Chapter Text
Shit. Shit. Shit.
"J, give me the rundown." Tony glanced into the hall through the ajar door, but immediately sank back after seeing the approaching shadow.
"Unidentified intruder. Security cameras non-operational. Alarm disconnected. Internal and external sensors blocked. Power to suits lost. Connection to suits lost. All phone lines and means of communication have been blocked." JARVIS intoned to Tony's repressed groan. There was a short mechanical chirp from the AI, and JARVIS's voice held a concern that bordered on fear. "Sir, someone was very thorough in cutting you off. Without the means to protect yourself or call on others, the enemy's attempt to corner you has proved successful." A pause followed. "With even my redundancies deactivated, I have no other theory other than an inside job, sir."
"Right." As quietly as possible, Tony pushed the door shut. His options weren't slim here, they were non-existent. No armor, no weapons, nothing on but the sweatpants he wore to bed, and nothing to fight with but whatever in the room he could throw. "How much time do I have?"
"Estimated time to your discovery is forty seconds."
Alright, scratch that, two options: beg for his life and hope that it would be spared or he could go out fighting. Hell, he was Tony Stark, he never begged. He would always go down swinging. Picking up a nearby chair, he shifted it in his hands a little to test the weight and heft of it to better accommodate his hold it in a way that he could smash it into bits over the bastard's back. If he died proving it, Tony was going to make sure people knew that you never crossed him and got away without a scratch. "Well then, Jarvis, it's been loads of fun. Don't hold dinner, okay, sweetie?"
"I'll keep the scotch though, shall I?"
Tony smirked. "Yeah, you do that."
Taking a deep breath, he gripped the chair just as the doorknob started to rattle. It cracked open and an ever-widening sliver of light striped the floor to steadily creep towards him.
Heart pounding, he raised his weapon.
The chair fell from his hands in a loud clatter as he was jerked backwards against a hard chest. A pale hand closed over his mouth and muffled his yelp of shock to frenzied breathing through his nose. Tony barely registered familiar emerald eyes staring back to him and a slender finger signaling silence just as the room flickered and dissolved away around them.
Tony stumbled away as soon as he could, pushing back from his captor with gasping breaths. The damage was done though; their surrounding scenery had changed for a lavish hotel suite complete with bar beyond the other man's back, a sizable couch and matching chairs behind Tony, and king-sized bed visible through a doorway some ten feet to Tony's left. All very lovely and all, but not where Tony wanted to be right now in a certain someone's company.
"What the hell are you doing?"
Loki's smugness split into offense at the aggressive outburst, but it took less than three seconds before he reformulated himself into a guarded look of false calm. He was dressed in his usual green and black leather - no surprise there - but no set of shiny bits and vambraces this time. Even without the brass hardware, he still looked every bit a god. "It would appear I just saved your life." He said.
"Who said I wanted you to save me?"
Loki took one step forward, eyes narrowing into a glare. "If my assistance is so unwelcome, then, by all means, don't let me hinder you."
He waved one hand as if to shoo Tony, and in the blink of an eye, Tony was standing back in his own bedroom, face to face with his intruder. One that looked surprisingly... human. Not that he could really be sure from the head-to-toe black gear, but they were human in shape, height, and in weapon choice.
Oh, shit, the weapon.
Apparently, not having someone be where they were supposed to had confused the intruder at first, but Tony was there now and once again left helpless as the figure in black raised a handgun aimed for Tony's head.
"Back, back, here is bad!" He stumbled away, tripping on the chair behind his legs, and falling back gracelessly. His eyes squinted shut to brace for the impact and the shot, but the bullet never came and the floor felt way too cushy to be his carpet. Eyes open and he was back in the hotel suite again - a comfy chair supporting him, no assassins threatening him, no guns at all. Just Loki sitting at the bar across the room, calmly pouring vodka into an already started unholy cocktail over what looked suspiciously like absinthe or Midori given the vivid green color of the liquid. A sorcerer was enough of a weapon himself though, so at the moment, Tony couldn't tell if he was safer here or not.
"I would not ask if you have learned your lesson now, Stark," Loki said, not even sparing him another glance, "but I trust you realize your situation." He turned his head to gaze at Tony, and his lips twitched upwards. "Yes?"
Tony grimaced and clenched his hands on the arms of the plushy armchair. "Yes. What you haven't said is why."
"Why not?" Loki shrugged and swirled the glass in his hand. "Perhaps I simply wanted to ruin someone's big day. Killing Iron Man is quite the feat in and off itself, but to dismantle his entire house and all of its security at the same time is something else entirely. Unlikely to happen once, impossible a second time once you realize the holes in your armor."
Tony scoffed, but somehow, he could see the sole reason of his rescue being to screw with someone else. How could he think any differently? "Alright, where am I?"
The look of condescension from the god's head tilt spoke volumes.
"Dear Stark, you mistake the plan." The bottom of the glass fit in the well of Loki's palm a bit too perfectly, and his fingers stretched nearly to the lip at the top. "What reason have I to tell you where you are? My only goal was to inconvenience your would-be killer. Any details beyond that are inconsequential."
"I'm not believing that shit, you never have just one plot." Tony stood and walked closer. "I'm here, right here, for a reason. Otherwise you would have sent me some place where you weren't standing there waiting and let me sweat it out wondering what happened."
The smile that lit up Loki's face was pleased beyond decency. "Have you been studying me that much?"
"No. I know what I'd do." Tony couldn't help the grin from spreading to his face as well; it shouldn't have been as contagious as Loki made it.
"Yes, I suppose so..." Loki said. His eyes raked over Tony with relish and no attempts at subtlety; there were no two explanations for that look. Reaching over the bar with his free hand, Loki poured a glass of scotch and held it out for Tony as he took a sip of his own mixed drink. "A drink, Mr. Stark?"
Crossing the distance, Tony ended leaning against the bar on one elbow and taking the offered drink. He swirled the liquid in the glass for a moment but didn't drink any before setting it down on the counter. "I'm not exactly the type to trust a drink from a homicidal god."
Loki rolled his eyes, ignoring the "homicidal god" comment with far too much ease. "It would be an astounding waste of my time and energy - both of which you know to be incredibly precious to me - to save your life twice in one night only to poison you in a nameless hotel room ten minutes later."
The inventor shrugged. "You said you wanted to steal their day. One way to do that is never give them the chance by killing me yourself."
"Why defend your murder so? One might mistakenly assume you wish for it."
"I don't. Life is good. Much better than death. But life's also got too many mysteries at this point in time. I'd like to solve a few."
Loki set his glass down beside the outside of Tony's elbow with Loki's arm now resting atop Tony's lightly. "I wished for you to hold a debt with me. They are useful for a considerable number of things."
Tony's mind must have been playing tricks on him for some reason, and he would have blamed the break-in and murder attempt on seeing things, but the last near death experience he had didn't have him imagining the surrounding people flirting with him. Could this be considered flirting at all? It seemed more like a blatant come-on. Then again, he and Loki had been metaphorically fucking around on the battlefield for a while with the so much sass and the obscenely overt flirtations before someone else would stop them, so maybe this wasn't so out of left field. Still, actually doing something about it was a different thing entirely. Tony had always flirted way more than he'd followed through.
"You want a debt from someone you fight on a regular basis. You gonna call in your debt some time to stop a fight or let you go? Because that's not going to work for me."
"No. This is not a discussion between Loki, villainous demigod, and Anthony Stark, heroic Iron Man and savior of Midgard." Loki's free hand waved dismissively at the titles. "This is a discussion between Loki and Anthony, two beings of indiscriminate allegiances during current company. Your Avengers have nothing to do with this."
Yeaaah, really not helping Tony figure out the situation any better. "Any ideas in particular that come to mind?"
Something odd flickered in Loki's eyes too quickly to read before he stood and grin faded to a sly turn of the lips. "Oh, one is quite prominent in my forethoughts. Not my initial intent, perhaps, but well..." His eyes dropped down again and back up to Tony's face. "When opportunities present, they say. As it would happen though, you have incurred two debts currently, you realize."
Naturally. Nothing was free in life. "I figured."
"Of course you did. I have taken a liking to your intellect, I must admit." His eyes fell to the arc reactor in Tony's chest as if it were incarnate of his brains. "A sharp wit and mind is a far greater treasure than a sharp blade. Not that I don't prefer both. Those willing to master both are rare beings to savor. To dig one's self out of their own grave and emerge fuller of life than before, that is no small thing to be ignored."
"Are you complimenting me, Loki?"
Their eyes met again. "I am catering to your prodigious ego, Stark."
Tony's smirk split into a smile of teeth for a few short seconds. All or nothing, in or out, go for the gold here. "Then you're seducing me."
Bright eyes of wide pupils flickered with delight. "It was my intent, yes."
And the crowd went wild.
"Good."
Tony was the first to start closing the distance, but Loki wasn't idle in pushing forward, and their lips met in a first unsynchronized and kind of teeth-gnashing mess before they adjusted to one another. The second kiss was more befitting of the talents of a god and a proclaimed playboy, and their moans became muted in the other's mouth as they discovered just how compatible they were together. Tony's left hand and Loki's right each adjusted to take hold of their partner - Loki's touching Tony's waist while Tony's made itself at home tugging on the long strands at the back of the god's neck. Loki hissed, and Tony took the opportunity to break the kiss and attack Loki's neck with a complete lack of tenderness, the resulting groan from his attentions serving to stroke Tony's ego almost as much as the talk of his brains. Almost. Tony was proud of many of his talents, after all, not just the one.
"You are quite adept at ruining my careful plans." Loki exhaled forcefully. "Such effort gone to waste."
"You complaining?" Tony gave a sharp bite to the junction of Loki's shoulder and neck, and Loki gasped, his left hand coming up to nestle in the short hair as his head moved to bare his throat.
"Not in the slightest." Oh, the smirk was audible there. "Not in this instance, at least. I'm finding the alternative to be quite satisfactory."
Tony scoffed, licking a stripe over the red indentations he'd enthusiastically left. "So glad I can be 'satisfactory'."
Both of Loki's hands relocated to Tony's shoulders, squeezing for a moment before twisting Tony around to pin him back against the bar edge, surprising him enough that Loki could take over biting and kissing along Tony's neck. "At times, you must learn to follow, Stark." Loki spoke against Tony's ear and brushed his tongue along the shell.
Shivers trickled down Tony's skin at the gentle touch of palms trailing down his arms, his focus caught between the wet distraction of lips against his neck and Loki's hands finding their blind but deft way right ... Tony inhaled sharply as fingers dipped beneath the waistband of his pants, letting the breath out in an indulgent moan as Loki groped his ass. Mirroring the movement pressed their bodies flush together, but there was far too much material between his chest and Loki's, and since Tony was shirtless, all that inconvenient clothing was Loki's.
Making a small noise of protest, Tony actually set to do something about fixing the problem and started with shoving at the long overcoat on Loki's shoulders that did a surprising amount to draw his silhouette into a fearsome figure. Without it, he still looked damned sexy and still too dressed, damn, how many layers does this outfit even have, but that was a work in progress. Loki drew Tony into another distracting kiss that Tony only allowed it for so long before he bit at Loki's lips hard enough for him to pull back with a pleased hiss. Taking advantage of the lapse, Tony jerked at the coat until Loki's arms moved to accommodate stripping it off and tossing it somewhere on the floor. The chest plate was more troublesome until Loki took pity and showed Tony the trick to unraveling it, and then everything went much faster - still uncoordinated between frenzied kisses and half-brushes of lips against heated skin, but grace was not an important factor as long as they both got naked.
Neither knew - or particularly cared - how long it took to strip Loki of his complicated ensemble, but by the time they had, they'd managed to stumble away from the bar and into the bedroom. Tony was shoved backwards first, Loki climbing after before the inventor even had time to finish falling onto the mattress, and after matching laughs of entertainment, their mouths were occupied with another round of searing kisses. Loki pinned Tony's hands to either side of his head and maneuvered his legs between Tony's, pulling a sharp yelp of surprise from him at the position. Topping was his main forte, but that was because Tony was an distrusting bastard with five too many experiences of really horrible guys that didn't know how to top well. So Tony topped. And sometimes it got boring. But Loki... Of all people, Loki had to have some proper experience on making it mutually pleasurable.
While his mind had ran rampant in those few seconds of contemplation, Loki found the best way to make all thoughts shudder to a full and complete stop. His hips bucked up roughly into Tony's, letting their cocks slide together between tightly pressed abdomens, a bit too dry and all the better for it to keep from going too fast. Their lips parted for the sole reason of gasping in moaning breaths as Loki set a slow pace aimed to make them sweat.
Yeah, this could be good too.
"Pay tribute to your god, and he will listen." Loki purred, opening his eyes to stare down at Tony, two pairs of lust-blown pupils set only on each other.
"Fucker," Tony groused, and Loki chuckled. "Pay tribute, huh? And how do I manage that?"
"I might have a few suggestions if you'd be so reckless as to trust me."
Reckless? They had met before, hadn't they? Honestly, it was like Loki was challenging to be more reckless. And who was he to resist the pull? So he wriggled underneath Loki, pulled his thighs tightly against Loki's sharp hips. "Like you said, you're not going to save my life just to kill me, so go ahead."
The silence is daunting when Tony has a god grinning down at him. "Very well. In that case," he leaned in to brush his lips against Tony's ear, halting the roll of his hips, "turn over, Stark."
Tony paused, giving a final consideration until Loki repeated himself more firmly. Yes, Tony definitely wanted this, but turning his back? Less want. "Do I have to?" "If you want to stay in this bed, then yes. If you don't trust me that much, you're also welcome to leave." So no was an option. Was it the option Tony wanted though? Stiff-limbed with nervous tension, Tony shifted and turned over onto his stomach hesitantly, more from lack of trust of not getting his throat slit than not wanting to get fucked. He had to keep repeating to himself mentally that Loki wasn't going to kill him, but another inner voice kept reminding him that Loki was a goddamn liar and how great a ruse sex was to get Tony into a position where he could be murdered and his naked body left to be found. Tony thought that particular inner voice needed to shut the fuck up because he never had any fun any of the times he'd listened to its advice.
The sheets rustled lightly as Loki adjusted to kneel behind Tony. So maybe Tony wouldn't get the once-in-lifetime opportunity of screwing a god, but he did get to have sex with one, and that was still a rare chance. From what Tony had gleaned from some of Thor's woeful drunken tales, homosexuality wasn't hugely accepted in Asgard, but Loki was discovered in various acts with various individuals of the non-female gender - and some of the disconcertingly ambiguously gendered, the stories went - quite a bit anyway. And those were just the times someone found out. So yes. Loki's experience was not to be questioned here.
Then there was the matter of where the fuck were the condoms, and he wasn't entirely sure Loki knew the word, let alone the concept.
His thoughts were scattered at the feel of cool palms grazing his overheated skin from his shoulders down to his ass. They settled against his cheeks, cupping them lightly and wrangling Tony into exactly the position that Loki wanted him in: on all fours with Loki's knees set inside Tony's. "You better have something to help with that." Tony made the mention before Loki could get too much farther. "And protection too. No sleeve, no dice here."
"I come better prepared than others, Stark; I'm well aware of the preference for condoms on this world."
"Yeah? Prove it."
Loki hummed softly in consideration before there's the rasp of drawer sliding several feet to the side followed by the crackle of foil being handled and the snap of a bottle cap right behind him. Well, Tony supposed he shouldn't be surprised at Loki using magic, but it was somehow disconcerting when his brain so helpfully reminded him that those same hands could cast a spell that would kill him instantly or in agonizing pain. He could only hope the sorcerer would continue keeping his spells to the non-fatal variety for the duration of tonight.
"You're afraid as much as you're aroused." Loki spoke against the dip at the base of Tony's arched spine. "It's impossible to discern whether I will kill you or fuck you. Perhaps the better question is what I'll do first."
Fuck. "I vote sex first."
Wet fingers slid between his cheeks, not daring to delve any further yet, just smoothing and waiting out the instinctual clench. He teased a few moments longer until sure that Tony was ready before one tip slipped inside. Tony groaned under his breath and then cursed when Loki's second hand, also slick with lube, moved underneath to tease Tony's balls with his fingertips barely grazing his hard length. "I will take your vote under consideration."
Loki took the preparation with surprising care, following the cues of Tony's reactions to urge him on or wait, and Tony didn't find himself having to spell anything out. Already better than previous topping partners he had. Instead of hasty prep and a barely slicker than raw fuck, Loki was taking his time teasing Tony's gland with one finger inside and a thumb applying the faintest pressure to his perineum, giving Tony every opportunity to refuse or redirect if this wasn't working. But it was working, very much so, and Tony was already letting his hips press back into the penetration with a prickling sense of danger, danger! mixed with the fleeting thought of considering taking up religion.
"When I am I going to figure out which option you picked?"
"Easy. If I kill you, I chose that one first." Loki said dryly, and Tony laughed under his breath because what was he honestly expecting as an answer? Something straight forward? From Loki? Some things really were impossible. And maybe Tony liked him that way a little bit.
A second finger slipped in easily, both fingers working gentle circles over his prostate, and a light fist working over his cock. "You can stop the teasing now. Better hurry up before I jump you, and that is a threat."
Loki laughed with a heavy gust of air at the back of Tony's neck. "The thought of you riding me to completion is a compelling idea..." He trailed off just enough to let the image settle fully into Tony's mind too. "But tonight, I can't have you stealing the show. Perhaps another time." Tony didn't even consider the last phrase because then Loki retracted both hands, and Tony was too busy lamenting the loss. Not five seconds had passed before he heard the condom packet being opened, and Tony peered over his shoulder to witness Loki putting it on. Assured of no tricks there, Tony let himself relax again. The dull head of a cock pressed to his pucker, and since the fingers were eased in, Tony naively expected the same now, but once the head breached and Tony hadn't made any efforts to stop, Loki thrust inside with one long movement until Tony had to bite the pillow to muffle his groan of ecstasy.
"No, no, don't hide your sounds," Loki tutted, his left hand trailing up to run across Tony's scalp as his right hand took a hold of Tony's hip. He gave a few small rolls of his hips to adjust, and Tony's mouth fell open in mute pleasure to allow Loki to pull the pillow away. "There. I should like to hear you."
Tony would have argued, but Loki started a hard pace, less speed but punctuating the end of each of thrust with a momentary burst of pressure to press deeper. Broken moans fell from Tony as he clutched the sheets in his fists. Above him, Loki's breathing was sharp-edged and coming to him in sync with his movements, one hand still holding onto Tony's hip while the other had ventured to trace the tendons of the mortal's back. It was impersonal, fucking from behind, but no one else but Loki was on his mind anyway.
"I should have you save my life more often. Shit." Tony whimpered and squirmed unabashedly when Loki changed the angle slightly. "Fucking worth it."
"My preferences have tended towards men for some time now, but Asgard finds such tastes less than honorable. I had to find other outlets." He adjusted again and this time, hit the inner bundle of nerves dead on, and Tony shouted, throwing his head back.
"God, Asgard's missing out then." His voice was a little higher than intended, but it got harder to form words once Loki found his prostate and aimed to ruthlessly stimulate it with every thrust. "Oh, fuck, missing out on a lot."
"Their loss is my gain. Less competition."
A breathless laugh fell from the bottom male. His left hand unfurled from the sheets, reaching underneath to stroke himself lightly, and Loki's hand soon moved to wrap over Tony's. "Less competition didn't affect your skill any." Holding himself tighter, Tony moaned as the pressure in his belly grew. "Trust a god to known the right buttons.
Their conversation fell apart as Loki picked up the pace and the moans grew louder, Tony starting to push his hips back harder to meet Loki's thrust for thrust all while jacking himself off. Hopefully the rooms were soundproofed enough for the next-door inhabitants to not hearing Loki laughing and spouting off filthy praises while Tony begged for more. The headboard banging against the wall might have been a bit of a tip-off anyway though.
"C'mon, babe, is that all you've got?" Tony goaded, and Loki traded a verbal retort for a snap of his hips that nearly sent them both careening forward as Tony's legs gave out for a short moment of mind-boggling pleasure. "Oh, god, do that again." Loki recaptured his balance and righted them into the proper position, and though the next didn't bowl them over, it carried nearly the same force and had Tony's nerves singing. "Fuck, so close."
"Ask," Loki tightened their hands on Tony's cock, stroking in counterpoint to his penetrations. "Ask and I will consider."
Tony could have just chanced waiting it out; he knew Loki wouldn't last much longer either. His thrusts had gotten progressively more uncoordinated, faster and less in control, desperately seeking release in Tony's body. But this little game was fun for both of them, so Tony obliged as a reward for making this night go down in his memories not as the time he almost got killed, but the time a Norse god saved his life just to nail him from behind and blow all of Tony's previous lovers out of the running.
"Please, Loki." He glanced over his shoulder to meet barely green eyes and a grin that matched his own. "Make me come." Loki leaned in for a kiss that ended up more as a brush of lips and slide of tongues before the god started to pound into Tony and even the attempt at a kiss was lost in labored breathing and moans of one another's names. "Yes, yes, yes, fuck, keep going!" Tony's vision exploded in white, and only after he'd started to come down from the high did he realize that Loki was panting out his last breaths of sated relief.
For a moment, they stayed as they were to catch their breath and ride out the final ripples of pleasure, minutely rolling their hips together before orgasm could become hypersensitivity. The high of adrenaline from the transition of defying death to sex with a deity, that was starting wear off and make him question his choices a bit, but he threw that aside pretty fast. Now, he was just going to let himself bask in the glow of a great fuck.
Loki slipped out of Tony, and their left hands moved to the mattress to support their weight as they gracelessly fell forward with Loki still lying on Tony's back. It was a weight he didn't mind holding as the soft puffs of breath against the back of his throat every other second were soothing until Loki hummed and brushed his lips against Tony's ear. "I enjoyed your pretty noises," he said lowly, an unformed laugh in his voice.
"Yeah, yeah, you'll be begging for me next time, Rudolf." The "next time" was mostly jokingly, but Loki must have understood that.
"We'll see." Tension gathered in the air, and Loki moved to Tony's side, propping up on one elbow to cast a serious look. Okay, maybe he didn't understand that it was a joke. "I feel it important to make note that nothing has changed in terms of... relationships."
"Relationships?" Damn, Loki wasn't actually bringing this up, was he? Tony shrugged a gave a carefree smile. "If I wanted a relationship, I would still be with Pepper. This? Between us? You're the sexy villain, I'm an appallingly handsome Avenger-" Loki rolled his eyes but smiled. "It's just a release. Even heroes need that sometimes."
Loki nodded and laid on his back again with a relaxing sigh. "I've grown tired of conventional relationships and expectations."
"No one said this had to be more than one night either." Tony offered. "There's this tradition I've enjoyed off and on, called a 'one night stand' that means no strings and no returns."
The god tilted his head and stared at the ceiling in thought. "A new partner every time?" Loki made a noise of disapproval after Tony nodded. "Sounds time-consuming. i prefer to return to known lovers. Better to know the body I'm playing to tune." That was a mental image that refused to leave. Now Tony was having no problems imagining Loki's previous partners singing with the right coaching. Tonight made it pretty obvious that Loki could conduct a choir with his skills. While Tony's head swam with the thoughts, Loki shifted and turned on his side to face Tony. "What if I simply kidnapped you again instead? What would that tradition be called here?"
Laughing, Tony leaned in and sucked a kiss against Loki's neck to a pleased moan from the god. "That's called 'fuck buddies'. Also high on my accepted list."
Loki groaned and moved his lips to graze Tony's ear. "Mm, yes, I believe that sounds closer to my tastes."
"Well, you know where I am when you get bored causing mischief."
Loki protested weakly when Tony laid back again, but they both lacked the energy to do more right now. "Do you wish to return to your Avengers now?"
Tony made a face. "Return to the latest lectures, you mean. 'Don't do this, you're causing too much damage, just follow orders, be careful about all the trouble you're causing,' yada, yada. I'm always a liability or a loose cannon. It's nothing new, but somehow it's a problem now when they're being associated with me and all that shit."
Loki hummed thoughtfully. "Think twice when trusting them, Anthony. When one such as you is faced with those that would give anything to keep their beliefs safe, it could prove dangerous to you."
"You're giving me advice on who to trust?" It wasn't intended to come out so catty, but Tony couldn't hide his incredulity.
But Loki merely fixed him with a look that implied Tony should shut up and stop interjecting his commentary where it wasn't wanted. "I'm merely cautioning you. If you're recall, it was less than an hour ago that someone broke into Stark Tower and nearly killed you." That sobered Tony up a bit. "How many have such access to your systems or are capable of forcing it?"
Shit. He really hated when villains had a point.
When Tony said nothing, Loki sighed and laid his head back down on the pillow. "Just be on guard. I'd hate to have you die on me so soon after you've proved your worth."
"Thanks, Loks, feeling the love." Tony frowned at the ceiling before letting out a resigned sigh. "Guess it's suspicious if I don't show up somewhere."
"You are somewhere."
"Somewhere Pepper can find me, at least." Tony clarified. "I don't even have my phone. The last time I didn't have it or Jarvis was Afghanistan."
The bed shifted as Loki laid on his side again. "Teleportation is not conservative on magic consumption; yet I performed it three times in succession on you, and soon to be a fourth as well. If you insist on contradicting yourself out loud, I'd rather you have your internal battles elsewhere."
"I was trying to figure out what it was about you that was so attractive." Tony said without bothering to feel offended, "I figured it out: definitely that compassionate streak of yours."
Loki's glare was half-hearted at best and tired. "Is that all?"
"I have a few more, if you'd like."
"Not in the slightest. Good night, Stark." Turning over, Loki waved one hand, and just as Tony opened his mouth to protest, everything went crooked again, and he was standing at the mouth of an alley. At least Loki was thoughtful enough to send him clothed though even if it was just jeans, t-shirt, and shoes. Maybe Tony was "worth" it.
Stepping out onto the sidewalk, Tony recognized the buildings as being a few streets over from Stark Tower. He'd need to get back in there and fix up the fucked systems, but he'd need an alibi for not being there when it was hit. Well, he could head over to a nearby bar and hang out there, pretend he hadn't been home when his systems were compromised. It was only four in the morning anyway. Maybe Pepper would even believe him, but even if she didn't, Stark Tower was not safe right now.
His back pocket vibrated, and Tony was surprised to find his StarkPhone even though he could have sworn it wasn't there two minutes ago. Electronic text was scrawled across the screen in a font far more runic than any Tony was aware his phone was capable of, and all it said was "you owe me another favor" in as ominous a tone as text could be. Two guesses on who sent that. Just as the text went away - no history of it in the logs either, Tony would discover later after trying to Loki annoying texts back - his phone rang, this time with an incoming call: Pepper. It was difficult lying to her; she was and always would be incredibly important to him, and hands down his favorite ex ever, mostly because his other exes were batshit crazy. Thank God being friends was easier than being romantic, and that was something they both had agreed on. But it still wasn't fun lying to a friend, ex-girlfriend or otherwise.
"Morning, Pep, kind of early for my wake up call, isn't it?"
There was a relieved sigh over the line. "I've been calling you for an hour, Tony. Jarvis sent me some half-garbled message that wasn't even complete, and then you wouldn't pick up the phone when I called!" She had to take a steadying breath, during which Tony really just wanted to thank her for caring. "Where have you been?"
"Just the usual: ending world hunger, establishing peace in the Middle East, maybe I threw a few darts in a bar."
There was a pause as Pepper formed her own words and completely ignored Tony's sarcasm. "Tony, Jarvis isn't connecting when I call."
He tried to sound surprised. "What do you mean 'not connecting'? Are you calling the right number?"
"I'm calling the same number that's been on my speed dial for years. It isn't connecting. Not a busy signal or anything, just a click and a dial tone. I think something's happened. You've been away from Stark Tower all night?"
The moment of truth, and he had to use to it lie. How elaborate or evasive should he go? "Yeah, no, I left earlier. Unexpected, but I needed to get out for a little while." True enough but vague. It would have to do. Now that he wasn't the only one aware of the situation though, he would have to return to find the problem sooner rather than later. "I'm on my way back now. If you don't hear from me in half an hour, call Rhodey, scramble the national guard, and plant evidence on Nick Fury."
"Yes, Tony, I remember the protocol for what to do when you die." Pepper's dry monotone betrayed just how much patience she was exercising right now. "Now be serious. And be careful too." She admonished not indelicately. "In fact, just don't be yourself for a minute because we know where that leads." Lecture though it was, the words were said with affection, so Tony could only smile.
"Advice taken, Miss Potts. I'll give the Cap a call; he can be my bodyguard. I have to check damage though, okay? Compromise?"
"Compromise." She ceded. "And call me as soon as you get there with Steve, okay? As soon as you get there. And keep me updated."
"Yes, boss, I won't forget. I'll call back in a few." A few short farewells later, he ended the call and dialed Steve next, who, unsurprisingly, wasn't too busy to drop by. The whole "get Steve Rogers accustomed to the 21st century" thing was a work-in-progress, but Tony kept catching the oddest feelings like Steve was really way farther ahead than he let on and just didn't bother showing it because it wasn't important. Tony himself had suggested a few pop culture reference origins for Steve to check out, and Steve had been making offhand comments related to them a couple weeks after. So maybe he wasn't as out-of-date.
Within ten minutes, Steve met Tony on a street corner not too far from Stark Tower, and they walked another five minutes to his building. Steve readily agreed that Tony shouldn't be going in there alone and insisted on sticking by Tony's side the entire time. Tony didn't argue the point.
Inside, everything looked fine on the surface except for a notable lack of life from no automatic lights to no cocky greeting from Jarvis. It felt cold without his children whirring away.
"Cap, I'm enlisting you as my assistant, starting now. I need Jarvis back up as soon as possible."
Steve was no engineer, and Tony had to constantly reword himself into less technical terms or simply point out what needed to be done, but he took direction well, caught on faster than anticipated, and having a supersoldier around certainly helped with piece of mind when Steve made sarcastic comments and playful jibs about Tony's reliance on tech. Tony gave back as good as he got, but his mind was still half elsewhere and not even on sex right now. He still had no idea who was responsible for trying to kill him, and even seeing what had been done to his systems didn't provide any clues. It was a clean job - professional and fast with the only error being that Tony suddenly had a god that fancied his ass. Tony shouldn't have survived this attack, and the very thought that he might not have was as terrifying as it was enraging.
Loki was right: this wasn't a one man thing; it was bigger. Someone wanted Tony dead very badly. The good part was that Loki fucked that plan up all to hell, and judging from the thoroughness of this job, it was going to be a while before they could attack again. Great measures were taken to preserve anonymity, and Tony knew well how difficult that was to arrange. Whoever it was certainly succeeded in destroying his sense of security though.
Tony broached the subject with Steve, who agreed after a moment of consideration, that it was high time for the Avengers to get under one roof. Tony already had the floors all set up for everyone; it had just been a matter of if could they survive living with each other. Now Tony and Steve had to ask the question of whether they would survive living without each other. With their faces and their abilities public, any number of people wanted them dead or injured or out of the game. So the Avengers were put on the list of new occupants.
xXx
Sunrise heralded Bruce's arrival, and Steve got a break to sleep. Tony stayed thoroughly caffeinated and was onto his fifth cup of extra strong, extra bitter for extra kick cup of black brew by the time he and Bruce settled in to work on making Tony's security into something new and improved. This time, Tony, Rhodey, and Bruce knew the codes. Pepper was allotted a set all her own that provided her access wherever she needed to go and nowhere else. He trusted Pepper with his life, but he didn't trust that those codes wouldn't fall into the wrong hands by accident. Bruce was Bruce, and no one would be able to interrogate secrets from the Hulk, so his codes could access everything that Tony's could, in case of emergency, as could Rhodey's for the same reasons. Steve, Clint, and Natasha were given codes that opened even less than Pepper's did. SHIELD was kept in the absolute dark, but Tony was sure Clint or Natasha wouldn't hesitate to turn over their own if they were asked to.
Everyone had their own unique set so that Tony would know who came and who went. Jarvis' keypads secretly doubled as biometrics too, surreptitiously scanning fingerprints or DNA and matching them to those allowed inside, so Tony would know who was using what codes too or if they were using codes not their own. He would know everything. He had to know everything. There was no such thing as being too safe or too cautious now.