Thank you so much for the comments and the favs, you are awesome! Here it is the second chapter. It's longer and more complex than the first one, so I had some difficulties with the translation, but I hope it won't be so bad. Also, starting Friday I'll be on holidays by a friend of mine and I don't think I'll manage to update again before that, but I'll try. Hope you'll enjoy the reading :)
Day 1
Afternoon in New York.
Four Avengers, because Thor is in Asgard and Bruce is out of town, the most advanced security system in the world, aka Jarvis, ready to alert Fury and one God of Mischief, all in one room.
It doesn't take a genius to realize that Loki is the only one happy for the little reunion that is taking place in the common area of the Stark Tower.
And for Steve it's a mystery how the god can have that satisfied expression plastered on his face, when Natasha is watching him with eyes that are more dangerous and threatening than the two guns she's pointing at his head. The spy's cold gaze can make him shiver, and Natasha is his ally and the most similar thing to a female friend he has ever had.
"Loki, would you mind bringing Clint back to his human state?".
The god's smile widens and he lifts his gaze from Natasha to the 1:1 scale statue of an archer ready to fire an arrow that is sticking out from the vent in the ceiling.
"Actually yes, I would mind. I warned him that attacking me was a foolish idea".
Steve really tries to suppress a sigh. He didn't know he could be affected by headache, but he's been feeling one arising since he has realized he doesn't have the situation under control like Fury hoped.
"Okay, Clint shouldn't have attacked you".
Actually, Clint has been incredibly smart when he chose the time for his attack: he didn't try to halve Loki's sight during the first hour of their meeting, when all of them were so tense they almost unleashed a war in the tower's living room and Natasha was ready to confiscate his bow at his first sign of hostility. Instead, Clint has waited for another half hour, so that he attacked the god when everyone thought the crisis had been averted.
"And I'll try to convince him to act in a more suitable and civilized way in your regard".
Which seems even more unlikely than convincing Loki to cooperate, but Steve isn't ready to admit it out loud.
"But I need a normal, flesh-and-blood, alive Clint, since now we're allies and he have to devise a plan together".
Loki rejects his words with a wave of his hand.
"We can devise a plan without him. Truthfully", and his green eyes search for Natasha "Barton's best ability is to loyally follow orders. He is not a man who likes taking his own decision".
Steve has never felt so helpless in a long time. Now he misses Thor and Bruce even more, since they are maybe the only Avengers who could actually make Loki behave in a more acceptable way. Or, at least, smash him into the ground and wipe the condescending smile off his face.
He turns his attention to the third Avenger in the room who still hasn't become a statue, but he already knows he can't expect some sort of help from him: Tony is pouring himself the fourth drink of the afternoon, which is a little improvement, since he spent the first half hour of the meeting plotting with Jarvis to hacker into the S.H.I.E.L.D.'s sever in order to make the Helicarrier sing "You are a pirate" every time Fury enters in someone's office. The fact Tony isn't plotting anymore means he has succeeded, but Steve really doesn't want to know.
Especially now, when one member of his team is actually a hundred percent stone and another one is about to begin a fight that can only end with another petrified Avenger or with a divine corpse they'll have later to show to his overprotective brother, whose favorite past time is smashing enemies with his magical hammer.
Like she wanted to agree with his fears, Natasha tightens her grip on her guns.
"If you don't free Clint from your spell, I will make you".
Loki smiles until he shows his teeth.
"I really want to see you try".
And then, chaos happens.
Without any warnings, the god releases a spell against Natasha, who is fast enough to dodge it, and Steve has barely the time to lift his shield to protect himself and reflect the spell back towards Loki. When he lowers his shield to control the consequences of the little explosion, Natasha is already behind the god, with her gun against his head.
"Jarvis!", he hears Tony screaming behind his back.
"Yes, sir".
A briefcase flies towards the genius and, in a few seconds, Tony is in his suit, ready to fight. Now they are three against one, however the god hasn't moved, nor seems he preoccupied: still smiling, Loki is comfortably sitting on the armchair and doesn't show any wounds, despite having received a full blow to his face by his own spell. Actually, he seems like he's having a wonderful time, when he looks at Natasha with a delighted expression, like he hasn't noticed her gun.
"Do you possess the courage to pull the trigger, knowing that, with my death, Barton could remain a statue forever?".
He has just finished talking when Natasha proofs him she does.
As Loki's head jerks because of the impact with the bullet, there's a moment of pure, terrifying horror, where Steve sees himself explaining to Thor why his beloved baby-brother is laying on a pool of blood in the tower's living room and at the same time showing to Fury what has happened to one of his best agent and former Avengers member.
Then Loki lifts his head again and smiles.
"Interesting".
The second and third shots don't even hit him and the bullets fall down after being repelled by some sort of invisible shield. Before Natasha can fire again, Loki snaps his fingers. In the blink of an eye, she founds herself dragged to the floor by a heavy chain which has appeared around her arms and torso. As soon as Natasha tries to free himself, the chain starts digging into her flesh, making her harder to breathe, even if the doesn't make a sound.
Immediately, Steve is on her side, trying to help her to break free.
"Enough, Maleficent, or your skull will be tested by my bullets".
Loki lazily turns his gaze towards Tony, who stands before him with all of his weapons aimed at him. He doesn't reply for a couple of seconds, then he stands with a look of light disappointment and waves at them. Suddenly, the chain disappears and Clint, now in a body of flesh and blood again, falls dead weight to the floor.
"Stark, tell your invisible voice to arrange me a meal. I shall have dinner within a half hour".
After that, the god exits the room, without even listening to the curses that Tony gives him as a reply.
Steve can't even breathe in relief, because Clint is already on his feet – which shows that the archer has a remarkable recovery ability, considering his recent fall, face first, on a marble floor – and seems determined to go on a rampage.
"I'm gonna kill him, that son of a bitch!".
Only thanks to his enhanced strength and speed, Steve manages to catch the archer and drag him to the couch. Behind him, Tony is wondering with Jarvis about the best way to kill an alien god with magic powers, or at least to permanently maim him, but he prefers ignoring them.
For now, it seems they have managed to avoid war and that's enough for him.
Dinner is quiet and almost pleasant, mostly because Loki decides to have his own version of room service. That is, appearing abruptly in the middle of the room, looking for a couple of seconds at the Chinese boxes on the table and then disappearing with a third of the food without a word, which is completely fine for Steve. Tony is too busy drinking to notice and Natasha anticipates Clint's reaction shoving a whole spring roll into his mouth – Clint almost chokes to death, but doesn't chase the god, nor does he offends him, so it's a win.
When it's past ten in the evening and Jarvis promises Steve he is going to warn him if Loki comes out of his room or if someone tries to crawl through the vents to attack the god, Fury calls.
Steve lets himself falling down on the couch with a sigh, rubbing his temples while the unfamiliar headache makes him grimacing. Ignoring the pirate songs that are echoing in the phone, he briefly answers the director's questions and struggles to make a coherent report of the day.
Clint has been petrified for some too long minutes, Natasha has been defeated with such ease she's probably plotting some terrifying vengeance against the god, Tony has worsened his alcoholic habit and he has discovered that even a super soldier suffers from headache.
At the end of the day, this isn't exactly a promising start, but there's something comforting knowing they are all still alive.