Hey guys! New chapter! Although bad news, now there wont be a new one for at least two weeks because im going away and i wont have computer access :( sorry about that. hope you enjoy this though :D I own nothing

Tony woke to the persistent pounding in his head, feeling like he hadn't slept in about thirty years, groggy but alive. He pulled his robe on over his boxers and headed out the door, following the sounds of voices to the kitchen. It was late, he knew, but it seemed almost everyone was still up. The only ones missing were Thor and Loki, it seemed.

"Hey guys, what's going on?" He strode through the room, pulling up a chair at the centre island, pouring himself a large mug of coffee. He inhaled the revitalising scent, cupping his hands round the beverage for warmth. It took him about two minutes to realize that everyone had fallen silent to stare at him, all displaying different emotions. Natasha looked livid, as did Steve. Bruce looked like he was barely reigning it in, the battle between his two sides raging in his mind. Clint looked disappointed.

"Okay, what did I do?"

"You don't remember?" Natasha's tone was harsh, her eyes narrowed into tiny slits as she leant forward in her, looking unnervingly like a lioness stalking her prey.

Tony was confused. The last thing he actually remembered was walking through the rooftop door, exhaustion getting the better of him, enveloping his mind in a cloud of forgetfulness. He'd been so tired...had he done something really awful?

"I don't remember a thing, why? Did I hit somebody? Hit on somebody?" He looked around at the pursed lips of his team-mates, all looking none too keen to tell him of his transgressions. He rolled his eyes at them all, trying to hid the panic settling in his mind. "JARVIS, give me playback of whatever happened earlier, now."

Yes Sir, his faithful AI chimed, a large screen flickering into existence before their very eyes. Tony watched in horror at his outburst, clenching his coffee cup so hard his knuckles went white when he saw the way Loki was holding himself, so unsure of his place. He watched through to when Loki had been carried back to his room by his brother, having had to be pried from Natasha as he gripped her slender hands tight in his sleep. He ordered JARVIS to turn the screen off, his face pale and eyes wide.

Shit.

He had to swallow down a little vomit from the back of his throat as his own vicious words echoed in his head. Where had this spite come from? He searched his mind, finding not even a hint of regret over helping Loki or letting him stay with them, so why on earth would he say that?

He had to apologize.

Now.

"Where is he?" Tony pushed out of his seat, startling as Natasha grabbed his shoulder, her grip crushing against his bone. She scowled, searching his eyes with her own.

"If you hurt him again, I will kill you in the most imaginative way possible. You've gone far enough. Some of what you said I wouldn't say to anyone. How dare you!"

By this point she was screaming, her hands balled into fists in his shirt, pulling him closer to her face. If he was being really honest, Tony was already a little scared of Natasha, but now he feared for his life.

"I know! I know. I don't know why I said it and I'm absolutely disgusted with myself and I kinda want to bathe in vodka right now to forget I ever said that, but I can't. That's what got me into this, that's not what's going to get me out of it. I'll make things right, I swear." He felt tears welling in the corners of his eyes and looked down halfway through his words, in shame. Natasha scowled at him, pushing him back into his chair, releasing him from her hold.

"You had better."

"Brother, Stark did not mean his words, you must know this." Thor sighed in anxiety as his brother lay curled up in a foetal position as he wept on his pillow, trying to hide his silent tears from his adoptive brother. Loki hadn't said a word since Natasha had soothed him to sleep, and his anxious ticks were more evident than ever. He had managed to unravel the embroidery on one of his tunics where his nimble fingers had been picking at the stitching, his fingers bled where he had been biting at the skin around the nails, and his arms were coated in the crescent moon shapes of his nails from where he had been digging them in, rubbed red as he tried to get the marks to fade faster.

Loki merely sniffled, turning his face further into his pillow as Thor rubbed his back soothingly. He was so tired of being a burden to everyone, and of feeling betrayed. He had come to trust the avengers, particularly Stark, Banner and Rogers, and now one of his three favourite people in the world had admitted that he thought him a burden, an irritant, an enemy still. #

It hurt, badly.

There came a knock at the door and Loki cringed internally. He did not want anyone to see him in such a state. They would only see him as more of a burden, more irritating than they did already, less worthy of their time.

They wouldn't want to be his friends any more. None of them.

Nevertheless, Loki stilled himself, giving no reaction as Thor rose to answer the persistent knocking that rang through the room.

The door swung open and Tony flinched a little as Thor's face darkened and Thunder rolled beyond the windows. The thunder God stepped into the hall, closing the door behind him without acknowledging who was at the door. Tony sighed, realizing Thor was probably trying not to freak Loki out by announcing it was him.

"I am most displeased with you right now, friend Stark. I am unsure as to whether I should be addressing you as friend at all."

Tony ran a hand through his hair. These Gods were giving him grey hairs.

"I know, buddy, I'm pretty disgusted by myself right now. But I'm willing to do anything to make it right, anything. I didn't mean it, I swear. Please, Thor, help me make it right. Please."

Thor stared deeply at him for a few moments, searching his face for insincerity. Tony tried to let his sincerity show in his face; he figured Thor would be pretty practised at this, living with the God of Lies for so long.

He almost sagged with relief when Thor sighed, nodding disappointedly, and pushed the door open quietly. Tony stepped in apprehensively.

Could he ever make this right?

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