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Loki fell to the ground with an undignified "Oof." Clint smiled slightly, but kept a firm grip on the knife in case the god decided to attack. Glaring at the archer, Loki stood slowly, then folded his arms across his chest and stepped back to examine Clint.

"You're shorter than I remember."

Clint rolled his eyes. That was what the god was going to lead with? Really? Weren't princes supposed to have manners and other regal shit like that? He shrugged. He was an orphaned ex-carnie. Who was he to judge? "Fuck you."

Loki raised an eyebrow. "Is that what you desire, Clinton? If only I had known when you were my slave. We could have had quite a bit of fun together."

"Shut up, asshole." Clint took a few steps back from Loki, gripping the knife tightly. He was not going to fight the god, no matter how much he wanted to. That would be idiotic, Hawkeye.

"But I suppose that I enjoyed myself anyway. The scepter gives off most magnificent vibrations when you use it to kill," Loki continued, smiling predatorily.

Clint took a deep breath and backed away from Loki. The god was mocking Coulson's death. No, not death. Murder. Clint quickly surveyed Loki. The archer had certainly taken down larger men, and Loki was in a weakened state without his magic. But he's still a god.

"Really, my only regret is that we never got to carry through with our plans for the quim."

I will not fight a god, I will not fight a god, Clint chanted under his breath, trying to listen to his common sense for once. Subconsciously he took a quick inventory of what weapons were still available and dropped into a fighting stance.

"Do you remember what I was going to make you do to her? It would have been a work of art. Can you imagine how deliciously afraid she would have been when the only person she trusts in the world raped her? Maybe I should have left your other friend alive long enough to watch."

Clint snapped. Screw it. The bastard deserves this. He dropped into a crouch and launched himself at Loki.

Which, apparently, was the god's plan.

Loki easily sidestepped Clint and whirled around, planting a boot in the middle of the archer's back as the shorter man's momentum carried him into the wall. Clint struggled as he felt Loki crouch beside him, the boot replaced with a cold hand on the back of his neck, but couldn't throw him off.

"You think you can defeat me, Hawkeye? You think that a mere mortal can defeat the God of Mischief and Lies?" Clint squirmed under Loki's grip, the god's breath hot on his exposed neck. "Did you believe that you could atone for your sins by offering me a truce?"

Loki flipped Clint onto his back and snatched the knife away, lowering the blade the archer's abdomen. "You were a rebellious slave, though you were still very useful in the end. Therefore, I will allow you to choose your punishment. Where would you like me to put this knife, Clinton?"

Clint glared at Loki. "Up your ass."

"I think we both know that isn't one of your options," Loki tutted, looking mildly amused. "Maybe I shall remove that heart of yours. Your emotions have certainly caused you a lifetime of trouble – I saw enough of that when I shifted through your memories. They made you so very annoying to control."

That was far from the first time Clint had heard that. Coulson and Fury had him pegged as a troublemaker from day one. He ignored the painful memories of Loki poking around in his brain for his deepest secrets and replied defiantly. "They make me human. They let me love. Maybe if you had some yourself your family wouldn't hate you so much." It was a low blow, but in the face of a painful death, Clint couldn't bring himself to care.

Glowering, Loki lowered his head until he and Clint were almost nose-to-nose. "They are not my family, and I have done nothing wrong. My deeds are only the results of Odin's lies. Were you really foolish enough to believe the lies I told you to set me free?"

Clint grit his teeth and forced himself to meet Loki's eyes. He was not going to die letting Loki think that he had won. He steeled himself and glared back at Loki. As their eyes met, Clint felt an electric blue flame flickering at the back of his mind roar to life.

He and Loki were still connected, and the connection went both ways. "You're lying."

Loki abruptly pulled his face away, allowing Clint to scramble out of his grasp. "What are you talking about mortal?" The god demanded.

Clint smiled. He could feel Loki scrambling to figure out what had just happened, to close the openings in his psyche. The archer pushed against Loki, exploring the vulnerable gaps in the god's mind. "About your family. Everything you told me before was true."

Loki frowned, silent for once. Clint pushed the connection further, wondering exactly how much access he had to Loki's mind. The electric blue probed deep into the acid green recesses of the god's psyche. "In fact," the archer continued, "you picked me for your number two on purpose. When you said that I "had heart," you saw everything about my past and you felt sympathy. You thought we were similar. You…were trying to help me," Clint finished in surprise.

The god sneered at him, leaning forward to draw the knife across Clint's throat. "Very good, archer. However, whatever I may once have thought of you changed once I had to spend a considerable amount of time and energy controlling you. So, I return to my original question: where should I stab you first? Or maybe I should cut out your tongue so you can no longer voice these inane thoughts."

Clint's eyes turned steely. "Those thoughts are the truth, and we both know it."

Loki pressed the knife down hard enough to knick Clint's throat, releasing a trickle of blood. "What's the phrase you used earlier? 'Fuck you?'"

"Now boys, is that really a proper way to treat each other?"

Clint and Loki both looked up for just long enough to register the voice as M before Loki was ripped off Clint and thrown across the cave into the opposite wall. M picked up the knife and threw it at the god, impaling his shoulder. "I was contracted to bring both of you in alive. If you can't play nice, you're both going back into shackles. Do we have an understanding?"

"Hey, he's the one who tried to kill me," Clint said defensively, glaring at M.

"True," M said mildly, seeming amused. "It was very kind – though foolish – of Clinton to let you down, Loki. You should thank him."

Loki looked so angry that he was beginning to turn purple in the face, his glares flickering between the other two men. Clint snickered in his corner.

"Don't get cocky, Clinton. I need you alive, but tongues are optional," M scolded. "We're waiting, Loki."

Loki gazed up at M in disbelief and rolled his eyes. "Very well. Clinton, I'm sorry that I threatened your quim and mocked your puny friends. I am also so very sorry that I didn't kill you when I still had the chance."

M shrugged. Clint could have sworn that he was smiling behind his mask. "Close enough. I'm beginning to feel that way about the two of you."

Clint suppressed another chuckle. Only he could manage to piss off two supervillains as much as he pissed off Coulson and Fury. He was on a roll, so he might as well keep going. "Shouldn't you be busy killing kittens or something instead of teaching us manners?"

M turned his gaze back to Clint. "I actually rather like cats, Clinton. I do hate unicorns though, the filthy cretins," he deadpanned, heading back for the wall. "And I much prefer it when things remain civil. You boys have about thirty hours before I hand you off. Do try not to kill one another before then. I'll be watching."

Clint watched M leave and quickly analyzed the last five minutes. He had been right earlier – he was screwed. Even though he had escaped the possibility of Loki killing him, there were only thirty hours until M handed him off to God-knows-who for them to do God-knows-what to him. There was nothing left to do. Well, nothing to continue to piss off Loki.

The archer wiped the worry off his face and turned to give Loki a lazy smirk. "You're right. I really do have a lot of fun with you."

Loki glared at him from across the cave as he slowly removed the knife from his shoulder. Clint whistled. M had thrown it so hard that the blade had gone all the way through, the tip protruding from Loki's back. "Ouch."

"Yes, mortal. That was rather painful," Loki said absently, poking at his shoulder. Clint glared at the god. He was a little bit jealous of the other man's healing ability. Given how often Clint ended up in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s medical wing, that power would come in handy.

Still, after their conversation with M, Loki seemed to have calmed down. Maybe Clint would hold off on exploring their mental connection in favor of resting for a bit. Let him be if you want to keep your tongue. Listen to your common sense for once.

Clint shrugged and moved into a more comfortable position. That was a good idea. Besides, if he only had thirty hours to live, he wasn't going to waste time in another one-sided wrestling match with Loki. "Since we're not getting out of this and M has a thing for law and order, can we call a truce?"

"And all is forgiven?" Loki asked mockingly.

"Let me rephrase that. We'll call it an armistice instead - I still hate you, and you still seem pretty determined to kill me. But if it's possible, I'd like to spend the next thirty hours relaxing with my tongue attached."

Loki eyed Clint carefully, taking in the archer's relaxed posture. The god nodded, and tossed the blood-covered knife to the side. "Alright then. An armistice for thirty hours, or until that tongue of yours angers me."

Clint groaned. With Loki, that was probably the closest he was going to get to peace. He would have to pay close attention to everything that came out of his mouth. The archer settled his head onto his arms and kept his gaze trained on Loki. "So, what was it that M was saying about unicorns?"

Loki rolled his eyes. "They are a most disgusting species. I know not how midgardians have come to cultivate such an innocent view of them. I remember once, long ago, Thor and I were exploring another realm..."

Clint relaxed as Loki dove into the story. He didn't have any control over what happened after these thirty hours, but with a little luck he would face it with his tongue intact.

At this point, Clint and Loki have found some common ground - though neither of them likes it - and they seem to getting along. Up next: jailbreak.