Choices With Consequences

Chapter 5

Spying on Loki was much harder than Bucky originally thought. Not only was he out of practice, but the guy just kept wandering around collecting rocks.

Why did he need so many rocks?

He's a witch right? A wizard? Maybe he's making a potion... Or something.

After an hour of watching a space viking prince collect nothing but assorted rocks Bucky began to think this was just a trip for biscuits.

That is until...

Loki just straight up puts the rocks in his mouth one by one.

This has to be a joke. Loki is knows he's being watched and is trying to mess with him. There's no way he just willingly spent an hour collecting rocks to stuff them in his cheeks.

He really is nuts.

Bucky can't stand by and just let this happen, that is so unsanitary.

"Hey, pal! What the hell are ya doin'?"

Loki jumped like a kid caught stealing from the cookie jar, except he was a grown man. Eating rocks.

He quickly spit the rocks from his mouth and tries to book it in the opposite direction Bucky was coming from.

"You ain't gettin' outta this one that easy, pal! Who just puts rocks in their mouth?" He shouted after him. The 21st Century is literally the weirdest thing to ever happen to him.

...

"So, how did your little 'mission' go?"

Bucky was red faced and his hair was unruly. He had to wrestle an Asgardian God for his own peace of mind. He didn't want to talk about it.

"I don't wanna talk about it."

"That big of a bust, huh?"

Steve finally looked his way and his eyes shot wide open.

"Whoa, what the hell happened to you?"

"Don't wanna talk about it."

They didn't talk about it.

...

The next meeting was far more civil, Steve tried to raise his voice, but was quietly reminded that sensitive ears were present. For once he was forced to act like a grown up.

They had come to the conclusion that there were only two plausible options.

Reband The Avengers and spend a couple of years trying to fight for New Asgard's right to exist on foreign land.

Or,

Use Loki as a peace treaty as a deal to grant the Asgardians asylum.

Nobody was very happy with either.

"I still think we can just like, cast a dingy magic trick that hides you guys." Bucky turned to Loki, "That's your thing, right? Magic? Cook up a spell and work those glitzy fingers!"

Loki glared at him. If only there weren't so many witnesses...

"Not feasible for the long run. He's gonna get drained out eventually. Plus, just 'cause they're hidden doesn't mean people can't accidentally find them."

Bucky finally conceded.

"Fair enough, but we should still keep it on the back burner."

Loki wanted nothing more than to leave, and then he remembered, he did have to leave!

He shot up from his spot on the floor as realization dawned on him.

He forgot the other Avengers.

The next day had come by so quickly he almost didn't even notice it. Now's no time for excuses, he has superheroes to pick up from another country.

As soon as he jumped from his spot, he sprinted to the exit of the ship. Which was unnecessary seeing as he would be teleporting anyway.

Bucky stares after him as he runs away. 'Man.' He thought, 'This guy's a real cute crumb.'

...

Sam stood around anxiously. He didn't want to pace because that would stress him out more, but he feels stressed just waiting around too.

'What is taking this guy so long?'

Loki should've showed up by now to whisk him away to Norway, but he wasn't. Which was raising quite a few red flags.

'He's killed them. He killed Steve and James. Great. Fantastic. No he didn't, Loki likes attention he would have killed them publicly.'

His thoughts were stressing him out even more. Why did he agree to this? Oh wait, he didn't. He just tagged along because Steve gave him a stupid speech about justice and shit.

Sam swears if Steve isn't dead he's going to kill him himself for giving him so much anxiety.

He was snapped out of his thoughts by a blinding flash of glittery light. Loki.

'About time.' He thought.

"I see you took your sweet time." His confident nature told him to walk up to Loki, to not fear him. But then the rational part of his brain reminded him that Loki once tried to take over the entire planet with an alien army.

"My apologies, Falcon. I was caught up in a meeting of the minds, which, coincidentally, you will also be joining."

Why did that sound so threatening?

Is he just paranoid, or is Loki going to kill him? One way to find out.

Oh great, he sounds like Steve.

"Let's just get this over with."

Sam walked up and grabbed Loki's bicep. As well as keeping a physical link between them so they can safely teleport, it also made him feel a bit more in control of the situation.

All of this is so weird. Why can't this planet just have normal bad guys like burglars or mob bosses. Not fucking this.

...

Thor and the rest of the group, Bruce included now, were waiting in the open field for Loki to return with Sam Wilson.

They wanted to make sure he could get immediate closure for any worries for his friends' safety.

Soon enough, Loki's glittery flash bomb arrival graced their eyes.

"Does that guy have a dimming option on that thing? Christ." Bucky shielded his eyes, from the assault of light.

Loki truly was a drama king. Queen? Bucky heard he's not picky.

"Welcome, Falcon! Look, as you can see your friends are very alive and not at all dead! They are in fact breathing and not bleeding out from their wounds in a secluded area, gasping and begging for help!"

Loki glared at Thor, "What the fuck? Is your problem?"

The King smirked.

Brothers. What shitheads.

Steve walked up to Sam and gave him a one arm hug, "Glad to see ya, buddy. Why don't we catch you up to speed?"

"Same goes to you, really glad to see you're not dead."

Both men chuckled as the Captain lead his friend to the ship, or now recently known as the conference room.

A loud shout sounded out and everybody whipped around.

Loki had stabbed Thor.

He'll be fine.