"Alright," Elaine said. She fought back a yawn. "And when Ben gets here, I need coffee."

Kae snorted. "Alright, I'll let him know when I see him." She stretched briefly before she settled in to sorting the books that needed to be reshelved so she'd have an easier time of it later.

It wasn't too much longer before Elaine heard both Tony's car and Steve's bike outside. Curiously, though, neither man walked inside. Instead, she could hear voices outside the door, and it sounded like they were arguing. A third voice joined the argument, and Elaine recognized the deep, boisterous sound of Thor.

"I wonder what they're arguing over," she mused to Kae. "Mr. Odinsson usually isn't one to get riled up."

"No, he's not." Kae was listening in, too, and she heard something along the lines of "He's my brother!" from Thor. His voice was very distinctive. "Brother?" She blinked, looking over at Elaine.

"Don't care whose brother he is, he's a menace," Tony argued. Now he was starting to get pissed. He wasn't particularly fond of Loki, after all.

Elaine just shrugged. "Do we want to hazard a guess based on the mythology?" she asked Kae.

"Thor, we're not babysitting him," Steve added, a little calmer than Tony. "We can't be worrying about keeping an eye on him."

"He is no threat to you," Thor countered. "He would not be here if he was."

"We could," Kae ventured. "Let's see. I know there are some tales of him growing up with, um, Loki?"

"Yes, he would, because we already know he can get away from Fury's people." Tony crossed his arms over his chest, his eyes narrowing.

"The All-Father would not have let him come back while he was a threat," Thor pointed out with an air of finality, crossing his arms as well and glowering. He made sure to keep himself between his brother and his friends.

"That sounds familiar," Elaine said. She nudged her friend. "Look outside, tell me what you see."

"The All-Father didn't let him do anything, from what he said," Tony snapped, totally ignoring Thor's posture. "He banished him here! That is not letting, that is telling. And how do we know he's not a threat? He tried to kill us. Repeatedly."

"Um... A guy in black and green standing behind Thor," Kae said, peering out the doors. "Thor's between him and the other two. They are definitely arguing, and the new guy is trying to look cute and pathetic to win brownie points. It's not working real well."

"He is not a threat," Thor reiterated. "The All-Father has bound his powers until such time he is worthy to have them back." Here, he looked a little annoyed. "Apparently it builds character." Oh yes, he remembered his own little banishment stint. But regardless.

"Interesting," Elaine replied. "Should we assume that guy is the brother?"

"Oh I'm sure." Tony snorted. "Fine. He can come to our little pow-wow. He causes any trouble, though, and it's your problem. Got it?"

"I think so. Looks that way. Although I don't see any family resemblance." Kae shrugged. "I think they hashed things out. They don't look so pissed now."

"I will see to it that he does not cause trouble," Thor replied. He glanced at his brother, a look that clearly said 'behave.'

"Who did we offend in a past life to get two of them in here at the same time?" Elaine asked rhetorically. She couldn't see this situation being resolved so easily.

Kae just sighed as they walked in. "Gentlemen," she greeted. "Your normal room is ready for you."

"Great." Tony sounded even more sarcastic than normal.

"And you may want to see this, Mr. Stark." Kae handed over the envelope Fury had sent to her. "At your leisure."

Loki watched the exchange, his eyes bright. Oh he still had so much to learn, and he had such good subjects to watch while he learned, too.

"And Mr. Stark," Elaine added as she heard Tony walk by, "I would like to remind you that if you cannot control yourself and your attitude at the same time, please take them both outside until you can." She almost ignored Thor going by her desk, until the scent of ozone hit her like a brick. She wrinkled her nose, but managed not to comment.

"I'll keep an eye on Tony," Steve said as he followed his friend inside.

The door shut quietly behind all four of them, and Kae let out a breath as she moved behind the counter again.

"Well, so far so good. No one's hit anyone else yet."

"I could smell the ozone from here," Elaine commented. "They really got each other ticked off. Was he throwing sparks or something?"

"Not quite, but he looked about pissed enough to be." Kae shrugged. "I guess they really don't like Loki much. I think he was an unexpected guest."

"Given what the mythology says, I can't say I'm surprised," Elaine replied. She suppressed a bit of a shudder as someone (she assumed Loki) walked by. Whoever it was, there was a slight aura of cold around them, as if they were too-cold themselves. "Was that him?"

"Yeah." Kae watched Loki walk around the library slowly, having been excluded from the research. "He's just kind of wandering."

"He's like a cold spot," Elaine said. "It's weird. Kind of like the ozone smell. Maybe all of them like them are like that?"

"I dunno. I'm not sure I want to know, either." Kae shivered briefly at the prospect.

"Oh, I doubt you will get the chance," Loki said, looking over at the two girls from between two bookcases. "Be amazed you've met two of us."

"Judging from the argument we overheard, it doesn't seem like we should have," Elaine replied cautiously.

"No, you shouldn't have," Loki agreed. For a moment he had an internal tantrum over the fact that his plans had been foiled, then he shook himself. "Be glad you're still alive," was what he settled on instead.

Kae shifted, feeling distinctly uncomfortable now. She was starting to get the weird cold vibe from him now too.

"I've been glad I'm still alive since I was thirteen years old," Elaine replied. After a moment, though, she added, "Although being a little more thankful couldn't hurt."

Loki snorted, moving closer to the counter so he could get a better look at the two. "No, it couldn't," he agreed. "Although your lives are so short anyway."

Elaine made a vague, noncommittal sound at that, neither agreeing nor disagreeing. It was best not to take a side with that one. She tried to ignore how goosebumps raised on her skin when she felt his 'cold spot' get closer.