Of Numbers and Strange Friendships

Chapter 50

Needless to say, Loki was banned from Stark Industries after his day of pranks there. Also needless to say, banning him did less than no good. Loki spent the rest of summer break helping Peter in his lab in the building and security couldn't do a damn thing to stop him from doing so.

Stark didn't like it, but he didn't complain too loudly as long as Loki wasn't playing pranks. The Trickster played a lot fewer pranks when he wasn't forced out of the tower. Tony found that out the hard way when he'd gotten security to somehow throw Loki out one day. Loki had filled the entire building waist high on every floor with teddybears shaped like Loki, wearing his armor from the build a bear store. Every piece of artwork in the building had been replaced with pictures of Loki too. When Loki vanished the Lokibears, some of them were being cuddled by the employees, so he allowed those to stay. He wasn't cruel after all.

Stark had been livid, but as Loki hadn't actually hurt anything, Pepper and Thor took Loki's side and told Stark to lighten up. Loki'd even agreed to try to behave as long as he wasn't banned from the building and from seeing and helping Peter.

It also helped that Loki was a literal genius and was an expert in much more complicated technology than the stuff Stark and Peter were working with. The first day the three of them all worked in the same lab together, Stark and Loki wouldn't even speak to each other. All their communications had to go through Peter. It was all "Kid, tell Reindeer Games..." and "Arachnid, tell Shellhead..." By the end of the day, they were at least speaking to each other. Somehow Stark didn't get stabbed and Loki didn't get blasted by a repulser. That was progress.

Most evenings, the Loki and Peter went out on patrol together, sometimes joined by others, sometimes not. They always stopped part of the way through patrol to have dinner with the team, sometimes at the tower, sometimes in the city in uniform. Peter was careful never to remove his mask when he was eating in uniform, he just lifted it so his mouth was free to eat. Though there were some evenings that they worked so late that Peter went out with Tony for dinner.

The paparazzi always noticed either occasion and took pictures of where the Avengers or where Tony Stark and his star intern were. Peter's name had become known for that, though they had tried to keep it quiet. It was too hard not to when the Tony Stark had taken special interest in an intern. It was noted that Peter was being groomed by Stark.

Someone even had the gall to insinuate that the youth was being groomed. He was quickly dealt with by Stark's team of lawyers and no one dared make the accusation that there was anything sexual going on again.

And still, somehow his identity as Spiderman had remained hidden.

The only problem with Peter working at Stark Industries was that he couldn't spend his summer working for the Avengers as much as he'd like. He couldn't leave Stark Industries to go on missions without being noticed. Even when Loki and Tony both left in their armor.

One day in the last month of Peter's summer vacation, that very thing happened. While they were working in the lab, Jarvis made the announcement. "Mr. Stark, Loki, there is an emergency mission. The team needs you at the tower,"

Loki's armor shimmered into place while Tony summoned one of the many Ironman suits that existed in the building. There was always one within easy summoning distance.

"Please let me come, Mr. Stark!" Peter begged, once he realized that the pair were getting ready to leave without him.

Stark shook his head. "Not this time, kid," he said as his Ironman suit formed itself around him.

Peter looked to Loki, who also shook his head. "No, Arachnid. Too many people have seen you here. It is not safe," they were both concerned over Peter's secret identity. It only hung on a thread as it was. And it would be obvious if Spiderman was seen leaving the building with Loki and Ironman.

Peter huffed and started to protest, but Loki and Stark both gave him the same stern parent look and he backed down. "Stay here," Stark told him firmly. "And stay safe." Peter nodded reluctantly and sat back down on the lab stool with a huff. "Let's go," he told Loki and the pair headed out of the building to return to the tower and find out what the mission was.

The mission was Hydra causing trouble and sending monsters to attack the city. It was something they did frequently and the only reasoning the team could see behind it was that they liked annoying the Avengers.

They should really stop annoying Loki, though, he had better things to do. Though he WAS on Midgard for the express purpose of helping the team as a form of penance for trying to take over the realm. Even though he'd been under mind control at the time.

The entire team made it out to fight the monsters.

"Pep, I'm kinda in the middle of something right now," Stark said as he blasted a monster. He sounded distracted over the comms as he spoke to Pepper as well as the team. He usually didn't let himself get distracted, but Pepper always had a line straight through to his suit.

"I know. But you're needed at headquarters," Pepper sounded panicked and the entire team, including Loki, heard her over the comms now. There was very little that could frazzle Pepper, so it got everyone's attention when something did.

"Pep..." Stark started.

"It's Peter," Pepper interrupted quickly. "The building is under attack. They got through security-" Pepper wasn't there. She was across the country on business. So she must've gotten the news from security. "They're looking for him in particular, Tony-" she pleaded.

Tony turned in desperation to find Loki on the battlefield. He caught Loki's gaze. "Go. We'll handle things here." Despite everything between them, Tony knew that Loki could get there faster than even he or Thor could flying. Loki could teleport that far and not be drained. He knew that despite how little he himself trusted the god, he could trust that Loki could and would do everything and anything within his powers to save Peter. No matter how illegal it was.

Loki didn't give a single fuck about legality. Not in the best of times and especially not if his blood brother's life was in danger.

Loki gave a brusque nod of acknowledgement and teleported off to Stark Industries, hoping he would get there in time.