Loki was never the kind for outrageous displays of sentiment. Hugs made him quite uncomfortable and weepy moments were just plain awkward.
So he stood in the shadows, watching as the Titan who had held him on such a tight leash during the Battle of New York, barked orders at his disposable underlings.
Bodies laid among the rubble of what was once their ship, dark crimson pools surrounding each and every one. Even Heimdall was down for the count, his breathing ragged as his body shuddered with every breath.
Loki knew what was to come and he wasn't too fond of it. Either he initiated his plan that had a 50/50 success rate or he made a stand, which would obviously result in he and his brother's ultimate demise along with the decimation of Midgard and other such unlucky planets.
With a heavy sigh, Loki squeezed his eyes shut and allowed a chill of magic to course through his veins. The pain, the power it took left rivets of sweat matting down his wild locks of hair and his body seemed to shudder among the immense energy it took to conjure the girl.
He knew he was reaching, but he had heard of the spell before. His mother had informed him before his death it was a dangerous and finicky spell to be messing with, but he knew the risks all too well.
He collapsed, his legs buckling underneath him as he sunk to his knees. Panting and a headache pounding at his skull, he smirked, willing his plan to work.
Thudding footsteps and he peered up, smirking at the Black Order, a bunch of smucks commanded by Thanos. They had nowhere near the power or brain cells Loki had and he knew it.
He allowed himself to be pulled to his feet, allowing his boots to drag reluctantly as they pulled him up to face the purple Titan. Such a garish color, Loki noted.
"I know what it's like to lose. Tofeelso desperately that you're right… yet to fail, nonetheless," The Titan boomed, grabbing his brother by the chest plate and pulling him to his knees, "It's frightening. Turns the legs to jelly. I ask you, to what end? Dread it. Run from it. Destiny arrives all the same. And now, it's here. Or should I say…I AM."
The gauntlet on his arm gleamed in the faint light, showcasing the infinity stone the Titan had already acquired.
"You talk too much," His brother spit out cheekily, blood shooting from his mouth.
The Titan merely ignored the God, instead turning his heavy gaze to Loki.
"The Tesseract, or your brother's head. I assume you have a preference?" He smirked, addressing Loki with an air of superiority Loki would have admired had it not been coming from the Titan that had managed to rob Loki of his own autonomy.
"Oh, I do, kill away," Loki shot back, his face solemn, as a last ditch attempt to buy them time.
Thanos remained silent, allowing his actions to speak for him. He pressed the gauntlet against Thor's head, a silent challenge to the God of Miscief as the power stone glowed. This managed to elicit pained cries from Thor, as Loki watched on in terror.
He didn't have much time.
"ALRIGHT, STOP!" He screamed, his voice ragged with a sense of defeat.
She still wasn't here. They were going to lose. And he couldn't stop it...
Loki was pulled back to the situation by his brother's booming voice, still holding even after the pain he had just endured.
"We don't have the Tesseract," He called out in anger, "It was destroyed on Asgard!"
Loki's eyes flicked to his brother's form, so full of innocence and trust. Like Loki hadn't dared to grab the Tesseract on their escape from Asgard.
He lifted his weary arm, searching for the object that was about to sentence them both to their deaths.
The Tesseract formed on his outstretched palm, as his head hung in silent defeat.
A mask of betrayal formed on Thor's face as he gazed up at his brother in defeat.
"Y-You really are the worst brother..." He sighed, blood dripping from his lips as he caught Loki with a look of disappointment.
"I assure you, brother," Loki replied, stepping forward to look into his brother's eyes "The Sun will shine on us again."
He could feel her presence. She was here. Somewhere on this plane, she was here.
He hoped his brother would put two and two together when he came across the girl, but for now, he knew his words would just come across as empty to Thor.
"Your optimism is misplaced, Asgardian," Thanos chuckled, but for once, Loki felt no fear of his looming presence.
He was in control.
"Well, for one thing: I'm not Asgardian. And for another… We have a Hulk," Loki grinned cheekily, as he caught the Hulk moving from his peripheral.
The lumbering beast leaped upon the Titan as Loki dove out of his path, grasping onto his brother and throwing him to the floor.
"I have help brother, she will come soon enough," Loki rushed out hurriedly, his brother offering him a look of confusion.
"Who brother?" Thor breathed out, his eyebrow cocked in confusion as the sounds of thuds and grunts echoed not too far away.
"She is the Sun, do not lose sight," Loki bit off, already rushing towards the shadows.
He had to say, he wasn't too sure of how effectively his spell would work against any attempts on his life. Nonetheless, Loki stepped back into view, sparing a glance at the corpse of Heimdall who had managed to send the Hulk back to Midgard.
His presence seemed to escape them at first, as they discussed searching for the stones.
"If I might, interject… If you're going to Earth, you might want a guide. I do have a bit of experience in that arena," He grinned sheepishly, holding his hands up in mock surrender.
"If you consider failure experience…" The Titan chuckles darkly, setting his sights on the God of Mischief.
"I consider experience, experience," Loki replied, taking a deep breath as stepped forward once again, "Almighty Thanos. I, Loki, Prince of Asgard… Odinson… The rightful King of Jotunheim, God of Mischief, do hereby pledge to you, my undying fidelity..."
The blade had formed between Loki's fingers and even though he knew it had no chance of slipping through the Titan's skin, he gave it a hell of a try as he plunged the blade forward.
It stopped, the tip hovering against the neck of Thanos, Loki's eyes widening as the stones power pushed back against him.
He couldn't recall much after that, the adrenaline coursing through him sending him into a sort of mental fog.
He was going to die. It wasn't going to work.
Thanos had him lifted in the air, as if he was showing off the God. His fingers tightened around Loki's throat, stifling his breathing.
He gasped and clawed like a wild animal, wanting...needing to escape. His eyelids felt heavy as he struggled to breath.
The sound of Thor's protests grew fainter and fainter before crack and the God finally succumbed to darkness.
She could hear horns honking, the bustle of life skimming by her. Alexandra allows her eyes to flicker open.
Everything's fuzzy, as she shakes her head in pain. She doesn't want to get up, she wants to fall back asleep. She can't do this...
They flutter open against her better judgement and she gets a good look at her surroundings, puzzled by the sight.
She's on a front stoop from what she can tell, the stone steps cool against her cheek. Pushing up into a sitting position, Alexandra looks around curiously.
These buildings are far different than the one's in Los Angeles, that's for sure. Cobblestone and brick seems to be a prime staple, each building composed of the materials.
"What the hell?" She mutters incredulously, narrowing her eyes as she notes a woman walking past, chattering away on her cellphone.
The cellphone doesn't interest Alexandra, more or less, the shopping bag clutched tightly by the woman catches her eye.
The side reads, Personnel of New York.
She nearly falls back in astonishment. How and why is she in New York? Was she kidnapped?
That couldn't be possible...why would any kidnapper just leave her lying around New York City on her own?
She pulls herself to her feet, jumping forward as a crash erupts from behind her.
Alex pauses curiously, turning to face the front door.
A plaque on the side reads 177a Bleecker Street, much to her surprise.
"Ok, what the actual fu-" She starts, before composing herself with a sigh and raising a weary fist to bang against the door.
Heavy footsteps fall inside, and she cocks her head as the door is wretched open, revealing a tall man with black hair sporting a pretty nifty cape.
He looks upon her in annoyance, as if her mere presence disturbs him.
He's almost familiar...
"Can I help you?" He gripes, keeping the door cracked just enough to hide the source of the chattering behind him.
"I-I'm not sure...I just woke up here on your doorstep and I'm not sure..." She starts before she finally places him.
"Wait, you're Benedict Cumberbatch!" She breathes out in admiration, eyes widening as the man looks at her in slight curiousity.
"I think you have me mistaken with another...I'm Dr. Stephen Strange and I have no knowledge of a Benedict Cumberbatch so if that will be all..." He replies, narrowing his eyes at Alexandra.
"Who's there?" She hears a man's voice resound from behind Benedict Cumberbatch who for some reason is claiming to be Dr. Strange, which is highly unlikely unless...
The man peers around the "Dr. Strange" and she nearly loses her meager lunch.
"Holy shit- you-you're Bruce fucking Banner!" She nearly shouts, eyes widening as Dr. Strange grabs her tightly by the arm and yanks her inside.
The door slams with a resounding echo as she looks around the Sanctum in wonder.
It had to be a dream...
She pinched herself. Hard. All she gained was a pained Yelp from her lips and an odd look from Doctor Strange and Dr. Banner.
"What was that for?" Dr. Banner questioned, lifting an eyebrow in concern at her actions.
"You can't be real!" She whisper-shouts in response, arms flailing like a madman, "This can't be real! You people are movie characters!"
"Since when?" A man speaks up from behind her and when she turns towards the staircase, she nearly facepalms at the sight of Wong, confusion displayed neatly on his features.
The only person who looked sure of themselves at the moment was Doctor Strange and let's face it, the man was always sure of himself.
"I sensed you, although I was expecting something a bit more...exciting," Doctor Strange shrugged, turning away from Alex to conjure a portal.
"Wait, that's all you have to say to me?!" She spits out, dumbfounded at his actions.
"At the moment, yes," He chuckles before disappearing through the portal, leaving her alone with Dr. Banner and Wong.
"So...movie characters?" Wong questions perplexedly, scratching his head in confusion.
Dr. Banner just shoots her a curious look before disappearing through the portal with Doctor Strange.
She recognizes this moment, their disappearing act. If she's correct in her assumptions, the two are currently speaking with Tony Stark. On the topic of Thanos...because of course Alexandra has the luck of being sucked into Avengers Infinity War.
"Yes, movie characters," She replies absentmindedly, before adding with a groan, "Why couldn't it be Age of Ultron?"
She starts forward carefully, noting the sound of Wong's footsteps close behind.
"I don't suggest you-" He starts warily, but she doesn't catch the rest of his statement as she steps though the portal and it snaps shut behind her.
Her heart thumps wildly against her chest as she looks upon her idol embracing Bruce Banner, the iconic Pepper Potts looking on in disbelief.
Tony Stark peels away from Dr. Banner and just stares at her. It's something akin to an eyeopener to her current circumstances as he stares at her weirdly.
She probably does look odd, in his defense. Staring at him like a dog salivating at the sight of a bone.
"Who's she; another one of your wizards?" He questions Doctor Strange, jerking his thumb in her direction.
"No, she isn't one of mine; we found her on the doorstep," Doctor Strange replies cooly as Tony stalks towards her.
"What's your name, kid?" He questions, looking up at her oddly.
"First of all, I'm 25," Alex stammers, her disbelief betraying her as she attempts to shoot the billionaire a dirty look, "And it's Alexandra..."
"Too long...I'm calling you Al, mm'k?" Tony replies absently, glancing around at his surroundings.
She freezes, her thoughts veering off to her parents.
"No, you can call me Alex," She replies shortly, moving to stand beside Doctor Strange.
He looks down at her in disinterest; before conjuring up another one of his portals behind them, golden sparks flying off as she inches closer to it.
"If you're done with your greetings, we really do have the fate of the universe to discuss," Doctor Strange quips annoyedly, motioning towards the portal.
"Wow, really?" She replies sarcastically, frustrated at his lack of acknowledgement "Nice to see you're not a pompous ass or anything,"
She can hear Tony chuckle softly behind her and with a quick eye roll, she steps back through the portal, the cool air of the Sanctum assaulting her bare skin.
She shivers at it, cursing her luck that she had somehow managed to lose the duffel containing her only sweaters.
Bruce, who has made his way over to her, awkwardly shrugs off his jacket and offers it to her.
"Oh, thanks," She smiles softly, pulling the large jacket over her slender frame.
The sleeves are a bit baggy, but it keeps her warm in the dreary air that seems to plague the Sanctum.
"No problem," He smiles, turning his attention to Strange and Wong.
Wong waves his hand across the air, crystals appearing at the motion. She recognizes them as the Infinity Stones and takes a step forward, her eyes lighting up in amazement at the magic.
Wong smirks at her amazement and launches into an explanation for the equally dumbfounded Bruce and Tony.
"From the dawn of the universe, there was nothing. Then, boom! The Big Bang sent six elemental crystals, hurdling across the virgin universe." Wong explains dramatically, "These Infinity Stones each control an essential aspect of existence."
"Oh cool, I know this!" Alex interruptinterrupts, jumping in as she lists the stones on her fingers, "Space. Reality. Power. Soul. Mind. Oh, and Strange has the Time stone."
Suddenly, she's pinned against the wall by a strange force, Doctor Strange jerking his hand to hold her in place using the magic.
"Where did you come from?" He questions simply.
"Los Angeles, 2019," She grins as he cocks his head.
"Cool, time travel; are you more of a Marty Mcfly," Tony stops, twirling his finger at his ear in the cuckoo motion, "Or Doc Brown?"
"More like dimension travel; in my universe, the Avengers is just a movie..." She replies breathlessly, not wanting to allow any interruptions.
"Wait, so does that mean you've seen our future?" Bruce questions, a look of shock plastered on his face.
"Yes," She responds as Doctor Strange ceases his magic, dropping her to the floor, hard.
"Hey, careful on the merchandise!" She whines, rubbing the back of her head that had struck the wall.
"Excuse me for being a little skeptical...but I'm a little skeptical," Tony scoffs, adjusting his glasses on his face as he stares down at her.
"Wait, are you seriously running my face?" She questions in disbelief, "I'm not a terrorist or anything like that!"
"That sounds like something a terrorist would say..." Tony replies in a sing song sort of fashion.
"Tony, we don't have much time...we can discuss Alexandra later, but she isn't our number one priority at the moment," Doctor Strange interjects impatiently.
With a disgruntled huff, Alex neanders away from the group as they discuss Thanos. They don't seem to notice her disappearance, too caught up in their discussion of Thanos.
"How is this my life?" She chuckles to herself softly, sliding down a wall behind the stairs and placing her head in her knees.
She was by all accounts, a pretty below-average person. She had read enough fanfiction to know this kind of thing happened to the Mary-Sue's of her world.
The ones that got super-cool superpowers on their way into this world and could do literally anything. See a piano? Wow, she plays better than Bach! No experience in fighting? Cool, she's can fight like a ninja!
Alex, on the other hand, had no powers whatsoever (or any that she knew of at least). Sure, she could fight, but that's because she was a stuntwoman and that's what she did. She wasn't going to be able to kick and shoot her way out of this either.
Thanos was a Titan, who could kill her with the snap of his fingers or the flick of his wrist. She was nothing more than a distraction, especially with the knowledge she possessed.
She certainly couldn't just tell the Avengers how to defeat Thanos. She had seen enough crappy telly to know messing with timelines was probably not in her best interest.
She could feel fat, warm tears slipping unannounced down her cheeks. Rubbing furiously at them, the only thing she seemed to be doing was plastering raven strands of hair to her skin. With a sigh, she tucked the strands back into her ponytail and stood up.
She was an outlier here. What help could she possibly be?
"Who could find Vision, then?" Doctor Strange was questioning Tony when she returned to the conversation, noting the pause Tony took at the mention.
"Shit." He cursed, looking done with the topic already, "Probably Steve Rogers..."
"Oh, great," Doctor Strange sighs in exasperation, and Alex can already see the confusion on Bruce's face.
"He can't call him," She says, standing beside Bruce. He looks alarmed, the wheels turning in his head as he attempts to puzzle out how she knew what he was going to say.
"Why not?" Bruce questions curiously, his expression innocent.
"The Avengers broke up. We're toast." Tony bites off, his tone like acid.
"Broke up? Like a band? Like The Beatles?" Bruce replies breathlessly, his voice rising an octave as he looks to Alex for confirmation. She merely nods her head.
"Cap and I fell out hard. We're not on speaking terms." Tony admits as Wong and Strange look on uncomfortably.
Alex can't help but feel the same way. She feels like she's intruding on the conversation and takes a step back towards the entrance.
"Tony, listen to me. Thor's gone..." Bruce chokes out, his face taking on a pallid look, "Thanos is coming. It doesn't matter who you're talking to or not."
She can see Tony hesitate before whipping out the flipphone.
She stifles a laugh at the old school nature of it. Doctor Strange shoots her a sharp look, but pauses as Tony stares at him in concentration.
She notices it too, his hair fluttering softly at a breeze that shouldn't exist.
Suddenly, her stomach drops and she remembers exactly what is to come.
"Shit, they're here," She murmurs softly in the silent room, catching the attention of all four men.
"Alex, who's here?" Tony demands, before peering up and watching in awe as a piec of metal flies past the window Bruce had broken on his way down into the Sanctum.
He pushes past her and through the doors, into the chaos on the street.
She can hear the screams and her feet glue her to the ground, refusing to move. Everyone else is scurrying around her, but she is focused on the devastation occurring in front of her very eyes.
A gentle hand falls on her shoulder and she jumps, before pulling the jacket she has on closer to her chest.
She refuses to meet his eyes, refuses to show the fear engulfing her being.
"Alex, we need to go," Bruce tells her softly, motioning towards the door, "I know it's scary, but if you are who you say you are, then Thanos and his people are going to want to find you; you're safer with us."
She nods her head and follows the older man out onto the street. She's instantly shoved to the pavement by those trying to escape, her palms scraping against the ground painfully.
A hand grabs hers and pulls her up, ushering along as she can only stare at her bloody palms in disgust.
Soon, they arrive behind Wong, Strange, and Tony. The three are on the defense, with Tony using his sarcasm as a defense like usual.
"Hear me, and rejoice. You are about to die at the hands of the Children of Thanos. Be thankful, that your meaningless lives are now contributing to…" She refuses to look up.
Ebony Maw was funny looking in the movie, but she's afraid what she once found funny could turn out to be devastatingly horrifying if looked upon.
"I'm sorry!" Tony booms sarcastically, stepping forward, "Earth is closed today. You better pack it up and get outta here!"
"Stone keeper… " Against her better judgement, she peers up at the alien as he chatters away, "Does this chattering animal speak for you?"
"Certainly not" Strange replies, jerking his arms back to reveal his magical shield thingy she can't help but gaze at in wonder, "I speak for myself. But you're trespassing in this city and on this planet."
"It means get lost Squidward!" Tony hollers, looking content.
"You can't call him Squidward, his nose isn't big enough!" Alex grins, boldness creeping into her actions at the reassurance that Ebony Maw would probably not be able to kill her.
"They exhaust me," The wrinkly, grey alien retorts, turning to his cohorts, "Bring me the stone and the girl,"
Her eyes widen in surprise and fear.
Well, that wasn't in the movie.
"Banner, you want a piece?" Tony calls back to Bruce, who's still poised at her side uncomfortably.
"No, not really, but when do I ever get what I want?" Bruce sighs, stepping forward and straining as he attempts to release the Hulk.
She can see the green trailing up his neck as he struggles against the Hulk, attempting to bring him to the surface.
With all the attention on Bruce, she finds the opportunity she needs to slip away.
She doesn't get far, though, before Wong grabs her. Ebony Maw and his ugly friends are already charging.
She watches in awe as the nanotech in Tony's suit crawls up his body like ants, molding over his body into the easily identifiable Iron Man armor.
The Godfather. She was gonna have to introduce him to the nickname if she survived this.
"Dr. Banner, if the rest of your green friend won't be joining us…you and Alexandra should really go," Doctor Strange yells among the fighting, conjuring a portal which she and Bruce fall through, slamming against the grass.
Bruce sits beside her in silence for a moment, before slamming his fist against the grass in anger.
She jumps at the sudden outburst and he pauses, looking sheepishly at her.
"Sorry, it's just..." He sighs, before going silent.
"I know," She nods understandably.
"So, if you're from another universe...where this is all a movie...Alex, do we win?" Bruce questions, turning his full attention to her as he looks to the woman desperately.
"You always win; you guys are the Avengers, but it also comes at a cost," She sighs, pulling her knees to her chest as a soft breeze whistles past.
It almost feels laughingly normal, here in the park. Like she and Bruce are just old friends catching up.
Aside from the fact that Iron Man is hurtling through the air towards them and the fact that they're fighting aliens, it would be almost normal.
But it isn't...so Alex dives, with Tony missing her by mere inches.
Normal.
She's already craving it.