Getting Started
The lights suddenly turned on for what felt like the fifth time within forty-eight hours, but there was no way of telling. Like always, he was sitting in a room with concrete walls, no windows and one reinforced steel door, or something stronger, he couldn’t quite tell. Things hadn’t gone to plan this past week, but it didn’t mean there was no way out, especially since he could feel his power slowly leaking back into him. His veins becoming infused, pumping it around his system. He heard footsteps making their way down the hall behind the door.
He sighed, yanking on his chains a couple more times for good measure. “This is becoming tedious, Fury. Even for you,” Loki grumbled as the door began to swing open.
A young woman entered through, pulling a chair up to the desk where agent Fury usually took up residence, three S.H.I.E.L.D agents walked in behind her, their faces obscured by their usual uniform. He began to shift in excitement, a smirk slowly inching its way onto his features.
“You’re not Fury,” He stated, watching as she wriggled uncomfortably before finally finding the right position, pushing her glasses up onto her nose.
“I hope you’re not disappointed,” She smiled sweetly. Her hair was loose over her shoulders, thick and dark. She wore the usual smart business attire, fiddling with a stack of papers now sitting in front of her.
“Of course not, darling.” This was going to be fun.
Her smile got a little wider, her eyes darting down for a moment. “I was wondering if I could ask you—”
“What is your name?” Something felt different. Something was coming back home to him after many weeks away.
Her eyes widened in surprise for a moment, “Georgia.”
“Georgia,” He repeated, feeling the way it sat on his tongue. “What a beautiful name.”
“Thank you,” She tucked some hair behind her ear. “Like I was saying—”
“I am Loki, of Asgard.” He could almost undo his shackles, he just needed a little more power…
“I know,” She said plainly. “I would really–”
“Of course you do, darling.” And that was it, with one tiny flick of his wrists he would be out of the chair and up within seconds. She made an effort to speak again before he hushed, “I just need one more thing.”
His arms swung out wide, flinging the agents around her to the floor, they laid there, three writhing heaps. He pushed aside the table. He pulled her towards him, her back against his chest as he rested a dagger he had just materialised against her throat. He could feel her shaking softly, tears surely falling down her face.
“If you kill me,” She stuttered through, “You won’t be able to get out of here. Please don’t kill me.” She choked on her sobs, trying not to move too much as to cut herself.
“I know that, dear.” He placed his mouth right next to the shell of her ear, revelling in the slight shiver it sent down her spine, “That is why you are going to guide me.”
“I can’t,” She started to sob harder.
“Do not cry, my love.” He whispered, “If you are good, maybe I will not kill you once I have escaped, and—”
“Christ. Are you done?” Her sobs suddenly stopped, and she went rigid.
“I beg your pardon?”
An unknown force slammed him up against the wall, the knife gliding out of his hand and across the floor with a pang. He couldn’t move as he struggled against the weight pressing him into the concrete, seeing the girl, who had just moments ago been shy and weeping, walking towards him with a blank face.
“I said,” She pushed her right hand forward into the air, he felt his windpipe constricting, “Are you done?”
He took a sure breath in, “Not remotely.”
His right arm swept through the air, pushing her back slightly as he collected himself. She fought back just as hard, her will against his. Just as he thought she was about to crack, with one slash of her hand he was on the ground below her.
“Okay Your Majesty, that is quite enough.”
If his vision wasn’t beginning to blur, he could almost swear a smile was beginning to curl her lip. “You pathetic—”
“Did I say you could speak?” He could see something resting in her hand, her arms crossed over her chest.
He tried to move again, but it was no use. “Rest assured, when I get out of this wretched place, which I will, I am going to hunt you down and—”
He gasped. It felt like the life was getting sucked out of him, his skin bleached a stark white, as his power was suddenly ripped from him again. His breathing began to slow and his eyes became heavy. He couldn’t hold them open. Just as everything became foggy he started to hear a voice that sounded peculiarly like Stark’s. The three men, who he thought to be incapacitated on the ground, were now standing around him. One began to take off his mask…
*****
“Son of a bitch, I forgot he really packed a punch.” Tony began ripping off his uniform to the point that Georgia thought he was going to strip completely. She began to avert her eyes just in case.
“Language.” Steve grumbled, as he hauled Loki’s limp body back onto the chair and clamped the shackles around his wrists.
Tony had learnt to ignore him at this point. Bruce pulled off his mask, rubbing the back of his head, a grimace lining his features. Georgia kicked off her heels, picking them up from the floor and carrying them in her hand. Tony placed his palm on the scanner, the lights flashing orange before going green, the sound of bolts unfurling as the door popped open.
“So, what do you think of good ol’ Reindeer Games?” Tony sidled up to Georgia’s side, a spring in his step despite having his ass handed to him just ten minutes prior. “Everything he’s cracked to be?”
She hummed, “He’s less of a diabolical tyrant and more of a sleaze-bag narcissist then I thought he would be. But he’s just as infuriating as I predicted.” The door at the end of the corridor opened before they had to unlock it as Thor held it open for them with a wide smile.
“That went well,” Natasha quickly jabbed Tony in the stomach with two of her fingers, almost giggling in delight as he doubled over slightly.
“Precious goods Romanov, keep your hands to yourself,” Tony snapped, rubbing his stomach with a pout. “Remind me again why we let him have his powers back, even though it may have been fleeting?”
“We needed to make sure Georgia could handle his abilities without any repressors, we don’t want him escaping when—”
“That was a rhetorical question.” Tony began to rub his temples, kicking out a chair at the round table and collapsing into it. “Okay so what’s the plan moving forward, get him to agree to the deal blindly? I highly doubt he’ll bite.”
“We need to give him what he wants,” Fury entered, his voice filling up the room the way it usually did, “A chance at freedom.”
*****
“Good morning,” Georgia chirped, some of the lights still beginning to turn on.
“I would not know,” Loki’s ashy voice piped up from the slowly dissipating darkness.
“No, you wouldn’t,” She said with cheer, watching as his face cringed. “How are you?”
“So, you are the Avengers newest pet.”
She could tell he was trying to get under her skin, even leaning forward as much as he could, that smirk of his only managing to make her mildly uncomfortable. “You could say that.”
“Do not think for a second that you will ever be more than a—”
“I’m not here to chit chat,” She leaned forward across the table, her face stoic. “I’m here to make a deal.”
“A deal?” He spat the word out like it was rotten.
“Yep.”
“I do not make deals with beings who are so beneath me.” He sat back in his chair, almost looking regal despite the cuffs and chains keeping him confined.
“I may not be a god, but I do have some neat little tricks of my own. Would you like a refresher?” She smiled sweetly, as his scowl only seemed to deepen.“Didn’t think so. Now, would you please hear my terms?”
“No.”
“In exchange for your full cooperation and assistance,” She began, paying no mind to the way his eyes rolled, or how his lips seemed to turn down even further, if that was even humanly possible... guess not. “The U.S government is willing to release you from their possession, on the condition that you fuck off back to Asgard and never come back,” She said, her voice staying flat.
“Is that in the fine print?” He looked like a kicked puppy, his eyes cast off to the side, his chin dropping slightly. If she didn’t know who he was or the atrocities he had committed, she might have felt bad for him.
“More or less.” She relaxed further into her seat.
“Is that all?” He droned, his expression switching from melancholic to bored within a matter of seconds.
“Yes.”
He paused for a moment, finally turning back to face her. “I am sensing that you are omitting certain elements of this so-called ‘deal’. What exactly does it entail?”
“The extraction and rescue of a former U.S soldier who is currently being held hostage in Russia.”
“Why do you need me?” He let an in-genuine smile reach his lips.
“You have a unique set of skills.” She nodded, seeing his smile suddenly become more cold and calculating.
He hummed, “I would be more than happy to remind you of my aforementioned skills if you would like.”
She huffed out a sigh. “I’ll pass. Your skillset will make it easier to infiltrate the group that is currently holding the soldier captive. Not to mention that if something goes wrong… Well, there’s no real loss there.”
“Who is to say I will not escape the second you let me out of this cell?” He almost whispered, it was soft and sensual. Georgia crossed her legs.
“Because you’ll be under my supervision.” She wanted to grin, but her face remained stony.
“I doubt you could handle me, I am a God.”
“It was quite simple yesterday.”
He went silent. Loki flipped through so many separate emotions within a matter of seconds it was hard to keep up. Georgia crossed her arms over her chest, waiting for a response. After a minute, she could tell he wasn’t going to budge.
“What’s the verdict?”
“No.”
*****
“Rise and shine sleepy head.” Her heels clicked on the concrete, she saw Loki slightly flinch as she pulled out the metal chair, its legs scraping in a loud whine. “You seem upset,” She said, as he slumped with a slight grumble.
“It is not like I don’t love our little talks, it is just…” He sighed, flashing his perfect grin. “I don’t love them.”
Georgia held in a chuckle. “You know, if you weren’t a malevolent idiot, I might just like you.”
“Oh goody!” If he rolled his eyes any harder she swears they would end up stuck in a permanent look of unamusement. “Because I certainly need validation from a pathetic mortal.”
“Ouch.” She clutched her chest as if wounded, an elaborate pantomime. “What a shame it is that said ‘pathetic mortal’ was able to beat your ass the other day.”
“Believe me,” He struggled against his bonds as he leaned forward in his seat to whisper in his dark dramatic tone. “If I had my full strength, you would be dead where you stand.”
“Alright, would you like me to call Stark? He’ll turn off that little gadget, then we can have it out.” She leaned forward in challenge, all amusement draining from her face.
“It would be my pleasure-”
The speakers in the room started to softly hum with the sound of a microphone turning on. “Yeah, not going to happen,” Tony’s voice bounced off the walls before petering out.
“Afraid I will defeat your little lackey, Stark?” Loki called out into the air.
“Nope, I’m afraid that I’ll have to get her to put you down. It would truly be a waste of resources.”
Loki scowled, none of the aggression leaving his features. “There’s an easy way out of this, Loki.” Georgia tilted her head to the side, “An easy way to get out of that chair, have your powers back and eventually return to Asgard.” She let her face soften, urging him to look at her. “Don’t you want that?”
He was silent for another moment, before his head shifted, his gaze landing on her. If she looked hard enough she could almost see herself mirrored back, the wounded animal within him begging for solace. She swore she could see something in him melt.
“I–” He hesitated, “I want…” His voice was small and nearly weak. “I want to make your death slow and gloriously painful, and by the time I am done with you,” Georgia rose from her seat, “you will be begging me for mercy.”
“You’re impossible,” she said under her breath, turning to walk out the door.
“Oh do not go now, darling.” He called after her, “I am just getting started.”