Of Numbers and Strange Friendships

Chapter 3

 Loki felt better for people watching on the roof of the building with Peter while they ate their sandwiches. "The shop really did have good sandwiches," Loki told Peter as they watched the crowd below. He was impressed that the child had been correct, and more impressed that the Midgardians had acceptable food, especially at such an inexpensive establishment. Loki vanished their trash when they had finished the sandwiches and Peter thanked him profusely while he oohed over Loki's use of magic. The kid was always impressed anytime Loki performed magic and Loki couldn't help preening under the praise.

"STOP! THIEF!" called a woman's voice from below them. Loki watched as a man went running from her with her handbag, clearly stolen from her. Loki shrugged, but looked concerned when the kid jumped to his feet.

"What are you doing?" Loki asked him, confused.

The kid just stared at him as he dove into his costume. "We have to go help that lady!" he told Loki as if that were obvious.

Loki just looked at him. "But... why? This is not a mission. She is not a member of our team..." helping others just for the sake of helping them was a foreign concept for the god.

Peter huffed. "Because it's the right thing to do," he told Loki emphatically as he pulled his mask over his head. "Now are you coming or not?" Peter demanded and jumped off the roof of the building.

Loki didn't want to go. He owed nothing to this woman. But... he couldn't let the kid rush off to battle alone, even if the battle was against a weak Midgardian thief. He still couldn't send a child into danger alone, not when he was here. So he sighed heavily and let his battle armor shimmer into place, golden horned helmet included. He wasn't taking any risks of people not knowing who he was. Or that the kid was under his protection. At least while he was babysitting the kid. How old did Midgardian children needed to be to be outside without supervision. The child was... fifteen? But that meant nothing to the god who was already over a thousand and still considered young.

So he heaved a sigh and resigned himself to the fact that he was going to have to help the spider child. So he teleported down to the ground, saw where the man was still running and teleported in front of him. He grabbed the thief by the throat and lifted him easily off of the ground. "Return the lady's bag," Loki snarled at the man as Peter caught up, landing from one of his webs. The man dropped the bag as he fought to breathe. Loki summoned a dagger so he could speed this along. This was really a lot of trouble and effort just for one Midgardian's bag...

"Mr. Loki, no!" Peter called, sounding like a terrified child. Loki tilted his head like a confused puppy and looked over at the kid.

"No, what? We caught the offender, now we deal with him and move on with our lives," Loki told the kid, wondering what the problem was.

"You can't kill him! He stole a bag, that's not a killable offense. That's like a 2 on the evil scale!" Peter protested.

Loki huffed a sigh and vanished the dagger. This was getting very tedious indeed. It would be so much faster and easier just to kill the man. "Then what do you suggest we do with him?" he asked, gesturing to the man he was still holding by the throat off his feet.

"Put him down. I'll bind him up. We'll leave him for the police with a note and they can deal with him," Peter insisted, but his voice was calmer since Loki was listening to him.

Loki rolled his eyes, but held the man against a nearby wall so Peter could web him to the wall. "Are you sure we cannot just kill him? It would be much easier," Loki grumbled, but didn't fight with the spider boy and even produced a piece of paper and an elegant feather quill to leave their note for the authorities. He signed it elegantly after he read over Peter's simple little note saying what the man had done.

Loki walked with Peter to return the bag to the lady. Loki understood how happy she was to have the bag back, but he didn't know how to deal with her gratitude. She hugged Peter and would have hugged Loki too for helping, but Peter convinced her that was a bad idea. Lucky lady.

"We should head back to the tower," Peter told Loki. "We did our good deed of the day,"

"Good deed of the day?" Loki asked as they strolled together back to the tower, both still in their battle costumes. It wouldn't do for either of them to hide as civilians now and Loki wouldn't risk the kid's secret identity. He was curious about this foreign concept.

"It's an old saying," Peter enthused, seeming to want to teach Loki how to be nicer to people, which was rankling, but the god was amused, so he let the kid ramble on. "The idea is that if everyone does one nice thing for someone every day, without expecting a reward, then they will be happier for it and the world will be a better place,"

Loki scoffed and rolled his eyes. That couldn't be right. And yet... wasn't his world a little better for being kind to the spider-ling? It was definitely something to think over.

*

A couple days later, Loki was sitting on his usual couch with a new recommended book from the spider-ling when the kid appeared. He looked up with a small smile, until he saw that there was a woman with the kid today. She looked angry and Peter was not quite cowered behind her as he walked in, but he was wary of this woman.

That had Loki's hackles rising. He didn't like seeing Peter upset. Peter gave him a small wave to get his attention and held up three fingers. Loki relaxed a little. The kid was ok. He would signal Loki for help if he wasn't.

The kid would...come to Loki for help if he was in danger.

Loki hadn't quite realized it before, but it came clear to him now. The child felt safe with him. Safe enough to seek his help if he were in danger.

Peter maybe even... trusted... him.

Loki's thoughts were interrupted as the woman stomped over to Tony. "How dare you put Peter in danger!?"

"Aunt May..." Peter said placatingly. Ah, this was the formidable aunt the kid constantly spoke about.

"What danger exactly?" Tony asked, hoping the kid's secret of being Spiderman hadn't been spoiled.

"One of Peter's internship duties is to babysit the former super villain?!?!!!" she demanded with rage and fear in her eyes.