AN: So close guest! Yes it is who you say it is but the geese don't lay that. And if you want suggest a gift idea!
Wow, 2K words and two references in this one! Let me know if you get both of them!
And I know, I'm a lying lier who lies. I'm sorry this is late but I hope the extra length makes up for some of it. I'm really trying to post everyday but geeze it's hard. None of the chapters are prewritten, everything you read I probably just wrote starting two or more hours ago. Tomorrow is seven swans a-swimmin'! (I have no idea how to go about that...everything is so last minute with this.) Also, I claim all errors as my beta The Moyashi Beansprout Midget only read part of this chapter. Sorry Moyashi, I'll try to get the next one done earlier! (There's a three hour time difference (she's later than I am)). Enjoy!
Dear Loki,
This is the friend I told you about. Please try to not give him new ideas. My workshop is chaotic as it is. Make sure he returns before Christmas Eve, he wants to help this year.
Wishing the best,
North
Loki looked up at his new ally and raised an eyebrow. The kid didn't look like much. He just showed up at his door, barefoot despite the freezing temperatures, and with a shepherd's crook. "You're needed before Christmas by North." He stated to break the ice.
The boy rolled his eyes. "I know. I'll keep track of time, that is if you want my...input for future pranks." He raised an eyebrow in turn.
"Perhaps." Loki turned away. "Meet me on the building east of the Avengers Tower." He teleported away before the kid could get a word in edgewise.
On said east building a second later...
Loki popped into existence and observed the tower in front of him. It was barely a minute later when he heard laughter. Turning he saw a person...flying(?) from the general direction of his place.
"What?" He whispered to himself as he squinted. He sputtered as a snowball hit his face.
"It's not very nice to leave some one behind like that!" The kid laughed from his place floating above and slightly in front of Loki.
"Get down here before you attract attention!" Loki had to resist the urge to stomp his foot.
"Relax," He started to float down, "It's not like they'll see me."
Loki suddenly remembered that Midgardian elementals (because six days ago he didn't know there was anything but elementals.) couldn't be seen by the mortals of the planet.
"This is the plan..." Loki described the plan as the kid bounced (occasionally floating) in excitement.
In the Tower...
Natasha was done. They were only halfway there. She took out a knife and approached the frozen abomination. It honked loudly before it flapped its wings and ran away. She threw her knife, nailing it in the head. To her disbelief (and frustration) it got back up and continued running.
With Loki...
"Whoa, she's scary." The boy said.
Loki merely grunted as he focused on magically getting the knife out and 'healing' the bird.
"I think at some point I'm going to have to go in to fix him." Loki was still mildly impressed that the kid could balance on the free standing staff on the windy roof top. Although on closer inspection it didn't seem to be as windy around his ally as it was around him.
Then his words registered. "Him?" Loki asked incredulously.
"Yes, my snow animals have genders. The one following Captain America is female and the one on Hawkeye." The barefoot teen's eyes were glowing slightly with his constant magic output. Loki rolled his eyes as he turned his focus back to dodging arrows.
In the Tower...
There was an intense staring contest going down in the living room. Five on five, each competitor not moving an inch, until...
"HONK!" Making most of the other team jump a foot in air.
"So, what are they going to lay? They're made of ice." Steve said, glancing at one that had an arrow in its back.
"Ice cubes?" Bruce suggested.
"I feel like they're going to be more annoying than that." Tony grumbled.
"Where's the sixth one?" Natasha asked.
"Uhhh." Clint looked over his shoulder as if it was sitting with them.
"I have located the last ice goose." Jarvis cut in. "It appears to be heading to the R&D labs."
They shared looks of 'uh oh' before they all dashed to the elevator to get to the proper floor. They burst out of the elevator, startling some people standing there, and spread across the floor.
"Mr. Stark?" A woman asked.
"Have you seen a goose made of ice running around?" He asked. To her credit she didn't seemed to be surprised.
"No, I haven't sir."
Before Tony could reply a shriek made everyone jump and look. Just in time to see snowflakes(?) settling to the ground. On the ground was an employee and Clint, the errant goose sitting comfortably on his chest.
"Why do birds love to harass me!?" He exclaimed.
"You're part bird." Natasha said.
At this point everyone on the floor was staring at them. It wasn't everyday superheroes crashed your work, one of them who pays your paycheck.
"Uh, sir?" A timid young man asked.
"Yes? What?" Tony answered.
"What's going on? What's that?" He pointed to the goose currently sitting on Hawkeye's chest.
"Very good question Jeremy. This is a project I've been working on. One of the most realistic robots I've made. The programming has some bugs to work out."
"You said it was ice." The woman he talked to earlier pointed out.
"It was the simplest way to explain it. It looks like ice, it was just how I designed it." Tony brushed off.
"And that?" Another employee asked, pointing to the white powder.
"Yeah, probably shouldn't touch that. I'm not sure what it is. Some one will come clean it later. Now if that's all, we'll be going now." Jeremy jumped back from where he was about to touch the powder.
Few minutes later back on the Avengers floor...
"So they poop snow?" Tony asked.
"No, it laid an egg that exploded." Clint corrected.
"The snow doesn't melt, is it still snow?" Bruce asked.
"Tony run some tests on it. We'll try to keep the geese corralled here." Steve ordered.
Tony gave a lazy salute as he picked up the test tube of collected snow.
Outside the Tower where magic geese are being healed...
"Oh man! Didj'ya see that! Haha! Make 'em lay more eggs!"
Loki's lips twitched despite himself. The kid was easily amused. Loki made the geese lay more 'eggs', that was his job. The teen would then grabbed the egg from Loki magically and let it burst. They still had a few eggs laying around that were put into place before the Avengers had woken up.
An hour, lots of cursing, eggs and snow later...
"I ran as many test as I could and it's just snow. Gah!" Tony stumbled into the wall when snow blew into his face. Once he could see again his jaw dropped.
The room was covered in a few inches of snow at least. Steve had wrapped himself in layers of clothes as the room had dropped more than a few degrees. Clint lay face down with at least three of the geese on top of him, Natasha was glaring daggers at one of them that was dancing around her happily and Bruce was sitting on the couch with a mug in one hand and a bowl of ice cubes in his lap, which he seemed to be feeding to the two geese by his feet.
"What happened here?" He stepped carefully over a nest (an actual nest made of ice twigs) full of eggs.
"The Avengers have been beaten by birds made of regenerating ice." Bruce supplied, amused.
"Regenerating?"
"Yes, see?" Natasha then produced a knife from somewhere and threw it at a goose on Clint's back. It honked at her as it was thrown back by the force. The knife fell out once it hit the wall and the ice came together like nothing happened. It then wandered back to sit on Clint again.
Tony jumped as the nest of eggs behind exploded, impossibly spreading itself across the large room.
"Is Clint still alive?" Bruce asked calmly.
In response he got a lazy arm flail, a goose nipping at the appendage when it got dislodged from its perch.
"Why are they intent on killing Clint?" Steve asked.
Clint had to lift his head up slightly to be understandable. "Not killing. They just decided I was a good place to perch."
"Alright then." Tony said. "I'm going to go make lunch."
"Food please?" Clint asked.
Tony hummed. "Maybe."
Clint groaned before plopping his head back in the snow.
Three hours later...
The snow was knee deep but not quite as cold as normal snow. In three hours the Avengers, well three of them, were having fun with the geese. Natasha had a contented smile as she came up with different ways to 'kill' the ice geese. Similarly, Tony was have an incredible time blowing/shooting the things and Bruce was protecting two of the geese in order to feed them ice cubes.
Clint was somewhere under the snow (they set a blanket over his approximate location to avoid stepping on him). They believed he fell asleep along with a goose on his back. (The other two had been stolen by Tony and Natasha.)
Outside with a rapidly growing army of ice geese...
"They can sure go through a lot." The hoodie wearing teen said, fascinated.
Loki ignored him in favor of keeping the portal open that they were using to send new geese through as the others got too damaged.
"You don't talk a lot. You remind me of my friend, he doesn't talk much either...well he doesn't talk at all. So, you're Loki? Norse branch? That's what we call it 'cause there's so many spirits that have the same title but are from different regions. Some turn into another...I guess it could be called an alter ego. You know that I have a form in the Norse branch?"
Holding his tongue Loki decided on, "You talk incessantly." Though he was curious who the kid was in his...branch? Midgard, he decided, was weird.
"So I've been told. Well, more like yelled at then had a bomb thrown at me. I'll tell you, that was a surprise."
"You had a bomb thrown at you?"
"A paint bomb. Kangaroo has a short temper."
Kangaroo? For the life of him Loki could not think of any Kangaroo myths off the top of his head.
"Just focus on holding the delayed eggs." Loki ordered.
"Sir, yes, sir!" He exclaimed.
After more than a few dead geese later...
"WHEN WILL THEY END?" Tony yelled after he destroyed his hundredth goose.
"At midnight." Bruce said, spluttering when snow hit the back of his head.
"Don't be such a smart a-"
"HELPPPP!" Clint came careening through the room, four geese on his tail...his real tail. It seems as though he grew a tail, beak, head feathers and wings out of ice.
"Oh man, J you got this?"
"Of course sir." Even the AI sounded amused.
"Don't be a jerk Tony! Help me! Gah!" Clint was forced into a somersault as a goose tried to jump on his head.
"Don't be a jeeeeee~rk it's Christmas ~!" Tony sung.
"Is that even a real song?!" Clint's voice rose at the end of his question.
The archer finally stopped and curled up into the snow, the snow reforming itself to look like a nest. Natasha appeared in the doorway, looked around the room and turned around and left.
"Let's just eat dinner and go to bed." Tony sighed.
Too bad it was easier said than done.
After a grueling two hours (the eggs kept exploding in their faces and food) everyone dispersed to bed, a goose each (well two for Steve since the other pairs technically had two).
11:59pm...
"LOKI!" Five voices were heard after three more explosions.
Loki's hideout...
The immortal boy was laughing next to a smiling (will be denied later) Loki.
"That was the BEST! What's tomorrow? Can I help?" He bounced in place while giving Loki his best puppy eyes.
"Perhaps. Now excuse me I have a letter to write."
North,
I admit the boy was interesting to have. I may keep him around for a few days. Although I'm not sure what he can do for seven swimming swans.
Hey North! Today was great! The Avengers didn't know what to do HA! Send my regards to the others!
As you can see he hijacked my letter. Could you clarify who this 'Kangaroo' is? He refuses to explain further.
Be kidnapped,
Loki
AN: Et fin! Find the references? And remember you have 'til Christmas Eve to send in gift ideas! And I'll try to get seven swans out soon so that I can catch up and get eight maids out as well. C'mon, your support is invaluable!
~Dawnmoon