I want to thank you all so much for your reviews and support! It really is a booster when it comes to updating stories. As I have seen this done by others, I would like to take a brief moment to respond to reviews before getting to the next chapter.
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The title for this chapter was a song from the band Hail the Villain, also an inspiration for this chapter.
Chapter 2: Evil Has A Name
Without a word from anyone, Loki was signaled to sit on the small exam table. He first held little to no interest of the medical team that was supposed to relieve him of his wounds until he was introduced to another Stark. The name brought anger and disgust to his mind. However, it was not the Stark he had expected. His gaze fell upon the "Miss Stark" his adopted brother had referred to. To be blunt, she had a boring appearance. Her facial structure resembled that of her brother's, though she appeared to be much younger. She had dark hair that was lifted into a standard style to be kept up out of her face in an unkempt manner. Her eyes were a dull green and she eyed him with loathing, a look that he was quite used to. However, there was also a small look of curiosity in her eyes as her gaze held his. It seemed as though she was searching inside of him for something. Not that she would find anything. Loki was talented at keeping his emotions and facial expressions limited. He was the god of mischief after all. What fun would it be if he so easily displayed his true feelings?
Cassie felt uneasy as the god sat on her exam table. She did not fear him, but she could not deny that he intrigued her. She had so many questions that she wanted to ask, but at the same time could hardly stand to look at him, let alone listen to him speak. He was the reason her home was destroyed. He was the cause of the hundreds of deaths in the past several days. She did not know him, but already she detested him. However, her opinion of him did not stop her from doing her job, as much as she wanted to refuse his need for medical attention.
Thor stood awkwardly in the doorway watching his brother intently. "I am needed on Level 4. If you are alright, I will take my leave until he is able to return to the detainment facility." Cassie simply nodded her head in agreement.
Loki watched with interest as she scribbled notes onto a clipboard and then proceeded to snap white rubber gloves onto her hands. He could not deny that though he found the human race to be disgusting and unworthy of life, their ways of living were fascinating to observe. It was like watching ants in a colony. Everyone played their part as they were trained, but their lives were unnecessary and could easily be killed with a little force.
His cruel thoughts abruptly ceased when Cassie approached him and placed both of her hands on the side of his face, inspecting his wounds. He instinctively flinched away from her touch, for he was not used to such close interaction with humans. For a brief moment their eyes met and Cassie looked away quickly, which caused Loki to smirk.
She walked around the room gathering items that she needed to clean and close the wounds. It was difficult with all of the security in the way and Cassie was beginning to feel claustrophobic. "Okay!" she finally shouted. "I need you guys to get out! Please, I cannot work this way! For the love of god, just wait outside!"
Yes, Loki laughed silently to himself. For the love of me, wait outside, you unworthy mortals.
One of the soldiers protested, "Ma'am, we do not have clearance to leave the fugitive alone. He needs to be under 24 hour surveillance."
Cassie huffed, "He is not going to be alone. I will be here. He is restrained and I'm not saying you have to go all the way to the other side of the ship. Just wait outside the door. You can keep an eye on him right from the door. I am not joking when I say that one of you is going to get stabbed or sliced with one of these devices if you don't clear out!" She didn't usually lose her temper so easily, but she was overworked and hadn't slept in the past two days. She was in no mood to negotiate.
They stood right outside the door, clearly awaiting Loki to attempt an escape. He remained on the table, silently observing the human healer. His eyes widened in surprise as she approached him with a steaming wet cloth and brushed it over his face. "What are you doing?" he asked bemused and slightly irritated.
"I can't clean your wounds with your face being this dirty. It needs to be cleaned," Cassie replied as she once again swiped the cloth over his face.
He noted that she was not being rough with him as others had been. She had a stern, almost angry expression on her face, but she washed his face carefully. "You have a gentle touch, Miss Stark," he said coolly.
Confidently she replied, "You won't be saying that when I'm sticking needles into your head." Loki laughed aloud. He has a good laugh, Cassie thought to herself. It's not as maniacal as I had imagined.
Loki had decided that now was as good of a time as any to try to get a rise out of her in order for his next plan to work. "So," he began suggestively. "Tell me, Miss Stark-"
"Cassie. Just call me Cassie," she interrupted, pulling the stitching material out of a drawer.
"Very well then," he continued with another wicked smile. "Tell me, Cassie, what is it like living in the shadow of your brother, the genius?" He knew the answer to this question for just days before he had coldly reminded his own brother of the shadow that he himself lived under in Asgard.
Cassie snorted with irritation. "It's rather cold, actually. I never get to see any sun."
The god chuckled at her quick-witted response. He was beginning to find her to be quite amusing. "I would imagine so. He certainly has everything one should desire to obtain in this life. Wealth, admiration from your kind, power, love…" he trailed off, raising his eyebrows at Cassie, pushing for a response.
She did not bother to meet his expectant gaze. Instead, she was focused on the cut on his nose as she applied the numbing cream to prepare for stitching. "Yes, my brother is quite the lucky man," she replied, brushing him off. She had a close relationship with her brother, but there was no jealousy between them. The things that were important to Tony Stark were not important to Cassie. She did not desire wealth, or admiration, or power, or even love for that matter. She found solace in doing her job and living freely without any restrictions. "And you're one to talk, Loki. You should know better than anyone what it's like to live under a shadow," she commented smugly. She knew all about his vendetta against his brother due to the loud conversations among the others on the ship. "Thor is much bigger than my brother, so I would imagine it to be a much bigger shadow than the one that I have supposedly been under."
"Mind your tongue, girl," he snapped. The rage building in his eyes was apparent and frightening as she stared into them. "You know nothing."
"I know enough to know what kind of man… correction, monster you are, Loki. Don't presume to think you know anything about my life. I do not care to have a nice little chat with you. I'm here to do my job, so please, don't make this difficult."
Her use of the word "please" took him by surprise. It was a word that he had not been familiar with in a long while. Still, he did not like being talked down to and he was not about to let her speak to him with such arrogance. "Do not treat me like a child. I have not been muzzled; therefore I have the freedom to speak freely. I thought humans were more courteous than this," he joked.
Cassie laughed in a boisterous manner, frustrating the god. "What about this conversation do you find to be humorous?" he asked, annoyed at her nerve.
Still laughing, she answered, "All of it." She noted his puzzled expression as she began stitching his nose, impressed at his apparent pain tolerance. He did not even flinch as she stitched. Though she should have known. It would take a Hulk to make him feel pain. "It's just amusing how much power you think you have over people while you're sitting here, restrained and waiting for your impending punishment. You have no power over anyone, so excuse me while I laugh at your attempts to make threats."
Loki was stunned speechless, not from surprise, but from complete rage. How dare she. His fists were clenched so tightly he had lost feeling in them. His lip quivered involuntarily as he fought back harsh, cruel words. She would pay for her insolence, but it would be slow, deliberate, and so painful that she would be down on her knees begging for death, and only after she had pleaded enough and suffered to his liking, would he grant her wish in the most excruciating way possible.
His lack of a comeback astounded and frightened her, though she would never admit it. Cassie couldn't help but briefly wonder what thoughts were wandering through his mind. She instantly regretted her statement. The worst thing you can do with a psychopath is put yourself on their radar, and she may have just accomplished that, though she hoped otherwise.
"Delivery for an angel?" spoke a familiar voice, interrupting her thoughts. Cassie and Loki immediately turned towards a man in uniform in the doorway, a wide smile spread across his face.
"Hey, Logan! Back so soon?" asked Cassie, a similar grin gracing her face.
Loki took careful notice of the soldier entering the room. He sneered at the human's attempt to seem official. He had destroyed so many of his kind easily in battle. He was just another simple-minded worker of S.H.I.E.L.D., yet he felt irritated by his presence, more so than the rest of the soldiers. Perhaps it was because he had interrupted his delightful plans of torture that he had been devising.
"I told you I wouldn't be too long," Logan replied as he crossed the room to Cassie, then placing his lips on her own, giving her a loving kiss. Loki could not take his eyes off of the scene. Human interaction had not been of interest to him, but he was not pleased with a worker of S.H.I.E.L.D. touching what he considered to be his future slave to torment, let alone touching her in such a sensual way.
"I see you've kept yourself busy," he finished, signaling towards Loki.
"Very funny," she replied with an eye roll. "Maybe if you had done your job quicker, I would be relaxing in my bed by now."
"Hmm," Logan spoke softly as he embraced her. "That's an interesting thought."
Loki sighed impatiently, revolted with the display taking place before him. Cassie pushed him away playfully before laughing, "Stop that, I'm working."
"Well, when you're finished working, you know where to find me, so try to hurry," he finished with a wink.
"I'll do my best," she calls after him in a joking manner as he begins to exit the room.
"As for you," Logan said bitterly towards Loki. "If it were up to me, I would have you bled to death from your eyes after I had ripped them out. I hope you realize how lucky you are that the Avengers found you before I did."
Loki slowly raised his head to smile cynically at Logan. "Well, if I had known that the punishment for attempting to enslave this pathetic Earth would consist of being cared for by your own personal harlot, I would have made an effort long before now."
Logan was in the god's face in a matter of seconds. "Watch what you say around me, you worthless excuse for a life. The trigger on my gun may just pull itself." He was seething while Loki was clearly amused and pleased with the response he had gotten from Logan.
"Okay, Logan. I can't have you killing my patients," Cassie said as she pushed him out of the door. "I'll meet you for dinner later, I promise; until then, stay out. Don't let him get to you, it's apparently what he does." Cassie was irked at Loki's harlot comment, but she wasn't too taken aback by his vulgar remark.
Reluctantly, Logan stormed out staring daggers at Loki's menacing expression as he left. "Are you pleased with yourself?" Cassie asked once Logan had walked out of the room.
"Very," Loki simply replied, fighting back a laugh.
Cassie had just snipped off the remaining stitching material, finishing her work. "Your words are your best defense, aren't they?" She was truly curious about his answer.
"No, though a worthy and entertaining defense, it is not my best." Now was his time to act. He prepared himself for what he had to do.
"Do I dare ask what your best defense is?" Cassie asked as she began putting away her tools.
"This… is my best defense," he whispered directly into her ear, making her jump. It happened in a matter of seconds. She instantly turned towards Loki who had somehow escaped his restraints and stood in front of her. She leaped backwards in surprise, not noticing the other Loki behind her, still on the examination table. While the other Loki distracted Cassie, he had somehow frozen the chains, making it easy for him to break through them with his godly strength. The moment the double Loki appeared, security had entered the room, but Loki was too quick for them. As they had their eyes set on the double next to Cassie, the actual Loki had approached her from behind placing one forceful arm around her neck and the other around her arms, locking her in an iron grasp.
"Surrender now or we will shoot!" the soldiers yelled aiming at both gods. Cassie was gasping for air due to his too tight grip around her neck.
"Now," Loki whispered threateningly into Cassie's ear. "Humor me, Cassie. Remind me of how powerless I am."
I had revised so many times, that it was just getting ridiculous so I just decided to post and hope for the best! Please let me know your thoughts! It's great fuel for future chapters to be posted quicker! Is that a bribe? Maybe…..
-LostInParadise
