Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Marvel-characters!
AN: I was completely overwhelmed by the response I got for the first chapter. Really, guys, thanks! I do hope the second chapter does not disappoint. Enjoy and (constructive) feedback is always appreciated!
~ Shadows and Regrets ~
Chapter 2
Thor reached for Loki's face and gently pushed aside some of his ink-black hair. He was horrified to find that it was filthy with dried blood. Thor inhaled sharply. He knew he had to stay calm, but somehow he felt his heart trying to leap from his chest and his hands did not stop shaking.
"Loki?"
The younger brother slowly opened one eye since the other was too swollen. He wasn't able to focus on his surroundings at first and Thor felt his concern transform into fear. Never had he seen Loki like this before. Then, Loki's piercing green eye fell on his face and he instantly shrank away as he only now realized who was with him.
"It's okay," Thor whispered, unable to keep his voice strong. Loki still seemed to want to get away from him. He looked very confused. "It's okay, it's me."
"Thor?" Loki's voice was hollow and broken.
"Yes," Thor replied, pulling his little brother even closer to him. He wanted to protect him, he wanted to make it all better, but…he couldn't. "You're safe now."
Loki's one eye looked around, but then fluttered shut.
"Loki, you have to stay awake." Thor gently shook him, forcing him to open his eye again. Loki did so, but only a little. He seemed half gone from this world. "Who did this? Do you remember what happened?"
Again, Loki's gaze fell away from him. His bruised and cut hands reached for Thor's arm as he tried to sit up straight, but he failed horribly. He groaned in pain and began to cough violently. Small drops of blood landed on his lips and Thor was horrified to see his brother in such agony. He cursed whoever did this and he vowed that he would make the one responsible pay.
"Keep still, Loki," he said, "just tell me who did this."
"I…I don't know." Loki's voice came rasping from his throat. "I… Thor, I-" He began to cough again and his eye rolled back. For a few seconds, his entire body began to shake and Thor had no idea what he had to do. Those few seconds seemed to last for hours, but when they finally did end, Loki went completely limb in Thor's grasp.
"Loki?" Thor panicked. "Loki, wake up." This time, Loki did not respond. "Someone, help me!"
His door opened and Natasha stormed in, a gun and knife in her hands. She was prepared for a battle. Tony followed her close behind. They both stopped dead in their tracks when they found Loki motionless and beaten in Thor's arms. They seemed unsure what to think of the situation, but Thor knew they couldn't lose any more time.
"Don't just stand there!" He bellowed. "Call for help!"
Natasha stormed from the room and Thor knew she would return with help. Tony hurried forward and kneeled beside him. His brown eyes landed on Loki's pale, hurt face. He searched for a pulse, found one, but began to look deeply troubled. Then he turned to Thor.
"What happened?"
"I do not know," Thor said in a wobbly voice, "I found him like this." For a moment, he feared his brother had stopped breathing, but when he placed a hand on his chest, he felt it rise and fall. It was too slow, however, but Thor didn't know what he could do to help him.
"What the hell is going on here, Thor?" Tony asked.
Thor wished he could give him an answer, but he couldn't. Something had happened yesterday, something horrible. Loki had been beaten half to death and none could remember anything. If only Jarvis still had some recordings!
Before anyone could say anything, Natasha came back into the room. She had traded her gun and knife for a bowl of warm water and a towel. She handed it to Tony since Thor still had his arms tightly around his brother's broken figure. Carefully, Tony began to clean away some of the dried blood on Loki's torn face. It gave them a better idea of the damage that had been done and Thor felt nauseous when he saw the broken skin, bruises and cuts.
"I called Coulson," Natasha said softly, "he sent a medical team."
When Tony hit a too painful spot, Loki moaned and tried to pull his head away. At least it was a sign of life.
"I will find who did this, brother," Thor promised him, knowing that Loki could hear him, "I will find the one responsible and I will make him pay."
~ o ~
Tony entered the small room. It had a one-way-mirror that gave him a view into Loki's hospital room. The trickster lay in bed, his pale arms above the white sheets. Different tubes stuck out of his arms, but that wasn't what caught Tony's attention. The ligature wounds on Loki's wrists stood bright again his pale skin. It was the umpteenth sign that something dreadful had happened to him.
A continuous beeping monitored his heartbeat. At Loki's bedside sat – as expected - Thor. He was leaning forward, his elbows resting on his knees and his head bowed. Tony had never seen the God of Thunder look so defeated. He hadn't even looked like that when Loki had first been captured by SHIELD all those months ago.
Steve entered the small room as well. He wasn't at ease, but then again, neither was Tony. Together, they had faced many foes and many different situations, but for some reason, this one frightened them all. Perhaps it was because they had no real villain to fight. In fact, their usual villain lay almost comatose in a bed.
"Any news?" Tony asked. Since Steve hadn't been present at the mansion at the time everyone had lost memories, Fury decided he could trust the Captain the most. If some development had been made, then Steve would know first.
The Captain inhaled deeply and crossed his arms over his chest. "Nothing new. We contacted some allies like Doctor Strange, but none have any idea what could have happened to you guys. Someone beat Loki to a pulp and erased your memories. Do you know what that sounds like?"
"Yeah," Tony said bitterly, "like someone is covering his tracks."
"Exactly," Steve agreed, "I wish I had been there, Tony If I had just been there-"
"-there is nothing you could have done," Tony quickly said, knowing that Steve felt bad about leaving them behind, "we were all there. Me, Thor, Bruce, Clint and Natasha. It's not the whole team, but we can defend ourselves, but even we weren't able to stop this apparently. So why has this happened?"
Steve turned away from the one-way-mirror. "I spoke with Natasha. She's worried sick."
That surprised Tony. He hadn't taken the Widow for the loving and caring person, certainly not when it came to villains. Tony liked Natasha, but he found her very distant and almost cold.
"There was blood on her hands, Tony," Steve explained, "it's safe to assume that it was Loki's blood."
"That means nothing," he sighed. He wished it meant nothing. "Have you reached Professor X yet? If he could tinker with our minds a little, then maybe he could find our memories again."
"He's not in New York at the moment and Doctor Strange can't help us either." Steve rubbed a hand over his tired face. "I'm afraid we'll have to solve this mystery alone."
~ o ~
Thor tried to shut the world out. The only thing he wanted to hear was the regular beeping that indicated Loki had a steady, strong pulse. Right now, that was the only thing that mattered to him. He knew people were watching him from the adjacent room – he could feel it, but he didn't care. He felt grateful that everyone was willing to help his brother, but he had somehow expected it.
SHIELD didn't like Loki, but they had enough honor and integrity not to let him perish.
"Thor?"
Thor's head snapped up and his gaze instantly landed on his brother's still form. Loki was looking directly at him with his one good eye. The other one had been covered by a bandage, but Loki didn't seem to mind.
"Hey." Thor moved closer to his brother. He hesitated to take his hand into his own, but he was suddenly afraid that any touch might hurt his brother. "It is good to see you awake."
"I'm tired," Loki muttered dully.
"That's normal," Thor assured him. He decided to take Loki's hand anyway and he was relieved when Loki didn't seem to mind. He did notice that Loki stared at their connecting hands, but he paid it no attention. It had been so long since the brothers had shared any affection. "You'll need time to heal, but I do not understand. Why don't you use your magic, Loki?"
Loki closed his eye and swallowed heavily. "I can't. I have no magic."
Thor didn't understand. Loki was a powerful sorcerer, one that didn't just lose his magic. It was again conformation that someone had done this to them. Thor could now see that Loki was afraid of the situation as well. "It will return," he assured him, "give it time, brother. I must go now, but you are safe here."
There came no protest which Thor had not expected.
"Be careful," was all Loki said.
And then Thor just knew. This was not normal behavior for his brother. Loki was hiding something and Thor would find out. In end, he always found out. It didn't seem, however, that he would like the truth.