No One Said This Was Going To Be Perfect

Smiling While the City is Burning Down

Hi! New chapter! Hope you guys like it!

This overlaps with IW, and plz comment. I luv ur guys comments so much.

Loki POV

As the quinjet landed in front of the palace, I noticed James had slowed to the back of the group walking outside. I slowly peeled away from T'Challa and the Dora at the front- they were having their own discussion anyway.

The Wakandans were all stepping outside the palace, but James and I stayed indoors for a second, as I pulled him to the side, and once he made eye contact with me, I raised an eyebrow.

"What?" He feigned confusion, but he couldn't trick the god of tricks.

"You're sulking," I took up one of my favorite jobs of stating the obvious, before adding something even more obvious. "About Steve."

"I..." He trailed off as Captain Rogers and Romanoff stepped out of the quinjet. The assassin must have dyed her hair some time in the past six years, probably while on the run. Rogers clearly hadn't had any time to shave, but he still looked as patriotic as always.

A rush of anger came back through me. I'd had James for less than a day, and now it's Steve's turn?

T'Challa and Okoye halted their walk, and stood still, waiting for everyone to leave the quinjet. From behind the palace doors, James and I could see all of the landing pads, and I couldn't help but notice that the Avengers took the biggest one. They truly believe the world revolves around them.

Behind the captain, Bruce, and two men with dark skin that I didn't recognize. One had a red suit with some mechanical thing on his back, and he carried himself with confidence. The other was simply wearing a black jacket, and some sort of leg brace, and he was murmuring with Bruce and they stepped onto the platform.

I felt a rush of power as the last two people left the quinjet, and it was obvious they were the most powerful. A girl with a red leather jacket was walking beside a cyborg, and I realized the cyborg was the reason I was here. Embedded in its forehead, was the mind stone. I could feel the raw power from across the courtyard, and for some reason, maybe relief or mania, I let out a smile.

"You look like you're watching a city burn down," James commented drily to me, and I rolled my eyes.

King T'Challa and Captain Rogers exchanged niceties, and I saw Bruce bow awkwardly, and I had to resist a facepalm. The man next to him said something, and Bruce looked back up at him, confusion clear on his face. T'Challa said something, and the man with the black jacket chuckled. The group turned and started walking towards the palace, and James and I took that as our cue to come forward.

When we came close enough to hear, I heard T'Challa was explaining our forces. "You will have my Kingsguard, the Border Tribe, the Dora Milaje, and..." He trailed off, looking at me and James.

"A semi-stable hundred year old man, and a tired ass god," James said, making eye contact with Steve, but Romanoff and the man with the red suit were glaring at me, and before I could say anything, the assassin had a gun pointed at my head.

"Woah, woah!" Bruce shouted. "Don't shoot! Don't shoot. He's not a bad guy anymore! I mean, he's annoying, but he's a good guy now. We saved Asgard together!"

Romanoff kept the gun pointed at my head. "Why should we trust you?"

I knew she had no good reason, so instead of answering, I said: "You shouldn't. But it's either trust me or let your world be destroyed. Take your pick."

Reluctantly, Romanoff lowered her gun back into her holster, and Bruce's sigh of relief was audible.

"How you been, Buck?" Rogers asked, politely ignoring the recent squabble.