Chapter Text
"What?" Aesira asked disbelievingly, doubting if she heard correctly.
"I said," Athena started slowly, not wanting to shock her. "We found a way to bring everyone back."
Aesira felt her feet buckle, holding out a hand to lean on one of the shelves for support. Goosebumps appeared on her skin as she replayed the information given to her in her mind.
The Avengers found a way to bring everyone back?
"How?" Aesira asked, lifting her eyes from the floor to meet Stark's gaze. "How will we do that? The infinity stones were destroyed—"
"Scott Lang," Athena started, and seeing the woman's confused look, she continued. "Scott Lang was one of Steve's recruits when he and Tony almost had a fallout. He showed up on our doorstep. One thing led to another, but long story short, time travel is possible."
"Time travel?"
Athena nodded as she assisted Aesira to sit on one of the couches in the library. "We've found a way—well, mainly Tony since it's his specialty—to make time travel possible," she explained slowly. "We could go back in time and collect the infinity stones before Thanos could get them and use them to bring everyone back."
Aesira was quiet as she processed the things the female Stark had shared with her. They had a chance to bring everyone back. They had an opportunity to get those who were dusted back.
Her baby . She now had a chance to bring back her baby.
"I want to help," she whispered at first to herself before she stood up abruptly, her eyes on Athena. "I want to help," she repeated more firmly before she faltered.
Athena noticed the hesitancy in the woman's tone as she rose to her feet as well, bringing a hand up to grab her by the arm. "You want to help," she paused to give emphasis to her point. "I can hear the ' but' at the end of what you want to say. Tell me."
A worried expression formed on Aesira's face as she lightly shook her head. "I want to help. I want to get my baby back. I'm willing to do everything it takes. But Loki," she explained, taking a quick pause to inhale. "Nobody can hold me back. Not even Loki. But that's what I'm scared about. Loki can't hold me back, and I'm also scared something will happen to him in the process."
"I understand. Why don't you talk it out with him first?" Athena suggested as she rubbed Aesira's shoulder understandingly. "I'll be here until the end of the day. You can go find Loki and talk it out with him first as I roam around. How does that sound?"
Aesira immediately nodded. Athena sighed as she pulled the woman and gave her a quick hug.
"I will understand whatever your decision will be. The team won't hold it against you if that's what you're worried about. You've already gone through so much," Stark said to the woman. She gave her a small smile before leaving the library.
——
Aesira cooped herself up in Loki's chambers immediately after talking with Athena. She had been patiently waiting for Loki to return from his meeting, ready to tell him what Athena had previously told her.
She knew Loki would be against the idea at first, seeing as he wanted nothing for her but to be safe. But the guilt bubbling in her stomach won't leave if she doesn't do anything. The guilt for not being able to save her friends and the guilt for not saving her baby.
A part of her will forever be missing to the end of her days—a piece that only the child she lost would get to fill. Loki made her happy, that's for sure. He made her feel loved for the past five years they have been together. Five years is short for them, who had an extended life span, but in those five years she had, Loki did nothing but shower her with his genuine love and care.
But selfish as it may sound, that still wasn't enough to fill the void within her.
Loki had been hinting in the five years of wanting to settle down soon, but he didn't pressure her, knowing how hard it was for her as she was still coping. A mother losing her baby, not to mention her first, is not easy to deal with and move on from. She was still not ready to bear another child, or if she was even still capable of bearing another one.
The talk of having a family was no longer a foreign topic the two of them discussed, but frequently, they choose to overall avoid it as it would cause Aesira nightmares the night after, a reminder of someone she lost.
The two of them occasionally made love, and both enjoyed every bit of it. As much as Loki wanted to fill her up and make her belly swell with their child, he respected her wishes and muttered a contraceptive spell before they did it.
Aesira was brought out of her thoughts when the doors of the chambers opened, Loki entering and closing the door behind him. He had a tired look on his face, which was not unusual after attending to the council.
He rolled his neck, making a few joints crack as he stretched out his arms. Letting out a long deep breath, he brought his fingers to his temples, applying a bit of pressure to massage it. The room was dimly lit, with only the lamps by the bedside table illuminating the figure sitting on the edge of the soft mattress.
When his eyes landed on his beloved on the bed, scanning her beauty from head to toe and wearing nothing but the silky nightgown he had gifted her, it seemed as if he was rejuvenated. All hints of enervation gradually ceased to exist as it was instantaneously replaced with a primal instinct that even gods like him possessed.
Aesira didn't make an effort to mask her thoughts, making the god raise his brow slightly as he walked towards her. She watched him silently stand in front of her as she still sat, making her look up at him.
With a tilt of her head, she opened her lips, but whatever she was going to say was caught in her throat when she felt him run his fingers softly on her cheek, tracing a path down her neck to the exposed skin by her shoulder.
"Loki," she gasped feebly, feeling a shiver run up her spine by the time Loki's hands were running up and down the skin on her arms.
A knot seemingly formed in her throat as she fiddled with her fingers, still maintaining Loki's gaze. His lips were anything but smiling as his pupils dilated. His breathing became slower as he swallowed, Adam's apple bobbing in his throat.
"Loki, I have to tell you s—" Aesira was cut off when the god hooked a finger under her chin, dipping his head down to capture her lips in a hot kiss.
Aesira's eyes fluttered shut, sighing into his lips as she parted her own. Loki indulged himself, nipping her bottom lip before letting his tongue enter her mouth. She kissed him back with equal fervor, wanting nothing more than to feel his skin closer to hers.
She shifted slightly on the bed as she held onto his broad shoulders, keeping her steady as he kissed her. His soft long raven locks got tangled in her delicate fingers, with her tugging them with a bit of pressure, making him moan into her mouth with enjoyment.
Briefly pulling away, the hands that were once cupping her chin made their way to the front of her nightgown, tracing circles on the buttons holding it in place. He lets his fingers circle on her clothed nipples that were starting to harden under his touch.
Despite his eagerness, Loki seemed to take his time unbuttoning each of the buttons of her nightgown, making the woman groan in annoyance. A slight smirk made its way to his lips as he finally removed her clothing, leaving her body in nothing but her underwear.
Aesira threw her head back when Loki cupped her breasts, his thumb and index pinching her nipples, rolling them in between his fingers. She bit her lip, holding back a moan as tingles of pleasure ran through her body. Her mouth was left wide open as she finally broke out a breathy moan when the god put a nipple in his mouth, his wet tongue swirling around it as he gently sucked.
Her hand started to grab onto the sheet beneath her, scrunching it up in the process as Loki continued to suck on her breasts before switching to the other and treating it with equal attention.
Whatever Aesira was planning to tell the god was now lost in her mind as Loki had successfully distracted her, making him sigh in relief.
Aesira was starting to get impatient with how slow Loki was, seemingly taking his time in ravishing her body, so she surprised him by magicking away every bit of fabric on his body. He raised a brow at her as he parted his lips from her nipple, briefly eyeing her with a hint of amusement.
"Impatient now, are we?" he teased as he pushed her down on the bed, now hovering above her.
Aesira just smirked at him in return as she let her warm hand wrap around his hardened member. Loki groaned from pleasure as he let his head fall briefly, inhaling sharply. She took this as a sign to proceed, guiding him to lay down as she got up.
She adjusted her body on the bed as she grabbed him once more, starting slow at first, her hands going up and down as she gradually increased her pace. The god's moans of frustrated pleasure from how slow she was moving were music to her ears.
"Feel good, my king?" she said in a whisper loud enough for him to hear as she collected the wetness on his tip, spreading it further down to the base of his erection, her grip getting tighter as she applied more pressure. "You're tired. I can feel it. Let me make you feel good."
Loki's eyes shot wide open, his pupils dilated and dark with lust as he pulled Aesira's body back down on the bed, resuming his initial position on top of her. She was pretty taken aback by the action. Usually, Loki lets her please him first.
"You're going to be the death of me," Loki muttered under his breath as he laid a hand just below her abdomen. Aesira felt the familiar soothing feeling the contraceptive spell gave her every time before they made love. It brought a calm, relaxing feeling, starting from her lower abdomen that spread throughout her body.
After casting the spell, Loki impatiently spread her legs wide for him. His fingers dipped to her core, collecting the pool of wetness starting to drip from her center. Her body shuddered from the contact before she let out a gasp as Loki inserted two fingers deep inside her.
Her short gasps soon turned into long moans as the god pushed and pulled his fingers inside her, feeling her inner walls clenching tightly around his digits. He could feel the building pleasure starting to bubble in her. The brink of her pleasure was getting nearer and nearer when the god retracted his fingers, making Aesira groan in annoyance.
"LOKI!" she protested, propping both her elbows as she pushed her upper body up. "What was that?"
"I want you to find your release while I'm deep inside you, Aesira," he started as he aligned his tip to her core, rubbing it on her swollen bud. "I want to feel your wetness, your walls clenching around me. Can you do that for me, my love?"
Before Aesira could even nod, Loki had already plunged himself deep inside of her. She threw her head back from pleasure as the god started slowly pumping himself in her, not breaking her gaze. She could hardly keep her eyes open from the pleasure he was giving her, but something about looking at him while making love provides a sense of intimacy. Seeing him taking it slow with her does wonders, making her think as if he wants the moment to last forever.
Wanting him closer, Aesira bent her knees even more as she pulled his body down to hers, and she captured his lips once more in hers. Loki positioned his arms on either side of her head, providing support to avoid crushing her with his body.
The coil in her lower stomach started to tighten, and Loki felt Aesira's release nearing. Her walls clenching around his shaft was also quickly bringing him closer to his own release. His hips started to pick up the pace as he continued to plunge and pull himself deeply within her, her breathing coming out in breathy gasps with each thrust as he stretched her most deliciously.
Her words were now lost as she became a moaning mess below the god, all sense of articulacy disappearing, only chanting his name louder and louder as she was nearing her release.
One thrust did it, the knot in her belly unraveling as her core throbbed from her orgasm, letting out a loud, lengthy moan in the process. Digging her nails in his back, she continued to buck her hips against him as she rode her climax. Her tight clenching around Loki was what sent the god into his own wave of pleasure as well, coating her inner walls with ropes of his own release.
He collapses on top of Aesira, making sure to support himself, preventing him from crushing her before he rolled off. His back was on the empty space beside Aesira, pulling the woman closer to his bare chest as he tried to catch his breath.
Aesira could feel her eyelids starting to droop, threatening to shut and drift her off to unconsciousness when she remembered why she waited for Loki to finish his meeting.
Loki's embrace tightened when he grasped her thought. He cursed inwardly, hoping she won't bring it up.
"Loki." Alas, luck seemingly was not on his side today.
Aesira gently got out of his embrace as she sat down on the bed, not bothering to cover her nudity with the blanket. It was useless now anyway. Loki already knew every part of her body the same way she knew his, like the back of her hand.
"I wanted to tell you something," she softly muttered. She knew what he was thinking and feeling, but she hoped she could still persuade him in the end.
"No," Loki answered immediately, making the woman frown.
"You haven't even heard what it is yet," she said. "Athena came here today."
The god just closed his eyes in frustration as he massaged his temple. "I know. A maid informed me during the council meeting."
"Then you certainly know what I want?"
"I do," his eyes opened, a mixture of irritation and fear in them. "I know the Avengers found a way to reverse everything. They want to travel back in time, do they not?"
"They do—"
"They want to collect the infinity stones, wield them, and bring everyone back. I know what you're thinking. I know what you want. But I can't let you."
Aesira's initial worry in speaking with Loki about the matter vanished, now replaced with an equal amount of frustration as well. "You can't stop me, you know."
"God, why can't you just listen to me?" Loki let out exasperatedly as he tried to reach for Aesira, but she just evaded his touch and distanced herself from him. "I can't let you go with them."
"We have a chance of getting back our child, Loki!" she argued desperately, raising her voice, something that took Loki back. They've had their fair share of arguments in the past, but they never came to a point where they raised their voices at each other.
The god could feel pent-up frustration, grief, and desperation in her voice, making his heart clench.
"Don't you want to bring our baby back?" she said, finally breaking down into a sob.
Loki didn't like seeing her start to fall back into the pit of agony she once almost drowned in for the past five years. Finally allowed to touch her, he pulled her body back into his arms as both fell back onto the soft mattress. He could feel her tears starting to fall on his chest as she silently cried.
"I want to. But it's too dangerous, Aesira. We could have another child, just say the word. I just don't want to lose you in the process should we proceed with their plan," he whispered in her ear.
She shook her head. "Something within me will forever be missing, a void in my heart that can only be filled by bringing our baby back," she explained softly as she dried her tears. "Now that an opportunity has presented itself in front of me, I just can't ignore it."
"I am terrified," Loki admitted as he placed a kiss on her head. "There has not been a moment where I didn't ponder on the thought of having a family with you if we had not lost our little one. I also want to bring our child back, but if it meant losing you in the process, I don't think I could handle it."
"You won't lose me, Loki."
"How sure are you?"
Aesira was silent for a bit, knowing her safety was something she could not one hundred percent ensure to her lover. She was torn, but she knew more or less she was willing to give all she had if it meant bringing everybody back—including her baby. Even if there was only a slim chance of success, she would take it and fight with everything she had until the end.
Loki sighed as the silence enveloped them. "I'm not going to convince you otherwise, correct?"
Aesira reluctantly nodded, staying on her ground.
"Very well."
Aesira looked up at him in surprise, only to find the god staring back at her. "Very well...?" she trailed off questioningly, her face now dry from her tears, but her eyes still glistened from the moisture.
"Very well. We will help them collect the infinity stones and find a way to bring everyone back," Loki answered. "I know you will most likely still find a way to help them even if I forbid you, so to avoid that, I will accompany you back to Midgard as well so I can at least ensure your safety."
Aesira smiled gratefully, pulling her body up as she gave a thankful kiss on his lips. Once she pulled away, Loki gave her a smile as he brought her discarded nightgown up and draped it behind her back, assisting her in dressing up.
"Let's go find the female Stark and inform her of our assistance."