Thor didn't bother to stop and think.
Tony had left. He had said that he needed to get back to the tower. Said something about some text that sounded important. Something that sounded like his team was staging an intervention. But it wasn't like he was going to get out of it anytime soon. He wondered what part of his personality they would be picking apart now. Of course he made sure Loki ate a bit more. Made Loki drink a cup of tea, it had seemed to soothe him before. Tony cared, he didn't know how or when he had had started. But he cared and he worried and he didn't want Loki to fall apart once he was alone once more. Yet, Tony still left despite his struggle on whether or not he should.
If Thor had bothered to slow down, maybe he would have handled his arrival at Tea and Potions a bit better. He could have slowed down. Possibly walked through the door like any mortal would. He could have seen Loki at a place of almost contentment.
Loki felt drained. The second Tony had left, all his strength had seemed to snap out of him. Though he supposed that could just be an after affect of the yelling he had been doing. Just another affect of falling apart at the seams. He went to autopilot. He cleaned up the tables. Moved his sign to the side and started to take orders. He started to feel normal, or at least he started to feel less curled in on himself, less broken.
But Thor never had been known for slowing down and it would have been a foolish time to start. His brother needed him. If anything he was moving faster then normal. A few had to practically jump out of his way to escape getting accidentally trampled. And Natasha very nearly had to run behind him. Every so often she would tell him to turn. Or watch out for the unsuspecting car. Other then that she just tried to keep up.
The door swung open. Except for the fact that it didn't swing, it crashed into the wall in a way that meant it was most likely going to be stuck for some time. The bell jingled. Except for the fact that it was ripped from its hanger and flew just past an unsuspecting couple. The shop that had finally begun to feel like home, or more accurately, sanity was struck once more. And all Loki could do was stand behind the counter as another metaphorical storm entered. Stand shaking from head to toe as if that could be his armor. As if he didn't fear the thought of his lie of a brother let alone the factual man that had entered. He didn't run, though apart of him wanted to. He didn't cry, though he definitely wished to. Instead Loki stood behind his counter hoping beyond hope that Thor would simply leave.
Thor didn't notice the bell or the door or the couple. And he most certainly wasn't going to leave anytime soon. Instead he walked closer and closer till he stood face to face with his brother. His not dead brother. And he smiled. The biggest smile he could, the kind that seemed brighter then any star. He stood there, smiling, waiting for Loki to say something. Anything.
Loki didn't know what was expected of him. So he stayed shaking. Just barely managing to stay upright. He stared and stared and stared till his eyes begin to water. Yet he still refused to blink. To blink would be to release the tears and even if it was only one or two he knew they wouldn't stop. And he couldn't cry. Not now. Not now, with Thor in front of him. Most likely ready to kill him. To swing that damnable hammer and cave his skull in. Ready to burn him, freeze him, rip him limb from limb. Loki retreated to the furthest corners of his mind. As if his darkest recesses could help him. As if images of torture left done and undone could protect him from his Not Brother.
Thor didn't understand why Loki was merely standing there. He expected a fight. He had expected a warm reunion. Actually he wasn't really sure what he had expected but it certainly hadn't been this. Thor reached out and placed a hand on Loki's shoulder. "Brother I..." He couldn't think of what he wanted to say. Couldn't think what he was meant to say. So instead of talking, the two brothers ended up standing in silence.
Eventually Natasha had to step in. She whistled, long and sharp. It was the kind of whistle that got everyone's attention. Which included the attention of Loki and Thor. And the attention of everyone else in the store. Which meant everyone had their eyes on her. But she figured it was fine since both Thor and Loki had bothered to move. Loki had even seemed to slow some of his shaking. Natasha smiled and said, "Would you find us a table. I think we need to talk."
Loki forced the smallest of smiles to flit across his face. He quickly grabbed up an assortment of various sweets and three mugs. He placed them all on a tray along with a recently made pot tea. Once everything was settled, Loki stepped out from behind the counter and lead Natasha and Not Brother to the slightly hidden table behind the pile of books. He tried to calm down. He tried to make it feel like he was surfing just another customer. But it didn't feel the same, how could it. When he was very nearly certain that this conversation would end before it even had a chance to begin. Before he even had a chance to explain himself. And he supposed it didn't really matter. A quick death, any death, was what he most likely deserved. It would be just for his Not Brother to be the one to set the final blow. He only wished that he would be allowed a moment to get his customers out of the shop. A moment to spare them. A moment to apologize, even if in the end it never really mattered.
