Summary: Sequel to 'I Fall to Fear'. Because the aftermath is almost worse; and now they are trying to recover. [Tony/Loki]

I hope this is good enough. O.o I can't believe the demand I had for the sequel, but thank you all so much~

Warnings; talk of noncon, slash, violence, smut (eventually)

~~~~Line Breaker~~~~~

"He's not telling us something."

Bruce glanced up at Clint, deciding not to say anything and let the rest of the team talk. He cleaned his glasses on his shirt for a moment, thinking back to the way Tony held himself, how his eyes skirted around and eyed the exists and windows and how everyone sat around him. How he unconsciously hid himself behind Loki without it being noticeable. And he felt a familiar ache in his head, a swell of anger but he begged the Hulk to calm down. He had no one to take it out on at the moment.

"He was tortured." Steve muttered. "He doesn't need to tell us more than that, does he?"

Natasha shrugged. "We need to know everything in case something comes up...He was barely recovering from his hydrophobia and now he has to go through it all again."

"That gives us a right do force him to re-experience those things?" The blond man demanded. "Tony...he said he's been through this before. Why was that never brought up if this is such an issue?"

"Because he was dealing with it." Bruce answered, annoyed when they looked at him in surprise. "I lived here first, before it was Avengers Tower or whatever. He...tried to explain things once, but I mostly had to ask Jarvis. He was in a cave for three months before he made his first suit and escaped... They tortured him and killed the squad that had been with him. He watched people die protecting him, being killed with weapons he had made. And he was...redeeming himself through Iron Man."

Clint sighed. "What do you think then, Bruce? You think it's worth bothering him about it?"

"My brother won't let you." Thor cut in. "It is rare to see him care for anything, not since his childhood, but he is fiercely protective...I thought the trait had died out with...with his last son."

They all looked up at that, Natasha beating them to it. "Loki had children?"

The thunder god nodded, looking suddenly exhausted. "He was always coddling, even towards me. He prefered animals though, once Asgard began to become weary of him. If not practicing, I could usually find him in the stables, but when he had his third son, my Father took them away from him."

"W-what?" It was surprisingly Clint that stood up, face twisted into something none of them recognized. "Why? Was he a bad parent?"

"No, never." Thor hissed. "My brother loved them, but they were meant to destroy Asgard. My Father had no choice but to lock them up. But ever since, Loki changed." He slowly smiled, blue eyes brimming with a small bit of hope. "This...this could mean something for him. For him to care for Friend Tony, to be released from my Father's punishment, means he has learned something."

"What was the punishment?" Steve asked.

Thor hesitated, knowing that Loki had his reasons for not telling them. He didn't want to betray that trust. "I cannot say; you would have to ask him, and I believe he will tell us someday. It seems he will be staying here for awhile."

"Great." The archer muttered but it seemed to lack his usual enthusiasm. "We're really just going to allow Loki to take care of him though?"

"I doubt any of us could do anything otherwise." Natasha replied. "You saw the way he guarded him, and Tony doesn't seem to mind too much. Something drastic would have had to happen for someone like Tony to trust Loki after only a week."

"What do we know about this Hammer guy?" Bruce asked, fighting the urge to walk over to Tony's room and check on him. He had a feeling it wouldn't be appreciated.

"He's nothing we need to worry about. Not really." Clint replied. "I read the report on him when he was arrested, the guy's a worm. He'd have to have someone leading him, and that's who we need to worry about."

Natasha nodded. "Hammer was the one who planned to have Iron Man killed at the Stark Expo by releasing a convict that almost killed Tony. He wanted it to be a bit of a show so he could introduce his own cheap version of the suit, but other than planning, he's useless. We need to know who bailed him out."

"You'll be surprised."

They all looked up as Coulson walked into the lounge, carrying a large binder of papers and looking very much alive. He gave a smile when they all stared, no one making a sound. Raising an eyebrow, he sat down on an open armchair.

"Is this going to take much longer?"

"Son of Coul!" Thor boomed, easily wrapping his arms around the man and picking him up into a hug. "You breathe once more! It is good to have you among us all again."

The Agent patted him on the shoulder, fixing his jacket once he was finally released. "Is it really that surprising?"

"You died!" Clint hissed, eyes wide.

He shrugged. "And then I stopped. Can we get back on subject? The fact that someone could kidnap an Avenger and keep him for a week is a little...uncomfortable. Director Fury is currently going through backgrounds and sent me to help you out."

"Who...who bailed him out of jail?" Bruce asked, unnerved with talking to a dead person.

Coulson placed the binder on the coffee table. "I'm sure most of you know him somehow. General Thaddeus Ross, who seems to have taken an interest into our network, especially about Stark's Reactor."

Bruce swallowed roughly, staring as a picture of the man was revealed. He looked the same, he hadn't changed at all. The man was still a hateful, cruel monster and wasn't that the ironic thing since now the Hulk was an Avenger and a hero.

"Dr. Banner." Coulson said gently, getting him to snap out of his thoughts. "I realize this might be hard for you...but we need you here with us. Especially Stark, he trusts you the most."

"I'm, I'm good, I'm okay..." he muttered, ignoring the way everyone looked at him and the odd feeling of pride in his chest. "What do we know?"

Coulson shook his head. "We should wait for Stark. He's met with General Ross before, he might be able to give us some idea why he'd be interested in Hammer."

"Shall I retrieve him?" Thor asked. "I fear if it was anyone else, my brother might not...react well."

"How long has he been sleeping?" Coulson asked.

"Almost an hour and a half...he looked exhausted when we came in." Steve answered, looking pale as he stared at Coulson.

The Agent sighed. "I guess...but if we can't get Stark here, at least get Loki."

Thor nodded and headed off, the room turning tense at the thought of the God of Mischief joining them again. Still, it was apparent that for Steve and Clint, they had more important things to deal with.

"How...?" the archer finally managed. "How are you...You were dead, we checked."

Coulson hesitated. He hated remembering; the feeling of pain in his chest and forcing himself to distract the god so he could test the weapon on him, having the perfect life for a brief moment in death before forced to go on a cold, painful and horrifying journey to return to his body. And the whole time, a hand guiding him until his eyes opened. That moment was sacred. He had been spared by a god and returned to life.

"I returned him."

The Agent sighed in relief, turning to look at Loki. "Loki. I take it Stark isn't ready to join us?"

The black haired god gave a nod in greeting. "Son of Coul. I believe it might be a few days before he is ready to come back on your little team, but give him a day or so and he shall be consulting for Shield once again, even if they have proven themselves less than worthy."

"Loki...brought you back to life?" Steve asked slowly, eyes wide. Was that a regular occurrence in this time?

Loki glared at him. "Yes, but it is not something I make a habit of. Do not think that I will do the same for any of you."

"Don't I feel special." Coulson said, ignoring the looks.

"You were being readied for Valhalla. Hela does not make that call lightly."

Thor grinned, thumping the man on the shoulder in pride. "It is the highest of honors for a warrior! And you have the pleasure of meeting my niece, she is a wonderful ruler."

The team slowly put those words together. Smirking, Loki crossed his arms and watched them connect the dots. The way they all paled was all he'd hoped for. Grinning, he seated himself next to the doctor, eying the picture while he waited for everyone else to catch up.

"Your daughter...rules over the dead..." Clint said.

"Yes."

"And she can decide to return someone back to life?" The archer asked.

Loki raised an eyebrow at him. "Yes, but she usually does not. Hela is very possessive of the souls she gets, it is only because I asked it of her that she did so."

He shared a look with Natasha, who looked unimpressed except for the paler tone of her skin. "We're so fucked."

"We need to get back on topic." Bruce interrupted, annoyed. Everyone immediately quieted down. "What do we have on Ross?"

Coulson nodded. "So far, since Stark has met with him, General Ross has returned to his military duties but they've been keeping an eye on him. Since the...incident in Harlem, he's been prone to disobedience and they've put him on a tight leash. However, lately he's been away on 'family business' and then he bailed out Hammer."

Bruce frowned. "Do you think he'd want weapons for against the Hulk? He's been very clear how he feels about him."

"It could be. But then why a Helicarrier?"

Steve sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Well, we had something we thought could contain the Hulk, right? Maybe that was part of it?"

"Not much of a containment if it could not hold Thor." Loki pointed out dryly.

"Why have Loki though?" Natasha asked, glancing between the two gods.

Thor frowned at this. "An alliance? Loki, your magic would be powerful enough to at least immobile the Hulk, is it not?"

Loki rolled his eyes when everyone else stilled. "Most likely. I have not done so yet because it takes away the fun of dealing with him."

Bruce muttered something under his breath while Coulson nodded. "Alright, so could someone use your magic? Like, siphon it from you?"

"No, it is not possible. My magic is not like other wielders, it is apart of me." the God of Mischief replied.

"Good to know..." Clint muttered, easily meeting the trickster's smirk with a raised eyebrow.

Bruce heaved a sigh, pulling his glasses off to play with them. "So, what do we do then? Do you think Hammer will come after Tony again?"

Coulson nodded. "Natasha, Clint, you both will be keeping an eye on General Ross. I don't think I trust the reports being sent in by the military. The rest of us are going to be staying here. I don't doubt Hammer coming back for Stark."

"He can try." Loki muttered darkly.

"When do you want us to start?" Natasha asked the agent.

Coulson glanced at some papers. "Tomorrow. I have to go let Fury know, so Rogers," He smiled at the man. "You'll be sending in weekly reports about what's going on. Especially on Stark, so we'd appreciate it if you could play nicely with us, Loki."

Thor placed a hand on his brother's shoulders, grinning. "I am sure there will be no problem with that, right, brother?"

Loki's eyes narrowed. "For now."

"Good." Coulson got up and nodded his head. "Pleasure to be back working with you all."

There was a moment of silence as they all contemplated what they were about to do. Steve stood up, muttering about the gym on a lower floor. He paused though, hesitating as he glanced up at Loki.

"Thanks...for Agent Coulson."

"I did not do it for any of you." Loki said immediately, eyes narrowing. "He had proved me wrong. It is not something that happens often."

Steve nodded. "Still, thanks. You didn't have to do it at all."

Rolling his eyes, the trickster left, obviously heading back to Tony's room. The super soldier grinned. "It'd be nice if he was permanently on the team."

"Do not count my brother out just yet." Thor grinned, thumping the man on the back. "I am beginning to believe that Howardson may still turn him away from his path of anger and vengeance."

"Let's worry about their little budding romance later." Clint said. "I'm going on ahead to get ready for tomorrow. Keep an eye on Stark...even if he's gone through torture before, something's different this time."

Both assassins headed out. When Thor decided to join Steve in the gym to spar, Bruce went off into the lab Tony had left him. He didn't even blink when Loki joined him not ten minutes later, and tried not to think too much about how easily he got along with the god when he wasn't twisting words and such into some kind of trap.

It made him feel a bit better that the God of Mischief was currently looking after his best friend.

~~~~~~Line Breaker~~~~~~~

I hate it. :x Sorry it's not that great for a first chapter of a sequel, but I really wanted to get a set up. -sighs- Please let me know if anything is too...gross and blehish, okay? I love hearing from you all, and I re-read every review I receive. :3

Note; I said my favorite aspect of Loki was his parenthood. Well, another is his strength that people seem to forget. He is a sorcerer, he is a god and he is a Jotun prince. He might not be physically stronger than Thor, but in the movie, he could fight him head on and be on even ground. So, that's something I will emphasize in this. Thank you.

MRIMO