Cruel Summer

“Tell him as much or as little as you like. I just need him to trust you, at least enough to get a read on him,” Tony had said, giving me my only real job description.

Get a read on him? As in was he a risk to the Avengers? To the public? To the planet? You know, that kind of casual thing.

***

I had been happy where I was.

Sure, I had a masters and wasn’t really applying it, but I was good at my job. I’ve been Ms. Pott’s PA for about a year now, and in my opinion, have done a good job. Pepper’s even my friend.

Yes, at first I was someone she just picked out of the pile, but we got along so well in the interview that she hired me on the spot, said she had a good feeling about me. That was enough for Tony, who put the paperwork through right away.

I managed her schedule, talked to clients, gave input on some projects, took her calls, emails, you name it. If she needed anything, I was there to get it for her. While this could be exhausting in other cases, Pepper was someone who was easy to work for. She was overly nice, didn’t make frivolous requests, and the location wasn’t bad either.

So you can see why I’d be a little miffed when Tony decided it was time to take my talents elsewhere.

“Vanek, I’m giving you a new job,” he explains as I sit in front of him at his desk.

“Like, on top of being Ms. Pott’s PA,” I ask, confused at this turn of events.

“No, a brand new position. I am moving you within the company,” he smiles like it’s the most exciting news in the world.

“Why, have I done something wrong? Does Pepper not want me as her PA anymore,” I ask quickly, worried that I’ve messed up somehow.

“No, no, nothing like that,” he waves his hand in the air, silencing me, “it’s just I have a situation, and it’s one I think you can help me with.”

I slowly nod, signaling for him to continue.

“A lot of crazy things have happened in the past year, this city specifically. I know that working for us has made you privy to some of the specifics regarding the Battle of New York. One of these specifics being who caused it, am I correct,” he asks, looking at me over the rim of his glasses.

I nod. “I know that his name is Loki, and he’s Thor’s brother. I also know that no one seems to understand why he went through all this trouble, to gather a sizable force just to subjugate us. Also, where he got the army in the first place,” I explain, throwing in some of my own pondering on the matter.

Tony smiles. “Exactly. Even Thor, being his brother, is unsure on the matter as well. Therefore, I thought I should bring in a professional. You.”

I laugh. I can’t help it. Tony thinks I’m a professional? At what, answering emails and taking coffee orders?

“Laugh all you want, but I’m dead serious. I’ve looked at your file. Undergrad in Psychology and Public Health, Masters in Emergency Management and Risk Assessment. You even have fieldwork experience in disasters resulting from human conflict. You have an impressive resume for someone working as a PA. I figured it was finally time to put those skills and education to use,” he smiles again, sliding some papers across the desk to me.

“And what will this use be,” I ask skeptically, not looking at the papers quite yet.

“I need you to assess Loki,” he states, like it’s the simplest thing in the world.

“Assess Loki,” I echo, thoroughly confused.

“Yes. After the battle, Thor brought him back to Asgard, to pay for his crimes, that sort of thing. Well, I guess Odin’s version of ‘pay for your crime’ is to live in the place you tried to destroy. So, after his trial, he went and sent Loki back to earth with Thor to live here. Of course we couldn’t let him go unsupervised, so he has to live here with the rest of the Avengers, in the tower,” Tony reveals to me.

I don’t know what to think. All this time and I didn’t know that I was under the same roof as a mass murderer.

“How long has he been here,” I whisper, my voice lowering unconsciously.

“Only a few days. Refuses to really do anything or see anyone. We have his power under control, though, so he’s relatively harmless. Well, harmless for a god anyways,” he sighs.

“And so why do you need me? Couldn’t you go find some professional psychologist or something to hire,” I question.

“I’m not going to outsource this job. It’s too important and on the down-low to bring in someone new. I need someone here that I can trust. That already knows the relevant information and is already proven reliable, and you are the person that fits the bill,” he replies.

I hesitate and he says quickly, “I’ll double your salary.”

I want to say no. I want to run far away from this problem, from this person, this being that could kill me with his bare hands. I want to say that my life is worth more than this, that I am not a martyr who will fall prey to trying to understand the unfathomable. That no amount of money is worth my livelihood. But I don’t say no. The words stick in my throat, relenting.

“Are there cameras in his room? Surveillance,” I ask.

Tony seems taken aback by my question, but answers, “of course.”

“Let me see,” I demand, confused at my own line of questioning, “let me see the surveillance at this exact moment.”

He still seems confused, but he nods his head, typing something into his computer.

The next thing I know, one whole side of the room has changed. I realise it’s a projection, but I’m still amazed at how lifelike it seems.

I get up from my chair and walk over to the wall, to what now looks like the inside of one of the towers apartments.

There, I see a spacious room with new furniture and bare walls. There are floor to ceiling windows that look out to the New York skyline, currently splashed with the reds and oranges of a sunset.

There’s a man sitting against the windows. His face is pushed back into the sun, bathing him in brilliant light. The sun shines on his raven black hair, and makes his skin look golden, fiery. He’s dressed in all black, his body a void of darkness in the otherwise brightly lit space. There’s a book on the floor next to him, sitting open on it’s spine.

“I’ll do it,” I state, voice unwavering. I tell myself it’s because of the money, because of the pay raise, that I need that money for my student loans and it’s an easy route to paying them off. The thing is, you can only lie to yourself for so long.

“Great,” Tony exclaims, “I’ll get the paperwork in right away. Here’s your copies.”

I turn and he’s up and handing me a stack of papers.

“I want you to take the rest of the week off. Use the extra time to come up with a game plan, and we’ll start bright and early on Monday. I’ll send you more details in an email later today,” he smiles, ushering me out the door.

***

In said email, he informed me that my access pass has been upgraded to give me clearance to new areas of the tower. The Avengers main floor, which includes the living space, communal kitchen, entertainment area, fitness center and training space, and the pool and showers. I also have access to Loki’s room, and the controls within.

He told me that he would follow my lead on whatever strategy I chose, and that he would convey what I needed to the other Avengers to make sure we were all on the same page.

He also gave me access to past surveillance and interviews/interrogations with Loki.

Which is how I came to be sitting at my kitchen table, papers and notebooks scattered around me, head in my hands.

I poured over the videos, needing to figure out how to play this.

What I gathered is that anger or threatening behavior will get you nowhere with him. Mystery can only get you so far, seeing as he’s the God of Mischief and Lies.

So that leaves me with one main option: being open with him. Well, mostly. Throw him off his game. I need to show him I don’t see him as a threat, even if I somewhat do. I need to show him that I don’t see him as any sort of special ‘other,’ almost like if you were dealing with a celebrity. I need him to feel like I’m comfortable around him; at ease. I can’t allow him to get the upper hand over my fear.

I need to meet his cold with warmth.

***

“Tony, I can’t do this. There are other people a lot more suited for this than me. I don’t want to downplay my own abilities, but I feel like this problem is far over my head. I don’t know why you chose me for this,” I stutter out rapidly, coming to a halt 15 feet from the door ahead, where I know the Asgardian to be housed.

“I didn’t choose you, Pepper did. And that means more to me than if I had been the one to make the decision. She believes in you Vanek, so it’s time to believe in yourself,” Tony smiles, lightly laying his hand on my shoulder, “just take a deep breath and go rock it.”

I listen to his advice, and begin moving forward again.

There are two guards walking behind us and I come to a stop again. “No guards,” I demand.

“No guards? Aren’t you afraid of something happening? I can’t have you being taken out on the first day,” he frowns.

“If there are guards, it’ll make him close up. He won’t be as trusting,” I insist, trying to get him to see my side of things.

“Okay, if you say so. They’ll wait out here, though, just in case,” he responds.

We get to the door, where Tony shows me the keypad outside for future reference.

“As I said in the email, your badge now has the ability to get you into some new places,” he motions for me to use the pad, probably wanting to make sure it works.

I pull my badge up and wave it in front of the keypad. A light turns green and I see my ID picture flash back at me. The door opens and we step inside.

Once we are past the threshold, I am able to take in more of the space. What I couldn’t see before is that there is a kitchen off to one side, with bright lighting and new stainless steel appliances, right across from the windows. To the side of the living room there is a hallway that must go back to a bedroom and bathroom. Everything a person needs to live.

I’m almost done surveying the room when I notice him. In the shadows, of course.

“Oh Tony, was two not enough? You had the perfect set there with Natalia and Virginia. Why’d you have to go and ruin it with a ternion,” a deep male voice asks cynically.

I feel my face flush, both in embarrassment and irritation. He’s comparing me to the other women here, and only because we share one trait in common.

I can see Tony stiffen beside me, looking like he’s about to open his mouth and say something. I beat him to it.

“Cool it there, Casanova. Geez, I see you really know how to make a woman feel so idiosyncratic,” I emphasize.

He thinks he’s so smart and clever. That’s the main thing I noticed from all the interviews and interrogations, that he sees himself as above everybody else. Well, two can play this game.

Tony laughs, a loud and sudden noise. Loki looks startled. Could I have already thrown him off his game? I smirk.

“Now I know why Pep likes you so much,” Tony exclaims, jostling my shoulder with his hand.

I can tell he’s nervous around the god. Of course, that would be ones normal reaction when someone tried to take over your planet and now they stand in front of you. Yet, I don’t feel the way I probably should.

I feel electric. Alive. The adrenaline is coursing through my body and I feel ready to take on anything.

“Okay, so, Lucille Ball is here to talk with you. Explain what her job is, why she’s here,” he looks to me, noticing my smile at the nickname.

“Thanks for the intro Tony. I think I’ve got everything I need,” I nod, dismissing him.

He nods back at me, turning and walking out the way we came. Leaving me alone with him.

Loki.