Disclaimer: I do now own any of the Marvel characters. The Avengers was written by Joss Whedon, movie transcript taken from the website Scribd. If you know it, I do now own it.

Getting the Upper Hand

When my fist clenches / Crack it open / Before I use it and loose my cool

-The Who, "Behind Blue Eyes"

India was hot. Muggy. Smelly. And crowded.

"Are you sure about this?"

Loki glanced down at Agent Hill, who was doing her best to keep up with Loki as he casually strolled through the streets of Calcutta. She had been less than pleased when Fury had ordered her to come along and allow Loki do what he wanted in order to secure Banner's cooperation.

Loki was surprised. While he would have done what he wanted whether Fury allowed him to or not, it spoke volumes Fury had figured this aspect of Loki's personality out this quickly.

"I am sure," Loki replied. "While I cannot claim to personally know Doctor Banner, I do know aspects of his personality that you and your organization do not. I know what it is like to view yourself as a monster."

Hill jerked, looking a bit surprised.

"Please wait here," Loki told her in a flat tone.

Hill scowled at Loki, but nodded. "Remember your radio."

Loki rolled his eyes and pressed the gadget into his ear as Hill had shown him. He turned away from her and let her melt back into the crowd. Loki took a few more steps, towering above the locals. He stood out in more than one way, between his height and pale skin. Loki wove his way towards the building Banner was currently located within and entered. The people downstairs looked up, all appearing rather scared, confused and bewildered at his appearance.

"I'm looking for the doctor?" Loki asked, the sentence rolling out in the local dialect.

A man pointed up some rickety stairs.

"He's tending sick," the man explained. "Best not go up. Shouldn't be here."

"I will be fine," Loki assured the group, weaving his way through their home to the stairs.

He carefully tread up the stairs till his head emerged in a smelly, overly warm room that smelled of sickness and death.

"What are you doing here?" a woman demanded, standing up. She looked tired and worn. "Get out! You shouldn't be here!"

"Oh, I do know. I must see the doctor, though," Loki said, still speaking in the local dialect instead of English.

At the sound of his voice, the man called Banner turned. He blinked, taking in Loki's appearance from head to mid-chest (as his lower half was still hidden by the floor).

"What you need me?" Banner asked in the local dialect rather badly. The man was clearly bemused by Loki's arrival. Banner straightened up and looked Loki over again, looking a little curious.

Ah, Loki did not appear to be a SHEILD agent at all. Good to know.

Loki took a few more steps up and rested his arms on the floor, looking around at the room filled with sick people— all slowly dying. He was glad he'd left his leather jacket on the plane, as it was stifling— especially for a Frost Giant.

India was not a place on Midgard Loki planned to return— unless it was to one of the snow capped mountains that resided to the north.

"You do realize, Doctor Banner," Loki began switching to English, "these people are beyond your aid?"

Doctor Banner tightened his jaw, twitched a little, but said nothing.

"I did not mean you should not be aiding them," Loki quickly added. "I do realize you do this for a living as well as for other reasons. Might I speak with you when you've finished here, if you would entertain me?"

Banner stared at Loki. Loki allowed the man to study him under a microscope.

"You talk funny," a little kid said from his ankles.

"I do get that," Loki replied.

The girl squeaked and took off. Loki looked back up to find Banner's face had softened and he sighed.

"Who are you with? You're British."

Loki quirked an eyebrow.

"Not the first time I've been told that. I'm afraid I am not British, nor I am with SHEILD— the organization that informed me of your whereabouts. I know you've interacted with them before and did not have the greatest experience. I assure you, this time, though, it'll go much more smoothly. And do not ask me how I know, as it is a tedious explanation and best not told here."

"What's your name?"

"Loki."

Banner frowned, removed his glasses and cleaned them on his grimy, sweaty shirt before putting them back on.

"Like the Norse god of mischief."

Loki allowed his trademark smirk to stretch across his face and tilted his head to the side. "I am the God of Mischief, Doctor Banner."

"Sure," Banner remarked, clearly not believing Loki.

Loki shrugged. "That is who I am and that is who I will be until they tell me I am no longer."

Banner frowned, glanced down at his patients and looked at Loki again. Banner had an internal debate for five minutes before Loki knew he'd come along.

"I will wait outside for you," Loki said.

"Why do they want me?" Banner flatly asked.

"I guess you could say my evil twin is trying to take over the world," Loki drawled, wearing a sardonic smile that did not reach his eyes.

Without waiting for confirmation, Loki transported himself next to Agent Hill, who squeaked and almost fell into a bucket of something foul smelling as Loki materialized next to her.

"Apologies," Loki said.

"Did he agree to come?"

"Did he say he would come? No. Will he accompany us? Yes."

Hill stared at Loki for a long beat and said, "Fine. Do not…do that again. Walk like a normal person."

"Ah, but Miss Hill, I am not a normal person."

"I know, you're a god," Hill grumbled, glaring at Loki. She put her hand to her ear and began talking to who ever she was supposed to check in with.

"Oh, but what is a god?" Loki sardonically asked himself, watching the door of the house across the way.

"I'm going to track you through the crowd. I expect you wish to continue speaking to Banner alone?" Hill inquired.

Loki nodded.

Hill again melted away into the crowd.

A half hour later Banner exited the hovel and looked around. Loki was easy to pick out— he stuck out like a sore thumb. Upon spotting Loki, Banner sighed and trudged over.

"How did they find me?"

"I do not believe they ever lost you, Doctor," Loki offered, indicating with a hand he wanted to begin walking. Banner sighed and used his hand to make the same gesture. Loki began walking, Banner falling into step a moment later. "Nicholas Fury seems to want you on a team of superheroes he is tossing together to stop—"

"Your evil twin. Do you seriously have an evil twin? I do not remember that being part of Norse mythology."

"No. He is not my twin," Loki admitted. "I do not know where he came from."

Banner stumbled a bit and asked, "Huh?"

"It is a long story— one I will be telling once all the superheroes are gathered together," Loki explained. "However, we may speak on other things. I would rather like things sorted before we arrive."

"Uh, why?"

Loki stopped walking. "I do not believe you are a danger. I know you believe the Other Guy is a danger, but I do not."

"Well, you're a god," Banner said, running a hand through his hair and looking uncomfortable. "Are you really a god?"

"What is a god? If that means ones has strength, power, an abnormally long semi-immortal life— then yes. I am a god. However, this definition also applies to yourself."

"And why do you need me— not a god, no matter what you say— why do you need me to help you defeat your not twin who is hell bent on world domination?"

"Because you are clever, brilliant, and stronger than you believe. And it is your world. I do not live here," Loki replied. "I wound up here."

Loki straightened and began walking again. Banner caught up to him.

"Why does SHEILD really need my help? I try to avoid global disasters."

"The Tesseract, the Cosmic Cube, or the Blue Glowy Thing. It's been taken by the evil twin and he plans to use it in a nefarious manner."

"Tesseract?"

"Ah, you've heard of it."

"No, not really. Not by Tesseract, Cosmic Cube or Blue Glowy Thing."

"It has the potential energy to wipe out the planet."

Banner looked dazed.

"I have a photo," Loki said, digging out his cell phone. He swiftly called up the photo he'd found of the thing back on Other Earth and showed it to Banner.

"Your cell phone has no service," Banner commented. "And it's not a Stark phone. What is that?"

"It is a iPhone. Do you not have those here? I know you have iPods," Loki said, staring at the phone in his hands.

"Why on Earth would Apple make a phone that's basically an iPod?"

Loki ignored the question.

"We're almost to the SHEILD containment area. Their words, not mine."

Banner switched from confused to uneasy.

"Okay, well, uh, what do they want me to do? Swallow the cube?"

Loki's eyebrows rose up. "Now that's something I never thought of. I guess you could do that. But, no. Nicholas Fury only wants you to find his lost cube. It omits gamma radiation. I do not know much about gamma radiation, having only recently studied it. But, you do know much on the topic, do you not?"

Banner stared at Loki, then looked at something over Loki's shoulder before frowning deeply.

"He wants the monster, doesn't he?"

Loki pressed his lips together. "You are not a monster."

Banner bitterly laughed and began to walk away.

"Doctor Banner!"

"What does he want? Really? Does he want to put me in a cage?"

Loki made a face of distaste.

"He does!"

"No…"

"Don't lie to me!"

"I am not lying! You are not a monster!"

Banner stumbled backwards, a person darting out of his way in order to avoid him. Banner suddenly seemed to realize where he was, shook his head and began smiling.

"I'm talking to the freaking God of Lies and he tells me I'm not a monster," Banner chuckled.

Loki pressed his lips together.

This was not going as he had planned. Loki sucked in a deep breath and took a few steps closer to Banner, gently taking his upper arm and moved his hand under the loose sleeve that rested there. He allowed his hand to cool down. Banner jerked at the massive change in temperature and looked down, moving the sleeve where it covered Loki's hand.

Loki's hand was turning blue. Once Banner saw the hand, Loki dropped it from his arm and allowed it to completely turn blue. The markings slowly worked began to etch themselves onto his hand and work their way up his arm as it turned blue. He took another step closer to Banner, putting a shield around them as to not frighten the locals. He allowed the transformation to overtake his face.

"If you are a monster, then what am I?"

Man on a mission / Can't say I miss him around / Insider information / Hand in your resignation

-Blink 182, "Man Overboard"

They drove from New Mexico and into Texas.

"I'm home!" the girl shouted, appearing in front of Clint when they had stopped at another gas station somewhere in Texas. "But, not really. I don't exist here. Spooky."

Clint hummed his agreement.

"Do we know where we're going yet?"

"Loki has not issued an order other than drive," Clint replied, putting the gas pump back. "So, we'll keep going left."

At a noise behind him, Clint turned to find Loki standing behind him and leaning on his spear. He looked tried and ill, the dark circles around his eyes looking almost black. He was covered in a sheen of sweat, which could have been due to the humidity in the air, but Clint had a feeling it was something else all together. As Loki turned his gaze to Clint, his eyes were cold and he appeared to be disturbed.

"Boss?" Clint asked.

For once, the girl did not say anything.

"We need some place where they can start building the portal now," Loki said in a voice so soft Clint had to strain to hear him. "Somewhere out of…the eyes of this world."

His eyes darted around the gas station. It was early afternoon in the middle of nowhere. Of course everyone and their mother was staring at them.

"You were in the sewers," the girl suddenly said. "Granted, it was a set in Cleveland or something, but that is where you make our hideout. Like big, old fashion sewers you see in movies."

She snorted.

Loki stared at her blankly.

"But! CCTV isn't as popular out in the middle of nowhere! Where are we exactly in Texas?" the girl asked, pulling out strange looking device. Kind of looked like a Stark Phone, but it clearly wasn't. "Well, bugger. Do you have one that works? Mine's from, well, Other Earth."

This made her giggle.

"Like Other Mother. Or my brother from another mother," she snickered. She looked at Loki and said in a serious voice, "That is what you called Hemsworth at the MTV Movie Awards. The Other You. Not Data, but Hiddles. He's like you but blond."

"Quiet," Loki snarled. He looked at Clint, taking a deep breath. "Find us somewhere the scientist can work."

"Roger that, boss," Clint said, eyes roving the horizon.

"You," he snapped, glaring at the girl. "Come with me. If you speak out of turn again, I will not hesitate to kill you."

He sent an icy look at the girl, who zipped her lips shut and followed him as he limped back to the truck bed.

All those words came undone / And now I'm not the only one / Facing the ghosts that decide if the fire insides still burns

-Sarah Bareilles, "Breathe Again"

The flight from India back to the United States was long, even in the Quinjet. Banner spent most of the flight fast asleep, which was perfectly fine with Loki. He had work to do.

He had to figure out what Reindeer Games was planning to do.

And why he was even here.

They were technically the same person, Loki felt it. Yet, Loki honestly didn't understand the logic, reasoning and thought process this demented version of himself used.

He never really had.

Jess did.

Sighing deeply, Loki leaned back in his seat and stared blankly at a spot above his head.

"We've heard nothing," Hill suddenly said from next to him.

Loki startled and stared at the woman, who was glowering at him.

"I would think not," Loki assured. "I do not know if he had a clear plan other than get Tesseract to begin with, but whatever he did plan— he has likely given it up in light of new information."

Hill pressed her lips together and turned away from him, glancing at Banner as he slept peacefully. It was amazing to see the man sleep. He looked younger, more at ease and serene. There was no fighting, no weariness, no strain.

Sleep was a wonderful thing.

Sleep was something Loki had not taken part in since he'd arrived on Midgard. Luckily, he was…what he was and he didn't require as much sleep as a mortal.

"What is wrong with you? I mean, the other you," Hill corrected. "What happened? If I understood…"

"You might be able to aid better in defeating him?" Loki offered.

He crossed his legs and readjusted himself in the uncomfortable seat. Loki did not know much about Agent Hill. He remembered little of her overall role, her purpose for being. She seemed to simply take up room. Or take orders from Director Fury.

"Yes," Hill said between clenched teeth. "Director Fury believes you have vital information. You have stated you two are one in the same, yet different."

Loki leveled her a look, then bent towards her.

"He had his whole belief system, his entire life torn apart in a matter days. He discovered he was something he hated and he'd been lied to his entire life. That would be enough to send anyone into a spiral of chaos, but there was another element to this story: the fact we've always been on the outside looking in. We were different in every way that mattered on Asgard. We were tall, thin, lithe, pale and dark haired. Instead of perfecting battle techniques, we practiced magic and perfected the art. Instead of relishing in the hunt, we read books. Do you see a trend here? Brute strength, muscles, and how many you killed were trumpeted. No one cared I could tell them the secrets many realms, no one cared that I got them out of battles alive with the use of magic and my tiny knives. No one listened when I gave advise, no one cared what I had to say."

Loki paused to calm himself down.

"I was hated."

Bitterness rose up within his throat and he turned away from Hill as he feared it showed in more than his voice.

"No one thought I was worthy to be a prince, to be a king," Loki quietly admitted begrudgingly. "Then I was king and no one paid heed. I was already dangerously unbalanced. I went mad. I lost control of my emotions, lost myself and everything else…"

"When did you two become different? So far you both sound unhinged."

"The abyss. I fell into the abyss hoping to end it all," Loki said. "This is where I became me, and he became himself."

Loki took a deep breath and turned back to Hill. She was looking at him critically.

"I fell into the company of Jessica Witton and became depressed. The other one did not. I do not know what happened to him. He's warped and twisted, he's fueled by his hate, his anger, his lack of self-worth. He is angry. He is filled with rage and arrogance. He is a danger to himself and others because he is currently delusional and thirsty for revenge against those who have wronged him."

"Delusional?" Hill faintly asked.

Loki smirked. "Indeed. Delusions of grander."

"You never had them?"

Loki turned away from her and uncrossed his legs. Pressing his hands onto his thighs he studied the pale fingers pressing into the dark jeans he still wore.

"No. I never wanted the throne," he admitted quietly. "Even whilst on it, I didn't want it. Still have no interest in it. I'd rather work in the background than lead in the foreground."

Hill made a noise in her throat, but said nothing till she told the whole plane in general they were ten minutes out and left.

Loki decided it was high time to wake Banner, which he did with care. Banner quickly readied himself for landing and the pair chatted quietly till the plane touched down.

"Are we the first ones here?" Banner asked as the door opened and the ramp lowered. "And where are we?"

"I believe we're on some sort of…ship," Loki offered, knowing Banner wouldn't know what Helicarrier meant.

Banner wandered off towards the railing of the ship and came to a stop. Loki stood near the plane and watched him. A few minutes later, another plane landed. Turning, Loki noticed a red haired woman standing at attention. She greeted two people who got off the plane and began walking with the tall, blond one. Loki waited quietly as they headed towards Banner.

"Trading cards?" the tall, blond man asked, looking confused.

"They're vintage, he's very proud," the woman reported smugly, smiling a very small, controlled smile at the man. "This is Loki."

"What?" the other man asked, whirling around and staring at Loki.

Loki blinked several times, staring at the man in front of him. They were roughly the same height, but the other man was much wider. Instantly, between the blonde hair, clear muscle mass, and startling blue eyes, Loki was reminded of Thor. Yet, there was something in the man's startled expression and stance that spoke of innocence, kindness, and the lack of brutal arrogance Thor carried around on his shoulders.

The man was a leader, but not all the time. He was not a king, but merely a solider who knew when to lead and when to step back.

Taking in the man before him, Loki swallowed thickly. There was something about Steve Rogers at that moment— be it his clothing or simply seeing him in person for the first time— something about him that caused Loki to forget for a moment the man thought Loki was the enemy. Something that caught his breathe and made him simply stare for a beat too long till he reeled himself in.

"Loki Laufey-Odinson, not to be confused with Loki of Asgard— as he is calling himself," Loki smoothly replied, extending his hand. "We are quite different people."

"Oh, good," the blond man breathed, taking Loki's hand. "I mean..I'm Steve Rogers. Captain…Captain America, uh…"

Rogers looked flustered suddenly.

"Pleasure is all mine," Loki said, letting the man's hand go. To hide his own disconcert, Loki turned to the red headed woman who was watching them. "I take it you are Agent Romanov?"

She nodded her head.

"Doctor Banner?" Loki called.

The more the merrier.

Banner turned around, startled at the sight of new people, then slowly ambled over towards the group.

"This is Captain Steve Rogers, fondly known as Captain America," Loki introduced, motioning to Rogers. "Agent Romanov, known as the Black Widow."

Banner held out his hand to Romanov, who took it. She looked a bit stuff.

"I believe we're only missing Stark," Loki mused.

"What?" Rogers asked, appearing mildly confused.

"Iron Man?" Loki prompted, telling himself he did not like the look of confusion on the other man's face.

"Oh, him," Rogers said, shaking his head. "Doctor Banner."

Rogers stuck his hand out. Banner stared at it a moment, before taking Rogers' hand and shaking firmly.

"Oh, yeah. Hi," Banner said. "They told me you'd be coming."

Rogers looked mildly embarrassed for some reason. He cleared his throat and said, "Word is you can find the cube."

"Is that the only word on me?" Banner mildly inquired.

Rogers seemed to understand what Banner was hinting at. He tightened up and looked serious. "Only word I care about."

Banner took the sentiment and nodded, looking away.

"Were you told nothing of me?" Loki inquired.

Rogers looked uneasy, ran a hand through his hair and said, "Uh, no, sir. Well, I was simply told you were the man with the cube. Who, uh, stole it."

Loki glanced at Romanov who was staring him down now.

"Wait, are you our secret weapon?" Rogers asked.

"Don't give him a larger head then he's got," Banner muttered, watching the activity on the deck before glancing between Loki and Rogers. "Must be strange for you two, all of this."

"Well, this is actually kind of familiar," Rogers admitted. His body language eased and it was clear he felt at home in the militarized environment the deck provided.

"Gentlemen, you may wanna step inside in a minute," Romanov said. "It's gonna get a little hard to breathe."

The men on the deck finish securing all the planes and scurried off. The whole ship began to quake and shake.

"Is this a submarine?" Rogers asked, eyes wide.

"Really? They wanted me in a submerged pressurized metal container?" Banner asked, glaring at Loki before running to the edge of the ship.

Loki laughed as the two men looked over the railing to see the huge lift fans, which made it clear they intend to fly, not sink. Rogers turned back to Loki and Romanov with a look of awe on his face, while Banner looked a bit…ill.

"This is so much worse," he moaned.

Loki crossed to where Banner was standing and gently placed a hand on his shoulder. "I am sure it will be fine. Let us retire inside. I am sure Nicholas Fury has things he wants to say to you three. Stark is not due till much later tonight."

"And your brother?"

"Thor will not arrive until RG allows Hemidall to see him and the trouble he plans to cause," Loki explained, guiding Banner towards the entrance to the main body of the ship.

"So, we're not going to hear your story till then?" Romanov flatly asked, narrowing her eyes.

"Thor?" Rogers asked. "Hemidall? Am I supposed to know these people?"

"Thor. My adoptive brother," Loki replied. "Hemidall is All-Seeing and watches everything. RG will want Thor here to witness his toils come to fruition."

At the thought of seeing the look on his brother's face when he realized there were two Lokis was enough to make Loki grin widely.

"Don't do that," Romanov warned. "You look like him when you do that."

She eyed him in distrust and stomped off.

"You do," Banner agreed, eyeing Loki.

Rogers shoved his hands into his pockets and eyed Loki out of the corner of his eye as they headed towards the bridge.

"So, uh, what does RG stand for?"

We are compelled to do what we must do / We are compelled to do what we have been forbidden

-Dashboard Confessional, "The Secret's In The Telling"

They commandeered a farm somewhere in the middle of nowhere Texas.

And it smelled.

Not the house, but the area around the joint. Clint couldn't figure out if it was the livestock that lived around there for miles upon miles or the fact someone was drilling and processing oil somewhere.

They had been at the joint for awhile— Clint wasn't sure how long having no care to keep track of time. Loki did not require it, so Clint didn't bother. What Loki did want was a lookout, so Clint was seated on the roof of a farmhouse that has seen better days. All he could see for miles was flat land littered with cows and windmills.

There were a lot of stinking windmills.

"There you are."

Clint looked over his shoulder to find the girl, dressed like a true Texan in jeans, a plaid shirt and cowboy boots. The only thing missing was a cowboy hat.

She plopped down next to him.

"I haven't seen you in awhile," Clint said, eyeing her.

She appeared to be unharmed. Cling had honestly figured Loki had offed her, since he hadn't seen her in so long. And it was so quiet around the joint.

Then again, Clint hadn't seen or heard much from Loki since they'd arrived at the farmhouse.

"I've been having a powwow with Locutus," she explained. "Wanted to know all I knew about life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."

Clint doubted that, but said nothing.

"So, I told him about The Avengers," she went on, picking at the peeling roof tiles.

The wind kicked up, blowing the horrible smelling air all around them. Strains of hair escaped the sloppy ponytail the girl had forced her dark hair into. The loose hairs danced on the breeze, making her look like some sort of ad for Texas living. If only the tourism industry were here to photograph it…

"I had to show him what a movie was, as he didn't know. He refused to accept the fact on the world I came from he's known as Tom Hiddleston, has curly blond hair and blue eyes and Loki doesn't exist except in stories. And I think he blew a blood vessel when I told him Thor had his own movie. Granted, I quickly explained the fact while Thor has the movie, it's Loki and Hiddles who've got the army of fangirls."

"Huh?"

"That's the name of the actor who played Loki in the movies, Tom Hiddleston. After Thor was released, Loki became rather popular. After The Avengers was released, he had an army of fangirls," she explained, glancing over at him. "And he knew it."

Clint was still confused, but shrugged. She turned away.

"This place lacks Tom Hiddleston. Targic. At least it's got Benedict Cumberbatch. Man, that would suck not to be able to throw that name around any longer. Great name."

She proceeded to repeat the name several times in varying accents.

"You seriously need help," Clint muttered.

"Oh, I know," she cheerfully agreed. "Locutus wants to see you. I told him all I could about the Avengers and why his plan failed at life during the movie, but you can tell him more details about the Mod Squad than I can."

She pushed herself to her feet and climbed back over the roof, vanishing from view. Clint took a different way down, going over the edge to climb in through the window below him. He had no idea how she'd found him. So far no one had bothered him.

Then again, Clint hadn't really seen anyone lately.

Landing with a thud in the empty bedroom he'd claimed as his, Clint straightened and headed downstairs. He had no idea where Loki currently was located, but he guessed somewhere near the Tesseract.

Clint entered the kitchen to find Loki looming over the scientist, watching them carefully as they worked. He looked a lot better than he had when Clint had first seen him. The bags under his eyes were gone and his hair didn't look as dry and mad.

Clint cleared his throat. "You wanted to see me, Boss?"

Loki turned and stared at Clint for a moment before nodding. "Yes. I need to know what…what these Avengers are like. Who they are…I need to know their weaknesses, strengths, fears…"

Clint nodded.

"I have need for them," Loki added. "Tell me all about the pitfalls of the initiative. Jessica has told me it was scrapped."

"It was, sir. The personalities of those involved were clashing and too different. They had no desire to work together. Or reason to. SHEILD thought it was…too much trouble. The project was actually a pet project of Director Fury's."

"Hmmm. Please, Agent Barton, tell me more about each person who had been considered," Loki urged.

Words began to flow out of Clint's mouth at an alarming rate.

"Stark doesn't work well with others. Stark talks too much, thinks too much of himself, and never takes anything remotely seriously," Clint complained. "He is famous, tabloid fodder and rich. He's a known superhero because he couldn't keep his trap shut."

"And Stark is…"

"Iron Man."

"What is this man of iron?"

"It's a suit…uh, made out of technology?" Clint asked, feeling baffled. The girl surely had told Loki about Iron Man. "He's a genius. He built it himself and blew up some terrorists."

"How would you…weigh his genius?" Loki inquired.

"Off the charts," Clint bluntly said.

Loki hummed. "Do you find him reckless?"

"Yes."

Loki smirked.

"Tell me of the one they call the Hulk."

"Banner's afraid of other people, afraid of killing and riddeled with guilt. He lives off the grid and tries to be a good person, but he's got a freaking monster living within him."

"Do you know much about the monster?"

Loki's eyes grew a bit distant and his mouth went tight. Clint frowned.

"No. But it's reported the monster has one setting: SMASH."

Loki nodded. He was not surprised.

"And the man's level of genius?"

"On par with Stark's, but in a different area. Also, he's not full of himself, but like Stark, he works on his own. Not exactly a team player," Clint reported. "Either of them."

"Jessica informs me that you know much about…Agent Romanov?" Loki asked.

Clint spoke at great length about Natasha. He told Loki all her fears, dreams, hopes, and strengths. He told Loki her weaknesses, told Loki how he'd found her, was told to kill her, but did not. He explained the concept of redemption that had been told to him when Coulson had found him and recruited him. He explained that while they were both dripping in red, maybe someday, they'd even out and be redeemed.

Clint had seen a bit of himself in Natasha.

Loki shifted a little as Clint began to speak about redemption. His eyes flickered between green and blue.

"Boss?" Clint asked, pausing.

"Thank you, Agent Barton," Loki snapped. He turned away from Clint and stared at the people working on the Tesseract. "Please tell me about SHEILD's procedures, security measures and weapon arsenal."

Clint dumped the entire load of information onto Loki. After he was done, Loki cocked his head to the side.

"Thank you, Agent Barton. That will be all."

Clint nodded. Loki turned and walked across the room and sat down on a box, resting the specter across his lap.

"You look better," Clint said before he could stop himself.

Loki looked at him and nodded. "Thank you, Agent Barton. Jessica, while an annoying nat, has fed and made me up. She seems most concerned with physical appearances."

Clint blinked. She'd put makeup on Loki?

Clint waited for orders, waited to be told what to do next, but Loki's eyes went unfocused and he seemed to space out.

"He's communicating with The Other," came the girl's voice from beside him.

"Who?"

"His boss's minion, or something. I don't know," she said. "Sandwich?"

She held a platter full of sandwiches. Clint took one.

"He'll be awhile. I think they're threatening him with pain worse than death or something stupid. Sit, take a load off, eat. I have a feeling you're gonna need a nap," she babbled at top speed.

Clint narrowed her eyes, not liking that someone was out there threatening his boss. He ate his sandwich and stood next to Jessica, who was trying to feed the scientists. As he eyed Loki, a voice— that annoying voice in the back of his head— began screaming at him to take Loki down while he was spaced out. Clint turned away from Loki and stomped up the stairs, squashing the voice down.

The voice was stupid. It knew nothing.

If I ever get back down / Find a map that take me back / Through the wounded / Through the wars / To a time that came before

-Bat for Lashes, "Peace of Mind"