Chapter Text
Centuries later, Midgard
"Mother, how much further?"
From the front seat of his car, Loki rubbed his forehead and studied the busy traffic. He wished he had an answer for Sleipnir, but unfortunately he did not.
They had only recently moved to Midgard after things had started to turn restless in Alfheim. Loki had been alternating between Alfheim and Vanaheim ever since he'd left Asgard, and so far it had worked well. His seidr had only grown since becoming a mother, and he was sensitive to the vibrations of the Bifrost, so he could tell if Asgardians were near.
But he had heard rumors that Thor's corronation was finally approaching. It didn't make him bitter, far from it. In truth, he would have not particularly cared one way or another. Thor belonged to a different life, one before Sleipnir.
Unfortunately, Loki had once known Thor very well. Before Loki had left, his brother had been incredibly arrogant and volatile, with his cronies—Sif and the Warriors Three—only encouraging this by blindly following his every order.
Everything he'd heard from traveling merchants suggested that he had only grown worse with time. And the king of Asgard was the most powerful man in the Nine Realms. Thor, armed with the full strength of the Golden Realm? The idea gave Loki nightmares.
He had taken refuge here, on Midgard, the one truly hospitable land the Aesir no longer truly touched. The other options were not pallatable—the last thing he wanted was to raise his child in the wastes of Jotunheim or the demonic heat of Muspelheim. But Midgard... Midgard was the perfect place to lose themselves among the crowd.
Unfortunately, Midgard was also nothing like what Sleipnir was accustomed to. Loki was beginning to regret his choice to come to this grand city—perhaps a smaller place would have been better—but it was too late now.
He heaved a sigh and threw a look back at his son. "Hopefully, not long, my darling. We'll be home soon." He had made all the preparations beforehand, including renting an apartment in the city. And technically speaking, he could have teleported them there, but he didn't want to draw any attention yet with the use of his more complicated spells. Better to wait until they were a little more accustomed to Midgard.
Sleipnir looked out the window, scanning the bright lights of the Midgardian night. "This is such a strange realm. The mortals have no seidr. They are so frail. How do they live like this?"
"Midgardians are great in their own way, my love," Loki replied. "They evolve and build in a rhythm unmatched by any of the other realms. I believe you could grow to like it here, if you give it chance."
"I don't dislike it," Sleipnir said hastily. "It is... chaotic. Like you."
Loki laughed. "Perhaps. But I know you love Alfheim best."
Alfheim was a place that teemed with the seidr so close to Loki and Sleipnir's heart. It had not been perfect, but they had at least found freedom there. Loki had taught Sleipnir how to shift between his shapes at will and Sleipnir had absorbed every bit of Loki's lessons like a sponge. Yes, they would always be fond of Alfheim.
(Secretly, Loki had been quite horrified the day Sleipnir had accidentally shifted into a regular-looking baby. To think that he'd considered even for a moment to give the child to the All-Father. He would have been bound to life as a horse for all time. Loki had come so close to making the worst mistake in his life.)
"Mother, can I ask you a question?" Sleipnir suddenly inquired.
"You already have, my darling," Loki replied, "but of course, you can ask me whatever you wish."
"Do you ever regret it? Leaving Asgard? Having me?"
Loki frowned and looked away from the still blocked road to focus on his son."Of course not. You're the best thing that's happened to me."
"But I... My father..."
Loki sighed. As Sleipnir had grown, he'd become insistent on learning the identity of his father. Alfheim and Vanaheim were unfortunately quite focused on traditional family structures, which left Sleipnir wondering why he was different. Loki had kept it from him originally, but Sleipnir was incredibly intelligent and perceptive. And Loki had not wanted to lie to his son.
Sleipnir was now old enough to understand, so shortly before they'd left Alfheim, Loki had pulled him aside from his games and told him. He had explained that he was a prince—and through Loki, so was Sleipnir—but that Asgard had spurned them. And he had told Sleipnir of the wall incident, although he'd carefully glossed over some parts.
Sleipnir was young still, but his shifter side was very strong within him. He had understood that Loki had not been a willing participant in the act that had led to his conception. And it had broken Loki's heart, because he felt he had failed his child.
"Sleipnir, my darling... It is true that he hurt me. I was very afraid at the time. But if I had to go back, I would not change that. I love you so much, and I will never never regret having you."
Sleipnir's lower lip trembled and his eyes teared up. "Really?"
"Oh, Sleipnir." Loki reconsidered his approach, since clearly Sleipnir had been thinking a great deal about this. "Tell me something. Do you love me?"
"Of course." Sleipnir huffed, and the sound came out a little funny since he was a child, not a colt. "I love you a great deal, Mama."
Mama. Sleipnir was feeling particularly vulnerable if he had called Loki that. "Well, there you go, my little love. No one really loved me in Asgard. I know I must sound morose, but truly I am not. It is but a fact, and I am telling you this because you must understand just how much you have given me. You are precious, a treasure more grand than all the gold and gems in the All-Father's vaults. I will never regret having you, no matter what happens."
A tear slid down Sleipnir's cheek, but he was smiling now. "I understand."
Loki kept looking at his son until the road cleared. Finally, he started the car again and continued on the drive.
It happened incredibly quickly. One moment, he was driving normally, making good progress toward the apartment he had purchased, and the next chaos exploded. For once, it was not chaos he liked.
Something went crashing straight into the road in front of him, sending cars flying and spinning. Loki was too close to the source of the disaster to move back. He pressed on the breaks just in time to keep from colliding with the... thing that had fallen in the middle of the road.
And then Loki's head stopped spinning and he went cold. What was that in front of him? Two automatons? They reminded Loki of the Destroyer in the Weapon's Vault.
But surely, the All-Father wouldn't have sent that thing after Loki and Sleipnir. And further, Loki would have sensed the Bifrost had it hit the ground.
He felt nothing Asgardian, nothing remotely alien to Midgard. So, Midgardian tech then?
Loki didn't get the chance to figure out what was going on, because the bigger of the automatons suddenly got up. He lifted Loki's car like it was nothing, roaring, "I love this suit."
In the back of the car, Sleipnir was wide eyed with fright. Loki himself was torn between shock and anger.
"Put them down," the smaller metal creature said. Its hands were glowing with light, something like seidr, but not.
"Collateral damage, Tony," the big automaton replied.
The smaller metal creature seemed to be complying, obviously concerned for Loki and Sleipnir's well-being. Loki appreciated that, but he had no intention of remaining in this situation any longer. Who did this creature think it was, threatening a god, threatening Sleipnir? Loki might have left Asgard behind, but he was still himself, and if this being thought he could just manhandle him and scare his child, he had another think coming.
As much as he had believed in the necessity of discretion in the use of his seidr, in this, he could not make a compromise.
With a thought, Loki teleported himself and Sleipnir out of the car, to the right of the huge creature. The smaller automaton was clearly not a threat, so Loki focused his anger on the being who had dared to threaten Sleipnir.
"Collateral damage, you say?" he sneered, his armor already forming around him. "I think not."
He lifted a hand, and a beam of green seidr rushed out of him, striking the massive automaton. The thing went flying, crashing against the other side of the road.
Sleipnir whooped and clapped his hands. "Yes, Mama. You show him!"
Loki didn't even need the encouragement. A twist of his fingers, and the metal began to shift and tear into pieces. The automaton was roaring now. "What? What is happening? Tony!"
The smaller metal man straightened his back, observing Loki without trying to approach. "Sorry, Stane. It looks like you pissed off someone with more juice than even me."
It was then that Loki noticed something he had missed before. The metal creatures were not actually machines like the Destroyers. Instead, they seemed... armors, very elaborate armors, but armors nonetheless—with people inside them. Mortals.
With an angry snarl, Loki twisted the head of the bigger armor. It flew off, revealing a bald-headed, pale-faced man. "You dare threaten the life of my child, the life of a prince? I am a god, and this is the last mistake you've ever made, mortal."
The mortal called Stane stared at him as the armor finally came to pieces. For a brief moment, Loki noted that the energy source that powered it was a true work of art. He tucked it into his pocket dimension—something like that couldn't go to waste.
Meanwhile, Stane looked increasingly terrified. "P-Please," he stammered. "I... P-Please. I didn't know. I... I'll give you anything. I'm a rich man. I can pay you. Please."
"We don't need money." Sleipnir snorted from behind Loki. "Stupid mortal."
"Wow, feisty kid you've got there, Reindeer Games," came the voice of the second metal man. Loki turned to glare at him, and the man—Tony?—lifted his hand to points out he was harmless. His face plate also came up, revealing a handsome male visage. "Hey, relax. I'm on your side here. That guy's there is a total prick. He tried to kill me like... half an hour ago." His voice turned lower. "Between you and me, I have no problem with you doing whatever you want to him with your mojo. But other people... They might not be so happy."
He swept his hand all around them, and Loki realized they'd gathered quite a crowd. Other mortals, holding strange devices Loki vaguely remember as meant for long-distance communication—and their attention was clearly on Loki and Sleipnir. They kept their distance from the actual scene, but they were definitely close enough to notice an execution.
This was getting out of hand. "I'm entitled to take my vengeance. He assaulted me and my child."
"Uh, yeah." The mortal Tony scratched his head. "I get the feeling you're not from around here, so I'll just say... Well, it really doesn't work like that here. He's not really a threat anymore." Loki must have glared, because once again Tony backtracked. "I don't blame you, seriously I don't, but it'll be easier for everyone if we just... did things the less bloody way. You know, when in Rome..." Another small pause. "Unless you don't really plan on sticking around, in which case, feel free."
Loki wanted nothing more than to tear the mortal Stane into little pieces, slowly and excruciatingly, until he was begging for death. However, the mortal Tony had a point, as weird as his speech might have been.
Loki had traveled extensively, so he knew that on a different realm, one needed to respect the ways of their hosts. And this was particularly important for Loki, since he needed refuge from Asgard for himself and Sleipnir. Killing the mortal in front of so many people would compromise his stay.
At the end of the day, Sleipnir's safety was more important than revenge.
"Very well," he said. He wove a binding spell around the mortal Stane, and then lowered his hands. "Know this, mortal. Your enemy has just saved your life."
Since the threat had been dealt with, Loki let his armor vanish and turned his attention to Sleipnir. "Are you well, my darling?"
"Sure!" Sleipnir grinned at him, eyes wide and bright. "Do that again! I love it when you use your seidr."
Loki shook his head at his son's antics. Of course Sleipnir loved his seidr—it was a match for Sleipnir's own. Still, he would have preferred it if Sleipnir was not so enthusiastic about a battle that must have caused quite a lot of damage and possibly Midgardian injuries. "Another time, darling."
The mortal Tony came forward, clearing his throat. "Can't argue with you there. So... Is that safe?" he asked pointing to Stane. "He won't get away?"
"Of course not," Sleipnir replied with a huff. "Mama crafts the best spells. No one can get away from him."
Tony's lips twisted into a small, strangely charming smile. "Is that right, little guy?" He shot Loki a grin. "Well, to be perfectly honest, if it were me, I wouldn't want to get away from your mom."
Loki narrowed his eyes at the mortal. Was the man... proposition him? Loki was torn between outrage and interest. After all, the mortal had just watched him make use of powerful seidr and almost kill a man. For a Midgardian, it must have looked frightening. What was this Tony thinking?
In the end, Loki decided he liked the mortal, if nothing else because he'd clearly wanted to save Loki and Sleipnir before it had become obvious that Loki was nowhere near as defenseless as he looked.
And since he was the guest here on Midgard, he decided to introduce himself. Unsettlingly, he found he didn't want to lie about his identity, but he didn't know to which extent his cover had been exposed. His shields were good, and the chaos on Midgard was such that it might have deceived and distracted Heimdall's eye."I am Loptr, and this is my son Sleipnir."
The mortal grinned. "Tony Stark, genius, billionaire, playboy, philantropist. I guess... Welcome to Earth."