Justin had somewhat taken permanent residence in the Tower. Natasha had had a very severe conversation with him first, from which he had returned pale as a sheet, and that had been enough to convince Tony that his rival's son was not after his company's secrets. He and Peter enjoyed minor pranks, and their moments of glory were all carefully recorded and edited by JARVIS, honorary member of the prank team since he had saved their ass when they had exposed Thor's. They were re-watching the video called "Thor's Restyling" when Justin suggested something.

"Perhaps we should show this to Loki."

"Why?"

"Loki is the god of mischief right? I have a feeling that he might just appreciate it…"

Peter nodded.

"Yeah… that's not such a bad idea, actually."

"Not such a bad idea? It's genius!"

Justin really looked too much like Tony for his own good. Secretly Peter wondered if Tony had perhaps ever screwed Justin Hammer Senior's wife, which would explain the odd resemblance between his friend and Stark.

They ended up watching the pranks with the whole team –and Loki- on movie night, including the security footage of Peter and Justin making the preparations, with a culmination in Thor's little striptease. Tony looked at Loki, and saw… he was grinning. It was that evil-god-of-mischief-grin and Tony hadn't known how much he had missed it until now. He bent to the trickster and whispered.

"You like, Rudolf?"

Loki turned his head to Tony, and his grin changed into an affectionate smile. That was all the answer Tony needed. He pulled the god closer to him, and Loki willingly scooted closer in his embrace, resting his head against Tony's shoulder. Later that night, Loki hesitatingly crawled out of Tony's arms and made his way to the library. It was dark and it was the first time he actually ventured so far from the engineer, but Loki bit his teeth, suppressed the throat-clenching fear and continued his way. With every step he felt as if it became harder to breathe, as if the panic would overwhelm him again, and he frantically tried to keep thoughts of Them out of his head while forcing his one foot in front of the other. When he finally stood at the door of the place, trembling, he heard a piano play, and a sad female voice sing.

"The Prophet took my hand on all souls day, he preached the value of deception… Changing shadows by a shapeshifter's rules, tales are never just for fools…"

It was a sad, melancholic song that gave Loki the chills even more than the short walk through the dark had.

"Do you want the truth or something beautiful? Just close your eyes and make believe… Do you want the truth or something beautiful? I am happy to deceive you…"

Loki stayed there, standing at the door, until Hela finished the song. No new song followed, so he suspected she knew someone was there. She had always been rather sensitive for those things. Carefully he opened the door. Hela sat with her back towards him, her black hair cascading loosely over her back. She was wearing some sort of black satin nightgown.

"Father."

"Hela."

It was an acknowledging of each other's presence, nothing more. The silence that hung between them said more than a thousand words. Hela was the first to break it.

"I am sorry, father. I failed you. Yet you must understand, I do not regret my actions."

She turned towards him, a fierce look in her eye.

"Midgard is a realm of mortals, yes. Many are unworthy, yes. But those few that are worthy are worth sparing the whole of their realm over. Midgard has given me things I didn't know a creature like me could ever experience, so I hold no regrets."

She stood up and slowly walked up to Loki. When she stood before him she silently kneeled and spoke.

"I have failed you, and I will gladly submit to the punishment you have in mind for me, for I know you have suffered because of my disobedience. But do not ask my regret, for I have none."

Loki was at loss of words. It had taken him over a week to gather the courage to see his daughter, whom he feared wouldn't want to see him because he had abandoned her, and now… He felt weak in his knees and decided to give in to it. He sank down on the floor next to Hela, his voice broken with sadness when he spoke.

"Hela dear, my daughter… No blame is on you, ever. I… I…" He just couldn't say it. How had it happened that he, once known as Silvertongue, had such trouble expressing himself all of a sudden?

"I should never have asked of you what I did."

He bent his head and felt how the bony hand of his daughter cupped his cheek and the black tendrils of Death surrounded him in an embrace.

"Father… I missed you so. Even the eyes of the Lady Death couldn't find you, and… I was so scared They had taken you again."

Loki looked up and saw his daughter's face. Even though it was stoic as always, he could see a tear running over her living cheek. Melting water of a frozen heart, he remembered. How long had it been since he had last seen his daughter cry?

"Death asked me payment in return, so I let her caress me and fill my head with her visions…"

Loki knew what that meant.

"You became ill."

"The tidings of Ragnarök plagued me in my fevered dreams… But the young mortal Peter Parker helped me."

Hela bit her lip, her green eye sad yet determined.

"I know you will think me disgusting father, but I don't care. The mortals are not as low as you say. Because they know my Mistress so well, their days are full and well spent. The seconds I have lived here were livelier than an eon in Niflheim, and I care for these people in ways a creature as myself should not."

Loki didn't know what to do. The sadness of his daughter surrounded him in the form of her magic tendrils, and even though she was but a few inches from him it felt as if she had closed herself of from him completely. Aching to do something about that, Loki took her hands in his.

"My Hela dear… it is good to cry."

Hela looked up, startled, as she remembered very well when Loki had spoken those words before. And like her seven-year-old self hadn't been able to, she threw herself in his arms. Loki felt both ribs and flesh when he pressed her against him, calming her cries like he had done when she was just a little girl. Like he should have done so long ago already…

(Pagebreak)

To his surprise Tony woke up on his own at night, and worriedly he asked JARVIS where Loki was. The answer made him smile.

"JARVIS, video feed of the library please."

When the library filled the screen of his computer, music filled the room. Loki and Hela sat next to each other behind the piano, playing a classical piece, fourhanded. Tony listened in awe. The music was truly unwaveringly beautiful… Time seemed to fly all of a sudden; it felt like the piece of music sucked in his entire environment. Before Tony knew it light already shone through the windows. He blinked and saw on the screen that the music had stopped and Loki and Hela were apparently saying goodbye. As the god left the library, Tony quickly ordered JARVIS to "hide the evidence" and pretended to be asleep. When Loki settled himself back in bed he was trembling and shaking, and without asking questions Tony wrapped his arms around him, pulling him close against his chest. The god curled up in Tony's arms, his frightened face lit by the blue glow of the arc reactor… He reached out for it and rested his hand against it, as if he needed to feel the soft humming of the device to convince himself it was actually there. Most of the times people even coming close to his reactor made Tony feel nervous, but now he understood. He ran his hands over Loki's back in a soft caress and pressed a kiss against his forehead. He caught the god's grateful look before Loki's breathing evened out and his eyes fluttered shut.

Tony felt deeply happy with Loki so close to him, and he didn't really want to ponder over why this was. It was more than simply worry and care… when the god was away from him it actually felt as if something physically tugged on his heart, urged him to make the distance smaller again. It was an unpleasant feeling, knowing that in a way he had started to need Loki like Loki needed him… There were no alien dream-invading tormentors waiting for him to leave the god's presence, but nevertheless he felt as if something really bad would happen if he were to be separated from Loki completely. All he could think of was that he could never let that happen…

(Pagebreak)

The next morning, Peter went to see Hela and found her not in the library, but in the kitchen, with Frigga, Steve and Justin.

"Mrs. Frigga, you make the best pancakes!"

"Oh dear, I am glad you like them. Here, have another one, with extra syrup. You're so thin; you definitely need to eat more! You remind me of Loki when he was a kid, eating like a war horse and never gaining a single pound!"

Frigga's joyous, motherly voice filled the kitchen with its warmth. When Peter entered, it felt like a warm blanket wrapping itself around him. Justin and Steve were eating pancakes like they hadn't seen food in days, and Hela sat behind a cup of black coffee with an unusually content look in her eyes. Frigga turned from the oven, holding a pancake pan and wearing a flowery apron over her royal gown.

"Good morning Peter! Can I please you perhaps with one of these cakes of the pan? Steve gave me the recipe!"

Peter nodded and smiled.

"Oh, sure, I'd like to!"

He sat down next to Hela while Frigga prepared his pancake.

"Don't you like pancakes?

Hela looked at him and nodded.

"Ah yes, I have tasted them and they sure are delightful. I just find that I can't gather the appetite at the moment."

Worriedly, Peter took her hand.

"You're not getting ill again, are you?"

Hela shook her head.

"The dead never rest, Peter. I have a hard time relaxing, that's all."

"Would you… would you like to go out with me today?"

That immediately caught the goddess' attention.

"To Central Park?"

There was a longing in her voice. Peter nodded.

"Sure. It will be cold now, it's almost December, but…"

"I don't mind the cold…"

Frigga smiled warmly at her granddaughter. Hela had seen too much of the horrors of the universe to have even a shred of innocence left, and back in Asgard Frigga had often thought that the girl was born old, an old soul bearing devastating knowledge only the Norns should ever contain. Seeing her here though, with a skillful illusion hiding her bones and adult voice, it was almost as if she saw her grandchild live a second childhood. Hela was still silent, reclusive and melancholic, but somehow there was a spark of happiness in her eyes Frigga hadn't thought possible. It appeared to have to do with the young Peter Parker…

(Pagebreak)

The trees had lost their leafs, but Central Park still elated Hela as much as it had done the first time. Peter was happy to see how the sorrow fell of her face when she touched the plants.

"Peter… These plants… they are like the realms, can you see?"

No, he couldn't actually. Hela sighed when she saw his confusion.

"They are born, they live, they wither, and then they die, but their death is only an illusion, for in spring they will be born again."

Hela softly ran her hand over the bark of a tree and smiled.

"Winter on Midgard is a bit like Ragnarök, Peter. Ygdrassil is not a tree for nothing. It is a never-ending cycle of life and death, destruction and rebirth."

"So… the end isn't really the end then?"

Hela nodded.

"I am afraid not."

"Isn't that a good thing?"

"Not if we are obliged to make the same mistakes over and over again. This question I ask myself so often… is the tapestry of Fate woven for us already, are we simply walking along paths predestined?"

It was hard to comprehend for Peter, and Hela knew. She smiled at him.

"You do not have to worry about this. Perhaps that is one of the advantages of your mortality."

"I don't worry for myself, I worry for you, because I care for you."

That seemed to surprise Hela, much to the surprise of Peter, who thought they had settled that when they made out in the library.

"You… care… for me?"

"I do. I really like you, Hela. I mean… Justin and I took revenge on Thor for you!"

Peter's goodhearted innocence made Hela happier than it should, but she couldn't help it. He was so full of well-meant affections that she couldn't distance herself from him.

"That was… amusing, yes."

Hela laughed, and that gave Peter the courage to say what he wanted to say. He took a deep breath and started.

"Hela, I know that to you I am just a mortal kid and stuff but I really, really like you. Like, really. And I don't care what your siblings look like or that you have a villain as a dad, I couldn't care less! Your true face is beautiful to me and the music you play is wonderful and every time I see you sad I just want to kiss you. I don't know what that was between us before your dad woke up, but I… I hope it was something real and that we can perhaps continue it. It's… it's okay if you don't want to, I just… had to tell you."

Hela stared at him with wide eyes, her hand still resting against the tree.

"You… you stayed away…"

"I thought you needed some space for yourself with everything that was going on with Loki."

It was true; she had needed the space indeed. If Peter had tried to force himself on her in those days she would have sent him away anyway. But… the fact he didn't try she had interpreted as lack of interest. Never it had occurred to her that perhaps this mortal understood her better than she knew… Hela let go of the tree and walked up to Peter.

"You are a foolish mortal to request the love of a handmaiden of Death… For many, many reasons."

Her green eyes were deep and mesmerizing, and Peter caught himself holding his breath for what she would say next.

"But there are at least as many reasons why this makes you a brave and worthy man…"

She stood nose to nose with Peter now.

"Do you realize that when you love me, you love Death? Are you prepared to share that with me?"

It was a serious question, and not one Peter had really thought of when he did his little ramble. Yet Hela's eyes were so pleading that he couldn't help but nod.

"I do."

Hela pressed her lips against his in a soft, tender kiss. It was different than kissing her true form, but even with the illusion Peter could sense the thin line in the middle of her lips separating the real flesh from the magic. It was good. It made her Hela. She broke the kiss ad whispered.

"Then I must say that I too, really, really like you."

They were both smiling now, hugging each other tightly under the leafless trees…

(Pagebreak)

After his nightly visit to his daughter, Loki started to talk more. Instead of using one-worded expressions he spoke in short sentences now, mostly to Tony and Frigga. He still trailed behind Tony, but not as obviously as before anymore. Instead he just made sure he was in the same room as the engineer. The trailing wasn't necessary anymore in the first place, because Tony himself now felt reluctant to leave the god's presence. When it was obvious that Loki needed at least a shred of privacy though, Tony made sure to give him that, waiting right outside the closed kitchen door, trying to ignore the strange feeling of loneliness. Loki was alone in the kitchen with Frigga.

"Mother…"

"Yes, Loki? Is there something I can do for you?"

Loki bit his lip. Words were still hard, he felt as if he had to force them out of his mouth. He knew that his mind was damaged; all he could hope was that it wouldn't be permanent. That wasn't what he had come to speak about though.

"The mortal."

"Tony."

"Yes."

"What about him?"

Frigga feigned ignorance, for she knew that this was important to Loki, he had to say it himself.

"I… I cannot be without him."

"Because he protects you from those creatures that harmed you?"

Loki, nodded, then shook his head.

"No, it… I feel sick w-when I'm not… with him. So alone… And s-something inside me pulls me to him, and… w-when I'm with him it's all better."

Frigga slowly nodded. When she had seen the magical golden thread between Tony and Loki, she had known they were deeply connected. Apparently that connection had some side effects… Loki continued, struggling with the sentences.

"I… I just… don't know w-what to do."

Frigga eyed Loki pensively, and finally she took his hand.

"My dear Loki… you are a skilled sorcerer, so you know that what I say is true. The threads of Fate that run throughout all of the realms sometimes meet each other, get in a knot, entangle, or melt into each other. You and the man of iron are such threads. Your fates have met and entangled. You are two threads in the same cord, and when you are together, the cord is strong. When you try to pull away from each other, the cord unravels and loses its strength."

"So…"

"Don't feel bad for needing him, Loki. He needs you just as much."

Loki looked at his feet, thoughts storming through his head. Stark could not need him as much as he did. He was dependent on the mortal, without the strange blue energy in Stark's chest to shield him, They would find and take him again, whereas Stark… he could just leave him, cast him out… couldn't he?

"I was so scared I would never hold you again…"

Those kisses… those touches… had it meant anything? Loki remembered the dream dimension very well, at night when Tony's arms folded around him that was what he thought about, to have their bodies meet without fabric restricting them, to touch his skin and feel those soft lips on his again. It wasn't possible. He was damaged now… there was no way that… Frigga taking him in a soft hug interrupted his thoughts. First he tensed, but when he heard the calm whisperings of his mother he relaxed.

"My dear Loki… Remember that you are loved. Always."

How the Allmother always knew what to say would forver remain a secret, but her words somewhat calmed the turmoil in Loki's head, making place for an intense desire to be in the engineer's vicinity. Frigga loosened the hug and saw how Loki's golden thread was wound tight. She smiled and said.

"Go, go to him. You will find him as longing as you are."

For some reason Loki doubted that, but he still went back to the living room, where Tony was impatiently waiting for him. They exchanged uncertain smiles and no words, but the relieved tension was almost tangible. Together again…

(Author's Notes)

So... A lot of fate-related things in this one... Tony and Loki being bound by fate, Hela wondering if people truly have free will... Heavy stuff xD

Anyway, Peter and Hela are now officially a couple (and trust me when I tell you he'll get himself into deep trouble with it), and Hela and Loki have a chat to discuss some important matters too (but mostly to hug and cry, they both need a lot of TLC...)!

The song Hela sings here is "Do you want the truth or something beautiful" by Paloma Faith, and if you want to know how I imagine that Hela sounds you should look it up! (It's really beautiful...)

And now... REVIEWS! Please review, I need it so much! Bring this story over fifty reviews and I will write a little titbit featuring crossdressing, reindeers and sick!Loki...