Mischief on Midgard

Meaning of worth

Loki found himself feeling unsure whether or not he should consider it a blessing or a curse that Thor was acting wiser than Loki thought he would upon seeing him ensconced among his allies.

Firstly, Thor had not given away Loki's true identity to his allies as he had expected. Oh, it was true that Thor gave him the occasional nudge, and that damned wink when he'd first shown up, but he never actually addressed him by his true name. Nor did Thor allude to any of their prior interactions. Even while laughing and boasting about the current going's on back on Asgard, being his usual, boisterous self, he never once slipped up and called Loki by his name, or referred to him as brother.

And to say that Loki had listened intently on all of the conversations that the Oaf had to stop him if he showed signs of saying anything stupid and giving him away was an understatement.

Secondly, when Loki and Thor briefly found themselves alone in an isolated hallway, Thor still didn't say anything. Instead, he smiled and subtly hinted at one of the many cameras dotting the hall. Loki had been shocked. That Thor was smart enough to have realized that the entire tower was under surveillance was... surprising.

Well then, Loki thought to himself with a huff. Perhaps Thor actually has two whole brain cells to work with instead of just the one I'd assumed him to have. Now, if the Oaf could just stop looking so stupidly happy all the damned time, that would be wonderful.

As it turned out, Thor had indeed shown up just for a friendly visit. He'd wanted to see how Earth itself was holding up and find out if they, his friends or the people of the planet, needed any Asgardian assistance. He had also stopped to visit one 'Jane Foster,' whom he had gotten to know during his Exile.

Sadly, a pattern that Loki was all too familiar with began to emerge. Thor's mere presence, with his broad smile and booming voice, made all others nearby cheer up. Soon enough, they would smile and laugh in turn. It was as if Thor's essence had some magical property to it that made people happy. That made people adore the Oaf.

Thankfully, Loki found himself spared from the usual response that Asgardian's gave the muscle-bound blonde. All googly eyes and simpering smiles. Instead, the Avengers seemed... mostly to be amused, or perhaps bemused, by Thor's exuberant personality. It was as if he were an oddity amongst them, welcome yes, but confusing all the same. They would even shake their heads at some of his more simple observations and smile at each other.

Indeed, what surprised Loki was when they would blatantly make fun of Thor. They, Tony especially, would crack jokes at Thor's expense. To his face, even! Something that would never have been allowed to happen on Asgard. No Asgardian, not one soul, would dare to make fun of Odin's Golden Princeling. Well, no one except for Loki, but that was something people expected. Loki had often made fun of the 'prodigal son of Odin,' only to get scorned for it later on by others.

What really shocked Loki, though, was Thor's reaction to being made fun of by the Avengers.

Loki knew Thor. Before witnessing his interactions with the Avengers, he would have sworn to all and sundry that Thor did not take well to being made fun of. That the Oaf would not tolerate any such showing of disrespect. That Thor would get angry and tell off those who dared say such things, perhaps even threaten or challenge them to a fight to correct the slight against his honor. Loki and Thor had often gotten into arguments over the blonde's temper.

Now, however? He... just laughed it off and bantered back, his tone remaining friendly. Cordial, even. It was... odd, to say the least. Even the worst of Tony's colorful and clearly condescending comments were shrugged off. Either Thor was too stupid to notice Tony's insults to his pride or... or he was honestly just letting it slide.