Well I'm certainly more glad now that this new plot has gotten quite an attention span, I was almost afraid it wouldn't be worth the work. Sorry to keep you all waiting, hope this will make up for it.
This chapter we have a time skip for Loki and Kira, to get an idea of how they've been living since living in Stark Tower. Loki has some nightmares and sickness so be prepared for some explicit stuff but not too much, and a little talk between him and Tony. Getting an understanding of each other, or a better one at least.
I don't own the Marvel characters.
Enjoy!
Dream sequence:
"NOOOO!" Loki screamed and thrashed as the horrid creatures holding him down tore off his clothes. He screamed as their disgusting hands grabbed and groped at his abused body, and paled when he saw a large purple titan smirking lustfully at him.
"My little godling…you are so exquisite." his deep voice reached Loki's ears and made him tremble terribly. "The stories of your power, and your beauty are none compared to what I have now."
"I'm…not yours…" he dared say the words.
"You are mine, you will always be mine." one hand reached down and as the smaller hands left him the larger one forced his legs apart.
"Please no…" Loki's face was wet with tears, pain and fear, regret and shame, all pouring from his once proud green eyes.
"You are mine, no one else will want you." right as he positioned himself between the pale legs Loki let out a shriek.
End dream sequence.
"NOO!" Loki woke up in a cold sweat, sitting upright in the bed before he scrambled out of the sheets and into the bathroom. Quickly lifting the toilet lid he bent down and vomited into the bowl, bringing up all of his stomach contents.
"Ugh…" he felt so sick, these damned nightmares wouldn't stop. He'd been having so many for weeks now it was almost impossible to get some sleep.
"WWAAAAHHH! WAAAAHHH!" his precious baby's crying caught his ears. Kira had woken up with him, but from the sound of the cry she was likely distressed or cranky. Loki quickly but carefully pulled himself up from the floor, wiped his mouth and gargled mouthwash, nausea still deep in his head, and made his way over to the cradle Kira slept in.
"I'm here darling I'm here." He carefully lifted her up and she went from loudly crying to making tiny whimpers. "I didn't mean to wake you, mummy's sorry." he sat down on the bed and rocked her gently, and she began to slowly fall back asleep.
Loki and Kira had been living in Stark Tower for over a month now, and to be perfectly honest Loki had been shocked that a mortal like Stark would even consider giving him a home and shelter. He was not from their realm, and Kira was not a normal child for Midgard, and yet these mortals had offered them a place to stay and food to go in their bellies. Fury had of coursed come to visit at least once a week if not that other man Coulson, and there were others living in the tower besides Stark yet they treated Loki and Kira like guests.
The last time Loki had been on Midgard was over two centuries ago, and it was nothing like it was now. It was more advanced, bigger in structure and population, maybe not as advanced as Asgard's technology but still it was an improvement. The tower itself was designed and created by Anthony Stark Loki's supposed protector, and everything in it belonged to the man. He was also incredibly wealthy for a mortal; he provided everything Loki and Kira needed.
"Mr. Odinson, forgive me but do you require medical attention?" the voice of JARVIS, Stark's computerized butler that protected the entire tower came into the room. Loki might not have known much about Midgardian technology, but he knew enough about JARVIS.
"No, no I am fine." he would be at least, the vomiting had not happened in a long while with the nightmares.
"Are you sure? Mr. Stark has asked I report any illnesses or distress you may have."
"I assure you JARVIS I shall live, I only need to hydrate myself." a good glass of water would help his stomach. Thankfully he had some bottles under the sink.
"I see, then I must inform you that Mr. Stark will have breakfast ready in fifteen minutes. Ms. Potts is there too, they would like to see you this morning." Loki glanced at the clock, it was nearly eight thirty this morning. He remembered waking up before at two fifteen, and Kira had been fed that time but the nightmare came afterwards.
"Thank you JARVIS, tell them I will be there." the AI left him alone, or so he believed it had. Loki saw Kira was not asleep, instead awake and no doubt would be hungry again. Loki carefully sat her back down and grabbed his long black bathrobe. He wrapped Kira up in her little purple blanket and changed her before leaving the confinements of his room.
The rooms Stark provided for them were done, but with Kira being so small and just a little over a month old Loki felt safer keeping her close. Stark didn't argue and said it was fine, he understood the bond between mother and child so he allowed Loki to keep her in his room. He was good to them, and Loki didn't understand why. He would ask today, he wanted some answers and due to Stark's schedule he had not been able to speak with the man alone.
"There you two are." Ms. Potts, or Pepper as she preferred, greeted Loki and Kira with a kind smile. "Coffee Loki?"
"Please." he nodded and sat down with Kira still in his arms.
"Good morning you three." Stark went and poured himself a huge cup. "Pancakes Loki or do you want something else?"
"Pancakes are fine." Loki was about to undo his robe to let Kira feed, but Pepper held out a bottle.
"Here, why don't you let me feed her this morning so you can eat? You look exhausted." Loki had let her hold Kira before, and watch her for a few hours, but feed her…he wasn't sure. "You did pump this yourself, I promise I'll hand her back after you finish eating." Loki still wasn't sure, but his stomach was growling and Kira needed nourishment.
"A-Alright." he carefully handed Kira to Pepper, and when the bottle was presented Kira immediately latched onto the nipple. Her suckling noises were small but could be heard, and it made Loki's heart warm.
"How many do you want Lokes?" Stark turned to him. Loki noticed unlike him and Pepper, Stark was fully dressed in jeans, black tennis shoes, and a Black Sabbath t-shirt. His hair was even combed back and trimmed nicely, normally he'd be wearing a tank top and sweat pants in the morning if not the same outfit he wore the day before.
"Five please, are you going somewhere?"
"Nah, I've just been up since early this morning working on the Mark VI. Decided to start a bit sooner so I can go over some plans." he turned back to cooking the pancakes. "Also, if you're up for it we can take Kira to the park nearby."
"I suppose…where have Captain Rodgers and Ms. Romanoff gone to?"
"Nat and Steve are with Clint on a mission for SHIELD, they'll be back later. Bruce is still asleep he had a rough night." Loki sat down at the table and watched as Pepper cooed and fed Kira. He liked the woman she was kind to him, but his trust would be earned later on.
"Here we are my famous Stark Pancakes and hot maple syrup!" Tony placed a plate of the cakes in front of him, and Loki prepared himself a cup of coffee.
"They're only famous because it's the only thing you know how to cook Tony." Pepper laughed.
"It is not, I can cook pizza too." she rolled her eyes.
"In the microwave."
"Hey it counts for something." Pepper rolled her eyes and Loki just dug into his food. He had to admit for a man who supposedly couldn't cook the pancakes were always delicious. If he wanted anything else Pepper could easily make it, but Loki didn't want them to always cook.
"Stark…"
"Yes?"
"If I may…could we speak privately later?" Stark stared for a minute.
"Sure, after you eat we'll talk." Loki nodded and kept eating. His appetite was satisfied and his stomach stopped growling after a while. Pepper handed Kira over and put the dishes in the dishwasher, and then left to go shower. She had the day off so she would be out mostly, so it would be just him and Stark today. "So what's up?" Loki sighed, it would not be easy to talk.
"I want to know why, why are you helping me and my child?"
"Because you needed it, couldn't just let you get locked away somewhere." Stark sipped his second cup of coffee.
"But why? You don't know me very well if not at all."
"Well…call it my gut."
"What?" Loki was confused.
"It means that I had a feeling you weren't going to do anything evil, especially not in the state you were in. According to Fury you appeared through a black hole and you were so ill you looked like you could fall over any moment. I think you would've if you didn't have Kira in your arms." Loki looked down at Kira, she'd gone back to sleep.
"So based on an internal feeling you decided to take us in, sentiment."
"Something like that, and based on how you've been progressing I'd say you're doing alright. It took almost a whole week for you to completely heal, and after that you've been up and down with nightmares. I wouldn't let you go when you're still a mess."
"I am not a mess." Loki knew what he meant, but he wasn't that.
"You are, you can barely get through the day without exhausting yourself. You have your magic yeah, but isn't it still a little weak because of what happened?" Loki paled.
"It…it is back and I use it but…"
"Calm down." Stark held up a hand. "We don't want you to go into another episode right? I didn't mean to scare you, but listen Loki…I'm helping you because you need it. By the time you're back on your feet it'll be your choice to leave or stay, but you'll have to check in with SHIELD from time to time."
"I have nowhere else to go." Loki let a tear fall. "I don't have a home."
"You can have one here, provided you help out. If anything you can be like Barton and Romanoff, work as a consultant team member of SHIELD. One thing though…you said you lived in Asgard, are they going to come looking for you?" Loki shook his head.
"They can't, the Bifrost is gone."
"The Bifrost, the Einstein-Rosen rainbow bridge that connects Asgard to all the nine realms?" Loki nodded.
"Unless they are able to repair it they cannot come after me, and I don't want them to." he couldn't go back to Asgard, he would be imprisoned and his baby girl would be taken from him. He knew Odin would lock him up, but he couldn't go back.
"Well look…if by chance anyone does come then we'll just tell them they can't."
"It's not that simple, they'll bring guards to steal me away. My child…" he held Kira a little closer.
"Hey." Stark walked around the counter and stopped a few inches away. "Look I can mention this to Fury, after that little incident in New Mexico with your brother he's going to want all the details. Now what we can do is have you talk to Natasha and Fury together, you can tell them how you ended up here and why you don't want to go back to Asgard. If anything they can make you a citizen."
"A citizen of Midgard? That will not sit well with the Allfather."
"Yeah well if it at least gives you time it'll work, besides…I like having you around."
"Do you?" he hadn't expected that.
"Maybe at first I was a bit cautious and all, but just having you around makes it easier here. Also with Steve and Bruce, but you…it's like you fit into the puzzle." Loki was stunned; these people wanted him to stay? To be friends?
"Forgive me if I don't believe you, I didn't have any good friend experiences in Asgard."
"Didn't you and Thor have friends?" another shake of Loki's head came.
"They were Thor's friends; I only tagged along because Thor made me. They didn't like me, but we tolerated each other to an extent. I didn't fight like they did, I was more of a trickster in battle and it was mocked often. I did a lot for them, and I rarely got gratitude for it." Tony sighed.
"Yeah I know what that's like. My old man wasn't exactly parental material after my mom died, and I tried everything to gain his attention or favor and after a while I just did things my own way. I made excellent grades, top of my class, even if I was your typical rich boy skirt chaser nothing I did was ever good enough for Howard Stark. People often used me because of the name, the only real friend I actually had was Rhodey until Pepper came along. All my other assistants tried to seduce or steal from me, and yet she was the only one good enough to run a whole company under my watch. I was surprised, but we're good friends and she earns her way in everything."
"What about Banner and Rodgers?"
"Eh we became friends after Fury recruited us, Cap's a bit old school because he's from old school seventy years back, and Banner…well he's a nice guy with a split personality…a giant green split personality with breathtaking anger issues. Either way he's easy to be around when he's calm, and he's a good man underneath that rugged exterior." Loki laughed.
"And Barton and Romanoff?" Tony shrugged.
"Just got acquainted after a while, and now we're friends. I help SHIELD out a lot, so if you do the same you'll earn a place here, but you don't have to decide right away."
"Stark you are overwhelming me." Loki took in a breath, he had Kira in his arms he couldn't have an anxiety attack now.
"Sorry…just trying to help out here." Loki smiled.
"You already have…you've given me a roof over my head, otherwise my daughter and I would be out on the street. Listen Stark I don't wish to intrude any longer than I have to, but I intend to repay you somehow for what you've done thus far." Stark just smiled.
"Well don't think on it too much, just take your time to take care of Kira and I can speak with Fury later on when you're ready." he held out his hand for Loki to shake. Loki didn't want to be touched, ever, not after what happened to him…but…perhaps a simple handshake wouldn't hurt.
"Thank you." he shook it hesitantly and pulled back almost a second after.
"You're welcome, and listen I'm going to be busy in an hour until lunch. What do you say about that walk in the park afterwards?" Loki looked at the clock, it had almost been an entire two hours since he came down here. Lunch would be ready at one, and Stark would be in his workshop until then.
"F…Fine." He hadn't been out of the tower since they arrived, and Loki decided that if he wanted to heal from the wounds those beasts gave him he would have to take it slow…but he would start a new life. Not just for him, but for Kira too.
"Okay, I'll see you at lunch. If you need me or anything else just ask JARVIS." with that said Stark disappeared to his workshop, and Loki took Kira upstairs to their rooms to get dressed.
'For my darling child, I will get stronger.'
I know it's kind of sappy at the end but at least this way Loki can try and rebuild his life with Kira. Tony doesn't know the whole story with Loki, but he will later when they get closer to each other. I want this to kind of build up before Loki can get completely comfortable with the Avengers, to show that he can make his own friends instead of being forced.
Next chapter I'm going to let Loki have some alone time with the other members, mainly Natasha and Banner. I think besides Tony those two are the main ones who can click the most with Loki because of their pasts and monstrous ways…to an extent at least. At the end I'll throw something in with Fury and Tony, getting an update on Loki's condition but something else too. Nothing on Thanos yet, he won't show up for a good while. Thor…well I haven't decided when to bring him in yet but we'll see how things go first.
R&R
Later!
