Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Faster. Faster, baby!
YES!

To be honest, watching water droplets on my whiskey glass move and drip down the surface wasn’t the most exciting way of passing the time. Yet the dancing condensation droplets gave me something to do while I was waiting. So I bet which one would reach the bottom first. Against myself. Pathetic.

I looked up from my table to examine my surrounding - again. Preparation was everything; at least when meeting a man like this. The walls of the karaoke Bar I had picked as the meeting place were covered with black fabric. The only colour in the room was provided by the seating – red couches and upholstered stools arranged around little tables in small groups. I sat in a corner with my back to the wall and a good view over the other people. The stage was currently occupied by two young women half singing, half screaming to ‘Everybody’ by the Backstreet Boys. They weren’t good, but since everyone could see their unfiltered joy, nobody cared. I took a deep breath and glanced to my watch on my wrist – 8:55pm. Five more minutes, then I would finally meet my business partner. Well my potential business partner; depending on whether he had information about the object or not. And depending on whether he was ready to give me the information at a reasonable price.

The last one I’d hoped could give me what I was looking for had been a disappointment to say the least. At first she had tried to move the meeting to a deserted place - bitch please, that was not my first week in this job. Then she had the audacity to not even know anything helpful. Instead she had made a ridiculous attempt to lie to me and still make money out of it. I had known instantly what she had tried to do - I always knew instantly. The only thing I didn’t know was what taste the lie would leave in my mouth. It depended on the individual, and the severity of the lie. Hers had tasted like rotted carrots and had tickled on my tongue. Nothing dramatic – just the flavour of a lying person, who does it often.

I had kindly reminded her, that me and especially my client shouldn’t be fooled. And by kindly I mean that she had my gun between her eyes. But at least I had smiled at her, while making this clear. And I didn’t harm her; I was impatient, not a killer.

I couldn’t help but chuckle lightly over the idea to threaten the man I was waiting for. No, Mr. Ngo was not the person you should greet with a gun to his head - his temper was infamous and working for one of the most powerful Vietnamese mafia groups in Berlin...I didn’t want him as my enemy. Especially since he was also known to be a hell of an art collector and always interested in artefacts. And with all his contacts in Berlin a veritable goldmine of information.
I checked my watch again – 8:59pm.

Come on. I’m not getting younger!

Like I said, I was very impatient, and always at least 20 minutes too early. Not the best combination.

As if God – or the gods, who knew – had heard me, the door of the bar opened and Mr. Ngo walked inside. Closing his umbrella, he looked around. I raised my arm and smiled slightly. Needless to say, he had no idea how I looked; we’d never met before. Well he had never met me; I, however, had visited his restaurant the last few days to watch him and prepare for this meeting. Preparation was everything!

He understood and started walking slowly to my table; and something was… off. I couldn’t place it, but he walked too…too majestic. Too graceful. Too self-assured. His whole body language was different to yesterday or the days before. I instantly reached for my gun on my leg to make sure it was there and ready if I needed it. I was uneasy about this situation. Maybe this was just a show? Or his behaviour in his restaurant was? I tried to calm down and but both my hands on the table again; didn’t want to make him suspicious. He stopped before me and I smiled up to him, gesturing to the seat across from me, “Mr. Ngo, I’m pleased to finally meet you. Have a seat.” He bowed his head a little as a greeting and sat down. “It’s a pleasure to meet you too, Miss Heart. Even in such an unusual place for a business meeting,” he smiled coldly and looked back to the stage where a guy was giving a hell of a show to ‘Sweet Transvestite’.

Well, he could have picked a worse song.

Mr. Ngo’s eyes moved back to me. His stare made me uneasy again; it was too intensive. “Miss Heart, let get us straight to the point. What you are looking for is not in my possession.” So far no lie, I had only the aftertaste of the whiskey in my mouth. “But I am also looking for this object.” That surprised me; Mr. Ngo had good contacts with other collectors, for sure; but I’d never heard that he himself was interested in norse artefacts. “That makes our situation a bit more difficult, I’m afraid. As you know I am looking for this ring for a client and” He interrupted me, “Yes, I am well aware of that. So let’s make this clear. If you have any idea where the ring might be, I’d pay you more than that client of yours. Your kind is always interested in more money, are you not? Name a price and I will pay it. You can tell your client you failed.”

Wait a second, I am here to get information from him, not the other way round. And what does he mean with ‘my kind’? Great day to get insulted by a mobster.

I didn’t let show what I was thinking. Instead I put another polite smile on my face, “Mr. Ngo, I…” Again I was interrupted when a slightly drunk guy passed our table and bumped a little on the shoulder of the man across from me, spilling a bit of his drink on Mr. Ngo.

Oi, if looks could kill. Wait.

Some light shimmering green appeared around Mr. Ngos shoulder - or had I had one drink too much? No, definitely, it disappeared as quickly as it had occurred, but it had been there! My hand shot under the table to my gun. “These mort…morons!” Mr. Ngo exclaimed. Then as if remembering I was there, he continued in a much calmer tone, “Forgive me my temper.” With a little snickering to himself he added, “What can I do, I am only human.”

As his last word escaped his mouth, mine was filled with the worst flavour I had ever experienced in my life. My stomach turned around, as my eyes widened with fear and my pulse increased. Realising that this sentence was the biggest lie I had ever heard, I drew my gun and shot the fake Mr. Ngo.

Chapter Text

Three truths about me.
Nr. 1: I was a good shooter; my dad had made sure of that. I had good reflexes, steady hands and a good eye.
Nr. 2: I only shot to wound, never a shot at vital areas of the body. I wasn't a killer or a soldier.
Nr. 3: Possessing a gun in Berlin was difficult, firing a gun in Berlin even more; firing a gun in a karaoke bar in Berlin was stupid

Or at least it should have been stupid, people should have heard the sound of the gun shot, should have seen your injured opponent and then should have went nuts. But instead nothing happened at all. Well, at least nothing of these things.
Instead, three other things happened incredibly quickly in a row.
First I saw the green glowing around Mr. Ngo again. And then Mr. Ngo wasn’t Mr. Ngo anymore. A tall lean man was sitting in front of me now; raven black hair framed his pale face which was probably very handsome. Difficult to judge by the angry grimace.
Second the bullet just dropped on the table, another green light around it, never reaching its goal.
In this moment it hit me - I knew who this was. Who I had tried to shoot not even one minute ago.

Oh fricking fracking shit.

And third – the man leaned over the table and knocked me out.

Ok. Maybe I deserved that.

_______________________________

“For God’s sake, Loki, why did you knock her out? How are we supposed to interrogate her in this state?”

Ufff…that was a loud voice, it hammered in my head. Maybe I could ask it to be quiet; some people were trying to regain consciousness over here.
Laying on my back, I kept my eyes shot and noticed that the underground wasn’t moving. It also smelled different.

Seems like we’re not in the karaoke bar anymore, Toto.

They had moved me. They - who were ‘they’? I had only an idea who one of them was. It made me uneasy not knowing who else was around me; but I kept my eyes closed. Maybe this way I would learn more about my kidnappers. “You can continue yelling at me. Or you go over to her. She’s awake,” answered a dark velvet voice.
Ha! Ten bucks that I knew who the voice belonged to. And shit. Bye bye ‘sneaky’ plan.
My eyes shot open; and closed again right away. Perhabs the knockout had injured my brain, because there was no way I had seen the right man standing over me. Said man cleared his throat, “Hello, hey there, it seems like you are indeed awake.” Deciding to give it another try, I looked again - a face with two kind blue eyes and blond hair greeted me. Pushing myself in a sitting position, I looked bewildered at the poster boy of the United States of America.

Well, hello there Steve Rogers.

Captain America was standing in front of me, his hands on his hips and a mild expression on his face. I looked around taking my whole surroundings in - we were in a small room, one side of it was completely made of milky glass. I could see the shadows of people walking by. Against the opposite wall leaned another person; Loki Laufeyson – God of Mischief and Lies. What an ironic situation.

“Next time you’re interested in a woman just ask her out. You’re nice to look at, you don’t have to kidnap her,” my voice was raspy. I winked at him; humour had always been my reaction to my own fear. The two men in the room stiffened, I let out a light chuckle - bad idea. “Listen here you little…,” the God took two long steps towards me. “Okay, enough of this,” the Captain interrupted, putting a hand on Loki’s shoulder. “Don’t you dare touching me, you worthless…ally.” Steve Rogers gave Loki a small smile, “Old habits die hard, huh Loki? Miss, please don’t annoy him on purpose.” I shrugged my shoulders, “It is not my fault that he can’t accept compliments.” Oohh Loki’s angry look was even more intimidating now, as the one he’d given me as Mr. Ngo. “Miss Heart, please. We only have a few questions for you. Then we will let you go,” Steve Rogers sighed.
His statement was not a lie - there was no bad flavour in my mouth. But something about it was still wrong, it tickled just a little bit on my tongue. I raised an eyebrow.
“We just have to wait for the others. Then we can start.”

The others?

Steve Rogers turned to Loki, “Did you inform them?” “No, I was hoping for a wonder. Of course I did,” Loki hissed, looking bored. The room fell silent.
I tried to concentrate. This was a tough situation, a few minutes ago I had been in Berlin, just trying to do my job. Wait a second, in fact, I had no idea how much time had passed since the karaoke bar. I didn’t even know, where I was.

Freaking Christ. Or freaking Loki? Either way freaking son of a god!

In this moment a door behind me opened and I yanked my head in its direction. The God of Thunder came walking in, followed closely by…

Ohh no.

Tony Stark. He looked me up and down. He remembered me, I could see it in his face.

Ohh nonono.

I rose to my feet, up from the couch they had placed my unconscious body on. Tony Stark crossed his arms in front of his chest.
“So tell me, Miss Heart. Does daddy know that you’re playing Lara Croft with the Yakuza?”

Chapter Text

When I met Tony Stark for the first time he wasn’t a hero yet. He wasn’t Iron Man.
He was Anthony Stark – CEO of Stark Industries. Having made a name for himself as a weapon designer and inventor, as well as a notorious playboy.

At that first time, I really wasn’t aware of all those things. Feeling jet-lagged and hungry I was only focused on my dad.
My tall, neat and well-groomed father, who always radiated pride and self-discipline. On the plane back to the US he had admonished me to behave myself as he told me about the importance of this upcoming demonstration.

With my thirteen years I still wanted to please him.

So I was standing quietly behind all these important men and women, who were waiting to see and experience the newest Stark weapons in the middle of nowhere. I wasn’t bored. I loved that my father had taken me with him. Proud to be considered old enough to see parts of his work, to meet some of his colleagues.
Let’s be honest, all of those advanced guns and this other destructive technology blew my mind. This presentation was a show! Like a Disneyland Parade for weapon-loving adults.
And as the last sound of the explosion of a bomb was fading away Tony Stark was more than pleased about all the offers he received for his newest inventions. He chatted a little bit more with all those people till a woman took over the negotiations for him and he started to walk slowly away.

Only then did he seem to spot me. He abruptly stopped and looked at me over his dark sunglasses.
‘Don’t think you’re old enough to buy my stuff.’
‘Obviously not. But my dad is.’
‘Huh…. and who is your dad, sweetheart.’
I just pointed in his direction.
‘And your daddy thought it would be a good idea to bring a child to this kind of event?’
‘I am a teenager. Not a child! And I know how to handle a gun! Actually I’m really good.’ I muttered. ‘I can show you!’

Looking around I saw a small gun, that hadn’t already been put away. I quickly picked it up and positioned myself the way my dad had taught me.
‘Kid, I don’t even like the idea, that you saw all of that. I surely don’t want to see you using one of these. Please put the gun down.’
A small part of me wanted to show him how good I was. But I promised my father to behave myself. So with a long dramatic sigh I obeyed. Then turned back to him.
He looked at me for a long moment.
‘You are a little fighter, aren’t y’. It was nice meeting you. Stay away from drugs. And my guns!’ He waved over his shoulder while walking away.

What a strange man – I thought to myself.

This wasn’t the last time I saw the strange man. Over the years we met couple of times on different social events I attended with my dad and the rest of my family.
My father and Tony Stark never were friends, but they were fond of each other. Always talking about this and that.
And he always remembered me. Asking how ‘the little Show-off’ was doing. Saw me growing up.
I began to like him, even adored him a little bit.

When he became Iron Man I was so proud to know the hero.
When he became an Avenger I told all my friends that he had a little nickname for me.
After the birth of his daughter and the defeat of Thanos I absolutely understood his decision to retire.

And now he was standing in front of me, after I had been kidnapped by one of the Norse Gods and I truly did not like it.
______________________

‘So tell me, Miss Heart. Does daddy know that you’re playing Lara Croft with the Yakuza?’ He smirked at me.

‘It’s nice to see you too, Mr. Stark. And yes of course. I tell my father everything.’ I answered with dry sarcasm. He laughed.

‘Yeah I’m sure of that, little Show-off. And call me Tony.’ He paused and looked me over. ‘You’ve grown a lot since the last time I saw you. You’re looking good.’

‘And you’re looking old.’

Today is not my polite day it seems.

‘Why am I here, Mr. Sta…Tony? What the hell is going on? Why did Severus Snape over there’ I pointed at Loki ‘disguise himself as my business partner?’
The God raised an eyebrow in annoyance.

Shit. Did he get the reference? Nevermind. Fucking Iron Man is here. And Captain America. And Thor.

Only then I remembered the other god coming inside with Tony and looked at him. His appearance was different to the pictures I had seen of him as an Avenger. He had short hair now and looked more…serious?

Think that happens when almost all of your people get wiped out and you have to start all over again as refugees.

‘Yes. Why are you here? We will come to that. But first, Cap I think your meeting is in a few minutes. You should go.’

‘Thank you Tony. I’m sure you can handle this.’ Steve Rogers nodded. He gave a warm smile to the others as a goodbye and left the room. My eyes followed him.

Damn. That is America’s Ass!

Looking back to the other three I noticed another annoyed look on Loki’s face.
Did he read my thoughts? Was he able to read my thoughts?!
Or does he just not like the way I looked at the other man? Let’s be honest if it had been a woman, my look would have been considered sooo rude.

‘Ok kid, let’s talk about your situation.’ Stark started.
‘First of all I am sure you have no idea where you are. This is one of the S.H.I.E.L.D. bases. We’re outside of Brussels.’

Ok, at least still Europe

‘You are here, because we need information from you. To be honest it wasn’t our plan to knock you out and kidnap you. Reindeer Games just fucked it up.’

‘The girl shot at me! Am I supposed to say thank you for that?’ Loki growled.

‘Of course not, brother.’ Thor spoke up for the first time to calm him. Addressed to me, he continued with his eyebrows pulled together.
‘My lady why did you shoot him in the first place? He is a highly skilled shapeshifter. How did you know that something wasn’t right?’

Yeah no way I’m going to tell you that. My powers, my secrets!

This question was way too loaded. Maybe I could trick them.

I looked at Thor with big eyes and answered with a small voice.
‘I don’t know. I was just so nervous to meet this gangster. The whole situation was stressing me. It was an accident.’

Loki snorted. ‘Liar.’

Now it was my time to look annoyed. Also, note to myself, trying to trick the Trickster - not that clever.

‘I highly doubt that as well, Show-off. We already know who you’re working for. Don’t try to pull the sweet-little-girl card on us. I mean come on. You’re working for one of the most influential men of the Yakuza.’

How did Tony Stark know that? And why did the disappointed expression on his face bother me?

‘I am not ‘Yakuza-working’ for him.’ I defended myself. ‘I am not a gangster. More like a highly skilled hound dog. He requested me to find something for him. That is what I do. I just find things for people.’ Tony nodded at this statement.

And by god I was good at it. You name it, I find it. It had started with little things. After completing my studies in art history I had got little request from family friends to find them a piece of this artist or something that artist once possessed. I had the knowledge, the necessary contacts through my mother and my study, the required doggedness.

The more years passed, the more unusual and illegal the requests became. And after the arrival of Gods and aliens even more unearthly. And I LOVED it. I loved that people began to believe in old tales and stories again. That they were eager to pay any price to possess mythological objects. And why shouldn’t they?
Gods were walking among menkind!
There had to be at least the possibility that those objects existed. Lying somewhere, waiting to be found again.

And as the last request from Japan had reached me, I was on fire. Yes, I would find this ring. I would learn more about it. I would see if the stories about its curse were true.
Maybe I would never meet a god myself. And for sure not the God, who was responsible for the creation of this curse. But I would find the ring or at least find out if it really existed.

They already knew about my profession. That was for sure. They knew about my connection with the Yakuza. Then they surely also knew what I was looking for.

As I turned my head in the direction of the God of Lies and Mischief, a warm wide smile spread across my face. Loki seemed surprised by my facial expression towards him.
‘You surely know what I’m supposed to find. So please tell me, your Highness, do I have a chance to fulfil my task? Does Andvaranaut really exist?’

His eyes locked with mine. He held my gaze long and as if he wanted to see into my soul.
See every happy memory, every horrid thing I’d done. See all, absolutely all of me.

‘Yes, little mortal. And should you ever find it, it will destroy you.’

Chapter Text

“That. Is. AWESOME!” Tony, Thor and Loki winced at my loud outcry. “Are you insane Show-Off? He just told you that thing is dangerous and you are thrilled about it?” Tony asked, irritated by me who was beaming with joy. “Uh-huh! And the best part - he’s not even lying!”

“Should you ever find it, it will destroy you.”

There had been no taste of a lie in my mouth - the God of Lies and Mischief had spoken the truth. According to legend, there was a curse linked to Andvaranaut, according to which whoever possessed the ring was destined to die prematurely. And Loki believed in that curse! The god supposedly responsible for it, believed in it! This was getting better and better.

Loki inclined his head, raising an eyebrow, “How do you know that I’m not ly…” Tony interrupted him, “Good God, kid. No wonder you have no problem working for the Yakuza. You’re mad.” “We’re all mad here,” I gave him my best imitation of the grin of the Cheshire Cat. Tony rolled his eyes. Thor and Loki clearly didn’t get the reference; the Blond was looking confused, the other annoyed - again. That seemed to be his natural state, at least around me. “So what else is true? And what is only myth? Did you really kill that poor otter? And can Andvari disguise himself as a salmon? And most importantly, has the ring the power to attract more gold to itself?” I had to stop and take a deep breath.

I had read so many things about the story of the dwarf Andvari and his ring Andvaranaut. The main sources of the Icelandic legend the Snorra Edda, the ‘elder’ Edda and the Völsunga saga had been quite similar. But now I had the opportunity to hear the story from the main source. And what a good looking main source he was.

“What? An otter? Thor you never spoke of an otter,” Tony whined. “I am not quite sure what the lady is talking about, Stark. Brother?” Loki uttered a weary sigh, “As always the mortals were incapable and dull-witted. They made up a lunatic story. According to them I stole the ring in order to pay a ransom. Odin and another Aesir had been bound, because I had killed someone’s son, who was an otter. And I was sent to find and bring back a treasure to pay for this crime. Knowing about Andvari and his gold, I caught him as a salmon in a net and refused to free him unless he gave me his gold and the ring. Absolutely laughable.”
Thor let out a loud guffaw, “They made Andvari a salmon? Really? Poor guy. I mean he is known as a dedicated angler. But that’s it.”

“Yeah yeah yeah, we humans are stupid. I get it. Then what happened in reality?” I asked unnerved.
The God of Lies sneered at me, “Patience is a virtue, little mortal.”
“Yeah and one I do not possess.”
“Evidently.”

I glared at him. What was his problem?
Thor continued, absolutely oblivious to my death stare towards his brother, “The real story isn’t that dramatic. We all had heard about the dwarf Andvari and his ring. It was told that it had the power to turn everything around it into gold. Made Andvari unbelievably wealthy. But it was also said to be a destructive force. Andvari himself had lost his wife and daughter to it. Back then we were quite young and this fellow over here thought it would be funny to steal the ring.”

Well at least something from the legends is true.

“Funny indeed. You should have seen the dwarf the moment he realized the ring was gone,” Loki smiled viciously, “He was looking for it in panic and started screaming. I understand why; the power of the ring was overwhelming. I could feel it only holding it in my hand. But something more dangerous slumbered inside it as well - a curse which was way older than myself. So no, I am not responsible for the curse.”
“No, but you are accountable to what happened next,” Thor reminded him. “Oh yes of course, yes of course,” Loki’s malicious smile returned, “As I was not interested in gold or my early death, I decided to bring the ring to Midgard. That was the simplest way to see what the ring can do. To see you little mortals fighting about something this small…what an amusing spectacle. To see brother slaughter brother. Sons betraying their fathers. Daughters killing their mothers. Well, the curse was fulfilled. Every time.” After his story we all fell silent for a moment.

Loki was the trickster god - a devious deity known for his many schemes and deceptions. The legends and stories told about his varied motives for his mischief – wealth, women, wisdom, the sheer pleasure of his knavery. Still, I was taken aback by his statement. He had indirectly brought death and misery upon people, just to see what would happen and to enjoy it. It was now widely known that he was not responsible for the attack in New York this many years ago. Still, Loki was definitely not a saint.

“Which brings us to our problem today,” Thor started speaking, “We can’t allow such dangerous things linked to us Asgardians lying around on Midgard. We have to find Andvaranaut.” “Why?” I asked bewildered, “Why now? The ring has to be on this planet for centuries. Why do you care now?” Thor looked a bit startled by my questions; Loki’s mouth twisted into a small smile on the other hand, as if he was pleased with my line of thinking.
“Politics. It always comes down to politics,” Tony sighed. “As you know the Asgardians live now in a part of Norway after the Destruction of Asgard.” Duh – that was well known.
“We are dependent on the goodwill of the people of Midgard,’” Thor continued. “So we have set ourselves to collect all dangerous relics connected with us. We can’t turn a blind eye on destroying people’s lives; by mistake or on purpose.” He looked at Loki. “So we have to find the ring.” His explanation made sense. It was also honest.

“So you wanted to commission me to find Andvaranaut for you?” I asked looking from Thor to Loki. The latter snorted. “No, Loki is responsible to find the ring. After all this situation is his fault. We had hoped you could give us information where it is,” the blond god explained.
“I found Mr. Ngo. He was a bit of a swizz. Couldn’t tell me anything helpful. After some… persuading he told me about his upcoming meeting with you.” Loki looked at me, “But you seem to be a disappointment as well. In every possible way.”

Ass

“Very nice, Prince Charming,” Tony clearly had a thing for nicknames. “After Loki told me the name of the business partner of Mr. Ngo I was quite surprised to find out it was you,” he looked at me, “And even more surprised when I found out about your profession and your boss.”
“And again not my boss,” I interrupted. “So your brilliant idea was to meet me disguised as the man who I was hoping to get information from?”
“Um yeah,” Tony admitted sheepishly. “And then the whole situation went south and Cap informed me that Loki didn’t get any information from you and instead had knocked you out.”
“Thanks for that by the way.”
“So Thor and me flew back from New Asgard to consider what to do next and ask you about the ring ourselves. So that’s what we’re doing right now. What information do you have about the ring?”

So it needs the greatest inventor of all time and to gods to ask me about some piece of jewellery? Great.

It was a real bummer to learn that Mr. Ngo was a dead end. I had leaned on him as main source of information; at least for the trail that leads to Germany as the location of the ring. Beside that there was another possibility, another source I wanted to meet. But it would be stupid to tell them about it. The moment they had the name of the source, they wouldn’t need me anymore. They would send Loki to talk to that person and he’d have a real chance to find Andvaranaut before me. I could never keep pace with the god. I was still eager to find the ring myself though. Maybe I would still bring it to my client, maybe I would not; but I definitely didn’t want this to be the end of my journey.

I looked at the three men standing before me. “I don’t want this to be the end of my quest,” I started slowly, “As I take it you need me. I’m sure Loki is very capable, but he has no connections to collectors. No one will talk to him unless he forces them and that can’t be in your interest.” Thor and Tony gave an affirmative nod. “I on the other side have no idea what the ring looks like. Which does make it difficult to find it. So how about a collaboration?” “Deal!” Tony shouted immediately while Thor grinned wide.

That was surprisingly easy. Too easy.

“You hoped I would suggest that, didn’t you?” “Actually yes. We are truly lost. Mr. Ngo and you were and are our last track. My brother may not be the easiest to get along, but we thought that you and him working together would help our case,” Thor admitted.
“So that’s why Captain Americas statement about letting me go wasn’t a lie, but felt strange,” I muttered to myself remembering the tickling on my tongue. “What?” Tony asked confused. “Nothing.” I would not tell them about my powers. At least not yet.

I grinned at Loki, "So… then we’re partners. Like Bonnie and Clyde!’
The God clenched his jaw.
“Starsky and Hutch!” Tony joined in.
Deep wrinkles appeared on Loki’s forehead.
“Sonny and Cher!” I suggested.
“Simon and Garfunkel!” Iron Men continued.
We could hear Loki grinding his teeth.
“Batman and Robin!”
"Who the fuck is Batman?” Tony asked with irritation.
"ENOUGH!" Loki boomed.

Huuuii someone is not used to be hoaxed. Despite the fact that he’s not even an only child.

The Trickster in front of me breathed hard, his eye contact with me was intense. I had to consider his ill temper for the future.
A knock on the door interrupted the situation - an older man stuck his head in the door, “Mr. Stark, Captain Rogers requested your and Mr. Odinson’s attendance.”
“Ok, thank you Linus. We have to go for a second. Don’t kill each other.” Tony left the room followed by Thor who looked back at Loki, “Brother, behave yourself!”
The door closed quietly behind them. Suddenly the room became unpleasantly silent.

“I do not trust you,” the God began to speak.

What a surprise.

“There’s something off about you.” Loki began walking around me; his movements were catlike – straight and smooth. He kept his shoulders back and his chin was slightly lifted up. My eyes followed him, till now I hadn’t really observed how tall he was. Or how intimidating.
He stopped moving behind me and bent down to me. “I am not sure what it is yet, but I will get to the bottom of it,” he whispered in my ear.
His closeness sent a shudder through me. I stepped a few meters away and turned around to face him again.
The distance didn’t help. His presence was still a force. He seemed to sense my discomfort and sneered.

This is a power game. He tries to dominate me!

It clearly worked. I was intimidated by him. But I would not show him that. Not if hell froze over! So I took three long steps back towards him and looked up. Our faces nearly touched.
“I refuse to be cowed into submission by you,” I whispered.
“For now, darling, for now.”

Chapter Text

Unpleasant. Unwelcomed. Uncomfortable.

There were not enough words to describe my feelings for this situation. For my task. Or for my feelings towards this woman.

She was so brazen, so annoying, so fragile. The second she had tried to shoot me I was willing to break her neck there and then. But oh no, we needed her. Needed the information only she could give us. At least Thor and Stark had thought so; apparently still did.

And now I was stuck with her. ‘Partners’ she had called us as her eyes widened with joy. Partners, ha! I would make this little mortal kneel; show her how to behave around a prince.

I took a deep breath to calm myself.

I still didn’t hold Midgardians in high esteem; their hospitality and sympathy towards our people was staggering though. The love of the people of Earth for Thor clearly helped. And for once in my lifetime I was glad about the adoration for my brother.
Our relationship had changed in general - it helped that Odin wasn’t there anymore, cruel as that may sound. But we worked better together without him; now Thor and I were closer as before. Not quite as close as we used to be as children, but closer.

I and Thor together had managed to negotiate a contract with the Norwegian government so that our people were allowed to repopulate an uninhabited area of the country. Since then New Asgard had grown bigger and bigger; not back to the glory of the real Asgard of course, but who’s to say what we could achieve in a few centuries.
Stark even had offered to help us to power New Asgard with renewable energy, which Thor welcomed as soon as he understood what that meant. So the man with the adorable little iron armour flew back and forth across the Atlantic Ocean to install and check on the necessary systems.

I believe by now his suit was more a decoration in his home than a real used battle armour as he had retired. Although his retirement still included him working in the labs of the Avengers Compound.
To be honest his help was necessary to find the trace to Germany as the possible location of Andvaranaut. I may have found and interrogated Mr. Ngo, but he was the one discovering who exactly the mobster was going to meet and what kind of a person she was.

And now I had to face that person - in her whole unpleasant and annoying glory.

She was sitting in front of me in Stark’s private jet chatting with my brother who looked smitten with her. Of course he did; she was telling him about all the myriad delicacies Berlin had to offer as the city was apparently a cultural melting pot. Of course the never full oath loved hearing all about food, and beer. She couldn’t stop talking about the superb beer she had tasted there. By some miracle Thor wasn’t drooling all over his seat yet.

After Thor and Stark had come back into the room of the S.H.I.E.L.D base a little debate had started how to proceed from there. Stark was eager to return to his family in the US and the woman had agreed to that. Apparently there was another possible contact who could help us find Andavaranaut. But she was also adamant that we had to go back to Berlin first so that she could pack a few things and get all her information about the potential location of the ring. So it was decided that we all would first fly to the city and then to the US.

Stark, who had been in the cockpit since the take-off, came back to us, "We have just been cleared to land at the BER airport. I have ordered a car for you, Show-Off. You can drive to your apartment and then head back to us. I’m not in the mood for a road trip. The rest of us will simply wait in the jet." The woman nodded in agreement and thanked him.

"I will come with you." Her eyebrows raised at my statement.

"Why? Are you interested in how I live?"

"No. I am interested in you coming back."

"Awww, so you would miss me?"

"Don’t flatter yourself." How annoying could someone be?!
"I would miss you as much as I would love getting beaten up by the Hulk," I replied coldly. She may have an interest in us working together, but I was still suspicious of her; she was hiding something.

The first clue was that she hadn’t shot me in the moment that drunk man had bumped into my shoulder exposing a bit of my sei∂r while shapeshifting. In fact, the incident was too short to provoke such a reaction. No, the shot was fired after my little joke about being only human. She had looked sick after this statement as if she wanted to throw up. Only then had she shot me.

Secondly her certainty about me not lying. She had been so sure of me telling the truth about the curse of Andvaranaut. ME - telling the truth. And then her strange muttered comment about the Captain and her dismissive reaction to Stark’s follow-up question.

All of her behaviour had set me thinking. I couldn’t feel sei∂r in her. So her being a sorceress was off the table. But it seemed to me that she somehow had a connection to lies and truth. How intriguing.

Me following this train of thoughts was interrupted by the smooth landing of the private jet.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to BER airport. Local time is I don’t know and the temperature is I don’t give a fuck. Please check around your seat for any personal belongings you may have brought on board with you. On behalf of the Tony Stark Airline and the entire crew, I’d like to thank you joining us on this trip. Have a nice stay!" Stark spoke with a deadpan expression.
The woman laughed.

"What a delightful cabin crew member you are."

"My next big profession, Show-Off," the man winked at her.

As the plane parked I stood up, straightened my green tie and pulled the shirt sleeves out so that they were exposed beneath my suit coat sleeves. I missed my Asgardian royal garment, but I had become fond of this Midgardian formal clothing. As a result, grey suits and white shirts with a green tie were now my preferred outfit.
"As the airport is located a few miles south-east of the city we will need about thirty minutes to reach my apartment. I just pack and then we will head back to you," the woman asserted Stark. He just nodded.

"Should you have some of this delicate beer you told me about, feel free to bring some of it," my stupid brother grinned.

"Of course," She laughed and stepped out of the jet. I followed her like a shadow without looking back at Stark or Thor.

______________________________________________________________

This woman was crazy. Crazy! How could someone EVER allowed her to obtain a driving licence?!

I looked concerned to the left, where a broad grin appeared on the face of the woman behind the wheel. As the speedometer needle passed the 180 km/h mark and went further her grin grew wider and wider. She looked like a maniac. Her loud laughter didn’t help. I had seen Stark’s bad and reckless driving, he was a paragon of a driver compared to her.

"Are you sure, you should drive like that?" I demanded in an absolute calm way without any noticeable fear in my voice. The tremble in it was just a sign of my excitement. Not of concern.

"Yes of course, honey. This is the German Autobahn, there is no speed limit. You are expected to drive as fast as you can, otherwise the Autobahn gets sad," she grinned.

"Then why drives everyone slower than us??"

She just shrugged her shoulders. Norns! I definitively didn’t want to die on a road on Midgard; there was no chance I would travel to Valhalla after dying such an embarrassing death.

When we reached the city she finally slowed down. A few more minutes passed while we drove past modern houses and ones from bygone eras – this city was a mishmash of architecture. Suddenly she double-parked before an old white six-story building with an elaborately decorated facade.

"Wait in the car. Please. I’ll be back in a few seconds," she said while biting her lower lip nervously. I didn’t even bother to look at her as I got out of the car. She groaned, then led the way and opened the main door. I stepped inside the entrance hall; it impressed with a lavish ceiling, panelled walls and an unlit fireplace. A wooden staircase covered with sisal carpet was leading to the upper levels. This wasn’t as imposing or sophisticated as the palace of my childhood had been; not at all; but I could still admire the Midgardian craftsmanship of this place.

"Your home isn’t as repulsive as I had imagined," I conceded.

"Thanks, I guess," she replied with irritation, "But that is just the entrance area of the building. My home… my flat is on the third floor." Now it was my turn to look irritated.

"This is an apartment building, I don’t own the whole place; several families live here," she explained, "Come along."

"Don’t you dare give me commands." Still I followed her up the stairs to her apartment. She hesitated slightly and gave me a long meaningful glance before opening the door; we stepped inside.

"I’m back!" she took of her black boots and simply tossed them on the hardwood floor; there were six doors that opened of the hall. To my surprise a female voice answered from somewhere of the apartment, "Welcome home, Sweetie!"

Sweetie? That was a nickname for couples on Midgard, was it not?

"Sweetie come here and help me! I’m totally losing to this enemy – he’s way too strong for me," the same voice exclaimed furiously.

I raised an eyebrow. Not only did it seem that this woman was in a relationship, but her and her partner fought alongside each other? How charming. Maybe she wasn’t as annoying and boring as I had thought.

"Ähm Nor…we have a visitor."

In that moment a woman with short blond hair wearing a headset stuck her head out one door. She gaped as she saw me.
"Holy cow…Noobmaster69, I’m out for today," she pulled the headset off her head; her mouth still open.

"Nor that is…," Sweetie began.

"Loki, Prince of Asgard, Odinson, the rightful King of Jotunheim, God of Mischief and Lies," I introduced myself with a small curtsy.

"Yeah…I know who you are," she breathed her eyes full of wonder, mouth open once again. Then she tried to compose her features into a smile.
"Hey there, yeah hey. I’m Nora." She turned her head to her partner, "What is going on?"

"I’ve heard we have a visitor?" a dark haired athletic looking man appeared in the doorframe across the doorway Nora was standing in.
"Oh my, and what an eye candy you had brought back home, Sweetie. Thank you," he cooed, flirting with his eyes.
Another one calling the woman Sweetie? Either this was just her nickname or these three had a very special relationship…interesting.

"And who are you, beautiful?"

The man’s eyes lit up by my question, "I’m Steven."

Sweetie coughed slightly.
"Steven would you be so kind and show Loki our living room and keep him company? I have to pack some things. Nor, come with me. I’ll tell you everything." With that she vanished into one of the rooms at the end of the corridor, the other woman followed her quickly.

Steven gestured me to follow him into one of the other rooms with bay windows, stucco features and two creamy-white couches. We each set down on one of them and I looked around - besides the two identical seating possibilities there were only a few bookshelves and a big wooden dining table with six chairs none of them like the other; and lots of house plants.

"You have a nice home," I began politely.

"Ohh yeah, we’re really lucky with this apartment. You have no idea how long Nora and I had to search to find something like this," Steven beamed. "At first it was way too expensive for us, but then Sweetie joined us and we could afford it."

So the ‘original’ couple had been those two? And she got into the relationship later as well? Impressive.

"So how long have you three been together?" I asked.

"What? Oh. OOHHH. Noooooo. We are not together, just roommates. And good friends of course. Actually we are all very very single," he battled his eyelashes at me.

That was a bit of a letdown; I had just started to find the woman interesting. After that I remained silent. Steven however kept talking, "It is kind of funny that you two met, don’t you think?"

"Why so?"

"You know – you the God of Lies…and she. Ironic," he gestured dramatically. I just inclined my head and said nothing.
"Ohh come on. You – the God of Lies. And she - the one, who can taste every fricking lie someone tells her. Really, that is so exhausting sometimes. No little lies…"

I didn’t listen to him anymore. She was able to taste lies? Every time someone told her one she tasted them? How? I just felt an incoming lie. She tasted them? I shook my head in disbelief and let out a loud laugh - the little mortal had become interesting once again.

"You didn’t know," Steven realised, slumping down. "She’s going to kill me."

On my face appeared a mischievous smile. I stood up, walked to the sitting man and leaned over him, "No, little one, she didn’t. But thank you so very much for this information. Now tell me, how exactly does this work?" My voice was calm and threatening, he swallowed hard.

"I…I don’t know… I know that the taste depends on…on the severity of the lie. And it depends on the person. She gets kind of sick, when her counterpart lies often…I don’t know more…I…"

"Would you excuse me, Steven."
I stormed out of the living room towards the place the two women had disappeared into; I tore open the door. Sweetie was standing in the middle of the room next to her bed, she looked up surprised by me. I took three long steps forward and looked down into her eyes; then I began to speak.

"I respect you very much. You are such a dear friend to me."
She looked green around the gills; but nothing more. Perhaps I had to go one better.

"I love you. I have never loved someone as much as I love you."

As my words left my mouth she grimaced with pain and doubled over.
"Stop! Stop that! You’re torturing her!" Nora yelled, rushing to her friend.
A little laugh escaped me.
The woman straightened herself.
"You know…how…" You could see the realisation hit her.

"STEVEN. YOU ARE DEAD!"

Now I laughed wholeheartedly. Oh this woman - this annoying, fragile, mesmerizing woman.

"I am going to have so much fun with you, little mortal."

Chapter Text

Two years ago one of my youngest nieces had an impossible wish on her Christmas list - this special shiny toy was almost nowhere to be found. And as her parents surrendered after hours and hours of hunting for this gift in the US it was my time to shine. After all, I was 'Auntie’! Not ‘auntie Sweetie’, not just ‘aunt’ - no ‘Auntie’! This was the special title in my family for the most beloved of the aunts; and I held this title.
So I had gone to Paris and London, Tokyo and Seoul to find this rare plaything for my little peanut. She had her birthday on the 25th of December, so I always made sure to give her something extraordinary; having to share your birthday with Jesus Christ couldn’t be easy. Thankfully I had found what I was looking for - seeing her eyes light up with joy and the sparkle in them when she successfully unwrapped her gift had been priceless. Her reaction had been heart-warming, the sparkle had illuminated the whole room.

This kind of joy, this kind of sparkle was now in the eyes of Loki Odinson, God of Mischief and Lies - but in a way more twisted and troublesome way. It didn’t illuminate my bedroom; it wasn’t heart-warming – actually, it set my teeth on edge! He took a mischievous pleasure in the latest revelation, that was for sure. His loud laughter had changed into a light chuckle, his eyes were still locked with mine.

How piercing can someone’s look be?

I had a choice between two options.
On the one hand I could face the problem and talk with Loki about me being able to taste lies; about the importance of keeping it a secret. Hell, maybe we could even share experiences. Above all he was the God of Lies. But I also had to talk with him about his comment of ‘having fun’ with me. I was not his new shiny toy! I was not here for his amusement nor to be played with. So I could choose all that; I could choose being a grown-up and have a mature conversation.
Or I could simply murder one of my best friends for spilling the tea.
The decision wasn’t that difficult.

With a sweet smile and a slightly mocking tone I addressed the God in front of me, “Please excuse me for a moment, your Highness.” I flounced out of the room; back in the corridor I grabbed our silver paperknife from the hall table and turned the corner into the living room. Steven was already waiting for me there, crouched behind one of the creamy-white couches.

“Oh Steven. Come here, darling!” I flipped the knife. His face paled and he raised his hands in an apologetic gesture, “I am sorry, Sweetie. I really thought you told him. My mistake. I’m so sorry. Please calm down.” His pleading words didn’t sooth me. Instead I took a step towards him.
“Come here, Steven honey.”
“No.”
“COME HERE!”
“NO!”

I flipped the knife in the air; it wasn’t sharp enough to really hurt him, should I decide to throw it. More than anything I had brought it with me for its dramatic effect - me flipping it just looked badass and intimidating. “Ok, if you don’t want to come to me, I have to come to you.” With that sentence I made a lunge for Steven. He immediately bolted and sought protection behind our dinner table; I threw the knife on the couch and followed him.
He was standing on one side of the table, I on the other. As I moved around it, he moved around it - always in the other direction, away from me.
We were running around the table like children.

From the corner of my eye I could see Loki standing in the doorframe. Nora approached him from behind a bottle of beer in her hand and sighed at Stevens and my behaviour.
“Are they always like that?” the Trickster God asked.
“Uh-huh,” Nora took a sip, “Well normally Sweetie is faster. She seems a bit worn out.” She slowly sipped at her beer again, “You should have seen her when Steven ate the food she had prepared for herself for later. Almost broke his nose.”
Stopping dead in my tracks, I looked at her.
“I TOLD him to keep his hands off it! I even had a note on it, so he would NOT eat MY food!” I whined. Nora just laughed shaking her head; Loki gave me a look of amusement and annoyance.
“Ok ok, time out,” Steven panted holding his side, “I’m really sorry, Sweetie. Didn’t want to hurt you, you know that. I’ll be more careful in the future!”
I sighed, “Yeah yeah, I know.”
“Love you. I’m truly sorry,” Steven came up to me and took me into his arms. “But to my excuse, I was way too distracted to think straight. This face of his should be forbidden,” he whispered in my ear. Laughing, I rolled my eyes at him and pocked in his side. He gave me a wide grin; I would miss him.
“I’ve already told Nor, Steven, but I have to go on another business trip. I think I’m not going to come home for the next few weeks.”
“Ohh…so your contact here couldn’t help you?” he asked sadly.
“I’m afraid not.”
“And can he help you?” he made a movement with his head in Loki’s direction; I nodded. “Well then Sweetie, have fun,” he emphasized the last word a little bit too much for my liking and wiggled with his eyebrows.
________________________________

After I had bundled my two dark brown duffle bags into the back of the car, I said goodbye to Nora and Steven. We were standing on the pavement before our house hugging each other with tear-filled eyes, when Loki, clearly annoyed by this display of emotions, cleared his throat, “I am not abducting you. You will see them again. Now come along, the others are waiting.”
He got ready to enter the car and I followed his example. Suddenly I shrieked, "Shit, I forgot something. One second, I’ll be back.” With that I dashed up the stairs back in the apartment. All three of them looked at me curious when I came back not even two minutes later; Nora started smiling as soon as she saw what I was holding in my hands. “So you truly are planning a longer trip, I see. You’re always at least one month away, when you pack them,” Steven said with a heavy sigh. I just kissed him on the cheek and put the things into the car boot as well. Waving goodbye to my friends I got in the car on the driver’s side. I started the engine and drove away from my home.

People have different ways to feel alive - for some it is a good dinner, others love to enjoy a good movie, or do sports. For me it was driving. I needed the speed, loved the moment the car responded to me flooring the accelerator.
I had noticed Loki’s reaction to my driving style - him clinging to his car seat, his concerned look at me as I had driven faster and faster; it had been quite funny. But now there were too many other cars on the road, so I settled on a more reasonable speed. I glanced at him for a few seconds, he seemed calm and relaxed. Well at least more relaxed than the last time we had been driving.

“Your eyes should be on the road, Sweetie.”
“You are not allowed to call me that.”
“No?’ he pretended to be surprised, "So we are not friends, little mortal?”
“Don’t like that nickname either.”
He sniggered.
“Little one then?”
“No!”
“Pet?”
“Don’t you dare!”
“How about darling?”
“What do you think.”
He breathed out slowly.
“Well then I don’t have a nickname for you. You hurt my feelings, I thought we had become friends.”
“Don’t try to feed me lies, Trickster.”
“Oh so you are allowed to have a nickname for me,” he pouted with false indignation.

This man was insufferable!

“But you’re right. Trying to tell you lies would be stupid. And I am not a foolish being. So tell me my dear, how does your power work?” he leaned over the centre console into my personal space. I gritted my teeth and tried to focus only on the road. For the first time I noticed his smell; it was pleasant. More than pleasant. I had read about certain body odours being connected to human sexual attraction. Damn, those scientists were definitively in the right.

So not cool! His looks are already too much!

“Come on. Tell me more about you.”
“No.”
“No?” he repeated with a surprised laugh and sat back into his seat.
“You have already seen my home, met some of my friends and have been told about my powers. You’ve learned enough about me for today.” He frowned at me and kept silent for a few seconds; you could almost see the wheels turning in his head. Then he started slowly with a dark voice, “Let me make you an offer, ...”

…I can’t refuse. Yeah great

“… you can ask me any question and I will answer it. In return I am allowed to ask you any possible question and you will answer it. Considering that we both would recognize a lie it seems quite fair.”

Damn. That is an offer I can’t and don’t want to refuse

“Deal! But no inappropriate questions. And it is allowed to skip one, if it’s too personal.” He inclined his head, “Seems fair to me. You may start.”

All at once I had no idea what to ask him. Well actually I had a lot of things to ask him, but I didn’t know where to start. So I began with the most urgent one. “Will you tell others about my power?”
“No. You don’t seem to want to show this part of you in public. I am not the one to violate such a wish.” I let out a breath I didn’t realised I had been holding.
“Thank you, Loki,” I said with a low voice, “Your turn.”
“For how long have you been able to do it?” That was an easy question for me to answer. “I can taste lies as long as I can remember. Clearly ruined my possibility to believe in Santa Claus.”

Does he even know who that is?

“Have you an idea why you can taste lies?”“I thought we are only allowed one question?” I laughed softly.
“Just answer me this one, then you can ask me two questions in return.”
“No, I don’t know why I have this ability. And to be honest I don’t really care anymore. I did, when I was younger. But why searching for an answer you possibly might never find.” He had his facial features too good under control; it was not possible to tell, what he thought about that.
“Have you ever met someone with my ability?”“No. Besides me, but your and my power are quite different.”“How so?”
“I feel lies. You taste them. I think, I favour my version of it.”
“Why?”
He raised his hand to stop me, “Ah ah, that had already been two questions. It’s my turn now.” “That was a follow up question. That does not count!” I exclaimed. He just shook his head, “It does. My turn.” I looked daggers at him.

Ass.

“After Stark had investigated you, he told us, that you are quite wealthy because of your job. Why are you living with two other people? Isn’t that stressful and exhausting?”

God of Mischief and Lies AND change of subjects, it seems. Also what the fuck, Stark?!

I swallowed my anger about this violation of my privacy. But besides that, this was another easy question. “I could afford an apartment all by my own, that’s true. But I don’t like living alone. My family is big. When I grew up our house was never quiet. I like having people around me. Without them I feel lonely.” For a short moment I had the feeling to reveal too much to him. Loki was the kind of person, who would use your personal information for his own benefit. But for the sake of a successful cooperation I also had him to get to know me, maybe then he would trust me. As he didn’t respond to my answer, I continued with our little game.

“Do you think we can find Andvaranaut?”
“Perhaps. Hopefully your contact in the US is more helpful than the one here in Germany.” I could only agree with that.
Loki’s eyebrows lowered and pulled closer together as he began to speak again, “If we find it, will you still try to bring the ring to your client?”
“Next question.”
“No, answer this one!” he demanded with a grave voice.
“Next question!”
He looked at me angrily, his eyelids had become squinted, “You know that I will not allow you to take the ring away from me, do you, little mortal?”

Well, for that rhetorical question he clearly didn’t expect an answer.

Chapter Text

I laid aside The Master and Margarita and reached for my phone on the feather pillow beside me. Hitting the snooze button for the second time this morning I leaned my head back against the headboard. There was no need for rest or sleep anymore. Still I couldn’t force myself to get out of bed.

Why does it have to be so comfortable?

Snuggling down in the warm embrace of the blanket not ready to face the world, I enjoyed the sound of the heavy rain against the windows instead. The sky above the Avengers Compound was covered with dark clouds.
The room around me was a classic example of modern architecture. Sharp, clean lines, unadorned windows and low minimalistic furnishing as far as the eye could reach. For sure not my preferred design aesthetic. The grey floor, those grey walls and the lack of colour or wood elements surely didn’t lift my mood.

But this bed… So comfy!

I had been quartered in this guestroom eight days ago. None other than Natasha Romanoff had shown me my room. She had also been our one-woman welcoming committee at the Compound when Tony had kicked Thor, Loki and me out of the jet before heading back to his family.
Her presence had left me feeling starstruck as well as intimidated. There was a subtle danger to her and despite the fact, that she was only a few years older than me, compared to her I felt like an unexperienced toddler. Funny that the two more than a thousand-year old gods didn’t make me feel that way.

Well, those two had never worked for the KGB and S.H.I.E.L.D. And surely weren’t considered as one of the most talented assassins and spies in the world. I prayed to every god out there, even to the two fellows next to me, that the Black Widow would never tell a lie in my presence. The taste of her untruths would be with absolute certainty as stomach-turning as the ones of the God of Mischief and Lies himself.

After a short introduction and some explaining of the conditions I had to follow while staying in this facility, she had led me to my room. Since then there had been a few encounters in the kitchen and living area. Natasha always gave me a polite smile and we had a few brief conversations, but besides that she didn’t seem to be too interested in my person.

The alarm on my phone started again. This time I tabbed the stop button. With the moaning of the wind as my background music, I clumsily swung my legs out of the bed and padded across the room into the bath. As little as I enjoyed the guestroom itself, as fond was I of the rainfall shower in here. As cold rain came down in torrents outside of the building, gentle warm rain came down on me. Such a beauty of a walk-in shower.
After a not so short time under the warm water I dried myself off and walked back into the bedroom. Up to now I hadn’t unpacked my duffle bags and put the clothes into one of the drawers. Thus, I reached down to one of my brown bags, which were placed next to the bathroom door, grabbed some jeans and a grey hoodie and dressed myself. Stepping out of my room, I closed the door silently behind me.

Thor and Loki were quartered in guestrooms on the same floor as me since they usually stayed here only for short time periods. On the flight to the US, Thor had told me, that they spent most of their time in New Asgard. Different from Thor every other active Avenger was designated their own private quarter near the common areas. The guest wing of the facility on the other side was further away. I started to walk down the long corridors passing by other rooms with closed doors. Finally reaching the kitchen I was greeted by the wonderful rich smell of freshly brewed coffee and warm breakfast rolls.

‘Good morning, Sergeant.’ I addressed the man responsible for the already prepared breakfast. James Buchanan Barnes turned around holding a mug from which white stream rose. In the last few days I had learned that the veteran wasn’t a morning person, in matters of talking, and needed at least two black coffees before he was approachable. Besides that, we got along quite well.
‘Morning. The usual?’ He asked with a small smile on his face.
‘You know me.’ With that he filled another cup and handed it over to me.
‘Angel. You’ve got wings, baby.’ I moaned happily as I took the first sip of the life-giving elixir. He just shrugged off my exaggeration.

The Sergeant was a reserved and quiet person. That had been obvious the minute I met him in the kitchen on my very first morning here. Wasn’t that surprising considering his past. I still couldn’t deter myself from asking him about his past life. Of course not about his ‘Winter Soldier’ time, god no. I had not the heart to do that. There are specific questions you should never ask a veteran.
Instead I had asked him about his youth in the 30s and 40s, eager to learn something about the attitude towards life back then and how he was acclimating with modern times. He seemed happy talking about his time growing up and with every of my questions he opened up a little bit more to me. As a quid pro quo I had told him a bit about myself as well.

‘What are your plans for today?’
I had to swallow the breakfast roll with butter and jelly I just had put in my mouth, before I could answer him. In the meantime, the Sergeant filled the dishwasher with his crockery.
‘I have a meeting with Thor and Loki in the afternoon about our ‘mission’. I loved to call our search of Andvaranaut that way. ‘Besides that, my day will be quite boring. I mean, I can’t just stroll around the compound as I have no security clearance and you guys are always busy doing god knows what.’
Besides doing my research there hadn’t been much to do for me. And as the patient, mature woman I was, I had moaned at the Sergeant about it at breakfast every fucking day. And sometimes at dinner as well.
‘I’m heading down to the gym and shooting range. You can always come along and train with me.’ He suggested sympathetically, not for the first time in this last few days.
‘Why does an over 100-year old man still have to train?’ I joked.
‘To stay a healthy, fit and slightly dangerous 100-year old man.’ He winked at me. ‘Besides, the odd two gods you arrived with, train quite regularly. Have to keep up with them.’

Before I was able to answer, a voice coming from the common room interrupted us.
‘Ahem hello? I’m here. Someone home?’
‘We’re in the kitchen, Peter.’ I looked at Barnes with irritation as a young man came in at the door.

That kid is eighteen at a max. What is he doing here?

The eyes of the newcomer grew big as he saw me.
‘He-Hello, you must be Mr. Stark’s new guest. He forewarned me of your presence. It’s nice to meet you. I’m Peter. Peter Parker.’ He wiped his hand on his trousers as to get rid of sweat. Then he stretched it out for a greeting. I grasped and shook it. During the handshake the boy tried to maintain eye contact…and failed miserably. This was one hell of a nervous little guy.

What a cute afraid little puppy.

I decided then and there to adopt him and gave him a reassuring smile. ‘It’s very nice to meet you, Peter. My name is…’

‘Ohh Mr. Stalk already told me your name!’ He exclaimed happily. ‘It’s nice to meet you, Show-Off. That’s an interesting superhero name.’ My left eyebrow raised by this statement. ‘Mr. Stark said you’re here to help Mr. Loki and Mr. Thor with their mission. That’s so cool!’

‘Kind of, yes. But I’m not a hero. Show-Off is just Tony’s name for me.’

The happy expression on the kid’s face vanished. Instead his eyes began blinking quickly indicating his distress or discomfort over my correction.
‘Oh my god. I’m so sorry, Miss! I had no idea, that that’s Mr. Stark’s special name for you. I would have never called you that had I known…’

How much coffee had this kid? Boy, he is double time rapping.

I interrupted him in his flow of speech. ‘That’s okay. Please, feel free to call me that.’
His tensed posture relaxed.
‘So when you’re not a hero, you’re working for S.H.I.E.L.D.?’
‘That neither. Let’s just say I’m more like a consultant. I find old artefacts or objects for people.’
Peter’s eyes grew large once again.
‘So you are like this dude - Indiana Jones? You know. From this really old movie ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’?’
‘I am neither an archaeologist, nor am I hired by the government.’

At least not the US government.

‘But I get recruited to locate different things and artefacts, yes.’
‘That is sooo cool!’ The boy exclaimed. ‘What was the most unusual thing you had to find?’

Huh…that was a good question. I mean finding a magical ring, that is cursed, was certainly special. There had been other strange requests however.
‘Once one guy wanted me to find Elvis. ‘cause he’s not dead and all, you know. I declined that job. Oh and there was this history nerd. He literally begged me to bring him the arm of the Winter Soldier.’ I laughed. ‘Rejected that as well. Didn’t want to get choked by that thing.’ I winked at the dark haired man behind me.

Sergeant Barnes laughed quietly. ‘You considered robbing a grandpa like me?’

‘You sure don’t look like one. And as I said, didn’t do it. You still have your arm, have you not?’ He looked at me in amusement. I turned towards Peter again.
‘And what are you’re doing here? You seem a little bit young to work for S.H.I.E.L.D.’By that question the boy hesitated and looked at Barnes before he slowly answered.

‘I’m…Mr. Stark’s… trainee. I’m here on the weekends to…work.’
I didn’t need the tingling sensation on my tongue to know that that was not the whole truth. But I left it at that. The kid deserved his secrets.

‘Speaking of working – aren’t you supposed to go?’ The Sergeant looked at Peter questioningly.
‘Oh yeah of course!’ He smiled at me. ‘It was nice meeting you, Miss.’ And with that he ran off.
‘I have to go as well. My invitation still stands. If you’re too bored come down. The gym is nice and I still want to see your shooting skills.’ With that Barnes bid goodbye and followed Peter out of the room. His heavy steps faded away and empty silence surrounded me.

As no one was around anymore I hopped on the kitchen counter and continued my breakfast, one leg tucked under the other. My mother would have chided me for my bad manners. But I was a grown-ass woman, for god’s sake! And more importantly, she wasn’t here.
I reached blindly for the mug in front of me, eager for more caffeine.
And missed it.

Odd. I’m sure I placed it in front of me.

Looking up I noticed it standing on my left.

I clearly don’t work without a proper amount of coffee in my system.

With a shake of my head I reached for it once again. This time with my eyes focused on my task. Once more my hand only grasped at nothing.

What the hell?

The mug stood innocently a few inches away from my fingers.

Am I having a stroke?

I looked at my hand impatiently. ‘Listen here buddy, we have to work as a team, okay? You want this caffeine, I want this caffeine, so get your shit together and get us this mug!’ With that I leaned forward to grab it.
‘ARE YOU SHITTING ME?!’
The cup of coffee wasn’t in my hand. Oh no. It also wasn’t in the same place as before. Instead the thing had decided that this was a good point in time to laugh about gravity. I looked at it dumbfounded.
Over my outstretched hand hovered the backstabbing little bastard. The backstabbing little bastard with a green glow around it.
‘LOOOOKI!’

Speak of the devil and he doth appear.

The man in question strolled into the kitchen cool as a cucumber, as if nothing had happened.
‘Good Morning to you too, darling. It is lovely to hear your euphonious voice this early in the day. And calling for me too. I am a happy man.’ He leaned against the fridge, his eyes sparkled with amusement. ‘Your eye-hand-coordination seems a little bit off. Are you getting sick?’

This guy will shatter my nerves!

‘Loki, I swear it, I will wring your neck! Stop this hocus-pocus with my coffee!’
Loki snorted derisively, but with a soft ‘klack’ the mug positioned itself on the counter again. With a dry thank you, I turned to my breakfast once more.
Even without looking I knew that his gaze was on me. Out of the corner of my eye I peeked at him. His slender frame still leaned against the fridge, arms crossed, the fingers on his right hand tapping his upper arm in a relaxed motion. He looked good in this calm state. His grey suit flattered his body, making him seem even taller and slimmer. So different to Thor, who always looked like his muscles would tear his shirts apart.

How does Loki look shirtless?

I licked my lips unconsciously at that thought.

Stop it! For fuck’s sake. In the end he IS able to read minds.

Risking another glance, a wave of relief rolled over me – his expression hadn’t changed a bit. Smiling to myself I brought the mug to my mouth and took a sip.

‘Did you notice the lie of young Peter? Tell me, how did it taste?’
Still with coffee in my mouth I turned my head with a jerk. The bastard didn’t even bother himself to speak low. I swallowed my coffee in a rush.
‘Yes, please, talk about my powers where everyone could hear you. Thank you very much.’ Loki didn’t let himself get worked up by my hissed response.

‘I believe, his lies are not capable to hurt you like mine, are they?’

‘Is this some sick kind of dick-measuring contest? Stop talking about it! Besides were you not taught to not eavesdrop? Listening to someone’s private conversation is rude.’

‘Then talk more quietly next time, darling. It is not my fault, that you are always so loud.’ He looked at me with a calm expression on his face. ‘You didn’t answer my question though. So, how did his lie taste?’
Was it just my imagination or was his voice getting louder and louder?
‘Would you shut up, you Asgardian pain in the ass!’ I tried to shush him.
‘I don’t appreciate your way of talking to me, little mortal.’ His eyes turned cold, before a cruel smile appeared on his face. ‘Besides, I already told the others about your ability.’
My face paled.
‘You…you didn’t.’

‘No?’ Loki asked mockingly and leaned forward. ‘You don’t look so sure. Do you have a bad taste in your mouth?’
I did not.
‘Why…?’ My voice broke. He didn’t give me an answer right away. Instead the cruel god straightened himself and took a step towards the counter my collapsed body was sitting on.

‘For my amusement. You should have seen their faces. So interested. And simultaneously so disgusted by you, your power and your secretiveness. Especially Stark looked disappointed. S.H.I.E.L.D. now knows about you too. They’re going to have a cosy little chat with you.’

His green eyes scanned my face for any reaction as he inclined his head slightly. Hot anger filled my stomach and spread through my whole body. Maybe I didn’t have the bad flavour of a lie in my mouth, but a feeling of numbness covered it. My lips and tongue tingled as if I had an allergic reaction. I clenched my fists.

‘No? No reaction at all? How interesting.’

I finally snapped when his joyful laughter filled the kitchen. In a fit of temper, I hurled my mug with coffee at Loki. It shattered into a thousand pieces as it impinged on the fridge. And as the cup shattered, Loki did as well. From one moment to the next I was alone.

I’m going crazy…the thing went right through him…

With the utmost caution to not injure myself on the shards, I slid down the counter.
‘Loki?’ No reaction to my whispered question. My hand waggled through the air to make sure, that he really wasn’t there anymore. I took a step on my tiptoes towards the place the god had been standing.
‘Loki?’
Nothing.

‘Why are you whispering, my dear?’
Frightened to death by his voice suddenly near my ear, I lost my balance and fell forwards.
‘Careful, darling. Or you will harm yourself on those broken fragments.’
A strong arm wrapped around my waist and I found myself pressed against Loki's hard chest. It felt like his lips brushed my ear. So light, so feather-light and still enough to send chills down my spine.

Oh Jesus, Mary and Joseph

Freeing myself from his embrace, I glared up at him.‘And whose fault would that be?’

‘I wasn’t the one throwing a tantrum and ruining that mug.’ His breath caressed my cheek.

‘No, you are just the asshole, who couldn’t keep a secret. And what the hell just happened?’ My hands awkwardly gesticulated to his former position in front of the fridge. While drawing himself up to his full height, a smug smile returned on Loki’s face.

‘That, my little lie detector, was a test.’ Suddenly another very Loki-like sounding voice began to speak behind me. ‘And you failed miserably.’

I cocked by head from one side to the other and back as if I was watching a truly fast tennis match. A tennis match with two Lokis - one to my right, one to my left.

The son of a bitch can duplicate himself!

‘Great. Now there are two of you.’

‘Actually there are three of us right now. But there is no need for you to worry about that. I have to thank you for your participation in this experiment. It was very enlightening.’
Both Lokis bowed their heads slightly with pleased smiles. ‘But now we have to bid goodbye to you.’
And with that…both of them just vanished with a green glow leaving me once again alone in the kitchen.

‘I hate you. I hate you. I hate you!’ I started to pace up and down.
‘How can someone be so..so…’

Intriguing? Fascinating? Hot?

‘No! Bad brain!’ I scolded myself, while running my fingers through my hair.

Ok, desperate times call for desperate measures.

It was time to blow off some steam.
‘Sergeant Barnes, I hope there is some room left for me on the shooting range besides you.’

Chapter Text

Breathe. Relax. Aim. Squeeze. Squeeze more.
Breathe. Relax. Aim. Squeeze. Squeeze more.

Out of rounds, the slide of my Glock locked back. Pointing the gun down, I removed the magazine and racked the slide a few times, before locking it back. After that I set the gun down on the bench. Removing my eye and ear protection I turned to face James Buchanan Barnes, who was standing behind my firing lane.

‘Not bad. You have an almost military shooting style.’

His eyes moved from my face to the human silhouette target behind me, examining the bullet holes in it. Not once had I missed. He grunted approvingly.

‘Not bad for a civilian indeed.’

‘Thank you, Sergeant.’ I laughed softly about his praise. ‘I’m a military brat. My father served, my brother served, my other one still does. It rubs off.’ Realization crossed the man’s face.

‘I see.’ He hesitated for a moment. ‘Is that why you only address me with my rank?’

Did I? I hadn’t noticed it. There was a high probability that he was right, though. Growing up my name had been secondary. While I was supposed to have no rank, the practice was that I essentially belonged to my father, who did had rank. So I only had been the General’s daughter. In return my father had made sure that I knew the proper way to address military personnel. The Sergeant wasn’t in the army anymore, I knew that, but as they say – old habits die hard.

‘It seems politer and more appropriate to me, yes.’ I answered with a nod.

He grunted again. ‘Feel free to call me Bucky. After all it seems as if you will spend a lot more time here with us.’

Did I just unlock the next level of a game called ‘The Sergeant’s trust’?

‘Bucky.’ I repeated his name with a smile.

Soon afterwards it was his turn to impress me with his skills.
With my mouth agape I watched him handling different firearms – machine guns like a Colt M4 or a M249 or smaller guns like a SIG-Sauer or a Glock. It didn’t matter what he wielded. Each shot hit the target between its eyes or its heart.

Bucky was highly proficient in handling firearms. He had unbelievable precision. He was deadly.

Note to myself: don’t piss off the grandpa!

After a certain time, I excused myself and walked into the cleaning room with my gun. Rolling up the sleeves of my grey hoodie, I got to work. Cleaning the barrel and chamber, cleaning and lubricating the action, reassembling the firearm and performing a functional check before finally wiping down the outside of the gun – it was all second nature to me. Even with my experience it took me about thirty minutes. Putting away my gun in the thigh holster, I stepped out into the hall.
A look through the glass window showed Bucky still busy with his training. Now, however, he seemed to be throwing knives at the targets.

I really don’t want to get on his bad side!

With a shake of my head I walked towards the exit. The only way out of the training area was through the gym as the shooting range was situated behind it, connected by another long corridor.

Unfortunately, there was no way for me reaching the gym. Ever. Because on the ceiling of said corridor hung a blue and red coloured, big-ass motherfucker of a spider. Granted, a humanoid looking spider with only four spider-legs, apparently made of some sort of metal, and two pairs of normal human arms and legs. All the same, too spidery-looking for me.
In defence of my honour, the volume of the scream, that I let out, was only comparable to the volume of a small jumbo jet.
Startled by my squeak of fright, the spider landed on the ground in one smooth motion vanishing the spider-legs in the back of the now purely human looking dude.

Damn, I’m stupid!

Of course I knew who this was. Even back in Berlin we had heard of the friendly neighbourhood hero in New York, before he was seen in Berlin itself.
In fact, my brother had sent me a clip of Spider-Man on Youtube a few years ago and after watching some of his feats we had established a discussion group with my other brother and one of his oldest friends about this being real or only done on a computer. They had teased me endlessly about the new rising star in the superhero world knowing about my fear of spiders.
Not exactly spiders themselves, but rather their spine-tingling, horrifying legs. Unfortunately, a spider almost never comes without those eight thin motherfuckers. To sum up, I can say that I had absolutely no problem with Spider-Man. Up to the time of this incident I hadn’t seen him manifesting those extra legs though.

Yikes!

‘Please don’t scream. Please don’t scream. I’m not going to hurt you. I’m so sorry. Didn’t want to scare you, Miss.’ Spider-Man tried to calm me raising his hands to show that he was unarmed. I was surprised by his voice, it sounded younger as I had expected and also kind of familiar. Even his posture reminded me of someone.

‘Peter?!’

The mask on his face vanished and suddenly the face of the young man stared back at me.

Spider-Man? More like Spider-Boy! …I wonder if someone made this joke already.

‘Aaaaaand another one knows my secret identity... Oh maaan! But please please please Miss, you can’t tell anyone! Please! You gotta keep it a secret. My aunt is going to kill me, if she finds out.’ He gazed at me in sheer despair. My heart broke a little by the sight of the stressed young boy.

‘Peter, relax. I’m not going to tell.’ I mimed locking my mouth and throwing away the key. His tense posture didn’t change. ‘Really. You don’t have to worry about me. I promise. Nobody wants their secrets to be spilled, I understand.’ Keeping my voice calm and steady to soothe him, I gave him a small smile. His face still screamed ‘I’m not convinced’.

Of course not, until this morning he didn’t even know me.

I put out my hand raising the smallest of my fingers indicating him to lock his with mine.
‘Pinky promise.’

Peter looked at me dumbfounded apparently surprised at a grown-up woman making a pinky swear. Nonetheless, he pulled off the gesture.
‘Thank you, Miss.’ He spoke quietly. Poor little guy, I could image the pressure he was under. I really wanted to lift his mood.

‘Tony’s trainee, eeehhh. I see. Iron Man’s trainee would have been more accurate. Wish I would have been so cool back in my school days.’ I winked at him. Never seen someone blush this hard before.

‘I’m, I’m sure you were very cool. I mean you’re still cool! I’ve seen you shoot with Mr. Bucky. You’re cool now, so you also had to be in school, right?’

Ha! No such luck, honey.

I just smiled at him. ‘Thank you, Peter. You’re a kind person.’ He returned the smile. ‘But now tell me, what exactly are you doing here on a weekend? Shouldn’t you be partying or something? Why are you hanging out with Gramps and the Asgardian Tweedledee and Tweedledum on a Saturday?’

Dear God, please don’t let them hear how I just called them!

Peter chortled with glee at my nicknames.
‘I come almost every weekend to the facility to train or work with Mr. Stark on my suit. He did an upgrade last week and wanted me to test it. And besides, every other week is a big team dinner. Wanda and Mr. Vision are coming back today and I’m really looking forward to see them again. Do you already know them? I’m sure you’re going to love them. They’re very nice. And Wanda is a fantastic cook. Mr. Vision not as much, but as a team they’re great!’

His flow of speech without the need to breathe was truly impressive. It occurred to me that Peter saw the rest of the Avengers as his extended family. He had mentioned an aunt, not his parents. What had happened to them?

Distracted by my own thoughts I almost missed his next question.

‘I was just about to go to the training room to watch Mr. Thor and Mr. Loki. Would you like to come with me? They are very impressive.’

Would I like to do that? After all, Loki’s behaviour had let me to seek refuge in the shooting range in the first place. I had been firmly convinced, that the god had spoken the truth. That he told everyone about my secret.
According credibility to the God of Mischief, Chaos and Lies. Sometimes I was just so unbelievable dumb. Seemingly he had only wanted to satisfy his curiosity and see if I was able to taste the lies of his illusions. Surprisingly my powers had failed me. But that was a mystery and a problem for another day.
For now, I wanted to see two gods fighting.

‘Lead the way, Spider-Man!’

____________________________

The training area was composed of an indoor gym and outdoor area. According to Peter, in the beginning sparring had been taken place inside. But after the destruction of one piece of sports equipment too much, Tony had established an outdoor sparring field with extra solid walls around it and an armoured glass window on one side for everyone who wanted to watch safe and sound from inside.

When Peter and I appeared on the scene, Thor and Loki were just getting ready for their training. As soon as Thor saw the two of us, he strolled over.

‘Ah, spidery Man! Are you here to join our glorious fight?’ Peter just shook his head. Turning to me, Thor continued. ‘Lady Heart, you are of course also very welcomed to join us.’

‘Naaa, thanks man. I don’t want to destroy you.’ Thor’s loud guffaw shook me to the core.

‘Well then, it looks like we’re on our own brother.’
Without so much as looking at us, Loki stepped outside.

Does he really want to fight in his suit?

Surprisingly Thor was wearing normal human sports clothes – a grey tank top, that showed off his immense arms and black sports trousers. Loki, on the other side, was still wearing one of his signature grey suits. I hadn’t seen him in anything else.

‘My brother is not talkative today. I apologize in behalf of him.’

He had been very talkative earlier.

‘You two can join us outside. You’ll have a better experience and we’re only going to fight physically without using our powers. There is no danger for you.’ Smiling down, the blond walked us out. Thankfully it wasn’t raining anymore.

In the middle of the area was a circular space similar to a doyhō for sumo wrestling bouts albeit significantly larger.
Peter and I positioned ourselves a few feet in front of the glass window, still more feet away from the battlefield.
Assuming a fighting position, Thor stepped inside the ring.
‘You know the rules, Loki. No powers, just one clean fight. The first who is out of the ring loses.’

Yup, just like Sumo.

‘You don’t have to remind me, Thor.’ Loki almost sounded bored.

The moment his foot crossed the verge of the fighting circle, the all too familiar green shine spread from the middle of Loki’s body. His grey suit melted away revealing a combat gear made of heavy black leather. The upper part was interwoven with green and gold elements, forming shapes that went in and out and came back around. Those interweaving designs reminded me of old Norse rune and symbols. Even his hair changed from casually framing his face to a slicked back style. At last, we watched a cape taking shape, also entirely made of dark leather.

A small noise of admiration escaped my mouth. Loki’s body position didn’t change, but he arched an eyebrow and gave me a look as if to say ‘Enjoying the view?’.
I definitely did. He might look like a BDSM god with all that leather. But also like an almighty, powerful one. That was the person I had in mind, while reading all those stories about Andvaranaut and the cunning trickster!

The brothers slowly began to circle each other, carefully watching the movements of their opponent. Suddenly Thor swung his fist at Loki. He bent backwards. Balancing his weight on his left foot, Loki grabbed Thor by his shirt and tried to sweep his legs away. But the blond god saw the move coming. With his immense strength he simply pushed Loki away.

The edge of the circle was very close behind him now. Loki continued to retreat, his brother continued advancing. All of their movements were characterized by tremendous agility and reflexes. While Thor dominated with his strength, Loki compensated it with his speed. But the older one managed to push his opponent to the edge of the circle with increasing frequency.

Thor punched. Loki ducked. Thor kicked. His younger brother twisted. It seemed like Loki was getting slower and more tired though. Thor’s next punch wasn’t dodged by Loki as precisely as before. The blond god’s fist swished past Loki’s face, leading for him to stumble back.

Now the Trickster was standing right on the edge of the circle, not yet back in his fighting stance. Realisation of his mistake crossed Loki’s face. Thor saw his opportunity. The older brother jumped into the air to land the final blow. With a loud Boom he landed outside of the circle cracking the ground beneath him.

Did he miss Loki?

No. Of course not. The God of Lies was standing on the other side of the circle, still inside of it. With a mischievous smile on his face.

‘Oh dear. It seems like you’ve already lost. Brother.’

His words were greeted with a howl of anger from Thor.
‘You used an illusion! You cheated, we said no powers!’

‘No. You said no powers. I never agreed to that.’

‘This is how you want to play? Alright then, let’s get this over with. Last one standing wins.’
With these words Thor broke into a sprint towards Loki. Their fighting had been fast and impressive before. Now it was a pure demonstration of power.

They moved quicker, their kicks and punches became fiercer, not caring anymore to stay inside the circle or for the other's wellbeing. Loki’s illusion popped up and vanished, when Thor hit them with his fists. None of them hold the upper hand for long.

Suddenly I heard something crackling. A tingling sensation spread throughout my body, the hair on my arms standing on the end.

With a tremendous volume, a lightning bolt discharged from Thor’s hand. Loki, who had been standing in front of Peter, rolled to the side. Even Peter himself had to dodge the lightning. With a giant leap he saved himself to the opposite wall.

‘Thor! You idiot! Be more careful!’ Loki screamed, while summoning daggers to his hands. While using them to redirect the electricity or to threw them at his brother, Thor continued to project lightning. He seemed completely lost in battle.

Thor stretched his right hand towards the sky. Over our heads formed a dense, towering dark cloud, accompanied by stark winds. Looking up, Thor summoned thunder and lightning down to us, absorbing it into his body. But something seemed to go wrong. Thor’s panicked voice reached me, before I understood what was happening.

‘I CAN’T HOLD IT! GET DOWN!’

As if in slow motion I saw lightning and shock waves erupting from Thor’s body, spreading in all directions. Three pairs of eyes full of fear stared at me.

Peter was still hanging high on the opposite wall. He had his suit. I knew, he was safe. But also too far away to help me.

I was no superhuman. I had no superhuman durability, no powers to protect myself. Either the lightning or the shock waves would injure me. An impact on the armoured glass window would my body not survive.

I closed my eyes.

Bracing myself for the pain.

‘Foolish girl. You shouldn’t be here in the first place.’

Two strong long arms wrapped around my body pulling me close to their master. My face was pressed against heavy leather. I opened my eyes and looked up into the distressed face of Loki.

His arms tightened around me as he pushed me to the ground, spinning our bodies so that he landed on his back, me lying on top of him. Two of his illusions appeared in front of us, only to be hit by the lightning and to disappear again. The next moment we were reached by the shock wave.

‘Don’t be afraid. I will not let you go.’

The air was pressed out of my lungs. We were hurled back, Loki still behind me, holding me tight in his arms. I could hear the window crack as his back collided with it. My head jerked against his torso. With a high-pitched ringing in my ear I blacked out.

Chapter Text

A sharp throbbing pain shot from my temple towards my closed eyes. Then another one. And another one.
What was going on? Where was I? A small groan escaped my lips.
Something cold glided over my forehead to my cheek. The touch was soft, soothing, almost caressing. Completely different to the hot excruciating pain that built up behind my eyes. Bright points of light flashed into my field of vision. I let out another groan. The cold touch ghosted over my face once again.
Slowly my eyelids fluttered open.

The first thing I saw was the dull sky. Dark heavy storm clouds moved above me. A black-haired framed face hovered over me as well. The mouth of the face moved. What did the beautiful sculpted individual want? I couldn’t understand what it tried to say to me.
Another face appeared in my field of view.
Peter!
The poor boy looked upset. Why?
Oh yeah! Thor had attempted to fry me.
But I had been saved.
I had been saved by Loki!

My eyes zeroed in on the face with the black hair. Its lips were compressed, the eyebrows forced together creating a wrinkle. Was that worry in Loki’s eyes?
The ringing in my ears slowly faded away, giving me the opportunity to understand them. Peter almost stumbled over his own words.
‘Are you okay, miss? Does something hurt? How do you feel?’
I opened my mouth and tried to speak, but barely managed a whisper.
‘What? What did you say?’ Peter asked with a pleading tone of voice and leaned closer.

‘Thunderbolts and lightning very very frightening me…’

The boy looked at me with a blanked expression. Then he broke out into laughter. His sudden outburst didn’t help the pain in my head, nonetheless I cracked a smile at him. My dry lips protested against the motion.

‘How do you feel, little one?’ The smooth, dark voice of Loki immediately grabbed all of my attention back to him. His gaze flitted over my body and back to my eyes. Funny, his voice was so calm, so steady. His whole posture was. But his eyes betrayed him. They never settled on something for long. He was worried. But…why?
‘I feel like shit. My head really hurts.’ I sounded hoarse. ‘That could have turned out much worse. Thank you, Loki. Are you ok?’
He almost looked uncomfortable because of my question. Lucky for him, another loud voice on my right joined in.

‘My lady, my apologies for this incident! Words can not describe how truly sorry I am.’

Turning my head, I laid eyes on Thor. The big blond god stood a few feet away from us, with his shoulders curved forward and his head looking down. Still, his entire body was charged by electricity. White lightning danced around his hands and arms and his eyes were glowing.

‘It’s quite alright, Thor. I’m good.’
Carefully I lifted my head from the ground and sat up. The pressure behind my eyes let me grimace. It kind of felt like my head was going to explode.
‘God, my head is spinning.’
Peter immediately put his hand on my back to support me. Thor, looking worried, took a step towards me.
I was not proud of it, but I winced a little by his movement.
In a flash Loki left his kneeling position besides me and positioned himself between me and Thor. His back was towards me, so I couldn’t see his face, but his hissed words were enough to imagine how he looked like.
‘I believe, you have done enough, Thor.’
The hurt on Thor’s face was obvious. He stretched out his hand.
‘Stay. Away. From. Her.’
Loki’s growl let Thor stop in his movement. In bewilderment he looked from Loki to me and back to his brother. He obviously was completely baffled by his brother’s behaviour. I certainly looked just as puzzled. Why was Loki acting so protective?

‘No worries, I’m good. Accidents happen.’ I tried to reassure. ‘Please just stay away until you’re run-down, ok Thor?’
‘Yes. Yes, of course, my lady.’‘And you have to deal with me calling you Pikachu from now on.’
Ah, another reference he didn’t get. The confusion didn’t leave his face, but the big blond nodded. At a later time, I would have to show him the yellow electric mouse. There was no fun in giving someone a nickname he didn’t get.

‘Pikachu. Of course! Why haven’t I thought about that.’ Peter muttered under his breath.
‘What can I say. Tony isn’t the only one, who has a penchant for nicknames.’ I smiled at him showing my teeth. ‘Could you please help me up, Peter? I would like to lay down in my room.’
‘Of course.’
I stretched out my hand, so he could help me on my feet. Instead the boy lifted me up – one arm under my legs and the other supporting my back.

What am I? A princess? A bride? And how strong is this kid?!

‘Ehm, thank you, Peter. But I can walk.’
‘The boy is right. You hurt your head. It is better, if he carries you.’
Loki didn’t turn to speak to me directly, he was still glaring at Thor. His behaviour was irritating. He didn’t want Thor near me, but Peter carrying me bridal style was ok?
‘Really, I can walk.’
‘No. You can not.’
‘I’d feel better carrying you, miss. May I?’ Peter chipped in with a small voice and pleading eyes. I surrendered with a nod. How could someone say no to this kid?

‘Please rest, my lady. And call for me...us…someone, if you need something.’ Thor corrected himself as he noticed something in Loki’s glare.
I was carried away from the training field and the two brothers, who were still holding a starring contest.
We passed the armoured glass window, the impact where Loki’s back had collided was clearly visible.
_____________________________

In the end, I slept for several hours. It was already getting dark, when I was woken up by a knock on the door.
‘Yeah?’
‘It’s me, miss. I wanted to ask, if you wanna eat dinner with us.’
‘One second, Peter. I’ll be right there.’
I stumbled out of bed and opened the door. Peter was standing in front of it, smiling at me.
‘Are you feeling better?’
‘Hmm, absolutely. Just a little bit sleepy.’ I stifled a yawn.
‘You almost slept the whole day. I hope it’s okay, but Mr. Bucky and I checked in on you. He said you could have a concussion.’
‘Of course. Thanks for that!’

Was it silly to be disappointed that Loki hadn’t looked after me? Certainly. I should get this kind of image out of my head very quickly. And the feeling that went with it as well.
Peter and I walked down the corridors towards the living area. He stopped in the passage to the kitchen.

‘May I introduce to you, Wanda and Mr. Vision, they’re our best cooks.’

I stuck my head in the door. The ones just introduced looked up from their current task – Vision was cutting something into small pieces, while Wanda added spice into a large cooking pot, which was standing on the stove. Both greeted me with a polite smile.
I had met two gods, two soldiers out of time, Spider-Man and the Black Widow in the last few days and still was baffled by the tall synthezoid and the beautiful red-head.

‘Now that she’s finally awake, you don’t have to worry anymore, моја мала.' Wanda smiled warmly at Peter. Addressing me, she continued. ‘It’s nice to meet you.’
‘It’s nice to meet you, too. Thank you for cooking and inviting me. What can I do?’
‘Oh nothing really. We’ll be done soon. But you could take the water carafe with you to the table. Peter, would you take the bread with you?’

The boy grabbed the bread basket and headed for the dining room. Stepping inside the kitchen I reached for the carafe standing next to the large cooking pot.
It was filled with a thick, red-coloured soup. I inhaled its smell deeply – it was the smell of home cooking and kindness. Oddly enough, it reminded me of my mother and my childhood.
I stepped closer to Wanda, who was stirring the soup with a wooden spoon, to have a better look. Recognising beef, pickled cucumbers, tomatoes, onions and capers, it dawned upon me, what the two were cooking.

‘Solyanka!’ I shouted out happily, clapping my hands in excitement.

The redhead gave me a look of astonishment. ‘Yes. You know the dish?’

‘Despite being of Russian origin, Solyanka is common in other states of the former Soviet Union and certain parts of the former Eastern Bloc. It is also popular in the former East Germany.’ Vision joined in without stopping or slowing down cutting dill finely. ‘I presume, it is still commonly found in restaurants in Berlin and you tried the soup there?’

‘I did. But in fact, it is one of my mother’s favourite dishes from her childhood. She cooked it for us at least once a month.’ I took the water carafe and went out of the kitchen. ‘I’m looking forward to trying your version of it!’ After all, every family cooked Solyanka differently.
_____________________________

I must admit I’m a sore loser. Always have been, always will be. Way too competitive.
Logically everyone around me knew, that you should never EVER let me play a game like Monopoly.
But here’s the point – these people didn’t know me. Yet.

So when dear sweet Peter suggested playing the board game, while we waited for Vision and Wanda to finish cooking, I was on fire!
I rolled the dices, bought and traded properties and drove my opponents into bankruptcy while collecting money like good old Scrooge McDuck.
A normal game of Monopoly, y’ know.
Except, that it wasn’t.

Because I was playing along the rules of my family. And we were absolute ruthless when it came to this board game.
To us the official rules were more what you’d call ‘guidelines’ than actual rules. The same applied to the rents you have to pay, when landing on an already owned property. Everyone ripped everyone off - my siblings and I fleeced my grandma, my father soaked my mother. We had no shame at all. As a result, everyone had the given rents of the properties committed to memory.
Whereas my opponents in this game of Monopoly did not.

Besides Peter and me, Thor and Bucky had agreed to play along. It had taken a while to explain the gameplay to Thor and to get him to stop apologizing for the previous accident. Once understood, the big blond was hooked on it. Apparently Bucky had played it a number of times, when it was first mass-marketed in 1934. Consequently, he was an old hand at the game.

As we had gathered around the coffee table in the living area, Loki walked in as well and was asked by Peter if he wanted to tag along.
A snort had been his only response. Instead he ensconced himself in an armchair with a book.

Although I had decided not to care about his earlier protective behaviour, I was a little disappointed that he didn’t even look at me when he walked in the door.
Granted, he didn’t pay much attention to anyone in the room, so why should it be any different for me. Still, I had to remind me to pay attention to the others and not him. There was a game to be won!
The first one, who landed on one of my owned streets, was Bucky.
Pacific Avenue with one house – normally the rent would be $130, I charged him $150, while giving him a sweet smile. The sergeant paid immediately, without hesitation. I suppressed a smug grin.

Let the games begin!

I almost missed Loki’s stare. He had averted his gaze from his book and looked at me, his face unreadable.
The others might not notice my cheating – the God of Lies and Mischief, of course, did. I prayed to him - yes to him – that he wouldn’t snitch on me.
When Thor landed on my Indiana Avenue with two houses, I charged him $300 - $50 too much.
Loki’s and my eyes met and he raised an eyebrow in amusement. I just gave him a wink, then focused back on the game.
Out of the corner of my eye I could see his lips curling into a grin.

As Wanda entered the room with the large cooking pot, closely followed by Vision, who phased through the wall instead of using the door, the game was not over yet, but my opponents had already lost a lot of their money. In fact, Thor was almost entirely bankrupt, Bucky was for the third time in a row in jail and Peter had mortgaged two of his five properties.
Ah the sweet taste of a soon-to-be victory.

We all gathered around the dining table, while Thor grumbled something about illogical Midgardian board games, and bit by bit Wanda handed everyone a serving of the soup.
Seated between Peter and Bucky, I listened to the animated conversations that arose. I didn’t miss the fact, that Wanda was watching me intently as I took the first spoonful of Solyanka. The signature saltiness and sourness of the soup sent my taste buds tingling.

‘It’s delicious Wanda. You are indeed a fantastic cook.’ I complimented her to which she cheerfully responded. ‘Thank you. Can I compete with your mother?’
‘Well, a mother’s cooking will always be the best. But you’re getting very close. Your recipe is quite different, though. For example, we don’t use dill as a topping, instead we serve it with sour cream.’
‘Actually I followed Natalia’s recipe.’
‘Oh.’
I took a look at the second redhead, who sat beside Thor at the other end of the table and was met with an unwavering stare. It wasn’t exactly hostile, but it wasn’t open either.

‘So then it’s your family recipe?’ The Black Widow took her time to answer.
‘Yes. It was my fathers. Our typical Saturday meal.’

I almost spat out the remaining soup in my mouth, as the taste of her lie displaced the one of the soup. It was disgusting – deep and penetrating. She was without any doubt an excellent and frequent liar. Loki, who sat next to Thor, looked briefly in my direction. He must have sensed her lie and of course knew exactly what she was doing to me. Otherwise nobody seemed to have noticed anything, most of them were still engrossed in their conversations.

‘How nice.’ I forced a smile, while my stomach was revolting.

‘He was a very passionate cook. A kind man, who learnt the recipe from my babushka.’

I slowly placed my spoon next to my plate, careful not to show the shaking of my hand. Her second lie felt like a punch in my stomach.

‘Are you ok, Lady Heart? You look pale.’ Thor observed loudly. Everyone at the table turned their attention to me. Peter gave me a concerned look.
‘I’m…fine.’ They all still looked at me.
‘Maybe the incident earlier was worse than you thought. Do you wanna see a doctor?’ Bucky suggested.

‘I don’t think that’ll be necessary. Loki protected her so well. Which, I have to say, is quite unusual for him.’ Natasha continued, while eating her soup undeterred. I could see Loki’s grip tightening on his spoon.
‘Quite remarkable indeed. What did you do to deserve such treatment from him?’
The Black Widow looked at me with a fake smile. I just shrugged, while trying to ignore the aftertaste of her lies. The other’s eyes wandered back and forth between her and me.

‘I wish he would treat me like that. But after that one night I was no longer interesting to him.’
Everyone had stopped eating and instead stared from Natasha to Loki in complete perplexity.
Thor in particular looked as if his eyes were about to pop out of his head and Peter’s cheeks were as red as a tomato.
I, on the other hand, was getting really dizzy from all these lies. Holding fast on the table, I tried to breath in and out to calm myself down.

‘Such a shame, I truly loved him.’

Her last lie sent me over the edge and I doubled over on the chair.
With squinting eyes, I looked at Loki – he sat completely motionless in his chair, only his eyes betrayed how furious he was.

‘I beg you stop!’ My voice was shaking – this was truly a crappy day for me and my health.
‘But of course.’ The Black Widow sat back and crossed her arms. ‘Then please tell the others what you and him want to keep secret from us.’
She gave me the most piercing, incisive stare.
‘And most importantly, why.’

What a lousy day.

Chapter Text

Four pairs of eyes were firmly fixed on me - Thor stared at me in utter bewilderment, the soldier’s eyes were blank, as were those of the android, whereas the Black Widow gave me a piercing glance. I ignored them, just as I had ignored her previous words; they were meaningless, almost forgettable. At least for me, it was a whole different story for the woman sitting at the other end of the table. She sat slumped in her chair, the picture of misery. After everything my idiot of a brother had put her body through today, this clash with the Black Widow was finally too much.

I should have been more careful. Didn’t I learn anything from last time this exhausting woman had tricked me? All those years ago on the Helicarrier, and now again, I had not foreseen her plan; she was unpredictable.
Some time ago a feeling in my gut had warned me that every encounter between me and the little one was being watched. So logically I had become cautious while observing her; had always remained in the background, had learned from a distance.

There was a mystique surrounding her and her powers; it was tempting; I was drawn to it. Without a trace of sei∂r or any other source of its power, I couldn’t explain her ability to myself. It might be that one of her parents had the gift as well; however, in all my years I had never heard of such power users here on Midgard. Or anywhere else. Magical powers always had a source, an origin that could be felt by others who were gifted with magic. For example, the powers of the witch and her partner almost screamed ‘Mind Stone’ in my face. But there was nothing with the little one; no whispering, no rustling, just absolute silence. Her magic didn’t speak to me.

And yet I couldn’t stay away from her. Something about her attracted me. The longer I had watched her, the more interesting she had become; she was a complicated woman - full of contradictions.
She enjoyed social contact with others, whether it was with someone as grumpy as the soldier or someone like Thor, who was basically a big child. She liked to laugh a lot and loudly with them, always delivered her stories in an effusive, arm-waving style. On the other hand, at some point it seemed as if her energy ran empty, then she withdrew into herself; as if every sentence, every word that she had to address to others was too much. In those moments she went from an active participant to an observer. It seemed that she was a volatile character withal, yet I had watched her working on her laptop for hours, deeply concentrated and absorbed in order to contact the man who could help us for our further search for Andvaranaut. She was an honest person, kind to other people, but regardless, she fooled or cheated others in order to achieve her goals. I had been greatly amused by her behaviour while playing that strange Midgardian board game. At the same time, she didn’t trust anyone quickly enough to voluntarily tell them about her powers. One should be proud of such a remarkable gift!

No, she wasn’t easy to understand.
And for a long time it was incomprehensible to me why I was so attracted by her. By the Norns, I had only known the woman for a few days! But every time I wasn’t around her, I felt even more lonely, as if something was missing from inside me. The urge to be around her had been disturbing. I usually didn’t need anyone, least of all someone from Midgard. This longing needed an explanation. After some headache, the penny had finally dropped! She was so similar to me, not only in terms of character, but first and foremost in terms of her powers; it seemed as if an invisible force connected us.
I’d never thought I’d get someone like her – Thor, of course; Odin had had numerous of them; but I…not after all that happened. I was lucky to finally have her, to have finally found her.

My own fylgia!

Humans believed fylgjur to be supernatural guardian spirits, bound to a family line in the form of an animal or they were seen as female entities; but to us Æsir they were so much more. Those who found their own fylgia could consider themselves fortunate. They were companions and could be from everywhere of the nine realms.
In ancient times, when the Æsir had increasingly walked the earth, human fylgia had mostly been the high priestesses and priests of those Æsir; after all they had a special bond to their god.
At the same time, their god had a special responsibility to his fylgia; it was his or her job to protect it, to take care of it. The fylgia belonged to its god and the god looked after its fylgia.
So when my oath of a brother had lost control, it was my job to save the little one.
Now she had to be saved from the Black Widow.

"Don’t everybody speak up at once!" the redhead slowly looked from me to my fylgia who still sat slumped in her chair. The young boy next to her stroked her back soothingly while looking around in confusion. Of course there was the possibility to talk myself out of here, to deny everything, but with that I also ran the risk of causing the little one more pain. There was only one way right now, to feign ignorance.
"I beg your pardon."
"Don’t come the innocent with me, Loki. I’ve heard you in the kitchen. I know she has powers!"
At this statement murmur went through the room; the cat was definitely out of the back. The soldier was the first to speak, "Natasha, what are you talking about?"
"Apparently we have someone else sitting here who can spot lies." With this sentence all heads turned in astonishment in the direction of the little one who looked up with a pained smile, "Yeah hey, the lie detector would then be me." This statement was briefly followed by silence, then everyone talked at once.

"Are you kidding me?"
"That is amazing!"
"How very interesting."
"My lady, why didn’t you tell us?"

I was just about to speak up when the voice of my fylgia cut across the room, silencing everyone.
"Why didn’t I tell you?" her voice dripped with bitterness, "Why should I? So that S.H.I.E.L.D. knows? So that I can be used? So that I can no longer determine for myself how my life should go, no longer free, unable to determine my own way? I never wanted to work for any government, or any agency. I didn’t want to be a tool for anyone!" As she spoke, she had gotten louder and louder. After closing her eyes for a moment, she continued much more calmly, "I am as grateful for the work you guys are doing as anybody else on this planet, believe me. But just because I have powers doesn’t mean I want everyone to know. Not even everyone in my family knows about them. And I certainly don’t want to be in public if I can’t explain them to myself!"

Thor darted a look at me before speaking again, "I didn’t mean to offend you, my lady. I was only curious. Of course, it is entirely up to you to decide who to share your secret with."
"Thank you," the little one run her fingers through her hair, "Please excuse my overreaction. The whole day was a bit much and Natasha’s lies really were the final straw; I have seldom tasted such disgusting untruths."

"So you taste lies?"
My fylgia looked tiredly at the boy next to her, "Unfortunately, yes. And the more often or more extreme someone lies, the worse the taste becomes."
"And then you had to meet Miss Natasha of all people," Peter joked.
"And the fellow over there," she pointed her finger briefly at me, "Nothing against you, Natasha, but he still beats you by far."
"How disappointing," the redhead answered with dry sarcasm, "With all due respect to your motivations, but why did you tell Loki of all people about your powers?"
"I didn’t, he found it out by himself."
"So you don’t work with him? Besides your search for that ring of course."
"What? No. I didn’t even know him until a few days ago."

With this statement, the Black Widow relaxed noticeably. Naturally the woman had assumed that I, and with it the little one, were planning something. After all these years she still didn’t trust me, still resented the brainwashing of her little friend. Apparently the redhead was not finished with her interrogation, since she spoke on, "And since when do you have these powers?"

"As long as I can remember. And before you ask, no, I was not involved in an accident, was not injected with anything, have not been experimented with. These powers have simply been there since I was born." Of course, as my fylgia her special bond to me must have shown itself early. "Do you have another question for me?"

"No, I just wanted to make sure who I’m dealing with. Your job doesn't make you trustworthy right away. But I don’t see any major problems with you anymore. Thank you for your cooperation," the Black Widow bowed her head.
"You’re welcome. Although no, I’ll take that back; your lies are just too strong for that. Next time just ask me," the little one retorted with a gentle laughter. A small smile spread across the redhead’s face, "Of course." With that said it was as if the tension of the last view minutes suddenly dissolved.

"To recap," Peter began to speak, "you can taste lies, the taste depends on the liar and you were born with that power." He paused for a moment to think, "Couldn’t it be that you inherited it?"
"No, no one else in my family can taste lies. They are all bog-standard people."
"Maybe you’ve been adopted," the witch threw in.
Interesting, I had not thought about this possibility; should I and my fylgia have something else in common?

She just shook her head, "Unlikely, I’m my mother’s likeness." Then she added with a playful smile, "Of course, there is always the possibility that she cheated on my dad and that my biological father had such powers."
It was obviously a joke; a joke my idiotic brother of course didn’t get.
He threw back his head, roared with laughter and gave me a slap on the back.
"Did you father a child, when you went to Midgard because of that lost bet, little brother?"
"NO!" I and the little one exclaimed in unison.
"That was just a joke, Thor. My mother would have never done such a thing."
"What a pity. I would like to be an uncle."

What. An. Idiot. Couldn’t he see what he was saying was more than inappropriate? He was talking about my fylgia, not the result of some brief liaison. The connection between a fylgia and its god was sacred!
Thor got a dreamy expression on his face. ‘Uncle Thor...’

"ENOUGH!" my voice boomed across the room, "Watch your tongue, Thor! You are talking about my fylgia." It was only when I noticed the confused looks of the others at the table that I realized I had yelled at Thor in our native tongue.
"Your fylgia? What?" Thor answered haltingly, still in our first language.
"You heard me. What else could it be? She has my powers, is not as boring as all the others from Midgard, I want to be near her, protect her…she is my fylgia."
"Loki, I don’t think she is your…"

"How about some English, you two?" The Black Widow cut him off with a stern look, "Or do you hear me and Bucky talking Russian at the table? We would like to understand you."
I shot Thor a warning glance, who was just about to answer.
"Of course, I’m sorry," he said, again in Allspeak.
At least he was smart enough to say nothing more.

"Now that we have untangled your powers; we were told you are here to help Loki find this dangerous ring, is that correct?" the witch asked as she started eating again.
"Yes, exactly. Speaking of which, Loki, Thor, because of the incident during training we didn’t have our scheduled meeting this afternoon. To make up for that quickly: yesterday I received the address of the man, who can help us, from my contact. He lives near the New York State - Quebec border. Loki, we could go there tomorrow and talk to him."
That was wonderful news. Finally, I would get away from Thor and his friends and would spent time alone with my fylgia.
"Good," I answered with a nod.

"He lives near the border…hmm. Do you want to take the Quinjet?" the soldier suggested.
"Thanks for your offer, however, I have no idea how to fly that thing. Do you?" the little one looked at me questioningly. I shook my head.
"I see. Furthermore, the guy lives relatively secluded and is said to be quite strange – believes in conspiracy theories and distrusts everyone and everything. It’s going to be hard enough for us to get him to talk, arriving on a S.H.I.E.L.D. plane will certainly not help." The others nodded in agreement. "I would just drive there; it only takes a little over four hours."

Oh no, she wanted to travel by car.

"May I borrow one of the Avenger’s cars for that?"
"Sure, just pick one from the hangar," the Black Widow replied.

Oh no, four hours in a car.

"Awesome! You know what that means Loki!" my fylgia exclaimed clapping enthusiastically.
"ROAD TRIP!"

Oh no.
A four-hour drive.
And the crazy little one behind the wheel.
May the Norns help me.

Chapter Text

I clung to my coffee mug like a drowning man to his lifebelt as I stood in front of the many cars of the Avengers. Too early…it was just way too early. When I had gotten up, the sun hadn’t even risen. Why the hell had I suggested to leave at this time? And why was Loki dressed to the nines, while I looked like a gremlin?! That wasn’t fair.
The tall god in the grey suit at my side turned his head to face me, "Don’t you want to choose a vehicle?" Of course I did; I was just not able to make decisions yet. With a deep sigh, I scanned all the cars again before randomly pointing at one, ‘Let’s take that.’ I flopped myself in the driver’s seat of a black coupe with tinted windows. With the key in the ignition, I started the engine and drove slowly off the compound. The fact that I was way too tired for my usual driving style seemed to please Loki; he was much more relaxed and talkative than on our first car ride.

Where is his off switch?

Any other day I would kill to engage into conversation with him, but not when I was lacking sleep, and more importantly, enough coffee in my system. In this condition I should be left alone. Would he be quiet if I just asked him to? Probably not. Should I tell him to shut up? That was certainly an even worse idea. Well then, let’s try flatteries. "Your Royal Highness, may I ask you not to speak to me right now? It is very difficult for me to focus on the road in your presence. After all, I am just a mortal." The god in the passenger seat looked at me for a long time before a smug amused grin spread across his face, "I will grant your request, little one, as I am a benevolent god."

And apparently a megalomaniac one too.

The road took us through a magnificent countryside, past meadows, rivers, and small villages. We stopped briefly in two of them; I badly needed more caffeine and also treated myself to a butter croissant. As my stomach got happier, so did my mood, which brought me back again to my usual style of driving. Amazingly, Loki had actually kept quiet; he had been looking out of the window most of the time; now, however, he noticed me driving at breakneck speed again.

"Is this necessary, little one?"
"Do you want to get out and walk, old one?"
"No more Your Royal Highness?" A mischievous smile was back on his face, "No more honeyed words? Pity! And I hoped you had finally learned the right form of address. Apparently, you only know it if you want something from me." Loki leaned towards me, his voice deep, almost a whisper, "I am the Silvertongue; don’t try to play me at my own game, darling."
"And yet I achieved my goal, didn’t I," I answered dryly.
"Indeed, my little one," he said with a chuckle.

My little one? That’s new.

After this short debate we lapsed back into silence. At some point we were the only ones left on the street, driving by houses decreasingly. Instead forests of maple and beech passed the windows, sunlight shining through the trees.
"Loki?"
"Yes?"
"Would you like to play the question/answer game again?" He raised his eyebrow. "What? It’s a good car game." Giving me an amused look, he tilted his head, "Be my guest."
There had been one thought in my head for a while now: I knew that the Snorra Edda and the other Old Norse sources were from the early to the late 13th century. So what age was Loki?
"How old are you?"
"I am 1,057 of your Midgardian years."
His age shouldn’t have been a surprise; I could do math; but to hear it out loud was something completely different.
"Slap my ass and call me Bob! Holy fucking Christ, you are old!"
"Do you always express yourself so eloquently?" Loki asked in exasperation.
"HA!" I blurted out, "No and with that I have answered your question – which makes it my turn again." I grinned at him, looking like the cat that got the cream. With his lips pressed together and his index finger raised he was about to argue, but I interrupted him, "Ah ah, don’t even try, it’s my turn." His annoyed expression almost made me laugh, while thinking back to last night. "How many languages do you speak? I mean yesterday you spoke with Thor in your native language, I guess; but your English is also incredibly good. You sound almost ridiculously British; one would generally not expect that from an alien slash god."

"So you don’t like the way I talk?" Better not to answer that question – I mean what was I supposed to say to that – 'It’s kind of hot actually’? No thanks. I shrugged my shoulders. He heaved a sigh, "I can speak with the All-Tongue, which means I can speak every language. It’s an inborn ability." My eyes grew big. "Impressed, little one?"
"Pff, not at all. It’s not like it takes me years to grow fluent in a language, no no. I’m not impressed at all." Much quieter I added, "Cheater."

His laughter filled the interior of the car; the sound of it was enjoyable. It hadn’t happened often before that he’d laughed in my presence; his features became much softer, his eyes kinder – it suited him. Because of my moment of abstraction, the car began to lurch slightly back and forth and I had to concentrate my attention back on the road. The little occurrence had made Loki paler for a moment; but when he started to speak his voice was completely calm, "Am I finally allowed to ask a question? Or do you rate my follow-up question as an independent one again?"
"No, not this time."
"How generous of you."
"What can I say: I am a benevolent mortal," I grinned at him, "Fire away!"

There was a short pause during which he gave me the once-over; then he asked, "Yesterday, when you were cornered by the Black Widow, have you been scared?" I didn’t expect such a question. "No, I haven’t. I mean, it wasn’t like she attacked me; she just wanted to know what was going on."
"But she thought we were working together against the Avengers."
"So?" I asked with a shrug, "Even then, Natasha wouldn’t have seriously hurt me, would she?"
Loki didn’t answer me straight away; he had an almost …sad expression on his face? When it came, his answer was scarcely audible, but his tone was harsh, "She still has a score to settle with me."

Before I could go into that, my eyes fell on the navigation system of the car. "Shit." We had missed our exit. With screeching tires, I made a U-turn in the middle of the street. "Little one!" Loki exclaimed warningly. He was back on clinging to his car seat. "Sorry," I chuckled to myself. "We should have got off the road. I just didn’t see an exit." I slowed down significantly to see the other road this time. But there was nothing. I looked at the GPS display and back up on the street - nothing; only maple trees and beeches greeted us.
"Look! There," Loki pointed between two big trees – what the navigation system identified as a street was more like a beaten track. With a sigh, I turned onto the dirt road. Little stones splashed against the car; hopefully I wouldn’t have to pay for any coating damage. This path was much more bendy and I had a lot of fun pushing the car to its limits. In a particularly sharp bend I had to fight to keep control of the vehicle, turning the front wheels to the opposite side to the direction of the curve. Laughing at the top of my lungs I felt Loki stiffen besides me as we were pushed away from the centre of the curve. It seemed to me that he wasn’t a fan of centrifugal force.
"Woman! Stop that!"
His eyes flashed with anger; admitted, it was sadistic of me to drive like this, although his discomfort was clearly visible – he was basically as pale as Snow White. I slowed down; moving at a snail’s pace wasn’t that of a fun, but also less noticeable.

The further drive past the trees took another twenty minutes until we finally arrived at a clearing with a little historic stone house. Its steep roofline stretched towards the deep blue sky, the structure was bookended by two chimneys – it was lovely. But it also looked uninhabited, or as if its resident didn’t really look after it.
I parked the coupe in front of the front door and turned off the engine. "I don’t see a car anywhere. Maybe he’s not home."
Loki looked around attentively, "Possible. You said he has a deep distrust of other people?" Giving him a nod, I answered, "Yes, according to David, my contact, he practically suffers from paranoia. But he’s also incredibly fanatical about old Norse mythology, collecting artefacts and information about it like a madman. He’s our best shot at finding Andvaranaut right now." The god’s eyes narrowed, "And you trust your contact?" "Absolutely!" with that I reached into the centre console, took out my gun and holster, and fastened them to my thigh, "But one cannot be careful enough."
I jumped out of the car, slamming the door behind me; while Loki did the same, he also changed his grey suit for the black leather outfit that he had already worn during training with Thor. Now a small woman with a gun and a tall leather-clad god were standing somewhere in the middle of nowhere – we must have been a curious sight.

We climbed the small set of stairs to the front door and I knocked loudly on it, "Hello? Mr. Dahl? I’m a friend of David Pinault. I would like to talk to you." No reaction. "Hello?" I called again, louder. Still nothing.
"Good thing we drove all the way up here,", said Loki dryly.
Heaving a loud groan, I ran back down the stairs and began slowly walking around the house - its windows were dirty, no one had cleaned them for a long time. I stepped closer to take a look inside. The room in front of me was almost completely empty – only two abandoned rocking chairs were standing on a dust-covered floor.
"I wouldn’t have thought you to be a voyeur."
Loki’s voice suddenly near my ear made me jump out of my skin. I turned around to face him – he gave me a wide toothy grin. "Stop that!" I hissed, "Or do you want to be shot again by me?". That wiped the grin from his face. "You are so violent, my little one," he obviously still took a mischievous pleasure in my reaction.
I stepped back from the window and looked around – nothing indicated the presence of another human. "We could wait for someone to come home."
"We could," Agreed Loki, "But I haven’t seen any other tire tracks besides ours and it hasn’t rained for a while. If someone really lives here, there should be some to be seen." Verily, I was almost impressed by Detective Loki. After all, it was very unlikely that someone would live in the middle of a forest without a car.
Without waiting for me, Loki strode on and quickly reached the back door. "You may trust your contact, but no one lives here. That’s for sure. But perhaps we can find clues inside about the actual whereabouts of this man," with that, he simply broke the door open.

How handy – I have my own personal battering ram

Holding the door open, Loki made an inviting hand gesture, "After you, my lady." I thanked him with a small indicated curtsy, "Thank you good sir." As I scurried past him, I couldn’t help but grin – this trip with Loki was entertaining.
I entered a big room with a massive brick-and-stone fireplace and a ridiculously low ceiling. Loki, who followed me close behind, had to duck his head, for not to bang on it. Except for an old china cabinet, this room was completely empty as well, and dusty - I sneezed twice while Loki looked around; the floorboard cracked under his feet with every step. "Look at that! Someone must have been here a while ago," he pointed to footprints on the dust-covered floor that led to stairs at the other end of the room and a door next to the stairs.
"And although this house is uninhabited, Mr. Dahl wants to know exactly if anyone is coming in here." At this statement Loki looked at me confused. "Do you see that device on the inside of the back door? If the door is opened by force, the device will send a warning to your phone. My parents used to have this in their garage." He gave me a nod of recognition. "How about we split up to look around further? You follow the footsteps up the stairs, I’ll take over this floor." That way we would finish much earlier, and hopefully the ceilings were a bit higher up there – Loki would get a stiff neck down here.
"If you like. Be careful, little one; I have a bad feeling about this."
"Oh, the big bad wolf cares about me."
Loki raised an eyebrow in annoyance – yeah, I was pretty good at pissing him off. Was there a scout badge for that? Without further words, he went up the stairs. With a sigh, I pulled my gun out of the holster and crossed the room. The door next to the stairs was as old as the house, and was of course stuck – I had to push my entire body against the little bugger to open it. When the door finally yielded, I stumbled into the room with too much momentum; graceful as ever.

The first thing I noticed was a teddy bear on eye level facing the door; how odd. Its fluffy little body with a cute bow tie was definitely out of place here. Only then did I notice the gun that was mounted on a kind of tripod under the cuddly toy; the barrel of the gun was aimed straight at me.
"Fuck."
My brain couldn’t give me more helpful thoughts as a shot from the gun went off. Instinctively, I ducked to one side; away from the line of fire. A sharp pain shot through my left shoulder; losing my balance, I fell to the ground.
In less than the blink of an eye, Loki was in the room, daggers drawn and with murder in his eyes. With a quick flick of the wrist he threw one blade at the gun, cutting it in half – that was definitively not a normal dagger. The two halves of the gun fell to the ground with a thud. As did the teddy bear that had been fastened on the gun. Now its little face was turned down on the dusty floor.
"Are you alright little one?" Loki turned and knelt next to me, still looking furious. "You’re hurt," he stated with a look at my shoulder. I followed his gaze – the fabric of my hoodie was torn at the shoulder, the area around it and my skin were smeared with blood. The shot had actually hit me.
"Should have worn red."
"Come again?"
"So they don’t see me bleed."
Loki pinched the bridge of his nose, "You are absolutely hopeless."

With careful fingers I took a closer look at the wound – it hurt, no doubt! But it didn’t seem deep, it was just a graze; nevertheless, I would have to take care of the wound. I tried to get up with shaky legs.
"What do you think you’re doing?"
"I’ve seen a first-aid kit in the car; wanted to get it."
The tall god stood up with a sigh, "Stay. I will get it." With that he left the room. Slowly and carefully, I stepped closer to the tripod to take a look at it. Its legs were bolted to the ground – clever; otherwise the recoil of one shot would have knocked the entire structure over. In addition, a device was attached to it that must have pulled the trigger of the gun – this had been practically a spring-gun. But I couldn’t see a string or other triggering device – what exactly had triggered the shot? Had someone triggered it from a distance? But how could anyone have known that I had entered the room?
Holding my left arm still, I grabbed the teddy bear. On closer inspection, the teddy’s nose looked strange; too disproportional, too big. I held the toy closer to my eyes – there was a camera hidden in the nose!
This was a nanny cam!
The camera must have displayed a live feed and when the observer had noticed me, he must have fired the shot via the device on the tripod. Insane; someone could have died. Noise from outside interrupted my examination; the creaking of the floorboards announced Loki’s return. I carefully put the teddy aside.

Loki held out the first-aid kit to me, "Here you go!" I took the box from him with a thank you and sat down back on the floor in a crossed legged position. Opening the first aid-kid with just one hand was more than difficult; I pulled and pulled on the zipper, but nothing happened. I groaned in exasperation; tilting my head, I looked at Loki expectantly.
"Use your words, little one."
I rolled my eyes, "Oh great Loki, Prince of Asgard, God of Mischief and Lies, would you be so kind and help me, a simple mortal, with this?"
A smug smile flashed over his face, "Of course, darling."

With a movement of matchless elegance, he sat down next to me on the floor and began cleaning my wound using sterile wipes from the first-aid kit. After that he patted the wound dry and began covering it with sterile gauze. His fingers worked carefully, precisely; his gaze was completely focused on my shoulder. I looked briefly down at the wound, then up at his face.
He was close; so close. I felt his breath on my face; saw every little movement of his face as he worked. Unconsciously, I leaned closer to him.
At this moment, his fingers froze.
His gaze turned on my face.
Neither of us moved.
We just stared into each other’s eyes.

I’m a slave 4 U
I cannot hold it
I cannot control it

Suddenly the voice of Britney Spears tore us out of our trance. I turned my head from Loki’s face and looked around, confused. The singing came from my pocket. Irritated, I took my cell phone out of it and held it to my ear.
"Hello?"

Chapter Text

“Sweetie, are you all right?” David asked me on the other end of the phone, his deep voice trembling. My hand gripped the mobile tighter. “Not really! I was shot David – shot! For Christ’s sake.”
Granted, it had been just a graze, but one shot at me too much for my liking. Next to me, Loki sat up straighter and looked at me questioningly. Ignoring him, I clamped the cell phone between my uninjured shoulder and my ear and placed my right hand on the dusty floor. “The address you gave me sucked. Mr. Dahl isn’t here. Driving up here was just pissing in the wind!” David gave an audible sigh of relief, “If you can complain like that, you can’t be hurt too badly. Good. I was so worried, Sweetie. Your mother would have killed me if something had happened to you, and I don’t even want to think about Alexander’s reaction.” Oh yes, there was no doubt about that. My mother would have re-enacted the axe scene from American Psycho while Alex would probably have run over his father with a tank. It was nice that my family and friends weren’t prone to overreaction.

“I got a phone call from Mr. Dahl less than ten minutes ago. He was all in tears; babbled something about a wrong address he once gave me and shooting a young woman. I was terrified.”
I snorted, “And I thought you were on good terms with him. He works for you for years and still gives you the wrong address; seems that he doesn’t even trust you.”
There was a brief pause before David spoke again, “It seems so. Which makes the next thing I have to tell you that much weirder.” There was another long sigh at the other end of the line, “Mr. Dahl gave me another address; the correct one this time he swears. Apparently he is very eager to meet…your companion. Is he telling the truth Sweetie? Is this…man really with you?” My eyes flicked up to Loki; could he hear David and his concern? His face was unreadable, perfectly stoic.
“Yes. Even though I wonder how Mr. Dahl knows that.” Oh of course! The nanny cam; it must have filmed Loki while he had patched me up. So I had been right; Mr. Dahl had observed me, well us, through it. David’s now tense voice pulled me out of my thoughts, “Christ, what exactly have you got yourself into this time?” Strictly speaking, David had sent me to the spooky house with a spring gun. Anyway! He had known me since I was a little girl; I was as important to him as he and his sons were to me; of course he was worried. But he had also become a business contact of mine and all that was needed at the moment was his professional help. “It’s going to be okay, David. Please, just send me the new address, will you?” Tapping my fingers impatiently on the floor, I waited for his answer. In my head he was running his hand over his face right now, as he always did when he was thinking. “Okay. But promise me you’ll be careful.” I rolled my eyes; shame he couldn’t see that over the phone. “Yeah yeah. Thank you, David. Best wishes to Alex!” “Bye Sweetie.” With that I hung up.

For a moment, Loki and I both sat motionless and silent on the floor. We just looked at each other; albeit quite differently than before David had called.
Should I apologize for my previous behaviour? He had dressed my wound and as a thank you I had invaded his personal space. Apart from training, I hadn’t noticed him to be a physically open person; maybe he had felt uncomfortable with me leaning closer.
Once again the silence was broken by my cell phone, this time by the tone of an incoming message – David must have sent me the new address. I cleared my throat, “Sooo, how much did you listen in on?”.
“I heard your entire conversation.” Wonderful, so I didn’t have to repeat everything. “How far is this new address from here?”
I unlocked my screen and looked up the address, “It’s usually an hour’s drive; I can do it in under 40 minutes.” The god looked at me doubtfully, “Are you sure that you are fit enough?”. Snorting, I made a dismissive hand gesture, “Oh please, I could still drive with my arms cut off – what are feet for?” With a shake of his head Loki stood up, “Walking. To be clear, I will never ride with you if you steer with your feet!” “Noted.” I followed suit, even though clearly less elegantly. Without looking back, we left the house, and the spying teddy bear in it.

During the drive my feet stayed where they belonged; near the pedals. This time I had connected my phone with the car to be able to listen to my music. Singing along softly, I tried to keep my left shoulder as still as possible. “Tell me, do all of your business contacts call you ‘Sweetie’? If so, I am deeply hurt that you forbade me to do so, little one,” Loki stated suddenly with a feigned sadness. “Isn’t it enough for you to call me ‘little one’ all the time?” I glazed over to him before turning my gaze back on the street, “David is an old friend of my mom and saw me grow up. He’s allowed to use my family’s nickname for me.” Loki made a sound of understanding. “His oldest son is also the best friend of my brother; we grew up together. Aaron is basically my third sibling.” As if two overprotective dumbasses hadn’t been annoying enough. “And who is this Alex?” Damn it, the man was paying attention. I thought about my choice of words before answering carefully, “Alex is Aaron’s younger brother. He used to be my best friend, at some point he became…more. Today we’re friends.” Talking with Loki about my first boyfriend wasn’t high on my priority list. Fortunately, he left it at that.

As it turned out, I had talked big. Instead of 40, it took me 46 minutes to get us to our new destination – I blamed it on my injured shoulder. The house we reached this time couldn’t have been more different. Sitting atop a concrete plinth, a single-story dwelling featuring glass walls greeted us. This residence definitely looked more inhabited; a column of smoke rose from its chimney. As I was about to get out of the car, Loki grabbed my arm – perhaps he didn’t have any problems with physical contact after all. “Listen, considering that you are hurt you should stay behind. The guy shot you before and this time you couldn’t even defend yourself.” He was right. I was good, but firing a gun with only one hand was a bit beyond my expertise. Still, I didn’t want to miss the fun. With a mischievous flutter of my eyelashes I smiled at him, “I am sure you would rescue me. Come on, Lie-Smith, time to spank a nerd’s ass.” I jumped out of the car in anticipation.
I almost failed to hear Loki’s whispered ‘You’re so weird’ as he walked past me to the front door. Conjuring a dagger and hiding it behind his back, he rang the doorbell. Hearing footsteps in the hallway, Loki pushed me gently behind his back; now he was standing between me and the possible danger that was about to open the door.

“Your Royal Highness, God of Mischief and Lies, author of woes, master of magic, I welcome you to my humble home.” We stood in stunned silence in front of the man standing in the door that had just been opened. Mr. Dahl’s right hand was pressed horizontally across his abdomen as he bowed deeply with his right leg drawn back, “All hail to thee, great Loki!”

Oh boy

_______________________

“May I offer you something to drink, Sir?” Mr. Dahl asked, standing in front of Loki and me; we had just seated ourselves on two vanilla-hued lounge chairs in his living room. “Tea? Coffee? Ale?” I couldn’t help but notice that the man was only addressing Loki; he treated me as if I wasn’t there. “Yes. Bring me some herbal tea,” Loki’s voice had changed since we’d entered the house; his whole behaviour was more…demanding; commanding; royal. He sat in his chair as if he was the owner of the house, not a simple guest.
Before I could ask for a cup of coffee, Mr. Dahl had scurried out of the room – what a hospitality. David had warned me that the guy was strange, but he was weird on so many levels more than I had thought. First of all, this bootlicker behaviour towards Loki; he was a total sucker for the god. Ok, that shouldn’t have been a surprise; I had been told he was obsessed with Norse mythology. Second his home; after the shabby stone house, this modern open-plan dwelling was simply surprising. How could a simple, paranoid scholar afford such a thing? Unlike me, David was never involved in any illegal art trade. Mr. Dahl may not have worked as an informant for him alone. And third, the man himself was just odd. My parents had taught me not to judge people by their appearance; but seeing a man bowing to another person all the time, even though he was significantly taller than them, was just peculiar. I mean, Loki was tall; this guy had to be easily over 6.6 ft. And he was thin. There didn’t seem to be any fat on his body, or muscle. He basically looked like Jack Skellington.

Snickering about my comparison, I watched Mr. Dahl re-enter the room carrying a tray with a teapot and a cup. Carefully he placed the tray on the cubic wooden table next to Loki. He pulled back with another reverently bow and sat down on a couch across from us. “It is an honour to finally meet you, Sir. I am Your Royal Highness’s humble and obedient servant,” even while seated, the thin giant bowed slightly, “To what do I owe the pleasure?”
“We need information about Andv…,” I didn't get to finish my sentence as Mr. Dahl turned his head with a jerk in my direction and hissed, “I didn’t ask you, girl. I asked your master.”

Beg your pardon my what?

With my mouth open like a goldfish I stared at Loki. Without so much as looking at me the fucker just smiled coldly, “I am in search of something that once belonged to me. I was told you can help me find it.” Mr. Dahl took another bow, “Yes of course. It would be an honour for me to serve you.”
“Is that so? Then why did you attack us in the first place?” The cold gaze of Loki made Mr. Dahl fidget on his seat. “I am heartbroken, Sir. I would have never shot the girl if I had known she was your servant.”

Excuse me his what?!

Clenching my fists in my lap, I bit my tongue - hard. We needed this information. It wouldn’t help to make a scene. But boy, this guy was pissing me off. How the hell did he get the idea that I was Loki’s servant? And Loki himself didn’t make the situation any better. In fact, it seemed like he was enjoying it to the fullest. Ass; he could look forward to a devilish drive home.
“I must say to see you take care of your servant so devotedly was impressive, Sir. Even if the girl doesn’t seem worth your attention,” Mr. Dahl looked admiringly at Loki; neither of them seemed to care about the insult to my humble self. I took a short, quick breath through my mouth, trying to keep cool and collected.

Eyes on the prize! Eyes on the prize!

I had to ignore this behaviour. Even if this behaviour was absolute sexist – calling me ‘girl’ all the time; I was a grown woman!

“Mhm, I’m quite generous,” Loki dismissed Mr. Dahl’s statement nonchalantly with a wave of his hand, “To return to the topic: I’m looking for the ring Andvaranaut. It was once in my possession, but I left it here on Midgard. I want it back.” The thin giant nodded his head eagerly, “Of course, Sir. I know everything about this story and have been collecting all sorts of information about the ring. If I may be so bold, the story is one of my favourite narratives about you – it simply shows your supremacy.” I couldn’t help but roll my eyes at his claptrap. Unfortunately, Mr. Dahl noticed, “Don’t be disrespectful to your master, girl! He should chase you away!”
With that he had finally crossed a line.
Furious, I jumped up from my seat and opened my mouth to say something; Loki’s authoritative voice made me close it again. “Mr. Dahl, I want the information. Now!”

Eyes on the prize! Eyes on the prize!

Closing my eyes, I only heard the guy leaving the room. To calm me down I took three deep breaths. It didn’t help at all; I still seethed with anger. Would it be very childish to break something? I let my gaze flicker across the living room – there was an orb-shaped ceramic vase on a side table. It would surely shatter satisfactorily. First victim found; what else would be suitable?
My eyes landed on a painting on the opposite wall. It was breathtaking. In awe and admiration, I stepped closer – it was the image of a mighty ash tree. While its golden roots were highly stylized, the rest of the stem, branches and leaves were absolutely naturalistic. You almost had the feeling of being able to hear the wind rustling through the crown of the tree, to feel the rough trunk under your finger would you dare to touch it. However, the portrayal of three woman sitting at the foot of the tree on blue and white marble steps was particularly beautiful.

“Yggdrasil and the Norns,” I whispered in admiration. “Indeed, my little one,” Loki had stepped next to me. His gaze was focused on the painting, eyes full of longing, “Urd, Verdandi and Skuld – the three sisters, the three wise maidens. They tend the tree; they shape your fate. In my native tongue we call them the Nornir.”
We both stared at the painting.
“Please tell me more about them another time. I’m too mad at you and the world right now,” I said in soft tone of voice and Loki looked at me with questioningly eyes. “Oh don’t play so innocent. Do you really think I like to be insulted by the guy? He may worship you; he is disrespectful to me. Of course you don’t care; or you didn’t notice it; or you like it. I don’t know.” At this statement Loki turned completely away from the painting to face me. “Do you really think I don’t care?” he asked in a deep, threatening voice. I looked in his green eyes in surprise and confusion; something was bubbling under their surface.

Hearing Mr. Dahl re-enter the living room, I tore my eyes away from Loki. “Your Royal Highness,” with a bow, the man held out a brown file to Loki. The god had put on a bland expression again and took a long step towards Mr. Dahl. With a quick wave of his hand he snatched the file from him and flipped through it quickly; a satisfied smile flickered across his face.
“I hope everything is to your satisfaction, Sir.” Loki just nodded patronisingly, turned to me and handed me the file. Mr. Dahl’s face brightened, “What a relief! Here to serve you, Sir.” Clearing his throat, the thin giant looked at Loki in a hopeful way, “So may I hope that you will honour me more often with your presence? That you might even accept me as a true servant and henchman?”.

At this question Loki slowly turned around. He grinned with malice and delight. “And why should I want a dishonourable man as my henchman?” he sneered in a low voice. Mr. Dahl’s eyes widened in surprise, “What? I don’t understand, I…” Loki didn’t let the stammering man finish. Taking another step towards him, his eyes narrowed to slits, “Why should I want someone who is disrespectful to gods? Who doesn’t know his place? Who is a coward? And a fool.”
Mr. Dahl backed away from Loki. But the god was without mercy; he took further steps towards him. His presence seemed to fill the entire room, his magical power was almost palpable on the skin – he was intimidating; powerful; striking. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the spectacle.

While Loki straightened to full height and even seemed to grow a bit, the man slumped until he was at last huddled against a wall; Loki standing over him, with a sardonic smile on his face. “You are a nothing. I don’t waste my time with someone like you,” his voice was dangerously low. Conjuring a dagger, he held it to the whimpering man’s throat. “Do you think you can insult her in my presence? Do you think I allow you to address her so disrespectfully?” Mr. Dahl’s eyes darted to me before locking back at Loki, “I do not understand. She is only a servant.”

“She is my fylgia!” Loki’s voice thundered across the room, making me flinch. The term didn’t mean anything to me, but apparently it did to Mr. Dahl – the man seemed paralysed with fear, colour drained from his face. Speechless, he shook his head, struggling for words. “Whoever offends her offends me.” Loki gripped the man’s neck tightly and lifted him up against the wall.
“And you'd better not offend me.”

With that he again held his dagger to the whimpering man’s throat – this time with more pressure. Where the blade touched the skin, a few drops of blood dripped off. The crimson colour of the blood in contrast to the ashen skin of the man made me startle out of my trance.
“Loki,” my voice was only a whisper.
Loki’s body tensed when his whispered name reached his ear. He didn’t turn to me, he just leaned closer to Mr. Dahl and spoke in a low voice, “But as I said before, I am quite generous.” He let go of the man who slid down the wall, gasping. Without looking back, Loki left the room.

“Come along, my little one.”

With a mocking grin and an indicated salute in the direction of Mr. Dahl, I followed the dark Trickster.

Chapter Text

“And you’d better not offend me!” I almost died of laughter, trying to mimic Loki’s serious tone, “Did you see the expression on his face? The guy nearly shat his pants.” By now, Loki and I were back in the car on our way home to the Avenger Compound. The day was drawing to a close; the sun was already quite low, bathing everything in an orange and red light; soon it would disappear completely behind the horizon. The god sat back in the passenger seat, smiling contentedly, the Andvaranaut file open on his lap. “How nice that I could entertain you, little one.” I didn’t need to look at him to know that he was grinning smugly now. Simmering down again, I pointed to the file, “Is anything helpful in it?” “Indeed,” Loki turned the pages slowly, “In addition to meaningless notes and drawings of Andvaranaut that do not correspond to reality, our dear Mr. Dahl has also noted down the places where the ring allegedly appeared in recent years.”
“Really?”
“Really,” Loki took a yellowish piece of paper from the file, straightened it and read aloud, “New York City, Paris, Milan, Berlin, as well as Switzerland and South Africa as a whole. And down here in the corner he scribbled London in addition.” Thumbing through the file again he added, “For each of the locations there is additional information such as addresses, names of people and so on. There is quite some work for us to do.” Loki was definitely right about that – the file was a veritable goldmine of information. “There is,” I agreed, “However, I can already cross a few places off the list. Switzerland was the first place I checked – a dead end. And we know that Berlin is a dead alley as well.” Too bad, sleeping in my own bed would have been nice. Also, visiting Switzerland again…this time with a handsome companion…I could imagine worse.

“I see,” Loki looked at the list with thoughtfully furrowed brow, “You should take a look at the information about those though; not that we miss anything. But in principle, we can ignore those places.” I nodded in confirmation while he continued speaking, “I’ve also already visited London; that’s off the list as well.” Conjuring a fountain pen out of thin air, he scored out the two mentioned capitals on the list. “That leaves Paris, Milan, South Africa and New York City.” Well, I wouldn’t always be able to drive us there – Loki had to rejoice. It also surprised me that he hadn’t looked in New York yet; after all, the Avengers lived so close to the city. On the other hand, he and Thor apparently spent most of their time in New Asgard; hence the previous visit to London – he only had had to cross the North Sea.

During the rest of the drive we planned our next steps and agreed to continue our search in New York. I still had to read the file, but that had to wait until tomorrow; at some point you should just call it a day! When we were only 10 minutes away from the compound – the sun had now completely set – a question came into my mind.
“Loki?”
The god looked at me amused, “What is it? Do you want to play the question/answer game again?” I negated by shaking my head. “I just wanted to know what a fylgia is. You called me that in front of Mr. Dahl and it seemed to shock him.” With a laugh I added, “You didn’t call me names, did you?” I had expected a teasing answer, some kind of fun; in fact, Loki became quiet, his expression serious. He hesitated before starting to speak, “Fylgjur are companions of the Æsir. It’s a tradition that dates back to ancient times.” So far so good, that didn’t sound too bad. “Odin had had numerous of them; Thor a few, I believe. They often have special abilities, are very similar to their Æsir and have a special bond to them. They belong to their god or goddess, serve him or her – for example, Odin’s human fylgjur were often his high priestesses and priests.” Loki kept on talking, his voice almost excited, “In return, the god takes care of the fylgia; protects them; guides them. Their connection is sacred; even if the fylgia disobeys – nothing shall be done to them.”

While Loki went on and on, I stared blankly at the street; unable to process what he had just said. The words didn’t make sense – ‘Belong to’? ‘Serve’? ‘Disobey’? What was he talking about?
The cold feeling of shame washed over me. How stupid I had been, how blind; had believed the God of Mischief and Lies had seen something like a partner in me, maybe even a future friend. Had let myself be lulled by his beauty; his wit; his charm. Stupid, stupid me! I gave a short, joyless laugh - nothing could be further from the truth.
The Asgardian in the passenger seat looked at me in surprise. When I started to speak my voice was soft, almost a whisper, “Tell me, weren’t you listening to me at the dining table? Or are you just stupid?” At these words, Loki’s eyes widened before they narrowed; I didn’t care, I just continued talking, “I don’t belong to anyone. I don’t let anyone use me. And I am definitely not your servant who obeys to you!” Hot, boiling anger made my voice shake, my hands gripped the wheel tighter, “How dare you!”
“Little one!” Loki uttered warningly.
“Don’t ‘little-one’ me!” now I was screaming, “Who do you think you are?” Giving me a stone-cold stare, Loki spoke with a dangerously calm voice, “I am your god.”
For a moment it was as silent as the grave in the car; then a sickly sweet smile spread across my face, “I’m afraid I must disappoint you – I am an atheist.”

With that, I stepped on the brake and jerked the car to a stop. “Out.” “Beg your pardon?” Loki looked like he was about to lose his composure. “Get out. We’ve arrived.” The god looked outside in surprise – we were standing on the grounds of the Avengers Compound; Natasha, Bucky and Thor were just stepping out of the building to greet us. Without further words, I jumped out of the car.
“Welcome back, how was your trip?” the redhead asked me with a smile; then her gaze fell on my bandaged shoulder and the torn hoodie covered with blood, “What the hell happened? What did he do?” I didn’t even have the time to process the question; Thor and Bucky had already rushed to the passenger side with heavy steps. Tearing the car door open, the big blond looked like he wanted to pull his brother along with the seat out of the car. That was really too much drama for me for today.
“Guys, relax! I was shot by the contact; Loki taped me up,” I heaved a sigh. Natasha stepped closer to me, looking deep into my eyes, “Are you sure? Then why is he looking daggers at you?” I turned around; Loki starred at me through the windshield – she was right; if looks could kill, a grave would have to be dug for me now.
But no matter how much he seemed to hate me right now; and I him; that was a problem between the two of us, it was none of the others’ business. Making a dismissive hand gesture, I lied, “After we got the information, I was a little too happy and raced like a madman. He didn’t like it that much.” Natasha didn’t believe me; I saw it in her eyes. Thankfully, Thor wasn’t that observing. With a happy mumble, he strolled over to me and put his hand on my uninjured shoulder, “So you are returning successfully from your battle!” Could it be called a battle when you only had faced a spring gun? “That calls for a feast! Let’s raise a glass to your victory, Lady Heart!” Looking up at the blond whose eyes were sparkling with joy, I grinned broadly, “Finally someone speaks the same language! Lead the way, Pikachu!”

____________________

“Nooooo, you don’t look like it – you’re not small, chubby or mouse-like. But your blond and an electric-type dude. It fits!” I slurred as I held my phone with a picture of Pikachu on it under Thor’s nose. The big blond sat relaxed on one of the armchairs in the living room with a glass stein in his hand, looking at the picture in front of him with his head tilted to one side, “I still don’t get it.” Tossing my head theatrically back, I sighed at his lack of understanding of his nickname – the sudden movement made me sway to and fro. “Easy, my lady,” Thor laughed while holding me with his free hand to keep me from falling.
“You get the joke right?” I whined, plopping down on the couch next to Natasha. She sat with her legs crossed and poured herself some more vodka, “Yes, but I think Peter would find the nickname a lot funnier than I do.” Making a sound of agreement, I looked around the living room – beer bottles were scattered all over the floor; on the coffee table rested a cutting board with a sliced lime and next to it a salt shaker, the empty tequila bottle stood next to Thor’s armchair. It was a good thing that the sergeant had driven the boy back home – this drinking binge would have been very uncomfortable for me in front of Peter. Although…not anymore – my reasonable side had waved a white flag and had gone to sleep about 30 minutes ago; now, my drunken side ruled.
“Uuuhh you know what – we should go dancing!” I cheered, grabbing Natasha’s arm, “Let’s find the old man; he’s still sober! He can drive us!” That was the best idea ever – especially since I wanted to see Bucky and Thor in a club. And with their and Natasha’s fame, we wouldn’t have to line up and that was for sure!

“I’m not driving back into the city. I’ve just got home,” came the grumpy voice of the sergeant suddenly from the door. “And especially since I don’t drive little girls who call me ‘old man’,” with a grin Bucky took a seat in one of the other arm chairs. “Don’t be a party blooper,” I pouted. All three of them laughed at this statement. “You mean party pooper,” Natasha corrected me and Bucky added amused, “And I also don’t drive little girls who are already sauced.” With that my competitive side was awakened. “I’m not drunk yet! Bring it on, Sergeant! I drink you under the table!”, I announced in a loud voice. Bucky just shook his head while Natasha smirked. “I can’t get drunk, doll; side effect of the serum – you would lose the game.” “You can’t get drunk?” I looked at him with wet eyes, “That is so sad; you poor baby.” I jumped up from the couch and fell onto the seated sergeant to hug him tightly – definitely drunk. He patted me reassuringly on the back and then helped me to my feet again, eyeing my injured shoulder, “We should teach you basic self-defense techniques. If you spend more time with us, you could become a target and should be able to defend yourself. How about you train with me from tomorrow on?” Natasha and Thor nodded in agreement.
“Pff how about you train with me?” I answered brusquely – I really wasn’t interested in more self-defense; my gun had to be enough. “You work out? What kind of training?” Bucky asked with a raised eyebrow. Now it was my turn to grin broadly, “I tell you what. I’ll share it with you and then we play a game. The one who loses has to train with the winner.” “What kind of game?” the sergeant’s question was dripping with suspicion.

I had to think about that – he couldn’t get drunk and I was not capable anymore to do much more than sit and talk and…drink more. Not a large selection. Turning to Thor and pointing to his stein, I asked, “Do we have two more of these?” “I believe so,” was the blond god’s answer. “Marvelous,” I rubbed my hands together, “The one who can finish his stein of beer first is the winner! Are you in soldier?” Bucky huffed, “You’re going to lose, doll.” With that he stood up, took two steins out of the cupboard and filled them to the brim with beer. I took the heavy tankard from him, “I forewarn you, the more drunk I am, the more I am in need of affection.” “Don’t be a chicken now,” the sergeant raised the stein to his mouth, “Nat, would you do us the honour of counting down?”
“Sure,” she sighed. “Ready” - I raised the tankard - “Set” - I glanced at Bucky - “Go!”
Ignoring Thor’s whooping and clapping, I drank the beer in one gulp.
“DONE!” I exclaimed proudly, putting the empty stein noisily down on the coffee table. “How?” Bucky asked bewildered, his tankard still half full, “You’re so tiny. How did you do that?” I just shrugged my shoulders. “You just won a training session with me, my dear,” with a smirk I added, “I should tell you what we’re going to do.” Leaning forward, I whispered his ‘price’ in Bucky’s ear; he turned pale. “You’re kidding me, right?” With a shake of my head I answered in the negative.
“Now I wish I could get drunk,” Bucky grumbled, making us others laugh.

We sat together for a while longer before the others decided that it was time for bed. Whereas Bucky and Natasha said goodnight and went to their rooms near the common area, Thor and I had to make our way to the guest wing. It was a good thing that there was hardly anyone in the building besides us – the two of us were anything but quiet as we wobbled down the hallways, singing our hearts out and laughing like maniacs. Even though the big blond was just as wasted as I was – he had drunk about four times as much as I did - he kept supporting me while laughing at my clumsiness.
“You remind me so strongly of my big brother,” I giggled with a slur, patting his chest. “He always had to take me home as well.” Thor answered with a belly laugh, “The curse of the older sibling – taking care of the younger ones.” “So you used to carry Loki home?” Somehow I had rather imagined that Loki had saved Thor form his drunken antics. Thor shook his head, “Oh no, my brother had to be protected from other things than alcohol.” With this statement we finally reached the unlit hallway with our rooms – at the end of the corridor stood a tall, dark figure.

“LOKI!” I exclaimed happily, freeing me from Thor’s supporting arm. With a gleeful chuckle, I ran up to the god and jumped into his arms – well, in my condition it was more of a falling. Completely perplexed and taken by surprise, Loki closed his arms around me.
With a smile I looked up at him, “Hey.”
“Hello,” he answered in an aloof manner. Snuggling closer to him, I made a satisfied sound. “You are drunk,” Loki noted. “Oh yes she is,” Thor smiled, giving a yawn, “And she’s cuddly in this state. Be aware of that, brother. Good night.” With that he was about to open the door to his room. “Wait!” Loki burst out, “You can’t just leave like that!” Thor turned around again briefly, “Yes I can. I’m tired. Have fun.” The door closed behind him with a soft thud.
Now a small woman with a future hangover and a tall god who was out of his depth were standing in the dark hallway.

“You smell really good,” I declared, still snuggling into his chest. The only answer I got was silence; but he didn’t let go of me either. “Come on. Don’t be cross with me,” I complained, “You bandied words with ‘sober-me’, ‘drunken-me’ is not to blame for that.”
I got dizzy, when Loki suddenly held me an arm’s length away from him so he could look into my face. “’Sober-me and drunken-me’? Seriously?” he raised an eyebrow – I just couldn’t tell if it was in amusement or annoyance. “Hh-hmm,” I nodded my head, trying to suppress a yawn. A short laugh escaped Loki which made me grin in return – I preferred this atmosphere between us to the tense one in the car before. “Come on then. We should get you to bed,” he said, while trying to manoeuvre me to my room. Leaning against him, I waited until he had opened the door – then I stepped in, almost tripping over my own feed.
“Easy there,” he wrapped an arm around my waist steadying me, “Better lie down.” With his help, I made it to the bed. When I started taking of my pants and bra and carelessly tossed them into the corner, Loki went into the bathroom and filled a glass with water.

Lying in the middle of the giant bed in only a wide tee and panties and wrapped in the duvet, I took the glass from him with a thank you. Loki had seated himself on the edge of the bed and watched me - like the beer before, I drank the water in one gulp. “You could have competed with Volstagg,” Loki declared with a sad smile. “Who?” I asked confused. He dismissed the question with a shake of his head, “Not important, little one.” Snuggling down further into the bed and closing my eyes, I smiled softly, “I kind of like that nickname.” Opening one eye again, I gave him a stern look, “Don’t tell ‘sober-me’ that I told you that!”
An amused smile whisked over the god’s face, “My lips are sealed, darling.”
With a satisfied sigh, my weariness overtook me and I closed my eye again. Nothing seemed to move in the room; only the rustling of the duvet could be heard as I slowly inhaled and exhaled.
“Hey Loki,” I said tiredly in a whisper, “Thank you for today. It was fun.” The god remained silent; was he still in the room? “If I could forget our argument…it would have been an even better day.” I snuggled even further down into the warm bed. “I’m sorry.”

Whether the God of Lies and Mischief had heard my apology or not I could not tell – satisfied and drunk, I travelled into the realm of dreams.

It stayed hidden to me that Loki stayed at my side; relaxed and with a genuine smile on his face.

Chapter Text

Drink me’ – I stared at the little flacon on my nightstand dumbfounded, its crystal clear liquid swirling magically. With a quick glance under the duvet I assured myself that I was still wearing my wide tee and panties and not some blue dress with a white apron. Nope, nothing had changed. Carefully picking up the vial, I took a closer look at it - it wasn’t the typical one for medicine; it was larger and ornamented with Norse runes. The note attached to the flacon inviting me ‘Alice in Wonderland’-style to drink was made of laid paper, beautifully and elegantly written by hand.
Only one person - Pardon! god - could have left this here.
When I had woken up, a headache and nausea had wished me good morning, but there had been no trace of the one who had put me to bed. Remembering last night, I ran my hands through my hair with a groan - ‘drunken-me’ had went overboard with alcohol once again; embarrassing me ONCE. AGAIN. First jumping into the arms of the man I had argued with before and then all that crap I had babbled about…someone had to put me out of my misery. How was I supposed to face Loki again? And why on earth had he left this bottle behind?

All of a sudden a wave of nausea hit me so strongly that I leant over and retched; thankfully, nothing came out. Disgusted, I shook my head – I would have to ask Natasha about pain-killers, otherwise this would go on all day. “Don’t get any ideas!” I whispered to my stomach as I slowly and carefully got out of bed. Fortunately, the little bastard behaved. Standing upright, I stared at the flacon in my hand again – you should never accept drinks from strangers; but Loki was no longer a stranger, right? “To hell with it!” In one fluid movement I uncorked the vial and knocked the liquid back. The substance had definitely looked better than it tasted, but the warm feeling that spread through my body was all worth the sour-spicy flavour; in an instant my headache and nausea disappeared. Breathing a sigh of relief, I tossed the empty bottle on my bed – I could kiss nurse Loki for his miracle drug.
For the second time this morning my stomach made itself felt, this time to advert to its hunger; hopefully Bucky had breakfast and coffee ready. After quickly reaching into my brown duffle bag, I pulled warm woollen socks over my feet and wended my way to the kitchen.

As I walked in the room, I laid eyes on Thor who was sitting at one end of the kitchen counter. “Morning Pikachu.” The blond looked up from his bowl of Froot Loops. “Good morning, my lady. Already sobered up?” he asked grinning from ear to ear. “Kind of; your brother really helped with that.” I poured myself a cup of coffee and positioned myself on the other side of the counter. “Where are Bucky and Natasha?” “They were called on a mission,” Thor informed me, while turning his attention back to his cereal. Fudge! I would have to make breakfast myself.
“What do you mean my brother helped?” the blond asked suddenly with a frown, before his eyes grew big. “Oh by the Nornir! I just left you alone with him yesterday.” As Thor directed his eyes from my head to my feet, it occurred to me how little I was actually wearing; the man’s eyes grew even bigger. Before he could continue talking, a movement at the door caught my attention; but no one came inside. I reverted my gaze back to the Asgardian who looked like something was heavy on his heart. “My lady, I should have never left you alone in your state...” Out of the corner of my eye I thought to see a faint green glow in the hallway. “...if my brother tried it on wi-” Thor stopped in mid-sentence, and starred at the door. I followed his gaze.

“Good morning, little one.” The God of Mischief and Lies breezed in the kitchen, with nothing more than a towel wrapped around his waist, his long black hair wet.
“Brother,” he acknowledged Thor and stepped between us; smiling down at me, he reached for a cup on my right. I watched, mesmerised, as a single drop of water detached from Loki’s hair and slowly slid down his muscular and lean torso. “I hope you don’t mind darling, but I used your shower. After last night I was too worn out to return to my room,” Loki said in a warm, husky voice. I didn’t think it possible, but Thor’s eyes grew even bigger; the spoon full of Froot Loops in front of his mouth seemed to be forgotten.

What was Loki playing at? I was one hundred percent sure that he hadn’t been in my room, let alone in my shower – the slightly bitter taste on my tongue revealed his lie. So why did he make it look like we had slept together? Actually, I wouldn’t mind at all; but it definitely didn’t happen last night.

Oh. Ooohhhh

Noticing how the half-naked god eyed solely his brother’s reaction, the penny finally dropped. I had to supress a grin – hoaxing a big brother; that was just my cup of tea.
“Of course, Handsome,” I purred, lovingly stroking Loki’s fair-skinned arm with the tips of my fingers, “I just wish you would have waited for me; we could have taken a shower together.” In a fraction of a second Loki’s eyebrows raised in surprise; but he controlled himself immediately. Eyes gleaming with mischief, he reached for my hand, brought it up to his lips and brushed them gently on the top of it, while his green eyes looked deep into mine “My sincere apologies, my love. Next time I will wait for you.”
I couldn’t help but blush.
“Ahem,” Thor averted his gaze from us. “I don’t need to know where my little brother takes a shower…or with whom,” he laughed nervously. Funny, I would not have thought Thor a prude. However, I didn’t want to have a mental picture of my brothers doing certain things either. The God of Thunder cleared his throat self-consciously, “How about we talk about your search instead? We didn’t get to that at all yesterday.” Turning to Loki, he continued, “Brunnhilde expects me back in New Asgard. I would like to be up to date before I leave.”

So Thor basically acted as Loki and my supervisor in the search of Andvaranaut? Finishing my cup of coffee and putting it on the counter, I asked, “How about we meet for a briefing in 30 minutes? I would like to shower first.” The two brothers nodded in agreement; Loki even added with a smirk, “Of course, darling. After last night, it’ll be good for you.” At this point Thor shifted his weight, embarrassed, from side to side.
Loki still wanted to play this little game of his? So be it.
Leaning against Loki, my right hand on his bare chest, I began to speak, “Thank you for…you know…my Stud.” I was of course referring to Loki’s miracle drug; the way Thor’s ears turned red, he understood my statement differently – good. I raised myself on tiptoes and whispered, clearly audible for Thor, in the black-haired man’s ear, “I miss having you inside me.”
With that I kissed Loki on the cheek and bounced out of the room, ignoring the two Asgardian gods who looked after me, speechless.

After a quick shower, I gathered in the conference room of the Avengers and was now sitting at the long wooden table with Thor on my left at the head of the table; Loki hadn’t thought it necessary to show up yet. “Sooooo…,” the God of Thunder broke the silence, “you and my brother.” He scratched the back of his head, “That’s a surprise. I was sure that you two had a serious argument yesterday. I recognize Loki’s murderous glare when I see it.” So he had noticed our dispute yesterday; Thor was more attentive that I had thought. I leaned back on my black leather chair. “You’re right, we argued yesterday. But otherwise you’re wrong,” I gave him a small smile, “Don’t sweat it. Loki and I are not a thing.” Was that just my imagination or did Thor almost look disappointed? “It was just a hoax.”
The Asgardian’s eyes closed, squeezing shut for a moment; then he breathed a sigh, “Of course.” Silence reigned in the room once again; I started drumming my fingers on the conference table. All the sudden I stopped in the middle of the movement.
“Your brother sees me as some kind of servant to him.”
Thor looked up in surprise, confusion clearly written on his face; then it seemed like the truth dawned upon him. “He told you that he believes you’re his fylgia.” I just nodded; rising anger made my throat tie up. “Idiot,” the blond heaved another sigh. “Perhaps I should sort things out. My brother is very intelligent, but sometimes just… an idiot.” Thor shook his head. “Loki never had a fylgia; all he knows about this tradition comes from outdated books and fantastic stories our father told us when we were children. And Father…Father was conservative about these things. In his day fylgur were servants; he didn’t use to see others as equals to us Æsir. This changed, but his stories were still shaped by his antiquated opinions.”
A melancholic expression appeared on Thor’s face, his voice became soft and lovingly, “I was lucky enough to meet a few beings who were my fylgur. And, thank the Nornir, my mother opened my eyes and helped me to see what this special bond between an Æsir and a fylgia actually is.” He stopped, absorbed in his thoughts.
I politely waited for him to continue; when the silence lasted too long, I spoke up, “So what is it then?” Thor looked at me with a friendly smile, “Beyond any doubt this bond is special, sacred even. But not because one has to obey to the other and in return the Æsir protects you; no. Think of it this way: have you ever met someone who you immediately knew you would become friends with? Who had this aura around them you immediately liked and cherished? That is what a fylgia truly is – a friend; kind of an instant friend.” Staring off into the distance, Thor murmured more to himself than to me, “It’s almost ironic that Loki found you here on Midgard.” We both lapsed into silence.

I liked this version, this view of a fylgia much better; friendships had always been something I was happy to build. Loki was no exception to me; he was funny, he was charming, he was clever – who didn’t want a friend like that. I just had to put this idea of a ‘servant-fylgia’ out of his head; then we could easily become friends. A little voice in my head also reminded me of his appearance; the way he had looked in the kitchen; tall, almost naked, with lean abs and this beautiful dark wet hair…so, maybe friends with benefits…

“Where is he, anyway?” Thor’s question interrupted my train of thought. As if Loki had been waiting for the question, he entered the room at that very moment. “You’re too late!” Thor chided his little brother, arms crossed. Loki just shrugged his shoulders with a mischievous grin on his face, sat down across from me at the table and opened his mouth to respond; but I was faster.
“A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to.”
“Sorcerer, not wizard,” Loki corrected, “But besides that, my love is absolutely right.” He winked and smirked at me. I blushed the second time this day. What was going on? I usually didn’t blush as quickly as a little school girl; this god would lead me down the primrose path.

“Whatever.” Thor grumbled. “Now, tell me about your progress.” And so we did; we told him about our trip to the empty house, Mr. Dahl and his bootlicking behaviour – okay, I told Thor about that – the file and the cities we would have to visit. Thor nodded every so often, showing that he was still listening; at the end of our report he asked, “So you want to go to New York next?”
“Yes,” Loki confirmed, conjuring the file with a wave of his hand. I cringed at the sight of it; still hadn’t read it. Loki flipped the file open, “According to this we should look for two men named Paul Kelly and Robert Eastmann.” Those names made me sit up and take notice. “Is the first name written together?” I asked; the god nodded. “Then we’re only looking for one man - Robert Eastmann. PaulKelly is not a person, it’s a place. Kind of a club; a high-end club for illegal art trade and auctions. I’ve been there before with Robert Eastmann, he’s one of the hosts.”
Eastmann was an unpleasant man, pushy and greasy; I wasn’t sorry at all for how I had treated him at the end of the evening. However, my behaviour back then posed a problem for us now. “Loki, I can take you to PaulKelly. But I will not be able to accompany you…I was barred from the club.” Both gods gave me a quizzical look. “Eastmann isn’t really fond of me…perhaps I broke his nose the last time I was there.”

Thor let out a guffaw and even Loki smiled amused. “Do not worry, little one. I will change your appearance so that you can come with me.” Oh yeah, right; Loki was a shapeshifter. “I should probably alter my physical appearance as well.” I nodded in agreement; as infamous as Loki was, we’d cause a stir. “Perfect, then let me make a few calls to find out when the next auction is going to take place,” I said; in my head I was already going through my list of contacts – Francisco was a regular bidder, he could certainly help me.
The God of Thunder clapped his hands enthusiastically “Looks like you have a plan; I can return to New Asgard with peace of mind.” With a groan he stood up; I looked at him in surprise, “Are you leaving immediately?” “Yes, my lady,” Thor answered with a smile, “It’s time to bid farewell.” The tall blond turned to his brother, who meanwhile had also risen from his chair. “Brother,” Thor and Loki grasped each other’s forearm as a goodbye. “Heyrumst,” Thor said, “And take care of the lady.”
“I will,” Loki replied seriously, with no trace of his usual mischief. I rolled my eyes; like I needed a bodyguard.
It suddenly occurred to me that I had no idea when I would see my electric drinking buddy again.
Cocking my head just a bid, I looked from Thor to Loki with a grin, “Sooo…when shall we three meet again, in Thunder, Lightning, or in Rain?”

Chapter Text

I slid my index finger under the laid paper and gently pushed the page to the left, thus turning the page of my book. It was a difficult written report of war tactics, demanding a lot of concentration. Normally, mere child’s play to me. The world around me could fall into chaos and it wouldn’t disturb my flow of reading. But today everything was different. Today even that low level of noise coming from the training area interfered with my concentration. One would expect it to be shouts or grunts that drove me insane; instead, soft, gentle sounds emitted from the gym.
Since when did Romanoff turn the music up so loud that it could be heard outside of the training area? It could only be the songs of the redhead; besides her, only Stark bothered everyone else with his ‘music’ from time to time. But his taste of music was clearly different from these gentle tunes and usually came from the labs, not the training area. So for the love of the Nornir, what was going on over there?

With one hand I snapped the book shut and made it disappear. This morning, unlike usual, I had not retreated into my rooms after my early breakfast, but had rather placed myself clearly visible in the lounge. In this way the little one would have discovered me on her way to the kitchen and would have certainly sought my company. At least, that had been my plan.
Pursing my lips, I untangled my outstretched crossed legs and got up from the chaise lounge. Perhaps she hadn’t got up yet. Should I wake her? After all, her presence made my stay here more bearable.
She seemed to have accepted her role of my fylgia; that had shown her reaction to my prank. I could have kissed her, when she had joined in to hoax my brother; had admired her for being so quick-witted. And how she had marvelled at my body had not escaped me either. Or the way she had blushed – just lovely. I couldn’t help but grin; the little one was worth my attention. And now that Thor was gone, she could give me her undivided attention. Only the return of the soldier and the spy last night could interfere with our togetherness. But those two weren’t going to join us at the auction in New York tonight; and as if they were competition for me. I snorted in amusement at the thought of considering those two as my rivals for the little one’s affection, while following the sound of music. I was eagerly awaiting today’s event. For one thing to finally find this confounded ring, and for another thing to see the little one in her natural environment – deceiving others. And that in evening attire. How intriguing.

The closer I got to the training area, the louder the music got; the sounds of a Midgardian piano and two celli swirled around me. Especially the latter made the music melancholy – the string instruments called and answered each other in a low pace; circling around each other as if they wanted to touch, to sound together, but were denied this act of togetherness by a greater force. It wasn’t one of the most sophisticated pieces of music I knew – it was still only Midgardian – this almost mournful composition managed to touch me nonetheless.
Apparently Romanoff needed a touch of melancholy for her training today. I had seen the spy dance before, but so far it had mostly been cheerful tunes backing her movements. Either way, her dance training hadn’t been of great interest for me so far; the same applied for her dancing as to the music – it was only Midgardian. Not be compared with the outstanding dance styles of Asgard. Oh, how I missed my mother’s court festivities. They had been ideal as a stage for my pranks and jokes; most of them of my brother’s expense. And in the moments I hadn’t been up to mischief, I had relished the intertwining figures, the intricate footwork of our dances and the leading and feeling of a woman in my arms. I grinned with pleasure thinking about all those splendid nights before I pushed open the gym door. The scene that unfolded before me let me stop dead in my tracks; the smirk was wiped off my face.

In the middle of the room stood a woman – deeply concentrated, in a high-necked black leotard, with her body tilted forward, standing on the tips of the toes of one foot while her other leg was raised more than 90 degrees. A men knelt in front of her; bent slightly backwards, his hands - one made of flesh and bone, the other made of metal - on her hips to support her in this vulnerable position. Their faces were inches apart; it almost looked like he was leaning towards the woman to kiss her; and she to kiss him. Her face exuded calm and confidence; everything about her posture showed grace and symmetry – this was an ethereal heroine. I had to swallow hard.
This was my little one.
“She is enchanting, isn’t she?” a voice startled me from the right. I tore myself away from the sight of the beauty and looked into Romanoff’s calm face. How could I have missed her presence? Without waiting for my answer, the Widow turned back to the two dancers. These had just broken away from their previous position – the soldier withdrew himself, giving my little one space to move freely. With quick, deft movement of her feet, she whirled around the room, holding her arms extended out to the side. “Her style is not the Russian ballet I was taught. But it is undeniable, she is outstanding.” We watched as she made a long horizontal jump in our direction, giving her an almost gliding appearance. Had she even noticed me? She seemed totally absorbed in the music; as if her body was acting on its own, guided only by the tones of the song.
“It’s unbelievable Bucky is doing it,” the woman next to me mumbled more to herself than to me, “Although he owed it to her…he lost the bet.” The spy gave a chuckle, “It’s a pity Steve and Sam aren’t here to see this.”
I didn’t care about the interests of those simple mortals; the soldier didn’t do this voluntarily? Oh, that fool! That uncivilized moron! Keeping a calm face but with clenched fists, I observed the little one starting to pirouette. Standing on the tips of her toes of one leg, the soldier supported her from behind. With short grips on her hips, he stabilised her and made her further rotate. That old fool provoked me – he should take his hands of my little one if he wasn’t interested in dancing with her! She deserved a partner who wanted to dance with her with full commitment; who wanted to hold her in his arms; who knew what he was doing. Someone like me! Even if I didn’t know this type of Midgardian dancing; I’ve always been a better choice than this soldier out of time!

The piece of music ended with a last, drawn-out note from one of the cellos, which lead the little one to stop in her movement as well; risen on the top of the toes of both her feet, holding the arms slightly rounded upwards, with the fingertips approaching each other. What a perfect final picture.
Our eyes met.
“Ey, God of Costumes. Ready to give some mobsters a kick in the arse?” the woman asked with a cheeky grin.
___________________

Later that day I walked impatiently from one side of the room to the other, awaiting a knock on my door. After her training session, and thanking the soldier with a bear hug for the possibility to dance with a partner, the little one and I had agreed that she would come to my rooms so that we could prepare for the auction. The plan was that I would take on the appearance of a man who was a regular bidder and friend of hers, while she would slip into the role of my escort; then one of the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents would drive us to the club where the event was going to take place - the evening promised to be exciting.

With a sigh I sat down on one of the armchairs. Three soft knocks made me jump up again immediately; in only two long strides I was at the door. With one arm behind my back, I opened it. “Good evening, little one.” A beautiful smile lit up the woman’s face, “Evening Loki. May I come in?” “Of course,” I stepped aside, “Please, have a seat.” She bounced into the room; stopping abruptly, she eyed my accommodation. “Hey! Your rooms are bigger than mine,” she exclaimed, “And you have an extra room to sleep in!” She was right about that; my accommodation consisted of a living room with a black leather couch and armchairs as well as a large desk; behind that was the door that let to my bed chamber. Judging from her reaction, her place consisted of only one room.
Her indignation brought a smirk to my lips; approaching her from behind, I whispered in her ear, “I am a prince. And a god, darling. I am entitled to it.” Fascinated, I watched goose bumps appear on her arms. Interesting; did only my voice trigger that reaction? Or was it my closeness? My smirk widened.

“Two-class society…unbelievable,” the little one muttered, plopping down on the sofa. I seated myself next to her while she took her cell phone out of her pocket and began to speak, “Let’s talk business. Have you read the information I sent you about Francisco?” She scrolled through her phone, “You don’t really have to know a lot about him – publisher, obviously loves art and has basically a new girlfriend every month.” I nodded; I’ve already learned all these things about her friend. “Thus it doesn’t matter what I look like; as long as you look like him, we’ll be let in.” She held out her cell phone to show me a picture of the man and her in front of a marble statue. “And you made sure he doesn’t show up himself?” I asked with a raised brow. “Of course!” she looked almost scandalised that I questioned her preparation. “I did my part for tonight. Now, it’s your turn,” indicating to her display with a finger, she waited in anticipation.

After a glance at her phone, I concentrated on my seidr. The familiar cool feeling of my magic doing its work washed over me; its characteristic green light briefly illuminated the face of my little one – when the glow was gone, I sat in form of her friend besides her. Her eyes roamed my changed appearance and she whistled approvingly. “That is so cool! Wish I could do that.” With a joyful laugh she added, “Oh, the tricks I could have played on my brothers. I get why you are the trickster god; what a temptation this power must be.” Her excitement sent a warm, comfortable feeling down my spine. Of course, praise wasn’t something I needed, I was a god; but I liked it coming from her, liked how her face lit up.
Leaning closer, I asked with a voice that wasn’t mine, “So, which appearance do you prefer? This?” I changed back to myself, “Or my real one?” “Yours of course!” she answered, without missing a beat; then paused in shock at the confession, before she stammered, “I…I mean Francisco…Francisco…is only a friend.”
I flashed her a very evil grin, “And what am I?”
“An idiot!” she deadpanned, while slapping my chest lightly with her hand.
I gave a chuckle. “Now, what would you like to look like? Everything and everyone is possible.” I watched with interest as the woman thought about it, her eyebrows furrowed. What look would she want? What would she rate as a goal, as a perfect appearance? Because surely she would want to look like that.

She surprised me once again, when she only shrugged with her shoulders. “I really don’t care; you decide. I only have a whish regarding my outfit, if that is ok.” Stunned, I nodded my head. “Great!” her beautiful smile was back on her face, “As you may have noticed, I am not exactly a person who likes to wear dresses; I’m not particularly fond of modern ones. Buuuut I love old movies and fashion; especially Sabrina with Audrey Hepburn.” I darted her a questioning look. “Oh, silly me. You certainly don’t know the film; we have to catch you up on that. Anyway, in one scene she wears this beautiful black cocktail buttoned down with a deep V back and black gloves. That outfit would be amazing!” She scrolled through her phone again; when she found what she was looking for, she held it under my nose.
“Stand up, my dear,” I demanded, while conjuring a full-length mirror in the middle of the room; she obeyed immediately. “Stand in front of it.” After she had positioned herself as requested, I placed myself close behind her. “No, darling. Watch yourself in the mirror,” I whispered as she turned her head in my direction. Gently touching her upper arms with my fingertips, I let them slide down. My seidr spread slowly over her, enwrapping her in its green light and leaving her in the desired black dress.

“It is beautiful,” she breathed, turning from one side to the other to have a better look.
“Yes, you are,” I responded in a soft voice.
She stopped in her movement; very slowly she turned to me, her eyes searching my gaze. A gentle smile was on her delicate face. “Thank you, Loki,” her voice was barely above a whisper. My eyes flickered to her lips, and back to her eyes. As if in slow motion I leaned towards her.
Startled by my movement she blinked once and shook her head slightly, then turned abruptly back to the mirror. “It’s gorgeous. You’re basically my fairy godmother now,” she giggled. “But I still can’t show up as me at PaulKelly. You’d have to alter my appearance please,” she reminded me. For a long moment I just looked at the back of her head; I swallowed hard, before I answered, “Of course. Wait a minute.”

I racked my brain - who should I turn her into? Nobody seemed suitable; I would love to have her as her on my arm. She looked beautiful, confident, strong – there was no better companion. Although…there was one other person…one other woman...yes. That would work. With a wave of my hand I let my seidr fall to work.
Breathing hard, I raised my eyes and looked into the mirror. The woman I saw in it let my heart skip a beat – wavy auburn hair fell over her fair-skinned shoulders, her bright grey eyes peered deep into me. “Wow. What an absolute beauty,” her smooth silky voice almost let me lose my composure. It was then that I realised it had been a mistake to choose her to disguise the little one. I was a damned fool.
Moistening my dry lips, I whispered, “That she was.”
Did the little one hear me? If so, she showed no reaction; she just kept looking enchanted at herself or rather at the woman in the mirror. “This time you didn’t have to touch me to change my appearance,” she noted suddenly with a smirk and a raised eyebrow. I let that comment remain unanswered and just offered my arm to her with a playful smile, “My lady, would you do me the honour of accompanying me tonight?”
She looked first at my outstretched arm and then at me. “It would be my pleasure, my prince,” she said while taking it. My smile widened at the address and I put my other hand protectively on her hand on my arm – as I said, the evening promised to be exciting.
___________________

“This used to be a subway station, but it was closed in the 40s,” the little one informed me in a whisper as we slowly walked down the stairs of the club. I preceded her, to be in the position to brace her in the unfortunate event of a slip – but this precaution was entirely unnecessary. She moved with natural elegance and grace. Since we’d got out of the car and stepped into the barely recognizable entrance to the club, she’d easily fallen into the role of my companion. She clung to me, flashed me brilliant smiles and played the devoted escort. I loved it.

The cellar-vault that we now entered was elongated, with tilted arches and floral ornate skylights, submerging the scenery in warm light. The ceiling surfaces were composed of white, green and brown tiles; where the tracks of the train once used to be, were now floor slabs embedded on which there were showcases with various works of art. Several people in tuxedos and dresses strolled past to look at them; and still others stood at a bar at one end of the former platform, chatting. All in all, however, the group of people was quite clear – I counted just thirty other people; seven of them seemed to be security guards.
The little one followed my gaze, “Those are Robert Eastmann’s men. If possible, I would like to avoid a confrontation with them; most of them have a bad left hook.” I looked at the five men and two women in black suites with more interest; how did my little one know that? Had these mortals dared to hit her after she had broken their boss’s nose? They better not get too close to her today; I wouldn’t leave it at that.

“Loki, please stop looking so murderous,” laughed the little one quietly, while pulling me towards the bar, “Francisco is a pacifist. This expression on his face is just wrong.” Reaching her goal, she turned to the bartender, “Two martini please; with olives, no lemon twists.” Turning back to me, she continued, “If we’re going to spend an evening like James Bond, then we’ll do it right!” She accepted the drinks with a smile, pushed a glass towards me and raised hers.
“To a successful evening.”
We both took a sip. After putting her glass back on the counter, she strolled up to me and started to straighten my bow tie. In the process she whispered in my ear, “I haven’t seen anyone who knows Francisco yet. So we’re on the safe side. Still, keep in mind that he usually shows off his girlfriends.” As if to reiterate she put her arms around my neck; immediately I wrapped mine around her waist and pulled her closer to me, flashing her a mischievous grin. “And I thought Francisco was just a friend to you. Isn’t it strange to be so familiar with him?”
She shrugged her shoulders, “Maybe I imagine that not Francisco but someone else is holding me like that.”
“So?” I tilted my head, “Tell me, who do you have in mind?”
“An egocentric,” she sighed, “A cheater. Someone cunning. Someone very handsome. One who cares. One who doesn’t.”
“Can a man be all of this?” I asked in a husky voice.
“No,” she paused for a second, “But a god can.”

We looked at each other without moving a muscle; it was as if someone had taken my breath away - she was still so close to me; her body pressed against mine; I could feel every curve of it.
I had hold her so tightly with my arms many times before; had often whished her back in my embrace. And now, when I really had that woman in front of me, I wished for nothing more than to remove my seidr and see the face my little one. To be able to kiss my little one. Her and only her.

Out of the blue a squeaky voice made us both startle, “Ah Francisco, how nice to see you.” A stocky man with curly long blond hair came up to us with his arms wide open.
“That’s Robert Eastmann,” the little one hissed under her breath, breaking away from the embrace so that she could watch the newcomer. I felt her entire body tense; I laid my hand soothingly on her back.
“My dear friend, how wonderful that you could come today,” said the little mortal with a lopsided sneer, “And then in the company of such a beautiful lady.” Despite feeling her nervousness, I watched the little one smile and bending her head down as a greeting. The man’s gaze lingered on her too long for my liking; I began to speak to get the attention of that man back on me, “I am always interested in new artworks. And here you can simply get the rarest.”
Mr. Eastmann replied with a throaty laughter, “Quite true, quite true, my friend. We at PaulKelly value the special, the unique.” And the stolen – at least that’s what my little one had told me on our drive here. “And tonight we have two very special pieces – pieces of jewellery to be precise. Perhaps your lovely lady will fancy one of them. We will present a pair of exquisite diamond earrings that are said to have once belonged to Catherine the Great.” With a wink he whispered furtively to her, “Who would not love to receive such treasures from their partner?”
My little one giggled in response in an unusual way; she played her part of a simple escort well. “They say diamonds are a girl’s best friend, but I’m not a big fan of earrings I’m afraid.” She fluttered her eyelashes, “So what is the second piece?”
“A woman who knows what she wants. I like that!” I almost rolled my eyes at that hollow statement of this man. As if it were a rarity that woman expressed their will; apparently he just wasn’t listening to them otherwise. One look at my companion suggested that she had a similar thought.

Our reaction seemed to slip the attention of our interlocutor, who continued to chat cheerfully, “Our second highlight is the myth-enshrouded ring Andvaranaut. Tell me dear, were you in New York all those years ago when the battle between the Avengers and those aliens took place.” My hand clenched behind her back as the woman by my side nodded silently. “And did you see their leader then – Loki, the God of Mischief, the God of Lies and Chaos?” the man asked. This time she shook her head in the negative; I took a deep breath. The mortal spoke on, “I saw this imposing figure that day; what an appearance, what a force.”
Maybe the man wasn’t so repulsive after all; at least he recognized a true god.
“The ring that we offer today is said to have belonged to this being once. So I expect high bids on -.” The man’s flow of speech was interrupted by the sound of a deep gong. We all looked in the direction of the showcases; the other guests were already gathering in front of it. “Forgive me, I don’t want to hold you back any longer. Enjoy the auction,” spoke Mr. Eastmann and bid goodbye inclining his head.

“And I thought we’d never get rid of him,” groaned my little one while we walked slowly to the crowd, “I really don’t like that man.” I remained silent; my hand still on her lower back, lost in my thoughts.
So far it had never occurred to me that she might have been in New York at that time; even though I knew from Stark’s research that she had an apartment here.
Had someone she knew been killed?
Had she been hurt back then?
Had I hurt her?

“Loki? Did you hear what I asked?” A hand on my face brought me back to reality. I turned my head to her, “Pardon me darling, what did you say?” “I asked you if I had to worry. It’s almost midnight – does it work like Cinderella and we’ll transform back in a few minutes?” she asked with a light smile on her lips. A snort escaped me. “No, silly. Our disguise is safe. I would have to be knocked unconscious for my seidr to fade.” I snorted again.
“I see. One day you have to explain to me how all of this works,” with that she concentrated her attention on the starting auction.

It was entertaining to watch the little one during the auction – although we were interested solely in one item, she was excited about every bit; cheered by every fall of the hammer, always informed me who should be allowed to take this or that work of art home with them and whether the paid price was reasonable or not. And in the case of one painting, she was quite sure that it was a forgery; apparently she had obtained the original for a customer two years ago.
After what felt like an eternity, our ring was finally called. The auctioneer briefly introduced it, its story and its connection to me; a murmur went through the audience. “Ha! If they only knew that you are in attendance,” the woman next to me laughed silently, “Can you see if it’s really Andvaranaut?” She craned her head to get a better view herself, despite the fact that she had no idea how the ring looked like. I shook my head, “No, but that doesn’t matter. We buy it at the auction and are gone; we can take a closer look at it later.”

And so it started.
In the beginning, thirteen people bid for the ring; little by little most of them withdrew. The price climbed higher and higher. The mood became more and more tense. After twenty minutes the little one almost clawed at my arm.
Now, only me and an old man with wrinkles around his eyes remained. At an amazing rate for his age, my competitor raised his bidder card once again. I followed suit. “Loki we’re going to lose, we’re going to lose!” The woman at my side raked her fingers nervously through her hair.
The old man and I glared at each other. Without breaking the eye contact, he raised his card again. I followed once more, narrowing my eyes to slits. My opponent ran his hand over his moustache. Tilted his head to one side. Gave me a small smile. And then…finally broke the eye contact. I had won. With a shake of his head he made this known to the auctioneer; the audience erupted in thunderous applause as soon as the hammer fall.

“Oh my god, we won! We won!” my little one cheered, leaping for joy. The other guests looked at us in amusement while the auction went on. Her whole face beamed with delight, “Loki you were brilliant! We won!” She laughed and laughed and laughed, jumping up and down.
“Calm down, my love.” I put my hands on her shoulders to help her regain her composure. When my hand touched her warm skin, she paused and relaxed. Slowly a small smile spread across her face. “Your nicknames for me a truly unfair,” her voice was soft…like a little bell.
“How so, darling?”
Her voice was barely a whisper now, “They make me want to be even closer to you.” I remained silent. She took a small step towards me; then another one. With a small, trembling hand she reached for my face.
The world around us was forgotten; who needed it? Who wanted it? No one! I wanted her, only her!

“Kiss me,” I whispered.
But she hesitated, looking at me with those big grey eyes.
“Kiss me,” I said.
And closed my eyes, bracing myself for a rejection.
“Loki…you know who I want to kiss.”

I opened my eyes wide. The wrong face was looking at me.
Of course.
Green light enveloped us.
And finally my annoying, mesmerising, fragile and beautiful little one stood in front of me. And she pulled me down to her.

Her lips were soft on mine, smooth, gliding, warm. They only brushed me. Caressed me. Was she afraid? She wouldn’t break me; never could.
I wanted more, so much more.
Knotting my hands in her hair, I pulled her harder against me. I groaned softly, low in my throat; her lips fell open at the brush of my tongue, welcoming me. Me! This desperate greedy being. Yet she accepted me.
And I still wanted more.
Little, breathy sounds escaped her as I licked into her mouth, fought with her tongue eager to win everything from her. Steal everything from her. Only to give it back to her.
I would let her rule me. Only to dominate her afterwards.
She was allowed to put me off; if she only lured me back in the end.
I could feel her heart beat faster and faster – would it explode? Her body pressed against me, melting against me. And I couldn’t help but grin.
I was lost. And it looked like she was too.

Chapter Text

The soft smell of snow, of a tender frosty morning breezed around my nose; caressed my face; drowned my mind. And for a short moment I was surrounded by whiteness. Brightness was all there was. Then, the most beautiful contrast that I had ever been allowed to lay my eyes on slowly approached me. Or did I pull this beautiful, dark framed face down to me? I couldn’t tell as I had lost contact with my body. The only contact I needed was this man’s lips on mine. And I was heard.
Heat descended on me as Loki’s lips touched mine. It was a cold, light touch; like a snowflake that had just alighted from sky onto my mouth. Fear ran through me; was this touch just as fragile? The god disabused me of that worry. With a strong grip, he pulled me closer to his body, his tongue demanding admission. I forgot how to breath. A low groan escaped his lips. And my world began spinning. Our tongues danced, fought, lost and won. He would shatter me into a thousand pieces. My heart was already galloping off. And I still had no idea how to move air into my lungs.

After a second and after a thousand years, Loki slowly broke away from our kiss. He smiled against my mouth, “Darling, you have to breath.” I blinked once, blinked again, and then finally my body remembered the mechanism for getting oxygen. When I inhaled, the smell of the tender, frosty morning surrounded me again – Loki’s smell. “Mortals...how pitiful,” he just stated with a chuckle. I tilted my head and gave him a crooked smile, “You just kissed a mortal. We can’t be that pitiful.” Loki looked at me for a long time; his eyes flashed with something dark, something awaiting. “Indeed. And I’m planning more than just a kiss.” I licked my lips, “Can I pin you down to that?” “But of course, love” Slowly he leaned closer to my face again; his green eyes completely fixed on my lips.
Wait a minute.
There was something wrong, utterly wrong. I shouldn’t be able to see his emerald eyes, his sharp jawline or his alluring lips. None of that!
Because if I could see Loki in all his glory, others could too!

Stopping his arriving lips with my finger, I perceived my surroundings for the first time in a long while. Pure silence screamed at me – there was no whispering, no rustling of clothes, no voice of the auctioneer. And yet we were still standing in the elegantly designed cellar-vault of PaulKelly. My eyes wandered slowly from one side to the other, passing shocked faces. We were surrounded by people staring at us; forgotten was the auction, their respective plus one, and most shockingly their drinks in their hands.
From the back of the crowd the clicking-sound of a phone camera broke the silence. “Ahem Loki,” I whispered, after a fashion, “the whole room is looking at us.” The god just made an affirming noise and pulled me flush against his chest.
“I know.”
I mentally noted to myself his delight at being watched by an audience, before clearing my throat, “If I may remind you, we just bibidibabidibued us to our normal appearance. In a place where I definitely shouldn’t be recognized.” The creases in his brow told me what he thought of my concern. “Little one, do you really think I would let someone get near you?” I lifted my head – Loki, still wearing Francisco’s suit, looked down at me, his expression serious. There was no trace of his usual mischief.

The squeaky voice of Robert Eastmann tore the moment apart, “Miss Heart…and I thought I made myself clear on your last visit.”. Loki’s and my head jerked to the man who stood flanked by two of his security guards at the other end of the cellar. His contempt for me was written all over his face; did he notice that he was subconsciously rubbing his nose?
“Mr. Eastmann,” I declined my head a little, “Don’t worry, you don’t have to deal with me any longer. Let me just quickly get the pretty little ring that my companion has just bought and then we’ll be gone.” I flashed him a sickly sweet smile. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw two other security guards positioning themselves in front of the auctioneer and the showcases with the objects.
The fake smile Mr. Eastmann gave me was in no way inferior to mine, “My dear, I’m afraid that’s not possible. We at PaulKelly take our house ban very seriously. I explained that to you firmly the last time you visited us, did I not?” It did not escape me that while he spoke the other security guards slowly began to circle us. My heart started to beat faster. I had a vivid memory of the last time I had exhausted Mr. Eastmann’s hospitality – an experience I definitely didn’t wish to repeat.

The man could see my fear; his smile widened. The guards came closer. “But before you are taken care of my dear, tell me, is your companion really who I think he is?”
“How rude of me,” Loki interposed, feigning consternation, “Allow me to introduce myself: I am Loki, of Asgard, God of Mischief and Lies and the rightful King of Jotunheim.” A murmur went through the audience, leaving the god by my side with his lips curled into a grin. “But you already knew that,” he finished matter-of-factly. More phone cameras clicked. And the beautiful bastard bathed in all of the attention; I rolled my eyes. “As my enchanting companion already said, we’re going to leave now. With our ring.” Loki’s eyes were fixed on Mr. Eastmann who just shook his head in false regret, “Under other circumstances you would be a valued guest, your Highness…but your company…and the way you sneaked in…,” he sighed, pursing his lips, “I will not tolerate such behaviour. Get them!”

As if his people had only been waiting for the order, they darted at us. The crowd scattered, screaming in fear. And for a moment I was paralyzed. Loki pushed me behind his back, the familiar green shine washing over him.

And then, there he was – the tall, leather clad, intimidating and devious deity. Back in New York City.

He spun us to one side, dodging the first punch aiming at my head. His fingers gripped the man’s arm tightly, picked him up, and threw him across the room. I heard the thrown groan as he hit the wall hard. But there was no time to pity him. Loki bent to the right, pushing me with him, to avoid a baton that tried to hit us from above. The two security women swinging their clubs circled us, narrowing the distance between them and us more and more. The god twisted, always keeping me behind his safe back, but their blows came closer and closer to me.
Loki gritted his teeth in silent fury.
Two more men came running towards us, stun guns in their hands. With a move too fast for my eyes Loki twisted the arm of one of the attackers and the guy tasered himself. With a groan, he sank to the floor. The other used the distraction; with quick steps he was behind us, aiming at my exposed back.
“Absolutely not!” Loki hissed through his teeth.
He clenched his fists and sent nearly everyone and everything right around us flying through the air and crashing into the walls. We stood in the middle, surrounded by groaning bodies. Now, one of the guards in front of the auctioneer made his way in our direction. I realized with dismay that the other began to stow the ring in a box. I looked at Loki in panic; he was too busy keeping one of the attackers who had recovered fast at bay, he couldn’t do a thing against it. I could.

“Loki, back me!” I shouted, before tossing my heels aside and starting to sprint towards the man with the ring. “Woman, what are you doing?” Loki tried to pull me back with an outstretched arm; but I was too fast. I heard my god curse under his breath in a foreign language.

While Running, I dodged the first guard, jumped over the shards of broken champagne classes on the floor and came to a dead stop in front of my target. The security man looked at me belligerently.
I flashed him a smile, “Ohh honey, let me be the Ring-Bearer.”
Humour was once again my reaction to my own fear. Remembering what my brothers had taught me, I clenched my hand, knees slightly bend, and hit him right on the nose. An unpleasant crunch was heard as my fist collided with the guard’s face. Tears welled in his eyes and he covered his face with his hands. A sharp pain shot through my hand. “Shoot!” I whined, before reaching for the ring box. But the man recovered faster than I would have liked. To duck his hand, I made a quick leap backwards. But my dress got tangled in my legs; I stumbled, falling to my knees.

Long slender fingers gripped my arm and I was pulled up to my feet. “You can fall for me, little one. Not for that mortal.” Loki stood beside me, smug and possessive. With a single blow with the fist he knocked the security man flat out. “Yeah yeah,” I held up the box with the ring, “Look, my prince, I got you a present.” Loki’s pupils dilated; whether it was because of the ring or my form of address I could not say. “How thoughtful of you, darling.” He took the box from my hand and made it disappear. “We should go now, before these weaklings decide to get rebellious again.” With that he took my hand and with long strides dragged me to the staircase that led to the exit. I turned my head to look behind – all the guards were lying on the floor, not a single one moving.
A thought occurred to me, “Loki, please change my outfit back.”
“Why? You look gorgeous,” he didn’t look at me, his eyes firmly fixed on the door; away from the danger. I heaved a sigh, “That was too much physical activity in a dress for my liking. I need my trousers back. And most importantly, I don’t wear any shoes!” My high heels were somewhere lost in the chaos behind us and the idea of walking the streets of New York barefoot gave me the creeps. Loki looked at my feet in surprise. When he saw my bare toes, he chuckled, “Please tell me, you used them as throwing knives.” “Nope! We’re not in a movie,” I said while he pushed open the door.

As I stepped over the threshold and into the streets smelling of exhaust and vent fumes my dress magically changed to pants, a top and a dark coat. In addition, black boots materialized on my feet. “Thank God!” I exclaimed happily, examining my new outfit. “Quite literally,” Loki added and watched me stepping to the edge of the sidewalk. “What are you doing, little one?” he asked in bewilderment as I stretched my hand in the air and gave a little wave. “I’m hailing a cab” I informed him, while making eye contact with a cabbie. The desired vehicle stopped before us and I encouraged Loki to enter the cab. “Normally I would ask you ‘Your place or mine’, but the question is superfluous in this situation,” I chuckled and gave the driver my street corner.

The cab glided through the night, past the hustle and bustle of the city, past the colourful lights providing an everlasting brightness and after a long time away my love for this place rekindled.
“Why are you smiling?” Loki’s voice was calm, low.
I broke away from the cab window, “I’m happy to be back,” and added more quietly, “I moved away after…after…” How did you tell the cause of your departure that he was the cause of your departure? “After a few safety concerns,” I finished the sentence ungallantly. The god just nodded, keeping to himself if he understood what I was not saying. His gaze wandered to the front seat and a small smile graced his lips.
“And what amuses you now?”
He gave me a wicked winked grin, “I’m just happy that someone else is driving us.”

_________________________________

The key turned in the lock, grating; with a slight push the door opened.
“It’s not big but feel free to look around.” I slipped off my coat awkwardly while Loki stepped into my little studio apartment. Without turning on the light, he walked in the middle of the almost empty room.
Moonlight fell through the oversized windows, casting long shadows and illuminating my lonely bed.
Loki slowly turned to me. My heartbeat quickened.
“Come here, darling.”
I obeyed.
“Suddenly so silent.” The god laughed quietly. Slowly he raised his hand to my face, his thumb softly rubbing against my lips. “Are you scared, little one?”
I shook my head amused, “No.” Glancing up at him from under my brows, I whispered, “Take off your clothes.”

Chapter Text

Glancing up at him from under my brows, I whispered, “Take off your clothes.”

Loki stood still in front of me, the oversized windows and the lights of the city and the moon forming a dramatic backdrop to the god. The towering figure’s voice, deep and warm, lapped around me. “So impatient,” I could hear him smile, “so demanding.” Gently but firmly he tilted my face up, running his finger slowly down my chin and my exposed throat. As I shivered under his touch, his smile widened. “Hmm, sensitive. I ask myself…” The sentence remained unfinished. Loki leaned down, slowly sliding his lips down my throat. I let out a slow breath. His mouth trailed along my jawline, before finally claiming my mouth as his.
The kiss was neither gentle nor sweet; Loki kissed me hard and deep. A perfect demonstration of desire and anticipation. But not what I needed nor wanted. I longed for his body on mine. Desired his moans and curses in my ear. Was aching to feel him come inside me. But first of all, I craved for him to be naked.

With swift movements, I tugged at his clothing, eager to free him. But those interwoven leather pieces of his armour escaped my understanding – where was the beginning, where the end? “Careful, darling,” his long fingers encircled mine. “Let me help you.” Loki’s magic washed over him, leaving him only with his dark pants still on his body. “Thank god,” I grinned, before pushing him on the bed. Satisfaction flooded through me: the God of Mischief and Lies half naked. On my bed. His lean muscles illuminated by the low light of the outside world. And he was waiting for me. I threw my leg over his hips and straddled him. “I thought I might like making you kneel in front of me. But having you underneath me is so much better,” I teased. A mistake.

The sound escaping his throat almost let me recoil. Before I even had the chance to realise what was happening he suddenly pulled my down and rolled us over. Loki quirked an eyebrow at me – now I was trapped underneath him, my hands pinned down by his. “Little mortal, it is not wise to mock a god” His eyes were wild. His chest rose and fell in the rhythm of excited breathing. “I’m trying to be gentle with you. Let you lead. Don’t mistake my generosity for weakness.” Black strands of his hair fell from his shoulders. Like they we’re reaching out for me. As I began to speak I was surprised by the calmness of my voice, the false control it still displayed. What a wonderful illusion. “I don’t want gentle,” my face stretched closer to that of the dark god above me, “Show me what it means to surrender to a god.” Should he get to know my dominant side next time; now I wanted to see his. His trademark smirk flashed over his face, “So it be.”

Loki raised his hand and let it slide bit by bit over my chest, past my waist, my hips, my thigh. Just as my clothes had manifested before, they were now melting away. For a moment I was still enveloped in a green glow. Then I laid in front of the god in my purest, most shameless form.
And the deity in him rose to the surface – Loki straightened up with a dark, dangerous glint in the eyes. His gaze slid hungrily over my bare breasts, my hardening nipples, my stomach, my centre. Before me was now the god who was full of mischief and wickedness. The headstrong divinity who would do anything for his goal. At his sight thousands of small flames started dancing across my skin. As time discovered its own insignificance, I burned; burned for him. But Loki just looked at me, slowly licking his lips.

“Perfect. My perfect little plaything.”

With that his whole body came to life. The god roughly grabbed my thighs and pushed them open, spreading me wide. Cold met my already overheated sex. Not for long. Quickly it was engulfed by the warmth of his mouth. He explored me - his tongue stroking in long, slow licks. He drove me insane. My eyes closed. His hand found the way to my breast, cupped it, squeezed it gently. And a moan escaped my lips.

“Look at me!”

His demand made me jerk my head up. Locking his eyes with mine, Loki slid two l fingers over my clit; he watched my reaction and did it again. My hands clutched the soft sheets, my eyes rolled back into my head.

“Look. At. Me.”

His growl was accompanied by a tug on my nipple. Sweet pain made me open my eyes wide. But Loki just grinned at me, enjoying himself far too much.

“Watch your god, little one.”

And then, with no warning, I felt two fingers entering me. My breath hitched.
A steady, unmerciful rhythm began - in and out. In and out. Adding the perfect pressure to my entrance. More moans tumbled from my lips, singing his praises. Yet there was more to come. His mouth turned to my centre again – swift licks to my clit, soft sucking. All while his long fingers pumped into me. It was devastating. My hips rose to meet him more. But his other hand, unbending and strong, pushed me down. Fixated me. The sounds of my wetness filled the room; only interrupted by my heavy breathing, my moans. My head twisted from one side to another. My core throbbed, tightening around his fingers.

“That’s it, that’s it, my darling,” Loki coaxed, “Be a good girl for your god.”

As his fingers suddenly curled inside me, I arched my back. It was too much. He would make me come before I had the chance to feel his cock inside me. “No!” I whined, unable to express my desire in other words, “No!”

“No?” Loki asked in an innocent tone of voice, “You don’t want to be a good girl?” At that question he pushed even deeper in me. I shook my head helplessly. “Do you want to be punished instead, little one?” I moaned instead of answering. “Oh you like that idea, don’t you?” He chuckled. “What a perfect little thing you are.” Still torturing me with his finger, he came up to my breasts - biting them, licking them. And I lost it. “Loki please! Just fuck me already!”

His movements stopped, his soft laugh reached my ear. I looked at him - so much innocence, such a malicious grin at the same time, “Greedy,” he chided me amused. Kneeling between my open legs and with a gentle, but firm tug on them, he pulled me towards him. “Tell me, are you greedy for me, little one? Greedy for my cock?”
It was my time to lick my lips, to nod briefly.
Eyes fixed on my face, Loki opened his tight clothing. Button by button, his black leather pants opened more. I was hypnotized by his leisurely pace. He took out his hard, eager erection. Slowly, almost lazy he began to stroke himself - once, twice.
What was he waiting for? I was soaking wet. Desperate. Empty!
“Loki,” my voice a praying whisper, “please.”

No more words were needed. Loki mounted me and slowly, oh so slowly slid into me. I felt every vein of his cock against my walls. It… he was divine. As my warmth and wetness embraced him, he uttered a suuuper-low moan.
Then he began thrusting into me, his length and level of arousal brutal. I gasped, struggled, moaned beneath him. He silenced me with his mouth – pumping even deeper. I travelled higher and higher. Bid goodbye to myself as I lost myself in that void Loki provided for me. I would crash and I would love it. The all-too-familiar shockwaves heralded my impending doom.

All the sudden Loki was gone – from my mouth, my core. Only to turn me around, lift me up to my knees, to grip my ass. “You are mine,” he growled and pulled me hard against his chest. His penis, wet from my fluids, pressed against my buttocks. “Mine.” He dove back into me, giving me full hard thrusts. With his mouth on my ear he promised, “And I will show the world that!”

Only then a small part of brain realised what was going on; noticed the way the bed stood, how it was facing the oversized windows. How we were facing the world. And how Loki presented me to the world, while simultaneously claiming me.
Our silhouettes were faintly visible on the smooth surface of the window. It gave me the perfect few – Loki kneeling behind me, his hair mussed, hand on my stomach, buried deep inside me. I watched my breasts bounce with every of his thrust, saw how his fingers trailed down, finding my clit. How he assaulted it again. I arched more against him, finding his eyes on mine in the window reflection. He enjoyed the sight of me, so utterly helpless and at the mercy of him. Everything in my tightened. The volcano in me roared, it would erupt in every moment. I just needed a little bit mo-
Suddenly, Loki’s hand wrapped around my neck with a light squeeze. Another of his demands, “Come for me!” The last piece to my orgasm. I fall apart, calling out his name, shuddering violently, while he held me tight, never slowing his movements. I screamed my lust out into the night – my screams my prayer to Loki, my moans my hymn of praise for my god.

When I finally regained my senses, I fell forward onto my hands. Loki had let go of me; his hands now on my hips. Chasing his own high. I watched our reflection in the window – his pleasure twisted face, his hips pounding against mine. If I only could hold onto this picture for eternity. And then with a last, hard snap of his hips, he came inside me. I felt his dick twitch, his semen filling me, dripping down my tormented pussy. With a last growl of his ecstasy he fell down on me, but caught himself on his arms before he would crush me. His hot breath caressed my neck, his sweat covered torso my back.

Only our heavy breathing was now filling the room. My arms finally gave out and, ungraceful as ever, I fell onto my stomach. An uncontrollable laughter found its way out of me.
“Not the usual reaction of my partners, after I just fucked them into oblivion.”
Loki’s tone of voice, irritated and amused, had me rolling onto my back. I was still between his arms; his body a perfect cage around me, our faces just a few inches away from each other. “You are so full of yourself,” I laughed breathlessly, shaking my head in amusement. I didn’t mean any harm and he could see that. Loki slowly laid down beside me with his elbow propped up and his hand in his long hair. “Am I wrong?” he asked smugly, already knowing the answer. I wagged my head, “No. I truly enjoyed myself.” He inclined his head by that compliment, but curiosity was still written all over his face, “Then why were you laughing?”
“Oh come on,” I sighed with pleasure, “the whole situation is just so absurd.” With a raised eyebrow, he encouraged me to continue. “Just a few hours ago we were playing James Bond, had to fight evil security guards and our first reaction to that was – oy, let’s fuck!” Laughter broke out of me again, while a small smile played around Loki’s lips. Perhaps the situation was normal for the Asgardian – I had no idea in what scenarios he had met his other ‘partners’. My dating life usually didn’t look like this.

Tilting my head towards the window, away from the god, I watched the outside world. Slowly the other apartments around us came to life – here a light went on, there a tired head showed itself briefly, before retreating back into the darkness of its home. What time was it?

Calmer I added, “On top of that I had sex with you. A god. A few years ago ‘Loki’ was just a legend. The stuff of tales so much older than…” I trailed off, unsure how to finish that comparison. A flock of birds over the house opposite from us momentarily caught my eye and I watched its intertwined flight up and down. Even calmer, almost whispering I proceeded, “I grew up with stories of you. Devoured them, as I tried to learn what my strange gift meant. They soothed me in my uncertainty.” His existence, even only in literature, had soothed me. But I would not say that out loud. It wouldn’t be fair to share such a burden with him – I hadn’t known the real person at the time. The real Loki. Did I even know him now?
I turned my head back to him – he still laid motionless next to me. A statue of pure power and relaxation. Michelangelo could not have carved it better. No, I answered my own question in my head, I don’t know him. Perhaps a small part of his personality I had uncovered. But those eyes bespoke of secrets, lies and stories I would surely never hear. How sad.

I smiled at him again. Maybe that would get him out of his torpor. But it didn’t achieve its aim. Instead, a long yawn on my part made it. With a benevolent sigh, Loki pulled the bed sheet over my shoulders, “Here, you should sleep, little one.” I was surprised by the fondness of his voice and gesture – sex was one thing, this was another. I was even more surprised when Loki slipped under the covers with me – with his arm he drew me against his chest. “Is that okay?” he asked quietly in my ear. Snuggling more against him, I nodded, “Of course.” For a brief moment my curiosity gained the upper hand of me and I had to ask, “Do gods have to sleep at all?” Loki chuckled behind me, “Yes, little one. Albeit significantly less than you humans.” I digested this information briefly, before my brain fired the next question. The cover of Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep? appeared briefly in my mind’s eye. “And do you dream as well?”
“Mm-hmm. And now – sleep.”
And for the last time today, I obeyed Loki’s demand and lost myself in my dreams.

Bright light was washing over me as I opened my eyes. A colonnade laid in front of me – I turned around – and behind me. Blue and white marble as far as the eye could see. And between the pillars…nothing but brightness.
Where was I?
As if lead by magic hands I walked through the arcade. It snaked away – sometimes to the left, sometimes to the right, with no beginning and no end. I didn’t know this place, had never set foot in it.
Suddenly, in the distance, barely audible, footsteps sounded – quick, thudding sounds, as if the person was running. Running from or towards me? It didn’t matter. My legs started moving without my doing, quickly following the noise. But I didn’t seem to get any closer to it. My walking became a run. I knew in my heart that I had to reach those sounds. See the face of whoever it was.
My hand stretched out, my mouth opened, “Wait!”
If I could, I would have stopped. But just as speaking had been out of my control, my body was too. And then it hit me. This voice, this spoken ‘wait’ hadn’t been mine. This body wasn’t mine. But I knew both of it. Had them heard and seen only seconds, minutes, hours ago.
They were Loki’s! I saw everything through Loki’s eyes!
“Please wait for me!” he called again with a voice so fragile, so scared. What was going on here?
He sped up even more, hurtling past the columns at inhuman speed. I felt his heart tighten. How panic crept up his neck. He knew he would be too late. And yet he ran, on and on.
When he, we turned a left corner, he suddenly stopped. Only to immediately run even faster towards the next left turn in the blue and white colonnade.

We had got a glimpse of the person running. Had caught a fleeting glimpse of fair-skinned shoulders and long, wavy auburn hair.

Chapter Text

Was there a place where you could swap your body? A small shop maybe, hidden somewhere in tall grass, surrounded by evergreen trees. I would walk in there with a smile on my face, "Good morning, Miss Doolittle,” I would greet the lady behind the counter, “Please take this one and just give me whatever you have in store; just a body that isn’t so sore. You know, I just had sex with a god. Thank you very much!” And Miss Doolittle would briefly disappear and then give me a new, unused exemplar. Wouldn’t it be loverly.

I sighed softly, cautious not to wake Loki next to me. But the god’s chest rose and fell evenly, his arm possessive over my hip. His dream must be as calm as a gently flowing river. He looked so at ease; so different from how I felt. It wasn’t just my post-sex body to blame for my current state. After just a few hours I had suddenly been startled out of sleep with my heart beating too fast and cold sweat on my forehead. But the dream that was responsible for this kept slipping through my fingers. Only blue and white still flashed through my mind, and long auburn hair. The rest of the memory, however, writhed like a snake and couldn’t be caught…
Confused and disoriented, only a look out of the windows had calmed me down again – the everyday busyness of New York was soothing balm to my troubled soul. So I just had laid there; had watched the people, birds and passing cars; and the sleeping god beside me.
At some point the sun tore me out of my trance; as high as it was, it must be after noon. No wonder I was so terribly hungry. Food hadn’t set foot in this apartment for a long time, so if I wanted to eat something it was time to search the outside world for it. But unwilling to get up and leave Loki, I just sighed again. Then again, the little café next door would surely have something delicious in store. They always had. And I would be back here in a heartbeat. Besides, I would be able to wake up Loki with fresh coffee. Did he even like coffee?

I looked back at him - an unruly strand of hair had slipped over his face, swinging up and down with each of his breaths. I smiled, hesitated and then brushed it out of his face; not that the tickling would wake him up. Eventually I slowly and deliberately pulled myself out of his embrace and sneaked into my little bathroom.
A long time ago, I had started storing a few clothes in all my apartments so I didn’t always have to travel with full luggage. This benefited me now – a quick reach into the small Victorian dresser and my outfit for the day was ready. There was still one problem to be solved though – if I went to take a shower now, I would definitely wake up the god. Those old water pipes made noise like my two brothers and me drunk on New Year’s Eve. However, after sex with him and especially, well, sex without a condom, a shower would be more than appropriate. But for the sake of Loki’s beauty sleep, that would have to wait.
I tiptoed back into the room and further into the hallway, where the carelessly tossed coat still laid. In its pocket I found my cell phone and the rest of my money, only pocketing the latter – there was no need for the mobile for now. Not for the first time since I’d actually witnessed Loki’s magic in person, I wondered how exactly it worked. How had he transferred my things from the pocket of the dress to the other outfit? And would his magic be explainable like a science?

I was still pondering those questions, when the old-fashioned little doorbell of the café announced my entrance. As in the past, the small place was crammed with colourful armchairs, too many people and an odd number of pictures of capybaras. Given that the café had the best coffee around, nobody really cared about the decoration; it was just another little quirk in this quirky city.
Patiently standing in line, I tapped my foot to a tune stuck in my head and smiled at several people who seemed to be strangely interested in me. Did I have a sign on my back saying ‘Sex and not showered’? Did I smell?! Normally only tourist stared like that in this city – everyone else was busy with their own life. But in this moment, I practically felt the heat of the spotlight shining on me. It was as if the eyes of an audience of millions were following me and yet there was a maximum of 15 people present here. The desire for my cell phone as a distraction arose in me. Or for a big hat to hide underneath.
When I finally reached the counter, I quickly ordered two large coffees, an orange juice and various snacks. Some of it had to be to Loki’s taste. And if not…well, I got a healthy appetite.

As always, the service was fast and friendly; a normal customer encounter without any staring. I chuckled at myself – I’d probably just imagined the looks. After all, I knew who I had slept with yesterday, but there was no way all these people could know.
Carefully balancing the cups and bags, I began to retreat to the apartment. A whisper, however, froze me at the door, “No, that’s definitely her. Look! That nose is unmistakable.” I slowly turned my head in the direction of a couple. Both of them stared blatantly, definitely talking about me. And my nose.
Surprised by so much audacity, I just blinked. The guy of the two looked down at his phone, up to me again and then nodded his head eagerly, “Right, now I see it too. But do you see him anywhere?” I blinked again. “No, maybe he just -” Without waiting to see what his partner suspected, I turned and quickly hurried away.

Okay. So I wasn’t imagining the looks; I had been eyed strangely. The restless feeling from this morning started to creep up on me again. Why?, I asked myself, They couldn’t have seen us all fucking last night, could they? Sure we had been right in front of the windows, but in a dark room without any lights on. I gripped the cups and bags tighter. And the way these two had spoken… they had known about Loki! Had they observed us with binoculars? Otherwise you would never have recognised him. No. Those glances had been about something else. But what? Wrinkling my nose at that unanswered question, I pushed open the door to my apartment. And was greeted by the sight of a half-naked, awakened god.

Loki stood in the middle of the room with his arms crossed behind his back, his hair tousled from sleep. Calm and serene, he looked down at the street below while the light of the still cool spring sun played around him. He was certainly a sight to behold.
Fate was a strange fellow; almost a trickster itself. All those years ago it had been Loki who had made me flee this city; and now I didn’t know where I would rather be than here, near this man.
I didn’t kid myself; I was old enough to know that last night might just have been a one-time thing for him. To me he seemed like a one-time thing guy. A wanderer. A connoisseur of quick, easy pleasures.
Perhaps his past as a prince had made him wary; or some other event in his long life. But every fibre of his body exuded a certain freedom; a freedom that nobody could take away from him. He surely would never allow that.
And I was not the person to ensnare anyone. Freedom was my own companion; my friend; my beloved. I would always fight to keep it. But then again, loneliness didn’t suit me either. I would always share my freedom with someone else; at least for a period of time.
Hopefully Loki would do the same.

Shaking my head, I brought myself back to the here and now. “Morning,” I beamed, holding the cups and bags a little higher, “Got us some breakfast.” Slowly and leisurely, the god turned his head in my direction. Then, with a few long steps, he was at my side and wrapped his arms around me. “Why weren’t you next to me, when I woke up?” Loki demanded to know, his voice still deep and raspy from sleep. I suppressed the urge to make silly jokes about old, deaf gods. “Because I got us breakfast,” I repeated instead, a soft smile gracing my lips nevertheless.
“And you thought leaving me alone is a good idea?”
I lifted an eyebrow in amusement, “Was the almighty god scared in the big city?”
That drew a growl from him.
“No. But the almighty god wanted his little mortal next to him.”
At that he brushed my forehead with his lips and my smile widened – maybe I didn’t have to worry about a ‘one-time thing’. “Forgive this mortal woman, your Highness. She is a slave to her cravings – especially coffee and food.” As if to lend substance to my words, my empty stomach spoke its mind aloud at that moment.
“Obviously,” Loki laughed and kissed me lightly on the forehead again. “Did you sleep well, little one?”
Considering that he would recognize a lie and the full truth wasn’t necessary, I just shrugged my shoulders and cocked my head, thinking back to the incident in the café, “Let’s put it this way, it was a short night and a strange morning.”

Without giving it a second thought, I thrust my purchases into Loki’s hands. A strange sight – the God of Mischief and Lies with brown food containers in his hands. Stifling a laugh, I got plates and cutlery for us. Loki looked puzzled at the food - probably the prince wasn’t used to this kind of dining. But it was my favourite way; with a movement of my head, I invited him to follow me onto the bed.
“Little one, you don’t really want to consume these dishes in bed, do you?”
I looked around the empty room and grinned, dropping onto the bed, “Would the gentleman prefer to eat on the floor?” A sigh was his only response and Loki, accepting his fate, followed me.

After the food was divided fairly – Loki resigned his coffee, which was just fine with me and my caffeine addiction – we began to eat. At first, he eyed every dish suspiciously, almost condescendingly, but little by little the food seemed to appeal to him. I was already done when Loki turned to his last snack – he’d apparently never had to fight over food with Thor. Spoiled princeling. My two gluttons of brothers, on the other hand, had made me a fast-eater early on. So swirling my coffee in my cup, I watched Loki savouring every mouthful. His table manners and mine were very different – I’d almost expected him to put a napkin on his lap.
“Why are you staring at me, little one?” So even focused on his food, my stare did not go unnoticed by him.
“Because you’re pretty,” I winked, swirling the brown liquid in its vessel a bit more.
“Quite true,” Loki said with a half-smile that fitted periodically across his face in a mixture of bemusement and curiosity, “but that’s not the whole truth.” With a steady hand, he put his cutlery aside and narrowed his eyes at me. “You look tired, exhausted almost.”
“What can I say, for some reason I didn’t sleep much last night.” The god didn’t respond to my light, fun tone. I leaned back at the headboard with a sigh, “I just had a nightmare, Loki. Nothing to worry about,” His eyes followed every of my movements.
“And your morning was strange because?”
I almost rolled my eyes at so much persistence. And yet a small part of me was surprised at how well he’d listened to me. It was almost cute. Almost.

Loki didn’t strike me as the caring type. At least not as the selfless, caring type. He was arrogant, smug, self-focused, a little megalomaniac…okay, very megalomaniac, and possessive. And I didn’t have any problems with that. I was no hypocrite; you couldn’t exactly call me a saint either. In fact, I didn’t know of any living being worthy of that designation. And if there was one, I probably didn’t want to meet it – it sounded boring. Loki, on the other hand, couldn’t be called boring. And despite of all of his qualities, he still wanted to know what was bothering me. Why? Why did he care?
I sighed – I did that a lot today – and regarded this attentive being in front of me.
The answer to my questions was quite simple. The way he looked at me mirrored the way I looked at him – we were a puzzle to each other, a labyrinth that we had not yet fully understood. The sex had only showed us one path, one part of the other; but so many others remained hidden from us.
It was clear to me, that my fascination with him would continue. I wanted to learn more about him, understand him better, see all of his passages and paths and would try not to become lost in his labyrinth while doing so.
And maybe he felt the same about me. At least his curiosity was in no way inferior to mine, that much was clear. So it was only fair to be open and honest. Even if my openness included something as ridiculous as admitting that I had felt watched and stared at in the café.

Clearing my throat, I began to report what had happened – the looks, the couple, my strange feeling. Maybe someone else would have laughed at that; with a little distance it sounded ridiculous. But Loki just gave me a thoughtful look and heard me out.
“I don’t think you imagined it,” he stated, after I had finished, “Several people took pictures of us yesterday in the club. And probably also recorded the incident.” My head snapped up at that statement. “Oh please, love,” he snorted, “You must have noticed that.”
Last night flashed past my inner eye – yes, there had been the sounds of cell phone cameras. The realisation made my blood run cold. Loki, oblivious to my reaction, caressed my cheek and continued, “That was the only reason I held back. Pictures of me killing those unworthy mortals would only have put you in danger. And Thor would have been nagging me about it forever.”

I didn’t even hear what he was saying anymore – a loud, high-pitched ringing in my ears replaced his words. My heart missed a beat. Or three. If there were pictures of us at PaulKelly and non-involved strangers had stared at me for real, it could only mean…

I jumped up in panic, glad that my legs still obeyed me. I would need them if my fears were true. “Darling?” Loki’s question was lost on me. With shaking hands, I reached for my phone. The glare of the display leaped at me like an unyielding feline at its helpless prey.
The enormous number of messages alone confirmed my fears. My entire family had tried to reach me – my father, my mother, both of my brothers, their partners, Steven and Nora, David, Aaron and Alex - everyone desperate demanding a sign that I was ok, that I was still alive. More than 30 missed calls testified to their panic, their sheer fear for me.
In Nora’s case, it was just one message with a link. One message that drained all colour from my face.

It’s all over the internet – are you alright? What happened Sweetie?

I clicked the link – on the thumbnail the face of an elderly man with a gigantic moustache and a bald head stared angrily back at me. Next to him was an image of Loki and I. Without starting the video, I read the title of it.

‘New York’s murderer is back! Sidekick or victim? Who knows this woman?’

A terrified cry escaped me; not loud, but loud enough that Loki was immediately at my side. I saw his mouth moving, could guess what he wanted to ask me, but the pull of sheer terror was too strong. There was footage of me at PaulKelly. Someone had sold footage from the club to the press. A clubs whose first rule was secrecy. And whose second rule was punishment.
I had been taught the second rule the hard way all those years ago. And back then I had only broken someone’s nose, not outed the club to the public. The greedy person, whoever they were, was dead. And then they would turn to me; Robert Eastmann didn’t leave any loose ends.
Frozen with fear, with eyes open wide, I looked at Loki, “I’m dead, Loki. They’re going to kill me.”

Chapter Text

“I’m dead, Loki. They’re going to kill me.”

Rods and cones – the two types of photoreceptors in the human retina; and in the retina of an elephant; and in that of a shark, a cat, a gecko, a freaking shrimp, or just about almost any other confounded animal on this rotating lump of earth! And why this digression into the anatomy of the eye again? Well, because these little buggers were responsible for deer getting caught in headlights. And right now, I felt indescribably close to those deer.
The realisation of the last few minutes had long since arrived in my brain; had been properly processed there and sent to all other areas of my body in due form and time - now you would expect my body to react; but the little dickhead had rather chosen to stand still and just blink. Once, twice – that would undoubtedly continue for the next few minutes.
No wonder the god at my side looked at me with deep concern.

“Little one,” Loki’s voice was soft, almost as if he were speaking to an injured, cornered animal – how fitting. “What do you mean by that? Who is going to kill you?”
“Mr. Eastmann.” At least my voice was still game. “The other hosts of PaulKelly. Their henchman. Their children. Their pets. Everyone!” Finally, my body broke free from the rigidity; with weak knees I pressed my mobile phone with the video about us into Loki’s hand. Then, as if the devil himself were on my tail, I started pacing the room, “They’ll all be after me. I have revealed the club to the public! I’m dead!” Loki quickly scanned the headline and looked at the picture of us; he scrolled to the video description – his eyes darted left to right, back again, and left to right again. How fast could the man read?
“They don’t mention the club by name. The text only says that we were sighted in a venue in New York City.” Loki smiled slightly and looked up at me, “Unless they say the name in the video, only the insiders will know where the scene takes place.”
I shook my head vigorously, “It doesn’t matter. Just that there are photos of the inside of the club is already too much!”
“But you didn’t take these pictures. You weren’t the one who sold them to the press.”
“That. Does. Not. Matter.” I stressed each word individually; Loki had to realise how serious the situation was. “These people don’t care how much you really are to blame for the situation. They only care about their business, and we just put that in jeopardy.”
“Exactly, dear, we did. So we will get through this.” He didn’t say it, but the missing, unspoken word trembled in the air – together.

That made me stop dead in my tracks; slowly my body turned towards Loki. The god hadn’t tried to stop my pacing; hadn’t put his arms around me to calm me, to tell me everything would be fine; hadn’t used empty, soothing phrases. Instead he simply stood in front of me; calm, serious, without a trace of his mischief. The trickster had left the stage and made way for the warrior. His posture spoke of a combat-ready man, a battle-hardened man. Whoever they sent for my doom, the person would first have to get past an unyielding deity.
It took a load off my mind; or thousands. Fear might had frozen me, but I would always have fought and defended myself. Nevertheless, not having to do it alone felt empowering.

With quick steps I was at Loki and wrapped my arms around him. “Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you.” His hand rose and gently rested on my head, “No need for that. This is simply a god’s duty to his fylgia.”
That statement earned him my fist in his side; not that crap again.
“Such violence,” Loki barely stifled a snicker, “I was just teasing you, little one. And now come, we should return to the Compound; you’re safer there than here.” One could only agree with this tactical train of thought. Eyebrows raised in question, Loki continued, “Can you call the agent who dropped us off at the club yesterday? A secured vehicle would be better than taking a taxi again.”
Oh fuck.
“At the risk of making you groan and mumbling about stupid mortals…maybe I forgot to ask the guy for his number.” At the end of the sentence, my voice rose a few octaves; having to admit to this mistake was embarrassing. Before Loki could make any comment full of snarky humour, I quickly added, “But we can take my car!”

My car; my baby; my Cherry Red 66 Mustang Convertible.
This apartment might be small, with old, noisy plumbing and quite stubborn windows, but its selling point had been the built-in garage anyway. And the proximity to the tuning shop of my confidence. And now, after all those years, I could finally take my sweetheart out again.

________________________

“I really should learn how to drive these blasted vehicles,” murmured Loki, his strained voice floating above the din of traffic around us. Although we had long since crossed the Hudson and were now on Interstate 87, which meant significantly less traffic as in the City, the open roof of the convertible still made for a not inconsiderable volume. Of course, the fact that I was driving well above the maximum speed limit didn’t help either. The wind rushed past us, just like we did to the other road users.
“Aw, you don’t want me as your chauffeur anymore? I’m hurting, my prince.”
Scowling, Loki turned his head to me, “Don’t you get tired of annoying me with your driving style?”
“Never!” I burst out laughing.

Loki’s thought about learning how to drive didn’t surprise me. I had suspected for some time that the lack of control over the situation itself was causing him problems and not so much the way I drove. In my opinion, the megalomaniac god would end up driving even more recklessly than I did.

“Then perhaps someone should teach you some manners, little one.”
At that I darted a prying look at Loki.
“So?” I asked as innocent as you please, “And what kind of educational methods would you use?” A scene immediately unfolded in my head: Loki sitting, laying me across his lap, his hand raised for the first spank… Maybe I should drive a little faster.
“Who said I would be the one to teach you manners?” A wicked grin spread across his face, “Maybe I’d just watch as someone tames you.”
At that my repartee failed me and my brain bid the world farewell; which Loki definitely saw in my eyes. “Oh dear,” his voice sweet and dangerous purred, “Did I just break you?”
Today I really was the deer in the headlights. Coughing slightly, I focused back on the road, “No. No no. I’m…I’m fine.”
“Clearly,” Loki grinned, having the final say.

After a few more travelled miles, Loki’s body suddenly tensed even more and his eyes looked around in alarm; yet his voice was serene as usual “Carry on as before, little one, but be more alert. We’re being followed.”
As if such an instruction would help with such an information. At almost superhuman speed my eyes darted to the rearview mirror, then to the wing mirrors; but I couldn’t detect anything unusual. I was about to open my mouth and ask when Loki forestalled me, “Behind the truck are two motorbikes that have been driving behind us since we left the city. They make sure we do not notice them; always driving behind larger vehicles and keeping their distance. And it works; you didn’t see them, did you?” I shook my head. But now that I knew what I was looking for, the figures in dark riding suits caught my eye. Of course they were wearing dark suits; did no bad guy ever want to wear rose?! Or at least a deep carmine?

“They’re good,” Loki hissed, before a hint of smug self-satisfaction replaced the strain in his voice, “But I’m better. Love, do me the favour and drive faster. Maybe we can shake them off without me having to use force.” Gladly complying with the request, I let the speedometer needle swing further to the right. The acceleration force pushed us into the seats. With tense shoulders, I watched the truck and the two bikes getting smaller and smaller in the mirrors.
“Darling, relax!”
Out of the corner of the eye, I saw Loki conjuring two daggers. Was he seriously thinking about hitting two moving targets at this speed? A fight in this situation was more than difficult, almost impossible. Our only chance was to throw them off. I accelerated even more; soon the speedometer needle would be in the max position. The wind roared around our heads. Under my hands the steering wheel vibrated. And yet a glance back showed that my efforts were of no avail. “Loki, they’re catching up!”
The god clenched his teeth, “It looks like they don’t want to play hide and seek any longer. Brace yourself.”

The words had barely left Loki’s mouth when the first pursuer raced past us like a dark missile. The sudden appearance made me flinch; but the sight of the assault rifle on the driver’s back truly made my blood run cold.
These people were here to kill.
The driver cut into the lane directly in front of us; his colleague stayed right behind the car, sticking to our bumpers and cutting our room to move. We were surrounded. In a flash Loki jumped up from his seat; holding onto the windshield with one hand, his other hand darted forward. The dagger he threw at the rear driver was nothing more than a blurred shadow. And yet our pursuer dodged it with a swerve.
Terror made my voice tremble, “SIT DOWN! ARE YOU MAD?”
“Possibly,” came the reply, almost light-hearted, while the god kept throwing blades. “Just focus on the road, little one.” His next throw missed our pursuer by a hair’s breadth, but also another vehicle behind us. Panic, other than about myself, swept through me. Who was in the car behind us? An old couple? A father with his young children? “Loki! Loki stop! You will hurt bystanders!”
“Would you rather get hurt instead?!”

No. No, of course, I didn’t want that. But the point was, the guys hadn’t shot at us yet. Of course not; opening fire at this speed would be tantamount to suicide. Nobody had such perfect control of their vehicle. Or such a precession.

Just as I thought that, another motorbike shot past us at breakneck speed. Dark leather clothing encased its rider, another assault rifle slung across his back, something metallic flashed in the sunlight – and my heart sank into my boots. We were outnumbered.
“Little one, don’t be alarmed!” came Loki’s warning from the right before the car suddenly shook violently. And then I had a man dressed in black, red and white sitting in the back seat of my car. Where the hell had he come from? Our eyes met in the rearview mirror – his brown eyes radiated absolute calm.
“Take the next exit and continue to the Compound without stopping. White panther here and I will take care of your comrades.”
Without further explanation, the man jumped into the air. All I could see were metallic wings spreading, then the view of the man and our pursuer was obscured.
“The exit, little one. Now!”
Loki’s shout brought me back to the street. With all my might I jerked the steering wheel; and left the Interstate and the rest of the figures behind us. I carefully reduced our speed; my breathing became difficult and my hands began to tremble. But I drove on; on and on, just as the Falcon had commanded me. I had imagined the first encounter with this hero differently.

“You held up well, little one.”
I slowly turned my head to Loki; meanwhile the god had taken his place in the passenger seat again.
“Loki…”
“Yes?”
“I need a vacation. Real bad.”

________________________

Finally, on the grounds of the Avengers Compound my cherry red baby came to a screeching halt; less than twenty feet from the waiting Black Widow. I was beginning to see a pattern in this.
“Nice car,” she greeted us, “Glad you’re still alive.”
“Me too.” With knees like butter I started to get out of it. The noise of a rapidly approaching motorcycle engine made me freeze in mid-movement. “It’s just the soldier. The other one will land soon too,” Loki whispered soothingly in my ear, suddenly at my side. He stretched out his hand, which I gratefully took. Behind me the car door slammed shut with a loud bang. Still with my hand in his, we watched as the bike came to a stop next to us. Now I finally recognized Bucky as its driver. My nerves were tested again when the other man landed next to us out of the blue. With a small hissing sound, his wings folded on his back.
“Someone has her car well under control,” he stated and inclined his head, “Sam Wilson. How you doing?”
“Fine. Thanks to you.”
My words were brushed aside with a quick wave of his hand. “You have to thank Natasha. It was she who sent us off.”
I turned to her in surprise.
“You’ve caused quite a stir on the police radio.” A brief smile crossed her face, “And now come, we have serious matters to discuss.”

To call matters serious had been an understatement on Natasha’s part. Gathered in the conference room, she enlightened us on everything that had happened in the last twelve hours. Loki was once again the number one topic of conversation, all media covered last night’s action at the club. Beyond that there was constant reporting and speculation about me. Apparently several broadcasters had already asked for exclusive interviews. We had truly rocked the boat.
But it didn’t stop there.
According to Natasha, our behaviour had put the criminal community in a flurry. Every east coast bounty hunter who wanted to make friends with Robert Eastmann was after me; I was fair game. They had already caught the poor devil who had sold the photos. When Natasha showed us the police footage of the crime scene, I had to look away. But the man’s empty eyes were already burned into my memory.

“We won’t let these guys anywhere near you, that’s out of question,” Natasha finished her speech. “But it would be best if you disappear off the radar for a while. You both should,” she added with a serious look at Loki who nodded once.
The god sat apparently relaxed in his chair across from me; but small twitches at the corners of his mouth and his eyes gave him away. Did the others notice his tension?
“Well, then take that pretty car out there and drive somewhere no one can find you,” Sam suggested, looking at me, “By the way, the way you drive….” He whistled approvingly.
“You can only say that because you’ve never had to ride with her for longer,” muttered Loki under his breath.
“That makes no sense,” began Bucky, “You should stay here, doll. This way we all can protect you.”

At that a short, cold laugh came from Loki. “No. I will certainly not leave her security to you incompetent mortals.” That earned him an angry look from me. The two only wanted to help; did he have to be so condescending to them?
“Don’t put on airs,” Bucky snorted, “If I remember correctly, it was her driving style that saved you before we finally got there. You didn’t contribute anything useful.”
“Yeah really girl. Where did you learn to drive like that?”
For Bucky’s good, I ignored Sam’s question and directed my whole attention to Loki. He looked like he was about to go for the soldier’s throat.
“What would you suggest instead, Loki?”
The god glared at Bucky for a few more seconds before his green eyes focused on me. “I will take you to New Asgard. No one will suspect you there or can sneak up on you. Any stranger would immediately stand out. It’s the safest place right now.”

Loki hadn’t made suggestions; the god had already decided what he would do. The only question was whether I would voluntarily follow his idea or whether he would have to take me with him by force. The challenge was clearly visible in his eyes.
A challenge that, in my opinion, did not exist. Didn’t I just ask for vacation? And then also with Loki, in a place that would otherwise have remained closed to me. Not to mention that I would put a whole sea between me and the killers.

“Let me quickly pack my bags and then let’s go, hun,” I grinned and blew a kiss at Loki. He relaxed noticeably and gave me a quick wink, while Bucky groaned in exasperation. “Then we’ve settled that. I will inform Thor,” Natasha announced matter-of-factly, standing up and leaving the room. With a sigh, I leaned back in my chair and pushed it a bit away from the table.
“Incidentally, I’m really happy to finally meet the woman who got this guy,” Sam addressed me, pointing his finger at Bucky, “to dance ballet with her. Nat’s video of you and him made my nephews and my day.” The statement made me look at him in surprise; I hadn’t even noticed that Natasha had filmed us. Admittedly, while dancing, I was always in my own world. “But honestly, where did you learn to drive like that? That was impressive.”
“Don’t encourage her!” Loki growled.
“And how much did you have to sham to pass the driving test?” Bucky added, ignoring the god.

Laughing, I looked from Bucky to Sam - maybe it was time to let them and Loki into a little secret. But the way Loki was feeling about my driving style, some preparations were probably in order. I carefully pushed my chair further away from the table and glanced at the door; if necessary, I would be out of the room in seconds. I risked a quick look at Loki - he, too, awaited my answer with a raised eyebrow.

“Well…,” I grinned mischievously, only focused on the god, “To be honest, I never got my driver’s license."

“LITTLE ONE!” Loki’s scream made everyone in the room jump.

“Ok, bye!” Like a bolt of lightning I sped out of the room, closely followed by a murderous god and roaring laughter.

Chapter Text

Click

With a soft sound the first cufflink opened. A gentle tuck, and it was removed from the dress shirt. Its brother followed - shiny silver metal, smooth and cold. Both were put aside.
Air escaped my mouth while button after button of my shirt was undone. Slowly and leisurely. I had all the time in the world; no need to use magic in this place. There was no rush or worry.

“Your Highness, I’ve laid out your desired robe for you.” In the doorframe the hell blond shock of Eldir came into view. With a practiced hand he threw my discarded clothes over his arm. “Is there anything else you need from me? Shall I run you a bath? Or do you wish to use the public premises?”

To those who didn’t know my valet, his question sounded attentive, dutiful. No grin blew his cover, no glint in his eyes gave away his mocking.
A truly blessed actor.
Saving my breath, I just cocked an eyebrow at him. Whether back in Asgard or here on Midgard, no five Valkyries would ever get me into the public baths. Which Eldir knew perfectly well. And still decided to taunt me with it. No wonder my mother had chosen him all these years ago; he was the perfect servant for me.

“Alright then. A dirty prince it is.”

Perfect, and nerve-racking.
The man had always observed the bare minimum of court protocol. You could call yourself lucky when he remembered, or lowered himself to address you properly. The only point that spoke for him was and has always been his endless patience with my pranks. From time to time he had even laughed at them. Even at those that had been at his expense.
A gifted actor indeed.

“Before I forget it,” armful of laundry, Eldir turned in front of the heavy elm door, “Your brother sent word that he’s awaiting you in the study. You better hurry, I should have told you that about 30 minutes ago.” He scurried from the room. Gone was the chance of a reply. How typical.

Cursing, I pulled on my royal robes. Away was my calm and rest. The Norns must have had a particularly bad day weaving my fate and Eldir’s together.
Hopefully the little one would get along with him.
Crumpled and tired from the long flight, she had just stared at him with wide eyes when we’d finally reached the palace and Eldir had opened the car door for her. Even when he’d introduced himself and shown her the way to her chambers, she’d barely uttered a word.
I chuckled to myself. Without caffeine, she really didn’t qualify as a social creature.
Perhaps I could order some coffee for her as soon as she woke up. To my knowledge, some in New Asgard had now taken a liking to the dreadful drink, and for a royal guest the supplies would surely be shared.

But first I had to talk to Thor.

Crossing the palace at a quick pace, past the Great Hall and different cabinets, my footsteps echoed through the long corridors. The palace was once again the heart of the city. But what had once been golden and openly designed was now darker and more closed. Like its inhabitants, New Asgard had had to adjust to its new home. Stone and wood dominated our buildings now. Buildings that no longer competed with the sky and its clouds, but rather sought to protect those who had survived the Great Escape. Those who now started a new life on a new, foreign world.

“Your Royal Highness, your brother awaits you- “

“I know. I know.”

With a wave of my hand I dismissed the statement of the female servant who had just come from the direction of the study. Once again a curse escaped my lips. Had Eldir informed me of Thor’s message in a timely manner, other servants wouldn’t have to correct me like a schoolboy. Unbelievable.

Already several paces away from the servant, I stopped abruptly and called out, “Do you know which rooms my guest is in?”

The woman turned around and made a small bow “Yes, Your Highness.”

“Then be so good as to take care of her. Whatever she wants, she shall have it.” I had also told Eldir to look after her, but you never knew with him. Shortly pondering my next thought, I added, “And make sure she gets appropriate clothes. At least offer it to her.” If I remembered correctly, and I always remembered correctly, she wasn’t particularly fond of dresses. But in this case, her cultural curiosity might prevail. I fervently hoped it would. She would be stunning.

The servant took the instruction with another bow, and I marched further down the corridor until the study came into view. With both hands I pushed open the wooden double door.

“Ah brother, finally,” a loud voice greeted me. Its owner stood at the end of the long table, which had room for the court’s advisers and officials. In the moment, however, it housed the many books about renewable energy that Stark had left Thor quite a while ago. I wondered if the big oath had even looked inside once. Most likely not.

“It’s good to have you back home Loki. Even when circumstances aren’t the best.” My brother’s eyes twinkled happily at me, “But tell, where is our guest? Isn’t she with you?”

“She’s resting. The way was strenuous to her.”

So strenuous that I had carried the asleep woman in my arms from the plane to the car that had picked us up. But that was not Thor’s concern. Nor was the fact that she had continued to sleep leaning on my shoulder during the drive. Warmth had filled my chest as she sat snuggled against me. If only the ride had lasted.

“Amazing how much humans can sleep isn’t it?” Thor laughed, “Every night. Truly every single night. So much time lost in the process.”

I didn’t agree.
Not that I disagreed in general. Mortals were fragile, no question. But the time with her so close to me, so trusting in her sleep…I couldn’t call this time lost.
“Well, what can you do. They die early and sleep a lot.”
Spoken without much thought, the words made me wince. But it was true. Their…her life was short-lived. Expected 80 years compared to my 5,000.
A blink of an eye.
Trembling, my fingers brushed the spine of one of the books. I needed other thoughts. Immediately.
“Why did you send for me? I was surprised that you didn’t greet us when we arrived.”

Thor sighed, “I wanted to, but the meeting with Brunnhilde took longer than expected.”

“So? Then where is our precious, little Valkyrie?”

At my mocking tone, Thor’s eyebrows drew together, slightly irritated, “It’s after noon, so she’s taking the people’s requests in the Great Hall.” We both winced at the mention of the task. Neither I nor Thor enjoyed this part of our position. It regularly fell upon the Valkyrie. “You would have met her if you had been here sooner.”

That was enough! Eldir could start looking for a new job. Thor of all people lecturing me about punctuality. That was unbearable.

“I had to take care of our guest,” I replied through gritted teeth.

“Of course.” A pause. “How is she?”

I looked at him.
My brother’s face had always revealed every of his emotions - joy, anger, blank despair. He had never learned to wear the mask required at court.
Perhaps he should have taken acting lessons from Eldir a long time ago. But he never had.
Thanks to this circumstance I was able to see the deep sympathy and concern for the woman he had only known so briefly and had already taken so deeply into his heart, be writ large in his face now. That’s how Thor was.
I knew, he would protect her without hesitation. With him at my side no one would be able to take her away.
I almost smiled.

“She hardly shows it, but the situation worries her greatly. We only could leave once she’d talked and informed her family. Beyond that the Widow and Soldier had to promise to keep an eye on them.”
Now I had to smile.
Back in the Compound she’d almost started shaking the latter until he pledged it. The scenery had been very satisfying. Almost devilish funny. How quickly the man had caved in on her. I couldn’t blame him. It had been painfully obvious how important protecting her family was to her.
She told me later that she’d taken steps to protect them herself. At the latest when she first got involved with organized crime. She had made sure that a connection between her and her family could no longer be made so easily. And yet she didn’t seem to trust her efforts one hundred percent.
“She is too proud to show it, but be gentle with her. I think this short time with me and now those threats are more than she can handle.”

Thor nodded understandingly. “You seem very concerned about her.”

“If you say so.”

“I do.”

Our eyes met. Thor’s intense gaze made me wince internally. Whatever he was hoping to find on my face wasn’t there, though. Unlike him, I had carved and donned my courtly mask ages ago.
I dismissed his statement with a shrug.

“We need her for the search of Andvaranaut. You said so yourself. No more, no less.”

“If you say so,” Thor repeated my words, grinning, a secret smirk.

“I do.”

“Fine.”

“Fine!” I spit out.

My brotherly counterpart took a deep breath. Inhaled through his nose. Exhaled through his mouth. “I don’t wanna fight, Loki. Forgive my teasing.”
I felt myself relaxing.
Thor spoke on, “But I’m glad that you took responsibility and invited her here. After all, the treats are based on her collaboration with us Asgardians.” Another deep breath, while Thor sat down. “So tell me, how’s the search going? Nat mentioned success. Did you find what you were looking for at the auction?”

Oh. That.

“See for yourself.”

With a wave of my hand I summoned the ring. The sound was dull as the box hit the centre of the table. Bored, I strolled to one of the windows while Thor leaned across the table with a grunt. I mentally counted backwards.

5
Looking out of the window, the peeked rooftops of New Asgard greeted me.
4
Behind the sea of houses, the dark ocean sparkled on the horizon.
3
I wondered if my guest would enjoy a trip there.
2
After her coffee, of course.
1

Behind me resonated the long sigh of Thor. Perfectly on time.
I turned back to my brother. Leaning on the table, his shoulders slumped, box open in his gigantic hand, he looked at me saddened. “The ring is pretty. But this is never Andvaranaut. It doesn’t match your descriptions.”

I just nodded once. It didn’t. The lack of magic spoke volumes as well.

“So another wrong track.” Thor dropped the box on the table and ran a hand through his hair. “How shall we continue? Do you two know where to look next?”

“Yes and no.” At these words, my brother gave me an irritated look. It needed an explanation. “She doesn’t know that this ring is nothing more than glittering trash. I was…I had other things to do.” Fucking her for example. “It didn’t come up yet.” And as far as I was concerned, it could stay that way for the time being.
The little one seemed like an overachiever. She would immediately want to follow the other clues on Mr. Dahl’s file. Which would clash harshly with my desire to protect her here in New Asgard.
In her case, ignorance truly was a blessing. For my nerves, and her impatience. Not that I would have to tie her down in the end.

Then again…
The image of her tied to my bed fitted past my inner eye.
Would she moan for me again? Beg me to take her?
I would. Immediately. Not able to withstand her pleads. Her body, even less.
I licked my lips.
I craved for her to be under me again. Or even better: on me.
My hands on her waist. My hips snapping into hers.
While she took from me whatever she wanted…

I shook off the image.
All in good time.
My hunger would have to wait. My straining cock as well.
Fuck.

Thor was talking again.

“… ring has been on Midgard for centuries. A few weeks more or less doesn’t make any difference anymore.”

“True words, brother,” I agreed. “As for other things, tell me what I’ve missed here.”

Not much it seemed. Expect for the usual squabbling over our ancient traditions and the influences of our new homeland, the subjects seemed content. Thor and Brunnhilde were most worried about how to deal with outsiders or mortals in general. A question that had occupied us for quite a while now.
Relationships between Asgardians and humans could not be eliminated in the long run. Not if we wanted to survive. After all there weren’t many of our people left.
So far, there was only one mixed pair in New Asgard. But that would certainly change.
Thor, Brunnhilde and I were already aware that neither children from such relationships nor their respective parents should experience discrimination. And there was much to be settled, considering the fact that a parent would die so much sooner. No mortal would ever live to see his or her child come of age.
How should this loss be compensated? How would the extra burden be taken from the remaining parent? How could such connections be prevented from being discriminated against? Question upon question. And still no clarity about the laws that would have to be enacted for this.

“As I understand it, there are anti-discrimination laws in virtually every country here on Midgard. Why don’t we take those as templates and use them to form our own?”

“Wouldn’t it take forever to work through these?” Thor interjected, “Isn’t it easier to write down our own ideas? After our own traditions?”

“You were eager to adapt more to this world. Adopting their laws would be one of the easiest steps to take,” I pointed out. We had discussed this already several times. From my point of view, other states would accept us more if some adjustments took place. In addition, the mortal parents would better be protected and understand laws created on the basis of their very own ones.

“Without Brunnhilde’s presence this discussion is without point, Loki. We three must decide. Not the two of us. The subject is urgent considering Víf’s confinement being so close, but-”

Thor got no further. A soft knock on the door interrupted us. We both looked up at the same time.
As if in slow motion, the right part of the double door opened. A truly laughable caricature of slowness. We would die of old age before the newcomer would finally enter.

“For crying out loud! Why are your doors so fucking heavy?”

Ah. The little one had risen.
I felt a thrill of anticipation.

The woman’s angry face peered through the gap she had fought hard to open, her fiery gaze turned to the door. Was the thing considering spontaneous self-inflammation? I would advise it.

“No wonder you’re all so ridiculously strong. These doors replace every damned workout,” she groused, blowing a strand of hair out of her flushed face.

Thor looked at me in utter bewilderment. He didn’t understand. I couldn’t help grinning. Just for a second.
The massive doors in the palace weren’t heavy at all. At least not for any Asgardian. During construction we hadn’t thought about the physics of the mortal body, though. So much weaker than our own. Oh, dear.

“Hello? Tiny, fragile human over here. Boys! Some help would be appreciated.”
Thor was at the door with a leap, pulling it open.
“Thanks Pikachu.” The small woman patted my brother’s arm approvingly. “Such a gentleman.”

“Milady,” Thor made a low bow. Raised back to full height, he grinned broadly down at her. She reflected his grin. Then they were in each other’s arms; my brother’s body almost swallowing her completely.

Laughing, she freed herself from his embrace, “Nice to see you Thor! How is my favourite Avenger doing?” I bit my lip in annoyance. Her favourite Avenger, huh?

“Good! Good!” The ox beamed by her compliment. “It’s a pleasure to welcome you in New Asgard.” His eyes darted from her head to her feet. I was right. Our clothing flattered her. She looked like one of us - a goddess. Thor saw it too.

My hands twitched at so much shamelessness. It wasn’t his place to look at her like that. Where was your decency, favourite Avenger?!

The object of desire seemed to take his gaze differently. “I have to say your room service is out of this world. I was even offered this outfit. Thank you very much!”
I had taken care of that; and yet she spoke only to Thor. Was only watching him.

Look at me.

No luck. Instead she leaned closer as if she was about to share the greatest secret in the universe with Thor. I hated him.

“And look at this,” her hand disappeared into the folds of the dress, “It even has pockets! Pockets!” Her eyes shined, her cheeks were red with joy – about something as simple as that.
I would get her 20 of these if it made her happy.
If only she would look at me.

Thor nodded happily, not understanding her enthusiasm. It was written all over his face. Stupid favourite Avenger.

“Glad you like Loki’s selection.”

At long last she looked at me, eyebrows lifting.
My stomach jumped as she searched my face.
I finally got her attention. And wondered if my expressionless mask was in place.
I hoped so.
There was heat on her cheeks again, her breathing shallow.
I wondered why she wasn’t saying anything.
I saw a flash of uncertainty in her eyes. Then she studied me, like she was waiting for something.
Should I say something fi-

“Then I have you to thank, my prince.”

I almost jumped.
Her courtesy was perfect - deep and slow.
Her address even more.
My prince.
A chill raced through my veins.
Fuck.

Seeing her in this regalia, in this place – my home – did something to me. Her obedience did something to me. In my head I already had pressed her into a wall. Had already hummed sexual innuendos into her ear, while sliding my thigh between her legs. I imagined her squeaks and moans. She would welcome me and my tongue, opening her mouth for me.
Such a good girl.
But only for me. Exclusively for me. Never for the favourite Avenger. He would never hear her sighs of longing. Would never feel hear breasts pressed against his chest. Nor feel them in his hands. I was entitled to this pleasure. She was my perfect girl.
And I would reward her. Would pull her against me, sliding her along my thigh, teasing out another moan.
A glorious moan from her lips.
As my palms would wander down, I would tell her how beautiful she was. Her hands would twist into my hair. And then her breathing would stop as I’d reach under her dress, my fingers dancing toward her.
I wouldn’t stop until I felt her tremble under my finger. Because her presence alone did something to me. And that deserved a punishment, and a reward.

I blinked away the heat.
And wondered if she knew what she was doing to me.

In any case, there had been no answer for too long. She looked up at me, her eyes full of curiosity. Thor, on the other hand, had his stupid knowing grin on his face again.
“My brother seems to have swallowed his silver tongue, but I’m sure it had been his pleasure.” Thor ignored my glare. Arsehole.
“Is there something else we can do for you? I’ve got another meeting to go to soon, but I’m sure Loki is free to keep you company.”

I saw the mouth corner of my little one twitch at his lie. Thor hadn’t thought about her powers when he spoke of his supposed appointment. He was an arsehole and an idiot.
No no, delay that. He was just an idiot. One who deserved a little credit. After all, he had just given us the opportunity to spend time alone. Even if his attempt had been very inelegant.

Full of expectation, I looked at her. She bit her lip, pondering. Small wrinkles formed between her eyebrows. The sight was sort of…cute. I stifled a laugh. A feeling told me that she would not appreciate this label. One day I would test her reaction to it. It promised a lot fun.

She seemed to have come to a decision. She smiled at me, eyes bright. “Would it be possible to explore the palace? I haven’t really seen much of it.”
Was that all she wanted? A tour of my home? I would have put the whole of New Asgard at her feet. And then that’s all she wanted? A tour?
Very well then.

“It would be my pleasure, my fair maiden. I cannot resist such enchanting company.” Light was the kiss, I placed on her hand. Satisfied, I watched heat rising in her cheeks and cleavage.
A wink and the red deepened.

A groan interrupted the lovely scenery. “You two make me sick. Out with you!” With his hands on our backs, Thor pushed us into the corridor. An ‘Enjoy!’ sounded than the door slammed behind us.

The abandoned corridor surrounded us. We looked at each other with raised eyebrows. Nobody said a word. Then we both laughed, and I watched a mask falling off her. Her gaze became more open and roguish; more intimate. A smirk, a quick look around, and she kissed me on the cheek.

“Didn’t know what Thor knows or is supposed to know. Sorry for ignoring you. And don’t worry, I’ll never do that again.”

I blinked.
She definitely needed no lessons from Eldir.
Without ever living at court she had understood that not everyone should know everything. Had left it up to me to decide how to proceed. Without a doubt, she understood my role here. And what that meant for any kind of relationship. What perfection.
I was utterly ravished by the way her brain worked.

My fingers wrapped around her hips, my other hand tracing her arm. As if on command, she pressed her body tightly against mine. My heart pounded. She longed for the closeness too. A smirk escaped my lips. How I loved getting what I wanted.

“You are quite a deceiver, my dear.”

“I see myself more as an actress, many thanks.”

I bowed my head in appreciation. “And what a convincing one.”

“Oh my. Such a compliment from the Lie-Smith himself. I’m about to blush.”

“You’re very pleased with yourself right now, aren’t you?”

A cheeky smile. “Quite.”

She always had to have the last word.

I sighed against her, embraced by the most delicious aroma. It was her perfume, or her hair or just her, and I considered myself already to be in paradise. She was so soft against me.

Suddenly the softness eluded me. She walked away from me, arms swinging back and forth. I stood rooted to the spot, confused.

“What about my promised tour now? Come on, lover boy. Show me your marvellous palace. I’m already wearing the right clothes. And am accompanied by a handsome and intelligent prince.”
She looked up into the air. Then over her shoulder back to me, a smile playing around her lips.
“Make me feel like a princess from a fairy tale.”

A princess.

Yes, love.
That you could be.

Chapter Text

We walked through the corridors. Silence laid over the palace like a heavy, impenetrable blanket. Only broken by our footsteps and the rustling of my dress.
Loki and I roamed the corridors like we had been doing all day. Back and forth the Asgardian prince had led me – to the Council Chamber, the private Drawing and Sitting rooms, the overflowing library, the kitchens -for of course there was more than one in the home of Thor- the baths and many places more. The palace was beautiful. Its dark stone and ornate wood elements exuded calm and security. The irrepressible, all-resistant heart of New Asgard. A symbolism that Thor and Loki’s people certainly needed after all the horrors of the past few years.

The most spectacular place, however, had been the soaring glass and iron building behind the palace.
With a small hand gesture Loki had invited me inside. A step over the threshold and warm, humid air had hit me. And then I’d stood in the most beautiful greenhouse I had ever seen. Dark lush green as far as the eye could reach. And as if a painter had carelessly swung his brush, here and there the most brightly coloured blossoms had beamed at us. Some in shades that I hardly had thought possible. A stunning contrast to the rich green. No closer look had been necessary to know that these plants and flowers were not from earth.

“You like it.”

A statement, not a question.
Loki had leaned against one of the trees with his arms crossed and watched me – the trunk behind his back almost as wide as that of a sequoia. The powerful, mighty Asgardian suddenly so small in front of this giant of nature.
I had just nodded, unable to form a coherent sentence. This verdant place had taken my breath away. It was beyond description. An unearthly haven, here on earth. Surprisingly, Loki hadn’t teased me for the lack of repartee. He had just continued to watch me and my excitement, his face motionless.

Wandering around, I’d carefully touched various leaves and stems, barks and blossoms. And with each new encounter, my eyes had widened, my delight had grown.
Meanwhile, my companion had just been the silent observer of my rapture. Every now and then, however, something like sad joy had flashed in Loki’s eyes. Like the flapping of a hummingbird’s wings, the emotion had swum in them, only to vanish immediately. He hadn’t shared his thoughts, though. And I hadn’t wanted to push him.

And so, instead of an explanation, I had stolen kisses from the Asgardian. Soft, quick ones – always mindful of any observers that might arise. It had basically become a dance of it: in one moment I had been close to his body, his face, pressing my lips on his. Only to be several steps away from him again in the next second, the hem of my dress spinning around my ankles. A waltz of secrecy and affection.
In my day-to-day life dresses were impractical. In this surrounding and at this moment, my vacation so to speak, the flowing dress had made me felt like a nymph. I’d laughed, weightless without worries or stress. A minor nature deity in her evergreen paradise, seducing a god. A more than willing god.

Loki had pulled me against his chest more than once, interrupting my feathery dance, his eyes never leaving mine as he’d led us deeper into the dense greenery. And while my kisses had been short and soft, his had been consuming. Hard, urging lips, wandering all over my body. Dressed in his dark green tunic, he had looked like the lord of this small, shielded world. His cocky, smug grin had said just that.

But whether nymph or not, flowing dress or no flowing dress, just giving in and letting others do was not my style. So, I had taken pleasure in tearing myself away from him again and again, seemingly interested in a previously undiscovered plant before immediately teasing him with my gentle kisses once more.
Each time his gaze had grown hungrier, his eyes darker.
He had caught me, over and over again. Had held me with unyielding hands and consumed me. I hadn’t wanted to give up my dance, had not been ready to give up the fun of it. But to elude him had become more and more difficult. An almost never-ending cat-and-mouse game. But only almost.

When we finally emerged from the enchanted greenhouse, the sun had already disappeared from the sky, making way for the moon and the chill of the night. It was at that moment, goosebumps raising on my bare upper arms, that I remembered why dresses weren’t usually my cup of tea.
Talking softly, we had walked back across the lawn to the palace. It’s outline a dark mountain in the moonlight, surrounded by the distant yet near lights of New Asgard.
Unlike what I had expected, Loki hadn’t escorted me back to my room. Instead he’d asked me if I was tired. After my denial the prince had directed me to follow him, a satisfied smile playing around his lips. Or one of anticipation. I could not tell.

And so I was walking behind the tall god through the dark corridors now, enveloped by silence and coldness and no idea of the way or the designation. The uncertainty annoyed me. I had no patience for this game; our earlier one had been more to my liking. But the two times I had already asked, Loki had dismissed me with a wave of his hand and a muttered “Patience, little one, patience”. As if…

“Is this some kind of payback for my driving style?” I huffed, trying to keep in step with Loki. Him and his stupid long legs.

A dark chuckle from the front. “My revenge for that will be different, little one.”

With a raised eyebrow I registered the chosen tense. A headache for the future. Right now, I tried not to get lost. Or freeze to death. Stupid beautiful nymph dress. Loki strode forward, unconcerned.

“Then tell me where we’re going!”

Another dark laugh, “I’ve told you once before: patience is a virtue.”

“Mmm,” I agreed, “And do you remember what I answered you back then?”

"Yeah and one I do not possess.” - the conversation had taken place all these weeks ago on the first day of our encounter. After I had shot at Loki and he had knocked me out for it.
Good old times.
The god didn’t turn to me, just kept walking, but the movement of his shoulders revealed his silent laughter.

“And I had hoped that spending time with me would have taught you that virtue.”

“Yeah, right.”
Now it was my turn to snort. Loki had probably more self-control than I did, but more patience…never.
“Cooome on. Tell me where we’re going!”
Impatiently I tugged at his sleeve. A little uttered sigh, then he turned to me and tilted his head, those green eyes so close. Eyes that sparkled with mischief as they beheld me. I swallowed, letting go of the arm. The gold thread in it shone as it swung back.

“Don’t you trust me, little one?”

I inhaled sharply. A dangerous question.
I trusted him, as much as that was possible. He was, after all, the God of Mischief and Lies. And I no fool. However, if I had no trust at all, I would not have slept with him. And Loki had not given me any reason not to. Moreover, in a twisted way, I might be one of the few who could truly rely on him and his words. If he told me a lie, tried to deceive me, I would simply taste it.
Physically inferior to him, we were equals on this one.
Nevertheless, in order for my power to unfold, he actually had to say something; not save himself by answering a question with a question.

“You didn’t answer me.”

“Neither did you.”

I inhaled again, nostrils flaring. Two younger siblings playing games was one too many.

“If you don’t wanna tell me, I’ll just go back into my room.”

“Ah. And you think you can find your way there alone?” he asked, clasping his hands behind his back.

Fuck. 
Judging by his feline grin, we both knew I was more likely to get lost.

“Come on little one. We’re almost there and you will like it, I promise. Besides,” he added, looking at my bare upper arms, “the way to your rooms is long. At my destination, on the other hand, awaits you a nice, warm fireplace.”

His smile spread, showing his teeth – a cat in front of a mouse hole. I didn’t like being the rodent. Freezing to death in this corridor even less. The cat’s paw pressed the mouse to the ground – I had lost. The knowledge of his triumph was reflected in Loki’s face. Accepting my defeat, I encouraged him to move on. With a mocking bow the god complied. Again our footsteps echoed through the corridors.

After a few more minutes we suddenly came to a stop. Two high wooden doors rose in front of us, adorned with various runes and ornaments. From the other side of them muffled voices, music and laughter reached my ears. We hadn’t visited this place on today’s tour – doors like that would have stayed in my memory.

“Don’t you want to open them?” Loki teased, knowing full well that all the doors here in New Asgard were too heavy for me and my stupid mortal body. I just stuck out my tongue at him.

“Lovely,” was all he said, smoothing his black hair back. Then, with steady hands, he pushed against the wood.

Warmth, light and noise jumped out at me. I reflexively backed away, my eyes squinting to adjust to the sudden brightness. Before me laid a mighty hall; it’s end not in sight. Columns, taller than the trees in the greenhouse today, lined the room left and right. Made of the same dark wood as the doors, runes were engraved in them as well; one rune probably the size of a full-grown woman. The comparison to a mouse came back to me – I was tiny compared to this.

“Welcome to the Great Hall of New Asgard, little one,” Loki whispered in my ear. Straightening himself, he put a hand on my back and nudged me along. Past long tables we walked. People sat there in groups, laughing, eating, drinking. Some of them gawked, some of them nodded to Loki, gave me a small welcoming smile, even bowed or ignored us entirely, too focused on their meal, their friends or their drink.

“Is this a celebration?” I asked as we passed a group of bulky men playing a game of cards.

“No,” Loki answered calmly, “This is the normal evening pastime.” I looked at him in surprise. The god’s gaze wandered over the columns and the roof that stretched high above our heads. “You have to know the Great Hall was our very first building. The rest of the palace was later simply added. Before the gradually construction of other accommodations, everyone lived here. It helped many to cope with the loss and trauma. We were just one big community.” Loki paused for a moment. “Of course, there are plenty other places for people to spent time now. But the early days here shaped them, and Thor and Brunnhilde prefer a soft hierarchy anyway. As a result, everyone is always a welcome guest in the evening.”

We passed a group of young women and men dancing happily to the tune of a flute player. Some women wore dresses like me, others just trousers and tunics. The women twirled as they danced, their dresses and tunics doing the same. I had to smile. In this gigantic hall gathered all sorts of groups. Families, friends or both sat together, enjoying their time. Separate and yet united under one roof.

“It’s a beautiful tradition,” I declared, smiling at a small child who looked at me with her eyes wide open.

“I figured you’d like it.”

His footsteps unhurried, Loki led me to the right between to pillars, away from the hustle and bustle of the centre of the hall. Before we vanished from the turmoil, however, I briefly turned around and waved at the little girl who was still watching me. She hesitated. Then her little hand rose as well and waggled at me, her brown locks bobbing with the movement. My smile deepened. She couldn’t be older than three or four. But considering that Loki didn’t look like an over 1.000 years old being either, in the end, the kid was twice my age. What a strange thought. I lowered my hand.
With slightly increased pressure on my back, Loki drew my attention back to him, “You’re about to meet a few people. But don’t worry. I have no doubt that you’ll get along with them.”

Before I could ask more, a loud, booming laugh erupted. A laugh I already knew.
In front of a large fireplace set into the wall of the hall sat Thor. Legs apart and a tankard in one hand, he slapped his thigh zestfully with the other, the liquid in its container dangerously sloshing back and forth.

“What tale did you tell my brother this time Víf, that he almost spills your husband’s good ale on the floor?” Loki purred, eyes fixed on a woman and a man sitting beside Thor on a dark velvet chaise lounge.
At his words she turned to us. A delicately noble face with honey coloured eyes fixed on Loki and me. The lines around her mouth bespoke of a cheerful person, and even now her mouth twisted into an amused smile. With a slow hand she brushed her braided hair, almost the same colour as her eyes, over her shoulder.

“I was just telling Thor about one of my students.” Her voice was smooth and smoky, not quite in keeping with her appearance, and yet perfect for her. “The girl has so much nonsense on her mind that one could think she took you as a role model.”

Amusement glittered in Loki’s eyes, “It would be my pleasure to meet the child. Maybe I’ll make her my protégée.”

“Stay away from her, Loki. She has no use for you and your mischief,” the woman chided warmheartedly. “Or rather, I don’t have the patience or time to deal with the fruits of such an unholy collaboration.” With these words, she shifted her weight carefully, her hand placed protectively on her round middle.
My eyes followed her movement. How I hadn’t noticed that she was pregnant right in the first place was beyond me. Judging by the size of her belly, she was already nine months pregnant, the birth only the blink of an eye away. Assuming Asgardians period of gestation was similar to humans…

The woman’s smoky laugh made me tear my eyes away. She had followed my gaze. “I’m huge, I know.”

“No, no…sorry. I…I didn’t want to stare. That’s rude,” I stammered, remembering all too well how my sister-in-law had hated people doing that in the last few weeks of her pregnancies.

“No harms taken, dear. I know when I’m round as a sphere. And right now I could just simply roll off into the sunset.”

“Don’t you dare,” interposed the man at her side with a slight accent and put his arm around her waist. While the woman stroked his long blond hair away from his face, he kissed her cheek lovingly.

“Little one, may I introduce to you Víf and her husband Sverre?” The two addressed bowed their heads in greeting. “Víf is our teacher here in New Asgard and Sverre is always kind enough to provide us with ale, beer and mead. He is an excellent brewer. A true master to his trade.”

Thor snorted into his tankard at that statement, “That’s not how you thought of him when he started. What were you words again…?”

“A mortal? A mortal presumes to brew like we gods? I won’t touch it!” Víf came to Thor’s aid with well-feigned indignation. The man at her side just smiled softly. I looked at him with some surprise. Friendly blue eyes, beard and long hair – he didn’t look that different from Thor in his early days as an Avenger. Except for the lack of mountains of muscle. I wouldn’t have recognized him as another of our ‘mortal’ kind. On the other hand, it was quite difficult to distinguish whether the person in front of you was human or an Asgardian. Our races didn’t really look that different.

“Well,” Loki declared, dragging me with him and dropping us onto the last chaise lounge across from the married couple, “he and his drinks have simply proved worthy.”

Víf snorted, “You just can’t live without alcohol, you lush.” To her husband she said affectionately, “But you really got better and better my love.” His response was another soft smile. Sverre didn’t seem to be a man of many words.
I slid my eyes to Loki. The chaise lounge offered so little space that I almost sat on his lap. But he just winked at me, utterly unimpressed, and sat back, one arm stretched out behind me. Either sitting so close together was perfectly normal around here or he didn’t care what people would think. Interesting.

Thor angled his head to talk to me past Loki, “Did you enjoy the tour of the palace?”

“Absolutely. It is amazing what you’ve accomplished in such a short amount of time.”

Thor beamed at the compliment. Víf asked interested, “What did you like most?”

“The greenhouse. No question.”

Silence.
Only from the fireplace came the crackling and popping of the branches and twigs, gasping for their last breaths. Loki next to me had suddenly gone very still. Thor’s expression had changed as well, their eyes holding a far-off look. But Víf nodded her head, satisfied with my answer. “Let Loki show you the Starry Night Dahlia next time. It’s snow white by day, but as soon as the moonlight falls on it…well, then it lives up to its name.” She smiled at me reassuringly.

“It was our mother’s favourite,” Thor explained quietly. Beside me, Loki still didn’t move. His face a cold, emotionless mask. I supressed the urge to reach for his hand. I wasn’t sure if he would pull away. Instead, my hand dropped to my thigh, palm up and just inches from his. An offer. If he wanted, I was there.

Thor cleared his throat, “Loki had the greenhouse built in her memory. She was an enthusiast of botanic gardens. Created most of them in Asgard herself. As you say on Midgard: she had a…” Waving his tankard back and forth, he fumbled for the right word.
“…green thumb,” I finished the sentence.
Thor nodded, taking a huge gulp. Loki was still a statue next to me. Leaving Víf and me to keep the conversation going. Before that, however, she bid Sverre to get Loki and me something to drink. The blond man rose without a word and disappeared between the columns. His wife’s gaze followed him. Then she remembered me.

“If you liked the greenhouse the most, does that mean you also have a plant thumb?”

“Green thumb,” I corrected, “And no. In fact, I can’t even keep cacti alive.”
That brought Loki back into the conversation. “I beg your pardon? Those prickly plants that hardly need any care?”

“Exactly. I had three of them. And failed each one miserably. One I watered too much. So I held back on the second one. The poor thing died of thirst.” A desert plant and I had let it withered. My brothers hadn’t stopped laughing at the sight of the brown thing in its pot. Ashamed, I had pestered my father until he’d bought me the next, and last, cactus. Its fade I would not admit in front of these people, though. Not after hearing, that Thor’s and Loki’s mother had been a wonder worker with plants.

“And the last one?” Loki asked, as if he had read my thoughts.

I gnashed my teeth, “It died too.”

“Because?” He stretched the question, quirking his eyebrow. Thor and Víf looked at me intently as well. Looking forward to the explanation of my last and most shameful plant murder. Great!
I exhaled, before I mumbled embarrassed, “The last one died because I dropped it one too many times. And at some point I had two parts.” The poor cactus had snapped in half without a whimper. The parts not survivable. What a terrible plant mother I had been. And that although I had given each of the cacti names…

Thor and Víf burst out laughing. The laughter of the former so booming, that I could feel it in my bones. Loki just ran a hand through his hair and chuckled, wordlessly watching me as heat of shame rose in my cheeks. He let out a low laugh.
Thank heaven I was saved from further embarrassment by Sverre’s return. With one of his soft smiles, he stood in front of us, two jars in his hand. With a thank you on my lips, I reached for one. But Sverre swiftly withdrew the mug from me and offered me the other instead. I looked at him confused.

“Unnskyld! Ah…eh…I mean…sorry about that. But you don’t want to drink that mead. Even I don’t drink it. And I brew it. One is hopelessly lost without an Asgardian’s liver; this mead floors you. Even for the two of them,” he pointed at the two princes, “it’s hard stuff.”

I only nodded, surprised by the many words coming out of the other human’s mouth. While Loki grabbed the mead, I accepted the jar with the harmless content. An amber liquid glistened out of it. Sverre seated himself next to his wife again and was immediately engaged in conversation by Thor. In his usual loud voice, the big blond began to ask the quiet master brewer about the spices, fruits and grains used in his newly brewed mead. Alcohol seemed to be an always welcome topic of conversation for them. Loki and I were both forgotten.
Putting the jar to his lips, the dark god took a long sip. I followed his example. Sweetness and the distinct tone of honey settled in my mouth. My tongue licked out, collecting the drops left behind from my bottom lip. Every movement was followed by Loki’s eyes. In a low voice he asked, “If I had told you not to, you would have drunk the mead immediately, wouldn’t you?”

“Naturally.”

He hummed, his thumb trailing idle circles over his jar. “Maybe I should let you drink it. You untamed is surely a pleasurable entertainment.” Loki’s face was nothing but feline amusement, the challenge glinting in his eyes.
He knew how to push all the right buttons.
Adjusting my position, I reached for the mug. Like some stupid strong mead would intimidate me. Our thighs pressed together more, our faces inches apart. His soft smell of a tender frosty morning drowned my mind again. In a wordless request, my fingertips touched his – let me have a taste. His fingers gripped the jar tighter. Despite the warmth of the hall, they were cold – and smooth like silk. The image of them entering and pumping into me came back to my mind. I felt heat rose.
I turned my head: Loki’s eyes were dark, fixed on our hands. From our touch, he did not withdraw. But he pulled the mug out of my reach, taking it in his other hand behind my back. My mouth opened to object.
“Shush, sweet one. Your health simply can’t take it.” His thumb stroked the back on my hand briefly. Another deep slug, then he added, “The mead would give you a hangover that even my potions couldn’t cure.”
Pity. But with a nod I indicated understanding.
The last time I had drunk – back at the Compound - the situation had escalated. So much so that ‘drunken-me’ had performed and a headache and nausea greeted me the next morning. However, a small flacon left on my bedside table and its contents had gotten me up on my feet again. Loki had gotten me up on my feet again.

“You’re welcome by the way,” the god purred in my ear, his breathing brushing my face and his arm behind my back nestling closer to me. The closeness let my blood sing.
From across us, nothing seemed to escape Víf’s eye. She watched amused what was happening on our chaise lounge. “Be careful with that one, love. The more he drinks, the naughtier he becomes.”
Loki scowled, shifting his weight, “It is always a delight to have your company, Víf.”
His sarcasm was ignored. The teacher just picked an invisible fleck from her round belly, her eyes lit, “Wait until he gets to the bottom of the cup. You’ll hardly recognize him.” Her gaze swept over the faces of the two Asgardian princes. “You won’t recognize either of them.”
Synchronously, Loki and I took a sip.

Oh, but how right Víf should be. The evening indeed showed me other sides of the prince.
Having emptied half the cup, Loki’s aloof mask fell off. His dark brooding seemed to slip away, simply disappear; like breath on a mirror. His posture relaxed, his words became less belligerent and his laughter began to rival his brother’s. They cracked up in fits of hilarity, their voices swirling around us. Story after story was told, each trying to outdo the other. Mead and ale reappeared, spluttered by all of us at all the nonsense both had to tell. Exuberance found its way into our small group. Forgotten was the rest of the Great Hall.
After two thirds of the mead, Loki’s arm slipped down to my waist, holding me against him with a strong grip. I leaned into the embrace, my head dropping on his shoulder and letting go of the part that told me to be careful around the other Asgardians. Let gossip be gossip. Except for Thor, Sverre and his wife, nobody was around anyway. Although, the chants and conversations of the others were definitely heard by us in our secluded corner. The more alcohol seemed to flow, the louder the background noise became. And at one point the crowd behind us had given a squee of delight, as if a rock star had just taken the stage. The five of us and our drinking remained undisturbed, though.

I was tipsy, no doubt, but still better off than the two brothers. Thor was now on his second mug, his speech slurring and definitely off balance. When he had drained the first, he almost had slipped off his seat. Víf and I had teased the oh-so-glorious warrior for several minutes for it. With Thor, it really felt like one of my brothers was around.
Loki, on the other hand, was otherwise busy. In the distraction that Thor’s nearly fall had caused, the god had slipped his hand under my dress and was now stroking my thigh slowly and steady. The presence of his brother or the married couple didn’t seem to bother him in the slightest. With every pass his fingers rose higher and higher, dancing seductively over my skin. Heat filled my face, my core. Did he realise what he was doing to me? I twisted, studying his face.
A picture of perfect innocence.

“If you keep doing this, I’ll ruin my panties.” My whisper was low, intended only for him.

Loki’s hand tightened on me; a near-silent growl as an answer. A growl of longing and desire. My breathing hitched. Dampness pooled between my legs. Just a little bit higher, a little bit more and…
As if he had burned himself on my skin, Loki withdrew his hand. Gone was the touch, leaving my thigh blazed with emptiness, and the feeling of rejection. I wondered what I had done wrong.

All of a sudden his hands were on my waist. And with a tug, the god raised me on his lap. Pressed against him, I felt all of him against my back. The hard pecs of a warrior greeted me, his thin tunic hiding none of his muscles. I turned into a pillar of salt. Not a muscle moved, as my heart hammered like it wanted out of my chest.
Meanwhile, Loki leaned forward, brushing his mouth against my cheek. Soft lips, a swift lick with his tongue. I froze even more. A statue – that I had to become. A statue with boiling blood and a moan soon to break out on her lips. I bit my tongue to suppress a whimper, my eyes fixed straight ahead at the other three. Only Víf seemed to be watching us out of the corner of her eye. Another of her amused smiles on her face.

“What are you doing?” I hissed under my breath and tried to wiggle out of Loki’s grip. He couldn’t act more obviously. Where had caution gone? Restraint? For crying out loud! I jiggled more. Not for my sake – I cared about preserving Loki’s reputation.

“If you keep shaking your arse like that, I’ll fuck you right here and now,” he groaned, his voice thick.

It almost undid me. Pausing for a moment, I clenched my thighs. I had lost control. Friction – I needed friction. Just a little, redeeming friction. None by Loki, by his finger, his tongue, but better than nothing…
It wasn’t enough.
I needed him. Wanted to hand over all control to him. If it was Loki, then I was willing to play this game in public, too. I shifted my hips again, arched my back, and his hands tightened on me. His control also seemed to be leaving him. He pressed me down against his groin. And every thought spiralled from my mind. He was hard against my backside. Hard, long and twitching.
A devilish grin spread on my face. Leaning a bit more against him, I slowly writhed along his length. A warning hiss.
“Pet!”
I just winked at him. I would play properly – all, or nothing. Forgotten was the surrounding in which we found ourselves. Desire and drive now ruled. My hand wended its way to the bulge in his trousers. Inch by inch. Slowly and leisurely. Two could play the game. Two wanted to play the game. Loki’s eyes wholly glazed followed my hand. Eyes that were almost red-hot. I swallowed. Just another inch and then-

“What are you doing…?”

Thor’s question was like a bucket of ice cold water. My hammering heart sank to my gut. I stopped with every movement – my hands immediately folded neatly in my lap.
Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.
Biting my lip, I looked to the right. The thought of seeing the Thunder God’s face angry and appalled…
Shit.
Loki stiffened under me as well. His whole body, not just his cock.
Shit.
I raised my eyes. But Thor wasn’t even looking at his brother and I.

“What are you doing here, you drifter?” the blond asked again slurring, but with delight in his eyes that were focused on a man standing in front of us. A newcomer. Dressed in long, flowing robes, with narrow hands and his white hair in a braid, he looked as if he had come from a bygone century. But his features were young and even. A man in the prime of his life.

“Bragi,” Loki breathed a sigh of relief, moulding his neutral mask back on his face.

Bragi – I recognized the name. In the Eddic poems Bragi was the wise and learned bard of Valhalla. One poem even depicted him as having runes carved on his tongue. My tense body relaxed a little.

“My princes,” the newcomer greeted friendly, yet without bowing. His voice, a baritone, swayed with every of his words as if they contained an understanding only he recognized. Robes swinging, he turned to the other two people.
“My dear dear Víf, getting more astonishing with every month.” He greeted the teacher with two kisses on each cheek – how French.

“Bragi, how nice to see you again after all your travels,” the woman replied, before chiding, no indignation in her voice, “Stop flirting with me in front of my husband!” But the two grinned at each other as if this conversation was a well-rehearsed ritual. In any case, Sverre continued to drink undeterred.

“Sing…sing…Bragi. We haven’t…,” Thor burped, “…heard you sing in so long.”

Oh wow. The man was wasted. And apparently the stories about Bragi told the truth. He actually seemed to be a bard, or at least a singer. One who just ignored the drunk Thor. He did not deign to look at his prince.
The bloke got balls of steel.
I flinched imperceptible when I realized that his eyes were instead fixed on me. Bright clear eyes bored through me; his gaze so intense that I almost felt like Bragi was physically holding me, not Loki. I hardly even noticed Loki’s reassuring thumb movements on my waist. Everything around me had disappeared. There were only those eyes. And something screaming inside me. A screaming that begged me to avoid that look. That told me that I had to hide something from this man. An unknown truth. At all cost.

“Interesting,” hummed the bard, his voice filling my entire world, every corner of my life and evoking my escape reflex.

“Yes, Bragi,” Loki spoke, his voice anchoring me back in the here and now, “She has powers. We already know that. Quit your dramatic posturing.”

“Powers…yes.” The bard’s focus stayed on me. “But there is more…”

I winced. My legs tensed. I had to run. Far away. Away from this man.

“What do you mean?” Loki hissed, still with his hands on my waist, but now it felt less like a caress and more like holding me back. The prince must have sensed my tension. The other three just silently watched the spectacle that presented itself to them.

“Spit it out, bard!” No politeness. Pure command.

Bragi didn’t take his eyes of me. He didn’t stiffen or get intimidated by Loki’s tone of voice. The power Loki and Thor possessed didn’t seem to mean anything to him. He was his own master – a rock in a storm of unspoken truths.
Since he had arrived in our small gathering I hadn’t seen him smile once. But now, with the warm light of the fire dancing on his face, his mouth twisted into a knowing smile.

“This human…I know her…we have met before." His voice dropped even lower, “She is…more...”

And as the last words left his mouth, I knew he was telling the truth. My mouth was free of any tainted smack of a lie.