What you do in this world is a matter of no consequence. The question is what you can make people believe you have done.
-Arthur Conan Doyle, A Study in Scarlet

When Barton gets pulled to go off on another super secret spy mission with Romanov – as if Tony doesn't know exactly where they're going, really – he is expecting things to go as they normally do. That is, for Loki to mainly stay in his room until he gets back. One thing Tony has noticed is that Loki doesn't like to be around the others without Barton. He can be. Tony isn't going to imply he's scared or weak or something insulting like that. But if he can avoid it then he does.

Which really, it makes sense if he is still healing. Not physically, but mentally. Why endure a hostile group when you don't have to? Appearing strong is one thing and it is always important. But what happens if someone calls your bluff and you can't back your strength up yet? Better to err on the side of caution.

So the next time Tony comes up for air from the shop he is surprised to see Loki join them soon afterwards. Surprised that is, until he makes his way over to Tony. Then it becomes clear. Looks like he is a fill in until Barton gets back. He doesn't say anything, doesn't make a move to really interact at all, but he is still in Tony's space. It is still clear who he is there for.

Tony withholds a groan when he sees the look on Rogers face at that. Neither he nor Romanov are being especially accepting of the new arrangement. Mainly them seem almost as suspicious about it as they do with Barton. In a turn of events Banner seems to be doing better with it. At least he looks more thoughtful than not about it. The other two, not so much. That they haven't dragged him away to be tested as well is a shock. Maybe they are waiting for the right time.

Fortunately he hasn't had to deal with Thor yet, because he has been away visiting Jane. A minor blessing because he isn't looking forward to his reaction. Will he be happy that Loki has another supporter? Or will he be suspicious too? For someone who seemed determined to defend his brother before, he isn't exactly taking a strong stance now.

But he is here on a mission and he is determined to continue it. That is, there is leftover pasta in the refrigerator and Tony is claiming it. For one thing leftovers around here are rare with how much certain people eat. For another thing it is from his favorite Italian restaurant. No one is going to stand in his way. He motions if Loki wants anything, but then closes the door when he shakes his head.

Once again he can feel Rogers' eyes on him as he begins to eat. And once again he refuses to break the silence. Most people think Tony can't stand the silence. That's why he talks so much. In a way they are right. Silence has always meant something bad was about to happen in the past, so he fills it when he can. But when he needs to make a point? Well you aren't going to get a sound out of him then.

Loki continues to sit next to him as a silent presence. It is surprisingly peaceful. When Tony first started this, he wasn't exactly thinking about how well he would get n with Loki. He had been too busy focusing on Barton for the most part. He had noticed details sure. Enough to see that this Loki was enormously different from the one who lead the alien army. Enough to see he had certain tells that implied nothing good. But beyond that, there wasn't much thought. On the field – the few times they had fought together – he was reliable. Off the field he was a silent shadow.

So no, Tony didn't give it much thought. Even when he agreed it was more of a let's save the world and have some fun along the way. But it has been a week now and Loki is the most peaceful person to be around besides Banner. The irony of it doesn't escape him. The god of chaos peaceful? That more than anything speaks of his state of mind.

Not that they've spent much – any – time alone without Barton. And Barton is much like Tony. He can fill the room with his presence when he wants to. In the face of that Loki seems to disappear into the background. Which was probably intentional too, but the point still stands. Loki has interacted with the bots more than Tony himself. It's fine, Tony isn't going to fault him for it, but it still surprises him that Loki is showing enough trust in him to be here right now.

When he finishes, he puts his dish in the sink and heads back down to the workshop. Loki follows without a word. Well that had to be the quietest meal he has had, basically ever. Awkward. But if Rogers didn't have the guts to say something than neither was Tony. He's never had any trouble before now, but this latest development seems to be throwing him for a loop.

As per usual the bots rush over to greet Loki as soon as he enters. A small smile tugs at his lips as he greets them in return.

Tony sighs. "I've been officially replaced I see. Good to know where I stand with you treacherous lot."

Dum-E, the sassy little thing that he is, beeps at him and then turns blatantly back to Loki.

Tony snorts, more amused than anything and collapses into his chair. "What do you have for me today J?"

JARVIS pulls up his project list.

He hums as he looks it over. Meanwhile Loki has been dragged into a game of... something. Tony isn't exactly sure at this point and he's not sure he wants to. Best not to ask. All parties involved look happy so he leaves them at it. He gets to work.

But eventually he notices a presence at his side. He looks up to see that Loki is sitting beside him. Well alright then. "How's it going Reggie?"

"I am well. I have yet to encountered that character to understand your logic though."

"He's a minor character so it takes till the end of the series." And even then you technically don't meet him, but he can hardly say that without spoilers. "But you're enjoying them so far?"

"In a manner of speaking. I admit that there are certain themes that are woefully ignored or dangerously misrepresented. That they need wands at all speaks of some rather weak magic, no matter what the author tries to convince you."

"In her defense I doubt she has any idea of how magic actually works."

"Obviously not," Loki scoffs, "her Latin is atrocious. It is a torture to read it with allspeak." There is a small note in his voice off when he says 'torture', but he ignores it.

Tony does the same. "Plus," he continues, "it started off as a children's series. Some subjects aren't supposed to be suited for kids."

"That indicates a lack of ability to communicate, not an excuse to leave them ignorant."

The venomous reply takes Tony aback for a moment. Clearly they are talking about something else here. "Someone has some strong feelings here. Care to share with the class?"

"Dumbledore reminds me too much of Odin for comfort."

That... well that is a terrifying statement actually. Because for all Dumbledore is seen as the Leader of the Light, one of the ultimate good guys, well... Let's say there are a few problems with that representation. Problems that don't even include his past with his own Dark Lord. While not exactly the best, that has never bothered Tony so much as some other implications. And for Loki to be comparing Odin to Dumbledore? Yeah, terrifying. "Not that father type then was he? Or too much the father type?"

"He is a hypocrite," Loki spits, "All of Asgard is. They wonder why I hold such anger towards them, yet even if I were to tell them they still would not see. They would only mock instead. Blame me for not fitting the mould not them for not seeing their own double standards."

Tony settles down to listen. This is obviously something that he needs to get out. Something that has been building for too long now. "How so?"

"Their precious King is a magic user for one. Magic is seen as womanly, for the weak and the feminine. But when the AllFather uses it? Oh no, it is not magic at all. He is a master rune mage, but is he considered weak? Is he considered egri? No. He is seen as wise. Powerful. Someone to be respected and listened to. But when I dare use magic, well." His eyes blaze with anger, "then it is a different story, isn't it? Loki the weak. Loki the sly. Loki the honorless. As if I have time for honor when I am busy keeping Thor and his fool friends alive.

"Simply because I do not fight like everyone else, I am dishonorable. Simply because I do not think like everyone else, I am a liar. Simply because I use magic, surely I am worth no regard although I am a Prince in my own right. I can travel the branches without the Bifrost. I am one of the most powerful mages of the Nine. I have stopped wars and saved Thor's life countless times on his petty adventures. But does any of that matter? No. It doesn't. It never does.

"And then," he gives a bitter laugh, "then when I am finally given a chance to prove myself, I am condemned for it. Odin was a known conqueror of worlds before he was the wise AllFather he is now. Thor once declared that it was his goal to kill every Frost Giant that lived. But when I try to follow in their footsteps, something is wrong with me. When I try to prove my worth, I am rejected. I tried to make Odin proud by following b example and he shamed me for it. Had the nerve to be disappointed in me. As if he didn't raise me to hate my own kind my entire life.

Loki looks up, teeth bared in a semblance of a smile. "Well he reaped what he sowed in me. I am only what I was taught."

Tony... isn't sure exactly what to say to that. Or he is, but it should probably be handled with delicacy here. Not something he's known for. Eh, screw it. "So you what, tried to commit mass genocide and can't understand why anyone would stop you?"

Loki lifts his head as if preparing himself for damnation. "Thor almost started a new war with Jotunheim and was banished for what amounts to a weekend romance in Midgardian terms. I tried to end Jotunheim and I," he pauses, "I took a far greater fall. The imbalance there is laughable."

"But you do know genocide is wrong right?" Tony pushes. He'd like this point cleared before they move on thank you very much.

"I am not an idiot Stark." He is still looking at Tony with cold, defiant eyes.

Tony gives a sharp nod at that. "Good. Now that that's out of the way, Odin sounds like a dick."

"That... is it?" Loki blinks at him. He looks blank suddenly rather than surprised, but given his words it's not a hard thing to figure out that's what he's feeling. "You do not feel the need to berate me? To drive in how disgusting my actions are? To tell me how grateful I am that I should be live at all?"

"Man," Tony shakes his head, "the more you talk the more Howard begins to sound like a half decent human being and father. Spoiler alert – he wasn't." Talk about some messed up stuff here. He had always thought Howard was bad, but... well. He may need to evaluate where on the scale he falls after this. "Is this about the whole adoption thing? Because Thor spilled the beans on that basically as soon as we met."

"Of course he did." Loki scowls both in disgust and discomfort. Obviously the former is more visible than the latter. "Yes." The word is curt and heavy, weighted down by a thousand others behind it. "Odin saved me from death as a child, or so he claims. That didn't him stop from making sure that I knew all Frost Giants are monsters. No exceptions." His smile is enough to make a person bleed to death on it.

Yeah, Howard isn't looking so bad right now. "Odin is a dick," he repeats with feeling, "A massive one. And not the one that sees any kind of action either."

Loki's mouth twitches into a smile. "I thank you. Even Barton does not know the details that led me to Thanos finding me. I am not expecting a warm reaction."

"Yeah I can see why you don't want to talk about it. And seriously, no genocide, but it's better with context." He frowns at his word choice. "Understandable," he corrects, "still wrong, but clearly there is a whole lot of issues that lead up to that point. Besides," he offers his own self-deprecating smile, "I was once the Merchant of Death. I have no room to talk." Because how many people did his weapons kill before he stopped them? How many innocent lives were lost because he was too blind and too naive to see the harm they were causing? Enough to add up to a country? An equivalent of a Realm? Maybe. And look at him now.

So he deliberately changes the subject, latching on to one of the details that caught his attention in a big way. "Thanos. Is that who is behind all of this?"

Loki nods. "The Mad Titan as he is known. His goal is to collect all six Infinity Stones and use them to wipe out half of the universe in the name of prosperity. The chitauri are his army, along with the outriders and his children."

And next on the list of terrifying people today, we have another would be mass murderer. Tony is starting to sense a theme here. "Alright, a) what are Infinity Stones, b) are these outriders anything like the chitauri? c) He has kids? Who let him reproduce and d) is it well known that the chitauri are part of his army?"

"To answer your questions in order, the Infinity Stones are six stones of power that control the base elements of the universe: Space, Time, Reality, Power, Soul and Mind. You have encountered two already for the tesseract is the Space Stone and my staff contained the Mind Stone. The outriders are a sister species to the chitauri and therefore just as powerful – with more limbs," he adds with a smirk, as if he finds that funny for some reason.

"None of his children are related to him by blood. All have been raised in his vision to be as vicious and ruthless as he is. Two in particular have been kidnapped that I know of – his daughters are most feared and have made a reputation for themselves across the galaxy. All are unwavering in their loyalty. And yes, it is well known that the chitauri are his."

Tony takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. "Then why didn't Thor mention that to begin with?" he shouts, mad as a pissed off hornet, "He knew you were leading them, but somehow missed the implication that Thanos was in charge this whole time? What? Did he think that you joined him willingly? Or is he that bad at connection the dots?" Oh Thor gets back and he and Tony are going to have words.

"To be fair, the last time he saw me, I had been trying to destroy a Realm."

"That's still no – wait," he says as something occurs to him, "so you went directly from that to Thanos? With no inbetween?"

"I would not say there was no pause. There was an... indeterminable amount of time in which I was rather incapacitated before he found me."

"That sounds ominous. Care to share with the rest of the class?"

"I fell from the Bifrost into the Void where Thanos found me. You have experienced the Void yourself so I am sure you understand how time could lose all meaning when you are simply falling with nothing to stop you."

Tony barely keeps from flinching. The Void is not something he likes to think about. Flying the nuke up into the wormhole has recently replaced his nightmares of Afghanistan. And he was only there for a short amount of time. Being there indefinitely? He can't even imagine. Doesn't want to. That combined with whatever Thanos did to him? No wonder he looked so bad during the invasion.

"Any plans on how to stop him yet?" That seems like the safest question to ask right now. Not that he necessarily wants safe, but he needs to change the subject before he has another panic attack right here and now.

"A few, but none are solid yet. Have you?" He sounds honestly curious. It helps focus Tony.

"Some, but I still need more information before I can make anything halfway worth telling."

Loki nods. "Any knowledge I have is at your disposal."

Ah, equal partnership without judgment. Refreshing. Tony nods his thanks. Yes, this might not have been what he expected when he first started this, but he can say that he doesn't regret it. Not yet anyways. Only time will tell if that will change or not.