Mirror of the Soul (Loki x Reader)

Chapter 5: Please Don't Leave

Tony gave you the benefit of the doubt for a few days but, having neither seen nor heard from you for three days, he decided enough was enough. He hammered on the door until his hand was red, at which point he called one of his suits from the lab and just punched a hole through the metal door. After that, letting himself in was surprisingly easy.

You didn't register his presence; you hadn't even heard the loud noise over your headphones. They were the best noise cancelling headphones in the world. A bomb could go off and you'd never know so, really, Tony had never stood a chance at grabbing your attention.

What did grab his attention, though, was Loki's sleeping figure. The god was slumped in a large chair beside you, his head hanging limply as he dreamt. Tony tried to make sense of the scene before him - as far as he knew you'd never really spoken to Loki before, let alone invited him into your room.

Knowing that coughing would do little to alert you to his presence, he strode across to your computer station and pulled the oversized headphones from your head. "Y/N, what's going on?"

With a flick of your hand, the screens before you went black and you stared at your uncle's reflection in the glass. He clearly hadn't shaved for a few days and his eyes looked dark. He looked worse than you'd seen him in a long while.

"I've been working..." you said, confused by his sudden appearance in your room. The only time he ever let himself in was when something bad was happening in the Tower. He didn't seem quite stressed enough for that to be the case, but you did notice one of his suits standing open by the door. "What's wrong, Tony?"

"No-one's seen you for three days, Y/N. I've been worried about you." He ran a hand through his hair, self conscious about what now seemed over enthusiastic measures to check on you. "You never came down to the lab to see me..."

Seeing his reflection in the dark screen, the look of pain in his eyes, you felt your throat constricting. He'd been so hurt by your silence, believing that he'd done something wrong. As he turned around to leave, you knew what you had to do. You reached out and grabbed his arm, pulling him back. "Tony, I need to tell you something..."

It was one of the hardest conversations you'd ever had, telling your uncle what you knew. You explained what Bruce had told you about how your powers were causing more serious damage than you'd previously believed. Tony blamed himself, no matter how much you disagreed. He didn't cry but his silence was worse.

"Please say something..." Holding back your own tears, you gripped his hand as if your life depended on it. You could feel him pulling away, subconsciously distancing himself to try and avoid the pain. The bright yellow shimmer that normally shone proud and strong around Tony was trembling. Every passing moment the light grew dimmer as his sadness spread.

"There's something else as well..."

His grip around your hand tightened as he prepared for the worst. He was hardly breathing and you had to shake him to stop him from passing out. Tony barely managing to muster a whisper, he nodded for you to continue.

"This is better news, I promise," you said gently. "I thought it was a fluke before when I saw it. Or didn't see it. You probably don't remember it. It didn't seem important at the time, it was only when I thought about it later did it mean anything. When you brought me biscuits..."

"You're rambling, kiddo," Tony interrupted.

You decided to just show your uncle instead of trying to explain it. Biting down on the inside of your lip, you lifted your gaze and looked straight at him. "So, yeah... I can look at you."

Your hands flew to your eyes, quickly blocking out the world. Tony was shaking your shoulders, his worry palpable, but he dialled it back when you told him, "It's fine. I'm alright."