Author's note: Hey guys, sorry I'm posting so late again, quarantine has really messed up my sleep schedule (like, more than usual). Here's chapter twenty one, don't forget I'm three chapters ahead on my AO3 account if you want more! Hope you enjoy, almost at 2k reads eekkk thank you all so much <3
...
Get to the window.
That was your only thought as you unleashed your pent-up fear and anger on these people who had kidnapped you with no remorse, your only goal to escape this hell hole. You didn't know how high up you were, or how far the fall would be, but it was a risk you were willing to take. Hopefully it wasn't any higher up than the ninth floor of the Avengers Tower. Loki wasn't here to heal you if things went wrong this time: you'd be on your own if that were to happen.
The guards were appearing in force now, but they were no match for you in this state, which was fast approaching pure panic. Some of them were even faltering and backing away down the corridor, presumably having seen their comrades being thrown about like rag dolls and not fancying going next. There was no time to think about not hurting them, you just needed to escape.
"Stop her!" the woman cried as you ran for the window, guessing correctly that the two guards stationed there would get out of your way as you approached them. There was no stopping you as you leapt straight through the window, closing your eyes and yelling as you smashed through the glass. It took you a second to remember that you had to break your fall with your magic as you fell, and caught yourself just in time, rolling over a few times as you hit the ground just to be sure. As you scrambled to your feet, winded but unhurt, you glanced up at the window you had fallen from. It had only been four floors up.
"She can't get away, quick, go!" that was the woman again, yelling at the guards.
You glanced around your surroundings briefly, but it was too dark to see anything apart from the looming building you'd just escaped from. Deciding that the best route was away from it, you started running blindly into the darkness, praying that the others would be here soon.
Wait, you'd forgotten about your tracker. Tony had told you to find the tracker in your suit and turn it on. You slowed to a brisk walk and started feeling around the arms and sides of your suit for... anything. Couldn't Tony have told you where the tracker was? Suddenly, your foot found a hole in the ground and you tripped, falling flat on your face having been preoccupied trying to find the stupid tracker.
You got to your feet, cursing, and stopped completely, checking over your shoulder for guards, and feeling about for your tracker again. This time you were luckier, and found a tiny cube under the fabric on your left underarm. Did you have to get it out, or could you just hit it? If you got it out you might lose it, and then you were well and truly screwed. But there was no time to stand around debating what to do, because now there were guards coming out of the building. Armed guards.
Praying that it would be enough, you hit the small cube a few times, and then broke into a sprint again, running away from the guards, towards who knew what. Exactly what you were running towards became apparent just a few seconds later, when suddenly a large metal fence, at least nine feet high with barbed wire along the top, came into view. You skidded to a stop just before hitting it, stumbling back a few steps. This was very annoying. You could blast a hole in it but that would attract the attention of the guards, who thankfully still hadn't seen you in the darkness. They'd just catch up with you on the other side if they knew where you were.
Were you really going to have to climb over this thing? Without any better ideas, you stepped up to the fence and grabbed hold of the nearest bar. Bad, bad idea. You didn't need to know many volts went through your body to work out that you were in trouble, because three seconds later you were flat on your back with the smell of burning surrounding you and a loud ringing in your ears.
"Over there! I saw a flash!"
That hadn't felt good at all. You tried to get to your feet but everything was spinning and you only got to your knees before toppling over again. Your escape wasn't going as well as you'd hoped. You tried to summon your magic as you heard footsteps approaching, but that just hurt...
"She's here! She's been electrocuted though..."
"Where, let me see."
That stupid old woman again.
"Y/N dear, now look what's happened. Didn't I say for you not to try anything?"
"Fuck off." you groaned, closing your eyes and trying to get your head to stop spinning. It was like you'd been put in a washing machine on the full speed setting. You couldn't breathe.
"Come on, pick her up and get her back to the room. We need to check her vitals before..."
"No, you can't- I won't..." you interrupted, breathing hard. Why couldn't you talk?
One of the guards picked you up and you were powerless to resist as you headed back towards the building. Unable to breathe, let alone think about escaping, you felt yourself drifting... no. You weren't going to pass out, not this time. Even though your head felt like it had been put in a microwave. You could still smell burning.
Suddenly, you heard a familiar noise over the ringing in your ears.
"Hah." you smiled, opening your eyes to see the Quinjet descending over the building. The hitting method had worked!
"Get her inside, quickly. We need to act fast, otherwise plan B becomes an option." the woman said, and you were carried swiftly inside, surrounded by guards. Plan B? You didn't like the sound of that.
Y/N? Can you hear me?
Oh no, now you were hearing things. Loki wasn't here. Maybe you'd already passed out.
Y/N, you haven't passed out, tell me where you are, please.
"Loki." you said, looking around incredulously.
"She's losing it, that was a strong shock she's just had. She might have internal injuries-"
"Nonsense, she's fine, quickly now..."
Y/N, please-
Loki?
Yes! Yes, I'm here.
The obvious, palpable relief in even his thoughts made you smile and that feeling in your chest returned, except this time it was a bad thing because you were really struggling to breathe...
"Stairs or elevator?"
"Elevator of course, you fool, get in. The rest of you take the stairs."
Y/N?
Elevator.
Talking through your thoughts was making your skull throb like mad, so you tried to keep the meaning short.
What floor?
Fourth.
You tried to focus on your breathing as the guard carrying you put you down and you lurched to the side, reaching out to steady yourself against the side of the elevator.
"Y/N, stop being dramatic please, you're fine. And if you're not fine, well, you heard about plan B didn't you?"
They wouldn't kill you. They couldn't. The team were here; Loki was here, you were going to be fine.
They're not going to kill you. I won't let them.
Your heart lurched in your chest; either a reaction to Loki's statement or you were going into cardiac arrest, you couldn't quite tell in your current situation.
The doors of the elevator opened and you were re-joined by the other guards who had gone up the stairs as you were half walked, half dragged down the corridor. You waited for something to happen, anything, but you were just getting closer and closer to that goddamn room again.
Loki.
Had you thought that or said it out loud?
I'm here. Hold on.
"The Avengers have infiltrated the building." one of the guards said, touching his earpiece, and the woman stopped in her tracks.
"How long?"
"A minute, tops."
She closed her eyes and exhaled heavily, before turning to look at you regretfully.
"I'm sorry Y/N, perhaps this could have ended differently if you'd decided to cooperate with us sooner."
You heart contracted in your chest, now you really couldn't breathe. They weren't going to have to kill you, your body was giving up on its own...
The woman turned and nodded at the guard who had been holding you, and he unholstered a gun from his belt.
Time slowed down. Your legs decided that they didn't work anymore and you dropped to your knees as the guard pointed his gun at you.
Loki...
Wait.
Everything happened at once. The gun went off, but nothing hit you. Nat was sprinting down the corridor from one direction, and Tony flew through the window which you had smashed earlier, and all hell broke loose. Then Loki was hauling you to your feet, and then all of a sudden you were outside, and there was fresh air and quiet, the sounds of fighting from upstairs now distant. He'd teleported you both outside.
"Y/N, what happened? What's wrong with you?" Loki asked you urgently, gripping your upper arms tightly. He was scared.
"The fence." you tried to explain, waving towards it vaguely. "I tried- I shouldn't've..."
"Just breathe." Loki told you, watching you worriedly.
"It was electric, the fence; I can't breathe." you said, realising how scared you were and feeling a sob rise in your throat as you met Loki's gaze.
"It's okay, we'll just- let's get you to Banner, he'll be able to..."
"LOKI!" Tony bellowed out of the window.
"Odin's beard." Loki muttered, and then you were in the Quinjet. You really needed to learn how to teleport.
You were met with a series of "Y/N!" and "Loki?" from all of the team apart from Tony, Nat and Thor who had apparently gone in first to see what the situation was like and not needed any back up.
Bruce was with you instantly, taking you from Loki and helping you to sit down.
"Tell me what happened." he said.
"She was electrocuted by the fence around the perimeter; she can't breathe or stand properly and her hearing is off. She can't use her magic." Loki reeled off, and you nodded to confirm what he'd said.
"How's your sight?" Bruce asked.
"Fine." you replied.
"Good, that's good. I think you're just in shock, but I'll check for internal damage when we get back to the tower. For now just stay still and concentrate on your breathing, alright?"
You nodded, closing your eyes to try and counter the dizziness you were feeling.
Loki was pushed aside as the others came over to see for themselves that you were alright.
"Tony and the others will be back any second, they're all fine." Steve reassured you, and you nodded again, relieved. You could vaguely hear their thoughts, wondering what you'd been through and why you were so tired, but you didn't have to energy (or breath) to tell them. Bucky, who was correctly guessing the gist of what had happened, sat next to you and put his arm around you; you leaned into him gratefully, closing your eyes. He could sympathise with what might have happened to you if the team hadn't turned up when they had.
You hadn't noticed in your state, but you couldn't hear Loki's thoughts anymore. If you'd been paying attention, you would have noticed that he was determinedly not looking at you and Bucky and that his jaw was clenched. But you weren't, and you didn't notice.
"Go, let's go. Quick."
That was Tony. You opened your eyes to see him, Nat and Thor running up the ramp, and mere seconds later you were in the air with no apparent resistance from those still on the ground.
Tony made a beeline for you, and Bucky removed his arm from around you just as Tony crouched down to your level and enveloped you in a hug.
"Kid, I'm so sorry." he said into your shoulder.
"It's not your fault." you replied, gently detaching yourself from him. It was nice that he cared, but you were struggling to breathe as it was, without being crushed by him.
"Look at you." he said sadly, scanning your face.
"Lady Y/N, are you hurt?" Thor asked in concern, peering over Tony's head at you.
"Can't tell yet, we'll find out later." you wheezed, attempting a smile.
"Don't talk, you're making it worse. Just breathe." Bucky told you, laying a hand on your arm in concern. You nodded gratefully, again not seeing Loki watching you in from the corner where he was now sat. There was only one word for what he was feeling. It wasn't something he wanted to think about.
Bruce was talking to Tony about possible internal injuries you might have while you tried not to listen, and Nat came over to give your arm a quick squeeze before sitting down herself, visibly exhausted.
You rested your head back on Bucky's shoulder and focused on your breathing, praying that you weren't suffering from some serious internal problem, which it felt like you were currently. You would be okay. Bruce would be able to fix whatever it was. Or Loki. You looked up and over to where Loki was sat; to your surprise he looked upset, or angry. You'd talk to him later, you were way too tired to try and talk to him through your mind right now.
You hoped he was okay.