Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

BOOK ONE 

She makes her way through the small crowd milling in the center of the large ballroom, among the ladies' lavish colorful dresses, the sequins glittering against the golden chandeliers hanging from high above the ceiling. The music is soft and provokes some couples to get up and dance in close embrace, while the rhythm of a cello and piano invites them to sway gently. The marble statues, the floral decorations, and the curious eyes that watch her and seem to silently judge her as she makes her way through the flashy dresses and elegant suits, none of that matters when she manages to make out the familiar figure sitting at the bar counter.

A lady in a bright white dress sings on the stage at the back of the room. The familiar melody of It's been a long, long time echoes in her ears, and she almost bites her tongue to keep from humming the song. She's lost count of the times she's heard it and thought that would be her divine sign, but it must be the simple cruelty of fate that she always arrives just as the lady in the white dress begins to sing it. Someday, he thinks, she will ask him to dance. Someday.

She slows down as she approaches him and then pretends not to see him as she sits down next to him, very close, so close that she can make out the citrus and soapy scent that the man gives off; she asks for anything that might lessen her own nerves and perhaps make her more uninhibited. She does nothing, says nothing. She doesn't need to, she knows very well how the story will go from here. Everything is the same, the people, the music, the smells, and the golden lights bouncing on the white marble floor. He is always the same, bright smiles, flirtatious eyes, and compliments on her blonde hair. But after that there is nothing more, she leaves before disaster strikes in this timeline, and then, it all starts all over again. She comes here and talks to him about meaningless trivia, at almost midnight she leaves, and he stays to see her end. Then it all happens again. He is everywhere and at the same time, and she wishes she knew him more than this. In fact, she wishes for so many things lately.

But no matter her wishes, no matter making plans, or staying a little longer to warn him about what will happen, they will ruin it if they find out. They've already ruined so much, and she thinks she doesn't want anyone to touch this moment, even if it's fleeting. But even so, she can still go back to this moment and talk to him for the thousandth time.

After all, the two of them have been here before. They are here now and will be here again later. Countless times, he and she.

Even if he no longer remembers her at all, she is determined to start again, as many times as it takes until it is no longer a risk to try to do anything about it so he won't forget her. She twists her hands in her lap as the barista hands her drink, the leather of her gloves creaks as she does so, and perhaps, that is the trigger for everything. He turns to see her out of the corner of his eye, and immediately his eyes scan her clothes, she is the only girl not wearing a dress, she stands out because of her uncomfortable brawler's outfit. Perhaps, that's what catches the man's attention in the first place. She takes a deep breath and finally faces that familiar face.

The brown meets the green of her eyes once again, then... he smiles at her.

Loki opens his eyes with a start, he feels he has held his breath for a long time and ends up releasing all the air from his lungs, somehow he thinks he should be dead, it is his destiny after all. But all he can see are gray, stormy clouds swirling high in the sky, is this what death looks like? Had he made it into Valhalla? But that thought fades because he can hear the strong, rapid beating of his heart inside his chest. How many times could he cheat death before she managed to claim him?

The thought is funny, but he still lies there on the withered grass, his eyes looking up at that tumultuous sky, and wonders if Sylvie will be safe. Sure she is, she's smart and stronger than he once was himself. He's sure she'll be able to take care of herself on her own, maybe take down the TVA, even if it's without his help. Still, he can't help but worry, he has come to appreciate her, after all.

He lays there, thinking about what he will do next, because he is a Loki, there must always be some sort of plan up his sleeve. He knows this place must be dangerous if the TVA has sent him here to die. He thinks about it, the possibilities, how he will get out of here, and what he should do. Then, something happens, something heavy lands awkwardly very close to him, and Loki flinches at that damn familiar sound. Before, the sound would have irritated him, now the thought that he will see a familiar face is comforting.

He sits up as quickly as he can, sitting on his butt, and then finds himself face-to-face with his sworn enemy. However, there is something that makes Loki very uncomfortable because this armor does not look familiar to him at all. It's heavy and looks like it's assembled from parts of other things and generally junk. Also, the colors don't seem to be right, instead of the vibrant, bright red and gold he knows so well there is a very dull matte green that covers almost the entire armor. A rusty silver here and there but otherwise, it's all green. Loki's color.

This armor definitely looks like Iron Man's, though not quite. Nothing like the sophisticated technology he met in his brief fight against the Avengers, and the colors don't fit the eccentric man inside all that metal either. But perhaps, what makes Loki raise both eyebrows skeptically, is that a pair of horns protrude from the armor's helmet. In size, they are just slightly larger than the ones Sylvie had on her tiara, but they still curve inward a bit and are still golden.

This must be a fucking joke, or was there so much chaos within the sprawling multiverse that there was even a variant of him that was Iron Man in him universe? Honestly, Loki can't imagine building such a suit of armor when he has his seidr to defend him.

After several seconds of silence and just staring at each other, the horned helmet is removed and finally reveals the person inside the suit. The same huge, cunning brown eyes, the same slightly long brown hair, some curls curling at the end of the longer locks, and the same smug smile. It's definitely Tony Stark, Loki would recognize him anywhere. The man who had been able to escape the influence of the mind gem.

And yet, not quite that man, not quite the Tony Stark he had known in his timeline. This variant is much younger and doesn't have that edge and hardness in his gaze that the variant who had offered Loki a drink had; this Tony Stark doesn't look a day over twenty-five Midgardian years old. Although... he still retains that spark of cunning and wariness in his eyes. For the most part, he's still Tony Stark, even if he wears the horns and colors of a Loki.

"Looks like TVA keeps sending more of us to this dump," he finally says with an annoyed smirk, and Loki blinks, had he said us ? Before he can even question it, however, the other man is already speaking again with a scowl. "Wait, you're a Loki, right?"

Loki nods slowly, half in surprise and half in disbelief.

"And you?" he raises an eyebrow to accentuate his question.

"Horns not subtle enough?" the other man asks in return, in the process rolling his eyes and snorting.

Loki is about to say something about it, however, before he can do so, an iron hand is extended toward him to help him stand up. He hesitates for a few seconds as to whether he should take it or not, but in the end, he ends up shaking that gloved hand to give himself the momentum and get up from the ground. He dusts off his clothes, and then his eyes return to the man who looks at him with burning curiosity.

Again Loki's words get stuck in his mouth because a shrill roar is heard in the middle of such awkward silence. A huge, angry purple cloud approaches them and looks legitimately furious. It watches -his other self?- swallowing spittle, opening his eyes wide, and finally cursing through his teeth, but out of all logic and what is expected in this kind of situation, he doesn't try to use his armor. Instead, he presses a button hidden between the metal folds of the shoulder, and the suit opens completely, letting out the variant of the inside.

Then, the man is quick to lightly kick the back of the boot, and the armor squeaks from the abuse. Despite how rudimentary it might look in comparison to real Iron Man armor and actually looks like it's about to fall apart at any moment, this one starts to bend at odd angles as it slowly turns into some sort of small briefcase; it still makes some horrible sounds as the pieces bend and shrink, but for the most part, it looks like it's not going to blow up in their faces. The chestnut puts on his helmet, and the faceplate retracts to show his face. In that way, the helmet looks an awful lot like the one Loki had worn during his brief time as Asgard's ruling king.

Stark... no, the variant takes the briefcase that a moment ago had been his armor and without further ado, begins to walk in the opposite direction of the huge electric mass approaching them with the promise of danger. Loki first looks at the purple cloud before deciding that it is better to go where this new and apparent Loki is heading.

"What's that thing over there?" he asks as he tries to keep up.

"His name is Alioth, and he destroys everything he touches," is all the response he gets from the variant.

"I don't want to sound obvious here," Loki says squeamishly, "but wouldn't it be better if you wore the armour?"

The other one hums in agreement.

"Originally yes, however, the repulsors on both boots are failing, I guess it's better to walk from here."

In the distance, the Alioth roars again, all the fallen buildings and other debris that had been there before disappearing in a purple, angry swirl as the creature advances towards them. Loki tries to think what they will do now, if they are both Lokis, then they must have a plan. Running doesn't seem to be one.

"So what's the plan?" Loki questions the variant, his breathing is ragged as they have both begun to almost jog away from the Alioth.

"Here's the plan, genius ," the other variant snorts, his tan cheeks starting to turn red from the effort it must take to run and carry that heavy briefcase at the same time. "Not to die."

Loki blinks and frowns in disagreement.

"That's not a plan, not dying is a survival instinct."

"Well, yes," agrees the other man, his brow slightly furrowed as he thinks it through. "But not dying, in the grand scheme of things, is the priority for now."

"The priority now should be to have a plan," Loki groans in frustration, but at least the Alioth is still far enough away from them now. "If you're a Loki you should have a plan."

"I have a plan, not to die ."

The variant is repeated again, and Loki rolls his eyes, this really has to be a variant of him, he is almost as irritating as Sylvie and himself. Now he really understands why sometimes Thor was so quick to become exasperated being around him. It seems that one of their many talents of a Loki is to exasperate any living thing, even himself, and that was saying something.

However, sooner than you think and against all odds, they manage to leave the Alioth far behind. Of course, its roars can still be heard, but they are so far away from it that it only ends up looking like a huge purple blob in the distance. They climb up a somewhat steep hill, and the variant stops just at the top, its brown eyes scanning the entire wide deserted valley as if it were waiting for someone else to come out of nowhere.

Once he is sure there are no prying eyes or potential dangers, the boy crouches down in front of a small metal protrusion sticking out of the dirt and grass. First, he taps a couple of times, then pauses briefly and taps a third time, and finally taps a couple more times. The hatch glows bright green, and immediately the hatch opens with a certain abruptness and a metallic screeching sound that shows how old it is, in the process, making Loki wince almost involuntarily.

"See?" the variant questions Loki with a smug smile. "I told you I had a plan."

And without saying anything else, he takes his briefcase and starts to descend through the hole that doesn't look promising at all. Loki peeks out at once, but he can no longer see anything but dense darkness, he is a bit undecided whether he wants to or should go in there, but in the distance, the Alioth roars again, and anyway, the variant speaks again from below, its voice echoing hollowly.

"Are you coming, or would you rather be the Alioth's lunch?"

Loki sighs but, in the end, decides it's better to go to a dark place with that variant rather than be swallowed by that purple creature over there. He's had his more than fair share with the purple monsters, and he definitely won't die at the hands of another, it's more than enough with Thanos breaking his neck in some other timeline, the thought is not comforting at all. As soon as he enters the narrow space and begins his descent into the darkness and the unknown, the hatch closes with an airtight click, and a few green seidr spray everywhere, illuminating the darkness for brief seconds.

There seems to be no end to the stairs down, wherever Loki is headed at the moment. He clings tightly to the worn metal of them, he thinks that if he slips it will be the end, and he will end up falling back down a dark void that he does not want to return to under any circumstances. But soon his feet touch the ground, and Loki breathes properly again, moreover, he discovers that at least down here, he must be more enlightened, as he can now see his own pale hands thanks to the faint light coming from somewhere deeper inside the lair. That's good.

When he turns to look for the variant that led him here, he has to suppress a sigh of disgust because of course, there are more variants of him down here. All of them standing around watching him intently. Among them are a child Loki, an old Loki, a dark-skinned and robustly built Loki, the Iron Man Loki that brought him here, and... Is that a crocodile Loki over there?

Loki has definitely seen many more improbable things in a single day than in his entire long life as a God of Mischief. What a life he has had.

"And who is this, Anthony?" asks the elder Loki, squinting his eyes as he looks very closely at Loki.

The variant in the Iron Man-like suit removes his helmet, revealing messy brown hair and tousled curls. He places the helmet between his right hip and arm, looking overly casual and carefree with the gesture. Loki then notices that the older Loki called him Anthony, so he wasn't a Loki? Perhaps, this Loki doesn't like to be called that either, like Sylvie? Could it be that Loki was thinking too much about an unimportant matter?  However, Loki's thoughts are interrupted when the younger Loki speaks instead of... Anthony.

"He looks like the wolf boss, that cheat ," he spits disdainfully, causing the other Lokis, with the exception of Anthony, to become completely defensive.

Crocodile Loki roars, but other than that he does nothing else. Fleetingly, Loki wonders who the hell exactly the wolves are. Judging by the expression on his other variants' faces, he doesn't look like he's a remotely good person.

"It's not," Anthony finally says, shaking his head slightly. "I found it after TVA pruned it."

That was enough for the rest to relax again and take a carefree stance, Loki is surprised how all those Lokis seem really comfortable and off guard around this imposter. He's definitely a Tony Stark variant, not a Loki. Loki is pretty sure of that now. Yet he wears the horns, and our colors, and doesn't deny being one of us, why? Loki thinks feeling confused in more ways than one. He thinks no one would want to be mistaken for a Loki, because who in their right mind would want the rest of the people to know him for causing pain or suffering? That was what Mobuis had said, after all.

Stark is a hero in his timeline, an Avenger no less. Even in a world like this so chaotic, it is preferable to say that your other variants are heroes in their worlds, instead of accepting to take the identity of a deity as problematic as Loki. Perhaps, that's why Sylvie also hates being called Loki, even though she preferred to take another identity rather than this one. Why would Tony Stark settle for being mistaken for a Loki? Perhaps it was because this variant was quite young, though Loki doesn't quite believe it. Ever since the TVA captured him in that damned desert, everything Loki knew had ceased to make sense, starting with the damned infinity gems and now even his own variants.

"Well," exclaims the child Loki, and Loki still wonders why he is allowed to wear the horns. "One more Loki doesn't make much difference, anyway."

And after saying this, he turns around and walks into the place as if, in fact, it belongs to him. The other Lokis shrug their shoulders and follow him without a single grumble. Stark turns to look at Loki with a frown when he realizes that he has stood still in his place and then encourages him with an uncertain smile to accompany them as well, he does so with a nod of his head pointing towards the inside of the lair. The gesture is actually kind, the kindest anyone has been to Loki in a long time, and well... maybe stranger days can happen. Either way, nothing has been normal since New York. Loki sighs and vaguely wonders about his brother and immediately banishes that thought to the back of his mind. Who can think of an idiot like Thor at times like this?

He follows Stark.

Chapter Text

Rensleyer falls on her ass, and Sylvie has never felt this ready to take someone down before. She wants to burn TVA to the ground, she wants to destroy everything this organization stands for, and she wants to start with Rensleyer, her blood boiling in her veins at the thought of this woman taking everything from her without hesitation. Ravonna looks at her with wide eyes and a fearful facade that Sylvie doesn't quite buy. She, after all, is the goddess of lies and mayhem, she knows when someone is just pretending and when someone is trying to trick her.

She squints when the other woman asks her to stop, but she doesn't trust, so she keeps pointing the gun with which the TVA prunes people. But somehow, Ravonna manages to slip away, standing up and trying to put as much distance as possible between the two. Sylvie lets her, either way, she's going to kill her. Her gaze sweeps across the large room saturated with dull colors and browns; she wants to vomit from how familiar it looks, and she knows right away what this place is.

Her most horrible nightmares all occur here.

"It was here, wasn't it?", she mumbles, but her eyes don't even turn to Ravonna's confused face. "It was here that you brought me after you destroyed my entire life. A fitting place to destroy yours!"

This time, her gaze turns to the other woman's face, and she points the gun again at Rensleyer, and Rensleyer immediately reaches out her arm in a vain attempt to stop Sylvie and at the same time, appease her growing fury.

"What if I told you that Loki really isn't dead?" Rensleyer asks him as fast as he can, hoping this revelation will somehow change things, then, "at least not yet."

"I'd say you're trying to trick me," Sylvie replies in return, taking a couple of steps closer for every step the other woman takes away.

Rensleyer does not miss a beat and nods.

"Yeah, maybe," she takes another step back again, she has her hands up in a clear sign of surrender, however, she slowly begins to lower her arms as she says, "Or maybe we have a common goal."

Sylvie frowns because there is no way they share goals. Ravonna wants to keep taking away people's free will, and Sylvie simply wants to destroy this place and make the person responsible for her whole life turn into this hellhole pay. The one was responsible for her whole life having to live it surviving and running away like a cornered mouse.

"How is it possible that Loki is still alive?" she takes another step forward, and this time raises her voice a little higher as she asks, "And how to save him going to get us closer to who really runs the TVA?"

Then Ravonna starts talking about this and that and Sylvie pays close attention because anything can be useful to find Loki and the person responsible for all this. She doesn't trust Judge Rensleyer, so she only believes half of what she tells her. Even if she is lying, Sylvie will find a way, she has been an expert at surviving and finding ways to reach her goals.

She lets the other woman keep talking for now.

The lair is essentially made up of trash, junk that the TVA dumped on this site, but now serves to make this place look like a home . Rusty iron shelves are stuck together, with more junk and curiosities than their other variants have probably collected over time. And in the midst of so much accumulated stuff, there is a space that masquerades as a sort of throne room, with a huge red padded chair in the center that is ornately decorated with many Christmas canes, bowling pins piled at the foot of it, and, finally, a big red letter "L" on top of the throne. The whole place is a mess, but it still works pretty well and is in keeping with what a Loki is supposed to be.

In front of the throne, some old and worn-out armchairs make a half-moon around the dreadful throne that, despite everything, is still too childish for any of the Lokis except for the youngest of them. Three armchairs, one for each Loki, and apparently, each one has an assigned place since each one takes his place without thinking too much about it, except for Anthony who actually leaves his seat free for Loki to sit there.

The youngest Loki is already half lying on the big red throne, with his legs stretched out to the left and his right forearm resting comfortably on the armrest. He snaps his fingers, and immediately each Loki has a glass of red wine in his hand, except for him, who instead summons a box of apple juice for himself. Anthony sits at the foot of the throne right after Loki took a seat in the middle of the other two variants with some misgivings. He's still a bit confused about the whole situation, but he's not about to start complaining when he's been offered a safe haven from the many dangers that exist in that place TVA sent him to.

The little alligator for his part goes to the blue tub next to where the older Loki sat and dives in with a grunt of satisfaction.

"So, after defeating Captain America," laughs one of his variants mischievously, and Loki thinks he must have missed the other half of the story as the sudden comment catches him off guard, though he doubts any of what this variant says is true, anyway, "and of course, Iron Man too, I claimed my prize. The six infinity gems!"

Loki frowns and looks skeptically at his other self, he knows a lie when he hears one, and he knows this is all ridiculous. But then, his eyes immediately shift to Anthony, who doesn't even seem affected by the dismissive comment. He merely stirs the wine inside his glass with slow movements of his wrist and grimaces in boredom as if this story has already been told countless times. Loki fleetingly wonders if he even has any idea who Iron Man is.

His thoughts are interrupted when he hears the crocodile Loki roar and then pounce on the most muscular variant of all, he must have been too immersed in his own head, as he doesn't even understand why all of a sudden his variants are arguing. The older Loki immediately stands up to separate the two variants, and Loki hears Anthony sneer.

For a moment, his brown gaze and Loki's meet, and he wants to say something, a biting, clever comment to impress the variant so he can hear him laugh again. But then, the younger Loki speaks first, seeming more interested in the conversation when he asks the older Loki to tell his story.

At first, he seems reluctant to say anything, but after Loki insisted, he agrees and begins to tell his story. This is not far from Loki's own story, they are actually quite similar until the point comes where he talks about Thanos and how he managed to cheat death and everyone one last time.

The moment seems to get a bit depressing when the oldest and also the wisest Loki of all begins to talk about the glorious purpose of a Loki and how it is to be a rejected god. Destined to cause pain and agony wherever he went, destined to remain in solitude.

Anthony simply stands up as the conversation begins to turn more pessimistic and without a word, he leaves the room. The other Lokis don't even seem surprised, instead, they remain in a somber silence that already says it all. Loki remains seated for a couple more minutes, debating between staying here or going to look for Anthony. In the end, he ends up opting for the second option, gets up, and quickly makes his way to the same place the other man left.

As he leaves, he hears his other variants sigh at the same time.

"Well, I'm not really surprised," he hears his older variant say.

And Loki stops on his way to hear what else they are going to say about him.

"After all, Anthony has always been popular in this place full of Lokis," sneers the Loki he has just called Boastful Loki for being the most different of them all, not counting Anthony himself.

The crocodile Loki roars.

"You're right," replies the youngest variant of them all, in agreement with the animal's roar. "You're just jealous because Anthony is smarter than you."

And... again, a discussion begins among their variants when Boastful Loki challenges the smallest of the group to repeat what he said. Loki sighs, shaking his head, and resumes his way to the small room hidden in one of the corners of the lair. Anthony looks up as soon as he enters the room that is just as cluttered as the rest of the place, only this place has the particularity of being crammed with metal parts, tools, wires, and handmade plans with drawings of the armor and some other prototypes of weapons and armor.

In all the chaos, there is a long table crammed with more tools and pieces of armor. Anthony gives Loki a friendly nod and then goes back to what he was doing before he burst in. He is taking apart one of the boots to investigate the reason for its failure.

Loki walks over to the other man's workbench and picks up one of the discarded repulsors there, and watches him very closely, pretending to be interested in the artifact instead of trying to find a way to start a conversation with the other man. This is ridiculous because he is a Loki and is known for his silver tongue, for always knowing what to say, how to say it, and when to say it. His words were always one of the most powerful weapons in his arsenal.

Now, however, it seems that things are different, and he doesn't know how he should approach Anthony. He decides to start easy.

"You didn't seem affected by what the other Loki said," he mutters, still not looking away from the repulsor. "About beating Iron Man."

He hears Anthony snort with amusement and finally glances back at the man, setting the object back down on the table.

"Well, I'm not Iron Man," he says casually and that sends a shiver down Loki's spine, Anthony doesn't look away from his boot and continues to unscrew the bottom to remove it. "There's no reason for me to be offended if anything." 

Loki says nothing for long seconds, he just watches the unusual variant who seems to be very focused on repairing the repulsors on the left boot. Of course, he knows that's a bit of a lie. Iron Man would always be Iron Man, no matter what. That was the central, primal core that made up any Tony Stark that might exist.

"Since when did you decide you didn't want to be Iron Man?" Loki asks, because he can't help it, he's been curious ever since he saw this variant and needs to satiate it.

That particular question causes Anthony to stop what he is doing and look up to meet Loki's face. He stares for a few seconds at the boot he has been trying to repair and frowns, finally shaking his head softly.

"I was never Iron Man," he finally mutters, then shrugs. "TVA took that away from me before I could even try. The only thing I have in common with my true variants is the armor. And I don't use it to fly around and save people, I use it to survive in this dump."

Somehow, Loki understands what he means. He didn't know Tony Stark for very long at the time of the Battle of New York, but he knows that the essence of Iron Man, and any other hero, is to help others. Surely Anthony must have heard from the other Lokis thousands of heroic stories about Iron Man, and probably many of those times, he did not feel identified with those stories at all.

Perhaps he spent too much time around Lokis that he ended up embracing this new identity as his own, feeling comfortable with it and how familiar it could be. Now, that could make a lot more sense than anything Loki could have imagined in the beginning.

He takes a moment to observe the man, he can't help but recognize Iron Man hiding somewhere in all those nooks and crannies. But he can also see a lot of himself in Anthony, and somehow, he wonders how things would have been had he accepted the drink he was offered that time. Would the Tony Stark of his universe and him have gotten along, like now? Would he have seen those similarities in both of them? He couldn't help but wonder about him, and he didn't even understand why that might be relevant just now. But still, think about it.

"I spoke to Iron Man once," Loki suddenly says quietly to the other man.

He then turns around to take a closer look at the plans for Anthony's armor, the ones that are taped to one of the walls of the cramped room. He doesn't understand what exactly he's getting at with that, maybe it's because a part of him wants to go back to his universe. Back when the Avengers were his only concern. He still thinks this is some kind of nightmare, that he's still lying in the crater of rubble where the Hulk left him and that he's unconscious, he hopes that, if that's the case, he'll be able to wake up soon.

"No shit," Anthony says with obvious amusement and sarcasm in his voice, cutting off Loki's train of thought. "You beat him too?"

Loki turns to see him, and Anthony is already smiling with his nose slightly wrinkled, a grimace too childish and that goes against everything that Loki could reach to know of the Tony Stark of his universe, but that still feels right in the face of this Anthony, that mischievous and mocking spark that he probably adopted from the other Lokis. He smiles back but ends up shaking his head.

"I guess you could say he beat me," he folds his arms across his chest and leans back against the wall, in the process listening to the paper creak against his weight. "Actually, he made a big impression on me. Even though it looked like he would pass out from fear at any moment, he didn't run away."

Anthony watches him with wide eyes, he is genuinely interested and amazed by Loki's little story.

"He..." he quickly denies and corrects himself when he says, "No, they all seem to be amazing" Anthony sighs, and there is nothing bitter in his voice, not even a hint of envy. It seems to be something more akin to longing and true admiration.

Somehow, Loki also understands that it's not that Anthony doesn't want to be Iron Man or that it bothers him to be Iron Man. It's more about wanting to earn that title for himself, not for being a Tony Stark variant. And that also makes more sense, even if it's just pure speculation on Loki's part.

"Maybe, it's an Iron Man thing, " Anthony frowns thoughtfully, then looks back at Loki with a small smile. "You know, not backing down no matter how scared one might be."

Loki hums something in agreement, though he doesn't really know much about Iron Man, let alone Tony Stark. What he is learning instead is about this Anthony and why being a Loki has become part of his identity in this horrible, chaotic place.

"Actually, I'm impressed by you too," he confesses with a small smile on his face.

Anthony blinks, looking legitimately surprised at the turn of the conversation, then he asks:

“Why?” 

Loki remembers how he threw the Tony Stark of his universe out of a window, from a very tall building, and somehow, he had managed to save himself with his technology, and Loki knows the answer when in a corner of the small room, he observes the green armor that is held by several wires. He is pretty sure that this variant, no matter what would also find a way to escape death, solely with his ingenuity and technology.

"You're a survivor, that's an Iron Man thing too ."

Anthony laughs.

"Ah, but it's also a Loki thing, isn't it? Surviving ."

Loki blinks when he realizes these similarities, because yes, he's been told he's harder to kill than a cockroach. And he always finds ingenious ways to get out of sticky situations, outwit death and cheat it.

“Yes.”

Loki agrees, he also wants to tell him that, even as a Loki, Anthony likes him better than any other Tony Stark variant. But he decides not to say anything unnecessary, deep down he knows Anthony is aware of that fact. Loki and Iron Man were sworn enemies, but Loki and this new Iron Loki variant? Yes, they may fit together better.

Perhaps, the thought is somewhat embarrassing, and he can almost hear Mobius in his head, calling him a narcissist and mocking him for liking himself. But technically, this variant of Loki decided to be, so like the good cheating, an arrogant man he is, he decides that makes all the difference and shushes Mobius' irritating voice that keeps judging him.

Chapter Text

That morning, Loki had awakened with a new conviction. He wanted to go in search of Sylvie, make sure she was all right, and then destroy the TVA. He no longer wanted to rule her, not after all the damage they had done to his variants. Sylvie had been right, they needed to burn that organization to the ground, and probably, at this very moment, she should be out there, doing something about it, and Loki knew he should help her.

He did not know exactly what had brought about this sudden change of heart. He only knew that after hearing Sylvie's story, his variants, and most of all Anthony's story, he wanted to stop this madness. He didn't want to be stuck in this horrible void, waiting and surviving, this wasn't how he wanted his story to be, and this wasn't how he wanted the story of his other variants to continue to be. Anthony's story.

So, yes, the first thing was to find a way out of this place.

With renewed conviction, he left the small room where he had slept the night before and went in search of his other variants. He heard voices coming from the makeshift throne room and knew immediately that the other Lokis must be there. They were all talking in hushed voices, and it seemed that Anthony was the one who participated the most in the conversation, raising his voice slightly and speaking so fast that it could be a miracle if the rest understood what he was saying. But as soon as they noticed Loki's presence entering the place, they all kept silent and instead turned to see him with different expressions on their faces.

Anthony was the first to greet him with a small smile and an enthusiastic greeting. Loki wondered why out of all of them, Anthony was the one who seemed to be the happiest to have him there. But Loki, instead of pointing to the big pink elephant in the room and asking what the rest of them were talking about, turned to them in a firm voice to say:

"I'm leaving."

That caused the other variants to look at each other and look noticeably confused. The older Loki and Boastful Loki, who had been sitting down, stood up quickly with a frown on their faces and the clear question none of them dared ask, except Anthony.

"Where to?" asked Anthony, his brow equally furrowed, and his lips twisted in disagreement. "You won't find any safer place than this."

"He's right," agreed Boastful Loki, although he seemed a little reluctant to admit it. "You should stay."

"I have to get out of this place," Loki replied simply. "Out of here, out of the void. Back to the TVA," this time, his eyes searched Anthony's face as he said almost urgently, " we know how to survive , but we also know how to escape. That should give me a good chance."

Anthony raised both eyebrows as he understood what Loki was trying to tell him. They had talked about it the night before, and while Loki was aware that he could do this on his own as he always had, he found that this time he did not wish to do things alone. Part of Loki wanted to convince Anthony to come with him, and judging by the expression on the other man's face and the fierce gleam in his eyes, he could almost tell that Anthony wanted to come with him as well.

They had talked long enough for Loki to know that Anthony was a curious soul and above all things, free. He liked to do the opposite of what he was supposed to do, so going against the TVA was a tempting offer for him. Perhaps, his intentions must have been quite obvious, or it was simply that it was his variants that were witnessing everything because then, the old Loki spoke instead of Anthony.

"You won't make it," he said earnestly to Loki, causing him to break eye contact with Anthony, to turn to look at his older variant, who added, "You will be brutally murdered."

And saying this, the old Loki's gaze went straight to Anthony's face. With that look it already seemed to say it all, and Loki could be sure that those five -including Loki alligator- had forged such a strong bond that none of them would want one of them to leave.

"So be it," Loki rolled his eyes impatiently, but his gaze returned insistently to Anthony's face anyway. "It was my destiny, to begin with. But perhaps, if you come with me we can change things."

Anthony was about to open his mouth, but at that moment the younger Loki, who had merely listened to the conversation without giving his opinion, stood up from his throne and spoke, causing all the variants to turn to look at him.

"You're different," he addressed Loki, squinting his eyes and tilting his neck slightly in the process. "Why?"

Loki shook his head gently.

"No, I'm not really," Loki shrugged his shoulders, glancing this time for brief seconds at Anthony, before returning his full attention to the younger Loki and continuing, "I'm the same as you, really. Have any of you met a female variant of us?"

Judging by the expression on the faces of the other Lokis, they seemed horrified at the mere implication. Though of course, there were a few exceptions like Anthony and the younger Loki, who rather than horrified, seemed intrigued with the implication that a female variant of Loki existed.

"No, and it sounds scary," the older Loki finally declared, frowning and genuinely displeased at the thought, while Boastful Loki nodded in agreement and feigned a shiver down his spine.

" Oh , and she is," Loki confirmed with a fond little smile. "But that's just what makes her special. She's different because she's not trying to take over the TVA. She wants to destroy it, and she needs me. All of us."

For a moment, no one said anything. Then, Anthony sighed, causing all pairs of eyes to focus on him.

"TVA being destroyed is definitely something I'd like to see," he confessed with a mischievous grin, all perfect white teeth.  Loki smiled back at Anthony.

"And you can see it," Loki walked a couple of steps that separated him from Anthony, hesitated a few seconds, but ended up resting his palms on the other man's shoulders to say, "If we go together to face the Alioth, we can get out of this place and destroy the TVA for everything it did to us."

Anthony's eyes burned with determination and the promise of revenge on the TVA. He nodded at Loki's proposal, and then his eyes moved away from his face to seek out the other variants who were scowling at them. But Anthony was not deterred, he looked almost frantic as he turned away from Loki to approach the other variants and explain how they could defeat the creature.

"Listen, I think we can do this," his brown eyes settled on the younger Loki, and he began to say, "You've been here the longest, and you said Alioth is the one keeping us here," he didn't even let the variant speak when he was already addressing Boastful Loki, "and I remember you had said he was a living being," Boastful Loki frowned, but nodded and the man's eyes finally shifted to where the older Loki was standing. "And last week you had compared it to a shark to annoy Croki ."

None of the Lokis seemed to really understand what the point of all this was, but Loki did. He quickly understood what Anthony was referring to, so he too stepped forward to speak.

"What Anthony means is that if the Alioth has life, it can also die," Loki made a point of emphasizing the word die, just in case that wasn't clear enough, then, "so I'll kill the shark , but for that, I need all the help I can get!"

For a moment, there was only silence, exchanged glances, and the anticipation of Anthony and Loki, but in the next instant, all the other variants began to laugh as if Loki had told the best embarrassing Thor story of their universe. Loki and Anthony exchanged complicit glances with each other before deciding that if the other variants wouldn't do anything about it, at least the two of them would.

Anthony grabbed the briefcase that had the uncanny ability to turn into Iron Loki's armor, the one he had fixed for a good part of the night, and without much thought, followed Loki through the lair and down the narrow stairs. Loki would be lying if he said he didn't feel something warm settle in his chest at the prospect of Anthony trusting him enough to go on a suicide mission and abandon the safety the rest of his variants offered him.

He never imagined himself going with Tony Stark to almost certain death, but here they both were. The multiverse was weird, but now he understood why even his brother had come to value the Avengers so highly, at least he could tell that some of them were good shield brothers. Just like the Anthony of this universe. Reaching the foot of the rusty old metal stairs, Loki had to stop to look at Anthony with a slight frown and ask:

"I don't understand you," he confessed, for everything about the other man intrigued him too much. "Why do you want to come with me ?"

Anthony furrowed his brow and gave Loki an unsurprised look. With that gesture he seemed to imply that the whole situation was quite obvious, however, he merely shrugged his shoulders and looked away as he answered him.

"A moment ago... you said you and the other Loki-"

"Sylvie," Loki quickly corrected him, then noticing Anthony's confused look, explained, "her name is Sylvie."

Unlike when he spoke to Mobius about Sylvie, Anthony didn't scoff at the name change or anything remotely like it. Instead, he simply blinked, seemed to store the information somewhere in his head, and nodded, returning to resume his explanation without Sylvie's identity and alias being a source of amusement or derision, if anything.

"Sylvie," he nodded, repeating the name slowly, then, "it's because you said you and Sylvie would destroy TVA. Ever since they captured me just like a stray dog and sent me to this place, I've wanted to return the favor. I want to burn that organization to the ground and make them remember to never mess with a Stark again. And most of all, with a Loki."

They both smiled, almost as if they were in sync somehow. And as Loki climbed the complicated stairs with Anthony following him, he wondered if this thing of burning things and making them explode was a trait that only the two of them shared, or if it was a thing in general of any Loki and Stark.

He turned the small rudder that kept the hatch sealed and the lair safe, however, when it lifted and let in all the fresh air from outside, and Loki looked up, he found himself face to face with himself. The variant was surrounded by other variants, and he did not seem surprised to see another one exactly like himself. Loki felt like he could really go crazy in this place.

"Wow, hello," exclaimed the variant, her voice slightly husky and mocking as she spoke again. "Which one of us are you?"

Loki expelled all the air he had been holding in a shaky sigh.

"This is a nightmare," he muttered to himself.

He felt Anthony move behind him to see what was going on, and as soon as his presence became obvious, the other Loki craned his neck. His eyes seemed to take on an almost insane gleam as he smiled at the man.

“Hello, Anthony.” 

Loki heard Anthony snort, he turned over his shoulder as much as he could so he could see the other man's expression, and judging by Anthony's irritated look, this particular Loki did not like him.

"Loki," he mumbled back the greeting but still faked a rather nasty smile as he said, "Here I thought I'd never have to see your ugly face," Loki frowned instinctively, and that earned Anthony turning to look at him. "No offense, it's not personal with you."

After this, the other Loki just laughed. He didn't seem offended at all, it was as if the whole situation was amusing him in an over-the-top way, and to be honest, if Loki wasn't in a somewhat awkward position where he didn't understand what the hell was going on, he would have laughed too.

"How rude," finally commented with mock indignation to the Loki who proudly wore a Vote Loki pin on the lapels of his threadbare coat and golden horns on his head. "I came all this way to see you, I must say that you disappoint me."

"I live to disappoint everyone," Anthony responded dryly.

The president Loki hummed something in agreement. But just when Loki thought the situation couldn't get any more awkward the other Loki spoke up again.

"Now, I came to pay a friendly visit. So it would be rather inconsiderate of you to lock us out," after saying this, the other Lokis who came with him pointed all their guns at them, and the president Loki proceeded to grimace in mock innocence as he said, "You'll let us in for good measure, won't you?"

Loki turned to look at Anthony, he had tight lips and a look that seemed to scream that at any moment he would commit a hate crime. However and against all odds, Anthony just sighed and nodded reluctantly, knowing that either way, the two of them couldn't be against all the other Lokis.

Truth be told, Loki had had enough of himself.

Chapter Text

Ravonna had set her up while they were talking. Sylvie wasn't really surprised, she knew there was no way she could trust this woman, it was because of this sort of thing she didn't trust, not anymore. She had been used to saving her own skin, running from place to place, and learning to defend herself. Developing her magic in a clumsy and rather rudimentary way because Frigga hadn't been there to help her. It was not like Loki.

So when the TVA agents entered the gloomy courtroom, her first instinct was to run and get out of the way in a place where it would be difficult for them to catch her. She had become adept at hiding in tight places, holding her breath, and preparing to fight tooth and nail. This could in no way be any different. She was more than used to fighting.

"Sylvie?" She heard Ravonna call to her from below the stage where she sat to judge whether a person lived or died. "Why don't you come down from there, and we'll discuss this? Just you and me, promise."

Sylvie rolled her eyes and had to bite back the hysterical laughter that wanted to come from deep in her chest. Judge Renslayer's promises were worthless to her, she knew she was only trying to sweeten her ear with comforting words to later get rid of her.

"I don't trust you," she shouted from the corner where she was still hiding and planning her next move.

"Okay, why don't we do this," Ravonna said with weariness. "Come down from there, and I promise I'll put you in a loop of a good memory. Doesn't that sound fair, to be forever in a beautiful memory?"

She looked at the strange weapon she had taken from Ravonna, her lips twisted at the thought that there might be more good memories, beautiful memories. She thought of Loki, of her nexus event, as Mobius had called it, she thought of it and how it had felt. They were the same person, and within all that, she had seen what she could have become if the TVA hadn't come hunting her like she was an exotic and extremely dangerous animal. She envied Loki so much, Norns , she hated him so much for that, for having had the life she was denied.

But being there, in Lamentis, she realized how much she actually admired him. The feeling that she was not a sad story and that she could still be more. She had always been alone, but there with him, in fact, she felt complete in a way she could not yet understand. She was him, and he was her, it was easy to feel comfortable with the only thing she had ever known in her entire life and the only thing TVA could never take away from her: herself.

But she also thought of the man at the gala party, of that night, of all those times she had wished she could stay with him; how still in her dreams, she could see his huge brown eyes and his flirtatious smile. How she had wished she could save him from his horrible fate, having the knowledge that if she did, she would give away their position, that even if they could run away before the TVA came for them, they would never have anywhere to go. They would always be on the run, and it was something she did not wish for them.

And while the offer of being able to stay forever in one of those two memories sounded tempting, she knew better that it would only be covering up knife wounds with band-aids. It wouldn't solve anything, and it wouldn't be real either. She had to fight to make sure those two were safe from TVA. To make sure she would see them again once she destroyed this crappy organization.

Looking at the weapon that pruned the variants, she had a new conviction. She would go find Loki, and maybe, if Ravonna hadn't lied about it, the two of them could get closer to the person who ran the TVA.

"What do you say, Sylvie?" spoke Ravonna again. "Don't you have a memory you'd like to dwell on forever?"

"A couple of them, really."

And saying this, she stood up, pointing the gun toward Ravonna and the rest of the agents who were already ready to capture her. There was a small instant in which everything happened too fast, for one second, she was pointing it at them, and the next, she had used the gun on herself.

She felt her whole body slowly disintegrate, although she knew that the weapon worked in a matter of quick seconds. There was an intermittent pain in her chest, and so she thought for that fleeting instant, maybe she was dying after all.

"Imbecile!" Loki heard his older variant shout at him from where he stood on the other side of the room. "You brought us the wolves!"

He couldn't help but raise both eyebrows in a gesture that was intended to be both surprised and questioning. Why was he being blamed for this happening in the first place? It could be so typical of Loki to believe that always the misfortunes that befell him were someone else's fault. He heard President Loki sneer, still holding Anthony's arm as he took a step forward, pulling the other man with him.

The rest of the Lokis piled around him, brandishing their strange weapons and wearing their best-bored expressions.

"We prefer snakes to wolves," commented President Loki, trying to sound casual and causing Anthony to snort in disgust.

"I've eaten them both, they die just like everything else!," exclaimed the younger Loki, showing his authority and insolence in all its glory.

However, the story took a 360-degree turn when Boastful Loki grabbed the younger Loki by the neck and placed his fake Mjölnir very close to his face. The boy didn't look anywhere near frightened, let alone surprised as he rolled his eyes.

"Excuse me, your highness," said Boastful Loki, with a huge grin showing his perfect white teeth, "I betrayed you, and now... I am the king!"

Loki didn't really want to say that this turn of events surprised him, because it really didn't. Although, to say he wasn't surprised at all was a total lie because they were all supposed to be family, even if Boastful Loki seemed to have issues with the rest of Lokis. But betraying for a throne, even if it wasn't even legitimate, was something any Loki would definitely do. Something he had already done in the past.

President Loki raised both eyebrows, putting on his best innocent expression, and dragged Anthony back with him as he took another step forward. Anthony tried to wriggle out of the iron grip, but the other Loki didn't even flinch or seem to care.

"Speaking of which," he said casually, and his army of Lokis immediately brandished their weapons against Boastful Loki, in yet another unprecedented betrayal.

"You're not serious," Boastful Loki scowled, in the process even causing kid Loki to jerk slightly in his grip.

Loki wanted to laugh, he felt so embarrassed that was all he had left.

" Oh , come on," muttered President Loki mockingly. Somehow, he and Anthony managed to synchronize impeccably as they said at the same time, "What did you expect?"

Still, although both had said it at the same time, the tone in which they said it differed quite well. While President Loki's was mocking and almost bordering on irony, Anthony's was more of annoyance and protest. Boastful Loki looked at Anthony with real panic in his eyes, perhaps expecting Anthony to do something about it.

But as things stood, even Anthony couldn't do anything.

"This is not how we agreed!" he groaned in frustration, now turning his gaze to an unperturbed Loki who seemed to be gloating over his cheating victory. "I gave you our location in exchange for shelter and supplies. You give me your army, and I take the throne."

"Look where your brilliant idea got us," Anthony was still trying to wriggle out of President Loki's grip, while with his other hand, he was still clutching his briefcase and at the same time giving Boastful Loki his best dirty look.

"None of that," President Loki hissed through his teeth, gripping Anthony tighter and then turning his attention to Boastful Loki again. "Ah, of course, I must say that wasn't such a good deal, how about this one? My army, my throne, my armour. "

And after saying this, his entire army of Lokis turned their guns on President Loki and Anthony himself, who by this point was already suppressing the hysterical laughter that you could tell for miles wanted to escape his lips.  And honestly, if Loki wasn't beginning to worry slightly about Anthony's safety, he would have wanted to laugh at the surrealness of this whole situation as well.

"You're a bunch of despicable traitors! We had a deal!" he muttered, looking legitimately indignant at the situation.

"Guess what, Reindeer Games ? You reap what you sow" Anthony let out a laugh full of bitterness, but his eyes were already searching for escape routes, and his head devising a plan to get out of this ridiculous situation.

The alligator Loki snarled, coming out from around some corner and more than ready to throw himself at the hand of President Loki who was still holding Anthony tightly. However, Loki would always be Loki, and he would always have a devious and well-planned ace up his sleeve. At that moment he teleported out of the place, Anthony stifled a gasp before disappearing with President Loki into nothingness.

The alligator landed in nothingness seconds later; there was a brief moment of silence, where the Lokis looked at each other, and the next instant, weapons, daggers, things, and spells flew everywhere. But Loki still stood for about five seconds staring at the place where Anthony had been.

He promised himself that he would look for him and find him.

Teleporting felt just like going up a roller coaster, just as you reach the peak and come down hard. He had clung with one arm to President Loki's torso, and with the other hand, he still held tightly to his detachable armor as he felt everything spinning and twisting around him. It had been like that until they landed hard on some desolate spot, and both flew off in opposite directions, landing heavily on the ground.

All in all, it wasn't nice to be teleported if it meant that every time this would happen. Still, the horrible sensation of being jolted and landing on his stomach, briefly losing his breath, was no deterrent to his first instinct to reach for his briefcase armor. But of course, life had never been kind to him, and at some point, during his bumpy landing, he must have dropped it.

Slowly he rejoined, exhaling as much air as he could and adjusting his slightly blurred vision to look for the spot where his briefcase had fallen. The other Loki seemed to have the same thought about the armor, because he too looked up, seeming less affected by the sudden fall than Tony.

The briefcase had been left halfway between the two of them, they looked at it for brief seconds before they both stood up and walked towards it. They both grabbed it at the same time, Tony frowned and pulled at the briefcase with all the strength he kept in his body, but no matter how much he said he was a Loki, he still didn't have the damn strength of a Norse god, as he didn't even manage to make Loki move one bit. He gave him one of those mocking smirks of his before the briefcase dissolved into green seidr and disappeared, probably into a pocket dimension.

Tony groaned in frustration.

"Which one?" he demanded to an unperturbed Loki. "What the hell is your problem?" 

"Oh, none at all," he replied in return, looking all too casual and carefree as he shoved his hands into his trouser pockets. "But you will find that, for safety's sake, I will keep the armour for you."

"Trust me, I can keep the suit safe enough on my own," Tony gave him a horrible fake smile and reached out to demand, "Give me my damn suit, you idiot."

President Loki raised both eyebrows, putting on his best innocent grimace that no one would buy, least of all Tony.

"I meant for my own safety, you see, I don't trust you not to use it against me if I give it back to you," he told Tony calmly. "Besides, you didn't even say the magic words. Beg me , and maybe I'll consider giving it back to you."

Tony was pretty sure that, if he had any blunt object at hand, he would have thrown it at this Loki, straight at his head. In the long run, it wouldn't do much good, since, for starters, if he knocked him unconscious it would be totally impossible to recover his armor, plus, with the whole seidr thing and all, he was likely to end up putting up some shield to protect himself. A waste of effort, really.

Brute force probably wouldn't help him, but maybe negotiating would make a difference. He was good at negotiating, before the TVA came after him, Tony had negotiated many of Stark Industries' weapons prices, so yes, he knew how to bamboozle. Plus, he had spent far, far too much time around Lokis, he had seen them cajole and convince people without much effort. He had a lot of tricks up his sleeve, after all. The only problem was that he had nothing else to offer, except what he had shared with the other Loki variants, and that wasn't much. Probably, by this point, there was nothing left of his lair.

Still, he had to try.

"Okay," he exclaimed, snorting at the end of the sentence. "What do you want in exchange for my armor?"

The other man was probably waiting for Tony to offer this. But he still pretended to think about it for a few seconds, then raised an inquisitive eyebrow.

"What do you have to offer, Anthony?"

"Keep the throne if you want it so badly."

President Loki let out a derisive laugh and slowly shook his head at the offer. And okay, maybe he had gone the easy way, but in his defense, he had nothing else to offer, even if the leadership position and the throne didn't belong to him.

"You're in no position to offer something like that," Loki pretended to grimace pitifully, but everything about him screamed that he was quite amused by the situation. "I'm afraid I'll have to keep the armour."

Okay, negotiating wasn't going to work either. But it didn't matter anymore, Tony didn't have time to spend with this insufferable idiot. He needed to find Loki and once he found him, he could build another suit of armor on the fly. He'd already made one with nothing but junk, and with his wits, he'd manage. He always did.

"Fine, keep the damn armor."

Then he turned and walked, he didn't know where exactly he was supposed to go, but that never stopped him either. However, he soon felt the other Loki following him, he could hear his quick footsteps on the dying grass and tried to pick up the pace.

"What's wrong with you?" he faced him, turning away when it became more than obvious that the other man had no intention of leaving him alone. "I have nothing more to give you."

"Whatever," replied President Loki, in the process grabbing Tony's arm again, so tightly that it was even painful. "You're staying with me."

Tony frowned, he was more than ready to fight, bite, kick, and run, but then... he saw that look full of desperation on this Loki's face, so tangible it hurt. Somehow, all his protests and his desire to fight got stuck in the back of his throat; he froze at that pleading look, and he didn't even know why.

Chapter Text

"Loki, what the..."

But Tony couldn't even finish completing his sentence, because then President Loki had given him his best scathing look. His thin lips pressed into a thin pale line; by this point, Tony no longer even expected any kind of response, but the other Loki finally spoke. So reluctant that he was mumbling the words.

"Because you belong with me!" he shouted, making Tony flinch slightly. "That's the way it always was, the way it was always meant to be."

Tony blinked, not knowing what on earth the other man was talking about. Sure, he had always flirted with him, but it never went beyond that. Flirtations and lingering glances. Finally, he let go of Tony's arm, turning around and sitting down on the dry grass. For what seemed like eternal seconds, Tony just stood there and watched him like a goldfish. He was trying to make sense of what Loki had said, but perhaps, this wasn't about him per se. 

Swallowing saliva, he slowly approached where President Loki was sitting, legs bent and covering his face with his own hands.  Tony sat down as well, at a safe distance and hugging his legs to his chest. He gasped, trying to say something, but for the first time, his eloquence completely deserted him.

"I didn't protect you," muttered President Loki, his voice a little muffled because his face was still covered. "When the TVA came for us, I didn't protect you. I couldn't."

Tony reflected on the words this Loki had confessed to him. He thought about it, and soon something clicked in his head because he was too smart not to notice. He swallowed saliva again, feeling that anything he was going to ask or say at this point could be used against him.

"You had...you had a Tony Stark?" he finally asked, uncertain and wide-eyed.

Loki took his hands away from his face, he looked at Tony with so much regret in those green eyes, he wondered what had happened to that Tony Stark. Was he the reason President Loki had that look on his face right now? Gods, how strange the multiverse was, how strange they were, how strange Tony's life was.

President Loki looked away from Tony's face as if he was so ashamed of himself that he wasn't even able to look him in the eye. For what it was worth, he nodded slowly at Tony's question, and then, it all began to make sense. That fixation this Loki had always had with him from the first instant he saw him, the long looks, the suggestive words, just... it all started to settle into place.

"In my timeline, everything had been perfect," he said suddenly, interrupting Tony's sudden epiphany. "When I first realized I wanted him, I never thought he could return my affections, but then, one day... he said he felt the same way too." A sad smile stretched Loki's lips, his mind flying away to beautiful memories as he struggled to hold back tears, "I wanted to be... good for him, that's all I wanted. But apparently, goodness and happiness are not meant for a Loki because the TVA immediately came for us. When we were separated, I promised him I would find him. I promised."

Tony swallowed, imagining it all in his head and feeling a stab of pain in his chest. Long ago, when the TVA had not yet come for him, he had had a dream in which he was separated from someone he loved dearly. In the dream, he wished he could find him, but there was only emptiness. And every time he woke up, he woke up crying, never able to remember the face of the person who held his hand tightly as someone else separated them. But still, he kept the bitter feeling of that dream. 

Now, with all this history, thinking about that dream sent a shiver down Tony's spine.

"So, that day the TVA pruned you... I found you, didn't I?" President Loki looked at him with swooning eyes, and Tony isn't even able to look at him for long.

No, he thinks about it and congratulates himself for not saying it out loud, because, although he's still determined to say it out loud at some point, he thinks he'd better think carefully about what he's going to say, anyway. He doesn't want to hurt Loki's feelings, for God's sake, he knows how sensitive they all are. Which he is.

He doesn't remember any of that, he didn't even live through any of that stuff. They're not the same person, even if at the end of the day, he's also a Tony Stark. It doesn't feel right to think of himself as a conventional Tony Stark. He stopped feeling that way a long time ago, and he doesn't even feel like he can be able to give that kind of comfort. So, he takes a very serious look at Loki and readies his silver tongue because he is a Loki even if he wasn't born one.

"I'm sorry, but I'm not him," Tony let out a sigh and it felt so freeing that the words flowed more easily from that moment on. "And I'm not who you think I am either or who I'm supposed to be. I am... my own person, and I am also a Loki."

Tony thinks the last thing he says is what triggers the effect and causes Loki to open his eyes wide, looking at him as if he is, in fact, just seeing him for what he is and not what he expects Tony to be. But he doesn't say anything, just stands very still and watches Tony, so he moves on.

"So don't try to find it in me, honey," she pauses dramatically, then very slowly finishes by stating in a soft voice, "because you're not going to find it."

Finally, President Loki drops that facade of toughness and coldness and releases the tears he's been holding back all this time. Tony wonders how long he has been pretending to be strong, he thinks it must be extremely painful. No, he doesn't think so, he knows it's that way because Tony has been in ugly, dark places too, even long before he fell into the void.

He allows the other man to have his moment of catharsis, still remains seated next to him, but says nothing. He doesn't try to patronize and say that he understands that kind of pain too, but he still stands there and wishes that at least this is some kind of comfort for now. He can't stay, he has a purpose , and he will move on because that's just the way he is.

"You said you were a Loki before," President Loki muttered after the worst of the crying had passed, and Tony supposed he must have used seidr to cover his swollen eyes and red nose. "But you're also a Stark."

And Tony has a protest on the tip of his tongue, he wants to rebut, and he also wants to fight. But at the last second, he realizes that it is actually useless. In fact, he is a Stark, for twenty-two years of his life he was, and then, when he fell into this dump he forgot he had been one. Did he spend so many years? Norns, he doesn't even know if it's been years, months, centuries, or even days since he arrived. Time here works so strangely, but he's sure it's been quite some time spent denying his last name and what he once was.

In his universe, he had always been Tony Stark, the troubled son of Howard Stark. Always in his father's huge shadow. A father who sucked at being one. Tony had grown up surrounded by servants, with Jarvis and Anna being his greatest comfort, as his mother had passed away when he was too young to even remember her face.

Howard never talked about her, nor was he with Tony when it mattered. He never felt comfortable being who he was supposed to be, the son of Howard Stark. The only thing he misses from his old life is Jarvis and Anna, and his technology. That's why he can't forgive TVA.

But when he came to this place, the end of everything , at least here he could be who he wanted to be. He didn't have to be in anyone's shadow, and when he met the other Lokis, none of them called him a troublemaker because of his chaos, his scattered thoughts, or the way he functioned. They let him be the way he was, so Tony found more similarities than differences and he chose to be one of them.

Even so, he would always be a Stark.

Still, that didn't mean she would ever again allow herself to be under anyone's shadow, ever. Not from his father and certainly not from his other variants.

"Yeah, that last name is encoded in my DNA, I think," he said after a long time of being silent.

It earns him a laugh from President Loki, and Tony can see vestiges of the person he must have been before TVA ruined his life. He fleetingly wonders if this is how he was when he was around his Tony.

"Loki and I are going to go destroy the TVA," Tony said suddenly, causing President Loki to blink in confusion. "You can come with us if you want."

Tony sees him frowning and thinking for a few seconds about his answer, but he finally ends up shaking his head.

"I'm sure TVA pruned it too, so I'll stay here and keep looking for him."

"And you're going to find him," Tony nods and then makes a few gestures with his hands as he says, "he is a Stark after all, it's encoded in our DNA to be stubborn jerks. He's probably looking for you too."

"I know."

President Loki smiles and is so determined that Tony actually hopes he can find his loved one. No, he tells himself that this Loki will find his Tony, he can sense it in his stomach, and he doesn't even know how or why, but he does. So he smiles back.

Their moment of peace and mutual understanding, however, is cut short when something thunders in the sky, which has suddenly become grayer, and too many yellow lightning bolts begin to strike everywhere. The Alioth approaches rapidly towards where they are, devastating everything in its path and looking more furious than usual. They both stand up at the same time, and that's when Tony notices the flash coming from the school truck in front of them about ten feet away. He turns to look at President Loki.

"TVA just pruned someone," the old truck pointed out, where the glow is slowly beginning to fade. "That explains why the huge purple mass over there is coming in such a hurry. I should go help."

Loki looks at him for a few seconds too quickly, and there is something warm in his green-eyed gaze. But Tony doesn't get a chance to point that out when he makes a graceful motion with his wrist, and his briefcase appears again. He picks it up and hands it to Tony.

"You will need this, Loki ."

Tony picks up his briefcase, still looking at President Loki like a goldfish, and a goofy grin stretches his lips. No one had ever called him that before, and he had meant it, not that he minded being called Anthony, but this felt pretty good too. They give each other one last look and a quick nod before President Loki disappears in several flashes of green seidr. He hopes that someday he will be able to see him again and hopes that when that day comes, President Loki will have been able to find that happiness that was taken from him for no reason and that he still craves with every bone in his body.

Tony hurries up and has his suit on in less time than he had thought. Unfortunately, he has forgotten his helmet, but that is probably the least of his problems at this point. However, everything else is working well so Tony propels himself upwards, trying not to fly too high.

From the old truck emerges a female figure running as fast as she can, but the Alioth is almost catching up with her, the frothy purple tentacles are getting dangerously close to her, and Tony tries to get his thrusters to go to their full capacity, which is not much in reality, due to his technological shortcomings. As one of the tentacles encircles the woman, she stretches out her arm, and suddenly, it turns green for a few very short seconds. Tony has no idea what she did, but it worked anyway because it dissolves and allows her to keep running.

Tony recognizes a Loki when he sees one and is immediately sure that she is definitely a Loki. When he finally manages to get close enough, he reaches out his metal arms and manages to grab her by the waist, and this time he propels himself up a bit more. She starts kicking and screaming something that sounds like a, "What the hell is going on?", the wind blows her blonde hair around and obscures her view, but somehow she manages to push her hair out of her face and turn upwards to see Tony.

Her eyes widen when they meet Tony's gaze, she looks so dazed and even a little scared. Tony hurries up and says in a loud voice, so she can hear him over the noise of the wind crashing against their faces.

"Relax, I'm a Loki too. I won't hurt you."

That gets the opposite effect of what Tony wanted to achieve because now she looks more confused and scared than before. Although maybe scared isn't the right word after all. At least she stops struggling against Tony's grip, but she still stays quiet, staring at him as if she's just seen a ghost.

"I'll take us somewhere safe, I promise," Tony assures her, and she simply nods, looking like she just reacted to what's going on around her.

After that, she looks straight ahead again, but now she's clinging to Tony's arms, almost as if she's afraid he might let go of her at any moment. Tony won't, but he doesn't tell her either, just focuses on getting them away from Alioth. He is almost certain that she began to melt in his arms at some point in her flight to somewhere safe, but he says nothing. Perhaps, it's simply due to the relief he feels as he begins to move away from the creature, but that doesn't seem to be the case either. Either way, Tony makes sure to keep her safe and make the trip as quick as possible, he doubts very much that it can be comfortable for someone to be pressing against your stomach like that.

She looks at him again, but there is no longer confusion in her green eyes. Tony tries not to look too much into those bright eyes that are watching him in awe this time. She leans back against him and her fingers touch the parts of the armor they can reach, maybe it should be awkward all this, but still, Tony has the nagging thought that he knows her from somewhere. Either way, he's learned the hard way that the multiverse is so small really, so whatever.

Chapter Text

Sylvie tries to cling as tightly as she can to those strange metal arms around her. Not for fear of falling, she thinks she's afraid that somehow, even here, the TVA might take this away from her. Her fingertips brush over every dent and bump of what she can reach, just to convince herself that this isn't some kind of dream from which she will soon awaken. She still doubts it a bit and wonders if maybe, this is part of her fucked up subconscious making her imagine all this.

She is being rescued in pure princely style. The idea makes her laugh because of course, she's sick of surviving and having to rescue herself over and over again. This is a nice change, definitely.

When they finally get far enough away from Alioth to throw him off, the man in the strange armor begins to slowly descend. But no sooner does he make it, when they both touch the ground, the armor completely falls apart, giving its last breaths of useful life. The man groans and looks almost pained as his eyes focus on the metal pieces scattered around him.

"It was bound to happen eventually, ah shit ," he mumbles through his teeth and bends down to check some parts and salvage as much as possible.

Sylvie doesn't say anything, she just stands there standing uncomfortably on her feet. Part of her still thinks this is all in her head and that she'll probably wake up in a cell, with Ravonna's hideous smile of triumph being the first thing she'll see when she opens her eyes. She can't look away from the man. Norns, he knows that face as well as the back of his hand, it's familiar, the same brown eyes and the same voice. Only he... it's not him .

This variant is much younger, there is no facial hair on his face, and even the hair being a complete chaos on his head shows that this is not the man in the bar. Although, in some wonderful way, he is. It doesn't make sense, she knows, but nothing in her life ever made sense at all.

"Why did you help me?" she asks when she finally manages to find her voice.

That seems to take him by surprise, as he winces slightly, and his brown eyes finally find Sylvie's face. He tries to put on his best smile, but he is hesitant, and it seems that this whole situation makes him uncomfortable as well.

"For no particular reason," he shrugs and continues going through the metal parts, seeing what's still good. "Maybe I'm just too naive to think anyone would do the same for me."

"Stupidly naive," Sylvie realizes she thought out loud when she hears the man laugh.

But he doesn't say anything else after that, and Sylvie has about a hundred thousand questions to ask, but all she can do is cross her arms and pretend that this whole situation isn't getting the better of her at all. She looks at him closely and comes to the conclusion that he definitely has the style of a Loki, and he had told her earlier that he was one. Sylvie actually wouldn't be surprised if that were the case, she experienced so many different things and saw so many possibilities when she was escaping the TVA through the multiverse that this doesn't seem implausible to her.

Yet, she has to ask.

"And... You're a Loki?"

"Something like that, though not quite as... literal, but yeah, I guess so," the man replies absently as he focuses all his attention on what appears to be the gauntlet of armor. "At least I consider myself one of them. But you can call me Tony, it works for me too."

Tony , Sylvie thinks and tastes the name in her mouth as she says it out loud, causing Tony to nod. The whole changing identities thing isn't new to her either, since she changed her name herself. She's Loki, but she's also Sylvie, and Sylvie definitely works better for her. So she doesn't make a big deal about it for now. When visiting the universe of the man in the bar, she never asked for his name, and he never asked for hers either.

It wasn't necessary, because she knew that after that there would be nothing more. There was no future to worry about such things. And he... well, maybe he thought she was just another face he would never see again; he wasn't really wrong. Sylvie would go back to that moment again and again, pretending it was the first time, but for him it was always the first time, believing it would be the last.

"Afraid I'm wrong, and I usually almost don't, I'm guessing you're Sylvie," Tony says at her lack of response, cutting off Sylvie's train of thought.

She blinks, partly surprised and on the other hand, very confused with the turn the conversation took; she squints suspiciously, and it's not hard for that to put her on the defensive.

"Maybe," she says in a scathing voice, already half ready to fight in case this is some kind of trap on the part of the TVA, although honestly, that would be too low, even for them. "It depends on who's asking."

"I like to think of a potential friend, ally if it suits you better," Tony stands with the gauntlet already missing a few pieces, and his gaze again turns to Sylvie's face seeing her distrust, he clarifies, "Loki told me about you. He said you wanted to destroy the TVA."

"Do you know Loki?" Sylvie steps forward, and Tony raises his hands in a sign of peace.

"I know him, yes," he nods slowly, looking calm despite Sylvie's sudden hostility. "In fact, I'm looking for him. We'd come looking for you to help you destroy the TVA. Sort of like a... three multiversal musketeers."

Tony smiles broadly, and Sylvie acknowledges that he's not trying to deceive her, he's too honest, really. This is ironic since he thinks of himself as a Loki, and they're not very good at being honest, but... not that he minds. She likes it when people don't try to double-cross her or lie to her.

"So..." Tony says conversationally. "What's the plan going to be now? Suggestions welcome."

Sylvie ponders for a few seconds, then her gaze moves to where Alioth can still be seen wandering around. Since she came into contact with it a few minutes ago, she is convinced that the creature is the answer to where she must go to find the TVA ringleader. The best chance she has right now is to try to charm Alioth to get inside his mind and try to manipulate him into leading her to that damned rat's hideout. It's all she has, but she's convinced it's her best option.

"When I was running away from him, I managed to touch him, and for a moment, I had a connection to his mind," she points in the direction of Alioth and continues, "I'm sure that if I can manipulate him enough, we can find the one who runs the TVA."

When she turns to look at Tony again, he has a frown on his face. He nods slowly after reflecting on Sylvie's plan and seems to agree, yet still asks with that curious look:

"And how do you plan to manipulate it?"

Sylvie smiles broadly, her fingertips glowing with green seidr as she shows them to Tony.

"I'm going to enchant him."

And after saying this, she takes a couple of steps closer to Tony and reaches out her arms to touch Tony's temples and show him some vague memories, however, the incantation doesn't last long. Mainly because she just wants to show her point without having to mess with the technicalities of her magic. When he pulls his hands away, Tony takes a step back and blinks his eyes wide open.

"Enchantment, got it," he nods, looking slightly confused at the too-quick flash of memories, then his gaze returns to Sylvie and says, "That can work, like definitely. Great plan, I'm in."

He smiles and for the first time, she smiles back.

"You assholes! They're all assholes!" shouts the older Loki as he walks so fast that the other Lokis have to pick up their pace. "We are beyond repair. We betray anyone who dares to trust us, and then we betray each other - nothing less!"

Crocodile Loki roars, seeming to agree with what the oldest Loki of them all is saying. For his part, the younger Loki nods and snorts in frustration.

"And when one of us tries to do something good, the TVA comes to hunt us down."

Crocodile Loki roars, again in agreement with what the younger Loki just said. Loki also agrees, completely agrees with them; they narrowly managed to escape the battlefield that the lair became, with the rest of the Lokis casting spells at each other and trying to kill each other. However, he thinks this is no time to be grumbling about how predictable and treacherous they all are, the other Loki took Anthony, and they should be looking for him instead of continuing to waste their time.

"Yes, I understand it's disappointing," he comments as he tries to keep up with the older Loki, not knowing exactly where they're headed. "But, listen, that Loki president took Anthony. Shouldn't we go and get him?"

That does the trick, the other Lokis stop their walking and turn to look at him with the same expressions on their faces.

"Are you insane?" finally asks the younger Loki. "The void is immense, they could be anywhere."

Crocodile Loki, very eloquently, roars again.

"Besides, I'm sure he's fine," adds the older one, scowling and giving Loki a scathing look. "Don't underestimate Anthony, he'll find a way to escape."

"Obviously," nods kid Loki with a look that seems to say duh, isn't it obvious? "On the other hand, you said you wanted to kill Alioth to go destroy the TVA," he frowns thoughtfully, and then, a smirk appears on his lips as he says, "Or did you lose your glorious purpose ?"

For some reason, Loki is unable to respond. That earns him some complicit glances from his variants, but none of them say anything more about it. They both continue on their way toward the purple creature, and Loki crocodile roars again before following the others. Loki watches them for a few moments, then his gaze drifts back as if somehow, Anthony might magically appear to be walking.

He sighs, he feels a bit silly, and anyway, Anthony wouldn't like to be underestimated like that, so he walks behind his variants.

They get close enough to Alioth, and luckily, the creature doesn't even seem to notice their presence, it is busy rampaging through more debris and destroyed buildings. Loki proposes to distract the creature with something big enough so that he might be able to get close and find its weak spot. His other variants don't seem too convinced, but they are determined to help him anyway. Kid Loki makes a rather strange artifact appear and tells Loki that he will try to attract something big to serve as a distraction.

When he presses one of the red buttons, a big ship appears with all its crew members on board, who look more than bewildered when they appear in that place so suddenly. Alioth does not take long to approach them, more than willing to destroy the ship like everything else he touches. The crewmen try to stand up to him, but as soon as the purple mist surrounds them, the ship disappears.

The other Lokis turn to look at Loki as if asking with their eyes what the next plan is. Because apparently, this plan has failed spectacularly.

"Maybe... we should reconsider," Loki mutters, earning a couple of unsurprised looks from his other variants.

"Maybe we should have a better plan," mocks kid Loki, and his laughter is joined by a roar from crocodile Loki.

"Even he knows this was a stupid plan," comments the older Loki, clearly referring to the crocodile Loki.

Loki opens his mouth, ready to refute that it is an excellent plan, only that the execution was not correct, but all that remains on the tip of his tongue when the engine of an old midgardian car is heard approaching them. The four turn around, and sure enough, they find a completely beat-up automobile approaching them at full speed.

"Is that bad?" Loki asks his variants, just to mentally prepare himself to fight if he needs to.

"Well, they're almost always cannibal looters or cannibal pirates," kid Loki replies with a sigh, though judging by his appearance, he doesn't seem frightened by that fact.

Adorable, Loki thinks as he watches the vehicle get closer and closer to them. The four of them become alert for any threat, but then the car stops and a black figure comes out of it and closes the door with more force than necessary. For a few seconds, Loki fails to recognize the figure until it finally comes much closer to them. Blonde hair and a bad temper, that's definitely Sylvie.

"It's Sylvie," he informs his other variants, before running towards her.

He rushes towards her, and she actually stands there waiting for him to finally get to where she is. Loki is so relieved to see her in one piece, a little disheveled and dirty but ultimately fine. He doesn't even pay attention to the sound of another door closing, he's so happy to see her that that seems to be the only thing relevant at the moment.

"So you're alive after all," she says, looking closely at him for any serious injuries.

"What happened to you?" Loki asks instead of answering but doesn't even allow her to respond when he's already questioning again, "Are you okay?"

Sylvie does not answer, instead, she turns to look at the person who was driving the car. Loki also turns his gaze to the same place and meets Anthony's smiling face. His stomach suddenly feels lighter for some reason he doesn't want to think about at the moment, all he does is smile back at the other man seeing that he is also well.

"Anthony! You're here too" he takes a couple of steps to get a little closer to the man and places his hands behind his back, to avoid doing anything invasive or stupid like touching him to make sure he's really here, and it's not an illusion created by his mind. "I thought... I thought I'd never see you again."

Anthony snorts with amusement, and then his gaze meets Sylvie's, the two share a moment of complicity that unsettles Loki and makes him frown, then he notices the big pink elephant on the spot. They arrived together, and he can't help but wonder how this happened so suddenly.

"How did you..." he begins to ask with narrowed eyes, however, he is unable to finish his question when Sylvie speaks again.

"We thought you might need help," she pauses and shakes her head, then says, "Or rather, Tony thought you'd be here on a suicide mission. He was very insistent on coming to get you ."

Loki blinks slowly, there's a smug little smirk on Sylvie's face, and for some reason, he can feel the warm blood pooling and swirling in his cheeks, which is ridiculous because of his jotun heritage and cold blood, still, he's definitely blushing now. He turns then to look at Anthony, and he simply shrugs with a soft smile.

"You know," he says, but his brown eyes wander anywhere other than Loki's almost radiant face. "I'm charmingly persuasive if I put my mind to it."

Yes, charming , thinks Loki when he realizes that Anthony managed to get him to commit the greatest recklessness in history.

Chapter Text

When Sylvie and Tony arrive at his old lair, they find it in a chaotic mess of burned and destroyed things. No surprise, from what they both heard from the other Lokis, some sort of battle between Lokis had been waged in this place. The rest of them had warned Tony that trying to find food here would be futile, but he had come here to repair the gauntlet he managed to salvage from the chaos of useless pieces his armor had become.

Loki and the other variants had gone to find food and shelter for the night, and for some reason, Sylvie had offered to come with Tony on this mission to see what they could salvage from their old lair, plus try to get the gauntlet to ignite. Building a suit at this point was impossible, it needed parts and more time. But at least having his gauntlet's repulsor working would put his mind at ease.

"It looks like there are some useful things in here after all," Sylvie suddenly remarks as she finds a couple of packets of chocolate chip biscuits.

She tosses one in Tony's direction, and he catches it with a frown while Sylvie opens her package of cookies and quickly pops one of them into her mouth.

"Looks like it," he nods, then his gaze drifts to the end of the hallway, where his workshop is located. "We should split up, you look for more food here, and I'll go to the workshop, maybe I can find some weapons or something useful."

Sylvie narrows her eyes but finally nods with a shake of her head.

"All right," she says.

Tony hands her a backpack that is on one of the shelves that were saved from the explosive fight of Lokis, the backpack is a little torn at the seams, but at least it will serve to carry everything they find. Sylvie takes it with a grimace of confusion on her face.

"It'll hold everything you find," Tony explains with a small smile, and Sylvie nods again, averting her gaze. He sways awkwardly on the tips of his toes before remembering what he came to this place for. "Well, uh... I think I'll go to the workshop."

"All right," Sylvie replies, turning around and looking for more salvageable food in the burnt rubble of the lair.

Tony also turns around and heads for his workshop. When he arrives, he finds it untouched by whatever scuffle there was in this place and sighs sadly; he is somewhat sad to leave here all his tools and other things he had gathered to build anything that might keep him safe in this place. He knows he can't take much with him, and anyway, his only purpose in coming here is to repair his gauntlet.

He spent a lot of time collecting solar panels that came to this place, so he managed to run his armor. Recharging it with the energy gathered from the solar panels. Unfortunately, it wasn't much either, as most of the time it was cloudy, and with Alioth hanging around everywhere, the days were even more gray and cloudy.

The good news was that the solar panels had been gathering power for days without Tony accessing it, so there should be more than enough power to be able to get his repulsor recharged and working. He went over to his workbench and began removing some parts that he knew were unnecessary and would eventually get in the way, connecting circuits in record time, soldering parts and generally trying to make it as functional as possible.

Once the repulsor was ready to recharge, Tony plugs it into the light socket that is linked directly to the solar panels outside the lair. His work pays off when he sees the repulsor light up white; however, he is also aware that this makeshift weapon can only be used for at least three or four recharges of the repulsor, before it runs out of power again.

He frowns thoughtfully, as his brown eyes search for what else from the workshop to take with him. Immediately his gaze comes across a wooden box where he kept some homemade bombs he made from spheres and some chemicals he had found lying around. He also finds a gun that shoots darts and a small machine that gives electric taps at the push of a button.

He hopes that this small homemade and improvised weaponry, plus the gauntlet with the repulsor can be of help in the absence of his armor. He'll have to steal some weapons from the TVA, that's for sure. He gathers and stores everything in a small worn backpack he had used when he was out looking for things, and then decides that his green shirt is already too stained from oil and other things, so he takes it off and starts looking for another one among his limited closet.

He stops when he hears a gasp behind him when he turns around; Sylvie just blinks and stands there in the door frame, not knowing what to do with herself. Tony is about to say a witty joke, but it dies quickly in his throat when she looks down at the mess that is on his chest. There is a small scarred circle that glows faintly green, and surrounding its circumference there are runes that were painfully carved into his skin.

He doesn't know how he manages to control the urge to pull his hands to his chest to shield himself from Sylvie's curious gaze, but somehow he manages not to look embarrassed by the thick scars and the faint green glow. Sylvie takes a couple of steps closer, there's a grimace twisting her lips, her gaze still fixed on Tony's chest.

"What happened to you?" she asks in a soft voice, this time looking up to meet Tony's eyes.

Tony looks away and sighs.

"Nothing... just, one of the TVA weapons exploded very close to my chest when I was trying to escape," he shrugs his shoulders, and his eyes meet Sylvie's face again. "Several pieces of glass and energy from the weapon remained embedded in my chest. I was in agony when the other Lokis found me here after they pruned me. They couldn't remove all the pieces, so they contained them with seidr so the other pieces wouldn't go to more interesting places like my heart, for example. Hence the runes, I guess."

Sylvie blinks again, her forehead creases in several worried furrows, and she swallows saliva, her fingers lightly brushing the strange circle on her chest.

"Does it hurt?" Sylvie asks after several seconds of silence.

"Nah, I mean, I'm used to it," Tony says simply, with a shrug. "But it's a shame I can't sleep on my stomach anymore, I used to love doing that."

She nods, still has that look of apprehension but they both pretend they are unaware of that fact as she steps away, so Tony can put on the long-sleeved, v-necked shirt that shows a portion of the runes carved into his chest.

After that, neither says anything for a long time, during their walk to their new, temporary lair. Sylvie looks rather pensive, and Tony wonders if it has something to do with her chest, he knows it's not a pretty sight and might make a lot of people uncomfortable, so he hopes she's not disturbed by that fact. Fortunately, Alioth is nowhere in sight, that's good, Tony would hate to have to run with his impaired ability to breathe properly.

"Can you use seidr?" Sylvie asks suddenly, cutting off Tony's train of thought, he turns to look at her with a look of confusion on his face, and she quickly explains. "Your chest, there's magic in it, and since it becomes part of the mage as it grows in his body, you can probably use seidr," she frowns and shakes her head, correcting herself as she adds, "Well, it's not as simple as that."

Tony abruptly stops walking and looks at Sylvie with his eyes wide open, as if she had suddenly sprouted a third eye right in the middle of her forehead. Then he shakes his head several times.

"But the seidr in my chest is not mine," he says very slowly.

"It's yours because it's part of your body now, kind of like an extension of yourself," Sylvie squints her eyes as she looks carefully at Tony and then speaks again. "Besides, my... my mother used to tell me that seidr has a conscience of its own too, that means that if it didn't like you, you wouldn't be alive now."

Tony blinks, hoping his brain doesn't short-circuit the amount of information Sylvie just dumped into his lap. Because if it were all true, that would mean that not only is he a Loki by choice, but he can actually access the seidr in his chest and be a real ... Loki. Something like that, anyway.

"Shit, that really is a thing," Tony mutters as one of his hands rests on his chest, there where he knows the seidr swirls placidly, then his gaze returns to Sylvie's face, and a nervous smile stretches his lips. "So, does that mean you're going to teach me how to charm people?"

Sylvie squints her eyes and pretends to mull over her answer for at least five seconds too fast.

"Maybe," she smiles too.

"Great!" says Tony cheerfully, already picking up his gait again, and he has a thousand ideas in his head about how he could use seidr on his chest. "Maybe if I build a new suit, I can handle it with seidr because that's possible, right?"

Sylvie just listens to him ramble on about this and that with a small smile on her face. Tony is surprised, despite that façade of rudeness and distrust she shows to everyone, she is actually quite kind.

Loki watches as Anthony shares Sylvie's theory about him being able to use seidr as well, he's not up on the whole story, but he supposes he'll have a chance later to ask how that could be possible. His other variants watch silently and attentively as Anthony continues to ramble on about this and that, waving his hands and talking almost so fast that Loki fleetingly wonders if he is even breathing.

It has been several minutes since Sylvie left the group, and Loki decides that it is not good for her to isolate herself in this way. He takes one last look at a smiling Anthony, and then he too walks away from the group to go sit on the grass with Sylvie. She doesn't say anything, just watches him out of the corner of her eye; neither of them really knows how they should start a conversation, but somehow, she manages to find common ground for both of them.

"So..." Sylvie begins, stretching out the o in an attempt to sound casual as she does so. "Tony."

Loki waits for her to continue, but Sylvie remains silent, so he frowns and cocks his neck curiously.

"What about him?" Loki questions.

"He's interested in you," Sylvie observes him briefly and then looks straight ahead.

He turns over his shoulder and looks at their small, makeshift ruined lair, the light from the campfire they made protruding through the one remaining window. Loki can hear the laughter of his other variants and he smiles. Again he turns to the front and shrugs his shoulders.

"He's like that," he tells Sylvie simply. "He cares about all the Lokis, about us ."

This time, when Sylvie looks at him again, she seems to do so with a look that makes Loki feel like he's a particularly dense toddler. She smacks her lips and seems to ponder what she's going to say next; it bothers Loki a little, he gets the feeling that she's been uncomfortable around him ever since she arrived with Anthony. He wants to know why.

"I mean..." she pauses a little and then sighs. "He cares about you."

"You make it sound like that's a problem," Loki mutters in return, his brow furrowed in a gesture of confusion and, perhaps, a little anger.

"I don't know how to do this," Sylvie whispers, almost as if she doesn't want him to hear her.

"I don't know what we do, really," he replies in return.

She nods with a thoughtful grimace. Loki doesn't understand what's going on and why Sylvie is suddenly so strange, he knows there's something there that she's not telling him, and that seems to be the crux of the whole thing. Still, he wants to understand how Anthony figures into all this. Loki knows himself too well, more than he would like to, which is why he knows that Sylvie initiated the conversation by mentioning Anthony for some specific reason.

He's sure she's trying to bring this whole issue to a fixed point, and he knows that this thing she wants to say is all that's bothering her right now. And because Loki knows himself, and therefore her very well, he thinks he knows what's going on, and he doesn't know if he wants to hear it.

After several seconds of awkward silence, she seems to perk up and begins to speak.

"When I was escaping from TVA between different universes, I... met a variant of Tony, and we talked many times. Those years sneaking into his universe felt like the closest thing to being home," Sylvie mumbles, and the weight of that confession falls on Loki's chest as well, because somehow, he already knows what she's going to say. Sylvie swallows and continues, "I don't... I don't have any friends. I don't have anything, just him."

"I see."

That's all Loki can say. He actually wonders if something else happened between Sylvie and that variant of Anthony, he doesn't want to know though, and hopes she won't tell him either. Perhaps, that something doesn't necessarily have to be romantic, although, on the other hand, the notion that in another universe a variant of him and Anthony fell in love takes Loki's breath away. He also wonders how many other universes they have been this close to and how many times it has happened throughout the multiverse.

When he first met Iron Man during the Battle of New York, he didn't seem relevant. Just another mortal with an incredible intellect, of course, but Loki never imagined being with him in this way. It never crossed his mind that there could be anything beyond the obvious attraction he felt for him at first. Even not even attraction, he was so affected by the mind gem that anything else was irrelevant. Still, he was willing to admit that the man had indeed left a strong impression on him.

So much so that he could recognize that there were two of them in his timeline. Loki is more than certain that he would recognize that scent anywhere in the multiverse.

"How do I know that at the last moment, you're not going to betray us? To Tony, or to me," Sylvie asks after a long period of awkward silence, and she seems uncertain, she really cares about Anthony.

But Loki as well.

"Listen, Sylvie... I," he takes a few seconds to think about what and how he will say it, he was always good with speeches, but this time he wants to be completely honest about this, at least. "In the past, I betrayed all the people who loved me. My father, my brother, and my home. I know what I did, and I know why I did it. I'm not that man anymore. I'm not going to let you down, and I'm not going to let Anthony down either, okay?"

"Are you sure?" Sylvie squints, Anthony's laughter echoes through the place, and she sighs. "We trust you. He trusts you a lot, for better or worse. Just... don't make him regret it, he's stupidly naive, you know? And the TVA has already taken a lot out of him. And me too."

Loki nods very slowly, talking this way with Sylvie so seriously and without insults in between reminds him very much of when his mother used to talk to him to make him see his mistakes. The thought is a bit strange, but, anyway, Loki was always much more like Frigga than Odin, it's only natural that Sylvie is too.

"If this works and the TVA disappears, there will be a timeline you can govern," says Sylvie, in the process raising an eyebrow inquisitively.

He knows what she is trying to tell him, but he would never betray them for a throne or anything like it. Maybe, to anyone else, but not to Sylvie and especially not to Anthony. He doesn't say any of that though, he hopes he can get the chance to prove it. All he does is laugh.

" Ah , does that mean I can finally be happy being king?" he asks mockingly in return, and Sylvie just rolls her eyes before shaking her head slightly. Loki looks at her briefly and says, "What about you? What will you do when this is over?"

She frowns thoughtfully, somehow Loki senses what her answer might be. Sylvie looks up and opens her mouth, ready to speak, but is interrupted when footsteps treading on the grass very close to them are heard. They turn at the same time and meet Anthony, who stops a couple of steps away from them looking uncertain.

"I... did I interrupt something?" he asks with a frown, but doesn't even let either of them answer when he quickly adds, "Uh, I can leave if I..."

"No!" Sylvie and Loki manage to say at the same time, and in perfect synchronization.

The two exchange quick glances before Sylvie begins to step aside to make enough room for Anthony to sit in between them. He looks at the spot reserved for him with the same confused expression but in the end, sits there anyway. Sylvie and Loki watch him intently as he does so, and Loki thinks it's creepy. That they should stop looking at him like that.

But neither of them does, and in fact, he doesn't want to stop looking at him either. Anthony settles in between the two and places both hands on his knees in a gesture that gives the appearance of discomfort; he then gives quick glances at each of them and tries to appear casual when he asks:

"So, what were you guys talking about? I'm curious," Anthony comments cheerfully in an attempt to dispel the obvious tension.

"Well, I was asking Sylvie what she's going to do after we burn the TVA and save the universe," Loki answers.

Anthony laughs at the comment and Sylvie snorts.

"No need to be so dramatic, but yeah, something like that," she pushes a lock of hair away from her forehead and tucks it behind her ear as she watches Anthony shake his head.

Loki also smiles. Before this, he too had no friends, no shield brothers. Now he understands why Thor made such a big deal about it, why even the Avengers seemed to be an important part of his life. It's really nice to have this kind of complicity with someone else. He also understands why Sylvie cares about Anthony, even if this is a different variant than the one she knew.

"And what would you like to do when this is over?" Sylvie asks Anthony.

His smile slowly distorting into a thoughtful grimace, he frowns as he thinks about his answer.

"That's an excellent question," Anthony says slowly. "I was stuck here for so long that it's hard to think of an answer. Anyway, I never knew what I was going to do with my life, even before TVA came for me. Maybe I'm just going to wing it. What about you guys?"

"There's a friend I'd like to visit," Sylvie is the first to respond, exchanging a quick glance with Loki, then turning her full attention to Anthony.

"Sounds like a plan," Anthony hums in agreement at what she said, then his gaze shifts to Loki, and he looks curious when he asks. "What about you, Loki?"

Loki shakes his head. Before he met Sylvie and Anthony, all he wanted to do was overthrow the timekeepers to take control of the organization. That would have been his answer, however, now, he had nowhere to go and no one but the two of them. And if Sylvie was going to take back what she lost, well, then that left him the same as Anthony.

"I don't know either," Loki finally confesses, his eyes searching Anthony's to tell him almost tentatively, "Maybe... we can figure something out and decide this together."

He doesn't look away from Anthony's eyes but he still hears the sigh Sylvie stifles. She is him, so it is clear that she has realized that this is as close to a proposal as it gets. While Sylvie did not live for long in Asgard, Loki is more than sure that she knows the traditions and customs, but, more importantly, that she knows herself, and thus, him as well. They both know that no Asgardian would say this unless it was a serious matter.

Anthony blinks and swallows hard. He twists his hands in his lap, and Loki knows he's nervous, he knows because Loki has that nervous twitch of wringing his hands in situations that make him nervous too.

"Uh, yeah, I mean… maybe we could think of something, you know. Maybe ."

Anthony looks away, and so does Loki. When his eyes meet Sylvie's face, she has a small knowing smile. It's good to know that she doesn't object, even if there is still a small part of her that still doubts Loki. His gaze returns to Anthony's face, and he thinks that maybe the future that awaits him won't be so bad after all.

Chapter Text

It is a particularly gray day, the clouds are black, and the Alioth seems to be more restless than on other occasions. It roars and makes the earth vibrate in its path, they all remain standing watching the creature that has not noticed them yet, but it is more than clear that this will not be easy. The wind blows in their faces and shakes Sylvie's blonde hair into a complete mess. Tony notices, he always does, even if he doesn't want to. He can't help it, he's observant and curious by nature.

Finally, Loki, Sylvie, and he exchange glances. It has to be now, or else it never will be, at least that's the feeling that lingers as they cheer each other on. Tony turns to meet his other friends.

"You guys can come with us, you know?" he mutters because he doesn't want to leave them here and because he knows he's going to miss them.

The older Loki quickly shakes his head and looks legitimately indignant.

"We're not leaving here," he tells Tony in a determined voice, and Loki alligator just roars in agreement.

"That's right" kid Loki nods, he has that fierce look on his face as he adds, "this is our home."

To some extent, that could be a claim, after all, this place had also been Tony's home. It was all he knew after the TVA took him away from his universe and all the things that were familiar to him. However, Tony knows there may be more out there, and he wants to know it all, that's just the way he is.

By no means is he hesitating, but still, the other Lokis are watching him intently, as if waiting for him to change his mind at any moment. He's scared as hell, for many years he had only this, and the idea that now he might be free is almost frightening, and he might as well stay comfortable and safe here while Loki and Sylvie go to face off against the creator of the TVA. But he doesn't want that; he can't stand idly by. It's just not his style.

"Tony" calls him kid Loki and doesn't even try to fake the sadness on his face when he says, "You know you can always come visit us."

"Now go," Classic Loki points in the direction where Sylvie and Loki are still waiting for him. "They need you."

Loki alligator roars, and the three nod. Tony never really managed to understand anything he was saying, however, here and now, he gets the feeling that he is wishing them good luck. He averts his gaze because he doesn't want to see the faces of the other variants as he says goodbye, for a change, he never liked goodbyes, but he ends up looking back to smile cheerfully at them and try not to make this any more awkward than it already is.

"I'll be fine, super fine" he assures them, for some strange reason. "And you know, if this ends up sucking and if I end up being a happy stain on the TVA floor, I guess that means I'll see you guys again in Valhalla."

Loki alligator roars.

"He says you're harder to kill than a cockroach," the older Loki clarifies, so seriously that Tony just wants to laugh. "You're smart, Anthony. And you're one of us too, you won't die that easy."

Tony actually gets a lump in his throat and doesn't burst into tears by sheer force of will. He has an iron spine, like all the Starks who came before him, and he thinks that's why he manages to hold back the tears. Besides, it wouldn't be like him, so he just smiles and averts his gaze again. When his eyes accidentally meet Sylvie's face, she smiles encouragingly and somehow, that's all he needs to keep from backing down.

"Loki," kid Loki says, in the process summons Laevateinn from some pocket dimension and approaches to deliver her to Loki. "You will need this."

At first glance, Laevateinn might look like an ordinary sword, but it is actually the most powerful weapon any Loki could have. And it really surprises him that Kid Loki is willingly handing it over to Loki, after all, it was his most valuable possession. For a few seconds, Loki hesitates to take it, however, when the sword passes into his hands, the blade ignites with green fire and all the power contained within it. It is the closest thing to a Mjölnir there is, so only a Loki can be worthy to carry it.

Loki just gives him a quick nod before conjuring his own sword carrier and placing it there. After that, the other variants wave goodbye with a wave of their hands, and Tony watches them walk away; when he turns to see the other pair of Lokis, they already look more than ready to fight. The feeling of camaraderie pleases him.

"We need a big distraction so I can charm him," Sylvie says loudly, the strong wind carrying her voice with him.

Tony then remembers all the weaponry he carries with him, and soon his brain finds a way to get Alioth's attention.

"I have some bombs and things that can explode," he quickly comments, attracting the attention of both Sylvie and Loki. "I can build a circuit that will blow everything up as a domino effect, however, I'll need at least a couple of minutes to put it all together."

Loki immediately turns to Sylvie, judging by the look on her face, she doesn't seem very comfortable with the plan for some strange reason. The look Loki gives her, however, is reassuring, and she ends up nodding.

"I'll do time while you set up the circuit and Sylvie enchants it," adds Loki and somewhere in the back of his mind, Tony thinks they are definitely a great team.

He nods, and without hesitation, he starts running towards a place that is not too close to his friends but not too far away either. He listens as Loki shouts, unsheathing his glowing sword and trying to attract Alioth's attention. When he reaches a good place to cause the explosion, Tony kneels on the ground, pulling out all the weaponry he had in his backpack and begins to assemble his bomb.

He concentrates on putting together the homemade bombs along with the electric teaser, the idea being to blow everything up with the gauntlet repulsor. As he assembles his own makeshift bomb that can't even compare to what he could have created given the chance, he hears Loki scream again. He looks up and can see that for some reason the Alioth is now approaching him.

All his instincts urge him to run away from there, but instead, he looks down and continues to try to finish assembling the bomb. There's a part inside himself that sneers at him with disdain, but screw it , if he's going to die, at least he'll do it fighting. He never flinches, and he knows he has all the icky instinct of a hero to sacrifice himself for the greater good. Even if the TVA didn't allow him to be Iron Man, even if he doesn't feel like Iron Man, he still has it encoded in his DNA.

Just when Alioth is already there, about to swallow him up and dissolve him into nothingness, there is a second scream, and this scream causes the purple monster to stop and focus his attention to where the scream is coming from. Tony turns around too, and can't help but open his eyes wide when he realizes that Classic Loki has come to his rescue.

He marvels at the enormous illusion of what appears to be Asgard, every little detail is there, and it's big enough to make the Alioth want to destroy the illusion instead of him. At that moment, Loki arrives at his side and looks as surprised as Tony himself.

"I didn't know we could do that," he murmurs, his eyes wide and full of excitement.

Tony smiles, he too did not know that a Loki could be capable of such a feat. He quickly turns his attention back to his bomb and begins to move his hands to finish assembling it, at the same time answering Loki. The wonders of multitasking.

"The amount of seidr he's handling is ridiculous," he comments, already assembling the last of what's left to finish the bomb, he can feel that Loki's gaze is now on him, so he continues speaking. "You are amazing, Loki."

And after saying this, Tony stands up with a small smile. His final work doesn't look too amazing, but he hopes and prays that it works and gives them enough time for Sylvie to charm Alioth.

"I think he found his glorious purpose, and now he's just protecting it," Tony looks up when he hears Loki say that, the other man has a strange look on his face as he looks him in the eye, however, Tony isn't even able to ask what the hell he is referring to, because Loki is already speaking again, "we should hurry up and go to Sylvie."

Tony nods awkwardly, signals Loki to indicate that they should both move away from there, and once they are a safe distance away, he fires with his gauntlet directly towards where the electric teaser with the homemade bombs forming a small row along the length. The first explosion is not as surprising as the others that follow. Alioth seems to be confused as the bombs keep exploding again and again, not knowing whether to focus his attention on the explosions or on Classic Loki's seidr, who still struggles to maintain his illusion.

When they arrive at Sylvie, she too seems to be having trouble charming the creature. She looks relieved to see that they are both back in one piece, however, the relief soon turns to a grimace of seriousness when her eyes land on Loki.

"I can't do it alone," she admits, and soon Loki and Tony understand what she means.

"I don't know how to do it," Loki denies, his eyes wide and looking almost unsure of what she is asking of him.

Sylvie nods and extends her hand in Loki's direction as she says:

"You do know," she pauses a little and adds bluntly, "because we are the same being."

As if somehow seeking Tony's approval, Loki turns to look at him. Tony doesn't know exactly how long they stare into each other's eyes, there is fear, adrenaline and hope in their gazes. Tony could almost call it a kind of spark that draws him to Loki like a moth to a fire. He knows what those feelings mean to him, to both of them, and yet, he can't even bring himself to call it for what they are. Love . 

Somehow, as those seconds seem to last an eternity, Tony knows that Loki also knows what is happening, somehow that is even more terrifying. His mouth is dry as he nods in Loki's direction, cheering him on because he knows what the Lokis are capable of, he knows what they are capable of.

Loki grabs Sylvie's hand, and the two share an equally meaningful look before it is Sylvie who begins the incantation. Even for someone who looks so powerful and tough most of the time, you can tell that she too is having some difficulty as she channels all of her power into Alioth. There are a few harrowing seconds where Loki's seidr are just sparks dying too quickly.

Tony almost begins to believe that maybe they won't make it, when suddenly, Loki is also enchanting Alioth. Sylvie and Loki both look almost unreal as they stand there, struggling to get into the creature's brain, and Tony can only watch with wide eyes and a sense of satisfaction knowing he wasn't wrong. Loki is capable of anything.

A blink of an eye and an explosion of green is all it takes for a portal to open. Tony is the first to react and realize that the incantation worked, then Sylvie opens her eyes, and finally Loki does too. The three exchange smiles of triumph and nervous glances, they know they have succeeded in finding the mastermind behind the TVA, but they also know that means they will have to fight.

Loki extends his free hand in Tony's direction, and he doesn't even hesitate to shake hands. Hell, they don't even need to hold hands, but still, that seems to be the comfort they need. Even if they are going to go to that place to face someone extremely powerful, they are not alone, they have each other, and that seems to be enough.

As they enter the citadel and stand before the gates of what appears to be a ruined sanctuary, they stop. Neither Loki nor Tony move, they know it is Sylvie who must take the next step, it is her lifelong struggle, she deserves to at least have this.

"Do you think it's a bad idea?" Sylvie murmurs, and her heart seems to be in her throat as she turns to look at them, although her attention is rather fixed on Tony. "Because if you think it's a bad idea, I need them to tell me honestly."

"I did stupider things, before, during and after the TVA came for me," Tony is the one who responds, being all the focus of Sylvie's attention, he nods in the direction of the door as he says, "this will at least be worth it."

Sylvie nods, and her gaze is now on Loki's face, who slowly denies.

"No," he says. "Nothing to say."

There is another pause, Sylvie seems almost unsure about what they have come to this place to do. Tony doesn't blame her for feeling insecure right now, he was also on the run for a long time to save his own life in the void, he can get an idea of what she is feeling now and all that this means to Sylvie. It's likely that he, or Loki can't fully understand.

"Are you okay?" Tony is encouraged to ask, his voice soft and almost hesitant.

"I am, just give me a minute, Tony."

"Are you sure?" Now it's Loki who asks, only because in reality Sylvie also looks as terrified as they do. "Because we could..."

"Loki, will you stop talking? Sylvie replies, she sounds equal parts jaded and scared, however, she soon softens the tone of her voice as she explains, "I was pruned long before either of you two existed. I've been waiting for this my whole life, I just need a minute to think things through."

Both Loki and Tony nod, exchanging sympathetic glances with each other. However, Sylvie can't even get her longed-for minute to think because the doors open wide with a horrible creaking sound that evidences the disuse and how old the place must be, in general. Inside everything is in gloom as the three of them enter, with different kinds of emotions. There is a lot of dust, and some windows are already broken, it seems that, at any moment, the whole place will start falling apart on them.

"Hello!"

The three of them gasp at the sound of the voice of the clockwork hologram that appears out of nowhere. Tony remembers her perfectly well, she was in charge of explaining everything about the TVA when he was captured and was going to trial. She must have been Miss Minutes. Sylvie and Loki had already drawn their own swords in perfect synchronicity, Tony's repulsor took at least another three seconds or so to power up.

"Welcome to the citadel, at the end of time!" says Miss Minutes with that awful smile that makes Tony's stomach churn, that too kind and tender voice bring up his worst memories. "Congratulations, you had to travel a very long way to get here. You made quite an impression on him."

"Who's impressed?" It is Sylvie who asks, her voice and all her body language hostile as the three of them try to get away from the creepy hologram.

“He who remains.” 

This is what Miss Minutes answers, calm, unfazed by the Lokis' swords, or Tony's repulsor that is still on with its green light, illuminating a small part of the place where they are standing. Tony blinks, wondering if somehow, this is not a trap, if it is not another invention of whoever is in charge and judging by the expressions on Sylvie's and Loki's faces, they seem to be thinking something similar.

"He created everything, and he controls everything" Miss Minutes explains, and Tony gets the horrible feeling that, for a kind of artificial intelligence, he actually has quite human traits, like that condescending look on his face as he keeps talking. "In the end, there is only He who remains. And now he wishes to offer you a deal."

Tony snorts, but Miss Minutes doesn't even flinch as she turns her back on them, far too sure of herself. This definitely has to be some kind of trap, it doesn't make sense that someone so powerful, who could actually kill all three of them easily, wants to offer a deal. For what? None of this makes any sense, and somehow, she knows that even if this wasn't a trap, Sylvie would never agree to a deal with the person who ruined her entire life. Tony thinks neither would he and he hopes Loki isn't willing to listen either.

Not after everything he did to them.

"He's been making some... well, creative adjustments," the hologram continues his spiel as he paces back and forth. "And he arranged everything in such a way that he can put them back in the timeline. Of course, in a way that doesn't disrupt things."

"And how would I do that?" Finally Tony decides to speak up, too wary of what he's hearing, somehow his instincts are telling him that something isn't right about all this.

"Well, TVA will continue to do its vital work, certainly," Miss Minutes doesn't miss a beat in responding, Tony almost angry to realize that she recently noticed his presence. "But you guys will be able to live the lives you've always wanted ."

Tony frowns, somehow, that doesn't answer his question at all, and that makes him even more uneasy.

"I'll stop you right there, cutie " Tony snorts, squints as he gives Miss Minutes his best skeptical look. "What do you know about what we want?"

"Don't get smart with me, little boy" Miss Minutes smirks, causing both Sylvie and Loki to turn to look at him. "You know damn well how you got yourself into this mess to begin with. You started devising Iron Man's armor long before you should have. Skipping all the important events that forged your variants before you, you cheater. But you can have that life back."

Tony purses his lips, having an idea , that's what he was accused of when the TVA captured him. Of having a single random idea, and already, he hadn't even begun to draw the blueprints, much less build something solid, any evidence that would prove he had committed a crime. His whole life had gone to shit for a single idea that he didn't even know where it had come from.

Perhaps, that was why he didn't want to be Iron Man. His variants had forged Iron Man, instead... Iron Man had forged him, defining who, how and when he should be.

Definitely, the person behind it all, He who remains, knew exactly where to hit Tony, because even when he still believes this is a trap, he's almost tempted to agree. To go home, to see his mom and even his drunk father again. Even if he's no longer interested in being Iron Man... he needs to understand why everyone else was making such a big deal about their variants wearing the suit.

"And you Loki. Remember?" Miss Minutes speaks again, causing Tony to shudder, but now she's talking to Loki. "The Battle of New York, you against those cocky, brash Avengers. Wouldn't you like to... beat them? And not only that... you can kill Thanos."

Tony looks up, both his and Sylvie's attention are focused on Loki's face. There is an almost pained grimace as Miss Minutes continues to talk about the throne of Asgard and an infinity gauntlet, Tony doesn't know the context of everything the hologram is telling Loki, but judging by Loki's almost lost and pained expression, he assumes it must also be an important topic for Loki.

"What about you, young lady?" This time, Miss Minutes addresses Sylvie, there is a strange grimace of compassion on her false face as she speaks to her. "So many years on the run, desperate, alone... Wouldn't you like to wake up tomorrow with a life full of happy memories next to the man in the bar?"

Seeing the longing, pained expression, much like Loki's and probably Tony's own right now, he knows that somehow, the He who remains has known how to strike at all their key and most fragile points. He is tempting them with things he somehow knows they want, and that makes Tony feel more defensive, more wary of every promise Miss Minutes is making.

"You guys will all be able to be in the same place together," Miss Minutes concludes, making it all sound too good to be true.

"Would you put us together in the timeline?" Now it's Loki who asks, and Tony can feel his gaze on him.

He knows that's impossible, they can't give each other what they individually want, and at the same time, all be in the same place together. Before they met or the TVA came for them, they had completely different lives on different timelines. What timeline could they all fit in the same place, getting what they want without it affecting everything else? Yet when Tony looks back at Loki, there is something almost desperate and longing in his eyes at the mere thought that they might be together. 

That in itself is scarier than going up against He who remains. The idea of feelings, of love... Tony was never good at it, so the very idea of what Loki might be having in mind, paralyzes him. Not because he doesn't want it, but because he wants it with every fiber of his being, and that might be enough to give up his vengeance and destroy TVA, even if it's just a trap.

"It's risky," Miss Minutes explains after a few quick seconds of Loki and Tony sharing glances. "But he'll make it work. All of it, whatever they want, exactly as they've always wanted it. They'll have it, all of it... together."

"It's just fiction," Sylvie shakes her head, there's something painted in her voice as she says it because she knows it's true.

Tony nods at Sylvie's words and takes a step forward, giving himself the courage to speak before he can be completely seduced by the impending trap, and says:

"You only say what we want to hear, but we don't trust you, and we don't trust him either."

"Now we write our own destiny," Loki joins them, although he doesn't seem too convinced by their words either, still seduced by the idea of having everything he desires.

Miss Minutes frowns, and definitely, artificial intelligences are scary. That's what Tony thinks when she mocks them and disappears into nothingness, leaving the whole place in a brief silence until... the walls start to rumble, and a figure comes into view as an elevator opens its doors wide.

All three hold their breath because they know he is making his presence known to them.

Chapter Text

There is an overwhelming moment when He Who Remains finally appears looking so casual as if he has been waiting for his visitors on a random Sunday. He's eating an apple, and his whole body language irritates Loki too much. He doesn't look worried, nor surprised as he smiles at the three of them, as if he hasn't ruined their lives and the lives of a few other people. Loki looks sideways at their sides, both Sylvie and Anthony are in a completely defensive position, almost as if they expect that at any moment He Who Remains is going to come against them.

"Crazy is this, isn't it?" he says suddenly, like an excited toddler waiting for Christmas to arrive. "You two... the same person. To be honest it feels unnatural, but wow!"

Apparently, he had not yet noticed Anthony's presence until his repulsor made a sound again as if about to fire, the black eyes of He Who Remains fixed on his face, and he smiled more broadly.

"Even Iron Man is here. How crazy," he sighed, looking between the three of them expectantly as he continued to eat his apple, and watch them as if they were something entertaining.

"Are you the He who remains?"

Anthony and Sylvie asked in terrifying synchronicity, their voices echoing throughout the abandoned place as they gave each other quick and puzzled glances in equal parts.

"He who remains? Is there anyone who still calls me that?" he asked, snorting, and with an amused tone of voice that continued to irritate Loki's nerves and unsettle him in equal parts. "Old-fashioned, but... I like it."

It seemed that rather than talking to them directly, he was just wandering between random things that crossed his mind. It gave the feeling that he was more occupied with continuing to eat than with what was going on at the moment. The three of them lowered their weapons, but Loki was sure they would have the same look of confusion on their faces as they did so. There was a horrible moment of silence, where the four of them looked at each other, not knowing what else to say, until He Who Remains sighed with an excited smile.

"Don't be shy, guys!" he pointed toward the elevator from where he had appeared minutes before. "Come on in, we need to talk in my office."

He didn't even wait for any objection because he turned around and walked towards the elevator. Loki and Sylvie turned to look at each other, wondering with their eyes if this was normal or if it was even a good idea. Anthony was the one who followed the other man first, the look of distrust was still on his face, but there was also a certain curiosity burning, perhaps, it was that very curiosity that drove him to follow him without thinking. So Sylvie and he had no choice but to agree as well.

"I can see it's not what you were expecting," said He Who Remains once everyone was in the elevator and the doors were closed.

He was turning his back on them in a gesture that perfectly communicated his self-assurance and how little he considered them a threat to him. Anthony was still scowling, despite his initial curiosity, the gauntlet still lit in a show of clear distrust. Sylvie seemed to be burning with restrained rage; she was scowling too hard and holding her sword too tightly, judging by her appearance, Loki was sure that, at any moment, she would decapitate He Who Remains.

But Loki just stood there, looking at everything strangely and making calculations in his head. Making sense of everything that was going on and trying to understand how it all ended up like this. They fight with a man, just a man .

"You are... just a man," Loki thought aloud.

"Uh-huh, flesh and blood," He Who Remains nodded, his voice coming disdainfully out of his mouth as he continued to speak. "I already know I disappointed you guys a lot."

"No! That way you're easier to kill."

Sylvie made a reckless move, going against the One who remains. However, any attempt she could make to kill him ended in nothingness. It was enough for the man to touch whatever was clinging to her wrist to disappear and reappear somewhere else, just at the right moment, mockingly laughing at all Sylvie's failed attempts to finish him off.

For Sylvie's last attempt, he completely disappeared from the elevator. Sylvie looked frantic as Loki watched her silently, and Anthony just stood there with a slightly thoughtful expression. Suddenly, the elevator doors opened again, revealing the man again, who didn't seem particularly surprised at the situation.

"Come on in, kids," he muttered with a smirk, turning his back on them again as he made his way to his desk in the middle of a huge darkened room lit only by candles and the glowing fireplace.

This time, Sylvie was the first to enter the huge decaying hall. Loki walked right behind Anthony, who had his eyes narrowed as he watched the He who remained pouring something into black porcelain cups. Despite all the circus the man had made when he first looked at Anthony, Loki was pretty sure he knew he was coming too, judging by the fact that everything was set up. From the three chairs in front of his desk, as well as the three cups he was already filling with what appeared to be tea.

And to have the knowledge that he was waiting for them and that he was certain that all three would come, was something that made Loki uneasy. He was always a mastermind, he always came one step ahead of the others. This was no coincidence, nor did it seem to be fortuitous. It was clear that the He who remains had been planning all this for some time.

"Please, take a seat," He who remained indicated to them once he finished serving the tea, turning to look at them. There were already a couple of cups in his hands when he approached the small circular coffee table in front of their respective chairs, he placed a first cup looking at Loki. "Uh... this one is for Loki", then his gaze shifted to Sylvie, and he placed the second cup, "this one here is for Loki." Finally, he looked up looking for Anthony's face, and the third cup appeared out of nowhere, right in the spot between him and Sylvie. "And for my star guest - Iron Man! The heart of the Avengers ."

He who remains smiled, in return Anthony just frowned, annoyed at being called that way, gave him his best look of contempt, then said between his teeth:

"I'm nothing of the sort, you made sure I wasn't."

He who remains hummed in agreement, not giving Anthony's comment much more thought as he continued to carry sugar and spoons for them, giving the impression that that was the only important thing at that instant. Finally, as if it was all something very well rehearsed, he poured his cup of tea, sitting down in the chair on the other side of the desk with a pleased sigh as he watched them.

The three of them were almost reluctant to take a seat where they were told to, but in the end, they did, all of them with different grimaces on their faces. From Sylvie's anger and rage to Anthony's curiosity to Loki's own grimace of confusion.

"It's been a long trip for you, hasn't it?" The man exclaimed, turning to Sylvie first. "A lot of running. A lot of hiding," then his black eyes settled on Loki's face. "And you... Wow, you're a flea on the back of a dragon on a crazy ride."

He let out a laugh full of amusement that echoed frighteningly throughout the room. Loki clenched his jaw tightly but refused to say anything as he felt both Sylvie's and Anthony's gaze on him. He was sure they wondered many things about him, perhaps more Sylvie than Anthony, considering he spent so much of his life in the void along with other Lokis.

"But you held on with everything, didn't you?" he sneered again, his gaze making long contact with Loki's eyes before deciding to focus his attention on Anthony. "And lastly... Tony Stark, you, I could send you into the void, into a desert... it wouldn't matter because you'd still manage to re-emerge as Iron freaking Man. I must say, I'm impressed out of the three of you."

Loki frowned, despite being a born observer, dedicated to noticing the nature of people, he still couldn't decipher if this man was serious about all the things he said or if he was just pulling their leg. Deep down, though, his liar's instinct told him that this man wasn't lying, at all.

"I think you are misunderstanding the situation," Loki said seriously, showing his sword to make his point, however, the other man just looked at him as if it was, in fact, Loki who was misunderstanding, but that did not deter Loki from continuing to speak calmly. "You lost, we found you."

His eyes briefly met Anthony's face, then Sylvie's. She seemed rather proud of the admission as a smug smile began to stretch her mouth. He who remains frowned even more and looked at the three of them as if they were particularly dense children.

"Well, duh," he exclaimed eloquently, causing Loki to squint. "Obviously yes, that was the point."

Sylvie jumped up, completely furious with this man's taunts. She looked like she was ready to plunge her sword into the chest of He Who Remains, but he didn't even flinch. Loki got the vague feeling that he was counting on Anthony also standing up to stop Sylvie as he had done, causing her to fail to even graze him with her sword.

"Oops, she bats and misses spectacularly," he scoffed again, settling back in his chair.

Sylvie groaned in frustration and wiggled out of Anthony's grip, giving him a look as if he had been the one to tease her. Anthony held up his hands in peace as he licked his lips nervously.

"We should hear what he has to say, we deserve explanations." Anthony asked almost as a plea, his voice was gentle and soft as he spoke.

Sylvie watched him with the same scowl for several seconds before giving in completely to Anthony's deer-in-the-headlights stare. He who remains snorted in response, and Loki sighed, standing up as well.

"Well, as Tony said, we should clear this up at once," he finally said, too standing up, to pull out from among a pile of dusty books an old-looking folder, placed it on the desk, and began to rummage through it with a grimace of seriousness now. "Very well... then, I will show you."

From the folder, he took out three white sheets of paper that by this point were more yellow than anything else, due to time, humidity, and dust. He who remains placed them on the desk, so that the three of them could take a closer look at the contents.

"You guys can't kill me because... I'm already aware of what's going to happen," he concluded with a smile as he watched them intently, waiting for their reactions.

Each took a sheet of paper. Loki's had his name at the top left, on it read a monologue with all the things he had, in fact, said before. But his actions and thoughts were also written on it. Loki read it with a frown, even if he tried to find the trick, the leaves were stiff and dusty, yellowed. The black ink was worn, it was as if this had been written a long time ago.

"This must be a trick." He snorted, still frowning and unconvinced of his own words.

He who remains did not seem offended by the admission. On the contrary, he was almost excited as he began to explain himself.

"Okay, and don't you wonder how I'm able to step aside when she's going to kill me? How was I able to know that Tony would interfere to keep her from doing it?"

Anthony remained silent, as he had been since He Who Remains appeared before them. Loki watched him step aside as he continued to read the script with his brow furrowed in concern, but there was also something else, something almost desperate in his gaze as he continued to read. Loki wanted to ask what was going on, but he couldn't because Sylvie spoke again.

"No, it's because of that little tempad you have there." Sylvie pointed with a frown at the tempad in the hands of the He Who Remains.

"Exactly!" He nodded nonchalantly. "But how come I've already got him loaded with every single thing I need to know so I can keep the two of you from murdering me? How do I know Tony doesn't even want to try anymore?"

Both he and Sylvie turned to look at Anthony, he was tight-lipped as he shared a strange look with the other man. The paper he had been reading was crumpled between his clenched fists, and Loki wondered what he had realized. What had he read on that paper to make him static in his place, unable to speak or fight? Remaining silent was not like him, and yet…

"Well, Tony already figured it out as he expected it to happen... and actually, the answer to that question is simple," He Who Remains continued speaking, causing Loki and Sylvie to turn to look at him again.  "I know everything. And I have seen it all," he paused to give them a knowing look before speaking again. "Everything you two did at Lamentis, I saw it. Everything the TVA didn't even know about, I did. So many traps, so many... Discussions?"

He raised an inquisitive eyebrow. Loki and Sylvie looked at each other for brief seconds. They were both surprised at everything he was telling them and yet seemed reluctant to believe it completely.

"I know exactly what's going on between you three." He exclaimed in a mocking, almost excited tone of voice at the thought of continuing to bring more truths to light. "Tony's confusion, Sylvie's attachment... Loki's feelings. Very touching, really."

Sylvie quickly denied, her eyes narrowed.

"No," she said, though Loki knew her better than that he knew she was hesitating. "We managed to escape your stupid little game. That's how we got here."

"Wrong." Quickly rebutted the He who remains. "Every... step you took to get here, every feeling that motivated you, every thought you've had... it was me deciding that, laying the path for you to get here. You just walked it, didn't you, Tony?"

He pointed in the direction of Anthony, who was still clinging to that damn sheet of paper, his eyes wide with the realization that it had hit him with the force of a freight train. Deep down, Loki knew too that this man couldn't be lying about this.

"Tony has already read his entire script, but if you don't believe me, here's the rest," he hurriedly pulled the pages out of the folder to show them he wasn't lying. "Everything that's going to happen. There is only one outcome."

"I don't understand, why did you make us come?" After a long time of remaining silent and almost absent in the conversation, Anthony finally asked, standing next to Loki.

"You should know better than anyone. The journey doesn't end until it changes you in some way," he motioned to the crumpled paper still in Anthony's fist. As if now that he had read everything, the two of them shared a complicity. "This was all meant to happen, to put us in the right frame of mind and clear up the confusion, wasn't it?"

Anthony frowned, there was something almost pained in his gaze.

"Was that a fucking game to you?" He questioned He Who Remains, whatever he had read, it was clear it had affected him too much. "You just manipulated us into believing that..."

"That what you guys felt for each other was real?" He Who Remains asked with a cruel and cynical smile on his face with a chuckle. "That everything that made you special and different from your variants was because you had chosen it? Please, Tony! I was the one who put the idea in your head to build the Iron Man suit ahead of time. Your escape from the TVA? Your journey into the void to meet Loki's variants? I was the one who decided everything you are, everything the three of you are."

He finished by saying, giving the three of them an appreciative look. Sylvie frowned, still not quite believing it, but Loki immediately searched Anthony's face. He was pale and had a blank look on his face. Loki felt desperate at the mere thought of him believing all that. Desperate at the thought of Anthony actually believing who he was, everything he had gone through to survive was something that had been designed in a script just for this moment.

Chapter Text

Confusion. 

It was a word that felt strange, Loki was quite familiar with it. He was essentially an old being and had spent much of his life confusing others, twisting things to give the impression that they were something, and the result was always something chaotic and completely different from what was predicted. He had always seen confusion as a friend, an accomplice to his plans and mischief, but now he felt it as an enemy that had just stabbed him in the back. Giving him a taste of his own medicine.

He was still trying to process things the way they were, rather than the way he thought they were supposed to be.

The He Who Remains said many things about the Multiverse, the true function of the TVA, his own variations, and most of all, he talked about how he had always been in control of their lives, every thought, every action... every feeling. All were parts that made the great machinery of the Sacred Timeline work. To keep his own variants in check, that had the goal of conquering and destroying every universe in the vast expanse of what is called the Multiverse.

In retrospect, it was all frightening, confusing, and meaningless. How could someone control every aspect of your life? Loki didn't even believe it was possible, he knew there must be some kind of catch to all the things He Who Remains had told them. The fine print he wasn't talking about, but still, Loki knew that the vast majority of the things he had said were true.

His fear of his other variants, the consequences of killing him, and the multiversal chaos that would ensue if he were removed from the vast chessboard. Loki was a liar, the best if you allowed him a little egocentrism. So he knew that even though He who remains said many things to manipulate them, there were undeniable truths in his speech.

And somehow, despite all the reasons why it was a bad idea to kill He Who Remains, Sylvie's anger did not subside. It didn't die down, it just seemed to get a lot more fueled, and Loki remembered himself with the same kind of fury, betraying his family and fighting Thor. She was him, he was her, and so it almost hurt physically how hurt, betrayed, and angry she felt. Loki felt that pain as his own as well.

And just as Thor had failed to get Loki to listen while they fought in the Bifrost, Loki had failed spectacularly to get Sylvie to listen. It was ironic to be in Thor's shoes, he wondered if his brother felt just as hurt when Loki dismissed him as nothing more than sentimental. He in no way wanted the throne, as Sylvie had assured him, Nornas, he just wanted to keep Anthony safe, her too. To find another solution so that the weight of his decisions would not affect the multiverse and all the other universes in it as much as possible.

Then, after the big speech by He Who Remains and the few options they had to keep all this safe, there was a fight between Sylvie and Loki. She wanted revenge, he wanted to shuffle all the options. Loki's first mistake was believing Sylvie would listen when Anthony also said they should think things through before doing something completely wrong.

But Sylvie only grew angrier. She looked at Anthony with tears of rage, a dangerous look that screamed betrayal, and then her eyes turned to Loki as if he was to blame for all of this. As if Loki's evil plan to take control of the TVA, the throne of He Who Remains, and most importantly, Anthony, had worked.

"Ah, I see, so you're on his side then," Sylvie murmured, turning to Anthony, her tongue sharp and her tone so cold that Loki knew it so well. "Spending so much time with Lokis has made you one, hasn't it?"

And there was so much venom and contempt in those words that both Loki and Anthony shuddered. Still, she was crying, and Loki knew her so well that he knew she wasn't even serious. That the attack on Anthony hurt her deeply, more her than him. Against all odds, Anthony approached her, wide-eyed and almost hesitant, there was so much naked vulnerability in his gaze that it was almost painful to watch.

For a fleeting moment, Loki allowed himself to believe that Sylvie's feelings for Anthony would be enough to convince her, and the next second she had somehow sent them both through a portal and back to the TVA. With her seidr and her fingertips, she had pushed Anthony in Loki's direction, and he had barely been able to react to catch the other man in time before he felt the effects of gravity as the portal sucked them out of the ground beneath his feet.

They had fallen hard and painfully, tangled limbs and all. And despite the physical pain of the fall, despite Anthony's emotional pain at being betrayed by Sylvie, he was the first to rise, his gaze turned to the ceiling, his brown eyes watching the portal disappear. He stood there, the same look of naked vulnerability, one arm half extended upward, as if to somehow reach for the portal. And Sylvie.

Loki stood, realizing what this meant. Because they were here and because Sylvie... was going to assassinate He Who Remains, the entire multiverse was in danger. They were back in the TVA, and they had to do something to alert everyone. It also meant that there would inevitably be a war, and no one would be safe. Not as long as those variants were coming for them. He slowly approached Anthony, his legs shaking and his heart pounding in his chest.

"Anthony..." he began softly, but he didn't even get to finish what he'd said before the other man had already started to speak.

"She left," he said, looking equal parts hurt and confused. "She didn't believe in us, and now the multiverse is in danger." 

"That is why we have to stick together."

Loki swallowed saliva as if even his eloquence had failed him. His famous silver tongue failed him as he tried to confess his feelings at the worst possible moment. However, they both knew exactly how Loki felt about Anthony. After all, He Who Remains had openly mocked those feelings; the other man simply shuddered.

Then he blinked and looked away from the ceiling to look at Loki warily, knowing full well what was coming next. And Loki moved closer to Anthony, close enough to be a little rude and invasive, but not close enough as he wished with every fiber of his selfish being. He put his hands on Anthony's shoulders, and Anthony's eyes were wide open, shining from the tears he was having a hard time holding back for some reason. Loki also wondered why he had that expression of sadness and fear when Loki reached out and touched him.

"We must stay together, for survival because I..." but he paused to consider how to express his feelings properly, and after a few moments of reflection, he continued. "He who remains has said many things to try to manipulate us, but he has also expressed many truths, and the truth is that I... want to be with you ."

The tears he had been holding back escaped his eyes, and then he just pulled away from Loki's touch as if it burned him, shaking his head gently. And damn, that hurt deeply, it was a pain that even felt physical to Loki, because he loved this man and he knew well that the feeling was mutual. So why did he pull away from his touch? It didn't make sense, and he longed too much to be able to kiss Anthony before this turned into a disaster, and they ended up in a fight to defend the multiverse.

"No," Anthony finally said.

And Loki, again was hanging on the edge of the Bifrost. Again, he felt that everything was hanging by a thread, not just him. The last thing he had heard from Odin before he fell and fell and fell again had been a "No, Loki". And now he had that feeling again, but this time he wanted to hold on.

"What you feel is not real," Anthony said, but he said the words not to Loki but to himself as if trying to convince himself. "It's just another manipulation of the He Who Remains. It is not real. Nothing we are is, nothing we feel is. How can you be sure that you're not chasing after mere mirages ?"

Then Loki understood the reason for the rejection. Anthony had read his script, the things He Who Remains that assured him were his work; of course, everything that was written there happened, and yet Loki was still convinced that there was some kind of trap. He was quite sure of the feelings he had for Anthony, it couldn't be a mere pantomime for something else, it was all real because it hurt .

"No, you know this can't be a mere invention, a means to an end," Loki moved back towards Anthony, and he tried to move away, but his back hit the wall, and Anthony couldn't escape. "This is real, Anthony. I know because I feel it in my bones. Even with the other you in my timeline... I felt the attraction and the desire, but I never wanted to admit it, not even to myself, because it was you and me, and it didn't feel right, but it is . In any universe, it will always be right, and you know it too." 

Anthony looked up and watched Loki for several seconds which felt like an eternity, and Norns, Loki was so close that it was so easy to lean into Anthony's face and crush his mouth against the other man's. And if that feeling wasn't real, Loki would be damned because it was the most real thing he had ever felt in all his thousand years of existence.

He felt ecstatic at first when Anthony returned the kiss, moving his lips softly and languidly against Loki's, feeling the wetness of his tears and the choked sigh in his throat. But as soon as the feeling came, it was gone, leaving him cold.

Anthony pulled away, abruptly breaking the contact of their lips and gently pushing Loki away with his hands, putting as much distance between them as possible, and it definitely had to be real. It hurt and made Loki fall, and in a twisted way, he'd rather fall back into the void than into such a fall.

"No, I'm sorry," Anthony mumbled, but it was one of those things where his eyes didn't match what his mouth was saying. "I can't reciprocate because I'm not sure. Not anymore ." 

Loki denied it, longing to get closer to Anthony, to give him a thousand and one assurances that this thing they felt for each other was not something that He Who Remains had fabricated for his purposes. However, Anthony only denied it and ended up putting more distance between them, and Loki couldn't even imagine what kind of expression was on his face at that moment, as even Anthony couldn't hold his gaze.

One of them sighed shakily, though Loki wasn't sure which one it was. Anthony looked up at Loki's face, big, brown, glowing eyes that he could show off if he wanted to; but there was nothing in that gaze, just the echo of something burning that must have been there at some point, now reduced to ashes.

"Don't follow me."

He said, almost in a pleading voice, as he lowered his eyes again and then, turning away from Loki, walked out of wherever Sylvie had sent them. Loki turned around, but Anthony's figure had already disappeared through the door. He could only take a few steps before he just sat down on one of the steps and tried to process everything that was going on and why he kept ending up there. The god of the rejected, his older version had said. Destined to be left alone, without family, without a brother, without a throne, without a timeline to return to, without Sylvie, and most of all without his love .

Everything had just collapsed, not just metaphorically, because the multiverse was hanging by a thread, there was no place he could return to, and Sylvie had gone off on her own, as had Anthony. He still half expected to wake up in that horrible crater the Hulk had made with his body, in the Stark Tower.

He didn't know exactly how long he was there, wishing things were different, yet even his own pain was disturbed by all the fuss that seemed to be out there. For a second, he thought maybe it was Anthony in trouble, and that was enough to get out to find out what was going on, instead, he found several TVA agents running everywhere in apparent collective chaos.

Then, he knew that Sylvie had murdered the He Who Remains and that this was only to be the beginning of the end. She walked through the corridors looking for Mobius or some familiar face of the TVA, like the slayer B-15, but in her wake, she only found more chaos, with agents going through portals to different timelines to try to contain what was happening.

He knew Anthony must be nearby when he came across several unconscious agents in his path. He followed the traces of the fights that had taken place in the area until he reached the warehouse where they hid the weapons and tempads, but of course, Anthony was no longer there. However, on one of the monitors that were there, someone had conducted a quick search of temporal lines, and at least Loki had a vague clue about where Anthony might have gone.

Don't follow me.

Despite the other man's words, Loki convinced himself that he was not only going to try to find Anthony. But also to alert other universes about what was about to happen. A variant of his had caused all of this, and somehow, Loki felt in that moment of epiphany that he was responsible for trying to fix it. He had to find Anthony because they were the only ones who understood the magnitude of the threat and probably the only ones who could do something about it.

He grabbed a pruner and a tempad, then memorized all the timelines that appeared on that old monitor and chose a random number. He hoped that this timeline would be the right one and that Anthony would be on the other side. When he entered the portal and came out, he was in Stark Tower's attic, and he was not really surprised at all. It was logical that the numbers configured on the monitor would take him to any place related to Anthony's variants.

He looked around, everything being exactly as he remembered it. He could even smell Anthony's cologne throughout the place, which was a bit unsettling if he thought about it objectively. But the scent had been etched into his brain since that brief chat during the invasion of New York.

"I suggest you don't do anything drastic, Mr. Laufeyson", a hollow voice suddenly exclaimed from somewhere in the vast room. Loki just furrowed his brow at the way he had been addressed, but he couldn't say anything about it because then the disembodied voice spoke again. "Mr. Stark is on his way."

Loki's reaction was immediate; he turned in all directions, his eyes searching for the familiar figure of Iron Man coming from anywhere to deliver some kind of rude and witty threat. However, when the elevator doors opened, he only found the nonchalant figure of the man himself and Norns - that was the familiar face he had been waiting to see all this time. When their gazes met, both froze, but Anthony quickly regained his composure. He raised an inquisitive eyebrow, and the most disconcerting thing from Loki's perspective was the look of fury he directed at him. It was a fury personally aimed at Loki, and somehow, that almost icy look felt different. Loki immediately knew that this look had nothing to do with New York. It felt quite personal and intimate.

"You seem quite surprised," Anthony finally said, his voice dripping with sarcasm and a sharp smile that showed that in this reality, he was not finding any amusement in all of this, and for some unknown and equally intriguing reason, it hurt him. "Did your magical ass land here by accident, or did you just come to retrieve all your stuff?" He paused for a moment and then let out a humorless laugh. "Because, in fact, you're being quite timely; I was about to throw everything away."

Upon hearing that, Loki blinked very eloquently and furrowed his brow in a gesture of total confusion. 

What?