Loki X Autistic Reader - Blog Posts

I loved your Unintentional fic I hope you do another part!!!!

Unintentional (Part 2)

Part 1

Pairing: Loki x Shy!Autistic!Fem!Reader

Summary: Loki tries to explain himself to you. Things don't go as either of you planned.

Warnings/tags: Soft Loki (probably OOC), angst, upset reader, minor character death (mentioned), mentions of mind control, mentions of delusions, mentions of alcohol, Frigga is a sweetheart, mentions of hospitals, implications of sensory overload, mentions of meltdowns, mentions of autism

A/N: I'm so sorry, this one isn't my best writing…

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

"L/N? L/N, can you hear me?"

Groaning softly, you open your eyes to see Romanoff sitting by your bed.

She breathes a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank goodness."

Thank goodness? What's she on about?

Then a wave of dread hits you.

Loki.

You were supposed to protect him if he got captured again.

And judging by the fact that Romanoff's sitting by your bed, that means he has been captured.

"Where is he?" you demand.

Romanoff looks confused. "Where's who?"

"Loki. Where is he?"

"Oh… Loki." Romanoff shrugs. "He's in a holding cell for the time being. Don't worry, we'll make him pay for what he did to you."

Make him pay? But he didn't hurt me! "I need to see him."

"L/N…"

There's a commotion outside the room, and Romanoff goes to investigate.

"What's going on?" she demands.

"Stark wants to see L/N," sighs someone. It sounds like Agent Hill.

Romanoff shrugs. "That's all?"

"The doctor said that she wasn't supposed to be excited or stressed out."

"Look, just send him in. The sooner we get this over with, the better."

"How about we send Cap in instead?" suggests another voice.

Dr Banner? What's he doing here?

"Hey, why does Cap get the special treatment around here?" someone else (presumably Stark) complains.

"Because he knows how to deal with people, and you don't," snaps Romanoff. "She's awake, Cap; you can go in."

"Thanks." A blond guy pokes his head around the door. "Am I okay to come in?"

You nod, and immediately regret it as a wave of pain washes over you.

The blond guy - presumably the aforementioned 'Cap' - sits in Romanoff's chair. "Look, I know this isn't going to be easy," he begins, his voice gentle. "But we need to know everything that happened to you after you were - captured."

"Captured?" Since when was I captured?

Cap leans forward. "L/N, I don't know what Loki said to you, or how he manipulated you into going with him, and I know it's going to be hard to hear, but - you were captured."

You take a deep breath. "Look, just - just tell me what happened - how you found Loki, what you did with him."

He sighs. "We don't know how Loki got hold of you, but we found him at Stark Tower, with you. You were in a pretty bad way. Do you have any idea how that happened?"

"The Destroyer gun."

"What?"

"It was a prototype weapon that Coulson fired at Loki. He took the brunt of the blast, cannoned into me, and we both went straight through a wall. That's why I was hurt."

Cap looks carefully at you. "No other reason?"

You shake your head. "Not that I can remember."

"What did you do afterwards?"

You pause. "I - my memory's not very clear. I…"

Cap waits as you pretend to try and recall what happened. You know full well what happened (how could you forget?), but you have no intention of telling the truth yet, at least until you've seen Loki, and agreed either to a plausible story, or to tell the truth.

"I'm sorry, I really don't remember," you say. "I suppose I was on autopilot. I probably just ran away, and then fainted or something. I did hit my head, so my memory's not very clear."

"That's okay," says Cap kindly. "So, just to recall, Agent Coulson fired this destroyer weapon at Loki, and you got caught in the crossfire. Is that what happened?"

"Yeah, but I was behind him - Loki, I mean. So it wasn't really the crossfire, as such. But you could call it that."

Cap nods. "That'll be all for now. Thank you for your time, L/N."

You're not really sure how to respond, so you just smile, and nod, trying hard not to wince as another wave of pain hits you.

You feel a bit guilty lying to him, because he does seem like he genuinely wants to help, but you really don't want to tell the truth until you've had the go-ahead from Loki, because whatever you say will impact him, whether positively or negatively - but most likely the latter.

You can hear hushed voices in the corridor, and even though it gives you a headache, you strain to try and hear what they're saying.

"…seemed quite lucid…"

"…fairly trustworthy…"

"…most valuable source…"

The voices fade away as you fall back asleep.

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

You're woken up by yet another commotion outside your room.

This one's louder, and sounds a lot more violent, so you strain to hear what's going on.

"…can't let him see her…"

"What if he…"

"…wants to see him…"

"…could kill us all…"

There's a knock at your door, and Romanoff pokes her head in.

"Hey, L/N, sorry to disturb you, but - Loki wants to see you. He - um, he threatened to break out of his cell and come see you by himself if we didn't let him…"

You try hard to suppress a smile. "That's fine. Him wanting to see me, I mean."

"You sure?"

"Yeah."

Romanoff doesn't look too impressed, but nods. "Okay. He'll be here in a minute."

You can hardly contain your relief at the fact that Loki's finally coming to see you. Or the delight that he wants to see you. It's been a few days since you first woke up, and you've asked about seeing Loki a couple of times, but the Avengers usually deflect, or (in the case of Stark) firmly say no.

The door opens, and Loki steps in, handcuffed, with Thor just behind him, presumably in case he should try anything.

Oh, darling… Loki's face is impassive, but you can see that his eyes are glassy. I was so worried.

You sigh. I'm sorry I didn't hold up my end of the bargain.

Loki shrugs. It matters not. I just want to make sure you're alright. Are you?

You bite your lip. I'm tired, achy, and I feel like I never want to move again.

Loki moves to sit down by your bed. How have they been treating you?

Surprisingly well. They all seem to think that you captured me, and tortured me, or something, and I've been too nervous to tell the truth, in case they think my brain's turned to mush or something.

They probably would. Loki sighs. I'm sorry I wasn't able to protect you.

You smile shyly. You did your best. And you know, it's kind of ironic that the organisation that was supposed to protect me turned out being the one that injured me.

Loki's eyes darken. That fool Coulson. I wish I could make him pay for what he did, but he's already dead.

Dead?

He died of that stab wound I gave him.

So you kind of got preliminary revenge.

I was acting in self-defence, but I suppose you could look at it that way.

Your heart gives a guilty leap when you remember that Thor's right there. Can he hear us?

Loki shakes his head. Not under these circumstances, although he can sometimes read thoughts.

You breathe a sigh of relief. Good.

Loki turns to Thor, who's been staring at you like you're both crazy. "Do I really need these handcuffs?"

Thor glares at him. "Yes. And they're not coming off."

You glance at Loki. Are those Asgardian handcuffs?

Loki shakes his head. I think they're just hoping that Thor can overpower me, should I try to escape.

Kind of stupid, if you ask me. Then you get an idea. What if I try to convince Thor to take the handcuffs off you?

Loki shrugs. You can try.

Okay. You take a deep breath. Look, Thor-

Out loud, sweet.

You blush, take another deep breath, and begin again. "Thor - does Loki really need to be handcuffed? Couldn't he just break out of them anyway?"

Thor stares at you like you've gone crazy. "Lady L/N…"

Now that you're over the first hurdle, your confidence begins to grow. "Look, I don't know what he's told you, or if you've even interrogated him, but he didn't hurt me. You must believe me."

"Lady L/N, you were very badly hurt - you were unconscious - when we found you. You said yourself that your memory was hazy-"

"Well, I lied."

Thor stares at you in utter shock and disbelief.

Your heart's jumping about wildly, but you keep going. "I didn't want to say anything that would negatively impact Loki."

Now it's Loki's turn to stare at you. You did - you what? How - why…?

Taking a third deep breath, you continue. "Anything I said - the Avengers could have twisted it to make an excuse to torture him - to - oh, I don't know - double his sentence, give him a worse punishment…"

"Well-" Thor looks like he's desperately trying to collect his thoughts. "What actually happened?"

You glance nervously at Loki. Should I?

Loki nods, his face impassive. Go on.

So you tell Thor exactly what happened.

His face turns from shock, to disbelief, to something you can't quite place.

Finally, he turns to his brother. "Is this true?" he demands.

Loki nods.

Thor turns back to you. "Lady L/N - why would you keep this from us? We were trying to help you."

"But you weren't trying to help Loki. And - well…" You look helplessly at Loki.

Loki mumbles something.

"Speak up!" snaps Thor.

"She's my soulmate."

"Who?"

"Y/N. She's my soulmate. She could read my thoughts. That's why I was protecting her."

The air in the room suddenly shifts. Soulmate? What's he on about? That's why I could get into your head? Then why-

Thor grabs Loki's arm roughly enough to make him wince. "We're going. Now."

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

You suddenly fling your book aside, sighing in frustration.

It's been several weeks since Loki last visited you, and the Avengers have been acting really weird. You thought they'd be angry, but they've been weirdly nice. They seem to be under the impression that you were mind-controlled by Loki, which you know is ridiculous, since neither of you had even been near the Sceptre when you first decided to help him.

You haven't really recovered from your injuries yet, but you're well enough to get out of bed, which is a relief, because now you can hide from the Avengers if they take to whispering outside your door again.

"Hello."

You jump in fright when you hear Loki's voice.

"Oh - I'm terribly sorry, darling. I didn't mean to frighten you."

It's fine.

Loki smiles. "It's alright. I already soundproofed the room. We can talk freely here."

"Okay."

Loki goes to stand with his back to the fireplace. "I expect this is all very confusing for you, all this soulmate business. I'm sorry I had to tell you under those circumstances, sweet. If things had been different…"

You nod. "It's fine."

Loki sighs. "It still doesn't excuse my giving you such a nasty shock. You ended up relapsing, I heard?"

You shake your head. "They're exaggerating. My social battery died."

Loki frowns. "Your - social battery?"

"I was tired from socialising. It takes up a lot of my energy. And I was already tired from all those injuries."

Even though he tries to hide it, you can see him visibly relax. "Well - do you have any questions for me?"

Which one to ask first? "Why can you read my thoughts, but I can't read yours?"

"I can shield my thoughts - something I actually need to teach you."

You suddenly feel a hot wave of anger hit you. Wait… is he lying to me?

"Look," you begin, rather irritably. "Why are you being so nice to me? I know there's the soulmate thing, but you - you just don't seem like the sort of guy who's just going around calling pretty girls pet names, and being super patient with them. And I'm not even that pretty. What's going on?"

Loki opens his mouth to explain, but the look on your face shuts him up before he can speak, so he just watches you with a strangely sad look on his face.

Not that it matters to you. "You realise that I nearly helped you destroy New York, that I've managed to alienate the Avengers - who were genuinely trying to help me, and that I'm now on SHIELD's blacklist? All because I was trying to protect you!"

The pain in your muscles when you stand up nearly makes you fall, but you grit your teeth against the pain, ignoring Loki's outstretched hand. "I'm done. I'm sick of trying to protect someone against people who won't listen to me, because they think I'm delusional! If you want to explain yourself to me properly - then - well - just-"

Having run out of words, you simply storm out of the room, leaving a speechless Loki behind.

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

"I don't get it," you later complain to Dr Banner. "A few weeks earlier, I was trying to protect him, and now I'm storming off because I think he's lying to me?"

Banner shrugs. "You've got the wrong person. Talk to Thor."

"I know Asgardian relationships aren't your specialty-" you begin.

"Actually, I'm clueless."

"-but you're the only Avenger here who I haven't actually lied to."

"So you want me to talk to Thor."

You nod. "More or less."

"You do realise he's not mad at you?"

You shrug. "Well, maybe he isn't mad at me, but he's kind of - terrifying, to be honest."

"Who's terrifying?" asks Stark. "Oh, hey, Y/N. How's it going?"

You're more than a little weirded out by his sudden friendliness. Is it because I yelled at Loki? "Oh, uh, yeah - hi…"

"Stark, do you know where Thor is?" asks Banner.

Stark shrugs. "No idea. Probably the training room." As you turn to leave, he calls after you. "Oh, Y/N?"

You turn back. "Yeah?"

"It's Nat's birthday, so we're having a party. Do you want to come?"

In what world-? "Uh - yeah, sure."

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

Your mind is racing as you go to find the training room.

What was I thinking? I can't go to a party! I don't have anything to wear! I don't even know where it is!

Fortunately, the training room's now up ahead, and you hastily stop catastrophising in favour of trying to thing what questions you're going to ask Thor.

He's just finishing up his workout as you walk in, so you stay right near the wall, just in case.

He grins when he sees you. "Oh - Lady Y/N! What brings you here?"

"I - um - I have some questions for you." Why do I sound so businesslike?

"Is this about the soulmate situation?" asks Thor.

You nod. "I just - why do you guys make such a big deal out of it? On Earth, it's usually kind of a myth. Nobody really takes the idea too seriously - well, I certainly didn't. Not until now."

Thor shrugs. "I'm afraid I don't have much experience in this. I have sent for my mother - who I think will have more knowledge of this than I, so when she arrives, you could talk to her."

You manage a small smile. "Okay. Thanks, Thor."

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

This was a mistake.

You'd forgotten that Stark's parties are notoriously loud and boisterous. And that they're massive.

All of which is a very, very bad combination for you.

Fortunately, no-one's really noticed you, but the smell of alcohol is giving you a headache, the loud music is hurting your ears, and the crowd's beginning to feel suffocating - whether from actual lack of oxygen or sensory overload, you have no idea.

I have to get out before I have a meltdown.

You make your way to the exit, hoping that nobody notices you.

"Lady Y/N!"

Biting back curses, you turn around to see Thor waving at you.

"My mother has arrived! Shall I take you to her?"

You nod. Wonderful. Another social interaction.

But at least you can leave the party.

Thor's mother's face lights up when she sees you. "So, you are the Y/N that my sons have told us so much about," she says, with a smile. "It's lovely to meet you, dear. My name's Frigga."

"Uh - yeah… Nice to meet you too."

Once you're both settled, Frigga comes straight to the point. "I understand you have some questions on the soulmate situation."

You nod. "Why is it such a big deal with you guys?"

Frigga smiles. "Well, on Asgard, it's expected that you marry once you reach a certain age - what Midgardians would call your twenties, I believe. We have not the option of divorce, which means we must either find our soulmate, or make an eligible match with someone similar. Meeting your soulmate before then is very rare, and being soulmates with each other - that is even rarer."

"But how do you know if you're soulmates?"

"There are several stages. The first is being able to read each other's thoughts. Loki can read yours, I understand."

"But I can't read his. At least - he claims it's because he can shield his mind, but-"

Frigga sighs. "It is difficult to know whether my son tells the truth or not. He's always been one for mischief, and he is an excellent liar, but-" She sighs. "I have talked to him about this, and something about his manner leads me to believe that he is being truthful, but - he has deceived me before."

"What's the second stage?"

"The need to protect the other."

"Well, I certainly experienced that," you say. "And I think Loki might have?"

Frigga nods. "He did. And he still does, I believe."

"And the third stage?"

"The third stage depends on your soulmate's honesty. If your soulmate is generally dishonest, then you won't believe anything they say, even if they are telling the truth."

"Hang on." You hold up a hand. "Does that mean that my getting mad at Loki was because we're - soulmates?"

"Strange as it may seem, yes. But it won't last long. And the fourth stage is sharing your feelings with your soulmate."

"Like hyper-empathy?" you ask.

Frigga nods. "Yes, except that you feel your feelings as well as theirs."

Oh, no. You feel shivers run down your spine. "Is - is there any way to stop that from happening?"

"How do you mean?" asks Frigga.

You sigh. How to explain autism to an Asgardian? "I - I was just curious."

Frigga shakes her head. "No, you weren't. I know there's a reason."

You stare at the floor, fiddling with your hands. "Well, I - I already have hyper-empathy - it's not a special ability or anything, it's just the way my brain works - and…"

"You're worried your feelings might overwhelm you?" asks Frigga.

You nod.

Frigga smiles. "Don't worry, Y/N. The 'feeling each other's feelings' that I told you about - it's little more than just a twinge, an inkling of what the other is feeling. It's rarely overwhelming."

"And I think it's happening right now," you add.

Frigga leans forward. "What do you feel?"

"I just felt a twinge of disdain. Which I'm guessing is Loki, because he doesn't get along with Stark, and absolutely hates his parties. I guess Thor must have dragged him along."

She chuckles. "That does sound like Loki. He's never liked parties, or large gatherings of any kind. Perhaps we should go and rescue him."

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

As you both enter the party, you immediately spot Thor engaged in a drinking game with Captain America.

"I ought to have brought him some Asgardian mead to make it fair," laughs Frigga.

"Captain America's got some sort of super serum in him," you explain. "I think he might last longer than average, though I think Thor's going to win."

As you scan the room, you suddenly notice Loki in the back, looking very grumpy and out of it, but his face softens slightly when he sees you and Frigga.

"Hello, Mother," he says. "Hello, Y/N."

You manage a small smile. "Hi. Um, look-"

Loki shakes his head. "Outside." He offers you his arm. "May I?"

You're surprised, but take it, while Frigga takes his other arm.

As you walk out, Loki and Frigga talk about what you're guessing is Asgardian things. It's too loud for you to really catch anything specific.

It's nice walking with Loki, even if he isn't talking to you. He's surprisingly courteous, making sure to walk you and Frigga around the clean areas on the floor.

"Mother! Loki!" bellows Thor suddenly, making you jump. "Join me!"

Frigga, laughing, lets go of Loki's arm. "I will see you later, Loki and Y/N."

Loki smiles at his mother, before frowning at Thor, and then continuing towards the exit with you.

Once you're outside, Loki turns to you. "I'm terribly sorry about my oaf brother. Are you alright?"

You nod shyly. "I'm okay."

Loki nods. "That's good."

"Your mother's so nice," you tell him. "I really like her."

Loki smiles. "I'm glad you like her."

"Oh, yeah - um, Loki, I'm really sorry about storming out on you a few days ago. I know there's the soulmate thing, but - it was wrong of me, and I'm sorry."

"It's alright," says Loki gently. "It wasn't your fault. Listen, I've been thinking. We got off to a bad start, and I'm sorry about that. I know it's too late to turn things back, but-"

He sighs. "I suppose what I'm trying to say is that I love you, and I do want a relationship with you. But I want a real one, not one based off - obligation."

Your heart jumps. "Are you asking me out?"

Loki nods. "If that's what Midgardians call courting, then yes."

You take a deep breath. "Okay. Yeah. I'd - I'd like that."

Then you feel a sudden warmth in your chest, a warmth that matches the smile on Loki's face.

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

Part 3 coming soon

As always, I do not give permission for anyone to copy my work, repost it, etc.

Unintentional

Pairing: Loki x shy!autistic!fem!reader

Summary: Accidentally getting caught up in a chain of events outside your control was not on your bucket list. But neither was working for SHIELD. Or being able to read the mind of a certain Asgardian captured by SHIELD…

Warnings/tags: Fluff, soft Loki, angst, reader hates their job, mind-reading, implied concussion, mention of stabbing, minor character death, mentions of injuries, probably OOC Loki? (I don't really know…), probably confusing dialogue, morally questionable SHIELD

A/N: I'm so sorry I haven't posted in so long, life's just been really busy lately.

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

Working for SHIELD was not on your bucket list. In fact, you didn't even know that the organisation existed until you'd dropped out of school, and started looking for work. You'd started as a lab intern, but you got promoted to lab assistant - and then you got onto SHIELD's radar.

In a good way, fortunately. You ended up getting a job there, and now you're one of the top lab assistants. You've worked with (well, for) some of the best scientists in the world. Some were nice, some not so nice, some just average.

Like your previous employer, Dr Selvig, who mysteriously disappeared quite recently.

And now you're stuck being a lab assistant to Dr Banner, who's probably the most dangerous person on the whole ship. Sure, he's not the worst scientist you've ever had to be a personal assistant to; in fact, he's actually really nice. One of the best, in fact.

Even so, you're pretty on edge around him. You're not the best with people, and the only reason you even agreed to the position of lab assistant in the first place was because, well, you thought that it would be only a few people that you'd have to interact with that would all be as awkward as you.

Unfortunately, that's not the case. Apparently, being a lab assistant also means acting as a mediator between the agents and the scientists - something you've never been great at, as it requires, well, people skills. Good people skills.

Fortunately, Dr Banner doesn't seem to be having any trouble like that, so far, and another guy's helping him out with whatever they're supposed to be doing (SHIELD is annoyingly 'hush-hush' about that sort of thing), which renders you pretty much useless as far as helping is concerned.

That's why you're glad that Banner lets you do pretty much whatever you like. He doesn't like being disturbed while he's working, he doesn't want to talk with the agents until he's found something of value - and that other guy, Sparks or something, is already playing assistant.

But still, knowing that he could lose control, and turn into a giant green rage monster at any point has been doing a pretty good job of keeping you on edge.

Sure, there's a dangerous guy locked up in the cage downstairs, who's apparently from another planet, and is ridiculously overpowered by all accounts, but - he's locked up. Banner isn't. And - well, you don't really know how the whole Hulk thing works. Does he get a nasty mood swing that turns him into Hulk? Is it under immense stress? Or does it just come on randomly?

One of the advantages of having pretty much free rein on a SHIELD hideout is that you can find out some pretty interesting stuff about the history of SHIELD, past cases, etc., and if anyone asks, you can just say it's for your job. It's just unfortunate that you aren't allowed to use your knowledge in trivia quizzes, and have to play clueless like other people.

"L/N? Where are you going?" You bite back a groan as you turn around.

It's just unfortunate that Agent Romanoff's seen you leaving the lab. You've never really been sure what to make of her. She's never been overtly mean to you, but she does have a habit of sticking her nose into your business, which you find kind of annoying, especially as you're a fairly private person.

"Aren't you supposed to be helping Dr Banner?" she asks.

You have to fight the urge to sigh. "He doesn't want to be disturbed while he's working."

"You should still stick around, though."

You shake your head. "He told me he doesn't like having people hovering over him unless they're actually helping."

Romanoff considers this for a moment, before nodding. "Okay, well, I actually have a job for you. I know it's not exactly in your skill-set, but - well, we still don't know what Loki's planning to do, so I need you to go and talk to him for me, see if he lets anything slip about his plans."

You nod. "Yes, Agent."

As you walk off, your mind's racing. I've got to talk to Loki, the second most dangerous person on the entire ship, a guy so powerful that it took the combined efforts of Sparks, Richards, Romanoff, and a couple others to even capture him? What if he attacks me? What if he gets inside my head? What if-

"L/N?"

Wonderful.

It's Agent Hill. "What are you doing?"

"An errand for Agent Romanoff."

You're surprised at how quickly her manner becomes more approving when she hears Romanoff's name. This could be a get-out-of-jail-free card for the next time I get caught snooping!

But even after that delightful discover, you're still very nervous by the time you reach the cage where Loki's being held, so much so that you end up debating with yourself about whether to even open the door.

Come on, Y/N, you have to open the door. You have to talk to him.

But he's dangerous! He might kill me!

He's in a cage that'll drop out of the helicarrier if he tries to break it, much less attack you.

But the mechanism might fail!

There's a button on the control pad that you can press that will do the exact same thing.

I don't want to do this!

Look, you promised Agent Romanoff you'd do it. You don't have to stay very long. Just ask him a couple questions, and then run away. You don't even have to stay to hear his answer; they can probably see him on the security cameras anyway.

Even so, for all your rationalising, you're still pretty scared when you finally push the door open, and step inside.

Maybe he won't hear me if I keep quiet. Maybe I can jumpscare him.

No such luck. Loki snaps his head around the minute you step inside.

He's actually a lot less scary-looking than you imagined he'd be.

Well, apart from his eyes. They're a glowing, unnatural blue that reminds you eerily of that weird spear-scimitar hybrid that Sparks and Banner are working on.

You can hear your heart pounding in your ears. Your lungs are struggling to fill with air, making you hyperventilate.

What am I even supposed to ask him? 'Hi, how's your day going? Oh, and by the way, could you very kindly tell me what exactly your plans are for invading Earth?'

Bang!

You jump back as Loki slams his fist on the glass.

"How did you get into my head?" he hisses.

Your first instinct would have been to run away, but you're so terrified that you can barely think straight, let alone run away.

He thumps the glass again. "Answer me!"

Tears begin to fill your eyes, partly from the shock, but also from his manner. You can see now why he's so dangerous; he can be absolutely terrifying when he wants to be.

"I - I don't know what you're talking about," you gasp, trying hard to hold back your tears.

"Don't lie to me." Loki's voice is quieter now, but more menacing. "Tell me how you got into my head!"

"I didn't!" Your voice is getting more and more high-pitched. "I swear!"

"Then why did I hear your voice while your lips weren't moving?"

"You can read thoughts?"

"When I choose to."

So he didn't-

"Why would I bother myself with the thoughts of a mere mortal?"

Darn. I forgot he could read thoughts.

"I'm not trying to read your thoughts, mortal," snaps Loki. "Now would you say something?"

You open your mouth, but it's completely dry, so you close it again, while trying to work out what you're going to say.

Then a wave of anger hits you.

You know what? you decide. Screw Romanoff. Screw Fury. Screw SHIELD. I'm sick of them, pretending like they're better than everyone else just because they work for the government.

You can tell Loki's listening in, but you don't care. Let him listen. Let him hear exactly what goes on inside my head.

"Tell me about yourself," says Loki suddenly, in a much more civil tone than before. "How did you start working for SHIELD?"

I got too good at my job, so Fury forced me to work for him. Outwardly, you say, "It was an internship."

Loki nods. "What do you want from me?"

Well, not from you specifically, but I'd quite like to quit this job, and go back to being a civilian. "Why… why would I tell you that?"

Loki just smirks. "I think you know why, mortal."

I don't want to tell you.

Loki chuckles. "Don't you trust me?"

I don't know who to trust anymore. "Why would I trust someone fighting the organisation I work for?"

Loki's suddenly serious. "Do you trust SHIELD?"

I thought I did. But after I read the files… "Of course." You're shocked at how easily the lie slips off your tongue. What have I become?

"L/N!"

It's Fury. And he looks like he's living up to his name quite well.

"What do you think you're doing?"

Your mind goes blank for a moment. "Uh… Romanoff asked me to interrogate Loki."

"Well, it doesn't look much like an interrogation to me. Seems like Loki's doing most of the asking."

Maybe there's different types. "Well - I'm - I'm going to ask him questions."

Fury sighs. "Fine. Just - don't get too close. He's a master of manipulation, L/N. He'll get inside your head, if you let him."

Well, I wasn't letting him. "Yes, sir."

After he's left, you turn back to Loki with a sigh. "Where were we?"

L/N, I need you to pay attention to me. In a few minutes, Barton will be breaking in with enemies of SHIELD, who work for me. I need you to stay low, draw as little attention to yourself as possible. Stay near me if you can. And get rid of that uniform, or they will kill you.

You try hard to keep your emotions in check. Why are you doing this? Why are you helping me?

There's no time to explain. Are you with me or not?

You consider for a moment. What has SHIELD ever done for me? For any of its agents? I don't even like the organisation, so why…

Loki sighs. What have you to lose?

Everything, if you lose. But… you know what? Screw SHIELD. I was planning to leave them anyway, at least once this mission was over, so why not leave now?

Loki smirks. "You have no questions for me, L/N?"

It's Y/N. "I did, but then Fury interrupted, and I forgot."

"Well, I'd rather like to hear some questions, all the same." What do you have to offer me, Y/N? I'm not doing this purely out of the goodness of my heart.

If we fail, I act as a double-double agent, and see if I can get you the lightest sentence possible. You'd still be incarcerated for a while, but it would be shorter than life - and better than going to the electric chair. If we succeed - well, I'm not sure. "How - how old are you?"

Loki chuckles again. "What a silly question. I am around one thousand and fifty years old - which is equivalent to around twenty-one of your years." That sounds fair enough.

How do I know you'll keep your word? "Um - well - do you have any siblings?"

"A brother. His name's Thor. You may have seen him." I promise to you, Y/N, on all I hold dear, I will protect you.

Cross your heart? "The blonde guy carrying the big hammer?"

Loki nods. "Yes." Cross my heart?

It's a kind of promise. Cross my heart, hope to die. Or you could swear on your mother's life. "Well - um… he mentioned you were adopted."

"That's correct." Well, if it makes you feel better - cross my heart, hope to die. But I already promised on my mother's life.

And you'll keep that promise? "How old were you when you were adopted?"

"I was a baby." I will.

Should I leave? "So, like, a birth adoption?"

Loki shakes his head. "I don't want to talk about it." No, stay here. You'll be safer near me.

But what about my uniform? "Well - um…"

"No more questions, hm? You don't seem to have learned very much about me." When I get out, I can cast an illusion to hide your uniform.

Should I help you break out? "Well, I learned a bit about your family and childhood. That's something, right?"

"But you still have no idea of my plans." Do you know how?

I think I could figure it out. Or Barton could get you out. "That's true…"

Crash!

The whole aircraft gives a massive shudder, the impact knocking you to the floor.

For a moment, you're dazed, unsure what to do next.

Looking up, you see that the security cameras around the cage are broken. Not that it matters whether anyone sees you now.

Struggling to your feet, you stagger to the control panel, and try to figure out which button to press to open the cage.

After trying a few random buttons, which fortunately do nothing untoward, you find the right one, and press it.

Stepping out, Loki takes a long look at you, before putting his hand on your shoulder.

"There," he says softly. "You should be safe now. Just stay with me."

Looking down, you see that your SHIELD uniform is gone, replaced by plain black clothes. "Thanks."

"Don't thank me yet. Do you have a weapon?"

You shake your head. "I'm not allowed."

Loki points to your belt. "You are now."

That's when you realise there's a holster on your belt - with a gun in it. Taking it out, you take a good look at the gun. You don't know very much about guns, but it looks pretty powerful.

"Come on," mutters Loki. "We can't just stand here."

"Sorry," you mumble, hastily putting the gun back into the holster.

You feel Loki tense behind you before you hear the heavy footsteps entering the room.

Stay still.

You obey without question, your mouth dry, as you watch Loki cast an illusion.

"No!"

Clang!

It's Loki's brother, Thor. And he's locked in the cage.

"Are you ever not going to fall for that?"

Loki's words make you want to laugh. Despite everything, it seems that he and Thor still have a sibling dynamic.

"Brother-" Thor's voice is low, threatening.

An illusion of Loki walks up to the control panel. "The humans think us immortal. Should we test that?"

In desperation, Thor throws his hammer at the cage wall. It manages to crack the glass, but then the bars holding the cage in place start to give way.

Loki's hand hovers over the button, ready to press it.

"Move away, please."

You turn, and - oh, of all the miserable luck!

It's Coulson. And he's holding a pretty lethal-looking weapon.

"You like this? It's a prototype we started working on after you sent the Destroyer to Earth. I don't even know what it does, but I'm pretty interested in finding out."

Loki begins to back away - and then disappears.

The real Loki appears behind Coulson, stabbing him in the chest.

"No!" yells Thor.

Ignoring him, Loki walks over to the control panel, and pushes the button.

You have to suppress an audible gasp as Thor is thrown out of the aircraft.

Loki gestures to you. "Come on."

You obey, scuttling up to him, trying not to look at Coulson's body, which is now slumped on the floor.

"You're going to lose."

Both you and Loki turn around to see that Coulson's still alive.

Loki lets out a soft laugh. "Am I?"

"It's in your nature."

Loki shakes his head. "Your heroes are scattered; your floating fortress falls from the sky. Where is my disadvantage?"

"You lack conviction."

"I don't think I-"

Bang!

Coulson fires his weapon, which sends you and Loki flying through the wall.

Fortunately, Loki was standing in front of you, and took the brunt of the blast, but you're still in a lot of pain, and you're pretty sure you've cracked some ribs.

"Y/N!" Loki gets up, and rushes towards you. "Are you alright?"

You nod. We should go.

"Come." Loki helps you up.

You're grateful for his concern, but you're not planning on telling him how you really feel. Not yet, anyway. Your whole body hurts, which makes you wonder if you're more injured than you first thought. Maybe the adrenaline's masking it.

Your suspicions are confirmed when your knee buckles, nearly sending you down a flight of stairs.

Loki catches you before you can fall. He gives you a look, but picks you up in his arms without a word.

You nearly yelp at the unfamiliar sensation, but you're grateful for the support. You're pretty much certain that you're badly hurt, and you doubt you could have gone the rest of the way by yourself.

A jet's waiting for you when you finally get out of the aircraft.

Loki's still holding you as he steps onto the jet, maneuvering you onto his lap as he sits down.

As the jet takes off, Loki gives a few orders, before turning his attention back to you.

Let's have no more lying, please, he begins, rather sternly. Now, how do you really feel?

You stare at the floor. I don't know. I know I'm injured, but…

Loki's face softens slightly. I'll get a medic to see to you once we land. You do need to rest, so just try to relax for now.

You try to do as he says, but it feels kind of weird. It's been a long time since you've had this much physical contact, even longer since you've sat on someone's lap, and even longer since you've been held in someone's arms.

Loki…

Yes?

Why are you helping me? I'm literally supposed to be a SHIELD agent. Or are you just taking me hostage for ransom or something?

Loki sighs, shifting you into a more comfortable position. I'm not taking you hostage, sweet. Look, Y/N, I know you won't believe me, but - I really am helping you - I really want to help you. But I can't tell you why. Not yet, anyway.

Couldn't you tell me at least one reason?

Loki's mouth turns up slightly. Well, it's been a long time since someone confided in me.

But what about your brother? Hasn't he confided in you before?

Not for a long time. Loki's arms tighten around you as the jet dips. And listen, once this is over, I will tell you why I'm helping you. But for now, you need to trust me.

Well, I don't really have much of a choice, do I? I'm injured, you're about a hundred times stronger than me, and I'm in a jet with a load of guys who'll kill me if I attack you.

Loki brushes a strand of hair out of your eyes. You should rest. I doubt you could attack even a human right now, let alone me.

Sighing, you close your eyes, and rest your head on his shoulder, suddenly feeling very tired. Your whole body's really hurting now, and it's getting difficult to breathe, but you're too exhausted to care.

You're painfully jolted awake when the jet lands.

You hear Loki curse under his breath. "Are you alright?" he asks you.

You're too tired to respond.

Answer me. Are you hurt?

I don't know. Leave me alone…

You feel Loki's hand rest on your forehead, before moving down to cup your cheek. "We need to get you to a healer."

And then everything goes black.

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

Part 2

As always, I do not give permission for anyone to copy my work, post it elsewhere, etc.