Weakness | Loki [Book One]

Chapter Seventeen

We'd sat and talked on the roof for a few hours after... that. Loki told me about the pranks he's played on his brother during his childhood and I'd told him the stories I'd read about, once with happily ever afters, ones with tragic deaths, and ones where no one really won. We laughed about things we could only imagine and we would sit in silence, each enjoying the other's presence. 

Eventually, we each went to our own rooms. I was still in a bit of a daze from all that had happened so the threat of nightmares didn't even register. 

At first, I didn't know if it was a dream or a nightmare. Loki and I were walking down one of the paths outside of Asgard, laughing and talking about who knows what. Then, Loki leaned in to kiss me. Before our lips could even touch, a sword drove through Loki's heart. But this time, it wasn't an illusion. 

As he started to fade away, I screamed in denial. It's not real, I told myself, although I didn't believe it. Loki's fine. It's not real. 

I snapped awake, still screaming. Sweat made my hair cling to the sides of my face, but I didn't care. 

Not ten seconds had passed before Loki nearly slammed open my door.

"Nightmare?" he asked worriedly. 

"Yeah." Honestly, I don't really know why, but I just dissolved into a sobbing mess. Loki sat next to me as I cried into his shoulder and I remembered the dream-turned-nightmare. I didn't think I'd ever be able to admit it, but I didn't want to lose Loki. Ever. 

"What happened?" he asked quietly. 

I shook my head. "I can't--"

"Hey, it's okay. You don't have to tell me."

"Just, don't die, okay?" I half asked, half commanded.

"I don't plan on dying any time soon." He wrapped his arms protectively around me. 

"You know, you look kind of handsome with bed head."

"Do I ever not look handsome?" 

I laughed. "Not that I know of."

"Delta?" he asked as he ran his fingers through my hair. 

"Yeah?"

"What's this?" he tapped gently on a spot just below my ear. 

"What's what?"

"The scar."

I reached my hand to my ear and pressed where he'd tapped. A shooting pain pierced through my skull, making me curse in another language. "I don't think that's a normal scar."

"Then what is it?"

"I have no idea. Honestly, I don't care." I curled closer to Loki and tried to forget the nightmare. He let the matter slide, for now, and read his book while I fell asleep on his shoulder. 

"Delta!" Stark was banging his fist on my door.

"What do you want?" I shouted back. 

"We need you for a mission."

"I'm not an Avenger, so let me sleep in."

"It's a Hydra base."

"Is that supposed to change my mind?"

"Fine! We'll do it without you!" I heard him walk away. Once he was gone, Loki burst out in laughter. 

"What's so funny?"

"You."

"Hey!"

"I mean that in a good way," he said defensively. 

I scowled. "We're going on the mission anyway, aren't we?"

"I assumed so." I created an illusion of my suit and left for the Quinjet. Loki caught up to me a few minutes later. The rest of the Avengers weren't there yet, so we sat down in two of the seats towards the back.

"Nice of you to join us," Stark said when they arrived. 

"You'll be dead without me."

"We'll see." 

Natasha flew the jet out of the hangar and into the clouds. 

"So what's the deal, Stark?" I asked. 

"We have reports of at least one enhanced human inside a Hydra base. 'Figured we'd check it out. Any tips?"

"Don't underestimate whoever is in there."

"We won't."

"I guarantee that you will. Multiple times." I started to twirl a flame around in my hand. 

"How'd you do that?" Rogers asked.

"Magic."

When we arrived a few miles from the base, Stark told us the game plan. Who was where, when things would happen, et cetera. I'd heard it all before. 

"Delta, you're in the Jeep with Clint, Natasha, and Loki," I heard him say. The three of them piled into the car while I stood beside it. 

"I'll run," I said. 

"Sure you will," Stark said, scoffing. Loki glared daggers at him but stayed silent, thank Odin.

The Jeep started up and I ran alongside it for a while, but then sped up, passing it altogether. I reached the first group of soldiers before the others and disarmed and knocked out the lot before the Jeep drove by. I grabbed on to the side, showing off a little. 

"Well done," Loki said. 

"Thanks," I jumped off the truck and ran into another group of Hydra soldiers, taking them out quickly. 

Suddenly, a flash of blue streaked by Rogers and tripped him. Natasha shot at it, but it dodged and grabbed a dead soldier's gun, aiming it at me and firing.

"Cool trick," I said when he'd run out of bullets. "But I can do it better." A dozen bullets fell to the ground. While the man was staring, Natasha tasered him. I saw Clint electrocute another enhanced in the distance. 

"Pack it up," Stark said over the comms. "We got what we came for. Let's go home."

We tossed the two in the truck and drove back to the Quinjet, where we flew back to the tower. Once we'd landed, the two were put in separate rooms and the rest of us went to chill. Loki and I went to my room. 

"You gave me quite a scare," he said. 

"What? You think I can't take care of myself?"

"Bullets are not a joke."

"Yeah, yeah. I know." I tried to discreetly wrap my hands in bandages. 

"What are you doing?" Loki asked.

"Uh, nothing."

"Let me see." He slightly unwrapped the bandage to reveal the streaks the bullets had made in my skin, blood still flowing from them.

"It's not a big deal," I said. 

He silently rewrapped the bandage and did the other one, too. "It is a big deal, love," he said. "It's always is  when you get hurt."

"It's really not."

"It is to me."