Case 325 || Loki

T W E N T Y

Tears shone in his eyes, his voice cracked from the painful memories. Lily nodded, a stray tear escaping. Stanley was right, she needed to stop being afraid.

"Now, go up and change." He ordered softly.

Lily got up with slightly shaky legs and trudged upstairs to her bedroom. Waiting for her on the bed, was Goose. Goose's head popped up alertly from his curled up body. Lily didn't hesitate to run over and stroke the cat's ginger fur for comfort. She tenderly kissed the top of his head, Goose purring in response.

Lily eventually picked out an outfit, she went for something cosy and not too formal.

Saying goodbye to Goose, she checked that there was still food in his bowl and fresh water. Goose let out a quiet meow and went back to sleep, curled up in the blankets on Lily's bed. Lily went downstairs

"Have fun, it's about time you took some time to yourself instead of having to endure my company." J told her firmly.

Lily gave a small smile, "I will but I happen to like your company." Lily embraced her grandfather in a quick hug and headed back to the tower. The sun had already set behind the New York skyscrapers but the city remained bustling with people rushing to get home.

Lily was surprised to see Grant already waiting in reception. She was also surprised to see him in a suit. It was very well fitted and completely crease free. His shirt was neatly tucked in and he wore perfectly laced shoes.

The reception was completely silent, no one passing by tripping over folders, or people complaining about how they've got to organise more builders to come in because Tony broke another window.

"You look lovely." Grant greeted Lily, looking her up and down.

"Thanks, you too." Lily said back. This was going to be a long night.

"Shall we?" Grant offered her his arm which Lily took hesitantly. She reminded herself, the only reason she was agreeing to this was because he threatened to alert S.H.I.E.L.D about her searching the evidence room.

"That dress does look good on you." Grant complimented once again, hungrily, "You know, I have the best espionage scores in S.H.I.E.L.D." He boasted..

"After Natasha Romanoff," Lily corrected, "she's tough to beat." 

Grant clenched his jaw, leading her out of the tower and down the streets of New York. The bitter cold of the night bit into Lily's bare arms, causing goose bumps and making her shiver slightly. They must have walked for around 20 minutes before Grant took them into a quiet restaurant.

They were both seated at a cosy booth in the corner of the restaurant. The servers were very welcoming when they both ordered their food. Warm yellow lights lit up the restaurant. Lily's goose bumps soon disappeared.

As they waited for their meal to arrive, Grant was the first one to start talking. "So, how have you found working at the tower?"

"I'm really enjoying it. The Avengers certainly keep you on your toes." Lily laughed lightly.

"And what about Loki?" Grant asked.

"I like staying with him. He's good company."

"He's a villain. A murderer." Grant spoke, confused.

"Loki's made mistakes. I'm sure working for S.H.I.E.L.D means you've killed people. So have the Avengers." Lily defended.

This made Grant pause for a moment, taking in Lily's comment. She has a point. But he still hated Loki with every bone in his body. "He killed innocents."