Okay, so I got a bit carried away with this chapter cause I kept thinking of new scenarios for Loki to experience at Disney World, so I just KEPT ON GOING. I'm sure many of you are happy to know that this chapter is over 11 thousand words long though :')
So without further ado, The Disney Chapter ;)
Hydrangeas Say Our Family Will Flourish
Chapter Forty-Four: A Dazzling Place I Never Knew
When Amelia told Tony of her and Loki's plan to take the children to Disney World, she wasn't expecting the reaction she received. What she'd anticipated was Tony clapping his hands together and announcing 'that's an excellent idea!' but what she got was a strained smile frozen in astonishment.
"Disney World, huh?" Tony murmured tightly, "And, uh, Loki's going with you?"
Amelia blinked, frowning, "Uh, yeah. It's going to be a family trip," she explained, her slightly concerned gaze lingering on the man sitting opposite her on the couch, "Is… is that okay?" She found Tony's rigid response entirely strange and she couldn't put her finger on why in the world he would be opposed to the trip.
Tony's eyes widened then, as if he suddenly realised how he'd sounded, "Oh, yeah! It's totally fine, it's just…" he trailed off, and Amelia inclined her head, waiting for him to finish his thought. Tony visibly cringed, sighed, and then murmured, "See, here's the thing. I sort of… made a deal. With Disney. A while back."
Amelia blinked.
"A deal? What kind of deal?"
Tony seemed reluctant to go on, but elaborated at Amelia's pressing expression.
"Well… I may have given them permission to… use the Avengers' likenesses in their parks."
Amelia absorbed Tony's admission, and then gave a confused smile, "What? Are you telling me that they've hired people to be the Avengers? Walking around the parks like the Disney characters?" She was glad Loki and the children weren't present at that moment; her husband was in the process of giving the kids a bath.
"Well. Yeah, kinda. Exactly that, actually." Tony admitted, his tongue rolling over his teeth sheepishly.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" Amelia started laughing, finding the revelation to be utterly hilarious. Tony had just confessed that there were Avengers lookalikes roaming the Disney parks, walking around and acting just like their real superhero counterparts. Her hysterics doubled when she discerned that the reason Tony seemed so nervous about her and Loki attending the park was that there was a Disney Loki there too.
Tony began to chuckle too, finding Amelia's laughter to be refreshing and catchy after seeing her express nothing but sorrow for weeks. He rubbed at the back of his neck bashfully and gave an awkward smile, "Yeah, not kidding. I'm not sure how Loki would react to this…"
Amelia snickered, covering her mouth with her hand to stifle it, "Oh, leave that to me. I'll break it to him. Apart from that, do you think it's a good idea to take the kids there? I know we'd have to keep Loki's identity a secret so he'd have to wear a disguise, but I really think it'd be a wonderful experience for Kari and Aster… they need something to be happy about."
Tony's prior awkwardness melted away, his face softening in understanding, "Oh, absolutely. The kids would adore Disney World… and we can put you in the biggest and best hotel room, I suggest the Contemporary Resort, I hear it's got a beautiful view of Cinderella's Castle," it was rather sweet to hear Tony speak so matter-of-factly about the Disney park.
"Wait, have you been to Disney World before?" Amelia inquired.
"Yeah. Once or twice. Or ten times. What? It's a magical place," Tony gave her a furtive smirk, "and how many times have you been?"
Amelia shook her head, "Never. This would be my first time there."
Tony's jaw dropped, and after a brief pause, he picked up his ipad and started tapping away on it; Amelia tilted her head confusedly, "What are you doing?"
"Booking you, Loki and the kids into the park for the most exciting vacation of your lives, that's what," Tony declared, clearly very eager to pay for everything. Amelia's heart fluttered with gratitude that Tony simply went ahead to pay for their trip without anybody even asking it of him; she recalled Loki telling her that Tony was keen to help repair the situation he felt he had a hand in causing, and Amelia would never have blamed him for what happened in Asgard, but she allowed him to foot the bill, knowing it would probably help him feel less guilty over everything.
"Thank you, Tony," Amelia told the man, her expression overflowing with appreciation.
"Loki, babe, can I talk to you?"
Loki's eyebrows lifted inquisitively as he looked up from sifting through his suitcase, his suspicions immediately high over Amelia's specific choice in words. She only called him babe either when she needed something or she wanted to butter him up and make him more agreeable for whatever she intended to pose to him.
"Yes?" he whispered tentatively, not wishing to wake the kids who were just a few steps away, snoring in his and Amelia's bed. It was the day before they were hopping on Stark's private jet to head to Florida and the twins didn't know anything about the surprise trip they had planned, which was Amelia's idea. She felt surprising them at the last moment would give them an even bigger impact of good memories and make them forget all about the nightmares that plagued them.
Amelia knelt down beside her husband, licked her lips hesitantly, and then smiled, "I have something I need to tell you."
Loki blinked, frowning slightly, "Right. And what would that be?"
Amelia scratched her head, her expression sheepish and unsure, which only further concerned Loki.
"Well, it's about Disney World."
"Go on," Loki's teeth grinded together as impatience burrowed into his head.
"See, um, Tony has… like, a partnership with Disney," Amelia began, explaining her words slowly and clearly, "and in this partnership, he's sort of… allowed Disney to use the Avengers' image in their parks."
Loki stared at his wife, "You mean in merchandise?" Whilst living in Manhattan, Loki had passed by many shops that sold merchandise centered on the Avengers, mostly in the form of clothing and accessories. It was nothing new to him.
"Yes. Well, there's that. But they also…" Amelia paused, peering over her shoulder at the kids to double check they were fast asleep before continuing, "you know how I mentioned that they have all the Disney characters walking around the park, people dressed in costumes, right?"
Loki nodded his head.
"Well, basically, they have the Avengers walking around the park in much the same fashion." She tapped her fingers nervously against her lips as she waited for Loki's reaction to the revelation.
Loki gazed at his wife, blinking a few times as he processed what exactly she had said, "People dressed as the Avengers?"
"Yep."
"Pretending to be them?"
"That's correct."
"So, Stark and Rogers… Banner, Romanoff… even Barton?" He lifted an eyebrow, almost amused at the thought of Disney employing somebody to dress as Hawkeye and wander around the amusement park.
"Right," Amelia swallowed, "and Thor… and you."
All the amusement quickly disappeared from Loki's face.
"Come again?" Loki spoke, his voice a few tones deeper than it had been.
Amelia licked her lips again, smiling anxiously, "Yes. There's somebody dressed up as you as well. You still don't mentally include yourself when you think of the Avengers?" Her voice became almost sad when she murmured the latter of her words.
He ignored her question, his face twisting as he appeared to go through the five stages of grief in a matter of seconds and finally landed on anger, anger towards Tony Stark.
"I'm going to kill that son of a bitch," Loki hissed, his voice rising slightly. Amelia slammed her hand over his mouth, shushing him almost violently before glancing back at the children. Aster stirred slightly at the commotion, her breathing stuttering before her head sunk deeper into her pillow and she cuddled up against her brother, dipping back into her slumber.
Amelia glared at her husband, "I'll kill you if you wake them," she grumbled in jest, "now calm down, it's all in good fun. They include you and the rest of the Avengers there because it makes children happy to believe they're meeting their heroes. Think of it as an honour! Disney thinks you important enough to be a figure at their park," she explained, idly rubbing her hands over his shoulders in a subconscious gesture to soothe his anger.
"I don't need Disney to tell me I'm important, and I don't recall my permission being asked for this," Loki growled.
Amelia tried to bite back her smile, "Tony told me the contract you signed when you started taking on missions included a section that states you hand over the right to allow your image to be sold to third parties for use in commodities, promotion and marketing, hence all the merchandise that exists already. It also includes Disney being able to use you as a cast member."
"A cast member? Wait, what contract? I didn't sign a damned contract!" When Loki grew a little too frantic in his hushed snapping, Amelia shushed him again, giving him a hard stare that promised him a scolding were he to accidentally wake the kids.
"Actually you did, according to Tony. He has your signature on file," Amelia pointed out.
"This is absurd. I only skimmed the important parts of the contract, how was I to know Stark planned to sell me like I'm some whore," Loki quietly seethed.
Amelia smirked, "Well maybe you should've read the fine print."
"You're enjoying this. You think it's funny that there's a fake me walking around that damn park."
Amelia would be lying if she said she didn't find the thought entirely amusing, she'd spent a long time laughing about it when Tony had confessed to her, "Look, I did a little research after Tony told me and from what I've read of the accounts of people meeting these characters, they have the actors study all your mannerisms and the way you speak and everything to get the character just right."
"I'm not a character, Amelia. I'm a person, not a fiction. They can't just try and replicate me like this. There's only one me." Loki seemed incredibly pressed, but Amelia knew when it eventually came to it, he'd behave himself when faced with his faux double for the sake of their children.
"You know, the guy that plays you is kind of attractive," Amelia threw in not-so-innocently.
Loki's irritation increased twelvefold, all manifesting in the dark look he pinned his wife with, and Loki put his arm around Amelia's waist, pulling her closer so he could openly glower into her eyes, "Don't even try it, Amelia," he growled wickedly. Amelia licked her lips for the umpteenth time, this time for other reasons; she loved when her husband got jealous and possessive.
"We're going on a little surprise trip," Amelia had told the children just before midday that next morning, "and you two are going to love it." The kids had reacted with smiles and verbal excitement, probably thinking they were being taken to Central Park to have a run around, or maybe a trip to the mall. They couldn't have predicted where they were actually going, Amelia and Loki had been very careful keeping it a secret.
So upon reaching the airport after a car ride by one of Tony's drivers, the children were very confused and a little bit apprehensive to be getting on Stark's private jet. It was going to be their first time flying, and Amelia was a little bit worried they would hate it, which was why she and Loki planned on telling them their destination just after takeoff.
They strapped the children into their seats and listened to the pilot over the intercom informing them of the imminent departure.
"The plane is gonna go really fast and then lift off into the sky, it might be a little scary at first but it'll be fine once we level out," Amelia explained to the nervous twins, giving them her brightest smile, before turning to Loki, "hey, would this be your first time on a plane? Not including quinjets, I guess."
Loki peered out the window as the jet was pulled into position on the runway, "Uh, not exactly."
"No?"
"I've been on a plane before. A long time ago… jumped out of it, actually."
He said it so casually, Amelia's eyebrows lifted in surprise, and she waited for some sort of elaboration that didn't seem to come, so she pressed for more information, "You jumped out of a plane?"
"Yes. I lost a bet with Thor," he chuckled, "and in the process, pulled off one of the most unintentionally funny pranks I ever pulled on humanity."
Amelia looked blankly at her husband, "What are you talking about?"
Loki peered at the children, who were glancing out the window as the jet began rolling down the runway at high speed, "Well. Have you heard of D. B. Cooper?"
Amelia frowned heavily at her husband for a brief moment, eyes narrowing slightly as she recollected that particular name, she definitely had heard it before. A few more seconds passed and then her eyes opened wide, "Are you joking?"
Loki merely smirked at her.
"I genuinely cannot tell whether you're joking."
Loki chuckled at Amelia's incredulity, "Perhaps I am joking," he said cryptically with a wink, much to her dismay, then turned his full attention to the window as the plane finally reached a fast enough speed and tilted back, lifting its front wheel off the ground.
The kids gasped, their eyes wide as they looked between their mother and father, searching their faces to make sure everything that was happening was supposed to be happening, and remained calm when greeted with reassurance.
After some time, the angle of the plane evened out and they were flying high above the States, en route to Orlando, Florida. Despite the bumpy lift off, the twins had been brave and endured the experience to the best of their ability, only growing slightly afraid where it was expected. Amelia felt it was about time they learnt about the true nature of their flight.
"I think you two deserve to know where we're going now," Amelia spoke knowingly with a smile on her face, "we're going somewhere very magical, and we'll get to meet some people you've always wanted to meet."
Kari and Aster looked between each other, eyes full of wonder and curiosity, but they were unable to venture a guess as to where this magical place was.
"Daddy and I have decided to take you… to Disney World."
Loki promptly found himself wishing they'd revealed the surprise after landing, because the ensuing scream of pure joy from both his children had him slamming his hands over his ears; he wasn't sure he had ever heard them shriek so loud in their lives and was stunned when Amelia seemed immune to the high volume. Her eyes were shining just as brightly as the children's, he supposed it made sense given Amelia had told him how much she'd always wanted to go and had never been afforded the chance.
After the initial shock of the screeching wore off, Loki himself felt a deep sense of contentment at the strings of laughter and giggles that came along with all of the smiling faces of his family; perhaps Amelia was right with her theory of joyous memories overpowering their nightmares, perhaps everything would all be fine after this trip.
Aster and Kari seemed so full of energy all of a sudden as excitement flooded through them, it was a high contrast to the sleepy, vacant faces he was often greeted with at this time of the day.
"Alright, shush, you two," Loki spoke up after the kids began listing which Disney characters they were most thrilled to meet, "there are some very important rules we need to establish for this trip, and you must follow them. It is extremely important."
The twins quietened, though they looked more like they wanted to continue talking about how fun it was going to be when they got to meet Elsa.
Taking the children out in public to a big place like Disney World meant that there would be some strict procedures and regulations to obey. Aster and Kari weren't at all used to being around large groups of people, and they especially weren't used to interacting with anybody who wasn't any of the real Avengers or the maid staff in New Asgard.
Whether or not the children would remember to follow these rules remained to be seen, and gave Amelia and Loki a great deal of anxiety if the kids failed to comply.
"Listen closely, because I'm only going to say these rules once," Loki lied. He would have to repeat them all at least three more times before they entered the park.
Rule number one, nobody was allowed to know that Aster and Kari were Loki's children. Nobody. When the kids asked why, Loki told them that it was imperative that they kept their true identities a secret, because if people were to find out about them, it could put them and their mother in danger.
Rule number two, they weren't allowed to give away the fact that Loki was with them, because if somebody happened to recognise him, it could spell disaster at a place like Disney World. All that unwanted attention would be quite stressful.
Rule number three, just because the people dressed up as the Avengers weren't really the Avengers, that didn't mean that the Disney characters weren't really themselves. They were one-hundred percent going to meet the real Elsa and Anna.
And lastly, rule number four, the use of magic was strictly forbidden up until they returned to Avengers tower in three days time.
"Do you understand the importance of following these rules?" Loki inquired seriously, his lips pursed and his brow furrowed. The kids needed to know the severity of the consequences of disobeying.
Aster and Kari nodded slowly, nervous little frowns on their faces, and Loki nodded too, satisfied for the moment. "Alright, good. So which Disney character are we going to meet first?" Loki asked, pulling them back into their happy chatter.
"Elsa!" They both cried determinedly.
The plan went as followed; they landed at Orlando airport and were driven to the Contemporary Resort hotel at Disney World, where naturally Stark had booked the most luxurious room available for them. After entering their spacious room and ogling the view of Cinderella's castle for a while, they decided to head down to Chef Mickey's restaurant for dinner, and the kids stared openly at the characters - Mickey, Donald and Goofy - who were wandering around and checking that everybody in the establishment was enjoying the food.
The whole time, Loki wore his usual hat and glasses disguise, hair tied back and hidden beneath his cap. He observed the characters with mild amusement, finding it oh so funny that there was just a regular human beneath the padded attire and comically large character heads. Still, the children appeared convinced that this was the real Mickey Mouse they had seen in the Disney cartoons they loved to watch.
Amelia seemed just as enlivened as the kids. When Chef Mickey approached their table, the kids fell quiet and shy, both of them unable to speak in the presence of a character they loved.
"How do you do? I'm Chef Mickey!" Loki was surprised at the very Mickey Mouse-like voice that emanated from the character. Was it somebody doing an accurate impression of the character or was it a pre-recorded message? He hadn't a clue. "I hope you're enjoying your meal!"
Predictably, the kids remained quiet, staring up at Mickey with astonished looks and open mouths. Loki was relieved when Amelia was the one to speak up, because he wasn't ecstatic at the thought of having to speak to these quirky oversized bobble-heads himself.
"We are, Chef Mickey! The food is delicious, isn't it kids?" Amelia smiled at the little ones and they nodded their heads in response, fully believing that the giant mouse before them had personally cooked up their macaroni cheese. "You're such a good chef!" Amelia praised the mouse.
"Aw, gee!" Mickey replied with an expressive hand gesture that suggested he was bashful over the compliment, "I'm glad to hear it! Hey, have you been in the park yet?" It seemed the person within the costume was just really good at doing the Mickey voice.
"Oh, not yet, we're heading in tomorrow," Amelia spoke conversationally, like she was talking to a normal person, "the kids are very, very excited."
"Oh boy! Are you going to meet any Disney princesses?"
"We are! We're very eager to meet one in particular, aren't we?" Amelia once again looked at the kids, trying to prompt them into conversation, "Who do you two want to meet the most, hmm?"
Kari gathered up his courage first and foremost to talk to Mickey, "Elsa…" he was somewhat tentative, but Amelia gave his shoulder a little pat. Incidentally, Loki pondered, the kids must have found this all new and exciting enough to make them nervous in the face of it; they really weren't used to fresh experiences like this and it would take them a little getting used to. Aster particularly probably wasn't going to be very talkative throughout this trip.
"Gosh! Elsa's the coolest queen there is, pun intended!" The exuberant Mickey responded with a playful joke, "Well I hope you have a fun time tomorrow, I'll leave you to your meal for now. Bye-bye!" He waved with both hands, and the kids waved back, staring after him as he plodded off to welcome the next family dining there.
Loki looked at his kids and then to his wife with one curiously arched eyebrow, "Are they all going to be so zealous?"
"Of course," Amelia laughed, "they're Disney characters, they're always zealous."
After dinner, they returned to their large room, which featured two double beds and a moderately sized television screen that came preloaded with a bunch of Disney movies to watch and enjoy.
Amelia felt that the twins sharing a bed would be the first step in easing them back to sleeping in their own rooms once they returned to Avengers tower, and plus that would allow herself and Loki to be able to cuddle at night again, without the children between them.
"There's no bad guys at Disney World, nobody can hurt you here," Amelia told her children, rubbing their heads as she tucked them into their shared double bed after they'd all watched Alice in Wonderland - Loki had somehow managed to convince the kids against picking Frozen for the millionth time - and gave them both a kiss on their foreheads. "And besides, Elsa isn't far away," she winked. Aster and Kari's eyes sparkled with anticipation.
"Can I give her a hug, mama?" Kari asked softly.
"Absolutely, I bet Elsa gives the best hugs," Amelia grinned.
Aster was quiet, Amelia could tell there was something going through the little girl's mind that was potentially bothering her. "What about you, love?" Amelia urged the girl, and Aster pouted slightly before speaking in a very soft voice.
"I wish… we could show her our magic."
Loki lifted his head from where he'd been lounging on the other bed, "You know you can't do that, little flower."
Aster sighed, "I know, daddy…"
Amelia licked her lips, peering sadly between her children and her husband, before an idea struck her and she smiled, "You know, Elsa's very powerful with her magic - I bet she'll be able to sense that you two can do magic without you even having to show her, and she'll know you're special, just like her."
The suggestion placated Aster, who smiled and nodded.
"Very good. Now, I know you're both beyond excited, but you two need to get to sleep because it's getting late," she glanced at the clock, which showed it was approaching nine o'clock at night, which was late for Aster and Kari, "and you'll need a lot of energy for tomorrow."
It took some time, but eventually the kids calmed down enough to fall into a light slumber. Amelia took the opportunity to slink into her bed with Loki, and she immediately snuggled up to his side, enjoying the fact that she could be so close to him while the twins were content in their own bed. Loki soaked in the moment, holding his wife flush against himself.
"I love you," Loki murmured quietly, kissing Amelia's forehead, "that was clever, what you said, about Elsa sensing their magic," he made sure not to speak too loudly.
"I know I'm clever," Amelia smirked, nuzzling her nose against Loki's neck, "and I love you too. I hope you're excited to meet Disney Loki tomorrow."
"Shut up," Loki snickered, poking his wife's side with his finger, causing her to jump.
The soft sound of muted chatter woke Loki in the middle of the night, and for a brief moment he was disoriented, wondering where he was in the unfamiliar room, but the recollection came back to him fast. He lifted his head from where it was pressed between Amelia's neck and shoulder, and cast a glance across to the other bed where his children slept.
The blanket was pushed back and his children were not there.
A panicked pulse flew through him as his brain thought up every possible reason they wouldn't be where they were meant to be, but it lasted only a few moments, because a fleeting perusal of the room revealed Aster and Kari standing on the couch in front of the window, peering out at the shining lights. A wave of relief rolled over Loki and he let his racing heart slow down while observing the kids.
His initial instinct was to get up and gently scold them, place them back in bed and tell them to go back to sleep, but he gave a pause, choosing instead to listen to what they were saying with faint voices. It wasn't every day that Loki was afforded the chance to hear his children speak to each other when they thought he wasn't listening.
"It's so pretty," Aster said, her face and hands pressed against the window as she gazed out.
Before bed, they had all looked out at Cinderella's castle, which was clearly visible in the near distance. The sky had still been somewhat light, so even though the castle was bathed in beautiful spotlights, they did not get the full experience of beholding its brilliance in the dark of night.
"I can't wait to see it in front of us," Kari whispered.
"Is it big?" Aster asked.
"Of course it's big! It's a castle," Kari stated matter-of-factly, his tone suggesting his sister was silly for asking. Aster shushed him for raising his voice ever so slightly.
"But is it bigger than in Asgard?" Aster questioned.
"I dunno." Kari shrugged his shoulders.
"Do you think Elsa will like us?" Aster's line of curious questions continued, as if she believed her brother must have had all the answers.
"I hope so," Kari breathed, wiping the window where his breath fogged up the glass.
Loki smiled. He wondered if either of them had had a nightmare or if they'd simply woken up because they were too excited for the day ahead; either way he allowed them to stand at the window and talk animatedly about what they were going to do during their first day in the park while he feigned sleep for a while.
After about fifteen minutes, he pretended to wake up and gently instructed the kids to get back to bed. The sooner they slept, the sooner they got to meet Elsa. The twins scrambled back to their bed, giggling as they went, and snuggled below the blanket.
Loki didn't expect them to get much sleep for the rest of the night, but at least this time it didn't seem to be terrible nightmares keeping them from their slumber, and that was already a relief.
Amelia had taken to wearing a thin neck scarf while out in public, covering up the memory of that horrific night. It was preferable that nobody got curious and decided to ask her what the visible scar on her neck was; she wanted to let herself forget all about it while she was in Disney World.
Loki dressed himself inconspicuously, choosing common Midgardian clothing that still managed to look sophisticated without standing out, namely black slacks, a long-sleeved dark green t-shirt and a black jacket over the top. Amelia furtively gave his butt an appreciative pat while the kids weren't looking before they left their hotel room that day and headed for the park.
His cap once again covered his tied-up hair and according to Amelia, he was practically unrecognisable as one of the Avengers. Loki hoped she was right, because the disguise was going to be put to the test that day.
He watched as Amelia and the kids gawped at their surroundings as they headed down the so-called Main Street, U.S.A, towards the castle that loomed directly ahead. There were families with loud, squealing children everywhere, and Loki smugly thought about how his kids were composed and well-behaved in public.
That was, until Kari began practically bouncing in place as he declared, "I wanna see Elsa! Can we go see her now!? Please! Please!" which promptly urged his sister into the same state of frenzied eagerness. Loki subtly rolled his eyes. So much for being calm and composed, though he supposed it wasn't expected of children their age in a place like this.
"We'll have to wait till a bit later in the day, kiddos. Elsa doesn't come out to say hello until well after lunchtime, so until then we can go on the rides or keep a lookout for some of the other Disney characters that are about, okay?" Amelia placated the kids readily.
"Aww," the kids murmured audibly, slightly disappointed that they'd have to wait, but they got over it rather fast as their attention was pulled to the many colourful items in the windows of the gift shops that lined the streets.
Amelia convinced the kids that there would be time for shopping later, and that for now it was time to go on the rides. Loki was a little unsure when it came to all the ride attractions; was Amelia expecting him to get on the rides as well? Hopping into a cramped little carriage and being strapped down wasn't exactly his idea of uncomfortable, but according to his wife, each child under a certain height needed to be accompanied with an adult, which meant there was no way he'd be able to weasel his way out of the experience.
Then there were the queues. For the love of Odin, the queues were boring. The children very much agreed with this sentiment, and Amelia had to come up with fun little games like 'I Spy' to help pass the time for them.
For being Loki's first time on a rollercoaster, Space Mountain felt relatively smooth; the kids were only just tall enough to be allowed onto it, thanks to their father's exemplary height and the way genetics worked, and they ended up screaming loud just like all the other humans that rode it with them. Immediately upon departing the carriage, Loki asked the kids if they'd enjoyed it, because their faces seemed to be holding stunned expressions.
Both of them had hair sticking out in various directions and they looked quite amusing in their newly unkempt state, but they both nodded their heads as they left through the exit.
They claimed it was fun, but Loki knew better.
"Great, do you want to go on it again?" Loki asked with a smirk, and the kids quickly gasped and shook their heads negatively, revealing their true feelings about it all. They'd been putting up a brave front, but it was quite an extreme ride for two four-and-a-half year olds.
They settled for something gentler, and found themselves on Peter Pan's Flight, which was more of a visually appealing ride and less of a thrill. The kids looked wowed by the interior of the ride, but Loki was very unimpressed for the length of time they'd waited in the queue.
"Is there a way to skip the queues?" Loki grumbled to Amelia after they exited the Peter Pan ride, and Amelia gave him a smug expression, looking utterly entertained by Loki's plight.
"You need to learn some patience, mister."
Loki glared at his wife and let out a groan. Disney World was going to be the death of him, it seemed.
The only thing of note that Loki was able to do in the queue that he didn't consider completely boring was to observe his children and the way they reacted to the magical world around them. Their eyes were drawn to anything colourful and loud and they seemed to be hunting for Disney characters at all times, particularly Elsa - even though they'd been told she wouldn't be around for a while yet - but also, there was something interesting about the way they looked at other children.
Aster and Kari were not used to being around so many children. They were treated to the odd trip to Central Park, but they kept mostly close to their mother and father and didn't pay attention to the children dotted around with their own families. Here, though, the other children were loud and difficult to ignore, Aster and Kari kept watching them curiously. Loki supposed they'd never actually interacted with other children, not closely, not personally. They had no experience talking to children their own age, or indeed at all.
Loki wondered then if either of his kids ever felt lonely without the company of a young friend or two; he was glad they had each other, but he knew better than anybody that having a sibling wasn't the same as having a friend. He'd had Sif and the Warriors Three when he was young, but a part of him still felt that they called him their friend out of obligation rather than any true friendship. That was probably Loki's fault, for always playing jokes on them at their expense.
While there were very few children in Asgard, Aster and Kari had never met them as the other kids did not live in or near the palace. Perhaps something could be arranged, so that Aster and Kari had the opportunity to interact with the few children close to their own age - but only when Asgard was considered safe for his family to reside in. The investigation was still ongoing, all the palace staff and advisors had been heavily interrogated and released of all suspicion, according to Thor's occasional updates.
Aster and Kari watched a little girl skip past them, their eyes full of envy as they stared at her pretty Disney princess dress - Loki guessed it was Belle's from Beauty and the Beast given it's bright yellow colour - and watched her wave a silver wand around, a star protruding from the end of it. She had a colourful Mickey Mouse headband in her hair and looked happy.
"Daddy, I want a dress," Aster whispered to him, tugging on his hand.
"Can I have one too?" Kari chimed in, pulling on his other hand.
Loki smiled in vague amusement. He'd been worried that the kids had been staring at all the other children because they wanted to make friends, but in actual fact they just wanted to steal the other children's wardrobes. Still, he had already decided he would make an effort in getting Aster and Kari to meet the few other children in Asgard.
"When we head to the Disney shops later, we'll look at the dresses," he promised, ruffling the hair on their heads.
They continued to hop into ride queues for the rest of the morning, notably experiencing the Pirates of the Caribbean - which was quite creative and one that Loki did not mind - and then the Haunted Mansion ride, which ended up giving Aster a bit of a fright. The imagery was too spooky for her and she kept hiding her face against her daddy's side, knowing he would protect her from anything that unsettled her.
Then they queued for a ride called It's a Small World, and Amelia kept peering at Loki with the biggest grin he'd seen on her face in some time. It was worryingly mischievous, and Loki began to feel uneasy.
As they boarded the boat and the ride began, Loki soon realised why Amelia had a look in her eyes that, in retrospect, exuded pure maniacal evil.
The high-pitched voices sang over the speakers a song that burrowed so deeply into Loki's brain and seemed to draw him into a state of hopeless weariness. He felt like he was being taken over by an unknown force, and not even plugging his ears was enough to stop the desperately awful feeling overtaking him.
And the whole time, Amelia stared at him, unaffected, smiling a dangerously calm smile. It was the first time in his life that Loki ever felt truly frightened of his wife. She was capable of ignoring the music tunneling through all their bodies, somehow immune to its negative energy that triggered Loki's fight or flight response. He wanted out of the ride, now.
'It's a small world after all. It's a small, small world. There is just one moon, and one golden sun, and a smile means friendship to everyone.'
How was it still going?
When the ride finally drew to a close, Loki jumped up faster than he ever had, swiping Aster from her seat and not even waiting for Amelia and Kari to exit behind them before he was dashing out of the departure area to freedom.
"That was fun!" Aster exclaimed happily, but Loki barely heard her as he came to a stop and waited for his wife and son to catch up.
"You look sufficiently traumatised," Amelia remarked as she reached him, Kari holding onto her hand looking confused at his father's reaction. "Thought that might happen, I've heard It's a Small World is notoriously, endlessly irritating for some people."
"Irritating?" Loki questioned incredulously, "Amelia, that word doesn't come close to describing the experience of that ride. I think the word devastating would be more suited."
"Can we go on it again?" Kari asked eagerly.
"No." Loki pointed an authoritative finger at his son, his wide eyes giving away his distress, "No. Never again. I'm not stepping foot any closer to that ride than I have to." He looked almost haunted.
"Oh my god, Loki, it wasn't that bad, you drama queen," Amelia snorted.
"Not that bad?" Loki stared at his wife, shaking his head in disbelief.
"Mama, I wanna go on it again," Aster declared, and Loki turned his head slowly to his daughter, the same disbelieving look plaguing his features.
"Traitor," Loki murmured under his breath.
"It's time for lunch, so how about we go get something to eat first and then maybe we can come back here later?" Amelia suggested, taking pity on her dear husband. It made Loki's whole body deflate with relief. Still, the threat of returning later in the day loomed over him like a dark cloud.
Pinocchio Village Haus in Fantasyland was the stop for lunch, where Loki was delighted to learn that pizza was on the menu. He took his time eating, trying to delay any return to the It's A Small World ride, affectionately nicknamed Ride to Hel by Loki himself, and steered the conversation towards meeting Elsa again, knowing that if the kids were distracted by the ice queen, they'd be less likely to want to return to the Ride to Hel.
To Loki's extreme humiliation, he found himself humming the tune while waiting for the kids to finish up their meals, and froze solid when Amelia peered at him knowingly in his peripheral vision. What an awful song for an awful ride.
They finished up their food and left the restaurant to explore the park a little more. They crossed over to Tomorrowland, steering clear of Space Mountain, and Loki was soon faced with something he'd almost succeeded in forgetting about for the first half of the day.
"Look, daddy!" Aster pulled on his trouser leg, pointing keenly across the way, where in a less populated area, two very familiar looking individuals had just made an entrance out of a mysterious door.
"Oh no," was all Loki could manage as his gaze zeroed in on the Disney copycats of himself and his brother. He heard Amelia gasp, and saw once again a look of joyful amusement on her face; it was clear she was gleaning some sort of annoying satisfaction out of seeing her husband react to all the egregious attractions. Going by the children's excitement of seeing Disney Thor and Disney Loki, he would soon have to face these cheap imitations too.
"What's wrong, love? You're not embarrassed to see these impersonators, are you?" Amelia quietly taunted as she steered them all in the direction of this faux Avengers.
"Shut up," Loki grumbled, "This is going to be an absurd and mortifying experience for me, and you're laughing it up."
Amelia grinned, her hand pressing on the small of his back to urge him closer to the characters, much to his dismay. Loki groaned inwardly as they came close enough for him to scrutinise their appearances. They looked very much like cheap knock-offs, in his opinion, but at least the man playing the part of himself looked somewhat handsome; Thor's double was a lost cause, however.
They were dressed up in artificial versions of their Asgardian leather armour, with Disney Loki clad in green, black and gold, and Disney Thor clad in silver and red. The outfits, while clearly counterfeit and inexpensive when compared with the high-quality materials made in Asgard, were not entirely inappropriate in their presentation. They looked… close enough to the attire they were trying to mimic. Loki supposed Disney had the money to make them look as close as possible to the original outfits.
"Ah, some newcomers," Disney Loki gestured to Amelia, Loki and the kids as the young teens who had been conversing with the characters walked away.
"Welcome!" Disney Thor exclaimed, swinging the replica model of Stormbreaker around in his hand in a very carefree way.
Loki's eyes fell shut briefly at the sound of the very forced Asgardian accents. It sounded like when Amelia tried to mimic him, embarrassingly bad. Amelia giggled at his side, and Loki eyed her as she covered her mouth to stifle any further tittering. The kids looked as though they found the presence of these artificial Avengers to be beyond hysterical.
"You," Disney Loki motioned to Aster, "I like your dress. Good colour," he complimented the girl's summery green dress and beckoned her closer as he squatted, closer to her height; Aster gave her father a beaming, bashful look and then approached the fake Loki. "Tell me," Disney Loki began, "who is your favourite Avenger?"
"Thor!" Kari exclaimed from behind his sister.
"Ah, wrong answer. And I wasn't asking you," Disney Loki wagged a finger at Kari, who started laughing.
"Oh but it was the right answer!" Disney Thor interjected uproariously, spreading his arms wide and proud, "I like you, little boy. What is your name?"
"Kari," the boy answered, bouncing up towards the man.
"You're so full of energy!" The false God of Thunder remarked in amusement.
Disney Loki rolled his eyes at the other man before turning his attention back to Aster, "As I was saying, your favourite Avenger?" He asked Aster.
Loki watched as his daughter pointed at fake Loki's chest, too shy to talk aloud, and felt a wave of pride roll through him.
"Me?" Disney Loki confirmed and then let out a short, brief laugh, "Of course, as it should be!"
Amelia licked her lips, barely concealing her grin, and Loki side-eyed her, knowing she was thinking up all sorts of witty ways she could mock him later over this experience. The complacent smirk on Disney Loki's face was irritating, there was no way Loki was that openly gloating when in the public eye - that was more typical to Thor. Loki preferred to be aloof and uncaring, though he supposed that kind of behaviour might not fly over well with Disney World guests meeting his Disney counterpart.
Still, Amelia had told him that these actors were tasked with replicating the Avengers' mannerisms as closely as possible, that they had watched countless videos of footage to perfect the way they walk and talk.
Did he come off as smug when in the public eye?
It was somewhat annoying that he was even questioning it now, that this actor impersonating him had him doubting the way he presented himself. It made him a tad grumpy.
"And what is your name?" Disney Loki asked Aster.
Instead of answering, Aster looked over to her mother and father imploringly, and Amelia dutifully responded on her behalf, "Her name is Aster."
"Aster, tell me, do you like causing mischief?" Disney Loki proceeded to inquire, and the girl - guilty as charged - nodded mischievously.
"That's what I like to hear," the man smiled.
Loki rolled his eyes. What a predictable line of questioning. As if he would approach a random child in public and start asking them if they liked to cause mischief. There was more to him than mischief and lying. And while he was thinking critically of this character that was supposed to be him, he wondered why this Loki didn't seem to have his hallmark daggers anywhere in sight when the fake Thor was allowed to carry his axe around.
He leaned down to Amelia and voiced the question in his head, "Where are his daggers?"
Amelia tore her delighted gaze away from Aster and Disney Loki to peer at him with one eyebrow raised, "Huh?"
"His daggers, Amelia. I use daggers, remember? Where are they?" He whispered impatiently.
"This is Disney World, Loki, he can't carry a goddamn set of daggers around."
Loki appeared affronted, waving his hand in the vague direction of the faux God of Thunder, "Thor has his axe!"
Amelia rolled her eyes and gave his shoulder a shove at the childish tone he was demonstrating, but Loki felt he had a good point in his enquiry, so he narrowed his eyes on Disney Loki, ignoring the slightly nervous expression his wife gave him, and took a step towards him.
Aster had joined her brother, the both of them being entertained by Disney Thor, who was flexing and showing off his muscles, so Loki had no qualms stepping up to his counterpart with an unamused expression. The Disney Loki peered at him as he approached, his expression falling into a muted smile, and Loki realised annoyedly that this fake version of him was maybe an inch or two shorter than he was. How was he supposed to feel well represented when Disney got these minute details all wrong?
"And who are yo-"
"Where are your daggers?" Loki swiftly cut his imperfect clone off.
Disney Loki's eyebrows rose in surprise and he blinked at the question, before crossing his arms over his chest. "Iron Man confiscated them because I kept showing children how I flip them in my hands, said something about how I might poke somebody's eye out if I'm not careful," he harrumphed, portraying an air of minor outrage, "as if I'm not extremely proficient when it comes to daggers. Honestly, his audacity is shocking."
Loki's eyes flickered down the man's body and up again, before he turned and gave his wife a sardonic look, to which Amelia grinned in amusement and took a few steps forward.
"Hello Prince Loki, it's a pleasure to meet you," Amelia greeted, holding onto the flowy part of her dress as she curtsied. Loki wanted to scoff at the display.
Immediately, Disney Loki seemed much more content to interact with somebody who wasn't glaring at him, and he respectfully bowed his head in response, "The pleasure is all mine, Lady…?" He prompted for her name.
"Princess Amelia," Amelia corrected with a serene smile, curious to see how the man would react at her self-proclaimed royalty.
Disney Loki didn't falter, playing along with what he assumed was a jest, "Ah, no wonder you have such refined manners, unlike some others," the man had the nerve to flicker his eyes toward Loki, a gesture that Loki did not fail to detect, "it isn't often I receive the delight of interacting with another who has learnt royal etiquette - unless you count the Disney princesses dotted about this kingdom."
It was somewhat ironic, because Amelia hadn't been given the rigorous lessons on royal etiquette that Loki had undergone with the help of his mother in his younger years.
Amelia was endlessly entertained, grinning from ear to ear.
Disney Loki continued, charismatic and playfully cocky, "Now, I don't even need to ask. I can tell I'm your favourite Avenger."
Loki realised with dismay that Amelia was actually flustered as she spoke with the fake version of him, her cheeks had reddened in a blush and the revelation left Loki feeling extremely irritable. This man wasn't even a quarter as handsome as he was.
"Yes, well, I was trying to be low-key about it," Amelia replied with an obvious pun.
"Ahahaha, you're so funny, that's definitely the first time I've heard that one," Disney Loki retorted in the most monotonous, deadpan voice, triggering a fit of giggles from Amelia.
Loki rued the fact that this cheap copy of him looked overtly self-satisfied at having made Amelia laugh so flagrantly.
Breathing an exasperated sigh, Loki groused, "Do you know where to find Elsa?" The hope was that Disney Loki could point them in the right direction and the kids would be so excited to meet Elsa that they'd very quickly forget the two fake Avengers. Aster and Kari swung round at the mention of their favourite character.
Unfortunately, Disney Loki did not reply in the desired fashion, "Ah, the Queen of Arendelle herself? I can take you straight to her!"
"Do you know Elsa?" Kari gasped, hopeful and brimming with anticipation. There were stars shining in the childrens' eyes as they gazed up at the fake Avenger, and Loki immediately wished he hadn't asked.
"I do! We're actually close friends, she and I," Disney Loki seemed as though he was bragging.
"Hah! You're not friends. She's just the only one who tolerates your mischief!" Disney Thor jeered in his over-the-top booming voice.
Disney Loki looked scandalised, "That's incredibly rude to say. Though I wouldn't expect anything less from you, brother. Never did quite get the hang of politeness, did you?"
The two Disney Avengers didn't trade insults for too long before Disney Loki began escorting Amelia, Loki and the kids in the direction where Elsa presumably resided; the whole time Loki glared at his imitation's back, trailing along behind him while Aster and Kari walked on either side of Disney Loki, holding his hands.
"You need to loosen up a little," Amelia murmured quietly, nudging her husband as they walked side by side.
"This fool acts nothing like me," Loki grumbled back, enlightening his wife to what exactly his frustrations encompassed.
Amelia audibly stifled a laugh, which vexed Loki; he glared openly at her until she bit her lip and shrugged.
"You're hysterical, you know that? He acts just like you. He's got all the mannerisms down and everything. Even the way he stands. He's a pretty good actor," Amelia smiled, making sure to keep her voice low enough that only Loki could hear her.
Loki rolled his eyes, shaking his head, "You're insane."
"You're in denial," Amelia shot back.
Loki was about to open his mouth to retort, but was swiftly cut off by the sound of his counterpart's annoying voice.
"Right here! This is the spot," he reoriented the children, turning them to face an area with another unassuming door, of which Elsa was presumably going to exit from at some point, "She'll be right here, any moment now."
Amelia had explained to Loki that there were supposedly very long queues to meet the Disney princesses, or queen in this case, much like the irritating queues to the rides, so Loki could only assume his Disney counterpart had led the children to what will very soon be the front of the queue. He supposed he had to give the copycat props for allowing them to avoid a horribly long line.
The kids looked taut with suspense, their eyes glued to the door ahead of them, and Disney Loki took a few steps back so that he was stood aside Loki and Amelia.
"So," Amelia began impishly, making conversation, "you and Elsa are close friends are you?" While her question was directed at Disney Loki, who was standing on the other side of her husband, she let her eyes flicker briefly and waggishly to the real Loki.
The real Loki subtly glared at his wife for even evoking more conversation from his Disney counterpart.
"Why, of course," Disney Loki bragged, falling into a smug Loki-like stance, "we have a lot in common, you see. She's a secluded orphan with amazing ice powers, I'm a secluded orphan with amazing ice powers, it was easy for us to understand each other." He gave a chuckle, as if it was all so funny.
Loki was actually shocked by the man's gall. He glared openly at the copycat, his disdain for the man abundantly clear, and he felt Amelia's hand graze lightly over his forearm, a little touch that wordlessly asked him to calm down.
Disney Loki seemed to notice the animosity in Loki's gaze, and there was a brief moment where he let the character slip - for just a brief nanosecond - and his eyes filled with confusion, probably wondering why his harmless joke had triggered such a reaction. He very quickly regained a hand on the character he was playing and gave an annoying, puffed up smirk.
"Oh, are you jealous that Queen Elsa and I get along so well?" He over exaggerated his complacent tone of voice, hoping another jest would diffuse the strange tension between them, but it did not. Loki's glare held, and Amelia tapped on his arm a little more insistently.
One of Disney Loki's eyebrows shot up as he unknowingly stared back at the real Loki, as if he was non-verbally asking 'what the heck is your problem?' and his gaze flickered back and forth between Loki's bright green eyes. And then, to Loki's alarm, there was an edge of recognition in those mirroring eyes.
Disney Loki's eyes went wide, the self-satisfied look draining from his face as he recognised Loki, and Loki looked back with similar levels of shock, his composure failing at the thought of being recognised while he was with his wife and children.
Disney Loki took a few steps back out of muted distress, trying his utmost best to remain composed and in-character despite knowing he was playing the character of the man standing directly before him, who had been pinning him with a challenging glare from the moment he'd stepped into his presence.
"Uh… I…" Disney Loki's face had gone pale and his eyes danced about, looking for some sort of escape, before he threw himself together and valiantly hid behind the mask of his character one las time, "Sorry, I'm getting an urgent alert from Stark, I think I may be needed for a mission. Goodbye."
With that, Disney Loki quickly scuttled off, practically zooming towards a staff exit door where he could find a suitable place to freak out. Loki watched him with eyes that resembled that of a lioness stalking its prey and getting ready to pounce.
Amelia grumbled something about Loki scaring the guy off with his unnecessary mean looks, but Loki didn't fully pick up on what she said, because he was already thinking up his plan of attack. He needed to deal with this one way or another, he couldn't risk letting his secret fall into the hands of the public, he couldn't allow anybody he didn't wholly trust to know of his family.
"I'll be back. I need to use the toilet," Loki lied, quickly taking off after his imitation, not even trying to hide the fact from Amelia that he was following after him. He stumbled as he hesitated for only a moment, wondering if he should really leave Amelia and the kids alone for all of the two minutes this next encounter would take, before ultimately deciding they were safe in the centre of Disney World, and it was beyond important that he dealt with his Disney counterpart now.
Loki cloaked himself with an invisibility spell, disappearing with ease even amongst the crowds of people as they were all too enamoured with everything else happening around them. It was easier still to catch up to Disney Loki, who was moving fast but not fast enough to outspeed Loki. He waited until Disney Loki opened up a staff door with a hidden key, and he effortlessly slipped in behind the man, entering a dimly lit tunnel that Loki assumed all the characters used to comfortably traverse to different areas of the park.
Once the door was locked behind them, Disney Loki let the character slip completely and leaned against the concrete wall, dragging a hand over his face as he breathed shakily through his disbelief and distress.
"What the fuck…" the copycat whispered.
"What the fuck, indeed." Loki deadpanned, dropping the cloaking spell at once.
Disney Loki gasped and then screamed, and Loki quickly shoved the man against the wall, clamping his hand down over the impersonator's mouth to shut him up; the mortal man was frozen stiff in place, eyes wide as saucers, his hands visibly shaking, and Loki felt exasperated at the sight of somebody dressed as him cowering in fear so flagrantly.
"Relax. I'm not going to hurt you," Loki spoke firmly, though his voice was anything but warm, "You just need to hold still while I erase your memory."
At this, Disney Loki let out a muffled yelp, shaking his head desperately as he tried to protest verbally. Loki rolled his eyes, "If I take my hand away, will you stay quiet?"
Disney Loki nodded keenly.
Loki removed his hand, hoping he wouldn't regret it, and blessedly the impersonator didn't immediately begin screaming for help. His face held an expression of alarmed consternation, but not all out fear. The copycat blinked a few times, as if affirming that what he was seeing before his eyes was actually real.
"You're him… aren't you?" Disney Loki breathed.
Loki lifted an eyebrow, "That depends entirely on who 'him' is."
Disney Loki continued, ignoring the God of Mischief's dry retort, "I can't believe it's you. Here. At Disney World. I never thought I… never thought I'd get to meet you, much less here of all places, while in-" he faltered, glancing down at his full Avenger ensemble and then looked sheepishly back up at Loki, "while in costume."
Loki blinked once, "Surprise."
Disney Loki swallowed visibly, his gaze flickering sideways nervously, "I… um… please don't erase my memory." His voice was small and pleading, and Loki sighed in exasperation.
"How did you end up playing me at Disney World?" Loki asked brazenly, unable to understand how this meek, anxious individual was able to pass the audition process that Disney must have had.
Disney Loki looked utterly astonished that Loki had asked the question, "Uh, how I…? Well, I acted like you, and they hired me, to put it briefly." His answer was not at all satisfying, and Loki's frown demonstrated the fact, urging the man to elaborate apprehensively, "I… I'm a fan," he tentatively admitted, "and I suppose the passion I displayed in the audition process endeared the casting manager to me?" He ended with uncertainty.
Loki didn't even know why he'd asked. He really didn't care, he just needed to do what he came to do, so he lifted his hand, preparing to reach into Disney Loki's mind in order to manipulate the man's memory.
"Wait, wait, wait! Please, don't!" Disney Loki begged, holding his hands up protectively in front of his head, "Please don't erase my memory!"
Loki lowered his hand, rolling his eyes once again, and firmly stated, "I have to."
"I won't tell anyone you were here! I swear!" Disney Loki pledged, splaying one hand over his heart.
"It doesn't have to do with me being here, you fool," Loki asserted; surely the man couldn't be that dense, "Nobody can know about them."
A hint of recollection appeared in Disney Loki's eyes, "Them? The woman and the children you were with?"
"Yes."
"But why? Who are they?" Disney Loki asked innocently.
Oh, he really was that dense.
Loki stared at the man before running a hand over his own face exasperatedly, "Are you truly, truly that much of an idiot?"
"Hey," Disney Loki mumbled with a frown, not happy at having his intellect questioned, "Are you being their bodyguard or something? Are they VIPs? Wait-" his eyes widened, and for a moment Loki actually thought he'd figured it out, until he opened his mouth again, "That woman introduced herself as a princess, I thought she was just joking and playing along but, is she a real princess? Is that why you're here? Guarding a princess and escorting her and her children to Disney World? What country is she-"
"Close your mouth." Loki snapped, annoyed at the barrage of questions. He hated when people asked fifty questions at once and then expected them all to be answered.
Disney Loki obeyed, sealing his mouth shut at the sharp demand.
Loki drew in a breath and let it out slowly. He was sure the man would figure it out if he had enough time to think about it, and he was going to wipe the man's memory of them anyway, so he had no issue spelling it out for him, "They're my wife and children."
A few moments passed as the man processed Loki's admission, and then another few moments passed as the man simply stared in awe at what Loki had told him.
"You have children?" Disney Loki finally spoke, his voice full of incredulity and, strangely enough, excitement.
"Yes," Loki drawled. It seemed that with humans, they always needed extra affirmation on things. He could never just answer a question, he always had to add 'yes, I really mean it.'
Disney Loki's face softened, and then his mouth fell open into a smile, "Oh, wow. That's… wow. I didn't know that- that's amazing. Wow. How old are they? I didn't even know you had a wife! When did you even get married? Is she somebody from Asgard? Is that why nobody knows yet? Are you going to announce-"
"Shut up," Loki growled, "There's no point in answering your questions because by the time I walk back out that door, you won't even know that you met me. Now, keep your mouth shut and let me redact the last half hour from your mind."
"Please don't wipe my memory!" Disney Loki pleaded for the third time, "I won't tell anyone about them! I'm good at keeping secrets, I won't tell a soul, not even my closest friends."
"I don't believe you."
Disney Loki looked a tad panicked, "I'm telling the truth! Look, per my contract with Disney World, I'm not allowed to even talk about my role here outside the park. If I go blabbing about meeting the real Loki at Disney World, not only will nobody believe me cause that's ridiculous, but I also run the risk of being fired, and I love my job. I wouldn't put that in jeopardy."
Loki paused. This man did not appear to be lying through his teeth.
"What's your name?" Loki finally asked.
The man blinked, and then he looked honoured that he was even asked the question, "It's Christopher."
"Christopher," Loki repeated, "your performance as me has been incredibly cringeworthy today."
Christopher actually looked hurt by Loki's remark, clearly he was not the type to take criticism very well. "What? Why? What did I do wrong? I've studied you from countless videos on the internet and I was even trained to take on this role."
Loki was worried that if he rolled his eyes anymore that day, they'd fall out of his head, "You need to curb the smarm and work on the accent."
Christopher deflated slightly, "Oh."
The silence that fell was uncomfortable, and it was broken very quickly by the mortal man.
"Well, despite your reproval of my acting, I'd like to just say firstly that I'm terribly sorry about the 'orphan with ice powers' joke, and secondly, it is an absolute honour to meet you," Christopher admitted, smiling rigidly at Loki.
"I know," Loki responded.
"And your children are delightful."
"I know."
"And your wife is very sweet, too."
"I know."
"Right, well, um," Christopher looked like he didn't know what to do with his hands all of a sudden, taken over by awkwardness, "well, does this mean you're not going to erase my-"
Quick as a flash, Loki lifted his hand to Christopher's head, reaching into his mind with gentle, prying magic, and fished out the fleeting memories of Amelia, himself and the kids, ensuring the man was left with no memory of the incident. Christopher's eyes were glazed over as Loki's magic faded, and his eyes darted disorientedly around at nothing in particular, before slipping closed as he fell into an involuntary light state of unconsciousness. Loki lowered him slowly to the ground, letting him slump against the wall; somebody would probably find him before he awoke, and when he did he would be fine except for a little confusion over lost time.
Loki was continuously befuddled by the ways some mortals acted. This man, Christopher, may very well have been honest about not planning to tell anybody Loki's secret, but he couldn't blindly put his trust in a random mortal based on a promise, the less people who knew about Amelia and the children, the better.
He observed the unconscious man for a moment longer before magically unlocking the staff door and slipping back through to the outside. He strode quickly towards the location where Disney Loki had led them earlier and found his family immediately.
Aster and Kari were holding onto Queen Elsa like their lives depended on it, looking up at her with a level of awe on their faces that he probably would never see again. They well and truly believed they were hugging the real Elsa, and she was smiling sweetly at them and talking softly to them, creating a memory that would last a lifetime for his children.
Amelia watched them meet their heroine, her eyes on the verge of tearing up as she felt supreme happiness at seeing the insurmountable joy on the faces of her dear children. Loki stepped up to his wife's side, taking her hand in his; she gazed tearfully at him, her smile unbreakable, and Loki smiled in return.
"You didn't scare Disney Loki away, did you?" She asked quietly.
"No, my dear. I simply went to the toilet, like I said I was," he responded with an innocent curl of his lips. He elected not to tell his wife that he had been recognised and that their secret had almost been compromised, for he did not want to tarnish the beautiful grin on Amelia's face.
I freaking loved writing this chapter. I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it because oh my god. There was just so much to be done with it. My favourite part is Loki's terror over the It's a Small World ride. I remember going on it when I went to Disney and I felt that Loki would hate it with all his heart.
I really hope that Loki meeting Disney Loki was all it was cracked up to be.
I've noticed that I tend to get fewer reviews on longer chapters, strangely enough, so I would like to remind you that if you read and enjoy this series, leaving a review and and adding this fic to your favourites is the best thing you can do to support me!
