"Don't go." Loki hated the pleading note that had crept into his voice, and forced it to be replaced with a laugh. "I never apologized for killing you."

Jack laughed. "Happens to me all the time. And I need to leave, because technically, I was supposed to interview you and then get my ass back to Cardiff."

Loki gripped Jack's wrist tightly. "You, Harkness, are a man who cannot die. What can they possibly do to you?" He laughed quietly. "You have ensnared a god with mere Midgardian charms, don't you wish to enjoy him?"

"I already have, Loki." Jack smoothed a strand of black hair off of Loki's forehead. "Trust me, it was great."

Loki released his hold on the other man's wrist, and looked away. He reclined backwards, a pillow under the small of his back. "You retrieved me from that cell because you found me attractive, yes?"

Jack paused, resting his chin on Loki's bare hip. "More or less."

"That's an answer I would give. I was under the impression you were more open-minded." The smirk on Loki's lips was audible. "Did you retrieve me from SHIELD simply to put me back after we satisfied each other?"

"Loki, you know as well as I do that the safest place for you to be is Asgard."

"You have learnt my story, it does not frighten or repulse you, and yet you still maintain that you have duties." A snarl crept into the god's voice as he propped himself up on his elbows, not caring about modesty. "You, who cannot finish your life's story, so you fill it with the most impressive, exotic coupling that you can."

Jack's smile was long gone. "Only because no one can stay with me." Loki snorted. "What do you want me to do? Take people with me? Then I'd have to watch them age and die, while I just keep twisting in the wind." He shook his head. Loki turned his face away and dropped back onto the bed, still resting a hand on Jack's back, despite the harsh words.

Several minutes passed. Then Loki spoke, so quietly a cat's purr would have drowned out his words. "You could save them."

Jack looked him in the eye, hard. "I can't."

"I didn't mean now. That would end in torment for us both."

Loki closed his mouth tightly, as if ashamed, and tried to look away. Jack grabbed his jaw and pulled him back. "Hey. Then what did you mean?"

Loki swallowed, biting the inside of his cheek. He tasted metal and salt. "When Thor brings me back to Asgard like a collared dog, I am long overdue to be tortured. I do not know who will do it, nor do I care. Asgard will turn a blind eye and the Chitauri will rejoice in punishing me." He tried to turn away again, but Jack was stubborn. He dug his fingers into Loki's pale skin and held a steady gaze. Loki felt desperate, frightened tears burning at the back of his throat. "You could save me from the worst. They will beat me and brand me, but you could save me before they take away all that I am." Loki wrenched his jaw out of Jack's hand. "But you will not."

"Why the hell d'you think that?" Jack said indignantly.

Loki let out a small, broken laugh. "Because, Captain, there is no reason for you to."

At the sound of a low chuckle, Loki glared at him. Jack was grinning widely. "Sorry, sorry, I just..." he laughed again.

"I am not above sewing your lips shut, Harkness."

Jack raised an eyebrow. "That's an awful specific example of cruelty."

"It sets the bar. What's funny, then?"

"Torchwood is." A crease appeared between Loki's brows. "Torchwood, I work for them. Hell, I am them. Anyway, technically speaking our job is to protect Earth from alien threats, but I started as a vigilante. You never forget your roots, you know." Jack looked at Loki expectantly. "If I feel like a person has been unfairly punished for his crimes, I might take it upon myself and my team to pull this hypothetical person out of prison, and make it look like a failed jailbreak."

Loki carefully considered his words, and replied, "But would this prisoner be in a favorable light when found once again? I think not."

"Unless Torchwood has officially taken his case. Intergalactic laws apply to Asgardians, too, and before you bring it up, Torchwood is also well-armed." Jack put a hand on Loki's chest and smiled at him.

Loki paused, not quite daring to hope. "There is one other thing. Why would you do such a thing for me?"

Jack suddenly grabbed both of Loki's shoulders, slid one of his hands up to the back of Loki's neck and kissed him.

Loki, caught off-guard, fell backwards slightly. A barely audible chuckle escaped Jack's mouth as he closed the distance between them, pressing his mouth to Loki's again. Loki could feel the human's feverish pulse, and his heat was just short of painful. Jack's lips were parted by his tongue, delving into Loki, tracing his teeth and the roof of his mouth. Loki's hands lay on Jack's chest, curled slightly. Jack's free hand came up to card through Loki's long hair as he dropped his mouth to the god's pale neck. Jack said in a low voice, "You're going to live a long time, Loki, and I want to be there while you do," and nipped lightly at Loki's neck.

Loki sucked in air through his teeth. "I shall outlive you, Harkness..."

"Getting cheeky, aren't you?"