Consciousness hit Loki hard. It felt like a blow to his spine that made it difficult to breathe. He gasped for air, filling his lungs bit by bit until he was able to breathe normally once more. Any sort of movement proved to be difficult. Each time he attempted it, shocks of electricity spread out from his back to every part of his body. He gritted his teeth hard when he tried to sit up, feeling like he once did when Thor accidentally shocked him with Mjolnir.

After much struggling, Loki gave up and remained laying down, staring helplessly at the white ceiling. He didn't pray so much as make demands for the ability to at least sit up but those demands were left unanswered and Loki was left bitter. He scowled to himself, wishing he could fall back into the dark unconscious until he was fully healed, when he heard the door to his left creak open.

He turned his head to look and instantly regretted it, especially because he couldn't see the door anyway. He held back his growl of frustration and resigned himself to staring at the ceiling once more. Clunky footsteps reached his ears as they practically stomped toward his bed.

"Steve, have you awakened?" Thor's voice asked.

"For the moment," Loki replied, defeat in his tone.

"You are healing well. Banner has said that you will be completely healed within the next day or two."

"It doesn't feel like it," he groaned, trying to turn his head again so that he could see Thor. He smiled down at him with a beam as bright as the sun. Loki frowned.

"Your powers are repairing you efficiently," Thor replied optimistically. "Banner is a trustworthy man."

"More like a monster," Loki exhaled under his breath.

"Did you speak?"

"No, just exhausted."

"Understandably so. You are a mighty warrior. Your wounds would have felled any other man."

"At this point, I'd just like to be able to sit up," Loki said, grumbling.

Thor laughed. "Soon, my friend. 'Til then, rest."

Loki sighed and nodded before pausing in thought. "Wait a moment before you leave."

"Yes, what is it?"

"At the end of the battle, you called me brother."

Thor looked at Loki curiously, searching his face. "I meant nothing of it. Just that I consider you to be as close to me as a brother."

Loki's brow furrowed, but he nodded again, accepting his answer. Thor smiled and clapped him on the shoulder before turning to leave.

"Rest and be well, Captain."

In the next moment, Thor had slipped through his bedroom door and Loki was alone again. He felt useless in his injured state, unable to move forward with his plan. He huffed, blowing air out of his nose like a raging bull before deciding to pass the rest of his healing time with sleep. He forced his eyes closed and tricked his body into rest so he didn't have to suffer the boring waking hours.


In a dark corner of the city, huddled away and shaking from something other than the cold, Steve stared down at the blood soaked scepter in his hands. His heart was still pounding against his ribs from the battle even though it had been many hours since then. In all that time, ever since he found himself in Loki's body, he had yet to sleep. The power and adrenaline running through him could keep him going for days.

He could feel the remnants of his rage, the pure hate that caused him to hurt Loki like that. That's what kept him shaking like a brittle leaf in the fall wind. That and the sight of the blood. Proof of the pain he caused. He'd seen it so many times before but it had never been drawn from anger, especially that which had affected him so deeply.

His knuckles were white and aching from holding onto the weapon so tightly for as many hours as he'd been away from battle. It seemed to hold onto him rather than he to it. Steve closed his eyes and shook his head, wishing he didn't have to see it anymore when he felt as if the scepter had slipped from his tightly clasped hands. When he opened his eyes, the scepter was gone, vanished into thin air. Another perk of the magic, he thought.

The scenery around him was unfamiliar. He hadn't looked where he'd gone; he just ran. Once freed from the tesseract-powered weapon, he realized that he was lost in the city. He figured he could find his way back to familiar ground eventually but what would be the point? He no longer had a home.

Loki stole it away from him. He—Steve paused, his hands curled into shaking fists as that rage burned hot within him again. He swallowed hard, choking back his feelings until he could unclench his fingers. In a breath, he exhaled his emotions and relaxed against the building at his back.

He pushed himself to his feet, anger in check, and surveyed the street around him. The sun had fallen below the horizon while he'd been in his stupor and the moon was at its crest. The street itself was not abandoned but it was sparsely decorated with a few passing people. Steve remained hidden well enough in the gap between two buildings but he was exposed to any passersby.

A young couple, holding hands and wrapped up for the cold, were quickly approaching his hiding spot. His heart picked up its pace when he noticed, almost to the point of hurting. Any emotion he seemed to have felt heightened in Loki's body as it shouted at the magic within him to assist its new and inexperienced driver. He could feel the power flare up, rushing throughout his body and across his flesh like cold water.

He shuddered at the feeling as the night air made him colder, seeping through the Asgardian armor. Within a few moments, the water-like feeling dried up, warming him again, just as the unsuspecting couple started to pass by. Steve tried to press himself against the wall, but he was still exposed as the young man turned to look over.

Steve expected him to react, well, in some way, but he didn't react at all. He scanned the area and then looked down at his girlfriend as if he'd seen nothing. Confusion was an old friend at this point as he looked down at his hands. He could see the body he wore, but was it possible no one else could? Steve stepped out of the shadows and into the street, stalking after the couple. He ran out in front of the two, keeping the pace while walking backward as he wildly waved his arms. Neither of them saw him. They kept walking, oblivious to his existence.

He stepped out of their path and leaned back against the nearest wall, trying to wrap his head around Loki's magic. Somehow, he'd made himself invisible. He could go anywhere unseen. As he looked up at the night sky and thought about what exactly he could do with that, Steve realized all he wanted to do was sleep. So, he dragged his feet through the streets, looking for an empty place with a warm bed for the night.


Unconsciousness stole Loki away quickly and held onto him for a long time, feeding him a dreamless sleep to keep him peaceful. When his own body seemed to softly nudge him out of it, he could practically taste the midday sun on his tongue. The curtains behind him were open, spilling the rays into the room, almost blinding him as he opened his eyes. His hands shot up to cover his eyes in shade before he realized what that movement meant. It slowly dawned on him as he put one hand down on the mattress and pushed himself up into a sitting position. He could finally move and it felt like freedom.

His mostly healed back still groaned in protest a little with each pull of the muscles but it was nothing he couldn't bear. He tossed the covers off of his legs, exposing his body, bare save for a pair of boxers. Staring down at foreign features was still slightly disorienting but he recovered quickly, swinging his legs off of the side of the bed.

He gripped the edge of the mattress with both hands and stretched his back out, feeling the tightness of freshly formed scar tissue. It hurt wonderfully as he rolled his neck, working out all the stiffness he could. Once the pain dulled down, he pushed himself up to stand and walked carefully over to the bathroom to examine the damage to his back.

For such a heavy body, he padded softly to the bathroom door and opened it to the white-tiled room. He didn't need to turn on the light as the light from the bedroom seemed to irradiate the tiles. After stretching out his muscles once more, he stood with his back facing the mirror as he turned to look over his shoulder.

Loki instantly paled at the sight, all the blood rushing from his face as his heart stopped for a moment. He stared at the scar that ran down his back along his spine. The bottom of it started a couple inches above the waistband of his boxers and it ran jaggedly upward until it ended just above his shoulder blades. That wasn't what made him feel so ill.

It was the marking between his shoulder blades, the intricately woven pattern that had once glowed bright green. Instead, it was a dead black, like a tattoo, and was run through the middle with the shiny pink line of a scar, interrupting the design and any magic it once held. All of the spell's power had vanished, the link between his soul and his own body severed. There was no way of switching back.

Loki shook his head and pressed his hands over his eyes. He rubbed them hard until he could see spots in the dark behind his eyelids, as if trying to wipe away the truth from his retinas. He dropped his hands and looked over his shoulder once more, disappointed when he still saw the lifeless mark that trapped him within Steve Rogers.

He swore under his breath, the old language slipping off the tongue as if it had never left. He wanted to say worse, to do worse, but he couldn't. At least he couldn't in any sort of extravagant manner. The whole mess needed to be rectified, he just had to figure out how, and being trapped inside Captain America's body gave him all the time in the world in the worst way possible.

The first course of action would be to somehow get Steve to contact him. Steve had the magic and Loki had the knowledge. If they both cooperated, it could easily be fixed. Yet, his whole plan would be down the drain. He hadn't even begun to upset the Avengers' structure and he would immediately be captured upon switching back. No, he had to plant a seed of chaos before he even thought about leaving Steve's body. He just needed the right moment. The soil, sunlight, and water.