Avengers Imagines (Part One)

Loki Laufeyson X Anti-hero!Reader - Joke's On You

A/N - This chapter was inspired by the song 'Joke's on You' by Charlotte Lawrence, which was featured on the Birds of Prey soundtrack. I hope you all enjoy it.

You supposed that you had broken all of the rules that had been set for you through your life. Be well behaved; nope. Play nice; nuh-uh. Get good grades; negative. Don't fall in with the wrong crowd; that one was hardly even a choice. It had always just been so much easier to be the bad kid. How could you disappoint people if their expectations were already so low?

You also supposed that it was the broken rules that drew the wrong men to you. Bad girls are more fun, and bad boys knew exactly how to control them. Or they thought they did. 

When you had first met Loki it had come naturally. He wanted the world and you were more than willing to help him take it. It would have been easy to rule them with a literal God at your side. Everything had been going perfectly to plan, and then he had explained said plan in a little more detail. The complete and utter destruction of New York wasn't exactly what you had signed up for.

"We can't let those alien creatures loose on a city full of people," you had stated as firmly as you could manage. "It'll be a massacre."

"Such a soft heart," he had murmured back, cupping your cheek ever so lightly before pressing a kiss to your lips. "You'll soon learn that these people's lives aren't worth your worry, Sweetness."

After that, the drive had died in you. If other human's lives were worth so little, then why was yours so important? And slowly, you began to distance yourself from Loki, no matter how much you may have loved him once. 

*Time Skip*

It had taken every ounce of courage you had left in your body to turn up at Stark Tower. Even walking into the foyer was terrifying, and you couldn't help but wonder how bad it would be when you finally got an audience with the Avengers. 

You were escorted up to a meeting room by a security guard, who watched every move you made like you were some dangerous animal that was getting ready to strike.

"Take a seat," the man uttered, nodding towards one of the plush office chairs that lined the table. You did as you were told, holding your tongue as your brain begged you to correct his bad manners. Would a little please and thank you be so hard? 

You attempted to busy yourself by surveying your nails as you waited, the guard hovering in the corner of the room with his eyes focused on you. It wasn't until the door opened again and a host of well-known heroes walked into the room that he seemed to relax, exiting the room as quickly as they had entered.

"You have information for us?" the first man started, and you knew immediately who he was. Your father had idolised Captain America his entire life, and when he'd come out of the ice it was practically a national celebration. 

"I do," you responded, leaning back in your seat to look at them all properly. There were only three of them here, which only left you wondering where the others could be. "I think it might be  of interest to you." A scoff broke the almost silence of the room, and your eyes shifted to land on Tony Stark. Another famous face, hard not to recognise. "Is something funny?"

He raised an eyebrow at you, finally moving forward to take a seat opposite you at the table, his feet kicked up onto the perfectly polished surface. "No," he muttered, letting out a small snort of laughter. "I'm just not sure why you expect us to believe you."

A small smile pulled at your lips. "You think I would risk coming here if this information wasn't important?" The three avengers remained silent, staring you down until you released a soft sigh. "Loki and I... it was all going pretty well, but he made a bad decision."

"A bad decision?" The woman was less recognisable, though you doubted you would have forgotten her if you had ever seen her before. She was a beauty, one so beautiful that she would likely be able to talk her way out of any situation.

"He thought it would be smart to make me choose between him and every human on the planet." You cleared your throat slightly, shifting in your seat to sit up a little straighter. "Look, I may not be the best person, but I have a family. I would give anything to keep them safe."

Captain America nodded, still standing beside the table. "Tell us the plan."

*Time Skip*

It had been a unanimous decision that you would have to stay out of the way when the Avengers took down Loki. Not that you had put up much of a fight. As much as you hated what he was doing, you would likely continue loving him until the day you died. 

You were left lounging on the sofa at Stark Tower flicking through the channels on the TV, unable to bring yourself to look down on the chaos he had caused out on the streets. 

"I didn't think you were capable of betrayal." The voice echoed from behind you, and you were on your feet a moment later, spinning to face the man you loved. "I assumed you loved me far too much to ever turn on me."

"I do love you-"

"Not enough, obviously." 

You lowered your gaze to the floor, unable to look at him any more. "You were going too far. You were going to kill people-"

"In order to put you on a throne."

You shook your head slightly, finally looking at him again. "You weren't doing it for me. Don't pretend you were." For the first time since you had met him, Loki was speechless, his eyes fixing you in place. "I couldn't let you become a murderer."

"So you abandoned me instead?"

You caught the movement of Tony entering through the window before Loki could, and took a deep, shaking breath. "I'm sorry." As Tony landed in the suit, Loki closed the space between you, his hand gripping your throat tightly. 

"I will make you regret this-"

"Let the girl go." Loki's hand tensed against your skin, his grip tightening ever so slightly. 

You lifted a hand, taking a hold of his forearm in order to keep him from moving away from you. "If you let them take you, we can still be together." His eyes locked on yours again, a pain behind them that you had never expected. "I don't need a throne, I just need you. Please."

"We will never be together," he murmured, hand tightening once more, until you sent a pulse of energy through your hand and into his skin, forcing him off of you. 

"Then I don't need to protect you anymore," you growled at him, shoving him backwards with as much strength as you could manage. "They're going to lock you up and throw away the key, and I for one cannot wait to see it happen." 

You turned on your heel after that, marching over to the sofa as you took a deep breath. You slumped down hard onto the cushions, kicking your feet up onto the coffee table and focusing your eyes on the TV. 

It was hard to ignore the fighting taking place between Loki and Tony, but you managed it. All you had to do was hold on until they left, and then you could take a moment to cry. 

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