"You're supposed to be dead!"

"So I've heard. Can we please move on?"

"Sure, you can explain why and how you are here." The Black Widow was much more straight forward than in the past.

"Bruce Banner broke his oath."

"I did not take an oath."

"You did not keep your word." Loki snapped. Bruce sighed before continuing.

"Well, I've told you how Hulk took the wheel for two years in Earth time. Sakaar was-time was odd. Anyway, Loki sorta kinda saved us. And then these two" He gestured towards Loki and Thor

"were having issues. There is a lot of history by the way. Next thing I know, I'm their... therapist? Couple weeks later, he dies, though he didn't. Long story short, Loki has been on Svartalfheim this entire time, I found him, he combined me and Hulk and made me promise, well no, more of threatened me so that I wouldn't tell anyone where he was."

"You knew my brother was alive?" Came a quiet whisper from next to Loki. It was both accusing and broken. It almost made Loki regret staying away. Almost.

"I'm sorry Thor."

"This is all getting spectacularly redundant. Yes, I'm alive. Yes, Bruce knew. Can we please skip to the part where Tony builds the time machine?"

"So that you can go back and win New York? No way!"

"First off, that is not how time travel works. Secondly, I did win."

"Umm, no. We beat you."

"Please. You think you would have bested me had I not let you?" There were several 'yes's and a couple 'no's.

Time to own up to your name, Silver-tongue.

"I believe you have a saying, correct?"

"Yeah, us humans have a bunch of those." Loki shot Tony a glare before counting three fingers.

"Motive, means and opportunity."

"Your motive was wanting to be Thor's equal, your means was the Chituari army and your opportunity was SHIELD working with the Tesseract." Natasha supplied.

"Wrong. Thor, question. When have I ever chosen brute force over magic? That said, when have I ever chosen to use other weapons besides the ones I made or mother gave me?" The god of thunder had no answer.

"The Chituari, though large in numbers are terrible fighters. Besides, if I truly wanted to take over Earth, I would take out the leader of the country with the best Navy, disguise myself as said leader and slowly change things. Nobody would be any the wiser."

"You do know that in the United States of America, presidential term is four years, eight tops."

"Ah, but you forget, I can simply shapeshift into the new president."

"Also, wouldn't you still be killing people?"

"Take out does not necessarily mean to kill. I could wipe their memory, or rather cast barriers around the person's mind and strand them on a different realm. In fact, that's exactly what I did with my father. Which, is another way I could have taken over your planet. I was king of all the Nine Realms, Midgard wouldn't have stood a chance." Alarmed, most of the people in the room stared at Thor for affirmation.

"That is true."

"Opportunity. That part is a bit trickier. Yes, it was because of the Tesseract, though it was also because who was in the facility. Clint Barton and Erik Selvig. Motive. Why attack Earth? Why would I want to rule Earth? The weakest of the Nine Realms. You blame me for the destruction of your world, yet I ask of you, what would have happened had I not attacked Earth?"

"On Titan, Thanos knew you, why do you think that is?" Nebula asked Tony.

"Within a few minutes of merely being in proximity to the Mind stone, you were at each other's throats. Can you imagine being with it for days, weeks, months? I resisted, at first. He said that I could be useful. I went along with it, trying to figure out what he planned, what he wanted. He felt that he failed his people, so he tried to make up for it by slaughtering half of life.

He said the universe would be grateful to him. He assumed he could control six Infinity stones. I spat in his face and said he would never be a god. He locked me up in a cell deep underground, near the Sanctuary's core. The heat makes you see things, hallucinate. I believe there were other prisoners, I am not sure. We were fed rotten Chituari meat; they were cannibals.

When I was brought back to the surface, he asked if saw truth. Again, I spat in his face, saying he would never be god. Again, he left me in the hot cell beneath the surface. Nebula warned me that in the end, we all kneel to Thanos. I asked if she had any siblings. Are entire friendship was built upon our relationships with our older siblings. Eventually, Thanos tired of my stubbornness. 'Enough', he said. 'Perhaps you can be persuaded by other methods.'

Ebony Maw and Cull Obsidian had their ways of causing pain, as did Proxima Midnight and Corvus Glaive. Nebula and Gamora were the worst. With the others, I fought back, to an extent. Gamora was the sister of my sister and Nebula- do you know what it's like to be tortured by your only friend in the world? The only person who truly understood you? I didn't blame her of course, she had no choice.

When all else failed, he locked me up with the Mind stone. Had he actually used it on me, I would have been under his complete control. Simply being in it's presence, I could guard my mind, if only slightly. However, I saw an opportunity, an escape. I would pretend to do as he asked and attack Earth. I would double cross him, losing him not only the Space stone, but the Mind stone as well. Odin would execute me and at Space would be taken to Asgard so that we did not have to rely on Dark Magic. I would assemble a team of six, each person representing an Infinity stone.

The Captain had a pure soul, hence he was the Soul stone. Tony Stark had a lot of influence over the people, a lot of power, hence, he was the Power stone. Lifetimes ago, Thor was worshipped as a god, preserved in legends throughout time, hence, Time. Natasha Romanoff was a spy, she has an analytical mind and is manipulative, hence, Mind. Clint Barton lived multiple lives, he lived as an agent, but also as a family man. He had two different realities, hence, Reality. Bruce Banner hides a hulking beast, no pun intended, inside a seemingly small, harmless body, hence Space.

Like the Infinity stones, you are strongest together. It was only a matter of actually cooperating. Thanos used the stones to destroy the stones, just like Zemo and Wanda used the Avengers to destroy the Avengers." Before anyone could ask how Loki knew that, he added,

"I was king of Asgard, I kept myself up to date. The Infinity stones are easily turned against each other because they are all dominate beings. Their greatest strength is their greatest weakness, just like the Avengers. You are strong together, so strong, that that strength turns against itself in a desperate attempt to establish order.

However, the Infinity stones can be united with the correct gauntlet. I had to be that gauntlet. Had I not attacked when I did, Thanos would have sent somebody else and you would have lost."

"I think you underestimate us." Tony bit out.

"I do, do I? You were assembled for one reason; protect Earth against Thanos. You failed. So no, I do not believe I underestimating you in the slightest."

"And where were you when he attacked us?"

"I was healing after fighting Thanos and getting my neck snapped."

"So, that wasn't an illusion?"

"Of course it wasn't an illusion! Illusions dissolve at the touch! Honestly, Thor, if you had ever bothered to learn the simplest magic, you would know that. Oh wait, you did know that because on Sakaar, you kept throwing things at me."

"Oh. Right." There was a long silence as the Avengers soaked in what Loki had said.

"So, let me get this straight, you were tortured, we all represent an Infinity stone and you are a good guy now?" Loki, Thor, Nebula and Bruce nodded affirmative.

"Okay. It's not the strangest thing that has ever happened to us. I'mma build that time machine now." With that Tony Stark, Rocket and Bruce left to go to another room.

"If you even think about betraying us-" Loki smirked in remembrance of that line.

"You'll kill me? I doubt you will be first in line."

A/N: So sorry that this is so dialogue heavy. Hopefully next chapter will be less dialogue. Thanks for reading!