Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. That's what they say, right?

Well, Virginia "Pepper" Potts had been scorned. And betrayed. And humiliated. And made to look like a damn fool. And now she was furious.

Seeing someone else, Tony had told her before the new semester started. That pissed her off, all right. Since when did him seeing someone else get in the way of 'them?'

Pepper and Tony had been off and on since they met at the welcoming party in her first year. He had been just as cute then as he was handsome now, with his wavy dark hair, long black lashes and those pretty brown eyes she immediately lost herself in. And that wasn't all she had lost to Tony Stark.

Tony was the first boy she had kissed with tongue. He was the first boy she let put a hand on her: down her shirt, up her skirt, on her ass. He was the first boy to give her a hickey; the first boy to go down on her and the first she had ever given a blow job. Tony Stark was her first everything.

And she wasn't as stupid as everyone thought she was. She was completely aware of what it meant when they were "off." They were still young—too young to get married, she knew—and Tony was a typical young man. He needed to sow his wild oats, needed to get out there and date other girls. So he could come back to her when he realized that what was out there wasn't nearly as good as what he had with her.

Except now, after a five-month break, Tony had decided he didn't want to come back to her. At all. Whoever this "someone else" was, Tony wanted to stay with her. Except, the rumor going around the dorms, was that Tony Stark wasn't seeing another girl. Pepper thought it was a joke. No way would a notorious ladies' man like Tony hook up with another guy.

But even Pepper couldn't deny what she was seeing with her own two eyes.

She had decided to come to the St. Patrick's Day party by herself, since apparently Tony wasn't going to take her. She had thought when he called and asked to have dinner with her earlier that week that he was going to ask her to go with him and to be his girlfriend again. She had gone all out. She'd gotten her hair done, her eyebrows waxed, her bikini area waxed, a mani-pedi, and she even bought a new Kelly green dress, for what she knew was one of Tony's favorite days of the year. It was the one day he was allowed to get totally plastered without anyone judging him.

However, as seemed to be the trend of her life these days, nothing had turned out like she had planned or hoped. They didn't even make it to dinner. Tony had a plate of mozzarella sticks, her favorite appetizer, waiting for her when she arrived, with a glass of red wine next to it. She expected the first thing out of his mouth to be, "Hey, Pep, wanna be my girlfriend again?" Or something along those lines. Tony could be really sweet and romantic when he wanted to, or when he put in any effort.

Instead, she got, "Remember when I said I was seeing someone? Well, it's pretty serious now, so we're not getting back together." She couldn't recall much of what happened next, but she was pretty sure Tony was wearing both the fried cheese sticks, the marinara sauce that came with it, and the red liquor when she stomped out of the restaurant. She hadn't spoken to him since. But she spotted him immediately when she walked into the auditorium.

In that moment, the air had just about been sucked out of her lungs.

He was sitting at a table, his usual behind the stage, with the normal group: Steve, Peggy, Clint, and Natasha. And at the next table were Thor, Jane, Darcy, and Maria, with another guy she assumed was Maria's new boyfriend. But tonight there was a new addition. And he was sitting next to Tony. Very close next to Tony.

Pepper watched Loki and Tony for awhile, as she hid behind the drinks and snacks table. She watched Tony casually rest his arm on the back of Loki's chair. She watched the way he twirled the tail Loki had tied his hair back into between his fingers. She watched—her eyes wide with horror—as he leaned over and whispered something into Loki's ear, making the paler man chuckle and smile at Tony. Seductively. They were practically eye-fucking each other. In view of everyone.

She wasn't sure how long she had been staring when she realized Steve had escorted Peggy to the dance floor. Clint and Natasha rose as well, but moved to chat with Thor and Jane and Maria and her date, leaving Tony and Loki alone. Her blue eyes scanned the table in front of her for something, anything, she could use. Her eyes landed on the different pitchers at the end with different colored punches.

Pepper Potts had never been the kind of girl to give in to hysterics. But, then again, there were a lot of things Pepper Potts had never been before she met Anthony Edward Stark. She gripped a pitcher full of green liquid in a vice grip and stalked her way to their table.

Natasha spotted her first.

She frowned, wondering why the skinny redhead looked so angry. When Natasha realized what was happening, her hand—resting on Clint's shoulder as he sat—tensed and squeezed into his shirt.

"Ow, Tasha…"

"Oh, my god—LOKI!" She took off in a sprint and Clint reached for her.

"Tasha—" Clint caught sight of Pepper. "Oh shit. No, no, no! Tasha!"

The commotion had Thor and Jane turning their heads. Thor shot to his feet, but a soft delicate hand on his arm stopped him. "Thor." He glanced down at Jane. "Remember what Loki said…" Thor looked his brother's way, nodded, and watched helplessly, with his hands clenched into tight fists.

"This band blows."

Loki chuckled. "It's a cover band. A college one, at that. What do you expect?"

Tony scratched his fingers against the nape of Loki's neck and ran his eyes up and down the length of the taller man's body. He wrapped the silky black tail of Loki's hair around his hand again. "Have I told you green looks good on you yet?"

Loki's eyes, greener tonight, highlighted by the deep green of his v-necked sweater, slid over to Tony briefly. He couldn't stare too long at his boyfriend in public. It made his blood boil. And it was awkward having an erection in public. All the time. He wondered how Tony did it. "It is my color."

"You know what else looks good on you?" Tony tugged on the end of Loki's hair then dropped his hand back onto the chair. But unable to keep his hands off of Loki for very long, he rubbed his thumb in a circular motion against Loki's back.

Loki knew what was coming. His eyes rolled up but he still smiled. "Anthony."

"Exactly." Tony laughed and glanced at the dance floor. He shook his head at Steve attempting to dance with Peggy to the punk music of the Flogging Molly cover band. "So how long until we can leave?"

"Leave?" Loki sat forward and reached for his cup of punch, sipped and placed it back on the table before sitting back. "You were the one who wanted to come here in the first place. We've barely been here an hour."

"Yeah. And after five minutes I knew it was gonna suck. Besides," his fingers found their way back into Loki's hair, "there are other, better things we could be doing."

Loki grinned and shivered at Tony's touch. "Really? Such as…?"

Tony leaned close to whisper into Loki's ear, making the paler man blush with his words. Just as he leaned back, they both looked up as Natasha shouted Loki's name and then…

"Bastard!"

Pepper shouted as she dumped the pitcher of green punch over Loki's head. And then she was violently shoved aside and stumbled on her black heels.

"You bitch!" Natasha yelled even as Clint's arms came around her and held her back from attacking again. She looked at Loki when she heard his appalled gasp. Tony shouted out a profanity and jumped up, looking around helplessly for the responsible party. Pepper dropped the empty pitcher with a clatter. It rolled and caught his attention. And everyone else's.

"This has nothing to do with you, Natasha," Pepper said in a shaky voice.

"The hell it doesn't, you crazy cunt!"

"Tasha." Clint scolded and grabbed Natasha by the hips, pulled her back when she lunged for Pepper again.

"What the fuck is wrong with you, Pepper?" Tony demanded. He shook the excess punch from his left arm, his eyes nearly black with anger. He was a little more upset that his green Velvet Underground t-shirt was wet and sticky.

"Me? What about you?"

They both jolted when the chair Loki was sitting in suddenly slid across the floor between them, propelled by the force of his kick. He stood and rounded on Pepper, trying to yank back on his arm when Tony grabbed it to hold him back.

"Are you mad, woman?" Loki's voice was a snarl, but carried far enough to have Steve and Peggy running back over. Loki stalked toward her, stopping only when Tony's grip tightened.

"Don't you talk to me, you…you freak." Pepper cowered back when Loki, green liquid dripping from his chin and ears, inched forward, halted once again by Tony, who moved his body in front of him.

"Pepper, you can't just go around throwing punch on people! What's the matter with you?"

"What's the matter with you?" She countered. "You selfish son of a bitch! How could you leave me for this…" her hands fluttered helplessly toward Loki. "This weirdo?!"

"You are so dead, Potts!"

"Barton."

"I'm on it," Clint responded to Loki. He wrapped his arm around Natasha's waist this time, lifting her off the floor and dragging her away as she kicked out her feet and shoved at his muscled arms that didn't budge one inch, even with her nails digging into his skin.

"Clint, let me go! Put me down!"

He had to push at her shoulders to keep her from launching herself at Pepper, who he was sure would crumble under Natasha's glare, not to mention her upper and lower body strength. His girl really made him proud sometimes. But at the moment he needed her to calm down. "Not now, Tasha."

"He's my best friend, Clint," she shouted into his face.

"I know!" He shouted back. He shook his head at himself and lowered his voice. "But this is between him and Tony. And Pepper. You have to let them figure this out on their own. I know you want to kick her ass. And as soon as Loki gives you the go ahead, I won't stand in your way. But right now, I need you to calm the fuck down and put a fucking lid on it." Clint had placed his hands on either side of her head to hold her in place. She reluctantly agreed and he moved behind her, his arms firmly around her waist.

Meanwhile, Loki stepped around Tony to glower at Pepper. "Have you completely lost your mind?"

Pepper avoided looking at Loki and set her eyes on Tony. "Tell him not to talk to me," she muttered through her teeth. Tony scoffed and crossed his arms over his chest.

Loki's arms flew out as he glared at Pepper. "I am standing within hearing distance of you, you lunatic!"

She winced at his yelling. "Tony!"

"All right! Loki. Just let me…" Tony took Loki by the shoulders and pushed him back a few steps before facing Pepper again. "Pep. Seriously, what are you doing?"

Pepper was breathing heavily now, her eyes darting around manically, her fingers toying with the skirt of her dress. "What are you doing here with him, Tony?"

Loki had removed his green sweater, tossing it over another chair, and was standing now in a green-stained white undershirt. He had pulled the tie from his hair, shaking it out, grimacing at the stickiness on his fingers. At Pepper's question he froze, his eyes moving to the back of Tony's head. "I thought you said you spoke to her."

Tony glanced toward Loki, gestured with his hands as if to say I got this. "Pepper. We talked about this. Remember?" He jumped back when Pepper whirled on him, a skinny finger pointed in his direction, her face flushed red with who knew what emotion.

"You're a fucking liar, Tony Stark!" Her eyes were wide and swimming with tears. "How could you spend two years with me then go off with…" her eyes floated toward Loki briefly, flinging a hand in his direction, "that?"

Behind Tony, Loki raised a black eyebrow, not terribly insulted, and more concerned about the fact that she seemed surprised that he and Tony were a couple. "This does not look like a woman in the know, Anthony."

"Babe!" Tony spun around and gave Loki a meaningful glare.

"Babe?" Pepper asked quietly, drawing Tony's attention back to her. A tear rolled down her cheek and her lips curled in. "Babe? And you let him call you Anthony?" Tony managed a semi-guilty face. "So it's…it's true then? You're with him now? This is your serious relationship?"

"Pepper, I'm sorry, but I…" Tony turned to Loki when he said his name, calmly, quietly.

Loki's chin had lowered toward his chest, his eyes burning emerald into Tony's. "You said…you told me that you spoke to her."

Tony blinked and jerked a shoulder. "I did talk to her."

Loki's head angled to glance at Pepper then returned to Tony. "Did you or did you not tell her about you and me?" Tony glanced around at the small crowd of their friends that had gathered to watch. "Anthony!"

"Okay!" He clenched his teeth, curled his hands into fists before scrubbing one over his face and through his hair. Drops of punch flew off the tips of his hair as he did. "Aargh. Okay, I might have…fuck. I might have left out your name…and the fact that you're…a male." His head lowered gradually, shamefully, as he spoke. "But, Loki…" he rushed forward, pausing when Loki raised a hand.

"So you lied to me?"

Tony spotted Thor moving up behind Loki. He didn't miss the scowl on his face. Preferring not to think about what Thor could do to him, he returned his attention to Loki. "You asked me how it went. I told you it went fine. You didn't ask for details."

Loki huffed out a short, sarcastic laugh. "A technicality, Anthony."

"Brother." Thor held out a small towel one of the members of the band had given him to Loki. After Loki took it, pressing it to his face, Thor removed the green flannel shirt he wore and offered it to him.

"Loki…" Tony began.

"I'm leaving," Loki wrapped the towel around his neck and tugged on Thor's shirt before reaching for his sweater.

"Don't go, Loki." Tony reached for him. "Just let me talk to her and—"

"You were supposed to have done that already, Anthony." Loki snatched his wrist from Tony's grasp. "And it wouldn't have mattered that you hadn't. Except that you lied to me. Don't." His wrist twitched when Tony tried to grab for it again and he inadvertently slapped Tony's hand away. He felt bad for the loud smack it made and the pained hiss that passed through Tony's teeth, but he refused to apologize and moved around him.

"It's not like you haven't told a white lie, too, Loki."

"Tell you what then, Anthony." Loki stopped and looked over his shoulder at Tony. "The next time one of my white lies gets you an impromptu sticky green shower, you have my permission to storm out."

"Loki." Tony started after him as he did storm out, surprised when Thor pressed a hand to his chest, stopping him. "Thor, I need to go after him."

"Give him the night, Stark." Thor's eyes followed Loki as he headed for the exit with Jane beside him, her arm around his waist in a comforting move. He looked back at Tony, a frown on his face that Tony couldn't decipher. Was he angry with him? Or sad for Loki? "Fix this. Soon."

Tony remained standing where he was as all of his friends left—without saying a word to him. None of them bothered to look in his direction. Except Natasha who glared as she stomped out with Clint on her heels. He felt rather than saw Pepper approach him from behind.

"Tony?"

"What?"

She jumped when he pivoted on his heel. Then smiled. "Are you okay?"

Tony's eyes narrowed and he turned his head, as if to hear her better. "I'm sorry? What was that?"

Pepper's smile faltered. "I said, are you—?"

"Oh, no, I heard you. I just can't believe you're actually asking me that. My night is fucked now because of you."

Her jaw dropped. "Because of me?"

"I'm sorry, that wasn't you who just dumped a pitcher of green shit all over my boyfriend? Yeah! My boyfriend, Pep! You heard me!" Her mouth snapped shut. "I have a boyfriend now, okay? I'm dating Loki. I'm not dating you. We never even dated! We didn't go out on dates, Pepper. We didn't have conversations about our future or school or our families. All we ever did was have sex!"

Pepper had crossed her arms during Tony's rant. "So, what're you telling me, Tony? Are you telling me that you and Loki go out on dates? You and Loki talk about your future, school and family? You and Loki have—" She realized with a jolt what her next question was gonna be and cut off her own words. "So, what's actually happening here? Suddenly you know how to be faithful? Suddenly the great Tony Stark is going to be the committed boyfriend?"

"Yeah, maybe I am! You got a problem with that?"

"Why couldn't you do it with me?" She uncrossed her arms, shoving at his chest. He didn't move very far. "Why couldn't you be my committed faithful boyfriend?" She placed a hand over her chest.

Tony opened his mouth but didn't speak. He moved forward to take Pepper by the arms and sighed. "Because…I wasn't in love with you, Pepper. I'm sorry," he said with a shrug of his shoulders.

Pepper's eyes filled again, but her mouth formed a tight pout. "Does that mean you're in love with him? Is that what you're—that is what you're saying right? You're telling me—you are standing here, in front of me, right now, and you're telling me…that you are…" her teeth clenched, "in love with Loki Odinson. Is that right?"

Tony dropped his hands to his sides. His mouth worked, trying to say the word, any word, something. He squeezed his eyes shut for a second then, looking Pepper in the eye, he croaked out a quiet "Yes."

He spat out another profanity, stomped his foot and groaned when Pepper's tiny fist connected with his face. He pressed a hand to his cheek, tested his jaw, and Pepper's heels clicked on the hardwood floor as she ran out of the building. He straightened and gave a little wave to the people staring at him, trying his best to laugh off the whole situation. He grabbed his coat, walked out, and headed for the nearest bar.

"Loki, I swear to god I'm gonna break every single one of your pencils. Or fingers, whichever is easiest."

He lifted his eyes from the notepad in front of him and stared at Natasha. She was in his kitchen with a spatula in her hand, glaring at him. He was at the dining table, working on a short story narrative. "What did my pencils or my fingers ever do to you?"

"Nothing. But you've been sitting there banging out a beat on the table for the last twenty-seven minutes." Her eyes flicked to the clock on the wall above his head. "Twenty…..eight," she counted after ten seconds passed.

Loki dropped the pencil that was between his fingers and folded his hands neatly in his lap. "Sorry."

Natasha flipped the patties sizzling on the stove. And sighed irritably. She was not a fan of distracted Tony-less Loki. "Why don't you just go find him and make up with him already? It's been two days of you moping."

"No," he huffed. His bottom lip protruded ever so slightly past his top lip. "He has not suffered enough yet. And I am not moping. Do you know I am still washing punch out of my hair?"

"Dear god, what is the world coming to?" Natasha replied dryly, closely examining a recently developed hangnail. When she finally glanced up at Loki, and caught the playful glare he had been sending her way, she actually grinned at him.

"Where is the sympathy from my best friend?"

Natasha turned sharply to her right, then her left; she looked up, then down, and under the hot pan on the stove. "I can't find it either!"

Loki stared unmoving, and not amused, for a moment. "Your sarcasm skills have greatly improved since you and Clint have been together. Were you aware of this?"

Natasha gave an exaggerated nod. "I was, actually. Aren't you proud? Listen, Pouty McPouterson," she said before Loki had a chance to respond. She moved aside the frying pan of cooked patties and replaced it with a saucepan of water, set to boil, for the gravy. "If you're gonna keep up with this lip thing," she motioned toward her own lips, "and the tension-filled drum solo, go do it in your bedroom. I'm sick of looking at and listening to it."

Loki pouted even more, closed his notebook, and got to his feet. "You are a cruel person sometimes, Natasha Romanov."

"I'm Russian. I tend not to weep over sentimental things."

"You're only half Russian. And I shall remember this the next time you and Clint are at odds. You will receive no sympathy from me." With his nose in the air, Loki turned away from Natasha's laughing expression and escaped to his bedroom.

He set his notebook down on his desk chair and stretched out on the bed. It had been two days, like Natasha said, since he had seen or spoken to Tony. He wasn't purposely avoiding Tony; Tony had not been around for him to ignore. But Loki missed him. The truth was he would have forgiven him in a heartbeat—already had, really—if Tony would just come back from wherever he was. Even Thor had no idea where he had run off to.

Speak of the devil, Loki thought, curling onto his side when his phone lit up with Thor's name and picture. Because he was not in the mood to talk to anyone, except Tony, Loki silenced it and let it ring.

It was still ringing when Thor burst into his bedroom. Loki lifted his head from his pillow, groaned, and dropped it back down again. "Thor, I realize we are speaking again, but that does not give you permission to just barge into my room whenever you wish."

"Loki, I need you to come see to Tony," Thor said through heavy pants.

Loki pushed up to a sitting position. "What do you mean see to Tony?" He spotted Clint and Natasha behind Thor, lurking outside his bedroom eavesdropping. Thor's worried expression finally caught his eye. "What is it, Thor?"

"I don't know how to explain…"

Loki sighed and rose again, but made no move to leave. "Well, try. Because if this another of Tony's tricks—"

"It is no trick, brother!" The boom of Thor's voice made everything go still and quiet, except for the sound of boiling water. Loki's heart stopped then picked up again and beat a fast tattoo, like the one he played earlier with his pencil. "I fear he may hurt himself." Thor held out his arm. "Please, go to him. He is across the hall."

Something like lead settled in Loki's belly and he darted out of the room. He could hear it before he even crossed the hall. Banging, clanging, profanity-laced shouts—was that breaking glass? Loki heard Clint and Thor both rush to stop Natasha from following him into Thor and Tony's dorm.

He stepped into a war zone. The dorm had been ripped apart. Bookshelves had been emptied and books dumped on the floor, papers were scattered everywhere; even the sofa cushions had been torn apart, their cottony filling floating across the floorboards and in the air. The dining table and chairs had been tossed across the room, left upturned and on their sides. Loki heard Tony's angry muttering and followed it toward the genius' bedroom. His heart broke at what he found when he opened the door.

Tony was sitting Indian-style in the middle of the mess that used to be his bedroom. His hair was mussed and sticking up in odd places, he mumbled to himself, and routinely would pick up a stack of papers and angrily toss them in the air. A near-empty extra large bottle of Jack Daniels was settled between his legs. Loki spotted the source of the broken glass—a cracked framed picture of Maria Stark and a young Tony, probably around age five or six.

Oh, Anthony…

Loki hadn't realized he had spoken aloud until Tony's head snapped up.

"Wha' you doin' here?" he slurred. Loki blinked back hot tears as Tony struggled to get to his feet. "Though' you hated me."

Loki's jaw clenched. Why did Tony immediately go to hate when he thought Loki was angry with him? Slowly, he shook his head. "No, I didn't. I don't. What is this, Anthony?"

Tony looked from side to side and the movement must have made him dizzy. He clamped a hand over his eyes and groaned. "Shit…" He blinked away the nausea and smiled crookedly at Loki. "It's a party, baby. Want some?" He held out the bottle to Loki. Loki's eyes filled and he shook his head. "Suit yourself. Hey! Gimme that!"

"No." Loki had snatched the bottle from Tony's hand, held it behind his back. "What are you doing?"

"I'm tryin' to have a good time. So gimme my bottle." He reached for it, but Loki held it just outside his grasp. "Sweetie, baby, honey, cookie, don't tease me. Please…?" Tony smiled but in this state it looked like a leer and Loki hated himself for cringing away.

"No, I will not. What happened to you, Anthony? Where have you been the last two days?" Loki knew that trying to have a serious conversation with Tony right now was futile, but he didn't know what else to do. Whatever keeps the focus off the alcohol, he thought.

That seemed to sink in. Tony's lips pressed together. He swayed then turned to wander around his destroyed bedroom. "I went home." Books, notepads, papers, and other school items littered his bed. And in one fell swoop he knocked most of it to the floor making Loki jump when a heavy physics book thumped onto the floor. Tony collapsed to the bed and when he looked up at Loki, tears had streamed down the shorter man's face. "Howie sent for me."

Loki frowned, tried to swallow back the emotion that clogged his throat. "Why?"

"Pepper called him." A bitter laugh rumbled in Tony's throat when Loki choked out a sob. "Yup. Vindictive little slut told him about us. He was as thrilled as Odin'll probably be."

Loki shoved back his hair and swiped a hand over his face before setting the bottle of whiskey he still held on Tony's dresser. "All right, enough of this. Come, Anthony. Let's get you cleaned up." Loki went to him, his arms outstretched, but Tony wrenched himself out of Loki's reach, twisting and turning this way and that. "Anthony, please."

"No! I don't want to."

"I know you don't, but you have to. Anthony, no—" Loki's face was grabbed and yanked down and a whiskey-soaked tongue was forcing its way into his mouth, a warm hand found its way between his legs. "Anthony, stop!" Loki shoved Tony and he fell back to his bed giggling uncontrollably.

"Wow, babe! I think that's the first time you've said no!" He clutched at his stomach as he continued to laugh. "You saucy little minx, you! Come on. Come to daddy, baby." Tony held out his arms toward Loki. "Come and show me why they call you Silvertongue."

Loki had had enough. Straightening himself, he fixed his shirt that had been clawed at in Tony's mauling. "I am not doing this with you."

"Damn shame, too. Drunken sex is awesome!" He sang the last word and giggled again as he tried to sit up, but ended up falling on his side.

"No!" Loki's arm snaked out and gripped Tony's chin, pulling him to the sitting position he kept attempting. Tony's eyes went wide and Loki realized his grip was probably too tight, but his anger was starting to take over. Tony's eyelids started to droop and Loki gave him one hard shake. "Look at me."

Tony's brown eyes tried to focus. "Which one? There are two of you."

"Stop this!" Loki fought the tears that filled his eyes when Tony whimpered softly at his shout. "I am not doing this with you anymore. I don't know what Howard said to make you react like this, but I won't stand for it." His fingers loosened; he ran his knuckles down one cheek, caressed the other. "I'm sorry, but I have already watched one friend do this to himself, Anthony. I refuse to stand here and helplessly watch the man I love drink himself into oblivion."

Tony watched the shadow of Loki's form fade from his view before his eyes rolled back and he gave in to the darkness.