Once Again Chapter 3

"So, what's the last thing you remember?"

Loki sniffed in displeasure at the bombardment of questions. "Well, yesterday at night Father threw a party, and everyone was fussing over Brother as usual, so I went back to my room to read, and Mother came in to say good night and tucked me in-" Loki paused, looking around. "This isn't my room. Where am I?"

"Avengers Tower." The man who had grabbed Loki said automatically. Loki raised an eyebrow in confusion. "On Earth. Er, Midgard."

Loki's eyes widened and froze. "Midgard?" He inhaled sharply. "I am on Midgard?"
"Kind of."

"Who are you?" Loki was becoming visibly distressed. "Why did you bring me here?"

"Technically, you brought yourself-"

"My name is Steve Rogers," the calmer man interrupted the other one. "This is Tony Stark. Your daddy- er, had something important on and left you with us."

Tony cringed. Steve was terrible at lying. No one would believe such a vague story, especially someone like Loki.

"You are trying to deceive me." Loki declared angrily. "I demand to know where I am."
Tony's brains churned for a suitable story, but luckily he was saved from answering the question by a call of "Breakfast is ready!" from outside.

"You know what," Tony made himself smile. "Let's go have breakfast first. Then we can explain everything."

Loki pursed his lips and pouted. Tony would have found it funny if the whole thing wasn't so flabbergasting.

"We don't mean you any harm." Steve knelt down and gave a smile that was far more warming than Tony's.

Loki looked wary, but allowed himself be led down the hall to the kitchen.

" 'Daddy had something important on?' " Tony whispered. "Seriously? That's the best story you can come up with?"

Steve shrugged sheepishly.

OOO

"Little bastard woke up." Tony sighed. He'd gotten to the kitchen before Steve and Loki; Loki had to use the toilet and Steve followed. "He'd been out for what, a week? Figured he was dead."

Clint choked on his toast. Bruce looked up from the table and studied Tony's expression. "You don't seem very angry." Bruce observed. "Did he say anything?"

"He doesn't remember anything." Tony had the attention of all the Avengers now. "He… I think his mind and body have been reverted to his six-year-old self. Thor, do you know anything about this?" Tony asked the demigod.

Thor hesitated, before shaking his head slowly. "It has not happened before, but if I had to guess, I would say he used too much magic, and his body forced itself into something that needed less energy to maintain." Thor's brows were furrowed in concern. "Is he blue?"

"What?"

Thor shook his head again. "Nevermind."

"So we're going to be stuck with a kid Loki in the tower now?" Clint growled.

"Unless you know how to get Loki his magic back, yes."

"Can't we just throw him out the window?" Clint grumbled.

"Have care how you speak!" Thor rose from his seat, hand closing in around Mjölnir. "This is a younger Loki we talk about. He does not remember anything. To kill him would be to kill an innocent child."

"Innocent?" Tony scoffed.

"It's not just about Loki. Kids are annoying. I don't know why anyone would want one of those things." Clint continued muttering, unfazed by the thunder rumbling outside and Thor's glare.

"Oh, we all know you were an accident," Tony walked over to the counter, neatly sidestepping a pile of rubble, and started making coffee. "No mother would possibly want that."

"Shut up, dipshit!"

"Are you done with the profanities already?" Everyone looked up to the doorway. Steve was standing there, with a stern look of disapproval on his face. When their eyes went lower, they saw the small child clinging to Steve's jeans, his emerald eyes glittering with fear and confusion. Steve's hand was on Loki's messy black hair, to calm him.

"Is that-" Natasha swallowed nervously. Even though she had seen him for the briefest moments, before the medical team rushed him away, she still couldn't get used to Loki looking like a six year old kid.

"Loki, this is Natasha Romanoff." Tony gestured to her. Loki gave a small wave. Natasha didn't return it.

"She does not seem to like me." Loki whispered to Steve, having obviously warmed up to him. Maybe he meant to say it softly but the room was so quiet, everyone heard him.

"Don't worry, kid," Tony took a swig of coffee. "She's always like that." Natasha glared at him. "That guy there is Clint Barton." Loki tried waving again, but Clint didn't even look at him.

"Pass me some coffee too, Tony." Clint reached out for a cup, but Tony held on to it.

"Say hi, both of you." He said, moving the coffee just out of Clint's reach.

Loki complied easily, but Clint hesitated for a few seconds before reluctantly murmuring something intangible. Tony sighed and pushed the cup across the counter towards Clint.
"Don't mind him. He's pmsing." Tony ignored the glares he received. Loki didn't seem to get it. "Okay, that's Bruce Banner, the one reading." Bruce gave a smile and Loki smiled back eagerly at the only person who didn't seem to hate him. He was adorable when not trying to throw people out windows, Tony thought to himself.

"And that's Thor." Tony almost bit his tongue. Loki's smile widened.

"Thor is here?" He seemed much happier. "Where?"

"Uh, he's not your Thor." Tony tried to explain, and swore internally as Loki's face fell immediately. "Just someone with the same name." Thor shuffled his feet awkwardly in the corner of the room and said hello. Loki narrowed his eyes at him for a moment, before saying hi.

"Where is my brother?" Loki asked no one in particular. Beside him, Steve stiffened.

"He was sent somewhere else." Tony said absent-mindedly.

"Can I go see him?"

"No," Tony said too quickly. The hope in Loki's eyes died a little and Tony cursed at himself again.

"Well, if you see him, tell him I miss him." Loki said. Thor made a strange noise and strode out of the room. The room was quiet again, the silence growing heavy and awkward.
"What is this place?" Loki started, leaving Steve's side to poke at the marble counter and great glass windows that gave a beautiful view of the destroyed Manhattan. "Whoooaaa. It's so tall."

"The kitchen of the Avengers Tower." Tony looked pleased at Loki's marveling. "Ninety-three floors, built it myself. Mostly."

"Why does some of it look like a warzone?" Loki gestured at the broken tiles and rubble.

"An idiot tried to blow up this place. It didn't work; we beat the crap out of him." Clint said bitterly before downing the rest of his coffee. Tony chuckled and continued, "we're making repairs now."

Loki gestured to the adult-Loki-shaped crater, where Hulk had left adult-Loki after their previous battle. "Why is there a man-shaped hole on the floor?"

Clint sprayed coffee across the table.