Loki Imagines

Proving It (Part One)

Loki tries not to lose his temper as he walks through the halls of the Avengers complex. Technically, he shouldn't have to be here at all; it's his off day, and he should be free to do whatever he wants, which usually includes finding a place without Tony Stark or any number of the other Avengers, and staying there until he's bored or is forced to leave.

Instead, Loki is striding briskly through the narrow corridors beside Tony, only half listening as the man gives him an update on the scant few things that have changed since Loki was here last, which was yesterday. Loki is not entirely sure what was deemed so important that he had to come in that instant until Tony gets to his final note, which is the latest addition to the Avengers team.

Loki has held the title of Avengers newcomer for quite some time now, an honor he finds rather amusing. How is it that all of these other mortals can call him inexperienced at their job when he's been alive for centuries longer than their grandfather's grandfathers? He'd been taking lives far before S.H.I.E.L.D. was founded, even before New York was more than a settler's dream. How then could he be less adept at missions than some of the others, who barely started at all this a few years ago? That's practically a blink in the eye for a god such as himself.

Needless to say, Loki doesn't entirely mind that someone new has joined the ranks of the Avengers. Perhaps now the others can stop eyeing Loki like he's an explosion about to go off in their faces, or perhaps that will never go away, no matter how many fighters join the team. There's no way for sure of guessing until it happens.

Tony pulls a crisply folded report out of his folder and snaps it open with a flourish, mouth souring slightly as he begins to read. "You might like our latest recruit, actually. You and Thor are no longer the only gods." This, more than rumors that he won't be the black sheep any more, piques Loki's interest. "We're not? Who'd you get, Sif?" That can't be right, she'd never deign to stay with mortals, not like Loki and his brother have. Sometimes it surprises even himself.

Tony makes a face. "She's not one of yours, Odinson. You ever heard about the Greeks?" Loki's only minorly preoccupied with the fact that Tony called him Odinson instead of Laufeyson that he almost doesn't notice the last part of the sentence. "The Greeks?" Tony nods sagely. "Ancient Greece, those gods. Zeus, Poseidon, Athena, and the rest."

Loki frowns. "I thought those were just stories." If there's a rumble of thunder overhead as he says this, Loki thinks that he'd rather blame it on his brother instead of the possibility of someone else. Tony just chuckles. "We thought you were just stories, too, but look how that turned out. Norse deities, walking beside me and wearing leather."

Loki shoots the guy a look, but Tony's too busy laughing at his own joke to notice. "So which one is your recruit? Which god?" Tony's smile starts to fade away as he considers the report once again. "Hades, the god of the dead, had a firstborn child. She goes by Y/N L/N up here. They call her the Goddess of Bloodlust. Her father was merciless but fair, at least. They say she's worse than that, far worse."

Loki raises an eyebrow. "How bad is she, then? And why the hell is she on the team if she's more bloodthirsty than the god of the dead?" Tony shrugs. "Fury vetted her and he seemed fine with it. Anyways, no one knows how bad she is, because honestly, she doesn't seem like anything special." Loki blinks. "She's the goddess of Bloodlust. How could she possibly not seem that bad?" Tony just shakes his head. "You'll see when you meet her. Honestly, I'm starting to think that the whole 'goddess of bloodlust' thing is just a rumor or a gift from her dad."

There's a lot that could be said about that, but Loki decides to hold his tongue for once. It's a good thing that he does, too, because Tony's already reaching for the door that leads into the main living/working center of the Avengers complex. There's a woman inside, one who turns when she sees Loki and Tony enter.