Starting Over - Loki (COMPLETE)

48) General banter

After the general riffraff, as Tony called them, had left, the Avengers, Pepper and Jane relaxed on the circle of sofas in the centre of the room. Only Steve, Loki and Bruce were still sober and even Bruce was dazed from the after-effects of speaking to a pretty girl for close to an hour. Thor had left shortly after dancing with Jane and saying goodbye to everyone.

"I think I'll miss the big fella," Tony slurred, clinking his glass with Clint's. "You make up with him, Loki?"

Whilst not terribly amused that Tony had brought up his and Thor's slightly fragmented relationship, he decided that it couldn't hurt since virtually none of them would remember it.

"Yes," he replied. "We're back on track, as it were."

"Good, good," Tony nodded. "Nat, do you have a crush on Loki?"

Loki raised his eyebrows, slightly startled by the question. Natasha was very beautiful, of course, and very like him, and also intelligent. Intelligence was always something Loki looked for in a partner. He noticed Jane appearing uncomfortable.

"He's cute," Natasha admitted, leaning over to pat Loki on the cheek.

Tony seemed disappointed.

"Is that it? This is the part where you snog him for about ten minutes."

"This isn't a film," Pepper reminded him.

"Oh, isn't it? That's a shame."

Tony apparently gave up on trying to speak coherently. Bruce, shaking himself out of his dazed stupor, leant forwards.

"Loki, could you show us some magic?" He asked excitedly.

"Depends what you want me to do," Loki drawled in response.

"What can you do?" Clint questioned, drawing on a childlike propensity for entertainment, and seemingly having forgotten Loki's prior decoration of the room they were sitting in.

"A fair bit," Loki replied, eyeing him cautiously.

"I want another drink," Tony said gloomily, twirling his empty glass between his fingers.

Loki clicked his fingers and the glass refilled. To his amazement, Tony, despite being absolutely hammered, did not smash the glass. He merely stared at it, his mouth falling open in shock.

Clint looked confused.

"They can't do that in Harry Potter," he accused.

Loki was amused.

"Well, it may have escaped your notice, Barton, but this isn't Harry Potter."

Everyone laughed and Clint frowned. Steve just looked confused.

"Remind me to add that to the list," Steve informed them.

"Harry Potter is a series about wizards and witches," Loki explained. "In that series, they can't conjure food or drink from nothing but, as I said, this isn't Harry Potter so my magic does what it likes."

"Can it be uncontrollable?" Tony asked eagerly.

Bruce winced at Tony's blasé tone, no doubt thinking about his alter ego.