A.N.: So I had this dream that I ended up having dinner in this fancy restaurant with Tony Stark, and he ends up going, "You passed the test, kid. Let's go meet the team." It was one of the best dreams I've had in a while. And then I woke up to find out that I had a message from a friend who cosplays Tony Stark really well? The world is weird, friends.
It took Loki a few days to recover, but they soon made their way to the Sanctum, where Laurel had moved back into her loft and begun teaching again. "You know you're going to have to lie low for a while, right?" she asked, folding laundry as Loki lounged in an armchair, a book balanced carefully in his hand.
"I know." He flipped a page in his book, his eyebrows furrowing a bit as he reread something on the Soul Stone. The Soul Stone had to be the key to bringing everyone back, he thought. No one quite understood the stone and its mysterious properties, but it was the best lead they had, and he had been chasing it for a while now.
"That means you can't go creating chaos all over the city, and you've got to dress like a normal Midgardian when you go out."
"Consider it done."
"You do look nice in Midgardian clothes, though," Laurel offered, coming over by where he sat to grab a couple of hangers from their closet. "You should consider expanding your wardrobe."
"Hmm." Loki nodded, turning a page in his book. "I think I'll take over organizing your library here. Someone has to do it, since your fellow teacher here hardly has time. Besides, it could use an update."
"Loki, Prince of Asgard, God of Mischief, rightful King of Jotunheim, the Odinson, Magical Librarian?" she laughed. "Good for you. You need a pet project like that. And when you've got time, I'm sure our students would benefit from some of your wisdom."
"Well, then, mayhaps I will. Have you ever read this?" He held the book up, Laurel raising an eyebrow. "It was locked up in the library, but the magic was fairly easy to get through. It's fascinating. You should give it a read."
"Let me know when you're done with it," she replied absentmindedly, disappearing into their closet to hang things up. "I'll look into it. Maybe it'll be helpful with Thanos."
They spent a lot of their days like that, Loki taking over the library and Laurel teaching and taking her students out on test missions. They would meet up with the other Avengers for dinner or for meetings at the facility, slowly but surely putting together a plan to defeat Thanos. Or to at least track him down on Titan, confront him, and live to tell the tale. They had to be sure that their plan would work, because it was very likely that they would only have one shot at it. While everyone else trained, worked on their armor, or recruited more help, Loki was busy reading through anything and everything he could get his hands on about the Infinity Stones and how to counter them.
He was in the Sanctum's library when Laurel came by, dropping off a cup of tea and reminding him that, "We've got to be dressed and ready by eight, remember."
"What's tonight, again?" Their calendars were always full of social events, whether they be strategy meetings, research nights with the others, or events that Tony had planned for his business. "And what am I supposed to wear?"
"It's Midgardian formal, but you can just wear your Asgardian robes if you want to. I don't think it'll matter. Just make sure you look nice and presentable," she answered, leaning on the bookshelf closest to him. "It's the anniversary gala for the Peter Parker Memorial Scholarship Trust. It's going to be a… fairly tense night, I would say. Tony's going to be more keyed-up than usual, and Peter's aunt is the guest of honor, like always."
Setting his book down, Loki sighed, asking, "Do I actually have to go?"
"We need to be there to support them. He was a part of my team, Loki. He was just a kid," she sighed, thinking of how Peter would follow her around the facility asking questions, telling her about high school, searching for advice. "Just come with me, okay? You've been cooped up in here for a while." Like always, he assented, promising that he would be ready by eight. It wouldn't be a fun night, even for the rest of them, but he did have to be there. Laurel had mandated it, and he still had a long way to go making things up to her.
As Laurel was getting ready, standing in front of their bathroom mirror, Loki seemed to materialize behind her. "You look wonderful, darling."
"Thank you. So do you." She turned to face him, putting in one of her earrings as she asked why he was so early.
"I want to talk to you. I found something on the Soul Stone that may be of importance. If Thanos used it in the way I think he did, everyone who was dissolved would have vanished into the Soul World, which is inside the stone itself. That's why the vanished Asgardians didn't end up in Valhalla. That, in turn, brings up two things - first, there is only one person I know of who can travel between the worlds of the living and the dead, and I think she might be able to travel to the Soul World as well. I don't know what it could mean, but if she could…"
"If I can do it, we might be able to bring everyone back, just like I can bring people from Valhalla back here," Laurel finished, straightening his tie. "And the other?"
"If we destroy the stone, would it not free everyone?"
Laurel thought for a moment, finally deciding that, "It might. It could. But we might also destroy all of them inside of the stone, and not have a way to bring them back. We've got to do more research, but it's a great start. Either way, being the Goddess of Death will help. But being the Goddess of Death won't help if we're late tonight. Let's go."
No matter what press events they were doing, no matter what gala they were at, the first few minutes were spent smiling for cameras, waving to the press, and greeting all of the important people. Both of them were glad to have each other to hold on to in those first moments, even if it was just to not be swept away by the deluge of media flooding the area. Laurel wouldn't let go of his arm until they were in the reception hall, finally relaxing enough to take his hand and lead him towards the first person she saw carrying a tray of champagne. They would take a breath, exchange a look, and fall into conversations with other people. Even if they drifted apart, they would occasionally look across the crowd to see each other and smile a bit, as if to say, "You're still here. I might be ready to murder these people, but you're still here too."
"Hey, you," Steve came up behind them, Laurel smiling and turning to give him a hug. "Nice to see you again. How's work at the Sanctum going?"
Thor pulled his brother away to talk about Asgardian administrative business, leaving the two of them to catch up. The next time Laurel saw Loki, she and Steve were spinning around the dance floor, stopping to talk to some of the scholarship donors and telling them amazing stories of battles and recently declassified missions. Everyone wanted to talk to the heroes, of course, especially someone as iconic as Captain America. Loki was used to this to, used to either being shoved aside by the press and the people at the galas or demonized and verbally abused. So he let her have her fun while he hung back, watching from the wall.
Steve Rogers. He was an interesting one. He'd been one of the ones to first go after him, to stop the Chitauri invasion. But he had also gone rogue, or as rogue as Captain America could go, when the Sokovia Accords attempted to tie down superheroes. He clearly hadn't forgiven Loki for everything he had done, but none of them had. He'd been one of the more accepting ones, though. He'd listened when Laurel explained how Loki had changed, and he'd always been there to help the two of them. He'd become close friends with Laurel, and he'd been the one to help almost every time she almost died. Now the two of them were grabbing more champagne, talking to donors, laughing at their horrible jokes in hopes of helping Tony and his scholarship fund.
It wasn't that Loki resented Steve Rogers, but he did remind him of Thor - the golden child, the one everyone looked up to, the one who could do no wrong, even when he was on the run from the law. He would have public support no matter what, and he would always have people flocking to him. He was just so damned nice, so personable in a way that Loki knew he could never be. Loki made his way through the crowd, appearing at his wife's side. "Hi, you," she beamed, kissing him on the cheek and introducing him to a couple of people whose names he paid no attention to. "How are you doing?"
"If you don't mind, I think I'm going to head back to the Sanctum," he whispered, pulling her aside for a moment.
"What's wrong?" Laurel frowned, her eyes full of concern.
"Nothing. I'm just tired of people, and I'm starting to get a headache. Stay here and have fun, alright? I'll see you when you get home."
"I can leave them with Steve," she offered, glancing back over her shoulder. "He's got them handled. They'll be donating to the fund at the end of the night regardless of whether or not I stay."
Loki shook his head, firmly telling her to stay there. "I'll be fine. Go have fun."
"Alright," she frowned, giving him a kiss. "Text me when you get home, okay?" He watched as she disappeared back into the crowd, beaming at a man in a charcoal grey suit. "Agent Ross! I haven't seen you in ages! Did I ever tell you that you remind me so much of one of Stephen Strange's old friends?"
Instead of grabbing one of the cars that had lined up outside, Loki simply left the building, snapping his fingers and appearing on the Bleeker Street stoop. It was quite late when Laurel finally made it home. Loki was up in their room, looking out the window towards the glowing lights of the gala, when a car arrived. Steve got out, going to open the door for Laurel, who gave him a hug, kissed his cheek, and wished him a good night before unlocking the door and coming upstairs. As he heard her footsteps coming closer, Loki sat down again, picking up a book and tossing a ball of light into the air.
"You're still awake?" Laurel wondered as she walked in, dropping her high heels next to the door. "How's your head?"
"Better," he told her absentmindedly, watching as she unclasped her necklace, shedding her watch and her earrings as she made her way towards the bathroom. He could hear the water running, Laurel humming to herself.
"Loki? Can you come here and unzip me?"
He set his book aside, having read nothing more than the first sentence. "May I ask you something? You and Captain Rogers are quite close, aren't you?"
"We are." She pulled a couple of bobby pins out of her hair as Loki unzipped the back of her dress. "Don't worry, love," she smiled mischievously, turning to him and pulling him closer. "You might not be off the hook yet, but no one can compete with you."
