It started when Loki decided to make their relationship public. Well, it wasn't a decision so much as a consequence. Saving someone's life tended to have the effect of people assuming the parties involved care about one another in some manner. And really, Tony kinda preferred the version of events where he ended up alive. Even if he had an awful lot of fallout to take care of.

Tony didn't even notice that he was safe until Loki was yelling at him. "What is wrong with you, you stupid mortal!" Loki was stained in black and red. His hands were slick with it, his staff is dipped in it. Tony was outside of his suit now, which was good, because he remembered it starting to be crushed around him. Loki growled as the Doombots approached, then he was off.

Loki moved in a circumference around Tony, destroying any bots that approached him. Loki was vicious. He was an impenetrable wall that surrounded Tony, allowing nothing close to him. The Doombots took notice. His team took notice. Doom took notice. That brought the fight to a close rather quickly.

"You are not allowed to die on me," Loki said to him with a glare. Then he disappeared, leaving Tony to deal with having not died via enemy intervention. Well, enemy as far as the team was concerned.

Thor was the first person to talk to him. This encounter was more or less expected since the first time he had slept with Loki, let alone anything more series than that. What he didn't expect was for Thor to storm into the room while he was talking to the team, actually pick him by the front of his shirt, and dangle him in the air. "Tony Stark," Thor said darkly. "I know not what your relationship to my brother is like, but if you harm him, body or heart, you will know the taste of Mjolnir very intimately."

"Holy shit, Thor! I get it! I get it! Put me down!" Tony replied in a slight panic.

Thor glared at him a moment longer before placing Tony back on his feet. Then, as if someone had flipped a switch, Thor grinned at him and pat him on his shoulder. Hard! Tony wasn't certain whether or not Thor meant to break him with the action, but he was suspicious either way. "Congratulations, my friend!"

Yeah, as if Tony believed that to be sincere.

"Your brother is crazy!" Tony said to Loki when the god came to bed that night. Loki didn't always stay with him, but it had become more and more frequent over the last few months.

Loki laughed. "Yes! And Yet, for whatever odd reason people tend to say that to him about me."

"Asgardians are insane," Tony grumbled.

"Midgardians are worse," Loki replied.

"How?" Tony demanded, looking at his lover incredulously.

"You garner the same amount of insanity in a much shorter time span."

Tony didn't answer that. He never liked when Loki made good points like that.

Amora was the next person to speak to him. She showed up in his penthouse one day, sitting on his bar as prim as you please. She smiled like a shark when she saw him and Tony was two seconds away fro sounding the alarm.

"Iron Man," She greeted. "Or shall I address you as Tony Stark? I am here on personal business instead of… the usual."

"Is that right?" He asked. "What personal business do you have with me? Maybe you didn't know, but Thor's floor is a few down."

Amora's eyes flashed with anger briefly, but she covered it well. "No, my business is with you, Stark." Amora stood from the bar and walked toward him slowly. "You see, you have something that is of particular importance to me and I want to assure that you take good care of it."

"Thor?" Tony asked in confusion. "Look lady, I don't know what you've heard-"

"Loki, you daft fool!" Amora yelled. She rushed forward, lifting him by the front of his shirt and slamming him against the wall. "My dear friend is entrusting himself with you and I want to be certain that you hold appropriate respect for the honor you've been given."

"Aren't you enemies?" Tony asked with incredulity.

"This is not about my relationship with him," Amora replied.

"You've attacked him on multiple occasions!"

"I don't care if I dance around in his entrails, if you harm one hair on his head you'll be losing yours, understand?" Amora glared at him fiercely.

Tony swallowed nervously at the goddess. Amora, and any Asgardian if he were honest, was a force to be reckoned with. It was something they often forgot, seeing as they usually fought her two against six. "Alright, I get it."

Amora dropped him. He failed to find his legs before the fall and he landed on his rear. "Good. I'm that we have an understanding. See that you do not forget it." With that she disappeared in a wave of green.

"Jarvis?"

"Yes, sir?"

"Remind me to upgrade security," Tony said.

"Of course, Sir."

Tony decided not to mention Amora's visit to Loki. The god's relationship with the rogue Asgardian was tumultuous at the best of times and even though Amora claimed friendship with him, Tony didn't really want to fan those flames.

It was a few days after that that he got a rather hectic call from Pepper. "Tony!"

"Pep? What's wrong?" Tony asked.

"I'm at the office and… I need you to get here right now Tony. He won't let me say why…"

"What he?" Tony questioned quickly, already moving to suit up.

There was an alarming silence over the line.

"Pepper!"

"He says that he just wants to talk, but he couldn't exactly schedule a meeting…" Pepper's voice trailed off.

"Has he hurt you?"

"No, I'm fine," Pepper answer. "He hasn't even been… rude or threatening… but he told me not to say who he was…"

"I'll be there soon, Pep, just hang tight, alright?"

"Alright."

Tony got there as soon as was possible, crashing through the window and aiming directly at the person that sat across from Pepper. Mentally he faltered at the sight of Doom outside of his armor, dressed in normal clothing except for his mask. Outwardly, he readied his repulsors to fire at any moment.

"Stark," the man greeted. "Doom was just having a chat with Ms. Potts. Forgive the abruptness of our meeting but it rather difficult to schedule a meeting outside of our… usual business."

"I seem to be getting a lot of these visits lately," Tony said calmly. "I can't say that I'm happy about it."

"Doom would not expect pleasure from you, Mr. Stark." The man glanced toward Pepper, who held herself tall despite the situation. "Doom would speak to you alone."

"My preference exactly," Tony agreed. "Pepper?"

Pepper stood shakily, visibly holding herself together as she went to the door. "I'll leave you to it, Mr. Stark."

Tony watched Doom until Pepper was out of the door before he dropped his arms. "The hell is this about?"

"Doom would like to speak about your relationship with a certain god."

"Wha? Again?" Tony groaned. "I thought you villains were all about yourselves?"

"Doom is not responsible for your mistaken assumptions," He said.

"Is this another shovel talk?" Tony asked.

Doom ignored his question. "Loki is a valuable ally of mine and I would not like to unduly damage relations between us."

"This is another shovel talk," Tony sighed.

"I would be very displeased to find that you somehow damaged the Trickster outside the usual parameters."

"Are you truly telling me not to break his heart? You're telling me not to break the God of Mischief?" Tony repeated incredulously. "Does anyone care about me in all this?"

"Doom is willing to make a deal with you until such time as the Trickster tires of your company."

"Did you… did you actually come here to try and make a deal with me?"

"Doom is willing not to take your head for the Trickster's heart upon the inevitable termination of your relationship if you get the Trickster to withhold retaliation against Doom for nonlethal damage caused to you before hand."

"I cannot deal with this," Tony said. "Did you both threaten me and ask me for a favor?"

"Doom is offering you a chance to do yourself a favor," He answered. "Doom is willing to punish you for the failings in your relationship with the god if you prefer."

"Why does everyone assume that I'm going to fuck up here?" Tony asked.

"You have a reputation, Stark."

"Loki has a reputation, too!"

"His reputation is not for infidelity" Doom replied. "And despite what you may believe, the god is well liked among us."

"So I'm starting to see," Tony answered. "Are you also his best friend?"

"Do not be ridiculous," Doom commanded. "We dine on occasion, nothing more."

"That sounds like something more."

"Are you jealous, Stark?"

"Of course not! Why would I be jealous? Should I be?" Tony asked.

Doom chuckled and stood. "Consider my words, Stark. Talk them over with the god if you must. Do not prove yourself unworthy of him or you will find your enemies are a lot more personal than you have ever before experienced." Doom walked to the door, stopping before he opened it. "I shall see myself out."

Tony stood there in shock a few moments before he could move. "How is this my life?"

"I never knew you had such overprotective friends," Tony said when Loki came to bed that night.

"What do you mean?" Loki asked, leaning his head on his hand as his other trailed across Tony's chest.

"I mean, two of your villain friends have come to talk to me so far, both of them with the express purpose of threatening me not to hurt you."

Loki blushed, looking away. "You must have mistaken their attentions. They wouldn't-"

"Oh, no. I understood them very well," Tony said. "Doom tried to make a deal with me that he wouldn't kill me for fucking this up if I got you to agree not to kill him for damaging me."

Loki smirked. "Pragmatic of him."

"And Amora threatened to take my head. Actually, they all threatened my head is some way, is that a villain thing?"

"Yes," Loki answered. "When you earn your membership you gain exclusive rights to threats upon your enemies head."

"I knew it."

"Worry not over them," Loki told him. "I shall protect you from their wrath as long as we are together."

"It's afterwards that I'm worried about," Tony groaned.

"Simply do not 'fuck up' as you would say." Loki grinned widely at him before leaning over to kiss him.

Tony pushed him away. "You're no help."

Loki laughed and Tony loved him for it.

It was when ury showed up that Tony thought he might actually lose it.

"If you're hear to make me break up with Loki-" Tony began, but Fury held up his hand and shook his head.

"That's not why I'm here, Stark." Fury paced in front of the penthouse window before stopping to face Tony. "I want to advise against the termination of your relation with Loki."

"Come again?"

"I'm saying I want you to stay with the god," Fury repeated. "I want you to treat him like the goddamned royalty that he is. I want you buy that asshole whatever nonlethal thing he desires, take him out into public if you want, fuck him on top of your goddamned tower if that's what he likes, I don't care!" Fury stepped into Tony's space. "But if you break this motherfuckers heart, it will be on your head. If he decided to blow up something because the two of you are having a spat, that will be on your head. If that assholes gets bored before you're not doing your goddamned job as his boyfriend and decides to lead another invasion, that is on your head! My people will be waiting for the chance to hold you accountable and take you in. Just thought you should be aware."

"You know, I never thought the leader of Shield would be giving me the Shovel talk on behalf of Loki of all people," Tony replied.

"I do what I have to to keep people safe," Fury replied.

"I need a drink," Tony said as he went to his bar.

"Just take care of that boyfriend of yours Stark. Remember, I'm holding you accountable."

Tony was still at his bar an hour later when Loki finally came wandering into the room. "I thought it was very inspiring," Loki said, wrapping his arms around Tony. "I didn't expect I'd get your Director's approval."

"Not sure that's what I'd call it."

"Not that it matters," Loki went it. "I was planning to continue having my way with you before they gave their opinions."

"Yeah, but now I've got a ton of pressure on me," Tony told him.

Loki slid smoothly to the floor. "Ah, let me help with that… tension." He grinned and Tony returned it readily.

"You have the best ideas."