Disclaimer: I don't own the characters or even the idea that this came from.

The Stark Spectaculaire

Chapter 3: It's Showtime!

The boom of a cannon resonated through his chest and Tony was only just able to keep himself from jumping. He was no stranger to explosions, especially not those coming from the machine's he had invented himself, but the anxiety over Stane's attack was beginning to get to him. Rather, the fact that they had seen neither hide nor hair of the man was getting to him. The ringmaster patted his waistcoat and pants to reassure himself that everything was properly in place as Rhodey finished.

They had made it the whole way back to New York without a hitch, not even in their equipment. Now, on the fourth night of their two week stay in the large city, Tony was wound tight enough to snap at every little thing as he waited for the other shoe to drop. He'd insulted each person in the troupe at least once during the weeks leading up to this but, thankfully, they seemed to understand or even share his stress and were all ready to help or at least turn a deaf ear to his barbs.

Loki was also a big help, providing both distraction as well as comfort, though they never had any time to themselves after that night nearly three weeks before. If Tony wasn't trying to prepare for the inevitable attack, Thor was pulling his brother away for some family time or Pepper had something that needed the businessman's attention.

Due to the circumstances, Tony felt as though he saw more of the assassins than the object of his affections. In fact, he felt as though he was tripping over at least one half of the highly skilled pair every time he turned around, though never literally (they were never involved in the falls at least, bastards).

It didn't help that Loki was so good at tucking himself away so as to not have to deal with their Scandinavian guests and the inevitable drama they brought with them, and Tony didn't fault him for that. He was more than willing to skip out on their many activities that they had invited him to. Or rather, the activities that Fan-guy kept trying to invite him to.

Tony repressed a shudder. He might be quite the player (especially in his college days, though the rumors had forced him to grind that part of the social scene nearly to a halt. His teeth ground a little at the thought of the man behind it) but he sincerely hoped that he had never acted as smarmy as that blond copycat was currently. The man was overly blatant about his intentions towards Tony's person.

Tony was thoroughly unimpressed with the man's continued behavior and was positive that he was making that message clear to even the slowest of dullards, but the man didn't seem willing to take a hint. Even the rest of the Europeans couldn't hide their embarrassment when their companion persisted in pushing his advances only to be rebuffed at every turn. But, then again, he also thought he'd made it obvious whose side he was standing on for the guests' collective spat against Loki as well, but only Hogun seemed to understand that one. Maybe they just couldn't believe that anyone would take Loki's side over theirs.

So, instead of trying to correct them, Tony simply treated them with all the respect that he thought they deserved (little to none) and went about with his preparations and attempts to corner Loki again.

The plans for general defense with the possible retaliation if the situation called for it went over well with the rest of the caravan and Tony was able to modify their carts to suit the new specifications in no time at all with Bruce, Happy, and Loki there to spread the work around.

"Tony!" The hissed whisper really did make him jump, his gold showman's cape nearly tripping him as he spun to face an apologetic Pepper. She made a shooing gesture towards the ring and, realizing that he had almost missed his queue due to his ponderings, Tony quickly moved to obey.

Rhodey was grinning at the still cheering audience, though it didn't quite reach his eyes as they scanned the crowd. He then turned to Thor, who assisted him in the act, to share the acclaim before bowing to Tony. The ringmaster bowed back theatrically, capturing the attention of the crowd and allowing the two men to start clearing the floor for the next act.

"Let's hear it again for our favorite dare devil, Risky Rhodey, and the spectacular strongman, Thor!" The packed theater roared their approval for the duos' death-defying feats; one particularly tricky part of the show, which had Rhodey flying across the room while Thor nearly hit him with impossibly heavy objects, was sure to make the papers.

He continued his easy rapport with the crowd as the final cannon was removed from the ring, showing off yet another of his inventions to keep the crowd interested.

This time it was the gloves that were designed to go with the boots Loki had found earlier. Tony presented them as strength enhancers rather than try to explain their main function as flight stabilizers. The crowd went wild as he easily picked up a volunteer from the audience with no visible effort. That didn't mean it was easy, the 'gloves' (which actually went up his arms underneath his jacket sleeves and covered a portion of his chest) didn't enhance his leg strength, but the volunteer wasn't all that heavy to begin with and he'd lifted ladies her size more than once without enhancement many times in the past.

Waving her back in to the cheering crowd, Tony's eyes caught a flash of light on the floor in front of him. It jumped three times and the ringmaster raised his hands for silence.

"I now have the great pleasure to announce our next Spectaculaire Event! This pair hails from parts unknown but their skills both on the ground and in the air are unmatched! You may have seen some fantastic high wire acts in the past, but let me assure you that none can hope to measure up to the heights and dangers that you will soon see." He raised his hands dramatically towards the tent's roof, "May I present, the king of his nest, the high-flying Hawkeye and his partner, whose beauty is only matched by her talent, the deadly Black Widow!"

Pyrotechnics went off as planned and brought the crowd's attention up to where the two acrobats stood, spotlights revealing their positions on separate pillars as they each gave showman's bows to the audience. They then got right down to business, grabbing the trapeze handles that had been secured to the columns behind them and hurling themselves off the platforms and in to their routine.

Tony made sure to leave the ring before they started the knife throwing portion of their act. He was met by the sight of the FBI Agent that Fury had assigned to their case, a young man who was far too professional and experienced to be called 'fresh-faced', who had introduced himself as Agent Coulson, looking terribly excited.

That gave Tony pause. The agent hadn't shown any emotion other than polite disinterest since he'd arrived. Now he was practically bouncing on his toes and rummaging through his pockets as he sent nervous looks over to a corner of the back room.

Worries pushed to the side for a moment, Tony looked on in bemusement as the agent gathered himself, took another glance at whatever he now held in his hands, and made his way over to the figure standing obliviously in the corner. The ringleader followed at a distance, wondering what the young man wanted with their gentle giant.

He almost lost interest as he caught a glimpse of Loki out of the corner of his eye, but the magician looked busy preparing for his act in the next partition. Never one to pass up an opportunity to (stalk) enjoy the other man's presence, Tony dropped even further back to see what the dark haired man was up to as Coulson hovered just behind his quarry. He'd been wondering what Loki was keeping in those strange baskets for the past week!

He tried to sneak a peek past the thick curtain that divided the room, but just then the government worker cleared his throat prompting Steve to turn and look questioningly at the still fidgeting agent.

"You are Steve Rodgers from Bucky's Bucking Broncos, right?"

Tony realized exactly what was going on here and had to bite a knuckle to help stifle the laughter that threatened to ruin this beautiful moment. For his part, Steve looked confusedly hopeful as he nodded at the agent, wondering what this was all about.

The agent only seemed to become more bashful at the confirmation, "I always went to your shows whenever I had the chance and it is an honor to meet you properly, sir."

Steve blushed at the praise; he'd never been good with fans even when the whole troupe had been there to take the adoration equally. "Thanks, it's uh, nice to meet you as well." He held out his hand for a handshake that was enthusiastically accepted. The agent grinned so wide Tony was afraid his face would crack.

"I've always enjoyed your parts in the show the best, even when you were just starting out. The things that you can do with the horses are simply amazing."

Blue eyes flicked down in embarrassment, catching sight of the excited fan's other hand which still clutched some small cards. Coulson caught himself, releasing his hero's hand and grasping the cards in question with both hands.

"I was wondering if you might be able to sign these cards I brought, if you have the time." He held up a pair of commemorative postcards that most Stark circuses sold after the shows, both showcasing Steve performing tricks with his favorite horses.

Tony watched the trick-rider-turned-clown simply stare at the postcards in shock for a moment before he had to turn away, unable to look for fear of bursting in to a fit of terribly unmanly giggles at the situation. His shoulders shook from the effort to remain quiet as Steve awkwardly agreed to sign the agent's memorabilia; he could practically feel Coulson's joy from where he was standing.

'Well, that certainly eased the atmosphere. For me, at least. Cap's never going to live this down if I have anything to do with it.'

Praying that JARVIS had caught the entire scene for (blackmail) posterity, Tony made a mental note to use the footage as a reward for Clint the next time he refrained from begging him for a crazy invention.

Well, a crazy new invention that Tony hadn't thought of to begin with. He never liked it when his genius was stepped on.

The engineer heard Coulson try to continue the stilted conversation and had to slap a hand over his mouth to stop his snort of laughter, glad he wasn't in their line of sight. He attempted to compose himself; to be serious again in this dangerous time, but when he looked up it was directly in to a pair of laughing green eyes. The magician's lips held a thinned half smile that only grew as the hilarity of the situation hit Tony again full force and a snort escaped from behind his fingers.

Moving quickly over to where Loki was standing on the other side of the cloth partition, they were both soon hidden from the hilarious pair, trying not to let those behind him know that they'd heard.

Grabbing one of Loki's arms to steady himself, Tony pressed his forehead to the European man's shoulder and tried to muffle the laughter he could no longer deny. He kept his lips pressed together to try and mute the sounds, but the stilted breathing through his nose and the fact that he was smiling so hard he couldn't open his eyes would have given him away in an instant.

Loki didn't seem that much better off and his breathy chuckles only encouraged more laughter from the man clinging to his arm.

They stood laughing with one another for a moment longer before settling down, Tony taking a couple of deep breaths to try and help facilitate that.

Pulling his head back up, he let his eyes trail over Loki's flushed and smiling face, enjoying the partially hidden lust he now saw reflected in those eyes as much as he had the laughter. Tony's eyes shifted down to the movement of the magician's tongue swiping over his lips (almost leaning in to follow it with his own) before he tore himself away.

Loki smiled understandingly even as he made it worse, running his fingers up the complex machinery that covered the other man's arm as Tony tried to step away.

"Finally finished the set, I see. Are you going to be taking them out for a test flight any time soon?"

The ringleader grinned at the reminder, holding up one of his hands so that they could both see the gears moving as he flexed his fingers.

"Hopefully; I can't wait to see how they do! I have to wait until this debacle is over, though." That reminder brought Tony back to the annoying waiting game they had all been playing, just passing the time until that shoe finally dropped.

He nearly made it back to the worried frown he'd been sporting earlier when cool fingertips traced his jaw and he realized that Loki had closed the gap that the ringmaster had so painstakingly opened moments before. Those green eyes were especially hypnotizing at close range.

"I am sure that everything will come together perfectly."

The fingers moved as if to slip away but Tony was quick enough to hold them there, his gloved hand trapping the magician's as he offered him a grateful smile. A distant click of heels had them both lowering their hands shortly after, Tony turning towards the door as Loki moved back to the table and snapped his case shut for the show. Pepper poked her head in, showing no surprise at having found them there together, and quietly informed them, "About five minutes until you're up."

She waited for Loki to acknowledge her with a short nod and her boss to grunt his acceptance before heading back out to make sure that Bruce was getting his animals prepared for their act as well. She'd barely stepped away, Steve in tow to help with the horses who followed the Hulk, before Tony's attention swung back to the man beside him.

The aforementioned man was lifting up his performance case as if it weighed no more than a feather. Tony pointed at it, jaw dropping a little.

"But, that – how –?" the ringleader sputtered as he tried to reconcile this lightweight case to the unmanageable monstrosity he'd attempted to move over a month before. Catching the smug look on the other man's face, Tony pointed a finger at him, eyes narrowed. "You knew that I was going to offer and weighted it, didn't you? I knew there was no way it could be that heavy all the time, not with you having to use it every night. Give it here, let me see how heavy it's supposed to be."

Tony made a grab at the case, easily tugging it out of the unresisting grasp. The case landed with a thump right next to his boots and the engineer felt lucky that it hadn't come any closer before succumbing to gravity and possibly crush his toes. His brow wrinkled in confusion as his gloves worked twice as hard as they had in the demonstration just trying to lift the case off the ground again. Maybe he should have been a little wearier of how accommodating the bag's owner was in handing it over.

Giving a huff as he strained to pull it off the ground, Tony muttered, "Should have known, the magician's bag is full of tricks, eh?" A chuckle came from beside him and he looked back up at Loki questioningly.

"Did you expect anything less?" came the taunting reply.

Another challenge then, well Tony was more then up for that. He let the case rest at his feet once again, eyes narrowing as he started inspecting it for clues, something that might give the trick away. Within moments he had narrowed it down to the handle (probably), but nothing seemed to be exceptional about it other than the strange texture it held.

"There's got to be a missing piece, something only you have maybe? But where would you keep it and how would you be sure that no one else could have it or take it? This is an awesome security feature but without a failsafe you might…" Tony trailed off and looked up at Loki, only to be surprised as he saw him looking around as if for spies.

Considering that the assassins were in the middle of their act and Agent Coulson was still mooning over his postcards past the partition, Loki quickly deemed it to be safe enough. He reached out and showed his hands, displaying them for easy inspection. Tony recognized the motions from the many side shows he had seen over the years, his mind filling in the words often recited. 'See, nothing up my sleeves.'

But there was something on his hands - on his fingers, specifically.

Five rings shone bright in the soft lamps that lit the back area. Finally releasing the bag from his grip, Tony moved to grab one of the other man's hands for closer inspection. The magician moved his arms a little bit closer to his body for a moment, just enough for the ringmaster to pause, before displaying the one on his left thumb prominently.

Skilled fingers gave the jewelry a small twist in one direction and Loki quirked a smile as both the bag and the man standing above it jumped slightly. Gluing his eyes to the ring once again, Tony watched in fascination as a turn in the other direction ejected a small latch from within. Loki reached down towards the bag's handle in a deliberately slow motion, displaying exactly how the ring fit in to one of the many slots that were hidden along the worn surface and pulled it half an inch to the right. The device gave the softest of clicks and the magician picked it up again, easily hefting up the weight in one hand.

Sensors activating in his lenses, Tony looked the bag over again and he found that the case was emitting something around the bottom, lifting itself as Loki guided it to where it needed to be. His mind analyzed the mechanics that had probably gone into it and it all just reaffirmed exactly what Tony had thought from the beginning: Loki was just as much a genius as Tony.

The engineer let his eyes move from the bag, trailing up the other man's body and head tilting slightly as he processed this.

There were differences of course; no two geniuses were exactly alike after all. Tony was far more specialized in his technology and open about his inventions, but Loki was quietly brilliant and had mastered more than just the standard scientific fields. The magician was tricky, sly, and his genius was usually attributed more to a sharp tongue rather than a quick mind, but his feats of magic were more than just tricks; it was Loki knowing what the audience would do before they did.

Tony's look was particularly heated when he finally met the other man's eyes and Loki wasn't unaffected, finding distinct pleasure in the fact that the ringleader had figured out even some of the smaller nuances of his invention after just one demonstration.

A magician should never reveal their secrets, but the thought of working with or even against this fantastic man was too much temptation for Loki. He raised his free hand enticingly and grinned while displaying its three unexplained rings. The dare was presented boldly; four more rings to try and puzzle out, as well as the amazingly distracting enigma who had created them.

Tony was more than willing to start the explorations now and reached out for the proffered hand to yank Loki (to the corner, to his room, to the lab) closer to him, only to knit his brow as the other looked away. Letting his hand drop as well, Tony looked over to find Coulson stepping up to the opening while carefully replacing the cards in his pocket.

When the agent looked back up it was with that calmly infuriating smile of his, "Mrs. Potts was looking for you. I am more than willing to offer her my assistance in making sure you get there on time."

Tony didn't like how the man's hand strayed towards his holster as he said this and quickly moved towards the center ring once again. "Yeah, yeah. I'm going." Before he slipped through the doorway he gave Loki one last lingering look over Coulson's shoulder, 'This isn't over, not by a long shot.'

Another stately nod was given, though this one was nearly ruined by the downright sinful smile on the other man's face, and Tony could feel the heated gaze on his back as he walked to the main stage. He reached the designated area just moments before he was due but his mind only left the back room when the spotlight blinded him. Tony was always ready for show time, however, "Let's get another round of applause for our talented duo, Black Widow and Hawkeye!"

The crowd gave another thundering roar of approval as the acrobats packed up the last of their sharp implements in preparation for Loki's arrival in the ring. Clint hammed it up, grabbing Tasha's hand, and pulling her away from the small containers and leading them in a bow towards the main part of the audience. Rolling her eyes fondly, the woman allowed it to happen twice before slipping from his grasp to finish up.

Tony grinned at the delighted crowd, "The Stark Spectaculaire never disappoints!"

Clean up being much easier for this act, the ringmaster launched directly in to his next opener as smoke began to slowly fill the ring and the lights dimmed.

"Our next performer has learned his trade from the most talented mystics across Europe and the Americas and has, in my humble opinion, surpassed them in every way! His feats will delight and astound as he twists reality and even your mind during his magical demonstrations! Without further ado, here is the magnificent magician, Loki!"

Loki seemed to materialize out of the vapors and into the center of the spotlight as Tony stepped to the side with a flourished bow. The performer smiled mysteriously at the gasping crowd and drew their attention to the side with a sweeping gesture, a snap of his fingers lighting the candelabras on the table that had been set up for his act.

Tony kept his bowed position a moment longer as he let the spotlight to slide off of him, both the light and his eyes following the man as he walked away. It didn't occur to him to be grateful that the smoke effectively hid his lecherous grin as he traced the way the long black coat clung to the other man's body, appreciating the view as the confident man did what he did best and (turned him on) started his show with a bang.

It was hard to miss the way those green eyes flicked to him for the barest of moments, smile twitching up a fraction before the bag which was sitting innocently on the table opened and unfolded without even a flick of his finger. Even knowing that no tricks would be revealed in front of an audience, it took Tony considerable effort to tear his attention away from the act and start making his way back to the 'backstage' room.

Instead of trying to relax or find something interesting in there while he waited to announce the next act, the ringmaster simply exited through the back door and out to the areas that the cages were kept in, ready to offer his assistance in bringing over the group of cats Bruce needed for his show.

Agent Coulson, whom he had passed on his way through the room, followed him on his trek towards the massive felines, having learned over the past few nights that this was a common occurrence. That first night was barely saved by Pepper, who had arrived with her calm rational, when the two men had started an increasingly loud argument about where Tony was allowed to go when under FBI protection. This was still his circus, damn it. He was allowed to go where he pleased!

The engineer arrived just in time to watch an extremely familiar feline get released from its cage, a leather collar strapped around its neck that would provide absolutely no trouble to it should the jaguar decide to pounce. The Jag ("Seriously, Tony." Bruce had never sounded so exasperatedly amused in his life, "'The Jag' was the only name it ever had. I'm not so fond of nicknaming things as you are.") showed no interest in doing anything dangerous, however, and Tony thought that was a plus.

Though the agent didn't look bothered in the least, the predator caught the slight shift in his weight and tipped Tony off to the other man's nerves.

"You can stay here if you like," Tony offered, hopeful. "I'm pretty sure that Stane won't try to attack me with these guys wandering about."

Carefully moving so as to not give the jungle cat further ideas, Coulson gave the inventor a polite smile. "I'm afraid I can't accept your offer, Mr. Stark. My orders are quite clear; I am to stay with you."

Tony heaved a sigh at the reminder of Fury's orders. So what if he was a 'high-priority' target, he could protect himself; the crowd, however, was free game. Stane hadn't ever had much care for human life, even trying to convince Howard Stark to go in to the weapons business in the beginning, so he would see nothing wrong with murdering everyone just to get to Tony. Now that he was already a convict, nothing would be off limits in his scramble to finish what he had started.

Subconsciously, Tony reached up and rubbed the gloves' power source through his stage clothes. He didn't have any illusions as to what Stane's ultimate goal was, he'd been pretty clear about it the last time he'd tried to murder the engineer.

Apparently, both he and his father were 'wasting' their inventions on the circus and Stane had promised some important people that he'd deliver those inventions to those who would make better use of them. Tony was sure Stane was trying to keep up his end of the bargain.

No sign of relief was shown, but Tony was positive that the FBI agent was feeling safer as The Jag lost interest in the two of them. Tony could only roll his eyes as he recognized exactly what he was hearing and knew exactly what had pulled the animal's attention away. The thumping and hissing stopped when Dummy finally made his way around the cart and found at least part of the group staring at it as the robot made its entrance. He sunk down on his pistons as if embarrassed at the attention.

It didn't have a chance to be bashful for very long; its jaguar friend proved just how easily it could escape the grip of its handler (Tony wasn't the only one watching the agent for any sudden moves after he tensed at the action. No one needed to get hurt here) and bounded over to where Dummy was standing.

Quick as a flash, The Jag was sitting precariously on top of the mechanical construct's body while one of those six legs carefully moved up to pet the cat above it. The feline gave a content purr.

There was a collective pause from those within viewing distance of this action.

Tony broke the silence, addressing Bruce, "If this isn't proving your hypothesis, what kind of data do you need? Does the cat have to pass a written test as well?"

His fellow scientist simply shook his head in disbelief as he stared at the duo. "Find me a few more subjects who react that well to it and we'll see." Bruce turned to Tony. "We'd have to give them writing courses first and it's easier with a group."

Pepper and Happy shared another one of their 'couples' looks' at the two scientist's comments while Steve carefully stepped forward and picked up the leash once again.

Thankfully, both the jaguar and Dummy looked content with their current positions and continued conversing with their hiss-whistles and growls instead of making any threatening moves. Bruce continued to set up the next cat, a rather large wildcat who had been his first trainee, as Coulson probably fretted internally.

Laughing to himself at the thought of the agent worrying over the health of his idol, Tony stepped up to have a quick chat with his invention.

"Alright, Dummy." Immediately the bot's optics (and quite a few sets of eyes, including The Jag's) were focused on him. "No, I'm not going to order you away. It'll actually be a bit easier on everyone else if you help out. Just don't follow them into the ring for their performance, alright? Other than that, keep with Brucie and you should be good."

Dummy gave a questioning whistle that ended in an angry hiss-clunk.

"What? No, that shouldn't be... well, alright. But only then, okay? You really aren't supposed to be there at any time after what you did before." The copper and steel construct gave a happy whistle that made the short, rhythmic hisses that followed give the impression that it was laughing at the memory.

"Yeah, go ahead. Laugh it up. You didn't have to clean up the mess you left behind, now did you." After giving the robot a pointed look that promised nothing good if it tried to continue this argument, Tony turned to the still outwardly calm agent.

"Looks like they have everything covered here today, let's head back and see if anything is happening back at the big top." Turning to leave, he saw Coulson hesitating, looking first at Cap then to the others. "Well, come on! Disaster isn't going to wait for us." Tony tried to hurry him along, but only a reassuring nod from Pepper got him moving.

The agent accepted Tony's flat look with one of his own, brushing passed the bespectacled man to start leading the way back to the main tent.

Turning, Tony looked at Pepper while gesturing towards the agent, 'how is this behavior okay? Doesn't he know who I am?' Pepper let her head tilt to the side slightly as she read that look loud and clear, returning one of her own complete with a pointing finger, 'He knows who is really in charge here. Now get going.'

"Yes, dear." The endearment was supposed to be accusing and admonishing all at once, but only managed petulant. Tony cut his losses, pulled the brim of his top hat down a bit, and went to follow the agent back to the show.

With his other obligations tended to, he could go back to trying to spot when more of those rings were used. He knew that at least one of those rings was used during the act itself and Loki wouldn't be so accommodating as to just show him the others.

He arrived just in time to watch Loki literally step down from his levitation trick, the crowd quiet with awe as they watched him move as if taking an invisible staircase down from about waist height. Loki was careful to do so in a tight circle, walking through the space his feet had just stood so securely on not moments before so as to prove the validity of his magic.

For a moment, Tony wondered if this was pulled off with something similar to his boots, before brushing that off. Loki's steps were too measured, each foot landing solidly as he moved. Hovering and flying was never that precise, that was why he'd had to have the gloves act as stabilizers. Even with weeks or months of practice, there was no way to remain that still when utilizing that particular brand of tech. Maybe it was something to do with the table? Or the boots the other man wore for his act? They didn't look like anything special, but the rings had taught him that not everything is what it seems.

As soon as he was back on solid ground, Loki gave a dashing bow towards the cheering audience and made what could only have been a witty quip judging by the laughter that followed, but Tony was too far away to hear it. Noise trailing off once again, something rose from the table on its own volition. The pungi began to play a haunting song and the magician turned towards it as if surprised by the sound. Tony allowed himself a moment to be impressed by the other man's acting skills.

Seconds later, Tony was joining the audience in a gasp as something peeked out of the collar of Loki's jacket. The magician seemed too preoccupied by trying to figure out why the wind instrument was playing itself to notice but turned when one of the children in the crowd shouted down to him, "Behind you!"

Feeling the movement beneath it, the animal slithered up Loki's opposite shoulder as the performer 'looked' for what might be sneaking up behind him. It was only as he turned back to face the instrument that Loki found himself nose to snout with a medium sized cobra.

The audience held very still as they watched the two stare at one another, the pungi still droning on in the background, and Tony realized just what the other man had been hiding in those baskets. Fear transformed into awe once again as the crowd looked on, entranced by the ease that Loki displayed when reaching up to easily pull the dangerous snake off his back.

Even as he pulled one from the back of his collar another reptilian head poked out from under his green lapels, nudging the gold tie pin at the magician's neck before sliding over the dark leather of his coat. Loki painted a dangerously handsome picture, a deadly snake wrapped around each arm as he held them out in an elegant display. Both of the cobras raised their heads and their hoods as the man lifted his arms, showing the audience that they both had their fangs intact for this presentation.

It was almost time for Tony to start making his way out but he paused for a moment just outside the flap that separated the rings and the back room when Loki started bringing those death dealers back towards his chest.

Another, smaller head had popped out of the man's breast pocket to take a look at the crowd and the magician was trying to lure it out completely. The shockingly green snake was having none of that and slid back inside its warm pocket as the audience chuckled. Instead of trying to fight it, Loki simply gave another sweeping bow to the delighted crowd before letting Tony take the floor as he replaced the two larger snakes in their proper containers and quieted the still playing pungi.

"And that, my friends, is why he is known as the best in the business! How about one more round for our resident snake charmer, Loki!" The spectators gave another roaring round of applause just as Loki finished snapping his performance case shut.

The performer turned and took another moment to bask in the cheers before giving them a final smile and bowed his way off stage, snagging his bag as he left. Loki had almost made it to the edge of the center ring when he paused. Rhodey was usually the one who pulled his table out of the ring, sometimes with Thor's help, but he could hear multiple sets of footsteps moving over the hard packed dirt behind him.

He looked over his shoulder just as Tony was finishing up Dr. Banner's introduction.

A mob of ruffians had started flooding the ring and were heading menacingly towards the ringleader. A couple of gasps came from the audience, but they had no reason to believe that this wasn't part of the show and Tony (currently expounding upon how dangerous the large felines were) didn't think their reaction strange.

It was only once he heard a loud thud and a grunt come from behind him that Tony turned, still talking, "...and their fearsome trainer the incredible Hul-ck!"

Loki was already halfway to Tony when he choked on the end of his sentence, the magician's bag having taken out two of the thugs when he'd thrown it to warn the engineer of the approaching men, but the loud bang that had preceded the man's jerking fall made it obvious what had just happened. Ignoring the shouts of the panicked crowd as they attempted to run from the violent scene, Loki made his way through the men to kneel at Tony's side even as they tried to stop him.

Having already started making his way in for his act, Bruce had a front row seat to both the gun shot and Loki's impressive knife throwing skills. He was also the next primary target once Stane realized that the magician was more worried about Tony's life than the risk to his own and had to stop his own run to the fallen man when the gun was pointed in his direction.

That didn't stop The Jag from sprinting forward through the crowds to ward off any who came close to his second favorite person while they were incapacitated.

Hearing the shot, other members of the troupe came running out from the backstage area to find Bruce held at gunpoint by a smirking Stane who was standing in a now evacuated area of the stands while his jaguar growled menacingly from within a mob of at least thirty large men and Tony laying in the midst of it all, possibly dying.

A standoff ensued as each side waited for the other to make a first move; the thugs waiting for Stane's word and the troupe waiting to see if Tony was still alive.

Tony was barely moving when Loki reached him, his deep red jacket hiding any blood that may or may not be spreading from where the bullet had torn into it, just between his heart and his left shoulder. Carefully looping an arm under the man's back, Loki lifted him up slightly from where he knelt at the man's right and acted as a makeshift shield between the shooter and his victim. Tony's face held a look of tense pain and his breath came in harsh gasps.

Stane laughed at this.

"You said I would never learn, Tony. Told me that my monologue before trying to kill you was my downfall. I took your advice and it turns out, you were right about just one thing." The insane man kept the gun leveled at the masked doctor even as he addressed the inventor laid out on the ground in front of them all.

"Saving the monologue for after the successful shot was much more effective. Though, maybe I should thank Doom for that particular bit of advice as well." And what a speech it was that followed, terribly long and full of self-loving compliments.

None of those in the arena paid any attention to it, though JARVIS was taping the whole thing, those near the door were trying to plan a way to take down all of the remaining men in the ring quickly (as well as the crazy man with the gun) without anyone else getting hurt but still fast enough to rush Tony to some much needed medical assistance.

Loki however was too busy having a silent and mostly hidden conversation with the man practically lying in his lap.

He'd noticed the absence of blood as soon as he'd touched the ringmaster's chest and he spotted the glint of metal half a second later. Something had stopped the bullet just past the thick cloth of the jacket. It took all of Loki's considerable acting skills to keep from relaxing or even smiling in relief as Tony cracked open one of his eyes to look up at the magician. Instead, he brought up his hand to 'press down' on the bullet, careful to keep pressure off what was, in reality, a large bruise.

Tony slowly pulled up his left arm that was hidden from the maniac (who was still raving about his accomplishments), affecting great pain for any watching thugs while showing Loki the glow in his palm that was steadily growing stronger.

Green eyes narrowed before he let out a low hiss of air, grateful that his slouch hid his front pocket from the ruffians who were watching with mild disinterest. An answering hiss was followed by the shy snake from before slowly trailing down Loki's arm.

After another short discussion held through pointed looks, Tony's hand replaced the magician's for a short moment while Loki set the now brown snake down in the appropriate direction. Tony closed his eyes as if starting to slip away when they returned to their previous positions and settled down to wait.

It wasn't long before Stane's speech suddenly cut off with a yelp and some shouted obscenities and everyone took that moment of distraction to put their separate plans in to action.

The former assassins were the first to move, Natasha easily slipping in to the center of the crowded ring and starting to thin the herd from the inside while Clint used some sandbags as a counterweight to reach the platforms they had performed on earlier that night and snagged his bow from its hiding place.

Not too quick on the uptake, the hired hands tried to fight back and aimed for the 'easy' targets who hadn't yet tried to join the fray (wisely keeping away from the growling feline for now).

Shouting but not backing down, Pepper socked the closest one who tried to grab her and was thankful that her husband was there to help her take out the rest of them. Happy had been a boxer before he'd met his employer and married Pepper and that training was once again coming in handy.

Grabbing one of the spare cannon closures that had been lying around just in case that cart had needed fixing again, Steve secured his arm through the inner handles before braining anyone who got close.

Even with chaos going on around him, along with Stane's crazed shooting of the ground trying to kill the snake that had almost bit him (and was still trying), Bruce seemed perfectly at ease. It was only when the men surrounding him started eying his cats and going for weapons that the Hulk finally reacted.

He didn't have to do much; simply releasing the great felines' leashes and giving a threatening growl to the thugs was enough to start his part of the counter attack. The growl, when paired with the demonic green mask he wore for the performances, was enough to make the attackers pause. Their hesitation emboldened the wildcat and tiger who had been sitting sedately next to their owner and the duo started walking threateningly towards those that their usually calm leader had marked as a threat.

Beginning to see that they had signed up for significantly more than they had bargained for, the thugs started backing away slowly. One of the less intelligent men thought it would be better to go for the singular target, instead of taking on two cats at once, and took a swing at the jaguar that was still pacing the space between them and the pair in the center ring.

The Jag howled as the bat grazed his side before jumping to attack the man who had initiated the fight. It didn't have much chance to start mauling the man before another tried to pummel its back, but the hireling was taken down by a green handled dagger.

A loud hissing whistle came from the back room as Dummy came racing out to aid his friend, throwing or trampling the unknown men as he marched through the crowd and joined the attack with the three cats. Soon, the four were taking down thugs left and right, using claws and hooks as well as boiling hot steam and wickedly sharp fangs to tear into their opponents.

The shooting stopped as the screams started and Stane finally realized what was going on, but it was too late for him.

Loki, who had been assisting their allies during the short wait with his personal knives, helped sit Tony upright at that moment, just as the glove finished charging. Tony leveled an angry look at his former mentor over Loki's shoulder even as he wrapped his free arm around the magician's chest to steady himself against the pain in his chest, his heart still giving faint twinges.

Steeling himself, ignoring the slight shift as Loki threw another knife, Tony braced his arm against the other man's shoulder and took careful aim. Obadiah was met with an energy blast to his chest, sending him crashing into the now emptied stands.

Agent Coulson handcuffed the criminal easily, having been making his way towards his target the entire time. "Good to see you again Mr. Stane. I'm sure Colonel Fury will be just as glad to see you return to his care."

Groaning at the pain in his chest just as much as at the thought of having to go back to the FBI's holding cells, Stane then passed out as the concussion took hold. The agent looked back to the arena to watch his hero take out the last man with a swing of his makeshift shield.

As Coulson moved to find Stane's missing gun and the snake which had also mysteriously vanished, Pepper rushed forward to where Tony was sitting on the ground next to the still kneeling Loki. The ringmaster opened the front of his jacket, pushing it open to show where the bullet had hit and dented the multiple layers of metal plating that linked the gloves to their power source. The blue and silver medallion glowed faintly as it started recharging the machinery for regular movement.

A relieved sigh from Pepper brought Tony out of his inspection of the damage.

"Oh, thank God. Tony, don't you ever do something like that again!" She waved over Steve from where he was helping Happy rouse both Thor and Rhodey after their run in with the thug's chloroform drenched rags.

Cap jogged over to where they were, jumping over the fallen thugs, giving a wide berth to where Bruce was getting his still growling cats under control with a little help from Dummy and The Jag and dodging around Natasha as she checked to make sure all the threats were neutralized.

"You grab his feet, Steve. Loki, if you would be so kind as to carry his shoulders as the two of you get him back to his room? That would be perfect, thanks."

Her instructions were met with vehement protests from the man himself. "Uh, uh. No way! I can make it there on my own, there's no reason I have to be carried out. I'm not disabled. Here, just help me up." He waved one of his hands at Cap, who levered his boss on to his feet. He heaved himself up and seemed to be well in control.

Giving a quick grin that hid his own surprise that he could stand on his own, Tony offered a hand down to Loki who accepted the offer easily. The magician's grip suddenly shifted as the engineer swayed dangerously to one side, but the engineer simply turned in his grip to interrupt the woman before she could start again. "See, I can make it there. No need to carry me like an invalid!"

Pepper wasn't going to back down, so Tony compromised to get what he had wanted the whole time. "I'll just be stealing Loki here while they clean up the mess in here and you go clean up this media mess outside, alright?"

A look of dismayed realization flitted across the redhead's face before she gave him a chastising frown. "But, Tony, your heart. What if something has happened to the pa-"

"It's fine," Tony responded with a wince, not wanting to get into that just now. Loki shifted his grip on the other man, wondering what they were talking about, before the organizer's expression softened.

"Okay, fine. Get out of here. But," she looked to Loki with a stern look on her face, "straight to bed; don't let him convince you to stop by the lab to make some adjustments or something equally frivolous."

Loki tightened his grip ever so slightly to stop Tony's protests about needing to go to the lab to get the gloves taken off now that they had that dent and started guiding the engineer around the fallen men that lay around the ring towards the back door. "Of course, Madam Potts."

Hearing the voices of the crowd that was still milling on the other side of the tent, Loki kept them to the shadows as he navigated the two of them through the night and back to Tony's personal cart.

"I really do need to stop by the lab, this thing won't come off without some tools." Tony muttered under his breath to the man currently keeping him vertical. "And maybe a nice steak. Yeah, steak sounds good right now. Think we can stop by the food cart as well?"

Giving a fond roll of his eyes, Loki shook his head and continued leading them directly to the engineer's sleeping quarters. Tony kept talking, having noticed how the magician's green eyes kept flicking down to his armor, shoulders tensing for a moment before Loki seemed to focus on Tony's words and relax once more. He wasn't sure what had spooked the man so much, but he was more than willing to babble his way back to the caravan if it would help Loki in any way.

Arriving at the wagon (they might be in New York, but no expense was spared when creating this room so Tony's cart was better than any five star hotel in the city) Loki dropped him down on to his bed before giving Tony an expectant look. The engineer took a hint and shut up for a moment.

"I will go fetch what we need from the other cart. You will be staying here." Loki then hooked up a familiar device to the wall. "JARVIS, I expect that you will be able to keep him here?"

"Of course, Mister Liesmith." Tony was too busy inspecting his wrists to see Loki slip out the door.

"That light fingered bastard," he muttered humorously, slightly awed at the other man's skill. Both of his cufflinks were missing from his jacket and for the life of him, Tony couldn't figure out when the theft had occurred. He huffed out a soft snort before setting to work on first the clasps on his shoulders to free his cape and then the many buttons that kept his jacket together. He was just moving to try and shrug out of the waistcoat when the door opened to allow Loki back in to the cart.

Seeing that the seated man was struggling to remove the outerwear due to his slightly immobilized arm, Loki set down the items he had retrieved on the dresser nearby and walked over to assist Tony. The injured man held back a wince almost successfully as the magician pulled his arm out of the sleeve and tossed both it and the cape into the chair next to the bed. Picking the metal tools back up off the wooden surface, Loki walked back over and knelt on the floor beside Tony's bed.

"JARVIS was kind enough to tell me which tools you may need. Where would you like me to start?"

Tony looked up at the other man, debating whether or not to argue with him about who would be taking the invention apart (Tony never let anyone mess with his inventions, not when they were this dangerous, not after Stane) before he relaxed a bit and gestured to the power source.

"Here. Everything is connected here. The back is just tied together with some leather straps for now until I remake the chest plate." Nodding silently, Loki set to work, but Tony got the feeling that the other was preoccupied with something. He was willing to let it go, thinking that it wasn't any of his business, until he saw that the magician's hands were shaking ever so slightly as he went to undo the next bolt. Concerned, Tony caught the trembling hand in his uninjured one. "What's wrong?"

It seemed that Loki was unaware that he had even been shaking until it had been stopped. Blinking, Loki looked taken aback for a moment.

Tony watched as the magician looked like he was debating over whether or not to talk about what had bothered him during their walk over but, it didn't take long before he to come to a decision. Shaking his head slightly after glancing down at the dent in Tony's armor, Loki pulled on a brittle smile.

"Nothing. You should not worry so." But the words fell a bit flat and the smile was not as bright as it could have been; Tony wasn't convinced. He moved his free hand to the other man's face, fingers moving up the strong jawline before his thumb brushed the corner of Loki's lips. Brown eyes searched the aristocratic face as the smile dropped off.

"You don't have to keep it all bottled up, Sunshine. You could just tell me."

A look of fascinated longing made its way across Loki's face, followed swiftly by confusion (though he completely missed the pet name). "Why?"

"Why not? I've got two working ears and I've been known to keep quiet while others are talking. At least most of the time," Tony allowed.

As if realizing what his question had sounded like, Loki shook his head slightly, looking away to collect himself. Tony let him, silently wishing that his gloves were already off so that he could touch Loki properly.

After a tense moment of silence, Loki finally asked a question that had probably been plaguing the European for months only to be exacerbated by the recent situation.

"Why do you continue to have such faith in me, such trust? When so many have betrayed you before and others do not receive the same, why trust me?" The magician looked almost pained to be asking the question, as if worried that the inquiry would make Tony realize his mistake.

Blinking, Tony let his hand drop to the other man's shoulder to give it a slight shake to get Loki to look back up. Now staring the kneeling man in the eye, the engineer repeated his earlier question.

"Why not? You've given me no reason to be mistrustful. In fact, if you look just at tonight, you've given me a whole lot of reasons to trust you more." Tony wasn't sure where Loki's train of thought had come from, but there wasn't any reason he should lie to the clearly distressed man.

Looking back down, Loki pulled his hand free from the other man's and went back to work on the chest piece, but didn't shake the hand off of his shoulder. Deciding to simply leave his hand where it was, Tony settled down to admire the wonderful view. While his eyes enjoyed the scenery, Tony's mind worked on why Loki would be so conflicted. There were obviously some major trust issues, but why would the magician feel like he shouldn't be trusted?

Tony could only imagine that it had something to do with why the talented man had left Europe in the first place; the look he was wearing now was far too similar to the one he'd sported after his last letter from home to not be connected. He guessed at what it was with all those extreme rumors floating about and he didn't put any faith in rumor. Either way, his mind was grateful to have something other than Stane to think about after the stressful night they'd had.

Soon enough, Loki was setting the tools and the freed screws back on the dresser. He came back to find Tony struggling to undo the leather ties with one hand, only succeeding in almost pulling a muscle in the process.

"Hold still," Loki murmured, pushing the arm back down to the engineer's side as he placed one knee along the outside of Tony's thigh and leaned around to reach the knotted strips. Tony's arm came up automatically to wrap around his waist and steady him.

Safely out of view, Loki spoke as he fought with the ties, "No one ever trusted me before, even before the rumors you can hear now were started." He felt the metal encased fingers curl slightly on his hip at the revelation, but he kept his eyes on his work.

"I have always known I was adopted. Most likely born to one of the gypsy caravans, I was found on the doorstep of one of my father's theaters the winter after Thor's birth. Unfortunately, most of those I grew up with knew the truth as well."

The first knot started to come undone while Loki granted Tony a moment to process that information. He hummed slightly as he felt the engineer's chest expand, intent on preventing any interruptions to the explanation. Placing the leather on the bed next to them, he continued, "The gypsy stigma is not as prevalent here as it still is in Europe, but those who are associated with them are thought to be murderers and thieves, even devil worshipers."

Tony was glad that Loki allowed himself to be tugged a little closer, the kneeling man's other leg slipping between his knees to keep properly balanced, and Tony could only hope that the magician would feel a little braver when he gently rested his head against Loki's chest in a comforting gesture. The engineer could hear the pain lacing that velvety voice and had to force himself to stay silent and let the magician say his piece. Loki, for his part, simply adjusted his arms around Tony's head and kept working on the knots.

"My mother and brother never cared, they would argue with any who would listen about my apparent virtues, how I was nothing like the tales said gypsies should be. My father was diplomatic as ever, never refuting the lies where I could hear, but he never threw me out." Another tie came undone with only one remaining; it joined the first beside them.

"I was never a shining example either, as I have always held a fondness for tricks and mischief even in my youth. The real trouble came when I began learning magic. Many were quick to believe that I was so talented because of my unknown heritage."

Loki frowned down at the distinctly difficult knot. "It certainly helped me when asking to learn some tricks from those who traveled through the town, but usually nothing further than that. I strove to learn more from any who would teach me that passed through the theater, but received nothing except ridicule from my peers. Especially from those that I had grown up calling friends."

He sneered down at the leather that had become tangled sometime during the night, though Tony wasn't entirely sure if his annoyance was due entirely to the befouled strap or the far more demoralizing memories of said childhood friends.

Loki seemed to drag his mind back to the present as he resorted to a different tactic, shifting the knot until it rested next to one of the metal plates and started using the plate to cut the leather.

Tony was just thankful for Loki's continued closeness because that was the only thing keeping him just distracted enough to stay seated instead of pacing furiously or even from simply interrupting. Tony had more than one idea in mind for if he ever met those fair weather 'friends'.

"Then the accident happened. Some fire breathers had visited our theater the night before and showed me a few of their techniques. I," Loki paused, lifting his hand slightly in an aborted move to touch his mouth before setting back to the task at hand. He seemed lost in the memories and only the press of Tony's fingers tracing patterns on his back had the magician speaking again. "I chose the wrong place to practice such a dangerous talent.

"The empty lot I visited the next night was located next to my father's rival, Laufey Jotun's biggest theater. I thought I was far enough away and had taken all of the appropriate precautions but by the time I found out what I had done, it was too late. I burned the theater to the ground."

The cord snapped under Loki's tense fingers, but he didn't move to take it out yet. "Looking back, I wonder if I had wanted it to happen, subconsciously picking the building that would do the most damage."

Tony listened as the story vibrated through the other man's chest, his gloved fingers still writing idle equations (none of them really leading towards anything specific, taking variables from the air) while his eyes narrowed at the hollow tone. It was clear that Loki blamed himself for everything that happened that night, but what exactly happened and, more importantly, how much of it actually was he actually at fault for? He lifted his head slightly to try and get the other to continue.

Taking the hint, Loki explained, "I had not actively participated in any fire breathing while the troupe was visiting, but they had allowed me to move their materials and watch their practice. I had never failed to learn anything I set my mind to and arrogantly believed that I could teach myself their art." He gave a rueful snort at the memory. "Appropriating one of their bottles of fuel during their stay was child's play, but my first attempt was an unmitigated disaster."

Licking his lips at the memory, Loki began toying with the small hairs at the nape of the inventor's neck. Tony was more than willing to offer himself as a distraction and tilted his head forward, arching into the light touch. Loki's mouth twitched into a quick smile at this and he continued (touching) the retelling of that terrible night.

"I abandoned my pursuits immediately to seek medical assistance for the burns. But, in my haste, I must have missed some of the embers I had created." Sitting still as he could, Tony gave a quiet sigh of relief as the small tremble in Loki's fingers slowly vanished after the other took a few calming breaths.

"The entire debacle was ruled a freak accident, the fire marshal blaming it on a campfire that some children and their parents had used the afternoon before, but Laufey insisted it was me." Loki finally pulled the broken strand of leather from the metal.

"I know I was unseen that night, but I was chosen as the scapegoat again simply because I was the gypsy son of his rival. The fact that I had always exposed him for the liar and cheat he was probably also played a factor. He had blamed many of his trials and failures on me prior to the incident as well."

Tony gave a vicious grin at that, because there was no way Loki would go down without a fight.

His darkly humorous thoughts calmed as the magician continued once more, "But I could not let my mother and father bear the weight of my sins. I left within the month, waiting just long enough for my self-imposed exile to not be linked to the property damage I had caused before leaving across the Atlantic. You found me here shortly after." Loki trailed off as he set the strap down with the others.

Tony felt the action and immediately leaned away, ignoring the pain of his bruised chest as he ripped the long gloves away from his body. His dress shirt might have torn in a few places where the metal caught but Tony couldn't care less. Throwing the gloves into some corner of his room where they would be found later, he reached out and pulled the retreating man back into his arms. Surprised that Tony wasn't asking him to leave, Loki virtually fell back into his lap.

Unfazed by the fact that Loki was now straddling his lap (but relishing it at the same time), Tony removed his spectacles so that he could look directly at the other man's eyes.

"That wasn't your fault." Loki opened his mouth to protest, unwilling to accept it after being told and telling himself differently for so long, only to have Tony speak first. "No, it was not your fault. Just like Steve getting bucked off that horse wasn't his fault. Accidents are called accidents for a reason."

Loki frowned and started to protest, "Anthony-!"

He had never had as much need for self-restraint as he did right now, finally hearing his name in that accent. 'He needs to know this, you can kiss him senseless later,' Tony promised himself. "Sunshine, how do you know it wasn't the kid's campfire? Or someone who was there later than yourself? Or even that Laughy guy just trying to get you in trouble? You didn't exactly stick around to watch the fire start."

The magician looked torn between wanting to believe that the possibility of his innocence might exist and the 'knowledge' of his guilt.

"You said it yourself that he would blame you for things like this all the time, things that you hadn't done. So what if there is a small chance that you might have accidentally caused this one? You are the only one who can say whether this particular accusation affects you. If everyone else thinks otherwise, that's their fault, not yours."

Examining the other man for any falsehoods, it seemed that Loki was finally starting to let himself believe what the ringleader was trying to tell him. That perhaps it was just an accident and maybe he would be more than welcome if he decided to return home.

Tony waited patiently for some sort of reply as Loki examined his face closely as if looking for any falsehoods before seemingly finding what he needed and nodding slowly. The ringleader blinked as the other leaned forward slightly to press their foreheads together and closed his eyes for a long moment. Understanding that paradigm shifts sometimes took time, Tony simply took the time to appreciate the magician's nearness.

Opening his eyes, Loki offered Tony a small smile. "Thank you."

Tony quirked a smile back at him, "Well, that was easier than expected."

A huff of laughter preceded the reply, "My mother insisted much the same as you did, but she will always tell me what I want to hear, not what is actually true."

Tony started to make a face at being likened to the other man's mother of all things before something occurred to him and he grinned instead. "Looks like I'm not the only trusting one here." He found himself absurdly happy at this new found insight.

Chuckling, Loki ran his hands up the front of the other man's white dress shirt, where one started fiddling with the buttons and the other continued until it slid over the engineer's shoulder. "Of course. Did you believe that I let just anyone get this close?"

Tony shivered as the words were practically whispered into his ear and gave a short gasp when Loki took the chance to nip at his earlobe before pulling back so that the inventor could see his mischievous smile.

"I should hope not," came the half growled, half groaned response. Laying back on the large bed, Tony pulled the magician down on top of him and got to work undoing the belt that held his jacket closed. After successfully opening the coat, Tony made to push it off of the lean man before pausing suspiciously. Loki raised a curious eyebrow even as his hands continued to roam the other man's body. "You don't happen to have any more snakes in this coat, do you?"

Loki laughed and removed the black leather jacket himself. "Nothing that would harm you, Monsieur."

Another soft growl came from the man beneath him as the engineer's hands ran up Loki's legs and pulled him down as they reached his back. "You said my name before and now we're back to titles? Call me Tony, Sunshine!"

He received a dark chuckle. "I see no need to reward you for giving me that ridiculous nickname."

Tony pouted. "What? I think it suits you."

Loki simply rolled his eyes at this response before leaning down for a kiss. It wasn't exactly what Tony wanted, but he could easily work with this. Arching up towards the magician, Tony's hands got to work on the other man's tie with the buttons on the shirt following shortly after. Loki's tongue easily found its way into the ringmaster's mouth and went about exploring everything again. He smiled into the kiss, enjoying both the groans and other physical responses this generated.

Once all of the buttons were undone, the callused hands pulled on the bottom of the black shirt, tugging it out from where it had been tucked in to those tight leather pants.

Moments later both men were divested of their shirts and Loki gave a pleasured moan of his own as one of Tony's talented hands started testing if all of those previously mapped spots made the same sounds without the barrier of clothing. So far the results were louder, but much the same. Tony was beyond pleased with that.

It seemed that Loki was unwilling to be the only one making noises, however, and Tony was dragged up for a punishing kiss even as blunted nails ran down the inventor's back. He could feel the other smirking at the heady moan the actions pulled from him.

Not about to lose his upper-hand, Tony grabbed the magician and expertly flipped them, angling their bodies so that Loki's head hit the pillow at the head of the bed directly. The elegant man just laughed a little breathlessly as Tony started trying to remove both Loki's boots as well as his own.

"So eager tonight, Monsieur Stark?" Loki trailed his fingertips teasingly across the other man's bare chest as Tony worked on the rest of their clothes, his muscles jumping involuntarily at the touch.

Throwing away the last shoe, Tony leaned down and braced himself just above the other man. "My name is Tony. I've heard you use it before, I know you can. Say it for me, Sunshine." The order was only semi-serious, with a bit of playful thrown on top, but the challenge lay hidden just beneath.

Who would hold out in their little game the longest? The magician raised an elegant brow before leaning up and stealing a long kiss from the accommodating man above him, dexterous fingers winding through the brunet's hair before he pulled back. Tilting his head a bit, Loki licked his lips coyly and took the bait. "Oh, I think I am going to want you to make me."

Loki was never one to back down from a challenge.

'Good,' Tony thought as he gave a rakish grin.

Neither was he.

I hope you all enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it! :) Please let me know what you thought of my first foray into writing in over three years. I hope I didn't mangle anything too badly.

I do have a sequel nearly finished, if any of you were interested, so hopefully that will be coming up shortly.

Thanks again to all of you who reviewed, followed, and favorited! You are all amazingly awesome people!