Chapter 17: Shocking News
In had been a week since the end of Loki's punishment and he had finally caught up on the delay from all his work. It was morning and they just finish eating. Loki knew what was next: Steve would give him the list of tasks for the day and the gold stars from the day before.
"Loki, I added something new to your list. It would be a good thing for Alex if, for one or two hours a day, he was to learn. Like pre-school. I also order some exercise books so you can use them. And there's a book for you, about all the things he should learn," said Steve.
"So, like pre-school?"
"Yes. Colours, numbers, letters, forms, and other abilities. It's really easy to do."
"Then I will do it," said Loki.
Though he was kind of glad to have this as a task. He had been in charge of Alex and it would be a good thing to educate him. If he could prove he can teach Alex right, them it would be even easier to convince Steve and Thor if they ever want to send Alex to Asgard for training, though Steve said Alex would not go. Better be safe than sorry and have a plan B.
oOo
"A, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, o, p, q, r, s, t, u, v, w, x, y, z!"
"Yes! Congratulations Alex," said proudly Loki.
"I know the letters!"
"Yes, you do!"
"Yeah!"
"Alex, do you want to learn the runes now?"
Loki remembered when he was young and that Frigga had taught him and Thor the runes. Loki was a bit younger than Thor, but Frigga had started to teach them both at the same time since Loki wanted to learn and was learning so fast. Loki was proud that Alex was a fast learner too.
"Steve! I learn the whole alphabet," claimed Alex when Steve entered the room.
"That's great!"
"Do you want to hear?"
"I don't have time, sorry Alex. I need to speak to Loki for a minute. Is that okay?"
"Yes..."
Loki stood up and approached Rogers cautiously.
"Did I do something wrong?"
"No, Loki, nothing is wrong. Well, there is something, but not about you. The Avengers have a mission we have to take care of. So I'm not going to be here for the next few days. And since Stark also have something outside, only Banner is going to stay with you. We should be back in a few days, a week top. But if anything happens, Friday and Banner know how to contact me. Would you be okay?"
"I will, mister Rogers. You don't have to worry about me misbehaving during your absence," said Loki.
"I'm not worried about that. It's just that it's the first time I let you here alone," assured Steve. "Now, I would like to tell Alex that I'm leaving."
"Sure."
oOo
"No! Tony, no! This is a bad idea. Do you want the other guy to remodel the whole compound?"
"No Bruce, but I have that lecture at Oxford and the Avengers have just been called away. You're the only one, sorry."
Tony and Bruce were in the lab together, arguing. And let's just say Bruce didn't like the idea of being home alone with the god of mischief.
"Look, I get that Loki is calmer now and he should not cause problems. But I think it's too early."
"I can call Clint if you want. I would call Thor, but he doesn't have a phone yet," said Tony. "Look, Loki behaves, mostly. So it's either you stay at the compound with him or we are sending him to summer camp at Shield prison," suggested Tony. "So..."
"He doesn't deserve Shield prison," said Bruce.
"How about this: I give you a button so you can zap him if necessary? Or! You can always ask Friday where he is so you never have to see him."
"No! Tony, I don't mind being in the same room as Loki for even an hour or two. It's just that you are giving me responsibility of the guy for a week."
"Not for a week, just until the team comes back, which should take maximum a week," clarified Tony. "And you can keep your cool, right?"
"Look, I can control the other guy as long as Loki can control himself. And he perfectly knows what he has to lose if he misbehaves. Loki is not the kind to want his child to see the other guy. The problem is not Loki, it's me! What if I panic? I'm already panicking just at the thought of watching over him for a week," said Bruce.
"Remember what Thor said? You were the first choice to be Loki's whatever-you-want-to-call-it. Even Asgard trusts you with the guy. You'll be fine!"
"Okay, but you and Steve own me big time!"
oOo
"Sleep well, Alex," said Loki after kissing his child.
He left the room and closed the door quietly. Nap time had a lot of advantages for Loki and he usually schedules the works for which he didn't want to have Alex around. Today, when he closed the door, he saw Banner standing there.
"Hi Loki."
"Mister Banner, Sir."
"I just wanted to clear things up since it's only going to be the three of us for a few days."
"I can assure you, Mister Banner, that I have no intention of running away or attacking or… Or misbehaving in any way."
They moved to the living room and sat down.
"In fact, I am worried about me," said Bruce. "You know about my condition and I don't want another incident right now if possible."
"I understand. What should I do to ensure you stay calm?"
"When I saw you, when you came back, I nearly turned. And then Thor told me I should be responsible for you. I don't want that because I cannot be responsible for someone else, not to that level. I think as long as Friday gave you your list of tasks, I should be okay. Just don't ask me big questions or demands."
"I will try to reduce your stress as much as possible."
"That's good. Thanks Loki."
oOo
Steve had put cooking on the list with an interrogation mark, so when it was time to prepare supper, Loki arrived in the kitchen. He had been trained to cook, but Steve had said before he would not ask that from Loki for a while. Loki had suspected the Captain might be afraid of a poison attempt, but Loki knew a good cooking slave has to taste the food to prove it's not poisoned. Of course, a master could make a slave taste any type of food just to be sure it was not poisoned. But Loki assumed the doctor would not cook for him and Alex, or that it was his chance to prove his cooking skill, so Loki was surprised when Banner was already in the kitchen.
"Hey Loki! I'm just getting started."
"Do you require my help?"
"Do you want to cut the vegetables?"
Loki was so surprised he didn't answer right away. Of course he had handled knives since coming here, but only when washing them or using them to eat. And usually, whoever was cooking would make sure the big knives were already clean when Loki would clean the kitchen. Oh, of course Loki knew where those knives were, first drawer, not hard to find. But no one had ever asked him to use those. After all, Loki thought the other guy had such a thick skin, a knife would not hurt him much.
"Yes, I can cut."
"Good! Medium size cubes maybe," instructed Bruce.
Loki was in control and he loved being able to hold a knife and do something with it, even if it was cutting vegetables. Such an ordinary task for a god who use to fight with daggers.
"Do you want to cook the meat," asked Bruce once the vegetables were cut.
"Yes, I don't mind."
"No Loki. I ask if you want to cook it. I'm not telling you to do it."
"Yes, I want to," said Loki sincerely, looking in Bruce's eyes.
"Great, here you go."
It was strange for both of them to do something as mundane as cooking for three with the guy who used to be an enemy.
"It's nearly ready," said Bruce while putting the plates out.
"Alex, go wash your hands, will you," said Loki.
Alex was coloring at the table and he stood and went to the bathroom. Soon after, he came back and sat in front of his plate.
"It's been awhile daddy cook," said Alex.
"But this is mister Banner's recipe," said Loki.
"You help a lot, you can take the credits for tonight's supper."
"Thanks."
"It's been a long time since daddy cooked," said Alex.
"Yeah, you were cooking often back... back there," said Bruce.
"But it's the first time I get to taste it," said Alex.
Bruce looked at Loki suspiciously.
"Slaves are not usually allowed to eat what they cook. They tasted it to prove it's not poisoned and then the free men eat," answered Loki.
"But we are not slaves here, right daddy?"
"Well, it's complicated. You are definitely not. But I am a prisoner here," said Loki.
"What did you do to be a prisoner? I want to know..."
"I told you, I did a bad thing."
"But what bad thing?"
"Alex, maybe it's not the best time," said Bruce.
"No, it's okay. You see, Alex, I hurt people. I shouldn't, but I did. I hurt some people emotionally on Asgard, then more on Jotunheim, and even more on Midgard. And I destroyed places too. I shouldn't have done that, Alex."
"Are the people you hurt okay now?"
"Some of them, yes. But not all of them."
"Did you say you were sorry? When I do something and say I'm sorry, you say I'm forgiven."
"I didn't, no. But it doesn't always work like that. Alex, what I did was bad, really bad. I had a fight with people and I regret doing that. But I will not hurt people anymore. I won't! And I'll never stop loving you."
"Whom did you hurt?"
"Well, the Avengers. That's why we are with them. I hurt mister Banner, and for that, mister Banner, I am truly sorry. You were part of a plan, but I should never have formed that plan, I should never have used you like that. I sincerely apologise for what hurt I cause you."
"I forgive you, Loki. You have changed a lot since that time."
"If daddy apologises, does that mean his punishment is over?"
"No Alex. Sometime, there are misdeeds that are just too great and for which the person needs a longer punishment," explained Loki. "And I deserve it for what I have done."
"So you'll never be free?"
"Since coming here, I have learned there are other ways to be free, like the ability to spend quality time with you."
Eventually, because Alex would never run out of questions, Loki told him to go play in the living room while he was washing the dishes.
"Loki, let me help you," said Bruce.
"It is my task."
"You helped me with supper, I help you with the dishes. That's only fair."
"Thanks..."
Loki was hesitant. What would Rogers say if Loki was not the one doing his own tasks? Maybe he would agree with Banner… But after all, making supper had been on his task list and he had helped Banner do it.
"Have you ever thought about escaping?"
"I did, yes," said Loki without knowing where this was coming from.
"I meant, since coming here, did you think about it?"
"No. When I tried the last time, when Alex was just born, the punishment was horrible and I never want to live that again. And then they put heavier chains on me."
"But, beside the fear of punishment and the chains..."
"The thing is, it's impossible," interrupted Loki. "Stark put that bracelet on me, but even if I could bypass that and Friday, they would still be Heimdall. He sees all in the nine realms, he would find me. And mister Rogers would know where I am given the bound. Also, Odin has ways to track people if needed. And then there's Alex. What would I do with a child on the run? I would not be able to provide for him, and hide both of us. I knew before coming here that it would be impossible. But since mister Rogers is a nice master, the best I could have hoped for, I have no intention of escaping. I want to stay here. I have no hope in life for freedom, I can only hope for my children to know freedom one day.
"And it's my sentence to belong to the Avengers. I came to term with that and I cannot say it's undeserved. Harsh, yes. But not undeserved for me."
oOo
Unknown to the three, a raven was sitting on a nearby tree and had heard to whole conversation. When its twin landed next to it, the first raven took flight and flew far away, into space and then to Asgard. The raven made its way to the AllFather and landed on his shoulder, then started murmuring something in his ear.
Thor, who was having supper with his father, decided to ask him about the news.
"Any good news, father?"
"Oh, some good, some bad, as always."
"As always," repeated Thor.
The Allfather had always said those same words and Thor should not have expected them to change now.
Odin was tired and retired to his quarter for the night soon after. The news from the raven was not what he had expected. He knew all about how Loki was living on Midgard, but he didn't know the slave had come to term with his punishment. He had suspected it would take more time before Loki admits even a fraction of what he had said that night. One of the many reasons Odin had sent his ravens to always keep an eye on Loki was because he thought the slave would try to escape. But now, knowing Loki wouldn't, should Odin keep him under surveillance?
Oh, why not? It was good to have news from him. To know how he was doing and how the boy was doing. And Odin should keep track of Loki's progress during his sentence.
oOo
"For me," said Loki surprised. "It cannot be, no."
"Oh Loki, just take it. You can't refuse a gift," said Natasha.
The team was finally back and she had brought him a gift. It was just a small sculpture of a horned lizard with not real use.
"It reminded me of you, so I bought it. It's green, it's a lizard and it has horned. All you. Just take it."
"A slave cannot receive gift or have possession."
"But a prisoner can," countered Natasha.
"Look, Loki, you don't need permission to possess a small sculpture," said Steve. "You can accept the gift."
So Loki took the gift, for which both Natasha and Steve were grateful, and then he kneeled.
"Thank you, my lady. I shall cherish this gift. I will also be your obedient slave," said Loki on his knees.
"Loki, you don't have to kneel," said Steve.
"A simple "thank you" is more than enough. No need for more," said Natasha.
"Thank you miss Romanoff."
It was strange to receive a gift. As a prince, Loki had received lots of gifts during his long life. But as a slave, nothing is free. Even with the reward system, he had tried to choose what could be the more useful or the more durable, with the exception of candies that were mostly to try those. To have an object with no real use was strange, it brought Loki to his ancient life, back when he had some knick-knacks and was a normal person — well, more like a prince — back in Asgard. And the lizard was beautiful, it had everything Loki likes.
"I really love it, miss Romanoff. Sincerely."
oOo
Clint had asked for the Quinjet to come pick him up at his farm. Steve knew it was a bit strange, because even though everyone knew Clint had a family on a farm, the archer was doing his best to hide his family. So it was suspicious that he wanted the quinjet to land at his farm. In the end, Steve still decided to send only Natasha.
The both of them arrived in the afternoon with a surprise.
'Hey Cap! You might want to tell Loki to come here,' said Clint.
'Friday,' asked Steve. 'Clint, what did you do?'
'Oh, you'll see,' said Natasha.
Loki arrived and he was a bit anxious.
'Is there something you require my assistance for?'
Steve looked at Clint to let him talk.
'Well, as you know, I have three kids. And we are not planning of having more, so I have to get rid of this stuff, baby stuff. And since Loki, you are going to have a baby, I figure you might want those,' explained Clint.
'You want me to have baby stuff, for the baby?'
'You know, a crib, lots and lots of pyjamas of all size. I also have both girl and boy pyjamas, so you'll already be prepared. I have basically everything you need for a baby between zero and two. There's even toys in there. So, where should we put the boxes?'
Clint opened the back door to the Quinjet and revealed all the boxes and stuff.
'I cannot accept all that,' said Loki. 'It's too much, we don't deserve that.'
Clint approached Loki and put both hands on Loki's shoulder.
'Loki, you deserve to be able to take care of your children. I know you raised Alex with not even the basic necessities, but I won't let you do that for the next one. And your baby doesn't deserve to have nothing. I could have sold that stuff, but I choose to give it to you. You, not anyone else. Because you can use them.'
Clint stepped back.
'So, where should we put the boxes?'
'How about the room next to Loki's? We are already planning of remodeling those two rooms.'
So the team ended up moving the boxes in the center of the empty room.
'Mister Barton, I don't know how to thank you for all this. It means so much to have that for the baby to come. With Alex, I was giving nothing except the bare minimum to clothe him. It means so much to me to have the right now to raise them as people with dignity. As a prince, I was always proud and I had to lose that when I became a slave. You, with the Avengers, are giving me back what was taken from me. I must admit I deserved my sentence, but now I can appreciate the value of those things more than before. And for that, I thank you, mister Barton.'
'Well, everyone deserves to raise their kids with dignity. I'm sure Tony or Steve would have buy what you need. I'm just saving them the trouble and saving you the stress of having to not forget something.'
