Burning

Part Three

Tony returned a few hours later with several bags and three boxes. When Catherine jumped up from the couch to ask him what all of that was he replied, "your new stuff."

"I asked you to get me clothes and shoes for today," she said disbelievingly. "Not a whole new wardrobe."

He rolled his eyes. "It's just the beginning of your new wardrobe. I wanted to get you a head-start." Catherine clamped her mouth shut. Her heart was touched with the fact that he had thought to help her out more than she had expected. She wondered if this was his way to start making amends.

"Thank you," she said gratefully. "That's very..." she stopped, realizing what she was about to say.

Tony grinned. "Come on, you can say it."

"It was very kind and thoughtful of you," she finished a little reluctantly.

"There you go," he said, please. "How did you and the reindeer do?" He glanced at Loki who had been watching the entire conversation with interested eyes.

"Um, good. For a... well a prisoner, he's very well-mannered." She smiled at the raven-haired man. She came back around the couch and sat on the floor in front of Loki to start going through the things her brother had purchased for her. Tony sat on an armchair not far away. As she went pulled each item out, Catherine gave the appropriate appreciative noises, hoping she didn't sound too fake. A few of the things she was a little iffy on, but she didn't dare tell that to Tony, not after he had gone out to buy all this for her. At the end of the bags and boxes, she turned towards her brother, tucking a hair behind her ear. "Thank you, Tony. I really appreciate this."

He shrugged. "Let's just call them gifts for all the birthdays I skipped out on."

"If you say so," she replied, gathering up the things to take to her room.

"Here, allow me to assist you." Loki stood, taking a few of the bags. She smiled at him gratefully and led the way back to her room.

After all the bags and boxes had been stowed on her bed, Catherine touched her stomach. "I'm hungry, is it lunchtime yet?"

Her assistant glanced at the clock. "It's ten forty-five."

"Oh," she made a face. "Well, it's never to early to think about lunch. I'm gonna find out what Tony was thinking." She went to the living room and asked, receiving pizza as the answer to her query. "Great! It's been a while since I've had pizza."

"Yeah," he smiled a little. "I remember that you hated it for a while. It was all we ate after...." He didn't finish the sentence, but she knew how it would end. After our parents died.

Catherine bit her lip. "Yeah. I don't think I've had it in months though, so...."

"Great." Neither of them knew what to say. "So..." Tony began after a few moments of awkward silence. "You and Loki. When did that happen?"

"What?" Loki had returned to his room a few seconds ago, so she could only hope he wasn't listening.

"Gotta admit, you work fast. Not as fast as me probably, but still."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"You guys hook up while I was gone? Does the couch need sanitized?"

Catherine's cheeks burned. "Tony! No! Ugh! What's wrong with you?" She got up and looked in the fridge for something to cool her flaming face.

He followed her, sitting on a bar stool. "No need to be ashamed, we all make mistakes. He's good looking enough, in his own, greasy sort of way. I mean—"