25: A Living Thing
The first thing that Tony was aware of when he woke was how odd it was to wake up alone. He stretched out in the bed and thought of Loki– since when had Loki become the first thing he thought about every morning? Screw Loki – dammit, that started an entirely different train of thought...
In Tony's imagination, Loki had spent the night forlornly pining for him, but if that was the case, then Loki didn't show it. All day, he behaved with his usual confidence, though, if anything, he was too confident – like he was overcompensating.
The two black ravens who followed Thor and Loki, which had, for the most part, kept their distance and silently observed, were on this day making a nuisance of themselves. They both perched in front of Thor and cawed frantically, stretching their wings out. Thor watched all of this with grim concentration, looking as if he could understand them – and hell, perhaps he could.
Loki, having also seen this, stood at Iron Man's side as they asked Thor what the meaning was of the birds' actions. Thor turned to Loki, and told him, "We are needed in Asgard."
Loki stared at him. "The Chitauri are coming here tomorrow, and if we are not here to defend Stark–"
Thor looked at Tony thoughtfully. "We could take him with us."
"No," Loki retorted, suddenly sounding quite worked up. "It is not just him. What action do you think the Chitauri will take when they arrive on Midgard to find all of us gone from here? They will take their revenge on the planet's civilians."
Thor frowned and looked upset. "You are right. And yet my father tells me that Asgard needs me. I must make a hard decision."
Loki scoffed. "There is only one rational choice," he said simply. "Asgard has other warriors. Midgard has none but us three who can defend it from the Chitauri."
"Uh, excuse me," Tony interjected, raising the mask of the Iron Man suit. "We have the Avengers."
Loki looked at him disparagingly. "Your last victory came more by luck than judgement, and you know it. Much was lost in the battle, there was much collateral damage. If we stay, it need not be that way again."
"In the same way," answered Thor, "without me – what of the collateral damage to Asgard – to our home?"
"Your home," Loki spat.
"There is a third option," Tony said, "you two go back to Asgard, I'll stay here and fend off the Chitauri, with the Avengers, with SHIELD."
"No," Loki said quickly, and Tony could see that he was scrambling to come up with a justification. "If anyone should learn that the Chitauri came here because of us, and at that moment, we abandoned this realm..."
"I'd say they just came for me," Tony shrugged.
Loki met his eyes and looked at him almost pleadingly – and Tony realised just how much Loki wanted to remain with him; too much.
Thor looked between them and put his hand on his brother's shoulder. Thor turned to Tony, "Could you allow us a moment to speak, privately?"
Tony lowered the mask and left them, though he wished he could know what they were saying to each other he distracted himself with the work that they were supposed to be doing.
A few moments later he was told that they had decided to stay: but only for tomorrow. Tony was relieved to have the mask to hide his emotions as he felt an ache in his chest at the sudden, lurching realisation that Loki would be leaving, and not only that, he would be leaving tomorrow. That was too sudden, too unfair – there was so much more Tony wanted to do with him, so much more time Tony wanted to spend with him.
"I could go with you, after tomorrow. I could help." Tony offered, trying to keep himself calm.
Thor looked at him as if this was a thoroughly absurd suggestion. One of the ravens landed on Thor's shoulder and cawed frantically again. Thor answered, "The All-father does not approve of such a thing." Not knowing much about Odin, Tony wondered what exactly the king didn't approve of – Tony going to Asgard in general, or of him as some kind of a companion for Loki. Tony suddenly imagined himself going to Asgard and finding himself in some sort of bizarre sci-fi/fantasy version of Meet the Parents.
Thor then glanced at Loki, whose eyes were fixed on Tony all the while. Thor continued, "It is for the All-father to decide what will happen to Loki. But, he will either be returned to his punishment, unless we should need his help."
Loki raised his eyebrows. "Locked away until you might have use of me..." He glowered at his brother. "Perhaps I would only render my help if Tony–"
"You are in no position to be making bargains, Loki," Thor answered, shortly, conclusively.
Later, Loki didn't ask what Tony would do if Thor found out about what Tony was doing; he surely didn't care. Tony went to get him, and Loki followed him upstairs, knowing that this may well be their last night together, after all. They had silently agreed to a truce, a ceasefire in their competitive and oppositional dynamic, and Tony deliberately tried not to give any thought to all that he had been doing to defend himself against Loki. He had no desire to defend himself now. He wanted to surrender himself to Loki completely, and didn't even care about what that meant or what the consequences might be.
There was an odd atmosphere between them, a certain acute awareness of the pressure to make their time count more than usual somehow.
By way of punishment, yesterday, Thor had not allowed Loki the food that he had been scheduled to have, so Tony gave him some food and, again, didn't care a damn about what anyone else might think of that. They sat at the table and talked a while about Asgard, and Loki advanced some theories as to what may be going on there – but this was all speculation. Loki would have to take Thor back so that they could speak to Odin in person.
At one point, Loki started talking a lot about Odin, so Tony took his hand and led him to bed.
Loki was still rather downcast and serious. He said earnestly, "Whatever happens tomorrow, I want you to know..."
Tony stroked his hair. "We'll be fine tomorrow."
Loki nodded. He kissed Tony, and said, suddenly, "I love you." He said it so simply, so honestly – as far as Tony could tell.
Tony swallowed hard. Loki took his silence for not feeling the same way, but honestly, Tony had no idea whether he felt the same way– Oh, the hell with it. "I love you too." Tony said it without being sure of his own intentions; he tried to convince himself that he was saying it because he wanted to keep seeing Loki, he wanted Loki to trust him... but maybe Tony meant it. He didn't know anymore.
Loki smiled widely and Tony could see in his eyes just how much it meant to him. Loki needed to be loved. He looked like he might cry or something. Loki wrapped his arms around Tony tightly and kissed him enthusiastically, gratefully.
They undressed as quickly as they could, and then met each other for another, deeper kiss. Loki pushed his tongue into Tony's mouth and Tony met it with his own, pushing forward as much as he could to taste Loki. They lay on their sides, facing each other, as close together as possible, Loki hooking one leg over Tony. Tony let his hand sweep down Loki's side and around the curve of his ass to his thigh, just as he took Loki's lower lip into his mouth. Loki pressed himself against Tony even more firmly and sighed blissfully, his growing erection throbbing against Tony's. As Loki rolled Tony onto his back and got on top of him, it was deeply satisfying to feel the two of them pressed flush against each other, muscular bodies writhing together, hands clutching desperately at each other, physically learning, memorising everything about each other.
Loki's kissed his way down Tony's neck, occasionally taking the skin between his teeth, marking it down to Tony's shoulder. He kept going, down Tony's arm, drawing his face over the skin, kissing lightly along Tony's forearm to his wrist. He planted feather-light kisses there, delicately trailing his fingers over it. Tony could feel the goosebumps all over his body in response, and he took in a deep, shaking breath.
Tony brought his hand to Loki's hair and pulled him back for a kiss, raking his nails up Loki's back and feeling the exquisite way that Loki would tense and then relax against him, relishing Loki's involuntary little moans and gasps of ecstasy. Tony pushed him by the shoulder, and there was a playful moment of back-and-forth before Loki was convinced to lie back on the bed.
Tony kissed down Loki's chest, taking his time over one of Loki's nipples, swiping his tongue across it heavily before giving it lighter, more fleeting touches. He kept going down, over Loki's firm stomach, down to his hip bones. Loki drew his legs apart, wrapping them around Tony's shoulders as Tony took Loki's cock into his mouth. Tony loved to do this for Loki more than he had ever imagined he would; feeling Loki sliding between his lips, filling his mouth; Tony enjoyed it in the same basic way that he enjoyed kissing, but this brought Loki so much more pleasure. It brought Tony pleasure too, and he moaned around Loki, let him feel the vibration, let him know that Tony was his and was more than happy to please him this way.
Loki guided Tony's fingers to his entrance, and Tony soon added that pleasure. He didn't just have it in mind to prepare Loki; he wanted Loki to really enjoy this as well. Tony massaged that most sensitive place inside, feeling Loki relax around him, opening up to him with the desire for more.
Tony's mouth left him and he made his way back up Loki's body, looking down at him as he had so many times, Loki eagerly applying lube to him, wordlessly urging Tony to enter him. When Tony took him, he did it slowly and deeply, letting Loki accommodate him comfortably. He pulled out after a moment to sit on the bed, and Loki did as Tony wanted without questioning it, straddling Tony's lap, facing him. He lowered himself down and Tony pulled him close, moaning against Loki's shoulder as he felt the tight heat of Loki's ass consume his cock again, taking it deep inside.
It was an incredibly intimate position, like this; they could wrap their arms tightly around each other, kiss, see each other. Tony held Loki by the waist as the god bucked his hips on top of Tony, breathless, trembling, barely able to keep his eyes open as the pleasure washed over him. Tony realised that Loki was close and wrapped his fingers around his cock, stroking him. "Come, Loki."
Loki whimpered a little, and it took him some time to get enough breath to make any kind of answer. "Same time..." he murmured.
Tony fell onto his back and pulled Loki with him, able to meet Loki's movements with his own, starting to get close himself. Loki's fingertips dug against Tony's flesh and he bit his lip as Tony took increasing control. Tony increased the speed of his hand around Loki's cock and could pinpoint the moment that Loki finally surrendered, a loud moan escaping him. "Tony!" he cried out as he let his head fall against the pillow, and Tony could feel Loki's body spasm as he got his release.
Loki clutched at Tony's shoulder and his side as Tony continued to ride him through the orgasm, forcefully rolling him onto his back. There was nothing quite like being on top of Loki, seeing him lying there with his eyes closed, his mouth hanging open, so helplessly taken over by the ecstasy that Tony could give him. Thrusting himself deep into Loki, Tony soon reached his own climax – a powerful surge of pleasure which shot through him, leading him to collapse on top of Loki, panting.
All there was then, as Tony rested his head on Loki's chest was the sound of Loki's breathing, Loki's fingers in his hair and gripping him firmly by the shoulder. Tony could tell from the way that Loki was continuing to touch him that he wanted it again – as soon as possible. Loki didn't want to stop at all, and neither did Tony. Tony kissed him and took Loki's hand in his, interlinking their fingers and holding him back against the mattress for a moment, so they could at least get their breath back a little.
Tony pulled Loki's hand to his lips, kissing the back of it, his palm, running his lips along Loki's fingers and taking them into his mouth. Loki lay in silence underneath him, watching, his chest rising and falling quickly. Tony moved to put one leg each side of Loki, and then pulled Loki's hand down between his legs, bringing Loki's fingers to his hole, and Tony pressed himself down on them. Before he met Loki he had never imagined that he would want this so badly, but now it was possible that he might not see Loki again, at least not for a while, after tomorrow, he had to have him one last time.
Loki watched him as he carefully, slowly, massaged the tight entrance. As Loki's finger slid inside, Tony gave himself over to the feeling, kissing Loki deeply, tugging at his hair. "More," Tony murmured in Loki's ear, taking it between his teeth and pulling at it. Loki complied and worked a second finger inside, causing Tony to moan in his ear and ardently flick his tongue over it. Loki brought his mouth to Tony's neck as he steadily prepared him, licking up over his throat and then kissing him, sucking zealously at his skin. He would be leaving marks behind but Tony didn't care about that – all he cared about was Loki.
Taking Loki's erection into his hand Tony was conscious of how big he was, how incredible it really was that he could take Loki inside him and be comfortable, get real gratification from it; the kind of gratification he needed right now.
Loki pushed Tony onto his back and grabbed hold of a pillow, getting Tony to prop his hips up on it to create a better angle – not that there had ever been anything wrong with the angle before. Loki pressed the head of his cock against Tony's hole, meeting his eyes and easing forward as slowly as possible, so Tony could feel himself stretching around it, until the tip was just inside. Loki behaved as if he had all the time in the world, pulling back and entering Tony in progressively deeper thrusts. Tony winced slightly when Loki was close to getting fully inside, so Loki patiently allowed him time to adjust to it before, finally, burying himself to the hilt and resting his hips there against Tony's ass, a deep, satisfied moan rising from his throat. He leaned down on top of Tony and kissed him, stroking his hair. "No magic, this time," Loki murmured. "Just you, and me." Oh. Tony swallowed hard and let out a sound of surprise; he hadn't really been thinking about the details, but he realised that Loki was right.
Loki's thrusts were gentle but firm as Tony started to really enjoy it, feeling the pressure of Loki's cock against his prostate every time, until Loki would change the angle slightly, so that it wasn't too much, before going back to it.
Loki leaned down and nuzzled against Tony's neck, increasing his speed. "Tony," he breathed, "I need you."
"You have me, Loki," Tony replied, breathlessly. "You have me..."
Tony wrapped his arms around Loki and gave himself over to this, letting Loki make passionate, desperate love to him. This may well be Loki's last night on Earth, and Tony wanted to make it one to remember just as much as he did. He raised his hips to meet Loki, tangling his fingers in his hair, pulling Loki in for a kiss.
They snatched breaths between kisses as moans frantically escaped them, until they could no longer breathe like that and Loki raised himself up on his arms. Tony opened his eyes and met Loki's, temporarily transfixed by his gaze as Loki buried himself inside him. Loki was beautiful, passionate, and unfathomably well attuned to his own sexuality, as well as Tony's, and before Tony could stop himself, he breathed, "I love you."
Loki blinked and his rhythm faltered, evidently surprised, before, "And I love you." Loki leaned back down to kiss him, holding himself up only a few centimetres above Tony now, gaze fixed on him intently all the while. Tony's eyes fell closed as the intensity of it all overwhelmed him. His hand at the back of Loki's head, he pulled Loki down so they were cheek to cheek, and all they could hear were each other's sounds of rapturous pleasure as they got close.
Tony could feel his orgasm building slowly for a long time before it happened, his entire body becoming unbearably hot as Loki kept pounding into him, becoming a little erratic in his own movements. Tony grasped at Loki's back and felt himself struggle to breathe as the pleasure built up inside him. It was only then that Tony brought one hand to his leaking cock, and he knew it would only take a few strokes to finish. Tony arched his back and felt the tension break tremulously throughout his body as he came, Loki spending himself inside Tony with a few final, hard, fast, deep thrusts. "Tony..." Loki moaned into his ear, and Tony wanted to say something, anything, but he physically couldn't, at least not until he had taken in a few sharp breaths. Then he managed to murmur Loki's name while stroking his hair, feeling Loki withdraw from him with a sigh and lie next to him, arms still around him, as much as possible.
They were both so exhausted that it took real effort to position themselves comfortably in each other's arms, facing each other. Loki pulled the covers up over them and lay there, gazing at Tony with a kind of tenderness and love that Tony had never expected to see from him. Tony found that he believed it, he absolutely believed it, regardless of Loki's status as a proven liar. There are some things that can't be faked, and the look in Loki's eyes was surely one of them.