Just a note that this has MAJOR spoilers for Thor: Ragnarok. So if you haven't seen it... go see it! It's fab, apart from the absence of Darcy and Jane...!
Also a warning for some foul language dotted around!
Darcy wakes up in a daze, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Her eyes dart across to the source of the shrill, annoying ringing that had woken her from her desk-nap. She swears under her breath as she clicks her neck and reaches out, her head still resting on a ton of paperwork that needs doing.
Fuck whoever decided to wake her up. It is 2am and she is exhausted.
She's seriously considering getting a kickstarter going. "Get Darcy Lewis some god-damn sleep" would be its name. She considers this with sleepy amusement as she grabs her phone.
She swipes across the screen with a feeble motion and rests the side of her head on the desk, the phone balanced on her ear. She closes her eyes.
"Hey Jane." Her words are slurred, and she half wonders whether Jane will think she's been drinking again. Nope, just working herself to absolute exhaustion to pay for her cramped apartment in New York City. Overtime was a bitch, but a necessary bitch.
"Where are you right now?!" Jane seems frantic. "You need to be here. Please?"
Great, another world-ending event? It isn't surprising given the amount of shit that happened almost constantly nowadays. She lifts her head from her desk with a loud groan.
"I'm at Stark's office in New York. Why?"
"Come upstate." She cries frantically. "To the headquarters."
"What? Why? It's 2am."
"I can't discuss it over the phone." She hears Jane pacing on the other end of the line and rolls her eyes. "Just come. It's urgent."
"How urgent?" Man, she wants her bed right now. That, and a killer massage.
"As in you needed to be here 10 minutes ago urgent."
"You got it, bosslady." She rubs her aching shoulders and grabs her car keys. "I'll be there in 20."
When Darcy handbrake-turns into the Avenger's new headquarters, tyres squealing, she can easily see what is wrong.
Even in the darkness she can see that a large alien spacecraft is parked in Stark's backyard, dozens of security surrounding the building. Elegant men and women in otherworldly dress wander around the back of the facility, looking more than a little lost. She recognises them instantly as Asgardians, and knows why Jane was so frantic earlier. She'd broken up with Thor, hadn't she? Still, an ex-boyfriend from space showing up would be cause for concern, she guesses.
She parks up with difficulty (and by park she means abandon on the road outside – the entire place is packed with reporters and busybodies). She slams the door shut, grabs her taser and side-steps through the growing crowd. She is stopped at the barrier by a woman in dark clothes wearing an important looking headset and a flashy SHIELD badge on her waist. Darcy flashes her pass-card at her and raises her eyebrows.
"I'm here to see Dr Jane Foster. She called me here." She does her best 'secret agent voice', but it falls flat when the woman in black scoffs.
"You think you're getting through with that? If you've spoken to Dr Foster, you know exactly what's going on here. A level 2 pass isn't going to-"
"Listen lady, I broke more than five laws getting here this fast, and now you're just going to waste my time…"
At that moment, she sees her knight in shining armour. A red flash of cape comes bounding toward her and pulls her into his arms.
"Darcy!"
"Thor!" She grins against his metal chest armour.
"Holy shit. You cut your hair." She notes, giving him a noogie (Well, as far as she can reach). She suddenly notices the small eyepatch on his right eye. "What happened?"
"I'll regale you with the tale inside." He turns his head to the crowd behind her, who are frozen in shock. The poor security woman next to her has lost all composure. "Jane sent me to collect you. She saw the crowd outside and feared you'd get trampled."
"I guess… you're free to go through." The woman says feebly, and then mutters some code down the radio. The waves of security part and she follows Thor to the door. She almost asks what the deal is with their relationship status, but decides it isn't the best time. She gives Thor a playful punch instead, rewarding herself for her restraint.
"Any answers as to what the hell is going on here? I thought I saw Asgardians in the back."
"It is… a long story."
"And I'm guessing Jane is freaking out because of this 'story'."
He holds the door open for her. "You are here as emotional support, as she would put it."
"Always happy to help." She shrugs, trying to keep her curiosity at bay. She realises she's not been brought here thanks to her amazing intern skills, which isn't exactly surprising. "Where are we going?"
"Jane told me to escort you to the meeting room. I'll explain everything there. I think you're the last to arrive."
"You do know, I can't fly? The traffic in New York is terrible."
Thor laughs gently and stops at a door at the end of the corridor. His face grows solemn.
"I don't want you to be alarmed, Darcy, but my brother, Loki, is here. He will not harm anyone, you have my word. He's a… reformed character now, as far as my brother is concerned. Still, be on your guard."
"I'm sure he'll be a blast when he's not trying to destroy our race, right?" She smirks and places her hand on the door handle, taking a step inside. She's heard a lot about Loki, including the bill that New York sent him for his destruction, but hasn't seen him in the flesh. There are no photos circulating, even around the SHIELD employee forums she frequents. "I can't wait."
Darcy is slightly disappointed. She expects a colossal-scale meeting with tons of publicity and people clambering for answers as to why there seems to be Asgardians in Stark's backyard. However, the meeting room is actually a relatively small room with high ceilings and a window that spans the entire left hand side of the room. The slight tinting on the glass makes her realise it is opaque from the outside, free from the eyes of the reporters that are inevitably gathered outside. It looks out onto the big-ass spaceship that has touched down, surrounded by lush green grass and woodland.
The entire room seems to stop and stare as she pushes the door open fully. Only Thor's stride behind her keeps her walking toward Jane, who has turned and makes a gesture to sit down next to her. Her face is unreadable. Sort of a mix between 'I'm happy to see you' and 'I don't know what the fuck is happening either'.
The leather seats face the front, where a judge-like podium is placed. and the place looks completely empty and Darcy notices only around a dozen of these seats are filled. Next to the podium are three seats, two of them taken. A woman with light brown skin and a braid in her hair sits closest to the end. She wears silver armour plated with intricate markings and Darcy doesn't recognise her at all.
Next to her is a pale, lanky man who seems only too familiar to Darcy. That dark hair and high cheekbones can be recognised from a mile away. The only thing that is unfamiliar is the Asgardian armour he wears. Putting two and two together, she starts to back away.
"That's Loki?" Darcy whispers frantically to Thor, who nods his head solemnly. She happens to catch the eye of Loki, who mirrors her gobsmacked expression, further confirming her suspicions.
"Nope." Darcy shakes her head and turns toward Thor, bumping into him clumsily. Her fingers claw feebly at his chest at an attempt to move him. "This cannot be happening right now. Fuck."
Thor puts a comforting hand on her shoulder and out of the corner of her eye, she sees Jane get out of her seat in concern. "I thought you wouldn't be alarmed?"
"It's not that, it's…"
"Darcy Lewis?"
She freezes completely, her eyes widening at the male voice behind her calling her name.
"I have to go." She says, ducking under Thor's arm. She scurries out quickly, the door slamming behind her in her haste. It isn't long until she hears footsteps behind her and knows she is not alone. "Shit." She mutters under her breath.
"Lewis."
"I'm not acknowledging your existence right now."
She's striding down the corridor as fast as she can walk. She doesn't want to be seen running away from him.
"Lewis."
She stops dead in her tracks, realising that he was still behind her. He wasn't likely to leave without a fight. She keeps her back to him, unsure that she can look him in the eye.
"What did you say your name was again? Wasn't it Luke?"
"I thought you weren't acknowledging me?" Loki reaches out and grasps her arm, turning her around to face him.
"I'm not." She sighs, shaking her arm out of his grasp. "You tricked me. If I'd have known who you were-"
"You wouldn't have slept with me?" She meets his glance for the first time, and notices the lack of worry or concern in them. Or embarrassment.
There was a hint of mischievousness in his expression and Darcy is aware that it's not all innocent amusement.
He's imagining me naked.
This sudden awareness makes her face turn a beetroot red colour, and she is transported back 6 months. Up on the kitchen counter, her legs wrapped around his waist, pulling at his shirt, the soft moans against her lips-
She blinks the memory away of what followed.
"You could've maybe hinted that I was sleeping with my best friend's ex-boyfriend's brother? Oh, and don't even get me started on the New York thing."
"I didn't know who you were." He shrugs. "New York? That was ages ago. What do you mortals say: Water under the bridge?"
"It was four years ago?!" She wants to scream at him, but settles for angry whispering instead. "And then you waltz up, pretend to be charming-"
"-pretend-" he has the audacity to look offended, but Darcy cuts him off again.
"How was the walk of shame back to Asgard?" She laughs. It seems too silly for her to comprehend at this moment. "The old guy you had with you. The bearded dude? In the wheelchair? Was he just a stranger you pulled off the street to prank me? Using your 'poor, old father' for a bit of pity sex?"
"Oh, no. That was Odin, King of Asgard. Not my real father if that's what you're getting at." He doesn't look the slightest bit ashamed as he continues. Darcy, on the other hand, is gobsmacked. He chuckles under his breath. "What a chance encounter."
"What a shitty situation." She finishes for him and sighs heavily. He smirks.
"Hardly."
"I'm conflicted." She admitted, her mind in overdrive, her filter gone. "I can't believe I was fantasising about a psycho supervillain all this time!"
The insults are ignored completely and he raises his eyebrows. "You fantasised?"
"I didn't mean-" She stutters. "That black suit, the-"
He waves her protests away and leans forward, right into her personal space. "I usually don't play with mortals, but you called to me. Now I know why. Besides, don't tell me you didn't have fun that night. You certainly seemed… satisfied."
He runs a finger down the side of her face and along her jaw, his long fingers trailing slowly across her lips. The motion is familiar, but Darcy feels instantly cold and uncomfortable.
Without a thought, Darcy pulls her taser from her coat pocket and fires.
Loki goes down with a yell, and a crowd forms behind them.
Mortified, Darcy realises what she's done and takes a good look at Loki's limp body on the floor. She nudges him with her foot.
"Shit." She nudges him again. "Sorry."
Next thing she knows, Jane is running at her like a football player, ready to tackle her to the floor.
"What did he do?!" Jane pulls Darcy to the side as Thor picks his brother up with a slightly amused expression on his face. The small scientist has a surprisingly strong grip on Darcy's wrist.
"Ow. Nothing really." She rubs her wrist gingerly and tries to look over the crowd that has now surrounded Loki. "Knee-jerk reaction. Well, taser-jerk reaction."
"He knew your name. You know him." Jane shakes her head. It wasn't the first time she'd seen Jane completely stumped. Darcy shakes the scientist loose. "Somehow. Right?"
"I…" She is well aware of the crowd around her, and she whispers furiously back to Jane. "I'll fill you in later. I'm tired, I'm pissed off. I'm going home."
Jane nods. "Tonight?"
Darcy shakes her head and sighs. "I'm exhausted. Tomorrow? Midday? I have the day off."
"I'll call you."