rest
The room was kept dead silent, save for the beeping, or the occasional drip of serum, or the rustle of his clothes against the plastic when he moved, which was constant, given the (low) level of comfort his chair provided him. He could hear her slow heartbeat, he could hear the slight whistle she made with each breath, he could hear her last choked gasps, he could hear her smile before she went out, he could hear it all
The room wasn't alight, even if it was morning and the sun was shining outside, he kept the blinds closed; he refused to pretend the world just kept going, he had no intention of carrying on before she decided she was ready to wake up. He had no need for the common room and its constant chatter, the kitchen with a different aroma filling his nose with each meal, nor the training room with its constant lighthearted competitivity, he had no need for his team.
He was afraid, afraid of his own room, and afraid of bumping into Cora's clothes, afraid of finding her in any way, shape, or form around the premises, of feeling her scent hit his nose, when in that medical room her scent was clouded by antiseptic, he was afraid of his mind playing tricks on him, he was afraid of what his nights would look like, and he was afraid she'd be gone the next morning if he left her side.
"No, I do not want to join you for whatever it is you're trying to summon me. I am not leaving", he started, talking seemingly to no one, until a sigh was heard from the other side of the door. "I have all I need, Stark thankfully installed the good showers in every bathroom, I have an illusion bringing me food every few hours, my sleep quality will be just as awful in my own bed, if not worse, and the team can manage just fine without their backup God, brother", respectful of the woman sleeping in the bed before him, he kept his volume low. She needed to rest. Otherwise, he should be worrying for her life and that would tear him to pieces, but it's Cora, so she would wake up, she has to wake up. He kept his volume low because Cora just needed her rest.
The door creaked slowly, light seeping from the outside where no one had the decency of respecting his darkness. How could they be so selfish? Just soaking in the sun, soaking in a new day, again he got lost on the way the world almost mocked him by keeping its constant rotation. He was brought out of it by Thor, who stood on the other side of Cora's bed, a silent tear escaped him, and Loki saw it, but Thor didn't bother wiping it away, he looked at his brother and took in a deep breath
"You look like shit, Loki", despite his insult, the God of mischief found himself smiling at his brother's low volume, he silently thanked him for humoring him, "And you smell like shit, thought you said you were showering"
"Yes, well", he opened his mouth then closed it again, how could he tell him without showing how useless and weak he felt? How could he tell him that he could barely leave her side to fucking piss, that as soon as she was out of his eyesight, he feared she'd be gone, that the fear he felt immobilized him so thoroughly that even as he finally slept, he took on the astral form Cora had taught him just to watch over her. "All things I will take care of when she wakes up, until then, I really don't see the urgency", he instead said, coldly, not even looking at him as he said it
"Then think about what she'd think if she saw you like this", Thor countered. Loki had that look Thor had gotten so many times during their childhood, it was a threat for him to shut up. He didn't. "If she saw how you're neglecting yourself, and for what? You want her to wake up and see the shell of a man you're acting like right now?", he was ready to keep going, but Loki abruptly stood up, instantly sealing his brother's lips
"I am the shell of a man right now"
"Loki, I didn't-"
"No, that's just it, I am", he snarled, his voice louder than intended. Wincing, he cast a worried glance at the sleeping woman, "I almost lost her, I know I did, I know what death looks like, and she was so close, I-", his eyes filled with tears, unlike his older brother, he was quick to bring his hands to his eyes and wipe any possible tear away. He took a deep breath to collect himself. With a distant look on his eyes, he spoke up again, "I can't imagine what she'd say, so I will keep looking like shit, and until she herself wakes up and tells me how shitty I look, you'll find me here in this horrid room, looking like shit"
Thor stared at him, his gaze changing towards Cora every other few seconds, until he sighed and pulled out the chair, "I understand, brother, but for Valhalla's sake, just go take a shower, it's been four days, I will look over her in the meantime", he saw the wariness covering his eyes, and he stopped himself from losing his control, "Must I remind you, not only is she perfectly safe with me, but I also almost lost my best friend, and I would like to spend some time by her side without you hissing at me the whole time"
Now, it was Loki's turn to stare, a part of him itched to stab him, but he knew his brother was right. He stood up and with a kiss to the ring on her pinky, he nodded to his brother with a display of shame Thor never thought he'd ever live to see, he wondered if there was anything else he could say, any way that he could fix whatever was breaking. He turned to Cora at that, after he heard the shower running, and his eyes glittered with pain and fear, "I'm sorry, Lolite, I am so so sorry", he muttered gravelly, his voice repeatedly breaking with treacherous sobs, he couldn't stop.
Those five seconds repeated themselves on his head, they wouldn't leave him. His own eyes wouldn't leave him, and her gasp of horror trapped him and wouldn't let go. They had him, he saw how Wanda had managed to enclose Cora's wound with her magic, Loki tried but he was petrified by her side, how did it all happen so swiftly? Somewhere in the back of his mind, he took a moment to watch them all move together, like synchronized dancers, Natasha was already calling Dr. Cho, and Vision took the woman's body, snatching her from Loki's side, Bruce had turned into his friend, managing to stop Loki from attacking the android when he took Cora away from him. He felt himself let go of the chokehold he'd had on the demon and he panicked, but quickly realized Tony and Pietro had trapped it in an ancient-looking box, he stayed put where he stood, he watched as everyone started making their way quickly back towards the compound, specifically towards Med bay, but he just looked at them. Those five seconds kept repeating in his head.
The demon had been too quick, or he had been too slow. His hammer lied in the ground, it was his silent show of cockiness, show the monster that he didn't need his weapon to best him. He smirked too early, he should've known better than to let only Stark's technology do the apprehending, his hammer should've been there resting on its chest. With the telling sound of a weapon being unsheathed behind him, he dodged the attack before he could even understand what was going on. If he had only connected the dots, if he had been more conscious of where he was standing - directly covering his best friend's back -, he would've taken the dagger without a doubt.
He only moved when he registered his brother's cries, the battlefield empty save for the two gods. Silently, Thor walked towards the raven-haired prince, kneeling besides him as a sob made its way out of the deepest parts of his soul. Loki on the other hand was catatonic, a river of tears ran down his cheeks, but he didn't sob, nor hiccup, his eyes just cried as he stared at the blood on the grass. Her blood. He offered a hand, and begrudgingly, he took it.
They walked towards the compound, not a word was uttered. When they saw the group of heroes all in the waiting room outside of the surgery wing they came to a halt, they both moved like they were of the same mind, not sparing anyone else a glance before settling down in the seats closest to where Cora would be wheeled out from, ready to take on the next torturous hours that awaited them
Back in Cora's hospital room, Loki came out of the bathroom, his hair wet and unruly thanks to the towel, he was ready to kick his brother out, he was no longer needed, and he really did not care about being rude about it, but when he set his eyes on them, the way he held her hand softly and repeated his regret almost like a prayer, his body had a mind of its own, and the next thing he knew, he was the one patting Thor on the back, rubbing in a soothing way, "It was not your fault", he said, his voice awkward but the sentiment was truthful, the God of Thunder only shook his head, "She'll wake up, she just-"
"Needs to rest", the dirty blonde finished, his voice hoarse and low in volume, he gave him a tight-lipped grin before taking a deep breath and standing up, "Please, Loki, if anything happens, if you need anything, I'm begging you to let me know", when he got no more than a nod, he sighed and left
- - -
The first thing she felt was ease, but that quickly turned into panic. Where was she? She opened her eyes and instantly rolled them. Unbelievable. That damned forest was the same as always: dark but full of life. She tried to get a sense of herself, to understand what was happening. A cold rush of air clouded her, and she laughed as bony fingers caressed her face.
"It's time", a voice said, and a cloaked figure emerged from behind a tree, she was holding her hand out, inviting her to take it
"No, it's not", Cora argued, her voice didn't tremble, but for a second she doubted her own words, but she looked at her face then and saw just the moment when her eye twitched, "Ha! I knew it!", she cackled, finding the resigned sigh she got in response ten times funnier than she would in any other occasion, "What you just did was illegal, you know that"
"You never let me have my fun", was the deadpan response, "My witch is ignoring me", she shrugged. That only made Cora laugh harder
"Oh, so I almost get taken because you're not getting any?", even though it was a question, the sarcasm was unmistakable, "What do you really want, Rio?"
"I'm here to make a deal", both deities sat on different logs, a table between them magically appeared, complete with a kettle and two mugs, "It's not necessarily, you know, legal", she added, a touch of awkwardness in her voice. With that said, the mugs and kettle changed themselves to turn into a bottle of wine and two glasses
"Eh, everything has a price", she dismissed, "Start talking" she sang, while serving them both a good amount of the liquid
"She got the Darkhold", the hairs in her neck stood at the mention of the book, her hand slightly shook as she brought the glass to her lips, and the sip she took was more of a desperate escape than a refreshing drink,
"I know right?", Rio chuckled, but she'd be lying if she said she hadn't had the same reaction
"You told us you got rid of it"
"I did! This one isn't ours", she said, staring at Cora, trying to decipher her
"If she starts digging into the Scarlet Witch, we know what will happen", she starts, her mind racing, "Wanda isn't ready yet, unleashing her now would still be a threat to the multiverse, we can't- I need more time to prepare her, I need more time!"
"I have a plan", she interrupted, pointedly interrupting the increasingly frantic spiraling
"Well, the easiest plan would be killing Agatha Harkness", she said, more thinking out loud than anything. She had to balance her glass thanks to the knife that was suddenly placed against her throat, "Touched a nerve?", the knife pressed further, she only stretched her neck to look at her square in the eyes, an eyebrow raised in question, "Try and remember that you're trying to pitch your deal", the knife was removed with a huff, but she didn't put it away, she held it, playing with it idly
"She needs her coven", Cora only chuckled, "She does!", she insisted
"Agreed!", still chuckling, "She doesn't do teams, I can't help find her one, there's not much I can do to intervene there", she waited for Rio's response, but when she didn't get more than a silent stare, she decided to delve further. She noticed the slight twitch in her eyes, her nose wrinkled, and now fiddling in her fingers, instead of a blade, was a dandelion. But the giveaway were her eyes when they finally met Cora's; the desperation. Cora gasped.
"Please", she heard Rio say, "I know he refuses to go through the system"
Cora felt like words were not a choice at that moment, she could only try to come to terms to what Death was asking her to do, begging her to do. "Rio, you know I can't agree to do that"
"I think I can make you", she countered, Cora only stared, "I know about the demon that attacked you"
Silence
Now, it was her turn to have a knife against her throat, "What do you know? Is it who I think it is? You better tell me all you know, you little shit"
"Do we have a deal?", Rio teased, a smile dancing on her lips at the crazed look in the eyes of the Queen of Heaven
"I get gossip? That's your deal?", her demeanor did a one-eighty, and now her face almost mocked the dark-haired deity
"I'll be in debt with you", she finally offered. Cora stared at her, gauging her body for any sign she was bluffing, for any sign of deception. After a minute of pure silence, they were interrupted by the stuttered whistle of an owl approaching them, its eyes a beautiful shining grey.
The creature hovered in between them, almost floating at eye-level, it hooted twice, and that was when Cora opened her voice and in a hushed whisper, "Get me Nicholas Scratch", she heard Rio shriek, in shock or delight, a mix of both she guessed, but she ignored it, "Start talking"
"It's Mephisto", she muttered, a shiver running down her spine
"Of course", Cora said in response, a huff of laughter leaving her as well as an exasperated eye roll, "He is such an infant, we get it, you wanna rule everything, get over yourself", she raged, taking a long gulp of her wine
"He says it's not fair that you got a better Earth"
"Yeah, every few centuries he'll do that, he kind of took a break when Freya died - out of respect or whatever - but then he's back at it"
"He's not kidding this time, Lina, he's getting bored, he already went through Thanos", a disgusted sound came out with that last name
"He didn't stop it? Amateur"
"He thought he'd be more entertained, turns out he pushed the mortals a bit too far", Rio shrugged, finishing the last of her glass, "That's all I know for now, I'll be sure to keep in touch if I find out anything else, try to ask your dad"
"He isn't the easiest to get in touch with", she laughed, standing up and shaking the dust off her bottom, "You think he'll know?"
"He has that whole fate and Oz-type magic, right? He got in touch with me a little while ago, he gave me the tip about the Darkhold, I wouldn't have found out otherwise", Cora only nodded, thinking about her dad's visit from some days before. She clapped when she got the signal from the owl back at Valhalla
"The kid is a teen, he has a bit of a case of amnesia, and a sigil, he's on his way to steal from mama, have fun!", Rio cackled at the woman's antic, pointed the knife at her a few times, as if trying to balance her mind, ultimately deciding to turn around and run his blade through the forest, the fabric of reality ripping open to give her passage
"Gracias, Coralina"
- - -
When she came to, the first thing she felt was the antiseptic surrounding her, like a cold blanket, holding her hostage. She wanted to rip the IVs from her skin, those sheets off her skin, and that smell- someone get her out of that smell. The second thing she noticed was that she was alone. She hummed at that, unsurprised. It brought her back to the last time she had been in that same bed, or maybe a different one, they all feel the same either way
She remembered the aftermath of Sokovia, and the weight of an entire city on her shoulders. Most of all she remembered the surprise on everyone's faces when, three days into her coma, she'd welcomed the team with breakfast made from scratch, the table littered with the different flowers her friends had given her during her stay in Med Bay. She had smiled so brightly then.
But now, months later, waking up alone felt wrong, she couldn't explain the heaviness that sat on her chest. Had she expected anything? Because if she had, that's on herself, no one owed her anything. Startled, she brought a hand to her eye, she was crying now? Pathetic, get your shit together, woman. She brushed her tears away and took on a deep breath, opening her lungs- and for fuck's sake, that smell! Antiseptic and what? Leather? Books? Coffee? Who is in charge of such atrocious mix of fragrances?
Then, suddenly, someone was grabbing her hands and cradling her head, and the smell melted into something familiar, "Loki", she found herself sighing, as if in relief, as if she had almost lost him
"You're okay! Thank the Norns you're okay, we were so worried", he rushed, his hold on her never faltering, checking her eyes for any anomalies, then losing himself in that grey he'd only seen in his nightmares, haunting him the last five days
"Everyone else is fine, right?", she asked, her voice now muffled by his chest
"I don't know, I don't care", he answered simply, his hold tightening ever so slightly, "You were the only one injured, dove"
"How long was I out, specifically?"
"It's almost dinner, so, five days, two hours, twenty-two minutes", She smiled up at him, then took notice of his face—his dark, tired eyes, the faint smudges beneath them. His battle armor lay draped over the back of the hospital chair, still dirty. He always cleaned his armor after a fight.
"Thanks for watching over me, my prince", she murmured against his neck
Instead of questioning how she knew, he pressed a kiss to the crown of her head, whispering a promise—a vow to protect her. The words never reached her ears, but the warmth of them lingered all the same like a blanket