Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Loki or Sasori.

Day 07

His head was spinning.

Not even noon yet, Thor had found himself dealing with so many things (arguing with Loki, almost eaten by wolves, being controlled by a creepy doctor), and was now quite exhausted by all this Midgardian drama.

Unfortunately, after leading him out, the doctor did not cease his control over his motor functions. Instead, the man directed him to an empty room padded with a soft, squishy cushion, with the door that closed behind them lined with steel.

His muscles, which had been tightly coiled and tensed throughout its duration under the doctor's control, suddenly relaxed. Testing his now mobile fingers and legs, Thor turned to see Dr. Akasuna seating himself on the ground, comfortably crossing his legs.

Taking off his glasses, Dr. Akasuna patted the floor beside him. "Please," he said, again patting his hand on the floor when Thor did not move. "Sit. We have much to discuss, and I am not overly fond of the idea of having to crane my neck to your superhuman height."

Thor was sorely tempted, now that he had regained control of his body, to strike this man down with Mjolnir. But the glittering intelligence in the doctor's amber eyes made him hesitate.

As much as he wanted to refuse the offer, his fear of the return of the cool phantom strings stealing away again the controls of his body, significantly outweighed the pros relative to the cons of the action.

If Loki were privy to the details of his mind at that moment, Thor thought Loki would have found himself amused by the fact that he was using his wits rather than his brawns.

I will concede. For now.

Setting Mjolnir on the ground, Thor warily sat down.

"What discussion do you have in mind?" he asked, his hand still on Mjolnir's handle. It was firm and comforting presence underneath his palm.

"A discussion in regards to Loki, of course."

Thor frowned. He figured as much. "What of my wayward brother?" he asked, thinking back of his brother in his cell earlier. "SHIELD have told me you have been attempting to heal him, yet I find him to be even more disassembled than before."

"Thor Odinson," the Midgardian doctor began in a placid voice, lacing his fingers together. "Healing, especially of the mind takes time and patience. Loki is...a difficult case, whether the problem stems from his long life span or the love-hate relationship with his family, both biological and adopted, I cannot say. Trust must be build between us before any real healing can happen."

Thor blinked. "Trust? You are surely jesting?" But Dr. Akasuna only gave a levelled look in response, no indication of having implied a joke in his earlier statement.

"Trust?" Thor repeated, this time in a disbelieving tone. "Have Loki trust you? Doctor, you would fare better trying to track down and kill ten Bilgesnipe within a week than have Loki trust you. He is known for his title as the God of Lies for a reason. Loki trusts no one but himself."

"Ah, and yet after a mere five days, I have already established a trust with Loki, however fragile it may be." Dr. Akasuna said as he pushed up his glasses. "There were many opportunities for him to harm me but he chose, in the end, not to. So, it safe for me to say that we have made good progress."

"Ridiculous," Thor replied, still in a state of disbelief, refusing to acknowledge the sudden aching in his chest. "Y-you must be lying."

"Only those deeply rooted in their self-denial would resort to blaming others," Dr. Akasuna admonished lightly. He looked at his watch. "Enough. We have completely digressed from what I originally brought you here to discuss. I will get straight to the point."

"Thor Odinson," he began in a heavy, unaffected tone. "I must expressly forbid you from visiting Loki. After today's events we can both see that you are quite detrimental to his healing."

Thor, obviously, would not stand for this. "I refuse," he retaliated, without hesitation. "Loki is my brother," Thor argued. "You cannot just forbid me from seeing him. He is lost and misguided, he needs his family. He needs me!"

One moment he was sitting upright, the next moment his back was flat against the floor, an open palm hovering over his face. Thor struggled to get up, but it quickly proved to be futile. Once again, he was reduced to a mere puppet, with the doctor his puppeteer.

"It is embarrassingly easy how I could overpower you, the mighty Thor, like this," Dr. Akasuna commented off-handedly. If Thor could move, he would have flinched when he suddenly felt a cool finger tracing a non-existent path around his throat, circling lazily around his Adam's apple. "It begs one to wonder how Loki continuously fails to kill you."

Thor gritted his teeth. "You scheming little underhanded warlock. Release me this instant," he demanded, his electric blue eyes flashing with a promise of a violent thunderstorm. "Or I will-"

"Or you will what?" Dr. Akasuna said in a bored tone, harshly bringing his face closer to his. "Kill me?" the redhead asked, a wide mocking smile on his face. "Better men than you have already tried and failed, Thor Odinson. And all of them met the same fate. Would you like to join them?" the doctor asked innocently, his head tilted to one side in a bird like manner.

"I-"

"No? Than I suggest," although, the steel threat laced into his words made it sound like it was anything but a suggestion, "That you be silent and listen very carefully to what I am about to say, Son of Odin."

It was easy enough, Sasori supposed as he entered the coffee shop, White Buttons; a simple yet classy establishment quite renowned this side of New York City; to have deduced the rendezvous point. After all, it is a well-known fact among the locals that the patrons here all wore dark tinted sunglasses, and whatever for would they needed within indoors if to hide their distinctive pearly white eyes from the ignorant populace.

The Hyuga, he recalled, were a powerful clan armed with their special eyes and unique fighting style. They are regarded as the elite among elite; the magical potency rivalling those from other big clans such as the Uzumaki and Uchiha, to name a few.

Though, he contemplated as he sipped his hot Jasmine tea, if this meeting were to head south, he was confident that he would be able to defeat them. After all, his moniker, Akasuna no Sasori, was not just some fancy name.

Light tinkling of bells drew his attention to the door. Chest heaving and cheeks flushed red from, what he assumed, running, Haruno Sakura entered the shop with as much grace as an elephant dancing in a ballroom.

Deliberately, he set his teacup on the saucer with a distinctive clink. "You're late," he said blandly, clasping his fingers. "I hate people who keeps me waiting."

Sakura, who had practically collapsed on the chair opposite him, puffed her cheeks. "Well, not everyone's lives revolve around your rules, old man," she said, waving down a waitress. "I would like a cup of coffee please. Black, no sugar."

The waitress noted it down on her pad. "Is that all?"

"Yes, thank you." After the waitress left, she turned to the redhead. "I'll be frank," she said, not attempting to make small talk. "When you left the Akat-, I mean, that organization, three years ago, the situation within our circle had further deteriorated. I am quite sure that you had already notice the unusual amount of magical residues in the air."

Sasori nodded. "Yes, I presume it to be Deidara's work," he commented, stirring his tea. "Those clay bird creations of his are good at disseminating magical spells over large populated areas. However, I do not see the concern over this. What he has been doing hardly resembles casting a spell, much less posses a threat."

"That's what we first thought too," Sakura said grimly, drumming her fingers on the table. "But the layers are getting heavier and heavier each day. It is obvious they are planning something but we do not know what. However, we have a speculation."

"A speculation? Deducing from the fact that you had contacted me in the first place, I believe this speculation somehow involves me. Correct?"

Sakura smirked. "I would imagine that you and Nara would get along fabulously," she teased, before returning to her business-like demeanour. "But yes. We have reason to believe that they are targeting your patient, the war criminal, Loki."

After hearing her words, Sasori could not help but arched an eyebrow. "What on earth could they do with him?" he questioned bemusedly, somehow finding the situation less dire than it was a seconds before. It was becoming ridiculous. "Is Pein still the leader, or has he been replaced by a stupid child with cotton stuffed deep within his brain? Because they are complete fools if they think they could achieve world domination by controlling that arrogant, self-destructive megalomaniac," Sasori scoffed. "It's more likely they would end up killing themselves with their own stupidity."

The pink-haired girl blinked at him. "...you seem very unconcerned about this. And confident that their plans wouldn't work-"

"Darling, I was one of the brains behind that little group. Without me, I doubt they could even run a circus right," was his haughty reply.

"Right. So, are you saying that the Council shouldn't be worried about this?" Sakura asked, needing further clarification. "That for the past three years we have been worrying over nothing?"

Sasori sniffed, resuming to stirring his now lukewarm tea. "Of course not. Even without an ounce of intelligence in most of them, they are still powerful thick headed brutes. You and the Council would be idiots to dismiss them as completely harmless and non-threatening."

Sakura was growing frustrated from the mixed replies she was getting. It showed on her face when she scowled. "Well, what do you propose we do, old man?" she snapped, flashing her abnormally pointy teeth. "As a former member, there must some information you might have to give us a way to exploit their weaknesses and stop them from carrying out whatever the hell their plan is!"

"I propose nothing," he said, without hesitation. Sasori held up a hand to prevent from speaking. "Let me finish, girl. If my extended interaction with them had served to teach me anything, I am positive that they will not launch a full scale attack anytime soon. As incredulous as it seems, Pein has one weakness; his unlimited supply of patience. That man honestly does not know when it is the right time to act. It could be years until he chooses to act."

"However," Sasori said, his shoulders rising and falling as he shrugged. "These are just mere assumptions. So I have decided that while the Council may titter away amongst themselves about setting up their various strategies, to I delegate myself to guarding the war criminal."

"Y-you can't do that!" Sakura protested, slapping a hand on the table. She ignored the looks from the other customers. "The Council has already appointed me to guard him!"

"The Council actually appointed you," Sasori repeated, slowly. As if the entire idea was absurd. Which it was. "Temperamental, impulsive and infamous rule bender, Haruno Sakura. To guard a war criminal known widely for his misogynist tendencies." He shook his head as soft bubbling laughter erupted within him. "Ha, you're more likely to end up murdering your charge instead."

Said aforementioned hot headed girl flushed in anger as he continued to laugh at her. Abruptly standing up, she gathered her things, and before leaving gave him a flat look. "I have gathered all I need to know. I will now take my leave a there is no more for us to discuss," she said, in a clipped tone.

Sasori cupped his chin, half-lidded eyes observing as rose from her chair. "What about your coffee?"

It was comical watching her restrain herself. "A-Another time then. You can have it if you want. I'll pay you back when we next see each other." She tilted her head in a slight bow. "Thank you for your cooperation."

"Anytime, darling," Sasori called after her, smirking when he saw her bristle at the endearment.

The bell tinkled agitatedly as the door was promptly opened and closed.

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