"That was one good party," Tony muttered, throwing himself on the couch, the only piece of furniture in the semi-constructed room.

He massaged his forehead. It was the night after the party and Tony couldn't remember much at all.

"You're telling me," Loki murmured, perching on the arm. "I spent the entire time responding to calls for more drinks and coaxing two stubborn oysters out of their shells."

"Brucie should know better than to offend me," Tony pointed out, staring up at the ceiling.

"He wasn't offending you. Merely avoiding all forms of life."

"Sounds like him," Tony admitted. "And the Capsicle?"

"I got Rhodey to discuss the army with him. He cheered up rather quickly. I hope he didn't start thinking of his lost comrades."

"How can he forget?" Tony asked bitterly.

There was a pause.

"It feels weird..." Loki said slowly, "To have got to this point without them."

Tony froze although he had already known where the conversation was heading.

"Daniel was... Closer to you than Yinsen ever was to me," Tony said and it was obvious that the admission hurt him. "I knew him for a week. One bloody week."

"One long week," Loki corrected. "But that was, without a shadow of a doubt, the worst week of your life, Tony. "He got you through it, he helped you. Who wouldn't regret what could have been?"

"I was stupid," Tony said, his face full of despair. "He said he would return to his family. How was I supposed to know_"

"Exactly. You were never supposed to know or work it out," Loki comforted his friend. "It's what Yinsen wanted, to return to them."

"How do you feel about Daniel?" Tony asked suddenly.

Loki physically recoiled, standing up and beginning to pace up and down. Eventually he spoke, Tony watching him all the while.

"I wish... I wish it was me there that week. I know I couldn't have done anything," he added, when Tony looked like he was about to interrupt. "I just... Would've liked to be there. It would've felt better to have been there than to have been far away, blissfully unaware of the whole event."

Tony winced but Loki was too caught up in his own thoughts to notice.

"Why didn't we go together?" Loki asked, almost manically. "Global warming and we took two jets in two consecutive weeks?"

"Something came up," Tony said miserably.

Loki quickly calmed down, noting Tony's dejected tone.

"There was nothing we could've done," he said out loud. "So why do we feel responsible?"

"Because you're good men."

Both men looked up suddenly. There Natasha stood, leaning against the doorway. Neither Tony nor Loki had known that she was there.

"I see where you got your bloody namesake from," Tony muttered.

Natasha moved forwards to stand in front of them.

"You are both good men."

Natasha's blatant honesty startled them into silence.

"That's why you feel guilty and wonder about all the ten million things you could've done differently."

She shrugged.

"Sorry, I couldn't help hearing what you said."

"I bet you could," Tony pointed out but Natasha only smiled gently.

"Don't go beating yourselves up over it. You are the two greatest men I've ever met. And they would've wanted you to go on, to live, not to regret the past."

"Damn," Tony said, wiping a tear from his eye with one irritable sweep, "You were wasted as a spy. Try public speaking next time."

"I'll request that as a cover for my next mission," Natasha smiled, resting a hand on Tony's shoulder.

She nodded at the two of them and left. They sat in silence for a few minutes, contemplating the dusty floor of the tower.

"Why didn't we put soundproof walls around this room during construction?" Mused Loki.

"I believe Sir said he might be labelled as a paranoiac," Jarvis spoke up.

Loki had forgotten that the AI was perpetually listening. Jarvis had been the first thing to be installed in the tower after electricity and the basics.

"Loki," Tony said quietly, unlike his usual self, "I have something to tell you."

Loki turned a wholly resigned face towards him. He could guess where this was going.

"Is it the news that you are planning to propose to Pepper?"

"How do you know?" Tony exclaimed, aghast.

Their previous apathy was cast aside almost immediately. Natasha's words had temporarily dispelled all of Loki's fears.

"Happy dropped the ring."

"He did not!" Tony sounded indignant.

"Of course not," Loki smiled. "I have lived a long time, experienced lots of things and recognise love when I see it."

"Please be my best man."

"Of course."

*

Tony's sneakiness obviously warranted suspicion.

"Tony, what are you doing?" Pepper questioned, alarmed, as her boyfriend attempted, unsuccessfully, to hide behind a pot plant.

"I was, um, inspecting the begonias," Tony sniffed.

"Those are petunias."

"Same difference."

Loki walked in. This had all been rehearsed, of course.

"Pepper, could you give me a signature for this? The government are still harping on about that battle; as if we didn't just save their city from certain annihilation."

While Pepper busied herself with the pen, Tony dropped to one knee behind her, ready for when she turned.

"Oh Tony!" Pepper gasped, clapping her hands to her mouth.

"Virginia Potts," Tony said, with utmost seriousness, "Would you do me the absolute honour of becoming my wife?"

Pepper fixed him with a stern glare. Tony shifted uncomfortably.

"I tried to imitate Loki," he shrugged.

A smile tugged at Pepper's lip. She couldn't stay even marginally annoyed at the lovable billionaire for long.

"Don't worry," she said, grinning. "I'll marry you."

Tony sighed, relieved, and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"Is that all I get?" She asked.

"Can you tie my shoelaces?" He asked petulantly, gazing at her with big brown eyes and sticking out his bottom lip.

"I can do a lot more than that," Pepper muttered flirtatiously.

Loki promptly left. Tony had it more than covered.

*****

A.N. Another funny and, hopefully, sweet chapter. Loki is going to be Tony's best man!

Thank you so much for reading! :)