I am so sorry for the delay in posting bit that is because I am the idiot trying to juggle AP classes for school and work at the same time as writing. Any further delays can be attributed to school and the ridiculous amount of homework I get. I hope everyone likes this chapter!

Not mine, never mine, usual disclaimers

"Stark. What are you doing in my bed?"

o~*+*~o

Loki had been expecting one of three things when he announced himself to the oblivious and distraught Stark.

One was anger.

Two was sadness.

Three was indifference.

Personally, Loki believed that number one was most likely because, even though he didn't know if Stark still considered him an enemy, it was unlikely a powerful man, by mortal standards, like Stark would like it for someone to witness him brought down.

What the raven haired god had not accounted for was just how odd the mortal's mind worked or what had happened to cause this incident in the first place. In retrospect laughter was not too unreasonable a reaction and when considering the human's rather eccentric nature it became almost obvious.

As soon as Stark heard his voice he bolted upright and faced him, a soft blue light filling the room and illuminating Stark's face. The light on the man's shirt was just bright enough for Loki to make out the slight tear tracks and red rimmed eyes, evidence of the mortal's sorrow. It all was a sharp contrast to the small smirk on Stark's lips and the following laughter than burst from the man in a short bark.

The laughter was not one of mirth or joy but one of self depreciation, laughter of ironic circumstances, a laugh that silently asked what would the world throw at him next and the understanding that whatever it was he would get through it.

"Hi Lokes, I forgot you were here." Loki didn't quite know how to respond to that. After all, he had once been this man's enemy. Was he really so easy to forget? Thor's friends and the people of Asgard had seemed to find it easy enough so Loki supposed it would be even easier for a mortal with such a short attention span, even a genius level one.

As if in answer to his thoughts Stark spoke up again. "Not that you are a very forgettable person, who could forget someone who took over your tower and threw you out a window, but you would never believe the day I've had." This comment only earned Stark a raised eyebrow and a condescending look. After all Loki was still injured, not to bad for him but with his magic depleted it was a problem, and this mortal fool was taking up half of the bed.

For a moment both Stark and Loki simply stared at each other in silence before Stark broke the slightly awkward silence, the man truly could not stay silent for lengthy amounts of time. "Technically, in answer to your question, I own the entire tower and therefore this room and all of the furniture inside including the bed. So the bed is technically mine but I am more than willing to share." Stark smirked at his last comment solidifying Loki's original opinion that the mortal was likely merely joking.

Nevertheless, the injured god slowly made his way over to the opposite side of the bed on slightly unsteady feet before dropping himself down on the edge furthest away from the sprawled figure of the man beside him. It occurred to Loki that it might not have been the smartest thing to stand up for long periods of time with his bruised, cracked and broken ribs along with many contusions. The bed sank under his weight and enveloped him in its softness without exerting pressure on his damaged body, a miracle with the myriad of bruises and lashes that had not quite healed that covered the majority of his back.

All thoughts about arguing with Stark about possession of this very nice bed, almost nicer than his one on Asgard, dissipated as he sank comfortably under the sheets and let himself consciously relax for the first time since he had awoken in the unfamiliar room. Loki's eyes closed in contentment that, surprisingly, did not disappear when Stark began to speak again. The mortal loved the sound of his voice far too much but at the moment the injured god could not bring himself to tell Stark to be quiet.

The other man's voice was strangely hypnotic, almost comforting, and the raven haired man merely laid back in the bed and let the words Stark said blend together into a blur of sound. Even though he was not concentrating very much, Loki eventually figured out that Stark was explaining what had happened today that had made him so upset. The incident seemed focused around a woman that Stark called Pepper almost fondly but corrected himself, Ms. Potts or Mrs. Stone, with a sort of self loathing each time.

A man refered to as Obadiah was mentioned once or twice in comparison to Ms. Potts but the thing that caught Loki's attention and caused him to listen with interest was how Stark commented on how at least she didn't literally yank his heart out, she only stabbed it metaphorically. How a mortal could survive without their heart for any amount of time was a mystery for the god but each time the raven haired man began to ask his question it turned out Stark's pause was merely to take a breath. It was only when the man began to reminisce about Ms. Potts again, quickly becoming lost in his memories and slowly falling silent, that Loki found a space to put his words.

"How did you survive without your heart?" The words were slightly rushed as the injured god was not eager to have his words spoken over and ignored in favor of the mortals own words. It was fortunate he did as Stark had just opened his mouth to speak when Loki began but the other man gratefully refrained from speaking until after the raven haired man had asked his question.

"Didn't you ever learn that it is rude to interrupt people, Lokes?" Stark said in an irritated tone but his face showed that he wasn't truly angry. Loki dismissed the idea of asking about the odd nickname in favor of an answer. After a moment of consideration the mortal said, "I will answer your question if you answer one of mine."

A bargain, this mortal might actually be clever. "You have a deal," Loki answered with a smirk. It really wasn't that much of a risk to give the mortal an answer to any question he could think of. After all, the other man giving away how he lived without a heart so the injured god was definitely getting the better end of the bargain. The sound of rustling cloth and a sudden light in the room made Loki turn towards Stark and stare in confusion.

In the back of his head Loki realized that the sound of cloth had been Stark removing his shirt but that was unnecessary information when Loki was entranced by the small, bright circle. What Loki had originally thought was a lamp turning on was actually a strange blue light that shone from Stark's chest where the human's shirt had been glowing earlier. The color was similar to the tesseract, not exactly pleasant memories for the god, but was brighter and was almost like a star in the mortals chest. It was strangely beautiful and Loki unconsciously moved closer to get a better view only to stop when Stark raised his hands as if to push Loki away.

"This here," the mortal tapped the glowing spot and a quiet metallic click could be heard, "is arguably my greatest invention ever and is, for all intents and purposes, my heart. This device is a miniaturized arc reactor and it runs the Iron Man suits and my own heart and after a few minutes without it my heart would be shredded and I would die." The mortal's face was oddly calm for a man who was telling the man who used to be his enemy the best way to kill him. What a stupid fool. "Or at least it used to." Maybe Stark wasn't as much of a stupid fool as the man lead himself to be.

"There were pieces of shrapnel in my chest trying every minute to worm their way into my heart. A couple of months ago I had surgery to remove most of it but there were a few pieces that they couldn't get that are lodge in the walls of my heart. Hopefully the scar tissue would hold them in place if the arc reactor was ever removed but I don't plan on letting that happen again so that should never be tested.

"This is my fourth version of the miniaturized arc reactor and I managed to significantly reducer the casing size so it no longer goes as deep or is as wide. That is definitely a good thing because the scar tissue from the surgery fills the empty space left by the improvements and allows it to heal better. I think."

While the majority of the information was foreign for a god that possessed magic, Loki understood that this miniature arc reactor was a significant construct and was powerful enough to simultaneously power ones heart and the Iron Man suit. For a moment, the raven haired man wished he had done more research before his previous visit to Earth, even though that would have been impossible.

Thanos and the Other didn't care about research or planning because what they did they did through power, force and manipulation. Even though Thanos had controlled his mind he could not control his magic, practically another entity on its own, so their plan ultimately failed and the tesseract was taken to Asgard. If Loki had done it on his own, not that he would because some of the Avengers were almost worthy opponents, he would have wanted as much information as he could so he would not have to fight directly often but from the shadows, his second home.

More information on Tony Stark would be very helpful now though as he would likely be occupying the mortals tower until he was healed or his magic returned. Preferably both because for now Loki had no away to defend himself other than his hand-to-hand combat training, useless against the Iron Man suit, and his own mind.

For once the trickster god was unsure who would be the victor in a battle of wits or knowledge. Loki knew that he definitely had the advantage of experience from the thousand odd years he had lived, all the while accumulating knowledge of the nine realms and magic, compared to Stark's less than fifty but he had little to no information about the realm he was stuck in right now. Unfortunately, Stark was not a complete idle minded fool and had more information and resources on Midgard that he could ever hope to amass considering his last visit.

"And since I know you haven't heard a word I've said over the last minute or so I'm just going to ask my question now."

The comment broke through Loki's musings and reminded him that, yes, he was laying in bed next to a shirtless Tony Stark who had been taking the entire time he had been thinking. It used to happen often, Thor or one of his witless friends would speak to hear their own voices and Loki would tune them out just like he had just done to the mortal beside him. What was suprising was how Stark had recognized his carefully formed mask of polite understanding for what it was, as mask to hide his thoughts while he ignored the speaker to listen to his own thoughts and ideas.

Now with his attention truly on Stark, Loki patiently waited for the coming question without saying a word. It seems like the correct response as the mortal merely waited a beat before asking his question. For all of the evidence to the growing opinion that Stark is an idiot who doesn't understand what is important to people he was quickly shown wrong in one of the questions the injured god had never though the mortal would ask.

"Do you really turn into a giant, blue smurf when you are in extreme cold?"

This mortal was far too clever for his own good.

For those who wanted sleeping and snoring instead of crying I can definitely promise that it will show up later. I hope everyone liked this chapter and will forgive me for any delays in future chapters. Work and school and writing and reading do not go well together.

Please review!