Bedridden
Thor drags himself into consciousness. It takes a while. He drifts, understanding vaguely that he’s in a bed, under fluorescent lights, but then he’s dragged under again. When he finally manages to blink his eyes open, he finds none other than Tony Stark sitting in a chair next to his bed.
“We made it, then,” He groans, startling Tony. “Where are we, New York?”
“Not the city. The compound, upstate.” Tony is staring at him. “What the hell happened to you?”
Thor chuckles softly. “You have no idea, Stark. It’s been a very, very strange journey.” There are drugs in his system, painkillers and muscle relaxants, slow to release their grip on his mind. They’re making everything about the last two years feel incredibly, absurdly funny.
“I’m sure it was. And once you’re a bit better I’d love to hear your version, I’m sure it’s far more reasonable than the absolute bullshit your brother’s been spinning, but just focus on resting and-” Thor is suddenly stone cold sober. His heart races.
“Where is he?” He says, voice low and dangerous. “Stark, where is my brother?!?”
“Okay, okay, chill! He’s under guard, don’t worry he won’t escape.”
“It’s not his escape I’m worried about, is he alright? Was he hurt?” Tony looks surprised. “Stark, what have you done-”
“Nothing, we haven’t done anything to him. Relax, Thor. He was only slightly injured by your crash landing, we just talked to him, got the story, or at least the story according to his mind which is still definitely not firmly placed in the realm of reality, and he’s been left alone.”
Thor scrubs a hand over his face. “Take me to him.” He makes an effort to sit up but a sharp pain in his back and chest stops him.
“You’re in no condition to be wandering around, buddy. We can wait until you’re better than take you to his cell-”
“Stark!” A surge of rage flows through him, but it only leaves him fatigued. He flops back against the pillows. “Bring him to me, now.”
“Thor, be reasonable-”
“Stark, you must bring him to me.”
“He’s dangerous, we can’t just let him out of-”
“Yes, he’s dangerous, but, he’s not plotting anything, Stark, he’s…he’s hurting.” Thor’s last clear memory of his brother was of Loki bound and weeping as he was tortured. There are other, vague flashes, Loki’s arm around his torso, the glow of the Tesseract, but the last clear image that fills his head is Loki’s horrified and devastated face. “He needs me.” Okay, perhaps Thor didn’t want to admit that it was really the other way around. Tony just looks at him like he’s grown a second head. “Please just bring him to me.” There is silence for a minute.
“What happened to your eye?” Tony asks quietly.
“My sister put it out.”
“And you caused the apocalypse to stop her?”
“Yes. Ragnarök. Asgard is gone.”
“Where did you find Bruce Banner?”
“He was fighting in the ring on the planet Sakaar. It was ruled by a tyrant called the Grandmaster. Hela - our sister - had thrown Loki and me from the bifrost and we landed there. That’s what happens, lost things land there. We escaped with the help of a Valkyrie.” Thor’s chest tightens. He still doesn’t know what’s become of her, or Heimdall, or the rest of the Asgardian refugees.
“Where’s Bruce now?”
“I don’t know. Loki and I were taken captive by Thanos - the Mad Titan, the one who had sent Loki to Earth with the Chitauri. We had a plan, I don’t know if it worked. I don’t even know how long it’s been since Thanos took us.”
Tony blinks. “I guess maybe Loki was telling the truth,” He mutters.
“Will you bring him to me then?”
Tony sighs. “Fine. I’ll arrange for a visit. I can’t make any promises. If he acts up, we’ll have to put him back in the cell.”
Thor nods and settles in. “Fine.”
He has to wait about thirty minutes, counting down every second. Finally the door opens and there is his brother, flanked by two guards. His hands are bound behind his back, his eyes are distant, unfocused, and his face pale, but he appears to be mostly uninjured. Tony follows them, dismissing the guards once they’re through the door.
Loki stumbles a little at Tony’s hand on his back, pushing him towards Thor’s bed.
“Brother,” Thor says softly.
“Thor,” He breathes.
“Unbind him.”
“Sorry big guy, we can’t take any chances. The cuffs stay on.” Thor lets out a frustrated breath but doesn’t argue. He has to choose his battles.
“Come here, Loki.” He beckons his brother forward. Loki sits on the edge of Thor’s bed, shifting awkwardly with his bound hands.
“I’m sorry,” Loki says. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you, I should have been more careful. The portal was collapsing so fast, I didn’t know what else to do.”
“It’s okay, it wasn’t your fault.” Thor touches his knee, relaxing at the contact, the feeling of solidity under his hand. “You did well getting us out of there. We’re free now, thanks to you.”
“Free.” Loki lets out a sob.
“We’re away from Thanos.”
Loki shakes his head. “I’ll never be free from him, I’ll never be away.”
“Look at me, look at me, Loki.” Loki’s shining eyes lock with his. “It’s going to be okay. Come here.” He pulls Loki gently down onto his chest, tucking his head under his chin. He pets back his hair as Loki shudders against him, hiding his face. “I’m here.”
They fall into the same position, curling together like they did for so many nights in the cell aboard Sanctuary. It’s practically habit now, even if Loki can’t embrace back because of his bonds. Despite it, Thor finds himself relaxing. Tony stares at them with naked shock on his face.
“Is anyone going to explain to me how tall-dark-and-crazy went from insane megalomaniac trying to conquer the planet, to dead, to…this?”
“It’s a very long story, Stark. Tomorrow, I’ll try to explain tomorrow.”
Tony looks a bit uncomfortable. “Okay, I’ll just call the guards back and-”
“Stark, you’re my friend, but I warn you,” Thor glares at him. “I may be bedridden but I will not allow anyone to take him away from me. If you want to take him away, you will have to come and remove him from my arms yourself.”
There is a look on Tony’s face like a door slamming shut. He pauses another moment, then nods. “I’ll be back in a few hours.” He turns and leaves. Tony Stark knows how to pick his battles too. A little more of the fight leaves Thor and he buries his nose in Loki’s hair.
“We made it,” He whispers. “We survived.”
“So far,” Loki whispers back. “You’ll pay for what you just said to Stark. He won’t forget that you threatened him to defend me.”
“I don’t care. He’ll understand, once I explain what happened.”
“I already did. I told the truth, all of it, I swear, brother. And he said I was mad. That I was spinning lies and he would not allow me to put a spell on him. Even if you confirm all I’ve said, they will say I’ve enchanted you.” Loki shifts, turning his head to press his ear over Thor’s heart. He sighs. “I don’t know what to do.” Thor just sighs.
“We’ll figure it out,” He says. “Together.”