It had been two days since the Chitauri invasion of New York and Steve Rogers couldn't sleep.
He turned in his blanket. Maybe it was the bed. He and the other newly christened 'Avengers' were staying in Stark Tower for the moment, out of the spotlight while the people of New York tried to get back to normality and Stark had given Steve what was apparently the 'best room in the house'. It came with a waterbed full of plastic goldfish and a mirror on the ceiling. Steve had accepted it graciously, despite his intuition telling him Stark had only given him the room for a joke but now staring at his tired looking face in the ceiling mirror, he wished he hadn't.
He didn't know whether it was a side effect of being frozen in ice or the residual adrenaline from the first real fight he had fought in for over sixty years but he just couldn't switch off.
They had stopped the invasion.
Loki was in SHIELD custody awaiting extradition back to Asgard though by all accounts there wasn't going to be much of a trial when he got there. The helicarrier was being repaired. Heck, Steve had even filled out his paperwork and tactical report of the 'New York Incident' and handed it in on time like homework.
So then why didn't it feel like it was over?
Making a decision, Steve threw off his blankets and began to get dressed. The green numbers on his digital bedside clock showed 23.30. He was pretty confident he could find the place again, even though New York had changed so much.
The bookstore owner saluted as Steve entered but then tried in vain to disguise it as an adjustment of his glasses. Steve smiled at him. The SHIELD guard was young and his eager salute had reminded him of himself.
'It's ok son, I won't tell anybody', Steve said.
'Thank you sir', the guard said and clicked the button hidden beneath the counter. The bookshelves began to part the same way they had when Steve had first come here seventy years ago. He felt an odd combination of nostalgia and déjà vu as they finished moving. Behind them, a long passageway led to SHIELD's hidden base.
'Sir?' the guard piped up as Steve began to move past him, 'My mother was in central station. Just-I-Thank you'.
'No problem', Steve smiled, 'At ease soldier'.
The guard retook his position as the bookshelves closed behind Steve.
He exhaled. It was amazing how much he got thanked for just doing what any other human being would've done in his place. It made him uncomfortable.
There weren't usually many guards in the bookshop base but Steve counted salutes from seven separate guards as he walked down the hallway leading to the room in which he'd first become Captain America. In the interim, the bookshop had been mostly used as a storage facility for classified records. It was only yesterday that the store's designation had been officially changed to 'Detention Centre'.
Steve descended the stairs to the 'lab' and saw it now held an entire wall of monitors. The top layer showed the bookshop from various angles and the street outside. The next showed the corridors around the base and the interiors of various rooms. The last row held the monitors that Steve wanted.
As he approached, the security officer leapt up from his chair and saluted. Steve returned the salute.
'With respect sir, what are you doing here?' the officer asked.
'What's your name soldier?'
'Donoghue sir'.
'Couldn't sleep Donoghue. How are things?'
'All quiet on the western front', Donoghue remarked but then, realising what he had said, tried to backtrack, 'Sorry sir! I didn't mean-'.
'Don't worry about it', Steve insisted, waving a hand, 'Good movie'.
'Yes sir', Donoghue said, visibly relaxing, 'He's been quiet enough though it's creepy the way he looks at the camera sometimes'.
There was no point asking who 'he' was.
'He knows it's there?' Steve asked.
'Director Fury didn't think we needed to hide it. He wants him to know it's there'.
'Only one camera?'
'Only one visible. Plenty hidden in the walls'.
'You have a visual log of the entire day?'
'Yes sir. Interview logs kept separate of course'.
'Interview logs?'
'Yes sir. Couple of people wanted to talk to him. You wanna see the records?'
'Isn't that a breach of security?'
'Director Fury said all Grade S personnel are allowed access sir. Same with the cell'
'Grade S?'
'For 'super' sir', Donoghue said with an unimpressed look, 'It was some guy named Coulson's idea'.
Steve felt a pang of sadness at the name. Without Coulson, there wouldn't have been any Avengers. Heck, there might not even be a New York. Quashing the possibilities beginning to swim around inside his head, he asked, 'You due for a break Donoghue?'
'Am I sir?' Donoghue asked.
'Yes you are but before you go, could you bring up those interview records for me please?' Steve asked, unable to keep a sheepish look from his face. Modern technology was something else: he was still getting used to CDs and apparently they were 'on the way out'.
'Already up on screen sir', Donoghue said, graciously ignoring Steve's discomfort as he clicked a couple of buttons on the console, 'Click play when you're ready. Just to warn you, the sound goes screwy near the start. They haven't been able to fix it yet'.
'Why not? I thought SHIELD had plenty of engineers'.
'We do but most are working on the helicarrier or helping with cleaning up the city', Donoghue replied, counting change from the pocket of his combats, 'Gonna be tomorrow before one of them can come down here'.
'Is it that hard to fix a few microphones?' Steve genuinely asked.
'It is if a god of thunder's done something to them sir. Besides they also want the engineers to check the machine'.
'What machine?'
'No idea what it is but it made his lordship mighty nervous when he saw it sittin' in the room', Donoghue said, gesturing to the monitor, 'So pretty sure it's a good thing for us'.
Steve nodded.
'Dismissed soldier', he said.
As Donoghue walked away in search of the base's coffee machine, Steve took a seat and clicked the play icon for the first interview.
The video opened. According to the date in the upper left corner, it had been recorded that morning at 9am.
Loki's cell was glass fronted and boasted a bed and a chair as its only pieces of furniture. Someone (likely Stark) had covered the bed with a statue of liberty cover. Despite the cell's 'normal' appearance, Steve had heard Stark boast how he had helped redesign it quickly to accommodate their 'abnormal' guest. The glass was the very same that had been used to create the holding cell on the helicarrier. There was no need to reinforce the walls: they were at least three levels underground. The room was painted bright white with every corner illuminated. There was nothing outside the cell save for a strange kind of machine Steve thought it must be the machine the guard had been talking about. Large and block shaped, it squatted against the wall. It had strange indentations etched around a circular button set into the top of it. Steve had no idea what the machine was but that was nothing new. He assumed it had something to do with the floor of the cell which was see through, showing a complex network of wires that seemed to be glowing. Steve thought it might be to stop Loki tapping into his 'abilities' since Donoghue had said he had been 'nervous' when he had seen it.
When Steve had called Loki's abilities 'magic' earlier that day in a conversation with Banner, Stark had annoyed him by giving an amused snort.
Banner had explained what Loki could do was more like 'weird science' before Stark had cut him off asking Steve if he had seen the movie 'Weird Science' citing it as an inspiration to him.
Loki seemed to be wearing the same clothes he had been wearing during the battle for New York but Steve knew this couldn't really be the case.
Loki's personal effects had been confiscated when he had been locked up. One agent who had been in charge of categorizing the items had nearly lost an eye when he had accidentally pressed a button concealed in one of Loki's gauntlets and a hidden blade had been launched from the wrist. Another had been examining a pendant Loki had had in one of his pockets when it had spontaneously shattered and caused second degree burns to the man's face. After that, Thor had taken over supervision and the casualty rate had not increased.
Steve could see Thor was Loki's visitor. He was carrying Mjolnir with him and was in his full armour, despite Stark lending him (in his words) 'hipper' clothes. Even locked up, he wasn't taking any chances with his brother.
'You will be taken back to Asgard next week', Thor said, 'We have decided to allow SHIELD time to study you so they may better understand Asgardians'.
'Very generous of you', Loki sniped but then gave an unpleasant smile, 'I'm sure they'll learn a lot about Asgardians by studying me'.
Steve picked up on the unpleasant insinuation in Loki's words but didn't understand its origin. Thor gave no indication he had heard anything of the sort.
'I have negotiated exercise time for you outside this cell but you will be under armed guard at all times'.
Loki scoffed.
'They will be carrying the same guns that son of Coul used on you', Thor said with a humourless smile, 'and many of your assigned guards were his friends'.
'There is only one of those guns', Loki said, sneer fading.
'Not any more. Escape attempts would be very unwise', Thor concluded.
Loki shrugged.
'Is this the part where I say thank you?' he snapped.
Thor shook his head and turned to leave.
'Does father send his love?' Loki called after him.
Steve was disappointed when Thor took the bait.
'Mother does', Thor replied stiffly.
'How sweet', Loki sneered, 'Has she put some welcome flowers in my cell in Asgard for me?'
Thor whipped back around.
'You will be lucky if you get a cell. You'll be Fortune's favoured son if you keep your head'.
'At least I'll be someone's favoured son', Loki quipped.
Steve shook his head: the same old schtick and Thor was falling for it.
'Do not start that again!' Thor snapped.
'It never ended Odinson', Loki spat, drawing out the name like a curse.
Thor jabbed a finger at Loki. Steve realised there was a low hum coming from the video: a distinct rumble that was growing louder as Thor spoke.
'Do not test me. Do you not realise your sick pride nearly destroyed the Earth?'
'Really?' Loki asked, eyes wide in mock surprise, 'I thought it was Mars. I wasn't going to destroy earth. I was going to rule it'.
The rumbling was growing louder and Steve noticed a faint shaking distorting the video feed. He suddenly realised what it reminded him of: clouds gathering before a storm.
'And when you'd had your fill of playing the could-be king, then what?' Thor demanded.
'Well, then I'd destroy it', Loki said off-handedly, as if the move would be the most obvious one in the world, 'I've already done it once brother. What makes you think I didn't enjoy it?'
Static suddenly crackled loudly on the video followed by the emptiness of dead air.
Steve checked the volume and saw it hadn't changed but then remembered what Donoghue had said.
Thor had inadvertently blown out the sound.
Looking back to the main video feed, he saw strange sparks flicker across the screen and a light bulb blew above Thor's head.
Loki had a smile on his face.
As Steve watched, Loki's form blurred.
At first he thought it was an effect of Thor's anger but then realised Loki had changed shape.
It took Steve a moment to recognise the woman. He had seen her in the personnel files Fury had given him to read. Jane Foster, a physicist who had helped Thor in New Mexico. The static field built into the floor didn't react putting an end to Steve's 'magic/weird science suppression' theory.
Thor gave a start at the change.
'Jane' pressed 'her' body against the glass and leaned forward making a face that (if the real Jane Foster did make a face anything like it) was usually made in the privacy of a bedroom.
Thor pointed Mjolnir threateningly at the glass as he shouted silently at his brother. Another lightbulb blew and the machine in the corner of the room gave a brief but noticeable flicker. As did the illumination on the wires beneath Loki's feet.
Suddenly Nick Fury entered the picture and apparently unconcerned with the atmospheric (not to mention the emotional) tension, had a quiet word in Thor's ear.
Thor made as if to shake him off but looking at Fury's face, seemed to think better of it. Turning on his heel he left, cape billowing behind him.
Loki blew them both a kiss as he dropped the illusion, becoming himself again.
Fury didn't look at Loki once.
As the record abruptly ended, Steve was surprised to see two more records from the same day.
He clicked the second one open.
He watched Clint Barton storm into the room.
Loki didn't look at him. He sat on the bed impassively facing the opposite wall.
From Clint's body language and his sharp gesturing, he was in the middle of a full blown rant. Steve skipped ahead. No point watching it if there wasn't any sound. Judging from the timer, Clint had berated Loki for ten minutes. Steve could guess what about. Loki didn't react to Clint's presence at all. Steve clicked play when he noticed Clint stop.
For a moment neither man moved.
Then Loki turned his head, lifted a hand, cupped it around his ear and shook his head mockingly.
Can't hear you.
Clint pounded both fists on the glass and stomped out of the room.
Loki coldly watched him go.
The file stopped and Steve clicked the final icon.
This 'interview' had taken place three hours later and Loki's visitor evidently expected to be there for a while.
Bruce Banner had brought in a chair with him.
Unfolding it, he settled down and leaned forward, arms resting on the top of his legs.
Once again Loki didn't turn round. He simply stared at the wall.
Only the gentle movements of Banner's head and hands signalled to Steve that he was speaking.
He stopped after a couple of sentences each time, probably to give Loki space to respond.
No reaction from the prisoner.
Eventually, Banner rubbed his neck with the back of hand and packed up his chair. Loki threw Banner's retreating back a venomous glance as the record ended.
Steve turned off the monitor and rubbed his eyes.
What had he learned?
The most obvious thing was that Loki couldn't be approached aggressively. His ego and the situation he was in meant trying to threaten him was a waste of energy. The next thing was Loki got a kick out of making people angry. Fittingly, Bruce, the one with the tightest control on his anger, had chosen the right approach but past experience had worked against him. Loki was not going to forget their encounter anytime soon. Finally, Loki was a talker. Stark had said he was a diva; someone who liked it when people paid attention. Makes sense he'd enjoy showing off how clever he was. The trick was getting him to talk in the first place.
Steve got up and checked he still had some cash in his pocket. Detecting a couple of dollar bills, he headed for the stairs once he heard Donoghue returning, coffee in hand.
His mother had always said you caught more flies with sugar than vinegar. And this was one big bug.
Loki turned at the sound of the heavy metal door opening.
Who would it be this time?
The woman? Stark?
As he turned, he had to hide his surprise.
Steve noticed Loki's split second frown of confusion and inwardly congratulated himself.
He took another bite of the jelly doughnut, the bag hanging from one arm as he unfolded a chair with the other.
Once it was set up, Steve sat down, placing the bag beside him.
Loki didn't say anything but watched him carefully.
Steve finished the doughnut and reached for the bag.
Pretending to notice Loki for the first time, Steve stood up and offered the bag to the glass.
Loki peered inside the bag and his lip curled.
'Poisoned pastries', he sneered, 'I must give the cyclops credit: it's certainly an imaginative form of torture'.
'Fury didn't send me', Steve said, 'and I don't think giving you a doughnut is gonna hurt planetary security. Here'.
Walking over to a hatch in the wall, Steve pressed a button. It slid open, revealing a metal tray on a conveyor belt. Steve took a doughnut out and put it on the platform. He closed and locked the hatch then pressed the second button set into the wall.
A hatch on Loki's side of the glass slid open.
Loki's eyes flicked to it then back to Steve, who was starting on his second doughnut. He waved it at the hatch as an invitation. Loki stalked over to the hatch and took the doughnut. He examined it critically and gave it a sniff.
It reminded Steve of the mangy mutts he used to see skulking down alleys when he'd been young. Food usually won them over. Hopefully it would do the same here.
'I won't tell anyone you took it', Steve said.
Obviously indignant that Steve thought he was nervous, Loki took a bite. He finished it before Steve was halfway through his own.
'What'd you think?' Steve asked.
'Better than the swill they've been feeding me', Loki commented, licking his fingers clean.
'Heck of a compliment coming from you', Steve said, polishing his own off.
'Well it's all you'll get', Loki said smugly, 'Just like all the other would-be interrogators'.
'I don't believe in the no win scenario', Steve said, wiping his hands on a napkin.
'Just because you don't believe in something doesn't mean it doesn't exist. I'm living proof of that', Loki said dryly.
'I'm not an interrogator', Steve offered, 'I just want to talk'.
Loki didn't buy it.
'No', he said, shaking his head as he paced, 'There's more to it than that. Every single person in this city would happily slit my throat, set me on fire or shoot me. In this building alone, some would love to do all three. Their so called 'morals' are the only things stopping them. Well, that and fear of retribution. And yet, Captain America, the 'living legend', freedom, truth and justice incarnate, wants to 'talk' to me'.
Loki leant against the glass, his arm beneath his forehead.
'It's like a bad joke', he grumbled.
Steve waited patiently for Loki to finish extolling before explaining.
'I keep reading about these tyrants. Hitler was still just a man when I went under, not a guy most people now consider the greatest monster of the 20th century. He wasn't even the last one. I've read all about Stalin, Saddam Hussein and Gaddafi though those names probably don't mean anything to you'.
Loki shrugged and Steve leaned forward, hands cupped.
'Now I've got a tyrant in front of me who isn't going anywhere. I guess I'm just curious what makes you guys tick. Why you think your ideas and your wishes are more important than anybody else. I also have a nasty feeling that this thing with the Chitauri isn't over. That's why I want to talk to you'.
Loki gave a humourless laugh.
'You want to know how monsters are created and if there are more on the way? Admirable but what makes you think I'll tell you?'
'Has anyone else come to see you apart from me?' Steve asked.
'Nobody worth talking to', Loki dismissed, 'Though it was amusing to see Barton squirm'.
'You can't blame him for taking the mind control personally', Steve said, trying not to be irritated at Loki's obvious sadistic glee.
'I don't', Loki said in a distinctly facetious tone, 'Just as he can't blame me for his weak heart and brain. They appear to be traits of your species. Except for Stark who seems to have rather sensibly upgraded himself'.
'He doesn't see it that way', Steve said.
'You're very focused on how things appear aren't you?' Loki asked, crossing his arms, 'How people see things?'
'I told you, I like to understand different points of view. Helps people learn about themselves'.
'Hoping I'll teach you a lesson of some kind?' Loki scowled, 'Come to my side of the glass then'.
'Think the Hulk already tried teaching you humility', Steve said bluntly, 'but by the looks of things it didn't stick'.
Loki's scowl deepened. Steve momentarily worried he'd pushed too far but then the scowl vanished.
'Let's play a game', Loki said.
'What kind of game?' Steve said, intrigued despite his wariness at Loki's spontaneous forthcoming mood.
'I call it 'Magpie'. I'll tell you a story and you tell me if it's true when I finish. You guess correctly, say best of seven, and I'll tell you what you want to know'.
'Gonna be a challenge since you're the 'god of lies' and all'.
'I thought you didn't believe in the 'no win scenario'?' Loki said, raising an eyebrow, 'Besides, lies have their uses. You know that'.
'I don't know what you mean'.
'USO shows are lies. Recruitment posters are lies. The 'good fight' is a lie', Loki leered, 'And the biggest lie of all? 'Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori''.
Steve was taken aback for a moment despite the personal attack. He recognised the phrase from a First World War poem.
'How do you know about that?' he asked.
He noticed Loki's disappointment he hadn't gotten a rise out of him. For a 'trickster' the guy sure wasn't good at hiding his emotions.
'I read', Loki deadpanned, 'Something that did little to endear me to my fellows on Asgard'.
Sensing Loki was about to begin the game, Steve played along.
'They're not big readers huh?'
'Are we going to play then?' Loki asked, sitting down on his bed.
'Your move', Steve said, keen to begin.
Before Loki could begin however, an alarm began to blare and the lights in the cell darkened to red.
Steve turned his head at the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs leading to the cell.
Loki smirked.
'Don't you know you're not supposed to be down here after visiting hours?'
'Door wasn't locked', Steve shrugged and turned to head outside, picking up the doughnut bag as he went.
'Come back tomorrow', he heard Loki call, 'If you're not facing a court martial'.
'What the hell do you think you were doin' down there?!' Nick Fury demanded, throwing himself into a leather chair with Steve facing him, a large mahogany desk between them.
The room was Fury's office on the rare occasion he had cause to visit the small base. As such it was devoid of personal effects save for a metal SHELD logo built into the wall.
'Questioning a prisoner of war for the purposes of information', Steve responded mechanically.
'By givin' him Krispy Kreme?' Fury asked, 'What makes you think you can believe anything he says?'
'I know prisoners tend to be more cooperative when they know they're not going to be tortured or verbally abused'.
'That man down there is guilty of attempted genocide for no better excuse than his daddy didn't love him and you wanna play 'good cop bad cop'?'
Steve didn't respond.
'Loki is not a prisoner of war', Fury stated coolly, 'He's a war criminal and probably the most dangerous man in this building which, need I remind you, is full of highly trained shield agents and your good self'.
'What does the weird machine do?' Steve asked.
Fury sighed at the obvious change of subject but answered the question.
'It's not Hydra tech if that's what you're worried about. It's Asgardian. We just painted it black to make it not stand out. Those folks love their gold finish. Thor says it's designed to restrict Loki's ability to cause trouble'.
'It doesn't stop illusions or shape changing?'
'Stops him causing physical damage only. Neither it or I care what the guy looks like as long as he's not vaporizing SHIELD personnel. Now if he turns into a dragon and tries to bust his way out, that's different. That little beauty'll zap him with so much electricity he'll wish his brother was beatin' him to a pulp. Not enough to kill an Asgardian but enough to make him think what a stupid ass decision he's made just before he's rendered unconscious'.
'Explains the lack of guards', Steve said.
'Had quite a few volunteers actually but I'd rather not have him taunting an angry earthling with a loaded gun who might actually decide to do something with it. Asgard wants him delivered alive'.
'What exactly am I in trouble for?' Steve asked.
'Going in after visiting hours without a briefing', Fury said, 'You woulda liked it; it's full of useful information like, for instance, what the 'weird machine' does. Also on a side note, I happen to like Krispy Kreme and two days ago he was trying to wipe 'em from the face of the earth. Understand?'
'Understood'.
'Now, were you goin' in there to appeal to his better nature like Banner, threaten him like Thor or just swear at him like Barton?' Fury asked, counting the options off on his fingers, 'Because he thinks all those routines are hilarious'.
'I was just going to ask him some questions'.
'About what?'
'You and I both know Loki isn't the one we should be worried about'.
Fury didn't say anything but waved a hand, inviting him to continue.
'You know that invasion force was too small to take the entire planet. And Loki obviously has no real loyalty to them because he hasn't tried to escape', Steve theorised, 'What if this invasion was just a test with him as the fall guy?'
'Stark said there were more on the way on the other side of the portal', Fury interjected, 'A whole fleet he said'.
'They must've known their forces were under attack', Steve countered, 'Why didn't they rush to help? Or at least get through the portal as fast as they could? Even if the bomb worked, there's no guarantee there aren't more on the way'.
'If that's the case what makes you think Loki knows anything useful? It's not like they've tried to rescue him'.
'Because he's got a bad habit of getting into places he shouldn't'.
'You think he's gonna spill the beans to you?'
'We've all seen what he's capable of when his blood's up. It shouldn't take very much to convince him to talk'.
Fury adjusted himself in his chair and drummed his fingers on the desk.
'Thor's not gonna like this', he said reflectively.
'Do you think he'd have better luck talking to him again?' Steve asked.
'He already tried', Fury said with finality.
'I saw. What did you say to him anyway?'
'Had to ask him to leave. All that electrical interference nearly shorted out the security system. Loki's plan no doubt'.
'Loki knows how to get under his skin'.
'It's what little brothers do', Fury said, leaning back in his chair, palms together, 'I just hope you can get inside his head. Watch it though, seems like a dangerous place. You got a week Captain'.
Fury began sorting a pile of documents on the desk into piles, signalling the conversation was over. But Steve had realised something in the progress of the conversation.
'You were going to let me keep talking to him anyway weren't you?'
'As long as it's within visiting hours: that's 4pm to 6.30pm', Fury said without looking up, 'Just wanted to make sure you knew what you were doing'.
'And?'
'I'm quietly confident', Fury said, then stressed, 'Very quietly'.
Steve nodded and got up. He stopped as he turned to leave and placed the bag containing the single doughnut remaining on Fury's desk before exiting the room.