Midnight is as good a time as any to post, right?
Thanks to Robotic Worm, Amberleaf le Haunt, thestralrider, livelaughlove, TheCresentMoonWolf, SkysFireLady15, AnOnYmOuS, won't be the Victim, mistyfoxmaid, AvengersJunkie, Cerca39, Yaraslava Rada, and cutechinchilla27 for their reviews!
AvengersJunkie: Using magic to heal his nose did deage Loki, but only by a few months so its not too terribly noticable. So you can imagine it was some pretty major magic that got him shrunk down so young in the first place.
cutechinchilla27: You should get an account so that you can post it then! Because fanfics are like love. They are meant to be shared. PS the surprise was just that. A surprise! You know... SURPRISE!
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Three hours after Loki began texting people with Stark's phone, the door of the cupboard was ripped off. Loki managed to hide the phone up his sleeve before Thor seized him by the collar and dragged him out. Just as well. He was running out of ideas and some people had begun to reply. Humans had very dirty minds.
"You have gone too far, brother!" Thor growled, dragging him along behind him.
"With what?" Loki spat, wrapping his two small hands around Thor's thick forearm to spare his neck from the jerking. He could hardly keep up with Thor's long strides.
Thor dragged him into the kitchen and threw him into a chair. Loki straightened his shirt. Thor stepped back, joining his fellows who stood in a threatening semicircle around the chair.
Thor looked furious, but not as angry as Stark. Banner stood as keystone of the group, stern-faced. Next was Rogers, trying to look like he was in control. Barton was last, looking slightly pleased. Loki gazed back at them impassively. Were they finally going to lock him up and torture him? It would explain Barton's expression.
"Give me my phone," Stark demanded, holding out his hand.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Loki lied coolly.
"Loki, you have caused enough trouble," Thor thundered. "You will end these schemes now!"
Loki stood and returned Thor's glare. "Will I?"
"Give me back my phone!"
"What makes you think-"
Banner suddenly strode forward, pushing aside Barton and Rogers. He slammed his fist into the table. "GIVE IT BACK!"
Loki reacted instantly. He threw the phone at Stark, hitting him square in the nose. The demigod backed away from Banner, nearly tripping over the chair behind him. It clattered to the floor. Banner walked forward – Loki found himself edging closer to Thor for protection – and righted the chair. The calm expression on his face showed that his anger had been an act. Loki straightened his clothing, as if that would help him get over the fact that a) he had been scared and b) he had been tricked.
"Right," Banner said, looking between Stark and Loki. "I'm getting sick and tired of this childishness. It ends now. Understood?"
Stark reluctantly nodded. Loki folded his arms and attempted to stare down Banner, but the memory of getting swung through the air and smashed into a stone floor made him think better of it.
"You may want to change your ringtone again," he said archly to Stark. "Unless you enjoy Rebecca Black."
Stark glared at him.
"Now, if all of you will excuse me," Loki continued, "I'm sure you would love some privacy to discuss my punishment."
None of them made a move to stop him, although he could feel their glares drilling into the back of his head. He heard Barton following behind him, but didn't give an indication that he had. Going to his room, Loki smirked to see that his earth garb had mysteriously reappeared in a heap on the floor. He found a pair of black trousers and a dark green sweater to replace Iron Man, and sat on his bed.
The fun was over. Now all he could do was wait for whatever the Avengers decided was punishment enough for these latest pranks. He could try to escape, he supposed, but he wasn't prepared for it. An attempt at this time would end in failure and make them increase security, making another attempt all but impossible. He would just have to wait out the punishment, and hope that it wouldn't take too much magic to heal from it. Would Captain America condone boiling oil?
Whatever they decided to do, Loki silently determined that he would laugh at all of them through it. It was only a matter of time before Odin decided to have him executed to appease the people of Asgard, anyway. What difference would the little tortures that these idiots could concoct make in the end?
An unexpected pang shot through him when he wondered if Thor would be the one to hold him down. As much as the oaf claimed to still love him, claimed to still view him as a brother, he had always loved himself more. How could that have changed? Loki angrily dug his fists into his eyes, trying to erase the emotions that swirled in his mind.
I've looked forward to this day as long as you have. You're my brother and my friend. Sometimes I'm envious, but never doubt that I love you.
Loki blew out his breath, forcing the memories from his mind. He reached under the pillow for his book. It wasn't there. Frowning, he lifted the pillow and threw it to the floor, and then the other one. His book was nowhere to be seen. Jumping up, he tore the blankets back, shaking them all out, and then rooted through the pile of clothing on the floor. His heart hammered against his chest, and he fought at the despair that clawed at his throat. Where was it?
Suddenly he stopped. Barton.
#
Steve sat down at the kitchen table, rubbing his eyes. The weight of leadership was heavy on his shoulders, but at the same time he realised that this wasn't the typical situation he was used to dealing with. Loki didn't belong to this world, and as the only representative from Asgard, as well as Loki's brother, Thor had a significant say in what went on.
But then there was Barton, who was clearly furious that Loki was allowed any freedom at all, and Miss Potts, who insisted that he be allowed that freedom, and Banner who spoke up lightly in support of Miss Potts, Romanoff who didn't say what she thought one way or another, and of course Stark, who joked so much about the whole matter that Steve didn't know what he thought.
"All right," Steve said, trying to bring order to a silence that was strife with opposing thoughts. "Obviously Loki is more resourceful than we thought-"
"'We'?" Barton repeated.
Steve glared at him.
"Sorry." The assassin was decent enough to look apologetic.
"And we're all stressed out, but we have really got to work together and solve this problem. Thor, do you have any idea what's going on in Asgard?"
The demigod shook his head. He was the only one who wasn't sitting. He paced back and forth, clearly still furious. "I have no means of communicating with my father, unless perhaps Heimdall is watching, which I cannot tell if he is. Even then, I cannot know what is happening there, they only know what is happening here."
Steve nodded in understanding. "We have got to come up with a system that keeps everybody happy. Most importantly, we have to make sure that we keep things calm-"
Just then, Loki appeared in the doorway. His child's body trembled with fury and he didn't even try to hide that. His bright green eyes narrowed in on Barton.
"Give it back," he hissed.
Barton stared back at him impassively. "Give what back?"
Without a word, Loki flung his hand forward, twisting it sharply as though he was throwing a football. A long, vivid green snake materialised in the air, shooting towards Barton with mouth open wide. It's fangs glistened. The assassin flung himself to one side, and the snake burst into a shower of golden sparks as it hit the chair where Barton had been.
"Give it back!" Loki screamed, launching himself forward.
Steve jumped to his feet to try to intervene, but Barton got to Loki first. He caught the demigod midair and tossed him away. Even as he fell to the floor, Loki whipped his hand around and a cloud of sharp-beaked crows materialised, swarming around Barton. Another flick of the wrist and a large wolf crouched growling on the floor.
"Loki!" Thor roared, seizing his brother and pinning his arms to his side. "Stop this now!"
Steve jumped between Barton and the wolf, grabbing a chair to fend it off. It dissolved as he thrust the chair at it, only to reappear behind him.
"GIVE IT BACK!"
"Give what back?" Stark shouted above the pandemonium as yet more creatures appeared.
"He took my book!" Loki screamed.
"Barton, what's he talking about?" Steve demanded, swinging at the wolf just to have it disappear again and pounce at the assassin, who was busy swiping at the birds attacking him.
Thor gave out a cry of pain as Loki kicked his shins and bit his arm. Steve spared only a glance to see another wolf appear to attack the blond demigod. Loki slipped from his grasp. Dodging between the creatures that he had conjured, Loki grabbed a chair and swung it at Barton with far more strength than a normal kid that age would have been able to do.
Barton grunted as the impact sent him to the floor. The wolf dodged in, but Steve swung at it and it dissolved again. He tried to step in between Loki and Barton, but he was too late. The assassin sprang back to his feet, and swung at the demigod. But at that exact moment, Banner stepped forward to avoid a crow dive-bombing his head. Barton's fist sunk into his stomach. A look of surpise came to the scientist's face, an oof of pain sounding loud in the room.
The conjured creature all disappeared in a poof of sparks. Absolute silence fell. Every eye in the room was on Banner, who bent double with pain. He let out a soft groan. Barton and Stark backed away. Thor tensed, readying to throw himself into the fray should Banner transform.
"Dr Banner?" Steve said cautiously, stepping forward.
"I'm all right. I'm good," Banner replied, slightly out of breath, straightening. He rubbed his stomach and gave a reproachful look at Barton. "Clint, that hurt."
Thor strode forward and seized Loki. Stark cautiously went over to Banner to make sure the doctor wasn't going to hulk out. Steve set down the chair he'd been using, watching Loki, who still glared murder at Barton, and whose returning glare was equally murderous. So much for trying to keep things calm.
"Barton," Steve said, holding out his hand. "The book."
Barton glared defiantly at the captain for a moment before reaching into his vest and pulling out a leather-bound book with delicate gold trimmings. Loki strode forward, Thor's hand still latched on his arm, and snatched the book out of Steve's hand before it was fully in it. Steve noticed how badly Loki's hands shook as he looked through the book, inspecting each page. It was as though he had forgotten about the five Avengers still staring at him.
"You kept it?" Thor asked quietly, his voice mystified.
The sound of his voice seemed to rouse Loki out of whatever place he had gone while checking over the book. He looked up at his brother for a long moment before roughly pulling himself from Thor's grasp and backing away. His knuckles were white as he clutched the book, and he looked at the five Avengers with a gleam in his eye that looked slightly hateful, slightly panicked. His chest rose and fell rapidly.
And then, as if he hadn't just been fighting all five of them for it, Loki strode over to the garbage and threw the book in with a definitive thud. Steve saw Thor tense.
It was then that Romanoff and Miss Potts returned. The women stopped in the doorway, looking around at the scene of destruction. Two chairs were overturned, Barton was scratched and bleeding, Banner was still rubbing his stomach, and in the middle of it all Loki stood, his green eyes glittering with challenge.
"What happened?" Miss Potts asked, the expression on her face wondering if she even wanted to know.
"I'll explain later, Pep," Stark muttered to her.
"Everybody just needs to stay calm, okay?" Steve stared at his teammates and then at Loki. The demigod sneered but didn't move or speak. "Look, Loki, we've been trying to play nice-"
"So have I," Loki interrupted.
Steve raised his eyebrows. Did this guy forget what was just happening two seconds ago? "You have?"
Loki gave him a chilling grin. "I haven't killed any of you yet, have I?" He laughed at the Avengers as they stared at him with expressions of varying degrees of disbelief. "You are all so pathetic! Did you think that anything would change just because we all share our meals like a great big happy family? This is laughable-"
"That is enough!" Thor roared.
"Is it?" Loki shouted back, his voice raising shrilly to match Thor's. "It will never be enough!"
"Enough for what?" Romanoff interrupted. She moved into the room, staring hard at Loki.
Loki glared at her, but didn't speak.
"Romanoff, will you take Loki back to his room so that we can decide what to do now?" Steve requested quietly.
Loki hissed between his teeth, but as Romanoff stepped towards him, he offered no resistance. Once they were gone, Miss Potts walked over to Stark with question in her eyes. He sighed and shrugged, sitting down. She put her hand on his shoulder, and he responded by wrapping his arms around her waist. The silence was heavy in the room, and Steve didn't even know where to begin. His team was falling apart. He couldn't deny that. He rubbed his eyes. What could Odin have possibly been thinking, sending Loki back to earth?
"What's with the book?" Banner asked Thor.
Steve looked up to watch Thor's reaction. The demigod was still staring at the garbage bin, and he hardly moved when Banner repeated the question.
"It..." Thor started, and then stopped. He didn't look at his teammates. "I gave him that book when we were children. Our mother taught him to read with it."
Steve glanced quickly at Barton. The assassin was holding his head in his hands, and didn't so much as stir.
"Leave it," Thor said suddenly, and Steve looked back to see that Banner had stepped towards the garbage bin. Thor spun towards the door and as much as Steve would have liked to have let him just walk out, this wasn't a matter that could be ignored.
"Thor, we need to talk about what just happened."
"I understand, captain. Now you please understand that I must cool my head so that I can talk."
Steve didn't argue. He looked at the remaining members of the team, and with a slightly apologetic look Stark took Miss Potts's hand and they, too left. Moments later Romanoff returned and without a word Barton stood and joined her. They didn't stay, leaving just Steve and Banner. Outside, the previously sunny day was darkening with black clouds and thunder began drumming ominously.
"Well, this is a mess," Steve sighed.
Banner nodded, and then walked over to the garbage bin and pulled out the leather-bound book. He wiped it off with a paper towel and then walked back over to the table and sat down.
"You sure you're okay?" Steve asked him.
"I'm fine. It was a bit touch-and-go there for a minute but I think the other guy is starting to realise that accidents happen." Banner sighed, and set the book down on the table. "All that over this."
"I don't get it. Was he just looking for an excuse to attack us?"
"Steve, do you really think that he needs an excuse?" Banner asked intently. "He was angry that Barton took it. Really angry."
"Yeah, but he threw it out."
Banner opened the book and flipped through the pages. "Because it became a weakness that we could exploit."
Steve frowned. "It doesn't matter. Odin's spell isn't enough to keep him from using magic, and Thor couldn't keep him in line. What are we going to do about him, Banner? We can't keep letting him roam free, he's causing too much trouble."
Banner smiled wryly. The wrinkles at the corners of his eyes deepened. "That's what a lot of people say about me."
"That's not the same," Steve countered.
"When it comes down to what he can do, and what I can do, who is the more dangerous?"
"He is," Steve said firmly. "Because you never wanted to hurt people. He does. He killed people just because he could. You're not like that."
Banner inclined his head slightly. "If we lock him up, he's just going to get angrier, and more dangerous. Trust me, I know. As crazy as it is, a part of me still thinks that locking him away in any manner will be a grave mistake. But," he sighed, "you're right. He is causing too much trouble and if today is any indication he could escape at any time. Once he's calmed down he will realise that, too."
Steve nodded. "So what are we going to do?"
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