Stockholm Syndrome
Author's Note: This chapter is especially action-packed, and as a result, may seem a bit abrupt. Mostly, I just want to get to the good stuff with this story XD Thanks to everyone who reviewed last time: Suna Babe, MsDragonLady, biankie88, everlastingtrueromance, ShadowCrawlerCiel, DocteureCrane, Amahlia, moor, Lady Miya, NorthernLights25, Mariico, LazyKiss, MeriLynelle, BlackShirt16, liljennmartin, Lorem tenebrae, Cihsegin, Eternally Free, ShimmeringWater, UnattainableDarkAngel, Raychaell Dionzeros, Shan84, inked quill, patricia pc, and marana1.
My dog passed on this week so seeing these wonderful and helpful reviews really made me feel good, guys. So cheers :)
Also, the wonderfully talented Mariico made an amazing banner for this story. FFnet seems to destroy links, so I will just tell you all to go to her twitter (mariico_97) or tumblr (mariico) and check it out. It is really amazing, as with all of her work. (I also encourage you to check out her writing; she writes Tomione which is quite a similar ship)
Please review!
Disclaimer: the HP and Marvel universes do not belong to me.
Four.
"So, did you sever things with the fiancee?" Tony asked abruptly at breakfast the next day. Hermione's fork clattered to her plate as Natasha made a hissing noise, rather like a cat.
"Way to be a gent, Stark," she snarked. She turned to Hermione. "Ignore him. Just because he's a bajillionaire doesn't mean he's got brains worth shit."
"Oh, very charming, Romanoff," Tony retorted, though she could see that they were both only partially serious and were enjoying being snarky. She offered them a weak smile. "Well? Did you?" he prompted.
"Sort of," she sighed, digging around her plate. "I ended up telling him vaguely that I couldn't be around for a while due to the job, and that if we maintained contact, it might hurt him in the end."
"Whatever. He can just grow the fuck up or go fuck himself," Natasha said airily. "The thing you need to focus on is how you can best use the rest of us for this. We don't want this Loki shit dragging on too long."
"You really have a way with words, Romanoff," said Clint with a smirk. The look Natasha sent him was amusement with an underlying hint of sexual tension. Hermione raised questioning eyebrows at Tony and Jane, who both nodded discretely. Ah. So they are together.
"So have you put that tracking spell thing on him?" Natasha asked abruptly; Clint looked away hastily. Hermione shook her head — she didn't want to let on that she suspected she had seen Loki.
"I don't even know if it will work yet, and obviously, I haven't even seen him." She shrugged now. "The best I can do for now is test it on Thor."
Just then, Dr. Banner joined them, in his rumpled grey pajamas as usual. His plate was piled high with odd combinations of foods: kippers with syrup, fruit with ketchup. He was looking frazzled and didn't appear to have any awareness of the fact that everyone was watching him.
"Morning, Banner," Tony greeted, smirking. "Hungry?"
"Always," said Dr. Banner fervently. He looked up and brightened when he saw Hermione. "Ah, good to see you, Dr. Granger," he greeted amiably. Hermione waved slightly.
"We were just talking about how Dr. Granger can test if her tracking spell will work on Loki," explained Tony. Dr. Banner frowned in thought.
"Why not have Thor take you to Asgard and test it on his mother? She's got very similar magic to Loki, from what I hear."
"Thanks — that's a great idea."
Hermione excused herself and dumped her tray before hurrying back to her room. Last night she had checked the parchment where she had Charmed Loki's position to appear, but it had remained stubbornly blank. Now, checking it again, it still was blank. But how is that possible? It's not like it only works on humans!
She was at a loss. Hermione collapsed onto her bed, arms outstretched, staring at the ceiling. She knew there was a solution to this problem — after all, there was a solution to every problem — but it was infuriating to her, how long it was taking her to reach it. Unbidden her thoughts returned to Ron and, cringing, she rolled over onto her side, facing the wall, and wishing she could develop a potion or a spell to make all of this heartache go away. It was making it impossible to do work, and all she wanted to do was lose herself in this project.
"Granger, open up," Natasha's smoky, sultry voice sounded through the door. Hermione sat up, frowning, and went to the door to open it. Natasha was leaning against the door frame, examining impeccably polished dark red nails.
"Yes?" Hermione asked hesitantly. Natasha shot her a grin.
"No offense, or anything, but sometimes only brute force works on gods..." Natasha's eyes roved over Hermione, "and you really don't look like you've got too much brute force in you." She held up her hands. "Again, no offense meant. But I was thinking I could try to help train you and in the meantime, give you what I know about Loki."
Hermione blinked in surprise.
"Actually, that would be great. I'm in terrible shape, and I could really use another perspective on him."
"Alright — get changed and we'll go to the training facility."
"R-right now?" Hermione balked.
Natasha arched a penciled brow.
"Yes, right now, Granger," she said wryly, and shut the door for Hermione.
Still feeling a bit shocked, Hermione mechanically changed into an older cotton jumper and trainers. She hadn't brought any sort of workout clothes, obviously — in fact, she was not entirely sure she even owned a sports bra anymore. When she opened the door again, Natasha looked bemused.
"I didn't bring anything else," Hermione pointed out with a shrug. Natasha's mouth quirked in thought, and she made a tsking noise.
"It'll do for now. It's not like you'll be climbing Everest or sparring with Steve any time soon, anyway. Come on."
With a wave of her hand, Natasha turned on her heel and Hermione hastened to lock her door and trot after Natasha, who was sashaying, her heeled boots clacking loudly on the floor.
"I really appreciate this, Natasha," said Hermione eagerly, desperate to make conversation. Natasha shrugged.
"No problem — Fury told me you were someone worth respecting, and from what I hear, it sounds like he wasn't kidding. It's an honor that you joined us."
They reached the training facility, though Hermione was overcome with tears of gratitude and had to discretely slip off to the loo for a tissue. When she returned, she was able to take in the immensity of the facility. Punching bags lined one wall in front of a mirror and a large area was dedicated to some sort of series of weight-lifting machines, as well as free weights. Steve was in the corner with one of the punching bags, and the room echoed with the sound of his gloved fists hitting the leather. Hermione blushed a bit; he was shirtless and gleaming with sweat, and entirely oblivious to her and Natasha.
"So, what's first?" Hermione asked, feeling intimidated already. Physical exercise and sports had never been her strong point, and her stomach was already clenching with the familiar fear that she'd always had in school, before Hogwarts: being picked last for teams, being laughed at when she couldn't catch the ball...
"Basic self-defense. Loki may be a god, but he's still got nerve endings just like the rest of us." Natasha shrugged off her stylish leather jacket and flung it onto a pile of mats, and led Hermione to the centre of a sparring ring; the floor was covered with mats as well. Natasha also kicked off her boots and rolled her shoulders. Feeling insecure, Hermione also kicked off her trainers, revealing mismatched socks with holes in the toes. "And, being a woman, you really should know some basic tricks, at any rate," she added as an afterthought.
For hours, they worked on what Natasha referred to as 'basic self defense' but what Hermione was nearly positive she had only seen in kung fu movies with special effects. Natasha looked curvaceous and feminine, but when push came to shove, she was no fairy princess. She moved fast, and in the blink of an eye, could do all sorts of damage. By the end of it, Hermione was shaking, bruised, and drenched in perspiration. She had never felt so physically weak in her life.
By contrast, Natasha had barely broken a sweat.
"That's enough for today," Natasha finally said, helping Hermione off the floor. Trembling, Hermione accepted the help and was pulled to her feet unsteadily. In the corner, Steve was still going strong.
"Doesn't he get tired?" Hermione panted, gesturing to Steve whilst she braced herself with one hand on her knees. She wasn't sure if she had to use the loo or throw up — possibly both, at the same time. Even beyond the nausea and gastrointestinal trouble was a gnawing, dizzying hunger and thirst. Natasha snorted.
"Oh, that's because of the drug that made him so buff. If he doesn't get enough exercise every day, he goes nuts. Kind of like a labrador or something."
The two women left the training facility with Hermione, to her personal humiliation, leaving sweaty footprints along the floor, as she had not yet bothered to put on her shoes. "You may be in crap shape, but you're still not bad — you can think on your feet," said Natasha thoughtfully as they entered the cafeteria. Hermione was beyond the point of caring if people saw her looking so disgusting. Fortunately, almost no one was there, as it was well past lunch.
"But I'm so uncoordinated," she replied, reaching for a bag of crisps. Natasha slapped her hand away.
"That's like putting sugar in your engine!"
"Huh?" Hermione asked, blinking sweat out of her eyes. All she wanted right now was hot tea and crisps and a good book. Natasha rolled her eyes.
"You need protein after a workout like that. Anyway," she continued as Hermione grudgingly went for the protein salad, "it doesn't matter if you're not coordinated. To be honest, I can't catch a ball to save my life. As long as you're strong enough and willful enough, you can fight your way out of pretty much any situation."
"That's comforting," sighed Hermione. They sat down at a table in the corner. "So what have your experiences with Loki been like?"
"Right down to business. I like it," she remarked, spearing a piece of broccoli. "Meh. He can definitely be manipulated — he's not as invincible as the others make him out to be. But actually, I think you're onto something, with the whole not fighting fire with fire thing. I honestly don't think we could beat Loki with force."
"Why's that?" Hermione was so intrigued she was able to forget how exhausted she was for a moment. Natasha frowned as she chewed.
"The late Agent Coulson had a good point about Loki. He said Loki lacked conviction, and that was why he could be defeated. In a way, I agree. Loki is just this wild force, thrashing around. Deep down, I think he's just confused and misses his brother and family — not that that is an excuse, but more like a reason." She paused, a far-off look in her flinty eyes. "I think if we could convince Loki to become our ally, it would be more effective than making him our enemy."
"It sounds like you've got a lot of experience with this type of thing," remarked Hermione, careful to keep her voice level. Natasha's lips twisted.
"There are always men like Loki — dramatic, charismatic, attention-seeking, but powerful men." She grinned down at her plate. "Just further evidence that women are superior."
The two women sniggered and enjoyed lunch together. Natasha filled Hermione in more on the Avengers' previous encounters with the god of mischief, and as they were parting, they agreed to meet the next day for another round of training.
With all of this business, Hermione had almost forgotten completely about Ron. In returning back to her room, however, the grief and confusion came rushing back. Just don't think about it, she told herself. She remembered Natasha's words at breakfast. He can just grow the fuck up or go fuck himself, Natasha's voice echoed in her mind. Hermione's lips twisted into a wry grin. This sort of solidarity was the thing she'd always missed, with her not having had too many normal female friends during her adolescence.
And after all, Natasha was right. This was her life, and if Ron couldn't accept that he was a part of her life and not the whole picture...well, then, he certainly did have some growing up to do. He should accept and appreciate me for how devoted I am to my work, she thought with irritation. Really, was that so much to ask? Sometimes, she thought that it wasn't that her relationship with Ron was actually inherently different from Harry and Ginny's relationship — more like, it was a consequence of her treating it differently. Harry and Ginny had always put their work before each other, and it had never been up for debate. Perhaps by virtue of treating it as a given, that was how one made it a given. And, perhaps, by always being party to Ron's demands, she had enabled him far too much.
I really need relationship help, Hermione thought with a sigh. She showered and was surprised to find how much better the training session had made her feel. She felt centred; she felt at peace. She closed her eyes and recalled her conversation with Natasha. I think if we could convince Loki to become our ally, it would be more effective than making him our enemy.
There had been a gleam in Natasha's eyes that had set off warning bells in Hermione's mind. Natasha seemed to do and say everything with innate confidence, but there had been a knowingness in her eyes when she had said that that made Hermione suspicious.
She must know something. But who could they make Loki an ally against? ...Of course, with nine realms, the earth was obviously always in danger. Hermione leaned her forehead against the tile. Loki had gone to another realm before, the last time, to find allies, according to Natasha. And it didn't work out so well for him, she reflected with a snigger. Then she felt cold as her blood seemed to turn to ice, and her eyes shot open.
What if Loki had pissed off the residents of yet another one of the realms, in his quest for allies against Earth and Asgard?
"Merlin's pants," she groaned, banging her head against the tile and then instantly regretting it as pain radiated through her head. She rubbed furiously at the spot as she thought. If Loki had pissed off another people, he would be clever enough to deflect their rage and turn it to either Asgard or Earth...and, obviously, it was less potentially dangerous to mess with Earth than Asgard...And obviously, this meant they were sitting ducks.
To put it in Natasha's wording: fuck.
Hermione hurriedly finished her shower and dressed. That explains why he didn't show up on the parchment. Because if Loki really had gone to another realm, then of course her tracking spell wouldn't work. What if that were the case? What if Fury knew — and Natasha had somehow found out — and was keeping it from them? ...Or, what if Natasha was double-crossing them and was feeling too smug to truly keep it to herself? Or what if this was all complete guesswork, and Loki was still lurking somewhere nearby and her tracking spell had simply failed?
She had to find out.
Hermione flung her door shut, not bothering to lock it, and then skidded on the tile as she changed her mind and ran back to lock it. She whirled back around and began sprinting, against the whim of her exhausted muscles. She rounded a corner and slammed directly into the very hard chest of Steve, who was accompanied by Agent Hill.
She flew back onto her arse from the impact, but was too panicked to take the time to groan in pain.
"Dr. Granger! You're certainly in a hurry — where are you —"
"No time, Captain America!" she cried, scrambling ungracefully to her feet and preparing to bolt again. Agent Hill simply reached her arm out, barring Hermione from passing.
"What is going on, Dr. Granger? Report," she demanded, leaving no room for disobedience in her voice. Hermione slumped in defeat and pushed at her hair.
"What are the chances that the Frost giants aren't the only realm that Loki's pissed off?" she asked weakly, her eyes searching Agent Hill's. Agent Hill said nothing, went pale as a ghost. Steve rounded on her.
"Why aren't you answering, Agent Hill?" For the first time, Hermione could appreciate that Steve was more than just a sweet-natured buff bloke in a spandex suit. His green eyes were fierce, his square jaw set in determined fury. The veins in his neck were visibly pulsing. Agent Hill licked her lips.
"I don't know anything," she finally began in a somewhat shaken voice, "but I have my suspicions... How did you come to this possibility?"
Hermione looked around in suspicion, before waving her wand. Muffliato. Steve and Agent Hill both looked around in surprise at the sudden subtle buzzing sound.
"For privacy," she explained in a lowered voice. Steve and Maria both stepped closer. "I was talking to Na- to Romanoff today, and she suggested that she agreed we ought to befriend — well, not befriend Loki, really, so much as align with him — instead of turn Loki into our enemy. And there was just something in her eyes when she said it..." Hermione trailed off, rubbing at her hair. Steve worked his jaw.
"There's no way Natasha knows something and isn't sharing it with us," declared Steve finally, shaking his head. "She's on our side, no matter how untrustworthy she may seem."
"Alright, Miss Congeniality," Agent Hill muttered under her breath. Hermione choked in surprise at Agent Hill's uncharacteristic glibness as Steve's eyes widened.
"You don't gain anything from being suspicious of everyone, Agent Hill," he said coldly. Agent Hill shrugged.
"I investigate all possibilities before I draw any conclusions, Captain. It is in my nature — and it's my job." Her eyes hardened. "Do you think Romanoff is a traitor, Dr. Granger?"
Hermione didn't speak right away. She had learned during the war to trust her instincts — but with some caveats. Sometimes, people could surprise you; however, oftentimes, your gut feeling was right.
"No, I don't think so. At least, I doubt it," she finally said. Steve sighed.
"See? If Dr. Granger thinks so too, we must be right." He frowned now, looking anxious. "But if Natasha isn't a traitor...then..."
"Leave it to me," said Hermione. Legilimency against one's will was only illegal in the Wizarding world...and only illegal if anyone found out about it. "I've got to have a meeting with Fury." She pushed past Agent Hill and Steve, who were looking over their shoulders at her in worry.
"If we can help, let us know," called Steve, but Hermione was already rounding the corner.
When Hermione reached the conference room, it was locked, but that was easily solved with a wave of her wand. The door flew open, revealing Fury and Thor. The two men turned in surprise to face her; Thor was garbed in his royal clothing and crown, and he looked more like a king than ever. Hermione slammed the door shut. Petrificus Totalus, she thought, making eye-contact with Fury. Legilimens.
"Lady Granger, what in the name of Mjolnir are you doi—"
"Not now, Thor," Hermione interrupted, holding up her hand. Fury's eyes darted back and forth in his head as he began to tilt backwards, as he was petrified; Hermione stopped him with a wave of her wand.
She probed and probed. She could tell that Fury had some inkling of what was happening to him, but as he was a Muggle, he had no way of stopping it.
And there it was — apparently, Thor had just told Fury that he had received word that Asgard was under threat from another realm. Finite Incantatem.
"What the hell was that, Granger," Fury demanded when he had been released; Hermione did not miss the fact that he had dropped the 'Dr' as he was clearly enraged at her.
"I had to check something," she said briskly. She turned to Thor. "Which realm? Where is Loki?" she asked without preface. Thor's jaw tightened.
"Svartalfheim," he said gravely, his blue-grey eyes flashing dangerously. "And I fear he will not receive kindness from them."
"Do you think he knows it? I mean, do you think he's doing it on purpose?" Her throat was doing a funny tightening that was making it difficult to breathe. She knew, obviously, that Svartalfheim was one of the nine realms, and she could recall reading in her books about it...And if her memory served her well, it was either the realm of the Demons, or the realm of the Dark Elves. She found that she couldn't quite warm to either option.
"That was what I was wondering, Dr. Granger, before you bewitched me," said Fury coldly. "What is it about magical beings, that you don't think twice about exercising your own power over others? You acted a lot like Loki just now."
Hermione set her hands on her hips.
"There is plenty of reason to not trust you one hundred percent, Fury," she retorted. "In case you haven't noticed, we are about to go to war — yet again. There is no time for me to pander to you. We have to stop Loki."
Still, her heart was pounding at what Fury had said, and she turned back to Thor hastily, not wanting to dwell on that thought. It wasn't the first time someone had remarked on her ability to think like a Dark wizard (or, in this case, Dark god.).
"Who knows what my brother is thinking?" Thor wondered. He looked heartbroken for one moment, and then, mastered himself quickly. "The Svartalfheimians are enemies of Midgard, but they are enemies of Asgard as well. If Loki tries to bargain with them, it will not turn out well for him. He may be part Jotun, but everyone knows him as a god of Asgard."
Hermione grabbed the nearest chair and sank into it.
"Will we become allies with him?"
"We are not allying ourselves with Loki, Dr. Granger. I don't know if you heard, but he tried to destroy Earth."
"Yes, and now we have a common enemy. If we can align with Loki, we can perhaps avoid future destruction while saving ourselves from the Svartalfheimians in the meantime," Hermione replied. Thor nodded.
"Lady Granger is right — and this is what I and my advisors came up with as well. It is the best plan, Fury. It's a risk worth taking."
Fury was seething, and he turned away, clenching and unclenching his fists.
"I just can't get past the idea of allying with a man we tried to kill and have been pouring valuable resources into imprisoning," he said through grit teeth. Hermione frowned as Fury rounded on her. "And how did you know about this, anyway? How the hell did you know to come here, now?"
Hermione worked her jaw as she tried to come up with an appropriate explanation. Finally, she let out a sigh.
"Last night, I sensed that Loki was nearby — that he was following me. I knew it wasn't worth it to engage, so I nonverbally cast a tracking spell. It should have revealed his location to me on a bit of parchment that I Charmed — and it would do that for anything, even non-human beings. But the parchment has been blank." Hermione met Fury's eyes. "And I was discussing what happened last time Loki tried to gain power here with Agent Romanoff, and she told me he had allied himself with another realm. I thought there was a chance he might do that again. From there...it was just a bit of guesswork."
Fury was silent for several moments.
"Let me get this straight: you thought you saw Loki, and instead of telling any of us, you cast some magic spell and walked away?" He ran his hand over his bald head, apparently overcome. "You don't even know if you did see Loki. This is literally the stupidest —"
"With all due respect, Fury, that does not matter anymore. The point is that Lady Granger was right, and we have a plan. The Asgardians will try to ally with Loki against the Svartalfheims; I suggest you do the same," said Thor gravely. Fury began pacing.
"Don't act yet — I need to have a meeting with the rest of SHIELD," he finally said.
After several hours of futile arguing, Hermione found herself following Thor to the teleportation room: the room that had been set up for Thor to travel between realms safely.
She was going to Asgard, and, probably, to Svartalfheim.
"Thank you for coming with me, Lady Granger," said Thor as he led her onto the teleportation dais. Hermione shrugged; she was still feeling a bit peaky at the idea of traveling between realms again — and at the prospect of seeing Loki again. She didn't know how to feel, she was in utter turmoil.
"No problem," she said with a dry mouth, though the phrase was absurd in its nonchalance, given everything that was happening. Thor set his hand on her shoulder, and again Hermione felt the peculiar experience of everything fading, as she was transported, particle by particle, to another realm.
They reappeared in the throne room, and the deja vu was startling. Frigga, in her long white robes and her long golden hair, was pacing in front of one of the windows frantically. When she caught sight of Thor and Hermione, she ran towards them to throw her arms around Thor.
"Mother, I'm sorry," said Thor softly, holding her close. He released her, and turned to Hermione. "We are to meet Loki on the bridge between realms now. Come, Lady Granger."
They left Frigga there, by herself, in the throne room, as Thor led Hermione outside of the palace and down along a long, raised road, that glimmered in different colors. It was like solidified rainbow, and was one of the loveliest things Hermione had ever seen. She focused on it, to take her mind off of the thing she was about to do.
The road ended too soon; they were at the bifrost bridge. When they entered the hemispheric shape, they were locked inside.
And then, slowly, Loki materialized before them, bearing his long cloak, his staff, and his gleaming horned helmet. Standing on the raised platform above them, he looked the part of a god, and a fearsome one at that. When he had fully materialized before them, his eyes alighted on Hermione, and a smirk curved his pretty lips.
"Dr. Granger — long time no see," he greeted in a silky voice, his eyebrows flicking upward slightly in recognition. Hermione made a show of rolling her eyes, to hide just how scared she was at the moment.
"Really? I was under the impression we ran into each other yesterday," she said coolly. Loki's eyes flashed, but he remained amused.
"Ah yes. I suppose that was after you ended things with that pathetic man to whom you were betrothed."
"Enough, brother. We have come here to discuss business," interrupted Thor imperiously. Loki scoffed and leisurely, elegantly, stepped down off the dais, his armor clinking and his cloak swirling about him with the movement. He was close enough now for Hermione to touch him.
"Business, eh? You really had the audacity to think you could bargain with me?"
"Actually, it's the other way round, Loki — you are going to have to bargain with us to get you out of trouble with the Svartalfs," Hermione pointed out. "If you align yourself with us, you are more likely to survive, but in exchange, you must end your quest for power. You will not be imprisoned or persecuted as long as you live peacefully, without harming either Asgard or Earth." She paused for effect, her eyes meeting Loki's. His flicked downward, roving over her, and she felt her cheeks grow warm as that odd clenching in the pit of her abdomen happened. It flustered her — she did not want to be so affected by Loki. "If you choose to not become our ally, then you are our enemy, and you are the enemy of the Svartalfs as well. You must know that by now."
Loki stepped backward, holding up his hands.
"So far, being the enemy of Midgard does not seem to have caused me too much trouble, Dr. Granger," he remarked. Hermione snorted.
"Who was it who just had to flee in pain from Mjolnir the other day? Hmm, can't recall," she said flatly. Loki's eyes hardened. In a flash, he was centimetres from her, so close she could feel his breath on her face, his cool, strong hand gripping her chin, his eyes before hers, his lips...so close to hers. Her brain was telling her to put some of Natasha's tricks to use, but her body was telling her something entirely different. Hermione grappled for her wand as Loki drew closer.
"Do not speak of things you cannot—"
"Step away from her, brother." Thor raised Mjolnir now. "Or I will rescind our generous offer."
Loki's fingers tightened on her jaw before, tantalizingly slowly, he released her, his fingertips brushing her skin. Hermione's heart was pounding in her ears as he stepped away, finally. "This is your last chance, Loki."
For one agonizing moment, the two brothers' eyes met, and there again Hermione found that same camaraderie that they had lost, that same private shared mischief that had made them truly brothers. Then it was gone.
Loki's eyes cast back to Hermione, then once more, back to Thor.
"I accept."