Twisted in Ties (Loki x OC)

Tony's POV

"That's the guy my dad never shut up about? I'm wondering if they should've kept him on ice."

"Huh. The guy's not wrong about Loki, though. He does have the jump on us."

"What's he got is an Acme dynamite kit. It's gonna blow up in his face, and I'm going to be there when it does," I replied, going back to my own screens.

"Yeah? I'll read all about it," Banner said, continuing at his own station and sliding something over to me from his screen.

"Uhuh, or you'll be suiting up with the rest of us." 

"Heh, you see, I don't get a suit of armor or a will to control what I want to happen." He began. "I'm exposed...like a nerve. It's a nightmare." 

"You know, I've got a cluster of shrapnel trying every second to crawl its way into my heart. This," I said, gesturing to my reactor. "stops it. This little circle of light, it's a part of me now." I walked over to him. "Not just armor."

"...And Izetta?" I sighed.

"She was a girl who never should've been brought into this. That was something I could relate to. She had no idea where, what, or who she was. I saved her from that. That's the one thing I don't brag about, though. She might not express it, but I knew how badly she wanted it to end. I wouldn't let her, because there was more to her than just being used and then being thrown away. I could see it in her. I admit, part of that is because she's one hell of a fighter and can kick some serious ass, but the other part is because I saw someone who was more scared of herself than she was the world."

"Scared of herself?" I nodded.

"...When I first brought her in, every night she would wake up screaming. I had to have Jarvis lock her in her room. I put her in a tower to keep her from doing something stupid. I would always be there, every night, every time she screamed, telling her that what she was feeling wasn't herself. It was the demons the world she'd been forced to experience put inside her. The minute she would calm down...all she would want is to sit with me," I explained. "I told her every night that she was more than this, that she was lucky to be alive. You know why?" He looked up. "It wasn't because of me. I told her she was lucky because she hadn't given up. So I wasn't going to let her give up right after she got what she deserved. Freedom."

"You know, it's hard to believe she's not your daughter when you talk like that." 

"Listen, the point is, no matter what, this," I said gesturing to my reactor. "it's a terrible privilege, just like Izetta's freedom was. Might have started out horrible, but it means something in the end."

"But you can control it." He countered. 

"Because we learned how."

"It's different." I pushed all of the data to the side.

"Hey," He faced me again. "I read all about your accident. That much gamma exposure...shoulda killed you."

"So you're saying that the Hulk-" He paused. "the other guy saved my life?" He asked. "That's nice. It's a nice sentiment..." He didn't look convinced. "Saved it for what?"

"I guess we'll find out." 

"You may not enjoy that."

"And you just might."

"Is that what you told Izetta?"

"Word for word, big man."

"Well...one thing is different, at least I know what the other guy is." He stated. "Does Izetta know what she is?" I paused.