I don't own Loki or the Avengers, but I do this for free so it's all cool.
Chapter 14: Pokerface
Loki and Natasha talked for hours about fashion, art, music, and the Avengers. Natasha ordered Chinese delivery, and Loki remembered how Natasha had shown her how to use chopsticks the very first day she had returned. Not for the first time, she wondered why the Black Widow was being so helpful. She had every reason to hate her, but here she was laughing over 'girl talk.'
Natasha noticed that the longer she spoke with Loki, the less and less she used the eloquent but stuffy mannerisms she had come to associate with Asgardians. She was just about to ask Loki about Asgard when her phone rang. She jumped up to grab it off the kitchen table.
"Hello?" Loki watched that same, strange transition as Natasha stopped being a normal woman and became the deadly assassin she was. "Yes, sir. I understand. No, I know where he is. I'll pick him up when I drop off Loki. Yes. Yes."
Natasha hit the end button and sighed. "Duty calls. Guess you get to hang out with the boys at Steve's after all."
There was a knock at the door, followed by a round of groans from around the table. "I'll get it," Thor offered. He laid his cards face down, and rose to answer the door. As he walked away, Tony attempted to peek under his cards until Steve knocked him upside the head.
Thor opened the door to see Natasha and Loki. "Hey, sorry to barge in on the boys' night, but Barton and I need to go on a mission, so I'm afraid you will have to watch Loki for the time being."
Loki smiled and waved at Thor, who sighed heavily.
Natasha leaned in the room "Clint? Director Fury needs us down at HQ."
"Got it." He threw down his cards.
"Aw man, just when it was getting good," Tony whined. He had, in fact, redistributed his large pile of chips across the table rather evenly.
"I'll take over," Loki offered.
Clint looked at her, and Loki realized this was the first time they had come face to face since... Her ruby necklace glittered and she shivered under his gaze. "You know how to play poker?" he said at last.
She shrugged. "Split the pot with you?"
Clint didn't seem too convinced. "You can't lie."
Natasha and Loki exchanged a private smile. "Bluffing isn't lying," she quoted.
He shrugged. "Whatever. Just don't bet any of my chores, ok?"
Loki nodded, and slipped into the room as Clint and Natasha left. She was disappointed to see that Clint had been sitting between Tony and Steve. Thor sat between Tony and Bruce. "Tony, can I-"
"Uh-uh, honey. This is my lucky chair," he diverted her.
Loki turned to Bruce, who smiled pleasantly up at her. She swallowed, and sat in Clint's place, picking up his cards. "So... the cards with faces on them are better, right?"
The groans were even louder this time.
Two games later, Loki watched as Steve laid down his winning hand-three Aces.
"What? I had four queens!" She shouted.
Tony laughed. "Well then you shouldn't have folded."
"But I had a better hand! I should have won," she pouted.
"It's not about what cards you have," Steve gloated. "It's what you make everyone else thinkyou have."
Her eyes narrowed. "Well then it's a wonder you ever win," she shot back, irritated.
He shrugged, unfazed. "Beat you, didn't I?"
As she picked up the cards dealt to her, her face lit up. "We'll see about that..."
Loki stared at Tony over the pile of chips between them. The others sat back, silent, as they watched the two high-rollers face off.
"Well, Tony? You gonna raise?" She smiled wickedly. She had picked up an impressive amount of slang in the last few hours.
He snorted. "You know I'm cleaned out." He stared at his cards. "Dammit!" He threw down a junk hand. "You better have something good."
She grinned wolfishly. "What I have, gentlemen..." they all leaned forward in suspense, "Is a pair." She neatly laid out the two of clubs and the two of hearts. Her eyes sparkled with delight at her double entendre as she stood and raked in her chips, affording them all (but especially Thor) with an excellent view of her cleavage.
Bruce started chuckling. "Well, boys, I think we have a new member."
Thor shifted uncomfortably. "Clint won't play with her here," he reminded them.
Tony scoffed. "Clint sucks anyway. He wears his poker-face all the time."
"That he does," Steve laughs. "And I don't think he was ever terribly enthusiastic about it. Close-quarters isn't his speed."
"I shall ask him," Loki suggested fairly. "I think this might make up his mind anyway." She gestured to the pot, which contained a variety of chips, notes indicating chore swaps, and the keys to one of Tony's cars, which Loki eyed longingly.
"Clint gets the car," Tony warned.
"Aw, man, Tony c'mon..." she whined.
"Nope. Rules is rules. No transport for you."
She sighed heavily. "All right. But one of these days you guys will trust me, just you wait."
Steve snorted. "I don't think this really helps."
They all laughed.
Loki stashed Clint's portion of the pot, which included all of the chores and Tony's car keys, under her bed where she wouldn't be tempted by it. She didn't know how long Clint and Natasha would be gone, but the others guessed a couple days. She remembered that Natasha kept her drapes open, and glanced out her own window each night to see if the lights were on.
During the day, Loki would go to Stark Tower and work on whatever pieces Tony provided her for the restoration. It was slow going at first, because some of the materials had to be special ordered from quarries around the world. Mostly she just decorated her corner of the lab with what she called 'inspirational materials.'
"What is that?" Tony asked, staring at the latest addition to her architecture section.
"It is the state capitol building of Nebraska," she said proudly. "A very fine example of Art Deco architecture."
Tony turned his head and looked at it sideways. "It looks like a-"
"I know what it looks like, and it has a very inappropriate nickname to that effect," she interrupted quickly. "But I think it's beautiful."
Tony raised his eyebrows at her, but refrained from comment.
At last, three days after the poker game, Loki went to bed one evening to see the lights come on in Natasha's apartment. It was nearly midnight, and she went straight to bed, so Loki decided to talk to Clint in the morning.
When she woke, she chose a conservative business casual outfit and retrieved the bag of loot from under her bed. She had yet to think of a way to spend her own winnings, but Jarvis had suggested she might get permission to visit a book store soon.
She padded quietly through the living room-she knew Thor would still be asleep-and opened the door as quietly as she could. She slipped through, and closed it silently. She frowned a minute at the lock. She had no key, but she figured it wouldn't hurt to leave it unlocked for the few minutes her errand would take.
"Going somewhere?" a voice full of suspicion said behind her, making Loki jump several inches.
She whirled around to see Agent Hill, hand on her still-holstered gun. "Odin's beard, you scared me half to death!" she said breathlessly.
Agent Hill appeared to take that as a compliment. "What do you think you're doing?" she demanded.
Loki hefted the plastic bag full of cash, chore promises, and one set of car keys. "I wanted to drop off Clint's share of the pot before he left for work," she said cheerfully. She hoped her open manner would let the SHIELD agent see that she meant no harm.
Instead she narrowed her eyes. "Then why are you sneaking out?"
Loki sighed. "Thor isn't exactly a morning person, and he locks his door at night, so I'd have to bang on it for like 20 minutes before he got up and Clint would be gone by then."
Hill blinked rapidly, and chose not to ask why Loki knew that Thor locked his door. "Alright. I will accompany you then." She snapped her holster shut, and set off for the stairwell.
Loki was a little surprised, but followed. Saved her the trouble of trying to figure out which of the apartments was Clint's, anyway. As it turned out, it was the one above and to the right of her and Thor's. Agent Hill did not pause, but walked directly up to the door and rapped sharply on it. She then stepped back, leaving Loki to face the door alone.
Clint answered after a moment, and did a double-take when he saw who stood before him. He glanced at Agent Hill and back.
"Er, hi." Loki said awkwardly. She held up the bag. "I brought your share of the winnings."
He stood there a very long moment, staring at the contents. At last he held out his hand, and she placed the bag in it. "Whose keys are these?" he asked, bemused.
"Tony's. I won." She smiled a little.
"I can see that." He hefted the bag. "And this is half?"
She nodded. "Half the cash, all the chores, and the car. I wanted to keep the car, but apparently I'm not allowed to." She pouted a little.
There was another long pause, and Loki cleared her throat. "Errr... Listen, the guys were thinking that maybe I could join the poker club..."
Clint looked surprised, and for a moment a little hurt.
"They thought maybe you wouldn't like that," Loki pressed on quickly, "so I thought I should ask you first-"
"No, it's fine," he said in a clipped voice. "You're obviously better at it anyway." He glanced down at the bag. "Thank you," he ground out, and then closed the door. He did not slam it, but closed it so softly and soundlessly that he clearly had used all his control not to.
Loki closed her eyes, sighed, and leaned her head against the wall.
Agent Hill shifted uncomfortably. "Are you well?" she asked, trying not to let any sympathy slip into her voice.
"Yes, thank you." Loki pushed off the wall and made for the stairwell. She paused at the top of the steps. "It's just..." she gazed back towards Clint's door. "I had hoped for the opportunity to apologize again, but..." she shook her head, and began tromping down the stairs dejectedly.
Hill followed, wondering how much, if any, of that had been for show.
A/N: This is one of the first chapters that I wrote ahead, and we're starting to get into the fun part of the story. Also, massive brownie points for anyone who can give the inappropriate name for the Nebraska capitol building (which I went to school across the street from, btw).
