Disclaimer - I own nothing you recognise.

Challenges Listed at the bottom.

Word Count - 4004

Beta'd by Aya and Elizabeth.

Fair Warning: I have botched canon in so many ways it's probably painful. Just… fair warning :P

Written for Gwen. I hope you enjoy it :)

Legend Has It

Thor was waiting when the ship touched down, a tiny shred of hope that Tony was still alive was the only thing holding him together.

The door swung down slowly, and with Nebula practically holding him up, Tony limped forwards.

"Loki?" he asked, his eyes searching Thor's.

Unable to answer for the lump in his throat, Thor only nodded.

Nebula caught Tony as his knees gave out, and Thor stepped forwards to take the limp genius in his arms. For his brother, he would keep Tony safe.

He hadn't managed to save Loki, but Thor was more than aware that Loki cared about Tony more than anything else in the nine realms.

…

"There has to be a way to fix things."

Thor looked up to see Tony awake on the hospital bed. He looked awful. He was practically skin and bone, and cuts and bruises littered his skin.

"There is nothing to fix," Thor replied. "We lost."

Tony glared at him. "The wizard says differently," he growled, wincing slightly when the sheets rubbed against his sensitive skin. "There has to be a reason he saved my life, Thor. There's a way to reverse this, there has to be."

Thor could only nod and tell Tony the truth. "Loki… he didn't dust in the snap, Anthony. Thanos killed him long before he completed the Gauntlet."

"I won't lose him, Thor. Not like this, and not for good. We're going to fix all of this."

Thor wished he had Tony's determination to see this through, but he didn't. Asgard was gone, Loki was gone, and Thanos, even if they killed him now, had already won.

…

Impatient to get things moving, and against the rather loud advice of both Helen and Bruce, Tony injected himself with extremis.

He knew it probably wasn't the best idea he'd ever had, but he was also sure that it wasn't his worst. He needed to be stronger than his current body allowed him if he was going to take on Thanos.

Even with the returned Rogues behind him, he knew that he wasn't yet strong enough to beat Thanos.

But he would be.

"You know I can't endorse this, right?" Rhodey asked him, minutes before he planned to start the procedure.

"But you'll support it," Tony replied. "Because you know that we don't have any other choice."

Rhodey nodded. "I will. Just… don't die."

"Done that," Tony quipped. "It doesn't seem to stick."

…

The plan, when it presented itself, was simple. They were going to follow the stones to Thanos and take his head off.

Thor, in particular, was immediately onboard with the plan.

"We need to get the gauntlet first," Tony made clear. "We need to reverse the snap. And get Loki back."

"Thor said Loki wasn't killed by the snap," Rogers said, frowning. "How are you going to bring him back?"

"I'm going to undo Thanos' acts. All of them."

"That's incredibly reckless, Tony," Natasha said, her head tilting slightly to the side as she stared at him. "What if you undo something that shouldn't be undone?"

"I don't care."

"Could your ego get any bigger?" Clint demanded. "You're going to, what? Put the universe at risk so that you can get your boyfriend back?"

Tony stared at him for a long moment. "Yes."

"I remind you that Anthony isn't the only one with a stake in this," Thor rumbled. Clint shrunk back in his seat. Apparently, he'd forgotten that Loki wasn't only Tony's priority. "My brother gave his life to try and deny Thanos the tesseract. If we can bring him back, then he has earnt it!"

"I just think we need to think more about what we're doing here," Steve put in, looking imploringly at Tony.

Tony looked back impassively. "What more do you have to lose?"

…

"He talked about you a lot," Bruce said, watching Tony get ready to leave. "On Asgard. Actually even before that. He asked me about you often."

"But he didn't come back to me, did he?" Tony replied, checking his suit for a final time.

"He tried," Bruce replied quietly. "He knew you would want him to do what was right, rather than what was easy."

Tony snorted but didn't reply. He glanced at Bruce. "You're sure you won't come with us?"

Bruce shook his head. "The other guy… he doesn't want to come out, and I'll be useless to you without him."

"That's where you're wrong; where you've always been wrong," Tony replied, pausing at the door. "Bruce is just as useful as the Hulk; the same way the Hulk isn't just a monster."

…

"Thor, wait!" Tony screamed in panic as Thor stood over Thanos with his axe poised to strike. It wasn't time yet. They hadn't done what they'd come to do.

To his credit, Thor listened, looking Tony's way as Tony picked up the gold Gauntlet. It was damaged, and Tony swallowed hard. He knew there was a large chance that he wouldn't survive this.

To die in this Garden, knowing he'd saved the man he loved—plus a solid half of the universe—didn't sound like the worst fate.

He jammed his suited hand into the gauntlet and froze. The stones seemed to be reaching out to him, calling for him.

They knew his name.

I need to undo Thanos' deeds, he thought to them desperately. I need Loki to be okay.

They sang to him, told him they could do exactly as he wanted, and instinctively, he knew what he had to do.

He clicked his fingers together, and fell to the call of the stones.

…

"Why would you let him do such a stupid thing?" Loki demanded, glaring at Bruce.

He paced back and forth, staring up at the cloudy sky.

"I mean… he clearly succeeded," Bruce pointed out unhelpfully. "The world seems to have been restored rather completely. We can only assume the same thing has happened around the universe."

"I do not care for the universe," Loki hissed. "Only for Anthony, and what this foolishness has done to him. He has not the strength to wield the Infinity Stones—no mortal has!"

"I think you're underestimating him," Bruce replied. "He'll come home, Loki. I refuse to believe otherwise." He paused. "You know he did this to save you, right?"

"Do I look like someone who needs saving?"

"Given you were dead, I'd say that you did, yeah," Bruce said flatly. "Tony… I know he cares about the world, probably more than most, but this mission? Going back into space when he barely made it back the first time? It was about you."

"He's a bloody fool."

…

For the second time in only weeks, Thor strode down the ramp of a spacecraft with Tony in his arms. He was unconscious, had been since snapping his fingers.

Thor had taken Thanos' head off his shoulders and incinerated his body for good measure while the others clamoured around Tony. Once he was entirely sure that his job was done, he scooped the mortal genius up and led the way to the spaceship.

Tony was alive, Thor could sense it. In all the ways that mattered, he was fine. The stones, they were… attached to him. Thor could practically feel the air of power coming off of Tony in waves and when the Captain reached out to pull the gauntlet from his arm, he yelped and leapt backwards, his hand burnt.

Thor knew, before they'd landed, that Loki was awaiting them. As soon as they'd come into orbit, he'd felt his little brother reaching out to him mentally, already berating him for allowing Tony to be so stupid.

The others hadn't known what to do with his chuckle, and so they hadn't asked.

Bruce, Loki and Colonel Rhodes were awaiting them on their descent, and Thor had barely put toe onto grass before Loki was there, peering over his arm at Tony, stroking the hair from his face gently.

"Fool," he whispered.

He took Tony from Thor easily, his slight appearance belying his strength as it always had.

"He's okay, Brother," Thor promised, meeting pained, green eyes. "The stones, they are bonding with him. He shall wake."

"I told you so," Bruce said as Loki passed him, smirking at the trickster god. Loki could only glare, unwilling to disturb his love.

…

Tony woke to a sunlit room, Loki lay beside him, propped up on his elbow so he could look down over him.

Tony took a moment to be annoyed that he'd slept through the first time they'd shared a bed in over two years.

His anger melted the moment he met Loki's eyes. His smile was radiant.

"Oh, good. It worked," Tony murmured, reaching up to cup Loki's cheek.

He froze.

"Hey! What the fuck? What the hell is that still doing there?" he yelped out, staring at the gauntlet still surrounding his arm. "You didn't think to take it off?"

"The good Captain attempted too," Loki sneered. "He got himself burnt for his troubles. The stones have decided they like you."

Tony's brow crumpled with confusion. "They like me?"

"Clearly so, since they refuse to be parted from you."

"I can't go round with this on my arm forever!"

"I shouldn't think you will have too," Loki assured him. "Now that you are awake, you can simply… wish them away."

"Like… out of existence?" Tony asked, staring at the six stones embedded in the gauntlet. "Just like that?"

He felt a shiver of… something. It felt almost like… pleading? Like…

"I think they want to stay with me," he whispered, never taking his eyes away from them. "They… they're asking me to keep them, Loki."

Loki's eyes widened slightly. "They are communicating with you?"

Tony nodded, finally pulling his eyes away to look at Loki. "They did before too. Before I snapped everything back to the way it should be. They felt like… home."

"You are… you are their one, Tony. The one they choose to serve, the master of their heart. They will remain with you, committed to you, faithful and loyal to only you. You are their chosen."

"Alright, Dumbledore, settle down. Nobody here is a chosen one."

Laughing, Loki shook his head. "That is where you are wrong. You are their chosen, Tony. There was once a legend of the one to unite the Infinity Stones. Of course, everyone believed that to be Thanos, but the legend told of the stones submitting to their chosen—of joining with their chosen as one."

"Oh. Okay. That's… certainly something. It's too early for this."

Loki leant down and pressed a soft kiss to Tony's lips. "You have been sleeping for three days, My Love. You gave me quite the scare. Thor has been quite unbearable as well."

"Oh?"

"Hmm. He insists on feeding me, of all the absurd things. I think it's another of the inane ideals he's picked up from Midgard, feeding one who sits beside their unconscious love."

Tony giggled. "Maybe he just wants to take care of you? He was distraught when he told me of your… fate."

Loki's lips tilted up. "Perhaps you are correct. He always was the sentimental one."

"Urgh. We should get up," Tony offered, making no attempt to move. "Let the others know I'm not dead. Rhodey and Pep at least."

Before Loki could reply, Tony sat upright in the bed, his eyes wide. "Peter."

…

"Thor and I can return him, if he has not already been returned," Loki promised, following Tony as he rushed down the corridor. "Honestly, Anthony, how you manage to pick up such strays, I have no idea."

"You were gone, you don't get to comment," Tony replied, picking up speed. "Peter… he was the one who was here. And now he's probably up there, all on his own and—"

"Hey, Mr Stark."

"Oh, thank god," Tony muttered, his eyes trailing all over Peter, checking every inch of him. He reached out for him, pulling him into his arms. "Can I just uh… yeah."

He squeezed Peter tightly, closing his eyes when Peter returned the hug, nuzzling his face against Tony's shoulder.

Tony pulled back just enough to look at Peter properly. "You're okay, kid?"

"I'm okay. Mr Strange brought me back down when we all… uh. Undusted?"

Tony wrinkled his nose. "Ew."

"You did it."

Not releasing his grip on Peter, Tony turned his head to see Dr Strange perched against the back of the sofa, smiling.

"You're a jerk," Tony informed him. "You knew about this nonsense all along, didn't you?"

"I knew there was a chance," Dr Strange replied. "Only a chance. It wouldn't have worked had I told you what to expect."

"Uh huh."

Tony finally released his grip on Peter when Rhodey and Pepper arrived, each of them tugging him into hugs in turn. The room was slowly filling up as Avengers, both new and old, arrived, along with the people Tony loved the most.

"Oh god, who invited him?" he muttered when he saw Bucky Barnes standing behind Steve, looking unsure of his welcome.

"Tones…" Rhodey murmured, shaking his head.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Wasn't him. Was never him I was particularly mad at anyway, you know that. I just… can't unsee what I saw."

"Do you want me to ask them to leave?" Pepper offered, even as Fury and Coulson walked into the room, Maria only a step behind them.

Tony shook his head. "Nope. Guess we all need to sit down and talk about what comes next, right?"

"It doesn't have to be now," Loki put in, slipping his hand into Tony's. "You've not even been awake for an hour yet."

"I feel fine," Tony promised. "It's just… a lot."

"I can't stay," Pepper said apologetically. "I've got to go and confound the press for another few days so they don't start trying to break the door down."

"You're the best, Pep."

She smiled at him, pressing a gentle kiss to his cheek before she left.

"Well, they can all at least show enough self restraint to allow you to eat before being bombarded with questions," Loki decided, gently pushing at Tony in the direction of the kitchen.

"I thought you said Thor was the sentimental one?"

…

"What if you're wrong?" Steve asked, looking between Loki, Thor and Tony. "What if Tony isn't the chosen one and the stones fall into the wrong hands?"

Tony resisted the urge to shout at the man. He'd been hovering in the kitchen the entire time Tony and Loki were attempting to eat. It broke up the domestic moment Tony had hoped for and he was feeling rather petty about it.

"They will not go to any other," Loki replied confidently. "Not even I, and I'm very persuasive."

"Loki is correct," Thor confirmed. "The legend he speaks of is true, and I have faith that Anthony is the one said to join the stones. I could feel the power as soon as I lifted him, the stones have decided their fate."

"So, Tony is just going to be the almighty now?" Clint asked.

Tony didn't know whether to feel amused or hurt by the clear fear in his voice.

"He has always been superior," Loki replied, a glint in his eye as he met Clints. "I could not overpower him during our first meeting. Even then, the Sceptre refused to harm him."

There was a slight mocking edge to his words, and Tony elbowed him. "Behave."

"Yes, dear."

"Come what may, the stones have chosen Tony. I, for one, am not worried," Dr Strange put in from the opposite end of the large table.

"That's very zen of you, you must smoke pot," Tony quipped. He sobered quickly though. "Look. I don't know what this means. I don't know what any of it means. But… whatever you think of me, I'm not about to try my hand at world domination. There's far too much paperwork involved, and Pepper wouldn't like it."

There was silence for a moment, and then Rhodey laughed. "You're not wrong. She'd stab you with her shoe."

"So… what do we do now?" Steve asked.

Fury cleared his throat. "We rebuild."

…

"You're really just going to let them all move back in?" Loki asked later as he and Tony walked slowly around the grounds of the Compound. "After what they did to you?"

"Who'd been telling tales?" Tony asked.

"Colonel Rhodes and FRIDAY were quite forthcoming when I asked what had happened in my absence."

"You're not allowed to be upset about it," Tony said, looking up at him. "You were gone, Loki. You and Thor and Bruce… you were all gone, and I did what I had to do. You can't be mad about it now."

Loki blinked. "You don't think I'm angry with you, surely?"

"I couldn't even keep the team together. I tried, Loki. I tried so goddamn hard and I—"

"Anthony… I could ring Captain America's neck with my bare hands, not to mention the others, but I'm not angry with you!"

"Why weren't you here?"

Tony hated that his question sounded so weak, but he'd spent months—years really—waiting for Loki to return, and when he hadn't, Tony had truly believed that he'd once again been abandoned.

"I hate to say this," Loki replied, "but time works differently for me than it does for you. A couple of years can pass by in the blink of an eye. I failed you, I know I did, and for that, I can never be sorry enough. I can only pray your forgiveness, and swear to never repeat the mistakes I have made."

Tony nodded slowly. "I—uh. Okay."

Loki materialised a bouquet of flowers and handed them over. "I love you. Even when I wasn't here, I loved you, and I will continue to love you. I'm sorry, Anthony."

Tony accepted the flowers with a small smile. It was a small gesture, but it still meant a lot to the genius. He glanced down at the Gauntlet that was holding them and the smile dimmed.

"Don't suppose the legends told you how I can keep the stones without such a garish fashion accessory?"

…

"Where did the Gauntlet go?" Steve asked.

Tony turned to look at him. "You didn't think I was going to spend the rest of my life wearing that ugly thing, did you? It clashed with… practically everything."

"You can't just leave something that powerful lying around, Tony! I thought you had more sense than that!"

"The Gauntlet is gone, Cap, slow your roll, would you, it's not even light out yet."

"Gone?"

"Gone," Tony agreed. "Nobody can ever get the stones again, the world is safe. Everything is back to normal."

"Not really," Steve disagreed. "We're still not okay, are we?"

"We're as okay as we're going to get for now," Tony replied flatly. "Until we can trust each other—"

"I trust you."

"Clearly you don't, or you wouldn't have just gone into meltdown about the Gauntlet," Tony countered, picking his now full coffee cup up from the counter. "And I don't trust you at all, so... Until that changes, things will stay as they are."

"I don't know how many times I can apologise, Tony."

With a sad smile, Tony moved towards the kitchen door. "You could try doing it for the first time and see how that goes."

…

Their first mission out with the whole team was… rocky. Okay, that was underselling it. It was an unmitigated disaster. Tony, Thor and Loki worked seamlessly together, but as a whole, they couldn't seem to gain any traction.

Thankfully, the threat level was relatively low, and it was taken care of with little damage and no lives lost.

When Tony walked into the compound, Loki's hand firmly in his, the rest of the team were already gathered to debrief.

"Clearly we had problems out there," Steve began. "If we're ever going to be able to work together again, there are some inter-team issues that we all need to work on."

"I had a thought about that," Tony said as he took his seat. "I think we should break up. It's not you, Cap, it's me."

"What?"

"I think we should have two teams," Tony clarified. "There are too many of us, and too many issues to count. I don't trust… half of you, Barton can't work with Loki, and we don't need so many flyers out in one team. It doesn't make sense."

"But… we are one team," Steve said, looking at them all.

"But we don't have to be," Natasha said, glancing at Tony. "I think Stark has a good point. There are more of us now, and more sure to come with time. It makes sense to have a structure in place for separate teams, with different strengths."

Tony met Steve's eyes. "Time for some of that compromise you promised, Cap."

…

Loki appeared in the Lab, wrapping his arms around Tony from behind.

He loved to see Tony down here, lost in his element. He was working on the suit, and Loki could see the minor groves set in different places around it.

Six of them.

"You will be magnificent in that," he murmured into Tony's ear. "All of your power, on display for the masses. They will cower before you."

"You know I'm going to hide them unless absolutely necessary, right?" Tony asked, amusement colouring his tone.

"I'll know they're there," Loki countered. "That's hot."

Laughing, Tony turned in his arms. "I think I could be persuaded to take a break. Do you fancy a late dinner and an early night?"

"Absolutely."

…

"I think I want to move." Loki glanced up from his book as Tony walked into the room. He moved the book just in time for Tony to flop into his lap. "How do you feel about Malibu?"

"The drink or the place?"

Tony snorted. "The place, you ass."

"I've never been."

"Time for a visit then, wouldn't you say?" Tony offered.

Loki wrapped his arms around Tony, cuddling him close. "Whatever, and wherever you want to be or do, is where I will be."

"That… was very smooth. Do you practice lines like that in the mirror?"

Loki dug his fingers into Tony's side, tickling him.

"Oh, you're going down!" Tony shouted through his laughter.

Rhodey found them rolling around on the floor ten minutes later, both of them laughing fit to burst.

"Hey Honeybear," Tony greeted, upside down on the floor.

"You two are certainly happy. Do I need to be worried?"

"In my defence, the world isn't always ending when I'm happy," Tony grumbled.

"I've been a victim of your happiness enough to know how not true that is," Rhodey replied, dodging the cushion that was thrown at him. "I'm joking. Mostly. What are you so pleased about?"

"We're going on a trip to Malibu," Tony said as he finally righted himself, pushing himself up onto the sofa. "Wanna come with?"

"And be a third wheel? No thanks. You two have fun though, you deserve some time off."

"You'll keep an eye on the kid?" Tony asked.

"Of course I will. And Pepper. And Happy. And—"

"Alright, I get it, you'll take care of things," Tony interrupted, laughing.

…

Sprawled out on coral, silk sheets, Loki sat above him massaging knots from his spine. Tony was in heaven.

He'd known Malibu was a good idea.

Loki's elegant, long fingers were working pure magic on him, and he was melting like a puddle.

"This is bliss," he murmured, words slurred with pleasure. "I hope you know that I'm going to expect this kind of treatment every night for the rest of forever."

"That you trust me with this is an honour," Loki replied softly.

"I know I'm safe as long as I'm here," Tony said, the words threaded with honesty. "You make me feel safe, Loki."

"You will always be safe with me."

Written for:

Writing Club

Character Appreciation: 4. Persuasive

Disney: D2. "I know I'm safe as long as I'm here."

Bingo: 5C. Determination

World Of Comics: 22. "Do I look like someone who needs saving?"

Book Club: Darryl: Mocking / Sensitive / Cuddling

Showtime: 16. Victim

Sophie's Shelf: 23. Bliss

Elizabeth's Empire: 23. Holding Hands

Bex's Basement: 1. "That's very zen of you, you must smoke pot."

Lizzy's Loft: 22. "Hey! What the fuck?"

Scamander's Case: 2. Gold

Film Festival: 23. "What if you're wrong?"

Marvel Appreciation: 12. Gamora: Green

Spring Funfair

Afternoon Tea: Condiment: Hoisin Sauce: Compromise

Gin Festival: 14. Blackberry Gin: "I told you so."

Bunny Racing: Confound

Easter Egg Decorating: Decoration 2: Stickers - Holding hands

Spring Cleaning: 1. Magic - Bouquet of flowers

Nature Scavenger Hunt: Mushroom List - Superior

Birdhouse Building: Step 3 - Romance

Petting Zoo: Feeding Chickens - "It's too early for this."

Teacup Ride: Red Zigzag - "Who invited him/her?"

Bunny Bingo: Avengers!AU/Fandom

Hot Air Balloon: "Can I just uh… yeah."

FarmVille: Grain Silo - "Could your ego get any bigger?"

Sand Art Stall: Purple: Fear / Green: Elegant / Pink: Defence / Yellow: Sharing a bed / Silver: "You're going down."

Guess The Name: Sparkle: Happy

Planting Flowers: Watering: Cloudy

April Fools: Muggle: Plastic Spider - Panic

Other Challenges:

Spring Quarterly: Carnation (pink) : Domestic

Spring Seasonal

Days of the Year: April 23rd, Take a chance day: "What more do you have to lose?"

Spring Themed: 4. Sunlit

Colour: 3. Coral

Birthstone: 8. Agate: "I trust you."

Earth: 8. Rocky

Hufflepuff: 10. Committed.

Astrology: Lyrids Meteor Shower: Radiant

History: 2. A Character receiving a nickname/pet name