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"And now?" It was Steve who asked the question everyone had in mind.
"Now, we`ll wait for Thor and then make a plan. He should arrive in an hour or so.
And I`ll order some food and drinks for later in the meantime. So would you please excuse me? Talk, have fun, don`t kill each other, don`t do things I wouldn`t do which leaves a lot of funny stuff you could try. We`ll be back with Thor, Loki would you accompany me?"
"I`ll follow you."
The two went for the elevator while the other Avengers stayed at the communal floor.
Immediately after watching the doors close, Tony turned to Loki. "The fact that Natasha and you still have all limbs in place lets me think of your conversation as a success without too much collateral damage?"
"You could say so. I refrained from killing her, like you recommended, but I was tempted."
"Nice. Still no blood shedding in the tower, please."
"Killjoy."
"I assume, if your face is a reference, you're not willing to talk to me about your two chitchats of today? They are both dangerous people and I'm sure they weren't especially nice. So if you want to talk, I would like to listen."
"You assume correctly, I'm not willing to talk, there's nothing worth mentioning."
"You look tense. Are you nervous?"
"Why should I? It´s not like there`s a room full of Superheroes and spies who could as well plan at that very moment to hand me over to S.H.I.E.L.D. Or a stupid not-my-brother who will arrive soon and with him his annoying cheerfulness and the total lack of understanding or brains but instead the possibility to kidnap me for Odin. So why should I be nervous?"
"Ok, ok, it was a stupid question." Tony raised his hands in surrender.
"But enough of that. You want to order food and drinks? You're throwing a party for your illustrious guests?"
"Yes. After talking about a plan. Perhaps it eases the tension, relaxes one or another."
"I guess it is no option that I just stay in my room and do something more funny, which includes almost everything?" Loki looked rather reluctant and cautiously.
"You`re right. You'll be on your best behavior, and I'll be, too. JARVIS, you know what to do, order, hire, whatever you think would be useful to entertain all of them without somebody getting hurt."
"Absolutely, Sir."
"Thanks. And Loki? You and I, we take a break. No Avengers, no plans, no nada. Just you and me and some fucking peace before we'll be more or less responsible adults again. One hour without thinking or talking about S.H.I.E.L.D. or Asgard or anything else related with the fact that they are out there to get us. Nothing about torture or death or enslavement."
"That sounds simply wonderful." And that was a genuine smile in Loki`s face.
They didn`t decide to do something spectacular. More of the opposite because they already had enough excitement. So they just lay on the couch, Tony leaned against Loki, Loki`s arm on his shoulder and they watched an episode of MacGyver. It felt familiar and cozy, warm and surprisingly normal. Until JARVIS made a noise like he was clearing his nonexistent throat before he announced: "Sirs, Mr. Thor Odinson landed on the terrace."
"Let him in." Tony sighed. That meant the break was over.
And yes, there was a tall, blond man walking to the glass door. This time he wore his Asgardian armor with the red cape and Loki rolled his eyes when he saw it. Thor on the other hand was smiling, walking in red and shiny silver.
"Was something speaking against normal, civilian attire?" Loki asked in the second Thor stepped in the room. "This is not Asgard." And you`re not a prince here. You are not better than me.
"Be greeted, brother." Thor simply ignored the question and gave Loki a smile.
Before Loki could start his whole You-are-not-my-brother-speech Tony answered. "Hello, welcome, greetings. The others are waiting for us. Do you mind just following us?"
It was surprising how long an elevator could take getting from one floor to the other when one of three passengers looks like he contemplates different possible methods to get rid of another one. The limited space doesn`t exactly help and Tony jumped for joy when they arrived at the right floor and everyone was still alive and able to leave the elevator.
Thor greeted everybody with loud words and painfully enthusiastic hugs.
After a while Tony coughed slightly. "Perhaps we could celebrate this get-together a little bit later? I already ordered food and drinks. But could we first think about a plan how to get the damn scepter?
Let me start. First we have to find the godforsaken thing. It's not on board of one of the Helicarriers, that much I found out, so it has to be at a land base. Which has to be equipped with labs and workshops, space for scientists to work. Any ideas? Clint, Natasha, where would S.H.I.E.L.D. hide such a project?"
"The Sandbox?" Clint guessed and looked at Natasha.
"No, that's mostly a storage and disposal facility. They wouldn't have the equipment for the required tests and the necessary staff. They quarantine and research artifacts there but they wouldn't use it for something with so much research needed and that classified.
But there's a top-secret research and experimentation location named the Lighthouse. I never was there, but I heard of it. It's classified, it's off the books, so it might be what we search." Natasha stated in her typical nonchalant voice.
Tony wasn't nonchalant at all. "You have cute little nicknames for the places Fury uses to forge out plans I would like to kill him for? Lovely! Do you know where it is located?"
"Not yet. But I know how to find out. I think I can get us the construction plans." Her face was emotionless. "But there's a condition. The scepter has to be destroyed or handed to Thor to carry it to Asgard if we couldn't destroy it. He," she pointed a finger at Loki "will not even touch it. Is that clear?"
Loki stared at the finger that pointed at him like a gun with a stony expression without even a hint of the polite smile he had a second ago. "That's the plan. Destroy it or give it to Thor so he can take it with him to a saver realm or somewhere where they would be able to destroy it eventually. And I might add I wouldn't touch it voluntarily. You don't have to trust me but you can believe that one thing, I would not use it. If I take it and the scepter still works, you`re invited to kill me."
"No!" Tony didn`t took that lightly, that wasn't amusing. Not the slightest. "No. Nobody will be killed, is that clear?"
"It'd be better than the consequences." Loki insisted stubbornly.
"Idiot! I'd rather have you alive, thank you very much. And Natasha? You're not killing him. Under no circumstances. I`m good in solving problems, but I can`t bring someone back from the dead. Nobody will die!"
"Do you sleep with him Stark?" Natasha looked from Tony to Loki and back, than she grinned. "My, my! He's more than that. You found yourself a cuddly boyfriend. A relationship, isn't it, Stark?" Natasha asked bluntly, blinking.
"What? I... What? Why..." Tony stammered. How the hell did she know that?
"Yes. Is that a problem?" Loki's voice was sharp and hostile, he sounded and looked like he was taking account of killing her. On the spot. Ah, the sore point again. Tony thought. I would have preferred to get S.H.I.E.L.D. of our backs before we deal with Thor. He will demand my head on a platter.
"Not mine. The contrary. If one of you fucks up this mission because of the honey-bunny-god, I'll kill the other one. And let the other one watch. If Loki is playing with you, Stark, you're a goner, because you let him in your head or heart or bed or whatever and then I hand him to S.H.I.E.L.D. And Tony, if you mess something up completely because of him or for him, we'll have a nice dead god for S.H.I.E.L.D. to perform an autopsy on and I`ll haul you into Fury`s office personally. I will have an eye on you both. You get your chance but if you don't deserve it, I'll take the chance back without hesitation." Her voice was cold and even, her face emotionless relaxed. It was impossible to tell if it was just a threat to make a statement or if she meant it literally.
Nobody said a word. Clint nodded in something that might be approval or might as well be just surprise considering his facial expression. The Captain stared in sheer disbelief at Natasha and Bruce looked strained with a slight tint of green at his neck. Thor swallowed and looked at Tony and the latter just wished for the floor to swallow him, because this was so fucking uncomfortable. Loki's face was still belligerent when he said "I understand."
"Good." Natasha had turned the whole room speechless, everybody occupied with trying to figure out how to react.
After a few minutes of silence Steve asked: "You two are a couple? When did this happen?"
"Yes, we are. So Steve, Thor, Clint - if you want to say something disapproving or homophobic, do it now. I'm in the right mood for it. Someone who wants to tell me, I`m not good enough for him? Just say what's on your mind." Tony radiated fury. This was not like it should have went. Why do things always tend to do something else than I planned them to? "Say it plain!"
Clint was the first to speak. "You may fuck whoever you want or get fucked by whoever wants you. And I will need a serious amount of drinks to get that pictures out of my head again! Keep on looking at him like a lovesick fool, Stark, if you want to. Yes, I saw that glance. It doesn't matter. I just hope that he isn't using you to get his scepter back and all of this turns out as nothing more than a big lie. Because I consider killing you both, if he would. Just to be sure. I trust Natasha to see it first if something would go awry. She sees things like that. But I will be happy for you if he's not here to use you, Stark."
"Thank you?" Tony shook his head when he was interrupted by Loki with a growl. "So my so called brother, will you now start to call me a whore again? I swear to whoever may hear me, I'll kill you this time if you do so!"
"No. I have to apologize for doing it before. Jane taught me, this world taught me, that Asgard is wonderful, but we are outdated considering some convictions and beliefs we shared. I almost lost you, I won`t push you away now. I watched you with him," he looked at Tony who tried his best to smile "and I have not seen you so unbent in decades. If he had such an effect on you, it's not my role to try to talk you out of it. I made so many mistakes, I won't add another one. Chose who makes you happy."
Loki stood there, his mouth opened to say something that never came, thunderstrucked. He just stared at the blond man. It took him a few moments to answer. "If you are not lying, and I`m not sure about that, but when you`re not lying then you really changed." Would have saved us a lot of pain and blood if you did it sooner.
"Steve?" Tony asked.
"Why is everybody assuming that I'm homophobic? I'm getting tired of it. I have moral standards, yes, and it seems that most people misunderstand them. Moral is not the same as having prejudices, it's the contrary. It doesn't matter to me which gender you are, what race or sexual orientation you have.
You both did things I wouldn't do because they are just wrong but being a couple is not one of them. I don`t care about that. If you two are good for each other, why do you expect me to say something against? I congratulate you if it`s what makes you happy.
And I might add, I grew up in Brooklyn. New York after all! Even in the 1920s and 1930s it wasn't exactly a completely straight town but host to, how do you call it today? A big LGBT community, even when it was prohibited. I have more problems with your persistent swearing than your choice of relationship. You should really watch your language!" That made Tony convulse with laughter till he hold his sides. " Holy fuck! Thank you! I`ll let JARVIS count for a swear jar if you`d like to. And I`ll teach you a few new ones that will make you blush fucking scarlet."
"That won't be necessary! None of the two." Steve`s face looked close to something like desperation and there really was a blush creeping across his cheeks. "Hmm, that`s more pink than scarlet, but I`m working on that." Tony grinned.
"No, you will not work on that! Can we now go back to the question what we`ll do? So you guess the scepter is located in the Lighthouse?" Steve took them back to the subject.
In the meantime Natasha had seated herself beside Clint, her right leg folded over her left knee. "I know how to find the actual position of the Lighthouse and more information including perhaps even the blueprints. I`ll need two days for that. Then we can make a plan. So all you can do until then is waiting."
"Ok, then we`ll wait. I hate waiting, but Ok. Anyway! It`s the first time we are all gathered here together. Someone hungry or thirsty? Because I, or rather JARVIS, ordered food and drinks. A lot of."