"Run, run, run away, buy yourself another day,
A cold wind's whispering secrets in your ear;
So low only you can hear."
-The Civil Wars, "Kingdom Come."
When Paisley Reynolds awoke, she felt as if she'd been sleeping for years. She hadn't been able to regain consciousness in her dreams, which had become overrun with Loki once more. She sat up, a bit too fast, wincing as a sharp pain hit her chest. Her head throbbed, but it was dull compared to the pain of the previous night. Had it all been the previous night? She had no clue. But there was one thing that she did know- she had to find Loki. He'd said he was going to offer her something she'd never be able to refuse, and in her more recent dreams, he'd told her he was ready to make his bid. She felt strangely compelled to find out what it was, but at the same time, she grew hesitant. It was Loki, after all.
Someone entered, and she looked up to them, realizing her glasses were gone. Her light blonde hair fell down her back, which was clothed in some sort of oversized t-shirt. "You're awake," a female voice greeted pleasantly.
"Natasha," Paisley sighed, giving a slight wave. "What's going on?"
The Russian chortled, pulling a stool up beside her teammate's cot. A miniature monitor beeped steadily as per Paisley's heartbeat. "You've been out for a good two days."
The blonde's eyes widened. "No way."
"I'm afraid so. You had a simple concussion, but you slept a lot longer than normal. You also have a couple of broken ribs, so I'd lie back down if I were you." Agent Romanoff warned.
Paisley grunted in frustration, obstinately staying in her same position. "I feel fine." She shrugged off the warning, and Natasha rolled her eyes. Something was nagging at the redhead, and Paisley had a feeling she knew exactly what.
"Was it really… Did Clint attack you?" She asked, her voice blasé as if she didn't care. Paisley knew she did, though. Natasha had that fondness for Agent Barton that the blonde also had, but she couldn't help but feel there was a bit more to those two. They were of the same breed.
She felt sad nodding in a yes. She knew Natasha would be hurt by the fact. "I see," she sighed. "I'm just glad you're okay. You really could have died. Hell, even Stark was worried about you." She laughed.
"He better have been, damn it." Paisley shook her head. "If he was such a genius, he should have known there was a freaking fault line right under the factory." Natasha laughed a little harder, and stood from the spot.
"Get some rest, Reynolds. You need to get back up to caliber."
Paisley nodded, a wry smile on her face. "Gotcha, Romanoff."
Her fellow agent left, and she took a deep breath. Okay, so broken ribs and stuff, she had to be in the small clinic they had aboard the ship. That wasn't very far from Loki's holding cell; in fact, it was just at the opposite end of the same hall. She slid her legs out of the bed, regaining her balance as she nearly fell. She felt like Jello. With each step she took, she felt the pang of that broken rib or two. Ouch. She unclipped the monitor attachment from her finger, a loud, stagnant beep acting like she'd had some sort of heart attack.
The t-shirt she wore went down to a few inches above her knees; it was more like a baggy nightgown. She almost wondered where or who they'd gotten it from, but decided it'd be better not to ask. Nobody was around, she could tell, so she wandered down. Okay, where was it…? Should be about forty-three paces… aha.
The entrance to the god of mischief's cell slid open, and she stepped in. He was silent this time, and didn't vocally address her when she shut the door behind them. She could feel his piercing gaze on her, his smile basically speaking for itself. "Loki," she nodded to him, walking to stand in front of the cage.
"Hello," he smirked, "you have returned."
She frowned, standing her ground. "I'm disappointed to say that I have."
"Then why did you?"
Good question… "Y-you know full well why. You keep calling me here, saying you have an offer for me."
He chuckled. "Oh, that. I'm quite surprised you'd even consider it. I thought you agents had a code of conduct to follow."
"Get down to business or I'm leaving." She ordered, jaw set.
He puffed, face set in a mock frown. "You're quite the demanding mortal, are you not?" She scowled, and turned. "All right. I am prepared to make you this offer."
"Hm?"
His smile materialized back on his face. "Turn around."
When she did, he narrowed his eyes in concentration, summoning up the magic he knew so well. Paisley doubled over, a sudden pain exploding in her head. "Wh-the hell are you doing? This oracle shit again?!" She shrieked, and he did not answer. Her eyes burned. He furrowed his brow, the process taking more out of him than he realized it would.
Paisley thought she was going to die, the pain was so intense. She crumpled to the floor, stomach heaving. It continued on for minutes, until Loki took his concentration away. She had her eyes covered with her hands, feeling as if they'd literally been set on fire. "Open them." He grinned weakly, though his voice still held that hypnotic, powerful commodity, no matter how his body felt. She did just as he'd said, wincing at the bright light that filtered in. She didn't know what was happening until she focused on something, forming from the brilliant white glow. Loki. She could see the god. His devil's leer caused her to stop dead in her motion, eyes wide. She could see. "How do you like my gift?"
"T-take it away." She immediately snapped, and he jeered. After over seven years, this was not the first sight she wanted to see!
He shook his head, bright eyes boring in to hers. "Oh, but you wouldn't want that, would you?"
Tears began to form. She could see her reflection in the class of the cage, and outlined were those familiar green eyes she'd been born with. They weren't a bit different from what she remembered. "N-I mean it! Quit playing with me!" She yelled, averting her gaze. She didn't want to see them. No, she didn't want them. She'd been happier without them, right?
"You can keep them, but for a price." He practically purred.
She shook her head, looking up to the god. "I don't want them."
"Are you sure about that?" He snarled, "this is no way to accept such an endowment. I believe a thank-you is in order."
She shook her head, harder. "No, no, no!" The light began to smear the images, a sharp pain resounding from her sockets. And suddenly, it was all gone. Like a light switch had been turned off, everything was dark again. He heart raced, and the paid faded away.
"Very well then," Loki sighed, frowning.
She took a minute of rest and silence before she stood back up, one of her knees scraped by the hard metal floor. She turned, almost intent on leaving without saying a single word to the manipulative god. She paused before opening the door, turning her head to him. "What… what would the price have been, had I kept my sight?"
"Nothing too hard, simply your undying allegiance," he evaluated.
She hesitated. Would it really be too bad...? Ugh, who was she kidding? Damn him! "Rot in hell."
She punched in the code, and the doors slid open. "'Tis a shame, then. Your pathetic life would become glorious at my side."
Paisley scoffed, a smile finding its way on her face, covering up the previous shock. "Glorious, my ass. Have fun being a prisoner."
His presence was once more sealed away with the closing of those heavy, steel doors. She exhaled in relief, heading back down along the hall to the clinic room. Hopefully, no one had noticed her ab-
"What do you mean, she ran away?" Tony Stark asked in annoyance. "How far could an annoying blonde with broken ribs and a concussion get?"
Paisley chortled, a small smile forming. Of course, he'd phrase it like that. "I'm right here." She crossed her arms, and he looked back at her in shock. "Who's the annoying one, again?"
"You have broken ribs! Get in to bed." A nurse hurried her along, and she blinked, finding herself tucked in like a burrito less than thirty seconds later. "Honestly," the woman huffed. "When you left, the heart monitor claimed you dead! We all had a bit of a scare."
"S-sorry…" She muttered, squirming against her one-thousand thread count restraints. Now that she thought about it, her ribs really did hurt.
The nurse walked out, muttering unintelligibly, as Tony strolled in laughing. "Jesus, Reynolds, you look like sushi."
She scoffed. "Well, way to boost a girl's self-esteem."
He grinned, sitting on the stool that'd earlier been pulled up by Natasha. "In all honesty, kid, you scared everyone. Where'd you go?"
"Kid?" She asked, jaw dropping. "First off, I'm twenty-five. I'm no kid. Secondly, it doesn't matter where I went. Third, why do you care?"
He rolled his eyes, pulling a hand through his dark hair. Why'd she have to be so damn stubborn? "Because… Look, I don't need to explain myself." He frowned, and she laughed. "Just don't play the disappearing act again."
She nodded, mock saluting him. "Gotcha," Paisley mumbled. She had no plans to go back to Loki; truly, she was scared of him. The stunt he had pulled, with giving her sight back, terrified her. It wasn't the act itself that made her so weak-kneed. It was the fact that she'd considered taking it all back. Even with being told she'd have to follow him, she had wanted it, for that one split second. For one moment, she'd wished to go back on all the progress she'd made these past seven or eight years. And that truthfully, sincerely petrified her.
"What's wrong?" Tony asked, noting her quick change in expression.
She shook her head, wanting anything but to explain her situation to him. "Nothing."
"Yeah, I'll believe that when my factories start manufacturing silly putty. What's up?"
"You're persistent." She frowned. "It's nothing, I swear."
He was actually trying to be friendly, and then she acted like such an intractable mule… "Whatever. But I'm not leaving, anyways."
Paisley chortled. "Have fun with that. I'm napping."
And nap she did. Or, so Tony thought. She'd slipped on a pair of sunglasses that Tony had brought, and he couldn't really tell if she was awake or not. He'd been determined to wait her out and badger the hell out of her upon awakening, but time dragged on. In all reality, Paisley had tried to sleep. But, trying and actually doing something were two entirely different concepts. She closed her eyes, not feeling anything come to her. Maybe if she kept at it, it'd happen. Nope. Let's try again? Sure. An hour passed, and she was damn near ready to give up, when Stark shifted beside her. She'd almost forgotten his being there. There was a tug on her hair, and she nearly moved to check it out. But, that's right, she couldn't see whatever was happening. It would have been useless anyways.
Absent-mindedly and beyond bored, Tony twirled the vibrant blonde strands around his fingers. He furrowed his brow in thought; when this was all over, he'd go back to Stark Tower, or maybe back to his place in Malibu. He'd go back to being Iron Man. He'd go back to Pepper. However, about a week with this ticking time bomb of a team had changed a bit of perspective- not that he'd let any of that shine through. He'd developed a bit of a respect for the Captain, despite how secretly jealous he was about the time spent with his father. He'd grown what he hoped would make a lasting friendship with Bruce Banner. He'd never get tired of the constant competition between him and Thor. He'd also greatly enjoyed the borderline sexual harassment he'd put the redhead assassin through, though he hoped there wouldn't be a seminar waiting when he got back. Tony chuckled, flicking the golden hair back over her face. She had too much of it, Paisley did.
Oh, Agent Reynolds. She was quite… unique? He didn't know how to put it. They were very similar creatures; the two both used sarcasm like Captain America used his trusty shield. They were both damaged in ways… hell, him more so than her- at least, he thought so. But, he felt a loose connection to her, and he didn't really want to give all of it up to go back to being, well, Tony Stark- Iron Man. Surreptitiously, he really did prefer Tony Stark- Avenger.
Okay, odd. Tony'd been caressing her hair for a good ten minutes, and Paisley was starting to wonder. "What on earth are you doing?" She asked him, conceding that she'd never, ever get to sleep.
"Oh, you're up." He retreated, and she sat up as well as she could in her wrap.
"Um, yeah. What were you doing?" She questioned again, per lack of response.
He yawned, leaning away a bit, and shrugged. "Just thinking." She looked over at him, brow furrowed. He was such a strange man. A few minutes passed before he spoke back up. "Paisley?"
"What?"
He sighed, inspecting her glossy white eyes. "How'd you go blind?"
The only other person who had ever been bold enough to ask her had been Clint Barton. She gave him a curious look, raising a brow. "Why do you want to know?"
"Just do, I guess."
Fair enough... "I was seventeen. I got a tumor," she tapped her head, a distant expression on her face. "We honestly had no clue, until the day I fell down and blacked out in the middle of school. When I woke up, I'd gone blind. It was really bad, the tumor... inoperable. They put me on chemo and radiation; I was like the classic patient, I guess. All my hair went, and I haven't been able to cut it since. But, uh, I got lucky. The radiation and such shrunk it down, and they were able to get it out surgically. When I woke up, I could just hear everything. It was like the surgery tapped in to another part of me. They couldn't reverse the blindness, but they found that I'd somehow maximized my auditory system.
"The hospital bills ruined my family. They couldn't afford to put me through school anymore, and shortly after, they got a divorce. I went to live my mom, but it never really worked out. We lived here, in New York. I met that guy that tried to kill us in the power plant- Clint- one day, when I'd decided to run off. Things led to things. I think my family thinks I'm dead, but I'm not really sure if I care." She finished, and Tony watched her closely. He'd had no idea that she even went through all of that. It almost reminded him of when he'd been poisoned by the Palladium in his old arc reactor; he'd gone through all the 'I'm going to die' feelings, too.
Paisley had almost forgotten all of her old, deeply buried pain. But, explaining to Tony most of what happened made her remember that long while before she'd gotten her hearing ability. She'd wanted to just die. She nearly killed herself, and hadn't cared. She felt desolate.
"What color were your eyes?" Tony asked, furrowing his brow. He went through a mental list of different shades, trying to imagine her in all of them.
She smiled lightly, thinking back to that moment when she'd seen her eyes in Loki's cage. Suddenly, she thought of it as a good moment, rather than something scary. "Green. Kind of hazel, but mostly green."
He nodded, "I see it." Yeah, it fit her. His phone beeped, a message from Bruce. He was needed back at the lab; he'd been at the clinic with Paisley for nearly two hours. "I have to get back. I'll see you later," he told her, standing. He headed straight for the door, not expecting anything more from her.
"Wait, I have a question." She sat up further, hoping to stop him.
He paused, leaning in the doorway. "What's up?"
Her curiosity had finally gotten the best of her. She furrowed her brow, trying to imagine how the man looked. He couldn't be over six feet tall; not too muscled, but not really flabby either. She couldn't pinpoint specifics or colors, but she saw him with some dark shade of hair. Blue eyes? Mayyybe. "If I could see right now, what would I see?"
He tilted his head to the side. "What do you mean?"
"Hm… I guess... I don't know. Are you a redhead? Does Thor have a mohawk? Natasha told me Steve looked like a professional weightlifter, just extra American…"
Tony chortled, scratching his head. "Well, if you must know, Thor looks like a younger, less-tanned Fabio. That depiction of Steve is pretty correct. Banner's a real simple guy, and I think he likes to wear purple. Me? I'm the most handsome man you'll ever meet in your entire life. Dark, robust locks, stylish facial hair, a chocolate-eyed wink that's to die for…" He chuckled as she let a giggle escape.
"I highly doubt that." She grinned, and he shrugged.
"I dunno. If you ever gain your sight back, you may just fall right in love with me. It happens. I honestly can't help it."
She shook her head in protest. "That would never, ever happen. You'd fall for me before I fell for you. But it'd suck, because then I'd have to reject you. I could see it now; you'd never get over me. A tragedy, it'd be." They both held guarded smirks, and she wished she could see his.
Yes, she was different. He definitely appreciated it, having someone he could talk so openly to. And who knew? Maybe he'd never have to go back to that empty lifestyle he held. Maybe, just maybe, things would be different after all of this blew over. He said a soft goodbye, slipping out. Paisley faced that door for what seemed to be ages, before realizing fully what was on her mind.
She wanted, very badly, to see again.
Hey, y'all, here's the second update I promised! I really like this chapter, as it starts to bring in Paisley's major conflict in the series. This chapter also showcases some of Tony's perspective, and ushers in a softer side of Paisley and Tony's friendship. This story will continue past the movie setting, and that's when most of the main romance will bloom. The movie plot is nearing its climax!
So, once again, thank you for reviewing, favoriting, following, and reading all of this. I'm glad you like the plot and Paisley as much as I do. Drop me any comments, critiques, etc, that you may have :)
-Caroline.
