AN: Sorry Guys! I have no excuses. So this is my plan, I'm going to post daily leading up to Christmas day, following the timeline of this fic. This one was supposed to be posted yesterday but I fell asleep before I could finish. So expect another chapter in the next five hours. (I say that because of time differences. Pacific Standard Time if you really want to know.) If I don't post one day expect double update the next day. Make sense? Sweet, now I still need present ideas, you have until Christmas Eve to suggest ideas. You will be credited with the idea at the end of the twelfth chapter. I think that's it. Enjoy!

Greetings Loki,

That certainly sounds ominous. It's five golden rings next? I can't imagine what you have planned. I'll admit I am getting curious of your future plans. I have a friend who would probably would want to join you. He is a mischievous boy, I don't know what to do with him most of the time.

Holiday best,

North

Avengers Tower, Noon

"Jarvis?" Steve just woke up and wasn't sure what had happened but the lights were out. Was everything out? What did Jarvis connect to? Did he run on the electricity?

"Yes?" Steve jumped slightly.

"Uh, what happened? Why are the lights out?"

"I do not know. The reactor powering the Tower is fully functional. No errors detected." Jarvis replied.

"Where's Tony?"

"In the kitchen."

"Thanks Jarvis." Steve then headed to the stairs.

"You're welcome."

In the kitchen...

"Fix it!" Steve heard Clint shout.

"There's nothing wrong! Everything else that requires electricity is still working!" Tony yelled.

"So what is happening?" Steve asked as he stepped in. A lantern spread light in the space, Tony's arc reactor seeming to shine a bit brighter.

"I don't know!" Tony threw his hands up before running them through his hair. "I checked and rechecked connections, Jarvis can't detect anything. Nothing is wrong!"

Bruce stepped in and moved the lightbulb to the side before Tony's hand could crush it. He wrapped his arms around his boyfriend from behind. Some tension drained from Tony's form.

"Just the lights?" Bruce asked.

"Yeah." Part time rage machine grabbed the lightbulb again, holding it aloft. "Even the emergency lights are out."

"Hmm, well we could try to-" Bruce cut himself off when Natasha brushed against his back, scaring him. "Natasha!" He exclaimed.

She merely raised an eyebrow and looked at the bulb.

"Oh good you're all here." They heard a voice say. It came from the hallway shrouded in shadows.

"Everyone's here right?" Clint asked, making sure it wasn't some one who actually lived at the tower.

"Yeah..." Tony slowly reached forward and grabbed the screwdriver he'd been working with. Natasha grabbed a steak knife from the knife block she was next to. Clint magically produced his bow (collapsible, courtesy of the resident geniuses). His quiver already on his back. (He was about to practice, not that he needed it.) Steve tightened his fists and tensed and Bruce just searched hallway.

"How futile, no escape for you. You pathetic heroes." The voice snarled.

"Wait a second..." Clint narrowed his eyes. "I know that voice."

"Hurry up!" A much louder voice shouted, visibly startling three of the Avengers.

"Hammer!?" Tony said in disbelief. "There is no way you got in here by yourself."

"He didn't." A familiar figure in green stepped forward.

"Loki!" Clint yelled in anger.

"Hammer you imbecile. You were supposed to stay silent." Loki sighed before extending his hand out. The lantern went out and there were sounds of a scuffle. It flickered a few times. In one instance Steve had Bruce in a headlock.

Flash

Natasha shaved some of Clint's hair.

Flash

Clint fired at Tony.

Flash

The screwdriver was in the wall.

Flash

Loki loomed over them, the light making him look demonic.

Flash

Hammer was sniveling in the corner after getting elbowed in the face.

Flash

Green smoke filled the kitchen before everyone was transported away.

Sudden silence and having their hands bound made everyone freeze.

"Hammer!" Tony shouted into the darkness of their new surroundings. Silence. "Where are those idiots?" He grumbled.

"Tony? Who else is here? I'm Steve."

"Like we couldn't tell." Tony snarked.

"Nat."

"Clint."

"Bruce."

"Now that we got roll call out of the way, we need to get out." Tony tugged his right hand.

"Ow! Stop that!" Clint exclaimed.

"We're attached? I'm going to move my left hand. Who's that?"

"Me." Steve responded. "Who's to my left?"

"I am."

They continued down the line; Tony, Steve, Natasha, Bruce, Clint...so they went around the circle.

"Can everyone stand up?" Steve asked as he shuffled to get his feet below him, his hands ready to push up.

"Ow! My hand doesn't bend that way Cap!" As Steve put his palm to the floor he ended up bending Tony's. "I cannot touch my forearm with my palm!" Steve brought his hands up again. They were bound hand to hand, the back of one touching the back of the next person.

"Sorry!"

Slowly they were able to stand, with help from each other.

"So, we're in a circle facing away from each other?" Clint clarified.

"I think so." Tony responded.

"Let's turn around." Natasha before promptly doing so. Bruce yelped as his hand was pulled and Steve grunted. Tony let out a surprised 'hey!' as he was tugged back. Clint ended up tripping over a foot, bringing Tony and Bruce into an awkward crouch as one hand was up and other was down. There was a stunned silence.

"Uh, ow." Clint commented. He climbed to his feet, "Warning would be nice." He mumbled with no answer from Natasha.

"Everyone turn around, slowly." Steve ordered. And they did, now everyone had their arms crossed in front of them facing each other now.

"How do we untangle this?" Clint asked.

"Easy, Steve go under my arm and everyone follow him, that should sort us out." Tony said.

Now, that would have worked if not for the flash of gold light. When it faded everyone was blinking dots out of their vision and attached to new people. This time it wasn't simply a circle. They faced each other but now in between them was a knot of arms.

"Hey!" Steve exclaimed.

There was a cough. "Sorry but I was suffocating myself." Bruce replied. "Wait..."

"Dang it!" Clint shouted. They all realized what had happened. They were all too tangled for Tony's simple plan to work.

"Now what?" Bruce asked.

"We do this by feeling, Tony lift this arm." Natasha said, shaking her right hand slightly so that Tony would move the correct one. As he did so she followed her arm towards Tony.

"Oh got it. Steve lower this arm." Clint stepped through.

They spent the next...really long time, trying to untangle themselves.

"Is everyone untangled?" Clint asked.

"No! Natasha, could you-ack! Not that way!" Steve exclaimed. They heard Tony snicker.

"Sorry."

Now that everyone was not in a knot the lights came on. Everyone blinked rapidly and looked around. There was nothing special, just stone and some bars. They looked to their wrists to see what was binding them. Gold...rings?

Five of them...

Five...

Golden...

Rings...

There was more than one scream of frustration.

"Seriously?!" Clint felt like bashing his head in. They were all still recovering from the previous four calling birds.

Suddenly the rings disappeared and Tony shoved Clint off himself.

"Hey!" Clint tackled Tony in retaliation. As they wrestled on the floor the others searched the room. The bars were too close together to reach through and there were no blemishes on the other three walls.

Clint and Tony rolled on the floor only to be kicked when they got too close to Natasha.

"Ow! Nat!" Clint complained as he rolled off Tony.

"Shut it. We need to get out." She responded.

"Well, there's no chance in that." Hammer's voice came through the bars. It was hard to see through the small slits so it was easy to communicate without Hammer knowing. From his seated position by the door Tony gave the 'keep going' motion with his hand, at the same time mouthing, 'Keep him talking.' Natasha gave a sharp nod, not knowing why Tony needed Hammer to talk but trusting him to do something.

He shimmied something out of his pocket, a black box with a couple of wires.

"Why's that?" Natasha asked Hammer.

Tony pried the box apart, half holding electronics and such.

"Oh I have a powerful ally."

Tony grabbed...something (no one really knew what he was doing or what he was messing with was.) and tugged it out.

"Loki." Natasha stated, staring in (concealed) confusion at the genius sitting on the floor. Tony meanwhile put the box together sans the something. The others were wary of the smile that had spread across his face. He waved Clint away from leaning on the door and grabbed a wire in each hand.

"Perhaps." Hammer said trying to maintain a mystery that was never there.

"Hey Hammer!" Tony called.

"What is it Stark?"

"Remember '93?"

"Never talk of that again!" At this there was a bang (the Avengers assumed this was him slamming a fist on the bars). At the same time Tony touched the wires to the bars. When he pulled them away there was a thump of a body and a thunk of locks disengaging.

"What was that?" Bruce asked.

"Electrocution." Tony smiled. "Not enough to kill." He rolled his eyes at Steve. "Added bonus that the locks were electronic. After you oh great master spy." Tony said with a mock bow to Natasha. She sauntered out, stepping over their captor's body.

"What happened in '93?" Clint asked as he trailed behind the group.

"Something I enjoy using as blackmail whenever I can." Tony smirked. Nothing more was said as they reached the outside.

"Don't you find it weird there were no guards?" Steve asked.

"Nope, Hammer had Loki, or Loki had Hammer, eh, whatever. The point is they believed Loki's magic would be all they needed." Tony scoffed.

"Not quite." Loki said appearing before them. "I merely wished to aggravate you with the fifth day of Christmas." With that a gold light surrounded them and they were back in the kitchen, lights on, like nothing happened.

"I am not looking forward to tomorrow." Clint mumbled as he slunk off.

"Where are you going?" Steve called.

"Bed!"

"It's only two!" (They had woken up late, catching up on missed sleep.)

"I am not rested enough to deal with this!" And Clint was gone. Natasha shrugged and followed after him. Bruce sighed before tugging Tony with him, leaving Steve alone. Shrugging he decided to make...lunch? Technically breakfast.

'Santa',

See no one got hurt, don't worry so much. I knew that bumbling Hammer wouldn't be able to do anything, I just wanted to mess with him too.

Who is this friend? If he is as you say I could use his...input for tomorrow. Send him over with your next letter.

Wishing you to crash,

Loki

AN: Tada! I'm keeping my promise of posting for Christmas! Anyone catch the reference in this one? Who is this friend? (Like you don't know). This reference is being swung over to the next chapter as well. So, yeah that's it. Review! (Even if I'm posting everyday.)

~Dawnmoon