EIGHT

At first, Ellie thought it was a trick of the light, but the longer she stared at her reflection, the more she couldn't deny that it was her. It truly was her skin that was tinted blue; it was faint, but it was there. She shook her head and forced her thoughts away from the issue. She would get an answer soon enough. Right now, she just wanted to wipe away the evidence of sex from her body and find clothes. She moved to the edge of the sink and grabbed a handful of toilet paper. After she cleaned herself, she tossed the paper in the water and flushed. She took another long look at herself in the mirror before venturing further down the hall in search of clothes.

She opened three different doors before she found a bedroom. It only hit her as she crossed the threshold that this was Tony Stark's bedroom; Iron Man's bedroom. It gave her a little hope knowing that Pepper lived here too. The blonde might be much thinner than Ellie, but she was tall which she hoped would make up for it. Ellie frowned as she opened the closet and saw an array of business attire. It was going to take a bit of searching to find something that would fit and that wouldn't be either too stuffy or too much like pajamas.

She did a double take as she saw a familiar pink stripped bag on a shelf and made her way to that first. Inside were three pairs of underwear, each different styles. Ellie sighed with relief that the tags were still on and decided that she needed them more at the moment. She chose the boyshort as they were a two sizes smaller than she normally wore, but they were the style that would be the least tight. As she pulled them on, she grunted in triumph at the fact that they fit pretty well. Unfortunately, the only other thing of Pepper's she could manage to find was a pair of black leggings that stopped just below her knee cap. She had been hoping for jeans, but this was as good as she was getting so she pulled them on.

Sighing in defeat, she turned around and saw another set of doors across the room. His and Hers closets. A grin took hold of her lips as she thought of how Loki would react seeing her in something of Tony Stark's. She opened the doors and stepped inside. Racks upon racks of designer suits greeted her and soon she realized how bad an idea this was. Just as she was about to give up and go topless she came across a set of shelves in the back chocked full of T-shirts. "Thank God," she mumbled and searched for one that did not have a band logo on it. She settled for a dark green one and smirked as she realized it matched the color of Loki's ensemble.

As dressed as she was going to get, she made her way back to the living area where she had left Loki. He was coming towards her from the kitchen, two glasses with clear liquid in hand. "What took you so long?" he asked, taking in the sight of her outfit.

Ellie took a glass and noticed that he had elected to only put on his bottoms and his coat when redressing. Her gaze lingered on his chest wanting to explore each and every square inch of sinewy muscle that showed. Her tongue darted out to run over her lips as the wicked scenarios played out in her head. However, she was pulled back to reality by the sound of a throat clearing. She felt heat creep to her face as she met Loki's inquisitive glance. She smiled sheepishly and downed the shot without a second thought.

"How much longer until Dr. Sevig-"

"Selvig," Loki corrected.

"Until Dr. Selvig comes around?"

"I'll answer that when you answer why it took you so long to come back," he said, leaning against the back of a couch to stare at her.

"It took me awhile to find something to wear. Pepper is smaller than I am." She looked down and plucked at the leggings stretched over her thighs. "I'm just glad I found anything."

"I'm surprised she had a T-shirt."

Ellie smirked from one side of her mouth. "She didn't."

The scowl on his face made her feel powerful in a way that she had never felt before. He downed his shot and then lowered the glass to his side, his finger gently tapping on the side. He chose to not comment on the shirt and answer her earlier question, but she could tell from the look in his eyes that he hated it. "Dr. Selvig was closer than my agents thought. He and his team will be here within the hour."

"That's good," she said; she'd never been good at small talk. She tilted her head to the side as she let her eyes rake over his body again. She hadn't noticed it before, but she saw it now, that slight blue tint to his skin that matched her own, one that was so faint she thought it was a trick of the light again. "I've never met anyone who could handle the cold let alone dish it out."

"Neither have I," he returned.

Her eyes narrowed in curiosity at the pain in his voice. "My skin turned blue when the scepter touched me. Why?"

"Because of your nature."

"My nature?" she questioned. "I'm a mutant, but I'm not that kind of mutant..."

He shook his head and moved away from the couch. He took her glass and moved to the counter to set them both down. "You are not a mutant."

"Um, twenty-four years of people telling me I am begs to differ."

"They knew you were different, not human, and the only thing around to explain it on this planet is being a mutant," he explained. "But you are not."

She decided it was worthless to keep arguing this point. "Then what am I?"

"A Frost Giant."

At first she only stared at him. Her stare led to a smile which led to a full on laugh. She stopped herself after a few moments and wiped at her eyes. He was frowning at the fact she didn't take him seriously. "Sorry," she muttered. The humor faded and she took a deep breath to clear her mind. Her face scrunched as she let his words truly sink in. "What the hell is a Frost Giant?"

"We come from the planet Jotunheim. We can make things from ice that is around us or create the ice ourselves. Some of us have other magic capabilities as well. We thrive in the cold and the colder we get, the more we take on our true form. That is why your skin turned blue. The Infinity Stone in the scepter made you cold enough to bring out the Frost Giant in you."

She heard him, but she was still trying to get past the word planet. She shook her head and took a step back from him without thinking. "I don't-"

"The Infinity Stone, or that one in particular, is programmed to bend the mind of the touched to the will of the holder. As you said, you were already affected by me as a subject would be to her king."

He was taking steps towards her now like a hunter stalking its prey. "So what? Are you king of the Frost Giants?"

"Yes," he said flatly. "Long story short, there was a war once upon a time between Asgard and the Frost Giants. The Giants invaded Midgard and Asgard intervened. The final fight took place on Jotunheim and Odin got King Laufey to surrender. Odin found an abandoned babe and took him home to raise him like a son. That son grew up feeling out of place and slighted. When he learned of his true nature he knew what he wanted to do with that knowledge."

"Let me guess, that son was you," she stated as her back flattened against a wall.

He inclined his head as he continued to approach her. "I wanted both thrones and I used the kings against each other. I convinced Laufey that I would help him kill Odin, but I killed Laufey myself instead. The throne has fallen to me by default and you, a Frost Giant, sensed that about me when we met."

"Couldn't have been your villainous demeanor or my attraction to you that brought me to my knees faster than it takes to blink," she said, her voice low.

His lips quirked into a smile as he stopped an inch away from her. "Either way."

She shook her head and slipped away from him. "But I've never even know there was another planet named Jotun-whatever, let alone been there. How is it possible that I'm a Frost Giant?"

He gave a casual shrug. "A few could have lingered after the war or been left for dead. They probably mated with humans over time; away from the cold we look like this," he said, gesturing at them both. "Time passed and now you're here. Did your parents possess the same affinity for ice?"

"I never knew my parents," she said so softly he barely heard her. "I was found as a baby and turned into a hospital. I was lucky and the girl that accepted me was a mutant too. She placed me in a foster home that catered to my needs and, well... Here I am."

"You are not a mutant," he bit out, a little anger in his voice. In a flash he had his arms around her. His cheek was flush against hers, his lips at her ear. "We are giants," he breathed.

Slowly he moved so that their foreheads were touching. Ellie thought of everything he had said, but she was having a hard time believing it. There was truth in it, that she couldn't deny. For example, with the exception of three mutants she'd ever heard of, mutants did not get their powers until the start of puberty. She had always had hers; always. She had never been cold, never, not once. Her foster parents, all of them, had to remind her to wear a jacket during the winter, especially during blizzards. The colder it was, the better she felt. It was the heat that did her in and why she hated traveling anywhere that didn't have a slight chill to the air.

Her mind went blank and she sighed with relief as Loki kissed her. She let her hands go to his chest and slowly work their way up and down, exploring every crevice of his muscles. His hands rested on her hips as they brought her body closer to his. He knew he had preparations to make and things to do, but he had never met someone like her before. She was like him in more ways than he could name and all he wanted to do was explore her, inside and out.

"Sir," came one of his agent's voices.

Ellie was the first to break the kiss and let her head fall into the curve of his neck, her hands still on his chest. Loki kept his hands on her as he addressed the other man. "Yes?" he asked, his voice full of annoyance.

"Dr. Selvig is five minutes out."

"Is that all?" Loki asked.

"Yes Sir," the other man replied and took his leave.

"What happens when Dr. Selvig gets here?" Ellie murmured against his skin.

Loki took a moment to think of the best way to answer, but couldn't decide on anything but the blunt truth.

"War."

She stilled in his arms, but didn't back away. "May I ask why?" she asked, lifting her head up so she could see his face as he responded.

"Why not?" he responded. "This planet is full of weak humans and seems ripe for the taking. The ones that survive will either become soldiers as I launch another attack at a different realm or stay here and become slaves. Their choice."

He expected her to pull away from him, outraged that we could speak of such things and not flinch. Instead, she remained where she was and held his gaze as if it didn't bother her at all. A smile of pride washed over him, one that was quickly dashed with her reply. "They'll fight back."

"Of course they will, but they will lose."

"How can you be so sure?"

"If I doubt myself I don't have a very good case, do I?"

She nodded. "Fair enough."

This time she did pull away, but not to get away from him. She retrieved their glasses and went to pour them another round. "Have you ever been in battle?"

"Uh-"

"Aside from the attack," he interrupted.

She shook her head. "There's the simulations in the Danger Room, but that hardly counts."

"Danger Room?"

She nodded. "A battle simulator at the Institute."

He stared at her, but didn't comment, instead he continued as if he knew what she was talking about. "It counts. Without it I'm sure you wouldn't have handled yourself so well earlier."

She nodded at that. "True." She handed him his glass and they downed the shot at the same time. "Guess I'll find out soon enough."

"You're handling all of this much better than I imagined."

"The alternative is to be a complete mess which would be utterly useless. I don't really see how I can't take this well, do you?" He shook his head and watched as her hand reached out to cup his face. "Besides, when you win the war you're about to start you can tell me everything again in full detain and make me understand."

"Sir, Dr. Selvig is here," an agent said as he entered the tower.

"Let the war begin," Loki declared and smiled at Ellie before leading her outside.