Of Numbers and Strange Friendships

Chapter 79

"Not that I mind, but why exactly are you coming to school with me?" Peter asked the morning of the first day of classes. Happy had picked him up and brought him to the tower so things could be explained to him before class and before Loki officially started school with him. Loki would be in all of Peter's classes. It hadn't been hard to prove he had the academic capability for them. He was the Master Magician of Asgard after all. He could handle some high school classes.

"Seven," Loki grumbled. He didn't want to go to the school any more than any Midgardian teenager wanted to go to school on any given morning. He was dressed in perfectly tailored jeans and a t-shirt with Norse runes on it. He also wore a pair of black converse, as he'd acquired a love of the brand and the design.

Cap cleared his throat to get the attention off of the stabby god. "Loki is attending the school to protect you," he explained to Peter.

Peter's eyes went wide. "To protect me?" He practically squeaked. He started to splutter apologies and explanations and try to reassure everyone that he didn't need protection.

Loki held up a hand and Peter's diatribe stopped immediately. The teen had learned to obey Loki's unspoken commands without question. Loki had been unheard and unlistened to his entire life. When he requested that Peter listen, Peter understood and respected the request. So Peter went silent and gave Loki his full attention. "Yes, you need protection, Arachnid. And I'm the one in the best position to be able to give you that protection. The world does not know that you are Spiderman," which was frankly a miracle since Loki and Peter were so close and Spiderman and Loki were also seemingly so close. People were dumb not to have put it together already, especially with Loki calling both of them 'arachnid'. Loki chalked it up to the general populace being filled with morons, Jarvis intervening, and people automatically assuming that Spiderman was in fact an adult. "If you lose control of your magic, the mortals are going to realize something is different about you and start asking questions. There is also the fact that you are in the spotlight after the attack on Stark Industries. The world knows now the extent to which you are important to myself and Stark." And the team knew that Peter couldn't protect himself without betraying his identity.

Loki watched Peter as the teen tried to figure out how to protest, but there was nothing he could say, no argument he could give. Loki spoke the truth. Peter wouldn't risk his secret identity and had a target on his back. He finally sighed. "There's no arguing, is there?" He clearly felt bad that Loki had to come with him to school.

He hadn't even seemed to realize yet that he would have to babysit the god just as much as Loki was watching over him.

Loki shook his head with a smirk that finally seemed to shock Peter into realizing just who was accompanying him to school. "No, there is not, Arachnid," he said with a Cheshire Cat grin.

And that was the moment that Peter knew that having a bored god of mischief in a high school was more trouble than he'd bargained for.