"I've already told you; I chose it because it was the most mundane mortal name I could think of." Loki rolled his eyes. "I didn't exactly have much time to come up with anything else."

"Yeah," Tony replied, "but I still think Elizabeth doesn't have much exotic flair."

Loki arched a brow. "I was going for covert. If I'd wanted flair, I would have just kept my proper name; it doesn't get much stranger on Midgard than that."

With a shrug, Tony put in, "I dunno. We've got kids named Apple." Pepper shoved his arm in discipline, and he turned to her. "What? I read somewhere that there is at least one unfortunate kid out there with that name."

"Okay," Bruce said, cutting over Tony, "I've got a question. There's that story about you and a horse –"

"No."

"You don't even know –"

"You were going to ask if it is true," Loki said, suddenly dark.

"Well," Bruce returned, "yeah. I guess so. Is it?"

"No."

"Yes."

Loki glared at Thor as though he would have liked nothing more than to light his brother's blonde locks on fire. His eyes alone would have withered a plant at close range.

"No, it's not true," Loki pressed, perturbed gaze never leaving Thor's face.

"Brother, Sleipnir is the finest horse in all of Asgard," Thor said.

"That very well may be," Loki shot back acidly. "But my connection to him is pure mortal conjecture."

Thor looked at Loki reproachfully, as only an older brother could. "You and I both know that's a lie," he said.

"Thor, I am the god of lies! I know a lie when I tell one." Loki paused, pinching the bridge of his nose in irritation. "I know that you personally subscribe to truth, but I cannot ever understand why. Let me have my lies. At least about this."

"I don't believe it," Bruce said. "It's true?"

Loki cringed, begrudgingly replying, "Every word."

"All of it?"

"All of it. The mortal bards were surprisingly thorough when penning this particular tale."

"It's one of the few entirely true stories in that collection," Thor put in, much to Loki's distaste.

The younger brother glanced at the older, revenge playing in his eyes. "There are indeed very few wholly truthful accounts," he acknowledged silkily. "I seem to recall another, though –"

"Oh no," Thor warned. "Don't you dare, brother."

Loki just raised his eyebrows. "Don't I?" He turned to Bruce, ignoring Thor as he continued, "Have you read anything about Thor –"

"Loki, stop."

"—wearing a bridal gown?"

The words were out now, and Loki clasped his hands behind his back innocently – a subtle, obstinate refusal to take back what he had said. He looked at Thor and shrugged. Look what you made me say.

"That one's true too?" Bruce asked, astonished. "You have got to be kidding me."

Now, Thor was glowering at Loki, who was as passive as a brick wall, even having the gall to smirk a bit at his brother's ire. "Would you rather me have lied?" His voice was a prod – a challenge refined by years and years of practice, meant to annoy.

"You were there too," Thor said, rising to the barb just as Loki had anticipated. Just as he always had.

With a scoff, Loki returned, "At least I had the decency to change my entire appearance, not just my wardrobe."

"You said you couldn't change me," Thor reminded him. "You didn't know how."

"I did say that, didn't I?" Loki mused, letting the significance of his words sink into his brother's thicker skull. When Thor's eyes finally lit up, Loki's smirk became a grin.

"You –"

"Lied, yes," Loki finished. "And that surprises you?"

"Geez, guys," Clint interjected. "Cool it. If this is what your entire childhood was like, I have a whole new respect for your mother."

Thor sighed, giving up arguing with his brother; many long years had taught him that he would never win anyway. "As well you should," he said to Clint.

"She's a remarkable woman," Loki agreed, though it was obvious that he knew he had claimed victory in this round. "And, yes, she had to endure decades of that before we were old enough to settle these matters ourselves."

"There were many fights of ours that ended in the training rings," Thor recalled fondly. Loki even smirked a little at the memory. "I won some –"

"I nearly won others." Loki's eyes sparkled as he added casually, "Then I learned how to use Seidr, and, well, I have never been afraid to cheat in a fight if it means sparing myself an injury. I think Thor still has some scars from my handiwork; I believe you humans call it 'payback.'"

Steve gave a low whistle. "That's a long time to hold a grudge."

Loki arched an eyebrow at him. "Says the man out of time himself." Before Steve could respond, he continued, "Even so, I've received more scars at Thor's hands than he has at mine. But, after so many years, we've both borne the weight of true battle enough times for it to outweigh any petty disagreements between us."

"Just how long have you guys been around?" Clint asked.

The brothers exchanged a glance. Then, after a hesitation, Thor said, "We don't really count years in the same manner as you do."

"But, if you had to –"

"If we had to," Loki filled in, "we would be slightly less than two thousand of your years in age. That is still quite young."

All of their present company gaped at them. Thor looked at Loki, who shrugged. "They asked."

"I guess we did," Steve acknowledged, raking a hand through his hair. "Still – wow. And I thought I was old."

Thor laughed at that, and, after a second, his brother joined him. "Forgive us," Thor said eventually. "But, you, Captain, are practically a child by Asgard's clock. When we were your age, we couldn't even lift a broadsword. Not that Loki could lift one even when he was older."

Loki's laughter turned mocking, and he casually flicked his fingers in his brother's direction; in a small flash of light, a cockroach replaced Thor in the chair, skittering around in circles confusedly. At that, Loki grinned, leaning back in his own seat a bit and glancing around at the others. "Right; anyone for pizza?"

A/N: I hope you've all enjoyed this story! I couldn't resist throwing in this short, amusing little epilogue; it would have been a deleted scene otherwise. But, alas; it truly is over now. Thank you all for reading, and I'll be posting that companion fic soon! :-)

Additional Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by Loki and Tony that Elizabeth is a mundane mortal name lacking in exotic flair are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of the author, Faye M. A. Neither does the author make any representation or corroboration of the accuracy of any such views and opinions.