I promise, I have NOT abandoned this story. T^T
Twelfth Installment: Progress
Within three days, Tony decided Loki was absolutely the most intelligent and amazing person ever to have existed in any time, in any place, in any universe. Somehow, without anything more than the most basic knowledge of the process, he provided Jarvis with a translation key for both the language of the people of Vign and the Ljósálfar. The practical applications, of course, were immediate.
Suddenly he could understand the people around him, which made communicating his needs immensely easier and faster. But even better, he could translate the panels of the downed ship in its underground cavern, which meant he could finally begin engineering a new power source - and its corresponding interfacing tech.
He threw himself into his project with great energy and gusto, using the same principles he'd used for his Arc reactor. The technicians who'd been assigned to aid him were surprised by his efficiency and ingenuity, something they told him often. It was a habit Tony didn't discourage. It felt good to be surrounded by his kind of people, especially since once he got started he didn't see much of his lover.
Loki spent all of his time elsewhere, and at first Skaði stayed with him. She started coming around more often, though, and her incredible strength came in handy when she offered to help. Everyone gave her wide berth, perhaps aware of the terrible fate she'd dealt the four enforcers out in the wilderness. Tony couldn't blame them, really. For her part, Skaði seemed amused by their fear.
The little devil.
Four days into his project, he returned to the lavish hotel where he and his love were staying. The suite had two small rooms off one enormous and lushly furnished sitting room. The bathroom had a tub set right into the floor equipped with jets and bubbles, something Tony fully intended to enjoy tonight.
To his delight, when he entered Loki was already there. Quite a pile of books and papers and notebooks spread across the table in the sitting room, and the beautiful god was diligently writing something. Not at all curious, Tony walked across the floor and plucked the pen from his slim fingers. He drew the surprisingly unresisting Aesir up into his embrace.
"Come take a bath with me," he demanded.
A breath of a sound that might have been a chuckle. "You reek of musty earth," Loki said in a mildly chastising tone.
"Exactly," Tony agreed, walking them backward toward the bathroom. It was one of his favorite things about this suite. "I'm dusty and you're sexiest naked." Naked Loki wasn't a sight he got to see nearly often enough.
Loki snorted. "You have such a one-track mind."
"Most times," Tony agreed.
In short order he had his love naked and in a steaming, lazily bubbling bath. Loki, seeming to be in a very mellow mood, didn't protest being curled against Tony's side. Deciding to take advantage while the moment lasted, Tony gently fused their mouths together. Loki at once tipped his head back and opened his mouth.
For long moments, Tony just kissed him. His tongue slid along Loki's, warm and soft and slick, and he gently nibbled now and then as his hands rubbed over slim, pale shoulders and upper arms. Loki's response was languid at best, neither protesting nor directing, his own hands tracing idly over Tony's chest.
Presently, Tony pulled back enough to ask, "What were you working on?" He planted his mouth on Loki's neck, instead, traveling over the smooth expanse with lips and tongue and teeth.
Loki tipped his head back to give him better access. "Some of the people here are very curious about the Ljósálfar," he replied. "I'm writing a . . . well, an overview of their history."
"Really?" Tony said, more to keep that sexy voice going than because he cared.
"Yes. Are you actually listening, or are you too busy gnawing on me?"
Chuckling, Tony didn't take his mouth off Loki's skin. "I'm listening."
"I would rather you tell me about your progress," Loki said, pushing against the man.
Tony nodded. "Okay, but I'm not done kissing you yet." And sealed their mouths together.
Did people need reasons for loving to kiss someone so much? Tony couldn't define the scope of the enjoyment he derived from this activity, but he loved kissing Loki. It grew deeper and wetter and sloppier by the second until he felt like he was practically eating the god.
After probably a good forty seconds, Loki seemed to run out of patience. He wrenched free to give Tony a rather venomous glare.
Deciding not to push his luck in favor of more kissing in a few minutes, Tony relented. "I'll need maybe another day to have a new storage device built," he said, "but I don't know how well it'll work since I've never tried to make one to store the magic of Yggdrasil."
Loki blinked, looking faintly surprised. "One more day?" He stroked fingers through Tony's hair, dampened by the steam and humidity building in the bathroom. "So industrious. And what about the ship?"
"If this storage container thing I'm building works," Tony replied, "then I'll just have to build a bigger version for the ship. Easy as pie, babe. Your man's pretty fucking clever."
Loki's expression seemed torn between amusement and a sort of agreeableness. He said nothing, though, as he leaned against Tony's chest, tucking his head against the man's shoulder and lightly kissing his neck. Tony wondered if this sweetness could kill him and tried not to think sexy thoughts. Like how completely naked Loki was right now.
Loki made a low, humming sound. "So insatiable."
"Shit, how did you know? Got a creepy sense of smell?"
Chuckling softly, Loki rose from the bath. The sight of rivulets of water cascading down his skin was almost more than Tony could handle. "Finish your bath, Stark, then come to bed. It's late."
That was an order requiring no second bidding.
When they were curled up in bed together, Tony feeling remarkably peaceful, Loki's cool hands smoothed across Tony's chest.
"Traveling to places when we have no idea what's out there will be difficult," he said softly. "That ship will have advanced sensors to detect dangers, but without star charts we will have to be vigilant."
Tony nodded absently. Travel through space might not be on his list of accomplishments, but he was confident in Jarvis. "Don't worry, babe. Jarvis will chart everything around us as we travel. And we're bound to come across a world with comprehensive charts."
"Mm."
Tony threaded his fingers through Loki's hair, then buried his nose in it and inhaled deeply. How could anyone smell like an advancing storm? That was the image flooding his thoughts. He wanted to stay awake and enjoy this closeness, but soon his exhaustion won.
~*o0o*~
Loki slipped out of bed the next morning before Stark woke, drawing a dark silk robe around his shoulders and belting it closed. He padded to the window, grateful Stark's fixation last night hadn't allowed him to notice Skaði's absence. He could sense her close, and when he pushed the curtain open there she was, wearing a cute little purple dress. The Aether looked up at once, and she waved to him.
Smiling faintly, pleased she'd already returned, Loki let the curtain fall back into place. For a few moments, he toyed with the idea of continuing writing his promised history.
Instead, he lowered himself onto the sill and turned his gaze toward the bed. The sun, having only just risen, cast weak light into the room, dimmed by the curtain. It was enough to illumine the bed's occupant, and Loki felt the usual upwelling of emotion when he looked at Tony Stark in silent moments.
For once, however, his feelings weren't tangled and complicated. They were, in fact, rather clear. Blinking slowly, Loki realized these last four days hadn't been complicated at all. He woke with purpose, completed his tasks for the day, and went to bed. He felt calm. Focused.
In control.
There was only one explanation.
This man.
This infuriating, stubborn, foolish, overly sentimental man.
This man who had abandoned his life, his friends, his family, and his career for the unknown. A man who had shaped his actions and efforts around a lover capable of giving him nothing. Who worked tirelessly for a desire all Loki's own, willing to do so simply to be with the one he (albeit foolishly) loved.
For the first time in his entire life, Loki felt something foreign sliver through his heart. A thought take root deep in his mind. I don't want to live without him. It started a shiver under his skin, stole the air from his lungs, and settled a heavy weight on his chest. A painful, but somehow sweet, ache.
Stark stirred, making Loki's heart do a weird flip.
"Hey," the man grunted, voice sleep-roughened. "Why don't you sit sexily where I can reach you?"
Without a word or protest, Loki rose from his perch and padded back across the room. Once he sat down, Stark's arms went around his waist, and the man buried his face in Loki's belly. Leaning back against the headboard, Loki rested one hand on Stark's shoulder and tangled the fingers of his other in the man's hair.
Probably ten seconds later, Stark's breathing evened back into sleep. Smiling against the burn in his throat, Loki leaned down until he could press his lips to Stark's temple.
"What would I do without you, Anthony?" he breathed.
He couldn't have known, but beneath the ever deepening layers of sleep, Tony heard and smiled.
It's short, but I'm aiming to have the next chapter posted tomorrow.
