Ternion (FrostIronStrange)

Part 2

Being told something and witnessing it for yourself where two distinctly different things. Loki folded his arms, tilting his head to the side as he watched.

'You are his...pupil? Adoptive child?' Loki asked the young mortal currently creeping across the ceiling.

The child muttered an expletive, falling to the floor in an elegant pose.

'No, I'm just Peter, Mr Stark...he's kinda my mentor slash teacher.'

'Spider...' Loki trailed off, hoping his sentence would be finished.

'Spider-Man,' he answered with a smile, not showing any apprehension at being alone with Loki.

Loki walked around him in a leisurely circle, hiding his smirk as Peter showed signs of discomfort at his scrutiny, but continued standing his ground. 'You hide your fear well, yet you do not run from me. Why?'

'Mr Stark told me it wasn't you who did those things in New York,' Peter turned, meeting his gaze head-on.

'And you believed him? Why?'

'Because Mr Stark believes it, and I believe him.'

Peter spoke the truth as though it was the easiest thing in the world. Loki felt something stir inside as he looked down at him.

'Erm, Mr Loki, sir?'

'Loki is fine, child.'

'So, is it true you do magic like Doctor Strange?' Peter bounced on his toes, positively gleeful at the prospect.

'No.' Loki was curt, almost angry, regretting his tone when Peter wilted. 'What I mean to say is, not like that imposter, no.' Loki stretched out his hand, palm held upwards, letting his magic float in a ball.

'Oh my gosh, how are you doing that?' Peter rushed forward, waving his fingers under the ball, grabbing Loki's hand and moving it this way and that, turning it over and, being daring, waving his fingers through the energy.

'I can see why he is taken with you. You may not share blood, but you are definitely his.'

'Yup, so hands off, Lokes. Did you get what I asked you for?' Stark directed at Peter, who bounded up to the man, all youthful enthusiasm.

Loki had things he needed to be getting on with, meetings with Thor's advisors, yet he lingered, curiosity getting the better of him as he watched the two mortals interact. They weren't shielding their conversation from him, looking over their shoulders to make sure he left. That was what Loki expected them to do, what many Asgardians and the few mortals that visited them did.

'What is it, exactly that you are building here?' Loki asked, walking around the contraption, waiting to see if his stay was unwelcome.

'It's a fusion generator, Mr Loki. It combines hydrogen, deuterium and tritium at such a high-'

'It's an arc reactor. You remember the thing I used to have in my chest?' Stark pointed with a thumb to his sternum.

'You still have it...' Loki pointed out.

'No, this one is different, this one houses nanobots which creates my armour. The one before, the one you poked with the glowing stick, that was an earlier version of this.' Stark patted the contraption. 'It's an energy source, clean, renewable energy.'

Loki nodded to show he understood, biting the inside of his cheek to hide his smile as Peter got flustered after his complicated explanation.

'A way for us not to rely on Midgardian resources. This is a generous deed you do for my brother.'