Shine Again (An Avengers: Infinity War/Endgame Story)

Chapter 6: Tea Talk

    Loki glared out over the barely waking city he had failed to conquer so long ago, wishing he could be anywhere but there in Stark Tower. Unfortunately, he had few options; long before tensions with Midgard, he had made many enemies across the nine realms. Even being here wasn't exactly a great idea, all things considered. But it was better than being in Thanos' clutches.

    "Despite what Tony will tell you, there are much better views on this planet," a quiet voice stated. The god turned his head and watched as Layla moved around the kitchen. She looked to be making some kind of beverage judging by the mugs she was sitting out and the water she was putting inside a kettle. "Would you like some tea?"

    "I doubt Midgard has much to interest me," Loki sneered.

    Layla stared at him wholly unimpressed as she shrugged, making the trickster stare at her in confusion. "Whatever, had to have been something. What's the point of conquering a place if you don't want it?" she muttered, turning away to pull wooden boxes out of a cupboard. Loki watched as she measured out dried leaves and put them into a metal box with holes, completely mystified.

    "Are you making herbal remedies?" Loki questioned, ignoring her scathing remarks. She obviously didn't know the truth completely behind what happened during the invasion, even despite the fact that Stark's AI had explained the mind control. He watched as the blonde looked up at him with a raised eyebrow.

    "Herbal remedies? It's tea. I guess long ago they considered it a remedy, but these days it's just a soothing drink," Layla retorted. "Guess you missed me asking if you wanted tea while you were brooding."

    She turned to grab the kettle just as steam rose from it in a whistle, and Loki found himself moving closer. He watched as she poured the steaming water over the metal box in the mug, eyes widening as the fragrant smells of herbs wafted up. Sure, he had tea before, but had never actually watched it get made. They had maidens for that back on Asgard; one small perk of being in the royal family, adopted or not.

    "What kind? It smells delightful," he questioned, moving so that he was directly against the counter opposite her.

    "Well, this one in particular is chamomile and lavender," Layla explained, looking at him patiently. "There are other types. For example, Bruce prefers green or jasmine. Anja likes Earl Grey, which is a black tea flavored with bergamot."

    "Fascinating," he murmured, looking intensely at the steaming mug. Layla huffed a small laugh and grabbed another mug, this one light green as opposed to the dark purple one she was using. She prepared the mug the same way as before, and then sat it in front of him.

    "Enjoy. Maybe you'll relax that stick in your ass a little," she huffed, making his head shoot up and lip snarl. He drew up short when he saw her smirking playfully, her hands wrapped around her mug.

    "You are awfully brave, mortal, to attempt to outwit me," Loki growled, but it came out surprisingly unthreatening.

    Layla shrugged and sipped from her mug, blue eyes bright with amusement. "Outwit you? I doubt that is something I could do."

    "Layla is much too nice to try and do something like that," a dry remark came from the hallway, making both turn and watch as Tony shuffled into the room.

    "Nice? We both know that I'm the furthest thing from nice," Layla laughed, nodding her head towards a filled coffee pot. Loki tilted his head as he took in the blonde and pondered if what she said was true. From what he had already gathered, Layla was the definition of nice.

    "Careful, I can see your brain cooking over there," Stark huffed, smirking. "Layla is nice. But she's also... not nice."

    "Big boy words, right there, Tony. 'Not nice,' he says," the girl sarcastically mocked, making Stark throw a spoon at her. "What this idiot is trying to say is that I do what I need to do so that those that I love are safe and happy."