Things changed for the worse when the pair made it back to the tower. Tony was not happy that Loki left the tower. He was even less happy that Morgan had gone with him. Morgan let him tirade for a while to get it off of his chest, but finally had to interrupt when he was talking about how dangerous of a villain Loki had been. "Dad, you want me to take a bodyguard when I go out. Loki is a trained Asgardian warrior and at least as capable as Thor at bodyguarding. He's also less likely than Thor to throw innocent mascot-costume-wearing teenagers through store walls thinking they're real monsters. You also want Loki to have a babysitter when he goes out, even though he hardly needs it. It was a win-win. Plus ice cream!" She held up her container of ice cream.

Loki nodded along to her explanation. He was surprised that Morgan was standing up to him, and even more surprised that she was actually being listened to by her overbearing father. "My job on Midgard is to aid the Avengers. If watching over Lady Morgan while she goes on an outing contributes to that, all the better." Morgan was one of the few people Loki could stand and he enjoyed her company.

Tony hugged his daughter and kissed her hair. He relished holding her close grateful for every moment with her, just so relieved that she was alive. "I just want you safe, kid," he told her quietly. It was always his reasoning for being overprotective.

"I know, dad," she replied just as quietly. "And I'm perfectly safe with Loki. He's a gentleman and a capable warrior. He's not going to let anything happen." Morgan didn't expect her dad to agree, not with his history with Loki, but she would keep repeating it until he accepted it.

"She is perfectly safe in my care, Stark." Loki gave Stark a firm look, reminding Tony that even when he'd been injured, mind-controlled, and worse, he'd still tried to help Morgan and had tried to save her life.

Morgan kissed her dad's cheek and dragged Loki up to her apartment so they could enjoy their ice cream in peace. She had an entire floor of the tower to herself and they could lounge in her living room in front of her giant tv with their ice cream in peace. Loki allowed himself to be dragged and looked around her apartment with polite interest. Her living room was plushly decorated with comfortable seating and bookshelves and tech everywhere. She had a study that was crammed with even more books as well as her schoolwork. She even had a guest bedroom.

But it was her bedroom that was the most interesting. Loki wouldn't snoop without real permission, but he could look into the room. It was just as richly decorated as the rest of her apartment, not gaudy, but good quality. Her bedroom, though was more personal, a space that was truly hers and gave Loki a lot of insight into her. The decorations were different: paper lanterns, origami cranes, and pictures of a Japanese temple.

Loki couldn't find out more, though, because Morgan called him from his exploring back to the living room. She was curled in what seemed to be her favorite spot on her favorite couch with her bowl of ice cream. His was waiting for him on the coffee table already in a dish with a spoon. Loki took a seat on the couch and carefully picked up the bowl. He paled as the cold started turning his fingers blue, and the blue crept up his hands. His illusions weren't going to hold against the cold. He knew it, but it was still difficult for him to accept, and he didn't know if Morgan would be able to handle seeing the monster he truly was.

When Loki took a bite of the ice cream, his illusions shattered, just as he expected. He gave Morgan a nervous glance, but she didn't seem troubled at all by his appearance. Only then was he able to relax and purr loudly at his sweet treat.

Morgan smiled over at him. Her smile was contagious. She was like a tiny sunshine. "Like it?" she asked as she took in his jotun form. He was still Loki, just... blue. His eyes were crimson and his marks were beautiful. And he had horns and a tail. She thought he looked amazing.

Loki's cheeks blushed purple at her evaluation of him and this form. "It's really good," he agreed, a bit nervously. He didn't want to lose Morgan. He found that he valued her friendship.

Morgan beamed "Thought you'd like it," she said and didn't comment on his form, but clearly wasn't turned off by it. Loki nodded and relaxed at her silent acceptance. His tail swished beside him. It seemed to indicate his mood.

Morgan gave him a gentle smile, finally up to broaching the subject once Loki had relaxed. "Your jotun form is beautiful," she informed him with a blush.

The purple on Loki's cheeks deepened. "You think so?"

"I do" she agreed easily. She wanted to touch, but that would be rude. And dangerous. Loki was practically emitting cold in this form, even from the other side of the couch and she was only human.

Loki looked over at her with his crimson eyes. His tail wrapped itself around his leg and he couldn't help but be amused at Morgan's cat-like curiosity as she watched it. "The movie didn't do your Jotun form justice. To the point that I'm not convinced he's ever actually seen a Jotun..." she rolled her eyes and Loki chuckled and gladly made fun of Thor with her. As he was the only one who could feasibly consult on a movie with Jotnar in it.

Loki went to smooth back a strand of hair, but winced when he touched his sensitive horns as he tried. Morgan tilted her head and reached to tuck the strand of hair for him. "Thank you," Loki said softly. He was very shy about his Jotun form.

Morgan noted that he was shy about it and didn't pressure him. Her fingertips brushed his sensitive horns as she fixed his hair. His skin didn't seem to bother her, though she was only human, so she should be turned off by the cold. Loki purred softly when she touched his horns and he blushed an even deeper purple.

Morgan lit up at his purring and did it again. A purring Loki was a happy Loki. And the Jotnar were apparently all overgrown cats. Loki purred louder at the feeling. A glance down would explain why. His horns were not only sensitive, but sensitive in a sexual manner as well. Morgan didn't notice at first, moving to trace her fingertips along the ridges on his cheek, curiosity taking over way more than logic. She was always too damn curious for her own good.

Morgan, however, eventually did glance down and there was no way to miss a bulge that size. Which she would not be fantasizing about later...

She jolted herself away from those thoughts and pulled her hand back, realizing that she was touching him more than was appropriate for friends. Neither of them could even think of entertaining those kinds of thoughts for a few more weeks at the very least, until she came of age.

"That felt good," Loki told her, though recognized that they both needed to pull back, to preserve their relationship as a friendship and nothing more. Definitely nothing more.

When Loki finished his ice cream, his illusion returned. He stood and gently clasped her shoulder, giving it a friendly squeeze before he gathered up all of the dishes to put them away. Morgan started to move to help him, then grinned when she saw that he just vanished the dishes clean back to the cabinets where they belonged. "You're welcome to stay for a movie if you'd like?" She said when he started to come back toward the couch. She would accept if he said no. He was likely peopled out by then. Loki didn't do social for very long.

Loki smiled at her offer and actually accepted it, coming back to sit on the couch with her. "I'd like that a lot," he replied warmly. It was such a nice change of pace to have someone actually want to spend time with him, to seek out his company just for his friendship. Especially someone in his own age group. He might be over a thousand years old, but where he came from, that put him at only a year or two older than Morgan.

Morgan smirked and picked out How to Train Your Dragon to watch with him. She figured he would enjoy the movie about vikings and dragons. Loki lit up in delight at the familiar characters and story. He'd read all the adventures of Hiccup and Toothless when he was a child on Asgard. They were his favorite books.

Partway through the movie, Loki quietly laid his arm along the back of the couch, a silent offer to cuddle. It was borderline too far, but he was Jotun and couldn't resist cuddles. Morgan shifted until she was cuddled up with him, a couch blanket wrapped around her. Loki gently lowered his arm so he could hold her. It felt wonderful to have cuddles again. And he tried very, very hard to convince himself that it was just a friendly gesture.

And tried to ignore the thoughts of all the ways Tony would kill him if he saw this.

His thoughts of the various ways Tony would kill him was interrupted after Morgan had relaxed in his arms, her head on his chest. She had relaxed to the point that she was purring softly. Actually purring! Like he did.

He was absolutely delighted. "You just purred!" he blurted out, amazed. Asgardians couldn't purr and as far as he had known, Midgardians couldn't either.

She looked up at him with a blush and started to pull back, thinking he was upset or weirded out by it "Sorry..." she said sheepishly. She didn't know why she could purr and usually hid it.

Loki shook his head, quick to reassure her. "Don't be sorry! That was amazing!"

"It was?"

Loki nodded. "Very much so," he pulled her back in to cuddle, wanting to hear and feel more of her purrs. No one in his life ever had, except for his Mother. She'd only been able to with magic.

When Loki's excitement eased some, it finally occurred to his excited mind that he should probably consider why Morgan could purr. Just as they were getting comfortable again, and Loki's mind was about to pleasantly traipse down the rabbit hole of the mystery of why Morgan could purr, they were very, very rudely interrupted by the mission alarm sounding through the tower.

Morgan groaned and paused the movie. Their relaxing afternoon was over.

Loki glared at the alarm, puffed up and angry. "Norns, why now?!"