Chapter Text
That’s when the burning started.
My left wrist felt like it had caught on fire, my skin sizzling like a grill. I grabbed my wrist, feeling my bracelet covering it still. Ever since the mark appeared, I had worn a wide silver bracelet to hide it from Jane at first, then from everyone.
The burning was intense. More intense than it had ever been. I let out a strangled cry before taking in deep breaths to try to get myself to not make a scene.
“Dana what is wrong?” Thor asked, concern written all over his face. He stepped towards me, but I held out my good arm to stop him.
“I’m fine!” I was gritting through my teeth. “I just think I slept on my arm wrong. Excuse me.”
I ran out of the room and into the nearest bathroom. Before escaping, though, I noticed Loki’s worried and confused expression. He probably thinks I’m crazy.
I turned on the cold water in the sink. I rested my wrist just under the faucet’s head to make sure all the cold water hit it, having flung off my bracelet moments before. The cold rush of water slowly took the sting away, little by little. I ended up staying in the bathroom for almost an hour. Thankfully, no one had followed me and bothered me since.
As the pain became more bearable, Loki’s last words flittered through my mind. Nice to see you again, little one. He remembered me. He called me “little one!” Oh, what have I gotten myself into?
No longer was I groaning from the pain but from the embarrassment of having just rushed out of a greeting with no explanation. I wouldn’t blame him if he thought there was something wrong with me.
I sat down on the ground, taking a close look at my wrist. Why was it burning again? It never burns, not since…. This was all too weird. The mark, Loki, everything. This scar had been haunting me for years now. Its black ink carved into my skin. Its lines drawn in a way as to resemble a snake. Its scorching pain. All of it haunted me.
Finally, I decided to leave my seclusion in the bathroom and try to join the others. Hopefully, no one had died since then.
The team and Loki were sitting in the living room. Tony and Thor were chatting, but I didn’t listen as I looked at him again.
I didn’t even notice Nat standing next to me. “Hey, are you okay?” she asked.
I nodded. “Yeah, sorry, I just took some Advil and relaxed it for a bit. It’s all good now.”
As I walked over to join them, all eyes turned to me again. Everyone thought better than to push me into explaining so they all went back to their conversations. The only one attempting to talk to Loki was Steve.
“We have ground rules here.” Steve’s face was serious, his eyes never leaving Loki’s. “Thor’s told you about them. You break one, there’s consequences. Anything goes wrong or anyone gets harmed, we’ll come for you. Do you understand?”
Loki raised his eyebrows at Steve’s tone. He looked smug, but he didn’t outright smirk or show disrespect. “Yes, Captain, I believe I understand,” he purred so elegantly.
I sat down by Loki and Thor as I took in the room, noticing Clint was very much absent. Probably for the best. Thor winked at me before turning back to Tony. I could only assume they were going over security details and mission assignments for Loki.
Loki’s eyes were on me, I could tell. Never one to shy away from a challenge, I looked behind me and stared back. I took him all in. His long legs, lean muscles, handsome face, those beautiful eyes, and slender fingers. My eyes stopped on his hands.
My mouth turned into a frown. “Thor why are these still on?” I asked, motioning to Loki’s chains.
Everyone stopped. Thor hesitated. “Well of course we can take them off, I just forgot.” His smile slipped at the mention of freeing him. He was scared, too.
I took that moment to get up and stand in front of Loki. “May I?” I asked, looking into his eyes for any warnings. He appeared shocked, but he soon recuperated and nodded at my request. I slid my hand over the Asgardian handcuffs, careful not to touch him. But not careful enough as my hand accidently slid over his, causing shocks to reverberate all over my body. That dreaded burning returned for a second then dissipated. All the while Loki was watching me most carefully.
At last I released his hands from the bonds and returned the chains to Thor. “There, now you’re an Avenger.”
Loki smirked at that. His eyes pierced into mine with neither of us backing down. We both knew everyone was watching us, or most likely, him, but I couldn’t turn away while he refused to.
We were interrupted by Tony. “Alright you know the rules. No lying, no breaking things, no horrible pranks, no dark magic, no harming others, no world domination, nothing. And no touching anything or anyone.” He emphasized that last part as he glared at Loki knowingly.
Loki laughed lightly. “Of course. I will obey all the rules of my most gracious hosts.” His words were dripping with sarcasm, but Tony elected to ignore it.
“I’ll show you to your room brother.” Thor stood up and walked down the hallway with Loki trailing behind him. As they turned the corner, Loki looked behind him towards me. There was an amused glint in his eye as he studied me for a quick moment. Then, he was gone.
Suddenly, it felt like the whole room breathed a sigh of relief.
“This is going to be difficult,” Bruce spoke up. “We’re all going to be on edge for the next couple of weeks. I know I’ll be upping my dose of anxiety meds.”
I put my head in my hands, feeling randomly exhausted after such a small interaction. “You got any extra?”
Tony strolled over to me, taking me gently by the arm into the kitchen. I looked at him in confusion. “Stay away Dana,” he warned. “He’s dangerous, I don’t need to tell you that. But also, I don’t like the way he looks at you. I don’t want him near you, touching you, thinking of you-“
“Okay thank you Dad,” I joked. Tony sighed. He was overstressed and overworked, clear bags forming under his eyes, but whenever I told him to rest he refused. His body wouldn’t let him rest- not yet.
“Tony, I know what he’s capable of. And I’m more than capable of handling him, but I promise I’ll keep my distance and be careful.”
That seemed to please him. He gave me a playful push, a smile returning to his face.
Since I had come here years ago, Tony had taken over as my parental figure. He always had a soft spot for me, and I got away with things no one else could. So, I could understand why he was protective over me with Loki here. But he had no reason to be. I was of no interest to Loki.
~~~~~~~~~~
That night at dinner, Loki was forced to join us. He didn’t join in any conversation even when Thor pushed him. He ate in silence. At the opposite end was Clint. He seemed a bit calmer, but every now and then he would peek at Loki in suspicion.
When everyone went to different rooms to entertain themselves for the rest of the night, Loki stayed in the living room. He paced around, studying the details of the building and Tony’s tech.
I was on the couch reading my new book. I tried to ignore him and focus on the story, but he grew bored and began fidgeting.
“You enjoy reading, don’t you?” I asked.
He considered me for a moment. “Yes, I enjoy books very much,” he answered, matter-of-factly.
Walking over to the bookshelf, I grabbed one my favorites, one I thought he might like or at least not hate. “Here try this one.” I handed it to him, being more cautious this time to not make physical contact.
He looked over the cover silently. Then he sat down on the couch and opened the book to read it. I smiled at the fact that he accepted my choice. I sat beside him and reopened mine.
After a while, with the silent noise dragging on between us, I was simply not able to concentrate. Something was bugging me. “You remember me?” I finally asked.
Loki looked up from his book, confused by my question. “Yes, we have met before.”
“I know, but I’m just surprised you recognized me. I was young back then.”
Loki smirked at me. “How could I forget the face of a girl who stared so fearlessly at me in a time of chaos?” With that he returned to his book, his face still having a hint of a smile.
He knew who I was. Yet, there was no way he thought I was fearless. I remember being scared shitless as I challenged him. But he didn’t mention it at all. Maybe he thought the act itself was fearless. Maybe I was.