Work Text:
“Hold still, Anthony.”
“Ah, fuck! Damn it, Loki! When you said you wanted to,” Tony hissed, “'mark me', I thought it would be more fucking-fuckfuck, pleasurable than this.”
There was brief pause and Loki raised his gaze from where it had been focused, his dagger poised over Tony’s hip; the tip was green and red; a combination of magic, ink and blood.
Tony was grimacing heavily even as he carefully raised his neck to look at the spot Loki had chosen to carve his possession into Tony’s skin. It was Loki’s name in Old Norse with the mage’s curved helmet and two daggers outlined behind the text and woven together with vines.
It was actually quite beautiful; a tattoo that would shimmer black or green depending on the angle and the light.
“I advised you of what it would entail and that it would hurt,” Loki told him, looking faintly amused. “You agreed regardless.”
I agreed, Tony thought but didn’t say, because you told me how much this would mean to you.
It wasn’t just a very painful display of possession; it was a show of trust, not only for Tony to allow Loki to do it, but from Loki who would be feeding strands of his magic into Tony. It meant that Loki’s magic would always be with him, no matter how far apart they were. Loki could find him in an instant and teleport Tony to him without touch.
It was a physical and magical sign of commitment, love, protection and trust.
The way Loki had asked had also been important. He seemed to genuinely crave this. He’d been nervous and hopeful; his hands clasping Tony’s as he explained everything, his voice becoming a little faster towards the end as fear of rejection slipped into his tone.
Tony had been unable to deny Loki his request, and so, a few weeks later--once Loki had perfected the design--Tony was lying on the bed getting a knife slicing through his skin.
It wasn’t the greatest experience they’d shared on a mattress; that was for sure.
“Is it almost over?” Tony asked, his teeth gritted as the pain throbbed through his hip and made him want to shy away from his lover and the dagger still poised over his skin.
“Almost,” Loki answered before bending back down and making Tony clench his fists and try not to jerk away from Loki’s precise slices of his blade.
It seemed to go on forever; the sharp pain of the new cuts and the agonising sting and ache of the old ones were all Tony could think about. It was probably only a few minutes, but Tony still let out a breath of relief when Loki murmured with pleasure, “It’s done.”
He followed his words by placing his hands on either side of the design, and Tony felt the warmth of Loki’s magic slide under his skin, healing the wounds and leaving Tony arching into the intimate feeling. He was almost disappointed when the magic disappeared - yet, unlike all the times he felt his lover’s seidr pulling away in the past, a part of it still lingered, warm and oddly affectionate as it hummed around his hip.
It made Tony sit up and look down at the black and green design on his skin. It was not unlike a tattoo only it was raised; small little grooves that felt like scars. When Tony ran his fingers over it he felt like he was brushing a hand over Loki. He could feel happiness, excitement, possession and when he glanced up at Loki, he could see those emotions reflected in the mage’s gaze.
“It’s like I can feel you,” Tony whispered.
“You can,” Loki agreed, his hand coming down to brush both the tattoo and Tony’s fingers. “In exchange for giving me a piece of you, you have gained a piece of me.”
Tony swallowed at the implication, even knowing from the start what it would mean. Loki looked so content over what they were sharing. That expression had Tony linking their fingers together and smiling softly.
“I could have done without the pain but...” he shrugged. “I’m glad to have this with you.”
Loki just smiled back, looking softly thrilled as he leant forward and kissed Tony lovingly. He also whispered against the seam of Tony’s lips; “As am I, my Anthony.”