Hey guys! I know it's been a minute. Lots of things happened. Adulthood mostly. I'm not gonna bore you with the details. I've had this chapter - unfinished - sitting on my hard drive for a while. Finally got around to finishing it. I of course had to re-read it and it's solidified the fact that I'll need to re-write this fic when I have all the chapters up which truthfully I can't give you guys a timeline for although I do promise that this fic will not be abandoned just that updates will be sparse.
Hope that doesn't chase you off.
Loki, Peter, and Lauren stood still in the communal kitchen. Loki tapped his fingers on the counter, looking unbothered by the new arrival, while Peter stood still, unsure how to react to the Norse god's presence. Lauren's eyes flitted between the two. They were all frozen into place until the oven timer rang. The sound caused Loki's arm to twitch, and suddenly his hands were webbed to the counter.
The quick succession of events made Lauren curse. Her mind raced with damage control ideas, only to be broken out of her thoughts by Loki calling the webs fascinating. His reaction made her sigh in resignation. She just left him be and checked on the pie she was baking. She prayed that food would mitigate whatever shitstorm was about to occur. Meanwhile, Loki kept shooting Peter question after question about his webs and abilities rendering the poor boy speechless.
"Loki, breathe. How is Peter supposed to answer your questions if you don't give him time to answer?"
"Ah, apologies, Spiderling. Firstly, it is supposed to be a spider web, correct? As I recall, no other web is as strong as a spider's."
"Uh, yeah." Peter stammered out, "Ms. Lauren, are ghosts real now?"
"Fortunately, Peter, that isn't a ghost."
"Didn't he die?"
"He faked it, apparently."
Lauren's statement caused Peter to give Loki a wide-eyed look.
"I… I'm torn between thinking it's cool and mean. Like, how could you do that to your brother?"
"Adoptive." Loki chimed in.
"Right, that. Uhm, so why are you here? Mr. Loki, sir?"
"Allegedly, he finds me fascinating," Lauren answered, " and you just gave him another reason to hang around."
"Okay?" Peter was understandably skeptical but at least he looked more relaxed. "Ms. Lauren, food please? I think I just gave myself a headache."
Lauren told the boy to help himself with whatever was lying around besides the pie because it was still too hot. There was an awkward silence while Peter made himself a platter of food.
"So, how long before I get free?" Loki asked as he tried to unstick his hands from the counter.
"Oh, about two hours?"
Speaking of time, Lauren glanced at the clock. It was still too early for dinner, but it was late enough that there was a risk of people coming into the communal any time now.
"Loki, if you get caught by anyone else, don't expect me to cover for you." She warned Loki indifferently.
Loki waved her off, at least he tried to, but as his hands were still stuck to the counter, he ended up just wiggling his fingers.
"Mr. Loki, If you didn't want people to recognize you, you should probably lose the outfit." Peter received a raised eyebrow in response, "Wasn't that your outfit the last time you were around these parts? I mean, I was younger back then, but there are still videos of the thing all over the internet, so yeah."
Loki took his word for it and switched his clothes into a 3-piece suit that Peter immediately vetoed saying it looked too similar to his outfit in Germany. Loki's answer to that was to remove his coat leaving him in his slacks, dress shirt, and vest. Peter studied him for a minute and went to fold Loki's sleeves up to his elbows.
"What do you think Miss Lauren? Could he pass as a New Yorker?"
"If he could do something about the hair - maybe."
Apparently, his hair was off the table so with his clothes approved, Loki continued to ask Peter about his web fluid and what else he was able to do. It allowed Lauren to finish up the rest of her preparations so she'll just have to stir-fry all the stuff together. As she kept an ear out while the two conversed, she finished preparing her dinner ingredients. Meanwhile, she noticed Peter kept glancing back at her. At first, she thought that it was because he was just checking if his continued conversation with Loki was okay and let him be. But after Loki caught him stopping himself from addressing Lauren twice, he decided to call him out on it.
"Peter, you make a great impression of a fish."
Lauren looked up from where she was cleaning up.
"Uhm, so, Miss Lauren, you're a girl." Peter stammered out, earning him an unimpressed look from Lauren. "What kind of stuff do you like?"
"Girls aren't all created the same, Peter. What's this about?"
Peter explained that he had a crush on someone, but she was upset with him because he decided to quit the decathlon team so he could spend more time patrolling as Spiderman a.k.a. his internship with Stark Industries. to which Lauren candidly told him, " If she's upset with you for having other things that don't revolve around her, you're probably better off killing off your feelings for her. Or you know, keep it as a late-night fantasy."
"And this comes from experience?" Loki teased her with a mischievous grin.
"Well, Ms. Lauren does get along with Mr. Sergeant Barnes very well." Seeing Lauren's disbelief made him quickly add, "Or at least that's what Mr. Stark tells me."
"Bwisit."
Peter sensed her irritation and quickly tried to change the topic.
"Uhm, so, Mr. Loki, sir. I really appreciate your curiosity and all, but should you really be walking around undisguised?"
Just as Peter finished talking, the elevator dinged telling them that someone was coming. Peter's eyes widened in panic, only to find that in Loki's place was a black cat with green eyes. His paws were still stuck to the counter.
"What's with the cat?" James greets them as he exits the elevator making a beeline toward the cat.
Lauren hesitated to answer. She knew James could be trusted, but how does one explain that a supposedly deceased Norse god decided to follow you around because you were 'amusing'?
"He suddenly popped up. I was too engrossed in cooking. The little guy wanted some of the food but thankfully Peter came in just in time to stop it."
"Huh, could he be one of the strays that roam around the Tower? You know I've been feeding and petting this white cat I've seen a lot. I wonder what Stark thinks about pets."
Just as Lauren is about to start to admit the truth, Thor comes in like thunder.
"Brother? I know that's you! I know those eyes anywhere!"
Loki-cat hisses and kicks at Thor's grabby hands when he tries to pet him.
"Better a cat's claw than a dagger I guess."
Peter and Lauren stare at each other with dinner plates as eyes while James watches Thor interact with the cat in confusion.
"What do you mean those eyes?" James – still staring confusedly at Thor and the cat – asked Thor who was still trying to pet Loki who gave up kicking Thor with his hind legs and settled with growling loudly as his front legs were still stuck to the counter.
"Look, his eyes are a deep green. Just like my brother's!"
"You do know that green isn't a rare eye color for cats right?"
"So, Peter are you staying for dinner?" Lauren interrupted but observed James who was still watching Thor talk to the cat as if it were actually his brother.
Peter made his way to Lauren's side to whisper. "Should we let Mr. Thor keep talking to Mr. Loki-Cat like that?"
"I honestly don't know Peter. But it prevents chaos from happening I'm all for it."
"Right," he whispered, "Oh right dinner!" Peter quickly exclaimed as he heard the whirring of the elevator coming up. "If you have room for me? I'd love to stay for dinner Ms. Lauren, ma'am"
The two blatantly ignored Thor talking to Loki as the rest of the team started to come up. James' confused look slowly turned into concern as Thor continued to talk to the black cat despite it still growling at his affection. His staring was quickly noted by anyone who came in and soon enough the rest of the team was watching Thor in concern.
Peter and Lauren decided to ignore the crowd and started to set up the dining table. Soon enough they were surrounded by the team who all had the same question.
"Is Thor okay?" Steve asked Lauren
"He has been acting weird the last few times he's visited," Tony noted.
"Uh, supposedly his brother died again? Or at least he thinks he did?" Lauren covered
"So he's just coping?" Clint concluded.
"I don't know? I haven't talked to him much." Lauren shrugged continuing to set up dinner to avoid further questions.
Deciding that Clint's conclusion was correct, the team shrugged and sat down in their respective places.
"Hey, Mr. Thor, sir?" Peter called out "Dinner time!"
Thor called out his confirmation and proceeded to tell Loki-cat that he'd bring him food and sit with him so he wasn't lonely. This earned the Thunder god a hiss from the black cat. He ignored his brother's protest and started to plate food for the cat as well as for himself. Just as Thor finished plating their food, Loki-cat's paws were freed from Peter's web fluid, and quickly made his way towards Thor's empty seat perching himself on it and sticking his head up mockingly at Thor.
Thor then laughed it off, set the plate close to the edge for easy access, and took the next empty seat.
The team collectively decided to just shrug it off.
After dinner, the team went their ways with Lauren's roommates and the two Norse gods – one still in his cat form - staying behind.
"Hey Thor, how about a drink?" Steve offered. Lauren didn't know what prompted the offer but it was a good thing that he did. She'd rather not keep more secrets with her roommates while she's still stressed about her friends. The alcohol would help her gain courage as well as relax her nerves.
They made their way to their assigned floor with the three men talking about what they'd be drinking. While Lauren was quite tempted to drink herself into a hangover, she knew it wasn't a good idea. At least not until Steve was told that the black cat that Thor was currently holding was Loki. Not to mention that it'd worry them more as her last episode wasn't too long ago.
Lauren started to make her way to their kitchen to prepare their drinks but Steve offered to do it instead. She already prepares dinner for the whole team daily so fixing up their drinks for the night was the least he could do as thanks. Although Steve worded it more sternly much to James' amusement.
Lauren sat down, not giving much thought to where she ended up sitting. Once she sat down and allowed herself to relax, she started to feel how tired she was after everything that happened that day. The only positive is that with Loki hanging around as a cat, her mind is focusing on how to reveal to Steve and James that the cat is Loki.
While her mind was occupied, Steve, James, and Thor chatted for a while, she didn't even register what they were talking about or if they were even speaking to her until James nudged her to catch her attention.
"You ok there? You haven't spoken for a bit."
Loki-cat looked at her, she didn't know why – cuz he's currently a cat for god's sake – but she just knew that he was teasing her.
"Oh shut up Loki." She snapped and then gasped when she realized what she just said causing the two super soldiers to whip their heads toward Thor – who was currently on the floor – apparently pushed by Loki, now in his human form.
"Good evening, gentlemen." Loki greeted the two unaffected by their tense stances.
"Brother! I knew it was you!" Thor exclaimed putting Loki into a bear hug.
Steve and James decided to turn to Lauren for answers. She couldn't help but feel a deep pang in her heart, thinking their stares were accusatory.
"I can explain." She started, "Well, actually I can't really explain why but…"
"What she means is that she is logically aware of how dangerous I can be but she's banking on the fact that everyone in the building is skilled enough to handle me if I do something but since I promised her no harm she's holding me to my word," Loki explained for her.
"Lauren!" Steve chided, "While I thank you for your faith in us this guy is still dangerous!"
"I know that! But what can I actually do against him? I'm just a civilian who has above-average martial arts skills at the moment. What chance do I have against the Norse god of magic and chaos?"
"She has a point, Steve. No matter how much she can keep up with us in training she's still a civilian."
"Not to mention I doubt that even if I had my gun on me it'd do anything." Lauren huffed.
Steve continued to stare at Loki sizing him up. James did the same though he was more subtle about it opting to keep an eye on Lauren.
"Your eyes," Steve realized "they're green."
"Yes! His eyes are incredibly green, it's how I learned to distinguish him from other snakes when we were children!"
Loki tensed at Steve's realization only noticeable by the way his jaws tensed up.
"They were blue when..."
"I'd thank you not to pick at old scars, Captain."
Steve narrowed his eyes at him but allowed his stance to relax. "This doesn't mean I'm letting you off."
Lauren let herself fall back onto the couch at his statement. 'That's one less thing to worry about.' She leaned back onto the chair allowing her mind to blank while she took deep breaths – 3 in, hold for 3, 3 out. She wasn't sure how long she was at it but she kept at it until her phone rang.
Her eyes snapped open. She felt like her hands weren't moving fast enough with the urgency she felt that carved a hole in her stomach. She's been waiting, she put her phone's notification on full volume to prevent herself from holding onto her phone like a lifeline.
She stared at the notification, a text message from an unknown number, that started with 0081, Japan's country code. It was the confirmation she didn't want to get. If they were contacting her through other unofficial channels it meant that shit's hit the fan. She took a fortifying breath before she opened the message.
Thread. Kaku. Last gig went FUBAR. FF MIA. Do-not-call.
"FUUUUCK." Lauren re-read the message, and let out a round of expletives that lasted a minute long. "Fuck. Bwisit. Hngg." She groaned, running out of steam. She dropped her phone on the coffee table and cradled her head in her hands as she leaned forward.
"Lady Lauren?" Thor queried.
"Sush, gimme a minute."
Lauren sighed – a deep sigh followed by another round of mumbled curses.
"Loki. Cat – now. Thor, not a word to the team but I need you to tell them to go to the communal."
The two couldn't help but follow the tone of authority that she used. They left in a hurry, Loki trailing after his brother, leaving her with the two super soldiers who she just knew were looking at her with concern.
"Remember when I told you guys that I used to help my friends plan to steal motorcycle parts and what shenanigans we did?" Lauren took a deep breath before continuing. "My friends, mostly Iris are still at it although she has a new crew. I… consult when I can, they're like thieves for hire. And when she recruited her new crew we agreed to a protocol in case shit goes FUBAR, and that's to call me in if shit's still the same in 4 weeks and it's been 4 weeks since they last contacted Greez and Shika just confirmed that their last gig went FUBAR and I don't know what to do!" She rambled, her breathing starting to pick up
"Ren, I need you to breathe with me. Come on – in, two, three…" Bucky prompted her, since when was he Bucky? James, that's James, there are already one too many deer-themed men in her life.
Noticing that his voice wasn't reaching her, James decided to put her hand over his heart and gently took hold of the sides of her neck to get her to look at him while he exaggerated his breathing. Meanwhile, Steve went off to grab her some water along with a bowl of ice chips to help ground her better once she got control of her breathing.
"Out, two, three, four. You with us Lauren?" James called out to her once her breathing stabilized.
"Here, hold this in your hand." Steve offered the chilled bowl of ice.
"Sorry. I'm sorry… it's just, I don't have the resources to help them at the moment. I can't afford to fly to Japan right now."
"Did you forget who we are?" James chided her.
"I can't…"
"Ah-ah. Complete that sentence and I'll tell Buck." Steve cut her off.
As ridiculous as it was his threat shut her up.
"Now, you obviously were set on asking for help from the team. You even got Thor and Loki to follow your whims. So getting the rest of us on board with your 'shenanigans' will be a piece of cake."
Another deep sigh from Lauren, but this time her eyes shone with determination.
Seeing her face shift, James pulled her up from her seat and handed her some water while Steve brought the bowl of ice to the kitchen.
"Time to get the Avengers involved in some Ganju Kids shenanigans."
Now this is the start of the climax. According to my notes, there are still 3 more chapters after this depending on how you guys react to the last chapter I have outlined I might keep adding chapters but as I said, no promises on when that'd be.
