#Loki has never seen a live fish before

[chickenfics]

Team ‘Weekend Trip to Asgard’

Relationship: Loki x Fem!reader (SFW)

Summary: When Bruce invited you to a quick weekend getaway, you’d hardly expected your destination to be Asgard. Just like you’d hardly expected to be accompanied by two gods – one of whom you’re convinced hates your guts. But who would have thought that the God of Mischief has a thing for flowers, a talent for reciting Shakespeare, and knowledge of all the best places for stargazing? Certainly not you.

But in a weekend filled with sunny fields and boisterous feasts, with accidental skinny dipping and drunken magic tricks, you would begin to realize all the different ways Loki could surprise you.

Word count: 8.3k

Content warning: nothing but fluff and some brief frog-on-frog violence (mentions of animal cannibalism, not graphic)

Also on Ao3

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Chapter 9

A thick canopy stretched high above your head, mostly brown and withered, but still giving signs of life. It cut off the sunlight, and you felt as if you’d stepped into a dimly lit house. The temperate dropped and you repressed a shiver at the dampness of the underbrush. 

Pine needles were scattered across the forest floor, ferns sprouting up in wispy green bundles that you tried not to step on as you walked further into the forest. It was essentially a clearing within the trees, but the branches were wound so tightly that it created a sort of dome. 

In the center of this dome was something extraordinary. 

From the top of the canopy, various sized branches stretched down, winding around each other to create a series of interlocking arches. Smaller branches curled around bigger ones, creating a beautifully intricate pattern of swirls and twists. 

You stepped up to the arches, following Loki’s lead, and your mouth fell open as you took them in. 

“I’ve never seen trees do that before,” you whispered, reaching out a hand, wanting to run your fingers along the bark. But you held back, glancing at Loki. 

“Can I…”

“No. If you touch them, the trees will take your soul and trap it inside them.”

Your mouth fell open further, and you stared at Loki wide-eyed until he cracked a grin. 

“I’m just kidding, you’re fine,” he assured. As if to prove it, he crossed his arms and leaned casually against the nearest arch. 

“Asshole,” you muttered, unable to stop yourself from smirking at his pleased expression before you went back to marveling at the sight before you. 

“This is amazing. What makes them do this?” 

Loki shrugged, turning to scan the canopy above you. 

“They have a mind of their own, I suppose. You could ask them yourself.”

“God I wish,” you muttered, then clamped your mouth shut and wondered if you should be embarrassed for just admitting that you’d like to talk to trees. But based on Loki’s casual demeanor, you quickly decided you had nothing to worry about. 

“Me too.” Oh. So you really didn’t have anything to worry about. “I wonder what stories they’d tell…”

“Nice ones, I hope,” you whispered, trailing the pad of your finger down the rough, dry wood, getting the overwhelming feeling that it had been alive longer than you could ever imagine. 

Your life would probably amount to a few rings in the trunks of these trees if you were lucky. You’d live and die, and they would probably still be here decades from now, growing in beautiful patterns and winding their branches together in an everlasting dance. 

You wondered if, in those many years from now, someone would pass by and think the same things you were; run their fingers along the very same branches, even after you were gone. You wondered if Loki would. The idea made you sad. 

“Uh-oh,” Loki murmured, drawing your eyes to him like a fish caught on a line. “What’s got you looking like that?”

“Like what?” You replied, too meek to sound completely defensive. 

“I dunno, like a kicked puppy or something.”

“I think that’s just my face.”

“Hey now,” Loki playfully insisted. “You’ve got a lovely face.”

“Thank… you?”

“But not when it’s looking so sad.”

“I’m not… sad.”

“You’re not a very good liar, either,” Loki replied, coming to stand by your side. 

Silently, he reached out and pressed his palm against one of the thicker branches that were winding towards the ground. 

“Did you know,” he softly began, brushing some flecks of moss off the bark with his thumb. “That trees communicate. They share messages through a fungal network. So if one tree is being attacked by insects or disease, it will spread a warning to the other trees in the forest. Then those trees have a chance at altering… surviving.”

“What happens to the first tree?” You whispered, breath catching in your throat as you watched Loki’s expression twist thoughtfully… beautifully. 

“I suppose it dies. Or maybe it recovers, depending on the threat.”

“So it… sacrifices itself for the others, in a way.” You looked out at the trees and thought about the little messages they were sending. 

“Oh dear. I’ve made it worse, haven’t I?”

Closing your eyes, you shook your head and offered him a small smile. Then, 

“Do you think they’re sending messages about us?”

Loki’s eyes deepened as they looked at you, searching your face for something. 

“I… don’t think that's how it works. Unless you're a swarm of insects or a bacterial disease, or something.”

You hummed, leaning your forehead against the cool bark. “I wonder what they’re telling each other right now.”

“...Something nice, I hope,” Loki whispered, sounding distant, like he was talking to someone else. 

You smiled. 

“Yeah.”

Letting the silence settle around you, filling up the dome of branches, you and Loki wandered around the small clearing, enjoying the forest and getting lost in your own heads. You scoured the forest floor, looking for the little green shoots of ferns, the small leaves just beginning to curl upward and stretch themselves out. 

You’d always found this particular plant interesting. How something so green could grow in near-total shade. How it could live in harmony beneath acidic pines or trail along the underbrush of the darkest forests. You liked how it brought its own life to barren places. Trailing your fingers through the little seas of green, palms tickled by the soft brush of fuzzy leaves, you smiled. 

After a little while, you and Loki wandered back towards each other. 

“So, was it worth the walk?”

“Absolutely, yes,” you replied, and Loki gave you that confused grin, tilting his head like a cat. God, you loved that look on him. The way it made him seem so alive -- so real. 

“You know, I think that--”

Loki’s voice was abruptly cut off by a horrible screeching as something off to your right burst out of the underbrush and shot towards the sky. You spun around and jumped away from the noise, backing right into Loki, bumping into his chest with a thud as you instinctively hunched your shoulders. 

The god, seeming to also act on instinct, wrapped an arm protectively around you, though his loose grip told you that he hadn’t been nearly as affected by the sudden noise as you had. But just as soon as it had happened, the commotion was done and the forest returned to its silence. 

“I think it was just a bird,” Loki whispered breathily, letting his hand slide down off of your stomach. 

“Jesus Christ,” you muttered, leaning back into him for the time it took you to catch your breath. Straightening back up, you placed a hand on your stomach, coincidentally in the exact same place Loki’s had been moments ago. 

“I thought we were goners.”

Loki snorted. 

“Please, don’t be so dramatic.”

“Hey, I don’t know what sort of shit could be hiding in these woods.”

“Well, rest assured darling, the most dangerous thing in these woods is me and I’m hardly hiding,” he shot you a lopsided grin that was probably supposed to make you blush or something, but really just made you want to tackle him. 

“You know, you keep saying that,” you began, realizing that you were probably taking your life into your own hands at this point. “But I have yet to see you put any bite to your bark.”

Okay, this wasn't entirely true. You were perfectly aware that Loki was dangerous, and though you might not have seen that side of him completely, you’d caught enough glimpses to know that the cautions you’d been given about the god probably weren’t unfounded. 

Still, you knew Loki wouldn’t hurt you. Well, you actually didn’t know that, but you believed it. Hence why you weren’t scared shitless by the way he was stalking towards you with that gleam in his eye. 

“Is that so, Little Mouse? You think I’m too much bark and not enough bite?”

“All I’m saying is you sure do talk a lot.”

“Mmm,” Loki hummed, almost a purr, and he was smirking at you like he found something very funny but you had somehow missed what exactly that was. 

Then he was lunging towards you. 

You yelped, trying to run out of his reach, but unsurprisingly his arm wound around your stomach and yanked you back. Laughing loudly, you let Loki drag you off your feet and toss you over his shoulder. 

Well, let him might have been a gracious overstatement. 

“How’s this for talk?” He muttered, swinging around -- and taking you with him. 

“Put me down!” You didn’t mean it. 

“Sorry, did you say something?”

“Loki,” you groaned, bracing your arms on his back and trying to push up off of him -- but you couldn’t get very far with his hand wrapped firmly around you, and his shoulder was poking uncomfortably into your stomach so you gave up and let yourself hang limp. 

“Seriously?”

“I won’t have my reputation doubted by a mortal,” he replied. 

It was odd, but it almost seemed like he was having fun. You felt like a little kid playing in the woods -- and by his content grin and the flush in his usually pale cheeks, you wondered if Loki was feeling the same thing. 

“You’re still not really proving your point, though,” you pushed, having too much fun to stop. 

“Is that so?” Loki quipped, a moment before releasing his grip. You felt yourself plummeting towards the ground as the god pretended to drop you, catching you a moment before you fell on top of your head. 

“When will you learn, Mouse?” He tsk-ed, frowning with pretend disappointment. 

“Never!” you shouted, swinging your legs and securing them around his waist as you grabbed his shoulders, effectively forcing him to give you a piggy-back ride. 

The momentum of you shifting your weight actually threw him off balance, to your surprise, and he fell back a step. Grabbing onto your legs, he grunted and turned sideways, catching himself as you laughed triumphantly.

“Norns, you really are a little menace.”

“Just for you, sweetheart,” you charmingly replied, and Loki snorted so loudly you thought he must have hurt himself. 

“Alright, you’ve lost your privileges, get off.”

“No… I think I’ll just hang out for a while. I like the view from all the way up here…”

It was sort of true. The man was very tall. Loki snorted again. 

“Do you have allergies, or did a bug fly up your nose?”

“Oh, you’re very lucky that I can’t reach you back there.”

You giggled, squeezing him tighter and pulling yourself up his back; even though he said he couldn’t reach you, you weren’t taking any chances. 

“It seems that we have reached a stalemate,” Loki announced. 

“Guess you’ll just have to carry me back to the blanket.”

“Or I could toss you up into one of these trees and leave you to think about what you’ve done?”

“And what exactly have I done?”

“Annoyed me, for starters--” You gasped loudly. 

“What? I thought you liked me?”

“Hmph. That may be true, but I’m not a horse.” He said it, but he’d started walking towards the clearing. 

“Wait,” you spoke up, the softness of your tone making him comply. “I want to look one last time.”

He took a pause, in which you also felt him take a breath, and then turned around. With your hands on his shoulders, you stared out at the twisting branches and looming trees. You smiled softly. 

“Okay,” you whispered. Still, Loki waited a moment before turning back around and heading towards the edge of the forest. 

“Oh, wait!”

“Norns, what now?”

Taking advantage of your new height, you stretched up towards the branches above your head. You felt Loki’s grip tighten on your legs as you picked one of the few leaves in the archway. Pulling it down, you ran your finger across it before setting it on top of Loki’s head like a little hat. 

“What on Earth are you doing?”

You laughed at the expression, leaning forward until your forehead bumped the back of his head. 

“But we’re on Asgard,” you chuckled, and you could practically hear Loki roll his eyes. 

“I’m aware of that, darling. I should hardly have to explain your own foolish Midgardian sayings to you.”

“Oh, you’re such a grouch,” you scrunched your nose, grinning from ear to ear. 

Loki grumbled something under his breath and you wrapped your arms around his neck, hugging yourself closer to his back. His hair smelled like lavender soap. You felt him tense slightly. 

“You are a strange little mortal, aren’t you,” he mused as he set off through the meadow. 

“Do you actually want me to get off?”

He seemed to consider it. You caught yourself holding your breath. 

“No. Which is a bit alarming, but… no.”

“Loki?”

“Hm?”

“I’m sorry to have to be the one to tell you this--”

“What now?” 

“--But I’m afraid you have a heart somewhere in there.”

“What’s that got to do with anything?” he scoffed. 

“Oh, I dunno. You being so nice to me?”

“I beg to differ. I’ve hardly been nice to you.”

“Oh my gosh, would it be so bad?” You draped your arms casually over his shoulders, your palms resting flat against his chest. 

“Of course it would. I told you, I have a reputation to uphold.”

“You could… start a new reputation,” you replied, voice soft with thought. Grabbing a strand of his hair, you began to play with it -- causing him to nearly trip. 

“Stop that.”

“Stop what?”

“Stop…” he fell silent, obviously struggling to find the right words. “Why are you so nice to me?”

It was an accusation as much as it was a question. He stopped walking, but he didn’t try and turn to look at you. Didn’t move -- just stood, staring out across the field. You could see the tree from here, and the two horses grazing peacefully. True to Loki’s assurance, they hadn’t wandered far. 

“Because everyone deserves to be treated nicely,” you answered, your voice so quiet that it almost got lost to the sky. 

“But this is more than just formal politeness,” he persisted. “And I’m… me.”

“Loki,” your hands shifted across his chest. “That doesn’t make a difference. It shouldn’t, and it’s wrong that it has. Do you understand that?”

“It… I…” he clamped his mouth shut, growing so still you couldn’t even feel his breathing. 

“And anyway, I’m so nice to you because I like you. I like spending time with you--”

“Why?” Loki spat, sounding disgusted. 

“Jesus Christ,” you sighed, your heart aching at his obvious hatred for himself and distrust of your affection. 

“Because you’re funny,” you began, determined to give this man a piece of your mind. “And you’re smart and witty, and I like hearing what you have to say -- even when you’re being a sarcastic prat.”

He opened his mouth, but you barreled right through any comeback he might have had. 

“You’re charming, and not always in a superficial way. You’re kind when you let yourself be, and I think that, despite how much you try to stop it, you have a good heart. You’re adorably protective and defensive and moody. And,” you took a breath. “You're a nerd for classic literature, which makes up for the rest of it.”

The god was back to not breathing, it seemed. 

“Loki?” You hesitantly implored after a moment of silence. “If I’ve broken you, can you at least put me down before you malfunction or something?”

“I’m not,” he cleared his throat, trying to hide the fact that his voice had just cracked. “I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” 

“Well…” he seemed to consider it. “I’m not the God of Lies for nothing.”

“Loki,” you sighed, and before you could think about the consequences, you wrapped your arms firmly around his chest, pressing your face into the side of his neck. 

“You don’t know me. That’s why you think all of those things. You don’t know who I am.”

“Shut up,” you insisted. “So what if I don’t? Maybe no one else does, either. Maybe you need to figure that out for yourself and stop letting shitty people tell you who you are.”

In an instant, Loki dropped your legs. By the time you got your feet under you, he’d turned around and was staring at you, eyes searching. 

“Who do you say that I am?”

You looked up at him. 

“I think you are tragically misunderstood, Loki Laufeyson.”

His face twisted up ever so slightly.

“And… do you think there is redemption at the end of my story?”

You nearly lost your breath at the genuine vulnerability in his tone. 

“I think if you’re asking that question, you’re already halfway there.”

He opened his mouth and you realized how close the both of you were. You could see the depth of his thoughts in those big green eyes. You could see a million words unsaid in the way that he leaned toward you. 

And you did the only thing your dumbass, awkward self could think to do. 

Reaching out, you handed him the leaf you’d managed to hang onto. He blinked down at it before taking it from your hand, twirling it cautiously between his fingers. 

“You are strange,” he stated thoughtfully. “I suppose I should thank you for that…”

You shrugged.

“What are friends for?”

Patting him on the shoulder, you turned and marched past him before he had a chance to recover from the admission of friendship. He stood frozen for a few seconds before jolting to life. 

“Now hang on just a minute,” he called, hastily marching after you. 

 ***

The sun was high and warm. You could feel it even from your place beneath the tree. Loki sat with his back propped against it, his long legs stretched out in front of him. You were sitting on the blanket, leaning casually on your side and flipping through Jane Eyre.

It didn’t take you long to feel the god’s eyes on you -- they practically bored into the top of your head. Still, you waited silently to see if he would say whatever was on his mind. 

Nearly five minutes passed and he remained quiet. You could feel the tension of the words he was trying to prepare in his brain as well as the struggle to actually speak them into existence. He fidgeted, an act that was so minute you were sure you only noticed it because you’d spent the last forty-eight hours with him. 

Slowly glancing up, you were surprised to find his eyes studying your book before flitting up to your face. 

“Loki…” you imploringly began, sounding like you were trying to coax an animal out of a cage or something. 

“What, I didn’t… hm,” he stumbled over his words, and you grew even more interested in whatever was currently going on with him. You racked your brain, tilting your head as you both watched each other out of the corners of your eyes. 

“Loki,” you said again, and finally he looked at you. You took a guess. 

“Do you… want to read with me?”

Loki opened his mouth to say something, then shut it again. He looked like he wanted to argue. The actual admission was like pulling teeth, but eventually, he nodded his head. 

“Alright,” you smiled, standing up only to rearrange yourself next to him, your back resting against the wide trunk of the tree. 

Loki tensed. You fought the urge to reach over and tuck a strand of hair behind his ear. Instead, you held out your open book. 

“Here, can you hold it? You’ve got longer arms.”

Loki took it with the utmost care, looking down at the pages like he was staring into an empty void. Then he leaned forward a bit, running his fingers down the page. You shifted, turning towards him, and he seemed to remember that you were there. Crossing his legs, he propped his elbows onto his knees and held the book out so both of you could read it. 

You had just begun chapter twenty, where Rochester’s companion Mr. Mason is the unfortunate victim of Grace Poole. You leaned closer to Loki as you read about Rochester seeking Jane out to help him tend to the injured man, leaving her alone with only a locked door between herself and the dangerous woman. 

After an annoyingly short amount of time, your back began to ache against the rough bark. You were sitting at an odd angle to be able to read the book, and it seemed that no amount of shifting you did relived your discomfort. In an equally short but much less annoying amount of time, Loki noticed. 

“Is something wrong?” He paused his reading to ask you. 

“What? Oh, no, I’m fine.”

“You’re lying. How many times do I have to tell you, you can’t lie to the god of lies, Mouse.”

You groaned, leaning your head back against the tree before rolling it sideways to reluctantly meet Loki’s eye. 

“Really, I’m fine. My back just hurts a little, that’s all. I’ll survive.”

“Maybe so,” Loki began, a new hitch in his voice. “But, uhm… you could… I mean I wouldn't mind if you wanted to…”

He shifted, uncrossing his legs and opening them, as well as his arms, leaving the front of him laid bare to you. Now it was your turn to stare open-mouthed, without a thing to say. But you somehow managed to recover -- the haste of it driven by not wanting to make an already awkward Loki feel even more awkward. 

“Are you sure?” You asked him, only stuttering a little bit -- which you felt was pretty good considering.

“Yes, but you’d better do it now before I change my mind.”

“Jesus, okay,” you muttered anxiously on account of him not really giving you time to decide if this was an astronomically bad idea or not.

 In the end, maybe that was a good thing because it meant you didn’t really think much of it as you settled between his legs. You hesitated, however, before leaning back against his chest, not wanting to put all of your weight against him. As if reading your mind, which Loki continuously denied doing, he spoke up. 

“Relax, Mouse, you won’t break me.”

“I know, I just… you don’t mind?”

“If I did, I wouldn’t have offered.”

“Okay, okay,” you took a deep breath. Then you leaned back against his chest. 

In that moment, all your mind could come up with was how much softer he was than a tree. And then Loki shifted, closing his legs around you, and your ability to think was further inhibited. 

He was wonderfully warm for a frost giant. You wondered how that worked. Could he control his temperature like he could control his form? Was he making himself warmer for you right now, like some human version of a heated blanket? 

Shaking your head, you tried not to implode as Loki’s arms appeared on either side of you. You had your legs tucked up near your chest, and Loki rested his arms on your knees now in order to hold the book up. 

Despite your new positioning, the shock of it all faded away after only a few minutes, and you both sunk back into a comfortable silence. Only now you could feel Loki’s breathing against your back and you could smell the vague scent of pine that he always carried with him. 

And now the sun wasn’t the only thing warming you up. 

It was intoxicating, how warm you were, with the afternoon light filtering through the branches and one not-so-frosty frost giant at your back. Your eyelids fluttered as you stumbled over the same sentence three times before giving up. 

Letting your eyes fall closed, you leaned your head against Loki’s arm. Almost pensively, the god began to read aloud, as if there were no one but himself and the birds and the grazing horses. 

“‘Is the wandering and sinful, but now rest-seeking and repentant, man justified in daring the world’s opinion, in order to attach to him for ever this gentle, gracious, genial stranger, thereby securing his own peace of mind and regeneration of life?’”

Your head sunk further against him, thoughts growing heavier with every soft word he uttered. 

You hadn’t meant to fall asleep. Honest. You we’re just going to… rest your eyes; with Loki reading aloud, you didn’t need them anyway. But as consequence, your already tired body took advantage of the quiet moment. 

In your defense, you hadn’t gotten much sleep the last few nights, with all the drinking and feasts that were very much parties -- and stargazing. 

Before you were fully awake, you shifted stiffly. You were surrounded by warmth and there was something covering you from the chest down. As your other senses began to work, you thought you heard a whisper. 

 “‘--Every nerve I have is unstrung: for a moment I am beyond my own mastery.’” Loki mumbled beneath his breath, reading aloud to himself. He must not have noticed you were awake yet. You smiled.

“‘What does it mean? I did not think I should tremble in this way when I saw him’ -- I should say,” he scoffed and you tried very hard not to laugh. 

You tried. 

Loki shifted, tensing slightly. 

“I like it when you read,” you whispered softly against his chest. That’s when your head finally seemed to come to and you realized where you were. 

You’d turned sideways in your sleep, tucking your legs beneath you and curling into Loki’s lap. His arms were still around you to hold up the book, however they were back to resting on his knees, which were pressed snugly on either side of you. 

Your head was tucked just under his chin, and you nearly knocked him out lifting it as quickly as you did. 

“I am so sorry, I-- I didn’t think that… you--”

“Breathe,” Loki insisted. “Norns, you’re acting as if you’ve tried to murder me in my sleep.”

“Sorry,” you squeaked. It was all you could say, with your sleep-riddled brain so fried by your current predicament. 

“Relax, Mouse.” Then he very reluctantly added, “If I minded where you were, I would have moved you.”

Maybe it was something in the way he said it. Maybe it was the fact that there was a blanket across your lap that definitely hadn’t been there before or the way that his arm was resting so close to your shoulder. You drew in a deep breath, letting it out with much care, and then slowly leaned back against his chest. 

“Though, you were talking in your sleep.”

“Oh god,” you shot back up, and Loki rolled his head back to prevent you from knocking his teeth together. “What did I say?”

“Something about a light bulb…”

You groaned, flopping softly against his chest again. 

“Sor--”

“Do not,” he interrupted, covering your face with the open book, which muffled your laughter.

“Okay, okay…” Seemingly convinced, he uncovered you, which revealed the god’s reluctant smile. 

“How long was I out?”

“Mmh, an hour or so.”

“Shit.”

“No, it’s good. You seemed exhausted. Then again, mortals always tend to look like that, so,” he shrugged, and you rolled your eyes. 

“You’re lucky you’re so comfortable.”

“Am I?” he tilted his head. 

You were torn between keeping up the playful banter and being genuine. You decided on the latter. 

“Yes. Very.” Inadvertently, you snuggled closer, tucking your hands beneath the blanket. Loki shivered like a draft had blown through. 

“Uh… I marked the page you fell asleep on, so we can start over from there if you’d like.”

“Mhm-mn,” you shook your head, accidentally tucking your nose beneath his arm. It felt so nice that you weren't quick to correct yourself. “Can you keep reading?”

“... I’m… sorry?”

“I like when you read," you softly repeated. Even though you’d just woken up from a nap, you could feel yourself drifting off again. You must have been more exhausted than you’d thought. 

“Um… yes, alright…” Loki swallowed. You took a hand out from beneath the blanket, crossing your arm across your chest and laying it on his hip. 

“Uh… ‘Or lose my voice or the power of motion in his presence. I will go back as soon as I can stir: I need not make an absolute fool of myself'...”

He continued to read, and you let yourself doze lazily. You felt like you were suspended in time -- a perfect, arcadian bubble. The rest of the world felt far away, like a distant memory; all that seemed real was this moment, right here and now, and it was such a good one that your insides felt warm with repose. 

After a few moments of awkwardness, Loki, too, began to relax. You could feel the tenseness leave his muscles and he leaned more heavily into the tree, shifting his legs closer and repositioning the book in front of you. His voice grew softer, breathier -- and more expressive, which you found absolutely enthralling. 

You could really tell that he didn’t like Rochester, and Loki kept adding his own little comments here and there that had you attempting to hide your laughter in his shirt -- which you knew you had failed when a smile bloomed in his voice. 

A page later and Loki must have been really relaxed, as his fingers found your head. He began to run his fingers along your scalp, brushing along your hairline before sweeping over to your temple and curling just below your ear. 

You nearly lost consciousness at the overwhelming pleasure the gesture brought you. No one had ever really touched you like this -- not since a very long time ago, when your mother had been feeling uncharacteristically generous. Even then, it hadn't been like this.

“Were you,” you struggled to find your breath, eyelids fluttering closed. “Were you doing this… while I was asleep?”

Loki stilled, hand jerking back, and you wondered if he just realized what he’d been doing. 

“I… I fear I might have, yes.” He grimaced, and you attempted to shake your head. 

“No wonder I slept so well.” 

You could feel Loki’s hand hovering above you, and the god held his breath. 

“Mhm, please don’t stop,” you tugged on his shirt a little, and the noise he made was somewhere between a laugh and a gasp. 

“As the lady wishes,” he muttered, smirking playfully.

But even so, he slowly, carefully reached back down, dragging his fingers across the crown of your head, his touches somehow feather-light and firm at the same time. You hummed, letting yourself lean further into him. He exhaled a laugh, and you could hear a smile in it -- one of those smiles that made his upper lip curl against his teeth. Then he began to read again. 

“‘Here one could wander unseen. While such honey-dew fell, such silence reigned, such glooming gathered, I felt as if I could haunt such shade for ever'...” Loki paused thoughtfully, his hand stilling against your skin. 

“It’s beautiful,” you spoke.

“Yes,” Loki whispered, sweeping a knuckle down the side of your face. “It is.”

The moment was interrupted by your rumbling stomach. 

“Oh dear,” he murmured. “The Hel hounds are trying to escape again.”

You laughed, poking him in the stomach as you sat up a bit regretfully. Crawling out from his grasp, you felt the god watching you as you dug through your bag, letting your book fall onto his thigh, pages down. 

With a little triumphant flourish, you pulled out the apple you had almost forgotten about. Grinning, you returned to Loki’s side, this time leaning back against the tree. You took a bite of the apple, and, unsurprisingly, it was infinitely better than anything you’d ever tasted on Earth. 

“Mm,” you wiped a hand across your mouth. Then, bumping your shoulder against Loki’s, you held the fruit up to him. 

“Want some?”

He stared at the apple, then looked down at you, one eyebrow raising an inch. Then he accepted, taking a bite. The two of you passed the apple back and forth until only the core was left. Hopping to your feet, you brushed your pants off and started walking. 

“Where are you going?” Loki asked, sounding almost offended. 

You spun around to give him a smile, walking backwards now. 

“Norns, don’t do that,” he muttered, frowning as he waited for your to fall on your ass. 

“I’m gonna feed the horses real quick,” you held up the core of the apple, spinning back around before you really did fall on your ass. 

You quickly located the horses off along the edge of the meadow where the grass met the tree line. You could feel Loki’s gaze on your back. It was almost comical, how obvious it was that he was watching you. You would have thought someone like him would be a little… craftier? But maybe it was just because it was you. 

The thought made you stop walking. Should you really think something like that? Was there any truth to the idea that Loki acted differently around you? You thought about the party last night and how you’d been able to feel his constant shift in personality depending on who was around. How he was particularly stiff around Valkyrie and Thor, but a little less so around Bruce. 

Then you thought about the way he was with you. About where you actually were -- in a meadow that he probably would have considered his own. So, maybe there was truth in the notion. 

You had no idea what to do with that information.

“Are you alright?” Loki called, that same annoyed hitch to his voice. Despite yourself, his peevishness was highly amusing. 

Not wanting to yell near the horses, you turned and gave him a thumbs up. 

Tove noticed your presence and lifted her head. Seeing that you had food, she began to make her way over, neck arched as she sniffed out the apple. You moved it out of her reach and held up a hand. 

“Alright, hold your… well…”

Yrsa had caught on, and now she was stretching her nose out to you, her whiskers tickling your arm and making you laugh. Breaking the apple core down the middle, you held out each piece with a flat hand. The horses ate them eagerly, and then promptly went back to their grazing. 

Tove in particular seemed to want the exact patch of grass you were standing on, and who were you to get in the way of a ginormous Asgardian horse. 

“Okay, pardon me, sheesh,” you mumbled, sidestepping as she calmly made her way forward, nose pushing some weeds out of her way so she could get to the green blades of grass. 

You took a single step backwards -- and ran right into what felt like a brick wall. You yelped, whirling around and bringing your arms up protectively only to be grabbed by the elbows. 

“Stop doing that,” you practically yelled, glaring up at Loki’s amused expression. “This is why I keep falling all the time, ‘cause you just pop up out of nowhere and stand right under my feet. Oh my god,” you realized. “You’re like a cat.”

Loki just laughed, flashing a toothy smile, his little incisors peeking out in a way that was definitely helping your cat analogy. 

“How did you get over here so quietly anyway?”

“Really dear, I’m a--”

“A god, yeah, I got it. Yeesh.”

“There are many things I can do.” It wasn’t a boast -- more like a guilty warning. Like he was trying to tell you what you were getting yourself into, being around him. 

You wondered if he thought he was dangerous. Hell, he was -- but knowing your strengths and abilities is one thing, thinking that you’re a danger to others… that’s something else entirely. 

“Yeah,” you softly replied. “I know.”

He was still holding your elbows. He looked down at his grip on you, opening his mouth and drawing in a breath, swaying closer like he wanted to say something -- wanted to spill all his guts right there onto the grass. Instead what he said was,

“Do you… want to see something neat?”

Not what you’d been expecting. 

“Okay,” you replied with a shrug. 

Loki smiled shyly, finally releasing your elbows. 

“Follow me,” he announced, then took off across the field at what, to your profound annoyance, seemed like a leisurely pace. 

To him maybe, with his long legs. You, on the other hand… 

“L--Loki, can you,” you nearly fell as your foot hit a small hole. “Can you slow down maybe a little?”

Loki stopped, turning halfway and watching as you scrambled to catch up with him. 

“Sorry. Sometimes I forget you’re a bit smaller.”

You shook your head, finding such an adorable apology very easy to accept, and the two of you set off again -- this time at the same pace. 

It wasn’t long before you re-entered the woods, which looked a lot more normal in this particular section, and Loki led you carefully through the trees. The underbrush was sparse and the ground was rocky, with occasional boulders here and there. 

He led you up a slight incline and the boulders began to increase until the ground was almost entirely rocks. 

You heard it before you saw it. 

A stream cut through the ground, gurgling softly as it poured over little rock waterfalls that were no higher than your knee. It looked a few feet deep and weeds were growing out of the clay-like dirt running along the edge of the water. 

“Wow,” you breathed, enjoying the view as sunlight sunk through the trees and lit the water up like shards of glass hanging in a window. It was beautiful, and the soft sounds of the river paired with birdsong and the quiet of the forest made the whole scene wonderfully tranquil. 

“Oh my god,” you grabbed Loki’s arm. “Do you think we’ll find more frogs?”

He laughed, and the sound filled you with more joy and wonder than any beautiful scenery could have. 

“For your sake, I hope not.”

“Aww, come on,” you protested, and he smiled down at you. Then, as if realizing something, he added, 

“Just, if you see any like the ones I showed you last night, do not touch them. I don’t know how fast I could get you to a healer…”

“Shit,” you blinked, losing a bit of your excitement at the sudden realization that you were in the wilderness and that meant there could very possibly be dangerous animals nearby.

“Don’t worry,” he easily replied. “Just don’t touch anything that looks poisonous.”

“Okay, good. Great… And what exactly does that-- hey!” You scrambled after Loki as he made his way up to a large, flat rock along the stream. 

Kicking off his shoes, he began to roll up his pants. You began to grin. 

“Oh hell yes,” you muttered, following suit -- and not missing the way that he smirked like a little boy. 

The day wasn’t exactly hot, but it had gotten warmer as the sun climbed higher, and you were looking forward to cooling off a little. Loki stepped in first and the water reached just below the center of his shins. Spinning around, he held a hand out to you. 

“Now would be the time to get those legs working,” he said, just as you were stepping into the stream. Of course. 

You wobbled a little, feeling around the smooth but rocky stream bed. 

“If I fall, I’m taking you down with me,” you shot back, tightening your grip on his hand. Loki laughed so genuinely that you felt a little embarrassed. 

“You can certainly try,” he teased, and if you hadn't been so focused on where your feet were landing, you would have. 

“Oh just wait, I’m gonna -- ouch,” you grabbed his arm just as he held it out and quickly moved off of the sharp rock you’d just stepped on. 

“Alright?”

“Yeah,” you assured, but he only took his arm away after you’d let go. Letting out a content sigh, you began to explore your surroundings. 

The stream couldn’t have been more than six feet wide, the water flowing gently, causing ripples where rocks broke the surface. You picked your way carefully along the bank, scanning the array of pebbles beneath the shimmering water. 

It seemed that rocks on Asgard came in a wider color variety than the ones on Earth. Beneath the fluorescent pool of water were blues, deep purples, greys, greens, and pinks -- it was fascinating to watch them interact with the sunlight cutting through the water. 

Stooping down, you reached beneath the surface, feeling along the riverbed and pulling out a small pink rock. Holding it out, it caught the sunlight and shone like a gemstone, its smooth surface almost fluorescent in the light. You turned in around in your hands, mouth open with an awestruck grin. It was when you went to put the rock back that you noticed something even better. 

“Loki!” You whisper-shouted, waving your arms frantically. “Come here, come look,” you urged, and you could hear soft splashing as the god waded through the stream. 

“What?” he demanded. “Don’t tell me…”

“Look! Tadpoles,” you grinned, laying a hand on his back as you pointed towards the little spots of black darting through the water. 

There must have been dozens of them, their tails wiggling as they surfed the currents of the water. 

“I should have suspected as much,” Loki muttered, unable to sound annoyed thanks to the reluctant smile on his face. Your smile, on the other hand, was far from reluctant. 

You had to repress a squeal of excitement. 

“Oh my god, look,” you suddenly jumped, pointing over at a mossy patch near the bank of the stream. “Eggs!”

Loki leaned forward. You realized your hand was still on his back. Quickly removing it, shaking your head at the fact it had gone unnoticed for so long, you let it hover behind him. 

“Hm. Good eye,” he softly replied. Then he laughed, leaning sideways and tipping his head towards you. 

“One time, my brother and I spent all day catching some of these little guys. He snuck them back into the palace and set them up in his room. I don’t know why he was so insistent on keeping them. Anyway, eventually one became a frog. He was annoyingly ecstatic about it, but then the other tadpoles ate it.”

You nearly choked. 

“I’m sorry -- they ate it?”

Loki pursed his lips and nodded. 

“Let’s just say that Thor didn’t try to keep any more pets after that.”

“Jeez,” you muttered. Then you burst out laughing. 

Loki looked at you like you’d lost your marbles. 

“Sorry -- God, that’s not funny. Holy shit though,” you ran the back of your hand across your eyes, wiping some stray tears from them. Loki gave an apprehensive chuckle.

“I suppose it was a bit morbid.” 

“I would say so, yeah,” you giggled. 

The two of you watched the tadpoles in silence then, before Loki wandered off to sit on the bank of the stream. You followed him, sitting down on a patch of moss and crossing your legs beneath you, the water from your feet staining your pants in dark blotches.

“It’s really nice here,” you commented, propping your chin on your hands. “Thanks for bringing me.”

“I do wish you’d stop thanking me for things,” Loki replied, not unkindly. 

“Okay, but… is that ‘cause you don’t think you deserve it? Because if that's the case then I’m just going to thank you more.”

Loki leaned back, opening his mouth in another one of those rare moments that you rendered him speechless. Maybe they weren’t as rare as you thought they were… 

“I just… it… doesn’t matter,” he argued. 

You wanted to argue right back, but you also had a feeling that he wouldn’t let this go. His self-hatred seemed so deep-seated that it couldn’t be undone by a quick debate in the middle of a forest. Something like this required more… long-term solutions. 

You didn’t consider the possibility that there wouldn’t be anything long-term between you and Loki. The thought didn’t cross your mind and you didn’t linger long enough for it to get the chance -- partly at the fault of Loki, who had a habit of being agonizingly interesting. 

Leaning back on one arm, he stretched the other out beside him and let his fingers trail lazily over the short stalks of weeds that were just beginning to sprout along the edge of the stream. After a moment, green tendrils of light began to creep from his fingertips and the short green stalks crept upward, curling towards his palm and blooming into leaves. 

You leaned closer, mesmerized as you watched his magic at work -- in awe that someone so powerful could manipulate something as delicate as a sprout; delighted that he even would. 

“That’s amazing,” you murmured. 

“It’s simple magic, really. Anyone could do it.”

“Uh, I couldn’t. And anyway, who cares? It’s still amazing.”

“You’re just saying that because you’re a mortal.”

You straightened up and jabbed him in the knee. 

“Would you just accept the compliment and move on, Your Highness.”

“No, actually, I don’t think I will,” Loki teased, narrowing his eyes, his nose scrunching slightly in his determination. 

“You look adorable right now.”

“How dare you,” he shot back, and you snorted, rocking forward and onto your feet. Arms out for balance, you began to wade back into the stream. 

“And where do you think you’re going?” Loki demanded, sounding like a parent who’d caught you sneaking out of the house or something.

“I’m going to become a swamp creature, buh-bye,” you waved without turning around, eyes trained on the stones along the bed of the creek. 

“Fine. I’ll just stay here by myself then,” he quipped, torn between sounding defensive and like a wounded puppy. 

You turned around to smirk at him but instead found the god staring at you with a faraway, affectionate smile. As a result, your smirk was more questioning than teasing. He raised his eyebrows an inch, but didn’t look away. Well, one of you had to, so you turned back around and pretended to search the bed of the stream. 

“And how is it?” Loki asked after a while

“How is what?”

“Being a swamp creature?”

“Mmm,” you hummed, straightening up and cleaning the rock you’d just found with the end of your shirt. You casually held it up in the sunlight, which gleamed off of it’s almost golden edges. 

“Thought it’d be a bit quieter, to be honest.”

Loki’s eyes darkened playfully and you suddenly found yourself very glad that you were practically on the other end of the stream. 

“You sure it’s not your thoughts that are being so loud?”

“No…No, I’m pretty sure it's this guy, goes by the name Loki, God of Mischief -- you might have heard of him.”

“Oh, I have,” Loki joined in on your banter. “I’ve heard he’s ruthless, the most powerful of the gods.”

“I heard he likes to pick flowers,” you murmured wistfully, gone was your tone of teasing. 

Loki narrowed his eyes before getting that faraway look on his face, like he was lost in thought and had forgotten you were there. And yet again, you found yourself longing to get a glimpse at what was going on inside his head. You wanted to know his thoughts, every secret he could spare. You wanted to know who he was beneath the fortress inside of him. 

Turning back around, you let your own thoughts wander as you picked your way along the stream. The water was pleasantly cool, swirling around your ankles and dampening your rolled-up pant legs. The stones beneath your feet were smooth, worn down by their time spent beneath the pull of the current.

You kept your eyes open, pulling rocks from the clear, shimmering depths every few moments -- inspecting them, holding them up to the sunlight that was creeping lower and lower in the sky, running the pad of your thumb along their silky, cool surfaces.

You passed the time this way until Loki softly called your name. You spun around, so unused to hearing him refer to you as anything but nicknames, and found him watching you quietly. He gave a gentle jerk of his head and you nodded, looking down at the rocks in your hands before returning all but one of them to the stream. 

Gazing down at the flowing water in a moment of silent goodbye, you took a deep breath and waded over to the waiting god. 

“It’s getting late,” he whispered and you nodded again, knowing what came next. 

He offered you a hand and you took it, climbing out of the river and onto the bank where he stood. 

“We’ll have to meet Heimdall a few hours after sundown, I imagine.”

“Alright,” you quietly replied. “But one more thing before we go…”

You held up the rock in your hand, lifting it so it was level with Loki’s temple. The god flinched slightly, looking down at you with an openly uncertain expression. You only smiled, watching as the evening light hit the blue-green stone and made it shine, matching the color of Loki’s eyes almost perfectly. 

“I knew I’d find one eventually,” you murmured, bringing the stone down so he could see it. He tilted his head, cupping a hand tentatively beneath your own and lifting them both to turn the stone towards him. 

His eyes flickered up to meet yours, and you smiled.

***

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[lailyn]

All The Plans We Didn't Make, Chapter 2

The next evening, Loki found himself wandering the streets of New Asgard, and before long, he was walking into the common dining hall, drawn by the sounds of a familiar laugh.

Most of the dinner crowd had dispersed but as expected, Thor was still seated at the high table, without doubt sharing stories of Old Asgard and reminiscing about the good old golden days.

Seeing Loki approach, the crowd around the king scattered. It was a silent intolerance that he had endured for centuries, one that had endured Ragnarok. Tonight, it was a blessing.

Thor looked him up and down.

"You look terrible," said Thor critically.

"And a very good evening to you too, brother."

"Your mood has not improved." Thor dipped his head, to ask his question in a conspiratorial whisper. "Did your plans with Sergeant Barnes not go as well as planned?"

"Why are you whispering?"

"It's what people do when they wish to partake in a private conversation, or share something sensitive." 

"I have nothing I wish to share," Loki muttered. "Least of all with you."

"Oh, but I think you do. I have never known you to appear at supper unannounced. They've run out of ham, but here, have some of my smok'd herring - "

"No, thank you," Loki said, recoiling in disgust. "I am more than capable of feeding myself."

Thor poured his brother a drink and slid it across the table. "Come. Unburden yourself. I will lend you my ear. My shoulder too, but it's a bit achy from sword practice."

Loki's reflection stared back at him from the murky black ale, morose and dour. 

How did it come to this? That Loki should find himself in such a predicament with no one alive to confide in but his brother? 

Thor should know, a voice said.

Loki had spent the most of yesterday tossing and turning in his bed, thinking of how best to break the news to the only family he had left.

Thor is King. Thor must know.

"I have some news," Loki said hesitantly. "I am just not sure how I feel about it."

'I think I'm with child', the long hours of overthinking intended him to say.

What came out instead was much more verbose. "I have been invited to Sam Wilson's seafood boil, and I would like for you to come with me."

"Allow me two questions. Who are you and what have you done with my brother?" Thor asked. "You've kept the good sergeant from me for more than a year now with nary an introduction, and now I am being invited to a…what is a seafood boil anyway?"

"That's three questions you just asked me," Loki said, mentally kicking himself for passing on the chance for a delightful pregnancy announcement, but congratulating himself at the same time for missing it. "And I kept no one from you. I am nobody's keeper."

Thor tsk-tsked. "Three questions and you managed to answer none."

Loki rolled his eyes.

"A seafood boil is when Midgardians get together and gorge themselves on boiled seafood because they don't know how else to prepare it. Alcohol is usually an afterthought," he muttered, "It used to annoy Njǫrd so much."

"Ah, yes, I remember now," Thor said with a nostalgic smile. "Trust Njǫrd to be discerning with how the bounties of the seas are to be enjoyed. I personally think sea creatures are to be admired, rather than consumed."

Loki hummed, neither agreeing nor disagreeing. Clearly Thor did not consider his smoked herring as seafood, seeing how he was scoffing it with relish.

"I'm not great with people," Loki finally admitted with reluctance.

"What are you talking about? I've seen you at parties," Thor mumbled through a mouthful of fish, "Two drinks in and you're singing and dancing on the table."

"It won't just be the two of us. There is Sam Wilson, and his sister, and I suspect, her children as well. Apparently, she's the brain behind the Wilson family's seafood business."

"How very entrepreneurial of the Captain and his family. It can be difficult to make a living these days, even for superheroes like us," Thor said.

"Poor you," Loki said with absolute zero sympathy. 

"You look troubled," Thor observed. "Did something happen between the two of you? Lady Jane and I used to have disagreements from time to time, very loud ones too on occasions. It is nothing to be ashamed of. It is all part of a normal, healthy relationship."

Was theirs either of those things? Loki wondered. It certainly was not normal in the traditional sense, through no fault of his nor Bucky's. One was born a Jotun, the other a human whose altered life span may just rival Loki's own.

And Loki did not have the first inkling as to what a healthy relationship should look like. They were both still alive from not having killed each other, so…that should count for something, yet?

"No, no," Loki said. "We're…quite healthy, thank you very much."

"Good, good," Thor said. "I am glad to hear it."

Loki cleared his throat. "So will you not come? You can finally and properly be introduced to James, if that is your wish."

Thor's grin widened. "It is every older brother's wish to chaperone their only sibling on a date. When and where is this party?" 

"It's in Louisiana, and they are expecting us at…" Loki calculated the time difference in his head, "Now, actually."

"What?" Thor sputtered. "Now?"

"You've had supper," Loki grinned. "How about some lunch?"

***********************

If New York City was cloudy on the day he left Bucky's apartment, the sun sought vengeance over Delacroix that day, and Loki regretted not having dressed in something other than his black suit.

In contrast, Thor looked effortlessly bohemian as always in his baggy khaki pants and paisley shirt.

Catching sight of Captain America at the dock post, Thor exclaimed, "You did not tell me we were going on a boat!" and hurried down the pier with such enthusiasm Loki felt like throttling him with his tie. 

"Welcome aboard Paul & Darlene," Sam said proudly. "The jewel of the Wilson family. It's not new, but it's got zero shake, instant throttle response and the highest horsepower to weight ratio in all of the bay."

"It is a beauty," Thor said sincerely, admiring the newly painted boat. "I have commandeered a vessel or two in the past, and I have to say, when the wind is blowing in your hair and the goats bray in symphony while you watch the space dolphins mate in the sky, it is a feeling like no other."

"Brother," Loki admonished, "Here on Midgard, we don't outshine the host."

Sam laughed. "Now I get why they say you're the life of the party."

"Did you hear that, Brother?" Thor clapped Loki on the back. "I'm the life of the party."

Loki only gave a derisive snort. 

"Come on up, guys. Bucky's already inside, setting the table." Sam turned, and was about to lead his guests up the plank when he stopped. "Aaand now he's not."

"Hey." Bucky did a double take at the sight of Thor. "Your Majesty. I wasn't expecting you."

"Oh, look who's here, Loki!" Thor said, feigning surprise that convinced absolutely nobody. "It's Sergeant Barnes!"

"I'm a civilian now," Bucky said, shaking his head. "I'm just Bucky."

"Just Thor, then," Thor smiled, and grabbed Bucky's hand to shake it. "And it's very nice to finally make your acquaintance."

"You two act like you've never saved the world together before," Sam teased. "People might think we made the whole story up."

"Yeah, we've met, once or twice," Bucky said.

"Not in this capacity, we haven't," Thor said mischievously. "I'm Loki's plus one, because he's terrified of children and I was told there were going to be some."

Sam raised his eyebrows. "Oh, the kids aren't actually here, my sister's taken them out to take care of something."

Bucky's sharp eye caught the sudden blanching of Loki's face. "Hey, you okay?"

"Yeah," Loki mumbled. "It's just a bit hot out here."

"What are we standing around like a bunch of idiots for? Come on up, let's get out of this heat!" Sam shooed them up. "Jeez."

*************************

"The first time I met him, I made fun of his suit," Sam said. "I mean, dude looked like a cat! The only thing missing was a tail."

Thor guffawed. "And what did he say to that?" 

"He was very cool about it." Sam's smile turned wistful. "Launched into a speech about how the Black Panther was a mantle passed down from generation to generation."

"I envy him," Thor admitted, fiddling with his empty beer can as his gaze took on a thousand-yard stare. "He has left a legacy that will keep on protecting his beloved Wakanda, even after he's gone."

"You're not so bad yourself. New Asgard is thriving, from what I hear." 

"Yes, but I do worry sometimes," Thor confessed. "One day you're here, gone the next. Man or God."

"As long as you have family, you're never truly gone. You live on in them," Sam asked. "You…don't have children? A prince or princess you've kept hidden somewhere?"

"Is this place bugged?" Thor made a show of looking around the small dining space, before breaking into a hearty laughter. "Don't believe everything you read in the books, Captain. The stories are very often embellished accounts of the truth."

A giant arm snaked out and grabbed Loki around the shoulders. "I have my whole family right here."

Loki blushed, his paltry effort at removing said arm backfiring when Thor tightened his bear hug. "Thor, how many drinks have you had?"

"Not near enough!" Sam stood and opened a new can of beer, "Whoops!"

Thor caught the spilling froth with his bowl of clams, eliciting more laughter from the table. 

That was when Bucky noticed Loki's silence, as well as his untouched plate. 

"You're barely eating," Bucky whispered. "What's wrong? You don't like the food?"

"The food's delicious," Loki said with an apologetic smile. "I just don't have much of an appetite." 

"Did I do something wrong?" Bucky asked under his breath the question he had been dying to ask since Loki's abrupt departure the day before.

"Hmm?"

"Did I hurt your feelings or something?" Bucky pressed. "If I did, I want to know, so I can make it right."

"Oh, James." Loki reached under the table for Bucky's hand and squeezed it gently. "No, you did nothing wrong."

Far from feeling any relief, Bucky could sense his anxiety level skyrocket. "I tried calling you but you never answered. I wasn't sure if you were going to turn up, or if you were okay."

"Were you worried about me?" Loki teased, but his attempt at his usual playfulness fell wide of the mark, when Bucky's fingers tightened around his.  

"You know I was," Bucky answered quietly. 

He sneaked a look at the head of the table a few feet away where Thor was busy helping Sam crack open a batch of lobster claws, a task that proved too delicate for Thor's clumsy gigantic hands.

"You didn't have any side effects or anything, did you?"

"Side effects?" Loki queried. "From what?"

"I know nothing about magic, but what you did the other night, was it dangerous or something? Shifting form like that?" he asked helplessly. It was the only thing Bucky could think of that had been…new.

"No," Loki exhaled shakily. "No, it wasn't."

Bucky's confusion finally gave way to exasperation. "Then why are you acting so weird?"

Loki licked his suddenly dry lips. It was a mistake coming here today. Thor was a passable distraction to take the attention away from him, but the smell of the bay, the food, the beer, the exhaust fumes, they had all added to the pandemonium in his head. 

To make things worse, the boat was starting to move; Thor must have persuaded Sam to let him have a go at the helm.

"I'm in need of some fresh air." 

Loki pulled his hand out of Bucky's grasp, and to his credit, Bucky let it slip. As Loki rose from his table, Bucky called his name instead, quiet and beseeching. "Loki."

"Five minutes," Loki implored. "Just give me five minutes, okay? I am not going anywhere."

"Can I get you anything?"

At the look of intense desperation in Bucky's brown eyes, Loki relented. "A glass of soda water, if you have it?" 

Without wanting for an answer, Loki lurched toward the back of the boat. A blast of hot, fishy air hit him in the face but he gulped it in hungrily, causing his stomach to roil.

Loki grappled blindly for the handrail, fighting the urge to be ill, painfully aware of curious onlookers from the other boats moored at the dock. As the boat chugged along at a leisurely pace, he prayed that Sam would steer the boat faster out of the bay into open water.

Are you there? Loki asked the silent waters before him, the rumble of the engine mere white noise amid the cacophony of his thoughts. 

My legacy…is down there, Thor.

Loki keeled, almost bent double over the guardrail at the stern. 

My Jor.

Saying that name was the final straw. Loki's world blackened, and he pitched forward, plunging headfirst into the black, black water.

#winterfrost #mpreg #loki x bucky #mth 2022 #fic

[warlock0103]

💥 -Tanner 💥 - Loki

💥 -Archmage

💥 -Selvina

💥 - mirage

Ooh. Lotsa headcanons. Let's see... Gonna also do some general backstory stuff that would be odd to put elsewhere, or nobody asks about. Because why not, ya know?

Tanner: When Tanner was relatively young, about 20 something, he ran away from home due to a conflict with the Archmage. To do so, he went to a whole new world, where with his powers and strength led the populace to think him an Earth God of some kind.

Loki: Loki has "died" 4 times, each time reincarnating by either being born, or just popping into existence. His 3rd incarnation was a tyrant that literally brought the world to it's knees through sheer might. This was also the first and (so far) only time Loki was killed.

Archmage: Not much is known about him outside of his vast knowledge of magic, living almost alone in a castle large enough to house, feed, and protect a small country, and his three children. Tanner, Scarlet, and Rina. While he's never shown any outward hostility, or really ever been seen less than cheerful, that doesn't stop rumors from swarming about his intensions. The crowd favorite is that he's a demigod cursed to guard the lands.

Selvina: Selvina is a product of a God of Creation named Kenshin wanting to practice with an advanced spell that was sealed away. The purpose of the spell was to grant children to those who otherwise couldn't through natural means. Kenshin took the spell, and pushed it to it's limits, cherry picking traits that he wanted, and discarding those he deemed unneeded. The result of this first attempt was with a serpent and a priestess from his mother's temple. The snake was later kept in Gaea's temple as a sacred animal of sorts.

Mirage: Mirage was born in the slums in a very inland city called Norad. As a result, Mirage never learned how to swim. Later in her adventuring career, this resulted in her nearly drowning before the party druid turned into a dolphin to fish her out.

#ask #katanamasako #headcanon #lore #//tanner #//loki #//archmage #//selvina #//mirage

[headempty-onlyfrostiron]

Cold

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply Category: Other Fandoms: Marvel Cinematic Universe | Iron Man (Movies) Relationship: Loki/Tony Stark Characters: Loki (Marvel) | Tony Stark | Happy Hogan Additional Tags: They/Them Pronouns for Loki (Marvel) | POV Loki (Marvel) | Tony Stark Has A Heart | MerMay | Alternate Universe - Merpeople | Pre-Canon | Kissing Words: 758 A/N: Sequel to “Sand”

Summary:

Loki and Tony go on their first date, and Loki gets cold. (MerMay 2022: Day 13 - Cold)

Read on AO3 or below the cut

Loki grinned at themself, fixing their hair in the vanity Anthony had bought for them. 

Anthony had been showing them many movies, and Loki had been most interested in a genre called romantic-comedies . They saw that if humans were courting each other, they went on something called dates , and Loki wished to go on one with Anthony. Anthony had agreed somewhat confusedly, as Loki had never expressed interest in going on dates.

Loki tried on some of the jewelry Anthony had bought for them, many necklaces and earrings made of jewels. Loki knew that Anthony was very rich in the human world, like Loki had been when they was still a prince.

They could not decide what to wear, as many of the jewels did not match with their dress.

After a while of consideration, they chose a beautiful gold chain with a small seashell, with no earrings. 

They looked themselves over in the mirror. They had fluffed their shoulder length hair, something different from the normally slicked back look they had. They were wearing a gorgeous green dress that fit them perfectly, as Anthony had hired a tailor to take measurements of their body. Loki wasn’t completely sure why they needed to take measurements for a dress, could they not have gotten one from a store?

They patted down their dress, suddenly anxious. What if Anthony did not like it? What if Anthony decided to no longer date them? What if What if What if-

“Holy shit.”

Loki spun quickly, not noticing Anthony walking in, “Pardon?”

His eyes were wide, “You look gorgeous .”

They felt their face heat, “Thank you.”

Automatically, Anthony asked, “Pronouns?”

Loki grinned, Anthony had gotten quite good at remembering, which warmed Loki’s heart, “They and them.”

Anthony held out his arm, something Loki had seen in many movies. Loki placed their hand on Anthony’s elbow, and he led them to their limbo.

Loki laughed as they saw the limbo, it seemed Anthony wanted their date to be much like a romantic comedy.

Anthony opened the door for them, “After you.”

Loki grinned, getting into the car, “Thank you.”

Anthony hopped in after them, closing the car door with a thud . “Hey Happy,” he said to the driver, “Take us away!”

------

Loki grinned as they looked over the city skyline, Anthony had taken them to a beautiful restaurant high above the ground. Loki loved it.

They had never been this high before, as they had lived all their life under the sea, so it was quite the experience.

Anthony was smiling from over the table, “I’m guessing you like it?”

Loki nodded, “I love it.”

Anthony seemed relieved, “I’m glad.”

The waiter brought their food over, placing it silently onto the table.

Loki frowned, “We hadn’t ordered anything yet.”

Anthony grinned sheepishly, “I know, I ordered ahead of time so we wouldn’t have to wait.”

Loki titled their head, “I didn’t know you could do that.”

“You can’t, but money can.”

Loki laughed, shaking their head, “Anthony…”

He shrugged, “Yeah, yeah, I know.”

Loki dug into their plate, it tasted delicious . They closed their eyes, savoring the taste. 

Anthony laughed, and Loki opened their eyes, “Yes?”

“It’s just funny that every time you eat food, you love it.”

“Everything tastes good when all you’ve eaten is fish.”

Anthony made a disgusted face and Loki snorted, “I know. I don’t think I could ever go back.”

“I know I wouldn’t.”

Loki took another bite of their food, “After tasting human food, I don’t think I’ll ever go back.”

He raised an eyebrow, “That’s the only reason?”

“Of course not,” Loki said.

Anthony smiled, going to say something, but Loki cut him off, “There aren’t movies.”

Anthony rolled his eyes, “Only movies and food huh? Nothing about the human who, I don’t know, houses you ?”

“Oh yes,” Loki said sarcastically, “How could I forget?”

Anthony sighed, “I should have never taught you sarcasm.”

Loki smirked, “Yes, you did seal your fate.”

They took a sip of their ice cold water, and shivered.

“Are you okay?” Anthony asked, teasing gone.

Loki nodded, but they were still shivering, “I am just cold is all, human bodies are terrible at regulating temperature.”

Anthony got up, shrugging off his jacket.

“What are you-” Loki asked confused, but Anthony cut them off.

“Giving you my jacket.”

He placed the jacket around their shoulders, wrapping it tightly around them. 

Loki smiled at Anthony, “Thank you.”

Anthony placed a kiss on Loki’s mouth, “Anything for you… babe.”

Loki kicked him in the leg.

#loki #frostiron #tony stark #loki fanfic #headempty onlyfrostiron writes #mermay #mermay 2022 #headempty-onlyfrostiron writes #tony stark fanfic #loki x tony stark #merman loki

[iamnmbr3]

The whole premise of the show is that he’s finding himself after struggling with trauma from his daddy issues and torture during the first avengers. I guess that’s not what you wanted but I think he can still be a badass Viking god while battling his identity crisis. Just give the show time before you judge it.

Oh absolutely he can still be a badass Viking god while battling his identity crisis. My issue is not with the premise. It's with the execution. If I’d just read the interviews about the focus being on identity I'd be absolutely thrilled and eagerly looking forward to the show. I love stories that explore topics like that in general and I particularly love digging into all that where Loki is concerned.

My problem is with what i’ve seen in the trailers. And what I haven’t seen; namely, I haven't seen Loki. Where is he? I see a completely different character who happens to be played by Tom Hiddleston and be called Loki but otherwise has nothing in common with the character that I find so fascinating and emotionally evocative. If I didn’t know what show this was from I’d assume the clips were from Tom Hidldleston in a different role. A VERY different role.

There is nothing about TV!Loki that feels like the original character to me. Just watch the tv trailer and then watch these clips of him from Dark World or this clip from Avengers and you can easily see the stark difference even though it's supposed to be a show about TDW/Avengers era Loki.

Movie!Loki always stands with a straight posture, as befits his royal background. His expressions and the way he emotes are also very subtle. He tries to hide his true feelings and the feelings he does reveal are often to a certain extent performative in order to deflect from deeper issues. There is a stillness to him. He has tremendous economy of movement, even in a fight. He has a confident, artful speaking style. There is tremendous depth to him; he rarely says what he means but you can see all that conflict flickering in his eyes. He affects an insouciant manner. He makes a great show of being externally cool and collected and has a dry wit. He exudes charisma.

In the trailers TV!Loki has none of this. He doesn't stand straight and command the room. He doesn't exude charisma. He's not still at all; he constantly flails about, making grandiose over-exaggerated gestures that might work in a comic panel but feel awkward in live action. His facial expressions aren't subtle at all nor is he guarded with his emotions. Instead he pulls clownish, comedically exaggerated expressions that are really only suitable for slapstick comedy. He doesn't hide his vulnerabilities but instead openly shows fear, surprise and alarm, in a manner that is meant to be silly and comedic. He also doesn't talk at all like Loki. He uses casual earth slang like "gonna" and "crap" - things Loki would never say even in Ragnarok which gave the Asgardians a somewhat more casual speaking style. There is also no real depth.

TV!Loki in the scenes that have been shared is not performative in his emotions. He just openly shows what he's feeling at the moment. He's not cool or collected or confident, nor does he pretend to be. He yelps in alarm. He gasps in annoyance. He grimaces and gapes in clownish fear. He doesn't feel otherworldly or dangerous or regal. He doesn't snap and snarl when challenged but rather gapes like a fish because he can't think of a comeback. He just feels like a regular guy who is out of his depth. A very human guy. Except he doesn't even ring true as a human because the performance is too slapstick and comedic and over the top. He feels like a caricature.

This complete tonal and characterizational break with movie!Loki is what concerns me. The character in the trailer doesn't feel like Loki to me. He doesn't stand like him or react like him or talk like him or move like him or emote like him. Other than the name and the actor they have nothing in common.

To me this new character isn't Loki because other than the name he doesn’t behave at all like the character I know. If Loki had been characterized like this from the beginning I would have taken no interest at all in his character. All Disney has to do to get me to watch the show is to show me some footage that actually feels like Loki. I want a show exploring the identity of Loki, not the identity of some boring buffoonish clownish caricature who happens to be played by the same actor and have the same name as the character I liked.

I will be delighted if the trailers are not at all reflective of the show. My problem is not with the premise. It's the fact that the show is called Loki but I have yet to see any sign of him in the footage released.

#at this point i'm just hoping main timeline loki gets resurrected in the movies and the What If show gives us some loki content too #bc based on the trailers i'm not sure we'll be getting any loki in the show. despite the name. (I would be beyond thrilled to be wrong) #asks #Loki #loki tv series #do i need to tag #loki tv series negativity #? #loki series #loki show #loki 2021 #my post

[space-mermaid-writing]

House Arrest [Loki X Reader] Chapter 2

Summary: You are Clint’s 'little' sister and actually a trained Shield agent. But you gave that up a few years ago and became a Chef, because you wanted a normal live. Then one day Natasha shows up at your door and takes you to the Avenger Tower for a while for security reasons.

Tags: Reader is an former Shield Agent, chef!reader, Reader Barton, 2012 Avenger vibes, everything is still alright, Slice of Life, Avengers Family, Loki has a good heart, still the god of mischief, Slow Burn, mention of food and cooking

Read it on AO3

Chapter 2: Not the new kitchen help

You can now call a cozy apartment with two rooms and a nice bathroom your own. You have stored your things in the bedroom and are now looking around the tower. The living rooms seem to be spread over several levels. Either there are really a lot of people living here or they tried to keep a little space to avoid stepping on each other's toes all the time. Living and working together can be quite a challenge for some people. The floors above consist - judging by the signs - of labs and various development rooms. Most of it is probably technical stuff, but some of the doors also have concerning warnings, and you don't want to spend your first day trying to figure out if they're genuine.

You find the outdoor platform with the big A and see, then it’s connected to some sort of party or lounge room. There are several couch sets and a rather nicely equipped bar. Overall, everything is very spacious and you're sure you can walk around here for a few days without anyone noticing your presence. At least once, you think you've lost your bearings for a moment, but then you find your way back to the elevators. On the other hand, there was surprisingly little going on up here.

All floors below the living area seem to be offices, at least the names of the elevator buttons suggest that. You don't feel like visiting them right now, because the exploration tour has left you pretty hungry. The last meal was also your breakfast this morning and now it's almost afternoon. So you look for the room that interests you the most anyway. And you find it near the lounge: a wonderfully large kitchen with fantastic equipment. You explore it with interest and notice that it‘s visibly little used. Among the people and other beings here, there seems to be no one enjoying cooking. Saving the world probably takes up enough of their time. As you open the refrigerator, a voice suddenly comes from somewhere, startling you briefly at first. "Good afternoon, Miss Barton. If you have any requests regarding the food or ingredients, please let me know." You look around, but can't see anyone. "My name is JARVIS," the voice explains. "I am an A.I. and I am available to assist you." "Uh-huh...hello," you merely reply, processing this information. Jarvis, meanwhile, continues talking. "Welcome to the Tower. The other Avenger members have been notified of your arrival in a memo." "Okay, thanks." It‘s a bit weird talking to a room, but apparently modern technology has already reached the next level here. Hearing nothing more, you start inspecting the contents of the refrigerator. The result is quite sobering. "It's all just fast foods," you grumble. "Would you like to suggest changes in the selection?", Jarvis asks. "Yes! Please and thank you." "You're welcome to make a shopping list, and I'll have everything ordered." Why not? Regardless of whether a computer can really do it, you nod. "Okay." "A personal tablet will be calibrated for you. You can pick it up from Mr. Banner."

A few minutes later you find yourself in the labs on the upper floors. The sterile lit hallway reminds you much more of Shield than the lower floors. You turn a corner and have to go down some stairs that lead you into a large room. Here, tables are jumbled with various types of modern computers and equipment. Further back is a robotic arm soldering a hard drive all by itself with a quiet whir. It’s a dream for any technology enthusiast. From one corner, you hear typing and beeping, followed by quiet murmurs. That's where you turn, looking at the whiteboards on the wall along the way, where complicated calculations and drawings could be seen. Then suddenly, right in front of you, a hologram appears in the air and you stop, rooted to the spot. "Oops!" "Oh, sorry." A head pops up from behind a nearby screen and you recognize Bruce Banner. His face is always shown on the news whenever there's been a shot of Hulk. But now you're more interested in the hologram as you take a closer look. It shows a nebulous, pulsating entity. "What is that?" you ask the scientist. "We got some cosmic stones. This was in one of them." "It's moving. Is it alive?" "Living would be an exaggeration, but there is energy present. My name is Dr. Banner, by the way." He reduzes the size the hologram so it's out of your way. "Barton, nice to meet you." "Clint's sister, I read the file. He never mentioned you though." "I didn't want any attention, but didn't quite work out, I guess." Bruce smiles sympathetically and reaches for a cup of tea, which, judging by his expression after the first sip, seems to be cold. You ask for the tablet you came for, and Bruce looks around searchingly. There are a few of them in the room, but the display of one lights up, drawing your attention. You see your name displayed and simply conclude that it's the right one. Briefly you say thank and goodbye, before you go back to your room and start making a shopping list. Please fresh ingredients and please deliver today.

Afterwards, you browse around a bit. The tablet, like every electronic device in the house, seems connected to the main computer and to Jarvis. You pull up a few files on your new housemates and read them curiously. At least the parts that are publicly available. You also take the opportunity to look for your own name. Because even though you know that your records were officially destroyed when you left, you know that no data is ever really gone. So you're almost surprised when you find only a few sentences about yourself and not even a photo. Mainly it was about your and Clint's entry into Shield at a young age as orphans. You had received a pretty good education, which may have also kept you from going off the rails. Besides hand-to-hand combat and firearms training, your specialty was handling knives, while your brother took up bows and arrows. For foreign missions, you had also had to learn various languages and had chosen the widely spoken Spanish and Russian. But you didn't work for Shield for a long time, instead opting out of your career early on. It just wasn't the life you wanted to lead. So you changed cities and mingled with the civilian population. And before you knew it, your talent with a knife led you into a traditional apprenticeship as a chef. You enjoyed this work more than having to fight to death, and you even expanded your knowledge and skills during a year abroad in France. But there is very little of all this in your records.

You set the tablet aside and stretch out on your new bed. Normally, you would be in full swing at work right now. A glance at the clock reveals that it's already early evening. Rush hour in most of the restaurants. But here? Without a task or a plan, there's not much you can do. On the other hand, a little vacation wouldn't hurt you.

At some point, the tablet gave a soft ping and when you checked, it was a notification that the refrigerator and all the pantries had been restocked. By now you are very hungry and you heard nothing about a joint dinner time, so you decide to cook yourself something. Out of sheer habit and to avoid getting your clothes dirty, you put on a chef's jacket and apron you brought from home and go into the kitchen. There's a radio in one corner that you turn on. Jarvis really did get everything you had asked for. It was a dream come true. Now in a much better mood, you grab a pan and get to work. From the freezer, you pull out a fish, which you gut and fill with fresh herbs. It goes into the pan first. Then it's the turn of the potatoes, which are peeled, boiled and rolled in rosemary.

You're so absorbed in your work - you've just poked a knife into the boiling potatoes to see if they're already done - that you don't notice a visitor, who had entered the kitchen at some point, until he makes himself known. "I'll have the course menu and a white wine to go with it." Somewhat confused, you look up as you hear the man's voice and see Tony Stark standing at the sideboard across from you. He notices your look and returns it with a smile. "I didn't realize we hired a new kitchen help." You frown and take a sharpening rod in your free hand to sharpen your knife while not taking your eyes off Tony. "Oh, I'm not a new kitchen help," you clarify. "I'm a chef." "Excuse me. Then would the chef please serve me the course menu and a white wine?" The trillionaire indicates a polite bow, but you merely turn to the stove and take the potatoes off it. You then retrieve a plate from the cupboard. "Jarvis", you direct your voice to the computer, hoping it’s still listening. "Would you please explain to Mr. Stark that I'm not here to cook for him and that he'll have to order his course menu, if he really wants one, from the Chinese place next door?" "Mr. Stark, I'm supposed to-." "I heard her, Jarvis," Tony interrupts the A.I., eyeing you a little more closely now. "That does make me wonder what you're doing here, Miss...? Aside from the fact that there's no Chinese working next door." "Then you should make one move in there," you replay amused. As you do, you wipe your fingers on the cloth you've hung on the apron at your hip and prep your dish. Just as Tony is about to say something clever, the door opens and another person walks in. You recognize Thor at first glance. "What's that delicious smell in the air?", he asks, looking around curiously. You smile and point to the stove. "I was just cooking. There's still some left for you to take." With that, you want to go to your room, but Tony stops you. "Oh, he gets something, but I don't?", he complains. You shrug your shoulders. "He didn't want a whole menu." With that, you disappear through the door and go back to your living quarters. There you quickly change into something comfy and make yourself comfortable on the couch, where you watch an episode of your favorite show while you eat. A little company would be nice, but you don't feel like meeting more people you don't know yet. And you don't feel like searching for Natasha in this huge complex. So you’re fine with being by your own right own.

After dinner, you continue watching the show, but eventually you realize you're getting tired. It really had been an eventful and long day. So you quickly take your dirty dishes back to the kitchen. But just as you're closing the dishwasher, Tony comes back in and leans against the frame with his arms crossed. "So… you‘re a Barton." Apparently he had spent a few minutes of his precious time gathering information about you and then waited for you to reappear. "Surprised there's another one?" you ask with a smirk. He takes that as a sign that you're not holding a grudge against him. He pushes himself off the door frame and comes closer, now leaning his arms on the kitchen island. "Nothing about Legolas surprises me anymore. Met his wife and kids the other day. Nice family. Are you guys a whole circus?" "Not anymore." You shrug. "So, what’s your deal?", he wants to know. "You left Shield in your early twenties. What's normal life like out there? No one waiting for you to come home?" You turn on the dishwasher and grab a water bottle from the supply. "Life is nice. Often stressful, but I have to worry a lot less about getting killed." You don't answer Tony's last question. It's really none of his business. "That is when you're not being yanked out of that life and brought into the house of superheroes", you add. "You'll get used to it. Both that we're super and that we're heroes. I promise." You laugh at his words. Tony seems to be a real egocentric, but also a humorous person. "Well, let's see", you reply, "Now if the welcome speech is over, I'd like to go to bed." "I won't keep anyone away from their beauty sleep. Good night." You wish him the same, then head back to your room, where you make yourself comfortable on the large bed. The strange surroundings were unfamiliar, but not you don't feel uncomfortable and so you soon fall asleep.

#Loki #Loki x Reader #House Arrest #Chapter 1 #my writing #Clint #clint barton #hawkeye #loki laufeyson #imagine #chef reader #mcu #marvel

[lokifantasies]

Ainsley (Loki/Jade/Reader) PART 3

Loki informs you of Ainsley's actions.

Read the Mischievous Life series here!

Follow Jade here!

Follow Loki here!

Jade becomes numb – the ability to feel seems to have left as she breaks down in her father's arms – No more tears left to shed. Loki helps his daughter up and guides her back into the house. You watch as the father and daughter enter, but before you can ask what happened, Loki holds up an index finger – the universal signal for, "give me a minute."

Loki leads Jade into her room and helps her crawl into her bed, but as she's trying to get as comfortable as she can, she reaches under her back and pulls out something that has her in tears again.

"She left Stewart," Jade sobs – hiding her face in Loki's chest when his arms wrap back around her. Jade clutches onto the stuffed duck – the first present that Jade ever bought for Ainsley. "Dad, why did she leave Stewart?"

Loki fights to keep his own tears from falling. "I don't know, my love," he says softly – rubbing her back and kissing the top of her head. "Please...try to get some rest."

Jade shakes her head. "No," she says through shaky breaths. "I can't sleep in this bed."

"Would you like to use ours?" Loki offers up without a second thought. "Your mother and I can sleep in the living room."

Jade nods and looks at her father with teary eyes – wrapping her arms around his neck once more before getting her breathing under control. "I love you, dad."

"I love you too," Loki responds. "I'll come and check on you later, okay, sweetheart?" Loki tells Jade – giving her a warm smile as the teenager fishes for some comfortable pajamas to put on.

Jade wants nothing more than to go to sleep, wake up next to Ainsley, and breathe a sigh of relief that it was just a horrible nightmare.

In a few hours, Jade learns that there was no such nightmare – this was real life.

Loki walks back into the living room – prompting you to get up from the sofa and approach him. He looks conflicted – his thoughts clearly moving a million miles a second. Once you get close enough, Loki grabs your hand and leads you back over to the sofa. You sit across from him and try to wait for him to speak, but the silence is far too deafening.

"Loki...what happened?" you ask softly and with worry. "Ainsley came runni -,"

"Ainsley came onto me," Loki blurts out – knowing that it's better to go ahead and get it out in the open rather than beat around the bush.

Your eyes widen in shock, and your breath hitches. "What?"

Loki nods and closes his eyes – taking a deep breath and holding your hands before explaining. "Jade saw it," he tells you – your heart shattering for your daughter. "Ainsley managed to cast a realistic clone, and when I told her I was proud of her...she, uh, kissed me."

"She kissed you?" you ask with a bit of offense and anger. "Did you –,"

"Absolutely not," Loki interrupts – knowing exactly what you're going to ask. "I pushed her away as soon as I realized what she was doing – no, I didn't like it." You nod your head and pull your fiancé to your lips – wanting to get rid of any trace of your daughter's ex-girlfriend on him, but Loki breaks away before you're ready. "There's more," he whispers against your lips.

"What do you mean?" you ask – resting your forehead against his.

Loki leans back so that he can look you in the eyes as he continues to tell you the story of what happened. He's nervous – a nervousness that you've never seen before from him. "Before I was able to push her off...Ainsley, well, she uh...she thought it would be a good idea to grab me."

Tears start to gather in your eyes at his words. "What do you mean by grabbing?" Loki averts his eyes – letting a tear finally fall on the sofa cushion. "Loki...," you beg – reaching out to tilt his head up – wanting to look into his ocean eyes.

"I can't believe this is happening," Loki mutters under his breath before taking a deep breath in. Finally, he looks up at you – his eyes filled with worry and fear. "I mean that she...grabbed what belongs to you." You begin to catch on, but your eyes and desperation for a further explanation urge him on. "My dick," Loki finally confesses – the weight finally off his shoulders now that you're aware. However, he can easily see that the weight has now been given to you – your eyes expressing your hurt and anger.

Taglist (let me know if you want to be added!)

@radicallyred @holdmytesseract @vicmc624 @mm2305 @nms224 @clockblobber @missdforever @winchestersgirl222 @sallymagnoliaposts @darkacademictrash @yellowballoon @1marvelnerd3000 @lynnsthoughts @imliketotallyclueless

#loki fanfic #loki fandom #loki family #loki x reader #loki x you #dad!loki #daddy!loki #domestic!loki #mischievous life #god of mischief #loki x jade #loki jade reader #jade lokisdottir #loki drama #loki angst

[sukorakurai]

@snarkyship is a true genius. I commission this Stark Family Portrait and I couldn’t be happier. I wrote a little fic to accompany this fabulous Picture. hope you all enjoy.

Stark Family Picture Day

 By Sukora Kurai

  Tony sighed over the counter in the communal kitchen. He had been there since dawn when he asked Jarvis what day it was. Then his trusty AI informed him of an importance of this month. Now he was stuck with what to do now.

 “Hey Tony what’s got you down?”

 “Hey Capsicle, I’m doomed.”

 “Oh come on Tony, it can’t be that bad you are an Avenger.” Steve smiled as he got out food to make omelets for the Team, and greeted the in coming members. “Morning Nat, morning Bruce.”

 “Morning Steve, what’s wrong with Tony?” Bruce greeted heading to the stove to put the kettle on for his morning tea.

 “Not sure I found him like this.” Steve stated cracking some eggs into a bowl.

 “His and Loki’s anniversary is this month and he has no idea what to get him.” Nat answered pouring a large mug of coffee.

 Tony shot up in his seat and stared slack jawed. “How could you possibly know that?”

 “It’s my job as a shield Agent and Pepper’s PA to keep tabs on you. So it is well documented when you clumsily asked Loki to be your boyfriend during the Lord of the Rings Marathon where you bought out the AMC Theater for the day.” The Spy shrugged ignoring the fact that all her team mates stared at her in horror. All were now wondering what she had on them in those SHIELD files.

 “So Tony, you have and anniversary coming up? Have you though about what Loki might like?” Steve coughed drawing the conversation back to the main topic.

 “No, I don’t. What does one give a god especially one that has magic and can make anything appear out of thin air?” Tony waved his arms in frustration.

 “That is a tough one but I’m sure anything you get him will be fine. Loki loves you Tony.” Bruce tried to be supportive.

 “I hope you will be putting more thought into the gift you give me next month for our anniversary.” Nat gave the Gamma Doctor a pointed before wandering out of the room to start her routine before heading out to work.

 “Ha, I’m not the only one in hot water now!” Tony crowed at the look of devastation in his science-bro’s face.

 “Tony, knock it off. Now in my day it was the thought that counted most. You should find what Loki cherishes the most. You find that then you can present to him in a meaningful way. It’s true he’s a prince and probably has had his other lovers throw jewels and meaningless expensive trinkets at him to win his affections. You know Loki better because you love him and he loves you.” Steve pointed out.

 “Yeah, Lokes complains a lot about his life in Asgard and that there were many who wooed him just to get to Thor. At night when it’s just the two of us and RC snuggled between us he sighs soft and says what a perfect night it is. He never elaborates but I think it means that he likes just the quiet nights with us.” The genius eyes went glazed as he recalled the many nights he cuddled with his god. Then the idea hit him. “Hey Spangles, can you paint or do you just draw?”

 “Huh,” Steve was caught off guard and almost dropped the omelet he was flipping. “I paint from time to time.”

 “Don’t lie babe you are in your studio whenever can get the chance.” Bucky laughed entering the kitchen. “All the paintings in our apartment Stevie did.”

 “Great! Can you do a portrait if I get you a picture?” Tony asked digging in to the ham and cheese omelet.

 “Yeah, it might take two weeks maybe less depends on if we get called out or if SHIELD needs me.” The captain estimated placing another plate in front of his boyfriend.

 “As long as it’s done before the end of the month we’re good.  Jarvis start looking through my photos and pull out any possible portraits.”

 “Yes, sir.”

 “Delicious breakfast as usual Capsicle. I’ll get you the photo as soon as I find one.” Tony dumped his empty plate in sink and ran off to his lab.

 Two hours later…

 “None of these are good enough J.”

 “Sir, might I suggest you take a new photo of you and Prince Loki.”

 “Yeah and RC too, because she’s our baby. We can’t have a Family Portrait without all the family members. Where’s are RC now?”

 “She is currently with Alpine in his play room.”

 “Cool, I think I got the perfect outfit in mind.” Tony grinned as he ran to his emergency closet in the lab. Tony had put in the closet when he realized he destroyed a lot of his clothes during his inventing and building phases. Also there was a suit or two for the days he forgot he was supposed to be in a meeting and had to make a rush to the board room.

  In the penthouse…

  It had been a quiet morning with no call outs, no calls to Asgard and no need to go anywhere. Loki decided to enjoy the peace and quite lounging in his soft Asgardian casual clothes on the couch reading his mother’s spell journal.

 “Hey there, Bambi! It’s Picture Day!”

 “Anthony, what are you on about?” The prince looked up from his book to see his lover carrying their cat into the living room.

 “Well Picture Day refers to the day school kids take pictures for the yearbook and photos are bought for family distribution. Anyways I want to have a family picture that was honest. I never had that growing up because Howard was an asshole and Maria, my mother, was frail. She loved me but she couldn’t express it because she was always ill. Now we have our own little family and I want a picture to put in the lab.”

 “You want to take this picture now? Anthony, I look a mess and how did you get the bow on the cat?”

 “Aww, you look gorgeous, love, as always. Anyways, I put a bow on our baby because RC loves to look pretty for her daddies. Don’t you sweetie.” Tony scratched under the kitty’s chin as they sat on couch next to the god.

 “Mew,” RC purred.

 “Fine, you win, where would you like to take the picture? Also what are you wearing? I don’t believe I’ve seen that outfit before, and what is on your feet?” Loki set his book aside and took in his lover’s appearance.

 “Oh you like? I dressed in red and gold to match my shoes. I had these shoes made based on my Iron Man suit. I thought maybe putting them on the market for kids but I liked them too much to share. So I have a life time supply in the lab. If you want I can have a pair made for you.”

 “No thank you. They clash with my outfit. Now let’s take your picture.” Loki said taking the cat in his arms.

 “Okay, okay. Let me get out my phone.” Tony fished his Stark Phone out of his back pocket and held it out to make them all fit in the frame. “Okay say cheese!”

 “Click”

 “Okay let’s see how that one turned out.” Tony looked at the photo to see him smiling a black blur and a bland look on Loki’s face. “Nope we got try again. This time smile Loki and RC you need to stay still so we can see you.”

 And it went picture by picture they have yet to take a family portrait.

 “Shit I only got half your face.”

 “Anthony your thumb is on the lens.”

 “RC Stay still!”

 “Achoo! Ow! I dropped on my foot!”

 “Do not eat my hair you Retched Creature!”

 “Okay I set it up on a tripod. Now say cheese.”

 “CHEESE BROTHER!” Thor popped up between the two men who stared at shock at the blond god.

 “Next!” Tony rolled his eyes as Loki vanished his brother to where ever. Tony didn’t ask where the Loki sent Thunder god. He rather liked staying in the tower and wanted to keep it that way.

 “Meow!”

 “No RC! Don’t chase the bunny!”

 Three Hours Later…

 “Okay, this is it I can feel it. Now Jarvis is going to take the picture the bunnies are secure in their room. The penthouse is locked down, so no unexpected guest and RC is filled of milk to keep her calm and relaxed. And I promise after we get this picture I will have Jarvis order you favorite meal from the Thai Palace down the street and I’ll rub your feet, while we watch you favorite Harry Potter movies.”

 “Oh Anthony you spoil me. I love you.” Loki sighed as a soft smile graced his face and he leaned into his lover as Tony joined their hands together. RC who was seated now on the god’s shoulder leaned in and purred soaking up the love of her people. The genius couldn’t be happier in that moment as he had his to precious family members with him and the grin on his face was wide and bright.

 “Click.”

 Two Weeks Later…

 “Sir Prince Loki and Mr. Odinson have returned from Asgard.”

 “Great, I got everything ready. Tell Loki that I have dinner ready and waiting.”

 “Yes, sir.” Tony had the table set with Loki’s Favorite food from the five star steak house, they go to. He paid extra to have the chef come over and cook for their anniversary.

 “Ding.”

 “Thank you, Jarvis. Evening Anthony, never in my life had been so glad to leave Asgard. He talked for hours at the council over stagnant topics. What’s all this?”

 “Well my hard working God of Mischief, today is our one year Anniversary and I have planned the perfect evening. Dinner, a bath and I installed a movie screen in our bathroom so we can enjoy the movie of your choice during the bath and then I plan on us making love until dawn.” Tony pulled Loki over to the dinner table, watching as the god’s magic removed the armor and replaced it with comfortable Asgardian wear.

 “You lovely little man, you spoil me so; I don’t deserve it or you.” The Raven pulled the billionaire into his arms and planting kisses all over the man’s face.

 “Yes you do, because I love you and I got you something, well I got Cap to make it, but it was my idea.”

 “You didn’t have to, dinner is more than enough.”

 “No, I wanted to. Now close your eyes and I’ll get your present.” As Loki closed his eyes Tony ran out of the room and grabbed the portrait from where he hid it. He placed it on the wall then Jarvis turned on the lights illuminating the painting. “Okay open them.”

 “Oh Anthony! It’s wonderful.” Loki’s eyes became all misty seeing their little family together and there was so much love radiating from painting. “It’s perfect.”

 “Happy Anniversary Reindeer Games.”

 “Happy Anniversary, my Man of Iron.” Loki whispered pulling Tony in to the sweetest kiss they ever shared. They didn’t hear the click sound of Jarvis capturing the moment with the sunset background. Another memory to save for another day.

 The End.

#fanart #fiction from fanart #iron frost #frostiron #ironfrost #Iron Man #tony x loki #loki x tony #loki #random black cat #tony stark #Avengers #Marvel MCU #Family Portrait

[lailyn]

Sole Provider

Characters: Loki/Tony Stark, Stephen Strange, Christine Palmer

Summary: Tony should have just let Loki order the fish.

___________________

Tony let out a groan.

“Are you alright, Anthony?” Loki asked politely. 

“Sole meunière again?”

“Is this not a seafood restaurant?” Loki queried. “Do they not serve fish? Please don’t tell me this is one of those pretentious fusion places that put chicken korma into a sushi and call it a taco.”

“Okay, that sounds bizarre but also kinda delicious. No, I mean, yes, this is a seafood place but come on, there’s gotta be something else you can try.”

“Why? I share Julia Child's sentiment, no other dish can quite compare. It is simple yet elegant and absolutely delicious."

"I don’t know why we bother going out to eat if you're going to be ordering the same thing everytime,” Tony complained. 

"Funny you should say that. It is a luxury afforded me only here on Midgard.”

Tony blinked, momentarily confused. "But you're a prince.”

“Was.”

“You and your brother, you can’t be any more different,” Tony said, shaking his head in amazement. “I mean, I've seen the way Thor eats, he’s always telling us stories of the feasts you guys used to have back in the day.”

“Ah yes.” Loki made a face. “The feasts. Norns forbid I should develop an affinity for anything. Father would make sure it would never appear at our table again.”

“Why?” Tony braced himself for another gruesome story about Odin and his inimitable parenting style. “Isn’t feeding your kids what they like a universally good thing?”

“Not if it makes it easier for people to poison them,” Loki said darkly. “You shouldn’t be so predictable in life, Anthony. You make it easy for someone to put a knife to your throat when you sleep in the same bed every night.”

“That’s why all my penthouses have ten bedrooms, minimum,” Tony said dryly. "Remind me to get the builder in this week so I can make you a secret compartment for all your daggers."

"There is no safer place for my daggers than on my person," Loki said.

"Where do you keep them anyway? Yeah, I know they're on your person, but where exactly on your person?"

"For all your exploring, you still haven't figured that out?" Loki teased. "I suppose Thor never told you about Mjollnir? He could make it so tiny he could carry it everywhere."

"I can't believe I'm saying this but can we please get back to the topic?" Tony pleaded. "You said you were starving. I'm just saying, maybe eat something substantial? Hey, look, soft shell crabs are in season. Let's get that."

Loki sneered. "I don't trust anything that cannot decide if they want to live on land or in water."

"That must be related to some shapeshifter logic I know nothing about but does the habitat really matter as long as it tastes good?"

"And yet you claim to have a very discerning palate."

"For whisky, sure."

"So your last meal on Earth would be - ?"

"Cheeseburgers, yeah."

________________

Loki poked his fork into the mound of deep-fried things. "Crabs aren't supposed to be this soft. Has this gone bad? Things go mushy when they go bad, right? Like bananas and dead bodies?"

“Bambi, this is a three Michelin star restaurant," Tony said patiently. "Any fresher than that you're gonna have to peel the shells off the moulting crabs yourself."

"And bring Njord's wrath upon my head? No, thank you."

"Then you'd better dig in. I'm sure your god friend would want you to enjoy and appreciate all the bounties of the sea."

"The things I do for you, Stark…" Loki twirled his fork around a few strands of pasta and a piece of crab. 

Tony watched Loki chew slowly at first, before picking up pace, swallowing the first mouthful with an appreciative hum.

"That went down easy," Tony observed happily. 

He was about to dig into his own dish, an exquisite squid ink pasta dish with abalone and mussels, when Loki began coughing. 

Tony looked up. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Something just went down the wrong way," Loki coughed harder. He thumped his chest with his fist several times. "Excuse me."

“It's not spicy, is it?" Tony asked, filling Loki’s glass with some water from the pitcher. "Here, drink this."

Loki gave a vehement shake of the head, clenching the table in a white-knuckled grip as he let out a string of harsh, painful-sounding coughs. 

Tony watched in growing horror as Loki grabbed his throat.

"Tony," he called hoarsely. "I can't -  breathe - "

Tony scrambled out of his chair, just as Loki toppled off of his. "Loki!"

Hearing the thump from Loki's unceremonious landing on the floor, the nearby tables began to gather around theirs. 

Tony held his lover's lolling head between his hands. Loki's chest rose up and down but he could not seem to get a single breath in. "Loki!"

"Is he choking?" A man asked loudly. "Does anybody know Heimlich?"

"Somebody call an ambulance!"

"Oh my God, he's turning blue!"

"Excuse us!" A loud voice and a louder man pushed through the crowd. "Can everybody step back and give us some room?"

"What are you doing to him?" Tony demanded. 

The tall, grumpy-looking man ignored him and simply focused on loosening Loki's tie and exposing his chest.

"Hey, I'm talking to you!" Tony was about to grab the man, when a hand landed on his shoulder.

He turned around to see a petite red-haired woman smiling down at him.

"It's alright, we're doctors," she said apologetically. "We can help."

She directed her next question to her companion. "What do you think, Stephen? An anaphylactic reaction?"

"Looks like," Stephen said gruffly. "His lips are swelling up, and he's breaking out in hives."

The doctor groped around in his dinner jacket and fished out what appeared to Tony to be some kind of hand-held flashlight, long and thin. He uncapped it, revealing a needle at the tip. 

With one confident stroke, the man stabbed the pen-like device right into Loki's thigh. 

"Whoa, what is that?" Tony demanded.

"It's an Epi-pen," Stephen explained impatiently. "Didn't your GP supply you with one? You're not supposed to go anywhere without it when you have a life-threatening allergy, don't you know that?"

"I don't - he didn't - " Tony mumbled. "We didn't know."

The pretty redhead glowered at her date and kept her hand on Tony's shoulder. "It's okay. He's going to be okay."

"Not if he keeps sticking around with you," Stephen mumbled under his breath. 

"Stephen," she hissed. 

"Christine," he mimicked, before turning his wrath upon Tony once more. "You go on a date with someone, you let them order whatever they freaking want. And before you ask, I wasn't eavesdropping, I just have very good hearing. Was it because you were picking up the check?"

Tony could not believe his ears. "Excuse me?" 

"It was either that or you're a major control freak," Stephen muttered, pointedly turning his back to feel for the pulse on the side of Loki's neck. "Consider yourself lucky I was here, Mr Stark. The press would have had a field day."

Before Tony could come up with a scathing response, Loki began to stir. 

The colour returned to his cheeks, just as the blue left his lips.

"Tony?" He whispered.

Tony shouldered the insufferable doctor out of the way. "I'm here, baby."

Green eyes fluttered open. They quickly came into focus, before widening in alarm at the sight of the crowd. 

"What happened? Why am I on the floor?" Loki tried to push himself up, but Stephen's firm hand on his shoulder kept him on the ground. "Who are you people?"

"People whose dinner is now ruined, thanks to you." Stephen's words may be harsh but his voice was gentle. "See, Christine. This is why I have the Epi-pen, on my person, at all times."

"Yes, yes," she said, rolling her eyes in exasperation. "Dr Stephen Strange, ladies and gentleman. Once a hero, always a hero."

Loki grew even more confused. "Doctor?"

"I am so, so sorry, Loki." Tony sounded near tears. "I damn near killed you."

Stephen heaved a loud sigh. "It wasn't you, idiot."

"Tony, why is this man calling you names?"

"Not important." Tony kissed Loki's knuckles over and over. "He can call me anything he likes. He just saved your life."

"Yes, that will be two thousand dollars, made out to Doctor Stephen Strange, MD, PhD. You can find me at Metro-General, everyone knows who I am."

A wide smile began to spread across Stephen's face. It made him look frightening, and frighteningly handsome at the same time. It was every bit as frightening as his next words.

"I have a feeling we will be very good friends."

#whumptober2022 #no.22 #allergic reaction #the avengers #fic #frostiron #doctor stephen strange #is a bamf #also an asshole #sick loki #loki whump #anaphylaxis

[griefpersevering]

sometimes you bend, sometimes you stand

the lokius beach fix-it fic nobody asked for

[Read on AO3] [Buy me a coffee?]

“Who are you?”

Loki stares at him for a long moment, his heart sinking in his chest. First Sylvie, now Mobius… maybe Lokis are destined to lose.

“What?” he asks, still breathing heavily.

The last few days have all melded into one; an indecipherable blur of racing for survival and not much else. With so much happening in quick succession since his failure in New York, it’s impossible to tell whether it has been days or weeks or months since he first arrived at the TVA.

Mobius doesn’t answer, just raising an eyebrow at him.

Loki allows his eyes to wander, assessing the situation and resigning himself to a fight. If Mobius doesn’t know who he is… well, there’s a chance he could get pruned again, and he would like to avoid that situation. Currently, the only people he can see are B-15 - who shouldn’t be too much of a problem - and Mobius, who he would prefer not to hurt, but if he doesn’t recognise him then-

Mobius bursts out laughing, B-15 snickering behind him. She claps him on the shoulder before waving goodbye and wandering off, still laughing to herself as she leaves.

“Sorry, I’m sorry,” Mobius says between breaths, his confusion replaced with a smile. “That was mean. I just couldn’t help myself.”

“Mobius?” Loki ventures, still wary.

“Look, all that stuff about the Multiverse or whatever?” he replies, waving a hand dismissively. “Not our problem. I’ve officially retired, and I’ve got an excellent retirement plan. Fancy joining me?”

Loki crosses his arms, frowning. “You tricked me.”

Mobius shrugs. “Seems only fair.”

He tries not to smile. “You’re sure the TVA can deal with the Multiverse?”

“Yep, B-15’s taking care of it. Now, come on, there’s a beach waiting for us.”

Mobius fiddles with his TemPad for a moment, a doorway opening up in front of them. He takes a few confident strides towards it before hesitating, looking around the library one last time.

“You don’t have to come with me, you know,” he says, not meeting Loki’s eyes. “I know… I know a quieter life doesn’t really agree with Lokis. You can stay for the fight, if you want, or for Sylvie.”

Loki’s chest constricts at the mention of her, but he forces a small, sad smile onto his face. “You can’t get rid of me that easily,” he answers, and Mobius smiles.

“For all time, then,” he says, extending his hand to Loki.

“Always,” he finishes, taking it as they step through the doorway together.

keep reading under the cut!

1991

The other side of the portal is exactly what Mobius promised: a beach. But what he failed to mention is the beauty of said beach - it isn’t just any old strip of sand, but one of the most breathtaking places Loki has ever had the honour of visiting.

They take a few steps into this new world, their shoes filling up with sand and their hands still entwined as they let their eyes adjust to the bright light. Loki pauses to slip off his socks and shoes, the sand warm and soft between his toes. Mobius follows suit, leaning on Loki for balance, a huge smile on his face.

“It should only be a few minutes walk from here,” Mobius announces, grinning.

“What is?” Loki asks, but he doesn’t get an answer. For once in his life, he isn’t sure he needs one, happy to go along with whatever adventure Mobius has planned.

They walk in comfortable silence, their feet sinking into the sand as they take in the tropical sights. To their left is a bay filled with sparking water which disappears past the land out to the horizon. In the distance, Loki can see a much busier beach by what appears to be a town. If he listens carefully enough, and the wind is blowing in the right direction, he can hear a hundred conversations carrying across the bay at once, a pleasant white noise that mixes with the sound of lapping waves.

To their right is a row of secluded houses, all enveloped in lush greenery that grows from the forest behind them, seeming to lean forwards and envelop them. Their front doors are all painted a variety of bright colours - red, yellow, purple, orange, pink - apart from the one at the end, which is just the default brown.

Mobius pulls a set of keys out of his pocket, a tiny fish keyring hanging from them. “This one is ours,” he declares, and he tugs Loki towards the little cottage at the end of the row.

It takes him a moment to find the right key to unlock the door before it swings open, a neutral brown and white hallway greeting them. He leaves his shoes on the mat outside the front door, Loki following suit, before venturing inside their new house.

Loki can’t say he is surprised by the decor - it isn’t exactly reminiscent of the TVA, but everything is decorated to look almost like a show home. There are no bright colours, no personal touches, nothing to indicate that anyone has ever lived there before them.

Just as Loki opens his mouth to say something, Mobius wrinkles his nose and beats him to it.

“Would it kill someone to pick up a paintbrush?” he complains, but he’s still smiling. “That’s what you get for a company retirement plan that’s only been in place for six hours, I guess… we’ll have to do it all ourselves.”

Loki raises an eyebrow. “Company retirement plan?”

Mobius grins. “We have a lot to catch up on. Come on, why don’t you get cleaned up, and I’ll get us something to drink.”

As soon as he leaves the room, Loki rolls his eyes and waves his hand, using his magic to clean the blood and the dirt off of him and to change into a pair of shorts and a bright green haiwaiian t-shirt. And, now that he thinks about it… he frowns and uses what little magic he has left in him to spruce up the place a bit, before collapsing onto the (admittedly, very comfy) couch.

Mobius returns only a few minutes later, raising his eyebrows at the way Loki is sprawled across the sofa, his eyes closed. He looks around the room, taking in the few things that Loki has added - a blanket draped across the back of the couch, a wooden coffee table with a golden bowl of fruit placed neatly on top, and a framed poster of a jet ski on the far wall.

Oh, Mobius thinks with a snicker, you’re gonna love what I have planned for tomorrow.

“Did you get us a drink or are you just going to stand there for all eternity?” Loki asks without opening his eyes, swinging his legs so that there’s room to sit next to him.

“Sorry if I wasn’t moving fast enough, your highness,” Mobius teases as he plops onto the couch, passing a cold beer bottle into Loki’s waiting hands. “The new outfit slowed me down a bit.”

Loki smirks, cracking open one eye to see the outfit that he’d swapped for Mobius’ old clothes. “I thought you’d appreciate something more comfortable. Besides, we match.”

He swings his legs back up onto Mobius’ lap, taking a swig of his drink. They are quiet for a moment, listening to the distant crashing of waves and enjoying the lack of need to do… well, anything.

“Do you mind if I turn the television on?” Mobius eventually asks, and Loki hums an affirmative. He grabs the remote, trying to avoid jostling the legs on his lap as much as possible, before pressing the on button.

As an afterthought, he tugs the soft blanket from the back of the sofa and drapes it over the both of them, firmly focusing his attention on the screen in front of them rather than the sleepy god next to him.

{o0o}

Since he isn’t exactly human, Loki doesn’t need nearly as much sleep as humans. Usually, about eight hours is enough to get him through the week. However, with all the crazy stuff and time hopping and running for his life that he has done in the last however long, he’s asleep within minutes of making contact with the sofa.

When he wakes, however, it is to light streaming through a thin beige curtain. He sits up, running a hand through his hair, as he sleepily takes in his surroundings.

Somehow, he has ended up on top of a bed that he has never seen before. Given the boring decor, he assumes it must be the upstairs of the cottage… so, presumably, Mobius had moved him upstairs in his sleep.

Loki waits for that statement to sink in, for him to feel that usual sense of panic at someone being there and moving him while he was vulnerable, but it never comes.

(If he is being honest with himself, he knows exactly why Mobius is the exception, but he isn’t ready to admit that, not yet.)

He wanders over to the window, yanking open the curtain. There, outside, is the same paradise they had arrived in only last night. And, if the digital clock on the bedside table is enough to go by, it’s 10am on the twenty-fourth of September, 1991.

The view is even more beautiful when he is more awake to admire it, Loki decides. The bay sparkles like a rare jewel, and he finds himself cracking the window open to let some fresh air in.

He sighs, a long breath that mists the glass in front of him. He’ll miss this place, when he inevitably has to leave. Because there’s no way he can stay here for the rest of his life; he’s a Loki, after all, and Lokis are destined to lose. This - a paradise beyond time with someone who knows who he is and accepts him for who he is? He could scoff at the idea. When has the Universe (or the Multiverse, he supposes) ever been that kind to him?

Loki stares blankly out of the window for a few minutes until he is broken from his trance when he spots a familiar figure struggling down the beach, attempting to balance much more shopping than one man can manage.

He blinks a few times, making sure that it is, in fact, Mobius, before barking out a laugh and rushing downstairs and out the front door to lend him a hand. After all, what kind of guest would he be if he let his host embarrass himself publicly within 24 hours of moving in?

When he catches up to him - wearing the same garish, bright orange haiwaiian shirt that Loki had conjured up for him yesterday, he notes - Mobius doesn’t even notice he’s there until several of the bags are lifted from him.

“Hey! Oh, it’s just you,” he exclaims, adjusting a box under his arm. “Thank you,” he adds.

“What did you get?” Loki asks, tucking some of the smaller items into a pocket dimension so he had free hands to carry the rest of it.

“Oh, just a couple of things to spruce the place up. I got a bit carried away, actually,” Mobius admits as they start off back down the beach. “How did you sleep?”

Loki rolls his eyes. “Like the dead, apparently. Did you move me while I was asleep?”

Mobius doesn’t meet his eyes as he responds. “Yep. You looked uncomfortable, and I didn’t want to wake you.”

There’s a pang in Loki’s chest; another reminder that leaving this place will get more and more painful the longer he stays. He can’t get used to these common gestures of affection - he can’t think of another person who would have cared enough about his comfort to go to the effort of carrying him up the stairs.

“Is something wrong?” Mobius asks, interrupting Loki’s train of thought. He’s staring at him, a curious expression on his face, and it’s only then that Loki realises they have stopped.

“It’s nothing,” Loki replies quickly, giving Mobius one of his most charming smiles as he starts walking again.

Mobius stays rooted to the spot. “Bullshit.”

Loki stops, his back turned to Mobius, and sighs. A range of lies are on the tip of his tongue, but he can’t quite find it in himself to bother trying to keep up a facade that they both know Mobius can see straight through.

“I’m having a nice time,” he states, after a minute of debate.

Mobius starts walking again, juggling his shopping as he catches up to Loki. “And that is a problem… why?”

“Because good things don’t last!” he exclaims, throwing his hands in the air. “Lokis are destined to lose.”

Mobius raises an eyebrow. “You think this will be taken away from you,” he says. It isn’t a question. “Well, I have a present for you, then. Two, actually.”

They reach the front door of their cottage, Loki’s eyes trained on the ground as he scuffs his sandals on the sand. Mobius rummages through his bags, trying to find something specific.

“May I have the red striped carrier bag, please?” he asks, when his search comes up fruitless. Loki conjures it for him, passing it over. He doesn’t know what’s in any of the bags (although, now, he’s thinking he should probably have checked), he had only picked it because it is one of the heaviest ones.

Mobius opens the bag from him with a word of thanks, peering in to check it’s the right one. Then, he sticks a hand in his pocket, pulling out his fist closed around something.

“Here,” he says, offering his closed fist to Loki. “This is yours to keep, forever.”

Loki cautiously holds out a hand, and Mobius drops the item into his palm. Loki stares at the little piece of metal, wondering how it could mean so much.

“...Is this?”

“The key to our house, yeah,” Mobius confirms, smiling. “And a crocodile keyring, since I’m apparently never going to get over meeting that version of you.”

Loki smiles, just slightly, cupping the key carefully in his hands as he admires the keyring.

“And that bag is also for you. Well, the contents are, I don’t know if you want the bag as well-”

It’s not hard to tell that Mobius is nervous, so Loki can’t begin to imagine what is in the bag. He picks it up, sand pouring out the bottom of the bag, raising his eyebrows at what he finds.

“Green paint?”

Mobius grins, scratching the back of his head. “We’re the only ones with a boring front door. I figured we should probably fix that, add some of your flare.”

Loki gives him a shit-eating grin, sliding the keys into his pocket.

“What?” Mobius asks, sensing something is up. “What did I say?”

With a wave of a hand and without the paint can ever being opened, the front door is suddenly the colour of Peppermint Fresh.

“You seem to be forgetting you live with a god,” Loki declares, waggling his eyebrows.

“Oh, come on.”

They spend the rest of their day renovating their new house, Loki’s powers speeding up the process immensely. Other than paint and wallpaper, Mobius had also bought them both some clothes, as well as a range of random items to make the place look a little more personal, and two whole bags of groceries.

“I’ve never cooked anything before,” he admits, just as the sun starts to dip below the horizon. “We never had to, at the TVA. We always just went to the canteen.”

Loki hums to the radio playing in the corner, standing back to check if the strip of wallpaper he had just hung looked straight. “We always had people cook for us, back on Asgard,” he replies. “My mother tried to teach me, but I found pestering my brother much more interesting.”

“Do you miss your family?” Mobius asks, collecting the paintbrushes from around the room so he can wash them in the kitchen sink.

“They weren’t my family,” he responds immediately, before wincing. “Well, not biologically. But I’m starting to think that maybe family is more than just DNA.”

Mobius nods, shoving the paintbrushes into a carrier bag. When he’s sure Loki has nothing else to say, he gestures to the door. “Want to make sure I don’t set fire to the kitchen?”

Loki smiles. He has found himself doing that more and more since he has met Mobius; the man always seems to know what to say and do. “I’m pretty sure you know that I have quite the history of arson, but sure.”

So, they go downstairs, Loki waving his hands and cleaning the stray blotches of paint off their clothes.

“Let’s start with something simple,” Mobius suggests, opening the fridge. “Fish fingers?”

Loki nods. “Surely even you can’t mess that up.”

Oh, how he was wrong. An hour later, they’re sitting next to each other on the couch (upright, this time) eating burnt fish fingers and scoffing at the programme they’re watching.

“Do humans really believe in these things?” Loki asks incredulously, squirting more ketchup on his plate in an attempt to overpower the burnt taste.

Mobius scoffs. “I think it’s for entertainment, Loki. But yeah, ‘aliens’ don’t act like this. At least, not as far as I know.”

“There’s a multiverse now,” Loki muses. “Maybe there weren’t any before, but there are now.”

Mobius shrugs. “Who knows. It’s not our problem, either way.”

Loki doesn’t answer, instead opting to scoop the fishfinger into his mouth. Mobius frowns at his lack of response, grabbing the remote and muting Mulder and Scully’s investigation.

“You do know… this whole multiverse business, it’s not your fault, right? And, as far as we know, nothing catastrophic has happened yet.”

Loki swallows, refusing to take his eyes off the silent TV. “That’s the thing, Mobius. It is my fault - partly, at the very least. And what if something bad does happen? Any suffering or pain caused by this is on my shoulders.”

Mobius puts his plate down on the coffee table, nudging him with his shoulder. “That statement is so incorrect, it’s unbelievable. I thought you were supposed to be smart?”

Loki doesn’t say anything, and he sighs.

“Look - first of all, it isn’t your fault. This is all on Sylvie. I don’t know what happened there, but from what I gather, you tried to stop her, and that’s all that matters. I’ve met a hundred different Lokis, and every single one of them would have done what benefits them the most, not fought to try and do something to help other people.”

“She kissed me,” Loki says, out of nowhere. “Sylvie, I mean. And then she just… tossed me away.”

Mobius frowns. “Did you like her?”

“I thought I did,” he admits. “But I think - I don’t think I liked her like that. I think I mistook wanting her to be safe and happy for love.”

“It’s a kind of love, just perhaps not the one you assumed it was.”

Loki nods. “I loved her like a sister, I suppose.”

“And she betrayed you,” Mobius continues. “When you were finally allowing yourself to trust others again.”

Loki puts his plate on top of Mobius’, suddenly not hungry. He tries to turn his attention back to the muted television, but he’s missed too much of the exposition to properly understand what is happening.

“Loki, look at me,” Mobius says softly. “Loki.”

He turns, praying that he doesn’t notice the tears welling in his eyes.

“Experiencing two conflicting emotions is perfectly normal,” Mobius continues, reaching for Loki’s hand and squeezing it. “You can care about Sylvie, and be upset about what she did at the same time.”

“I just-” he tries, his voice cracking. “I just wonder whether she ever cared about me, or whether she was just using me the entire time. I mean, it’s the kind of thing I would do, isn’t it?”

Mobius stares him dead in the eye, his voice firm. “Maybe once, but not now. You know what makes you different from every other Loki?”

“The fact I stole the Tesseract, escaped to the desert, and then helped to take down the man in charge of the universe?”

“No.” Mobius sighs. “Well, yes, I suppose. But what I was trying to say is that you’re different to every Loki because you care. You recognised your faults, and then you tried to change them.

“You said, earlier, ‘Lokis are destined to lose’, and yet here you are. I would count this as a win, wouldn’t you?”

Loki is uncharacteristically silent after that. They sit like that for a few minutes, neither of them speaking, before Loki stands up and disappears into the kitchen, taking the plates with him. Mobius sighs, reaching for the TV remote and turning the channel to some random movie.

When Loki returns a few minutes later, he sits straight down next to Mobius. They watch the movie - something about little fluffy monsters - together, not finding the need to speak.

It’s only by the time Loki’s head has drooped onto Mobius’ shoulder that the silence is broken. He drags the blanket over the sleepy Loki that’s attached itself to him, grinning at how adorable he finds the ferocious god.

“Thank you,” Loki mumbles, only half-conscious, and they both know he isn’t only talking about the blanket.

{o0o}

This time, when Loki wakes up, he knows the bed he lies in is his own. He frowns, not remembering getting into bed, before realising that Mobius must have carried him upstairs again.

If anyone asked him, he would say that he had fallen asleep because of all the magic he had used to renovate during the day, but that wouldn’t be the truth. No, he’d be a little more hesitant to admit that their little cottage by the beach feels like the safest place he has ever stayed. Besides, emotions are exhausting.

He sits up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and checking the little clock by his bedside. 9:24, it reads, which isn’t too-

“Loki?” a sleepy voice says from beside him, and he has to stop himself from leaping out of the bed in surprise.

Because somehow, in the few minutes he has been awake, he has failed to notice that he is not alone in the room. Next to him, tucked neatly under the covers, is Mobius, Captain America pajamas and all.

Loki wrinkles his nose at the choice of outfit, but doesn’t voice his opinion. “What - did I fall asleep again?”

“Mmm,” Mobius hums, eyes sliding shut again. “‘S too early, go back to sleep.”

Okay, Loki’s pretty sure his heart just melted slightly. “I don’t need as much sleep as you,” he replies gently. “But you should lie in.”

“Fine,” Mobius complains, rolling over. “But I’m stealing your pillows.”

Loki can’t help but grin at the ridiculous sight - Mobius M. Mobius, formerly one of the most prestigious members of an elite organisation, spread starfish-style across their bed in his Avengers pajamas.

(Although, Loki supposes, the actual Avengers won’t exist for another twenty or so years, thanks to their time travel shenanigans.)

He slips into the hallway, leaving the door ajar behind him, before rummaging around in the bags they had shoved in the study yesterday without bothering to unpack. It only takes a few minutes to find the item he’s looking for, and it takes even less time to sneak back into their bedroom, his footsteps entirely silent.

Click! Loki smirks from behind the disposable camera and sneaks back out of the room, hoping that Mobius doesn’t wake up. Just because he doesn’t want a throne anymore doesn’t mean that he isn’t the God of Mischief- surely, Mobius should be expecting at least a few harmless pranks.

It’s a nice morning - cool, but in that way that suggests it might get much warmer later in the day - so Loki decides to go for a walk. He has barely made it past the second house in their row when a familiar face pops up from behind a hedge, waving wildly.

“Hey! I know you - blue box guy!”

Loki blinks a few times, trying to place the man in front of him. “Casey?”

“Yeah!” he exclaims, hurrying out of his front gate. “You stole my drink.”

“Sorry,” Loki replies automatically, before shaking his head. “Wait, what are you doing here?”

“Oh, you would not believe the week I have had,” Casey begins, waving his arm dramatically. “So I’ve been behind a desk my entire life, right? And then Mobius comes along, and he’s all like ‘Everyone who works for the TVA is a variant and the Timekeepers aren’t real!’ So there’s a bit of a fight - not everyone believes him, you see, and I had no idea what to think - and then a load of people come back from a field mission saying they saw Judge Renslayer as a high school principal!”

“Really,” Loki says drily, trying to keep up with the man’s incessant babbling.

“Yeah! So then Mobius takes over, just for a while, and he says that there are two Loki variants who are gonna take down whoever is behind the TVA, and he comes up with a plan - the people who still want to work there answer to B-15 and do whatever they want to, or you can retire to a few different locations in a few different times! And I figured, ‘Gosh, I nearly died twice in the span of ten minutes and that was scary so I should probably make sure my life has meant something,’ and also a multiverse sounds like a lot of paperwork, so. Here I am!”

Loki is silent for a few seconds, still trying to process all the information that Casey managed to spit out at an alarmingly fast rate. “Wait. So, everyone who lives here used to work for the TVA?”

Casey nods. “This row of houses, yeah. ‘1991 Beach’ was the most popular retirement option - I was pretty lucky to get one of these spots.”

“Huh,” is just about all Loki can manage.

“And guess what, criminal whose name I don’t know!” Casey exclaims excitedly. “I met a fish the other day.”

Loki raises an eyebrow, amused. “Did you, now?”

“Yep! Which, uh, makes your threat much more vivid.” Casey shudders.

“Don’t worry, I don’t kill people anymore,” Loki says, and realises that that is probably the truth. “Sorry about that, and for stealing your drink.”

Casey shrugs. “It’s okay. I forgive you.”

“I should head back, but it was nice to see you again, Casey.” Loki turns back to their house, his feet slipping slightly in the sand. “Oh, and, by the way - my name is Loki.”

He turns his back and walks away before he can see the look on Casey’s face, but if the sharp intake of breath he hears is anything to go by, he has certainly succeeded in surprising his new neighbour.

When he gets back, Mobius is awake, shuffling around the kitchen in his pajamas. “Morning, sunshine,” he greets as Loki appears in the doorway, sniffing the air.

“Breakfast?” he asks hopefully, and Mobius laughs.

“Yup. Full English, I thought. Did you have a nice walk?”

Loki perches on the edge of the table, smiling. “I didn’t get particularly far. I had an… interesting conversation with Casey, though.”

“Oh, I remember him. Bit weird, if memory serves,” Mobius responds, scrunching his nose as he cracks two eggs into the frying pan. “Wait, how do you know him?”

Loki scratches the back of his head. “I may, uh - I may have threatened to ‘gut him like a fish’. And then I stole his drink and poured it into your salad.”

Mobius raises an eyebrow. “Wow, okay.”

“In my defense, he didn’t know what a fish was until he moved here. And, I was part of the reason he retired, so.”

“How did he not know what a fish- You know what,” he replies, shaking his head as he turns back to the stove. “I don’t care.”

Loki turns the radio in the corner on with a flick of his wrist, and they are both content to sit and enjoy the quiet morning while Mobius cooks. In no time at all, they are sitting across from each other, two plates of food in front of them.

Picking a piece of eggshell out of his food, Loki warily takes a bite. “Did you have any plans for today?”

“As a matter of fact,” Mobius responds with an excited grin, “I do.”

It turns out, Mobius’ plans involve him packing a backpack and eagerly dragging Loki down the beach to a small jetty. There, waiting for them on the end of the small pier, is a jet ski.

Loki grins. “So that's why you chose the beach.”

Mobius grins, dumping the bag on the side and fishing his keys out of his pockets. “I have read about these things every day for almost the entirety of what I can remember, and I’m finally getting to go on one. Are you coming?”

“Of course,” Loki answers, and he clambers on behind Mobius.

“Hang on,” he shouts over the engine, and Loki wraps his arms around his waist. “You ready?”

“I’m starting to think this might be a bad- woah!”

Before Loki can even finish his statement, they’re off. Mobius soon gets the hang of it, zipping around the bay and whooping. Loki can’t help but smile - sure, he isn’t nearly as bothered about jet skis as Mobius is, but the man’s excitement is contagious. Besides, there is a certain freedom to it; he can feel the wind in his hair and taste the salt on his lips.

Suddenly, Mobius attempts to do a sharp turn, jolting them both with absolutely no warning. Loki tries to hang on, clinging tightly onto his chest, but the movement catches him by surprise and he ends up in the water.

Mobius turns the jet ski around, slowly pulling up next to (the now very wet) god. “Sorry,” he says, but he doesn’t sound very apologetic.

“Maybe I’ll stick to sunbathing,” Loki suggests as Mobius hauls him back onto the ski before dropping him off at the jetty.

“Are you sure?” he asks, clearly torn between having the time of his life and leaving Loki on his own.

“Of course I’m sure,” he answers. “I think I’ll survive an hour or two on my own. Besides, I don’t want to ruin your fun by vomiting all over you.”

Mobius pulls a face. “Maybe it’s for the best, then. I won’t go far, I promise.”

“Go!” Loki says, waving his arm at his friend as he picks up their bag. “Have some fun. You’ve earned it. I think we both have.”

Hours later, when the sun has started to set over the horizon, the two men find themselves lazing on the beach next to each other. Mobius slips a chocolate wrapper into the book he’s reading and places it down next to him, turning to his companion.

“Loki,” he begins, staring out at the sea. “Did you ever think you would settle down like this?”

“Never,” Loki answers, without any hesitation.

“Me neither.”

In the distance, there is the faint smell of cherry pie - perhaps one of their neighbours is cooking. A seagull swoops by overhead, landing on a fence a few feet behind them and bobbing about. If you look closely enough, you can see the ripples on the top of the water; the only clue that there are fish below the surface.

“We make a strange pair, don’t we?” Mobius muses, watching the sky turn from blue to orange to pink.

Loki hums. “That’s why we’re perfect for each other.”

There’s no argument to be made against that in Mobius’ mind, so they sit together, not at the end of the world, but at the beginning of one.

THE END.

tag list! ask to be added or removed :D

@tiredgayemoweeb / @idrilearfalas / @consulting-supernatural / @doomeccentric / @lyriumwolf / @peterspattersons / @inconceivablelife / @sunsetcurve123 / @i-am-the-trash-duchess / @hermes-creature / @alexmalikplays / @hisfishfingersandcustard

#lokius #loki #loki spoilers #mobius #mcu #my writing #syssyb

[rollychan]

Okay, turns out I have more to say about the first Loki series episode already.

But first a preface/disclaimer: 1) I welcome all opinions if they’re stated respectfully / without any insulting of or jibing at others or other groups of fans (I mean it, any “some fans *rollyeyes*” will get you a swift block and Idgaf which side you’re on, I have no time for that bullshit) 2) I am a mere unintelligent trashcan of a person and also my native language isn’t English so excuse me if my thoughts here aren’t deep or intelligent enough or thought through. They are my own, though. 3) These thoughts will NOT be very organized. I apologize in advance.

Thoughts under the cut.

The TVA and Dystopian Themes

The first point I’d like to make is that the first episode gives me major classic dystopian vibes just set in a very bureaucratic world. I will explain why:

1) The fact that Loki is arrested for time crimes he wasn’t even aware he is committing and that are decided on by some mysterious few authorities nobody ever seems to see.

Let me expand on this. It feels very much like it’s another powerful dictator-like power, like Big Brother from 1984, like the ten world leaders from Brave New World. They dictate how things should be. They decide on exactly the one timeline that they allow to exist and any variance from that is punishable by death. In 1984, you had the Thought Police and an arbitrarily chosen enemy you had to hate that changed from time to time and everyone had to follow those changes, in Brave New World, it’s a bit trickier, but basically, people were genetically modified (was it before birth? I can’t quite remember that well the details of it) and pre-determined to be in one of three (or four? it’s been years if not a decade+ since I last read the book) classes by deciding on their intelligence and other factors. Pre-determination, rigid behavioral rules, no straying from the decided upon social norms. That’s what they all have in common. Not to mention the brainwashing. “War is Peace / Freedom is Slavery / Ignorance is Strength” anyone? The TVA might as well get such a slogan for themselves. The people working for the TVA all seem very brainwashed. The guy at the desk that stowed away the Tesseract grew up behind the desk, for godssake, he doesn’t even know what a fish is. Just like people in Brave New World are brainwashed from their birth.

“A really efficient totalitarian state would be one in which the all-powerful executive of political bosses and their army of managers control a population of slaves who do not have to be coerced, because they love their servitude.” (Brave New World)

The TVA, like the people in the Brave New World, want there to be no conflict (forced happiness is the thing in BNW). They believe in what they do, and Mobius is actually very much a product of that. He believes he is doing the right thing. He believes that getting a Loki variant on his side will solve the problem the TVA are facing with the other Loki variant they are chasing. He will do anything for this goal, but he does have a different idea from the other characters we have met so far. They don’t think a Loki variant will help, but they are still all working towards the same goal.

And, I mean:

“You will be lifted clean out from the stream of history. We shall turn you into gas and pour you into the stratosphere. Nothing will remain of you; not a name in a register, not a memory in a living brain. You will be annihilated in the past as well as in the future. You will never have existed.” (1984)

I get major 1984 vibes here.

(I do think that Mobius might change his stance towards the TVA throughout the course of the series and I think he’s an interesting character to follow. But in the beginning, he’s still wholly entrenched. Him having a different opinion from the rest of the TVA does look like some foreshadowing though.

I have seen some people say the TVA is framed positively, which I respect as their opinion, but I don’t agree. I have seen nothing that cements in stone they’re the good guys here (there are some scenes I view as neutral and Mobius’ introduction I view as framing him as not totally evil, not the whole TVA as good). If anything, I get the feeling they are very powerful dictators and Loki caved because he realized how powerless he truly is there. But I guess that could be just me.)

2) Nothing is explained to Loki. There is no instance that acts in Loki’s defense. In fact, from what we have seen, there is usually no way anyone accused of time crimes can influence the court verdict. It is entirely one-sided and pre-determined unless someone from the TVA wants them alive.

Like, that is a major indicator of something being very very fishy here. No one who has a shred of morality will think that is just. Everyone accused of a crime has the right to a fair process, to a defense, to an appeal. Nothing about this process is fair. Everything about this process screams dystopia to me.

Loki isn’t even treated with dignity like every fucking criminal still has a right to in democratic countries. Getting the clothes lasered off without a warning? Would be a major human rights violation. Getting dragged left and right and dropped through floors? Major human rights violation.

This is, partly, played for laughs, but also not entirely. Loki does realize how little power he holds in that place and that moment is played seriously. It’s dictatorian, it’s unjust, it’s rigid.

3) People are arbitrarily erased / killed (”reset” is the term they use, I believe? When they use those glowsticks?)

For things like refusing to take a ticket and then having no ticket. When nothing is explained to them before.

The court process is a joke. It’s a farce, they go through some (not even all) standard motions of court preceedings but there is 0 chance for the accused to win. It’s all an illusion, as Loki so correctly points out. Nobody questions it but him, but it very much is all an illusion, a mask for the dictatorship underneath.

I’m, like, 80% sure the ticket bs is there so they don’t have to deal with everyone and can get rid of the annoying variants before they ever reach the “court”.

Basically, I think the TVA are supposed to be dystopian. It fits right in. (There is so much more in my brain but currently I lack the words to express it)

Loki and Continuity

The first half of the episode feels very over-the-top. There is so much over-acting going on with Tom Hiddleston that I don’t understand. He feels incredibly OOC in that first half (save for a couple moments, perhaps). The panicky fumbling for the ticket after he saw another variant being “erased”? That’s so much NOT Loki it’s not funny. I can overlook the thing about signing the papers that are supposed to be “everything he ever said” but some things are so OOC they are not even in the same universe as Loki’s original characterisation (of the T1 & Avengers 1 Loki) is anymore. That ticket fumbling moment, for example.

They did go over basically all his life in that scene with Mobius (though Mobius was absent for a bunch of it). Those emotional moments were raw and IC, in my opinion (the way he reacts to his own death - btw, anyone reading this before watching the episode: they show the IW death scene and while the moment he dies happens while the camera shows Loki’s reaction to it, you can still hear the audio of it, so beware!) I think that moment he breaks down is well-done. And it’s in that vulnerable state that Mobius finds him and gives him the final manipulative push to tell Mobius what Mobius wants to hear.

If they pick up on these themes - the dystopian dictatorship that the TVA are in reality and Loki having to come to terms with never being able to turn back and freedom vs. determinism (chaos vs. rigid order?), it can turn out to be a decent show.

I have way more thoughts but I’ve already spent way too much time on this so here you go.

#random #loki series #loki series spoilers #loki series review #sort of? #not tagging this one with the negativity tag since it's not really negative

[ohitshoneybee]

Sleepover

Loki (2021) Self Insert AU

Summary: An odd group of friends has a movie night in one of the Time Theaters, and shenanigans ensue.

Word Count: 1384

Warnings: Tooth rotting fluff, that's it

A/N: You guys. My first ever fic here on tumblr?? I'm so hyped, y'all have no idea! Special thanks to @nebulousfishgills for being my motivation and helping co-create this funky AU and for creating this *incredible* mood board! Enjoy.

The sight of a mountain of blankets, pillows, and other soft items sitting in Time Theater 27, along with a buffet of cookies, chips, and drinks, wasn't unusual. The appearance of the Time Door, precisely at half-past eight wasn't odd either. In fact, it had become a sort of routine for a handful of TVA employees. Ravonna always showed up early to set things up, Casey and Hunter B-15 not far behind. Mobius strolling in at around ten till, with Loki, Olivia, and Sylvie showing up at nine on the dot.

Now, you may have asked yourself, 'What relevance does the time door have? Are we missing someone? And why all the blankets and everything?' Well dear reader, at approximately eight-forty, Oliver walks through the door for the final time that night, the last armful of blankets and tray of brownies in hand.

A cheery "Hey B-15! I made your favorite brownies again!" heard from across the room piques the hunter’s interest, as well as Mobius'.

"Oliver! You made it! I mean of course you made it, what am I even saying? Whatever, come sit down!" Mobius jumps up to accept the platter of brownies, sneaking a couple before anyone else could get to them. Olivia and Loki, arm in arm, saunter over to greet Oliver.

"Hey, you're here! And just in time too, we were about to pick tonight’s genre!” Olivia snatches the tray from Mobius’ hand, setting it on the buffet table. “Yeah? What are the options? And for the love of the Gods, don’t tell me there’s horror on the list, I’m not playing ‘Snakes and Ladders’ in the corner with Miss Minutes again. No offense, but I’d rather hang out with everyone, rather than sit in the corner for almost two hours.” Oliver smiles and elbows Olivia in the arm, dropping their pile of blankets next to the table.

“I am pleased to inform you that we have comedy or adventure as our picks tonight! Votes starting with Ravonna, as always,” B-15 chimes in, cutting Olivia off before she could retort.

“Comedy,” Ravonna starts.

“I think I’d like adventure,” says Casey.

“Ditto, on the adventure,” from Mobius.

“Comedy,” Sylvie and Loki respond, in unison.

“Adventure!” Olivia exclaims, striking a rather piratey pose.

“Adventure for me too, hon,” Miss Minutes nods to the hunter.

“And comedy for me,” B-15 notes.

“Oliver, that leaves you as the tiebreaker. Chose carefully,” Mobius teases.

“Well... I think I’ll pick… adventure?” Oliver answers, earning groans from half of the group and cheers from the other half.

Olivia, quite literally jumping with joy, just about tackles Oliver with a hug. “I knew I could count on you! Unlike those weirdos over there,” Olivia sticks her tongue out at Loki and Sylvie, earning an amused chuckle from Loki.

Mobius waves Ravonna over, talking to her in hushed tones, as to not disrupt the rest of the group. “Ravonna, I still think we should get one of those popcorn machines for these movie night sleepover things.. It isn’t fair to Oliver that they have to run back and forth whenever we want popcorn.”

“Mobius… it’s already hard enough to hide all of these blankets and the table and, well… everything. I just don’t know where we would put the popcorn maker. On top of that, none of us would even know how to use it!”

“Well, it can’t be that hard to figure out, I’ve seen kids on Earth use them and it’s gone fine for them!” Mobius argues.

“I’ll… I’ll think about it, okay? Just.. Don’t get your hopes up,” Ravonna sighs, waving Mobius off.

The projector boots up, and with a flicker of golden hues, the title screen for ‘The Mummy’ appears, earning a cheer from Oliver, who is wrapped up in a white comforter with a plate of various snacks in their lap.

“What? This movie was my bisexual awakening, it holds a special place in my heart because of it,” they defend, albeit through a mouthful of brownie.

“Nobody was judging you, Oliver, we were just a little...surprised,” Sylvie responds, snuggling closer to Olivia.

“You know what else is surprising? The fact that you three haven’t run off to a broom closet yet,” B-15 interrupts.

“Yeah, well, at least Oliver isn’t climbing over me yet,” Mobius teases.

“Wait, has nobody told you? Yeah, when you’re asleep, you end up snuggled with Mobius, no matter where in the room you are,” Olivia adds, rather suggestively.

“W-Well, there’s a perfectly reasonable explanation! Uh.. yeah.. an explanation…” Oliver mutters, flustered and embarrassed.

“Hey, nobody said they were bothered. I’m certainly not. There’s no need to stress over it,” Mobius adds, trying his best to be comforting.

B-15 shushes the group as the opening scene starts, the room bathed in golden hues.

Halfway through the movie, Oliver is already asleep, curled up with three or four pillows and a mountain of blankets, as well as a green cactus plushie. Ravonna is the only thing between Loki and Sylvie staking piles of Cheez-Its on their face, and Casey and B-15 are quietly chatting about the movie so far. Olivia is laying on her stomach, the blanket over her slightly askew, and Mobius is up getting more snacks.

“You really are a bottomless pit, aren’t you Moby Dick?” Olivia jokes. The nickname ‘Moby Dick’ caught on when Olivia showed up to the TVA and used it to poke fun at the analyst. After that, it stuck and is just a bit of fun.

“Yeah, well you kinda eat whatever you can when you live off the food here. Ollie’s baking is a real treat, so I’m enjoying it while I can,” Mobius retorts, stacking his plate with chips and the last of the brownies.

“Loki, Sylvie, stop it. Oliver isn’t gonna be happy when they go home and their cat is licking their face when they smell like Cheez-Its,” Ravonna whisper-yells at the pair as she throws a pillow and nails Sylvie in the face.

“Oh, I see how it is, old lady. It’s on!” Sylvie grabs the pillow and climbs over Oliver, running for Ravonna. “Pillow fiiiiiight!”

Oliver sits up and rubs the sleep from their eyes, almost immediately getting hit in the face with a pillow thrown by Mobius. “Oh so suddenly I’m not your favorite, Moby? I’ll just take those brownies back!” They grab their cactus plush and chuck it at the analyst, ducking with a squeal of surprise as another pillow flies past their head.

“Nobody decks Mobius like that except for me!” B-15 shouts, standing over a mountain of pillows.

“Hey, that’s not cool! You can’t hog the pillows!” Casey protests, ducking behind the food table.

“Well neither is teaming up, but us three already have!” Olivia announces, using Loki and Sylvie as shields to avoid getting hit with a pillow from Ravonna.

“Oh come on! That would’ve hit you!”

“Moby! Catch!” as Oliver chucks a couple of pillows in rapid succession. “You’ll never win! Not against me!”

“That’s where you’re wrong, hon,” Miss Minutes pops up next to Oliver and whacks them in the arm with a decorative pillow, a distinct rip heard through the room as stuffing flies.

“Oh. My. Gods. You’re so dead!” Sylvie shouts with a smile, and suddenly, alarms are blaring. Ravonna fishes through the pockets in her pajamas for her TemPad.

With a sigh of relief, she announces to the group, “It’s not an emergency, but I’m going to need to borrow you two for a bit,” she says, nodding to Mobius and B-15.

“Let’s make it a group trip since it isn’t an emergency!” Olivia proposes, earning a groan of disapproval from Ravonna and B-15, almost in unison.

“Olivia, we’ve been over this. Oliver isn’t allowed anywhere else in the TVA, other than here and the bathroom. If anything were to happen to them, I’d be the one to blame, and I’m not taking that risk.”

“Ravonna’s right, it’s a miracle that having Ollie here hasn’t created a Nexus event yet. Who knows what would happen if something went wrong,” Mobius reasons.

With a reluctant sigh, Oliver, Olivia, Loki, Sylvie, and Casey settle back into their respective blanket piles and finish the movie while B-15, Ravonna, and Mobius run off to handle the cause of the alarms.

#mobius #loki 2021 #loki #sylvie #ravonna renslayer #b-15 #loki x oc x sylvie #self insert #queer #lgbtq

[mimisempai]

Home is where our story begins

Summary:

Mobius and Loki will finally move in together, will the cohabitation be as natural as the rest of their story?

Notes:

Still not having the real name of Hunter B-15 and the story taking place post canon, I found it odd to keep calling it that. But I didn't want to invent a name for hher, so I chose HB, if Marvel were to give him a name later, I would change it here of course.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/32628412

2871 words - Rating G

"So, soon the big day? I hope you're happy about it, even if it's new for you."

Mobius sipped his Josta, wondering what the best answer was. Yes seemed too restrictive, but it wasn't as if he wanted to go into details about his new living arrangements with Loki. Yes, he was happy to move in with Loki, of course, but...

"Mobius?"

"I'm... cautiously optimistic. You know me."

HB nodded. "For you, it's practically effusive." Chuckling, she took another pretzel. "I'm happy for you and Loki." Her smile faded briefly, "If our variant condition has taught me anything, it's to take happiness where it lies. I'm glad you decided to give your relationship with Loki a chance."

"There was nothing to decide because everything happens naturally between us," Mobius mumbled.

HB frowned. "Hm?"

Mobius cleared his throat. "It's nothing. I've talked too much."

"Talked too much?" HB laughed. "When it comes to explaining the logic of a mission strategy that sounds crazy, yes you could be accused of talking too much, but when it comes to your personal life... but I understand what you mean and to me who has been watching you a bit since the beginning of this relationship, it is clear that things are natural between you. Although I am curious about one thing."

"Which one?" Mobius prepared himself.

"How will you manage living together, as you both have your single habits, not to mention your lifestyles which were rather... different".

This question kept going round and round in Mobius' head. He was ready to compromise, but he wasn't going to change who he was either. With the personalities they both had, it might seem insurmountable from the outside, but Mobius had a deep conviction that it could work.

"I guess we'll see as we go along," he replied confidently.

"You know where to find me if you need to talk."

The friendship he had formed with HB, was one of the surprises that had come with Loki's arrival in his life.

Before they were just colleagues who worked well together and had the same dedication to the TVA and now having shared the same experience of losing everything, a real friendship was born.

"Thank you. But let's stop talking about me, how's it going with the new recruits and training?"

The TVA, purged of old influences, had returned to its primary function: to monitor realities across the multiverse and attempt to reduce temporal interference as much as possible. Mobius was the leader. Loki, Hunter B-15, now HB and other agents formed the core team.

They had completely restructured the organization, recruitment and training.

"Well, there are several young recruits who are promising, and I must say Mobius, that Loki is not only a very good teacher but also very well liked."Loki had volunteered on his own to handle the training of the newbies on the field.

Mobius, however, was not surprised at his success. As he had told LOki in the early days, he could be anyone he wanted.

Once HB left, the afternoon passed without surprise for Mobius, who was eager to get home. He found it hard to concentrate, looking forward to the changes that were coming.

**********

Loki was waiting in Mobius' living room when Mobius returned home.

"Mobius!" he exclaimed happily as he stood up and walked over to Mobius to kiss him. Mobius thought he wouldn't mind this kind of action if it became part of their routine in the future.

As is often the case when they haven't seen each other in a while, things heated up quickly between them and they were both panting when they parted.

"How was your day? HB told me she told you about my work? Is everything okay?"

That, too, was something nice -even if he found it annoying at first, this talkie-talkie thing, this incessant stream of words from Loki. He had realized that Loki's questions were always sincere, his lover expected answers and never asked them out of politeness.

"A lot of paperwork as you can imagine, I miss working in the field, fortunately once this is over I will be able to accompany you again and see the excellent work you provide with my eyes, if I believe what HB told me", Mobius said quietly while pushing aside a strand of Loki's hair that was falling on his forehead. "What about you? How was your lunch with Casey?"

Another unexpected relationship, for who knew Loki. He had formed a bond with Casey, an ordinary administrative employee. Loki had told Mobius that it was nice to have a friend whose reactions he didn't have to weigh, because Casey was spontaneous and naturally trusting.

"Fun. He's excited for us, well for me because I'm going to live with the great Mobius." Loki chuckled before continuing, "I expected the opposite, but you're his idol, I'm just the god of mischief who taught him what a fish was."

Mobius raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yes, I swear." Loki smiled. "He even offered to help us move our stuff in once the apartment was ready."

Mobius shook his head. "He's really supportive."

"Absolutely," Loki smiled, "He always surprises me with his candor."

Loki pulled Mobius to the couch and sat him down. Then he lay down in his favorite position, with his head on Mobius' lap. Mobius, as always, couldn't resist the impulse to put his hand on Loki's silky black hair and began to stroke it gently. In response, Loki made a sound that closely resembled a purr.

**********

Turning his head to Mobius, Loki asked, "Are you really happy that we live together?"

"Of course Loki," Mobius murmured as he ran his hands through Loki's hair, enjoying sliding the strands between his fingers. "I am, but you know it won't necessarily be easy right?"

"Hmm." Loki nodded and smiled sheepishly. "I know I'm not easy to deal with."

"Hey Sweetheart! That's not it at all." Mobius protested. "I just think we're from two different worlds and it's going to take a little adjustment and patience."

Loki nodded.

"Besides, we're going to be together a lot. Between work and home," Mobius said.

"Yeah." Loki looked up and smiled at Mobius. "This is going to be great!"

"We'll see," Mobius said, finally realizing that it wasn't he who was afraid of being disappointed, but that he was afraid of disappointing Loki.

After a few moments of silence, he decided to put his fears aside and enjoy the moment.

"Now, have you thought about what you want for dinner?"

"No." Loki pressed himself against Mobius, "But I know what I want for dessert."

"What a coincidence," Mobius muttered as he slipped his hand under Loki's shirt, "I think we both have the same idea.

These kinds of little moments between them, these little habits, made Mobius think that maybe he didn't need to be anxious about their future shared life.

**********

A few days later, Mobius was up to his neck in paperwork and couldn't take it anymore. He threw his pen away and leaned back on his chair.

"Mobius?"

"I'm here."

When Loki entered and saw the state Mobius was in, he locked the door behind him. He walked up behind Mobius, put his arms around his neck and kissed the top of his head. Mobius leaned back even more and closed his eyes.

"It's going to be hard to keep working if you make a habit of doing this," he whispered.

Loki's hands slid over Mobius' shoulders and he began a firm massage. "How about this?"

Mobius sighed, "It's not good for concentration either... " as Loki's skilled fingers had encountered a particularly knotted muscle.

"Oh, is that so?" Loki rhythmically pressed his thumbs into the back of Mobius' neck and it felt so good that Mobius moaned, "It doesn't seem to bother you that much."

"You and your distracting hands mustn't be around too often," Mobius said, "or I'll never be able to work properly, a massage like this, on the other hand, is... effective. I didn't know you knew how to give massages." Mobius was always happy to learn new things about Loki.

At Loki's silence, Mobius turned his head and was surprised by the sad expression on his face.

"Loki?"

"Um... this is something my mom used to do for me and my brother..."

"Oh Loki... I'm sorry." Mobius reached for the hand that had remained on his shoulder and squeezed it.

"I miss her..."

"I know, sweetheart, believe me, I know." replied Mobius gently.

After a moment of silence, Loki kissed Mobius' head again, "Sorry, I didn't mean to distract you. It's just so nice and strange to have you just a few steps away from me all the time."

"Why strange?" Mobius turned in his chair to look at him.

Loki shrugged, "I usually store all the things I want to tell you later in my memory, but now that we're in our new home, and we both work together a lot, I feel like I have access to you all the time and it's..."

"Different."

"Yeah. And tempting. And distracting." Loki licked his lips. "I want to see you all the time, not just talk to you, if you know what I mean..."

"Yes, I know exactly what you mean" Mobius cleared his throat, fighting the mental images that Loki's words evoked. "However, I think we're going to have to set some rules, no matter how nice it is, we're both still at work."

Loki nodded, "Yes, we really should, if only for my sanity." He bit his lower lip, and when Mobius saw him do it, he thought that it wasn't just for Loki's sanity that some rules had to be set.

"Maybe later, if you want Mobius? Or tomorrow?"

"Why tomorrow?" Mobius raised an eyebrow. "Why not now?"

Loki smiled "Because I'm excited now, and you're tired of paperwork and I think you need a good distraction."

Mobius rolled his eyes "You're insatiable."

Loki pretended to walk away, saying, "I can leave, I wouldn't want to distract you from your duty..."

Mobius grabbed him and pulled him against him. "You think you can light a flame and not blow it out?!"

"And what about rules and work?" asked Loki, raising an eyebrow.

"That can wait until tomorrow." replied Mobius, pulling Loki's head to his and silencing him in the most effective way he knew how.

**********

For some time, Mobius had been catching scrutinizing glances from the recruits, some even giggling after running into him.

"I feel like they're staring at me," Mobius said one night as he sat on the couch with Loki in their usual position.

"You can't blame them for being curious. After all, the God of mischief and the famous Agent Mobius, we're legends. And also... um... I may have been showing off a bit for a moment or two about your... prowess. Nothing graphic, just little details," he hastened to add when Mobius' mouth opened.

"Little details," Mobius repeated.

"Oh, but nothing, just that I'm satisfied, that's all."

Hiding his face in his hands, Mobius groaned, "Loki, tell me you didn't discuss our sex life in front of your students!".

"Uh... you want me to lie?"

"Loki!"

"Mobius, people think I'm not mature enough for you. That you're too serious and I'm not enough, that you have more integrity and I don't. Personally, I don't care what other people think. But I want people to know that you are as good to me as I am to you."

"And that requires you to tell them the intimate details of our sex lives..." Mobius mumbled.

"No, no, you don't understand," Loki said, clearly struggling to express himself. "I tell them little things that humanize us. That you like my cooking, that you like jet skiing, that I think you're sexy in the morning when you wake up, nothing too intimate..."

"Only in the morning when you wake up?!"

Count on Mobius to have kept only this part of Loki's answer.

"Even sexier than usual."

"Aaaah, that's the reason for these morning quickies," Mobius replied.

"You don't like it?"

"That's not the point, Loki."

"I know what the point is. The point is, I just want people to know the real you. Let them see you the way I see you."

"And for that, you have to tell them we screw every morning?"

"It was just one time, and it was Casey's fault. He said he didn't picture you as a sex beast."

"It gets better and better."

"Mobiuuuuus. I didn't say anything more than what I just told you, I promised! Now they know why we're perfect together."

"Because I give you satisfying orgasms when I'm barely awake."

"Because you're brilliant, and caring, and yes, incredibly sexy."

Lifting Mobius' hand to his lips, Loki kissed his fingertips and whispered, "And because I love you."

Just like that, Mobius' irritation disappeared. He took Loki's face in his hands and ran his thumb over his lower lip. "And I feel the same way. But Loki, I also wish you wouldn't talk too much about our intimacy, even with your closest friends."

Loki replied with his most mischievous smile, "You think I want to tell them how perfectly your lips fit my mmph."

Mobius had just closed Loki's mouth with a kiss and after that, Loki wasn't articulate enough to list Mobius' bedroom qualities and Mobius unapologetically left his book aside.

After all, it was important that he lived up to his reputation.

**********

"You're looking fine, Mobius. I guess everything is okay with you and Loki? I feel like the cohabitation is going great," HB said as she walked into his office.

Nodding his head, Mobius couldn't help but smirk, "Everything is going very smoothly, yes."

"Clearly." HB smiled. "You look... satisfied."

Mobius' eyes narrowed.

"However, given the bags under your eyes, may I recommend that you rest tonight?"

Mobius widened his smile. "I'm sure I'll rest... someday, even if it's not tonight. As I told you before, Loki can be... enthusiastic, and we're enjoying a bit of a second honeymoon right now."

Chuckling, HB shook his head. "And like I said, enjoy the moment. Even the enthusiasm of youth is wearing off."

"Indeed, it is." He paused before continuing, "Do you need anything?"

"Do I need a reason to visit a friend?" asks HB.

"No, of course not. I even enjoy our little early week dates. You know I like talking with you. After all, you and I have pretty much the same background. We've done well."

HB nodded, "Yes. You're right, but I admit I also stopped by because I need you to validate the latest new recruit evaluations."

Mobius chuckled, "I'll look at those afterwards, and send them to you when I'm done."

"Take your time, you can return them to me next week.

They chatted about various things, then HB got up to leave.

"I'm going to start reading these evaluations, unless my insatiable partner decides to show up...I'd hate to disappoint him you know...."

HB shook his head. "Lovely. And since I'll see you Monday to pick them up, You can give me all the details then. Don't let him tire you out too much!"

"That' s not up to me..." Mobius said, and smiling he pulled the first evaluation toward him. He raised his head and looked at the door, aware of a presence in the room.

Loki, standing in the doorway, was grinning from ear to ear.

"Aha! So it's not just me. You do it too!"

Mobius raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

Reaching up to him, Loki touched Mobius' chest with his index finger.

"You also tell your friends intimate details about our relationship!"

"I certainly don't."

"Oh, I think you do. I just heard HB teasing you about my 'youthful enthusiasm' and telling you to rest because you look tired." Loki's eyes danced with joy.

"I-" Mobius sighed, "Okay, I guess I told her a couple of things about our life together - Hmph!"

Loki threw his arms around Mobius and kissed him deeply. Mobius, surprised at first, put his hand on his cheek, answered the kiss with the same passion, carding his fingers in Loki's hair. Once things calmed down, they parted, breathless.

"What was that for?" asked Mobius, tucking a strand of hair behind Loki's ear in a gesture so familiar now.

"You're talking about me to people, bragging about me." Loki's eyes glowed. "That means you're proud to be with me."

Mobius blinked. "Of course I am. How can you doubt it?"

Loki pressed another kiss to Mobius' mouth. "You can be quite a hard man to read sometimes."

"Not at all," Mobius whispered, as he gently patted Loki's butt. "I'm an open book."

"You are..." laughing, Loki rolled his eyes. "You're not at all." His expression softened as he looked Mobius in the eye. "But I think I can read you."

"You're the only one who can do it," Mobius acknowledged softly.

He wondered how long it would take Loki to see in his eyes the infinite love he had for him, and if he would be able to surprise him with the ring he had in his pocket.

________

Whole series of one shot here : Together, for all time, always

As always, bear with me as it is not beta'd I hope you enjoyed it 🥰

#lokius fic #lokius #loki series #loki #mobius m mobius #moki #wowki #loki x mobius #time husbands #timeforst #established relationship #moving in together

[lokis-army-77]

If You Please

Chapter eleven

Bucky Barnes x Reader

Word Count: 3560

This is technically a reader insert but without the (y/n) and all that. She also has no name mentioned so feel free to imagine as you please.

Follow the reader through the events of the Captain America movies and experience her love for Bucky Barnes.

Warnings: none

Note: Honestly, this chapter reads a little weird to me but my friend who helps me edit said it was fine. IDK going from the 40s to 2012 is weird when trying to write.

<< Previous Next>>

Masterlist

Seven months had gone by since Steve and I had been unfrozen. This new world I suddenly woke up in was exhausting. Everything had changed from the simplest thing like manners to complicated things like technology.

Days after waking up, we had been sent to a place called “The Retreat” so we could catch up on the seventy years we had missed out on. There was so much that we took to writing everything down in small notebooks, so we could remember.

I caught onto using the new technology quicker than Steve since I had worked with Howard Stark for several years. Being able to adapt to strange and new tech on the fly was a requirement when working with him.

After those few weeks there, we were both moved into two separate government apartments located in New York. I wish I could say that it got easier with time, but it didn’t. Instead of going to hang out with Steve or actually trying to make acquaintances with anyone, I just stayed in my room, locked away from everything. Coping with being in the future was the easy part, learning to live without everyone I ever knew was hard.

I hadn't known peaceful sleep in a long time. Every time I closed my eyes I am met with nightmares. The softness of the mattress had made it feel like I would fall through at any moment, back into the ice. To try and combat this I pushed my bed into the far corner of the room and made a cot directly under the frame. It felt safer to lay on the hard floor in the dark. The nightmares still came through, sometimes they were battles, sometimes they were of the plane crashing, but most of the time they were about losing Bucky. Every time I woke up in a cold sweat and never went back to bed. I just stared unblinking at the metal that made the bed frame.

One night after a particularly taxing dream I decided to take a walk. It was three in the morning, so I wouldn't have to deal with a lot of people. I changed out of my pajamas into some of the clothes I had been provided. The clothes of the future were tighter than in the forties. It had taken me a while to get used to the feeling of fabric clinging to my legs and upper body. The outside world was quiet except for the occasional car passing by. I kept my eyes to the ground, not really caring where I ended up. I only looked up when I was almost run over by another late-night walker. Peering from left to right, my eyes fixed on an old faded sign hanging above me. The letters were just barely readable and said in large letters ‘Boxing gym’. With another survey of the area, I realized where I was. This was the gym that Bucky used to take Steve when teaching him self-defense. I had tagged along a couple of times before I had joined the SSR, I was surprised it was still here. I smiled weakly and turned to the door. The light inside was on, it couldn’t hurt to see if they were open. The door creaked open and I slipped in quietly. The sound of someone working out came down the long brick hallway. Hesitantly I made my way to the open doors that led to the sparring room.

Stopping just past the threshold, to my surprise, I spotted Steve, who was busy punching the life out of a punching bag. I walked through the small office and around the boxing rings before I stopped again and leaned against one of the columns a few feet away from where Steve stood. I watched him for a while before he landed a hard punch on the bag and it flew off into the distance. I started clapping slowly and he turned around in shock.

“Good job, you broke the bag, but you do know you’re gonna have to pay for that right?”

“Hey kid, I haven’t seen you in a while. I came by your apartment but you didn’t answer.”

“I know Stevie, I just haven't felt up to company since we got back to New York. I hope you can forgive me.” He looked at me with sad eyes and took three long steps in my direction. His arms came out to engulf me in a hug.

“It’s okay, I understand. Promise you’ll tell me if something's wrong, okay?” I nodded into his chest and he squeezed me tighter.

“I couldn't sleep, I guess you couldn't either.”

“No, too many thoughts.” He let go of me and went to get two more punching bags. He hung them up a few feet away from one another before turning to me and asking if I wanted to join. Pretty soon we were both laughing together if it felt almost like we were back home before everything happened. That was until the same dark-skinned man from that day seven months ago showed up. I later learned he was Nick Fury, director of SHIELD.

“I’m glad to find you both here.” He stated.

“Are you here with a mission, Sir?” Steve asked.

“I am.”

“Is this to try and get us back out in the world?” I asked.

“No, I'm trying to save it.” he thrust out an open manila folder. I grabbed it slowly and brought it to where Steve and I could both look at it. The blue cube that had evaporated Johann Schmidt was in the photograph pinned to the first page. In large bold letters beside the pictures spelled out TESSERACT. We slowly walked to a nearby bench and sat down.

“That's HYDRA’s secret weapon. I thought it fell into the ocean that day,” I whispered.

“Howard fished it out of the water when they went looking for you both. He thought what we think, that this cube could be an unlimited sustainable energy source.” Fury informed us.

“Who took it from you?” Steve questioned.

“He’s called Loki, he’s not from around here. We have a lot we're gonna need to catch you both up on if you agree to help. This world has gotten stranger than you already know.”

“I doubt anything could surprise us anymore, right Stevie?”

“Yeah,” he agreed.

“Ten bucks says you’re both wrong.” Fury bet. We both got up from our seats and handed the file back. Steve went and grabbed another bag from the floor and I just headed straight for the door.

“There are debriefing packets at your apartments, read through them and get back to me by tomorrow afternoon. And before you leave, is there anything we should know about the tesseract?”

“You should have left it in the ocean.” Steve and I said at once before walking out of the gym. Once we were outside on the sidewalk we hugged and said our goodbyes for the moment and then went our separate ways.

The walk home felt longer than the walk to the gym, but this gave me time to think about what I wanted to do. Whether I wanted to go on this mission, or if I just wanted to lay low and live my life. By the time I walked through my front door I had almost made my decision, but I was waiting to read the file before I decided for good. With a quick look through the minimal information provided I sighed and threw the papers down onto my kitchen counter. Shaking my head I murmured to myself.

“No, I am not doing this. This cube is not worth it.” Rubbing my eyes I went back to my room and crawled under the bed, not caring that I was still in jeans and a t-shirt. I was not going to walk blindly into anything dealing with that cube again. I lost my fiance and everyone I have ever known because of that stupid blue thing, I'm not going to go anywhere near it again. I laid there quietly for a while before I eventually drifted off into a restless sleep.

The next morning I woke up with a start, almost hitting my head on the bed above me. Furious honking made its way from the street into my room. One thing I definitely missed from the past was how quiet it once was at seven a.m.

Along with the decision to not join the mission, I had also made up my mind about leaving New York. This had been a long decision in the making and the talk with Fury last night was enough to make the choice for me. I couldn't live in this city anymore. The places I used to hang out at were still here, but they had been renovated so many times that they were unrecognizable. Everywhere I turned It was like I was walking through a strange alternate reality. I saw glimpses of the past, like ghosts around every corner, it was worse when it was a place Bucky and I frequented.

When I had gotten back from the Retreat I made the mistake of going to mine and Steve’s old apartment. It had been torn down to construct a bookstore, along with several other retail shops. I broke down in the street when I saw it, waves upon waves of emotions crashed into me. All the memories I had there with Steve, mom, and Bucky had no place to live now other than in my mind. The next mistake I made was to go down the next few blocks to Bucky’s apartment he shared with his mom and sister, Rebecca. It was no longer there either, a bakery stood in its place. I turned and left before the onslaught of tears came. After that day I thought it would be best to go somewhere else, somewhere I had no memories.

I crawled out from under the bed and slowly moved to the bathroom to start getting ready for the long day to come. Once I had showered and gotten dressed I sat myself down on the living room sofa, looking wearily at the telephone on the end table. Hesitantly I picked up the receiver and dialed the number that had been in the tesseract briefing file. It rang twice before Nick Fury answered.

“Mr. Fury, I’m calling to tell you that I won’t be joining your team for whatever mission you have going on. I just want to lay low and rebuild my life and live it quietly without interruption.” I let out a long breath.

“Well, that’s unfortunate. Was really hoping to have you fight with us. If you change your mind, you know where to contact me. Goodbye Agent Rogers.” He hung up quickly after that, not giving me a chance to tell him goodbye as well. The next call was going to be the hard one, I had to tell Steve my plans. I dialed his number slowly as I raised the receiver to my ear. It didn’t even have time to get through the first ring before Steve picked up.

“Hello?” He asked on the other end.

“Hey, it’s me.”

“What’s up kid. Have you called Fury about joining the mission? I called about an hour ago letting them know I’d help.” He sounded a little enthusiastic.

“That’s actually what I’m calling about. I’m not sure how you’ll feel about this but I’m not going to help with the mission.”

“Oh,” he sounded surprised. “Why not? I thought you’d want to help get rid of that thing once and for all.”

“It’s not that, I want nothing more than for the tesseract to be gone for good. I just don’t think I can be a part of it, I don’t want this thing to take over my life if we can’t get rid of it. This brings me to another important thing I need to tell you. I can’t stay here in New York, so I’m moving to DC.” He was quiet for a while after I had said that, the only thing I could hear coming from his side was his breath. I grew more anxious by the minute waiting for him to say something.

“What do you mean you’re moving? Why can’t you stay here with me?”

“Don’t be selfish.” I snapped.

“I’m not being selfish, you are.” he raised his voice. I huffed through my nose, getting annoyed.

“I can’t stay here any longer. I have no idea what it is like for you, but for me, being in this city is torture. I see ghosts from the past every time I leave my house. I can’t go anywhere without seeing him, and every time I see him, I break down. I never got to say goodbye and that day plays over and over in my head. Steve, I’m being tormented with nightmares to the point where I have barely gotten five hours of sleep in the past week. I need to get out of here whether you like it or not.” Tears had started to stream down my face as I yelled into the phone.

“Why didn’t you tell me sooner? I could have helped you, I still can help you if you let me. If you leave I can’t keep you safe, I can’t protect you like I’m supposed to.” He was using his soft “grown-up” voice he always used with me when I was younger to try and calm me down but the tears kept streaming down my cheeks at a rapid pace.

“I can protect myself, we did take the same serum,” I choked out. “I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want to bother you with my problems, I can deal with them myself. Plus you have your own things to deal with, you don’t need to help me with mine.” My head was starting to hurt now and my cheeks and neck itched with quickly drying tears.

“Fine. The only way I will be okay with you leaving is if you promise to call me at least twice a week and you let me help you move.” I gave a strained laugh and nodded, even if he couldn't see it.

“Okay, it’s a deal. I actually already have an apartment lined up, so you can come over and help me pack everything up whenever you want to. I’m going to try and be out of New York by the end of next week.”

“I’ll be right over.” I laughed as I told him that I’d be waiting. I laid the receiver back down in its spot and stood up to go to the bathroom. I stared at myself in the mirror, thinking. I was glad my relationship with Steve could handle an argument, understand one another, then go right back to normal, I don’t think we would be this close if it couldn't. I blinked back a few stubborn tears and bent down to grab a rag from the sink cabinet, I dampened it in warm water then wiped the dried tears from my face. The warm water felt wonderful on my skin.

Over the next week and a half, Steve and I boxed up what few belongings I had and packed them and the furniture into a moving truck. I didn’t own a car so the moving truck would be my transportation to DC. One of the many things SHIELD had us do was take a modern driving test, which wasn’t hard, just a few more signs to remember and more gadgets in the car than there used to be, I ended up passing with flying colors.

By Friday morning we had everything ready to go. Steve would follow me on his motorcycle and I would drive the truck the whole three and a half hours to my new apartment.

We stopped several times on the way down, mainly so Steve didn’t have to sit on the bike for the whole three hours straight. We also stopped for lunch. All in all the trip took us about five hours, with traffic added. We made it to my new home just after two and we started moving my belongings in immediately.

Admittedly the apartment was way too big for just me but I liked the extra space, it was different from the tiny two-bedroom apartment I had grown up in. The first thing I made sure to unpack and put up was the bed. I still hadn't told Steve I wasn’t actually sleeping in the bed, but he didn’t need to know that. After that clothes were sorted through and put in their respective places. With our enhanced strength and stamina, we had the whole place relatively furnished in just under two hours. We stopped for dinner when everything had been brought up from the moving truck.

The day went by fast with us talking and laughing like we used to, it was a good change of pace from my usual aimlessly roaming around my apartment alone. But, all good things have to come to an end and Steve had to leave. He pulled me into a tight hug, almost crushing me, and wouldn’t let go until I pinky promised to call him several times a week. I just laughed and promised him I would. I was sad watching him walk down the hallway to the stairs.

I turned back into my apartment and closed the door, locking it behind me. I stared at the box littering the floor and decided to get to work unpacking the rest of what we hadn’t gotten earlier.

Most of my belongings I found in thrift stores and antique shops around the city. It may have been the twenty-first century now, but that wasn’t stopping me from making my home a comfortable, familiar space. If you walked in from the outside world, you would have thought you had been transported to the past with how much authentic 1940s and before things I had littered about. Some things had been saved from the apartment we lived in in the forties. I learned a few weeks before we came back from the retreat that Peggy had been the one to put everything in storage after they had failed to find Steve and me in the ice. I had gone through all of it and took out what I wanted to take with me and Steve had done the same. I was thankful Peggy had done what she did, otherwise, everything would have been lost to time.

That night as I tried to sleep, I realized it was a little easier to relax. DC was a whole lot quieter than New York, there was no honking or yelling every two seconds to keep me awake. I was left alone in almost complete silence, which for others may be worse than being bombarded with noise, but I didn’t mind. I fell asleep almost an hour after laying down for the night and had a restless sleep. I woke up many times in the night covered in sweat, but I couldn't remember the dreams, anything I could remember dissipated as soon as I opened my eyes.

I woke up again very early the next morning, the clock on my wall said it was four forty-five. It was still dark out, but I could hear birds starting to chirp. I crawled out from under the bed frame and went to put on some exercise clothes. Running always helped to clear my mind after not being able to get any sort of rest. The run itself didn’t take long, even though it was seven miles, any normal person would be exhausted but I had barely broken a sweat. I did get to see some nice places, taking a route around the zoo, to the National Cathedral, and then back around to the Dupont Circle neighborhood, where my apartment was. The sun was just starting to come up as I made my way back into my building.

Although I had just moved in the day before, I was ready to start finding some sort of job. The money SHIELD was giving me to help assimilate back into the world comfortably was appreciated, but I wanted to make my own way in life without their help. Finding a job was going to be harder than it used to be, but I did have expertise in several areas. Upon being unfrozen, along with the driving tests, SHIELD created a new resume for me. I had degrees in history pertaining to the 1940s, World War II, and several of the New Deal programs, with a specialty in the SSR. I was also given a Veteran ID, although I don’t really know how that one works because I definitely was not a part of the apparent ongoing fighting in Afghanistan. I still looked twenty-four, I doubt anyone would believe it.

Anyway, I had interviews lined up for today at the Smithsonian, and hopefully, the resume that SHIELD created and my knowledge would be enough to land a job. I had already figured that I would be volunteering at the local VFW. I knew I could find people there to relate to and hopefully be able to make some friends.

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