Phoenix Rising: A PJATO/Avengers Crossover/Loki Love Story

The Avengers get schooled. Dance schooled.

Third person omniscient POV~

"Look at my little sister and her friends. They have no clue as to what is in store for them, do they? I could just set the place ablaze with almost little to no effort..." Melinoe states, looking through the window at Thana and her class, them completely oblivious of her presence, before being cut off by a strange, disembodied voice only she could hear. "I command you to desist with your petty rage for one moment and do what I've sent you there to do." "But master-" The voice cut Melinoe off. "Don't be a fool, you insufferable goddess! We need your sister alive to obtain the helm which you will use to obtain the tesseract from S.H.I.E.L.D. Hopefully, without any unexpected distractions. I needn't remind you of what should happen if you fail to do so successfully." The voice said, making Melinoe grimace as she replied through her teeth. "No." "No, what?" "No, you don't have to remind me, master." The voice grunted in content with her answer. "Now, go. And do not return until it is time." The voice commanded her as she turned heel abruptly and stormed off, ready to do her evil deeds.

Thana POV~

"What in Ha-" I caught myself as I noticed my students ogling my friends, along with Stephen. I deadpanned for a second before sighing deeply through my nose. The whole class gasped in awe. Noticing how extreme they may have looked to the children in the room, they got out of their attack formation and sheepishly waved at the kids. They instantaneously ran over and bombarded the Avengers with all kinds of questions, while the team was unsuccessfully trying to hold them off. I looked over at Stephen as if to say, 'Should I call them off?' He looked back at me, dying of laughter with a, 'Just a few more minutes' expression. I shook my head, breathily laughing, before whistling to get the class' attention. They all cleared a path, getting into their places as I stood in front of them. "Class, take five and prepare to get into your groups while I talk to my friends, okay?" They all reluctantly went back to their spots as I turned to Stephen, who nodded knowingly at me as he obtained the students' attention while I pointed to the team with two fingers and to the door rapidly, motioning for them to follow me out in the hallway. When everyone made it outside the door, my expression dramatically changed. "What..in..HADES do you guys think you're DOING here?!" All eyes turned to Tony, who shrugged his shoulders, smiling sheepishly. "We can't stop by to say hi?" was his excuse. "In all of your Iron Man glory?" I said, sarcastically raising an eyebrow at him. He sighed as he explained why they were there. "Well to be fair, you did leave right in the middle of a team discussion." I scoffed. "Really? I do have a day job, unlike the rest of you." "Well that's all you had to say, cupcake." "Ugh, you're impossible, Tony!" He stuck his tongue out at me, which I all too happily returned the gesture. Steve rolled his eyes and stepped in to be the peacekeeper. "Thana, we just wanted to make sure you were okay. In our experience, when someone just runs off without warning, something unpleasant usually follows." I stopped being childish and smiled at him. "I'm sorry, Steve. I should've told everyone where I was headed. But now that you're here, why don't you guys sit in on class today?" He looked at the team, who just collectively shrugged, before turning to face me to respond. "Um, sure?" Making his answer sound more like a question. I rolled my eyes, smiling at the man out of time before placing my hand on the handle of the door, beckoning the team to follow. As we reentered the classroom, everyone cheered for the team as they all looked around, curious and nervous all at once. I crooked a finger at Stephen, who got the message and scurried over to me. "Stephen, meet my friends, the Avengers. Avengers, this is Stephen Fontaine, my assistant and one of many of the Apollo kids." Stephen held out his hand for everyone to shake, which everyone did, even Loki, albeit not without a deep scowl. Stephen noticed this, raising an eyebrow, but kept quiet anyway as he turned to face me. "So are they joining us today?" He asked. I nodded. "They're going to sit in on class, and maybe even talk to the kids. Isn't that right, Tony?" I said, with a glare to the brunette, who had been caught off guard by my inquiry. "Wha-?" He began, but stopped once he saw my expression. "Sure..." He drug out. I smiled as I thought where to place them. "You guys can sit down over..there!" I said, pointing to the chairs for the parents. They all sat in the chairs as Stephen and I turned back around to address the class. "Okay class," I began. "Have you figured out your groups?" They all nodded. "Now, Mr. Fontaine will explain his idea for today." I looked at Stephen, who was in position by the stereo. "I thought it would be a good idea to have a little competition, just to keep you on your toes. Each group of two will have a number. Since the music is on shuffle, whatever song comes on will be the music for that round, and your objective is to come up with a creative way to dance. The two teams that win will compete to go against Miss Phoenix and myself, and the team that wins that matchup will choose the music and dance style for the battle. If you beat us, you can choose the music for the rest of class. Sound good?" Everyone sounded a mutual agreement as I turned to look at the team with a sneaky idea. "And the Avengers will be our judges for each round!" They all straightened up quickly, exchanging looks with one another, before Clint said, "I don't really think we're qualified for this." I rolled my eyes at his statement before Tony made one of his own. "It's not rocket science, Katniss. You're judging based on their creativity. Don't you listen?" Clint sent him a glare and Tony just shrugged. "I'll put each of the team numbers in a bowl on slips of paper to determine the matchups." I ran to my office, writing each number on a piece of paper and throwing them into a small bowl, returning to the classroom where everyone was patiently waiting. "Team one will draw a number and we'll start from there. I handed the bowl to the team up front as they drew a number and passed it back to me. Once I had the bowl again, I placed it on the floor by the stereo. I walked back over to the first team on the end up front, asking for the number they drew. "Team 1 vs. Team 6!" I announced, both teams coming up front and taking their positions. I motioned for Stephen to cut the music on. The first song began blaring through the speakers as I gestured for the teams to begin dancing. It went on for a while until team 6 was left. Team 6 consisted of Kayla and Bradley. They were both very adept students, even though they were the youngest in the class. I was impressed they had won all of their matchups, but not surprised in the slightest. I smiled before an idea popped in my head. "Why don't we switch this up? I'll take Kayla, and Stephen can take Bradley. A battle of the sexes, so to speak. Sound interesting?" I said. Stephen thought about it for a moment, before nodding yes. Bradley went to stand beside him, whilst Kayla ran beside me. "Five minutes to come up with a genre and dance?" I asked. Stephen nodded. "Sure. Just don't cry when we beat you, Thana!" I smirked at him. "Yeah right! Let's show 'em, Kayla!" She smiled up at me. "Yeah!" We separated off into our new groups, formulating plans and moves before Stephen announced, "Time! So what song are we doing?" "Why not Reptile's Theme?" He looked at me with an eyebrow raised. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" I smiled. "Rockem Sockem?" I questioned. He smiled back. "Rockem Sockem." "All right then, we'll pick it up from there." Kayla looked at me, smiling knowingly as Stephen moved to the stereo to press play. "Do you remember the plan, Kayla?" "Yup, Miss Phoenix. The boys are going down!" I smiled back at her before getting in position in the back, making the hand signal for my class to be at the ready to reveal the trampoline panels in the floor. "What the heck is 'rockem sockem' supposed to mean?" Tony asked no one in particular. "You'll see." I replied. The song started, and we got into position. Kayla and Bradley started to dance using fight moves while Stephen and I mirrored their movements to a tee, using the trampoline panels for moves like flips and flying kicks. The whole class, including the team, watched with awe as we finished the dance, clapping. We all took a collective bow. "I think it's safe to say that was a draw." Stephen said as we went over to the team. "Sooo...what didya think?" I asked. "I thought you danced beautifully love, as always of course." Loki chimed in. I blushed beet red as Stephen looked at me, then at Loki, then back at me again as his eyes widened then he smirked, nonchalantly bumping me in the shoulder. I glared at him, before playfully smacking him on his arm. "What?" He asked, laughing. "You know what." I said, half-serious. "Okay, okay. I'll be over there, talking to the kids." He said as he walked away. I turned back to face the team, all of which had stood up. "So that's what you meant by 'rockem sockem' Just like the robots." Tony said, smirking. "Yup." I said. "So, what happens now?" Steve asked. "Well, we dance!" I said, pulling him towards the kids and Stephen, motioning for the rest of the team to follow. Steve politely waited until I stopped dragging him to decline. "If you want, I can teach you?" I asked. He looked around at everyone else, them all being preoccupied with the kids. "Sure." I smiled at him. "So, are you a visual learner or do you prefer the hands on approach?" Steve gave me a look of disbelief. "Oh, you thought you were off the hook?" He hung his head in defeat as I laughed. "Here, give me your hands." I said, grabbing them and positioning Steve in the right way. "Now, take a deep breath and follow my lead." I instructed, counting the measure of the song along with the steps of the dance. It worked for a while until Steve kept losing count and accidentally stepping on my toes. "Okay, I think that's enough for now." He said, looking defeated. I took a step back to assess the situation, before coming up with the perfect solution. "I think I know what's wrong here. Kayla, can you come here please?" She hopped over beside me instantly. I picked her up, placing her on top of Steve's shoes as I posed their hands and arms. "Thana, I don't see how this is going to work any better." He protested. "You're too nervous. If you stop over thinking how you're going to mess up, your movements wouldn't be so restricted. That's where Kayla comes in. She's done years of ballroom dancing and where she's smaller than I am, you're less likely to step on her feet. You've got the lead part down, so just start there and Kayla will keep you on track. And just so you have an example," I began, looking around me for a partner and seizing Loki's hand, "Loki and I will dance alongside you." Loki looked at me with a raised brow before catching on and taking the lead. Everything significantly faded out of importance as I focused on the man in front of me, getting lost in his eyes. Loki and I eventually started leaning in closer, faces inches apart as the song came to finish and Loki dipped me down, keeping a firm grip on my back. We stayed like that for what seemed like forever until we heard applause coming from the rest of the team and my class. I blushed as Loki pulled me back up, my hand resting on his chest before we separated from each other. Everything slowly came back into focus as I smiled a small smile and Loki slowly let me go. I turned to Steve. "So, do you understand the steps now, Steve?" I asked him. Before he could answer, Kayla did it for him. "He's not half bad. He's just having a little trouble with the timing." Steve looked taken aback before half smiling at the rest of us. Since the last thirty minutes of class was approaching fast, we let the children dance or ask the team questions, their choice. When class was finally over, myself, the team, and Stephen sat down, all exhausted. After a quick rest, Stephen and I were cleaning up, putting the equipment or anything else that was used for the day up, with the help of the team of course. Stephen waited until we were out of earshot of the team before asking me about Loki. I denied it of course, and told him to drop it. He just rolled his eyes again and soon we all finished putting everything away. We all exited the building as I locked up for the day and we all said or goodbyes to Stephen as he got in his car and drove off. The team and I went back to the tower, where everyone congratulated Steve for getting over his first dance with flying colors. He cooked dinner for everyone and we all sat, eating and exchanging funny stories. For the first time in a long time, I felt like part of a family. I smiled as I volunteered to do dishes, which Steve also tried to do, or at least help. But I told him he had done enough for the day and that it was no big deal. I collected everyone's plates as my dish water was running, putting all the dishes into the water. In little to no time at all, I was done and putting the dishes away before letting out the water. As soon as I was about to let the water out, a bubble floated up in front of me and said, 'You have an Iris message from the underworld. Do you wish to accept?' Oh great. I wonder who this could be. "I accept." I stated loud enough for the message. An image of my mother appeared, smiling at me from her garden. "Thanaiadene, how are you my dearest daughter?" I half smiled at her. "I'm fine, mama. Where's papa?" She halfway frowned a bit, but caught the look in my eye. "Your father is, well...don't fret about your father, Thana. He is fine." I eyed her suspiciously. "Mother, what else aren't you telling me?" Her eyes darted left to right looking for an excuse, when a voice said her name. 'Persephone, where are you?' She looked at me and smiled nervously before answering. "I'm in the garden, husband. Come quickly!" I raised an eyebrow. 'Please insert one drachma to continue this message.' I fished around my pocket and dug one out, tossing it into the message. I watched as my father entered the garden, coming up behind her. "Perseph-oh. Hello, daughter. Has your mother told you the news?" I cocked an eyebrow at that, shaking my head no. "I thought you were going to tell her, my love." She had a look on her face that said murder. "I'll tell her then." I was getting frustrated with the secrecy. "Oh gods, tell me what?!" I accidentally almost half screamed. "As you know, on your 23rd birthday this year, we are holding a coronation ceremony here in the underworld in your honor." I shook my head, my mind and heart racing equally fast. This was a lot to process at once. Did this mean my father was stepping down from the throne of the underworld? I sincerely hoped not, seeing as how I had absolutely no idea whatsoever how to run a flippin kingdom. The look on his face told me there was definitely more than what they were telling me. I was jarred from my thoughts as the rest of the team started talking about something. "Whatcha doin', kid?" Tony said, noticing me not talking. "Talking to my parents." I pointed to the bubble, turning to face it once more. "Now you were saying, papa?" I heard Tony snicker and shot him a glare before I put on an innocent face, hoping to get some info. "You're to be coronated next week here in the underworld and..." He trailed off, looking at my mother as if to say, 'you tell her'. She huffed, exasperatedly, rolling her eyes. "What your father is trying to say, Thana, is that the ceremony is also a courting event. When you are given your official title as princess and heir to the throne, you will have to choose a husband, or we will." The words floated around aimlessly in my head, an expressionless look on my face, until their meaning finally resonated. I could feel my temperature rise as I screamed out. "WHAT?!?" I breathed out black fire, something that only happens when I'm absolutely furious. This action didn't particularly go unnoticed. Tony's eyes went wide, while everyone, even Loki, just looked at me with a mix of concern and surprise. My eyes were ablaze, matching the rage I felt inside. I took a minute to compose myself, and turned back around to the message. "Pó̱s tolmás na dokimásete kai na párete mou sto spíti mou pantref̱teí off se kápoio xéno, óla káto̱ apó to próschi̱ma ti̱s psev̱deís parastáseis?"* I asked them, tapping the counter impatiently. "Eímai o patéras sou, Thanaiadene, kai o vasiliás sas. Tha káno̱ ópo̱s katalavaíno̱ eínai dýo. Eínai safés?"** I rolled my eyes. "Gami̱méno krýstallo! Giatí tha to kánete af̱tó gia ména, patéra?̱!"*** My mother stepped in, trying to pacify the situation. "Sweetheart, we're only doing this for your future." I rolled my eyes again. "You mean he decided this." I said, pointing toward my father. My mother was getting angry. "Enough. You will come next week or so help me I will drag you here myself, young lady." I hung my head, feeling defeated. "And we'll make room for your friends as well." I started to frown. "Goodbye mother, father." I popped the bubble, trodding back to my room, being trailed by the eyes of the team.

*(How DARE you try and get me home to wed me off to some stranger, all under the guise of false pretenses?)

**(I am your father, Thanaiadene, and your king. I will do as I see fit being both. Is that clear?)

***(Fucking crystal! Why would you do this to me, father?)