Loki was in the elevator before Jarvis even stopped talking. The others following close behind.
The media room was in chaos when the three of them arrived. "-eve! Steve! Hey, calm down! I don't want to hurt you!" James shouts coming through to the elevator as it arrived on the floor.
James was trying to get a hold of Steve, who was fighting him off with a feral look in his eyes. Several pieces of furniture were toppled over, and Bruce was off to the kitchen, staying out of the way and trying to calm his breathing before he transformed. James had a cut on his right arm that was bleeding, and several bruises on his face but he didn't seem to notice. Every time he tried to get a hold of Steve, it would escalate Steve's anger further, causing more of a backlash from his friend.
"Sergeant! Step away from him." Loki's tone was commanding but not forceful or angry.
"I can't!" Said James as he dodged another punch, "He's going to hurt himself further!"
"You don't understand. You need to step away from him or he will become more dangerous. Move away." Loki was moving closer, but a hand kept the others at a distance. Tony skirted the edge of the room, making his way to the kitchen where Bruce was calming down, "You okay Brucie-Bear?"
Bruce nodded, but didn't trust himself to speak yet.
"James, do as he says!" Said Natasha, a knife in one hand and a gun in the other. She was willing to see if Loki could calm Steve down, but she was also prepared with a tranquilizer if need be.
"Please Shield Brother, trust Loki's instincts in this matter and remove yourself from your friend's reach before you get seriously hurt." Thor also looked ready to intervene but was willing to see if Loki could calm the original Captain down.
With a growl of frustration James hop stepped back to a wall, further away from where Steve was currently standing. Steve didn't follow his move though; he stayed in his spot, watching warily for a moment before turning his attention back towards the window. There was some kind of force field covering the window, but Steve didn't seem to care, he began pounding and throwing the side of his body against it- sparks of electricity flying off the field and probably sending jolts of electricity into Steve with each hit. The jolts weren't very high voltage, just a bare sting as a warning to stay away because the glass was broken. Tony and Jarvis had been working on it over the last few days as a way to counterbalance what happened in the Penthouse.
"Steven." Said Loki carefully when it looked like James was going to intervene again. Steve didn't acknowledge Loki, which was a first for the Avengers since the pair seemed so in tune with one another. Loki glanced down at the sketchbook Steve had dropped before punching the window. It was the city skyline from where he was sitting, with the rain falling on everything in big drops. The God of Mischief suddenly knew what Steve was trying to do. Fortunately, he could handle the magic he was about to do pretty easily.
Without another word Loki waved his hand across the window, changing the scene from the rainy city skyline to a sunny open field. It took a few minutes, but Steve slowly stopped punching and hitting against the glass. He let out a deep breath; eyes clearly upset and began tapping against his leg in the same fashion the Avengers were so used to seeing from him. He moved so he was back against the wall and slid down it back to the floor, knees drawn up to his chest. He grabbed his sketchbook, putting it against his knees and just looked at the picture, one hand tapping against the page softly. A look of defeat and sorrow was in his features and posture.
Slowly the Avengers began putting their various weapons away, and the Science Bro's came out of the kitchen. Loki sent a nervous glance towards Bruce, but when he saw that Bruce was still in control he relaxed marginally.
"The hell was that all about?!" James didn't shout, but it was pretty close.
"I'd like to know the same thing." Said Tony, while the others just nodded in agreement.
Loki felt a headache coming on and it wasn't just from the over extension of his magic. All he said by way of explanation was, "it's raining."
The Avengers just looked at him with blank uncomprehending faces.
Loki fought the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose. Instead he just sighed and elaborated quietly, "He spent the last seventy years in space. On a ship, or crater, neither of which were the flourishing examples of seasonal changes or weather in general."
Natasha was the first to understand what Loki meant. She let out a startled curse in Russian, looking over at Steve mournfully. The boys were a little bit slower on the uptake, but they caught on within seconds of Natasha. They all looked pretty upset with Loki's explanation. James looked like he was two seconds away from pulling Steve into a huge hug and never letting him go. Fortunately, Natasha was close enough to stop him from moving, with a gentle hand on his elbow. Steve was hunching down seeming to ignore all of them, but his body was as tense as a bow. Clearly, he understood they were talking about him, and didn't want to see the pity on all the Avenger's faces.
"I'm a little tired," said Loki, "perhaps Steven and I can return to our room now."
They all knew a retreat when they saw it but didn't comment. "Come brother, I will take you both back to your room."
"I'll get some more food together for you both," said Bruce, "Tony and I want to try some different recipes for Steve, see if he can stomach some juices or something similar."
Loki waited until Steve stood up with his pencil and sketchbook before moving towards the elevator to follow Thor. Food sounded wonderful right now, and Steve needed a chance to regroup after what just happened. The old Captain had his shoulders hunched as he walked, like he was trying to hide from everyone. Steve flinched away from James when he put his hand out towards him.
As the elevator closed on the three of them Natasha spoke up, "Jarvis, can you black out the window in Loki and Steve's room?"
"Of course Ms. Romanoff. It shall be done immediately." Came the A.I's swift reply.
James was frozen in place staring at the spot where his friend entered the elevator. Without warning he spoke up quietly, "he tried to show us."
The others looked up and waited for James to continue, "with the drawing. Bruce- he was trying to tell us about the rain with his drawing. But we didn't get it. I didn't get it- didn't connect the dots…"
"This wasn't your fault James," said Natasha quietly. "You didn't force him to put his hand through the window."
"But I should've guessed! There have been clues all over the place! The way he keeps tracking the sun… He did it in the ruins and on the quinjet! I bet he was even doing it this morning before we brought them breakfast! I should've realized…" James' eyes were connecting the dots, all the clues he had missed in the last few days. He was getting a little frantic in his worry and was pacing in a tight circle.
"Hey, you're not the only one who didn't see this RoboCap. We all missed the signs. This wasn't just on you." Said Tony, trying to get him to calm down some.
"But I'm his friend! I've known him since we were practically babies!" James didn't seem to want to give up the blame on this one. He had one hand raking through his hair, and the other opening and closing into a fist as he moved.
Without warning James turned and went to the elevator. "Hey! Where are you going?!" Said Tony, ready to stop him if need be.
"My room." Was the short reply.
"Try not to break any more walls please! There's enough damage to the Tower right now!" Tony said as the doors to the elevator closed.
"He needs a little time," said Natasha, but she looked like she wanted to follow him anyway. Instead she began fixing some of the furniture around the room, trying to keep herself from going upstairs after James.
Bruce and Tony nodded in agreement before moving to the kitchen. Bruce located a juicer and the pair began brainstorming different things that Steve might be able to drink.
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"Do you require anything Brother?" Asked Thor as the three of them made their way back towards Loki and Steve's shared room.
Loki shook his head in response, "we will be fine… Thank you."
Thor nodded and left them at their door, "I will be just down the hall if you decide differently."
The pair stood in the middle of their room, seemingly waiting for the door to close behind Thor. Steve glanced at the blacked-out window, shoulders hunching down even further. He moved to his spot on the floor from the previous night and settled in, tapping against the sketchbook as he did.
Loki nodded to Steve then moved to the bed. He hesitated for a moment before sitting on the edge. When nothing happened after a moment, he moved to a lying position. Within moments he was sound asleep, safe in the knowledge that Steve was keeping watch and would wake him from a nightmare, or if someone was coming to the room.
Steve set down his sketchbook and picked up the StarkTablet given to him by Tony. He ran his hands over the screen and experimented with different letter combinations. Every now and again he would glance up, looking around the room before nodding to himself and continuing to play around with the tablet. He figured out how to set the volume to practically mute, so he wouldn't disturb Loki with his experimenting.
For a little over an hour, the only sounds in the room were Loki's even breathing from the bed and Steve's StarkTablet's Irish voice. Steve looked up from the tablet, head tilted to the side slightly, before nodding and standing up. He carefully walked over to Loki and touched a finger to Loki's hand. In an instant Loki was awake, eyes open, but still laying on the bed. Steve glanced at the door then back to Loki, his hand tapping against Loki's wrist. Loki nodded then sat up before making his way to their shared bathroom.
Steve waited a beat then took the Starktablet and made his way to the door. He wasn't actually sure if he would be let out or not, but he was going to try anyway. Slowly he pushed the door open, and when nothing happened, he moved out into the hall. Jarvis didn't ask him to return to his room, so he took that as a good sign. Clutching the Tablet, he slowly made his way across the hall to James' room. Steve gently knocked on the door and waited, hoping his friend would answer. If not, he would leave the tablet on the floor and return to his room.
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James spent most of the time in his room pacing, clearly upset with himself for missing the signs of Steve's distress earlier. After a while he just laid on the bed, not really sleeping but staring sullenly at the ceiling. He was trying to figure out the best way to apologize to his friend for what happened earlier and was coming up short on possible solutions.
A gentle knock on his door startled him out of his musing, but not the mood he was in. He contemplated not answering, figuring it was Natasha or Bruce, probably trying to get him to see reason.
However Jarvis', "Sergeant, I would strongly recommend you answer your door," had his interest peaked.
/Perhaps Natasha threatened to murder me if I didn't…/ With that thought he rolled off the bed and made his way to the door.
He was not prepared for the sight of Steve on the other side, clutching the StarkTablet Tony had given him.
"Stevie… what?" Was all James could say.
Steve just pressed the speaker button on the Tablet, making sure the volume was up a little more than it had been so his friend could hear it. The Irish voice came out of the speaker, "I'm sorry for scaring you earlier..."
"No, it was my fault. I should've realized what you were doing…" Steve was already tapping away at the tablet.
"It wasn't your fault. You couldn't of known that I was going to have such a strong reaction to the rain… Bucky, please don't beat yourself up over this."
James made a noise; no one had called him "Bucky" since the '40's. Everyone in this century went with his first name, especially when he was getting his brain together. Then it just stuck. Without warning James was wrapping Steve up in a giant bear hug. His anger over the earlier situation melting away with hearing Steve use his old nickname.
Steve tensed when he saw his friend move, but relaxed into the hug after a moment, letting Bucky hold him for as long as he needed. It was his own way of apologizing for his freak out earlier.
"Hey, Punk. Maybe we can go out onto the roof, or Tony's Penthouse deck later for a while." Said James, realizing this would be a good way to help his old friend. Steve gave a small nod to the suggestion but didn't want to put too much hope into the thought. Hope was a hard thing to come by for him, especially with everything that had happened.
"Sirs," said Jarvis after a moment, "I wanted to inform you that the others were on their way up with a few large trays of food."
James gave Steve a final squeeze before letting go. The pair then made their way back to Steve's shared room with Loki, the God standing near the door quietly. Steve gave him a small smile in greeting, which was returned briefly. The pair made their way back over to the wall, sitting together on the floor in a repeat of their position from yesterday. James looked like he wanted to say something but stopped himself. There was probably a reason Steve was not using furniture, and he would share that in his own time. James remembered having a similar problem when he was regaining himself after the Red Room and that was what kept him from commenting.
James chose the spot against the blacked-out windows and was just sliding to the floor when Bruce, Natasha and Tony came knocking on the door. Tony adding a mile a minute commentary as he did so, "Alright kids! Food's here, everyone eat up."
It was still a little early for the Avengers to be eating lunch, but with the super metabolisms of Bruce and James, along with Thor being a God, they brought enough food for everyone to share. One tray was specifically for Loki and Steve, the other for the Avengers to share. Thor came in right behind his teammates, "Ah the glory of a delicious meal to share amongst friends."
His comment got an eye roll from Tony and a bemused smile from Natasha and James. Loki realized that his brother was saying certain things like that for those specific reactions from his Midgardian teammates and hid a smile of his own. He was still weary of his brother and his intentions, so he made sure the others didn't see the twitch of his lips.
"Alright Space Cap, Bruce and I came up with a bunch of different smoothies that have a similar texture to the broth you've been eating thus far. Each one has been carefully vetted for maximum healing properties and general healthiness. Feel free to try them all and finish off the ones you like the best." Tony's mile a minute mouth was moving even as he was unloading tall glasses towards the original super soldier. Bruce was passing Loki a plate of sandwiches full of meats, cheeses, and veggies.
Steve's eyebrows were rising to his hairline the longer Tony went on about each smoothie. At one point he quickly glanced to the far wall near the bathroom, before turning his attention back to the inventor. His hand was tapping against his leg, and he was only a little tense with Tony's proximity.
Finally, Tony finished speaking with a dramatic look and hand wave, "Well? What are you waiting for?"
Steve's eyes glanced over to James, then Bruce quickly, before settling back on the smoothies. With a careful hand he picked up the closest smoothie, sniffing it a moment before taking a sip. Steve made a disgusted face, and James nearly choked on his bit of sandwich from the look. He was having trouble with the whole breathing, laughing and eating at the same time thing- so Natasha went over and non-to-gently pounded on his back.
Purely to help her friend catch his breath of course.
When he could sort of breath again James gasped out, "Ha! Oh God, I haven't seen that face since the kimchi incident of '38."
The glare Steve sent him was totally worth it for James.
Bruce had the decency to look apologetic; "There was actually kimchi in that one…"
Which sent James into another round of laughter.
Steve put the glass as far away from his person as he possibly could and rolled his eyes at James. He was secretly happy he got his friend to laugh, but he wasn't going to actually let him know that anytime soon.
A little more warily this time, Steve chose a glass that was red in color. He raised an eyebrow at Bruce, figuring on an explanation from him would be better than Tony's jumble of words from earlier.
"Mostly fruit juices, and some milk with protein powder." Said Bruce, seeming to know what Steve wanted.
This time there was no disgusted face. Steve waited a beat before smiling and taking another sip of it, before placing it near the wall next to him. Bruce made a mental note, to use that recipe again.
There were three more smoothies on the tray, one of which got another disgusted face- but not up to par with the first one, more so because it was too sweet- which Loki communicated for the group as a way of explanation. The other two got put on the wall with the red one.
Steve picked up the red one and began sipping at that. Now that he was getting fed on a more regular basis, he could feel his metabolism begin working to heal some of the damage on his body. He wondered briefly if this regular feeding would help heal everything wrong with him, but again didn't dwell on it too long. Hope could be a very dangerous thing.
Out of nowhere Natasha's phone let out a chirping sound. She was up and out of the room before anyone could blink.
Steve and Loki shared one of their creepy telepathy moments, before Steve gave a small smile towards the God. Neither of them elaborated on what just happened, and the others were wondering if they should ask.
Steve was able to finish the first smoothie quicker than he had the broth from his last two meals. After everyone was finished eating the Avengers weren't too sure what to do with themselves.
"Well," said Tony, "the bonding time has been fun and all, but I have things that need to get done in the workshop." He was up and out the door almost as fast as Natasha had been a moment before.
"Would you mind if I did another check up Steve?" Asked Bruce calmly, "I just want to make sure you didn't do too much damage to yourself earlier."
The super soldier narrowed his eyes slightly then pointed to James as well. Bruce looked between the pair before nodding, "I agree he should also be looked over."
Steve sent James a devious smile.
"Punk."
Steve typed out a quick, "Jerk," on the tablet. The pair of them both twitched their lips into small smiles at the same time. Bruce just raised an eyebrow at them.
"I'll just go get my bag then." Said Bruce, who grabbed the trays and moved towards the door.
"Brother," said Thor suddenly with a neutral tone, "I was hoping to have a word with you in private."
Loki became tense before Steve gently touched his arm, fingers tapping against the God's appendage. Loki looked wary at his brother before glancing over at Steve, who was still tapping his fingers against the God's arm.
With a sigh Loki nodded, "If we must," before using the wall to help himself get up and gesturing for Thor to lead the way.
The pair made their way out of the room in silence.
By the time Bruce made it back to the room with his bag, Steve had finished about half of the second of the three smoothies. The super soldier pushed the two remaining glasses away to where Loki was sitting earlier so they wouldn't get knocked into. Bruce figured he would treat this check up the same as the last, where he took everything out of his bag he would need, then explained/demoed the procedures on James. The only difference was this time James would also be receiving some treatments as well.
"Hey Bruce," said James while the doctor was unpacking the bag, "maybe we could all go out on Tony's balcony deck when we are done here."
The two Avengers shared a brief look before Bruce responded, "I'm sure that would be fine. Right Jarvis?"
"Sir has not given me instructions saying otherwise Doctor Banner." Said Jarvis.
Steve was looking between the pair a little warily, before looking around the room again, his fingers tapping against the floor next to his foot. He didn't give any indication that he was for or against the chance to go outside either. James and Bruce shared another look and fought the urge to look around the room as well. The three of them were the only ones in here at the moment, and they couldn't figure out why Steve's eyes kept sweeping the room like there were more people around.
Obviously, this was another nervous tick from his time in space.
"Alright," said Bruce, "Shall we begin?"
James and Steve both nodded and the pair were both examined by Bruce. Neither soldier had too much damage from the morning's altercation and James was well into the healing process. Bruce was concerned with the state of Steve's ribs, but the soldier either didn't seem to notice, or care that they were more bruised than they had been the day before. Nothing had really changed with Steve's body temperature, or pulse, but Bruce wasn't expecting too much at this point. Steve needed to be on a more stable eating schedule in order to get his energy higher so the serum could kick in better to heal him.
Around the time Bruce was finishing the exam, Loki came back into the room, Thor nowhere in sight. Steve gave him a worried glance, but Loki just shook his head in denial, not saying anything, and sitting on the edge of the bed. Steve nodded and brought his attention back to Bruce and James.
"That's everything," said Bruce, "and you both check out about as well as I expected you to. Steve, can you finish the second smoothie and we can all head out to the Penthouse Deck for a while?"
Steve narrowed his eyes, but obediently picked up the glass from before. Within about five minutes the smoothie was gone, and Steve was placing the empty glass back on the floor.
Bruce and James nodded, before getting up off the floor and making their way towards the door.
"Are you coming?" Asked James when it looked like Steve wasn't going to go with them.
Steve looked between the pair and Loki, the two of them doing their telepathy thing before Loki shook his head and nodded towards the bed. Steve seemed to understand and nodded towards the blacked-out windows before moving to follow James and Bruce.
/The two of them have the weirdest connection…/ thought Bruce as he watched the pair interact. /This is beyond fascinating…/
Thankfully Bruce didn't share his thoughts with the others, because it would've caused an even bigger incident than the one from that morning.
As the door shut behind the three of them Loki slouched forward, hands clasping between his knees and head bowed. He wanted to hate his brother, with the same ferocity as he did his so-called father… but a part of him couldn't do it.
He needed time to think and work through everything on his own. Later he would bring it all up with Steve to get his opinion, since he knew Steve had similar feelings of anger towards Thor.
Loki moved so he was sitting with his back against the headboard of the bed and let himself drift into his own mind. He let his thoughts wander and tried to come to an agreement with himself.
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Thor brought Loki to an unused guest room as "neutral" territory for them. The God of Thunder went right to the point, looking Loki in the eye as he spoke; subtle was never a thing for him. "You were right about me not being ready to be King. In fact, I still truly don't think I'm ready for such a role even now."
Loki drew his lips into a thin line but didn't comment in return. Thor took that as a sign to keep going.
"Arrogance was not my only flaw that needed to be addressed, as I didn't think to look further into Father's word on your activities. I am sorry that I have failed you so thoroughly Brother, and I will understand if you never want to speak to me again. I will however try to make up for my past mistakes to the best of my abilities."
Part of Loki wanted to believe his brother. "I don't want to return to Asgard," was all he could say.
Thor nodded, "Indeed, if I were in your position, I would not want to return either."
The God of Thunder paused for a moment, "What of Mother? Surely you have no quarrel with her?"
Loki looked away suddenly tense. He did miss his mother but wasn't going to express that in front of his brother. However, he really did want to know how she was doing.
In the end, he stayed silent.
Thor noticed the hesitance in his brother's body language and didn't push the matter further.
Instead he shared a few stories of his mother's activities while Loki was away. There were very few truly happy moments for her with Loki being missing, but some instances were humorous and made her smile. "Mother was given the same information as I on your activities Brother. If she had known what was happening there wouldn't have been a force in the Universe that would've stopped her and I from coming to get you."
Loki could feel himself starting to believe what his Brother was saying. He needed time to think. To see if it was too late for him to trust what Thor was saying, or close himself off from his brother.
"I would like to return to my room now." Loki said quietly. He refused to look Thor in the eye but did keep watch with his peripheral vision.
"Of course Brother. I hope with time that you might find a way to forgive me my wrongs against you." Said Thor, as he moved to open the door to the hallway.
Without thinking Loki said, "Careful. Hope can be a very dangerous thing," as he was exiting the room.
The God of Mischief didn't look back at his brother to see his eyes widening in realization of how deep Loki's wounds ran. He merely stayed in the hall while Loki slowly made his way back to his shared room. The God of Thunder vowed then and there he would find a way to help his brother believe his sincerity.
It was just a matter of how.
Thor was lost in his thoughts when the shared room's door opened again, this time with Bruce, James and Steven exiting. James noticed Thor first, "Thor, want to come with us to the Penthouse deck for a while? We are going to steal some time on it while Tony is in his workshop.
Thor nodded absently and made his way over to the trio. The group of four then made their way to the elevator and Jarvis took them up to the Penthouse without needing to be told.
As the elevator opened again Steve was the first one out. He clearly had a problem with the small space, but there was little way around that because the stairway doors were programmed to open into the stairwell and not the other way around.
Steve looked around the room for a minute; clearly interested in something he saw from the way he was moving around the room. There was little pattern to his movements though, so the others were a little confused about whatever held his attention.
James started to make his way to the deck's sliding French Doors, but stopped from a sudden exhale of breath from Steve and an alarmed sound from Bruce. He turned to see Steve crouched next to the crater the Hulk smashed Loki into. He was carefully touching the edge of it with his right hand, the other tapping against his leg at a pretty fast tempo.
Bruce looked like he was going to apologize for what the Hulk did, but Steve just looked up at him with a small genuine smile. It was the first time that look was directed at someone other than James, which left Bruce feeling confused yet happy.
Steve tapped the floor with two fingers of his right hand, and then tapped his temple near his eyes, not breaking eye contact with the scientist. It took the scientist a moment, but he suddenly understood what Steve was saying.
Loki had been under the influence of the scepter, just like Clint had been. This meant that the Hulk's "smashing" of the God had done what was needed to break the scepter's hold over him.
/The Other Guy was able to help…?/ The scientist pushed the thought away before it could take root. The Hulk was not trying to help. He was just releasing his anger on the God who had started this whole thing.
Steve looked like he wanted to say more but realized after a moment the StarkTablet and his sketchbook were both still in his room. He glanced at Bruce and must've seen something in his features that stopped him from trying to communicate more, because he then turned towards James and started hesitantly walking towards his position near the doors. The rain had stopped at some point, but it was still pretty cloudy outside. Steve wasn't sure if that meant their little excursion would be ended or not, but he was willing to take a chance that it wasn't.
Steve could hear Loki's voice in his head warning him against Hoping for anything.
James motioned for the doors to slide open, which they did without question. James then stepped out onto the deck, clearing the way for Steve to carefully make his way out there as well.
Steve stopped short of the door, watching them for a moment in their open position, glanced back at Bruce and Thor, the latter had moved over to the scientist and put a hand on his shoulder in support, and squared his own shoulders. Steve took a few quick steps, moving out onto the deck and moving away from James, who was still standing near the door. He let out a shaky breath as he looked around the deck at the city skyline, and up at the clouds.
The original Cap barely noticed when Thor and Bruce moved out onto the deck, enjoying the city fresh air and view as well. The sounds of the clean up were harder to hear up here, but if Steve listened closely, he could make out what was happening below. He moved all around the deck and up to the railings trying to take in as much as he could before the others got bored and called it quits.
However, Bruce and James were settling into the loungers set up for Pepper and Tony's use (the pair figured the couple wouldn't mind if the chairs were used while they hung out with Steve), and Thor had a sudden idea. He held out his hand like he was calling Mjolnir, simply waiting for his weapon to appear. If the others saw what he was doing, they didn't comment.
After a moment the elevator dinged, and Mjolnir came flying out of it and into Thor's hand. Bruce made a mental note to ask Thor about how he commanded the hammer and got it to fly through the building like that without breaking anything.
Steve heard the whoosh of air as the hammer got to Thor and turned just in time to see the God raise said weapon into the air, his eyes focused on the sky. Steve flinched back and took several steps away from the God, even though they were already pretty far apart on the deck. He suddenly flinched again when something wet landed on his forehead. Steve cautiously looked up and another wet drop landed in his eye. He blinked and drew his eyebrows together in confusion. When it suddenly started raining on the deck (Thor was controlling the storm and didn't want to interfere with the clean up below), Steve realized what had happened.
Steve was like a small child seeing snow for the first time. He smiled wide, trying to look up at the drops, but had to close his eyes from their onslaught. He raised his arms up then out then cupped together to catch the water, over and over again. Thor gently placed the hammer down, to be less threatening, but Steve didn't even notice.
His clothes were completely soaked through in minutes, but Steve didn't care. He was just standing there enjoying the feel of the rain for the first time in so many years.
James was content to stay on the loungers and watch his friend. He and Bruce were mostly sheltered from the rain with the umbrella between them, but they were still getting a little wet from the experience. Suddenly James frowned and got Bruce's attention. He then gestured to where Steve was standing in the rain. Bruce didn't see what James was gesturing at, until he looked up towards Steve's face.
The turtleneck James had given his friend had gotten a little heavy in the rain fall, causing the portion around his neck to start sagging down. Steve probably didn't notice, since he was so focused on the weather, but if he had he would've done something about it. As it was Bruce could see a bandage covering the whole of his neck, but it had a bunch of dark red spots, following the same line as the cut that came up towards his chin. His neck also seemed a little swollen, especially where the blood was seeping into the bandage.
Whatever was wrong with his neck had clearly been agitated, either from the incident that morning, or even how much Steve was turning his head, but the super soldier didn't seem to notice. /Or…/ Thought Bruce, /the pain has become a standard feeling for him, and he has gotten used to it. /
That thought was making Bruce a little anger, so he quickly moved onto other thoughts. He did glance back at Barnes, who had a very worried look on his face. The two shared a nod, both on the same page about the wound. They were going to get one of their two guests to explain it, one way or another, no matter what it took. James was looking pretty upset, even for him, and Bruce guessed his teammate might know more about the injury than he was letting on.
Bruce made a mental note to talk to James about it later and see what his thoughts were.
After about ten minutes Steve began shivering uncontrollably, even though he was trying to hide it. Thor took that as a cue to call off the rain, so very carefully he picked up his hammer and raised it up to the clouds. Within moments the rain stopped, and the clouds parted to show the sun again. Steve looked sad at the loss of the rain but didn't make any other moves. He simply closed his eyes and enjoyed the feel of the sun's heat against his cold body.
When the rain stopped, James moved back into the Penthouse and asked Jarvis where he could find a warm blanket, or towels for all of them. He grabbed a couple towels for everyone, but Jarvis also directed him to a fleece blanket for Steve. It would help warm him up after he dried off some. He tossed towels to his teammates, who took them and began drying off, and then made enough noise that Steve would hear his approach. Steve didn't acknowledge his friend when he draped a towel around his shoulders, but he did grab the edges of the towel to keep it in place.
James also got a better look at Steve's neck injury and it was even worse up close. He didn't say anything about it, because he was pretty sure it would set his friend off again. However, he did say, "Gotta dry off Stevie, or you'll catch a cold. And we both know how THAT always turns out for you."
Steve gave James a halfhearted glare and an eye roll, but obediently began toweling off. James stepped away to give his friend a little privacy, and went over to Bruce, the pair talking softly enough that Steve wouldn't hear what they were saying.
They were discussing the neck wound, Bruce asking careful questions about the injury as quietly as possible, with James responding with as much detail as possible. Thor noticed the conversation and brought Steve's attention towards him, "Steven, do not worry, I am sure we will have an opportunity to enjoy some rain showers again in the future."
Steve nodded and finished toweling himself somewhat dry, while also carefully readjusting his turtleneck. He was shivering much more noticeably, and his teeth began chattering almost in stereo with his body. Luckily Bruce and James had finished their conversation for the moment, and James quickly brought the fleece blanket over to his friend, taking the towel away after making sure he wasn't dripping water anymore. Steve wrapped himself in the blanket right away, pulling it tight around his body.
Bruce herded everyone back into the Penthouse towards the elevator, asking Jarvis to please turn the heat up a few degrees in Steve and Loki's room. Jarvis did so right away and also informed the group that the clothes ordered for Steve and Loki had arrived and was on their way up to the guest floors.
As the group made it back to the guest suites, they split going to their respective rooms to change. James suggested Steve get a hot shower to warm up a little more, since there were now clothes that he could wear. Steve opened the door to his and Loki's shared room to find the God sitting against the wall, playing with the StarkTablet Tony had given Steve. Loki gestured to the dresser, "I've changed all the shirts to have high necks like the one you are wearing now."
The smile Steve sent him was full of gratitude, as he went over and grabbed some new clothes. Loki had also changed from his battle clothes, changing the original clothes into something that he was more used to. The shirt was green silk, while the pants were black. Within minutes Steve was in the bathroom, turning on the hot water and getting a quick shower to warm up some. He made it as quick as he could, knowing James might start to panic again if he was in too long like that morning. The towels hanging up were also pretty warm, courtesy of Jarvis, so when Steve went to dry off, he gave a small smile at the camera in the ceiling. Jarvis didn't say anything, but Steve figured the A.I knew what Steve meant with the gesture.
Within ten minutes Steve was back up against the wall near Loki, who offered his silent friend the StarkTablet back. Steve shook his head, left hand tapping against his leg. Loki nodded and went back to what he was doing, while Steve grabbed the other smoothie left over from that morning. He took a sip, smiling when he realized Loki had kept it at a cool temperature for him so it didn't go bad. Steve's body was getting used to having more food available, and he could feel the serum working as he sipped the smoothie. It meant he would need to start drinking more of these, but he was hesitant to ask their hosts.
The Avengers overall seemed like they were okay with Loki and Steve, but the pair was still hesitant to ask for anything from them. Steve especially wasn't going to try it after only one day. Loki had done it a few times, and it had turned out well for them, but Steve had also been with Thanos much longer than his God friend. Some things were just more ingrained.
The smoothie was finished off much quicker than the others, and Steve leaned his head back against the wall. He knew Loki was keeping an eye out, which helped him relax enough to get some sleep. It had been a little longer than he normally went without sleep, but he knew his body would handle it fine. And now he also had Loki to watch out for him while he slept, making it easier for him to relax into the deep sleep his body needed.
Jarvis must've let the Avengers know that Steve was sleeping, and probably monitoring said sleep with orders from Bruce. It was only about ten minutes after Steve woke up (he had slept for a little over an hour), that there was a knock on his door. Bruce, James and Thor were bringing more food for the pair, the same smoothies that Steve had liked that morning, and sandwiches packed with thick cuts of meat for Loki. The third tray was again piled with food for the team and within moments both Natasha and Tony were back in the room with them, the latter talking a mile a minute about some new breakthrough he was making with his newest suit design.
Natasha had a much more peaceful look than she had the last few times the pair had seen her. Loki raised an eyebrow at her mood, clearly asking but also giving her an opportunity to keep whatever it was to herself. The Widow looked right at Loki, clearly expecting some kind of response from him, as she said, "Phil is doing better than the doctors expected. His injuries, which should have killed him, are actually healing and he is responding to all the treatments he is being given."
"Fascinating." Was all Loki said to her unasked question. The others must've already received the news, as they were watching the interaction between the two without comment. Unfortunately for them Loki's face gave nothing away. Yes, he had used a spell to help the Agent recover from the stabbing, but he also wasn't going to admit that to them unless they specifically asked him.
Loki and Natasha had a little staring contest/silent conversation with their eyes, neither backing down. Steve glanced between the pair, a small twitch of his lips the only thing giving away that he knew more than he was letting on. But, since the Avengers were watching Loki and Natasha, they missed the look on Steve's face. After a moment both participants of the contest looked away at the same time. The Avengers weren't quite sure what to make of it, but let it go for now.
The rest of the meal was full of light banter and a running commentary from Tony on his ideas for the new suit. When Steve was finished eating, he just leaned back against the wall, watching the interactions around him. Loki also seemed content to listen and not add anything, the pair beginning to feel a little more like actual guests and not prisoners.
Which is why neither Steve nor Loki was surprised when the next day, the feeling vanished and everything kind of went to hell.
-End Chapter 6-