Chapter 19

A/N Not sure why but I've been unable to sleep as of lately, and I get these creative bursts of energy. Decided to use it to write another chapter, but since it's late, it may be, more so than normal, full of mistakes, but I'll try. This chapter is especially dedicated to Myridinn who has been reviewing since she started reading this and encourages me to continue. I've honestly thought of dropping this story, since it's probably horrid, but reviews like hers help me stop sulking and start writing.

I want to thank everyone who reviews though, you're all wonderful!

ooOOoo

To say Loki woke up was the overstatement of the year. He didn't wake up, he returned to the living, or at least, that's how he felt. His body was aching all over and he felt tired, though he reckoned he had slept for hours on end. He opened his eyes, but the only light in the room came from the light through the tiny window. His eyes hurt right away and he almost suspected last night was a weird nightmare and Tony got him drunk or something. He couldn't tell what time it was from the light that did manage to get in the room, but his gut told him it must have been already around midday.

Just as he was about to turn away from the light he realized something warm and heavy rested on his waist. Looking down he discovered it was an arm. And to be perfectly honest with himself, it felt comfortable. Realizing this must be Tony's arm he remained still for a full minute, not wanting to wake up the other man. Yesterday's events returned to him and he remembered how Tony had taken care of his wounds. He remembered how his hands had traveled over his body looking for wounds to pay attention to, cuts he could heal. He also remembered how that had felt… right. Tony didn't had to do that, he was a pharaoh after all, he would have dozens of healers at his beck and call, ready to heal the pharaoh's latest pet.

Because that's what he was, wasn't he? Nothing more than that? I mean, what could Tony, the pharaoh of a whole nation, possibly see in this poor sod out of the slums? Oh no Loki had no disillusions on that part. After all, he had been treated as vermin ever since they moved there. But he was pretty sure he didn't imagine Tony's kind eyes last night as he had carefully wrapped the bandages around his wounds.

Loki shifted carefully around until he was facing Tony. His arm was still wrapped around his waist filling Loki with a warm feeling. Tony's face was so close to Loki he could feel Tony's breath tickle his collarbone. Curiously he looked down on Tony's face. There he was the courageous, intelligent and brave leader of Egypt, drooling on his silken sheets, holding Loki in his arm.

That's also when Loki realized that

a) he was naked

b) Tony was naked

Which resulted in a high dosage of blood traveling to certain parts of his body, of which only his cheeks Loki would admit it did. He slightly gasped at the thought and as he was still staring down on Tony's face, a pair of chocolate brown eyes opened to stare up in his.

"Ok, I will admit, this is something I could wake up to every day." Tony said groggily, after rubbing his eyes with his free hand. Then, as if he remembered what had happened, he looked at Loki, as if to check if he was still in one piece. "How do you feel?"

Loki pushed back the thoughts about how extremely naked and close they were at the moment, wishing he could at least cover himself with a separate cover, if only to add a layer, no matter how thin, between him and Tony. "I'm feeling better…"

"Yeah right, try better next time." Tony said, not believing one word.

"Alright, I feel like I've been run over by an elephant, after being clawed by a wildcat, if you must know. But I feel better than I did yesterday, so I guess that's something?" Loki chuckled, then winced, as the sudden movement of his chest hurt him.

"Yeah, still not falling for that." Tony said, holding a hand to Loki's forehead. "Well at least you don't have a fever, so that's good, but I think you ought to stay in bed a little longer."

"With you?" Loki said, raising one eyebrow, silently questioning Tony's motives. Tony noticed but decided to ignore it entirely.

"Of course with me, I have the tedious job to make sure my subjects are safe, so let's start with you, shall we?" he replied. Loki raised his eyebrow, if possible, even more. Before Tony could mock offense though, a loud growling noise filled the room. Both of the men weren't sure who made the noise, but they were both hungry. Last day's events had made them skip dinner altogether, and their stomached were about to rebel soon if they didn't fill it with food. Loki was used to this feeling so he paid it no heed, but Tony was insulted by this state of his body.

"Alright, so, I will be back to keep an eye on you, you stay here as I'll make sure someone will get us something." Tony slipped from under the covers and walked up to the door in his birthday suit, as Loki pretended to not look at his bare back and bum. He would have to ask Thor about this lately, as he hadn't experienced this feeling before. And weren't you supposed to have this feeling only with girls? He was confused. Diverting his eyes quickly as Tony had finished instructing a guard to get food, and was now walking back to the bed, he didn't notice Tony smiling and admiring.

He did shiver slightly as Tony raised the covers again and climbed in next to Loki. "Are you cold?" he asked, wrapping his arm again around Loki. "Need me to get an extra blanked? Or should I just lay closer to you?" At that last remark he winked, earning him a scowl from Loki.

"I think maybe it's your presence that's making me ill?" Loki snapped. He wasn't sure what was going on, most certainly he wasn't snappy because he didn't knew what to do with these emotions and feelings he had right now. He detested the man, didn't he? Forcing him to stay for a year while he had no rights in the first place.

"Back to grumpy old self, then?" Tony said, looking annoyed. Tony just didn't know what it was what he had done wrong.

Loki looked at Tony for a while before his hard stare turned soft and he sighed. "I'm sorry, I'm not used to this… closeness." He motioned the little space between Tony and him.

"I understand, I'm making you feel uncomfortable." Tony said, finally understanding what was going on. He wasn't sure how Loki was so good at resisting him, he was really pulling all the stops, but nothing worked. He shifted backwards so there was more space between them, and pulled his arm away laying it in front of him, between him and Loki. "There, is that better?" He asked

"I didn't mean to offend you, I know you mean well… it's just… I'm not sure… Nevermind." Loki sighed, best not start that topic, he was really confused right now.

"Did… Did Obediah hurt you more than just those wounds?" Tony carefully asked. It would certainly help explain why Loki was so afraid of being touched.

"I'm not sure I know what you mean…" Loki asked, squinting his eyes as if what Tony said was a difficult to solve puzzle.

"I mean, did Obediah tried to.. sexually abuse you? Yesterday I mean, because your sash was gone and… well" Tony nudged his head down.

"Ah.. He didn't. Well, yes, he tried, but he didn't succeed. He had voiced his, ehm, wish to do just that before as well, but I think in this case he only wanted to do that to annoy you." Loki answered.

"Annoy me?" Tony said, shocked. "I'd be so pissed I'd cut off his…" seeing Loki look alarmed and shocked at the great amount of rage aimed at the man just for his sake, he stopped. "You said it yesterday, people like him are the cause of hurt and pain for many others, he'd hurt you only to hurt me, in my opinion that is unforgiveable, his beef is with me, so he should only come after me."

"Do I need to remind you, Tony, that's exactly what he did?" Loki said. "He probably didn't expect us to be so close."

That reminded the both of them that Vali had died for Tony.

Tony was immediately back to sulking as he had done before, while he was unable to talk about it because for all he knew Loki didn't knew Vali at all.

Loki may seem heartless for not being sad at all, but he had been witness to people's deaths on a weekly if not daily base, so he has grown accustomed to it. In the slums all you could really hope for is that it wouldn't be someone you cared greatly for who dies next. "Vali was a good man…" he whispered, surprising Tony.

"He… he came to me, to ask about Thor, and as I tried to help Thor, he was trying to keep you save from whoever was responsible. When we found out that it was Obediah… he was shocked at first, but then told me deep in his heart he knew, he knew, it was him, as he had seen him change slowly the past years. He told me how Obediah's greed had grown, and instead of money and good wines he coveted power. First high-priest had been enough but then… he said he should've known he would try and take over the throne." He looked up to see Tony was listening with a thoughtful look on his face.

"I suppose… we should all have seen it coming. My father's old friendship and my general blindness to threats stopped us from doing so." He finally said. "So that means you knew Vali as well… That smart dog, protecting the realm from the shadows."

"That makes me feel like maybe it had been best if he had told you sooner. But that turns into 'what if' and… what if never works. What is important, is that he helped my brother, and you, and we should respect that, and honor him for what he did." Loki's voice had turned into a whisper by the end of his sentence. He slightly bowed his head, closing his eyes as his body ached once more.

"Yes… Yes we should…" Loki could be mistaken, but it almost sounded like Tony was on the brink of crying and he was about to look up to see what was wrong with Tony when he felt the slight pressure of Tony's lips on the corner of his mouth, pressing a small kiss there before hastily retreating, just like Tony shuffled back to where he was laying.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that, it's just that right now, I'm so glad you're here. And I'm sorry you had to go through all that you have been through, and no one was there to protect you."

"Thor was there!" Loki said. He was still shocked at the sign of affection Tony had given him.

"Yeah but he was basically in the same boat as you were, what I mean is. Now I'm pharaoh, I will do my best to make sure no one will ever have to face that again, no one will ever be hurt again, everyone willing to hurt anyone else will be imprisoned or punished and cities are to make sure people in the slums, or poor people in general, will be taken care off. My realm can be so much greater, let's make sure it happens." Loki was in awe of the fiery will he could see in Tony's eyes and in that moment finally knew what Thor had meant when had said Tony would be a good ruler.

Yes, he would follow this man to make sure his plans come true. It would help everyone he had ever cared for. He thought of Pahir, the baker in the slums, Thor, his brother who had taken care of him since he could remember, Stieth, who worked so hard to make sure he had food for his family and even Fury and his group of misfits whom he knew sometimes had a hard time maintaining his group as not all cities were kind to him and the entertainment they provided, sending them away with no more food or drink to travel through the unforgiving heat of the desert.

"I have so many plans, Loki. I don't know where to start… I take joy in design machines and weapons that may benefit this realm, but I haven't found time to actually engineer them. Imagine tools that could help us water the ground which is otherwise not suitable to grow food on. Or weapons that you'd need to only use once to make sure the enemy will never try again to intrude on your lands. I don't know where to start."

Loki smiled at that. Tony sure knew how to surprise. "At the start, Tony… at the start." He sighed, closing his eyes, once more, tired of talking, feeling his body ache at every attempt to move.

"Why don't you rest while I go and check where our food is?" Tony said, while climbing out of his bed to get dressed.

The only response he got was a hum, and he smiled as he, dressed in proper clothes, left the room, accompanied by guards Thor had picked for him.

ooOOoo

A/N Woah, that was… a lot of talking. Please review! ^_^