A/N:

The Avengers, Loki, Iron Man, or anything of the like. Just the thoughts inside my head. And taking some personal freedoms with mythology and lore.

Loki couldn't grasp his magic, not for long periods at least. He took a deep breath, trying not to move, feeling his skin shift from blue to pale, and back again. At first the guards were careless, slicing and slashing where they would, trying to inflict pain. But when Loki didn't react, moved when he had too, but didn't make a sound. And the made the guards mad.

After that they had left, let his sit for a day before two new guards walked in. These ones, he learned, were the specialists. They were trained. Tiny slices, thin, not too deep. Blood welled but didn't flow. These were the guards they called when they wanted to hear screams. They left him for another night knowing the wounds wouldn't heal over and would be more sensitive the next day. More sensitive to the knives that criss crossed over the previous days marks.

Loki glanced up when the guards walked in, a cup of water with them, and smirked a little. "Must be dinner time. I do so enjoy our time together." He sucked in a breath when some of the boiling water was poured over the wounds on his arm. "I simply dream of them all day," he hissed out.

"By the Norns," Balder sighed, staring at Tony. "You can't be serious. Call down a Valkyrie?" It was morning and Balder was sitting at the dinner table across from Tony, staring at him. "The only reason a Valkyrie comes down is to aid in a battle, or to take a warrior back up to the Halls."

"And it used to be said that the only reason a God would come down to Earth was if they were offered a gift," Tony countered. "I'm pretty sure that I ran out of gifts to give Loki a while ago, but he stays with me."

"These are Valkyries!" Balder exclaimed. "There are just some creatures and beings that you don't mess with."

"I'm sure that messing with the denizens of Helheim falls into that category, but look what we do all the time!" Tony wrapped his hands around his mug of coffee. "There has to be some way of contacting them. I mean, no one can be that off the grid, just waiting for them to show up."

"Not everything works like that," Balder rubbed between his eyes. "It's not like everyone has an intergalactic cell phone.

"I should make that," Tony mumbled and Balder snorted. "I' completely serious though, Balder, I need to either get to Valhalla, or call down some Valkyries."

"And I'm telling you that the only way to get to Valhalla is by dying," Balder countered. "and there is no coming back from that death, so don't even think about it." He pointed at Tony, eyes narrowed to kill the thought before it began. "You have to be a dead warrior, worthy of taking a place in the army to fight in Ragnarök, or a Valkyrie returning home. And I highly doubt you'll be able to find a Valkyrie."

Tony tapped his fingers on the counter a little, staring at the god. "Alright, I'm gonna level with you, I'm gonna tell you why I'm so insistent on this."

"That would be much appreciated."

"I've seen Glasir," Tony told him and Balder raised an eyebrow. "The big golden tree? I've seen it, and I've seen the outside of the big hall where the warriors rest and that."

"There is no one alive to have seen these in Valhalla and live to tell the tale," Balder said gravely. "Even Thor, Loki and I don't know what they look like. We only have drawings graced to us by the Valkyries."

"Well, I've seen them." Tony pointed to his eyes. "With these two eyes. Obviously before I lost the sight in one of them. I was young, like newborn young." Balder frowned. "Anders was able to access my memories as a baby, he went back to the very beginning. I saw the tree, saw the leaves, touched them, and I heard a woman talking to me. She had feathers from wings, and talked about some Queen, and something about my dad, and she called me son."

Balder swallowed slowly and looked at Tony. He was silent, but never took his eyes off of the man. "You're starting to creep me out. Why are you looking at me like that?"

"I'm trying to decide on if you're insane or not," Balder told him. Tony's expression deadpanned. "Do you know what you're suggesting? You're saying that you could quite possibly be the son of a Valkyrie."

"I think that's exactly what I'm saying," Tony agreed. "That's the only conclusion that I can come up with."

"What's her name?" Balder asked.

"I don't Know, why the hell do you think I'm asking for a way to speak to the Valkyries?" Tony almost threw a piece of fruit from the table at him. "I was a baby, probably a week old or something. She didn't exactly say, hey this is my name just incase someone is able to go back into your memories so you can see this." Tony rolled his eyes a little. "All I know is what she said, and that she had Amber wings. I mean, I saw her face so I'd know her if I saw her, but other than that," Tony shrugged. "Balder, I have to know if she gave me up because she wanted, or if she had no choice. I have to know if I was abandoned."

Balder let out a long sigh and rubbed his face. "Let me go back up to Asgard and see what I can do," he said behind his hands. "I make no promises. Does Loki know?"

"I found out after he left," Tony said, leaning back.

"You seem awfully calm about letting him go to Jotunheim alone," Balder commented and Tony raised an eyebrow.

"Why's that? He just went to take care of some stuff. Told him he'd better make sure that I' freaking warm when he takes me. Plus, Emma went with him."

"To take care of Farbauti?" Balder raised both eyebrow and Tony frowned. "You didn't know?"

"I don't think He knew. Who the hell is this Farbauti?" Tony leaned forward. "What's going on?"

"Farbauti took control of the throne while you and Loki were gone," he said slowly. He wasn't looking forward to the next part. "She's Loki's Mother." Tony's body tensed.

"Go to Asgard, work a miracle, because I have a bad feeling." Tony pushed himself up. "Time is not on our side anymore."