Hell and You
“Did ya miss me?” My shout carries through the courtyard to the hesitant Hela and an amused older woman beside her as we approach.
Went to the bar
His steps are slow, but purposeful as he slows to a stop in the center. With care he lowers to the ground and once his hulking form lies down, I can slide from his back.
To get a little closer to myself and learn
Holding Hela’s glare, I come to the bottom step, she goes to open her mouth but I hold up my hand, there's something I need to address first. Something that made Fenrir laugh for a good part of our long journey.
Things I never really wanted to know
“Loki, I think that's enough of your tricks.” His older woman disguise smiks befores shimmering in green, revealing the man I've crossed realms to drag home.
“Hello, darling.” Saint dances in circles around his form, but quickly settles back at his side.
The walk got a little far
“As cute as this is, I believe our bargain is done.” Hela’s tone slices through the air and I drag my gaze from Loki's face that's trying to convey so many emotions and his mind dancing just out of reach.
So I got into a cab that smelled like vinegar
“Unfortunately it's not, shall we talk in private?” her gaze narrows to me, “Or shall I tell EVERYONE what you plan to do to their resting place?” All the guards shift slightly, all of them are now truly paying attention.
Stains that showed what's in the girl before
“Oh? Did you not want them to know about the war and how your going to destroy Hel to do it? My bad…” She snarls at me and Loki's mind brushes against mine, questioning, but I don't show him. I need every advantage possible.
But I want to be where all
“Follow. Me.” She bites and I climb the stairs calmly following her into the large hall. Spinning to face me, pure anger and rage radiate from her.
The stupid things I say sound so
“Who do you think you are?” Anger may seep from every pore, but no weight barrels against my mind.. It seems Fenrir was right about another thing.
Romantic and true
Leaning closer, her eyes give away nothing, “Someone about to get everything they want. Now, where's this book I've heard so much about?”
'Cause I'd rot in Hell with you
Barely she masks her shock at my arrogance, “No, our deal was Fenrir for a soul.” I can't help the laugh from rumbling in my chest, “You don't have him, I do.”
If you'd just ask me to
“And if I'm correct… which I tend to be, I have your guards too.” Her fists clench at her sides, “Or shall I go talk to them some more?” Feigning moving backwards makes her snap.
I love the shitty things we do together
“What do you want?” She seethes and grips my arm, practically dragging me down the hall. Her grip will probably leave a bruise but that will be the least of my concerns if I fuck this up.
Live with me in this sin forever
“That little book, it's for all deaths, past and future…” She tugged me through a doorway, and down a flight of stairs. “All I want is for a few dates to be shifted about, nothing crazy.”
Hell and you
Immediately she yanks me to a stop, pinning me with her death filled glare, “And what is in this for me?”
I know you want it too
“That war? Won't happen.” She's frozen in place, shaking her hand off my elbow, I step through the wooden door in front of us.
I say take the shot, see this chance
Go, go, go…. Web of lies little devil
Feel the fire and let me have this
The small chamber contains nothing more than a pedestal in the middle with a large leather bound tome. Death hangs heaviest here, a scent that is an old friend. One who’s nearly a comfort. When there's death, I have control.
Dance with you
The snap wasn't death, it didn't linger in the air, it was nothing. All those lives, my boys snapped into nothing.
We take things a little far
“You speak nonsense. I'm going to fulfill Ragnarok no matter what a small midgardian says.” A blade presses against my side, there's no warmth from her body, just an empty coldness stands behind me as I lean into the blade.
But you couldn't name a place I wouldn't go with you
“Go ahead… see what happens Hela. See what Fenrir does to this realm, see what Loki does when you kill the only person who matters to him.” Tuning around the insanity aflame, the monster fully awake under my skin.
A plane, a train, a car, I'd run
“I dare you to unleash the utter destruction of killing the only being left that can undo what has been done to half the universe.” That's when I see it, the hesitation, the spark of doubt ever so subtle but it's there.
If I was dead I'd float
“Why do you care so much about a world that has obviously done you no favors?” The blade recedes back into her pocket but her questioning gaze remains firm even as I turn to trace my fingertips over the worn leather.
I'd crawl in bed with you
“I once told the man who held my heart between his unmatching hands that I'd burn the world down to keep him safe and I'd have no regrets.” Gently my fingers trace the unfamiliar symbols, “Then the world burns, the whole universe… all because I couldn't stop him.”
Even on someone else's blood
“The war I waged, I was responsible for, is the reason half the universe is mourning a loss most cannot comprehend….” With care, I lift the cover, and watch the symbols dance across the page slowly becoming english.
On top of someone else's love
“It likes you…” Her murmur is no surprise, I've felt its presence since we hit the staircase. “I regret it… every move I made during that battle... There was a better one I could've made… and maybe we would've won.”
In the worst motel we find
The letters form a list of names, they don't even fill the whole page… some have dates, others don’t, and some are written in pulsing ink, as if they are undetermined.
'Cause home is the last place that I'd stand
Natasha, Clint, Tony, Steve, Peter, Wanda, Bruce, Fury, Phil, Wade, Saint, Bucky Loki, and… my own.
To be with anyone but you
Natasha’s pulses with a date from…. 2014?
'Cause I'd rot in hell with you
Clint’s hangs in permanent script in 2043.
If you'd just ask me to
Tony’s pulses with a date towards the end of 2023.
I love the shitty things we do together
Steve’s… flickers… between 2023 and 1999?
Live with me in this sin forever
Peter’s… remains blank…
Hell and you
Wanda’s…. Her name flickers on the page. No date in sight.
I know you want it too
Bruce… in firm letters 2057.
I say take the shot, see this chance
Fury’s stares up at me… unrelenting 2029.
Feel the fire and let me have this
Phil’s....2030.
Dance with you
Wade’s… is blank. Just his name in the haunting script.
'Cause I'd rot in hell with you
Saint’s pulses with the same date as Nat’s….
If you'd just ask me to
Bucky’s… 2137… I can’t…
I love the shitty things we do together
Loki’s… is blank.
Live with me in this sin forever
Adhara… so isn't mine. No date, not even a hint of a date graces the yellowed page.
Hell and you
“Have you learned far too much now?” Her condescending tone does nothing to alleviate the pit growing in my stomach… What do these dates mean? Fenrir told me what the different scripts mean… but I didn't expect mine to be unknown.
I know you want it too
“What will it take for you to change these?” She scoffs, circling around the pedestal, standing across from me, her internal debate obvious.
I say you take the shot, see this chance
“You've already taken my war… may chance to rule Asgard. Turned Fenrir against me and began to set uncertainty amongst my guards…” Her pale hand, blackened fingertips rests on the cover… “But you knew that, knew I needed Fenrir to fulfill Ragnarok.”
Feel the fire and let me have this
“I believe I know what would be most fitting to ask, to demand in return.”
Dance with you
Holding both hands over the book, the pages begin to flip rapidly, sending a rush of death through the air, matching the gleam in her eyes. Whatever her demand is I'll take it in stride, whatever it could be is nothing to what I was forced to perform since I was 6.
If it's rotting in Hel with her… then so be it.
As long as they come home, it'll all be worth it.