"Test subject?" Loki tilted his head, interest peaked.
"I'll be right out with my stuff." Tony left the couch and hurried to his room, sorting through the piles of stuff to gather his work. Arms full, he brought the things out and laid them on the glass table by Loki's foot. There was a notebook with unreadable scribbling, a few odd tools, and then a pile of tangled wires attached to what looked like a glove. Tony sorted the objects, flipping through a few of his notes. He tuned out a bit when he worked so it was a few minutes of checking before he remembered to let Loki in. "Here, hold out your hand." He ordered, readjusting a few wires attached to the glove.
Loki hesitantly held out his hand, curious and slightly worried. He trusted Tony but sometimes, and he'd heard these stories, his math could be off or one of those wires could be live, ending in pain. He took a deep breath and steadily held out his hand.
Tony saw the cautious look in Loki's eyes and smirked devilishly. "Come on, a little trust wouldn't hurt." He chuckled as he fit the glove onto Loki's hand. It wasn't exactly sleek, and it was as thick as a heavy work glove. Looking once from the glove to his notes, Tony pressed a sequence of numbers into the small control box attached to the wires. It hummed quietly for a moment, and the black surface of the glove remained the same. Then, suddenly, electricity jolted alive and the glove shimmered and began to fade- showing only the surface of the table beneath.
Loki gasped as he watched his hand disappear. He realized that this had to be an adaption of the invisible technology Tony had been working on.
Tony smiled, brows still furrowed slightly.
Loki turned his hand, palm facing up and carefully reached out with his other hand, touching the cool surface of the now-transparent glove, just making sure Tony hadn't actually made his hand disappear. He finally looked up, assured that he still had two hands, unlike Odin's brother Tyr, and saw Tony's expression. "Is everything alright?" he asked, reaching over to touch Tony's hand.
Tony nodded, scribbling violently into his notes. "That wasn't supposed to work. It was supposed to just kind of hum and shimmer, not actually make your hand invisible. I mean there isn't even a little shimmer around it. It worked better than I expected. Can you move your hand? Slowly, though. I'd feel bad if I electrocuted you."
Loki smiled and obediently closed and opened his fist, testing that his hand still worked. He released a tiny laugh and had a small lapse in maturity. "That is good is it not? It's completely making my hand invisible I mean. And my hand seems to be in working order."
Tony finally looked up, a hesitant smile on his face. "Yeah this definitely is good. Is it too stiff to close your fingers?" He asked reaching out gesture at where Loki's hand was.
"No, the glove is very flexible." Loki supplied, still staring at the oddly empty space at the end of his wrist.
"Okay now, fun's over ... that thing could start heating up ..." Tony smirked and punched another sequence into the control box. The hum slowed and then the glove blinked in and out of sight. Finally it was fully visible again. He slipped the glove off of Loki and checked it over to make sure nothing had started smoking.
Loki was still smiling. "That was fun. What are you using to power it?"
Tony looked up at him sheepishly. "Three double A batteries."
Loki snorted "Nice." Then he reached out to tap Tony's chest. "Why not your reactor?"
Tony shrugged. "I don't quite know everything about the reactor yet. I'd rather not hook this thing up to the glove and have it drain the reactor. I've done that before, and I couldn't find my replacement. It wasn't pretty."
"How did you get that, again?" Loki asked. Tony never liked telling that story and Loki had never before really gotten an answer. Perhaps that was subject to change.
Tony sighed and looked down at the glowing circle that shown slightly through his shirt. "I was about ten. It was after my Mom had died. Howard was drunk, and he was in a complete rage. I had just been called to the principal's office for ... what was it ... Oh, yeah. I got into a shouting match with a senior over him not being able to get an equation right. So Howard had picked me up and we were speeding through the road-red lights and all. I knew I was going to get it back home. All of a sudden, this sixteen wheeler filled with kerosene crashed into us as Howard ran through another red light. Smash, boom, fiery explosion and shrapnel everywhere."
"I had been thrown out of the car when the kerosene lit up. A bunch of shrapnel hit me, embedding itself in my chest. We were rushed to the hospital. Howard was pretty much unscathed and I was dying. They couldn't get all the shrapnel out ... so Howard designed this. It's a heavy duty magnet that keeps that shrapnel from making its way to my heart. I've upgraded it a bit." Tony told the story, a distant look in his eyes. At first he'd been disgusted by the whirring machinery in his chest, but now he'd come to accept and love the little piece of technology that was now part of him.
"I am so sorry." Loki finally said. He had not known Tony that far back. With the Borson's, Loki had moved here in his seventh year and befriended Tony in Year Eight.
Tony shrugged, "I got over it a while ago. It's actually a really good light to read by at night." He smiled. "I just hope that it doesn't freak you out too much. I've literally had girls run when they saw it. They must've thought I was the Terminator or something."
Loki smiled. "No, I am not disgusted or freaked out. I grew up reading my father's collection of Scandinavian mythology. Among other things, my namesake had a daughter who was half dead."
"Yeah, the Loki of the myths certainly had some interesting children ... but his story's rather tragic when you read all of it. He wasn't always the monster others thought him to be." Tony looked at him now, across the table, watching him carefully. By now, it had already started to get dark.
Loki nodded. "I know." He wanted to move on. So often he was reminded of himself when he read of the mythological Loki, though he liked not to think of himself in comparison to such a tragic character.
"You work on that. Unless you have something else for me to test, I can do our work."
Tony laughed. "Unless you want to be the test subject for my new paralysis spray, I think we're good." He stood up and stretched. "What did Sigyn want?" He yawned, grimacing at the strange crackling noises his back made when he stretched.
Loki cocked an eyebrow before shaking his head. "That I do not know. She came over, informed me that kissing a man isn't going to make me popular, and tried to sit in my lap- all the while, cheerfully updating her Twitter feed. Can you guess her intentions?" He began to unpack their bags.
Tony shrugged. "Not really. Maybe she felt bad about cheating on you, and thought that you were trying to get back at her by kissing me. You do know that she was cheating on you with Sif, right? She told everyone that it was Steve Rogers, but I saw something quite different at the Winter Dance."
"Oh?" Loki asked, pretending he didn't care all that much.
Tony stopped and looked to Loki. He thought he knew... Obviously not.
"Yeah, it's like Clue. Sigyn and Sif. In the library. With a..." He trailed off. He had actually just fled the scene when he had walked into the library and heard the noises emanating from behind a bookshelf. What had betrayed them was when they had emerged from the library a few minutes later, hair ruffled and doing their best not to look abnormal.
"Well! I should have known. Poor Thor. I should tell him. No... He'll be turned on, no doubt, by the fact that his girlfriend is kissing girls." Loki laughed, reaching for his phone, which he had yet to replace. That would mean telling his parents, and he wasn't quite ready to talk to them. Certainly not over something so petty.
Getting out his math homework, Tony settled himself on the couch and turned on the TV. He had not forgotten about Loki's phone, and had just ordered a new one. When it arrived, he would be sure to upgrade it AND put it in a bulletproof case.
"Oh. What did you have in mind to watch?" Loki said, pulling his Trig. Homework up with him.
Tony tossed the remote to Loki. "Doesn't matter. It's up to you." He buried himself in the math, losing himself comfortably in the numbers whirling around in his head. Work had always been there for him, during his best and worst moments. When he was lost in work, he could ignore the screaming and pounding at the door. He could ignore the bruises and the stress.
Loki turned on "Justice League" and turned to his work. His work was his only escape from the constant pressure of, "You should have gone into sports like Thor! What are you going to be, Loki?" He hunched his shoulders and tried to distract himself with work. Halfway through his Chemistry work he threw his things aside, definitively bored and frustrated by the homework. "I refuse to work any longer without some form of food."
Looking up from his work, Tony shrugged. "There are some leftovers, we could order pizza, or we could go to that bakery. They have soup and cafe stuff there." It really did not matter to Tony, at this point. He was just weary and glad that he didn't have to go to school. It had been eating away at him, and if he had to deal with one more swooning girl, or one more ignorant teacher, he would lose it.
Loki smiled, his stomach making the decision for him, he placed his feet over Tony's work. "Tonight we order in a pizza and watch a movie. Now put your work away. I am tired of all this work. I wonder, do you think we could graduate early?"
"Pizza would be fabulous. And a few years ago, when I was like, 15, both MIT and Harvard asked if I wanted to attend. Scholarships paid the tuition in full, so I could have gone. I actually don't know why I stayed here." He drifted off, thinking about what the benefits of living in these small suburbs were.
"I have no doubt that they would have accepted you in a heartbeat." He gestured for Tony to join him on the couch. "Now which movie shall we watch?"
"I don't know. It's up to you. I'll go order pizza and you can choose something. Surprise me." Tony said, smiling. He hopped up and went into his room, ordering a small pizza with mixed toppings from his Iphone. Tony emerged a few minutes later and sat next to Loki on the couch, pulling his legs up to his chest and leaning slightly into the taller boy's slim frame.
Loki held the DVD case as Tony returned. "Any objections to Sweeny Todd?" He asked,
Tony chuckled, resting his head on Loki's shoulder. "None whatsoever. You know, I once offered to direct Sweeney Todd as the school musical. But apparently, cannibalism is slightly frowned upon in this community. So, they just did Grease or something like that."
Loki snorted in laughter and grabbed the remote. "I did in middle school, before we moved here. One year we actually performed A Nightmare Before Christmas. I do adore Tim Burton's films."
Tony smiled, relaxing considerably from the crazy day they had endured. "I did not know that." He said earnestly. He knew quite a lot about Loki, but he seemed to have just never asked the small details. Tony knew that Loki's favorite color was green, of course, and he knew what foods the boy like... But there were some things that had just never been said during those hours of soul-sharing discussions they had partaken in throughout the years.
"Yes, and I once tricked Thor into playing a nun for a school production of A Sound of Music in his fifth grade year. I do believe he thought impure things upon my person at least twice a show. I was mysteriously absent from that production, for safety reasons." Loki chuckled at the memory.
Tony laughed, looking up at Loki. "And you didn't invite me..." Tony frowned playfully, and nearly jumped out of his skin when the doorbell rang for the pizza.
Loki half-jumped when the bell rang out. He paused the DVD, which was only in the trailers, and Tony rose. "Do you think perhaps we could have some beers, or did you get a two liter bottle of soda?" Loki asked.
Tony chuckled softly. "Soda. I am so not getting hung over twice in the same week with you." Tony went, retrieved the pizza and soda, and set it down on the cluttered table. Grabbing a piece, he sat back down again.
"True. Oh, Gods, Mother would kill me with all these calories and no exercise." Loki grabbed a piece and a cup as he leaned back. He patted his flat stomach. "See? I'm getting fat." He laughed at the irony.
Tony shook his head after taking a bite. "Hey, carrying around all ten pounds of you is really good exercise, Shakespeare." Tony paused and mentally saved the moment. This was perfect. Here he was, not having to go to school, enjoying himself and relaxing. With Loki. It was simple and peaceful; a brilliant respite to his typically hectic life.
Loki smiled, tossing his hair aside. He was going to savor the moment. Of course, he planned to have many more just like it. "Would you start the movie please?"
"Sure." Tony replied, grabbing the remote as he cuddled into Loki's side. One strange thing he had noticed about his friend was that he was always very cool; temperature wise, that is. Before, Tony had only ever touched his hand or given a fleeting hug. Now that they were more physically comfortable, he had noticed how that pale skin was always rather cool.
Loki smiled and bent his head to kiss the top of Tony's head. He settled back, happily eating away through the bloodiest scenes of the movies. He was sure Tony turned green at least once, but that was settled by a huge gulp of soda. "We can switch the movie, if you want." Loki whispered.
"Haha. No." Tony said sarcastically. The whole - eating pizza while watching a movie about people-pies- was slightly off putting, but his pride simply would not allow him to turn away from the morbid musical. He had never been overly fond of physical violence; he simply preferred to outsmart his opponents without any blood. Not that Tony would ever admit it... He was more of an engineering and math oriented person as opposed to a more biologically inclined one.
Loki leaned against Tony, lost in memory. For he had been raised around Thor and Odin, who preferred movies like Silence of the The Lambs over Pirates of the Caribbean, any night of the week. He had grown used to the horribly realistic looking gore displayed before him.
Tony laughed, poking his friend in the side. "All your fault..." He merely shook his head for a moment, amused by Loki's interesting choice in films. He most definitely would be picking from now on.
When the movie finally came to an end Loki put on a smile, "I apologize. You had the remote. You could have stopped the movie at any time. Now that that is over, do you have anything you want to test on me?"
"I wouldn't have stopped it, because I know that Alan Rickman impressions will ensue." Tony smirked at the memories of Loki's various impressions throughout the years; the funniest of which being those of Alan Rickman. "And no, I don't have anything safe to test. You have done more for my invisibility tech than I could have asked for. Thanks."
Loki smiled and swung his legs off the couch, "In guessing that an impersonation was soon to follow you were correct." Loki then performed a rendition of one of his favorite actors. It went well with his accent. When he was finished, he laughed with Tony before handing the remote to his friend. "You choose the movie now, if you so wish."
"Yeah, because you know how much I love Jersey Shore." Tony said, voice dripping with playful sarcasm. "I would actually rather just watch Hamlet or something... Much better written." It was nice being able to be himself, instead of having to put on his many facades. With Loki, he could laugh and speak his mind, and he could be as sarcastic and cynical as he wanted to be; and expect no less from his companion."
Loki beamed, "You know that I love Hamlet." He rose to his feet, reaching for his crutches. "I will be right back.". Once balanced he began to thump towards the kitchen. From there he took a small flask and filled it with a drink of his choosing. Sliding the bottle into his pocket he turned to make his way back to Tony.
Upon returning he sank onto the couch and pulled their cups of soda to him. He wished Tony would look away for a few minutes as he took his time re-filling their drinks. Just then Tony's phone began to ring. Once Tony had left to answer it did Loki quickly mix in some of the vodka he had pilfered. Almost absent mindedly he stirred their drinks with a finger as he waited for Tony to return.
Tony looked over to Loki rather wearily, looking like he was slightly less than enthusiastic about who the caller was. Tony had just had a rather one sided conversation with Pepper, who had been shouting and crying and making him feel particularly guilty.
"Pepper." Tony said, hoping that Loki understood the weight behind the name. Pepper had been his longest and strongest steady relationship, and the breakup had been messy. And now that she was yelling at him about being with another guy... He sat down and ran a hand through his wild hair. "I don't know if I can do another movie, Loks."
Loki could see that something terrible had happened over the phone and swallowed guiltily. Perhaps he should confess to his deed. He lifted the remote and switched off the TV. "I am so sorry." He rose again, taking up his crutches. "On second thought, I think I am being overcome with a terrible case of indigestion, perhaps. I will retire for the night." He balanced himself and leaned forward to kiss Tony. He did not know what Pepper had said but it seemed to have affected Tony greatly and now was not the time for games.
Tony kissed Loki back and pleaded, "Don't go. I got her off my tail for now, at least. And besides; what I usually do best is to sulk about it and then ignore it. Not really the best option with you around. Tony looked up at Loki and took a sip of his drink, nearly doing a theatrical spitting of the soda. He knew the difference between soda and alcohol, and this was definitely not one of those alone. Swallowing, Tony felt the burn in his throat and smirked devilishly.
"What interesting Coke this is." Tony observed smoothly.
Loki smirked as he fetched his own and took a small sip, careful to play along. "I don't know what you're talking about. It tastes fine to me. Are you alright?"
Taking a few gulps to finish off the drink, Tony set the cup down. "Perfectly fine." He said with a knowing smirk. Whatever that cunning little snake had put in his drink was certainly not weak. In fact, Tony was already feeling the subtle buzz in his head...
Loki grinned, glad Tony had accepted his bid to drink and took a larger drink. "Oh this is good." He was already beginning to feel the buzz. "Whatever shall we do?"
Tony raised an eyebrow. He was definitely not used to seeing Loki so... unrestrained. Tony was used to calm, collected Loki, and sometimes tragic, emotional Loki. But this new flirtatiousness, this spark... It seemed that Tony had awoken something rather wonderful within him, as of late, and the alcohol did nothing to inhibit that, of course.