Regaining Innocence (avengers au)

[4] meeting the maximoffs

"Hey, guys! Thanks for coming, it means a lot to me and Tasha," Clint greeted them, gesturing at Loki, who apparently had decided to play bashful. "Meet Wanda and Pietro. They're here to play with you and take care of you together with me and Nat." Loki peeked out from behind the table, batting his long eyelashes at the twins. "Hello, my name is--" Clint cut him off sharply before he could reveal his name.

"No, let them guess who you are," Loki nodded, still keeping up the bashful angel facade.

"Doctor Banner, no?" Pietro guessed, "He is the most soft-spoken member of the Avengers," Wanda agreed, smiling at the toddler in front of her, only to sceptically raise a slender eyebrow as Clint shook his head, hoisting Loki into his muscled arms.

"Nope, but it isn't Tony either if you're planning on guessing by hair colour," he said, laughing as Loki grasped the hairs on the back of his neck and giggled. "Meet Mini-Loki, the God of mischief."

Pietro's eyes widened, shaking his head as fast as he could without using his powers. "A very funny joke, Clint. Who is he really? Last I checked he was leading an alien army to destroy the streets of New York."

"That was his adult counterpart. This is the toddler that used to roam the Asgardian Palace alongside Thor as a prince. He would not have been as sinister back then, though he still might feel unloved or overshadowed by his brother," Wanda stated grimly. "During our time here, we shall treat him equally, if not better, than the others. He may not remember his former life on Asgard, but he knows he's a prince, and he still feels insecure from time to time."

"Just how did you know that? You don't even know what's going on." Clint asked, confused.

Wanda rolled her eyes in a way that was eerily similar to Nat, sending chills up Clint's spine. She held up one hand, toying with the red ethereal glow that danced between her elegant fingertips. "Neural electric interfacing, telekinesis, mental manipulation?" she drawled sarcastically, amused that he could forget her powers.

"Oh, right. I- I was distracted," Clint fumbled, gesturing at Loki in a pointless but hilarious attempt to redeem his mistake.

At that moment, Steve and Thor bounded in, giggling madly about something they were saying, then stopping dead in their tracks, gawking at the sight of two strangers with vibrant hair colours. Saved by the children, Barton? Wanda's voice sounded in Clint's head mockingly, a shadow of a smirk gracing her features. He didn't bother answering her, instead opting to turn to Steve and Thor, who was still staring shamelessly at the strangers. Looking down, he saw that Loki was now leaning against his leg, looking a bit too smug at the sight of Thor caught off guard.

"Guys, meet Wanda and Pietro Maximoff. They're twins and your new friends." Clint explained. Thor and Steve's eyes lit up at the mention of new friends, both rushing forward to hug Pietro and Wanda respectively.

"Hi, I'm Steve, I'm five years old!" Steve chirped happily, craning his neck to look up at Wanda, who smiled softly back at him. "Hi," she replied. "You already know who I am."

"I'm Thor, an' I'm four!" Thor piped up, not noticing the adults' amused expressions at the rhyme. Thour, Clint thought to himself, that has a nice ring to it. He could practically feel Wanda's mental eye roll judging him as she heard the thought sound in his head.

"Great to meet you guys!" Pietro said, grinning widely, failing to hide his amusement at seeing the most serious and patriotic man he had ever met reduced to a giggling toddler. Not to mention the fact that being the man-child he was, he was still laughing mentally about the convenient 'Thour' rhyme.

"Let's wait until Nat and the others are here before you guys show off your D-A-N-G-E-R-O-U-S but really awesome abilities," Clint suggested.

"Hey, don' spell things like that! I- I don't understand what you're saying!" Thor whined.