Politician George Water is a made up character. Any resemblance with the name and real people is coincidental.
The cat got the canary
The several hours of rest were peaceful and quiet. Loki was sleeping on his back on the sofa with one hand under his head and the other resting on his abdomen. His wide chest was delicately rising and falling, his breathing calm. For a moment in his slumber he felt a soft power entering his head, and gently caressing his mind. He was immediately aware of what was happening.
'Hello Carró.' He smirked, when his measured mental voice caught the other side in surprise. She instantly withdrew, her presence lost.
Her actions were the lightest of mind reading attempt he had ever experienced. It would be absolutely undetectable for a regular human and even for the majority of mind readers, but he had thousands of years of practicing his telepathic skills. Even when exposed to other telepaths he could not only feel them in his head, but also he could deceive them in getting a lot less information from him than they would want. He would lead them through unimportant thoughts that they would find annoying, or even horrific, and would quickly withdraw from his mind. However Caroline was way easier to be scared away. Like a canary would fly away only by the sight of a cat passing by.
. .. .. .. .
Caroline shifted in her bed. She was annoyed. How could he know she was there. She had chosen the possibly most insensible roots of his mind. What was more, he was asleep. People were never aware of what happens with their mind when they were asleep. Oh, but he wasn`t human, was he?
When Caroline entered Loki`s flow of thoughts she wasn`t in search of something in particular. She only wanted to know what this person would think about in the calmest statement of his mind.
He was dreaming. In his dream he was walking next to a bubbly river, and she could see through his eyes. His feet were bare on the soft grass and his shirt was open for the skin of his chest to be caressed by the sun. Water flow filled her ears. They were in a rather wild jungle-like environment. Loki`s steps halted when he reached the end of a cliff, the river going down in a glorious waterfall. He glanced in the distance where ocean waves calmly splashed on a white-sanded beach. Caroline somehow knew this wasn't her world. Loki prepared to jump off the cliff and in the pool below. Suddenly blackness enveloped her, and his voice sounded in her head, 'Hello Carró.'
What kind of nickname was that? And every time he would call her 'little' she would literally feel so. Little Carró. It never sounded sweet from his mouth, but more like diminutive for her self esteem. Caroline gave out a puffing sigh and got up her bed. He was awake now, she could tell. Was he hungry? She went to the mirror. "Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all." She smiled to her reflection and her messy hazel curly hair quickly regained its tidied appearance, and spilled over her female frame. She then went to the wide window in her room and let her gaze dart around the distant New York City buildings.
Meanwhile in the bar hall Loki had tried to stand from the red sofa, and was pleasantly surprised to find that he could. He moved forward to the exit of the hall with a hand in front him, so this time his fingers would feel the damned shield before his forehead.
A soft "Damn." escaped his lips. His fingers tapped the surface of an energy field which kept him inside the hall. He shifted in the other part of the hall and found that he could use his powers inside that shield. He quickly reminded himself of what Caroline had said. His power was in his DNA, an indivisible part of him. Concern crossed his face. Could she really kill him? He knew that the demise of the gods was a possibility. His fists clenched on the sides of his body.
"Having fun?"
Loki turned around to see Tony entering the hall. The god`s eyes immediately darkened. He once had had the chance to get rid of this petty mortal, but he missed it. Now, however, he wouldn't do this mistake again. He instantly shifted towards Stark appearing close enough to strike him with a deadly ball of green light.
Stark quickly ducked behind the bar, calling, "JARVIS, now!"
In an instant his suit flew in the hall ready to defend its creator, but no battle followed. Stark waited for a second and then let himself peep around the bar. There several steps away from him Loki was standing in his full height staring down at an angry Caroline who was dangerously eyeing him with crossed arms on her chest. The view was extremely comical. Stark let out a chuckle before he got on his feet. "What the heck Addison?" At this moment the rest of the Avengers ran inside the hall, armed and ready to fight.
Caroline looked at Stark and started apologetically, "I am sorry Tony. It is my fault he attacked you. Are you ok?" Her forehead wrinkled in worry."I`m good, yes. How did he manage to attack me?" Stark gave Loki a hardened nervously scratched the back of her neck. "I might have given him free access to every end of the hall. I will get him to one of the guest rooms. We cannot keep him in the bar hall. Oh, and from now on the shield will not only restrict him from stepping out of it, but it also will stop anybody from entering it. I didn't figure that one before."
Stark gave her a look of shock and scolded her. "Didn't figure that one? Are you crazy?" He started laughing. "And I entered the place more carelessly than any time before. I guess I am the crazy one after all."
'Or too arrogant for your own good,' thought Loki. Caroline glared back at him and it showed him she was in his mind again. He smiled to himself. This might be interesting. 'Will you show me to my quarters?' He raised an eyebrow at her.
'But of course your Majesty.' She mock bowed to him and turned to Stark.
"I am going to lead him to the only green room you have here. You know the one on the 110th floor." She glanced back at the god of mischief and eyed his green outfit, raising her brows at him. The Trickster nodded in response and she moved forward, followed by him.
"Before you go… Addison don't mentally speak with him. Don't let him get to you." Stark gave her a last strict look and dismissed her with a wave of his hand, a friendly smirk playing on his lips.
Steve raised an eyebrow at Loki, "Yes. Be careful." Caroline wasn't sure if he was warning her or her Avengers followed them with eyes until the Will Master and the god of Mischief were out of sight.
They were now walking the long corridor to the elevators.
'You let him treat you like a child,' came Loki`s amused voice. It was such a purr in her head. It took her a second to assimilate what he had said.
'I know, but he's like a father to me. If you had hurt him…' Her thoughts trailed. She couldn't imagine Tony being murdered because of her own mistake of letting a mad man wander free with a one side closed shield - the perfect trap.
'It would have been your mistake. You are right.' He smirked.
'But then I would have killed you myself.' Her eyes narrowed at him. She stopped and glared at his emerald pools. Loki couldn't approach her, for her shield was restricting him. Yet he leaned forward making the impression of towering over her, while she was two steps away from him. His honey smooth voice echoed in her head again,
'Ooh. Little Carró is getting angry. And would that bring your precious mortal back? No. And it would be even worse when Thor finds about my death. No matter what I do, he will never hate me enough to wish me dead. He will even want to avenge me, as idiotic and impulsive as he is. He is war thirsty. He has always been. Can you imagine how angry he will be if you were to murder his precious little brother? Midgard has never seen anything like Asgardian force before. The petty Avengers will be useless against the mighty warriors of Asgard.'
Caroline lifted her eyebrows in a bored expression and blankly stated, 'You are just afraid that I may be able to kill you.'
'I am only giving you something to think about before you act out like the mindless beast.'
'This is why I silence you Silvertongue. You speak too much nonsense to trick people in believing your ways.'
'And yet you let me speak to you.' His eyes sparkled with smugness, 'You like my voice.'
Caroline instantly closed her mind for him and looked away. Damn this purr of his voice!
Addison continued leading him silently to his room. Loki walked besides her with a victorious smirk. When they reached his future prison she opened the door widely letting him enter before her. She followed him inside the room and closed the door.
"So," she started out loud, "This is going to be your so called quarters. Don`t give me this disapproving look! This is not Valhalla." She went to let light enter the room. "The place is still way bigger than an average bedroom, and looks a lot better than a five star hotel room. You have a very comfortable bathroom over there with everything you need. The bookshelves are quite empty, but I can supply you with some really great books. The wardrobes will be shortly filled with clothes, although…" She stroke her chin looking him up and down. "What size would you be?"
Loki made a writing gesture with his hand and Caroline made a notebook and a pen appear in his hands. He instantly dropped the unneeded pen on the floor and turned the notebook to her. It read,
'You cannot keep me here forever, little Carró.
You are but a mere mortal.
What happens when you die?'
Her eyes widened. She looked in his emeralds, vulnerability flashing through her aventurine green pools. What happens when she is gone? Will the shield keep itself around Loki? No. It wouldn`t. She could feel the god`s constant struggle to gnaw at the energy field, so she needed to renew it every now and then to keep him inside. Maybe she could renew her youth. She had thought of this before – the egotistical want to stay young, which now may turn into a need. Yet she wasn't sure if she could deceive death.
Loki couldn't have been more pleased with her reaction. The vulnerability in her eyes giving out her concern. He felt in control once again, even though, he still couldn't move by his own accord. He had made her worry. His intentions weren't to wait for her to die though. He needed her alive and under his command. Until then he had to break her shields.
Suddenly he felt himself free from the close feeling of the restricting energy field. He looked questioningly at Caroline. She glared back in anticipation. He slowly walked toward her, smiling slyly when he heard her heart pick up its pace. She didn't move from her place, only watched him coming closer and closer. He lifted his hand as if to caress her cheek, but his fingers touched a new shield. It wasn`t around him. This shield was surrounding Caroline`s frame. And he was oh so close to her, his hand stopping millimeters from her skin. He was already imagining the pain he could cause if he actually touched this vanilla skin of hers. She would beg him to end her life. Yet he had to make her let him approach her.
His fingers sensitively slid down the surface of her shield, drawing the forms of her body.
Caroline felt herself inhaling for longer than needed. She made a step backwards, and Loki mirrored her stepping forward and letting his hand fall to his hide. He smiled at her with smug eyes and turned away, grinning to himself, already knowing what her Achilles` heel was. He went to the notebook and turned it to her. It wrote,
'I am going to take a shower, Carró. You are free to join me.
Bring me lamb with vegetables.'
Well, yeah. He was quite the moment killer. Caroline rolled her eyes at him and looked at the table in the room. There already stood the wanted dish, hot and streaming. A pleasant scent caught his nose. He turned the notebook once again toward the young woman in front him.
'I wanted the food after I have showered.
It will be cold when I come out the bathroom.'
Caroline suppressed a growl and turned on her heels walking towards the door. Before she exit the room she said without turning to meet Loki`s gaze, "This room will be your habitat until we decide something else for you. You cannot exit it, and nobody can enter it, except from me. Oh, and don`t worry about the food. It will be warm when you finish with your shower." She exited now Loki`s green room and wished for the door to lock itself.
With a sigh of relief Caroline walked to her office, and started her working day 6 hours later than normal. The phones were heated to fire. Paper documents were hanging off her bureau. She pouted in irritation. Somebody could have sorted the documents after unloading them on her desk. She sat on her office chair, turned it toward the city and took the office phone to check on the missed calls.
Pepper flew in her office. "Caroline? Oh! Thank God you are here! I know you were busy today, but George Water has sent people for you and insists to meet with you."
The other Addison`s eyes widened. "Water? The politician? What the-...?"
"Yes I know. It`s rather strange. Now that you are here, you might want to take some action, because I am on the verge of tears with him." Pepper lifted her brow showing annoyance, and smirked friendly at Caroline before exiting her office.
"Ahh, stress could be a killer," Caroline said to herself before she clicked a button on the office phone. "Brittany," she spoke into the receptor, "give me the contacts of Politician George Water."
"Right away Miss Addison."
It turned out that the said politician had heard about Caroline`s negotiating and assisting skills and had decided to offer her a job as his own assistant with a double salary. The poor man will never know how silly it was to try to buy a Will Master, or do anything to make her leave Stark and Pepper.
After her meeting with the politician, Caroline phoned Tony. "Stark, where are you?"
Club music was coming through the phone. He was definitely having fun somewhere. He was chewing a cocktail olive when he answered, "What do you need Addison?"
"Talk about Loki. He is eating my shield from inside out. Call Thor and meet me at the bar hall in an hour." Tony hung up without saying a word. At least, it meant that he had gotten the message.
She was at Stark Tower in a matter of minutes, her appointment with the politician being in a nearby building. The first place she visited was Loki`s luxurious prison. She wanted to confront him for trying to escape. Well, of course he would try that, but her frustration was coming from the weakness that was creeping up her spine while feeling his constant unstoppable struggle. She had to deal with the blows of his powers all the time. And for how long? She was beginning to feel him slipping away.
Caroline entered his room without knocking only to see the god of Mischief lying on the couch in his birthday suit reading the newspaper. She quickly turned her back to him. Loki smirked, but suddenly felt a silk robe materializing around his body. The cloth nicely tickled his bare skin. His smirk turned into a smile. Mortal people and their fear of nakedness.
Addison turned to look at him and was satisfied with the look of the night gown on him. It was black, opened on his wide chest and his strong legs. The end of it hanging from the couch. Just the way she had imagined it. Why did she imagine it that way?
Loki also looked at himself and gave Caroline an almost curious look with a raised eyebrow, though it seemed more like a knowing smoulder gaze, while watching her entering the room more and sitting on an armchair across from him.
When his visitor spoke, she sounded concerned. "Loki you can speak. Tell me what you are doing."
He smirked. But didn't say anything. He wanted to try and angry her. Caroline felt irritation build in her. If he wasn't going to speak, then she will take the information herself. She willed her mind enter his head, but she wasn't prepared for what happened next. Usually when reading somebody`s mind, she could see her actual environment and even have a normal talk with another person if needed, while her inner eyes and ears would see memories, and hear thoughts from the person her mind is reading.
This time, however, deep blackness surrounded her. What happened? Fear crept her spine. Her skin pricked. A well-known baritone voice sounded in her ear in almost a whisper. 'The cat got the canary. Welcome to my world, little Carró.'
She wished the darkness away, but it didn't work. Loki`s laughter echoed around her. "Your powers are useless here. Now, let us finish what we started. Fight me!"
Caroline`s eyes widened in shock when she saw a green energy ball flying towards her. She tried to send it back to Loki as a counter attack, but the ball clashed with her anyway. She flew to the floor. Addison's heart rate was rising. She looked at her hands with searching eyes. What was happening? Why would her talent betray her just now?
Loki`s laughter sounded in her ears again and the next words of his were pure hiss, filled with poison. "Feeling weak? Your little shield not working anymore? You must have known better than to try to overpower me, the god of Mischief."
And the thought hit her. Of course her powers wouldn't work. She was in his mind and he was in hers, her whole consciousness swallowed by him. Yet her true body was unharmed, but if he stayed in her mind for long he might be able to break her shields from inside out.
Still lying on the blackness she said aloud, "There is only one God, Loki, and he doesn't dress like you." She willed their minds to separate and it worked.
When Caroline finally felt her mind one with her body, she looked around and was met by the Trickster`s angry gaze. Her back was leaning on the wall behind her. She never felt herself standing from the armchair. Loki was towering over her, his hands propped on the wall on both sides of her head. Only her shield was keeping him from doing anything to her. She was angry too, but before she could say anything, her phone went off. Unceremoniously she pushed him away with a blow which almost knocked him from his feet.
Caroline looked at the name on the screen and held the phone to her ear, "I am coming up Stark."
Tony`s casual voice sounded on the other side of the line, "Yeah, you'd better come already. There`s an idea formed here which you might strongly dislike."
'Mortal people and their fear of nakedness.' Well? How would you react if there was a very nude Loki before you?
