Tony awoke with a pleasant sigh, his eyes widening at the sight of a Joutun Loki snuggled up close to him. He sat up, looking to the now closed door to the room Loki was once in. His sitting up confused the piss out of Lokitty, who hissed and dug his claws into Tony's stomach. "Ow, hey let go!" He pulled the kitten off of him, and Loki stirred. Tony poked the frost giant, willing him to wake up.

"Come on, I'll call you Sleeping Be-"

"Be sssilent," Loki half hissed, half slurred, his sleep making him sound like a snake. His voice was rough, as if he'd gargled with gravel, and Tony wondered if he was going to get used to it.

"Don't tell me what to do, this is my tower."

"I'll do whatever I please." Loki shifted, then sat up. He was on the couch with Tony and Lokitty and impossibly energetic. "Can we... Can we do something? Outside?"

"Uhh, you're blue."

"And?" Loki smiled at Tony, his eyes sparkling with happiness.

"Okay, okay, we'll go. But tell me something first."

"Anything."

Tony paused, his mouth agape. He wasn't expecting Loki's response. However, he regained his composure. "Why are you so excited? What happened? Why are you sudden- Mmph!"

Loki had pressed a kiss to Tony's mouth, silencing him. While Tony was confused and waking, Loki was drifting between the wakeful world and the sleeping, thinking of a plan, something to prevent him from having to serve Thanos, or to be double crossed. He kept trying to think of a way to double cross the double crosser, and he'd been successful.

"Shh. Less questions, more explanations. Save your breath for the world around you, for you'll have to describe every living thing I point out to you."

"Everything?" Tony blinked as they broke away, their noses brushing. Loki snickered.

"Most everything," He allowed.

"I'm gonna need a car or something. We can't walk around Manhattan with you pointing everything out."

"Walk. Take me somewhere pretty."

Tony was about to respond, when he realized something. "Loki, answer at least one question."

The Norse god huffed out an impatient sigh, then pressed his forehead to Tony's, waiting for the inquiry.

"Why are you acting this way? And don't lie. I know that's going against your nature and all, but I want a real answer from you."

Loki pursed his lips together, trying to think of a way not to lie, or at least to bend the truth so much that, if and when Tony would figure it out, it would snap back on him.

So Loki decided with the most simple thing he could think of.

"Remember my dreams with Thanos?"

"Vaguely, yeah."

"Well," Loki said after giving the inventor a playful glare. "This time, I spoke with him again. And we made a deal. He could do what he'd pleased with me once you'd... Stopped liking me." He misliked the taste of the lie, but he masked it well, under a mask of indifference. He'd prayed Tony could would understand.

"So are you pressuring me to love you?"

"I pressure you to do nothing. Nor do I want you to feel that way." He smiled, a rueful twist of his lips. "But if you didn't love me," he felt his face warm just the slightest at the word; it made him feel weird inside. "I would understand. I am not forcing you to do anything, Stark."

"Good." Tony pulled the Joutun's face to him, planting a kiss on those dark lips. "I don't liked to be forced to do anything."

"Mmm." Loki looked into Tony's eyes, and saw the orangey yellow light play on them. "Thank you for understanding. Now can we go?"

Now it was Tony's turn to sigh. "Can't we just stay here?" He asked softly, whining. Loki leaned close, closer, so close that his eyes were half-lidded and his lips just barely touched Tony's. The inventor thought he was going in for a kiss, and almost happily obliged to it, if Loki hadn't pulled away with a small "No" and a smirk. Tony groaned, pushing Loki off the couch.

"My couch."

"My Lokitty!" Loki reached up for the kitten, who was trapped behind Tony. The genius handed the cat off and Loki stood, placing Lokitty on his shoulder, where he should be all the time. "Fine, if you do not wish to lead me, then perhaps I will go off on my own."

Tony hated the smug look on Loki's face as he slowly rose to intercept him. "No, no you won't."

"You're sure?"

"Yeah. Gimme a minute. Actually, gimme like, thirty. I'm gonna take a shower." He winked at Loki, teasingly. "Wanna join me?"

Loki blinked. "A what?"

"A sh... Never mind."

"Is that the water spout thing?"

"Yeah. Take one when you went into your little seclusive hole I'm guessing?"

"Mhm."

"Need another?"

"Maybe."

Tony assessed Loki with a quick once over, then deemed him worthy to take a shower. "Come on, Frosty."

"I'd rather be Blue. Something tells me you mean to demean me with the name 'Frosty'." Loki looked intently at Tony, daring him to prove him wrong. The inventor just shrugged and said something to JARVIS.

"Shower time, darling." He winked again, and Loki scoffed, following after.

They did a little more than just shower though. The water warmed him, and nearly made Tony's bathroom seem like a sauna. Loki enjoyed the warmth, without feeling the scalding heat he normally would. And the warmth of the man behind him definitely warmed him up.

So now they were tied, Tony had said. One to one. Loki didn't care. It was great.

Finally, they were dressed- Loki in more borrowed clothes -and headed downstairs. JARVIS had questioned if Tony should bring the blue Joutun prince onto the streets of Manhattan, and Tony just replied cryptically, "I know what I'm doing, Jarjar."

They had left the tower, and Loki closed his eyes, the sun making his skin seem almost aqueous. Like a blue crystal with slowly churning azure liquid inside. He took Loki to the little park that was only a few blocks away, and the god took in the smells around them, the hot dog/lemonade stand, where they had gotten a drink, the air slightly tinged with the pollution from the cars that passed by with breathtaking speed. Loki was impressed with this pitiful world, Tony thought. He liked that.

They finally arrived at the park, which was more of some kind of Asian-themed garden with a little pond in the middle. Small, chubby children ran around it, screaming as one splashed the other with water, and another feeding the little ducks small chunks of bread.

Loki looked at Tony, his orange eyes glittering. "This is amazing," He breathed. "simply amazing."

"Really? I guess. I keep thinking 'Damn, one of those kids are gonna fall in' every time I look at them."

"They won't. Look at how far they tread from the water's edge."

"Yeah, okay. What's with the sudden wanting to come outside?"

"I strictly remember you saying you'd ask only one question, Stark." Loki laughed. "But if you really must know, I was tired of being cooped up in the tower all day, and I wanted to see something other. What are those billed animals?" He pointed to a duckling. Tony snorted.

"You know what a kitten is, but you don't know what a duck is?"

"It was not I who studied up on Midgard, Stark. I know only a few things about this place."

"Well they're ducks. Baby ducks. And there's the mom, right over there." He pointed to a bigger duck with slightly ruffled feathers. Behind her was a different duck, not matching with it's brethren. Loki stared at it, thinking, then looked at his hands.

"Am I that little duck?" He wondered aloud as he flexed his blue fingers a few times. "Only knowing he is different when he is told?"

Tony sighed and kissed Loki's cheek. "That duck is no match for how amazing you are, no match for how beautiful you are. And he isn't blue." He turned Loki's face and kissed him. "And I love you for your difference."

HEEEEEEEEEE It took me forever to finish this chapter, omg omg omg. Fourteen maybe? what? WHAAAT? THere's no way I'm updating FOUR chapters in ONE day?! Hehe yes, maybe. Love you guys. Review, review, I love them. Iluvyouhehe mwaaah