Tony and the Drums of War
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Tony took a sip of his coffee, sans-scotch, of which he was pretty proud of himself. He had expected the beginning of this meeting to give him some anxiety, give him a headache, or give him indigestion, but standing next to Sesshomaru, who was dressed in jeans that hugged his hips a little too well and a scarlet silk button up (Armani maybe?) steadied him. He had expected him to be wearing his silk kimono thing, but after the shower he simply hung it up in the closet next to his really cheesy, gaudy one.
Tony scoffed at himself, he never would have thought a man who consistently wore aviators, a fur boa and sported face tattoos would provide him mental stability…but here he was. He wouldn't trade him for anything. Hell he'd give away all his stupid cars (even the Shelby) and dump his stocks to keep him, not that was really all that realistic.
He was lucky, maybe. Maybe they all were lucky in a kinda fucked up sort of way. No…there was definitely a time where Tony didn't believe in luck. Luck was what people believed in when they didn't recognize what was really at work, or how much work something took to achieve.
But…
The shrapnel….
The void…
Coulson being alive…
Loki using the Bifrost to bring forward into time the most devastatingly handsome pain-in-the-ass white knight to rival Thor.
Maybe…luck existed? Tony didn't really know to do with that epiphany that snuck up on him like Little Miss Sunshine when he had been caught staring at her Lord and father-figure.
The weight of responsibility for the invasion still weighed on him, but the asphyxiation that plagued him had dissipated. He knew the Demon Lord, with an ass that he would be happy to worship for decades, would stop at nothing to help him protect what was his. He knew that in a way that shocked him, but the evidence was there and he wasn't going to question it.
He was committed, all in, no bluff, he had a full house.
Everyone who thought he was bluffing about his decision could kiss. His. Ass. Though it had definitely not sunk in yet that he was basically engaged to a Demon Lord. What had sunk in though was that he was staying. Sesshomaru stood by his side, and he wasn't going back to his time…his old life. It honestly spooked Tony a bit. Sesshomaru was giving up everything he knew to be with him, a sacrifice Tony was having a hard time wrapping his head around.
He got what, rather who, he wanted, and it still buzzed in his system that this was really happening.
Sesshomaru chose him, and while it was a little…uh…intimidating…he knew he could make worth the Demon Lord's while. He knew he could compliment his strengths and skills with his tech and intellect. They made a killer team, Tony knew this. He wasn't going to screw this up like he did with Pepper. He…wait.
God his life was so backwards.
Did he seriously accept a marriage proposal before either of them saying THOSE three little words?
Tony's eyes went wide.
'Do I love him?' Tony paused mid-sip of his Colombian coffee. 'Fuck. Do I love him?' A ribbon of anxiety crept up Tony's throat as he stole a glance to the drop dead gorgeous Demon next to him who had his head tilted towards Little Miss Sunshine and her cone of rainbow sherbet. Tony could tell by his ears, and the relaxed position of Sesshomaru's jaw that he was plenty content.
He was also pretty damn content with what happened in the shower this morning as well.
His posture also hinted he was in a good mood. He wasn't rigidly standing there like he would be if there were too many people for his liking. Tony knew he didn't like crowds, or a lot of attention on him. His shoulders were also up and not that slightly slumped angle they had when he was in a sulky….Oh god, how did this happen? How had he managed to know someone's body language as well as the schematic to his arc reactor? Christ, he could read the Demon Lord in a way no one else could, that was for damn sure. Not even Loki, maybe not even Nat.
As if he could read Tony's mind Sesshomaru sliced his gaze over to Tony, chin tilted slightly up. Tony got a good, long view of his neck and was mad that the hickey he left in the shower that morning had already faded.
So. Not. Fair.
"Stark do you want one? Lord Sesshomaru told me it is an Eggo homestyle!" Rin materialized next to him the only way kids could.
"Um…I'm good sunshine, going carb light." It could never hurt to shave off those few stubborn pounds he had on him. Not that romping around with a shredded Demon Lord made him self conscious.
"What does homestyle mean? Why is it called an Eggo if Uncle Loki called it a waffle?" Rin ran up to him with far too many questions. From across the room he felt the sharp heat of a gaze. Loki. He probably knew something. He probably put her up to this. He hated that guy sometimes. Well, ok, not full blown hate, but a good medium-well grilled hate.
Tony looked to Sesshomaru for help who simply ate more of his steak. He was of course no help, like he knew what a waffle was. Tony still had no idea what to do with kids….oh wait, that was what the babysitter was for.
"You know who knows the answer, is Bruce." Tony redirected Sunshine's incessant energy towards Bruce who paled. He could still put him on babysitting duty while he tried to sneak a question to her dad about his sun gla—
Dad.
Christ he was going to be a father. Step father? Adopted father? Great fucking job, Tony, way to think things through. How was he going to do this?! It wasn't that he didn't like Rin. She was smart, observant even for a kid, and she did like those Bill Nye the Science Guy youtube videos he showed her. But…how could he help raise a child? Especially one from the feudal era of Japan! He didn't exactly have a great framework to work with Howard's stunning example of parenting leaving him feel like a sack of shit castaway. No shows at everything, not even a card for his birthday. Oh lord, he was going to have to remember birthdays.
Tony doubted he could make Pepper remind him.
He'd have to ask Rin what her birthday was, wait, that one time he asked Sesshomaru for the date he said 'solar year'. Japan used the lunar calendar back then didn't they? Could he cheat and just convert it? There was no way he could remember a damn moon cycle.
Did Sesshomaru have a birthday? Did Demons celebrate every 'human' year? Tony hoped not, because there was no way he could figure out what a Demon would want for his birthday. A sacrifice? More aviators? Christ what exactly had he done?!
"Yes, Man of Iron, tell me, why are those breakfast pastries called eggos if they don't even taste nor resemble them?" Thor's voice boomed across the speaker system and Loki barked out a quick laugh. Oh. God.
Loki.
Loki was Sesshomaru's basically adopted big brother.
Was Loki seriously going to be his brother-in-law?! Clint?! Tony didn't know which was worse. He and Clint had been on some damn rocky terrain recently and he was not about to let the whole 'manipulate my now fiancé into scrying his hysterical boyfriend and having him pass out which put Tony into a new stratosphere of pissed and worried because if he didn't fucking wake up because he was helping LOKI of ALL PEOPLE who got him into this stupid mess in the first place he was going to make Loki WISH he had been dragged off by Fury.' Tony's left hand was a white knuckled fist at his side. He would never forget the vaulting, cascading warmth of relief when Sesshomaru's eyes opened and his stripes and moon had turned back to their normal colors.
When Sesshomaru didn't wake back up right away, he almost lost it on his future fucking brother in laws. Even Rin had been upset and he didn't really know how to calm her down, but Clint sure did with the damn pizza and….
"Stark." Tony whipped his head around. Sesshomaru's face was neutral and didn't reveal anything, but the warmth of his hand on his clenched fist gave him away.
Tony studied him, taking a sip of his quickly dwindling and cooling coffee. He was vibrating out of his skin. He had to get out of here and think about how this morning everything was FINE. And now, it didn't feel so FINE. Tony knew this whole war room thing wasn't going to be FINE, but he didn't think it was going to be his impending mating ritual with his fiancé that was making his blood itch.
Was this what heroin addicts felt like?
Something.
He needed something otherwise he was going to lose his cool which would make no sense to anyone here. He also didn't want the extra attention while he figured out just how down this rabbit hole of….commitment was.
But Sesshomaru's gaze bore into him like coals on his skin and he took a deep breath and relaxed his fist. He could fake this. He could get through their 'all important pow wow to end all pow wows'. He could pick up the damn pom poms and cheer on Steve and 'Sesshoki'. God. Sesshoki. No. Tony downed his luke warm coffee.
"I'm good Moonie. Really." Tony knew that probably didn't convince him but it was really his best effort. Really. He really. Really. REALLY. Should have taken that Xanax. He didn't because this morning was one of the best he had in a long, long time.
Tony woke up and saw that vision in bed and smiled like he meant it. Because he did mean it, Sesshomaru was in his bed and they were together. Then that really got him worked up that he decided to prove Nat wrong and actually do some cardio. He had to do something 'cardio oriented' because he wasn't going to be 'that guy' to wake him up for attention. That's not what Tony Stark did. Tony didn't do needy. He didn't wake up Demon Lord Boyfriends at seven forty-ish am for hanky-panky when he had a shitfest of a day the day before.
He could wait. Until it was like, 9:21 am and he had run four miles, watched the video between him and Steve like four times, and had one cup of coffee and he STILL wasn't up. He couldn't wait all day, they had things to do. He had to do things to him!
Plus, if Bambi and Robin Hood were getting it on, he wanted some too. Tony knew he was a selfish being, but to his credit he didn't mean to scare Sesshomaru out of his skin. Tony, a few years ago would have laughed at him, but he got it. Sometimes he woke up like that too and judging by how long his claws were and the red that bled into his eyes he was really out of it. Fuck. Sesshomaru was so good with him when he lost his shit, and he went and fucking caused him to panic like the Tower was falling down. He didn't want to make a big deal out of it, but it also surprised the hell out of him. Was that how he looked when he turned into an unhinged mess? And fuck, he caused it.
Tony knew he was shit at comforting people, but damn he wanted to be better, at least for him. He legitimately wanted to not only return the favor for being a calming pillar of strength for him, but because he never wanted him to feel panic that he did.
The same bitter panic was jolting through his nerve endings and feeding on his spinal column now at the WORST time possible. He had his head on straight yesterday when Sesshomaru could've been dead…why was he a basket case now? Christ he needed a drink. Did he have time to go get something? What would Steve think? Ugh. He and Pepper would PITCH. A. FIT. Loki would probably say something snarky, assholish, and dramatic and Clint would hover around Loki, like he made the world turn, agree with him, and Thor would say something one half right, two halves wrong.
Bruce…he'd probably understand? Or he might be holding a grudge about leaving him with Sunshine for the whole morning.
He wasn't touching the issue of his fiancé right now. Who was still holding his hand which was just a little TOO much.
Tony almost took his hand back from Sesshomaru's when something really unexpected happened. Tony nearly jumped in the air when his arc reactor warmed up and something like the nicest hit of the best California cannabis money could buy, flooded his lungs. No. Not his lungs, it spread down his arms and legs and into his head and...the bitter percolating panic faded out like the music from a car driving by.
Was that….youki? He had definitely felt this….blanket of…zen before. Sesshomaru did say his youki would start to meld into his blood stream. He'd have to get a blood test done or something now…but if that's what it did, it didn't scream emergency.
Actually, he was struggling to dredge that previous panic up again. He…didn't feel so shit. He had a grip. In fact….Tony turned his hand over and gave Sesshomaru's clawed one a quick squeeze. He finally dared to look Sesshomaru back in his eyes, but by then he had turned to Steve. Tony didn't know what that meant.
Sesshomaru squeezed his hand gently back. OK, he knew what that meant. They were ok. Well it wasn't like he could really read his mind about getting cold feet. He wasn't really a telepath.
"Alright, I think we're all set and uh, here for the most part." Steve sounded a lot more confident than his words made him out to be as he announced to his living room.
Plus one ice cream girl. Because of course they had an Ice Cream scooper here. He had almost forgotten about her. Polly.
Polly, wide-eyed, sat on the other side of Rin. Little Miss Sunshine had originally wanted to go visit her, but time ran short so Pepper just had Happy go pick her up.
He thought Steve would lose his composure and give another lecture on who should be let in the super-secret invasion. Steve circle-time, and he kinda did lose his cool, but as Natasha already pointed out it was too late for that.
It didn't take a genius like him to see that Steve was struggling with the whole 'I'm the overwhelmed babysitter of two gods, a Demon, and a bunch of heroes and assassins, and I have to get everyone to get along to save a planet half full of idiots.' Tony was going to play nice with their spangled captain who looked like hell.
So, he had his back, Sesshomaru had a point down in the scepter room, Steve had tolerated Loki's shit a lot better than he had.
Tony got where he was coming from when Cap said maybe bringing a girl who got arrested for some not so peaceful Wall Street protesting, public intoxication, and who was associated with some pretty shady petty criminals in New Jersey into his tower to be briefed on an alien invasion.
Yeah, he ran her background, she wasn't bad news, but she wasn't squeaky clean either.
They got overruled, which Tony actually didn't see coming.
Miss Spy Universe said if they all had to leave New York, it would be good to have someone on the ground as a look out… or something.
Sesshomaru also firmly asserted he promised Rin that she would see her today, and he TRUSTED her with invasion plans. And well, since he knew Moonie wasn't the type who trusted easy he sort of just…let it happen?
Tony Stark wasn't whipped. No way.
If Pep, Nat, and his princess of a fiance wanted someone in the tower… well fine he'd let it happen. Tony knew how to choose his battles and this was not the hill he was going to die on.
Polly also had been, despite her 90's punk goth thing she was rocking, hadn't done anything but talk to Rin, Jaken, and observe. He didn't peg her for the quiet type, so she must know when to listen, which was convenient. Though Tony wasn't born yesterday, he could tell she was just itching to say SOMETHING.
He had to admit though, he didn't see an ice cream scooper being at this hootenanny over Fury a few weeks ago.
Tony had put Fury on permanent voicemail, rendering him notably absent. That was the hill Tony Stark was going to die on. Tony's blood simmered from the looks Fury was giving his boyfriend now fiancé when he was comatose and all swirly. He knew Fury and SHIELD would try to pick his brain apart once Bruce had told him about his Astral Window ability and when Rin had told him about the scrying.
Fury almost looked like he had an idea about what scrying was. That fucking unnerved Tony.
Tony kicked him out of his tower long before Natasha, Cap, and Horns made it back with Jaken. However, unfortunately not before Jaken turned into a super sea serpent and smoked the shields on the Aethon.
He caught Fury's eye light up and that is what pushed him over the goddamn edge. Not only was little green not as insufferable as Tony had previously thought, yes even he could be wrong, but he was his fiance's loyal best friend and one Tony trusted way more than Loki with certain things.
It really made his week when we he got in Fury's face and told him to get lost. Don't call us, we'll call you.
Pepper to his right cleared her throat. OK, maybe he did zone out.
"The threat is here. It's time we got ready so we aren't on our heels like we were last time. Sesshomaru, care to enlighten us about anything you learned from your mother?" Steve began with Sesshomaru, short and sweet. Tony had predicted this. He watched the video of the scepter room before he woke up the sleeping Demon Lord.
He was only a little pissed that Sesshomaru had gone and tried to destroy the scepter, again! He had sorta let him have it in the shower… well among other things.
Tony turned on the water to the shower, waiting for it to warm up and start to fog the room. He wanted to have this conversation with Sesshomaru before they engaged in some form of risky behavior. Contrary to somewhat popular belief, thanks again TMZ, he didn't really do shower sex. It was usually a lot more awkward and more hassle than what it was worth.
He also, though he would never admit it, just sorta, kinda wanted to wash his hair. It was…well. Nice. Like fairy tale princess nice. Ugh. He hated even thinking it, but knowing that when it dried and looked nice, it was he who made it look good.
And having his hair smell like his shampoo…. Well. That was an unexpected turn on.
Buuuuuuut, that didn't mean that he couldn't get creative. Tony always loved a helping hand, but that was for later. Now he had to chew out a Demon Lord.
From behind, lips positively attacked the valley where his neck met his shoulder. Cheater.
"Hey, hey, Lestat before things get steamy I gotta say something or I'm really gonna get distracted." Tony protested and hoped he sounded more sure and manly than he really thought he did.
The lips left his shoulder as did the smooth hands on his arm and shoulder. The brush of his soft, but messed hair was also missed as Tony turned around to meet sharp gold eyes.
They still caused his blood to rocket through his veins.
"You told me this curse was bad news. And I'm not blind, the mark…" Tony trailed off looking at the violent slashed burn on the soft underarm of his fiancé. Some colossal prick sorcerer carved HIS name on HIM. And he was letting it get worse and fester! And it took everything in Tony to not utterly lose his shit because who dare claim someone so close to him?! Who dare try to own him, like he was someone else's. Like a fucking pet or slave or he was going to study that scepter and find the Other and….
Tony. Cool it.
"Steve was right. You were right, we tried to get you to do our dirty work and I'm still mad I let it happen. The scepter is our responsibility. You weren't even here when we decided to get it. I don't want you messing with the scepter, or any more of that…abomination's magic until I can study it some more. I'm a genius and if anyone can figure out a way to use this magic against them and another way to break the curse it's me. And maybe Bruce." Tony reluctantly tossed the idea around in his head of letting Bruce back into his lab for this. This was important. This could be more than the grudge he was holding on to. He could let that go, he could be BETTER than his pride. Bruce did tell him about Fury and the space windows.
Sesshomaru stared though his skull for what seemed like a century. It was certainly long enough for the water to heat up and begin to fog the room. Tony was not about to back down on this. He didn't understand what this curse was going
"I cannot promise this to you in its entirety." Sesshomaru finally admitted. Tony was about to get in his face until he saw the handsome Demon do something he had never done before, he broke his gaze and ran a clawed hand through his hair as if to shake something out of it. "The scepter I shall leave be, however the shields on their vessels are the Others' magic. I will not back down from engaging the enemy because of a mere inconvenience. I am fully aware of my abilities and my disciplines. I can and will dissolve this curse." Sesshomaru pressed, his voice sounded almost low and raspy, like he had smoked a cigarette.
Tony grabbed the taller Demon by his lean, taut shoulders and forced him to look at him.
"Deal. But you're not alone, I got your back. I'll be damned if I let some two bit magican get over on us. We are a team, um the A team, and there is nothing on or off this stupid planet that will stop me from letting you go off on your own and do something stupid, including, no, definitely you. Loki brought you into this mess, but I'm damn certain not –"
Tony was cut off by Sesshomaru closing the gap suddenly with a soft kiss.
"Stark. Enough. I will not perish here." Sesshomaru stated with a slight smile toying on his full lips. The only soft anomaly about his entire face.
"I know babe." Babe? Fuck! Go with it. "Like I'd let you. But….I got question for ya." Tony recovered smoothly. He didn't mean to get so damn sappy.
"I acquiesce." Sesshomaru moved under the showerhead, brushing his bangs back.
"Are you keeping any other important secrets from me? You kept flying from me, for one, and the dog form, two. Jaken might have gotten tanked and said you've got some other tricks up your sleeve. He even told me to ask you." Tony spilled out, running his hands down Sesshomaru's smooth, toned, and wet arms.
Sesshomaru paused and furrowed his eyebrows slightly. His eyes darkened and for a moment Tony thought he almost looked angry. But that wasn't what he was feeling. Tony couldn't read him though, which confused him because he had gotten pretty damn good at it.
"…You seem to be operating under the impression that Tenseiga and Bakusaiga are simply swords. They are not." Sesshomaru turned to Tony and Tony huffed.
"Yeah, I mean, I get you can call them to you, make them fly, the Backgammon one can disintegrate people…" Tony listed and Sesshomaru's mouth hardened. Oh, he meant something else?
"They are not mere weapons, Stark. Bakusaiga is my progeny, she is a full-blooded Demon. Tenseiga is forged equally from Loki's own magic and my father's fang, rendering him a Hanyou, a half Demon. How they represent themselves now are their true forms, much like my Canine form and Jaken's River Serpent form." Sesshomaru sternly informed and continued. "They have their own abilities and identities. Tenseiga approves of you, Bakusaiga….does not."
Tony could only say he had been rendered this speechless very few times in his life. This was probably in the top three. He didn't expect that when Jaken told him to ask him about secrets. But, now it made sense that he referred to them as he and she, and their names…and even…Clint had started to do it.
"Wait. Clint hasn't seen them, has he? Like their…people form?" Tony's jealousy churned even though he knew better.
"Yes. Bakusaiga in particular has taken a shine to him." Sesshomaru moved to let Tony into the shower stream and Tony just grumbled.
"Of course he did, and of course she has." Tony sighed heavily and dramatically. He was laying it on thick on purpose as Sesshomaru let out a ghost of a smirk. Jerk.
"Envy not, Barton, and worry not about her opinion of you. She reviles Loki most." Tony's face brightened. Score one.
"Damn, now I can't say she has bad tastes. You should probably listen to her; I've been known to be a terrible influence on people." Tony laughed because it was true. Sesshomaru simply tilted his head to the side, one of his lips curled slightly up.
"Hmmm... I have the reputation of not being easily influenced." Sesshomaru ran his talons down Tony's sides which caused his gut to coil in warmth.
"Now let's wash that hair of yours and I want to push you up against the shower wall and finger and stroke you till you come across the floor." Tony decided that a much needed change of subject was in order.
"And here I thought you simply wished to wash my hair." Sesshomaru chuckled softly. He. Actually. Laughed. It wasn't the laugh he did for Clint but…oh God.
"Warned you, bad influence, and if I wanted something simple, I wouldn't want you." Tony waggled his eyebrows in a way that he knew drove people crazy. When Sesshomaru's eyes flashed, Tony knew he had him hooked.
He had learned, from the video of him and Cap, exactly what Sesshomaru thought of Thor in their weird sibling triangle. He obviously thought that Thor didn't have the right to kill Loki if he really went full Helter Skelter, but also that he probably didn't have what it takes to do it. Or… he was just saving Thor that particular unpleasant task. There was no doubt that Tony was going to study this damn scepter.
It was common knowledge that Tony didn't like, fully trust, or fully give a shit about Loki, but like hell was he gonna stand by with his thumb up his ass and watch as his Demon Lord fiancé murder his best friend because of a magic wand. He was going to figure this scepter out so it never came to that.
Sesshomaru didn't deserve to be reunited with his best friend only to have to murder him. That was some Shakespeare in the Park right there.
It was the least be could do, and he knew it would even be fun. Alien tech, maybe they could ahead of the curve, beat them at their own game.
"This is not the first encounter this realm has had with this Titan. He was here five hundred years ago, questing for a Gem of the Greater Cosmos, and an army of my fellow Demons. He acquired neither." Sesshomaru led voice placid like a lake. His voice never failed to stir something deep and hidden inside him.
"That's impossible. If the Mad Titan was here five hundred years ago Thor and I would have known about it. Odin would ha—" Loki trailed off his magic curling around him like green smoke. He always had to be so goddamn dramatic. Suddenly the magic sparked black like obsidian shards. Loki paled even lighter than Sesshomaru and he mouthed something that Tony didn't catch. This pow wow was already beginning to unravel due to Loki.
Oh shawarma, Loki's posture stiffened like he had been struck in the back with a baseball bat
Thunder boomed through the speaker system. Thor's pissed too?
"Brother! Half a millennium ago we were on a mission from Allfather to Alfheim! Twas a lengthy excursion if I reca—" Thor's eyes raged blue as he shouted through the holoprojector, obviously he hadn't caught on that he didn't have to yell to be heard.
"Silence! That can be no coincidence! Sho what happened?!" Loki was shaking at this point and his dark magic had begun to leech out across the floor. Just what, in the words of Steve, had rustled the jimmies of both Point Break and Reindeer Games so badly?
Oh fuck.
Loki had told them all during storytime that he searched for centuries for Sesshomaru and all the Demons, but found zilch and his father knew the search was in vain the whole time.
Maybe Nat had a point, maybe he could be a bit slow… because while Clint had told them that Thanos had kicked Earth's ass before, it now clicked and Tony had to put down his coffee mug before his shaking hand dropped it.
"Loki…breathe ok?" Clint, who had on his trademark tacky workout gear, put up a pretty weak attempt to calm down babbling Bambi. Tony was trying to steady his own breathing.
If he were in Loki's aesir diva boots he'd want to wreck something too, but there was a time and a place for all of that and this wasn't it. Maybe after this he and Clint could go let off some steam, but not right now. He was amping everyone else up in the room. Including Tony because now he had to really process what had happened.
Thanos had come. He had won. That meant he killed…
Thanos killed Sesshomaru five hundred years ago. But not this one. A…sham Sesshomaru Shamshomaru.
Not the one standing next to him.
Now, Tony knew Clint had told him all of this. Sesshomaru and his army had lost the war against Thanos, but it wasn't the guy next to him. They basically created two branches in time. Maybe it didn't faze Tony as much as it should, but seeing Sesshomaru dressed to kill next to… oh
That sly dog.
Is that why he shelved the kimono and wore modern clothes, to really drive the point home that he wasn't the Sesshomaru who lost to some space thug five hundred years ago?
Buuuuuuuuut….Loki didn't look like he could be reasoned with like that.
"Correct. My mother knew the Mad Titan was searching for us and the Soul Gem Of the Greater Cosmos and informed Odin to stand down. Odin as a result sent you and Storm God away as to not interfere with our war." Sesshomaru explained almost disinterestedly, but Tony could tell that he was a bit wary of Loki because his ice blue youki had too pooled out onto the floor.
Vines began to race across the floor from Loki feet.
"The Soul Gem? Us? You mean the Demons? DON'T TELL ME YOU WERE ALL SLAUGHTERED BY HIM WHILE I WAS OFF LISTENING TO YEARS OF REPEATING LECTURES FROM FAT OLD ELVES!" Loki was screaming at this point and as if the sun had set, the light in the room had dimmed and the electricity that powered them had dimmed.
Sesshomaru had straightened, and only had the for sight to shoot his right hand out in a defensive stance before Loki lunged at him and they both vanished. Tony fought the creeping desire in his lungs to shout out to Jarvis to get that tracking chip ready because he could feel that Loki hadn't taken them far, in fact he was pretty sure that Loki just transported them to...
Then Thor vanished in a puff of smoke. Yup England. Wait now...central park?
"What was that about?!" Steve asked and Tony was about to have a mental breakdown. Nat may have called him slow, but Steve was dial up Internet. He was do focused on Sesshomaru staying he didn't put together that he had fought this war before and died. Died.
Dead.
Gone.
But not this Sesshomaru. Not this one. Not his Sesshomaru.
"Connect the dots, Steve. Odin hid Thor and Loki so they wouldn't fight in the war that Fancy Pants and the Demons waged against Thanos 500 years ago. A war that Sesshomaru lost, and, well Loki isn't happy that after it all Odin lied to everyone and said that no one knew what happened to the Demons, including our Mr Nirvana." Clint explained, and Tony was glad that happened because his pulse was red-lining.
"Wait he lost this war before? Wat happened? How did they lose? How does this make any sense?" Steve was on his heels and this was news to Pepper too because she was tapping her heel nervously. Click. Click. Click.
"Yeah, look, I'm still not great at the details but Loki branched time. The time line we are in was the one that Fancy Pants died, Loki just time traveled him before the war started." Clint fumbled and Tony pursed his lips. He just had to say die didn't he?
Poof.
Green smoke poofed onto the screen along with an agitated Point Break. Thor's hair had been pulled out of his ponytail wildly and it looked like he had probably taken a swing at someone.
Poof.
Sesshomaru had Loki by his shirt and Loki had his arms gripping Sesshomaru's wrist.
"I'm alright. I've calmed down, you can let. go." Loki bit out, but it lacked his usual diva venom. Sesshomaru dropped him like a bad habit and fussed with his collar on his now wrinkled shirt.
Yeah. there was no way that he was the same one that died back then. He had changed here. He had to be stronger now that the other Shamshomaru that died five hundred years ago. He buzzed with more energy, and stared with the most vibrant, alertness of anyone he had ever met, not to mention sleep with.
"Ok, well, back to it. This means that Odin thought that you two weren't ready to fight Thanos before, right?" Steve concluded looking between a completely mental Loki and a fuming Thor.
"Worry not, even if you believe Allfather's assumption, my brother and I both have become much stronger and hardened warriors in the last half millennium. I am concerned about what Son of Taisho spoke of earlier though, the cosmic gem. Those are of almost unlimited power and can lay waste to galaxies whole." Thor mused and Loki snorted, his magic still writhing around like one of those inflated things outside used tire dealerships.
"Assumption indeed Thor. The Tesseract is but one of them, it houses the Space Gem." Loki gritted out, as if willing himself to not implode. "Sho. Was the Soul Gem the only ONLY the cosmic gem he came to Earth to find? I doubt very much it was the Tesseract or he would have left with it." Loki seethed, and Tony was beginning to think he was just a trigger away from really losing it.
Sesshomaru took the aviators off his head and absently cleaned them. As he nodded.
"Yes. My mother's parents managed to split the Soul Gem of the Greater Cosmos into two halves, one half resides in the pummel of Sounga. The other half is contained within the Meido stone that is currently in the possession of our enemy. Inside the Meido Stone are the souls of the deceased demons from before the war, such as Ryokustusei and Hakudoshi." Sesshomaru stepped forward, his voice deeply filled the room which usually calmed Loki. It didn't this time. Now he just started pacing.
"Brother! Do you think that's why Allfather feared The Sw—"
"Thor. SHUT. YOUR. INFERNAL. MAW! Sho…the scepter…the scepter mentioned The Mad Titan vowed to make the Soul Gem whole. Where is Sounga, that wicked blade?" Loki paced back and forth, finally his mind doing something other than trying to destroy his Tower. It took a whole mass of people to patch together Substorage 3-b after Loki's last meltdown.
"Sounga is safe." Sesshomaru calmly responded, but Tony bet even Point Break could tell Loki was going to press.
"Sesshomaru. Thanos, this Mad Titan, already has half of the Cosmic Gem, correct?" Steve sounded like he really, really had enough and looked around. "And he…apparently came to Earth five hundred years ago to get this Gem, and an army of Demons, then we need to know were, and we need to know WHAT a Sounga is." Steve crossed his massive arms in a 'don't even try' show of power.
Pause.
"Sounga is my birthright. It is a sword of tremendous nefarious power and ability. My mother hid it on the Astral Plane, well out of the Titan's grasp. It shall remain there." Sesshomaru eventually conceded and his voice took on a foreboding tone that Tony didn't miss. Tony also didn't miss that he didn't give Sounga a he or she pronoun. Hopefully that meant it wasn't going to come to life and be irritating.
"That's it. Oh, ho, ho, ho, ho….that's iiiiiiit." Loki finally stopped going full workout mode and chuckled darkly. "That grating spirit Hakudoshi told me that the Other wished to capture either you or I, that it didn't need us both. The Mad Titan requires Sounga to complete the Soul Gem. He could easily unleash an army of spirits and possess the ones who oppose him with the full power of the Soul Gem. He can either abduct you to retrieve it for him since you are the only being alive that can spirit-walk to the Astral Plane, or he can imprison and force me to retrieve the Tesseract from Asgard to create a portal to the Astral Plane." Loki ran his hands manically through his hair like he wanted to put it up into one of those hipster man-bun travesties.
"In no realm shall I retrieve Sounga for the likes of that Titan." Moonie's voice sliced through the air and the temperature plummeted a good five degrees. Yeah, what he said.
"Brother, the Sword of Hell in the hands of Thanos cannot come to pass. It rivals Gungnir in strength. It surpasses even my Mjolnir and Son of Taisho's swords." Point Break was really on about this Sword of Hell. Like it was some sort of super weapon and it piqued Tony's interest some. Some. What happened next, really got him curious about Sounga because Bakusaiga next to him rattled in her sheath. Her. Damnit. Now even he was using the damn pronouns.
"What's so special about it? Sounga I mean. Point Break is acting like it can actually break him." Tony asked before he really thought about it.
"You mean aside from the fact it has the souls of an entire Demon army in it?" Clint sassed out. Bruce face palmed and Tony just groaned. Clint's dumb eyes went wide when he realized his slip-up. Good job there Legolas, we just got Horns off his over protective brother bender and now you had bring up his Demon army was stuck inside the Sword of Hell.
When Tony envisioned this team huddle this wasn't exactly what he had in mind.
"What? Your Demon soldiers' souls reside within Sounga?" Loki, damnit, now they were really off topic. Steve looked a sick shade of pale as well. He wanted to try to keep that from the All American Capsicle as well so his pretty head didn't implode. Too late.
"After the other Sesshomaru lost his duel with Thanos, my mother sealed my army's souls within Sounga to prevent them from being enslaved by Thanos. Odin spirited away their bodies to an undisclosed, distant, frozen realm." Sesshomaru tossed his hair as if he was saying he wanted skim milk in his latte.
You could have heard the pin to a grenade drop if Loki's magic didn't start snapping and crackling.
"Lord Sesshomaru, is Uncle Inuyasha frozen too?! What about Ah-Un?!" Rin asked, eyes wide and full of hope. It didn't really hit home for Tony that if Sesshomaru stayed here, so would Rin and Jaken. Tony knew that Rin had been orphaned at a young age, and left for dead, but it did sound like when Loki spirited them here that the left behind some people Rin obviously missed.
Sesshomaru nodded once. Wait his brother's soul was trapped in a sword? Was this a good or a bad thing?
Tony thanked his parents again for only procreating once.
Pause.
"Odin spirited the bodies away to a frozen realm...it couldn't be..." The blood drained from Loki's face and he was even paler than Sesshomaru.
"Brother, they must be frozen on Jotunheim! The rest of the Demons must be there!" Thor really needed to use his indoor voice through the speakers.
"He not only knew their demise... But he hid them from me…He never did trust me. And to think I almost destroyed them with the Bifrost...Never…wait. That is why Odin overreacted in Asgard when Thor, Romanoff, Rin and I returned. He fears that Sho will uncover the truth and awaken his Demon army and storm Asgard with the Jotuns for revenge." Loki was babbling something incoherent and probably something that wouldn't ever happen.
From what Tony could figure out about Sesshomaru by putting together his past and just getting to know him, was that he was fine NOT being saddled with the responsibility of leading an army. Honestly, if he really wanted command, he would have probably tried to pull rank by now. From the battle with the smaller Interceptor, and here, Sesshomaru just wanted to say his two cents and be left to do what he wanted.
Not thaw out a Demon hoarde and pick a fight with Thor's and Loki's dad over ruling Asgard.
"Odin is indeed a blind and deaf fool if he believes such actions from this Sesshomaru." Sesshomaru stated plainly and turned to Tony, eyes piercing. "Sounga is a weapon that can channel the power of the Demonic Underworld. Unlike the Meido Stone which opens portals to it, Sounga can call upon the Killing Intent of all the souls within the underworld, along with the soul claiming power of the underworld itself." Sesshomaru explained and Tony didn't really get… oh wait. No. He had heard of this before. Thor told him that Sesshomaru used his Killing Intent on Loki when Loki jumped him in the elevator. God that seemed like forever ago.
That Killing Intent though, definitely not something he would want used again him. Nat was rattled in a way he never thought he'd see again since Bruce. he also had a sneaking suspicion it might not just make people piss-their-pants afraid.
"This is troubling. I don't see how the Other could possibly have gotten so powerful to be using the Meido Stone. The Other is a powerful sorcerer, but magic directly opposes Youki. It should be impossible for him to summon or control a Demonic Spirit even with half the Soul Stone. Even opening portals to any underworld is near impossible to control…and just how does the Other know to bring forth Demon Spirits that know you personally? I didn't think The Other would have gleaned information about you in such detail from my memories, and I didn't know anything about this you wield both Sounga and the Meido stone if we must use it against The Mad Titan? " Loki started pacing again, manically talking to himself. At least Tony thought he was now talking to himself. Even Clint winced in concern. The horns unhinging process was beginning. He was going to create trenches in his floor he knew it.
"The Other is not in possession of the Meido Stone. Mephisto, my mother's former retainer, betrayed her and killed her after the other Sesshomaru was slain. Mephisto stole the Meido Stone and defected to The Mad Titan's army. This Sesshomaru believes that due to him being an Eternal Demon, like my mother, he has the ability to summon spirits, but he is far from adept at it." Sesshomaru revealed and Thor sputtered in surprise.
"Brother was that not the Fire Demon who propositioned you by bringing you that rare Horse Demon?" Thor's grin was all sunshine. Oh man, so one of the enemies they had to face had it bad for Horns? Tony read the expression on Loki's face as: beyond irritated.
"Yes. Thor." Loki's face, purple with rage really amused Tony. He could take Thor as a brother-in-law easy.
"You know brother, that's probably how the mortals came up with the legend you sired Sleipnir, the eight legged horse!" Thor continued and this just kept getting better.
"THOR." Oh, Point Break was definitely going to make having Loki as a brother-in-law tolerable.
"Brother we all know that to be pure folly, I mean unless you decided to shape shift into a—" The feed on the holoprojector went to mute. Loki buzzkilled that before Clint could bust a nut in laughter. Even Nat smiled. Tony would have turned the volume back on but he could read Thor's lips just fine, as could pretty much anyone else in the room.
"Uncle Loki, what's 'sired' mean?" Little Miss Sunshine asked in that innocent way that Tony just had to mess with.
Except Pepper gave him THAT look.
Then Polly decided to say something in Japanese to Little Miss Sunshine and her eyes got as wide as dinner plates. Great, not only was the first thing she said in a language he didn't understand, but she got to mess with his future stepdaughter and he couldn't. This wasn't fair.
Loki's magic sparked green around his fingers. This guy couldn't be laid back if you plopped him a hammock in Fiji. Clint was rocking back and forth on his heels. At least Clint kept his sense of humor. Legolas, really, wasn't so bad when he wasn't trying to protect Bambi from getting his ego bruised.
Tony didn't miss the slight smirk on Sesshomaru's soft lips. Tony hoped this stupid meeting could end soon so he could pester Sesshomaru about all this business with Sounga and then fiddle around with the scepter and The Other's magic. If he could figure Loki's out, how hard could The Other's be?
"Back to the topic at hand…there are different bloodlines of Demons? I am assuming you can also control the Meido Stone if it came to it. Sounga as well." Loki crept closer to his fiance and Tony's protectiveness got the better of him and he sidestepped to Sesshomaru side. He didn't like Loki's fucking tone.
Sesshomaru gaze darted to Tony, as if recognizing and thanking his backup.
"My… " Sesshomaru trailed off and Tony's blood embered over in fire. Loki put him on the spot to talk about something he wasn't ready to talk about in front of everyone. Didn't Loki get it that Sesshomaru hated talking in front of big groups of people, especially about himself?
Tony was just about to go tell Loki to go to hell when Sesshomaru grabbed his wrist. He must have projected his move.
"My lineage is…not of most Demons. My mother informed me that beings called Celestials tampered with the bloodlines of Demons long ago to create two bloodstrains. The Deviants my father's bloodline, composed the vast majority of the Demons. The Eternals, my mother's bloodline, had almost all died out by the time I was conceived. I concluded only those of Eternal bloodline can utilize the power of the Meido stone, and only those of the Deviant bloodline can wield Sounga. I am both, thus yes, I can master both the Meido Stone and Sounga." Sesshomaru explained and Loki's face darkened into a knowing look. Loki knew something about this bloodline business. Horns was definitely scheming something and Tony had a feeling it was going to be another colossal pain in the ass.
"OK, I may not know a lot about what you're talking about, but I know about high priority targets, which is you two." Steve stepped in. "Which means we will have to keep you two double covered. I may not fully understand this… Demon blood and soul business, but I do know that the last thing our enemy needs is to get his hands on a sword that can possess them." Cap managed to lasso the group back and Natasha nodded.
"Yes, which is precisely why Sho and I will fight the Mad Titan separately. One us will engage the ailing Atheon and the other the Nycteus." Loki recovered, smirking darkly like he already had a super irritating plan which was something Tony didn't remotely approve of.
"They won't be engaging us in tandem? Do you have an idea of where they are now and where they will go?" Nat finally spoke up.
"The Aethon is stalled on the far side of the moon undergoing repairs. I was unable to scry the other vessels, yet it would be practical to have the two most similarly constructed vessels hidden together for support." Sesshomaru admitted which surprised Tony and the rest of the room because he definitely didn't tell him he scryed the ship.
"You were most likely unable to scry them not due to any fault of your own, but because the Mad Titan's armada is utilizing my own blood magic for its stealth and shields." Loki revealed and Tony straightened. The torture. Did they…. torture Loki to get the secrets of his magic just like the hand did to him with getting a weapon?
It made sense though, how effective little green was against the shields of the ship.
A shiver went down Tony's sides. Did he seriously share the exact same sob story as his future 'bother' in law? On top of the world, fall from grace, tortured for his weapons, escaped only to have to deal with his demons later? LITERAL Demons? How poetic.
"…The Mad Titan is using your own magic against us, Glow Stick?" Nat's voice could smelt steel. Clint's face lost all of his color and Tony smelled an illtimed emotional reaction incoming in five…four…three…two…one….
"Loki, they…." Tony cut him off. Not only because Clint just was about to derail their conversation further, but also because he knew the last thing Loki would want is to be a spectacle like this.
"Did what we all knew already happened. Let's stay on target. The ship's are using Loki's magic, which as we already know is countered by youki. If we fire the youki capsules I've already made at the Aethon and the Nycteus, with some weapons I can create, wham bam, we got shields down." Tony announced, he already had it practiced. He had extra ones (and yes he knew Loki had pilfered the ones he had already made which made him hide the toxins, Cerberus, Sirius, and Blitzen down where Loki's magic couldn't easily detect them, the scepter room. Also coincidently the most secure room in the tower.
"Sho being present in this time has had severe consequences for The Mad Titan, one of which is that a faction within the Mad Titan's own armada has begun to defect against him." Loki paused and Tony was thankful for the change of the subject. It was making his skin itch. "The Mad Titan striking a deal with you insignificant lot makes little sense… but a faction within the Mad Titan's armada bent on defying him, that would be more plausible." Loki whirled his fancy magic around and showed the blue figure and the shorty white haired Demon Spirit who carved up Loki like a turkey.
"I uncovered that Nebula, a cybernetically enhanced luphomoid daughter of The Mad Titan and her partner, Hakudoshi a supposed Demon Spirit from Sho's Era, are working with someone higher up in the armada's ranks. Together with the rogue faction within SHIELD the aimed to retrieve the scepter to mutany against the Mad Titan. They aspire to use the Other's scepter against him, the Mad Titan wouldn't have dared show his hand this early for a mere toy of the Other. Their entire mission in Shanghai was a mere feint against the Mad Titan, which we thwarted." Loki grinned thinly, magic showing the Aethon in detail.
Tony's brain Ignited. Justin Hammer was worming around somewhere in the shadows and Tony would find him and ruin his life for this.
"So, the rebel faction in SHIELD wasn't working with Thanos, they bet that the rebel faction would defeat Thanos over us and the rest of Earth's forces." Nat stepped forward and poor Cap never looked more confused.
"How did this even happen? How could the Mad Titan just let this mission go forward if he never approved it?" Cap asked the question Tony wanted to ask. Bambi and Point Break had puffed up this Space Warlord as big badass and he had an entire spaceship go AWOL and didn't do anything about it?
"The Demon Spirit informed me that The Mad Titan approved it as a measure to lure me out of hiding. His priority, as we all now know, is the completion of the Soul Gem and reclaiming the Tesseract." Loki said and now this really wasn't making sense. Why would the enemy just tell them all of this?
"And you just believe this Demon Spirit? Why would he tell you all of this? I smell something rotten." Brucey finally spoke up, and yeah Tony more than agreed with him.
"I concur brother, we have encountered many devious Demons before. Many cannot be trusted, we cannot believe what he has to say." Thor boomed across the speakers and Tony winced a little because now it came across that they didn't trust Demons in general and well….
The room fell into an awkward silence before his drop dead gorgeous fiance shifted. He wanted nothing more than to just get out of here with him, get a really good steak and a...
"It would be wise to consider what Hakudoshi stated as truth if he had a self serving motive for doing so." Sesshomaru stated smoothly and Loki straightened, instantly vindicated.
Of course his Fiancé would want to believe the psycho Demon Spirit who almost murdered his best friend. He said it before, he was never simple.
"Heed my Lord's words! Hakudoshi was an incarnation of Naraku, and as such was created to do Naraku's bidding. Lord Sesshomaru never interacted with that cowardly Demon, but that distasteful Inuyasha had! Hakudoshi would tell him about his plans to defy and betray Naraku due to his own arrogance and selfish reasons. If Hakudoshi hated being controlled by Naraku, he would positively hate being controlled by this Mephisto. And if he bragged about his plans, he probably did it to get something out of it!" Jaken shook that staff at Bruce like an old woman with a cane.
Wow...he was really holding all of that in. Maybe he should go set Cap's punching bag on fire again.
"Alright going off Jaken, so SHIELD's rogue faction, and that massive tool Justin Hammer who made the destroyer guns, is helping Thanos' rogue faction. I think I'm going to go ahead and put out there that the enemy of my enemy…is NOT our friend. I know I've never been the paragon of a team player, but this is a firm NO. So, no one better be getting any ideas about cozying up to children of the corn and robo-smurfette." Tony, hands itching for something to do, decided to make yet another cup of coffee. He also sensed another one of Cap's speeches coming on. He had been pretty quiet when Loki and his super hot fiancé decided to talk about blood, souls, swords and other things best left to devil worshippers or Aztec sacrificial rituals.
"They certainly don't see us as allies either. They both see us as pawns on a chessboard at best." Loki insisted, and Tony had to count that as a win that he didn't have to fight Reindeer Games on this.
"I'd like nothing more than to turn albino chucky into chalk dust." Clint picked up his fancy gold bow, no doubt something Bambi gave him as some sort of prize for putting up with him. It was gaudy enough to go with that silk kimono he had. Maybe he could somehow convince Clint to take it…no wait. Then he and Sesshomaru would match. Not happening.
"And here in this very room you led me to believe you didn't want a magic bow, Cupid." Natasha smirked and Tony then remembered that.
"I forgot about Cupid…" Tony mused to himself.
"Great. Thanks Nat. And the bow, which…has a name, Ichiaval, and yeah I know I made fun of Fancy Pants for the same thing. But, this bow is how I'm going to powder these Demon Spirits. Fancy Pants isn't the only one who can kill them." Clint picked up the bow and it glowed a faint purple. Tony raised an eyebrow, that was a game changer.
"Lord Sesshomaru! That archer is a Priest?!" Jaken jumped next to him. OK so this wasn't only news to him.
"Loki's protection magic, like the Magic Gate's magic to this Sesshomaru, awoke his long dormant purification gifts. It is as Barton says, he can purify Demons, and Demonic spirits." Sesshomaru nodded once.
Purify Demons? Could Clint purify Sesshomaru?
No. Clint couldn't even pick out matching clothes.
"Perfect." Steve slammed his hand down on the counter. Oh yeah, Capsicle must be chomping at the bit to get the meeting back under control. "Then if the ships go to two separate locations, we can easily split our forces and not have to worry about Loki cutting himself open, which was…pretty unhygienic to say the least." Steve got all tall and straight, getting back into his groove. He had his serious voice on.
"Sho and I have discussed where the Aethon and the Nycteus will most likely strike. The Nycteus, the undamaged vessel will attack this realm's most important military target, and the Aethon will go after a city of great governmental significance, simultaneously of course." Loki, in true diva fashion, magicked together two incredibly recognizable targets.
"Norfolk, Virginia, the largest naval base in the world, and Washington, DC makes sense. Plausible definitely. Good thinking, but those aren't the only critical targets Earth has. How positive are you about this Loki?" Steve assessed the magic and Tony had enough of being shown up in his own living room so he also brought up some screens showing Norfolk and the carriers stationed there, along with photos of DC and its current weather and people of importance.
"There are other targets we could consider, but we also can incentivize the Mad Titan into those two locations." Loki led and Tony's stomach soured.
"You two will act as bait, one at Norfolk, the other in DC." Steve pointed to Sesshomaru who was busy fussing with his aviators, as if this wasn't important at all. "Well, I have to say it's solid strategically, and I will have the final decision on who is stationed where." Tony took a sip of the coffee that finished brewing.
"It might be smart to have Loki in DC, especially after China's president stated publicly that they wanted Loki to be China's own 'Alien Protector' and me as far away from any civilian populace as if I'm in Norfolk with Sesshomaru, he can help me in case I lose control." Bruce spoke up, wincing.
Oh yeah, Loki preening himself after he saved Shanghai definitely almost caused an international incident. Xi Jinping stated in one of their super boring, assemblies that since the United States hadn't officially endorsed Loki as one of Earth's defenders that they would endorse him as China's defender. Poor, Poor Rhodey had to deal with that aftermath. The United States, had to officially align with SHIELD and state that Loki, the guy who killed hundreds of people in New York, was actually one of Earth's Defenders.
That went real smooth. Rhodey called him and gave him an earful, well not really he put him on while he was jamming to Iron Maiden in the gym.
"Right, that settles it. We will have Loki, Thor, Clint, Tony, and myself in DC, and Sesshomaru, Bruce, Jaken, and Natasha in Norfolk. If Rhodes is willing to suit up as well, he will be in DC with Tony and I." Tony choked on his coffee. Did Steve really think he was going to not fight alongside his fiancé in what was probably going to be the quarterfinals of the battle for the end of the world.
"Lord Sesshomaru! I get to fight alongside you once more!" Jaken jumped around and Sesshmomaru immediately straighted, placing his stupid aviators back on his stupid perfect hair. Hair he wanted to run his fingers through again.
This was when Moonie was going to tell Cap his idea of splitting them up was as stupid as Loki's leather pants.
"Jaken is a Water Demon, not a Sea Demon. Jaken knows not of this Norfolk, but he cannot assume his true form in seawater, only fresh water. I am assuming a city of great importance such as this DC has a river running through it." Sesshomaru nodded and Tony just about dropped his coffee. Was his prissy Demon Lord saying he was OK with the seating arrangements for this dinner party of hell for him being in DC, but not Jaken?
He wasn't going to bring up that they weren't fighting alongside each other?
Well, if Sesshomaru thought he was better off on his own, or too good to be on the same field as him then fine. If he wasn't going to fight for them, then he wasn't about to. If he needed his damn space he could have it.
"The Anacostia and the Potomac both run through it, and that will make more sense if we have a Demon at each location that can damage their shields. With the aircraft carriers and additional military presence in Norfolk, we need more of us in DC." Steve gestures to the whole room and Tony pursed his lips, forcing the blood out of them. Steve wasn't wrong, but Tony still didn't have to like any of this.
Another wash of anxiety pricked through his lungs. He really didn't like this at all. What if he couldn't figure out the Other's magic in time? What if the youki capsules he crafted weren't enough? Could he get to Sesshomaru in time before something happened?
What if he got captured? He almost was the last time and he cut through his restrains. He was almost blown to hell and back in the Quinjet because of Clint. OK, that wasn't fair, that wasn't on Clint.
What if Sesshomaru did something stupid and reckless? He promised he wouldn't, but with Bruce hulking out... And have he and Natasha even spoken to each other since the whole Killing Intent thing?
Nat and Loki chatted a lot, they were scary close. Probably should watch out for that.
"Pepper, it would be a huge help if you could stay here in the Tower. You know the systems and we need a pair of eyes here incase Tony's satellite detector—" Tony cut Steve off.
"Uh D.E.M.O.N.S. at least get the name right. Acronyms don't write themselves, and this one has so much more panache than SHIELD." Tony forced a quip and a smirk. He wasn't going to let Moonie get to him.
"Tony. Panache. Really?" Pepper scolded him. He was right; it had a lot more panache! And since when did Pep really care about cutting off Capcicle? It wasn't that life or death.
"Tony, I think we're past 'panache' this is the fate of the world, not the fate of your ego." Wow. Ok. Was everyone in this room against him? It wasn't do or die yet. Something dark and thunderous resounded in Tony's chest. Again everyone was against anything he had to do say or do with, even the little shit that was really supposed to be funny. "We could really use your help, Pepper, in case D.E.M.O.N.S. picks up any more ships. And…" Steve's gaze landed on Polly. "And if you're present then you can be useful and you can…look after Rin here in the tower. We can use all the help we can get, and if Sesshomaru, Bruce, Nat, and Clint trust you, well, I am willing to extend that trust to you as well." Stars and Stripes of course figured out a way to be all honorable and heroic so Tony couldn't call him out on making him feel like an ass. Tony put down his coffee mug and stretched abruptly. He needed some damn space from the Demon Lord who obviously wanted his.
"Me?! I'm in?! I'm an Avenger?!" Polly probably needed new pants after that scream. Nat across the room snorted.
"Um…not exa—" Steve failed at getting control of that situation.
"I can go get my taser! Oh, and my mace, and my luck—" Pepper put a hand on the surprisingly peppy goth kid. Maybe she was more activist than broody.
"We got it covered, why don't I show you around with Rin? I don't think you've gotten a tour yet." Polly's eyes lit up like she was going to Disneyworld, but Tony knew Pep wouldn't take them anywhere he didn't want them to be.
At least…well. He hoped so.
"With that…I think we have covered everything. I think everyone can do whatever it is they need to do…Oh Thor." Steve paused. They totally forgot to unmute the big guy. He was just gaping and…probably knocking the laptop around due to the shaking. Dr. Foster is going to be pleased about that. Tony switched him back on just in time to see Dr. Foster's coffee retriever…Daphne? Appear on screen wearing….of course face paint.
Pink Stripes. Blue moon. Red eyeshadow.
"Omg it is him! Thor I TOLD YOU to tell me when he showed up! Hey, like my handiwork? I actually went out and bought eyeliner for this in a color that isn't black." Darcy now had completely smashed her face up into the webcam and Tony couldn't help but roll his eyes. Sesshomaru shifted his weight.
"Lord Sesshomaru, that one loud human has painted themselves like you! What vile behavior! You have disrespected my Lord!" Ugh now Jaken was all riled up. Perfect. He should have just left Thor on mute.
"And to think not even a week ago you wanted me to replace them with your father's." Loki sniped and Tony didn't know exactly what he meant by that but it earned a chill in the air from Sesshomaru.
"Hey, this took me like an hour to match the stripes up, if you want to see real disrespect, go on Insta, there are some slaggy looking moons on there. Some people even did them backwards. There's a whole community now, there is even a Snapchat filter, but I personally think that's cheating." Delilah rambled on in just the way that Tony could easily turn into white noise. Tony wouldn't have been surprised if this coffee gopher did the makeup while on the clock. She didn't look like the type to scream productivity.
"There's a snapchat filter of Mr Mysterious?!" Polly's voice carried through the tower. Oh no he was shutting this down.
"Yeah, it even gives you the slit gold eyes..creepy yet pretty…no offense. Mr Nirvana…speaking of that… I saw your super swanky meet and greet. You totally brought back the white suit and even silver hair. It's all over GQ magazine. Some model recruiter Jason Sisson apparently broke it wide open what you were going to wear before and it's gone viral since. You looked good, well until you bled all over it. Crazy they are still trying to catch those guys who shot you...But hey what do I know…except you mentioned you were going to see Dave Grohl for a drink or possibly date…You don't think I could get in on that do you? I mean, I don't even have to say anything, I can just…BE there. You probably wouldn't even notice me, I can blend in anywhere. One time Ja—"
"Darcy! What did I…this is serious! Thor why didn't you stop her?" Dr. Foster to the rescue. Jason Sisson, Tony knew he had heard that name before…wait…was this guy who has been dressing Sesshomaru?
Oh. It was on. Tony knew fashion and knew how to dress. He just assumed….wait what did he assume? That Sesshomaru just happened to know Armani? That Pepper was shopping for him all this time?
This day just kept getting better and better. Now they had to have another talk. When would these stupid talks end? Is this what he really wanted? To have to deal with Horns, Legolas, and Point Break as brothers in law? Deal with weirdo fangirls painting their faces to look like him? Some model stalking him for a catwalk exclusive? Him assaulting a space cruiser that he couldn't actually assault without his whole arm ripping apart with some sorcerer's name carved into it?!
"I thought it was a flattering tribute to Son of Taisho." Thor smiled. Tony almost believed him. Nat nudged Loki and pointed. A swirl of green magic coiled around Loki's finger.
It was then Sesshomaru's markings appeared on Thor….and it was awful and terrible and holy god why was this happening?
"Ok, you wear them better than me. Not fair, I'm taking a photo for blackmail purposes…and for my blog." Darlene or whoever is now definitely not getting anywhere near Sesshomaru if she is going to blog about him. Tony was pretty certain that Sesshomaru hadn't figured out the internet yet, which along with it was social media. It was one of Tony's priorities to keep him out of the limelight if at all possible.
Tony himself of course didn't mine the attention for the most part, but he wasn't going to make a spectacle out of his prissy, recluse Demon Lord. Well, more of a spectacle than he had already made himself. Tony wasn't jealous that ironman wasn't made into snapchat filter, he was the only Ironman. Posers could shelve it.
Thor pawed at his face when he saw the photo that Diandra took.
"Brother! This is a serious meeting, and you're making light of it." Thor had a shit eating grin plastered on his face. Tony smirked when Steve literally facepalmed.
"Are my markings something of a joke to you, Storm God?" Sesshomaru squared up to the screen and cracked his knuckles. Tony could tell that the big Priss was just messing with Point Break. He wasn't wound that tight, at least not anymore. Maybe at first…but he had actually mellowed out a bit.
Tony didn't think Thor realized just how calm he had gotten however.
"A joke, of course not, but I do think they are a bit….dainty for me. They suit you far better." Thor just signed his life away. Everyone in the room tensed. Even Nat.
"I wouldn't expect someone of your intellect to comprehend stature doesn't always indicate strength." Sesshomaru, to everyone's shock, actually bantered back. Jaken fell over, white as a sheet. Was…was Sesshomaru MESSING with Thor?
Now. This was definitely proof Moonie had lost some of his prickliness. Before when he first met him, he would have probably melted something with his toxin. Or attacked Thor. Or both. Yeah, probably both.
"I do believe that I still had one win over you in the melees we had." Thor actually was gunning for him now. Oh man, it was definitely a good thing that Thor was on a completely separate continent. Not that it would stop those two from a grudge match anyway.
"After we defeat this Titan, I shall even the score." Sesshomaru lengthened his talon and the slightest smirk was at the corner of his lips. Loki rolled his eyes and grumbled something as the markings vanished. Whatever Nat and Loki had tried to do obviously backfired because Point Break and Sesshomaru definitely just had a quintessential 'bro' moment.
"You have wagered with Loki! Say this, if you win the Melee bout, I shall do something in recompense, if I win the melee bout you shall….purchase me three kegs of my choice of beer." Oh Shwarma this was getting interesting. Tony though didn't think this was all fun and games for Thor though. He wasn't being just funny here. The guy could read a room when he wanted to. Tony scratched the back of his neck, Thor wasn't just tying to lighten the mood, he was trying to bond with Moonie.
Why was he trying to do that?
"I accept your wager. When I am the victor you shall purchase me a motorcycle of my choosing." Sesshomaru announced that with a straight face. Did he know that three kegs worth of beer didn't exactly equal what a motorcycle cost? Did Thor? Did either of them have any concept of money?
Did either of them care?
Has Thor done a keg stand?
Clint burst out laughing. Oh yeah, they raced Ducatis together. Big deal. He could buy the company Ducati itself if he wanted to.
"I accept. This shall be a most vigorous test of mettle!" Someone should have probably stopped them, but Tony couldn't because Sesshomaru's ears were up juuuuust a hair and his shoulders were back. Tony could immediately tell he was stoked about this melee thing, and well, honestly he was kinda intrigued at what a 'melee' match meant. As much as he wanted to see Thor do a kegstand, he'd much rather see his persnickety fiancé and Thor squabble at a Ducati dealership and the look on Thor's face when they didn't accept mead a payment.
"Thor we are going to have to have a talk about gambling on fights. And Darcy, we are going to have a talk on when's appropriate to fangirl and not fangirl over some guy from Nirvana." Tony didn't envy Dr. Foster. She had to put up with Thor destroying everything and Lo…oh. Wait they had Loki in common. Maybe this is what a family was supposed to resemble. Tony scratched his neck.
Family.
Pending they all survived this war, one small insignificant detail. Really.
Family. God he was a family man.
"…Oh my god, did you have a childhood, or were you just born adulting? And you have heard of the Foo Fighters right? Wait. have you been to an actual concert?" Ok this had officially gone off the rails. Tony grappled onto Sesshomaru's wrist and immediately a tingle trickled up his arm. Tony didn't know if he was frustrated or turned on or both.
Agitation prickled the base of his skull. He thought he was sure. Certain. Completely 100% positive and now…now he just needed to talk through this. AGAIN.
If Pepper suggested couples counseling to them he might just lose it.
He took Sesshomaru back into his lab, the bedroom…too risky. He might get frisky and he also had replenished his secret scotch stash and fuck the coffee he needed something stronger for all of this. He let go of Sesshomaru's slim wrist almost reluctantly as he crossed over and reached under and got the…GIN? Did he…did he really replace it with GIN?
Fine.
He was losing his mind before the end of the world over what kind of liquor he had in his lab because a Demon Lord had Loki for a brother, a damn model recruiter for a personal shopper…and would rather fight a space ship without him.
Didn't he get that he was sacrificing a lot too? He'd have to be a father of some sort, he'd have to put up with LOKI and even Clint and Thor as family. He'd have to basically forfeit his free time as he knew it. He'd have to do actual couple-y shit that he hadn't really figured out yet, like maybe effectively communicate. And that was if they survived the whole battle for the fate as humanity as they knew it.
And Sesshomaru, cool as a fucking ice-pond in Siberia, Demon Lord, was ok with him fighting a spaceship, that he couldn't really fight against because of the curse, basically solo. Yeah, Bruce and Nat would be there, but they didn't have long distance weaponry. Sure he'd give them the youki capsules but that was besides the point. Either Sesshomaru thought he could do better without him, or…
Maybe he just didn't give a fuck if he got blown away. Maybe he didn't want the responsibility of having his back.
"Stark. You're tense, and anxious. Does the current strategy we have in place not sit well with you?" Sesshomaru spoke first and damnit his eyebrows slanted in confusion. His lips softened as well, Moonie had read him like a book. He poured out some gin into an almost clean glass.
Tony didn't get how he could go into the meeting so SURE of everything and now just want to break everything.
"Um, what about it do you think sits well with me? You can't bring down the shields on the ships even though everyone, save maybe Natasha, thinks you can. And you're going up against it without enough back up. What if Bruce loses it when he hulks out and you can't Steve Irwin some sense into him? What if I can't find out how to break this curse before these ships show up? What if the firepower of the cruisers and the f-22s we have aren't enough to give you cover fire and you get blown away while I am fully covered in DC and I cant….I can't have your back." The usually unstoppable Tony rant train had puttered to a sad pushcart of angst. God when had he gotten so lame? So soft?
"This Sesshomaru had thought you wished it this way, that you had previously discussed this with your Captain." Sesshomaru's placid voice carried a hint of surprise to it. Tony leaned back. He hadn't thought about that. He also didn't think about how Sesshomaru may have thought he was alright with it. "Nevertheless, I believe this is the right tactic for a few reasons." Sesshomaru put a curled finger to his lips like he always did when he was thinking about something.
"Oh. Why's that?" This had better be good. Tony almost took the swig of Gin straight.
"Our mating ritual is incomplete. I do not know how this will affect me in combat if you become imperiled. It may result in me doing something rash like transform. I require…time to test this out. In addition, Storm God and Loki currently do not communicate well, they will probably need your assistance to aid them in fighting alongside each other effectively. Barton would be far too biased, and the Captain and Loki are far too dissimilar. Also, as a public figure, you are most needed in a civilian city to be seen, and I would rather better understand your realm's military defenses." Sesshomaru took a few gliding steps towards Tony and he lost all momentum.
He had really thought this out and Tony just…sort of made a snap judgment. He still didn't like it, but he had some points. Not that he was going to…
Oh ok, he was now standing right in front of him. He smelled like the air right before a thunderstorm and his skin tingled like it too. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end.
"Worry not about this arrangement, Stark, trust in me." Sesshomaru's slit eyes burned like candles and damnit yeah. Something deep, hidden and almost forgotten cracked open in his chest. For a crazy moment, all he wanted Sesshomaru to do was to hold him. He wasn't about to just collapse into his arms like some damsel, but he really did trust him. He did. Tony swore he did he just…
"I do trust you. I just don't…" What? Trust the enemy? No shit. "think this is a fair play for you Bruce and Nat. It's not balanced." It was true, it wasn't balanced at all. Didn't Cap see that?
"There may be something to tip the scales in my favor." Sesshomaru's eyes gleamed. What did he know? Did he figure out the curse?
"What? The curse? New outfit? Which by the way, I am taking you shopping. That Jason Guy whoever he is, is not allowed to be your personal shopper." Tony could never stay on topic for long. Sesshomaru sighed through his nose and closed those crimson eyelids of his. Could they just have makeup sex now?
"Loki informed me, before the meeting, that a certain…friend of mine is amongst the enemy's ranks. Knowing her well, I can ascertain that she is repulsed by a Fire Demon attempting to lord his power over her. I intend on speaking with her, as I am sure she will seek me out." Sesshomaru's voice held a lilt of humor in it. Why did he get the feeling he was talking about some sort of ex girlfriend?
"Oh god, don't tell me that Mephisto guy, who apparently has it bad for Loki, bad judgment call there, brought back an ex girlfriend of yours." Tony huffed. Could this get any worse.
"Hardly. Kagura and I were merely…friends." Friends with benefits Tony guessed. Well, like he could talk. His list of slam pieces could fill the Vietnam war memorial wall. Tony eyed the gin. He didn't need it anymore. He was…better. OK. Maybe talking did help a bit. He still felt a bit off kilter but who wouldn't after all this.
"Yeah, fine. Chat up your ex to see if she can defect with us, and not the other defectors…god this is complicated. All of it. Us." Tony didn't mean that last part. Really. Well, he did. They were complicated but he didn't mean for it to come out that way. He didn't want Sesshomaru to think that now everything was ambiguous the morning after he accepted his proposal. That definitely didn't start things out on the right foot.
Sesshomaru blinked.
"Stark." Sesshomaru went for his neck and grazed his fangs down his throat. That got his attention. "You indicated to me while bathing that you didn't like simple. Have you changed your mind?" Tony could tell by the tone of his voice, and the way those lips grazed his neck that Sesshomaru was fucking with him.
"Never." The word was out of Tony's mouth before he thought it through. But he didn't need to. He could handle this. He got it. He was worth it. He may not know if he loved him yet or not. Incredibly backward, but Tony did know one thing.
Together, they could do this.
WOW. OK this chapter was a bear to eke out but we definitely needed a recap chapter to set everything up for the next bout!
I started another fic, both should update monthly.
thank you again for all your support :) next chapter is going to be a doooooooooozy.