Of Numbers and Strange Friendships

Chapter 63

"What do you mean, Pete's doing this?" Stark demanded, looking at the items floating near Peter. He clearly had no idea how to control his new abilities. Loki wasn't surprised.

Loki rolled his eyes. His words had been perfectly clear and clearly legible on his piece of paper.

Stark rolled his eyes even harder. "Alright, reindeer games. How is the kid doing this? He doesn't have magic. That's what you and the witch do, not Pete," Stark protested. Peter was an inventor and genius like Stark. He'd made his own web fluid for being Spiderman, helped Stark come up with his newest suit. He'd gotten powers because of the radioactive spider, but that wasn't really magic, not how Loki and Wanda meant it.

Loki took Wanda's hand to make telepathy easier between them. Her eyes glowed red as her powers activated. /Can you hear me, witchling?/ he asked her with his own magic.

She nodded and smiled over at him. /I hear you, starshy/ she replied, calling him her brother as she always did. She'd adopted him as such and it had stuck. Loki loved the reminder in her term of address that she was family, that she loved and chose him for who he was.

/I'd appreciate if you can give me a voice, little one/ he said gently. He hated using her for her abilities, but was grateful that he could speak to her telepathically, that he could still be heard, that his voice wasn't silenced like the Allfather wanted it to be.

/Of course. You know I'll help. It's no trouble,/ it really wasn't a problem for her. She had too much power that she had to focus to avoid hearing everyone's thoughts. She was glad to help Loki now. She liked feeling loved and useful. She liked being able to help. And she liked empowering Loki.

So Loki spoke to Wanda telepathically and she dutifully recited his words to the team. /I saved Peter's life by giving him one of Idun's Apples, one of the golden apples of immortality as the mortals know them. That's a misnomer for them. They have immense healing properties. They also have the power to turn mortals into immortals. Into Asgardians to be more specific. When Peter became Asgardian, he also gained the gift of Asgardian magic. That likely happened because he already had his spider-child abilities/ Loki explained to the others while Wanda recited his words for him.

"I'm not a child," Peter protested in a huff. His teasing and laughing was soothing to Loki. Not everything was as dire as it seemed when Peter could laugh about the situation. Loki knew that Peter was putting on a show to make him feel better, but he accepted it regardless.

"And Odin decided to sew Loki's mouth shut for saving Peter's life?" Nat demanded. Everyone on the team adored Peter. They'd all grown to care for Loki, because of his friendship and brotherhood with the teen if nothing else.

Thor nodded and looked down. "And he made me do it," he said, rage making lightning crawl over his skin. He'd hated having to hurt his little brother. He'd hated the unjust punishment. Thor stood, his rage radiating off of him. Loki looked up at his brother, wondering what he was about to do, and knowing it was something stupid. Thor's expression gentled when he looked at his brother. "I need to have some words with the allfather. Stay here with Peter. I'll be back soon,"

Loki shook his head firmly and started to stand. Thor couldn't face Odin alone. He'd never win. Odin was Thor's king and father. He out powered Thor in magic, as well as political power. He'd squash Thor and banish him again, or find some other punishment for his son for daring to stand against his king.

Thor gave Loki a fond smile and clapped a hand on Loki's shoulder. "I will be alright. The allfather won't hurt me, but I cannot let this atrocity stand. Now that you're safe and out of his reach, I will see this injustice rectified,"

Stark, surprisingly, stood. "And he won't be alone,"

"We protect our own," Nat agreed as she stood too. She was followed by Cap, by Clint, one by one the entire team stood to get ready to face down Odin, to avenge one of their own.

In their eyes, thanks to Peter's influence, Loki was no longer seen as being there on penance, on house arrest, on punishment. He was a member of the team, a full member, just as respected and cared for as any of the rest.

Loki was absolutely touched, even if he did think they were crazy to go against Odin.

Peter and Wanda jumped to their feet. "I'll go too!" Peter insisted more bravely than he felt. He wanted to avenge Loki, wanted to prove that his life had been worth saving. That didn't mean he wasn't afraid of the king who had always frightened Loki.

"Me too!" Wanda insisted.

Thor shook his head. "No, and not just because it is too dangerous. Which it is. I need you two to stay here and take care of Loki. He will be in no shape while we're gone. I'm frankly amazed he's still on his feet..." it was true. Loki was swaying from exhaustion and pain. He'd been mostly asleep before Stark started asking him questions.

The teens both wanted to protest, but they also saw the state Loki was in. Loki tried to protest, but as he couldn't form words at the moment, no one was listening to him. He was tempted to use some magic to get their attention, but when he reached for his magic, it slid out of his grip.

He was a lot worse off than he'd thought if he couldn't use any magic.

The next thing he knew, Peter was easing him back down onto the couch. "I'll look after him, Mr. Thor," he promised and pulled Loki's head down to his lap while Wanda found a couch blanket to cover Loki with. He would be just fine with the teens looking after him.

Thor bent down to kiss Loki's forehead. "I'll make this right, brother. And I will return as soon as I am able," he promised.

There was still a lot to do, especially with Peter's transformation. But Loki couldn't focus on any of that right now. He couldn't focus on anything but the fingers stroking his hair and the soothing presence around him. He was fading fast and let the world fade away. He barely noticed as the team left. He had to give Peter a message before he let the world fade completely. He tapped three fingers against Peter's leg.

"Glad you're feeling better, witch," Peter said fondly. "Get some rest. Wanda and I will be here,"