Coffee and Books 2

Loki's view - scene 4

(This scene corresponds with chapter 5 in 'Coffee & Books')

Loki sits in the turning chair in front of the large windows, his favourite place in the apartment. He stares at the view of skyscrapers and other tall buildings, alternating with pieces of blue sky. He'd rather be reading, knowing the view by heart already, but he has yet to receive his order of books.

The door to the apartment opens and Thor and a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent come in. Loki recognises the sound of the black leather shoes they all seem to wear. It's probably Williams, as he is the agent assigned to the Asgardians. Soon, there will be more of them, coming especially to keep an eye on him. Loki hears another set of footsteps on the marble floor of the entrance to the apartment. Did they send an agent for him already? The moment he wants to turn his chair around to see who is there, he hears Lady Eir greet the person.

"Welcome, Lady Ylva. Would you like some orange juice?"

It's the Little Wolf girl.

Loki releases a sigh of relief he didn't knew he was holding in. No agent yet. Just the girl from the coffee shop who is bringing him his books.

When she steps further into the living room, he can see her reflection in the glass of the window. She has put her hair up in a messy bun and wears a knee-length dress in bright green. The girl looks around the room until her gaze falls on the chair in which he is sitting.

The green dress becomes brighter in the reflection of the window when she comes closer. She is holding a package in her hands, his books. Loki holds up his hand expectantly when she is close to the chair. "I believe that is for me?"

The girl doesn't react; Loki shifts his gaze from her reflection to the real girl next to him. He notices she has light freckles, matching her strawberry blonde hair; her dress has tiny blue flowers printed all over the green fabric. She is looking at him, probably still processing all the new impressions. Knowing Thor, he probably scared her again or something. Loki cocks an eyebrow, his hand still waiting to receive his package. "Well?"

"Oh. Uh. Yes, sorry." She finally hands him the package of books.

Loki unwraps the books in his lap. On top is 'On the origin of species' by Charles Darwin. Underneath is a book on anthropology and Frederikson also added a book that claims to be the short history of nearly everything. Flipping through the books, Loki becomes aware that the girl is still standing next to his chair. Looking up through his eyelashes he can see her reflection in the glass.

"You're welcome," she mutters under her breath before taking a couple of steps closer to the window, away from his chair.

Loki feels the corners of his mouth turn up. She expected a thank you and her quiet protest is amusing. The girl takes another step to the glass so she can look almost directly down. The hairs on her arms stand up; the nerve of a mouse indeed.

Little Wolf girl hears his chuckle, but she ignores him on purpose. The mouse seems to have a spine, however small.

She is looking for something among the mass of buildings outside when Thor comes to stand next to her. Always the big friendly giant, he takes up a conversation with the girl. Why did he bring her up anyway? Thor always had more of a thing for brunettes. Either way, his brother diligently looks for a red bench on a rooftop, the landmark of her home apparently.

Thor is not the only one who wants to talk to the girl. Lady Eir calls her over, she and Thor do a good job of getting the girl's life story out of her. Instead of reading his book, Loki listens to them talking behind him. She sounds like nothing special: she came from a small country in Europe to live with her aunt and uncle in New York and work as a waitress in their coffee shop. Yet somehow he enjoys to hear her talk about her simple life, she has a pleasant voice and an open attitude. Of course, when you ask someone about their home, they want to know about your home too. S.H.I.E.L.D. has been very selective giving out information about how and why the Asgardians came to Earth, so it's up to Thor and Eir to explain to the girl Asgard had exploded into tiny pieces.

Of course the girl is sorry to hear about the loss of their home. "Thank you," Thor says. "But thankfully we found refuge here on Earth. Tony Stark has been a wonderful host to us."

Loki snorts when he hears the name of Stark, the designer of his metal cuffs and the one who came up with the idea to tag him like an animal.

"I know you feel differently, brother," Thor says, addressing the back of the chair. "But Tony Stark really has done a lot for the people of Asgard. He has been more than hospitable."

Loki wants to give his opinion on that, but the girl expertly changes the topic before he can say anything. So Loki keeps staring at the reflection of the people sitting on the couch in the living room. They're too far away from the glass to see clearly, but the girl's green dress stands out.

He is absentmindedly thumbing through Darwin's book, when the door to the apartment swings open. "Yoohoo... Reindeer games! You home? I've got something for you!"

Stark.

Loki slowly puts his books on the floor and places his hands on the armrests of his chair. For a moment his fingers tightly grip the leather, but then he forces himself to put up a relaxed demeanor. Stark is distracted anyway, his attention focused on the girl.

Loki turns his chair to face the room, seeing her and Stark shake hands stiffly. It's clear she doesn't like the billionaire that much. She leans back a little as he entered into her personal space and pulls her hand back gingerly the moment she can. The corners of Loki's mouth turn up when he sees her share his dislike of Stark.

However, his mouth is a straight line again the moment Stark shifts his attention from the girl to Loki. The billionaire inventor holds up a large syringe and waves it back and forth. "This will only hurt a little, Bambi!" Tony Stark laughs.

Loki shoots up from his chair, his hands clenched in fists. It takes all of his self restraint to not wrap his hands around the shorter man's throat.

"Loki..." Thor's voice contains a warning. "We've talked about this. There are some conditions to your release..."

By Valhalla! That oaf really doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut! Loki shoots his brother a dark look, shutting him up.

"Not. Here." It is bad enough that this needs to happen, but does it need to be done here? In front of everyone? In front of a human girl who barely knows him?

Heimdall and Eir sit still on the couch, looking away from the situation. They have talked about it at length, when Loki was inside the S.H.I.E.L.D. prison and after he had been released. If he wants to stay out of that glass cell, he has to play by the rules. S.H.I.E.L.D.'s rules.

The attending S.H.I.E.L.D. agent seems to be on full alert, expecting Loki to attack Stark at any moment. Well, he wasn't that far off the mark, Loki would really like to do just that. If only it wouldn't have him end up in that horrid glass cell again. Thor and Heimdall would surely help agent Williams stop Loki and he wouldn't be surprised if one of Stark's tin suits would come flying in too.

It would also scare the girl; it's a consideration that surprises Loki a little.

"Don't worry, you don't have to drop your pants in front of the pretty lady," Stark says airily, unaware of Loki's thoughts. "Rolling up your sleeve will be enough."

Loki looks at the girl, who tries to make herself disappear into the couch cushions. He suddenly feels ashamed of what is happening here. He's about to be tagged like an animal in front of everyone. His brother, Eir and Heimdall know why he isn't putting up more of a fight. That S.H.I.E.L.D. agent probably thinks his organisation has the evil space god under control and Loki has no qualms to let him think that. But what will the human girl think?

For a short moment she looks him in the eyes, before squeezing hers shut. Loki is certain he saw something in her eyes, it was not pity, yet she doesn't want this to happen to him. He hasn't even been that nice to her. And yet, still she shows him compassion.