Author's Note: GUYS GUYS GUYS OH MY GOD GUYS. I watched Age of Ultron and DEAR SWEET LORD IT WAS BRILLIANT, IT WAS TWO HOURS AND SOMETHING MINUTES OF PURE, BLISSFUL JOY TO WATCH AND OH GOD, I CANNOT, AJGNGRGKGLLSGSNAJFDLFLDFLDKLLL.

Okay, okay. I'm calm.

Needless to say, I loved every minute of the new movie and I cannot wait for it to come out on DVD (*cough cough* cut Loki scene *cough cough cough*)

I do realise, on watching this movie, that I overestimated Hulk's height quite a bit. Well. Oops. No matter, I believe it won't be too much of a hassle. However, when need arises, Hulk will be canon size again *grumbles* **EDIT: I fixed this problem in chapter 10 by fixing a single sentence and it all worked out. Hulk is canon size again**

This chapter is a short one, but important nevertheless. On to the reviews then!

Theatre: Thanks for the review! Oh snap, that totally slipped my mind! Thank you for pointing it out! I'm glad I've got a typo queen for a reader though, it makes spotting the faults easier ;) I also spotted a couple more in the last chapter. Damn, one of these days I have got to get around to Re-editing my chapters for grammar. I'm such a hypocrite - I despise bad grammar and yet here I am, making atrocious little mistakes! Excuse the rant, lol xD Also, I LOVED THE MOVIE AND I HAVE NEW SHIPS AND OH GOD MY FEELS I CANNOT. I even included a little reference in this chapter ;) Thanks again for taking the time to review - I hope you enjoy this chapter :)

Queen Martha Pond: Yes, the brothers are an amazing team, no matter how much animosity Loki creates between them! Wow, I'm so glad you understand exactly why Clint was scary in comparison to some powerful beings! I'm so relieved to know I got that little idea across successfully. Thanks so much for the review, and I hope you like this chapter too!

Anonymous: Thanks so much for your kind words! I'm glad you like the story and I hope you continued all the way through to chapter 11 and are able to read this chapter as well.

AinsleyWright: Aw, shucks, thanks so much! I adore jealous Loki, it makes for such hilarious writing xD Poor Loki. I adored the movie, as you can probably tell by my outpouring of words at the beginning of this thing. It was absolutely brilliant and I felt highly smug at having imagined Clint's reckless driving and the whole singing (the lullaby thing) to calm Hulk down even BEFORE I watched the movie. Gah. Let me proceed to bury myself in feels and maybe attempt to sneak into the movie theatre again. I hope you like this chapter too!

PhantomLion: Thanks for taking the time to leave a review! I hope you enjoy this next chapter.

And there you have it! I hope you enjoy this one folks!

Chapter 12

Louie POV

"Shouldn't have done that," sighed Clint, hurrying back to the car and taking out his arrows. But Seb Rohmer was too quick for Clint; he ducked down an alleyway as Clint's taser arrow whistled past.
Clint took off in a sprint behind him.

"You promised me there would be no running," I groaned before taking off after him.

I had to hand it to Seb, he was fast. He very likely knew the alleyways like the back of his hand because it was like playing a game of whack-a-mole, what with the way he disappeared and reappeared among the empty warehouses.

After Seb made a particularly narrow escape into a dark corner, Clint skidded to a halt, panting. A couple of his arrows littered the floor.

"That little bastard is taking us around in circles," I huffed, clutching a stitch in my side.

"All I need," said Clint, breathing deeply, "is one good shot." I nodded.

"I can get you one good shot." I stomped hard into the ground and the earth beneath our feet shot into the sky, towering over all the buildings. Clint loaded his bow, his eyes raking the shadows.

"Got him," he murmured and fired at an alley a good way away from us. There was a slight whisper as the arrow whizzed through the air and then a shout of pain.

"Taser?" I asked sympathetically.

"Yup."

"Let's go," I said, and concentrated. The pillar cracked and creaked and then, a perfect cylinder broke away from the top, taking us with it.

"Got any more tricks up your sleeve?" asked Clint, gripping my shoulder to prevent himself from getting thrown off.

I shrugged, "I don't know really, I'm making these up as I go along."

Seb Rohmer was lying face down on the ground, twitching slightly. We both hopped off and I extended my staff. Clint pulled off his arrow and flipped Seb over.

"Hey," he said kneeling next to him and tapping his face. Seb groaned slightly before batting Clint away wildly.

"Fuck, dude!" he gasped, trying to crawl backwards. Unfortunately his limbs didn't work as well, making him do an odd little dance on the ground. He cursed a little more.

"Language," I tsked sweetly. Seb let loose an emotional tirade.

"Look man, I'm sorry okay, I was just doing what I was told to and I was told to break into Jared or whatever-"

"Jared?" Clint frowned, confused.

"Yeah," said Seb looking up at us, "you know, that computer at Stark Tower, I didn't want to get in there man, I was just -"

"Wait," I interrupted, "that was you?" Seb gulped.

"I'm sorry, I was just doing as I was told-"

"Who told you?" asked Clint at once. At that, the redhead went ashen, mouth clamming shut.

"Well, what about three days ago?" asked Clint, "what the hell were you doing back then? You shouldn't have been able to access what you did on a long distance network and yet you did."

"I - what?" Seb asked, confused. He looked at me slowly. "This isn't about Stark?" Clint and I shook our heads and Seb rubbed the back of his curly red head. "Fuck."

I stayed silent, thinking hard. The hacker from three weeks ago, that had been Seb. Clint stepped closer.

"You still didn't answer my question. What were you going three days ago?"

"I was just surfing the net, man," said Seb defensively. I raised my eyebrow.

"Okay," he corrected himself. "Not just the net. But I was just doing it for practice."

"Practice?" Seb sighed and sat up, rubbing his arm. "I was just trying to pay my way through some stuff," he said quietly. "And my line of work isn't easy. I need to practice on something."

"So you went online and picked a random site?" I asked in disbelief. Seb shrugged.

"Pretty much, yeah."

"So then what?" Clint asked, folding his arms and waiting for Seb to continue.

"I just stumbled across some tough stuff and I got curious. The tech was nothing like I'd seen before - it was incredible. But I broke through in less than three minutes. Some of my best work," he said proudly, before shaking his head. "And wasted on a god damn fun-capade. Damn, if I was that fast on Stark's tech-" he broke of suddenly, seeming to realise who he was with.

I stepped closer to the archer.

"So the SHIELD break-in was just a coincidence?" I asked Clint quietly. Clint shrugged, eyes narrowed.

"Seems like it."

Seb took off his glasses and rubbed them on his t-shirt in a curiously childlike manner.

"How old are you?" I asked, suddenly feeling bad for the kid. Seb put his glasses back on and squinted.

"Nineteen, ma'am," he replied.

"You're damn smart for a nineteen year old," I said cocking my head. "And that's what we want to talk to you about."

"P-pardon?"

"Let's just say that tech you went on a, uh, fun-capade with shouldn't have been broken into in even five minutes, let alone three."

"Oh," he blinked, and rubbed his arm, where the taser had got him. I noticed a familiar little patch on his upper sleeve.

"Let me guess," I said, "college kid who got into some deep shit, huh?" Seb nodded miserably. I kept talking. "You got some crack, you did some, and you dealt some and got into debt. And whoever strung you along wanted payment. Fast." Seb nodded and picked up where I trailed off.

"Just a bunch of idiots. I thought I could handle it. But then, I couldn't pay up on one day. One fucking day. And they went apeshit. Then, this bunch of guys came to my apartment one night. They said they'll pay my debt if I hacked into a tower for them and then forgot they ever existed," Seb shrugged. "So I did. But I didn't realise it was Stark Tower until I actually got through and that – Jared –"

"Jarvis," Clint and I corrected him automatically.

"Right – him, told me where I was. And God, I flipped the fuck out and back tracked as fast as I could. I might've temporarily shut Jarvis down on my way out," he winced. "Anyway, the people that were supervising me, they told me they'd got what they wanted. Then they shoved cash into my pocket and knocked me unconscious. I woke up outside my apartment."

"What did these guys look like?" Clint asked. Seb shook his head.

"I've forgotten, man. Their faces are a blur. I can't even remember how many of them there were." Clint and I exchanged skeptic glances.

"Look, you gotta believe me," Seb burst out angrily. "One of them just said 'Thanks, now, forget this ever happened' and I swear, I've just forgotten. I'm not lying. Neither am I lying about just stumbling into some tough tech three days ago." He glared. I bit my lip. He seemed to be telling the truth and yet… Clint sighed and nodded.

"Fine. I believe you."

"You do?" I asked, surprised.

"You do?" echoed Seb.

"I do. But you're accompanying us to Stark Tower." Seb whimpered.

"Oh God, I never asked for this shit." I rolled my eyes as I strapped him into the front seat and took the back.

"Yeah, me neither, kid. And yet, here we are."

"We've been gone a long time," said Clint, starting up the vehicle. "People are probably starting to worry. Let's get you home to lover boy." He smirked at me as he said it.

"Oh, shut up Clint," I said irritably. I'd forgotten about Loki for a second there. Thinking about the Asgardian gave me an uncomfortable rush of feelings. Right now, what was on the forefront of my mind was what Clint had said. Was I being too trusting with Loki? Had I forgotten what he was, what he had done, what he could do?

I bit my lip. What if he was playing havoc in my head? What if that was why I couldn't stop thinking about him? I went a little pink at that thought. Nervously, I bit the end of my braid as I curled up in one corner of the back seat. What if Clint was right? What if Loki was just playing me like a fool? The thought was terrifying, for more reasons than one.

I had been staring off into space but now noticed Clint giving me odd little glances in the rearview mirror. At that point I realised I had been humming tunelessly, a habit that came around very rarely and only when I was trying to block problems out of my head. I was something I hadn't done in years, the first time being -

I broke off that train of thought immediately. No. Now was not the time.

Loki POV

During the day it could be said that Stark Tower was one of the busiest places in Manhattan, even called the hub of all technology and activity. During the night the same could be said of the uppermost floors, the ones which needed VIP passes to be allowed into, the ones which all of Stark's employees tried to sneak into on occasion, only to be kicked out on their corporate behinds by one sassy software program.

However, it was now well past three in the morning, and the whole tower was still, well , not deathly still; drones were patching up three floors from an angry scientist debacle, but it lacked human activity anyway.

Loki shifted crossly in the large sofa. He couldn't sleep. It was the pain in his back, he told himself, and certainly had nothing to do with the lack of a certain Midgardian. He'd tried everything and now, the lack of sleep was giving him a headache. He hissed in frustration and attempted to read his book. One would think the author would captivate him, and at some other time he certainly would have, but not today. Not now.

The door clicked as it opened. Quietly, a figure padded into the kitchen, rubbing her eyes tiredly.
Natasha made her way to the refrigerator and rummaged about inside it.

"Can't sleep?" she said, her head still stuck in the fridge. Loki shook his head.

"No."

"Yeah, me neither." Loki grunted. Obviously not. Natasha poured herself a glass of milk before dropping into a sofa next to Loki's.

"They've been gone a long time," said Natasha quietly. Loki didn't need to ask who she was talking about.

"It must be hard for you," said Loki bitingly, "to see him go off with her instead of you." Natasha shrugged.

"I can't always have him to myself. Besides, I trust Louie." Loki couldn't believe his ears. Did Midgardians not believe in monogamy anymore?

"You really expect me to believe you have no problem with sharing your, er, lover, is it?" Natasha raised an eyebrow, puzzled.

"What are you on about?" Loki blinked. Was she really that obtuse?

"Barton and the mortal. They went on a date." The word felt bitter in his mouth. Natasha's lips thinned and her eyes narrowed in confusion.

"I see," she said, "and Clint told you this?"

"No," Loki shook his head, "She did." Natasha nodded, her face unreadable. However, Loki noticed that the tension in the air around her had somewhat relaxed. She downed her drink in one go.

"I think," she said quietly, "I'll go back to bed now. Goodnight Loki."

Loki waited for just a little while longer, until the clock chimed the passing of another ungodly hour. Giving up waiting as a bad job, he headed down to the rooms. Louie's one was just opposite his. He hesitated only a moment before entering it. She wouldn't be coming back to this room anyway, not tonight, if his brother and Jane Foster were anything to go by.

Louie's room was now very different from the bare space it had been at the beginning of her stay. In the beginning it looked much like his room, but now, colourful pictures hung on the wall, and books were scattered across the carpet. The bed was made, but crumpled, some clothes she had picked out to wear still lying on the bed. Her computer was on her desk, along with her mobile phone. Loki picked it up and fiddled with it. The screen lit up and a picture of Louie and an older woman who looked much like her appeared on it. Putting it down, Loki let his fingers drift over her books.

Many of them were he own, although he could see a few that were Tony's in the mix. There were also a few books on Norse mythology. Loki rifled through one and smirked. Well. Someone had been attempting to conduct some research. Although most of it seemed wrong - Loki hardly remembered siring any children. He sat on the bed, kicking off his shoes, and leaned back, fully engrossed in the torrid love affair of Thor and Sif. Oh, he should show this to Thor. Maybe even Jane. The sheets smelled of Louie and for once in the last few hours, Loki felt comfortable and warm.

When he awoke once more, strangely well rested, he could faintly hear the traffic in the distance. He put together that it was still quite early in the morning. Too early. It was then that he realised that this was not his room. It was not his bed. And he was not alone. Something shifted beside him, something warm. Hesitantly he looked down.

Curled against his side was Louie, her hair still in a braid and her jacket still on. Only one shoe was on her socked feet. The other, he realised, was buried under him, digging into his spine. He pulled it out and dropped it onto the carpeted floor. Louie mumbled softly and curled into him further, her fingers tightening on the fabric of his shirt. Loki swallowed. This was not good. This was most definitely not good. As delighted as he was that Louie hadn't decided to spend the night in Barton's room (the thought made his skin crawl), the way she was pressed up against him was... worrisome.

She smelled faintly of oranges and more so of dust and sweat. Only Loki wasn't finding it overly unappealing. Perhaps he could simply pull away and leave? As if she'd read his mind, Louie put the other shoe clad foot firmly over his legs, almost straddling his waist. Her hand drifted low on his chest. Loki groaned softly. Not good at all.

The shoe clad leg moved lower and Louie stretched against him, sighing.

Oh, for Odin's sake.

He wriggled slightly, trying to ease away.

"Stop fussing, Jesus," muttered Louie thickly and Loki almost jumped out of his skin. He held his breath, hoping he was imagining things.

"I can feel you worrying and it's not letting me sleep. So stop," she said, her voice still laced with sleep and annoyance.

"I thought you'd be the first to flee this room in surprise," said Loki, gathering his wits.

"Give me time," she murmured, "once I'm fully awake and back in my senses, maybe I will." Loki found himself hoping that moment would never come, but he'd be damned if he ever said that out loud. He opened his mouth to make a snarky retort.

"Don't say another word," Louie threatened, her nose buried into his shoulder. "Just shut up and sleep." Loki's mouth snapped close and he pondered his options. On the one side he was still annoyed at her (not at her and the archer's involvement mind you, just a blanket disapproval; Barton was far too old for her and too short for her, not that he was saying that Louise needed tall men, it was just that he – oh, shut up, shut up now, you idiot) and he knew come sensible hours of the morning, Louie would go as red as a tomato and run away with her tail in between her legs. On the other hand, he was tired and he hadn't slept better in ages. Leaving didn't seem very welcoming.

And so, he reached over and tugged off Louie's other shoe, taking a swift kick in the shin for interrupting her slumber with as little wincing as possible and settled back. In no time at all, he was fast asleep.

Louie POV

It was almost five in the morning when Clint drove back into the Tower's garage. He shook both Seb and I awake and saw me through to our floor before heading off to Tony with Seb in tow. I didn't want them to go alone - Tony was going to massacre the boy, I just knew it.

I entered my room, fully intent on sleeping for the next five years and groaned. There, asleep on my bed, was the last person I wanted to see after tonight's course of events.

"For God's sake," I grumbled. I was too tired to care. I flopped onto the bed, making a half hearted attempt to take off my shoes and drifting off at once. I'm fairly certain that I woke up once more in the early hours of the morning, but I don't particularly remember. When I did rejoin the land of the living however, Loki was still there, hand splayed across my hips.

"To wake or not to wake, that is the question," I said softly. Loki was still fast asleep, his breathing slow and steady and I was in no mood to poke him awake. I stared curiously. He seemed so… peaceful. I'd never realized until this moment that Loki's face always held a guarded or smooth expression. Now however, his expression was serene and relaxed. I brushed a lock of his hair from his face, tracing the shell of his ear. His eyes opened at once.

"Um," I said.

"Articulate as ever." I rubbed my eyes, still too sleepy to be embarrassed.

"What did I say or do last night?"

"Nothing except just force me to stay." Loki smirked. "You're strangely compliant when you're sleepy." I felt my face heat up.

"I guess it's too late to get all worked up about it, huh?"

"Far too late," said Loki, his lips quirking before frowning softly, "I'm surprised you came back to your own room after your, ah, date."

"Yeah," I bit my lip, avoiding his gaze, "About that..." Loki raised an eyebrow curiously. I took in a deep breath.

"I lied," I said in a rush, "Clint took me out on my first mission." Loki gaped. He stared at me for a long moment. When he didn't say anything after a full minute of staring, I tentatively reached for him in my mind. Barriers slammed up against me and I winced.

"I guess I deserved that."

"Why did you lie to me?" The hurt in his voice was evident. I stared at his collar.

"Clint told me not to tell anyone. But I suppose considering what happened last night, everyone will be updated soon." This was clearly the wrong thing to say, because Loki's eyes immediately dulled.

"And if nothing had happened last night," he said slowly, "you wouldn't have told me about this at all, would you?" I kept quiet.

"Natasha knew," he said absently, eyes fixed on the wall, "that's why she seemed confused when I told her you went off with Barton."

"It's different for them," I said shifting before blanching, "Wait, you told Natasha what, exactly?"

"That you and Barton went off to wine and dine and later, possibly procreate," he snapped. My face burned.

"She is going," I whispered, "to murder me." I got no answer from Loki.

"How is it different for them?" he pressed, eyes still fixed on the wall. I shrugged before answering.

"Well, they've been partners for a really long time and I'm pretty sure as a SHEILD agent, she'd be informed of where her partner and friend goes."

"Of course. And we are neither partners nor friends?" asked Loki blankly. I opened my mouth, hesitantly. What was the status of my relationship with Loki? Were we even friends? I mean, sure, we got along well enough, especially when he wasn't behaving like a crabby old man. We even shared the same love of Shakespeare, which had lead to several days of happy arguing about which character was our favourite. But after Clint's story… I was beginning to wonder whether the Loki I knew was truly Loki at all. The Asgardian in question drew in a sharp breath.

"Very well. I understand." I blinked. What? Oh!

"Oh no, I didn't mean, I'm sor-"

"Don't," he said cutting across my apology, "circumstances are the only reason we're attached to each other. It is not necessary to pretend to like me or to be my friend. I certainly won't. I don't need your friendship and I certainly don't need your pity." He disentangled himself from the bed sheets and got up, picking his shoes off the floor.

"That's not – I didn't mean – Clint told me what you did," I said, ignoring the stab of hurt I felt at being shoved off. "What you did to him." Loki's throat worked, his green eyes flickering.

"Well then, I suppose you know what I'm capable of," he said finally, before walking out. The door clicked close behind him and I stared at it for the longest time, trying not to feel terribly empty.

"We're not friends." I muttered, scrunching my nose. "We are not friends."

A/N: *Whistles innocently*

I'll make it up in the next chapter, I swear.

That's it for now folks, if you like it, do leave a review and let me know what you think :D

Also, many thanks to the favourites and follows – the numbers are still rising!

25/07/2015: BIG GRAMMAR EDIT

Until next time,

Much love,

xo