Chapter 26: Food Fight!
Loki raced out of the lobby the instant he spied Thor.
"Loki?" Thranduil shouted after him.
"This way! Hurry!" Loki pointed down the hall.
"Why are we running?" Thranduil caught up with the god as they continued to race down the hallway.
"That was my brother back there," Loki explained as he turned right and raced towards a stairwell.
"And you wish to avoid your brother?" Thranduil asked.
"Definitely!"
"Why?"
Loki stopped for a moment to consider the elven king's question. "He believes I am dead. The last time he saw me, I was dead."
"Would he not be overjoyed to know that you live?"
"No, he wasn't precisely happy with me and my… ah… actions here on Earth," Loki answered as he continued on his path. "I think he would prefer that I had remained dead."
"Well, it is not your fault you are not dead, is it?" Thranduil asked.
Loki paused for a second, considering the oddity of the statement. "I suppose you are correct, I didn't exactly decide not to be dead, but I thought I was dead, until I discovered I was very much alive."
"Excellent. Then simply explain that to your brother," Thranduil smiled, happy that the matter appeared to be settled.
"It is not really that easy. Thor is one who believes things are either black or white… he doesn't understand the gray areas of life… and my activities here, earlier, were not in the best interests of the general population," Loki replied, opening a door and entering the room.
"You are saying you attempted to wage a war?" Thranduil interpreted his friend's cryptic comments.
"Indeed. With a little help from a few friends," Loki smiled grimly, then looked around the room. The room was filled with people in white jackets dashing about, crashing platters of food, and filling pitchers with water. "I would guess we are in the kitchens."
"I believe you are correct," Thranduil agreed. He reached out and plucked a white powdered doughnut off a platter. Taking a bite, he sneezed as the powdered sugar scattered around his face. "What is this?"
One of the white coated people stopped to stare at the pair. "A doughnut, but what the hell are you doing down here? You guys below upstairs. This is for workers only. Get out before I call security."
Thor chose that instant to burst into the room. "LOKI!"
Loki smiled at the white coat. "Now would be a good time to call security!" Grabbing Thranduil's arm, he pulled him through the center of the room heading towards the opposite side, pushing people out of his way. Platters and pitchers fell to the floor and people started shouting at them.
Thor tried to catch up to them, but the food on the floor mixed with the water created a sloppy mess and he slipped. As he felt himself falling he swung Mjölnir and slid across the room. He crashed into the legs of several people causing them to fall on top of him. Slamming into the wall, he gently removed a few of the bodies on top of him. Glimpsing the tail of Loki's leather cloak, he grabbed it and tugged.
Loki collapsed on top of the heap. "Thor! Let me go!"
"How did you get here?" Thor felt his brother struggling to escape. "And don't try any of your tricks on me."
Loki's hand struck a pie plate. Grabbing it, he thought for only a millisecond before throwing at his brother's face. The cherry pie filling exploded out of the pie crust as it hit Thor. Thor released his grip on Loki's cloak allowing him to escape.
Scrambling to his feet, Loki scuttled away from his brother.
Thor grabbed the plate closest to him and threw it at Loki. The bowl contained a fettuccini salad, and the contents landed squarely on Loki's head. Noodles mixed into the long, black hair as the oily dressing dripped down Loki's face. Loki casually plucked a piece of fettuccini off his brow and tossed it to the side. Bending down, he picked up another plate and with an evil grin, threw it as Thor. The plate of mashed potatoes hit Thor squarely in the chest. Thor stared at the white globs on his chest, and scooping up a handful of it, he threw it back towards his brother.
Seeing the two brothers throwing food, several of the white coated workers grabbed platters of food and joined in, choosing sides. Soon, food was flying everywhere. Thranduil lifted his eyebrows sardonically and he elegantly side-stepped the piles of spilled food and walked towards the doorway. He had just reached it when Loki noticed the movement.
"Thranduil!" Loki shouted across the room.
The elven king turned towards the sound of the voice. He found it difficult to ascertain who had spoken as everyone was covered in various foodstuffs. Finally settling on one figure, he nodded. "Yes?" As he spoke, he realized he had picked the wrong one as out of the corner of his eye, he spied a chocolate cake hurtling through the air towards him. He ducked, but was too late and the cake hit him in the back covering his silvery white garb in gooey brown frosting and cake bits.
"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON IN HERE?" Stark's voice cut through the noise, causing everyone to stop what they had been doing to turn and stare at the source of the sound.
"Tony!" Thor raised his arms up to greet his friend. Striding across the room, he reached out to grab Stark.
"WHOA! Hands off, cherry pie," Stark backed away from Thor. "What happened to you?"
"I have found my brother, and he is alive!" Thor crowed, wiping some of the food off his face.
"Um, I knew that," Tony replied.
"You knew Loki was alive?" Thor stared at him incredulously.
"Yeah, he showed up with a few friends one day… was going to tell you, but didn't have your phone number," Tony quipped.
"Phone number?" Thor looked at Stark strangely, not quite understanding.
"Never mind. Listen, if you want to like catch up with your brother, you know, find out what happened and everything, I would strongly suggest… THERE HE GOES!" Stark pointed towards the doorway where Loki and Thranduil were fleeing out of the room.
"LOKI!" Thor roared, racing after his brother.
"This ought to be interesting," Tony said to no one in particular. "I think I might just follow and watch."