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“Well, this is the nicest kidnapping I’ve had.”
Loki rolled his eyes. “This is not a kidnapping, Stark.”
“Really? Could have fooled me.”
Loki didn’t grace him with a response, continuing to read his book. Tony dropped down in one of the green leather armchairs.
The truth was, it wasn’t a kidnapping. Well, it was skirting an abduction. Mostly, it was a way to keep him out of harm’s way while the Avengers looked into who actually wanted him dead.
Natasha had stumbled upon the plans accidentally while doing spy things for SHIELD. She’d brought them to Steve who’d called a team meeting. They’d tried to insist he should stay in a secure room never letting anyone in or out and more or less hiding from the bad guys who wanted to assassinate him.
It had not gone well.
They’d spent the better part of a day arguing with Clint actually tackling him to the ground at one point to stop him from leaving. He’d been about ready to activate JARVIS’ defence procedures when Thor had pipped up with an alternative suggestion.
He’d said, quite seriously, “What if another was to kidnap Stark first?”
“Like who?” Clint had questioned.
“I am sure that my brother could be counted upon to perform the task.”
“Your brother?”
It had been demanded from more than one person, in varying states of horror or disbelief.
“Yes,” Thor had continued, undaunted. “Loki will not be suspected by any other villain. He can collect Stark and protect him while we uncover who wishes to see him harmed.”
“I don’t need protection,” he’d snapped.
“What if it’s Loki who wants him kidnapped?” Steve had countered.
“What part of your brother being crazy means he’d be a good option?” Clint had fired off.
“What would he want in return?” Natasha had questioned.
Her reply had turned the most heads. Because a question like that from Nat meant she was seriously considering it.
Tony still hadn’t expected anyone to go for it. The next round of arguments had only further proven it.
But when someone had tried to shoot him through the glass of his tower the following morning? Well, it had been remarkable how quickly Thor had contacted Loki and not only got him to agree, but had the mage disappearing him in a shimmer of magical sparkles to land in Loki’s living room.
There had been coffee, a plate of sandwiches, a bored Loki reading on a settee and a very nice view of what appeared to be somewhere in Scandinavia.
Tony knew he should be a lot more concerned than he actually was, but, frankly, Loki had been low on the fear-on-sight o-meter for a while. He was more the try-not-to-be-caught-laughing-or-flirting-too-much-with villain.
(And really villain was stretching it. Nuisance to SHIELD and the general public was more accurate.)
“Soooo,” Tony drawled. “We just planning to sit her in silence for the next few days?”
“I thought that was what one did with captives?”
“And I thought you were insisting it wasn’t a kidnapping?”
Loki sighed. He also looked away from his book. Tony grinned. He wondered how long it would take him to drive Loki up the wall. He was bad at confinement and frankly, even with the lab and normal distractions, the Avengers were all sick of him by noon most days.
“What do you seek to converse about?”
It sounded like the question was forced out of him at gunpoint.
“How about we start with a little more cheer?” Loki’s deadpan expression only made Tony fight down a grin. “Okay. Well then, how about a few questions. Like, why did you agree to it?”
“‘It’?” Loki enquired.
Tony rolled his eyes. “Oh, come on.”
“I know not what you mean, Stark. It’s hardly specific. Are you enquiring about my choice in prison fare?”
Tony’s lips twitched again, and judging by the barely hidden amusement in the mage’s eyes, he was enjoying it too. And that was the thing, they did enjoy bantering with each other, they always had. Even when Loki had been on the actual opposite side after falling through a portal onto Earth – they’d still been engaged by each other.
Yes, it had ended in a dick joke and defenestration, but once Loki had gotten back on his feet and with his mind in the right place, it had settled into a genuine and entertaining game between them. There was even flirting, if he was being honest with himself. (But he tried not to be honest about having the hots for a still-SHIELD-categorised villain.) But how could he not notice the way Loki’s leather outfits fit him? How good he was with his hands? The way the mage's smirk made him think really inappropriate things.
“Once again,” Tony remarked, forcibly shaking off his thoughts, “I thought you said I wasn’t a prisoner?”
“You can become one if you continue to irritate me.”
“I don’t believe that any more than you.”
Loki’s lips finally twitched into a hint of a smile. It was always the expression Tony felt most pleased to inspire. It was the one that said Loki hadn’t been able to resist his amusement. It always gave him a burst of pride to see it.
“If you must know,” Loki said, “Thor is going to procure me something from Asgard.”
Tony scrunched his nose. “Really? That’s all you bargained for? Low bar. He would have gone much higher to keep me safe.”
“Oh? You believe you have such importance to him?”
“Uh, I house, feed and otherwise repair the shit he breaks. The guy owes me and he knows it.”
“I think you overestimate how well Thor understands debt. Such things are merely expected when one hosts the Crown Prince of Asgard.”
“Wow, and I thought I was raised to be arrogant.”
“You were not raised a prince,” Loki said, returning to his book and making Tony frown. “Not even your ego is raised as high as that of Golden Thor.”
Ah, misstep. Reroute away from Thor.
Loki didn’t seem angry, at least, which was often a reaction when Thor, Asgard and Odin came up, but clearly, he was losing the man’s focus. He had to change that.
To start, he lifted his feet, placing them on the edge of the coffee table, beside the sandwiches. Loki immediately glared at him. A second later, a light glow appeared on his feet before they were magically lifted and dropped heavily back on the ground.
“No feet on the furniture? I thought you’d like chaotic seating arrangements.”
“Chaos, perhaps. Uncouth and unclean behaviour is not favoured by me.”
“Loki. They are shoes on the edge of a table.”
“And they are unclean.”
Tony met the mage’s stubborn scowl, and rather than put his shoes back up to be annoying, or keep his feet on the ground to appease the mage. Instead, he toed off his shoes, followed by his socks and lifted them again, placing his bare feet on the table.
As expected, this time, Loki merely stared at them.
It didn’t seem like much, but to them, it was about as blatant as peeling off his armour. Taking shoes off in someone’s house designated they were comfortable; they were staying awhile. And yeah, he was here until the threat was removed, but he didn’t need to act happy about it.Taking off his shoes? That was expressing he was willing to stick around, and there was no joking about that.
“You should at least wash your feet,” he murmured.
“I only wore them for about an hour before I got here.”
Loki stared at his feet for another few seconds, then met his gaze, then looked away. “Very well.”
Tony grinned at the concession. Loki didn’t back down without a fight, but here he was, letting Tony put his feet on the coffee table. Tony had always wondered exactly how serious Loki was about his flirting and his backhand compliments.
If this was any indication? It looked like he was going to find out.
But apparently not any time soon.
They ended up in something of a stalemate, him drinking coffee, eating sandwiches, and needling Loki. The man had turned back to his book and only gave the vaguest replies. Tony had also gotten a little distracted by the glass doors that opened out onto a decking overlooking a huge snowy Fjord. Surprisingly, he didn’t get cold when he stepped outside (making him check all available points for anything that would indicate one of Loki’s wards. But without his tech, he didn’t have much of a chance.)
They were literally in the middle of nowhere though. Not a house or person in sight. He didn’t want to know how bad the internet was. (Then again, this being Loki’s lair, he was sure not even being in the remotest corner of the globe would make connections disobey Loki’s will.)
When he stepped back inside, he decided to leave Loki to his reading and explore the house. It was multi-story and fully decorated with furnishings. Some looked like Loki had picked them, others, Tony would bet came with the house and Loki hadn’t bothered to change.
He really wanted to ask how this situation was working. Was there a rental or purchase contract? Did they even know who it was living in the house? Were they even aware Loki was here or was he more or less squatting?
There were so many questions.
But then, there always were with Loki.
After doing a circle of the house and finding at least three bedrooms he could occupy (and one that Tony couldn’t help giving a long look over when he noticed the green bedding and very Loki additions like a coat rack and what looked like magic books. He would have stuck his head further inside, but the doorway had shimmered green and kept him out when he’d tried poking his finger at it.) Tony had made his way back to where the mage was still sitting in the main entertaining area.
He'd only just entered through one of the doorways when Loki asked, “Have you finished attempting to escape?”
“I wasn’t trying to escape.”
Loki smiled faintly.
“Were you not?” He glanced up, his expression almost challenging. “Shall I take that as a compliment to my ability to trap my prisoners? Or shall I assume you just like being here with me?”
Tony was tempted to boldly meet the man’s bluff, but that wasn’t how either of them worked, not really. Yes, they liked their bantering and would always choose to trade verbal and physical blows with one another, but neither of them were good with outright truths.
“Well, the alternative is supposed to be death, I’m told.”
“True.”
“And you’re a hell of a lot more interesting than Steve. He waves a shield, you wave magic, no comparison.”
“Ah. Then you’re seeking to gain my secrets.”
“Since you can’t make up your mind as to if I’m a guest or a prisoner, I guess I can’t make up mine about what I’m here to do.”
“Well, I suppose your staying alive should be the primary goal.”
The goal, huh?
Tony was tempted to bring up matching aligned interests. Did it make them temporary allies? Did it mean the line between hero and villain was a little bit blurred for a few days? And, more importantly; did anyone expect him to pass that up?
Crossing the room, he bypassed the armchair from before to go to where Loki was seated. The mage watched his approach but didn’t complain. Therefore, when he was close enough, he perched on the arm. The hairs on his body stood on end at being so close. Their arms were almost brushing. Loki could easily place a hand on his thigh… or other things. The mage’s gaze was laser sharp as it observed him. The heat and attraction in his gaze made Tony’s mouth dry. It was time to push the boundaries.
“You’re not good at being honest," Tony remarked.
“Aptly pointed out.”
“I’m not great at being forthcoming.”
“Is that so?”
“But, let me be clear about something: you and me. It’s always been a hero and villain issue, hasn’t it?”
“I am hardly a villain.”
Tony held that sharp green gaze. “Not the time to split hairs, Loki.”
After a moment, Loki gently inclined his head in consent.
“Your Avengers, SHIELD most notably, have always been so irritatingly stringent in their little battlefield lines. I was surprised they even contemplated asking me this.”
“Thor instigated it.”
Loki huffed a small laugh. “Of course he did.”
Tony tilted his head, turning it over in his mind.
“Thor knows you,” he theorised. “Knows how you work, at least, in a basic sense. If you’re flirting with someone, he’d know when it was real. If you were seriously interested, then you wouldn’t want them dead. You’d even go out of your way to keep them unharmed until you’re finished.”
Loki didn’t reply, but that was as much an answer as the faint smile and raised eyebrow. Loki didn’t like to tell the truth, after all, but if he wasn’t lying, then he was all but admitting. Tony gave it a few seconds more thought before pushing the last of the way off the arm of the chair and right into Loki’s lap.
It startled a small laugh out of the mage.
“Well, well, well,” he murmured.
“Call me old and impatient if you want, but how long do you think we can keep playing games? We’re alone in your little house until the Avengers deal with the problem trying to shoot me. We could be doing something a lot better than snarking.”
“Oh, I rather think we can still snark,” Loki replied, his hand going to the small of Tony’s back, stroking it gently. Yet, he also tilted his head thoughtfully and added, “You surprised me, Anthony Stark.”
“I did?”
“I thought you might take a few more days, and there was always the chance you would not offer at all.”
“I’m a lot less moral and good at resisting temptation than people give me credit for.”
Loki laughed again, but his hand also slipped up Tony’s back, moving to rest against the back of his neck.
“I shall not be complaining about either of those.”
Tony grinned. He stared into those sparkling green eyes, seeing a matching fascination and attraction. Tony didn’t know what it would mean that they were finally crossing this line: both during and after their cohabitation, but he was willing to take the risk of finding out.
Closing the last of the space, Tony finally pressed his mouth to Loki’s, feeling his body light up like a conduit.
It was definitely going to be the nicest kidnapping he’d ever had.