Sweet and Pudding 1x1

[pudding]

Tony looked at Natasha when his arm was grabbed and she started to pull him away. Seriously? Just when things were getting good, the hypnotized red head was spoiling his fun. All because Loki got a bit tipsy and wanted to rest. Wait, that was it! "Rest?" he asked, pulling his arm away quickly. "If you want to rest, you can go lay down on a bed. Wouldn't that be a lot better than just sitting here?" He stared at Loki as the thought took its time being registered and contemplated. After a while, Loki reluctantly nodded.

"If that wouldn't be too much trouble," he replied softly. Tony smiled and looked at Natasha and Thor.

"See? I'm just trying to help. I'll take him upstairs, if that's alright with the two of you. There are a ton of guest bedrooms so he can be a lot more comfortable there. And the rest of us can keep drinking down here."

[Sweet_Wyvern]

Natasha saw through it right away. "Sir, he's trying to get you alone," she pointed out, releasing Tony though she glowered at him. "SHIELD is most likely on the way, with the intention of detaining you." Thor looked hurt. "Man of Iron.. does the lady speak truly?" He asked with a frown. He didn't want to believe it, but if it was true.. he was going to be furious.

[pudding]

"Of course not," Tony replied, looking genuinely offended. "But if you think that way, why don't we all just stay together? If SHIELD does show up, we'll know and you won't have to worry. We can handle it while you rest."

Loki just nodded and slowly laid down on the couch. Unable to keep his concentration any longer, he let out a sigh and just let go. The illusion rapidly dissolved and he was reduced to his real form. He just wanted to sleep at this point. "Just... don't look," he muttered as he looked away.

[Sweet_Wyvern]

Both people he was controlling averted their gazes. "It is not a reason to be ashamed, Brother," Thor mumbled quietly, staring at his feet. Natasha was silent after Tony smooth talked Loki into staying, silently cursing. Loki was getting led into a trap, she just knew it.

[pudding]

While the others looked away, Tony just stared. Loki wasn't looking anyway since he was facing the other direction and the other two were both looking away so it wasn't like anyone could tell. Except maybe JARVIS. More importantly, were those horns? Practically everything had changed about Loki except his hair and general body structure. Yeah, there was no way he was letting SHIELD take him away. Even if it was dangerous and generally stupid, Tony needed to know everything he could about everything. It was a part of his know-it-all nature.

"Ashamed? Why be ashamed? I'm a huge fan of the blue you. It's like a smurf but taller and with adorable little horns." He turned to Thor since Loki didn't seem in a talkative mood. "Do you turn blue too? Or are you orange like an oompa loompa instead?"

[Sweet_Wyvern]

The confusion on Thor's face was almost laughable. He wasn't as smart as Loki, so he couldn't just process it all and ignore it. "A.. what?" He said after a moment, shaking his head and glancing at Loki. "Nay, this is what I look like. Loki is.. well, he is adopted, but my brother nonetheless, and this is what he looks like," he answered, wanting to defend him.

[pudding]

Adopted. So that was two alien species. One looked remarkably human while the other did not, at least in a natural state. "Really?" he asked as he glanced at Loki. He wasn't moving, just listening to them talking. "So what is he? I mean, he doesn't look like a monster to me. He just looks blue. I wasn't aware being blue made you bad. I'm not a psychiatrist but it seems to me like he's got some psychological issues. Can you tell me why?"

[Sweet_Wyvern]

Thor wasn't sure what a psychiatrist was, but Tony sounded genuine. Maybe he was trying to help! That thought made him slightly more cheerful. "Well, it is not really my place to be spreading such things, but I will explain as best I can. For a long time, my people were at war with the Jotnar, or the Frost Giants. They came to your planets eons ago and caused what you may know as the first ice age. We came to you, wish I suppose is why you called us gods, and fought them off, eventually beating them as our father bested their king. However, what he did not tell us was that he took a child from Jotunheim, his intent being to use said child in order to unite the two kingdoms with peace when he grew older. We grew up with tales of frost giants being monsters, so naturally.." he trailed off, shaking his head. "But I do not believe it. Loki is my brother, and I care for him," he said loyally.

[pudding]

Well that small story went against nearly everything he knew about the world. But the evidence was before his eyes so he would just have to adjust. That still didn't explain what Loki was doing on Earth or how he had found out he was a Frost Giant. Immediately, Tony frowned and looked back at Loki again. "But he's tiny," he blurted out. "Like, seriously tiny. Is he like a Frost Midgit since Giant doesn't seem appropriate." Alright, so Loki was taller than he was. But that didn't warrant the term Giant. The form on the couch trembled before Loki slowly sat upright and stared at Tony. Despite everything that had happened, the blunt comment from Tony had managed to put a smile on his face and he was laughing quietly. But his expression quickly turned sour again when he turned to look at Thor.

"That is not you talking," he said softly as he looked at the staff leaning against a wall nearby. "Neither of you... In this room, the only one who is not lying is Tony Stark."

"Well, I wouldn't say that," Tony replied softly but leaned in closer. What was this about?

[Sweet_Wyvern]

"Well, my father cast him out because-" Thor was cut off as they continued talking. He frowned in irritation, opening his mouth to continue when Loki spoke. The words died in his throat. "Brother..?" He asked quietly, scooting closer. "There is no one here but me.. And I am not lying. That all truly happened but you are still my brother." Natasha quirked an eyebrow but remained silent.

[pudding]

Loki raised a hand and made a few rather wild gestures as he spoke. "No, that is not true," he replied. He stumbled to his feet and shambled over to where the staff was laying on the ground. He lifted it up and turned to face Thor, now gesturing with the pointy end of the staff instead of his hand. "This... thing I have created has altered your mind. Her's as well. You may think what you are saying is the truth but that is not what you really think." He took a deep breath and shook his head. "It cannot be."

[Sweet_Wyvern]

Thor's brow furrowed while Natasha narrowed her eyes. "No! You did not.. it's.. that is irrelevant!" He insisted, forgetting Tony was even in the room. "The cube showed me truth! It did not force me to love you, Loki, that was my own choice!" The female assassin looked slightly puzzled as well. It wasn't a lie that he was all powerful.

[pudding]

"It is not!" Loki roared, slamming the blunt end of the spear into the ground. The blue orb glowed brighter as he struggled to stay calm. When he looked at Thor again, pain filled his features. "You should have stayed in Asgard," he said with a shake of his head. "You could be with your friends, celebrating and partying. If I wasn't around, you would be king instead of banished. How could you possibly love me when it's all my fault?"

[Sweet_Wyvern]

"IT IS NOT YOUR FAULT!" Thor shouted, grabbing Loki by the shoulders and shaking him once. "Can you not see that I want to be here? Must you constantly shun my closeness? I did not WANT to be in Asgard, I did not want to be king, not if that meant you were trapped here alone! I will not blame you for being alive, nor will I blame you for our father's secrecy! If you were not around, I would be sorely lonely," Thor finished quietly, blue eyes glazed.

[pudding]

Loki's red eyes widened when Thor shook him. That hadn't helped his headache in the slightest. He turned his head aside and avoided looking at Thor as he spoke of how he did not want to be king and he would be lonely. "I was always lonely," Loki replied. "I never wanted to be king either." He shook his head as he held the staff close to his chest. "Please... just let me be. What you think you are feeling are not your real feelings. This staff has warped your mind. Just let me be."

[Sweet_Wyvern]

Thor clenched his fists angrily, jaw working as he tried to come up with something else to say. When he could not, he turned and stormed off, punching a hole in the wall as he left. Well, apparently mortal hands were weaker seeing as he was bleeding- not that he cared. Loki was rejecting him! It broke his heart, in ways that made him want to curl up and die (most of them were the Tesseract's doing, not all). Natasha expected she was going to be told her thoughts were lies as well, strangely feeling the same heartache.

[pudding]

Tony watched the fallout between Loki and Thor quietly. After Thor stormed off, Loki raised a hand to his mouth and turned away. Comforting wasn't something Tony was that good at but he walked up to Loki anyway and patted a hand on his shoulder, deciding to ignore Natasha for now. He wasn't hurting Loki anyway so she shouldn't be too annoyed. "Hey there, Princess," he said as he reached over and gently removed the staff from Loki's grip. Loki didn't say anything as Tony guided him back to the couch, only laid down on it awkwardly. Tony stared down at Loki before turning to Natasha. He opened his mouth to speak before closing it. Ah, whatever. She'd keep him safe. Turning, he quickly strode after Thor, making a mental note to have someone fix that wall. He couldn't have a fist mark there forever. "Thor? Big guy? Come back here before you break more of my ."

[Sweet_Wyvern]

Thor kept walking, doing his best to ignore Tony. "I am not the best of company right now, Man of Iron. You should not be with me," he growled, barely glancing over his shoulder. His angry stampede was slowing however, his clenched fists relaxing.

Natasha merely stood where she had been left, watching Loki carefully.

[pudding]

"I usually don't listen when people tell me I shouldn't do something." Tony replied as he caught up with the angry god. He stared up at him then glanced back to where they had left Natasha and Loki. "Look, I get that you two are having family issues. But it's not helping anyone right now. So how about we talk about it before you punch another hole in my wall? And before SHIELD shows up because they're really pissed at Loki right now."

[Sweet_Wyvern]

"Do I look to be in a gaming mood?" Thor snapped, but his expression wavered. What Tony was suggesting wasn't possible. He knew that now. It was hopeless. "Loki does not need me anymore.. Nor was he ever.. My brother.." He got a hopeless, heartbroken look on his face for a split second before he collapsed.

 

"Sir..?" Natasha tried, biting her tongue. He was in distress, so she needed to do something, right? The Tesseract had given her a change of heart. It wasn't exactly love, but more like adoration. She just didn't show it.

[pudding]

"Calm down, big fella," Tony said, raising his hands in a pacifying manner. He swore softly when he suddenly collapsed to the ground. "Jarvis!" He yelled, panic filling his voice. "Prepare my lab. And don't tell SHIELD about any of this!" He took one more look at the fallen god before he ran back towards where Loki and Natasha were.

 

Loki glanced up at Natasha and reluctantly raised himself to a sitting position. Looking back, he was quite upset with himself for snapping at Thor. But his senses were rapidly growing more and more confused and he was becoming more adgitated as time passed. Damn alcohol. "What?" He asked before Tony burst back into the room.

"Thor just collapsed," he said. "I need your help lifting him up to get him to a medical table and figure out what is wrong with him." Loki was on his feet in an instant, his face unable to mask the concern he was feeling. He started forward before he stumbled over to the bar and leaned against it. His motor skills were impaired. "Go help," he said, motioning to Natasha. "Do whatever Stark asks of you. Just help my brother."

[Sweet_Wyvern]

Natasha moved to catch Loki, but luckily he held himself up so that he didn't fall. Giving a sharp nod, she strode past Tony and down the hall he had come from. "Where is he?" She asked, but her question was answered for her as she turned the corner and was presented with the fallen god. He was clearly unconscious, though his face was drawn in a sad, pained expression, and he was moaning in obvious discomfort.

[pudding]

Tony quickly followed Natasha and positioned himself at Thor's head. "I need you to help me move him into the lab," he said, total seriousness on his face. It was rare for him not to make wise cracks but he couldn't help it. He was actually very concerned and his humor refused to manifest.

 

Loki watched as they left then slowly slid to the floor. The spear nearby glowed and blue energy tricked out of it. Like a snake, it slithered across the floor before entering his chest. Loki stiffened before his eyes closed and his entire body went limp. Stark Towers dissolved around him and he found himself-or at least his conscious-on some sort of rock in space. Startled, he quickly turned around and looked at his surroundings. "Who is there?" He called out as the something stirred in the shadows. "Where have you taken me?"

[Sweet_Wyvern]

Natasha moved to his feet and on some unspoken signal, hoisted the god up when he did. She had her fingers on one of the pulse points of his ankles, monitoring it as they moved. "His pulse is slowing down. It's not by much, but its decreasing," she warned, and that was incentive enough to pick up the pace.

[pudding]

Tony cursed and picked up the pace, moving as quickly as he could without tripping. They were at the lab quite rapidly and Tony quickly placed him on a table, brushing aside beakers that had previously occupied it. He hovered over the god before he realized he had absolutely no idea what to do with him. "JARVIS, I need some help here!" He yelled to the AI then turned to Natasha. "Any ideas on what's wrong with him?"

 

Loki wheeled around and threw his fist into the darkness when he heard a hiss from behind him. Oddly enough, there was nothing there. Hands reached out of the darkness behind him and wrapped around his throat, only to vanish when Loki tried to kick his attacker from behind. Holding a hand to his throat, he turned in a circle as he tried to figure out what was lurking in the shadows. "Who are you?" He called out.

"Poor little Jotun," the figure in the darkness crackled in response. "All hail the abandoned prince. Taken from one home, cast out by another. A misfit everywhere you go. Resorting to hypnotism just to get people to like you. Hiding your true self since you know you are a monster."

"Leave me alone!" Loki roared and, at once, he found himself back in Stark Towers, sitting on the floor by the bar. What? What had that been? Loki grimaced and held his hands over his ears as the shadowy figure's words echoed in his brain.