(A/N - Hi guys! This is a short one, focusing on Bruce/Hulk situation. I have just been thinking about the whole situation where Hulk refuses to come out. I hope you like it. I loved writing Loki and Bruce in this. Lemme know how y'all find it.)

CHAPTER 25

Loki frowned as he looked at the heroes around him and wondered, not for the first time, if it had been such a great idea to tell the Avengers what the space stone had meant them for. He could see that they were taking it hard, if their downcast looks were anything to go by. It had been almost half an hour since the group had dispersed from the kitchen and now most sat in the main living room, except for the Avengers. The six of them had taken the news of their importance pretty hard. Well, it wasn't every day that one found out that they had the power to kill the tyrant titan, although they were very skeptical of it. Perhaps, it wasn't such a good idea. Then again, Loki had left it to them the last time and look where it got them all.

Tony was walking down the corridors aimlessly. It wasn't the news that had shaken him up but the fact that had the Avengers not broken up, they would have been able to defeat Thanos and none of this would have happened. Logically, he knew that that wouldn't have solved anything, but right now logic wasn't really welcomed. It was then that he heard a growling 'NO' from behind one of the doors that led outside the building. Curious, he peaked a look and saw a panting Bruce Banner glaring at the ground and somehow managing to look like a kicked puppy at the same time.

"You look a little green, buddy." Tony said, pointing to the receding green coloring on his friend's neck. Bruce rubbed at his neck furiously and threw a punch in the air in frustration.

"What's wrong?"

"Hulk." Bruce spat. "He won't listen to me!"

"Still not coming out to play?"

"He refuses to come. It's so… agrh!"

"Woah! Hey, let's take a walk, okay? Come on." Tony pulled the frustrated scientist along, away from the building. He could feel the anger, an almost tangible thing and yet the Hulk, who would have normally made an appearance at the smallest discomfort, stayed completely silent. It was quite puzzling. Tony had always been one for action, always the problem solver, so when they were a considerable distance away and Bruce was looking more and more morose by every passing second, Tony finally asked, "What's his problem?"

"Dunno." Banner kicked a pebble in front of him and stuck his hands in his pockets, looking very much like a brooding teenager. Tony was suddenly reminded of Peter and took a deep breath to ease the pain settling in his chest.

"He was fine on the spaceship when he fought Thanos and he was fine before that when he fought that giant dog/wolf on Asgard."

"Giant dog? You know what, not important." Tony mentally filed it away, intent on asking Brunnhilde the full story. She was one of the rudest people he had ever met but in her, he found a kindred spirit. He could most definitely relate to drinking away one's problems. Concentrating on his upset friend, he prodded, "So, why do you think he won't come out now? If he was fine before, he should be fine now too… unless… unless he doesn't want to go up against Thanos?"

Banner snorted, "Are you seriously suggesting that Hulk is scared?" When he realized that the glorified mechanic was being serious, he shook his head. "Hulk doesn't get scared. He comes out when I get scared. No, it's something else entirely and until he comes out… how can we go up against Thanos if he doesn't?"

"I mean, if what Loki said is correct, even a little bit, then we need Hulk more than ever. It's because of Hulk that Fury even included me in this thing. If we don't have Hulk…"

Bruce shook his head and walked ahead as Tony stopped and stared at nothing in particular. A slow smile spread on his face as Tony looked up and yelled, "That's it!"

"Huh?"

Tony impatiently snapped his fingers and said, "When you lot were telling stories about Sakaar or whatever… Brunn mentioned over and over again how Hulk was this amazing, popular guy."

"So?"

"So?" Tony grinned. "So, Hulk got used to that. I mean it is obvious now. Hulk must have liked that planet because the people were crazy about him. What if he hates Earth for the same reasons?"

"Nobody likes him on Earth." Bruce said with a nod.

Tony shook his head, "Not nobody, Doc. You particularly don't like him. On that planet, you weren't in control, right? He could do as he wished. But here, you are in control. Maybe that is why he doesn't want to show himself."

Bruce frowned and Tony continued, "Remember what I told you about my arc reactor? It was a terrible privilege… but a privilege nonetheless. Bruce, Hulk is like that. Whether you like it or not, he is a part of you, a large part of you. He is the sole reason you are still alive."

"My stupidity is the reason that I required saving in the first place."

Tony shrugged and said, "And my irresponsibility was mine, but it is all in the past now. You can't think about why and how. We don't have the time." Tony looked at the ground and then back up at his friend. "I hated the arc reactor. It was a necessity. I was going to die without it, so I made my peace with it. Turned it into one of my greatest achievements. You can either shun the Hulk or accept him. Either way, you are stuck with him forever. All these years, you have ran from him, you have been scared of him and where did it get you? Still scared, after all these years. Maybe, it is time to accept him. He is a person after all. Don't think he likes being used as a weapon, being brought out only when required. And who better to know the feeling than you?"

Tony smiled and turned around and walked back to the building, leaving Bruce to deal with his internal crisis. He could only tell Bruce. What was done with the information, was entirely on the scientist.

Banner sighed as he watched Tony disappear inside the building. What Tony had said had made some sense and how much ever he wanted to stay away from the other guy, he hadn't made any actual development in that area. But making peace with the guy? How? How do you make peace with the monster inside of you? He was a scientist. He needed facts and proofs. How could he let Hulk loose without knowing if the green monster would not go on a killing rampage?

A small, gruff voice that sounded a lot like a petulant Hulk, reminded him that he had made peace with a proven murderer – Loki. And if he could do that, then what was stopping him from actually accepting the other guy?

Loki! That's it!

To say Loki was surprised when Bruce Banner sought him out, would be an understatement. He had been lounging on one of the outdoor benches in search of some peace and quiet when he had spotted the scientist making his nervous way to Loki. He hadn't said anything, letting the man steer the upcoming conversation in whatever way he wanted it to go.

Banner bit his cheek and wondered whether his impromptu decision of seeking Loki out was sane or not. Sure, on the Statesman, it had been alright to talk to the alien prince. It had been easier there to concentrate only on the recent events and the Revengers (however silly that name sounded), rather than the New York battle. It had been easy to let the image of grumpy but weirdly caring Loki slide in front of the angry and deranged alien who had attacked them all. It was not so easy now. Here, on Earth, where it all had started, he could only see the monster who had attacked them, who had so easily brought out the other guy from under Banner's careful watch.

An elegant eyebrow made its way towards Loki's hairline and Bruce asked before he could lose his conviction, "If I ask something, promise not to kill me?"

"Depends on the question."

"It's somewhat… no, actually it is personal." Bruce managed to say and added, "Might get you angry."

"I'm not the one who turns into a giant green monster when faced with anger."

"No, but you can turn into a blue one, right?" Bruce's eyes widened and he added, "Not that your species is a monster species. I didn't mean tha…"

"Stop talking." Loki gritted his teeth and said, "Give me a reason to not kill you on the spot."

"You need the Hulk to defeat Thanos?"

"Fair enough." Loki conceded and looked the scientist up and down. "What was the question? Now please, before I decide that you are not important enough."

"It relates to your other self…"

"Excuse me?"

"Your… umm… bluer self?" Bruce grinned sheepishly and Loki rubbed his forehead. Perhaps, he should have slept in.

"I am probably going to regret this, but please elaborate."

"Right. Elaborate. Okay." Bruce wrung his hands together and paced in front of Loki. He stopped and opened his mouth a couple of times, trying to get the words out but stopped himself each time. Finally, having come up with a proper sentence, he said, "Don't get me wrong. I'm not trying to insult you or god forbid, provoke you, but I really need to know this."

Loki frowned as Bruce continued, "You see, while we were on the Statesman, the other Asgardians taught me about the realms and the species residing in the realms. That was how I came to know about your people…"

"My people are the Asgardians."

"Right. I mean… your birth people? Jotunns?"

"Jotnar. That is the correct term."

Loki seemed a bit tense but as long as he wasn't actively attacking him, Bruce considered it a win and continued, "So, yeah, them. Well, the others would tell stories about how they are this violent species…"

"Monsters. That would be the term used."

"Right." Bruce could feel the sweat trickling down the back of his neck and he wondered if he just turned and walked away, would Loki forget this ever happened. "Yeah. Umm… I cannot even imagine what you must have gone through when you came to know of your origin."

"Is this going anywhere or are you really trying to make me angry?" Loki squinted his eyes and added, "Because you are succeeding."

"No, no, no. Nobody's trying to make you angry. I mean this is not even about you." At Loki's incredulous look, the scientist added, "Well, it is a little about you. But it is mainly about… no that too is about you. But in the context of helping me."

"I do not follow."

"Nor do I," Bruce muttered. He sighed and sat down on the same bench as Loki, leaving as much space as possible between the two of them. Resting his elbows on his knees, Bruce said, "I know I'm not making much or even any sense, but I honestly could not think of anyone else who could be of little help. They try to understand but they cannot. Maybe… maybe you can."

"It is easy to deduce that if all Asgardians considered the jotunns – jotnar, sorry, if they considered the jotnar monsters, then perhaps you did too. And I am not saying that they are correct or anything. I mean I don't even know anything about the species to pass judgement. So, yeah. But what I am saying is that you would have considered yourself a monster and somehow I feel that now you don't."

"Whatever gave that away?"

"Well, for starters, I am still alive." Loki shrugged in acknowledgement and Bruce observed, "And you seem more at ease with yourself than the last time we saw you."

"The point is that I want to know how that happened. I mean it is no secret that I don't really like the other guy."

"Yes, the lack of using his proper name is a dead giveaway."

"Yes, it is. I'm sure you know how he came to be and all that." Loki nodded. "Well, then you know that he comes out whenever I am angry, except, now he doesn't. Ever since that fight on Statesman, he refused to come out and Tony says that I should make my peace with him and I don't know how to go about that. I mean I have never even thought of doing something like that. Ever. I am only asking you because I know you overcame something similar. Except that, well, the jotunn is actually you, unlike the Hulk."

Loki was quiet for a long time, which in truth, made Bruce nervous. He considered giving up and walking away when Loki said, "So, you want to know how I made my peace with my being of a different species than my peers?"

"Yes."

"You do understand that it took me a decade to come to that conclusion. A decade that included trying to kill myself, being captured and tortured, trying to kill my brother, isolation, multiple near death situations and going through the death of my parents to reach this very stage."

"Yes?" Bruce sighed and said, "Look, I know the circumstances are different. You were trying to come to peace with yourself and I am trying to come to peace with this monster inside of me."

"Who said that he is not you?"

"Excuse me?"

"Did somebody tell you specifically that Hulk is a separate person? I do not think so and even if they did, they were wrong. He is not a separate person. He is very much a part of you and not just because he resides in your mind."

"Meaning?"

"I think that the Hulk is the physical representation of your anger." Loki leaned against the wall behind him and said, "I am not a healer of the mind but I did attend a few preliminary classes. There was this really beautiful Vanir… not that it is any of your business, but the point is that I know a few things about the injuries that a mind can sustain. One of them being dealing with aggressive emotions. Knowing your childhood, it is not hard to guess that you would have trouble with expressing anger because you would not know where to stop. Or rather, you would be afraid that you would not know when to stop, would lose yourself in it. Like your father."

Bruce closed his eyes, his anger increasing second by second, except when it reached the threshold when Hulk would come roaring out, the other guy just pushed it all back. That was like a bucket of cold water being poured all over him and Bruce sighed and settled for clenching his fists and wondering exactly how Loki knew about his history.

Loki ignored Bruce's palpable anger and continued with his theory, "You want to know what I think happened? I think that when your experimentation went wrong, the gamma rays somehow managed to separate the anger from you and turned it into a real person. The Hulk is a part of you because he is you. He is your anger. That is why whenever you get angry, he comes out, because…"

"He is my anger."

"Yes."

"So, what do I do? How do I go about making peace with him? With myself?"

"You cannot." Loki said nonchalantly. "It is a lengthy process and we do not have time for that."

"Then what am I supposed to do? The Hulk is part of the Avengers. You said that we need the six of us to go up against Thanos. Without Hulk, how are we to do that?"

"I literally just told you that Hulk is you. If Hulk is a part of Avengers then so are you."

"Because we are the same."

"Precisely. However, with that being said, it is also true that Hulk's superior strength is one of the biggest asset this team has."

"Then how do we go on if he is being difficult?" Bruce stood up and started pacing again. "Tony said that Hulk must have liked Sakaar better than Earth."

"Well, he was quite popular there and well loved. Even if it was by a deranged celestial and his equally deranged subjects. But it was all he knew so you cannot…" Loki trailed off, frowning in the distance. "Hulk kind of liked being part of the Revengers. Right?"

"Yeah, I suppose. I mean, I don't always remember the things that Hulk does."

"Why was that?"

"Why I don't remember…"

"No! Why did he like the Revengers better?" Loki growled and muttered, "Great! Now, I am calling us that! Despicable!"

"I guess because Brunn made him comfortable? Plus, it's not like Revengers had any issues with beating the crap out of people."

"That is true. We are a violent species and the other Asgardians did also take a liking to Hulk. The point is that Hulk was comfortable because no one on the team minded him."

"Except you."

"I am still undecided if I am actually on the team or not."

"Thor wants you to be."

"Thor wants a lot of things. It is my responsibility to ensure that he does not get them all. It will go to his head otherwise." Loki smirked at that and continued, "Anyway, back to the Hulk. I think the key might be to get him to understand that the Avengers appreciate him as much as the Revengers did."

"Barring you."

"Barring me."

"So that will work?"

"I do not know but people are generally more comfortable working with those who appreciate them."

"Something of a life lesson?"

"Common sense actually." Loki paused and shrugged. "Now run along before my patience does."

"Right." Bruce smiled a little at Loki. Maybe Thor was right. Maybe the Loki he knew was still there somewhere. Ducking his head, Bruce murmured, "Thank you." At the twitch of Loki's lips, he knew that he had been heard.

Loki couldn't help himself as the smile grew on his face. It had been so long since he had helped anyone with his suggestions. He had forgotten how good it felt to do something like that. Normally, he only advised Thor but on occasion, his mother would insist on him helping out the councilors and he used to love those days. He settled back, watching a line of ants crawl around and tried to control his smile. He had to keep up appearances after all.

"That was nice of you."

So much for keeping up appearances. Loki groaned internally as he watched Val sit down next to him and give him a surprised smile.

"I can be nice."

"Name one time."

"You weren't there."

Brunn snorted and looked at Loki. "Why'd you help him?"

"You'd rather that I didn't?"

"That's not what I meant."

"That's what you are going to get."

"You are impossible, you know."

"Takes one to know one, I suppose."

Brunn shrugged and said, "I didn't know you were jotun."

"It is not something I advertise." Eager to change the topic, Loki asked, "Explain something to me. Why are the Asgardians on Vanaheimr? I thought Thor wanted to settle down here on Midgard."

"He did. Still does. But we got separated, remember? Before you went and died?" Brunn sighed and told him the entire story of how they ended up in the realm of dark elves and how they managed to survive and reach Vanaheimr. By the time she finished her tale, Loki was frowning.

"That should not… how did you end up in Svartalfheim?"

"Weren't you listening? There was a portal that pulled us in…"

"The gravitational portal should have brought you to Midgard, not Svartalfheim."

Brunn watched the emotions flitting across Loki's face and announced, "You created the portal!"

"Yes," Loki was still frowning, "and I was making sure that it went to Midgard. How would it even…?"

"Why? Why did you create the portal?"

"Well, Thor was busy fighting and I took the chance to see if you all had managed to escape." Loki drummed his fingers on his thigh and continued, "I already told you that the space stone sometimes shows the future when needed."

"Yes."

"Well, I have a better relationship with it and as a result it shows me more of the future. Helps me out a lot. That was how I knew that the escape pods would never make it out of the area. So, I created the gravitational portal, so that even if something happened, the pods would still be pulled in by the force and it would deposit you all near this place where the Allfather had lived out the past few years of his life. It was a nice place. Suitable for Asgardians, I suppose."

"Then why didn't we?"

"I don't know. Those portals are hard to maintain, especially if you are trying to transport a lot."

"That's what Eda said."

"But I am no ordinary sorcerer." Loki said smugly. "I could maintain it, but I needed to continuously focus on the location, which was why I kept on talking to Thanos about Midgard. As long as Midgard was in the forefront of my thoughts, the portal would take you to Midgard." Loki straightened and asked, "When did you go through the portals?"

"I don't know. We all were knocked out from the aftershocks of Statesman destruction. Why?"

The prince groaned and nodded. "That makes sense. I was dead by then. When Thanos was killing me, I think I started to subconsciously think about the last time I died, which so happened to be on…"

"Svartalfheim."

"Exactly." Loki shook his head and said, "Since that was my last thought, the portal would have locked in on that."

"Why did you do it?"

"Do what?"

"Make the portal. Get us out of there."

"Would you prefer if I hadn't?"

"I would prefer if you just admitted that you cared. It is not that bad." Brunn smiled, thinking about the Asgardians that had weirdly become something like family to her.

"I don't care."

Brunn scoffed, "Really? Could have fooled me. Come on! You do care. You came back to Asgard to save it from Hela. You know you didn't have to do that. If you didn't care, you would have just left. You had a spaceship and a crew. You could have gone anywhere."

"I came because… Thor was being an idiot. I was trying to hint him to not rush into things but does he ever listen to me? No!" The words sounded flimsy to even Loki and he groaned when Brunn just laughed at his explanation.

"For someone who is nicknamed the 'god of lies', you are not all that good at it." Brunn smiled. "You are good at evading, I'll give you that. Just not at lying." She stood up and got ready to walk away. "You know it's not really horrible to admit that you care about something or someone. Gives you a reason to fight. Trust me, I know from experience."

"Brunnhilde," Loki called out when the warrior had started to walk away, "contrary to popular belief, I do take my princely duties seriously. I do not need to admit anything to need a reason to fight. Asgard is my reason to fight. Has always been. Most of the things that I have done are because I believed them to be the right things for Asgard. Whether they truly turned out that way or not…"

Brunn turned back and smiled genuinely at Loki. Tilting her head in the semblance of a bow, she said softly, "Your Highness," and walked away, leaving Loki to stare after her.

It had been nearly a decade since he had heard his proper title and Loki didn't even try to stop the traitorous grin that graced his face. He knew that after the Odin-Hela fiasco, Brunn didn't dole out titles just because of blood. She had only called Thor by his proper address because he had gone to save his people despite not knowing whether he would return alive. So it was quite an achievement if he got her to defer to his title. Maybe the day wasn't that bad after all.