Of Two Minds

Chapter 4 Part 2: A Stark Confrontation

TOM'S QUARTERS - Early evening

Once the day's shoot completed, Loki again followed the circuit from the set to Wardrobe to the makeup chair before returning to his temporary home. He was not surprised upon his arrival at Tom's quarters to see Tony reclined casually in the chair next to the couch, reading the screen of a smartphone in his hand.

TOM: This is not a good time for Tony's visit.

LOKI: No, but I can't say it's unexpected.

TOM: Very true. Let's get it over with. We have much to discuss.

Loki considered the billionaire genius for a moment. As there was a slight chance this might be the actor who played him, he couldn't automatically presume. "Robert," he greeted with a cordial air.

"So which one are you today, Jekyll or Hyde?" Tony queried without taking his attention from the phone.

Blinking with confusion for a minute, Loki puzzled at the reference until he found the answer in Tom's memories. Tony used a lot of cultural references for the nicknames he called people, giving Loki two nicknames in as many days. Loki turned the tables. "Given your question, that makes you Stark Raving Mad."

Tony scowled at the new nickname bestowed upon him. "Were you awake all night thinking of that one?"

"More like out cold as soon as I got back from makeup and wardrobe," Loki stated, bending the truth sharply. "Yesterday was a trying day, and my headache was quite real."

"At least we agree on that."

"For the record, I knew it was you, but I had to check." Loki absent-mindedly rumpled the back of his hair, which was once more free from extensions. "Tom wouldn't insult a colleague like that."

"No, he wouldn't." Tony looked up from the phone. "Have a seat."

Loki scowled at Tony's uninvited intrusion into his and Tom's safe space. "You realize most people wait to be invited inside someone else's home."

With a slight expression of chagrin, Tony nodded. "Yes, but most people don't have a duplicate of their own face working on the same project you boys are filming. I can't be seen waiting at the door when the other guy's in a whole different state."

Reluctantly Loki conceded Tony's point, scowling but otherwise remaining silent as he walked over to the couch. Well-versed in the art of body language, he sat squarely in the middle. He determined to take control of the conversation one way or another. "To what do I owe the honor of your call?"

Tony immediately got to the point of his visit. "Fury and I want to know how you pulled that little stunt."

"Which stunt?" Loki asked, pretending he had no idea what Tony referenced. "I do a lot of my own stunts for this role. This afternoon I experienced the opportunity to fly with wires. The experience was interesting, given I could leap that far on my own."

"The email."

Loki persisted in playing innocent, leaning back on the couch with his arms along the top in both directions. After all, Tony would have difficulty proving anything. "Tell me about this email I supposedly sent."

"Photos of Tesseracts and shelving from the prop room," Tony reminded him, "and a suggestion to check security footage of the area."

"Your agent with the Groucho mustache appears to be turning up clues already."

To Loki's immense satisfaction, Tony made a sour face at the sarcastic description but didn't deny he identified the man correctly. "The email didn't come from him," Tony insisted. "His goal today was keeping an eye on you, as well as looking for who might have switched the Tesseract."