"Defectors from Kamar-Taj with a penchant for dark magic, or for simply causing trouble?"
"They are all accounted for, last time I checked." Stephen rubbed his stubble. "The registry is clean."
"Could it be Kaecilius? Or his remaining Zealots, out for revenge?"
"I don't believe there are any left. The pathway to the Dark Dimension is all but sealed and for as long as the Book of Cagliostro is under your care, it might as well be obliterated. Unless you've let someone break into the library. Again." Stephen dead-panned.
He shook his head. "Besides this attack seemed a bit too personal…the Zealots were kind of like, you know, 'the bigger picture' kind of people."
"Personal? Why do you think it is personal?" Wong said in that expressionless way of his that Strange never knew meant jest or sarcasm. "Because it happened right on our doorstep, or because it happened to Loki?"
"Don't read me like one of your books, Wong," Strange said tersely. He then sighed, and relented.
"No, from what Loki said, it didn't sound like Kaecilius."
"From what Loki said, it didn't sound like anybody." Wong muttered darkly. "A hooded figure with no clue as to his identity."
Stephen resisted the urge to glare at him, lest he show too much the offense he was taking on Loki's behalf.
"So no deadly blades made of rainbow glass then. A bit of an impossible idea too since he did turn into dust and become one with the stars." Wong shrugged. "Did Loki see the attacker use any other relic?"
Stephen shook his head in frustration. "No relic. Just hand-to-hand combat and spells. The other two Sanctums come up with anything?"
"Things are quiet on the English and Hong Kong fronts. But they are increasing surveillance." Wong frowned. "Although…"
"What?" Stephen asked warily.
"Master Hamir did mention a peculiarity in recent times at Kamar-Taj. I am not sure if it is connected."
Stephen waited for him to continue.
Wong scratched his cheek hesitantly. "A number of former apprentices who left the Kamar-Taj in favour of worldly pursuits and patients who had been cured by the Ancient One with magic have reported of sudden loss of magic and relapses. This has no precedent and Master Hamir is understandably confounded."
Stephen frowned deeply. "Could the Ancient One's death have anything to do with it? Like how if an army ant queen dies, the colony dies with her?"
"But it is not the Ancient One's magic that sustained the healing and the continued recovery in the first place. It is your own magic." Wong crossed his arms. "Besides if that were true, shouldn't all of us be affected in the same way?"
Stephen rubbed his upper lip in consternation. "I do not like this, Wong."
In an attempt to cheer his Sorcerer Supreme up, Wong patted his shoulder and gave him a smile, which looked ill-at-ease at best. "Hey. Maybe it was simply an isolated incident? A case of…how do you say it…'Wrong place, wrong time'?"
"A mugging is a wrong place, wrong time." Stephen growled. "Someone attacks you with a Spell of Revelation, that's an outright sniper-for-hire assault."
"What if…the sniper had wanted to reveal Loki for what he is?"
"Which is?" Stephen raised an eyebrow, daring Wong to say any of the many wrong things.
"A…millennium-old alien sorcerer who once attacked New York and is now being sheltered by the Sorcerer Supreme?"
"You and I both know the invasion was not of his own volition, not entirely."
"Don't get me wrong, Strange. You like the guy, I don't dislike the guy." Wong shrugged. "Others may not share the sentiment."
As if on cue, a sudden shudder ran through the Sanctum, shaking the walls and rattling the chandelier above their heads.
Oh…boy. Here we go.
"Thor Odinson. You're looking awfully…battle-ready. For…" Stephen's gaze flicked to the grandfather clock on the wall. "7 o'clock in the morning." He nodded to the man standing next to the God of Thunder, whom he was not at all expecting. "Dr Banner."
Wong hooked both thumbs into the belt at his expansive waist, eyeing the God of Thunder who was all decked out in his battle armour and cloak, Stormbreaker ever at the ready. "Are we going fighting again? Do we have time for some tea first?"
"Sorry to barge in like this, Strange. Master Wong." Thor flung Stormbreaker over his head, resting it on one vast shoulder. Stephen felt a little irked at the sheer familiarity (or maybe it was plain dislike) presenting itself as well-concealed disrespect but decided to do well away with it. They were his guests after all.
"What can I do for you gentlemen?"
"SHIELD has detected a sudden surge of combative energy in your vicinity yesterday but was unable to pinpoint the exact location, possibly due to the shielding effect of whatever weaponry or abilities used by the combatants," Bruce began. "We scoured the area for possible threats in and around Greenwich Village the whole of yesterday but could not find any physical evidence of anything…physical."
Strange and Wong exchanged looks. "So…in other words, the Avengers did not find anything to smash or pulverise and you have come to us for…help?"
"Of the metaphysical kind, yes," Thor affirmed, fixing Strange with a suspicious look. "Was that a knowing look you just gave him? Or you just happened to look in the general direction of the other person and your eyes just happened to meet?"
Stephen felt a vein throb in his temple. Since when did this hulking bulk of muscle mass develop such keen observation sense? Good on you, King of Asgard.
"Yes, Your Majesty, it was." If Thor could do snarky, he could do it twice over. But they were supposed to work together after all. "I am afraid there has been an incident involving an unidentified wielder of sorcery, most likely a Master of the Mystic Arts, and an unanticipated attack on our…person."
"Any casualties?"
Stephen paused. "No."
But Thor once again picked up on the nuance of hesitation in Stephen's brusque answer. His golden-tanned face blanched. "Where is Loki?"
When neither Stephen nor Wong answered, Stormbreaker thudded to the floor.
"He did not return yesterday." Thor took a few steps forward. "He did come here?"
"I am here, Brother." A familiar voice carried into the drawing room from an annex right behind him. Thor whirled and broke into a magnificent smile.
"Loki. I am glad you are safe."
Thor's giant hand clamped on his shoulder, thumb automatically brushing against the side his neck. Thor's smile wavered. "You are alright? You feel warm."
"Yes, Brother. I am only slightly indisposed." Loki gave him a wan smile. He looked beyond Thor, and his smile turned a little more characteristically mischievous. "Hello, Bruce."
The physicist was staring at him open-mouthed, no doubt having caught sight of Loki's rounded abdomen, now very much visible against his willowy frame despite the loose tunic he was wearing.
"Okay." Bruce removed his spectacles, his movements calculative and measured, wiped the lenses on his shirt and put them back on again. "Okay. Still there. Still…yeah."
Loki winked. "Oops."
"I am sure there is a perfectly logical scientific explanation." Bruce waved a hand, trying very hard to appear casual. "No sweat. I have seen stranger things. Yep. I really have…"
"So!" Stephen clapped his hands. "Back to the matter at hand."
He waved a hand and five ostentatious-looking fauteuils appeared in a circle. "Everyone, do take a seat." He looked pointedly at Loki, furtively studying him from head to toe. He only looked a shade paler than normal but appeared his usual self with no tell-tale sign of residual weariness or nausea.
Good. Jolly good.
"We…are still in the midst of investigation and have established communication with the London Sanctum as well as the Hong Kong Sanctum. We are trying to determine the nature and scale of the threat, but preliminary inquiry suggests these attacks are solitary and…contained for now."
Stephen tried to gauge Loki's reaction but alas Loki's face was as blank as paper.
Bruce appeared unconvinced. "So, in your opinion, there is no immediate danger on an apocalyptic scale to New York or any other city in the world?"
"Yes." Stephen answered shortly. He clasped his hands in his lap.
"Yes, as in there is immediate danger on an apocalyptic scale to New York or any other city in the world?"
"No." Stephen growled.
Loki sighed. He propped an elbow on the armrest and leaned his temple into the heel of his hand. His head was still a little heavy.
Wong cleared his throat. "Dr Banner. Perhaps it is best if we could adjourn and let us back to our work and we shall update you if there is any development or matter of concern?"
"Yes. But at least do tell us who the victim of the attack was. Was it a civilian?" Thor ventured a guess. "Another wizard? Captain Rogers has kindly requested something to put in the report."
"Hey, what happened to your arm?" Bruce suddenly demanded.
In alarm, Loki realised his faux pas a heartbeat too late when Thor rose to his full towering height and lifted his finger. "NO. No glamour."
Stephen closed his eyes and wished he could disappear for an hour. Or a day.
Thor took Loki's elbow surprisingly gently and straightened his brother's arm, pushing up the sleeve even further. He stared down at the stretch of inflamed red skin marring the milky whiteness of the underside of his forearm. Stephen noted with alarm the angry blisters scattered along the path of the burn that must have formed in the night.
What powerful magic it was to have lingered so; it was now a second-degree burn and much more serious. No wonder Bruce was alarmed.
Thor's expression was unreadable. "It was you."
Loki's eyes steeled. "I attacked no one."
Stephen climbed to his feet, "Guys-"
"You were attacked. And you did not tell me."
That was the straw that broke the camel's back.
Loki wrenched his arm out of Thor's grasp, shot to his feet and practically flew out of the room.
"Loki!" Thor growled warningly.
"I've got this, big guy." A hand pulled on Thor's impressive bicep.
"Banner?"
The physicist patted the air with both hands in a 'wait here' gesture, obviously meant to placate the God of Thunder, who was becoming more overwrought.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Thor turn around to loom over Doctor Strange and decided he did not want to stay. Banner quickly left the room in search of the Trickster God, feeling more than slightly guilty. God, he hoped Loki had not teleported anywhere he could not follow.
"Hey." Bruce found him in the kitchen, sitting at the table and staring into space. There was a mug in front of him. The mug was empty.
"Hey."
"You alright?"
"Yes."
Bruce nodded. At least Loki was still willing to speak, even if in monosyllables.
"Look, I'm sorry about all that, you know, earlier."
Loki gave a disinterested shrug. "Why? You haven't done anything to me."
"Right." Bruce fidgeted and fingered the back of the chair right next to Loki. "Mind if I?"
Loki shrugged again. He couldn't care less. He was a thousand miles away. It did not matter in the slightest where Bruce sat.
They sat in silence, an uncomfortable one at first, but with each passing minute, Loki sensed his awareness slowly returning as if Bruce's presence was a tether pulling him in. After what felt like hours, he took the first deep breath ever since leaving that stifling excuse of a meeting he wished he had not attended.
"You don't look all that surprised."
At Bruce's raised eyebrow, Loki looked expectantly at his bump which was nothing to write home about; it just looked like he had swallowed a very small whole cantaloupe.
The physicist gave him a small smile, of what suspiciously looked like relief. "I had my suspicions. Not that you were knocked up, no. But more like I was worried you were hiding some kind of illness or something. You were vomiting quite a lot and quite too much and too long for a simple stomach flu."
Loki looked at him sharply, his green eyes unreadable.
"So all the while you were wearing a glamour, huh."
"I would hate having to answer questions."
Bruce only nodded in mutual understanding.
"I haven't thanked you for the teas."
"Did they help?"
"No," Loki chirped. "Which was why I didn't thank you earlier."
Bruce laughed softly. Loki glanced at him in surprise.
"Well. Herbal teas are usually only placebos anyway. I just couldn't, you know, not help."
"Well. Thank you, Bruce. For what it's worth, I am much better now."
"I'm glad." He gestured at the empty mug. "Did you want to make something to drink?"
"I did. Then I figured why bother." Loki blinked lazily. "It is never going to fill me up inside."
Bruce did not know what to say to that. So he did what he always thought was best to break an awkward conversation. He changed the subject.
"So. Will you be coming with us to Asgard, then?"
Loki's head whipped around and stared at Bruce, eyes wide as saucers.
Bruce looked up in the general direction of the ceiling. In the distance he could hear the sound of something likely made of glass breaking loudly and he shook his head. Thor's umbrella was lethal.
He pointed at Loki's arm. "You do know Thor is never letting you stay here after that, don't you?"
In a sudden display of quiet rage, Loki picked up the mug and threw it at the wall in front of him where it smashed into pieces.
When Loki returned to the drawing room, aside from Wong who had mysteriously disappeared and the million pieces of what used to be a cauldron, which Loki had long suspected to be Eldhrímnir, the old Norse cauldron of the gods, but no matter now - nothing seemed amiss.
Stephen was leaning against a wall in a far corner with his arms crossed tightly across his chest and looking very cross. Loki gave him a once-over and decided he looked unscathed. No doubt he had told Thor everything. He could tell by the downward slope of Thor's shoulders as the Thunder God stood hunched in front of the window, staring out at nothingness.
"Thor."
The Thunderer turned around very slowly. His stony, impassive façade masked the despair in his mismatched eyes.
Loki knew that look. And he hated it.
"Loki Odinson, Prince of Asgard, you are hereby ordered to promptly return to Asgard, and the presence of your person is requested by this evening at the latest. Dr Banner and I will personally escort you-"
"By whose command?" Loki fought to keep his voice steady and disinterested. He felt Bruce's grounding presence by his side but he could not see beyond the figure standing in front of him and the shadows he cast over them all as the morning rays shone through the windows.
Thor did not answer.
Loki turned his back and walked out for the second time and made a note to make damn sure no one was going to be able to find him this time.
He was wrong.
He sensed the static energy hovering in the air long before the portal flickered into view, and when the familiar red-cloaked figure emerged out of it, Loki leaned his head back and thumped it hard once against the wall. He noted the absence of pain. Good, he thought. He was still numb. That meant he could say just about anything and exactly everything he wanted to say and worry about the consequences later.
The Sorcerer Supreme glided towards him and came to rest a mere foot away. Loki ignored Stephen's proffered hand up and slowly climbed to his feet.
"So. Did Thor have to twist your arm, or did you simply give me up?"
"I cannot give up someone who is not mine to begin with."
Loki pursed his lips. "Always a clever answer with you, Doctor."
Stephen was as calm and collected as ever.
"It was not meant to upset or hurt you."
Loki barked a laugh. "Oh, I'm sure it wasn't. Thank you for being so considerate of my delicate tendencies."
"You weren't there when Thor and I talked but surely this doesn't come as a surprise to you." Stephen sounded almost aloof and Loki's blood ran cold with icy fury.
"You promised me," he whispered. "You will try harder, you said."
Stephen clenched his jaw.
"I was not going to pretend I am capable of offering you protection when I wasn't able to prevent one of my own from attacking you right at my front door, Loki!"
Loki's throat began to constrict as anger rose and welled in his gut like waterbrash. He could feel the monster in him rear its head, threatening to swallow him whole like the sea-
"It is not protection that I wanted from you!" Loki nearly choked on a sob. "Never that!"
"Then what did you want? Tell me the truth, Loki." Suddenly Stephen was in his face, his grey eyes flashing, his handsome features contorted in a snarl, "Are you happy here with me? Truly?"
Loki recoiled and took an intuitive step back. He blinked back against the sudden wetness in his eyes.
"You and Thor are more alike than you know."
"Oh, please do elaborate." Stephen implored sarcastically. "I am dying to know. In what way am I even remotely similar to your dearly loved brother?"
The threatening tears dried in an instant and Loki's eyes hardened as he hissed, "I am not a piece of relic that breaks the second things go awry, Doctor. You think asking me if I am happy, or upset, or content or whatever the Hel it is you both think I am and should be feeling is going to insulate me in some way against your own insecurities?"
"You're projecting. I know feelings can be a difficult concept for you."
"Tell me you're only asking solely out of concern for me."
"What else is there if not for concern?" Stephen threw his hands up in exasperation.
"Oh, I shouldn't presume, Doctor. Feelings are difficult for me, remember? Maybe to assuage your own guilt? Regret? You tell me."
"You think I regret this?"
"Spare my sensitivities, Strange," Loki spat, "I am no docile creature. I have seen the way you look at me. Or don't look at me. You are conflicted."
Stephen's face blanched. Without thinking, he grabbed Loki's arms and catapulted them both into a tapestry on the wall, the only thing cushioning Loki from the impact being the sheer heaviness of the ornate fabric, but he still felt the shudder go through his head and for a moment Loki saw stars.
"You have no idea -" With the weight of Stephen's body pressing against him, Loki could not escape noticing the tremors of fury radiating from the sorcerer's chest and abdomen. The hands clenching his arms were shaking, yet the grip exquisitely painful. Loki winced.
"There was no choice, Loki."
"There was always a choice. Do you truly think if there had not been a choice, I would subject myself to this? Carrying the baby of a stranger? No pun intended, of course."
"You tried to terminate the pregnancy, remember? It didn't work."
Loki leaned forward until their noses almost touched, his eyes dark and stormy and utterly devoid of light.
"I threw myself off the Bifrost in a tantrum, Sorcerer. Taking a knife to my gut and slicing my belly open is no hard measure."
A chill ran down Stephen's spine-
This was it. This was the madness. This was Loki.
The Loki who never gave direct answers to anything, whose words stung like poison, whose black, black heart withered at the first display of affection through no fault of his own but the ones who should have showered him with nothing but love of the deepest kind.
The Loki who, in his twisted, roundabout way was telling Strange that
"You do care." Strange's grip loosened around Loki's arms, as if only realising what he should have realised right from the start-
He looked down to the soft curve of rounded flesh between the juts of Loki's hipbones pressed hard against his own midriff. "You wanted him too."
Just as much as I, and that thought thrilled Stephen to the core.
But the sudden rush of euphoria was lost on Loki, whose voice began to shake.
"I am a warrior, Strange. I have fought countless battles alongside the mighty Thor for as long as I can remember. I have sat upon the throne of Asgard, wielded Gungnir and ruled over the Nine Realms in lieu of Odin All-Father, so deprived of lifeforce was he under a spell that I cast, that he told me he loved me and died."
There were unshed tears in Loki's eyes.
"Your rogue sorcerer corners me in a street. Casts a spell that strips me bare, and instead of answering the challenge and taking his head off where he stands, I retreated." Loki's hand ghosted over his belly.
A sick whisper. "I felt him move inside me and I ran."
Loki dropped his head slowly, his forehead thumping against Stephen's chest without realising, exhausted as he was. "What does that tell you about how I feel?"
"It tells me, to tell you-" Stephen laid a hand against the side of Loki's face, lifting his chin so the green, green eyes had nowhere to look but only at him. "That I'm going to do this."
And Stephen kissed him.
Loki's heart came to a crashing halt, and his eyes slowly, so very slowly, fluttered to a close. The tips of Stephen's fingers lightly lingered on his temples, before digging deeper, bolder, deliberately kneading the sensitive pressure points behind his ears with deft thumbs in time with each delicate probe of his tongue, lips soft, dry, yet undiluted honey still-
Stephen's kisses grew hungrier and more desperate; Loki yielded with as much give as Stephen ever remembered him give on that one night they shared, too, too long ago, his tongue more teasing than exploratory, goading Stephen to push back even harder.
Loki could hardly breathe, his chest tight as his pulse quickened with each gasping heave and his hands clawed the front of Stephen's robes-
And when they finally broke away, Loki was the first to speak.
"Strange…"
"Yes?" His lips throbbed. He still could not take his eyes off Loki's lips.
"Do we really have to fight before every time we kiss?"