justabitoffun | [for kingofarchers and <user site="livejournal.c

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[for kingofarchers and <user site="livejournal.c

Loki didn't leave the apartment all day in part fear that Barton would attempt to escape somehow. He already knew he was going to get into trouble for what he'd done, he certainly didn't need to loose the archer on top of the impromptu transformation spell he'd cast to turn the agent into a white tiger cub. He didn't mind being stuck inside all day on this particular eve though as the entertainment value provided by Barton's defiant attitude and Raun's eager attempts to get the cub to play with him were priceless.

By the end of the day Raun had begun to settle down and when Loki took a relaxed seat on the couch the kitten was almost instantly there to lie down in his lap. The Trickster god petted idly at the kitten's soft fur as he kept a deceptively lidded eye on the tiger cub.

Coulson would be home soon. Loki couldn't be more overjoyed by the prospect.

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The cub made another distressed noise and started what had to be his millionth lap around the room. This day was quickly working its way up Clint's list of worst days. If things didn't improve drastically, it might settle in the top ten. He glanced at Loki, snorted, and changed direction.

There had to be windows he could reach. Or a door. Or a vent. Vents he could work with. Ears perking, Clint changed direction again and walked along the wall until he found one. With no better idea coming to him, he sat down on his haunches and frantically started clawing. It did a good job of making noise, but not much else.

That's when the sound of the front door unlocking resonated throughout the room. There was never any such thing as 'just another day', but one made do, and in this case actually managed to get home at something somewhat approaching a reasonable hour.

Coulson stepped inside, carefully closing the door behind him. One never could be too careful with a swift kitten in the household, after all. He started to shrug off his suit coat and then stopped. "Oh, Loki." And then something else caught his eye. "Please tell me that's not a tiger."

Even if Loki hadn't heard Coulson's distinctive gait approach the door Raun's tiny ears pricking the moment the key hit the hole would have told him that the agent was home. When the door opened the kitten's head perked up. A moment later and the white ball of fluff was racing to greet Coulson, rubbing happily against the agent's pristine pants.

Loki smiled faintly as he watched and a moment later he responded. "It's not a tiger."

The clawing stopped abruptly as Clint recognized the new voice. Oh fuck. Abandoning his escape attempt, Clint bolted toward Coulson, and skid to a stop at the man's feet. The first noise out of his mouth was an embarrassing chirp, and none of the one's that followed were any better.

Coulson had already begun to kneel down to scratch Raun behind the ears, and the kitten was purring quite happily. He calmly held his ground as the tiger cub approached and cautiously held a hand out towards him, fingers curled inward, just in case.

"Why is there a tiger in my apartment?"

"It was either that or leave him where I ran into him. I thought he'd be safer here."

He got up from his seat on the couch and simply turned to watch Coulson's reaction to the tiger cub. He was mildly surprised Raun didn't bat at the tiger for approaching his favorite human so tactlessly.

"Besides, he's only a tiger cub. He won't hurt anything."

Coulson's hand went ignored as the cub turned on Loki. He crouched down and pinned his ears flat against his skull, tail twitching behind him. His lips were curled in a silent snarl, a warning for Loki to stay where he was.

Clint was at a severe disadvantage, but he'd enforce the distance between Coulson and Loki by force if necessary. Part of him hoped it would be necessary.

"Well, he certainly doesn't seem fond of you."

He straightened slowly, picking Raun up as he did so. The tiger cub was obviously on edge at the moment, and he didn't want the kitten doing anything to startle him and possibly getting injured. "Where did you run into him? And is there an annoyed mother tiger somewhere?"

Loki smirked down at the tiger cub, clearly amused.

His attention flickered back to Coulson as he spoke. "His mother is deceased. As well as the rest of his family. Pity, that." The god spared another glinting smirk at the tiger before he sidestepped around the furniture and moved towards Coulson. "I knew he would be fond of you though. It's endearing, really..."

That was it, Clint was officially pissed. His mother was a sore topic, family in general was a sore topic, and to casually dismiss them like that effectively derailed any rational battle plan Clint had. Roaring, the cub launched himself at Loki's leg, fully intending on chewing through the god's Achilles tendon if it killed him.

Coulson blinked at the sudden ferocity of the cub's attack, making sure to hold the kitten just that much more securely. He knew without a doubt which was more sturdy between Loki and the small tiger, so he directed his commentary accordingly.

"Be careful. Please don't hurt the cub."

He snorted in reply to the agent. Whether he was still amused at the tiger cub or not was debatable but he certainly seemed unperturbed. He didn't move as Barton clamped down on his leg though the cub's teeth weren't dull in the least.

After giving the tiny tiger a minute or so to try and bite through not only his skin but his armor protecting said skin, Loki rather abruptly bent down and plucked the cub up by the scruff of the neck. "Are we really going to play this game again? Come now, what happened the last time you bit me, hmm?"

After a cursory struggle, Clint stilled. No sense in wearing himself out further when it wouldn't even make him feel better. His ears remained flat as Clint nodded once in a slow, deliberate motion.

It was hardly as if the agent had terribly much experience around tigers. But he was fairly certain that they couldn't nod. He could chalk the motion up to coincidence, but it wouldn't have been a very comfortable motion, not being held by the scruff of the neck like that.

His eyebrows knitted together. "Did he just nod?"

"He's a smart one."

He leaned in close to the tiger's ear and whispered "this time" in a voice that only the feline would hear enough to understand. He set the cub down gently on the floor and patted him on the head.

"Good boy."

Then he made his way towards the kitchen, deliberately getting close enough to brush his fingertips across Coulson as he moved by the agent.

The second Loki got too close to Coulson, Clint was moving in between them. He pressed his side against Coulson's leg, keeping his teeth aimed at the god. There wasn't enough common sense in the world to make him back off from this fight. Even if he was trembling again.

Loki's actions were little more than an afterthought to Coulson at this point. He frowned and crouched down to get more on the cub's level. "You're trying to protect me, aren't you, little guy? Something's not adding up."

Laughter floated out of the kitchen, light and brief. Loki leaned against one counter at the edge of the area as he tore open a snack-sized chocolate candy bar and resumed watching the two agents. His grin was unmistakably tinged with devious delight.

"Like I said, he's quite fond of you for some reason."

The cub gave another nod, relaxing just a fraction. Coulson was smart, Clint had faith he could piece this together. He had to. Clint raised a paw and pushed at Coulson's leg in an effort to direct him toward the door.

Between Loki's laughter, the tiger's behavior, and just plain instinct, something clicks. Coulson glances up and over at Loki.

"You weren't just humoring me when you said it's not a tiger, were you?"

"Oh, I might have been humoring you just a little bit. But no, it's not really a normal tiger, now is it?"

Loki smiled again this time aimed directly at Coulson. Then he turned away as he bit into the chocolate and opened the refrigerator door.

This lack of movement wasn't thrilling Clint. They had an opportunity for distance that was being squandered. He squeaked at Coulson, lifting his other paw to push at the man's leg.

His attention was diverted to the tiger cub again. "Running's not going to do much good at the moment, and it's definitely not going to help your situation."

His gaze didn't shift, but who he was addressing did. "I've had a very long day, Loki. Whoever it is, please change him back."

Loki poured a glass of milk and set aside a small saucer of the white liquid while he was at it. As he knew would happen, Raun heard the tell tale sounds and knew exactly what they entailed. By the time Loki had set the saucer on the kitchen floor the kitten had struggled out of Coulson's grasp and was headed straight for the treat.

Closing the refrigerator door, the Trickster turned back towards the agent and tiger. "No."

Giving an exasperated huff, Clint dropped back onto the floor and sat down. That was the answer he'd been expecting. Why they aren't currently going to SHIELD to fix this, that's the question that will haunt him.

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