Chapter Eleven

~Time skip~

The repulsor beam went through the water and onto the pipe in front of him, opening up a panel in order to fit a new tech piece in its place. 'The final piece of the puzzle.' Tony thought as he took a moment to make sure everything was in order. He then shot up to the surface and started to make his way to his new home.

It had been a year and a half since the last time he'd seen Loki, and he would be lying if he said he missed him. Not that Tony would admit that out loud or anything though. It had been hard, but he had just finally managed to get over the god, slipping back to his playboy ways as he finished the construction of his new tower. This tower was to house an arc reactor that powered the whole city with clean, efficient energy. He was proud of his creation, and it was time for the unveiling.

"Good to go on this end, the rest is up to you." He said to Pepper, who was connected through a phone call to him as he flew back to the tower.

"You disconnected the transmission lines? Are we off the grid?" She asked back. Tony smirked.

"Stark tower is about to become a beacon of self sustaining energy." He said, pulling up a diagram of the building on the HUD screen along with a video link of Pepper.

"Well, assuming the arc reactor takes over and actually works." Pepper replied, cocking her head then laughing as Tony scoffed.

"I assume." He said as he turned the last corner, looking straight ahead at the very building they were talking about. "Light 'er up!"

The lights of the lower levels flickered on first, they rose higher until they were on throughout the structure. The last past of the lighting flickered to life, as the neon Stark logo shone through the darkness city, as if appearing to guide Tony to the landing pad.

"How does it look?" Pepper asked, smiling as she watched the look of awe dawn on Tony's face. When he realised she was watching him, he blushed slightly and tried to play it cool.

"Like Christmas. But with more me." He said smugly, causing Pepper to roll her eyes.

"We've gotta go wider on the public awareness campaign, you need to do some press." Pepper answered as Tony flew virtually up the side of the building, still smiling at this creation. "I'm in DC tomorrow, I'm working on the zoning for the next three buildings-"

"Pepper, you're killing me. Just enjoy the moment." Tony said, cutting her off as he levelled his flight and landed in the pad.

"Sir, Agent Coulson of S.H.I.E.L.D is on the line." Jarvis said as he began to walk inside.

"I'm not in." Tony said quickly, not particularly wanting anything to do with SHIELD at the moment. He smirked as the machines came up to disassemble his suit. "I'm actually out."

"Sir, I'm afraid he's insisting." Jarvis said more firmer as the last parts of the suit were taken off, leaving him in just a black and grey under-suit.

"Grow a spine Jarvis. I've got some celebrating to do." Tony answered finally before going inside.

He walked into the penthouse to find Pepper looking over a holographic protection of the tower once more. He slipped an arm around her waist as he picked up the waiting glass of champagne.

"Levels are holding steady. Of course, because I was directly involved. Which bring me to my next question, how does it feel to be a genius?" He asked with a smug grin.

"Sir, Agent Coulson is on the phone again."

"Tell him I'm busy."

"Stark, we need to talk." The voice of Coulson interrupted him, sounding out for his phone, which had somehow accepted the call. Tony rolled his eyes and stepped away from Pepper as he lifted his phone up.

"You have reached the life model decoy of Tony Stark, please leave a message." He replied sarcastically with a smirk.

"Stark, I know you're there." A few moments later the elevator doors opened.

"Phil!"

"Phil?" Tony pulled a face then followed Pepper as she walked over to the man who was entering the room. "This is a private party, consulting hours are between eight and five every second Thursday."

"Tony! Don't be rude." Pepper hit his arm lightly, though Tony over-reacted as though it hurt him.

"Security breech." Tony stated, raising an eyebrow at Coulson, who was sipping a glass of champagne that Pepper must've handed to him. "What do you want?" he then asked, though it wasn't in a rude way.

Coulson handed him what looked like an acrylic block.

"No, I don't like to be handed things."

Pepper sighed, swapping her champagne for the screen and swapping that for Tony's empty glass.

It was then Tony's turn to sigh as he took it from her and walked away from the two as he scanned through the files. He raised his eyebrow within the first few seconds then turned back.

"I though I didn't qualify for the Avengers? And that the idea was scrapped?"

Tony swiped his finger across the screen and the files spread themselves over his own projected screens. He flicked through videos of the hulk, articles about captain America, and reports of an Asgardian alien with God-like powers flattening a small town in New Mexico. It was in one of these articles that a name caught his eye. Loki. It was dated between his last two visits from Loki over a year and a half ago. Tony swallowed.

"This isn't about personality profiles anymore." Coulson answered as Tony scanned through the articles. "And it was, but as you can see, we've had a problem."

After a few minutes, both Coulson and Pepper both noted Tony's unusual amount of silence, and the fact that he hadn't moved off a single article. What that article was though, they couldn't see from where they stood.

"Stark?"

"Hm?" Tony said, turning the device off quickly and spinning around to face the two who were giving him an odd look.

"Are you okay?" Pepper asked, wondering why he had been quiet and staring at one article in particular. Tony looked at her oddly for a moment before he smirked and nodded once.

"Of course." He lied, though he didn't show it. Seeing Loki in these files made him feel both excited and uneasy. He knew he'd be doing a lot of research later that night for this. "So any of these other misfits agreed to join your super secret boy and or is it just me?" He asked in an attempt to lighten the mood. Pepper rolled her eyes at the phrasing, and Tony guessed that if Coulson was less serious, he might've.

"We have a team, as you can see." He said simply, nodding at the screen which Tony had now placed on a table to look at later.

"Doesn't mean they're all willing..." Tony mumbled, too quiet for Coulson to hear, then sighed and walked back over. "So is this my homework then? To study up?"

"You're accepting?" Coulson seemed surprised that he agreed so easily. After all, this was 'doesn't play well with others' Tony Stark

"Well, uh." Tony thought quickly, looking away from them and blushing ever so slightly. "I guess we'll see. Do I even have a choice in this though?"

"Not really, no. Fury wants you on the helicarrier tonight for a debriefing and to meet the team."

"Yeah... No, think I'll pass." Tony pulled a face. "I'll do the reading, see if I'm interested. I'm a busy man y'know." He shrugged then glanced over at the screen he'd put down again, thinking about Loki. Because this matter had something to do with the mysterious god, of course Tony was interested in it, but he didn't want to raise suspicions about his involvement by acting too willing.

"So, I'll go off and read then." He pointed to the screen, walking over to pick it up before making to leave the room, leaving a slightly confused Pepper and Coulson behind.

"I'll make sure he agrees. As long as you promise to give him back to me in one piece."

Coulson smiled, and then finished the glass in his hand before handing it back to Pepper. "I doubt I could do much in that respect, but we both knew that already." He said, before giving her a little bow and turning to leave.

"Bye Phil." She smiled at him as the elevator doors closed before turning to follow Tony into the bedroom. "What did you see?"

When she shut the door, she turned around to see Tony sitting half on the bed with his knee bent up, rubbing his chin and keeping his focus on one page. He jumped when he noticed her arrive, then glanced away and figured it was pointless to hide anything from her.

"It's him." He said, holding up the picture so that Pepper could see. Since that so called last night of theirs a year and a half ago, Tony had refused to talk about it with anyone, and it had actually become quite a problem when he realised Loki was right and they wouldn't see each other again. He had been recovering well this past year though, and if he or Pepper needed to mention Loki in any way, they would just said 'he' meaningfully, so even before he showed her the picture, she knew who he meant.

Pepper moved to sit on the bed beside Tony, sliding her hand into his spare one. This explained how mysterious the guy was, and it also scared Pepper that someone who had once been intimate with Tony had so much evil power. Judging by the way he treated most of his lovers, Pepper worried for Tony's health. As much as she was worried about Tony, she couldn't help but wonder how Loki's reappearance may jeopardise her chance with him.

"I don't..." Tony paused, his eyes darting again to that picture of him before he glanced away again, almost sadly. "I don't know what I should do."

Pepper looked at his conflicted face. Tony was the genius, yet it was her wisdom he was asking for. She'd have felt touched if not for the situation. "You should do the right thing."

Tony sighed audibly and fell back onto the bed with his hands behind his head. "If I knew what that was, then I'd of done it a year and a half ago... Fuck." He raised one hand to his face and rubbed it tiredly. "I want to go, to see him again but... But I don't know if I'll be able to fight him, or watch as one of these others guys does... I mean, he's a god, so it's not like it'll hurt him, but still, I don't know why but I'm not sure if I can watch that or not..." He trailed off and stared up at the ceiling.

A few moments of silence passed between them as neither knew what to say, until Tony broke it with a casual observation. "His hair's grown longer."

Pepper rolled her eyes, of course that's what Tony would pick up on. "Aren't you curious? I know I am." She lay down next to him on her side to look at him properly. "Don't you want to meet his brother?"

"Hmm..." He sat up and took the screen from her, flicking through the files until he came across Thor's. "I dunno about him- from what he's told me about the guy, he seems like an arrogant princely jerk."

"With giant muscles and a ruggedly handsome face." Pepper laughed at Tony's shocked expression before her tone became serious again. "Tony. You need to decide where your priorities lie. With this guy you met a couple of times more than a year ago, or with this planet." with me, she implied in the look she gave Tony.

Although Tony couldn't meet her gaze, as if he felt his would betray her. "I don't know Pep, I just don't fucking-" he paused and frowned as if struck by a sudden thought, then grabbed the screen back quickly and flicked through it until he found Loki's article again.

Pepper let her eyes shut, silently worrying about Tony, but knowing nothing she could say would stop him, whatever his decision. He didn't even notice it upset her to talk about Loki like he was in love and as if she didn't exist.

"His eyes..." He said suddenly, breaking her trail of thought and pulling her attention back to the screen with a frown as Tony enlarged the picture and peered closed.

"What about them?" She said with a moment's hesitation, and eye roll and a sigh. Tony was too engrossed in his thoughts to see this though, and at the moment, his expression looked more concerned than confused.

"They weren't- they were green before when we- but why are they now... Blue?" He said, voicing his thoughts aloud.

"It's probably the lighting. See, his skin looks pale and almost blue as well."

"No, his skin's like that anyway, as he's part... Something or other. I forget. It looks too real to be the lighting... Wait." He flicked back a page to 'Clint Barton's' article and zoomed in on his picture. "The same eyes... And he was one of the hostage-turned ally's."

"Maybe they share a brain connection by sharing eye colour? Look Tony, I'm not a scientist. What I do know is that whatever happened between the two of you, you're iron man. You have a duty to this planet, and this guy... This guy's killing people Tony."

"Exactly." He said, his eyes not leaving the screen as Pepper gave him an odd look. He turned his head to look at her and nodded. "That's why I have to stop him." He said surely, as if his mind was made up already. 'And save him...' he added in his head.

Pepper sighed and rest her head on Tony's shoulder looking up at the ceiling. "Then that's what you'll do."

Tony looked down and smiled at her, then wrapped his arm half around her and gave her a hug. He then told Jarvis to start tracing Loki's energy signature to find out where he was, and was quite surprised by the result of the search.

-page break-

Loki wore a sharp black suit, crisp white shirt, and a green paisley tie with his hair slicked back. His eyes darted around the jet, checking that nothing was out of place. He had put a charm on his new sceptre (courtesy of Thanos's pet), transfiguring it to look no more than an ornate gold cane that would not look out of place at the function. The tech he had been provided for the retinal scab was tucked securely in his pocket and he was almost ready. They just needed to reach their location. As his eyes surveyed the room, he noticed a look of concern in Barton's eyes.

"What's up, Boss?"

"Excuse me?"

"You look kinda tense." He said, leaning forward a little.

"Have you found out where the Iridium will be held?"

"Yeah sir, as the iridium is found in meteorites and forms anti-protons, it is very hard to get hold of, which is why we're headed to the Stuttgart museum in Germany, as there is a professor there who is working with the stuff." Clint answered back promptly, sending Loki a little nod as he spoke.

Loki nodded, and then he leant back against the metal walls and looked up at the ceiling with a sigh through his nostrils. Stuttgart. That was where he and Tony Stark had shared their second night together, and it had been glorious. He smirked as the memories of that evening came into his mind, but was then replaced with a sad smile. He would be lying if he said he didn't miss him, which was a surprise given that he was supposed to be the god of lies. He also found this feeling a little unsettling, to know that the mortal held such power over him.

His hand subconsciously rested on his stomach as he sat there idly rubbing it without noticing. A wave of nausea passed over him, and he leant forward slighting with his eyes shut in concentration, willing for the sickness to go away.

"Sir?" Clint asked, snapping Loki from his thoughts. "Are you sure you're alright?"

"I will be fine." Loki could feel that the struggle to keep the vomit down had caused a thin layer of sweat on his forehead. "No need for your concern." He looked back down and began to create a quick charm to cool him off and to ease the sickness for just a couple of hours. Loki heard Barton ask the pilot for the ETA, which he found out, was just a couple of minutes. Loki composed himself.

This was going to be fun.