This story is going to be several chapters long, it basically chronicles the trips that Darcy and Loki took in the interim between ''Good Neighbors'' and ''The God-Bothered.'' There isn't a lot of plot; I just figured that I torture these poor babies so much, they deserve to have a good time. So there will be like, a gratuitous amount of sex. I hope you guys like! Please let me know what you think!

Stop acting so small. You are the universe in ecstatic motion.

-Rumi

Tokyo, Japan

''Can you believe this place?'' Darcy kept saying, moving around their elegant suite of rooms in the Imperial Hotel. Smiling stupidly, she spun in a circle and then dove onto the enormous bed, sprawling on the linens. The splendour and luxury dazzled her. She didn't know how they were affording this and didn't care to know. Darcy had sworn that she wasn't going to doubt or question too much on this trip, only enjoy herself. That was easier said than done, especially at first. So much crazy awfulness had happened that ordinariness and peace felt strange. She still kept waiting for a piano to fall from the sky and crush her. This line of thinking would not do at all, she realized. ''Just live in the moment,'' Darcy told herself. ''Be zen about things.'' And, fortunately, this moment was a nice one to exist in.

Tokyo was their first stop. After getting settled in Paris she and Loki planned a trip to 'everywhere' because that's where she had said that she wanted to go. Loki had smiled and told her that she might have to be a little more specific. And so she'd picked this city because it was one that she'd been wanting to see since she was a teenager. And now they were here. It was astonishing how bright and quick everything was, how it all seemed to be moving at light speed. There was an overwhelming quality about it; Darcy found herself clutching hard to Loki's hand, feeling a little foolish, but she was actually afraid of getting lost, swallowed up in the glowing, shifting sea of buildings and bodies and signs. Fortunately, there was something magical in Loki's ability to almost seamlessly adapt to any location or situation. He found his way around Tokyo just fine, cool and calm, as if he'd visited there a thousand times before.

This hotel, though...it was just unreal. She felt like a princess.

Loki's heart swelled as he looked at Darcy, saw how happy she obviously was, the flushed, silly, smiling look on her face. ''What would you like to do tonight?'' he asked her.

''Let's go out,'' she replied, sitting up and bouncing a little on the bed. As wild and bright and busy as it was, she couldn't wait to dive right in to the city that was beckoning outside the windows. ''Get some food, some drinks, see where the night takes us.''

''Alright,'' he agreed with a cool smile. Excited, she immediately set to getting ready, showering and dressing in an outfit that had been recently purchased. It was different from what she typically used to wear. Darcy wasn't quite sure when she stopped hiding inside of her clothes and started getting more comfortable with her body, but it felt good. Everything that had happened to them had changed her in so many different ways, some drastic, some subtle. She'd been opened, awakened. She was alive, vibrantly so, and this trip was serving as a constant reminder of that.

The skirt she had chosen was short, but not ridiculous. It was checkered blue plaid, which gave it an undeniable schoolgirl quality. The top was a dark navy, tighter and lower cut. Stockings and high boots completed the ensemble. Darcy dried her hair, scrunching it up, tousling and spraying until it fell around her shoulders in soft, sexy waves. A little bit of smoky eye makeup finished off the look nicely.

She stared into the mirror for a moment, noticing her face from another angle. Everything felt soft and warm, smelled wonderful, like flower petals and amber. Lights, lights all around. Shaking herself out of her daze, Darcy gave her hair one last tousle and walked out into the bedroom to find Loki. Standing in front of the mirror, he was very sleek and attractive in black pants, a black jacket and dark green turtleneck. Damn, but he looked so good in black and green. He looked very intelligent, she thought, like a sexy professor. That intelligence sent her body into a riot.

''You need glasses,'' she blurted. He turned and looked at her strangely. ''What?''

''For that look. It would be better if you had like, a nice set of hipster glasses.'' He simply blinked at her in response. Sighing, Darcy reached for her phone, pulling up an image and showing it to him. ''See?'' she said.

With a shrug he said, ''If you insist.'' An instantaneous shimmer passed over his face and then he was wearing thick, trendy eyeglasses, almost identical to the ones she'd just shown him. Darcy gaped. ''You look so...hot,'' she commented. Loki shrugged again but inside he was smiling fiendishly. ''If you say so.'' He hid how pleased he was. He secretly loved it when he could get her all flushed and bothered. Oh, they were going to have a good time later, he knew, as his eyes raked approvingly over the outfit she'd chosen, which emphasized her curves in all the right ways.

''C'mon,'' she grabbed his hand. ''Let's go.''

They exited the splendour of the hotel and walked out onto the busy streets, letting themselves be swallowed into the slipstream, the frantic, arrhythmic heartbeat of the city.

''This place is like electricity,'' observed Loki, looking around and taking everything in once again. ''I quite like it, it's very stimulating.''

''It's fast,'' Darcy remarked. ''Maybe if you move fast enough, everything looks like a blur of light.'' Then she paused and added, ''I like it too but don't let go of my hand or you'll never find me again.''

''So dramatic, my girl, so dramatic,'' he murmured, rolling his eyes but still tightening his grip on her hand.

The god of mischief was thoroughly enjoying himself in this strange and beautiful country, something that he hadn't expected. He'd assumed that restlessness would be chasing him, close at his heels as it had always been. But rather, he was calm. And totally smitten with the gorgeous creature walking beside him, clinging to his hand. Now that he and Darcy had so much time just to be together, he had to acknowledge that he was becoming quite the sexual being. This was interesting to experience because it hadn't really been important to him for so long. Sex was pleasant when it happened and it served its purpose but was never more than just a vigorous fuck. It wasn't this, what he had found with Darcy. Loki gained a sense of satisfaction and completeness from being with her that he'd never found before. He was tapping into a very intensely passionate side of himself that he didn't exactly know what to do with, but it was powerful, an almost spiritual fervour.

He almost forgot to be angry.

''What is that?'' Pulled from his thoughts, Loki stopped on the sidewalk and pointed at something remarkably bizarre in a window that caught his eye. Darcy followed over to see what he was looking at, then laughed a little. ''That's Hello Kitty.''

Loki kept staring in almost horrified fascination. ''Where's its mouth?'' he asked. Darcy shook her head. ''There isn't one. It's ok, don't try to figure it out. Come over here and look at this,'' she said, pointing to an image of Pikachu in the same window. He made a face at it, then looked back over at Hello Kitty. ''Are these...things related somehow?''

''Nah, this one's a Pokemon. He's pretty awesome, he can shoot electricity.''

''Like you,'' he said, thinking of her taser.

''Yes. Exactly. I am Pikachu. Congratulations.'' She pulled him along. Darcy couldn't help but notice that Loki was getting many long, fascinated glances from people, especially young women. She had grown used to it by now, though. Loki was so exotic in his own way that he tended to draw stares wherever he went.

At dinner, they talked about everything from physics to fashion to Zen Buddhism.

''This is very good,'' Loki remarked, picking up a piece of sashimi. ''I'm surprised that you like it though, being as it is raw fish,'' he added. ''You acted so strangely in that restaurant back in Paris, I assumed that you tended more towards vegetarianism.''

Darcy shrugged as she struggled with her chopsticks. ''If I had to label myself I guess maybe I'm more of a pescatarian than anything else. It's not weird ocean food that bothers me, it's weird land food.''

''Weird land food,'' repeated Loki, quirking an eyebrow at her, amused. He honestly couldn't remember the last time he'd smiled so much. It was like he was having a dream that he was ordinary. She nodded, screwing up her face a little. ''Yeah, like...tripe or sweetbreads or foi gras. This stuff is fine, I mean, it would be if I could get it into my mouth.''

Frustrated, Darcy set down the chopsticks and took a sip from the small sake cup in front of her. ''Having some difficulty?'' he asked in an amused, sympathetic tone. ''Yes,'' she huffed. ''It's not fair,'' she added, looking over at him darkly. ''You're doing that like a pro and you're not even from this dimension.''

''I cannot help it if I have naturally dexterous fingers,'' he retorted. That was true to an obscene extent. She scowled. His eyes glittered mischievously behind the large eyeglasses. Those glasses were driving her crazy. The whole outfit probably would have looked dorky on anybody else but Loki just looked incredibly classy, fiercely intelligent. Darcy found herself being pulled into a fantasy—she was sitting in a classroom. The room was an old fashioned lecture hall, elegant, the way it should look: classic, no glaring screens or whiteboards, just polished wood and books, the smell of chalk and paper. Loki stood in front of the chalkboard, his sleeves rolled up, concentrating. His hand moved quickly, trying to keep up with his mind as he wrote a blisteringly complicated equation. As she watched him, Darcy shifted a little in her chair, unconsciously squeezing her legs together under the desk. He turned around suddenly to face her. ''Do you want me to show you?''

''Darcy, do you want me to show you?'' Blinking as the fantasy evaporated, she saw that Loki had moved even closer to her at the table. His hand reached out and his fingers came down over hers. She was suddenly very aware of how large his hand was compared to hers. ''Relax your fingers, you're too tense. That's a girl.'' She turned to liquid beneath the instructive touch and the velvet sound of his voice, became malleable. ''It's just like...holding a pencil,'' he said as he positioned her fingers along the polished wood utensils. He guided her hand down to the plate. ''Now just grip,'' he said, helping her to lift a bit of sashimi from the plate. ''Very good.'' Her hand lifted higher. ''Open your mouth. There you are,'' he said, smiling as she chewed slowly. Darcy didn't really notice the taste of the food, which was quite delicious. She was too busy staring into his eyes. Little frissons of electricity ran along her skin where he touched her. She set the chopsticks down. Things needed to be cooled slightly, put on simmer. Quelling the slow burn in her lower belly Darcy reached for her glass of sake and drained it. ''I want to sing,'' she said suddenly. ''We're in Tokyo, let's do karaoke.''

''You want to sing,'' Loki repeated, a slow, lovely smile still creeping around his mouth.

''Yes,'' she replied.

''Alright. Let's go.''

There must have been at least a hundred plus Japanese businessmen in various stages of inebriation staring at Darcy as she walked onto the stage. Full of sake, she staggered and swayed maybe only the slightest bit as she gripped the microphone; nobody seemed to be able to tell but Loki. She was singing something that he didn't recognize, but it didn't really matter because nobody was focused on the song. Oh, her voice was relatively on-key and quite pleasant sounding, but everyone was just looking at her, with her full lips and blue bedroom eyes and that there—that predatory smile that crossed her face as she found him in the crowd, he'd taught her that look.

Loki felt something possessive rise up in him, almost violently animalistic. Different coloured light shone down on Darcy's face and lit up her skin and eyes. There was something feral in her that he loved, something that only he could coax out. It sang to a primitive itch beneath his skin, like two wolves calling to each other through a bitterly cold night.

The song finished, she darted off the stage and back to the table. ''Didja like it?'' she asked, blurry and tipsy. She looked like a neo-impressionist painting. ''I did, very much,'' he replied. ''It was quite impressive. Now come along, we should be getting back now.''

''Why? We just got here.'' She batted her eyelashes at him. Loki took gentle bit firm hold of her arm as he stood. ''Your song was lovely, sweet girl,'' he said in a dark voice. ''But I want you to sing just for me now.'' She shivered delightedly. ''Ok,'' came her quiet reply. ''But if I sing for you, you have to do something for me.''

He peered into her eyes. ''What?''

''Teach me,'' she replied.

He ripped her shirt. Tore it completely down the center. It was so overzealously yet unintentionally cliché and it made her laugh. ''I like your skirt,'' he said, tilting her back onto the bed while skimming his fingers up under the plaid fabric. Teasing at the silk and lace that she wore underneath, a light triumphant smile crossed his lips when he thrust his fingers beneath and found that she was soaking wet. She arched up slightly, rubbing against him. ''Aaah,'' she said.

''I love your body. You have so much potential inside of you,'' Loki told her, pulling away and licking his fingers. Darcy shuddered. Inside their room, the air felt thick, staggering to a stillness, like amber bathed in sunlight. ''I'm going to make sure that you reach it before this night is over.''

He pulled her panties all the way off and then turned her over onto her stomach. She wriggled on the silky sheets, liking the sensation on her bare skin. Loki put a hand on the small of her back, holding her down slightly. There was a strange, indefinable comfort in being restrained by him, that cold otherworldly strength that made her feel inexplicably safe and warm.

Turning her over again, he started teasingly rubbing her clit with two of his fingers. She bucked her hips against him, in answer he pushed one long finger inside of her, moving it in and out very slowly. Darcy squirmed impatiently, wanting more. ''You had better settle down,'' he murmured. ''This is going to take awhile.'' He added a second finger and she gasped out delightedly. Still holding her, Loki kept her pinned down to the bed while stroking her at a pace that was relentlessly slow. She tried to move her hips but the minute she did so he pulled away, leaving her whining at the sudden lack of contact. ''You are such a greedy little thing,'' he whispered in a pleased-sounding voice, the words a cool breath against her skin.

Gripping her hair, he gently pulled Darcy's head to the side, exposing her throat to him. He fastened his mouth against the soft skin there, nipping at her with his teeth. There was a look of very dark promise in his eyes and she knew that she was in for it. She just wasn't sure how long she would last. Her body was on fire, shamelessly aroused, and Loki intended to exploit that completely.

''Breathe,'' he told her. ''You always forget to breathe.'' That was true. She slowly drew in a mouthful of air and then let it out more shakily then she initially intended when his hand closed over one of her breasts, rubbing his thumb over her nipple. ''You like this, don't you?'' he murmured. She nodded dreamily. ''Yes,'' she replied. ''You know I do.''

''That's right, because I know what you like, but I also know what you need. And I'm going to give it to you.'' As he spoke he replaced his hand with his mouth, his tongue laved at her. She was going to come, already, she realized. He could feel it too. He couldn't wait to be buried inside of her to the hilt. But, one thing at a time.

''You try to make it happen too fast,'' noted Loki, halting a moment and looking into Darcy's face. ''I'm...I just have a hard time letting go,'' she breathed. ''It didn't really used to happen that often before...you know, before I met you. I mean, sometimes...but never like...'' she trailed off, swallowed.

He didn't want her to hold back anymore. Not from him, not from herself. Moving back slightly and repositioning his body he pushed her legs open, situating himself between them. When he brought his mouth down against her she couldn't keep from crying out. Loki started very slowly, gently, sucking and caressing. Darcy's hips raised convulsively off the bed. She dug her fingernails into his hair, scratching at his scalp. This was one of her very favourite things, this intimate kiss, heated and gentle. Then he delved his tongue inside of her dripping heat, beginning a rhythm, a dance. She could feel it building inside of her, she was almost there. And he knew she was closer because she started moving her hips and calling him baby and pulling on his hair. But rather than pushing her over the edge the tension simply continued to build, coaxing her to new planes of arousal, not yet reaching a peak.

Loki's hands tightened on Darcy, holding her down, making her endure it while he plundered her. She forced herself to relax into the incredible feeling that sent warmth pooling inside. Then once again he suddenly and maddeningly stopped, pulling away. Her skin ached with loneliness. She made a choked whimpering sound.

Time slowed, bowed.

''Feel it,'' he said, his voice thick. Warmth spread all through her, climbing and licking, igniting sensations that she hadn't known her body was capable of. Darcy felt glowing, radioactive; torn between wanting release and wanting to continue this sweet torture. ''That's good,'' he told her, piercing her with his glittering eyes, like wild ice. ''Slow. You look so beautiful,'' he added.

Light, light, delirious shards, slashes of light. A candle flame, a halo, a gentle nothingness beating like wings against her skin. She was so soft against the heaviness of the air.

Darcy remembered to breathe. Slow, steady. Time was failing to exist, there was only light, and her humming, singing nerve endings. Then in one single quick and elegant movement he thrust inside of her completely. The sudden onslaught hit her just right, and she shattered like a dropped vase. She was either screaming or making no sound at all. It didn't matter. It was perfect. She was liquid light, the space between breaths of air, between heartbeats. It was a calm place, and very still. Outside, the city still moved, so fast it was nearly a blur.