Chapter 12 – Thor

Tony woke up to the smell of bacon. It was a delicious smell – one that made staying in bed impossible because of the craving it created. He looked around the room, discovering that he was alone in bed and in the bedroom, and pushed himself out of bed, now curious by the disappearance of Loki and the tempting smell of bacon. He wandered out of the bedroom and the smell of bacon hit him again, harder, and his stomach growled.

"Loki?" he called, wondering where the other man had gone off to, and the reply came from the kitchen.

"I'm in the kitchen. Breakfast is almost ready."

Tony wandered into the kitchen, and found Loki standing at the stove, half dressed in pants and a rumpled button up left open to leave his chest bare, a spatula in one hand and tongs in the other. Tony stood in the doorway in surprise, watching as Loki flipped a pancake with one hand and turned bacon with the other.

"You cook?" he asked, walking up to slide his arms around the other man from behind, pressing a kiss to the side of his neck.

"It is a practice I quite enjoy," Loki agreed, and Tony chuckled.

"You could've just said yes."

Loki shrugged but allowed a smile, sliding the last pancake onto a platter he'd been keeping warm in the oven, and putting the bacon on a layer of paper towel on a pile of already cooked bacon.

"Would you mind getting the plates down? We can eat now." With that he left the room, leaving Tony a little shocked, and when Loki came back in, collecting syrup from the fridge, Tony still stood in the middle of the kitchen.

"Everything alright?" Loki asked, and Tony nodded, a grin splitting across his features.

"Perfect. Everything is perfect." he followed Loki to the table, plates and cutlery in hand, thrilled that Loki had thought to cook breakfast. They sat together, enjoying the food, and Tony found himself grinning as he ate. It had been two months since Loki had returned, to earth and home with him, and he found himself more relaxed than he'd ever felt. He glanced out the window, noticing the dark storm clouds filling the sky, but even they didn't manage to dim his mood.

"So. What do you want to do today?" he asked, and Loki shrugged, his own gaze wandering towards the window.

"Anything you'd like. Though if we're going out I need to shower first." Tony looked up at the man across from him, seeing not a hair out of place, and rolled his eyes. Loki just smirked, continuing to eat breakfast.

"I want to go out. Haven't decided where yet though." Tony admitted, and Loki inclined his head, hiding his amusement behind another bite of pancakes.

They finished their meal and Tony waved Loki off when he began to clear the plates.

"Go get your shower. You cooked, I'll clean."

Loki gave him a dubious look but left the dishes on the table, wandering back towards the bedroom and the bathroom beyond it.

When he came back out, fully dressed, hair damp, the kitchen was nearly sparkling, and Tony was putting the last of the dishes away. Loki looked around in complete disbelief.

"Who are you? And what have you done with Tony?" he asked, and Tony gave an eye-roll.

"I know how to clean. I just don't usually bother, and I didn't want you doing it."

With a soft smile, Loki moved to press a kiss against Tony's lips. "So, what is it you wish to do today?"

"Can you skate?"

They ended up in what was usually a public indoor rink, but Tony had payed the owner such an obnoxious sum that he'd closed it for them without any public notice.

"That really wasn't necessary," Loki said, though he'd enjoyed the exchange, and Tony shrugged.

"It was fun."

Loki was on the ice first, scarf wrapped tightly around his neck, winter coat and leather gloves on. He glided across the ice as if he'd been born to skate, and Tony watched in both envy and amazement before joining him on the ice.

"Where did you learn to skate?" he asked, and Loki frowned, as if the memory was both pleasant but painful.

"With my brother, when we were children."

Tony let the subject drop, knowing Loki's family history was a touchy business, but he took Loki's hand, smiling when he looked up, and pulling him to the end of the rink.

"Race?"

Loki grinned at the idea, pivoting to face the opposite end of the rink.

"There and back?" he asked, and Tony nodded, his own competitive nature coming forward.

"On three. Three, two, -" he shot off on the two, much to Loki's surprise, but instead of being annoyed he merely laughed, moving to follow, racing across the rink. With a trick or two up his own sleeve, Loki spun on the spot, appearing in front of Tony who had to stop quickly not to hit him. Shooting a grin at Tony, he sped back past him, hearing Tony's laughter following him. He reached the end and then appeared back beside Tony who was shaking his head.

"Teleporting is cheating," he said, and Loki just grinned.

"So's starting before the count."

Tony just laughed again, a playful sparkle in his eyes as he moved suddenly towards Loki, reaching as if to catch him. Loki raced away, and the chased each other around the rink, back and forth, their laughter ringing off the walls as if they'd both lost decades in age, just for the afternoon.

A crack of thunder all but shook the building, and Loki went stock still, stopping on the spot, his eyes travelling to the ceiling, catching Tony as he nearly shot passed.

"We must leave." he said, grabbing Tony's hand and pulling him towards the edge of the rink.

"Why? What's wrong?"

"It's important that we aren't here any longer. It isn't safe any longer."

Remembering the last time Loki had said something wasn't safe, Tony didn't argue, following Loki off the ice, all but untying his skates as they walked. He pushed Tony towards the bench where his shoes were, eyes darting around the empty building for signs of whatever it was that was frightening him. Tony couldn't see anything, but he hurried to put his shoes on, tossing his skates over his shoulder.

"Ready."

Without a word, Loki took his hand, pulling him towards the exit then pushing him out the door just as a booming crash resounded through the building.

"Run. To the car. Quickly." Tony broke into a run, looking back to see a cloud of vaporized water, large cracks having formed in the rink. He slid behind the drivers seat, waiting as Loki got in beside him, worry clear on his features. "We should go back home." he said, and Tony nodded, pulling out of the parking lot with a squeal of tires.

"What exactly are we running from?" Tony asked, and Loki cast a worried glance over his shoulder.

"It isn't a what so much as a who."

"Someone else is after you?" Tony asked, now equally as worried but also preparing himself for a fight, and Loki gave a weak smile.

"Of sorts."

They made it to Stark tower in record time and Loki followed Tony towards the entrance, somewhat more relaxed than he had been at the stadium.

Without warning, a man clad in silver armour with a red cape flew down with a bang, standing only to grab Loki roughly.

"Hey! Back off!" Tony yelled, but the man only swung what looked like a hammer, sending Tony back into the building, knocking the wind from him. Loki called out for him, but there was a ringing in his ears and by the time he'd struggled to his feet, both Loki and the man were gone. Tony swore, and though he was still winded he ran inside, straight for his suit. "I've had enough of this." he growled, moving to dress in the suit.

Dropped on his feet, Loki spun to face his attacker, coming face to face with the third last person he wanted to see, above both his old keeper, and his father.

"Brother." Loki greeted cooly, the human clothes he was wearing shimmering into armour.

"Loki," his brothers voice was full of emotion, as it tended to be, and Loki pulled everything he felt behind a mask of indifference.

"You could've hurt him." Loki said quietly, "He was unarmed with no way to defend himself and you hit him with your hammer." rage began to bleed through yet the other didn't seem to notice.

"We have been searching for you for decades, brother. Decades upon decades, with no sign or trace. I understand why you wished to stay away for a time, but decades Loki?"

"I wasn't running Thor," Loki said, pulling back, turning cold. "I was captured after my fall, made prisoner."

Thor froze, his eyes widening in disbelief.

"A prisoner? Who – who dared?" he turned towards Loki, grabbing his shoulders, expression full of shock and then worry. "Are you alright? What happened to you during those decades?"

All the bitterness that had gathered during those many years as prisoner came spilling forward.

"What would you assume happened, Thor? The one who captured me? he placed his torturer as my keeper. There are many who wish to break and twist gods to their purposes. These were no different."

"Brother, I had no idea, if I had we would've searched harder. We thought you didn't want to be found -"

"No!" Loki tossed Thor's hands off. "They didn't want me to be found! You think your father didn't know where I was?"

"Our father," Thor interrupted, but Loki spoke over him.

"Your father. He had to have known where I was, and what that thing did to me, and yet he did nothing to stop it!"

"He can't have known then."

"He had to have! All that time you were searching, all that time I spent at the hands of a creature designed to destroy gods, did he ever try and aid you in your search? Even once?"

"Of course he did Loki!" Thor surged forward, holding Loki's head so he couldn't turn away. "He led the search! Many of the searches! Between the two of us someone has been always been out searching." Loki stared into his brothers gaze, not noticing the tears that had formed in his own eyes. Finally he pulled back, turning away.

"If he was truly searching, he would've been able to find me," he said, but the conviction wasn't all there. "And why did you bring me here?"

"I want to bring you home."

Loki spun back, furious all over again, his emotions closer to the surface than he was used to with his brother, realizing that he'd lost much of his shield from being with Tony.

"I am home! This is my home now! With the man you happened to nearly kill! And I don't want to leave. Not now, and not ever."

"But everyone is worried, they all want to see that you're alive!"

Now there was sadness, even as Loki turned back to his brother.

"They aren't worried for me, brother. You," there was a soft, almost self-deprecating laugh. "I believe you worried for my well being, and perhaps even father," there was a pained pause, "and mother. But the others worry for you. That I'll hurt, or corrupt you."

"That's preposterous!" Thor exclaimed, but Loki just tilted his head curiously.

"Is it? You are the god of thunder and morality, me of mischief and trickery. It would only be logical for them to assume I was fulfilling my part as your brother."

"If that were true, you would not be saying all of this."

"Just because you and I know one truth doesn't mean they'll believe it."

Thor didn't respond, a frown creasing his golden features as he recognized the truth in Loki's words. Before he could respond, the iron man suit shot through the air, ramming into Thor and sending them both off.

"Damn."

Loki watched till they crash landed and then took himself to where they were, stepping between them before they could throw any punches.

"Loki, who's hammer boy?"

Loki put a hand up towards each of them, watching as Tony's helmet came up, and Thor hefted his hammer but didn't move to attack.

He turned first to Thor, "Thor, this is Tony. The human I've made my home with." Then he turned to Tony. "Tony, this is Thor. My brother."