary? If he had any external wounds, they would have healed over by now, don't you think?"

Stark looked up, giving Loki a critical eye. "At least remove the shirt. I don't think we'll need to see the rest."

Loki did as they said without argument, as he just wanted to get this over with as soon as possible. Thor had forbidden him from using magic, so he could not even conjure a glamour to cover the worst of the scars. Most of them were on his back and when Thor had noticed after their first time, he had had to spend an inordinate amount of time both calming down his brother from going smiting and convincing him to touch him again because they didn't hurt.

"How much of this is from the torture and how much is from your training?" Banner asked, pulling a notebook toward him and a pen.

"I would say that the majority of it was the Chitauri. I usually did not get injured in training."

"Amazing that in all those thousands of years, you didn't get a nick."

Loki rolled his eyes at the skeptical tone of Tony's voice. "I did not let them hit me. My talents lie in subterfuge, illusion, and quickness."

"We noticed."

He laid on his back when Banner touched his shoulder. If he hadn't been with the healers at any point in his life, seeing a transparent copy of his body hovering over him would have been shocking. Granted, those on Asgard were more ethereal, made of magical particles that the healers interpreted. This was more defined, clearer.

Both scientists were studying the image as his skin was 'waved' away and his organs hovered in sight. It was…rather ghoulish, if he was being honest. Banner muttered that the majority of his internal body was the same. "His blood seems to be moving a little slower than I would expect. Almost like…"

"Like what?" Loki asked with narrowed eyes.

"Well, there are certain creatures on earth that are cold-blooded. They require warmth from the sun to regulate their bodies. That's not what I'm suggested here, but what I'm noticing at least is that…" There was a pause before Banner changed what he was about to say. "Do you find that cold is easier to handle and you find a lot of heat more uncomfortable than others?"

"Yes. Ever since I was a child, but I am also Jotun. Jotunheim is a world of ice and the people that live there, hearty to the cold. They have little need for heat."

As Banner scribbled down some notes, Tony flicked his fingers and several organs disappeared from view. "Everything else seems to check out. I don't see any internal injuries at least. Well…except this."

The slightly shorter man looked up and peered over to the area that was now being highlighted by Tony's machines. "…What is that? Do you think it's an injury?"

"It could just be a splotch on the image, I guess. Jarvis?"

"There is nothing wrong with the equipment," AI responded immediately.

Loki shifted his head, noticing they were staring at an area just below his abdomen. There did appear to be a shadow there. "What kind of organ is that for anyway?" Tony asked, looking at him. The 'splotch' as the genius had aptly put it was all but hidden from view by the rest of his organs and the only reason they had noticed it was thanks to the image removing most of the others.

"As we have established, I know little about what I actually am. I have no idea and even if I were interested in such things, Asgard would not be the place to learn about it. Given the longstanding history between the Jotuns and Asgardians, they would not have books on each other's physiology."

"Seems to me that's a tactical oversight," Stark replied, flicking his fingers and then heading over to another area of the lab to study the organ more in depth as Banner finished the rest of the exam. "Wouldn't you want to know that sort of thing to exploit weaknesses?" Before Loki could argue, he abruptly blurted, "Holy shit! Bruce, get over here." Almost jogging, the other scientist was at his side in seconds. "Is that what I think it is?"

"No, it can't be. It's impossible…"

Loki sat up slowly, watching the two suspiciously. They were huddled around a monitor and he slid off the table, fully intending on approaching and demanding an explanation. Stark whirled around to face him before he could. "Loki, how does that 'curse' of yours work?"

"Curse?" He blinked. Oh, the Allfather. "It changes how I look to appear as an Asgardian."

"So...it doesn't change anything else. All your…natural bits are still…natural."

"I am and will remain male, yes, if that is what you refer to."

Tony turned back to Bruce. "See? It has to be wrong."

"…I don't know, Tony." Now Banner turned to him. "Is there anything else significantly different about the Jotun?"

Loki crossed his arms and glared, feeling something close to fear in his gut. Did he truly have some sort of injury that he hadn't been aware of? There were a few diseases that affected the Jotun and were ultimately fatal… "Be more specific, Avenger."

"Well…what do the females look like?"

"There are no women among the Jotun. They are a single gender species."

The scientists shared a glance before it was Tony that blurted out, "Then congratulations have to be in order. You're pregnant!"

He froze for a moment before he abruptly shook his head. "You are mistaken."

"It's right here on the screen, Frosty."

"And you just confirmed that there are no women in the Jotun," Bruce added gently. "If there are no females, then the only logical way of reproduction is either by self replication or…men carry the organs necessary to bring a baby to term."

Loki damned both of them to hell that he couldn't even lie to himself because they had pointed out the things that he had not even considered before. Sure he had known they were single gender, but having lived in Asgard as he had, it hadn't occurred to him to even wonder how they populated their race. It had been even less of a concern with Thor because he had been mentally still staying the way he'd been raised, as an Asgardian male that could not carry children. Now…now he had an abomination inside him.

Bruce looked at Tony, who quickly headed out of the room. The other scientist approached him cautiously, but when he reached out to touch Loki's arm, the trickster jerked back. "It must be a mistake! This should never have happened!"

"Why do you think this is a bad thing?"

In his already panicked state, he didn't notice the very carefully controlled tone of voice the other man used. "It is a half-Jotun, half-Asgardian! It will be hunted, an outcast, its entire life! Do you think it will ever find acceptance anywhere, much less…love?!"

"Thor will love your child no matter what it is—"

"Fool! You believe he would? Most of the time, I fail to even believe that he loves me, how could he love such a hybrid?!"

"Loki!" Feet thundered down the stairs and the door was thrown open as the rest of the Avengers hurried in. Thor was looking concerned and he didn't even wait as he rushed over, gathering Loki up into his arms.

Loki didn't want to be held though. "Release me!" he spat and disobeyed his brother's orders to use his magic. He teleported out of the arms that he'd wanted for so long, but at least only a few feet away from him. He wouldn't risk becoming an outcast just yet by leaving the building or Midgard entirely.

"What's going on?" the god of thunder demanded of his two friends, even as he approached Loki slowly like he was a wounded animal.

"Well, other than the fact that you're going to be a dad and he's freaking out over it? Nothing much."

Bruce glared at Tony for dropping the information so blatantly, particularly in front of the other Avengers, which had the same reaction that they had when they'd first figured it out. "I know it seems like it's impossible—"

Thor, though, didn't seem particularly shocked or upset and Loki was watching him closely for the disgust he was sure his lover felt. "It did not occur to me that such a thing would happen, but now that you mention it…" Their eyes never broke from their stare and he wondered what he must look like for Thor to be behaving as cautiously as he was. "Loki, please calm down."

"I am calm!"

"Yes, because calm people look like they're going to jump out a high building at any minute—ow!"

Loki didn't look over, but he was pretty sure Steve had hit Tony in the shoulder for that comment. "This is an abomination, you know that, Thor. This will seal my fate. They would rather see me dead than bring any child of ours to term."

"And I would raze all the worlds on Yggdrasil before I would let that happen. Our child is not an abomination and I could not be happier."

"You do not look happy."

"That is because you are holding a knife in your hand."

…He was? Loki looked down and it felt like he'd been hit with a strange sense of vertigo. He was indeed holding a knife and he looked at Bruce, who gave him a grimace of sympathy as someone who had been in the same position thanks to Loki's magic back then. When had he conjured a dagger? It was only now that Loki realized that his subconscious had realized his fears of imprisonment and death even as the rest of him had reeled from the fact that he had been pregnant. He had…operated under the assumption…

"They will come, Thor, to execute me no matter what you want."

"And we won't let it happen!" the super soldier near the door insisted. "We wouldn't before this and we certainly won't now."

"They will kill me to kill it! It will be a contender to the throne, an illegitimate heir, and one born from the unnatural love between two Asgardian princes, those raised as brothers!"

"I don't think you give them enough credit, or at least your father," Barton told him. The distraction didn't prove successful as he noticed Natasha trying to creep along the edge of the room, clearly hoping to get behind him and disable him.

"Do not crowd him!" Thor ordered as he realized that Loki had found her in the shadows.

"What are you even planning on doing with that knife?" Stark demanded. "You say they'll kill you to kill the baby, so what are you going to do? Carve it out of your stomach? Kill yourself ahead of time?"

Loki had not intended either of those suggestions, only to instinctively defend himself out of the fear that the Avengers would feel the same as the Asgardians no doubt would at the turn of events. "…No."

"Prove it then. Put it down."

At the defiant tone of the genius, a slight to his pride that the man thought he wouldn't, couldn't, do that and Loki knew he was being manipulated. Attempting to use his pride against him? That was one of the most basic of manipulations, designed to pull on baser and less controllable emotions. And it worked, even on him. He set down the dagger on the table. Almost as soon as he did, Thor had rushed up and wrapped him up into his arms.

"Thor. Thor! Let him breathe!"

Thor's grip loosened a fraction and Loki let out a heavy breath. He sighed in a way that was entirely unintentionally when callused fingers dove into his hair. "Loki, understand something: If your fate were not still undetermined on Asgard, I would bring you home, right to father, and demand to be wed. If it were in my current means of power, this child would not be illegitimate."

He looked up with downright disbelief. "You would? You would wed me and love this child?"

"I would wed you and will love this child. I will admit to being…a tad foolish for not considering such an outcome, but that does not mean that I would wish this situation changed at all."

Loki didn't want to risk humiliation and worse, his very life and freedom, by trusting Thor. If it were misplaced, then it would mean nothing but death for him and the little life he carried. He had promised to honor his deal with his brother in respect for the good times of their past, not because of trust. Did this man even know what he was asking Loki to do by trusting him? It was a risk and though Thor had done nothing but earn that trust by his actions, he found it ridiculously hard to give in.

Looking into those blue eyes, all he saw was absolute and utter conviction. Silently he nodded and Thor beamed in joy. "I cannot wait to tell mother and father! I shall have Heimdall pass the message—"

"What did I just say about what they will do when they find out?!"

"You really think the guy will kill you? He'll be a grandfather!"

"Besides, this might be helpful too," Natasha pointed out. "Illegitimate or not, it would still be an heir, right? And it's not biologically compromised because you two aren't technically related by blood."

"You underestimate the Asgardians hatred of me. What manner of society do you live in that is so accepting?"

"Apparently a more advanced one," Tony said, looking at his machines again as they began to store all manner of data about Loki. "Well, hey, I've always wondered what it would be like to play doctor to an pregnant alien. This could be fun!"

"Or not, depending on how rough the pregnancy is. You know how human women get, all those strange cravings. Loki's could be even more outlandish."

Stark merely waved his hand at Barton's actual logic, too giddy at the new development and all the information that the situation presented to care. Thor was nuzzling his face into Loki's hair as the trickster let the conversation wash around him. He didn't add anything as the Avengers talked amongst themselves and tried to convince himself that this wasn't a huge mistake.

A large hand rested over his still-flat stomach and had his brother been a Midgardian cat, he was sure he'd be purring, he was so happy. There was no doubt in Loki's mind that Thor would be a good father, now that he'd been forced to mature, but they knew so little as it was about Jotuns and there was even less information about half-breed. What would they even look like? What would they eat? Would it have the height of an actual Jotun? That seemed unlikely, given Loki's own diminutive stature and Thor's natural state.

"Thor, I require you to do something for me," he said, drawing the others attention after twenty minutes of silence.

"Ask anything."

"You must go back to Asgard and scour the library. I need you to bring back any books that make reference to Jotun history or physiology. If you need help, then…" He hesitated, but firmed his spine resolutely, "then ask mother. She will know them. This will require the utmost secrecy. I will give you an enchanted bracelet to put on once you have arrived that will make you unnoticeable except to Heimdall and mother."

Thor remained silent for a minute, clearly warring with the idea of leaving Loki alone at all. They had not been separated except for a few hours during the times the Avengers were needed and apparently with the knowledge that his mate was pregnant with his child made him even less enthused to return. However, Loki was relying on his brother's need to make sure that both he and the child were born healthy and would do what he asked. "Very well, but Loki, I must ask… Please, may I tell mother and father?"

"You would ask my permission?"

"I would. This is not just my child, as it is not just my decision."

How much Thor had changed in the past two years, had actually grown. "…If you can tell them alone. The rest of Asgard must not know." Loki was not a fool to assume that this would not, of course, get out. Eventually others would find out, but he would hold the truth as close as he could for as long as possible. "Not only for their reaction, but also the Jotuns. You forget that I was born a prince of Jotun. The child will have also have a claim on the Jotunheim throne and they will not suffer that easily."

"I swear I will keep it as quiet as I can." His brother looked at the other Avengers that had watched quietly. "My friends, I will have to entrust to you the one thing that means more to me than anything in any world. Please, take care of him as I would."

"Well, I'm not going to jump into bed with him, but the rest I think we can handle," Tony teased, seeming to enjoy the way that Thor tensed up in jealousy at even the idea of someone else in Loki's bed.

"Lady Sif is not going to like this," Loki commented as Thor let go of him clearly in preparation to find a nearby balcony.

"Sif? You mean that warrior woman you were talking about?"

Loki nodded at Bruce as Thor looked a little unsettled at the topic. "She has, since childhood, desired to be Thor's wife. She loves him very much. Such knowledge that we are lovers will be bad enough; to know that I am with child will be worse."

"Why don't we just deal with that as it comes?" Steve suggested, dropping a hand on Loki's bare shoulder in support, much to his surprise. "One thing at a time. We'll take care of Loki, Thor, so go on. We'll break it to Fury too, as best we can."

"That task I do not envy you," Thor told him. "I will return soon."

-0-

"Congratulations are in order, I hear."

Thor looked up at Heimdall, fiddling with the bracelet that Loki had given him, but not having put it on yet. He looked for any sign of the man's disapproval or disgust, any sign that the warrior he admired would turn away from him…but there was nothing. Just a smile as if he were pleased that Thor was having a child with someone he loved, no matter who it might be.

"You did well to calm his fear."

"You watched it all then?"

"I have kept my eyes close upon you, but it was merely chance I looked that way when I did." Heimdall stepped down from the raised platform in a relaxed manner. "Your friends are very perceptive. The Allfather has some success in changing Loki's fate. He is no longer to be executed, but your father was not willing to give up yet. Now he fights against life imprisonment or banishment to Jotunheim. I do not wish to sound like a politician, but this turn of events could not have come at a better time."

"And you, Heimdall? What do you think of this 'turn of events'?"

"I believe…that you will be a wonderful father."

"And of Loki?" he asked cautiously, not sure he wanted to know the answer.

The big man sighed, his amazing eyes closing briefly, but he smiled when they opened once again. "Loki has changed as well, though I do not believe he has noticed it. He will also make a good father. His love for you, his desire to not disappoint you of all, has caused him to mature just as much as you had to. You are both better for your ordeals."

Thor smiled brilliantly, restraining himself from hugging Heimdall. It was a weight from his mind that this man, who had spent so much time with in the past, supported him. So long as his father and mother did, then he cared little for what the rest of Asgard thought. Even his friends the Warriors Three and Sif…he wanted their approval, but if they did not, so be it. It would not be as crushing as it would be if Heimdall or his parents disapproved. Such a thought was a surprise, but he tried not to dwell.

"Where is my mother?"

"The queen is in her chambers." As if anticipating his next question, Heimdall added, "The Allfather is on the balcony of the throne room, looking down at the gardens."

"Thank you, Heimdall. Truly." He slipped the bracelet on and hurried, blessing the weight of Mjolnir. He could never explain in words just how much he hadn't wanted to leave Loki, but he knew that the man was right. For all the fact that he was in good care with Tony and Bruce, not one of them knew much about the Jotuns. If something unexpected should occur, they would be entirely unprepared for it. Something that would be considered mundane for a Jotun and could be harmless, they might view as a threat to Loki's or the child's life.

Thor headed for his father first. He knew that he looked like any other nondescript guard and no one gave him a passing glance. "My Lord," he said, bowing a little. Odin only shifted his head just a little to show he acknowledged his presence. "I have a message for you."

That caught the older man's attention and he turned fully. Thor let his eyes meet that of the Allfather's and whatever he must have seen there convinced him of his true identity. "What message?"

"The queen wishes to speak to you in her chambers."

"Very well," Odin said after a minute and gestured with his hand to have him accompany. The conversation would not have been out of place and they said not a word to each other as they passed through the halls to the private quarters of the king and queen.

Frigga looked up from her book as the doors opened and Odin entered and Thor closed the door behind them. He didn't even have time to remove the bracelet before his mother had enveloped him in a hug. "Thor! What are you doing here? Is Loki—"

"Loki is fine, mother," he said, hugging her back tightly before he pulled off the enchanted item to show himself in his armor. "In fact, I have news."

"I hope, for the sake of this old man, that it is good news."

He smiled brightly at his father. "It is. SHIELD has become our cautious ally on Midgard and the Avengers solid supporters. Loki is safe." He shifted, a little more hesitant to say the rest. He was not as confident about this news as he had led his lover to believe.

"What is it, Thor?" his mother asked, verbally prodding him.

"Mother, Father… Loki and I…" He licked his lips, not nearly as good with words as his brother. "Were we able, I would wed him." There was only the faintest of widening of their eyes, but no condemnation yet. "I love him as a brother…but also as a man that I intend to spend the rest of my life with. Heimdall has spoken of what you have managed to do here, father, and I am more happy than I can say…but I cannot have Loki returned for life imprisonment. SHIELD will ally with me in that regard and is willing to let Loki stay on Midgard."

"I have not given up, Thor, but if it is the case where I cannot succeed, then I will at least know that my sons are safe and happy."

"Is this why you have returned, Thor? To tell us this news?"

"No. I came for books."

"Books?"

"Yes, those that speak anything of the Jotun race. Loki…is with child. My child."

That had a reaction. His mother sucked in breath and covered her mouth. "I will have a grandchild?"

"Yes," he said nervously, stepping back a little in case she thought to hit him. It was possible that they could accept his relationship with Loki, but not if such a tangible thing came about because of it. "It will be—"

"Half-Jotun, half-Asgardian," Odin supplied. Thor nodded, watching him most closely. His father eased down in a chair slowly, as if every movement hurt and let out a sigh.

"Have we disappointed you? We did not…intend this. Neither of us gave a thought to the fact that Jotun could bear children. It seems so obvious now…"

"You could never disappoint me, Thor. Neither you, nor Loki," Frigga insisted. "I will love you both no matter what, and this lovely grandchild no matter what they might look like or be."

All attention was drawn to Odin, who stared pensively into the flames. "I am an old man, Thor, one is no longer confident in the way I have raised my children. One grew to be too arrogant and foolish, the other believed in his heart that he was not as loved and did not feel confident in speaking his mind when I could change it. I no longer have any disappointment in me for anyone but myself. I merely wish to hold my sons in my arms, and perhaps one day, my grandchild."

"You will…love Loki and the child?" he asked, cautiously optimistic. "You do not seem…happy."

"Thor, your father is exhausted. He rarely sleeps and has had little of the success he wants most. Of course he still loves Loki and will love your child, but it is hard to be enthusiastic or happy given the circumstances. If he cannot change something, it is possible we will never see our grandchild."

For so long, Thor had always lived under the belief that the Allfather could do anything. It was only the past two years, since his banishment, had he begun to realize even the man he had looked up to the most was not all powerful. "It was suggested by the Avengers that perhaps, with Loki carrying the heir…"

"It might be possible, but I assume that Loki would have preferred to keep such knowledge quiet."

"You know him well, father."

"He is my son."

"I would normally never go against Loki's wishes, but if it could help him, should we not take it? I do not want to break his trust, but I would also want him to be able to come home if he chose."

"We will see. For now, your mother and I will bask in happier tidings."

Thor smiled in return at the tired but still there stretch of lips on his father's face. He looked exhausted, but there was a spark of life in his eye that had been missing when Thor had first arrived. "Mother, I will need your help to find the books Loki asked for. We must know as much as we can about his condition."

"Of course, Thor. Put the enchantment back on and we will go to the library immediately." Frigga leaned down to kiss her husband's temple, squeezing his shoulder, and stepped out of the bedroom.

He paused, meeting his father's eye. "Loki…still loves you very much, father, no matter what he might say."

"That is a great comfort to me, Thor. Now hurry after your mother. Loki is waiting for you, I am sure."

Thor nodded and headed off. The sooner he had those books in hand, the sooner he could return.