Tony left for an Avengers meeting sometime during The Goblet of Fire, threatening Loki plenty of times for good measure before he did. Loki promised him after each new threat that he would not dare to harm Grace and blushed red with embarrassment when Tony spelled out, in explicit detail, just what other activities were unacceptable. Loki could barely stammer out his assurances that he had no intentions of such things before Tony left the apartment with his suit.
Grace paused the movie, unwilling to miss the amazing bouncing ferret, as Loki attempted to find words to make their situation less awkward.
"Loki, it's OK. You don't have to say anything. Tony does this to most of my friends...hence why I have had very few friends. He's intimidating. And I know he put in a few extra threats just for you...but we're going to be fine."
"Miss Grace, I hope you know I have no intentions of...of...of any of what he said."
"I know. And even if you were interested, all you'd have to do is ask and we'd talk. I'm not ready for another romantic adventure yet, but if you're ever so inclined, just know you don't have to be afraid to be blunt about it. Hell, I would be. I think I asked the last person out by walking up to her at a baseball game and saying, 'You're cute, you like the Mets. That's admirable. Let's go get a beer together.' I'm not subtle."
"It is not, were I interested, that I would not find you worth the risk, but... I should just cease speaking. As Thor would say, not even my silver tongue can get me out of this." He shifted uncomfortably on his end of the couch, his knees tucked to his chest.
"There's nothing to get you out of, Loki. We're OK. We're being friend-y." She scooted closer to him and leaned her head on his shoulder, "Besides, I'm a snuggler. Tony's never going to change that."
"But he said were I to touch you, he would tear my arms off." His arms were still pressed to his side.
"And he's said that before. Besides, I'm the one touching you. Relax. You'll be OK. I'll make sure of it. Now come on, we've got a ferret to laugh at." Grace felt Loki take a few deep breaths as he relaxed against her. She started the movie, "Behold, Malferret!" and started giggling as Mad-Eye Moody and Professor McGonagall discussed just precisely why there was a bouncing ferret in the Hogwarts courtyard. He laughed with her and slipped his arm around her shoulders.
"Please do not let Mr Stark remove my limbs. I rather like sitting with you like this."
"If Tony followed through with all his threats, there would be a dozen women in this town with no limbs at all. I know he's overprotective, but I'm also one bitch of a woman to piss off- he knows well enough to stand back unless I tell him there's a problem. And this is no problem. Friends are for cuddling."
They nestled into the couch together and continued with their movie marathon relatively quietly, flicking stray bits of popcorn at the screen when Barty Crouch Jr was revealed, Grace calling out to Snape to just punch him in the nose. She only moved when it was time to turn on the Order of the Phoenix and promptly returned to her spot snuggled close to Loki on the couch. Grace knew that Tony was likely watching from his meeting and she really could not have cared less. She was content, Loki was relaxed and seemed to enjoy her close to him, and they had four more movies to watch.
Loki cringed at Umbridge's torture of the students and cheered at Fred and George's escape, "I think I would have done so long before they did, but quite a brilliant plan. Where is the swamp, though? I was so looking forward to the swamp in the hallway that even Mr Filch was impressed with."
"Yet another amazing scene that fell victim to the screenwriters. It was one of my main complaints about this one- no swamp. The gal playing Umbridge is brilliant, though. It takes a lot of skill for someone playing a villain to really make me hate their sorry asses and hate her I truly do. And those damn cat plates."
"Do plates such as those exist in your world?"
"Unfortunately, yes. Thank god they don't really move and mew."
Their conversation ended as they were drawn back into the film. They were mostly quiet through to the end of the movie when Loki asked if he was mistaken or if the Dumbledore and Voldemort duel was really not in the books. Grace put in the next movie and made tea, bringing out the rest of the pizza and a box of cookies from the kitchen. Loki was reclining against the arm of the couch when she returned, one leg bent, one leg draped off the edge of the couch. He started to move and she shook her head, instead first handing him his tea and then sitting down in front of him, leaning back against his chest, the food balanced on her lap.
"Are you quite sure Mr Stark will not remove my legs for this particular transgression?"
"Not a transgression if I insist on it. And nobody's going to lose limbs. Just relax. We've now been through five Harry Potter movies together, I think that means we're officially best friends for life or something."
He laughed and swiped a slice of cold pizza from the box, "I suppose so, Miss Grace."
"You know that you don't have to call me 'miss' if you don't want to. I'm fine with just being 'Grace'."
"I prefer it as a means of conveying respect. So long as it is not offensive to you, I would like to continue."
"Nope, fine by me."
They turned their attention back to the screen as Millennium Bridge fell into the Thames; a few minutes later, as Bellatrix and Narcissa spoke to Severus Snape, Loki commented, "I sympathise with Professor Snape. He's in a terrible position. While I have not yet had my final encounter with my Voldemort, I somehow doubt Thanos will be so merciful as to simply have a snake rip out my throat in retaliation for my failures."
Grace sat up a little so she could twist to face him, "Who?"
"Thanos. I did not simply come by the sceptre I used in New York by chance. It was given to me in exchange for a service- the delivery of the Tesseract after I used it to conquer Midgard. I, as your culture says, made a deal with the devil. I did not deliver on my end, nor do I foresee being able to do so in the future."
"So what will he do to you?"
"I loathe to discover it. He relishes witnessing death in all its facets. I doubt he has seen one of my kind die, so he may be quite interested in experimenting."
"Fuck, Loki, that's terrible."
His voice was soft, "Yes, yes it is. I only hope I can put it off as long as possible. Perhaps I can find a way to destroy him first, or to deliver a false Tesseract that can be his undoing. I do not know."
Grace cuddled back up to him, "So you're doomed no matter what you do."
"It seems so, yes. Prison in Asgard may keep me safe, but now do you see why I fled here? No matter what punishment I take, it will be harsh and I will no longer have my freedom. I needed a short time to live before I return to my cage. Even the cell in Mr Stark's tower allows me more freedom than in Asgard. Both, of course, are preferable to whatever Thanos has in store."
"Yeah. I get it. I hope this all is worth it."
"Having met you at least makes my time in Midgard worth-while."
As Dumbledore and Harry spent time with the formerly-an-armchair Slughorn, Grace thought about the fact that she was sitting on her couch in the arms of a condemned man and realised just how much she would miss his company when he was returned to whichever punishment he was destined for first. She sighed and took one of his hands. He was surprised by her gesture but laced his fingers through hers and let her place his arm around her waist. She wished she could reassure him, be protective in some way, and keep her new friend safe, but Grace knew through and through that if there was doubt that even Asgard's mighty Thor could keep Loki safe that she had little chance- she doubted that friendship and love were as powerful in his realm as they were in the world of Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry.