Pairing: Tony/Loki, Thor/Sif, Clint/Darcy

Rating: M

Word Count: Don't know and don't care

Summary: While his palace is under siege by Odin and his army, King Laufey sends his infant son away with a powerful and much sought-after weapon. His hope is that when he is old enough, the boy will be able to wield it and defeat Odin to save not only Jotunheim, but as well as the other realms that have fallen to the tyrant's rule.

Warnings: FrostIron angst. And Clint/Darcy bicker like a married couple. Other stuff too. Don't own The Avengers or Lord of the Rings. I got tired of making up reasons.

Favorite Story: Apathetic Sympathy

Story Alert: Danna Noble, Lusiek

Review: Shara Raizel

Part 1: Chapter 7

"So Obidiah has betrayed us," Heimdall murmured.

"He allied himself with the enemy a long time ago, it seems," Phil replied with a sigh.

"When Loki fully recovers, he must go." Phil jerked his head towards the Elf. Heimdall instantly noticed the intense look of worry on his friend's face. "The All-Father's eye is turned on Alfheim. The Tesseract cannot stay here. And I cannot protect Loki from Tyr forever."

"I know. I just wish we had more time. And allies..."

Phil's eyebrows furrowed when a man rode in on a horse, looking at his surroundings. He had thick blonde hair, blue eyes, wore a navy blue outfit and had a large shield strapped to his back. He was soon followed by an Elf with olive skin, black hair in a high ponytail, and wore dark clothing with a bow and quiver full of arrows slung over his shoulder. A Dwarf with thick red hair and a red beard wielding an axe was the last to follow. Phil was about to ask who all these people were, but Heimdall was already gone.

xXxXx

"Darcy, would you like to braid my hair while I eat?"

"Yaaaaaaaayy," Darcy said with a dreamy look on her face.

"You shouldn't encourage her."

"Shut up, Clint," Darcy hissed before she stuck her tongue out at him.

"So what has been going on in the past few days?" Loki asked before putting some kind of pastry in his mouth.

"Well, Phil's back. But you already know that. We haven't really seen much of Asshole since we got here," Clint replied.

"What happened to Tyr? I know he's been…'incapacitated,' but-"

"He's what? You need to stop using such big words," Darcy mumbled.

"Basically he's temporarily Missing In Action."

"Ooooooh…I still don't get it."

"It must have been that Elf girl," Tony mused.

"What Elf girl?" Loki asked.

"She showed up and brought you here on her horse. She and Asshole seemed to know each other." Tony's eyes widened in realization. "Wait, how did you know about that? You were unconscious and bleeding to death."

"My father told me. In a dream."

"Don't take this the wrong way, but you're weird," Darcy said. "There. Finished."

"So Phil's back, Tyr's 'dead', and you haven't seen Asshole. What else has happened?"

"Well, Tony is totally pining over you." Said male sputtered.

"What the Hel, Darcy?! I am not!"

"Oh puhlease, Tony. Don't deny it, you'll hurt Loki's feelings."

"Um, no I'm fine. Really."

"He was all mopey and sad and blaming himself for your injuries."

"Oh. Well, he's already told me about that," Loki said dismissively.

"Yeah, but did he tell you that he was at your bedside nearly the entire six days? He finally left when Phil told Fenrir to chase him off."

"No. He failed to mention that. Seriously, that's a little harsh on Phil's part. I'm really sorry about Fen-" Loki's statement was cut off when he saw that the person he was talking to was walking away at a quick pace. "Tony!" Loki shouted as he got up and followed him as fast as he could without exerting himself.

"Idiot," Clint hissed, elbowing Darcy in the ribs.

"Tony! Tony, please wait!" Loki was panting by now. "I can't…keep up with you!"

Loki heaved a sigh of relief when the other male stopped, but he didn't turn around to face him. Once he reached him, Loki bunched the material of Tony's shirt in his hands to keep himself steady as he tried to even out his breathing. He then snaked his arms under Tony's and wrapped them around his middle.

"I don't know whether or not Darcy was telling the truth. But no matter how you feel or don't feel about me, I will never judge you. So will you stay with me?"

Loki's heart sank when Tony pried his arms away from his body. But then he felt fingers entwine with his own and a smile spread across his features.

"Until the end."

xXxXx

Blue eyes stared blankly at the painting in front of him. It was one of the most well-known stories regarding the All-Father's conquests. The siege of Jotunheim and the murder of Laufey. The part that not many people knew was Laufey sending the Tesseract with his son into

hiding, moments before his death.

"I hate this painting," the blonde said.

"Then why do you keep coming here to look at it?" The dark-haired Elf girl asked. The cut on her cheek had healed by now.

"As a reminder of who I am."

"The theme is portraying Laufey's bravery, which is why the Tesseract is not in Asgard. Yet you see only bloodshed."

"Sif, I cannot liberate myself from this. All that he has done."

"You are not your father, despite what you may think. If you really want to restore honor to your family's name, help Loki. He is barely a young man and he has to face your father alone."

"I had already planned on doing so."

"Really? Are you certain?"

The blonde heaved a sigh and turned slightly when the Elf was a couple feet away from him. He held out his hands and she placed her own on top.

"Why is it that whenever you speak to me, it sounds as if you are giving me a lecture?"

"Hmm…well, perhaps it is intentional." When he stroked his thumbs in circles over the tops of her hands, her brow furrowed. "You are concerned about how he will take the news."

"I worry that he will lose all trust in me, learning that I am the son of the man he must kill. Or he may become fearful of me."

"You have been severed from Asgard. You are not a threat to him, and he needs to be convinced of this, or he will fail."

xXxXx

Tony and Loki had moved and were now sitting under a plum tree. Tony was talking about his dad, more like complaining, and Loki was telling all he really knew about his own father, which was next to nothing.

"Well, to say you were difficult to find would be an understatement, son of Laufey." Loki blinked in confusion at the dark man. "We cannot begin the Council meeting without you."

"What Council meeting?"

"You are not invited, Anthony Stark," Heimdall replied.

"Don't call me Anthony…"

"Am I supposed to go there now?" Loki asked.

"Preferably."

"Okay. I guess I'll see you later, Tony," Loki mumbled as he stood up and brushed off his pants. "Try not to kill Darcy while I'm gone."

"Can't make any promises," Tony said with a wink.

Loki rolled his eyes then nodded at Heimdall, who led him towards a section of the main estate that he still had yet to see.

xXxXx

They entered a small area where some chairs were placed in a semi-circle around some sort of pedestal with nothing upon it. Phil was there, as well as the blonde man who had traveled with them. There were a couple Elves whom Loki assumed to be Heimdall's advisors, but the others he didn't recognize.

"First, I would like to welcome our honored guests to Alfheim. Hogun of the Mountain Elves. Volstagg, son of the infamous craftsman Ivaldi. And Steven Rogers, Captain of the Western Kingdom's Army.

"I bring you all together for one purpose, and one purpose only: to take back our world. And the only way to do that is seated right there."

"A boy? You expect us to believe that a child will save us?" Steven asked.

"Loki, if you would present the Tesseract," Heimdall said, gesturing to the empty pedestal.

Loki looked to his left at Phil, who nodded. He then got up from his chair and approached the pedestal before removing his earring. There was a lot of whispering and murmuring among the group.

"I don't know how to make it bigger. The Norns never taught me."

"No matter. I shall do it." Loki was hesitant in giving it to the other male, but he had healed him, so he must be trustworthy. Loki placed the Tesseract in Heimdall's open palm before slowly retracting his hand. "I'll tell you later," Heimdall whispered, earning a chuckle.

While Loki returned to his seat, Heimdall removed the Tesseract from its setting before handing the jewelry piece back to Loki. He placed the cube on the pedestal and held his hand over it, then a moment later it slowly grew in size, earning gasps throughout the group.

"So it is true then," Steven murmured. "The rumor that the Tesseract never disappeared."

"As you all can see, the Tesseract was not lost," Heimdall said.

"No. Instead, the most powerful weapon in the world was in the possession of a boy. As a piece of jewelry. It could have been used in battle against the All-Father and his armies."

"No, Captain. The Tesseract need only be used against the All-Father. If the King falls, the Empire collapses with him," the still-nameless blonde said.

"And what would a Ranger know of battle tactics?"

"That is no Ranger," the foreign Elf interjected, rising to his feet. "He is Thor, Aesir God of Thunder, and heir to the throne of Asgard. You'd do best to remember that."

"Thor? The All-Father's son?" Steven asked with a sneer.

"Sit down, Hogun," Thor said quietly, and the Elf immediately did so, still glaring at Steven.

Loki turned his gaze to the floor and turned the earring setting around in his hands nervously. This whole time he had been traveling with the son of his archenemy and he didn't even know it.

"The Tesseract had been decreased in size by the Norns so it would be hidden from view until Loki was of age," Phil said.

"The Norns?" Steve asked, not sounding convinced.

"They raised me as a child," Loki commented.

"This is getting more absurd by the second."

"I have a pet wolf if that makes you feel any better." Loki was beginning to enjoy seeing this man flustered. "He's curled up on my bed. Well, that's where I left him…"

"So how is this cube supposed to defeat the All-Father?" Volstagg asked.

"A staff is to be forged, then it will be inserted into the tip. That way Loki will be able to face Gungnir on even ground," Heimdall explained.

"Gungnir? Gungnir cannot be stopped. It was crafted by Dwarves after all!"

"Oh, you think your creations are so great? What about Mjolnir? Thor couldn't even lift it when you first gave it to him, and it took centuries for him to be able to use its powers! And what happened to the handle?"

"Hogun, could you please not talk about that?" Thor asked, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Oh, and I suppose an Elf can do better?"

"Do they always fight?" Loki whispered.

"Dwarves and Elves have never really gotten along very well," Phil deadpanned.

"I hope they aren't traveling with us, because that would make things difficult."

"Why do you think they are here?"

"Oh no…Steven too?"

"Steven too."

"Oh no…"

TBC

I know Hogun seems kind of OOC, despite the fact he's supposed to be Legolas. We'll just pretend that he and Thor met as kids and became best friends 5eva and he can get all bitchy and defensive whenever someone insults Thor. Okay? Okay. Steeeebe is a total asshole, but he's supposed to be Boromir. His shield made me do it, okay? Oh, and Ivaldi's like this famous dwarf craftsman guy who has a bunch of kids with different lady dwarves, and one of said kids is Brokkr. We'll just pretend that Volstagg is one of the half-siblings or something okay.

And unlike in the movie where there are like four people from each race that show up, I just wanted to have one person. And they're supposed to be, like, "important" or some shit. After I do some more research I'll go back and change it.