A/N: Lots of thank yous to reviewers Haruko-Mizumi (did you predict correctly?), Ynath Esrith, EvilConcubine, jaquelinelittle (there's an idea xD), kakashidiot (who knows? bwahaha...), THORKISUPPORT, ClintBarton-Loki'sButtWarmer, Guest, MilkyWayGalaxy, Aquarinus, angrbodagiantess, Kurtgleelove, AvengersJunkie (*is flattered*), mistyfoxmaid, Insane Elvish Vampire Pirate And The Demented Hobbit Ninja, Potkanka (I actually wrote a bit about Sleipnir but forgot to add it D:) and Guest, my Fav'ers, Followers and Bomber x).

Stark Tower was sleeping as Loki made his way, soft and quiet as a shadow, through the unlit rooms and corridors. He was still limping, but not so much from pain as from being bed-bound and lethargic for so long; he had grown unused to such freedom of movement. Reaching a staircase, he endeavoured to descend it; but ended up taking the steps one at a time, clinging to the banisters for support. He was pausing to catch his breath, and wondering if he should turn back, when Romanoff spoke.

'Where are you off to?'

He hadn't heard her walking; the floor was carpeted and her feet were not in shoes. A nice relaxing stroll perhaps, or possibly a late-night rendezvous with Hawkeye.

'Anywhere secluded,' said Loki sincerely.

'Family a bit much to handle?' she asked. He didn't answer. Without offering and without invitation, she helped him down the rest of the steps. The human was too small to lean his weight on, but with her arm around his middle he was much steadier. 'Things aren't going to change just because Odin shows up, you know. I mean, out there they might, but in here Thor's still got your back. So, if your dad gives you any grief, just let someone know.'

'That is touching. Naïve, but touching.' Loki stumbled a little, catching his feet in the dark. 'You might know my brother as a deity, but Odin still has authority over him.'

'Thor's no god. And somehow I don't think he gives a damn about "authority" anymore. You guys have come too far for that.' She removed his arm from around her shoulders, and at the bottom of the stairs they parted ways.

'And where are you going, Agent Romanoff?'

'Somewhere secluded,' she tossed over her shoulder, 'Considering you could fit a couple of cruise liners in this place, it's surprisingly hard to get any peace and quiet.'

Alone again, Loki continued unaided. With nowhere to stable Sleipnir, the horse had been allowed to virtually wander the Tower. When Loki found him, he was chewing his way through a large bowl of fruits and vegetables being fed to him by Tony Stark. The inventor's inquisitive mind was clearly fascinated by the anomalous horse. Also on the floor was a tub of water.

'Sorry,' Stark said like a child caught with his hand in a cookie jar. 'I didn't expect to see you here.'

As if remembering his manners, he offered Loki an apple from the bowl. Loki shook his head, so Tony offered him a pear instead. Loki turned away and rested his hands on Sleipnir's back, leaning on the magnificent animal for support. He breathed deep of the horse's wild scent as if he could somehow catch a scent of Asgard – a little bit of home – a fragment of a childhood long since lost.

'Can't sleep?' Stark asked him.

'I've slept enough.' With his fingers, Loki began to untangle the knots in Sleipnir's mane, while the great horse stood patiently. The silence dragged out to an uncomfortable length.

'So...you and Svaðilfari.'

'Pardon?'

'I'm reading a book,' Tony elaborated, 'Norse mythology. I'm about halfway through. I heard you two had a little thing, way back when...When you were horses...'

'I don't know any Svaðilfari. What are you suggesting?'

'So Sleipnir's not your kid?'

'No.' Loki's expression was halfway between revulsion and amusement. 'No, certainly not.'

'And you don't really have a penchant for gender-bending?'

'I have only one form, Stark,' Loki scoffed, but as he said it, a shadow of doubt seemed to cross his face, and his gaze drifted to his own skin. He shook himself and went back to stroking Sleipnir. 'I suspect somebody started rumours about me – possibly a friend of my brother. Besides, I've never been particularly interested in...intimacy.'

'Ah...' Tony patted Sleipnir's flank. 'Sorry, I've gotta ask,' he blurted. 'The whole sewing thing, and the snake, venom, eyes, bowl thing. Did those happen?'

'I'm not sure of what you speak.'

'Thank God.' Tony was now wishing he had never spoken. 'Well, that's one more book I'm adding to the trash-pile...'

'I'm sure that's not necessary. Inaccurate as it is, it must be an interesting read. In fact, I would like to read this book, if you would be willing to let me borrow it.'

'Um, I doubt that's a good idea. In fact, I would go so far as to say, whatever you do, don't read the book. You all die at the end.'

'All?'

Tony was starting to think there was no bottom to the hole he was digging himself into.

'Um...you, your kids and Thor. You die while duking it out at the end of the world. It's kinda depressing.'

'Well, they must be wrong, for I have no children and no intention of having any,' said Loki, but there was a stiffness to his jawline and a tension to his back that betrayed how deep Tony's words had cut.

'You don't kill Thor,' Tony hastened to clarify, 'It wasn't you, it was Jörm – '

'Stark, I came here for peace and quiet,' said Loki quietly, not raising his head from his task. 'If you would be so good as to leave, I would greatly appreciate it.'

Stark walked away quickly, taking his fruitbowl with him and leaving Loki alone in the darkness. Loki fetched a sponge from the kitchen, soaked it in the tub and knelt to wash Sleipnir's hooves; he was determined not to allow himself to wallow in emotion, and besides, if he was going to live here, he had to make himself of use.

'Do the mortals treat you well?'

Odin All-Father had appeared; Loki had been too preoccupied to hear the rustle of his robes. Feeling suddenly vulnerable, Loki remained on his knees as if he were safer there. If he had learned anything in his life, it was that his proper place was beneath others.

'Yes. For the most part,' he answered.

'And is everything resolved between you and Thor?'

'Yes. How is Frigga?' he dared to ask.

'She is sick with worry for both of her sons – though she hides it even from me. Her kind heart will not permit her to let herself be a burden on others.' There was a pause. 'When you fell from the Bifrost, I thought you dead. From the moment the cosmos swallowed you, until the moment you set foot on Midgard with the intention of wreaking havoc upon its people, you were lost to my sight. And when the Tesseract failed to deliver you and Thor safely here, the same happened; it was as if a shroud came over you. If you are willing, I would know what happened to you.'

'Can't you just rip the truth from me? It's well within your power, and your right as my captor.'

'I would greatly prefer your consent.'

'Thanos happened, if you must know. You know the Mad Titan's name well, I expect. First the Chitauri found me, then they tortured me.' Loki fumbled, nearly dropping the sponge. 'Constant pain. Do you understand? No matter if I lost consciousness, no matter what pleas and promises I made, the torment would not cease. It didn't end until they tossed me back to Earth at Thor's feet, intending to cement my humiliation by having me beg his forgiveness. And then after the Chitauri, I was tortured again – this time by the humans. There, are you satisfied?'

'You know perfectly well that I could never derive satisfaction from your suffering.'

'Is that so?'

'I don't expect you to let go of your bitterness towards me. I know you are very angry with me, and I know your anger hurts you deeply.'

'You know nothing. When have you ever been lied to? When have you ever...' Loki trailed off.

'Please, speak your mind. Some things should not be withheld.'

'Why should I? I owe you nothing.' Loki's hands shook as he bathed Sleipnir's hooves. 'I am disarmed. If I don't have my lies and my secrets, then what other defences am I left with? I have no weapon, no tricks, no magic, no power left to protect myself with. You would have me bare myself to you like an open wound, until the last of my dignity is gone?'

'You need not hide your pain from me – I would never use it against you.'

'You lied to me.' Finally Loki spoke freely, pent-up words so long suppressed. 'Because of your own weakness or lack of foresight – I do not know which – you favoured Thor over me even at the height of his stupidity and arrogance, regardless of how inadequate it made me feel. You allowed him to be a disgrace, and allowed me to grow up resentful and jealous. You dangled the hope of kingship in front of me like a bone in front of a hungry dog, even though you knew there was no chance that I would never sit on a throne – any throne. Because I was never important was I? I was among royalty, yet I was never truly a prince.'

Odin didn't interrupt him, waiting until he was finished.

'You were never anything but my son.'

'And that would have been enough for me, if only you had not pitted me against Thor.'

'I never did.'

'Well, that was how it seemed to me.'

'How would you have preferred I raised you?' Odin asked calmly, 'Would your sense of worth have fared better if you had known that I had stolen you from a realm which had cast you out to die – a helpless and innocent child – simply because you were undersized?'

'I would have borne it better if you had supported me. But it's pointless talking about it. You made me the way I am and that cannot be changed.'

'Is this your final word?'

'Yes.'

'I see.' After a long silence in which Odin continued to stand there and Loki continued his task, Odin spoke again, 'You were never inadequate. You were a good, considerate, dutiful and sensible boy. For the majority of your life, you were a better son to me than Thor was. But the fact remains that your ascension to the throne was an impossibility. Thor, and Thor only, was meant to be my successor. He was raised to be king, and you were not.'

'Then what's the point of me?' Loki couldn't help but laugh, a shocked, hollow and utterly humourless little sound. 'Did you let me live only to provide Frigga with another child to coo over? Or to make yourself look charitable and merciful? What's the point of me?'

'Who else could have taken you in? Laufey had disowned you. We had just a won a hard-fought war against Jötunheim, and no Asgardian citizen would've been willing to adopt a child of the enemy.'

'You still could've given me to someone else. You could've ordered them to adopt me.'

'That is true. But it was not what I desired. When I first picked you up from the snow and held you, you were so cold and hungry. From that moment, I wanted to ensure you had every possible comfort from a warm cot to a bright future; and the brightest future Asgard could offer you was as its co-regent.'

Loki was silent; straightening up, he let the bucket hit the floor with a clang.

'I understand now. But it's too little too late. I will never forgive you. You've hurt me too much for too long. To forgive you would be to absolve you. No matter how wrong I've been, no matter how many bad things I've done, I'm not taking the blame for what you have caused. They were your mistakes and yours only.'

'Do you still hate us?'

The straightforward question caught Loki off-guard, and he began to feel flustered.

'I forgive Thor. And I still love Mother, even though she deceived me as much as you did.'

'But my actions, in your opinion, were unforgivable?'

'Yes. Being a wise king does not make you a good father. You did not give Thor and me the childhood we deserved."

'I understand.' The All-Father paused. 'Thor was not alone in his grief. I believed you dead too. Would you permit me to hold you?'

'No.'

'Very well.'

Odin left, and not long after Loki began to cry – stupid, pointless, angry tears of frustration, at himself for being so hateful, at his saviours for forcing him into this situation, and at Odin for being the root of all this. Sleipnir snorted, his long tail swishing, and turning his head nuzzled at Loki's shoulder.

'Sir, would you like me to notify Mister Odinson or Mister Banner of your distress?' J.A.R.V.I.S. spoke at a low volume as if not wanting to be too intrusive, and Loki wondered if Stark had programmed the A.I. to treat him so.

'No.'

'Is there anything that I can do?'

'No. Leave me alone.'